<![CDATA[RABBI ELIZABETH W. GOLDSTEIN - Rabbi\'s Writings]]>Tue, 10 Mar 2026 22:46:14 -0700Weebly<![CDATA[Corona Virus Pandemic - Jewish Poetry]]>Tue, 24 Mar 2020 21:41:53 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/corona-virus-pandemic-jewish-poetryShared by Marcie Belgard, Congregation Beth Sholom, Richland Washington, "One last thought – though we may not see each other for a while, we need to fight “social distancing”  by remaining connected to one another. There is strength in community. Here is the poem. I hope you enjoy as much as I did."
 
Pandemic
 
What if you thought of it
as the Jews consider the Sabbath—
the most sacred of times?
Cease from travel.
Cease from buying and selling.
Give up, just for now,
on trying to make the world
different than it is.
Sing. Pray. Touch only those
to whom you commit your life.
Center down.
 
And when your body has become still,
reach out with your heart.
Know that we are connected
in ways that are terrifying and beautiful.
(You could hardly deny it now.)
Know that our lives
are in one another’s hands.
(Surely, that has come clear.)
Do not reach out your hands.
Reach out your heart.
Reach out your words.
Reach out all the tendrils
of compassion that move, invisibly,
where we cannot touch.
 
Promise this world your love–
for better or for worse,
in sickness and in health,
so long as we all shall live.
 
–Lynn Ungar 3/11/20
]]><![CDATA[Separation and Union: Holiness in the Time of the Corona Virus]]>Sat, 21 Mar 2020 07:00:00 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/separation-and-union-holiness-in-the-time-of-the-corona-virusSeparation and Union: Holiness in the Time of the Corona Virus 

Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh
holy and separate
emulating angels, saving lives

Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh
set apart and sanctified
emphasizing a great yet distant power

Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh
sanctified and distinct
separating the mundane and the sacred

Kiddushin a holy union between two
separating us into a single unit 
away from the rest of the world

Kiddushin a holy bond with each other
to the exclusion of every other person 
on the planet

Kiddushin without physical proximity
we can fill the universe with our love
connecting across the miles

Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh
like distinguished
different or separate but also special

Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh
like the light and darkness
each with a beautiful purpose

Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh
like one who doesn't go with the crowd
holding strong with opposite inclinations

Shalom, Shalom, Shalom
peace, hello, goodbye
separation and unity

by Kimberly Burnham
The Torah Poetry Project

Kadosh means "holy" and "separate" in Hebrew. Kiddushin is part of the marriage ceremony joining the couple together to the exclusion of all others.
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]]><![CDATA[World Jewish Congress statement of concern regarding coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic]]>Thu, 19 Mar 2020 07:00:00 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/world-jewish-congress-statement-of-concern-regarding-coronavirus-covid-19-pandemic
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World Jewish Congress statement of concern regarding coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic

Dear friends,

We have been monitoring the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus around the world with great concern over the last months and we are acutely aware that it is having a significant impact on many of our affiliated communities and organizations. [Read More}

We realize that this is a very difficult time for community leadership, as many aspects of our lives are affected by the restrictions being put in place by local, regional or national authorities, or by uncertainty amongst community members about participating in communal events, attending synagogue services, or sending our children to schools. [Read More]

]]><![CDATA[Prayers and Liturgy in Times of the CoronaVirus]]>Fri, 06 Mar 2020 20:38:50 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/prayers-and-liturgy-in-times-of-the-coronavirusFor Prayers and Liturgy in Times of the Corona Virus [Click Here] ​from the Central Conference of American Rabbis.
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]]><![CDATA[Paying Dues to the Synagogue]]>Sat, 29 Feb 2020 08:00:00 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/paying-dues-to-the-synagogueAdult Education, Rabbi's Teachings from Rabbi Elizabeth Goldstein and Sefaria.
​
שמות כ״ה:א׳-ח׳(א) וַיְדַבֵּ֥ר יְהוָ֖ה אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֥ה לֵּאמֹֽר׃ (ב) דַּבֵּר֙ אֶל־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל וְיִקְחוּ־לִ֖י תְּרוּמָ֑ה מֵאֵ֤ת כָּל־אִישׁ֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר יִדְּבֶ֣נּוּ לִבּ֔וֹ תִּקְח֖וּ אֶת־תְּרוּמָתִֽי׃ (ג) וְזֹאת֙ הַתְּרוּמָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר תִּקְח֖וּ מֵאִתָּ֑ם זָהָ֥ב וָכֶ֖סֶף וּנְחֹֽשֶׁת׃ (ד) וּתְכֵ֧לֶת וְאַרְגָּמָ֛ן וְתוֹלַ֥עַת שָׁנִ֖י וְשֵׁ֥שׁ וְעִזִּֽים׃ (ה) וְעֹרֹ֨ת אֵילִ֧ם מְאָדָּמִ֛ים וְעֹרֹ֥ת תְּחָשִׁ֖ים וַעֲצֵ֥י שִׁטִּֽים׃ (ו) שֶׁ֖מֶן לַמָּאֹ֑ר בְּשָׂמִים֙ לְשֶׁ֣מֶן הַמִּשְׁחָ֔ה וְלִקְטֹ֖רֶת הַסַּמִּֽים׃ (ז) אַבְנֵי־שֹׁ֕הַם וְאַבְנֵ֖י מִלֻּאִ֑ים לָאֵפֹ֖ד וְלַחֹֽשֶׁן׃ (ח) וְעָ֥שׂוּ לִ֖י מִקְדָּ֑שׁ וְשָׁכַנְתִּ֖י בְּתוֹכָֽם׃

