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Imagining Shabbat March 2016 Adar I/Adar II 5776 Vol. 42 No. 6 Rethinking the “Other” Imagining This March brings us the Hebrew month of Adar II, which brings us Purim, which brings Shabbat us Haman. The Book of Esther identifies our fa- vorite villain as “Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite.” That is bibli- cal code: It means that Rabbi David Stern Haman is descended from a king named Agag, who himself was descended from the tribe of Amalek. In the Hebrew Bible, the Amalekites are the paradigmatic enemy of the Jewish people, condemned in the Torah for all time for their sneak attack on the weary stragglers in the rear of the Israelite camp. The play- ful Purim custom of drowning out Haman’s name during the reading of the Megillah– with our gragers, by stomping our feet or with lusty boos–is actually a fulfillment of the Torah’s twice-issued command to “blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” Amalek is our tradition’s paradigm of the hateful and destructive other. In Jew- ish culture, we have invoked the name to describe those who have sought to destroy us throughout our history, to inspire vigi- lance in defeating the enemy, and to recall the Torah’s promise that God will always be at war with Amalek throughout the ages. Amalek is a powerful metaphor for the Cover Story Pp. 12-13 non-Jewish other in Torah tradition, but (CONTINUED ON PAGE 5) NEW DATE! • Sunday, September 11 • 11AM The Picnic, a special celebration of our community, has been moved to Sunday, Sept. 11, the first day of Youth Learning + Engagement classes. The fun-filled day will begin at 11AM with a dedication ceremony with Temple and community leaders, followed by music, art, learning, food, children’s activities and more. PURIM Purim Spiel and Carnival Sunday, March 20, Olan Sanctuary 11AM Come in costume and show your appreciation for teachers! Tickets for lunch and carnival games can be purchased at the door. Mac Attack Help the 6th grade Community Movers group collect 600 boxes of macaroni and cheese for Vickery Meadow Food Pantry. Use your donations as gragers for the spiel! Adult Celebration and Dinner Wednesday, March 23 6:30PM Israeli beer tasting 7:15PM Megillah reading followed by adult dinner Cost: $18 Register: participate.tedallas.org/ adultpurim 2 The Window • MARCH 2016 COMMUNITY WRJ World Union Shabbat Expand your Jewish world view at this annual Shabbat sponsored by Women of Reform Judaism. This year’s celebration will feature our friend and guest rabbi from Israel, Rabbi Kinneret Shiryon from our sister congregation, Kehillat Yozma in Modi’in. Friday, March 11 Rabbi Shiryon will speak at the 6:15 and 8:15PM services Saturday, March 12 9AM Rabbi Shiryon will teach Chever Torah SHARING STORIES Clockwise from left: Rabbi Kinneret Shiryon, Rabbi David Stern, Marcia Grossfeld, Jody Platt and Harold Kolni 10:30AM During the Shabbat morning service, Rabbi Stern and members of our community, Marcia Grossfeld, Harold Kolni and Jody Platt, will share reflections of their travels together throughout Central and Eastern Europe in 2015. 12PM Shabbat nosh hosted by WRJ and Q&A with Rabbi Shiryon TEMPLE JOURNEYS 10 Days of Tikkun Olam Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, Oct. 29-Nov. 7 Travel with Rabbi Debra Robbins and Larry Robins as we see, learn and do in a truly unique way. Registration now open! www.arzaworld.com/temple-emanu-el-dallas-tikkun-olam-israel-2016 MARCH 2016 • The Window 3 ANNUAL MEEETING • MARCH 29 • 7PM, LINZ HALL • ELECTION OF BOARD, OFFICERS OFFICIAL INFORMATION and INVITATION 144th ANNUAL MEETING OF TEMPLE EMANU-EL CONGREGATION March 29, 2016 Nominations for Officers and Board of Trustees The Nominating Committee consisted of Edward Stone, Chair; Andrew Gilbert, Eric Goldberg, Gayle Johansen, OriAnn Phillips, Amy Roseman, Joe Rosenfield, Melissa Tone and Julie Weinberg. Serving as ex-officio to this committee were Mark Zilbermann, President, and Mike Sims, First Vice President. In accordance with Article VI, Section 10 of the by-laws of Congregation Temple Emanu-El, the Nominating Committee submits the following nominations for officers and trustees: NEW SLATE The following people are The following people have Brotherhood President being proposed to serve for served the first year of their Thomas Timmons The following people are a second two-year term: first two-year term: being proposed to serve as DAFTY President officers for a one-year term: Flauren Bender Karen Blumenthal Emma Nance Judy Foxman Greg Gerstenhaber President: David Millheiser Micah Jacobs Brotherhood Executive Mark Zilbermann OriAnn Phillips Josh Kahn Vice President Mike Rosen Sarah Kaplan Charles Redden First Vice President: Marc Sachs Bob Krakow Mike Sims Debby Stein Amy Roseman Cemetery Edward Stone Lauren Savariego Julie Bleicher Secretary: Jeff