Mission, vision, values….sometimes this last item—values—is omitted from an organization’s foundational documents. Speaking directly, this is a mistake. I say this definitively because I’ve attended too many meetings in synagogues and other Jewish organizations that desperately needed some guidance in Jewish values. Of course, I’ve also worked with many committees…

As I noted in the last post, defining mission precedes developing vision. The mission is like the acorn and the vision is the tree. Or to take an example closer to home, the “mission” of the Jewish people is “to be holy” (am kadosh) and our “vision” of what that…

It’s legitimate to ask the question, “Why does a congregation need to define its mission?” After all, shouldn’t a congregation’s mission be “to live the word of Torah/Scripture in the world?” On a basic level, that’s true.  But if the mission of the congregation is so amorphous, it will resemble…

Congregational governance-what do you think of when you hear this phrase? Does the image of endless committee meetings come to mind? What about board meetings that result in squabbling? Is it clear when staff should take the lead on an issue and volunteers should? You want a true partnership between…

Difficult issues, those which involve competing values, can be argued persuasively from either point of view. In this post, I want to raise one of those issues: should congregations specially recognize donors who contribute significant funds or should all financial gifts be treated equally? In the former case, there are…

Join Rabbi Sheila Weinberg for a meditation on, and exploration of, what it means to experience life as b’tzelem Elohim – created in the divine image.  We return to the beginning, to where it all starts, Chapter 1 of Genesis; recognizing that there can be no liberation from bondage without…

Thank you.

Join Rabbi Sheila Weinberg in contemplating Sh’ma Koleynu – Hear our voices.  This is the reverse of Sh’ma Yisrael, when our plea to hear is directed to ourselves; here, Sh’ma is directed towards the source of mercy and compassion - Adonai Eloheinu.  It is a communal project to ask God…

Join Rabbi Sheila Weinberg in this series of short podcasts in preparation for the High Holy Days.   “Achat Sha’alti me’eit Adonai, otah avakeish; shivti b’veit Adonai kol y’mei chayai, lachazot b’noam Adonai ulvakeir b’heichalo.  One thing I ask of Adonai, for this do I yearn: to dwell in the…

Join Rabbi Myriam Klotz for a relaxing period of embodied spiritual practice.  Experience restorative yoga - a kind of yoga that involves gentle, passive stretching, allowing the nervous system to quiet down and experience deep rest.  Explore how, in stressful times, we can find our ways to the waters of…