Blog Archives

"Let All God's People Be Prophets" (P. Beha'alotekha)

5/31/2026

Maybe we imagine that the ideal of Jewish spirituality turns most on a spiritual leader.

Throughout history, rank-and-file Jews often deferred to spiritual leaders – from Moses to modern professional rabbis. Often they imagined that heightened spiritual connectivity was the special calling and province of the few.

This week's Torah portion underscores that this pattern was wrong from the start.

On Spiritual Discipline (P. Nasso)

5/24/2026

One of many things I appreciate about Judaism is that she offers many paths toward meaning, holiness and self-refinement.

It makes sense that there isn't just one way. After all, people are wired, raised and educated differently. So it stands to reason that Judaism would offer multiple paths befitting our diversity of perspective and life trajectory.

It's telling that our tradition's greatest paths to spiritual meaning and holiness – the discipline of long-term wise choice – comes forward in Torah precisely now, just after Shavuot.

Every Day, A Voice Comes Forth (Shavuot)

5/17/2026

Where does our "belly barometer" come from? How do we know what is just and right?

This week, the Torah cycle suspends for Shavuot, our festival anniversary of the revelation at Sinai, and our collective communion with the One we call God.

Though our community opted not to schedule a Shavuot celebration this year due to Memorial Day weekend (we'll have a mini-Yizkor online), it's still an important important chance to consider our source of revelation, justice and rightness.

Redeeming Life's Wilderness (P. Bamidbar)

5/10/2026

I intend my weekly Torah writings to be about more than the Torah portion. I tend to see in nearly every portion both the flow of spirit and community far more than myself, and universal values that transcend any particular time, place and context.

But right now, for personal reasons I see Torah reflecting back at me my own situation. – and in particular my own personal wilderness, what I might learn there, and how I might redeem it.

Even so, I sense that my present experience isn't much different than most everyone's at one time or another. As for me, perhaps also for you.

Rabbi's Corner: May 2026 – On Receiving Torah & May Highlights

5/3/2026

Fittingly for this month that leads into Shavuot, our festival of receiving Torah, I write these words on the evening after Nancy Heller's bat mitzvah.

I write these words about how we receive Torah and what it means for a spiritual community to put Torah at our center –

– the physical scroll, of course, and far more.

Our Greatest Interests of All (P. Behar-Behukotai)

5/3/2026

Money can be a sensitive subject, which is one reason Torah bans charging interest among our people. (The Qur'an does the same for Muslims.)

Torah and Qur'an are aiming at far more than money: after all, most of us don't lend money.

This mitzvah is really about relationships and right use of power, which spiritually are far more important than money. This mitzvah aims at the heart of our greatest interest of all.

"Let All God's People Be Prophets" (P. Beha'alotekha)

On Spiritual Discipline (P. Nasso)

Every Day, A Voice Comes Forth (Shavuot)

Redeeming Life's Wilderness (P. Bamidbar)

Rabbi's Corner: May 2026 – On Receiving Torah & May Highlights

Our Greatest Interests of All (P. Behar-Behukotai)

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