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Ansche Chesed Monthly Bulletin |
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March is a busy month at Ansche Chesed. Our Bikkur Holim Committee is sponsoring a training session open to all on March 7. Ruth Messinger will address the community on March 10 about the situation in Darfur; on March 26 we will have a panel discussion on the changing face of Jewish philanthropy. Our arts and culture offerings this month include a film for all ages, A Night at the Opera, on March 6. On March 10, Nahma Sandrow will direct the third of this year's reading of plays she has translated from the Yiddish. Our screening of The Front on March 20 will be conclude with a discussion led by Walter Bernstein, who wrote "The Front" based on his experiences as a blacklisted writer during the McCarthy era. Our spring Scholar-in-Residence, Rabbi Saul Berman, will speak on "Being a Jew in the Marketplace: The Torah of Business and Social Ethics" on the Shabbat of March 11 and 12. Last but certainly not least, Purimpandemonium takes place on Sunday, March 20, with a workshop, a concert, a carnival, and a used book & CD sale. And Purim arrives on the evening of March 24.
CANDLE LIGHTING TIMES
3/4 Light candles 5:32. Shabbat ends 6:32 3/11 Light candles 5:40. Shabbat ends 6:40 3/18 Light candles 5:47. Shabbat ends 6:48 3/25 Light candles 5:55. Shabbat ends 6:55 SERVICE TIMES On Shabbat Family and Children's Services 11 a.m. WEEK OF MARCH 1 WEEK OF MARCH 6 WEEK OF MARCH 13 WEEK OF MARCH 20 WEEK OF MARCH 27
In the category of underused resources: consider the AC library. I
wonder how many of our members know enough about the richness and
variety of our collection. Without doubt, it can offer most of us
opportunities to read for pleasure and edification. Please come
check it out.
Sure, some of us have access to JTS (one of the world's most astonishingly great Judaica collections) and Columbia. And some of us have fine libraries in our own homes. But "two are better than one," says Ecclesiastes. The more we pool together, the greater our shared resources will be. So let me take this opportunity to urge you to explore the material we share in our chapel. Start with the writings of our members: from fiction, like Melvin Bukiet's After to scholarship, like Alan Mintz' Hurban: Responses to Catastrophe in Jewish Literature. (There are too many members' work for me to mention here, so I will not attempt a list. Forgive me, everyone except Alan and Mel.) A relatively recent addition to the library from our members is Zachary Braiterman's (God) After Auschwitz, a scholarly work on how post-War theologians have confronted the question of evil. Might be up your alley. Preparing a d'var Torah? You've got numerous avenues to follow in our library. If you're inclined after peshat, a semantic reading of the text, or you're oriented toward seeing the Bible in its ancient context, you can't go wrong with the JPS Torah Commentary for each of the Five Books of Moses (which were condensed into the Etz Hayim humash) or the Anchor Bible, a leading academic series, one volume for each book. (We don't have all the Anchor, but we have quite a few volumes.) In our library you can also explore how generations of Jews before you have read the Torah. If you're inclined toward rabbinic lore, we have an English version or the Torah Temima, R. Barukh HaLevi Epstein's spectacular collection of Talmudic and Midrashic comments, organized verse-by-verse. We also have an English version (condensed) of the midrashic encyclopedia Me'am Loez by. R. Yakov Huli, originally in Ladino and a staple of Sephardic Jewry since 1730. For those who want to hone their reading of medieval Bible commentary, we have English editions of Rashi and Nahmanides, and one of the sets of studies by the great Nehama Leibowitz, who taught contemporary Jews to read the Torah through the eyes of the commentators. There is Talmud and Midrash Rabba for the Hebrew readers, plus English versions of both, so you can look up a needed citation or explore. Beyond the bounds of traditional religious texts, there is a solid (if not up-to-the-minute) collection of Jewish fiction, both by English-speaking Jews - like Philip Roth and Allegra Goodman - and Hebrew and Yiddish prose in translation, like Singer, Grade, Agnon, Hazaz and