The westernmost member of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism
Sof Drashes 2020 – 2021
Gut Yontif – Yom Kippur Drash
October 1, 2021
By Alex Golub

The High Holy Days are a time of teshuvah. Between the beginning of Rosh Hashanah and the end of Yom Kippur we hope to have improved. And yet,… Continue reading
How to Make Jewish Spaces More Accessible for Disabled Jews
How to Make Jewish Spaces More Accessible for Disabled Jews Like Me
By Allison Wallis
Previously published in Kveller:
https://www.kveller.com/how-to-make-jewish-spaces-more-accessible-for-disabled-jews-like-me/
One in four Americans has at least one disability. If you live long enough, the odds are that you will… Continue reading
Books By Sof’ers
American Pastimes
A New Book by S.P. Goldstein
Sof Communications chair Sid Goldstein has just published a new book of baseball-themed short stories entitled American Pastimes. Here is the publisher’s press release that accompanied the launch of the book.… Continue reading
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
Sofʻer Profiles
Naomi Olstein Jewish Education Fund
May 2, 2022
by Sandra Z. Armstrong
The Naomi Olstein Jewish Education Fund at Sof Ma’arav has been created to honor the memory of Naomi in a way that will keep her close to us.… 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
Sofʻers Get Creative

All About OLLI
by Sid Goldstein
December 1, 2021
The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at UH Manoa (OLLI-UHM) is a member-based learning community of adults age 50+. OLLI-UHM offers a program of non-credit, college-level courses, workshops, lectures, events, and other… Continue reading
Snowbirds: Off-Island Sofʻers
Snowbirds at Sea
December 1, 2021

Mahi mahi at Penguin Banks, Molokaʻi

Sea turtle checking us out at Kāneʻohe Bay Sandbar
Sof Snowbirds on the Go
September 1, 2021
By Les Rosenthal

In the early evening of August 21st,… Continue reading
Stories & Legends
By Reb Daniel Lev
Reb Zalman’s Two Menorahs: A Hanukkah Tale
November 30, 2021
The great Rebbe of San Francisco, Reb Zalman, had a curious practice that he engaged in on the eighth night of Hanukkah: As on all the… Continue reading