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Mishkan invites you to our upcoming Pride programming, including a Pre-Shabbat Pride Happy Hour and Pride-Themed Friday Night Shabbat on June 24th. We will also be in the Chicago Pride Parade on June 26th — march with us ! Rabbi Mike Moskowitz is the Scholar-in-Residence for Trans and Queer Jewish Studies at Congregation Beit Simchat Torah, the world's largest LGBT synagogue. He is the recipi...

Obviously, Judaism is more than a little gay. But that's just modern Judaism, right? Wrong! Rabbi Steven delivered a delightful drash "Judaism Is Kinda Gay" in honor of Pride exploring three queer Jewish stories at the very heart of our tradition. You can watch it on YouTube or read it on our blog . Mishkan invites you to our upcoming Pride programming, including a Pre-Shabbat Pride...

"I love you / You love me / We're a happy family!" It's in your head, now.  Or, like the endless loop of school shootings on the news night after night, maybe it never left. And perhaps, infuriatingly, this earworm still has something to teach us. In this pre-Shavuot sermon, Rabbi Deena shows us how the texts and themes of the holiday demand that we wake up to America's gu...

"Whenever truly terrible things happen in the world, I think to myself, 'Maybe I should try being religious.'" With all of Mishkan's rabbis off duty or under the weather, self-described "fifth string rabbi" Rebecca Stevens steps up to speak from the heart about what it is like to live through this difficult time. God warned us that They would curse us if we didn&...

Rabbi Lizzi is joined by Arya Marvazy, the Senior Director of Programs for the Jews of Color Initiative.⁠ Arya (he/him) is a first-generation American born to Iranian-Jewish immigrants from Tehran. For nearly 15 years, Arya has cultivated his leadership in Jewish communal service at Hillel on campus, Hillel International, and JQ International. A proud queer Jew, Arya is passionate about empowering...

A lot of us are (correctly!) furious about the right-wing attack on our bodily autonomy.  In fact, Mishkan is joining the march this Saturday in support of abortion rights. Yet the same Torah and tradition which inspire us to march for reproductive justice also demand that we never harm anyone — not even our enemies, and not even emotionally! So how do we love a neighbor who doesn't return th...

During the Omer, we pray "for the sake of the unification of God." But isn't God already One? Rabbi Lizzi drops some drash. Today's episode is sponsored by Broadway In Chicago. Tickets are available now to Fiddler on the Roof at the Cadillac Palace Theatre, from May 17th - 22nd. Use Mishkan's special offer code ROOF45 for $45 Middle Balcony tickets. This message was origin...

We've made it through the Narrow Place, but are we fully free, yet? Builder couple Martin Friedman and Felicia Savage Friedman — expert facilitators in racial justice and Raja yoga — join Rabbi Steven for to explore how each of us living authentically is connected to our collective liberation. Today's episode is sponsored by Broadway In Chicago. Tickets are available now to Fiddler on th...

This message was originally delivered at the Mishkan's virtual seder on April 16th, 2022. You can watch the whole thing on our YouTube channel. Mishkan also invites you to our post-Passover party, The ReLeavening , on Saturday April 23rd at Half Acre Brewing. Yes, there will be pasta. And beer. And burgers. And you? Today's episode is sponsored by Broadway In Chicago. Tickets to The Prom...

Passover is a story about freedom. But what even is freedom? Rabbi Deena breaks it down ahead of Mishkan's virtual Passover seder. Today's episode is sponsored by Broadway In Chicago. Tickets to The Prom are available now! Use Mishkan's special offer code PARTY49 for $49 tickets, valid for April 19 and 20 (evening only), and April 21, in the Orchestra, Dress Circle and Loge seating...

Are your spirits getting stale? Is your soul feeling a little overproved? Toss out that chametz and tune into Rabbi Deena's drash on the benefits of a spiritual spring cleaning. Today's episode is sponsored by Broadway In Chicago. Tickets to The Prom are available now! Use Mishkan's special offer code PARTY49 for $49 tickets, valid for April 19 and 20 (evening only), and April 21, i...

"I have to be honest, I am sitting with a lot of feelings that are making it hard to lean into the peace of Shabbat." In the wake of Florida's "Don't Say Gay" bill and Texas Governor Greg Abbott's threats against trans children and their families, Rabbi Steven delivers a passionate drash connecting the oppression of the LGBTQ+ community to the soul-crushing slave...

