Lively conversation between Rabbi Artson and the Ziegler students exploring: can Jews participate in Halloween? Reflections on the shooting at the synagogue in Pittsburgh, antisemitism and our responses, what would you say to the family of the baby having its brit milah in that synagogue that morning? Support from other communities and our connections to them, and exploring what does it mean to politicize or not politicize this event?
Two letters from Rabbi Artson’s grandmothers, one written in 1972 and the second in 1983, highlight the ways that memory allows the past to live in the present. Rabbi Artson reflects on how people live in deeds, not in time, that our mammalian brains are literally shaped by our experiences so that our loved ones live in us. One of Judaism’s great gifts is crafting moments to visit our memories and gain strength from them.
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Rabbi Artson answers Ziegler students’ burning questions about sexual harassment and abuse, how the Internet has hurt and helped, seeking a solution to move us forward, what advice Senator Graham’s rabbi ought to offer, what advise Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s rabbi might suggest. Oh, and a question about Sukkot rituals that seem pagan (and why they’re so much fun!)
Rabbi Artson’s inviting Yom Kippur address: we are always changing, never the same as we were previously. That is true for individuals, for communities and for nations. The core Jewish teaching of teshuvah gemura, of complete repentance is predicated on an open future that does not have to follow a slavish script. We can choose a worthy tomorrow by making better choices today! We can risk novelty and blossom in goodness!
In this Rosh HaShanah address, Rabbi Artson dares us to dream big: personally, communally, and politically! In a world of rancor, hostility, and violence, we tend to fall in on ourselves, shrinking our vision and hiding behind walls. It is time to stand tall, to hope, to dream, and to act!
Rabbi Artson fields questions from the students of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies as the new academic year begins! Topics include: when you don’t want to be a rabbi, coping in a broken world, Rosh HaShana thoughts, spiritual work during the holidays, patrilineal and matrilineal descent, approaching God during the Days of Awe, Conservative Judaism and egalitarianism, and how to fight the urge to covet. What a session!
Rabbi Artson fields questions from the students of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies as the new academic year begins! Topics include: when you don’t want to be a rabbi, coping in a broken world, Rosh HaShana thoughts, spiritual work during the holidays, patrilineal and matrilineal descent, approaching God during the Days of Awe, Conservative Judaism and egalitarianism, and how to fight the urge to covet. What a session!
Every year, during the Rosh Ha-Shanah services, we confront one of the Torah’s most terrifying texts. What are we to make of the Akedah, the sacrifice of Isaac, in which the father of our people is called to murder his son as an act of religious obedience? What are we to make of a test in which killing a beloved child constitutes success and refusing entails ultimate ontological failure? What are we to do with such a terrible story?