Sermons: High Holy Days

We have every reason to trust science.  Biology teaches us that death is the end of life. When a heart stops beating, the life force is no more. 

However, for many generations, Jewish tradition has reflected the idea that death does not mean the end of life.
Our early Israelite ancestors believed that those who died remained tethered to earth in a shadowy existence.  There is archeological evidence that ancient...Read more...

The front hallway was a mess. My elderly mother-in-law, Cis, sat in her wheelchair. Her useless left hand, paralyzed by a stroke, rested limply on her lap.  Cis watched as her son pulled her treasures from the hall closet.  Stacks of neatly folded linen tablecloths landed in a haphazard pile on the floor, next to another pile of small cardboard boxes containing mother-of-pearl cheese knives, crystal finger bowls, stemware...Read more...

Imagine standing on a windy bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean.  Seagulls glide on the wind, and you can watch fishing vessels sail from Newport’s Yaquina harbor out to the open sea.

Sheltered among the shore pines in this Oregon State Park is a small open-air chapel. A few rows of weathered wooden pews face a black granite altar inscribed with the names of fishermen and...Read more...

In Japan, the Phone of the Wind sits in a garden on a wind-swept hill overlooking the ocean.  A short path passes underneath a bell and leads to a simple, glass-paned booth. Inside the booth sits an old black rotary dial phone. The people who come to use the phone can look through the glass and see the ocean that violently breached the shoreline and swept away thousands of lives a decade ago in its tsunami....Read more...

When I was eleven years old, my family and I went hiking through an evergreen forest in Washington State.  My grandmother was with us.  But she bolted ahead, rushing past the wonders that captivated our attention.  An insect with shiny metallic blue wings.  A huge rotting tree trunk with young saplings taking root inside.  A small creek with a miniature waterfall spilling into a moss-framed fairy...Read more...

Ten days ago, we celebrated the beginning of a New Year.  Beginnings invite us to open our hearts to possibilities of renewal and hope, the possibilities of change and growth.

Tonight, Kol Nidre, has a different purpose.  We are meant to recall our shortcomings, our failures, the ways we have wronged others and ourselves.  On this night, we are meant to feel broken....Read more...

Temple Israel feels so different when it is empty.  You can hear the hands move on the clock in the hallway.  The air smells a little stale.  All is still and silent, like after the last breath leaves the body.

One summer afternoon, I stood in the lobby and watched the electronic bulletin board scroll through the announcements left over from the spring.  The...Read more...

Just across the river from here, at the trailhead into Doodletown, a sign warns hikers: Timber Rattlesnake Habitat Ahead!  The sign says that rattlesnakes are a threatened species. If a hiker encounters one, the snake should be left alone.  But I wasn’t worried. I hiked the trails often and I never saw a rattlesnake.

One very hot day I had the trails to myself.  As I made my way through the quiet forest, I heard...Read more...

I feel blessed to share the High Holy Days with you.  I’m thankful to everyone who makes these services possible and meaningful.  Many people you see and many are behind the scenes.  It’s a group effort with devotion at its core. It's an honor to serve this community which has meant so much to our family and me.  I grew up with Jewish family, culture, education, and service as driving forces- yes, I’m one of those....Read more...

 It’s a warm Friday night in May, in the year 1958.    In Atlanta, Georgia, Rabbi Jacob Rothschild is preaching at Shabbat services.  Rabbi Rothschild serves the Hebrew Benevolent Congregation, better known as “The Temple,” the oldest Reform synagogue in Atlanta, housed in a beautiful building. 

The title of Rabbi Rothschild’s sermon is: “Can this be America?”   The rabbi preaches:...Read more...

At my age, I should have known better.     One stifling morning last May, I decided to go for a run on a wooded trail near my house.  I wanted to run despite the heat, and despite my knee that had been a little swollen. I thought briefly about taking my phone, but I didn’t want it to slip out of my sweaty hand.  Besides, I would be on a trail usually well-populated by dog walkers.

It turns out that...Read more...

Delivered Rosh Hashanah Evening

This past July I went on a Jewish heritage tour of Eastern Europe along with several members of our congregation.   Before the trip, when I imagined the places we would visit, I pictured them in black and white.

It felt like I had been preparing for this trip for decades.  I first learned about the Holocaust in high school. Ever since that time, the question of how a systematic...Read more...

Rosh Hashanah Morning - 5776

Jewish tradition says that today, Rosh Hashanah, is “the birthday of the world.”   Who doesn’t love birthdays?  Candles burning on a cake, singing “Happy Birthday,” Pin the Tail on the Donkey -- Birthdays are joyous celebrations of the anniversary of a new life. 

These happy customs are great when it comes to celebrating the birthdays of people.  But I'm not sure...Read more...

Almost forty years ago, mid-way through his freshman year at the University of Washington in Seattle, my older brother vanished.  One day he left the campus and did not return.  My brother didn’t take much with him.  He left his clothing and all of his possessions.  His dorm room looked as if he had just stepped out for a moment.  A few days later my father received a post card mailed from a town in Oregon.  On...Read more...

Let me tell you about the first time that I questioned my decision to become a rabbi.  It happened sixteen years ago, when I was a rabbinical student studying in Jerusalem.  I was taking a class on liturgy:  the language and order of prayers in a worship service.  During one session, something happened that made me question whether I was suited for the rabbinate. 

Our professor was showing us examples of...Read more...