Announcements - April 26, 2024

Today is the 4th day of Passover. In Israel, the holiday is celebrated for 7 days. Elsewhere, most progressive Jews celebrate it for 7 days and most traditional Jews celebrate it for 8 days. If you are interested in supplemental material for a seder, there are many social-justice-related resources here. If you are interested in counting the omer, there are resources here.

There is no Kabbalat Shabbat service on the Coastside tonight. Instead, we are co-hosting a Pride Seder in Half Moon Bay in partnership with CoastPride and the CoastPride Multi-Faith Partners. Registration is closed as we have reached capacity. Our next Friday night service will be next week at Holy Family Church with a special guest. (See below.)

Photos from our Community Seder in Half Moon Bay on Tuesday, April 23

It was a joyful yet reflective seder. Perhaps the best part was the warmth of our community. There was a sense of deep kinship shared by a diverse group of over 90 members & friends!

"I really enjoyed being with all of you tonight. During the first night's Seder, I was really depressed about all the people suffering in Israel and Gaza and all the college students here being attacked. Something about having our community all come together helped me feel better. So thank you to all of you, especially Moshe, Lissin, and Michal!" - Monica Spitzer

"Thank you for your uplifting, unifying Passover message of hope, spiritual renewal in nature, simplicity, overcoming adversity, and the charge for us to remain committed to morals of kindness, environmental stewardship, compassion, generosity, and service to one another as we navigate a world behaving otherwise. Your message resonates in our hearts and minds, grateful that such a community of peace and mindfulness exists amongst us and we were invited inside.... Last night was a gift." - Cynthia Sherrill & Rinaldo Veseliza

"Michal - tonight was amazing! You did such a great job! Thank you so much for all you do!!!" - Juliette Freestone

"It was put together so beautifully and what a spread! Thanks so much to Rabbi, Lissin, Michal and everyone behind the scenes that made it happen." - Jennifer Malkin-McDade

How welcoming are we to Jews of Color?

Find out at next week's Shabbat service with special guest Gen Slosberg

According to a recent study, a vast majority of Jews of Color have experienced discrimination in Jewish communal settings; more than half of them in synagogues or congregations. Thus, it’s not surprising that many Jews of Color indicated that it is more difficult for their multiple identities to co-exist in predominantly white Jewish spaces than in (non-Jewish) BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) spaces. It’s also not surprising that they have often felt disconnected from their Jewish identity, having to navigate the Jewish community’s racism and assumptions.  

Growing up in China as one of very few mixed-race kids, Gen Slosberg was frequently bullied and excluded. Her father descended from Ashkenazi Jews from Poland and Lithuania. After she moved to the US with her family when she was in high school, she connected with her Jewish roots. She now works as an organizer for T'ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights.

Outside of her work as a Jewish professional, Gen is a researcher and analyst of China's role in the Latin America and relationship to the US -- she was recently a Junior Fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. She holds a B.A. in Political Science from UC Berkeley. Plan to welcome her Friday, May 3 at 7pm at Holy Family Church.

JOIN US FOR A SHABBAT SERVICE HONORING LISSIN LEV CHAYA

Plan to join us on Friday May 17 at 7:00pm at Holy Family Church in HMB as we celebrate Shabbat and the contributions Lissin has made to our community over the past 8 years she has served as a soloist and service leader, and the 12+ years prior she has been a member.

Special guests will include Rabbi Jane Litman and Rabbi Ted Riter, previous CJC rabbis who worked closely with Lissin as her mentors. Throughout her tenure, Lissin provided a sense of continuity and presence through a rapid succession of rabbis. A special presentation will be made by the CJC Board in appreciation for her many years of joyful service.

Support Your Local Coastside Pride Chorus

The Coastside Pride Chorus was founded in July 2023 as the first musical organization to serve the LGBTQ+ community on the Coastside. Their repertoire aims to inspire and uplift the community, address social issues of the day, entertain, and enlighten. 

Chorus membership includes both members of the LGBTQ+ community and allies from age 21 to 80; all from a wide spectrum of backgrounds, interests, and abilities.

Coastside Pride Chorus is grateful for the fiscal sponsorship given us by Coastside Lutheran Church. The rest of our revenue is received through member dues, charitable gifts and ticket sales. To learn more about the Chorus and to donate to their spring fundraiser, click here.

Earth Day was earlier this week. Thanks to CJC's partnership with Interfaith Power and Light, we are able to offer you a free viewing of the powerful movie Common Ground.

By fusing journalistic expose’ with deeply personal stories from those on the front lines of the food movement, Common Ground unveils a dark web of money, power, and politics behind our broken food system. The film reveals how unjust practices forged our current farm system in which farmers of all colors are literally dying to feed us. The film profiles a hopeful and uplifting movement of white, black, and indigenous farmers who are using alternative “regenerative” models of agriculture that could balance the climate, save our health, and stabilize America’s economy – before it’s too late.

Use this link and password to watch the movie:

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/x8eenx0m2yf4zv3qzs90k/CommonGround_ROCO_Subtitles-EN-SP.mp4?rlkey=qqefxa89955t2cnzrk4qka5ls&dl=0

Password: roco0424 (For CJC members & friends only.)

FEATURED ARTICLE: Passover and Remembering the Innocents, by Rabbi Mark Blazer

The deaths of innocents over these last months are devastating and they can be simultaneously held in prayer by everyone also praying for the release of the hostages. The enormous human cost to the people of Gaza who are tied to the actions of the terrorist regime in control is a tragedy that must end....

Each year at Passover, as we recount the suffering of the ancient Egyptians through the Ten Plagues, we diminish our cup of wine, a symbol of joy, by removing a drop with each curse. We remind ourselves there were human beings at the other end of each of those miracles, and innocent Egyptians paid a horrible price for the cruelty of their leadership and system of oppression. [You can read the entire article here.]

Wondering what else is coming up? You can always check our website and calendar here.

Rabbi Moshe Heyn serves as CJC's Spiritual Leader, along with our Sheli'ach Tzibbur, Lissin Lev Chaya.

The Mission of CJC is to provide an inclusive community that supports connection to Jewish life, both cultural and spiritual, on the coast from Pacifica to Pescadero.

We rely on the generosity of our members and friends. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation using the Donate button below.