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Monthly Archives: 5 Tevet 5770 (December 22, 2009)
Scrip
The Temple gratefully acknowledges these scrip purchasers (October 30 through November 30, 2009): Sue and David Carnevale, Anita and Phil Freed, Barbara and Michael Freeman, Sue and Michael Grant, Lisa Horowitz and David Huth, Elaine and Jack Israelsohn, Paige and Michael Katzenstein, David Mack and Stacey Parker, Linda and Dan Magalnick, Lisa Kosan and Scot Petersen, Lynn and Rabbi Steven Rubenstein, Tracey and Jerry Schwartz, Elissa and Alain Sireuil, Karen and Michael Stearn, Lorinda and Alan Visnick, Paul Weinberg.
A Woman in a Tallis at the Kotel is Like Blowing Out the Hanukkah Candles
A commentary from Rabbi Goldie Milgram: Upon arriving at the baggage claim in Philadelphia’s airport, the man beside me noticed I was holding a Jewish paper open to an article about the arrest of a woman wearing a tallis (prayer shawl) at the Kotel, (the “Wall”) in Jerusalem. The title of this article is the comment he made to me: “A woman in a tallis at the Kotel is like blowing out the Hanukkah candles.” Hoisting my suitcase off onto the baggage cart, I quoted the Iggeret HaKodesh (a Hassidic text) to him: "Whenever ahavat yisrael (love of all Jews) is in the hearts of the Jewish people, the heart of God, the Shechinah is, also healthy." [Epsitle 31] His family was waving and coming towards us, so he simply bowed his head slightly in acknowledgement, and we parted ways blessing each other to have a happy Hanukkah. The arrest at the Kotel of tallit-wearing Nofrat Frenkel, an Israeli defense officer and medical student, also brought the blindness of Isaac to mind. It was the biblical matriarch Rivka who could see her children for who they were becoming, not her husband Yitzchak, whom the traditional commentators understand as both physicially … Continue reading
A Message for December 21 – The Winter Solstice
“Jewish Spiritual Renewal is not about proselytizing to the many Jews who need it; it is about helping those individual Jews who want it… Have the faith to know that living a life of happiness, joy and freedom begins with repairing yourself… with God at your side.” – Rabbi Arthur Segel According to the astrological calendar that dictates our lives, this is the shortest day of the year. In theaters across the country, a new movie is being released, reminding us that on the winter solstice of 2012, the Mayan calendar ends its 5,125-year history. Some take the end of the Mayan calendar to mean the end of the world is approaching; and Hollywood’s rendition of this calls for earthquakes and tidal waves. The question we ought to be asking ourselves is: “How do you prepare for the end of the world?” For Jews, we have been waiting for centuries for a word or two from Eliyahu HaNavi at the Passover table each spring and at the end of Shabbat each Saturday evening, announcing that the Mashi’ach and the End of Days draw near. I can only imagine how our ancient ancestors must have felt when they took notice that … Continue reading
Death Notice
It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Shirley Sager, mother of our member Linda Magalnick. Funeral service will take place in New Jersey. The family will sit shiva from 7:00 p.m. Saturday, December 26, through Wednesday evening, December 30, at the home of Dan and Linda Magalnick. Shiva minyan will take place daily at 7:00 p.m.
A Perfect Way To Spend a Chanukah Morning
On Sunday, December 13, our community enjoyed a morning of soothing jazz music, homemade latkes and other delicious treats, all while raising money for a local charity, Citizens for Adequate Housing (CAH). This event happened as a result of an email sent to Rabbi Steve from a new member, Steven Swartz, expressing an interest in bringing a little music to his new community. Steven is a member of The Joy of Sax , the jazz trio that entertained us so wonderfully. Judith Murray, a returning TBA member and occasional vocalist with the band, also agreed to volunteer her talents. Judith’s vocals complemented her backup musicians beautifully, mixing standards from the great American songbook with appropriate Chanukah music. Joel Black outdid himself preparing by hand a tremendous amount of latkes that were consumed down to the last bite. Our “kitchen crew” led by Donna Pierce, and including Elissa Sireuil, Janis Soffer, Andi Freeman-Younger, Philip Freed and Anita Freed, did an outstanding job setting up and cleaning up after this magical program. It was a perfect way to spend a Sunday morning. The Joy of Sax is available to perform at events. Contact Steven Swartz at 978-265-4934, or steven@sspr.biz.
Searching for God in the Light of Torah–Life is a Masquerade, My Friends
Parashat Mikkeitz ~ December 19, 2009 ~ 2 Tevet 5770 Now that Chanukkah is coming to an end, with eight candles feeding on each other for attention as the flames flicker from the intensity of the heat, I recall quite fondly a scene from my childhood when my sisters and I squabbled with one another over who was going to light the candles and who was going to set them up and who was going to choose the colors, even though the majority of them were either white or yucky yellow… Imagine sharing a meal with the extended family as they try to decide who will sit next to whom, and who won’t… Don’t even try to comment on whose latkes are better, and who has grandma’s original recipe as handed down by the women for generations…! Families are funny that way. When it is our own, we are embarrassed by the level of dysfunction that we put up with at these gatherings, whether it is Chanukkah or Pesach or Rosh Hashanah! When it comes to making peace, we find ourselves being asked by our loved ones to “PLEASE” put on a happy face, or at the very least “PRETEND” … Continue reading
Cancelations for Sunday Dec. 20
