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JFGSB Blog

Explore news and featured stories about Jewish Federation programs, volunteers, donors, special events and updates from our partners in Israel. Learn how you can become more in engaged with the Jewish Federation of Greater Santa Barbara.

Oct 9, 2020

A Sabbath Message: Simchat Torah – Reconnecting with Joy

“V’samachta b’chagecha...And you shall rejoice in your Festival…and you will be only happy.” – Book of Deuteronomy (16:14-15)

“Joy is any feeling fully felt, any experience we give our whole being to…I feel a deep sense of joy every moment of my life, in which I am utterly…

Oct 2, 2020

A Sabbath Message: The Lessons of Sukkot – Fragility and Resilience

“U’vros aleynu sukkat shelomecha –
May You spread over us the Divine Sukkah of peace.”
– Traditional evening liturgy
 
“In the Sukkah, a house that is open to the world, a house that freely acknowledges that it cannot be the basis of our security, we let go of this need. The i…

Sep 25, 2020

A Sabbath Message: Teshuvah – The Redemptive Power of Repentance

“Teshuvah, Tefilah, Tzedakah – Ma’avirin et ro’ah ha’gezeyrah.
But Repentance, Prayer and Deeds of Righteousness have the power to transform the harshness of our destiny.” – High Holiday Liturgy

“We are free. Judaism is the religion of the free human being freely respondin…

Sep 18, 2020

A Rosh Hashanah Message: A Prayer and Reflection for a Sweet New Year

“Ha-yom harat olam, ha-yom ya-amid ba-mishpat…
Today the world stands at birth, today all creation is called to judgment.”

– Rosh Hashanah Liturgy

“The blasts of the shofar on Rosh Hashanah revitalize the soul and mind of every Jew. Each one receives a new soul and a new lev…

Sep 11, 2020

A Sabbath Message: Elul Jewel #4 – Memory and Meaning

“A great horn sounds, calling you to remembrance, but all you can remember is how much you have forgotten. Every day for a month, you sit and try to remember who you are and where you are going. By the last week of this month…your prayers become urgent. Then the great horn sounds in earn…