Weekly Newsletter

Week of December 11th, 2020
25 Kislev 5781
Shabbat Chanukah VaYeshev

Thank you to this week's DONORS
We are grateful to have such a committed community

Welcome to our new Out-of-Town Member: Joshua Blachorsky 
The following congregants have contributed to the Eruv Fund:
Barry Feldman •  Alvin Goldstein • Robert Jacobs • George Kleiner • Richard McBee • Esther Rebibo • ​​​​​​​Ellen & Paul Silverstein
The following congregants donated to shul as a cooking class participant:
Rachel Frazer • Karen Housman • Jeff Katz • Rita Lourie • Rachel Mincer • Phyllis Ruffer Joan Silverman • Ellen Silverstein • Jessica Spector

ERUV FUNDRAISER
Please support the downtown Eruv and donate here!
Our Shul's responsibility for the Eruv is $3600. Thus far, we have raised over $1800. Every little bit of support helps.
Consider becoming a $180 Sponsor.
Watch a Recording of our Giving Tuesday ERUV EVENING 
including a wonderful lecture by Museum Curator Zachary Levine on the History of the Eruv

COVID Protocols
As cases rise nationally, and New York City begins to tighten it's restrictions with the onset of winter and the holiday season, we reemphasize the need to abide by the CDC guidelines. If you traveled beyond tri-state area or hosted for Thanksgiving, or were in a high risk situation recently, please take the appropriate measures to ensure everyone's safety. And as always, if you feel sick, please stay at home. If you attend in-person services, please wear a mask and register for services in advance. Thank you everyone for your cooperation as we all work together to ensure a safe service. 

The miracles of Chanukah are many. The Maccabees defeated the Syrian Greeks, an army far more powerful than the Jewish forces. One pure cruze of oil that had not been defiled by the invaders burned miraculously for eight days.

Let us together perform a Stanton Chanukah miracle of our own. Let's come together on Sunday morning, December 13 at 9:30 and have the first morning minyan in the Shul since our Purim minyan in March, days before the start of the pandemic. The service includes a full Hallel and Torah reading.   
Please register here

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.  

Many may not realize that we stand here today, Shabbat Chanukah, on the precipice of one of the most controversial issues in Halakha. Despite hundreds of years of discussion, with every major Halakhic authority of the past few hundred years taking a stance, somehow this controversy rages on, unresolved. Of course, I’m talking about the notorious question in Halakha of whether to light Chanukah candles first, or to recite Havdalah first. While this question may not seem “controversial,” in the sense that the stakes feel much lower than the “controversial” issues we think of, it certainly remains subject to intense controversy as, somehow, this Halakhic issue has never reached a finalized conclusion. 

But what’s so controversial about this question? The Shulchan Aruch (OC 681:2) quotes the Terumas HaDeshen who rules that in Shul, the congregation should first light Chanukah candles and then recite Havdalah. While the Shulchan Aruch specifically locates this practice to the Shul, the Rema comments that the same practice should be adopted at home. As such, it seems like this should be a cut and dry question! Like all other realms of Halakha, the Shulchan Aruch and Rema are the decisive codification and final word on the Halakha, and thus, should settle the matter. And yet, many if not all of us, when we get home tonight, will first recite our Havdalah before lighting Chanukah candles– a clear contradiction to the words of the Rema!

But we needn’t worry, as we too are basing our practice on a well sourced custom. The Taz, commenting on the Shulchan Aruch, quotes the Maharal amongst others who disagreed, and argued that we should recite Havdalah first, and only then light Chanukah candles. And yet, while it is nice to know that the practice of reciting Havdalah first has authority behind it, even the Taz’s suggestion doesn’t fully align with the practice many of us are used to. For, in every Orthodox Shul in America tonight, the congregation will first light Chanukah candles before reciting Havdalah! Ultimately, our practice aligns with the later decision of the Mishnah Berurah (681:3) who rules that the Shulchan Aruch’s insistence of lighting Chanukah candles before Havdalah only applies in Shul at the communal lighting, but at home, we are free to recite Havdalah first.

Eventually, the practice developed in America to light Chanukah candles before Havdalah in Shul, but at home, to recite Havdalah first. But isn’t this compromise inconsistent? How can we Paskin one way at home and one way in Shul? And why is this issue so complicated and unresolved after centuries of Halakhic discourse? What is going on in this seemingly small detail of Chanukah that has led to so much unresolved discussion and controversy? To answer these questions, we must first understand what’s at stake here. We are faced with a question of prioritization, as both Chanukah candles and Havdalah compete for preferential treatment. But what exactly is motivating that question? Why should we be prioritizing one or the other? What statement is being made by choosing one Mitzvah first?.... continued

Click HERE to read the Rabbi's full Drasha

Chanukah Celebrations!

Saturday, December 12th at 7:00 pm 
Join Leead and Shoshana for a Chanukah Housewarming a.k.a. a Chanukah Chanukat HaBayit! We're celebrating the Festival of Lights and one month at 194 East 2nd Street. Meet us in the outdoor space across the hall from our apartment (1A) as we light our chanukah candles and hang up our mezuzas, followed by donut-filling, dreidel-playing, and a raffle! Bring a coat and a mask for some socially distanced holiday fun.
Hope to see you there! - Shoshana + Leead



Sunday December 13th, 10:00 - 10:30am
Please join us for a StantonKIDS with Morah Leslie and Morah Aliza
We will explore Chanukah traditions and rituals, and sing holiday songs. 
via ZOOM with pswd: 703760

StantonKIDS provides inclusive and innovative shabbat and holiday programming, engaging children through music, prayer, food, and interactive, experiential activities.
Your generosity allows us to provide free, high-quality StantonKIDS programming. Please keep us in mind as you consider your year-end giving!
For more info, email kids@stantonstshul.com or CLICK HERE to donate!
Chanukah Sameach!
The StantonKIDS Committee,
Aliza, Liz, and Leslie

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. 

Folow-Up: Our Pre-Chanukah Cook Along with Nancy Wolfson-Moche was a smashing success. Thank you to all those who participated and donated to the shul. And a big thank you to Malka Percal for generously sponsoring this event. Nancy's new book is available for purchase:  Vegetables for Breakfast from A to Z

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. 

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.

We at The Stanton Street Shul and beyond have the incredible opportunity to learn Torah from the comfort of our own homes every week! Hear Rabbi Staller's fresh perspective on the weekly parsha on Tuesday evening at 7:00 PM and his innovative approach to understanding Tefillah (prayer) on Wednesdays at the same time. All Stanton classes are free and recorded for your review, but it is the live interchange between rabbi and participants that energizes these classes and makes them special. 

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