Beth El

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In Memory of Rabbi Emeritus Steve Sager (z”l)

Rabbi Steve Sager
June 29, 1951 – May 15, 2022

We invite the community to participate in the mitzvah of tzedakah by making donations designated for the Sager Visiting Scholar Fund at Beth El. Proceeds will be used to support learning with teachers and students who made a difference in Rabbi Sager‘s life and those whose lives he affected. These people will help us carry forward Rabbi Sager‘s Torah. Click here to make a donation (select Sager Visiting Scholar Fund in the fund dropdown).

 

Rabbi Sager served as Beth El’s rabbi for 32 years.  He is a graduate of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (RRC) and earned a Ph.D. in Rabbinic Literature at Duke University. Rabbi Sager has been a teacher, rabbinic advisor and mentor for students and graduates of the RRC, Hebrew Union College, Jewish Theological Seminary and the Rabbinical School of the Boston Hebrew College.  Rabbi Sager was an adjunct faculty member of Duke Divinity School and had taught at the Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and in the Department of Social Medicine at the UNC Medical School.  Rabbi Sager was a Senior Rabbinic Fellow of the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem, where he was also a leader of the Rabbinic Programs Advisory Committee and of the Rabbinic Havurah program.  Rabbi Sager served as President of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association and of the Greater Carolinas Association of Rabbis (GCAR); co-director of the GCAR Interfaith Institute, Scholar in Residence on numerous occasions for the GCAR, as well as serving in this capacity in congregations throughout the United States.   Rabbi Sager published articles in The Reconstructionist, The Journal of Religious Education, and The Southern Medical Journal. Rabbi Sager served as the Director of Sicha, a project to stimulate conversations between classical Jewish culture and contemporary Jewish needs. Rabbi Sager passed away on May 15, 2022.

Funeral services for Rabbi Steven Sager took place on Tuesday, May 17. Click here to view a recording.

An obituary of Rabbi Sager’s life may be found here. Click here for an obituary published on JTA.org.

On May 31, the Shalom Hartman Institute hosted Torah and Stories in honor of Rabbi Sager. View the recording here.

Midrash, Stories, and Poetry

Click on the bold sessions below to view a recording:
  • “The Patriarchs and Journeys of Aging, Part II, Isaac” April 12, 2022
  • “The Patriarchs and Journeys of Aging, Part I, Abraham” March 13, 2022
  • “Father We Thank Thee For The Night…” Rabbi Sager’s Childhood Night-Time Prayer. What Is Yours?, December 6, 2021
    (Click here to view the text)
  • “I Have No Earthly Idea About God,” part two: Theology And Meteorology- Predicting The ‘Whether’ Of God, November 22, 2021
  • “I Have No Earthly Idea About God! ‘Sometimes I Pray,’ ‘Prayers Preceded God'” November 8, 2021
    (Click here to view the text)
  • “Great, Mighty, And Awesome” October 25, 2021
    (Texts are available here and here.)
  • “Prayer is Both the Key and the Lock to the Holidays” October 11, 2021
    (Click here to view the text.)
  • “Presence In The Sukkah” September 27, 2021
  • “Taking Place: Blessings Within And Without” September 13, 2021
    (Click here to view text.)

 

Conversations with Rabbi Sager: “Holiday Seasons: Judaism While Standing On One Foot–At A Time”

Click on the bold sessions below to view a recording:
  • “Holiday Seasons: Judaism While Standing On One Foot–At A Time” August 16, 2021
    (Click here to view texts.)

Conversations with Rabbi Sager: “Doors, Doorways, And Transitions” 

Click on the bold sessions below to view a recording:
  • “Doors, Doorways, and Transitions” October 19, 2020
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “Teacher In The Door” November 2, 2020
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “Doors have Soul” November 16, 2020 
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “God is a Doorway” November 30, 2020
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “In Light Of The Door: The commandment of the Hanukkah light is to light it in the doorway closest to the public thoroughfare in order to publicize the miracle…” December 14, 2020
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “Giving in the Doorway” December 28, 2020
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “Opportunity Knocks: The Poor At The Door” January 11, 2021
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “Miracles Behind the Door” February 8, 2021
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “Elijah and the Messiah at the Entrance” February 22, 2021
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “Elijah in the Doorway” March 8, 2021
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “Elijah: Bridging Worlds”March 22, 2021
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “Torah For All And Torah For Each” April 5, 2021
    Related texts: “Torah Revealed to Each” and “Torah Not Yet Given.”
  • “The Door From Sinai To Sinai” April 19, 2021
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “‘Threshold’ Experiences of Revelation” May 3, 2021
    (Click here to view texts.)

