Abortion is one of those topics that seems to come up—conveniently—every election cycle, and I get asked about it quite a bit. Many people wonder how Judaism views this deeply complex issue. While it’s true that most Jews lean pro-choice, and that view is supported by Jewish texts and tradition, the conversation within Judaism is much more nuanced. It reflects our tradition’s deep concern for life, moral responsibility, and compassion. In Jewish thought, as with so many topics, abortion is … [Read more...]

Naama – I love you and am so proud of you. I imagine you get most of your wit and personality from your mother, but I will certainly take credit for some of your humor and all of your colorful language. You were a gift to us from the moment you were born and while there are always hills and valleys to cross in life, you are a unique and special soul and I am so proud of you. Naama – you become a bat mitzvah at one of the most critical moments in Jewish History. Perhaps aside from the Shoah, the … [Read more...]

When I meet new people, one of the questions I often ask is “what keeps you up at night”. The question “What wakes you up in the morning” is similar, but that can be passion and energy. “What keeps you up at night” tells me what concerns you, it tells me what worries you, it tells me what you haven’t yet figured out how to fix. Tonight, I want to talk about what keeps me up at night as I need your help…not with sleeping pills or a better pillow, but with your actions, your advice, your … [Read more...]

I’m a creature of habit, I have a consistent daily routine, I like eating at roughly the same restaurants, I snack on the same foods (healthy or not), I drink the same drink…and I watch the same show, The West Wing, every night before I go to bed. I prefer, no matter how many years since the show has aired, to live in a world where Jed Bartlet is president. I sleep better at night knowing that Tobey, Sam, Josh, and CJ are briefing the president and that Leo is making sure the trains run on … [Read more...]

A few years back, I was asked to sit on a committee for a local school district to discuss their "health" standards, which I quickly learned was code for sex education. I sat in the room with school administrators, local clergy, and teachers to discuss the curriculum. I was the odd man out; growing up on the East Coast, I went to a public high school where my science teacher had a basket at the front of the class filled with condoms and candy. It became clear very quickly I was a stranger in a … [Read more...]

The feeling of sadness for what took place yesterday has not fully dissipated. Rarely am I at a loss for words. Yesterday left me with nothing to say, only to feel a sense of deep sadness for our country. I don't know what it must have been like to live outside of Jerusalem at the time of destruction of the Temple, to hear of it burning down, being looted and destroyed. I am sure the pain felt was deep and profound, not just a loss of physical items, but a loss felt so deep because it was … [Read more...]

Yizkor Yom Kippur 5774 Rabbi Steven Abraham   Today, in a few minutes we will do as Jews have done for centuries and take a break from the prescriptive ritual that makes up the Yom Kippur service to remember those individuals, friends and family that touched our lives.  We join together to honor their memory, by keeping it alive inside each of us.  It was only a few years ago that I even dared to enter the synagogue of my youth during the Yizkor service, blessed to still … [Read more...]

Friends, A well taught midrash (Bereshit Rabbah 39:1) tells us that, as Abraham was journeying, he came across a burning palace. "Is it possible that this palace has no master?" asked Abraham. Whereupon God looks out from the palace and says, "I am the master of this palace." Today we look across our country and we see our palace, our country on fire. I have spent the day searching for the right words, yet I fear they may never come. Our country is on fire and some are trying to put it out … [Read more...]

  YK Yizkor 5780 A Letter to My Grandfather Pop, you have been gone a little more than 5 years and I miss you every day. You were an incredible person, not because of your job or wealth, but because of your character. I have been thinking about you a great deal over the past few months and felt the need to write, perhaps I simply needed to remind myself of some of the characteristics that made you such a wonderful person in the hopes of being able to put myself back on … [Read more...]

  I recently finished reading "Make Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change Your Life...And Maybe the World" by 4 Star Admiral William McRaven (Ret). The book is the expanded version of his May 2014 commencement address at The University of Texas at Austin (watch here). In the address, Adm. McRaven referenced the UT slogan, "What starts here changes the world" as a basis to share ten principles he learned during Navy Seal training that helped him during his career and his … [Read more...]