“ Serving Long Island and World Jewry” WEEKLY SHABBAT
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“ Serving Long Island and World Jewry” VOLUME 244 ISSUE 174 JUNE 2015 5775 WEEKLY SHABBAT SERVICES Friday, June 5, 2015– Service 8:00 PM The Oneg Shabbat will be hosted by Jennifer and James Klayman in honor of the B’Nai Mitzvah of their children Jonathan and Julia. INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Saturday, June 6 – Torah Study & Service 10:45 AM B’NAI MITZVAH – JONATHAN AND JULIA KLAYMAN Rabbi’s Column 2-3 President’s Column 4 BEHA’ALOTECHA Cantor’s Column 6 Torah Portion: Numbers 8:1-12:16 Haftarah: Zechariah 2:14-4:7 Religious School 7 Funds 9 Friday, June 12 – Special Shabbat Barbeque Dinner 6:30 PM Calendar 10 Installation of Officers & Board of Trustees Shabbat Service 7:30 PM Temple Israel in honor of the Officers and Board of Trustees. TEMPLE OFFICE HOURS & PHONE NUMBERS Monday-Thursday 9 am- 5 pm Saturday, June 13 – Torah Study & Service 9:30 AM Friday 9 am—3 pm Rabbi (emergency only) 1-917-687-9640 SHELACH Cantor Torah Portion: Numbers 13:1-15:41 239-1140 Haftarah: Joshua 2:1-24 Temple Office 239-1140 Temple Fax Friday, June 19 – Service 8:00 PM 239-0859 Saturday, June 20 – Torah Study & Service 9:30 AM Religious School 239-9213 KORACH Torah Portion: Numbers 16:1-18:32 Haftarah: 1 Samuel 11:14-12:22 Jay H. Rosenbaum………....Rabbi Galina Makaveyev……......Cantor Friday, June 26 – Service 8:00 PM Kenneth Shapiro.………President Saturday, June 27 – Torah Study & Service 9:30 AM The Temple Israel Bulletin CHUKAT is published monthly at Torah Portion: Numbers 19:1-22:1 Temple Israel Haftarah: Judges 11:1-33 140 Central Ave Lawrence, NY 11559 Page 2 Volume 244, Issue 174 A WORD TO THE WISE R ABBI J AY H . R OSENBAUM “WHY INTERFAITH DIALOGUE IS IMPORTANT FOR THE CONGREGATIONAL RABBI” On May 4th, in commemoration of the 50th Anniversary year of Vatican II, which transformed 2000 years of Catholic-Jewish relations and marked the beginning of constructive Jewish- Catholic dialogue, Catholic and Jewish leaders from around the World, composed of 120 Rabbis, 7 Cardinals, 25 Bishops and 50 Priests, joined together at a religious center on the shores of the Galilee, dedicated by Pope John Paul II for Jewish-Catholic dialogue. In total, 400 individuals were in attendance including Israeli politicians, renowned scholars, educators and artists from both faiths. This unprecedented inter-religious gathering in the State of Israel, which was sponsored and hosted by The Neocatechumenal Way evolved from a concert presented by The Way entitled, “The Suffering of the Innocents” performed at Lincoln Center composed by Kiko Arguello, founder of the movement, as an act of love and reconciliation for the suffering of the Jewish people during the Holocaust. Many of us attended this concert and Temple Israel was given a special place of honor at the performance and I was asked to present the opening remarks. Because of a special relationship our Temple forged with this movement, having invited them to attend our High Holidays and many other services including our 94th Annual Interfaith Thanksgiving Service where they presented a beautiful rendition of the Shema Yisrael, and we provided aid to the victims of Hurricane Sandy, they expressed a desire to move forward in building stronger bridges of respect, understanding and dialogue with Temple Israel and the Jewish People. It is from these encounters with the members of our Congregation followed by my discussions with their leadership, that the idea and ground work for the historic May 4th conference emerged. The four-day conference, in addition to reflecting upon the past history of Catholic-Jewish relations and the progress that has been made in the last half century, addressed the issues of the virulent anti-Semitism that has gripped Europe, persecution of Christians in Africa and the Middle East, economic justice and the environment. Representing Pope Francis was Cardinal George Pell, who brought a signed personal message from the Pope and as the Rabbi of our Temple; I invited and led a group of 70 rabbis to the conference from across the United States. From the Five Towns area, the delegation included Rabbis Steven Graber, Temple Hillel and Rabbi Shalom Stern, Temple Beth-El. My delegation also included Bishop William Murphy, of Rockville Centre, who is the liaison of the Vatican to the American-Jewish community. Kenny Shapiro, as President of Temple Israel, was personally invited to attend the conference by the organizers and sponsors of the conference, however, prior commitments prohibited him from doing so. The concluding session of the conference occurred on the eve of the 70th Anniversary marking the end of the Holocaust. On that occasion, the