 

Conversations with Rabbi Sager: “Torah From Heaven, Heaven From Torah”

Click on the bold sessions below to view a recording:
  • “My Father Was God and Didn’t Know It” June 29, 2020 
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “All Were Present at Sinai Except For One” July 13, 2020 
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “The Threatening Mountain and Loving Shelter” July 27, 2020
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “Moses Only Once Saw God’s Face and Forgot” August 10, 2020
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “Moses Received Torah from Sinai and It Became Three Things” August 24, 2020
    (Click here to view texts.)
  • “A Mystical Master and a Modern Poet Receive Torah for a New Age!” September 14, 2020
    (Click here to view texts.)

About Rabbi Steven G. Sager, Rabbi Emeritus

Rabbi Sager served as Beth El’s rabbi for 32 years.  He is a graduate of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (RRC) and earned a Ph.D. in Rabbinic Literature at Duke University. Rabbi Sager has been a teacher, rabbinic advisor and mentor for students and graduates of the RRC, Hebrew Union College, Jewish Theological Seminary and the Rabbinical School of the Boston Hebrew College. Read more.

Check the calendar for Rabbi Sager’s upcoming conversations:

September 2023

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
1
  • DurhamISH Kabbalat Shabbat

    DurhamISH Kabbalat Shabbat

    September 1, 2023  6:30 pm - 9:00 pm
    Beth El Synagogue, 1004 Watts St, Durham, NC 27701, USA

    Join the youngISH, professionalISH, JewISH community for a lively service. Bring a kosher-style dairy or parve dish, side, or dessert and a little tag for allergy concerns. Everyone is always welcome!

    See more details

•
2
  • Mishnah Study

    Mishnah Study

    September 2, 2023  8:45 am - 9:30 am
    Beth El Synagogue, 1004 Watts St, Durham, NC 27701, USA

    See more details

•
3
  • Preparing your Heart for the High Holidays with Reb Mimi

    Preparing your Heart for the High Holidays with Reb Mimi

    September 3, 2023  9:30 am - 11:30 am
    https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87158211813

    “Everyone has an address but not everyone has a Home” 

    When I heard my teacher, Reb Shlomo, say, “Everyone has an address but not everyone has a Home” I heard him speaking on many levels, beyond the question of the four walls that we return to at the end of the day. I heard myself needed to respond, as looking at the multiple Homes, not only addresses we live in - our physical, emotional, and spiritual Homes.  

     Our Rabbinic and Chassidic sources will engage us in questioning these definitions, offering insight into the voices and strengths of both the Insider and the Outsider and what Home can be.  

    How would you like to stand in the world this coming year? What does “coming home” look like / feel like to you? Is the Machzor we will pray from an “address to find prayers” or perhaps it feels like a “home that has been waiting for us since last year”? Where and how will you stand in God’s presence as the “Ba’al Habayit” – the ultimate “Home Owner.”

    See more details

•
4
  • Office Closed

    Office Closed

    September 4, 2023

    See more details

  • Virtual Healing Yoga

    Virtual Healing Yoga

    September 4, 2023  4:30 pm - 5:30 pm

    Join online: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6125477280?pwd=eXBiTzNuSHpwSjJqZHYyOEFZTUVtdz09 

    See more details

• •
5
  • NO Weekly Parsha Study

    NO Weekly Parsha Study

    September 5, 2023  8:45 am - 9:30 am

    See more details

•
6
7
  • EC Meeting

    EC Meeting

    September 7, 2023  7:30 am - 9:00 am

    See more details

  • Virtual Healing Yoga

    Virtual Healing Yoga

    September 7, 2023  4:30 pm - 5:30 pm

    Join online: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6125477280?pwd=eXBiTzNuSHpwSjJqZHYyOEFZTUVtdz09 

