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April Calendar |
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CANDLE LIGHTING TIMES
4/1 Light candles 6:02.
Shabbat ends 7:03
4/8 Light candles 7:09.
Shabbat ends 8:11
4/15 Light candles 7:17.
Shabbat ends 8:19
4/22 Light candles 7:24.
Shabbat ends 8:28
4/23 Light Pesach candles 8:28
4/24 Light Pesach candles 8:29
4/29 Light candles 7:31
4/30 Light Pesach candles 8:36
SERVICE TIMES
Morning Minyan
Monday & Thursday 7:20 a.m.
Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday 7:30 a.m.
Sunday & Civil Holidays 8:30 a.m.
Rosh Hodesh 7:15 a.m.
ON SHABBAT
Friday Evening Services 6:30 p.m.
Torah Study 9 a.m.
Morning Services 10 a.m.
Sanctuary Minyan
Minyan M'at
Minyan Rimonim April 2, 16
West Side Minyan April 9, 23
Teen Service April 16
Family and Children's Services 11 a.m.
Ages 4 and Under
Ages 5-7
Ages 8 and Up
WEEK OF APRIL 3
4/6 Talmud Study 7 p.m.
4/9 SHABBAT: Tazria / Shabbat HaHodesh
Bar Mitzvah: Daniel Zloof
Family Kiddush Lunch
WEEK OF APRIL 10
4/10 Passover Family Workshop w. Jerry Raik 10:30 a.m.
Bar Mitzvah: Elan Holtz
Rosh Hodesh Nisan
4/13 Passover Kashering Workshop w. Rabbi Kalmanofsky 7:30 p.m.
4/14 AC Calendar Meeting 7 p.m.
4/16 SHABBAT: Parashat Metzora Teen Service 11 a.m.
Bar Mitzvah: Daniel Levenson
WEEK OF APRIL 17
4/18 Dennis Ross Speaks at AC 7:45 p.m.
4/20 Talmud Study 7 p.m.
4/21 Siyyum of the First Born after morning minyan
Search for Hametz (evening)
4/22 Burning of Hametz before Shabbat
Community Shabbat Dinner
4/23 SHABBAT: Parshat Aharei Mot / Shabbat HaGadol
First Seder
WEEK OF APRIL 24
4/24 Pesach Morning Services 10 a.m.
Mincha & Ma'ariv Services 7:30 p.m.
AC Community Seder 8 p.m.
4/25 Israel-Zionist Reading Group 7:45 p.m. (not held at AC)
4/27 Board of Trustees 8 p.m.
4/30 SHABBAT: Seventh Day Pesach
Kiddush Lunch & Study w. Rabbi David Ellenson, sponsored by
Minyan Kesher
5/1 Eighth Day Pesach. Morning Services, including Yizkor 10 a.m.
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Message from the Rabbi |
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SATURDAY NIGHT SEDER This year, Passover begins on Saturday
night - a somewhat inconvenient turn of the calendar that happens
infrequently enough that people often forget how to handle their
Pesach cleaning and disposal of Hametz. (Pesach fell on Saturday
night once in the 1980s, once in the 1990s, then in 2001, now in
2005 and coming up in 2008, but will not occur again until 2021.)
Here are some notes which I hope will clarify how to have, as
the expression goes, a Hag Kasher v'Sameah, a happy and
Kosher holiday.
Fast of the First Born - Taanit Bekhorim
First, an adjustment is made in the customary "fast of the first
born" on the day before the Seder. (Incidentally, the legal
tradition records an opinion that first-born females fast, too. An
unexpectedly egalitarian view.) Since one does not fast on
Shabbat, the fast of the first born is advanced. But advanced by
how much? It is thought to be burdensome and a spoiling of the
Shabbat spirit to fast on Friday (although if Pesach were to begin
on Friday night, one would fast on Friday anyway). Instead, we
fast on Thursday, from dawn to sundown. However, it is most common
for people to attend synagogue that morning to participate in the
conclusion of a major study project and the celebratory meal that
follows. So on Thursday April 21, please come to morning services
and we will have our Siyyum.
Search for Leaven - Bedikat Hametz
In most years, the night before the Seder, just after sundown but
before dark, one searches one's property to ensure that no Hametz
is in one's possession. (It is forbidden not only to consume
Hametz on Passover, but even to own it.) This year, however, we
advance this practice by one day, to Thursday night. The custom is
to check with a candle and feather to get into the nooks and
crannies. (Be sure to make this a symbolic check. Every year or
two, an overzealous checker burns down the apartment by igniting
the drapes. So stay away from fabric, furniture and carpets.) My
family and many others make this into a fun game for the kids, by
hiding a certain number of packets of Hametz around the house.
