Park Avenue Podcasts

 Dr. Nadler shares his insights into the Portuguese-Jewish community of 17th-century Amsterdam, including the stories and myths surrounding the herem, or censure, of the famed philosopher Baruch Spinoza. For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  spinozza_lecture_-_3.15.19_-_podcast.mp3

After discussing the role that the sacrificial system played in centralizing religious life, Rabbi Witkovsky explores the effect of upheaval in religious development and poses that the next reorganization of the Jewish world will be based on identity. For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  ew_sermon_3.23.19.mp3

What sort of society did Zionists want to build? Did they focus on individual freedom or the collective, emphasizing equality and fairness rather than innovation and the self? We may see these values in historical terms such as the creation of agrarian kibbutzim (collectives) or in urban areas like Tel Aviv. This conversation enables us to consider the nature of Zionist social values, and the role of government in promoting both freedom and equality. It also allows us to trace the history of economic change from an earlier time to the Israel of Start-Up Nation. Audio:  intro_to_zionism_31.mp3 read more

In his sermon "Why We Laugh," Rabbi Cosgrove prays for peace and, with Purim around the corner, explains how laughter is one of the ways that we cope with painful gap between the world as it is and the world as it ought to be. For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  3.16_sermon.mp3

In his sermon “Varieties of Never Again,” Rabbi Cosgrove draws on the book of Esther and on the teachings of Dr. Shaul Magid to offer historical context for the different ways that American Jews view our diaspora community, all responding to the trauma of the Holocaust and to other expressions of anti-Semitism. For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  3.9.19_ec_sermon.mp3

Theodor Herzl envisioned his “New Society” as a polity both Jewish and democratic, a radically egalitarian view in his time, and one that remains a bedrock of contemporary Israeli political thought. This view thought of Jewish sovereignty in a positive and defensive way: as the natural right of Jews to self-government and thus part of the process of normalizing Jewish life, and as a response to modern anti-Jewish ideas and action that we call anti-Semitism. In this lecture we consider the relative Israel/Diaspora political strategies of self-government versus integration. Audio:  intro_to_zionism_2.mp3 read more

What connects Zionism to Jewish history? Is Zionism the natural continuation of two millennia of Jewish attachment to the Land of Israel and aspiration to return there in the End of Days, i.e. Jewish messianism? Or does it mark a modern radical largely secular repudiation of this older view of Jewish history and destiny? Through the lens of the role of religion and peoplehood in Jewish life, as well as the role of continuity and discontinuity in Jewish history, we discuss the birth of modern Jewish nationalism and its affirmation of a secular vision of Jewish nationhood. Audio:  intro_to_zionism_1.mp3 read more

How do the stories and legends of our people come to be, and what do they mean for how we connect to our history? Dara Horn examines one of the most well-known “legends” of American Jewish history, and invites us to see a new angle on how and why it came to be. For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  dara_horn_podcast.mp3

 In his sermon "Neither Early Nor Late," Rabbi Cosgrove discusses a centuries-old rabbinical debate over the chronology of the narrative in the second half of sefer Sh’mot, the book of Exodus. Whether or not we accept the principle of ein mukdam u-m’uhar ba-torah, “there is no early or late in the Torah,” relates to how we seek God’s presence even today. For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  2.9_sermon.mp3

PAS Music Director Colin Fowler performs the music of Felix Mendelssohn and leads a conversation around Mendelssohn's complicated relationship with Judaism and its effect on both his life and music. For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  colin_salon.mp3

In his sermon The Great Schism, Rabbi Cosgrove addresses the challenging divide between Israeli and American Jewry, tracing it to the difference in how the two communities answer the question, “Is Judaism a religion or a nationality?” For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  ec_sermon_1.12.19.mp3

 In his sermon, "Hardened Hearts," Rabbi Cosgrove proposes that it is God’s gift of free will that defines our humanity and that it is our responsibility to use that gift correctly. For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  sermon_1_5_19_podcast.mp3

 In his sermon, “Hidden Goblets,” Rabbi Cosgrove proposes a  new interpretation of events in the familiar narrative of  Joseph and his brothers, which gives us a new lesson for our  own lives. For more information about services and programs at Park  Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  ec_sermon_12.15.18.mp3

Rabbi Cosgrove introduces an initiative to make PAS a leader  in addressing the environmental crisis and encourages us to  be like the Maccabees, who took action even in the face of  what seemed to be insurmountable odds. For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  12.1.18_ec_sermon.mp3

Five days after comic book legend Stan Lee passed away at the age of 95, Rabbi Cosgrove paid respects to Lee in his sermon and discussed how the early days of the American comic book industry reflected Jewish history and culture. For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  11.17.18_ec_sermon.mp3

Weeklong Scholar-in-Residence Shalom Orzach shares insights on Israel’s place in the world in its 70th year of statehood, and what issues and goals are central to its present and future. For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  lecture_11_9_18.mp3

In his sermon “#PittsburghStrong,” given one week after the shooting in Pittsburgh, Rabbi Cosgrove acknowledges the different ways a person may cope with such a tragic event and the many questions and concerns such an event can raise. For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  ec_sermon_-_11.3.18.mp3

In his response to Jack Wertheimer’s essay “The New High Holy Days,” Rabbi Cosgrove critiques the analysis of a survey of how non-Orthodox synagogues try to engage their congregants during the High Holidays and beyond in a time where more and more people are disassociating from the concepts of religion. For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  9.8.18_sermon_rabbi_cosgrove.mp3

Days before the 50th anniversary of the famous protest by Tommie Smith and John Carlos at the 1968 Olympics, Rabbi Cosgrove discusses the current wave of protests in the US, the contrast between Noah and Abraham, and the importance of defending what you believe is right for the world in his sermon, “Stand!” For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  ec_sermon_10.13.18.mp3

Sermon – Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove: A Time to Speak, Bo – Sep 29 In his sermon, "A Time to Speak,” Rabbi Cosgrove reflects on current events, #MeToo and the Jewish values that we can bring to the discussion by leaning into our tradition, drawing on its wisdom and letting it guide us in these uncertain days. For more information about services and programs at Park Avenue Synagogue, visit our website at https://pasyn.org. Audio:  9.29.18_sermon_rabbi_cosgrove.mp3