May 14 - 20, 2021 | Sivan 3 - 9, 5781

Virtual Shabbat Services Schedule
 
Friday, May 14th
5:00 p.m. - Kabbalat Shabbat Service
 
Saturday, May 15th (Sleep In Shabbat)
10:30 a.m. - Schmooze
11:00 a.m. - Torah Study
12:00 p.m. - Mincha

Please find the link to this week's services at 4:30 p.m. on Friday's on our website.

Torah Portion- May 14th & May 15th: Numbers 1:1−4:20

8th Annual Tikkun Leil Shavuot: A Night of Learning in Community
Sunday, May 16th
4:30 p.m. - Family Friendly Music with Gavri Yares (In-person, masked, socially distanced) Registration has closed
6:45 p.m. - Virtual sessions via Zoom
You and yours are invited to take part in a night of study, developing new skills, and being together in community. Virtual sessions this year include Jewish Gender and Queer studies, A Quick Guide to the Structure of Jewish Prayer, Nutrition for Healthy Hormones and a Happier You, Not-So-Private Property: Jewish Social Security Traditions, and much more!

Click here to register - Zoom link will be sent upon completion of registration

Shavuot Yizkor Service 
Tuesday, May 18, 9:00 a.m. 
Join us to make minyan in community, as we honor the memories of loved ones.

Outdoor Sleep-In Shabbat
Saturday, May 22, 10:30 a.m.
Location provided upon RSVP - see link below
We are excited to invite you to join us for our next Outdoor Shabbat! We look forward to worshiping together, safely, as a community. To mitigate risk of COVID-19 transmission, we require all attendees to be masked. If you have COVID-19 symptoms or have been diagnosed with COVID-19 in the past 2 weeks, we respectfully ask that you refrain from attending.

Please bring your own chair and siddur, if you have one. If you are able to make a $36 donation in advance of the event, you can purchase a siddur that will be given to you at the event.


Havdalah - Pew 2020 Survey of Jewish Americans
Saturday, May 22nd
We invite you to join us and learn from IADS member Professor Laura Yares about the recent Pew Research Center's 2020 Survey of Jewish Americans. To learn more about the survey before Havdalah, click here.

Check-ins with Rabbi Silverman
Many of us need a little extra support and care these days. Please reach out to Rabbi Silverman to schedule a personal check-in.
If you need help setting up Zoom technology, please email us and we will walk you through it.


(1) A song of ascents. Of David. I rejoiced when they said to me, “We are going to the House of the ETERNAL.” (2) Our feet stood inside your gates, O Jerusalem, (3) Jerusalem built up, a city knit together, (4) to which tribes would make pilgrimage, the tribes of the ETERNAL, —as was enjoined upon Israel— to praise the name of the ETERNAL. (5) There the thrones of judgment stood, thrones of the house of David. (6) Pray for the well-being of Jerusalem; “May those who love you be at peace. (7) May there be well-being within your ramparts, peace in your citadels.” (8) For the sake of my kin and friends, I pray for your well-being; (9) for the sake of the house of the ETERNAL our God, I seek your good.

תהילים קכ״ב
(א) שִׁ֥יר הַֽמַּעֲל֗וֹת לְדָ֫וִ֥ד שָׂ֭מַחְתִּי בְּאֹמְרִ֣ים לִ֑י בֵּ֖ית יי נֵלֵֽךְ׃ (ב) עֹ֭מְדוֹת הָי֣וּ רַגְלֵ֑ינוּ בִּ֝שְׁעָרַ֗יִךְ יְרוּשָׁלִָֽם׃ (ג) יְרוּשָׁלִַ֥ם הַבְּנוּיָ֑ה כְּ֝עִ֗יר שֶׁחֻבְּרָה־לָּ֥הּ יַחְדָּֽו׃ (ד) שֶׁשָּׁ֨ם עָל֪וּ שְׁבָטִ֡ים שִׁבְטֵי־יָ֭הּ עֵד֣וּת לְיִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל לְ֝הֹד֗וֹת לְשֵׁ֣ם יי׃ (ה) כִּ֤י שָׁ֨מָּה ׀ יָשְׁב֣וּ כִסְא֣וֹת לְמִשְׁפָּ֑ט כִּ֝סְא֗וֹת לְבֵ֣ית דָּוִֽיד׃ (ו) שַׁ֭אֲלוּ שְׁל֣וֹם יְרוּשָׁלִָ֑ם יִ֝שְׁלָ֗יוּ אֹהֲבָֽיִךְ׃ (ז) יְהִֽי־שָׁל֥וֹם בְּחֵילֵ֑ךְ שַׁ֝לְוָ֗ה בְּאַרְמְנוֹתָֽיִךְ׃ (ח) לְ֭מַעַן אַחַ֣י וְרֵעָ֑י אֲדַבְּרָה־נָּ֖א שָׁל֣וֹם בָּֽךְ׃ (ט) לְ֭מַעַן בֵּית־יי אֱלֹקֵ֑ינוּ אֲבַקְשָׁ֖ה ט֣וֹב לָֽךְ׃


