There are certain songs that I can’t listen to without sobbing. Anything by James Taylor and Carol King. Puff the Magic Dragon. Most of what plays on the “The Bridge” channel on SiriusXM. What is amazing is this inevitable sobbing begins before any of the lyrics are actually recited. I just have to hear a few chords. My Continue Reading »
This past week at a local grocery store, my patience was running thin. The checkout boy clearly had no discernible skills when it came to identifying produce or any non-barcoded grocery. I was polite and all smiles on the outside, but seething on the inside. Ten minutes. How could someone so inept waste so much Continue Reading »
As printed in the Marietta Daily Journal, May 12, 2023 I have to admit that I am a little embarrassed to be writing this letter. I’ve been the rabbi of the largest synagogue in Cobb County for nearly seven years. During that time, I’ve experienced no outward antisemitism (Jew hatred) against me personally. On the Continue Reading »
At some point in my rabbinate (I am deliberately being ambiguous as to the timeline here), I received a rather chutzpadik complaint. In fairness to this person, the complaint itself was not the problem. She may even have had a point. What made the complaint chutzpadik was that the person who issued the complaint was Continue Reading »
The last thing that I did to mark the weekend of my fortieth birthday was to buy a lottery ticket. We were leaving Atlantic City (having broken even, I can proudly say) after a beautiful Shabbat. We stopped at a rest stop and feeling lucky, I bought a Powerball ticket. It’s been several weeks. I still Continue Reading »
Upon canceling his documentary contract, Lucas Shaw from MRC Entertainment put it best: He wrote: “Kanye West is a producer and sampler of music. Only last week, he sampled and remixed a classic tune that has charted for over 3000 years – the lie that Jews are evil and conspire to control the world for Continue Reading »
Why should we observe Pride Shabbat every year? In my view, it’s for the same reason that we return to Beresheit each year. As Jews, we recognize and believe deeply in the importance of studying Torah as a lifelong obligation, commitment and opportunity. We understand that every year, we have new life lessons to learn. Continue Reading »
