Living Jewishly Out Loud

Who Are the Bad Guys? Seeking Clarity in a Time of War

With news of a possible end to the Israel-Hamas war, and as we await the release of our hostages this weekend, Rabbi Michael offers clarity and context in this powerful episode directly tackling the painful question: are we the bad guys? Drawing on decades of travel and study in Israel and the Palestinian territories, he delves into the massive attack plan behind October 7th, the deafening antisemitic silence that followed, and the accountability necessary on the path toward peace.
This sermon originally aired on October 1, 2025.
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For more information about Congregation Temple Israel, visit: www.ti-stl.org  
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This podcast’s theme song, “Oseh Shalom,” is performed by Rob Aronson. 

The Jewish Origins of Paddington Bear

The story of Paddington Bear was inspired by the author seeing Jewish refugee children during WWII.  As we marked Kristallnacht and read the story of the Akeidah, we looked at the ways in which our faith teaches that the Jewish community refuses to sacrifice its children.  We believe in and sanctify life, and our children are our greatest resource. 
This sermon originally aired on November 15, 2024. 
Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute at: www.ti-stl.org/Donate  
For more information about Congregation Temple Israel, visit: www.ti-stl.org  
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This podcast’s theme song, “Oseh Shalom,” is performed by Rob Aronson. 

Escaping the Scapegoat

Ancient Judaism imagined Yom Kippur as a time when ritually, the whole community’s sins could be erased by putting them on a scapegoat (an actual animal). How has the idea of the scapegoat transformed and affected us over time, and what can we learn from it today?
This sermon originally aired on May 23, 2025.
Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute at: www.ti-stl.org/Donate  
For more information about Congregation Temple Israel, visit: www.ti-stl.org  
Follow us on social Instagram: www.instagram.com/congregationtempleisrael Facebook: www.facebook.com/templeisraelstlouis  YouTube: www.youtube.com/tistl  
This podcast’s theme song, “Oseh Shalom,” is performed by Rob Aronson. 

God, the Poet, and the Lone Soldier

As we come together as a community in the face of a recent antisemitic attack here in Clayton, MO, it can be hard to make sense of the ongoing turmoil Jews are facing every day, here at our doorstep. Now, more than ever, is when we must turn to study, to God, and to each other.
This sermon originally aired on August 8, 2025.
Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute at: www.ti-stl.org/Donate  
For more information about Congregation Temple Israel, visit: www.ti-stl.org  
Follow us on social Instagram: www.instagram.com/congregationtempleisrael Facebook: www.facebook.com/templeisraelstlouis  YouTube: www.youtube.com/tistl  
This podcast’s theme song, “Oseh Shalom,” is performed by Rob Aronson. 

From Anne Frank to Mordechai Anielewicz

The Jewish story contains the voices of both strength and hope. This episode includes inspiring stories of both strength and hope that have occurred in the last few years in Israel and in the local Jewish community. 
This sermon originally aired on October 11, 2024.
Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute at: www.ti-stl.org/Donate  
For more information about Congregation Temple Israel, visit: www.ti-stl.org  
Follow us on social Instagram: www.instagram.com/congregationtempleisrael Facebook: www.facebook.com/templeisraelstlouis  YouTube: www.youtube.com/tistl  
This podcast’s theme song, “Oseh Shalom,” is performed by Rob Aronson. 

Too Soon?

There is a perpetual question of when to dwell on the tragedies of the Jewish past and when to focus our thoughts toward a positive future. When is it too soon? 
This sermon originally aired on May 2, 2025.
Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute at: www.ti-stl.org/Donate  
For more information about Congregation Temple Israel, visit: www.ti-stl.org  
Follow us on social Instagram: www.instagram.com/congregationtempleisrael Facebook: www.facebook.com/templeisraelstlouis  YouTube: www.youtube.com/tistl  
This podcast’s theme song, “Oseh Shalom,” is performed by Rob Aronson. 

Jews by Choice

After the congregation witnesses and celebrates someone choosing Judaism, we become more aware of how different it can feel to have been born into Judaism.  The way we decide to daily choose Jewishness and openly share those choices with others is the greatest way we can combat antisemitism and feel proud of our faith. 
This sermon originally aired on April 4, 2025.
Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute at: www.ti-stl.org/Donate  
For more information about Congregation Temple Israel, visit: www.ti-stl.org  
Follow us on social Instagram: www.instagram.com/congregationtempleisrael Facebook: www.facebook.com/templeisraelstlouis  YouTube: www.youtube.com/tistl  
This podcast’s theme song, “Oseh Shalom,” is performed by Rob Aronson. 

The Real Message of Passover (and Why It Doesn't Really Matter if Moses Was Real)

The key message of Passover is also the key message of Judaism — God took the Israelites out of slavery, and that relationship defines us.  It gives us a lens to view our everyday decisions, even in a world where it is increasingly hard to know what the Jewish answer is to any situation.
Sermon originally aired on April 18, 2025.
Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute at: www.ti-stl.org/Donate  
For more information about Congregation Temple Israel, visit: www.ti-stl.org  
Follow us on social Instagram: www.instagram.com/congregationtempleisrael Facebook: www.facebook.com/templeisraelstlouis  YouTube: www.youtube.com/tistl  
This podcast’s theme song, “Oseh Shalom,” is performed by Rob Aronson. 

Beyond a Time for Rebuke

On the High Holy Days, we’re told to look back over the past year so that we can avoid repeating our mistakes.  Whereas Moses, in his final speech to the Israelites before they enter the Promised Land, chooses to look back over their journey together and rebuke the people to ensure they don’t make the same mistakes twice, this past year has been too difficult to begin with rebuking.  Instead, here is a reminder of some of the most difficult moments of this past year, and the way that our community shone so brightly. 
As the first sermon of the High Holy Days, this was given to remind people of all that they faced so courageously in the past year, and to give them the encouragement and hope that whatever the next year brings, we will face it together with strength and confidence.
Sermon originally aired on October 2, 2024.
Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute at: www.ti-stl.org/Donate  
For more information about Congregation Temple Israel, visit: www.ti-stl.org  
Follow us on social Instagram: www.instagram.com/congregationtempleisrael Facebook: www.facebook.com/templeisraelstlouis  YouTube: www.youtube.com/tistl  
This podcast’s theme song, “Oseh Shalom,” is performed by Rob Aronson. 

This House is on Fire

A midrash presents the idea that the reason Abraham was chosen to be the first Jew could be compared to a person who sees a birah doleket with God inside.  Birah doleket can mean either a palace on fire, or a palace all lit up; regardless, God is inside and Abraham does not choose to walk by.  It’s a matter of perspective, and so too is the way that each of us sees our country after the election.  Regardless, we have to be like Abraham and not pass by. 
After the election, there was such a complete mix of elation and devastation, it just depended on perspective.  This midrash gives us a sense that whatever our perspective is, as the descendants of Abraham, it is still our role to engage. Sermon originally aired on November 8, 2024.
Love this episode and want to show your support? Contribute at: www.ti-stl.org/Donate  
For more information about Congregation Temple Israel, visit: www.ti-stl.org  
Follow us on social Instagram: www.instagram.com/congregationtempleisrael Facebook: www.facebook.com/templeisraelstlouis  YouTube: www.youtube.com/tistl  
This podcast’s theme song, “Oseh Shalom,” is performed by Rob Aronson.