by Cantor Sally L. Neff | Sep 8, 2010 | Nature, The Things I Learn from My Students
Hi all! I wanted to share two things with you to put you in a Rosh Hashanah mood for tonight. The first is in the catagory, “Wisdom of My Students.” I assign my students thirteen mitzvot to do in preparation for their Bar or Bat Mitzvah. One of these is to...
by Cantor Sally L. Neff | Jul 31, 2010 | D'var Torah, Deuteronomy
“And now, O Israel, what does the Eternal One your G-d demand of you? Only this: to revere/ fear (yirah) the Eternal One, your G-d, to walk only in G-d’s paths, to love G-d, and to serve the Eternal One, your G-d, with all your heart and soul.”...
by Cantor Sally L. Neff | Jul 18, 2010 | Judaism
This coming Tuesday we will mark the Jewish observance of Tisha B’av. Tisha B’av, or the 9th day of the month of Av, is a national day of mourning for the Jewish people. According to tradition, a large number of disasters befell our people on this day. The most...
by Cantor Sally L. Neff | Jun 29, 2010 | Judaism
I had the unfortunate occasion to be present for many family recitations of the mourner’s Kaddish when I was a child. After my grandparents died, my mom and dad always went to shul for their yahrzeits. When my mother’s father passed away, I attended...
by Cantor Sally L. Neff | Jun 6, 2010 | Judaism, Knitting
My mother is an incredibly talented artist. For many years now, she has used her talents for the sake of hiddur mitzvah – beautifying the mitzvah – of tallit. She painted her first tallit for the occasion of my Bat Mitzvah. It was purple flowers on white...