This week’s Torah portion, Sh’mini, relates the deaths of the two sons of Aaron, Nadav and Avihu. The boys entered the newly dedicated sanctuary unauthorized, offered “strange fire” upon the altar, and were consumed by the flames. Much is unclear, leaving some to speculate that the boys may have been drinking. What is clear is Continue Reading »
Fun comes in many forms. One can have fun by playing a game, riding a bike, or watching a movie. One can have fun alone or with others. Everyone deserves and needs to have fun. But, as a recent New York Times article notes, over the last two years, with us stuck at home and Continue Reading »
The COVID-19 pandemic is motivating us to develop new coping skills to be healthy in body and mind. Togetherness helps us to do that. Our members sharing what is going on in their day-to-day lives brings us together: Lines of Your Life Gayle Skolky: I spend my time reading and folk dancing, and dance along Continue Reading »
This week’s Torah reading includes the call to be holy. “You shall be holy, for I the Eternal your God am holy.” (Leviticus 19:18) It is an awesome and daunting aspiration, especially because it is couched in the challenge to rise to this exalted place because God is holy. To be like God? How can this be expected Continue Reading »
Rabbi Meir taught that we should recite 100 blessings every day. (Talmud Men. 43a) (See this list of 100 blessings offered by author Dannie Siegal: https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/100-blessings/). This teaching reminds us to approach life with an attitude of gratitude and to look for the things that bring us joy, even amidst the challenges. Here we all Continue Reading »
Our tradition teaches: “When Adar arrives, joy increases.” But this year, it is all too obvious that joy has become increasingly elusive with each passing day of Adar leading up to tonight’s celebration of Purim. Instead of joy, anxiety has increased as we have watched the spread of the coronavirus (thankfully, not significantly in New Continue Reading »
Middot Make Mensches In the September issue of the Shofar, we shared with you that we are expanding our efforts to help our students develop emotional and social skills that will help them understand, express, and manage themselves as they navigate their studies, their relationships, the challenges of daily life, and the complexities of their Continue Reading »
In our faculty handbook, we offer the following framework for the work of our Religious School: In everything we do at Temple Beth-El, we aim to guide our students in developing a greater awareness that their Judaism is an integral and valuable part of who they are. We strive to educate the whole child — Continue Reading »
A small group of healthcare professionals in our Temple Beth-El community met last year to discuss how to advance the good work of the TBE Caring Network. We are pleased to update the community on two initiatives that emerged from insights they shared and our collective brainstorming. Mental Health Initiative – In his Yom Kippur Continue Reading »
