JEWISH COMMUNITY
CENTER OF
LONG BEACH ISLAND
E-LETTER
April 5, 2024
26 Adar II 5784
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FOR THE BEST VIEWING OF THE SHABBAT REMINDER,
CLICK HERE
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A PRE-PASSOVER MESSAGE FROM THE RABBI | |
MATZAH MEMORIES
Pesach, only a few short weeks away, has always been my favorite Holiday. While it tells a relatively simple story of an enslaved people redeemed lovingly by an all-powerful God, we have come to observe it by means of a wonderfully complex and layered system of preparation and ritual. The holiday’s choreography is designed to create meaning and to foment individual and collective memory.
Despite all its nuanced complexity, at its core, the Passover story is about remembering. God remembering the Israelites and His Covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; the enslaved Israelites in Egypt remembering God; and us, today, remembering that we were slaves, and that God took us out of Egypt. Indeed, when God discussed the very first Passover with Moshe, he clearly had in mind that memories would play an important part in future celebration as He said:
This day shall be to you one of remembrance: you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord throughout the ages; you shall celebrate it as an institution for all time. (Exodus 12:14).
When we remember, we re-live and when we re-live, it is as if we were there. Live, remember, re-live.... a holy cycle.
In The Book of Passover, Rabbi Benjamin Blech tells us that when we have Seders and experience the Passover rituals:
What we are doing is creating memories. Not in the synagogue, but in our homes. Not with strangers, but with family and friends. Not to listen to a rabbi or cantor, but to be like rabbis and cantors ourselves –to lead a service of our very own, sharing our original insights into the Passover story. Retelling the past in a way that binds us to the future. Making our children the focus of our attention as we listen to them “ask the questions.” On the very first Passover, we became a people; how appropriate that every Passover since then we ensure our survival and become reborn through the power of memory.
!!!!!!!!ASSIGNMENT WARNING!!!!!!!!!
Your assignment is to send me a Passover memory. It can be about a Seder from your childhood, or more recent. It can be about Passover preparation. It can be about explaining the holiday to someone else. It can be short, or long. It can be funny or serious. It can bring a smile, or a tear. (Are you getting the sense that I will accept just abut anything your offer?) THE BOTTOM LINE IS THAT I WANT YOU TO SHARE.
!!!!!!!!END OF ASSIGNMENT WARNING!!!!!!!!
This year, as we are preparing for Passover and sitting down to partake of our Seders, may we all be cognizant of the notion that we are creating memories for ourselves, and for our children and grandchildren. Memories are God’s gift to humankind and the cement that binds each generation to the next.
SHABBAT SHALOM AND REMEMBER TO PREPARE FOR A ZISSIN AND MEMORY FILLED PESACH!
RABBI MICHAEL S. JAY
PS: Last week I wrote at length about Hametz. But I left out one important part. Because our lives are complicated, and because we do not want to waste perfectly good Hametz (Well, it is perfectly good and acceptable for 357 days of the year), if some Hametz remains in your homes during Passover, I have a great deal for you! Leslie Dinkfelt, the JCC’s office manager, who is not Jewish, has graciously agreed to purchase the community’s Hametz for the duration of the holiday. If you click the hyperlink below, you will find a form authorizing me as your agent to sell all leaven and hametz in your possession for the duration of Passover. All you need to do is fill out the form and send it to me. Read the form and it will explain in detail what signing the form does, and what you need to do. Importantly you are allowed to keep the Hametz in your house, but not in the open. To authorize me to sell your Hametz, CLICK HERE
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Shabbat Candle
Lighting time
Friday evening
April 5, 2024
7:07 PM
JOIN US FOR SERVICES
SHABBAT HACHODESH
precedes the first of the Hebrew month of Nisan during which Passover is celebrated. On the first day of Nisan, G-d presented the first commandment of how to “sanctify the new moon” (kiddush hachodesh) for the onset of Rosh Chodesh and thus Nisan becomes the first month of the Jewish year (counting by months).
Shabbat Mevarchim Chodesh Nisan
Friday, April 5, 2024
7:30 PM
for this week
ON ZOOM ONLY
Here is
your invitation from
Rabbi Jay to join
Zoom services
FRIDAY NIGHT
Saturday,
April 6, 2024
9:00 AM
ON ZOOM ONLY
Here is
your invitation from
Rabbi Jay to join
Zoom services
SHABBAT
TORAH READING
Parashat Shmini
Leviticus 9:1-11:47; Exodus 12:1-20
Shemini (“Eighth”) opens with the consecration of the Mishkan (Tabernacle). Two of Aaron’s sons are consumed by a fire sent from God when they attempt to offer a “strange fire.” God describes the animals, birds, and fish that are permissible and prohibited for consumption, as well as some laws of ritual purity.
