Rabbi Rafi Spitzer

08/23/2023

You can reach me directly on Whatsapp!

10/06/2021

Heshvan, Heshvan
By Suzanne Sabransky

There came a wind upon the face of the Earth
And with it came the clouds.

The sky grew dark until all was blackness
And the rains began to fall.

For forty days and forty nights the deluge came unabated
And then land existed no more.

All the world's inhabitants disappeared beneath the waves
And only the Ark remained.

The sun reappeared warming the waters
And now life was confined to those on board.

Time and again they prayed for a port or place to come to rest
And they diligently searched the distant horizon.

Day after day they awoke to water, rocking to sleep on swells
And the waters and the Ark became their entire world.

They floated the ocean where once a world had been
And the depths remained silent and wide.

Days into weeks, weeks into months
And soon a full year had passed.

Time and again Noah sent forth a dove
And time and again it found no roost.

Then one day the dove succeeded in its quest
And returned with an olive branch.

Noah rejoiced because the journey would soon end
And his family shared in his joy.

A year in their lives had come and gone
And their lives were forever changed.

The waters had begun to rise on Heshvan 17
And the land was dry once more on Heshvan 27.

Heshvan sees the world that was
Heshvan sees the world anew ...

This is the month when HaShem started over
And the month when HaShem promised "never again."

This is the month without Holy Days
And the month perhaps holiest of all.

This is the month we remember the rainbow
And the month we can all learn to begin.

By Suzanne Sabransky There came a wind upon the face of the Earth And with it came the clouds. The sky grew dark until all was blackness And the rains began to fall. For forty days and forty nights the deluge came unabated And then land existed no more. All the world's inhabitants disappeared beneat...

09/17/2021

Share a Yom Kippur highlight? What made you feel connected, forgiven, joyful, renewed?

09/15/2021

Getting in the mood for Yom Kippur!

Joey's Master Classes in Jewish song and prayer: https://www.joeyweisenberg.com"Darkekha - It Is Your Way" (Yom Kippur liturgy)All music composed and directe...

09/10/2021

If you missed my Rosh Hashanah Day II Sermon, titled "Shmita Challenges Our Responsibilities and Our Relationships," you can read it at this link: https://www.agudatachim.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/20210909-5782-Rosh-Hashanah-Day-II_-Shmita.pdf... and watch it here: https://youtu.be/_yfkrerVGLY.

09/10/2021

If you missed my Rosh Hashanah Day I Sermon, titled "The First Step to Getting Unstuck is to Recognize Our Stuckness," you can read it at this link:https://www.agudatachim.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/20210909-5782-Rosh-Hashanah-Day-I-Sermon_-Stuckness-Unstuckness-and-Hannah.pdf and watch it here: https://youtu.be/X-NeiyIaYYI.

08/30/2021

For those who were saying RH is "early" this year...

07/18/2021

The second temple was destroyed by senseless hatred.

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