Weekly Newsletter

Week of November 6th, 2020
19 Cheshvan 5781
Shabbat Vayera

COVID Protocols:
If you feel sick, please stay at home, and if you are coming to Shul, mask-wearing over both your mouth and nose remains non-negotiable. Please register for services in advance, so that we may prepare for your arrival and have a record for potential contact tracing. We are thankful to be able to meet, safely, during this difficult time. 

Because many of us are not able to attend shul in person, the Rabbi has agreed to share his shabbat morning drashah in advance. Here is the first half of it. To read the full drashah, click here and it will take you to what will become a rich archive of all of Rabbi Staller's drashot.  
Surely the story of Lot must be one of the quickest falls from grace we see in the Torah. When we first meet Lot, he is a foster son and a ward of Avraham, joining him on his adventures and partaking in Avraham’s larger divine mission. After a seemingly small dispute over appropriate grazing practices, Avraham and Lot decide to split up. At this point, we still haven’t really seen any bad action on Lot’s part beyond a seemingly calm disagreement with Avraham. Ultimately, Lot decides to move to Sodom due to its economic success, as it has fruitful land full of produce and greenery, due to the geography of the land and its water access. 

While the educated reader, knowing full well that Sodom is later doomed to destruction as a center of depravity, may judge Lot for this decision, at face value, Lot is not to blame for moving to Sodom. Avraham was given the mission of settling Israel, not Lot. It hardly seems his fault that he would choose an economically comfortable land to move to, as who amongst us can confidently say we would have made a different choice given the same opportunity. 

That said, it is clear that there is a certain amount of perversion to Lot’s otherwise generally good character. When the angels first visit Lot, Lot demonstrates his laudable hospitality, a trait he surely learned from Avraham. And when the people of Sodom surround Lot’s house and demand he relinquish his guests to a violent mob, we again see Lot’s commitment to his guests’ comfort, as he takes every measure within his means to protect his guests. And yet, here we begin to see signs of something being wrong, as part of Lot’s efforts to protect his guests involve offering his daughters up to the violent crowd in the angels’ stead. While perhaps Lot’s intent was in a good place, his actual suggestion was reprehensible– a clear corruption or perversion of Avraham’s values.

This perversion follows Lot in his story. Following Sodom’s destruction, angels take Lot and his daughters to a nearby hilltop to safely wait out the end of the destruction. There, alone with no one else but their father, Lot’s two daughters take turns taking advantage of their father as he sleeps, ultimately becoming pregnant and giving birth two two children– Amon and Moav, the national forefathers of the two border nations that would develop outside of Israel. Again we see an act of perversion surrounding Lot and his relationship with his daughters. Whereas in the first instance, Lot offered his daughters to strange and violent men, here, Lot creates a environment and household where acts such as rape and incest are thought to be tolerable....
Click HERE to read the Rabbi's full Drasha 

Please take a moment to fill out the Chesed/Social Action Committee's Survey. Share your interest, with Committee Chairs, in chesed, or acts of kindness, including volunteer opportunities and providing support to community members during lifecycle events; and educational opportunities for social action, specifically focused on racial justice efforts.

Misheberach: We pray that all who are sick may have a full recovery. To add a name to our communal misheberach prayer list, email us. 
Refuah shleimah to Susan Levinson, Shifra Etta bat Beila, mother of Rabbi Melinda Zalma

Women’s Tefillah Group
The Stanton Street Shul Women’s Tefillah Group will hold services for women, by women, on Rosh Chodesh Kislev. We will be davening via ZOOM (with Password: 364421) Tuesday, November 17th at 8am. All women are encouraged to attend. If you wish to lead any part of the service please contact us at this link.

Virtual film and discussion: A Wing and a Prayer
From the Israel Awareness Committee... 
Sunday, November 8th 4:00 - 5:00pm at Sousa Mendes Foundation via ZOOM
Free, but registration required to watch film in advance and then attend panel discussion. The film depicts World War II aviators as they race against the clock in a secret operation to arm the emerging Jewish state between 1947 and 1949. The panel discussion will feature Boaz Dvir, one of the last remaining aviators and author of Saving Israel: The Unknown True Story of Smuggling Weapons and Winning a Nation's Independence.

CLICK HERE to view our Annual Bulletin
Printed copies are available at shul.

SPONSOR A CLASS
Please sponsor a virtual class in honor of oneself, the Shul, a yahrzeit, an anniversary, a birthday, or in the name of a friend or someone who sustains the Shul with their hard work.  Sponsorships begin at $36, but there is no maximum. All sponsorships benefit the Shul and are very much appreciated. 

Rachel Frazer Teaches on Mondays!(Sponsorship opportunities available)
Reverberations of the Joseph Narrative
We will consider the fascinating Joseph story in Genesis as well as the story's reverberation throughout the Tanach.
Monday, Nov. 9th, 7:00pm - 8:00pm
via ZOOM with Password: 927772
To join by phone, dial 1-(929) 205 6099 and enter
​​​​​​​Member ID: 826 7409 231

ONLINE ARCHIVES
Click HERE for an archive of shiurim by Rabbi Staller
Click HERE for an archive of drashot by Rabbi Staller
Click HERE to go to our YouTube Channel for an archive of our ZOOM classes

Rabbi Staller Encourages and Welcomes Your Feedback and can be reached by email or by phone/text at (917) 282-7643. Alternatively, you may reach out, confiedentially, to our Rabbinic Advisory Committee. Contact committee chair Jeff Katz or committee members Paul Ruffer, Margie Segal, Marc Schwartzberg, and Ellen Silverstein. We welcome your input.

Thank you HIGH HOLIDAY CAMPAIGN DONORS
for making this year's campaign a success!
We are grateful to have such a committed community.
Sheldon & Rochelle Abelson • Moshe Bloxenheim • Brina Chu • Leslie Levinson & David Chu • David & Aliza Deutsch • Amy Eisenberg • Barry Feldman • Gary & Judith Floam • Dana Friedman • Michael Gansl • Alvin Goldstein • Jennifer & Adam Gottlieb • Paul Hess • Nathan Janette • Jeff Katz • Lindy Keiser • Moire Matheson • Elizabeth & Jonathan Miller • Bernard Osofsky • Malka Percal • Ben Rapp • Paul & Phyllis Ruffer • Marc Schwartzberg & Jill Slater • Margie Segal • Paul & Ellen Silverstein • Jessica Spector & Raffi Abelson • Maxbetter Vizelberg • Karen Suss Wolfson

For important resources during this COVID-19 era, please  CLICK HERE.