March 16, 2007– Adar
27, 5767
Send your friends and relatives the gift of Jewish awareness -- a
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THIS SUNDAY!!!!!
JOIN US AS HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE COME TOGETHER TO CELEBRATE THE
MUSICAL TALENTS OF OUR LOCAL CANTORS, INCLUDING OUR OWN, CANTOR RACHAEL LITTMAN
Contents
of the Shabbat O Gram:
(Click
to scroll down)
Just
the Facts (service schedule)
The (Occasionally) Ranting Rabbi
Mitzvah/Tzedakkah Opportunities
The
Beth El Bar/Bat Mitzvah Commentary (new)
Required Reading and Action Items (links
to key articles on Israel and Jewish life)
Announcements (goings on in and around
TBE)
TBE’s Teens
Puttin’ their Heads Together!
See more pics at our new USY
website:
A special thank you to USY’s Communications VP,
Danielle
Shapiro, for designing the lovely site!
And of
course…
Check out www.tbe.org for Purim photos,
plus our
extensive library of photo albums,
articles, sermons, info about
the temple,
Shabbat-O-Grams and links to
the Jewish world.
Quote for the Week
An Interfaith Prayer for
this season
from the Interfaith Council
of
Lord God,
I know that my life has consequences,
that the things I say and do and think have
consequences,
that my actual sins have consequences,
even those things I wrongly suppose to be sin
have consequences.
And yet somehow I
also know
that your love is unconditional,
and that only such love can empower us
to live together without violence.
When we know that God loves us deeply
and will always go on loving us,
whoever we are and whatever we have done,
it becomes possible
to expect no more of our fellow men and women
than they are able to give,
to forgive them generously
when they have offended us,
and to respond to their hostility with love.
By doing so we make visible a new way
of being human
and and a new way of responding to
our worlds problems.
Candle lighting: 6:44 pm on Friday, 16 March
2007. For candle lighting times, Havdalah
times, other Jewish calendar information, and to download a Jewish calendar to
your PDA, click on http://www.hebcal.com/. To see the festivals of other faiths as
well, go to http://www.interfaithcalendar.org/. The United Synagogue has updated its candlelighting information. To learn more, click here.
Friday Evening:
Kabbalat Shabbat: 6:30 PM
– in the chapel
Tot Shabbat: 6:45 PM –
in the lobby
Shabbat Morning:
Service begins at 9:30 AM
Mazal Tov to
Spencer evans, WHO BECOMES bAr MITZVAH THIS SHABBAT MORNING! MAZAL TOV ALSO TO JILL ROTHKOPF AND
JONATHAN STEINBERG, WHOSE UFRUF WILL BE CELEBRATED THIS SHABBAT MORNING!
Children’s
Services: 10:30 AM
Shabbat
Mincha-Ma’ariv-Havdalah: 6:15 PM –
MAZAL TOV TO MELINDA (LINDY) FRUITHANDLER,
WHO BECOMES BAT MITZVAH THIS SHABBAT AFTERNOON!
Our Torah Portion
for Shabbat Morning
Parashat Vayakhel-Pekuday – Shabbat Hahodesh
פרשת ויקהל־פקודי
1: 39:22-26
2: 39:27-32
3: 39:33-43
4: 40:1-8
5: 40:9-16
6: 40:17-27
7: 40:28-38
Maftir: Exodus 12:1 - 12:20
(special maftir)
Haftarah (Shabbat ha-Hodesh): Ezekiel 45:16 - 46:18
If
you liked Storahtelling, you’ll LOVE Storahtelling’s
new weekly blog about the Torah portion Find it at http://storahtelling.blogspot.com/. ORT
Navigating the Bible; Rashi
in English; BibleGateway:
Useful for comparing different translations: Note- this is a Christian site.
What’s
Bothering Rashi (Bonchek) Each
week, one example from the parashah is deconstructed.
See a weekly commentary from the UJC Rabbinic Cabinet, at www.ujc.org/mekorchaim. Read the Masorti commentary at http://www.masorti.org/mason/torah/index.asp. University of Judaism, JTS commentary is at: http://www.jtsa.edu/community/parashah/.
USCJ Torah
THE ENTIRE
HEBREW BIBLE (AS WELL AS OTHER JEWISH SOURCES) CAN BE FOUND
WITH SIDE-BY-SIDE TRANSLATION AT http://www.mechon-mamre.org/
100
Blessings: Download information about the grace
after meals (see Birkat
Ha-mazon explained in Wikipedia and in the Jewish
Virtual Library)
The actual prayer can be downloaded at Birkat
Hamazon [pdf]
Morning Minyan
7:30 Weekdays, 9:30 Sundays
TO ENSURE A “GUARANTEED MINYAN” FOR
THE DAY OF YOUR YAHRZEIT – GO TO THE ROSNER MINYAN MAKER AT WWW.TBE.ORG AND ALSO
CONTACT ME AT RABBI@TBE.ORG.
We’ve had several people coming lately
who are saying kaddish following recent deaths in the family. We want to make sure we have a minyan
each day. Your presence any morning is greatly appreciated!
The
(occasionally)
Warm Thoughts
for the Start of Spring
A late
winter snow and ice storm are on our doorstep, but so is spring, which begins this
coming Tuesday, on PRECISELY THE SAME DAY that the Jewish month of Spring begins.
