5779 BETH ISRAEL BOARD OF TRUSTEES

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1 January BETH ISRAEL BOARD OF TRUSTEES Lori Beth Susman, President Amy Goldin, Vice President Leon Sootin, Treasurer Rayanne Weiss, Secretary Brad Kessie, Past President TRUSTEES Debbie Goldin Richard Balser Debbi McCallam Ryan Goldin Gary Taylor, Administrator O ice hours are usually Monday and Wednesday, 11:00 am to 2:00 pm, and Friday, 11:00 am to 1:00 pm, or by appointment. The o ice schedule may vary due to holidays and other events. Please call to con irm. Cheryl Fishman, Newsletter Designer Rabbi Norry returns for first visit of 2019 January Friday, Jan. 25 Family (Tot) Shabbat, 6 p.m. This is geared toward families with children ages 9 and younger, but all are welcome! Dairy Potluck Dinner, 6:30 p.m. (please bring a dairy dish or dessert to share) Shabbat Services, 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 26 Rabbi Norry will be available at the synagogue to talk, counsel, quiz, share, and teach starting at 11 a.m. Have a question for the rabbi? Want to share something? Need some help? Stop by and see the rabbi! (If the door is locked, please knock loudly.) Sunday, Jan. 27 Sunday school, 9:30 to 11 a.m. General Membership Meeting, 11 a.m. Open to all CBI members. If you are interested in membership, please or call the synagogue. YOU DON T WANT TO MISS IT! Congregation Beth Israel Three Rivers Road Gulfport MS bethisrael1818@yahoo.com Visit us on Facebook! website:

2 President's Message Hello Friends, President Lori Beth's Message... I hope everyone had a festive December, and is doing well in Wasn t our Chanukah party fun? We had more raffle prizes than ever, the best latkes, great desserts, wonderful music I could go on and on. The Family Fun Chanukah party is really one of our best events. Thank you so much to everyone who helped! Now that we are in a new year, we find ourselves getting ready for more activity. Rabbi Norry returns Friday through Sunday, Jan. 25-Jan. 27. That Friday night will be a busy one with Family Shabbat (also known as Tot Shabbat) at 6 p.m. This is primarily for young children, but everyone is invited. We will then have our dairy potluck at 6:30 p.m. Please bring a dish or dessert to make this a wonderful meal. Our traditional Shabbat services will start around 7:30 p.m. After all the ruach (spirit) of Shabbat, we will get serious. You remember that at the end of October there was a horrible massacre at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh. Since that time (and even beforehand), our board has been discussing security at the synagogue. We re upping our measures in a number of ways. At the general membership meeting on Sunday, Jan. 27, we will share some of our updated security measures with you. We will also talk about upcoming events. The meeting starts at 11 a.m., and, as always, we will provide a small meal. The meeting is open to all Congregation Beth Israel members. If you are not yet a member, but are interested in joining our congregation, take a moment to reach out to me (or the synagogue). I look forward to seeing you during Rabbi Norry s visit and at the general membership meeting. If you have any questions, please let me know. Shalom, Lori Beth P.S. Rabbi Norry will be available at the synagogue all day Saturday, Jan. 26. Why not stop by and say hello? 2

3 President's Message Three Houses In One Message from Rabbi Hillel Norry Synagogue is a Greek word. It is ironic that we use it to describe Jewish houses of worship. Temple, refers to The Jerusalem Temple, and is used by many communities to suggest that the ONE Temple has become EVERY temple. In Hebrew, a Jewish place of worship is called a beit knesset. This literally means a place of coming together, a gathering place. We also call our houses of worship a beit midrash, meaning a place of inquiry or study or learning. Lastly, we say our synagogue is a beit tefillah, a house of prayer and meditation. That is a tall order to fill, but most synagogues play all of these roles for each member of the Jewish community. Some Jews are drawn more by the prayer than by the learning. Others come for the friendship and community more than the prayers. We come to synagogue for different reasons at different times in our Jewish life. When we are saying Kaddish, we come for the tefillah and the kehillah (community). When we are raising children, we come for the gathering and the learning. Each of us needs all of this to live a full and meaningful Jewish life. In many ways, this three part description of the synagogue s mission also describes the necessary ingredients for an individual to have a vital personal Jewish life - spiritual practice, Torah learning, and community. You ve got to practice, you ve got to stretch and grow, and you can t do it alone, you ve got to have others. These three principal expressions of our Judaism form a strong and stable platform to explore, grow, change, mourn, celebrate, and discover together. Which of these three is most meaningful to you at this stage of your life? How can you help bring more of that to CBI and to your own Jewish practice? What are some other, foundational Jewish experiences can we share together as a beit knesset, a kehillah, a community of Jews? Every time we gather together we strengthen the bonds of community. Every time we sing and pray together, we grow as a kehillah of worshippers. Every time we learn together we deepen the foundation of Torah upon which our beit knesset is built. I look forward to seeing you all in January. In Israel, New Year s Eve is called Sylvester. (You can look up why.) Happy Sylvester! Rabbi Hillel Norry 3

