Category: Uncategorized
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Parasha Bereisheet Why Did God Create People?
Since September I have been going to the pre-school occasionally, to meet with the children. I have answer their questions, celebrated Havdalah, played the guitar, sounded the shofar, taught them about the lulav and etrog, ate with them at their Succoth party and on and on and on…. I see them in the hallway, do…
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The Importance of Friends Parasha Re-eh
As many of you know, I recently attended my 50 year High School reunion. A classmate and I were marveling at the durability and strength of our ties to one another. Many of us have so many overlapping relationships. We were neighbors of each other, we attended the same public schools, we attended the same…
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Friday Night Fiftieth Anniversary Sermon
The organizers of the 50th anniversary celebration of our congregation asked that I connect my sermon tonight to the weekend’s central theme of “superheroes”. Well, I am always up for a challenge. The first images that popped into my head when I heard the word ‘ ‘superhero” were Spider Man“ “Wonder Woman, “Batmanand “Captain…
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Setting off on the Journey / Parasha Bamidbar
Our parasha opens with Israel encamped around Mt. Sinai. It has been 25 months since the Exodus from Egypt and they have been at Mt Sinai for a year and a half. It is time for them to set off for the land of their ancestors, the Land of Canaan. This recalls a cartoon by…
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A Reflection on the Texas School Shooting
Yet once again the nation is shuddering and reeling after the massacre of 19 elementary school children, second, third and fourth graders, and two of their teachers, on May 24, at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. This occurs on the heels of the massacre of ten Black Americans, on May 17, doing their…
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Be Mindful and Multiply (Parasha Tazriah/5782)
I am going to do something tonight that I have never done before when delivering a sermon. I am going to deliver a sermon I have delivered before. Well, that is not quite true. What I have never done before is to TELL YOU that I am giving a sermon that I have given…
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The Hidden Meaning of Keeping Kosher? Parasha Shemini/5782
In one of our most beloved prayers at Friday night services, Ahavat Olam, we sing the following: “Torah u-mitzvoth, chukim u-mishpatim, otanu limadetah” – “You teach us torah, mitzvoth, chukim and mishpatim”. We all know what torah and mitzvoth are! “Torah” in this prayer stands for all of Jewish learning, not just Bible learning. Mitzvoth, of course,…
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Mental Health Shabbat/Parasha Ki Tissa
As we approach the 2-year anniversary of life with COVID, mental health statistics reflect that the pandemic has had a profound impact on our minds, bodies, hearts, and souls. Depression, suicidal ideation, and anxiety have all increased among adults, adolescents and children. Appallingly nearly 25% of individuals who have a mental health illness report not receiving the treatment that…
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Gathering for the Good of Ukraine פּרשׁה ויקהל
Our Parasha for this week begins with the words, “Moses gathered all of the people of Israel.” The word used for “gather” is “Va-yakhel”, [ויקהל] in Hebrew. The three-letter root of the word “Va-yakhel” – kuf, hey, lamed – is used to form another word in Hebrew – “Kehillah”. A “Kehillah” is a congregation. Sometimes you…
Rabbi Marc D. Rudolph 