so, nu? - shulcloud parents and children, siblings, co-workers, and close friends. it’s even true...
TRANSCRIPT
~ 1 ~
Inside this issue
Getting to Know You .... 2
BIYA News ................... 2
Kol HaRav .................... 3
Word Salad .................. 3
Announcements ........... 4
Tisha B'Av Schedule .... 4
Community News ......... 5
Kosher Eateries ........... 5
Committee Reports ...... 6
The Power of Speech .. 7
Look For ....................
Monthly Calendar and
Candle Times insert
for your fridge! ........... insert
NEW COLUMNS!
Reflections ......................... 4
Music Rainbow .................. 6
Maybe Not So Nu ..............8
27 Lloyd Street Baltimore MD 21202
410.732.5454 Est. 1873
July/August 2017 Av 5777 Issue No. 1.2
So, Nu?
www.jewishdowntown.org
BUILDING A DOWNTOWN BEIT MIDRASH
’NAI ISRAEL envisions a Beit Midrash in downtown Baltimore where Jews from
all walks of life gather to study and share ideas, to deepen our understanding of
the texts of our tradition, to explore the critical issues of the day affecting modern
Judaism, and to grapple with issues facing our world through a Torah lens. We envision
this Beit Midrash as a place where learners have access to nationally recognized
teachers as well as local leaders.
That goal got off to a great start on July 10, as eighteen dedicated people (Chai!)
studied Torah at B'nai Israel with Rabbi Yonah S. Berman of Yeshivat Chovevei Torah
(YCT), exploring the question of what is the most important line in Torah. This was the
first session in our new year-long Torah Cafe learning series featuring YCT's Torat
Chovevei curriculum. It was an inspiring kick-off for our new Beit Midrash, and B’nai
Israel is deeply grateful to Rabbi Berman.
Rabbi Berman’s wealth of knowledge, combined with his energetic, engaging style
of teaching, brought everyone into the conversation. The study focused around four
primary verses chosen by the Rishonim as the most important:
“Love your fellow as yourself" says Rabbi Akiva.
“This is the book of the generations of man,” according to Ben Azai.
Ben Zoma argues for the Shema.
For Shimon ben Pazi, it is the one describing the daily sacrifices. “The one lamb
you shall bring in the morning and the second lamb you shall bring in the evening”.
Why? Well, you should have been there! So start a conversation over Kiddush
lunch with a friend who attended . What's your answer? What is the most important
line in Torah?
You have another opportunity to experience this thought-provoking approach to
Torah learning. Our next shiur will be on Monday, 7 August at 7:00 pm when Rabbi
Haggai Resnikoff from YCT leads us in a study of Revolution and Restraint: Is
Gradualism a Jewish Value?
$5 donation requested. Food will be served.
The Monthly Nu’s-letter of
The Downtown Synagogue
B
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orn in Los Angeles, California and raised partially in Baltimore, Gerry Gilstrop
understood early in life that peoples, places and cultures differ from location to location.
Making sense of his bi-coastal experiences enabled him to think outside the box.
Gerry began his personal journey into halakhic Judaism at age 15, after failing to locate
resources at his local library which would allow him to fulfill his goal of reading the Bible in the
original Hebrew. Determined not to fail in his quest, by age 16 he located a resource called
the Baltimore Hebrew College (BHC), located in upper Park Heights, which would allow him
to take Biblical Hebrew classes. However, since he could not legally be truant from high school, as the Biblical Hebrew
courses were scheduled during the school day, he had to settle for Modern Hebrew Ulpan classes at BHC. This was b'shert,
as the following year he enrolled in a program which allowed him to take his first trip to Israel and live there in the summer
of 1983. This first trip was ultimately the beginning of many subsequent trips, so many that he has stopped counting.
Gerry continued along his Jewish spiritual pathway and growth after encountering B’nai Israel’s Rabbi Alan Yuter,
and is now culminating his Rabbinical studies by prepping for his Semikhah (ordination) exams with the internationally
acclaimed Rabbi David Weiss-HaLivni as his exam tester. His ultimate dream is to reside in Israel after making aliyah.
Gerry's spiritual philosophies are based upon the works and words of Rabbi Bentzion Chai Meir Uziel, the first
Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel. It is a religious philosophy which centers on the mitzvot of the Written and oral Torahs, yet
also emphasizes a high degree of religious humanism, expressed in the form of love for one's fellow Jew; love for humanity;
and love for the State of Israel, the world and its fruits; all for the pursuit of the Ultimate Truth.
