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It’s just twelve days before the curtain rises on A Dramatic Affair, Bet Ha’am’s 2021 annual spring gala. It will be presented virtually at 8 PM, Saturday, May 1. Excitement

There are many definitions of the word vital but when applied to Bet Ha’am and to me this meaning is head and shoulders above all others: “absolutely necessary or important; essential.” As a new Jew, a neophyte in so many respects, being part of a community is essential for creating a new Jewish identity.

This winter the 5th grade at Bet Ha’am has been learning about Jewish women leaders of the worker’s rights movement. We also learned about what life was like for Jews in the United States in the early 1900s, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, and Rose Schneiderman.

What: 11th Annual Plant Sale Date: Sunday May 16, 2021  Time: 9 AM to 1 PM All COVID safety protocols will be in place.  We

When the pandemic continued into a second school year, all our religious school volunteers knew their tasks would be less personal and more challenging than

This is a bittersweet moment for me. By the time you receive this article it will be about one week until our congregation’s annual meeting

As you may be aware, I will be on sabbatical from May 18-August 18, 2021. This is the remaining 3 months of my 6-month sabbatical from my 7th year at Bet Ha’am. To make things smoother for the congregation, rather than taking all 6 months at once, I take two 3-month sabbaticals, the first in the 7th year and the second in a subsequent year. I am excited to share with you here some of my plans.

Because Black History shouldn’t only be relegated to February, the shortest month of the year, Penguin Random House has put out the Black Excellence Booklist.

A Book Review I should have majored in Biblical History when I first went to college in 1968. I certainly had a thirst for it,

By Karli Efron  Karli Efron loves to watch true crime documentaries and consistently gets crushed at Scrabble when playing her husband, Jay. She has been

Sam Spinrad Religious School Director As a Jewish parent of young kids, I often felt like my observance of the fourth commandment was half-hearted.  Until

Lynn Urbach Do you know why you belong to a Reform Congregation? Is it a conscious choice, or one of convenience? To me, the difference

Rabbi’s ColumnMar-Apr 2021 Chadashot Dear Friends, We are approaching one full year of this global pandemic, a year apart and yet, we’ve still found paths

by Rabbi Saks and the Bet Ha’am Garden Committee Please join us on January 27, 2021 at 7:00 PM.Registration details will be in the Thursday

by Rabbi Jared H. Saks In November 1885, a group of Reform rabbis held a gathering in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, that birthed a document that would

by Catherine Share, congregant Here All Along: Finding Meaning, Spirituality and a Deeper Connection to Life-In Judaism, by Sarah Hurwitz Some part of every person’s

By Lynn Urbach, President Every summer when my brother and I were young, my mom would drop us off in Birmingham, Alabama, to stay with

by Rachel Lefkowitz, Synagogue Administrator In early December, I was able to attend the online conference of the National Association of Temple Administrators (NATA). I

by Sam Spinrad, Education Director Looking ahead to 2021, like most people I anticipate the reopening of schools, businesses, and life as we knew it.

This year, on each night of Chanukah, some of our congregants shared written reflections of the holiday. They are gathered here for all to enjoy.

by Toby Rosenberg, congregant Throughout this entire growing season, the garden committee and volunteers have continued to look after Bet Ha’am’s garden and grounds. Caring