Doar Shalom:
June 11, 2020 / 19 Sivan, 5780
Erev Shabbat candle lighting: 9:00 pm
Havdalah: 10:09 pm
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Rabbi Hannah's Weekly Reflection
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Parshat B’haatoecha –
Wherein Miriam is Punished with Whiteness
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It is our practice to turn the text of Torah over and over, as the Mishna instructs, so that the facet meant to illuminate our particular moment surfaces and inspires. Each year, the
parshiyot
strike us uniquely, and so it should be.
At another time, I might say that our prophetess Miriam was not speaking
against
her Black sister-in-law Tzipora, but rather
about
her, concerned for her. I might bring the
midrashim
that say Tzipora
was no longer wearing jewelry, and Miriam worried about a strain in the marriage between Tzipora and Moses. These
midrashim
teach that Miriam and Aaron were speaking about how to help their brother and his wife, as Moses became overly absorbed in his work, less attentive to his family.
But this year I don’t want to turn attention away from the suggestion of racism. I read God meting out terrible punishment against Miriam’s whispers about her Cushite sister-in-law, for she was Black. God doesn’t say, “Hey,
all
lives matter.” God says something more like, “If you denigrate the dignity of a Black life, beware lest you lose your own life.” “If Black life does not matter, no life matters.” And with this sentiment, God
whitens
Miriam with a paradoxical malady that mocks her racism with a whiteness threatening the very integrity of her skin. As this vital organ begins to fall away, Moses raises his voice in supplication: “
Ana, El, na; rafa na la!” –
“
Please,
God; please heal her!”
She is removed from community till she heals.
The question for us is: What does the healing entail? What will it take?
We must be careful not to allow our sense of historical victimization as Jews to get in the way of our advocacy. We must be careful not to be complacent in our sense of ourselves as inclusive and unbiased, even with our heightened awareness, even with our attention to social justice. Miriam was, after all, a prophetess, a leader of women, a font of nurturing, deeply spiritual. Still, Torah demonstrates that she was susceptible to whispering about the Other in her family. We must renew our curiosity about the experiences of those Persons of Color with whom we live and with whom we share spheres of community. We must educate ourselves regarding white privilege so that we critically see where and how
we
contribute to the systemic imbalance. We must be careful not to mistake our sincere sentiments for activism. And we must commit to a long period of unlearning and re-learning so that the social change necessary will be rooted and will prevail.
May these aspiration be a part of our vision as we build the post-pandemic world of our dreams.
Shabbat Shalom!
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Saturday, June 13, pre-taped Shabbat Morning Service
Parashat Beha'alotcha / פרשת בהעלתך
This week’s Shabbat morning davening is a fully pre-taped service created by a small group of community members collaborating in a by-appointment, temporally and spatially spaced gathering of artists and prayer leaders, returning to the Bayit to daven there for the first time since early March. This is a departure from the Zoom
davening
we’ve been offering and we will return to the Zoom format. But in the advent of the
Yamin Noraim
– the Days of Awe, we want to experiment with a variety of modalities and vehicles for offering virtual services as may be needed. You’ll see that we are new to this. And we hope you’ll perceive the dedication of all involved as we explore what’s possible, sharing our heartfelt and imperfect product as we embrace a new learning curve.
The prerecorded Shabbat Service will start playing at 10am on Shabbat morning. The web site home page to
www.orshalom.ca
will have the information about how to live-stream. We hope to post before Shabbat begins Friday night but no later than 9AM on Shabbat morning.
A recording of the service will be available any time after the stream concludes. It is delightful to be a community that is nimble, capable of flexing with the needs of our moment.
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Saturday June 20, Shabbat Morning Service via Zoom
10:00 am
Aviva Milstein is celebrating her Virtual Simchat Mitzvah.
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Saturday June 27, Shabbat Morning Service via Zoom
10:00 am
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Borrowing Prayerbooks (
Siddurim
)
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If you would like to sign out a
Siddur
from Or Shalom for virtual services, email the office at
office@orshalom.ca
to arrange a pick up time or a delivery time (please allow around 5 days for volunteer deliveries).
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Sunday June 14,
Virtual Evening Minyan
led by Rabbi Hannah
7:00 pm
For a transliterated and translated weekday evening liturgy, please click
here
(pg 69 to 125).
Join via
Zoom
.
Meeting ID: 869 8675 6931. Password: 291406
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" A gem of Or Shalom’s online offerings. The poetry of the Maariv liturgy, contemplative tefillah, a sweet minyan. A well-spent half hour." - John
"Since this pandemic began, weekly Sunday Ma'ariv has become such a special part of our lives. Each Sunday we rush back from our 7pm neighbourhood solidarity gatherings to dive into the sweetness of Reb Hannah's evening the frayed edges of our lives. These services recognize the passage of each day, the passage of a week, and often also the passages of loved ones in the lives of those who join in. We come together for a brief moment of prayer and reflection, touching base with some of the sweet neshamas of our community, and mark one more transition in our collective journey through this remarkable time in history. We thank Reb Hannah for her continuing commitment to sweet Sunday Ma'ariv and to community."
