JOLIET JEWISH CONGREGATION The Jewish Bulletin

Transcription

1 JOLIET JEWISH CONGREGATION The Jewish Bulletin William T. Kaplan President Charles Rubovits Rabbi January 15, Tevet 5777 From the Rabbi s Study Candle Lighting Times January 20, :28pm January 27, :36pm February 3, :53pm Friday Evening Services January 20, :00pm January 27, :00pm February 3, :00pm Shabbat Morning Services - 9:00am January 21, 2017 Torah portion of the week..shemoth Exodus 1:1-6:1 Haftorah portion of the week..isaiah 27:6-28:13; 29:22-23 January 28, 2017 Torah portion of the week..va-ayra Exodus 6:2-9:35 Haftorah portion of the week..ezekiel 28:25-29:21 February 4, 2017 Torah portion of the week..bo Exodus 10:1-13:16 Haftorah portion of the week..jeremiah 46:13-28 Contacts Main Phone...(815) jolietjewish@att.net Website.. Our address N. Midland, Joliet, IL Intellectually I know we are in 2017 but somehow it still feels like we never left During our Shabbat Services this past weekend, we completed the reading of the Book of Genesis. The Hebrew translates beraishiet as the beginning - the written accounts of the beginnings of our Universe and of humanity. The flow of prose continues through the lives of Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebecca, Jacob, Leah and Rachel, and their children. We read about Esau, and Dinah and Joseph and his two sons, all this in preparation for the world changing story of Moses and the escape from Egyptian slavery coming in the Book of Exodus. A moderate sized library could easily be filled with the written books, artwork, and cinema renderings of the Exodus. This story like no other, has captured the minds and hearts of civilization since the actual events occurred over 3500 years ago. All three monotheistic religions of the world take special note of Moses story and his interactions with the pharaonic court in his efforts, with Gd s assistance, to free the Hebrew slaves from their bondage and forge them into an independent nation whom we today call The Jews. From almost any angle, Moses efforts were fraught with detours, and danger. Yet, again with Gd s help, he argued, he pleaded, he persevered with the Egyptian leadership to free the Hebrew slaves and he accomplished this feat virtually single handed. The old saw, ignorance is bliss comes to mind. Moses knew nothing of the future. He only knew that abject slavery of human beings was wrong and he was going to free the Hebrews or die trying. In much of Judaism, the annual calendar begins at Passover not at Rosh Hashanah which, as one can imagine, causes a bit of confusion, never-the-less, the beginnings of Judaism as we know it today stem directly from Moses and the Exodus from Egypt. The story is thrilling! The events stir our hearts and minds and we wring our hands reading about the cruelty of

