News Journal, Delaware section, 12-31-12

Faiths grasp ideal of 'pebble in pond'
The News Journal www.delawareonline.com 12-31-12 Delaware
...The Jewish faith has already celebrated the start of its new year during Rosh Hashanah in September. Still, Rabbi Michael Beals of Congregation Beth Shalom in Wilmington has sometimes given a nod to the lesser-known St. Sylvester’s Day when
the secular calender turns, he said.
...
In Israel, restaurants will avoid losing their kosher licenses by celebrating St. Sylvester’s Day on Dec. 31 rather than marking the end of the calendar year, said Beals, who has taken to wishing people a “Happy Sylvester” around this time of year.

Cute stories aside, Beals said the most poignant moment of his sermon during the weekend came while praying for peace.

The Iranian government’s move toward nuclear capability has hung heavy over the end of 2012, he said, while the Middle East has again been rocked by conflict.

“Every single time a Jewish person ends a prayer – we’ve done this for 2,000 years – we always pray for peace,” Beals said. “It’s our biggest hope and desire. It seems really elusive, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t pray for it.”

Jamaican Shabbat and Ethical Wills

Dear Haverim

*This Friday night, December 28, 6:30 p.m. (Happy Hour 6 p.m.), Kabbalat Shabbat.

Sermon topic: Jews of Jamaica: Celebrating 50 Years of Jamaican Independence -- with Jamaican-inspired drinks at Happy Hour. Note: Bob Marlee -- M.O.T. (his grandmother was Jewish!).

*This Satuday morning, December 29, 9:30 a.m., Parashat V'yehi:Writing Your Ethical Will - Guaranteeing Your Imortality.

*Note: Tuesday, January 1st -- later 9:00 a.m. start time. Happy Sylvester!

Shabbat shalom!

Rabbi Michael

From Gun Control to Yoga to Teshuva

Dear Haverim:
*Tomorrow night, Friday, December 21, 6:30 p.m, (Happy Hour 6 p.m.), assuming the world does not end, my sermon topic will be:

A BRIEF JEWISH GUIDE TO GUN CONTROL.

*Saturday, December 22, 8:45 a.m, Shal-OM Yoga. Join us in the chapel for Yoga with a Jewish accent, with Zach. If you have never tried Jewish yoga why not come and give it a try – it will make you pray better!
*Saturday, December 22, 9:30 a.m. My sermon topic will be:

JOSEPH, RAMBAM & WEIGHT WATCHERS WEIGH IN ON TESHUVAH – inspired by Parashat Ha Shevuah – Vayigash.

*Please note LATER 9 a.m., minyan time on Tuesday, December 25. Happy Challah Daze!



Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Michael

Jewis Love Affair w/Chinese Food + Chanukah & Globalization

Dear Haverim:

            As we near the end of Chanukah, I am placing a strong emphasis on study this weekend, and I hope you will find time to embrace the student in you, and join me for all or some of these study opportunities.

       *Tonight, 8 p.m., Friday, December 14.  From Lokshen to Lo Mein.  I will explore the Jewish fascination with Chinese food, especially on December 25.  Join me for this tasteful topic plus a history of the Jews of China. An oneg Shabbat with kosher Chinese fare imported from Cherry Hill will follow.

       *Saturday, 9:30 a.m., December 15.  Shabbaton for the Hebrew School (10:15 am).  My sermon topic will be a study session, with texts provided.  Subject –

            Chanukah: Development, Globalization and the Miracle of the Maccabees. (material provided by the American Jewish World Service).

Looking ahead…

       *Saturday night, 7 – 10 pm, Teen Pa-Jew-Ma Dance.  Hosted at CBS, co-sponsored by Adas Kodesch, Congregation Beth Emeth and Temple Beth El.  We hope to bring all our community Jewish teens together for synagogue-based social and ritual programs.  We hope it will lead to mixed dancing. We will begin with Havdalah.  Music by DJZ and photobooth by Professor Looney. Cost: $15 cash at door.

            *Sunday night, 7 pm – Teddy Roosevelt and the Jews. Presented by the Rabbi Jacob Kraft Education Foundation. With Rabbi Lance Sussan, PhD, Senor Rabbi, Congregation Keneseth Israel, Elikins Park, PA. Dessert to follow.

            Stay informed. Be moved.  Attend worship services and study sessions at Congregation Beth Shalom!

            Shabbat shalom and Happy Chanukah!

                Rabbi Michael

Palestine Statehood to Dream Analysis

Haverim:




Stay informed, be connected, build community – attend Shabbat services and weekend programs at Congregation Beth Shalom (and in our community).



Friday, December 7, (Pre-Service Oneg 6:00pm), 6:30pm Kabbalat Shabbat services. My sermon topic will be: Palestine Statehood: A Time to Dance or A Time to Mourn?



