Blog

Rabbi Annie Villarreal-Belford writes, “Passover is our celebration of redemption. We remember that in ancient Egypt, we were slaves; we celebrate our miraculous exodus and freedom. We raise each of the four cups of wine to acknowledge the joy we feel that we live as free people today. This year, however, our joy is tempered with the knowledge that not all Jews are free….” 

In truth, the fact that more than 130 men, women,...Read more...

We spent the past week in Colombia with family. My sister-in-law is Colombian and our niece and nephew (the exact same ages as our kids) spend much of their school vacations and summers in Colombia. We were grateful for the invitation to join them for spring break and looked forward to lots of family bonding. 

What was so unique about the experience was that we were not just tourists exploring a city; but...Read more...

For a few years I have been fascinated with the transitions from one book of Torah to another. Each book is so different from the others they could each be their own movie about the Jewish people. Not unlike the Star Wars movies, they don’t necessarily need to be viewed in order, and in fact, in more traditional communities, it is often the third book, Leviticus that is the one introduced to children first.

If Genesis is about our...Read more...

Nehama Leibowitz, among the great teachers of modern Judaism, posits a controversial thesis: that Judaism is more concerned with the holiness of time than the holiness of physicality and space. She argues that, when the Israelites built the golden calf (which we studied last week), they were in the midst of a faith emergency, feeling isolated and alone in the wilderness due to a 40-day stay atop Mt. Sinai featuring Moses and God. In the wake...Read more...

In Pirkei Avot, “Ben Azzai taught: Do not disdain any person. Do not underrate the importance of anything, for there is no person who does not have their hour, and there is no thing without its place in the sun.”

We spent an entire year studying what it means to “belong.” The four steps to belonging were identified as Noticed, Named, Known and Needed. But those are not enough. Accessibility is also key. Our Hineini committee...Read more...

When the world rejoices, the artist creates. When the world hurts, the artist creates. When the world sees despair, the artist creates, when the world is in awe, the artist creates. The artists’ creations of every age are a direct reflection of the world they inhabit. Every medium speaks to their times and influences one another. Some pieces are so poignant that they are timeless and ultimately speak to the broad themes of life that surface...Read more...

We know that when we hear the words, “Please rise for Aleinu,” we are nearing the end of a worship service. The Aleinu (translated as, “it is upon us”) is a punctuation mark, a culminating statement for just having prayed an entire service, that states, “It is upon us to praise God.” From my very “Glatt-Reform” childhood days, I remember us singing these words in English. “Let us adore the ever-living God and render praise...Read more...

During my brief time in Israel last month as part of a rabbinic solidarity mission, several people with whom we met shared a version of the following message: “Thank you for coming; your presence here means more than we can express, especially as we know you are now battling a second front of this war in the States.” They were referring, of course, to the explosion of virulent expressions of antisemitism now rampant on college campuses,...Read more...

In 1992, the minister Gary Chapman wrote the popular book The Five Love Languages documenting the ways in which most romantic partners feel loved by one another. If you are not familiar, they are words of affirmation, gifts, quality time, physical touch, and acts of service. Each of our love languages might be different. Knowing how your partner feels loved is key to a fulfilling relationship.

I’m not just saying this because...Read more...

Perhaps you have heard this famous maxim from the Talmud: “if you save one life, it is as if you have saved the entire world.” A corollary to that is also true in Jewish thought: if you comfort one life, it is as if you comforted the entire world.

This week, the Sinai community fulfilled this mission. When faced with the insurmountable task of addressing the magnitude of the October 7th massacre and its aftermath, we embraced this...Read more...

Throughout these past two months since the terrorist attacks of October 7, we have endeavored to infuse a sense of Israeli spirit, pride, and staunch support into every realm of Sinai life. Informative conversations and classes, speakers, dignitaries, and presentations, solidarity services, special prayers for this difficult time in Jewish life, tzedakah collections, podcasts, articles, rabbinic columns, sermons, outreach to our students, and...Read more...

Of the many opportunities afforded that make Temple Sinai an incredible congregation at which to work, that of global travel ranks toward the top of the list. In the 18 years that I have served as one of your rabbis, I have had the great joy of traveling locally with our youth to New York, Alabama, Charleston, Los Angeles, and Cincinnati, and I have traveled with adults and families internationally to Israel multiple times as well exploring...Read more...

Two thousand years ago the ancient Greek philosopher Plutarch (1st cen) wrote that the ship of the Athenian hero Theseus, long after his death, was kept in pristine condition by the people of Athens for centuries. Whenever a board decayed it was replaced, until eventually, nothing in the ship was original; every stick of wood had been replaced. This prompted Plutarch to ask, “Is it still the ship of Theseus, or is it a new one?”  A...Read more...

In the Torah verse made famous by Jewish singer and songwriter Debbie Friedman z”l, God says to Abraham: “Lech Lecha - to a land that I will show you” (Genesis 12:1).

Many have interpreted this verse as a teaching to listen to our spirits, to explore new places and to journey into the unknown. Our understanding of this piece of Torah often encourages us to leave home. But as I study the verse now, all I can think about are the...Read more...

Dear Friends and Members of our Temple Sinai Community,

Our spirits are distraught and confidence unsettled as we watch the unfolding events in Israel in disbelief. The gravity and dimension of loss, destruction, and terrorism wrought by Hamas against Israeli citizens and soldiers are inconceivable and heartbreaking. As of this writing, over 700 Israelis have been murdered, the vast majority civilians. Over 2000 Israelis lie wounded,...Read more...