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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For those who really believe
“For those who really believe that God is the King of all the earth, the presence of poverty, injustice, bigotry, and war is both a challenge and source of guilt. How can anyone feel comfortable in his own well being while the victims of terror, of hunger, of fear look upon him with pleas for pity and love.”
-Rabbi Levi A. Olan. “A Modern View of the Kingdom of God.” March 24, 1963.
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A Modern View of the Kingdom of God
“We must move from charity toward justice which is the basic quality of God’s kingdom.” In this sermon, Rabbi Olan addresses what is arguably his core theme: how the Prophets called upon us to work …
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An Eye for an Eye
“It is of the utmost urgency for us to learn how to mete out justice with love.” In this March 10, 1963 sermon, Rabbi Olan addressed the question of responding appropriately to evil. What do …
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100th Blog Post!
This is our 100th blog post!
Thanks for being part of our reader community! Since April 2018 it has been our privilege to present weekly introductions to the writings of Rabbi Levi A. Olan and occasional quotation and image postings.
May the legacy of “The Conscience of the City” continue to inspire us to work together, building a better world for all.
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Easy to sail along
“It is easy to sail along when we are flushed with success, one does not need wisdom or faith for victory. But when things fall apart, when all our careful preparations end in failure, we need a combination of wisdom, faith, and courage to keep our knees steady.”
-Rabbi Levi A. Olan. From “Man Need Not Fail,” March 3, 1963.
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Man Need Not Fail
“To men of Biblical faith the Kingdom of God will be achieved and our task in life is to help.” In his sermon “Man Need Not Fail,” Rabbi Olan discusses the “bright vision of a …
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Those Who Say “What Will Be Will Be”
“Life’s uncertainties and frustrations, its bewilderments and mystery gives rise to the notion that what will be will be, it is fate.” Doris Day’s 1956 hit song, “Qué Será, Será,” was on Rabbi Olan’s mind …
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Neither good nor evil
“Man in the Hebraic view is born neither good nor evil. He comes into life, rather, with two impulses, one toward the good and the other toward the evil. His life is in his hands and depends upon which of these impulses he chooses to follow.”
-Rabbi Levi A. Olan. From “Those Who Say, ‘What Will Be Will Be,'” a sermon broadcast over KRLD and WFAA on February 24, 1963.
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The Book of Lamentations—The Unyielding Believer
“The virgin Israel is fallen, She shall no more rise; She is cast down upon her land, There is none to raise her up.” In this sermon Rabbi Olan discusses the Book of Lamentations, a …
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Out of the depth
“Out of the depth there arises a vision of faith which is unyielding no matter what the threat or danger.”
“This kind of faith under-girded the descendants of Abraham through a long history and found expression in the Warsaw Ghetto when Hitler turned all of his mechanized terror upon a city of helpless victims.”
-Rabbi Levi A. Olan. From “The Book of Lamentations – The Unyielding Believer.”
