Articles/In the News - The Denver Kehillah

Halachik Articles by Rabbi Gelman

Burying Jews and Gentiles In The Same Cemetery post Oct. 7, 2023
A Note on the "Unworthy" Ones: Birkhat HaGomel
Claiming to Know God's Will
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A collection of short articles on selected laws of Shabbat (Shabbat simplified)
- Sweeping floors on Shabbat
- Watering Plants on Shabbat
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Thanksgiving and Community (11/23/23)

Dear Friends,

I hope this note finds you well and enjoying Thanksgiving.

Even though over a month has passed since the “Black Sabbath” (this is what they are calling it in Israel) of October seventh, so many of us are still so deeply sad, angry and tormented.

I struggle, like many of you, to find the light and to conjure up the Thanksgiving spirit.

Even so, I will try to communicate one thing that has helped me in this regard.

This week, I had coffee with two TDK members, and of course, our conversation turned towards the war in Israel and the hostages. THE couple I was meeting with said that coming to shul has been a great comfort because it is a place where they do not have to explain why they are feeling down. They know that everyone else there , even if they are not necessarily feeling the same way, understands why they are. (Read more)

What we claim to know

Dear Friends,

I hope that the following message is uplifting and comforting.

I recently saw two videos of leading Chareidi Rabbinic figures insisting that God brought about the attacks in Israel in order to provoke Teshuva (repentance), implying that the horrific events in Israel of Oct. 7th were the fault of the Jewish people.

I am writing to let you know that I utterly reject such theology.

To imply that we know the workings of God is arrogant. As noted in the Talmud (Sanhedrin 105b) regarding Bilaam who describes himself as one who “knows the knowledge of the Most High” (Numbers 24:16), and the Gemara asks: Now, if the knowledge of his animal he did not know, is it possible that the knowledge of the Most High he knew?” (Read more)

TDK and Incusivity

Originally published in Intermountain Jewish News

East Denver’s vibrant Jewish landscape is going through another growth spurt, evidenced by the recent expansion of the East Denver Eruv, current reconstruction of the Mikvah of East Denver and the formation of some new synagogues, most notably the Denver Kehillah. From just an idea in April of this year to now attracting 60 member units, the Denver Kehillah is a modern Orthodox congregation with an emphasis on both words — modern and Orthodox. Denver Kehillah President Dr. Noah Makovsky says the shul began in April with meetings of “like-minded individuals thinking about the way we live our lives Jewishly — individually and communally — and how we see the future of our Modern Orthodox Jewish community. Many of us who had these similar ideas […]