Temple Beth El of Williamsburg, VA
E-News Sukkot Edition
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October 2, 2020 Issue 405
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Jill Hyman, Synagogue Manager
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This September marks the 10th anniversary of our rabbi, David Katz, who leads a remarkably diverse Jewish community that embraces Orthodoxy, Conservatism, Reform, Reconstructionism, and a seeming endless variety of beliefs and practices between. While Rabbi David’s rabbinic training is Reconstructionist, he creates an atmosphere where congregants can express ideas from a variety of Jewish movements and viewpoints. Many Jewish congregations across our country have diminished in size, while Temple Beth El’s continues to grow, and that has much to do with our rabbi’s warm and caring leadership. And that leadership steadfastly reinforces the haimish atmosphere for which Temple Beth El is well known.
Rabbi David’s expertise in Jewish scripture, Star Wars, Star Trek, the New York Mets, and the entire Marvel Universe only make him more accessible to the temple youth, as well as the child’s heart that resides within the whole age range of our congregants. It’s hard to believe it’s been 10 years, and our most fervent wish is that those years continue in the endless imagination of our broadest vision.
Happy 10th, Rabbi David!
Visit www.tbewilliamsburg.org, under the "rabbi" pull down menu, share your thoughts and memories with the congregation.
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Parashah for the Intermediary Days (of a festival)/ Chol HaMo'ed, Shabbat of Sukkot |
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This special reading - read when Shabbat falls in the middle of the festivals of both Passover and Sukkot - comes from Parashat Ki Tissa, and happens after the incident of the golden calf. It first describes Moses and God having an intimate conversation, in which Moses asks God to let Moses know more about God's plans for the Israelites, for God to travel with the Israelites in a demonstrable way so that they and the other peoples of the earth will know that God is with them, and for God to let Moses see God's Presence. Then, Moses works together with God to carve the second set of tablets, since Moses smashed the first set after seeing the golden calf.
God proclaims the famous "thirteen attributes of God," which we chant several times during the High Holidays. God then makes a covenant with Moses regarding God's relationship with the Israelites, in which fundamental topics are addressed, including not worshipping other gods, observing Pesach, Shabbat and Shavuot, and not cooking a kid in its mother's milk.
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Celebrate Sukkot Virtually with TBE - October 2 |
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Sukkot, the Festival of Booths, begins on Friday night, October 2. Due to COVID-19 safety considerations, we will not build a Sukkah at Temple Beth El this year. Instead, we encourage folks who have their own Sukkahs to build them at home, as Rabbi David will, and to join together by Zoom a few different times throughout the holiday, to share moments in all of our Sukkahs.
Please join us on: Friday night, October 2, for Shabbat Kulanu services in the Sukkah, starting at 6:30pm.
Meeting ID: 858 0539 0033
Passcode: 339485
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Virual Sukkot Box from the Reconstructionist movement |
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Shabbat Kulanu Service tonight |
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Mi Shebeirach by Debbie Friedman |
Mi shebeirach avoteinu
M'kor hab'racha l'imoteinu
May the source of strength,
Who blessed the ones before us,
Help us find the courage to make our lives a blessing,
And let us say, Amen.
Mi shebeirach imoteinu
M'kor habrachah l'avoteinu
Bless those in need of healing with r'fuah sh'leimah,
The renewal of body, the renewal of spirit,
And let us say, Amen
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A special Bracha...
Masks are effective when used in combination with frequent hand-cleaning with alcohol-based hand sanitizer or soap and water. We continue to social distance, staying home as much as possible and staying safe. Please enjoy this special blessing for the mitzvah of putting on a mask. This blessing was written by Rabbi David’s friend Rabbi Michael Knopf of Temple Beth-El in Richmond, which is the synagogue whose Mikvah we use for conversions. Rabbi Knopf introduced the blessing a few weeks ago in this column in TheForward: https://forward.com/opinion/443804/wearing-a-face-mask-youre-doing-a-mitzvah-make-a-brachah/.
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All Zoom sessions can be accessed by phone, if you’re unable to join us on the internet, just call the number 929-436-2866, and when prompted, enter the meeting ID and password for the appropriate section.
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Rabbi David's HHD 5781 Talks |
All of Rabbi David's talks from Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, are posted on our website.
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High Holiday Virtual Food Drive Continues |
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Dear TBE Friends,
As we celebrate the High Holidays in virtual space, we are reminded that the Jews have always had to adapt. And the Social Action Committee is asking our wonderful congregation to adapt a little more to help make this year’s High Holidays Food Drive a real success. This year, we are supporting the Campus Food Pantry through our donations. As you may know, our neighbors on Jamestown Road at the Wesley House, led by Reverend Max Blalock, have been doing incredible work helping hungry members of the William & Mary community get enough to eat through their food pantry.
Since we are not meeting in person, the problem is, how do you get your donations to the Campus Food Pantry? Easy. You can visit the Wesley at William & Mary Donate Page and click on the Donate button in the middle of the page. Before you input your PayPal or credit card info, leave a note designating your donation for the “High Holidays Food Pantry Drive.”
May the new year bring us all together in spirit,
TBE Social Action Committee
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Sukkot Celebration
Shabbat Kulanu in the Sukkah
Friday, October 2
6:30 pm
Meeting ID: 858 0539 0033
Passcode: 339485
Meditation and Mindfulness
Tuesday, October 6
4:00 - 5:00 pm
LINK: https://zoom.us/j/750545116
THIS ZOOM WILL ALWAYS BE THE SAME
Password: 316776
Join Rabbi David for a brief virtual visit in his Sukkah (weather-permitting)
Tuesday, October 6
7:00 pm
Meeting ID: 874 4846 4697
Passcode: 581238
Zoom and Schmooze
Tuesday, October 6
7:30 pm
Check in, say hi, and visit with other TBE friends.
