To say the Western New York is filled with natural wonders is an understatement. Lush green landscapes (even in a drought), rolling hills, healthy water ways, and, of course, Niagara Falls. On Thursday (8/25), the National Park Service celebrated its…
Torah Thoughts – Vetchanan 2
Haven’t we heard this before? The entire book of Deuteronomy often feels like a repetition, but especially this week’s Torah portion Ve’etchanan where the Ten Commandments is recited for a second time in Torah. In our yearly cycle we actually…
Torah Thoughts – Devarim
Yehudah Amichai, Israel’s most renowned poet who died in the year 2000, once wrote a poem about being the mayor of Jerusalem. “How can a man be mayor of such a city?” he wrote, “What can be done with it?/…
Torah Thoughts – Motot Masei
This past week saw the release of a new Harry Potter book – Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. Ten years after the last and final book in the Potter series was published, we now have a new last and final…
Torah Thoughts – Pinchas
There are many systems of making decisions as a community – democracy being one of the best. In the ancient world, they often turned to goralot or lots. While there were a variety of different methods of casting lots, as…
Torah Thoughts – Balak
Torah Thoughts Balak Sometimes the hardest thing to hear is not a complaint, but a compliment. Over the years as a rabbi, I have learned to really pause and take it all in (most of the time J). When someone comes…
Torah Thoughts – Chukat
Torah Thoughts Chukat This past week, I had a chance to see Pixar’s newest creation Finding Dory. One of the things I loved about the movie was watching Dory jump from ocean to whale tank to baby bottle to water…
Torah Thoughts – Shelach
You never know where a Devar Torah will come from. Several weeks ago I was reading my copy of Sports Illustrated when I came across the story of a Christian Pastor preparing a basketball team for a difficult matchup during the team’s…
Torah Thoughts – Korah
Last Friday, Congregation Shir Shalom celebrated our fourth anniversary. On July 1, 2012, members of the entire community gathered at the former Temple Sinai building on Alberta Drive to transport three Torahs across Longmeadow Road, Millersport Highway, to their new home…