How are you? In these challenging times, if there is any way the Stanton Street Shul can support you and your loved ones, please email us.
It's time for our Annual Membership Drive. You should have received an email to either join us for the first time or to renew your membership. We need the financial support of our congregants so that we can rise strong from this crisis and continue serving our community. We are committed to being a welcoming institution with open doors and an open heart. Join today and participate in our Zoom services and classes!
Shabbat, July 18: Shabbat Mevarchim, Matot-Masei (26 Tammuz) 9:12p Shabbat Ends 9:27p Communal Havdalah on Zoom
Monday, July 20 (28 Tammuz) - CHANGE IN SCHEDULE 7:30-8:30p Rachel Frazer's Class on Sefer Shoftimvia ZOOM Meeting ID: 835 5117 2681; Dial in phone number: (929) 205-6099
Tuesday, July 21 (29 Tammuz) 5:30-6:30p Rabbi Wolfson's Shiur on Three Weeks leading up to Tisha B'Av via ZOOM Meeting ID: 869 1718 3883; Dial in phone number: (929) 205-6099
Wednesday, July 22: Rosh Chodesh Av (1 Av) 7:30-8:30p Richard McBee Jewish Art Lecture Series via ZOOM Meeting ID: 811 6969 6258; Dial in phone number: (929) 205-6099
Pre-Shabbat Kabbalat Shabbat Fridays at 7:15pm (ends before candlelighting)
Come together for davening as we prepare to welcome Shabbat in our own homes.
Community Havdalah Motzei Shabbat, 15 mins after Shabbat ends
Gather post-Shabbat to connect and transition from Shabbat into the new week.
Rabbi Joe Wolfson Joins Us (Virtually) for the Summer
We are pleased to announce that this summer, during the months of July and August, Rabbi Joe Wolfson, Rabbi of The Bronfman Center at NYU, will serve as the Stanton Street Shul's Virtual Rabbi.
Rabbi Joe will offer a weekly ZOOM shiur every Tuesday night, 5:30-6:30pm. Meeting ID: 869 1718 3883 Call in Number: 1 (929) 205-6099
He will write a weekly dvar Torah for our newsletter (scroll down for this week's), will be available to answer congregants’ questions, and will attend Shabbat morning services in the Shul once we reopen with great caution in August. Details will be included in next week’s newsletter.
VIRTUAL CLASSES
Jewish Art with Richard McBee This is the last week of Richard McBee's three-part course on Jewish art, in advance of the fast of Tisha b'Av. Richard is a Stanton member and co-founder of the Jewish Art Salon. The course aims to visually set the tone for the upcoming full-day fast that begins on the evening of July 29th.
Wednesday July 22 at 7:30pm: Mourning, Memory and Art: Images of the Destruction of Jerusalem via Zoom To join by phone, call 1-929-205-6099 and use Meeting ID: 811 6969 6258
Each lecture is 45 minutes with an additional 15 minutes for discussion & questions.
Rachel Frazer Leads a Class on Sefer Shoftim (Book of Judges) - now on MONDAYS
Rachel Frazer offers an insightful, intelligent and novel approach to the Book of Judges (Sefer Shoftim). After the death of Joshua, as the new nation of Israel is struggling with external and internal threats, a series of unlikely, charismatic leaders emerge. Rachel's weekly study group will highlight a different personality/"judge" every week, including Deborah and Samson.
Please bring your questions, your previous knowledge and your intellectual curiosity for a stimulating evening.
Now on MONDAY nights at 7:30pm via ZOOM To join by phone, call 1-929-205-6099 and use Meeting ID: 835 5117 2681
Bring a Tanach to follow along or find the Book of Judges online at sefaria.org or alhatorah.org. If you don't have the text, just come anyway.
DVAR TORAH
Parashat Matot-Masei "These are the journeys of the people of Israel…" (33:1)
As we end Bamidbar, the Torah presents us with a list of Israel’s journeys on their way in the desert. At first glance the list appears exhausting, representative of the forty years of hunger, danger, rebellion and punishment. Rashi, however, provides a different picture.
"Why were these encampments recorded? To indicate God's great compassion… Do not think that they were in constant motion from one encampment to the next for the entire forty-year period and had no respite whatsoever. In fact, there are only forty-two encampments listed here."
Rashi goes on to point out that fourteen of the journeys took place in the first year and the final eight took place in the fortieth year. He concludes:
"Thus, over the course of thirty-eight years, there were only a total of twenty encampments (42–14–8=20)."
Many read the book as one of endless catastrophe, with the narratives of the people’s greed, the spies, and Korach’s rebellion, amongst others, marring the journey from slavery in Egypt to freedom in Israel.
Rashi’s insight dramatically challenges this approach. True, tragic episodes occurred. But considering the book as taking place over the span of forty years, these episodes were in fact relatively rare.
As Jeremiah tells it, when God looks back on the desert experience, He says to Israel, "I remember the kindness of your youth, your bridal love, how you followed Me in the desert, in a land unsown."
Bamidbar should thus be viewed as a period of harmony and intimacy. Perhaps the message that we can take at this moment is the bigger picture: even as we find ourselves in a moment of true distress and dislocation, to appreciate that on the wider canvas of 40 years, our experience is one that we should be profoundly grateful for.
