An award-winning speaker, popular teacher, and experienced officiant.
“Man can alter his life by changing his thinking”
~ William James
An award-winning speaker, popular teacher, and experienced officiant.
“Man can alter his life by changing his thinking”
~ William James
Rabbinic Services
Rabbi Allen is ready to serve your needs in a variety of capacities. He is an award-winning speaker, popular teacher, and experienced officiant.
Speaker
Teacher
Officiant
Rabbi Allen is pleased to meet with you to discuss officiating at your wedding. With the experience of officiating at more than four hundred weddings, Rabbi Allen can customize each …
Books
In addition to the scholarly articles he has contributed to peer reviewed publications, Rabbi Allen has edited two books on Jewish law and co-written along with Harvey Haber a book of introductory prayers for various occasions. Rabbi Allen has also made a significant contribution to the understanding of Jewish theology, philosophy, history, and religious practice through his books.
Thinking About Good And Evil: Jewish Views From Antiquity To Modernity
The most comprehensive book on the topic, Thinking about Good and Evil traces the most salient Jewish ideas about why innocent people seem to suffer, why evil individuals seem to prosper, and God’s role in such matters of (in)justice, from antiquity to the present.
Outlook & Insights
Being Special – VaYeshev 5784
In the Biblical narrative, the word “vayehi” is taken to mean “it was,” from the root meaning “to be.” It often introduces a particular episode which the Rabbis consider woeful (from the combination...
Adapt and Live – VaYishlah 5784
Consumed with worry over the Kishinev Pogrom (1903), the Russo-Japanese War (1904), the Bolshevik Revolution (1917), and World War I, the heads of European yeshivot considered fleeing with their...
A Kiss Is Still a Kiss – VaYetze 5784
Despite the fact that Song of Songs (1:2) speaks of how deep love is expressed with kisses on the mouth, centuries later Rabbi Akiva speaks admiringly of the early Persians (Babylonian Talmud,...
Lighthouses – Toldot 5784
In two Hebrew words the text compresses the years of childhood development into a matter of size: “The youths grew” (Genesis 25:27). Readers gain no insights into the personalities of Esav and...
Sunrise, Sunset – Hayye Sarah 5784
Since its debut in 1964, Fiddler on the Roof has remained one of the most beloved of all Broadway shows. Aside from the nine Tony awards it garnered, Fiddler was the first musical to surpass 3,000...
Looking Down on Evil – VaYera 5784
The building boom that followed World War II was very good for my family. My grandfather and two uncles started a business that prospered by supplying pre-made doors that went into the construction...