Rabbi Marc D. Rudolph

  Sculpture of Leah by Michelangelo Before Generation Z, before the Millennials, before Generation X, there were the Baby Boomers. My generation and the generation of many of you… The “Baby Boomers” were also dubbed “The Me Generation” because of our perceived unhealthy focus on fulfilling our own needs. The American historian and   social critic…

  One of the most enduring myths of our country is that of the “self-made man”. Benjamin Franklin has been described as “the original self-made man”. In his autobiography, Franklin describes the journey he made from being the son of a candle maker to re-invent himself, through the virtues of “industry, economy and perseverance” as…

  In 1688 a Swiss physician named James Hofer coined the term “nostalgia” from the Greek “nostos” meaning “homecoming” and “algos” meaning “pain”. The syndrome was characterized by sadness and a persistent longing for a person, an object or a place. Hofer called nostalgia a “disease”. It was thought to be particularly widespread among soldiers.…

  John M. Gottman is an American Psychologist renowned worldwide for his extensive research on marriage. He has spent over forty years developing measurements to predict who would become divorced and who would stay married.  When I was still a practicing couple’s therapist, I took a seminar with him on assessment of couples who present…

  The ideal of the blessed person in the Bible is to live long enough to see one’s grandchildren. For example, Psalm 128 concludes with the following blessing: “May G-d bless you from Zion/May you share the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life/ and live to see your children’s children.” But unlike…

  In our Torah reading for this week Moses instructs the Israelites to set up stone pillars in the Land of Canaan after they cross the Jordan River. The stone pillars are to be coated with plaster, and the words of the Torah are to be written on them. They are also to set up…

  This evening marks Rosh Chodesh Elul, the first day of the month of  Elul is the month when we begin our spiritual preparations for the Yamim Noraim – the Days of Awe. Elul is the official opening of our High Holidays. The numerical value of the word “Elul” is the same as the numerical…

 Our Cantor just sang the prayer, “Shalom Rav” set to music by Debbie Friedman, of blessed memory.  Shalom Rav Al Yisrael Amekha means grant ABUNDANT peace to Israel, Your people. The word “rav” you might remember is related to the word “Rabbi” in English (“rav” in Hebrew) A “rabbi” is someone who makes learning “abundant”…

  My colleague, Cantor Sandy Horowitz, shared an old Peanuts cartoon she dug up which aptly illustrates the relationship between Moses and the Jewish people after 40 years of leading them. In the cartoon Linus shares with his big sister Lucy that he wants to be a doctor when he grows up. Lucy replies that…

Rabbi, would it be alright if I lit candles on Shabbat? At first glance, a strange question to be coming from a fellow Jew. What objection could a rabbi possibly have for a person to perform the mitzvah of “hadlakat nerot”, kindling the Sabbath lights? But a deeper look revealed the anxiety that lay behind…