Kol Kiruv February 2019
Sh’vat - Adar
Happenings
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A Note From Cantor Goldberg
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A Message From Reb Jamie
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A Message From Rabbi Mintz, Rabbi Emerita 4 The President’s Message, Sam Lieberman
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BGU Symposium
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A Musical Celebration
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Jewlicious Learning
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Free Money
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Yahrzeit, Nid’vei Lev and Celebrations Calendar at a Glance
Vol. 28—No. 6
Congregation P’nai Tikvah will worship on February 1st and 15th. Tot Shabbat, Kabbalat Shabbat and Ma’ariv services will begin at 6:30 PM on February 1st. On February 15th, Shabbat-Kabbalat Shabbat and Ma’ariv Services will begin at 7:30PM at Adelson Educational Campus Chapel.
Torah Study will be at 10:00am on February 2nd and February 16th. Call for locations.
If you are interested in sponsoring an Oneg to celebrate an event, memorialize a loved one, 10-11 or just because, please call 702.436.4900 for sponsorship and catering opportunities. 12
A Note From Cantor Marla Goldberg In the liturgy class of my first year of cantorial school our teacher, Rabbi Shaul Feinberg, had a daily mantra, “The Rabbi’s knew their Bible”. He was speaking about the creation of our siddur, our prayer book, and how it started with several passages from the Torah. The Shema, for instance, comes from Deuteronomy 6:4. In one of the portions this month, Ki Tissa, a popular prayer is read. In chapter 31 verses 16 and 17, we find the words, “Thus shall the Children of Israel keep the Shabbat, observing Shabbat throughout the ages as a covenant of all time. It is a sign for all time between me and the Children of Israel. For in six days God made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day God ceased from work and was refreshed.” Deut. 31:16-17. The words of V’Shamru. Each week we sing about this covenant, and we can use many melodies to do so. Even though it is thought to be a ‘traditional’ version by many people, one very popular melody is by Rabbi Moshe Rothblum. It is the one we sing in most of our services. He composed this melody in 1967 as part of a play he put on in rabbinical school. A humble man (although he did do a guest spot on the TV show CSI:New York, as a rabbi) he loves to perform, and probably finds the popularity of his composition amazing, especially as it was written to be sung slowly not the dancing style most congregations sing it with now. He loves music and theater, and despite retiring from his pulpit last year, continues to enjoy performing in all forms. With so many variations possible it is sometimes amusing to me to talk to people about which one to sing on a given Shabbat. Some composers have written more than one version. I once had a discussion with a colleague from my DLTI group, on which V’shamru to use for a Shabbat service we were leading. She suggested the Debbie Friedman version. I asked, “Which one?” She said, “The Debbie Friedman one,” (I kind of got the feeling of going into “Who’s on First?”). I told her there was more than one melody she wrote for it. We did decide on which version to do. So whether we sing V’shamru upbeat, or lyrically, or just read the prayer, we remember that keeping Shabbat is one of the most important things we can do as Children of Israel. It is our covenant, our promise. It is our time to be like God, and cease from work and be refreshed. L’Shalom,
Cantor Marla Goldberg
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Message from Reb Jamie As I write it is early morning and I am on BART headed to San Francisco. The full train is silent with people half awake. The woman sitting next to me crosses herself having completed her morning prayers. As I look around, I see a Sikh man a few rows down, and a woman reading the Bible. Conversations with God are taking place all around me.
I too use this quiet time for morning tefillah/prayer. I begin as I leave my car and walk to the station. I am usually at the Amidah, the central prayer, by the time I board the train. The Amidah begins “Blessed are you, Lord/Spirit of the World. God of Abraham, god of Isaac, and god of Jacob.” The compilers of the prayerbook asked why the text says, “god of” three times and does not condense the opening into “God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob?” The sages answer rings in my ears as I look around at my fellow travelers engaged in prayer. This formulation was no accident. The author of this prayer was telling us that though each of the patriarchs believed in one God, he experienced that God in different ways. There are many approaches to and ideas of the nature of God. In Judaism, the view varies from a deity who micromanages the world and acts in history, to the pantheism of Spinoza, the religious naturalism of Kaplan, to the aspirational humanist ideal of Fromm. If across the ages our sages and theologians came to know God differently, why wouldn’t Abraham’s understanding differ from Isaac’s, and Jacob’s differ from theirs? The opening to the Amidah reminds us that diversity in the way we know God is part and parcel of holiness. As the train hums along the tracks to San Francisco it is playing out before my eyes.
