A Real Shanah Tovah
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
$1.00 WWW.5TJT.COM !veu,nu vcuy vba VOL. 6 NO. 51 29 ELUL 5766 SEPTEMBER 22, 2006 INSIDE Yamim Nora’im Liturgy Cantor Bernard Beer 22 The Countdown Is Over Hannah Reich Berman 34 Matchmaking Michele Herenstein 38 Cooking Concepts Naomi Ross 39 MindBiz Esther Mann, LMSW 46 A Letter To Shulamith Rabbi Moshe Zwick 54 School Bus Fiasco Larry Gordon 55 15-Minute Chef Jaime Geller 57 Little Mitzvahs Irwin H. Benjamin 59 Aliyah Chronicle Shmuel Katz 62 Back To Normal Rav Aryeh Z. Ginzberg 67 Tashlich In Uman by C.H. Nathan. This and other Judaica works are available at www.judaicartexchange.com The Monsey FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK THIS YEAR LET’S Chicken Scandal And BY LARRY GORDON STOP BEING Fistel–Pack wedding. Timtum HaLeiv RELIGIOUS See Simcha Gallery A Real Shanah Tovah Pages 76–77 BY YAIR HOFFMAN BY GAVRIEL ARYEH DEAN, TIFERET CHAYA HIGH SCHOOL What a year this was, filled length about our going to SANDERS with ups and downs, joys and shul to “say selichos.” Selichos The Monsey treif chicken sorrows, triumphs, and— means forgiveness, and cer- As we approach Rosh scandal has shocked religious unfortunately—defeats. But tainly it is not we who are Hashanah, many of us start to Jews across the New York aren’t they all like that? Isn’t doing the forgiving, but rather think more seriously about our Metropolitan area. The extent this how life utilizes this tool it is we who are using the religious practices and com- of the damage is still unclear. called time, swinging it round ability to speak to beseech mitments. We might attend a Was it going on for just six and round sometimes like a and try to eloquently reason class, read a book, get tickets months, or was it much pendulum and other times like with the One Above so that for High Holy Day services, or longer? How many places nothing less than a sledge- He forgive us as the old year schedule ourselves for a fami- were affected? Was that cha- hammer? As we head into dissolves and we reboot every- ly or singles conference that sunah in Monsey that we Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish thing about ourselves with includes the holidays. Daily minyan at Woodmere attended a year ago serving New Year, we do so with vigor promises and wishes to once This year, I want to propose Rehab. See Page 48 treif food? Did my kid’s camp and confidence after a week of again start anew. a revolutionary thought (hold order from this guy? early-morning selichos, a sta- Selichos is not a magic for- on to your gefilte fish!). Let’s CANDLE LIGHTING But perhaps the most ple of our annual calendar. mula pieced together by our resolve to stop being religious. Sept. 22 – 6:34 PM pressing question is, How bad The other night at Yeshiva sages that if used in the cor- In fact, let’s resolve to stop Sept. 29 – 6:22 PM Darchei Torah, Rav Matis- Continued on Page 9 yahu Salomon spoke at some Continued on Page 6 Continued on Page 12 2 September 22, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES September 22, 2006 3 4 September 22, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES September 22, 2006 5 FROM THE EDITOR work, somehow tefillah does not func- Continued from Front Cover tion quite that way. And who knows— perhaps it did work with some effec- rect proportions automatically exacts tiveness years ago when as a communi- forgiveness from G-d for whatever ty we were still in the process of flee- needs forgiving. Neither is it some- ing for our physical as well as spiritual thing that we can “speed hum” our way lives from the consuming flames of through and expect some magical Europe and World War II. Maybe combination of words to produce the then, while we were still catching our outcome we desire. The same is true of collective breaths as people escaped the Psalms we recite on a regular the clutches of the destruction that so basis, whether it is because someone many experienced, we could simply we know is not well or because of the put on a tallis and press those davening situation in Israel. In fact, the buttons, and that would be sufficient. Rambam observes that anyone who I think, though, that we’ve graduated We are a manifestation of His will and we are, in a sense, His agents on earth, here to implement a Divine plan that preceded creation itself. believes that reciting Psalms alone will from that and, whether we like it or help alleviate a difficult or complicated not, we live in times that some of that