CJHS E-news October 30, 2015

October 30, 2015

17 Cheshvan, 5776 This Week at CJHS

Open House This Weekend

Open House

Prospective Family Day at CJHS

Fall Sports Conclude Rabbinics Conference Speed Dating in Tanach From the P.O. Alumni in the News Mazal Tov Community Events 窶帰lumni Trivia A Taste of Torah

Quick Links CJHS.org Calendars Lunch Menu

Sunday, November 1 | 1:00 p.m.

Student Activities Fair! Pizza! Classroom Tours!

Edline Give Now

CJHS is excited to welcome prospective students and their families to its annual Fall Admissions Open House on Sunday. Guests will hear firsthand from students, teachers, alumni and parents about the school's academic and extracurricular programs. Families will

Save The Date

learn why students should attend a Jewish high school and why specifically CJHS. For more information or to RSVP contact Riv Lynch, Director of Admissions, 847.324.3706.

November 11

No School - Professional Day November 18-20 Junior Social Justice Seminar November 21 Homecoming November 25 Erev Thanksgiving - 8:00 a.m. to 1:15 p.m.

November 25-26 No School - Thanksgiving Break

Fall Sports Conclude

December 6

Women's Volleyball Completes IHSA Tournament

Studio Art Show

Congratulations to the women's JV and varsity volleyball teams on December 20 - January 3

the completion of a fabulous season! The team played its last IHSA

Winter Break

tournament game against Waldorf on Monday night after hardfought conference games against Providence St. Mel and Northtown. Kol hakavod to powerhouse seniors Jorie Dayan, Sarah Gilman, Eliana Kharasch, Maya Michalewicz, Jordan

College Season CJHS is pleased to welcome admission representatives from over fifty colleges and Israel programs this autumn!

VIEW SCHEDULE >>

Programs Abroad Bronfman Now Accepting Applications The Bronfman Fellowships is looking for outstanding high school juniors for our 30th Fellowship cohort.

With a year of engaging content and learning, including a 5

Krauss, Melissa and Sarah Levin, Hana Lieber, Hannah Taussig and Celia Pivo! Many of our graduating seniors have played for all four years on the women's volleyball team, and we wish them all the best as they move on to college and beyond!

week all-expenses paid trip to Israel, The Bronfman Fellowship provides a forum for inquisitive and creative Jewish students to engage with important texts and learn from respected teachers in a community of diverse peers.

Applications for the 2016 Fellowship are due January 6, 2016 and are available online.

Benchmarks in Rabbinics National Conference in NYC On Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, Rabbi Silver and Ms. Frankel headed to the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York to take part in a nationwide effort to create standards and benchmarks for the teaching of Rabbinics. Similar to the Standards and Benchmarks program for Tanach, this effort seeks to unify day school teaching of Rabbinics with a set of standards of practice. The program was coordinated

by Rabbi Sheryl Katzman, former principal of Solomon Schechter of Metropolitan Chicago. Rabbi Silver and Ms. Frankel loved seeing colleagues from throughout the country and contributing to the field. Ms. Frankel and Dr. Schorsch will travel to New York two more times to continue working on this project.

Hevruta Speed-Dating Freshman Tanach Meets King Saul Ms. Nadis’ 9th grade Tanach class explored the introduction (in I Samuel 9) of Israel’s very first king through Hevruta Speed Dating! Working with a diverse array of classmates, each student had a chance to get to know this “excellent young man, a head taller than any of the people," so good looking that “no one among the Israelites was handsomer than he!" A character who quickly emerges as one of the most complex in our Tanach definitely deserves to be studied from a variety of perspectives, and Hevruta Speed Dating definitely provided plenty of that!

Tikkun Trio to Perform at CJHS November 10, 2015 | 12:30 - 1:30 p.m.

The CJHS Performing Arts Departments proudly welcomes TIKKUN, a Quad City trio whose mission is to heal the world through music. They seek to present to their audiences programs that comfort the soul and challenge the mind. This incredible program will include two Chassidic dances (arranged by Zikmund Schul), Rondo (Arranged by Jean Sibelius), Song Without Words, Op. 109 (arranged by Felix Mendelssohn), and Trio in A minor, Op 114, III Allegro (arranged by Johannes Brahms). The program is open to CJHS staff and CJHS parents. For additional information about the program or to make a reservation, please contact Bruce Scher at bscher@cjhs.org.

窶帰lumni

Trivia

Seen any familiar faces in the halls? Which of our alumni is back teaching at the front of the class right here at CJHS? Hint: the beard hasn't changed much in seven years!

From the P.O. CJHS PO Book Club - Fall Book Club Meeting: The Book of Aron by Jim Shepard Monday, November 9 7:00 p.m. at CJHS Join us as Edie Salzman leads us in what is sure to be an engaging discussion about The Book of Aron, "a novel that will join the short list of classics about children caught up in the Holocaust." For more information about the book, click here.

Please RSVP at PO@cjhs.org. Feel free to contact us with questions.

Karen Ecanow & Debbie Copley CJHS PO Presidents

Sponsored Breakfast Happy birthday to Brian Silverstein. Many thanks to his family for sponsoring bagels. To sponsor breakfast in honor of your favorite Tiger, contact Diane Zidman, dzidman@cjhs.org.

Community News and Events

Alumni in the News Time Magazine Interviews American Students in Israel "American Students Visiting Israel Are Undeterred By Violence," the headline reads. Jewish students who wish to study in their homeland are doing so, CJHS grads included! “If anything, the situation makes me more proud to be a Jew and more proud to identify with Israel,” recent graduate Jonah GlickUnterman ('15) told the reporter, “because it shows how resilient we are in the face of violence.” Read all about in in Time Magazine!

