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This year's 10-Minute Torah for Sukkot 5780: https://youtu.be/ElBPNZtS5kk SERVICES: We are planning a Saturday morning, Shabbat Shachrit for 9:30 am, 10/19/2019. Details to follow

Torah Readings for Sukkot

This week's 10-Minute Torah (10/12/2019) "Ha'azenu 5780": https://youtu.be/Empj9Fklveo This year's Yom Kippur Sermon (10/9/2019) "The Vidui - Confessional": https://www.modernrabbistephen.com/single-post/2019/10/10/Sermon-for-Yom-Kippur-5780-1092019-The-Vidui-Confessional Rebbetzin Chris and I would like to thank all those who joined us to celebrate the High Holidays this year. Thank you for you presence and participation. Please watch for upcoming Shabbat services.

Parashat Ha'azenu #ParashatHaazenu #TorahCommentary #DvarTorah

Yom Kippur Sermon We have transgressed, we have acted perfidiously, we have robbed, we have slandered. We have acted perversely and wickedly, we have willfully sinned, we have done violence, we have imputed falsely. We have given evil counsel, we have lied, we have scoffed, we have rebelled, we have provoked, we have been disobedient, we have committed iniquity, we have wantonly transgressed, we have oppressed, we have been obstinate. We have committed evil, we have acted perniciously, we have acted abominably, we have gone astray, we have led others astray. We have strayed from Your good precepts and ordinances, and it has not profited us. Indeed, You are just in all that has come upon us, for You have acted truthfully, and it is we who have acted wickedly. We are all familiar with the Vidui, the confessional, that we chant on Yom Kippur. We are acknowledging all our sins. It is meant to encompass anything we can do just to make sure we are covering all the bases. It is fitting that this week’s Torah portion is Ha’azinu, which is Moses’ last address to the Israelites. This is the generation born in the wilderness; a hearty people who will conquer the holy land and sanctify it to Hashem. They will be examples to the rest of the world how to act humanely to each other and all other peoples, with mercy and justice. But Ha’azinu, like we Jews, is written is a very precarious pattern. The wording is in the form of two pillars. As such, there is no support. Although pillars are good to hold up buildings, any slight movement or push in any direction and they lose their footing and the building comes crashing down. Just ask Sampson the judge. So it is with us, G-d’s chosen people. Hashem knows that when we’re at our best, we accomplish great things. When we forsake Torah, we bear the consequences, which can be severe. That’s part of being G-d’s chosen people: we’ve accepted the yoke of living righteous lives, so we’re held to a higher standard. The Vidui keeps us on track. It also keeps us humble. How many of us have read this during Yom Kippur and said, “Oh, no, that’s not me”! Yes, it is. This is our arrogance. It’s also our ego and our self-esteem. The two are very related. We grow up in a culture which at times can be very unforgiving. Many people are not understanding, and we make a mistake, we’ve vilified. That makes it very hard to admit our shortcomings. But G-d knows. One of the main lessons of Torah is that even though we go through life putting our best efforts towards accomplishing things and growing and making our lives better, it is ultimately up to Hashem. And while our efforts certainly help us get to our goals, very much like rowing a boat, it ultimately up to G-d to arrange our lives so that we have more successes than failures, and that we are rowing our boat with the current. Mitzvot and commandments are important. They keep us on track to do what is right, even when we don’t want to. That is the hardest part of observing the commandments. G-d tells us to honor Him by loving our neighbor as ourselves, being honest in our business dealings, and showing mercy and justice to our fellows, even when we don’t want to. In this portion, G-d reminds us that “Vengeance is Mine”. We just go along with commandments and don’t mind what else happens. That’s easier said than done. We always want to take vengeance, take revenge on those we believe have wronged us in some way. It’s our nature to want Justice and not wait for any karma. We want our retribution and we want it now! Each year we remind ourselves how flawed we are. No, we’re not attacking our self-esteem and admitting that we’re just pitiful little creatures with no hope of redemption. Think of the Vidui as a starting point. It’s our once-per-year year-end review. We take stock of what we’ve done. Not who we are, what we’ve done. There’s a big difference there. We’re taking stock of our actions. G-d knows we’re up to the task. That’s why He chose us to lead the way in this world. He wants us to show everyone how great our species can be and that when we set our minds to a task, when we evaluate what we do, we are always looking to do better. And we can. May you all be sealed in the book of life for a healthy, prosperous and fulfilling year. #YomKippurSermon #Vidui

