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 12, 2022 By Beth Mordecai no comments.
The High Holy Days are just around the corner! Click "Read More" for a Schedule of Services and other important information.
Our home for Rosh Hashannah and Yom Kippur will be:
The Sheraton Edison Hotel at Raritan Center, 125 Raritan Center Parkway, Edison NJ 08837.
(more…)
Category : Announcements High Holidays home Rosh Hashanah Yom Kippur
September 12, 2018 By Beth Mordecai no comments.
[caption id="attachment_9704" align="alignright" width="318"] God’s presence surrounds us every moment.[/caption] When I was in my last year of graduate school, I worked at a synagogue in Malibu, CA. I would drive through cities, streets lined with strip malls turning onto a highway, then to narrow roads surrounded by brush and no cell service. My car would finally climb up the last hill and I would be overlooking the gorgeous Pacific Ocean before driving down to sea level. The view was incredible…the first time. After a couple of weeks, I was distracted making a to-do list in my head as I approached my job. After the first month, I almost didn’t notice the view. I then decided that I was missing something[...]
Category : High Holidays Rabbi Rabbi's Journal Rosh Hashanah Sermons
By Beth Mordecai no comments.
How many of you have called out to a loved one and used the wrong name? Did you have a dog or cat growing up and was accidentally called their name by your parents? Growing up I would sometimes hear: Donna, Steve, Rusty, Samantha I mean Sara come here. When my father would call me my mother or brother’s name it wasn’t so bad, when he got to the cat or dog’s names… I didn’t love it. Then my father would look at me and say, well you know who you are. Like my father, I do this too. I cycle through the kids’ names before landing on the correct one. I too then look at the child I’m calling and declare, “Well[...]
Category : High Holidays Rabbi Rabbi's Journal Rosh Hashanah Sermons
By Beth Mordecai no comments.
King Solomon challenged his wisest advisors to find him a ring that when worn could make a person cherish their joy and bring comfort in their sadness. The advisor searched high and low. With the deadline to the challenge approaching, the advisor went to the local market where he found ring with the following words engraved on it, “Gam ze ya’avor. This, too, shall pass.” King Solomon was delighted that his advisor had completed this seemingly impossible task. He saw when he was melancholy, the message on the ring would comfort him and remind him of sunnier days ahead. When he was at the height of contentment, the ring would humble him and remind him of life’s fleeting nature. Legend has[...]
Category : High Holidays Rabbi Rabbi's Journal Rosh Hashanah Sermons
September 22, 2017 By Beth Mordecai no comments.
Does anyone else feel like this year has flown by? It seems as if we were just here and I was speaking to you about feeling the true impact of Rosh Hashanah. It has been quite a year filled with highs and lows, but the beauty of this holiday, is that we are able to wipe the slate clean and begin again. For me, this upcoming year is truly about new and different. But this isn’t just about me, it’s about all of you too. We all have the chance to begin fresh with new outlooks and new goals. And I have to say that being here, today with all of you on Rosh Hashanah, fills me with anticipation and[...]
Category : High Holidays President's Message Rosh Hashanah
September 6, 2015 By bethmordecai no comments.
(9/6/15),
I'm a big football fan and this week is the lead-up to the regular season of the National Football League (NFL). Each week/game is important because there are so few games in the year (as oppose to all other professional sports who play multiple games a week). That being said, certain weeks are bigger than others because the opponent is either a hated rival or a contending team. Those weeks are often called by the name of the opponent, as in "Dallas Week" when my favorite team, the Philadelphia Eagles, play the hated Dallas Cowboys. That week boasts a lot of hype and a lot of energy and enthusiasm because you really want your team to win that game. That[...]
Category : Rabbi Rabbi's Journal Rosh Hashanah Tag : Jewish NFL Philadelphia Eagles rabbi rabbi's journal Rosh Hashanah shofar t'shuva teshuva teshuvah tshuvah
July 15, 2015 By bethmordecai no comments.
(7/15/15),
62 days. That's how long it is until we gather together in our beautiful sanctuary to ring in another Jewish New Year (!). I don't know about you, but 62 days feels far off and just around the corner at the same time. Yesterday, I spent some quality time in the library at the Jewish Theological Seminary to prepare material for the holidays and to turn my mind towards the themes of repentance, forgiveness, and self-renewal. Perhaps its because it felt so blistering hot outside, but it was hard to imagine that I was preparing for an event at the end of the summer. Could the words I was reading about a holiday still over two months away resonate with[...]
Category : Holidays Rabbi Rabbi's Journal Rosh Hashanah Yom Kippur Tag : high holidays holidays planning rabbi rabbi's journal Rosh Hashanah Script volunteers Yom Kippur
November 10, 2014 By bethmordecai no comments.
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
