Rabbi's Message
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JANUARY 2015 TEVET / SHEVAT 5775 CONTENTS RABBI’S MESSAGE What’s Judaism Got to Say RABBI’S MESSAGE 1 about That? Rabbi Daniel Cotzin Burg PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVE 3 Most Jews know that Judaism has a strong tradition of CONGREGATION questioning. We question everything from the temperature at LEARNING 4 which metal becomes sufficiently heated as to alter its kosher status to the very nature of God. But that doesn’t mean all IFO, Inc. 5 questions are good questions. In fact some questions are “so UPCOMING stupid as to put an end, at least briefly, to all discussion.” So EVENTS 7* writes Michael Wex in his 2005 book Born to Kvetch. Wex explains the concept of the klots kashe, literally a “wooden beam CALENDARS 11 question:” Most Jewish people who are even vaguely observant are COMMUNITY familiar with the term kasha from the Passover seder, where the NEWS 14 term fir kashes, four questions, is still used for the questions that CONTRIBUTIONS 16 the youngest child recites at the beginning of the seder ritual. As anybody who has ever attended a seder can tell you, it can EUTAW PLACE 17 take hours to get from the fir kashes to the meal, hours spent in answering these questions. FUND A klots kasha is the antithesis of this sort of question...It’s…a DESIGNATION 19 stupid question with pretensions...Imagine a group of history professors discussing the Exodus from Egypt or the Civil War when one of them asks, ‘But is slavery necessarily bad for the *throughout bulletin slaves?’ (pg. 42-43) In the strictest sense the question “What’s Judaism got to say about that?” isn’t a klots kashe; it’s not pretentious. But it’s most often an unhelpful question, one that conflates two common misunderstandings about Judaism. First, to imply that “Judaism” is a monolithic thing with singular answers to complex questions is to assign too much dogma to a largely US non-dogmatic religion. We all know the expression “two Jews ON three opinions.” Ours is a robust and ever-unfolding tradition facebook.com/ with competing ideas and centuries upon centuries of recorded BethAmBaltimore debates. “Judaism” infrequently says one thing. continued on page 6 BETH AM BOARD OF TRUSTEES Rabbi Daniel Cotzin Burg Standing Committees Adult Ed Chair Elaine Weiss Officers Adult Ed Co-Chair Carla Rosenthal President Scott Zeger Finance Chair Alan Kopolow 1st Vice President Julie Gottlieb Finance Co-Chair Joe Wolfson 2nd Vice President Lynn Sassin House Chair Sam Polakoff Treasurer Alan Kopolow Kiddush Chair Meg Hyman Secretary Elaine Weiss Membership Chair Sharon Nathanson Membership Co-Chair Robin Katcoff Trustees through 2015 Religious Services Chair Joe Wolfson Alyson Bonavoglia Social Action Chair Arthur Shulman Eliza Feller Social Action Co-Chair Jackie Donowitz Cheri Levin Youth Education Chair David Lunken David Lunken Ad Hoc Committees Trustees through 2016 Annual Fund Honorary Chair Gil Sandler Neil Kahn Annual Fund Chair Ricky Fine Cindy Paradies Annual Fund Vice Chair Jim Jacobs Desiree Robinson Balt. Jewish Council Rep. Ben Rosenberg Jim Schwartz Beth Am Connection Joanne Katz Risa Jampel Trustees through 2017 BAYITT Chair Brian Ross David Demsky Congregant to Congregant Joyce Keating Risa Jampel Eutaw Place Ellen Kahan Zager Ashley Pressman Jack Zager Naomi Rosner In, For and Of Lisa Akchin Maggi Gaines Past Presidents and Life Members Marketing Chair Ellen Spokes Past President Cy Smith Operations Co-Chair Ashley Pressman Past President Jack Lapides Operations Co-Chair David Demsky Honorary Life Member Lainy LeBow-Sachs Res. Hill Improvement Council Carol Shulman Honorary Life Member Efrem Potts Office Hours Rabbi Daniel Cotzin Burg Tuesday-Thursday: 9:00-4:00 443.202.0912 (cell) (emergencies only, please) Friday: 9:00-3:00 [email protected] Office Contact Extentions: Cantor Ira Greenstein Tel: 410.523.2446 / Fax: 410.523.1729 443.759.7807 (home) Extensions: Rabbi Daniel Burg - 14 [email protected] Rabbi Gludt - 15 Henry Feller, Exec. Dir. - 20 Rabbi Kelley Gludt, Director of Linda Small, Senior Staff and Congregational Learning Development Coordinator - 12 520.248.9541 (cell) Ralph Shaver, Finance Manager -18 [email protected] Norm Weinstein, Bookkeeper - 17 Marsha Blank, Educ. Admin - 16 Henry Feller, Executive Director Idella Crenshaw, Admin. Specialist and [email protected] Assistant to the Rabbi - 21 443.742.9654 (cell) (emergencies only, please) Nakia Davis, Front Office Coordinator - 11 Valerie Tracy, Marketing Coordinator- 10 Scott L. Zeger, Board President Sandy Winters, Ritual Coordinator: 410.868.7761 410-598-6397 [email protected] Office E-mail: In case of an emergency, please contact: Email: [email protected] Henry Feller, Executive Director Web site: www.bethambaltimore.org 443.742.9654 (cell) 2 3 PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVE Scott Zeger ‘American Judaism is going to change over forward. And, thanks to the past leaders the next few decades,’ Potts says. ‘I’m not sure for whom ownership translated into action. how or what it will look like. But I believe Your wise decisions, especially in times of that 40 years from now, Beth Am will be crisis, have been honest and true. going strong.’ Thanks to the lineage of talented lay - Baltimore Sun, Synagogue Marks Birth, and professional clergy starting with Rebbe page 1, December 16, 2014. Louis L. Kaplan and Cantor Abba Weisgal One does well in life by betting with and continuing to this day with Rabbi Efrem and Debbie Potts. Forty years ago, Daniel Cotzin Burg, Cantor Ira Greenstein they predicted we would celebrate Beth and Rabbi Kelley Gludt. Beth Am was Am’s fortieth anniversary on Shabbat founded as a learning community. You keep Hanukkah, 2014 and you now know how that tradition alive and well. that turned out. And now, thank you to the many people I write from the beach at Guanacaste, who made the 40th anniversary celebration Costa Rica where the news of the Beth a success. Before I could even ask, Ellen Am bash has just arrived. Joanne, Max, Spokes nominated herself and Adina Amith David and I are enjoying a family reunion to plan and execute the Shabbat Hanukkah with 20 Zegers, keeping alive a tradition celebration. Everything that happened: the that my grandmother Yetta started in the video, Friday night Kabbalat Shabbat and Catskills 60 years ago. We regret missing shared dinners at home, Shabbat services the Saturday events but have the date for and luncheon and the celebration dinner/ Beth Am’s 50th on the calendar now. dance were planned and led by their Thank yous are now in order. committee. Some have asked me whether Thanks to the founding generation, we are losing our “do-it-yourself” tradition. many of whom plotted Beth Am’s formation Ellen, Adina, and the dozens of volunteers 40 years ago. The easy move was to get out who made the weekend a huge success of town. But in the activist tradition of the demonstrates what we are still made. day, you said, “hell no, we won’t go”. The Thanks to theCampaign for Beth Am Baltimore Jewish community and Reservoir committee chaired by Lainy LeBow-Sachs Hill are better for your decision. and Cy Smith who raised the funds to Thanks to the membership that has support the 40th celebration where we supported and nurtured Beth Am in the kicked off the public phase of the first intervening period. This congregation is capital campaign in our history. This only as strong as the sense of ownership you campaign is an opportunity for members feel for Jewish living in Baltimore. During and others to invest in the quality of clergy all the ups and downs, you have exercised and programming in the magnificent Sperry your ownership and kept Beth Am moving building to assure the 80th anniversary is continued on page 6 3 CONGREGATIONAL LEARNING Rabbi Kelley Gludt Spring has arrived! It may not seem experiment and discovery, an expedition like the season of renewal and rebirth here where the learners undertake a journey in Baltimore, but we Jews celebrate our of knowledge, instead of being led there holidays tied to the land of our people, by others. If done correctly, the process and that means the time has come for the also includes a synthesis of newfound New Year of the Trees! knowledge, skills and ways of thinking. The 15th of Shevat, known in Hebrew Experiential education provides an as Tu B’Shevat, celebrates the beginning effective and useful learning method that of the fruit crop in Israel and corresponds is engaging, compelling and lots of fun— this year to February 4. It reminds us of very Beth Am! our physical bond with the land given to Judaism lends itself amazingly well to us by God, and the obligations that come experiential education. Whether lighting along with it, including tithing. Spiritually, the Hanukkah candles, reenacting Tu B’Shevat echoes our people’s survival receiving the Torah at Sinai during through difficult days to once again flower Shabbat services, poring through the and bear fruit. Haggadah, or dwelling in a Sukkah, we To commemorate this holiday some Jews employ this educational technique all people plant a tree, donate to the Jewish year round. Tu B’Shevat is no exception! National Fund, learn how to be more The many ways to celebrate this holiday ecologically minded, or attend a Tu all incorporate this approach to education, B’Shevat seder, all experiential ways to including eating some new fruit, actively observe the day. helping the environment, or sharing a Experiential education is the seder. I encourage you and your families “learning by doing” school of thought, an not to miss this wonderful opportunity to educational philosophy which creates an learn for ourselves and from ourselves! The active and engaging learning experience experience promises to be a valuable one.