- 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
…the blessings would have been for him like in the first lekh lekha as well as for his descendants. I would like to thank everyone for coming to celebrate with me today. I would especially like to thank everyone who helped me prepare for today. Shabbat Shalom! …
…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…
…movement, indeed all of modernity, finding its origins in Biblical times. Today’s Parshat [weekly Torah reading], Ki Tavo, provides our proof text. The very first section of the Parsha contains the declaration known as miqra bikurim, the “Recital of the First Fruits.” As Nehama Leibowitz, of blessed memory, points out in her Studies in Devarim, [t]he Israelite farmer who brings the first fruits of his soil does not say: “My fathers came to the la…
…ting the land in the seventh year, called shmita. Still others speak to us today as Jews and equally as Americans, as modern men and women. These ancient laws direct our behavior. They operate across the full range of our experience, calling on us to achieve the purpose of Torah — Tiqun `Olam, the perfection of the here and now. With my mom’s help [as the reader of the sources], I would like to share some examples of these mitzvot. Although they d…
Our choice, Moshe tells us today at the end of Parshat Nitzavim, is between life and death, between the blessing and the curse. Teshuv el Adonai Elohekha — return to the Lord your God — and Hashem will give us abundant food and wealth and children. And if we turn away? Brimstone, salt, burnt earth and death. Again and again, the parsha urges us to return to God and hearken to God’s voice. Two weeks from now, on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, w…
…fered from the front of the room on behalf of a largely passive audience. Today we are reclaiming another model, recognizing that the ten people required for our services are equals and that the Torah is meant to be accessible to all. The book of Proverbs teaches b’rov am hadrat hamelekh, the splendor of God is among the people. What would it look like if our spiritual space were designed to express our values — to express that at BEKI, and in o…
…17 Dec 8th Night Joint Hanuka Party December 17, 2020 8:30 pm – 9:30 pm Home Page Interior Page A joint Hanuka celebration on the 8th night of Hanuka, with other Masorti congregations, featuring candle lighting, singing, and a concert by singer/songwriter Neshama Carlebach, one of today’s […] More Info…
…6 — led by parents, every Shabbat, rain or shine. This tradition continues today, with over 30 families participating. We welcome all children and all those raising them (including intermarried couples, queer or same-sex parenting couples, single parents, guardians or relatives, families considering becoming Jewish, and those of nontraditional family structures) to participate, no matter their level of Jewish knowledge or family observance. Here a…
…oked what was considered a technical (but significant) Biblical violation, today we are publicly overlooking (or disregarding) a Biblical rule that has become untenable. Perhaps in the next few years we will see a better way to reconcile an ancient rule with a radically changed world, but in the meantime, life goes on. After all, we don’t want to take Biblical rules lightly; but in this case, there is not much else we can do but treat it the same…
…ring, the perceived injustice and disloyalty. Indeed, the themes play well today in films such as “The Green Mile,” which is a replay of the crucifixion, this time with a miracle-working black man who is sentenced to death in the electric chair. As Lenny Bruce once said, if the story had taken place in the 20th century, Christians would be wearing little electric chair pendants around their necks. But the movie does not develop those themes – it i…
