THE VOL. 96 NO. 3 APRIL/MAY/JUNE 2017 NISAN/IYAR/SIVAN/TammUZ 5777 Passover 2nd Seder Tuesday, April 11 | 6:30 pm in the Auditorium Traditional Pesach foods Our menu will include: Chicken and matzah ball soup, roasted turkey, matzah stuffing and gravy, brisket, potato kugel, vegetable kugel, green vegetable, chocolate cake, macaroons and wine For early bird pricing, please reserve no later than Friday, April 1. Reservation form on page 3. Bring forms to the temple office or register online at www.tberochester.org Mission Statement Temple Beth El is a vibrant and inclusive community of Jews who join together for prayer, education, celebration, mutual support and comfort, tikkun olam and acts of loving kindness. We are guided by Torah and the principles of the Conservative movement. We are committed to our community, the State of Israel, and Jews around the world. Vision Statement Our vision is that Temple Beth El will be an inspiring center of Conservative Judaism in which meaningful experiences and memories take root and grow. Values Statement We are a welcoming and inclusive congregation. We value and respect each congregant and his or her personal journey in Judaism. We foster a sense of connectedness with our community. We value participation in all aspects of synagogue and Jewish life. Our congregation will be here for the entire Temple family now and for future generations. Welcome to our house. WEEKLY SERVICES 139 Winton Road South Shacharit: Rochester, NY 14610 Sunday: 8:30 am Phone: 585-473-1770 Monday-Friday: 7:30 am Rosh Hodesh: 7:15 am tberochester.org Shabbat: 9:00 am facebook.com/TBEROCH Secular Holidays: 8:30 am Mincha/Ma’ariv: @tberochester Saturday: 1½ hrs prior to sunset (see calendar) Sunday-Friday: 6:00 pm 2 Please Join Us! GUESS WHO'S COMING TO SHABBAS "Guess who's coming to Shabbas" is a program that partners congregants with one another for Shabbat dinners in their own homes. I/we would like to Upcoming Dates: ___ Host a Dinner ___ Attend a Dinner April 28____ June 9____ Name (s): __________________________________________________________________________________________ Email address: _____________________________________________ Phone: ________________________________ Children (names and ages): ___________________________________________________________________________ Please tell us about the level of kashrut in your home: ____ Strictly kosher ____ Kosher style ( no separate dishes, don't mix meat and dairy, kosher meat or poultry only) ____ Not kosher We already know who we will be inviting __ yes __ no We would like suggestions for guests: __ yes __ no Name(s): __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Find more information, or register online at: https://www.tberochester.org/guess-whos-coming-shabbos PASSOVER SECOND SEDER Tuesday, April 11 at 6:30 pm Name(s) of all attending: ____________________________________________ Early bird prices end on April 1 _________________________________________________________________ Address _____________________________________________________________ Adults (13 years and older): after Apr 1 Phone_______________________________________________________________ _____ TBE Member @ $40 $50 Email _______________________________________________________________ _____ Non-Member @ $50 $60 Allergies and dietary restrictions _________________________________________ Children (12 and younger): after Apr 1 Please seat us with* _____________________________________________________ _____ TBE Member @ $10 $15 * we will do our best to accommodate seating requests _____ Non-Member @ $15 $20 Payment Information: Name on Card _________________________________________________________ Family (living at the after Apr 1 same address): Card # _______________________________________________________________ _____ TBE Member @ $100 $135 Exp. Date _________________________ Sec. Code _________________________ _____ Non-Member @ $135 $160 Signature _____________________________________________________________ Please Make Check Payable to Temple Beth El 3 President's Message Once again, I find myself writing the KOL article. I asked Sonya what I should write about. I then commented... “No one is interested in what I write and they probably don’t read it anyway”. She kind of looked at me funny. She gave me the quiet, bossy, narrowed eye look she gives our kids. Not only do people read it she said, many people prefer to read it in print than electronically! Sonya and her mom Muriel still remember receiving and reading the monthly version of their synagogue’s bulletin, the Shomer. The Kol is a tradition. There are certain things that are expected; the rabbi's message, the cantor's message, the education director's message, and even the president’s message. Equally important are the blurbs about each upcoming B’nai Mitzvah. There are the pages memorializing donations. And then, there are the advertisements. It's like