The World Zionist Congress Elections are coming soon, and our congregation’s votes are critical to maintaining a large Reform presence! The election (which happens every five years)  is our chance to have the Reform Movement’s voice and priorities heard in Israel. This is our chance to combat the discrimination the Reform Movement faces in Israel. Together we can grow our Reform Movement and work towards making progress on the issues we care about: religious freedom, equality, and many more. This process is critically important to the allocation of funds toward progressive causes in Israel. Did you know that the Israeli government pays the salaries of hundreds of rabbis, but only 9 are Reform? Or, that while only 20% of the Israeli population is comprised of Orthodox Jews, 100% of Jewish marriages in Israel are controlled by the Orthodox Chief  Rabbinate? A vote for ARZA is a vote to make changes to these types of discrimination. We often sit from the comfort of our American homes and … [Read more...]

Chag Urim Sameach- Happy Chanukah everyone! Last week, we began to read about Joseph, our favorite dreamer, and Jacob’s favorite son. Although he is a star in his father’s eyes, Joseph descends lower and lower: first into a pit, then through many slave trades, and finally down to Egypt. As Joseph descends toward his rock bottom, the Torah reminds us not once, but twice that God is with Joseph.  When Joseph moves through his many sales as a slave, God remains “with Joseph, when he was successful and also when he stayed in the house of his Egyptian master [Potiphar].” Later in the same chapter, as Potiphar throws Joseph in prison, we read for a second time, “Adonai was with Joseph, and whatever he did, Adonai made successful.” These two verses illumine that even in our darkest moments, or lowest of circumstances, God is with us, even when things are so dark that we cannot see or feel the light of God’s presence. The Or HaChayyim, a Moroccan born rabbi of the 18th century explains that … [Read more...]

Jewish-ness is not something easily determined. Are we a race? A religion? A nationality? An ethnicity? Or, maybe, we are all of these things or something else entirely. We have been questioning how to categorize the Jewish people for thousands of years, and the recent executive order by the President has brought this question to the fore once again. In the early days of the Reform Movement, back in the 19th century, our founders declared that the Jewish people were only a religious group. The earliest Zionists then firmly stated that Jews represent a nationality. These, however, are only two opinions of the thousands on the core question, “who are the Jewish people?” In America, it is easy to forget that half of the global Jewish population does not come from a European background. The vast majority of American Jewry is associated with Ashkenazi descent that we take the diversity of the Jewish people for granted. It’s difficult to claim that the Jewish people are a single ethnic group … [Read more...]

There was once a great Cantor[1], “bound to the world of music” by the Baal Shem Tov[2] himself. This cantor rose to great heights and sang with incredible soul that he became known throughout the land as The Cantor of the Baal Shem Tov. At that time, it was hard to find a cantor without his meshor’rim- his choristers, who would harmonize spontaneously with the cantor and help those in the congregation to sing as well. This particular cantor had a bass who would travel with him to the different towns and villages where they would sing and harmonize together. When the cantor passed away, the angels summoned him to sing before the heavenly courts. The cantor insisted that he could not sing beautifully without his bass singer to join him. So, the heavenly court waited until the bass singer had also died, and then the two of them, cantor and bass, sang together in heaven. This story reminds us that music is meant to be shared, sung and experienced together. Cantors need their fellow … [Read more...]

Thanksgiving may just be a few weeks behind us and Chanukah just a few weeks ahead, but we are in full swing of the hosting season! Whether you’re hosting a holiday party or family that’s coming to town, the Jewish value of hachnasat orchim (welcoming guests) calls upon us to welcome people into our homes. For Temple Emanu-El families, it just so happens that we’re extending the season of hospitality by a few extra weeks and asking our families to open up their homes to Jewish teens from all across the Southern Area Region for NFTY-SAR Winter Kallah, hosted by Temple Emanu-El January 17–19, 2020. You do not even have to have a teen living in your home or beds for them to sleep in order to host (they’ll bring sleeping bags for the floor!). You’ll just be asked to provide breakfast, a few late-night snacks, and a few car rides throughout the weekend. When we talk about being a welcoming community, our hope is that the welcoming nature extends beyond the walls of our building and into … [Read more...]