10th Anniversary - Save the Date:  May 20th 

 

Shopping and Earn for TBT 

Be a Shopping Hero all year long!

 

Smile.Amazon  

 

If you're an Amazon.com shopper - whether for special occasions or on a regular basis - then you can make your shopping support TBT. And it's at no cost to you! Every time you shop at https://smile.amazon.com a portion of your money is given to your synagogue.

 

Register at https://smile.amazon.com/ch/26-3360667 with your email address and Amazon password and you're set to go!

 

Then Bookmark or Add to Favorites https://smile.amazon.com so that every time you shop and buy something on Amazon, 0.5% of the price of your purchase will be donated to TBT. That may not sound like much, but it adds up quickly. Remember, you must shop at Smile.Amazon.com for your purchases to count.

 

Amazon Smiles has donated nearly $38 million dollars to various charities and we're excited that Temple Beth Tikvah is a recipient of the program!

 

 

Fred Meyer Community Rewards

 

 

Sign-up for the Fred Meyer Community Rewards program, choose Temple Beth Tikvah as your favorite nonprofit and TBT gets a quarterly donation based on your purchase totals. Multiply this outstanding moneymaking proposition by every TBT member and you can see what a golden opportunity this is for free money! 

 

If you don't have a Rewards Card, maybe you should. Sign-up online or visit the Fred Meyer Customer Services. Then follow the directions below to link your card to the Community Rewards Program and start no sweat fundraising for TBT...

 

Raise money for TBT. It's easy as 1, 2, 3:
1) Sign-up for the Community Rewards program and link your Fred Meyer Rewards Card to Temple Beth Tikvah at https://www.fredmeyer.com/topic/community-rewards-4  . Search for Temple Beth Tikvah by name or nonprofit #82505.

2) Raise money for TBT every time you shop and scan your Rewards Card.

3) Re-enroll annually in the Community Rewards Program to keep the donations coming year-to-year.

 

Signed up? Now every time you use your Rewards Card at Fred Meyer in Oregon a percentage of your purchase amount goes to TBT. Plus you get to continue earning your Fred Meyer Rewards Points, Fuel Points and Rebates. So, save money for you and raise money for TBT.

 

This month of March, we find ourselves between two Jewish holidays that focus on freedom and food. Last week during Purim, we read from the Megillah about Haman's evil plot and Esther's courage in saving the Jewish people. How does she do it? By throwing a feast, a dinner party, at which she can let her husband, the king, know that Haman's agenda threatens her personally. Before Esther speaks, she flirts and feeds.

 

In just a few weeks time, we welcome Passover into our midst. Again with the food. Unleavened bread symbolizing the haste with which we left Egypt. Bitter herbs to remember the bitterness of hard labor. And again with the freedom. We are Hebrew slaves in Egypt and a new nation of Israelites when we leave.

 

Of course there are significant differences between the biblical narratives and the mood we present at these two holidays. Purim includes drunkenness, frivolity, and comedy. God's name is never mentioned in the book of Esther. Passover requires drinking, buts it's drinking is about mimicking wealthy, free people and not drunkenness. Telling the story of our exodus from Egypt is a very serious matter. The meal in which we partake has a particular order, hence the Hebrew name for the dinner, Seder (which means order). In a traditional Haggadah, the name of Moses is never mentioned. Unlike Queen Esther, Moses, gets no credit. We should always understand our redemption from the narrow straits comes from God.

 

Our Middah of the Month, in March, is Silence and Mindful Speech. I think the choice to exclude God from one story and include God in the second is a great example of the teachings that surround when we are quiet and when we choose to speak.

 

The story and celebration of Purim is about letting go of the stress we feel at the hands of oppressors and even bullies. When we succumb to that power yielded over us, we voluntarily surrender to a Godless world. When we try to power through, fight back, or flee, all as if we are victimized alone, we find ourselves in a world of frivolity, objectification, and violence.

 

When we approach whatever it is that we perceive holds us back, not just on our own but with a sense of values or principles that are beyond us, God, we enter into a possibility of transformation. When our aspirations are higher ideals, shared ideals, we grow and evolve. When our aspirations are base, mere survival or victory, we remain in the world of politics, exploitation, and violence.

 

Spend a little time this month reflecting on the differences between Purim's solutions to oppression and Passover's response. What is our practice? Are we stuck in base responses to stimuli around us? Or do we choose to embrace and practice values and principles that lift us to new possibilities?

