CJC Newsletter January/February 2006

Welcome, Chaverim, to the New Year with CJC!

With gratitude to our religious leaders, we include a deliberation on self-truth, from Jhos, and Part 2 on meanings in the Kaddish prayer, from Julie.

This month the CJC Board meets together with the Va'ad, the leadership circle, to discuss in depth the results of the Participation Survey conducted in June 2005, as well as vital current and future organizational issues.

Questions and input about your potential participation, membership, volunteering, and taking a leadership role are always encouraged.

Contact Sara Russell at: (650) 490-0914, or email: saralrussell@sbcglobal.net.
Click here for a Membership Form

nature photos ©2005 Amee Evans Godwin

From Our Maggid: Walk Your Talk
by Jhos Singer

Shalom Chaverim-

Remember the phrase "walk your talk'? A decade or so ago, 'walking ones talk' was the measure of how much respect a person commanded. People who didn't 'walk their talk' were suspect, their credibility was questioned and they were dismissed as being 'flaky' or worse. I distinctly remember feeling like I had better quit talking lest my walking bring me to disgrace.

While I certainly think that we each have a responsibility to act in accordance with our beliefs, I also know that Jewish tradition supports a certain amount of talking that is merely for the sake of exploring ideas and possibilities. Indeed it is one of the things that is somewhat unique to Judaism, our passionate embrace of paradox, contradiction and the truth that lies between the extremes. This brings to mind another phrase, "Do as I say, not as I do." This I learned from my mother, z''l, who would blearily say it when I would reproach her for various bad behaviors.

Our words are tremendously powerful. There are Jewish traditions that strongly admonish "if you can't say something nice, don't say any thing at all". Some of our teachers say that speaking lashon hara, evil tongue or gossip-spreading rumor, is as odious as murder. Indeed there are entire treatises written about the ills of lashon hara. But just how do we define it?? Is it, in fact, lashon hara, to not walk your talk?

I mention this because a few weeks ago as I was preparing to lead our kahal/congregation in the Aleinu, I was struck by how the words and ideas of that prayer are talk that I struggle with, I doubt their worth, I do my best to actively not 'walk' them, and yet service after service I, and we, continue to speak them.

Here is a basic translation:

It is our obligation to praise/Aleynu l'shabeiach
The Master of all,/l'adon hakol
To ascribe greatness/l'teit g'dulah
To the Creator of the beginning: l'yotzeir brieshit.
That He has not made us/Sh'lo asanu
Like the Nations of the lands/k'goyei haratzot
And has not positioned us /v'lo samanu
Like the families of the earth;/k'mispachot ha'adamah
That He has not assigned/shelo sam
Our portion like theirs,/chelkeinu ka'hem
Nor our lot like that of all their multitudes. /v'goraleinu k'chol hamonam

Its going OK up to this point, and most modern interpreters who support the continued use of this prayer draw heavily from this part of the liturgy. Of course it is true that each distinct

(Jhos' continued...)
group, whether defined by belief or custom or genetics, are unique and unlike any other. And what's wrong with taking a moment to be grateful for our uniqueness in the world. Nothing. So far, in my opinion we are not committing an act of lashon hara. But then comes the next few lines, here I'm putting the unedited version, the lines in parenthesis have been omitted by the reform movement and most conservative communities, but you should know what the traditional prayer in its entirety says……

(For they prostrate themselves/sh'hem mishtachavim
To vanity and nothingness,/v'chevel v'rik
And pray to a god that cannot deliver./u'mit'pal'lim el el lo yoshiya)
But we bow, prostrate ourselves/va'anachnu korim u'mistachavim
And offer thanks/u'modim
Before the Supreme King of kings/lifney melech malchei ham'lachim
the Holy One blessed is He./HaKadosh Baruch Hu!!!

Now, if I'm not mistaken, these lines read are patently insulting to the entire non-Jewish world. Of course the current editing helps soften it up a bit, but if we are being really honest we have to admit that this 'prayer' can be understood to mean that we Jews have a monopoly on truth, and that's problematic to say the least.

Our liturgy is our redacted and codified spiritual script. We use it to converse with God. Is it possible that we are allowed, in that sacred forum, to consider the possibility that we have found THE TRUTH? Or should we never allow ourselves that indulgence, even behind closed doors? Should we only 'talk' the words we can 'walk'? Or does that limit us to a closed set of beliefs? I have to say that I have met Jews who 'walk their talk' and as a result totally ascribe to the notion that they are in fact better than people of other faiths, and are closer to God than other people. And this troubles me.

