Sermons

Sermons

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Sermons
  • Rabbi Koffman: We Will Dance Again (Yom Kippur, 2024)

    How do we heal from so much pain and loss this year? Rabbi Koffman reflects on what we can learn from the framework of Mourner’s Kaddish.

  • Rabbi Cosgrove: Pardon Me (October 5, 2024)

    Are you carrying any grudges? Regretting how you’ve treated someone? Rabbi Cosgrove urges us to forgive the shortcomings of others as we hope God will forgive our shortcomings, to make apologies and accept apologies so that we can begin the new year free of past bitterness.

  • Rabbi Cosgrove: A Time of Testing (Rosh Hashanah Day 1, 2024)

    Do you have hope for the future? Rabbi Cosgrove teaches that all of Jewish history has been a series of trials and tests, and it is hope that has sustained the Jewish people throughout. To guarantee the Jewish future, we must channel our hope into living vibrant Jewish lives.

  • Rabbi Cosgrove: Entering a Synagogue (Erev Rosh Hashanah, 2024)

    What do we seek when entering a synagogue? By way of a visit to his grandfather’s synagogue, Rabbi Cosgrove teaches that we hope to experience gratitude for the people and values that have shaped us and to dedicate ourselves to becoming even better versions of ourselves.

  • Rabbi Cosgrove: The Pull of the Land (September 28, 2024)

    In good times and bad, for Israelis and for American Jews, Jewish identity is tied to our connection to the Land. Rabbi Cosgrove explains how the pull of Israel situates Jewish identity and lays bare the challenge of living outside Israel while always feeling that one belongs there.

  • Rabbi Cosgrove: Today and the Day After (September 21, 2024)

    Throughout history, hope in the future has been essential to Jewish survival. Rabbi Cosgrove urges that despite our weariness and despair over the continuing war in the Middle East, we must envision and plan for a future of peaceful coexistence between Israel and its neighbors.

  • Rabbi Zuckerman: The Mountain We Must Climb (September 14, 2024)

    How do we move forward when the obstacles at hand seem too great? How do we revive our souls when our faith is wavering? Rabbi Zuckerman applies Amalek's attempt to crush the spirit of the Israelites to the crises, and aspirations, the Jewish people face today.

  • Rabbi Koffman: Unfinished Business (September 7, 2024)

    As we prepare for the High Holidays in this month of Elul, what do we need to do to “get our house in order?”

  • Rabbinic Intern Pink: Stolen Land? (August 10, 2024)

    One of the most frequent claims made by campus protesters over the last year is that Israel rests on stolen Palestinian land. Rabbinic Intern Aiden Pink analyzes their case - and brings teachings from the rabbinic tradition that take the conversation in a surprising direction.

  • Rabbinic Intern Pink: Truth and Interpretation (June 29, 2024)

    In this week’s Torah portion, negative filtering - framing the truth in a way that ignores the world's positives - led the Israelite spies astray. Rabbinic Intern Pink explains how the story teaches us the importance of hope, even in challenging times.

  • Summer Teachings: Rabbi Koffman (June 22, 2024)

    Join Rabbi Koffman in a discussion of complicated and confusing texts, sibling rivalry, and the consequences of what happens when we talk about others.

  • Rabbinic Intern Pink: What Exactly Are We Praying For, Anyway? (June 15, 2024)

    Birkat Kohanim, the blessing that parents give their children on Shabbat, has its origins in this week’s Torah portion. What does this blessing tell us about the values we want to impart to the next generation? Rabbinic Intern Aiden Pink leads a discussion on the history of the blessing and its i...

  • Rabbi Zauzmer: Receiving the Torah Within (Shavuot Day 1, 2024)

    On Shavuot, we read about the giving of the Torah and the entire community's acceptance of it, but what about individual acceptance? Rabbi Zauzmer leads an interactive discussion encouraging us to think about when and how we personally receive the lessons of the Torah, perhaps uncovering gifts th...

  • Rabbi Cosgrove: The Shards We Carry (Shavuot Day 2, 2024)

    Is there any getting over grief? Rabbi Cosgrove suggests that just as the Israelites carried the shards of the broken tablets of the covenant, so too, we carry our losses and yet, move forward.

  • Rabbi Zuckerman: Know Your Story (June 8, 2024)

    Rabbi Zuckerman draws parallels between the Israelites wandering in the desert and the current state of worldwide Jewry, reflecting the deeper meaning behind the census of every Israelite as requested by God, and how we can count ourselves in this same story of our ancient history.

  • Rabbi Cosgrove: Double V (June 1, 2024)

    What is Double V? Recalling the campaign during WWII for victory against fascism on the battlefield and victory against racism on the homefront, Rabbi Cosgrove calls for a Double V campaign for Israel, for victory against Hamas and for the democratic values that are intrinsic to the state.

  • Rabbinic Intern Pink: The Liberty Bell’s Message (May 25, 2024)

    To commemorate Memorial Day, Rabbinic Intern Pink discusses the Torah verse inscribed on the Liberty Bell, analyzing what Jewish tradition teaches about how to achieve liberty and justice for all.

  • Rabbi Cosgrove: Time to Engage (May 18, 2024)

    What is your response to the anti-Israel protests on college campuses? Explaining that these demonstrations not only express distress at Israel’s response to Hamas, but reflect a surge of antisemitism, Rabbi Cosgrove urges all Jews to step up to combat Jew-hatred politically, legally, and philant...

  • Rabbi Cosgrove: A Free People in Our Land (May 11, 2024)

    How does a connection to the land of Israel play out in your life? In sharing his own personal experience, Rabbi Cosgrove reminds us how the dream and the reality of a sovereign Jewish state in the land of Israel has sustained the Jewish people.

  • Rabbi Zauzmer: To an Anti-Israel Protestor (May 4, 2024)

    Rabbi Zauzmer brings us into an imagined conversation with an anti-Israel protestor on campus, giving us guidance for how to speak to our own friends even through vehement disagreement.

  • Rabbi Zuckerman: What Makes a Miracle? (April 23, 2024, Passover Day 1)

    What makes a moment in Jewish history, both biblical and not, a miracle? Can what seem to be modern, human interventions be miraculous? Rabbi Zuckerman seeks to answer these questions by reflecting on themes in the Haggadah and times of resilience and survival.

  • Rabbi Zauzmer: The Difference Between History & Memory (April 30, 2024, Yizkor)

    The last time we gathered for Yizkor was October 7. Now, we must keep the memories of those killed on that horrific day alive – not as history, but in our personal memories.

  • Rabbi Zauzmer: Counting Each New Day (April 24, 2024, Passover Day 2)

    Rabbi Zauzmer leads a participatory discussion about the meaning behind counting the Omer and encourages us to be grateful for each new day.

  • Rabbinic Intern Pink: The Two Types of Fear (April 27, 2024)

    Several texts in Jewish tradition teach us to “have no fear.” But can fear actually be controlled, or is it an instinctual reflex? Rabbinic Intern Pink discusses what Judaism says about processing and acting upon our fears.