FOR THE BEST VIEWING OF THE SHABBAT REMINDER,

CLICK HERE

A PRE-PASSOVER MESSAGE FROM THE RABBI

MATZAH MEMORIES

Pesach, only a few short weeks away, has always been my favorite Holiday. While it tells a relatively simple story of an enslaved people redeemed lovingly by an all-powerful God, we have come to observe it by means of a wonderfully complex and layered system of preparation and ritual. The holiday’s choreography is designed to create meaning and to foment individual and collective memory.

Despite all its nuanced complexity, at its core, the Passover story is about remembering. God remembering the Israelites and His Covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; the enslaved Israelites in Egypt remembering God; and us, today, remembering that we were slaves, and that God took us out of Egypt. Indeed, when God discussed the very first Passover with Moshe, he clearly had in mind that memories would play an important part in future celebration as He said:

This day shall be to you one of remembrance: you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord throughout the ages; you shall celebrate it as an institution for all time. (Exodus 12:14). 

When we remember, we re-live and when we re-live, it is as if we were there. Live, remember, re-live.... a holy cycle.

     In The Book of Passover, Rabbi Benjamin Blech tells us that when we have Seders and experience the Passover rituals:

What we are doing is creating memories. Not in the synagogue, but in our homes. Not with strangers, but with family and friends. Not to listen to a rabbi or cantor, but to be like rabbis and cantors ourselves –to lead a service of our very own, sharing our original insights into the Passover story. Retelling the past in a way that binds us to the future. Making our children the focus of our attention as we listen to them “ask the questions.” On the very first Passover, we became a people; how appropriate that every Passover since then we ensure our survival and become reborn through the power of memory.

!!!!!!!!ASSIGNMENT WARNING!!!!!!!!!

Your assignment is to send me a Passover memory. It can be about a Seder from your childhood, or more recent. It can be about Passover preparation. It can be about explaining the holiday to someone else. It can be short, or long. It can be funny or serious. It can bring a smile, or a tear. (Are you getting the sense that I will accept just abut anything your offer?) THE BOTTOM LINE IS THAT I WANT YOU TO SHARE.

!!!!!!!!END OF ASSIGNMENT WARNING!!!!!!!!

This year, as we are preparing for Passover and sitting down to partake of our Seders, may we all be cognizant of the notion that we are creating memories for ourselves, and for our children and grandchildren. Memories are God’s gift to humankind and the cement that binds each generation to the next.

SHABBAT SHALOM AND REMEMBER TO PREPARE FOR A ZISSIN AND MEMORY FILLED PESACH!

RABBI MICHAEL S. JAY

PS: Last week I wrote at length about Hametz. But I left out one important part. Because our lives are complicated, and because we do not want to waste perfectly good Hametz (Well, it is perfectly good and acceptable for 357 days of the year), if some Hametz remains in your homes during Passover, I have a great deal for you! Leslie Dinkfelt, the JCC’s office manager, who is not Jewish, has graciously agreed to purchase the community’s Hametz for the duration of the holiday. If you click the hyperlink below, you will find a form authorizing me as your agent to sell all leaven and hametz in your possession for the duration of Passover. All you need to do is fill out the form and send it to me. Read the form and it will explain in detail what signing the form does, and what you need to do. Importantly you are allowed to keep the Hametz in your house, but not in the open. To authorize me to sell your Hametz, CLICK HERE

LET'S SHARE SOME PASSOVER RECIPES

Here's one from Deb Levy

send your recipe to rvalen1963@aol.com

MATZAH GRANOLA

Sarah Jampel

Ingredients 

• 2 cups crumbled matzo
• 3/4 cup roughly chopped pecans
• 3/4 cup roughly chopped almonds
• 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon allspice
• 1/4 cup grated apple
• 1 pinch coarse salt
• 1/2 cup (or more) chopped dried figs
• 1/2 cup (or more) chopped dates

