Author: Congregation Beth El

A Fresh Chapter for the Scroll

May 28, 2026

In the past 75 years, since its first publication in 1951, the Scroll has undergone many transformations and reimaginings – the most recent of these being our move to a …

The Psychiatrist at Nuremberg

May 19, 2026

The recent Nuremberg movie spotlights a fascinating, behind-the-scenes relationship at the historic Nuremberg Trials that followed World War II. Over many months, U.S. Army psychiatrist Dr. Douglas Kelley examined and …

Freedom From Fear This Passover

March 26, 2026

The dominant theme of Passover is freedom. In the Haggadah, we celebrate the liberation of the Jewish people who had been enslaved in Egypt by pharaohs “who knew not Joseph.” …

Proving the Angels Wrong

March 23, 2026

Saul Golubcow’s Were the Angels Wrong? is both a marvelous whodunit and a moving meditation on the lingering aftermath of the Holocaust. This is the third book in Golubcow’s mystery …

Conversational Hebrew Class

February 23, 2026

Languages are a challenge for me. And I am not really competent in biblical Hebrew. Nonetheless, I’m a student in Yoel Gleizer’s Conversational Hebrew class. And I am very much …

Memoir as Comedy

February 23, 2026

Edward Hirsch is a celebrated American poet and the author of many notable books, both poetry and prose. He is also very funny, as shown by his wisecracking and witty …

The Film Director’s Tragic Bargain

January 20, 2026

The Director by Daniel Kehlmann (translated from German by Ross Benjamin) is a powerful, darkly comic World War II novel about art, ego, and bad choices. The “Director” of the …

Was Shakespeare a Jewish Woman?

December 17, 2025

More than four centuries after they were first performed, the plays of William Shakespeare continue to dazzle and inspire. But as to Shakespeare himself, a vocal minority has long contended …

Great Miracles Happen Here

December 9, 2025

Dreidel trivia: According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the most dreidels spinning simultaneously for at least 10 seconds is 820. The longest dreidel spin is one minute, 29.93 …

A Very Special Hanukkah

December 2, 2025

As we look forward to the celebration of Hanukkah, three words tend to dominate: gifts, lights, and miracles. We search for presents for our children and grandchildren. We clean our …