Jewish holidays often have multiple names applied to them.  Chanukah, for example, is known as Chag HaUrim, the Festival of Lights.  Rosh...

Happy Purim to all!  We had a great gathering last evening for the Megillah readings, both our family reading and the traditional full...

I have always been fascinated by the biographies of the Presidents of the United States.  I am uncertain how I got hooked on this, but...

Sixteen years have passed since my last trip to Israel.  While I am aware of many changes in that time, I, like many other Jews around...

Every Monday evening, a group of us at Temple B’nai Israel gather on Zoom to study a rabbinic text. We have looked at biblical texts with...

Like many people, I have found the avalanche of Executive Orders being issued by the President of the United States in the past few weeks...

This week, as we mark the new month of Sh’vat on the Jewish calendar, many of our neighbors around the world are celebrating the Lunar...

In Pirke Avot, the Ethics of the Fathers, we are urged to be disciples of Aaron, loving peace and pursuing peace, loving all people and...

More than fifteen months have passed since the horrific, unprovoked attack on Israel by Hamas and its allies on October 7, 2023.  Some...

At our monthly clergy lunch on Wednesday, one of the ministers told us of his family’s deep concern as the fires rage in Los Angeles this...

In the Torah we are taught about five festivals celebrated during the course of the Jewish year.  We have the two holidays known nowadays...

One of my favorite Chanukah songs, one which many Hebrew students in recent years seem to enjoy, is the Latke Song, by the late...

One of the best-known paintings by the 17th century Italian artist Artemisia Gentileschi is of Judith beheading Holofernes, a powerful...

June 8, 2023 It has been a while since we have celebrated a bar mitzvah in this congregation, so it with great joy that we join this...

Next Thursday, we join with people of all backgrounds in our national day of Thanksgiving. This year has indeed been a difficult one for...

A few weeks back, I received a call from a colleague in New York, Rabbi Matthew Abelson, the Executive Director of a group called Rabbis...

This week, so many among us are deeply upset and concerned by the results of the national election.  While some folks may be pleased by...

Last Thursday and Friday we celebrated the concluding days of our annual Fall holidays, marking the festival of Shemini Atzeret (the...

As we conclude this year of tragedy, loss, and destruction – truly “a year with its curses” and pray for the new year to bring blessing,...

As we approach the High Holidays, we also are nearing the end of our annual cycle of Torah readings. We are in the final chapters of the...