Before the search, the practice is to say a blessing: Barukh
Ata Adonay, Elohenu Melekh HaOlam, Asher Kideshanu BeMitzvotav,
v'Tzivanu al Bi'ur Hametz. Blessed is God, Master of the
Cosmos, who makes us holy and commands us regarding removal of
leaven. After that, one says a formula to nullify, or renounce
ownership of leaven. This formula is given in prayerbooks and
Haggadot in the vernacular Aramaic, so it is fine, even
preferable, to say it in English: Any leaven in my possession
of which I am unaware and which I have not yet destroyed, is
hereby considered nullified, like the dust of the earth.
Destroying Leaven - Bi'ur Hametz
In most years, the next morning after the search, before the
prohibition of eating leavening (or more technically, the
prohibition of using Hametz for some kind of economic or
practical benefit) kicks in, one should destroy the last bits of
the Hametz from the night before. Usually this is done by
burning (and Ansche Chesed always has a small bonfire for this
purpose), but one may also crumble it up and scatter it in the
wind, flush it down the toilet or otherwise dispose of it. This
year, the day after the search will not be the day before
the Seder - it will be Friday, fully 36 hours before the Saturday
night Seder. So there is no particular need to destroy the
Hametz by a certain hour on Friday. We will still have a
Friday morning fire at the shul, so we do not lose practice at the
customary burning. But even if you miss the morning fire, one can
and should destroy their Hametz by burning, scattering or
whatever, at some point on Friday, before Shabbat begins. Since
this Friday act does not coincide with the prohibition on economic
benefit from Hametz as it does on most years, there is no
need to recite the final nullification formula, as you normally
would.
Instead, one should recite that formula on Saturday morning
before 11:45, when the prohibition on Hana'ah [benefit] takes
effect: Any leaven in my possession, whether I am aware or
unaware of it, which I have destroyed or not yet destroyed, is
hereby considered nullified, like the dust of the earth.
Kashering Your Home
In most years, one should complete the Kashering process by
the time the prohibition of eating Hametz kicks in. This year,
because that time kicks in on Shabbat morning, one has to prepare
a bit earlier: All the kitchen transformations and koshering of
individual appliances must be complete by the time you light
candles for Shabbat, at 7:20 p.m.
Shabbat Meals
So what are you supposed to eat on Shabbat? Three states of
affairs conflict: 1) the kitchen must be ready for Passover, 2)
one is supposed to eat three Shabbat meals, including saying
HaMotzi over bread, and 3) one is forbidden to eat Matza on
the day before the Seder. (On this last point, many people avoid
Matza for three days or even 30 days before Passover, but the
actual law is only to avoid it on the day of the Seder. Still, I
recommend avoiding Matza for the whole preceding month, not
because of traditionalism, but because it intensifies the
experience of eating Matza at the Seder itself.)
For those who wish to keep these laws scrupulously, there are
two basic options. The easiest is to be fully Pesach-dik
one day early, rid all your home of Hametz on Friday before
Shabbat, exactly as you would on any other year (and say the
nullification formula on Friday before Shabbat, not as advised
above), and eat only Pesach-dik food on Shabbat. Then, say
HaMotzi at the meals on Shabbat over what the sources call
Matza Ashira ("rich matza") or what we usually call egg
Matza. Egg Matza is a kind of middle ground food: it is
sufficiently close to Matza to be considered bread for purposes of
saying HaMotzi, but not truly Matza, such that one could
use it for the mitzvah of eating Matza at the Seder. [This is
tactic recommended by R. Moshe Feinstein. Note: many Ashkenazim
have the tradition of not eating egg Matza at all on Passover.
Even if that is your practice, it is universally agreed that one
can eat it before Passover actually begins.]
But some people will find that extra day of a Hametz
free zone to be burdensome. So here is another option: one can
simply keep a small, defined and well-guarded amount of Hametz
food in your home for Friday night dinner, and make HaMotzi
over regular Challah. In that case, one might want to eat on paper
plates and be careful with the crumbs. Then after Friday night
dinner, dispose of the remains thoroughly and be certain to shake
out your tablecloth well, then store it away with the Hametz
dishes. This practice can apply to Saturday morning breakfast as
well.
