Rabbi’s Sermons

Please take a moment to explore a sampling of our Rabbi’s sermons over the years.

If you would like to read more from Rabbi Berkowitz, then click to here to connect to her blog “This is What a Rabbi Looks Like”.

2020

January 10	I am a Jew because …
January 17	There’s no such thing as “Not My Problem”
February 7	As Difficult as Splitting the Red Sea
February 14	Ask Someone Else. Be Someone Else.
March 6	Making Our Voices Heard in Israel
March 13	How to Stay Engaged and Connected During the Quarantine
March 27	Them’s the Conditions that Prevail
April 17	We Are All Sitting Shiva
May 1	Love is a Discipline Too
May 15	May We Be Strong and May We Share Our Strength
July 3	It Only Works When You Use It Regularly…
July 10	When is Anger “Righteous”?

2019

October 3	What Judaism Can Teach Us About Living in Interesting Times – erev Rosh Hashanah
October 3	This Is Just To Say – Rosh Hashanah
October 18	Open the Box and Read the Recipe – Kol Nidre
October 18	Hope in the Dark – Yom Kippur

2018

September 28	Being Yourself – erev Rosh Hashanah
September 28	Hineini – Rosh Hashanah
October 8	How Words Create Worlds
November 2	Tree of Life

2017

March 10	The Beast Is Loose
March 13	Disturbing Memories
September 21	Gesher l’Ahteed – Bridge to the Future – Rosh Hashanah
September 29	If I Forget Thee, O Jerusalem – Kol Nidrei
September 30	The Sin of Indifference – Yom Kippur

2016

November 9	A Time to be Together, Gathering to Express Hope the Day After the Election
December 3	Esau, post-election, reclaimed from history

2015

April 17	What We Remember and Why – Yom haShoa
September 13	Opening Eyes Minds and Borders – erev Rosh Hashanah
September 14	Hearing but not Listening – Rosh Hashanah
September 23	The Hebrew Word for Year Also Means Change – Yom Kippur

2013

September 4	To Love Is To Give – erev Rosh Hashanah
September 5	Exisence As Encounter – Rosh Hashanah
September 14	Let My People Stay – Yom Kippur

2012

September 17	America the Beautiful – Can It Be – Rosh Hashanah
September 22	Express Yourself – Kol Nidrei
September 26	We Are Michaelangelo’s Unfinished Works – Yom Kippur

2011

February 2	Egypt in Turmoil
September 11	Service of Remembrance – A Decade Later
September 28	The Power of the Spoken Word – erev Rosh Hashanah
September 29	Lament for a Nation — The Plague of Hunger in America – Sh’lahchaynee – “Send Me” – Rosh Hashanah
October 7	Hunting Season – Kol Nidrei
October 8	Shame – Yom Kippur

2010

May 18	Words to Confirmation Class 2010
September 8	Anger in America — erev Rosh Hashanah
September 9	When Is A Jew – Rosh Hashanah
September 18	What Does It Remember Like — Kol Nidrei

2009

September 18

Be Holy – Wage Peace — erev Rosh Hashanah

2008

September 29	Fill Our Hands with Blessings — erev Rosh Hashanah
October 8	Speaking to God: The Challenge of Language – Kol Nidrei
October 9	Toward Personal and National Redemption — Yom Kippur

2007

January 5	Dedication of the American and Israeli Flags on the bimah of Congregation Kol Ami
September 12	Hope Lives — erev Rosh Hashanah
September 13	From Generation to Generation – Rosh Hashanah
September 21	The Always Open Door – Kol Nidrei
September 22	Finding God — Yom Kippur

2006

August 4	Who Will Cry For Israel
October 2	You Are My Kaddish — Kol Nidrei

2005

January 8	Terror of the Tsunami
October 4	The Ordeal of Civility – Rosh Hashanah
October 12	A Closer Look at the Kol Nidrei – Kol Nidrei
October 13	The Prices We Pay in the Quest for Perfection and Power – Yom Kippur

2004

May 15

The Shame of Abu Ghraib

2003

October 5

Dealing With Lifes Challenges and Changes – Kol Nidrei

2002

February 15	The Art of Giving
July 5	In Honor of Those Who Fought and Fell So That We Might Stand – Independence Day

1998

April 4	Pope John Paul Visit to Rome Central Synagogue
May 9	Our Congregation Travels to Israel for Her Jubilee Year Celebration
September 30	Teach Us To Number Our Days — Tuesdays With Morrie and Messages From My Father — Yom Kippur

1995

September 25	A Proud Moment – A Precious Legacy — The Dedication of the Kol Ami Torah – Rosh Hashanah
October 5	No Regrets – Kol Nidrei

1994

September 5

New Beginnings New Hopes New Voices – The First High Holy Day Service of Congregation Kol Ami

Rabbi’s Sermons

In This Section