The Shabbat Project is a fantastic idea. In this crazy world, we need a little bit of unity and where better to find it than in G-d's hidden gem given to the Jewish People. Shabbat, a little bit of sanity in a turbulent world. Jews around the world are going to unplug and just "be" with our friends, family and even just ourselves - quite a feat in a 24/7 go, go, go mindset.
Enjoy the time off everyone.
Shabbat Shalom.
The Shabbos Project #KeepingItTogether
You don’t need to be religious to observe the Shabbat Project
This weekend, Jews in some 460 cities all over the world have signed up to turn off their phones and tune in to the Jewish day of rest
Friday, October 24, 2014
Monday, October 6, 2014
Cuteness Abounds
I never quite got the hang of the hand motions for Dovid, Melech Yisroel (David, King of Israel) when I was a kid. Yesterday, the idea popped into my head that YouTube probably had it - I was right, here it is. I've learned it now and my daughter R (3.5 yrs) is into learning it too. Y (2 yrs) is trying his best to join in. Cuteness abounds.
Sunday, October 5, 2014
Yizkor Thoughts
This was the first year (unfortunately) that I said the Yizkor prayer for my mother. I said it at home, there was no way I was getting to the synagogue. I remember all the years that those of us who hadn't lost anyone would file out of the sanctuary and hang out in the lobby. A few minutes later someone would pop out and let us know that it was time to come back.
I always thought it must have been a big-time prayer - long and difficult to read. It wasn't. It was two paragraphs long. Truthfully, I was surprised.
It's interesting to me that so many people who aren't regular shul goers come to the synagogue special just to say those two paragraphs. I think that it must be about a need for connection to those we've lost. Even those who only come to shul every so often, I think, make a statement of belief when they come for Yizkor - speaking directly to G-d, asking the Almighty to watch out for their relatives.
I'm not saying that they should be limiting their time in shul to only when they can say Yizkor. In fact, I think they are losing out on building a relationship with G-d and with their community - but I do think that I have to re-evaluate what I used to think about those who do that.
Wishing everyone a healthy, happy New Year!
Time to get ready for Sukkot! Happy Sukkah building!
I always thought it must have been a big-time prayer - long and difficult to read. It wasn't. It was two paragraphs long. Truthfully, I was surprised.
It's interesting to me that so many people who aren't regular shul goers come to the synagogue special just to say those two paragraphs. I think that it must be about a need for connection to those we've lost. Even those who only come to shul every so often, I think, make a statement of belief when they come for Yizkor - speaking directly to G-d, asking the Almighty to watch out for their relatives.
I'm not saying that they should be limiting their time in shul to only when they can say Yizkor. In fact, I think they are losing out on building a relationship with G-d and with their community - but I do think that I have to re-evaluate what I used to think about those who do that.
Wishing everyone a healthy, happy New Year!
Time to get ready for Sukkot! Happy Sukkah building!
Friday, October 3, 2014
Yom Kippur Resources
Wishing everyone a Gmar Chatima Tova - a healthy and happy year ahead.
And a fantastic article for those of us stay-at-home moms who won't be anywhere near the synagogue.
Hoping all the Jewish People have a meaningful and easy fast.
Monday, September 29, 2014
A Quick Overview of the High Holidays
Good day everyone!
I've started a new book, Toward a Meaningful Life, and I wanted to share a piece giving a fantastic overview of the Holidays we find ourselves in the midst of --
I've started a new book, Toward a Meaningful Life, and I wanted to share a piece giving a fantastic overview of the Holidays we find ourselves in the midst of --
On Rosh Hashana, we learn that we have the power to still the trembling world and assist in the birth of a new one. The tremors of the old world are the birth pangs of the new. It is within our power to help bring about that rebirth, by taking steps to renew our own spiritual lives (xiii)
The message of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is that renewal is possible even after loss and destruction.... Rebirth can be more powerful than the initial birth. The first revelation of the Law on Mount Sinai took forty days, but Moses spent twice as long to persuade G-d to yield to his entreaties and replace the broken tablets. The effort required to rebuild after destruction is much greater than the work of building in the first place. But the rebuilt structure, when it is finally completed, is stronger than the original and can never again be destroyed...Yom Kippur is the holiest day in the year because it is the day when life's essential element, Hope, was born. The message of Yom Kippur is unequivocal: even after great loss, we can repair, rebuild and regenerate... Yom Kippur makes clear how we can achieve these things: by connecting to G-d, to immortality (xiv-xv).