What about Shabbat lunch? Since the prohibition of eating
Hametz kicks in at 10:37 Saturday morning, obviously one
cannot eat Challah at lunch. In many Orthodox settings, they make
a point of beginning Shabbat morning prayers at 6:30 or 7 a.m., so
they can complete davvening early enough for a full meal. Should
Ansche Chesed try that this year? On second thought. . . let's
davven at the regular time. But in this case, one could only use
egg matza for HaMotzi on Shabbat. For Seuda Shelishit,
the third meal in the afternoon, one may either say HaMotzi
on egg matza or, in this difficult situation, simply omit the
bread, and restrict the meal to fruit, veggies or fish. Since it
is desirable to be hungry during the Seder, I recommend eating a
very small Seuda Shelishit.
Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky
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Ambassador Dennis Ross to Speak at AC on April 18 |
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Monday, April 18, 2005 at 7:45 p.m.
THE MISSING PEACE: ISRAEL AND PALESTINE AFTER ARAFAT
A lecture and dialogue with DENNIS ROSS
U.S. Envoy to the Middle East, 1988-2000
Ambassador Dennis Ross, chief Middle East peace negotiator in
the presidential administrations of George H. W. Bush and Bill
Clinton, is recognized by both Republicans and Democrats as the
expert on the peace process. Charged for over a decade with
educating presidents and the Congress on all matters dealing
with the Middle East, Ross is that rare figure respected and
trusted by both the right and the left, Palestinians and
Israelis alike.
He was instrumental in assisting Israelis and Palestinians in
reaching the 1995 Interim Agreement; he also successfully
brokered the Hebron Accord in 1997, facilitated the 1994
Israel-Jordan peace treaty, and intensively worked to bring
Israel and Syria together. He now is the Ziegler distinguished
fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. For
reservations call 212-865-0600 ext 407 or email events@anschechesed.org
This event is made possible in part by the support of
Minyan M'at.
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Special Passover Workshops |
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Sunday, April 10 at 10:30 a.m.
MAH NISHTANA! A DIFFERENT SEDER FOR YOU AND YOUR FAMILY
Jerry Raik, long-time principal of the Havurah School and a
master at engaging kids in Jewish learning, will help you make
Passover a rich experience for friends and family of all ages.
Wednesday, April 13 at 7:30 p.m.
THE WHATS AND HOWS OF KASHERING
This workshop with Rabbi Kalmanofsky will help you understand
the sometimes daunting complexities of keeping kosher for
Passover. The workshop will cover the details of kashering
your kitchen (applicable also to year-round kashrut), as well
as explanations of which foods are permitted or forbidden and
why. Bring your questions!
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Passover Information |
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HAMETZ REMINDER
If you plan on designating Rabbi Kalmanofsky to sell your
hametz, please visit the synagogue any time up until Shabbat
on Friday, April 22 and sign the form at the front desk. Also,
remember the Haggada's call: Kol dikhfeen yetey v'yekhol
-- All who are hungry, come and eat. Please remember to
make a contribution to the Ansche Chesed Rabbi's Discretionary
Fund to help feed those in need this Pesach.
Friday Evening, April 22
THE "EREV EREV" PASSOVER SHABBAT DINNER
Let someone else prepare Shabbat dinner for you the night
before the seders! Join the community for a pre-holiday Friday
night dinner. Cost: Members $30, non-members $35, children
ages 4-10 $15 The gym will be open for supervised play for
children. Send a check to the AC office, 251 West 100 Street,
NY, NY 10025 or call the office at (212) 865-0600, ext. 407 to
reserve using a Visa or MasterCard. Indicate number of adults,
children, and vegetarians. Paid reservations must be received
by Tuesday, April 12. Seating is limited.
FIRST SEDER HOME HOSPITALITY
Ansche Chesed members who are hosting seders have
traditionally opened their homes to members who need a place
to attend. If you would like to be a guest or to host someone
for the first night of Pesach, please call Sharri Posen at
ext. 415 in the AC office.
Sunday, April 24
SECOND NIGHT SEDER AT ANSCHE CHESED
Join Rabbi Kalmanofsky and his family at our annual second
night seder when we ask our questions and tell the story of
our people's liberation. AC members and seniors $65,
non-members $80, children $25 The seder will begin at 8 p.m.
following mincha at 7:30 and ma'ariv at 7:45. To reserve a
place, call ext. 407 in the AC office or email
michelle.dingoor@anschechesed.org. Reservation deadline:
Monday, April 18.
