Do you remember Lily Tomlin’s telephone operator skit? One ringy-dingy, two ringy-dingy…? We dial phone numbers all the time, using area codes even if someone is around the corner, adding numbers if our intended recipient is in a different country. … Continue reading →

I’m not worried about the overturn of Roe v. Wade. After all, I am no longer of child-bearing age and so if I were raped I could not get pregnant. I’m not worried about the overturn of Roe v. Wade. … Continue reading →

Based on A Litany of Remembrance – We Remember Them by Rabbi Sylvan Kamens and Rabbi Jack Riemer, from Gates of Prayer: A New Union Prayerbook, copyright © 1975 by the Central Conference of American Rabbis. Used by permission of the CCAR. All rights reserved.  In the rising of the sun … Continue reading →

How many conversations have you heard or have you participated in regarding rising numbers–gas prices, food prices, inflation, housing prices? How much does this worry you? We are in a difficult moment of time with supply chain issues, recalls and … Continue reading →

How do you teach Israel? You could stay “safe” and stay biblical. You could focus only on current events but that doesn’t give context. Or you could do it all. That’s what we tried to do for our year-long focus … Continue reading →

When I was learning Hebrew as a child, we went for four hours per week of just Hebrew (beyond religious school) which was unusual for a Reform congregation.  We learned to read short stories, to read without vowels, to translate, … Continue reading →

You had to be there. On Shabbat morning, March 19 Temple David gathered for our Shabbat morning service focused on A Celebration of Jewish Women: RIGHTS of Passage. We celebrated the 100th anniversary since the first Bat Mitzvah and the … Continue reading →

In a two-part book discussion with Temple David members and residents of Pittsburgh’s sister city, Karmiel, Misgav, we talked about Israeli author David Grossman’s book More Than I Love My Life or, the English translation of the Hebrew title: Life … Continue reading →

In this week’s Torah portion, we read the single worst example of idolatry: the golden calf. The irony is that the Israelites did this just after hearing the 10 Commandments and while Moses was on his way down the mountain … Continue reading →

I was visiting Philadelphia and kept to my routine. In the morning, I walked to Dunkin to get my regular–an iced tea–despite the fact that it was freezing outside. I added in a double-sausage, egg, and cheese croissant. Perhaps needless … Continue reading →