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 By Rabbi Steven Rubenstein on כ"ז באלול ה'תש"ע (September 6th, 2010) in Dvar Torah, From the Bima Parashat Nitzvim / Vayelekh 5770
Over the past several weeks we have been offered a litany of blessings and curses from Moses as he prepares the new generation of Israel to enter the land promised to them by God. He tells them that if they follow in God’s ways, they will be rewarded on the land; however, if they stray from the laws set before them they can expect numerous curses to challenge their existence in Israel. The words are not meant to be taken literally. Rather, they are meant to be understood in their spiritual sense on what it means to create a life of meaning by “choosing life”…
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Continue reading Parashat Nitzavim – ‘Who am I to me? Who am I to you? Who am I to us?’ →
By Rabbi Steven Rubenstein on כ"ז באלול ה'תש"ע (September 6th, 2010) in Bulletin, From the Bima, Thoughts I read about 10Q after the holidays last year. An organization called Reboot sends out 10 questions for the Jewish New Year — one question a day for 10 days — to individuals who sign up. Individuals’ answers are sealed for the year and then sent back to them prior to beginning the next new year.
Last year, the questions were posted on an electronic billboard in Times Square. According to Rabbi Benjamin Blech, those people whom he stopped on the street and questioned admitted how meaningful they found “this unexpected invitation to personal contemplation.”
In his article for Aish’s weekly messages, Rabbi Blech poses his own 10 questions for…
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Continue reading 10Q Starts Wednesday, September 8 →
By Rabbi Steven Rubenstein on כ"ד באלול ה'תש"ע (September 3rd, 2010) in From the Bima Dreading the Length of High Holiday Services? The Yerushalmi Talmud Feels Your Pain
I enjoy my e-mails from Maqom and Rabbi Judith Z. Abrams, who is helping adults experience the joys of studying Talmud, especially the lesser-known Jerusalem version of this epic text. According to scholars of Jewish literature, the Jerusalem Talmud predates the more widely studied Babylonian version by about 200 years. There are some similarities between the two versions. However, it is the differences that often peak our interest as we delve into the lives of the two Jewish communities, the one that remained in Judea after the destruction of the First Temple, and the other that had…
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Continue reading From the Bima: A Talmudic View on the Length of High Holiday Services →
By Rabbi Steven Rubenstein on כ"ב באלול ה'תש"ע (September 1st, 2010) in From the Bima, Thoughts The holidays are early this year. Elul, the final month of the Jewish calendar, began on the evening of August 11. With it we entered into our yearly practice of introspection toward teshuvah, a life of forgiveness and the promise to make ourselves better partners in our relationships with God and with others.
During the early part of the summer I had the opportunity to visit with my parents on the Cape. No matter your travel route, there is no avoiding the Bourne or the Sagamore bridges that connect Cape Cod to the rest of Massachusetts. I like to gaze at the canal and admire the sailboats in the water…
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Continue reading A View From the Bima: Crossing Bridges →
By Rabbi Steven Rubenstein on י' באלול ה'תש"ע (August 20th, 2010) in Bulletin Due to circumstances beyond our control, there will be no showing of a movie on Wednesday, August 25. Please excuse us if we have caused any inconvenience in your plans.
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Continue reading Please Note This Calendar Change (Hummus and an Israeli Movie) →
By Rabbi Steven Rubenstein on ו' באלול ה'תש"ע (August 16th, 2010) in Dvar Torah, From the Bima Parashat Shofetim 5770
“Tzedek, tzedek tirdof” – A Matter of Law and Order
Ever notice how many television shows are dedicated to “pursuing justice”? Perhaps one of the longest-running shows was Law & Order, which experienced a 20-year run of apprehending villains in the first half of the show and then prosecuting them in the second half of the show. Not only did it introduce a new vocabulary to its television audience that is just as familiar as sports terminology, it has also played into our desire to punish certain segments of society for their belief that the law does not relate to them in the same way…
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Continue reading Parashat Shofetim – A Matter of Law & Order →
For a number of years I have been following the lessons taught by Rabbi Judith Abrams, who has been running an ongoing discussion of the Yerushalmi Talmud, which is less popular than the Babylonian Talmud that is studied daily by hundreds of thousands of individuals. A current lesson delves into Pirkei Avot, the Ethics of our Ancestors, as Rabbi Abrams relates them to our young adults who are preparing to leave for college. This is a transition of great importance to both child and parent. She invites us to share our thoughts with her and her online students, about what sage advice we would give to our loved ones as…
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Continue reading What Advice Would the Sages Give Their Kids as They Head Off to College? →
By Rabbi Steven Rubenstein on א' באלול ה'תש"ע (August 11th, 2010) in Bulletin Five years ago, musical artist Craig Taubman developed a program — the Jewels of Elul – that would help the general Jewish population prepare spiritually for the Days of Awe. He solicited paragraphs from notable people based upon a theme for the year, and he sent daily messages to all those who signed up to receive a dose of inspiration and reflection.
Elul, the last month of the Jewish year, is the time when we begin to examine our lives and reflect upon the changes we would like to make in the year ahead. Today is the first day of Elul. We use the shofar to help us keep…
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Continue reading Jewels of Elul VI: The Art of Beginning…Again →
By Rabbi Steven Rubenstein on כ"ח באב ה'תש"ע (August 8th, 2010) in Dvar Torah, From the Bima Parashat Re’eih 5770
What A Sight!
In the teaser to get us to watch the reruns of Grey’s Anatomy, we hear Meredith Grey pleading to her former lover, “So pick me, choose me, love me.” All that she desires is for someone to recognize her for who she is, a woman worthy of being embraced and cherished for the blessings that she can offer to another. This week’s Torah portion coincides with the announcement of the new, and final month, of the year, Elul, which the sages teach us is an acronym for the phrase, “Ani L’dodi Vi’dodi Li”: “I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine.” It is…
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Continue reading Parashat Re’eih – What A Sight! →
By Rabbi Steven Rubenstein on כ"א באב ה'תש"ע (August 1st, 2010) in Dvar Torah, From the Bima Parashat Eikev 5770
“I Do Thee Wed”
In this week’s Torah portion, Moses revisits what happened when he was on the mountain with God, the two of them carving the initial laws that would guide the Israelite nation in their new status as a freed people. What ensues can only be described in terms of a marriage that had been in danger of divorce. The people below had become unfaithful to God, and to Moses, when they failed to return to them at the appointed time. So, they took upon themselves a new “lover,” so to speak, in the shape of a Golden Calf. Fidelity is what God expects of…
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Continue reading Parashat Eikev – I Do Thee Wed →
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