Virtual Shabbat Box Archives: January 2024
January 5-6
Rabbi Toba Spitzer examines a core teaching of Reconstructionist Judaism, the rejection of the idea of Jews as the chosen people and explains why it’s more relevant than ever.
Rabbi Megan Doherty shares that, in rereading the Torah every year, we encounter old friends and acquaintances as well as life’s range of highs and lows.
Rabbi Jeremy Schwartz delves into Lecha Dodi and what the 16th century poem tells us about Shabbat and the possibilities for repair and wholeness.
Tayla Jankovits’ poetic response to war looks for signs of living and endurance.
January 12-13
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s landmark 1967 “Beyond Vietnam” speech is set to traditional haftarah melodies, adding a new layer of meaning to King’s prophetic words.
At Ritualwell’s weekly “Holding Each Other” gathering, poet Hila Ratzabi reads the title piece of her debut collection and offers a prompt to spark creativity.
Revisit this conversation — the most downloaded Hashivenu episode ever — between Rabbi Deborah Waxman and Rabbi Sandra Lawson about what it means to be an ally to groups and individuals.
Have you ever struggled to explain racism to your kids? Flubbed conversations at the dinner table? Then be sure to catch our conversation with Buffie Longmire-Avital, Ph.D.
January 19-20
Rabbi Alex Lazarus-Klein explains how “new year for trees” helps explain Reconstructionist approaches to Jewish practice and celebration.
During Ritualwell’s weekly “Holding Each Other” program, artist Betsy Teutsch recounts the process of illustrating the Reconstructionist prayerbook, sharing some light during a dark time.
Learn the basic history and theology of Tu B’Shvat from this excerpt from “A Guide to Jewish Practice.”
This Tu B’Shvat ritual explores the kabbalistic symbolism of the number four.
January 26-27
The Torah tells us that a human being is like a tree in the field, and this meditation encourages us to envision ourselves as planted by the divine.
Scholar, rabbi and lawyer Jay Michaelson talks about his first book of fiction — which tackles queerness and mysticism — and his post–Oct. 7 journalism for the Forward and Rolling Stone.
During a Ritualwell “Holding Each Other” virtual gathering, Rabbi Joshua Boettiger offers writing prompts that ask us to investigate the stories that different parts of our bodies may be telling us.
Not all disabilities are readily visible and apparent. This prayer asks that all those who live with less visible disabilities realize the expansiveness of their gifts.
