I recently shared the following midrash with our religious school community: When Hebrew slaves, Reuven and Shimon crossed the Sea of Reeds, they experienced a...

The name Recha Freier may not sound familiar. But it should. Recha Freier was the visionary that began the Youth Aliyah movement to Israel. In...

It has become “tradition” to light yellow candles on Yom Hashoah, honoring the memories of those that perished in the Holocaust. What is the...

I thought cleaning for Pesach was a nightmare. Nope. Cleaning for Pesach was somewhat therapeutic. A blend of kashering dishes, clearing out the pantry...

One of the main themes of Passover is humility. We eat matza that is flattened as a reminder to calm down our often puffed...

As I visit preschool classrooms and watch model seders, the prayer, “Dayeinu” is belted out, chanted with fervor and enthusiasm. Over any other Pesach...

This past Wednesday was National Take a Walk in the Park Day. I laughed when I saw the name of the holiday. Why do...

Rabbi Jeffrey K. Salkin, the rabbi at Temple Israel in West Palm Beach, Florida, recently shared an article about the future of religious leadership. In...

We recently hosted 50 young adults in our backyard, making hamantaschen. I started the evening giving one of the reasons why we eat this...

On one side of the world, a child wakes up, makes his breakfast, proudly dressing in his favorite red shirt, mismatched socks and a baseball hat. Growing...

My Nana insisted on the presence of yellow roses at her funeral.

Routine may give us solace in knowing what comes next. But life occurs in between.

Brokenness is what we may feel.  But builders and beacons of light—that is who we are.

Our relationships thrive when we intentionally take a small step back, not withdrawing or retreating, but rather, wondering.

How do we create spiritual environments in which children that grow into teens that mature into adults, look at the siddur and feel a sense of ownership?

How many of us take the time to evaluate our relationship with God?

On Saturday night, I told my daughter, “It is ok to be afraid.” I couldn’t entirely shield her from the hostage situation at a Texas synagogue.

The scene outside of the windows was shockingly frightening. Pitch-black, a thick darkness in which we couldn’t see the hint of sunrise.

One of my favorite traditions during the secular new year is a semi-annual deep organizing of my home.

As the years go by, I realize that while there is nothing wrong with a good party, I am more focused on time well spent.

With the end of the secular new year comes the self-imposition of life decisions.

What needs to be said to a loved one or friend that has since, gone unsaid?

Ritual isn’t reserved only for the young or for the old. Let’s make memories, together, with any chance we get.

There is an ancient debate as to how one should light the Hanukkiah.

Although most of us are still enjoying Thanksgiving leftovers, Hannukah is just days away.

It once again feels odd that Hanukkah will take place during the Thanksgiving holiday.

We forget that bright paths are often first submerged in darkness.

Sometimes, letting go is the way to see another door, a hidden exit.

While the Torah often asks us to do a mitzvah without an explicitly attached meaning, the study of Torah itself seems to encourage the “why”.

Authentic listening may start with deciphering between noise and sound. Noise is that which distracts us from living with purpose and intention.