Posted on December 8th, 2013 by siteadmin. Categorized: Community News.
Saul Schiffman helps to find a passage in the Torah. He is assisted by a museum staff member.
The Torah, like the Morroccan one at the North Carolina Museum of Art, contains the five books of Moses; Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy, written on parchment made from the skins of a kosher animal, such as a deer, goat, cow etc.,” Saul Schiffman, a friend of the Judaic Art Gallery at the North Carolina Museum of Art said. “The skin is soaked, stretched and scraped to create a smooth light colored writing surface. Over the centuries a scroll can darken to a brown color as has this one here and most of the fragments from the Dead Sea Scrolls.”
Schiffman recently shared information about how a Torah is prepared, written and maintained.
He explained that a scribe (sofer) copies the scroll onto the parchment word for word being careful not to make any mistakes. If a mistake is made it must be corrected, otherwise the scroll is not ritually pure. He added that the scribe spends years in training to be qualified to write sacred texts. It takes about a year to write one Torah scroll, including the work of the scribes and checking the text by other scribes. Texts written by scribes do not simply include the Torah, but also a mezuzah (affixed to the doorposts of Jewish homes), phylacteries (tefillin) worn during weekday morning prayers and megillot (such as the Book of Esther).
“In the Museum’s Judaic Art Gallery, we roll the Torah scroll to a different section about twice every year. The portion chosen either coincides with a ritual performed by Jews during the same time of the year or a text of general interest. For 2013, during the first half of the year, the scroll was turned to the priestly benediction (Numbers 6:23-27) recited by the Rabbi and/or cohanim (descendants of Aaron) during Jewish religious services. This same blessing is also recited at most Christian church services around the world,” he shared. This particular scroll was made of soft deerskin and is fragile. It has to be handled with care. The museum’s staff have to wear gloves when handling this artifact.
During the remainder of 2013-14, the scroll was turned to the portion recanting the death and burial of Abraham. Schiffman said that the significance of this short portion was that “even though Isaac and Ishmael may not have been close to each other, they came together to bury their father showing reverence and respect (Genesis 25: 1-10).”
The Torah, housed in a silver Sephardic case, is on display at the North Carolina Museum of Art’s Judaic Art Gallery.
For more information, visit ncartmuseum.org.
Posted on December 5th, 2013 by siteadmin. Categorized: Community News, Havurah News.
Havurat Tikvah is sponsoring a panel discussion, “To Honor and Comfort: A Jewish Response to Death and Grief,” on Jan. 12, 2014, 4 p.m., at Avondale Presbyterian Church, Fellowship Hall, 2821 Park Road, home to Havurat Tikvah.
It’s the one certain event most people avoid planning for: the death of a family member or oneself. Adding to that reluctance, one might not know enough about Jewish funeral and mourning practices or who to turn to for help in making decisions.
Led by three experienced professionals, attendees will be able to expand their knowledge base about Jewish customs and practices surrounding end-of-life issues.
Rabbi Jonathan Freirich, associate rabbi at Temple Beth El and a graduate of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, will give an overview of traditional laws and customs regarding death and bereavement, as well as liberal Jewish practices. Both communal and individual obligations will be considered.
Sandra Goldman, director of the Hebrew Cemetery Association of Greater Charlotte, will talk about traditional grave sites and new options at the historic cemetery, including the nearly-completed chapel/memorial building.
Joel Blady, who is Jewish and a funeral director at Hankins & Whittington Funeral Service, will cover funeral home services that enable families to observe Jewish practices.
A question and answer session will follow the panel’s presentations. All attending are invited to refreshments immediately afterward.
The program is free and Charlotte’s Jewish community, including unaffiliated Jews, is invited to attend.
Parking is available in the church lot off Lilac Road.
Posted on December 5th, 2013 by siteadmin. Categorized: Havurah News.
Brooke Feinglass is doing her part in providing support to her mother’s native land.
