Joseph and the Exodus: Openheartedness After Being Constricted
March 30, 2026
Joseph is here to teach us to let things go.
Michael Strassfeld is the rabbi emeritus of the SAJ-Society for the Advancement of Judaism. He is an editor of The Jewish Catalogs and with Joy Levitt, A Night of Questions: A Passover Haggadah. His new book Judaism Disrupted: A Spiritual Manifesto for the 21st Century was just published by Ben Yehuda Press.
Joseph is here to teach us to let things go.
For many people, the liturgy seems disconnected from their concerns, hopes, dreams and challenges.
A word of Torah focusing on this moment in Israel and also the upcoming presidential debate. The “psalm” is composed of a number of verses
Judaism needs to be disrupted to respond to our radically changed world.
Synagogues are in trouble. I suggest that we revisit Kaplan’s notion of the synagogue-center.
In this speech from the 2017 RRA convention, Rabbi Michael Strassfeld reflects on redemption, responsibility and embodying Torah as Jewish leaders and community members.
Serving as central organization of the Reconstructionist movement
Training the next generation of groundbreaking rabbis
Modeling respectful conversations on pressing Jewish issues
Curating original, Jewish rituals, and convening Jewish creatives
