The Vashti-Esther Dilemma

Rabbi Cosgrove and Yizhar Hess, vice chairman of the World Zionist Organization, discuss why American Jews should vote for Cosgrove and the MERCAZ USA (Conservative Movement) (Slate 17) in the elections that run through May 4.   For more Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove, follow @Elliot_Cosgrove on Instagram and Facebook.   Want to stay connected with PAS? Follow us @ParkAvenueSyn on all platforms, and check out www.pasyn.org for all our virtual and in-person offerings.

Rabbi Cosgrove interviews Snir Pilus from Brothers for Life (BFL), which gives critical and immediate help to Israeli soldiers injured in combat. Among other initiatives, the organization pairs recently wounded soldiers with other injured soldiers to support each other during recovery.   For more Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove, follow @Elliot_Cosgrove on Instagram and Facebook.   Want to stay connected with PAS? Follow us @ParkAvenueSyn on all platforms, and check out www.pasyn.org for all our virtual and in-person offerings.

Listen as Rabbi Cosgrove is joined by Rabbi Nolan Lebovitz, the senior rabbi of Valley Beth Shalom in California and the author of a new book, The Case for Dual Loyalty: Healing the Divided Soul of American Jews, as they discuss the post-October 7 relationship between American Jews and Israel.   For more Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove, follow @Elliot_Cosgrove on Instagram and Facebook.   Want to stay connected with PAS? Follow us @ParkAvenueSyn on all platforms, and check out www.pasyn.org for all our virtual and in-person offerings.

What model of leadership serves our people best? Absolute adherence to principle or willingness to compromise? The book of Esther prompts Rabbi Cosgrove to examine both approaches, share his own answer, and advise that we must be tolerant of those who choose differently than we do.   For more Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove, follow @Elliot_Cosgrove on Instagram and Facebook.   Want to stay connected with PAS? Follow us @ParkAvenueSyn on all platforms, and check out www.pasyn.org for all our virtual and in-person offerings.

Where do we find holiness? Rabbi Cosgrove teaches that while a beautiful sanctuary may inspire us, holiness is to be found in the connections between people, between ourselves and others. He urges us to pursue holiness by practicing respectful dialogue with those with whom we disagree.   For more Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove, follow @Elliot_Cosgrove on Instagram and Facebook.   Want to stay connected with PAS? Follow us @ParkAvenueSyn on all platforms, and check out www.pasyn.org for all our virtual and in-person offerings.

It is tempting to see things as black or white, right or wrong, good or bad. Rabbi Cosgrove reminds us that reality is not so neat. He urges us to be generous in standing together as we deal with the messiness of conflicting truths.   For more Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove, follow @Elliot_Cosgrove on Instagram and Facebook.   Want to stay connected with PAS? Follow us @ParkAvenueSyn on all platforms, and check out www.pasyn.org for all our virtual and in-person offerings.

In the wake of the October 7 attacks and many universities’ lack of strong response to rising antisemitism on campus, Marc Rowan, major funder and Chair of the Board of Advisors of the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, encouraged university donors to “close their checkbooks” until major changes are made on campus. Looking at the current state of affairs, Rowan and Rabbi Cosgrove will discuss the many ways we can advocate for change on campus and beyond.    For more Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove, follow @Elliot_Cosgrove on Instagram and Facebook.   Want to stay connected with PAS? Follow us @ParkAvenueSyn on all platforms, and check out www.pasyn.org for all our virtual and in-person offerings.

What are the qualities of a leader? Looking to the examples of both Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Moses, Rabbi Cosgrove teaches that a great leader is one who stands up for righteousness while honoring the sentiments of opposing factions who do not agree on what is the truth.   For more Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove, follow @Elliot_Cosgrove on Instagram and Facebook.   Want to stay connected with PAS? Follow us @ParkAvenueSyn on all platforms, and check out www.pasyn.org for all our virtual and in-person offerings.

After participating in a mission to Israel for parents and their Gen Z children seeking to gain a common language for discussing the impasse between Israelis and Palestinians, Rabbi Cosgrove urges us to realize that no resolution is possible without empathy for the other side.   For more Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove, follow @Elliot_Cosgrove on Instagram and Facebook.   Want to stay connected with PAS? Follow us @ParkAvenueSyn on all platforms, and check out www.pasyn.org for all our virtual and in-person offerings.

Bucky Apisdorf, founder of Let’s Do Something, an organization that promotes advocacy, safety, and healing in the wake of the Oct. 7 attacks, recounts his experience on Oct. 7 and how his life changed after the death of his best friend at the Nova Festival.    For more Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove, follow @Elliot_Cosgrove on Instagram and Facebook.   Want to stay connected with PAS? Follow us @ParkAvenueSyn on all platforms, and check out www.pasyn.org for all our virtual and in-person offerings.