Saturday, December 8, 9:30am, my sermon topic will be: Parashat Vayeshev: Dream Analysis-Speaking vs Listening.



In the evening, it is time to celebrate Chanukah. Begin your celebration with Havdalah, then light your first Chanukah candle and three blessings: 1. Lehadik ner shel Chanukah, 2. Asher asiti l'avoteynu, and 3. Shecheyanu. Complete prayers are available online.



Next Saturday evening, Community-wide Chanukah Teen Pa-Jew-Ma Party. Please be a supportive parent or grandparent and get your teens here!

Rasslin' With Angels to Boxing Dina to Afterlife

Dear Haverim:
Stay informed, be connected, build community – attend Shabbat services and weekend programs at Congregation Beth Shalom (and in our community).
Friday, November 30, (Pre-Service Oneg 6:00pm), 6:30pm Kabbalat Shabbat services. My sermon topic will be: Wrestling With Our Inner Angels - Both Good and Evil.
Saturday, December 1st, 9:30am, Sisterhood Shabbat, Our guest darshanit is former CBS President and Sisterhood Member, Diane Wolf. Her sermon topic is Parashat Yayishlach: Putting Dina in a Box.
Saturday night, December 1st, 7:30pm, Siegel JCC Auditorium, Jewish Views of the Afterlife, a lecture by Dr. Simcha Raphael, jointly sponsored by the rabbis of Adas Kodesch Shel Emeth, Beth El, Beth Emeth, Beth Shalom, plus Schoenberg Memorial Chapels and the Siegel JCC.
Sunday, December 2nd, 10:00am - 3:00pm, Siegel JCC, Chanukah Choopla. Please stop by the CBS table and sign up your teen for the Pa-JEW-Ma Party (an inter-synagogue dance for 7th to 11th graders, Sat. night, Dec. 15, 7 to 10pm).
Shabbat Shalom and an early Happy Chanukah!
Rabbi Michael

Interfaith Thanksgiving Day Message-broadcast 9:05 am this Sunday WDEL 1150 AM with Cantor Elisa singing

Rabbi Michael Beals                                                                                                        November 2012

The Rabbi Speaks

Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free

'Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,

And when we find ourselves in the place just right,

'Twill be in the valley of love and delight.

When true simplicity is gain'd,

To bow and to bend we shan't be asham'd,

To turn, turn will be our delight,

Till by turning, turning we come 'round right.^[2]

          At Thanksgiving time, no song seems to fit the season as well as Simple Gifts.  It is a Shaker song, written and composed way back in 1848 by Elder Joseph Brackett.  Maybe it’s kind of odd opening the Rabbi Speaks with a Shaker song.  Of course there IS a Jewish connection.  The song was virtually unknown outside the Shaker community until a nice Jewish boy named Aaron Copeland made it famous in his magnificent ballet score for Martha Graham’s ballet, Appalachian Spring, first performed in 1944.

          And speaking of gifts – what a gift to hear this piece sung by my friend and colleague, the new Cantor of Congregation Beth Shalom, Elisa Abrams.  And if you think it’s eclectic to have a rabbi showcasing a Shaker song, get this.  Elisa Abrams is the first Latina to serve as a Jewish spiritual leader in the History of Delaware – she’s Cuban on her mom’s side and Argentinean on her dad’s side.  Do you know what that means? It means the liturgical music sung at Sabbath services at Beth Shalom suddenly got really interesting.  But don’t take my word for it – come check out services at Beth Shalom, over on 18^th and Baynard Blvd. any Friday night or Saturday morning, and see for yourself.

          I am VERY grateful to be working with Cantor Elisa.  At this time of year, gratitude should start with those closest to you – your co-workers, fellow students, your spouse, your parents, your children.  We need a Thanksgiving Day to snap us out of our complacency – to truly appreciate what we have and not take those closest to us for granted.

          I’d like to let you in on a little secret not commonly known outside the Jewish world.  I know, on the secular calendar, this past Thursday was Thanksgiving.  But on the Jewish calendar EVERY day is Thanksgiving day.  No, we do not consume turkey every day – if we did Jews would be known NOT as The People of the Book, but rather, the People of the Yawn, due to the well-known sleep-inducing qualities of tryptophan – a byproduct of turkey meat.

          Jews are commanded to say 100 blessings every day – and a lot of those blessings are blessings of gratitude.  Follow me as we take a walk in the footsteps of an observant Jew.  If you are Christian, think of this as the ultimate WWJD experience, as there was no more observant Jew than JC.

          The observant Jew awakes, and the first thing he says is Modeh Ani, the first thing she says is Modah Ani … I am thankful.  I am thankful, Melech Chai v’kayam, Sovereign who lives and establishes, for you returned in me my soul with kindness, great is your faithfulness.  For the Jew, every morning is Resurrection Day.  For the devout Jew, every day is Easter Sunday, every day is miraculous as each and every one of us experiences resurrection … daily!  It is as if God is saying I validate you, I believe in you, that is why I decided to reimplant your soul in your body – now make something of this day!

