“If you want to know what the character of a people is, look at whom they choose to honor for greatness. We are a people who admire success, fame, and power. We are not too finicky as to how these are achieved.”

In this sermon of January 22, 1967, Rabbi Olan points a prophetic finger at the callousness, expediency, and egoism that modern society seems to value most highly.  Read this sermon (alas, the recording is unavailable) to discover the two people Rabbi Olan singles out for greatness in the Biblical and American traditions and the three characteristics they held in common.

*Written by Joshua F. Hirsch*