Recent Sermons
Israel on a Cloudy Day
“Israel on a Cloudy Day” 3 Iyar 5777 • Tazriah-Metzorah • April 29, 2017 Rabbi Alexander Davis I’ve got sunshine on a cloudy day When it’s cold outside I’ve got the month of May I guess you’d say What can make me feel this way? My girl Talkin’ ’bout my girl Much to my wife’s relief, I am not going to sing her praises...
read moreConverso “Conversion”
Converso “Conversion” 2 Sivan 5777 • Bamidbar • May 17, 2017 Rabbi Alexander Davis From Manchester, to the President at the Kotel, to the investigation into Russian meddling, there is much to consider. But sometimes it is also important to be able to put aside the daily newswire and be transported to a different time and place. And that’s what I’d like to do...
read moreBorn Again Jews
“Born Again Jews” 22 Nisan 5777 • Pesach Day 8 • April 18, 2017 Rabbi Alexander Davis The Jewish people are like what animal? I came to this question reading an essay by JaeRan Kim who writes: “I sometimes believe it was my destiny to be born many times like a cat, whose lives steal away on silent, soft paws. Reincarnation holds a special appeal,...
read moreTrue Security: Chazak, Chazak, V’nitchazek
“True Security: Chazak, Chazak, V’nitchazek” 27 Adar 5777 • Vayakhel-Pekudei • Shabbat Hachodesh • March 25, 2017 Rabbi Alexander Davis What do we do when we finish a book? Talk about it in book group. Return it to the library. Start a new book. As Jews, we do something else: we rise and call out, “chazak chazak v’nitchazek strength, strength, may we be strengthened.”...
read moreSpice and Spirit
“Spice and Spirit” 13 Adar 5777 • Titzaveh • Shabbat Zakhor • March 11, 2017 Rabbi Alexander Davis What’s your favorite smell? Do smells ever remind you of something? A certain place or a time? For me, I love the smell of rosemary. It reminds me of my year at Hebrew University where it grows wild around the campus. And then there is the smell...
read moreHonoring Our “So-Called” Judges
“Honoring Our “So-Called” Judges” 29 Shevat 5777 • Mishpatim • Shabbat Shekalim • February 25, 2017 Rabbi Alexander Davis Once, a Jew living on Park Avenue built a Sukkah on his balcony. Some of his high society neighbors brought him to court claiming that his hut was an eyesore. They said it was having a negative impact on the value of their homes. In court,...
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