• Reflections on Kesher Israel

    A recent visitor in shul, looking slightly bemused, asked me, “Is Kesher an international organization?” I answered, “Yes and no.” We are a shul, but additionally we have “members” all over the world, many of whom have lived here and some who just attend a few times a year. All of these thousands of Kesherites…

  • Rabbi Abraham Magence and Rabbi Phillip Rabinowitz

    In 1996, I went to St. Louis to be the Rabbi at the Hillel at Washington University. Near the university was one of St. Louis’ oldest Orthodox shuls, Bais Abraham, dating from 1894. During my time at Hillel I was a congregant at Bais Abraham, and its rabbi, Rabbi Abraham Magence, was my rabbi. After…

  • Why We Need Israel

    Moses, the paradigm of Jewish leadership, is singled out for one characteristic: humility. Humility in leadership is vital because it helps a leader to always remember that leadership is not about them but about the honor, welfare, and flourishing of those being led. This is especially crucial in political leadership which, due to all the “politics” involved,…

  • What Makes Israelis Unique: Reflections on a Trip to Israel During the Hamas – Israel War

    I spent the last week in Israel on a YU/RCA/Mizrachi trip for rabbis. Before I left, I was worried. I thought to myself, we are all feeling so much doom and anxiety and to fly to the heart of it will, no doubt, be deeply disturbing. But just the opposite was true. Instead of hopelessness…

  • Thankgiving

    In Hebrew, the term for being thankful is hakarat hatov, recognizing the good that is done for us. We primarily do this through the recitation of blessings which are so ubiquitous in an observant life. These are really about recognizing that we construct very little of our own lives. Much of who we are —…

  • Don’t Give Up the Shul: Synagogues as creative engaging institutions

    Despite new alternatives to the synagogue model, I believe no other Jewish institution can equally build strong, encompassing, spiritual communities. The following are some guidelines, based on my work at Bais Abraham (Bais Abe) in St. Louis, for utilizing creativity and open-mindedness in generating more vibrant and engaging synagogue communities. Spiritual Tools It takes a…

  • A Jewish blogger looking at the bigger picture….

    Though I have spent some time over the past few years writing in the blogosphere, most of it has been on Morethodoxy.org, a blog I write with three other Orthodox rabbis.   We started writing it because we felt that the center and left of Orthodox Judaism, often termed “Modern Orthodoxy,” instead of bringing together…

  • Why Some Orthodox Jews in Israel are Violent

    Why don’t Orthodox Jews in America act violently against women who are not dressed modestly, while some in Israel do?   There are to my knowledge almost no such outbursts in the USA, whereas in Israel we read about them quite often, such as this week  http://www.jta.org/news/article/2011/12/27/3090916/israelis-rally-around-naama-women    In fact the attitude of even right…

  • Making Sure Judaism is Fair

    One of the tenets of Morethodoxy as I see it is finding as many and as wide a range of opportunities as possible within halacha for all Jews to engage in Judaism and connect to God.   In the case of women this means finding greater room for women’s leadership, women’s learning, women’s expression, and women’s…

  • Defining Morethodoxy (a re-posting of an earlier essay)

    Morethodoxy.  One more label to add to an already thinly divided Jewish world? In subtitling our blog “Exploring the Breadth, Depth and Passion of Orthodox Judaism,” I think we aim to overcome the limitations that labels impose.  To see Jewish life not as it often is seen today as a linear spectrum from insular to…

  • What does one need to be a Jewish leader?

    Is talking to God a prerequisite for being a Jewish leader?   If so Adam would have been the first Jewish leader; but he was not.  Is being a tzadik, a righteous person a prerequisite for Jewish leadership?  If so Noah would have been first Jewish leader; but he was not.  It is Abraham in our…

  • Tweaking the Jewish Image of Relationships

    I recently went to hear Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski speak of the respect the Torah demands in relationships.  He quoted the Talmud, which says, “a man must love his wife as himself and respect her more than himself.”   He spoke of the fact that the Talmud forbids rape within marriage, something the western world only…

  • A Profound Disagreement on How to Live Jewish Lives

    The Mishna in Berachot (53b) states: “With regard to one who ate a meal and forgot to say the bircat hamazon (grace after meals), Bais Shamai says they must return to their place and say the grace, Bais Hillel says they should say grace in the place they are when they remember.” The Talmud on this Mishna…

  • The Importance and Value of Creativity in Talmud Study

    I and my family are living in Israel for the next 5 months on sabbatical.  Though we are living in Jerusalem I commute each day to the city of Lod to learn torah in the kollel of Rabbi Israel Samet.  It is a small group of mostly young married men who have finished their army…

  • Torah Alone does not Make a Mench

    A congregant of mine was confounded by the reports of Rabbis who were arrested for illegally trafficking in human organs. One person in the group said that some might justify their acts claiming the money would be used for yeshivahs and other important Jewish organizations. They turned to me and demanded to know if there…

  • Tefillin on Chol HaMoed and the Unity of the Jewish People

    With regard to wearing tefillin on chol hamoed (intermediate days of the festivals) the Shulchan Aruch (Code of Jewish Law) states (OC 31:2): “On Chol HaMoed it is prohibited to wear tefillin for the same reason as on shabbat or a holiday, namely that Chol HaMoed is an ot, a “sign” (rendering tefillin, which is also…

  • Learning from the Bene Israel of India

    “Rabbi, what will you do about the rain?” Exhausted and in shock from my first exposure to the realities of the swarming, squalid city of Mumbai, then called Bombay, I stared back, perplexed and concerned. “Don’t you know, Rabbi, there is a drought here in Maharashtra.” Their thoughts, though unsaid, were loud and clear: “We…

  • Individualism and Conformity

    Judaism believes deeply in the power and value of the group, but it also values the individual.  Jewish unity is vital, the Jewish people were only able to receive the Torah when they were like one person with one heart.  On the other hand the danger in unity is the loss of the self. If…

  • The Voice of Women in Holy Song and Prayer

    In the beginning of this past week’s Torah portion,Toldot, the Torah writes, “These are the generations of Isaac…” Surprisingly, we are told in the next verse that there are no generations, that Rivka, like each of our ancestors, was  barren. The Torah comes to describe the empty space of no children and the need for…

  • The Endangered Next Generation of Israeli-American Jews

    Close to a million Israelis live in countries other than Israel. The majority have settled in the United States and Canada for the long run, teaching at universities, running business, and becoming entrepreneurs. Most identify as secular and send their children to public schools. Although they maintain a vague Israeli identity, most of the children…