|
|
|
|
Rabbi Joshua Rabin Cantor Emeritus George Lindenblatt
Judaism With Open Arms |
|
|
Friday Flyer |
January 31, 2025 • 2 Sh'vat, 5785 |
|
|
|
Rabbi Joshua Rabin Delivers NYC Council Invocation |
|
Last Thursday, January 23, Rabbi Rabin delivered the invocation at the start of the City Council's session. He delivered a call for unity and an end to seeing different groups as enemies across our city and beyond. His full remarks are shared below, and the video can be found on the City Council website.
Thank you, Rabbi Josh, for sharing the values of Judaism and of our particular Jewish community with our elected representatives. |
|
|
|
Shabbat Services
|
|
Saturday, February 1 at 10am
Tot Shabbat From 10:30-11:30am Doors open at 9:45; come early to schmooze. The Gershon-Stark family invites all in the community to share in a Kiddush lunch and celebration after services. |
|
|
Upcoming Children’s Programs |
|
Tot Shabbat 10:30-11:30am For preschool children
Upcoming dates:
Junior Congregation 10:30-11:30am For school-aged children
Upcoming dates:
|
|
|
Candle Lighting |
|
Shabbat Tonight's candle lighting time is 4:55 pm. The weekly Torah portion is Bo.
Havdalah will be Saturday at 5:57 pm. |
|
|
Do You Have Construction Experience? We Need You! |
|
ACI is seeking a volunteer with construction experience to assist and advise on upcoming renovation projects. Please write to [email protected] by January 31 if you are interested. |
|
Rabbi Rabin's Full Invocation |
|
Rabbi Joshua Rabin- New York City Council Invocation
January 24, 2025
Speaker Adams, Majority Leader Farías, Council Member Caban, beloved community,
With your permission, let us pray.
In Jewish tradition, there is a midrash—a rabbinic legend—that compares the wisdom of our sages to drawing water from a well:
“Rabbi Hanina taught: Torah is like a deep well full of water, whose waters were cold, sweet, and delicious, but no one was able to drink from it. Then, a certain person came along, tied one cord to another, one rope to another, and drew water out of the well to drink. Then, everyone else began to draw water and drink from it.”
What strikes me most about this story is the choice made by this mysterious individual. In this legend, water represents the wisdom of the Torah, a spiritual life force for each Jew. And yet, after this person labored tirelessly to access the well’s water, they shared it freely with others instead of keeping it for themselves. Confronted with the decision to view wisdom as either a scarce or abundant resource, they chose abundance.
My friends, those entrusted with our city's leadership, no one enters this world as an enemy to another. So, how do so many of us become enemies? Perhaps it is because we fail to embrace the subtle lesson of this legend: the world is not inherently zero-sum. It does not have to be unless we make it that way.
This year, I pray for all of us to stop seeing each other as enemies.
Republicans and Democrats, rich and poor, Christians, Muslims, Tibetans, Jews, and atheists; native-born citizens and immigrants; the 9,000 New Yorkers waiting for a lifesaving organ transplant; the over 350,000 homeless people in our city; the 91 Israeli hostages still in Gaza and the millions of Palestinians suffering in Gaza; the almost 3 million transgender Americans; the over 120,000 million people worldwide displaced last year due to climate change; Yankees fans and Mets fans—the list goes on.
None of these people are my enemies.
And none of them need to be anyone’s enemies.
So, let’s not treat any of them that way.
This year, I pray for you, our leaders, that you will become models of what it means to draw wisdom from the well and share it abundantly with all.
I offer this prayer in the name of my God and to whomever you may pray.
And let us say: Amen.
|
|
Open Door Shabbat Calendar |
|
Our Open Door Shabbat services are back once a month! Upcoming dates are:
What is Open Door Shabbat?
Shabbat morning is the best time for Jews to come together, and the WORST time to feel out of place in synagogue.
Join the ACI once a month for a no-experience-necessary Shabbat service, where we will explore the:
At 10:00, there will be a brief meditation service, and at 10:30 we will start the learning service.
If you have any questions, contact Rabbi Josh at [email protected]. |
|
Pastoral Requests |
|
ACI is committed to serving our community’s needs. If you would like to add a name to our Mi Sheberach list, inform the synagogue about a hospital visit or death, or request pastoral care for yourself or someone you know, please fill out this simple form. All submissions are confidential. |
|
Messages |
|
|
|
Get well to Elaine Brichta, from Sue Ann & Mitch
|
|
|
|
Happy Birthday to Elaine Brichta’s granddaughter Anna Brichta, |
|
|
|
Mazal Tov to Ezra Gershon and the Gershon and Stark families upon the occasion of Ezra’s becoming a Bar Mitzvah, with love from Sue Ann and Mitch |
|
|
Mi Sheberachs |
|
Please keep the following people in your hearts and prayers for the blessing of r'fua sh'leima:
Mindy Zimmerman Gary Lefkowitz Larry Opoliner Z'ev Ben Batya V'Avram Esther bat Chana
To add (or remove) a name, please contact Lizanne Fluxmon. |
Yahrzeits |
|
This week (3-9 Sh’vat), we observe the yahrzeits of the following ACI members, family and friends. May their memories always be a blessing.
Jennie Grossman
Pearl Rosenwasser Harry Wasserman Hermine Zacks Stross Ethel Diller Sarah Rabinowitz Fanny Kusnetz Morris Heller Lena Sklarofsky Ida Janofsky Dora Nagel Bea Blas Herman Utain Benjamin Greiff Max Nashoffer Jennie Goldstein David Blumenthal Sidney Snyderman Irving J Pomerantz Ruth Golding Sydelle Diner Samuel Pantie Israel Ratner Bertha Rosenfeld Betty Rifka Schwartz Harry Hirsch Ralph Yohai Sylvia Steinberg Harry Aptakin Abraham Goldenthal Julia Moss Rose S. Robinson Sidney Young Irving Sipes May Herman |
|
|
|
|