Beth El Temple Center Bulletin
February
1997
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Table of Contents
February
Worship Schedule
WEEKDAY SERVICES
Every Monday and Thursday in February, 7 a.m, except Monday
February 17th (Presidents' Day), when services are at 9 a.m.
Every Sunday in February at 9 a.m.
SHABBAT SERVICES
Friday, January 31st and Saturday, February 1st
Kitah Gimmel Class Service 8:00 pm
Torah Study 9:00 am
Shabbat Morning Service 10:00 am
Yitro (Exodus 18:1-20:23)
Friday, February 7th and Saturday, February 8th
Family Service/Pot Luck 6:15 pm
(Please call the office to RSVP for Pot Luck)
Regular Evening Service 8:15 pm
Torah Study 9:00 am
Shabbat Morning Service 10:00 am
Bar Mitzvah of David Haffner,
son of Drs. Arthur and Jane Klare Haffner
Mishpatim (Exodus 21:1-24:18)
Friday, February 14th and Saturday, February 15th
Shabbat Evening Service 8:00 pm
(Friday Torah Service)
Torah Study 9:00 am
Shabbat Morning Service 10:00 am
Tot Shabbat 10:15 am
Terumah (Exodus 25:1-27:19)
Friday, February 21st and Saturday, February 22nd
Shabbat Evening Service 8:00 pm
(February Simchas)
Torah Study 9:00 am
Shabbat Morning Service 10:00 am
Bat Mitzvah of Emily Newberg,
daughter of Joseph Newberg & Alice Melnikoff
Tetzaveh (Exodus 27:20-30:10)
Friday, February 28th and Saturday, March 1st
Brotherhood Shabbat 8:00 pm
Junior Congregation (downstairs) 8:00 pm
Torah Study 9:00 am
Shabbat Morning Service 10:00 am
Ki Tisa (Exodus 30:11-34:35)
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From the Rabbi
I always am impressed when people translate their
lofty words and promises into deeds. Heartfelt
promises often come to our lips quite easily.
Translating those words into new behaviors usually
proves more difficult.
That is why I want to devote this space to Jonah
Nissenbaum. Many of you know that Jonah
became Bar Mitzvah at a wonderful Shabbat service
in early November. Many of you may not know an
even more impressive fact. Since becoming Bar
Mitzvah, Jonah and his family have been fairly
regular participants in our Shabbat morning service.
On so many shabbatot, in beautiful and inspiring
divrei Torah, our Bar and Bat Mitzvah students
speak about attending services in the future. They
promise that increasing their participation in Jewish
worship will be one way they define their new status
as committed Jewish adults. I am so proud that
Jonah has followed through on his promise. He
deserves our respect and appreciation for being a
wonderful model.
As members of Beth El, we share a covenant in
which we promise to help make this a sacred
community. To do so, we need beautiful, inspiring
and thought-provoking words. But more importantly,
we need every small but precious act of commitment
that brings us closer to our goal. We need people
like Jonah, who make a real effort to live out the
promises they speak to themselves, to our
community and to God.
Rabbi Jonathan Kraus
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From the Director of Education
I am a great fan of figure skating. Anytime it is on
television you will find me as glued to the screen as any
ardent football fan. What, you might ask does this have
to do with a column on Jewish education? Figure skating
takes practice. Before we see the skaters on television
making everything seem so effortless they have spent
countless hours in practice sometimes getting that jump
right and sometimes falling but continuing to try.
Being Jewish and acquiring a Jewish education also takes
practice and commitment in order to feel comfortable with
the fancy spins. The Aleph class students recently
finished their primer and will now begin to work on prayers
from the siddur. The Dalet class students are visibly
gaining in confidence as they approach becoming a
Bar/Bat Mitzvah. Third and fourth grade students are
skating on the slippery ice of theology, raising questions
about God that don't have immediate answers.
Kindergarten students make a connection to Shabbat with
their own hand-made challah cover. Even our adult B’nai
Mitzvah students recently approached receiving their
Haftarah portions with both excitement and trepidation.
Whether we are children, young adults, or adults, taking
new steps to develop and increase our Judaism can have
elements of both excitement and trepidation (although the
school philosophy is to do our best to increase the former
and decrease the latter). Like it or not, we live in a
society that emphasizes getting things right. That can
sometimes make acquiring new skills all the more
difficult. For many of us who were not brought up in
homes that included a lot of Jewish practices or who
chose Judaism later in life, there may be a feeling of "I
should know how to do this." This can be frustrating.
