The Bulletin Adat Chaim s News Source

Transcription

1 The Bulletin Adat Chaim s News Source November 2017 Owings Mills, Maryland Cheshvan/Kislev 5778 From The President s Desk We are into the month of November and I am a little behind in getting out this edition of the Bulletin. I do apologize for that. The High Holidays and all the fall festivals are behind us. Thank goodness for the month of Cheshvan where there are no holidays to speak of until approaches next month on the 12 th of December or 24 th of Kislev. It gives us time to pause and regroup and take some time to think about the fact that the holidays are over, and now what? I have been able to spend some time with family, celebrating birthday milestones and having some much needed time with my granddaughter. It is both exhausting and invigorating at the same time! Now, it is back to the business of the synagogue and preparing for the rest of November and December. I want to let you know that we will not be holding services on Saturday, November 25 th. Please take time with your family and enjoy the holiday weekend. We will be back on Saturday, December 2 nd at the usual time, 9:30AM for Shabbat morning services. We are thankful for Rabbi Seidler and Norman Ament who lead us each week and chant Torah and Haftorah. I would like to thank everyone who made a High Holiday pledge this year. Your dedication and support of Adat Chaim is beyond words. You have taken on the responsibility of Tzedakah and I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Letters will be out shortly as a reminder of your commitment. In December we will prepare our annual membership statements so that members can take advantage of the end of calendar year for payment. Give thanks for all the blessing you have. May you continue to be thankful all year long. Wishing you and your family a very Happy Thanksgiving, full of hope, peace and love for all. Shalom till next month, Cathy Litofsky 1

2 Adat Chaim Pleasant Hill Center Red Run Boulevard, Suite 109 Owings Mills, MD SHUL (7485) Rabbi Jerry Seidler Officers President Cathy Litofsky st Vice President David Teichman Davidalan99@gmail.com nd Vice President Jerry Newman jsnewm@gmail.com Secretary Allan Weksberg weks@comcast.net Treasurer George Korba gkorba@bridgedeck.org The Bulletin accepts all material relevant to the Jewish community in the northwest corridor. To maintain accuracy all information will be accepted by only. SUBMISSION DEADLINE: 18th of each month for the next month s publication. Send to: Adatchaim18@gmail.com Please contact Rabbi Seidler for all of your Life Cycle Events so that he may provide guidance and support to you and your family members. The synagogue can also help with a variety of services for you. This might include: phone squad or announcements to the congregation, coverage for services, meals, visits, rides to the doctor or any other assistance that you might need. So be sure to contact the synagogue office at: and let us know how we can help. Need Information? Adult Education Wendy Raith B nei Mitzvah Program Synagogue Office Billing Questions George Korba Bulletin Cathy Litofsky Catering and Kiddush Sponsorship Tina Asher Facebook Page Wendy Raith Gift Shop Tina Asher Life Cycle Events Synagogue Office Membership David Teichman Mitzvah Cards Janet Korba Ritual Committee Jerry Newman Sisterhood Tina Asher Webmaster Lynn Ruddie No phone calls or s on Shabbat please. Remember that the synagogue is supported through the Amazon Smiles program. Log on to and choose the link: Shop Adat Chaim. It is a great way to shop and support Adat Chaim at the same time. 2

3 Divrei Chodesh D Rabbi Jerry Seidler I continue to surprise myself as I age when it comes to Judaism and Jewishness. I would have supposed I should be growing more traditional, conservative. But no, my Judaism and Jewishness is becoming more heterodox and idiosyncratic, evolving dynamically and unpredictably, focusing more on the personal and less on the tribal. As we enter November, that is Cheshvan into Kislev, my focus is drawn more to the anniversary of the Rabin assassination 22 years ago than to that of the Balfour Declaration a century ago. I mull more over the implications of the Harvey Weinstein fiasco (and its related scandals) than to the breached promises over egalitarian prayer space at the Kotel. Some might say my Jewish self is declining, receding from identity prominence. But I tend to see it differently. My Jewish self is, to my mind, ascending and predominant as a matter of my identity and very being as human. And that s just it. It s my humanity that shines forth; being human is the essence of who I am. The Judaism and Jewishness are the lived processes that propel and guide me on the way. In other words, I feel myself not as an enlivened Jewish soul (though I have one), but a vital human living my own Jewish path. It s about character, being a mentsch, a tzadik. That s why my focus is on Rabin s murder and Weinstein s abusiveness. These bespeak a sickness of human character. They are emblematic of the culture of violence and misogyny that degrade our world. Real Judaism and Jewishness must say no to these societal pathologies. As to the first, violence is not the way to resolve politics, arguments, differences of opinion, or pretty much anything. Our prayer books are replete with prayers for peace, for understanding, for wisdom. We do not pray for the strength to destroy. But we do pray for God s strength so that we may be blessed with peace (Psalm 29). It is crucial for us to develop a peaceful character, that turns from anger and hate, that seeks to welcome the stranger, and that works hard to befriend an enemy. As we say for Hanukkah next month, quoting Zachariah, neither by might nor power, but by My spirit, says YHVH. Regarding the second, it is simply past time that we admit to our gender problem. Male domination is a thing. And whether it s about rigid and skewed gender roles, unequal pay whatever the problem of male hegemony includes men abusing women. Recent US studies are verifying that 91% of sexual abuse/harassment is committed by men upon women. Judaism holds up the eshet chayal, the proverbial woman of valor. Women are to be treated with dignity and respect, love and kindness. They are not to be groped, ogled or threatened, much less raped. They are human equals whether at home, school, work, synagogue, bar, gym and anywhere else. And yes, men should be treated the same way. So, here is my November character Torah Vort: Be mindful that God s peace (Shlomo) and dignity (Kvodo) permeate our world. Listen, pay attention to their call. Shlomo in the right ear; Kvodo, in the left. Heed their call. Shlomo bids us to be peaceful of demeanor and behavior. Kvodo inspires us to act dignified and honorably, and to treat other people (men and women, boys and girls) with dignity and respect. Be a mensch, a tzadik. That s what Judaism demands, and Jewishness expects. And you know? That s pretty traditional and conservative after all. Shalom Aleikhem. 3

