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by Cantor Sandy Horowitz Ancestors. We begin praying the Amidah by invoking them: as we acknowledge the presence of God, we do so by stating that this is also the God of our patriarchs. In recent times, more liberal streams of Judaism added the matriarchs; as a woman it is comforting to read the names of Read More >

Miriam the Healer Rabbi Jill Hammer As we approach the seventh day of Pesach, when we read the narrative of crossing of the Sea, I am thinking of the prophetess Miriam, who dances and sings to celebrate the crossing and the victory of YHWH.  At my own seder, I have long had a cup of Read More >

The Life of Miriam A D'var Torah for Parashat Hukkat By Cantor Sandy Horowitz ('14) In parashat Hukkat we encounter Moses’ sister Miriam for the last time: “Then came the people of Israel, the whole congregation into the desert of Zin in the first month, and the people abode in Kadesh, and Miriam died there, Read More >

  A D'var Torah for Parashat Ki Tavo By Rabbi Heidi Hoover ('11) In the megahit musical Hamilton, there is a song with the repeated line, “Who lives, who dies, who tells your story?” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrMkdZtqiVI). The way that we know who we are and where we come from is through stories. Sometimes we call them Read More >

A couple weeks ago, I had the privilege of talking with someone interested in converting to Judaism. Since the pandemic, I have noticed an uptick in people interested in converting with me. In the conversation, I asked them more about themselves, their story, and their interest in casting their lot with the Jewish people. And although I’ve heard several answers now to this question of “Why do you want to convert?”, I had never heard this one before.

“From the hands of his enemies and from the hands of Saul” A D’var Torah for Parashat Ha’azinu By Rabbi Rob Scheinberg The traditional cycle of Haftarot, prophetic readings for each Shabbat and holiday of the year, is one of the more confusing parts of synagogue ritual, between the numerous differences in practice between Ashkenazic and Sefardic communities, Read More >

The Heart of the Matter1  A D’var Torah for Parashat Eikev by Rabbi Greg Schindler (2009) In this week’s D'var Torah, Rabbi Greg Schindler digs deep to see if there is a central lesson hidden in our Parashah. If you are a frequent reader of Divrei Torah, then you are probably familiar with some of the great Torah commentators: Read More >

Parashat Shemini doesn't lack for themes but the one which stood out for me as I began to prepare this D'var Torah is one that "speaks" to me every year when we read this parashah - namely, the theme of silence. Although Aaron's silence is of course in an almost inconceivably tragic context all its own, I've been recalling and Read More >

A D’var Torah for Parashat Beha’alotekha By Rabbi Inna Serebro-Litvak (AJR '16) When I was six years old, my father took me on a camping trip with his coworkers and their children. (In Russia this was considered to be a team building activity). My favorite memories of that time include sitting around the campfire, listening Read More >

Click HERE for an audio recording of this D'var Torah A D'var Torah for Parashat Vayeishev By Rabbi Greg Schindler ('09) Dedicated to the memory of my dear wife Barucha Esther bat Daniel v’Rachel (z”l) Dream On Dream on/ Dream on / Dream on Dream until your dreams come true - Steven Tyler (Aerosmith) Did you ever have Read More >