Rabbi Howard Morrison

When people talk about great philosophical challenges in the Torah, they often cite some verses toward the end of the ten plagues. For example, after the Egyptians suffer from boils, the Torah says, "And God hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he did not hear them (the suffering Egyptians)."There are challenges to free will here. If God hardened Pharaoh's heart, how could God continue to punish him and the Egyptians?

In actuality, we read five times before the plague of boils that Pharoah hardened his own heart. Thus, in Midrashic literature, Rabbi Simon ben Lakish taught, "Since God sent the opportunity for repentance and doing the right thing five times to Pharaoh and he sent no notice, God then said, 'you have stiffened your neck and hardened your heart on your own. . . . So it was that the heart of Pharaoh did not receive the words of God." In other words, Pharaoh sealed his own fate, for himself and his relationship with God. Pharaoh refused to change. He became recalcitrant and arrogant. Pharaoh was unable to be self-critical and introspective. Thus, he led his army and his nation to disaster.

There have always been, and there will always be, Jew-hating Pharaohs and those who serve them. We are witnessing this phenomenon most recently since October 7. While a small few may be able to self-assess and change, the many do not and cannot change. They have put themselves in a place where their hearts are completely hardened and stiff. 

So, how do we overcome them? We are in the process of doing so by our unity, our caring for each other, our commitment to the ideals and principles that have guided our people for millennia. A modern miracle - the State of Israel - the Jewish people have returned to our homeland, established Jewish sovereignty, and are in the midst of building the third Jewish civilization and commonwealth. 

Sadly, and tragically, we are witnessing the hardened heart right here in the GTA. If any particular group wants to have its own demonstration or rally, there are appropriate ways to do so. The Pro-Israel rallies in Toronto and Ottawa have been done in peaceful ways and which have not disturbed the lives of innocent people. The Pro-Hammas rallies have been the opposite. These hardened and stiff-heartened people have recently held their so-called protests in the heart of the Jewish community. On recent Shabbatot, these have occurred at the Avenue road bridge hovering over the highway 401 and where a good part of the location is residential and largely Jewish.

Even more disturbing is the participation of a small but significant number of police officers distributing coffee to these supporters of Hammas. Rightly so, the Jewish community has responded. These hateful rallies in Jewish neighborhoods, without sufficient police protection, and with inadvertent support by giving coffee, only serve to validate these modern supporters of Pharaoh and which can only exacerbate further attacks on Jewish owned businesses, establishments, and other Jewish institutions. Due to the proper outcry of the Jewish community this past week, local police leadership endorsed some changes to better support the needs of our people. We will watch and see if progress is made.

We are forever grateful for the police support on a daily basis around our shul and the local Jewish community and do not fault the entire police for the acts of a few. However, all need to know the difference between an appropriate versus an inappropriate form of protest.

We have overcome the hardened heart in the past, and we will do so again and again.

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Howard Morrison

This past week, I attended the annual Rabbinic Training Institute at the Pearlstone Retreat Center in Maryland. An opportunity for professional development, I had attended almost annually until the pandemic. This was my first retreat in four years. 

Arranged by the Jewish Theological Seminary, my alma mater from 1982-1987, fifty Conservative rabbis became students for a four-day period. There was a colleague from Israel and from Germany, but most were North American. I am now one of the older students who attends. I met many returning colleagues, saw some colleagues whom I had not seen in many years, and discovered new acquaintances.  We picked our classes from a number of options. Mine were as follows:

Early morning - "Should we still care about obligation?" A Talmud/Rabbinics class on the notion of obligation regarding prayer and Mitzvah observance.

Mid-morning - A roadmap for preventing burnout and building resilience

Mid-afternoon - "Who was Moses?" This was a Biblical text on Moses. What were his origins? Was he a magician/warrior? a passive vessel of God? and more.

Evening - The cornerstone of healing

As you can see, a couple of classes were academic, and a couple were focused on physical, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing.

