We have entered the Hebrew month of the yom’s, “the days.” These are not Biblical or Rabbinic holidays or commemorations. Rather, they are modern moments in our Jewish history. On Wednesday evening, we lit six candles to remember the six million Jews who were murdered in the Holocaust. As a child, I have a vivid memory of watching Holocaust survivors, like my Hebrew teacher Mrs. Szafran, walking down the sanctuary aisle to kindle the flames. This week, all six candles at Sinai Temple were lit by children of survivors, for as time passes, it is now our generation that must carry the responsibility to tell their stories.
Honorable Mensch-ion
In Praise of Unity Without Uniformity
This past winter, Sinai Temple hosted a basketball team consisting of teenagers from the destroyed kibbutzim on the Gaza border.
Are We Really Prepared?
This is a most unique Passover, as we have to be prepared a day earlier than the Seder because Shabbat precedes Passover. In a normal year, we would have another 24 hours to prepare for the Seder, up until the moment it begins.
Telling Our Story
A few years ago, when I began the podcast, “Rabbi On The Sidelines,” I asked Rabbi Wolpe, “Would you find it acceptable if I used my rabbinic voice in the sports world?” To my surprise, he answered, “One day, that voice will be needed.”
Creating a Holy Community
Last weekend, I had the good fortune of spending Shabbat with our always sold out Sinai Temple Religious School Shabbaton. Before we took out the Torah, a young student read a prayer she composed.
Shabbat As Our Center
While we learn about Shabbat in the book of Genesis, when God creates the world in six days and rests on the seventh, we continually learn about Shabbat’s sacredness throughout the entire Torah.
Light and Joy
This morning at the daily minyan, in addition to reading Megilat Esther, we read the Torah reading for Purim.
Breaking the Glass of Joy
For the last week, as a member of the initial Voice of The People Council presented by the President of Israel, Isaac Herzog, I met the most interesting people. The council was presented with the major challenges facing the Jewish world today–polarization within, Israel-Diaspora Relations, Jewish and non-Jewish relations, and antisemitism. We worked diligently not to propose a solution but to dig deep into understanding the problems. It was exhausting recognizing that more important than finishing the work is being actively engaged with it.
Bringing the Divine Presence into Adar
I write to you from the El Al airplane en route to participate in the Voice of the People Council, hosted by President Herzog of Israel.
Mourning Our Hostages
In May 2024, I visited Kibbutz Nir Oz. Our group met with an October 7th survivor. We walked around a place where families simply lived and loved the people and the land. As we finished our time there, we stopped at the home of the Bibas family. I had seen the pictures on TV, but this was different. We were standing at their front door. I will never forget: The toys turned upside down, the smiles of the pictures posted on the door, and the green grass with scorch marks. In our sanctuary, every Shabbat, I have looked at the pictures of those little boys as we prayed for their return. It is unfathomable and heartbreaking; no words are enough to describe the feeling knowing Ariel and Kfir Bibas, brutally murdered by the bare hands of Hamas along with Oded Lifshitz, are now home in Israel–not in life but in death.
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