Thoughts from the Commons: On the meaning of Juneteenth
by Rabbi Nancy Kasten Last year, President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law, making a holiday that originated in Galveston in 1866 into a federal […]
On Practicing Piety in Public
by Rev. Dr. George Mason Below you will find two columns, both published by the Dallas Morning News on May 29, 2022. William Haun authored the first and I wrote […]
What does it mean to be pro-Israel?
As Cinemark and other local theaters screen a controversial film claiming to prove disinformation about election fraud in the 2020 presidential election, this exchange took place in the Texas Jewish […]
Thoughts from the Commons: Faith is not a spectator sport.
by Rabbi Nancy Kasten In April 2021 I joined a group from Temple Emanu-El and met (virtually) with Texas State Representative Morgan Meyer’s chief of staff to discuss several legislative […]
Thoughts from the Commons: Learning from the convergence of Ramadan, Passover, and Easter
by Rabbi Nancy Kasten This year Ramadan began on April 2, Passover begins on April 15, and Easter is celebrated on April 17. These three holidays play distinct roles in […]
As a Rabbi, Helping Pregnant Texans Get Abortions Has Never Been More Important
My experience helping pregnant Texans get abortions is one example of how faith leaders can do our part to protect life: by making abortion accessible. As a rabbi who lives […]
Thoughts from the Commons: God needs us all.
by Rabbi Nancy Kasten This story is told of the 18th century scholar and rabbi, Zusha of Hanipol: Reb Zusha was lying on his deathbed surrounded by his disciples. He […]
Dallas Woman Meets with Pope
Scholar, Pontiff seek global harmony through climate action Dr. Maria Reis Habito has long worked to help bring about a global consensus of peace, unity, and understanding among some of […]
Strangers are friends you haven’t met yet
Valarie Kaur joins Krys Boyd on KERA’s Think. Learning to respect one another is important, but what if we could take it a step further and actually learn to […]
Resolution Revolutions
In a CBS poll conducted by telephone in December, 29% of Americans said they were making New Year’s resolutions, down from 43% last year. What’s behind this notable decline? No […]