Shabbat HaGadol- Sara Friedman chants Haftorah HAPPY PESACH!

Shabbat HaGadol

April 12, 2025

Haftorah chanted by Sara Friedman

Services will be in our Sanctuary at 10:00 a.m.

1st Day of Passover Festival Service

Sunday, APRIL 13 at 10:00 a.m.

7th Day of Passover- YIZKOR

Saturday, APRIL 19 at 10:00 a.m.

Important Announcement:

In order to watch Shabbat morning services and Friday night Minyan on Facebook you will need to be a member of our

TEMPLE ISRAEL SERVICES

Private Facebook Group.

if you have difficulty joining the group

email info@templewb@gmail.com

or call our offices M-F 8am-2pm

570-824-4646

Watch on Website

Go to Facebook

This week is Shabbat HaGadol (The Great Shabbat). It either got its name from the particularly long and drawn out sermons on this Shabbat filled with every law and rule about strict observance of Passover, or because the words HAGADOL V'HANORAH- God's Great and Awesome Day that appear at the conclusion of the Haftorah from the Prophet Malachi read on this Shabbat.

Since I'm not giving a long sermon, we'll assume it's Shabbat HaGadol because Sara will be chanting Malachi's words. The uplifting phrase in Malachi 3:23 says that God will send the Prophet Elijah (Eliyahu HaNavi) before the coming of the great and awesome day of God. And he will reconcile parents with their children and children with their parents.

What a great way to begin the Passover holiday- with families brought back together in the spirit of freedom from slavery as we hope and pray that Hamas will finally let our people go free and return from captivity to the Land of Israel.

A Passover Message

from Linda Popky

Linda Popky is the daughter of Marty and Janet Popky, both of blessed memory. Marty was always involved in our congregation and the community. He was long time treasurer of the Wyoming Valley Interfaith Council and Janet was extremely active in our Temple Israel Sisterhood. We miss them both.

Linda started a marketing firm in California which has become very successful. She sends out a weekly commentary which I have quoted from before. Her message this week stands out and should be front and center at our Passover Seders this year.

"Passover, one of the most important holidays in the Jewish calendar, starts this weekend.

This holiday commemorates the exodus of the Jewish people from Egypt after 400 years of slavery. It's a time when we traditionally celebrate our freedom.

But this year feels different.

This is the second Passover when we still have hostages held in captivity in Gaza, about half of whom are believed to still be alive. But this year, after hearing the stories of those who have been released, we know much more about the horrendous conditions in which these men are being held.

We now know they are being tortured and brutalized, sexually assaulted, starved, and abused—both mentally and physically. We now know that this abuse is often coming from civilians in Gaza who are holding hostages—not just from Hamas operatives. We now know that the only starvation happening in Gaza now is among Jewish hostages.

The war in Gaza started up again recently after hostage release negotiations failed. No one is happy to see this happen. Innocent people will die, and the angst and suffering will continue. Yet, the answer—just like thousands of year ago—is simple: Let my people go.

The Bible says Moses brought this message to Pharaoh multiple times, but Pharaoh was stubborn. It took 10 plagues of increasingly devastating intensity for him to agree to let his Jewish slaves go free. Even then, he changed his mind and followed them to the Red Sea, which miraculously parted to let the Jewish people escape, with the Egyptians unable to follow.

For 18 months, the cry among Israelis, Jews and supporters of decency and morality around the world has been, "Bring them home now." But that puts the onus on the rescuers, not the captors. The message to the world should be clear.

Let our people go. Now."

Join us on

Thursday, April 24, 2025 at 6:00 pm

at the Friedman JCC

Please RSVP HERE

A poster Exhibition from Yad Vashem

"Spots of Light. To Be a Woman in the Holocaust"

Michael Polgar, PhD will be onsite for questions and commentary

.........

Yom HaShoah Memorial Service

.............

"The Final Victory-the Story of Felix Zandman"

Documentary Film followed by Q&A with

Ariele Klausner,

daughter of Felix Zandman

This documentary tells the story of Dr. Felix Zandman, a Holocaust survivor who became a known physicist and industrialist whose inventions created a revaluation in the electronically component industry. Zandman was born in 1927 in Grodno, then Poland, and survived the Holocaust in a secret hiding he shared with his uncle and 3 other Jews for 17 months. During his hiding he was taught by his uncle, an engineer, mathematics and physics. After the war he went to France and studied physics and engineering. In the early 60s he moved to the United States and established Vishay co-operation. Some 39 patents are named after his name. In Israel, which he visits frequently, he owns 6 companies. The film that is divided to several parts, each tells a different victory story, explores Zandman’s exceptional story. Including archive footage, family photos and interviews with Shimon Pertes and Ariel Sharon.

