God of Victory
Rabbi Knopf explains the power of the Hallel service, which invites us to partner with God, shake off the dust, and rise.
Jan 17, 2019•5 min
Shtender
Join Rabbi Michael Knopf, the Rabbi of Temple Beth-El in Richmond, VA, for sermons given from his Shtender.
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Episodes
Pulpit Swap: Rabbi Michael Knopf at Seventh Street Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
On December 1 and 2, 2018, Rabbi Michal Knopf participated in an interfaith “pulpit swap” with colleague, Rev. Hollie Woodruff, of Seventh Street Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Richmond. She preached on Saturday, and he spoke to her congregation on Sunday. The topic was “Spiritual Revolutionaries: Making Religion Relevant in the 21st Century”. This episode is […]
Jan 03, 2019•19 min
Pulpit Swap: Reverend Hollie Woodruff at Temple Beth El
On December 1 and 2, 2018, Rabbi Michal Knopf participated in an interfaith “pulpit swap” with colleague, Rev. Hollie Woodruff, of Seventh Street Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Richmond. She preached on Saturday, and he spoke to her congregation on Sunday. The topic was “Spiritual Revolutionaries: Making Religion Relevant in the 21st Century”. This episode […]
Dec 27, 2018•19 min
Let It Go
In his Shabbat message for Parashat Vayetze (November 17, 2018), Rabbi Knopf discusses the meaning of a strange story about the matriarch Rachel stealing her father’s idols, explaining that it is a story about needing to let go of the past to become who you were meant to be.
Dec 20, 2018•20 min
2018 End Of Year Appeal
In this episode of The JCast Journey, host Darone Ruskay returns for his semi-annual request for support. Have you been listening to JCast Network podcasts for days, weeks, months, years? Well as we say, podcasts are free to listen to, but not free to produce. Darone discusses some the cost of keeping the network afloat, and […]
Dec 17, 2018•8 min
The Name You Earn
In his Friday message for Parashat Toldot (November 9, 2018), Rabbi Knopf explains that our identity is formed by how we show up and what we do in the world.
Dec 13, 2018•8 min
Love Just Because
In his Shabbat message for Parashat Hayyei Sarah (November 3, 2018), Rabbi Knopf offers a message of healing and hope following the attack on the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh.
Dec 06, 2018•12 min
Putting God Second
In his Shabbat message for Parashat Vayera (October 27, 2018), Rabbi Knopf shares that the story of the Binding of Isaac has a crucial lesson to teach for our incredibly politically charged moment.
Nov 29, 2018•17 min
Praying for Rain and Reviving the Dead
Most of us don’t believe that rainfall depends on moral behavior or that God literally raises the dead. Yet the liturgy of Shemini Atzeret asserts both of those things simultaneously. In this holiday message, Rabbi Knopf brings these practices into the 21st century.
Nov 22, 2018•17 min
Everything is Abel!
The biblical book of Ecclesiastes, which is read on Shabbat during the Sukkot holiday, is one of the most misunderstood books of the Bible. In this brief talk, Rabbi Knopf offers a unique way of understanding Ecclesiastes that is relevant for our times, and morally and spiritually challenging.
Nov 15, 2018•13 min
Embodying Gratitude, Elevating Joy
Waving the Lulav and Etrog on Sukkot is how we take the secular act of repeating a harvest and turn it into the spiritual act of gratitude, which elevates and directs our joy in an already joyous season.
Nov 08, 2018•11 min
Don’t Just Repent. Vote
Introducing the confessional prayer on Yom Kippur morning, Rabbi Knopf points out that its plural language means we share responsibility for the sins of our community. In a democracy, that means we must participate in the processes — like voting — that make our society better.
Nov 01, 2018
Think Different
In his Shabbat message for Parashat Noah (October 13, 2018), Rabbi Knopf discusses how the Tower of Babel story teaches us about the dangers of uniform thinking.
Oct 28, 2018•17 min
The Responsibilities of Privilege
In his Yom Kippur sermon, Rabbi Knopf talks about the role of luck in our lives, and how Jewish tradition offers pathways for the privileged few to level the playing field for those who have been less fortunate.