PASSOVER FOOD DRIVE
As in past years, we are collecting non-perishable packaged
foods for the food pantry run by the West Side Campaign
Against Hunger. Food may be brought until Friday morning,
April 22.
Food may also be brought to Congregation Shaare Zedek, 212
West 93rd Street, on Sunday, April 17 from noon to 2 p.m. Then
stay to nosh and learn with Rabbi Mark Ankcorn of Shaare Zedek
and Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky.
PASSOVER KASHRUT
For helpful information on Passover Kashrut, please come to
Rabbi Kalmanofsky's class on 7:30 Wednesday night, April 13,
or you can check the United Synagogue's web page http://www.uscj.org/Passover_guide6635.html
for a handy guide. Call the office if you would like us to
send you a copy of that information sheet. Other helpful web
pages include http://www.kashrut.com/Passover/ and http://crcweb.org/kosher/consumer/passover.html.
(Note: These last two sites are from Orthodox sources. Some of
their views may differ from non- Orthodox practice. Feel free
to ask if you're uncertain!)
Shabbat, April 30
DR. DAVID ELLENSON, President of Hebrew Union College
In celebration of Pesach and in appreciation of the warmth
extended by the Ansche Chesed community, the Kesher Minyan is
pleased to invite the AC community to join them for Shabbat
lunch and learning with esteemed scholar Dr. David Ellenson.
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Family and Youth Events |
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Shabbat, April 9
FAMILY KIDDUSH LUNCH On Shabbat, April 9, we are going to
have our second Kiddush lunch of the year after Family
Services (around 12 noon) sponsored by the family of Lori
Cohen & Chris Rothko. Come one come all and enjoy this festive
occasion! The lunch will be on the sixth floor.
Shabbat, April 16 at 11 a.m.
TEEN SERVICE
Suggested by teens, planned by teens and run by teens. For
students in grades 8-12.
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Shabbat Learning |
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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.
LEARN TO READ HEBREW
Shabbat mornings at 9:30 a.m. (Through April.
SEUDAH SHLISHIT, SHABBAT'S THIRD MEAL
This monthly gathering is an opportunity to savor the final
moments of the day of rest with song and study, food and
drink. The generosity of our members makes this monthly
gathering possible. If you would like to sponsor a seudah,
please call ext. 415 in the office.
Next Seudah: May 21 at 7:30 p.m. - Shavuot Study
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Coming in May |
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Monday, May 9
ISRAEL FORUM
With JJ Goldberg, editor of The Forward, Gary
Rosenblatt, editor of The Jewish Week, and others.
Wednesday, May 11
YOM HA'ATZMAUT PROGRAM & CELEBRATION
Events on Sunday, May 22
WORKSHOP ON ADVANCE MEDICAL DIRECTIVES (Living Wills)
With Leonard Sharzer, rabbi and physician; and Ira Salzman,
elder-care attorney.
SPRING BLOOD DRIVE
RIVERSIDE PARK CLEAN-UP DAY
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News & Notes |
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MAZAL TOV TO:
March's b'nai mitzvah:
Michael Kengmana, Adam A, Seferina Berch.
Valerie Wald and Jeremy Goldman on their marriage.
Lisa and Steven Kern on the birth of their son.
CONDOLENCES TO:
Oscar Awner and Vivian Awner on the death of Ruth Awner,
Oscar's wife and Vivian's mother.,br> Lea Golan on the death
of her mother, Miriam Noach.
David Fishman on the death of his father, Rabbi Hertzel
Fishman.
Tamara Green on the death of her mother, Faye Marcus.
Joni Greenspan on the death of her father, Philip
Greenspan.
TODA RABBA TO:
The sponsors of the Scholar-in-Residence lunch with Rabbi Saul
Berman:
Ellen Flax, Nina Yahr and Eric Gertner, Minyan Kesher,
Jenny and Greg Lyss, Elaine and Ronald Morris, Iris Engelson
and Hyman Rosen, Rabbi Marion and William Shulevitz, Dorothy
and Michael Weiss, Ruth Sharfman.
Those whose contributions to the lunch helped defray our
costs: Trudy Balch, Deborah Brodie, Elizabeth Denlinger,
Joyce and Martin Mann, Anne Mintz, Yocheved and Yochanan
Muffs, Roberta and Paul Shapiro, Sharon Sonnenschein, Jackey
Gold and Robert Weiner, Janice and Matthew Tannin, Jocelyn
Maskow, Andrew Srulevitch, Tony and Eleanor Zak.
