How St. Louis rabbis are handling politics inside their synagogues

Halfway through her 2008 Yom Kippur sermon, Rabbi Brigitte Rosenberg realized she had made a mistake.

The sermon was about change. Roughly half of the congregants smiled each time she said the word. The other half looked upset. While she was on the bimah, it clicked.

In addition to being a core tenet of Yom Kippur, the word “change” was also central to presidential candidate Barack Obama’s campaign. Rosenberg was giving a sermon that made it seem like she was explicitly supporting a candidate weeks before the election.

“I didn’t connect that word to Obama’s campaign,” she said. “I knew I was going to get emails about ‘how could I preach a political sermon.’ ”

It was the first time she realized how easily words can become politicized.

Navigating a divided moment

The Jewish Light spoke with nine St. Louis-area rabbis who said rising political tension and deepening partisanship have changed the atmosphere inside their congregations. Many say they now face a delicate balance: fostering community while deciding when — and whether — to address the issues dividing the country.

In this environment, speaking out or staying silent can alienate congregants, making every sermon a careful calculation.

Rabbi Michael Alper of Temple Israel said he tries to balance what he calls the prophetic voice — calling out injustice — with the priestly voice focused on building spiritual community.

“Politics has, in its own way, become almost like a religion,” Alper said. “I think people want to come to a place where they can just be Jewish.”

Speaking through values

Historian Jonathan Sarna, who taught American Jewish history at Brandeis University for 35 years, said most rabbis historically avoided explicit political messaging.

“The majority of rabbis were concerned about their jobs,” he said. “The role of the sermon, in part, is to persuade, and very skillful rabbis use Jewish texts to justify what they are doing.”

Rabbi Eliezer Finkelstein of Bais Abraham Congregation said focusing too narrowly on politics risks distracting from Judaism’s larger purpose.

“If I say something political, that only applies to that moment,” he said. “The Torah is eternal.”

He said teaching values allows congregants to apply Jewish wisdom across different situations rather than just reacting to current events.

Justice and responsibility

Rabbi Susan Talve of Central Reform Congregation has long taken the view that moral issues and Jewish values are inseparable.

“There are moments where the political and the personal cannot be separated,” she said. “There are moments that the moral call to respond to human suffering and justice issues is no longer either personal or political, but it’s both.”

At the same time, she emphasized that synagogues must remain spaces where Jews with different viewpoints can still belong.

“It’s about knowing that your community is going to be there for you when you have a tragedy but also be there for you when you have a simcha,” she said.

Israel and Oct. 7

Several rabbis said the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks on Israel deepened divisions within the St. Louis Jewish community over how to talk about Israel.

Rabbi Daniel Bogard said silence itself can carry meaning.

“Not speaking out about what is happening in our world is also a political statement,” he said.

Rabbi Jeffrey Abraham of Congregation B’nai Amoona said he feels a responsibility to address Israel and antisemitism directly while allowing space for disagreement.

“If you’re going to threaten my people’s existence, and there’s going to be continuous antisemitic incidents, I have an obligation to weigh in,” Abraham said.

To help manage those tensions, his congregation now offers optional discussions outside regular services where political topics can be explored more directly.

Holding community together

Rabbi James Bennett of Congregation Shaare Emeth said empathy is essential as rabbis and congregants navigate this new landscape.

“I wish members of the Jewish community would understand just how challenging and difficult it is right now for clergy to speak our hearts and our values,” he said.

At Kol Rinah, Rabbi Noah Arnow said his goal is building what he calls a “resilient community,” where disagreement is not seen as failure but as part of Jewish tradition itself.

“This is not the only model,” Arnow said. “It is one, and this is working for us right now.”