Exodus 25:1-8 (1) And Adonai spoke unto Moses, saying: (2) Tell the Israelite people to bring Me gifts; you shall accept gifts for Me from every person whose heart so moves him. (3) And these are the gifts that you shall accept from them: gold, and silver, and copper; (4) blue, and purple, and crimson yarns; fine linen, and goats’hair; (5) tanned ram skins, dolphin skins, and acacia-wood; (6) oil for lighting, spices for the anointing oil, and for the aromatic incense; (7) lapis lazuli, and other stones for setting, for the ephod, and for the breastplate. (8) And let them make Me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them. [Read Entire Source Sheet].]]><![CDATA[Kol Nashim: Rosh Hodesh Shevat]]>Sat, 08 Feb 2020 08:00:00 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/kol-nashim-rosh-hodesh-shevatby Rabbi Elizabeth Goldstein on Sefaria

שמות י״ב:א׳-ב׳
(א) וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יי אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֣ה וְאֶֽל־אַהֲרֹ֔ן בְּאֶ֥רֶץ מִצְרַ֖יִם לֵאמֹֽר׃ (ב) הַחֹ֧דֶשׁ הַזֶּ֛ה לָכֶ֖ם רֹ֣אשׁ חֳדָשִׁ֑ים רִאשׁ֥וֹן הוּא֙ לָכֶ֔ם לְחָדְשֵׁ֖י הַשָּׁנָֽה׃

Exodus 12:1-2(1) And the LORD spoke unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying: (2) ’This month shall be unto you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you.

Talmud Yerushalmi Ta'anit 1:6
Women who refrain from work on Rosh Chodesh [= the first day of a lunar month] are following an established custom. [Read Complete Source Sheet]

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]]><![CDATA[Consent and Respect in Judaism]]>Sat, 04 Jan 2020 08:00:00 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/consent-and-respect-in-judaismby Rabbi Elizabeth Goldstein on Sefaria.

ברכות י״ט ב:ט׳ת"שגדול כבוד הבריות שדוחה [את] לא תעשה שבתורה

Berakhot 19b:9 Come and hear : Great is the duty of honouring one's fellow-creatures, since it sets aside a prohibition enjoined by the Torah.

בראשית א׳:כ״ז(כז) וַיִּבְרָ֨א אֱלֹהִ֤ים ׀ אֶת־הָֽאָדָם֙ בְּצַלְמ֔וֹ בְּצֶ֥לֶם אֱלֹהִ֖ים בָּרָ֣א אֹת֑וֹ זָכָ֥ר וּנְקֵבָ֖ה בָּרָ֥א אֹתָֽם׃

Genesis 1:27(27) And God created man in His image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

בראשית א׳:כ״ח(כח) וַיְבָ֣רֶךְ אֹתָם֮ אֱלֹקִים֒ וַיֹּ֨אמֶר לָהֶ֜ם אֱלֹקִ֗ים פְּר֥וּ וּרְב֛וּ וּמִלְא֥וּ אֶת־הָאָ֖רֶץ וְכִבְשֻׁ֑הָ וּרְד֞וּ בִּדְגַ֤ת הַיָּם֙ וּבְע֣וֹף הַשָּׁמַ֔יִם וּבְכָל־חַיָּ֖ה הָֽרֹמֶ֥שֶׂת עַל־הָאָֽרֶץ׃

Genesis 1:28 (28) And God blessed them; and God said unto them: ‘Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that creepeth upon the earth.’ [Read Complete Source Sheet] ]]><![CDATA[If All The Seas Were Ink Book Club Reading]]>Sat, 06 Jan 2018 08:00:00 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/if-all-the-seas-were-ink-book-club-reading
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The Wall Street Journal: "There is humor and heartbreak in these pages...Ms. Kurshan immerses herself in the demands of daily Talmud study and allows the words of ancient scholars to transform the patterns of her own life."

