On Fridays, we email two Elul Thoughts, out of respect for those of us who choose not to look at email on Shabbat. We wish you a blessed and restful Shabbat and hope you continue finding inspiration in our Elul Thoughts. Rabbi David Young 25 years ago today, I was walking through the Jerusalem campus of Hebrew Union College when I got a call from my mother. She told me of a terrible accident in New York at the World Trade Center as I was walking to class. A few minutes into

Rabbi Alan Litwak Perfect Enough As Elul begins, many of us quietly take inventory of our lives. We replay conversations we wish had gone differently. We think about decisions we would change if only we could. We imagine a version of ourselves that is somehow more patient, more generous, more faithful—more perfect. But perfection has never been Judaism's goal. The moment that has already passed is beyond our reach. We cannot rewrite yesterday's words or relive yesterday's cho

Rabbi Laurence Malinger Two and a half years ago, I went back to school to obtain my Certificate of Proficiency in Mortuary Science, as a way to enhance my rabbinate. This Elul arrives unlike any I have experienced before. Having completed both National Board Examinations in Mortuary Science and the State Jurisprudence examination, I find myself reflecting not only on professional achievement but on the deeper meaning of the work I am preparing to undertake. Mortuary science

Rabbi Glenn Ettman Teshuvah as Answer We've been taught that teshuvah means "return." And it does. But that's only half the story. In Hebrew, teshuvah also means "answer." Same word, same root. Israelis drop it into conversation all the time — Mah ha'teshuvah? "What's the answer?" It's not a liturgical phrase. It's just how people talk. That changes what we're doing on these Days. "Return" implies a fixed point behind you; the person you used to be, before you drifted. Somew

Rabbi Jeremy Schneider One of the most powerful moments of my recent trip to Ethiopia to visit the remaining Beta Israel Jews took place during morning prayers. As the community gathered, many held photographs. Not prayer books. Not siddurim. Photographs. Pictures of children, parents, siblings, and grandchildren already living in Israel. Some had been separated from their loved ones for years. Others for decades. As they prayed, they held those photographs close, asking God

Rabbi Bradley Levenberg There is a remarkably powerful difference between two ideas, represented by two words, that are often explored in Elul. Regret, the first idea, is one of the most accessible emotions we have. It arrives quickly, it sounds sincere, and, for a moment, it can even feel like we’ve tapped into something meaningful. But regret, on its own, doesn’t ask very much of us. It allows us to acknowledge a misstep without requiring that anything actually change. Resp

On Fridays, we email two Elul Thoughts, out of respect for those of us who choose not to look at email on Shabbat. We wish you a blessed and restful Shabbat and hope you continue finding inspiration in our Elul Thoughts. Rabbi Deana Sussman Berezin Our journey towards the High Holy Days begins long before Rosh Hashanah. It actually begins at Tisha B’Av. And with it comes the invitation to recognize the key places in our lives that need realignment, a chance to turn towards s

Cantor Jenna Sagan Holy Transitions: An Elul 5786 Playlist As Elul unfolds, I'm drawn into a deep reflection on the transitions that have marked my life this past year. This month feels like a sacred pause, a chance to look back at where I've been and to contemplate where I'm headed. Change can be daunting, but it also holds incredible potential for growth and renewal. This year, my annual Elul playlist captures the essence of this holy transitional time—music that comforts,

Rabbi Andrew Rosenkranz A passage in our Talmud declares: “A loved one – you do not see his faults. And a hated one – you do not see his merits.” There are faults and merits in everyone, including – of course – ourselves. Sometimes the prejudices we hold against each other, both bad and good, can cloud how we view our relationships with each other. An adult child, for instance, may be incapable in your eyes of doing any wrong. Or a sometimes ornery neighbor who gives a wave a

Rabbi Michael Churgel In our complicated world, it is often difficult to find or recognize peace: between nations, groups of people, individuals, or even inner peace. But peace does exist, and it is certainly achievable as long as we are willing to put in the work to make it happen. Members of my congregation recently read The Future is Peace. This fascinating discourse jointly authored by a Palestinian Arab and an Israeli Jew, who both experienced tragedy, loss, and heartb

