The Jewish High Holidays are a time for reflection.

I read about a sermon that prompted a member of the congregation to do the right and courageous thing.

That prompted me to write this letter to the editor of the Jewish Times.

Dear Editors:

How does a rabbi address the compelling political issues of the day without alienating someone in the congregation?

That important question was raised last week in Rabbis Balance Politics on the Pulpit.

In a Rosh Hashanah sermon in 1963, Rabbi Morris Lieberman addressed the compelling political issue of his day – racial segregation in Baltimore. It motivated someone in his congregation – Mal Sherman.

A successful real estate broker, Sherman was prompted by that sermon to announce that his company would sell to all individuals, regardless of race, creed, or color.

One of his clients in 1966 was a newcomer to Baltimore, who could not find a house in a safe neighborhood with good schools. Sherman found a home in Ashburton for Frank Robinson. That October, the Robinsons and their neighbors celebrated the Orioles World Series victory.

How do I know this?

I read the autobiography of Wendy Sherman, former Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs and Mal Sherman’s daughter, on Rosh Hashanah morning.

Delegate Samuel I. “Sandy” Rosenberg

The text of Rabbi Lieberman’s sermon is at
http://www.delsandy.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Lieberman-RH-1963-Sermon.pdf

The sermon on this topic by Rabbi Elissa Sachs-Kohen, also given from the pulpit at Baltimore Hebrew Congregation, is at
http://www.delsandy.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/May-We-Be-Changed-for-the-Good.pdf