Regardless of our professional and personal station in life, I encourage us all to deepen an appreciation of our heritage and our self-fulfillment on a regular basis.

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Howard Morrison

The Hebrew term for the second book of the Torah is Shmot, "names." In the Parsha, names abound: Jacob and his twelve sons, Pharaoh,  Shifra and Puah, Amram and Yocheved, the daughter of Pharaoh, Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, Yitro, Tziporah, Gershom and Eliezer, and other significant people. 

Even God declares the divine name to be "Ehyeh asher Ehyeh," on which the commentary in the Etz Hayim Chumash states, "The phrase defies simple translation. It has been taken to mean ' I am whatever I choose to be,' 'I am pure being.' 'I am more than you can comprehend.' . . . The name is gender free . . . as befits a God who embraces polarities of male and female, young and old, transcendent and near at hand (Etz Hayim Chumash p. 330)."

Being created in the image of God, our names contain levels of meaning that define our character in part. On a personal level, I am named in English and Hebrew for my maternal great grandfather, of blessed memory. I was given his Hebrew names, "Avraham Tzvi." The first is a patriarchal name, hinting to my being a father of two sons and a patriarchal figure in my professional capacity. The second, Tzvi (gazelle), finds a rabbinic source in Pirkei Avot, the Ethics of the Sages, "Run like a gazelle (in terms of performing Mitzvot)." Little did I appreciate as a young boy that my late great grandfather was an ordained rabbi, although he never used his training to assume a congregational position.

Shmot, names, are indeed meaningful. Elsewhere in Pirkei Avot, we learn that the crown of a good name (the reputation we earn in life) exceeds all else.

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Howard Morrison

On this Shabbat morning, we completed reading Sefer Bereishit, the Book of Genesis. If one were to try and summarize the entire book, one might call it a book about brothers. At the outset, Cain kills Abel, a brother kills a brother. At the very end, however, brothers once divided, live together in harmony, that of Joseph and his brothers.

What about the intervening stories about brothers? We have the saga of Isaac and Ishmael. At an early stage in their lives, they have to be separated from each other. Ishmael is a bad influence on Isaac. They cannot remain together. However, that estrangement does not have to be permanent. We read that when their father Abraham dies, Isaac and Ishmael buried their father together. At some point, these two brothers united. 

While Isaac would be a progenitor of the Jewish people, Ishmael would be the progenitor of the Arab/Muslim world. There was a time in the Golden Age of Spain when Jews and Muslims got along, worked alongside each other, and shared from each other's insights. However, the Jewish - Arab/Muslim world has been bitter as well. Before October 7, Israel had made economic agreements with the United Arab Emirates and was close to striking a deal with Saudi Arabia. Do we know how these Arabs feel about the Jewish people right now? Sadly and tragically, Hamas seems to have purposely done what it intended to do in order to destroy any kind of bond between the Jewish and Arab/Muslim world.

Jacob and Esau are twin brothers. Conflict defines the early years of their relationship, causing Jacob to leave the nuclear family. However, some two decades later, these two brothers embrace each other and unite before going their separate ways again. 

While Jacob's name would be altered to Israel and become a progenitor of the Jewish people like Isaac, Esau's national personna would evolve over the generations. Esau became identified with the nation of Edom in Biblical times. Esau became identified with Rome in ancient rabbinic writings. Esau subsequently became identified with ancient Christianity. When one considers Jewish - Christian relations - hostility, persecution, and hatred came to define antiquity and most of the Middle Ages. Most of Christianity adopted replacement theology. The Church was now Israel. The Jew was replaced by the Christian. The New Testament superseded what Christians called the Old Testament.

While tensions still exist between certain Christian denominations and Judaism, some branches of Christianity, like some evangelical groups and Catholics, no longer believe in replacement theology. God has two legitimate covenants, one for Christians and one for Jews. There has become a new dawn in the relationship between Judaism and some denominations of Christianity.

