This will be my last eKI (June 23) and tomorrow, June 24, will be my final Friday night Shabbat service at KI. Most of my efforts at this point are directed at moving into my new office across the hall in the former Gift Shop. I am glad I will...
It’s June, the final month of my work as Senior Rabbi of KI and all the big celebrations are behind us. We still have Confirmation (this Saturday night) and a number of Bnai Mitzvah and baby namings among other things. But the clock is running and sometime in the next...
America is weeping for her children From an unknown place In our shattered souls Where there is no consolation Or hiding from our feelings. America is weeping for her children And their shattered bodies and Families Who cannot dig graves Deep enough to bury their sorrow. America is weeping for...
This coming Sunday, May 15, 2022, will be my final day at JQuest. JQuest this year has another week but because of a family event tied to the KI Spring Celebration and two weddings, May 15 will be my last day. I will be in the lobby to say goodbye...
“From Now On, No Distinction:” Reform Judaism and the Redefinition of the Religious Status of Jewish Women, 1810-1975 (The Reform Advocate) By Rabbi Lance J. Sussman, Ph.D. – Roots of Reform Judaism Senior Scholar for The Reform Advocate During the last fifty years, it has become typical, if not fashionable,...
The hidden battle for the soul of Reform Judaism During the last month or so while our eyes and thoughts have been trained on the war in Ukraine, another battle, a hidden battle, has also been waging over the future of American Reform Judaism. This is not a battle over...
God of Peace, Eternal Source of Love: Be with the people of Ukraine In this, their hour of need. Strengthen their resolve to fight For their freedom and independence. Be with their friends of every faith and nation in their support of the Ukrainian people. Bless the citizen soldiers, mothers,...
On March 1, 2022, artillery shells fired by the Russian Army in Ukraine fell in and near Babi Yar, the Holocaust’s largest mass grave. On September 29-30, 1941, led by the SS commanders, a large number of Einsatzgruppen, Wehrmacht and German police units as well as Ukrainian collaborators combined to...
Ukraine is in the news. Daily reports pour in about the buildup of Russian troops, as many as 130, 000, to the north, east and south of the country. Diplomatic activity is also escalating but without a clear path to resolving the situation. NATO is on alert. Ukrainian civilians are...
The Torah portion for this week, Yitro, includes the story of the giving of the Ten Commandments. It is not well known that in Jewish law, the Eighth Commandment, “You shall not steal,” is actually understood to be a prohibition against kidnapping. While this interpretation goes all the way back...
