Entries by Rachel Barenblat

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Yizkor at Home

“…I thought I’d try something new this year: giving us a way to remember loved ones with a short Yizkor remembrance at home. Although traditionally Yizkor is communal, this communal ritual clearly isn’t speaking to our community as we are now. But maybe a ‘DIY’ version to do at home might speak to some of us….”

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From the Rabbi – March 2026

Passover has always been my favorite holiday, ever since I was a kid excited to travel to Dallas for seder at my Aunt Sylvia and Uncle Bill’s house. I love the prayers and the songs, I love the story of liberation from Egypt, I love the foods (even more now that I have my own favorite recipes for preparing them myself.)

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What Torah Asks Of Us: Shabbat Yitro 5786

Torah tells us 36 times that we must “love the stranger, for we were strangers in the land of Mitzrayim.” We have been in narrow straits before, and because of our people’s suffering both historical and present we must stand up for those who are oppressed today. Not “may,” not “might decide to” – if we take Torah values seriously, caring for the stranger is an obligation.