~~ Rabbi Hershenson's office hours are by appointment. If you would like to set up an appointment, please contact her by email at: [email protected], or by phone at 541-213-9880.

From TBT President Jeanne Freeman  

Anyone who knows me well knows that my favorite genre for books and movies is science fiction. Not the worlds of wizards and warlocks, but spaceships traveling into the stars, alien visitors to earth, and superheroes.

 

My love affair began at the newsstand on Blue Hill Avenue in Boston at the tender age of 8. I would get my 10-cent allowance and hightail it to the newsstand where I would pour over the comic books -- Wonder Woman, Superman, Batman, Aquaman, Hulk, Fantastic Four, Justice League. I moved on from comic books to pulp fiction with Amazing Stories and finally entered the worlds of Anderson, Asimov, Heinlen, Herbert and Silverberg.

 

My voyages into space with all-night into the early morning reading have been curtailed, but I've found a new way to get my sci-fi fix. I am now hooked on the updated versions of superheroes from my childhood. Courtesy of my 8 and 11-year old granddaughters, I am binge watching The Flash and Supergirl.

 

Looking at the portrayals of these youthful superheroes, I am captivated by their sense of justice, of fairness. They never hesitate between right and wrong, good and evil. They understand the value and importance of family and friends. They look for the humanity in their foes and strive to bring out the good. They inflict harm only as a last resort.

 

The world view portrayed in both these series is acceptance and inclusion. STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) rules! Intelligence is glorified. There are interracial couples and interspecies couples. There are lesbian relationships and gay relationships. Without fanfare or explanation, in this very extraordinary world, everyone can be who they choose to be and with whomever they choose.

 

One of the most important things to note about superheroes is that they are not invincible. In fact, they often possess only a single superpower. It is often their faith in humanity, in those that they care about, that makes them seem all-powerful.

 

Each of us has a superpower; we just don't define it as such here on Earth-prime. There are those that can quiet a screaming baby with a single touch. There are some who can offer support and sympathy with a simple hug, making the recipient feel instantly, almost magically better. There are those who know how to connect people with each other, making everyone feel welcome and included. There are those who can always bring people to "yes," others who instill a love of learning in children and still others that can commune with animals. And then there are the superheroes that take on the really big challenges fighting for peace, for equality, for justice.

 

In many ways Reform Judaism fits quite snugly into the world of superheroes. Social justice and advocacy are among the central tenets. American Reform Jews have historically supported a variety of civil rights issues, including equality for the LGBT community, hate crimes legislation, criminal justice reforms, disability rights, and legislative protections from religious discrimination.

 

In our own community we know the value and importance of our family and friends, and we show by our actions that we care. We step up to feed the hungry in ongoing programs, and now we are working with organizations to support the youngest and oldest members of the greater community with Mountain Star Family Relief Nursery and Assistance League.

 

There are many amongst us who are deserving of the title superhero -- those who serve our community as leaders and keep our synagogue running; those who teach our children - Sunday School, Hebrew School, and B'nai Mitzvah preparation; those who work to create the programs that we all enjoy; those who step up to help the greater Central Oregon community.

 

Does this all seem far afield from being able to run at Mach 3, to fly, or use x-ray vision? Not really. Here on Earth-prime our powers may be less herculean, but they certainly bring as much benefit to the planet.

 

Give some thought to what your superpower might be and how you can put it to work for the TBT community and for the planet.

B'Shalom,

 Jeanne

 

Next Board Meeting:  March 13th, 3:30 p.m. 

 

Ritual (Religious) Committee News

Many thanks to Ann Rosenfield and Lynne Connelly for hosting our Shabbat@Home on Feb 23rd. This was a little smaller than previous Shabbat@Home events, with 12 people at one home and 14 at the other, but the smaller numbers did not diminish the food, fun and fellowship. The jokes were hilarious, as the theme for the evening was "Jewish Humor." Our next Shabbat@Home event is scheduled for June 8th, 2018, and I hope that you will consider joining and/or hosting.

Our PG-13 Purim Celebration was a wonderful time, with a silly Purimshpiel (play) and a discussion on some of the more mature topics that Purim raises, and which are usually glossed over in the classic child-centric Purim traditions of Purim Carnival and Cosplay (costumed play.) I hope you were able to join us!

One change you should all be aware of: We are removing Mindfulness practice from our Saturday mornings (in conjunction with our Saturday Morning Service once per month), in order to make room for the Torah chanting class, which has been a great success, but we've found it needs more time than 30 minutes. We have not given up on Mindfulness, so stay tuned for updates as we find a place for it in our busy monthly schedule!

