Congregation Shaarei Torah

High Holy Day Schedule - 5769

CONGREGATION SHAAREI TORAH
5769 HIGH HOLY DAYS 2008

SERVICE SCHEDULE

Selichot Program and Service, Saturday Evening,
Sept. 20 7:30 P.M.

Erev Rosh Hashanah, Monday, Sept. 29 7:00 PM

Rosh Hashanah Day 1, Tuesday, Sept. 30 9:30 AM

Tashlich Family Service and Picnic at the Arboretum 1:30 PM to 3:30 P.M.

Rosh Hashanah Day 2, Wed. Oct. 1 9:30 AM

Shabbat Shuvah .......... Friday, Oct.3, 7:30 PM

Saturday, Oct 4, 9:00 AM Special Shabbat teachings with Rabbi Michael

Shabbat Morning Services - 10 A.M.

Erev Yom Kippur, Kol Nidre, Wed. Oct. 8 7:00 PM

Yom Kippur, Thurs. Oct. 9:30 AM

Yizkor 4:30 PM Neilah 5:45 PM

Baby Sitting, all three days 9:30 AM – 12:30 PM

Erev Sukkot, Monday Evening, Oct 13 7:30 P.M.

Shmini Atzeret/Simhat Torah, Tuesday, Oct 21. - Morning 9:30AM Evening…… 7:30 P.M.

For more information please call the Synagogue office,
(626) 445-0810

Education Classes with Rabbi Michael

TEACHINGS WITH RABBI MICHAEL

All classes begin at 7:00pm in the Rabbi’s Study, with the exception of the class on October 14.

Tuesday, October 14: Secrets of Sukkot
This class, which will take place in the CST Succah, will explore some of the meanings, mysteries, and secrets that are hidden within the Sukkot practices. We will experience the Four Species at deeper personal and collective levels; and will explore some of the hidden depths of this very important Festival.

Tuesday, October 28: Meditations on the Siddur
The first in a series of consecutive classes on Jewish liturgy, we will begin the process of opening up the Siddur to experience deeper meaning and understanding of our prayers. This is a time to come with questions about prayer, and to start a personal exploration of the Jewish prayer book.

Tuesday, November 4: There will be no class due to the elections. Please remember that it is a Jewish obligation to vote!

Tuesday, November 11: The Prayer
The Amidah, called by our Sages, “the Prayer”, is one of the pillars of the Siddur. We will explore in depth the components of this prayer, and some of the hidden mystical meanings within it.

Tuesday, November 18: Exploring our Liturgy
More in the continuing series on liturgy and prayer, this class will focus the meanings and history of specific prayers that we recite on a regular basis. Based on questions from participants, this class will focus on the prayers that are recited by rote, but all too often without intention.

Tuesday, November 25: Why does it have to be so Complicated?
The last class in this series, we will explore some of the prayers and phrases that are only said at specific times of the year. We will look at Nusach (the musical modality of the liturgy), and seeing the “simplicity” hidden within the “complex” liturgy.

President's Message - July/August 2008

President’s Message

July/August 2008 – Tammuz/Menachem Av 5768

The month of June has always been a busy month around the synagogue. Weddings, B’nai mitzvoth, confirmations etc. usually dot the calendar. It is that last surge of activity before we move into the “summer lull”. CST has not had such opportunities for several years, but that is about to change for the better.

I am so excited and pleased to announce the appointment of Rabbi Michael Barclay as interim, part-time, rabbi for Congregation Shaarei Torah. Rabbi Barclay is presently faculty at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles teaching Jewish studies. He has been active with the campus Hillel chapter and has been requested for major life events throughout the Los Angeles area.

Rabbi Barclay will bring to the shul a level of energy and enthusiasm long due to the congregation. He has shared several ideas for adult education both on site at the synagogue and some opportunities abroad. But I will let him share those ideas with you. Rabbi Barclay and his wife, Allison, presently reside in Los Angeles.

Please mark Sunday July 13, 2008 at 10:00 AM for the annual Congregational Meeting. The Board will be presenting a slate of officers for the congregation’s approval and the proposed budget for FY 2008/2009.

And, there is more. Rabbi Micah Caplan will be returning to CST this July 25 and 26, 2008 to help lead services and be our scholar in residence. Everyone is welcome to attend the services and programming at no charge. We are seeking sponsorship(s) for the oneg and Kiddush luncheon for that weekend. Please contact Susan at the office if you are interested. The theme for the weekend will be: Celebrating Shabbat with Old and New Friends- the Beauty and Sanctity of Our Relationships.

Please RSVP to the office if you plan on attending so we may have an accurate count for preparations.

Shana Leon has advised the synagogue that she has taken a cantorial position with a synagogue in the San Fernando Valley and will not be able to participate in High Holy Day services this year. Shana has been an integral part of our shul for the past 5 years and has stepped up to help out at services and family needs. I would like to personally thank her for all she has done for our synagogue and wish her the best of luck and joy in her new position.

Finally, the final stages of the preliminary renovations at the shul will begin in July. Preparations are being made to replace the exterior doors on the social hall and sanctuary, repairing the ceilings in the hallway and foyer of the building, and additional lighting upgrades. The project will conclude with a fresh coating of paint on the exterior of the building.

We have come a long way since last June. Our building renovations are nearing an end, and, we have a young, enthusiastic rabbi to help lead and grow our congregation. But, there is one critical element myself, your Board of Trustees and the Rabbi cannot do: Your individual participation. Take these summer months to drop by for services. Call the office to schedule a time to meet Rabbi Barclay. Join us for the Micah Caplan program at the end of July. It is time to rekindle and reaffirm our relationships as a congregation as we begin to prepare for 5769.

Joy and happiness to everyone,

Larry Horowitz

President

Fourth of July - A Jewish Holiday

Happy 4th of July, one of the great Jewish holidays!

