Congregation Beth Israel of the Palisades at the New Synagogue of Fort Lee

Transcription

1 Congrgation Bth Isral of th Palisads at th Nw Synagogu of Fort L פרשת תזריע, פרשת החודש, שבת ראש חודש Shabbat Rosh Chodsh, Parashat Hachodsh, Parashat Tazria April 6, 2019 Nisan 1, 5779

2 This Wk: Shabbat Hachodsh, Shabbat Rosh Chodsh, Parashat Tazria Vayikra , pags Addd rading 1: B midbar , pags Addd rading 2: Sh mot , pags FIRST ALIYAH: Circumcision was commandd to Avraham, and Mosh narly did for not circumcising his son (Sh mot ), wo why is b rit milah bing commandd hr (vrs 12.3)? SIXTH ALIYAH: How can cloth bcom lprous? Th haftarah, Y chzkl , bgins on pag TORAH STUDY For haftarot, w follow S fardi custom. THE VISION OF Y CHEZKEL AND ITS MEANING FOR US This Shabbat, Shabbat Hachodsh, drivs its nam from th additional slction rad from th Torah, which bgins: "This month (Ha-chodsh ha-zh) shall b th first of th months of th yar for you." Th month of Nisan marks th libration of Isral from Egyptian slavry, and on th v of its 15th day th fstival of Psach is clbratd. Th haftarah brings us Y chzkl's vision of th sacrifics to b offrd in anticipation and obsrvanc of Psach that will tak plac in th nw Tmpl, aftr th popl hav rturnd from captivity. H livd in th days bfor and aftr th dstruction of th First Tmpl, and prachd in th arly part of th 6th cntury B.C.E. H was xild to Babylon and forsaw th day Isral would com hom. His mssag gav our traditional intrprtrs grat difficulty. Thy askd: what kind of Tmpl did Y chzkl hav in mind? If th actual Scon Tmpl was mant, thn this was nw lgislation, sinc it was not mntiond in th Torah and, in fact, significantly diffrd from it. For that rason, som argud that on should undrstand Y chzkl's words as prophcis for whn Mashiach coms. Othrs suggstd that th book of Y chzkl should not b taught publicly bcaus it contravnd th Torah. Indd, crtain rstrictions bcam customary with rgard to rading it, spcially chaptr 1, with its mystical vision of th havnly chariot. How rlvant is this haftarah to us today? First, that th Propht's vision procds from an normous rspct for th Hous of God. No dtail is too small, no procdur too unimportant, if it hlps to assur its sanctity. It is a sntimnt worth rspcting in vry ag. Scond, form has its plac in th structur of rligion. Biblical rligion was a combination of contnt and form. Th prophts urgd th popl abov all to lad a moral lif, and thir battl against idolatry ultimatly rlatd to this purpos. But thy also knw thir rligion could not surviv as mr idalism and spirituality; it had to b surroundd by a ritual that would rmind th popl of God. All prophts shard ths motivations. To b sur, Y chzkl gos much farthr than th othrs in making form an outstanding componnt of his taching; but lswhr in his book h givs du attntion to th thical lmnts. Evn in th midst of th dtails of Tmpl ritual, h injcts a rmindr that all mrchants who sll sacrd supplis must b scrupulously honst. In th prophtic viw, ritual mpty of rligious contnt is an abomination, and Y chzkl stands squarly within that tradition. His mphasis on Tmpl ritual had an additional function in his own tim. Th mticulous car h dvots to vry dtail actd as a powrful inspiration for his listnrs. It assurd thm that thir dram of a tmpl rstord was not mr spculation, for his dscriptions mad it so uttrly ralistic. No on ls, bfor or aftr him, managd to concrtiz a popl's hop as wll as did Y chzkl. ז ל Strn, and Chaim,ז ל Plaut, Adaptd from th Haftarah Commntary ditd by W. Gunthr CBIOTP STANDARDS & PRACTICES Nxt Wk: Shabbat Hagadol Parashat M tzora Vayikra , pags FIRST ALIYAH: Th lpr brings two birds, on of which is killd ovr watr (vrs 5), an addd lmnt to sacrifics not othrwis sn. Why was this rquirmnt addd hr? FOURTH ALIYAH: An ruptiv plagu on a pic of cloth gts two chancs to bcom clar, but a hous gts thr chancs, Why dos a hous gt th xtra tim? Th haftarah, Malachi , bgins on pag Mn must kp thir hads covrd in th building and must war a talit whn appropriat. Womn may choos to do ithr or both, but it is not mandatory. 2. Anyon accpting a Torah-rlatd honor must war a talit, rgardlss of gndr. 3. Only on prson at a tim may tak an aliyah. 4. No on should ntr or lav th sanctuary during a K dushah. On should not lav th sanctuary whn th Torah scroll is bing carrid from or to th ark. 5. No convrsations may b hld in th hallway outsid th sanctuary, or whil standing in an aisl alongsid a pw. 6. Th us of rcording quipmnt of any kind is forbiddn on sacrd days. 7. Also forbiddn ar cll phons, bprs and PDAs, xcpt for physicians on call and mrgncy aid workrs (plas us vibrating option). 8. No smoking at any tim in th building, or on synagogu grounds on Shabbatot and Yom Kippur. 9. No non-koshr food allowd in th building at any tim. 10. No on may rmov food or utnsils from th shul on Shabbatot. An xcption is mad for food bing brought to somon who is ailing and/or hombound.