Gerry holds a B.A. in Political Science with a Minor in Spanish Language from University of Maryland Baltimore
County, and a Master of Science from Loyola University. His career has touched upon the areas of: American Express
Business Travel; Import-Export Brokerage; and Healthcare, specifically in the areas of Emergency Medicine/Medical
Laboratory/Pharmacy. He currently is an Epic Medication Analyst at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore, when he is not
enjoying karaoke or taking long beach walks with his wife, Becky.
Gerry is a longstanding member of B'nai Israel and sits on the Board of Trustees.
-- Editor's Note: Think of this column as the covers of the storybook of our congregants. So nu, what's your story? What is your life journey all about? Where are you coming from, and where are you going?. If you would like your story to be featured in this column, please submit a brief bio and headshot of yourself for consideration to [email protected]
B GETTING TO KNOW YOU . . . Gerry Gilstrop
Shabbat Under the Stars - Friday, Sept 8 Sukkot Party: Tuesday, October 10 Shabbat Dinner: Friday, December 8 BIYA Sponsored Chanukah Kiddush: Sat, Dec 16
BNAI ISRAEL YOUNG ADULTS has announced the
BIYA Calendar for the remainder of 2017. At left are
the dates for BIYA Shabbat dinners, Sukkot Party, and
Chanukah Kiddush. We are also planning a Friday
Night Live Oneg after Kabbalat Shabbat, a Jewish
cocktail kiddush/event, and a reprise of the
Cholympics along with Egg Salad and Tuna Salad
competitions - dates TBD.
Contact:: Avi Sommer, [email protected]
BNAI ISRAEL YOUNG ADULTS ACTIVITIES SCHEDULE THROUGH 2017
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WORD SALAD
Word of the Month for Menachem Av: LASHON HARA. Literally, it means "evil
tongue" or "evil speech", and is commonly used in conversation to mean gossip. The sages
have interpreted it widely, to include even speaking well of someone, lest hearing such praise
cause jealousy and resentment. The Sages teach that lashon hara is one expression of the
baseless hatred that caused the destruction of the Second Temple, which is but one of the many
tragedies to befall the Jewish people on this day which are commemorated on Tisha B'Av with
the reading of Eicha. (See related article on page 7.)
he pre-eminent couples therapist, Dr. John Gottman, has been researching
relationships and conflict for over 40 years. In his research, he looked into what
the number one thing that couples fight about is and found something really
surprising. It’s not money, it’s not division of household chores, or even physical intimacy.
The number one thing that couples fight about is actually-- nothing. Our fights and estrangements usually are
actually based in very little. Fights come out of nowhere and have more to do with the underlying feeling about
the relationship than any specific issue.
The other day, Tammy and I found ourselves squabbling over something trivial. Later in
the day when we were discussing it, we both realized that neither of us really cared one way or the other. It had
more to do with both of us feeling ignored by the other earlier in the day. Couples just want to feel a sense of
closeness and connection, and when they don’t feel that, they begin to squabble. It’s true for all relationships --
between parents and children, siblings, co-workers, and close friends. It’s even true for our relationship with
Hakadosh Baruch Hu.
In Kabalah and Hasidism, the ultimate goal, more than even Torah or mitzvot, is d’vekut—
a cleaving or closeness to God. More than the destruction of the Temples, every year when I come to the
reading of Eicha, it is the loss in relationship that feels most painful. How Jerusalem is left alone and
abandoned. How the Jewish people feel distant from God, and God from the Jewish people. All we want is to
be close again. We don’t even know what drew us apart.
I see it all the time in my pastoral work. Recently a father told me about his son who he
hadn’t spoken to in over thirty years. He hardly remembers why they stopped speaking, but he just felt
paralyzed to pick up the phone. Sadly, on the other end, his son also just couldn’t bring himself to reach out,
even though he wanted to. Eicha concludes with a plea from the Jewish people to Hashem – “Hashiveinu
Hashem Eilecha V’nashuva” – Hashem, return to us, and then we will return to you. When Hashem, though,
speaks to the Jewish people about their estrangement, God has a parallel plea - “Shuva eilay, v’ashuva
Aleichem” – return to me and I will return to you. Only this time, Hashem is asking the Jewish people to
initiate. And yet, we stay distant. Sometimes, so much time has passed that we don’t even know why
or how we became so distant to someone we once loved so much. Taking the first step is always the
hardest. But someone has to.
KOL HARAV The Rabbi's Voice
T
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Please send us your notices of
BIRTHDAYS, WEDDINGS, BIRTHS, BRIS, SIMCHAT BAT and other smachot, to be published in this space. For timely publication of your birthday, wedding, aufruf, etc., notices should be submitted two weeks in advance of the event.
