You've Always Belonged Here: The Temple Israel Podcast

This week, Rabbi Plesent remarked about the United States of America's semiquincentennial and how respectful disagreement can strengthen both our communities and our democracy. To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below. Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠ ⁠@templeisraelwestport⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Temple Israel of Westport, CT⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Youtube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Temple Israel Westport⁠⁠⁠⁠ Website: ⁠⁠⁠ ⁠tiwestpo...

For this week's podcast, Cantor Becky Mann taught us during our Pride Shabbat on the Beach that we are all created b'tzelem elohim – in the image of God. To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below. Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠ ⁠@templeisraelwestport⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Temple Israel of Westport, CT⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Youtube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Temple Israel Westport⁠⁠⁠⁠ Website: ⁠⁠⁠ ⁠tiwestport.org⁠

Drawing on the shared history of enslavement and the imperative to remember the past, Rabbi Elana Nemitoff-Bresler reflects on the deep parallels between Passover and Juneteenth, calling for solidarity between the Jewish and Black communities to fight systemic racism and work together toward tikkun olam. To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below. Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠ @templeisraelw...

This week, Rabbi Friedman reflected on the sale of his childhood synagogue and how encounters with God have traditionally taken place in nature and invites us to experience the divine through wonder, awe, and the quiet presence found beneath the open sky. To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below. Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠ @templeisraelwestport⁠⁠⁠ Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Temple Israel of Westport...

For this week's episode, our Legacy Shabbat Artist-in-Residence, Cantor Barbara Ostfeld reflected on how TI has carried forward a legacy of social justice, musical innovation, and radical inclusion through generations of evolving Jewish leadership and worship. To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below. Instagram: ⁠⁠ ⁠⁠@templeisraelwestport⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Temple Israel of...

For this week's episode of You've Always Belonged Here, we are sharing excerpts from our 2026 Adult B'nei Mitzvah class: Diana Blau, Kate Jonas, Michael J. Miller, Randi Mondshine, Barbara J. Roffe, Hazel Malbin Shulman, Jeremy Swetzoff, Bernie Vagnini, & Susan Sanders Witkow. To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below. Instagram: ⁠⁠ ⁠@templeisraelwestport⁠⁠⁠ Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠...

This week, Rabbi Friedman urges "troubled Zionists" to remain engaged with Israel rather than distancing themselves. To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below. Instagram: ⁠⁠ @templeisraelwestport⁠⁠ Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠Temple Israel of Westport, CT⁠⁠⁠ Youtube: ⁠⁠Temple Israel Westport⁠⁠ Website: ⁠⁠ tiwestport.org

This week, Cantor Becky Mann explores the true soul of the state of Israel—a nation where holiness and peace are discovered by embracing a shared humanity within the complex tension of grief and celebration. To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below. Instagram: ⁠⁠@templeisraelwestport⁠⁠ Facebook: ⁠⁠Temple Israel of Westport, CT⁠⁠ Youtube: ⁠Temple Israel Westport⁠ Website: ⁠⁠t...

This week, Cantor Cadrain highlights the Torah’s invitation to turn towards one another, even and especially across lines of difference. To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below. Instagram: ⁠⁠@templeisraelwestport⁠⁠ Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠Temple Israel of Westport, CT⁠⁠⁠ Youtube: ⁠⁠Temple Israel Westport⁠⁠ Website: ⁠⁠tiwestport.org

This week, Rabbi Friedman explores the significance of "The Yoms": Yom HaShoah, Yom HaZikaron, and Yom HaAtzma’ut. To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below. Instagram: ⁠⁠ @templeisraelwestport⁠⁠ Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠Temple Israel of Westport, CT⁠⁠⁠ Youtube: ⁠⁠Temple Israel Westport⁠⁠ Website: ⁠⁠ tiwestport.org

This week, Rabbi Elana Nemitoff-Bresler discusses the joy and wonder of counting the Omer. To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below. Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠ @templeisraelwestport⁠⁠⁠ Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Temple Israel of Westport, CT⁠⁠⁠⁠ Youtube: ⁠⁠⁠Temple Israel Westport⁠⁠⁠ Website: ⁠⁠⁠tiwestport.org⁠

This week, Rabbi Friedman draws from Hillel's idea of the Jewish people being Erev Rav– a mixed multitude, reclaiming the Jewish tradition of respectful disagreement to bridge the deep political and ideological divides at our own Seder tables. To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below. Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠ ⁠@templeisraelwestport⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Temple Israel of Westport, CT⁠...

Introducing You've Always Belonged Here: The Temple Israel Podcast To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below. Instagram: @templeisraelwestport Facebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CT Youtube: Temple Israel Westport Website: tiwestport.org