November 2016 Volume 39 Issue 2

Transcription

1 November 2016 Volume 39 Issue 2 Inside this Issue Steering Committee...Page 2 Ilene s Music Corner...Page 3 Bulletin Board....Page 5 Tributes Page 5 Rabbi Search...Page 6 Book Review.Page 6 Havurah Happenings...Page 7 Tikkun Olam..Pages 8&9 Calendar...Page 10 From the Education Director: A Reflection and an Invitation I have been thinking a lot about preparation, lately. Preparation for the Yamim Noraim, the Days of Awe - trying to bring myself to a place of readiness to engage the big questions about life that can arise in our rituals, if we are present. Trying to inhabit the Hebrew name that we give Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur Yamim Noraim, the days when we experience the fine line between Awe and Fear. Preparation to renew all the Havurah Education Programs communicating, organizing, managing, bringing hundreds of people and educational resources and logistics all together to create meaningful learning for adults and youth. Preparation for Winter cleaning the gutters, and trying to forestall flooding in our basement. Bringing in the last of the vegetables and pears, freezing produce and pesto, being both overjoyed and overwhelmed by the harvest of the fruits of our labor. Preparation for the Cascadia Subduction Zone Earthquake gathering supplies, calling neighbors together to know each other better [Fun fact: In natural disaster situations 98% of the first responders (in the immediate aftermath - the most crucial time for saving lives) are neighbors and people who live/ work close by]. Like the squirrels, Continued on Page 11 Rabbi s Column: What We Learned What an election cycle. We have all been through the wringer on this one, and while we may have become resigned through the years to hearing politicians on campaigns saying things that they hardly meant or touted as ridiculously highminded or, conversely, the opposite this season threw it all into sharp relief. As Charles Blow wrote about one candidate (The New York Times, October 17th), he is the logical extension of toxic masculinity and ambient misogyny. He is the logical extension of rampant racism. He is the logical extension of wealth worship. He is the logical extension of pervasive anti-intellectualism. The leap from one stage to the next in this analysis may not be linear, but it s familiar. These traits associated predominantly with men can go hand in hand, and they are not only insidious but seem to hark back to a medieval way of settling scores. As Jews, we should not only be wary of individuals and parties that animate this brand of politics, we need to be clearer about why it is that we should insist on a more just and inclusive discourse. Such a discourse would run counter to the rapacity that has been an undercurrent of our own supposedly democratic system. What s more, it could serve to correct (in the manner that markets experience corrections) the severe disparities that keep some on top and others forever on the bottom. During the Yom Kippur break this year, Havurah hosted a powerful discussion on privilege and otherness. Many people participated, and in this case, it seemed to me that there were nearly as many non-members as members and certainly a great many people not yet 40 years old. Considering the fact that on Erev Rosh Hashana, I had spoken about who gets written into the Book of Life, I was happy to see so many new faces and listen to such articulate perspectives on inclusionary politics. In the midst of the conversation, I realized that what Charles Blow has to say about toxic masculinity as a beginning point is particularly insightful. What the next Continued on Page 4

2 Steering Committee Transitions and Foundations As I participated in services during Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, listened to the drashot, and thought about the coming year both for myself and our community, I realized just how apropos our theme HaRishonot va- Chadashot (The First Things and The New Things) is for We are in a time of transitions as we continue to implement a new governance structure, and prepare to select a new Rabbi. Each of us has a responsibility and an opportunity to participate in the Rabbi search process. I urge all of you to try to attend at least one service or event for each candidate when the rabbinical candidates visit in December and January, and provide feedback through the survey tool. Even as we look ahead to Chadashot New Things, we depend on the comfort and strength of HaRishonot The First Things. As our mission statement articulates, steeped in Jewish values, Havurah Shalom promotes spirituality, learning, and acts of social responsibility. That bedrock, our foundation, will remain and will help guide us through these transitions to the next phase in Havurah s future. As the Tikkun Olam Lead in the new governance structure I may be somewhat biased, but I think for many of us our connection