          We get up. We get out of bed.  We use the bathroom.  As we come out, we say a blessing thanking God that each of our internal plumbing closed and opened at the appropriate time or else it would be impossible to stand before our Maker.  Come on.  What other religion has a “Going to the Bathroom Gratitude Prayer”? We are a grateful people. But wait, there’s more!

          The serious Jew then goes to synagogue where the first thing out of our mouths are 14 prayers of gratitude, beginning with praising the rooster, yes the rooster, for knowing the difference between night and day so it would cockle doodle doo and wake us up, then we utter  gratitude prayers for our ability to get out of bed, to put on clothes, all the way through a general prayer of thanks for giving us strength to make it through the day when we are weary.

          I was listening to National Public Radio last week.  Yes, I give thanks for NPR. They interviewed an author named Anne Lamott, who just wrote a new book, called Help, Thanks, Wow: The Three Essential Prayers.   In an excerpt from her book, she writes: "Well, I've heard people say that God is the gift of desperation, and there's a lot to be said for having really reached a bottom where you've run out of anymore good ideas, or plans for everybody else's behavior; or how to save and fix and rescue; or just get out of a huge mess, possibly of your own creation.

"And when you're done, you may take a long, quavering breath and say, 'Help.' People say 'help' without actually believing anything hears that. But it is the great prayer, and it is the hardest prayer, because you have to admit defeat — you have to surrender, which is the hardest thing any of us do, ever."

          I was particularly interested in the ordering of her three prayers:  thanks first, followed by help, and culminating in wow.   For 2000 years, three times daily, during the week, Jews recite the Amidah, 19 benedictions, beginning with Wow – we call it Praise, but Wow works fine, followed by Help, concluding with Thanks.  Of gratitude, Lamott comments, "Thanks is the prayer of relief that help was on the way. ... It can be [the] pettiest, dumbest thing, but it could also be that you get the phone call that the diagnosis was much, much, much better than you had been fearing. ... The full prayer, and its entirety, is: Thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you. But for reasons of brevity, I just refer to it as Thanks.

"It's amazement and relief that you caught a break; that your family caught a break; that you didn't have any reason to believe that things were really going to be OK, and then they were and you just can't help but say thank you."
          In the Jewish faith, this gratitude prayer, is called Modim, Here is an excerpt: “We thank You and proclaim Your praise for our lives which are in Your hand, for our souls which are in Your care, for Your miracles which are daily with us, and for Your wondrous kindness at all times—morning, noon and night.”

          And then there are those special moments: festivals, New Moon celebrations, times consecrated with an additional Hallel service, corresponding to moments in our Biblical past, where special sacrifices were brought first to the Tabernacle, during our 40-year wandering in the desert, and later to the Temple in Jerusalem.  With the destruction of the Temple, we lost the sacrifices but we have held on to the Hallel service.  As we look on our Thanksgiving celebration, it seems appropriate to remember the quintessential prayer of the Hallel liturgy: “Give thanks to God, for God’s love endures forever.”  And who better to conclude this special Thanksgiving edition of the Rabbi Speaks than Cantor Elisa Abrams, setting these words of gratitude to their original Hebrew text. This is my thanksgiving gift to you.

          Hodu l’Adonai ki tov, ki l’olam hasdo.

 

 

CIA Directors-Biblical Patriarchs:WHY Do People Lie

Dear Haverim:

*Tomorrow, Friday night, November 15, 6:30 p.m. Shabbat Services (Happy Hour 6 pm).  Sermon Topic:

 From Biblical Patriarchs to CIA Directors: WHY Do People Lie?

*Saturday, November 16. 8:45 a.m. Beth Shal-OM:Jewish Yoga

9:30 a.m., Bat Mitzvah of Rebecca Harrison.  Her sermon topic:

Sibling Rivalry: First Experiences Inspired by Parashat Toldot.

*Sunday, November 17, 11 a.m. Town Hall Meeting.  Join me, Cantor Elisa, President Karin, and Moderator Michael Sigman to learn the latest happenings at CBS and help guide our future.  The leadership will be on hand to hear your suggestions.

Be inspired! Stay informed! Be moved.

Attend Shabbat services at Congregation Beth Shalom!

Shabbat shalom!

Rabbi Michael

Veterans-Shabbat Unplugged-Eeki-Hebrew Crash Course

Dear Haverim:

      This Shabbat and weekend will be one of the most intellectually and culturally diverse in a while, and I hope you will take advantage of everything there is to offer.

·        This Friday, November 9, 8 p.m., CBS (note later service time). A Salute to our Veterans, guest darshan Marty Mand, sharing his service time in Morocco. Marv Cytron will read names of CBS servicemen who died in service. Service leader Rabbi Jeremy Winaker.

