You've Always Belonged Here: The Temple Israel Podcast
Temple Israel of Westport, CT
Each week, we’ll bring you the voices of our clergy from our bimah. Occasionally we’ll feature longer conversations where we can learn from the vast wisdom of our community, staff and clergy team. By adding this new medium to our toolkit, we’re opening a new door to Jewish life here at TI—one that’s ready whenever you are.
Episodes
Oct 9, 2026 | New Beginnings
In this week's episode, Cantor Becky Mann teaches that every day offers an opportunity for a new beginning and reminds us that growth comes from embracing our humanity and finding the courage to try again, rather than the strife for perfection.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Sept 25, 2026 | Fragility and Joy
This week, Rabbi Zachary A. Plesent spoke about how Sukkot teaches us to move from fragility to vulnerability, embracing life’s uncertainty while remaining open to joy, connection, resilience, and the people we welcome into our lives.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Yizkor 2026 | Beyond Words
During Yizkor, Cantor Becky Mann spoke about finding light in moments of darkness, reminding us that even when there are no words to ease our grief, we can carry one another through with love, presence, and hope.High quality livestreams of all our High Holy Day 2026 services are available for free online at tiwestport.org/hhd26servicesTo learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Yom Kippur Morning 2026 | AI & Judaism
During Yom Kippur 2026, Rabbi Michael S. Friedman spoke about how Judaism can serve as a counterbalance to AI by preserving the uniquely human capacities for thinking, creating, relationships, morality, tradition, meaning, and spiritual connection.High quality livestreams of all our High Holy Day 2026 services are available for free online at tiwestport.org/hhd26servicesTo learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Kol Nidrei 2026 | The Case for Sacred Argument
On Kol Nidrei, Rabbi Zachary A. Plesent charged us to reclaim disagreement as a sacred practice, and approach those who differ from us with curiosity, kindness, and a recognition of our shared humanity so that darkness can give way to light.High quality livestreams of all our High Holy Day 2026 services are available for free online at tiwestport.org/hhd26servicesTo learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Rosh Hashanah Day Two 2026 | Fear and Awe
On the second day of Rosh Hashanah, Rabbi Nemitoff-Bresler explored the concept of yirah, a word that means both fear and awe, and invites us to acknowledge our fears while choosing to notice the gratitude, joy, and wonder that surround us.High quality livestreams of all our High Holy Day 2026 services are available for free online at tiwestport.org/hhd26servicesTo learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Rosh Hashanah Morning 2026 | 250 Years: Jewish History & Future in the United States
This Rosh Hashanah, Rabbi Friedman reflected on the changing experience of being Jewish in America and calls us to respond with Jewish pride, courage, resilience, and a commitment to building a vibrant Jewish future.High quality livestreams of all our High Holy Day 2026 services are available for free online at tiwestport.org/hhd26servicesTo learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Erev Rosh Hashanah 2026 | Evil & Fear: 25th Anniversary of 9/11
On Erev Rosh Hashanah – which coincided with the 25th Anniversary of 9/11 – Rabbi Friedman spoke about what it means to hold onto our values when fear takes hold. High quality livestreams of all our High Holy Day 2026 services are available for free online at tiwestport.org/hhd26servicesTo learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Aug 28, 2026 | Returning to Our Best Selves
In this week's episode, Rabbi Michael S. Friedman uses photos from his office to teach how the historic Black-Jewish partnership of the Civil Rights era can inspire us to rebuild relationships, pursue justice together, and return to who we are at our best.The referenced photos can be found in the episode artwork for this week.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Aug 21, 2026 | This Elul: More Love
For this week's episode, Rabbi Plesent shares how the Elul acronym for ani l'dodi v'dodi li ("I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine,” Song of Songs 6:3) invites an expansive love for self and others that can inspire us in this season.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Aug 14, 2026 | A Season of Becoming
This week, Rabbi Lily Goldstein teaches that Elul is a season of reflection and preparation, inviting us to take responsibility for our own growth, strengthen our faith and courage, and move toward the people we hope to become.For this week's daf, please visit tiwestport.org/dafTo learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Aug 7, 2026 | A New Stage of American Jewish Identity
