Sermons

Given the fact of interfaith marriages, what is the role and responsibility of the rabbi and the synagogue? Rabbi Cosgrove enjoins interfaith couples to learn about Judaism together and to take responsibility for their Jewish future.

Why should we care about the antisemitic tweets from Kanye, Kyrie, and others? Rabbi Cosgrove explains that hate-filled rhetoric always leads to violence and calls on us to fight antisemitism by every means we have available.

Is it good to regret? The Hebrew word naham can mean to regret, to repent, and also to comfort. Rabbi Cosgrove explains how the relationship between these apparently contradictory meanings allows us to learn and to benefit from our mistakes.

The Soviet author Vasily Grossman imagined a final letter from his mother before her death in the Berdichev Ghetto; he also continued writing to her after her death. Rabbi Cosgrove invites us to imagine the letters our loved ones might have written to us and what we would write ourselves.

Drawing parallels between Moses and successful modern leaders, Rabbi Cosgrove finds that Moses exemplifies all the qualities of a great leader, especially the ultimate measure of success: that one’s values endure far beyond one’s own lifetime.

The moment of Yizkor makes us aware of the finite and indefinite length of our lives. Rabbi Cosgrove encourages us not only to remember our debts to those who have gone before but also to recognize our responsibility to those who will follow us and will, in time, remember us.

While we hope for long life, we fear the inevitable losses of old age; most of all, we fear becoming irrelevant. Rabbi Cosgrove charges us with revering our elders, not only by caring for their physical and social needs, but above all, by maintaining their values in our own lives.

In an imagined conversation with the founding father of Zionism, Rabbi Cosgrove assesses the accomplishments, the aspirations, and the complexities of the Jewish state and provides a charge for us all to create strong Jewish identities. 

The stories we tell ourselves reflect our personal realities and desired self-images. Rabbi Cosgrove urges us to sit down with each other in these weeks leading to the High Holidays and to listen to each other’s stories with an aim to restoring understanding.

Rabbi Cosgrove suggests that while the Torah lists detailed rules for returning lost property, the deeper meaning of this concern may be about repairing lost relationships and restoring our souls.