High Holy Days with CSK 2024Who? Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss, Rabbi Laura Sheinkopf, Hannah Madeleine Goodman (soloist), Tiffany Halfon (Program and Operations Manager), Andrew Lienhard (pianist), Kelly Dean (woodwinds), Daphnee Johnson (cello), Darrell Lacy (bass and guitar), and Leo Hernandez (trumpet and shofar).What? The Jewish way into community…

Rabbi Laura Sheinkopf is CSK's part time associate rabbi and adds so much to our community. Check out her blogpost all about belonging, transition, and finding your place in the world.By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

Join us tomorrow night for Shabbat led by Rabbi Scott and Rabbi Neal Katz!By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

Shabbat is the break our hearts and minds need to better do the work of our lives.By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

Annual Meeting by Rabbi Scott Hausman-WeissBy Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

Musings - Jews Gone Wild by Rabbi Scott Hausman-WeissBy Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

"The horrors of war are horrific and there is no one I know who takes solace or joy in the suffering of innocents. Not so ironically, the sooner the remainder of Hamas is disarmed, the sooner the people of Gaza can hold hands and pray for a future." (click to hear the full but brief blog post)By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

Perhaps the ultimate proof that Hamas means it when it says, "From the River to Sea..." is October 7, 2023, itself. The victims of their terror lived, worked. and loved inside of the most accepted Israeli borders there are. And still, they lost their lives.By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

The Blue Light by Rabbi Scott Hausman-WeissBy Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

Today Is Your Lucky Day! by Rabbi Scott Hausman-WeissBy Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

Hostages release must be at least a co-condition of a ceasefire demand.By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

This week's Torah portion may make you rethink your assumption that it doesn't matter what you wear - to someone else, but most especially to you!By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

Wouldn't it be a better world if we breathed before we posted and asked ourselves whether or not we really wanted our most negative words to be part of the ether for millennia I know that the Torah did not have the Internet in mind, or maybe it did?By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

Wisdom Works by Rabbi Scott Hausman-WeissBy Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

I do recognize that there is an existential angst plaguing our world, and it may very well be the cause of violent outbursts against the most vulnerable. And there is no question that a country with more guns than people makes the worst outcomes all the more possible. But how is it that if God forbid a child got drunk at your home, and suffered a h…

“The North American Jewish community has steadfastly come to the aid of Israel at moments of crisis. Israel belongs, first of all, to its citizens, and they have the final word. But Israel also matters to the entire Jewish people. When an Israeli government strays beyond what your commitments to liberal democracy can abide, you have both the right …

Calling out the two worst human beings in the world.By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

“I was there for 10 minutes, and already I felt calmer.” And in that moment, I was reminded once again how Shabbat is a practice that when regularly “practiced,” sensitizes us to shabbats that arise when we are least expecting them. And that is a central element for what it means to live Jewishly. Yesterday, Ann Friedman and I visited the Auspiciou…

It doesn't matter if you understand all the words, know all the rituals, are fluent in Hebrew and Yiddish. What matters is your fluency as a human being. And this is what Shabbat is about - the pause we need to reawaken to our humanness,.By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

Where My Loves Are by Rabbi Scott Hausman-WeissBy Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

We See You Sandy Hook by Rabbi Scott Hausman-WeissBy Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

If we're not wiling to break some eggs, what's the point?By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

The Inconceivable Surprise Of Living by Rabbi Scott Hausman-WeissBy Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

Shabbat is always special. Shabbat at the Rothko Chapel is all the more so. Enjoy this recording of CSK Shabbat at the Rothko Chapel, 10-28-22.By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

What drives political violence? Spiritual angst and loss.By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

This is a brief meditation on the meaning of withdrawal necessary to stay spiritually healthy.By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

An Invitation To Journey Parents from Rabbi Scott by Rabbi Scott Hausman-WeissBy Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

Poisoned Wells by Rabbi Scott Hausman-WeissBy Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

If Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness doesn't encompass who we sleep with, who we build our lives with, where we learn and with whom, and when we start our families, then what does it mean?By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

This Is Why We Practice by Rabbi Scott Hausman-WeissBy Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

The Rainbow And The Matrix by Rabbi Scott Hausman-WeissBy Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