The month of Elul prepares us for the coming High Holy Days, which are timed for t’kufat hashanah, “the end of the year” (Exodus 34:22). But what does it really mean for a year to end? The same word appears in Psalm 19, which speaks of the sun’s domain: motzato ut’kufato al k’tzotam, “Its dawning and its ending until the far reaches [of the sky]” (Ps. 19:7). A lovely translation for the t’kufah of the sun might be “turning in,” which reflects our English idiom of “the turning

Rabbi Alan Litwak The Sound of Beginning Again The shofar is an unusual instrument. It doesn't play a melody. It doesn't entertain. It doesn't even explain itself. It simply interrupts. Every morning in Elul, its ancient sound cuts through the noise of our routines. For a brief moment, we are invited to stop living on autopilot and ask a simple question: Who am I becoming? The beauty of Elul is that it does not demand perfection before Rosh Hashanah arrives. It asks only that

On Fridays, we email two Elul Thoughts, out of respect for those of us who choose not to look at email on Shabbat. We wish you a blessed and restful Shabbat and hope you continue finding inspiration in our Elul Thoughts. Rabbi Eric Linder There is a Greek concept called arete. Loosely translated, it means virtue or excellence, but really it's about the constant pursuit of excellence. And that excellence is judged not by looking at others, but only at yourself. I think Elul i

Rabbi David N. Young On October 14, 2023, America caught “Eclipse Fever.” We lived in Chicago, and rather than drive one hour to see totality from Indiana, I thought it would be fine to check out the 95% coverage we would enjoy from our home. Was I wrong. Two months later while planning a vacation, I told my wife I would prefer to go somewhere around August 2026, when I knew there would be an eclipse over Spain and Greenland (both places I was willing to go in August). Sure

Rabbi Laurence Malinger As I prepare for this sacred season, I have been reading This Is Real and You Are Completely Unprepared by Rabbi Alan Lew. He offers a compelling insight: the Days of Awe are not primarily about judgment; they are about awakening. Elul, the month of preparation, is the gentle beginning of that awakening, inviting us into a sacred journey of reflection, honesty, and renewal before we reach Rosh Hashanah. The daily sound of the shofar interrupts the rout

Rabbi Erin Boxt The month of Elul gives us this opportunity to reflect and look deep within ourselves for hidden comfort and possibility. This possibility allows us to focus on what we need. Our health – mental, physical, and spiritual – is of utmost importance. Every year, during Elul, we have time to think about what we are most thankful for or what we crave the most. Or, we may just have a few moments of quiet solitude in which our minds can unwind and just be. Maybe someo

Rabbi Jeremy Schneider During my recent trip to Rwanda, I spent an hour sitting with a family of mountain gorillas. Like many travelers, I arrived focused on the destination. The trek. The photographs. The bucket-list experience. But once we found the gorillas, something unexpected happened. They did almost nothing. A mother groomed her infant. A juvenile tumbled through the brush. Others rested quietly in the shade. There was no performance. No dramatic moment. No grand less

Rabbi Benjamin A. Sharff One of the many challenges we are facing post October 7th, is that there are a lot of people who have made it their mission to define Judaism for us Jews, mostly in painful and inaccurate ways. They are busily re-writing our history and lived experiences. They are reinterpreting our sacred textual traditions through a very myopic lens. Because of this, it is almost impossible to find a space to be able to live an authentically Jewish life without feel

On Fridays, we email two Elul Thoughts, out of respect for those of us who choose not to look at email on Shabbat. We wish you a blessed and restful Shabbat and hope you continue finding inspiration in our Elul Thoughts. Rabbi Simone Schicker As we work through the month of Elul, as we take an accounting of our souls, actions and goals, I am sitting on the teachings of Barbara Brown Taylor, an ordained Episcopal priest. She writes in her book Holy Envy: Finding God in the Fa

Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker We want everything to be “all better.” After scrapes, broken toys, mistakes – we have a solution and without thinking about it too deeply, we’ll proclaim to a child that the situation is “all better.” And a band-aid won’t make it “all better.” Duct tape won’t make it “all better.” And whether someone of any age is coerced into saying sorry, or it’s sincere, that act alone will not make it “all better.” We know this. We know that “all better” doesn’