It’s been two months since Andrew Rehfeld departed as president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of St. Louis to become president of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. This seems like a good time to brief our community on where Federation...

We are grateful to our colleague Rabbi Seth Gordon for his articulate and thoughtful op-ed in the St. Louis Jewish Light on May 23 (“Jewish law, abortion and born v. unborn life”) laying out an argument that provides food for thought based on his...

What do Notre Dame Cathedral, Kate Smith and Joe Biden have in common? All are famous names from the past, threatened recently with erasure from our collective memory because they do not stand up to contemporary sensibilities.In short, they have each...

There are particular sacred texts of Jewish Tradition that I make a point of reviewing at least on an annual basis. These tend to be teachings and insights that not only appeal to my mind and intellect, but also resonate deeply within the chambers of...

People always tell us to count our blessings. Rarely, if ever, does anyone tell us to count our curses. After all, who wants to think about all the bad things that have happened because of our action or inaction, much less all the terrible consequences...

Herman Wouk, the famed novelist who first became a household name for his 1951 Pulitzer Prize winning “The Caine Mutiny” died last week nearly 70 years after achieving fame. Besides his long career as a writer he was also a lifelong Zionist.This fact...

This week’s parasha, Emor (speak of or to), Leviticus 21:1-24:23, continues the directions of the actions of the priests on behalf of the Israelites. It is an excellent postscript to the Holiness Code in the previous parasha as contains specific ways...

PITTSBURGH — The April 27 shooting at the Chabad of Poway, which left one woman dead and three people injured, was a devastating tragedy for the American Jewish community.As an Israeli expat who has made a home in Pittsburgh, it made me feel more vulnerable...

In the emotionally charged discussions around reproductive freedom, it can seem that people of faith universally support extreme, restrictive proposals like those currently before the Missouri Legislature.  As people deeply committed to our respective...

On our third day in New Orleans my teen group spent the morning volunteering at the Second Harvest Food Bank.  That afternoon, we walked into a local grocery store in the Lower Ninth Ward where the group was greeted by the owner, Burnell.  Over the...

MOSCOW — Whether it’s a white supremacist targeting praying Jews, blacks or Muslims, or an Islamic radical committed to killing Christians on Easter Sunday, it has become very trendy to attack houses of worship.In Europe, synagogues unfortunately...

I am a rabbi and progressive faith leader in this city who has fought for racial and economic equality for almost two decades. I am also an unapologetic Zionist and a proud supporter of AIPAC.The public perception of AIPAC among my fellow progressives...