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...
-
-
1963 photograph of Rabbi Olan with Martin Luther King, Jr.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., with, from left to right, H. Rhett James, Rabbi Levi Olan, and J. A. Stanfield, on a visit in Dallas for Dallas County United Poll Tax Rally at the Fair …
-
Belief in a Living God
“Is America acting as a nation as though it is really under God? Are we as individuals living our daily lives as though God truly exists?” Does God exist? On October 14, 1962 Rabbi Olan …
-
In this critical hour
“In this critical hour of American History when many issues are really those of life and death for our nation as well as humankind, we had better recognize that we need a sympathetic understanding of each other’s concerns. The fact is that we need both the conservative and the liberal, both of whom ultimately want the same thing, a free, strong nation.”
Rabbi Levi A. Olan. From “The Conservative-Liberal Debate,” broadcast March 18, 1962.
-
The Conservative-Liberal Debate
“Every nation and every church or synagogue is better prepared for its growth and strength if it has an on-going healthy debate between those who want to change and those who are guardians of the …
-
We Need Not Fail
“Whatever else life is, it is striving, failing, trying again.” Rabbi Olan’s October 7, 1962 (Erev Yom Kippur) message conveys a three-fold process for getting our lives back on track during the High Holy Days …
-
The Fear of Growing Old
“What does one do to prepare against the loneliness and the emptiness which becomes intense as we grow older?” Here Rabbi Olan addresses a profoundly personal problem with uncharacteristic concreteness. More characteristic is his search for answers …
-
Morality and Nuclear Testing
"Those who urge continued nuclear testing invite not only the possible death of mankind by radiation, but the possibility of a nuclear explosion by accident, miscalculation, or fear. The choice we must make is not a moral one but a practical and reasonable one." Rabbi Olan's radio sermon on April 15, 1962 includes many debates that continue...
-
Ideals Are Real
“Faith, like love or patriotism comes at a very high price.” In his April 8, 1962 broadcast, Rabbi Olan discussed idealism and realism. Although these worldviews conflict, he suggested that both are necessary. It seemed …
-
Costly religious ideals
“If a man [or woman] really believes that God is the Father and all the children of the earth are His, can you possibly go on being satisfied with some of the family starving while a few live in unbelievable luxury? Can you picture a father telling his children that those of darker skins are the less favored. To take the ideals of our religious faith seriously can be very revolutionary and very costly.”
Rabbi Levi A. Olan. From “Ideals Are Real,” a sermon broadcast April 8, 1962 over radio stations WFAA and KIXL in Dallas, Texas.
-
Communism and the Biblical Tradition
“Communism and the Biblical faith are in conflict over the primary issue of the nature of the universe and man’s role in it.” On Sunday, April 1, 1962, Rabbi Olan discussed the conflicting world views …
