Light is a symbol of resistance to the darkness. Heat warming up the cold. Love triumphing over hate. This week, we begin Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights, celebrating all of these things. Each night we can remember the small and large acts of light that were done this year. All who wore masks. All who marched in streets. All who attended to the sick. All who helped a neighbor. All who got out the vote. All who reached out to friends. All who comforted the bereaved. All who helped celebrate a zoom-worthy-milestone. This year, each of these actions were acts of resistance. Against ignorance, hatred, and isolation. They were acts of inspired love.

This year, each of us embodies the spirit of the Maccabees, that small tribe who defeated the massive strength of the Assyrian forces. Each of us embodies the spirit of Judith, who recognized the power that she uniquely had and used it to save the Jewish people. As 16th century Spanish Rabbi Bachya Ibn Pakuda says, "even a small light dispels a lot of darkness." This Hanukkah, let us light candles as an act of resistance to the travesties so many have suffered this year; let us light candles as an act of love.

Together, we're #keepingitsacred...

Rabbi Heather Miller, 

Founder, Keeping It Sacred

HANUKKAH WITH KEEPING IT SACRED

Celebrate the third night of Hanukkah with us! Rabbi Miller will provide the teachings, Jeffrey Silverstein (from our HHD programming) will provide the music. And together, we will bring in the light of this Festival of Lights. If you have a Hanukkiah/menorah at home, bring it to share the story of how it came into your life. Sunday, 12/13 at 5pm PT/8pm ET. All are welcome!

HOMELESS REMEMBRANCE: THE LONGEST NIGHT

Sunday, 12/21 at 7pm PT/10pm ET, join us as we observe The Longest Night with our friends at Women Drivers and the Interfaith Council of Greater Rancho Santa Margarita. It is the Winter Solstice, literally the longest night of the year, and appropriately, we remember all those who have died on the streets. This particular observance will mark those who died in Orange County this year. Rabbi Miller will offer up the Mourner's Kaddish during this service. To register, please email Rabbi Miller at rabbimiller@keepingitsacred.com.

A CHRISTMAS EVE INVITATION

In the spirit of interfaith appreciation, The Very Reverend Keith Yamamoto has invited Rabbi Heather Miller to participate in the St. Mark's Episcopal Parish Christmas Eve services. They will be broadcast December 24 at 5pm PT and again at 10:30pm PT on their Facebook Live page and on their YouTube channel. All are welcome.

ACCESS JUDAISM

Please save the dates for our upcoming two-session adult learning program called Access Judaism. Full class lineup personally designed by Rabbi Miller. Classes have a suggested donation of $25 per class, or $180 per session. Please email rabbimiller@keepingitsacred.com to RSVP. 

TORAH OF THE WEEK

Happy new week! The reflection called "Out of the Pit," on this week's Torah Portion Vayeshev, Genesis 37:1-40:23, can be found HERE:

BOOK GROUP: THE REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE FUNDED

Rabbi Miller has joined with several faith leader colleagues to discuss the book: The Revolution Will Not Be Funded by INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence. Please email rabbimiller@keepingitsacred.com to join the Facebook Group discussing the topic of the Non-Profit industrial complex. 

TALMUD TEXT STUDY!

Ever want to jump into a conversation with the rabbinic sages of old? Now you can! Join us as we study a page of Talmud every day, adding our perspectives and the relevance to our own lives as we go along. 

The more varied the participants the deeper the conversations. Thursdays 11am PT.

Currently, we are 91 members strong from 17 different states and 3 countries!

We are:

People interested in becoming Jewish

Members of various Jewish denominations

Clergy

Lay leaders

Retired people

People who are not Jewish

We are in our 20s to 80s, and we are everywhere on the spectrum of gender.

Build community affirming of one another’s journey in the sea of Talmud with us! Benefit from the wisdom of Jewish tradition!

What people say:

"Talmud study has opened a window to that world for me. I love the anthropology and sociology of it all."

"The minority opinions may someday count as much as the majority opinions. It reminds us that things change the Halacha changes and we change each year that we read it."

"We have the opportunity to compare the Halacha we are practicing today with the one they were writing and studying in the Talmud... It has been very interesting how things have evolved how we keep the tradition in our own way."

"I feel very close to this amazing group and I'm grateful to Rabbi Miller for conducting it."

To join, send Rabbi Miller an email or DM on Facebook to be added to the closed, secret Facebook group and/or the weekly text study group. And look for us on Instagram daily HERE.

MY JEWISH LEARNING 

MyJewishLearning.com is a fabulous resource for those interested in learning about Judaism. Today's Daily Dose of Talmud features commentary by Rabbi Miller. View it HERE:

UPCOMING EVENTS:

EVERY DAY

Please enjoy our 7-episode web series and podcast: People Keeping It Sacred on YouTube HERE or at: Or on your favorite podcast players (like: Spotify  Google Podcasts, Apple + Podcasts, RadioPublic, Breaker, and PocketCasts).