It is now called Nisan, but in the Torah it was
“Hodesh ha’Aviv”
literally, “the Month of Spring.” How odd the coincidence! This Shabbat is Shabbat-ha’Hodesh, which always precedes the beginning of
Nisan, indicating to us that the festival of spring, Passover, is just a couple
of weeks away.
This
Shabbat we also read the portion Va’yakhel,
which describes the construction of the tabernacle in the Wilderness. It was from this sacred work that the
rabbis later defined the 39 categories of work prohibited on Shabbat. Find them here. (for more on the 39 categories and on
Shabbat in general, see http://www.myjewishlearning.com/holidays/About_Jewish_Holidays/Overview_Shabbat/Rest_and_renewal.htm,
http://www.myjewishlearning.com/daily_life/Shabbat/Shabbat_Themes_and_Theology/Observing_Shabbat_GL.htm,
http://www.ou.org/chagim/shabbat/thirtynine.htm)
And so, some springy thoughts….
The
environmentalist Bill McKibben has said, “…the constant pauses of
observance – to say blessings, to touch a mezuzah and especially to
observe the Sabbath – are of profound importance in making people aware
of the world around them. We waste
the earth because we never stop to think or notice what we are doing.”
It is said that everyone should recite 100 blessings each day. To do that we have to
be constantly on the lookout for things to be in awe about, or to be grateful
for. Some are automatic ---
but many are not. Some Jewish
mystic traditions assert that when we make a blessing, changes actually occur
in the object that we bless. For one
thing, the object no longer is a thing to us – but a sacred
encounter. And even if it
doesn’t change the object, for certain, saying the blessing changes us.
So on this special Shabbat where we ponder the gift of spring and
the gift of Shabbat itself, let us pause a little bit more, and sense the
holiness around us.
Happy Aviv!
Thank You to
Our Purim Volunteers
With
Passover just a few weeks away, time for one last look back at Purim. Our carnival was once again a smash hit,
thanks in large part to Eran Vaisben and Edoe Cohen, along with Youth
Commission members Joan Katz, Mara Hammerman, Sharon Goldstein and co-chairs
Carl Shapiro and Roz Rubin. Roz has
put together a list of the adults and teens who volunteered to help make the
night such a success. We want to
thank them all (and see them in action in the photos on our website, www.tbe.org)! As always, there is risk of leaving
someone out or spelling a name incorrectly, for which we apologize. Here is Roz’ list as of today:
Adult
Volunteers:
Beth Finchler
Maureen Leffand
Susan Plotzky
Jeannie Kasindorf
Ellen Gordon
Mark Plotzky
Bruce Goldstein
Lisa Pomerance
Jill Knopoff
Barbara Cohen
Harvey Cohen
Linda Braun
Karen Resnick
Cathy Bernstein
Stacy Cooper
Kathy Freund
Renee Cannella
Larry Katz
Steve Katz
Stuart Nekritz
Stacye Nekritz
Kids:
Mitchell Shapiro
Allison Schechter
Harrison Shapiro
Adam Pollack
Ethan Hammerman
Randi Braun
Joelle Braun
Ali Pomerance
Arielle Poser
Alex Rosenberg
Dana Katz
Ian Cohen
David Katz
Matt Zielinsky
Jacob Cohen
Adam Satz
Peri
Shapiro
Morgan Temple
Jackie Schechter
Aliya Boyer
Brandon Pomerance
Kyle Tuckman
Daniel Hammerman
Dana Gordon
Lauren Tuckman
Michael Sosnick
Alana Kasindorf
Oliver Sabloff
Amitan Rubin
Ben Rathman
Lauren Pollack
Emilie Pollack
Mollie Steinmetz
Ali Kruk
Skyler Ross
Billy Harris
Rachel Benjamin
Jesse Hirtenstein
Andrew Madwed
Mitch Weissman
Samantha Cooper
Dara Gold
Brenda Heyison
Sophie Koester,
Eloise Hyman
Nick Hyman
And now with Purim behind us, time for
some….
Passover Resources
Download our TBE Sale
of Hametz Form
My own Passover guide A Guide for the Perplexed
Keeping the
Story Alive: Questions and Reflections for the Seder Table
COMMUNITY SEDER
Second Night of Passover
Tuesday, April 3 at 7PM
Click for more information
Those high school students wishing to attend services on Passover,
April 3, 4, 9 and 10, may obtain an absentee letter for their school’s
attendance office by contacting Ellen at 322-6901, ext. 308 or TempleSec@tbe.org.
Passover: Guided
Learning from MyJewishLearning.com
Guided Learning
presents the content for this section by level of depth, and offers you a
specific order by which to read through the articles
at each level. You can go directly to one of the four levels by clicking below,
or take a quiz that will suggest the appropriate level for you based on your
results. Or, you can opt to start at the Primer and work your way through all
four levels of Guided Learning one by one. Quiz
on Passover Level
I: Primer Level
II: Topical Overviews Level
III: Deeper Explorations Level
IV: Analysis & Interpretation
For a host of other Pesach links:
And finally…
Two nice links if you are interested in getting rid of the
“hametz of the soul” http://hillel.myjewishlearning.com/holidays/Passover/TO_Pesach_Home/Isaacs_Leaven_717/SpiritualHamezt_555.htm
http://www.rebgoldie.com/pesachrituals.htm
Mitzvah/Tzedakkah Opportunties
Beth El Cares
Cathy Satz (968-9191; csscounsel@yahoo.com)Cheryl Wolff (968-6361; cwolff@optonline.net)BETH EL CARES co-chairs The Highest Level of Tzedakkah: Job Networking
Experienced MBA with solid background in Information
Technology & Finance seeking position to use technical and analytical
skills. Primarily
interested in Finance and Investment industry. Skills and interests
include Business Analysis, Business Process Re-engineering, Operations &
Project Management, System Design and Enhancement and
Business Modeling Concepts. I can vouch for
this person being a real mensch. Contact me at rabbi@tbe.org
if you can perform this great mitzvah of networking
Free Them Now
Ehud Goldwasser Eldad Regev Gilad Schalit
Kidnapped Israeli Soldiers
• Sign the petition at www.freethesoldiers.org
Pre-Passover Hametz Food Collection
As you clean your cupboards in preparation for Passover, please consider
donating unopened boxes, bags and cans of hametz to a
local food pantry. For your
convenience, you can deposit those items in a box outside the Helen Golin Gift Shop, from March 22nd to 28th. We will then deliver the food to a local
food pantry. Check your e-mail for
more information.
