Blog

Rabbi Nicole Auerbach writes, “There are [certain moments] in which it is possible to feel fear and reverence and awe in one single, combined inner experience.” Imagine standing on the very edge of an immense canyon and looking down into the vast expanse, while also appreciating the magnificent colors and rock striations, and also considering a time hundreds of thousands of years prior when the river on the canyon floor first began to...Read more...

I have a small confession to make…

I am conflict-avoidant. Conflict makes me profoundly uncomfortable. In fact, if you say something that upsets me, you will rarely know it. I may talk about it ad nauseam with friends and family, but it is rare that I will actually confront the person with whom I am upset.

It seems I already know what I need to work on this year as the High Holidays roll around ;)

In all...Read more...

The mental picture is one I will never forget. It was at the beginning of my first year of rabbinical school in Jerusalem and several of my classmates and I decided to go to the Kotel (Western Wall) in observance of Tisha b’Av, a historical day of fasting which commemorates the destruction of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem two millennia ago (and longer). We were truly unprepared, though, for the scene that greeted us: a throng in...Read more...

To me, summertime has always been about journeys. Trips to camp, the mountains and the beach. Pilgrimages to Israel and meet-ups with friends and family members. So, it is fitting that we always read Parashat Matot-Masei in the midst of the summer months. Matot- Masei recounts in great detail the forty years of Israelite journeys through the desert.

Over the past few weeks, like many of you , I have taken a few trips.  Last...Read more...

We are writing to update you about a significant staff transition that is presently taking place. Samantha Berinsky, our Senior Manager of Congregational and Community Management, has announced her departure effective August 9th in order to join Repair the World as the Atlanta City Director. We are delighted that Samantha will continue to serve as a Jewish professional for this rather impressive organization.

At the urging of Rabbi...Read more...

Each evening, as we are driving home from Temple Sinai I ask Rafi,  “What is your rose?” and “What is your thorn?” Roses and thorns, the more child-appropriate way of saying blessings and curses. 

As I ask Rafi these questions, I too ask myself, “What is my rose and what is my thorn?” I try to take a mental inventory of some of the most poignant images, both good and bad. This week, it was easy to...Read more...

We spent July Fourth Weekend on Cape Cod visiting friends who summer there each year. We were in Woods Hole which is the home to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, one of the premier marine biology centers in the nation that draws hundreds of students there each summer to study. One of the most endearing things that happens there is the July 4th parade. It is not your typical Americana-type parade, it is a Science Parade where all of the...Read more...

During a meeting last week, a NY-based rabbinic colleague shared the following story. She and her wife took their ten-year old nephew to see the recently released Top Gun movie.  As he had not seen the first Top Gun, my colleague told her nephew a bit about the two main characters in the original, “Maverick” and “Goose,” explaining that they were best friends but that Goose sadly died at the end of movie (sorry if that’s a...Read more...

There are times when the choices of others challenge us to live our values. I had one such experience when, in January of 2021, my wife, Rebecca, and I had a sit-down conversation with our son, Evan, about his Bar Mitzvah ceremony which would take place in 2022. Evan, who we know is rather shy and reserved, abhors being the center of attention while at the same time relishes his Judaism and the rituals of Jewish living. Rebecca and I crafted...Read more...

Buffalo. The Taiwanese Church in California. And, because these things come in threes, Texas. Earlier this week our newsfeeds were filled again with reports of a(nother) school shooting, this time in Texas. And, once again, broken-hearted, we allowed our tears to flow and our rage to boil.

We know that 19 children who were days away from finishing 4th grade now lay dead, as do two adults, in the latest mass shooting. ...Read more...

“The strangers who reside with you shall be to you as your citizens; you shall love each one as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.”-Leviticus 19:34

Now is the opportunity for us as Temple Sinai to fulfill this mitzvah. Temple Sinai has been assigned to help settle a Refugee Ukrainian family. This project is supported by Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta and...Read more...

There are two ways below to contribute to Ukrainian humanitarian aid.  One goes directly through Father Bo’s St. Andrew Ukrainian Orthodox Church and the other through the American Jewish Committee (AJC) which continues to support Jews and non-Jews in the war effort.  

American Jewish Committee (AJC) has launched an emergency fund to provide...Read more...

Since being a recent newlywed (and someone who was divorced), I have found myself asking friends who have been married for over 25 years what has contributed to their long, healthy marriages. While some of the answers were cute and maybe a little glib (i.e. “always say, ‘yes dear,’" or “have separate bathrooms”), one answer stood out as the best ingredient to a successful marriage. My friend said, “Do the work on yourself to be...Read more...

"Two are better than one, for the reward is greater when they are together. For if they should fall, one can lift up the other; truly sad is the one who falls with no companion there to lift them up!"— Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

Sometimes, life offers us special opportunities to make sacred connections with fellow human beings. You meet someone—at school, at temple, at work, through a mutual acquaintance, by...Read more...

If you have entertained the thought, “I want to make a difference in our community,” but are unsure how best to make a significant and meaningful impact, I encourage you to read on.

Founded in 1987 by local churches and synagogues, including Temple Sinai, the Community Assistance Center (CAC) provides critical support for thousands of Sandy Springs and Dunwoody residents each year.  The CAC provides basic needs assistance for...Read more...