From a Ritual Committee perspective, this is a "quiet" month, with the major holiday (Passover) not starting until March 30th and our congregational celebration next month, April 6th. We "just" have Shirei Shabbat on March 9th, Saturday Morning Service on March 17th, and Erev Shabbat service on March 23rd.

Have a great month!

A big thank you for the enthusiasm our congregation has shown in embracing our expanded social action mission. These past few years, we have fed hundreds of low income individuals and families through Back Door Café and Family Kitchen as Burt Litman has organized our teams of volunteers for these important programs.   

  

Beginning in the 4th quarter of 2017 we successfully expanded into helping other community organizations with rave reviews from the organizations and from our members who have participated.  

  

In December we worked with the Assistance League in their Secret Santa program, which gives Christmas gifts to low income residents of facilities in Bend and Redmond, many of whom have no families. 11 members delivered 18 bags (the magic of Chai!) and monetary donations to Assistance League out of the 260 gifts that were provided in total. We have had members ask to make sure they are included next year, so look for sign-ups in November.

  

The first quarter of 2018 initiated our very rewarding partnership with Mt. Star Family Relief Nursery. Mt. Star serves children age zero to 5 and their families who are experiencing a high stress period in their lives, with the goal of supporting those families. 24 of our TBT members learned more about Mt. Star from executive director Tim Rusk in a Havdalah With A Purpose.  

  

Birthday Bags assembled by the Shalom Teva youth group.

 

Our participation has included a diaper drive, money for the classrooms' emergency AED equipment and birthday bags for the two dozen children at the Madras facility. We are excited to report that Shalom Teva, our BBYO chapter, has enthusiastically adopted the Birthday Bag program and has already delivered 5 beautiful bags of toys, books and party set-ups including cake mix and pans for kids in the Madras facility who are celebrating birthdays in the coming few months.  

 

Diaper Drive donations.

 

Our members have donated over $500 for the Diaper Drive and over 900 diapers sizes 1 to 4! These diapers clothe not only the kids at Mt. Star's four campuses in Bend, Redmond and Prineville but also are given to families whom they serve. PLEASE KEEP THIS PROGRAM GOING THROUGHOUT THE YEAR BY OCCASIONALLY PUTTING A BOX OF DIAPERS SIZES 1 THROUGH 4 IN YOUR SHOPPING CART AND CALLING LYNNE CONNELLEY TO PICK THEM UP FROM YOU.

  

Look for volunteer opportunities next quarter as we develop a partnership with the Humane Society of Central Oregon and this summer as we volunteer for a build with Habitat for Humanity. Thank you all for your participation.

Our Fundraising Committee has been hard at work the past 6 months in planning our events and campaigns. When asked to step up and commit to supporting our Jewish community, many of you donated to our Year-End Matching Appeal. $5770 was donated by our members and then matched by our generous anonymous donor. We are most grateful for all of you. We hope that our raffle winners, who choose to remain anonymous, are enjoying their prizes.

Our 'Single Handed' author presentation in October was a huge success as well. We filled the auditorium with members, non-members, and our teens. The BBYO teens sold baked goods and raised money for their local chapter. Everyone in attendance was impressed by the remarkable story of Tibor "Teddy" Rubin, as told by local author Daniel M. Cohen.

Please mark your calendars for our upcoming Wine Tasting and Social to be held on May 2nd at the North Rim Lodge Clubhouse on Wild Rye. We will send out more information, but it is shaping up to be an informative and delightful evening!

APRIL Newsletter Deadline:  March 24th 

This newsletter is emailed to both members and non-members each month.  If you have something you want to include in the newsletter, please e-mail it to Marilynn: [email protected] by the 24th of each month for the following month's publication.  As always, you will continue to receive "e-minders" before important events take place.

**Please note the change in editor/email address. This is my last issue as editor. Marilynn Jacobs will be taking on the newsletter with the April issue, (and is therefore now my favorite person in the whole world!) All newsletter items should now be sent to Marilynn.

L'hitraot,

Sara Charney Cohen

 

All TBT members are invited to Taizé - an evening of Interfaith prayerful meditation, peace, and silence. Taizé services are held the first Thursday of each month, October through May, 7:00 p.m. at St. Clare's Chapel, St. Francis Catholic Church, 2450 NE 27th St. in Bend, OR. Everyone is invited to attend and participate. Sponsored by the Sacred Art of Living Center and the Interfaith Community of Central Oregon.