This week’s d’var is dedicated to a middah (value) that is very near and dear to me, and one that I sadly fear is all-too lacking in today’s world. It is also a value I hope we all have, and can continue to require ourselves to improve upon within our character and condition each and every day. This value is none other than kavod– respect. Kavod is a cornerstone of Jewish behavior and an essential characteristic of Jewish ethics. It is also foundational in human relationships – it is difficult to form or deepen a relationship that lacks basic respect for one another. To this end, Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus of the Talmud taught “Let the honor of your friend be as dear to you as your own.”[*Pirkei Avot 2:10] I was taught through Talmud and Torah to cherish respect from the time I was a young boy in Hebrew […]

Shabbat Shalom! I hope this finds you all well. The doctor who has to perform delicate life-saving open-heart surgery on a notable dignitary in the back of a Land Rover while it bounces over sand dunes at high speeds, the pilot flying a plane full of sick passengers through a night-time blizzard with one engine out and only fumes left in the tank, and the hero who has to decide whether to cut the red wire or blue wire on a massive bomb with only three seconds left before it detonates…what do we call these heart-pounding scenes? Really great ways to sell movie tickets and popcorn while getting movie-goers’ heart rates up! What else do we call them? Life-and-death, no-fail scenarios. Life-and-death, no-fail situations are the things that send the imagination wild: the knight versus the dragon, the raft and its crew fighting against the merciless rapids of a treacherous, […]

Shabbat Shalom and Chag Pesach Sameach! I hope this finds you well. Three different manufacturing companies, three different CEO’s. One day, a major piece of equipment fails at each of their facilities and their production lines come to a grinding halt. Each of the CEO’s has a different reaction: The first is heard screaming every curse word and proclivity known to mankind while throwing anything and everything that isn’t nailed down. The second blames everyone in sight: “I bet you had something to do with this”, “I knew it was too early to promote you,” and “Look at what you’ve done to my company.” But the third, the third takes a different and far more productive track. He calls in all the department heads and calmly tells them: “Folks, I’m not going to lie to you: this is bad, but it’s fixable and we’re going to get through it together. […]

Shabbat Shalom. I hope this finds you well. One of the most common things I hear from people is, “Rabbi, I wish I could come to services more often, study Talmud and Torah, and have more prayer, holiness, and spirituality in my life, but honestly, I just don’t have the time.” Believe you me, I get it. I’m not judging at all. I’m actually very sympathetic. Folks work long hours at demanding jobs to make ends meet, and when they’re not at work, they’re at home keeping house (laundry, dishes, cooking, cleaning, mowing the lawn, weeding, etc.), and when they’re not doing that they’re picking up the kids from school, helping them with their homework, and getting them to soccer and ballet practices, B’nai Mitzvah lessons, youth group meetings, and SAT prep. And when they’re not doing that, they’re often found visiting and helping take care of an elderly parent. […]