Congregation B’nai Abraham Founded In 1903 A warm, caring, inclusive community Cantor Michal Gray-Schaffer Spiritual Leader 519 N. Main Street, Butler, PA 16001 724-287-5806 E-Mail: [email protected] Website: www.CongBnaiAbraham.org Eric Levin President April/May/June 2017 Nissan/Iyar/Sivan/Tammuz 5777 From The Cantor’s Desk… Cantor Michal Dear Friends, Occasionally, I come across an article or message so compelling that my first thought is to share it with as many readers as possible. Such is the case with an article written by Rabbi Dr. Danny Schiff, Foundation Scholar for the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh. To share his message with you, I will quote heavily from his article, but space does not permit me to share my colleague’s message in its entirety. Rabbi Dr. Schiff muses: “What does it mean to be a successful person? How does one live a successful life? Over the last year or two, we have heard many characteristics of what makes a person a success. We have been told that you are a success if you have built a great business, you are a success if you have achieved high office or if your are a “winner”; you are successful if you have made a great deal of money or if you are intelligent; you are a success if you have attained celebrity status, have the “number one show,” or if you are constantly in the public eye. Is this all true? Are these really signs of success?” Judaism takes a different view to success, Schiff writes. There is only one person in the entire Torah who is described as an “ish matzli’ach,” a successful person, and that is Joseph. Joseph does ascend to become the second most important person in Egypt in his time, but it is not for this reason the Torah labels him a success. That comes when he is living the lowest of the low existence as a slave to Potiphar - - and he resists the temptation to yield to the sexual demands of Potiphar’s beguiling wife. What is it that makes him successful? “Put simply, Joseph demonstrates mastery of the elusive art of self-restraint. [...] He has internalized the indispensable importance of character, and he knows that character means cleaving to principle, and not acceding to the whims of the hour, even when those around you might be doing just that. He demonstrates that being civilized requires a moral compass that is oriented towards a high calling. Judaism is absolutely concerned with success. But it never links success to fame, wealth, business, winning, or intelligence. In Jewish life, you become a success when you are a person of noble character, not enslaved to your passions, able to exercise self-restraint over your speech and conduct, principled, and not easily led astray from the worthy path.” [...]This is the type of success that really matters. We should each ask ourselves daily: ‘By the standards of Judaism, am I a success?” For nothing less than the nature of our society hinges on the answer....” What an important message for us to hear during these troubled times! Even though few of us will reach society’s current definition of success, all of us are capable of striving for Judaism’s interpretation. Rabbi Dr. Danny Schiff brings us a much-needed definition of what we should value and aspire to as Jews. I hope I have transmitted his message in a coherent way. He can be reached at dschiff@jfedpgh.org and, as always, you can reach me at shul..... My very best, Cantor Michal 2 A Few Words From Our President, Eric Levin... Dear Friends; I am thrilled to report that by the hard work of what started as a relocation committee we have broken ground on the renovations of our beautiful sanctuary. When completed the worship setting will be more intimate without losing the historical feel of the room. By reducing the size by about a third this will allow for us to utilize the free space for new offices, a library, and ADA approved bathrooms all on the same floor. Our memorial plaques and Tree of Life will be moved into the sanctuary which will allow for us to always feel the presence of those who have gone before us. Happily, also included in the renovation is central air conditioning and heat. A lot of work had been put into this project, by a few, to better the whole of our congregation. I look forward to being a part of this new era of Congregation B'nai Abraham and ask you to come join me. Happy Pesach to everyone from all of the Levins. 