
With Fire In Their Souls
The parsha opens with an in-depth discussion of the olah sacrifice which is totally burnt on the altar. Ohr Hachaim Hakodosh has a lengthy dissertation expounding how the olah sacrifice alludes to the tremendous difficulties that we have suffered over the years from the nations of the world.

Matzo in the Park
A Jewish man took his Passover lunch to eat outside in the park. He sat down on a bench and began eating. Since Jews do not eat leavened bread during the eight-day holiday, he was eating Matzo.

This Week In Pictures
Olami Denver Experience enjoyed a fabulous Mock Seder this week in preparations for Pesach. And not just any Seder – Steak and Seder! What a fabulous dinner and a great opportunity to learn the best practices to hosting their own Seders at home this year.

Sharing Our Stories Through Food: Passover Brownies
This is my mother in laws- Cindy Wolfe’s- Recipe
I double this for each 9×13 pan and literally make at least 8 pans of this every year. It’s the first cooking I do before Pesach every year is make a ton and fill the freezer. This is a staple and my husband laughs at the idea of me making something different. They are the best.

The Greatest Inequality
We begin sefer Vayikra dealing with the various offerings that were sacrificed in the Mishkan. Some of them were in the category of voluntary ‘donations’ to elevate the owners of those particular sacrifices. However, there were many obligatory sacrifices both on the individual level and communal offerings.

The Knight
A British Jew is waiting in line to be knighted by the Queen.
He is to kneel in front of her and recite a sentence in Latin when she taps him on the shoulders with her sword. However, when his turn comes, he panics in the excitement of the moment and forgets the Latin.

This Week In Pictures
Our annual matching campaign was Monday, raising much-needed funds to help fuel outreach, education and inspiration in each of our 5 divisions, serving thousands of individuals and families. The theme was “Together we can!” and we did it – together! Thank you to everyone who helped us reach our goal and we can’t wait to put all this hard work to great use!

Inspiration from Chaya Parkoff
I have been thinking a lot about community lately. Maybe it’s because this past Shabbat the message of the Torah portions was all about the importance of community. Perhaps it’s because this past Shabbat we attended the Bar Mitzvah where the people in attendance represented Jews from all over Denver

You Are Welcome
Rashi cites the Talmud that the sin of the Golden Calf will plague us for all generations. The gravity of their iniquity was such that a deeply engrained flaw had penetrated into their construal. Although we had so passionately stated that we were primed and ready to accept the Torah without even knowing the details, shortly afterwards we seemingly dissented and displayed a lack of trust in Hashem. Even though we were under duress, having apparently lost our cherished leader, nonetheless, we failed to live up to our expectations. And that was forgiven but not forgotten!

The Taxi Driver’s Surprise
A taxi passenger tapped the driver on the shoulder to ask him a question.
The driver screamed, lost control of the car, nearly hit a bus, went up on the footpath, and stopped inches from a shop window.
For a second, everything was quiet in the cab. Then the driver said, “Look, mate, don’t ever do that again. You scared the living daylights out of me!”

This Week In Pictures
We can do it – together! Our teams met this week to kick off the Annual Matching Campaign, as we set our goals together and, of course, enjoyed a delicious dinner.

Sharing our stories through food: Deviled Eggs
Every thanksgiving, we used to have our family come over and we all cooked together. My uncle was in charge of the deviled eggs. One day, out of all 3 kids, he chose me to help. I was close to 7 years old at the time and he had me add in the ingredients, help mix, and pipe the eggs, which was a mess then but I have gotten much better at it…