·        Also this Friday, November 9, 7:30 p.m., SHABBAT UNPLUGGED musical Shabbat service – first combined Temple Beth El-Beth Shalom service, featuring Cantor Elisa singing Ladino, Rabbi Michael on violin, Rabbi Micah on guitar and his band @ Temple Beth El, 301 Possum Park Rd., Newark (5 minutes from Christiana Hospital).

·        Saturday, November 10, 9:30 a.m., Israel Leadership Institute, with Israeli guest speaker, Eeki Elner (bio below)*.  A new take on Parashat Hayei Sara and a NEW VISION FOR ISRAEL.  Eeki will stay for Kiddush lunch and engage us in conversation.

·        Sunday, November 11, 10 am – 3 pm, CRASH COURSE IN HEBREW with Vered Nohi-Becker in CBS Library. This course is gateway for those wanting to help their kids’ w/Hebrew homework, those who want to better follow the service, those who want an adult bar or bat mitzvah.

 

Spend this Shabbat weekend at CBS and connect to Israel and your Jewish soul!

Shabbat shalom!

Rabbi Michael

 

*Eeki (Itshak) Elner, Founder Eeki Elner is the Founder of the Israel Leadership Institute/ILI, and the developer of its unique training method. He teaches leadership in several programs and is an expert in "Vision Development". Elner is a graduate of Tel-Aviv University (BA, Political Science, Cum Laude); and has served over two decades in numerous Political and Public positions. Elner was a Media Consultant and Political Advisor to different Ministers in the Israeli Government (Knesset); and later led public campaigns to transform Israel's Constitutional System, with much success and appreciation. He travels to many conferences outside Israel, where he lectures on Leadership Development and Conflict Management. He is an Envoy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Elner established the Israel Leadership Institute/ILI in 2006; and Co-Founded ILINA/AFFI in 2008

Deadline is NOW: Shabbat Unplugged Dinner

Dear Hebrew School Parents and other CBS Friends,

As you pick up your kids from Hebrew School today, why not bring along a check for this Friday's Community Shabbat Dinner, catered by Boscov's, and hosted at Temple Beth El, as the first of hopefully MANY future CBS-Beth El joint programs? The cost is $13.50 for adults, $7.50 for children, and the check should be made out to Temple Beth El. Dinner will be served at Beth El this Friday night, at 6 p.m.

You can choose to skip dinner and still attend the innovative Shabbat Unplugged musical program at Beth El at 7:30 p.m. Both Cantor Elisa and I will be adding our musical talents to those of Rabbi Micah Becker-Klein, of Beth El, and the Shabbat Unplugged musical group he helped create. Afterwards both Beth El and Beth Shalom's Sisterhoods/Kitchen Klub will be co-hosting a delicious Shabbat oneg.

For those of you who live in the Newark, Bear, Middletown and Hockessin communities, this is an attempt to bring Shabbat programming to your back door. For those of you who live in North Wilmington and Pennsylvania, it is your chance to .... see the world!

I am asking for your support and participation as I try to build stronger bridges to all parts of our Delaware Jewish community.

Won't you join us?

Shavua tov,

Rabbi Michael

PS There will also be a lovely 8 pm Shabbat service this Friday night at CBS, featuring guest speaker Marty Mand, as we salute our veterans. This service will be lead by fellow congregant and my colleague, Rabbi Jeremy Winaker.

CBS@90 LET's P-A-R-T-Y !

Dear Haverim:

Please join us for our Gala 90^th Anniversary Shabbat Celebration!

*Tonight, Friday, November 2^nd, 6:30 p.m. services (6 p.m. Happy Hour). Sermon topic:

Vayera: Mitzvot Galore-From Visiting the Sick to Welcoming Guests

*Saturday, November 3^rd, 9:30 a.m. We will be honoring 90^th Gala Honorees during Torah service, along with a champagne toast to Beth

Shalom at Kiddush. PJ Library for 0 – 5 set. Sermon topic:

Beth Shalom: Past-Present-Future-A Synthesis of Music & Torah

Co-presented by Cantor Elisa and Rabbi Michael in perfect harmony

*Looking ahead:

This Monday, November 5^th: Last day to get reservations w/check to CBS for Shabbat Unplugged Shabbos Dinner at Newark’s Temple

Beth El ($7.50 for children, $13 for adults, featuring salmon and mango chutney or baked ziti main courses-rabbinic scholarships available on request-call 654-6642 for info).

Next Friday, November 9^th (2 Great Shabbat choices):

a. 8 pm Beth Shalom service featuring Salute to Veterans with Marty Mand, services led by our own Rabbi Jeremy Winaker or

b. 6 pm pre-paid Beth El Shabbat dinner followed by FREE 7:30 pm Shabbat Unplugged service featuring Shabbat Unplugged with Rabbi Micah with special musical guests Cantor Elisa and Rabbi Michael on violin. Followed by Beth El-Beth Shalom co-sponsored oneg.