Today, we finish Bereishit, Genesis - a book about brothers and their spinoffs throughout history. Now is a time to assess Judaism's brotherly relationships today. The events of October 7^th and beyond seem to have set many of the relationships backward, at least for the time being. With Ha'Tikvah as our mantra, we must "hope" that situations can change and improve, as has been the case up and down throughout Jewish history. Let us keep in mind that a book which began with one brother killing another ends up with brothers uniting as a family.

Rabbi Howard Morrison

This Shabbat, we conclude the book of Bereishit-Genesis. The entire book takes us on a journey of brothers' relationships. 

Cain murders Abel.

Isaac is separated from Ishmael, but they reunite to bury their father.

Jacob flees from his brother Esau, but they reunite and embrace later on.

Joseph has an estranged relationship with his brothers, but they reunite and make peace with each other.

Ephraim and Menashe are born in Egypt. While they are grandsons to Jacob, they are seen as sons by him as well.

The individuality of each narrative as well as a collective analysis show us the complexity of these stories of brothers.

This past week, I saw the movie, "The Iron Claw." Some of you know that I enjoy watching and attending professional wrestling, now referred to in many circles as sports entertainment. Sure, the results and the moves in a match are scripted. However, there is true athleticism, fine acting, special effects, and more.

When I was a child in the 1970's and a young man in the early 1980's, pro-wrestling did not show the kind of glitz it does now. The action was largely in the ring. Often, there was real hurt and pain in order to glorify the illusion of it being a competitive match. At times, injuries and hospitalizations took place.

In the 1980's and before, North American wrestling was divided into many territories. One of them, a branch of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) was called World Class Championship Wrestling, based in Dallas Texas. The most famous and popular wrestlers at the time were the Von Erich brothers: Kevin, Kerry, Mike, David, and Chris (not shown in the movie). They were loving brothers who excelled in their craft. Tragically, in real life and depicted in the movie, each brother except for Kevin dies horrific deaths in the prime of life. Also, the oldest brother, Jack, died as a young child before any of the other brothers entered the scene. Kevin is currently married with children and grandchildren.

As in the Torah's tales, the relationships between siblings are influenced by many things: the impact of parents, personal mental and emotional issues, sociology, and more. The same can be said about the Von Erich brothers and most other familial situations.

The Iron Claw is more than a wrestling movie. It is a timely modern Midrash on the stories found in the book of Bereishit-Genesis.

Sincerely,
Rabbi Howard Morrison

The Second book of Maccabees relates a story about a woman and her seven sons. This Biblical tale has been amplified with variations in different depictions found within Jewish literature.

Soon after Antiochus Epiphanes IV assumed leadership of the Syrian-Greek Hellenists, he outlawed Jewish practice and belief in God. In one particular scene, he summoned Hannah and her seven sons to worship idolatry, forsake belief in the one God, and abandon all forms of Jewish practice. When the family refused, Antiochus took the oldest son and dismembered the boy before killing him. Antiochus went on to kill all of the remaining sons, even the youngest, one after the other, with a mother having to witness the deaths of all her children.   Depending on the version of the account, Hannah then either threw herself over the corpses of her sons, threw herself into a fire, or threw herself off a rooftop, dying after witnessing the barbaric murders of her children.

This haunting Chanukah tale comes to mind especially this year, when Hamas tortured and brutally murdered over 1200 Jews in one day, including the rape and murder of many women, as well as the dismembering and killing of many children. The brutality of Antiochus can indeed be compared to the evil Hamas monsters.

Hannah and her seven sons have their story recorded for posterity in our tradition. A mother and her children are considered martyrs having died a Kiddush Hashem, sanctifying God's name because they were Jews. Likewise, may the stories of all who have died at the hands of Hamas, civilian or soldier, have their stories recorded for posterity and be remembered as martyrs who sanctified the name of God in their deaths. May their memories be recorded as blessings for all time.

Rabbi Howard Morrison

Although our originally planned trip to Israel had to be postponed due to the war, lately, many Jewish institutions are planning up to one week solidarity missions in Israel during which time we help performs deeds of lovingkindness with and for our brothers and sisters in Israel.