to community, both within Havurah and beyond to the broader world, is strengthened through grappling with the hard work of Tikkun Olam together. Our world is in need of repair, and while we could be overwhelmed by the needs, together we have created many opportunities to come together in the work of Tikkun Olam. In our new governance structure, the Tikkun Olam cluster has identified four areas of focus. These aren t necessarily new to the work we do, but now we have a bit more infrastructure to support our activities. We are launching workgroups and have identified leads for each one to help manage all of our activity: Equity and Privilege (Susan Rosenthall, Liz Schwartz) Immigrants and Refugees (Bob Brown, Rachel Oh) Poverty and Homelessness (Gloria Halper, Steve Rudman) Environment and Climate Change (Michael Heumann) We have so much going on, and there are always ways to get involved. Each month we have an intergenerational group volunteering at Goose Hollow Family Shelter. We also have a growing number of members who are serving as Cultural Navigators with recently arrived refugee families. A small group continues to support the Hassan family, who you remember we moved into their apartment last spring. Adan Hassan recently started a job with Goodwill, which we hope will provide some financial stability for the family, and he is working hard on his driving skills to try to get his driver s license. The Hassans are expecting their third child in January. We are launching two discussion groups/classes this fall on climate change and privilege and otherness. We hope that these will be opportunities to gain some tools and identify some options for ongoing programs. If you are interested in finding out more about the workgroups, or would like to suggest projects that you are interested in helping to get started, please contact the appropriate lead (see above). If you have general questions about Tikkun Olam at Havurah Shalom, please contact Chris Coughlin or Liz Schwartz. - Chris Coughlin chriscoughlin60@gmail.com Havurah Shalom Steering Committee: October 6, 2016 Present: Shelley Sobel; Bill Kwitman; Debbi Nadell; Ken Lerner; Liz Joffe; Janet Byrd; Aaron Pearlman; Susan Brenner; Lisa Cordoba; Chris Coughlin Staff: Deborah Eisenbach Budner Agenda Items: For the complete minutes of the meeting, please contact the Havurah office. The following topics were discussed: Financial Report Committee Updates Rabbi Search Update Executive Session The meeting was adjourned at 8:30 pm. Respectfully Submitted, Chris Coughlin Wondering why we didn t need to share Machzorim at Kol Nidre? Or why your Machzor had a different nameplate? We gratefully received 200 Machzorim from Congregation Neveh Shalom as they switched to a new High Holidays Prayer Book this year. We appreciate their donation and not having to share books! Monday-Thursday 10am-4pm Friday 10am-3pm December Hakol The deadline for submission of articles, pics, tributes, announcements, etc. is Monday November 14. any submissions to Rachel@havurahshalom.org 2

3 Caribbean Jews Did You Know? It probably won t surprise you that the oldest Jewish synagogue in the Western Hemisphere is not the one built in Newport, Rhode Island in It s the one built in Recife, Brazil about 100 years earlier. But did you know that: - The first Jews to arrive in Rhode Island colony, were likely Jews from Barbados, around 1658? - The French (think the 1685 Code Noir) and Portuguese governments also exiled Jews, who then established themselves in Caribbean colonies ruled by the more tolerant Dutch, Danish, and British governments? - Skull-and-crossbones images were carved into the oldest Jewish gravestones in Suriname and Jamaica? - Isaac Mendes Belisario ( ), a Sephardic Jew and Jamaica s first island born professional artist, is famous for his lithographs of Jamaica s Jonkonnu (often anglicized as John Canoe) festival? (Belisario and his father also supported full freedom for Britain s former slaves. Part of one lithograph is pictured here.) - Moses Cohen Henriques, a Dutch pirate from a Portu- Portland Jewish Book Month guese Sephardic family, had his own private island off the coast of Brazil? There s more to discover during Portland s Jewish Book Celebration, which features Alice Hoffman s The Marriage of Opposites, set in 19th century St. Thomas. There are two discussions of the book on November 8, a talk about Jewish pirates of the Caribbean on November 13th, and painting instruction related to the book on November 15th. Details at Havurah Shalom will host A Kippah in the Caribbean on Wednesday, November 16, at 7 pm. This hour-long documentary is in Dutch with English subtitles, but don t let that stop you. The film is co-sponsored by the Institute for Judaic Studies and the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education, and there is a fee: $8 for the general public; $5 for students or members of Havurah, IJS, or OJMCHE. The film is free