Living Jewishly Out Loud

We’ve all heard Jewish caregivers kvell over their "exceptional" children — the doctors, the lawyers, the "tall and handsome" sons. And they're right to: Jews make up only 0.2% of the population, yet hold 20% of the world’s Nobel Prizes and the list of accomplishment goes on and on. Is it just good luck, or is it the way we’re raised? In this episode, Rabbi Amy breaks down the "Talmudic Checklist"...

The world often embraces Jewish stories when they are tragic, memorialized in museums, or win Academy Awards — but as Dara Horn famously wrote, "People love dead Jews. Living ones, not so much." In this episode, the Rabbis explore the vital connection between our history of loss, our modern right to self-determination, and our future, where the ultimate act of defiance is living with unapologetic...

Having just commemorated Yom HaShoah, and in this moment of deep communal challenge and change, Rabbi Amy reflects on what it means to live openly as a Jew. Drawing on a personal experience, she speaks honestly about loss and isolation since October 7, while also sharing moving stories of unexpected allies and renewed commitment to Jewish life. Her message is a reminder that even in turbulent time...

Moses stands before the burning bush and receives the divine command to tell Pharaoh, "Let my people go," yet he repeatedly resists, citing a profound speech impediment. Yet, this story serves as a powerful reminder that while we are all deeply flawed and bound to fail, if God can entrust the leadership of a nation to a man who struggled to speak, we too are capable of achieving greatness despite...

When terrible things happen, we often look for where to place the blame - villains, ourselves, even God. This week’s Torah portion prompts us to ask the same question about how the Israelites went from having Joseph as Pharoah’s right-hand man to being entirely enslaved in Egypt just a short time later.  This sermon originally aired on January 9, 2026. Love this episode and want to show your suppo...

Drawing on Mark Twain’s famous observation of Jewish endurance, this sermon explores how the secret to Jewish continuity lies not in having all the answers, but in our commitment to passing down stories and planting for the future. Even in a modern world filled with uncertainty, rising antisemitism, and complex questions that feel impossible to answer, our tradition encourages us to find clarity i...

Jewish congregations, and Temple Israel specifically, have a long tradition of innovation and change. In the generation to come, we need to both appear more Jewish and make more Jewish appearances.  This sermon originally aired on December 5, 2025. Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute here. For more information about Congregation Temple Israel, visit: www.ti-stl.org    Follo...

Throughout American Jewish history, there have been times when it seems that a switch flips in us that reminds us that our Judaism is our defining feature. Now is the time to embrace our particularism and go all in for Judaism.  This sermon originally aired on September 23, 2025. Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute here. For more information about Congregation Temple Israel...

In times of danger, we have warnings that help us protect ourselves, but there’s rarely a sign that tells us when the danger has passed. The shofar, however, provides a message about both protection and when we can return to feeling safe and whole again. This sermon originally aired on September 22, 2025. Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute here. For more information about...

You may remember our spring episode on those who become Jews by choice. Join us for this episode of Living Jewishly Out Loud as Rabbi Amy digs deeper into the awe and significance of choosing this journey for oneself.  This sermon originally aired on September 12, 2025. Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute here. For more information about Congregation Temple Israel, visit: w...

With news of a possible end to the Israel-Hamas war, and as we await the release of our hostages this weekend, Rabbi Michael offers clarity and context in this powerful episode directly tackling the painful question: are we the bad guys? Drawing on decades of travel and study in Israel and the Palestinian territories, he delves into the massive attack plan behind October 7th, the deafening antisem...

The story of Paddington Bear was inspired by the author seeing Jewish refugee children during WWII.  As we marked Kristallnacht and read the story of the Akeidah, we looked at the ways in which our faith teaches that the Jewish community refuses to sacrifice its children.  We believe in and sanctify life, and our children are our greatest resource.  This sermon originally aired on November 15, 202...

Ancient Judaism imagined Yom Kippur as a time when ritually, the whole community’s sins could be erased by putting them on a scapegoat (an actual animal). How has the idea of the scapegoat transformed and affected us over time, and what can we learn from it today? This sermon originally aired on May 23, 2025. Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute here. For more information ab...

As we come together as a community in the face of a recent antisemitic attack here in Clayton, MO, it can be hard to make sense of the ongoing turmoil Jews are facing every day, here at our doorstep. Now, more than ever, is when we must turn to study, to God, and to each other. This sermon originally aired on August 8, 2025. Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute here. For mor...

The Jewish story contains the voices of both strength and hope. This episode includes inspiring stories of both strength and hope that have occurred in the last few years in Israel and in the local Jewish community.  This sermon originally aired on October 11, 2024. Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute here. For more information about Congregation Temple Israel, visit: www.t...

There is a perpetual question of when to dwell on the tragedies of the Jewish past and when to focus our thoughts toward a positive future. When is it too soon?  This sermon originally aired on May 2, 2025. Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute here. For more information about Congregation Temple Israel, visit: www.ti-stl.org    Follow us on social  Instagram Facebook YouTube...

After the congregation witnesses and celebrates someone choosing Judaism, we become more aware of how different it can feel to have been born into Judaism.  The way we decide to daily choose Jewishness and openly share those choices with others is the greatest way we can combat antisemitism and feel proud of our faith.  This sermon originally aired on April 4, 2025. Love this episode and want to s...

The key message of Passover is also the key message of Judaism — God took the Israelites out of slavery, and that relationship defines us.  It gives us a lens to view our everyday decisions, even in a world where it is increasingly hard to know what the Jewish answer is to any situation. Sermon originally aired on April 18, 2025. Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute here. Fo...

On the High Holy Days, we’re told to look back over the past year so that we can avoid repeating our mistakes.  Whereas Moses, in his final speech to the Israelites before they enter the Promised Land, chooses to look back over their journey together and rebuke the people to ensure they don’t make the same mistakes twice, this past year has been too difficult to begin with rebuking.  Instead, here...

A midrash presents the idea that the reason Abraham was chosen to be the first Jew could be compared to a person who sees a birah doleket with God inside.  Birah doleket can mean either a palace on fire, or a palace all lit up; regardless, God is inside and Abraham does not choose to walk by.  It’s a matter of perspective, and so too is the way that each of us sees our country after the election. ...

In this very first episode, join Rabbi Michael as he examines the ways in which millennials and Gen Z have shown a disconnect to their faith and the state of Israel, the ways that we can learn and be proud of our Judaism, and what we have accomplished. Originally aired on October 3, 2024, this sermon was intended to give each generation a push to show pride in their faith and to show the dedicatio...