When I look at our matriarchs and patriarchs in the Torah I see flawed people. People who had anger management issues, communication problems, who lied and connived, who deceived and attacked. I don't see people who 'walked their talk', I see people who fell more in the 'do as I say….' scheme of things. They stumbled and made mistakes, they had moments of clarity and vision and moments of clouded angst. I think the Torah teaches us again and again that wisdom is borne out of a combination of intuition and experience. Moses is great, but he is also tremendously weak in some areas. I think that we, the Jewish people, are a lot like Moses in this way. And just as Moses needed a lot of help and input to carry out his mission, so do we. I continue to pray the Aleinu as a sort of spiritual micro-abrasion. Every time I say it, in its edited form, I am painfully aware of its dangers: hubris, arrogance, xenophobia and conceit. I am simultaneously aware of how dependant Judaism is on all the "nations of the earth" who differ from us, who offer a different perspective and possibility.

To date, Jews remain one of the smallest and longest lived cohesive groups of our species. The fact that we exist at all is a miracle. Are we different from 'the other nations'? Indeed we are on that level. But are we better? I honestly don't know. But I would hazard a guess that if we really were spiritually superior to our fellow earthlings, we wouldn't need to brag about it in our liturgy. Now that would really be walking our talk…… In the meantime, I'm still stumbling, how about you??

May we make 2006 a better year, for us, for all who wrestle with God and for the whole world. Amen.

Jhos

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nature photos ©2005 Amee Evans Godwin

Our Sheli'ach Tsibbur: The Mourner's Kaddish (Part 2)
by Julie Batz

In last month's newsletter, Jhos and I wrote about the Kaddish Yatom/The Mourner's Kaddish, exploring both its historical development and traditional enactment. This month, I'd like to share some of the more creative ways people are using and adapting the Kaddish.

Anita Diamant has written a beautiful book called Saying Kaddish: How to Comfort the Dying, Bury the Dead & Mourn as a Jew. In it, she includes many creative English interpretations of the Kaddish, including one written by Debra Cash that we have used in our services and offered as an English addition to those saying Kaddish:

"Build me up of memory
loving and angry, tender and honest.
Let my loss build me a heart of wisdom,
compassion for the world's many losses.

Each hour is mortal
and each hour is eternal
and each hour is our testament.
May I create worthy memories
all the days of my life."

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(Julie's continued...)

In Naomi Levy's book, Talking to God, she has created prayers and blessings for all occasions, including those for someone who is dying, and for those who are in mourning. She has built upon the traditional Kaddish to create prayers for the many kinds of losses one might suffer: from the loss of a parent, to the death of a loved one after a long illness, to the loss of a family member to suicide. Written in the first person, these prayers are not "traditional", but they beautifully incorporate the Jewish foundations of blessing someone's memory and what they brought to our lives, reaching out to God for comfort during difficult times, and acknowledging death as a part of the cycle of life that should be honored through ritual.

Here is her introduction to the prayers she has written for death and dying:

"Death cannot sever our connection to those we have lost. The soul is eternal and can never be extinguished. But not only the soul survives the grave. The bonds of love are stronger than death. The lessons that our loved one taught us, their goodness, their deeds, their wisdom will remain with us always. They have left a permanent imprint upon our souls that can never be erased. They continue to guide us wherever we go.

Most people think heaven is a far-off place. But perhaps heaven is closer than we think, perhaps our loved ones are with us. Perhaps they are silently watching over us and sheltering us and guiding our steps. I believe that we are surrounded by the loving presence of those we have loved and lost. May they continue to be with us; may they bless us and inspire us to goodness, in death as they did in life."

Finally, contemporary liturgists have taken the same underlying themes of memory and honor and made inspirational music to comfort us during difficult phases of our lives. One that we use in our Yizkor service is "Limnot Yameinu", adapted from Psalm 90, verse 12 by Rabbi Yitzchak Husband-Hankins:

Limnot yameinu kein hoda v'navi l'vav chochmah
Teach us to treasure each day
That we may open our hearts to Your wisdom
Teach us to treasure each day

May these authors and blessings inspire and comfort us as we pass through the darkest part of the year.