Shulamit Hareven. You can find poetry from R. Solomon ibn Gabirol to Muriel Rukeyser. You can find Yehuda Amichai in Hebrew and English. We have a set of the Encyclopedia Judaica - absolutely invaluable on almost any topic up to 1971. (Just ask Solomon Mowshowitz, who is plowing his way through the EJ, day-by-day.) We have the two- volume Jewish Women in America: An Historical Encyclopedia. Our library can enrich your grasp of Jewish history in Jerusalem, Cordova, Vienna, Kiev and Boston. You can meet many of Judaism's greatest minds in our library, from Philo to Maimonides to Hermann Cohen & his student, Franz Rosenzweig. You can stay abreast of contemporary Jewish affairs with the Forward, the Jerusalem Report and the Jewish Week. You can access an enormous range of popular Judaica, which will help you figure out how to write an ethical will or learn how to enhance Shabbat. Now I am just getting warmed up and the message is getting too long! We do have some shortcomings in our library. We don't budget money for the collection, so more recent books are only available if we're lucky enough to get a donation. (As I look through the books and their donation plates, I must note a couple of folks who have been particularly generous in building our library: Mel Bukiet and Jill Goodman who donated many books upon their kids' b'nai mitzvah and Nahma Sandrow and Bill Meyers, who donated many books from the library of Nahma's father, R. Edward Sandrow. Thank you for enriching our community.) A particular weakness is children's material. Some of our kids' books are terrific; most are dated and some don't really fit our un-Orthodox ethos. Also, no one keeps the collection organized on a regular basis. A former member, Debbie Rand, used to keep track, and then Jeff Bogursky did a fabulous job organizing the books into logical sections. But, admittedly, no one comes in each week to make sure everything is neatly shelved or to update a catalog. Sometimes we receive new books that don't make it so quickly to the shelves. No one scours the shelves to get rid of outdated material. While all that work would be nice, certainly, it is not at the top of AC's priority list. As things stand now, it is still possible to survey the shelves fruitfully, sign a card when you want to take a book and return it on the honor system. Another problem: like all our building, the chapel is used for multiple purposes, such as children's music classes (Tuesday and Thursday mornings) and Hebrew school classes (Tuesday and Thursday afternoons). One cannot automatically assume that the library will be free when you need it. But call the office when you want to use the library, and we'll tell you when it's free. Jewish study is a mitzvah. Even if we were all wise, all sages, all elders, all knowing the Torah, it would be our obligation to use the minds God gave us to think about what Jewish life means, to engage our tradition and its wisdom, to imbue our lives with reflection and value. Only learning will make Judaism worth saving for another generation. Let the AC library help you fulfill this mitzvah.
BIKKUR HOLIM TRAINING SESSION
Monday, March 7 at 7 p.m. Everybody does it, but some of us find it very hard to do. Visiting family members, friends and synagogue members when they are ill is a mitzvah, but sometimes we don't know how to act or what to say. Ansche Chesed's Bikkur Holim Training Session will help you to relax and be truly supportive to those who need comforting when they are ill. Bikkur Holim (visiting the sick) training is designed for Ansche Chesed's community and our newly formed Bikkur Holim committee. The program will be led by the Rabbi Isaac N. Trainin Bikur Cholim Coordinating Council - a program of the Jewish Board of Family and Children's Services. It will take place at Ansche Chesed on Monday, March 7 at 7 p.m. This training is free, but pre-registration is required. All Bikkur Holim volunteers should plan to come. Please call 212.865.0600 ext. 415 to RSVP. For more information, or to join the committee, please contact Bettyrose Nelson at 212.362.3269 or email her at bettyrosenelson@verizon.net. RUTH MESSINGER WILL SPEAK ON DARFUR PANEL DISCUSSION: NEW TRENDS IN JEWISH PHILANTHROPY The panelists will be: All the minyanim will join together for services followed by a potluck lunch and panel discussion.