Parashat Yom Kippur 5780 #ParashatYomKippur #DvarTorah #TorahCommentary

Parashat Vayelech #ParashatVayelech #DvarTorah #TorahCommentary

This week's 10-Minute Torah (10/5/2019) "Parashat Vayelech": https://youtu.be/A5lqz2wscMo Good Yom Tov. May you be sealed in the Book of Life Wednesday, October 9 Yom Kippur / יום כפור This year's 10-Minute Torah (10/9/2019) "Parashat Yom Kippur": https://youtu.be/3Kf6wBZMl70 Sermon for Rosh Hashanah Evening: https://www.modernrabbistephen.com/single-post/2019/10/01/Sermon-for-Rosh-Hashannah-5780-9292019-Hashem-the-True-Judge

Sermon בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יהוה אֱלהֵינוּ מֶלֶך–הָעולָם “Blessed are thou, Hashem, our G-d, King of the universe, the true judge”. In Judaism there is a prayer for everything. We say a blessing to acknowledge Hashem and express gratitude for whatever the act or situation is. It may come as no surprise that upon hearing bad news or experiencing a tragic event that there is also a prayer for that. How is it, then, that this blessing should be “the true judge” and what does that mean? First of all, we understand as Jews that G-d is watching us always and interacting with us as we journey through our lives. G-d didn’t just create us, let us have free will, sit back, grab some popcorn and watch the Universe go around! As we affirm in our morning blessings, G-d provides us with our every need, girds our strength, firms our footsteps and gives strength to the weary. Therefore, when a tragedy strikes, it’s all part of The Plan. G-d is there to help us through it all. He’s like a parent that watches us fall and helps us get back up and move forward to overcome that challenge and grow. There seems, however, to be a contradiction. If G-d is the “True Judge”, why do we have earthly courts? G-d set in motion for us to develop systems of justice. We have the lowest court of three, the “Beit Din”, or “House of Justice”. In fact, this is why we have three people on the bema during Yom Kippur during the three chantings of “Kol Nidre”. We then have higher courts with more people until finally the 70-person Sanhedrin. They hear various cases, and various levels of cases of both criminal and civil cases in accordance with the Torah. From the laws laid out in the Torah, there are four tractates in the Talmud (Bava Kamma, Bava Metzia, Bava Batra and Sanhedrin) that discuss how to adjudicate cases. At the base of all court hearings is whether or not the perpetrator has been first warned before committing the offense and whether two people saw that person commit the offense. The Torah also discusses when a person may be clearly guilty but can’t be convicted because of some technicality, such as no one can verify that they were warned beforehand, or two witnesses aren’t available. The sages state that even if someone gets away with something, or even if someone is wrongly convicted, there will be Divine Justice either somewhere else in their lives or in the World to Come. And this is really what’s at issue here: the fairness of it all. Why bother having an earthly court at all? Why not just let life happen and when something bad happens—something that we think is unfair, we’re good people, what did we do to deserve this—we can just shrug our shoulders and say, hey, it’s G-d’s will and that piece of Karma is done, one less thing and we move on. Not that easy, is it? There’s always the human emotions that go along with it. Whether it is just an annoyance like a flat tire, an extra expense we can’t handle, or people taking advantage of us with no recourse, there’s always the anxiety, anger and resentment that accompanies it. G-d, the true Judge. Did G-d set this up to happen or did we in our limited cognition allow these things to happen? Who do we blame? For us acting in the material world, we will sometimes get involved in situations that we don’t think are fair. We may do what we think is best and yet there are people impeding us. We behave at work, stay late, go the extra mile, and someone else gets the promotion. We show compassion and friendship to people who then deceive and lie to us and take advantage of us. This is when this blessing comes in to comfort us. Yes, to comfort us. Some may recognize this blessing as the first thing we say at a funeral. G-d is the true judge and makes sure everything happens—like the late rains and early rains—in its proper time. G-d as the “true judge”, as the prayer and affirmation states, is constantly involved in our lives. He knows what we are doing, what we’ve done, what we’re going to do and what our intentions are in each and every situation. The point, then, is that we have to go through the motions and that is what helps us with our spiritual development. This is why G-d let the Israelites do what they did and Moses plead for their mercy. The point is that as we enter a new year and ask Hashem to inscribe us in the book of life, we take stock of our own actions. We don’t act for any possible consequence; we act for the purity of the action. We commit mitzvot because that’s what G-d wants us to do. They may not pay off right now, but we can be assured that Hashem, as the “true judge”, will take stock of actions and we will benefit at some time in some way. #RoshHashannahSermon

