Ansche Chesed

10/23/2026

This week, we explore a bit of the back story of Abraham and Sara, and veer into some interesting territory. Give a look or a listen! Shabbat Shalom!

With Rabbis Jeremy Kalmanofsky, Eliot Malomet and Barry Chesler.

We explore a bit of the back story of Abraham and Sara, and veer in...

10/22/2026

We are proud to partner with Broadway Community for our shelter, which serves seven of our unhoused neighbors every night. We are grateful to our extended community for making our volunteer-run model successful, as described in the article.

Interested in joining this vital communal initiative? Learn more about volunteering here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ekkT3AGDMeSec6u2VkUMHHbfGNtDvXe7w8VHszUdMR4/edit?usp=sharing

“New York City can continue to pour billions of dollars into outreach, but even the best outreach worker cannot persuade someone to come inside if we cannot offer them a place they believe is safe.

The simple truth is that our neighbors on the street need spaces where they can lay their heads at night and experience compassion, dignity, and community. And we do not need to build those spaces from scratch. Thousands of them have substantial empty space every evening and are waiting to be activated. They are called synagogues, mosques, churches, and gurdwaras.”

Our Executive Director, Isaac Adlerstein, shares his thoughts in a new op-ed for City Limits.

Read it here👇
https://citylimits.org/opinion-why-are-so-few-nyc-houses-of-worship-sheltering-people/

10/16/2026

In this week's Parsha Talk, we engage in a robust conversation about the decline of human civilization before the Flood. Then we pivot to the Tower of Babel story. This is a story not about storming heaven, but about God's desire for individuals, cultures, and nations to be differentiated and individuated. We have a great time. Enjoy!

With Rabbis Jeremy Kalmanofsky, Eliot Malomet and Barry Chesler.

We engage in a robust conversation about the decline of human civil...

10/09/2026

This week's Parsha Talk was recorded on October 7, the third anniversary of the terrible massacre. We devote some time to thinking about its commemoration, as well as comfort. And we begin the Torah cycle again with the first parsha of a new year.

With Rabbis Jeremy Kalmanofsky, Eliot Malomet and Barry Chesler.

We are recording this Parasha Talk on October 7, the third annivers...

10/07/2026

This past Shabbat/Shemini Atzeret during services, we marked the Hebrew anniversary of the slaughter and kidnapping of October 7, 2023. Going forward, Israelis will commemorate that “Black Sabbath” on Isru Chag, the day following the holiday of Shemini Atzeret, which for us in the Diaspora will be Simchat Torah. Still, both in Israel and around the world, we all call it shiva b’October, “October 7th.” So let’s not fail to mark it today as well.

Let us remember the more than 1,200 Israelis killed during the Hamas onslaught. Remember the nearly 1,000 Israeli soldiers killed in fighting since then.

Let us open our hearts to mourn the devastation wrought in Gaza for the Palestinians. Many of those killed were combatants in this war. Many were not.

Do not lose compassion. עוד לא אבדה תקווה. Od lo avda tikvah. Do not lose hope.

Click below to Read Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky's message, including a version of the memorial prayer he has been using.

Email from Ansche Chesed     REMEMBERING OCTOBER 7   נֹדִי֮ סָפַ֢רְתָּ֫ה אָ֥תָּה שִׂ֣ימָה דִמְעָתִ֣י בְנֹאדֶ֑ךָ הֲ֝לֹ֗א בְּסִפְרָתֶֽךָ “Lord, count up all my wanderings. Place every last tear in your

10/06/2026

Thank you to everyone involved, including our dedicated volunteers, for their hard work on this project! We are proud of this continuing collaboration.

10/02/2026

Our theme is juxtapositions. These coming days present us with a full menu of items. The end and beginning of Torah, sadness and joy, continuity and eternity. We even talk about the symbolism of the choreography. Hint: circle = .... Enjoy!

With Rabbis Jeremy Kalmanofsky, Eliot Malomet and Barry Chesler.

Our theme is juxtapositions. These coming days present us with a fu...

09/25/2026

Rabbi Meir said we should say 100 blessings a day. What did he mean? How is this connected to Sukkot? We examine this and more. Happy Sukkot. Hag Sameah!

With Rabbis Jeremy Kalmanofsky, Eliot Malomet and Barry Chesler.

Rabbi Meir said we should say 100 blessings a day. What did he mean...

09/18/2026

Here we are between Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur. We talk about the metaphors of Teshuva, and a few lines from the Haftara of this week. We wish everyone a Ketiva ve-Hatima Tovah! May you be sealed in the Book of Life for a sweet year!

With Rabbis Jeremy Kalmanofsky, Eliot Malomet and Barry Chesler.

Here we are between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. We talk about the...

09/08/2026

It is sometimes said that, in addition to the usual five senses, the sixth Jewish sense is memory. In the last of our three-part series, AC members Todd Chanko, Rachel Mann, Stuart Klawans and Benjamin Joffe join Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky to discuss this theme, and how it can resonate for us both as individuals and as members of the Jewish people. What is it that memory does for us, and how does it shape our identity? What must we continue to remember, and what might it be time to forget? As we approach Rosh HaShanah, also called Yom HaZikaron (“the Day of Memory”), these questions loom larger than at any other time in the Jewish year.

Listen to our earlier conversations and learn more about the High Holidays at AC at https://anschechesed.org/high-holidays-5787/

It is sometimes said that, in addition to the usual five senses, th...

09/04/2026

Don't miss the last Parasha Talk of 5786. Shana Tova to all of our viewers and listeners! This conversation covers Teshuva in Nitzavim and the public and private charges to Joshua in Vayelekh. Lots of good material. Enjoy!

With Rabbis Jeremy Kalmanofsky, Eliot Malomet and Barry Chesler.

Last Parasha Talk of 5786. Shanah Tova to all of our viewers and li...

09/01/2026

In the second of our Elul podcast-style conversations, AC Rabbinic Intern Harry Aaronson and AC members Lauren Wein, Liz Emens, Alexis Offen, and Burt Visotzky join Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky to discuss hope and how it can help us orient around the renewal of the new year. We begin with Rachel Goldberg-Polin’s response to unimaginable despair, the Oct. 7 abduction and later murder of her son, Hersh: “Hope is mandatory.” How can we hang onto hope, and to what degree is hope a practice rather than an emotion? How does hope differ from optimism? And, in a world that does not always inspire hope, how can we respond to despair?

In our second conversation, AC Rabbinic Intern Harry Aaronson and A...

08/28/2026

It's not too late to join the AC Hebrew School! We would love to welcome your family into our community.

Learn more at https://anschechesed.org/learning/ac-hebrew-school-kids/