Shalom & Welcome to

Rabbi Dina-Hasida Mercy's Website!

Where Judaism is relevant, meaningful and joyful.

Welcoming the Shabbat

You may ask why the first mitzvah of Shabbat is the kindling of lights. That is because Shabbat is actually a celebration of the Creator and His Creation. G‑d’s creation of the world follows a seven-day cycle, which peaks each Shabbat and begins anew. At Creation, the first thing that was brought into being was light. Therefore, it is appropriate to kindle lights at the start of Shabbat in commemoration of the first light that was created.

Important Upcoming Dates

Our Next Major Holiday

Pesach / Passover

The evening of Wed, Apr 5, 2023 – Evening of Thu, Apr 13, 2023

Pesach, known in English as Passover,  Pesach begins on the 15th day of the Jewish month of Nissan. It is the first of the three major festivals with both historical and agricultural significance

Passover is celebrated by Jews every year, commemorating the anniversary of our miraculous Exodus from Egyptian slavery, as told in the Bible.

On the first two nights of Passover (just the first night in Israel), we hold a Seder. After the candles have been lit, we enjoy a ritual-rich 15-step feast, which centers around telling the story of the Exodus.

This story is told in Exodus, Ch. 1-15. Many of the familiar Pesach observances are instituted in Chs. 12-15.