Mitzvah Project – Dog-related Items LINDY FRUITHANDLER
WILL BECOME BAT MITZVAH ON MARCH 17.
PLEASE READ THIS NOTE
FROM HER REGARDING HER MITZVAH PROJECT:
For my mitzvah project
I am helping Adopt-A-Dog, a volunteer organization in
I will have a collection box
out in the
You can also help Adopt-A-Dog by saving
"Weight Circles" from Purina Brand Dog Food. Adopt-A-Dog receives 8 cents for every pound of weight
circles sent in to Purina. Adopt-A-Dog buys 1,000 pounds of dog food
every month! Each label that you clip and donate from a 20 lb. bag gives
them $1.60 towards their food bill. A 50 lb. bag label means $4.00 in
meals for their pooches. Trust me, it adds up! Please clip the labels off the side of each bag
you buy and place them in the envelope attached to the collection box.
On behalf of all the homeless dogs and cats at Adopt-A-Dog, thanks
so much for your help!
Lindy Fruithandler
322-4712
To check out Adopt-A-Dog for yourself,
please visit their website at www.adoptadog.org.
What is Shabbat Ha-Hodesh?
See http://www.ou.org/chagim/fourshabbatot/hachodesh.htm
Parshat
HaChodesh
"This month shall be for you the
beginning of the months, it shall be for you the first of the months of the
year." (Shemot 12:2)
On the Shabbat before Rosh Chodesh Nissan, or on Rosh Chodesh
if it falls on the Shabbat, two Torah Scrolls are removed
from the
The first day of Nissan was and always
remains a historic day for the Jewish nation. It was the day
when the people received their first commandment as a nation: Sanctify the New
Moon.
This ritual has a profound spiritual and
historic significance. It is noteworthy that it was one of
three commandments that the Syrian Greeks, in the time before the Chanukah
miracle, attempted to nullify by force. The other two were the
Observance of Shabbat and Circumcision. Clearly, therefore,
Commentators explain that, by virtue of
this Commandment, G-d gave the Jewish people mastery over time. From that
moment onward, the calendar with its cycle of festivals could exist only when
the Sages of Israel declared the New Month. This signifies more than control
over the reckoning of time, the dating of legal documents, and all the
banalities to which man is subject in his everyday life. It represents the
potential for renewal.
The Jewish people is
symbolized by the moon because, although the moon wanes, it waxes as well. It
stands for hope, for the confidence that there is a future as well as a past.
This vibrancy assures that any conquest of the Jewish people can never be more
than temporary.
The moon returns - and
Should Jews Be So Obsessed with Food?
See: Virtual
Talmud: The Jewish Obsession with Food
“What is Jewish
food? It's a record of our civilization as it evolved down the ages and spread
throughout the world. For Jews of Eastern European descent, the foods may be matzoh balls, or chopped liver, latkes, or gefilte fish.
Jews from other parts of the world have carried their own distinctive and
delicious recipes with them as well, such as Moroccan hamin
or Indian tandoori chicken livers; in Israel, it’s hummus and falafel. Wherever Jews have lived,
they took elements of local foods (as with so many other aspects of local
practices and customs) and wedded them to the demands of Jewish dietary
laws–separating milk and meat for example or avoiding leavened foods on
Passover. The result is a blending of cuisines, one that is simultaneously
worldly and authentically Jewish. (In
As an aspect of our civilization, Jewish food helps form and
reinforce Jewish identity through shared memories and shared meals. It
helps hold us together, and gives us something to nosh as it does so. Let's not
sell it short.” – Rabbi Joshua Waxman
Also see the Beliefnet discussion: Is
Kosher Food Healthier for You?
Prayer,
Song and Poetry
Some
Fascinating Websites…
Something
I stumbled across – a site documenting the vast history of Jewish
religious poetry and song (the piyyut). The home page is at http://www.piyut.org.il/search/english/. Let yourself wander from there to all
corners of the Jewish world, to the vastness of our cultural folkloric
heritage. A great way to prepare
for Passover! There are seven Dayenus
- play the mp3s at your Seder!
Passover
is at http://www.piyut.org.il/cgi-bin/search.pl?lang=en&YearCicle=9&Tradition=&RulerComponents=yearcycles
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Purim
and Adar materials are at
http://www.piyut.org.il/cgi-bin/fresh.pl?lang=en
And
speaking of prayer and poetry…
For centuries, Kabbalists have been intrigued by the healing powers of the divine
name. The
Ana Bekoach - the 42-letter name of God - is a
dynamic spiritual code buried in the pages of the Bible. The teachings of
Kabbalah reveal that the Ana Bekoach encompasses the
actual powers of creation. In traditional synagogues
it is sometimes recited prior to Lecha Dodi on Friday
nights.