Already, I have contacted Ramah Israel Institute, our original tour operator. They would be glad to organize a solidarity trip for us this coming Spring. Please note that this kind of mission is very different from a two-week tour. We would stay in nice but more economical accommodations. We would be working every day in appropriate service projects. We would try to get a first-hand glimpse at some of the events which have transpired. We would aim to spend a Shabbat in Jerusalem.

Toward this goal, I need to know if there is sufficient interest from you, our Beth Emeth family. I have scheduled a meeting for Sunday morning December 24 at 9:30AM to discuss with you.

May the lights of Chanukah dispel the darkness of the world.

Chag Urim Sameach,
Rabbi Howard

In this week's Parsha of Vayeshev, Joseph appears to go down and down. At first, he is cast into a pit by his brothers. How could siblings, even if estranged from Joseph, do such a thing to him? The Torah informs us that the pit was without water. The good news is that Joseph will not drown. The bad news is that Joseph may die of thirst.

Soon after, Joseph is sold. The Torah informs us that literally, Joseph was taken down to Egypt, another level of descent. After an awkward scene in the home of Potiphar and his wife, Joseph is sent to prison, another downward spiral in his young life.

As we read about Joseph enduring and surviving in a pit and in an Egyptian prison, I think about the hostages who were and still are, God willing, enduring and surviving in secret tunnels and downward places under the reign of Hamas. Survivors have already reported their horrific treatment while in captivity. One can only hope and pray for the wellbeing and future return of the hostages still in captivity.

Among other things, Chanukah celebrates the ascent from lowliness and despair. We follow the view of Hillel who explains that we should light the Chanukiah in ascending sequence from night to night. The Talmud explains Hillel's view, "Maalin B'Kodesh V'Ain Moridin - We ascend in holiness and do not descend." 

May the remaining hostages soon ascend from that low place of physical and moral depravity. When that happens, we will truly say, "Nes Gadol Haya Sham - A great miracle happened there."

Shabbat Shalom and Chag Urim Sameach,
Rabbi Howard Morrison

I am struck at how every Parsha speaks to our contemporary relevant situation. Over the last several weeks, all of my sermons have interfaced with the plight of Israel and Jews around the globe. During these tumultuous times, I actually feel guilty to concentrate on anything else, for our people's physical, spiritual, and moral life is at stake.

In Parshat Vayishlach, Jacob is forewarned that Esau is approaching with four hundred armed men. Like a military strategist, Jacob divides his family into two camps, one to potentially fight, and one to escape and keep the family alive. 

Right after Jacob splits his family into two camps, prays to God for divine assistance, and sends gifts of appeasement, we are told, "Vayivater Yaakov Lvado - Jacob was left alone." How striking and relevant these words are right now. I, for one, and I believe for many of you and for many Jews around the world - we are feeling all alone. Almost no one understands our history, our experience, our suffering, our pain on real and existential levels. It is as if the prophecy of Bilam has come true again - Behold they (the Jewish people) are a nation that dwells alone, not recognized by the nations."

Maybe for a couple of days after October 7, there was international sympathy. But as one may have predicted, that sympathy did not last long. Overnight, Israel the victim became perceived as Israel the aggressor. The good are called the bad, and the bad are called the good. We are living in an upside-down world. Almost no one speaks with moral clarity. Almost everyone speaks with moral relativism, the likes of which we have heard before. Why is it so difficult to simply have people respond to the pure evil of October 7? Why do so many people avoid the question and bring up comments which are either factually wrong or simply irrelevant to the evil of October 7?

A few days after October 7, except for Jews, the U.S., and a few others, who is caring about and speaking about hostages? Who is caring about and speaking about rockets which continue to be hurled indiscriminately in Israel? Do I care about the loss of all life? The loss of lives in Gaza? Of course, I do. I consider myself a moral person. However, I also look at the root causes for the tragedies unfolding. The loss of life in Gaza is due to the people of Hamas and Hamas only! There was no loss of life prior to October 7. The loss of life since October 7 is due to the evil and indifference of Hamas to the people they are supposed to represent.

