through a process of spiritual and moral cleansing and forgiveness. Rabbi Moshe Isserles the 16thcentury Polish commentator

Transcription

1 TEMPLE BETH ISRAEL Temple Talk I am here to help you avoid a fashion crisis during the holiest days of the year, on the Yamim Noraim, the Days of Awe. As many of you know and practice already, there is a custom on Yom Kippur to wear white clothing and/ or a white kittel, a simple cloak over one s clothing. In many traditional communities, one wears a kittel during prayer in the synagogue throughout Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. This custom is seen as symbolic of a few different ideas. Our Yom Kippur liturgy includes this verse from Isaiah 1:18: Though your sins be scarlet red, they shall be white as snow. In the Avodah Service of the Kohen Gadol of Yom Kippur Musaf, the days special rituals conclude with a scarlet thread turning white. So we wear white as an expression of hope and expectation that the Yamim Noraim will bring us Upcoming Events Avoiding a Fashion Crisis on the High Holy Days By: Rabbi Tracy Nathan through a process of spiritual and moral cleansing and forgiveness. Rabbi Moshe Isserles the 16thcentury Polish commentator on the Shulchan Aruch and presenter of Ashkenazi customs, explained that some wear clean, white garments to h a v e t h e a p p e a r a n c e of ministering angels (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayyim 610:4). Angels are seen as devoted servants of the Divine who share a special closeness with God. By wearing clothing symbolic of the angels, we express our desire for that closeness and our aspiration to be better servants of goodness, compassion, and justice, rather than servants of our own destructive impulses. My favorite reason for wearing white is its expression of equality. Several people associate the Friday Sept. 7 6:30pm - Service/Dinner - page 11 Saturday Sept. 8 10:45am - Children s Service - page 11 Saturday Sept. 8 8:30pm - Selichot - page 6 Sunday Sept Sukkah Building - page 9 (Continued on page 3) Rabbi: Cantor: President: Vice President: Secretary: Treasurer: Tracy Nathan Ellen Band Merrill Griff Jim Baron Genevieve Fosa Ed Kaufman Membership Co-Chairs: Editor: VOLUME 28 ISSUE 1 S EPTEMBER 2012 E LUL TISHRI 5773 INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Yahrzeits 2 Calendar 4 Donations 5 Selichot Flier 6 Mark s Remarks 7 High Holiday Schedule 8 Sukkah Building/Pot Luck 9 Program Fliers 11 Diana Korzenik and Ellen Macklin Andrea Baron Address 25 Harvard Street P. O. Box Waltham, MA office@tbiwaltham.org (781) Office Hours Monday - Friday 9:30am - 12:30pm

