Rabbinic Reflection: Rabbi Eliza McCarroll

Dear Holy Blossom Temple Family,

With this upcoming Shabbat being my installation, I wanted to take a moment to express my gratitude to each of you – our congregants, lay leaders, and my colleagues – for the gifts that you have given to our entire community, as I’ve integrated into Temple life.

In your contributions of time and talent, you strengthen Holy Blossom each day and make it a place that has proven itself warm, welcoming, and full of wisdom, and a place that I am so proud to call home.

I am also extraordinarily excited to welcome a good friend of our congregation, Rabbi Karen Thomashow, back to her Holy Blossom home to be with us for my installation as Assistant Rabbi.

Equally, this Shabbat is a time to draw your attention to a few upcoming programs and initiatives that fall under my portfolios, which I hope will be of interest and meaning to join:

• Monday, December 5, 7:30 pm: the Luke Sklar Mental Health Initiative is presenting an important panel entitled: Childhood Sexual Abuse in Jewish Spaces: A Panel Discussion with Author Stephen Mills, Dr. Guila Benchimol, and Tracy Doyle. Find out more and register here.
• Shabbat morning December 10, 11 am: Family Services – Channukah edition! Family Services are always special, but even more so when we get to celebrate chagim together. Come along, bring your children, your grandchildren, and friends, for the joyous music of David Gershon and an interactive, relaxed environment featuring some Channukah fun!
• Contact me at [email protected] for the following Bikkur Cholim mitzvah opportunities: our new Kugel Kindness program, where we are making kugels to deliver to congregants who could use a lift, OR, to visit our retirement facility partners with Jewish residents, such as Amica and Baycrest.

Our tradition teaches us not to separate ourselves from the community (Pirkei Avot 2:4).

As such, I would love to hear from you if you would like to be involved, and, mostly, I look forward to celebrating our congregation with you all this Shabbat, and to all the good work we will do together.

B’todah u’b’ahava,

Rabbi McCarroll