What can each of us do to repair the world during this year of Shmita? Rabbi Lizzi welcomes Jakir Manela, CEO of Hazon: The Jewish Lab for Sustainability, for a conversation about how we can create a healthier, more sustainable, and more equitable world for all. Today's episode is sponsored by Broadway In Chicago. Tickets to The Prom are available now! Use Mishkan's special offer code PA...

The Shabbat before Purim is Shabbat Zachor — the Shabbat of Remembering. Specifically, we remember the pain inflicted on our people by Amalek, ancestral line of Purim villain Haman (boo!). But why are we commanded to simultaneously remember and forget this traumatic memory? In this drash, Rabbi Lizzi teases out how the story and mitzvot of Purim can inspire us to live with life's contradictio...

"History may repeat itself, but it doesn't have to. The story isn’t finished, and we get to choose the role we want to play in this unfolding drama." Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Rabbi Lizzi connects current events to ancient ones, and Rashi’s retelling of the building of the Mishkan to a more modern retelling of a cinematic classic. This episode is the sermon from Mis...

"I had a big gap from age 7 until 21 doing anything Jewish — except for coming home and watching Sanford And Son for Yom Kippur." Jared Jackson shares how his multi-heritage African American and Ashkenazi upbringing led him to found Jews in ALL Hues over a decade ago. This episode is abbreviated from a conversation during Mishkan's Friday night  service on February 18th. For full re...

"I don’t think it’s accidental that Whoopi Goldberg, both Black and female, was punished with silence when many people, generally White and male, have said much worse with no consequence. And I am grateful for those who, despite all of this, sought dialogue with her: remembering that conversation, not censure, is what helps us find and act upon our ability to grow." Rabbi Steven meditate...

What is God's love language? Here's a hint: it isn't receiving gifts — at least, not according to  Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks. Rabbi Deena explores how God's clear instructions for building the sanctuary can inspire us to ask for the love we need. This episode is a drash given at Mishkan's Saturday morning  service on February 5th. For full recordings of Friday services, cl...

"...Halfway through the presidency of George W. Bush,  I stood on the Washington Mall and I held my sign. It said: Another Jewish woman who loves life and kids for choice ." In a time when abortion access is being restricted under the guise of "religious liberty," Rabbi Lizzi reminds us that our religious tradition upholds the right to choose. This episode is a drash given at M...

Ruben Shimonov is the National Director of Sephardi House and Young Leadership at the American Sephardi Federation. He is also the founder of the Sephardic Mizrahi Q Network, a space for queer Jews of Sephardic and Mizrahi backgrounds, as well as a talented calligrapher whose art reflects his multicultural upbringing. He joined Mishkan's Rabbi Steven fascinating conversation with Rabbi Steven...

Just as Martin Luther King Jr.'s struggle for voting rights didn't end with the passage of the Voting Rights Act, Moshe's fight for liberation didn't end when the Israelites packed their bags full of Egyptian gold and hit the road. It's a long way to freedom, and boy are Moshe's arms tired! This episode is Rabbi Deena's sermon from Mishkan's Friday night ser...

After Pharaoh loses his firstborn son, he finally lets the Israelites leave. But not before asking Moses and Aaron: "Bless me, too." It's a strange little moment — just three words! — so, of course, the rabbis have written pages about it. Their takeaway? Even pharaohs can change. This episode is an extended excerpt  from a Torah study led by Rabbi Steven following the Saturday morni...

For five weeks, Mishkanites gathered for a discussion-filled study of "Can We Talk About Israel? A Guide for the Curious, Confused, and Conflicted." This thought-provoking book exploring one of the world's most complex, controversial topics was written by Daniel Sokatch of the New Israel Fund. Daniel was kind enough to join Rabbi Lizzi for the following Q&A session to conclude t...

We can't escape death, which doesn't stop us from spending our whole lives trying. Yet in the back of our minds we have this idea that when it's our time to go, we'll be at peace with ourselves and our loved ones, even if we didn't spend our life preparing for the inevitable. Jacob's deathbed blessings shows us that's not how it works. He died as he lived — pitti...

“Don’t smile because it’s over, cry because it happened."⁠ Why do we so often cry after a huge accomplishment? Why does it never feel truly satisfying when a dream comes true? What is honey times 60? Rabbi Deena unpacks Joseph's tears after achieving his lifelong dream. This sermon was from the Friday night service on December 10th. For full Friday services, click here . For upcoming Sha...