2 slavery and the endurance of the Hebrew people. We cheer when the plagues harass the Egyptians and when Moses leads the people out of Egypt to begin their trek toward a civilized society. Is it no wonder that this story is the stuff of artists and authors. I hope I ve tantalized you a bit so why not involve yourself in the retelling of this amazing story by coming to Shabbat Services and join with your fellow Jews as we retell this wonderful story. No need to wait for Passover the story of the Exodus is with us here and now. Rabbi Rubovits THE PRESIDENT S KORNER Pardon Our Dust...We Are Expanding. The reference to Pardon Our Dust does not pertain to the Synagogue s physical plant. Rather it pertains to the Synagogue s Membership Directory. Several Board Members have made suggestions to improve the booklet, and we will do so. For 2017, the Directory will be divided into sections. The first section will contain the usual contact information as found in the past, but children and spouses will be listed. Children are individuals 26 and under. The second section will list birthdays. The information listed will be the month and date. The year will be missing. The third section will list anniversaries. Again the information listed will be the month and date. The year will be missing. The fourth section will list the occupation of those members presently employed. Here we will establish categories, i.e., Attorneys, and list those members who are attorneys. This is a new task for the Synagogue so we will have to develop the categories. The Synagogue is presuming that you want your personal information displayed in the Directory. If you do not, you need to be proactive and contact the office at and specifically state what information you want omitted. You may also the Synagogue at jolietjewish@att.net and state the information to be omitted. The Synagogue s secretary, Beth, will be contacting some of you, for while we have attempted to modernize the method of securing information regarding our Members, our system has not yet reached perfection, so when Beth contacts you for information, please respond as promptly as possible. We also have to issue a disclaimer. It may be that Beth has been unsuccessful in communicating with some of you, and because time is of the essence in issuing the Directory, it may be that we will go to print without certain information about you or your family. The Directory of Membership information is not on the Synagogue s webpage, and it won t be for privacy purposes. However, at some point in time I am hoping that the Members will have a private log-in password so they can electronically review the Directory. Many of the Members have smart devices so even if they have forgotten to carry with them the printed Directory, they can obtain whatever information they are seeking by logging into a secure site via their smart devices. Having the Directory on a secure site will also be beneficial to all Members, for any change can be made with a few keystrokes by the website administrator and the changes will be instantaneous. No more waiting a year until the next Directory is issued. Admittedly, the electronic version of the Directory is a dream of mine, but we will discuss turning the dream into reality with our website guru. More On Current Events If you have forgotten, the Current Events meets the first Monday of each month unless weather or a holiday prevents such a meeting. The topic of Jewish religion is off the table as Lunch n Learn fills that void. At times I have been a critic of the opinions expressed due to the lack of facts surrounding the topic. Not so this January. January s topic was broadly Israel s expansion into the West Bank, and the United States abstention on a United Nation s Resolution condemning Israel for its expansion into the West Bank. President-Elect Trump s policies toward Israel also were discussed. Due to the Rabbi s artistic talent with masking tape, we were made aware of the area called the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The discussion was delightful because facts were first discussed which led to the voicing of a few opinions. What surprised me was that there was little bashing of Obama and his administration for the United States abstention on the United Nation s Resolution condemning Israel for its policies of expansion into the West Bank, and even more surprising to me was that there was the slightest hint of criticism for the policies of Prime Minister Netanyahu. We discussed the three state, two state and one state solution for the State of Israel regarding the West Bank. My point in this section of the newsletter is that the current events evening is a stimulating way to spend, at most, two (2) hours at the Synagogue. The eve-

3 is even more productive if the topic is known ahead of time and research can be performed on the topic so that the facts are fully known (as is possible) before opinions are expressed. I know that I have previously stated that we understand that the Monday night is usually a school night, and those with children find it hard to attend. But the Monday evening can be a stimulating evening and if you can, you should try very hard to attend. It is getting that good. The only negative feeling you have at the end of the evening is that we are unable to solve the world problems!!! Gauging An Interest A Member has suggested a men s card playing evening. I admit such an event is discriminatory but maybe later we can have a co-ed card playing evening or an all-female card evening. Right now we need to know how much interest there is in a men s card evening. With certain exceptions, the evenings could be Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday nights. The first Monday and the third Tuesday of each month already have scheduled events. The event will be held at the Synagogue. If you do have an interest please call the Synagogue office at or the Synagogue at jolietjewish@att.net and express an interest that you would like a men s card evening, and please state what night or nights you would prefer to attend. We would like to know if such an interest exists by the end of January, One More Thing An Important Thing The Joliet Jewish Congregation s 39 th Annual Raffle is now in full gear. The M and M boys (Mark and Mark) have chaired this event for many years and tickets have previously been forwarded to your attention. I have stated earlier that no dues increases have occurred for the past two (2) years, and the collective hand of the Synagogue has been withdrawn for most events. This means that for most events (except where food is involved) the Synagogue no longer seeks voluntary contributions. However, the Raffle is a major fundraiser for the Synagogue, and we need all Members to step up. The odds of winning are very good as only 100 tickets will be sold, and the first cash prize is $1, We need all Members to either be a buyer or a seller. That means we would like you either to sell a ticket or purchase a ticket yourself. In the past I have been negligent in not stressing this event. This year the budget is so thin that we will need a larger cushion from the sale of the Raffle tickets to make certain that we do not have a negative cash flow in So, as the spokesperson for the M and M boys, please either sell or purchase as many tickets as you possibly can. You are able to spread the cost of the tickets among as many partners as you desire, and divide the earnings as agreed upon with your partners. Here is the best part: You do not have to be present to win. The drawing is February 21, 2017, which is the night of the monthly Board meeting. So, if you win and are not present, Beth will either contact you by telephone or via , to pass on the good news that you are a winner. Good luck to all. Bill Kaplan NOTES We need your eyes and ears. If you know a congregant is ill, in the hospital, or nursing home, please let the office know. Join us on Thursdays at Noon for 90 minutes of lunch & Torah study. Rabbi will review and discuss the upcoming Torah portion of the week so come prepared to learn something new and exciting! Cost $5 per week. The Hadassah Book Club will meet on Thursday, February 23rd at 7:00 PM at the home of Linda Trager. We will be discussing The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins. This novel is a complex thriller with themes of domestic violence and alcohol & drug abuse. It is available in hard cover, paperback, at the library and as en e-book. POT LUCK DINNER Please join us on Friday, January 20th for Services at 6:00 PM followed by Pot Luck at 7:00 PM. RSVP to the office. New Synagogue membership directories will be available later in January.

