Temple Beth Am in Miami is a large Reform congregation that owes much of its success to the vision of its founding rabbi, Rabbi Herbert Baumgard, z”l. A pioneering rabbi in many respects, Rabbi Baumgard’s lasting legacy is punctuated by his belief that in order to flourish and remain viable, Temple Beth Am needed an […]
Let’s review some key data: The Jewish community is dramatically more diverse than we once realized it was: One in every seven to eight Jews is a person of color; we have a sizeable LGBTQIA+ population; and the number of Jewish-adjacent individuals in our communities is growing. At the same time, religious affiliation is in […]
Editor’s Note: A longer version of this article originally appeared in the Los Angeles Jewish Journal on July 22,2020. Revolution is complex and not for the fainthearted. Most of us are not meant to be Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. or Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, yet the fate of the world rests upon the work of […]
When our entire world changed overnight a year ago, last March, we in the synagogue world had countless new challenges to address as the enormity of the pandemic came to light. This unprecedented time was clearly going to require innovative solutions and a very different kind of thinking. It quickly became clear that in order […]
In July 2020, a few months into the Covid 19 pandemic, our Reform congregation in Denver, CO hosted 27 Hours with Temple Sinai: The Come Together Zoom-a-Thon, a full weekend of virtual programming for all ages intended to be both a community-building experience as well as a fundraiser. Leading up to the weekend, we had […]
In 1962, 36 families, many with young children, pooled their energy, resources and vision to create a new Jewish congregation in Northern Virginia. There were a few well established synagogues in Alexandria and Arlington, but families were moving “west.” This reality and other community issues led this small group to break away from their congregation […]
Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared in eJP in September 2019. It takes on added significance in light of the trend during the Covid-19 pandemic to leave cities and take up residence in suburban neighborhoods. Ten years ago, I became a rabbi and, over that time, I have to confess that I have frequently […]
Over the past two years, I have been part of leading a number of campaigns at Temple Beth Sholom, Miami Beach that made a positive change in our greater community while deepening our congregation’s commitment to meaningful social justice engagement. Our work in helping to shut down the for-profit, child detention center adjacent to Homestead, […]
Editors Note: This article was first published by Kveller on July 28, 2020 I recently left my job as a congregational rabbi. I loved the community — a dynamic, 50-year-old congregation with some 135 families that’s affiliated with the Humanistic Judaism movement. The place, and its people, have a lot of heart, and I felt I […]
When feeling overwhelmed — immersed and implicated — in the complex, amalgamated legacies of the United States, it is best to phone a friend. Involving Rev. Dr. Daryl Horton, Youth Pastor/Assistant to the Pastor at Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Austin, Texas in my inquiry and interrogation of my place in this country immediately sharpened […]
