A Message from Marc

Marc's Message

Marc Baker headshot
CJP's President and CEO, Rabbi Marc Baker, writes and teaches about leadership, community, and civic life, bringing the voice of Jewish tradition to contemporary issues.

 

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History Has Its Eyes on Us

Rabbi Marc Baker deliveres his keynote at From Strength to Strength, CJP's 2020-2021 kickoff event. Watch or read below.

This past winter, my grandmother Muriel passed away at the age of 97. Nothing gave her more nachas (joy) than her 8 grandchildren and 13 great-grand-children. I’m…

Choice Points

Shalom Chaverim,

I hope you all had a healthy and restful summer. 

After this week’s Massachusetts primary — and with just two months until the presidential election — I am thinking a lot about choices. At the heart of democracy is our right as citizens to choose the people who will…

Breaking Open

Shalom Chaverim,
 
Yesterday was the 17th of the Jewish month of Tammuz, a minor fast day on the Jewish calendar that marks the beginning of a three-week period leading up to Tisha B’Av, the saddest day on the Jewish calendar.
 
The 17th of Tammuz commemorates the breaching of the wa…

Aloh Naaleh – We Can Go Up

Shalom Chaverim, 

Over the past few months, and specifically these past few weeks, I’ve been thinking a lot about the brokenness of our world, and about what it means for leadership and the character of our community. 

When times are good it can be easy to coast along, to succumb to th…

Our World is on Fire

Shalom Chaverim (Dear Friends),

This week, our world, our country, our communities, and the streets of our city have been both literally and metaphorically on fire. Like so many of you, I feel a combination of outrage and pain at the killing of George Floyd and at the racial injustice that …