Explore every episode of the podcast Wilshire POV
| Title | Pub. Date | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| A Sacred Symbol - Rabbi Leah Fein - February 6, 2026 | 06 Feb 2026 | 00:05:24 | |
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. 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. | |||
| It's Over - Rabbi Leah Lewis - Parashat Beshalach - January 30, 2026 | 06 Feb 2026 | 00:04:29 | |
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. | |||
| A Prayer for Shabbat - Cantor Lisa Peicott - June 27, 2025 | 04 Jul 2025 | 00:03:15 | |
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. | |||
| Rabbi Steve Leder: Conquering a Giant | 04 Mar 2022 | 00:04:45 | |
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. | |||
| Cantor Don Gurney: Holding the Ukrainian People in Our Hearts, Our Thoughts, and Our Prayers | 25 Feb 2022 | 00:03:26 | |
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. | |||
| Cantor Kerith Spencer-Shapiro: How to Deal with Anxiety and Fear | 18 Feb 2022 | 00:04:14 | |
In this week's Shabbat message, Cantor Spencer-Shapiro unravels how we deal with anxiety and fear. Back in the time of Moses retrieving the 10 Commandments, the Israelites dealt with their fear by creating the golden calf. Spoiler alert: Moses was NOT happy! But, in Judaism there are many reminders to help us live beyond fear, to help us find comfort, and to make good choices. 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. | |||
| Rabbi Beau Shapiro: My Armor | 12 Feb 2022 | 00:04:41 | |
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. | |||
| Rabbi David Eshel: How Judaism Gives Our Lives Meaning | 05 Feb 2022 | 00:03:31 | |
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. | |||
| Rabbi Ben Naim: Martin Luther King Jr. and the Torah | 15 Jan 2022 | 00:06:35 | |
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. | |||
| Courage and Determination - Rabbi Hannah Elkin - June 20, 2025 | 20 Jun 2025 | 00:03:17 | |
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. | |||
| Revelation Happens Every Day - Cantor Kerith Spencer-Shapiro - May 30, 2025 | 30 May 2025 | 00:03:27 | |
As we approach the festival of Shavuot, most years (and this year included) we read from the torah portion Bamidbar - “in the wilderness”. For our ancestors, bamidbar meant leaving what they knew - slavery in Egypt. For us, bamidbar can infer leaving what we know. For us and our ancestors, bamidbar invokes traveling in uncertainty. In this week's Shabbat Message, Cantor Kerith Spencer-Shapiro asks, "When we feel that we are traveling in a wilderness, how can we bring equanimity to that untamed place?" 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. | |||
| Roadmap to Holiness - Cantor Lisa Peicott - May 9, 2025 | 09 May 2025 | 00:03:36 | |
For weeks we have been wading through the many ritual laws of the book of Leviticus, known in Hebrew as Vayikra. In short, Vayikra consists of rules about a specific holy place (Mishkan), with very specific kinds of sacrifices (korbanot), that can only be performed by a specific group of people, the priests (Cohanim), who are the mediators between God and the Israelites. And then this week’s double portion, Acharei Mot-Kedoshim, arrives on the scene and everything changes. We get what is affectionately referred to as the “Holiness Code.” 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. | |||
| On Creating a Holy Society - Rabbi Joel Nickerson | 02 May 2025 | 00:05:26 | |
We are currently in the midst of the Book of Leviticus, a book dedicated to both the concept of purity and, more importantly, the values and actions a community must adhere to in order to create a holy society. We are a people who spend the majority of our central text wandering through a barren wilderness, just like that little boy, Bodin, in Arizona, found safe with only minor scratches, thanks to the a rancher's dog's unwavering protection for sixteen hours while rescuers searched.As we learn in this week's Torah portion, we have an obligation to look out for one another and assist each individual in navigating the wilderness with dignity and compassion. 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. | |||
| Spring Renewal and the Spirit of Passover - Rabbi Hannah Elkin | 18 Apr 2025 | 00:02:57 | |