4 Shabbat Services 7:30 p.m. January :30 a.m. to noon 9:30 a.m. to noon 9:30 a.m. to noon Shabbat Services 7:30 p.m. Shabbat Services 7:30 p.m. 9:30-11 a.m GENERAL MEMBERSHIP Meeting, 11 am YOU DON'T WANT TO MISS IT! Rabbi Norry returns for first visit of 2019 January Friday, Jan. 25 Family (Tot) Shabbat, 6 p.m. This is geared toward families with children ages 9 and younger, but all are welcome! Dairy Potluck Dinner, 6:30 p.m. (please bring a dairy dish or dessert to share) Shabbat Services, 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 26 Rabbi Norry will be available at the synagogue to talk, counsel, quiz, share, and teach starting at 11 a.m. Have a question for the rabbi? Want to share something? Need some help? Stop by and see the rabbi! (If the door is locked, please knock loudly.) Sunday, Jan. 27 Sunday school, 9:30 to 11 a.m. General Membership Meeting, 11 a.m. Open to all CBI members. If you are interested in membership, please or call the synagogue. YOU DON T WANT TO MISS IT! 4

5 JANUARY 2019 YAHRZEITS January 4 January 11 January 18 January 25 Ruth Perwien Edith Gottesman Fannie Shockett Joseph Walton Samuel Fleisher Ruben Leff Moody Grishman Esther I. Fishman Leonard Marcus Gertrude Horowitz Robbie Goldin Jack Goldin Leah Rosenblum Abraham Peck, Madelin Glass Harris Manas Moses Signoff Flora Piltz A Time for Prayer May God who blessed our ancestors, bless and heal our chaverim. May the Holy One in mercy strengthen them and heal them soon, body and soul, together with others who suffer illness. Amen Jimmy McIntyre Jackie Lippman Jamie Herman Phyllis Fishman Jen Jenkins Taylor Hopwood Vickie Rubenstein David Grishman Muriel Schwartz Shelia Racz Diane Becker David Martin Mike Loebenberg Terry Loebenberg Pat Boyle Jerry Mathews Susan Zukowski Muriel Laverson Lehwmon Skrmetti Leeann Rasmussen Valerie Schreck Susan Shoenberger White And the Family of Rachel Delahunt And we continue to pray for Israel and for peace for all people. Is there someone you know who needs to be kept in our thoughts and prayers? 5

6 A few things to do to celebrate Shabbat Invite friends over Ask guests to prepare a Shabbat blessing, story or song Set a special table for Shabbat dinner Use a special tablecloth Arrange fresh flowers in your home Polish the silver Pour a nice wine Bake or buy challah Give thanks for the blessings of the week Light special candles Read a Shabbat prayer then read it again Say blessings over the wine and challah Sing some nice songs Listen to the quiet peace of a dinner at home without phone, TV or radio Take a Shabbat walk Be open to moments of wonder, of soulful encounter Come to Congregation Beth Israel for Shabbat services Yahrzeit Memorial Plaques Remember your loved one with a plaque on the memorial boards inside the sanctuary. Plaques are now $180 Call or the office today at bethisrael1818@yahoo.com. Southern Memorial Park Cemetery Plots in the Jewish section are $1,800! the only Jewish cemetery on the Gulf Coast Plot purchases include opening and closing costs.still plenty of spaces left in the cemetery. Call or bethisrael1818@yahoo.com Share your Simcha Mark a birthday, a wedding or any simcha with an engraved leaf on a custom made Tree of Life. Call or the office today at bethisrael1818@yahoo.com. Happy 80 th Birthday, Grandma We love you, Sara and Jacob Leaves are now only $72 Illustration purposes only. 6

7 Rabbi Hillel Norry will return in He will be with us the following weekends. PLEASE SAVE THE DATES! March Purim Carnival is Sunday, March 17 April 5-7 WAYS TO GIVE There are many meaningful ways to give to Congregation Beth Israel. Helping our community institutions to thrive is a wonderful mitzvah and a rewarding part of living a Jewish life. Your financial contributions make a tremendous impact in keeping Jewish life strong along the Gulf Coast. Consider a gift to our synagogue in the name of a departed friend or loved one. A donation is also a great way to mark a celebration or simcha. Purchase a leaf on the new Tree of Life to mark the celebration or honor. Honor a congregant by making a gift in his or her name. Beautiful bricks will fill the walkways, and you can dedicate an engraved brick today for just $54. Consider Congregation Beth Israel in your will or setting up an endowment. Your gifts are much appreciated and will only be used to support our synagogue. For more information, reply to bethisrael1818@yahoo.com. WANT TO DONATE The kitchen is out of challah. It is available for order through many companies,including Amazon.com. Thank you for your donations! Enclosed is my gift of $ q From: Name: Address: q Please send an acknowledgement to the following: Name: Address: In Memory Of In Honor Of Mail your gift to CBI Three Rivers Rd. Gulfport, MS Challah, BUT DON T BAKE? 7