Erev Shabbat with Marty Plotkin

In-person & online

This is a challenging moment in the Jewish calendar. The evening of July 25 marks the start of the month of Av, with nine days of lamentation culminating in Tisha b’Av, the anniversary of the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. The Torah portion is Matot-Masei, which recounts among other things the slaughter of the Midianites and the violent conquest of the land of Canaan. But it’s the genius of our tradition to find deep, authentic, spiritual meaning even in this very troubling history. We invite you to join us in the coolness of our Sanctuary (or in the comfort of your home on Zoom, but please do come in person if you can) to welcome Shabbat with song, prayer, and warm community, and perhaps to learn something from our sages about the art of seeing deeply into a perplexing text.