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The Community Synagogue of Port Washington, New York, is a vibrant, caring and inclusive Reform congregation that inspires meaningful relationships with one another, the larger community and with God.
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Eight Short Lessons of ChanukahEight brief - but powerful - lessons for Chanukah.
The Power of Hanukkah's LightLighting the Chanukah menorah reflects a move from darkness to light, an embrace of hope for greater light even as the days grow short and the nights grow dark. Our traditions teach that the cycles of the moon and sun are inherent in Chanukah, but this holiday reinforces the message of Judaism that light is emblematic of understanding (enlightenment), resolve, hope and strength.
Irwin Zeplowitz•1298 Views•December 11, 2020•Strength,Light,Hope,Pride,Hanukkah,Calendar,Rosh Hodesh,Chanukah
Finding Light in Dark Places How the Menorah InspiresHow interpretations of the menorah offer suggestions on dealing with suffering and pain, and an analysis of the Talmudic notion of "sufferings of love". Can this notion help us understand why we suffer?
A Time to be Silent, A Time to SpeakWhy is there a need for a 'korban' for not testifying? Why a punishment for silence in the face of wrongdoing that one witnesses?
The Dangers and Potential of Human Leaders - Ki TisaHow does the narrative of the Golden Calf teach about the minimization of faith of the people of Israel and their too great a reliance on the singular imporatnce of Moses?
Endings and BeginningsEndings are often hard. So can be new beginnings. How may Pesach be the end not only of a year in one understanding, but a birth metaphor for the people of Israel? This sheet looks at sources that challenge looking back and encourages hope in looking forward to change.
Checks and Balances - Internal and ExternalWhat does it mean to give voluntarily vs. requiring giving? Is the desire of Torah to have us give physically or spiritually? And for "Shabbat Shekalim", how does the "haftarah" establish a necessary system of checks and balances on power to limit corruption and build trust?
Why is the Sukkah a Symbol of Peace?!This sourcesheet explores different dimensions of the "sukkah of peace" as it appears in Tanakh, Talmud, liturgy, and later Jewish thought.
Not Published•Irwin Zeplowitz•103 Views•October 19, 2024•Sukkah,Peace,Wholeness,Imperfection,Sukkot,Good and Evil, Sukkat ShalomHope in Hard Times - Yom Kippur's LifelinesIrwin Zeplowitz•513 Views•October 9, 2024•Yom Kippur,Hope,Humility,Imperfection,Despair,Giving,Loneliness,God
Concealed and HiddenWhat does it mean that God judges our "concealed acts"?How can we bring that which is hidden into a sphere of being known, and by whom?And for those acts that are known and overt, what are the responsibilities of the community and individual in punishing or helping the wrongdoer?
Irwin Zeplowitz•410 Views•September 27, 2024•Punishment,Forgiveness,Nitzavim,Sins,Good and Evil,Teshuvah,Responsibility,Dots,Laws of Repentance
Eclipses and Nisan: It's Always Darkest Before the DawnPesach occurs in Nisan, the month when it becomes clear that the brightness of the day is greater than the darkness of the night. What might this allude to in the story of Pesach? Why might Pesach, as a result, be the symbol of redemption and hope - for Jews and others?
Elijah: Why is He the One At the Seder?Eliyahu as the figure who makes the impossible, possible. The harbinger of the higher ethical standard. The one who will make us listen to each other and (re)build the world.
Not Published•Irwin Zeplowitz•209 Views•April 18, 2024•Passover,Messiah,Laws of the Passover Night Seder,Death of Elijah,Pesach,Havdalah,Zealotry,Elijah's Cup,Compassion,EliyahuChanukkah in a Time of DangerNot Published•Irwin Zeplowitz•209 Views•December 9, 2023•Courage,Chanukkah,Antisemitism,Martyrdom,Maccabees,Life,Fear,Forgetting,Vayeshev,DangerDestroying the Innocent with the WickedWhat is the balance between fighting terror and harming the innocent? Can there be (SHOULD there be) limits in how we engage in war? What are the Jewish and modern human rights limits in the conduct of war that balance ensuring security and not causing undue harm to innocents?
Sukkot: The Water/Rain FestivalNot Published•Irwin Zeplowitz•201 Views•September 29, 2023•Torah,Lulav,Water Libations,Four Species,Rain,Water,SukkotKindness versus Truth: How to Be Civil with Those We Think are Wrong?How do we balance being compassionate with being honest? How can (must?) kindness include a sense of honesty? Who models for us a way to offer rebuke in a loving and necessary way?
The Death of Miriam: What Grief Takes ... and Can GiveThe death of Miriam creates an emotional pain that challenges her siblings (Moses and Aaron) and all the people of Israel. How does this narrative help us confront the emotions of loss? What comforting lessons does this story provide?
Irwin Zeplowitz•1338 Views•June 24, 2023•The Well,Mourning,Miriam,Anger,Grief,Miriam's Well,Hope,Parshat Chukkat
The Real Hero of the AkeidahWho is the most heroic figure of the "Akeidah" (the Binding of Isaac)? How are we meant to be like this character? What does it mean to truly hear the shofar? These sources play with the idea that the ram is the only character in the narrative who is not constrained by circumstances beyond its control - and truly chooses how to respond to the constraints of fate.
Irwin Zeplowitz•4414 Views•September 16, 2020•Pandemic,Free Will,Ram's Horn,Binding of Isaac,Choice,Akeidah
The Priestly Blessing: What Is The Blessing?Birkat Kohanim carries within it many meanings. What are the blessings - and how can they offer us a guide for a purpose driven life.
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Irwin Zeplowitz
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claire franco
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