Dear Friends, From Yom Kippur, we race right into Shabbat, and then right on into Sukkot! On the High Holy Days our liturgy was exceptionally lengthy. It gave us time for introspection. It gave us time to contemplate our lives. But change is in the air! Now that the High Holy Days are over…everything moves Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, Shabbat Shuvah is the Shabbat of Repentance or, some might say, it is the Shabbat of Return. In any case, this special Shabbat helps us bridge the gap between Rosh HaShana, when we pray for life, and Yom Kippur, when we pray for greater insight as we move forward into the new Jewish Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, It’s the last Shabbat of the Jewish Year! I take this opportunity to wish you and your loved ones a Shana Tova u’Metuka – a good and a sweet New Year, filled with joy, health, and happiness! It is also Labor Day weekend, so I hope you will enjoy this weekend too as Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, I hope you will join us, in person or online by live stream, for our Selichot Service this Saturday night, August 28th, at 9 pm! This is our first opportunity to hear some of our favorite High Holy Day melodies and a special “moment” in which to ramp up our spiritual preparation and Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, There is more than one way to take care of ourselves….We might take care of ourselves physically. We might take care of ourselves spiritually. We might take care of ourselves individually. We might take care of ourselves communally. Our parsha speaks about the mitzvah of erecting a parapet (guard rail) on our roof/s Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, A simple reading of our weekly Torah portion seems to suggest that the mitzvoth in the portion (including “Justice, justice you shall pursue”) are directed to the judges and to the leaders of our people…However, one might read these verses quite differently. According to an alternate reading, we are all being addressed in Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, Thank you to all the volunteers who kept our services running so smoothly during my vacation! You are the best! I truly enjoyed just coming in and sitting in the back of the Sanctuary, and allowing the sounds of the service to surround me spiritually. Thank you! I really appreciated having some time Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, Balaam, the non-Jewish prophet who was sent by Balak, King of Moav, to curse the Jewish people, looked over the encampment of the Israelites in the desert in ancient times and was moved to say: “Ma Tovu…” [How lovely are your dwellings, Jacob; your sanctuaries, people of Israel]. Nowadays, these powerful words of Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, What do we take to heart from the vast expanse of the Jewish history and of the American history that we study? What do we choose to raise up to the level of a celebration? How do we learn from and celebrate both people and events even when we are aware that they Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, Sometimes I truly feel like Korach who rebelled against Moses and demanded that Moses cede his leadership of the people Israel. What do I imagine Korach was feeling? I imagine that Korach might have felt, as I too have felt at times – angry, upset, frustrated, wishing that I could make the world Continue Reading »
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