“Preschool in my Wisconsin town planted seeds in the sidewalk cracks.”Credit: reddit user sunflower53069 For the past few years, I’ve been feeling grateful for all the moments in the Jewish calendar dedicated to renewal and rededication. Not because I think it’s important to believe or do certain things in order to be a “good Jew,” Read More
Category: Tikkun Olam
Connecting Through Deep Time
The author in her grandma’s lap, with three generations of matriarchs (Miami Beach, 1976) Growing up in a Conservative congregation, I wasn’t allowed to attend yizkhor on Yom Kippur. The special memorial service occurs four times each year – Yom Kippur, Shemini Atzeret (at the end of Sukkot), Passover, and Shavuot. My parents adhered to Read More
Opening Up Through Elul
The Spiral by Dori Midnight Join us throughout the month of Elul for conversations and activities designed to help you prepare for the Days of Awe. Draw inspiration from Joanna Macy’s (z”l) Work That Reconnects together with the study of sephirot from mystical Jewish tradition to reflect on the year gone by and gear up for Read More
Lessons from Ships Adrift at Sea
The first week of July, a series of ships floated through our Sukkat Shalom. Aboard were lessons from the past and messages for a sustainable future. The first was the MS St. Louis which set sail from Hamburg, Germany to Havana, Cuba on May 13, 1939 with over 900 passengers, most Jewish, fleeing Nazi persecution. Read More
Holding Space for Deep Conversations on Israel/Palestine
Nothing about the ongoing conflict in Israel/Palestine or the historic and political context that gave rise to it is pleasant or easy to address. According to my daily email from the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, today is day 97. 97 days of this news cycle that has taken so many twists and turns – here at Read More
SPECIAL EVENT: Deepening Our Conversations on Israel & Palestine
Since October 7, it’s gotten harder and harder to have civil conversations about Israel & Palestine with people who don’t share our views. For some Jews the issues of the day are black and white, for many others they are a rainbow of grays. Either way, you’ve likely felt uncomfortable at some time since this Read More
Preparing for the 5784 High Holy Days of Awe: Week 7
Chesed: Channeling Love for Ourselves, Each Other, and the Worldby Debra Seltzer NOTE: This is the 7th and final post in a series written by KSS members linking social and environmental justice issues to the 7 sephirot of the Omer cycle. To read the past six posts, please check our blog archive. We have come to the last week of Read More
Preparing for the 5784 High Holy Days of Awe: Week 6
NOTE: This is the 6th in a series of posts written by KSS members linking social and environmental justice issues to the 7 sephirot of the Omer cycle. To read the past five posts, please check our blog archive. WEEK 6: Gevurah: May My Left Hand Share Its Cunning by Jan Leibovitz Alloy I don’t tweet. I don’t boast photos Read More
Preparing for the 5784 High Holy Days of Awe: Week 5
NOTE: This is the 5th in a series of posts linking social and environmental justice issues to the 7 sephirot of the Omer cycle. To read the past four posts, please visit our blog. WEEK 5: Tiferet: Opening to Beauty & Brokenness by Michelle Moskowitz Brown The light of Tiferet is strong, demanding, radiant. Notice colors this Read More
Preparing for the 5784 High Holy Days of Awe: Week 4
NOTE: This is the 4th in a series of posts linking social and environmental justice issues to the 7 sephirot of the Omer cycle. Previous offerings are available in the archive of this blog. WEEK 4: “I believe I can do this!”: Learning from Nezach – Confidence/Persistencea Collaborative Offering, curated by Debra Seltzer Just over a year Read More