Brit Shalom: A Covenant of Peace You Can Count On

Brit Shalom: A Covenant of Peace You Can Count On (A Reflection of Parashat Pinchas)

When I was a student in the Institute for Jewish Spirituality’s Jewish Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Training (JMMTT) program, one of my colleague students would write a weekly reflection on that week’s parashah – or weekly lectionary portion from the Hebrew Bible.

Each week, one of the other students would masterfully integrate the themes, symbols, and ideas from the weekly Torah portion with the fruits of their personal mindfulness meditation practice, telling a story so grand and marvelous that it could only be told through the individual lens of a Rabbi and gardener, an integral psychiatrist, a Hazzan and performer, an artist and activist, a mediator and DJ, a professor and neuroscientist, a singer-songwriter and liturgist, a social worker and yoga therapist, and others. Continue reading “Brit Shalom: A Covenant of Peace You Can Count On”

Preparing for the High Holidays: Broken Spirit, Broken Heart (Ru’ach Nishbarah, Lev Nishbar)

Preparing for the High Holidays - Broken Spirit, Broken Heart (Ruach Nishbarah, Lev Nishbar)

Over the past month or two, it has taken me some time to write about Tisha B’Av and preparing for the High Holidays, the sacred Jewish liturgical period of the Yamim Noraim, the Days of Awe and Wonder.

This is in part because of the day to day stresses and changes of life, but also because I have been genuinely wrestling with the meaning and place of brokenness and sacredness, new beginnings and endings, and sacrifice and atonement, especially from the perspective of a contemporary 21st Century Jew and American Zen practitioner. Continue reading “Preparing for the High Holidays: Broken Spirit, Broken Heart (Ru’ach Nishbarah, Lev Nishbar)”

Are You a Jewish Millennial?: Jewish Mindfulness Meditation May be for You!

Are You a Jewish Millennial - Jewish Mindfulness Meditation May be for You

Are you a Jewish Millennial? Are you involved in more than enough to keep any “normal” person busy? All at the same time? Are you achievement oriented? Maybe more than is helpful? Do you value diversity? And each person’s extraordinariness? Are you in relationship with people of different faith traditions and spiritualities? And value each one? Do you enjoy being part of a team and collaborating with others? And maybe need a little more quiet time? Are you spiritual, but (perhaps) not religious? Jewish Mindfulness Meditation may be for you! Continue reading “Are You a Jewish Millennial?: Jewish Mindfulness Meditation May be for You!”

What is Jewish Enlightenment? Kan VeAchshav! Here and Now!

What is Jewish Enlightenment - Kan VeAchshav (Here and Now)

You may have heard or read stories about enlightenment in Buddhism. Much like Jewish midrash, these stories are filled with wonder, miracles, and awe. Is there such a thing as Jewish enlightenment? And what is our enlightenment story?

This upcoming Saturday, we celebrate the holiday of Shavuot (what is celebrated in Christianity as Pentecost). On Shavuot, we celebrate the giving and receiving of the Ten Commandments at Mt. Sinai. Shavuot is also called Zman Matan Torateinu – or the Time of Giving our Torah – and is a commemoration of the gift of receiving the entire Torah. Yet what does this have to do with enlightenment? Continue reading “What is Jewish Enlightenment? Kan VeAchshav! Here and Now!”

SAVE THE DATE: Jewish Meditation Retreat in Los Angeles Scheduled for August 19, 2018

Save the Date - Jewish Meditation Retreat in Los Angeles Scheduled for August 19, 2018

Please join Mindful Judaism for a Jewish Mindfulness Meditation Daylong Retreat on Sunday, August 19, 2018 at Temple Beth Am in Los Angeles this summer! This is a wonderful opportunity to learn about Jewish Mindfulness Meditation and contemplative prayer, ask any questions you may have, and practice in sacred community. All of the details are below! Continue reading “SAVE THE DATE: Jewish Meditation Retreat in Los Angeles Scheduled for August 19, 2018”

A Jewish Heart Sutra: The Great Wisdom-Heart Prayer – Tefilat Chochmat Lev Hanorah

Jewish Heart Sutra - The Great Wisdom-Heart Prayer - Tefilat Chochmat Lev Hanorah

I have been playing a lot recently with the roots of Jewish Mindfulness Meditation in Insight Meditation (Vipassana) and traditional Buddhist meditation. As a Zen practitioner, I am familiar with the Heart Sutra, a liturgy that is chanted daily throughout the Buddhist world. I began to play around with what a Jewish Heart Sutra would sound like. Take a look below!
Continue reading “A Jewish Heart Sutra: The Great Wisdom-Heart Prayer – Tefilat Chochmat Lev Hanorah”

All Alone Together With God: Passover, Shavuot, and the Path from Enslavement to Freedom

All Alone Together With God: Passover, Shavuot, and the Path from Enslavement to Freedom

Over three millennia ago, our Israelite forefathers and foremothers wrestled with their Gods and risked the perilous desert journey from enslavement to freedom. Seven Sabbaths later, God revealed himself, and on that day – as on this day – God spoke, and speaks, to each one of us and All that is Israel. Continue reading “All Alone Together With God: Passover, Shavuot, and the Path from Enslavement to Freedom”

Rabbinic Judaism and Halachah: One Fence too Many?

Rabbinic Judaism and Halachah - One Fence to Many

Over the past few months, I’ve been studying and practicing with the ideas, thought, and innovations of Jewish history. I especially marvel at the creativity of Rabbinic Judaism just following the destruction of the 2nd and final Temple in Jerusalem. This makes me wonder about the constant unfolding of Jewish history and tradition. Is there a period of Jewish life after Rabbinic Judaism? What comes next? Continue reading “Rabbinic Judaism and Halachah: One Fence too Many?”

The Pew Study: Why Jewish Meditation, Contemplative Judaism, and the Necessity of Innovation

The Pew Study - Why Jewish Meditation, Contemplative Judaism, and the Necessity of Innovation

The Pew Research Center published its landmark study on A Portrait of American Jews in 2013. This important research – commonly called the Pew Study – presented a series of contradictions and what felt like an ever unfolding series of “bad” news for the American Jewish community. The Pew Study felt to many as a punch to the gut of American Jewry! But where does Jewish meditation and contemplative Judaism fit in? Any why now?! Continue reading “The Pew Study: Why Jewish Meditation, Contemplative Judaism, and the Necessity of Innovation”

Meditation and God: Is There Room for Both?

Meditation and God - Is There Room for Both?

With the Purim holiday coming up, I have been reflecting on the tides and turns of Jewish history against the backdrop of the larger world and great civilizations as celebrated, mourned, and honored in the Jewish Holiday cycle. With this in mind, I thought of the relatively recent contact between Buddhism and Judaism and about the practices and language of meditation and God, wondering, “Is there room for both?” Continue reading “Meditation and God: Is There Room for Both?”