Temple Beth El of Williamsburg, VA
E-News
Shabbat Shuva and Yom Kippur Edition
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September 25, 2020 Issue 404
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Jill Hyman, Synagogue Manager
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Parashat Ha-Azinu is the last parasha in the annual cycle of Torah readings read as part of the weekly Shabbat portions. (The final parasha, Zot Ha-Bracha, is only read on Simchat Torah.) Ha-Azinu contains Moses' final words to the Israelites. These are delivered as a powerful poem or song, recalling the people's sacred history since the Exodus from Egypt, and warning the Israelites in the strongest terms not to stray from the path that God has commanded. This is one of only two songs in the Torah attributed to Moses, the other being the Song at the Sea in Parashat Be-Shalach. At the end of the parasha, God tells Moses to ascend to the top of Mount Nebo, where he will die. But while God allows Moses to see throughout the Land of Israel from the top of the mountain, it is reiterated that Moses will not be able to enter the Land since he 'broke faith with Me.' |
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Simcha Shabbat
Please join us this Friday night, September 25 during services to commemorate Simcha Shabbat. We will recognize and celebrate anyone with simchas in September and receive blessings!
In advance of September 25, please email the office with who's celebrating and the occasion.
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Kabbalat Shabbat - Shabbat Shuva |
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Please use this link to download a PDF copy of our prayerbook, Kol HaNeshamah:
This page guide includes the many different prayers, songs, and readings that are used in most of TBE’s Friday night services. The exact prayers, songs, and readings in each service will vary each week.
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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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This week’s Shabbat Box from the Reconstructionist movement |
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The High Holidays Are Here! |
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The High Holidays are here! Kol Nidre, Erev Yom Kippur, begins this Sunday, September 27!!
TBE services will be held online, using Zoom. This decision is based on concerns about community health and safety, in light of the ongoing COVID19 pandemic across the world.
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Here is the schedule for our High Holiday Services:
Yom Kippur
Kol Nidre
Sunday, 9/27, 7:00 pm
Meeting ID: 818 9293 7207
Passcode: 432958
Yom Kippur
Monday, 9/28
Shacharit, 9:30 am
Meeting ID: 873 6656 1019
Passcode: 315628
Children's Program with Rich Roston
Monday, 9/28, 11:30 am
Meeting ID: 713 2955 6719
Passcode: hZPrV5
Yizkor 2:00 pm
Meeting ID: 825 0601 7277
Passcode: 083360
Yom Kippur Minchah and Neilah Services will start at 6pm, not 5:45pm,
as it says in the High Holiday Letter.
Mincha & Neilah 5:45 pm
Meeting ID: 842 9590 3442
Passcode: 386637
Havdallah 7:44 pm
Break Fast 7:50 pm
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Rabbi David's HHD 5781 Talks |
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Machzor Leyamim Nora'im
Prayerbook for the Days of Awe
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Purchase a Machzor. There is a 10% discount on the Machzor Leyamim Nora’im: Prayerbook for the Days of Awe to increase its availability to individuals and families who want to purchase it for their homes in light of the pandemic. This discount is not available in combination with any other discount.
Download a Machzor. A PDF of the Mahzor is available here for free. Visit
Borrow a Machzor. If you would like to borrow a Machzor, distribution of our High Holiday prayerbooks will take place at TBE, by appointment only, from 1-5 pm Thursday, September 17. Please email the office before that date to make an appointment to pick up a book. Please plan to only be at TBE during your appointed time slot, so that we can ensure a socially distant experience for everyone.
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Supplemental PDF of High Holiday 5781 Prayers and Materials |
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As once the winged energy of delight by R.M.Rilke |
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This is an additional poem that Rabbi David will read during Yom Kippur Morning services.
by Rainer Maria Rilke
English version by Stephen Mitchell
As once the winged energy of delight
carried you over childhood’s dark abysses,
now beyond your own life build the great
arch of unimagined bridges.
Wonders happen if we can succeed
in passing through the harshest danger;
but only in a bright and purely granted
achievement can we realize the wonder.
To work with Things in the indescribable
relationship is not too hard for us;
the pattern grows more intricate and subtle,
and being swept along is not enough.
Take your practiced powers and stretch them out
until they span the chasm between two
contradictions… For the god
wants to know himself in you.
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Children's Resources for the High Holidays |
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Join Rich Roston for a family friendly Virtual Children's Program on Yom Kippur, Monday, September 28 at 11:30 am.
Meeting ID: 713 2955 6719
Passcode: hZPrV5
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Please stay on the Zoom after Havdallah and Break Fast Zoom style. Share and visit with each other together! |
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Virtual Family High Holiday Programs With Camp Havaya,
the Reconstructionist Summer Camp
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Temple Beth El families are invited to participate in the virtual High Holiday programs of Camp Havaya, the Reconstructionist movement’s amazing summer camp. The first program will be a family service on the afternoon of day two of Rosh Hashanah, starting at 4pm on Sunday, September 20. All you need to do to participate is to register for the Zoom by visiting https://havayasummerprograms.org/highholidays5781/.
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Something To Watch To Prepare For The High Holidays |
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Rabbi David's Yom Kippur talk this year will use the recently ended TV show "The Good Place" as a way to talk about mortality. During that talk, Rabbi David will specifically talk about the last few episodes of the show (the end of the fourth season).
The Good Place is a sitcom that aired on NBC, which imagines the afterlife. While the first season can seem like it continually mines the same joke, there is a major twist at the end of the season that sets up the next three seasons, which explore philosophy and eschatology in ways that are incredibly creative and unusually imaginative. If you're looking for something to watch while you're at home during the pandemic, Rabbi David highly encourages you to watch the entire show. There are four seasons, each composed of 13 half-hour episodes. The first three seasons are currently streaming on Netflix, and the fourth season can be watched on NBC's website, and is expected to come to Netflix later this summer. Please let Rabbi David know if you have any questions, and happy watching!
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Thank you to Terry Lieber and the Shofar Blowers! |
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High Holiday Virtual Food Drive |
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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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Simcha Shabbat
Shabbat Shuva
Friday, September 25
7:00 pm
Meeting ID: 860 0496 9669
Passcode: 424056
Yom Kippur
Kol Nidre
Sunday, 9/27, 7:00 pm
Meeting ID: 818 9293 7207
Passcode: 432958
Yom Kippur
Monday, 9/28
Shacharit, 9:30 am
Meeting ID: 873 6656 1019
Passcode: 315628
Children's Program with Rich Roston
Monday, 9/28, 11:30 am
Meeting ID: 713 2955 6719
Passcode: hZPrV5
Yizkor
2:00 pm
Meeting ID: 825 0601 7277
Passcode: 083360
Mincha & Neilah
5:45 pm
Meeting ID: 842 9590 3442
Passcode: 386637
Havdallah 7:44 pm
Break Fast 7:50 pm
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Meditation and Mindfulness
Tuesday, September 29
4:00 - 5:00 pm
LINK: https://zoom.us/j/750545116
THIS ZOOM WILL ALWAYS BE THE SAME
Password: 316776
Zoom and Schmooze
Tuesday, September 29
7:30 pm
Check in, say hi, and visit with other TBE friends.
Meeting ID: 831 5173 0077
Password: 748573
Zoom and Schmooze
Wednesday, September 30
11:00 am
Check in, say hi, and visit with other TBE friends.
Meeting ID: 104 219 597
Password: 042870
Torah Study
Thursday, October 1
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
Sukkot Celebration
Shabbat Kulanu in the Sukkah
Friday, October 2
6:30 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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The office will be closed Monday, September 28
in observance of Yom Kippur.
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Erev Yom Kippur - Kol Nidre - September 27 |
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Yom Kippur is the most unusual day of the Jewish year, possessing many special rituals that are unique to it. Before Yom Kippur arrives, it can be useful to review some of its many unique customs and behaviors.
The Five Abstentions:
It is customary for Jewish adults - those over the age of thirteen - to abstain from five normal human behaviors during Yom Kippur (these abstentions are specifically NOT expected of children). This is done both to increase your ability to pray to and connect to God, by removing other concerns from your attention, as well as to give you the feeling that you are rehearsing for your own death throughout the day. The activities abstained from are: eating, drinking, bathing, engaging in sexual relations, and wearing leather shoes.
Your degree of engagement in any and all of these practices is your own personal decision; please remember that we are a diverse community, and that judging the behaviors of others on Yom Kippur is exactly the opposite of the purpose of the day.
A few notes about these practices:
On fasting: Because life always comes first in Jewish practice, this custom MUST be waived if not eating or drinking will cause you harm in any way. This especially applies if you need to eat or drink in order to take medication, or if not eating or drinking makes you ill.
On not wearing leather shoes:
In ancient times, leather shoes were considered to be the most comfortable and luxurious form of footwear available. Today, wearing different shoes during Yom Kippur services can augment the sense that this day is truly different. Popular alternative choices to dress shoes include canvas sneakers, and Crocs.
Other Ritual Practices:
Wearing a kittel: A kittel is a simple white linen robe, symbolizing purity, simplicity, and equality, which serves as a burial shroud for Jewish men. It is customarily worn in life on a man's wedding day, on Yom Kippur, and on certain other holidays in some communities. Kittels are worn on Yom Kippur to symbolize purity, to emphasize the desire to atone for sin, and also in accord with the idea that the day is a rehearsal for death. Kittels can be purchased online.
Wearing your talit all day:
Yom Kippur is the only time when it is appropriate to wear your talit during all services, day and night (it is usually customary to only wear your talit for morning services, except for the person who is leading services).
Reciting the Baruch Shem K'vod line aloud: Yom Kippur is the only day of the year when we recite aloud the second line of the Shema, "Baruch shem k'vo malchuto l'olam va'ed." It is customary to silently recite this line to yourself during the rest of the year.
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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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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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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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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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