We arrived to the edge of the Ramon crater and were greeted by a small group of Bedouin people who served us an authentic meal of chicken (cooked in a stone stove), rice, fatir, potatoes and sweet potatoes. The surrounding area was pure desert. The guide told us that his lineage had lived in the desert for a very very long time. He explained to us some of the ins and outs of living in the desert claiming that “there are many little things here in the desert that only those that have lived here for a long time can see”. He finished his introduction by saying [...]

Joseph Kaiser, tenor (Montreal, August 22, 2018): The internationally acclaimed Montreal-born tenor Joseph Kaiser will be performing cantorial duties at Temple Emanu-El-Beth Shalom for the High Holidays. Mr. Kaiser will be the guest cantorial soloist for Erev Rosh Hashanah (Sunday, Sept. 9 at 7:45 pm), first day of Rosh Hashanah (Monday, Sept. 10 at 10:30 am), Kol Nidrei (Tuesday, Sept. 18 at 5:45 pm and 8:15 pm) and Yom Kippur (Wednesday, September 19 at 10:30 am). “The Days of Awe are a season of renewal, reflection, and repentance,” explained Rabbi Lisa Grushcow, Senior Rabbi at Temple. “Through his extraordinary voice and powerful presence, Joseph brings [...]

Like most kids, I experienced a degree of bullying. It was part of the queer fabric of being a gay kid in Alberta. I didn’t play the right sports. I loved Tegan and Sara – Who are Calgarians, by the way. I was always a little bit different. The transition between grade 6 and 7 was brutal. It was like a switch flipped in everybody’s brain but mine. In June my friends and I were really into riding our bikes down Nose Hill. By September, at our new junior high school, everyone was gelling their hair, popping their collars, talking about girls. Girls? I had never considered [...]

Chickens. The Israeli embassy gave chickens to St. Mary's School for Girls in Nakuru, Kenya today. It's part of an approach called Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), which the school's top educator learned in Israel. The essence of ESD is for children to invest in school life in an empowered way, working to create a sustainable community. As part of this, they help produce the food which is used for school meals... hence the chickens! But even here in Kenya, challenging and inspiring, I am following the news from North America. I am heartsick at the news of the continued bomb threats against Jewish Community Centres, and now [...]

What are we doing here? Members of our group plan to take turns blogging, so I won't be sharing every detail of our trip every day. That being said, each day is so full of experiences, questions, and reflections that I want to share with you. So today, let's explore how a nice Jewish girl finds herself in Kenya in the first place. When I was asked to be involved with this trip, I couldn't say no. Let me admit up front that I love to travel, and I have always wanted to go to Africa. But it's not just the location of this trip which drew me [...]

We landed in Nairobi last night after over a day of travel. Our delegation has twelve members, all young Montreal Jewish leaders, plus a diplomat from the Israeli foreign service. Including me, there are five Temple members on our trip. Today was a remarkable start. We began the morning at the Gatoto school (www.gatoto.org - check it out!). The school has 1082 kids between the ages of 4 and 13... and a staff of just 40, with fewer than 30 teachers. Class sizes range between 50 and 70 students. The school started out in a one-room church in the adjacent slum (which we drove through to reach the [...]

D'var Torah delivered by our Shlichim, Shanie and Alon Dotan, on Friday, October 16, 2015 Hard times are coming for the people of Israel; many people around the globe are watching this recent wave of aggression, searching for the right message, searching for the truth. And what is the truth? What is the right message? How should I act? What should I do? We see in the media the Palestinian leadership, the Arab leadership and the Israeli leadership blaming each other for inciting this wave of violence. We see in the media religious figures calling for violence, screaming to their viewers’ simple, narrow messages. We look at the [...]

Good morning from Camp George, on Maple Lake in Parry Sound, Ontario. The Reform movement is famous for its summer camps, and Camp George is the only URJ (Union for Reform Judaism) camp in Canada - which makes it very special, not unlike our Temple, the only Canadian URJ congregation east of Ontario. The setting is spectacular - classic Canadian cottage country - and the ruach (spirit) is equally great. As soon as I returned to Canada, I knew I wanted to send my kids here and to come here as camp rabbi. Camp rabbis, cantors and educators rotate into camp for a week or more at a [...]