So what can be done? The most important thing is to get
on the ice and practice. Whether it is making Shabbat
with the family, practicing Hebrew or learning about a
holiday, if you practice, it will become comfortable. The
other benefit is that unlike ice skating, there is no scoring
system in Jewish education. There is no judge to say you
are doing your Jewishness wrong. All we ask is that you
continue to work on your skills, to add more to the
repertoire. Then, we all win for the winning is in making
the effort and the sense of accomplishment and
community at being able to participate fully and enjoy
the richness of your experience. The next time you see
your favorite skater take a leap on the ice, remember that
you can soar too!
Toby Koritsky
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From the Preschool Director
The preschoolers have been working on the theme of
winter, especially since the weather has been
cooperating. Our discussions have centered around
weather changes, dressing appropriately for the different
seasons, keeping our homes warm, how animals live in
winter, etc. The children have read many winter stories
and learned songs about the cold weather. A beautiful
mural of snowflakes, skaters, skiers, and sledders was
created. We experimented with water, ice and snow-
melting, measuring and recording. The color white was
celebrated with its own special day, where all
preschoolerswore white clothes, made white projects, ate
white snacks and brought in white items for sharing at
"snow and tell" time.
The following is a winter story, written by our 3 & 4 year
olds:
Mr. Snowman
On a cold winter night I looked out the window and saw
mr. Snowman playing. Mr. Snowman was making
snowballs, and he was making snow angels, and also
snowman friends. They were all making a rainbow with
the snow, and also a refrigerator to put the snow apples
in. They were building a snowdog, and a snow school.
The snowfriends went sledding on sleds. A kitty was
being made out of snow. And his friends, and him went to
a snow restaurant where they ate snow apples, snow soup
and snow oranges. After lunch the snowmen built an
igloo, and snow women. Then they went to bed with their
friends. The End.
Rolene Karp
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In the Beth El Family . . .
Mazel Tov to Our Bat/Bar Mitzvah...
Emily Newberg, peripatetic daughter of Alice Melnikoff,
and Joseph Newberg, younger sister of Mark, will become
Bat Mitzvah, on February 22nd. A 7th grader at the
Chenery Middle School, Emily is a clarinetist with the
band, plays alto sax in Jazz Band, and participates in
Math Team. She also dances--jazz and tap--and
continues in Girl Scouting, which enabled her to attend an
International Jamboree in Norway last summer. In her
"spare" time, this aspiring pediatrician may be found
baby-sitting for an ever increasing number of young fans.
Emily devotes considerable energy to social action, and
has organized holiday toy drive as well as a readathon to
benefit the fledgling library of an impoverished Mississippi
school. She is using her Bat Mitzvah as an opportunity to
involve her guests in the contribution of infant items to a
Cambridge shelter, and is herself participating in a
twinning program of the Jewish Foundation for the
Righteous, which offers financial support to Christians
who rescued Jews during the Holocaust.
David Haffner, is the son of Arthur Haffner and Jane
Klare-Haffner, and older brother of Jessica. He is a 7th
grader at the Chenery Middle School. David spends lots
of time reading, with special interests in Military History,
the Civil War, and WWII. He also enjoys reading science
fiction. David’s free time is spent with good friends or at
the Karate Studio where he often helps instruct younger
students. Dave always enjoys a good game of chess with
his Dad, or playing with his puppy, Athena.
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Capital Campaign
During a 28 year career in Jewish communal service, I
have worked with communities, large and small, across
the United States, and on five continents. To succeed on
communal projects, four ingredients are essential: a
focused objective, a rational course of action, a cadre of
dedicated volunteers and sustained hard work. In my
brief exposure to the leadership of this congregation, I am
persuaded that the ingredients are there and that the
goals before us are bold, necessary and achievable.
We have opened a capital campaign office which adjoins
the Rabbi's study. All members who wish to offer advice
or volunteer their services are welcome to drop in. You
can reach me directly on the new campaign hotline at
484-2057. Please call.
--Mel Galun, Campaign Consultant
65 years have elapsed since our founding as a
congregation and 41 years have passed since our present
temple was built. We have grown from a handful of
families to our present strength of 325 members, and
have become a well-knit community in the towns that
surround us. But, as our congregation has grown, and our
needs have changed, the time has come to undertake
building and renovation if our current and future needs
are to be met.