for Havurah High and Middle School Students. Please pay and reserve through Havurah students, your seats are already reserved! For more information, contact Ruth Feldman ruth@ruthmike.com Ilene s Music Corner The holidays are over, but the glow remains. How blessed and fortunate we are to be able to be touched by the talents and generous efforts of so many. I just wanted to write and express my heartfelt gratitude to everyone who was a part of our High Holiday services at the Tiffany Center. To the service leaders and leyners, each year, you bring new insights and enrich our prayers.. To our instrumentalists and singers, your spirit and beautiful music helps our prayers soar.. To the flower arrangers and the banner hangers, the sanctuary was more beautiful than ever. To our incredible logistical team.you shlep, set up, take down, keep us secure, and help with a myriad of other tasks that are so important but may be unknown to most of us. To everyone who is involved in feeding us, from the start of the holiday to the finish.. To Teri and Rachel, you take on each request with a smile and a generosity of spirit that touches us all. To Deborah, for your thoughtful guidance in educating and inspiring our young families in services and through the year. To Joey, as always, for your spirit and enthusiasm, your teaching and your heart. To our entire Havurah Shalom community, you give with your heart and you touch us all, and each year, your efforts launch us all into a new year with renewed energy, commitment and spirit. May the year be sweet and may we continue to grow together. with much appreciation and many thanks! Ilene 3

4 Rabbi Article Continued generation understands in a way that my own only began to is that negotiations about economic and racial justice begin, in many circumstances, with gender politics. In terms of the building-blocks of a community, it s important for us to respect non-traditional families and households. If you are over 45 (and I use that age somewhat arbitrarily), it s often dizzying to be confronted with the alphabet soup of gender politics but it s important for the reason that young people are breaking down rigid corporate power structures, as much as reinterpreting love. What perturbed us during the election cycle was the crass display of manipulative power, the Manichean wish for good once and for all to subdue evil. The theme of a proven conqueror who executes foreign invaders, as we know from history, belies the subordinating of hard-won rights and liberties by the rest of us. What we can learn from our exploration on the holiest day of the year, to the contrary, is that we can choose to make a community on the basis of listening to and respecting partners that are different from us. In this sense, choosing to be Jewish either to become Jewish or to be a part of the conversation will offer a distinct path to entering loving relationships, to challenging staid conventions of participation in the Jewish community, and, I daresay, the management of wealth. This was driven home to me on Yom Kippur, a day on which we are supposed to make a complete turning toward what s essential. The old ways of lording what we have over others won t do any longer. And, likewise, the plundering, misdirection, and scapegoating on the Continued from Page 1 American scene will come to be seen for what they are and locker room talk, for what it s worth, will meet the fate of priestly banter. We ll have work to do. Because I am a Pharisee, I welcome the trend in the Jewish community, because it supports an aspect of what I have been teaching all along that everything gets back to arguing clearly and logically the basis of human ethics. That s what has been missing in politics, and 4 among Jews across the country it s happening gradually but in a big way. We need to listen to what the next generation of Jews are saying along the arc from Reconstructionists to Orthodox, including taking seriously what they produce in the way of insights that arise from Talmudic study. Everywhere it has to do with gender and inclusion and economic justice. I want to thank the leaders of Tikkun Olam, who in their wisdom opened the gates to this exciting exploration for Havurah Shalom. Rabbi Joey

