- Congregation Beth El–Keser Israel
85 Harrison Street, New Haven, CT 06515-1724 | P: 203.389.2108 | office@beki.org
85 Harrison Street, New Haven, CT 06515-1724 | P: 203.389.2108 | office@beki.org
…y” (Deuteronomy 29) – It does not say, “that are not here standing with us today,” but rather “with us today.” Those future souls who weren’t yet created weren’t actually standing. Although they did not yet exist, still each one received their share of the Torah…and not only all the prophets received their prophecy from hbhx rv but even the scholars who arise in every generation, each one of them received theirs from Sinai. All the people – all Je…
…ant us to do with her? She doesn’t know the language! She doesn’t know the code! What are we supposed to do with her?” “What does God say?” she asks. I listen. God doesn’t say anything. He won’t tell them to let me in. He doesn’t interfere. He’s just smiling. “Why is he smiling?” she asks. I think that God finds it amusing in some way…his children amuse him. And I think He’s smiling because he knows it’s not time, for them or for me, and that I ha…
…we think of pluralism, integrity, and community is so crucial to our world today – not only as Jews but as human beings,” said Rabbi Eric Woodward of BEKI. “I’m so excited to get to learn from Rav Eitan at the Elm City Kallah.” “It’s All About the Community”, jewishnewhaven.org, Aug 17, 2021 Downtown Evening Soup Kitchen (DESK) has sat nestled in the basement of the Center Church Parish House on Temple St. since the early-2000s, serving as a prima…
…e him from his position and find another way for him to earn a living.’”18 Today, job availability and the stress of economic dislocation are recognized as major factors in crimes against persons, crimes against property, suicide and domestic violence,19 and political scientists recognize economic conditions (especially unemployment) as major contributors to civil unrest and international military conflict. No matter what kind of economic system w…
…BCE, were poems designed to rebuild the faith of the exiles in Babylonia. Today’s haftorah is chapter 60, one of the final three chapters. It was written towards the end of the century and foretells the return of the Jewish people to their homes in Palestine. To understand Isaiah better, imagine for a moment what it must have been like to have been forcibly taken from a city and culture that you thought was that chosen for you by your God, where…
…what was once vital and contemporary, like polyester suits and or bell bottomed pants, can be experienced by some as somewhat dated. With the blessing of the Ritual Committee and Rabbi, Lynn Brotman and I, with Clarence’s help, have made a few changes in the decoration and lighting of the sanctuary for today’s services. With a desire to seek beauty in the services, members of the Singers’ Circle have prepared a few songs and new harmonies for the…
…night. We don’t have any such assurance that God is dwelling in our midst today, but we build and maintain synagogues anyway. Is God here in BEKI right now? What is the point of this whole exercise if God isn’t here? I don’t know how you see God — as a watchful Father, the Rock and Redeemer of Israel, the intelligent designer of creation, the force that inspires goodness within us, or some other construct — but however you see God, we build and m…
…ormational experience. * * * * The Jacob we have come to know, as we begin today’s parashah, is not a very attractive fellow. His deceitful behavior in conning his brother Esau out of his birthright, and tricking his father Isaac into bestowing upon him the blessing that belonged to Esau, has portrayed him as a liar, a cheat, a trickster, a crafty, dishonest manipulator. Jacob’s brother threatens to kill him, so Jacob flees from his home in Canaan…
…I was intrigued by this story and its placement, and decided to discuss it today. Perhaps its position in Leviticus is meant to make us question and give it attention. If so, it worked for me, and I enjoyed the variety of opinions and the privilege to decide for myself what I choose to believe. I recently saw the Broadway play Wicked. The author of the book Wicked, Gregory Maguire, writes books based on the point of view of an alternative characte…
…s mitzva is so important that the Shulhan Arukh, the sixteenth-century law code that serves as the common base for modern law, describes the obligation in this way: ‘ One needs to take great care in lighting the Hanuka lights; even a poor person subsisting on charity pawns or sells their cloak and buys oil for lighting. Shulhan Arukh O.H. 571 Lighting the Hanuka lights is so important that a poor person is instructed to take on additional hardship…