See more about this fascinating acrostic at
http://www.hebrewsongs.com/song-anabkoach.htm
http://www.newthoughtkabbalah.com/anabekoachprayer.htm
Finally, a link received from several of you (thanks!)
It is the recording of an excerpt from a Friday
night service conducted by Rabbi Leslie Hardman,
Senior Jewish Chaplain with the British
Army, on April 20th 1945 at Bergen Belsen
concentration camp.
http://www.israelreporter.com/files/radio/BergenBelsenHatikva.mp3
Jewish and Israeli Links:
A great resource
on all things Jewish: http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/news.html
The best Jewish
site for Jewish learning: www.myjewishlearning.com
THE MOTHERLODE OF
ISRAEL-RELATED LINKS: http://www.israel.org/mfa/go.asp?MFAH00kj0
Israel
Defense Force, http://www.idf.il/
Israel Government Gateway, links to Government Ministries, www.info.gov.il/eng
Israel Knesset, http://www.knesset.gov.il/
Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, http://www.mfa.gov.il/
Israel Prime Minister’s Office, http://www.pmo.gov.il/
Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, www.cbs.gov.il/engindex.htm
Israel Tourism Ministry, North America, http://www.goisrael.com/
Buy Israeli Products, http://www.israelexport.org/, http://www.shopinisrael.com/,
http://www.finefoodsisrael.com/
Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies, www.tau.ac.il/jcss
Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, http://www.besacenter.org/
Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, http://www.jcpa.org/
One Jerusalem, http://www.onejerusalem.org/
Twenty Facts about Israel
Myths & Facts: A Guide to the
Arab-Israeli Conflict
Jerusalem Archaeological Park, http://www.archpark.org.il/
Israel Info Center
– Israel Activism Portal, www.israelinfocenter.com/
US White House, http://www.whitehouse.gov/
US State Department, http://www.state.gov/
US Senate, http://www.senate.gov/
US House of Representatives, http://www.house.gov/
THOMAS (search for US Legislation), thomas.loc.gov
United Nations Watch, http://www.unwatch.org/
Embassy of Israel – Washington, D.C., http://www.embassyofisrael.org/
Media-Related Links:
CAMERA, www.camera.org
Jerusalem Post, http://www.jpost.com/
Jewish Telegraphic Agency, http://www.jta.org/
Ha’aretz English Edition: www.haaretz.com
HonestReporting.com, http://www.honestreporting.com/
Independent Media Review and Analysis, http://www.imra.org.il/
Middle East Media Research Institue (MEMRI), http://www.memri.org/
Palestinian Media Watch, http://www.pmw.org.il/
Israel Insider, http://www.israelinsider.com/
Jewish World Review, http://www.jewishworldreview.com/
America’s Voices in Israel, http://www.americasvoices.net/
@The Source Israel, http://www.thesourceisrael.com/
Other Jewish Sites
Data JEM – an GEM for Jewish Education! Database for Jewish educational materials: http://www.datajem.com/visitor/IntroPage.asp
The best Jewish kids’ site on the Web is http://www.babaganewz.com/ ,
with games, virtual tours and “J-Pod” downloads, kids of all
ages will LOVE it.
Another superb educational site is http://www.myjewishlearning.com/
-- you can be a self-taught “maven” on all things Jewish!
A Jewish Guide to the Internet: http://www.uscj.org/metny/bellmobj/jnet2.htm
On Jewish Vegetarianism and Animal Rights: http://jewishveg.com/schwartz/
(hey, you KNEW I’d put this one in)
How many Jewish hockey players are there? (None right
now…there’s a lockout).
Find out at http://www.jewishsports.com/
Glossary of Yiddish Expressions: http://www.ariga.com/yiddish.shtml )Please be patient, this page is farshtopt with
information)
You can find an online Hebrew dictionary at http://milon.morfix.co.il/
Nice Jewish parenting site http://jewishfamily.com/
http://www.jewishgates.com/main.asp Jewish Gates is an amazing site, filled with material
on Jewish history, ritual and culture.
Go straight to the linked index at http://www.jewishgates.com/fullindex.asp and go to
town!
http://www.zipple.com/ The Jewish Super Site; a
similar site is http://www.maven.co.il/ and my personal all-time
favorite,
http://shamash.org/trb/judaism.html
The sourcebook for Jewish history (all periods) can
be found at http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/jewish/jewishsbook.html
Online Texts Related to
Jewish History. All the primary
sources “fit to print.”
Israel Campus Beat – to get all the latest
information on
The Beth El Bar/Bat Mitzvah
Commentary
Excerpts from Kira
Smith’s Speech on Parashat Ki Tissa
Hello & Shabbat
shalom!!
If you haven’t noticed, I am a very bubbly person. In fact, it might not surprise you that
I am a cheerleader. I have been
cheerleading since the 6th grade, and I love it!
When I started cheering, I thought that it seemed
like fun and was a good way to meet people. But during the past two years, I have
discovered it is more then an after school or weekend activity, it’s a
way of life. It is an attitude that changes you, as you help to change others.
It is a way of always seeing the glass as being half full.
