why chanukah?
12/07/2023 09:26:49 AM
Rabbi Jeffrey Myers
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Asking an Internet search engine “Holidays during Winter” lead to at least seventeen: Diwali; Thanksgiving; Boxing Day; Krampus Night; Las Posadas; Ganna; Makar Sankranti; Chanukah; Three Kings Day, also known as Epiphany; Winter Solstice; St. Lucia Day; St. Nicholas Day; Christmas; Kwanzaa; Solar New Year; Lunar New Year; Mardi Gras. Many of them originated in the Northern Hemisphere,...Read more...
remembering
11/30/2023 06:56:43 AM
Rabbi Jeffrey Myers
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What is the right way, and perhaps the best way, to remember 10.27? I do not think that I could offer one simple answer, as there are many ways to do so. I had the privilege this past Saturday evening of experiencing one of them. The PSO (Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra) is world-renowned, under the baton of Maestro Manfred Honeck. Thirty days after the shooting, on November 27, 2023, the PSO put...Read more...
an attitude of gratitude
11/22/2023 12:18:39 PM
Rabbi Jeffrey Myers
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The war in Gaza and the dangerous levels of antisemitism both here and abroad might diminish our Thanksgiving gatherings this year. The joy of being with family and the aroma and taste of delicious foods will be lessened by war updates and the latest acts of antisemitism. It seems inescapable. One might even suggest that there is nothing to be thankful for this year. That is...Read more...
Labels
11/09/2023 10:51:07 AM
Rabbi Jeffrey Myers
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When I’m purchasing something in a market, a label not only directs me to the item that I am in need of, but also provides information to compare products. In this example labels are useful and necessary. Then there are the labels that are applied to our fellow human beings, whether they are supplied by others or self-applied. One’s political leaning, religion, sexual orientation, family’s...Read more...
allyship is a two-way street
11/02/2023 09:32:02 AM
Rabbi Jeffrey Myers
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An uncountable number of doors opened in response to 10.27, and I’ve tried to walk through those doors, engage with the hosts, find common ground, and work together to make a better world. Minority groups in America should have learned that they will be far more successful in promoting equality when they collaborate with other minority groups who also seek the same things. There are many ways...Read more...
five years later
10/26/2023 10:48:08 AM
Rabbi Jeffrey Myers
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I’m constantly asked how I or the congregation or community is doing five years later. I had been wondering about the answer for months prior to the conclusion of the trial and started to see hints of potential healing once the trial concluded. Smiles returned to people’s faces. Even laughter. I began to think “Maybe we will get through this” when the attack on Israel came. I’ve written...Read more...
silence
10/19/2023 11:29:11 AM
Rabbi Jeffrey Myers
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It is far more than coincidence that when I prepare a D’var Torah, somewhere within the weekly parashah will be the appropriate text for that moment. The best word that comes to mind is the Yiddish word bashert, which means “meant to be”. This week is another example of bashert-ness. We read of the story of Noah, which all of us learned at some point in our lives. The Torah states in...Read more...
feels familiar
10/12/2023 10:57:23 AM
Rabbi Jeffrey Myers
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As I walked to the JCC on Sunday evening to participate in the rally in support of Israel, fellow walkers greeted me, tried to figure out the right thing to say, of which there was none, and we entered the building. The first person I saw on my left was one of the first two patrolmen who responded on 10.27 and was shot. We embraced and I thanked him for being here. His response of “Of course I...Read more...
the curse of proximity
10/05/2023 09:18:52 AM
Rabbi Jeffrey Myers
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Sukkot is such a joyous holiday. Coming five days after the weightiness of Yom Kippur, it offers us moments to celebrate. The pomp and circumstance of the Lulav and Etrog, whether we wave it during Hallel, or parade around the sanctuary reciting Hoshanot, prayers beseeching God to save us, is just joyous. Eating in the Sukkah is just fun. For the first time, we held a Sukkah hop, and it was clear...Read more...
the most important day
09/28/2023 11:01:35 AM
Rabbi Jeffrey Myers
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I pray that your fasting on Yom Kippur was meaningful, and that you have entered 5784 recharged and presenting a new and improved version of yourself. Now comes the final examination. What was the day after Yom Kippur like? If it showed a glimmer of what is capable, then that is wonderful. If it didn’t? When queried, most Jews will answer that the most important day of the year is Yom Kippur,...Read more...
Sat, December 9 2023
26 Kislev 5784
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