Dover Emet: Speaking the Truth

A Rabbi on the Economy & The Great Gatsby Posted: 06/03/2013 2:45 pm F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote  The Great Gatsby  in 1925 as a poignant commentary on the excesses of the pre-Great Depression jazz era. And now, in 2013, Baz Luhrman has brought it, once again, to the silver screen--a gaudy and beautiful rendering in a moment of economic recovery and rebounding housing markets. We watch this movie in an America hoping to return to dreaming big. I have long appreciated Fitzgerald's novel as a commentary on the limits of the American Dream that we all hold sacred. Dreams and fantasies, the pursuit of wealth and fame and success--these vanities have been lifted to the highest levels of respect and hope and yearning over the past century. For many, they replace core values. They replace real connection and contentment with the pursuit of praise, which is a false kind of love. When we have achieved fame and power and wealth, we are validated, appreciated, fawned...

Login with Facebook to see what your friends are reading Enable Social Reading i Rabbi Gil Steinlauf Senior Rabbi, Adas Israel Congregation GET UPDATES FROM RABBI GIL STEINLAUF   Like 6 Asteroids, Randomness and the Absolute Truth About God Posted: 02/13/2013 2:23 pm Follow Prayer and Meditation  ,  Judaism  ,  Religion and Science  ,  Asteroid 2012 DA14  ,  Jewish Wisdom  ,  Prayer And Meditation  ,  Belief In God  ,  God  ,  Thankfulness  ,  Religion News SHARE THIS STORY 8 5 1 Submit this story When asteroid 2012 DA14 makes its perilously close encounter and near miss with Earth, there will be plenty of people who will thank God. We all know that one hit from a big asteroid, and life on earth as we know it could be wiped out. But, as some may reason, God is not letting that ha...

1/30/2013 12:05:00 PM Slavery lives on in our attitudes by Rabbi Gil Steinlauf During the holiday break, I took my kids to the Smithsonian Museum of American History. We went to an exhibit about the emancipation from slavery in this country, its effects a century later and on to this day. We went past a glass case that contained tiny shackles, meant for the wrists of a child. It was crowded, but I couldn't but linger at that horrifying object. It's not unlike the huge pile of shoes in the Holocaust Museum - tangible objects that silently make unspeakable horror so very real and palpable. My God, I thought, how could this be possible? How could any human being sink to such cruelty and heartlessness? But here is proof, literally in front of me. The story of the Exodus from Egypt attests that there has been slavery, brutality and cruelty for as long as there has been human civilization. It's still a reality today around the world. Thank God, we think, we're past i...

The queerness of love: A Jewish case for same-sex marriage BY RABBI GIL STEINLAUF Follow JewishJournal.com on  11 Rabbi Gil Steinlauf Last year, I officiated at the first same-sex wedding in the 145-year history of my synagogue.  For a Conservative congregation, this was quite a break with tradition.  Nevertheless,  I was proud to stand beneath the wedding canopy with this couple, who affirmed the sacredness of their union “in accordance with the laws of Moses and the people of Israel.”  Before I chose to officiate, I studied the texts, teachings, and arguments in my tradition.  I didn’t make this decision lightly.  Today, I am unfazed by the apparent biblical injunction against homosexuality as an “abomination.”  I am confident in my stand, despite a 3,000-year-old tradition that has no precedent for such a marriage.  In fact, it is from a place of humility and awe before my tradition and God that I have chosen take this ...

Rabbi Gil Steinlauf Senior Rabbi, Adas Israel Congregation GET UPDATES FROM RABBI GIL STEINLAUF   Like The Idolatry of Guns Posted: 01/07/2013 2:56 pm React Amazing Inspiring Funny Scary Hot Crazy Important Weird Follow Gun Control  ,  Judaism  ,  Scripture Commentary  ,  Newtown Sermons, Prayers and Poetry  , Prayers And Poetry  ,  Gun Violence  ,  Idolatry  ,  Newtown School Shooting  ,  Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting  ,  Scripture Study  ,  Religion News SHARE THIS STORY 2 4 0 Submit this story "Guns don't kill. People do." I keep hearing this phrase repeated by gun-supporters. It sounds so reasonable. Even wise. In fact, it's a misuse of a truth in the service of a dangerous set of beliefs and principles. People indeed do the killing, but this idea implies that more handgun...

I just got off the phone with Oren Marmerstein of the Israeli Embassy.  It’s one thing to read headlines, to debate politics.  It’s another to speak to someone who is regularly contacting his parents and family as the rockets are falling.  Many of us in our congregation have loved ones and dear friends in harm’s way during this difficult time.  This is a time for prayer and for doing what we can to show support.  Oren shared with me information that he can access at the embassy.  He watched a video from the cockpit of an Israeli fighter jet.  He could see how the Hamas target was situated right in the middle of a civilian area, with innocent people acting as human shields.  From the cockpit, the pilot was ready to launch a missile at the target, but suddenly he saw two civilians.  Immediately, he asked permission to abort so as not to harm innocent life, and his commander instantly ratified the request.  Oren told me how a sta...