Congregation B'nai Harim
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Congregation B’nai Harim Children of the Mountains Congregation B’nai Harim, P.O. Box 757, Pocono Pines, PA 18350/ (570) 646-0100 http://www.bnaiharimpoconos.org NEWSLETTER OCTOBER 2018/ VOLUME 24, ISSUE 10 RABBI’S MESSAGE - OCTOBER 2018 The Sukkot season that just passed is one during which we reflect on the fragility of life and on its bounty. Watching the sukkah construction crew at work made me think of Abraham Lincoln’s saying, “a house divided against itself cannot stand.” We were a house-committee united and our sukkah withstood wind and rain and stayed reasonably intact. It didn’t take a village, just a good-sized group of people with a goal. Rabbi Peg Kershenbaum I recently read a wonderful tribute to a family group that had a goal. Our Weinberger family and the rest of their “clan” share a love of Israel and a deep motivation to honor the memory of Ruth and Saul Weinberger. (You may recall that our sanctuary is named after Saul Weinberger). They decided to pool their resources in order to donate an ambucycle to Hatzalah. An ambucycle, as the name suggests, is a motorcycle equipped with life-saving equipment that can be used very effectively to get to the site of an emergency despite road congestion. I’m sharing the trib- ute with permission of Larry Weinberger as spokesperson for his whole family. But I’m doing this to entice others to think what they might be able to accomplish along with families or friends. We are, after all, part of something bigger than ourselves. “Your ambucycle, donated in loving memory of Ruth & Saul Weinberger, is on the road and racing to people's aid in the fastest time possible. It has been assigned to Moshe Fromm of Ganei Tikva, a veteran United Hatzalah medic. “Just yesterday at about 6:30 PM, Moshe had left work and was on his way to do some shop- ping when he was alerted to a man with severe shortness of breath. Already on your ambucycle, Moshe flicked on the red lights and siren and raced through the rush hour traffic to arrive at the ad- dress in an incredible 60 seconds! Grabbing his medical kit from the compartment, he ran into the home and found a 91 year-old man struggling to breathe. The agitated family members were astounded and relieved at the medic's rapid response. “Although administering oxygen to the gasping patient may have seemed the obvious thing to do, the experienced medic was well aware that unnecessary O2 can actually cause harm. Moshe swiftly checked the man's blood oxygen level first, finding it within normal range. The volunteer then took a full set of vital signs, reassured the gentleman and inquired of the man's medical history from the family. As Moshe found no indications of serious illness, the seasoned medic surmised that the man's general unwell feeling had apparently caused him physical distress which had then snow- balled into a full-blown panic attack. “Moshe spoke in a calm yet confident manner, explaining to the elderly gentleman that his self-induced hyperventilation was probably the cause of his acute symptoms. The medic gently guid- ed the man in relaxation breathing techniques which slowly improved his condition. Although the man was feeling much better by the time the ambulance arrived, the anxious patient insisted on be- ing taken to the hospital. Moshe briefed the crew, helped transfer the man to the ambulance and wished him a full recovery. “The family profusely thanked the volunteer medic for his swift arrival and professional, car- ing treatment. Moshe bid them a good evening, hopped back on your ambucycle and drove off to begin his delayed shopping. “May the wonderful lifesaving activities performed by this ambucycle be a great merit for Ruth & Saul Weinberger, as well as for the entire Weinberger family.” And may this example inspire others to build something that will last. PAGE ONE/B’NAI HARIM PRESIDENT’S2 MESSAGE - OCTOBER 2018 by Meredith Stempel I would like to thank all past presidents for the superb job they have done. Having been a member of Con- gregation B’nai Harim almost from the very beginning I’ve witnessed the hardships and adversity you have endured and overcome. I know that at times it seemed like a thankless, frustrating position but know that you were and continue to be greatly appreciated. The building of the temple began with very modest plans: a donation of land and a relatively small budg- et. Thereafter it ballooned to several times the original budgeted amount with land that we had to pur- chase. One mortgage became two when it was learned that the rules changed and