Strengthening Congregations
Rosh HaShanah

On Being a Diaspora Jew, In More Ways Than One

Kerry Leaf

Merriam-Webster defines “diaspora” as “a group of people who live outside the area in which they had lived for a long time or in which their ancestors lived.” Because I am Jewish yet living outside of Israel, I am already labeled a Diaspora Jew, but should we
Strengthening Congregations

Traveling in Time: One Synagogue's Journey with a Czech Memorial Scroll

Susan Ebert
Our scroll – Blatna scroll #877 – originally belonged to the Jewish community of Blatna, which once might have included as many as 100 people. By the mid-1930s, thanks to migration – both across the Atlantic and to larger towns in the region – Blatna numbered only eight Jewish families. When the Nazis rounded up the town's Jews in November 1942, those families were sent to Terezin. We know the names of 26 of those who perished.
Shabbat

Shabbat is Everywhere

Howard Lev

I’ve always been taught that when the Jewish people read from the Torah, it is not a random passage. When a congregation on Long Island (like the one I attend!) celebrates Shabbat, they open their Torah to the same portion as a congregation celebrating Shabbat