Many times, at the end of a game, when there is
only time for one last play, and no hope, we are still out there cheering. We have faith that our team will be able
to do whatever is necessary in order to win. Faith. That is what it is all about. Believing in something bigger than you. That by working hard and putting
everything you’ve got into something at the end of the day you will have
won.
In my Torah portion, the Jewish people lost their
faith when Moses was on
When they finished building the calf, they began to
dance around it and worship it. A
little bit later, Moses came down from the mountain and discovered them
worshipping an idol. He got so mad
that he broke the tablets that contained the Ten Commandments that he had spent
40 days writing – just like they broke the laws that they were just given
by God. After all of the miracles they had seen, they
still did not have the faith to believe in God.
The last verse I read from this portion contained
the law where we shouldn’t cook a goat in its mother’s milk. While
we do
not
know exactly why we are given this commandment, we have come up with many
reasons to explain it. For example,
one reason for that law is so that a mother goat won’t have the pain of
seeing its baby being killed. From this law came the custom
of not mixing meat and dairy together.
It’s a good thing I don’t like cheese burgers! While we don’t always understand
why, we still follow this and many other laws. Judaism takes hard work and with faith,
we hope to be victorious in all that life has to offer.
With all the things that I have learned during my
years of study, one idea stands out - that as Jews, we need to have faith that
good comes out of hard work, and that we must be cheerful as we make the best
of everything. The ancient rabbis taught us to treat everyone with a cheerful
face. They were like the cheerleaders back then. I believe that by making people
smile we can help to make the world a better place.
For my mitzvah project I
am hoping to bring cheer and smiles to help people keep their faith. I will be giving books in the baskets on
the bimah to children with cancer at
Some
GOOD NEWS from
and other sources
Finding a common bond in Israel's environment
American college students visiting
Health
| Israeli clinical trials help new breast
cancer drug Tykerb win FDA approval
The success of GlaxoSmithKline's once-a-day breast cancer pill Tykerb - which this week won approval by the FDA for use by
women with metastatic or advanced breast cancer - is
thanks in part to clinical trials conducted by Israeli researchers. Dr. Bella
Kaufmann, director of the breast cancer unit at the cancer research center at
Tel Aviv's Sheba Medical Center, coordinated the trials on Israeli women with
relapsing inflammatory breast cancer, and her findings were instrumental in
educating the FDA about the benefits of the drug. Tykerb
will be available in the
Culture
| Israel's Mayumana
lights up New York stage with nonstop motion
For the past decade, the multi-talented theater group, Mayumana
has combined dance, music, rhythm, slapstick comedy and intricate storytelling
to create a vibrant and exciting art form that is both international, and at
the same time unmistakably Israeli. After performing for over four million
people in more than 30 countries, the improvisational troupe is set to conquer
the
Technology
| Israeli sound technology makes waves in the
music business
Frustration with the quality of tools for professional musicians and producers
led two Israelis to develop a new audio mixing software for the music industry.
Now, the company they founded, Waves, is employed by the world's top music and
film producers for artists like Madonna, David Bowie, U2, and The Rolling Stones. You don't have to be a music mogul to
enjoy the benefits of Waves technology, however. The company has also developed
software that can improve the quality of even the tiniest of speakers -
promising to revolutionize the way all of us hear sound. More...
Health
| Enriched low-fat dairy products pouring out
of Israeli lab
Israeli researcher Dr. Yoav Livney
has active in Israel's dairy industry for years, developing some of the
country's most popular milk products. Now in his lab at the Technion,
he's perfecting a new method of delivering health-promoting nutrients to milk products
via casein micelles, the protein particles naturally present in milk, as
carriers. This breakthrough innovation may facilitate the production of low-fat
or non-fat foods that contain important oil-soluble vitamins and antioxidants
now present only in fat-containing foods. More...
Israel's
Eurovision Song Contest Entry Accepted (STT-Finland)
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU)
said in
The final of this year's contest is to take place in
now for the rest
Prime source: Daily Alert of the
See also http://www.theisraelproject.org/site/c.hsJPK0PIJpH/b.672581/k.CB99/Home.htm
Transcripts of Speeches from this Week’s AIPAC Conference:
(http://www.aipac.org/index.asp)
- Vice
President Richard B. Cheney - AIPAC Policy Conference 2007 (PDF, 47K)
- Speaker
of the House Nancy Pelosi - AIPAC Policy Conference 2007 (PDF, 34K)
- Senate
Majority Leader Harry Reid - AIPAC Policy Conference 2007 (PDF, 30K)
- House
Republican Leader John Boehner - AIPAC Policy Conference 2007 (PDF,
24K)
- Israeli
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert
- AIPAC Policy Conference 2007 (PDF, 32K)
- Israeli
Minster of Foreign Affairs Tzipi Livni - Policy Conference 2007 (PDF, 67K)
- Howard
Friedman - AIPAC Policy Conference 2007 (PDF, 37K)
- Author
Michael Oren - AIPAC Policy Conference 2007 (PDF, 49K)
- Is Gaza
War Inevitable? - Alex Fishman All the scenarios point to a
war in
In parallel to upgrading its rockets against the Israeli home front, Hamas has established a well-equipped and trained, four-division army based on the Hizbullah model. Just like in - Overrated New Initiative -
Hillel Halkin
Every couple of years, a much-ballyhooed new initiative has surfaced to solve the Israel-Arab problem. Will anyone remember the current "Saudi initiative" 40 or even five years from now? Not unless the Saudis are willing to go a lot further toward meeting minimal Israeli conditions for a peace agreement. There is no way that even the most dovish Israeli government can agree either to return all the way to the pre-1967 borders or to accept a massive influx of the descendants of the 1948 refugees.