situation is completely mistaken. feeling of old should have returned According to these respected commen- and we need to put more of ourselves taries, what selichos and the words of into the effort we will be exerting over David HaMelech do is to provide you Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. with the prose and poetry that, if used In Psalm 51, David HaMelech with sincerity and meaning, can assist expresses with unusual clarity the rela- you in scaling the heavens in search of tionship between those of us who pray Divine mercy. and The One we pray to and Who con- Even though we live in times where trols everything in the world at large all you have to do is press a button on and, at the same time, our miniature something and it is supposed to do its personal worlds. But does Hashem, 6 September 22, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES who is all-knowing and all-giving, gen- therefore, does not need our Temple uinely need to hear our prayers? Does sacrifices or the checks we write at all He need our sacrifices or the charity the breakfasts and other receptions. we give in order to allow us to tweak Certainly those good deeds are neces- His system? David HaMelech says in sary cogs in the machinery of life and that Psalm, “For You do not desire a an opportunity to effectively emulate sacrifice, otherwise I would give it; a the ways of our Creator. What Rosh burnt offering You do not want.” And Hashanah is about, however, is dealing he continues: “The sacrifices—the with our thought processes and our offerings—that Hashem wants is a intentions when doing those and other spirit that is broken, a heart broken things to help fulfill His great plan. and humbled…” And in our very mate- In one single day earlier this week, rial and physical world, that can be while running around meeting with quite a difficult thing to achieve. people and overseeing the production That difficulty is precisely what we of this issue of the paper, I also attend- fight and try to overcome in our daily ed a b’ris early in the morning, a funer- lives. We pray and seek to overcome al in the afternoon, and a sheva bera- poverty and sadness, that they give way chos party for a new couple that very to hope and joy accompanied by pros- same evening. The emotion of the day perity. But what about the compatibil- should have been enough to pull just ity of having our prayers answered and about anyone apart. At the conclusion being able to achieve an appropriate of the day, it occurred to me that this level of humility? This may speak to day represented the essence of the the very essence and purpose of cre- month of Elul and the very fabric of ation and of Rosh Hashanah, which what Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur marks the two days on which we can are about at their core. The heart and accomplish getting the good start we soul of our prayers on these days is the need to keep ourselves anchored while poetic reflection on being the unpre- reaching new heights. dictable recipients of the will of Additionally, I’ve always felt that it’s Hashem. The liturgy states: “On Rosh important to understand—especially at Hashanah will be inscribed and on Yom this time of year—that Hashem really Kippur will be sealed: how many will doesn’t need us, but it is we who need pass from the earth and how many will Him. We are here on this planet be created; who will live and who will amidst these extraordinary surround- die; who by water and who by fire; who ings because He desired that it be this by sword and who by beast. Who will way. We are a manifestation of His will rest and who will wander, who will live and we are, in a sense, His agents on in harmony and who will be harried…” earth, here to implement a Divine plan We frustrate ourselves and extend that preceded creation itself. It should not surprise anyone that Hashem, Continued on Page 8 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES September 22, 2006 7 FROM THE EDITOR Continued from Page 7 ourselves to assign our pedestrian logic P.O. BOX 690 LAWRENCE, NY 11559 to Hashem’s Divine wisdom. How can 516-984-0079 [email protected] we know or even come close to under- [email protected] standing His ways? We frequently LARRY GORDON delude and convince ourselves into Publisher/Editor believing that both Hashem and we ESTA J. GORDON think alike. There was once a chasid Managing Editor who came to his Rebbe to ask him to YOSSI GORDON help the chasid understand things that Director of Sales were happening to him.