What Today’s Dedication Means (Remarks delivered by Rabbi J.B. Sacks at the dedication of Congregation Beth Shalom’s new synagogue space in Palm Desert on September 11, 2022)[1] Good afternoon! What a wonderful occasion for us to gather, the dedication of a new home for Congregation Beth Shalom, a new home...

Due to the global pandemic, the Jewish values of piku’ach nefesh, saving endangered lives, and sh’mirat hanefesh, protecting our own lives, rightly predominated. As a result, we’ve held services and classes on Zoom. As it turned out, Zoom was quite a blessing, enabling us to meet with one another, to...