Spring has arrived in Southern California, signaling a time to embrace warmer weather and prepare for Passover. Rabbi Hannah Elkin expands beyond the story of the Exodus from Egypt and shares the other Jewish traditions, including the reading of Song of Songs, symbolizing new beginnings. This seasonal transition is mirrored in the Torah portion, Parashat Vayikra, which calls for spiritual and emotional purification. Despite the challenges of the recent winter, including fires and floods, there is hope that the beauty of the earth and our spirits will blossom anew. As we approach Passover, may this time of renewal bring love, beauty, and fresh starts for all. 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. | |||
| Bitterness and Sweetness: A Passover Reflection - Rabbi Leah Lewis | 18 Apr 2025 | 00:03:59 | |
For this week's Shabbat Message, Rabbi Leah Lewis reflects on the emotional weight of Passover this year, marked by the ongoing captivity of 59 Israelis in Gaza. Yet, Passover also emphasizes the coexistence of bitterness and sweetness—represented through traditional foods and rituals. This duality is echoed in the reading of Song of Songs during Passover, a poetic celebration of love and hope. Finding sweetness amid sorrow is a form of redemption, and that love—whether divine or human—holds sacred power to uplift us, even in broken times. 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. | |||
| Personal Remarks at the Installation of Rabbi Joel Nickerson | 10 Mar 2025 | 00:38:23 | |
Rabbi Joel Nickerson, on the occasion of his installation as the seventh Senior Rabbi in Wilshire Boulevard Temple's 163-year history, shares four pillars that will shape our future together: Hope, Vision, Community, and Courage. These words serve as the foundation for the next chapter of our Temple’s journey. Tikvah, the Hope to inspire the next generation, Chazon, the Vision to innovate boldly, Kehillah, the Community to bring comfort and inspiration, and Ometz, the Courage to lead with conviction and bravery - we will reach new heights, together. 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. | |||
| Choosing Hope Amidst Grief: A Mother's Promise - Cantor Lisa Peicott | 21 Feb 2025 | 00:03:16 | |
This week’s Shabbat message comes from Cantor Lisa Peicott—not just as a clergy member, but as a mother. As we collectively mourn the devastating loss of Kfir and Ariel, the heartbreaking fate of the Bibas family, Cantor Peicott offers a promise—to Kfir and Ariel, to her own children, and to us all. "I promise to hope." "Hope is not easy, hope is not pretty, hope is not a zero sum game, but it’s who I believe we are. It is what has sustained us through plague, pogrom, and endless persecution. In the darkest of times, when the anger and the rage threatens to become all consuming, we choose hope. We have to believe that things can be better than our current reality." 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. | |||
| Origins of Valentine’s Day and of our Core Jewish Values - Rabbi Joel Nickerson | 14 Feb 2025 | 00:06:30 | |
In this week's Shabbat message, Rabbi Nickerson shares the not-often-thought of origins of Valentine's Day and invites us to reflect on the origins of our core Jewish values from this week's Torah portion Parashat Yitro. These core principles such as dignity, healthy disagreement, loving kindness, and responsibility guide our community through challenging times and inspire action to repair the world. 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. | |||
| We Are in the Thick of It - Cantor Lisa Peicott - Parshat Bo - January 23, 2026 | 23 Jan 2026 | 00:03:51 | |
Well folks, we are in the thick of it. In just the last few weeks, we have witnessed the abuse of unchecked power against a group of outsiders, the rising up of a people against a heartless dictator, the crumbling of an authoritarian regime, and a people’s chance at true freedom. 2026 is off to a bang, right? Well, not quite. While this description could be the homepage of any news publication today, this is unfortunately a tale as old as time. It is biblical time, but it has a lot to offer all of us trying to make sense of and navigate the complex times in which we are living. 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. | |||
| Carrying the Burden Together - Rabbi Leah Lewis | 27 Jan 2025 | 00:03:49 | |
This week's Shabbat Message reflects on the overwhelming challenges faced in the present moment, comparing current crises—such as ongoing fires, a fragile ceasefire in Israel, and political shifts—to past periods of struggle, particularly the aftermath of the destruction of the Second Temple. In this time of uncertainty, we must stay connected, acknowledge the heaviness of the moment, and support one another through the shared burden, with the understanding that no one can face it alone. 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. | |||