After consultation with architects, we are now embarking
on a long needed and promising course of action: to
refurbish, renovate, and expand existing Temple facilities.
This will lead to more effective use of space, and a more
pleasing environment for worship, study and celebration.
Obviously, a project like this requires money. I have
therefore asked Jason Cotton, and Rusty Epstein to
devise a fundraising strategy that will engage the
imagination and support of our Temple constituency.
Both are talented and energetic individuals who blend
professional pursuits with active board membership, and
family and social responsibilities. I know you will give
them complete cooperation on this exciting project.
As I told in my memo of December 19th, after conducting
a thorough and exacting search the board decided to
engage the firm of Joel S.Friedman and Associates, to
assist us in planning and organizing a Capital Campaign.
Mr. Mel Galun has been assigned to serve as an on-site
campaign consultant for the duration of our campaign.
Ours is a vibrant and growing congregation with
significant impact on the Jewish presence in this area.
With your help we can expand and enhance our Temple
facilities, and extend our program of services to an even
larger population. The results will accrue to our benefit,
and to the benefit of our children and the succeeding
generation.
--Stephen Winter, President
In carrying out our assignment we will proceed with all
due regard for the opinions and views of our Temple
membership. We will be guided by the professional
advice of Mr. Mel Galun, an executive with extensive
domestic and international experience as development
officer for major Jewish organizations.
As an initial priority we have begun to recruit a team of
volunteers to serve on various committees and an
incipient campaign cabinet. All committees will begin
deliberating immediately and will reconvene throughout
the campaign. We will conduct a three month long series
of educational parlor meetings hosted by member families
at which our building and renovation plans will be
discussed. Every member of the congregation will be
invited to attend one of these sessions.
In succeeding weeks, as our ideas crystalize, amnd our
plans unfold, members and friends of Beth El Temple
Center, will be kept informed of campaign developments,
through this newsletter, direct mail and the local press and
media.
We have embarked on an ambitious course of action
whose results will significantly enhance the spiritual and
social life of this congregation. To succeed we will
require a high level of involvment from each member
family and individual. We look forward to your support.
--Rosalie (Rusty) Epstein, Jason Cotton, Howard Herzog
Campaign Co-Chairs
Mensch T-Shirts For Sale
Do You Know A Mensch?
Celebrate our year of the Mensch and support the school
by purchasing a “Mensch” T-Shirt. It makes a great gift!!!
See the sample in the lobby. See Toby or Rose to make
a purchase. Thanks.
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Levine Center Opening
We would like to announce the opening of The Levine
Center for Loss and Healing, located at 496 Harvard
St., Brookline. This Center houses several hundred
books, periodicals, videotapes and audiotapes that
deal with the issues of loss, and the pathways to
healing. These resources include information for
children and teenagers, as well as adults.
This Center, sponsored by the Levine Chapel of
Brookline, is a community resource for education and
support, a service without charge.
Please call Lori Diamond, at 617-713-0800, for
information and upcoming programs.
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Retreat for Women
Learning, Friendship, Relaxation
...
A Restored 18th Century Sea Captains’
House In Historic
Falmouth By The Sea...
March 14th, 15th, and 16th 1997
The Retreat For Women
Return Your Invitation Today!
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SHIMON PERES LECTURE
SHIMON PERES LECTURE
at Salem State College
Tuesday, May 6 at 7:30 PM
We will hire a bus & leave the Temple at 6:00 PM
& return at approx. 10 PM
Cost - Lecture $15; bus $10
Prepaid reservations required; send checks payable to:
Temple, marked Peres Lecture
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CRADLE ROLL
CRADLE ROLL
NEXT PARTY...PURIM!!!
March 23, 1997
If you are new to Cradle Roll, call Amy Kraus
for an invitation for your child!
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Thank You from the Rosens
We will never forget Friday, December 13th,
1996!! As Rabbi Grollman said, It was a Love-In.
It was wonderful seeing so many of our friends.
To Rabbi Kraus and Rabbi Grollman, our
deepest thanks for all their kind words and
blessings. To the many friends who contributed to
the leaf on the “Tree of Life”, our thanks. We shall
remember it always. To the Sunday morning
“Minyan Group”, the tape of Fiddler on The Roof,
will be played over and over, and each time we will
think of you.
