ut bulletin march 2014

8/12/2019 UT Bulletin March 2014

1/12

March at UnionTemple MarkYour alendars

1stFriday Shabbatand Shabbat Across

AmericaMarch 7th.

See page 6 for details

Celebrate Purim!Service on Saturday,

March 15th at 6 PMHave fun at the

CommunityPurim Carnival

Sunday, March 16thSee page 7 for details

The BulletinUnion Temple of Brooklyn

Affiliated with the Union for Reform Judaism MARCH 2014 ADAR I-ADAR II 5774 Vol. 165 No. 7

SHABBAT SERVICES FOR MARCHSHABBAT SH'KALIM / P'KUDEI

Feb. 28 Friday EveningFourth Friday Late Shabbat4:00 PM - Fridays at Four: Shabbat for Tots7:00 PM - Dinner (RSVP, $10)8:00 PM - Kabbalat Shabbat9:00 PM - Oneg and Discussion /The Affordable Care Act

Implementation, with Jeffrey Stein

March 1 Saturday Morning9:00 AM - Shabbat Study Hevre9:30 AM - Out of the Shabbox10:30 AM -Brotherhood Shabbat/Luncheon to follow

Torah: Exodus 38:21-40:38 Haftarah: I Kings 7:51-8:21SHABBAT VAYIKRA

7 Friday Evening1st Friday and Shabbat Across America4:00 PM - Fridays at Four: Shabbat for Tots6:00 PM - Snacks6:30 PM - Shabbat Service7:30 PM - Pot Luck Dinner

8 Saturday Morning9:00 AM - Shabbat Study Hevre9:30 AM - Out of the Shabbox10:30 AM - Shabbat Morning Service

Torah: Leviticus 1:15:26 Haftarah: Isaiah 43:21-44:23

SHABBAT ZACHOR/TZAV

14 Friday Evening4:00 PM - Fridays at Four: Shabbat for Tots6:30 PM - Kabbalat ShabbatPizza to Follow

15 Saturday Morning9:00 AM - Shabbat Study Hevre9:30 AM - Out of the Shabbox10:30 AM - Shabbat Morning Service

Torah: Leviticus 6:18:36 Haftarah: Jeremiah 7:21-8:3; 9:22-9:23

SHABBAT PARAH/SHEMINI21 Friday Evening

4:00 PM - Fridays at Four: Shabbat for Tots6:30 PM -Peter, Paul and Mary Shabbat with Gathering Time

22 Saturday Morning9:00 AM - Shabbat Study Hevre

10:30 AM -Shabbat Morning ServiceTorah: Leviticus 9:1-11:47 Haftarah: II Samuel 6:1-7:17

SHABBAT HACHODESH/TAZRIA28 Friday Evening

Fourth Friday Late Shabbat4:00 PM - Fridays at Four: Shabbat for Tots7:00 PM - Dinner (RSVP, $10)8:00 PM - Kabbalat Shabbat9:00 PM - Oneg and Guest Speaker: Rabbi Jeffrey Salkin

29 Saturday Morning9:00 AM - Shabbat Study Hevre10:30 AM - Shabbat Morning Service

Torah: Leviticus 12:1-13:59 Haftarah: II Kings 4:42-5:19


2/12

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Rabbis Message Megillat EstherOn Saturday evening, March 15th, and continuing through Sunday, March 16th, we will

celebrate the Festival of Purim, one of the most joyous times of our year. We will dress up

in costumes, eat hamantaschen until we're bursting, and yes, imbibe alcoholic beverages,

until, as we are commanded, we can't tell the difference between Mordecai and Haman.

We will spingroggersand hoot and holler, the sillier the better.

What a ridiculous celebration! Commanded to get drunk, and indulge in outrageous behav-

ior? But it could be this may be the onlysanereaction to the reality of the Megillah, and

the horrifying story it has to tell.