4 Ritual Committee Jerry Newman, Chair We continue to need all of your support to assure weekly Saturday morning minyan, when services begin at 9:30 a.m. Your presence at the start of services is greatly appreciated so that our members can fully participate in all the prayers in the service and recite Kaddish during the service where appropriate. Rabbi Seidler will be leading services three Saturday mornings each month. Please refer to the calendar for dates. The Ritual Committee is looking for a few extra members who are willing to lead services on dates that the Rabbi is not here. Please contact me if you can lend your skills in this area. If you need a minyan for any reason during the week or on Shabbat, please contact Jerry Newman at jsnewm@gmail.com so that he can arrange it for you. To assist us in arranging a minyan, please give at least two weeks notice, allowing time for the Ritual Committee and our congregants to be notified. Yahrzeits The families listed below will be observing Yahrzeit for family members and need to say Kaddish during the month. To schedule a minyan service on a date other than a Saturday morning Shabbat service, contact Jerry Newman at or jsnewm@gmail.com. (Candles should be lit at sundown the night before) Date: Yahrzeit of: Relationship: Wednesday, November 1 st Seymour Essrog Husband of Toby Essrog Herman Rosenthal Father-in-Law of Maxine Rosenthal Grandfather of Carol & Mark Rosenthal Thursday, November 2 nd David Begelman Nephew of Lori Teichman Thursday, November 9 th Irene Sugar Mother of Lynn Ruddie Grandmother of Jaime Reilly & Elliot Ruddie Morris Tonken Father of Nancy Heasley Tuesday, November 14 th Lena Gold Mother of Maxine Rosenthal & Armand Gold Friday, November 17 th Rose Levy Mother of Sandra Blaustein Saturday, November 18 th Sarah Miller Mother of Helen Gold Wednesday, If you November haǀe a Yahrzeit 22 nd and Leslie don t Asher see it in the ďulletin Father or ǁish of Buddy to ďe inđluded Asher on the list for a Sunday, November relatiǀe s Yahrzeit, 26 th please Robert Đall the Blaustein offiđe and we Father will be of happy Arnold to Blaustein update our database. Saturday, relative s December Yahrzeit, 2 nd please Maurice call the Litofsky office and we Father will be of Irv happy Litofsky update our database. Saturday, December 9 th Jadzia Weksberg Mother of Allan & Bernard Weksberg Sunday, December 10 th Rose Friedheim Mother to Tina Asher Wednesday, December 20 th Charlotte Gordon Mother of Cathy Gordon Litofsky Saturday, December 23 rd Jeanne Sandler Sister of Helen Gold 4

5 Happy Birthday Happy Birthda y TZEDAKAH Thank you to the following members and friends of the Adat Chaim Family who have so graciously made donations since our last edition of the Bulletin: General Synagogue Fund: Susan & Les Ansel Beverley & Stanley Fishman Cathy & Irv Litofsky for the anniversary of Cathy & Natalie s Bat Mitzvah Sandy & Jerry Newman Sisterhood Kiddush Fund: Susan & Les Ansel Tina & Buddy Asher Cathy & Irv Litofsky HAPPY NOVEMBER BIRTHDAY WISHES GO OUT TO: November 8 th Lindsay Rosenthal November 9 th Toby Essrog November 14 th Ilana Newman November 16 th Alvin Bober November 18 th Natalie Litofsky November 21 st Mark Rosenthal November 26 th Cathy Litofsky November 27 th Helen Gold November 28 th Lori Teichman If your birthday does not appear or you have a correction to what we have, call the office at UPCOMING ANNIVERSARIES Carol and Howard Wagenheim December 5 th 35 th Sandy and Jerry Newman January 6 th 44 th Susan and Arthur Ross January 19 th 16 th If you have any news you would like to share with the congregation, please us at adatchaim18@gmail.com and we will be happy to include it in our Bulletin. The deadline for submissions is the 18 th of the month for the following month. If the 18 th falls on Shabbat, please plan accordingly. 5

