TheAaronion 616 S. Mississippi River Blvd, St. Paul, MN 55116-1099 • (651) 698-8874 • www.TempleofAaron.org Vol. 96 • No. 4 December 1, 2020 15 Kislev 5781 2 3 Crossriver Kosherfest #5 Keeping the Spark Alive One of the most well-known stories of the Jewish people is the Hanukkah story. Of all the details we remember from our history and the one so prevalent in even the secular world is the sparks of a candle lasting eight whole days. It seems that today, December 2020, people once again need to muster a larger spark than ever before. These sparks are not just candles, although in the winter months we certainly could use more light, but the internal spark to keep going and remaining positive. Hannah Senesh, beloved Jewish poet, wrote of Hanukkah: “Blessed is the match consumed in Rabbi Jeremy Fine 651-252-6412 kindling flame. Blessed is the flame that burns in Email: the secret vastness of the heart.” Hanukkah is as [email protected] much about the burning of candles as it is the Twitter: @RabbiJeremyFine ignition of the Jewish spirit. Of course, we consume sufganiyot and become consumers of products and presents, but it is the joy and smiles that make Hanukkah so special. The reaction of a child opening a present, the generational cooking of latkes, and the marveling as a family at the glow of the candlelight. As the staff continues to search for opportunities to connect us, and as seen last month with Kosherfest, December will tap into the nostalgia of our community. Cantor Fineblum and pianist Tom Bartsch will lead us in a wonderful concert of music to be experienced in-person or on our couch. Rabbi Miller will be organizing a youth carnival to bring our families together, embracing the snow and cold. And finally, we will have a brand-new program that mirrored what we began last year with Crossriver Events and echo the excitement of the annual fundraiser. Halilah will be a talk show with guests from Hollywood to the Jewish world sharing stories and having fun with myself and Cantor Fineblum. These entertaining shows will be live on our YouTube channel and hopefully several of you can join us in the Zoom Room where it’ll happen. See more in your weekly emails. See you in shul! Rabbi Jeremy Fine New Season of Rabbi Fine’s Podcast: The Religion of Human Nature on iTunes. Guests include: Kevin Pollak Jon Lovitz Oded Fehr Jen Widerstrom Lenny Krayzelburg Jeremy Hobson 4 Watch our Limited Series Rabbis A New Spin to Hanukkah Each and every year as all of the holidays in approach, April and I try to think of new ways to celebrate them with our daughter Aria. This year Uniform many of you joined us virtually as we hosted our first-ever erev Rosh HaShannah seder, and we on Youtube added painting pumpkins as part of our way to welcome in sukkot. For Hanukkah last year, we hosted the first TAXY Ugly sweater party at our home, and it was a great time! This year, we will have several unique opportunities to celebrate the holiday commemorating our rededication of our Holy Temple, but I want to highlight two: one in- person option and one virtual one. Rabbi Micah Miller Assistant Rabbi When it came time to think of a fun way to 651-252-6411 celebrate Hanukkah I found myself thinking about Email: [email protected] another holiday, Purim. Now, it is true that these two holidays do not appear to have much in common on the surface level. Besides the fact that we spin a dreidel and we also spin a grogger above our head, I would also say that both of these holidays are always a lot of fun. I then began to think, “Why not combine them!” So this year we will have our Festival of Lights Carnival, which will have the feelings of the carnivals from my youth – ring toss, the fish bowl game (Do not worry; no fish will be given out.), we will have some classic holiday and carnival food, and of course fun projects for families to take home with them. I hope that you will join us for this fun, outdoor, socially-distanced Hanukkah celebration on Sunday December 13 from 10am-12 pm. On the last night of Hanukkah we will join together with congregations from all 50 states! Temple of Aaron will take part in IllumiNATION, which will be a virtual program featuring a short performance by Neshama Carelbach, prayers and blessings for the coming year shared by rabbis from around the USA, and finally a lighting of Hanukkah candles. This program is also being used as an opportunity for Jews around the country to help and support