From the Rabbi's Desk

It's always a little sad for me on the 7th and 8th days of Passover. I know that the Sedarim are over and I'll not have the opportunity to sit around the table with family and friends studying the Haggadah for another year.

Passover is a tremendous amount of work, but at the end of the day most of us feel that it's worth it - the interplay of tradition, scripture, family, memories and good food is wonderful.

What is it that...Read more...

Do you know why God created human beings? According to Elie Wiesel, God created human beings because the Holy One loves a good story.

More than any other time of year, Passover is about story telling. We are commanded to tell our children the story of the Exodus. The Torah states: vihigadita livinkha bayom hahu laymor... "You shall tell your child on that day..."

Indeed, the telling of the story of the Exodus is one of the...Read more...

The Perasha this week is Perashat Tzav which speaks about various sacrifices offered by the Israelites in the desert during their 40 year sojourn on the way to The Holy Land.

One sacrifice which stands out is the Korban Todah, the thanksgiving offering. Very simply, if someone wanted to thank the Almighty for a kindness, then a gift offering was brought to the Kohen who then shared it with others. This is the classic case of "paying...Read more...

We are beginning a new book of the Torah this week the book of Vayikra. 

The portions contain a lot of details having to do with sacrifices-hardly interesting material. But I would like to look at this whole idea of the sacrifice in a different way and I think you will find it most relevant to your own lives.

Do we really need to know exactly which animal was offered up for which occasion? Is there anyone who cares about...Read more...

I would venture to guess that everyone here has at one time or another stopped and watched as a building was being constructed. Whether it is a skyscraper and we are fascinated by the excavation or the men high up doing the riveting or more locally watching a house go up, board by board, there is an excitement watching something take shape before our eyes. Our family, for example, takes note each week of the...Read more...