About the exhibit: “Spots of Light: To Be a Woman in the Holocaust”

This exhibit explores the unique voice of Jewish women during the Holocaust. It focuses on examining the position of women during the Holocaust and the ways in which they coped with and responded to unforeseen situations. The Nazi ideology viewed women as agents of fertility. This ideology identified the Jewish woman as an element that must be exterminated to thwart the rise of future generations of Jews. For these reasons, the Nazis treated women as prime targets for annihilation. Jewish women inhabited a society that was conservative and patriarchal, with males as heads of household and women discharging traditional roles at home or helping to make a living. Accordingly, women did not participate in the leadership that was tasked with shepherding the Jewish public during the Holocaust. Instead, Jewish women assumed the main family role – the “affirmation of life”: the attempt to survive in any situation. Women in the Holocaust applied their minds to a place that deprived them of their minds; brought strength to a place where they had no strength. And in a place where they and their families had no right to live, they marched all the way to death and invested every additional moment of life with meaning. It is these women’s voices that we wish to sound and whose stories to tell.

Please RSVP HERE

We're excited to announce our 2025 Law Day Shabbat Guest Speaker, The Honorable Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice, David N. Wecht.

Our 2025 Law Day Shabbat promises to bring together numerous Temple Israel lawyers, alongside esteemed members of the legal, legislative, and judicial communities.

A heartfelt thank you to Atty. Michael D. Yelen for chanting the haftarah and to Chairs, David E. Schwager, Esq. & Myer S. Messinger, Esq., and the generous support of the Wilkes Barre Law & Library Association whose contributions and support help make this meaningful gathering possible.

ABOUT OUR SPEAKER

David N. Wecht was elected to a ten year term on The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania in November 2015, and began his service as a Supreme Court Justice in January 2016.

Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court is the oldest appellate court in the United States of America, and predates the nation's independence by several decades.

Read more HERE

Join our Midrasha students on

Sunday, May 5th, 10am

at the Friedman JCC

as we raise a new Israeli flag in celebration of Israel's Independance Day!

Everyone is welcome!

Crafts~Treats- Fun

VOTE BY MAY 5, 2025 TO ASSURE MERCAZ

HAS RERESENTATION IN THE

WORLD ZIONIST CONGRESS

“MERCAZ” represents. MERCAZ — which means “center” in Hebrew but also was used as an acronym for “Movement for the Reaffirmation of Conservative (Masorti) Zionism” — was established in the late 1970s as the Zionist arm of the worldwide Masorti movement. The aim of its founding was to enable Conservative/ Masorti Jewish organizations worldwide to have representation in the “national institutions” of the Jewish people — the World Zionist Organization, Jewish Agency for Israel, Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael (JNF), and Keren Hayesod (United Israel Appeal).

MERCAZ is not just another movement organization; it is a comprehensive framework in which Israel/Zionist engagement is enhanced for the spectrum of Conservative/Masorti groups. This inclusive approach also applies to the MERCAZ chapters operating in 16 countries — United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Mexico, Brazil, Spain, Ger-many, France, Ukraine, Russia, Hungary, and Sweden — with more on the way. In addition to political influence at decision-making tables, the Conservative/Masorti movement gains financially from the votes cast for MERCAZ every five years for World Zionist Congress representation. Subsequent national institution allocations promote Israel-oriented conferences and missions, Israel awareness, and Israel engagement everywhere that Conservative/Masorti Jews reside. The allocations translate into approximately $4 million annually,

Click HERE to learn more about how having representation of the MERCAZ movement’s values helps the stature of the Conservative/Masorti movement grow and the impact of the centrist voice within world Jewry.

YOUR VOTE MATTERS

It's easy, just follow the steps below!

1. Go to votemercazusa.org

2. Click Register & Vote Now. (there is a very small administrative fee of $5 payable online)

3. Retrieve the voting PIN number that will be sent to the email you registered with.

4. Return to the votemercazusa.org webpage and enter your assigned voting pin.

5. Vote for SLATE17 - MERCAZ

6. Click Vote

7. Check your email shortly after to confirm that you received an email confirming your vote.

SUNDAY, APRIL 27