Rabbi Fox just emailed me to be sure I knew that Beth Jacob in Oakland is again doing Greatest Hits of the High Holy Days. Anyone can drop in for a little bit of soul refreshing. If you have to dash out to work afterwards you’ll do it with more energy. The Greatest Hits of…
Read More »Blog
Putting an Irish element into your Jewish wedding
A Jewish woman wrote to me asking about how to include something Irish in her wedding to reflect her fiancé’s Irish heritage. Here’s what she asked. My fiancé and I are starting to plan our wedding for next spring. Neither of us is particularly religious. I’m proudly Jewish and he is Irish and was…
Read More »Fall 2015 Interfaith Programs from BJB
There’s a little something for everyone this fall. Peruse the classes below, call if you have any questions, and I hope to see you at a program in the next few months. Dawn —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————– Do You Have One Jewish Parent? Do you see yourself as Jewish, half-Jewish, part Jewish, Jew-ish? Were you raised as a…
Read More »Getting Ready for the High Holy Days
I just love this message from Rabbi David Booth of Kol Emeth in Palo Alto. Don’t make your introspection on the High Holy Days negative, find the joy. It is Good to be Joyful I feel the need to advocate for joy this week. We’re entering a time traditionally associated with introspection. Yet too often…
Read More »How does it feel to be given the choice of religions?
Jason Segel, star of How I Met Your Mother (and various films) is the son of a Christian mother and a Jewish father. Segel was recently interviewed on Marc Maron’s podcast, WTF. About 15 minutes into the podcast the subject of religion comes up. For the next 5 minutes Jason pokes gentle fun at…
Read More »We are what we Nosh
Rabbi Milder of Beth Emek in Pleasanton sent out an email to his congregation last Friday reminding them of the importance of food – as a gesture of hospitality, as a social mixer, as a gesture of caring. Here’s what he had to say: Shabbat services don’t feel complete without Oneg Shabbat. It’s like dinner…
Read More »