Jacob was left alone - We are left alone. Who do we speak with on an individual level? Who are our friends? Who understands us? Who even cares to understand our narrative, one which is based on irrefutable historical facts.

Jacob was left alone - We are left alone. Who do we speak with on an international level? With no disrespect, only the U.S., which is divided among itself, and a few others seem to understand Israel and support its needs.

Jacob was left alone - You have heard me say it before. But where are the clergy of other faiths and the adherents of other faiths? Here in Canada, don't they remember when rabbis and members of our synagogues formed rings of solidarity in years past when Churches and Mosques were attacked?

Jacob was left alone - In the aftermath of the Shoah, Pastor Martin Niemoller famously said, "First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak for me." 

In his article, "The lonely people of history," Yossi Klein Halevi, of the Shalom Hartman Institute, writes, "First they came for LGBTQ and I stood up because love is love. Then they came for the black community and I stood up because black lives matter. Then they came for me, but I stood alone, because I am a Jew." Klein Halevi's thesis is "When even Israel's allies begin to lose moral clarity about the justness of this war, Jews will stand and proclaim our truth."

It is no accident that right after Jacob finds himself alone, he struggles, he wrestles -  with God? with an angel? with himself? Not clear, perhaps some or all of the above. From that encounter, Jacob becomes identified with the word 'Yisrael-Israel," one who wrestles and prevails with God.

Today, the household of Israel finds itself alone in the vastness of the world. We are hurting; we are struggling; we are wrestling. But only by adhering to what we know is right and true will we prevail and move on as AM YISRAEL CHAI - the nation of Israel which is meant to live for eternity.

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Howard Morrison

In this week's Parsha of Vayetze, Jacob flees from Esau at his mother's request, to find safety and security at his uncle Lavan's house. Did you know that the literal translation of Lavan is "white." So, if you will allow me, Jacob is sent to find peace and tranquility at the "White house."

With this poetic joke in mind, if I were Jacob (a symbol of the Jewish people), and if I were sent to the White House or to Ottawa's equivalent, I might say the following to the Lavan in charge:

Do you believe that what took place on October 7^th is an example of moral depravity of the worst kind?

Do you believe that the victims of October 7^th are truly the victims? and the perpetrators of those events are advocates of pure hatred?

Do you believe that the victims of October 7^th have the right to defend themselves so that such depravity never again occurs on my (Jacob's) soil?

If nations of the past were validated and understood for fighting fully against Nazism, imperial Japan, Al-Qaeda, the Taliban, Isis, and other forms of pure evil, then why is my people not accorded the same right and understanding? Why I am the only nation in the world being pressured to have a cease-fire when the enemy for evil still stands strong?

Dear Lavan, or whatever your name is in your contemporary "White house:"

If you are not able or willing to speak with moral clarity, do you know that you are supporting hatred and violence against me, Jacob, and my people in your country?

Do you know that you are complicit in hatred perpetrated against Jews on campus and for an ideology of hatred on campus?

Do you know that you are complicit in Jews being fearful of attending school? wearing symbols of Jewish pride and commitment? displaying age-old Jewish symbols on the doorposts of our homes?

Do you know that you are complicit in anti-Semitic pictures being displayed at a downtown coffee shop? in a bomb threat at a Jewish high school one week ago which forced students and staff to evacuate to a nearby synagogue? to attacks at synagogues and other Jewish institutions? in the ripping apart and removal of pictures showing the faces of innocent hostages, young and old, taken away by brutal monsters?

Dear Mr. Lavan, or whatever your name is, let me ask you:

If over 1200 local citizens were slaughtered in your country on a single day; if among them babies were decapitated and cooked; if women were raped and then shot; if over 200 young people were murdered attending a music festival; if some 240 innocent people, young and old, were taken hostage - - - All on the soil of your country, I ask you, what would you do???? and what if the attack came from right outside your border????