And because the Saudis know this, they also know that their initiative in its current form is no more than a propaganda ploy. This is not to say that the Saudis would not like to see
See also The Saudi Mirage - Editorial (New York Sun)
See also See You Later,
One has to know and remember that the "Saudi plan" in its current form is a recipe for the destruction of - The
Myth of Moderate Mullahs: It's Still Khomeini's Iran - Reuel Marc Gerecht
Are the clerical elite and their praetorians - the Revolutionary Guards Corps, the thuggish Basij, and the killers of the Ministry of Intelligence - still running a revolutionary enterprise within which they see themselves as the ideological vanguard of the nation and Islam? Yes, absolutely. To a striking degree, the ruling elite has maintained its sense of religious mission, while the Iranian people, especially the young who don't remember the charisma of Khomeini, have gone cold. For the vast majority of Iranians, an Islamic missionary spirit is no longer happily married to the national identity.
It is astonishing that some Western analysts of
What's
Missing from the Saudi Initiative - Negotiations - Shlomo Avineri (
- One
key element is missing from the Saudi initiative and from the March 2002
- The
Beirut declaration "called upon Israel to affirm" three points:
full and unequivocal withdrawal from all the occupied territories;
achieving a "just solution" to the Palestinian refugee problem
in accordance with UN General Assembly Resolution 194; and acceptance of
an independent Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza with East
Jerusalem as its capital.
- The
Arab League does not offer negotiations with
- What
the declaration demands is that
The
writer is former director-general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Avoid
the "Grand Solution" Temptation - Gerald M. Steinberg
The rapprochement between Israel and Saudi Arabia, and the revival of the 2002
Saudi-Arab League initiative, is not the result of a sudden outbreak of mutual
understanding or the dedicated work of special Middle East peace envoys.
Rather, the cause is rational self-interest. The Saudi monarchy, in concert
with
Palestinian
Editor: Palestinian Factions Abusing Democracy
The editor-in-chief of the Palestinian daily Al Hayat,
Hafiz Barghouthi, on Wednesday accused the
Palestinian factions of abusing democracy. Barghouthi
said that what is delaying the formation of the
Palestinian unity government was not political differences but the absence of
internal democracy within the factions. He accused the factions of
"turning the national project into a project for employment and
posts." (Maan News-PA)
America and Israel Are at
War with a Common Enemy - Pastor
John Hagee (
Pastor John Hagee,
who founded Christians United for
- There are millions of evangelical
Christians across
- Why do Christians support
Shin Bet: Palestinians
Working to Improve Missile Capabilities - Gideon Alon (Ha'aretz)
The Palestinians are taking advantage of the restraint
demonstrated by the Israel Defense Forces to bolster their arms and improve the
range of their rocket fire, Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) Director Yuval Diskin told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense
Committee Tuesday.
He said Hamas was sending hundreds of men to
Palestinian terror groups are attempting to increase their rocket
range to strike Kiryat Gat and Ashkelon;
Islamic Jihad succeeded in launching a Grad rocket some 16 kilometers last
July.
In the West Bank, both the Al-Aqsa
Martyrs' Brigades of Fatah and Islamic Jihad aspire to be the first to launch
rockets into
Diskin said the Palestinians have
employed improved roadside bombs, some capable of penetrating armored vehicles.
Hamas
Facing Internal Split Over Mecca Accords - Khaled Abu Toameh
(Jerusalem Post)
"Opposition in Hamas to the
The "rejectionist" camp in
Hamas, led by Interior Minister Said Siam and Foreign Affairs Minister Mahmoud a-Zahar, is opposed to
the
The two are expected to lose their jobs
in the new Hamas-led coalition.
U.S.,
Israel Walk Out During Iran's Speech at Geneva Disarmament Conference - Alexander G. Higgins (AP/Guardian-UK)
The U.S. and Israeli delegations walked out during a speech
Tuesday by Iran's foreign minister at the 65-nation Conference on Disarmament
in Geneva after he accused Israel and the U.S. of posing the main threats to
the security of the Middle East.
Japan
Hosts Mideast Peace Meeting to Raise Profile - Elaine Lies (Reuters/Washington Post)
Japan on Wednesday kicked off four-way talks with Israel, the
Palestinians, and Jordan aimed at economic cooperation in the Middle East, part
of efforts to raise its political profile in the region and ensure a stable
energy supply.
U.S. Students
Volunteer in Battered North - Hagai Einav (Ynet
News)
This year 120 Jewish students opted to help rehabilitate Israel's
north after the war in Lebanon during their semester break, planting trees and
fixing up bomb shelters in a volunteer program organized by the Jewish National
Fund and the Alternative Spring Break project.
The group was joined by an MTV television crew
producing a series on American youth spending their vacations volunteering
around the world.
Russia Having Second
Thoughts on Nuclear Aid to Iran
- Yossi Melman (Ha'aretz)
The state-owned Russian company building
the Iranian nuclear plant at Bushehr announced Monday
that the plant would not be launched in September and nuclear fuel will not be
delivered to the station this month as planned, due to unpaid bills.
