The Roots and Fruits of Justice

Greetings on another snowy January day! I spent this past weekend at a conference in Philadelphia, learning about ways to fight white supremacy, white nationalism, and antisemitism in our communities. Here at BHA, our students focused on ways they can plant justice in the world.

Ellen and the other teachers led the children through a Tu B’Shevat seder that focused on bringing justice into the world. They learned that giving directly to people in need is one way, and that it is also important to fight for justice. Then they explored some ways of thinking about justice, and made some connections between their impulses towards fairness and ways that they can make a difference in the world.

One of our ongoing projects is a postcard station, where folks of all ages can let each other know about issues we care about, and we can write postcards to the people who have some say in those issues. I welcome all members of our community to take part in sharing about the issues you care about, and encouraging each other to say something to our elected officials, or to the leaders of companies from which we buy products. Keep an eye on the station, because education is also a tool for change!

Remind: Good news for folks who use the Remind texting service with a Verizon cell phone! Enough people contacted Verizon and let them know that Remind text messages aren't spam. Verizon chose not to institute the fee, so you will continue to receive text messages if that is your preferred form of communication.

Coming Up:

Friday Masa: 4:00-6:00
Stories with Rabbi Brent: 4:30-5:00
Mini Minyan: 5:30-6:00
Kiddush and Community Potluck: 6:00
Shabbat Services (all ages): 7:00

Sunday Masa: 9:30-12:30

This week’s journal topic: This week’s Torah portion is full of different rules (mitzvot) for how Jewish people should behave. Why do we have rules? Do all rules make the world more fair? Who decides what the rules are? How do you know when to follow the rules and when not to follow them?