Blogroll | Congregation Darchei Noam

This past year, Darchei Noam was fortunate to have two wonderful Shinshinim, Noa and Itamar. On Saturday, June 8, they addressed our Shabbat congregants to say goodbye and tell us about all that they had learned during their year in Toronto.

Here is the transcript of their speeches:

Shabbat Shalom,

Being a Shinshin in Toronto has meant a great deal to me. It meant leaving my family, the kibbutz and my home,...Read more...

We had a very successful program with Aaron Lightstone last year.   Myra Schiff shares here about that experience.  We look forward to welcoming him back again this year, on Thursday, May 30 at 7:30 pm in the triple rooms.  We hope reading this blog post inspires you to join us for this year’s program. 

You may know Aaron Lightstone as a musician who sometimes leads us in singing on Shabbat...Read more...

This parasha is the last in the book of Genesis.  It is the end of the stories of the ancestors.  It contains three parts: the blessing of Menasha and Ephraim and their incorporation into the B’nei Israel (though once again, the younger brother prevails).  A long and sometimes bitter farewell from Jacob to his sons, rewarding some and cursing others.  And a final confrontation of Joseph and his brothers (other than...Read more...

"Parents were thrilled and felt it was a meaningful event. They enjoyed seeing the kids’ presentations and overall had a wonderful time.” Ariel Zaltzman, Director of Youth Education and...Read more...

Ki Tavo is a migration/immigration story. It is fitting we discuss it this shabbat after a summer when migration - and the treatment of refugees and asylum seekers - are such contested features of our world.

Ki Tavo means “when you enter”. This is a famous Torah portion. It is about First Fruits, tithes and blessings and curses. In Ki Tavo Deuteronomy moves to a climax- and here as the people of Israel get ready to enter the...Read more...

Esther Enkin:

There are times when we are lucky enough to have the privilege to participate in transformative events. Our weekend in Pittsburgh was one of those times for me – and, judging by the comments by members of Dor Hadash and the 28 DN members who participated, it is a widely shared feeling. It was truly remarkable - six weeks after such a profound trauma, our Pittsburgh hosts opened their homes and...Read more...

Shabbat Shalom

I’ve had a question in my mind for a very long time, and I return to it once in a while without really reaching any clarity. And that’s OK; it’s nice to have these meaty questions out there for reflective moments. This one is, why does Yom Kippur follow Rosh HaShanah, rather than precede it? That might seem arbitrary, but another way to think of it is, why...Read more...

I was once a good Catholic girl.

My parents were immigrants who came here from post-war Europe...Polish Catholic refugees who met and married in a British DP camp in Germany. When they came to Canada, they spent a short time in the depths of Northern Ontario, where my sister was born, but ultimately settled in Oshawa, where my father worked in a car parts factory.

They brought with them their religion and their culture, which...Read more...

Marcy: Welcome to Toronto Noa and Itamar! I understand that Toronto has the largest group of shinshinim in the diaspora and the program here is in its 12 th year. You have both deferred your army service for one year in order to
volunteer as Israeli emissaries here in Canada. Tell me a bit about yourselves and what part of Israel you are from.

Read more...

In the musical “Rent,” we are reminded: “Let's celebrate! Remember a year in the life of friends.” On May 27, under a glorious 6:00 PM sun on Peugeot Sound in Seattle, we were privileged to celebrate not just one year, but thirty-seven years of connections.  Several of...Read more...

You may know Aaron Lightstone as the musician who has led us in song on Shabbat mornings. Or you may know him from Rabbi Tina’s program on aging. On May 31, we got to know him through his program about his work as a music therapist. 

During the program, Health and Rehabilitation Benefits of Music and Music Therapy in Older Adults, Aaron talked about various aspects of music therapy, illustrating many of them...Read more...

I have always wanted a daughter, but, after 32 years, raising three boys to adulthood, I'd come to terms with my lot. A daughter was not in the cards - until this past Fall. When I heard that Darchei Noam's Shinshinit, Batel was still in need of a third host family, I jumped at the opportunity to offer her a place in our home. Having hosted Shinshinim in the past, I knew how rewarding an experience it could be.

"Shinshin" is an...Read more...

My interest in Reconstructionism began in the 1960’s when I was a university student and I subscribed ‎to the Reconstructionist magazine which, believe it or not, was published in print form and mailed ‎twice a month. As a result of my subscription I received a letter from Rabbi Lavy Becker of the ‎Reconstructionist synagogue in Montreal late in 1971...Read more...

“And let them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them” (25:8)

Today’s Parsha begins the narrative of the building of the sanctuary and the construction of its utensils. The entire focus of the Torah from this point on, through the end of the Book of Shemot (Exodus), The Book of Vayikra (Leviticus), and half of the book of Bamidbar (Numbers) is on the Mishkan, (Sanctuary). In total, 354 verses are devoted to the building...Read more...