may 2019 shofar - shulcloud · shofar torah portions may 2019 may 4—29 nisan ... this means being...

SHOFAR

Torah Portions May 2019 May 4—29 Nisan

Acharei Mot II (After Death) Leviticus 18:1—30

Moses condemns the sexual practices of some neighboring peoples.

Certain forms of sexual relations are prohibited.

May 11—6 Iyyar Kedoshim (Holy Ones)

Leviticus 19:1—20-27 G‐d describes to Moses many ethical and ritual laws aimed at helping

people live lives of holiness

May 18—13 Iyyar Emor (Say)

Leviticus 21:1—24:23 G‐d describes a variety of holidays, and outlines the omer period, ask‐

ing the Israelites to bring food offerings to the priests for seven weeks

May 25—20 Iyyar

B’har (On the Mountain) Leviticus 25:1—26:2

G‐d describes the laws surrounding resting the land and crops every

seven years, as well as the Jubilee year every 50 years. G‐d permits

the use of slaves, but provides stipulations, including the obligation to

FRIDAY NIGHT SERVICES

Terry & Harold Nash

Sanctuary

May 2019 - Nisan-Iyyar, 5779

5:30 PM

5:30 PM

5:30 PM

5:30 PM

5:30 PM

SATURDAY MORNINGS

Torah Study Every Saturday 8:45 am

Samson Social hall

Saturday Shabbat Services 10:00 am in the Chapel

May 4 May 11 May 18 May 25

May 3

May 10

May 17

May 24

May 31

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Temple Leadership Bob Glast President

Beatrice Eslamboly Past President

& Education chair

Sanford Friedman 1st VP

Gordon Poster 2nd VP

Rosanne Ezer Treasurer

Judy Monetathchi Ritual Chair

Bobbie Rosenberg Corporate Secretary

Terrie Turner Chavurah Chair

Ann Miller Membership Chair

Micki Greenspan Ambassador

Michelle Hoffman Women of Sinai

Gary Kreger Brotherhood

Marvin Paul Social Action Chair

Lily Mazet PTO

Brian Harnik Member at Large

President’s Circle

Picce & Bob Glast

Leslie & Joel Hirschberg

Vernon Kozlen

Mitzie & Jack Olshansky

Patron

Marion & Dale Cowle

Jessica & James Greene

Patron Mitzvah

Ruth & Morris Beschloss

Arline Greenblatt

Sharon & Rod Hill

Ann & Glynne Miller

Ruth & Jerry Newman

Nancy & Arthur Shorr

Marcia & Rick Stein

Single Patron

Lucia Balbini

Sandy Eichberg

Fred Fabricant

Lillian Fox

Sally Frank

Shirley Greenwall

Michelle Hoffman

Kathy Kapler

Gladys Layne

Reesa Manning

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Dear Congregants,

Change is often difficult. However, it can bring new possibilities and clarity. Due to financial concerns and in the best interest of our youth, the Board of Trustees has decided to restructure the religious school.

We have eliminated the Director of Education position and created two new positions that will be filled by in house staff. Arava Talve will be the Principal of the religious school in charge of curriculum, programming, communication and staffing. Leslie Pepper has agreed to serve as vice principal and will continue overseeing the religious school during school hours and assist in communication with parents. Toni Robinson will take on more of the administrative responsibilities in helping the school function within its budget. Rabbi Bentley will continue to be involved by teaching music and sharing his wisdom with our students.

We believe this team approach will strengthen the school and help it grow. Arava brings a wealth of knowl‐edge in curriculum design and has been our Melamedet for the past ten years. We are thrilled Leslie has agreed to continue working with us to make the school better than ever. Toni has years of administrative ex‐perience and will help keep the school running smoothly.

The philosophy of the religious school is to give our students the tools they need to feel at home in any shul they travel to. This means being literate in Jewish liturgy, worship, lifecycle events and having a good under‐standing of observance and holidays.

A meeting will be scheduled in the near future with religious school parents to review the curriculum and answer any questions you have. We will also be working with a consultant to find meaningful ways to promote our religious school and hopefully increase our numbers.

