I have never felt a connection to the Holocaust. To me, it was always a horrific crime against humanity and never a terrible act against my own people. But on a recent trip to the concentration camps of the past, where I saw the ashes for myself, it has never felt more real. Being in Continue Reading »
Move over, Marvel heroes. At Temple Beth-El, we have our own superheroes, and we are proud to be celebrating everything they’ve accomplished at the upcoming gala dinner dance on Saturday, May 11, 2019. Here’s a closer look at our three honorees and what inspires them to go above and beyond. Ellen Davidson It makes Continue Reading »
I am happy to report that the Tu BiShvat Seder on January 26 was a rousing success. For the Social Action component, celebrating the New Year of the Trees, we learned interactively about how we can help the trees by reducing our personal environmental footprint. We had about 80 attendees, each of whom worked on Continue Reading »
What If? by Rabbi David Wolpe Life is composed of finite facts and infinite possibilities. Part of the art of living is to take the possibilities and elevate those which enhance our lives, improve our world and grow our souls…. In the Talmud, one Rabbi has a dream about an upside-down world. By stretching our Continue Reading »
“When God returns the exiles to Zion, we will be like dreamers.” – Psalm 126 The State of Israel is the fulfillment of a dream. As we sing in Hatikvah, the modern return to Zion was a hope — a dream of 2,000 years! Today, on Israel’s 70th birthday, it still seems like a miracle Continue Reading »
Years ago, when Pam and I first joined a Reform congregation, I noticed that the walls of the synagogue were adorned with pictures of young women and men in robes, usually accompanied by the rabbi and cantor. A small engraved plaque identified each photograph as the “Confirmation Class” of some year. The photos stretched back Continue Reading »
First, a little Hebrew. The three root letters of shavu’ot are shin-bet-ayin — the same root that yields the word sheva’, “seven, sevenfold, seven times.” (In the language of the Bible, sheva’ can also mean the less specific “many times.”) Sheva’ appears frequently in Jewish tradition. The sheva b’rachot, “seven blessings,” are recited at a Continue Reading »
Every movement has a flashpoint that helps create a new generation of activists. Count TBE’s Erica Milgram, 18, and Mitchell Friedman, 17, among the young people across New Jersey and the country who say they will no longer stay silent on issues impacting their generation and the world. Both say they were called to action Continue Reading »
If you attended Temple Beth-El’s recent 65th anniversary gala, you may have sampled the delicious tray of chocolate 65s that added an extra note of sweetness to the festivities. Those tasty morsels were compliments of Susan Steinfeld, who, with her husband Ed, is one of our newest congregants. Susan and Ed moved to Somerset Run Continue Reading »
To my future grandchildren, I don’t know you yet. You haven’t been born or conceived; your mothers aren’t even in serious relationships! Yet I think of you. I wonder what you will know of me, whether we will share our holidays, whether you will think of yourself as Jewish. I deeply hope so. There’s a Continue Reading »