3 Our Religious School Director: Roberta Gallagher As I write this, it is March 17, St. Patrick's Day. My father would have been 102 years old today and even though he passed away in 1994, his spirit still guides me each and every day. He was not a religious man, but traditions meant everything to him. As our Religious School celebrated Tu B'Shevat with our Seder this year, I know he must have chuckled! This Seder was new to him when my sons celebrated it years ago; but the reason for it, the birthday of the trees, delighted him. He loved and respected nature. Our Purimschpiel and service to the tune of “Oklahoma!” would have put him over the edge! Kudos to our Cantor, students and adults alike for such an enjoyable evening! And a huge thank you for all the amazing desserts for the oneg! How will you ever top that one?! Our older Religious School students will be attending J-Serve again, volunteering at different venues in Pittsburgh while my students will be learning the four questions and making origami frogs! Coming soon will be our Model Seder where my father's spirit will again be felt. We shared Pesach as our favorite holiday. I'm not sure if he enjoyed the 4 glasses of wine or my mother's amazing brisket and kugel more (I'm going with the food!) Religious School will be winding down soon, but we have three B'nai Mitzvahs coming up! Jonah Doerr, Sarah Csonka and Joshua Miller will be called to the Torah June 10, and August 5 & 19 respectively. This would be sweet music to my father's ears. To know that B'nai Abraham continues to educate and instill Jewish values to our children would make his teacher's heart burst with pride. I feel so lucky to carry on in my father's footsteps as I enter my Religious School classroom each week. Now I'm going to celebrate Purim again, this time drinking L'Chaim once too often with a Scotch in honor of my dad! Roberta Margaret Zellefrow’s Book Review Ravensbrück BY Sarah Helm (Survivor) The Setting takes place in Germany during WWII. A concentration camp built by Heinrich Himmler that housed over ninety-thousand women. In fact, it was the very first concentration camp built for women prisoners. The women came from all walks of life. Also, only 10 percent of its inmates were Jewish. The rest of the women were prostitutes, political prisoners, housewives, British, and French. Any female person who opposed the Nazis ideology was sent to this horrible camp. The book speaks of horrors that cannot be spoken aloud or imagined. Survival by any means kept the women from starving or dying from disease, or being beaten to death at the whim of their Nazi captors. After reading this non-fiction story of life and death in Hitler’s concentration camp for women, I walked away from it with a changed outlook on life. This is a must read for all older teens and adult readers. It may also change your life. Ourcongregationisoverwhelmedwiththegenerosityofsomanypeoplewhohavedonatedsomanybooks.Ourlibraryisgrowing,andwillcontinuetodosothankstoallofyou!Wearenow especiallylookingfornew&recentlypublishedbooksforourentirecongregationtoenjoyandshare. 4 Thank You For Your Contributions! Mazel Tov Cantor’s Discretionary Fund Alvin Leventhal To In Memory Of Jonah Doerr Ruth & Nathan Siev Melvin H. Thomas On His Upcoming Bar Mitzvah Cemetery Fund Allen & Linda Ruben In Memory Of Fern Ruben Please join us for services on Saturday, June 10, 2017 at 9:00 AM, as our son Jonah is called to the Torah as a Bar Mitzvah. General Fund Donald & Judith Pripstein In Honor Of Shirley, Sara & Herb Grossman and any others still active at B’nai Abraham who were adult members of the Congregation when we were there from 1959-1962 (More details to follow soon!) Religious School Herman “Buddy” & Joan Leventhal Tom & Lori Doerr In Honor Of Roberta Gallagher for all the work she does for the Congregation CLASSES AT B’NAI INTRODUCTION TO JUDAISM There is currently no class, however, Cantor Michal is taking names for a new session. If interested, please contact her at [email protected], or call the shul at 724-287-5806. HEBREW CLASSES Currently there are no Hebrew classes in progress. The Cantor, however, is amenable to teaching upon request. As always, classes are free. We are pleased to announce the donation of the following books to our library: From the library of Janice Dunmire: The Tale Of The Ring; A Personal Memoir Of The Holocaust, by Frank Stiffel. Ravensbrück; Life And Death In Hitler’s Concentration Camp For Women, By Sarah Helm Shaking Eve’s Tree; Short Stories Of Jewish Women, Edited By Sharon Niederman Schindler’s List; A Novel, By Thomas Keneally A Guest At The Shooter’s Banquet; My Grandfather’s Past, My Jewish Family, A Search For The Truth By Rita Gabis Ally; My Journey across The American-Israeli Divide, By Michael B. Oren 5 Tu B’Shvat Seder! J-Serve 2017 B’nai Abraham Youth Group Mitzvah Project for UPMC Children’s Hospital: Buying requested items at Walmart (then enjoying Yogurt At Menchie’s afterward)! 