Sincerely,

Bob Glast

President

From the President

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All too often, when things go wrong, the blame is easily shifted to a “scapegoat.” Un-fortunately, the Jewish people have been blamed, throughout history, as a way to de-tract people from those really responsible. Most recently, we have the Nazis, who based their entire philosophy on singling out the Jews as the cause for Germany’s de-mise in World War I. Even today, society is not immune to finger pointing, as dem-onstrated by recent debates about various minority and immigrant groups. This notion of a “scapegoat” actually has its origins in this week’s Torah portion, which centers around the perplexing and dramatic ritual on Yom Kippur, where two goats were picked out and “…Aaron would cast lots upon the two goats, one lot for God, and the other lot for Azazel.” (Leviticus 16:7.) Here, the goat for God would be offered as a sacrifice, while the High Priest would confess the sins of the people on the other goat, before it was taken “to a desolate area” (Leviticus 16.22) in the hills of Jerusalem and thrown over a steep ravine. This place where the second goat was taken is referred to as “Azazel” and has been the source of much scholarly debate. Some even say it refers to spirits or demons. However, the most common translation comes from William Tyndale’s 1530 English translation of the Hebrew Bible, who saw “Azazel” as a compound noun meaning “the goat (ez) that was sent away (azal).” This became known as the “escapegoat,” which has morphed into our modern “scapegoat.” But, what is the real purpose of this ritual? The objective of this ritual, on Yom Kippur, is to psychologically heal the collective shame and guilt that often manifests itself on a nation or a community during difficult times. By symbolically taking this animal and verbalizing the mistakes and transgres-sions of the past, and then sending it away, we are given a powerful cathartic tool with which we can cleanse ourselves of shame and find hope in adversity. More im-portantly, it prevents us from looking to our fellow human beings to blame. So, as we navigate our daily lives, try to avoid finding a scapegoat to explain away guilt or misfortune. Instead, remember the Yom Kippur ritual, and take positive steps toward releasing negativity and overcoming difficulties. Rabbi Andrew Bentley

Escaping the Blame Game

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BIRTHDAYS

5/1 Zellah Arrow

5/2 Rosanne Ezer

Todd Lond

Martin Sherman

5/3 Shirley Greenwall

5/4 Sondra Reitman

5/5 Lynn Hannan

5/8 Barbara Jacobs

Roz Roniss

Phyllis Siegel

5/9 Michael Horne

5/10 Harris Weinstein

5/11 Anne Kaplan

Norma Stempler

5/12 Marion Cowle

Robert Livingston

5/13 Terry Blitz

Eric Freedman

5/14 Carol Woodward

5/15 Lynne Livingston

Lorraine Pregozen

5/16 Micki Greenspan

5/17 Philip Becker

5/18 Andrew Kaplan

Mitzie Olshansky

5/19 Steven Alden

William Ferstenfeld

Sally Frank

Andrea Rosenblatt

5/22 Ayala Marks

ANNIVERSARIES

5/1 Howard & Patricia Levy

5/9 Robert & Bonnie Guss

5/13 Eric & Marie Sontz

5/17 Larry & Edward Sogolow

5/19 Dale & Marion Cowle

5/21 Sanford & Sharon Kaplan

5/23 Michelle Hoffman

Ellen Sachs

5/24 Melvin Cohn

Sydelle Kramer

Daniel Levine

5/26 Norman Schweitzer

5/27 Bonnie Guss

Nancy Levine

5/29 Bernard Zemmol

5/31 Nicole Cherlin

Lindsay Goldstein

Reesa Manning

Sam Weiss

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I hope you have all had a wonderful Spring/Passover break. We return to school on Sunday, April 28th and will focus on Yom Ha’Atzmaut (Israel’s Independence Day) Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day) and Tom Ha Zikaron ( Israeli Remembrance Day) in addition to our regular studies. Welcome back to school after a long break! Leslie

Planning and preparing for the Religious

School Model Seder

Leslie Pepper

Director of Education

RELIGIOUS SCHOOL

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DINNER And A

MOVIE Temple Sinai Brotherhood presents:

“YENTL” starring Barbra Streisand

Join us on Thursday, May 9.