This industrious sophomore in the IB program at Myers Park High School is gathering school supplies for donation to public schools in the Central American country of Hondurus. During a time of research, she discovered that the educational system in that country was below standard. The main reason for this is due to the lack of school supplies.
So, Feinglass is collecting anything that a school-aged person would need to become more successful. She is looking for notebooks, paper, pencils, etc., and will donate them to the school system in Hondurus when she has completed her contributions’ gathering.
For more information or to make arrangements for supply pickup, email bjfeind1@gmail.com.
Posted on November 21st, 2013 by siteadmin. Categorized: Havurah News.
Havurat Tikvah will again participate in Friendship Trays on Dec. 24.
Members and friends will help the organization prepare, pack and deliver meals to clients of Friendship Trays.
To volunteer, email Volunteer Coordinator Lani Lawrence at llawrence@friendship trays.org or call 704.970.4842.
The organization is located at 2401-A Distribution St. off Remount Rd.
For more information and/or to alert the havurah coordinator, call Brian Feinglass at 704-737-2814 or email bcfein1@gmail.com.
Posted on November 21st, 2013 by siteadmin. Categorized: Havurah News.
Havurat Tikvah will assist Avondale Presbyterian Church, 2821 Park Rd., with their Room in the Inn social action initiative on Jan. 28, Feb. 18 and March 18 in 2014.
Volunteer members will provide the evening meal preparation and service.
The congregation has been a steady volunteer since it began leasing from the church a couple of years ago.
Under Brian Feinglass’s leadership, members have helped to get the facility ready for visitors, as well as preparing dinner and bagged lunches and more.
To participate with Havurat Tikvah on its slated dates, call Brian at 704-737-2814 or email bcfein1@gmail.com.
Of course, there are more days to lend a hand. To sign up for additional slots, visit SignUpGenius.com/go/10C0E4AACA722A6FF2-volunteer. Password is 1944.
Posted on November 21st, 2013 by siteadmin. Categorized: Community News.
The Charlotte Pride Band will perform it’s winter concert on Dec. 15, 3 p.m., at Temple Beth El, 5101 Providence Rd.
The program will feature seasonal favorites performed by small ensembles of Charlotte Pride Band including the jazz band, woodwind quintet, brass quintet, clarinet choir, sax ensemble, brass choir, trumpet choir, and trombone quartet.
The band is partnering with Temple Beth El in its support to the Freedom School Partners and Sterling Elementary School.
Freedom School, with headquarters at 1030 Arosa Ave., prepares children for success through summer literacy programs, led by college student role models in collaboration with community partners.Preparing children for success through summer literacy programs, led by college student role models in collaboration with community partners. Locations are scattered throughout Mecklenburg County.
Sterling Elementary, 9601 China Grove Church Rd., Pineville, NC, is a K-5 paideia academy facility. It seeks to Empower Students, Engage Community, Ignite Passion and Respect All.
Attendees are encouraged to bring contributions to the event.
The list includes:
Snacks for Sterling Elementary School
Cheerios
Animal crackers
Fruit snacks
Goldfish/cheddar crackers
Fruit cups
Graham crackers
Cheese puffs
8 oz. bottles of water
Vanilla wafers
Fruit Loops
Apple Jacks
Corn Pops
Kix
Microwave popcorn
School supplies for Freedom School –
Crayons
Pencils
Markers
Scissors
Glue sticks
Copy paper
Charlotte Pride Band, which began in 2010, provides an open, inviting environment for musicians of all ability levels while promoting the value and respect of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in the Charlotte metropolitan area through quality musical performances.
Admission is free.
info: charlotteprideband.org. beth-el.com.
Posted on November 6th, 2013 by siteadmin. Categorized: Reconstructionist News.
Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D., has been elected as the new president of the Reconstuctionist Rabbinical College (RRC) in Philadelphia, Penn. She takes office on Jan. 1, 2014.
She is considered to be the first woman to hold a post of this nature for a Jewish congregational union.