Celebrate 90 years of history this Shabbat at Congregation Beth Shalom!

Shabbat shalom!

Rabbi Michael

Jewish Yoga @ CBS

Dear Haverim:

Oops, I forgot to mention....

Debute of Beth Shal -OM

JEWISH YOGA

Tomorrow, Saturday, 8:45 am

Levin Chapel

w/Zach

(you can dress in Shabbatwear, Zach will go easy on us

--he promised)

Rabbi Michael

"The Other Son" & Lech L'cha: Identity,Transitions

Dear Haverim,


*Tonight, Friday, October 26, 6 p.m. Happy Hour followed by 6:30 pm. Services. We are celebrating Jacob Richman’s bar mitzvah. Sermon Topic:

NEW MOVIE: THE OTHER SON or Puddin’head Wilson Meets the Middle East.

*Tomorrow, Saturday, October 27, 9:30 a.m. Jacob Richman darshan. His Sermon Topic:

Lech L’cha: Making Tough Transitions
Looking ahead…

Saturday night, November 1st, 7:30 pm – Jewish Views of the Afterlife w/Dr. Simcha Raphael (location TBA).
Come to Shabbat service and be inspired!
Shabbat shalom,

Rabbi Michael

Noah's Drinking Habit & Celebration of the Animals

Dear Haverim:

        *Tonight, Friday October 19^th, 6:30 p.m. services (happy hour at 6 p.m.). We celebrate Molly Adelman’s bat mitzvah. Sermon topic:

Noah’s Drinking Habit: Jews & Addiction.

        *Tomorrow, Saturday, October 20^th, 9:30 a.m.  Molly Adelman darshanit. Her sermon topic:

Parashat Noah: Celebrating Individuality

      *Sunday, October 21^st, 12:30 p.m. Celebration of the Animals

Please bring your pets to the garden, along with stories. We will include a misheberach prayer for sick animals, and a Yizkor service to remember pet friends who have passed away.

        *Note: Next Sunday, October 28^th, 10 am – 3 pm,

Vered’s HEBREW CRASH COURSE MARATHON in the Library. Please RSVP at 302-654-4462 ext. 10 ASAP!! (free of charge).

        Celebrate! Stay informed! Attend Shabbat services, educational and cultural programs at Congregation Beth Shalom!

        Shabbat Shalom!

        Rabbi Michael

Columbus-Jewish? & Einstein on Ebay:Creationism vs. Darwinism

Dear Haverim:


*Tomorrow night, Friday, October 12, please note the later,
8 pm., service start time. My Sermon Topic:

WAS COLUMBUS JEWISH?
In honor of the recently concluded, Columbus Day Holiday, except some kosher Italian-themed desserts at the dessert oneg following services.

*Saturday, October 13, there is a Hebrew School Shabbaton for students (K-Kehilla) and families in the Chapel. There is a PJ Library Shabbat Program (0-5 years old) and families in the Lower Level. My Sermon Topic in the Sanctuary is:

Genesis: Creationists vs. Darwinists & Einstein’s Ebay Letter.

*Notes: Shiva minyanim, Sat. & Sunday nights, 7:30 pm, for Lorraine Miller at the Zayback residence, 12 Perth Drive, Wilmington. No Hebrew School this Sunday, so please attend 9 am. CBS Services to ensure a minyan for congregants saying Kaddish.

Stay informed! Be inspired! Attend Shabbat services at Beth Shalom!

Shabbat shalom!

Rabbi Michael

Ushpizim, Holy Day Services, Funerals, etc.

Dear Haverim:

Moadim l’simcha! Happy Holidays!

*Tonight, 6:30 p.m., Friday, October 5, abridged (aka short) Shabbat services, followed by family-friendly Shabbat-Holiday “Sameach in the Sukkah” Dinner (with pre-arranged reservations).

* Tomorrow, Saturday morning, 9:30 a.m. For little ones:

Fun Time with Ariella in the Rabbi’s Study. Rabbi’s daughter, Ariella, creates interactive Jewish playtime & Shabbat stories in her new initiative to supplement next-week’s PJ Library Event. Stop by.

Sermon Topic: Ushpizim: Who Would YOU Invite into your Sukkah?

Please bring thumb-nail sketches of some of your lesser-known Jewish heroes and take turns being the teacher, along with Rabbi Michael, who will bring in three of his own favorites.

Note: For each night of Sukkah, you are supposed to recite the following formula:

I am honored to welcome into my Sukkah the following honored guests: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron, and Sarah, Rebecca, Leah, Rachel, Miriam, Deborah, and Ruth.

(the addition of the famous women is a unique Conservative Movement contribution).

