Come answer the question: Which one is the best one?

Latke(s)? Hamentaschen? Hamentaschen latke debate

I like latkes – lots and lots of latkes. They’re golden brown. I gobble ’em down 

With sour cream and apple sauce. A taste deserving of applause

I could eat ’em all day long.  ‘Cause……….latkes are the best

Come an-swer the ques-tion: Which one is the best one?

Latke(s)? Hamentaschen? Hamentaschen latke debate

Hamentaschen are so sweet. They’re full of stuff that’s great to eat.

Latkes are greasy. I eat them I’m queasy,

Some-times even sneezy. They make me un-easy.

Hamentaschen are the best

Come answer the question: Which one is the best one?

Latke(s)? Hamentaschen? Hamentaschen latke debate

I once heard a story about a doctor who claimed   That eating Hamentaschen affects the brain.

 “The more you eat,” this doctor said, “You’re liable to wind up sick in bed.

All that prune filling will go to your head,       So eat potato latkes instead.”

Latkes are the best

Come answer the question: Which one is the best one?

Latke(s)? Hamentaschen? Hamentaschen latke debate

Hamentaschen they hit the spot. You can put ’em in your pocket – latkes? NOT!

So many different flavors to choose, If you eat Hamentaschen you just can’t lose.

And it tastes like glue………

Hamentaschen are always in fashion. Hamentaschen are the best

Come answer the question: Which one is the best one?

Latke(s)? Hamentaschen? Hamentaschen latke debate

Hanukkah Flame – Nefesh Mountain

Hanukkah candlelight, see my flame. Shining on my window’s pane;

Come flicker ‘cross my glassy glass. And light each lonesome one to pass.

If your lifelong heavy load.  Brings you down my path and down my road,

My light of Hanukkah shines your way. To ask you in to rest a day.

Hanukkah candle dances warm. To help you weather your heavy storm;

Shines like my lighthouse light this night. To bring your worried soul my light

Now as I light my first and my last. Of all nine candles to guide you past

Through these winds of blowing snows. To take you to your    Hanukkah home.

Hanukkah candle dances warm. To help you weather your heavy storm;

Shines like my lighthouse light this night. To bring your worried soul my light

If you don’t wish to stop inside. Too bashful, proud, or afraid of pride,

I’ll send my beam to light your dream. Under your snow, where my new grass hides.

Hanukkah candle dances warm. To help you weather your heavy storm;

Shines like my lighthouse light this night. To bring your worried    soul my light

Blue Hanukkah (Lyrics) – Elvis Presley

 I’ll have a blue Hanukkah without you

 I’ll be so blue thinking about you

 Menorahs of light, playing dreidels at night

 Won’t be the same dear, if you’re not eating latkes with me

 And when those blue Soufganiyot start cooking

 That’s when those blue memories start calling

 You’ll be doing all right, with your own Festival of Light

 But I’ll have a blue blue, blue, blue Hanukkah

 You’ll be doing   all right, with your own Festival of Light

 But I’ll have a blue blue, blue, blue Hanukkah

The post Night 7 Song Lyrics 2022 first appeared on Hanefeshoc.

This Sunday is Halloween, a night of dressing up in costumes, knocking on stranger’s doors and asking for candy! What kid doesn’t like this day! And parents even enjoy the trick or treating with the caveat to our youth, ‘oh, you don’t need all of that candy’ and then we pick out our favorite, stashing them away for our own indulgence.

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Tonight, we will be hearing the story of Esther, Mordechai, King Ahasheuerus, Queen Vashti, and of course, Haman (BOO!) This story set in Shushan, Persia, is one of our favorites as it teaches us to stand up for ourselves in the midst of our greatest foes. To not hide in the face of oppression and how important it is to speak out against injustice. 

Megillat Esther is a timeless story and is absolutely relevant today. Rabbi David Marcus and the staff of Bayit have created a video retelling the story of Purim with weaving in modern politics and news events. This 11 minute video is worth watching and seeing the connections of the story of Esther and today’s world. Click here to watch the video and share your thoughts in the comments here. 

The post The Megillah as Seen Today first appeared on Hanefeshoc.

This week, we read from Parashat Yitro which includes the giving of the Ten Commandments to Moses who will later bring them down to the people. A midrash explaining the events of that day states that God took Sinai and held it above the Israelite people and said, ‘see now! You WILL accept the Torah or this will be where I will bury you!’ 