6 Sisterhood News and Updates Tina Asher, President Tuesday, October 17 th was Boscov s Friends Helping Friends Shopping Event. Tina Asher and other Sisterhood members sold tickets prior to the event and on the day of the event. We raised money for Sisterhood. Those who shopped found some great bargains! Sisterhood had a very enjoyable opening meeting on October 18 th. Rabbi Arlene Berger, who leads a small congregation in Olney, MD, was our speaker. She spoke about how to continue to cultivate an attitude of gratitude now that the holidays are over. The evening also included a silent auction, raffle and delicious desserts. Our next event and shopping day will be Sunday, November 19 th at Five Wacky Women in Cockeysville at a special time for Adat Chaim Sisterhood, congregation members and friends and family. The time is 10AM until Noon. This is a unique gift shop, with something for everyone. Tickets are $5, and sisterhood gets a percentage of that day s sales. See the flier in the Bulletin. Thursday, November 30 th at 6:00 PM, Federation will have a dinner meeting at Oheb Shalom. Dr. Neil Rubin will speak about: The Story Behind Israel Headlines. Please check the Federation s website for RSVP and payment information: December 13 th at 6:30 PM will be the paid-up Membership Dinner/ celebration. Look for your invitation from Beverley Fishman. A fun evening will be planned. The next Book Club will meet on December 18 th at 7:30 PM at Janet Korba s home. Linda Boteach will send along information on the book that they will be discussing so look out for her . The book club is open to all, and you can get more information and RSVP by contacting Linda at the following linda.boteach@gmail. Saturday, January 20, 2018 at 9:30 AM, Sisterhood Shabbat will take place. Men and women of Adat Chaim are welcome to participate in this special service. Afterwards we will have lunch sponsored by the Sisterhood. Please contact Adrienne Frager (adriennesl@aol.com) or Tina Asher (at the above) to let them know how you want to participate in the service. Save the Following Dates: 1. February 21, 2018-Help prepare for Purim by making hamentaschen and rehearsing for the Purim Spiel. 2. March 21, 2018-Passover activities, which include a possible Passover wine tasting and candy sale. 3. April 22, 2018-possible bus trip to Frederick. This is in the planning stages. 4. May 5 th and 6 th 2018-Seaboard Region Conference in Williamsburg, Virginia. 5. June 3, 2018 elections and end of year lunch. Shalom until next month! Ma Tovu Mah tovu ohalecha Yaakov, mishk'notecha Yisrael, "How goodly are your tents, O Jacob, your dwellings, O Israel!" (Numbers 24:5) 6

7 Adat Chaim Sisterhood is going Holiday shopping at Sunday, November 19 from 10AM - 12PM* (Special Sunday Shopping Hours for Adat Chaim) 5 Wacky Women will be donating a portion of the day s proceeds to Adat Chaim Sisterhood 5 Wacky Women is located in: Scotts Corner Shopping Center York Rd, Cockeysville, MD 5 Wacky Women offers unique ideas for gifts, home and self all hand selected for their flair and personality! Lite refreshments provided *These special Sunday shopping hours are set aside for all Adat Chaim members and their friends. A donation of $5 per person is requested and 5 Wacky Women will also be donating a portion of the day s proceeds to the Sisterhood. Please mail your $5 to Cathy Litofsky, 1103 Kingsbury Road, Owings Mills, MD (make check out to Adat Chaim Sisterhood). Check out their website: to see some of the store s unique ideas for gifts, home and self; all hand selected for their flair and personality! 7

8 November 2017 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Vayera 1 Sisterhood Board Meeting 7:00PM 5:45PM Services 9:30a.m. Rabbi Seidler 5 6 Ritual Committee Meeting 7:00PM :38PM 11 Chayyei Sarah Services 9:30a.m. Rabbi Seidler Synagogue Board Meeting 7:00PM 17 4:32PM 18 Toldot Services 9:30a.m. Rabbi Seidler 19 Sisterhood Five Wacky Women Shopping Event 10AM Noon :28PM 25 Vayetze No Services Rosh Chodesh Kislev Notes: The Baltimore Holocaust Survivors and Descendants Group s monthly meeting will be on Sunday, November 19, 2017, 2-4 pm in the Community Room, Park Heights JCC. Program: Address Unknown featuring: Herb Hane and Charles Heller. First published in 1938 in Story magazine as a wake-up call warning Americans of the true nature of the Nazi menace, this punchy tale enacts a stunning drama of friendship, betrayal and vengeance. The event is free of charge, dietary laws are observed. For more information, contact Felicia at hgraber@earthlink.net or