The central text of Purim, of course, is Megillat Esther- the Scroll of Esther - TheMegillah for short. But in

all the merriment and parodied reading, it's easy to ignore the realities of this text, many of which are harsh,

and downright brutal. Unlike most other Biblical books, God plays no part in this drama, and in fact, is not

even mentioned or acknowledged anywhere in the text. Thus it is up to human beings to spin their fate, for

better or worse. In this light, Rabbi Donniel Hartman poses the question of what it really means to live in a

godless world. We might think that such a world would free us from the destructiveness of religious fanatics

in our midst. This would be agoodthing! Nevertheless, within the reality of godless "Shushan," there are no

humanitarian concerns; no laws outside the king's immediate whims, and ethical standards take a back seat to

raw power and survival.

Perhaps the most disturbing element of The Megillah is the lightening speed with which fatal decisions are

made. Mordecai refuses to bow down to Haman, so the angry Haman goes to King Ahashuerosh and advises

him to annihilate all of Mordecai's people. And like THAT - the king sends forth the order to annihilate all the

Jews, without so much as a moment's hesitation. How easy it is, and how seemingly insignificant. And, unde-

niably, the same snap decision-making, with violent consequences, goes in both directions. Esther tells the

king of Haman's plot to annihilate her people, and like THAT - the king reverses his decree and Haman ishanged, along with all his 10 sons, and 500 of his people. We are left with the devastating reality of how easy

it is to perpetrate evil, and how instantaneously it can be achieved. In our own day, we have seen this truth

actualized in spades. It is now our task to stand up against it. The overwhelming weight of Jewish tradition

teaches us to savelife, and to honorhumanity. (It is an interesting and rather sad irony that the Kingdom of

Persia of some three millennia ago is now the Republic of Iran, once again having taken center stage as the

locus of threatening power and brutality.)

FromMegillat Estherwe derive four mitzvot: (1) Likro et Hamegillah - tell the story; (2) lishtot- drink; (3)

lishloach manot la'evyonim- send gifts of food to the poor; (4) lishloach manot ish l'rei'eihu- send gifts of

food to your friends.

The third and fourth of these are particularly interesting. It is our sacred obligation to givetzedakah, and send

portions to the poor. This is the hallmark of our responsibility as Jews. With all the merriment and silliness, and

problems in the text itself, our overriding concern on Purim is for the poor and disenfranchised. But it is also our

sacred obligation to remember our own friends as well. Perhaps it is an admonition that in a potentially hostile

and destructive world - a godless world, if you will - we Jews need to know that other Jews will be there for us,

and we for them. While we may view our tradition through different lenses, all of us ought to maintain the larger

perspective ofK'lal Yisrael- the community of Israel - and honor that community. Chag Purim Sameach!

-Rabbi Linda Henry Goodman


3/12

By the time you read this column, the Brotherhood Shabbat service (March 1st) probably will be in the past.

But as I write this column, its a few weeks away, and Im learning the Torah trope for the last several verses

of the Book of Exodus.

I have been chanting the Torah portion for the Brotherhood Shabbat service since I took Cantor MariaDubinskys Torah trope class five years ago here at Union Temple. And so far, Ive been studying a differ-

ent portion for each years service, committing the trope to memory. (The Torah may contain the words of

God, but it doesnt have the trope symbols, or vowels or punctuation either. But at my age and probably at

any agememory exercises are a good thing.)

Every year, as I chant verses over and over at home, Mark asks me, Why do you do this? To begin with,

its something I learned and something I like, but there is much more to it than that.

Early in our Torah trope class, Cantor

Dubinsky mentioned that this may be

the oldest form of musical notation stillin widespread use. The Masoretic

scribes worked out the trope systems

over a thousand years ago, and they are

essentially unchanged except for nu-

merous regional variations in how they

are vocalized.

Trope is not just a melody to go with the

words. In addition to that, trope tells the

reader how the words are grouped into

phrases and verses, relationships amongwords within a phrase, where to accent,

where to pause. If we pay attention to

all of that, trope doesnt just add melody

to the words, it also adds meaning to the

words. And the amazing thing is that to

some extent it reflects the thinking and

understanding of those Masoretic scribes

over a thousand years ago. Just imagine,

having a subtle influence on people liv-

ing a thousand years in the future.

