S
habbat Shalom! As we head into the High Holydays, I would love to suggest that you take the year to add Torah study to your weekly routine. There are many opportunities online to study that take only a few moments, but will certainly keep you thinking for the rest of the week. Many of these online opportunities also will send you emails about upcoming holidays. For example, the below from Torah Topics for Today seemed appropriate for the weekend.
AN OPPORTUNITY FOR PERSONAL GROWTH….
ROSH HASHANAH
Rosh Hashanah is perceived as the Jewish New Year, but it is so much more than that. It is time to reflect on the quality of relationships with friends and family and compare yourself to the way you were a year ago. Rosh Hashanah, according to the tradition, gives you a time to make amends to family and friends.
Use the days leading up to Rosh Hashanah to go through a process of introspection and evaluation with your family, thinking and talking about habitual problems and conflicts that are difficult to change. Seeing other family members, regardless of age, struggle with their problems provides children with a measure of comfort and a dose of reality.
Give your children specific examples to think about as they make their own moral inventory of transgressions. Maybe they didn’t treat a sibling well or didn’t share. Perhaps they lied to a friend or didn’t act with respect toward an elder.
TALK TO YOUR KIDS ABOUT how they could improve in their relationships.
CONNECT TO THEIR LIVES:
- Could you be nicer to your brother or sister?
- Could you be a better member of your classroom?
- Do you treat your friends the way you would like to be treated?
- Do you act respectfully to your parents and grandparents?
- How does it feel to tell someone you are sorry for the way you may have treated him/her?
By Rabbi Dianne Cohler-Esses
You can also subscribe to:
My Jewish Learning to receive: Weekly Torah Portion Summaries, Text Studies, Commentaries etc…
URJ for 10 Minutes of Torah offers a daily email on the topics of:
- Reform Voices of Torah – commentary on the weekly portion
- The Rhythum of Jewish Time
- Isarel connections
- Delving Into t’filah – discussions of the New prayer book
- Reform Judaism Q&A
Sign up for one, two or all.
And many more.
Don’t forget that if you want to study Torah, you can also join Rabbi Holtz on Wednesdays from 10-11 am (beginning again in October) and feel free to join us on Saturday mornings at 9 am for our Conservative Service and Torah discussion.
Barry, Tamir and I want to wish you a happy and healthy New Year filled with the study of Torah.
L’shalom,
Cantor Margot
