E-News, Aug 21 - Aug 27 2026

Weekly E-News 5786

Aug 21 - Aug 27, 2026

Kiddush Menu

Hot Dogs

Potato Salad

Cole Slaw

Pickles

Blueberry Dump Cake

Thanks to Beth Bosman & Elise Shernoff

for preparing kiddush.

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Use the button below to place your order.

Orders must be received by September 4th!

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RSVP by Sept 14th!

From the Desk of

Rabbi Cantor

When you take the field against your enemies, and the ETERNAL your God delivers them into your power and you take some of them captive, and you see among the captives a beautiful woman and you desire her and would take her to wife; and you bring her into your household, and she trims her hair, pares her nails, and discards her captive’s garb; and she spends a month’s time in your household lamenting her father and mother: after that you may come to her and thus become her husband, and she shall be your wife. Then, should you no longer want her, you must release her outright. You must not sell her for money: since you had your will of her, you must not enslave her. (Deuteronomy 21:10-14)

As a source of inspiration for how best we can live our lives, this passage from the Torah presents some challenges: it is simply no longer acceptable (if it ever was acceptable) to capture women in war and take them home—presumably against their will—to become wives. The argument that the procedure outlined in Deuteronomy 21:10-14 is an “improvement” on battlefield rape is missing the point: this is not the way we would expect an enlightened text to suggest as proper behavior.

If we accept that the activity is unacceptable, what—if anything—can we gain from reading it? What lesson can we learn that may be relevant for today?

One observation is that before the woman can become the soldier’s wife, she must be afforded a month to mourn her former reality: having lost her mother and father, she also must trim her hair, pare her nails, and discard her former way of dressing. Before entering into her new reality, she must inhabit a transitional space.

Transition is difficult. William Bridges has written extensively on the necessity of the “Neutral Zone”: going straight from Egypt to the Promised Land rarely results in success. Lasting change can be made more difficult by an abrupt break: time must be spent letting go of what can no longer be and testing out what could be new.

It’s possible to find wisdom in a passage that is challenging. One of our tasks as inheritors of a text written thousands of years ago is to know when to take it seriously, but not literally.

The best part of Rabbi Cantor's Day is when he sits down to meet with congregants. To make an appointment with Rabbi Cantor:

Call: 912-352-4727

Email: rabbi@agudath-achim.com

Use this link: Schedule a Meeting

In Person Service Times

Tuesday: 7:30 AM

Wednesday: 8:00 AM

Friday: 8:00 AM

Shabbat: 9:45 AM

This Shabbat

Parashat Ki Teitzei 5786 / פָּרָשַׁת כִּי־תֵצֵא

22 August 2026 / 9 Elul 5786

Candle lighting August 21, 2026 7:44 pm / Havdalah August 22, 2026 8:39 pm

Torah Portion: Deuteronomy 21:10-25:19

Ki Teitzei (“When You Go Out”) contains numerous laws, more than appear in any other Torah portion. These include laws about the treatment of a captive woman, returning lost objects, forbidden mixtures, the erection of a rooftop fence, rape, collateral, and workers’ wages.

1: 21:10-14 · 1112

2: 21:15-17 · 1113

3: 21:18-21 · 1113

4: 21:22-22:7 · 1114

5: 22:8-12 · 1117

6: 22:13-29 · 1118

7: 23:1-7 · 1122

M: 23:4-7 · 1122

Haftarah: Isaiah 54:1-10 · 1138

Service Leader Sign Up

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Aug - Sept

Birthdays

Saturday, Aug 22 - Brian Blumenfeld & Ben Jensen (16)

Sunday, Aug 23 - Haim Bober, Harriet Karlin, Ida Zeger

Tuesday, Aug 25 - Fred Kaplan

Anniversaries

Friday, Aug 21 - Lynn & David Reeves

Sunday, Aug 23 - Suzanne & Craig Olin

Tuesday, Aug 25 - Eva & Motti Locker

Thursday, Aug 27 - Diane & Loren Weil

Yahrzeits

Thursday night/Friday, Aug 21 - 8 Elul

Sam Steinberg - great-uncle of Sally Krissman

Albert Pecknay - father of Barbara Pecknay

Friday night/Saturday, Aug 22 - 9 Elul

Rabbi Jerry Potack - friend of Motti Locker

Saturday night/Sunday, Aug 23 - 10 Elul

Herbert Kahan - father of Linda Meier

Sunday night/Monday, Aug 24 - 11 Elul

Jeane Cranman - grandmother of Paul Cranman & Lynn Reeves,

great-grandmother of Kasey Berman & Morgan McGhie

Joseph Greenberg - grandfather of Jan Moore

Monday night/Tuesday, Aug 25 - 12 Elul

Lois Laney Reeves - mother of David Reeves,

grandmother of Kasey Berman & Morgan McGhie

Louis Ginsberg - father of Ron Ginsberg

Dorothy Bosman - mother-in-law of Beth Bosman

Harold Faust - father of Stacy Lasky

Tuesday night/Wednesday, Aug 26 - 13 Elul

Rose Rudikoff - grandmother of Lynn Berkowitz

Belle Ruth Faust - mother of Stacy Lasky

Meyer Tenenbaum - father of Cookie Gale

Wednesday night/Thursday, Aug 27 - 14 Elul

none

Thursday night/Friday, Aug 28 - 15 Elul

Bonnie Feiler - mother of Preston Feiler

Commemoration of the Yahrzeit begins the evening of the first noted date.

