Messy and Clean

Right now many of us are deep in the middle of cleaning. Cleaning our house for Seder guests.  Cleaning our kitchens so we can kasher and cook for Pesach.  Vacuuming out our cars where children have left crumbs all over the backseat.  The concept of “Spring Cleaning” originated” from somewhere, right?

But the cleaning isn’t just surface level wiping down the counters, cleaning out the cabinets, or making sure we don’t have any chametz in the house.  This kind of cleaning involves purification of our cookware and utensils, pouring boiling water over counters, and making sure that anything that comes into the space is kosher on a different level than the rest of the year.

Everything about Passover is about keeping things in order.  Our kitchens are purified, our meals include a step-by-step guide (Seder literally means “order”), and the plagues represent what happened when the world was pushed out of order.

This week’s parsha, too, is about order.  You may not think so at first glance.  The parsha, Metzorah, goes into great detail about skin diseases and bodily fluids and the sacrifices that we do to purify ourselves.  Those sacrifices involve splattering blood, sometimes on the altar and sometimes placing it on the person afflicted.  Things don’t seem so much in order, rather quite the opposite.

Author George Robinson in his book Essential Torah, explains that he views these as an attempt to confront “The often messy necessities of our biological nature”.  

The mitzvot of Passover can seem filled with rules, but they are to help us spiritually prepare for freedom.  We remember what God did for us and prepare differently than we do the rest of the year, even ridding ourselves of spiritual chametz.

May you and your families have a pure Passover, that is in order, without chaos, and is healthy and happy as well.

Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach!

Rabbi Blatt

Passover begins April 22nd!

Click below for some resources as you prepare for the holiday.

Passover Services at Kol Ami

Monday, April 22nd at 7:30am Taanit Bechorim “First Born Siyyum”

We will not have an Evening Minyan Service

Tuesday, April 23rd at 9:30am Passover Day 1 Service

We will not have an Evening Minyan Service

Wednesday, April 24th at 9:30am Passover Day 2 Service

7:30pm Evening Minyan

Sunday, April 28th at 9:15 Morning Minyan

6:30pm Erev Passover Day 7 Service

Monday, April 29th at 9:30am Passover Day 7 Service

6:30pm Erev Passover Day 8 Service

Tuesday, April 30th at 9:30am Passover Day 8 Service/Yizkor

7:30pm Evening Minyan

Ignac Varkonyi, Grandfather of Julie Begani

Edna Spector, Grandmother of Julie Begani

Rose Schreiner, Great Grandmother of Avi Elias

Stanley Caplin, Uncle of Larry Caine

Neal Levenson, Brother of Roslyn Willis

Lee Stevens Binder, Father of Michael Binder

Israel Zitrin, Uncle of David Cross &

Great Uncle, of Kevin Cross

Lewis Shipp, Father of Nancy Haines

Robert Borden, Uncle of Alan Borden

Seymour Lubin, Father of Edward Lubin

Robert Lubin, Father of Carol Jaffe

Larry Frisby, Husband of Roberta Lipschutz

Isadore Levinson, Grandfather of Sally Pliskow

Terry Firestone, Mother of Lloyd Firestone

Loretta Morales, Sister of Richard Dembo

Harry Miller, Father-in-law of Herb Herzog

Nettie Eichholz, Grandmother of Julie Lybanon

Sidney Wallach, Father of Paul Wallach

Gloria Wallach, Mother of Paul Wallach

Friday, April 26 Shabbat Services

Saturday, April 27 Shabbat Services

Friday, May 3 Kol Shira Musical Shabbat Services & Board of Trustees Installation Shabbat Service

Saturday, May 4 Shabbat School (grades 6&7) Shabbat Services followed by Kiddush Luncheon Sponsored by Kol Ami

Make a Minyan! 

Available to help last minute for a minyan occasionally? Want to be notified when someone has a yartzeit so we know we will have ten? Join our Kol Ami WhatsApp group! Click this link (from your phone) to join: https://chat.whatsapp.com/KiBtwSw7UGJ0ElQdwwxytp

Weekly Talmud Study with Rabbi Blatt.

Thursday at 10:30am - May 2 & 9

Join our Talmud Class - an all-levels discussion of Talmud.

Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/624135476

Parsha Study with Rashi

Saturday at 8:30am - April 27 & May 4

A weekly discussion of the Haftarah of the week.

Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/795031104

Meeting ID: 795 031 104