This week's 10-Minute Torah (09/28/2019) "Parashat Nitzavim": https://youtu.be/i00ZznQqQh0 Rosh Hashanah 5780 / ראש השנה 5780 The Jewish New Year Monday, September 30 This year's 10-Minute Torah (09/30/2019) "Parashat Rosh Hashannah": https://youtu.be/4EJS7TF404M From Rabbi Joseph Gelberman: "Comfort Yourself" Comfort lies in spiritual wisdom. It comes when surrender replaces resistance. Our anguish is only as enduring as our attitude about it. No grief, however devastating can survive the healing balm of spiritual purification. Grief must be yielded, in a willing act of commitment, to G-d. G-d can transmute grief into love, which helps us to re-dedicate our emotions to a new pursuit: the joy of living. If we lift the veil of sadness and seek beauty, we participate in joy again. Don't dread, "What if?" Instead, say, "So what if." Comfort is delayed when we nurse our grief. Comfort is attained when we nurture life.

This week's 10-Minute Torah (09/21/2019): "Parashat Ki Tavo"- https://www.modernrabbistephen.com/single-post/2019/09/18/This-weeks-10-Minute-Torah-09212019-Parashat-Ki-Tavo From Rabbi Dr. Joseph Gelberman: Live Courageously Courage, like art, demands practice. No challenge need not dismay us. If we practice trusting life, we become equipped with the resources we need to overcome the tyranny of fear that claims our joy. All we basically need is to start with one gesture of faith as a token of this acceptance. Each little act strengthens the next. Courage is confidence and security which we build into ourselves by accepting challenges, gradually giving up our dependencies and welcoming new avenues to test out our growth. Courage requires the wisdom not to thrash around alone with frantic stoicism, but rather to build with the Master Builder. SELICHOT SERVICE The Torah Club invites you to join us for Selichot service on Saturday, September 28 at 7:00 p.m. at the home of Rabbi and Mrs. Stephen Epstein in Tuscany Hills. Please come join us for this short 25 minute service that will start with Havdalah and commences the Jewish traditional High Holidays Season. Dessert to follow. In the Sephardic tradition, recital of Selichot in preparation for the High Holidays begins on the second day of the Hebrew month of Elul. In the Ashkenazic tradition, it begins on the Saturday night before Rosh Hashanah Selichot prayers are usually recited between midnight and dawn. Some recite it at night after the 'Arvit service or in the morning before the Shacharit service due to the convenience of synagogue attendance at these times. The Torah Club welcomes all who want to participate. Please contact Sherry Beth Reiter, President of the Canyon Lake Torah Club, if you have any questions or want to reserve a place at the service.

Commentary on Ki Tavo 5779 #ParashatKiTavo #DvarTorah #TorahCommentary