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Read Rabbi Knopf’s Recent Posts
- Shabbat for Shabbat’s Sake: Parashat Sh’lakh Lekha 5782 June 25, 2022
- Embrace the Wilderness: Parashat Beha’alotekha 5782 June 21, 2022
- Message to the Class of 2022 June 20, 2022
- Punk’s Not Dead, It’s Jewish: Shavuot 5782 June 7, 2022
- ‘Earn This’: Last Day of Passover 5782 April 24, 2022
Tag Archives: current-events
Leaning Into Love: A Jewish Message for Lent/Easter 2020
I was honored to be invited to offer remarks at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church (Richmond, VA) during the Lenten season. Unfortunately, those plans were…altered…by the pandemic. But my message has been posted on YouTube. You can check it out here:
Posted in Reflections, Sermons
Tagged coronavirus, covid-19, current-events, ethics, health, healthcare, justice, love, politics, religion, social justice, society, spirituality
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Wearing a face mask? You’re doing a mitzvah. Make a brachah!
Among the Jewish tradition’s most cherished values is the sanctity of human life. With a few notable exceptions, one must not endanger their life in order to fulfill a religious obligation. And one must violate even the most significant commandments … Continue reading
Posted in Articles and Op-Eds, Public Statements, Reflections
Tagged blessing, coronavirus, covid-19, current-events, faith, health, healthcare, politics, prayer, religion
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What God Needs Now: A Brief Pandemic Passover Reflection
“Once, Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai was traveling out of Jerusalem. Rabbi Yehoshua was walking behind him and saw the Temple in ruins. He said, ‘Alas for us, for this place which lies in ruins was where the people Israel atoned … Continue reading
Posted in Reflections, Sermons
Tagged coronavirus, covid-19, current-events, faith, health, healthcare, Jewish holidays, love, Passover, personal, religion, society, spirituality
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A Eulogy for Helen Zimm (z”l)
Today, I had the painful honor of burying my dear friend and teacher, Helen Zimm. The experience was made even more painful by the fact that most of Helen’s family and virtually all of her community were not able to … Continue reading
Posted in Sermons
Tagged coronavirus, covid-19, current-events, faith, history, holocaust, hope, Jewish holidays, Jewish People, jewish state, love, Passover, personal, religion, society, spirituality, women
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Reflections on the COVID-19 Pandemic
I wrote the following statement along with my multi-faith partners on the Standing Together Steering Committee of the Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities: These are turbulent and anxious times. The COVID-19 pandemic has upended so many of our lives. We … Continue reading
Posted in Public Statements
Tagged community, coronavirus, covid-19, current-events, faith, health, inclusion, interfaith, justice, Muslim-Jewish relations, politics, religion, social justice, society
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A Pandemic Blessing and Prayer
Ever since Lilah, our oldest child, was born, Adira and I have sung a prayer called “B’shem Hashem (The Angel Song)” to our children each night at bedtime, using a melody from Rabbi Solomon Carlebach. It’s a lovely ritual, but … Continue reading
Posted in Reflections
Tagged coronavirus, covid-19, current-events, faith, health, parents, personal, religion, spirituality
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Coronavirus is our Amalek. The Torah’s lesson is clear: Protect the vulnerable.
As Jewish communities gather to celebrate the Purim holiday under the shadow of a global pandemic, it is worth heeding a piece of wisdom embedded in one of the scriptures most closely associated with the holiday. On the Sabbath before … Continue reading
Posted in Articles and Op-Eds, Reflections, Sermons
Tagged coronavirus, covid-19, current-events, environment, faith, health, healthcare, justice, politics, purim, religion, science, social justice, society
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Justice, Truth, and Peace: How to Keep Our Republic
The following was a keynote address at the Religious Freedom Day celebration at Richmond, Virginia’s “First Freedom Center,” January 16, 2020. Good morning. It is an honor to be with you today for this celebration of our most cherished freedoms. I … Continue reading
Posted in Public Statements, Reflections, Sermons
Tagged culture, current-events, faith, freedom, history, inclusion, Pluralism, politics, religion, society
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Celebrating Jewish Culture in Troubled Times
Keynote address at University of Mary Washington’s Jewish Cultural Celebration (November 6, 2019) Good evening. It is such an honor and a joy to be with you this evening for this celebration of Jewish Culture. It is especially meaningful to … Continue reading
Posted in Public Statements, Reflections, Sermons
Tagged anti-semitism, culture, current-events, faith, history, immigration, justice, peace, personal, politics, race, racism, religion, social justice, society
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Nature Abhors a Vacuum. But Antisemitism Loves One.
Sermon from Yom Kippur — October 9, 2019 In late April of 1913, a night watchman at an Atlanta pencil factory discovered the bruised and bloody corpse of a 13 year-old employee named Mary Phagan in the factory’s cellar. As news … Continue reading
Posted in Sermons
Tagged anti-semitism, culture, current-events, faith, Islamophobia, justice, peace, personal, politics, religion, security, social justice, society
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Rabbi Michael Rose Knopf 