5 Bulletin Board In the coming month Havurah Shalom will call to the Torah the following B nai Mitzvah: Saturday, November 12 Sophie Beck Daughter of Liz Joffe & Nora Beck Saturday, November 19 Lev Wolin Son of Tera & Chaim Wolin Please join us in celebration and welcome her to our community. MAZEL TOV! New Havurah Members Esther Schuster & Alan Shealy Talia, Dan, Aleeza, Sidra, and Orli Stein Michelle Lamanet, Josh Fingert, Shoshana & Uziel Lamanet Megan MacRae Greta Klungness, Chris, Cora, & Kai Paasch Rabbi Joey Retirement Celebration Save the Dates!! - Social Justice Shabbat Service date TBD - Shabbat School Havdalah with Rabbi Joey Saturday, April 15th, 4:45 5:30 pm - Retirement Celebration Dinner Thursday, April 20th, 6:00 pm at the Mittleman JCC - Friday Night Shabbat Service Friday, April 21st, 7:30 pm - Saturday Morning Minyan and Lunch Saturday, April 22nd, 10:00 am If you are interested in helping with celebration planning, please contact Debbi at debbinadell@gmail.com. Help Light Up Someone's Life This Holiday Season Continuing a 15-year tradition, Jewish Family & Child Service (JFCS) will once again brighten the holiday season for needy individuals, families, Holocaust survivors, and other seniors. Our two Holiday Campaigns not only celebrate the season, but also help people who are facing adversity feel more connected to their community. This year s campaign is produced in collaboration with Cedar Sinai Park. These uplifting holiday campaigns are special, once-a-year events, and are a great way to volunteer with your family and friends or to meet others who share your interests. When the community comes together, great things happen! Sunday, November 20th from 10:00 2:00: we need volunteer drivers and delivery partners to deliver 3-4 Thanksgiving Food Boxes to families, using a prepared delivery map. We suggest that you enlist a strong family member to help you as the boxes are bulky and heavy. A full-sized vehicle or SUV is needed. Sunday, December 18 th : we need volunteers to deliver bundles of gifts for our Adopt-A-Family campaign between 11:00 1:00. A driver and delivery partner will deliver 3-bundles of gifts to families, using a prepared delivery map. The bundles are bulky so a full-sized vehicle or SUV is required. To sign-up as a volunteer contact Phoenix Barrow: phoenix.barrow@cedarsinaipark.org or at Tributes Havurah Endowment Fund Amy Blumenberg & Chris Potter, in appreciation of Ken Lerner & Miriam Reshotko for chanting Torah at Eleanor's bat mitzvah. Many people have made their commitment to Give Back to the Future - thank you! Joey Wolf Education Fund Amy Blumenberg & Chris Potter, in appreciation of Rabbi Joey for working with Eleanor on her drash Emergency Kehillah Fund Amy Blumenberg & Chris Potter, in appreciation of Sacha Reich & Aaron Pearlman for their gift of beautiful music at Eleanor's bat mitzvah High Holidays Fund Amy Blumenberg & Chris Potter, in appreciation of Rachel Palmer for her calm demeanor and capable assistance with Eleanor's bat mitzvah planning Marian Rhys Karen Labinger Susan Baillet & Herman Asarnow

6 Book Review Protecting Paige by Deby Eisenberg Studio House Literary, 2015 The publicity for this middle grade/young adult novel reads: From the author of the Book Club favorite, Pictures of the Past, comes another compelling, multi-layered novel, ripe with the twists and turns of the best historical fiction. Indeed the best part of the story is its historical context: the 1915 Eastland disaster on the Chicago River, the plight of French Jews in World War II, and the American culture of 1962 that surrounds twelve-year-old Paige Noble as she recovers in a Chicago hospital from a gang shooting that killed her parents and brother. Paige becomes the ward of her famous bachelor uncle Maxwell, a wealthy and worldly photographer obsessed with his sister-in-law, Paige s mother. Twists and turns for sure. Protecting Paige reads more like a romance novel and, frankly, not a well crafted one, with a happily-ever-after aspect I found too neat. Then again, I m not the intended audience for this book. On the up side, there s no explicit sex as I recall, the main character Paige could be the tween down the street fifty years ago and the story is an absorbing one. --Ruth Tenzer Feldman Rabbi Search The Rabbi Search Committee is currently identifying candidates to bring to Havurah for the interview weekend. Please don t forget to put on your calendars the following weekends: December 2-3, 2016 December 9-10, 2016 January 6-7, 2017 During those weekends, the congregation will be able to see and interact with the candidates at the following events: Friday evening services & oneg Shabbat morning services Casual Shabbat lunch Shabbat School which includes a parent discussion and Havdallah Saturday evening Town Hall Q&A So how is the decision going to be made? After each weekend, on Sunday, each congregant will receive via an initial survey to share feedback to the committee. That survey will need to be returned by the Thursday of that week. In mid January a final survey will be sent via to each congregant asking you to rank the candidates. After considering all the feedback the Rabbi Search Committee, in February 2017, will give a recommendation to the Steering Committee. On March 5, 2017 at the congregational meeting, the congregation will be asked to approve the Steering Committee s recommendation. We look forward to seeing you at the interview weekends. We thank you for your engagement and participation throughout this important process. As always, if there are questions, please contact the rabbi search committee at rabbisearch@havurahshalom.org Art Workshops for the Havurah Mosaic Family Art Workshop Ages 5-9 with an adult 10 am to 11:30 am Sunday, October 30 Family Art Workshop Ages 10 through adult 1 pm to 3:30 pm Sunday, October 30 Adult Art Workshop 10 am to 12 pm Sunday, November 20 Teen Art Workshop 1:30 pm to 3:30 pm Sunday, November 20 Glazing Workshops Ages 10 through adult 10 am to 12:30 pm Sunday, December 4 10 am to 12:30 pm Sunday, December 11 With artist Lynn Takata An invitation to create ceramic artwork for the Havurah Shalom courtyard Please RSVP at Havurahshalom.org 6

