The Stanton Street Weekly Newsletter: Shabbat Vayechi
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Week of December 17th, 2021 13 Tevet 5782 Shabbat Vayechi
Erev Shabbat December 17th (13 Tevet) 4:12p Candle Lighting
Shabbat Vayechi December 18th (14 Tevet) 9:30a Shabbat Services IN SHUL 5:16p Havdalah
Tuesday, December 21st (17 Tevet) 7p Rabbi Leead Staller's Parshat HaShavuah Shiur via ZOOM
Wednesday, December 22nd (18 Tevet) 7p Rabbi Leead Staller's Tefillah Shiurvia ZOOM 9p Challah Bake with Moishe House IN SHUL
Thank you to this week's valued DONORS! We are grateful to have such a committed community. Jonathan Cooper • Jason Klein for Giving Tuesday Linda & Lawrence Friedman for Out-of-Town Family Membership and Kiddush Sponsorship
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FROM RABBI LEEAD STALLER
Drasha While all of the brothers get a line or two of parting words from Yaakov, Yosef, the firstborn of his beloved Rachel, is given an extended goodbye scene. Yosef brings his sons, Ephraim and Menashe, to say goodbye to their grandfather and to receive Yaakov’s parting blessing– a tradition we recall from Yitzchak’s parting blessings to his sons earlier in Bereishit. And while Yaakov’s last minute decision– crossing his hands, and giving the younger son, Ephraim, the honor of the right hand and the primary blessing– is perhaps the most famous element of this scene, I want to focus on an even more peculiar part of Yaakov’s final farewell to Yosef and his sons that does not get as much attention.
In the middle of Yaakov saying goodbye to Yosef, and giving his grandchildren a parting blessing, Yaakov, in a seeming non sequitur, chooses to rehash past history. Jacob has just said “Ephraim and Menashe will be like sons to me, and will inherit like all the other brothers,” an on topic statement abou how Yosef, as Yaakov’s most beloved firstborn, will receive the firstborn’s double portion through his sons, when all of a sudden, Yaakov launches into a narrative (Genesis 48:7):
“And as for myself, when I came from Padan Aram, Rachel died on me in the land of Kanaan while we were still on the way to Efrat, and I buried her there on the way to Efrat, which is Beit Lechem.” continued
This month's update comes from Mona & Stephen Klaber Although my husband Stephen and I live in San Francisco, my roots to the Lower East Side are long and deep. I was raised in the Hillman co-ops and was so blessed to have all my grandparents living across the street in the East River co-ops. My paternal grandparents previously lived on Clinton Street where my dad grew up. They ran a shoe business on Avenue B and then Stein’s Realty, at the same location for 50+ years. My maternal grandparents owned a “yards-goods” (fabric) store on Allen Street.
Pre-Covid, when we’d come to NY to visit our son and daughter-in-law, Andrew and Jackie, we always went with them to The Stanton Street Shul and the warmth of the congregation was palpable. And now, even 3,000 miles away, we continue to feel the haimishkeit of the shul. We are honored to be members of the Stanton community.
So…Vos Iz Nayes?…we’re still quite Covid-cautious. But since we’re both retired, we have time to take in as much of the beauty of Northern California as possible, especially hiking around Marin County, Pescadero, Sonoma, and Napa. After our exercise, we find places off the beaten path where I sit in the sun and Stephen sits in the shade (the key to a long and happy marriage). We bring our lunch and read, or catch up with friends on the phone. I study with a Partner in Torah in Far Rockaway, NY, and we’ve zoomed into some incredibly inspiring programs sponsored by the Illinois Holocaust Museum, CAMERA, and Streicker Center Temple Emanuel-El NYC. On Shabbat, we love discussing the Parsha with each other and then, after Havdalah, taking the Chabad Parsha quiz and comparing our scores! We very much enjoy One Day University. It offers a wealth of outstanding 1-hour classes with topics ranging from literature to art to science to history, to movies, to Broadway show tunes, all taught by fabulous professors. One of our favorites was, “A Jewish Founding Father? Alexander Hamilton’s Hidden Life.” But undoubtedly, the highlight of our days is babysitting for our two young grandsons, 3-year-old Nathan and one-year old Noah. And B’H, we very much look forward to doing the same very soon, for our beautiful 7-month-old granddaughter, Eliza Anne, in NYC.
