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Andrea Strongwater’s Lost Synagogues of Europe

By Leave a Comment Filed Under: Freighted Legacies

Paintings and Histories

Lost Synagogues of Europe recreates in vivid color paintings and chronicles the life stories of nearly eighty majestic— and destroyed— European synagogues, each one a testament to the approximately 17,000 synagogues decimated during the Third Reich and early takeover of the Communist regimes. After WWII only about 3,300 buildings remained standing, and just 700+ are still in use as synagogues. This exquisite and significant work of historical preservation collects, organizes, and documents their stories.

Freighted Legacies has invited Andrea Strongwater to focus on the synagogues in the Polish Lands which include close to 20 locations. The imagination is drawn into a reflection of the missing material culture of Jewish life.[…]

Rabbi Miriam Klimova Presents “Good, Evil and the Self”

By Leave a Comment Filed Under: Guest Teachers, Rabbis, and Artists

What is the nature of good and evil? From the Torah to contemporary thinkers, Jewish tradition has placed this question at the heart of its reflection. During our lecture, we will explore how rabbis, midrashim, philosophers, and modern teachers have responded to the dilemmas of the human heart, free will, and the meaning of suffering.

Miriam Klimova is the rabbi of the Shirat ha-Yam congregation in Haifa. She studied and was ordained at the Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR) in Jerusalem. She holds an M.A. in Hebrew Studies from Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poland. […]

Finding Meaning in Creation’s Rhythm

By Leave a Comment Filed Under: Sermons

Thoughts on Parashat Bereshit 5786

As we open the Torah to Parashat Bereshit (Genesis 1:1–6:8) in 5786, we are invited to reflect on the very act of creation—a divine process that brings order from chaos and imbues the world with purpose. The Talmud, in Shabbat 119b, teaches us that “the Sabbath gives meaning to the work of creation.” This insight, rooted in Genesis 2:1–3 where God rests on the seventh day, frames the Sabbath not merely as a pause but as the culmination and purpose of the six days of creation. The Sabbath transforms the act of making into an act of meaning, offering a profound counterpoint to a worldview that sees the universe as devoid of purpose. In this D’var Torah, we explore how Bereshit’s vision of creation, crowned by Shabbat, reveals a universe infused with divine order, human purpose, and the delicate balance of chaos and stability.[…]