Rabbi’s Update 3/6/2026

Dear Friends:

Our Purim celebration this past Monday night, which unexpectedly took place with both the United States and Israel at war with Iran (aka ancient Persia) was nevertheless lovely and well-attended. Thanks to Hazzan Komrad, Michael Sheib, and Jacob Sheib who chanted from the Megillah along with me; to Tom and Linda Loggie for refreshments after services; and to Linda Loggie and Wendy Schneider-Levinson for baking hamantashen. If I have omitted anyone, please accept both my thanks and apologies.

I want to share a precis of the remarks that I made Monday evening before we read the Megillah:

There are certain moments in your life that helped shape the way you view the world and that you will always recall. I was a senior in college when the Iran-Iraq War broke out. Early in the war I attended a regional Hillel Shabbaton at which Dr. David Altshuler, who at the time was Professor Judaic Studies at George Washington University, was the Scholar in Residence. He was discussing the war and said “do not for a moment think that this war is something that Jews should be happy about.” A student in the back of the room shouted, with a rather aggressive tone, “why not?” Prof. Altshuler replied “because people are dying.”

We are raised with the idea that during the Passover Seder we spill ten drops of wine from our cup to acknowledge the deaths of the Egyptians during the tenth plague and in the Red Sea. And many of us are familiar with the Talmudic story which appears both in Tractate Megillah and in Tractate Sanhedrin, that God forbade the ministering angels to sing songs of praise after the splitting of the Red Sea, because of the deaths of the Egyptian soldiers: “My creatures are drowning in the seam and you would sing songs of praise to Me?”

This is not a reflection or an opinion on the wisdom of or justification for the war, about which reasonable people can legitimately differ. It is rather to pray that civilian (and military) casualties on all sides be minimized, that the war end quickly, and that its result be peace and freedom for all peoples of the region.

Some notes about the upcoming days and weeks:

• With the change to Daylight Saving Time this Saturday night/Sunday morning, our Zoom havdalah will no longer be at 7 pm weekly but will change as sunset gets later. Havdalah on Saturday night March 14 will be held at 8 pm.

• As a reminder, we “reset” our MiSheberach list every year at Pesach and Rosh Hashanah. If you have asked for a name to be added to our list and want it to remain, please contact the office before Pesach to ask that it be kept. Names not “renewed” will be removed from the list. And as always, if you have given a name and it no longer needs to be on the list, please let us know.

• Forms for the sale of chametz as well as Passover guidance will be forthcoming soon.

If you or someone you know is in need because of having been laid off, or has  lost benefits of some type and needs immediate help, please let me know. I can access limited funds through the Jewish Federation almost immediately. For longer-term help, the Hebrew Free Loan Society will loan up to $18,000 interest-free and the Jewish Federation has set up a hotline to  access assistance at 703-JCARING.

As a reminder, I am having drop-in hours on Thursday afternoons from 2 to 4 at the shul. For my drop-in hours, you do not need to make an appointment -- that would negate the whole point of drop-in hours -- but I’d urge you to check and make sure I am there regardless as sometimes there are unavoidable pastoral or other emergencies which might take me away from the building. 

As always, if I can do anything for you or you need to talk, please contact me at rabbi@kehilatshalom.org or 301-977-0768 rather than through the synagogue office. I am happy to meet you at the synagogue by appointment; if you want to speak with me it’s best to make an appointment rather than assuming I will be there when you stop by. 

Additionally, if you know of a Kehilat Shalom congregant or another member of our Jewish community who could use a phone call, please let me know.

L’shalom,

Rabbi Charles L. Arian