Mar 25, 2019
In this week's Torah portion, Parashat Sh'mini, we learn about the sudden deaths of Nadav and Avihu, two sons of Aaron the High Priest. Rabbi Shimshon Raphael Hirsch wrote that their sin was innovation. But innovation is also a key part of Jewish life and renewal over the centuries. Rabbi Jacobs encourages us to...
Mar 18, 2019
This week's Torah portion, Parashat Tzav, is read around Purim, a story of mythic (and even improbable) proportions that remains enduringly relevant to Jewish Diaspora life and anti-Jewish persecution throughout the centuries. Rabbi Rick Jacobs talks about how sometimes, just like Esther, we are called upon to make...
Mar 11, 2019
This parashah introduces many laws and rituals that might seem irrelevant to our modern lives, but what do these laws teach us? How do we bring them into our lives? A.J. Jacobs, acclaimed author of The Year of Living Biblically and Thanks a Thousand: A Gratitude Journey joins Rabbi Rick Jacobs to discuss the roles of...
Mar 4, 2019
Art exists beyond the binary of rational and irrational. Art has the ability to reshape our perspectives on our world - which is precisely why great artists have designed synagogues, museums, and other sacred spaces - including... the mishkan, the Israelite's portable ark