From the Rabbi's Desk...
 
Rabbi Irwin Huberman
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March 25, 2010
Final Call: Second Seder
About eighty congregants, family, and friends have signed up for next Tuesday night’s second Seder.
There is room for more.
Anyone who does not have plans for the second evening of Passover can still join us. We will be observing the full Seder, which will include stories, songs, teachings and, of course, a wonderful meal.
Please call or e-mail the office or me, or
use and return the form
if you would like to attend. Cost is $49 for adults, $18 for those seven to 18. Children under seven are welcome free.
If funds are an issue, please contact me and you will gladly be welcome. This is not tzedakah (charity.) This is CTI completing the mitzvah of “all who are hungry come and eat.”
In ancient times, families would obtain a lamb the day of Passover and slaughter it. We learn from the Talmud that, since it was required to eat the lamb that day, friends and neighbors should be welcome at our table.
That is the beginning of the Seder tradition that we are proud to observe at CTI.
As well, if you do not have a Seder to go on the first night, please contact me. There is room at my or the cantor’s table for more. You honor us by joining our families.
Quote of the Week
From Rabbi Simcha Raphael, who taught a class last week on making Passover Seders more spiritual when asked how vegetarians can observe Passover without a chicken or lamb bone on the Seder plate, he replied:
“Those who do not want to use a Passover lamb may use a Passover yam.”
Annual Udell Breakfast
There is wonderful tradition that will continue at CTI on Monday morning.
The Udell family will against sponsor a bagel and lox breakfast at 8:15am, after the close of morning services.
Beginning at dawn Monday, “first born” in every Jewish family are traditionally obligated to fast. This reminds us of the fact that Jewish first born were “passed over” by God during the plague of the first born.
However, there is a loophole. The study of Torah is so important that it overrides the requirement to fast. Therefore, it is customary at the close of morning services before the first Seder for the rabbi to deliver a very short teaching which is celebrated by a meal afterwards.
The Udell family has been supporting this tradition for more than fifty years.
Whether you are a first born or not, please join us morning for this mini celebration.
Calling All Haggadot
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Over the past few weeks, a number of Passover Haggadot and texts have been borrowed from my office. I would appreciate if they could be returned so that I can use them at our Seders.
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There are also a number of books and DVDs on loan from the CTI library. If you find any during your Passover cleaning, please return them to the shul.
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Scheduling Notes
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CTI will hold Passover services Tuesday and Wednesday at 9:00am.
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Hebrew classes scheduled for this Thursday and next have been cancelled. They will resume on April 15.
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This Friday evening, we will honor those celebrating birthdays this month with a special blessing. Our musical Shabbat and blessing service begins at 8:00pm.
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Amazon Results
Our webmaster, Froma Bessel, has set up a number of links off our web site to Wal-Mart, J& R Music and Computer World, Enterprise Rent a Car, and Amazon.Com.
The synagogue receives a percentage of each purchase accessed through our web site.
Many other shopping sites offer similar rebates so if you often shop at a site that offers an affiliate program,
let Froma know
and she will add it to our list.
This week, we began using more than $55 of credits sent to us by Amazon.com for books purchased by our book club.
Your can access our shopping site by clicking http://www.ctionline.org/shop.html
The Treasure of Family
Within the classic Jewish tradition, it was customary for rabbis to speak only twice a year.
For centuries, the word rabbi referred to a teacher who spent most of his time in a classroom or “cheder” setting teaching Talmud or other sacred texts.
But twice a year the rabbi would ascend the bimah and deliver what we would call today a “sermon.” One of those occasions was the Shabbat between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, and the other was this week, the Shabbat before Passover, known as Shabbat Ha’Gadol, “the great Sabbath.”
So essential is the concept of freedom to our tradition that the rabbi would break from tradition and address the congregation with a personal teaching.
During the past few weeks, I’ve been focusing my synagogue sermons on the need to clean the chometz, or yeast, from our souls. As we gather with family and friends, it is important that we enjoy each other’s company, share memories and traditions, and create new ones.
Sometimes there are tensions between family members. It is important when they occur to bury our pride and stubbornness and allow our souls to flatten like a sheet of Matzo.
Surveys tell us that the vast number of Jews, secular or religious, celebrate Passover in some way. In Israel 97.6 per cent of Jews attend some type of Passover Seder.
I have yet to preside over a funeral where, when recalling the deceased, someone has not mentioned the wonderful memories of family gatherings for Passover.
Therefore I believe the meaning of Passover is not just freedom, but also family. Seders serve as a gathering point for generations as they tell stories, observe traditions, ask questions and ponder how we can give thanks for our freedom, and help those who remain enslaved.
In this week’s Torah portion, we are reminded that, in the desert, the Israelites regularly brought to God an offering of thanksgiving (Todah.) But as our scholars tell us, God does not need our sacrifice. The practice of sacrifice reminds us that the world does not revolve around ourselves. Self sacrifice and flattening our souls remind us of the importance of tolerance in our lives.
Shabbat Ha’Gadol, celebrated just days before Pesach, reminds us that we have much to be thankful for—in particular, the company and blessings of family and friends.
Let us savor the beauty of those relationships as we thank God this Passover season for the gifts of life, freedom and hope.
May we also consider those who are enslaved spiritually and physically, and find some way in our lives to “embrace the stranger.”
I would like to share with you a prayer from our Shabbat prayer book (Siddur.) May it provide inspiration for a sweet Pesach:
A prayer for families:
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Avinu Malkenu, bless my family with peace. Teach us to appreciate the treasure of our lives. Help us to find contentment in one another. Save us from dissension and jealousy; shield us from pettiness and rivalry. May selfish pride not divide us; may pride in one another unite us. Help us to renew our love for one another continually. In the light of Your Torah grant us, the people Israel and all Your children everywhere, health and fulfillment, harmony, peace and joy.
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And let us say, Amen.
Best wishes for a Chag Sameach (Happy Holidays,) Shabbat Shalom, v’kol tuv (with all goodness.)
Rabbi Irwin Huberman
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