G-d willing, we hope to see you all at SSS in the very near future. Zei gezunt!
Please send all 'Voz Iz Nayes?' submissions to Mona Klaber We look forward to including your news in an upcoming Stanton newsletter!
For those of you who missed our Volunteer Recruitment Meeting last week, it was a great start to enriching our community engagement and participation. Check out Rabbi Staller's slide show to review what we discussed and survey the committees and tasks available as volunteer opportunities.
Some examples of ways to get involved:
Try your hand at being a Gabbai for a week Plan fun events. Help maintain and improve our building. Extend chesed to our members in need. Brainstorm ways to grow membership in our shul. Strengthen connections to our external community and within our internal community.
(Note: You will always have support and assistance. If you want to try something you've never done before, we will guide you. You won't have to figure it out on your own. We encourage you and welcome you to give as little or as much of your time as you are able.)
If anything strikes your fancy, please fill out this google form. And consider grabbing a buddy with whom to volunteer.
StantonKIDS Saturday, December 18th, 2021 10:30am in SHUL
Challah Bake with Moishe House Rabbi Staller will lead the crowd in preparing a challah from scratch! Wednesday, December 22nd at 9pm 180 Stanton Street
MORE UPCOMING EVENTS. Stay Tuned... January 7, 2022: Community Dinner (from now on we will have a Shabbat Shul dinner the second Friday of every month.) January 2022: Shul Art Gallery Launch Upstairs in the Balcony February 2022: Monologues from the Makom: Intertwined Narratives of Sexuality
Parshat HaShavuah Shiur Tuesday, December 21st, 7:00 - 8:15pm via ZOOM To join by phone, dial 1-(929) 205 6099 and enter Member ID: 847 9509 7605
and Tefillah Shiur Wednesday, December 22nd, 7:00 - 8:15pm via ZOOM To join by phone, dial 1-(929) 205 6099 and enter Member ID: 894 9535 0094
With Rabbi Leead Staller
New Beginner Talmud Class: Needs Your Help! The class, led by Rabbi Leead with the help of our Rabbinic Intern Emily and others, will be an introduction to Talmud, with the goal of giving members exposure to wide areas of Talmud and Talmudic thinking. If you'd like to join Rabbi Leead, Emily, and Dan Marcus to brainstorm topics/ideas and finalize a class schedule, please reach out to Rabbi Staller. All help is appreciated!
Shabbat Shmooze Another way to stay connected to congregants and let people know we care! Each Thursday, we will call a few congregants to chat, touch base, and wish them Shabbat Shalom! Send all call requests, recommendations, or interest to Rabbi Staller
For our health and that of our city, country and world -- get vaccinated! Walk-in vaccines and booster shots are now available throughout the city. Or speak to your doctor. Or call the main vaccine hotline for NYC: 877-VAX-4NYC or 877-829-4692. Or visithttps://vaccinefinder.nyc.gov/or https://www.turbovax.info/
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.
Wishing Barry Feldman a speedy recovery after undergoing surgery. Happy Birthday Risa Gerstein The Stanton Street Shul COVID PROTOCOLS (as of November 1, 2021) We care deeply about the safety of our community. All attendees must wear a mask except while eating and drinking. Attendees must provide proof of vaccination. Please be considerate of the health of our community.
Security Protocols for Entering Shul: At all times as a security precaution, please use the code to enter the door on the right side of the building. If you do not know the code, knock and someone will let you in.
ONLINE ARCHIVES Click HERE for an archive of shiurim by Rabbi Staller ClickHERE for an archive of drashot by Rabbi Staller Click HERE to go to our YouTube Channel for an archive of our ZOOM classes