the Masorti movement in Israel. The work that the Masorti movement does in Israel is to ensure that those Israelis who identify as Conservative Jews have places to pray, learn and come together as a community. They also ensure that the voice of the collective Masorti movement in Israel is heard on large issues. There will be an opportunity for you to donate individually to the organization and be sure to look for links and information in the coming weeks. While all of our holidays have been a little bit different this year I hope that you will join me for one or both of these celebrations for the holiday of Hanukkah. Kol Tuv, Rabbi Micah Miller 5 ToA Zoom Hebrew & Religious School December Dates: What is your favorite holiday? When I ask this 2, 6, 9 & 16 question to children in our community the most Sundays: common answers are Purim or Hanukkah and Toddler/Parent Class: sometimes for adults as well. Many adults say 10am-10:45am Passover or Rosh Hashana because of traditions in their home, food traditions in their own family, Pk/K Class: or just about getting together with family. Others of 9:30am-10:30am course tell me Shabbat as it is a break from the 1st-7th Grade Classes: week and time to rejuvenate and relax. 9:30am-10:45am I must admit for me it is twofold. On one hand, TiKone USY (8th-12th Grades) Yom Kippur is my favorite because it gives me true 9:30am-11am time to connect to God and community through the Wednesdays: many prayers and the idea of togetherness. On the Joshua Fineblum, CJE other hand, my favorite holiday is the modern Yom 4th-7th Grade Classes Cantor/Educator Ha’atzmaut, the day I was also born in the Jewish 4:00pm-4:45pm 651-252-5403 Email: calendar. Both give me a clear connection to the 2nd-3rd grade classes [email protected] Jewish people, our homeland, and God but in very 5:00pm-5:45pm different ways. TiKone USY (8th-12th Grades) Creating community during these past months has been the most difficult part about 6:30pm-7:30pm connection and we have done so in many ways through live stream, social distancing programming, and personal calls to as many people in the community as possible. All students and families will enter Each week, ToA students, teachers, and families, come together in our ToA Mercaz, ToA Mercaz, and then be sent into central meeting place, before school begins to also help create community. their appropriate zoom rooms. If there are any questions please The holiday of Hanukah, Channukah, Hanukka, Chanukkah, is right around he corner, contact C/E Fineblum via email and again we will try to bring to bring the community together throughout the week. Through music and song, through fun and creativity, and learning we will all have the or on his cell, 240-372-0168. chance to join together throughout the week. The music of the Festival of Lights is nostalgic and takes each of us back to our childhoods hearing Maoz Tzur, Sivivon, I Had a Little Dreidel and more. It is these songs which remind us of the beauty of the holiday and what it can mean for each of us as we light the Hanukkah lights. Need Scholarship for I have been to Israel many times but none was better than Hanukkah as I walked Overnight Camp & Israel? through the winding corridors of Jerusalem and seeing all of the candles lit leading my group’s path to the Kotel. The wonder and hope in those lights keeps us aware of the hope for the Jewish community and we, like Judah, will prevail and live on and be able to come back to ToA together someday soon. There will be a limited availability option to join me and Tom Bartsch for an evening of Hannukah music on Saturday, December 12. The event will also be live-streamed for those who cannot be with us. We will bring back the Hanukah classics and add some newer songs to the evening as well. Families should join us live in the ToA parking lot for a festival of Lights carnival. More information about the carnival are in the ad and in the weekly email. It will be a fun time for families with games, projects, Ice sculptures and more as we celebrate the holiday together. Go to this link and scroll Wishing you all a wonderful Hanukah, and I hope that you join us for all of the fun we down for the latest have in store throughout the week! scholarship application. Chag HaOrim Sameach, http://templeofaaron.org/ Cantor Josh education/schools/ Questions? Joshuafineblum Play practices have begun. @templeofaaron.org Please check emails for more information.