Clergy Commentary

Archived Sermons

5786 High Holy Day Sermons

• Cantor Ella Gladstone Martin, Erev Rosh Hashanah -  Video
• Rabbi Melissa Buyer-Witman, Rosh Hashanah (Day 1) -  Video
• Rabbi Melissa Buyer-Witman, Rosh Hashanah (Day 1, Family Service) -  Video
• Rabbi Jade Sank Ross, Rosh Hashanah (Day 2) -  Video
• Rabbi Lyle Rothman, Kol Nidrei -  Video
• Rabbi Melissa Buyer-Witman, Yom Kippur -  Video
• Cantor Claire Franco, Yizkor -  Video

5785 High Holy Day Sermons

• Rabbi Jade Sank Ross, Erev Rosh Hashanah - Lo L’fached - Be Not Afraid  | Video
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Rosh Hashanah (Day 1) - Wells of Living Waters  | Video
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Rosh Hashanah (Day 1, Family Service) - I Sent You | Video
• Rabbi Lyle Rothman, Rosh Hashanah (Day 2), The Truth about Truth | Video
• Rabbi Jade Sank Ross, Kol Nidrei - We Are Each Other’s Songs of Ascent | Video
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yom Kippur - Das Pintele Yid | Video
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yizkor - Memory: Pain, Blessing, Forgiveness | Video

5784 High Holy Day Sermons

• Rabbi Lyle S. Rothman, Rosh Hashanah (Day 1) - Finding Harmony in Vulnerability | Video
• Rabbi Jade Sank Ross, Kol Nidrei - How to Be More Jewish | Video
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yom Kippur - It Begins and Ends with Kindness | Video
• Rabbi Lyle S. Rothman, Yizkor - Giving Life | Video

5783 High Holy Day Sermons

• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Rosh Hashanah (Day 1) - Lonely Together | Video
• Rabbi Jade Sank Ross, Rosh Hashanah (Day 2) - We Forget, But Are Never Forgotten | Video
• Rabbi Jade Sank Ross, Kol Nidrei - There is Me | Video
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yom Kippur - Returning to... | Video
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yizkor - Broken and Whole | Video

5782 High Holy Day Sermons

• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Rosh Hashanah (Day 1) - Gut zu sein a Yid (Jewish Pride) | Video
• Rabbi Jade Sank Ross, Rosh Hashanah (Day 2) - Hineini | Video
• Rabbi Jade Sank Ross, Kol Nidrei - Bonim: That's How People Really Are | Video
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yom Kippur - Regret and Live | Video
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yizkor - What a Mechayeh | Video

5781 High Holy Day Sermons

• Rabbi Jade Sank Ross, Erev Rosh Hashanah - Destruction to Revelation
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Rosh Hashanah (Day 1) - We are the Ram
• Rabbi Jade Sank Ross, Rosh Hashanah (Day 2) - Creation from Deepest Darkness
• Rabbi Jade Sank Ross, Kol Nidrei - Remember
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yom Kippur - It's Not in Heaven
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yizkor - Dying Alone

5780 High Holy Day Sermons

• Rabbi Sam Pollak, Erev Rosh Hashanah -  Because I Knew You (also on Rabbi Pollak's blog here)
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Rosh Hashanah (Day 1) - Change Comes From Within: A Statement on Interfaith Marriages
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yom Kippur - Choose Life - Responding to Antisemitism
• Rabbi Sam Pollak, Kol Nidrei -  What Are We So Afraid Of? (also on Rabbi Pollak's blog here)
• Rabbi Sam Pollak, Yizkor - The Bonds of Life (also on Rabbi Pollak's blog here)

5779 High Holy Day Sermons

• Rabbi Sam Pollak, Erev Rosh Hashanah - Seeing and Being Seen
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Rosh Hashanah (Day 1) - Tears and Tenderness
• Rabbi Sam Pollak, Rosh Hashanah (Day 2) - Olam Hesed Yibaneh
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yom Kippur-  Hope in Tomorrow
• Rabbi Sam Pollak, Kol Nidrei - For All the Wrong Reasons
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yizkor - Embracing Death

5778 High Holy Day Sermons

• Rabbi Sam Pollak, Erev Rosh Hashanah - Bridging the Gap
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Rosh Hashanah (Day 1) – Rise Up! Justice, Truth and Peace
• Rabbi Sam Pollak, Rosh Hashanah (Day 2) - It's All in the Way That You Look at Things
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Erev Yom Kippur (Kol Nidrei) - If It Weren’t for Second Chances
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yom Kippur – The Memorials We Erect
• Rabbi Sam Pollak, Yom Kippur (Yizkor) -  Carrying the Absence

5777 High Holy Day Sermons

• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Rosh Hashanah - Fear and Vision
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz - Not Remembering, Dreaming

5776 High Holy Day Sermons

• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz - A Statement on Jewish Vitality
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Rosh Hashanah - Tikkun haNefesh – Repairing the Soul
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz - The Burning Palace
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yizkor – The Mad Dash

5775 High Holy Day Sermons

• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Rosh Hashanah (Day 1), September 25, 2014 – Israel Now. More Than Ever.
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yom Kippur Morning, October 5, 2014 – What Defines Us
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yizkor, October 5, 2014 – How's the Water? What Death Teaches Us About Living

5774 High Holy Day Sermons

• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Rosh Hashanah (Day 1), September 5, 2013 - Hear My Cry
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yom Kippur, September 14, 2013 - The God I Believe In
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yom Kippur Yizkor, September 14, 2013 - Stumbling Into Memory

5773 High Holy Day Sermons

•  Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Rosh Hashanah First Day 5773, September 18, 2012 - The Endurance of Hope   
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Erev Yom Kippur 5773, September 25, 2012 - Where Are We Headed?  
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yom Kippur 5773, September 25, 2012 - The Meaning of My Life (To see the "Spritual Checklist," click here.)

5772 High Holy Day Sermons

• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Rosh Hashanah First Day 5772, September 29, 2011 - Digging in Our Parent's Wells
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Erev Yom Kippur 5772, October 7, 2011 - The Person I Ought To Be
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Yom Kippur 5772, October 8, 2011 - The World That Ought To Be

Additional Sermons

• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Friday, May 30, 2025 - Lessons I've Learned | Video
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Friday, May 30, 2025 - Light in the Darkness
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Friday, April 11, 2025 - Pesach: When a People Leads
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Sunday, October 29, 2023 - Gathering for Israel: Both/And | Video
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Friday, October 27, 2023 - First Steps Out of Destruction | Video
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Friday, March 24, 2023 - When a Leader Sins
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Friday, November 2, 2018 - Kristallnacht 80th & In Remembrance of Pittsburgh
• Jill Rubin (Rabbinic Intern), Friday, October 25, 2018 - Tree of Life: Reflections on the First Anniversary of the Tree of Life (Pittsburgh) Shooting
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, “When a nation loses it’s way", March 17, 2017 -  What does a nation do when it is gripped by fear?
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, The Immigrant Experience as Jewish paradigm, September 4, 2015 – A response to the world’s refugee crisis.  
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, The Stubborn Heart: Racism Lives, January 16, 2015 – A response to the terror attacks in Paris and racism in America. 
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Chanukah, December 14, 2012 - Darkest Before the Dawn (on National Tragedy)
• Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz, Shabbat Nitzavim, September 14, 2012 - What Do We Stand For? 

Rabbi Z's Videos To Inspire ... 

• Rabbi Z on perspective and our approach
• Rabbi Z on alone-ness vs. loneliness