Volume 1 Issue 3 March 2009 I N T H I S I S S U E Temple Beth El Times From the Rabbi’s Study……….…..2 President’s Message………………3 TBE Sisterhood………………….....4 Religious School News………...….5 Contributions………………...……..6 KJA Ha’ Kol President’s Report………………….11 Friendshippers……………….……..14 Jewish Family Services……...…….14 Shorrlines…………………………...15 Suzy Snoops…..…………………...15 KJCFF ……………………...............16 Heska Amuna Synagogue HaShofar Harold’s At Heska Amuna………...17 From the Rabbi’s Desk………...….19 Chairman’s Reports…………...…..19 HARS News……………….…….... 20 Among Our Members……..…..…..21 Contributions……………...……..…22 6800 Deane Hill Drive Knoxville, TN 37919 865.690.6343 www.jewishknoxville.org From the Rabbi’s Study 5 Adar - 6 Nisan, 5769 By Rabbi Beth Schwartz Rabbi Beth L. Schwartz How do you explain Purim to people Rabbi Emeritus Howard Simon who have never heard of it? It is so unlike Temple President Stephen Eisen our other festivals and holy days, and so Sisterhood President Liz Gassel unlike the stereotype of Jews as very serious people. The old, ―They tried to kill us; we won; let‘s eat,‖ doesn‘t quite fit. ―Small town girl makes good?‖ Sort of. ―Revenge INSIDE THIS ISSUE is sweet?‖ We don‘t like to talk about that part of the story. The Jewish Halloween? From the Rabbi’s Study……….…..2 The Jewish Mardi Gras? Elements of play, of theater, of political satire are all there, not President’s Message………………3 to mention pure silliness. TBE Sisterhood………………….....4 Purim is so many things. But it is always a story of courage, of stepping Religious School News………...….5 outside of the normal way of doing things, and of taking risks, even when your life Contributions………………...……..6 depends on it. It is always about the need to look beneath the surface at what is really going on. And it is always, always, about SERVICES IN MARCH using humor to tell the truth. Humor is subversive, and it is healthy. Humor lets you Rabbi Beth Schwartz March 6 at 7:30 p.m. – Annual Purim say, safely, what can‘t say otherwise. Just as Service and Spiel. This year‘s theme is pain hurts, humor heals. the movies! Services begin at 7:30 p.m., Our ancient rabbis taught that in the world-to-come, the only holiday that will remain immediately following our annual Purim is Purim, so important is it that we be able to laugh at ourselves and the world around us. Supper. When you are laughing so hard that you can‘t tell the difference between Mordecai and Haman, then you have truly celebrated Purim. ―Forget your troubles, c‘mon get happy‖ – March 7 at 10:00 a.m. - Harrison Roth it‘s Purim! will be called to the Torah as a Bar Mitzvah. Harrison is the son of Jonathan and Lori Roth, and brother of Spencer and Joelle. March Oneg Hosts March 13 at 7:30 p.m. – Shabbat services. March 6 Ava and Frederic Radoff & Leslie and Craig Snow March 20 at 7:30 p.m. – Shabbat March 7 Bar mitzvah – Harrison Roth services ―in the round.‖ March 20 Jan and Stu Elston & Shirley McGuire and Richard Licht March 27 at 7:30 p.m. – Shabbat services. March 27 Bat mitzvah – Jessie Rosenberg March 28 at 10:30 a.m. – Jessie Rosenberg will be called to the Torah as April 3 Belinda Smith & Jeff and Kaye Goodfriend a Bat Mitzvah. Jessie is the daughter of Hall and Amy Rosenberg and sister of Dani and Jake. 3037 Kingston Pike Knoxville, TN 37919 865.524.3521 www.tbeknox.org Temple Beth El Times March 2009 3 President’s Message By Stephen Eisen Temple Beth El remains a busy place as we transition from winter to spring. This month alone we have our annual Purim Schpiel and we will be blessed with not one, but two b‘nei mitzvahs. Harrison Roth will come to the bimah on Saturday, March 7 and Jessie Rosenberg will do the same on Saturday, March 28. Please support our youth and their families by attending these very special life cycle occasions. To me, being affiliated with the Temple is about joining with others to share life cycle events, good times and bad, and to celebrate our Judaism. Temple Beth El serves as a meeting place to share our thoughts and stories, to make new friends and strengthen our old relationships. It is a place to relish in our differences and to look for common ground. I‘m thankful every day for our Temple and hope you are as well. In order to keep our Temple operational, many people work on a daily basis tending to the business side of things. First and foremost, Nancy and Fae are doing a fantastic job in the office. It is rare that a week