March 24, 2022

Letter from Rabbi Ross

Dear TBS Friends and Family,

It was such a joy to celebrate Purim together! We are taking a week off to celebrate Shabbat in our own homes. But next weekend, we have two amazing events to be aware of. On Friday, 4/1, we will welcome Sophie Lewis to the bimah as she prepares for her Bat Mitzvah on 4/9. Chuck Fink will be our guest soloist who will co-lead with us as well. Then, on Sat. 4/2, we will have a special study session to get ourselves ready for Passover. Details are below.

SPECIAL TORAH STUDY: “Exploring the Passover Haggadah” – in-person & Zoom

We will prepare for the upcoming Passover holiday with a special dive into the Haggadah texts and the Exodus story! We will look at ways of making our seders meaningful and relevant to our lives. Bagel brunch will be served!

BAT MITZVAH’S 100th ANNIVERSARY

One hundred years ago, Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan revolutionized American Judaism by celebrating the first Bat Mitzvah, for his daughter Judith. At TBS, we will be celebrating this revolutionary spirit during our Bat Mitzvah celebrations this spring. For more on this wonderful moment in Jewish history, please see this link: https://jwa.org/batmitzvah100

SUPPORTING UKRAINE

Please find ways to support folks in the Ukraine this week:

Rabbi Rachel and I donated to the JDC. I directed a few more TBS donors to send their tzedakah funds there: https://www.jdc.org/
HIAS is collecting to support the refugees: https://www.hias.org/
Cleveland Federation is collecting for Ukraine here: https://www.jewishcleveland.org/
World Union for Progressive Judaism is helping at this link: https://wupj.org/give/ukraine/

Please find ways to research about the Jews in Ukraine as well. The history is fascinating. It’s worth noting how TBS assisted the Jews fleeing the former Soviet Union 30 years ago. Our assistance and support will be needed again. I do believe we will be asked to welcome Ukrainian refugees in the coming weeks and months.

UPCOMING TBS GATHERINGS

Fri. 4/1, 7:30 pm: Shabbat Service – with Sophie Lewis, guest soloist Chuck Fink, and Rabbi Michael – Zoom and in-person
Sat. 4/2, 9:30 am: Special Torah Study: “Exploring the Passover Haggadah” – Zoom & in-person
SAVE THE DATE: Sat. 4/16, 5:30 pm: Passover Community Seder – Zoom and in-person