This time of year, I hear my own inner skeptic say, “Why bother?” Isn’t this idea of starting the new year over a bit outdated? After all, we are Jews. There’s no Times Square fanfare or a ball to drop. Yes, there are apples and honey, but frankly, I’d rather eat a brownie. 

Shalom, Rabbi, I have a question. Why is it that when I experience true beauty, a mama lion serenely cradling her cub, a cub fully vulnerable and relaxed into her mama’s embrace, do I experience a pain in my heart? I immediately feel a pain and a fear that someone will harm either of them or that bad things will happen to them? What in me needs healing to let go of this fear and despair that beauty is under attack, that vulnerability and love will be destroyed?

What if instead of your alarm waking you in the morning, you awoke to song, to soul, to love?

Guess what?

You can. 

A blessing for you and yours in the video above. 

For insights into the shofar, hear my recent song-filled sermon here. 11 min.

To join us tonight and over these Awesome Days at my shul in San Diego. We will broadcast live - tune in here.

Shana tova!

Our world is becoming an increasingly scary place. 

We need to strengthen our resolve to seek tov, to seek goodness.

One way: seek peace by looking in each other's eyes.

Click here to listen to me preach about this man as I look into his eyes.  

Walkin' with the One. Such a relief. A prayer for the sacred count up from Passover to Shavuot. Walk with me through the barley fields.  

Bless it. A way to get closer to your own experience. Take off the saran wrap, get on the court, touch skin to skin. Let's point to Source. Yes, you. Yes, us. 

Check out my 1st published piece in Elephant Journal! Share with your people and try out at home. Would love to hear your favorite Passover Tip! xo

The fresh month of Nisan began this weekend. It's the month of Uri'el, Spring, Passover, blossoms and balance. Click the blossom above to have a special listen in to our April MoonWalk, recorded live 4/5/16. To join, go to http://www.thisisras.com/shop/moonwalk.

Each night our souls fly high. According to Jewish tradition 1/60th of our soul returns to The One every night. In the morning, as we open our eyes, we sing a song of praise thanking The One that our soul has been re-nested in our body, renewed and refreshed.

Purim is here and it's time to step out. Wether we wear masks during the year or just on Purim, that which is hidden is yearning to emerge. 

Picture this: In rabbinic times, after the destruction of the Temples, Jews lived throughout the Middle East and North Africa. In order to synchronize the calendars, long before Iphones or satellites, a rabbinic court in Jerusalem waited for two witnesses to come and testify that they had seen the New Moon crescent.

Upon hearing from each witness, the judges scrupulously compared their testimonies to make sure they were identical. Once the New Moon was confirmed, the news had to spread immediately to people living far and wide. How, you ask? 

Bonfires. Want in? Click to learn more. 

When you walk on the beach, where do your eyes rest? A VIDEO teaching inspired by Hassidut, Judaism's mystical wild-side. An opportunity to train in spiritual warriorship, to notice our mind's patterns to cultivate choice and empowered self expression. 

Want more? Join me on an upcoming FREE CALLS. Details inside. 

הִזדַמְנוּת - OPPORTUNITY.

At the root of the the Hebrew word for opportunity is the word for time, or moment. 

What does opportunity look like and sound like, in your life? What is the potential of one moment to alter our lives? Here's a peak into Moses' life and just one of those tiny, GIANT, moments. 

Each day we light fires and put them out. We break things and build. We plant and harvest, tear and smooth. Six days a week we effort, tirelessly to create. In the year 200 C.E., the rabbis of the Mishna got radical. They took a list of 39 artisan techniques -- threshing, winnowing, sowing, skinning, weaving and tearing -- and transformed it from a checklist to create into an invitation to be created. Shabbat is one of these nights. 

A quick shout out from my body to yours! Are you tired of sitting at your computer and thinking all day? Let’s shake it up and remember that we have legs, necks, bums and toes. The Hebrew word for body is goof. Even the word “goof” brings a smile. Click the video link above to hear more. 

As I boarded the plane in Los Angeles to fly to Cape Town for the High Holy Days, I paused, touched the side of the open plane and said to myself, “b’yado afki ruchi,” in Your hand I place my spirit. This line from Adon Olam is my “all aboard” ritual and prayer. 

A Rosh Hashana invites us to press reset. When the New Year begins its tempting to feel apathy upon arrival, disillusioned to begin again, fatigued by our futile resolutions made last year. That’s where community, ritual and a good kick in the tush can really count. Hope to hear from you! Where are you this year and where do you want to go?