passes by that I don‘t receive at least one compliment on how kind and professional they are. If you have never had the opportunity to meet them you should stop by the office to introduce yourself and say hello. Of course most everyone knows Scott and is aware of how well he maintains our facility. We are so lucky to have him on our staff. The list of volunteer members that stop by to take care of different things on a regular basis is a long one. The members of the executive committee as well as the chairs and co-chairs of our committees, and many others, wear a path in the carpet coming in and out of the office daily. We would be nowhere without their dedication. You too can participate in the resurgence of Temple activity by volunteering to serve on a committee. Most of the committees meet on an as-needed basis and are task-oriented so no one has to commit to a certain night every month or feel they will be recruited to head up a project just because they suggested an idea. If you are unsure of where you might fit or how to get involved please let me know and I will lead you in the right direction. Shabbat in the Round Jewish Words March 20 of Wisdom... What would it be like if we could all see each other during services, if everybody had a front-row seat? What if there were no podium, no bimah, and the Torah was in the middle? Get the answers to these questions on Friday, March 20 as we gather in a circle to welcome Shabbat in the Arnstein Social Hall. Our service will be Old friends, inclusive and participatory – be there! like old Condolences Melvin Goldberger Our condolences to the Roth family for the death of Melvin Goldberger, grandfather wines, don't of Lori Roth and great grandfather of Spencer, Harrison and Joelle. Melvin supervised in the building of Temple Beth El and served as President at Temple Beth El and was a benefactor of our congregation. Melvin resided with his wife Betty at 590 Isaac Prugh Way, Apt. 344, Dayton, Ohio 45429-7416. May his memory be for a blessing. lose their Muriel Blatt Zuckerman Muriel Blatt Zuckerman, age 88, passed away on January 18, 2009 at home after a short illness, surrounded by her loving family. Muriel and her husband, Gene, settled in flavor. Harriman, Tennessee in 1948 and raised their two daughters in Harriman and then in Knoxville, where they were devout and active members of Temple Beth El. Mrs. Zuckerman served several terms as Sisterhood President and combined her loves of gardening and philanthropy by introducing flower bulb sales to raise funds for the congregation. Mrs. Zuckerman is survived by her husband of 66 years, Dr. Eugene -- Yiddish proverb Zuckerman; her daughters Ronni Kirsch (Joe) of Germantown and Emmy Zuckerman (Ed Bonfield) of West Windsor, NJ; and her three grandchildren, Philip Kirsch, Anna Klausner and Holly Klausner. May her memory be for blessing. 4 Temple Beth El Times March 2009 The Sisterhood of Temple Beth El We are an affiliate of WOMEN OF REFORM JUDAISM ‘BOWLing for Hunger’ Part One – Painting the Bowls Sponsored by Sisterhood, Religious School and the Social Justice Committee Congregants and friends came together to create their special bowl to be picked up at the ‘BOWLing for Hunger’ Dinner and Shabbat on February 6 with all funds going to MAZON and Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee. March Events Hamentaschen Bake - March 1 at 9:30 a.m. in the Temple Kitchen Bring a rolling pin and an apron and join us. If you love to bake or even if you don‘t, this is a fun morning of rolling, filling and chatting. We raise funds for Sisterhood projects through the sale of Hamentaschen orders. If you submitted a bulk order, you may pick it up on March 8 at the Purim Carnival. We plan on having some to purchase individually at that time also. For more info, contact Linda Zaretski at 356-4879 or Lesley Krakauer at 691-3208. As March progresses we find we have a little down time to consider our plans for the rest of the year and next year. Our nominating committee is in the process of searching for a new president as Liz Gassel‘s term is up in June. We are looking for people to serve as vice presidents and chairs for our various programs and also are considering new ideas for programs. Our goal is to interest every one – maybe not in every event or program - but we would like to provide opportunities, over the course of our sisterhood year, that engage most of you at least once or twice.