Bath Jewish History

September/October 2018
Elul /Tishri/Heshvan 5778/5779

Presidents Message

by Marilyn Weinberg

With days still warm and humid, it’s hard to believe that summer is already nearing its end and our High Holiday time is drawing near. We always joke that the holidays are early or late, but this year they are earlier than usual. Just as our children and grandchildren are starting their school year, we are starting our new religious year, 5779. The month of September is filled with holidays every week. It’s as if the Rabbis who put all of these holidays together decided we needed a jolt to our system to pay attention to the days ahead. 

Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur provide us with time for personal reflection and an opportunity to renew our commitment for positive change. As the days before Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur draw near, I always feel blessed that we are given an opportunity to “take stock” of where we are and decide on those things we want to change. This is an opportunity to look not at just ourselves, but also at our community and think about our focus, direction and commitment. I am especially thankful that Rabbi Lisa Vinikoor is here and is helping us navigate this journey.

No one person gives a synagogue life. It only works when we all pitch in. Although our membership is not large, there is the benefit in a small shul in that each person plays a very important role. When you come to services on a Friday night or Saturday morning, you make a difference. When you bring food for an oneg, you make a difference. When you help out at a Hebrew School function, you make a difference. There are so many opportunities to make a difference in our synagogue and make a real contribution to the life of our congregation.

We do face our challenges. Our synagogue building, although in fairly good repair, still needs regular upkeep. We have begun to make a list of the updates needed at the Minnie Brown Center and it’s a bit overwhelming. And creating new programs often has a monetary demand connected with it. So with the joy of new leadership we also face the burden of asking for your financial support as we continue to grow and flourish in the future. 

We welcome all of you who choose to be a part of the Beth Israel community in some way and wish you a most wonderful new year.

L'Shanah Tova

Rabbi’s Message

by Rabbi Lisa Vinikoor

Dear Beth Israel friends,

It’s mid-August, and I have nearly completed my first full summer in Maine and am grateful for a moment to step back and reflect on my experience of this summer.  Over these past few months of the summer season, I’ve greeted first time visitors to Bath who seek out our synagogue and enhance our Shabbat morning of Torah and conversation. The arrival of Beth Israel congregants who are here only during the summer months has enriched our community in so many ways. Praying together outside at Shabbat Under the Stars has enlivened our congregation. On these spirited Shabbatot, I’ve enjoyed the warm welcome of our hosts and prayed amidst the vast world of nature.  The joyous flow of friends and relatives who have come to visit Alyssa, Shira and me in our home has filled our weekends with connection and love. I continue to marvel at the humidity and heat waves followed by rainy downpours and the gracious return to cool nights.  

In the spirit of reflection, both at the end of the summer season and towards the High Holidays, I share with you below one of my favorite poems by Marge Piercy. In the poem, Piercy employs images of the waning summer season and the garden’s bounty to help us consider this time of reflection in preparation for the Jewish New Year.

Coming Up on September
by Marge Piercy

White butterflies, with single
black finger paint eyes on their wings
dart and settle, eddy and mate
over the green tangle of vines
in Labor Day morning steam.

The year grinds into ripeness and rot,
grapes darkening, pears yellowing,
the first Virginia creeper twining crimson,
the grasses, dry straw to burn.
Stone Pot.

The New Year rises, beckoning
across the umbrellas on the sand.
I begin to reconsider my life.
What is the yield of my impatience?
What is the fruit of my resolve?

I turn from frantic white dance
over the jungle of productivity
and slowly a niggun slides,
cold water down my throat.
I rest on a leaf spotted red.

Now is the time to let the mind
search backwards like the raven
loosed to see what can feed us.
Now, the time to cast the mind forward
to chart an aerial map of the months.

The New Year is a great door
that stands across the evening
and Yom Kippur is the second door.
Between them are song and silence,
stone and clay pot to be filled from within myself.

I will find there both ripeness and rot,
what I have done and undone,
what I must let go with the waning days
and what I must take in.
With the last tomatoes, we harvest the fruit of our lives

Family and Children’s Services for the High Holidays

by Marilyn Weinberg

Rosh Hashanah            
Monday, September 10        
4:00 p.m.                
Minnie Brown Center    

Yom Kippur
Wednesday, September 19
4:00 p.m.
Minnie Brown Center

Join us on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur afternoon at the Minnie Brown Center for a special service for children, families and anyone who would like to welcome in the New Year 5779 with songs, stories, and creative prayer.

Rabbi Vinikoor will lead these special High Holiday services. These will be hands-on, no-experience-needed gatherings where we will celebrate a wide variety of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur prayers and customs.

Flowers for the High Holidays

by Marina Singer

If you are interested in contributing toward the synagogue flowers for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, please contact Marina Singer. Please include the names of the people you would like to honor or remember.

