Hope and Healing

by Rabbi Nathan Kamesar   It’s hard to put to words the experience of relief many of us are feeling in response to the release of the living Israeli hostages this week, and an apparent end to the war — an experience, which, to state the obvious, must be but a shade of the experience […]

Relief, Joy, and Peace

by Rabbi Nathan Kamesar   It is with great relief that I write reflecting on an agreement reached between Israel and Hamas, brokered by the United States, that seeks to bring an end to this two-year war launched by Hamas on October 7, 2023. The deal would bring home all 48 remaining hostages, 20 of […]

We Need Each Other

Yom Kippur 5786 by Rabbi Nathan Kamesar We need each other. That’s the premise of this sermon.  And yet as nice as that sounds, and as easy as that is to affirm, I can promise you it can take a lot longer to learn than one might think. I’ve learned that lesson the hard way. It’s […]

Sacred Touchstones

Kol Nidrei 5786 by Rabbi Nathan Kamesar   As I stand here on Erev Yom Kippur, the eve of the Day of Atonement, I’m picturing us on the shore of a river. I don’t know why we’re here, but our task, I feel certain, is to reach the other side. The current is rushing, and the […]

Geoff Kelly’s Al Het

For the sins we have committed by not showing up for others, and for the sins we have committed by not showing up for ourselves.  For the sins we have committed by holding our tongues at injustice, and for the sins we have committed by contributing to it through our own deeds.  For the sin […]