Rabbi's Week in Review Blog

Over this past weekend the community honored the memory of Leonard Zeskind. An afternoon of learning about, and engaging in, fighting White Supremacy, White Christian Nationalism, and Neo-Nazis provided a needed, if not scary, reality check on the threat of these groups to our democracy, and the anti Semitic foundation upon which their hateful ideologies are based.

“Lenny” was the preeminent voice in the country, and...Read more...

I spent the past Erev Shabbat in St. Louis to be with family after the death of my wonderful Aunt Rose (her funeral was on Erev Yom Kippur, an impossible time for me to leave town). We attended Kabbalat Shabbat services at Shaare Emeth, a large and long-standing St. Louis congregation. The generosity of spirit shown by Rabbis Bennett and Goldstein, and Cantor Warner made not only for a beautiful service, but made me feel gratitude for...Read more...

I always like this time of year; the quick transition from Yom Kippur to Sukkot.  Well… I should say I like getting to Sukkot after a somewhat grueling yet important Yom Kippur observance. (Keeping energy in the transition, building our Sukkah, and prepping for all that is to come is its own challenge.)

I have commented on more than one occasion how I like the idea that, after making commitments to ourselves to do better in the...Read more...

What to say as we approach the new year 5786? Can we somehow get beyond the present state of fear and polarization that is infecting our country and our world? While I feel that, as rabbi, it is important to project some sense of optimism and hope, regardless of how the general consensus leans to a more bleak outlook, I have to admit to having my moments this week. This past week it has been the response to the murder of right...Read more...

As feared, the Missouri governor has called a special session in an unprecedented move to further gerrymander Missouri’s congressional districts. I say further in that these districts are already gerrymandered in a way that vastly under represents Missouri’s urban populations, clearly an effort to deny the voices and votes of Black and Brown communities in the state.

There is a rally scheduled on September 10, noon, at the state...Read more...