| "Hineini": Responding to Crisis with Presence and Action - Rabbi Leah Fein | 17 Jan 2025 | 00:04:29 | |
Rabbi Leah Fein shares this week's parsha, Shemot, which includes the most famous story of fire in the entire Torah: the Burning Bush, where Moses answers God's call with "Hineini" ("Here I am"), signifying readiness to act in times of crisis. 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. | |||
| The Essence of Joseph - Cantor Kerith Spencer-Shapiro | 16 Jan 2025 | 00:03:14 | |
This week we begin the Joseph saga in our Torah. Chanukah may seem like an unlikely time to think about forgiveness. The author, Stephen Mitchell, associates Joseph’s journey and character with the quality of forgiving in his retelling of the Joseph story, Joseph and the Way of Forgiveness. 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. | |||
| Healing Familial Brokenness - Rabbi Joel Nickerson | 22 Nov 2024 | 00:05:25 | |
Many of us will have the blessing of sitting around a Thanksgiving table next week with members of our family with whom we share great joy and love. But others will be mourning the loss, and even death, of certain familial relationships. They will be looking across the table, maybe even smiling or laughing externally, but inside, they will be sitting with a pain that punctures their hearts. 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. | |||
| Inertia - Lech Lacha - Rabbi Leah Lewis | 08 Nov 2024 | 00:03:27 | |
“An object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force.” -Sir Isaac Newton Baked into the basic laws of physics, there is a fundamental truth that is being felt across the country, as we prepare to enter Shabbat this week. There exists a natural tendency to resist change in one’s state of motion. That resistance is called inertia. Long before Sir Isaac Newton gave language to this tendency, inertia was illustrated in two journeys that began to take shape in this week’s Torah portion. 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. | |||
| The Significance of Making - Rabbi Leah Fein | 01 Nov 2024 | 00:03:01 | |
This week, we read of someone who exhibits a strong sense of agency over his own future in the face of forces beyond what he can control. Not long after God has created the world, corruption and lawlessness filled the earth. So God decides to send a flood to destroy it all, save for Noah, a man “righteous in his generation” (Genesis 6:9), along with Noah’s family and two of each animal. God instructs Noah: “Make yourself an ark” (Gen 6:14). The Torah goes on to describe the details of the construction of the ark, a structure larger than a football field! But if God is powerful enough to create the world and powerful enough to destroy the world, then surely God could devise a supernatural way to save Noah and the other creatures that God deems worthy of saving. Why is Noah “making” anything, let alone a massive wooden ark, in order to be saved? 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. | |||
| When Do You Stop Saying Shanah Tovah - Rabbi Hannah Elkin - October 25, 2024 | 25 Oct 2024 | 00:02:56 | |
When do you stop saying, “Shanah Tovah”? This is a question that clergy are commonly asked around this time of the Jewish year. 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. | |||
| "Blessing for a New Beginning" - Cantor Kerith Spencer-Shapiro | 04 Oct 2024 | 00:03:52 | |
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. | |||
| It Wasn't Supposed to End this Way - Rabbi Joel Nickerson | 06 Sep 2024 | 00:05:33 | |
It wasn’t supposed to end this way. He was supposed to come home. We saw her on TV, listened to her on podcasts, watched her and her husband, Jon, give speeches, and I even met with her this summer with a small group of us rabbis in Jerusalem. Rachel Goldberg-Polin inspired us with her strength, her faith, and her mantra, “Hope is mandatory.” She represented every Jewish mother, fighting to the bitter end for her son’s safe return. 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. | |||
| A Blessing, a Privilege, and a Sacred Responsibility - Rabbi Joel Nickerson | 30 Aug 2024 | 00:04:16 | |
