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Ansche Chesed Monthly Bulletin |
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With both the reflective and celebratory holidays of the new year behind us, we look forward to many more community activities. Our first seudah shlishit (Shabbat’s third meal) of the year takes place on November 12. The following Shabbat, November 19, we will welcome our new members at a special kiddush for all the minyanim. On that day families will also gather for their monthly kiddush lunch, and teens will have the opportunity to join Rabbi Kalmanofsky for a meal following services. A first this year, AC will host an Interfaith Thanksgiving Service on November 22. The following month, Marcia Falk, well-known poet and scholar, will visit us as Scholar-in-Residence on December 2 and 3 . And we anticipate with excitement the silver anniversary of our Hanukkah Arts Festival, which takes place on December 10 and 11.
CANDLE LIGHTING TIMES
11/4 Light candles 4:30 Shabbat ends 5:31 11/11 Light candles 4:24 Shabbat ends 5:25 11/18 Light candles 4:18 Shabbat ends 5:19 11/25 Light candles 4:14 Shabbat ends 5:16 SERVICE TIMES Shabbat Services SHABBAT STUDY Family and Children's Services 11 a.m. WEEK OF NOVEMBER 1 WEEK OF NOVEMBER 6 WEEK OF NOVEMBER 13 WEEK OF NOVEMBER 20 WEEK OF NOVEMBER 27 DECEMBER 2 & 3 DECEMBER 10 & 11
Happy Halloween.
This past Saturday more than 60 kids joined me and Rabbi Lauren Kurland to conclude Shabbat with Havdala, to dress up in wizard-themed costumes, to read from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (as well as the Hebrew translation Harry Potter ve’haAsir MeAzkaban) and to watch the film version. Havdalah was a special hit, complete with blue flames dancing from a “Goblet of Fire.” May we all perform many such Havdalot on many future Shabbatot. So far, so uncontroversial. But as we billed this program as “Harry Potter’s Halloween Havdalah,” a number of Ansche Chesed members have questioned whether it was proper for our synagogue to sponsor an event to celebrate such a “holiday.” After all, Halloween is indisputably a remnant of the Celtic pagan holiday Samhain – in which spirits of the dead are said to visit their earthly homes – and medieval Christianity co-opted the fall festival by remaking it into All Hallow’s Eve and All Saints Day. Given its pagan origins and its long Christian associations, shouldn’t Jews shun those religions we’re forbidden from practicing? True, the Torah forbids Jews even from admiring the accoutrements of idolatry, let alone practicing pagan religious rites. And we’re supposed to maintain our distinctiveness by marking clear boundaries between our practices and theirs [called the prohibition of Hukkot HaGoyim]. In this context, there is a reasonable argument to be made that Jewish children should not celebrate Halloween at all, let alone in a synagogue. But I don’t see it that way. Instead, I would argue that the American Halloween has been fully stripped of any religious character. No Americans who dress up in costume, who carve pumpkins, who tell ghost stories, who keep the Hershey’s company in business have the slightest religious motivation. (The contemporary neo- paganism of Wicca is not relevant here. This practice is a new creation, not an organic continuation of ancient Celtic paganism. Their idiosyncrasies lack the center of gravity to forbid what is otherwise permitted.) Furthermore, American Halloween customs are not part of Christian worship in other countries. Trick-or- Treating is certainly not a Christian ritual. (You want to argue that it should be forbidden as crass commercialism? You might have a point. Forbidden as unhealthy eating? Also reasonable. But not what were talking about here.) The American Halloween uses a once-pagan motif for a day of imaginative play with a ghost-theme. But should a change in Halloween practitioners’ motivation matter to Jews? If Halloween is originally pagan maybe that should be sufficient for us to shun it? Those of us who celebrate New Year’s Eve (St. Sylvester’s Eve, also known as someone’s bris) and Thanksgiving (a religious moment to its original practitioners) might not want to carry this argument too far forward. To me, it is a hallmark of modern liberal Judaism that we value and participate in secular culture when we can. Sometimes, certainly, aspects of secular culture cannot co-exist with Jewish faithfulness. But I would group Halloween with Thanksgiving as secular celebrations which – whatever they once meant to people hundreds of years ago – have no religious meaning for nearly anyone who marks them. I would contrast these festivals to Christmas and Easter, which are fundamentally Christian religious holidays for most people who observe them, even though