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Shabbat starts on Friday at 7:35pm and ends on Saturday at 8:31pm. The weekly Torah portion is Ki Tisa and Parshat Parah.

Mincha is now in summer recess until the end of DST in early April. See the WhatsApp group for further info.

Weekly sushi & shiur continues on Wed at 1.30pm at A-P GF/459 Collins – and via zoom. Current topic: dividing common property. Details here and on the WhatsApp group.

Thought of the Week with thanks to David Prins.

The weekly reading of Ki Tisa turns on a painful moment: the Golden Calf. After all the miracles, the people panic when Moshe seems delayed. Fear fills the vacuum, and in that fear they reach for something tangible, even if it betrays their deepest values. The Torah’s critique is not only about idolatry; it’s about what happens when anxiety overrides patience, trust, and collective purpose.

That tension feels very present in Israel and in the Jewish diaspora today. In moments of national uncertainty – political, social, or security‑related – there is a similar temptation to grasp for quick fixes, to harden into factions, or to let fear dictate our choices. Ki Tisa reminds us that the real work of nation‑building happens in the uncomfortable space between crisis and clarity.

Moshe’s response is instructive: he doesn’t abandon the people, nor does he excuse their actions. He rebuilds – slowly, deliberately, with renewed covenant. We need to continue that same work today: choosing dialogue over despair, responsibility over reaction, and shaping a future grounded in shared commitment rather than shared fear.