2 TEMPLE TALK P AGE 2 September Yahrzeits Plaque Loc. Name Yahrzeit Date 5-2 Samuel Arnold 1-Sep Elul Jennie Bernstein 1-Sep Elul Harry Goldberg 1-Sep Elul Anna Ginsburg 2-Sep Elul Hyman Cohen 2-Sep Elul Rose Jacobs 3-Sep Elul 16 Stanley Bloom 5-Sep Elul Rebecca Wolf 5-Sep Elul Daniel Leaken 6-Sep Elul 19 Morris Macklin 7-Sep Elul Dorothy Nottenburg 7-Sep Elul Bessie Aronie 7-Sep Elul David Feingold 8-Sep Elul Sarah Mendelsohn 9-Sep Elul Louis Kniznik 9-Sep Elul A. Harvey Cinamon 10-Sep Elul Louis Goldstein 11-Sep Elul Annie Siegel 11-Sep Elul Abraham Crevoshay 12-Sep Elul Hedwig Benedick 12-Sep Elul Samuel Pill 13-Sep Elul Sarah Caplan 13-Sep Elul David Pokat 13-Sep Elul Lillian Michaelson 13-Sep Elul Abe Grater 13-Sep Elul Doris Resnikoff 15-Sep Elul 28 Herman Bootin 15-Sep Elul Max Russell 16-Sep Elul 29 Marion Cohen 16-Sep Elul Annie Meilman 18-Sep Tishri Noah Goldberg 18-Sep Tishri Janet Greenblott 18-Sep Tishri Tsippa Shapiro 19-Sep Tishri 03 Jack Victor Iskowitz 20-Sep Tishri Rose Bronfman 20-Sep Tishri Rose Sheer Wolk 21-Sep Tishri Louis Sheer 21-Sep Tishri Mary Hoffman 21-Sep Tishri 05 Plaque Loc. Name Yahrzeit Date 1-4 Ethel Shriberg 22-Sep Tishri Stefanie Claire Handel 22-Sep Tishri Ida Pedell 23-Sep Tishri Abraham Larks 25-Sep Tishri Barnett Goldstein 26-Sep Tishri Florence Milesky 26-Sep Tishri Herbert Larks 26-Sep Tishri Minnie Krinsky 26-Sep Tishri Sarah Sheinhait 28-Sep Tishri Louis Baron 28-Sep Tishri Louis Harris 30-Sep Tishri Rose Talent 1-Oct Tishri Sadie Sherman 1-Oct Tishri Samuel Chansky 2-Oct Tishri 16 Gertrude Fischer Zuckerman 2-Oct Tishri Florence Furman 3-Oct Tishri 17 Isaac Goldberg 4-Oct Tishri Sylvia Pinstein 6-Oct Tishri Samuel Nussinow 7-Oct Tishri Adolf Stux 8-Oct Tishri Abraham Geller 9-Oct Tishri Joseph Canter 9-Oct Tishri Lena Merowitz 10-Oct Tishri William Riseberg 11-Oct Tishri Morris Weinstein 11-Oct Tishri Sophie Tuchfeld 12-Oct Tishri Jacob Hoffman 12-Oct Tishri Ida Dubin 13-Oct Tishri Sarah Benjaminson 13-Oct Tishri 27 Ruth Shapiro 15-Oct Tishri Lillian Berman 15-Oct Tishri Helen Talvy 15-Oct Tishri Benjamin Moldoff 16-Oct Tishri 30 If you would like to make a donation in memory of a loved one listed above please send it along with a brief note of who you would like remembered to the Temple Office.

3 P AGE 3 V OLUME 28 I SSUE 1 Avoiding a Fashion Crisis on the High Holy Days By: Rabbi Tracy Nathan (Continued from page 1) wearing of a kittel or simple white garment with the custom of burying our dead in simple white garments. This practice is recorded in the Talmud as established by Rabban Gamliel, the head of the Sanhedrin in the years following the destruction of the Temple. Despite his great stature, he demanded that he be buried in a simple, linen garment, to set an example of economic modesty, so poor families would not feel they had to dress their deceased in fine, expensive clothing (Babylonian Talmud Moed Katan 27b). We are thus reminded, that in death all are equal, and we are stripped down to our essence as we stand honestly before God and ourselves on Yom Kippur. This same sensitivity to the dignity and equality of all people, wherever they fall on the economic spectrum, is behind another mention of white garments associated with Yom Kippur. In the final Mishna of Ta anit 4:8, Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel said the following: "There were never happier days for the Jews as the fifteen of Av (Tu b Av) and Yom Kippur for on those days the daughters of Jerusalem would go out wearing borrowed white clothing so that they should not embarrass those who did not own such. (Mishna Ta anit 4:8) The High Holy Days are seen as a time to connect deeply with God and aspire to become a better Divine servant - much like the angels, often depicted as dressed in white. And it is a time for going through a process of spiritual cleansing that will leave us white as snow. And it is an opportunity for each of us to recognize the dignity and equality of all people. So invest in a Kittel for this year and years to come - or put aside white clothing so you don t have to agonize over what to wear to synagogue. Save yourself from a fashion crisis, while enjoying the deep symbolic experience of wearing either a kittel or white. And wishing you all a Shanah tovah u metukah! Welcome New Members Noah and Rebecca Beit-Aharon Gene Katz and Nancy Harrison Susan Kane and Michelle Lauder Frank Orovitz Yoav and Sarah Perron Arnold Pinsley and Linda Kopans Ian and Rachel Rosenblum The Boston-area Jewish Education Program (BJEP), a welcoming Sunday School that meets at Brandeis University, is now accepting fall registrations for its Sunday-only program. For students in grades K-7, BJEP IS NOT YOUR TYPICAL SUNDAY SCHOOL. Classes are taught by passionate and knowledgeable Brandeis students that make it cool to be Jewish. Families love the college setting where learning is open, differences are welcome and friendships are formed. Experiential learning and Jewish arts and culture are central to the program. A Jewish theatre program is available for interested students. Hebrew is taught and bar/bat mitzvah support is available. BJEP welcomes families of all backgrounds including interfaith and nontraditional families. High holiday services are offered. For additional information, please visit our website at or call (617)

