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May 28, 2020
5 Sivan, 5780
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Please register by 2:00 PM Today!
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A Letter from our President
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Shalom my friends,
Like most synagogues around the country, coronavirus caused us to close our building on March 15. Although some synagogues have announced plans to re-open, possibly as early as today, we will only re-open when it is legal and safe. Not only does this seem like the most prudent practice, but it also reflects the position of the Chicago Rabbinical Council, whose guidance is reprinted below.
Although our building is closed, there is still plenty going on, and this newsletter is only one example. Every week, we include dozens of programs with Jewish content that are only a click away. We include a mini Yiddish lesson. Beginning this week, we are publishing a yahrzeit list for the full month of Sivan, so those who cannot attend services in person can still remember their loved ones. We are offering delivery of kosher food from Romanian for people who are self-isolating. We compile an extensive list of congregations of multiple denominations who offer services online, and we are organizing our own zoom services as well.
We are also planning for the day when we can safely reopen. That will require new procedures, new cleaning practices, new rules and endless amounts of hand sanitizer. We are in close contact with our friends at the Department of Justice and FEMA as they share their guidance on the best way for us to reopen, and we are being proactive about following their recommendations so we will be ready to reopen the minute we safely can.
Next Thursday evening through Saturday, we will celebrate the holiday of Shavuot -- one of four times during the year when I would traditionally make a yizkor appeal during the service. Since we are closed, that option isn’t available for us right now, but as you can see, our needs remain the same. I am painfully aware that to ask for financial support when so many people are hurting is, in many ways, completely tone deaf. But I am also aware that I owe it to all of us, and to the future of our synagogue, to ask anyway – and so I am.
When we are open, those who attend our weekday minyanim generally belong to other congregations; and to you I say, please be here for us so we can be here for you. For our Shabbat and High Holiday minyanim, who consider us their primary synagogue I say, please be generous. And for those of you live elsewhere but still enjoy a meaningful relationship with our special synagogue, I ask that you continue to support a strong Jewish presence in the heart of downtown Chicago.
As always, I thank you for the opportunity to be president of this congregation, and with your support I am confident we can continue going from strength to strength. To donate,
click here
.
Sincerely,
Lee Zoldan
President
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New Kosher Caterer in Town
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Just in time for Shavuot & Summer
Introducing
RAW’s
cRc Parve Vegan Menu
Prepared Fresh Daily & Packaged To Go
RAW
is on a mission to Raise Awareness Worldwide, RAW about the powers of plant-based foods. Their menu selections nourish, fuel & inspire you!
RAW
is a local, health-food restaurant focusing on freshly prepared, raw, vegan food to go.
Our Kosher PARVE, gluten-free menu features breakfast, lunch, & dinner items, as well as many specialty selections to you liking.
Please take a look at
RAW’s
full Kosher, Vegan menu on the next page
Celebrate the Power of Plants where Nutritious Meets Delicious
Order by Phone OR Grab-&Go
Order by Phone:
(312) 664-2729 - Daily, 8 AM to 8 PM
Mention Chicago Loop Synagogue and a Contribution for each order will go to
Chicago Loop Synagogue!
Delivery to anywhere in the Chicagoland Area:
Free for orders $50 and above.
Shabbat Orders:
Submit by Wednesday; and pick up your orders on Friday between 10:30 AM to 12:30 PM.
OR Grab-&-Go:
RAW is located at 51 W. Huron St. Chicago, IL 60654. Please call Ahead for Curb Side. Daily hours are from 8 AM to 8 PM
OR Order Online Now Through:
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Yahrzeits
Click here
for yahrzeits being observed in the month of Sivan
.
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Yiddish Word and Phrase of the Week from
Vilt Ir Lernen Yiddish's Gela Altman
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Word:
Translation:
Pronunciation:
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Oysergevendlekh
Extraordinary
Oyserge-VEND-lech
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Word w/ sentence:
Translation:
Pronunciation:
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Di kinder zenen oysergevendlekh sheyn.
The children are extraordinarily beautiful.
Di kinder zenen o
yserge-VEND-lech
sheyn
.
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Do you want your Romanian order delivered to
your home?
We can do that!
Our next delivery date will be Sunday, June 7, 2020
Our own Cary Wolovick is willing to pick up your order from Romanian Kosher Sausage Company and deliver it to you.
Please note that in order to participate, there is a $10 fee. This fee should be paid to Chicago Loop Synagogue by
clicking here
and selecting Romanian Delivery.
Products are subject to availability.
Click here
to make arrangements with Cary for pick up and delivery.
Click here
to visit Romanian's website. To place your order, call (773) 761-4141.
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Introducing Days of Gratitude
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Introducing Days of Gratitude, a worldwide initiative to help us build resilience through intentional expressions of gratitude.
Until May 30, culminating on the Festival of Shavuot, Days of Gratitude will feature a rotating menu of daily activities and prompts designed to help you and those around you share gratitude.
Join dozens of organizations and thousands of individuals
who have already signed up.
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Online Prayer Service Options
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We are pleased to provide you with online prayer service options. To see what is available,
click here
.
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Learn Hebrew and Israeli Music with
Hebrew Language Society
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To make the best use of your time at home, the Hebrew Language Society is offering mini-sessions of virtual Hebrew and Israeli music classes via Zoom.
Hebrew classes meet on Mondays and Thursdays.
Beginner, intermediate and advanced levels are available. Class times are available on
their website
.
Please note that new full sessions start every three weeks.
Israeli Music on Sundays at 1:30 PM
Join the Hebrew Language Society every other Sunday at 1:30 PM to learn and sing beautiful Israeli songs, experiencing the best of Israeli culture while expanding Hebrew vocabulary and improving language comprehension.
