Ki Tavo September 1, 2018 (Elul 21, 5778)

Service Times Upcoming Events at Dor Tikvah Friday, August 31 Lulav and Etrog orders are due before Rosh Hashana. Place your 7:00 pm - Mincha order by emailing Jonathan Zucker at [email protected], or 6:26 pm – Earliest Candle Lighting calling 843-410-3230. (He will send an invoice for your payment - 7:28 pm – Late Candle Lighting with payment due before pickup of the set.) Sep 2, 7 pm - Sephardi Style Selichot at BSBI Saturday, September 1 9:00 am – Shacharit Sep 10-11 - Rosh Hashana. Email David Rosenberg, (10:07 am – Latest preferable time to say the shema) [email protected], to purchase high holiday honors for 10:00 am – Shabbat Morning Youth Groups yourself or others. 10:30 am – Youth Tefilla Begins Sep 10, 6:10 pm - Greatest Hits of Rosh Hashana. Special Torah Presentation following services by Dovid Sigman Community Events 6:15 pm – Parsha Shiur Sep 3-5: Second Amiel BaKehila visit - responding to crisis 7:00 pm – Mincha around the world. Details for the upcoming Amiel BaKehila trip can 8:23 pm – Havdalah be found on the CJF website. Anyone who would like to host an event for Amiel BaKehila at their home, please contact Davies. Preparing for the Heights: 11:15pm Kumsitz/Inspiration 12:00am Selichot Hebrew Ulpan – Mondays beginning Sep 3rd | 5:30-6:45PM Kiddush/Lunch Sponsor: In addition to her traditional daytime classes, CofC Professor Noa Lenny and Barbie Zucker in memory of Lenny’s father, Max S. Weinberg's once-a-week evening Ulpan classes aim to teach students Zucker at yahrzeit time. how to speak and read Hebrew. It will expect students of all ages to be serious about the enterprise - to do the assigned work on a regular Sept 8 – Available basis, and to come to class each Monday prepared to participate. The Sep 15 – The Arbiv family in honor of the Bar Mitzvah of Yali Amos ulpan classes will be conducted largely in Hebrew, but no previous Akunis background of Hebrew is required to enroll. This immersive course is Sep 22 – Available a first for the Jewish Studies Program, after many years of teaching Hebrew Reading to the community. Sep 24 – Sukkot Day 1 – Available

Sep 25 – Sukkot Day 2 - Available Refuah Shelema Yechil Yeshiahu ben Fradel Boaz Moshe ben Golda Tamar Sep 29 – Available Robert Levinson Moshe ben Chava Oct 1 – Shmini Atzeret – Available Hodel bat Raozel (Linda Kirshstein) Linda Milligan Yehudit Elisheva bat Miriam Leah Shmuel Zalman ben Shoshana Please consider marking a special event in your life by sponsoring a Kiddush. Claret (Kate Kalin Tobakos) Yocheved Koplowitz Contact Lenny Zucker at [email protected]. Regular Kiddush is $150. Laella bat Simcha Zelig Aharon HaLevi ben Miriam Shabbat Academy Kiddush/Lunch is $275. Talia bat Shoshana Valerie Armour

Weekday Services Blooma bat Chaya Sara (Bertha Aryeh Chaim Simcha ben Yael

Mincha/Maariv services Monday and Wednesday Hoffman) Bracha (Teddy Mocle Levine) Miriam bat Mazal Leah Gittel bat Nahama Beryl at 6:00 at Dor Tikvah. Bear Phillips v'Moshe HaCohen (Leah Yisrael ben Chaya Chase) Regular Classes Torah Study – The Avraham Stories – is off for the summer. Life Cycle Anniversary Lunchtime Talmud - Thursdays at noon (with Facebook Live access. Ø Susan & Ben Chase (9/3) Please contact [email protected] with questions.) Yahrzeit Dor Tikvah Youth Programs Ø Nathan Moses Wolper, relative of Nathan Kirshstein (9/1) While the adults are in services, the kids are having fun with our Ø Max Zucker, father of Lenny Zucker (9/4) teen group leaders! Every Saturday, 10:00 AM-12:00 PM Ø Max Kirshstein, father of Nathan Kirshstein (9/5) (Babysitting available from 9:00) More information about our Ø Ludwig Spangenthal, father of Peter Rosenthal (9/7) youth programs is available at www.dortikvah.org/youth Donations In Memory of Thank You! Ø Jerry Zucker by Rose Goldberg Thank You to all those who made our Dedication Weekend and We appreciate all contributions - those of $10 or more will be acknowledged here. the Sunday Event such a Wonderful Success! Anyone with good Contributions in support of CDT, can be made at, DorTikvah.org or by check to photos of the event, please send them to [email protected]. Congregation Dor Tikvah | PO Box 80301 | Charleston, SC 29416