She has a deep commitment to the Jewish Reconstructionist Movement (JRM), from her time as a student and up through her service more recently as vice president. She was also on deck for the strategic plan to merge the Jewish Reconstructionist Federation with the rabbinical college.
She brings an inclusive vision to her tenure.
Waxman, a historian of American Judaism, brings to the fore a vision that emphasizes relevance and pluralism. She believes that in the 21st century, as Jewish people choose from a vast array of spiritual, religious and cultural sources to construct their identities, Reconstructionist Judaism offers a distinctive way toward meaning and connection. She also is interested in fostering a more robust presence for all progressive religions in the public square.
Waxman brings particular expertise in strategic planning. In her previous work as RRC’s vice president for governance (2003 to 2013), she played a central role in creating RRC’s first-ever such initiative as well as its first institution-wide assessment plan. In winter 2014, along with a team of Reconstructionist movement leaders, she will move forward another first — a strategic plan for RRC as a combined organization, which trains Jewish leaders and also provides services to congregations.
Waxman also is a strong fundraiser. Her grant proposals have won support from leading funders such as the Kresge Foundation, Wexner Foundation and Cummings Foundation; and she has cultivated and stewarded major individual donors for RRC.
As vice president, she staffed the organization’s board of more than 40 members and 13 committees — setting mandates and evaluating impact — and was key in the successful integration of the rabbinical college and the congregational union in June 2012. She led RRC’s academic accreditation work as well; she chaired self-study and review processes to demonstrate the College’s compliance with required standards.
Her academic presentations include “Reconstructing Religious Authority in a Democratic Context: Early Reconstructionist Approaches and their Contemporary Resonances,” for the Association for Jewish Studies Conference in December 2011. At the 2013 conference, she will participate in a round table discussion titled “Mordecai M. Kaplan Reconsidered: The Meaning and Significance of His Legacy for Our Time.” She has presented frequently for lay audiences as well; most recently she taught on the subject “Rejecting Chosenness — An Exploration.” She has received a number of academic honors, including the Ruth Fein Prize given by the American Jewish Historical Society. She serves on the society’s academic council.
Waxman has sat on the faculty of RRC, teaching courses on Reconstructionist Judaism and practical rabbinics. From 2002 to 2012, she served as High Holiday rabbi for Congregation Bet Havarim in Fayetteville, NY.
Her published articles include “‘A Lady Sometimes Blows the Shofar’: Women’s Religious Equality in the Postwar Reconstructionist Movement” in A Jewish Feminine Mystique?: Jewish Women in Postwar America (Rutgers University Press, 2010), “Distinctiveness and Universalism: How to Remain Jewish if Jewish Isn’t Better” (Zeek, fall 2010); “The Challenge of Implementing Reconstructionism: Art, Ideology and the Society for the Advancement of Judaism’s Sanctuary Mural,” co-authored with Joyce Norden (American Jewish History, September 2009), and a review of the National Museum of American Jewish History for Pennsylvania History (winter 2012).
Waxman graduated cum laude from Columbia College, Columbia University, where she was elected to the Phi Beta Kappa Society. She received rabbinical ordination and a Master of Arts in Hebrew Letters from RRC in 1999. She studied at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem as both an undergraduate and graduate student, and received a Horace W. Goldsmith Fellowship to support her graduate work. She earned a Ph.D. in American Jewish History from Temple University in May 2010; her dissertation was titled “Faith and Ethnicity in American Judaism: Reconstructionism as Ideology and Institution, 1935–1959.”
To hear her acceptance remarks, click below:
play
To hear about her vision, click below:
play
info: 215.576.0800, ext. 129. officeofthepresident@rrc.edu.
Posted on October 2nd, 2013 by siteadmin. Categorized: Community News.
