Category Archives: Uncategorized

You may have noticed that I’ve reverted back to my old PR head shot rather than this more recent one I first posted a few weeks ago. Feedback on the new pic was overwhelmingly negative (and was even, apparently, a major subject of discussion at a recent JRC committee meeting.) The final straw was when my always supportive wife Hallie admitted, when pushed, that she wasn’t too crazy about it either…

So I’ve decided to put an end to the congregational and familial upheaval. Let it never be said of me that I don’t know how to take a hint: we’re back to clean-cut for now.

This well-dressed, clean cut looking guy is me, Brant Rosen, the Rabbi of Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation in Evanston, IL, and the author of this blog. I fervently hope that by starting this new project, I’m not just adding more blah, blah, blah, blogging to cyberspace. I guess time will tell.

Believe it or not, I originally wanted to call my blog “Di Shande Fun Der Voch,” which roughly translates from Yiddish to mean, “The Outrage of the Week.” In the end, I decided on something slightly less strident: “Shalom Rav.” A bit of a pun: it is the name of a well-known Hebrew prayer, meaning “Abundant Peace,” but it also can also mean “Hello, Rabbi.” (It’s much more polite, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a lot to be outraged about…)

Anyhow, welcome to my new blog. I hope it has something to contribute.