Stone Ladd Hirsch Richard Wasserman Sisterhood President The following past presi- Erin Zopolsky Treasurer: CONTINUING BOARD dents serve on the Board of Mark Kleinman OF TRUSTEES Trustees: We thank the following Vice President: The people listed below are Robert Cohan members who so willingly Chris Cheniae not part of the slate be- Bert Fischel and ably served the congre- Beth Gold cause they are in the middle Larry Ginsburg gation and now depart the Marcia Grossfeld of their term. Their names Suzi Greenman Board of Trustees: Scott Rosuck are listed for your informa- Irwin Grossman Brad Sham tion only, and in order that Bernard Hirsh Bob Behrendt Julie Weinberg you may get a full picture of Harold Kleinman Julie Fields the proposed board. Robin Kosberg Gary Golden Ronald Mankoff Barbara Rosenblatt The following people are Scott McCartney Lindsay Steinberg being proposed to serve for The following people have Stanley Rabin Mary Lee Broder a first two-year term: served the first year of their Bernard Raden Susan Giardina second two-year term: Frank Risch Randy Ratner Jeff Becker Herbert Rosenthal Alan Shor Alex Cohen Sara Albert George Tobolowsky Paul Genender Sheryl Fields Bogen APPOINTMENTS Risa Gross Barbara Einsohn AND DEPARTING * Changes in Board members are Jon Karp Alyssa Fiedelman BOARD MEMBERS subject to organizational elections Amy Kerber Michael Friedman or presidential appointments Nancy Lubar Barbara Hyman The following appointments taking later in the year. Harold Kolni Marty Mintz to the Board of Trustees Judi Ratner Barbara Rabin have been made in ac- Cary Rossel Joe Rosenfield cordance with Article IV, Michael Selz Section 1 of the by-laws Michelle Whitman by virtue of their congrega- Linda Winski tional office*: 4 The Window • MARCH 2016 COMMUNITY (CONTINUED FROM COVER) Rethinking the “Other” he is not our only one. We advice on how to administer of the non-Jewish other in Israel is real, and to deny first meet Amalek in the last justice among the people. our lives–Amalek or Jethro? genuine threats to our exis- verses of Exodus Chapter 17. In a magnificent collision Do we automatically assume tence is no virtue. But the Torah immediately of juxtaposed verses, the that the other is enemy? Or The challenge is to hold follows with a radically con- Torah gives us radically con- do we remain stubbornly the truth of both images in trasting model of the other in trasting models of the other. complacent in the face of our lives and the world. The the opening verses of Exodus The great medieval com- threats to Judaism and the Torah’s complexity invites 18: “Jethro priest of Midian, mentator Abraham Ibn Ezra Jewish people? us to a level of awareness Moses’ father-in-law, heard suggests that the contrast is Especially in an age of po- about our own reflexive as- all that God had done for purposeful–that the Torah in- larization and fear, we are at sumptions, and the risks Moses and for Israel.” Je- troduces Jethro immediately great risk of over-extending they carry if we leave them thro is not only part of the following Amalek to protect the Amalek metaphor: of unexamined. When we make foreign Midianite people, he us against the assumption seeing every outsider as a noise to drown out Haman’s is a Midianite priest–a high that all “others” are as evil threat, every immigrant as name this Purim, perhaps we religious official of another as Amalek. a member of a fifth column, can also blot out the rants of culture. And yet he is a totally Even more, the result of every Muslim as a terrorist. simplistic polemic, and em- sympathetic figure–he prai the collision is a great moral Islamophobia is Amalek con- brace the Torah’s invitation ses God for the redemption and reflective challenge to us: sciousness run amok. But at to be complex moral beings of the Israelites from Egypt, Which do we use (consciously the same time, anti-Semitism in God’s world. and he offers Moses sage or not) as our primary image is real, de-legitimization of MARCH 2016 • The Window 5 WRJ AND WOMEN’S KALLAH Shop Local WRJ Shop Jewish Events Shop Happy WRJ GENERAL MEETING Wednesday, March 16, Judaic Treasures will soon be 11:30AM-1PM, Linz Hall open in our beautiful bou- Meetings are open, social, and not restricted to WRJ members. A tique off the Tycher Gathering complimentary lunch is provided. Space. Look for details of our Grand Reopening celebration STITCHIN’ SISTERS First Tuesdays coming in April. Temple’s gift Tuesdays, March 1, April 1, shop is owned by Women of 6:30-8:30PM, Weisberg Library Reform Judaism and run by DAUGHTERS OF ABRAHAM volunteers, and all proceeds Thursday, March 17, 7-8:30PM directly support Temple events MAS Islamic Center, and scholarships. 1515 Blake Drive, Richardson Topic: Etiquette in Houses of Worship n’s Kallah ual Wome Third Ann oleness lness • Wh Health • Wel “..
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