some individuals may secularize their observance with colored eggs and plastic trees. To state this more abstractly, I think Jewish law knows how to distinguish between a true religious rite and tangentially religious practices now stripped of religious character. The famous Orthodox sage Rabbi Moshe Feinstein in 1981 permitted celebrating Thanksgiving on the grounds that “even in a case which is certainly of religious character . . . where we see that the entire Gentile world practices it, even those whose motivation is unrelated to religion or law, but simply because it is fun and pleasurable to them, there is no prohibition on the basis of imitating Gentile custom. . . . Any item of pleasure in the world cannot be prohibited merely because Gentiles do so out of religious observance.” [Responsa Iggrot Moshe YD 4.11.] Admittedly, R. Moshe would probably judge Halloween more harshly, but this statement establishes a clear principle that I find compelling. The fact that some Catholics may still observe All Saints’ Day should not prevent our children dressing up like ghosts, joining the vast majority whose motivation is pure chocolate, and unrelated to religion. Another relevant precedent is found in Rabbi Moshe Isserles’ ruling in the Shulhan Arukh (YD 141.3), in an interesting revision of Talmud Avodah Zarah (42b-43a) that a Jew who finds a vessel adored with images of the sun, moon and stars – in other words, something that might plausibly have been a religious icon to an ancient idolator, and which the Talmud rules must be destroyed – is permitted to use or sell this item, since in his day the worship of the heavenly bodies had ceased. I would draw an analogy to our case. If organic communities of people still observed Samhain as a living religious practice, if Catholics dressed up as ghosts and ate candy in order to observe All Hallows Eve, I would feel differently. Neither of those things are true. Happy Halloween. -- Jeremy Kalmanofsky
In June 2002, Ansche Chesed embarked on an ambitious capital
campaign to address much needed repairs and improvements in our
building. Members of the community pledged over $1.6 million, of
which we have so far collected over $1.2 million. I would like
to thank all of those who have made this possible, in particular
the capital campaign volunteers who helped to raise the money,
and the members of the Building Committee who have helped us to
spend it wisely.
If you spent any time in our building over the summer, it was impossible to miss the work that was going on. The building is sounder and more comfortable as a result of the capital improvements made possible by your generosity. Now that the holidays are over, it seems like a good time to take stock and update the membership about what has been accomplished so far. The first projects that the shul took on were major structural issues that were also mandated by the city: pointing and waterproofing most of the building’s exterior and the repair, rebuilding and waterproofing of the sidewalk vault. Completion of these major structural projects allowed us to turn our attention to other building systems. We commissioned an engineering study of heating, air conditioning, and ventilation systems and installed new controls for the boiler that increase efficiency and decrease downtime. This summer, we completed work on a number of improvements that will make the building run better and will noticeably improve the experience of those who use it: ·The elevator has been modernized and the cab rehabilitated. What does the future hold? In the immediate future, we will be completing improvements in the air conditioning for Hirsch Hall and replacing the thermostat. In 2006, we hope to be able to paint the Sanctuary, purchase new curtains for backstage at Hirsch Hall, renovate the lobby, and pursue a number of safety and security initiatives, this in part with a grant from the Department of Homeland Security. So, as you can see, we have been putting your capital campaign contributions to good use. So far, we have received 95% of the pledges that have been billed to date. Although this is very good, we should be receiving 100%. I urge everybody to pay their pledges promptly when billed to enable the community to complete the work that has been planned. In addition, the main fundraising portion of the capital campaign was completed in 2003, and we are fortunate in that many members have joined us since then. We expect to be contacting these members to discuss a capital pledge over the coming year. If you have any questions or would like to discuss a pledge in the meantime, please contact me at diva7195@yahoo.com Wishing you all hayyim shel shalom, hayyim shel parnassa, a life of peace and prosperity, Alan Divack
Wednesday, November 2 – 6:45-8 p.m.