Here is Parshah
Leviticus
Exodus
HAFTORAH
Ezekiel 45:16-46:18
This special haftorah is a prophecy regarding the Paschal Offering that will be brought during the Messianic Era, reflecting the theme of the Hachodesh Torah reading—Moses' command to the Israelites in Egypt to prepare and bring the Paschal lamb.
Here is the Haftorah
NO HAVDALLAH THIS WEEK
WEEKDAY SERVICES
Monday - Thursday
Ma'ariv Service
7:30 PM
Here is your invitation from Rabbi Jay to
join Zoom services:
MA'ARIV
PLEASE NOTE THERE WILL BE NO EVENING MINYANS SCHEDULED FOR SUNDAY NIGHTS.
IF YOU NEED A MINYAN TO SAY KADISH, PLEASE CONTACT
RABBI JAY OR STU LEHRER.
Monday- Friday
Shacharit Service
NEW 7:45 AM
Sunday at 9:00 AM
Here is your invitation Rabbi Jay to
join Zoom services:
SHACHARIT
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NO CLASSES WITH
RABBI JAY THIS WEEK
SUNDAY, APRIL 7
Pickleball
10:00 AM
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TUESDAY, APRIL 9
Pickleball
3:00 PM
Beginning Hebrew
with Ira
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WEDNESDAY, APRIL 10
Canasta & Mah Jongg
12:30 PM
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THURSDAY, APRIL 11
Pickleball
10:00 AM
Intermediate Hebrew with Ira
2:00 PM
PJP Program
“Jewish Philosophy and Feminism”
8:30 PM
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MAH JONGG & CANASTA
WEDNESDAYS
12:30 PM TO 4:00 PM
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PICKLEBALL
SUNDAY 10:00 AM
TUESDAY 3:00 PM
THURSDAY 10:00 AM
Reminder: Pickleball for
members only!
| For those who missed the excellent program on the making of Schindler's List here is the link to view it. |
Here is the recording of Rabbi Jay's class this morning on the 3 matzahs
CUT AND PASTE
https://www.dropbox.com/transfer/AAAAAOmg2wSeH_fy1NKiJCmgtHlpn-YOEJG0MEXsOMVQ-EWkYKeUSN4
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LET'S SHARE SOME PASSOVER RECIPES
Here's one from Deb Levy
send your recipe to rvalen1963@aol.com
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MATZAH GRANOLA
Sarah Jampel
Ingredients
- 2 cups crumbled matzo
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3/4 cup roughly chopped pecans
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3/4 cup roughly chopped almonds
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1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
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1/4 cup honey
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
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1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon allspice
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1/4 cup grated apple
- 1 pinch coarse salt
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1/2 cup (or more) chopped dried figs
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1/2 cup (or more) chopped dates
Directions
- Mix together the dry ingredients -- matzo through coconut flakes -- and set aside.
- In a small saucepan over low heat, stir together the honey, sugar, olive oil, spices, and grated apple until the sugar is dissolved.
- Mix the wet ingredients with the dry, stirring so that all of the matzo is well coated. Add a big pinch of coarse salt and stir to incorporate.
- Preheat the oven to 300° F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Spread the mixture on the baking sheet. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring halfway through. When the matzo is dry and toasted and the coconut is golden, remove the baking sheet from the oven and let the granola cool completely -- it will crisp up even more as it cools. Mix in the dried fruit, then enjoy the granola with milk or yogurt, or simply as a snack.
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Friday, April 5
10:00 AM
Signing Class
Thursday, April 11
8:30 PM
PJP Program
“Jewish Philosophy and Feminism”
Friday, April 12
1 - 3 PM
WAX Luncheon
High Tea at the Lizzie Rose Tea Room
Sunday, April 14
2:00 PM
WAX Lecture Series
Chuck Sidwa, PA
"Aging, the Sun and your Skin"
Wednesday, April 17
4:00 PM
WAX Book Club
Friday, April 19
10:00 AM
Signing Class
Friday, April 19
12 - 4 PM
CPR Class
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LEARN SIGNING WITH
ANTHONY DEFRANCO
at the JCC
FRIDAYS
10:00 AM - 11:AM
LAST CLASS
April 19, 2024
Another program brought to you by the JCC Women's Auxiliary
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JCC WOMEN’S AUXILIARY: BOOK GROUP DISCUSSION
WEDNESDAYS AT 4:00 PM
NEXT BOOK REVIEW MEETING
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Thank you to Sondi Pripstein for so skillfully leading the March discussion.
