26 Elul 5780 | September 15, 2020
Rabba Sarah Hurwitz - Welcome & Framing
Each year, we start again not with that which we do not know, but rather that which we have forgotten or dismissed. As we choose which burdens to carry and what inspiration to bring, we are given another opportunity to see things through a new lens.
Rabbanit Leah Sarna - Sounding Shofar in Solitude
During the pandemic, we have been forced to daven on our own. However, women have taken on more of an obligation, according to the Maharil, by taking on the mitzvah of shofar which may be an obligation permitted only with the community as a whole. Rabbanit Leah Sarna explains what it means for tefillah to be different individually and in a community.
Rabbanit Alissa Thomas-Newborn - HaMelech BaSadeh- Davka This Year
This year, feeling strong has been incredibly difficult. As Likutei Moharan teaches, though, there is God both even and especially in the lowest of lows if we seek God out. Further, says Rabbanit Alissa Thomas-Newborn, in the Tanya’s image of a King in the field is a well of strength and the potential for joy and humor.
Darshanit Dr. Miriam Udel - A Prayer Apart: Exempla from Yiddish Children’s Literature
Yiddish literature, thriving from the mid-19th to mid-20th centuries, was featured in newspapers for several holidays to allow children to engage. Darshan Dr. Miriam Udel tells a story of a young Polish boy who connects through music whistling during Rosh HaShanah davening to reach the King just on the other side of the veil rather than locked in a palace.
Rabba Shani Gross - The Court of Compassion
The tractate of Rosh HaShanah discusses who can serve as witness and who can serve as judge, arguing that the two are incongruent when they are one and the same. Rabba Shani Gross discusses our own judgment of ourselves and the need to be kind to ourselves.