7 PURIMSCHPIEL & ONEG BAKE-OFF! (Cantor’s & Kim’s New Offices) Construction has begun! Making haroset for Mrs. G.! 8 Mark Your Calendars! April 2017 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu 2 3 4 5 6 Fri 7 MS 9 10 11 12 Erev Pesach Pesach day 1 Pesach day 2 day 3 Chai Mitzvah Pesach day 4 19 20 21 26 27 28 Pesach day 6 17 18 Pesach day 7 Pesach day 8 23 24 25 16 Pesach 13 14 Sat Notes: 1 4/7: First Friday Family Shabbat Service 7p 4/14, 4/21, 4/28: Shabbat Service 7p 8 4/2: Model Seder 11a-12:30p 4/2: Chai Mitzvah class at Rodef Shalom 2:30p 15 4/10: First Seder-enjoy with your family! 4/13: Chai Mitzvah Class 7p-9p 22 4/30: Possible trip to Diamond Square, downtown Butler, to read names of Holocaust victims 29 Pesach day 5 30 4/11-4/18; Pesach Religious School 10 am-12:30 pm May 2017 Sun 7 Mon 1 8 Tue Wed 2 3 Thu 4 Fri 5 9 10 11 12 Sat Notes: 6 5/5: First Friday Family Shabbat Service 7p 5/12, 5/19, 5/26: Shabbat Service 7p 13 5/8: Chai Mitzvah Class 7p-9p Chai Mitzvah 14 15 16 17 18 19 *21 22 23 24 25 26 29 30 31 Chai Mitzvah 28 20 5/21: Chai Mitzvah at Senator John Heinz History Center 2:30 p 27 Religious School 10 am-12:30 pm June 2017 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu 1 Fri 2 Sat Notes: 3 6/2: Shavuot & First Friday Family Shabbat 7p A Cheesecake Oneg w/all the toppings will follow service! 4 11 5 6 7 8 9 12 13 14 15 16 10 6/9, 6/16, 6/23, 6/30: Shabbat Service 7p 6/12: Chai Mitzvah Last Class 7p-9p 17 24 Chai Mitzvah 18 19 20 21 22 23 25 26 27 28 29 30 6 Please Note The Following: FIRST FRIDAYS FAMILY SHABBAT SERVICE First Friday Family Shabbat Service; will be held the first Shabbat of each month. Special music and an Oneg will be the hallmarks of this service, and the new prayerbook will be used. SECOND FRIDAYS TOT SHABBAT SERVICE HAS CHANGED Second Friday Tot Shabbat Service; will only be held the second Shabbat of each month by Congregational request. All families with young children are welcome. Services will be held every Friday night at 7:00pm unless noted. Services will be held in the Library until further notice. Todah Rabah To The Following Congregants & Friends! Thank You to the following volunteers who assisted with dedication and energy to make the following events successful: David Hoffman, Kim Csonka, Sarah Csonka, Cantor Michal: for their photos. Everyone who prepared and brought food for our Shabbat Across America Dairy Potluck Dinner. Roberta Gallagher for organizing our Tu B’Shvat Seder and collecting contributions our congregants made to the Jewish National Fund toward the purchase of trees for Israel. Cantor Michal for writing, producing and directing a phenomenal Purimschpiel “Shushan Persia!”, which was a take-off on”Oklahoma!”. The Stars of our Purimschpiel; Sarah Csonka (Es-tuh), Emily Csonka (Ado Vashti), Ben Vincent (King Hashy), Zach Doerr (Mordy) and Tom Harrison (Ha-man), and additional cast members; Jonah Doerr, Valerie and John Perelman (Shushanites), Cantor Michal, and Shirley Grossman (Narrator)! Kathy Soroka, for her fantastic accompaniment during our Purimschpiel. Everyone who baked their hearts out for our first ever Oneg Bake-Off! Also thanks to all who voted on their favorite dessert. Shirley Grossman and her daughter Helene Goldstein won! Cantor Michal, Yisraela Klinger (in memory of her son Israel M. J. Klinger), Valerie & John Perelman, Sandi & Bill Hewko (in memory of their daughter Alexis Rae Hewko) for sponsoring wonderful Shabbat onegs! Angela & Michael Chang (and their adorable daughters Leila & Nora), and Ben Vincent for the wonderful job they have done in cleaning and sprucing up our shul, including our offices, and classrooms! Congratulations to Ben Vincent who is our new custodian! Shirley Grossman for spearheading & supervising the custodial care of B’nai. Everything has begun to shine around here! Congratulations to Emily & Sarah Csonka, Marni Levin & Bella Terman who participated in J-Serve 2017. The dedication you show for this wonderful community service event is amazing. Year after year you represent yourselves