Islam – Page 2 – Rabbi Jon 's Website and Blog

November 21, 2016

Three Things I Did As Soon As I Got To The Office

I made three phone calls this morning, in an attempt to do something to head off the hate crimes and discriminatory actions suggested by people connected to the incoming Trump administration, to call for the un-appointment of Stephen Bannon, and to show some solidarity with the local Muslim community. I called and left messages for:… Continue reading

Community Relations, Current Affairs, Election, Ethics, Freedom, GLBT, Inclusion, Interfaith Dialogue, Islam, Justice, Leadership, Peace, Rabbi, Tikkun Olam, Tzedek, USA

October 23, 2016

Proud to Be Jewish and Making a Difference in the World This Weekend

A quick check in before the last Tishrei holy days: I am incredibly proud of our congregation, Temple Beth Abraham in Nashua. Yesterday we hosted Imam Muhammad Musri from Orlando, who was visiting the nearby mosque in Lowell, for a talk on the basics of Islam. At least sixty congregants attended. People asked questions about… Continue reading

Community Relations, Current Affairs, Election, Holidays, Interfaith Dialogue, Islam, Israel, Leadership, Peace, Sukkot, Temple Beth Abraham, Terrorism, Tikkun Olam, Tzedek, USA

October 7, 2016

Making an Impact on the Election Conversation Through Big Questions

It feels good to know that a thoughtful question during a presidential election makes a difference. When I had the chance to ask a question on a televised town hall to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in February, I went for what my colleague Rabbi Josh Feigelson calls a "Big Question." Josh differentiates between "Hard Questions"… Continue reading

Community Relations, Current Affairs, Election, Ethics, Freedom, High Holidays, Islam, Justice, Leadership, Taking Sides, Television, Terrorism, Tikkun Olam, USA, Yamim Noraim, Yom Kippur

July 29, 2016

The Farmer and the Cowman Should Be Friends

This is my column for August 2016 in the Jewish Reporter, the monthly newspaper of the Jewish Federation of New Hampshire. The Torah opens with distinctions. Heaven and earth, land and water, sun and moon, animals and people. Weekdays and Shabbat. Distinctions that are pretty dramatic, clear-cut, and consequential. Then, in the first story involving… Continue reading

Community Relations, Current Affairs, Election, GLBT, Inclusion, Interfaith Dialogue, Islam, Justice, Peace, Tikkun Olam, Tzedek, USA

July 14, 2016

Walking With, Into, and Through Difference – Part 1

It is said sometimes that a rabbi will speak or teach the same thing over and over. So it's great to realize when you learn something knew, and not bad when it's from yourself. Last Shabbat I said something in my D'var Torah, reflecting on Elie Wiesel — that getting the details right is important,… Continue reading

Abuse, Community Relations, Current Affairs, Inclusion, Interfaith Dialogue, Islam, Tikkun Olam, USA

July 11, 2016

Remembering Elie Wiesel As a Lens For the Week That Was

These are the words I shared this past Shabbat morning. Another version, with appropriate links and notes and credit for things I read and heard, is here. Last Shabbat, the Jewish people and the world lost one of our generation's most important voices of conscience, Elie Wiesel.* As the week began, I thought that this… Continue reading

Community Relations, Current Affairs, Holocaust, Islam, Justice, Korach, Tikkun Olam, USA

July 6, 2016

Checking In

There is a lot happening in the world these days and I haven't posted for a while…. I think some of you may be here after hearing me on the West Wing Weekly podcast, and if so, welcome! If you're Jewish, you'll find that I had a couple more things to say about the episode in… Continue reading

Current Affairs, Election, Holocaust, Inclusion, Interfaith Dialogue, Islam, Television, Temple Beth Abraham, Tikkun Olam, Tzedek

April 24, 2013

A Wiser Response to Islam and the Boston Bombing

I have been thinking about all kinds of things in the week and a half since the bombing at the Boston Marathon. Our minds have been drawn to all kinds of questions, from the basic ones about where such evil comes from in the human soul, to policy questions about immigration and surveillance. As a… Continue reading

Current Affairs, Islam, Terrorism