This Tu B’Shevat, our community gathered for a thoughtful and engaging seder led by Rabbi Randy, featuring a special talk from our Scholar-in-Residence, Jared Goldfarb. With nearly 80 attendees, the evening was both well attended and deeply meaningful.
In his Tu B’Shevat teaching, educator and environmental activist Jared Goldfarb wove together Jewish text, his experiences living in Jerusalem, and inspiring real-world initiatives that bring Israelis and Palestinians together through environmental action—reminding us of the power of shared stewardship and hope.
On Saturday, Jared gave a d’var Torah at Shabbat Morning Services exploring the strength of complaint in Jewish tradition. Connecting biblical text to modern moments of collective protest and civic action, this teaching lifts up complaint as a shared language of concern and care, one that can build solidarity and push communities toward responsibility and repair.
The learning continued into the afternoon on Saturday with Jared leading a lunch & learn entitled “Drawing Lines in the Sand” – a text-based, map-guided exploration of how Jewish relationship to the Land of Israel was formed—and complicated—through biblical narrative, evolving borders, and competing sacred claims. This talk offered a framework for understanding today’s Israel/Palestine conversation not primarily as a religious war, but as a collision of deeply rooted narratives about peoplehood, belonging, and holy ground.
The weekend concluded on Sunday with “From the River to the Sea… There Is Room for You and Me!” as Jared helped our community engage contemporary questions in Israel and Palestine with nuance, care, and curiosity.
To request access to the video of the learning sessions, please contact communications@centralreform.org.
