Newsletters

Worship Event
of the Week

Shabbat Shulchan
At 6 p.m. this Friday, January 12, at All Souls, we make Shabbos together (weather permitting) with our Shabbat Shulchan, our Shabbat Table, with informal worship, followed by dinner and time to be in sacred space together, just to talk and share life. We’ll make some time during the service to check in to see how we’re feeling vis-à-vis the ongoing, troubling war in Gaza. If you plan to attend, please RSVP to rabbidoug@kolamikc.org.
Please note: Watch for the rabbi's Friday reminder in case of a change in plans due to inclement weather.

Community News

MLK Observance


Rabbi Doug reflects on the intersection of Judaism and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King’s Beloved Community at the Greater Kansas City MLK interfaith service (hosted by SCLC-GKC and the Greater Kansas City Interfaith Council) Sunday, January 7, at Community Christian Church. (Photo by Zulfiqar Malik)

Yahrzeits
This Week
January 13
Elaine Lubert – mother of Alan Lubert

Ely Solomon – father of Roberta Solomon

January 15
Sylvia Goldstein – grandmother of Anna Jaffe

We Wish
Mi Shebeirach
A complete healing of mind, body and spirit to:

Robert Clinton
Kenneth Dantzler
Bill Drummond
Rev. Lloyd Fields
Dana A. Fuller
Amanda Goldstein
Harriet Greenwald
Michelle Hills
Karla Jacobs 
Butch Murphy
Katie Nottingham
Harolyn Richberg
Michah ben Sarah
Edi Shifrin
Rachel Silk

If you would like a name to continue to be listed or if you have a
new name to include, please send an email to  healing@kolamikc.org. 

Rabbi's Week in Review



The main feature of my past week was contracting Covid for the second time. Thank G-d, the symptoms were not too serious, and I know I’ll be fine. However, it did make me (if only temporarily) a bit of a pariah in the community. Nobody says it quite like that, and it’s very temporary. At the same time, I kept thinking how Miriam and others were banished from the encampment during 40 years wandering in the wilderness. For me, it was ... Click here to read the rest of Rabbi Doug's blog post.

This Week's Torah Portion
Parashat Va’era
(Shemot/Exodus 6:2-9:35)



G-d “appears” to Moses as G-d “appeared” to Avraham, Yitzhak and Yaakov. Again, G-d reaches out to someone we might consider an unlikely choice to lead the Jewish people. We learn to not judge people at first blush, and seek out the somewhat hidden gifts they may possess. 

Weekly Feature

The Roast Chicken Debate Heats Up
By Wynne Begun

Roast chicken has been a longtime mainstay of Shabbat dinners. For family Shabbats in recent years, I’ve generally picked up a chicken from Costco — easy, inexpensive and always tasty. My healthy-food consciousness, though, recently made me second-guess this practice. I’ve read about the additives, the amount of salt, and the inhumane conditions for the chickens. And sometimes the Costco chicken doesn’t seem cooked quite long enough. 

I began researching recipes for roast chicken and found an interesting one at The Nosher. I’ll refer to it as the low-slow method — the oven is set at 250 degrees F, and the chicken is roasted for three hours. It’s very good, with moist breast meat and crispy skin that browns well after a short stint in the broiler. I shared the recipe with a friend who is a gourmet cook and a fellow foodie. Her reaction was pleasant but reserved. Very politely she said, “I use the Ina Garten method — 425 degrees for 90 minutes.” 

The challenge was on. Which was better, low-slow or Ina’s method?  

After trying low-slow one more time and then roasting a chicken using Ina’s recipe, I have to say Ina’s wins out. The chicken is browned without the broiler, the skin is crisp, and it is nicely done. 

So my friend was right, and the roast chicken debate has been put to rest. Ina Garten retains her title of the Contessa. But remember: For a quick turnaround, there’s always Costco. 

For the low-slow recipe from The Nosher, click here.
For Ina Garten’s roast-chicken recipe, click here.