You may or may not be surprised that the regular contributors to our Shabbat Shalom messages occasionally forget who is sharing during a given week. It becomes especially tricky when someone is away for a period of time, like me this past week, and has to come back to

Just this past weekend, we had a large number of people gather to learn how to play Mah Jong. A special shout out to Melissa Rafson Friedman who put this event together. As the players trickled out from their first lesson, I asked how it went. Everyone was excited

"Nevertheless I have spared you for this purpose: in order to show you My power, and in order that My fame may resound throughout the world" (Exodus 9:16). I stopped on this quote and wondered, does God have an ego? Can an all-powerful presence like God have an ego?

Over the past few weeks, stories have been shared from family members of the hostages in Gaza who have been released. One story that has stuck with me is that of Emily Hand. Emily was the hostage who turned 9 years old while in captivity. Emily was at a

Dear Friends, This week’s parsha, Vayeitzei, opens with another life changing experience for our forefathers. Jacob has departed from Beersheba and decides to rest. He uses a stone as a pillow and goes to sleep. He dreams of a ladder that is grounded on Earth and stretches up to

Those who know me well know that I am incredibly uncomfortable expressing my feelings. Playing "Would You Rather" makes me cringe. However, today, I want to be a little more vulnerable than I usually am. I want to explain my current state of mind. As most of you know,

Take a deep breath. Hold it… and now exhale. We just made it through a meaningful fast and period of self-reflection. And now, we get our “Jewish whiplash” and embark on our celebration of Sukkot. This holiday is unique in its rituals, among them the waving of the Four

In this week’s parsha, Eikev, we continue with Moses’ speeches to the Israelites. He tells them that, if they maintain their covenant with God by observing the commandments, God will, in turn, make them fruitful and victorious over their enemies. Moses recalls the hardships the Israelite people faced during

You may have picked up from previous Shabbat Shalom messages, I stream a whole lot of TV. It’s one of the few things that let me truly decompress and allows my mind to focus on things other than the chaos of day-to-day life. This weekend I found myself watching

I will be the first one to admit there are many things that I am absolutely petrified of. Having my blood taken is the perfect example. I have built it up in my head some much that even the sight of someone having their blood taken turns me green.