Spirituality

Parsha Shmot: A teaching on values

This week’s Torah portion is Sh’mot or Shemot (Names). Rabbi Annette Koch sent her congregation, Temple Israel of Alameda, a beautiful drash (teaching) about it that is particularly well timed as we approach the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.   This week’s Torah portion Shemot, which means “Names” begins the story of our exile and…

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Spiritual Guardrails

For a month before the High Holy Days begin with Rosh Hashanah, we have the month of Elul. It is a time to reflect on who we are, how we are doing morally and spiritually, and what we want to do better in the coming year. Rabbi Avi Schulman of Temple Beth Torah in Fremont…

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Let’s Go to the Theater: The Good Book

When you say the words, “The Bible,” a Jew, a Christian and a Muslim will probably have different ideas in mind. Put them all together for The Good Book.   Berkeley Rep’s play, The Good Book explores faith, belief in God, and the acceptance of biblical scripture as divine, as opposed to scientific, historical theories of…

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What is “God”?

Two weeks ago I had a wonderful program, What Do Rabbis REALLY Believe About God? To that question let me add: What do Catholics believe about God? What do Zoroastrians believe? What do agnostics or Buddhists believe? What about Catholic priests?  Muslim imams? When I pose this question to individuals, many are quick and confident as they…

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What Do Rabbis REALLY Believe About God?

(Photos top row from the left: Rabbi Steve Chester, Rabbi Rebecca Gutterman, Rabbi Daniel Stein and bottom row from the left: Rabbi Chaya Gusfield, Rabbi Yonatan Cohen) God Talk with Rabbis from Across the Jewish Denominations Rabbis talk about God quite a bit. But what role does God plays in the lives of our rabbis?…

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