Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann Last year at this time, I stood in front of this congregation and shared about the shame and stigma of mental illness. I spoke as a parent whose child had struggled with active thoughts of suicide,…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann In the spirit of Yom Kippur, which we usher in tonight, where we take responsibility for the wrongs we have done in the past year, I begin by asking us some questions as a way to…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann This summer, I re-read This I believe, a book of excerpts from NPR’s series of the same name, in which people from all backgrounds share their personal philosophies. One in particular has stayed with me since. Greg…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann In the Unetaneh Tokef Prayer, the liturgist writes: “On Rosh HaShanah, all people pass before (you) God like sheep to a shepherd.” This image has always resonated with me. Though some people take this metaphor as…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann I begin with a story (of an unknown source:) When God was ready to create human beings on the 6th day of Creation, God decided to give the human beings a special gift. God would give…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann I would like to invite you to stop whatever you are doing, stop fiddling with your computer or papers in front of you for a moment and just rest for a moment. Find a comfortable seat,…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann Dedicated to Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan z”l and all those who started the Society for the Advancement of Judaism in 1922 Imagine, for a moment if you will, that you are an Israelite, wandering in the rough…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann On Yom Kippur, we confess sins in the plural and aim to take responsibility for the sins of omission and commission, of our community and larger society. This spiritual work is challenging under the best of…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann Kol Nidre 2020 I begin with a poem that I have found myself going back to again and again these past seven months: “Talking to Grief” by Denise Levertov Ah, grief, I should not treat you…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann Shana Tova. I want to start this morning with some truth telling: In the past year: I let my kids watch TV or play video games for hours — no, days! — on end I ignored…