YOM HULEDET SAMEACH
to the Birthday Lights of Av:
* Ilene Harris, 7.27
*
*
Due to space limitations, we
are unable to publish all of
the Yahrzeits of our
synagogue community
If you would like a notice to appear here, please send it
We recite KADDISH this month for the following loved ones of blessed memory. May their neshamas have an aliya.
Our condolences to those in mourning.
* *
*
TISHA B'AV SERVICES AT BNAI ISRAEL:
Monday, August 1 (9 Av) at 8:15 pm
Reading of Eicha by Avi Weisberg
Fast begins at 8:19 pm Monday evening
and ends at 9:00 pm on Tuesday.
CHODESH AV AND BASELESS HATRED
By Rebecca Pepkowitz-Gilstrop
It's a tough month. With the sun beating down,
tempers can flare and bodies can chafe. Especially in
ancient days, relief from the heat was hard to come by.
Neighbors might turn against neighbors, and the
inclination to seek peace and compromise under
difficult conditions could simply evaporate. This is the
story of the senseless hatred that the Jews heaped
upon each other during the siege of Jerusalem, and
which, we are told, led to its downfall.
Paradoxically, here in Baltimore the discomfort of
the Dog Days of summer could actually serve to
lessen tensions between the entrenched and often
tumultuous ethnic enclaves on the East Side. Lack
of fans and no air conditioning left the row houses of
Baltimore filled with hot, humid, breathless air by the
end of a long hot day, and people just had to escape.
In 1976 when I moved to 2104 East Pratt Street, my
97- year old neighbor, Ms. Alice Pryzbyz, told me how
people survived the summer with social relations intact.
Entire families went to Patterson Park to sleep out
on the grass. Mamas packed picnic baskets, papas
toted children and rugs to lay out on the grass, and
everybody brought instruments. The adults stayed to
themselves, but the children ran freely from group to
group, following the music.
According to Ms. Agnes, you knew which group was
which from their music: Poles played accordions and
squeeze boxes, Jews played clarinets and violins,
African-Americans played harmonicas and banjos, the
Ukrainians played drums and bugles.
In East Baltimore, the heat brought a ceasefire, as
everyone put their disagreements aside and peacefully
shared the cool breezes coming up from the Harbor, as
another hot day drew to a close.
Offerings of a More
Personal Nature . . .
~ 5 ~
DR. PAUL MILLER IS HONORED
Longtime B'nai Israel member and Trustee Dr. Paul
Miller has been honored with the Top Doctor Award
from Top Doctor Awards magazine for his education,
experience, achievements and special expertise in
dentistry. He will be featured in
a forthcoming issue of the
magazine. Stay tuned! Mazal
Tov and Kol HaKavod, Paul!
AND FROM OUR ISRAEL BUREAU . . .
Our friend, B'nai member and Israel Correspondent
David Ben Moshe left for Eretz Yisrael early in July for
study at Pardes and a later hitch in the IDF. So that we
could eat our hearts out, he sent these fabulous photos
overlooking Ma'ale Adumim ים in the West מעלה אדמ
Bank. The photos were taken from the mirpesset of
Rabbi Elan and Rivka Lambert-Adler, David's hosts.
Photos courtesy David BenMoshe
EATING OUT KOSHER IN B'MORE
Now 4 Kosher Alternatives Downtown
Me Latte (2 locations)
Espresso bar with wide variety of'
breakfast and lunch options.
300 S. Ann St. Mon - Thurs 7 - 5
Fells Point Friday 7 - 3
Baltimore, MD 21231 Saturday Closed
410.558.1958 Sunday 8 - 6
Filicori Zecchini Nice variety of hot
and cold coffees, breakfast foods,
sandwiches, pastries, salads etc.
1550 Orleans St. 1st Fl. Baltimore, MD, 21231 (410) 502-2936
Mon - Thurs 7:00 - 5:00 Friday 7:00 - 4:00 Sat/Sun - Closed
One East Pratt Street Baltimore, MD 21201 (410) 244-1292
Monday - Friday 6 - 8 Sat/Sun 8am - 8pm
Van Gough Cafe Gourmet coffee,
iced drinks and a wide array of
breakfast and lunch foods, including
falafel and knishes.
~ 6 ~
For Tisha B'Av, a joyous song about rebuilding the Temple
Here is a list of our currently active committees.
Please contact any of the named committee members to assist.
MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE
is forming and searching for volunteers to help the shul retain
and grow its membership. Please contact President Shelly
Mintz for information, exchange of ideas and signup.
Contact Shelly at [email protected].