3 MAZAL TOV CORNER [If w don t know about it, w can t print it; if w can t print it, w can t wish it.] Sunday Wdnsday Thursday HAPPY BIRTHDAY Brnard Albrt, Lawrnc Hss Drk Isnbrg, and Molly Kis Frd Shim Carly Walkr This wk s Shabbat Booklt is sponsord by JOY KROOKS in mmory of hr lat husband, ז ל KROOKS, ALVIN may his mmory b for a blssing MITZVAH MEMO As you clan out your cupboards for Psach, plas bring any non-opnd, non-prishabl food and othr itms to th shul. * * * Do you know somon who nds financial hlp in ordr to proprly clbrat Psach? If you do, plas lt th rabbi know. THE IMAHOT: Following is th txt adoptd by th Ritual Committ for us by th Prayr Ladr in rciting th Amidah, and thos wishing to insrt th Matriarchs in thir Amidot: This wk s kiddush & lunchon ar sponsord by HOWARD BARMAD in mmory of his lat mothr,,ז ל BARMAD, RUTH MILLER may hr mmory b for a blssing Plas join Howard and us! What is Tzara-at? Both Tazria and M tzorah nxt Shabbat ar usually said to dal with lprosy, but that is bgging th qustion. Th ancint Grk vrsion of th Torah rndrd th ky trm tzara-at by lpra, maning a scaly condition. This word passd into modm languags via th Latin translation of th Tanach; and, during th Middl Ags, lpra was idntifid with th disas w now call lprosy. (Formrly, it was calld lphantiasis of th Grks. ) Tru lprosy (Hansn's disas) is not highly contagious, and it dvlops slowly. Among its symptoms ar changs of color and growths on th skin, and a loss of snsitivity to pain. In advancd cass, th nos, jaw, and xtrmitis may rot away. Modrn mdicin can arrst, possibly vn cur, th disas; but until rcnt tims th lpr was doomd to a horribl nd. It this was by a mr accidnt of history that most translations rndrd tzara-at as lprosy. Th Hbrw word must includ othr ailmnts, sinc th rcovry of th patint is rgardd as possibl and vn likly. Th only qustion is whthr tzara-at vr mans lprosy, but this qustion cannot b answrd with crtainty. Mdical xprts hav suggstd, variously, that it dals with czma and psoriasis (which ar not contagious), imptigo (which is highly contagious), gangrnous infctions, and tru lprosy. In othr biblical passags, w rad of afflictd prsons whos skin turnd whit as snow. This dscription suggsts an ailmnt calld lucodrma, which is disfiguring but not srious. Such rfrncs ar frqunt in th biblical narrativs. On of th signs Mosh was to giv th pharaoh was to caus tzara-at to appar on his own hand and thn disappar. Miriam was punishd for maligning Mosh by a brif attack of tzara-at. Thr ar othr such rfrncs throughout th Tanch. Rgarding tzara-at as a plagu, th xprssion of God's angr, it was natural to inquir what sin voks this punishmnt. Th biblical rfrncs suggst that it might b brought on by svral diffrnt sins; and a varity of opinions is rcordd by th Sags. A favorit dvic of midrashic prachrs was to pun on m tzora, lpr, and motzi ra, slandrr. Thus, thy utilizd th rading of ths Torah sctions as an occasion to prach against lashon ha-ra, bad spch, always an appropriat topic for a srmon.a ז ל Plaut, Adaptd from th Torah: A Modrn Commntary, ditd by W. Gunthr

4 Th mitzvah of mikvh for modrn tims To plung into th mikvh (Jwish ritual bath) is to plung into frsh connctions with Cration and with our spirituality. Th Sags drivd thir laws that rquir an immrsion in th mikvh in larg masur from Vayikra (s at , 15.16, and 11.36). Thy rootd th laws in a nd to purify onslf ritually aftr crtain conditions such as mnstruation, mal sminal mission, crtain skin disass, or contact with th dad. Rmoving impuritis was a prcondition for coming into contact with th holy, such as in approaching th sanctuary. With th dstruction of th Tmpl, ths laws rmaind mandatory for womn and