- 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
…effect. When her son is arrested by the Romans, Mary says, “Ma nishtana ha-laila ha-ze – Why is this night different from all other nights?” But please donʼt laugh aloud in the theatre, as the other viewers will not think this is funny. The filmʼs use of Latin, on the other hand was a bit bizarre. Icelandic would have been an equally appropriate choice, as Icelandic was spoken in Israel about as much as Latin in that period. Even more bizarre, I…
…m immigrants from Arab countries, Africa and Europe. The fact that my great-great-great grandfather Dov ben Ze’ev lived in northern Israel does not give me a “first come” claim over people who subsequently lived there. But the notion that Arabs are somehow more “native” than Jews is an historical absurdity. Yet it is a notion that underlies much of the writing of the European and American press, and that is held dearly by some Palestinian Arab pro…
…worker) at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York. During my nineteen and three-quarters years serving congregations in Connecticut, I have counseled hundreds of families facing death or grieving a loved one, have attended numerous individuals at their hour of death, and have prepared the dead for burial. I have experience in guiding families and medical workers in deciding whether to “pull the plug” and in the consequences of their de…
…em would rise up before them and greet them, saying: “Brethren, men of such-and-such a place, you are welcome!” – The flute was played before them, until they reached the Temple Mount. When they reached the Temple Mount, even Agrippa the king would take his basket on his shoulder and enter. When they reached the Temple Court, the Levites sang the song: “I will exalt Thee, O Lord, for Thou hast raised me up, and hast not suffered mine enemies to re…
…mix So in this world – and this is the 2nd creation story – both names of G-d come together Elokim the just and Adonai the merciful. And we bend ourselves to this G-d our pleas on Yorn Kippur are to both A vinu and Malkenu father and king, compassionate father and stern king. And we ask for tzedaka v’chesed: asay imanu tzedaka v’chesed – do for us justice and mercy – only when those come together can we be saved – asay imanu tzedaka v’chesed v’hos…
…and uplifting, sometimes infuriating, and sometimes confusing and even impenetrable. After having gone through more commentary and more explanations than I thought I would have to read in order to understand these episodes, I must conclude that I’ve found no satisfactory answers or explanations. We see again that the patriarchs are flawed but often impressive characters. The moral tangle of their personal lives and their efforts to cope may give u…
…Shabbat Afternoon Schedule Change: The Shabbat Minha (Saturday Afternoon) services in February 2017 will be 1p – 1:35p in the Posener Beit Midrash, and (as in the summer) the evening service will not be held at BEKI on those four days. This early service time will allow participants to avoid the round-trip to the synagogue on what are the snowiest and coldest nights. Comments or questions to jjtilsen@beki.org . …
…verse reads as follows. I will not punish your daughters nor your daughters-in-law when they commit adultery; for their men had gone astray sacrificing with harlots. Unable to rely on the changing moral order, the halakha chose the rights of women. Was the halakha hostile to the mitzva of the sota ceremony? Never! However, the sages of the Mishna, the inventors of the ketuba, saw the sota ceremony very differently than we do today. As recorded in…
…container is not marked “Kosher for Passover”? Signed, Concerned for Colon Comfort Dear Colon Comfort, Many simple products such as Lactaid or orange juice, that normally do not contain hametz but are not packaged specifically for Passover, may be used on Passover if purchased before the holiday. On the morning before Passover, we perform the ceremony of biur hametz and bittul hametz (nullification of leaven), which provides a legal cover for the…
…e all the more important to honor our leaders who are honest, intelligent, community-minded, self-sac rificial and hard-working people with high ideals and shared values. They are people who are dedicating part of their lives for the common good, to fulf ill the mission of the Jewish People of making the world better through the mitzvot and values taught by our sages. As Rabban Gamliel, son of Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi, taught (Avot 2:2): כל – שמים לשם…
