The mission of this blog is to stimulate interest in the deeply perceptive and still-relevant teachings of Levi A. Olan (1903-1984) by sharing from the Levi A. Olan Sermons and Images at Bridwell Library Digital Collection. The title "Conscience of the City" was applied to Rabbi Olan by a Fortune magazine reporter in 1964. Although Olan's city was Dallas, his thought transcends locality. Our goal is to...
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Love Thyself First
“The failure of a good relationship to oneself lies at the root of much emotional suffering today.” In his sermon of April 18, 1965 Rabbi Olan argues that we cannot follow the Biblical injunction to …
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On Being Displeased with God
In today’s strange and uncertain atmosphere, it is all but certain that many of us are less than thrilled with God. Why is there a pandemic? Why are so many people suffering? Shouldn’t God be …
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The Bible Without God
“Hope is the central theme of the Prophetic faith.” Delivered 3 days short of a month after Bloody Sunday, and 3 years to the day prior to Rev. Dr. Martln Luther King, Jr’s murder, Rabbi …
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Psychology and Religion
“Religion is not a science, and psychology is not religion.” On March 28, 1965, Rabbi Olan preached a sermon designed to differentiate therapeutic psychology from the religious thought and practice. This seems to have been …
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Take Time to Be Holy
“Worship is an art, it is full of symbols, art forms, music and poetry. It takes effort and will, desire and persistence to achieve the capacity to experience the beauty of holiness.” In this sermon …
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What Do You Want More Than All Else in the World?
“This is a moral universe and we must pay for what we want.” Take a moment to reflect on the question that Rabbi Olan poses in his title and come up with your own answer. …
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Do Not Cheat Your Child
“Much, too much emphasis is placed by parents upon preparing the child to live as an adult at the expense of his needs as a child. He need not be looked upon as always father …
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Rabbi Olan spoke out for peace in 1936
In 1936, with a world war looming, Rabbi Olan spoke out for peace in a series of in-person and radio addresses sponsored by the nation-wide Emergency Peace Campaign, according to the Vermont Journal (Windsor, VT), 22 October 1936. In an Armistice Day speech, Olan stated: “War breeds the darkest forces in a man’s heart. War was responsible for the whole crazy scheme that now engulfs the world. We cannot make the world safe for democracy—but we can preserve our own heritage, the America whose cradle is liberty and whose home is a living democracy.”.
– Rabbi Levi A. Olan. From an Armistice Day address. -
The Parasite in our Midst
“Once we grasp the essential meaning of our existence, we can respond to the injustices and inequities around us.” Rabbi Olan, in his sermon of February 21, 1965, opines that we may have accepted a …
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Doing Something about Anxiety
“Whatever else religion is or is not, this is common and central to it wherever and whenever it appears – it affirms the meaning of life. This much is sure, where there is genuine faith there is no room for anxiety.”
– Rabbi Levi A. Olan. From “Doing Something About Anxiety,” broadcast Feb. 14, 1965.