optional for mn. Whil traditional Jws continu to us th mikvh for family purity, most libral Jws rarly ntr th mikvh. Whn thy do, thy oftn ntr th mikvh for diffrnt rasons. What might prompt libral Jws to immrs in th mikvh s watrs? Cration. Th mikvh taks us back in tim, as w immrs ourslvs in th world of Cration. Th root k-v-h that forms th word mikvh appars for th first tim in B rishit (1.9): Lt th watrs bnath th sky b collctd [yikavu] in on plac. Furthr, in th nxt vrs mrgs th xprssion mikvh hamayim, th nam givn to th sas, whr k-v-h connots th gathring. This first mikvh is filld with mayim (watr). In th most archaic Hbrw script, th lttr mm is a zigzagging lin, drawn lik wavs that rcall watr. It is intrsting to not that in many languags, th phonm m is associatd with mothr (ima, umm, muttr, mr, madr, mama, tc.). Th prson who plungs into th ritual bath of th mikvh ntirly surroundd by watr, nud, without any barrirs, and without touching its sids rsmbls th ftus in th mothr s womb. Th immrsion in th mikvh bcoms a rturn to th snsations of th utrus, a rturn to our sourc and an act of rnwal. You cannot know who you ar without knowing whnc you cam. This rturn to what happnd bfor is somtims a way of softning th traumas of th past, to start anw aftr a difficult lif xprinc. Convrsly, somtims it is a way to clbrat somthing prcious in on s lif or somthing nw. Th word kav mans to b strong or strngth in Aramaic. Th rturn to our sourc rinforcs us. Spirituality. Watr appars first in th scond vrs of th story of Cration: God s spirit (ruach) glidd ovr th fac of th watrs (1.2). Thus, from th vry bginning, watr is forvr linkd to th divin, to th spiritual. Spirituality in rlation to watr is not ncssarily about purity. Purity was originally attachd to th mission of th Tmpl; sinc th Tmpl xists no mor, purification nd not apply to contmporary immrsion in th mikvh. Going to a mikvh is not only a mans of washing away th past, of rmoving th lgacy of som sin, but also of prparing for th futur. This is how th mikvh functions whn usd to prpar for Shabbat and holidays, or important momnts in lif, such as marriag. In this cas, mikvh is practicd by both womn and mn. Traditional Jwish law rquirs that only womn go to th mikvh. Howvr, whn th immrsion in a mikvh is part of a coupl s sxual lif, if both partnrs go to th mikvh, thy togthr assrt that thy ar taking charg of thir sx lif. Making a visit to th mikvh a rgular part of th cycl of a coupl s sxual lif dos not imply a dnial of sxuality, but rathr a coupl s dcision to st tmporal boundaris to thir sxuality. Jwish tradition honors sxual impulss. Th Talmud (BT Yoma 69b) tlls us that, without passion, th world would cas to xist. Howvr, sxuality, lik watr, must b channld in ordr for lif to flourish fully. Passion is xhilarating, but it is not a prmannt condition. Morovr, it may gain in intnsity whn limits ar st, as is tru with music whr th silnt nots undrscor th mlody. So it gos with sxuality: th downtim (which could b confind to mnstruation in th cas of womn), punctuatd by th mikvh utilizd by both partnrs, is a form of suspnsion a Shabbat of sxuality. It can lav th spac ncssary to discovr a diffrnt fac of th othr, in a mor disciplind tnsion. In B rishit 1, God crats th world by sparating th watrs, and thn withdrawing thm to mak spac for arth and lif to appar. Th Akkadian root ku û (on of th possibl antcdnts of th Hbrw word kav) mans to wait for, to strtch, to undrscor th tnsion of nduring or waiting. Oscar Wild said: In this world, thr ar only two tragdis; on is not gtting what on wants, th othr is gtting it. Expctation is th romantic framwork of lov and dsir. Th mikvh rintroducs th othr as a frind; th lovr bcoms a frind