7 Davenology 101 It s one thing to be able to pray, but it s another to lead others in prayer. Like driving, there are routes to choose and considerations for accommodating other passengers on the journey. With GPS you can get where you need to go without realizing where you are. As leaders, we need to do more. We ll go over options for how to lead with both spiritual impact and a sense of direction. And we ll learn some of the melodies that help us appreciate the ride. Taught by Ilene Safyan & Rabbi Joey. Register by Nov. 1. Tuesday, Nov. 15, 7:00 8:30 pm Havurah Book Discussion Group Join the Havurah Book Discussion Group to read and discuss both fiction and nonfiction books by Jewish authors on a variety of themes. In our next session, we will discuss The Marrying of Chani Kaufman by Eve Harris. This is a fictional story of 19 year-old Chani Kaufman who lives in an ultraorthodox community. As the book opens, Chani has been betrothed to Baruch, a young man who she barely knows. Having never had physical contact with a man, she approaches the upcoming marriage with a mixture of trepidation and anticipation. Chani receives advice from the Rebbetzin about the duties of a Jewish wife. But Chani and Baruch are not a typical orthodox couple. Secrets, fears, and sexual longing surface along with a desire for liberation. This book is a fascinating exploration of the boundaries for romantic love and sexuality within the ultra-orthodox Jewish community. Please join us. Feel free to bring a nosh. Next Session: Tuesday, November 29, at 7pm Join Us! B nai Mitzvah Committee Presents: Whose Bar/Bat Mitzvah is it Anyway? How do parents with varying degrees of familiarity with and/or attachment to Jewish tradition navigate planning a Bar or Bat Mitzvah? How do they create a meaningful experience for their teen? Led by Deborah Eisenbach-Budner & Laura Orgel. Wednesday, November 9, at 7:00 pm Talmud Lite We are currently studying a section from Tractate Brachot, which grapples with the ordering for familiar rituals, such as Kiddush and Havdallah and the washing of the hands and how we lend structure to the passage of sacred time. Usually, we meet twice a month on Tuesdays at 12:10 1:00 pm at a downtown location. We study with the English translation and no previous knowledge is required. Upcoming Dates: November 15 & 29 For more info contact joey.wolf@havurahshalom.org Young children (0-5) and their parents celebrate Shabbat with singing, movement, blessings and storytelling. We touch on the main highlights of the Shabbat morning service: wonder, fun, song, listening to the world, dancing and Torah. Afterward we enjoy an informal oneg nosh and the chance to play and schmooze. Led by Deborah Eisenbach-Budner. Saturday, November 5, 10:30-11:30 am Dorot Shabbat Dorot Shabbat is a service for all ages! Young ones look up to the older ones, and older ones enjoy the younger ones' joy and singing. A casual, family-friendly and musicfilled service, it begins with candle lighting, Kiddush and challah, and continues with prayers and music led by congregants. After the service, we'll enjoy a vegetarian potluck dinner. Friday, November 18, 6:00 pm Alter Rockers Party Please join the Alter Rockers for a fall get-together. People should bring appetizers or dessert to share, as well as whatever beverage they wish to drink. We will have eating and drinking, talking and laughing, and a table or two of poker, and other games as people are interested. Anyone interested in whiskey tasting, please bring a bottle. If you have not already responded, please RSVP to sarah.r.rosenberg@gmail.com. Saturday, November 5, 7:00 pm 7

8 Tikkun Olam On Privilege and Otherness at Havurah Our Tikkun Olam discussion during the break between services on Yom Kippur had an amazing turnout, 75 folks! This topic of privilege and otherness resonated with many. Once we were gathered, we explained how this topic had grown out of a coming together of various threads at Havurah, all echoing the same need/interest, and that this discussion was going to continue on, in much more depth, with an upcoming 6 session course (see end of article for more). We broke up into small groups and wrestled with the following two questions: --how do we experience our privilege in this community and in our daily lives? --how do we experience otherness and what do we do with our experiences? The groups were