Posts Tagged ‘halakhah’

halakhah

December 24, 2015
By bethmordecai
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DAY 1272: Tonight’s Tradition

(12/24/15), Reflection on tonight's Chinese Dinner & A Movie event... Dear Hevreh, A brief search of Facebook events reveals the extent to which the custom (minhag) of Chinese Dinner and a Movie on Christmas seems as powerful as any biblical or rabbinic law (halakhah). This should not be surprising. Whether it's eating bagels and lox on weekends, placing rocks on gravestones, or arguing over the check, Jewish customs are extremely potent markers of Jewish practice and identity. The rabbis knew this. Even in a system whereby laws (halakhot) were authoritative because of the weight of biblical precedent or rabbinic decree, customs held great sway because they were created and maintained by the people (amkha). In some instances, customs were so deliciously[...]

Category : Holidays Rabbi Rabbi's Journal
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halakhah

August 29, 2014
By bethmordecai
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Parashat Shoftim (שופטים): How Do You Pursue Justice?

Parashat Shoftim 2014/5774 (Triennial I) -- How Do You Pursue Justice? At the beginning of this week's Torah portion, Parashat Shoftim, we read some of the most talked about words in the entire Torah: "Justice, Justice You shall pursue" (Deuteronomy 16:20). But what does it mean to pursue justice? Is it a job for the few or is it a job that each of us can undertake in our own way?

We will explore this question using wisdom from Jewish tradition. Please join us for this important conversation.

Category : Online Learning Online Parashah Class
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halakhah

September 12, 2013
By bethmordecai
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Emphasizing the First Day; Reimagining the Second Day — A plan for our synagogue observance of the Jewish Holidays (High Holidays 5774)

Rabbi Ari Saks Congregation Beth Mordecai High Holidays Bulletin Article, 5774 Last Friday, for the second day of Rosh Hashanah, we had a special and unique High Holiday experience that was not the normal, traditional service. The order of the service was different, there was no Torah service, and we had opportunities for discussion and some dancing, in addition to some other innovative methods used to enhance our Rosh Hashanah experience. Overall, the feedback has been that it was a fun and meaningful service. Yet the service would never have been possible if it were not for a combination of a unique quirk of the Jewish calendar and the unique customs in which we observe our holidays. The unique quirk of the Jewish calendar is the existence[...]

Category : Bulletin Articles Passover Rabbi Rosh Hashanah Sh'mini Atzeret Shavuot Simhat Torah Sukkot Yom Kippur
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