PURIM PANDEMONIUM
Sunday, March 20 10 a.m. Ansche Chesed/Yaldaynu Preschool PURIM WORKSHOP 11 a.m. Purim Concert and Sing-a-long with SHIRA KLINE! Shira is the outrageously hip Jewish kiddie rocker seen all over the New York metro area! 11:45-3 p.m. PURIM CARNIVAL. Children of all ages are invited to our annual Purim festival. Win prizes, eat lots of food, play great games, and even throw a pie or two! 10 a.m.-3 p.m. BOOKS & CDs FOR A BUCK SALE 10 a.m.-3 p.m. MISHLOACH MANOT PACKAGING Entrance fees: $5 for Shira Kline concert; $5 for carnival + 4 booth tickets. VOLUNTEER! PURIM MEGILLAH READING
BEING A JEW IN THE MARKETPLACE: THE TORAH OF BUSINESS AND
SOCIAL ETHICS
Friday Night Lecture Shabbat Lunch Lecture Shabbat Afternoon Study Session Rabbi Saul Berman is a leading Orthodox scholar and thinker. He has made extensive contributions to thought about the role of ethics in Jewish life, to women's Jewish education and to understanding the applicability of Jewish law in contemporary society. Rabbi Berman has served as Senior Rabbi of Lincoln Square Synagogue, Chairman of the Department of Judaic Studies of Stern College, Yeshiva University, and currently is the director of Edah, a new organization devoted to the invigoration of Modern Orthodox ideology and religious life. Registration Information: RSVP to sharri.posen@anschechesed.org or ext. 415 in the AC office by Tuesday, March 8.
PARENTS & CHILDREN AND THE DIVINE PARENT
Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky One of our most common Jewish ways of speaking about God uses the parent/child metaphor. In the liturgy, God is avinu malkenu / our Father, our King. To Isaiah, God feeds us "the breast of consolation" like a "mother comforting her child." How can we understand this kind of religious language? How does it shape our experience of being children of earthly parents? How might it shape our self-conception as parents of earthly children? Join us to explore a theological metaphor and its impact on our most important ethical, spiritual and emotional relationships. 4 Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m., beginning March 2. AC members free, non-members $60. See "Shabbat Learning" for additional offerings.
TORAH STUDY
With Rabbi Kalmanofsky and AC members Join us to discuss the weekly Torah portion. Participants are welcome on either an occasional or regular basis. Shabbat mornings at 9 a.m. EXPLORING HASIDIC TEXTS BEGINNERS' SERVICE NEW SHABBAT MORNING CLASS! LEARN TO READ HEBREW SEUDAH SHLISHIT, SHABBAT'S THIRD MEAL
Sunday, March 20 at 7 p.m.
Join us for a very special evening when we welcome Walter Bernstein, screenwriter of The Front for a discussion following the screening. AC member Stuart Klawans, film critic for The Nation, will introduce the film. In this film, Woody Allen plays a cashier who is paid to be a front for a group of blacklisted writers during the 1950s McCarthy era, but the injustice around him pushes him to take a stand. Walter Bernstein wrote The Front based on his own experiences as a blacklistee and on the experiences of his friends, including director Martin Ritt and cast members Zero Mostel, Herschel Bernardi, Lloyd Gough, and Joshua Shelley. Bernstein began his career as a staff writer for The New
Yorker and during World War II brought back the first
interview with Marshal Tito for the Army magazine Yankee.
Back in New York, he and two other blacklisted writers
developed and wrote the popular CBS television program "You
Are There" hosted by Edward R. Murrow. Bernstein was able to
work openly again beginning in the 1960s and wrote films
including The Molly Maguires. In 1990 Knopf published
his book Inside Out: A Memoir of the Blacklist. Suggested contribution $5.