I don’t know about you, but I would absolutely say yes if God was holding a mountain over my head threatening to bury me, I would not argue with God. Thankfully, no one is holding a mountain over our heads as this portion is read. Yet, we still wonder, when have we felt like a mountain was being held over our heads and we had no choice in the matter?

We call those who convert to Judaism, Jews by Choice, however, I would argue that in many ways, we are all Jews by Choice. Each of us chooses to participate in or connect with Judaism or Jewish community. Each of us does it in our own way, in our own time and of our own will.  No one can hold a mountain over our heads and tell us that this is the ONLY way to be or do Jewish – we’ve definitely figured that out. 

As we enter into the second year of this pandemic, we’ve lived with a mountain over our heads. Covid is that mountain and the choices we make will either keep us alive or bury us. Mask or no mask? Vaccine or no vaccine? Mask after vaccine or not? Indoor dining or outdoor dining? Personal shopper or shopping personally? Just like the Israelites, the only way that mountain gets carefully placed back is knowing that the choices we each make impacts everyone. The mountain does not just fall on one person alone, but rather it can fall on all of us. We are impacted by the decisions of all of those around – just like the Israelites saying together, “WE will do and WE will understand.”

We all take this very seriously and we all work to understand how life continues to pivot as we learn more about Covid and how we can, together, get out from underneath the mountain. May God carefully put the mountain down and may we see in the months ahead a time when we can climb the mountain and enjoy the view from above.

The post The Mountain Over Our Heads first appeared on Hanefeshoc.

There is the story of Honi the circle maker who comes across an old man planting a carob tree. Honi asks him why he is doing this at his old age, he will never benefit from it as the carbo tree will not produce fruit until long after the man is gone. The man’s response, ‘I plant this tree for the next generation because I benefited from the fruit of these trees that my father and grandfather planted before.’ 

This week we also observed International Holocaust Remembrance Day. January 27, 1945, Auschwitz was liberated and the end of the atrocities of the Holocaust was in sight. The atrocities were not completely over as there were still so many survivors who had to find their way home only to be met with more hate and cruelty by those in the towns from which they came. Just because the people were liberated, it did not mean that hate against the Jewish people ended. And unfortunately, we still see this today. 

As we are very much aware, anti-Semitism is still very much a part of our world and our lives. And the question we continue to ask is, how do we bring awareness to and an end to anti-Semitism? Like Honi who comes across the old man planting the carob tree, we are being asked, ‘why do we continue to teach about the Holocaust?’ We do this because we never want to see this happen again, not to the Jewish people and not to anyone.

However, there is a challenge in how we teach about the Holocaust and anti-Semitism. In an article by Jonathan S. Tobin of the Jewish News Syndicate, he reminds us that teaching the Holocaust needs to go back to its roots. Unfortunately, we have gone away from teaching the Holocaust as an atrocity that happened to the Jewish people. Instead, we are focusing more on teaching morality and how to treat all people. Not that this is a bad lesson, it’s a very important lesson. However, with the rise of anti-Semitism as we see today, we have to return to teaching that the Holocaust was an act of direct hate against the Jewish people for the most part and that anti-Semitism is a very real problem for the Jewish community. Yes, anti-Semitism and hate are issues for all, but if we are going to fulfill the promise of Never Again, then we should make sure that we start at the core and then from that seed, we can grow a world of respect and tolerance for all. 

This is a larger conversation and we will continue this in the days and weeks ahead.

I want to finally thank everyone who has already registered for the Ride for the Living – Global Challenge, to support our Holocaust survivors. My last count has us at 20 from HaNefesh. If you have registered, let me know. There will be plenty of time to do so before June with more information to come. 

The post Who will plant for the future? first appeared on Hanefeshoc.

Join Sheila and Rhea for a fun Tu BiShvat seder celebrating Mother Earth, the trees and all that comes from them.

Click here to log in and have your foods ready to enjoy.

• White and Red Wine/Grape Juice: You will need enough for four cups.
• Fruit that is hard on the outside and soft on the inside, such as, walnuts, coconut, almonds
• Fruit that is soft on the outside and a pit on the inside, such as, olives, peaches, dates, apricots
• Fruit that is soft throughout and completely edible, such as, figs, grapes and raisins
• Fruit that has a tough skin but sweet on the inside, such as, bananas, mangos and pear

The post Tu BiShvat Seder January 26 at 6:30pm first appeared on Hanefeshoc.

