A Blessing for Going Off to Summer Camp
Every year we venture back to the place we were before
And though our lives may differ we share a bond forever more
All year we sit in classrooms and we have to wonder why
Our summers are so special at OSRUI.
Remembering From Where We Come: A Prayer for the LGBT Community
This piece of liturgy was originally written for the interfaith prayer service held prior to Los Angeles Pride Parade.The prayer memorializes those who have employed the various ways individuals can and have made a difference in promoting justice for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community.
The Season of Healing
The High Holidays are a time of introspection and self-assessment in anticipation of repentance, forgiveness, thanksgiving and rejoicing. It is a season of healing.
A Prayer for Simchat Torah
“Rejoicing in the Torah” doesn’t require us to find joy in every verse. It doesn’t mean that we concur with every choice made by the people in it.
On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah - Nitzavim: Why Organ Donation is Jewish
Parashat Nitzavim features the phrase “choose life,” but what does it mean to choose life? One way of choosing life is by becoming an organ donor. Rabbi Jacobs discusses why this lifesaving choice is part of his Jewish values in this episode of On the Other Hand.
On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah - Va-et'chanan: Why We Should Bring Politics to the Pulpit
Everybody has an opinion on whether politics should be brought to the pulpit, but according to Rabbi Jacobs, this debate was settled centuries ago.
On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah - Eikev: A Seat at the Table
A chapter in Parashat Eikev reads, “when you have eaten and are satisfied, you shall bless.” What does it mean to be satisfied, and what kind of power does a good meal have?
On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah - R'eih: Eating With Compassion
Parashat R’eih includes that infamous line: “you shall not boil a kid in its mother’s milk.” Jewish tradition categorizes the mitzvah of not mixing milk with meat as one without specific reasoning, but many scholars think th
Podcast: Why Marriage Equality is a Reform Jewish Value
Hear why marriage equality is a Reform Jewish value.