Current sectionU.S. NewsShare to FacebookShare to XArticle printing is available to subscribers onlyPrint in a simple, ad-free formatSubscribeComments: Zen reading is available to subscribers onlyAd-free and in a comfortable reading formatSubscribeRabbi Amelia Wolf of Etz Hayim, a synagogue in Arlington, Virginia. Her sermon this year will not center on Israel. Credit: Isaac AinspanRabbi Amelia Wolf of Etz Hayim, a synagogue in Arlington, Virginia. Her sermon this year will not center on Israel. Credit: Isaac AinspanIs the purpose of the sermon to bring people together or to challenge them? For some rabbis, politics is verboten; others say talking about Israel is unavoidable – even if it risks upsetting their congregantsPhilissa Cramer Senior Jewish Life Correspondent11:14 PM • September 10 2026 IDTA year ago, Rabbi Joel Sisenwine entered the High Holy Days feeling like his congregants were brittle and divided.Loading...Click the alert icon to follow topics:ZionismJudaismJews in AmericaJewish holidaysSynagoguesCommentsLoading...In the NewsIn the News: Live UpdatesNetanyahu October 7Settlement SanctionsIran-U.S.EisenkotBen-GvirHamasIsrael Election PollsOphir AwardsHaQuizHaaretz PodcastCentrist Eisenkot, Left-wing Democrats to Sign Surplus Vote Deal as Bloc SettlesIsrael's Opposition Answered the U.K.'s West Bank Sanctions With a ShrugU.S. Jewish Groups Launch Fund to Channel Federal Tax Credit to Jewish SchoolsHow This Israeli City Challenges Jewish SupremacyTel Aviv Deputy Mayor Spreads Shas Campaign Materials in Municipal-run GroupRemembering and rebuilding two years laterICYMINetanyahu Got an Explicit Warning Before Oct. 7. He Didn't Brief Security ChiefsThink Bibi Is Bad? Meet Sara NetanyahuNetanyahu Was Warned About October 7. Will Haaretz's Exposé Change Anything?IMDb Replaces the Name Israel With 'The Occupied Palestinian Territories'Netanyahu Says He Will Sue Haaretz Following Oct. 7 ExposéWater Crisis Triggered by Gaza's Ruin: Israel Is Paying the Price of Destruction