by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 4, 2024 | Shemot, Tests and Trials
The beginning of the Israelites’ slavery in Egypt is marked by Pharaoh’s fearful decree: “Let us deal shrewdly with them, so that they may not increase” (Exodus 1:10). Yet, paradoxically, in response to increasing oppression, the Israelites flourished:...
by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 4, 2024 | Chosen Nation, Redemption, Shemot, Tests and Trials
The Torah portion of Shemot (Exodus 1:1-6:1), which opens the Book of Exodus, recounts the transition of the Children of Israel from their esteemed position within Egyptian society to a state of harsh subjugation and relentless oppression. This period of suffering and...
by Eliyahu Berkowitz | f 20, 2023 | Psalms, Tests and Trials
I hate tests. I never understood the point of throwing a difficult problem at someone in order to see what they know or what they can do. As a teacher, I preferred to sit down with my student and discuss the material. In that manner, I learned more from my students...
by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 28, 2023 | Community, Israel, Judges, Tests and Trials
By Rabbi Elie Mischel It was one of the very worst moments in modern Jewish history. On May 14, 1948, Israel was reborn. Five Arab nations immediately invaded the new state of Israel, which would have to fight for its life with a limited supply of guns and ammunition....
by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 19, 2023 | Community, Freedom, God, Happiness and Joy, Holiness, Psalms, Responsibility, Tests and Trials
By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz A long time ago, I worked as a cook in exclusive restaurants in Manhattan. I once got a special order for a lunch party of ten young businessmen celebrating their success. They were all under thirty years old and they had each achieved a...
by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 12, 2023 | Faith, God, Israel, Judges, Passover, Tests and Trials
By Rabbi Eliezer Mischel As a synagogue rabbi in New Jersey, I often thought of the classic insight that “no good deed goes unpunished.” While celebrating happy events like weddings and bar mitzvahs, I would praise a particular congregant or family in the community...
