The westernmost member of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism
Torah Leyning Class
May 23, 2023
The sweet, mellifluous sounds of Torah chanted by the children of Israel are no longer bound by time and space; no longer to be heard only on Shabbat in shul. Within the unlikely venue of Zoom has… Continue reading
Tazria and Tzaraʻat
Parshat Tazria Drash by Alexander Fellman
Good Shabbos, all. I’d like to start, as is my custom, with a little story: There is a council of Rabbis meeting, discussing a matter pertaining to the ritual impurity of an oven under… Continue reading
Seder Symphony
via Arnie Warshawsky
Civil War Seder
From Mark Gottdiener, PhD
When I taught my course on “American Jews” I often asked– “Can you imagine Jews fighting and killing each other during a war?” They couldn’t.
Civil War is famous for such an event. So is WWI… Continue reading
Dancing to Praise God
Haftorah Commentary for Sh’mini by Stan Satz
In the Torah, the most familiar example of dancing to praise God is found in Exodus Chapter 15 verse 20: Miriam, the sister of Aaron and Moses, choreographs and orchestrates the… Continue reading
New Members for the Sof Board
On Sunday, March 19, the Sof Board met and appointed some new members for the congregational year. The new members of the board are listed below.
Carrie Dibrell – Welcome Chair
Kate Lingley – Recording Secretary
Jennifer Ezekiel – Oneg… Continue reading
Eternal Flame and Sacrifice
Tetzaveh Drash by Daniel Koster
Why does God want all this? This week, God instructs the Israelites to maintain an eternal oil lamp, to construct extremely intricate (that is, expensive) robes for the priests, and to sacrifice a… Continue reading
Justice and Mercy
Parsha Bo drash by Stan Satz
Parasha Bo (Chapter 10 through the 16th verse of Chapter 13)
I was in graduate school at Kent State University in the iconoclastic early 1970’s. At that time, one of my non-Jewish English graduate… Continue reading
The Bones of Joseph
Vayehi Drash by Howard Streicher
The different themes to pursue in Parsha Vayehi (“And he lived”) give us the opportunity for integrating the past into the present. Yet, accepting the value of Torah without questioning the literal truth of… Continue reading
The Rest is Commentary
Vayera Drash by Alexander Fellman
וַיְחַזֵּ֤ק יְהוָה֙ אֶת־לֵ֣ב פַּרְעֹ֔ה
But Hashem hardened pharaoh’s heart.
There is a concept among Christians called the unforgivable sin, the sin that God will never allow repentance for. In most churches, it is the… Continue reading
- Israel reportedly strikes in Iran, days after fending off Iranian missile attack"To respond to their possible action, we have fingers on the trigger," an Iranian military commander said on Thursday. -- The post Israel reportedly strikes in Iran, days after fending off Iranian missile attack appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
- 100+ arrested in day of unrest and mass protest at Columbia U over Gaza and IsraelThe escalation came a day after Columbia's president told Congress that more was needed to fight antisemitism on her campus. -- The post 100+ arrested in day of unrest and mass protest at Columbia U over Gaza and Israel appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.