Discerning the Call. And Following Through.
Kol Nidre 5785 by Rabbi Nathan Kamesar For me, becoming a rabbi was a calling. I can still remember a moment that I unequivocally felt the call. I was a college senior, out for a meal with my cousin who was a college junior, and she asked me that most obvious question […]
The Jewish Story: Resounding Through the Shofar
Rosh Hashanah 5785 by Rabbi Nathan Kamesar This year has changed my relationship to what it means to be Jewish. Every year, during the High Holidays, I give a sermon, in one version or another, making the case for getting more deeply connected to Jewish communal life. I make this case because I genuinely believe […]
How to Pray, I Think
Erev Rosh Hashanah 5785 by Rabbi Nathan Kamesar I want to start my teaching this evening with one of the most well-worn stories of the Yamim Noraim, the Days of Awe, about a boy and his flute.¹ When Rabbi Israel was about to enter into his synagogue in Medziboz, he stopped outside the door […]
Making Ourselves Known: Unburdening As A Bridge To The Divine
Yom Kippur, Society Hill Synagogue, 5784 By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar There is one particular story from Torah that is sticking with me this Yom Kippur, and it’s a story that, while perhaps known to many, does not necessarily have an enduring role in the Jewish ritual calendar and so I want to take this opportunity […]
Loving Your Neighbor As Yourself: A Journey Into The Soul
Kol Nidre, Society Hill Synagogue, 5784 By Rabbi Nathan Kamesar Rabbi Akiva has been called the greatest rabbi of them all, the most esteemed of the ancient rabbis. So when he identifies what he considers to be כְּלַל גָּדוֹל בַּתּוֹרָה, the great principle in all of Torah, you sit up and listen. The principle, the […]