Even if I didnt chant at least once a

year, I learned from the trope class just

how much preparation goes into pre-

senting the Torah portion, to try to con-

vey its meaning. Listen carefully.

-Steven Segall, Secretary

Officers Column Why Do I Chant

3


4/12

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5/12

5

When you read this it is hoped that the miserable

weather we have been having this winter will be just

about gone and we can turn our thoughts to more

pleasant things. One the highlights of late winter go-ing into early spring is the annual Brotherhood Shab-

bat on Saturday, March 1st. Brotherhood President

Steven Seagall will be chanting the Torah parshah at

the service while other Brotherhood members conduct

other parts of the service. Its always a wonderful ex-

perience both for Brotherhood and temple members.

And of course there will be a luncheon sponsored by

Brotherhood after the service. We hope that you canmake it.

-David Rapheal, Secretary

BrotherhoodCelebrate Shabbat with Brotherhood

Adult Education3 Wednesday

Evenings in March

7:30-9:00 PMled by Rabbi Goodman

Reform Judaism: Alive

and Well?

March 12: Whenceideology? Communities at prayer,

and our spiritual quest

March 19: Practice, private andpublic, and the future of

denominationalism------------------------------------------

March 26: Tribute to

Rabbi Professor David

Hartman, z"l

- his thought, his teaching, his hope -


6/12

6

During the month of March we celebrate my favorite Jewish holiday- Purim. It is a holiday to be joyful and celebrate

being Jewish as we sing in the Chag Purim song, "Chag Gadol Layehudim - A big holiday for the Jews. We cele-

brate by dressing up, having carnivals, performingshpeils and reading the story of Purim found in theMegillat Esther.

This year the Religious School is joining forces with Jews For Racial and Economic Justice (JFREJFormore information about JFREJ please check out their website at

www.jfrej.org.). We are planning a carnival extravaganza for the

community.Please join us on March 16 at Union Temple from 1-4

for the Purim Carnival. We are looking for volunteers to help set up

the carnival, run booths at the carnival and help clean up. If you are

interested in helping please email me at [email protected]

-Mindy Sherry, Director of Youth and Family Engagement

Education Corner Lets Celebrate
http://www.jfrej.org/http://www.jfrej.org/mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]://www.jfrej.org/


7/12

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Preschool Winter EscapesThe Chickadees, our twos class, were very busy the last few weeks. The biggest change in their classroom is

that Montana, their teacher, had a baby! Both Montana and Saoirse, her daughter, are doing great. And we are

excited to have Bev in the classroom full time until Montana returns.

In the Big Room this week the Chickadees practiced balancing by walking on the balance beam. The sensory

table has also been transformed into a wintery mix of fake snow, pine cones, and pom poms.

Weve seen a lot of growth since the winter break in the Robins, Tomomi Iwamoto's young threes class. Chil-

dren seem taller, and are using more of their words to communicate and making new friendships.

The Sparrows, Alex Beer's threes class, took a day off from this long winter to celebrate Beach Day 2014.

They wore bathing suits and sunglasses in the classroom, and sat on beach towels. They danced to the Beach

Boys, put sunscreen on their arms and shared their favorite memories of summer. The Sparrows played with

water and sand all morning long. This multi-sensory experience was meant as a break from the relentless cold

and the routines that can cause the winter doldrums. Who needs Miami Beach?

The Hummingbirds, Pam Apple's fours class, were busy last week celebrating the Lunar New Year by making

lanterns, orks and splatter paintings representing fireworks. Nicole Tu, Zoe's mother, read a story about the

New Year and gave each child a red envelope with a coin inside. The envelope is given to wish good luck for

the coming year. After celebrating in the classroom the Hummingbirds paraded through the school, led by Zoe

and her Dragon puppet.

They have now switched gears and began an Artist

Study, looking at Picasso's Blue Period, Pink Period,

Cubist Paintings and collages. The children created

their own blue paintings, using five shades of blue.