Jamie Hyams
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Message from Rabbi Emerita Yocheved Mintz Dear Chevreh: One of my most favorite things to do is Torah Study. I love our CPT Torah Study sessions and I know we have a small but mighty cadre of members who avail themselves of Torah Study at several locations around town. For those who just can’t get enough, I’d like to introduce a fairly new study opportunity that tackles the Torah and, in fact, the entire Bible, and you can do it from home! “929” is a daily digital Hebrew Bible webpage/app that brings together Jews of different disciplines and ideological backgrounds to study our shared pre-denominational texts. The site is so-named for the material it covers: 929 chapters that comprise the TaNaCh, the Hebrew Bible (Torah/N’viim[Prophets]/K’tuvim [Writings]). Each day, five days a week, a series of articles, podcasts and videos is posted on the site focused on that day’s chapter. The site originates in Israel, is in English, and is gaining viewers from all over the world. Contributors include rabbis, professors, attorneys, intellectuals, and even regular folk contributing their relevant Torah commentaries, and earlier this year I was asked to submit a commentary. My first contribution is a 500+ word commentary on Numbers/B’Midbar, Chapter 20, which was broadcast online January 21st . (Because I’m writing my message to you prior to our newsletter submission deadline of January 10th , I don’t know what kind of response or readership it received, but I’m honored to be a part of this enterprise.)
Want to check it out? Try this url: https://www.929.org.il/lang/en/today . And, if you like the joy of studying a different chapter from the Bible every day, join me and thousands of others from all over the world on 929. Happy Studies,
Rabbi Yocheved Mintz
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From the President… Thanks to all who attended our inaugural service at the Adelson Educational Campus. Our goal is that it becomes a spiritual home for years to come. We know that change is difficult, so please share your concerns and opinions. Give me a call anytime. Thanks to Dale Gardner, Judi Stotland and the amazing team that worked tirelessly to make the Roast ‘n Toast of Dina Titus a marvelous success and a beautiful event that was enjoyed by all. We thank Dina for her ongoing support of the Jewish community and Congregation P’nai Tikvah. We are a D-I-Y (Do-It-Yourself) congregation and we couldn’t do it without you! Thank you for all you do. All the best,
Sam Lieberman 702-286-0739
LIFE & LEGACY is a partnership program of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation to support Jewish communities in securing after-lifetime gifts.
An unprecedented transfer of generational wealth is taking place before our eyes. Yet Jewish organizations by and large have not fully recognized the possibilities or sought legacy gifts despite the knowledge that endowments will have an increasingly impactful role in sustaining the future of their organizations. Having this knowledge, the question HGF sought to answer is “Can Jewish communities be motivated to become proactive in encouraging widespread legacy giving?” With implementation of LIFE and LEGACY the answer is YES! 5
If you would like a copy of Kol Kiruv sent to your home, please send $72.00, along with your address to: Administrative Office 1697 Black Fox Canyon Rd Henderson, NV 89052
P’nai Tikvah is a warm and welcoming, progressive, egalitarian, and pluralistic
congregation focusing on the spiritual, educational, and social well-being of those who wish to live a fulfilling and meaningful Jewish life.
Clergy and Staff Cantor: Cantor Marla Goldberg Student Rabbi: Jamie Hyams Rabbi Emerita: Rabbi Yocheved Mintz Educators: Rabbi Mintz & Cantor Goldberg Bookkeeper/Treasurer: Lynn Pisetzner Administrative Assistant: Faith Silverman
702.436.4900 www.pnaitikvahlv.org info@pnaitikvahlv.org 6
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Jewlicious Learning Returning from winter break, we began the semester with a study of Tu BiShvat, the birthday of the trees. We discussed many of the blessings that trees bring us and the importance of Bal Tashchit, saving our resources. We had fun doing a Readers Theatre sedra scene of Parshat Bo, when we learned what the Torah is, inside and out. We did a reading of an original playlet by our own Aaron Brown, as well. When Rabbi Mintz was away at the OHALAH Conference and Cantor Goldberg was away on jury duty, we had the treat of Morah Iris (Katz) and the return of our beloved Austin Royer, who was on break from UNR. David Piekarsky, Sophia Brown, Aaron Brown, and Meyer DeLee are getting better and better at the basic Hebrew alphabet and can recognize most of the vowels. They are growing their spoken Hebrew vocabulary and will be reading for understanding before the year is out.
