RABBI DANIEL KIRZANE
  • Home
  • About
  • Sermons
  • Teaching
  • Ritual in Education
  • Publications
  • Weddings

Acting in Fear

12/1/2023

0 Comments

 
I actually don't think we have to fear fear itself. Fear is normal, and the most important thing is not to be overwhelmed by fear. Fear can motivate us to act--sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worse--and one way or another, we best face the truth when we become intimate with our fear.

Read More
0 Comments

War in Israel

10/20/2023

0 Comments

 
The Simchat Torah attacks on Israeli civilians continue to haunt us two weeks out, and Jews around the world anxiously watch Israel's response unfold. There's no "right answer" to what should come next, but the timeless values of the Torah should be guideposts to moral decision-making.

Read More
0 Comments

Yom Kippur 5784: Know Before Whom You Stand

9/24/2023

0 Comments

 
Self-knowledge is an vital Jewish value, and it's especially important to Yom Kippur. Cheshbon nefesh, the "accounting of the soul" requires an honest exploration of what we've done and who, deep down, we are. I explore two sides of cheshbon nefesh, using my own journey of learning I have autism as a case study in self-understanding.

Read More
0 Comments

Reading with New eyes

7/21/2023

0 Comments

 
There are two different accounts in the Torah about the wilderness generation. In one, they are doomed to die in the desert for their lack of faith in God. In the other, they use the forty years of wandering to prepare themselves to enter the land. The Torah ultimately sides with the former story. Why? How might Judaism look different if we told of a generation of slaves who themselves, after a period of waiting, entered the promised land?

Read More
0 Comments

Death Penalty

6/2/2023

1 Comment

 
This week, we saw the beginning of the trial of Robert Bowers, accused of killing 11 people at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, PA. He has tried to plead guilty in order to receive a life sentence in prison, but the prosecution is seeking the death penalty. What do our sources, and our moral aspirations, say about this very difficult case of life and death?

Read More
1 Comment

Activating Holiness

4/28/2023

0 Comments

 
Parashat K'doshim instructs us to be holy. But aren't we already holy? Yes, but. We activate the holiness within by engaging in acts among people and with God that demonstrate our commitment to living a sacred life. Shabbat is a powerful symbol of the same dynamic, revealing to us how our own decisions not only reveal but make real holiness within us and around us.

Read More
0 Comments

Calling God

3/10/2023

0 Comments

 
When Moses needs God most, God responds by announcing God's own name. This is a mirror of God's calling Moses by his name when they first met - and both encounters occur on Mount Sinai. A short d'rash about the closeness of God when we need God most.

Read More
0 Comments

Remember to be holy

3/3/2023

0 Comments

 
There has been a lot of violence in Israel this past week. As we mark Shabbat Zachor, the Shabbat before Purim, it is essential not to get carried away in what look like our tradition's calls for retributive violence. Rather, we must remember what it means to be holy, to learn from our experience as victims and to promote peace whenever we can.

Read More
0 Comments

Dynamics of Faith and Doubt

10/21/2022

0 Comments

 
I believe so many contradictory things, the game of tug-of-war can be exhausting. In Parashat B'reishit, we encounter a world of rights and wrongs, and we are empowered through the concept of "creation in the image of God" to see our lives as if they have purpose and significance. But the scientific worldviews that class with B'reishit promise us comfort and political progress while stripping our lives of higher purpose. What are we to do with these competing truths? Of course, I don't have an answer, but I do have foundational beliefs that help provide some contours and contexts for the discussion of faith and doubt.

Read More
0 Comments

Sukkot is for All

10/7/2022

0 Comments

 
The Shabbat between Yom Kippur and Sukkot is a perfect time to prepare ourselves for the Festival of Ingathering, a holiday on which we work hard to welcome everyone to our table.

Read More
0 Comments
<<Previous
    Picture

    About

    “To be effective, the preacher's message must be alive; it must alarm, arouse, challenge; it must be God's present voice to a particular people.” 
    ~A. W. Tozer

    Archives

    December 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    October 2022
    September 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    May 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    May 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    May 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    May 2014
    September 2013
    April 2013
    October 2012
    September 2012
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    April 2011
    January 2011
    October 2010
    September 2010
    September 2009

    RSS Feed

    Tweets by @dkirzane
Contact Me
  • Home
  • About
  • Sermons
  • Teaching
  • Ritual in Education
  • Publications
  • Weddings