After discussing that this was an unhappy phase ofPicasso's life, the children talked about what makes

them sad or unhappy.

The Puffins, Caitlin Mullin's fours class, just com-

pleted an exciting unit on outer space. The Puffins

learned about the planets in our solar system and

made a beautiful outer space mural. They

also learned about constellations and made constella-

tions of their own and gave them very interesting

names! The Puffins also constructed rockets using

paper towel tubes and collaged rockets utilizing dif-ferent materials.

As we approach Presidents Week we are looking for-

ward to the arrival of spring and the end of a very

long winter.

Warmest wishes.

-Susan Sporer, Preschool Director


8/12

8

Had enough of winters winds and ice and snow? Then join Sisterhood as we welcome March with its promise

of at least the official start of spring. Be with us on Sunday, March 2, 2014, at 10 AM, for a lively morning of

good food and great talk as our own Demetria Royals leads us in a discussion of Rebecca Walkers autobiogra-

phy,Black, White, and Jewish. Rebecca is the daughter of Pulitzer-prize-winning black author Alice Walker

and white Jewish civil-rights lawyer Mel Leventhal, and her book is a fascinating window on the difficulties of

straddling two worlds and trying to make a place for herself in both. If you havent read the book, thats not a

problem. Youll still have much to contribute to the conversation, and youre guaranteed a delightful morning

wrapped in our warm circle of friendship.

Sisterhoods circle of friendship extends beyond Union Temple as we reach out with Women of Reform Juda-

ism to perform tikkun olamthroughout our country and the world. Your membership dues and contributions

help with countless worthy programs, from providing scholarships to feeding the hungry and holding out a

helping hand to all Jews in need. So the next time you want to mark a special occasion or honor the memory of

a loved one, we hope youll consider making a contribution to Sisterhoods Happy Day Fund, Memorial Fund,

or Rose Keit Flower Fund. Its a beautiful way to help make our world a better place.

Sisterhood wishes everyone a happy Purim. May the courage and example of Esther bless and light our path

through life.

-Barbara Brett, Secretary

Sisterhood Straddling Two Worlds


9/12

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Tzedakah

We express our

heartfelt sympathy to

STEPHANIE

STEINBERG and DANSCHACHTER, and

ILANA SCHACHTER

on the death of

Stephanie's aunt

DOROTHY

GOLDMAN

on January 12.

We extend our sympa-

thy as well to Dorothy'shusband Benjamin, and

their children Kenneth

and Pam.

May her memory be

for a blessing

UNION TEMPLE MEMORIAL FUNDDonated by ................................................................... in memory ofHerb and Julie Karlitz ............................... ......................... ... Vivian Zweig KarlitzAbe Barnett ................................ ........................... ............... Irving Barnett

Dr. Gail Levine-Fried................................ ......................... ... Bonnie LevineCheryl Paradis and Gene McCollough ........................ ........... Ruth Paradis

George Hausman and Anna Budd ... ........................... ........... Jack Machtinger

Richard Maltz ......................... .......................... .................... Richard MaltzDoris Klueger ...................................... .......................... ....... Leon KluegerJoyce M. Charles ........... .......................... ........................... .. Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson

The Estate of Marilyn Goodman for memorial plaques for Marilyn Goodman and Sarah Schein Litto

RABBIS DISCRETIONARY FUNDDonated by ................................................................... in honor ofMichael and Jackie Ehrlich ....................................... ............ the naming of their daughter, Ella Jean Ehrlich

DR. A. STANLEY DREYFUS LECTURE FUNDDonated byMarianne Dreyfus

SISTERHOOD HATTIE NEWMAN HAPPY DAY FUNDDonated by ................................................................... in honor ofHortense Hurwitz ........................ ........................... ...............Susanne and Henry Singers 50thwedding anniversaryHortense Hurwitz ........................ ........................... ............... Barbara Brett with wishes for a full and speedy recovery