May each of us be blessed in this moment of healing and wholeness.
Rabbi Heidi

Blessings for Receiving the Covid-19 Vaccine
Collected by Rabbi Lior Nevo

On Receiving a Vaccine:
Modah Ani/Modeh Ani
I thank You
For the wisdom of the scientists
For the courage of the trial volunteers
For the strength and compassion of the health care professionals
For the patience of the delivery workers
All
Who have brought us to this moment.
For our bodies,
Our finely balanced networks
Capable of blessing You
May this vaccine offer protection.
May it offer strength.
May it offer hope
Baruch atah Adonai,
Shehechianu v’ki’manu v’higianu lazman hazeh.
Blessed are You,
who has kept us alive and sustained us and enabled us
to reach this very moment.
-Rabbi Margaret Frisch Klein

Blessing for the Vaccine
Blessed are you, Vaccine,
Holy tool of science, medicine, and health,
Secretly, invisibly transforming pathogen to antigen,
Antigen to immunity.
With each dose, be as anointing oil;
Bless us each with strength and power to fight.
No mere superstition are you, but the work of will,
Curative and creative,
Birthed by knowledge and observation and trial and error,
The culminated work of many minds, many hands, many hearts.
Child of science and magic,
Bless us in turn.
Grant us hardiness, grant us protection,
Grant us the will to persist against imperceptible onslaught.
Do your secret work in our bodies and in our blood,
As you did for our ancestors before us.
With each moment may you grow into your purpose
Of protecting those most susceptible, most vulnerable.
Help us to recognize that you are no malefic potion,
No plot or plan or scheme;
But that you are the embodiment and creation of Love for one another,
That you represent the promise of many hands making light work.
When each of us who can, takes on this tiny risk,
The risk for many more divides, and divides,
Until one day, it’s gone.
May the labor of those who created you be not in vain,
May your promise grow to fulfillment,
May each of us persist, resist, grow strong with your help.
May our losses be eased.
May we be inoculated from strife and trouble.
Vaccine, work of many, child of many:
Blessed be you among balms.
-Rev. Molly Brewer

May the one who hears prayers and requests, hear my prayer. I am about to be given a vaccine to protect me against the novel Coronavirus which has claimed so many lives this year. I am concerned. I know this vaccine might have side effects, and I pray for the strength and grace to handle any that I experience, and to accept that all medications and vaccines have potential side effects. Give me the wisdom to trust my instincts and my body, that I will know when to be concerned. Help my mind to be calm and to trust in this medication and its healing capabilities.
Divine Healer, I am grateful for those whom you have endowed with the knowledge and ability to create vaccines and medications that can protect us against or slow the progress of devastating diseases. I am grateful for my doctors and practitioners who care for me body and spirit. May this medication/vaccine bring me healing, and may I be granted peace of mind in the knowledge that I am sheltered beneath the wings of Shekhina.
Baruch ata Ado-nai, rofeh haKol, shomei-ah t’filati.
–Rabbi Susan Elkodsi

With gratitude and thanksgiving to the Healer of repairable hearts and Restorer of brokenness, appreciation and thanks for inspiring the medical teams and scientists, granting them the wisdom, knowledge, and expertise to prepare this vaccine for all of us. May it be Your will that with my vaccination I will be granted the ability to heal and keep safe humankind and be granted the privilege to fulfill the mitzvah of one who saves a life.
Blessed are You, Healer of all who are sick.
–Rabbi Karen Reiss Medwed

A prayer of thanksgiving for the COVID-19 vaccines
Merciful God, hear our prayers for a world that continues to grapple with a relentless virus, and our gratitude for the light beginning to emerge at the end of a long and deadly tunnel.
As vaccines are at last becoming available for COVID-19 and as people begin to be inoculated around the globe, we give thanks for all whose tireless labors have brought us to this day: technicians, scientists, medical personnel, biotech companies and government agencies that have worked together to find a cure that will restore our communities to wholeness and health.
We pray that the reach of these vaccines will encompass the world, especially those places where medical resources have far too often been inadequate to the need — places where histories of colonialism have left abiding scars and where under-resourced medical systems are overwhelmed by the essential work of caring for those who have been infected.
We continue to pray for healthcare workers around the globe who are running ragged after months of high-risk essential work on the frontlines of this pandemic. Grant them strength, endurance, wisdom and courage for the living of these days. We pray for all who are desperately ill, for those who grieve the loss of loved ones and for those whose physical, mental and economic wellbeing have been most severely impacted by the havoc wrought by the pandemic. Grant wisdom to all entrusted with civic leadership as they discern and negotiate just ways in which to aid those most afflicted. Move our hearts to put partisanship aside for the common good, so that safeguards against the coronavirus will not be ignored and that our communities may be restored and revitalized.
Let us live in the Spirit of Christ for one another and for our world.
God, in your mercy, hear our prayers. Amen.
–Rev. Roger Gench