ONGOING: SPIRITUAL COUNSELING

Rabbi Miller is available for 1-on-1 spiritual counseling; pay what you can. Topics are based upon the participant and can include your personal theological understanding of coronavirus, spiritually making space for others in your home, the spirituality of isolation and finding your way back to sacred connection. Please request a meeting by contacting her at rabbimiller@keepingitsacred.com.

EVERY THURSDAY: PRAYER CIRCLE

Join us as we gather Thursdays for a Prayer Circle. Lift up names of those who are ill, and join together for support and community. All are welcome. 10:30am PST/ 1:30pm EST/ 3:30pm Brazil time, 6:30pm London-time. Contact rabbimiller@keepingitsacred.com to request the link and password.

EVERY THURSDAY: KEEPING IT SACRED-DAF YOMI GROUP MEET-UP

Our Facebook group will host our next virtual meetup via zoom. For the link to attend this meeting Thursdays 11am PST, 2pm EST, 4pm Brazil time, 7pm London time, please contact Rabbi Miller directly at rabbimiller@keepingitsacred.com. 

SUNDAY, 12/13: SHINE YOUR LIGHT: A HANUKKAH CELEBRATION

Sunday, 12/13 at 5pm PT/8pm ET, celebrate the third night of Hanukkah with us! Rabbi Miller will provide the teachings, Jeffrey Silverstein (from our HHD programming) will provide the music. And together, we will bring in the light of this Festival of Lights. If you have a Hanukkah/menorah at home, bring it to share the story of it in your life. All are welcome! To register, please email Rabbi Miller at rabbimiller@keepingitsacred.com. 

MONDAY, 12/21: THE LONGEST NIGHT

Sunday, 12/21 at 7pm PT/10pm ET, join us as we observe The Longest Night. It is the Winter Solstice, literally the longest night of the year, and appropriately, we remember all those who have died on the streets. This particular observance will mark those who died in Orange County this year. To register, please email Rabbi Miller at rabbimiller@keepingitsacred.com.

THURSDAY, 12/24: ST. MARK'S EPISCOPAL CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICES

Thursday, 12/24, Keeping It Sacred has been invited to enjoy St. Mark's Episcopal Church Christmas Eve services as an expression of interfaith outreach and love. Rabbi Miller will offer a reading from the Tanakh in Hebrew as she helps her friend, The Very Rev. Keith Yamamoto and his parish celebrate their holy day. This event will be made available live on the church's Facebook and YouTube channels at 5pm PT and 10:30pm PT. No registration required.

2021: ACCESS JUDAISM: ADULT EDUCATION CLASSES

Please save the dates for accessible, relevant, and empowering Jewish learning! Classes will be held at 10am PT/1pm ET via zoom. Session 1 dates are: 1/17 Personal Inventory of Belief, 1/24 Radical Responsibility for the World, 1/31 Demystifying Denominational Differences, 2/7 The Flavors of the Holy Books, 2/14 One for Every Mood: The Jewish Holidays, 2/21 Jewish Intermarriage: A History, 2/28 The Righteous Economic Vision of the Rabbis, and 3/7 The Kabbalistic Non-Binary God. Session 2 dates are: 4/11 The Intelligent Design of the Prayerbook, 4/18 Reform Renovations of the Prayerbook, 4/25 Rituals as Markers of Transition, 5/2 The Characteristics of a Good Jew, 5/9 Slam Poetry in the Golden Age, 5/16 Bad Theology: Terrible Explanations of Why the Righteous Suffer, 5/23 Siblings or Cousins?: Jews and Christians in the First Century, and 5/30 Before You Die Consider these Rabbinic Thoughts. Please see keepingitsacred.com/accessjudaism or email Rabbi Miller if you're interested in these courses at rabbimiller@keepingitsacred.com. 

THANK YOU!

You are a cherished member of this community and we love to hear from you-- what questions do you have? Reach out to rabbimiller@keepingitsacred.com or via phone at 818-312-8388 anytime to let us know what you’re finding meaningful, inspiring and what you’d like to see.

Together, we're #keepingitsacred...

And now on Spotify, Google Podcasts, Breaker, RadioPublic, PocketCasts!

We'd love for you to forward this to a friend to invite them to sign up, too!

If you’d like to make sure that this kind of quality programming by

Keeping It Sacred continues, please consider making a donation via:

PayPal using the link here

Venmo username: @keepingitsacred, or

Check may be made out to Keeping It Sacred and mailed to:

27068 La Paz Rd. #781, Aliso Viejo, CA 92656

Thank you for #keepingitsacred...