CEMETERY COMMITTEE
This could be the most important mitzvah
of all. Please speak to Shelly Mintz about
your interest in either chairing the committee
or joining as a member of the Cemetery
team. [email protected]
FINANCE COMMITTEE
Monitors and reviews the congregation's business and
financial affairs. [email protected]
HOUSE COMMITTEE
ISO hardy volunteers to donate their time behind the scenes
to join Chair Fred Shoken in maintaining the synagogue
building at its Shabbos best. Please contact
ADULT EDUCATION AND CULTURAL COMMITTEE
Lynne Farbman, chair; Karen Rubin, Shelly Mintz, Fred
Shoken and Ilene Harris. [email protected]
MECHITZA EXPLORATORY COMMITTEE
Rick Gwynallen, chair; Claudia Andorsky, Avi Sommer, Kyley
Sommer, and Maraji Gwynallen. For information, contact Rick at
COMMUNICATIONS COMMITTEE
Maraji Gwynallen, chair; Rebecca Pepkowitz-Gilstrop, Michele
Rosenberg, Rick Gwynallen, Shelly Mintz. Suggestions,
questions and newsletter submissions are welcome, addressed to
KIDDUSH COMMITTEE
Kathleen Peterson, Chair. To volunteer, address Kathleen at
B'NAI ISRAEL IS actively seeking new volunteers to assist the shul by serving on the following Committees:
~ 7 ~
Sponsor a Kiddush Lunch! Inquire at [email protected] OR
the Bnai Israel website, donations page, at
www.jewishdowntown.org
THE POWER OF SPEECH Excerpted from jewishvirtuallibrary.org
udaism is intensely aware of the power of
speech and of the harm that can be done
through speech. The rabbis note that the
universe itself was created through speech. Of
the 43 sins enumerated in the Al Chet confession
recited on Yom Kippur, 11 are sins committed through
speech. The Talmud tells that the tongue is an
instrument so dangerous that it must be kept hidden
from view, behind two protective walls (the mouth and
teeth) to prevent its misuse.
The harm done by speech is even worse than the
harm done by stealing or by cheating someone
financially, because amends can be made for
monetary harms, but the harm done by speech can
never be repaired. For this reason, some sources
indicate that there is no forgiveness for lashon ha-ra
(disparaging speech). A Chasidic tale illustrates this
point: A man went about the community telling
malicious lies about the rabbi. Later, he realized the
wrong he had done, and began to feel remorse. He
went to the rabbi and begged his forgiveness, saying
he would do anything he could to make amends. The
rabbi told the man, "Take a feather pillow, cut it open,
and scatter the feathers to the winds." The man
thought this was a strange request, but it was a simple
enough task, and he did it gladly. When he returned
to tell the rabbi that he had done it, the rabbi said,
"Now, go and gather the feathers. Because you can
no more make amends for the damage your words
have done than you can recollect the feathers."
he Gemara in Yoma 9b says that before the
destruction of the 2nd Temple, Torah learning
and mitzvah observance thrived. The Temple
was destroyed due to baseless hatred exhibited by
the Jewish people of the time. Rashi (ibid.) points out that
this baseless hatred was further aggravated by the
immense amount of lashon hara being spoken.
The Chofetz Chaim starts his sefer, Shemiras Halashon,
an excellent work devoted to laws of lashon hara, by
quoting the pasuk in Mishlei 21:23, “Guard your mouth
and your tongue, guard yourself from spiritual harm.” The
Chofetz Chaim explains that we can see the deleterious
impact that speaking lashon hara can have on the Jewish
people’s spiritually. Not only was it the cause of
destruction of the 2nd Temple, but the continuous slander
of others has also prevented the 3rd Temple from being
built. He therefore, emphasizes the importance of
learning the laws of lashon hara. With this in mind, over
the course of the next several days we will discuss
various aspects of lashon hara.
J T
ROAD SIGN
ON THE
DERECH ERETZ:
~ 8 ~
AND MAYBE NOT SO NU . . . By Fred Shoken
A Column on Baltimore Jewish Heritage and the History of B'nai Israel
THE SHIP THAT LAUNCHED A NATION
his year marks the 70th anniversary of the voyage
of Exodus 1947. Originally known as the
President Warfield, this former Chesapeake Bay
steamer made history when it was used by the
Haganah in an attempt to bring 4,500 Holocaust
survivors to the land of Israel.
