Jewish Musings, Tuesday, September 26, 2023

[peachymom1]

What’s on your mind — how to make kugel? This week’s Torah reading? Life goals? Prayer? We are all engaged in weight loss/weight maintenance journeys and we are all Jewish or at least interested in Judaism. We like to eat, we like to discuss. It is our goal here to provide each other support on our journeys, to share experiences, to call on our rich cultural heritage and texts, and to help each other grow spiritually.

Some of us take weekly turns starting the thread:

Holly
Lee
Louise
Lynne
Peachy

And for those of you that stop by to read this thread without posting — you are welcome to, but you are also welcome to chime in. Don’t be shy!

[peachymom1]

Good morning! I’m thinking about Frieda and hoping everything went well yesterday, and that she got some cheesecake too. :+)

How was Yom Kippur for you yesterday? Did you learn or feel anything you’d like to share? Did you have an easy or difficult fast? Did you gather with friends to break the fast, whether you fasted or not? Did you sleep well and hopefully wake up feeling refreshed? If you read Torah or haftarah, how did that all go?

For the past many years, I have read Torah during the minchah service, so I’m not nervous about that aliyah anymore. Also, it happens late in the day, so honestly, if I were to make a mistake, I don’t think I’d be too fussed about it. The shul’s main sanctuary is currently being renovated, so we had our services in the rooms that are usually used for wedding receptions and bar/bat mitzvah parties. The lighting was different, and there was a little glare on the Torah scroll, but I was tired by then and barely noticed.

When it’s time for the final shofar blast, the kids come in from their service with glow sticks, and lots of people bring their own shofars and (try to) blow along. It’s wonderful pandemonium, and I love it.

How about you?

[hollygail]

One thing I learned was about the late Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky, a strong Zionist. Starting very very very shortly after the last elections in Israel, the folks in government introduced lots of legislation that in one way or another would weaken (or do worse than only weaken) democracy in the country. In New York City (Ansche Chesed, Upper West Side, a 650-family congregation founded in 1829 ), he apparently started to feel uncomfortable with the traditional prayer for the state of Israel (I know it's often repeated toward the end of the Torah service, at least on Shabbat mornings because I've heard it at local Conservative shuls in San Diego). Specifically, there are three words in that prayer, raishit smichat gi’ulateinu, that he was no longer willing to say; it's for the success of Israel’s leaders, ministers and advisers. Why? His position was that Israel's (at that time) new government included right-wing extremists he considered akin to the Ku Klux Klan. (His words, not mine.)

Here's a direct quote: “I don’t hope that this government succeeds; I hope that this government falls and is replaced by something better.” And he further said in an interview: “I just could not imagine us [sic] saying this prayer that their efforts be successful. I think their efforts are dastardly.”

I'm assuming that everyone on this message board is aware of the current political situation in Israel. There have been demonstrations in Israel practically on a daily basis (I don't know how often similar demonstrations happen in New York City, whose Jewish population may be higher than in any other cities in the world outside of the State of Israel), but here in San Diego, there's one every week (although I admit I don't know when they started). If you're not aware, take a look at HaAretz (an Israeli newspaper you can find online) or many other online Israeli newspapers, to find out the latest. I've seen videos of marchers and the camera pans along the line from a distance so you see just how long the line of people goes (actually, in the last one I saw, I never saw the end of the line, that's how many people were marching).

On a more personal level, the haftarah I chanted was a little on the long side, and it was chock-full of words I'd never seen before in my life. I did not do a great job, but I did get through all of it (people came up to me afterwards expressing their appreciation). However, in the afternoon, I found out that I'd studied the wrong verses for what I was supposed to read... The good news is that the Reconstructionist movement reads a slightly different selection from the traditional one, and the first aliyah (the one I was to read) is the opening of the portion of the week being read the week I was born, and the weekly portion for the week on which I chose to have my bat mitzvah. I've read it in the past, and after looking in the machzor maybe three times, I was able to read it from the Torah scroll fluently! (I was proud of myself.) No one else in the room knew (other than my rabbi, to whom I showed the verses I'd been studying; I think she was a little surprised that I was able to read the not-before-YK-studied verses so well, at least that's what I hope). I caught the man who'd volunteered to read the second and third aliyot before the beginning of the Torah service to show him the pages in the machzor with the correct verses, and although he didn't have prior experience with reading those verses, he did fine.

I saw a couple who moved away from San Diego many, many years ago. The last time I saw them was at their house for shiva for their oldest son (a young child at the time; don't ask) and their daughter had just been born. I have no idea how but I remembered that little tiny baby's name and found out last night that she's getting married! She's gotta be close to 30... They're currently living in Raleigh, and we didn't have enough time to chat, but when the father stood up at Kol Nidre to say kaddish for his son, as soon as I heard the boy's name, I started to cry; I immediately went back in my mind to the boy's funeral. I didn't know the boy at all well, only having seen him around shul a few times. Seeing the couple after all this time was a pure delight!

I just noticed the time. I have a class on Zoom in 12 minutes (7am here; the instructor is in Israel where it's already afternoon or evening). Must shower and get some food!

[gazelle18]

Holly, I have read previously about the rabbi and his unease with the prayer for the state of Israel. Very interesting, and frankly I agree.

Mazel tov to Holly and Peachy on their readings. I’m sure Louise did well also!

One cure thing I learned was that our rabbi and staff take the day off every year after Yom Kippur. They call this “Yom Kaput.”

My fast was particularly easy this year. I break my fast at about 5 pm every year, as I am in charge of a 25 person break fast at my house, and there is no way I am frying blintzes and moving hot casseroles from oven to table when I’m feeling a bit woozy. So my fast usually ends up being a 23 hour one, which I think is just fine. I feel sufficiently “afflicted” with that.

Our rabbi talked about how the Kol Nidre prayer, in which we state that all vows are now cancelled, etc., is for vows we make to God, not to other people. For centuries, anti-semites have pointed to the Kol Nidre as an example of how Jews are untrustworthy towards their fellow man. In truth, this is a misinterpretation of the prayer.

[brgmsn]

Our rabbi is so positive and upbeat and charming (such a change from our previous synagogue) that he made Yom Kippur a pleasure. We stayed from beginning to the end of the service prior to the 5PM beginning of the end. I had to go home also and set up, even though we only had 9 folks. But after hosting 32 last weekend I am still beat and recovering. His theme for all the holydays was changing fear into awe, and what steps we can take to do so. Excellent suggestions and analogies, but I expected nothing less. The Cantor was fabulous also. The choir?? Not so much. There was one person who sounded exactly like I do--quivery quavery voice. NOT a singing voice anymore, that's for sure. Dystonia took care of that. But bless that woman for feeling comfortable enough to sing.