Your donations for the flowers should be sent to:
Treasurer
Beth Israel Congregation
PO Box 244
Bath, ME 04530

Selichot Observance

by Rabbi Lisa Vinikoor 

Saturday, September 1
7:00 p.m.
Synagogue

Join Beth Israel Congregation for our Selichot observance. Through prayer, music and reflection, Selichot is a terrific opportunity to help you prepare for the High Holidays. We will begin the evening with dessert and Havdallah followed by a contemplative prayer service. No RSVP needed. All are welcome.

A New Year of Tot Shabbat

by Rachel Connelly

After a welcome summer recess I am looking forward to another year of Tot Shabbat programs. These monthly programs (mostly the first Saturday of the month) are designed to engage toddlers and preschoolers and their parents (or grandparents) in activities related to Shabbat and the annual cycle of Jewish holidays. We meet from 10:00–11:00 am in the basement of the Minnie Brown Center. There are always blocks and books, songs and crafts. We bless the Shabbat candles and the “wine” and then devour some delicious Challah. No RSVP is needed, come when you can.

Our first Tot Shabbat of the new school year is September 8. Rabbi Vinikoor will be joining us and the theme will be Rosh Hashana. There will be a shofar to try and apples and honey to add to our Challah snack. 
 
Complete List of Dates for Tot Shabbat 2018-2019
 
September 8
October 6
*November 3
December 1
January 12

February 2
March 2
April 6
May 4
June 1
 
*Stay for an early lunch at 11:30 joint with the Torah Study group

Looking forward to seeing all my toddler and preschool friends.

Beth Israel Religious School

by Camille Kauffunger

Beth Israel Religious School enrollment is easy this year with online registration forms and payment options, and tuition in now included when you join the Beth Israel Congregation community! 

Our weekly Thursday afternoon schedule from 4:00-6:00 pm, keeps weekends open for busy families commuting from as far as Wiscasset and Freeport to our Bath location at the Minnie Brown Center. Our students in grades 2–5 stay for two hours, and our students in K–1 have the option either to stay from 4:00-5:15 pm or for the full time. Many of our families carpool, and we are happy to help parents make connections with other families coming from the same locations.

We are lucky to have Rabbi Vinikoor serving as teacher and school director with our returning teachers of Susan Horowitz and Alina Shumsky. We are so pleased that Anita Lichman has agreed to join our wonderful group of educators. We are looking forward to welcoming back our continuing students and introduce new children to our school community. 

The first day of our Religious School is Thursday, September 6. For additional information about Beth Israel Religious School, Enrollment Forms, or to pay our new material fee or non-member tuition, visit here...
www.bethisraelbath.org/religious-school/

Rosh Hashanah Community Luncheon and Tashlich

by Marilyn Weinberg

Monday, September 10
12:30 p.m. (following services)
Minnie Brown Center

Rosh Hashanah is the time when we all come together as a community. Our High Holiday potluck community luncheons have been a great opportunity to renew acquaintances.

We will begin our Rosh Hashanah luncheon at the Minnie Brown Center immediately following morning services on Monday, September 10, at approximately 12:30 p.m. It will be great opportunity to catch up with each other and share some delicious food, for which our members are known. 

We will then go together for a Tashlich service at the waterfront in Bath at approximately 1:30 p.m. You can drop off a "non-meat" dish at the Minnie Brown Center before you come to services.

Yom Kippur Break Fast

by Marilyn Weinberg

Wednesday, September 19
7:30 p.m.
Synagogue

As usual our annual potluck break fast will begin right after we blow the shofar and have Havdalah, signaling the end of Yom Kippur. There is something very special about being together to break the fast. The break fast will be held at the Synagogue. You can drop off food any time at the Synagogue on September 18 or 19.

Community Sukkot Celebration

by Marilyn Weinberg

Sunday, September 23

Save the Date. On Sunday, September 23, we will celebrate Sukkot with our annual Community wide Sukkot celebration. We are still making final preparations and will be sending out the details in one of our wonderful new email blasts. We have a great day planned, so mark your calendars now.

Simchat Torah Celebration

by Marilyn Weinberg

Sunday, September 30
4:00 p.m. Service
5:00 p.m. Pot Luck Community Dinner
Synagogue

We will be celebrating Simchat Torah this year on Sunday, September 30, at the synagogue. Rabbi Vinikoor will lead us in this celebration with the help of many of our Hebrew School students. This will be followed by a pizza dinner with potluck salads and desserts at 5:00 p.m. 

This holiday is a celebration of the Torah and you will have a chance to march with the Torah as we make our way around the sanctuary seven times. There will be singing and dancing as we proceed. It is not only a great time for adults, but also a great time for children to come, as they will receive an honorary aliyah as the Torah is read.

Update from the Social Action Committee

Joanne Rosenthal

The committee met on August 8 to chart a course for the new year. Among the topics covered were voter engagement and how to get college students and first time voters registered. We will work with the Bowdoin College Hillel to accomplish this important goal. 

