Ha D’var

rabbi noam raucher

Searching for Our Spiritual Crumbs

A Passover Reflection for Men   By Rabbi Noam Raucher If you saw someone moving through a dark house with a candle, searching for crumbs, it might look strange, even suspicious. On the night before Passover, though, that strange act becomes sacred. We call it bedikat hametz — the search for leaven — and while …

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Putting it all together

Friendship – Judaism – Mentorship – Community   By Bruce Tomar Over the last four issues I have expanded on just what these words mean to us as FJMC and as members of the larger Jewish community. Last year, we adopted our new name – FJMC International – and our new and ongoing mission: FJMC …

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“Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious”

Netta Reimagines a Disney Classic   By Jason Hecht When Netta Barzilai takes on a classic, she transforms it into something entirely her own. In her official lyric video for “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious,” Netta delivers a vibrant, modern reinterpretation of one of Disney’s most beloved songs, blending nostalgia with her signature pop energy. The song originally appeared …

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Get in the Spirit!

Widow Jane Decadence Straight Bourbon 10-Year-Old   By Al Davis Shalom achim. Last month I was pleased to present a higher end Scotch that, while delicious, might not be priced within everyone’s liquor budget. This time we’re looking at a marvelous bourbon from — believe it or not — Brooklyn, N.Y. I’m talking about Widow …

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rabbi noam raucher

Purim Isn’t a Costume Party. It’s a Reckoning.

Time to take off your masks   By Rabbi Noam Raucher Men know masks. Not the papier-mâché kind, not the Purim-store Batman face that snaps behind your ears and smells faintly of plastic. I mean the other masks: the ones we learn to wear so early we forget they’re masks at all. The competent mask. …

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California.. Here we come!

2027 International Convention to be held in San Francisco   By Jay Steinmetz FJMC International is pleased to present our 2027 International Convention, to be held from July 8-11, 2027, at the Westin St. Francis Hotel at Union Square in San Francisco. Chaired by Jay Steinmetz, with Rob Blitzer as convention vice-chair, this special occasion …

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Coming soon, to a Pesach seder near you!

Passover, your way   By Rabbi Noam Raucher It’s March, and Passover will be here before we know it. But at FJMC International, we haven’t forgotten. Here’s a special upcoming opportunity that you can participate in. FJMC recently sent out an email from Benny Sommerfeld, our vice president of Jewish programming, inviting our community to …

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Mental Healing Mind, Body, and Soul:

Mental Health Through Jewish Wisdom   By Rabbi Nate Crane Mental health conditions affect millions of people. Yet they remain stigmatized and often unspoken within the Jewish community. Drawing on biblical narratives, rabbinic thought, medieval Jewish philosophy and contemporary psychology, this presentation explores a Jewish perspective on mental health as a sacred and communal concern. …

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Who is Rabbi Nate Crane?

Upcoming FJMC Webinar speaker has deep Jewish leadership roots   By Norwin Merens Rabbi Nate Crane is the rabbi at Beth Hillel Bnai Emunah in Wilmette, Ill., having assumed the pulpit in 2019. Building on his current leadership, Rabbi Crane also serves on the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards (CJLS), the governing body of …

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Get Connected!

FJMC relaunches individual membership programming   By Leonard Zangwill FJMC International has traditionally been focused on our synagogue-affiliated men’s clubs across the United States and Canada, where groups of guys get together because they are already part of a shul together. But that no longer works for many Jewish men who may not have access …

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