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April 2017 Bulletin

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April 2017 Bulletin Ohavay Zion Synagogue Bulletin 2048 Edgewater Court Lexington, Kentucky 40502 859-266-8050 Nisan/Iyar 5777 April 2017 http://www.ozs.org Community Yom HaShoah Commemoration "Letters After Liberation" Jewish Federation of the Bluegrass presents the community Yom HaShoah Commemoration Sunday, April 23 - 10:15AM at TAI. The program will include a reading and discussion of Holocaust survivors' letters to family after the liberation, a memorial candle lighting, and presentation of the Emilie Szekely Writing Project winning compositions. For more information, contact Rabbi Sharon Cohen at [email protected]. Community Yom HaAtzmaut Celebration Celebrate Israel's Independence Day with Lexington's Jewish community Sunday, April 30 - 12:30PM at OZS. This year's festival will include activities and educational pieces for all ages, including music, games, an Israel quiz, vegetarian Israeli street food by Izzy's Kosher Catering, interactive exhibits, and much more! Contact Tamara for more information at [email protected]. FROM THE RABBI Spring has arrived, and with it the holiday of our redemption: Passover. Please join us at OZS for our services this year: Tuesday, April 11th at 9:30am Monday, April 17th at 9:30am, with Yizkor The idea of freedom, of redemption from oppression, is so central to Judaism that it comes up several times a day in our prayers. Thank God, we were freed from bondage in Egypt. And may God similarly redeem us in the future. But this redemption, whether past or future, not just for us. Part of the Passover story, perhaps a part that is not emphasized nearly enough, is the idea that when our ancestors left Egypt, they were not alone. Others joined them. There were non-Israelites that made the choice to join our people as we left the oppression of Egypt. We were not alone. Central to Judaism’s idea of a redeemed world is the idea that the redemption is not just for us, it is available for everyone. Whether someone is Jewish or not, we can join together in the dream and the actualization of a world freed from oppression. Certainly, there were people that stayed in Egypt. According to our tradition, there were both descendants of Jacob and Egyptians who were not ready for a new reality and wished to remain. But for those that wanted to take a chance, for those that dreamed of freedom, there was an opportunity to join in. Many of us have folks that are not Jewish at our Passover Seders. We welcome others to join us in thinking about freedom, and we can wonder if they would have joined us during the Exodus. At the same time, perhaps this Passover we can think about other groups in our society and our world who are in need of freedom, in need of redemption from oppression. We should love the stranger for we were strangers in the land of Egypt. (Leviticus 19:34, Deuteronomy 10:19) We have had our share of discrimination and oppression, this year may we work toward embrace and love for ourselves and for everyone. Wishing you a meaningful and joyous Passover! Rabbi Moshe Smolkin Shabbat Services: April 2017 March 31 April 1 April 7 April 8 Emilie Tackett’s Shabbat - 9:30AM Shabbat at Home w/ Shabbat - 9:30AM Bat Mitzvah 5:30PM Vayikra Family & Friends Tzav Emilie Tackett’s Bat Mitzvah Birthday Aliyah April 14 April 15 April 21 April 22 Shabbat at Home w/ Shabbat - 9:30AM Kids Shabbat 5:30PM Shabbat - 9:30AM Family & Friends Shemini April 28 April 29 Kaballat Shabbat Shabbat - 9:30AM w/ Stewart Home 5:30PM Tazria-Metzora Selling Chametz In addition to the Passover prohibition against eating Chametz, there is also a prohibition against owning or benefiting from Chametz. Traditionally, our people have handled this by selling all of our Chametz, renting the properties on which Chametz is found, and renting our animals who eat Chametz. Buyers of Chametz were historically known for making their down payment ($1 this year for the whole amount), however they consistently seemed to default on the total balance due at the conclusion of Passover, and as such, they end up owning the Chametz only during the holiday itself. Thus, after Passover was over, the sellers would once again own their Chametz. We may assume this will be the case this year as well. With the following form, OZS invites you to participate in the Mitzvah of Selling Chametz. Please fill out the bottom and return to OZS via mail or email by 10:00 a.m. on the 14th of Nisan 5777, April 10, 2017. Form Authorizing the Sale of Chametz 5777/2017 We the undersigned, whether by our own hand or by authorization, give permission to Rabbi Moshe Smolkin to sell any and all Chametz and Chametz