ejdraper

Letter from Rabbi Ross

Dear TBS Friends & Family,

We will prepare for Hanukkah with a special Torah Study and Prayer Essentials class this Saturday.
Hanukkah begins Sunday evening.
The deadline for RSVPS for our amazing Shabbat Hanukkah dinner on 12/19 is this Monday, 12/15!
Below is my Hanukkah column for the weekend newspapers.

The Miracle of Light
Hanukkah is called the festival of lights. As we face the ever growing darkness in our days, it is hopeful to know we will pull out our menorah and begin lighting the candles on Sunday evening.
These are truly dark times. Every day, darkness seems to encroach upon us, almost like Frodo entering Mordor with Sam, and feeling a sense of darkness that pervades the day time.
We are living in difficult, anxious times. The darkness can feel overwhelming.
So, I am looking forward to celebrating with my community as a way to move out of the deepening darkness into the light of friendship and fellowship.
As I notice the depth of the darkness, the light of the first candle seems almost miraculous.
As a prayer leader, I often ask my prayer group to pray for hope and peace, and that can be difficult during dark times.
The beauty of the Hanukkah menorah is not that first moment of light, but it’s in the spiritual practice of adding one more candle each night. As we mark the winter solstice, we know that the days will begin to lengthen during the holiday of Hanukkah.
As a meditation teacher, I have loved using the candlelight of the menorah as a special candle meditation. The rabbis of the Talmud taught that unlike the Sabbath candles, which are bright enough to be used for reading, the Hanukkah candles don’t have a specific function or utility. So the rabbis ask, “mai Hanukkah”, what is the purpose of the Hanukkah light?
The Jewish mystics teach that during the creation of the world, there were two types of light created. On the first day, there was darkness, and God created light. And on the fourth day, God created the sun, moon and stars. So what is the nature of this first light, for the first 3 days of creation? The Jewish mystics teach that this first light gets hidden away after the creation of the sun and stars. They call this first light, the Or Haganuz, the Hidden Light. The mystics teach that the Or HaGanuz is the light of awareness itself.
When we sit and meditate on the nature of the Hanukkah lights, we are actually meditating on the Or Haganuz, the light of awareness, the hidden light, that is only revealed during Hanukkah.
May we spend time exploring the nature of awareness this Hanukkah. May we notice that when we explore the nature of awareness, we become more present to our lives. We feel more connected to ourselves , our families, and our communities.
The term Hanukkah means dedication.
This year, may we witness awareness, and notice it deepen in our lives. May we feel expanded by this depth, and notice holiness. May this holy expansion inspire us to rededicate ourselves to our spiritual selves and our spiritual communities for the year ahead.
We will need this expanded presence and resilience in our ever darkening world.
May the light of Hanukkah inspire us to rededicate ourselves to repairing our broken world, one piece at a time.
Chag urim sameach, a joyous festival of lights.

JEWISH MEDITATION CIRCLE IS RESUMING!
Our next session is Thursday, 12/11 to prepare for Hanukkah.
For both beginners and advanced meditation folks.
Donations are welcome.

TBS’ Adult B’nai Mitzvah Class Starting this fall!
Have you wanted to transform your adult understanding of Judaism into a meaningful ritual? We are forming an adult b’nai mitzvah class this fall. We will spend the next 9 months or so studying together. Each student will read from the Torah, lead part of a group prayer service, and deliver a D’var Torah.

NEW CLASSES ARE STARTING THIS FALL:
– Jewish Prayer Essentials – structure & meaning of prayers (Saturday mornings before Torah Study, from 9:00 – 9:45 am)
– Basic Hebrew (with Jean and Art, Tuesday evenings)
– Torah Study with Commentaries – Rabbi Michael will teach a new Torah Study as we explore the weekly readings through the eyes of the classic commentators like Rashi, Ibn Ezra, and Ramban. For both beginning and advanced students. All texts will be in English, with Hebrew as needed.

TBS Religious School News
We will make donuts for Hanukkah this Sunday. Our final class of the semester will be Thursday, 12/18. Winter break will take place from 12/21 – 1/4

TBS Brotherhood  meetings/events

• Brotherhood Membership
The Brotherhood performs much needed projects for TBS. Even if you cannot participate in Brotherhood, PLEASE CONSIDER MAKING A DONATION. This will help to complete the many TBS projects planned for 2024 – 2025. Please contact treasurer Art Busch, ascyb34@yahoo.com with any questions.
* Please Do Not pay along with your Temple dues. 

• We meet throughout the year in the spirit of friendship and good humor. We sponsor social events, fundraisers and building beautification projects to support and enhance the TBS community. Announcements will be posted as soon as they are available!
Contact: Mike Miller at: mikemillercsi@roadrunner.com
Thank you for your support!

TBS Sisterhood meetings/events

Sisterhood members gathered on Sunday, December 7th to fry up latkes for TBS members and our annual Hanukkah dinner.

85 pounds of potatoes were transformed into 60 dozen latkes!

Thank you to all the members who helped chop, mix, fry, and pack last Sunday: Robin Rosen-Sharp, Laurie Frankino, Randy Herman, Carol Telesman, Julie McBride, Moema Furtado, Susan Berman, Jeanie Rhodes, Toby Liberman, Kim Strausser and Susan Terkel.
Several of us remembered years ago when the latke fry happened outside, at Suzy Axelrod’s home! We talked about how we used to fry in the old kitchen with that slippery floor and old countertop.

Thank you to the Brotherhood and the many generous members who made our new kitchen happen several years ago!

• It’s that time again to support sisterhood with your membership dues. Please contact Robin Rosen-Sharp at Rrsdvm2@gmail.com for a membership form. Please DO NOT send dues with your Temple dues or to the Temple Zeffy account. Robin can provide you with a Zelle link if you want to pay online. Thanks for your support!
Thanks, Robin

• Upcoming meetings and events are currently being planned and scheduled by the Sisterhood. Announcements will be posted as soon as they are available!
Thank you for your support!

---

Please send us your announcements, engagements, weddings, graduations, sports news, kid news, etc. to: e-megillah editor, hberman44236@yahoo.com no later than ONE WEEK PRIOR to the next issue.
Please include ‘e-megillah news‘ in the subject field.

We are looking for Volunteers!

• Help our Temple
• Assist with events and gatherings