A Response to "Overcoming Trump-ism" and More

I have sought to encourage the denomination to remember its history of Bible-based discrimination against blacks and women, to thus acknowledge how we moved beyond that discrimination, and allow that memory to empower a rescinding of our anti-same-sex unions and marriage language and legislation.

Pew Report on Religion and Education Around the World

WASHINGTON, D.C. (Dec. 13, 2016) – Jews are more highly educated than any other major religious group around the world, while Muslims and Hindus tend to have the fewest years of formal schooling, according to a Pew Research Center global demographic study that shows wide disparities in average educational levels among religious groups.

From Apartheid to Trump

So, on Tuesday night, I watched with shock as a man who is undeniably racist—not to mention misogynist and xenophobic—was democratically elected to the highest office in the country. No, he didn’t win the popular vote; and yes, the Electoral College is an obsolete system. Nonetheless, half the country voted for this man. Indeed, we are more divided than we knew.

On Turning Sixty: Counsel From My Inner Wisdom on How to Live

Trust that your sustained presence will take care of the fruits. Work in a relaxed yet alert way, knowing that insights are gifts bestowed when you let go and align. Meet challenges with possibilities. Realize that in most cases, less is more, and quality trumps quantity. Decide whether inner criteria or outer requirements will determine when the work is finished. Celebrate your accomplishments, acknowledging they ultimately derive from the Wellspring. Bless your life and the Giver of life.

Trump: Jung's Warning

Many politicians display egotistical personality distortions, some more than others. Trump, however, is of an entirely different order. Do we want a president accessing nuclear codes, shaping the Supreme Court for generations, and leading the world in extreme climate denial, who, in the eyes of many psychologists is a narcissistic sociopath/ psychopath well accomplished in the art of gaslighting, which is when abusers undermine and distort the reality and truth of others’ perceptions and emotions in order to control or destroy them, i.e. Trump claiming victory for ending the birther myth he promoted for years by falsely shifting blame to Clinton.

The Big, Orange Shofar

If Donald Trump’s campaign was hoping for strong support from American Jews, they are surely disappointed. Trump’s support among Jewish voters is at an historically low 19%. There is an active website with contributions from rabbis and Jewish leaders called jewsagainsttrump.com. The Jewish social justice organization Bend the Arc has shared a satirical video of Jewish grandparents threatening to haunt their offspring if they vote for Trump. Rabbis, normally fearful of running afoul of congregants and IRS regulations, are openly considering speaking against the man on the High Holidays.

Policing Pride

The theme of San Francisco Pride 2016 was “For Racial and Economic Justice.” Black Lives Matter was scheduled to be one of the parade’s grand marshals. However, divergent reactions to the Orlando nightclub massacre exposed deep rifts between Pride’s organizers and LGBTQ communities of color.