Purim Carnival Volunteers:
Rabbi Iscah Waldman for coordinating the event;
Talya Baiamonte, Trudy Balch, Kim Blumenthal, Freda Eisenberg,
Claudia Chernov, Josh Hanft, Suzannah Herschkowitz, Helen
Gottstein, Susan Greenfield, Marci Jacobs, Randi Jaffe, Rabbi
Jeremy Kalmanofsky, Rebecca Kaufman, Sara Leshen, Amy Marx,
Hallie Marx, Deborah Pastor, Nan Salamon, Lisa Shulman, Sharon
Sonnenschein, Anna Weissman, the entire Ansche Chesed
Hebrew School, faculty, parents and creative students, the AC
Office, security and maintenance staffs.
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Donations |
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As of March 31
GENERAL DONATIONS
Yael Aloni-Metzer & Ariel Aloni
Richard Ballinger in memory of his grandmother, Celia
Felder
Debbie Ulie & Eugene Bardosh-Rabina
Aliya Cheskis-Cotel
Zelda Damashek in memory of her mother, Sally Guttman
Evelyn Dichek in memory of her mother, Margaret
Rosenberg and her husband, Maurice Dichek, MD
Freda & Evan Eisenberg in memory of Rabbi Hertzel
Fishman
The English Department at Fairleigh Dickinson University
in memory of Faye Marcus
Stanley I. Fischler in memory of his mother, Molly
Fischler
Sarah Fisher Gillman in memory of her father, Harry
Fisher
Rabbi Ellen Flax in memory of Doris Flax
Ida Fried in memory of Ruth Awner
Dr. Marilyn P. Goldberg
Marge Goldwater in honor of Gideon Hanft
Jill Goodman & Melvin Bukiet
Brynn Rosen & Abe Hendin
Natasha & Shimon Hirschhorn
Elana Elster & Jordan Horvath
Rabbi Jeremy & Amy Kalmanofsky
Rabbi Jan Caryl Kaufman in memory of her grandfather,
Abraham Deutch
Jenny & Greg Lyss
Sue Martin
Jocelyn Maskow in memory of Ruth Awner; in memory of
Miriam Noach; in honor of Sheryl Reich
Linda Messing in memory of Ruth Awner; in memory of
Miriam Noach
Nahma Sandrow & William Meyers in memory of Ruth Awner
Ilana & Dan Miron
Lisa Nord & Jay Podbersky
Nina Bruder & Gary Pretsfelder
Amy Rosenfeld
Dr. Leah Schaefer & Katherine Schaefer
Roberta & Paul Shapiro in memory of Ruth Awner
Rabbi Marion Shulevitz in memory of her aunt, Sarah
Cohen Levinson; In memory of her mother, Syd E. Cullen
William Shulevitz in memory of his father, Norman
Shulevitz
Ellen Singer
Joyce Slochower
Brent Spodek in memory of Sarah Weichselbaum
Valerie Wald
Amy Zarrow in memory of Harry & Evelyn Zarrow
SANCTUARY MINYAN KIDDUSH FUND
In Honor of Hanukkah Arts Festival Volunteers:
Jane Head & Charles Davidson
Mary & Paul Feinberg
Nina Yahr & Eric Gertner
Stephen Gross
Marilyn & Larry Levi
Ellen Tucker & Alan Rosenstein
Herta Shriner
Anat & Avi Zloof Heidi & Ernest Kahn in memory of her
mother, Kate Vorchheimer and his grandmother, Amalie Levy
SHELTER FUND
Roberta Axelrod
Oksana & Matthew Bellas
Chizever Benevolent Association
Deborah Pastor & Aaron Brown
Feygele Jacobs & Michael Cholden-Brown
Susan Dickman
Sylvia Ettenberg
Rita Falbel
Pearl Beck & David Fisher & Family
Robert & Navah Frost
Laura Gold
Dr. Marilyn Goldberg
Vicki Brower & Michael Gottsegen
Brynn Rosen & Abe Hendin
Kenneth Karan
Lois Leatherman
Janet Leuchter
Toni Landau & Fred Mansbach
Sue Martin
Carolyn Cohen & Ruby Namdar
Menachem
Lisa Nord & Jay Podberesky
Jennifer Rosenberg
Lori Cohen & Christopher Rothko
Rebecca Sandler
Ricki Lulov Segall & Jeff Segall
Rachel Shalmon
Rabbi Marion & Bill Shulevitz
Joyce Slochower
Benjamin Feldman & Frances Stern
Ken Gorfinkle & Doris Ullendorff
Arleen Stern & Albert Gal
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