Wilshire POV – Details, episodes & analysis

Imagine: You are an ancient Israelite, and all you have ever known - all your recent ancestors have ever known - is oppression. You witnessed the plagues and the sea splitting and you fled for your life into the wilderness. And now, three months later, you are gathered at the foot of Mt. Sinai together with your fellow Israelites. 

Morning dawns, thunder and lightning begin, a dark cloud descends on the mountain, the shofar is sounded, and everyone collectively trembles. You see a stack of smoke rising from the mountain, which is on fire and violently shaking. The sounds of the shofar grow louder and louder, until... 

Each week, a member of the clergy offers their personal perspective on a topic of their choice, such as the week's Torah portion, a Jewish holiday, ritual, custom, or history.

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Ran Gvili’s funeral was a moment unique among all others, but the collective need to rise to the next chapter is a feeling familiar to the Jewish people. It is on full display in the Torah portion we read this week. At the core of Parashat Beshalach are two songs, sung not when Pharaoh first freed the people from Egypt, but after they crossed the sea and the waters closed in on the Egyptian armies that had been pursuing them. Finally, they were on the other side. Finally, after a long and tortuous nightmare, they were free, and that in that moment, their new-found freedom was all consuming. 

Each week, a member of the clergy offers their personal perspective on a topic of their choice, such as the week's Torah portion, a Jewish holiday, ritual, custom, or history.

Facebook: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Website: wbtla.org
Youtube: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Instagram: wilshireboulevardtemple

Lucky for us, our tradition has a secret weapon to help us deal with the never-ending mishigas of our time, and no, it’s not a giant space laser 

Each week, a member of the clergy offers their personal perspective on a topic of their choice, such as the week's Torah portion, a Jewish holiday, ritual, custom, or history.

Facebook: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Website: wbtla.org
Youtube: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Instagram: wilshireboulevardtemple

In this week's shabbat message, Rabbi Steve Leder helps us deal with the events happening in Ukraine by sharing the biblical story of David and Goliath. That even if we tremble before a giant, we can defeat him.

Each week, a member of the clergy offers their personal perspective on a topic of their choice, such as the week's Torah portion, a Jewish holiday, ritual, custom, or history.

Facebook: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Website: wbtla.org
Youtube: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Instagram: wilshireboulevardtemple

On this Shabbat, we hold the thousands of Jews in Ukraine in our hearts, our thoughts, and our prayers with a beautiful message from Cantor Don Gurney. 

Each week, a member of the clergy offers their personal perspective on a topic of their choice, such as the week's Torah portion, a Jewish holiday, ritual, custom, or history.

Facebook: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Website: wbtla.org
Youtube: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Instagram: wilshireboulevardtemple

Each week, a member of the clergy offers their personal perspective on a topic of their choice, such as the week's Torah portion, a Jewish holiday, ritual, custom, or history.

Facebook: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Website: wbtla.org
Youtube: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Instagram: wilshireboulevardtemple

In this week's Shabbat message Rabbi Shapiro talks about the way we arm ourselves when we walk out into the world, and how after 2 years of zoom calls and sitting at home, that armor has changed.

Each week, a member of the clergy offers their personal perspective on a topic of their choice, such as the week's Torah portion, a Jewish holiday, ritual, custom, or history.

Facebook: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Website: wbtla.org
Youtube: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Instagram: wilshireboulevardtemple

In this week's Shabbat message, Rabbi Eshel helps us see how Judaism gives our lives meaning and purpose, as well as makes us part of something bigger.

Each week, a member of the clergy offers their personal perspective on a topic of their choice, such as the week's Torah portion, a Jewish holiday, ritual, custom, or history.

Facebook: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Website: wbtla.org
Youtube: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Instagram: wilshireboulevardtemple

In this week's Shabbat message, Rabbi Ben-Naim shares her beautiful and powerful experience of getting to teach the Brawerman Elementary School students about Martin Luther King Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement, as well as the connection both hold to Judaism. 

Each week, a member of the clergy offers their personal perspective on a topic of their choice, such as the week's Torah portion, a Jewish holiday, ritual, custom, or history.

Facebook: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Website: wbtla.org
Youtube: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Instagram: wilshireboulevardtemple

This has been another difficult week. As we wait and watch and hold our breath over the news coming out of Israel, we feel tension, concern, and hope. The events unfolding in Israel and in our own backyard fill up our thoughts and trouble our sleep. In the past week I’ve had several conversations with congregants about Israel in particular, and what many of us keep coming back to is the awe we feel for how Israelis are handling the situation. 

Each week, a member of the clergy offers their personal perspective on a topic of their choice, such as the week's Torah portion, a Jewish holiday, ritual, custom, or history.

Facebook: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Website: wbtla.org
Youtube: Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Instagram: wilshireboulevardtemple