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!
September 30, 2014 By bethmordecai no comments.
Let Us Sing Our Songs Together
Rosh Hashanah 5775 – September, 25 2014*
Rabbi Ari Saks
Congregation Beth Mordecai
Picture this. You are an Israelite in approximately 1600 BCE. You, your family, and your people have just escaped the torture and slavery of the Egyptians with the help of God and Moses, and as you turn back from reaching the other side of the Red Sea , you hear the deafening, vicious sound of waves devouring your Egyptian pursuers, until the last of them are no longer seen.
You stand there aghast, not knowing what to say…you are free! After a moment or two of reality sinking in, you feel this overwhelming urge to shout out for joy. To sing praises of thanksgiving, of joy,[...]
Category : Rabbi Rosh Hashanah Sermons Tag : Arukh Hashulkhan Benjamin Segal birds community Expression high holidays joy love mary poppins rabbi Rabbi Irwin Kula reflection Rosh Hashanah sermons shower song song of songs To Rome With Love Unique Songs unique torah vulnerability Woody Allen Yearnings
September 19, 2014 By bethmordecai no comments.
9/19/14,
אע"פ שתקיעת שופר בראש השנה גזירת הכתוב, רמז יש בו, כלומר עורו ישינים משנתכם ונרדמים הקיצו מתרדמתכם (רמב"ם משנה תורה הלכות תשובה ג:ד)ש
Even though the blowing of the shofar on Rosh HaShanah is a Biblical decree, it hints at something, i.e., “Wake up, sleepers, from your sleep! And slumberers, arise from your slumber!" (Maimonides Laws of Repentance 3:4)
Dear Hevreh,
One of the things I'm often working on is how to be more judicious and efficient in using my time effectively. Schedules, planning, and even execution of the tasks at hand only seem to go so far, because as I sat in prayer yesterday I realized that one of the things I often miss when it comes to trying to[...]
Category : Rabbi Rabbi's Journal Rosh Hashanah Tag : blessings david kraemer food high holidays pirkei avot rabbi rabbi's journal rambam Rosh Hashanah shofar
By bethmordecai no comments.
Please join us for Yom Kippur and the 2nd day of Rosh Hashanah in our MAIN sanctuary. Not in a catering wing with a television or a speaker with a piped in service. You will be in our main service with our own Rabbi Saks and our Canter, Rabbi Bronwen Mullin. It is the custom of this synagogue to offer FREE services for those days to those that wish to attend and cannot afford a ticket. The first day of Rosh Hashanah and Kol Nidre do require a very affordable ticket. Please call our office at 732-442-1373 Monday through Thursday from 10-2. If we are not in please leave a message and we will call you back.
Category : Holidays home Rosh Hashanah Yom Kippur Tag : Rosh Hashanah Tickets Yom Kippur
September 16, 2014 By bethmordecai no comments.
הָיוֹם הָרָת עוֹלָם
Hayom Harat Olam
Today is the birthday of the world
(Rosh Hashanah liturgy)
Dear Hevreh,
According to tradition, Rosh Hashanah is considered to be the "birthday of the world," when God first began the process of creation. Perhaps this tradition teaches us that like our birthdays, the "re-birth" of the year not only gives us a chance to reflect on the year that has gone by, but to be rejuvenated for the year to come with the youthful energy of a newborn who looks at the world and sees the possibilities of what lies before her. In other words, Rosh Hashanah can help us find the kid in ourselves again.
How appropriate then that in this week leading up to Rosh Hashanah we[...]
Category : home Kidz Korner Rabbi Rabbi's Journal Rosh Hashanah Tot Shabbat YJPA Tag : baby naming big tent judaism birthday Jewish Federation kids kidz korner pj library rabbi rabbi's journal Rosh Hashanah Tot Shabbat YJPA youthful energy
May 9, 2014 By bethmordecai no comments.
Parashat B'har 2014/5774 (Triennial I) -- What's a Jubilee?
In this week's Torah portion we read about the "yoveil," the commemoration of the Jubilee every 50 years. But what is a Jubilee? Where does the term come from and what is it all about? Join us as we discuss the physical and spiritual qualities of the Jubilee and its message for our day.
