Temple Israel Rabbi’s & President’s Messages Tigers and Strawberries President’s Message Friends — The following is an excerpt from Rabbi Mars’s Kol Nidre Sermon. You can read her full sermon on our I am so grateful for the Temple Israel teams that website, https://www.templeisrael.org/rabbis-message. meet regularly to discuss goals and help us grow One day while wandering through the wilderness, our congregation. Our Education Team kicks off A woman stumbles upon a tiger. Aghast, she 2020 with a column about their work. I am runs and runs until the tiger chases her to the grateful for their leadership! very edge of a cliff. She stares down and spies a Amy Weisbach — Amy Weisbach Rabbi Sharon Mars vine. Desperate to save herself, she grips the vine Temple Israel President and lowers herself over the precipice. The tiger above roars, and for the moment she can breathe. We Jews are fortunate. And for many reasons. One of which is that When suddenly, she hears another roar…there are tigers below her we get an opportunity to push our restart buttons not just once, but as well. two times a year! Our entry into 5780 may feel like a distant memory, but the ringing in of 2020 is likely fresh in our minds. As fear grips her chest she realizes that the vine is slowly being Perhaps you are among the 60% of Americans who declare a New gnawed away by the sharp teeth of a tiny little mouse. Just when she Year’s resolution. Maybe your resolution aims for ‘more’ - learn thinks all is lost, the woman sees a beautiful bunch of ripe something new, increase patience with your children, make more strawberries nestled in a nearby clump of grass jutting out from the connections with others. Or maybe you’re one who will instead try cliff just within her reach. She looks up, she looks down, she looks to go the ‘less’ route - reduce stress in your life, spend less time on at the mouse, she looks at the strawberries. She grabs a single your device. strawberry and pops it right into her mouth. The end. These may seem like lofty aspirations, but rest assured, they are This is one of my new favorite stories. This tale often gets whittled attainable. All of them. And Temple Israel can help. Just by taking down to, “Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die!” The advantage of the wealth of educational and meaningful experiential offerings available, you can achieve these goals and much, much talmudic equivalent might be, “Repent — do teshuvah — the day more. Here’s how: before you die!” • Learn something new – easy! Attend an upcoming Scholar-in- Both make the same point: when tigers (of ambition or desire or Residence program led by our fellow congregants, join a future hunger) pursue you from above and below, and the little mouse of Adult B’nai Mitzvah class, sign up for Judaism 101 with Rabbi time slowly but deliberately gnaws away at the vine of our life, we Sharon Mars, partake in the weekly The Book of Exodus with had better live it up in the moment — gulp down that strawberry Rabbi Alvin Mars, and enjoy Stories of Music with Cantor while we still can! Life is to be celebrated here and now, so go for Moses it! • Increase patience with your children – you’ve got this! That would be the perfect place for this sermon to end, but this is Strengthen your parenting skills with the help of Rabbi Mars Yom Kippur. Today is very different. Most days, our tigers take the and the Torah form of overflowing email inboxes and people oversharing on social media. Sometimes the tiger can be a challenging medical • Reduce stress in your life – no problem! Take advantage of diagnosis or sudden job loss. In these particularly fraught and Urban Zen Integrative Therapy with Lori Guth Moffett precarious times, this parable has profound resonance, especially for us members of the American Jewish family. Undoubtedly, with all of the above, you are guaranteed to make more connections with others and spend less time on your device. This tiger looks eerily familiar. We know this tiger all too well. In a So there. Done. matter of months, Pittsburgh and Poway have become Jewish code for the “new normal.” In our own Columbus Jewish community, We look forward to seeing you at any and all of the offerings we security briefings have become part and parcel of our weekly have available and asking you how it feels to have your New Year’s routine. Special funding has been conjured and collected so that resolution accomplished. we can sit here in relative safety and security to celebrate our Shabbat and holy days, and our kids can go to religious school Shalom, without worry. Temple Israel Education Team Aimee Sanders, Adam Solomon (Co-chairs), Tom Anger, Debbie Cohen, Jason Crabill, Lance Croffoot-Suede, Joan Folpe, Beth Seltzer Temple Israel TIKUN (USPS 537600) is published 11 times per year, monthly except August by Temple Israel 431 E. Broad St., Columbus, OH 43215-4004. Periodicals postage paid at Columbus, Ohio. Postmaster: Send address changes to Temple Israel Tikun, 431 E. Broad St., Columbus, OH 43215-4004. 