Baruch HaBa! Welcome to my personal website.
Shalom and thank you for visiting my little corner of the web. This is a personal blog site, written from my perspective as a rabbi, as a husband and as a (grand)father. I aspire to share my spiritual ideals and my thoughts about religion, family, community and the world we live in. I am glad you are visiting today and hope you enjoy this site.
Orthodox Jews have Orthodox Rabbis. Likewise for Conservative and Reform Jews. But what about the unaffiliated? How about the disenfranchised, universalist, spiritual, secular, humanist, or ‘other’ Jews? The Baal Shem Tov said: The love God has for every Jew extends not only to the Jew’s soul but also to his body. God loves all Jews without distinction; the greatest Torah genius and scholar and the most simple Jew are loved equally by God. It is my job, my calling, to befriend, love, and serve those Jews who find community no where else. I am excited to share my love for Judaism with you.
I must state here that I am a Netzarim Jew. Netzarim Judaism is Biblical Judaism (and not to be confused with the messianic Christians who have co-opted the term), it is similar to Karaite Judaism, just a bit more modern and maybe a bit more liberal, depending on how you look at it.
I am a Rabbi and member of the International Assembly for Netzarim Judaism. I received semikah through the IANJ from R. Nehemiah Goldberg and R. David Joseph in 2022.
And since I get asked often:
Netzarim Judaism: The Quick Summary
Netzarim Judaism is an authentic, contemporary expression of Biblical Judaism, rooted in the ancient traditions of the Sadducees and Karaites yet fully engaged with the present. Like our Karaite brethren, we believe that the Torah is the Word of God, that its plain meaning can be understood by anyone dedicated to its study, and that the 24 books of the Tanakh alone are the binding source of Halakhah. We reject the Talmud and all extra-Biblical writings as authoritative, yet consider the full breadth of Jewish literature worthy of study, recognizing that divine inspiration did not cease in antiquity. Netzarim Judaism affirms that Judaism is a living, evolving tradition; we believe that all Jews are called to holiness and capable of embodying it in daily life. The messianic age, as we see it, is not a return to Temple sacrifice but the ethical perfection of society grounded in Torah. Central to our faith is the conviction that each Jew bears personal responsibility for interpreting and applying Jewish law, guided by individual conscience and the enduring light of Scripture.