However, American and Israeli experts see a strategic decision by
For the past five years,
Twice in the past two weeks,
Judge:
Sudan Liable for USS Cole Bombing
(AP/CBS News)
Four experts on terrorism, including R. James Woolsey, CIA
director from early 1993 to early 1995, testified Tuesday to support the
families' position that al-Qaeda needed
Experts testified that
How Many Jews
Did Mama Kill? (MEMRI)
On March 8, 2007, Hamas TV broadcast an interview with the
children of Palestinian suicide bomber Rim Al-Riyashi.
Interviewer: "Let's talk with the two children of the
jihad-fighting martyrdom-seeker Rim Al-Riyashi,
Dhoha and Muhammad. Dhoha,
where did Mama go?" Dhoha: "To
Interviewer: "What did Mama do?" Dhoha: "She committed martyrdom."
Interviewer: "She killed Jews, right? How many did
she kill, Muhammad?" Muhammad: "Five."
Monument to Ethiopians
Who Died En Route to Israel Dedicated in Jerusalem - Ayanawo Farada Sanbetu (Ha'aretz)
A monument commemorating the more than 4,000 Ethiopian Jews who
died in Sudan while attempting to reach Israel was dedicated at Mount Herzl cemetery in Jerusalem on Wednesday.
"This is a thank you to the Jews of
MYTH
#256
"Palestinians
are moderating their views toward
FACT
It
is often suggested that the Palestinians have
moderated their views toward Israel.
When it is pointed out that groups such as Hamas
(a partner in the Palestinian
Authority government) openly advocate the destruction of Israel, as the
group’s spokesman did on March 12, 2007*, their position is often
dismissed as mere rhetoric. The Palestinian people, we are
told, are prepared to live in peace with
Even
more alarming are the signs that young Palestinians are more militant than
their elders. On the question of whether Hamas
should continue to seek the elimination of Israel, for example, 66% of
Palestinians 18-21 agreed and an overwhelming majority of 90% said Israel has
no right to exist.
Given
the steady diet of anti-Israel propaganda in the Palestinian
Authority media and educational
system, these results are not surprising and reinforce Israel’s
longstanding view that incitement through those channels is having a
significant negative impact on Palestinian attitudes toward Jews and Israel and
hurting the prospects for peace. These results are sobering for anyone who
believes that Israeli concessions will end the conflict or that a new
generation of Palestinian leaders will be any more willing to accept
*“We
will not betray promises we made to God to continue the path of Jihad and
resistance until the liberation of
This
article can be found at http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/myths2/exclusives.html#a71
SAVE THE DATE FOR OUR NEXT SYNAPLEX SHABBAT
APRIL 7
THE THEME OF THIS DAY-LONG PROGRAM WILL BE
“MATZAH
AND MITZVAH”
FEATURING JEWISH JOURNEYS OF A LIFETIME
…AND BEYOND
ADULT BAT
MITZVAH
NO-HATE-BUT-HARMONY,
NESHAMA YOGA, MIND-BODY-SPIRIT BIKE
RIDE, AND GOOD PASSOVER FOOD!
LEARNER’S, TRADITIONAL AND MEDITATIVE
SERVICES;
SESSIONS ON
“THE ETHICS OF EATING,” NUTRITION,
KEEPING KIDS HEALTHY,
RAISING YOUR ADULT CHILD;
COLLEGE-TALK FOR TEENS, CHESS, TOUCH FOOTBALL
A CHOCOLATE SEDER FOR THE KIDS!
AND MUCH, MUCH MORE!
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Second
Night Community Seder
Tuesday,
April 3 at 7:00 PM
(Doors
open at 6:45 PM)
Led by Rabbi Joshua
Hammerman and Cantor Rachael Littman
Includes traditional Kosher
Seder meal
Entertainment and activities
for children throughout the evening
Please
complete the reservation form below and send it with your check, payable to
Temple Beth El, to Temple Beth El,
Reservation
deadline is March 22, 2007.
THIS FLYER CAN BE DOWNLOADED AT OUR WEBSITE, www.tbe.org
Prices: Adults: $55,
Children (3-12) $25, Children 2 and under free
Maximum
Price per Family $175, Parents & Kids
Please
check off choice of Entrée. Children’s meal will be Chicken
Fingers
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If you have a child who would
like to help with the younger children’s activities, please provide their
names and ages: _________________________,
_________________________, _________________________.
If you are able to volunteer please check off your preferences:
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For more information please contact Steven
Mayer at 203-316-9195; e-mail steve_mayer@mayerbenefits.com
or Mark Plotzky at 203-359-2290; e-mail mark.plotzky@snet.net.
.
THIS WEEK!!!
Community
Scholar-in-Residence Program
AVRAHAM INFELD
President Emeritus
of National Hillel & Early Architect of “birthright
March 20, 2007
7:30 pm at Temple
Beth El (opening session)
“Being Jewish in the iPod Age”
Maintaining and translating Jewish values into
contemporary Jewish life
Infeld is
known for his searing intellect, brilliant insights
into Jewish life and
enthusiastic, dynamic speaking style,
Avraham Infeld is not
to be missed.
For more information on the other events of the three-day program,
visit UJF website at www.ujf.org or contact
Dr. Ilana De Laney
203.321.1373 ext. 114 or ilana@ujf.org
This program made possible through the generosity
of the Herbert and Sarah M.
Gibor Charitable Foundation
We PROMISE you won’t be disappointed!
