Blogs

This week’s Torah portion, Vayeitzei, contains the mysterious story of Jacob’s ladder. Appearing to Jacob in a dream, the ladder connects the earth to the heavens and angels travel up and down between the two realms. Amid this fantastic vision, God declares the following: “I, the Eternal, am the God of your father Abraham and God of Isaac: the land on which you are lying, I will give to you and to...Read more...

You’ve all seen this flash across the screen while streaming whatever show currently has your attention.  As the credits start, it will often than say “special appearance by ________.”  This person is often a recognizable performer who has used all of his or her gifts to inhabit a single episode, or a limited arc.  Well, if Torah portions had opening credits, our special appearance this week would be made by Eliezer, the...Read more...

It’s always interesting to see what various synagogues do years like this one, when Shabbat and Halloween fall in such close proximity.  We can be certain that some synagogues are doing nothing, which is understandable.  The two days could not be more different.  Shabbat is unabashedly Jewish while Halloween, with its probable pagan roots, has become a secular holiday celebrated around the...Read more...

“There is a crack, a crack in everything,” the songwriter and poet Leonard Cohen wrote in his song “Anthem.”  That line could describe any one of our hearts just after Israel lost more souls in a day since the Holocaust.  He then goes on and adds, “that’s how the light gets in.”

In an unutterably dark time, there are some things we can do to reach for that light and let...Read more...

In the final portion of the Torah, V'zot Habrachah, we find ourselves at a poignant moment. Moses, the revered leader of the Israelites, stands on the threshold of eternity. The Children of Israel stand before him, aware of the impending loss they will soon face. Mourning, reflection, and transition are at the forefront at this solemn moment, and if we look closely, we might see a...Read more...