Rabbi Mendel Liberow: The Jewish New Year
P.T. Barnum famously said, “There’s no such thing as bad publicity.” What he meant by that was that it doesn’t matter as much what people are saying about you as long as they’re talking about you. The worst feeling is not when someone speaks...
Religion: Becoming the best version of ourselves
If you were told to repent the day before you die, when should you start repenting? Right now!
Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur (10 days apart) are the Jewish High Holy Days. Observance includes communal prayer, food (such as apples dipped in honey for a...
Religion: Response to a Vocal Minority
In the San Francisco Bay Area, we seem to be in a bubble of more open-minded thinking and inclusion. There are other places, regions and states that seem to be filled with fear of the outsider and suspicion of neighbors of different ethnicity, national...
Religion: A time of discipline, sacrifice and reflection
A special time of the year for millions of Muslims worldwide began in the first week of March 2024, the Islamic month of Ramadan.
Ramadan is the ninth month and holiest month of the Islamic lunar calendar. It is a time of festivity, community, charity and...
Rabbi Mendel Liberow: Celebrate Chanukah
We’re about to celebrate one of my most favorite Jewish holidays: Chanukah, the Festival of Lights, which begins Dec. 18 and runs through Dec. 26.
It’s my favorite because more than any other Jewish holiday, Chanukah is all about celebrating our freedom to live proudly...
Rabbi Mendel Liberow: Have you noticed those curious-looking structures?
A few of you may have noticed the curious-looking structure that popped up outside my home recently. No, we did not embark on an overnight house expansion project. What you saw is our sukkah—a temporary structure that is the highlight of the weeklong holiday...
Rabbi Mendel Liberow: Why be thankful?
Recently, Chabad of South County Women’s Circle hosted a pre-Thanksgiving event titled, “Give Thanks by Giving Back.” We gathered to make fleece blankets and care packages to donate to Rebekah Children’s Services. I was heartened and touched by the tremendous response from our community...
As school begins, make a fresh start
This time of year, many of us think about going back to school, for ourselves or for our children or grandchildren. There are all sorts of questions: Who is taking children to school? Do we have the correct supplies? Who is making the lunches?...
Religion: Prayers of the faithful
Prayer takes on different forms in different religious expressions. Prayers are chanted, spoken or sung. Prayers are spoken aloud or uttered more silently.
One of the notable expressions of prayer in Christianity is the prayer Jesus taught his disciples when they asked, “Lord, teach us to...
Religion: Learn about Faith of our Neighbors Sept. 22
Everyone in South County is invited to Faith of our Neighbors, an educational program presented by the Interfaith CommUNITY of South County (ICSC) and the Interfaith Clergy Alliance.
In this series, the focus is on the ways different faiths acknowledge and celebrate lifecycles, including birth,...