Donations

To make a donation to the synagogue in recognition of a birth, birthday, anniversary, bereavement, or yahrzeit, you may use the button below. The message box can be used to tell us who we should notify of your donation.

Make a Donation

Recent Donations

Lynn Berkowitz - to the Kiddush Fund in memory of Dick Berkowitz

Linda & Michael Zoller to the Kiddush Fund to celebrate the birth of Amy & David Rosenthal's new grandson

Linda & Michael Zoller to the Kiddush Fund in honor of Natalie & Bruce Hyman

Ed Price to the Kiddush & General Funds

Linda & Gary Udinsky to the Kiddush Fund in memory of Stanley Rosenberg

Linda & Gary Udinsky to the Kiddush Fund to celebrate Victor Shernoff's birthday

Howie Gaynor to Backpack Buddies to celebrate Victor Shernoff's birthday

Phyllis & Ken Aaron to the General Fund in memory of Phyllis' brothers

Rachael & Malcolm Currie to the Rabbi's Discretionary Fund with sincere gratitude for Rabbi Cantor, Barry Schlafstein, & the Ritual Committee

Amy & David Rosenthal to the Kiddush Fund in celebration of Buddy Metzger's birthday

Amy & David Rosenthal to the Kiddush Fund to celebrate the birth of their grandson

Amy & David Rosenthal to the Kiddush Fund in memory of Stanley Rosenberg

Harriet Meyerhoff to the General Fund to celebrate the birth of Amy & David Rosenthal's grandson

Harriet Meyerhoff to the General Fund to celebrate the birth of Bunny & Jim Montag's great-grandchild

Harriet & Paul Kulbersh to Backpack Buddies wishing AM Goldkrand a speedy recovery

Margaret & Fred Kaplan to the Kiddush Fund to honor Kenneth Sadler, recipient of the Jack Malitz Levy Award

Howie Gaynor to Backpack Buddies to celebrate Victor Shernoff's birthday

Phyllis & Ken Aaron to the General Fund in memory of Phyllis' brothers

Donor Dues

Benefactor

$9,999 - $5000

Melvyn & Eleanor Galin

Leader

$3,599 - $1,800

Stephen & Annette Friedman

Ed Price

Patron

$1,799 - $720

Aaron & Dayle Levy

Allan & Arlene Ratner

Sherwin & Sara Robin

Sol & Stephanie Zerden

Michael & Linda Zoller

Chai Member

$719 - $360

Michelle & Matthew Allan

Gerald Caplan

AM Goldkrand

Paul & Harriet Kulbersh

Jeffrey & Stacy Lasky

Andrew & Leslie Walcoff

Supporters

$359 - $100

Lynn Berkowitz

Joe & Linda Cooper

Adam Fins

Ted & Adelle Geffen

Doug & Lisa Goldstein

Seth Grenald

Gale Hirsh

Jonathan & Tova Javetz

Harriet Karlin

Michael & Suzanne Konter

Larry & Betsy Lehner

Steve & Linda Sacks

Victor & Elise Shernoff

Thanks to these donors for going above and beyond by participating in the Donor Dues Program this 2025-2026 fiscal year. If you would like to participate by making this additional commitment, please contact the office.

RSVP

Community News

Montag Gallery

The Montag Gallery at the Jewish Educational Alliance is pleased to announce the upcoming solo show of Savannah photographer, Joshua William Yates. The opening reception for “Front Row Seats to the End of the World” is Thursday, August 6th and all are welcome to attend. The show will run through August 31st in the Montag Gallery.

Joshua William Yates (He/Him) is a photographer based in Savannah, Georgia. His journey started at 15 in a high school darkroom, sparking a lifelong connection to analog processes. His photographs explore themes of solitude, impermanence, and transformation, particularly in abandoned industrial spaces and forgotten architecture. Having recently outfitted a cargo van with a makeshift film lab, Yates is expanding his scope through cross-country travels, capturing America's overlooked spaces along the way.

Rabbi David Cantor

Tova Javetz, President

Motti Locker, Executive Director

Congregation Agudath Achim | office@agudath-achim.com | 912-352-4737 | www.agudath-achim.com