Smol Emuni US

08/21/2026

Just a few seats remain for our private showing of Sandra Laub’s one-woman play “Picking Up Stones”!

Monday, August 24
7:00–9:30 PM
Upper West Side, Manhattan

If you registered but can no longer attend, please let us know so we can make the seat available to someone else. Once we reach capacity, we’ll begin a waiting list.

In this unflinching, 80-minute one-woman play, playwright and actress Sandra Laub portrays 21 historical and contemporary individuals, weaving their voices into a tense, cross-generational dialogue. A powerful cri de cœur, the performance reveals the raw complexity and pain at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Braiding these 21 voices with her own personal journey through the shadow of the October 7 attacks and the ensuing war in Gaza, Sandra searches for the human thread that might still lead toward peace.
A talkback will follow the performance.

RSVP: smolemunius.com/events/picking-up-stones

08/21/2026

“The Stranger in Your Tent”

By Shamai Leibowitz

What do returning lost property, a desert tent, and the Arabic greeting—adopted by many Hebrew speakers—Ahlan wa sahlan (“welcome”)—have in common?

They all have a connection to the Semitic root: א-ה-ל (A-H-L).

While Hebrew kept ohel (אֹהֶל) as the physical tent, Arabic came to use ahl (أَهْل) to mean the family living inside it. Saying “Ahlan!” conveys the idea: “You are family here. Step into my tent.”

In Parashat Ki Tetze, the Torah commands Hashavat Aveidah—returning lost property. But it adds a key rule: if you find a lost item and cannot return it immediately, "you shall bring it home and it shall remain with you until your peer claims it." (Deut. 22:2)

You don't say "it's someone else's property so it's their problem." Instead, you open your home—or your tent—to shelter it, treating a stranger’s belongings as if they were the property of your own “ahl”—your family.

Today, those who practice Protective Presence in the West Bank, such as בני אברהם and Rabbis for Human Rights are practicing a courageous form of this mitzvah. They stand with Palestinian families to shield their homes, land, and property from settler terrorism—often tacitly approved by the Israeli Army.

By standing guard over other people's homes and livelihoods, these volunteers are protecting another person's figurative ohel and treating those people as “ahl”—as family. Yasher Koach!

Shabbat Shalom.

08/20/2026

Yesterday, Rabbi Yael Vurgan led us in a powerful Elul learning session, exploring midrashim she wrote in the aftermath of October 7 and the ways sacred texts can help us process and speak about painful realities. She also shared personal experiences as a lay chair and activist with Combatants for Peace, including the heartbreak of seeing the Magen David—a symbol deeply woven into Jewish life and identity—used by settlers in the context of violence against Palestinians, the domination of Palestinian communities, and the seizure of their land. How do we respond when our shared symbols, Torah, and the name of God are invoked to justify harm? Together, we reflected on how Elul calls us to confront these painful questions with honesty, courage, and a commitment to teshuva.

You can watch the full shiur here:

Join us to study two new Midrashim written by Rabbi Vurgan after 7/...

08/20/2026

As we enter the second week of Elul, Rabbanit Leah Shakdiel reminds us that true teshuvah encompasses how we treat all other human beings.

Rabbanit Shakdiel is an Orthodox rabbi and teacher of Torah who works in interfaith dialogue and alongside Israeli human rights organizations, including Machsom Watch, Mirkam Azori, Darom4Peace, and Rabbis for Human Rights to bring the values of peace, equality, human & civil rights, feminism, and social justice to the next generation of Israelis.

08/14/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/19MdbF6jXc/?mibextid=wwXIfr

08/13/2026

The Jewish communal conversation must not lose sight of what is driving so much of the turmoil and strife within our community and beyond it: the Israeli government’s conduct in Gaza. We are grateful for Esther Sperber’s clear-eyed perspective during these challenging times.

Link to Haaretz.com article in comments.

08/13/2026

As we begin the month of Elul and head toward the High Holidays, we’ll be sharing a weekly clip of Torah from the incredible rabbis, teachers, and leaders in the Smol Emuni US network—inviting us into this season of reflection, accountability, and a vision for a more just Jewish future.

We’re beginning with Rabbi Tamar Elad-Applebaum, founder of the Zion Community of Jerusalem and the Israeli Rabbinic Seminary at the Hartman Institute and Midrasha.

In this week’s teaching on Parashat Re’eh, Rabbi Tamar draws on the teaching of the Baal HaTanya, R’ Schneur Zalman of Liadi, on the opening words: רְאֵה אָנֹכִי נֹתֵן לִפְנֵיכֶם הַיּוֹם בְּרָכָה וּקְלָלָה — “See, I place before you today a blessing and a curse.” Before we can heal and do teshuva, we must first be willing to see clearly—to acknowledge reality as it is, the good and the ugly, and reckon honestly with what we see.

Follow along each week for more Elul Torah.

08/12/2026

We are kicking off the month of Elul with a virtual learning session led by Rabbi Yael Vurgan. Join us!

Register at link in comments.