Dear Friends, This Shabbat is the 17th day of the Jewish month of Tammuz. On this date, in 70 C.E., the Roman army breached the walls of Jerusalem. Three weeks later, on the 9th of the Jewish month of Av, the Romans destroyed the Second Temple. In our modern Jewish calendar, the 17th of Tammuz Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, As you may recall, I mentioned last High Holy Days that I am an avid reader of Louise Penny mysteries which are written on the backdrop of Quebec landscapes. Since then, I have been enjoying Donna Leon’s books featuring Commissario Guido Brunetti and his Venetian escapades. And, most recently I have begun reading Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, I hope you are enjoying our Independence Day Weekend! I was grateful that we had a lovely morning minyan on Thursday, July 4th, and that we could be with Stephanie and Jack Gelman who were concluding the Shiva for Stephanie’s mom, Edith Spritzer, of blessed memory. After the morning minyan service, and before Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, This past week we have all seen heightened advertisements enticing us to buy gifts for Father’s Day….Mostly the ads say: Do you have your gift ready? Interestingly, our Torah portion of Naso includes the gifts brought to the Tabernacle by each of the Nesi’im [the chiefs] of the 12 tribes of Israel. Each Continue Reading »
Shabbat Parashat BaMidbar and Shavuot (Saturday night, Sunday and Monday) Open Our Hearts to Your Torah June 8, 2019 – 5 Sivan 5779 Dear Friends, This Shabbat will be followed immediately by the two days of Shavuot – the holiday which celebrates the giving of the Torah! For the traditional lighting Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, How many mountains have we climbed? How many memories have we acquired? Our Torah portion begins by mentioning Mount Sinai. Even if we have not personally climbed that particular mountain, we retain a communal memory of that amazing mountain where God appeared and spoke with all of us. Midrash tells us that each Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, I hope that you will join us this Friday night and on Shabbat morning for services as we welcome Cantor Ruth Ross, our High Holiday Cantor, to Rodef Sholom Temple. I also hope that you will be here this Shabbat morning as Dr. Kim Gipson’s Religious school class will process with their hand-made Continue Reading »
Parashat Kedoshim Dear Friends, As Mother’s Day approaches, we automatically wish one another Happy Mother’s Day. It is truly a blessing to be able to feel good about Mother’s Day. Nevertheless, for various reasons, some of us feel sad on Mother’s Day and it is helpful for us, as individuals and as a community, to Continue Reading »
Parashat Acharey Mot The “Light” Response to Antisemitism Shabbat Machar Chodesh Shabbat Mevarekhim HaChodesh May 4, 2019 – 29 Nisan 5779 Dear Friends, The name of our weekly Parsha, Acharey Mot literally means: “After the death of….” How did Aaron, the Kohen HaGadol [the High Priest] respond after the sudden, shocking, unsettling death of two Continue Reading »
Dear Friends, I share with you my free translation of the contents of my son’s recent text message which contained an excerpt of the testimony of Ben Gurion in 1946. It is great food for thought and for discussion for Passover…. In 1946 Ben Gurion testified (as head of the Jewish Agency) before a Continue Reading »
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