4 P AGE 4 September 2012 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 Ki Tetze Rabbi Tracy Nathan 8 Ki Tavo Rabbi Tracy Nathan 2 3 Minyan 9:00am Dinner/Service 6:30pm Selichot 8:30pm Nitzavim Member Led Shabbat Shuvah/Vayelekh Cantor Ellen Band 18 Rosh Hashanah 8:30am 17 Rosh Hashanah 8:30am Tashlich 5:00pm 16 Erev Rosh Hashanah 6:30pm Haazinu Member Led Yom Kippur 8:30am Break-the-fast 7:15pm Kol Nidre 6:15pm 30 Sukkah Events see pg 9 If not specified, Minyan Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday is at 7:00am and on Saturday and Sunday at 9:00am.

5 P AGE 5 Memoriams Lillian Etkind, in memory of her sister Katherine Sidell. Esther Davidson, in memory of her husband, Oscar Davidson and her father, Morris Potash. Donald Kaplan, in memory of his cousin, Sumner Mason Tirk. Thank You To Leonard and Esther Meiselman for sponsoring the food at our Break Fast. SPONSOR A SHABBAT KIDDUSH LUNCH V OLUME 28 I SSUE 1 We are grateful to those who sent in a High Holiday contribution... Steven Chilton Louis Goldman Robert Gross and Edie Rosenberg Diana Korzenik Irving and Sheila Lesnick Alec Simon Arnold and Polly Slavet George and Judith Isaac Howard Trachtman Sponsor a Kiddush lunch on a Saturday in honor of a special occasion or in memory of a loved one. Let us know the date. The donation is $125 per date. It is never too late to donate. Use the form on the last page of the bulletin and mail it to the Temple. Thank you in advance. Saturday Kiddush Sponsors Sept 22 - Lester and Ellen Macklin Sept 29 - Irving and Sheila Lesnick Condolences To Gayle Blackman and Beverly Rosendorf on the loss of their brother, Jeff Blackman, from Harry and Ann Baker. Refuah Shlemah We wish a speedy recovery to: Owen Turner Herb Baron Barbara Leboff Anita Israel

6 TEMPLE TALK P AGE 6 Selichot Learning and Service Holy Forgiveness Selicha, Mechila, and Kappara in Prayer and Music Join us on Saturday, September 8th at 8:30pm Rabbi Tracy Nathan and Cantor Ellen Band will lead a discussion on forgiveness in practice and liturgy, drawing on text and music. Rabbi Nathan will examine the various words and notions of forgiveness in our liturgy, and how they might guide us in our own process of teshuva and forgiveness. Cantor Band will explore the liturgical text M chal La Avonoteinu, one of the centerpieces of the N ilah Service, the closing service of Yom Kippur. We will consider the significance of this text and listen to musical examples of the text setting that demonstrate how music is used as text painting. Candle Lighting Times We Need Minyanaires Sept 7 Sept 14 Sept 21 Sept 28 Oct 5 Oct 12 Oct 19 Oct 26 6:50pm 6:38pm 6:26pm 6:13pm 6:01pm 5:49pm 5:38pm 5:28pm Services are held at 7:00am on weekdays (except Tuesday) and at 9:00am on weekends & 9:00am on Civic Holidays. ****************************************** Kaddish We are not able to guarantee a minyan at each morning service, so if you need a minyan on a particular day to recite Kaddish, please let the Temple know at least 2 days prior.

