Congregation Ohav Sholom

09/04/2026

From the Desk of Rabbi Ira Ebbin:

Dear Friends,

This is the final Shabbat of the year.

And perhaps appropriately, Parshat Nitzavim begins with one of the most important words in the Jewish vocabulary:

Hayom.

“Atem nitzavim hayom kulchem lifnei Hashem Elokeichem.”

“You are standing TODAY, all of you, before Hashem your God.”

There is a famous story told about a Jewish prisoner who was given permission to leave prison for just one day a year.The Rabbis debated which day he should choose. Should he choose Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year? Perhaps Rosh Hashana, when the world is judged? Maybe Pesach, when we celebrate our freedom? Or perhaps Shabbat, the most sacred day of the week?

After much discussion, the Rabbis came to a surprising conclusion.

The prisoner should ask to leave the very next day.

Because no matter how holy or significant another day might be, there is nothing more precious than the day that is right in front of you.

And this idea appears again in one of the most beautiful phrases of our Rosh Hashana liturgy:
Hayom harat olam. We generally translate it as, “Today is the day the world was created.” But harat literally means pregnant.
So the phrase can be understood as:“Today, is pregnant with a world.”

Every day contains possibility. But today contains a world that has never existed before.

We live in a culture that has figured out that perhaps the most valuable commodity in the world is not gold, oil, or even money.

It is our time and our attention.

Entire industries are built around capturing them. Netflix famously recognized that its competition isn't just another streaming service. Its greatest competitor is sleep. Think about that. Companies are competing with each other for something we give away every day without even realizing how precious it is: our time.

Because money can be earned again.Things can be replaced.
But yesterday's twenty-four hours are gone forever.There is no way to get them back.

And perhaps that is why the final Shabbat of the year carries such an important message.As we stand at the end of one year and on the threshold of another, the Torah tells us: Atem nitzavim hayom.
You are standing today.

Don't wait for tomorrow to become the person you want to be. Don't waste your time doom scrolling or on other frivolous things. Don't wait another year to repair the relationship. Don't postpone the apology. Don't tell yourself that you'll become more religious, more generous, more patient, more present, more connected—someday.

Because someday is not a day on the calendar. Today is.

Rosh Hashana is not simply about turning the page from one year to the next. It is about recognizing the extraordinary gift that has been placed directly in front of us. Today is the only day we actually possess. And today is pregnant with possibility.

So as we prepare to say goodbye to 5786, perhaps the question isn't simply, “What do I want to accomplish next year?”
Perhaps the more important question is: What can I change today?

Because The most precious day isn't necessarily the holiest day.
It's the day you have.

Today, the day is pregnant with a world.What world will we give birth to?

Wishing you all a ,
Rabbi Ira Ebbin

Candlelighting: 7:04 pm

09/01/2026

Don't forget the w**e - Ohav gets 2% back on every purchase!
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08/28/2026

From the Desk of Rabbi Ira Ebbin:
Yesterday was one of those days that reminded me just how blessed we are to live in the United States.
I had the privilege of walking into the U.S. Department of Justice to participate in a meeting between faith leaders and the Department’s Civil Rights Division. I was there representing the Jewish community, together with clergy and religious leaders from just about every denomination and faith tradition.
We spoke about something that should never be taken for granted: the freedom to worship—and the responsibility of our government to protect that freedom.
In 1941, in the midst of a world engulfed in war, President Franklin Roosevelt articulated what he called the “Four Freedoms”: freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear. Two of those freedoms—freedom of worship and freedom from fear—felt particularly relevant as we sat in that room yesterday.
Our country is far from perfect. We know that. and there are still many challenges we face. But that should never prevent us from appreciating the extraordinary blessing of living in a country where the government is committed to protecting our right to gather in a synagogue, church, mosque, or other house of worship and practice our faith freely.
Yesterday, the administration pledged to work toward stronger protections for houses of worship, so that people can enter their places of worship without fear. I will speak more about the meeting and what it means on Shabbat, but as I walked out of the Department of Justice, I found myself thinking about this week’s parsha.

In Parshat Ki Tavo, the Torah gives a rather striking explanation for why the curses would come upon the Jewish people. It says:

“Because you did not serve Hashem your God with joy and with a good heart when you had an abundance of everything.”
—Devarim 28:47

It is a remarkable verse. We might expect the Torah to say that punishment comes because we failed to serve God. Instead, the Torah focuses on how we served Him—or, more precisely, on our failure to appreciate what we had.
When things were abundant, we forgot to be grateful.
That is a powerful message for us as Americans, and as Jews living in America.
We should never be naïve about our country. We should never stop working to make it better. But we also should never become so accustomed to our freedoms that we forget how extraordinary they are.
To walk into a shul on Shabbat morning which proudly waves and displays both American and Israeli flags. To pray openly. To wear a kippah on the street. To gather with other Jews without needing permission from the government. These are not small things.
They are blessings.
And perhaps one of the messages of Ki Tavo is that gratitude is not just an emotion; it is a religious obligation.
We have much work to do. But we also have much for which to be grateful.
May we never take our freedoms for granted, and may we always have the wisdom to recognize the blessings that surround us—and the humility to say thank you.

Candlelighting: 7:15pm
Parshat Ki Tavo

08/20/2026

Going out on a limb here, to find the Jewish connection to this sad day in history, but here goes nuthin':
-Jets owner Woody Johnson's mother was Jewish Judith Cohen
-2008 Hofstra president was Jewish Stuart Rabinowitz

08/19/2026

08/16/2026

Congratulations to Ohav Softball, who beat Merrick Jewish Center to win the 2026 Temple League Championship this morning!

08/16/2026

Thinking about Parshat Shoftim...

07/31/2026

Yesterday — July 30, 1492; Spain ordered the expulsion of its Jews.

The Alhambra Decree gave roughly 200,000 Jews four months to convert or leave. Most chose exile.

Tens of thousands died on the roads and at sea. Some captains took their payment and threw them overboard. Others were murdered by brigands searching their bodies for swallowed jewels. Those who fled to Portugal faced forced baptism or further expulsion.

The survivors became the Sephardim. Their language, Ladino, carried a Spanish-Hebrew mix into new lands for centuries.

The Inquisition continued hunting “conversos,” Jews who had been forced to convert but were still suspected of secretly practicing Judaism. For the first time, Jewishness was treated as something unchangeable because it was in the Jews’ blood.

One of the richest and most accomplished Jewish communities in the world was destroyed almost overnight.

It took Spain until 1968 to formally revoke the decree.


Candlelighting: 7:53 pm
Parshat Eikev

07/24/2026