Class Dates:
Sunday, May 31, 2020
Sunday, June 14, 2020
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Join AFHU Leadership Empowerment and Development (LEAD) and Dr. Renana Keydar as they explore Holocaust memory through Digital Humanities, a field that uses digital and computational methods to create new approaches and insights. Dr. Keydar has taught at Tel Aviv University, Stanford, the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute and the Hebrew University’s Minerva Center for Human Rights. Her research explores questions of justice in the wake of violent conflicts in order to expand our understanding of grave human rights violations and create a better, more secure future.
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Why are Student Governments Obsessed with Israel?
Monday, June 1, 2020
3:00 PM
Student government should be an opportunity
to develop leadership skills, work with diverse groups of student leaders to improve campus life, and plan fulfilling programs for one’s peers. So why does it seem like many student governments have become little more than a platform for constant vilification of Israel, and of Jews for supporting the Jewish state? How can Jewish students and their supporters change the conversation in student government to enable student leaders to focus on the issues that directly impact the lives and well being of the campus community?
Join AJC to hear from student leaders who have first-hand experience working to push student governments to act as a means of improving student life, instead of an arena for geopolitical battles.
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Join this 10 week course taught by Rabbi Lauren Berkun.
11:00 AM every Tuesday through June 23, 2020
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'A Rabbi's Daughter'
with Author Avigail Graetz
Tuesday, June 2, 2020
11:00 AM
MERCAZ Reads Israel
is an online book club featuring contemporary Israeli literature that provides insight into and understanding of the lives and concerns of our Israeli counterparts.
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Israel, Zionism and the Path to Peace – Einat Wilf in Conversation with Roz Rothstein
Thursday, June 4
1:00 PM
What is obstructing the path to peace in the Middle East? Join a LIVE conversation with StandWithUs CEO and co-founder Roz Rothstein and leading intellectual and thinker Einat Wilf, who will discuss her new book, The War of Return: How Western Indulgence of the Palestinian Dream Has Obstructed the Path to Peace, as well as matters surrounding Zionism and feminism. Wilf is a former member of the Israeli Parliament, where she served from 2010 to 2013, serving as chair of the Education Committee and member of the influential Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. She is also a prominent commentator on matters of foreign policy, economics, education, Israel and Zionism.
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Additional ingredient packages available.
First 10 registrants per class will receive an apple pie.
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Virtual Greater Chicago Jewish Festival
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Sunday, June 7, 2020
4:00 PM
This year, the Greater Chicago Jewish Festival will share 40 Years of the Festival. A virtual Greater Chicago Jewish Festival with great performances from the past 20 Festivals! AND new performances from David Broza and other acts that were planned for this year.
click on the Virtual Festival button.
LIVE 2021
The usual outdoor Festival will be POSTPONED to
June 13, 2021 (yes, 613).
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Monthly Book Club Meeting - Sarah's Key by Tatiana De Rosnay
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Tuesday, June 9, 2020
5:30 PM - Online via Zoom
Zoom link will be provided to those who register.
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Lunch@65West
invites you to join us when Chicago Loop Synagogue, the Union League Club of Chicago, The Standard Club and more welcome Wojciech Soczewica, Director General of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation.
During this timely, complimentary webinar, Director General Soczewica will be interviewed by club member Michael Traison. They will discuss the physical enormity of Auschwitz-Birkenau (20 separate camps), the events that occurred there, its continuing importance in contemporary life – especially in light of last year’s global increase in anti-Semitic attacks, and the mission of the Foundation to preserve Auschwitz-Birkenau for future generations.
This program is presented in collaboration with the American Association of Jewish Lawyers and Jurists, Anti-Defamation League, Chicago Loop Synagogue, Decalogue Society, Jewish Federation of the Quad Cities, and the Jewish United Fund of Metropolitan Chicago.
Advance registration is required. Please click on the link below to complete your registration:
Please log-on by 11:50 AM.
The program will begin before the hour to minimize technical difficulties with Zoom servers strained by the high number of videoconferences that begin on the hour. For further information, please contact ULCC Public Affairs at
[email protected]
.
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Chicago Public Library has launched
Live From the Library: A Daily Story Time for Kids of Chicago
. This program will feature librarians and Chicago notables reading their favorite children's books. Join story time weekdays at 10:00 AM daily on Facebook Live.
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Shalom Hartman Institute at Home
What can Jewish history offer about living in apocalyptic times? How are Israelis dealing with the convergence of pandemic and the worst crisis of democratic legitimacy in its history?
- Yossi Klein Halevi in conversation with David Bernstein of the
Jewish Council for Public Affairs
.
Click here to watch
.
'Coronavirus and American Jewish Life'
- Yehuda Kurtzer interviewed by Rabbi Shmuly Yanklowitz of Valley Beit Midrash in Phoenix, Arizona.
Click here to watch.
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Additional Resources from JCFS
JCFS Access line, 1-855-ASK-JCFS
is staffed by social workers available to assist community members in finding support and resources and we will be adding resources their website,
www.jcfs.org
.
In addition, here are some resources to share with your family:
Virtual Activity/Engagement Resources
Coping During These Times
24/7 Crisis Assistance through the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline:
· 1-800-273-(TALK) 8255
· Text 741741 for a 24/7 crisis text line - a live, trained
crisis counselor receives the text and responds quickly
Friendship/Crisis Line for adults over 60 or adults with disabilities: 1-800-971-0016
Virtual 12 Step Meetings
SHALVA’s 24/7 Help/Crisis Line
: 1-773-583-HOPE (4673)
Those in abusive relationships may be at heightened risk if they are isolated or quarantined with their abusive partner.
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Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter!
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Chicago Loop Synagogue has joined Facebook, Instagram and Twitter!
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