Freylekh Fridays is a monthly, multigenerational Shabbat evening, complete with a family-friendly Teddy Bear Shabbat, a potluck dinner, Kabbalat Shabbat and a guest speaker ready to spark discussion and introduce new ideas to mull over all weekend!

Teddy Bear Shabbat at 5:30 pm - Join Rabbi Zuker for snacks, stories, and stuffies!

Potluck Shabbat Dinner at 6:30 pm

Musical Kabbalat Shabbat at 7:30 pm (available via Zoom as well)

Guest Speaker Rabbinic Student Intern Léah Miller at 8:15 pm (available via Zoom as well)
Kishut Keshet and the Power of Ritual Adornment

As a queer non-binary reconstructionist Jew, Léah is constantly thinking about how to engage with halakhic traditions. One of the ways they have embodied their practice is through engaging with the mitzvot of physical adornment like wearing daily tzitzit [fringes] or wrapping tefillin [phylacteries] and wearing a tallis [prayer shawl] when davening. They enjoy playing with gendered expectations of ritual wear and connecting to practices that have been historically exclusionary. They have also experienced deep spiritual connection from trying on these physical practices–the daily visual and visible marker of tzitzit marks me as Jewish in a special way and also catches my eye as a reminder as I move through the world. As a crafter and mender, they feel passionate about helping people to feel more connected to material objects whether that’s through decorative adornment or through mending to avoid the landfill.

Léah makes Judaica, ritual objects, and Jewish jewelry under the name Kishut Keshet Crafts. Kishut קישוט, meaning adornment, whose Hebrew root sounds the same but is one letter off from Keshet קשת, the word for rainbow. A mystical convergence for a queer language nerd! Léah takes seriously the concept of hiddur mitzvah [beautification of the mitzvah] as a way to exalt the divine and religious practice.

For Freylekh Friday’s talk, Léah will be sharing some Torah of Hiddur Mitzvah and Creativity, and showing some of their art.