9:00am Spanish Services on Zoom; 10:00am Shabbat Services on Zoom
Sun.
Jul 26
9:00am Davening on Zoom; 9:30am Maimonides Class on Zoom
Mon.
Jul 27
12:00pm A Little Mishnah on Zoom
Wed.
Jul 29
12:00pm A Little Mishnah on Zoom
Fri.
Jul 31
12:00pm Tefillah Class on Zoom; 6:00pm Kabbalat Shabbat Service, Bat Mitzvah of Sophia Finkel on Zoom
Sat.
Aug 1
9:00am Spanish Services on Zoom; 10:00am Shabbat Services, Bat Mitzvah of Sophia Finkel on Zoom
Sun.
Aug 2
9:00am Davening on Zoom; 9:30am Maimonides Class on Zoom
In Jewish tradition, the days before Tisha b’Av (Wednesday night this year) is a time of mourning and sorrow. Starting three weeks out, and intensifying in the nine days before this difficult holiday, our rabbis set down many prohibitions and reductions to set the tone for the day. This means taking on many of the practices that resemble those of Shiva and Shloshim- refraining from shaving, avoiding live music, and minimizing pleasurable activities like swimming or eating meat and wine among others. The purpose is, ostensibly, to prepare us for Tisha b’Av by putting us in a proper state of mind where we can fully experience the pain and anguish of the day.
Tisha b’Av is the unique Jewish approach to facing communal suffering- a day set aside in our calendar to remember and express our sorrow for millennia of catastrophes and traumas, from the destruction of the Temples to the pogroms and massacres that fill any history of the Jewish people. The day is not meant to reduce or ignore the anniversaries or memory of each particular harm, but rather to give us, as a people, a way to take those tragedies and give them a safe place to be remembered when they have passed into the grey area beyond living memory. We can be sure that, through observance of Tisha b’Av, Jewish tragedies will never be forgotten even if no one is left who remembers them personally.
Yet I am compelled to ask whether this year, of all years, the preparations and self-denial that are part of this ritual memorial need to be kept. So many of us, and so much of the world, are struggling with personal and communal crises. Anyone who has seen me on their screens these last few months likely has noted that no razor has touched my head or my beard- but my distance from a barber’s scissors is based on avoiding exposure to disease, not religious piety. My diet is reduced, swimming avoided, concerts not attended because of public health concerns. In many ways, we have been living in a state of contraction and mourning since March. It almost seems absurd to suddenly ascribe religious intent to my behaviors, when they have conformed so completely for other, more immediate, reasons.
That is the key, though- intent. I might not have cut my hair for months because I wanted to avoid close contact and minimize health risks, but this week I do it in preparation for Tisha b’Av. What was about personal health is now also about Tisha b’Av. Just as I refrain from shaving during the Omer every year, this year I also refrained for health reasons. The laws and practices of our tradition are not meant to be exclusive, but rather inclusive- one motive or many are equally valid reasons to engage, so long as we engage at all.
As we move toward Tisha b’Av in the coming week, and onto the High Holidays not long after, may our ability to find purpose and meaning behind our everyday actions grow in power and clarity. There is no action, no task, that cannot be made greater by our investment. And as a community, and a people, may we be blessed to find meaning and purpose in our every day efforts to ensure the safety, health and wellbeing of ourselves, our families, and our communities.
Please help generate donations for TBS-EV by purchasing items on AmazonSmile.The AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase price of eligible products to TBS-EV once you sign up.
Aluminum can donations will help support our General Fund. Please place your CRUSHED aluminum cans (beverage cans only please) in the administration office mail room.
Please donate your used printer cartridges. Place your used cartridges in the box located on the counter in the Administration Office. We have been paying for most of our office supplies for several years through the money we get from recycling printer cartridges. Please help us keep this worthwhile endeavor going.
The Sisterhood of TBS-EV is collecting old eyeglasses and lenses to be donated to the Lions Club. There are donation containers waiting to be filled in the Sanctuary, Social Hall and Administration Office.
Save the Family has asked for help to transition families into homes. Current household product needs include: toilet paper, paper towels/napkins, shampoo & conditioner, toothpaste & brushes, deodorant, mouthwash, body lotion, body wash, diapers--particularly size 4, baby wipes, feminine hygiene products, all-purpose cleanser/comet/etc., laundry detergent/bleach/dryer sheets/fabric softener. There is a bin in the Office. Please help this worthy community service.
Prayers are needed for Chaim Laib ben Esther, brother of Walter Berkey; Alexander Moshe HaLevi ben Rivkah, father of Regina Fischer; Rivkah bat Rachel, grandmother of Regina Fischer; Brenda Carson, sister of Rebecca Toledo;Donnie Carson, brother-in-law of Rebecca Toledo; Roberta Rosenberg (Rivkah Fradel bat Sara);Shimson ben Etel, father of Florence Wibel; Irene Simpkins (Yocheved bat Miriam); Barbara Tricoci (Baila bat Rifka); Elazear ben Dreisyl; Eric Taylor; Sid Brodsky (Zundel Be'er ben Esther); Linda Heartquist;Allen Simon (Aaron Hirsch ben Ceil);Carol Osman Brown, friend of Linda Radke; Rijon Erickson; Chano Ruven ben Shaina Chaya; Matthew Werdean, friend of Regina Fischer; David ben Sarah, father of Rabbi Aberson; Jack Heller; Liba Yetta bat Tova; Ilana bat Bella, sister of Ruti Keren; David Ramirez, brother of Louis Ramirez; Pasha bat Fayge, friend of Gloria Windmiller; Moshe ben Hana, brother-in-law of Ruti Keren; HaRav Haim Baruch ben Chana; Raphael ben Rebekah, friend of Alan Sapakie; Jack Rosenberg (Ya'acov Avram ben Sarah Ruchel); Walter Berkey (Yossel Velvel ben Esther); Warren Stern (Binyamin ben Meyer Rav); Jennifer Dally, partner of Maggie Diamond; Rose Tufarelli; Sarah Caliandro (Sarah Nechama bat Leah); Ingrid Gallegos; Chaim Shneur Zalman Yehuda ben Hinda Yocheved; Alex Shekhel;Avraham ben Chaya Udel;Mordechai Shimon ben Sarah, brother of Roberta Rosenberg; Harve Kimmel (Herschel Yehuda ben Avraham Ya'acov HaCohen).
Lola Goffman, mother of George Goffman Irving Steel, father of Edward Steel Hyman Bernoff, father of Neil Bernoff Bonnie Cooper-Davis, mother of Lara Berkey Julio Gallegos, brother of Ingrid Gallegos Arthur Libman, father of Casil Libman Helen Reinitz, grandmother of Roberta Rosenberg
It is with great sadness that we inform you of the passing of Robert Edwin Skirboll(Rueven Asher ben Rivkah), brother of Phillip Skirboll.
Notesof Condolence may be sent to Phillip at 8314 S. Jentilly Ln., Tempe, AZ 85284. The family appreciates the thoughts and prayers of the community during this very difficult time.
HaMakom yenakhem etkhem b'tokh she'ar avelei Tzion Virushalayim.
May God comfort you together with all the other mourners of Zion and Jerusalem
