Friday Shabbat Shalom
Dec 29, 2023
When people ask me what CAJE is and what CAJE does, I often refer to the famous advertising line and say “CAJE is the ‘Intel inside’ Jewish education in Miami-Dade.” CAJE helps the teachers and schools from early childhood through high school be the best they can be through outstanding professional development and other services. In sum, CAJE is part of the infrastructure of Jewish life and education in our community... This concept of “infrastructure” is embodied in this week’s parshah, Vayechi, which marks the conclusion of the book of Bereishit / Genesis, the first of the Five Books of the Torah.
Dec 22, 2023
Our parsha this week, Vayigash, which means to approach, to come close, is the story of Yosef and Yehuda. As we navigate the collective trauma of 10/7, in Israel and abroad, the Torah’s call to come closer, as individuals and as a nation, resonates more than ever.
Dec 15, 2023
Our hope as parents and Jewish educators is that a child should rise up and say to themselves: “I am special; I have a special mission and I have special gifts given to me by G!D and the Torah to fulfill that mission.” That mindset is what launches a child into their future and that’s the secret sauce of Jewish education.
Dec 8, 2023
Most years, we focus on the joys of the Hanukkah miracle and are uplifted by the story of Israel’s victory over those who would see our national light extinguished. Sadly, this year our attention is also focused on the challenges our people face in Israel and in the United States. We feel as if we are under siege, militarily and culturally... As always, our ancestors have a great deal to teach us in how to survive and thrive in adversity.
Dec 1, 2023
So when we have no words…. It’s as if we are stuck in darkness. Our Biblical forefather Jacob was, for much of his life, also someone who dwelt at times in a kind of (spiritual) darkness. Perhaps we can learn from him. Parashat Vayishlach brings us to the climax of the story of Jacob, so much of which takes place at night.
Nov 17, 2023
Pittsburgh and Charlottesville, Poway and Monsey… and now we add the Gaza Envelope communities on October 7th in Israel— a litany of names associated with antisemitism over the past five years. Rabbi Jonathan Sacks points out an interesting phrase in Parashat Toldot that foreshadows the antisemitism we are seeing today.
Nov 10, 2023
On some level, all Zionism relies on an ancient tradition that gives voice to human pathos, calling all to mercy and empathy in spirit and deed. At its most noble, Zionism could be a triumph of each individual’s yearning for wellbeing and community.
Nov 3, 2023
Opening Parshat Vayera, it is difficult to know where to look first. The parsha is filled with so many well-known narratives: Avraham welcoming the three angelic ‘guests’ into his tent… the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah… Sarah’s birth of Isaac… interaction between Sarah, Avraham, and Hagar... the Akedah (binding of Isaac... And these are just snapshots of the stories in this parsha. Your head and heart are pulled in so many directions as you read through the verses. And this is how I feel right now.
Oct 27, 2023
I think reading the Torah portion Lech Lecha this week is especially difficult. God promises Abraham and his descendants the land of Israel, inspiring a millennia-long relationship between the land of Israel and the Jewish people that continues to this day. In the wake of the recent events, I think many of us are questioning what it means to be the bearers of that promise... I want to take elements of God’s promise to Abraham and look at the different ways these elements might meet us in our lives right now...
Oct 20, 2023
We are living in dark and dangerous times, but as always, our tradition has much to teach us about how to navigate. First, we must recognize that we will all be toggling between our need to go out and impact the world and our need to regroup and strengthen ourselves internally… This need to find a balance between our inward and outward selves is a lesson we can derive from this week’s Torah portion, named for its chief protagonist, Noah.