Then, for each night, each biblical “couple” take turns getting their own special greeting. Here is the greeting for this Friday night:

Welcome Aaron, welcome Deborah. You shaped Israel’s history one with words of peace, one with a call to battle. May we have the wisdom always to strive for peace, but never lack the courage to oppose injustice.

*Tomorrow night, Saturday, 7 p.m. Sukkah Home Hospitality. Come usher Shabbat out with a Havdalah, wine, cheese and dessert Celebration at the Beals home, 611 Berwick Road, Edenridge, North Wilmington, co-hosted by Elissa and Rabbi Michael, and Cantor Elisa and Loren (in abstentia). Rabbi Michael will have his guitar on hand to lead you through lots of sing-a-longs. This is a family friendly event.

*Sunday, 9 a.m., Hosahana Raba & Hebrew School Interactive Sukkot Program. Tentative funerals: 1 pm, George Dubin, Jewish Community Cemetery, grave side. 2 pm, Mildred Glass (mother of Mitch Glass), CBS and interment at Har Zion Cemetery. Email to follow to confirm. (Note: tonight light yahrtzeit candle before Yom Tov candles).

*Monday, 9 a.m., Shemini Atzeret (including Yizkor). Office closed.

*Monday, 7 p.m., Simchat Torah family friendly program. Bring a musical instrument and play in our simcha band!

*Tuesday, 9 a.m., Simchat Torah including honoring Kallat Torah Jill Downard and Hatan Bereshit Jay Rappaport, capped off with festive lunch. Office closed. (Note: Shiva for Mildred Glass, 7:30 pm, Glass residence, 902 N. Broom St., Wilmington 19806)

(Next week: 8 p.m. Late Friday night Service: Was Columbus Jewish? And a Salute to Italian Jewry. Saturday morning, PJ Library Shabbat).

Rabbi Michael

Bibi @ the UN, and Haazinu:What You Can @ 120

Dear Friends,

Tonight, services start at 6:30 pm. Sermon Topic: Bibi Netanyahu's UN Address: A Drama Told Through Cartoons

Tomorrow, Shabbat Morning, services start at 9:30 am. Sermon topic: Haazinu: Moses' Swan Song and What You Can Achieve at 120

Monday: Sukkot services 9 a.m.

Tuesday: Sukkot services 9 a.m.

All hol ha mo'ed morning services at CBS and AKSE respectively this week..

Shabbat shalom and chag sameach!

Rabbi Michael

LIVE THIS SUNDAY@9:05 am:WDEL 1150 AM THE RABBI SPEAKS!

Rabbi Michael Beals                                                                                The Rabbi Speaks -September 2012

SUKKOT

 

                Tonight, at sunset, begins the seven day Biblical Pilgrimage Holy Day of Sukkot.  You may know it by its English name, The Feast of Tabernacles.  In Biblical days it was known as “heh hag,” THE Festival.  Now that’s not EXACTLY accurate.  In the days of the Temple in Jerusalem, there were actually THREE pilgrimage festivals or hagim: Pesach or Passover, the early spring harvest, Shavuot, Christians know it as Pentecost, marking the barley harvest in the late spring/early summer, and finally, in the fall, the harvest festival of Sukkot.

            But of the three, God commands the children of Israel on Sukkot to be “ach sameach,” TOTALLY joyous!!  If one were to look at the agricultural underpinnings of these three festivals, only Sukkot, in the fall, has a feeling of complete relief associated with it.  For Passover and Shavuot, there was always a chance that something could go wrong with the crop.  But Sukkot is on the other side of the harvest.  By the time you get to Sukkot in the agricultural calendar, you’ve made it.  There is a collective sigh of relief.    So important is the agricultural underpinning of this holiday and its connection to the Land of Israel, that long ago the rabbis instituted an occasional leap year in the Jewish lunar calendar, to ensure that each of these three agricultural-based holidays would always fall in the correct season, even though there is always some variance between the Hebrew date of the holiday and where it falls on the solar-based Julian calendar which governs our Western society. 

This lack of coordination between the Jewish lunar and secular solar calendars makes it very challenging for parents to explain to public school teachers and administrators, which days our Jewish kids need off. From a non-Jewish point-of-view, every year the Jews are changing the dates of their holidays.  But in the Hebrew lunar calendar, these dates, from Biblical times onward, are always the same: the 1^st and 2^nd days of the Hebrew month Tishrei for Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, the 10^th day of Tishrei for Yom Kippur, our Day of Atonement, the 15^th day of Tishrei for the beginning of Sukkot, the 22^nd day of Tishrei for Shemini Atzeret – the 8^th Day of Assembly, and the 23^rd day of Tishrei for Simchat Torah, the rejoicing of the Torah.

