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The Life of Miriam A D'var Torah for Parashat Hukkat By Cantor Sandy Horowitz ('14) In parashat Hukkat we encounter Moses’ sister Miriam for the last time: “Then came the people of Israel, the whole congregation into the desert of Zin in the first month, and the people abode in Kadesh, and Miriam died there, Read More >

  A D'var Torah for Parashat Ki Tavo By Rabbi Heidi Hoover ('11) In the megahit musical Hamilton, there is a song with the repeated line, “Who lives, who dies, who tells your story?” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrMkdZtqiVI). The way that we know who we are and where we come from is through stories. Sometimes we call them Read More >

A couple weeks ago, I had the privilege of talking with someone interested in converting to Judaism. Since the pandemic, I have noticed an uptick in people interested in converting with me. In the conversation, I asked them more about themselves, their story, and their interest in casting their lot with the Jewish people. And although I’ve heard several answers now to this question of “Why do you want to convert?”, I had never heard this one before.

Parashat Shemini doesn't lack for themes but the one which stood out for me as I began to prepare this D'var Torah is one that "speaks" to me every year when we read this parashah - namely, the theme of silence. Although Aaron's silence is of course in an almost inconceivably tragic context all its own, I've been recalling and Read More >

A D’var Torah for Parashat Beha’alotekha By Rabbi Inna Serebro-Litvak (AJR '16) When I was six years old, my father took me on a camping trip with his coworkers and their children. (In Russia this was considered to be a team building activity). My favorite memories of that time include sitting around the campfire, listening Read More >

Click HERE for an audio recording of this D'var Torah A D'var Torah for Parashat Vayeishev By Rabbi Greg Schindler ('09) Dedicated to the memory of my dear wife Barucha Esther bat Daniel v’Rachel (z”l) Dream On Dream on/ Dream on / Dream on Dream until your dreams come true - Steven Tyler (Aerosmith) Did you ever have Read More >

Seven  Principles of a Biblical  Environmental Ethic While many people delight in the high drama of the first stories of the Bible in this weeks’ parashah, we can also derive a profound and far-reaching  environmental ethic from these stories – and in particular from Genesis 1.  Outlined below are 7 principles of an environmental ethic Read More >

By Rabbi Katy Allen All About the Heart I entered a patient room for a routine visit. Medical staff hovered nearby – they were having trouble with the EKG equipment, and yes, it was fine for me, the chaplain, to visit; they needed a few minutes. The patient, George (not his real name), told me Read More >

Connecting with God By Marian Kleinman In the story of the sacrifice of Isaac we read on Rosh HaShanah, the sacrifice asked of Abraham can be explored as symbolic of relationships such as the relationship between ourselves and God. In today’s society, individuals are frowned upon or shunned if they tell others they are “hearing Read More >

In this week's Torah portion we are witness to a grand ritual - a dramatization depicting the landscape of choices within which we all reside, at all times. One half of the Israelite tribes are told to stand on Mt. Gerizim while the other half of the tribes are to stand on Mt. Ebal. Between Read More >