Deli dinner from Sherman’s Deli at 5:30, Movie at 6:00

$15.00 Per Person

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I've been gratified to see so many Women of Sinai members turn out for the two focus meet‐ings we've had recently to discuss possible programs for next year. Your ideas will certainly help guide the Board in planning for the 2019‐2020 year. And I have certainly appreciated your support this year that has helped us give $7,500 so far to the Rabbi Avi Levine Religious School, with another $2,500 planned to be donated in June. Please join us on Friday, May 17, at Shabbat services as the 2018‐2019 Board is relieved of of‐fice and the 2019‐2020 Board is installed by Rabbi Bentley. Then join us at the Zimra dinner following services that evening. Elsewhere in this Shofar, you will find the flyer for that eve‐ning, along with a tear‐off to make your reservation with the Temple office. We hope to see many of you. (Please note that the installation luncheon previously scheduled for May 14 will not be held, as installation will be during Shabbat services on May 17.) As I mentioned, we are in the throes of planning for next year. If you have ideas that you'd like to share with our Board, please don't hesitate to send them to me at [email protected].

WOMEN OF SINAI by Reesa Manning, President

BOOK CLUB

The Temple Sinai Book Club will be meeting through the month of July on the 3rd Wednesday of the month at 10:30 am.

Join us on Wednesday May 15th to discuss The Hare With Amber Eyes, by Edmund de Waal

Please contact Sharyn McKee if you have any questions. [email protected]

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GENEROUS DONATIONS

General Fund

ANNIVERSARY

Bob & Picce Glast

By: Bobbie and Shelly Rosenberg

BIRTHDAY

In honor of Jack’s Special Birthday

By: Michele and Alan Krapf

Sheila Cohen

Stephanie Ross


Rosanne and Steve Ezer

Elaine Kravitz

By: Alicia Rodriguez

YAHRZEIT

Goldie Paul

Linda Sue Paul

By: Marv Paul

Tybie Proman

By: Richard Proman

Father’s Yahrzeit

By: Marvin Siegel

Nancy Rothberg

By: Dr. Melvin Glick

Pauline Schreiber

Henry Smolinsky

Miller Drucker

By: Jackie Drucker

Robert Greig

By: Trudi Greig

TZEDAKAH

Kevin Giser

Bobbie and Shelly Rosenberg

Renee and David Zeimer

IN HONOR OF

Bob Glast

By: Marv Paul

MEMORIAL

Barbara Keller

By: David Goldberg

Michael Sachs

By: Kathryn White

Bobbie and Shelly Rosenberg

Howard Hirschfeld

By: Betty and Neil Colt

Mitzie & Jack Olshansky

Betty Lewis Wilson


ONEG SPONSOR

Stephanie and Paul Ross

RABBI’S DISCRETIONARY FUND

IN HONOR OF

Eli and Mitch Gordon (grandchildren)

By: Karol and Myron Gordon

YAHRZEIT

Sally Phillips

By: Phillipa Wagner

RABBI AVI LEVINE RELIGIOUS

SCHOOL FUND MEMORIAL

In memory of Betty Lewis Wilson, mother

of Betty Denebeim

By: Nancy Singer

Stephanie and Paul Ross

Mitzie and Jack Olshansky

Barbara Rosenberg

Fred Fabricant

Stephanie and Marvin Anzel

In memory of Michael Sachs, brother of

Rosanne Ezer

By: Fred Fabricant

Mitzie and Jack Olshansky

In memory of Melissa Kane

By: Fred Fabricant

In memory of Norman Cohen

By: Adrienne Hirschfeld

Birthday

Jack Olshansky’s 90th Birthday

By: Fred Fabricant

Nancy Singer

YAHRZEIT

Mrs. Miriam Ross

By: Stephanie and Paul Ross

CRUVANT LIBRARY FUND BIRTHDAY

Elaine Kravitz

By: Leah and Norman Schweitzer

MITZVAH FOOD BANK FUND TZEDAKAH

Tony Garlock

Robert Schwartz

YAHRZEIT

Ida Sachs

By: Irving Sachs

DOROSHOW RELIGIOUS SCHOOL

FUND YAHRZEIT

Pearl Amdor

By: Judy Egendorf

TZEDAKAH

Gary Levin

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The children did a fantastic job performing their Passover Play for their families. We want to

