It’s Sukkot, a joyous holiday to celebrate the harvest. Please join us for our Sukkot observances. Sunday, Oct. 5, 10 a.m.: Build the Sukkah Monday, Oct. 6, 7:30 p.m.: Members of the Universalist Unitarian Church of Southold are invited to a 7:30 service in the sanctuary, followed by refreshments in the Sukkah. Please join Rabbi Debra for this Erev Sukkot interfaith learning event Tuesday, Oct. 7, 9:30 a.m.: First Day Sukkot service in the [...]
Dear Tifereth Israel Friends, Cantor Ze'ev Weinstein and I are excited to usher in the new year with you in less than a week! We are planning what we hope will be meaningful and participatory high holiday services, filled with singing and learning. Tashlich sheets (as well as birdseed) will also be available at the synagogue on the first day of Rosh Hashanah. Birdseed!? It turns out that bread isn't healthy for fish or birds, [...]
Dear Tifereth Israel Friends - On the Second Day of Rosh Hashanah, I will be leading a Community Text Study following the Torah service and the sounding of the shofar. That morning, the Torah reading is about the Akedah - the Binding of Isaac. During our text study, we'll explore some powerful new Israeli poetry related to the Akedah. Then we'll blow shofar (again) and conclude the service. Printed handouts will be provided at the [...]
To the Editors: I have been attending Shabbat services since the end of last year when Rabbi Gadi invited me. And since I am not Jewish or looking to convert, I never would have thought that his invitation would change my life. But I love the services, and have found such a warm welcome that most Saturdays, that is where I want to be. And I never expected that the first time I saw him [...]
21 Av 5785/ August 15, 2025 Dear Chevra, In trying to get my thoughts together, many things are running through my head, not the last is our beloved synagogue. It is time for all of us to come together and move forward with faith, hope, and good will. We can start that process by coming to shul, be it in person or via ZOOM and help to make a Minyan so members can recite the [...]
As You Seek Enlightenment Through Introspection During The High Holy Days This Year, Consider Also The Wisdom Of The Zen Master It has been said — by whom is not clear — that Yom Kippur, a time of introspection and reflection, might be a shirttail relative of the ancient beliefs associated with Zen Buddhism which teaches enlightenment through meditation. So on Yom Kippur, as you follow the teachings of the ancient rabbis who ask [...]
The Book Circle will meet on Thursday, Sept. 18, at 3 p.m. in Andrew Levin Park to explore a father-son relationship as each looks differently at the battle for human rights in Palestine. In his personal memoir, We Could Have Been Friends, My Father and I, Raja Shehadeh reveals the complexities of their relationship. It is, in essence, not only the story of the battle against various oppressors in the region, but also a [...]
The shul’s Tikkun Olam Initiative thanks the many congregants who donated to the School Supplies Drive for the children of CAST clients. We filled the red barrel three times, helping to give these students a great start to the new school year. The Common Ground garden continues to produce organic vegetables and herbs. Each weekday, crates of zucchini, beets, peppers, basil, beans, tomatoes, carrots, etc. are harvested and brought to the CAST food pantry and [...]
About 12 years ago, Helena Czernek and Aleksander Prugar began researching mezuzah traces — imprints left in the wood of Jewish homes before WWII. In pre-war Poland, mezuzahs were placed in a groove in the wood and covered with a metal plate. Czernek and Prugar capture the indentations with silicone, which they then use to create plaster molds. At their Mi Polin Judaica studio, they make bronze cast replicas of the original mezuzahs. On trips [...]
At the 2025 JCC Maccabi Games that took place last month at the University of Pittsburgh, 2,000 Jewish teens from around the world competed in events that included ice hockey, swimming, basketball, soccer and dance. According to the event’s organizers, the games are intended as a welcome reprieve from rising antisemitism. Founded in 1982 through the JCC Association of North America, the JCC Maccabi Games has become the largest Jewish youth sporting event in [...]
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