2 Temple Israel Shabbat January Service Schedule Tot Shabbat All About Names Friday, January 3 Celebration Shabbat ....................................................... 6:00 PM Saturday, January 4 10:00 AM at the JCC Saturday, January 4 Jewish Meditation .......................................................... 10:00 AM What’s in a name? What special meaning does your name have? Tot Shabbat ................................................................... 10:00 AM Join Rabbi Mars and a special musical guest for this month’s Tot Shabbat. We will sing songs, hear a story, participate in a craft Friday, January 10 and enjoy a healthy snack! For more information, please email Erev Shabbat Service ....................................................... 6:00 PM Rabbi Mars at [email protected]. Purimagination Film Premiere Be sure to mark your calendars for the following Tot Shabbat Saturday, January 11 dates: Shabbos Morning Service ............................................. 10:00 AM February 1 - Tu B’Shevat March 7 - Purim April 4 - Passover Friday, January 17 May 9 - Israel June 6 - Shavuot Erev Shabbat Service ....................................................... 6:00 PM Saturday, January 18 Jewish Meditation .......................................................... 10:00 AM Friday, January 24 Erev Shabbat Service ....................................................... 6:00 PM Bimah Guest: David Levy of Epstein Memorial Saturday, January 25 Shabbos Morning Service ............................................. 10:00 AM Friday, January 31 Erev Shabbat Service ....................................................... 6:00 PM Saturday, February 1 Jewish Meditation .......................................................... 10:00 AM Tot Shabbat ................................................................... 10:00 AM Refuah Grief Support Group Friday, January 3 4:30 PM in the JCC Conference Room Refuah is a discussion and support group for congregants experiencing the impact of loss. It is held on the first Friday of each month and is guided by the needs of those participating. Facilitated by licensed therapist and Temple Israel congregant, Dana Zager. Empty Nesters Havurah Saturday, January 11 6:30 PM Please join our hosts, Mike & Lesli Mautz, Mike & Amy Nolan, Elaine & Jonathan Pelz, and Ellen Half in Bexley for our monthly get together and potluck dinner. Our group is open to everyone! Email Kathy Weissberg, [email protected] or Ellen Mendel, [email protected] for more information. Temple Israel 3 Education Religious School — Chanukah Chey Day! 4 Temple Israel Lifelong Learning Urban Zen Integrative Therapy Judaism 101 in January! with Lori Guth Moffett 12 sessions with Rabbi Sharon Mars UZIT Master Teacher and First class is in person at the JCC Director of UZIT Program at Zusman Hospice Wednesday, January 8 @ 6:30 PM Sunday, January 5 Wednesdays January 15 through March 25 Virtual classroom from 6:00 to 7:15 PM 9:30 AM at the JCC Final class is Celebration Shabbat on Friday, April 3 No prior yoga experience needed. followed by Shabbat dinner at Rabbi Mars' home. Dress in comfortable yoga clothes for class. $180 per student Urban Zen Integrative Therapy (UZIT) is designed to Register at https://tinyurl.com/tb3pxnr enhance well-being in your every day life through a layering of relaxation techniques, which includes: Yoga Therapy, Meditation, Reiki, and Essential Oil Therapy. Parenting and the Parashah This 60 minute class will address anxiety, insomnia, and Sunday, January 26 exhaustion. You'll walk away with real tools that will 9:40 AM enhance the well-being of you and your family. with Rabbi Mars at the JCC Parenting is a tough job. Join Rabbi Mars for an opportunity to Scholar-In-Residence: learn with her and other parents about best parenting practices Dr. Mike Kravitz straight from the Torah. Dealing with Challenging Family Members & Friends Tools to Build Better Relationships Sunday, February 23 with Your Teenagers 9:30 AM at the JCC Sunday, February 9 9:30 AM at the JCC This program is intended to provide strategies for dealing with challenging situations including family members and Presented by Tara Shiman friends with dementia, developmental disabilities, chronic Tara is a Youth Services Librarian and physical conditions, mental illness and substance abuse. Teen Volunteer Coordinator at Worthington Libraries. Through interacting with teenagers daily, Topics will include avoiding arguments, remaining calm via she has gained knowledgeable insight about what’s going on in a anger management, avoiding personalizing, understanding teenager’s mind. In her presentation, Tara will discuss how parents pain and self-orientation, clarifying expectations, resisting the can effectively communicate with their teens to better understand “righting reflex,” listening with empathy, taking care of them and be able to provide them with the support and guidance yourself, avoiding toxic relationships, focusing on what can be they need during this challenging time in their lives.