From the CEO

Kindness and cheesecake

Starting tonight, we celebrate the holiday of Shavuot. Agriculturally, we celebrate the barley harvest, and spiritually, we celebrate receiving the Torah on Sinai. We listen to the reading of the Ten Commandments, read the Book of Ruth, and eat cheesecake. Several explanations are offered fo…

Yom Yerushalayim

“Har Habayit Beyadenu, Har Habayit Beyadenu!”—the Temple Mount is in our hands, the Temple Mount is in our hands.” Today, on Yom Yerushalayim, we celebrate the reunification of Jerusalem and remember these words of Colonel Motta Gur as he made his way through the winding alleys of th…

My trip to Israel—Part II

I am in the relationship-building business, and as such I try to avoid ever publicly expressing a political opinion. With that said, I’m going to try to walk that fine line and discuss Israel’s government and the proposed judicial reform from the perspective of an observer, and share wit…

My trip to Israel—Part I

I just returned from a couple of weeks in Israel with many stories to share. In the weeks ahead, we can discuss Israeli politics/justice reform/protests, people watching on the Tel Aviv Tayelet (paved beachside walkway), our visit to Eshkol, and Yom HaZikaron/Yom Ha’Atzmaut (Memorial Day/I…

Lecha Dodi

As part of our Friday evening services, we sing Lecha Dodi to welcome in the Shabbat bride.
 
At our pre-Pesach community Shabbat program, I took a few minutes to walk around the JCC to check in on our various Kabalat Shabbat services. At the moment that I stopped by, I heard Lecha Dodi f…