thank the Jewish Federation for the funds that allow us to have the amazing Mr. David who

accompanied us as we sang songs about the Israelites and how they were able to leave

slavery. One of their favorite songs was about the plagues and being able to throw plastic flies

and frogs on the Pharaoh. On Friday, each class enjoyed a special Seder. They especially en‐

joyed eating the charoset they made with Ms. Dina and finding the afikoman. Be sure to

check out our Facebook page for more pictures.

Jackie Leaney

Director of Tikvah Preschool

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TEMPLE SINAI JUDAICA SHOP

HOURS:

TUESDAY 11—1 & 3—6 WHEN THERE IS

RELIGIOUS SCHOOL

FRIDAY 4:30—5:30

AND BY APPOINTMENT 760– 568‐9699

Cards, Gifts, and Judaica for all Seasons

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From the Melamedet

During this past season Nesa Bland and I had the pleasure to facilitate Perkei Imahot;

The Wisdom of Women gatherings, sponsored by the Women of Sinai. The program was

loosely based on the book written by Rabbi Eve Posner and Lois Sussman Shenker. Once

a month we gathered to study the Perkei Avot (Ethics of the Fathers) and explore what

this beautiful body of writings means to us as women. We kept a written herstory of our

time together, and the following represents one of the topics we addressed.

On Leadership.

Rabbi Shimon taught:

“There are three crowns: The crown of Torah, the crown of priesthood, and the crown of royalty. The crown

of a good name surpasses them all.”

We discussed: What makes a good leader? What is leadership? Is it something big or is it simply a “lollipop

moment?” That is, a moment of reaching out through a simple act of kindness.

We spoke about everyday holiness. Leadership doesn’t have to be anything huge. It could be driving a friend

to the doctor, showing up to help with a task, smiling at someone having a tough day or picking up a piece of

trash.

Although we had more questions than answers, we posed the following questions to each other in exploring

ethical leadership.

1. What kind of qualities does a person need to have the crown of a good name?

2. How do we acquire these qualities?

3. Who in your world, or our world, would you nominate for the crown of a good name?

4. What is the best way to know and teach practical leadership to contemporaries and to adult children?

How do you teach the values you care about most?

5. What is the one leadership quality lesson you value most?

We all agreed on the following qualities: A good leader must care about the people she leads; she must be

judged by the same rules; she must listen to all, she must not lead from too far out front lest she turn around

to discover no one is following; she must have empathy; she must lead by example and have a clear vision

about the direction she wants to take.

Many thanks to all the women who attended and shared their stories and wisdom.

Arava

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CONFIRMATION SERVICE

EREV SHABBAT

MAY 31st, 2019

Rabbi

Avi Levine Leading the service:

Marti Lond

and

Seth Curtin

Mediterranean

feast from Luna

Grill following

the service

$20.00 Adults

$10.00 Children

Please RSVP by Tuesday,

May 28 so that we can order

the correct amount of food

Temple Sinai * 73251 Hovley Lane W. * Palm Desert, CA * 92260 * 760‐568‐9699

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ZIMRA Shabbat

May 17 Join us for a fabulous dinner in the Samson Social Hall at 6:45 P.M.,

immediately following services at 5:30 p.m.

RSVP BY TUESDAY, May 14 SO THAT WE HAVE A GOOD HEAD COUNT

18

Another Perk

Of

Membership

Learn how to use your smart devices!

Pair up with a teen teacher to increase your

ability to use your phones and tablets

Call Bobbie Rosenberg for Details

760-345-6277

may 2019 shofar - shulcloud · shofar torah portions may 2019 may 4—29 nisan ... this means being...

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