7 P AGE 7 V OLUME 28 I SSUE 1 Mark s Remarks: A Post Card from Estonia By MARK FRYDENBERG As I write this (August 1, 2012) I am in Tallinn, Estonia, for a conference on Open and Social Technologies. I was walking from my hotel to the conference at Tallinn University, yesterday morning and stumbled on a modern, glass enclosed, archshaped building with a sign on the front door: SUNAGOOG. That s Estonian for synagogue, and this new modern structure is the only synagogue in the country. Today on my way back to the hotel, I stopped in for a visit and a tour. The synagogue is named Beit Bella, and I learned that the Bella of Beit Bella was the mother of one of the major donors of the building. The synagogue, which opened in 2007, is the first to open in Estonia since World War II. Prior to that, people prayed privately in shteebles (prayer rooms) in nearby buildings. My guide told me that there are about 2000 Jews in Tallinn, but about 10% of those are active in the synagogue. It was hard to be Jewish during the Soviet Occupation, she said. In 1940, organizations and businesses owned by Jews were closed down, and about 400 Jews were deported to Siberian prison camps. From 1944 until 1988 the Estonian Jewish community had no public Jewish presence. Since that time, a few have returned to Tallinn. Tallinn s original synagogue, built in 1883, was destroyed in 1944 when the Russians bombed Tallinn, and it was never rebuilt. The nearest synagogue was located in Tartu, about 250 kilometers away, also had a synagogue, which is no longer in use. A Torah scroll from that synagogue is in use here. The chief rabbi of Israel, and then Prime Minister Shimon Peres along with the president of Estonia, and the chief Rabbi of Russia were among the dignitaries on hand when the Tallinn synagogue was dedicated. A stone from Jerusalem lies beneath the Aron Kodesh (holy ark) in the new synagogue. The three-story building also has a kosher restaurant on the ground floor, and a mikvah. It is adjacent to the Jewish Community Center of Estonia, a former Jewish high school building from the 1920 s. The new synagogue seats about 200 people and has services four times a week: Monday, Thursday, and Saturday mornings, and Friday nights. I met Rabbi Shmuel Kot, a rabbi in his 30s who welcomed me to the synagogue. It s nice you came to join our community which is growing, even if you re only with us for one day. He said they get a lot of visitors who are stopping in Tallinn as a port of call on the Baltic Sea. The ferries arrive just a few blocks from the synagogue. A note on the synagogue's web site (Continued on page 10)

8 High Holiday Schedule 5773 Selichot Saturday, Sept 8 8:30pm Rosh HaShanah Evening Service Sunday, Sept 16 6:30pm Rosh HaShanah Day 1 Monday, Sept 17 8:30am Tashlich - at the Riverwalk entrance by Moody Street Bridge 5:00pm Rosh HaShanah Day 2 Tuesday, Sept 18 8:30am Shabbat Shuva Saturday, Sept 22 9:00am (with Cantor Ellen Band) Daily Minyan Sunday, Sept 23 9:00am Cemetery Memorial Service Sunday, Sept 23 10:00am Weekday Minyan for Ten Days of Teshuva Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday 7:00am Kol Nidre Tuesday, Sept 25 6:15pm *we will begin promptly please be seated by 6:10pm Yom Kippur Morning Wednesday, Sept 26 8:30am *Yizkor will be held directly after the Torah service at approx. 11:30 am Yom Kippur Mincha/Neila Shofar/Fast Ends 4:45 pm 7:15pm Build Sukkah Pot Luck Dinner Sunday, Sept 30 see page 9 Sukkot Day 1 Monday, Oct 1 8:00am Sukkot Day 2 Tuesday, Oct 2 7:00am Sukkot Service/Dinner in Sukkah Friday, October 5 6:30pm Shabbat Hol HaMoed Sukkot Saturday, October 6 9:00am Hoshanah Rabbah Sunday, Oct 7 9:00am Shemini Atzeret (with Yizkor) Monday, Oct 8 9:00am *Yizkor will be recited at approx. 9:45am Simchat Torah Evening Monday, Oct 8 7:00pm Simchat Torah Morning Tuesday, Oct 9 7:00am

