Rabbi Levi A. Olan: The Conscience of the City

Walls that divide

“Men will tear down the walls that divide them only when they come to the grand realization that as there is but one God in heaven, there is but one human-kind on earth.”
– Rabbi Levi A. Olan. From “Walls That Divide,” broadcast March 25, 1962.

*** This is our 275th blog post! ***

May 4, 2022May 7, 2022

Levi and Elizabeth

Posted by conscienceofthecity on May 4, 2022May 2, 2022

Levi Olan and daughter, Elizabeth. Image courtesy of Joshua Hirsch.

Images

How easy it is

“How easy it is to recite reverently and piously God’s command, ‘Thou shalt love they neighbor as thyself.’ But to obey God is very hard.”

– Rabbi Levi A. Olan. From “On These Foundations,” broadcast January 9, 1966.

May 3, 2022May 5, 2022

Three Generations

Posted by conscienceofthecity on May 3, 2022May 7, 2022

Three generations of Olans (l-r): Levi; his daugher, Elizabeth; and his father, Max. Image courtesy of Joshua Hirsch.

Images

Bigotry is an insult

“Bigotry is an insult to a creature made in the image of God.”

– Rabbi Levi A. Olan. From “Religion – Opiate or Stimulant,” broadcast March 17, 1968.

May 2, 2022May 5, 2022

Beginning Our Fifth Year!

Posted by conscienceofthecity on May 2, 2022May 7, 2022

The “Rabbi Levi A. Olan: Conscience of the City” blog began in April 2018. To celebrate the completion of four years of weekly (and sometimes more often) blogging and our upcoming 275th post, the writing …

Sermons

Religion – Opiate or Stimulant

Posted by conscienceofthecity on May 1, 2022

“It is the ‘Gotterdammerung’, the Twilight of the Gods!” The first half of the title to Rabbi Olan’s March 17, 1968 radio sermon is a direct reference to Karl Marx’s famous words, “Religion is the …

Sermons

When We Feel Depressed

Posted by allerona97 on April 25, 2022April 24, 2022

“In most critical situations, we can light a candle instead of cursing the darkness.“ Rabbi Olan begins this sermon by normalizing “periods of despair and frustration” as reactions both to bad news from the wider …

Sermons

God and Auschwitz

Posted by conscienceofthecity on April 11, 2022

“Somehow life and religion can never be the same after Auschwitz.“ In the light of intense human cruelty and suffering, it is natural to ask “Where is God?” and “Why doesn’t God intervene?” Is God …

Sermons

Beware of False Messiahs

Posted by allerona97 on April 4, 2022April 2, 2022

“There is no easy road to the Promised Land. There is no way of avoiding the wilderness of suffering and endurance in our journey towards the better life. No one can relieve us of our …

Sermons