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Pandemic
03/15/2020 05:19:45 PM
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This post includes content from my words to the congregation at the Shabbat service on March 13, 2020.
Uncertainty is unsettling. When we don’t know what’s going on, it’s easy to get nervous, upset, frightened. We are living though such a time right now. We don’t know exactly where this new virus is. We do know that it is disrupting our routines and claiming lives all around the world.
These past few days, my thoughts have been consumed with our sacred community. In the past, during anxious times, we sought to be with each other. Think about the terrible shooting in Pittsburgh. The following Friday evening, we all “showed up for Shabbat,” in such numbers that we exceeded the maximum number currently allowed for assembly in New York State (500).
We instinctively turn to each other for comfort. Now we may have to distance ourselves physically – but that doesn’t mean that we are distant from each other. Temple Israel’s leadership, clergy, professional staff and teachers are all working on ways to use technology to stay connected with each other. The members of our community will remain connected emotionally and spiritually, even if not physically.
As part of this effort, our Caring Committee chairs and I have generated a list of people with whom we want to make certain to stay in touch. If you know someone who might be feeling isolated or anxious, please reach out to that person. If I can help provide additional support to you, or to anyone else in our community, please let me know. Let’s embrace the truth that we all need each other.
Finally, I consider it a blessing to feel sad at the thought of canceled CJL classes and no Torah study gatherings. This feeling of sadness reaffirms for me that I genuinely enjoy being with my community. When I feel sad, I remind myself that my community is still here, even if we have to interact a little differently with each other in the coming weeks.
I want to end by sharing a poem with you, one that I find especially meaningful for this time. It is called "Pandemic," written by Lynn Ungar:
Pandemic
What if you thought of it
as the Jews consider the Sabbath—
the most sacred of times?
Cease from travel.
Cease from buying and selling.
Give up, just for now,
on trying to make the world
different than it is.
Sing. Pray. Touch only those
to whom you commit your life.
Center down.
And when your body has become still,
reach out with your heart.
Know that we are connected
in ways that are terrifying and beautiful.
(You could hardly deny it now.)
Know that our lives
are in one another’s hands.
(Surely, that has come clear.)
Do not reach out your hands.
Reach out your heart.
Reach out your words.
Reach out all the tendrils
of compassion that move, invisibly,
where we cannot touch.
Promise this world your love—
for better or for worse,
in sickness and in health,
so long as we all shall live.
Thu, March 28 2024
18 Adar II 5784
Temple israel Happenings
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Saturday ,
MarMarch 30 , 2024Midnight Run
Shabbat, Mar 30th 2:00pm to 5:00pm
Volunteers needed. The Midnight Run is a volunteer organization whose goal is to come together as a community in order to feed the homeless of New York City. They coordinate more than 1,000 relief missions per year with volunteers from churches, synagogues, schools and other civic groups to deliver food, clothing, blankets and personal care items to the homeless poor on the streets of New York City. -
Saturday ,
MarMarch 30 , 2024Midnight Run
Motzei Shabbat, Mar 30th 8:00pm to Sunday, Mar 31st 2:00am
Volunteers needed. The Midnight Run is a volunteer organization whose goal is to come together as a community in order to feed the homeless of New York City. They coordinate more than 1,000 relief missions per year with volunteers from churches, synagogues, schools and other civic groups to deliver food, clothing, blankets and personal care items to the homeless poor on the streets of New York City. -
Wednesday ,
AprApril 3 , 2024A Conversation with Dr. Benjamin Sax Moderated by Ed Ginsberg
Wednesday, Apr 3rd 6:10pm to 7:30pm
Moderated by Ed Ginsberg. 6:30 PM talk with a 6:10 PM Pizza community dinner. How do we talk about recent events in Israel to our friends and colleagues? When does criticism of Israel and anti zionism cross the line to antisemitism? What choices do American Jews in confronting these difficult situations? Join us to hear the views of an accomplished scholar and author. -
Thursday ,
AprApril 4 , 2024Israeli Music in Times of Conflict
Thursday, Apr 4th 11:15am to 1:00pm
In this class, we will focus on different aspects of Israeli culture (Music, Art, Literature, Dance and more). In continuing with last year’s format, each session will focus on a different cultural art form. This year, we will do a deep dive into one cultural piece ( a song, a story, a dance) each session. We will explore the time period and context in which it was created, how this creation affected the cultural moment, and how it reflects Israeli society and culture. Through these cultural pieces, we will deepen our exploration of the complexities of the 21st century state of Israel.
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