DECEMBER EVENTS

   Dec.  2     5:00 p.m. - Chanukah Party

   Dec.  3     7:00 p.m. - Adult Ed. at the Levinsons'

   Dec.  5     7:00 p.m. - Taize Service at St. Francis

   Dec.  6     9:15 a.m. - Women's Hike

   Dec.  8   10:00 a.m. - Sunday School

                   7:00 p.m. - TBT Board Meeting

   Dec. 11    5:30 p.m. - Men's Gathering at Greg's Grill

   Dec. 15  10:00 a.m. - Sunday School

   Dec. 20    6:00 p.m. - Family Shabbat Celebration with

                                     Potluck dinner

   Dec. 21    9:00 a.m. - Munch & Torah

                 10:30 a.m. - Shabbat Torah Service

   Dec. 25    5:00 p.m. - Vindaloo with the Jews

   Dec. 27    7:00 p.m. - Kabbalat Shabbat Service

   Dec. 28    2:00 p.m. - Snowshoeing and Chili Feed

ON THE HORIZON

   January 13th - A Taste of Judaism - first series begins

DECEMBER School Activities:

Sunday School: (10:00 a.m. Shalom Bayit):  

     12/8, 12/15

Hebrew School:  (4:30 p.m. Shalom Bayit - all classes):

     12/3, 12/10, 12/17

For more details about any TBT events, see our complete schedule of Services, School activites and Events online:

http://www.bethtikvahbend.org/calendar.

December begins and Chanukah is already halfway over!  Wow!  The mash up between Thanksgiving and Chanukah has filled Facebook news feeds, tweets and even TV commercials.  I am personally reminded about what I believe is the true lesson of Chanukah. 

First, a little history.  The Maccabees fought the Hellenist empire, the Greek-Syrians.  Antiochus determined that there would no longer be religious freedom and insisted Jewish rites be replaced with the religion of the Greek gods.  Mattathias rebelled.  His sons, the Maccabees, joined him.  They won and rededicated the Temple.

The Talmud only refers to the miracle of the oil when the rabbis ask "What is Chanukah?"  The accounts of the war between the Maccabees and the Greek-Syrian army is left to the books of Maccabees which are not even included in the Hebrew bible.  How is it possible such an important victory would be left out?  Why don't the rabbis discuss it at all?

The truth is that the rabbis were not pleased with the results of the Maccabean war.  While it is great that the Temple was rededicated, the actions of the Hasmonean dynasty were not behaviors the rabbis appreciated or wanted to celebrate.  The descendents of the Maccabees continued to love the Helleninst lifestyle.  They gave their children Greek names.  They built a gymnasium on the Temple Mount.  They even supported a medical procedure that reversed the appearance of circumcision so that Jewish men could participate in wrestling matches.

While the Maccabees fought for religious freedom their successors teach us the real challenge of their time, and ours.  How do we adopt customs and ideas we like from our neighbors and simultaneously maintain our Jewish identity with integrity?  This is a great question and one that stands throughout time. 

We are so fortunate to live in a world where people share tradition and culture with one another generously.  I can say I have learned a great deal about myself and about Judaism because I've had the opportunity to compare our practices and ideologies with Christians and Muslims, Buddhists and Hindus.  I have also incorporated new habits and ways of thinking as a result of those interactions.  My Judaism looks and sounds quite different from that of my grandparents and certainly of ancient times. 

Assimilation and cultural exchanges present great opportunities.  With these opportunities comes also the responsibility to know ourselves and honor our historical legacies as well.  I think this is the true message of Chanukah: to be a part of the world but to be true to ourselves in it.

TBT Members & Friends ~

I hope you had a great Thanksgivikah (or is it Chanuksgiving).  Actually, latkes and turkey seem to make a very tasty combination.  While Thanksgiving is over, there are still a few days left for celebrating Chanukah. On Monday, December 2nd, we had wonderful TBT Family Chanukah gathering.  A great THANK YOU to Suzanne Schlosberg and Kim Rafilson for organizing this amazing event; and to the many latke makers and other helpers that made it such a success.

We also hope you take advantage of the many other wonderful activities from TBT in December (see the Calendar section for the full list).  Additionally, in December this year, the Reform movement (URJ) will be having its Biennial event in San Diego.  Rabbi Hershenson, Kathy Schindel, and I will be attending.  This Biennial event brings together thousands of members from Reform congregations across North America for several days of intense learning, sharing, schmoozing, connecting, worshipping, and simply enjoying the Jewish experience.  This will be the first time attending this event for the three of us, and we look forward to gaining new insights and ideas that we can bring back and share with the congregation.

Of course, December is also a time for reflection - looking back at the past year on what went well for us and what didn't; as well as, looking forward to a New Year and what we can improve and what new opportunities there are for us.  For Temple Beth Tikvah, we can reflect on the past six months of having a new, resident Rabbi and our potential for the future.  We are very thankful for finding such a wonderful spiritual leader in Rabbi Johanna Hershenson, who had the faith in us and our community to move her family here to Bend.  

Having a resident Rabbi has allowed us to do more and different activities as a congregation.  While we still have monthly Erev Shabbat services, Family Shabbat Celebrations, Torah Study, Torah services, and Adult Education, these events are now distributed throughout the month, making it more flexible for people's schedules.  Through the inspired leadership of our Fundraising committee, our congregation has responded with generous contributions for additional funding to support added opportunities for Rabbi Hershenson - such as more Jewish holiday celebration activities, additional pastoral care opportunities, greater involvement in Religious Education, stronger presence in the broader Central Oregon faith communities, and coming up early next year, a multi-topic, multi-session educational series on a "Taste of Judaism".  At the suggestion of the Rabbi, we now have weekly women's hikes on Friday mornings.  And that's just the beginning!  Having a resident Rabbi is a new experience for us, so we are still figuring out together with the Rabbi all our possibilities.  In the coming months and years, it will be exciting to watch us evolve into an even better Jewish community.

