Donate Today to Help Reconstructing Judaism Stay Strong
Virtual Shabbat Box
Your Virtual Shabbat Box holds many ways to celebrate the day. Choose what nurtures you: listen, watch or read. Looking for Shabbat services? Check out Recon Connect for virtual Shabbat services and other live, online programs throughout the week.
Subscribe Me to the Virtual Shabbat Box
October 15-16
Listen: ‘Ometz Lev’ Meditation
This is a meditation to cultivate and integrate Ometz Lev, a “strong heart,” “courage.” The words of this opening niggun are a reminder that our strength comes from God and is sustained by the flow of spiritual goodness from the heavens. Sourced from Reset, providing Jewish activists with accessible spiritual practice and teachings.
Read: A Prayer for Human Rights
Rabbi David Freidenreich composed this prayer for T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights’ Human Rights Shabbat. Sourced from Ritualwell
Listen: ‘Ahavat Olam’
This choral setting of Ahavat Olam by Will Robertson is performed by the Chorus of Congregation Bet Haverim (Atlanta). “When we sing this in services, we surround the congregation at the end of the piece and invite them to sing with us.” Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
Read: Avraham, Happiness and God’s Open Hand
Ellen Dannin writes that Avraham’s life in parashat Lekh-Lekha reflects the key points of the Ashrei (Psalm145), and that examining the events in this portion against the Ashrei adds a new dimension to its events. Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
Listen: Hidden Jews in the 21st Century
In the past few decades, a growing number of the descendants of Jews who had been forced to flee, convert, or hide Jewish practices during the Inquisition have been seeking to reconnect with their Jewish roots. Rabbi Leila Gal Berner and Rabbi Barbara Aiello discuss the experience of hiding, fleeing, “coming out”, and returning. Sourced from Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations
October 8-9
Watch: Shema Prayer: American Sign Language and Hebrew
Rabbis Roni Handler and Darby Leigh chant the Sh’ma in Hebrew and ASL. Sourced from Ritualwell
Read: ‘My Fig Tree’
In her poem, Nancie S. Martin recall Isaiah’s prophecy of peace and prosperity when each person will sit under their own vine and fig tree. Sourced from Ritualwell
Listen: ‘Oseh Shalom’
Joanie Callem sings her original take on the prayer Oseh Shalom. Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
Read: Symbolism of Rainbows
According to Rabbi Howard Cohen, what we witness in par’shat Noah is the remarkable evolving meaning of a common symbol of belligerency and violence into one of peace and reconciliation. Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
Read: ‘A Fresh Look at Who We Are and What That Means
In this essay, Rabbi David Teutsch reflects that “when Reconstructionists talk about the centrality of Jewish peoplehood and Judaism as an evolving religious civilization ... we are saying that reinvigorating cultural life and acting on behalf of moral and social- justice concerns must be an integral part of what we do.” Sourced from Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations
October 1-2
Read: Ritual for Turning Off Devices Before Shabbat
There are many ways to observe Shabbat and taking 24 hours away from our devices (TVs, computers, smart phones, etc.) is one way to create a day of rest and peace. Elana Bell offers several ideas for how to mark this moment of unplugging. Sourced from Ritualwell
Listen: ‘V’Shamru’
Cantor Marcelo Gidlin sings the verses of Torah that are used in the Friday evening service to declare the holiness of Shabbat. Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
Read: ‘Elohim Hayyim: On the Amidah’
Devon Spier’s brief but intense poem/prayer can be an appropriate meditation for Shabbat B’reisheet as we re-encounter God in the story of Creation. Sourced from Ritualwell
Read: Kaplan on Creation: An Explanation of Jewish Mission
Mel Scult presents some of Mordecai Kaplan’s thoughts on the relationship between Creation and the special task and destiny of the Jewish people. Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
Listen: In the Same Place, as the Same Person
Amanda Mbuvi, Ph.D., is the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College’s new vice president for academic affairs. A Hebrew Bible scholar and nonprofit leader, she is the first Jew of Color to hold such a leadership position at an American rabbinical seminary. Rabbis Deborah Waxman and Sandra Lawson delve into Mbuvi’s desire to deepen how people and communities think about diversity and identity. Sourced from Hashivenu: Jewish Teachings on Resilience
July 30-31
As Shabbat both begins and ends with transitions, Rabbi Annie Lewis acknowledges God as the artist of evening’s changes. Sourced from Ritualwell
This choral setting, by Will Robertson, of the Hashkiveinu prayer from the evening liturgy was originally a lullaby he wrote for his daughter when she was a baby. It is performed by the Chorus of Congregation Bet Haverim in Atlanta. Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
Ellen Dannin suggests that it is about relieving suffering, being diligent about our obligation to live in a Godly way, being grateful for the good things that come our way while not assuming that we deserve them and instilling these understandings in the next generation. Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
Listen: Spiritual Leadership in Times of Crisis
Rabbi Joshua Lesser explores the lessons he learned about community and vulnerability as an out gay rabbi during the height of the AIDS crisis and how that experience informs his work now. Sourced from Hashivenu: Jewish Teachings on Resilience
Read: Havdalah Prayer for Holy Separations
With Trish Arlin’s Havdalah prayer, we praise the One who makes distinctions between the holy and the mundane. Sourced from Ritualwell
July 23-24
Read: Comforting Light of Shekhinah
Tisha B’Av is followed by Shabbat Nahamu, the Sabbath of Comfort. This meditation by Ariel Neshama Lee is inspired by two biblical passages and calls to mind the presence of the Shekhinah in our lives. Sourced from Ritualwell
