How My Daughter Persevered on Her Bat Mitzvah Day
As Netta’s mom, I maintain balance between others accepting Netta for who she is – a child who has medical and developmental needs – and holding expectations high.
7 Tips for Starting a Congregational Recycling Program
Our role as custodians and stewards of God’s earth is to protect and preserve the ecology and environment as best we can.
Praying With My Feet: Seeing Myself as an Activist
After doing half an hour of work – during which time I received a few more calls to action through email, Facebook, and Twitter – I asked myself: Why don’t I think I’m the kind of person who would show up? Who is?
A Letter to My Mother on Her First Yahrzeit
Psalm 23 is traditionally recited during funerals, shiva visitations, and Yizkor ceremonies. Although this psalm talks about God, I think about it this morning and see it under a completely new light. Today, I think it talks about you.
How Braille Put Jewish Texts at My Fingertips
When I was 7, my parents ordered a braille prayer book for me from the Jewish Braille Institute. When I went to the synagogue with them, I proudly carried my siddur and tried to read along – but I didn’t yet know the Hebrew braille alphabet.
LGBTQ: Focusing on the "T" in Synagogue Life
In 2014, Congregation Kol Ami in Elkins Park, PA, hosted a “Kindness Counts” conference focused on welcoming LGBTQ Jews to the community. Recently, a small group of congregational leaders decided it was time for a second gathering, this time focusing on inclusion of trans and non-binary Jews in synagogue life.
It’s Time to Rise Up
In 2009, during my first year as a rabbi, I wrote a song called “Rise Up.” I wrote it as a celebration of the teachings of the Biblical Prophet Amos, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and Theodor Herzl.
New Beginnings: Tu BiSh’vat and Environmental Action
In this moment of transition, we will celebrate a different kind of new beginning: Tu BiSh’vat, the new year for trees. Tu BiSh’vat is an opportunity to celebrate the earth and to recommit ourselves, for another year, to environmental action.
The Quiet Message: How Parashat Yitro Teaches Us to Lead
Between two massive thrusts of Jewish history, between Exodus and Sinai, stands a little old man named Jethro, who taught Moses to lead.
At the Local Mosque, Sharing Love with our Muslim Neighbors
We wanted to let our Muslim neighbors know that as Jews, as Americans, and along with other faith groups, we embrace shared ethics of diversity, multiculturalism, and religious freedom.