    See more details

  • Talmud Study Class

    Talmud Study Class

    September 7, 2023  7:00 pm - 8:30 pm

    On many Thursday evenings this fall, Rabbi Greyber will lead a Talmud Study Group from 7 to 8:30 pm in the Sager Beit Midrash. We will be learning the 3rd chapter of Moed Katan, "V'eilu M'galhin." The Talmud notoriously wanders from topic to topic, but this chapter includes rabbinic conversations about Jewish mourning practices. Knowledge of Hebrew and Aramaic will be helpful, but not necessary. Everything will be done in translation, but students should be able to commit to attending most class sessions. 

    Students should purchase a translation/commentary of Tractate Mo'ed Katan. Either Artscroll  (which is what will be used in the class) or Koren.

    See more details

• • •
8
  • Eat, Schmooze, Pray: Friday Night for Everyone

    Eat, Schmooze, Pray: Friday Night for Everyone

    September 8, 2023  5:30 pm - 7:30 pm

    5:30 pm - Tot Shabbat perfect for 0-5s and their grownups 
    6:00 pm - Kid-friendly fare for the littles, wine and cheese for the not-littles6:30 pm -  Accessible, meaningful, musical Kabbalat Shabbat service

    See more details

•
9
  • Mishnah Study

    Mishnah Study

    September 9, 2023  8:45 am - 9:30 am
    Beth El Synagogue, 1004 Watts St, Durham, NC 27701, USA

    See more details

  • High Holiday Melody Learning Session

    High Holiday Melody Learning Session

    September 9, 2023  1:00 pm - 2:00 pm

    Join us for a melody-learning session in preparation for the Chavurah Minyan High Holiday services.

    See more details

• •
10
  • Preparing your Heart for the High Holidays with Reb Mimi

    Preparing your Heart for the High Holidays with Reb Mimi

    September 10, 2023  9:30 am - 11:00 am
    https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87158211813

    What did You say Your Name Is? Face to Face with God in Chassidic Teachings - Selichote and Yamim Noraim Prayers  

    Not only are God’s thirteen attributes of compassion so central to selichot and seeking forgiveness from God, but the machzor is full of different names of God! Avi’nu (our Father)… Mal'keinu (our King)… And without being too blasphemous what would Imeinu Malkateinu (our Mother, our Queen) mean? God the Shepherd? God the Judge? God the Listener of Prayer?  

    How will you stand in the presence of our Creator / Maker / Holy-One-Blessed-Be-S/He, this year? How will God reveal God’s Self and Essence to you in the next months and years? Is it possible that you’ve been looking at the wrong page for you?  

    See more details

  • Jewish Parenting Class

    Jewish Parenting Class

    September 10, 2023  10:30 am - 12:00 pm

    Join Rabbi Greyber to explore wisdom from our texts and traditions about parenting our children of any age. Class meets on Sunday mornings at Beth El Synagogue. There is no cost to attend but registration is helpful. See you there!

    See more details

• •
11
  • Virtual Healing Yoga

    Virtual Healing Yoga

    September 11, 2023  4:30 pm - 5:30 pm

    Join online: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6125477280?pwd=eXBiTzNuSHpwSjJqZHYyOEFZTUVtdz09 

    See more details

•
12
  • Weekly Parsha Study

    Weekly Parsha Study

    September 12, 2023  8:45 am - 9:30 am

    See more details

•
13
  • Board Meeting

    Board Meeting

    September 13, 2023  7:15 pm - 9:00 pm

    See more details

•
14
  • Virtual Healing Yoga

    Virtual Healing Yoga

    September 14, 2023  4:30 pm - 5:30 pm

    Join online: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6125477280?pwd=eXBiTzNuSHpwSjJqZHYyOEFZTUVtdz09 

    See more details

  • NO Talmud Study Class

    NO Talmud Study Class

    September 14, 2023  7:00 pm - 8:30 pm

    On many Thursday evenings this fall, Rabbi Greyber will lead a Talmud Study Group from 7 to 8:30 pm in the Sager Beit Midrash. We will be learning the 3rd chapter of Moed Katan, "V'eilu M'galhin." The Talmud notoriously wanders from topic to topic, but this chapter includes rabbinic conversations about Jewish mourning practices. Knowledge of Hebrew and Aramaic will be helpful, but not necessary. Everything will be done in translation, but students should be able to commit to attending most class sessions. 