The festival of joy, Sukkot (Tabernacles), follows in the wake of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur with a vital lesson of its own for today's difficult circumstances. Joy is an external sign of the soul's innate celebration of life. Awareness of our indispensable purpose, that we are connected to our Divine mission, is cause for celebration. Conversely, if we are cut off from this awareness - that is, if we feel that our lives lack purpose and direction - we are prey to feelings of insecurity, fear, uncertainty, and despondency... The joy of Sukkot is an extension of the hope born on Yom Kippur. Joy cannot be experienced to the fullest until we have encountered loss and begun to recover, as happens on Yom Kippur. With hope regained, after our broken spirits have revived and we have started to rebuild after loss, we celebrate (xvi).This is only the beginning of the book. I'm looking forward to reading and learning more!
Saturday, September 27, 2014
Happy New Year 5775!
How time flies. We're back at the beginning - Shana Tova to all! Happy New Year!
It's the beginning of the Jewish New Year! A celebration completely different than the secular one, we spend the day thinking about G-d as our King.
For me, Rosh HaShana and the upcoming holidays are a bit tough to get my head around. I am blessed with three small people, 3.5 years, 2 years and 3 months old. Getting in the mood and to synagogue is more than a small challenge (more like a bad joke). Happily, I found someone in my building who blew the shofar for me.
I'm revisiting the idea of learning something Jewish for 5 minutes a day. For anyone who thinks that 5 minutes is no big deal should come visit my home. I'm hoping to find that 5 minutes block - rather, I think it may have to be broken up into parts.
I'll share with you a series of books that I enjoy. There are at least six books in the series so far, each focusing on different parts of the Torah. I just finished Let Me Join Your Nation by Yosef Deutsch. (Took me three months, trust me, it's not a long book). It's a novelization of the Book of Ruth. Using commentaries and midrashim, he weaves a coherent narrative, fleshing out the story. What I like about it is that he includes footnotes, so if you were so inclined, you could actually check out the details. I feel like you are learning by reading a book without working too hard.
The next book I'm going to be working through is one I've read before, but it's been about six years since I've cracked it open. It's called, Toward a Meaningful Life: The Wisdom of the Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson. It's got a universal message, so anyone from any faith should get something out of it - but obviously geared toward Jews. I don't remember much from the last time I read it, but I do remember enjoying it. I am excited to give it another read (as slow and painful as that may be).
So again, I'm going to try to write a weekly dvar Torah, and hopefully I won't peter out like I did last time. Try, try again!
A healthy and happy Shana Tova to all!
It's the beginning of the Jewish New Year! A celebration completely different than the secular one, we spend the day thinking about G-d as our King.
For me, Rosh HaShana and the upcoming holidays are a bit tough to get my head around. I am blessed with three small people, 3.5 years, 2 years and 3 months old. Getting in the mood and to synagogue is more than a small challenge (more like a bad joke). Happily, I found someone in my building who blew the shofar for me.
I'm revisiting the idea of learning something Jewish for 5 minutes a day. For anyone who thinks that 5 minutes is no big deal should come visit my home. I'm hoping to find that 5 minutes block - rather, I think it may have to be broken up into parts.
I'll share with you a series of books that I enjoy. There are at least six books in the series so far, each focusing on different parts of the Torah. I just finished Let Me Join Your Nation by Yosef Deutsch. (Took me three months, trust me, it's not a long book). It's a novelization of the Book of Ruth. Using commentaries and midrashim, he weaves a coherent narrative, fleshing out the story. What I like about it is that he includes footnotes, so if you were so inclined, you could actually check out the details. I feel like you are learning by reading a book without working too hard.