A Prayer for Receiving the Covid Vaccine
I have been praying for this day and now it is here!
With great excitement, a touch of trepidation
And with deep gratitude I give thanks
To all the scientists who toiled day and night
So that I might receive this tiny vaccination
That will protect me and all souls around this world.
With the pandemic still raging I am blessed to do my part to defeat it.
Let this be the beginning of a new day,
A new time of hope, of joy, of freedom
And most of all, of health. I thank You, God, for blessing me with life
For sustaining my life And for enabling me to reach this awe-filled moment.
Amen
–Rabbi Naomi Levy

Prayer for Receiving the Covid Vaccine
Holy One of Blessing,
I say the shehekyanu prayer
for all the big and little “firsts”
the first day of school
the first meal in a new home
the first time seeing a friend after months have passed
the first night of a holiday
Every “first time” is a time to celebrate
the miracle of life

But as I receive the COVID-19 vaccine,
it feels like the first time I’ve ever said these familiar words
A shehekyanu of shehekyanus
a first that leads to other firsts
the first warm hug from a good friend
the first coffee shop conversation
the first in-person prayer service
the first standing ovation after
the first live performance
the first time my hands touch the hands of another

I receive this first, this vaccine, in memory
of those who died from this disease,
the ones who no longer have firsts to celebrate
and in honor of those who worked while I quarantined
essential workers, medical professionals,
those who risked their lives
to protect mine.

With gratitude to them, and to You,
for my survival in this time of death,
I promise to protect others,
and to bless the miracle
of every breath.

God, please help me remember
to never take another first for granted.

Blessed are You, Source of Life, Breath of the Universe,
who has kept us alive, sustained us,
and brought us to this season.
–Heather Paul, Scatteredleaves.net

We thank you, our God, and God of our ancestors, God of all flesh, the Creator of cures, that You have endowed humankind with knowledge and imbued humanity with the understanding to find and to invent an inoculation to this pandemic. May it be Your will that this vaccine will prevent the spread of the pandemic and save the lives of millions throughout the world.
–From Israel

May it be Your will, Heavenly Healer, that this endeavor be for healing and may You grant healing to me, to my loved ones, to my nation, and to all who are in need. Fill me with a sense of gratitude for all who create, distribute, and deliver this vaccine, and for all those who work for the health of individuals and our communities. Empower me to care in good health ever more deeply for others. Blessed are You, Holy One, Healer of all flesh, sustaining our bodies in wondrous ways.
–Rabbi Aaron Starr, based on Babylonian Talmud, Brachot 60a and the Morning Blessings

A Reflection for Receiving the Coronavirus Vaccine
As we move from darkness to light
May we take this vaccine as a sign of what is to come
A world reopened and renewed
Embracing family and friends
Gathering together in joy
May we also be mindful of what has been
The lives lost
The sorrow felt
And may the past and present intertwine
Giving us hope for the future.
–Rabbi Rebecca Kamil

Intention When Receiving COVID-19 Vaccine
With gratitude for
the wisdom of the scientists
the courage of the clinical trial volunteers
the dedication of the thousands of leaders and workers
who made it possible for me to receive it

May this vaccine protect me from this virus
bring peace of mind to those who hold me dear
give me strength to continue to care for those who
depend on my professional skills and
compassionate presence.
–Rabbi Deborah Miller

The post A Blessing for a Vaccine first appeared on Hanefeshoc.

I understand that people are upset and want to voice their opinions. And I am a believer of peaceful protest – but that’s the important part that was missing – PEACEFUL. There was nothing peaceful about yesterday’s actions by this mob who only sought to exercise their muscle. 

Thankfully, the members of Congress along with their staffers were able to return to complete the work they set out to do earlier in the day. And yes, there was dissent, but it was done with respect on both sides. 

As a Jewish community, we recognize the importance of pursuing justice and doing the work of tikkun olam, repairing our world. Our world is broken; our country is broken. This did not happen overnight and repairing it will not happen on one day. This is work we take on for our lifetime. And together, as HaNefesh, we will always work for and speak up for equality for all. We will use our voices to speak for those who may not be able to speak. We will always work to educate ourselves about how we can ensure that our country will always be a safe haven for all. We remember that many of our family members came to the US to live in freedom and have the ability to speak out for freedom and against injustice. 