- Mary Adlersberg
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Upcoming Or Shalom Virtual Happenings
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Friday June 12 to Thursday June 18
Friday, June 12
Prayers for Healing,
Tehillim
for the Human Family
with John Fuerst
1:00 pm
Reciting
Tehillim
for the sick is a traditional practice.
Join John to chant or sing Psalms, or to sit quietly, sending healing intentions. Psalms are available in Hebrew and English
here
.
New link!
Join via
Zoom
.
Meeting ID: 873 2214 6883; Password: 200901
North Shore Virtual Shabbat
5:30 – 6:45 pm
This week, Rabbi Hannah is leading the Shabbat blessings.
Join Or Shalom, Har El, and Connect Me In for a collaborative gathering.
Erev Shabbat Candle Lighting
6.00 pm
Reb Laura and Charles invite you into their home to share a virtual Intergenerational Shabbat candle lighting and blessings. Come for candle lighting and stay for Shalom Aleichem, Kiddush, hand washing, and Motzi.
Join via
Zoom
.
Meeting ID: 826 4524 7744. Password: 712461
Saturday, June 13
Pre-taped Shabbat Morning Service
10:00 am
Sunday, June 14
Virtual Evening Minyan led by Rabbi Hannah
7:00
pm
Tuesday, June 16
Zusia The Bet Midrash Offerings:
The Jewish Book of the Dead
with Matthew Gindin
7:00 - 9:00 pm
For registered students.
Inside the Black Box: The Mystery of Tefillin
with Rabbi Hillel Goelman
7:00 - 9:00 pm
For registered students.
Thursday, June 18
Women's Heart Centered Torah Study
12:30 – 2:30 pm
Parashat Beha'alotcha
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With our move to virtual services over Zoom, there is an ongoing need for volunteers to help out at each event, and many hands would make that work lighter. Job requirements are:
Have a recent computer, reasonable internet speed, and some technical capability with Zoom, Preview/Acrobat, and Web browsers.
Mute-Meisters
are co-hosts responsible for the safety and clarity of the service. They mute us as a congregation and unmute the person leading that part of the service, and diligently monitor the people as they enter, and occasionally mute those who have inadvertently unmuted themselves.
Holy Scrollers
are co-hosts responsible for sharing the liturgy and other audio-visuals during the zoom call, smoothly and without fuss. There is often some rehearsal involved and you need to be proficient with Zoom, applications and full-screen behaviours. Holy scrollers usually need to be able to read Hebrew and know the order of services.
To apply, please fill out this web
form.
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The Annual Campaign is Officially Over -
but it’s far from complete!
The Annual Campaign has officially ended but there are many conversations still to be had. If you haven’t already, please reach out to our Campaign Director, Jaydeen Williams Rabinovitch, at
campaign@orshalom.ca, or or 604-710-1677. Now is a time to share how meaningful Or Shalom is to your life, and your ideas on how to make it even better. Complete your Annual Campaign donation online at
www.orshalom.ca/campaign/.
Toda Raba.
- Roslyn Kunin, Campaign Chair
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- Thank you to Mary Adlersberg for generously re-binding several boxes of Or Shalom's siddurim.
- Thank you to Reb Hillel Goelman and Sheryl Sorokin for donating books to the Or Shalom library.
- Thank you to Charles Cohen, Dave Kauffman, Hannah Dresner, Harley Rothstein, Harriet Frost, Jesse Gotfrit, Martin Gotfrit, Nomi Fenson, Sally Thorn, Sandra Cohen, Tilly Schalkwyk, and Wendy Rubin for their contributions to the pre-taping of the June 13 Shabbat Morning Service.
- Thank you to the Gemilut Chesed Working Group and to our Covid-19 volunteers for their ongoing support.
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The membership committee's
Getting to Know You
interview series is an opportunity for Or Shalomniks to get to know one another and learn about the fascinating stories and knowledge our community has to offer.
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Community Thoughts and Feelings about Recongregation
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The results of the Thoughtexchange are complete with 116 people sharing 186 thoughts and rating other people’s thoughts a total of 3,892 times.
They are available for viewing here:
The purpose of running a qualitative project even during Phase I was to give the community an opportunity to share their ideas and concerns about how, when, and if Or Shalom should re-congregate from the perspective of us as members. The board of directors is responsible for setting our policy and will gather information from the BC Ministry of Health, and our newly-formed Or Shalom COVID-19 Advisory Committee, and will be
mindful of
the vision and capacity of our Rabbi and staff. Hearing from the community about what is most important to you also provides guidance for board decisions. Thank you to all who participated in the Thoughtexchange. You can always reach the board at
board@orshalom.ca
The top thoughts include:
#1 The rabbi and other community members have really provided an excellent online presence.