10/12

Union Temple suggests that its memberscontact our Funeral Director

Martin D. Kasdan of

Boulevard-Riverside Chapels1895 Flatbush Avenue

Brooklyn, NY

1-800-522-0588

Proudly maintaining morethan 50 years of Temple involvement

The BulletinUnion Temple of Brooklyn

17 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn NY 11238

(718) 638-7600Fax (718) 783-9151

E-mail: [email protected]

Website: Uniontemple.org

Dr. Linda Henry GoodmanRabbi

Emma GoldinStudent Cantor

Shinae KimTemple Musician

Susan SporerPreschool Director

Mindy Sherry

Director of Youth and Family EngagementBeatrice Hanks

President

Abe BarnettEllen KolikoffJeffrey Stein

Vice Presidents

Steven SegallSecretary

Leonard ShillerTreasurer

Mike BaronHortense R. Hurwitz

Doris KluegerHonorary Presidents

David RaphealBulletin Editor

John GolombTemple Administrator

Martin KasdanFuneral Director

(800) 522-0588

Memorial Plaques

10

A memorial plaque is a lasting tribute to a loved one.

If you wish more information regarding obtaining a

plaque in memory of a loved one please e-mail the

temple at [email protected]

or leave a message with the temple office.

MARCHCharles Diener ............ ............. ............. .............. ............ .. March 1, 1983

Lucille C. May ............ ............. ............. .............. ............ .. March 1, 1986

Joseph J. Baker .............. ............. ............. ............. ............ March 2, 1938

Sophie Newman ............. ............. ............. ............. ............ March 2, 1940

Rosa R. Keit ............. ............. ............. ............. ............. .... March 2, 1944

Bert Nachman ............. ............. ............. .............. ............ .. March 4, 1955Priscilla R. Sherer ....................... ............. ............. ............ March 4, 1975

Saul Solow .......................................................................March 4, 1998

Helen Stein Caplin ............. ............. ............. ............. ........ March 5, 1913

Helen M. Baum.............. ............. ............. ............. ............ March 9, 1923

Isaac Rutenberg .............................................................. March 10, 1929

Bessie Kasdan ............. ............. ............. .............. ............ March 11, 1948

Ray Latz Frisch .............. ............. ............. ............. .......... March 14, 1918

Sali Fried ........................................................................ March 14, 1946

Morris Smallberg ............. ............. ............. ............. ........ March 14, 1954

Florence Liebman .................... ............. .............. ............ March 14, 1982

Bertha Levy ............ ............. ............. ............. ............. .... March 15, 1920

Morris Salzman............................................................... March 15, 1930Leon Meyer .................................................................... March 15, 1935

Minna Feldenkris ............. ............. ............. ............. ........ March 15, 2004

Milton Rosenberg ........................................................... March 16, 1943

Gustave L. Stern ............................................................. March 18, 1969

Samuel A. Fogel .................... ............. ............. .............. . March 18, 1970

Regina David ............ ............. ............. ............. ............. .. March 19, 1965

Helen Boley ............ ............. ............. ............. ............. .... March 20, 1951

Louis Fishman ............ ............. ............. .............. ............ March 20, 1935

Dr. Arnold Messing ............. ............. ............. ............. .... March 20, 1958

Dr. Charles M. Pollack ............. .............. ............ ............. March 21, 1941

Dr. Louis Beacon ............. ............. ............. ............. ........ March 22, 1982

Leah Davidson ............ ............. ............. .............. ............ March 23, 1951

Blanche Baar Stern ................ ............. ............. .............. . March 24, 1963

Arnold Leopold............................................................... March 25, 1947

Adolph Mayer ............. ............. ............. .............. ............ March 25, 1947

Hilda Feldman ............ ............. ............. .............. ............ March 25, 2000

Harry Smallberg ............................................................. March 25, 2005

Lewis A. Feldenkris ............. ............. ............. ............. .... March 26, 1974

Rose Kaufman ............ ............. ............. .............. ............ March 26, 1977

Jennie Felner................................................................... March 28, 1947

Mary Glassheim ............. ............. ............. ............. .......... March 28, 1958

Carrie R. Hamburger ............ ............. ............. ............. .... March 28, 1963

