by Rabbi Grossman | Mar 25, 2021 | Blog, Messages from the Head of School
In the summer before my first year at Akiva, I called my friend, mentor, and predecessor Cooki Levy, z’’l, to ask her if she knew why our founder, Rabbi David Hartman, z’’l, had chosen to name our school Akiva. I had known Cooki at that point for over 20 years, and,...
by Rabbi Grossman | Mar 19, 2021 | Messages from the Head of School
It is difficult for some to understand the outcry of teachers in Quebec asking to be vaccinated against Covid-19. Prioritizing one guild over another grates against our societal sense of equity. We do understand that preference may go to those most vulnerable, such...
by Rabbi Grossman | Oct 15, 2020 | Blog, Messages from the Head of School
This week we begin the annual Torah reading cycle, starting with the creation of the world in the first chapter of Genesis. Standard English translations, based primarily on non-Jewish sources, render the first words of our parasha, “In the beginning, God created the...
by Rabbi Grossman | Sep 25, 2020 | Blog, Messages from the Head of School
The Content of our Character The most ancient of all of the prayers for the High Holidays has a special connection to The Akiva School. Avinu Malkeinu is almost 2,000 years old, yet its central words have remained unchanged. Akiva’s founder, Rabbi David Hartman,...
by Rabbi Grossman | Sep 3, 2020 | Blog, Messages from the Head of School
On Thursday mornings in synagogue, we recite a prayer that begins with the words, “Acheinu kol beit yisrael—Our brethren, all the House of Israel.” The tefillah offers the image of all Jews living as siblings in the same home, caring for each other as brothers and...