Mazal Tov New Babies Everywhere!

Mazal tov to Rabbi Allan Kensky and his family on the birth of the first Kensky grandchild! Eitan Kensky and Jennifer Broxmeyer welcomed a little boy on Monday, and they look forward to a brit milah this coming Monday in Boston. Mazal tov also to Rabbi Sam Feinsmith and his family on the baby naming of their little daughter Ilanit last Shabbat.

In alumni news, mazal tov to former Judaic studies teacher Debbie Jacobson-Maisels and her family on the baby naming of Amalia Jacobson-Maisels. Ms. Jacobson-Maisels, Rabbi Jacobson-Maisels, and big sibs Ella and Amiel now life in Israel, where Ms. J-M works for Project TEN, a global Tikkun Olam initiative, and practices psychotherapy privately in Haifa.

Hachnassat Sefer Torah

Mazal tov to Emma and Julia Mati on their uncle's recent completion of writing his first Sefer Torah. Moshe Braun is a sofer and artist in Israel and was commissioned by a family in Istanbul to write the Sefer Torah for their son's bar mitzvah.

Limmud Chicago Coming Soon!

November 7-8, 2015 Don't miss out on Limmud Chicago 2015! Co-sponsored by CJHS, Limmud Chicago brings together Jewish learners from all over Chicagoland for an immersive experience of Jewish learning and community. Limmud is an entirely volunteer-run conference with participants on all kinds of Jewish journeys and presentations on the broadest array of Jewish topics possible. T​his year's conference is November 7 and 8 at the Doubletree Hotel in Skokie, from 6:30 p.m. on Saturday to 5:00 p.m. on Sunday. The exciting slate of presenters for Limmud Chicago 2015 can be found at http://www.limmudchicago.org.​ Fill in the code CJHSLC15 during registration for a discounted rate.

Empowering Our Students for Jewish Campus Life November 11, 2015 | 6:00 p.m.

An Evening for High Schoolers And Community with Hillels of Illinois North Suburban Synagogue Beth El Featuring Eric D. Fingerhut, President and CEO, Hillel International – former U.S. Congressman and Chancellor of Ohio Board of Regents 6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.: Hillel Fair Representing Midwest Campuses – Meet Current Students and Staff!

7:00 p.m.: Keynote Address by Eric Fingerhut Eric Fingerhut will address Hillel’s dynamic role in developing Jewish identities and Jewish life on campus during the undergraduate years. Discussion panels to follow will highlight what’s really happening on campus, including important challenges faced by today's Jewish college students. During the panels, high school students will have the opportunity to learn from Write On for Israel fellows and current college students about engaging in Israel activism and Jewish life while on campus. Parents and community members will learn how Hillel has evolved to face the current campus environment. A light kosher dinner

will be provided; event is free of charge. To RSVP please contact Suzanne Storrs at 312.673.2355 or register online.

Alumni Trivia Aaron Weinberg ('09) has been teaching Tanach and mishna while Rabbi Feinsmith is spending time with his newly-expanded family. "Dubs" has just completed his masters' in Jewish professional leadership from Brandeis, and he not a private consultant, working with Jewish organizations to develop their digital targeted advertising and social media presence. Aaron has worked at the Shalom Hartman Institute, the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, and Makom-- an Israel education initiative of the Jewish agency. After years in Israel and on the east coast, he has just returned to Chicago. Welcome, back, Dubs! We're thrilled to see you!

A Taste of Torah: Vaera and the Akedah "It’s important to interpret what Avram was going to do, but not take it to heart."

The Akedah is about loyalty. The Akedah teaches us that we should be loyal to our loved ones, friends, and elders. As Jews, as people, and as citizens, it is crucial that we learn from Avram. Personally, this Akedah really speaks to me. It helps me realize that it is important for me to self-reflect and look at the type of friend and family member I want to be. In contrast, this text does not make my relationship stronger. Biblical times were very different then modern times and God will not destroy you if you are wrong. However, it does make me realize that it is important to stay loyal to Judaism. It is important for our generation to keep Judaism alive with tradition.

Many famous Jewish philosophers have commented on the binding of Isaac. Rashi that explains Avram's affection for God: how he has so much faith in God that he is even willing to sacrifice his own son for Him. Rashi states, “Avraham! Avraham!”: This is an expression of affection, that He repeated his name.

— [Tos. Ber. ch. 1, Sifra Vayikra ch. 1]. As Avram goes to extremes for God, it is important to be rational.

When in love, people go to extreme measures. Yeshayahu Leibowitz explains that, when Avram’s faith is put to the test, he is silenced. “Avram’s silence demonstrates that his faith is not a conditional faith and is not limited by limitations of human morality.” In life, people should not go past their human morality, but they should be able to do things they do not want to for the people they love. It’s important to interpret what Avram was going to do, but not take it to heart.

Everybody’s loyalty gets tested one way or another in life. Whether a friend tries to catch you in a lie, or someone has a death in the family and they need support. It is okay to make mistakes, but it is important to show your loyalty to friends, family, and loved ones. Everybody can learn from Avram and relate it to their own lives. Avram went to extreme measures to show his loyalty to God, and therefore, was rewarded by God. When you show your loyalty to a friend, they will reward you with the same loyalty, and your relationship will be stronger just as Avram's was with God.

Josh Pliskin ('16)

1095 Lake Cook Road Deerfield, IL 60015 | cjhstigers@cjhs.org | 847.470.6700