that commercial property had to have a paved parking lot. Despite what at times seemed like insurmountable obstacles, B’nai Harim persevered and grew. There were attempts to block the building of the temple. The township declared that there was an endangered spe- cies on B’nai Harim’s land. Just as we were about to hold our first High Holiday services the certificate of occupancy was delayed. You may ask -- and I’ve asked myself -- how I became president of Congregation B’nai Harim. The an- swer is very reminiscent of a childhood game: Tag, you’re it. RABBI GERSHOM SIZOMU’S VISIT Rabbi Gershom Sizomu spoke to members of Congregation B’nai Ha- rim and the community at 7 p.m. on August 22, 2018. He is the first native -born black rabbi in Sub-Saharan Af- rica, the chief Rabbi of Uganda and the first Jewish member of the Ugan- dan Parliament. He is the leader of the Abayudaya Jewish community, a 100-year-old community of approxi- mately 2,000 Jews who live among their Christian and Muslim neighbors in scattered villages in Eastern Uganda. He is a Senior Rabbinic associate at Be’chol Lashon, an American NGO that partners with the Abayudaya to improve health and economic devel- opment. Improved healthcare and community development provided by Rabbi Gershom Sizomu, Rabbi Peg Kershenbaum and Mark Silverberg. the Abayudaya Jews to their Christian and Muslim neighbors fosters good- will and helps combat anti-Semitism. A focus on interfaith cooperation paved the way for Rabbi Sizomu’s election to the Ugandan Parliament. Dr. David Abramowitz, founder of the Dental Clinic in Nabugoye Village, met Rabbi Sizomu when he established the clinic and they became friends. When Rabbi Sizomu visits the U.S. he sometimes visits Dr. Abramowitz and this time when he visited David and Lori he said he would be happy to meet with all of us. We all enjoyed meeting him and hearing about his congregation. CALLING ALL WHO LIKE TO SING OUR CHOIR NEEDS YOU! You don't have to know the words or the music. All you have to know is that your voice is im- portant. We rehearse once a month and sing during the next service. Even if you don't want to sing in a group during services, come sing together at practice! Choir Practice: Oct. 20, Nov. 17 and Dec. 15th Choir Warm-Up: Oct. 13 and Oct. 27th PAGE TWO/B’NAI HARIM HAVE WE MADE IT? by George Novick Listening to Joe Lieberman’s eulogy for John McCain, I was struck by a strange feeling. Was the former Senator, Vice Presidential candidate in 2000 and potential candidate in 2008 telling us that it was possible to be an Orthodox Jew and hold high political office at the same time? Can these two seeming- ly divergent items be one? Evidently yes. Following Senator Lieberman was Henry Kissinger, a wielder of great power as Secretary of State in the Nixon and Ford cabinet. Kissinger is a non-religious Jew but still a Jew. Evidently it was okay for Jews to have extraordinary governmental and international power. Does this mean we have finally made it? Most American Jews born after the 1950s would answer that they are fully assimilated into our soci- ety. No position of power and trust is unattainable to them. I want to believe that my children and grand- children are and will continue to be an accepted part of society. I hope that our nearly 250 year experi- ment in democracy has done for us what we hoped it would. I want to believe it. HOW ABOUT YOU? TIKKUN OLAM by Steven Levine A special “thank you” to all our Temple members who schlepped shopping bags filled with food for our Kosher Food Pantry. I personally want to thank Jerry Goodstein for all his efforts in gleaning the shopping bags and delivering the foodstuff to the Food Bank in Scranton. The latest statistics show that unfortunately, the amount of homeless, vets, and needy in Monroe County has increased again this year. There is a desperate need for warm sweaters, pants, jackets and socks, especially for children since their numbers have grown substantially. B’nai Harim is a station for RSVP’s HUGS (hats, clean underwear, gloves and scarves) Program and for the Mat Makers Program. Now it is most important that you add clothing to your plastic bag donations. Operation Chillout works diligently, dispersing these items to all those in need here in Monroe County and at Federation. Remember, as the weather gets colder the need gets greater. NETTING IT OUT by Honi Gruenberg Rabbi discussed our connections to Jews worldwide in one of her many wonderful ser- mons over the holidays. I’ll bet that you don’t know that you have a connection to the oldest continuously used synagogue in the Western Hemisphere.