August 21 2020 l 1 Elul 5780
CONGREGATION BEIT T'SHUVAH WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
|
|
|
|
It's that time again! Join us for our virtual High Holidays and renew your commitment to BTS by becoming a member!
Tickets for High Holiday services are included in membership dues.
Click here to renew your membership and/or purchase tickets.
|
|
JOIN US WEEKLY FOR SHABBAT SERVICES-VIRTUALLY!
FRIDAY NIGHT- 6:30PM
SATURDAY MORNING- 10:30AM
|
|
|
|
*NEW ZOOM PROTOCOLS: Effective July 24th, all zoom community programming for Beit T'Shuvah will have the waiting room function enabled, as well as other new security measures to ensure the safety of our community. If you need assistance with getting on to our virtual programming, please contact Max Hahn. To view all of our upcoming virtual events, please click here.
*Please make sure your full name is associated with your zoom account to ensure entry into virtual programming*
|
|
Dear Congregants,
With the first of the presidential conventions starting this week, we are reminded that the campaign for electing our next president is officially underway. Today, with the the new moon of the month of Elul, we as Jews are reminded that the work of teshuvah has also begun as we turn our attention to the fast-approaching Jewish New Year. Yes, Rosh Hashanah is just 30 days away.
This is also the time that we at Beit T’Shuvah turn our attention to membership. One of the Core Values of Beit T’Shuvah is obligation. We teach that: “People need each other and community to thrive. Community implies obligation.” (One Grain of Sand).
So, we invite you to become a part of our community, either as new members or returning members. We need you to help us bring recovery through Torah to a world that is desperately in need of healing. And, just as important, we are here for you, too, to be with you and to help you on your journey towards wholeness.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Micha'el
|
|
THIS WEEK'S TORAH PORTION
By: Chaplain Adam Siegel
Imagine (or remember) getting to a point in your life that requires physically separating from the existing surroundings, lest the possibility of being completely consumed by destruction and pain occur. This decision to leave is connected to heading towards a safe space, a place specifically designated for protection and rehabilitation. The catch (there’s always a catch, right?) is that your stay in this new place is open-ended, without a clear idea of how long this exile will last. Oh, and the rules stipulate that there will be no in/out privileges: once you arrive, you aren’t leaving for a while. There is good news, however: there will be a community waiting to welcome you, a community where there are others who, like you, have needed to separate themselves from a past of destructive experiences.
While this scenario may mirror the experiences of our current residents and alumni, it also describes a section outlined in Shoftim, this week’s parashah. We find Moses, in the midst of delivering his farewell address to Israelites, reminding them about G!D’s instructions for setting up a just society in the Promised Land. In Deuteronomy 19:4-5, the Torah gives instructions about establishing several Cities of Refuge:
4Now this is the case of the manslayer who may flee there and live: one who has killed another unwittingly, without having been his enemy in the past.
|
|
Lysa H. for 11 years of sobriety.
We are still celebrating birthdays each week on Zoom!
To sign up to take a Sober Birthday cake at Beit T'Shuvah, click here.
|
|
Lysa, after 11 years you continue to inspire everyone you encounter, including us. We will always be grateful for the "magic" of The Shuv, but, YOU've done the work! We love you. Mom and Daddy
|
|
If you would like to sponsor shabbat at
|
|
Check out the BTS Thrift Store’s new e-commerce website. We have a wide range of items starting as low as $15! Shop, donate and share with your friends. *Shipping is available upon request*
|
|
Tribute donations are a wonderful way of marking life cycle events for your loved ones and friends and supporting Beit T'Shuvah.
Bobbi Elliott in honor of Annette Shapiro
Rabbi Joseph Shamash In honor of Bas B., Scott Minkow, and Bill Deliman
Terri Binder in honor of Eitan Schotland
Ronnie Stabler in honor of Gayle and Evan Weiss
Jilliene Taper Bolker in honor of Janice Kamenir-Reznik
Bobbi Elliott in honor of Judy Carroll
Scott Minkow in honor of Rabbi Joseph Shamash
David Vinarub in memory of Rabbi Kerry
Lynn & Les Bider in memory of Arnold Familian
Janice Kamenir-Reznik & Ben Reznik in memory of Arnold Familian
Harriet Maitin in memory of Arnold Familian
Ronnie Stabler in memory of Arnold Familian
Lauri Carey in memory of Ellen Moss
Annette & Leonard Shapiro in memory of Gayle and Evan Weiss's daughter
Lynn & Les Bider in memory of Gayle and Evan Weiss's daughter
Pam Kluft in memory of Marisa Weiss
Dr. Stephen Gollomp in memory of Sam Spitz
Ann & Jerry Altus in memory of Sam Spitz
Bonnie & Mitchell Benson in memory of Sam Spitz
Jonathan Levin in memory of Sam Spitz
Steven Erlbaum in memory of Sam Spitz
Elaine Siegel in memory of Sam Spitz
Rabbi Steve Stroiman in memory of Sam Spitz
Sarah Strnad in memory of Shirley Hager Chaplin
If you are interested in sending a beautiful tribute, please contact Development . You can also send a tribute online by Clicking Here. Beit T'Shuvah will promptly send a card to the family or friend you are recognizing.
|
|
THIS WEEK'S SPOTLIGHT
Annie G.
By Nathan Ruibal
When Annie G. returned to Beit T’Shuvah in January, she had the idea that her stay would be a “tune-up,” just a short refresher course to set her straight. Less than two months in, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and she surrendered to not being ready to leave as soon as she wanted. “COVID has presented me with an opportunity to be with myself, be comfortable with solitude, have the time to figure things out, and face the things I’ve been running away from. I remember lying in bed my first night back thinking, ‘this is safe, I feel embraced. I can cease fighting and just be here.’”
Annie grew up in Manhattan in the seventies, the only child of a renowned architect father—whose building models she would use as dollhouses—and a hippie-ish copywriter mother. Her parents divorced and lived on opposite sides of the island, mom on the west side, dad on the east. “I was a happy kid, a wild child. I had a white afro and wore long dresses to school.” Her father remarried, and Annie felt like a visitor in her father and stepmother’s home. She remembers feeling replaced by her stepsister, who was only two days older. To cope with the need to feel like she needed to “even out” her love for her divorced parents, every night before bed she would repeat to herself, in an admittedly OCD kind of way, “I love...click here to continue reading.
|
|
Join us this year for livestreamed, interactive services you won't forget. Leave behind your old notions of High Holidays as mandatory and monotonous. At Congregation Beit T’Shuvah, the number one concern is uplifting your soul (even from your couch).
Tickets for High Holiday services are included in membership dues. If you would like to simply purchase tickets for this year’s virtual service, tickets are a suggested donation of $36 per person, per service.
Click here to renew your membership and/or purchase tickets.
|
|
|
Adult Ed: Building a Spiritual Program |
Join Rabbis Miriam Green Potok and Matt Shapiro for an interactive exploration of how to create, build, and sustain a program of spiritual connection in preparation for the High Holiday season. We’re going to need all the tools we can find as we head into this next year - join us in exploring the resources of our tradition as we do this work together in rich, meaningful, and deep ways!
6 Tuesdays, 8/4-9/8, 7:30pm
Please e-mail Jillian Coventry for zoom link - it will not be posted! *to ensure access to virtual programming, please make sure your full name is associated with your zoom account.
|
|
|
Beit T’Shuvah Custom Masks are Here! |
Stay safe while supporting Beit T’Shuvah with masks custom made by Creative Matters. Perfect gifts for alumni, staff, residents, people in recovery or community members!
$10 per mask
Designs:
One Day At A Time
In This Together
|
|
|
BTS Zoom Family Support Group! Whether your loved one is still in treatment or they have already moved on to the next chapter of their journey, we would like to provide a platform in which families get to talk about their shared experiences and wisdom.
This group is for families of our current and former residents, no need to RSVP, just drop in!
|
|
|
Friday night services held via zoom at 6:30pm PT.
|
|
|
Saturday Morning Services |
Saturday morning Prayer and Meditation at 10:30am PT.
|
|
|
Come learn on Saturday mornings at 9:30am PT with Rabbi Micha'el Akiba.
|
|
|
Baked T'Shuvah's founder Jackie Elkins is licensed by the state and you can now order the Baked T'Shuvah challah you know and love!
Pick up at BTS. Must prepay.
Available flavors: Plain, Chocolate Chip, Salted Caramel or Raisin. Contact Amy Abrams to place your order - orders need to be placed no later than Wednesday!
|
|
|
We are still celebrating birthdays each week on our Shabbat Zoom.
To sign up to take a cake, please contact Jillian.
If you missed celebrating your birthday this year and would still like to take a cake via Zoom, contact Jillian.
|
|
|
Life in Uncertain Times: Coping Strategies Before, During, and After Corona. With Rabbi Joseph. Mondays from 12-1pm PT/3-4pm ET.
|
|
|
#NotMyCorona. Recovery-Minded Spiritual Learning with Beit T’Shuvah and the T’Shuvah Center. Wednesdays. 1pm PT/4pm ET.
|
|
|
BTS community AA meeting: Thursdays at 7pm.
|
|
|
Beit T’Shuvah and the Elaine Breslow Institute invite you participate in this spiritual challenge!
|
|
|
Thursdays. 9-9:30am PT/12-12:30pm ET.
A powerful kaddish experience led by the Lab/Shul community. They have invited our Beit T’Shuvah community to join them.
https://labshul.org/event/virtual-mourners-kaddish-call/2019-08-29/
|
|
|
Past newsletters are now available online. Please click here to view.
For anyone that shops at Ralphs, please consider registering your phone with their community care program and select Beit T'Shuvah as your charity.
For anyone that purchases items on Amazon, all you have to do is go to Amazon Smile and choose Beit T'Shuvah as your charity and a percentage of each purchase will be given back to us.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