Twenty years ago, Baltimore memorialized her
story by placing a historical marker at Baltimore’s
World Trade Center along the waterfront walkway
beneath the building. The marker’s text is as follows:
“Near this spot, the Baltimore steamer President
Warfield began her epic voyage into history. Built in
1928 as the flagship of the Old Bay Line, she ran
nightly cruises between
Baltimore and Norfolk. In 1943
she was given to Britain under
the wartime lend-lease
program, but joined the U.S.
Navy in 1944 as a harbor
control vessel off Omaha
Beach after the D-day landings.
Purchased as war surplus in
1946, she was outfitted in
Baltimore as part of a secret
fleet to transport Holocaust survivors through the
British blockade against Jewish immigration to the
Land of Israel. On July 18, 1947, manned mainly by
Americans and carrying over 4,500 refugees, she was
attacked by British warships and boarded in
international waters. Three men were killed, including
the American mate William Bernstein; dozens were
wounded. During the struggle the ship’s new name,
Exodus 1947, was proclaimed to the world.
The British returned the captured refugees by force
to detention camps in occupied Germany. The saga of
Exodus 1947 inspired the world to condemn British
policy, led to the UN resolution to partition Palestine,
and symbolized the birth of Israel. The ship itself,
battered and abandoned, burned and sank in the
Haifa harbor in 1952. Between 1946 and 1948,
volunteers from the United States and Canada
acquired, equipped and manned 10 ships, which
carried 30,000 refugees through the British blockade.
The four vessels outfitted in Baltimore: Exodus 1947
(originally President Warfield), Chaim Arlosoroff (Ulua),
Hatikva (Tradewinds), Jewish State (Northland). Outfitted
elsewhere: Josiah Wedgewood (Beauharnois), Haganah
(Norsyd), Ben Hecht (Abril), Geula (Paducah), Kibbutz
Galuyot (Pan York), Atzmaut (Pan Crescent).
Erected by the Jewish Museum of Maryland and the
Baltimore Zionist District on July 18, 1997. This marker
commemorates the fiftieth
anniversary of the voyage of
Exodus 1947. It is also a memorial
to Mose I. Speert who led
Baltimore’s efforts to equip refugee
transports. We salute the crewmen
for their valor and the refugees for
their courage. “
Another Baltimore connection to
the Exodus 1947, is that Baltimore-
born author, Leon Uris, wrote a best
selling novel, Exodus, based upon her story which was
adapted as a major motion picture in 1960 starring Paul
Newman.
It is appropriate that the date of the ship’s capture by
the British, July 18, 1947, corresponds to the 1st of Av
5707 – Rosh Chodesh Av – in the Jewish calendar. While
the month of Av is associated with sadness and
destruction, it ultimately promises redemption.
--- Fred Shoken is a longstanding member of B'nai
Israel, well versed in the history of our fair city and our
beautiful synagogue, and the unofficial Expert-in-
Residence on just about any subject, but especially the
Orioles and the Ravens.
T
View of the Exodus 1947 arriving in Haifa harbor under British command
AV 5777 JULY/AUGUST 2017
1 ROSH
CHODESH
AV
24 July
2
25 July
3
26 July
4
27 July
5
8:03
0 Services 6:30
28 July
6 Shabat Chazon Parshat Dvarim
Shacharit 9:30a
Kiddush for R. Mintz
Havdala 9:10p
29 July
7 Shacharit 8:30
30 July
8 EREV
TISHA B'AV
Fast Begins 8:19p
Services 8:15p
Reading of Eicha
31 July
9 TISHA B'AV
Fast Ends 9 pm
1 Aug
10
2 Aug
11
3 Aug
12
7:56
Services 6:30
4 Aug
13 Shabat Nachamu
Parshat Va'etchanan
Shacharit 9:30a
Havdala 9:03p
5 Aug
14 Shacharit 8:30
6 Aug
15
7 Aug
16
8 Aug
17
9 Aug
18
10 Aug
19
7:48
Services 6:30
11 Aug
20 Parshat Eikev
Shacharit 9:30a
Havdala 8:54p
12 Aug
21 Shacharit 8:30
13 Aug
22
14 Aug
23
15 Aug
24
16 Aug
25
17 Aug
26
7:38
Services 6:30
18 Aug
27 Parshat Re'eh
Shacharit 9:30a
Havdala 8:45p
19 Aug
28 Shacharit 8:30
20 Aug
29
21 Aug
30
22 Aug
1 ROSH
CHODESH
ELUL
23 Aug
2 ROSH
CHODESH
ELUL
24 Aug
3
7:28
Services 6:30
25 Aug
4 Parshat Shoftim
Shacharit 9:30a
Havdala 8:35p
26 Aug
Hebrew dates in black, Gregorian dates in red.
Please see SO NU? for details of events listed in blue italics.