4 ANNUAL RAFFLE The Annual Raffle Drawing is la little over 1 month away Tuesday, February 21st. Please turn in your ticket stubs and money to the office as soon as possible. Thank you for your support of this important fundraiser. The Raffle Committee TAX LETTER FOR 2016 If you need a letter listing your payments to and value of goods received from the synagogue during 2016, please send an to Jim Kaplan - kaplanjim@comcast.net This will not include accounts other than the main synagogue checking account (e.g. Hadassah, Sisterhood, Welfare Chest). Yahrzeits (Week of January 15-21) Ron Galowich 19 Tevet January 17 Judy Block 20 Tevet January 18 (Week of January 22-28) Ken Pollock 24 Tevet January 22 Jim Kaplan 24 Tevet January 22 Dr. Gary Trager 24 Tevet January 22 Bea Scholar 24 Tevet January 22 Amy Elias 26 Tevet January 24 Bettie Berest 26 Tevet January 24 Michael Freeman 29 Tevet January 27 Dianne Parker 29 Tevet January 27 (Week of January 29-February 4) Mark Turk 2 Shevat January 29 Ronda Lebold 8 Shevat February 4 The Yahrzeit light is lot on the evening before the date noted above. Yahrzeit lights will be lit on our Memorial Tablets in memory of: Week of January 15-21: Lena Maddis, Harry W. Sanders, Morris Fisher, Mrs. Rose Lewis, Mrs. Sarah Press, Abraham Kahn, Isadore Lewis, Joseph Deutsch, Ruth Festenstein, Mrs. Sara H. Singer, Mrs. Rae Cohen Week of January 22-28: Samuel W. Fisher, Leonard Saper, Irwin Eisen, Louis Markle, Augusta Freeman, Joseph Lewis, Daniel Mann, Lilian Lewis, Irving Hirshfield, Maurice Press, Bess Freeman, Rose Berlin, Florence Deutsch Week of January 29-February 4: Louis Turk, Jennie Noriansky, Adeline E. Kamin, Bessie Wolensky, Leslie Bonn Erck, Lena Herzog, Arnold J Hartman, Harris Lewis, David Balch None Hattie & Harry Brown Happy Day Fund Hattie & Harry Brown Memorial Fund In Memory of Mr. Dan Kliska Mrs. Mary Ellen Hillman MARK YOUR CALENDARS GAME NIGHT A Game Night will take place on Saturday, March 4th. More details in upcoming newsletters. CURRENT EVENTS DISCUSSION GROUP The February Current Events Discussion group will meet on Monday, February 13th at 7:00 PM. Please note the change of date. UPCOMING BAT MITZVAHS February 18th Sami & Jessica Guzick February 25th Lauren English Plan to attend services to help honor these members on their special day. SCRIP An order form will be included in the next newsletter. Any questions about the program call Beth at (815) ONGOING FUNDRAISERS Joliet Jewish Congregation collects inkjet/laser cartridges & cell phones to recycle. Drop them off at the office. We have a newspaper/ magazine recycling container at the Campbell Street entrance. Thanks to all who help support these recycling efforts. HELP THE JOLIET NOON LIONS Please bring in pop top tabs, old keys, glasses and hearing aids and leave in the office. Help the Lions help those in need.

5

6 Joliet Jewish Congregation 250 N. Midland Avenue Joliet, IL (815) Please support the following advertisers For more information please call (815)