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by Holly Lentz Kleeman, presented at July 1 Shabbat service
I am fortunate to have been blessed with many profound moments in my life. Many of these moments are what you would envision – the birth of a child, a tender moment with a loved one, a breakthrough about faith. But I have found that there are less obvious encounters that can be quite profound as well. I want to share one of these with you.
This past January I needed to pick up something from CVS. Continue reading
Last Shabbat, our congregant Ellen Kraftsow-Kogan offered a beautiful presentation on “Understanding Profound Moments.” Her focus on love was inspiring and provoked a lot of thought and conversation, both during the service and afterwards; we invite you to continue the discussion with comments here.
Join us to celebrate Shabbat this coming Friday, July 15 at 6:00 pm, as our immediate past president Fred Strober will present, along with Rabbi Maderer.
by Rabbi Bill Kuhn
All too often, we Reform Jews have a difficult time discussing God. Sophisticated, cosmopolitan Jews of the 21st Century cannot relate easily to the ancient biblical understanding of the God concept. Adding to the confusion is the fact that there are many ways to understand God in Judaism. In fact, there is no single, unified Jewish theology, or philosophy of God. As a result, most of us are seekers, and some of us become convinced that there is no God. Continue reading
By Fred Strober, RS President
I’m the first to admit it: I have a horrible singing voice. It’s easier for me to carry a 100 pound sack of flour than it is to carry a tune. You may not want to be near me when I sing. Your first instinct may be to move a few feet away once I’ve started. Continue reading
Please learn about our Visioning Initiative, and join us for the visioning weekend opportunities with Rabbi Hoffman, listed below!
RS 2020: Creating Our Vision Together
6:00pm Shabbat Service, 7:00pm Dinner & Discussion
RSVP for Dinner to Marcia Biggs at 215-627-6747 x12 or mbiggs@rodephshalom.org. Cost for dinner is $20 per person.
Torah Study with Rabbi Lawrence Hoffman
Saturday, March 5, 2011 at 9:15am
RS 2020: Why the Next Generation Will Be Jewish
Sunday, March 6 at 10:30 AM
Please read more here for full descriptions of these conversations.Continue reading
by Rabbi Jill Maderer
“My House Shall Be Called a House of Prayer for All People.” All people? What does the prophet Isaiah mean when he says “all people?” We typically understand this phrase to be a sign of welcome into the sanctuary, and it certainly is! Yet, this summer, we will add another layer of meaning. The synagogue is a house of prayer for all people because the fullness of Jewish prayer requires not only the singular “person,” but the plural, “people.” This summer, join us for community, prayer, and disuccion, as we explore how Jewish prayer is designed to spiritually connect us in community. Continue reading
This introduction to Philadelphia Jewish history comes from Temple University’s Murray Friedman Chair of American Jewish History and director of the Feinstein Center for American Jewish History, Dr. Lila Corwin Berman. Dr. Berman will speak on this topic at Synaplex Shabbat this Friday night.
On Leaving, Staying, and Returning: A View of Urban History from Jewish Philadelphia, by Lila Corwin Berman
One of the perennial themes of Jewish history and lore is movement. God commands Abraham lech lecha, “Go away from your land, from your birthplace, and from your father’s house, to the land that I will show you.” Driven by trade, by decree, by economic instability, by violence, by the desire for a better life, Jews have moved. Some historians and thinkers have argued that the constancy of migration in Jewish life has bred a sense of Jewish detachment from land, territory, and place. Continue reading
By Rabbi Bill Kuhn
On Friday evening, January 15, 2010 at our 7:30 p.m. Shabbat Service, we will celebrate the national holiday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday. In what has become an annual event at Rodeph Shalom, we will share one of the most meaningful interfaith services of our calendar year as we welcome Reverend Kevin Johnson and the Bright Hope Baptist Church. Reverend Johnson will give the sermon that evening as we also welcome many members of his congregation and his choir. Those of you who have heard him speak and have heard their magnificent choir know what an unforgettable experience this is. Continue reading
By Rabbi Bill Kuhn
It is timely that we will welcome Dr. Deborah Lipstadt to Congregation Rodeph Shalom on Friday, November 13 at our 8:00 p.m. Shabbat Service, as this year’s Joseph J. & Lulu S. Rosenbluth Memorial Lecture guest speaker. Dr. Lipstadt is an internationally renowned expert and author on Holocaust denial. We have all heard with horror all of the publicity given Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who recently stole the election for the presidency of the Islamic Republic of Iran. He has repeatedly spread his lies that the Holocaust did not happen, and that he believes Israel should be wiped off the map. The fact that Iran is developing nuclear weapons is extremely frightening, in light of these statements and sentiments spewed by Ahmadinejad. One can only hope that President Obama and the world community can find a way to stop Iran’s efforts to destroy Israel before it is too late.
Holocaust denial is nothing new, unfortunately. Dr. Lipstadt made a thorough study of this topic in her ground-breaking book, Denying the Holocaust: The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory (The Free Press, NYC, 1993).
By Rabbi Jill Maderer
This Friday, we continued our Shabbat summer series “Spiritual Power in Prayer” with a text that focuses on the one-line introduction to the Amidah: “O Lord, open my lips and let my mouth declare Your praise.” The commentary teaches:
“As a person begins to pray, reciting the words: ‘O Lord, open my lips and let my mouth declare Your praise,’ the Presence of God comes into him. Then it is the Presence herself who commands his voice; it is she who speaks the words through him. One who knows faith that all this happen within him will be overcome with trembling and with awe” (Your Word is Fire: The Hasidic Masters on Contemplative Prayer, Arthur Green and Barry Holtz.).Continue reading
by Rabbi Jill Maderer
What kinds of questions can Jewish art challenge us to face? This week’s new RS Philadelphia Museum of Jewish Art (PMJA) show inspires its curator, Matt Singer, to ask: When, how and where did Judaism begin? When Abraham and Sarah entered a covenant with God and departed for the Promised Land? When Moses and his people—the descendents of Abraham, refugee slaves wandering in the desert—received the Torah at Mount Sinai?
This Friday evening, all of us have the opportunity to ask the artist what she thinks about such foundational questions of the Jewish people. Zoë Cohen, artist of the PMJA’s new show “What Was Our Vision: Sixteen Scenes from Wandering in the Desert” will visit RS this Friday, July 17, for our 6:00pm service (pre-oneg reception begins 5:30pm). Continue reading
