We mourn with the community of Charleston by Temple Beth El’s Clergy Team
As a congregation of Temple Beth El, we weep over the death of nine individuals who were murdered in the midst of Bible study in Charleston, South Carolina. We cry out in pain that a house of prayer and peace was turned into one of violence and bloodshed. We condemn this crime of hate. Law enforcement […]
Sacred Trash and Sacred Times at the Hebrew Cemetery by Rabbi Judy Schindler
Have you ever wondered what to do with your child’s consecration Torah from thirty years ago? It is too sacred to throw away. Do you question what to do with your broken Judaica or the tattered tefillin and torn prayer books you inherited from your grandparent? We have an answer. Bring your worn-out Judaic items […]
MITZVOT MATTER BY DR. LAURA BERNSTEIN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
When we think about what it means to perform a mitzvah, we might think of an extraordinary act of altruism or a great gift of charity, but a mitzvah can really be big or small and can include very simple acts of kindness… a helpful hand to older person, a kind word to lift someone […]
‘Black Lives Matter’ Is Not Just About Police, It is about Education by Rabbi Judy Schindler
(These were the words shared at the NAACP Moral Monday Rally on May 4, 2015 at Marshall Park in Charlotte.) B’tzelem elohim means, “In the image of God…” B’tzelem elohim – In the image of God, we all were created. Jewish sages teach that we were all created from one human being so that no […]
You And I We’ll Change The World by Rabbi Judy Schindler
Reflections from the Religious Action Center’s Consultation on Conscience When I was a kid, I’d often sing this Hebrew song, “Ani v’atah n’shaneh et haolam – you and I we’ll change the world… others have said it before me but it doesn’t matter. It will be tough for us, no matter, it’s not too bad.” […]
The World is Falling Apart by Susan Jacobs, Director of Education
I hate to turn on the television news or to check my phone or ipad when I get frequent news updates. The news is terrible. Every day I am bombarded with disaster, injustice, and violence beyond anything I can imagine. I am terrified for the people in Nepal and saddened by the enormous loss of […]
When Bread is Affliction by Cantor Mary Rebecca Thomas
Halachma anya di achalu avhatana b’ar’ah d’mitzrayim. Kol dichfin yeitei v’yeichalu. “This is the bread of affliction, the poor bread, which our ancestors ate in the land of Egypt. Let all who are hungry come and eat.” There are few moments in the Jewish year so focused on food as Passover. Food in Judaism is […]
#Je Suis Juif – I am Jewish by Rabbi Judy Schindler
Read as part of the Maggid – after we say, “And the Lord heard our voice.” Four Jews were murdered and fifteen held hostage in a Paris Kosher Mart on the tail of the Hebdo attack killing eleven and wounding eleven cartoonists and journalists. Terrorists trying to use acts of horror to take away freedom […]
The Plagues that Threaten Jewish Survival by Rabbi Judy Schindler
Read after the traditional plagues These are the plagues that threaten our Jewish survival. Some are cast upon us by outside forces and some are self-afflicted Assimilation… blending in so greatly that we no longer know who we are nor do our kids. Jewish illiteracy… not even knowing the questions to ask in order to […]