To Annie Fantasia and Hildy Dvorak, who
planned the Oneg, and for Annie's speech to us, we
will always be grateful. We love you both. Many
Thanks.
We are pretty well settled in our new home.
We have met many new friends, but miss all of you.
If and when you come to
the Cape, please visit us.
With all our love, Cele and Bill Rosen
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Invitations/Judaica Available from Sisterhood
Having An Affair?
Support Sisterhood...and Save $$$$! Buy your
invitations
and accessories through us. Call Rennie Moore at
484-0626, for more information today. Sisterhood
can help with more than just bar/bat mitzvahs.
Consider us for wedding, showers, and birthday
party invitations, birth announcements, personal
stationary, and moving announcements, too!
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SAVE THE DATES
SAVE THE DATES:
April 6, 1997... Springtime Concert to benefit Social
Action Projects...and April 13, 1997... Mitzvah Day!!!...
Families needed to deliver food to needy families...
See Sheila Doctoroff for more details...
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Jewish Humor Lecture
Rabbi Moshe Waldoks
Jewish Humor
Light Supper & Lecture
sponsored by the Program Group
Members $10; non-members $12
Prepaid reservations required by March 7
checks to:
temple marked Waldoks lecture
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Jewish Philosophy Study Group
The Jewish Philosophy Study Group will next meet on
Wednesday, February 5th, 1997 at 7:30 PM, at the
Temple. We will be discussing a Kol Nidre Cantata
written by a temple member, Minuetta Kessler. There
will be copies of the readings in the Adult Education box
at the Temple Office. Anyone can come and join the
group, and new members are always welcome. You do
not need to have any prior knowledge. If you have any
questions or concerns, please call me.
Julian Harlowe
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Sisterhood Rosh Chodesh Group
Rosh Hodesh Adar I will be celebrated on
Monday, February 10th, 1997, at 7:30 PM, at
the home of a temple member.
We will learn about our matriarch Rachel,
and discuss the rituals of pregnancy, birth, and
baby naming.
Sheila Doctoroff
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Adult Education
This month, lunch with the Rabbi will be on Thursday,
February 6th, 1997. The topic will be Contemporary
Israeli Poetry. Jan Stigberg, (with a little help from her
friends), always manages to coordinate a simple and
elegant meal, so please join us for this regularly
scheduled event.
On Sunday morning, February 9th, there will be a very
special Adult Education/Outreach Workshop. Toby
Koritsky will lead our discussion, Talking With Your
Children about God. All are welcome.
Please mark your Calendars for the following events:
Answering the Whirlwind, March 7th-9th. We will have
this year's Shabbaton. A Shabbaton is an extensive
Shabbat experience. In addition to our regular Friday and
Saturday services, there will be a Saturday afternoon
luncheon, a Saturday evening Havdalah service with
dessert, and Sunday morning breakfast. Our discussion
for each session will focus on how Jews and Judaism
have responded to the reality of suffering throughout
history. Our Scholar in Residence, will be our own
Rabbi Jonathan Kraus. We hope that you will be able to
join us for one or more of these sessions.
Invisible Lines of Connection: Dimensions of a New
Jewish Spirituality, will be a very special Visiting Scholar
Lecture Series. Rabbi Lawrence Kushner is the author of
a number of books including, God Was In This Place,
and I Did Not Know It. Rabbi Kushner is a very
prominent thinker, as well as, an occasional commentator
on National Public Radio. Our four part series will be held
on the following Sunday evenings: April 13th, May 11th,
May 25th, and June 8th. There will be a modest fee for
this very special program, which is partially subsidized by
donations from some very generous congregants. More
information to follow soon!
Arlene Feinberg, Chairperson
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Outreach Committee
Are you an inter-faith couple and would like to meet
other inter-faith couples at our Temple? Would you
like your children to develop friendships with kids
who share similar experiences living in an inter-faith
home? Would you like to learn more about the
Jewish religion and traditions? If you answered yes
to these questions, then you should become a
charter member of the first Inter-faith Couples’
Havorah at Beth El Temple Center. Traditionally,
the term havorah is used for a designated group
that studies and observes Jewish rituals and life
cycles together. Our havorah will emphasize
socializing and building “community” within our
Temple life as well as learning and practicing Jewish
traditions.
The first gathering will be a Havdalah service to end
Shabbat followed by a pot-luck dinner at my home in
Belmont. Children are welcome. It will be on one
of the following three dates: February 15,
February 22 or March 1. If you are interested in
participating, please call me at 489-4730 by
February 6 and tell me which date is best for you.