That’s right, this anniversary of independence is a “Jewish” holiday. Like Passover, it is a time to remember the gift of freedom that we enjoy in this nation. As we do during Yizkor, we remember in our prayers those men and women who died on our behalf, in defense of our liberties. This year, it falls on Erev Shabbat, and Jews and non-Jews alike will take the day off in preparation for celebration in the evening. On July 4, we remember brave men and women who took a stand for what they believed; and who fought for their freedom against a tyranny that was significantly larger than their own forces. This is the same practice that we celebrate during Channukah, when we remember the heroic Maccabees who took on and defeated the powerful Seleucid dynasty in the second century BCE.

For 2000 years our people were in exile, unable to return to Eretz Yisrael. Always outsiders within the nations that they lived, they were persecuted through pogroms and expulsions; massacres and forced conversions. With the establishment of the United States, a nation was finally created where Jews would be able to practice our beliefs without fear of government sponsored discrimination. Today, while there is sadly still institutionalized anti-semitism throughout much of the world, we are able to rejoice in our faith and traditions without fear of punishment here in the United States.

The Talmud teaches us “Tzedek Tzedek Tirdof” (“Justice, Justice shall you pursue” Sanhedrin 32b). A Jewish concept, this became the spiritual foundation of the United States. As Jews, we are not to just “complain” when we see injustice… we are to do all that we can to rectify it. The Founding Fathers (and Mothers) of this country realized the importance of this teaching, and for the first time in modern history, chose to fight against injustice by declaring their own nation based on ethical values. Like Jews throughout the centuries, they decided to embrace the concept that there are “unalienable rights” (the original do*****ent uses “unalienable” as opposed to “inalienable”) and that “all men are created equal”. No Rabbi in their homily could have worded it better.

What many people do not realize is how important Jewish history actually was to the members of the Continental Congress. Of the five men who wrote the initial draft of the Declaration of Independence, three were additionally selected to create a seal for the United States. On July 4, 1776, the day that independence was declared; John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson were asked to design a seal for the nation. Here, as much as anywhere else, we see the Jewish influence on our country.

Both Franklin and Jefferson wanted the Seal to include imagery of Moses leading the Exodus from Egypt, crossing the Sea, and G-d being present with them in their journey through the wilderness. Preserved in a note from August of 1776 in his own handwriting, Ben Franklin wrote:

"Moses standing on the Shore, and extending his Hand over the Sea, thereby causing the same to overwhelm Pharaoh who is sitting in an open Chariot, a Crown on his Head and a Sword in his Hand. Rays from a Pillar of Fire in the Clouds reaching to Moses, to express that he acts by Command of the Deity.”

Jefferson’s ideal seal included not only this image, but an image of “the children of Israel being led in the wilderness by a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night”. The two were combined into the original proposed Seal below:

Although these images were not incorporated into the Seal that was ultimately chosen by Congress in 1782; it is clear how the imagery and teachings of our text directly influenced these architects of our nation.

On July 4, we celebrate joyously the rights of “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness”… three of the great values of Judaism. We are taught in Psalm 100, “The work of G-d is found in joy” (Ivdu et HaShem B’simcha); and July 4 is a time for us to be happy, grateful, and celebrate our ability to be practicing Jews in this country. We also need to remember our responsibility to work against injustice in all of its facets. This too is the work of G-d. As Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel z”l said as he marched with Dr. Martin Luther King in Selma, “I am praying with my feet”. As Jews, let us remember this teaching, and the teachings of the Founders of this nation, that we must not only “speak” against injustices… but act against them.

So have a happy and safe July 4th, and may each of us be blessed to celebrate freedom and joy on this Shabbat.

B’shalom

Rabbi Michael

Upcoming Events

CONGREGATION SHAAREI TORAH EVENTS
SEPTEMBER 2008

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 5
Shabbat Services
Congregation Shaarei Torah
7:30 PM Friday Evening Shabbat Services

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 6
Shabbat Services
Congregation Shaarei Torah
9:30 AM Saturday Morning Shabbat Services - Torah Reading at 10:15 AM

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 7
Movie Night
Congregation Shaarei Torah
7:30 PM Joinus foranice cream social followed by a movie - $5 donation requested

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 11
Seniors Meeting and Program
Congregation Shaarei Torah
11:00 AM Join our remarkable group of seniors for an interesting program. Meeting begins at 10:00 AM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 12
Shabbat Services
Congregation Shaarei Torah
7:30 PM Shabbat Services

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 13
Shabbat Services
Congregation Shaarei Torah
9:30 AM Saturday Morning Shabbat Services - Torah Reading at 10:15AM

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 14
Special Men’s Club Breakfast and Program
Congregation Shaarei Torah
10:00 AM Join us for a special program to welcome Shaarei Torah’s new spiritual leader, Rabbi Michael Barclay. Rabbi will be presenting "Hineni: Achieving peak performance in work, athletics, relationships, and life through the art of being present." Eggs and Bagel Breakfast $6. Reservations requested by Thursday, Sept 11th. Please call the synagogue office at 626-445-0180 to reserve.

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 19
Shabbat Services
Congregation Shaarei Torah
7:30 PM Musical "Simcha Shabbat" - the special CST Musical Service in which we also celebrate all September simchas - birthdays, anniversaries, and all special occasions.

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 25
Seniors Meeting and Program.
Congregation Shaarei Torah
11:00 AM Join our remarkable group of seniors for an interesting program. Meeting begins at 10:00 AM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 26
Shabbat Services
Congregation Shaarei Torah
7:30 PM Shabbat Services

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 27
Shabbat Services
Congregation Shaarei Torah
9:30 AM Saturday Morning Shabbat Services - Torah Reading at 10:15 AM