Blogs

Perhaps the hardest lesson for any child to learn is that parental decisions are sometimes final, whether or not one agrees with their parent’s logic. With infuriating consistency, no means no, no matter how much a child may plead, pucker out a lower lip, or employ the most adorable, irresistible pair of puppy dog eyes. Asking again five minutes later is unlikely to result in a different...Read more...

Depending on how you work the numbers, I’m one of 9 children. Or 11. Or 16. After my parents split, each remarried someone who brought their own kids into the mix. So, for anyone keeping score: 3 brothers (1 deceased), 5 sisters, 1 half-brother, 1 half-sister, 3 stepsisters, 2 stepbrothers. Some of these siblings grew up with me in Albany—sharing values, bedrooms, clothes, a love of corny jokes, and the local...Read more...

Some weeks, drawing connections between the Torah portion and current events can feel like a reach. And then there are weeks like this one, when the parallels are impossible to ignore.

Parashat Balak is a story rooted in fear—fear of occupation, fear of being overwhelmed, fear of the other. The Moabites and Midianites grow anxious as they watch the Israelites temporarily settle near their borders. To Balak, king of Moab, this...Read more...

For those who attended TBD’s Pride Shabbat Service on June 13, you were treated to an exceptional D’var Torah by one of our congregants, Lori Sudderth.  For those who were not there, here is an opportunity to read her words.  As Pride Month comes to an end, may we be blessed with a renewed sense of confidence in who we are, and a commitment to celebrating difference and diversity in the months and years to come.

Shabbat...Read more...

This week’s Torah portion, B’haalot’cha, continues the saga of a people in motion—newly freed Israelites journeying through the wilderness, guided by the mysterious signs of God: a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night--divine markers offering clarity, direction, and assurance amid uncertainty and fear. When the cloud lifted, the people moved. When it rested, they...Read more...