Pleasantville Community Synagogue

09/04/2026

for information go to: http://shalompcs.com/interest

09/04/2026

For information go to: http://shalompcs.com/interest

08/28/2026

Contact us for more information: http://shalompcs.com/interest

08/28/2026

Join us for the High Holidays! For more information contact us: http://shalompcs.com/interest

08/28/2026

08/21/2026

All are welcome. Free to register, Tickets required.

07/23/2026

Dear PCS community,

Tonight, we gathered at PCS and on zoom to read Eicha (the book of Lamentations) in honor of Tisha b'Av, the Day of Mourning. Rabbi Ben shared a handout and a beautiful midrash by Rabbi Arthur Waskow z"l (see comments), which remind us that hope will rise when we tend to the space between ourselves and one another, willing to trade our weapons and our self-righteousness for something new and emergent that has yet to take shape.

We reflected on the walls that have fallen in our lives and in the world, and also on hope coming forth from the ashes. Tisha b'Av calls us to practice empathy before certainty and moral accountability before analysis, reminding us that healing begins when we truly grieve, through the practice of sitting and the work of integrating. As our hearts soften, we deepen, and soon we can begin to hear the question: Akeya? Where are you? Who are you now? Who are you and we becoming? What is possible, now?

I continue to sit with a question that I wish to pose to you: What do you grieve and what gives you hope for yourself, for the Jewish people, for America, for Israel and for the world? If you'd like to share your reflections, we would be honored to read them. Whether it's a sentence or a short journal entry, your words will help shape our teaching and our connecting in the months ahead.

May the Holy One of Blessing help us carry together one another’s burdens, as we deepen our commitment to building a more compassionate world.

Rabbi Shosh and Rabbi Ben

07/04/2026

So excited to lead Shabbat services this morning—on the Fourth of July!

I'll be dressed in red, white, and blue sparkles as we explore what it means to celebrate both Shabbat and America's 250th anniversary.

We'll learn about the extraordinary contributions of Jews during the Revolutionary War, including the Sephardic Jews whose vision, courage, and philanthropy helped shape the birth of our nation. We'll also read George Washington's remarkable letter to the Jewish community—a text that still speaks powerfully today.

Our Torah portion is Pinchas. We'll study the Or HaChaim's commentary on God's "covenant of peace," asking what it means to transform anger into peace. Peace isn't passive; it requires courage, moral imagination, and the willingness to build something new.

Some of the questions we'll wrestle with:
✨ What are you a zealot for?
✨ What can we be proud of 250 years later—and today?
✨ Do you think of yourself first as a Jewish American or an American Jew? Why?
✨ And what might Judaism teach us about interdependence alongside our national celebration of independence?

Shabbat Shalom, and Happy Fourth of July! 🇺🇸✨

06/11/2026

Looking forward to participating in this wonderful ritual of celebration of African-American liberation from slavery, a Juneteenth ritual Seder, modeled after a Passover Seder. The ritual will be led by April Hampton, an inspirational civil rights leader from Montgomery, Alabama.
Join us!! Teens are invited to volunteer at 5 pm and will be given a small stipend and community service credit.
No one will be turned away for lack of funds. Please register in advance.

05/22/2026