WEEKLY NEWSLETTER

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After the pomp and circumstance of the dedication of the Tabernacle of last week's portion, it would seem that it would have been appropriate to move on to a new subject. Yet in the beginning of this week's portion we go back to the Menorah and Aaron's role in lighting it. Ramban (Nachmanides) sees in this a prophetic hint that there would come a time when everything of the previous portion would cease but the Menorah would live on. Now of course the actual Menorah met the same fate as the other vessels of the Holy Temple so he explained that this would be in the form of the Chanukah candles, lit far after the destruction, even to the present day. 

 

On a deeper level he was referring to what the Menorah represented vs. the rest of the vessels. The Menorah was lit with olive oil, symbolic of the wisdom of Torah, while the rest were more tied in with ritual. Thus, he was saying that it was the wisdom of Torah that would be the primary driving force and energy of the Jewish people. Of course our ritual is our spiritual garment but it is the Torah that preserved us and will continue to do so until the final redemption.

 

Congratulations to our trustee to Adam Teller for his wedding to Chana Goldman this past Thursday

 

 

This Sunday we are excited to present the great Warner Wolf on our Sunday Night Shmooze at 7pm to discuss the present state of professional sports! 

ID # 882 8489 4096 no password

 

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As we know, there is not much ritual prescribed by the Torah for the momentous holiday of Shavuot. As with many of our occasions in the Jewish calendar the Torah hints at themes through the sacrificial rituals. Now these may be far from our consciousness being removed from the Temple for 2,000 years but a little scratching might yield a special message.

 

With Shavuot we introduce chametz to the altar, which was a very rare phenomenon, in the form of the Shtay HaLechem, the double Barley Bread. This is curious, because the process that brings us to Shavuot begins 7 weeks earlier with the Passover sacrifice, where we know that chametz is strictly forbidden. It seems we start with the purity of matzah and descend to the level of chametz, when one would think that this period of spiritual growth should go in the exact opposite direction!

 

But the truth is that at Passover, like it was then, we start with deprivation and restraint, but that is not the goal of Torah. The goal is to be able to live in this world with all its pleasures while maintaining control over our lifestyle, and still be servants of the Almighty. When we emerge from these intense 7 weeks, we can now reenter all aspects of our physical life knowing how to create spiritual balance, and that balance is represented by the featuring of chametz in the Temple.

 

We are slowly emerging from our period of restrictions but have to learn to balance the need to get on with life all the while remembering to practice those "rituals" that preserve life. We hope to be able to do that at TriBeCa Synagogue as soon as that balance can be realistically achieved.

 

For now we have an exciting lineup of programming starting 5pm today which you can find here; www.tribecasynagogue.org

 

Remember to make Eruv Tavshilin today-put away an egg and a matzah to be eaten for seudat shlishi on Saturday.

 

Today is the 49th, and last day, of the counting of the Omer.

 

Enjoy the latest article from our own Dr. Freema Gottlieb:

https://jewishweek.timesofisrael.com/against-the-grain/

 

The TriBeCa Synagogue is thrilled to announce the wedding of Adam Teller to Chana next Thursday at 4pm. The happy couple would be honored with your virtual presence at their special occasion with the following coordinates:

https://us04web.zoom.us/j/76747952721?pwd=WlUyNEZCZzBQR09ldUxVWTBRYk5Xdz09

Meeting ID: 767 4795 2721
Password: nice2bu

May they merit to build a faithful house in Israel!

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This week we complete the Book of Leviticus with the double portion Behar-Behukotai with the primary theme being the Sabbatical/Jubilee year or Shemita/Yovel. The key feature is the requirement to leave all fields and orchards fallow every 7th year and then the 50th year. Commentators are quick to point out that this is not to be associated with the regular agricultural strategy of preventing these fields from drying up. Any farmer knew that fields could only produce 3 or 4 years consecutively before they would have to be given a chance to replenish. Thus the requirement for the 7th was random from an agricultural standpoint and purely an act of faith and respect for the One from whom the land was granted. Additionally, it was during this year that the people were supposed to "replenish" their spirituality and holiness being freed from the burden of providing for themselves.

Many of us find ourselves in a kind of "Sabbatical" that was randomly cast upon us. And while we should never consider the factors that created this a good thing, we might try to use this extra time for personal and spiritual growth. Please consider joining us for the classes, Shabbat experience and the social outlet that we have laid out on a weekly basis. And of course, as always, I remain available for individual study and discussion.

Scenes from our virtual synagogue:

Celebrating Lag B'Omer

Sunday Night Shmooze

Our own Paul Schaeffer, will join us this Sunday at 7pm for the Shmooze to give us the latest in testing research! Paul Schaeffer is the Director of Administration at the New York City Health Laboratory.

Our Portion of the Week class moves to Thursdays at 7pm starting TONIGHT! 