Oct 25, 2018
You Don’t Need Likes to Be Loved
For his Kol Nidrei sermon, Rabbi Knopf shares a personal account of his struggles with social media addiction, and what he learned about himself could help others, and open up a new way of relating to the holiest day of the Jewish year.
Oct 18, 2018
The Torah’s Call for Civil Disobedience
Rabbi Knopf teaches the Torah’s commandment not to return runaway slaves, and discusses its implications for today, particularly regarding the current assaults on immigrant communities, in his Shabbat message for Parashat Ki Teitzei (August 25, 2018)
Oct 11, 2018•14 min
What to Do When “We’re in Crazytown”
Rabbi Knopf’s introduction to the Shofar service on the 2nd day of Rosh Hashanah 2018, introducing the Shofar’s call as a reminder of how to be sane in a world gone mad.
Oct 04, 2018•7 min
Just Walk Beside Me
Rabbi Knopf’s message for the 2nd day of Rosh Hashanah 2018, an exploration of what it means to be part of a community, and an invitation to show up for each other.
Sep 27, 2018•24 min
Listen to Her Voice!
Rabbi Knopf’s message for the 1st day of Rosh Hashanah 2018, a forceful call for women’s equality in the Jewish world and beyond.
Sep 20, 2018•28 min
The Land of Israel: God’s Conditional Gift
In his Shabbat message for Parashat Eikev (August 4, 2018), Rabbi Knopf discusses the conditions the Torah attaches to living in the Land of Israel, and their implications for the modern-day Jewish State.
Aug 16, 2018•14 min
The Most Counter-Cultural Commandment
Rabbi Knopf’s Shabbat message for Parashat Va-Et’hanan (Saturday, July 28, 2018), discussing the significance and challenge of the 10th commandment – not to desire that which does not belong to us.
Aug 09, 2018•12 min
Looking Backward to Move Forward
Rabbi Knopf’s message for Parashat Mattot-Mase’i (July 14, 2018), discussing the importance honestly confronting the mistakes of our past in order to move forward in a positive direction.
Aug 02, 2018
Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner: Judah P. Benjamin
Guest preacher Rev. Wallace Adams-Riley discusses the intersection of race, the history of America’s South, and the implications for our lives today, sharing from his own story, his family’s story, and from his work on the History & Reconciliation Initiative at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church Richmond.
Jul 26, 2018•13 min
The World is Yours, But it Doesn’t Belong to You
Rabbi Knopf’s address to the Maggie Walker Governor’s School graduating class of 2018, at their Baccalaureate ceremony (June 14, 2018).
Jul 19, 2018•10 min
A Kingdom of Priests
In his Yizkor message for Shavuot (May 20, 2018), Rabbi Knopf argues that it is the job of all Jews, and not just the rabbi, to minister to and care for each other.
Jul 12, 2018
Not In Heaven
Rabbi Knopf’s message for the first day of Shavuot (May 20, 2018), discussing the importance of treating the Torah as a living, breathing document.
Jul 05, 2018
No One Invisible
In his Shabbat message for Parashat Bamidbar (May 19, 2018), Rabbi Knopf argues that the set up of the ancient Israelites’ camp in the wilderness offers powerful guidance for our world today, where poverty and inequality are rampant, and we have an epidemic of in/visibility.
Jun 28, 2018
God’s Spirit, Our Hands
In his Shabbat message for Parashat Emor (May 5, 2018), Rabbi Knopf offers a glimpse at the true purpose of counting the Omer, through a close reading of the biblical text.
Jun 14, 2018
No One Is Really Gone
Rabbi Knopf’s Yizkor message on the last day of Passover 2018, in which he proposes that death is, in a certain sense, an illusion. No one is ever really gone.
May 31, 2018
What Will You Take With You?
On the eve of the 8th day of Passover 2018, Rabbi Knopf invites us to consider what insights from the holiday will stay with us after the holiday ends.
May 24, 2018
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