The Jewish Standard: “Brilliant, beautifully written, sensitive, original."

The Jerusalem Post: "A beautiful and inspiring book. Both religious and secular readers will find themselves immensely moved by [Kurshan's] personal story.”

American Jewish World: “So engrossing I hardly could put it down.”

If All The Seas Were Ink by  Ilana Kurshan

The Wall Street Journal: "There is humor and heartbreak in these pages...Ms. Kurshan immerses herself in the demands of daily Talmud study and allows the words of ancient scholars to transform the patterns of her own life."

The Jewish Standard: “Brilliant, beautifully written, sensitive, original."

The Jerusalem Post: "A beautiful and inspiring book. Both religious and secular readers will find themselves immensely moved by [Kurshan's] personal story.”

American Jewish World: “So engrossing I hardly could put it down.”

"Jewish Community of the Palouse (JCP) Sisterhood Book Group:  Our first book, If All the Seas Were Ink, was received with a wide range of emotions and an abundance of thought provoking conversation.  Many of us in the group are interested in doing our own Daf Yomi and Rabbi Elizabeth Goldstein has just started hers."  Warmly, Jesica Sweedler DeHart 
]]><![CDATA[A Bride For One Night by Ruth Calderon]]>Wed, 13 Dec 2017 08:00:00 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/a-bride-for-one-night-by-ruth-calderon
​If you would like to read ahead for the Jewish Community of the Palouse (JCP) Sisterhood April meeting, Rabbi Elizabeth has chosen A Bride for One Night by Ruth Calderon.  We are asking everyone to bring book suggestions to the February and April meeting to help us choose our June book and future titles.
]]><![CDATA[​About The Dybbuks JCP Palouse Sisterhood Book Group for Feb, 2018]]>Tue, 12 Dec 2017 08:00:00 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/about-the-dybbuks-jcp-palouse-sisterhood-book-group-for-feb-2018
About The Dybbuks by Spokane, Washington author, Sue McClelland avialble for free kindle download on December 17-18, 2017 for Hanukkah

     "Immigration has never been easy-moving to a new country, learning a new language, and adapting to new cultural norms can be the most difficult thing a person ever does. Immigrating is not easy today nor has it been easy in the past. About the Dybbuks, a collection of short stories by Sue Lindenberg McClelland, addresses these issues from a personal/family point of view.
       Sue's grandparents and extended family, those who survived the pogroms, immigrated to the Hill District in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from Riga, Latvia in the early 1900s . The Hill District was full of Jewish, Irish, and Italian immigrants. Most were poor, and all were attempting to keep their native language and culture while at the same time needing to learn English, understand the new culture, survive, and prosper.
       The book is sensitive and well written. The author, a retired therapist, understands human nature and the problems we create for ourselves. For the uninformed, including me, there is a helpful glossary of Yiddish terms in the back of the book. This was a peek into many of our ancestors' experiences. It is also a reminder of the challenges immigrants face today."       -Pamela Pollack-Fremd, San Diego Jewish World Book Review 

]]><![CDATA[​If All The Seas Were Ink by  Ilana Kurshan - JCP Sisterhood Book Group Dec, 2017 Selection]]>Sun, 10 Dec 2017 08:00:00 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/if-all-the-seas-were-ink-by-ilana-kurshan-jcp-sisterhood-book-group-dec-2017-selection
​If All The Seas Were Ink by  Ilana Kurshan

The Wall Street Journal: "There is humor and heartbreak in these pages...Ms. Kurshan immerses herself in the demands of daily Talmud study and allows the words of ancient scholars to transform the patterns of her own life."

The Jewish Standard: “Brilliant, beautifully written, sensitive, original."

The Jerusalem Post: "A beautiful and inspiring book. Both religious and secular readers will find themselves immensely moved by [Kurshan's] personal story.”

American Jewish World: “So engrossing I hardly could put it down.”