3500 years ago, my ancestor Jacob thought he could dwell with his community safely under the jurisdiction of Lavan. Jacob thought wrong. Ultimately, he had to take his family away. I pray that for the people of Jacob today, we will never have to flee the countries of our "White houses."

Without moral clarity from top leadership, however, we the descendants of Jacob now live in constant fear and anxiety.

Without moral clarity from top leadership, we the descendants of Jacob are re-experiencing the angst and pain of the 1930's in Eastern Europe.

But we are the descendants of Jacob, not in the 1930's, but in 2023. We will not remain in fear, shock, or denial. We are now angry. We will not accept the hate directed against our people. We will not accept the moral relativism. We will not accept weakness in leadership, be it at universities, businesses, or in government. We will fight back.

We will not fight back by defacing stores, cars, or by burning flags.

We will not fight back by attacking people.

We will fight back by assertively using legal and moral principles to protect our rights, our safety, and our place as a "Jacob" in society.

The original Lavan did not mend his ways. Jacob had to flee. I pray that the Lavan leaders in democratic countries will see what is  morally clear, so that the Jacob of today will not have to flee but will be able to call his Diaspora his home.

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Howard Morrison

Tradition has it that in every generation there are 36 anonymous righteous people called the Lamed Vavnicks. Could it be they have been identified?

During the Hamas imposed war, three Israeli tanks were targeted and destroyed, each with seats for 12 soldiers. Due to a mechanical error in the first tank, the soldiers got out ahead of the destruction. Upon seeing the first 12 get out with no explanation provided, the other 24 soldiers in the following two tanks got out also before the destruction.

36 lives were spared. A Chanukah Kislev miracle? A contemporary lamed vavnick story?

In an interview, some soldiers felt that they were saved because world Jewry is praying for them, and they feel the spiritual power.

We here cannot do much. We can give Tzedakah and perform acts kindness. We can advocate for Israel. And we can and will continue praying for Israel, the IDF, and Jews around the world.

Rabbi Howard Morrison

On Wednesday, November 15, this week, I learned that two of my professors from rabbinical school at the Jewish Theological Seminary passed away -  Rabbi Israel Francus, a renowned Talmud scholar and Rabbi Avraham Holtz, a renowned scholar of liturgy and rabbinic texts. 

In addition to my learning from both of them, I also had the privilege of sitting next to them during services in the Stein Chapel. For years, I sat in the second row right behind Rabbi Francus, who sat in the front row. Rabbi Francus, who lived close to the Seminary,  attended virtually every service in the Seminary synagogue, morning, afternoon, and night, whether there were lots of attendees or even by himself at times. A true scholar, he was also a mentsch. His final exams were known as "Francathons." He was dedicated to making sure his students knew how to learn Talmud texts and the Rishonim, the early commentators on the texts. 

Rabbi Holtz commuted to the Seminary and often sat right next to me primarily at Mincha time in the Stein Chapel. While I did not have the privilege of taking a formal class with him, I benefited from countless informal conversations. I remember always seeing him with a book or article, something he was reading or writing. I was a rabbinical student when the original Siddur Sim Shalom was published. Rabbi Holtz served on the Siddur committee. During that time, we shared many discussions on the nature of Jewish prayer, statutory rules and where and when modifications could be made in the liturgy. I will always remember and treasure those conversations. Rabbi Holtz, like Rabbi Francus, combined the virtues of being a scholar and a mentch at the same time.

Yhi Zichram Baruch - May their memories be a blessing.

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Howard Morrison

Getting back on track:

It is a pleasure to say a few words at the AGM meeting this morning.

First and foremost is the Mitzvah of Hakarot Ha'Tov, acknowledging the good and giving thanks:

I wish to thank you - our entire congregational family -  for your continued support and involvement in our shul: From chesed knitters, to our Sunday Alef-Bet Chadash School, to attending adult classes and lectures, to attending daily Minyan or Shabbat services, to participating in person or on livestream, and much more - Thanks to you -  our entire community - for your continued support of Beth Emeth.