Wednesday, April 17
"The Genius of Israel" by Dan Senor and Saul Singer
Discussion Leader: TBA
Why do Israelis have among the world’s highest life expectancies and lowest rates of “deaths of despair” from suicide and substance abuse? Why is Israel’s population young and growing while all other wealthy democracies are aging and shrinking? How can it be that Israel, according to a United Nations ranking, is the fourth happiest nation in the world? Why do Israelis tend to look to the future with hope, optimism, and purpose while the rest of the West struggles with an epidemic of loneliness, teen depression, and social decline?
Dan Senor and Saul Singer, the writers behind the international bestseller Start-Up Nation, have long been students of the global innovation race. But as they spent time with Israel’s entrepreneurs and political leaders, soldiers and students, scientists and anti-government activists, ultra-Orthodox Jews, Tel Aviv techies, and Israeli Arabs, they realized that they had missed what really sets Israel apart.
Moving from military commanders integrating at-risk youth and people who are neurodiverse into national service, to high-performing companies making space for working parents, from dreamers and innovators launching a duct-taped spacecraft to the moon, to bringing better health and climate solutions to people around the world, The Genius of Israel tells the story of a diverse society built around the values of service, civic engagement, and belonging.
Widely admired for having the world’s highest density of high-tech start-ups, Israel’s greatest innovation may not be a technology at all, but Israeli society itself. Understanding how a country facing so many challenges can be among the happiest provides surprising insights into how we can confront the crisis of community, human connectedness, and purpose in modern life.
Bold, timely, and insightful, Senor and Singer’s latest work shines an important light on the impressive resilience of Israeli society in the face of external and internal challenges—and what other countries can learn.
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Thanks to our membership in the PJP we are able to enjoy a variety of programs. Here are the new programming lists. No need to register in advance. | |
PJP Series "What Jews Think”
2023-2024
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Thursday, April 11 @8:30 PM Dr. Andrea Dara Cooper, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
“Jewish Philosophy and Feminism”
In this talk, we’ll consider how scholars and theologians have attempted to find a feminist space within the Jewish interpretive tradition. How can contemporary approaches to gender analysis allow us to understand the use of gendered terms in Judaism, and in what ways can Judaism be both challenged and revitalized by these approaches? Andrea Dara Cooper is Associate Professor and Leonard and Tobee Kaplan Scholar in Modern Jewish Thought and Culture in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she teaches a range of courses on religion and culture, the history of Judaism, gender, and philosophy. She is the author of Gendering Modern Jewish Thought (Indiana University Press, 2021).
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The following names will be read by the Rabbi on Friday evening:
Sylvia Glasser
Morris Herman
David Polinsky
Anita L. Ross
William Berger*
Hannah S. Cohen
Bernice Franks
Alvin Kaplan
T. Daniel Lang*
Jacob Liebenberg
Isadore Opatosky
Joseph Schlanger*
Marvin Henry Weinberger*
Ethel Zwillman
Ann Celnik
Chaya Cohen
Samuel Kreiger
Leslie Siegel
Sam Singer
Richard Sugarman
Michael Beck*
Louis Cohen
Irving List*
Lillian Barham
Charles Miller
Fannie Shapiro
Ruth Weisberger
We encourage you to join us on the day of your loved one’s yahrzeit. In the morning, the service is about ½ hour beginning at 7:45 and in the evening at 7:30 until about 7:45. Rabbi will be glad to say the traditional El Malei Rachamim prayer for you, which is recited during the funeral, going up to the grave of the departed, Yizkor remembrance day and other occasions on which the memory of the dead is recalled. You are also welcome to share with the minyan some special memories of your loved one.
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CARING COMMITTEE
This committee acts as a support system for congregation members facing illness and other personal situations that need to be addressed.
Please contact Chairperson,
Debby Schweighardt
if you are in need of assistance or if you know of a JCC member that needs our help.
973-634-5349
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Clifford Denker
April 6
Robert Farin
April 7
Sharon Hendler
April 10
Laura E. Leizer
April 10
Barry Freedman
April 11
Stanley Wallach
April 11
Sandy Rosenbloom
April 12
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George & Susan Karp
April 7
45th Anniversary
Scott & Dana Ranani
April 8
24th Anniversary
Cary & Lynn Reimer
April 8
52nd Anniversary
James & Amy Wolf
April 9
30th Anniversary
Howard & Janet Cohen
April 12
38th Anniversary
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MAZEL TO
Diane & Bernett Hoffman
on the Bar Mitzvah of their grandson, Archie. He lives in Manhattan with his parents Eva Hoffman & Ken Cornick and this older siblings Clara and Theo. He is an avid athlete playing baseball and basketball on leagues throughout the city. He has recently taken up golf. His bar mitzvah on April 6th celebrates the final Hoffman bar/bat mitzvah of the Hoffman’s 7 grandchildren.
