Rabbi Steven Abraham

In furtherance of the commandment to care for the stranger among us, Beth El leadership has embarked in preliminary discussions with local community volunteers to pursue an active role in the refugee crisis around the world.  We have met with Lutheran Family Services of Nebraska, a leading advocate for refugee resettlement in the Omaha area, to discuss how Beth El Synagogue can be a partner in this effort along with the numerous other faith-based organizations throughout the city that are … [Read more...]

  Three weeks ago my congregation, my community learned a hard truth that we had known in our minds, but not experienced in our hearts. That violence does not affect other people and other families, but something that touches us all. Three weeks ago, a young man, Seth Rich, 27 years old, was shot dead in the prime of his life on the streets of Washington, DC. Three weeks ago my congregation lost one of its children. Seth, grew up here in Omaha, attending Central High and Creighton. He … [Read more...]

As a kid I attended Camp Harlem, a Jewish overnight camp in the Poconos affiliated with the Reform movement. It was a wonderful place and it left an indelible mark on my Jewish future. Yet from the moment I began dating Shira it was apparent how important Ramah was to her and her family. It was not just about the place or the impact, but about the people. It was not until recently that I fully understand the last effect of camp. Many of us and I will include myself in this group, we see camp as … [Read more...]

Upon arriving in Omaha five years ago I knew we had found an incredible community. Omaha has stellar schools, a philanthropic culture, low unemployment, the best zoo in the US and a high quality of living…just to name a few of the many wonderful characteristics of our community. Yet one of the aspects of the community that surprised me the most was the lack of racial diversity. In my time at Beth El I have searched out ways to be active and involved in North and South Omaha, predominantly … [Read more...]

While on vacation last week I did a great deal of reading, in the midst of a number of new books, I took the time to come back to one of my all time favorites, God Was Not in the Fire by Rabbi Daniel Gordis. This is one of those books that helps give me purpose, every page makes me think and whenever I read it, at all different stages in my life, I respond differently that I have before. I read it for the first time when I was in the process of applying to rabbinical school. The book spoke to … [Read more...]

On Friday night Beth El had the honor of hosting the world renown musician and vocalist Matisyahu, along with guitarist Aaron Dugan. The evening was electric and the emotion, joy and energy in the room was palpable. After the concert and into the early part of this week people have asked if I was happy with the turn out, the number of people who attended. I will admit that I was was quite pleased, 450 people at any event is a success, yet attendance was not the goal. The goal, which is much more … [Read more...]

This week our thoughts and prayers go out to those who lost family, friends and loved ones in Orlando. I pray that we will one day find the strength, courage and fortitude to build a society that no longer needs to throw out words like pluralism or inclusion as those will be traits that are engrained in our communities. This week while on a much less threatening scale, yet no less important, are a number of events that are taking place in Israel that threaten the Jewish State relationship … [Read more...]

It has been 16 years since "Keeping the Faith" hit the theaters in April 2000. A story about Rabbi Jacob "Jake" Schram (Ben Stiller) and his two best friends Father Brian Finn (Edward Norton) and Anna Reilly (Jenna Elfman). I imagine many of you have seen the film, nevertheless the summary, is that Anna rekindles her relationship with her two childhood friends after moving back to NY. Anna(Jenna Elfman), who is not Jewish, ends up falling in love with Rabbi Schram (Ben Stiller). I came across … [Read more...]

Between Egypt & Sinai This coming Shabbat we will be in the home stretch of the 49 day count that commemorates the Israelites' journey from Egypt to Sinai, from slavery to freedom. A little over 5 weeks ago, on the second night of Passover, we began our march and our count towards day 49. The idea of making each day count is a profound idea.  So many of us lead lives running from one meeting to another, see our spouse, kiss the kids, go to bed and then do it all again the next day. With a … [Read more...]

Source: Love And Tradition - Books About Jewish intermarriage, Insights About Jewish Intermarriage, Educational Consulting   Over the past 2 weeks I have had a number of conversations with families about the topic of intermarriage. I feel for everyone involved as the topic, unfortunately, has become the third rail for many Jewish families. What I have learned working with families is that while a conversation about intermarriage may be difficult, does not need to end relationships. … [Read more...]