I'm a rabbi

and the award-winning author or editor of ten books. I was the founding rabbi of The New Shul, an innovative and dynamic synagogue in Manhattan's Greenwich Village, for over a decade (1999-2010). I am now the spiritual leader of Congregation Beth Shalom of Napa Valley.

I've written for Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, and many other publications, and I've been featured in Time, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Christian Science Monitor, and other national venues, as well as on radio and television.

I served as a U.S. Army chaplain and for the last 20 years have worked with the federal law enforcement community. I have strong interest and experience in interfaith relations, having worked at the Parliament of the World's Religions and the Center for Interfaith Engagement. My passion for adventure travel has taken me from the steppes of Central Asia and Mongolia to the dog mushing trails of Alaska and the Arctic.

I like to hike, ride horses, and practice the martial arts (I hold black belts in karate and tae kwon do). I lecture and teach throughout the country and abroad on various topics in the areas of spirituality, religion, leadership and personal growth and I have served on the faculty of New York University, Loyola University and Hebrew Union College.

"Jacob awoke from his sleep and said,
'Surely God is present in this place, and I did not know it!'"

Gen. 28:16