Rabbi Koppell’s Writings
We can still talk about Purim, right? Purim may have officially ended when we lit candles and entered into Shabbat. However, in some parts of the world, ancient walled cities- like Jerusalem- it’s STILL Purim. It’s actually called “Shushan Purim” and it commemorates the tragic loss of life that the…
You may have missed a sad, recent event in the news. Overshadowed by current events, the death of Alex Trebek, long time host of “Jeopardy,” was barely noticed. No, I’m not a serious fan of the show, but I am a fan of questioning, and Alex Trebek was the man…
Chazak, chazak, v’nitchazek- that’s what we’ll say at the end of this week’s parsha, and it seems to be a good prayer for the end of 2020 and the dawn of 2021- we’ve had strength to get to this point; may we have the strength to move forward. The parsha…
Updated: Dec 8 It’s impossible to ignore today’s date. December 25th. As a Jewish minority living among a Christian majority, we can’t help but be aware of the significance of this date to our friends and neighbors, who celebrate today the birth of a first century rabbi and teacher, Jesus…
Did you know that today is a holiday? And I don’t mean “Black Friday?” I only recently learned that StoryCorps has informally designated today, the day after Thanksgiving, as the “National Day of Listening.” One might hope that we actually listen to each other EVERY day. But, then again, we…
A member of our community recently shared with me his frustration that he had apologized to someone, “I’m sorry, please forgive me,” and he sensed that the person was still withholding forgiveness and reconciliation. In that moment, I reflected on The Five Languages of Apology as defined by Gary Chapman…
A few lyrics- “I believe the children are our future.” So sings Whitney Houston, and I am inclined to agree. “Do you believe in life after love?” Cher posed that question and I believe that I do. The Lovin’ Spoonful want to know, “Do you believe in magic?” I guess…
September 11, 2020 It’s Sept. 11th. You just can’t ignore that date. Or maybe you can? It’s hard to believe it was 19 years ago, so there is a whole generation for whom Sept. 11th is the day after Sept. 10th and the day before Sept. 12th. But not for…
I want to invite you to take a breath. A deep breath. Let it out slowly and luxuriously. Pause now, and, at your leisure, inhale once again. The average person takes 23,000 breaths a day, virtually all of them completely unconscious. What is it like when we hold our breath?…
According to the Torah, we are just now, with this week’s parsha, entering Bamidbar/the wilderness. According to us, it feels like 40 years of wandering aimlessly, hoping to reach the promised land with no idea how to get there, when we will arrive, and how we will survive along the…