Ki Tavo Rabbi | Aish HaTorah

The story is told of two prisoners condemned to death being held for 6 months in the dungeon of a castle. On the day of execution, the lieutenant leads them down the corridor and up the stairs level by level until they come to the courtyard exit. They are taken to the wall, blindfolded, given their last cigarette and their hands are tied behind their backs. The lieutenant walks back to his firing squad and says, "Ready, aim ..." and one prisoner turns to the other prisoner and says, "Now here's my plan!"

Rosh Hashana is coming (Sunday night, September 9th). It's up to us to make our plans and prepare for it before it's upon us. How do we prepare for Rosh Hashana? First, we have to focus on the essence of Rosh Hashana -- it is the time for us to recognize and accept the Almighty as a reality in our lives.

The Mussaf davening (the second part of the morning service in the Shemoneh Esray -- the Amidah, the Standing Prayer) we focus on Malchios (Kingship), Zichronos (Remembrance) and Shofros (Shofar blasts). These focus on three aspects of our relationships with the Almighty: 1) He is the Sovereign of the world -- He created it, directs it, interacts with history. 2) He remembers the covenant with our forefathers, our deeds and administers justice to us 3) His Presence is manifest throughout history -- i.e. the shofar blast at the giving of the 10 Commandments to the shofar blast of the final redemption. The Shofar is to wake up and to take action.

For many of us it is difficult to relate to G-d. Our society gives lip service to G-d, but we really have little understanding of G-d -- of how He relates to us and the world. It is difficult to feel His presence or understand His role in our lives -- we may not even know that deep down that we really believe in G-d.

If you are unsure and would like to demonstrate to yourself that you believe in G-d, then ask yourself these questions: 1) Did you ever pray? 2) Were your prayers ever answered? (most everybody says "yes") 3) What did you do to "bribe" G-d to answer your prayer? (In truth, one can't bribe G-d with anything; G-d has no needs. He doesn't need our prayers or our praises. Actually, prayer is to change us, not Him.) 4) If you didn't do anything to "bribe" G-d, then G-d did it just for you -- does that mean that G-d loves you? Most people are able to appreciate the concept and accept it.

There are two ways to gain an understanding of G-d -- intellectual and emotional. For information on the existence of G-d you can listen to or download "Evidence of G-d's Existence" by Rav (the founder and head of Aish HaTorah and my teacher) at AishAudio.com or purchase it from 800-864-2373. You can also buy Permission to Believe by Lawrence Kelemen.

However, even if one has sufficient intellectual reason to believe in G-d, he still has to interact with G-d on an emotional level to have a relationship. To make G-d real to you, you need to take what you know by intellect and make it an emotional reality. G-d is not a computer to input data or get a read-out. G-d is our Father in Heaven Who loves us and wants good for us.

How can you work on your relationship with G-d? It is an old Jewish custom to take walks and talk with G-d, to commune with G-d. You can talk to G-d, pray, pour your heart out. It's a lot easier to do this when, unfortunately, there is a tragedy going on in one's life. One has to treat G-d as a reality to feel G-d as a reality. If one focuses on the many blessings in his life, it is easy to feel G-d's love. There is no better book to help you develop gratitude to the Almighty than Rabbi 's Thank You -- and no better book to feel the Almighty's presence than Rabbi Pliskin's My Father, My King.

Soon the "lieutenant" will be coming to escort us to the Rosh Hashana services. Hopefully, you'll be ready not with an escape plan in hand, but a plan for connection, for commitment, for growth. A sweet and healthy year to you and your family!