Park Avenue Synagogue Podcast

Sermon – Rabbi Steven Philp: Sometimes We Need a Do-Over – January 2, 2021

Reflections, retrospectives, and resolutions . . . Didn’t we already do this at Rosh Hashanah? Our tradition teaches us that sometimes we need a do-over to help reorient us toward a more courageous, more hopeful future.

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Sermon – Rabbi Ethan Witkovsky: The Need for Restraint – December 26, 2020

We all need some strength as we work to keep everyone safe through a little self-restraint. To give us a boost, Rabbi Witkovsky discusses the Jewish values latent in the idea of restraint, including lessons from Joseph on when and how we can benefit ourselves and others through self-control.

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Sermon – Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove: Never Alone–December 19, 2020

Rabbi Cosgrove reminds us that since Joseph in Egypt, Jews have found the strength to form imagined community and make spiritual connections even when we are physically separated. We must reach out to others, reminding them and ourselves that we are never alone.

For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org.

Dialogue - Jennifer Stern Granowitz and Erin Beser: How We Talk About Judaism - December 17, 2020

Manhattan Congregational and Hebrew School Directors Jennifer Stern Granowitz and Erin Beser co-host this professional development podcast for educators who teach Jewish subjects in Jewish schools. Each episode will explore an educator's most powerful tool, the pedagogy of language, and how the words we use can create new worlds and open spaces in a classroom. Today's pilot episode will explore how we talk about Judaism, unpacking expressions such as "Judaism says that . . ." and "They're more religious" and discussing who's entitled to have a Christmas tree.

 

For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org.

Sermon – Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove: Do You Believe in Miracles?–December 5, 2020

Do you believe in miracles? As we approach Hanukkah, the holiday of miracles, Rabbi Cosgrove teaches that we need not believe in the supernatural in order to appreciate the miraculous in the mundane.

For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org.

Sermon –Rabbi Ethan Witkovsky: Illuminating Our Vulnerability – November 28, 2020

We are all imperfect, and holidays like Thanksgiving often seem to shine a light on the ways we don’t measure up to some Rockwellian standard. Rabbi Witkovsky shows us how the family stories of Jacob, Leah, and Rachel, along with the writings of Brene Brown, can give us insight into being vulnerable with one another and getting our needs met.

 

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Sermon – Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove: Oh Brother! –November 21, 2020

As Thanksgiving approaches, Rabbi Cosgrove explores the subject of sibling relations by way of the most intense and painful sibling rivalry of the Bible – Jacob and Esau. He urges us to invest in the blessing of siblings and to express gratitude for their presence in our lives.

For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org.

Sermon – Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove: The Sancho Question –November 14, 2020

In posing “the Sancho question,” Rabbi Cosgrove considers how the response of our political leaders and our own responses to the recent election bear on the health of our democracy and the strength of our country.

For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org.

Sermon – Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove: This Too Shall Pass – October 31, 2020

Rabbi Cosgrove reminds us that at moments of joy and sorrow, gam zeh ya·avor, this too shall pass. We can find strength and sorrow in the realization that no single moment totally defines us and we should always work for things to be different in the future.

For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org.

Sermon –Rabbi Ethan Witkovsky: Our Story Begins... – October 10, 2020

Genesis is the origin story of our world, and like any good origin story, it imparts both superpowers and a mission to its heroes. Rabbi Witkovsky discusses the origin stories of the Torah and the United States. What lessons we can learn from them? Is it time for a reboot?

For more information available at www.pasyn.org or follow us @parkavesyn or https://www.facebook.com/parkavenuesyn.