Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann There is a well-known midrash that speaks of the time before Abraham’s call to start a new nation. The midrash imagines that when Abraham (Abram) was journeying from place to place, he came upon a palace…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann Today, we confess our wrongdoings. We acknowledge the ways we have mistreated others and shunned our responsibilities. Today, we stand in the possibility of who we want to be in the world. We set goals like:…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann Rosh HaShanah is a liminal moment. It is the meeting point between 5779 and 5780, the year that has passed and a brand new year. On Rosh HaShanah, we stand on the cusp of newness, and…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann On Tisha B’av, I chose to put my body on the line and engage in civil disobedience to protest the cruelty and violence that is happening in our country and at the border at the hands…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann This prayer was delivered at Yom Kippur services at SAJ-Judaism that Stands for All on Wednesday, September 19, 2018. The Langston Hughes poem was offered by Reverend Nigel Pearce, Pastor of Grace Congregational Church in Harlem.…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann There is a well-known and beloved story about Rabbi Zusya of Hanipol: As he was approaching his death, Zusya came to his followers with tears in his eyes. They asked him, “Zusya, what’s the matter? You…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann September 18, 2018 It seems to me that never before has the world needed Yom Kippur so intensely. We have never needed such a reckoning: a day of uncovering what is covered up. A day where we —…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann The Psalmist says “Bless, Oh my soul, the One, and may all my inner strength facilitate my blessing God’s holy name” (Psalm 103:1, Morning Liturgy). How do we bless God with our whole selves today? Today is…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann The New Colossus, Emma Lazarus Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame, With conquering limbs astride from land to land; Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand A mighty woman with a torch, whose…
Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann A short questionnaire. Have you ever been in a meeting at work where you were so focused on what you wanted to say that you realize you are no longer listening and have no idea where…