Portrait of an American Rabbi: in His Own Words , livre ebook

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In short, I believe, a little bit of religion is a good thing whether or not you fully embrace the idea of God. I believe that Judaism should accept this approach and help its adherents translate their deep, inherent religious needs with the symbols and practices of our ancient tradition. Judaism understands that not only does it have to adapt as part of its cultural dance, but it also has to choose and to create in order to complete its mission: to help modern Jews, the children of Spinoza, and the disciples of Einstein, to stay on course, to see the poetry written into the cosmos, and to help one another on the road to contentment with kindness, with concern and with love. Every once in a while, somebody comes to me and says: “Rabbi, I’m so glad I’m Jewish.” “Rabbi, I’m lucky. I have what I need. I have what I want.” And I smile and count my blessings, too.

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Publié par	Xlibris US
Date de parution	14 juin 2023
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781669877899
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0200€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

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PORTRAIT OF AN AMERICAN RABBI: IN HIS OWN WORDS

Rabbi Lance J. Sussman, Ph.D.

Copyright © 2023 by Rabbi Lance J. Sussman, Ph.D..
Library of Congress Control Number:
2023909359
ISBN:
Hardcover
978-1-6698-7791-2
Softcover
978-1-6698-7790-5
eBook
978-1-6698-7789-9

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

As often as possible, this book follows the Hebrew transliteration guidelines of the CCAR Press.

Rev. date: 06/14/2023

Xlibris
844-714-8691
www.Xlibris.com
850774

To my grandchildren

One generation shall praise Your works to another.

—Psalm 145:4

CONTENTS
Introduction
PART 1
In The Beginning, 2001–2006
Getting Started, 2001–2006
In The Beginning, My Story
The World Jewish Condition Today: Europe
You Went To Germany?
A Red Thread: Uncommon Threads
The Roadblock To Peace
Half Empty Or Half Full: Judaism In America
American Jews And Israel: The Doctrine Of Interdependence
Twenty-Five Years In The Rabbinate
Where Are The Borders Of Jewishness?
Israel Defense Forces: Heroes Of The Jewish People
Gaza
Iraq: What Do You Think?
Yizkor
Hanukkah: The Right Light
Tikkun Torah
Why I Am A Jew!
PART 2
A Little Religion Is A Good Thing 2007–2011
In The Rear View Mirror, 2007-2011
A Little Religion Is A Good Thing
Israel At 60
Justice, Justice You Shall Pursue
Sin
Rabbis And Imams
I Believe In Prayer
Abraham’s Other Son: Jewish-Muslim Relations Today
Judaism And The Difficult Question Of Race
My Synagogue
On The Road Again: Maryland Jewish Heritage Tour
My Munich Report: The German Jewish Heritage And American Judaism
HUC-JIR Founders’ Day Talk
Jewish Dance?
The Statute Of Liberty And The New York Mosque Controversy
Shaman g Israel: Israel’s Recent Conversion Crisis
No Place Like Home
I Love Israel
Reform Judaism
Yizkor
Transcending An “Artless Tradition”: The Birth Of A Modern Jewish Art Movement
Generations: My Dad, Charles Sussman, Z”L
PART 3
A Night Of Watching 2012–2016
A Night Of Watching, 2012-2016
Passover Report: Seeing Oneself Going Forth From Egypt
You Can’t Go Home Again? President Obama’s Peace Proposal
Taking Syria Seriously
Rabbi’s Journal: The Feminine Mystique At 50
Rabbi’s Journal III: My Cup Overfloweth
Why Hanukkah?
Zimmerman Trial
A Blessing For Everything
The Blessing Of Peace
The Blessing Of Love
The Blessing Of Memory
Faith In Art: Visual Culture And The Future Of Judaism
The New Union Haggadah: Exodus As A Theme In American History And Culture
Second Isaiah: “A Light To The Nations” And The Mission Of Reform Judaism
Ahavat Yisrael: Love Of Israel
Malachi: Healing, Comfort, And The Hearts Of The Children
Ezekiel: Renewal And Awakening
Acharei Mot K’doshim: The Battle Of Baltimore
Seeing Is Believing: Visual T’filot And The Future Of Jewish Worship
The Confirmation Revolution: Then And Now
Back To Ohio: Revisiting My First Pulpit
Rabbi, What Do You Believe?
A Sacred Event: Social Justice, Chesed , And Reform Judaism
Rabbi Joseph Krauskopf, Reform Triumphalism, And The 1885 Pittsburgh Platform
PART 4
Crossroads, Conflicts, And Challenges 2017–2022
Crossroads, Conflicts, And Challenges 2017-2022
Strangers And Neighbors: The Golden Rule Today
The Fight Against BDS: Israel’s Battle For Legitimacy
Not By Might: Jews, Guns, And Violence
Celebrating Hanukkah: To Decorate Or Not To Decorate, That Is The Question!
Neglect: The Hidden Crime
Between A Rock And A Hard Place: Navigating The Book Of Leviticus
It All Depends: Finding The Middle Of The Torah
The 13 Midot : God Is Ethical And So Are We
You Are What You Eat: The New World Of Kosher Food
What We Can Confirm: The Path Of Torah
Judaism, Medical Science, And Spirituality: A Brief History
Liberty And Freedom From Religion In America
Finding Our Moral Compass: Reflection On Charlottesville
Personal Strength: Am I Strong Enough?
Jewish Unity
Staying Strong: American Anti-Semitism Today
Chazak, Chazak V’nitchazeik : Keeping Our Synagogue Strong
Yizkor: Staying Strong In The Shadow
I Still Believe: Rereading Anne Frank
Mazal Tov : The KI Puppets Are 13!
Marines
The Final Review: Philip Roth, 1933–2018
An Emblem Of The Land I Love: Reform Jewish Reflections On Flag Day
The Wine Was Good: Another Look At The Trefa Banquet
Bibi: The Cheltenham Years
Why We Need Good Sermons Now More Than Ever
I Cannot Forgive You
The Voice For Justice
An English Hanukkah
Walls: American, Israeli, And Mexican
A Bold Centrist: Remembering Isaac M. Wise
Siding With Science: Reform Judaism, Evolution, And The Environment
The Coronavirus Pandemic And The Future Of Organized Religion
Ordinary Citizens: Lessons From The Pandemic Of 2020
Lessons Learned: Historical Pandemics And The Philadelphia Jewish Community
Grant Us Peace: An American Reform Jewish Classic Prayer
Closing Our Shuls, Opening Our Homes: A Jewish Response To COVID-19
An Old Hatred And New Challenges: Jews, Blacks, And White Supremacy In America
A Long History: American Jews And The NAACP
Monumental Questions: A Rabbinic Reflection For July 4, 2020
What Is Being Asked Of Us?
The Right To Vote— Shof’tim 16:15–21:9
Rest In Peace: Remembering Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, A”H September 24, 2020
The Attack On America
Back To Work: Step By Step, Inch By Inch
The Unbearable Middle: The Public, The Police, And Life In America Today
Alaska And The Holocaust: An Unknown Story
Huddled Masses: Sanctuary For Afghans In America
In Situ: A View Of The Landau Windows From The Pulpit Of Reform Congregation Keneseth Israel
What’s In A Name? Thoughts On Jewish Identity
Anti-Semitism And The Taking Of Hostages: A Tragic And Undeniable History
In The Crosshairs Of History: The Jews Of Ukraine
Spiritual Roadmap: The Hidden Battle For The Soul Of Reform Judaism
From Now On, No Distinction
My Last Day At Sunday School (JQuest): A Few Final Thoughts
Five Special Moments
Acknowledgments
About The Author

