Jewish Life

From Sambor, Ukraine where one line of my ancestors lived for 500 years, to the streets of New York City where they arrived at the turn of the century, to…

A teacher once told me that the entire Torah, or Old Testament, can be read as a story cycle of Otherness, Exile, and Redemption.  Of course, the ultimate example of…

“I remember the first thing I noticed when we came into the harbor-I woke up, and suddenly smelled something. And of course, it was pollution”-Greta Thunberg, Environmental activist and winner…

It’s been several months since we returned from our wonderful 10-day study tour in Reggio, Italy. Loris Malaguzzi once stated, “It is urgent for us to underline that children’s intelligence…

Before I start, I want to tell you all just how much I have missed you, dear readers. For those of you who follow my blog each month, you may…

Waiting for Godot is always timely, the existential queries that all the characters ask in this play echo our lives in the most microcosmic aspects and also on a global…

Dear Friends and members of The 14th Street Y, When I decided to become a Shaliach, an Israeli relationship-building emissary, I knew that missing home would be a challenge. I…

A Response to Pittsburgh from Executive Director, Rabbi Shira Koch Epstein: *Update: Please join me and other members of the 14th Street Y staff tomorrow morning, Monday, October 29 from 8:30 – 9:30 AM. We’ll…

Kabbalah teaches that the prayers of the downtrodden open a window in the heavens to allow our prayers to ascend because of the depth of prayer of the broken-hearted. On…

Let’s take the term “High Holidays” and analyze it together. What association comes to mind with the word ”high”? To me it symbolizes “uplifting” or “ascending.” In Hebrew, the High…