Meeting ID: 831 5173 0077
Password: 748573
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Zoom and Schmooze
Wednesday, October 7
11:00 am
Check in, say hi, and visit with other TBE friends.
Meeting ID: 104 219 597
Password: 042870
Torah Study
Thursday, October 8
10:30 am - 12:30 pm
Please join us for TBE's always-lively Torah Study session
LINK: https://zoom.us/j/104488948
THIS ZOOM WILL ALWAYS BE THE SAME
Password: 978192
Join Rabbi David for a brief virtual visit in his Sukkah (weather-permitting)
Thursday, October 8
2:00 pm
Meeting ID: 898 5060 4497
Passcode: 819685
Simchat Torah on Zoom
Shabbat Shuva
Friday, October 9
7:30 pm
Meeting ID: 858 0539 0033
Passcode: 339485
Passwords for our Zoom sessions are in response to concerns about security. Please do NOT share Zoom passwords with anyone you don’t know.
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If you’ve ever thought about buying your own Sukkah kit, both Rabbi David and TBE’s Sukkahs were purchased from The Sukkah Project, https://www.sukkot.com. |
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Join Rabbi David for a Virtual Visit in his Sukkah - Oct 6 & 8 |
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Please also join Rabbi David for a brief virtual visit in his Sukkah, on the following days and times (weather-permitting):
Tuesday, October 6, at 7pm
Meeting ID: 874 4846 4697
Passcode: 581238
Thursday, October 8, at 2pm
Meeting ID: 898 5060 4497
Passcode: 819685
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Simchat Torah on Zoom - October 9 |
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TBE will celebrate Simchat Torah during Shabbat services on Zoom on Friday night, October 9. During this service, we’ll celebrate the holiday by chanting the end and beginning of the Torah, and by doing Hakafot - dancing around with Torahs - in a fun way specially adapted for quarantine circumstances. In his home, Rabbi David will dance around with a toy stuffed Torah, and he invites you to join him in doing the same thing. If you have one at home, please take it out for this fun ritual, or if you’d like to get one, they can easily be purchased online. One source is https://www.amazon.com/s?k=stuffed+torah&crid=P990V25IN3GS&sprefix=Stuffed+torah%2Caps%2C180&ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_13.
Simchat Torah Shabbat services will start at 7:30pm, and will use the regular Zoom link for Friday night services.
Meeting ID: 858 0539 0033
Passcode: 339485
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Shabbat Morning Service on Zoom - October 17 |
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Shabbat morning services on Zoom will take place tomorrow, on Saturday, Octobwer 17, starting at 10:30 am. This online morning service will be led by Rabbi David at Temple Beth El.
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89855009994pwd=Zm90dkpWdnBSL1hldVVuT29jNk02Zz09
Meeting ID: 898 5500 9994
Passcode: 383752
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Save-the-Date: Sisterhood Annual Meeting via Zoom on Wednesday, October 28th, from 7 to 8:30 pm. A newly elected slate of officers will be determined at this time. Zoom links TBA.
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TBE's 20th Anniversary of the Virginia Peninsula Jewish Film Festival
Opening Weekend - November 7 & 8
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Twenty years of entertaining, educating and connecting our audiences to issues related to Jewish life in the US, Israel, and around the world! We are pleased to announce the following films for our Opening Weekend:
Saturday, November 7th at 7 PM – Prosecuting Evil
Sunday, November 8th at 2 PM – Crecendo
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Films will be screened virtually this year, and we will provide each subscriber a password link in advance of the screening date. We plan to return to the familiar surroundings of the Williamsburg Regional Library for future festivals when we are certain we can protect the health of our attendees within the confines of a theater. For this festival, you will be able to see our films in the comfort and safety of your own homes.
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Machzor Prayerbook Return |
We are working on a plan for determining when Machzor prayerbooks can be returned, sometime after Simchat Torah. Please stay tuned. |
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Social Action Committee Tzedakah Project |
TBE member Steve Alter is 3D-printing face shields for use by the Virginia Department of Health. He needs help in making deliveries to the VDH and to the Virginia Oncology Associates, as well as to retrieve visors to be made into face shields from a NASA colleague in Poquoson. If you can help out, please contact Steve directly at altertalk@gmail.com.
If you would like to help with the material costs of the face shields, please make checks payable to Temple Beth El, with Social Action/Mask Project in the memo field. This will be a tzedakah project for the Social Action Committee.
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Renew Membership for 2020 - 2021 |
Please complete and return your membership items as soon as possible.
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The Community Relations Council (CRC) of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater educates the community on issues impacting the rights of Jews locally, in the United States, in Israel and around the world. The CRC transforms issues into action through the community, public officials and government, the media and other faith and ethnic communities.
Please visit the Jewish Tidewater Virtual Community Resources to connect to many community events.
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Due to the continuing COVID-19 pandemic, all Temple Beth El programs, services, and classes are currently taking place online. This will continue until TBE’s Reopening Committee and Board of Directors determine that it is safe and appropriate for those activities to return to the building - a decision that will be reached based on health statistics, and on recommendations from local and national organizations. In the meantime, the synagogue building is open by appointment only for maintenance and essential services, as we prepare it for the eventual return of the community. |
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There are many locations providing testing for COVID-19. The Virginia Peninsula Health District Office has compiled a list for our convenience.
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Jill Hyman
Synagogue Manager
757-220-1205
Rabbi David Katz
757-206-1633
mobile 757-634-6407
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Temple Beth El, A Welcoming Synagogue In Williamsburg, Virginia
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