- 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
…instead look up from that son’s perspective, see the world through Isaac’s eyes, the eyes of a man who would go blind. * * * This is Isaac’s parshah. By next week, the story is Jacob’s – Isaac makes no appearance at all – and in the parshah after that all we see of Isaac is his death. Already here, this week, Rebecca and Jacob and Esau threaten to overtake the narrative. But if Isaac has any moment in the limelight, it is this one: v’eyleh toldot…
…a trivial matter. The words keves and kesev were mentioned in the Torah a combined 121 times not to mention its synonyms. In comparison, Sarah was only mentioned 55 times. There are several different names in Hebrew that mean sheep. A one year old male is a keves, a one year old female is a kavsa, kivsa, or kisba. An adult male is an ayil, a 3 year old is an ayil meshullash, and a mature female is a rahel. Both a young sheep and goat is called a…
…s men, then the ruling of that medieval German rabbi has no bearing on our community, and, as it turns out, there is no compelling reason for women not to wear tefillin, and there is abundant permission for them to do so from our sages from the Mishna, the Talmud, the Rishonim and the later major law codes. I could go on and on — maybe I already have — citing examples of how understanding the reasons for our laws and customs is essential to their…
…ve them park a block away. The choice facing the Rabbis seemed to be: They come by car or they don’t come, and the Rabbis wanted them to come. It seemed preferable to violate the prohibitions of driving than to have much of the religious fabric of life fall apart. At the time they stated, “the program that we propose is not to be regarded as the full and complete regimen of Sabbath observance, valid for all Jews for all times and for all places. O…
…gazes occur within one painting, and sometimes the gaze of the mirror overcomes them all and seems to comment on the nature of the gaze itself. Is it natural or is it artificial? Concentrating on figurative work, and specifically on figures inhabiting a – mostly – interior space, Wolf strives for a realistic style. But by confronting these figures with analogues in iconic Western painting, often accompanying them with open books of relevant class…
…16 Jan Tu Bishvat Seder via Zoom January 16, 2022 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm BEKI Kids page Home Page Interior Page Tu Bishvat Seder: An online celebration of the New Year for Trees on Sunday, Jan. 16 from 6:30 to 7:30 pm. To fully participate, have […] More Info…
…17 May Walk Against Hunger – Team BEKI May 17, 2015 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm Walk Against Hunger – 2015 flyer Walk Against Hunger – Sunday, May 17. In support of the CT Food Bank. We’re getting a BEKI Team together […] More Info…
…terested congregants. Two or three months into the year, my yovel learning commitment ripened into a teaching commitment. To the Department of Jewish Education I proposed a course of my own design, entitled Hidden Stories of God in the Movies. Many of you here today were present at the birth of this notion about one and one half years ago, when I gave a Devar Torah on “Toyrah Story”, wherein I offered – no sense in beating around the bush – defini…
…icable here. Nothing has to happen, but we can make anything happen. The chance to be our best selves, our authentic Jewish selves, and to have this redound to the benefit and future of our community, is a great one. Will it cost us financially in the near term? Yes. Will it pay dividends in the future? Ken y’hi ratzon! May it be God’s will….
…t BEKI’s values of inclusion, accessibility, egalitarianism, participatory communal prayer, and environmental sustainability. For more information, and to make a donation in support of this once-in-a-generation project, visit the Sanctuary Redesign page. Link coming soon! Number of siddurim you are dedicating Quantity* Price: $50.00 Quantity Choose a dedication* Your name or name of donor In Honor of In memory of Other (please type your dedication…
