Mishkan Blog
Building My Judaism
This sermon was delivered at our service on August 7th, 2026. You can listen to this drash on Contact Chai Podcast or watch on YouTube. **** My name is Manuel Gauto and I am a recent graduate of Mishkan’s Blueprint program. I am so honored to have the opportunity to...
The Spiritual Danger of Abundance
This sermon was delivered at our Saturday Morning Shabbat service on August 1st, 2026. You can listen on Contact Chai Podcast or watch on our YouTube channel. **** There's an apocryphal story about a Jewish man running late for an important job interview. He...
The Necessity of Moral Imagination: Reflections on Tisha B’Av
The picture above is me with Israeli educator, Alex Sinclair. For more than two decades, he’s worn a kippah that bears both an Israeli and Palestinian flag. With it, he’s saying three things: I’m a religious Jew, I care about Jewish identity and sovereignty, and I...
Arguing For The Sake Of Heaven — My Trip To Israel And The West Bank
Rabbi Lizzi in the West Bank town of Umm Al Kheir with Zach Witus of New Israel Fund, Rabbi Amichai Lau Lavie of Lab/Shul, and beloved Zohar teacher Dr. Melila Hellner-Eshed of the Sulha Peace Movement. They heard from one of the town’s leaders about the nightly...
Pride Shabbat!
This guest sermon was delivered by the Richards-Kutcher family at our Pride Shabbat service on June 26th, 2026. You can listen to this drash on Contact Chai Podcast. **** MATT: Shabbat Shalom. We are the Richards-Kutchers – I’m Matt, this is Becca, and these are our...
On Juneteenth And Bold Moses
This sermon was delivered at our service on June 20th, 2026. You can listen to this drash on Contact Chai Podcast or watch it on our YouTube channel. **** A good story sticks around. It speaks to a person across their lifetime, and to many people across generations....
Progress Is Not Inevitable — It Is Promised
This drash was delivered at our service on June 12th, 2026. You can listen to this sermon on Contact Chai Podcast or watch it on YouTube. **** My generation was raised on the idea that progress was inevitable. Yes, there was still work to be done around racial...
We Are Here — The Roman Empire Is Not
This sermon was delivered at our service on June 6th, 2026. You can listen to this drash on Contact Chai Podcast or watch it on YouTube. **** I want to begin at the beginning of this week’s reading, which Esther read to us this morning, B’ha’alotkha et haNerot, mul...
When The South Side Rabbi Met The South Side Pope
Rabbi Lizzi Heydemann of Mishkan Chicago with Pope Leo XIV on May 28th, 2026. (Photo credit: Simone Risoluti, Vatican Media) **** It really happened — I met the pope. Last week, I joined a delegation of Chicago community and faith leaders on a visit to Rome. While...
The Poetry Of Torah — Shavuot Shabbat
This sermon was delivered at our 2026 Shavuot Shabbat service. You can watch it on YouTube or listen on Contact Chai Podcast. **** We know the Torah, which we received today at Sinai, begins: Bereishit bara Elohim et hashamayim v’et haarets. "When God was beginning...
We Can’t Ignore The Story Behind The Story
This sermon was delivered at our service on May 2nd, 2026. You can listen to this drash on Contact Chai Podcast or watch it on our YouTube channel. **** I loved hearing Gideon’s take on this week’s parashah. I love how he drew out the positive stuff, because...
The Obligation to Heal
This sermon was delivered at our April 18th service. You can listen to this drash on Contact Chai Podcast or watch it on our YouTube channel. **** Rabbi Brad Artson (a wonderful scholar that both R’Lizzi and I count among our teachers) describes Judaism as a...
