Month: November 2019

In his Rosh Hashanah sermon, Rabbi Saks spoke about the work he would like to do with our congregation to dismantle systemic racism in our country. As part of that work, Rabbi Saks is reading White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism, by Robin DiAngelo. Rabbi Saks invites you … Read more

By Jane Snerson. D’var Torah, November 1, 2019. The Torah portion this week is Noah. Noah who was told by God that the people were so wicked they were beyond help and God was going to start all over again—almost. God designated Noah to build an ark that would accommodate Noah and his wife; his … Read more

by Sam Spinrad, Education Director On Erev Simchat Torah, which fell on October 20 this year, we celebrated the beginning of our first-grade students’ Jewish education (consecration). This phrase—Jewish education—evokes a different image to everyone. Some may picture learning about Shabbat and holidays. Others may recollect intense hours of studying Hebrew or Torah trope in preparation for … Read more

by Rabbi Jared H. Saks Last March, I traveled with nine teens from Congregation Bet Ha’am, along with a parent chaperone, to Washington, DC to participate in the Bernard and Audre Rapoport L’Taken Social Justice Seminar with the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism (the RAC). Our teens lobbied our members of Congress on climate change, criminal justice … Read more

by Lynn Urbach, President I go to Shabbat services at least a couple of times a month. The more often I go, the more I get out of it. That doesn’t surprise me. I see it as similar to meditation or yoga. Participating infrequently just doesn’t work. It is takes practice to get into the right frame … Read more