Shabbat Shalom ~ Ki Teitzei 2024

Dear WJC Family,

We look forward to a peaceful Shabbat after a difficult week in the congregation involving several funerals. We pray for peace and comfort for all of the bereaved.

This Shabbat, we have several opportunities to get back into the swing of things at WJC. For those of you who have ever said, “I wish I understood the Saturday morning siddur and prayers a bit better so I could better engage in the services,” this is your opportunity. We are delighted to invite you to Shabbat Morning 101! Join our second-year intern, Rabbi Claire Shoyer, this Saturday morning in the library to learn what the words of the prayers mean and identify personal connections to the liturgy. You will also practice the traditional Shabbat melodies so that you can feel a part of the community in the WJC Sanctuary. While Shabbat Morning 101 is designed for beginners, all are welcome and will likely find some of the insights new and interesting, giving access to deeper prayer experiences.

We are also well into the month of Elul. This week, my Saturday Morning Torah Talk returns at 8:30am before services. We will do a deep dive into the work of philosopher and Talmud interpreter Emauel Levinas on forgiveness. This topic was personal and intriguing for Levinas, as he considered if he could forgive his beloved teacher, Martin Heidiger, who joined the Nazi party and was one of the leaders of the boycott of Jews in universities in the 1930s.

On another note, we are also working hard on preparing a meaningful High Holiday experience here in the synagogue. Of course, we are working hard on appropriate ways to recognize the anniversary of October 7 throughout our services, including a special Memorial at the afternoon/evening Yizkor Memorial Service before Neilah on Yom Kippur. However, the main community commemoration will be on October 6 at Temple Israel Center. I assume that event, of which we are a co-sponsor, will sell out. So, if you would like to attend, please register as soon as possible: click here to register.

In November, we will have the honor to host the Civilian Defense Committee of Kibbutz Reim and their families. This is a Project 24 undertaking, with whom we have coordinated several programs, and we are partnering with Shaarei Tikvah in Scarsdale to make it happen. In all, we will be hosting ten Israeli heroes and their families and we are looking for help with home hospitality and their programming for the week. If you are interested in being a host or can help out in other ways, please let me know as soon as possible, and thanks for helping us honor these amazing people and their families.

We are looking forward to our first Rhythm & Ruach of the year tonight. Join us with toddlers for Preschool Community Shabbat at 5:30pm, dinner open to all at 6:00pm (advance registration is closed; walk-ins are welcome), our Rhythm & Ruach service with band accompaniment at 7:00pm, and our special guest speaker, Zibby Owens, at 8:00pm. Zibby is author and editor of On Being Jewish Now, a collection of more than sixty notable Jewish authors speaking to their lifetimes of Jewish joy, celebration, laughter, food, trauma, loss, love, family, neuroses, and fun, and the common threads that course through the Jewish people: resilience and humor. All proceeds from the book go to help the non-profit “Artists Against Antisemitism.” It should be a very interesting talk and a beautiful Shabbat at The Center.

See you in shul,