again and th frind, a lovr. Th mikvh likwis rintroducs spirituality into our livs in a habitual mannr. Th rabbinic sags captur th powr of habits in thir dtrmination that frquntly occurring rituals tak prcdnc ovr infrquntly occurring rituals (BT Sukkah 54b, 56a; BT P sachim 114a; BT M gillah 29b; and lswhr). W ar calld upon not to build lif upon th xcptional, but rathr to rnw th ordinary; such is prhaps on of th scrts of on s bing togthr with anothr in partnrship. Whn on plungs into th mikvh, th links with Cration and with our spirituality xtnd vn furthr. Whn w rmmbr that w ar cratd in th imag of God, mikvh bcoms a rmindr of th infinit within th finit, th immortal within th human, th limitlss options offrd to humanity. It is not surprising, thn, that th Torah is compard to watr in rabbinic litratur. To immrs in watr is also to plung into th Univrs of th Torah, th infinit sourc of transformation of th world. Adaptd from th ssay by Paulin Bb in Th Torah: A Woman s Commntary

5 To protct nwborn girls Parashat Tazria contains on of th most puzzling, vn disturbing, passags in Vayikra, a book concrnd with holinss. Tazria challngs us, for it placs childbirth among th sourcs of ritual impurity from which on thn nds purification, -and it rckons th birth of a daughtr at twic th lngth of impurity as th birth of a son. In Vayikra, th mitzvah of purification aftr childbirth is consistnt with th Torah s insistnc that blood rprsnts th lif forc. Th pristly authors of Vayikra bliv that blood, whthr mnstrual or postpartum, is so powrful as a sourc of lif that only purification rituals can allow thos who com into contact with it to rjoin thir community. Ths rituals srv to contain th lif forc that placs contaminatd popl outsid th normativ community, by rturning thm to a stat of purity in which thy can rntr God s holy community. Rgardlss of whthr a woman bars a son or a daughtr, th rituals of purification ar th sam. Why, thn must a woman spnd twic as long in a stat of impurity following th birth of a girl than following th birth of a boy? Traditional intrprtrs hav assumd this is bcaus th birth of a girl crats a kind of doubl impurity, possibly bcaus nwborn girls contain th latnt capacity for mnstruation and rproduction. But anothr point is also important hr: in ancint Isral, baby girls arguably facd livs filld with mor risks than did baby boys. Isral was a socity in which conomic valu accrud primarily to sons. Thy rmaind part of thir fathrs housholds vn whn thy marrid, inhritd thir familis ancstral lands, and card for thir aging parnts. In contrast, thr is vidnc to suggst that girls wr somtims thought of as xpndabl. In tims of nd, famin, and war, baby girls might suffr hungr and nglct, or vn b abandond and lft to di. Th pristly authors sm to b concrnd about this situation and try to avrt such tragdis by nsuring that baby girls stay in thir mothrs protctiv car for an xtndd priod of tim. This not only allows mothr and daughtr to bond tightly, but also nsurs that th child is nursd and card for. Thus, this troubling passag can b undrstood not as dis crimination against womn, but as a way to promot God s loving community and to guarant that womn and mn, both cratd in th divin imag, ar nurturd and protctd. Adaptd from th articl by Bth Alprt Nakhai in Th Torah: A Woman s Commntary Psach is coming! Now is th tim to donat $18 or mor to Th Ma ot Chittin Fund, to hlp th lss fortunat to clbrat Psach with fstivity and grat joy. Mak th chck payabl to CBIOTP and mark th mmo lin Psach fund. Plas rturn your Chamtz Sal Contract in ordr to fulfill this major Psach mitzvah. Fill out your Psach Win ordr form. Th slction is amazing, and you will hlp rais mony for our shul.