Via Zoom ID # 815-0166-6820

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We have another double portion this week, Acharei Mot-Kedoshim, which is common for the book of Leviticus during a Hebrew non leap year. The Torah introduces the intriguing rituals of Yom Kippur by reprising the death of the sons of Aaron which was described 3 portions ago. One of the reasons the Torah connects the 2, according to the Jerusalem Talmud, is to teach us that just as Yom Kippur atones, so does the passing of the righteous. For me, this concept hit particularly hard with the news that one of the most important people in my life, both personally and professionally, was cut down over the holiday of Passover due to the virus. And what was even more painful was the fact that under normal circumstances this woman would have had a gigantic funeral and a massive shiva but instead was quietly sent off to Israel for a stealth burial.

I am referring to Rebbetzin Malka Kalmanovitz, who was the wife of Rav Shraga Moshe Kalmanovitz, the Rosh Yeshiva of the Mirrer Yeshiva where I received my semicha and who I’ve known since 1975. She began life in communist Russia under the jackboot of the NKVD who were always persecuting the Rabbis of that generation of whom her father was one of the prominent ones. Literally at age 4 she was trained to be on the lookout and upon detecting the authorities on their way she would run to her household to warn them and escort her father out the backdoor. They all made it to America where she raised 9 amazing children and lived to 94 when I had visited her just a few weeks earlier, although this summation doesn’t begin to do justice to her amazing life. Mostly this is about how helpful she was to me in shepherding myself through the echelons of Yeshiva life, considering my religiously humble background, to the pinnacle of making my shidduch and her support throughout my 7 years of Kollel, and then to the Rabbinate. We were distant relatives through marriage from generations back but that was no barrier to her embracing me as close family and that closeness was with me long after I left the old Flatbush neighborhood.

It is concerning to consider how great the need for atonement, and by extension repentance, must be to have required such a great loss. But that is the stark reality expressed by this passage from the Jerusalem Talmud so we, and especially I, better get started. May we merit to hear better tidings.

Hear more from Rabbi Glass on the portion here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BaEFALhW-w&feature=youtu.be

Enjoy this celebration of Israel Independence Day here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lc8c1II7Z8w&feature=youtu.be

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Emerging from Passover/The New Reality

This year the turnaround from the lengthy holiday to Shabbat is almost instantaneous, yet another challenge in this already challenge filled period. 

We continue with the weekly portion this weekend with Shemini, describing the period of 7 day sequestering of the Kohanim before they would begin their new priestly role on the 8th day, hence the title Shemini, or 8th. That day that they emerged was described as the most cosmically important day in human history since creation. 

To quote Rabbi Munk, he described this day, the activation of the Tabernacle, as "the supreme guarantee of God's love, kindness and protection. It would re-establish the ideal state that had reigned in Paradise at the beginning of creation-God dwelling among His creatures...This state of intimacy with the Divine Presence would surely constitute a source of infinite material and spiritual blessing."

We have just completed the momentous 8 day experience of Passover with all its spiritual rejuvenation, so necessary a long 6 months since the days of awe. May this momentum carry us for the near future through the spiritual limitations placed upon us for our physical protection. 

At TriBeCa Synagogue we will do our best to work with these limitations. As such, until further notice, our synagogue will continue to be active on zoom with many of the features becoming recurring, rather than on a week to week basis.

Nachas note: Our basketball alum, Ethan Feldman, who brought us to 1 point of the Young Israel Basketball League Championship 7 years ago has completed a stellar career at NYU becoming captain and lead scorer. He now is in the process of signing a professional contract with TEAM ISRAEL and will become a citizen shortly!

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Today is Rosh Chodesh Nisan, considered the beginning of the Biblical year and the day that the Tabernacle (Mishkan) was assembled. 

We begin the book of Leviticus with Parshat Vayikra and an extended discussion of sacrifices and all things Tabernacle. We finished Exodus with the assembling of the Tabernacle and in this book we discuss how it was to function. It may be difficult to relate to all these details but I think our present set of circumstances might serve as a bridge to understanding their significance. 

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Due to the challenging circumstances we will expand this section of the newsletter:

Ki Tissa presents us with one of the most challenging stories of the chumash with the golden calf being perpetrated in such proximity to the 10 commandments on Mount Sinai. Ibn Ezra attempts to mitigate the severity of the sin by explaining they were not seeking another God but rather another Moshe. Indeed, their argument was “Because this man, Moshe, we do not know what happened to him” we are now vulnerable and rudderless. The immediate problem became that once these forces were released they rapidly disintegrated into base revelry. The farther reaching problem was that they weren’t ready to connect to God without an intermediary. One of the cornerstones of Judaism is its emphasis on developing a personal and individual relationship with God. There are aids and resources, but after all is said and done it’s us that have to create the connection.

Many of us may feel fear and uncertainty from everything that is going around us which is magnified with the 24/7 media. We live in a blessed country which is ramping up its efforts to address the situation but that shouldn’t take the place of firstly our own personal obligations to do our part while at the same time never replace our faith in the Almighty, Who is the true Shomer Yisrael (guardian of Israel).

At TriBeCa Synagogue we have taken the unprecedented action of closing the synagogue for the weekend, something that wasn’t done in the direct aftermath of 9/11 or Sandy. We are in intense deliberations regarding the near and far term and look forward to providing an update in a timely fashion. We will do everything we can to reopen as expeditiously as possible to be that beacon of hope and center of social nurture.