Rabbi Jon 's Website and Blog

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Numbers

December 29, 2020

Disrupting Texts is a Tradition — My Hosea Story

A Facebook post by a congregant highlighted a controversy around an initiative called #DisruptTexts, and my response to it was going to be much longer than a typical FB comment. #DisruptTexts as a specific project isn’t something I had heard of, but as I skimmed the website the other day it certainly doesn’t seem brand… Continue reading

Abuse, B’midbar, Books, Current Affairs, Education, Ethics, Feminism, Foregiveness, Jewish Education, Justice, Leadership, Numbers, Parashat Hashavua, Prophets, Ritual, Study, Teacher-Student Relationship, Teens, Tikkun Olam, Torah, Tzedek, USA, Young Jewish Adult, Youth
July 20, 2020

Rubik’s Cubes and Cities of Refuge

This is my D'var Torah for Parashiyot Mattot-Mas'ei, on July 18, 2020. This is a Rubik’s Cube: The Rubik’s Cube starts all jumbled up, with random colors mixed together all over each side. The goal is to get every one of the six sides to be entirely one single color. This is tricky because whenever… Continue reading

Calendar, Community Relations, Coronavirus, Current Affairs, Ethics, Inclusion, Justice, Leadership, Mas’ei, Mattot, Numbers, Parashat Hashavua, Patience, Torah, USA
June 22, 2020

Giants, Not Grasshoppers — Toward the Landscapes Just Ahead of Us

This is my D'var Torah from last Shabbat, June 20, Parashat Shlach L'cha. This week in the book of Numbers, there is a beautiful project that Moshe is getting impatient to launch. In a nutshell: it’s about becoming a kingdom of priests and a holy nation, in a land flowing with milk and honey. Moshe… Continue reading

B’midbar, Coronavirus, Current Affairs, Justice, Leadership, Numbers, Sh’lach L’cha, Tikkun Olam, Torah, Tzedek, USA
June 18, 2020

First Thoughts After George Floyd: Justice Torah From Rabbi Akiva and Ben Azzai

This was my Dvar Torah for (Zoom) services on June 6, 2020. I'm making reference here to the Bar Mitzvah of Seth Brown. I want to thank the Browns again for this simcha and as I told them, usually my words of Torah are light on days like this, but sometimes the world thrusts events at… Continue reading

B’midbar, Community Relations, Current Affairs, Ethics, Freedom, Inclusion, Jewish Education, Justice, Naso, Numbers, Study, Talmud, Tikkun Olam, Tzedek, USA
December 18, 2009

Last Day of Chanuka: Dimensions of 8

This last day's focus on Jewish dedication is centered on the number 8 itself. Eight is a significant Jewish number. A bris takes place on the eighth day of a boy's life. Eight is associated with the ancient Temple in Jerusalem — King Shlomo dedicated the first Temple on Sukkot, the eight-day fall festival. In… Continue reading

Chanuka, Eight, Holidays, Justice, Money, Numbers, Tikkun Olam, Tzedakah, Tzedek

Numbers

Disrupting Texts is a Tradition — My Hosea Story

Rubik’s Cubes and Cities of Refuge

Giants, Not Grasshoppers — Toward the Landscapes Just Ahead of Us

First Thoughts After George Floyd: Justice Torah From Rabbi Akiva and Ben Azzai

Last Day of Chanuka: Dimensions of 8