Grounded in a personal heritage of deep political conviction and amidst today's shifting tides, Rabbi Michael S. Friedman calls on us to navigate current political uncertainties not by retreating, but rather deepening our interfaith partnerships, engaging our leaders face-to-face, and boldly reaffirming our Jewish identity and resilience.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
July 31, 2026 | Choosing Gratitude Over Fear
This week, Rabbi Lily Goldstein, citing her current pregnancy, remarked on how this week's Torah portion – Parashat Eikev – invites us to move beyond fear of the evil eye and anxiety about arrogance, embracing gratitude as the most authentic Jewish response to life's blessings.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
July 17, 2026 | Turning Mourning Into Dancing
Inspired by Debbie Friedman's Mourning Into Dancing, Rabbi Lily Goldstein, Rabbi Zachary A. Plesent and Cantor Becky Mann gave a sermon in three parts this week about what that means to them.Mourning Into Dancing by Debbie Friedman can be listened to here.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
July 10, 2026 | The Sacred Courage to Ask for What We Need
This week, Cantor Julia Cadrain helps us explore how rest, healthy boundaries, and self-advocacy are not acts of selfishness but sacred practices that renew us and strengthen our ability to care for others.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
July 3, 2026 | This Land was Made for You AND Me
This week, Rabbi Plesent remarked about the United States of America's semiquincentennial and how respectful disagreement can strengthen both our communities and our democracy.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
June 26, 2026 | You Are Holy Just As You Are
For this week's podcast, Cantor Becky Mann taught us during our Pride Shabbat on the Beach that we are all created b'tzelem elohim – in the image of God.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
June 19, 2026 | From Egypt to Galveston: A Shared Journey of Liberation
Drawing on the shared history of enslavement and the imperative to remember the past, Rabbi Elana Nemitoff-Bresler reflects on the deep parallels between Passover and Juneteenth, calling for solidarity between the Jewish and Black communities to fight systemic racism and work together toward tikkun olam.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
June 5, 2026 | A Sanctuary Without Walls
This week, Rabbi Friedman reflected on the sale of his childhood synagogue and how encounters with God have traditionally taken place in nature and invites us to experience the divine through wonder, awe, and the quiet presence found beneath the open sky.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
May 15, 2026 | Cantor Barbara Ostfeld: A Legacy
For this week's episode, our Legacy Shabbat Artist-in-Residence, Cantor Barbara Ostfeld reflected on how TI has carried forward a legacy of social justice, musical innovation, and radical inclusion through generations of evolving Jewish leadership and worship.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
May 8, 2026 | Excerpts from Temple Israel's 2026 Adult B'nei Mitzvah Service
For this week's episode of You've Always Belonged Here, we are sharing excerpts from our 2026 Adult B'nei Mitzvah class: Diana Blau, Kate Jonas, Michael J. Miller, Randi Mondshine, Barbara J. Roffe, Hazel Malbin Shulman, Jeremy Swetzoff, Bernie Vagnini, & Susan Sanders Witkow.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
May 1, 2026 | A Letter to Jews Considering Abandoning Zionism
This week, Rabbi Friedman urges "troubled Zionists" to remain engaged with Israel rather than distancing themselves.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Apr 24, 2026 | The Heart of Who We Are
This week, Cantor Becky Mann explores the true soul of the state of Israel—a nation where holiness and peace are discovered by embracing a shared humanity within the complex tension of grief and celebration.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Apr 17, 2026 | Turn Toward One Another
This week, Cantor Cadrain highlights the Torah’s invitation to turn towards one another, even and especially across lines of difference.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Apr 10, 2026 | "The Yoms"
This week, Rabbi Friedman explores the significance of "The Yoms": Yom HaShoah, Yom HaZikaron, and Yom HaAtzma’ut.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Apr 3, 2026 | The Omer
This week, Rabbi Elana Nemitoff-Bresler discusses the joy and wonder of counting the Omer.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Mar 27, 2026 | Erev Rav - A Mixed Multitude
This week, Rabbi Friedman draws from Hillel's idea of the Jewish people being Erev Rav–a mixed multitude, reclaiming the Jewish tradition of respectful disagreement to bridge the deep political and ideological divides at our own Seder tables.To learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org
Trailer
Introducing You've Always Belonged Here: The Temple Israel PodcastTo learn more about Temple Israel, please click the links below.Instagram: @templeisraelwestportFacebook: Temple Israel of Westport, CTYoutube: Temple Israel WestportWebsite: tiwestport.org