TeMPLE TALK | HIGH HOLIDAYS 2025
08/26/2025 09:38:05 AM
L’Shanah Tovah Temple Israel,
At this time every year, as we find ourselves on the precipice of a new year with all the anticipation and hoping and dreaming that comes with it, we are grateful to take a moment to reflect on our past year together, as a Temple Israel community.
The new year brings with it an opportunity for each of us – as individuals, as families, as members of this sacred community – to reflect on the...Read more...
TEMPLE TALK | JUNE 27
07/02/2025 02:53:37 PM
Shabbat Shalom.
For those who may not know me, I’m Robert Friedman. I’ve been a member of Temple Israel since I was eight years old, and I’m deeply honored to share this year’s Pride D’var Torah with you.
For those who do know me, you know that my life has changed significantly in the last few years. Since 2020, I’ve lost over 200 pounds, married my husband Andy after navigating the immigration process,...Read more...
TEMPLE TALK | JUNE 20
06/27/2025 10:33:04 AM
This week's Torah portion is a turning point for our Israelite ancestors wandering in the desert. They have witnessed the unimaginable. Freedom from Egypt, crossing the sea on dry land, literal mana raining from the heavens, water following them on their journey through a barren landscape and all being led by a pillar of fire and cloud of God’s presence manifest in their midst. But as the 12 spy’s return from scouting the...Read more...
TEMPLE TALK | JUNE 6, 2025
06/17/2025 02:25:16 PM
As often happens, when it is my turn to be speaking, there is so much happening in the world and in my brain that choosing a direction can be challenging. I turned to my trusty torah commentators, Rabbi Jonathan Sacks and Rabbi Shai Held, and I think I may have become even more challenged on the direction to take.
Rabbi Sacks notes that in the census of Nasso, the process...Read more...
TEMPLE TALK | JUNE 6
06/11/2025 03:16:28 PM
Shabbat shalom.
If this is your first time at a Shabbat gathering, welcome!
This is a d’var Torah. It simply means “a word of Torah.” It’s a short reflection on the weekly portion from the Torah, which is the foundational text of Jewish life. Each week has a name and a section of reading, and tonight’s portion is called Naso, which means “to take a census,” because the parsha begins God asking Moses to take a...Read more...