Directions

1. Mix together the dry ingredients -- matzo through coconut flakes -- and set aside.
2. In a small saucepan over low heat, stir together the honey, sugar, olive oil, spices, and grated apple until the sugar is dissolved.
3. Mix the wet ingredients with the dry, stirring so that all of the matzo is well coated. Add a big pinch of coarse salt and stir to incorporate.
4. Preheat the oven to 300° F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
5. Spread the mixture on the baking sheet. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring halfway through. When the matzo is dry and toasted and the coconut is golden, remove the baking sheet from the oven and let the granola cool completely -- it will crisp up even more as it cools. Mix in the dried fruit, then enjoy the granola with milk or yogurt, or simply as a snack.

Friday, April 5

10:00 AM

Signing Class

Thursday, April 11

8:30 PM

PJP Program

“Jewish Philosophy and Feminism”

Friday, April 12

1 - 3 PM

WAX Luncheon

High Tea at the Lizzie Rose Tea Room

Sunday, April 14

2:00 PM

WAX Lecture Series

Chuck Sidwa, PA

"Aging, the Sun and your Skin"

Wednesday, April 17

4:00 PM

WAX Book Club

Friday, April 19

10:00 AM

Signing Class

Friday, April 19

12 - 4 PM

CPR Class

JCC WOMEN’S AUXILIARY: BOOK GROUP DISCUSSION

 WEDNESDAYS AT 4:00 PM

NEXT BOOK REVIEW MEETING

Thank you to Sondi Pripstein for so skillfully leading the March discussion.

Wednesday, April 17

"The Genius of Israel" by Dan Senor and Saul Singer

Discussion Leader: TBA

Why do Israelis have among the world’s highest life expectancies and lowest rates of “deaths of despair” from suicide and substance abuse? Why is Israel’s population young and growing while all other wealthy democracies are aging and shrinking? How can it be that Israel, according to a United Nations ranking, is the fourth happiest nation in the world? Why do Israelis tend to look to the future with hope, optimism, and purpose while the rest of the West struggles with an epidemic of loneliness, teen depression, and social decline?

Dan Senor and Saul Singer, the writers behind the international bestseller Start-Up Nation, have long been students of the global innovation race. But as they spent time with Israel’s entrepreneurs and political leaders, soldiers and students, scientists and anti-government activists, ultra-Orthodox Jews, Tel Aviv techies, and Israeli Arabs, they realized that they had missed what really sets Israel apart.

Moving from military commanders integrating at-risk youth and people who are neurodiverse into national service, to high-performing companies making space for working parents, from dreamers and innovators launching a duct-taped spacecraft to the moon, to bringing better health and climate solutions to people around the world, The Genius of Israel tells the story of a diverse society built around the values of service, civic engagement, and belonging.

Widely admired for having the world’s highest density of high-tech start-ups, Israel’s greatest innovation may not be a technology at all, but Israeli society itself. Understanding how a country facing so many challenges can be among the happiest provides surprising insights into how we can confront the crisis of community, human connectedness, and purpose in modern life.

Bold, timely, and insightful, Senor and Singer’s latest work shines an important light on the impressive resilience of Israeli society in the face of external and internal challenges—and what other countries can learn.

PJP Series "What Jews Think”

2023-2024

Thursday, April 11 @8:30 PM Dr. Andrea Dara Cooper, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

“Jewish Philosophy and Feminism”



In this talk, we’ll consider how scholars and theologians have attempted to find a feminist space within the Jewish interpretive tradition. How can contemporary approaches to gender analysis allow us to understand the use of gendered terms in Judaism, and in what ways can Judaism be both challenged and revitalized by these approaches? Andrea Dara Cooper is Associate Professor and Leonard and Tobee Kaplan Scholar in Modern Jewish Thought and Culture in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she teaches a range of courses on religion and culture, the history of Judaism, gender, and philosophy. She is the author of Gendering Modern Jewish Thought (Indiana University Press, 2021).

CONGREGATION NEWS

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AND PICTURES

CONTACT: 

rvalen1963@aol.com

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

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