deeply involved with their discussions, resisting moving back into the larger group, so we had time at the end for only brief summaries of the high points of each group. Here are some but hardly all of what we heard: On privilege : --There are many ways that we all have privilege, both as members of the Havurah community and because of living in the United States. No matter how challenged some of us may be in large and smaller aspects of our lives, we acknowledged that things are much better here than in many other places in the world. --Being part of the Havurah community is a privilege (being surrounded by smart, thoughtful, caring, engaged folks). Having the luxury of time to participate in services and to have time to reflect is a privilege. --Are we as Jews privileged because we are seen as white and/or because we can pass as non-jews should we so choose (i.e. by wearing or not wearing a kippah)? On the other hand, the assumption that Jewish communities are white communities immediately excludes Jews of color. On otherness --Otherness sets people apart. How to address this is the challenge. Being open and curious helps, as does the awareness that one s words can affect someone else negatively, without our being aware that that is happening. --People at Havurah can feel other due to being single, being without children, being a Jew by choice, being a newer member, or not having the same level of income as others. --Sometimes our efforts to be open and accepting leave some people feeling like one is being welcomed primarily to fill diversity goals. --At other times, people attempt to share differences or raise concerns and are told, that s not a problem, a response which minimizes and dismisses the experience of the person sharing the difference. The above of course captures only a small segment of the myriad conversations, which in the small groups were deep and rich. If all this is of interest/concern to you, know that going forward, we hope to explore this throughout Havurah s various cohorts, through discussions and classes and activities. The exciting next step is the upcoming series of classes described below: Being Jewish Makes a World of Difference: Equity, Privilege & Otherness Six sessions starting Wednesday, Nov. 30, at Havurah Shalom Rabbi Joey will lead the first three classes where we will look at texts from Jewish tradition about equity and otherness. These examples of situational ethics will be the foundation for our study and reflection. What do the texts mean to you as an individual? What is the relevance in our own lives? What are the issues that we need to confront? The second set of three sessions will broaden the discussion to explore tools that can be used to help us wrestle with these challenging topics as we explore issues of equity, privilege, and otherness at personal, community, organizational, and systematic levels. For example, how can we become more aware of our implicit biases and assumptions? How do we address the impact of our behavior and that of others in respectful and productive ways both in and beyond Havurah? Outside facilitators will lead these three sessions. Rabbi Joey s classes will be 7-8:30 pm on Wednesdays, November 30th, December 7th and December 14th. The second set of meetings will be in January 3, 10, and 17. We ask that participants commit to all six sessions. The course is limited to 20 Havurah members, but we will have a waiting list, so if you are interested register online asap. This will help us gauge interest and whether we should consider additional classes. If you are interested in this work and cannot attend the class, let us know. And let us know your other questions and/or comments. Becky Seel beckyseel@gmail.com Susan Rosenthall sarosenthall@msn.com (for the class planning committee, which includes Fran Weick, Judy Steinberger, and Chris Coughlin) 8

9 Tikkun Olam Portland Homeless Family Solutions Goose Hollow Shelter Tikkun Olam Direct Service Project News: 2016 Highlights Spring, 2016: recipient of CareOregon Funds Lack of access to health care and other needed resources often keep people in an unending cycle of poverty, homelessness, hunger and fear. To help break this cycle, CareOregon provides more than $1 million in grants. Portland Homeless Families Solutions (PHFS) received $50,000. PHFS empowers homeless families with children to get back into housing and stay there. CareOregonFunds will provide support for enhanced housing retention efforts to help 125 homeless families remain in stable housing by hiring a Retention Specialist. PHFS: pdxhfs.org for more info. Spring, 2016: At PHFS annual volunteer appreciation party Havurah received The Peg Brockman Award for "Outstanding Service by a Meal Provider" -Way to go Meal Providers, headed up by Len and Elayne Shapiro. Anyone can volunteer in this capacity without attending an orientation. This is a great way to see the shelter, meet some of the families, staff