Shofar Av/Elul 5772
Jewish Family Congregation www.jewishfamilycongregation.org
Summer 2012
From the Rabbi’s Desk As you can tell from the photos that were put up on our website, and distributed by email broadcast earlier this month, and that are featured in this issue of the Shofar, once again I visited our kids at Camp Eisner in Great Barrington, Mass. They were all smiling broadly, all seemed very happy, and also much too involved with their friends and activities to spend much time visiting with me! Eisner is, of course, one of the URJ camps, and a very special place it is. The kids actually spend their entire time there living Jewishly. They acquire a Hebrew vocabulary, learning the names of the activities and the places on the campus (limud is learning, and khadar okhel is mess hall). Each week builds toward the celebration of Shabbat, which is observed with joy and gusto. Every meal is preceded by the appropriate blessing, and concluded with the Birkat HaMazon (“grace after meals”).
sion in living Jewishly for about a month has a powerful impact on the degree to which young people identify themselves as Jews and remain connected to the Jewish community. A significant percentage of those who attend URJ summer camps go on to become Jewish professionals…rabbis, cantors, Jewish educators or communal workers. And friendships made at camp apparently endure even as kids go off to college and beyond. So Reform congregations have good reasons for supporting the URJ camps.
We at JFC do a good job of that. We invite folks from Eisner to come and make a presentation to our congregation, to encourage families with young children to plan to send their kids to this great camp (and to Crane Lake Camp, also located in the Berkshires, and also a great summer experience). We invite our Eisner campers to attend that presThe day I was there, the camp, like all of us at home, had entation (they come wearing Eisner gear) to talk about been experiencing a dry, hot summer. So three of my their own experiences, to identify the things they love colleagues got up and did a “Jewish rain dance”, and later about Eisner and why they are counting down the days till that afternoon it poured (ok, rain was forecast, but still….). they can return. The kids went along with the shtik, because it was camp, Last winter, we had a visit from Greg Kellner, who was a after all, and what other kind of rain dance could possibly senior staffer at Eisner and is now at Crane Lake, for a be offered there? Shabbat evening service; Greg played guitar and conIn the last 20 years, research has shown that the most ef- ducted the service a la Eisner. Most of our campers came fective predictor of ongoing Jewish commitment, beyond out to have a little taste of their summer Shabbat, and the college and into adult life, is participation in a Jewish sleep joy in the room was palpable. -away camp. More than going to Religious School, becomWe encourage families to attend the special weekend ing Bar/Bat Mitzvah, or being confirmed, clearly immer-
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From the Rabbi’s Desk President’s Message Aug. Bday/Anniv/Yahrzeits Service Schedules Beg. Hebrew for Adults JFC Sisterhood Summer Fun Pictures Early Childhood Center Kids Ask the Rabbi
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The Ritual Committee The Religious School JiFTY Religious School schedule M.A.R.S. Program Ask the Rabbi Kids Knesset Donations Form
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