Brokenness at the Core

We have had a busy few weeks. Two weeks ago, we found ourselves at the base of a mountain. Thunder, lightning, shofar blasts, smoke, and a voice that reverberated in each of our hearts. Moses imparted to us the 10 commandments, the word of God. Then, last week, we got more details. Holidays, foundational laws for structuring our community and instructions for living in fellowship and relationship with our neighbors We have had a busy few weeks.

And now, we get into what can seem like biblical technobabble. The instructions shift from “you shall not wrong or oppress a stranger” A moral enjoinder that easily speaks to our time. To “you shall make the planks for the tabernacle of acacia wood…each plank shall be 10 cubits and the width of each plank shall be a cubit and half” Intricate details for the design of the tabernacle, The movable dwelling place for God During the Israelites’ desert wandering. We move from the quality of our character To the quality of the wood, gold, silver, and bronze that we use to create and adorn this holy space in the Israelite camp. I, at least, need a moment when I reach parashat Terumah. I need a moment to recalibrate To move from the easier to access moral code of last week’s parashat Mishpatim. To find the core truths and values in parashat Terumah.

And, it is precisely the core of the Tabernacle where, I want to look with you today.

Are Our Stories Enough? Yes, And! (MLK Day)

Last Sunday, curled up on the couch, eating Ben & Jerry’s frozen yogurt, watching the Golden Globes, I had a mini-existential crisis.

It all started off fine. There were great stories and moving speeches. And, as always, those actors and directors who gave a glimpse into their story and their truth gave me chills and warmed my heart.

Morning Blessing Experiment

For my week of leading services at HUC, I wanted to do a little experiment...Here is the introductory iyyun and the handout from the service.:

There’s this commercial for Febreeze that I haven’t been able to shake. Here’s the scene: a teenage boy in his room, thinks everything is just fine. Mom walks in and the screen shifts to what she smells: a dirty, unlaundered locker room. Febreeze warns us against “nose blindness” those things we think are fine just because we have become accustomed to them. But, when we stop to really take a nice long whiff, we realize that something is very very wrong.

Parshat Noach: Confounded Language

Today, I have no solutions. I have no new, novel ideas to solve the crisis and stop the violence. And, frankly, even if I did, I’m not sure I would be able to articulate it in a way that people could understand. I would be speaking in my own language, just as your solution would have its own language as well. But, despite our confuddled language, I hope that there is still space for us to talk.

For some of you, this might sound familiar. You could consider this my "take 2" at an Israel sermon after speaking on the subject back on the evening of Rosh Hashanah. I thought about just saying that one again. Who knows how many of you actually stayed awake through the whole thing. But, it has been suggested to me that that would not be a great idea. On Rosh Hashanah, I spoke about the importance of presence and hope as we create space for Israel conversations. Today, I hope to follow up on that message.

Rosh HaShanah 5775: Toward Healing on Israel

Most people spend their summers reading books, relaxing on the beach, and maybe catching a few Mets losses live and in person. I spent my summer as a chaplain in a hospital. On Mount Sinai Medical Center’s ninth floor I visited patients to talk, listen, and, hopefully, be a part of the healing process. I helped my patients as they tried to process their experiences of suffering and their co-occurring feelings of anger, fear, confusion, and sadness. You know, easy stuff.

One day in late July I had a referral to visit Mrs. B, a soon-to-be-discharged Catholic patient. I was feeling confident after a meaningful conversation with her, but then, the dreaded moment came. She looked up at the television, which had been on throughout our conversation, gave me a knowing glance and asked, “so, what do you think about all of that?” On the screen were scrolling headlines about the war between Israel and Hamas. There were images of rockets, demolished buildings, frightened people, and the occasional, requisite pundit. I took a deep breath.

Yom Kippur 5774: High Holiday Word Play

What do you call an average-looking grassland? Plain plain. How would you describe an unsightly collection of 144 items: Gross gross. A super cool insect? Fly fly.

English homonyms are great. And I love a good pun just as much as the next nebbishy rabbinical student, but playing with English words…that’s small potatoes. Now, this may just be the reality of four-more years of school plus a lifetime in the rabbinate talking…but Hebrew Homonyms…that’s where it’s at.

Rosh HaShanah 5774: Sefer Zichronot

I delivered this sermon at University of Rochester Hillel:

I don’t know about all of you, but in the last few weeks, I have acquired a lot of books. Books for classes, reference books, library books, notebooks, planners. It is a miracle that there is a square inch of space to move in my room. But, this is how we start things. We collect and we open books. New classes? Textbooks. Bar Mitzvah? Prayer books, books of Jewish Wisdom, a stack of Torahs. Starting a new job? Workplace handbooks and instruction manuals from past employees. Time for the New Year? Rosh Hashanah is a holiday with plenty of books to dive into.