- Very often the top thought in an exchange is an expression of gratitude.
#2 Concerned about high holidays. Lots of people and singing. There is hard evidence that indoor large gatherings plus singing equal spreading virus. Obvious. See above.
- There’s not much doubt we will have to have a different High Holidays experience this year, and are exploring how to make that experience as “Or Shalom”-like as possible.
#3 We will need to continue our on-line presence for the foreseeable future. We've brought in people from all over the world as well as our local congregants who appreciate no longer driving for an hour or are ill, etc.
- This is recurring theme that regardless of when we start to gather together again, there will be people who would benefit from maintaining an electronic outreach of our services going forward.
#4 The zoom platform is working really well and can be used more - it helps people feel connected and there are so many ways it can serve the community.
#5 I feel we need to prioritize the health of our members.
- This is of course an ongoing concern, as we consider both physical health as well as mental and spiritual health.
You can read the rest of the thoughts in the report above and also see the demographics of the respondents, as well as what themes emerged form the exchange.
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Faith Response to the Corona Virus
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We share with you an exciting project of religious responses to the Corona season from around the world, including that of the great Jewish teacher
Rabbi Arthur Green.
The Elijah Institute, centered in Jerusalem, asked spiritual teachers from all the great traditions to offer words of wisdom and ḥizzuk, (fortitude). Many are in the form of interviews conducted by Rabbi Dr. Alon Goshen-Gottstein, the institute's founder. The result is a colorful panorama of religious personalities, teachers, and teachings. It can be found at
www.coronaspection.org Click
here and below if you first want to see just the trailer.
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If you wish to help support folks in need, please complete the volunteer
form
at this link. Your community will be very grateful.
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Generosity in the Time of Covid-19
With the need to remain at home for the sake of good health, Or Shalom staff and volunteers are reaching out to connect socially and spiritually, and we are reaching out to provide material goods as well, buying and delivering provisions, as requested, and dong our best to help with other unexpected short-term needs.
Please help us to maintain strong financial resources in the communal funds from which we draw to ensure that members of our community have what is needed during this difficult time.
We rely on your generosity to do this holy work:
The Rabbi's Benevolent Fund
is administered confidentially by Rabbi Hannah and will continue to provide short-term financial assistance where it is needed.
The Gemilut Chesed Fund
will be used to purchase food for the members of our community who cannot shop for various reasons, and to cover expenses incurred by our volunteers.
The Or Shalom donation form can be found
here
.
Thank you.
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The Voices of our Community
Canadian Jews of Color
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Log in
to the
Virtual J
to listen to a recording
of "An Evening of Deep Listening; Facing and Combating Racism With/In the Jewish Community", r
ecorded LIVE on Monday, June 8, 2020.
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Presented by Toronto Board of Rabbis and Jews of Colour Canada; and co-presented by Hillel Ontario, UJA-Federation, Downtown Jewish Community Council, Miles Nadal JCC, Schwartz-Reisman Centre and Prosserman JCC.
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Financing Covid-19 Presentation by
Dr. Roslyn Kunin
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Dr. Roslyn Kunin is one of those rare economists who can make the often difficult subject of economics understandable and even interesting. She holds a Ph.D. in economics from the University of British Columbia, an Honorary Doctor of Laws from The University of Victoria and the ICD.D designation from The Institute of Corporate Directors. She received the Crystal Ball Award from the Association of Professional Economists, the Woman of Distinction Award from the YWCA and is a member of the Order of Canada and the Order of British Columbia.
Dr. Kunin is currently a director of the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research and the council of Applied Sciences and Technicians and Technologists of BC.
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The link will open 10 minutes before the start of the program.
Dr. Kunin's presentation will take about 20 minutes so there will be a lot of time for a Q&A.
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Order
here
and r
eceive Challah at your doorstep on Friday mornings for free (up to 2 per family).
(Register before 12:00 pm on Thursday each week for guaranteed delivery.) If you have any questions about this program or would like to make a donation, please contact Adam Ben-Dov at
abendov@jewishvancouver.com
.
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JFS Emergency Care Hotline
9:00 am – 9:00 pm,
7 days a week.
JFS is here to help! If you or a loved one need support you can contact us in any of the following ways:
604-558-5719
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Hebrew Free Loan Association of Vancouver
Coronavirus Emergency Loan
Helps support individuals with financial challenges caused by the Coronavirus.
Maximum Loan Amount Available: $2,000
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Have something to post in the Doar?
Just fill in this
handy web-form
to included
your article
in future editions of the Doar Shalom, Or Shalom's weekly e-newsletter.
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