HAKOL Volume 35 No. 1 October 2019 Tishri 5780 5151 NE 14th Terrace, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33334 | Templebatyam.org | 954-928-0410 | [email protected] Editor: Marion Fass | Email: [email protected] Hakol brings together the messages of the season and the joy of community . In Memoriam: Rabbi Lewis Littman The Temple Bat Yam Community mourns the passing of Rabbi Emeritus, Lewis C. Littman. Rabbi Littman was born on January 22, 1941 in Trenton, NJ and died on November 22, 2019 in Fort Lauderdale. Rabbi Littman joined Temple Bat Yam in 1986 at its founding. A superb teacher and spiritual leader, Rabbi Littman’s perspective on Judaism reflected his strong commitment to Tikkun Olam, or Repairing the World. In addition, his love of Jewish music and theater was reflected in the central role music plays in Temple services, observances and events. The National Conference for Community and Justice recognized Rabbi Littman’s work on behalf of the Jewish community and the community-at- large with the 2002 “Silver Medallion Award” for community service. Rabbi Littman chaired the Community Relations Council of Imperial Point Hospital, and served on the Board of the “Missions of Mercy” at Holy Cross Hospital. Rabbi Littman served as president of the Broward Board of Rabbis; Chairman of the Clergy Dialogue Group of the National Conference on Community and Justice (NCCJ); and on regional boards of directors of Seafarer’s House, the Anti-Defamation League, the Central Agency for Jewish Education and the Jewish Federation. Rabbi Littman graduated from Rutgers Univer sity and then earned a Master of Arts degree. He was ordained by the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC -JIR) in New York in 1967. Following ordination, he served congregations in Denver, Colo.; Erie, Pa.; and Rockville Centre, N.Y. From 1982 through 1986 he was Director of the Southeast Council of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations, based in Miami. While at his post in Erie, PA., Rabbi Littman sang the role of Tevya in Fiddler on the Roof and Don Quixote in Man of La Mancha in regional theater. In 1992 the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion awarded Rabbi Littman the degree of Doctor of Divinity in recognition of 25 years of service in the rabbinate. Rabbi Littman is survived by his wife, Marlyn Kemper Littman, six children and five grandchildren. Remembering Rabbi Littman The Temple by Carol J. Cooke in Covenant of the Heart 1993 and submitted by Debra Werner Between the darkness and the Light Stands the Temple of Oneness Containing both,Its alter aglow with candles of celebration, atonement, wonder, forgiveness and grief The worshiper gazes upward, following the hazy smoke Rising, swirling, moving from the embrace of the light to the terror of dark, As does he, watching. How to reconcile the duality into ONE? What is possible? The answer lies unspoken in the question, and the worshiper follows the light Into Darkness of his soul, Descending into the center, secret core. That is the Life. May Lew's memory always be for a blessing. I've known Rabbi Rabbi Littman was a man When I first walked into Littman for 30 years, of persistent strength in Temple Bat Yam with and am deeply character and demeanor. my wife, Lois, we were saddened to hear He showed compassion to warmly welcomed by this. He was family to those who needed it and Rabbi Littman and all of us. understanding to all. He immediately involved in will be missed. the life of TBY. -Avis McCoy - Judy Morrison -Arnie Pittler Page 2 When Chanukkah and Christmas Spin Together The Spirit of the Season Though Chanukkah pales in comparison to Christmas with regard to its relative importance among the other holidays, they share a spiritual message: it is possible to bring hope into a world of oppression and despair,light into a world of darkness. Christmas focuses on the birth of an individual whose life and mission was intended to bring liberation. Chanukah focuses on a national liberation struggle of an entire people, seeking to Spey family dogs enjoy the menorah remake the world through struggle with an oppressive political and social order. This year in particular, I hope that we can hear and embrace this message. The hope, the miracle, of the Chanukah story is that our people was able to resist the “reality” imposed by the Hellenistic forces and were able to stay loyal to a vision of a world based on generosity, love of the stranger, and loyalty to an invisible God who promised that life could be based on justice and peace. Our “old-school religion” that the Maccabees fought to preserve, had revolutionary aspects, not only its pursuit of justice and peace, but also in