Got a craving for homemade matzo ball soup or maybe a nice corned beef on rye? Perhaps a potato knish or a kosher hot dog? Choose from over 20 mouth-watering traditional Jewish foods at the 11th annual HardLox: Asheville’s Jewish Food and Heritage Festival on Oct. 20, 11 a.m.-4 p.m., at Pack Square Park, 1 W. Pack Square.
Enjoy delicious homemade Jewish foods, Israeli dancing, crafts, a Kids Zone, klezmer music and more.
Have your name written in Hebrew. Discover the Torah. Learn about Jewish holidays and festivals. Join in the singing and dancing. Asheville Jewish organizations will provide interactive educational opportunities to learn about Jewish heritage and culture.
The HardLox Jewish Food and Heritage Festival is hosted by Congregation Beth HaTephila and co-sponsored by the City of Asheville.
For more information, call Marty Gillen at 828-253-2282 or visit HardLox.com.
Posted on October 2nd, 2013 by siteadmin. Categorized: Havurah News.
Kate Kaplan is collecting pop top tabs to support the work of the Ronald McDonald House in Charlotte located at 1613 E. Morehead St.
She has asked that members bring their tabs to Havurat Tikvah services and events so she can collect them. When enough are accumulated, she will ferry them over to the Charlotte house.
According to Ronald McDonald House, the tabs convert into cash. “The House takes tabs into local recycling centers and exchange the tabs for money for our guest family fund! Although it costs the House approximately $89 a night to shelter a family in medical crisis, families are invited to make only a small financial donation — many cannot afford to contribute anything at all. The money from pop tabs helps to ensure that we are able to accommodate every guest, regardless of their ability to pay,” the charity said.
Kaplan remarked that her experience with the charity was positive, saying “I can’t say enough good things about them.” Ronald McDonald House of Charlotte provides families with a safe, comfortable and supportive environment during their child’s medical treatment.
To learn more about the Ronald McDonald House, visit rmhofcharlotte.org.
Posted on September 29th, 2013 by siteadmin. Categorized: Community News.
Program to highlight southern summer camp experience
The Jewish Historical Society of South Carolina will present “A Summer to Remember: Jewish Summer Camps in the American South” on Nov. 9-10 at the University of South Carolina in Columbia, S.C.
“Jewish summer camps have been a fixture of the southern landscape for 60 years. Camp Blue Star, Camp Judaea, Camp Barney Medintz, Henry S. Jacobs Camp, Camp Juniper, Camp Coleman, Camp Baker, and Camp Ramah Darom the most recent arrival, have nurtured generations of youngsters, creating a Jewish social milieu hard to find in small southern communities,” the Society shared. Head out for a weekend of reflection and remembrance as the Society explores the history of these camps and their ongoing impact on the way Jewish youths see themselves and the world.
Keynote speaker will be Marcie Cohen Ferris, associate professor and director of undergraduate studies in the Department of American Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She will share her thoughts on “God First, You Second, Me Third.”
A full itinerary is available online.
Registration is $75 per person. Call Enid Idelsohn at 843-953-3918 or email ldelsohn@cofc.edu for more information.
Hotel accommodations are available at The Inn at USC (a Wyndham Hotel property), 1619 Pendleton St. Rates are $120 per night. Reservations are due by Oct. 23 by calling 803-779-7779.
In other news, the South Carolina Council on the Holocaust Teacher Advisory Committee will present its eighth annual teacher workshop, “Lessons for the Holocaust: Teaching with Primary Sources,” on Oct. 18 at Columbia College.
Registration and refreshments are from 8-8:30 a.m., with the workshop following until 4 p.m.
Keynote speaker is Morris Glass, Holocaust survivor and co-author of “Chosen for Destruction: The Story of a Holocaust Survivor.”
Workshop sessions will be conducted by Dr. Lauren Granite, regional educator and director of the U.S. educational programs of Centropa, the first oral history project that combines old family photographs with the stories that accompany them.
Registration is $35 and includes a copy of Glass’s book. It is suggested that attendees read this before the event.
info/registration: jhssc.org/events.