"Jewish Community of the Palouse (JCP) Sisterhood Book Group.  Our first book, If All the Seas Were Ink, was received with a wide range of emotions and an abundance of thought provoking conversation.  Many of us in the group are interested in doing our own Daf Yomi and Rabbi Elizabeth Goldstein has just started hers." Warmly, Jesica Sweedler DeHart 

The next book for Febraury, 2018 is About the Dybbuks by Sue McClelland, Spokane, Washington
]]><![CDATA[About The Dybbuks by Spokane Washington Author Sue McClelland]]>Sat, 02 Dec 2017 08:00:00 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/about-the-dybbuks-by-spokane-washington-author-sue-mcclelland​Jewish Community of the Palouse Sisterhood Book Group

 JCP Book Group Blog 

About The Dybbuks by Spokane, Washington author, Sue McClelland available for free download on December 17 & 18, 2017 for Hanukkah
"Immigration has never been easy-moving to a new country, learning a new language, and adapting to new cultural norms can be the most difficult thing a person ever does. Immigrating is not easy today nor has it been easy in the past. About the Dybbuks, a collection of short stories by Sue Lindenberg McClelland, addresses these issues from a personal/family point of view.
       Sue's grandparents and extended family, those who survived the pogroms, immigrated to the Hill District in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from Riga, Latvia in the early 1900s . The Hill District was full of Jewish, Irish, and Italian immigrants. Most were poor, and all were attempting to keep their native language and culture while at the same time needing to learn English, understand the new culture, survive, and prosper.
       The book is sensitive and well written. The author, a retired therapist, understands human nature and the problems we create for ourselves. For the uninformed, including me, there is a helpful glossary of Yiddish terms in the back of the book. This was a peek into many of our ancestors' experiences. It is also a reminder of the challenges immigrants face today.
      -Pamela Pollack-Fremd, San Diego Jewish World Book Review www.SDJewishWorld.com/2017/05/09/about-the-dybbuks-tells-problems-of-immigrants/
]]><![CDATA[2016 April Gonzaga University Psalms Projects]]>Fri, 13 May 2016 01:39:24 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/2016-april-gonzaga-university-psalms-projectsDr. Elizabeth Goldstein's Hebrew Bible Students, please post the link to your project, MP4, or Powerpoint in the comments section below or email the YouTube Link to PsalmsProjectsGU@gmail.com
This is a special Psalms project that reflects life today.
]]><![CDATA[Melissa Remy Haskin Psalms Project]]>Thu, 12 May 2016 01:49:07 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/melissa-remy-haskin-psalms-project
]]><![CDATA[Marleigh Noelle Brown Psalm Project]]>Thu, 12 May 2016 01:41:06 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/marleigh-noelle-brown-psalm-project
]]><![CDATA[Olivia Viola Zertuche Psalm Project]]>Wed, 11 May 2016 01:48:10 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/olivia-viola-zertuche-psalm-project
]]><![CDATA[Jordan Romeo Batres Psalm Porject]]>Wed, 11 May 2016 01:47:18 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/jordan-romeo-batres-psalm-porject
]]><![CDATA[Malcolm J Hull Psalm Project]]>Wed, 11 May 2016 01:38:57 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/malcolm-j-hull-psalm-project
]]><![CDATA[Kailee Price Psalms Project]]>Fri, 06 May 2016 05:42:10 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/kailee-price-psalms-project
]]><![CDATA[Alyssa Quan Psalms Project]]>Fri, 06 May 2016 05:40:52 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/alyssa-quan-psalms-project
]]><![CDATA[Sarah M Knight Psalms Project]]>Fri, 06 May 2016 05:39:40 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/sarah-m-knight-psalms-project
]]><![CDATA[Jordan T. Juranek Psalms Project]]>Fri, 06 May 2016 05:36:20 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/jordan-t-juranek-psalms-project
]]><![CDATA[Tuan Trong Minh Nguyen Psalms Project]]>Fri, 06 May 2016 05:33:33 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/tuan-trong-minh-nguyen-psalms-project
]]><![CDATA[Nicholas Lloyd Simmons Psalms Project]]>Fri, 06 May 2016 05:32:19 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/nicholas-lloyd-simmons-psalms-project
]]><![CDATA[Kelsey Norton Psalm Project]]>Tue, 26 Apr 2016 19:03:54 GMThttps://www.elizabethwgoldstein.com/rabbis-writings/kelsey-norton-psalm-project
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