Dear Temple Beth-El, This week’s Torah portion is Vayigash, the denouement of the Joseph story in which Judah pleads to Joseph on his brother Benjamin’s behalf, Joseph reveals his identity to his brothers, and they reconcile. It is a striking end to a powerful tale, one that begins with arrogance and enslavement and ends with Continue Reading »
Dear Temple Beth-El, I am so excited to celebrate my first Chanukah Shabbat with all of you, and to take part in the Consecration ceremony for our newest learners in our religious school! Tonight is going to be so full of joy and light and love. The lights of Chanukah have been dimmed by violence Continue Reading »
Dear Temple Beth-El, The sad truth is that, despite the fact that no Jew anywhere deserves anything other than joy and light this week, our jubilation as we enter Chanukah this year has yet again been dulled and diminished by violence. A community Chanukah celebration on Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, where hundreds of Jews Continue Reading »
It is this week’s Torah portion, Vayishlach, that tells us the story of our forefather Jacob’s dream in which he wrestled a blessing from an angel of the Divine. When he awoke from his dream, he was renamed– no longer Ya’akov, Jacob, but now Yisrael, Israel, the God Wrestler. This process of ending the tenure Continue Reading »
This week’s parashah, Vayeitzei, comes from the book of Genesis which means “And he left.” This portion details Jacob’s journey from Beersheba to Haran, including his vision of the ladder to heaven, his time working in servitude for his uncle Laban, and his marriages to Leah and Rachel. When I had the privilege to drash Continue Reading »
L’dor vador, from generation to generation, our people have been thoughtful and deliberate about ensuring the continuity of leadership as a sacred trust. Moshe Rabbeinu didn’t merely announce that Joshua would be his successor. He assembled the entire community and, in the presence of God, laid his hands upon Joshua’s head and blessed him. To Continue Reading »
Dear Temple Beth-El, Tonight and tomorrow in Israel another holiday of thanks-giving will be celebrated: Sigd, a special holiday of the Ethiopian Jewish community, known as Beta Israel, which confirms and celebrates the renewal of the covenant between God and the People of Israel. As R. Dr. Dalia Marx writes in her book From Time Continue Reading »
Dear Temple Beth-El, I want to start this message with gratitude: We called upon you to rally to support our food insecure neighbors, and you have answered the call. Our community has donated over $7,000 of critical funds to the Food Bank Network of Somerset County–a testament to the mensches of which our community is Continue Reading »
The following remarks were shared by Gary Cohen at our Erev Shabbat Service on Friday, November 7. Shabbat shalom everyone. For those of you who do not know me, my name is Gary Cohen, and if you do know me you may not recognize me without my mask. Tonight, I took off my mask to Continue Reading »
Dear Temple Beth-El, We were already in a moral crisis in the United States around hunger–the wealthiest country in the history of the world should not be struggling to feed its most vulnerable populations. That moral crisis, however, has been worsened into an immediate and existential crisis–not because of acts out of anyone’s control, but Continue Reading »