a newspaper - everyone has their favorite parts. If you have a favorite part of the KOL that means you are interested in what is going on at TBE. With that in mind, I ask that you participate in the running of our shul by joining a committee. I am all too familiar with the frequent grumblings about joining a committee. “I hate meetings”, or “I don’t have time for this.” Nevertheless, I ask that you identify a committee that interests you and donate your time. TBE needs new people joining committees so that we can get new perspectives and ideas. I have found the experience rewarding. I mean, I started a while ago being on the membership committee and now I am the President! Please call the office or stop in to ask about the many committees we have at TBE and ask to join one. One need not read any or all of the KOL. But, we all know that it comes regularly. And that is a comfort. Even if you don't come to TBE regularly, a little piece comes to your mailbox quarterly. Seth Charatz President For highlights of the Minutes of the Board of Trustees Meeting, please go to tberochester.org. From the Desk of the Senior Rabbi Pesach, A Family Feast I would like to provide a personal overview of our new Limmud Program. History teaches us that on the tenth of Nisan, the head of each household took a lamb for sacrifice. Egyptians worshipped this lamb as a deity. The Israelites living in Egypt kept the lamb for four days in their homes; and, on the fourteenth of the month they sacrificed it and sprinkled its blood on the lintel of the doorposts of their homes. They faced the danger of death for the sake of following God’s commandments. Our ancestors proved to be worthy of becoming God’s people. Only then Israel did come to birth as a nation. That first celebration of Passover was a unique moment in their lives and at the same time it was a family event. The paschal lamb was to be consumed as a family meal. The lamb was to be roasted whole, and no bone was to be broken-rules symbolic of family unity, the only sure basis for national unity and strength. In the long night of the exile, the celebration of Passover continued to be a family feast. The Seder night was an object of lesson for all, especially for the young. If we want the night of Passover will continue to be a great lesson for children and adults. Will Israel ever forget the Matzah and Haroset - symbols of bitter servitude and sweet freedom? The roast bone and the roast egg - memorials of the Korban Pesach and Korban Hagigah? Will Israel ever forget the cup of Elijah emblem of hope to Israel? As long as Pesach remains a family experience, our Judaism will not be deprived of its beauty and strength. We must take the initiative and invest in a meaningful Passover experience. Hag Kasher V’Sameach Rabbi Leonardo Bitran To read more of Rabbi Bitran's' letter please go to: www.tberochester.org/senior-rabbi 4 With Hazzan Leubitz's recent announcement of his plan to retire at the end of June 2018, the Temple family has an opportunity to explore what it envisions for the future. Towards that goal, Seth Charatz, President of Temple Beth El, has asked Shoshana Germanow and Martin Presberg to lead the process to take a look at ourselves, assess our needs, and create a vision for the future. Shoshana and Martin anticipate a two-phase process involving exploration and planning in Phase I and implementation of the plan in Phase 2. A preliminary gathering of members was held on March 5 to solicit member participation and input in the process. As follow-up, work groups will be developed to consider questions such as: What are current models in other congregations and communities? What is the TBE Community looking for in a Hazzan or Musical Leader? How should we go about collecting the views of individual members? How should we run this process? How will we keep the congregation informed of these activities? Your comments and suggestions are welcome. A designated email has been set up for your convenience at inspiration@tberochester. org, or you may contact co-chairs Shoshana (585) 749-1405 or Martin (585) 794-3509 directly. TO SELL YOUR HAMETZ The Torah prohibits the ownership of hametz (flour, food or drink made from the prohibited species of leavened grain: wheat, oats, barley, rye or spelt) during Pesah. Ideally we burn or remove all hametz from our premises which may be effected by donations to a local food pantry. In some cases, however, this would cause prohibitive financial loss. In such cases, we arrange for the sale of the hametz to a non-Jew and its repurchase after Pesah. You can arrange for this sale of your Hametz by sending the following form to Rabbi Bitran at the Temple office no later than Friday, April 7th. It is customary to include a donation to provide Maot Hittin funds for Passover supplies for the needy. Please make checks payable to Temple Beth El which will contribute to Maot Hittin on everyone’s behalf.