Finding Our “Different Spirit” for Gay Pride Month

June is Pride Month, & we're looking for Jewish LGBT stories, both personal & congregational, for our blog! Check out our writing guidelines (http://goo.gl/IeN6z), & submit your 300- to 800-word essay to rjblog@urj.org for consideration.

When the Israelite scouts went to survey the land in last week’s Torah portion Shlach Lecha from the Book of Numbers, were Caleb and Joshua really the only ones who saw the land of Israel as a land flowing with milk and honey?  Or, as the midrash (legend) asks, were there others who shared this dissenting view but chose to keep silent.  Perhaps what makes Caleb special is his description in the Torah as having a ruach acheret, a different spirit.  It’s the ruach acheret that compells us to speak out, even when we hold the dissenting view (based on last week’s Union for Reform Judaism Ten Minutes of Torah).  (Thank you to the URJ for this image).

Gay Pride Celebration and Advocacy at Rodeph Shalom and Beth Ahavah

This month, we affirm our Jewish values of justice and righteousness as we celebrate Gay Pride month.  Congregation Rodeph Shalom and Congregation Beth Ahavah invite you to join us for education and advocacy! This Wednesday, June 5 at 7:00 pm, Ted Martin, the executive director of Equality Pennsylvania will speak at RS on: “Love and Let Love: The State of LGBT Civil Rights in Pennsylvania.”   And Friday, June 7 at our 6:00 pm service we will celebrate Gay Pride as well as Shabbat.

Why does Congregation Rodeph Shalom share with Congregation Beth Ahavah (whose mission it is to welcome LGBT Jews and who resides at Rodeph Shalom) such passion for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender rights?  Rabbi Kuhn laid out the source of advocacy in a Bulletin article last year, (March 1, 2012 Bulletin) when he called for Marriage Equality (just weeks before President Obama did!).  Continue reading

Call-In Day for Immigration Reform

On Tuesday, May 21, lift up your voices together and call your Senators and tell them that you support comprehensive immigration reform to address our nation’s broken system. Along with others across the country, tell Congress that you demand reform that does justice to our American and Reform Jewish values.  To get a reminder text about the call-in day, text “GESHER” to 877-877.  On Tuesday, call your Senators at 877-897-0174.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=BWRqqFfQMao#!]

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Mark Bittman, Cheesecake and Shavuot Celebration

We were freed from the slavery of Egypt, not to wander aimlessly, but to discover our people’s purpose through Torah.  Tues. evening and Wed., we celebrate the gift of the revelation of Torah.  Learn about the festival of Shavuot with this great new Jewish content website from a Reform perspective, and participate in our RS celebrations:

Tuesday, May 14, 7:00-9:00 pm, Shavuot Night of Study: Without the sleep deprivation of the all-night study tradition, we will engage in a discussion about what our “What is Our Food Worth?” conversation that was started with Mark Bittman spoke at RS in March.  Nourish the soul with intellectual and spiritual search and nourish the body with some traditional dairy treats.Continue reading

Phila City Council Passes Landmark LGBT Equality Bill

Proud of last year’s Board resolution for Marriage Equality, Rodeph Shalom and  Beth Ahavah (a historic GLBT congregation housed at RS) have been exploring advocacy opportunities to further civil rights and marriage equality (Save the date, Wednesday, June 5, 7:00 pm, when Ted Martin, exec. director of Equality Pennsylvania, is our guest speaker!).  This week’s progress in the city council is something to celebrate!

Read more about the legislation and its impact here.

Addressing Poverty & Humger

From Rabbi Kuhn
A recent study found that Philadelphia has the highest rate of “deep poverty” – people with incomes below half the poverty line – of any of the nations 10 most populous cities (Philadelphia Inquirer and Temple University Sociologist David Elesh analysis of the U.S. Census American Community survey, Inquirer article March 19, 2013).  The study found that Philadelphia’s “deep poverty” rate (individuals living at half the poverty line of $5,700 per year – or a family of 4 of $11,700) is around 12.9%, or 200,000 people. As Jews, we should be troubled by these distressing statistics, and we should be moved to act to solve the problems of poverty and hunger.
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Tennessee: The Volunteer State

By Rabbi Eli Freedman, sermon delivered erev Rosh Hashanah evening 2011

As many of you know, this summer I got married.  Laurel and I decided to take a road-trip to and from our wedding in Texas.  While leaving Asheville, NC and heading into the birthplace of Rabbi Bill Kuhn, I saw a large welcome sign.  On that sign it read, “Tennessee: The Volunteer State.”  I usually do not place much stock in state mottos.  I come from the Bay State and now live in the Keystone state, neither of which names deeply resonates with me, however, for some reason I was struck by Tennessee: The Volunteer State.  I assume it is because, as a synagogue community, we have been thinking a lot about what it means to be a part of congregation in recent months.

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Limbs of a Whole: Caring Community

By Rabbi Jill Maderer, sermon delivered Yom Kippur Morning 2011

A boat filled with travelers sails in the ocean, when suddenly one passenger begins to drill a hole in the floor.  His fellow passengers plead with him to stop, but the man says, “Mind your own business.  This is my seat, and I can do whatever I want to the floor under it.  Am I telling you what to do?  No.  So why don’t you leave me alone?”

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Profound Moments: Twice Asked “Are You Jewish?”

by Carl Schneider, presented at 09/16/11 Shabbat service

 I have lived comfortably in immediate communities that were significantly or overwhelmingly Jewish. My boyhood home was in the Wynnefield section of Philadelphia. It was so Jewish that I remember going to elementary school one day to find that there were no other students. The custodian told me that it was a teacher in-service day because it was a Jewish holiday and no kids were expected. I assure you it was not one of the High Holidays, or one of the other biggies like Passover, when even my non-observant parents knew to keep me home. I think the day in question was something like Lag B’Omer or Tu B’shevat. As a result, I have had very little personal experience with overt anti-Semitism Despite my comfortable surroundings, I have always felt that being Jewish separates me, as part of a small minority, from the larger society. Continue reading

Center City CSA

Members of the Center City CSA (community supported agriculture) look forward to Thursdays when Farmer Phil comes and drops of fresh produce and cheese.  Some of the produce we have received so far include swiss chard, kale, onions, peaches, blueberries, plums, lettuce, arugula, zucchini, cucumbers and chives- all organic and straight from the farm.  Along with trying new vegetables, each participant volunteers to help with distributing the produce. 

Members will have the opportunity to visit the farm where everything is grown and take a canning class to learn about preserving the fresh produce.

Debra Felman picking up her produce
Rabbi Freedman and the farmers sample some of the Men of RS’ beer
CSA members chatting with Farmer Phil during the first pickup

Check out more pictures at Rodeph Shalom’s facebook page.

Like the Center City CSA on Facebook.

J Street’s Rachel Lerner’s Remarks at RS 6/2/11

Rachel Lerner’s Remarks: These have been some very eventful weeks when it comes to the Israeli Palestinian conflict, the future of a peace agreement and the U.S.-Israel relationship.  I’d like to talk a bit about J Street – who we are, what we do and why we do it, and then I want to spend some time talking about some of the things that transpired over the past few weeks, what the challenges and opportunities are and where J Street comes into the mix. But first I want to spend a little time introducing myself, and my own involvement in J Street. I grew up in the Jewish community. In the Modern Orthodox community in Brooklyn, to be specific. I attended a Zionist Modern Orthodox day school through high school, and, like many of my classmates I spent my freshman year of college in Israel – not in a seminary like most of my friends, but at Bar Ilan University, where I was able to spend half my day studying torah and half my day earning college credits. Continue reading