Shaarey Tphiloh Prayers, by Caryl Herzfeld

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Congregation Shaarey Tphiloh

Welcome to Shabbat Services

Emor
Omer: 28
 
May 21, 2016 – 13 Iyar 5776
 

Leviticus 21:1-24:23
Haftarah: Ezekiel 44:15-31

Candle lighting 7:47 p.m.

Services Saturday May 21 9:30 a.m.

Kiddush generously sponsored by Miriam Sheftel
in memory of Ethel Wishnick

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Congregation Shaarey Tphiloh, 76 Noyes St. Portland, ME 04103

President: Dr. Natan Kahn
Administrative Director: Susan C. Lawrence
www.mainesynagogue.org/wp 207-773-0693
maineshul@nullgmail.com cstexec@nullgmail.com
Shaarey Tphiloh Office Hours: T, Th, F 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.

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Ner Lamaore

Gail, Jack and Marilyn in memory of our beloved mother, Lea Markuse

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Parashat

Parshat Emor

“And you shall count for you from the morrow after the day of rest, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the waving seven weeks. They shall be complete.” (VaYikra 23:15)

We are currently involved in the mitzvah of sefirat ho’omer – the counting of the omer. We begin counting the omer on the second night of Pesach and continue the process up to Shavuot. This mitzvah requires that each night we verbally identify the new day’s number within the fifty days of the omer. On the second night of Pesach we declare that we are in the first day of the omer. We declare the following night as the second day of the omer. We repeat this process nightly until we arrive at Shavuot. The first mention of this mitzvah in the Torah is found in our passage.

Sefer HaChinuch provides an explanation for this mitzvah. He explains that the fundamental purpose of this mitzvah is to link Pesach with Shavuot. Why is it important to make this connection? Pesach recalls and celebrates our redemption from Egypt. However, this celebration is only completed with Shavuot. Shavuot recalls and celebrates the revelation of the Torah at Sinai. Our redemption from Egypt was designed to prepare us for this receiving the Torah. This was the purpose and sole objective of our redemption from Egypt. Without the Torah our redemption would have been meaningless. Therefore, we are required to acknowledge that the redemption that we celebrate on Pesach was – in itself – an incomplete event. It was a step in the progression towards revelation. We acknowledge this concept by linking – through our counting – the redemption of Pesach with the revelation of Shavuot.[1]

Rabbi Bernie Fox . Orthodox Union

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Sholem Aleichem

Stephen Simons, PhD
Sun, May 22, 10:00 am – 11:30 am
Temple Beth El Social Hall

Join Dr. Shimon Simons for a four session course on an adventure through the life and literature of the “grandson of Yiddish Literature, Sholem Aleichem.”

Who was Soloman Rabinowitz? Why did he use the heartiest and most welcoming of Jewish greetings, “Sholem Aleichem,” as his literary name? This participatory course will explore the life and times of the “grandchild of Yiddish literature.” Through selected short stories we will see how he responds to the rapid changes affecting the Jewish community in the Russian Pale of Settlement and then in the United States where nearly three million Jews began a new chapter in Jewish experience between 1880 and 1921. See the world through the eyes of the Jewish masses as interpreted by this innovative writer of the people.

ADVANCE REGISTRATION

Contact the TBE office at 774-2649 or office@nulltbemaine.org All are welcome.

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DONATIONS NEEDED FOR JEWISH FAMILY SERVICES ALL YEAR ROUND

Wish List:

• Diapers and wipes
• RICE!!
• Baked Beans
• Pasta Sauce & Pasta
• Kid Friendly Snacks-granola bars, etc.
• Cereal
• Juice Boxes

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Learning Opportunity at Chabad House

On Tuesdays at 7:00 p.m., Dr. Shimon Simons will teach Maimonides’ Hilchot Deot, “laws of character development,” at Chabad House, 11 Pomeroy Street, Portland. The next class meeting is Tuesday, January 19. Texts will be provided. Call Chabad House at 871-8947 for more details or check the December issue of the Jewish Journal.

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GREAT JEWISH BOOKS AT THE YIDDISH BOOK CENTER THIS SUMMER

Every year, the Yiddish Book Center welcomes a group of enthusiastic, engaged high school students for our Great Jewish Books Summer Program. Applications for the 2016 program are due April 1.

Now in its fifth year, Great Jewish Books brings together a diverse group of rising high school juniors and seniors to spend a week reading important works of modern Jewish literature and discussing them in seminar-style classes led by college professors. Outside of class, they meet renowned visiting authors, enjoy group recreational activities in the Amherst area, and get a taste of college life while staying (with staff RAs) in dorms on the Hampshire College campus, adjacent to the Yiddish Book Center.

All students admitted to the program receive scholarships covering the full cost of tuition, room and board, books, and special events.

Because the program has proven so popular in the past, this year we’re offering two sessions of Great Jewish Books: July 24-29 and July 31-August 7.

You can learn more about the program at yiddishbookcenter.org/great-jewish-books or by calling or e-mailing us at 413-256-4900, ext. 143, orgreatjewishbooks@nullyiddishbookcenter.org. I’m also including a flyer about the program that can be downloaded here, which I hope you will post and share with others.

As we look forward to another exciting summer of Great Jewish Books, we appreciate your sharing this information with any prospective applicants you know.

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No electronic devices are permitted. No electronic children’s toys or cell phones or cameras are permitted in the synagogue on the Sabbath.

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Please consider making a gift to one of our many funds. Call the office at 773-0693 for details. Thank you for your support of Shaarey Tphiloh. Contributions are tax-deductible.

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Yahrzeits This Week

4 Iyar William Arlock, Nellie Harris, Celia Popkin, Jack Schwartz
15 Iyar Jacob Benjamen, Mina Matts, Sadie Rubinoff, Mildred Sulkowitch
16 Iyar Louis, Gordon, Jennie Oransky, Morris Pluznick, Ida Shulman
17 Iyar Dorothy Goodman, Jacob Grant, Benjamin Sanford, Moses Wolfe
18 Iyar Eva Goldovitch, Eleanor Kessler
19 Iyar Anna Goldberg, Sidney Mack, Melvin Stairman
20 Iyar David Blumenthal, Edward Finks, Stuart Lerman, Rose Stern