    Students should purchase a translation/commentary of Tractate Mo'ed Katan. Either Artscroll  (which is what will be used in the class) or Koren.

    See more details

• •
15
16
  • NO Mishnah Study

    NO Mishnah Study

    September 16, 2023  8:45 am - 9:30 am
    Beth El Synagogue, 1004 Watts St, Durham, NC 27701, USA

    See more details

  • Rosh Hashanah-ISH

    Rosh Hashanah-ISH

    September 16, 2023  6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

    The young-ish, Jew-ish, Durham-ish community is invited for a musical evening service and potluck dinner to celebrate the holiday! 

    6pm: Service 
    7pm: Potluck

    See more details

• •
17
  • Tashlich

    Tashlich

    September 17, 2023  4:30 pm - 5:30 pm

    Chapel Hill– 4:30 pm at Eastwood Lake
    Durham– 4:30 pm at Ellerbee Creek Trail meets Markham Ave

    One of the most beautiful and powerful rituals of the Yamim Noraim season is Tashlich. “Tashlich” literally
    translates as “you shall cast,” and is a word used by the prophet Micah when he calls upon the Jewish
    community to cast their sins upon the water. Metaphorically, Micah was imploring the people to cleanse
    themselves of their mistakes and to repent. A more visual way to cast off our misdeeds, this Rosh Hashanah afternoon ritual is great for the whole family. Bring comfy shoes, some old bread, your singing voice, and a shofar if you have one!

    See more details

•
18
  • Virtual Healing Yoga

    Virtual Healing Yoga

    September 18, 2023  4:30 pm - 5:30 pm

    Join online: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6125477280?pwd=eXBiTzNuSHpwSjJqZHYyOEFZTUVtdz09 

    See more details

•
19
  • Weekly Parsha Study

    Weekly Parsha Study

    September 19, 2023  8:45 am - 9:30 am

    See more details

  • Dr. Itzhak Brook Presentation: "A Physician's Personal Account of the Yom Kippur War."

    Dr. Itzhak Brook Presentation: "A Physician's Personal Account of the Yom Kippur War."

    September 19, 2023  7:00 pm - 8:00 pm
    https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89218300540

    The presentation includes a description of the historical background of the Yom Kippur War and its effects on the Israeli society, as well as Dr Brook’s personal experiences and challenges as a battalion physician in the Sinai. He will address the physical and psychological traumas his soldiers had to cope with, the effect of religion on them, the cost of war in human life and suffering, and the daily struggle for survival in the difficult war which threatened Israel’s existence.

     

    See more details

• •
20
21
  • Lunch and Learn with Rabbi Greyber

    Lunch and Learn with Rabbi Greyber

    September 21, 2023  12:00 pm - 1:30 pm
    The Forest at Duke, 2701 Pickett Rd, Durham, NC 27705, USA

    Join online: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85274018059?pwd=eUJWRndITjlnZTdJdW1iQmhKb2NQQT09

    "Sacrifice for What Purpose? An Alternative Akedah Story."
    The Binding of Isaac has long been understood by rabbinic tradition to have taken place at Mt. Moriah to explain why it was chosen as a future site of the Temple. What if the bible offered an alternative story about sacrifice and faith?