9 SUKKAH BUILDING, DECORATING, and POT LUCK DINNER SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 30 Our Sukkah-building event this year will be held on Sunday, September 30th. Morning minyan will be at 9am per usual, then we will begin the set-up shortly afterward at about 10:15 am. Yoav Perron will be coordinating the set-up, and work gloves and snacks will be provided. With 10 people helping, we can set up the sukkah in under two hours. Please contact Yoav to sign up. Sarah Perron will also be running a decoration-making event for kids and anyone else who wants to make decorations for our sukkah, beginning at 5:30 pm, just before our pot luck dinner in the sukkah, so please feel free to invite and bring friends and family to make this a really special day! If you can attend the building or decorating events, or you have questions, please feel free to Yoav at his new address: yoav.perron@gmail.com. Sukkot is such a wonderful time of celebration, and set-up is always a lot of fun, so we hope to see you all there! In the evening, we will gather in the Sukkah for a pot luck dinner to celebrate the first night of Sukkot. Please join us in the Sukkah at 6 pm. (Candle lighting is at 6:10 pm). We will light candles, say kiddush, motzi, and the blessings for sitting in the sukkah. We will provide beverages and desserts. For the pot luck dinner, please bring a fish, dairy, or pareve dish, enough to feed at least 8 people. Place all food that is certified kosher or prepared in a kosher kitchen on the table labeled "vegetarian with a hechsher" and all other food the table labeled "vegetarian." This creative arrangement allows everyone to contribute and enjoy a meal together as a single community. Please contact the Temple office to let us know if you're coming for dinner, so we can have an idea of how many chairs to carry into the sukkah.

10 P AGE 10 V OLUME 28 I SSUE 1 Mark s Remarks: A Post Card from Estonia (continued from page 7) (Continued from page 7) ( describes the rebirth of the Jewish community of Tallin. Our Synagogue symbolizes the living miracle of the Jewish people. Despite the hard times that the Jewish community in Estonia had to face, we are still living. During World War II, all Jews as well as all synagogues and prayer-houses in Estonia were destroyed. During the Soviet times, the religious life here was prohibited. And still now we built the new Tallinn Synagogue and the Jewish life therein is flourishing. We view the current objective of the Jewish Community in taking the Jews back to their historical roots and thereby strengthening the Jewish identity. This task may be fulfilled only with the help of old Jewish tradition all Jews support one another. We have gained the opportunity to build Tallinn Synagogue and lay the foundations of the Jewish life in Estonia. However, there is still lots of work ahead. After the Holidays we ll schedule a slide show at the synagogue where I ll share some of my travel photos in Europe this summer. I hope you ll join us.

11 Friday Evenings, September 7 October 5 (in the Sukkah) November 9 Welcome Shabbat with Services and Community Dinner at Temple Beth Israel Services: 6:30 pm Dinner: 7:30 pm $12 per adult, $30 per family Welcome Shabbat with a spirited Kabbalat Shabbat Service at 6:30 pm, led by Rabbi Tracy Nathan, followed by a home-cooked dinner at 7:30 pm, singing, and good conversation. Reserve now! Payment must be received by Thursday morning, the day before the dinner you are attending. We cannot accept payment at the door, and will not send bills afterward. Sign up for all three dinners and save! Names of Adults and Children Attending: Contact Phone: Date Number Amount Sept 7 Adults Children $12 per adult or $30 per family Oct 5 Adults $12 per adult or Children $30 per family Nov 9 Adults $12 per adult or Children $30 per family Sign up for all three dinners now and save! $5 per adult $15 per family Payment Enclosed: Our Shabbat Program for Children Begins again on September 8th We will once again hold a Shabbat morning program for children beginning on September 8th. The morning will include a service, Torah learning, and activities for young children all led by Eliana Light. Services will take place in our downstairs space beginning at 10:45am. Please stay and join us for a communal kiddush lunch in our social hall following Shabbat morning services. Mark these future dates for the year on your calendar: Oct 6 - Shabbat Hol HaMoed Sukkot Feb 9 - Mishpatim/Shekalim Nov 10 - Chayyei Sarah Mar 9 - Vayakhel Pekudei/HaHodesh Dec 15 - Miketz/Shabbat Hanukkah Apr 13 - Tazria-Metzora

12 Temple Beth Israel stamp 25 Harvard Street P.O. Box Waltham, MA Phone: Website: September 2012 Bulletin It is never too late to donate. Use the form below and mail it to the Temple. Thank you in advance. Donate on the web at Kol Nidre Pledge High Holiday Donation General Fund Rabbi s Discretionary Fund Morris Hollender Music Appreciation Fund Carl Goldstein Memorial Fund Other, please specify: Temple Beth Israel Donation Form For your convenience, please use this form to make your donations and send to: Temple Beth Israel, P O Box , Waltham, MA I have chosen the fund indicated at the right: (Please use a separate form for each fund. Minimum donation: $10) Attached is my check in the amount of: $ The donation is being made In Honor Of In Memory Of Other This donation is made by: Name: Address: City/State/Zip Please send acknowledgement to: Name: Address: City/State/Zip