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Nov 11
4 min

For the good of all our children: Torah for after the election

As I write, I do not yet know who has won the presidential election. You might not know either. In this period of suspense and exhaustion...

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Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Sep 24
3 min

Who by Virus and Who by Fire?

I’m so grateful that I don’t read the words of the machzor (High Holiday prayerbook) literally. If I believed that there were an anthropo...

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Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Aug 2
2 min

The Days of Awe are Here

Not to worry. Rosh Hashana does not begin until the evening of September 18th. There’s still time to prepare. But we have been living i...

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Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Jul 31
4 min

In Our Time of Exile, We are Not Alone

Tisha B’Av came early this year. We have been mourning and contemplating collective losses since early March, when the pandemic hit.

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Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Jun 12
3 min

Sound the Trumpets of Justice for All

I can only hope that the agony of these weeks will serve as a sound of the trumpets, awakening our nation to the institutional racism.

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Rabbi Amy Eilberg

May 17
3 min

The Pandemic as a Teacher

Who do you want to be when the virus has passed? How will you have changed?

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Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Apr 25
4 min

A mysterious disease strikes

When we have come through this, let us turn our pain, fear and loneliness into a new way of being with others and as citizens of the world.

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Remembering all the commands to remember

Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Mar 9
3 min

Remembering all the commands to remember

Let us not let the hate-mongers rob us of what we most cherish. Let us not fail to remember & celebrate that which is most precious to us.

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Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Feb 21
4 min

What Kind of Country Does This?

Of all the people I met during my trip last month to the U.S.-Mexico border, one person’s face haunts me. Maria (not her real name) sat a...

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The Balance between Righteousness and Self-Righteousness

Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Jan 18
3 min

The Balance between Righteousness and Self-Righteousness

Ometz lev is a quality of willingness to speak truth to power and also a quality of the heart: strength tempered by love and gentleness.

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Can Two Readings of a Text Both Be Right?

Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Dec 15, 2019
3 min

Can Two Readings of a Text Both Be Right?

Which of two well-known readings of this text is correct?

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In the Sukkah, as in life, we are both vulnerable and safe

Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Oct 19, 2019
3 min

In the Sukkah, as in life, we are both vulnerable and safe

Ten months after the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989, I moved to Palo Alto. When our first Sukkot arrived, members of the Jewish community...

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Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Sep 18, 2019
3 min

Can I Really Change?

Rabbi Levi Yitzhak teaches that with every breath we take, God breathes life into us as on the day of creation.

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In these trying times, what are we to do? Here's an answer from Torah.

Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Aug 25, 2019
3 min

In these trying times, what are we to do? Here's an answer from Torah.

We must arise from our posture of humility in order to practice transformative love, emulate God’s ways and spend our lives in service.

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Why This Rabbi Protested U.S. Immigration Policy on Tish'a B'av

Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Aug 16, 2019
3 min

Why This Rabbi Protested U.S. Immigration Policy on Tish'a B'av

I have been to many demonstrations at Palo Alto City Hall. But there was something special about the one on Aug. 11, for Tish'a B'Av.

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Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Jul 4, 2019
3 min

Leading with Fear or with Faith

The Israelite spies were sent on a sacred mission and they failed spectacularly. Why? Because they let fear overpower them, overwhelming ...

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Scapegoats on the Streets of San Francisco

Rabbi Amy Eilberg

May 8, 2019
3 min

Scapegoats on the Streets of San Francisco

This year I can visualize the scapegoat being cast out by the community, because I have seen it on the streets of San Francisco.

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Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Mar 29, 2019
3 min

An Answer to What Ails Our Society

Still aching from the horror of the massacre at the mosques in New Zealand, I found myself at a remarkable gathering last week. It was no...

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Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Mar 21, 2019
3 min

This Year I Skipped Purim

A friend of mine says sardonically, “You’ve got to love the Megillah (the Book of Esther, on which the festival of Purim is based). It s...

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Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Mar 8, 2019
3 min

A Navigation System for Life's Journey

When life is stormy and confusing, wouldn’t it be amazing to have a spiritual navigation system to tell us what we need to do?

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Rabbi Amy Eilberg

Spiritual Director, Kindness Coach, Peace and Justice Educator, Author