mixtures which belong to us or are in our possession Erev Pesach 5777 and also any and all Chametz which might come into our possession during Passover and any and all food which might become Chametz during Passover in our homes or at any of our properties. We also give permission to Rabbi Smolkin to rent all our properties with their vessels and utensils, that the buyer might have access to the purchased Chametz, and to rent all our animals, that we not benefit from their being fed Chametz. We agree to allow Rabbi Smolkin to treat the entire amount due to us from the buyer as a debt, with the buyer taking ownership and responsibility even before the balance is paid. When and if the balance owed to us shall be paid, it is agreed that each of us will receive the value of our sold Chametz and rented property. To indicate our acceptance of these terms, we have affixed our names and the date. Mindful of the tradition of giving charitable contributions in preparation of Passover, we are asked to make a contribution to Ohavay Zion Synagogue. Name: Date: PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Passover season marks a time to relive the story of our people’s escape from slavery in Egypt. The Haggadah says we should take part in the seder as if the escape to freedom was happening to us now. We were once slaves, but now we’re free. This year the world is witnessing the largest outpouring of refugees since post World War II. Many Jews can still recall relatives and friends turned away from safe countries during the fearful times of the Nazi Reich. In times of fear, bigotry and cruelty to others, darkness can seem insurmountable. However, in darkness, there is also an opportunity for light. The great Persian poet Rumi says that in the cracks of imperfection the light can come in. When the Lexington mosque (Masjid Bilal Ibn Rabah) experienced a bomb threat last month, our OZS Board signed a letter of support to their congregation. Rabbi Smolkin hand delivered and read it to them after their prayer service on Friday. I was there to witness the outpouring of warmth and gratitude by the congregants who appreciated being treated by us with kindness and dignity. Last Sunday our shul hosted an Interfaith Triologue of Christians, Muslims and Jews. We hoped that up to 150 would attend, but 180 showed up and we put out extra chairs. Rabbi Smolkin participated in a two hour panel discussion with Bruce Caldwell, the Bishop of the Episcopal diocese, and Dr Aiyub Palmer, UK professor of Islamic studies on the caliber of a spiritual Ted Talk. It was heartening to experience that when diverse faiths meet face to face, there is an opportunity for understanding and tolerance. Thank you, Rabbi Smolkin, for leading the way. On Monday evening 7:30 p.m. April 24 at the Kentucky Theater there will be a showing of Disobedience: The Sousa Mendes Story, in conjunction with our community’s commemoration of Yom Hashoah. Sousa Mendes was a Portuguese diplomat who risked his life to save countless Jews. Michael Rie, a member of our Jewish community, is here today because of Sousa Mendes’ great courage. As a righteous gentile, Sousa Mendes deserves praise and honor. I encourage everyone to see this film. Hag Sameach to one and all! Kathy Grossman MONTHLY THOUGHTS FROM THE RELIGIOUS COMMITTEE Kabbalat Shabbat: The Friday Night Synagogue Service, part 6 As Siddur Lev Shalem beautifully puts it: “Having entered Shabbat with the recitation of Psalm 92 [the Psalm for Shabbat], creation is now complete. It is with rest, peace, and this sense of completion that God can be seen as sovereign,” an idea encapsulated in the final Psalm of the Kabbala Shabbat service, Psalm 93, Adonai malach gei-ut lavesh (Adonai is sovereign, robed in splendor). This short psalm affirms that God is eternal and reigns over all. At OZS we usually begin singing with the second half, “Mi-kolot mayim rabim,” describing how God is more powerful than the vast energies of nature: “Above the roar of the vast sea and the majestic breakers of the ocean, Adonai stands supreme in the heavens.” The psalm ends with the assertion that not only does God exist forever, but also God’s teachings. We sing these final two lines to a melody I have not yet identified, but is quite widespread, followed by a niggun (a wordless melody) often associated with the Shabbat song Y’did nefesh. At OZS, we go directly from Psalm 93 to the Ma’ariv service, but this is the traditional place for the insertion of a famous selection from the Mishnah (Tractate Shabbat), “Bamei madlikin,” which describes the permissible and impermissible materials for wicks and fuels for the Shabbat lamp, along with a few other laws of the day.
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