6 מי שברך blssd May H who May H who blssd our ancstors blss and hal all thos whos nams ar listd hr, thos whos nams will b calld out, and thos whos nams w do not know bcaus ithr w ar unawar of thir illnss or thy ar. אמן ill. W pray H mrcifully quickly rstor thm to halth and vigor. May H grant physical and spiritual wll-bing to all who ar Sydll Klin Bonni Pritzkr Applbaum Dnah bat Sarah Lah Nili bat Simchah Rut bat Esthr Miriam Zlda bat Gittl D vorah Miriam Rachl bat Chanah Harav Mordchai Volff bn Liba Miryam Michal Byblzr M nachm Mndl bn Chaya Dina Simchah bat Zlda Adina bat Fridl Baila bat D vorah Basha bat Surah Chanah bat Alizah Chavah bat Sarah Chayah bat Flora Dvora Yochvd bat Yhudit Esthr bat D vorah HaRav Ilana Chaya bat Rachl Esthr Malka bat Esthr Masha bat Etil Masha bat Rochl Mindl bat D vorah Nintt bat Aziza Pinyuh bat Surah Ruchl Lah bat Malkah Rita bat Flora Rifkah bat Chanah Rut bat Hadassah Shimona bat Flora Sura Osnat bat Alta Chayah Tzipporah bat Yaffa Yosph Prl bat Michlah Michll Blattis Dian Fowlr Marj Goldstin Judy Golub Ruth Hammr Goldy Hss Fay Johnson Slma Kamil Micki Kuttlr Kati Kim Elain Laikin Mira Lvy Robin Lvy Karn Lipsy Marna Lynn Barbara McClanahan Gail Schnkr Linda Stat Mary Thompson Michll Lazar Norma Sugrman Julia York Susan York Altr bn Hassia Aharon Hakohn bn Oodl Chaim bn Golda Ezra bn Luli Gil Nchmiah bn Yisrala Mordchai Yitzchak bn Tirtzach Rachmil Yitzhak bn Frumah Harav Shimon Shlomo bn Taub v Avraham Yidl bn Etil Yisral Yitzhak bn Shayndl Yitzchak bn Tzivia Yonatan bn Malka Yosf bn Flora Larry Carlin Alan Edwards Josph Favia Shannon Johnson Adam Mssing Gabril Nri Jff Nicol Ed Sodosky Mark Alan Tunick W pray for thir saf rturn... May H who blssd our ancstors blss, prsrv, and protct th captiv and missing soldirs of Tzahal Ron Arad, Zcharia Bauml, Guy Chvr, Zvi Fldman, Ykutil Katz, and Zv Rotshik as wll as thos U.S. and allid soldirs, and th civilians working with thm and around thm, still missing in Afghanistan and Iraq, and all othr aras of conflict, past and prsnt. And may H blss th mn and womn of th U.S. Armd Forcs and Tzahal, and thos who srv th Unitd Stats and Isral in forign lands in whatvr capacity, official or unofficial, mmbrs of our community or rlatd to mmbrs, and thir collagus and אמן unharmd. companions. Guid thm in pac and rturn thm spdily to thir familis aliv and Ar w in your will? Shouldn t w b? Whn popl prpar thir wills, thy usually look to lav a mark byond th confins of thir familis. Thus it is that gnral gifts ar lft to hospitals, and othr charitabl organizations. All too oftn ignord, howvr, is th synagogu, vn though its rol in our livs oftn bgins at birth, and continus vn byond dath. W com hr on Yom Kippur and othr days, aftr all, to say Yizkor, th prayr in mmory of our lovd ons. Our Virtual Mmorial Plaqus rmind vryon of who our lovd ons wr, and why w rcall thm. All of us join in saying th Kaddish on thir yahrzits. Considring this, it is so unfortunat that, in our final act, w ignor th on institution in Jwish lif that is so much a part of us. Th synagogu is hr for us bcaus thos who cam bfor us undrstood its importanc and prpard for its prsrvation. By rmmbring it in our wills, w will do our part to assur that th synagogu will b thr for futur gnrations, as wll. Think about it. W hav always bn hr for anyon who ndd us in th past. Do not thos who nd us in th futur hav th sam right to our hlp? Of cours thy do. Do not dlay! Act today! Hlp scur th futur of your communal hom.