INTRODUCTION
On June 30, 2008, Professor Marc Saperstein, the world’s leading scholar of sermons and rabbinic addresses in the Jewish tradition, gave a talk to a gathering of rabbinic graduates of the Leo Baeck College in London. He began by asking a disquieting question, “Is the sermon on its deathbed?” His comments were subsequently published in European Judaism (March 2009); and although he tactfully did not answer his own question, Saperstein ended with the following recommendation: “So I urge all rabbis: whatever you write, keep your papers safely stored away for future use, and leave instructions that the texts of your sermons not be tossed into the rubbish bin, but sent for safekeeping to an appropriate archival collection.” He then provided a gratifying rationale. “The sermons you give,” he assured his audience, “plant seeds in the minds and souls of your congregants, but they are also part of the historical record of our people.”
This book is an attempt to comply with Saperstein’s dictum by providing a published record of select sermons and articles I wrote during my twenty-one years as Senior Rabbi of Reform Congregation Keneseth Israel (KI) in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, from 2001 to 2022. Far from the complete record suggested by Dr. Saperstein, they are hopefully representative of the many themes and literary genres that constituted the core of my rabbinic work and writing during the second half of my career. Ordained at the Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR) in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1980, I previously published a book of sermons, Sharing Sacred Moments (1999), taken from my first nine years as rabbi of Temple Concord in Binghamton, New York.
The seed of producing a book of sermons and other rabbinic writings in my life actually goes back to my days as a rabbinic student. For my rabbinic thesis, under the guidance of Dr. Jacob R. Marcus, I wrote on the sermons of Isaac Leeser (1806–1868), the leading Jewish religious leader in the United States in the decades prior to the American Civil War. In fact, Leeser was the primary Jewish religious leader (he was not an ordained rabbi nor ever claimed to be) who pioneered the tradition of preaching in the American synagogue. He ultimately published ten five-hundred-page volumes of Discourses . I read, studied, and indexed all of them and can honestly report that they were almost entirely theological treatises of little or no entertainment value. However, they did constitute an intellectual diary of American Jewish religious life during the Antebellum Period in which the influence of Protestant, Bible-centered religiosity was the dominant form of spirituality in the United States. Leeser himself beli