Today We Are Reborn, Yom Kippur Sermon 5784
Yom Kippur is a time for renewal. A time for sinking into the people we want to be. What are the elements of life we desire to bring forward in this new spiritual year? Sermon for Yom Kippur Morning Service 5784.
Tzedakah: Righteousness Is When People Give Money to the Poor. Kol Nidre Sermon 5784
Giving tzedakah, money to the poor, is one of the ways to make our lives better. I internalized this teaching through chevruta with a Bar Mitzvah student. Kol Nidre sermon, 5783.
Returning to the Path of Goodness and Truth: Teshuvah
Returning to our deepest selves. Returning to the path of Goodness and Truth. This is the Teshuvah expected of us on Rosh HaShanah. We must apologize to the people we’ve harmed and clarify the people we want to be.
Self-Reflexive Self Actualization: The Life Changing Power of Tefillah, Jewish Prayer
Jewish tradition relies on three pillars: Prayer, Returning to the Path of Authenticity, and Righteous Action. This Erev Rosh HaShanah 5784 sermon explore Jewish prayer, Tefillah.
Requesting Forgiveness, Selichot 5783
How do we return to our authentic selves? How do we forgive ourselves for not living up to our ideals? How do we ask for forgiveness from people we have harmed? Selichot, Penitential Prayers, support us in returning and renewing our lives.
Teshuvah and Creating Spiritual Community
Accepting the yoke of the Divine. Waking up to our obligations. Joyously entering 5783.
Kol Nidre: The Dark Night of the Soul
Kol Nidre: the night when we practice for our deaths. The dark night of the soul. Facing the reality of our lives and our inevitable deaths.
This Time of Truth, Brokenness, Teshuvah, and Apologies
Facing our choice, apologizing and accepting apologies. The core themes of Rosh HaShanah 5783.
Avinu Malkeinu: Our Parent, Our Sovereign
Avinu Malkeinu is a central prayer of the High Holy Days, yet its imagery can turn people off. Do we really need a Father and King?
