Passover is one of the most celebrated Jewish holidays, often bringing together extended family to engage in the tradition of the pesach seder. However, for the past two years, many folks have been unable to host or attend these large gatherings. God-willing, this year is different. So much so that when we reach the question: "Why is this night different from all other nights?" I pray that many of us will have the opportunity to add, "because we can all be together again." While we hold this tremendous joy in our hearts, we also know that hate still plagues our world. Yet Judaism built a system in which the cycle of the holidays carries us forward no matter our circumstances. Just like the Jews of Ukraine found opportunities to read and hear the megillah on Purim, so too will they find ways to host and attend sedarim. Judaism provides constant reminders to surround ourselves with community. This Pesach, while we hold in our hearts the disruptions that plague our world and the hate … [Read more...]
Why Do We Need a Second Night Seder?
So, you learned everything you needed to learn after one Seder? You know the whole Torah because you chanted from the Torah when you became bar/bat mitzvah? You still remember how to assemble the Billy Bookcase from IKEA because you did it once ten years ago? Didn't think so. Reading the directions again is typically a good course of action. The same can be said for a Second Night Seder. We read the same story of our exodus from Egypt every year, but every year we gain some new insight. A Seder should be tailored to the folks around the table. Just as you wouldn't read a Shakespearean-themed Haggadah to a group of 5-year-olds, you wouldn't tell the story of Pesach using the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse to a group of 20-somethings with no toddlers around the table. Join us on April 16 for Temple Emanu-El's congregational seder, as we dine together and tell the story of our liberation as a synagogue family. This night will be different than all other nights because we will sit in our shared … [Read more...]
Lashon Hara* in Hollywood, and a Jewish Take
I do not follow celebrities. Just ask Rabbi Max, other than Denzel Washington and Meryl Streep (whose name I had to Google because I forgot it for a second)…I'm not really attuned to these things. That said, earlier this week I couldn't walk anywhere without overhearing someone talk about "the slap heard around the world." Immediately my thoughts turned to The Slap's connection to our Torah portion this week. Our Torah portion this week is Tazria. Though the rabbinic commentary on the portion provides nice material for sermons, few rabbis get particularly excited when they draw the Tazria card for their Shabbat service, and many a bar or bat mitzvah student come into our office like: WHAT did I just read?! That's because the main themes of the Torah portion are: purification rituals after childbirth; and, the ways to diagnose and treat various skin diseases, like tzaraat. Tzaraat is an important disease in Jewish literature. The rabbinic interpretation of why someone may be … [Read more...]
Second Night Seder is BACK
Passover is my favorite holiday. The food and family present make the Seder warm and exciting, but I really look forward to the Haggadah itself. When it comes to telling the story of our ancestors' escape from Egypt, the leaders of the Seder are commanded to do whatever it takes to keep everyone's attention. Rabbinic literature even goes so far as to allow adults to bribe children with candy and treats to sit at the table, listen, and participate! The one thing the Seder is NOT allowed to be is boring. Second Night Seder is the time to shake things up-to fulfill the mitzvah of telling the story of our ancestor's exodus from Egypt, and to do it with a lot of engagement. At Temple Emanu-El that means extra singing, extra games, maybe even extra wine! Passover is one of the nights each year where our congregation truly becomes a family. Thinking back two years, Purim 2020 was the last in-person event we held at Temple Emanu-El before we entered lockdown. That made Passover 2020 the … [Read more...]
THIS Year in Jerusalem
"What's the best part about being Jewish?", I asked a group of 6th-grade boys today. The only three answers were (in order): the food, the holidays, and Shabbat! They're not wrong. And the best place in the world to experience it all (besides Temple Emanu-El), is in ISRAEL. Nothing compares to the food in Israel. There is no replicating fresh veggies and fruits, falafel and hummus, and a cold Coke with fries on a warm Tel Aviv day at the beach, not in New York, not in Los Angeles, and not in Atlanta. When you're with Rabbi Spike, Rabbi Rachael, and me in Jerusalem on Ben Sira St. or right off the Tel Aviv beach on Carmel St., you'll get the culinary experience of a lifetime. Even though this trip to Israel won't have a major Jewish holiday, the real eye-opening experience is to welcome Shabbat with 7 million people all at once. When we're in Jerusalem for Shabbat this June, you will hear the noise of traffic, of shops, of the whole city start to quiet. Then, the sounds of prayer, of … [Read more...]
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