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...
-
-
The Role of the Artist
“This is the time for us to listen to the artist as he tries to tell us who we are and what we can become.” On April 2, 1968, the film 2001 A Space Odyssey …
-
A Leader for These Times
March 31, 1968 In the midst of the 1968 presidential campaign, with the nation in crisis, Rabbi Olan asked in his sermon, “Whom shall we choose to lead us back to health?” He endorsed not …
-
Levi and Bertha
Rabbi Olan and his sister, Bertha, in the 1960s. Image and identifications courtesy of Joshua Hirsch.
-
Religion and the Social Crisis
“The prophetic faith recognizes God’s presence on earth as well as in heaven…. He asks of [us] that [we] help Him build the good and beloved community.” Rabbi Olan’s sermon “Religion and the Social Crisis”, …
-
Human existence
-
Family of origin
The Olan family, early 20th century (l-r): Bessie (mother), Bertha (sister), Max (father), and Levi. Image and identifications courtesy of Joshua Hirsch.
-
No man or group
-
1958: Give Olan a Solo!
Rabbi Olan embraced many causes. Clearly, this one did not succeed. Perhaps it is a good thing that the bema and the choir loft are so far apart in the Olan Sanctuary at Temple Emanu-El! …
-
An ancient teacher
-
Rabbi Olan in the 1950s (?)
If he is trying to look stern in this official portrait, Rabbi Olan does not succeed completely. Arms folded, he does not smile. Still, there is something pleasant and perhaps whimsical in his visage. Image …
Rabbi Levi A. Olan: The Conscience of the City 