Each seder gathered a constellation of color and courage: Blacks and Jews, Black Jews and people of color—Bishops and Rabbis, churches and synagogues, choir singing, and the cacophony of connection and contemplation— We were a veritable mosaic of Moses’ people, linking arms, lifting hearts, lamenting and loving in equal measure.
Category: Stories of our Lives
Remembering Rabbi Stanley M. Davids
A tribute to my rabbi, mentor, and friend, Stanley M. Davids, who died recently.
Sanctuary in a Jazz Club
A jazz club. A Torah whisper. A T-shirt with a prophet’s promise. Reflections from the CCAR rabbinic convention on listening for the sacred in unexpected places—and improvising our way toward hope.
The Things We Do for Love
Love lives in the details—the small, intentional acts that show we care. Vayakhel teaches us that just as the Israelites built the Mishkan with devotion, we create holiness in our own lives through everyday gestures, like getting the right mustard and mayonnaise for my wife—because love, like faith, is best expressed in the language the other understands.
Finding the Holy in the Everyday: Lessons from Sand Dollars and Nature’s Wonders
Wow! God was in this place, and I did not know it.” Like Jacob, we often miss the Divine Presence all around us. This article explores how sand dollars, mezuzot, and nature help us rediscover the sacred in daily life.
Climbing the Ladder to Self-Acceptance: Fulfilling a Childhood Dream on My 61st Birthday
Sitting on a Fire Truck: A story of overcoming shyness and self-doubt, embracing self-acceptance, and fulfilling a childhood dream of sitting on a firetruck at 61 years old
Parenting Adult Children: The Sacred Work of Growth and Transformation
Parenting adult children requires new skills and a fresh perspective. Drawing from Torah wisdom, expert insights, and personal experiences, Rabbi Paul Kipnes explores the joys and challenges of this transformative phase. Discover how to foster deeper, more authentic connections with your adult children to support this sacred work.
What a Double Funeral and Double Bat Mitzvah Taught Me about Connection
Reflecting on love, healing, and connection through the intertwined lives of a couple laid to rest together at their funeral and twin sisters celebrating their B’not Mitzvah. Discover the profound lessons of relationships and the tree of life.
When the World Seems Hopeless
How to find hope when the world feels hopeless.
My Chiropracter Prepared Me for Rosh Hashana
How my chiropractor prepared me for Rosh Hashana.
They Spit on the Sefer Torah
In an act so heinous to Jews, an orthodox Jewish young woman spit on the Torah scroll. That's what the ultra-orthodox leadership is fostering in their opposition to Women of the Wall and of progressive Judaism.
Sermon: That Time My Wife Was Spit on… In Jerusalem… By a Jew
Sermon: That Time My wife was spit on... in Jerusalem... by a Jew. AKA: Rejecting Tribalism, Embracing Discomfort
When the Rabbi Feels Trauma
A mass shooting in a Pittsburgh synagogue.A mass shooting in the local dance bar.A raging fire, forcing the evacuation of the synagogue and 75 percent of our congregation. This is the story of when the rabbi experienced trauma after these events.
God Damn You, God! Taking God to Task in a Messed Up World
What’s with the raging wildfires and destructive flooding, the mass shootings and mindless meanness all around? How many more need to die to motivate Your mercy, to finally get You to act on our behalf? What the heck is going on with You, God?
Rabbi, Do You Have a Faith That Gets You Through?
How I found faith that got me through these tumultuous years.