Right now, we are in the final book of the Torah, Deuteronomy, as Moses prepares the Israelites to enter the Promised Land. He outlines the values, priorities, and pitfalls they will face as they settle in this new land. This week’s portion, Re’eh, begins with Moses presenting the Israelites with two choices - “See, this day I set before you blessing and curse…”(Deut. 11:26). The Israelites can either build upon the solid foundation provided to them by the Torah and their predecessors, and be blessed, OR they can forget their past, forget their values, and be cursed. 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. | |||
| Parashat Vaeira - Rabbi Hannah Elkin - January 16, 2026 | 16 Jan 2026 | 00:02:48 | |
In our Torah portion this week, Parashat Vaeira, we see an important moment for Moses to speak the truth. God has told Moses that he will be the savior of the Jewish people, the prophet directly communicating God’s words to Pharaoh to let the Israelites go and bring them back to the land of Israel. But Moses hesitates to take on the task, and he tells God that he is unable and unprepared. Moses says that he cannot possibly communicate this message because he has a speech impediment, or literally “unprepared lips.” In response, God tells Moses to rely on his brother, Aaron, to do the talking for him. So now, God will communicate with Moses, Moses will communicate with Aaron, and Aaron will communicate to Pharaoh and the Israelites. 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. | |||
| Nachamu - Shabbat of Comfort - Cantor Lisa Peicott | 19 Aug 2024 | 00:02:25 | |
Nachamu, Nachamu ami, yomar eloheichem Comfort, Comfort my people, says God… Tonight begins Shabbat Nachamu, the Shabbat of Comfort, named after the first few words of the Haftarah portion this week: Isaiah 40:1-26. Shabbat Nachamu directly follows the somber commemoration of Tisha B’Av (9th of Av), a day of mourning for the Jewish people, as we recall the destruction of the first and second temple, and immerse ourselves in the extent of human suffering in our world, which in the last ten months, have seemed rather endless….But tonight we take a deep breath and we attempt to let go of our sorrow and our pain. 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. | |||
| Choices - Rabbi Hannah Elkin | 09 Aug 2024 | 00:03:37 | |
In this week's Shabbat message Rabbi Hannah Elkin comments on the theme of Teshuvah in this week's portion Devarim, in the world today, and in our personal lives. 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. | |||
| The Link Between Generations - Cantor Kerith Spencer-Shapiro | 02 Aug 2024 | 00:03:08 | |
Cantor Kerith Spencer-Shapiro contemplates the links between generations in this week's Shabbat message. 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. | |||
| The Mezuzah - Cantor Kerith Spencer-Shapiro | 19 Jul 2024 | 00:03:20 | |
I’ve been counting doorways this week. Yesterday I walked through over 50 thresholds. As I invited our meditation class to take a moment and think back through the day, envisioning all of the doorways we passed through, I took on the practice of treating every doorway I passed through this week as if it had a mezuzah installed upon it. When we take the time to pause in a doorway, to reach out and kiss the mezuzah, we connect to a powerful symbol. The mezuzah is a religious symbol but it holds much more than just a ritual practice. Yes, inside are the words of the Sh’ma, connecting us to God and the people of Israel. It’s also encased in a beautiful outer shell as if to elevate those words that point toward oneness. 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. | |||
| Fight or Flight - Rabbi Leah Lewis | 12 Jul 2024 | 00:03:47 | |
It was when my daughter, now thirteen, was part of the infant and toddler program in her Early Childhood Center that I gained a new appreciation for the ‘fight or flight’ response of human behavior. It is a term that I had always heard but never truly understood. That is, until I was there myself and had an opportunity to watch these new crawlers learn to navigate their way with through their shared space. 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. | |||
| Korach and Chaos - Rabbi Hannah Elkin | 05 Jul 2024 | 00:02:39 | |
At a certain point, freedom without structure turns to chaos, and Moses has been tasked to turn this rag-tag bunch into a people, into a collective, into a community. But the journey from independence to a stable collective is hard. 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. | |||
| Cockeyed Optimist - Cantor Lisa Peicott | 28 Jun 2024 | 00:03:51 | |
