Shalom Friends,
My Rosh HaShanah sermon focused on the great mitzvah, the great commandment of sharing our stories - both our personal stories and the stories of tradition - with each other. I’ve posted some helpful resources here (click links on right) including information about a unique non-profit organization that can help us tell our stories. It’s called StoryCorps.
StoryCorps is an organization that believes, “listening is an act of love.” Its mission - to honor and celebrate one another’s lives through listening - is accomplished by providing a place where personal interviews can be recorded and shared. StoryCorps has a list of thoughtful questions that can assist us in sharing our tales.
StoryCorps encourages the recording of our stories. Download their free Do-It-Yourself Instruction Guide to get started. It is my hope that you will join me in participating in StoryCorps’ National Day of Listening on November 27, 2009.
You can record your own story at their booth on Centre Street. Join me for lunch near the booth downtown on Friday, November 13 or Friday, December 4. We will visit the booth after we eat, RSVP to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) at 212-838-5122 x1012.
Also, join me and my fellow clergy for our weekly classes and I invite you to friend me on Facebook so we can share updates on the stories of our lives with each other.
I look forward to continuing to share stories with you.
Wishing you all the best in this New Jewish Year of 5770,
Rabbi Mo Salth
P.S. Enjoy this storytelling-related parody of the song “As Time Goes By” from Casablanca
L’Shanah Tovah!
You must remember this,
A bris is still a bris,
A chai is just a chai.
Pastrami still belongs on rye,
As time goes by.
With holidays in view,
A Jew is still a Jew,
On that you can rely.
No matter if we eat tofu
As hours slip by.
Old shtetl customs, never out of date.
All those potatoes mother has to grate.
Honey, tsimus, latkes, chopped liver on our plate
The best that gelt can buy.
Some would send us to perdition,
But we’re strengthened by tradition,
That no one can deny.
We roam, but we recall our birthright,
As time goes by.
Dreidels and chocolate, never out of date.
Ancient Jewish stories that we all relate.
Blue-and-white giftwrap, everything that’s great
And festive chazerai!
It’s still the same old Torah,
It’s still the same menorah,
We’ve latkes still to fry.
It’s at yomtov when we feel most blessed,
As time goes by.
L’Shanah Tovah!
Shalom Religious School Parents,
I know you are well aware of the power of reading stories and sharing stories with your children. Our Religious School teachers regularly tell stories to our students in order to teach them about Jewish values, holidays, and our Torah.
Speak to your specific teachers about the resources they are using and the themes they are addressing in class. Continue to ask your children to show you the materials they study in class and the homework they are asked to complete. If your children are studying material that you are not familiar with speak to your teacher or to one of the clergy about how to learn about it yourself.
There is so much to know about Judaism and do not feel like you should know it all. Let your children know you are learning too. By letting them know you are still learning you model for our children that learning is a core value for Jews whether they are young or not so young.
If your child’s teacher is using specific story books in class, consider purchasing copies of them for your home. Retelling these stories reinforces the lessons taught in our classrooms and allows you to share your own opinions and view on the subject being addressed.
The KarBen Publishing House has a wonderful variety of books for children of all ages. Peruse their Web site for other books that may be related to your child’s age as well as subjects you and your children are interested in such as the holidays, Bible characters, Israel and Jewish values.
I also recommend:
And check out:
A monthly Shabbat service especially for kids in Kindergarten through 4th grade
A monthly class for parents of kids of all ages
Shalom Nursery School Parents,
I know you are well aware of the power of reading stories and sharing stories with your children. Our Nursery School teachers regularly tell stories to our students in order to teach them about Jewish values, holidays and our Torah.
Speak to your specific teachers about the books they are using in class and consider purchasing copies of them for your home. Retelling these stories reinforces the lessons taught in our classrooms and allows you to share your own opinions and view on the subject.
The KarBen Publishing House has a wonderful variety of books for Nursery School Children. They are the publishers of the popular Sammy Spider series of books. I also suggest you peruse their Web site for other books that may be related to subjects you and your children are interested in such as the holidays, Bible characters, Israel and Jewish values.
And check out:
Special Shabbat services for kids up to 5 years of age
A monthly class for parents of kids of all ages
There are many books connected to the theme of telling our personal and tradition’s stories. I have recommended a few below and invite you to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on this theme.
Hear Central Synagogue member, Abigail Pogrebin, discuss her new book in conversation with her sister, Robin, at the Manhattan JCC on October 26. Click to purchase tickets.
Central Synagogue’s classes and programs connect us to the ancient and modern stories of our tradition and to each other. Join us for any of our upcoming events. I especially recommend attending one of the weekly classes taught by Cantor Sacks, Rabbi Friedman or me. Descriptions of these classes are below. If you are unsure of which class or event might be best for you, .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or at (212) 508-3013, and I will suggest something to you.
Engage in the study of the weekly Torah portion and discover its biblical characters, narrative, and themes and how the Torah relates to our daily lives. No previous background or Hebrew experience necessary.
Experience a line by line look at our sacred text from many perspectives. No knowledge of Hebrew is necessary. Participants bring with them an eagerness to understand the Bible in history, as the Rabbis read it, as literature or drama, and for what it has to say to us today.
Engage in the study of the lives and rulings of some of the most famous personalities in the Talmud. Who were these sages? Why did they reason as they did?