We’ll go with the date when most people can attend
(I will let everyone know which date is picked). And,
if you are interested in participating, but none of
these dates work for you, please let me know. If we
have enough interest we may even form two
groups! Hopefully this will be the first of many
monthly or bi-monthly gatherings, depending on the
group’s desire.
Please call by February 6 to let me
know if you would like to be a part of our havorah. I
look forward to hearing from you.
Cindy Rubin, Chair
(General information is available on-line about the
Reform outreach program, and
regional
outreach programs.)
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Religious School Committee
Our Religious School continues to be very active. The
Aleph Class celebrated Siyyum Hasdfer with a pot luck
dinner and a lovely ceremony. The students were
presented with a siddur and a beautiful cover decorated
by their parents. This is always a joyous and memorable
event for the students and their families.
One Friday evening we were treated to services led by
the Dalet Class. They did an excellent job of leading
followed by D’Var Torahs in which they shared their
thoughts on death, heaven and hell - certainly
enlightening.
Junior Congregation services have continued to flourish,
with students clamoring to lead. We can be very proud of
their abilities and enthusiasm.
This month we are looking forward to the Grade 3 Family
Education Program - Bringing the Words of Torah Home.
Please remember, family education activities are most
successful when family members participate!
The School Committee has been busy with the budget for
next year. We are very excited by the proposed
programs for our religious school.
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SOCIAL ACTION COMMITTEE
As the New Year moves forward, so do we.
With Spring (hard to believe, but only six weeks
away) will come some special activities. The Walk
for Hunger will take place on April 4. We will be
having a benefit performance of a Spring Concert
on Sunday April 6 in the afternoon. This will be a
pleasant way for adults and children to listen to
beautiful music while helping organizations which
provide food and shelter. The Social Action
Shabbat will take place this year on Friday night,
April 11. This will be followed on Sunday, April 13
by Mitzvah Day, an excellent opportunity to have fun
while learning Jewish values. Mitzvah Day this year
will focus as planned on serving those outside the
immediate Temple Family. This will include Pilgrim
Church, with their community support programs,
Transition House, a group serving victims of
domestic violence, and Family Table, which
provides food to many local families. Since our goal
is to serve our broader community this Mitzvah Day,
we will plan a separate day for Temple projects such
as clean-up and organizing.
These plans build on projects which have
already been successfully completed. Project Ezra,
where some Temple members assisted in serving
meals on Christmas Day, has provided lasting
benefit. One child who participated from our Temple
was lucky enough to win a raffle of a Christmas
stocking filled with presents. She chose one for
herself, one for her sister, and distributed the rest to
other children who were there. These memories
and lessons which result from volunteering can
become treasured times of our lives.
We plan to offer ideas for social action
volunteering that you may wish to consider. This
month we wish to highlight the opportunity to assist
Family Table in their collection and distribution of
the food donations they receive. This is an
excellent opportunity to help local people and to
teach children who participate about the importance
of concern for others. If you are interested, please
call Sheila Doctoroff at 484-2523. Tikkun olam, the
improvement of the world, comes one mitzvah at a
time, through each one of us.
Sharon Rich and Ariel Kohn, Co-Chairs
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Sisterhood
I would like to call your attention to our new format.
If you have a favorite Sisterhood event, check out
the advertisement for that group or event in this
publication. [Web editor: unfortunately that info doesn't
make it to this web page!] All details of the program should be
included on that page.
For my article, I would like to thank everyone who
joined us for the annual Sisterhood Shabbat Dinner.
The food, entertainment, and company were all
wonderful. A huge thank you for once again making
this a success goes to Linda Levin-Scherz. Many
thanks also to everyone who helped set the tables,
serve the food, clean up, and bring the drinks and
deserts. It is so nice to have Shabbat dinner with
the temple community-friends new and old.
Our January Sisterhood meeting continued on this
same theme, as we welcomed our newest
Sisterhood members to join us to get to know them
better, and vice versa. I hope more members will
join us at future meetings.
Invitations to our first annual retreat will soon be
reaching your mailbox. Try to join us. It looks to be
a very exciting weekend. Pops tickets will soon be
going on sale. Watch for the flyer and reserve your
seat. May 29 is the date.
Sharon Feinberg, Sisterhood President
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