One of the first pieces of music I ever learned was from the musical “South Pacific.” For those of you who may not be so up to date on your American musical knowledge, I will summarize. The plot centers on an American nurse, Nellie Forbush, stationed in the South Pacific during World War II. Nellie falls in love with a middle-aged expatriate French plantation owner, but struggles to accept his mixed-race children. Now place all of this racial tension on an unnamed island in the South Pacific, during the raging battles of World War II, and you have a 10-time Tony award-winning musical, but I digress… 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. | |||
| Silently Offering Blessing - Cantor Kerith Spencer-Shapiro | 14 Jun 2024 | 00:03:57 | |
I just returned from a week-long silent Jewish mindfulness meditation retreat. Yes, you read that correctly - Jewish and silent. So, what do 50-some Jews ranging in age from their early 20’s through their 70s do when we come together in silence? 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. | |||
| Taking a Breath - Rabbi Hannah Elkin | 31 May 2024 | 00:03:39 | |
Despite the continued presence of “May Gray” in the mornings, summer is undeniably on its way. And as the weather warms, I’ve been reminded of a game that my cousins and I used to play in the summers growing up. Swimming in the pool, we would each take turns holding our breath and seeing how far we could swim underwater on that single breath. One by one we would swim as far as we could, and then stand in place to mark our distance. I always wanted to go last, because I found it easiest to know just how far I had to go to win. I remember straining and struggling to swim as my oxygen levels dipped, thinking to myself, “I just need to get there, just a few more strokes to get to the end, and then I can breathe!” Perhaps you played this game as well. 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. | |||
| Finding Strength and Purpose in the Wilderness - Rabbi Joel Nickerson | 26 Apr 2024 | 00:06:06 | |
This year, as we make our way through Passover, it feels as though we are in our own wilderness. We may feel secluded, without a real sense of direction, almost shell-shocked, as we view images and videos of these terrible campus protests, complete with anti-Israel sentiment, overt antisemitism, and a brewing storm of frustration, chaos, and anger. 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. | |||
| Who Were Ephraim and Menasseh? - Rabbi Leah Fein - January 2, 2026 | 02 Jan 2026 | 00:04:18 | |
For thousands of years, Jewish parents and parental-figures have been saying this exact same blessing. So who were Ephraim and Menasseh, that the Torah warrants blessing our children in their names each Shabbat eve? We are living through what feels like an inflection point in the history of American Jewry. Antisemitism is sharply on the rise and the broader Jewish community is splintered, especially on Israel and Zionism. All of this raises big, existential questions: What are we supposed to do with this change that we are experiencing as Jews living in foreign lands? Where is it leading us? Where has it come from? In the Spring, Wilshire Boulevard Temple is hosting two major speakers who will share their own insights and help us to think through these questions and more:
This speaker series is an opportunity for us to engage in high-level conversation, exploration and learning about this unique moment in American Jewish history, and our place within it. As you make your resolutions for 2026, I highly recommend adding Donniel and Sarah’s newest books to your reading lists. Please visit wbtla.org for more information on this series. 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. | |||
| Bedikat Chametz - Rabbi Hannah Elkin | 12 Apr 2024 | 00:03:20 | |
Each year, we perform bedikat chametz, searching and cleansing the house of bread products, as the first ritual of Passover. We go around to each shelf of the pantry, the refrigerator and freezer, and scrape away the crust that has built up over the last year to start fresh. This ritual acts as a spiritual cleansing as well, and it gives us concrete baby steps in this season of freedom: before we can liberate the world, we start by liberating our kitchens. 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. | |||
| Light, Happiness, Joy and Love - Cantor Lisa Peicott | 22 Mar 2024 | 00:03:52 | |
The Story of Esther, with all of its twists and turns, knows this painful truth about life, and I believe our tradition gives us the keys to navigating the darkness around us. 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. | |||