9 December 2017 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 2 Vayishlach 4:26PM Services 9:30a.m. Rabbi Seidler 3 4 Ritual Committee Meeting 7:00PM 5 6 Sisterhood Board Meeting 7:00PM 7 8 4:25PM 9 Vayeshev Services 9:30a.m. Rabbi Seidler Sisterhood Appreciation Dinner 6:30PM :26PM 16 /Miketz Services 9:30a.m. Rabbi Seidler Erev Book club at the home of Janet Korba 7:30PM :29PM 23 Vayigash Rosh Chodesh Tevet Rosh Chodesh Tevet :34PM 30 Vayechi No Services 31 Notes: 9

10 Jewish Genealogy Society of Maryland Jewish Immigrants in New York s Lower East Side Please join us on Sunday, November 19, 2017, at 1:30 p.m. at the Pikesville Library s meeting room, 1301 Reisterstown Road, Pikesville, for our next program: Jewish Immigrants in New York s Lower East Side, presented by Professor Tyler Anbinder. The Lower East Side of New York was the first American home for several million Jewish immigrants who arrived in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This lecture, taken from Professor Anbinder s 2016 book City of Dreams, will recount why immigrant Jews made the Lower East Side their home, what life was like there, and how and why Jews eventually left the area to live elsewhere. Prof. Anbinder will also explain why he decided to make his own immigrant ancestors part of the book s narrative and the role genealogists played in helping him uncover their stories. Tyler Anbinder is a professor of history at George Washington University, where since 1994 he has taught the history of American immigration and the U.S. Civil War. He is the author of three award-winning books: Nativism and Slavery: The Northern Know Nothings and the Politics of the 1850s (1992); Five Points: The Nineteenth-Century New York Neighborhood that Invented Tap Dance, Stole Elections, and Became the World s Most Notorious Slum (2001), and City of Dreams: The 400-Year Epic History of Immigrant New York (2016). He has won fellowships and grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities and held the Fulbright Commission s Thomas Jefferson Distinguished Chair in American History at the University of Utrecht. His research has won awards from the Organization of American Historians, the Columbia University School of Journalism, the editors of Civil War History, and the New York Society Library. The program is free for paid members and $5 for non-members (applied to membership fee when a visitor joins JGSMD) after their first meeting. Refreshments will be available. Please check our web site at for late updates and for the time, location, and program of future meetings. 10

11 Don t forget that we are in the middle of a fund raising campaign for Adat Chaim. We now have discount cards that are good for 12 months at 15 different businesses in the Pikesville, Owings Mills, Reisterstown and Westminster area. The cost of the card is $10. We are hoping that each member will take 10 cards to sell so that we can have a successful fund raiser. Contact us at adatchaim18@gmail.com to arrange to get yours. We would like to thank the following businesses for providing discounts to all discount card holders over the next twelve months. Please when visiting these places, thank them for their support. Chicken Shack 75 Main Street, Reisterstown Eggspectation Grand Central Avenue, Owings Mills Flowers & Fancy Cronridge Drive, Owings Mills Gourmet Girls 1 Easter Court, Owings Mills The Green Turtle all locations IHOP Boulevard Circle, Owings Mills Jiffy Lube Reisterstown Road, Owings Mills KB Grille & Wok 6309 Reisterstown Road, Baltimore Millers Deli 2849 Smith Avenue, Pikesville Outback Boulevard Circle, Owings Mills Parsonizing Fine Dry Cleaning two locations (11299 Owings Mills Blvd & 1852 Reisterstown Rd) Ristorante Firenze 2 Hanover Road, Reisterstown Sakura Japanese Steak House & Sushi 5 Westminster Shopping Center Season s Pizza 9161 Reisterstown Road, Pikesville Spa 1 Nails Reisterstown Road, Owings Mills

12 Use this form to mail in your contributions to Adat Chaim Synagogue I am enclosing Chai ($18) Double Chai ($36) Triple Chai ($54) 10 X Chai ($180) Other Contributions can be made: In Memory of For Speedy Recovery In Honor of In Appreciation of Yahrzeit of or Other: (Please specify) Contributions can be made to: General Synagogue Fund Rabbi s Discretionary Fund Rabbi Seymour Essrog Lecture Fund Tree of Life ($180.00) Yahrzeit Plaque ($250) I would like to donate to the following fund: (Please specify name of fund) Donation for (name/occasion) Your name(s) as you wish them to appear in Bulletin Send card to Card to be signed Address Your Address City, State Zip City, State Zip Office Use : Card sent Check # Amount $ Posted 12