The Psalmist repeats the word “shalom,” which can mean well-being, peace, wholeness. I am heartbroken and horrified by the brokenness that we see today.
I still believe peace is achievable. I really do. And I pray you do, too.
Outdoor Shabbats with the Downtown Synagogue

As we enter into warmer months and see our community getting vaccinated against COVID-19, we are excited to announce our series of Outdoor Shabbat services! We look forward to coming back together, safely, as we worship with our beloved community.

We would love to have members of the Downtown Synagogue community open their backyards to host an Outdoor Shabbat on Friday nights or Saturday mornings. If you are interested in hosting a Shabbat in your backyard, or want to learn more, please reach out to Nicole.
Celebrating 100 Years of the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue

In December of 1921, Charles and Nathan Agree, along with the Canvasser, Kaplan, Rosin and Zatkin families, announced the founding of the Isaac Agree Memorial Society. The society was named in honor of their father, a Russian immigrant who came to Detroit in 1904. The society held its first services in a home on Rosedale Court and, as they say, the rest is history.

As the growing congregation in the heart of Detroit looks forward to celebrating its 100 years serving the community, we are looking for your stories. Did your Grandfather come to services at IADS? Was your brother’s Bar Mitzvah in the sanctuary above Kosin’s? Did you blow the Shofar at High Holy Day services at the Veteran’s Memorial Building? What about the Hanukkah celebrations and epic dance parties, have you been to any of those? We want to hear about your or your family’s connection to the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue over the years and how we have been a part of your lives.

In addition to the stories, we are also hoping to grow our collection of archival materials, so we’d love any photographs or other memorabilia that you’d like to share. Stories, video and digital photographs can be submitted here. If you have questions or would like to submit physical items, please contact the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue at 313.324.8006.
We are honored to be part of this year's Detroit Jewish Film Festival. The Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue will be co-sponsoring the film A Crime On The Bayou in partnership with Barbara Nusbaum, Dale & Bruce Frankel, JCRC's Coalition for Black and Jewish Unity, and The Workers Circle - Michigan.

Tickets will go on sale this Sunday, May 2nd and are good for 24 hours from time of purchase. To receive one of the 25 complimentary tickets we are pleased to offer, click here.

  1. Enter code IADS at bottom of the page under "Special Price Code" to unlock the complimentary ticket option.
  2. A new ticket type called "Free 4+" will appear at the bottom of the page. 
  3. If the "Free 4+" ticket doesn't appear or there is no "Special Price Code" box, that means that your organization's complimentary tickets have all been used.
  4. Select the Free 4+ ticket and go through the order process. No money will be collected, but they need your information in order to send you the actual virtual ticket.
The staff and board of the Downtown Synagogue is thinking of ways to support our community's needs right now. If you or a loved one needs help, please let us know- we will endeavor to connect you to services or help you directly. Please reach out to Rabbi Silverman with resource inquiries.

In addition, we are aware of the following community resources:
 
  • Jewish Federation: Please visit the Jewish Federation Coronavirus community resource page which includes support for meal delivery, emergency loans for small businesses, and mental health support. 

  • City of Detroit: Please visit the City of Detroit's website to learn more about the free meal program/food resources, unemployment benefits, water restart plan, and what actions and precautions are currently being taken to slow the spread of COVID-19. 

  • City of Detroit COVID-19 Vaccine Information: Check your eligibility and schedule your covid-19 vaccine through this resource. Eligible groups will be added to this page as additional vaccine becomes available.

Call for Mi Shebeirach
During our Shabbat morning worship, we read the names of people in our community who are in need of healing. As we invoke God's blessing, we also become more aware of the people who could use a little extra care. Please let us know if you would like us to read the name of a loved one.