Congregation Beth Mordecai
Congregation Beth Mordecai
An inclusive congregation affiliated with the Conservative Movement.
Your Jewish Home for the Soul!
An inclusive congregation affiliated with the Conservative Movement.
Your Jewish Home for the Soul!
August 7, 2014 By bethmordecai no comments.
Dear Hevreh,
Last week, I wrote three journal entries previewing this past Friday's Shabbat By The Sea experience with each entry devoted to a theme associated with the event -creative fun,partnership,and wordless music.In looking back at this night, I can't help but see how each of these elements helped made this night a wonderful success.
Creative fun - I don't know about you, but if we have ice cream from Bayside Creamery at each of our events, I'll be there in a heartbeat. Just seeing their little stand waiting for us as we finished our abbreviated service was enough to make your mouth water. It certainly added an element of fun and even a little whimsy to a night of[...]
Category : Ari-archive Tag : bayside creamery creativity God's Army Ministries innovation niggun partnership perth amboy perth amboy news rabbi rabbi's journal shabbat by the sea wordless music
August 5, 2014 By bethmordecai no comments.
Dear Hevreh,
Last night, our community gathered with Marlboro Jewish Center, Temple Beth Ahm, and Congregation Beth Ohr for a special communal observance of Tisha B'av. A number of the rabbis, including myself, had an opportunity to teach a little about the holiday prior to readingM'gillat Eikhah. I was particularly fascinated by the teaching of Rabbi Lisa Malik on the story of Kamtza and Bar Kamtza, perhaps the most famous story related to the destruction of the second Temple.
The story, which you can find here, seemed pregnant with such meaning that I took the time today with one of our members to study it in more depth. (By the way, please feel free to drop in during[...]
Category : Holidays Rabbi Rabbi's Journal Tishah B'av Uncategorized Tag : Bar Kamtza Congregation Beth Ahm Congregation Beth Ohr destruction fasting holidays jerusalem Kamtza Marlboro Jewish Center rabbi Rabbi Lisa Malik Rabbi Michael Pont Rabbi Yochanan Rabbi Yohanan rabbi's journal talmud Temple tisha b'av tishah b'av zealotry
August 1, 2014 By bethmordecai no comments.
This is the third of a 3 part journal series previewing different aspects of this Friday night's special Shabbat by the Sea -- Family and Community Edition. The theme for this journal is: wordless music.
Dear Hevreh,
When I was in Israel, I spent some time learning in a small one-room orthodox yeshiva in which the long table which acted as a m'hitzah separating the men from the women. However, the rosh yeshiva allowed for special sessions just for non-orthodox rabbinical students in which this restriction was discarded. The reason? Learning, unlike prayer, is more open to all.
When I was in New York I participated in an interseminary dialogue group with eight different Jewish and Christian seminaries (four each). We spent a good amount[...]
Category : Ari-archive Tag : God's Army Ministries interfaith music niggun rabbi rabbi's journal shabbat by the sea wordless
July 30, 2014 By bethmordecai no comments.
This is the second of a 3 part journal series previewing different aspects of this Friday night's special Shabbat by the Sea -- Family and Community Edition. The theme for this journal is: partnership
Dear Hevreh,
In one of my journal entries from nearly nine months ago, I used the story of creation in which God created a partner for Adam to show that, according to the wisdom of our tradition, "the only way for humanity to fully enjoy and take advantage of all the potential imbued in creation is when we have partners to work with us because it's not fun to do things alone." This is a teaching that we've applied to much of our programming at Beth Mordecai[...]
Category : Ari-archive Tag : community God's Army Ministries partnership perth amboy rabbi rabbi's journal shabbat by the sea ymca
July 29, 2014 By bethmordecai no comments.
This is the first of a 3 part journal series previewing different aspects of this Friday night's special Shabbat by the Sea -- Family and Community Edition. The theme for this journal is: creativity.