7 yahrzits for today through nxt FRIDAY blssing! May thir mmoris b for a זכרונם לברכה 6 Charls Singr Josph Luri* Josph Droutman* Stanly Frnhoff* Ray Gross Eric Hassl, husband of Anntt Shandolow-Hassl 7 Gloria Vogl, aunt of Allan Bakr Milton Balk* Jnni Gordon* Ros Skulsky* Josph Borns 8 Lah Evans, daughtr of Ml and Elain Evans Rn Marc Abram, brothr of Hnritt Chalom Hilda Popkin Max Drutman 9 Frank Kamil*, uncl of Phil Kamil Johanna and David Barzilay, parnts of Doron Barzilay Mary Fldman* Ida Flschr, Errol Kagt s aunt Julius Farbr Jack Savitt 9 Grtrud Hirsch Fanni Silon* Lon Rozyn* Myr Cohn* Parl Silvrstin* Anna Strnbrg* Harry Librman* 10 Naum Krymkivich 11 Josph Smith, fathr of Gloria Kirch Isaac Pozharskay* Raymond E. Klin* Myra Fox Morris Stogl Gisll Mssing*, Anntt Mssing s mothr-in-law 12 Max Blank Dbbi Spinks Rollins*, nic of Roslyn Rauch Ros Patrizky, aunt of Albrt Ads Lillian Fogl* Marion Nuhaus Sistr of Brnic Winstin Batric Gigs* * A plaqu in this prson s nam is on our mmorial board; yahrzits ar obsrvd bginning sundown th night bfor. Is thr a yahrzit w should know about? Kaddish list Julius Birnbaum Larry Frank Tamara Galprin Myrna Badinr Gittr Ruth Gordon DMing Huang Asa Kaplan Ray Kaplan Itzik Khmishman Karol Lang Arlin Lvin Alan Maltz Marcia Wis Myrs Harold Moss Binyamin Ovadia Samul Rak Samul Rosnblum Marvin Sakin Stvn Sakin Marilyn Tannbaum Sonnrs Form of bqust to CBIOTP Th following form is suggstd for guidanc in prparing a bqust: I, th undrsignd, giv and bquath to Congrgation Bth Isral of th Palisads, or its succssor, th sum of $ for its ducational and rligious work. Signd Witnss 1: Witnss 2: Dat:

8 Congrgation Bth Isral of th Palisads at th Nw Synagogu of Fort L ק ק בית ישראל של הפליסד 1585 Cntr Avnu, Fort L, NJ Shammai Englmayr, Rabbi Nadia Massuda, Prsidnt Al Glick Vic-Prsidnt Edwin Cohn, Vic-Prsidnt Errol Kagt, Scrtary Garrison D. Millr, Trasurr rabbi@cbiotp.org nadia@cbiotp.org alglick@cbiotp.org Edwin.Cohn@prismpartnrs.nt mmbrship@cbiotp.org garymillr@cbiotp.org Psach Srvic Schdul for th 1st two days SHABBAT, 9:00 A.M. r at th Fort L Jwish Cnt SUNDAY, 9:30 A.M. right hr in our sanctuar y 1585 Cntr Avnu Fort L, NJ Cliffsid Park Phon: Fort L Phon: wbsit: gnral -mail: shul@cbiotp.org Hav you joind a com If ys, GREAT! mitt? If no, why not? This is your shul, B involvd! Alx Glickman chants it today! Jo Massuda chantd it last wk! Alan Kaminsky chants it nxt wk! Dan Rappoport chants it! Isn t it tim you chantd it, too? s dy clas u t S. Torah s i b b :15 p.m a 7 r t a h T nsday d W s i join! us th o t m contin ti s still r h T Shabbat nds tonight with havdalah at 8:12 p.m. DST