and volunteers from Havurah. For more info re: Meal Providing: Elayne Shapiro elayneshapiro@gmail.com or Leonard Shapiro lenshap@gmail.com Summer, 2016: PHFS Goose Hollow's shelter was the recipient of items collected at the Bat Mitzvah of Uma Hausman, ( avid volunteer with her mother). Fall, 2016: Goose Hollow children were outfitted with back to school items and backpacks by friends and family members of John Devlin and Rachel Rosenthal Devlin Fall, 2016: New family lockers installed at Goose Hollow by Havurah volunteers John Devlin and Jay Moskovitz Fall, 2016: Recipient of Havurah's generosity at our Tikkun Olam High Holiday Tzedakah Project collection. Twelve full grocery bags of items along with several brooms/dustpans were delivered to Goose Hollow the day after Yom Kippur. All were items families receive when moving back into permanent housing. Fall, 2016: Havurah member Jeff Gottfried helped parents and children personally and individually at Goose Hollow find appropriate Padagonia winter wear that he was donating. Over the several hours that Jeff was at the shelter, almost every adult and child left his side with something perfect for our city's winter weather. One woman said she would think of him every time she wore her jacket. Upcoming Goose Hollow orientations: November 8 and 30, December 6 and 28, 5-6 PM. All orientations are at the shelter: 1383 SW Jefferson, parking behind the church. For Goose Hollow info: Gloria Halper losninos6@gmail.com High Holidays Tzedakah Project Update Many thanks to everyone who donated items for the High Holiday Tzedakah Collection this year. We collected enough to full two cars to overflowing. The items were sorted and delivered to Portland Homeless Family Solutions to support families transitioning to housing, and to Catholic Charities to support new refugee families arriving in Portland. This is one small way we can help families feel welcome in our community. Thank you for your generosity. 9

10 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 6 (5 Cheshvan) Spiritual Life Committee 13 (12 Cheshvan) Transition Projects 6:00pm 20 (19 Cheshvan) Art Project: Adult Art Workshop 10:00am Art Project: Teen Art Workshop 1:30pm Steering Retreat 4:30pm 1 (30 Tishrei) Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan Give Back to the Future Meeting 7 (6 Cheshvan) 8 (7 Cheshvan) Election Day don t forget to vote! 14 (13 Cheshvan) Hakol Deadline Joey Retirement Celebration Planning 21 (20 Cheshvan) Connections / Membership Committee 15 (14 Cheshvan) Talmud Lite 12:10pm Davenology (26 Cheshvan) 28 (27 Cheshvan) 29 (28 Cheshvan) Talmud Lite 12:10pm Book Discussion Group 2 (1 Cheshvan) Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan Morning Minyan 8:30am Middle School Havurah High 9 (8 Cheshvan) Morning Minyan 8:30am Havurah High Middle School Whose Bar or Bat Mitzvah is it Anyway 16 (15 Cheshvan) Morning Minyan 8:30am Havurah High Middle School A Kippah in the Caribbean 22 (21 Cheshvan) 23 (22 Cheshvan) Morning Minyan 8:30am 30 (29 Cheshvan) Morning Minyan 8:30am Havurah High Middle School Being Jewish Makes a world of Difference 3 (2 Cheshvan) Shabbat School Parents Night (K-2) 10 (9 Cheshvan) Steering Committee Climate Change Discussion 4 (3 Cheshvan) Candle Lighting 5:34pm 11 (10 Cheshvan) Veteran's Day Candle Lighting 4:26pm Kabbalat Shabbat Dinner Kabbalat Shabbat Service 7:30pm 17 (16 Cheshvan) 18 (17 Cheshvan) Candle Lighting 4:19pm Dorot Shabbat 6:00pm 24 (23 Cheshvan) Thanksgiving Day Havurah Office Closed 1 (1 Kislev) Rosh Chodesh Kislev Climate Change Discussion 25 (24 Cheshvan) Candle Lighting 4:13pm Havurah Office Closed 2 (2 Kislev) Candle Lighting 4:10pm Friday Night Shabbat Service with Rabbi Candidate 7:30pm 5 (4 Cheshvan) Noach Community Minyan 10:00am Tot Shabbat 10:30am Shabbat School 3:00pm Havdalah 6:41pm Alter Rockers Party 12 (11 Cheshvan) Lech Lecha Bat Mitzvah of Sophie Beck. 10:00am Havdalah 5:33pm 19 (18 Cheshvan) Vayera Bar Mitzvah of Lev Wolin 10:00am Shabbat School 3:00pm Havdalah 5:26pm 26 (25 Cheshvan) Chayei Sara Shabbat Mevarchim Community Minyan 10:00am Havdalah 5:21pm 3 (3 Kislev) Toldot Community Minyan 10:00am Lunch with Candidate 12:15pm Shabbat School 3:00pm Havdalah 5:18pm Q & A w/candidate Calendar November