I wish to thank our professional team - Candace - her office staff, Maxim - his custodial team, Avivit ( our young families program and Hebrew school director), our Shinshinim - Omer and Sharon, Shlomo (our Torah reader), Ron (our director of spiritual engagement) - -  You have all made positive impacts on the present and future of our shul.

I wish to thank our outgoing president Steve Werger, his executive, board of directors, our advisory/ritual committee, and all the other committees - You all came into voluntary office as we were still coming out of Covid. You have all worked seamlessly and harmoniously to get our shul back on track.

 I wish to thank our incoming president Miriam Ziegler Goldberg, her incoming executive, board of directors, and new committees who will lead us into the next chapter of our shul's legacy.

This past HHD, for the first time since pre-pandemic, we had more people in shul and less people on livestream. Whereas livestream will continue to be available for those in any kind of need, having more people in shul was a great sign of where we are and the direction we are heading.

While the horrors of October 7 and beyond continue to haunt us, we did have over 20 people on board to tour Israel. This would have been our first synagogue tour since pre-pandemic when we visited Spain, Gibraltar, and Portugal. I pray that we will be able reschedule our tour to Israel sooner than later. The fact that we had a group ready to go before the trip had to be postponed is also evidence of getting our shul back on track.

I am grateful to the security personnel and police personnel who make sure that we are safe and comfortable anytime we choose to enter our precious Beth Emeth. I hope that we make a point to thanking them for protecting us.

While I hope I have not erred by omitting anyone - I and all of us should observe the Mitzvah of Hakarat Ha'Tov, of thanking and acknowledging the good from all who make our shul the best it can be, from staff to volunteer.

Shavua Tov (a good new week)

Chazak Ve'Ematz (be strong and have courage)

Yachad Ne'Natzeach (together we will be victorious)

Am Yisrael Chai (The people of Israel lives)
Rabbi Howard Morrison

Today, I wear a poppy. We remember all Canadians who made the ultimate sacrifice for our peace and well-being. We honor all the veterans who served and wish them well.

Today, I wear a yellow star, bearing the words "never again." We remember the anniversary of Kristallnacht two days ago, and we say "never again" is now as Israel and Jews around the world stand in peril, enduring a silence or hatred from much of the world at large.

Today, we read Parshat Chayei Sarah. In it, a generation comes to an end. The deaths of Sarah and Abraham are both recorded in today's Torah lesson. The middle section, however, focuses on the next generation, the generation of Isaac. He will be the definitive patriarch who never leaves his homeland, who maintains a steadfast faith to his heritage and his place of origin.

As the Parsha bridges two generations, we today do the same. We recall the horrors of the Shoah just over 80 years ago. In the last eight decades, we have said "never again" will such hatred be unleashed against our people. Who could have thought that during this week of the anniversary of Kristallnact (Nov 9, 1938), that world-wide Jew-hatred is back, with such words as "gas the Jews, cut off their heads, from the river to the sea." Jews at risk in a Russian airport. Jews at risk at university campuses, blockaded in a library at Cornell university, Jews accosted at Concordia, and made to live in fear in neighborhoods throughout the world?

Over 80 years later, we will not be defeated. In Israel, the unifying expression is "Yachad Nenatzeach - Together, we will be victorious." In a bold and courageous move, Israel delegates at the U.N. are wearing the yellow badge, imposed on Jews during the Shoah, but which now reads "Never Again."

While Jews live today in Israel and around the world, most Jews are proud to call ourselves Zionists, meaning we believe in the land of Israel as the rightful and sovereign homeland of the Jewish people. In this regard, we pay homage to the second patriarch of our history, the one who called Israel his home throughout his entire life - Yitzchak Avinu, Isaac our patriarch. 

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Howard Morrison