THE ANSCHE CHESED TZEDAKAH FOUNDATION The Ansche Chesed Tzedakah Foundation (the ACT Foundation) has its first meeting on Wednesday, November 2, at Ansche Chesed from 6:45-8:00 p.m., and will meet again on November 16. The ACT Foundation enables b’nai mitzvah students to learn first hand about the power of philanthropy by giving them the opportunity to collect money, create a foundation, send out grant applications to various nonprofit organizations, and distribute funds as they see fit. The program meets under the supervision of AC rabbinic intern Ethan Linden. For more information contact Ethan at etlinden@jtsa.edu or Rabbi Lauren Kurland at 212.865.0600 ext. 413. Pizza dinner will be served. Shabbat, November 19 Beginning November 5
SEUDAH SHLISHIT
The last hours of Shabbat can be the sweetest time of the sweetest day. As the sun sinks and the shadows grow, we can stave off the weekday spirit with our Seudah Shlishit (the "third meal"), a final occasion for song and study, food and drink. Join us to sing and learn and savor the final moments of the day of rest. If you would like to sponsor one of our monthly gatherings, please contact Sharri Posen at ext. 415. November 12 at 4 p.m. TORAH DISCUSSION BEGINNER'S SERVICE EXPLORING HASIDIC TEXTS November 5 at 4 p.m.
HEVRA SHAS - TALMUD STUDY
Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky We continue our "weekly page" study of Babylonian Talmud with chapter 5 of Bava Metzia, converning economic exploitation and usury. Most members of this class use the Artscroll English-Hebrew Talmud, enabling them to both read the traditional text and understand its content. Wednesdays, 7 p.m. TORAH B’SHIRAH: STUDYING TEXT THROUGH MUSIC FROM APPELBAUM TO ZAHAVI: WHAT’S IN A NAME? THE TIE THAT BINDS: A WORKSHOP ON TEFILLIN AC'S Member-Led Study Groups ISRAELI LITERATURE IN TRANSLATION READING GROUP RELIGION AND SCIENCE READING GROUP ISRAEL-ZIONIST READING GROUP
Beyond the politics we read about from Israel every day, these
films offer aesthetic and dramatic views of israeli society.
Join us on three Sunday evenings to see and discuss some of
israeli's most successful films of the decade.
Sunday, November 6 at 7 p.m. Sunday, December 4 at 7 p.m. Sunday, January 8 at 7 p.m. Suggested contribution $5
SENSUALITY AND SPIRITUALITY IN JEWISH WOMEN'S VOICES
Is there a female voice in Jewish literature? How might such a voice help us understand Jewish spirituality? Marica Falk will join Ansche Chesed to share her own poetry as well as her translations of very different writers: the biblical authors of the Song of Songs, the Israeli-Hebrew mystic Zelda, and the American- Yiddish innovator Malka Heifetz Tussman. Through study and dramatic reading of these works, Falk will highlight their approaches to nature, love, solitude, and spirituality. She will also discuss and present excerpts from her groundbreaking prayer book, The Book of Blessings, which incorporates these voices, refashioning Jewish liturgy through an inclusive, non-hierarchical theology. Friday Evening Saturday This Scholar-in-Residence Shabbat is endowed in part in memory of Aviva Isobel Kirsch through the generosity of her family.
MAZAL TOV TO:
October's bar mitzvah: James Robert Sui Noah and Stephanie Perlman on the birth of their son, and Laila on her new brother; Itzhak and Toby Perlman on their new grandchild; Navah Perlman and Robert Frost, Aviva and Tzipora on their new nephew and cousin. CONDOLENCES TO: TODA RABBA TO: The members who donated funds for the High Holiday flowers in
the Sanctuary: The sponsors of the October Family Kiddush Lunch: Sue Dickman, Lisa Gersten & David Gerwin, Stacey Gordon & Neil Guterman. CHILDREN'S TEFILLAH FUND TODA RABBA TO OCTOBER'S SHELTER VOLUNTEERS:
September 29 - October 31, 2005
GENERAL DONATIONS Rachel Altstein and Andrew Bachman Heike Magister and Myron Cohen Amanda Fassler Sally Gerity in honor of Barbara Sontz for the inumerable Mitzvahs she has brought to others Grace and Leo Glasser for their aliyah on Rosh Hashanah at Minyan M'at Lillian Greenfield in memory of her son Jerry Greenfield and husband Theodore Greenfield Katherine Herz and Marco Hefti in honor of Rabbi Ellen Flax for performing their wedding service on July 10th Ellen Resnick and Eric Peterman Sharon Strassfeld in memory of Ruth and Miriam Nulman, Libby Fralkoff and in honor of Josh Hanft YAHRZEIT DONATIONS RABBI'S DISCRETIONARY FUND SHELTER FUND SANCTUARY MINYAN KIDDUSH FUND ADULT EDUCATION FUND
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