MayLee DeLee, Danica Lockett, and Mason DeLee have been studying the Friday evening/Erev Shabbat service and have gained some proficiency in L’cha Dodi, the Borchu, Maariv Aravim, Ahavat Olam, the Sh’ma, V’Ahavta, Mi Chamocha, Hashkiveinu, and V’Shamru. Meyer 8
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It’s easy to find Box Tops. In fact, you may have some in your home right now. Clip Box Tops from your favorite products and turn them in to your child’s school today! Box Tops are each worth 10¢ and they add up fast! * Annie’s * Betty Crocker * Bugles * Cascadian Farms * * Fiber One * Finish * Gardetto’s * General Mills * Go-Gurt * * Green Giant * Hefty * Kleenex * Land O’Lakes * Larabar * Lysol * * Old El Paso * Pillsbury * Nature Valley * Reynold’s * Scott * * Totino’s * Yoplait * Ziploc * 9
FEBRUARY BIRTHDAYS Daniel Piekarsky Stella Bialac Anna Gomez Gayla Wennstrom Molly Billbray-Axelrod Paul Aizley Wendy Kraft Ann Mandell Vincent Gardner Lorraine Brown Zelda Goldwater Faith Silverman
February 1 February 3 February 11 February 12 February 14 February 16 February 16 February 17 February 19 February 21 February 25 February 29
FEBRUARY ANNIVERSARIES Don & Linda Kauffman Jason & Paula Deal Gary & Anne Ullman David & Lynda French Andrew & Barbara Holland
February 9 February 12 February 13 February 14 February 14
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FOR THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY Eli Brandt -Remembered by Marti Jenkins
Ernest Jacobs -Remembered by Sam Wagmeister
Memorial plaques are available; to honor the departed, to inspire the living, to be remembered in the hearts of those we leave behind is, in a sense, to live forever.
Feliccia Johnson -Remembered by Kristen Jaeger
For further information, call the Synagogue office at 702-436-4900
Fred Halperin -Remembered by Ellen Royer
Michael Kramer -Remembered by De’Anna Ernst Cory Kraus -Remembered by Marti Jenkins
Karen Magid -Remembered by David Aris Bertha Platt -Remembered by by Zandra Bender Julian Ullman -Remembered by by Gary Ullman Dora Weiman -Remembered by Barbara Holland Jacob Weiman -Remembered by Barbara Holland Eleanor Wohl -Remembered by Barbara Holland
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CALENDAR AT A GLANCE: February 1 2 4 11 15 16 25 March 1 5 4 11 15 16 18 20
6:30pm 7:30pm 10:00am 12:00n 4:15pm 4:15pm 7:30pm 10:00am 4:15pm
Family Shabbat Kabbalat Shabbat and Maariv Service Torah Study Mad Hatter Tea Party Jewlicious Learning Jewlicious Learning Kabbalat Shabbat and Maariv Service Torah Study Jewlicious Learning
Adelson Adelson TBA Dale Gardner Rabbi Mintz Rabbi Mintz Adelson TBA Rabbi Mintz
6:30pm 7:30pm 10:00am 4:15pm 4:15pm 7:30pm 10:00am 4:15pm 7:00pm
Family Shabbat Kabbalat Shabbat and Maariv Service Torah Study Jewlicious Learning Jewlicious Learning Kabbalat Shabbat and Maariv Service Torah Study Jewlicious Learning “Come As You Aren’t” Purim Party
Adelson Adelson TBA Rabbi Mintz Rabbi Mintz Adelson TBA Rabbi Mintz Rabbi Mintz
4:15pm 6:30pm 7:30pm 10:00am 4:15pm 10:00am 6:00pm 4:15pm
Jewlicious Learning Family Shabbat Kabbalat Shabbat and Maariv Service Torah Study Jewlicious Learning Torah Study Community Seder Jewlicious Learning
Rabbi Mintz Adelson Adelson TBA Rabbi Mintz TBA UNLV Rabbi Mintz
April 1 5 6 8 20 29
Blessing for the Month of Adar Aleph: May we embrace the materiality, mundaneness, and physicality of the world and, in doing so, discover its inner divinity this month. Amen. 12