Our work with the Midcoast New Mainers Support Group will continue, while seeking further opportunities for interfaith dialogue. Signage proclaiming our support of immigrants is being explored. We encourage members of the congregation to sign up to receive emails from the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, www.rac.org. There, you will learn about the Urgency of Now campaigns and have access to free online webinars and calls to action. For Sukkot, we will look for ways to include the local, new Mainer families in our celebrations.                                                                                                                        

The next meeting of the Social Action Committee is scheduled for September 5 at 4:00 pm, in Bath (location TBD). ALL are welcome. Contact Joanne Rosenthal with any questions.

Shabbat Under The Stars

by Marilyn Weinberg

The Chai Committee and our whole congregation extend a very special thank you to Barbara & Robert Lenox. Barbara and Barrett Silver and Norma Dreyfus and Stan Lane for hosting our Shabbat Under the Stars program this summer. 

Although we were rained out in June, it held off in July just in time for us to enjoy the beautiful outdoors at the Silver’s home on July 27. Barbara and Barrett Silver sponsored a lovely dinner followed by an outdoor service in their garden. With special readings and prayers and a great Torah discussion, all those who attended felt a special connection and appreciation of all of our traditions.

We look forward to our next service at the Dreyfus-Lane home on August 24. There is something so special about having our Shabbat services outdoors. Maybe we can plan more for next year. 

We Asked and You Answered. Thanks!

by Rachel Connelly

Thanks to everyone who contributed to our Beth Israel By the Numbers end of the fiscal year fundraising campaign. Our goal was to raise $15,000 to close the gap between our annual expenses 2017–2018 and our income. We are thrilled to report that we made our goal and more! In total, we raised $21,677, putting us in a strong position for the beginning of our new fiscal year.

Sad to say, operating expenses don’t go away even with a such a successful fundraising effort, so please give generously along with your dues for 2018–2019.

The fundraising committee is looking for both members and ideas. Look for an announcement of a meeting time soon after the High Holidays. In the meantime, if you would consider joining our committee contact Rachel Connelly

Rabbi Vinikoor’s Installation—It’s Official!

by Camille Kauffunger

The heat subsided and a clear breeze blew as our midcoast Jewish community filled the Beth Israel sanctuary floor and balcony to finally and formally welcome the arrival of our new spiritual leader, Rabbi Lisa Vinikoor.

Uplifting music filled the sanctuary as Rabbi Sruli Dresdner and his wife Lisa Mayer from Auburn led the first half of the service with their beautiful songs and prayers. Next, Rabbi Erica Asch of Augusta led us in prayer and blessed many attendees who were instrumental in having Rabbi Vinikoor come to Beth Israel. 

Rabbi Nancy Weiner, a mentor of Rabbi Vinikoor’s from New York’s Hebrew Union College, gave the D’var Torah, reflecting on Rabbi Vinikoor’s strengths as a passionate and effective leader. A leader’s responsibility to her congregation is to listen to and challenge each other, to learn and grow together, to be mutually concerned for each other’s spiritual and physical health, and to nourish a community where every member counts. Our Rabbi Vinikoor is dedicated to that model.
 
Following the service, we celebrated our Jewish community and Rabbi Vinikoor at the Minnie Brown Center with more music by Sruli and Lisa and a generous spread of good food provided by congregation members. And, yes, although not documented well in photos, we did lift Rabbi Vinikoor up in a chair while lifting our spirits with klezmer music and dancing throughout the community room. There is no doubt we are proud of our growing congregation and the precious relationship we are forming with Rabbi Vinikoor, our already proven respectful, compassionate, present, and committed spiritual leader.

At one point during the service, Rabbi Vinikoor looked out over the room and remarked that it would be beautiful to see the sanctuary as full every Shabbat. Said for a little laugh but then followed by a, “No, really,..” Rabbi Vinikoor sets the challenge for us to continue to come together as a community to celebrate, pray and participate in our future. We hope to hear from you or see you in some capacity soon!

Rabbi Weiner gave a very moving blessing for Beth Israel at the close of the service:

PRAYER FOR OUR CONGREGATION
(Read at the Installation Ceremony)
 

Eternal Presence, who blessed our mothers and fathers,
bless this holy congregation.

Together we give thanks for our members:
diverse in age, interest, and background;
Jews by birth, Jews by choice,
and those of other faiths who join with us;
all who offer their time and talent, 
their love and commitment.

May the spirit of peace, dignity, and respect live within these walls,
inspiring us to care for one another with compassion;
and may we be a source of goodness, light and healing for the world.

May the One who blessed the generations before us
bless us as we stand together this evening.

Let us renew ourselves for the year ahead.
Let us honor the precious legacy that is ours.

-Excerpted from "Prayer for Our Congregation," Mishkan HaNefesh: Machzor for the Days of Awe, CCAR Press (2015): 270.

REMEMBRANCES FOR MONTH–MONTH YEAR

May their memories be for a blessing.

BIRTHDAYS AND ANNIVERSARIES

Listing the birthdays and anniversaries of those in our immediate family creates a wonderful opportunity for our community/shul family to have an excuse to celebrate with each other.