The next book I'm going to be working through is one I've read before, but it's been about six years since I've cracked it open. It's called, Toward a Meaningful Life: The Wisdom of the Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson. It's got a universal message, so anyone from any faith should get something out of it - but obviously geared toward Jews. I don't remember much from the last time I read it, but I do remember enjoying it. I am excited to give it another read (as slow and painful as that may be).
So again, I'm going to try to write a weekly dvar Torah, and hopefully I won't peter out like I did last time. Try, try again!
A healthy and happy Shana Tova to all!
Monday, May 5, 2014
Stark Contrasts
This article is written by a friend of mine, Yehuda Poch, who lives in Israel.
Israel is a land of stark contrasts. On most street corners in Jerusalem you can find black-clad ultra-Orthodox Jews standing next to T-shirt-clad secular Jews, waiting for the light to change. It is a country with precious few natural resources and a relatively small population, yet it has one of the strongest economies in the world, driven by a high-tech industry that is the envy of everyone. It is an island of democracy and stability in a sea of despotism and strife. Its people are brusque and audacious, yet sweet and welcoming at the same time. The headlines often contain issues of world drama, yet it’s the small and mundane that makes the news.
Yet nowhere are the contrasts of Israeli society more pronounced than in the mid-Spring when twice, one week apart, we bring our entire national ethos into sharp contrast.
A loud and mournful cry goes up from every corner of the land. The entire country collectively cries out in pain and anguish, and stands in silence - remembering.
Our cry echoes that of our nation 70 years ago, as six million of us were murdered in cold inhumanity. We remember the victims of the Holocaust, the ultimate denouement of our long and bitter exile from our national homeland. And then, a week later, our cry is our own, in memory, respect, and longing as we remember those who gave their lives so that six million might return and live in that homeland as free people.
The Jewish nation never loses sight of its past. For it is that past that forms the foundation for our present strength, and that is the source of hope and inspiration for our future.
The State of Israel – the rebirth of the Jewish nation. Born out of the ashes of the greatest destruction known to mankind, and strengthened through the fire of war and struggle, the State of Israel grows and our nation stands.
It is exceedingly difficult to turn, literally in one minute, from deep mourning, contemplation and memory to intense celebration with a passion that is unmatched in any other culture. Yet it is precisely that most stark of all contrasts that enables us to celebrate our Independence Day with far greater meaning, and with far greater appreciation for the miracle that is Israel.
Israel is a land of stark contrasts. On most street corners in Jerusalem you can find black-clad ultra-Orthodox Jews standing next to T-shirt-clad secular Jews, waiting for the light to change. It is a country with precious few natural resources and a relatively small population, yet it has one of the strongest economies in the world, driven by a high-tech industry that is the envy of everyone. It is an island of democracy and stability in a sea of despotism and strife. Its people are brusque and audacious, yet sweet and welcoming at the same time. The headlines often contain issues of world drama, yet it’s the small and mundane that makes the news.
Yet nowhere are the contrasts of Israeli society more pronounced than in the mid-Spring when twice, one week apart, we bring our entire national ethos into sharp contrast.
A loud and mournful cry goes up from every corner of the land. The entire country collectively cries out in pain and anguish, and stands in silence - remembering.
Our cry echoes that of our nation 70 years ago, as six million of us were murdered in cold inhumanity. We remember the victims of the Holocaust, the ultimate denouement of our long and bitter exile from our national homeland. And then, a week later, our cry is our own, in memory, respect, and longing as we remember those who gave their lives so that six million might return and live in that homeland as free people.
The Jewish nation never loses sight of its past. For it is that past that forms the foundation for our present strength, and that is the source of hope and inspiration for our future.
The State of Israel – the rebirth of the Jewish nation. Born out of the ashes of the greatest destruction known to mankind, and strengthened through the fire of war and struggle, the State of Israel grows and our nation stands.
It is exceedingly difficult to turn, literally in one minute, from deep mourning, contemplation and memory to intense celebration with a passion that is unmatched in any other culture. Yet it is precisely that most stark of all contrasts that enables us to celebrate our Independence Day with far greater meaning, and with far greater appreciation for the miracle that is Israel.
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