its very concrete prescriptions found in Torah for debt relief, soil conservation, redistribution of wealth and land, and its recipe for a balanced life in Shabbat. Even our retention of our fundamental identification as PagePage 3 Rabbi David Spey having been slaves, liberated by God, providing motivation for freeing others from oppression, is miraculous in the face of the intellectuaominance attempted by Greek philosophy and science, and legal oppression wrought by edicts forbidding the study of Torah, the practice of circumcision, and the observance of Shabbat. When the energy to preserve and bring justice to the world, when the Spirit of God, displayed by our people to overcome the forces designed to destroy them becomes an ingredient of the consciousness of ordinary people, miracles happens.The message of Christmas, similarly is a message of hope, a light in the short dark days of winter, like message of the lights of Chanukah. The hope associated with a new birth in a family, was transformed into a universal message of hope. The hope was in the birth of a messiah who could challenge the existing systems of economic and political oppression, bring humanity into a new era of peace, social justice, and love. Even the identification of Jesus as the Son of God brings radical substance to the idea that every person is created in the image of God. For God to appear on earth teaching peace, justice, and love only to be killed by the same forces that were oppressing the people, is a beautiful message of a world yet to be redeemed and served to motivate millions who took comfort in this message. The messages of our respective holidays can motivate us, from our respective faith traditions to work toward the improvement of the world for all humanity, when we embrace these as particular religious holidays, for it is within the religious framework that the messages of hope are to be found. May these holidays inspire hope in all of us and encourage us to find the beauty and value in diversity so that we can find unity in a common goal of peace and the improvement of the world for benefit of all. Happy Chanukah and Merry Christmas A Message from Rabbi Spey Page 4 These comments are adapted from Arnie PIttler's comments at Kol Nidre 2019. A Message from the President Hineni - “Here I am.” In the Torah, the word Hineni occurs only eight times – it’s an important word! Abraham, Jacob, Joseph and Moses spoke Hineni – as a response to G-d. We still use it today but in a different context: · When you call Temple Bat Yam for celebrating a life cycle event – Temple Bat Yam is here! · When you call TBY to provide Jewish education for your children – Temple Bat Yam is here. · When you want to study or Talmud or learn about becoming a Jew by choice – Temple Bat Yam is here! · When you want to include someone in our Shabbat Mischeberach for Healing or to be visited by the Rabbi or a member of our Bikur Holim – Temple Bat Yam is here! · When you want to worship during the High Holy Days, sit in a Sukkah, attend a Passover Seder, or hear the reading of the 10 commandments – Temple Bat Yam is here! · At the end of our life; for a funeral or a Shiva minyan – Temple Bat Yam is here! Being honest, these are things that any synagogue will do. So WHY Temple Bat Yam? When my wife Lois and I walked into Temple Bat Yam for the first time, everyone welcomed us. Rabbi Littman, Cantor Wendy and everyone at the Oneg greeted us and most importantly were interested what we were interested in. We met other interfaith families, LGBTQ families and Jews of Color. We learned about Bat Yam’s involvement in Social action. When we left that Friday night, we knew that we had found OUR Temple. It is not about what TBY does, but rather, the Relationships, Meaning and Impact one gets by being HERE. We are all faced with choices every day. We can choose, whether or not, to be present for our families, our friends, and our community. In the Torah, each time the word HINENI is used, it signifies a turning point, a potentially life-changing moment requiring decision, action and resolution. When the Torah uses the word HINENI, the person speaking is saying: “I hear your call. I understand what you are asking of me. I am prepared and ready to do it, because I recognize, although it is hard, it is also important that I act.” On Yom Kippur, during Kol Nidre, I asked everyone to feel they are part of our Kehillah Kedoshah - Holy Community, by making a pledge to support TBY. Actively participating in Temple activities: Brotherhood; Sisterhood; Temple Committees or offering Audacious Hospitality to others in the Eastside Jewish community, are all ways that you can made the declaration, “Here I Am” for – Temple Bat Yam.