11 Articles Continued from page 1 whose pace seems to ratchet up a notch with each rain shower, we are responsibly investing in our futures. We are trying to claim some agency in our lives. Sometimes, we are trying to control, or ensure particular outcomes. But, I start to wonder: Is preparation really living? Or is preparation just preparing to live? We can use Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur as opportunities to stop and really focus on those preparations, what we need to change and what we hope for in our futures. Right? However, now that those holidays are passed for this year s cycle, it is easier to see how crazy the whole concept is 10 days to return. (tshuvah)! Yeah, right!?! Numerous people spoke this year about the rituals of Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah becoming disturbingly rote for them. They wondered aloud if their reflection, their praying, their holiday observance makes any difference. Do they really return to their best selves or, for that matter, make any progress getting anywhere? Invitation: I would like to follow up on Emily Simon s recommendation of Rabbi Alan Lew s book This is Real and You Are Completely Unprepared: The Days of Awe as a Journey of Transformation. Below are a few selections from his work, which covers the spiritual and ritual time from the mid-summer fast day of Tisha B av through the rejoicing in the harvest of Sukkot. If any of these words resonate for you or you are interested in trying to deepen your own preparation and experience of the Days of Awe, please be in touch with me. We will gather several times from the late spring through the beginning of the New Year, to absorb Lew s book together and see if preparation can actually lead to life. From an interview with Rabbi Lew, about his book: If we look at our lives honestly, the events that really shape us, that really make us who we are, are the events we didn't prepare for, or we couldn't prepare for, like a serious illness, the loss of a loved one, the failure of a relationship, or God forbid the loss of a child. Or suddenly a child appears surprisingly, or we fall in love. However We spend most of our lives preparing like crazy--we prepare for our professional lives, we prepare for our health by doing exercise, we do self-improvement, we always anticipate tomorrow, but the mounting evidence is that what we anticipate almost never occurs tomorrow. We live life like a kind of Maginot line--the line of defense that the French built to ward off the Germans and they ended up coming from a completely different direction. Our life is like that--it comes at us from a different direction than we think it's going to. It circumvents all our defenses and leaves us feeling very unprepared. All of this is at the heart of the High Holiday journey, this journey of the soul that we go through every year at this time. It's built into the liturgy: the service that we do on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur is taken almost word for word from the prayer service that went along with the public fast practiced during Rabbinic times for public emergencies, the kind of things you couldn't prepare for--drought, a ship lost at sea, a city under siege. It's a liturgy for a spiritual emergency, for an urgent desperate matter you can't prepare for. The shofar is like the ancient alarm--it was something that we blew at a really desperate, urgent time. And from Lew s book: The journey I will describe in these pages is one of self-discovery, spiritual discipline, self-forgiveness, and spiritual evolution. It is the snapshot the Jewish people pull out every autumn of the great journey all human beings must make across the world: the journey from Tisha b'av to Sukkot, from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur, from birth to death and back to renewal again The gate between heaven and earth is always creaking open. The Book of Life and the Book of Death are open every day, and our name is written in one or the other of them at every moment, and then erased and written again the moment after that. We are constantly becoming, constantly redefining ourselves And our heart is always breaking, and the gate is always clanging shut The great journey of transformation begins with the acknowledgment that we need to make it. It is not something we are undertaking for amusement, nor even for the sake of convention; rather, it is a spiritual necessity. And our need to be more conscious to awaken from the deep dream that has held us in its thrall is always there. Deborah Eisenbach-Budner Shabbat School Grade 4 performing plays based on the stories of Jacob and Esau. 11

12 Havurah Shalom 825 NW 18th Ave Portland OR Non-Profit Org. US Postage PAID Portland OR Permit No Address Service Requested Address label here KABBALAT SHABBAT DINNER Friday, November 11 Dinner at 6:30 pm; Services at 7:30 pm Cost adjustments for the dinner are available. Contact the Havurah office for information. Dinner will include dairy-free, gluten-free, & nut-free choices. You are invited to bring wine/juice to celebrate. Reservations are required by Monday, November 7 Please mail the completed form (right) with payment to the Havurah office OR register online at Kabbalat Shabbat Registration Form First and Last Name(s) for name tag(s): Number of Adults (Ages 13+) Number of children ages 4 to 12 $15.00 Each $ $5.50 each $ Number of children ages 3 & under No Charge Consider an extra donation to help others attend Total Enclosed $ Childcare is available for ages 2-8, from 6:30 pm until the end of the service. Name(s)/age(s) of child(ren): 12