Sukkot is mentioned, either as a place name or as a holiday in every single book of the Torah, except Genesis.  The most complete description of this holy day occurs in the 23^rd chapter of Leviticus, beginning on verse 39.  God says:

“Mark, on the 15^th day of the 7^th month, when you have gathered in the yield of your land, you shall observe the festival of the Lord to last seven days: a complete rest on the first day, and a complete rest on the eighth day.  On the first day you shall take the product of hadar trees, branches of palms trees, boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days.  You shall observe it as a festival of the Lord for seven days in the year; you shall observe it in the seven month as a law for all time, throughout the ages.  You shall live in booths seven days; all citizens in Israel shall live in booths, in order that future generations may know that I made the Israelite people live in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt;  I the Lord your God.”

I felt compelled to quote the Biblical passage in its full form because NO other Jewish holiday as so many mitzvot, that is commandments, associated with it.  After coming off of the extreme NON physical, highly spiritual holy day of Yom Kippur, where we fast and remove ourselves from the material world, Sukkot, through its mitzvot, land us slam-bam right in the thick of the material world.  Because of the gratitude nature of this harvest festival, I often think that our Biblically inspired Pilgram founders were actually trying to recreate Sukkot and because they got things going kind of late in the game, ended up with their Sukkot Festival in November. We call it Thanksgiving --  a lovely excuse to eat turkey, gather with friends and family, and most important of all, watch the Macy’s Parade.

Let us returning to the Biblical description of Sukkot.  First, we are supposed to gather four species. “The product from the hadar tree” has been interpreted as the plump, yellow, refreshingly citrusy-smelling, citron-like etrog.

“The branches of palm trees” speak for themselves.  In Hebrew we call it the lulav, which is also the name we give to the three sets of branches bound together.  

“The boughs of the leafy trees” are interpreted as myrtle branches, or in Hebrew, hadas. The largest women’s and Zionist organization in the world is called Hadassah, from the root word, Hadas, named for Queen Esther, whose Hebrew name was Hadassah.  Hadassah is celebrating its 100^th anniversary this year.  The organization is most proud of the medical center in Jerusalem which bears its name, which prides itself on bringing the very finest in medical expertise to the Middle East, serving Palestinians of the West Bank with the same care, love and attention as their Jewish neighbors in Israel.

And finally, the willows of the brook is self explanatory, called aravah in Hebrew.

These four species share in common their need to grow with lots of water to thrive.  By parading around the pulpit in synagogue seven times, with lulav and etrog in hand, and by shaking of them in all six directions, the four cardinal points plus up and down, we are making the theological statement that God is truly everywhere. We are simultaneously beseeching the omnipresent God, to provide enough rain to sustain the land of Israel through the long winter ahead, making next year’s harvest possible.

If you go to religious neighborhoods of New York’s Lower East Side and Brooklyn, today you will see on the streets the faithful and devout taking great pains to visit outside vendors and choose the very best lulavs and etrogs possible.  It is certainly worth seeing these vendors at least once, although it is much more convenient to have your local Delaware synagogue just order a lulav and etrog set for you.

The second part of the commandment involves the building and living in Sukkot for seven days.  Like with so many other Jewish holidays, there is both a historical and spiritual nature to Sukkot, and the dwelling in booths or tabernacles.  First, the Biblical text itself states that we were to dwell in booths to remind us that God caused the Israelites to dwell in booths on their 40-year journey through the wildness, from Egypt to the Holy Land.  That’s the historical underpinning to Sukkah habitation.

On top of that, we have our children help us decorate the Sukkah, where we sit in a temporary, shaky dwelling, appreciating all that God has given us, including the permanence and safety of our sturdy homes which we temporarily abandon.  Excluding rain, traditional Jews spend all their waking and sleeping hours in their backyard Sukkah (Sukkot in Hebrew), while those less daring still take their meals in their Sukkot, and invite friends, family and neighbors over for hospitality.  During the evening, with some imagination, we invite special guests called Ushpizim, including the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Aaron, David and Solomon to visit during each of the seven days of Sukkot.  Modern and feminist Jews came up with an equal number of impressive women from Judaism’s past, including the four matriarchs: Sarah, Rebeccah, Rachel, Leah, Mose’s wife Tsiporah, the Judge Deborah, and Queen Esther – we have NO shortage of impressive Jewish women in our history, which is why Jewish women occupy such a place of respect in our tradition.

 

The Sukkah is created according to certain rules: the roof must be composed of organic material and be thick enough by day to allow for shade, yet thin enough at night to allow the stars and moon to be seen through its branches. It must have a minimum of two and a half sides.  I like to decorate my Sukkah with blinking colored lights so when you enter it is like dining inside a Christmas tree.  We also like to string all our High Holy Days as decorations.  The kids have a blast. You are welcome to come and visit our Sukkah at Congregation Beth Shalom during these next seven days.  I’ll keep a look out for you.

Wishing you a chag sameach! A joyous Festival of Tabernacles.  

