Rabbi Stephen Fuchs has made the decision to retire as of July 1, 2011.
Read his letter announcing his retirement and President April Haskell's letter outlining the process for selecting his successor.
A note from President April Haskell:
While we are losing a learned and loved leader, we also respect and support Rabbi Fuchs' decision, and our prayers are with him as he moves on to another chapter in his life.
The process for the selection of a new Senior Rabbi will give us the opportunity to revisit our needs and direction as a Congregation, and to choose a successor who will take us into and through the coming decades. I am confident that the decisions we make over the coming year will allow us to go from strength to strength and grow in a positive way. I welcome any concerns, questions, or suggestions that you may have as we move forward to find our next Senior Rabbi.
Click
here to read Voices of Healing : Personal Testimonies and Reflections.
Click here to go to the "Health Care 4 Every 1" website and learn about Sustinet.
Text and Audio of the
"What It Means To Be A Jew" Sermons
The ideals, teachings, and practices of the Jewish people have been the central focus of Rabbi Fuchs's life for more than forty years. Rabbi Fuchs hasl shared his thoughts and beliefs in a series of provocative and challenging sermons of interest to both newcomers and to knowledgeable Jews. The sermons were delivered during High Holy Day Services and at Friday night Shabbat Services throughout the rest of the year.
All of the sermons in the What It Means to be a Jew series were recorded live at each Service.
They have been posted in a MP3 file (audio) and a PDF (text) file. These files are also available in the Learning Center.
Violence in the Media Mazel tov to Rabbi Fuchsfor his excellent op-ed piece on violence in the media, published in the Hartford Courant on August 12, 2008. Click to read.
Media Violence and the Next Generation: What our children really learn
Rabbi Stephen Fuchs '68, will make a presentation during the Hamilton College Alumni Class Reunions '08, June 5-8, about his campaign against violence in media. Tragic events like the shootings at Columbine, Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois University, are, Rabbi Fuchs believes, the direct result of the growing and ever more graphic depictions of violence that children grow up with in television programs, movies, and video games. Click
here to read more. See the slide show.
To see Rabbi Fuchs in his Face the State interview,
February 2007, click
here.
To see Rabbi Fuchs on WVIT, CT Newsmakers, with
Tom Monahan,
August
2007, click
here.
Read Susan
Campbell's article from the Hartford Courant.
Rabbi Fuchs spoke about his proposal in his High Holy Day Sermons
in 2006 (A Preposterous Proposal) and 2007 (Still Preposterous but Still my Proposal).
Rabbi Fuchs On Israel
Read "PRAYER FOR ISRAEL"
Delivered on Wednesday, January 14, 2009
At the Rally “Hartford Stands with the People of Israel”
Hear Rabbi Fuchs and Rabbi James Rosen on Israel@60 on the radio show, "Best of Valley Shore" on May 14, 2008. It is about 29 min.
Hear Rabbi Fuchs' brilliant defense of Israel on WWUH, University of Hartford, May 12, 2008. It is about 28 min.
To Listen:
Click on this link: Defense of Israel
Click on this link: Israel@60
If you have trouble hearing the recordings, you can also download the files:
Right click on the link.
Click "Save Target As"
Save the file on your computer
Listen to the file with ITunes, Window Media or Real Player
If you are unable to hear the recordings, you can borrow a CD from the Learning Center or come into the Center to hear them.
A Story for all Ages Listen as Rabbi Fuchs retells Isaac Loeb Peretz’ famous story “If Not Higher”, a wonderful tale to help us prepare for the rapidly approaching Days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. The story was recorded at Shabbat Eve services on September 5, 2008.
If you have trouble hearing the recordings, you can also download the files:
Right click on the link.
Click "Save Target As"
or "Save Link As" then save the file on your computer.
Listen to the file with ITunes, Window Media, or Real Player.
A Tale of Love and Darkness A Book Review of the book, A Tale of Love and Darkness, by Amos Oz
May 16, 2008 The First Shaker Shabbat in history! Read Rabbi Fuchs' sermon about the Shaker religion, its contributions to American culture, and what commonalities the Shaker religion and Judaism share. The sermon is in honor of the publication of From Shaker Lands and Shaker Hands: A Survey of the Industries, a book by congregant and West Hartford resident Dr. M. Stephen Miller, one of the foremost collectors of Shaker ephemera.
Mazel Tov to Rabbi Stephen Fuchs!
On Tuesday,
October 24, 2006, West Hartford Mayor Scott Slifka
presented Rabbi Fuchs with the “Legion of Honor” award
by the Chapel
of Four Chaplains. The Chapel of Four Chaplains is
a national non-profit organization which gives this prestigious
honor to those who exhibit “outstanding, sacrificial
volunteer service to one’s community and fellow
human beings without regard for faith or race.” The
award will recognize Rabbi Fuchs' work in the community
and will acknowledge his Memorial Day Speech at Town
Hall in which he retold the story of the heroism of the
four Chaplains, two Protestant Ministers, a Catholic
Priest and a Rabbi who served on the troop ship Dorchester
which was torpedoed and sunk in the waters of the North
Atlantic by a German submarine on February 3, 1943. Read
his acceptance speech by clicking here.
