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Rabbi’s Review – April 2021

April 1, 2021

Resetting the Table Rabbi Cassi Kail rabbikail@bethelsp.org On a Sunday afternoon, eighteen community members gathered to begin a series of courageous conversations through an organization called Resetting the Table. Participants were diverse in age, perspectives, political leanings, and life experiences. They shared a desire to create meaningful relationships and learn skills for having difficult conversations […]

Rabbi’s Review – March 2021

March 1, 2021

Celebrate Freedom Rabbi Cassi Kail rabbikail@bethelsp.org Passover is my favorite holiday. It isn’t the matzah ball soup or haroset that I most look forward to (though they are delicious). Instead, it is the way we gather around a table each year (virtual or in-person) and tell the story of our people. Tradition requires even the […]

Rabbi’s Review – February 2021

February 1, 2021

A World Upside Down Rabbi Cassi Kail rabbikail@bethelsp.org Purim is a topsy-turvy holiday. One of the most important phrases in the entire Megillah is v’nahafoch hu, which means “upside down.” Last year, we honored this tradition through the hilarity of Purim spiels, costumes, pranks, drinks, and carnival games. Little did we know how upside-down this […]

Rabbi’s Review – January 2021

January 1, 2021

Resetting the Table Rabbi Cassi Kail rabbikail@bethelsp.org I grew up in a mixed family. My mother was a democrat, and my father, a republican. Conversations around the dinner table often erupted into passionate debate over governmental policies, economics, and religion, especially when we had guests. My house defied the age-old rule never to talk politics […]

Rabbi’s Review – December 2020

December 1, 2020

This Hanukkah, Be the Light Rabbi Cassi Kail rabbikail@bethelsp.org Nine months into the pandemic, every one of us has felt the impact. Somehow, around Thanksgiving, the emotional toll feels particularly pronounced. After my fourth conversation in one day with community members struggling from grief, loneliness, and isolation, I hung up the phone and thought, “Hanukkah […]

Rabbi’s Review – November 2020

October 29, 2020

Self Care Rabbi Cassi Kail rabbikail@bethelsp.org I write this article as the month of Heshvan is beginning. Just after the four major holidays that occur in quick succession during the High Holy Day season, the month of Heshvan represents a change of pace. The Talmud refers to this month as Mar Heshvan; the word Mar […]

Rabbi Cassi’s Yom Kippur Afternoon Sermon 5781

September 28, 2020

One mitzvah leads to another – A contagion worth spreading On Rosh Hashanah, many of us took part in a ritual called Tashlich, in which we toss our metaphorical sins into the water. Whether communally or individually, we took time to reflect on the year’s ups and downs, our missteps, and the choices we plan […]

Rabbi Cassi’s Yom Kippur Morning Sermon 5781

September 28, 2020

Change is Possible, After All Derek Black was born into a family of white nationalists. His father was not only the grandmaster of the Ku Klux Klan, but the creator of the popular white supremacist website Stormfront. At a young age, he was primed to be a future leader in the Ku Klux Klan. By […]

Rabbi Cassi’s Rosh Hashanah Morning Sermon 5781

September 19, 2020

L’chaim: TO LIFE! Rosh Hashanah 5781/2020 Rabbi Cassi Kail At the end of March, I received a call from my dad. He was worried about my mother’s deteriorating health. She had been struggling with COVID-19 for several days, and it was clear that her condition was declining rapidly. Dad had just put my mother in […]

Rabbi Cassi’s Erev Rosh Hashanah Sermon 5781

September 18, 2020

Responding to Loneliness Erev Rosh Hashanah 5781/2020 Rabbi Cassi Kail It’s been six months since the first stay-at-home orders were issued in Los Angeles county. Many of us forget what friends and family look like without zoom boxes around their heads, or facemasks covering their noses and mouths. We work on zoom. We learn on […]