1. For Parents of Young
Children:
Reinforcing the Beauty of Jewish Values at a Yong Age. – Tuesday, March
20th at 9:45 AM at the JCC
2. For All: Redefining Being Jewish
in a World of Uncertainty. Tuesday, March 20th at
7:30 PM at
3. For
Jewish Teens and Parents - Being Jewish in the iPod Age. Wednesday,
March 21st at 7:00 PM at
For
more information please go to www.ujf.org
or email Ilana at ilana@ujf.org
SWEET ON YOU
Newest addition to the TBE catering
panel
You may now use
your Kiddushes, for your
baby namings and aufrufs at
Please call our Executive Director for
more information
Learning and Latte at Borders
featuring
This year’s topic:
“Moral Dilemmas for a World in Crisis”
Join us as we engage in friendly dialogue about some of
the hot-button issues of the day.
Meets on the second Tuesday of each month from 7:30-8:30
PM, October-May
Topics (subject to last-minute adjustment to keep
up with the headlines)
April 10 – What are different ways of imagining God
in our traditions? How does God show love?
May 8 – What is the future of religion in
ADULT ED
“The Many Demensions of Jewish
Prayer”
with
meets select Sunday mornings 9:00-10:00
am
Bimah 101:
Prepatory course for Adult Bar/ Bat Mitzvah
With Cantor
Meets weekly Sunday mornings 10:00-11:00
am
Judaism
for Everyone
An Introductory Class for Dummies, Smarties…
and Those Who Don’t Know How to Ask
With
Meets weekly on select Sundays 11:00
am-12:00 pm
(A prerequisite for those who wish to join
the Beth El Adult Bar/ Bat Mitzvah Class.)
Fee: $50 for materials
Modern
Conversational Hebrew Ulpan
Instructor: Eran Vaisben, Education Director
Do you have good basic Hebrew reading skills? The
primary goal of this class is to further your overall
understanding and use of the Hebrew language. This
class emphasis is on communicative skills that
will enable you to communicate in simple Hebrew for
everyday situations. This first level Ulpan class
is covering a variety of dialogue, articles, stories
and songs.
Prerequisite: Hebrew reading
SENIORS –
HAZAK RETREAT
We are planning to participate in a very exciting Hazak Retreat this June
13-20. Please see all details via the url:
http://www.uscj.org/ctvalley/Hazak%20Retreat%202007.pdf
Support our
Changes in Kosher at Stop & Shop Ridgeway
Approx. 16 months ago, in response to requests by
the local kosher community, the SKAC has been in discussion with corp.
management at Stop & Shop to consider both expanding store space, devoted
to kosher, as well as consolidating all specific kosher products to one area at
the Ridgway location.
Management informed the SKAC a few months ago, that they would accommodate this
request.
In the next few weeks, during the store's overall remodeling, the temporary " Super Passover " section, traditionally situated
in the center of the store, has been relocated to the right side of the produce
section.
The permanent regular kosher section will soon be relocated
to the rear of Aisle # 14. There will now be over 100 feet, devoted to kosher
specific products, with grocery on one side of the aisle and refrigerated /
frozen items, including dairy, meat / poultry and frozen, on the other side.
We hope this expansion and consolidation will be more of a convenience and an
additional draw to the location for your local kosher needs.
The SKAC wishes to thank store management for their continued efforts to
accommodate the shopping needs of their local kosher customers.
The SKAC continues to work, to provide more kosher choices to
town. Stay Tuned !
Eat & Enjoy,
Avi Greif
Pointperson
Invites you to a fun-d-raiser:
FAMILY
ICE
SKATING
PARTY
SUNDAY
APRIL 8th 2007
1:00pm
– 4:00pm
$5 per
person / $15 per family
Skate
rentals available for $4.50 each
In order
to reserve your place please fill out attached form by April 1st and
send to the
Laser
tag, mini golf, bowling, batting cages available at additional cost.
Kosher
for Passover refreshments will be provided.
Questions? Email: lpomerance@optonline.net
The Rinks at
Located off
USY
USY Goes BOWLING!
Saturday, March 24th
8:30 p.m. Meet at
Pizza will be served.
10:30 p.m. Pick Up
Price: $15
Please bring a signed waiver with you
to the event.
RSVP by Wednesday,
March 21st by emailing edoecohen@gmail.com
** All USY events are now
open to 8th graders
8th grades are welcome to
continue to attend Kadima events as well.
May 5th or 6th -
June 3rd - Pool Party
We hope to see you at these events.
If you have any questions or suggestions please feel
free to write me at edoecohen@gmail.com
or call 917-348-9790.
All the best!
Edoe
Hey
teens!
If you’re ready for a
new, hip, cool temple experience…
Come to
Teen Synaplex
Saturday, April 7th, 2007!
12:30–2:00 pm
Lunch with friends, with a
performance by teen troupe
No Hate But
Harmony
2:15–3:15 pm
Teen chat room on surviving high
school and getting into the
college you want (hear from HS seniors)
3:20–4:30 pm
FOOTBALL (co-ed) or hear WWII
survivors!
4:30 pm
Teen nosh
(more food!)
Get ready to have an
amazing time!
Bring all your Jewish
friends!
No charge!
NO MORE AFIKOMAN CRUMBS!
THANKS TO ROZ
RUBIN FOR FORWARDING THIS
JAPANESE MATZAH TIP
FROM YOUTUBE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jj_HzQSWKBQ
Previous
Shabbat-O-Grams can be accessed directly from the
archives on our web site (www.tbe.org)
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to office@tbe.org