B'shalom, Julie

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Lifecycles - Bikkur Cholim

LIFECYCLES

Mazel tov to Linda Jacobson and Maryann Bell on the birth of twin boys,
Elijah Solomon Jacobson-Bell and Tobias Mace Jacobson-Bell
on December 28th.
Eli at 11:16AM, 6lbs 9 oz
Toby at 11:18AM 6 lbs 8 oz
Doula, Sarah Russell, was on hand

Amee Evans Godwin's mother, Adelaide Evans, passed away November 14th.
Condolences to her and her family

 

YARTZHEIT

Alison Levi's mother, Shirley Levi, 1/30, 1 Sh'vat, 5765
Linda Jacobson's grandmother, Matilda Jacobson, 2/2, 4 Sh'vat, 5762
Lisa Spector's father, Joseph Spector, 2/05

Julie Moed's mother, Lily Moed, 2/7, 30 Sh'vat, 5751
Lesli Sachs' father, Louis Laeb Sachs, 3/04, 4 Adar I, 5744

Elizabeth Ross' mother, Matilda Ross, 3/07, 7 Adar I, 5762
Hank Stern's father, Al Stern, 03/29, 29 Adar I, 5733

Vaughn Harrison's father, Norman Polansky, 03/11, 11 Adar II, 5763
Sheila Weiss' father, Michael Kosmin, 3/18, 18 Adar II, 5733
Laura Alster-Martin's mother, Sylvia Alster, 3/11, 11 Adar I, 5766

 

“Help for our community is needed”

As always, new families appreciate dinners delivered to them.
Anyone able to cook for or help transport our community when the need arises,
please contact Linda Bea Miller: lb250a@hotmail.com or 726-6959.
We are in need of helpers.

Before the recent holiday season, someone e-mailed me expressing interest
in working with me on the Lifecycles position. I have since misplaced
your information (sorry). Could you please e-mail me again
(LB250a@hotmail.com) so I can contact you.

June is just around the corner. It is the time of year we change board members.
If there is another position on the board that you are interested in, contact us
and let's pursue it together. New board members equal new energy and new ideas.

Thanks, -LB

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Donations

GENERAL FUND

Richard Zipkin, in Loving memory of his father, Dr Isadore Zipkin; in honor of his mother, Mrs.. Lillian Zipkin and his brother, Michael Andrew Zipkin

Warren & Joanne Wolfeld, High Holidays Donation

The Ruach Havurah practices the mitzvah of tzedakah at all our gatherings in order to support and bless the on-going life and well-being of the entire community

Marta Drury in honor of Randi Howard & Mark Perlsweig

Leslie Deman in memory of Amee Godwin's mother

Karen Erlichman in honor of the 20th anniversary of Cathy Hauer & Nancy Baker and the 10th anniversary of Linda Jacobson & Maryann Bell

Sharon Jacobvitz in honor of Julie Batz

Jacque Maxon for High Holy Days prayer books

Mindy Goldman

Jhos Singer, Tzedakah

Lesli Sachs for the Nights of Light Banner,
in memory of Amee Godwin's mother, and in memory of Jihan Abdel-Gawad

Mark Perlsweig for the Nights of Light Banner

CANTOR'S FUND

Kerry Lobel

Rabbi's Discretionary Fund and the Sheli'ach Tsibbur's Fund

Elizabeth Rutzick

Prayer Book Fund

Sheila Weiss

 

Get more involved with CJC!

Sign up with eScrip - the electronic fundraising program in which participating merchants contribute when you buy stuff using your supermarket club/debit/credit cards that you register with eScrip. No receipts to collect, no tsuris (trouble) for you-and every purchase counts! Every time you shop at one of 6,000 merchant locations, a percentage of your purchase goes directly to CJC! It's simple and secure to sign up online:

Step #1: Go to www.escrip.com
Step #2: Click on Sign Up
Step #3: Enter CJC's Group ID#144028734
Step #4: Enter your card number(s).

It's easy. It's free. It's great for CJC.

 

Contact us!

CJC on the Web: www.coastsidejewishcommunity.org

Email: coastsidejewishcommunity@yahoo.com

Mailing Address: PO Box 1729, El Granada, CA, 94018

Spiritual Leaders:
Jhos Singer, Maggid 510-526-5397 cjcmaggid@sbcglobal.net
Julie Batz, Sheli'ach Tsibbur 510-549-3121 jbatz@sbcglobal.net

Board Members:
Sara Russell (Vice President)
Leslie Deman (Secretary)
Wendi Shafir (Education)
Linda Bea Miller (Lifecycles)
Amee Evans Godwin (Publications)
Lissin Lev Chaya (Ritual)
Liz Gray (Social Action)
Carrie Sealine (Ritual)

CJC Newsletter: Amee Evans Godwin
Email: coastsidejewishcommunity@yahoo.com

nature photos ©2005 Amee Evans Godwin

Ocean Shore Printing
for all your printing needs
Bar/Bat Mitzvah & Wedding Invitations
575 Kelly Ave, Half Moon Bay 94019
650-726-5186

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Publications/Webmaster - coastsidejewishcommunity@yahoo.com