Daily Kavanot
Writings of reflection by the Stephen Wise Temple clergy.
Each weekday morning, members of our mailing list receive the “Daily Kavanah,” which includes messages of thought, inspiration, and contemplation from our clergy, along with a schedule of events. Every Thursday, the “Daily Kavanah” turns into “Eyes on Wise,” our weekly newsletter featuring the latest news, photos, videos, stories, and tikkun olam opportunities from our community. Sign up and don’t miss out!
Daily Kavanah – Monday, May 5, 2025
“You shall be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy.” (Vayikra 19:2) This year, the beginning of Jewish American Heritage month (May) coincides with our preparation to read Parashat Kedoshim. In this coincidence, we are given a profound opportunity to reflect not only on who we are but on how we are meant to be, as Jews and too as Americans. Kedoshim is often called the "Holiness Code," a sacred blueprint of what it means to live a life of justice, dignity, and responsibility. But holiness in Judaism isn’t about distance from the world—it’s about engagement with it. Holiness lives in the field where we leave the corners for the poor, in the weights we keep honest in our businesses, in how we speak—with honesty, with truth, and with love. “You shall not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor” (Vayikra 19:16) is not a suggestion—it is a command to act. [...]
Daily Kavanah – Friday, May 2, 2025
Shabbat Shalom, On Tuesday evening I was honored to share words of greeting at the official Yom HaZikaron ceremony for the city of Los Angeles, co-sponsored with the Israeli Consulate and held at Stephen Wise Temple. Below is a translation of the remarks I delivered in Hebrew. — Rabbi Yoshi We gather here this evening, as a sacred community, united as one, to mark Yom HaZikaron—Israel’s Memorial Day for Fallen Soldiers and Victims of Terror. This is not the only day of mourning on our calendar, but it is distinct and unique. On Yom HaShoah, just a few days ago, we mourned the six million murdered in the Holocaust and acknowledged the painful truth: Part of the terrible price we paid was because we did not have a state, and we did not have an army to defend us. But tonight, on Yom HaZikaron, we grieve a different loss: We mourn the soldiers [...]
Daily Kavanah – Thursday, May 1, 2025
On this Yom HaAtzmaut, we mark 77 years since David Ben-Gurion stood in Tel Aviv and declared, “The State of Israel has arisen!” He proclaimed the Jewish People’s right “to be masters of their own fate, like all other nations, in their own sovereign State.” This moment was made possible in part by the global support expressed on November 29, 1947, when the United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 181, voting 33 to 13 in favor of partitioning the land into separate Jewish and Arab states. While the Jewish leadership accepted the plan, the Arab leadership rejected it, sparking a regional conflict that, as we know, continues to this day. And yet, out of that deeply complex and painful chapter of history, the State of Israel was established — a beacon of hope and sovereignty for the Jewish People. With Ben-Gurion’s words and the UN vote, the dream of [...]
Daily Kavanah – Wednesday, April 30, 2025
Each year, countless Jewish communities around the globe, including ours, read the Natan Alterman poem Magash HaKesef (The Silver Platter), as part of their Yom HaZikaron—Israeli Memorial Day—observance. The poem, which speaks to the price paid to secure and maintain Jewish statehood, quotes Israel’s first president, Chaim Wietzman, who stated, “A state is not handed to people on a silver platter.” Alterman’s poem features two war-torn soldiers, a man and a woman, stepping forward into the midst of a celebration of freedom. When asked for their identities, they quietly reply, “We are the silver platter on which the Jewish state was given.” Alterman’s reminder that Jewish freedom and statehood carries a heavy price has become a cornerstone of Israeli national identity, codified through the calendaring of Yom HaZikaron the day prior to Yom HaAtzmaut—Israeli Independence Day. The juxtaposition of sorrow and elation beckons us to mourn the sacrifices necessary to secure Jewish [...]
Daily Kavanah – Tuesday, April 29, 2025
Yom HaAtzmaut, Year 2 After October 7—A Reflection In the spirit and voice of Rabbi Sari Laufer For Passover, I wrote to you about mixed feelings—about the Jewish imperative to hold multiple truths and experiences in the same moment. While I wrote about Passover, never is this more true on the calendar than the night that Yom HaZikaron turns into Yom HaAtzmaut. From a day of sorrow, with names scrolling endlessly across TV screens, and radio stations playing sad songs, the streets—most years—erupt into joyous chaos. Silly string flies through the air as children and adults alike hit one another, laughingly, with plastic hammers. And yet. I cannot imagine it is ever easy for a bereaved family to make this transition; this year, we have added almost 800 new families who lost a child, a sibling, a spouse, a parent in combat. So, more than ever as Yom HaAtzmaut approaches, [...]