We invite all those reflecting on life and looking to find more meaning and involvement, to please check out all the many wonderful activities and offerings being provided by TBT.  Chances are there will be several that you will find quite appealing and enjoyable.  In addition, the welcoming and supportive people you will meet and get to know will enhance your network of friends and caring community.

Finally, it is with deep sadness that I must report that TBT member Ray Kilpatrick, beloved husband of Lita Kilpatrick, passed away on November 26th.  Lita and Ray had been long time residents of Central Oregon before moving to the Los Angeles area for a brief time, but they returned to Bend recently.  Our sincerest sympathies go out to Lita and her family.  She will be needing much love and support from our community to help her through this difficult time.  More information will be forthcoming.

Best wishes for a Happy Chanukah and Happy New Year.

B'Shalom,

Mark Schindel

The Fundraising Committee is resting at this time.  However, in the works are 1. another poker tournament for mid-May 2014; 2. a one man show late April or early May; 3. an auction for sometime after mid-October.  George Brant is working on the poker tourney, Joe Jezukewicz is in charge of the one man show, and Harriet Dietz and Bev Adler are planning the auction.  Also, Ralph Uri is looking into TBT sponsored tours with a fee going to the temple from each participant.  Whew!

Resting on our laurels, we had a very successful Rabbi Time appeal and the poker tourney, although it did not meet our financial expectation, did raise some money for TBT all the while everyone involved had a BALL!  My thanks to Michael, Suzanne, Ralph, Ed, George, Joe, and new members Bev and Harriet.  A great committee!

November was a busy month, ending with Thanksgiving AND Chanukah. The month of December begins with a Chanukah party on Monday December 2nd and Adult Ed on Tuesday, December 3rd at the Levinsons.

The month continues with a Family Shabbat and potluck on December 20th. The following day, December 21st is Munch and Torah study and service. The following week on December 27th we will gather again for an Erev Shabbat service. On December 28th, we end the month with a snowshoeing outing with Rabbi Hershenson followed by Havdallah and a chili feed.

We are excited to announce that Rabbi Hershenson will be teaching a series of classes entitled "A Taste Of Judaism." Each series consists of three consecutive Monday evening classes. These classes will be free to TBT members, and we will also be offering these classes to the public at a cost of $18 for each of the three series.

The first series called "Rhythms of Jewish Living," begins on Monday, January 13th. The second series "Mechanics of Jewish Sacred Literature" starts on Monday, February 24th, and the third and final series beginning Monday, April 21st is entitled "The 'G' Word."

We loved seeing everyone at our Chanukah celebration on Monday, December 2nd.

Bethlehem Inn

Thank you to those who participated in cooking and serving dinner for the residents of the Bethlehem Inn in November. Preparing a dinner of roasted chicken, potatoes, salad, rolls & butter and dessert are: Jeff Adler, Linda Brant, Harriet Dietz, Vivian Freeman, Jeanne Freeman & Burt Litman, Ann & Michael Rosenfield, Lorraine Schechter, Terry Reynolds, Suzanne Schlosberg,Cathy Wynschenk, and Marcia & Ralph Uri.

And special thanks to our servers: joining TBT's Corinne Smith were CJ Fritz and Gillian Fritz of Shalom Bayit and Aleh Rapoport of Chabad of Bend. Supervising the kids in the kitchen was Hallie Smith who said it was a great experience for all of the kids.

According to Hallie, "The residents LOVED the food and were so appreciative. One commented that nobody ever sticks around as long as they did tonight. I said it was because they were watching the game, he said it was because they were savoring the great food."

Our next dinner is scheduled on Thursday, January 30th. If you are interested in cooking or serving please contact Burt Litman at [email protected] .

Christmas Morning at Back Door Caf�

Are you available to cook and serve breakfast on Christmas or New Year's Day morning?

The holidays fall on a Wednesday this year and the Back Door Caf� will be serving their scheduled breakfast. Members of the Methodist Church will be handing out gifts to our breakfast guests and could use some assistance in the kitchen. We've got a few people scheduled but need some additional help.

Please, if you're available, contact Burt Litman at [email protected] and we'll put you on the schedule.

Thank you to those who assisted in the kitchen in November: Jeff Adler, Vivian Freeman, Jan Freeman Bauer, Jeanne Freeman and Burt Litman, Joe Jezukewicz, Ann & Michael Rosenfield and Bonnie Ruby. 

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 [email protected] by the 24th of each month.  As always, you will continue to receive "e-minders" before important events take place.

Shalom,

Sara Charney Cohen

Two organizations serving the advancement of our community will welcome special guests Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber and First Lady Cylvia Hayes as keynote speakers at an extraordinary event on January 21, 2014 at 7 PM at the Tower Theatre. 

Temple Beth Tikvah is a growing Jewish congregation based in Bend, Oregon.  We are affilliated with the Union for Reform Judaism and are excited to be the first Reform synagogue in Central Oregon.

We are committed to providing a Jewish education for our children as well as stimulating educational activities for adults.  We value social action and strive to provide a Jewish cultural, social and religious experience in Central Oregon.

Temple Beth Tikvah is a warm and enthusiastic community that includes families, singles and "empty nesters."  We are a mix of long-time Bend residents and newcomers from around the country who moved here to enjoy Central Oregon's beauty, active lifestyle and quality of life.

Please contact us at 541-388-8826 or 

[email protected] for more information.