| Pillars of Hope - Rabbi Joel Nickerson | 15 Mar 2024 | 00:05:45 | |
A pillar of hope and a dark cloud frame Rabbi Joel Nickerson's Shabbat Message this week. 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. | |||
| A Letter to My Son - Rabbi Ben Naim | 08 Mar 2024 | 00:05:57 | |
I was delighted to lead a micro-mission to Israel with 4 of our congregants. The trip was designed to coincide with the ceremony in which my 21 year old son completed basic training and received his red paratrooper’s beret from the IDF. With the many twists and turns of the ongoing war with Hamas, the ceremony was delayed by a week. The volunteering and solidarity mission healed small cracked fissures and filled my heart. So much so that I boarded the plane home on Monday knowing my son would be sufficiently supported with his brother Yoni by his side representing our family. I sent him this letter and he was fine that I share it with you. 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. | |||
| Resilience - Cantor Kerith Spencer-Shapiro | 01 Mar 2024 | 00:03:41 | |
Last night I had dinner with a woman visiting from Israel who represents the Jewish mindfulness organization Or HaLev. We spent a good amount of time talking about her experience, and her family, and how her practice of meditation has helped her garner resilience during such a terribly difficult time for her and her family. She then asked me what do Jewish leaders - rabbis and cantors, especially - need at this time from an organization like Or HaLev. And that led to a discussion about anti-semitism here in the US. 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. | |||
| Tetzaveh - Rabbi Hannah Elkin | 23 Feb 2024 | 00:03:56 | |
This week in the secular, entertainment calendar, we find ourselves right in the middle of the most holy season: award season. And of course award season includes endless red carpets and the striking fashion that comes along with it. As celebrities make their way down the red carpet, some looks will become iconic, some fine but unmemorable, and some declared to be the worst. In the Torah portion this week, the High Priest and his fabulous ensemble are not to be outdone. 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. | |||
| Gifts - Cantor Lisa Peicott | 16 Feb 2024 | 00:03:35 | |
‘“The Eternal spoke to Moses saying: Tell the Israelites that they should bring me an offering, from every person whose heart is willing, bring for me a gift” (Exodus 25:1-2). Grammatically, we must ask why it says a “gift,” which connotes raising up?’ This question brought me back to my 1st year biblical hebrew class, and the word used for an offering or gift, terumah. In that hebrew word are the root letters, resh and mem. These two letters can form words that mean to lift up, raise up, or make higher, and so on. The idea that when we give a gift, that we are elevated to a higher place. That we become closer to God, or to holiness itself. 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. | |||
| As a Sign of Mind and Strength - Rabbi Joel Nickerson | 19 Jan 2024 | 00:03:34 | |
I received a text earlier this week from a congregant who sent me a picture of himself buying his first pair of tefillin. The picture was accompanied by the caption, “How my mornings start now.” To be honest, this is not someone I would have ever expected to wrap tefillin 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. | |||
| Why did God harden Pharaoh’s heart? Rabbi Hannah Elkin | 12 Jan 2024 | 00:04:02 | |
It is always a good day when a child takes the words right out of a rabbi’s mouth. Last Sunday afternoon at religious school at the Resnick campus, I shared the story of this week’s Torah portion (as the Torah portion each week runs from Sunday-Saturday) with the Kindergarten-2nd Grade students. As I began the story of Moses confronting Pharaoh to let the Israelites out of slavery and into freedom, I told them that I had a question for them at the end, so they needed to listen very closely. We listed off each of the Ten Plagues together, which were brought on both by Pharaoh’s stubbornness and then God’s own part in hardening Pharaoh’s heart. I was just about to ask the big question that I had prepared them for when a little voice piped up. “Wait, why did God harden Pharaoh’s heart? Why would God do that?” My question exactly, I said. 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. | |||