FILMS FOR FAMILIES
Second in our Jewish Film Series for families, the Marx Brothers "A Night at the Opera" is classic fun for all. So come in out of the cold, have some popcorn and soda, and enjoy! A Night at the Opera Suggested contribution: Adults $5, kids $2. PLAY READING: The Treasure The Treasure is a dark cynical comedy about money (cash and real estate). It takes place in a graveyard. It has a reasonably happy ending. Sort of. The cast is large, so you will probably read more than one role, and possibly more than two. Roles include a gravedigger, a half-wit, a member of the Dowries-for- Poor-Brides Committee, a well-dressed man, the ghost of a surgeon, a dead saint, a rich man, a matchmaker, and a variety of paupers. Curtain speech at 7:00. Curtain rises at 7:15. Tea and cookies at intermission. You can come just to listen if you prefer.
Sunday, March 6 and Sunday, March 27 at 7 p.m.
OUTINGS GROUP DANCE SUNDAYS This popular series continues with two dances in March. The first is a Square Dance on March 6. Swing your partner and do-si-do! With square dance caller Allan Brozek. Lessons throughout the evening starting at 7:15 p.m. Get ready for salsa on March 27 ! Learn the basics of salsa from the expert teachers from Empire Dance, then party the night away to sizzling Latin music! No experience, partner or reservations are necessary. Just come and have fun! Co-sponsored by B'nai Jeshurun. AC/BJ/MOMC members $15, non-members $20. For information or to volunteer in exchange for free admission, call Michael at 212-678-7881 before 9 p.m.
MAZAL TOV TO:
Evan Smith and his family on the celebration of his bar mitzvah. Bill Jaffe and Jessica Lieberman on their recent marriage. CONDOLENCES TO: TODA RABBA TO:
Donations are as of February 23
GENERAL DONATIONS Vivian Awner in honor of Michael Meric & Rivka Widerman, Paul & Roberta Kupietz Shapiro, and Ron Werter & Melinda Gros Howard Berkowitz in memory of his father, Fred Berkowitz Judy Birnkrant in memory of her father, Paul Horowitz, her mother, Louise Cohen, and her daughter, Deborah Birnkrant Michael Brochstein in memory of John Dobbin's mother, Helen Dobbin and Irene Nelson's husband, Jerry Nelson Myron Cohen & Heike Magister Ruth Fuhrman in memory of Lester Koren Lucy Geldzahler in memory of her father, Adolphe Fischer Eric Gertner & Nina Yahr Marilyn Goldberg in memory of her uncle, Philip (Frankie) Goldberg Martin & Tamara Green in memory of Tamara's father, Rabbi Robert Marcus and Martin's mother, Pauline Green Debra & Martin Greenberg in memory of his father, Solomon Greenberg and her father, Martin Feldman Sophia Gutherz in memory of her mother, Genia Gutherz Shimon Hirschhorn in memory of his mother, Miriam Hirschhorn and in honor of Natasha Hirschhorn Ruth Kaufman in memory of her father, Chiel Morgenstein Richard Mark in memory of his father, Sandor Mark Paula Milla-Kreutzer in memory of her father, Emilio Milla Martin Miller in memory of his mother, Fay Miller Sol Rosenkranz in memory of his friend, Sam Cooper Samuel & Frances Schiff in memory of his parents, Henry & Lina Schiff Michael Schmidt & Lori Skopp in honor of Gideon Hanft's bar mitzvah, William Jaffe & Jessica Lieberman's wedding, and Freda Eisenberg's reading of the Torah David & Linda Shriner-Cahn in memory of Sam Kayman Marion & William Shulevitz in memory of Irene Nelson's husband, Jerry Nelson; in memory of Ricki Lubov's mother; and Deborah Brodie's father, David Shapiro Ellen Singer Marsha Wagner in honor of her brother, Michael Mantel and in memory of her mother, Gertrude Mantel Ian Yudelman in memory of his mother, Lena Yudelman Bonnie Zaben in honor of Gideon Hanft's bar mitzvah; in memory of Deborah Brodie's father, David Shapiro and Irene Nelson's husband, Jerry Nelson SANCTUARY MINYAN KIDDUSH FUND RABBI'S DISCRETIONARY FUND SHELTER FUND PRAYERBOOK FUND
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phone: 212-865-0600
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