Dear Hevreh,
One of the things I've enjoyed the most over the past few years is being able to creatively work on ways to engage our community together. Whether it's a Cantorial Showcase, aUnique High Holiday Experience, or driving to people's homes to wave the lulav and count the omer, we've run many unique programs that you won't see in other places. Trying something new is exciting, but there is a certain amount of anxiety and[...]
Category : Ari-archive Tag : creativity fun innovation rabbi rabbi's journal shabbat by the sea
July 25, 2014 By bethmordecai no comments.
Dear Hevreh, There is nothing like Shabbat by the Sea. The view, the atmosphere, the singing and dancing. It's a very special time for our community, and though our first Shabbat was rained out I am looking forward to a wonderful season of making memories in the open air by the Raritan Bay. Being in the open air (i.e. outside of the walls of our building) means that while the experience of Shabbat by the Sea is meant for our community's benefit, we are exposing the elements of our ritual to onlookers and passerby in the local Perth amboy community. Dog-walkers, runners, children at play, even couples taking pictures before their wedding (according to a story shared by Rabbi Melinda Zalma during[...]
Category : Ari-archive Tag : bayside creamery Giddy's Pizzeria God's Army Ministries openness perth amboy rabbi rabbi's journal shabbat shabbat by the sea ymca
July 17, 2014 By bethmordecai no comments.
(7/17/14),
You know that saying that "it's hard to see the forest through the trees?" I used to think it simply meant being unable to see the big picture when you're immersed in the details of what you're doing. Now I think it also means that even if you have a sense of the bigger picture of what you're doing, you may not be able to see the bigger picture of what the world is doing. That is to say that what we're doing is only a small part of what's happening in the world, and even if we are cognizant of how we impact the world, the world may have other things on its mind.
Take this week. Whether it is[...]
Category : Israeli News Rabbi Rabbi's Journal Tag : israel rabbi rabbi's journal
June 24, 2014 By bethmordecai no comments.
(6/24/14),
When I started in my role as rabbi of Beth Mordecai there was a lot I didn't know. I didn't know much about board meetings, I didn't know what it would be like to run a High Holiday service with a cantor, I didn't know how my ideas would be received by the community. Nearly two years and much experience later, I have a better handle on some of these questions though more often than not an answer to one question leads to seeking answers for many more questions.
There is one question though of which the answer has evaded me since I started -- how can I successfully set up and maintain all of the tools in my possession and[...]
Category : Rabbi Rabbi's Journal Tag : foundation rabbi rabbi's journal shabbat
June 20, 2014 By bethmordecai no comments.
*Note: This message is longer than usual
Dear Hevreh,
I do not think Facebook is a great source for news. Not only is it hard to find posts posted not less than a week ago, but more importantly the posts I am able to read is not a representative sample of the news that's available for me to read. On one level this is my fault because though I may try, my circle of friends and colleagues is not broad enough to include all of the viewpoints I might need to hear. (That being said, is it realistic to work at being "Facebook friends" with complete strangers just to broaden my news feed? I know that the term "friend" is used loosely[...]
Category : Israeli News Rabbi Rabbi's Journal Social Media Tag : facebook israel israeli news jewish people kidnapped klal yisrael peoplehood rabbi rabbi's journal social media teens terrorists
June 18, 2014 By bethmordecai no comments.
Dear Hevreh,
Last week I was sitting at a table in the Menlo Park Mall for my weekly open "Ask the Rabbi" when I received a phone call from John*, a local resident who has come to me in the past for help with homelessness. Here is a not-so-exact version of our conversation:
Me: "Hi, John"
John: "Rabbi, are you at the mall?"
Me (a little surprised): "Um, yea."
John: "In the food court?"
Me: "Yes"
John: "Where? I don't see you?"
Me (turning around and seeing him): "Look behind you."
It turns out that John and some of his friends his saw the advertisement for "Ask the Rabbi" in the local paper and thought that instead of only coming to my door to ask for help in a crisis,[...]
Category : Rabbi Rabbi's Journal Tag : ask the rabbi homelessness maimonides rabbi rabbi's journal stories tz'dakah tzedakah צדקה