Would We Kill if They Blasphemed Moses? & Mary M on Papyrus

Dear Haverim,

As we say shalom to summer and hello to the New Year 5773, Shabbat Shuva is a perfect time to return to synagogue for regular Shabbat attendance. In a never-ending effort to keep things interesting for you, I present two sermon topics for your consideration:

*Tonight, Friday, September 21, 6:30 p.m. (happy hour at 6 p.m.). Sermon Topic:

Would We Kill if They Blasphemed Moses?: What ARE Our Sacred Cows?

*Shabbat, Saturday, September 22, 9:30 a.m. Sermon topic:

Come Gather the Women That They May Learn: Mary Magdalene on Papyrus (Deut 31:12)

Stay informed. Be curious. Attend Shabbat Services at Congregation Beth Shalom!

Gemar hatima tova – May you be inscribed in the Book of Life for a healthy and happy New Year.

Rabbi Michael

P.S. See you back in shul on Tuesday night for Kol Nidrei and Wednesday ALL DAY for Yom Kippur. Note: Yom Kippur break scholar: Danielle Rice, CBS Member & Director of the Delaware Art Museum. Neilah: BYOS - Bring Your Own Shofar.

Kaddish for Amb. Stevens & Choose Life: Lose Weight!

Dear Haverim,


Whether you took a Shabbat hiatus or not during the summer, it’s time to come home to Congregation Beth Shalom, and why not experience the intimacy of a Shabbat service before we all come together for High Holy Days, beginning this Sunday evening?

· This Friday, September 14, 8:00 p.m., join us for a Second Friday of the Month Late Service, where we reintroduce all the melodies you grew up with at Beth Shalom (and perhaps a few new ones too). Our Sermon Topic Theme will be:

A Time for Memories,

 and we are indebted to Marv Cytron for his leadership. A CBS Hebrew School-sponsored good ol’ fashion ice cream social will follow. As a united American family we will say Mourner’s Kaddish for Ambassador Chris Stevens, and the other members of the Consulate Staff in Ben Gazi, Libya who lost their lives in the service of our country on September 11th.

· This Saturday, September 15, services begin at 9:30 a.m. My sermon topic will be:

Nitzavim: CHOOSE LIFE! (Lose Weight)

· This Sunday, September 16, no Hebrew School (so please help make a minyan at 9 a.m.). Erev Rosh Hashana services beginning after dinner, at 8 p.m.

Be moved. Be improved. Attend Shabbat services at Beth Shalom.

Shabbat Shalom! L’shana tova!

Rabbi Michael

Free Shabbat Dinner + Peanut's View of Reward & Punishment

Dear Chaverim:


*Friday night, 5:30 p.m. FREE BBQ Shabbos dinner followed by Shabbat Under the Stars, 6:30 p.m., JCC Picnic Grounds, 101 Garden of Eden Way, Talleyville. (No services at 1801 Baynard). Guitar music, sedra scenes. Please bring unaffiliated friends who are shul shopping.

*Saturday morning, 9:30 a.m., at CBS. Amanda and Benjamin Ebner b'nei mitzvah and guest darshanim: "Our Israeli B'nei Mitzvah" plus a little from Rabbi Michael, on

Ki Tavo: A Peanut's View on Reward & Punishment.

*Saturday evening, 8:30 p.m., Selichot: Gateway to High Holy Days. Havdalah, Nasherei, Charlie-Rose'esque Panel Discussion with President Karin Karel, Cantor Elisa and Rabbi Michael hosted by former newscaster Michael Sigman. Topic: Our Vision for CBS. Selichot services to follow.

*Sunday morning, 9 a.m., Open House including start of Hebrew School, Kugelmania, 1:30 p.m. - first-ever joint AKSE-CBS Pre-High Holy Day Cemetery Visit and Program, Jewish Community Cemetery on Foulk Rd.

Be moved. Have fun. Bring in the High Holy Days at CBS.

Shabbat shalom!

Rabbi Michael

Labor on the Bimah + Kindness to Animals Legislation

Dear Haverim:

     *This Friday, August 31, 6:30 p.m. services will be mindful of Labor Day.  My Sermon Topic will be:

Labor on the Bima: Insights from the Torah. 

I will be focusing on the rights of restaurant employees, immigrant workers and advances in Hegsher Tsedek, which is the Conservative Movement’s efforts to add another layer to labeling meat kosher, which would include standards involving how the employees who process the kosher food are treated.

        *This Saturday, September 1, 9:30 a.m., my d’var Torah will be Ki Tetzei: (Tsa’ar Baa’lei Hayim) Kindness to Animals legislation, from shooing away mother birds to not yoking an ox with a donkey.  I will be exploring modern applications as well as asking medieval rabbinic questions like: are we doing this for the animal or we doing this for our own moral development?

        (Note later 9 a.m. service on Monday, Labor Day, September 3).

        Be relevant. Stay informed.  Attend Shabbat services at Congregation Beth Shalom.

        Shabbat shalom!

        Rabbi Michael