Category: Uncategorized
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Yom Kippur Morning Sermon 5770/2009
Averting the Severe Decree? On the face of it, unetaneh tokef is a pretty fatalistic prayer. Listen: “As a shepherd herds his flock, and causes them to pass beneath his staff. So YOU pass us before you, and count and number and record every living soul You define the limits of every creature’s life…
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Bernie Madoff — Placing a Stumbling Block Before the Blind
Who is he anyhow, an actor?” “No.” “A dentist?” “…No, he's a gambler.” Gatsby hesitated, then added cooly: “He's the man who fixed the World Series back in 1919.” “Fixed the World Series?” I repeated. The idea staggered me. I remembered, of course, that the World Series had been fixed in 1919, but if…
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The Parting of the Sea
In Parashat Beshallach we come to the climax of the story of the exodus from Egypt. Pharaoh has once again changed his mind about letting the people of Israel go, and is now in hot pursuit of the Israelites with his chariots and armor. Ahead of the Israelites lies and impassable sea — behind…
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Martin Luther King and the Prophetic Tradition
Martin Luther King and the Prophetic Tradition This week’s parasha begins the Book of Exodus. Tomorrow we will read in the Torah about the enslavement of the Israelites in Egypt and G-d’s call to Moses to lead the Israelites out of bondage. Monday is Martin Luther King Day, a celebration of the birthday of that…
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Terror in Mumbai
A week ago we were witness, via our televisions, to the horror that unfolded in Mumbai, India, over a period of several days, as Muslim radical terrorists attacked Western targets throughout the city of 19 million people. It was a coordinated attack unlike any other we have seen, capturing the world’s attention for four or…
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Open My Lips So I May Speak Your Praise
Open My Lips So I May Speak Your Praise Adonai Sefatai Tiftach ufi yagid tehilatecha There is a story behind the words that precede our amidah. First, one has to understand that the Amidah, said three times a day by traditional Jews, is a substitute for the sacrifices in the Temple that can no…
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Parashat Haazinu:Finding Your Passion
Finding Your Passion Parashat Haazinu October 10, 2008 Rabbi Marc D. Rudolph What does it mean, to love “with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might”? We know love when we feel it, but love is often difficult to express in words. Fortunately, for that we have the poet.…
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Kol Nidre : The Four Questions
Kol Nidre The Four Questions October 9, 2008 Rabbi Marc D. Rudolph Although an honest judicial system is essential for the proper functioning of a society, nobody ever wants to go to court. If you must go to court, of course you want the best attorney, and the best preparation, that you can properly…
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Yom Kippur AM Do Jews Believe in G-d?
Yom Kippur Morning October 10, 2008 Rabbi Marc D. Rudolph A rabbi is always entertaining interesting questions about the Jewish religion from his congregants and others. In fact, when one is introduced as a rabbi, people are often moved to ask a question they have been wondering about for a long time. Do Jews…
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Parasha Vayelech You Shall Teach
You Shall Teach and Learn This weeks Torah portion contains the commandment to gather the people together every seven years at the Temple in Jerusalem in order to hear the King read from the book of Deuteronomy. The Torah specifies that men, women, and children are to attend this gathering. Why children? Wouldn’t small…
Rabbi Marc D. Rudolph 