I’m still traumatized by the first, and only time, I went camping. We had to shlep heavy tenting materials, bars, posts, and connective joints, up a sandy hillside. With a […]
Surgeon General Vivek Murtha recently issued an advisory on the public health crisis of loneliness. Even before the Covid pandemic, Americans reported enduring periods of profound loneliness. Murtha’s report calls […]
After visiting civil rights memorials in Alabama, I’ve been reading about the history of slavery. The facts are shocking. The arguments made and justification for slavery are appalling. Some of […]
My American history teacher asked our high school class to offer the name of a hero. I recall my answer vividly and I’ll share that with you at the end. […]
Think of an archeologist with a sieve in hand. She sorts through piles of debris and detritus. Through the sieve falls the dirt. Treasures hidden in the earth are captured […]
Lepers, Jews, and prostitutes had a lot in common in Medieval Europe. They were all reviled. All were forced to wear distinctive clothing. Imagine the plight of a leprous Jewish […]
Aaron’s eldest sons, Nadav and Abihu, met a fiery fate. As with reports of many deaths, the event shocks us. How could the two oldest sons of the High Priest […]
Passover recalls escaping slavery, which is the narrowest imaginable place. Slavery not only shrinks the world, but it also constricts the spirit. In modern times, physical slavery continues. And there […]
The Exodus never ended. The historic journey from Egypt to the Promised Land is over. But the existential state of exodus continues. Sometimes we are moving away from and other […]
The promise of freedom is at the heart of the Passover seder. Freedom is not merely the liberation from slavery but goes to the quality of our lives. This year, […]
A lifelong musician, cantorial soloist Caitlin McLaughlin has been a service leader and band member at Temple Emanuel of Kensington, MD since 2011, has led alternative High Holiday and Women’s Retreat worship services, and has also taught music in the Religious School since 2020. She joined the Jewish Studio worship leading team in Rockville MD in 2021.
Caitlin completed vocal studies at Temple University in Philadelphia, PA and a master’s degree in Music (Choral Conducting) at the University of California, Irvine. She has led choral groups in schools and congregations in California, New England and Minnesota before settling in Maryland. Beginning in 2021, Caitlin will be a member of Cohort 11 of the Davennen Leadership Training Institute. She has taken part in other Jewish music workshops including Shabbat Shirah and Hava Nashira at OSRUI, NewCAJE and the Jewish Collaborative Songwriters’ Retreat.
She lives in Silver Spring MD with her family.
David Abramowitz was ordained as a Cantor by the ALEPH Ordination Program in January 2016 and received his certificate as a spiritual director in January 2017. David enjoys leading Shabbat morning services at the Charles E. Smith Life Communities in Rockville, Maryland twice a month and officiates life cycle events year round.
In his other professional life, David is the Mid-Atlantic regional technical lead at Trend Micro, a specialist in computer and network security. In his free time, he enjoys playing drums and singing in a rock cover band, and playing in an adult ice hockey league.
David graduated from Brandeis University with a B.S. in Computer Science and received his Masters in Computer Science from The George Washington University.
Evan J. Krame was ordained as a rabbi by the ALEPH Ordination Program in January 2015 and is currently a fellow of Rabbis Without Borders. He has served as president of several non-profit organizations, including the Hillel at George Washington University and Shared Horizons, Inc.
In addition to leading the Jewish Studio, Evan also serves as a founding builder of Bayit, a national organization that provides innovative tools to build a new Judaism. His honors include Hillel’s Exemplar of the Year, Israel Bonds Young Leadership Award, the Jewish Federation of Washington’s Campaigner of the Year, ORT’s community leadership award and the Shared Horizons Humanitarian award.
In addition to his religious activities, Evan is also a partner at Krame and Biggin, a Maryland law firm specializing in estates and trusts work with a focus on assisting families of persons with special needs. Evan is a graduate of Brandeis University and George Washington University Law School and has an LLM in Taxation.