Watch/Listen: ‘Tzadik Katamar’ (Psalm 92: 13-16)
This virtual performance (Composer: David Alon Friedman) by Nashirah: The Jewish Chorale of Greater Philadelphia (Artistic Director: Dr. Julia Zavadsky; Collaborative Piano: Soyeon Bin) was recorded in May 2020 and is dedicated to the memory of Hannah Reich (March 2002–May 2020). Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
Read: ‘Dance of the Twelve Sisters’: A Tu B’Av Story
This story was written by Rabbi Jill Hammer for the full moon festival of Tu B’Av, a love and dancing holiday that comes six days after Tisha B’Av, the anniversary of the destruction of the two Temples in Jerusalem. Sourced from Ritualwell
Read: The Ten Commandments
Comparing the two versions of the commandments in Exodus and this week’s portion in Deuteronomy, Rabbi David Stern wonders what it was that God really was saying. Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
Watch: Recasting Our Images for an In-Person World
As we get up from our Zoom screens, Rabbi Hugh Seid-Valencia helps us set an intention for re-entering public spaces and in-person relationships. Sourced from Recon Connect Beit Midrash
July 16-17
Look: From Destruction to Restoration for Tisha B’Av
Julie Weinstein’s mixed-media image and its accompanying text evokes an interpretation of Tisha B’Av based on the concept of Whole Orchard Recycling. Sourced from Ritualwell
Read: Out of Isolation
Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg introduces the rituals of Tisha B’Av, and how they help us mourn and express grief. Sourced from Ritualwell
Listen: Eli Tziyon
Rabbi Alan LaPayover chants several verses of one of the most well-known of the kinot (liturgical poems for Tisha B’Av). An alphabetical acrostic describing the destruction of Jerusalem, it is recited towards the conclusion of kinot due to the hopeful note in the comparison of Zion to a woman about to give birth, thought by many to be a messianic reference. Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
Read: A Contemporary Kinah for Tisha B’Av
The process of mourning on Tisha B’Av may be alien to us. But Barbara Kavadias’s poem suggests that “we do not retell the things that befell us all on one day to comfort us. We funnel it down to one day as a telescope, as a magnifying glass to focus us, so that we do not turn away from baseless hatred, where we did not love our neighbor as ourselves.” Sourced from Ritualwell
Read: Shabbat Hazon
In this d'var Torah on the Shabbat preceding Tisha B’Av, Rabbi Richard Hirsh teaches us that “the observance of Tisha B’Av is an opportunity to re-examine the adaptive theology whereby generations of Jews managed to persevere in the face of adversity, oppression, even destruction.” Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
July 9-10
Listen: ‘I Will Carry You — V’Ad Seva’
Inspired by Isaiah 46:4 (“When you turn gray, it is I who will carry … I will carry and rescue you”), Rena Bransson composed this song. She reflects, “It’s about learning to hold myself and having my own back, and sometimes feeling like the universe is holding me, too.” Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
Read: Shabbat in Berlin
Sara Stock Mayo remembers standing in the courtyard of Berlin’s once great New Synagogue at dusk on erev Shabbat. Sourced from Ritualwell
Watch: Meditation on Hesed and Breath
Rabbi Jacob Staub leads this breathing meditation into the realm of hesed, of lovingkindness. Sourced from Ritualwell
Read: Making the Epic Personal
In this d'var Torah, Rabbi Lewis Eron teaches us that, by providing us with one small but significant personal memory, Moses has made the Torah’s epic narrative of God and the Israelites into a very human story of him and his people — our people — that still touches our hearts and moves our souls. Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
Listen: Creating a Jewish Community Where All Can Thrive
Marcella White Campbell, executive director of Be’chol Lashon, discusses her multiracial Jewish family’s experiences as a window into the Jewish community’s troubled record of welcoming Jews of Color, and reflects on the interplay of her Jewish and Black identities in making meaning at a time of personal loss. Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
July 2-3
Read: Healing for our Nation
On this Independence Day (July 4), dedicated to the proposition that we are all created equal, let us join Rabbi Jen Gubitz in praying for the health and healing of our country. Sourced from Ritualwell
Read: On Re-entering Sacred Space after the Quarantine
As our synagogues reopen for communal services, Trisha Arlin reminds us of all that we have missed and look forward to re-experiencing. Sourced from Ritualwell
Listen: Emet M’Eretz Titzmach
From Gayanne Deurin comes this message for listening at this critical time in humankind's relationship to the Earth: an interpretation of Psalm 85:12, “For all truths emanate from the earth.” Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
Read: The Next Generation
Commenting on parashat Pinkhas, Rabbi David Steinberg reminds us that “we retain a connection to our loved ones who have died through all that they have taught us and shared with us when they were here with us in the flesh.” Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
Watch: Jewish Particularism and Universalism
In this enriching conversation, Rabbis Deborah Waxman and Shmuly Yanklowitz focus on the things that traditional and Reconstructionist Jews have in common, the challenges that social distancing is posing to community, and ways that Jewish practice can bolster resilience. Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
These resources were drawn from:
- Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations
- Hashivenu: Jewish Teachings on Resilience
- Recon Connect Beit Midrash
- Reset: Providing Jewish activists with accessible spiritual practice and teachings
- Ritualwell
- The Center for Jewish Ethics
Previous Virtual Shabbat Boxes by month:
- June 2021
- May 2021
- April 2021
- March 2021
- February 2021
- January 2021
- December 2020
- November 2020
- October 2020
- September 2020
- August 2020
- July 2020
- June 2020
- May 2020
- April 2020
- March 2020
