My husband, Rabbi Allen Maller, and I had been invited by Severyn Ashkenazy the patron of the Reform Jewish Congregation in Warsaw to come to Poland for two months, to help the Beit Warshazva Congregation. Before we left Poland to return to Los Angeles, Darius gave me a kiss and handed me a large picture […]
Zigler’s Story
Introduction by Rabbi Allen Maller In 2010 I was asked to serve as a Rabbinic scholar in residence at Beit Warszawa. My wife Judy Maller and I were amazed by the wonderful people we met in the congregation. Every rabbi knows that the Halakic definition of who is a Jew is simple: all children born […]
Hebrew Words Seeking Polish Melodies
The Baal Shem Tov was a gifted singer. He considered singing as worship of God, for music touches the soul. He often led his disciples in song, especially at the Shabbat table. Sometimes he asked them to close their eyes and put their hands on each other’s shoulders as they sang, so that they were […]
Grow Or Decline
More than 20 centuries ago, the great Jewish sage Hillel stated that “Those who do not add; subtract” (Avot 1:13) Our rabbis traditionally applied this wise saying to the subject of study and learning; which they saw as an ongoing process. Hillel’s admonition is the intellectual equivalent of today’s medical advice about our physical health, […]