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October 1, 2013 By bethmordecai no comments.
Dear Hevreh, On Kol Nidre, I challenged our community to build something special that will last. Yet if we are truly going to build something special then throughout this process we must identify the ingredients that will go into our "special sauce." Identifying these ingredients will require opportunities for us to come together on an individual and communal basis to share our Jewish passions with one another, which means that one of the key indicators for knowing that we are on our way to crafting our special sauce is how successful we are at coming together and showing up at schul. Enter Exhibit A...Holiday attendance. I'm not talking about the High Holidays, but rather the joyous holidays of Sukkot, Sh'mini Atzeret, and Simhat[...]
Category : Rabbi's Journal Sh'mini Atzeret Simhat Torah Sukkot Yom Kippur Tag : high holidays jewish passion rabbi's journal rabbi's tisch sh'mini atzeret simhat torah sukkot unique torah Yom Kippur
September 23, 2013 By bethmordecai no comments.
Dear Hevreh, I could be mistaken, but I don't think many of us find the act of starting our cars a meaningful moment in our day. For those who drive regularly, it is a mundane occurrence that we don't think about (until that inopportune moment when our cars won't start). Yet there I was, sitting in my car on Friday morning, about to turn on the ignition and feeling lots of butterflies in my stomach as if I was walking into a room full of teenagers. All of a sudden, a simple act that I have done countless times in my life became a spiritual test, full of meaning. Why was this ignition start different than all other ignition starts? Because this[...]
Category : Holidays Rabbi Rabbi's Journal Sukkot Tag : car community ignition lulav m'lakhah mission lulav and etrog mitzvah rabbi rabbi's journal sukkot work
By bethmordecai no comments.
Dear Hevreh, I could be mistaken, but I don't think many of us find the act of starting our cars a meaningful moment in our day. For those who drive regularly, it is a mundane occurrence that we don't think about (until that inopportune moment when our cars won't start). Yet there I was, sitting in my car on Friday morning, about to turn on the ignition and feeling lots of butterflies in my stomach as if I was walking into a room full of teenagers. All of a sudden, a simple act that I have done countless times in my life became a spiritual test, full of meaning. Why was this ignition start different than all other ignition starts? Because[...]
Category : Rabbi Rabbi's Journal Sukkot Tag : car innovation meaning rabbi rabbi's journal sukkot vulnerability
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