Tzedek, tzedek tirdof – justice, justice shall we pursue. In the days, weeks and months ahead, may we be active participants in ensuring that our country remains the land of the free and that all are afforded equality, respect and safety.

With blessings, 
Rabbi Heidi

* below is the blessing I shared on my live broadcast on Wednesday, January 6. You can see the full broadcast on the HaNefesh Facebook page. 

Mi Shebeirakh / Healing Blessing for the US
By Kohenet Ahava Lilith evershYne

May the Divine who blessed the old ones
with the courage to face their fears
and to be anointed by their stinging, streaming tears,
with the strength to bridge gaps, reach mountaintops and tumble walls,
with the power to get up again and again after so many falls,
with the determination to work to better their communities,
with the wisdom and compassion to toil for unity,
with the persistence to stay alive and strive and fully thrive,
with the daring to uproot and move to improve their families’ Lives,
with the Love to rise above and the grief to dig down deep,
with the bravery and stamina to take to the streets,
to gather signatures, donate, volunteer and phone bank,
to vote, talk to representatives, stand in front of moving tanks,
to Love the haters, to lay their very Lives on the line,
to mend the world for themselves, for your Life and for mine;
May the Divine who blessed the old ones with all of these traits,
who blesses us with these blessings now to be the authors of our own fates;
May the Divine who will bless the ones-yet-to-be
bless us at this moment in the “Land of the Free”
with all of the blessings that we need to heal
all of the injustices in this nation that are real;
May the Divine awaken and kindle deep inside
any latent powers we have to heal these divides;
May the Divine help us to become all we can be –
a nation of true peace, social justice and equality,
where everyone who dwells here receives all that they need
to Live and Love, to grow and thrive, to achieve all their dreams,
where children are safe, nourished, cherished, can grow and learn in peace,
where immigrants are welcomed from places they need to flee,
where people of all colors, statuses, beliefs and identities
are treated equally with great respect and dignity,
where science is listened to and challenged only when necessary,
where treaties are honored and reparations are made immediately,
where we honestly confront our past and teach all who need to see
that our differences are what can make us such a great democracy,
where people are put before profits, where we listen only to truth,
where we revere our elders and indigenous ones and listen to our youths,
where we take stands for social justice here and everywhere,
where we lead by example to be compassionate, just and fair,
where we take all the necessary steps to heal our Mother Earth,
where, right now, we are blessed to midwife our country’s rebirth,
where the Divine reminds us that labor can also have great pains
Zhe tells us that we have the power to ensure that Love reigns;
May this nation and the world heal its bodies, hearts, minds and souls;
May we all know a complete healing to be truly free and whole.

The post Hope and Healing in the Days Ahead first appeared on Hanefeshoc.

September 17, 2020 | 28 Elul 5780

What an amazing opportunity we have this year to be with our families during our high holy day services!  This year is unique in so many ways and invites many opportunities for us to include our children in services. In the past parents have dropped their children off at a youth program or babysitting instead of sitting in the sanctuary for the service.  Well this year that’s not an option.  Your homes will become your own personal sanctuaries.  Your children might be off in another room.  Invite them in.  Sign into services and toss the service onto the tv screen for the whole family to enjoy together. Keep the service streaming in the background on the computer.  Let the kids see and hear services without the pressure of worrying about the noise they make or the shpilkes they might have.  Use this as an opportunity to include them in the experience.  No need to stuff them into fancy temple clothes or temple shoes.  No need to keep them quiet (just keep yourself on mute!).  Let them play in the background. This year we all get to bring our authentic selves to the table. Sticky fingers, messy hair, no shoes required!  Looking forward to seeing those sweet young faces along with yours on the screen!  

Please join us for tashlich and havdalah at the beach on Saturday, September 19th.  Hanefesh will be at Corona Del Mar from 4:00-6:00. Wait!  What is tashlich?  Tashlich means “casting off”.  We cast off our sins, our mistakes symbolically using bread.  We bring our sins to a body of water and throw them away.  For more information on tashlich visit the PJ Library website.

We will have a do it yourself tashlich service available for you to take with you down to the water.  Bring your bread.  Bring a blanket and hangout with us before havdalah at 6:00 PM.

The beach can be reached via an access road near the intersection of Iris Street and Ocean Boulevard in Corona del Mar. There is plenty of parking below.  We will be by the breakwall.  Enter the parking lot and head to the right.  Hope to see you there!

Click here to read all about our High Holy Days and the schedule of services and events.

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