Dear Friends, As often was the case, the rabbis were arguing. Shammai argued that we should light 8 candles on the first night of Chanukah, and count down, lighting one fewer candle each night. Hillel, on the other hand (or foot as was his wont), believed we should start with one and build up. As […]
About Rabbi Benjamin Zober
Posts by Rabbi Benjamin Zober:
Invitation to Mourn
Dear Friends, Whenever I had a challenge or crisis in my life, I turned to my dad. So now as I mourn his death, I am at a particular loss. Among the many things he inspired in me was a love of Judaism and an appreciation for its wisdom. Lately, I find myself encountering our […]
In Every Generation
Dear Friends, As we prepare for Pesach, we are incredibly excited. Not only for our congregational seder, where we will gather and celebrate together. Not only for all of the traditions and foods that make Passover unique. We are excited because this year we will be using our new congregational Haggadah for the first time. […]
Purim Gets It Right
Dear Friends, Judaism gets a lot of things right. I know that as a rabbi, I am supposed to say that, but I truly believe that while there are many ways to do some things, a lot of the ways Judaism leads us are good ones. Take, for example, mourning. Our customs are designed to […]
Jew in the Pew (or guest room)
Dear Friends, A belated L’shanah Tovah to all of you! I was so disappointed to be unable to celebrate the High Holy Days with all of you. Certainly, I want to thank everyone who pitched in (especially at the last minute) to lead services and make sure everything happened on schedule – even if not […]
The Start of Something
Dear Friends, “I don’t make New Year’s resolutions,” said the DJ on the radio. He went on to explain that making promises on an arbitrary date was silly and that one could make a resolution at any time. I would have loved to ask him, “so do you make resolutions at another time? Do you […]
Sprucing Up Sinai
Dear Friends, Following on the heels of a successful but exhausting Mitzvah Day, we have introduced Sprucing up Sinai. Every Sunday from 9-noon, we turn our attention to the building’s physical needs, right now with a focus of weeding. I was hoping to open my message with some sage Jewish wisdom about weeding. To my […]
Reno Hebrew Benevolent Society
Dear Landsmen! In Yiddish, people from the same town refer to each other as landsmen. When meeting a fellow from your hometown it is customary to greet them with a hearty “Landsman!” As we migrated out of the shtetl, landing in such far-flung places as New York, Los Angeles, or Reno, encounters with people from […]
The Great Latke Debate
Dear Friends, As Chanukah approaches, so do the many great debates of the season. I am not referring to the one between Rabbis Hillel and Shammai over how we light the chanukiah (we settled that one – Hillel won and we light one the first night and increase each night as opposed to counting down). […]
You Are the Temple
Dear Friends, Christ Church Reno has only been in our building a short while, but it is already providing so much for both of our congregations. A few weeks ago, I was invited to join them for Father Juan’s installation. Among the guests was Bishop Eric Menees of the Anglican Diocese. As he spoke, a […]