David S. Heit ............ ............. ............. ............. ............. .. March 29, 1935

Ricka Bender .................................................................. March 29, 1945

Hyman B. Rosenson........................................................ March 30, 1921

Emanuel S. Brandt ............. ............. ............. ............. ...... March 30, 1988

Max Meyer ..................................................................... March 31, 1956

Selma Oppenheim ............ ............. ............. ............. ........ March 31, 1989
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]://www.uniontemple.org/mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]://www.uniontemple.org/mailto:[email protected]


11/12

11

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 9:00 AMShabbat Hevre

9:30 AM Out of

the Shabbox10:30 AM

Brotherhood

Service/Kiddush

Shabbat Shekalim

2 9:30 AMReligious School

Parent Seminar

10:00 AM

Sisterhood Rosh

Chodesh Seder

With Demetria

Royals

3

6:15 PM

Officers

4 56:00 PM Union

Temple Singers

7:00 PM

Machzor Piloting:Mishkan Hanefesh:

Kol Nidre

6 7

Shabbat Across

America

6:00 PM Snacks

6:30 PM

Kabbalat Shabbat

7:30 PM Pot Luck

Dinner

89:00 AM

Shabbat Hevre

9:30 AM Out of

the Shabbox

10:30 AM

Shabbat Service

99:30 AM

Religious School

10:00 AM

Membership

Committee

10

6:00 PM

Board of

Trustees

11 12 5:30 PMShalom Meditation

Circle6:30 PM UnionTemple Singers

7:30 PMAdult Ed SeminarReform Judaism:Alive and Well?

13 14

4:00 PM

Friday at Four

6:30 PM

Kabbalat Shabbat

Pizza to follow

15 9:00 AMShabbat Hevre

9:30 AM Out of

the Shabbox

10:30 AM

Shabbat Zachor

6:00 PM

PURIM

169:30 AM

Religious School

1:00-4:00 PM

Purim Carnival

With JFREJ

17

6:15 PM

Religious School

Committee

18 196:30 PM Union

Temple Singers

7:30 PM

Adult Ed Seminar

Reform Judaism:

Alive and Well?

20 214:00 PM

Friday at Four

6:30 PM

Peter, Paul and

Mary Shabbat

with Gathering

Time

229:00 AM

Shabbat Hevre

9:30 AM Out of

the Shabbox

10:30 AM

Shabbat Service

239:30 AM

Religious School

24

7:15 PMPreschool

Committee

25 266:30 PM Union

Temple Singers

7:30 PM

Adult Ed Seminar

Tribute to Rabbi

David Hartman zl

Anshei Mitzvah

27 284:00 PMFriday at Four

Fourth Friday

Shabbat

7:00 PM Dinner

8:00 PM Service

9:00 PM Oneg

299:00 AMShabbat Hevre

9:30 AM Out of

the Shabbox

10:30 AM

Shabbat Service

309:30 AM

Religious School

31

6:15 PM

Officers

March 2014 ~ Adar I-Adar II 5774

Rosh Chodesh

Adar II

UniTY Midnight

Run

4:00 PM Friday

at Four

Guest Speaker:

Rabbi Jeffrey Salkin


12/12

Prospect Park

Health and Racquet Association

In Union Temple Building at

17 Eastern Parkway

718-789-4600Ask about Special discounts for

Union Temple Members

Union Temple of Brooklyn

17 Eastern ParkwayBrooklyn, NY 11238

(718) 638-7600

[email protected]

MARCH 2014

UNION TEMPLE OF BROOKLYN BULLETINSecond Annual Passover Seder! Details on page 4

Shabbat Morning Hevre

Torah Study for Adults

Saturday Mornings

9:00-10:20

This year's focus is Sefer Devarim:

The Book of Deuteronomy

Why is this book different from all other books?

(Partially because of its treatment of Passover; and

much, much more....)

Come study with us on Saturday mornings as we

explore the answers together.

Bagels, Coffee, and Shabbat Study

with fellow congregants

Led by Rabbi Goodman
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]

ut bulletin march 2014

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