    See more details

  • Virtual Healing Yoga

    Virtual Healing Yoga

    September 21, 2023  4:30 pm - 5:30 pm

    Join online: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6125477280?pwd=eXBiTzNuSHpwSjJqZHYyOEFZTUVtdz09 

    See more details

  • NO Talmud Study Class

    NO Talmud Study Class

    September 21, 2023  7:00 pm - 8:30 pm

    On many Thursday evenings this fall, Rabbi Greyber will lead a Talmud Study Group from 7 to 8:30 pm in the Sager Beit Midrash. We will be learning the 3rd chapter of Moed Katan, "V'eilu M'galhin." The Talmud notoriously wanders from topic to topic, but this chapter includes rabbinic conversations about Jewish mourning practices. Knowledge of Hebrew and Aramaic will be helpful, but not necessary. Everything will be done in translation, but students should be able to commit to attending most class sessions. 

    Students should purchase a translation/commentary of Tractate Mo'ed Katan. Either Artscroll  (which is what will be used in the class) or Koren.

    See more details

• • •
22
23
  • Mishnah Study

    Mishnah Study

    September 23, 2023  8:45 am - 9:30 am
    Beth El Synagogue, 1004 Watts St, Durham, NC 27701, USA

    See more details

  • Bishop Ronald Godbee Shiur

    Bishop Ronald Godbee Shiur

    September 23, 2023  1:00 pm - 2:00 pm

    Bishop Godbee and three members from the River Church will be joining us for an after services discussion about the Racial Justice Task Force trip to DC.

    See more details

• •
24
25
  • Yom Kippur Teaching

    Yom Kippur Teaching

    September 25, 2023  4:00 pm - 5:15 pm

    See more details

  • NO Virtual Healing Yoga

    NO Virtual Healing Yoga

    September 25, 2023  4:30 pm - 5:30 pm

    Join online: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6125477280?pwd=eXBiTzNuSHpwSjJqZHYyOEFZTUVtdz09 

    See more details

• •
26
  • NO Weekly Parsha Study

    NO Weekly Parsha Study

    September 26, 2023  8:45 am - 9:30 am

    See more details

  • MoB Sukkah Build

    MoB Sukkah Build

    September 26, 2023  10:00 am - 12:00 pm

    This year's M.o.B. sponsored Sukkah build will take place at Beth El starting at 10:00 am on Tuesday, September 26.  Last year's build was completed in a record time of 2 hours with a little more than 10 volunteers helping with the build.  If we can get 10-15 volunteers to help, we can break last year's record!

    What to bring (not mandatory, but helpful): Work gloves, a step stool or small "A" style ladder, and a positive can-do attitude.

    The M.o.B. will sponsor light refreshments for the build volunteers, and volunteers are not required to be M.o.B. members, male, or identify as male.

    See more details

• •
27
28
  • Virtual Healing Yoga

    Virtual Healing Yoga

    September 28, 2023  4:30 pm - 5:30 pm

    Join online: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6125477280?pwd=eXBiTzNuSHpwSjJqZHYyOEFZTUVtdz09 

    See more details

  • Talmud Study Class

    Talmud Study Class

    September 28, 2023  7:00 pm - 8:30 pm

    On many Thursday evenings this fall, Rabbi Greyber will lead a Talmud Study Group from 7 to 8:30 pm in the Sager Beit Midrash. We will be learning the 3rd chapter of Moed Katan, "V'eilu M'galhin." The Talmud notoriously wanders from topic to topic, but this chapter includes rabbinic conversations about Jewish mourning practices. Knowledge of Hebrew and Aramaic will be helpful, but not necessary. Everything will be done in translation, but students should be able to commit to attending most class sessions. 

    Students should purchase a translation/commentary of Tractate Mo'ed Katan. Either Artscroll  (which is what will be used in the class) or Koren.

    See more details

• •
29
30
  • Mishnah Study

    Mishnah Study

    September 30, 2023  8:45 am - 9:30 am
    Beth El Synagogue, 1004 Watts St, Durham, NC 27701, USA

    See more details

•

Additional Resources

Rabbi Sager's Teachings on YouTube

Rabbi Sager's Short Essays

Additional Resources for Doorways and Thresholds

Recording of Sicha's 9th Annual Hevra Kaddisha Day of Learning

Beth El YouTube Channel

Hebcal Shabbat and Holiday Times

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