Congregation B'nai Shalom
Traditionally Speaking
February, 2005
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Congregation B'nai Shalom Traditionally Speaking |
From the Rabbi
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THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS - From RABBI JONATHAN GLASS
One Little-Known Festival
Here's one festive day you may not have heard of. Purim Kattan-"the little Purim." In a Jewish leap year we have two Adar months. Purim is celebrated on the second Adar. One month before Purim though, during the first Adar we observe Purim Kattan. There are no Megilla readings, graggers or hamentashen-just a barely noticeable omission of certain daily prayers.
So why am I telling you about this little day-this day that only occurs seven times in the nineteen year cycle? (By the way it falls on Wednesday, Feb. 23...) Because it's a tremendously, fundamentally, extraordinarily important day! It contains a most wonderful lesson, one that we always need to be reminded of. In fact our classic book of laws, the Shulchan Aruch, concludes its first volume with the laws of Purim Kattan and the quote from Proverbs-"The good of heart are continually feasting."
The good of heart are continually feasting?! Sounds more like hedonism than Judaism doesn't it? But NO -not at all! Hedonism is the acknowledgement of a meaningless life and "killing time" through the pursuit of pleasure--something that's become all too common in our day. The "continual feasting" mentioned here is something else entirely. It's not about filling up the emptiness but about recognizing and being grateful for the fullness. I've heard it said that there are two kinds of drinking--drinking to fill up the emptiness or drinking to express the fullness. The first is unhealthy--the drinking of the addict. Traditional Jewish drinking on the other hand (kiddush, sheva berachot, havdala, Shabbos morning lechaim...)is not about filling any emptiness within but about expressing the fullness of our lives.
"The good of heart are continually feasting." Despite life's precariousness, we are surrounded by blessing, and the continual awareness of that blessing should bring us to be ever joyful. Life is not "blah" or glum with occasional highs and occasional lows. The bedrock of life is joy. There are times when mourning is appropriate but those times are strictly limited. The basic, continual median stance of our temperaments should be one of joy. This is the lesson of Purim Kattan.
Our Rabbis taught, "When the month of Adar arrives we increase in joy."
May our joy be ever increasing!
Rabbi Glass
FROM THE PRESIDENT - ROB CHEIFETZ
Your Board and fellow Congregants have been hard at work revitalizing our shul. To do this, we are focusing on putting our shul in the financial position to hire Rabbi Glass for next year, and continuing to create a warm, family-friendly environment that makes our Congregation such a welcoming, enriching, and enjoyable center for Traditional Jewish life.
Last month I wrote about our “quality of life” efforts, so this month I’ll focus on the financial side of things. There are basically four parts to our financial effort, each of which is very important to our continued success.
First, our Membership VP, Stephen K., has been actively soliciting families to become members of our shul, and due to his efforts - and the efforts of upbeat Congregants like Wendy F, and Nina D. - membership is on the rise. And the more members we have, the more people we have to help us support our shul.
Second, the Board, led by Financial VP, Harold K., has been cutting our costs. Among other things, Harold (with the able assistance of Jay P.) negotiated a new insurance package for the shul; Stephen K. significantly reduced our communications charges; and Amy S. cut our snow-plowing costs in half.
Third, we are thinking of creative ways to raise funds for the shul. Here are a few examples: Wendy F. organized a wonderful and successful Chanukah book sale, which she hopes to make an annual event. Marty K. created a program where the shul will receive 10% of the profits realized by any promotional products orders placed by shul members. (So, let’s say you work at “Bob’s Office Products,” and Bob would like to order “Bob’s Office Products” T-shirts, or mugs, or hats, or key chains, or pens, etc. If you place the order through Marty, our shul will benefit - at no expense to you or Bob!) And we are now in the final stages of preparation for our big wedding-themed dinner dance. Last month, Sandy R. and Stacey L. lovingly prepared and sent out hundreds of invitations, and now our Bride, Amy F., is selecting processional music, writing her wedding vows, and reviewing seating charts.
Finally, we are asking all of our Congregants to pitch in and donate money to the Rabbi Glass Retention Fund. This is where each of YOU comes in. Those of you who are “big machers,” please go get your check books, write a check out to CBSBG, write “Rabbi Glass Fund” on the memo line, and mail your check to the shul. The rest of you please go get a shoe box. Now, place a dollar inside. Tomorrow, place another dollar inside. Repeat every day (except Shabbat and Yom Tov), and when the box is full, count the dollars and write a check to the shul for that amount. If every family donates $200 - $300 of “shoe-box money” to this Fund, we will have enough money to hire Rabbi Glass. That’s right; if everyone pitches in, for one-third of the price of a cup of Starbucks coffee a day, we can make Rabbi Glass a part of our family for another year.
Shalom and L’hitraot.
Upcoming events: upcoming Young Judaea event:
February 6th: rock climbing at the Foglia YMCA in Lake Zurich 2-4 p.m.
Join Sisterhood. Membership can be paid with your shul bill, $18 for the year or $180 (over two years) for lifetime membership. Any questions, contact Jody K.
At the meeting on January 10th, we planned some fundraising events. The money raised is used to pay for the Kiddush pastries.
Lox Box: March 12. You will be receiving a flyer in the mail shortly.
Meeting to bake hamenstashen: March 14, 7 pm.
Chocolate Party: May ? We’re looking to reserve an evening in May.
Culminating dinner and Bingo: June 6 (tentative date). We will try to have the dinner catered by Simply Simchas.
Rummage Sale: July 10.
KABBALAT SHABBAT SERVICES ---Come join our Family Kabbalat Shabbat services at 4 p.m. every Friday afternoon during winter. Don't forget to bring the kids!
If you or any family member is ill or in the hospital or a rehabilitation center, please contact the Shul to be put on the Mishabeyrach list and to receive a call from the Rabbi.
HOSPICE of Northeastern Illinois offers grief support groups for adults and children. For more information about Hospice and grief support services, visit their website at www.HospiceAnswers.org or call 847-381-5599.
OUR LIBRARY NEEDS GOOD JEWISH BOOKS----This is a beautiful way to memorialize a loved one or honor someone special and promote Jewish education at the same time. No shul library should be without a set of Talmud. We need one!
---Artscroll Hebrew English Talmud ---$50 per volume---Your donation can dedicate one or more volumes today!