“Turn ordinary moments holy.” 

Biography

Rabbi Anat Moskowitz serves at Congregation B’nai Torah in the Denver area and works as a high school teacher at the Denver Campus for Jewish Education.  She is an Adjunct Professor of Religion at Colorado College, and served as the school’s first Rabbi Chaplain.  She was Senior Rabbi for Temple Shalom in Colorado Springs, CO for five years and served as Rabbi for the United States Air Force Academy for a year while the academy Rabbi was deployed.  Prior to moving to Colorado, she lived in Los Angeles where she was an Assistant Rabbi, a middle school principal, and day school Rabbi. She also worked as a Chaplain for Beit Teshuvah, a facility for Jews in recovery from addictions and, for Nechama, a Jewish agency serving the AIDS community.  Before her rabbinic journey, Rabbi Moskowitz was a third-grade teacher for 10 years and a Disneyland foreign language tour guide. She received her BA in Psychology from California State University Long Beach and her Masters Degrees in Hebrew Letters and Rabbinic Studies, California Teachers Credentials, and Rabbinic Ordination from the University of Judaism.  She volunteers as a prison chaplain.

INTERVIEW EXCERPT 

What experiences put you on your spiritual path?

At age five, I was attending services with my father and said, “When I grow up, I want to be a Rabbi.”  My father replied, “You cannot because you are a girl.” So, I said, “Then, I’ll grow up to be a boy.”  My father retorted, “That’s not possible.”  Finally, I compromised, “Then, I’ll be a Rabbi’s wife.” I knew I wanted to do something in religion and saw no separation between faith and learning.  For example, I used to hold services for my friends—most of whom were Christian—where I taught them how to read and write and pray to God.  My relationship with God strengthened as I felt him embracing and comforting me after I was molested.

How did these experiences change you?

These experiences grounded me in who I was.  Since I couldn’t be a Rabbi, I decided to help children through becoming a psychiatrist or psychologist.  By age 12, I subscribed to Psychology Today and supported children’s causes such as The Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon.  After earning my Master’s degree, I grew tired of studying and became a third-grade teacher. One day, a seven-year-old student named Amanda said, “You’ve been teaching for a while now, what are you planning to do with the rest of your life?  You should become a Rabbi.”  I replied, “But, I wouldn’t finish rabbinical school until age 40.”  Amanda countered, “You’ll be 40 anyway so why not be 40 and a Rabbi?”  I initially started the rabbinical program without really applying or even wanting to go.  The school kept calling and asking when I was coming.  As soon as I walked into the University of Judaism, I knew I belonged.  During my first internship, I worked at Nechama, a hospital for Jewish AIDS patients.  I was the “chick Rabbi” who studied Talmud and Mishna with the patients and tried to reconcile their families.  The internship helped me get over my fear of hospitals and death. 

Who have been some of your mentors? What have you learned from them?

Amanda, the student I mentioned earlier who now is in law school (my former pupils are about 30 years old).  Two years into rabbinical school, I came home frustrated, threw down my holy books, and decided to drop out.  I ordered a non-kosher pizza for delivery and zoned out watching Friends. The phone rang.  It was Amanda.  She said, “We studied Jacob’s ladder today and I was thinking about how you are going to be the ladder helping people reach heaven when they are low and come back down again when they need grounding.” Needless to say, I stayed in rabbinical school.  Ruti Gavish, the school principal who said, “You’re a wild weed and I’m going to make you a tame flower.”  She pushed me hard to be the best teacher I could be because she wanted to ensure I did what was right for the children.  Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson, a Rabbi at the synagogue where I taught day school, who knew I’d be a Rabbi ten years before I did.  He had a way of explaining things that made me feel I already knew them.  He assured me that the rabbinate needed my people and intuitive skills.  Everyone I encounter is my mentor, like the homeless man who said, “Have a nice day” even though I did not make eye contact.  What’s the point of being blessed if we are not a blessing in return?”

For the rest of the interview, please check out the book, My Enemy is My Lover: Lessons from 50 Spiritual Leaders.

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“There are no accidents, only blessings in disguise.”

BACKGROUND

Alicia Fall is a songwriter, lyricist, singer and musician who draws upon her rich cultural background—Eastern Band Cherokee, Danish, Cuban and Spanish—to capture the American experience.  Alicia grew up in New York City where she collaborated with jazz greats such as Chico Freeman and Norman Hedman.  In 1998, she worked with musician Jon Solomon to release her premier CD, Headed For Amsterdam. The CD, a mix of jazz, blues, and soft rock, addresses the heart-breaking reality of human relationships.  Her latest CD, Hope Is What We Got, was released in December 2008, with proceeds going to global causes.  Alicia is a powerful performer who evokes spiritual awakening and emotional resonance from her audiences. 

INTERVIEW EXCERPT

Q: How did these experiences change you?

I recognize the perfection in—and purpose behind—every moment. For example, my car was rear-ended and I sustained tears in my shoulders.  When the doctors did an MRI, they found a bone tumor embedded in my left shoulder.  Had this car crash not happened, I might have discovered this tumor too late.  There are no accidents, only blessings in disguise.  We experience these divine interventions all the time but sometimes overlook them when they are not what we like or expect.

Q: Anything else?

A: When I was young, I stayed with different friends for six months while between apartments.  One day, I complained about my bouncing from place to place to a friend who happened to be homeless.  He replied, “Wow, you have a lot of friends!”  This insight caused a permanent shift inside me.  Life is all in how we look at it.

For the rest of the interview, please check out the book, My Enemy is My Lover: Lessons from 50 Spiritual Leaders.

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