participants joined together in a prayer of remembrance and hope for the six million who perished in the Shoah and prayed, “For the safety and well being of our Jewish, Christian, and Muslim sisters and brothers and all who suffer persecution only by reason of their faith in places where they are minorities.” Though the discussions of the pressing issues of our day, addressing the mitzvah of Tikkun Olam were moving, scholarly and compelling, I found the small group sessions that dealt with issues of faith and our Page 3 Volume 244, Issue 174 personal religious journeys of greater interest and help to me as a Congregational Rabbi. Why? Because in order to reach out effectively to interfaith couples or individuals seeking or entertaining conversion to Judaism, it is necessary to understand the foundation upon which their faith journey is built and their perception of Judaism and the Jewish people. This is indeed of profound importance for the survival of Judaism and our Temples and Institutions as the latest Pew Report revealed that the inter-marriage rate in America is 58% for all Jews and 71% among non-Orthodox Jews. While I understand the history of Christianity and that its roots were based on Judaism and while recent Popes have called the Jewish People “our elder brothers and sisters,” before this conference, I did not realize the deep impact this has had upon Christians in our post-Vatican II World. Furthermore, I had the opportunity to explain, in these small group encounters, what the misunderstood concept of “Chosen People” which has led to so much anti-Semitism really means in Judaism, simply and in truth, Am Yisrael does not consider itself superior to anyone else, but rather have as our mission to make the World a better place for all of God’s children. So, while this voyage to the Sea of Galilee in Israel began with a heart-stirring and uplifting choral rendition of “Shema Yisrael,” offered in our sanctuary by Leaders of the Catholic Church, presenting the closing remarks of the Conference, I was given the unique honor of expressing my understanding of the Shema, the watchword of our People, namely, that as citizens of the World, while we come from different faiths, we all share the same fate. Rabbi Jay Rosenbaum in conference with Rabbi Jeremiah Wohlberg, Past President, New York Board of Rabbis, Cardinal Christoph Schonborn, Archbishop of Vienna and Bishop William Murphy of Rockville Centre, during the Jewish- Catholic Interfaith Conference at the Domus Galilaeae, Israel, May 4-7, 2015 It is with a great sense of pride that Temple Israel extends a most heartfelt Mazel Tov to Carol Rotenberg for being selected as Woman of the Year by the Nassau Region of Hadassah which has 18,000 members. This greatly deserved honor occdurred May 19th at a banquet attended by several hundred members of Hadassah. Page 4 Volume 244, Issue 174 P RESIDENT ’ S M ESSAGE KENNETH A. SHAPIRO I am amazed how quickly my first year as President has passed and is almost over. It has been quite an experience with the many challenges our Temple has faced. With the help of my officers and the board, we have thrived and look forward to the years ahead with renewed enthusiasm. I want to personally thank each Officer for all the help they have given to us all. My First Vice President, Leslie Martin, always encouraging and ready to help whenever asked. He has done most of the legal work for the Temple and has always been dedicated in every aspect of Temple life. I very much value his input. Vice President, Alan Hartstein, tells me straight, both good and bad. His experience of virtually holding every officer's position and being a past President is a value we cannot put a price on. Most of all I am proud to call him my friend. Cindy Finklestein, Vice President, has been a tireless working for our religious school and all the parents of our kids. She has worked extremely well with our Religious School Director, who is our Cantor. Our Treasurer, Ross Whitehead, has steered us to a healthier financial position. He has made very tough decisions which we all hope will ensure our financial future for years to come. His practical advice has helped me enormously. Mary Price, our Secretary, and so much more, has not only produced the most accurate minutes for every board meeting, but has done so much with Wayne and her family for this Temple that is truly astounding. She says it the way it is, and even though we may sometimes disagree, I always respect her opinion and forward-looking ideas. Our Financial Secretary, Alan Krim, the kindest bull dog I have every met, makes sure all the financial obligations are collected, but as important, has a big heart to listen and help those congregants in need, working out financial arrangements.