Category : Online Learning Online Parashah Class Tag : b'har behar blasts d'ror jubilee liberty online learning online parashah class parsha parshat Rosh Hashanah shofar yoveil בהר דרור יובל שופר תרועה
April 13, 2014 By bethmordecai no comments.
Faith in Words
Sermon for Shabbat Hagadol (April 12th 2014)
Rabbi Ari Saks
Congregation Beth Mordecai
Once there was a king who ruled many kingdoms, yet no matter how much wealth he amassed, no matter how many people he helped, he never felt at peace. His mind raced in so many different directions he could never feel as if he was in the right place at the right time. When he was sad he wanted to be happy, and for some reason when he was happy, he wanted to be sad. Well, he thought, if my mind is never at peace then neither should my kingdom. So he set about making every part of his kingdom the opposite of what it should be –[...]
Category : Cantorial Showcase home Passover Rabbi Sermons Shabbat Tag : capacity community high holidays Interfaith Center of Greater Philadelphia mission passover rabbi rabbi david wolpe Rabbi Ezekiel Landau Reverend Nicole Diroff Rosh Hashanah sacrifices sermons shabbat words Yom Kippur
November 3, 2013 By bethmordecai no comments.
Dear Hevreh, Today is a wonderful day because for the first time in recent memory, we welcome a teenage Bar Mitzvah boy and his family to mark this wonderful occasion for their family in our community. By partnering with the Hebrew Corner, a non-denominational Hebrew School run by Cantor Avima Darnov, we connected with Lyle and Robin Sandler who were searching for a venue to host the bar mitzvah of their son, Ben. After many conversations and opportunities for the Sandlers to experience our community (including participating in our Unique High Holiday Experience on the second day of Rosh Hashanah), they agreed to host this wonderful simhah in our Jewish home. Being a part of the Sandlers' simhah is a wonderful privilege for our congregation and it[...]
Category : Bar and Bat Mitzvah Bar Mitzvah Rabbi's Journal Rosh Hashanah Youth Education Tag : avima darnov bar mitzvah grow community hebrew corner jewish home Rosh Hashanah simhah unique high holiday experience
October 8, 2013 By bethmordecai no comments.
Dear Hevreh, We are still less than a month removed from our High Holiday celebrations as a community, and I hope you are still feeling some of the positive effects of those days together and that they helped make the wisdom of a Jewish tradition come alive for you. I've already heard a good amount of positive and constructive feedback from you on the content and the process of those days, yet in order to make the lessons from those days stick throughout the year, and in order to improve the overall experience of the holidays every year, it is important to know more. That is why this week I will continue to listen to anecdotal feedback through private conversations and[...]
Category : Holidays Rabbi Rabbi's Journal Rosh Hashanah Yom Kippur Tag : feedback high holidays holidays rabbi rabbi's journal Review Ron Miskoff Rosh Hashanah Yom Kippur
September 24, 2013 By bethmordecai no comments.
Dear Hevreh,
As I sit at my desk trying to think about how to describe our upcoming celebrations of the holidays of Sh'mini Atzeret and Simhat Torah, I'm struck by a particular thought. Judaism is a religion that thrives on anxiety. Now bear with me, for a moment -- we just celebrated the High Holidays which is a period of serious reflection as we consider the aspects of our character that we'd like to work on for the following year. Yet Rosh Hashanah is supposed to be a joyous holiday, and Yom Kippur is considered to be a Shabbat Shabbaton, the greatest of all Sabbaths, and no one would mistake Shabbat for a sad occassion. The juxtaposition of the solemnity[...]
Category : Holidays Rabbi Rabbi's Journal Rosh Hashanah Sh'mini Atzeret Simhat Torah Yom Kippur Tag : dance holidays joy rabbi's journal rosh hashana Rosh Hashanah sh'mini atzeret shemini atzeret simchat torah simhat torah Yom Kippur
September 12, 2013 By bethmordecai no comments.
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 Tag : 5774 attendance diaspora etrog halakhah high holidays history innovation israel Jewish calendar jewish law lulav mission lulav and etrog passover pesach pesah rabbi's tisch Rosh Hashanah sh'mini atzeret shemini atzeret simchat torah simhat torah sukkot torah unique high holiday experience Yom Kippur