Dana Evan Kaplan

Last year for Hanukkah, we were hoping to be part of the Jewish community’s lighting of the menorah at Bienville Square. Things did not work out. I was pretty shocked at what happened. So we needed a Plan B. Howard S. and I decided to build our own menorah and celebrate in front of the Temple. Howard built a beautiful Chanukiah! Copper tubing and assorted fittings were used to construct the arms of the menorah, which are attached to a very heavy piece of wood. All the fittin

Thanksgiving is probably my favorite American holiday. It emphasizes the value of inclusivity in our society and how people of different backgrounds can learn to get along with each other: open hands, open arms, open hearts. One of the practices that I like to do when possible--it all depends on the environment and how receptive people might be to this--is to read one or more psalms that reflect appropriate sentiments, praise God for providing nourishment to us, and sometimes

We brought a goat to the synagogue in Jamaica. It was a great way to show the children how the Bible can come alive. The dictionary defines a scapegoat as someone meant to bear the blame for others. Originally, a scapegoat was a goat let loose in the forest on Yom Kippur after the high priest symbolically laid the sins of the people on its head. You can find this described in the book of Leviticus, chapter 16. We were looking for a way to make Yom Kippur memorable for the chi