How many bullets? Forget about gun laws or sentence guidelines and background checks or red flag laws. Common sense says that an 18-year-old kid buying 375 bullets should raise a red flag in anyone’s mind. Right now I am not trying to debate whether or not amending the 2nd Amendment, with laws restricting gun ownership, will end gun violence. I ind…

An Act Of Faith? by Rabbi Scott Hausman-WeissBy Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

The Jewish Position On Abortion by Rabbi Scott Hausman-WeissBy Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

That said, I am not going to make a strong argument for or against the Exodus “happening.” Not to sound too glib, but for me it comes down to that question about the tree in the woods. If it falls, but there is no one to hear it, did it truly fall? That question is really about relevance. Does it matter? Does it affect our lives? Does the Exodus ch…

In case you were wondering exactly what gas-lighting is, THIS IS IT! Making a claim so outrageous that you force others to prove it wrong, thereby making them responsible for the mess you’ve created.By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

I write this not from the point of view of political science or as a governmental finger pointer, but more as a prayer. I do not want to sit back and pretend that any of this is OK, “to be expected,” or “the price of admission.” As a Prophet of the people of Israel (I am neither a Prophet nor the son of a Prophet), but at times I must step into the…

It's amazing and tragic the way history repeats itself. The question then is how to avoid it? Learn from it and step in when its your moment to ensure it doesn't happen again.By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

823,101 dead from Covid as of today, Thursday, December 30, 2021. What must we do to help make their deaths not be in vain? Be real. Be honest. Get vaccinated. And recognize that there is NOTHING in Jewish law, tradition, lore, minhag (culture) or bubemeisse (old wives tales) that teaches or requires otherwise. Photo by Susan Nerlove…

Sigd is an Ethiopian Jewish holiday older than the Talmud. Oh, yes Horatio, there is far more to our Jewish world than Ashkenaz and Sepharad.By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

The Goyim Defense League? It would be hilarious if it wasn't so frightening. In Austin, as the American Jewish community remembers the Tree of Life synagogue massacre in Pittsburgh, this week three years ago, the self proclaimed "GDL" hung a banner proclaiming "Vax the Jews" over the highway exit near the Jewish Community Center. Don't they know we…

There are moments when we can and must recognize public leaders channeling the wisest teachings of our ancient sages. This is one of them. In a few short weeks, we at CSK will have the great privilege of welcoming into our community the chief executive officer of Harris County, Judge Lina Hidalgo. Elected by the voters of Harris County in 2018 at t…

We're all tired. And we all yet need to transform. How do we do it? The High Holy Days are a good place to start.By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

Over the past year, the existential crises brought to my attention have had much more to do with one’s self and one’s partner, than one’s parents or other close, but not live-in, relatives. In many cases, distance did make the heart grow fonder. But now, yep!, masks are off. And with them, the potential for closer ties to make things a bit closer (…

Israel is not an Apartheid state. If you want to have a meaningful conversation about Israel-Palestine, stop throwing stuff at us and do your homework. Any productive conversation between two people assumes that both are worthy of being heard, both are worthy of their own existence. Same is true of nations.…

How do we respond to things over which we have no real control? And does our response make things better or worse for those actually suffering? Brief but daily prayer and meditation centers us, and keeps us more honest and reflective when things get rough. As our mystics taught, "There is nothing more whole than a broken heart."…

Here are the words to the song: Mei libeinu anachnu sharimMei libeinu anachnu sharimUv’charta bachayimUv’charta bachayim…Chayim(From our hearts we singFrom our hearts we singChoose lifeChoose life…life) Uv’charta bachayim, Uv’charta bachayimL’ma-an tichyeh uzchorKi baz’chirah sod geulahSod geulah mei libeinu (Choose life and choose lifeIn order tha…

Pharaohs abound. How they turn to dust.By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss

It is true that each of us is unique and distinct in the world. A brain, a body, organs, all part of the individual "me" we use to move through the world. And yet, without reliance, interdependence, openness and vulnerability, each of is just a blip on a radar screen until we disappear from view. We're in this together, let's act like it.…

All we have truly is Hayom - Today. What are you going to make of it?By Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss