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JEWISH COMMUNITY
CENTER OF
LONG BEACH ISLAND
E-LETTER
March 1, 2024
21 Adar I 5784
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FOR THE BEST VIEWING OF THE SHABBAT REMINDER,
CLICK HERE
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LEARN SIGNING WITH
ANTHONY DEFRANCO
at the JCC
TOMORROW 3/1
10:00 AM - 11:AM
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A MESSAGE FROM
OUR RABBI
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We interrupt this regularly scheduled Shabbat message to make an important announcement.
Back in March of 2020, when the Pandemic had just reared its very ugly head, we started doing Shabbat services on Zoom. As many of you know, I was initially not comfortable with the idea. In order for me to do it, I needed to shift my thinking about what was permissible under Jewish law. Frankly, it was not easy, but I realized that the JCC community urgently needed to be together and the only way that this would happen was if services were Zoomed.
In retrospect, though I struggled with my decision, I believe it was one of the best things I have done as the Rabbi of the JCC. (If I’m being honest, I think that the decision to introduce the JCC community to Cholent was the best decision I made. But the Zooming of services is a very close second.)
Shortly after we began zooming Shabbat services, we realized that we could increase the community feeling of comfort and togetherness by having a morning and evening service every day.
The JCC had never had a daily minyan, even during the summer. It was a tall order, but we started it, and, for nearly 4 years, we never missed a minyan. Well, we never missed a minyan until this past week. We almost made 4 years. Two services every day is a tall order for any Jewishly liberal synagogue. Most cannot do it. But we did it.
Mostly we did it because of a small group of incredibly dedicated (and awesome) people who came every day and night. But we also did it because other people felt comfortable coming less frequently. Still others have been “on-call” in case we needed them.
Though the success of the minyans has exceeded my wildest expectations, it was a great disappointment when the streak ended.
To understand the disappointment, first you need to understand what having the daily minyan has meant. It created a new and constant community. Many of the regulars at the morning or evening services did not know each other well before we started having the daily services. Endearing friendships soon began to form. People came early to touch base, and lingered a bit on the zoom link, after the service, to check in with each other.
One of the reasons why minyan is so important is because when people are in mourning, it is customary to say Kaddish. Kaddish cannot be said without a minyan, a grouping of at least 10. Indeed, I was saying Kaddish for my father, Z”L, when we began in March 2020.
We also say Kaddish when we are observing the Yahrtzeit (the anniversary of the death) of a loved one. Thus, the minyan’s existence enabled a person, who did not come to services regularly, to join us on a loved one’s Yahrtzeit date to say Kaddish.
We also started a minhag, a custom, that when someone was saying Kaddish, they could share a memory of their loved one. This has proved moving and powerful for many. It has also given the other members of the community a window into the lives of their fellow “minyannaires”.
The daily services are also personally important to me. When I began to pray (daven) three times a day, about 25 years ago, I quickly realized that I preferred to daven in community. Our daily services meant that I did not have to daven alone.
So why is the Rabbi telling you all of this. First it is to let you know what a unique community we have. I can tell you that, with our daily services, we have achieved something that much larger congregations have failed to do. (You can pat yourselves on the back now).
I am also telling you to let you know that the daily service needs your help. If each person reading this Shabbat Message can make a commitment to join one service a month, it will guarantee that we will not have a night like we had last week when a person who needed to say Kaddish could not do so. If each person reading this Shabbat Message can make a commitment to join one service a month, the minyan community will be enlarged and strengthened. If each person reading this Shabbat Message can make a commitment to join one service a month, you will have an opportunity not just to pray, but to laugh, and/or learn something new.
Morning Services start at 8:15 Monday through Friday. Sunday mornings they begin at 9:00. Evening services are Sunday through Thursday at 7:30 PM. Click this link to join us.
Meeting ID: 835 5920 8295
Passcode: 437484
Become a Minyannaire.
Shabbat Shalom – Rabbi Michael S. Jay
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SHABBAT SHALOM
Shabbat Candle
Lighting time
Friday evening
March 1, 2024
5:31 PM
JOIN US FOR SERVICES
Friday, March 1, 2024
6:30 PM
ON ZOOM ONLY
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Here is
your invitation from
Rabbi Jay to join
Zoom services
FRIDAY NIGHT
Saturday,
March 2, 2024
9:00 AM
IN PERSON
& ZOOM
Here is
your invitation from
Rabbi Jay to join
Zoom services
SHABBAT
TORAH READING
Parashat Ki Tisa
Exodus 30:11-34:35
Here is Parshah
Ki-Tisa (“When You Elevate”) opens as God tells Moses to collect a half-shekel donation from all Israelites and to anoint the Mishkan (Tabernacle), its vessels, and the priests. The Israelites worship the golden calf and Moses breaks the tablets. Moses beseeches God to forgive, and returns with a second set of tablets.
HAFTORAH
I Kings 18:1-39
Here is the Haftorah
Elijah the Prophet demonstrates the worthlessness of the Baal, who was at the time perceived as the most supreme and powerful of all the gods, just as Moses chastised the Israelites for serving the Golden Calf in this week's Torah reading.
HAVDALLAH
6:30 PM
ON ZOOM ONLY
Here is
your invitation from
Rabbi Jay to join
Zoom services
HAVDALLAH
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Sunday - Thursday
Ma'ariv Service
7:30 PM
Here is your invitation from Rabbi Jay to
join Zoom services:
MA'ARIV
Monday- Friday
Shacharit Service
8:15 AM
Sunday at 9:00 AM
Here is your invitation Rabbi Jay to
join Zoom services:
SHACHARIT
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The WAX Lecture Series continued Wednesday night with a most unusual approach by Cantor Sarah Geller to studying Anti-racism.
Cantor Geller talked about the practice of redlining (a lending practice when lenders would draw red lines on maps around neighborhoods that were predominantly Black as a way to deny a mortgage, claiming it was high risk). She shared her own experience of growing up in an all-white neighborhood in Westchester County. Others on the Zoom also shared their history: some the same as Cantor and others in a more diverse neighbors.
Cantor concluded her talk with suggestions on how, as individuals, we can combat racism.
MARCH WAX LECTURE SERIES SPEAKERS
March 10: Dr Jerry Faich “Surviving Your Next Prescription” 1:30p-3p
March 12: Mark Lipman "History of LBI" 1-2:30p
March 24 Rabbi Jay “The International Court (ICJ) and Current Ruling” 1-3p
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THIS WEEK'S ACTIVITIES
SUNDAY, MARCH 3, 2024
Pickleball
10:00 AM
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MONDAY, MARCH 4, 2024
"Chosing Hope"
Class with Rabbi Jay
10:00 AM
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TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2024
Pickleball
3:00 PM
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WEDNESDAY, MARCH 6, 2024
Canasta & Mah Jongg
12:30 PM
Rabbi's Class
"The Case for Israel"
7:30 PM following minyan
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THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 2024
Pickleball
10:00 AM
Torah Study with the Rabbi
11:00 AM
Intermediate Hebrew with Ira
2:00 PM
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FRIDAY MARCH 8
Studying the Prophets with Rabbi Jay
9:00 - 9:20 AM
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PICKLEBALL
SUNDAY 10:00 AM
TUESDAY 3:00 PM
THURSDAY 10:00 AM
Reminder: Pickleball for members only!
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MAH JONGG & CANASTA
WEDNESDAYS
12:30 PM TO 4:00 PM
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Learn Signing
Friday, March 1 & 15, 2024
10:00 AM
Dr Jerry Faich “Surviving Your Next Prescription”
Sunday, March 10, 2024
1:30 - 3:00 PM Zoom
Mark Lipman "History of LBI"
Tuesday, March 12, 2024
1:00 -2:30 PM
PJP Program
Dr. Michah Gottlieb, New York University
“A Rabbinic Debate about Slavery on the Eve of the Civil War”
Thursday, March 14, 2024
8:30 PM
WAX Book Review
The Color of Water
by James McBride
Thursday, March 21,2024
4:00 PM
Stop the Bleed
by Jewish Federation of Ocean County
Friday, March 22, 2024
11:00 AM -1:00 PM In Person
Magillah Reading
Saturday, March 23, 2024
7:00 PM
Rabbi Jay “The International Court (ICJ) and Current Ruling”
Sunday, March 24, 2024
1:00 - 3:00 PM
In Person & Zoom
WAX Brunch
Tuesday, March 26, 2024
11:00 AM -1:00 PM
Wally’s
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LEARN SIGNING WITH
ANTHONY DEFRANCO
at the JCC
FRIDAYS
10:00 AM - 11:AM
March 1, 15, April 12, 2024
Another program brought to you by the JCC Women's Auxiliary
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JCC WOMEN’S AUXILIARY: BOOK GROUP DISCUSSION
THURSDAYS AT 4:00 PM
NEXT BOOK REVIEW MEETING
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Thursday, March 21, 2024 at 4:00 PM
Discussion Leader: Sondi Pripstein
The Color of Water By: James McBride
In The Color of Water, McBride retraces his mother's footsteps and, through her searing and spirited voice, recreates her remarkable story. The daughter of a failed itinerant Orthodox rabbi, she was born Rachel Shilsky (actually Ruchel Dwara Zylska) in Poland on April 1, 1921. Fleeing pogroms, her family emigrated to America and ultimately settled in Suffolk, Virginia, a small town where anti-Semitism and racial tensions ran high. With candor and immediacy, Ruth describes her parents' loveless marriage; her fragile, handicapped mother; her cruel, sexually-abusive father; and the rest of the family and life she abandoned. At seventeen, after fleeing Virginia and settling in New York City, Ruth married a black minister and founded the all- black New Brown Memorial Baptist Church in her Red Hook living room. "God is the color of water," Ruth McBride taught her children, firmly convinced that life's blessings and life's values transcend race. Twice widowed, and continually confronting overwhelming adversity and racism, Ruth's determination, drive and discipline saw her dozen children through college—and most through graduate school. At age 65, she herself received a degree in social work from Temple University.
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Thanks to our membership in the PJP we are able to enjoy a variety of programs. Here are the new programming lists. No need to register in advance. | |
PJP Series "What Jews Think”
2023-2024
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Thursday, March 14 @8:30 PM
Dr. Michah Gottlieb, New York University
“A Rabbinic Debate about Slavery on the Eve of the Civil War”
As civil war loomed, President James Buchanan designated January 4, 1861 as a national day for fasting and prayer. That day Rabbi Morris Raphall of Congegration B’nai Jeshurun in Manhattan gave a sermon arguing that a civil war should not be waged over slavery since slavery was a biblically sanctioned institution. The Baltimore Rabbi David Einhorn responded with an essay excoriating Raphall for his terrible misunderstanding of the Bible. Does the Bible consider slavery legitimate? In this session, we’ll explore a rabbinic debate over this question.
Michah Gottlieb is Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in the Skirball Department of Hebrew and Judaic Studies at NYU. An expert on modern Jewish thought and philosophy, his current research centers on musar and the practice of ethical self-development. He is author of several books and numerous articles including most recently, The Jewish Reformation: Bible Translation and Middle-Class German Judaism as Spiritual Enterprise (Oxford, 2021).
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If you missed the PJP program Jewish Portugal last week you can
VIEW HERE
Passcode:m7TeR%p5
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PJP Travel Programs
2023-2024
Sunday, March 10 @ 1:00 PM “Jewish Iran” with Alan Niku
Iran's Jewish community is one of the oldest diaspora communities in the world. But is there more to those 2700 years than Queen Esther and the Islamic Revolution? This talk examines the lesser-known parts of Iran's Jewish History, a vast story of prophets, autonomous nations, divergent sects, epic poetry, and political intrigue. Through the music, languages, foods, writings, traditions, and stories of two millennia, along with their ties to neighboring and faraway communities, the Jews of Iran have forged a culture at once Persian and Jewish, with traditions and aesthetics uniquely their own. Now in a second Diaspora in the United States and Israel, with a small population remaining in Iran, the community faces inevitable changes. We will use the knowledge of the past to look to the future of the community and discuss how the unique heritage of Iran's Jews can be preserved. Alan Niku is a filmmaker, writer, and scholar of Mizrahi culture from San Luis Obispo, California, based in Los Angeles. A native speaker of Persian, he spends his time learning related Jewish languages, deciphering Judeo-Persian manuscripts, and interviewing community members about their stories. He is also a musician and an amateur chef, teaches history and Jewish heritage at various levels, and seeks to educate the world about the underrepresented cultures of the Middle East through his writing and films.
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The following names will be read by the Rabbi on Friday evening:
Marian Diamond
June Hartman*
Victor Kasner
Herman Kleinfeld
Elbert Abramson
Lillian Salander*
Amy Smith
Milton G. Smith
Hershel Alan Denker
Albert Kessler
Phyllis Lachs
Morris Rebo
Sophia Shapiro
Meir Cohen
Arthur Goldsmith
Benjamin Katz
Milton Pollack
Sarah Rubin*
Eleanor Satir
Emily Spiegle
Seymour Tilbor
Marjorie Fisher*
Lillian Hammer
Sel Gross Medvin*
Gloria Reason*
Alan Resnick
Josephine Tucker
Minnie Britz*
Solomen Chalek
Edna Eisner
Helen Freedman
Edward Gold
Arthur Lee Goldsmith
Abe Rosenbaum
Melvin Shaprio
Ginette Shomer
Sidney Kronenberg
Fanny Parker
Manuel Sidel
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Susan Fisher
March 2
Alvin Konner
March 2
Phillip Glass
March 4
Steven Tebeleff
March 4
Richard Taffet
March 5
Ken Feldman
March 7
Myrna Hernandez
March 7
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Ethan & Julie Sheffet
March 2
28th Anniversary
Robert Finkel & Jacqueline Printz
March 3
33rd Anniversary
Horace & Carol Barsh
March 8
16th Anniversary
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SHARE YOUR NEWS
AND PICTURES
CONTACT:
rvalen1963@aol.com
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CARING COMMITTEE
This committee acts as a support system for congregation members facing illness and other personal situations that need to be addressed.
Please contact Chairperson,
Debby Schweighardt
if you are in need of assistance or if you know of a JCC member that needs our help.
973-634-5349
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YOU CAN NOW FILL OUT A GIVING FORM AND PAY ON LINE IN ONE SIMPLE PROCESS.
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GIVING OPPORTUNITIES
PAVERS
Inscribe a paver at the front entrance to the building
8" X 4", 8" X 8" and 12" X 12"
SEE UPDATED ORDER FORM:
PAVER FORM
Become a permanent part of the JCC landscape.
Purchase a personalized paving stone
in honor of your family or in memory of a loved one.
Please contact Diane Hoffman
with your order or with any questions:
dihoff1@aol.com
PRAYER BOOKS
There are still High Holiday Prayer Books and Chumashim available to be purchased in memory or honor of someone or something. The cost of a Prayer Book is $72 each and $120 for an Eitz Hayim Chumash. The donation includes an affirmation sticker in the book and an acknowledgement letter or letters.
See Order form here: Prayer Book
TRIBUTES
SEND ONE OF OUR TRIBUTES IN HONOR OR IN MEMORY OF
See order form here: TRIBUTES
TREE OF LIFE
Add a leaf (leaves) to our beautiful Tree of Life located in the Social Hall. See the order form here: TREE OF LIFE
Bronze Leaf $90
Silver Leaf $126
Gold :Leaf $180
ENDOWMENT FUND
Herb z"l and Selma z”l Shapiro established the first individual Endowment Fund in memory of his father, as part of the JCC’s Endowment Fund portfolio.
Since then, three additional individual Endowment Funds have been established. Other members are encouraged to also provide for the future of our JCC by establishing similar funds. Please consider adding to this number.
A donation of at least $50,000 to the endowment fund will allow the donor to name one of the funds as the donor wishes. All such named funds will be joined together to be part of the Endowment Fund portfolio.
Endowment funds are necessary to ensure the continuation and well being of our congregation. All members are encouraged to help this important effort by contributing to this portfolio, whether as a specific named individual fund, or as a general donation. The donation can be spread over one, two, or three years, and can be paid via check, donation of appreciated stock, wills, or from the RMD of your IRA or 401K account. Your gift to the fund can be sent to the JCC Office. Please mark your check accordingly.
YAHRZEIT PLAQUES
Space is available for memorial plaques on the yahrzeit boards in the Sanctuary.
Here is the order form:
YAHRZEIT
KOL HAKAVOD
Please consider being a part of this campaign to supplement the clergy needs of our congregation. This is a separate, voluntary commitment and is additional to our low annual dues obligation. HERE IS THE LINK TO BRING UP THE DONATION FORM KOL HAKAVOD
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2023 MEMBERSHIP FORMS
Your support is so important to the continued success of the JCC.
Here is form for renewal:
RENEW NOW
And if you have been reading our Shabbat Reminder and other communications and have not yet joined our congregation, here is the new member form:
JOIN NOW
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JCC FUNDS
Your gift to the JCC supports our Clergy, our Congregation and the Community.
ENDOWMENT FUND
This fund was established to assure the continuity of our JCC, and our ability to continue providing a full-service congregation to serve the Jewish people of the area. While a donation of any amount is encouraged, a donation of at least $50,000 allows the donor to name a special or specific Endowment Fund in memory or honor of a specific person event, or family.
GENERAL FUND
Donations to this fund are not earmarked but placed in the general administrative account. Donations to this fund can be in honor or memory of a person, event, or family.
KOL HAKAVOD FUND
Donations to this campaign supplement the clergy needs of our congregation.
RABBI’S DISCRETIONARY FUND
This fund, managed by the rabbi, allows donors to enable the rabbi to do the work of tzedakah in response to the needs of individuals, organizations and the community.
ZENA & JERRY JAY KIDDISH FUND
The Zena and Jerry Jay Kiddush Fund was established in memory of Rabbi Jay's parents to help provide funds for our Saturday morning kiddushes.
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JCC LEADERSHIP
OFFICERS
President- Phil Rosenzweig
1ST Vice President-Sherry Fruchterman
2ND Vice President-Diane Hoffman
3RD Vice President- Rose Valentine
Treasurer- Ira Morgenthal
Secretary- Cliff Denker
Immediate Past President -Michael Babst
BOARD MEMBERS
Howard Babbitt
Diane Buskirk
Mitch Frumkin
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Jon Geier
Paul Levine
Ken Podos
Terri Robinovitz
David Shatz
Bonni Rubin-Sugarman
WOMEN'S AUXILIARY
President - Diane Buskirk
Co-Vice President - Noralyn Carroll
Co-Vice President - Jill Denker
Treasurer - Suzy Geier
Secretary - Joanne Babbitt
Immediate Past President - Irene Babst
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