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YOU CAN NOW FILL OUT A GIVING FORM AND PAY ON LINE IN ONE SIMPLE PROCESS.
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GIVING OPPORTUNITIES
PAVERS
Inscribe a paver at the front entrance to the building
8" X 4", 8" X 8" and 12" X 12"
SEE UPDATED ORDER FORM:
PAVER FORM
Become a permanent part of the JCC landscape.
Purchase a personalized paving stone
in honor of your family or in memory of a loved one.
Please contact Diane Hoffman
with your order or with any questions:
dihoff1@aol.com
PRAYER BOOKS
There are still High Holiday Prayer Books and Chumashim available to be purchased in memory or honor of someone or something. The cost of a Prayer Book is $72 each and $120 for an Eitz Hayim Chumash. The donation includes an affirmation sticker in the book and an acknowledgement letter or letters.
See Order form here: Prayer Book
TRIBUTES
SEND ONE OF OUR TRIBUTES IN HONOR OR IN MEMORY OF
See order form here: TRIBUTES
TREE OF LIFE
Add a leaf (leaves) to our beautiful Tree of Life located in the Social Hall. See the order form here: TREE OF LIFE
Bronze Leaf $90
Silver Leaf $126
Gold :Leaf $180
ENDOWMENT FUND
Herb z"l and Selma z”l Shapiro established the first individual Endowment Fund in memory of his father, as part of the JCC’s Endowment Fund portfolio.
Since then, three additional individual Endowment Funds have been established. Other members are encouraged to also provide for the future of our JCC by establishing similar funds. Please consider adding to this number.
A donation of at least $50,000 to the endowment fund will allow the donor to name one of the funds as the donor wishes. All such named funds will be joined together to be part of the Endowment Fund portfolio.
Endowment funds are necessary to ensure the continuation and well being of our congregation. All members are encouraged to help this important effort by contributing to this portfolio, whether as a specific named individual fund, or as a general donation. The donation can be spread over one, two, or three years, and can be paid via check, donation of appreciated stock, wills, or from the RMD of your IRA or 401K account. Your gift to the fund can be sent to the JCC Office. Please mark your check accordingly.
YAHRZEIT PLAQUES
Space is available for memorial plaques on the yahrzeit boards in the Sanctuary.
Here is the order form:
YAHRZEIT
KOL HAKAVOD
Please consider being a part of this campaign to supplement the clergy needs of our congregation. This is a separate, voluntary commitment and is additional to our low annual dues obligation. HERE IS THE LINK TO BRING UP THE DONATION FORM KOL HAKAVOD
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2023 MEMBERSHIP FORMS
Your support is so important to the continued success of the JCC.
Here is form for renewal:
RENEW NOW
And if you have been reading our Shabbat Reminder and other communications and have not yet joined our congregation, here is the new member form:
JOIN NOW
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JCC FUNDS
Your gift to the JCC supports our Clergy, our Congregation and the Community.
ENDOWMENT FUND
This fund was established to assure the continuity of our JCC, and our ability to continue providing a full-service congregation to serve the Jewish people of the area. While a donation of any amount is encouraged, a donation of at least $50,000 allows the donor to name a special or specific Endowment Fund in memory or honor of a specific person event, or family.
GENERAL FUND
Donations to this fund are not earmarked but placed in the general administrative account. Donations to this fund can be in honor or memory of a person, event, or family.
KOL HAKAVOD FUND
Donations to this campaign supplement the clergy needs of our congregation.
RABBI’S DISCRETIONARY FUND
This fund, managed by the rabbi, allows donors to enable the rabbi to do the work of tzedakah in response to the needs of individuals, organizations and the community.
ZENA & JERRY JAY KIDDISH FUND
The Zena and Jerry Jay Kiddush Fund was established in memory of Rabbi Jay's parents to help provide funds for our Saturday morning kiddushes.
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JCC LEADERSHIP
OFFICERS
President- Phil Rosenzweig
1ST Vice President-Sherry Fruchterman
2ND Vice President-Diane Hoffman
3RD Vice President- Rose Valentine
Treasurer- Ira Morgenthal
Secretary- Cliff Denker
Immediate Past President -Michael Babst
BOARD MEMBERS
Howard Babbitt
Diane Buskirk
Mitch Frumkin
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Jon Geier
Paul Levine
Ken Podos
Terri Robinovitz
David Shatz
Bonni Rubin-Sugarman
WOMEN'S AUXILIARY
President - Diane Buskirk
Co-Vice President - Noralyn Carroll
Co-Vice President - Jill Denker
Treasurer - Suzy Geier
Secretary - Joanne Babbitt
Immediate Past President - Irene Babst
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