-- Rabbi Joe Wolfson
RESOURCE HUB
TORAH Resources Suggested and Taught by Rabbi Wolfson:
Daily Tanakh Whatsapp Group: currently at the end of Hoshea, starting Yoel on Thursday - a link to the chapter and a recording each day
Halacha Whatsapp Group: participants ask questions and I respond (of course people are still welcome to message me individually)
No one should go hungry at this time. Please share these resources with those in need: NYC Meal Hubs are located at 400 locations throughout the city and distribute 3 prepared meals (including kosher meals) per person, Monday through Friday--packaged to go. No ID or registration required. Just show up!
Seniors can receive meal delivery by connecting with their local senior center or calling DFTA’s Aging Connect at 212-AGING-NYC (212-244-6469) or call 311.
Most supermarkets (including Trader Joe's, Stop & Shop and Whole Foods) provide Senior early hours for the more vulnerable to shop safely during Covid-19.
COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS
Refuah Shleimah: Jeff Katz is recovering from a car accident and can use our prayers for healing. Please say a misheberach for Yaakov David ben Chava.
Happy Anniversary to David and Rivky Friedman, who married 15 years ago, and first met at Stanton!
Volunteer Opportunity: Help Distribute Meals to LES Community Members (M-F 12:30-2:00 pm): Looking for human interaction and to do good for the world? We are looking for volunteers for weekday lunch shifts! We distribute 700 meals a day Monday-Friday at 504 Grand Street (in front of Eastside Kosher), 12:30-2:00. Meals are available for anyone who needs them. If you can help, please contact Penina at penina.seidman@gmail.com
Public Service Announcement: The 2020 U.S. Census is now underway, and we have learned that only about 50% of neighborhood residents have completed it. We strongly encourage you to fill it out if you have not yet done so. Please help ensure our neighborhood gets the funds it deserves by making sure you and your family and friends get counted. More information at www.2020census.gov
I witnessed this today and had to share because it literally took my breath away. (Jill reporting remotely from Maine)
Cute photos are making us smile during these difficult days. Submit a photo of your own cute kid, pet, or plant to be included in a future newsletter!
When to Open our Shul: Despite an official lifting of restrictions on religious institutions in New York State, our shul will remain closed for the time being. We believe it is too soon to re-open in terms of safety. Thank you for your patience. We know that everyone misses shul and all the community and support it affords, but we know as well that it behooves us to remain cautious. May God give strength and courage to health care workers, mental health professionals, and all who work selflessly to keep the rest of us healthy and safe during this time. We pray that all who are sick may have a full recovery. To add a name to our communal misheberach prayer list, email us.
TISHA B'AV
We are now within the 3 weeks of mourning for the destroyed Temples in Jerusalem. This period began on the 17th of Tammuz and will end on the morning after Tisha b"Av, on July 31.
The Gemara states: "If you share in the mourning over the destruction of Jerusalem, you will be privileged to share in the joy of its rebuilding."
To give contemporary relevance to these themes of mourning, exile and calamity, in these days of the COVID pandemic, we feel the pain of being estranged from our mikdash me'at, from our beloved Stanton Street Shul, and grieve for our return. Seasons, holidays and so many Shabbatot have passed since we closed the Shul immediately after Purim, but our hope is that in the very near future, when it is safe, we will reopen and share in each other's joyful presence.
During these 3 weeks leading up to Tisha b'Av we are blessed to offer Zoom classes that deal with the themes of mourning, exile, and rebuilding. Rabbi Joe Wolfson, our Summer "Virtual Rabbi" will be teaching at 5:30 on Tuesday evenings, and Richard McBee will continue with his series on explaining the Book of Eicha through art at 7:30 on Wednesday evenings.
The 24-hour fast of Tisha b'Av will be observed starting on Wednesday evening, July 29, at 8:30. Tradition dictates that on Tisha b"Av we refrain from greeting each other. So when we open Zoom that evening we will begin immediately with a virtual ma'ariv and then sit on our respective floors and begin to chant the Book of Eicha. The five chapters of Eicha will be chanted in the tradition trope by a coed team of Stanton members. Rabbi Wolfson will introduce and lead us in the Kinot following Eicha.
We wish all a meaningful and thoughtful fast that will lead to the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem and good health to all.
--Jeff Katz
Staying Connected While Apart
Even when we're apart, we are still a community. We encourage people to check in with one another by phone and email, so that social distancing does not become a time of isolation. Pick one or two "Stanton buddies" and check in weekly with your buddies!
While logged in to your account on the Stanton Street Shul website, you have access to the membership directory, including contact information for members and friends of the shul. You also have the ability to edit your own listing and, if you prefer, to hide your information so that it does not appear in the public directory. If you have any difficulty, please emailJessica Spector, membership committee chair.
Here's another way to stay connected: Head over to our newStanton Street Shul Group on Facebookto chat with other congregants, share LES news, quarantine parenting tips, recipes, a class you may have heard about, how you are doing, and what help you might need.
We Appreciate Your Support!
Although our doors are closed, our spirits, minds and hearts remain open during these difficult times. We are davening together on Zoom, supporting congregants with chesed needs, and hosting classes and events online.
Please consider sponsoring a virtual program. Now more than ever, we rely on your generosity to keep us going. We know this is a tough time and appreciate whatever you are able to give.
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