and our shul with great character, maturity, honor and integrity, and you have fun doing it. You Rock!! 9 Yahrzeit The Yahrzeits of the following beloved relatives will be observed in the weeks to come. Their names will be read at Friday evening or Saturday morning services the week of the date listed. Attendance at synagogue services and the recitation of Kaddish is always a most appropriate way to remember a loved one. The following names will be read at services on Friday, April 7. Nisan Apr. Jean Brown 11 7 Harry Blatt 11 7 Louis Schwartz 12 8 Alexander Hurwitz 14 10 Minnie Rosenberg 14 10 Frank Liebling 14 10 Sigmund Nast 16 12 Raymond Brown 17 13 Elizabeth Klein 17 13 The following names will be read at services on Friday, April 14. Nisan Apr. Roseann Rosen 18 14 Max Barron 18 14 Samuel Arnovitz 18 14 Isadore Aaron 19 15 Geneva Norris 20 16 Ann Abes 20 16 Schoene Gruskin 20 16 Harry Lurie 20 16 Bessie Arnovitz 20 16 Jeanne K. Krause 20 16 Rita Ziman 20 16 Lewis Horwitz 22 18 Sarah Offstein 22 18 Tracey Schmitt 22 18 Sam Parnes 22 18 Sam Berland 23 19 Louis Gluck 24 20 Meyer Farber 24 20 The following names will be read at services on Friday, April 21. Nisan Apr. Joel Meislik 25 21 Julius Bernstein 26 22 Marc Rosenblum 27 23 Fern “Fay” Ruben 27 23 Fela Kazew 28 24 Gertrude Barron 29 25 Lillian Gertrude Rosenthal 29 25 Lewis Offstein 29 25 Samuel Friedland 29 25 Iyar Apr. Martha Harris 1 27 Ferne Friedlander 1 27 Evelyn Schwartz 1 27 Natalie Roth 1 27 The following names will be read at services on Friday, April 28. Iyar Apr. Floyd “Tunny” Leventhal 2 28 Mary Benjamin 2 28 Alexander S. Cohen 3 29 Dora Vera Horwitz 3 29 Fannie Much 4 30 Ada Lurie 4 30 Iyar May Esther Moss 5 1 Edna H. Barron 7 1 Reva Kalka Berman Leventhal 8 2 Iyar May Dina Stark 8 4 The following names will be read at services on Friday, May 5. Iyar May Isadore Leventhal 9 5 Bruce Terman 9 5 Noah Horwitz 10 6 Morris Stern 11 7 Elva Perrin 11 7 Carl Morgain 13 9 Louis W. Solomon 14 10 Dora Greenberg 14 10 Rose Horwitz 14 10 Esther Casper 14 10 The following names will be read at services on Friday, May 12. Iyar May Minnie Levin 16 12 Mary Lieberman 16 12 Mary Baron 17 13 Bernard Rosenblum 19 15 Natalie Amber 21 17 Mary Lipsky Friedman 21 17 Lillian Lurie 22 18 The following names will be read at services on Friday, May 19. Iyar May Harry Greenberger 23 19 Jack Ziman 23 19 Dorothy Liebling 24 20 Edna Schaul Nast 24 20 Mildred Metzger 26 22 Edward J. Steiner 26 22 William Feldman 27 23 Herman Brown 27 23 Harry Moss 28 24 The following names will be read at services on Friday, May 26. Sivan May Ruth Braude 1 26 Ida Oklin Strauss 1 26 Isidore Goldberg 1 26 Leib Siegel 2 27 Charles A. Horewitz 2 27 Milton Goldstone 2 27 Nathan Goodman 2 27 Isadore Feldblum 2 27 Max Horvitz 4 29 Hyman Ziman 5 30 Abraham Miller 5 30 Nathan Weinberg 6 31 Sivan June Lillian Hurwitz 7 1 Julius Abes 7 1 The following names will be read at services on Friday, June 2. Sivan June Mendel (Max) Zaritsky 8 2 Betty Blatt 9 3 Mary L. Cohen 9 3 Leo Newman 9 3 Esther Leventhal 10 4 Arnold Jack (Yankel Alta) 10 4 Friedman 10 Sivan 10 11 11 11 Madeline (Leventhal) Frischman 11 Morris Rosenblum 12 Ida Ziman 12 Max Zaritsky 12 Frieda Miller 13 Herman Berg 13 Norman Rosenfeld 13 Jan Horwitz 13 Samuel Bernstein 14 Pearl Stein 14 Frieda Berman 14 Randall Aaron Klein Hazzan Harry Rickel Milton Oklin Harry Cohn June 4 5 5 5 5 6 6 6 7 7 7 7 8 8 8 The following names will be read at services on Friday, June 9. Sivan June Pearl Marlin 16 10 Henrietta Goldstein 16 10 Mollie Feigenbaum 18 12 Samuel N. Cohn 18 12 jacob Shy Garber 18 12 Harvey Shevin 19 13 Minnie Claudia Zucker 21 15 Rhoda Kopelman 21 15 The following names will be read at services on Friday, June 16. Sivan June Charles Abes 22 16 Isidore Felder 22 16 Morton I. Cohn 22 16 Morris Zinman 23 17 Robert S. Cohn 23 17 Sidney Shapiro 24 18 Millie Rosenthal 25 19 Blanche Abbatiello 25 19 Mark Carl Zucker 27 21 Samuel Rapoport 27 21 Eva Abes 28 22 The following names will be read at services on Friday, June 23. Sivan June Pearl Cohn 30 24 Tammuz June Edward B. David 1 25 Saul Silverman 1 25 Samuel C. David 1 25 Donald Israel 1 25 Samuel H. Mark 2 26 Lilly Parish 2 26 Idah Smith 3 27 Bernie Mintz 3 27 Claire Pass 4 28 Nathan Segall 4 28 Mary Wolfe Spero 5 29 The following names will be read at services on Friday, June 23. Tammuz June Ellen Wendy Leefer 6 30 Tammuz July Alice Blistein 7 1 Elayne Leventhal 7 1 Jeanne Eisenberg 8 2 Fannie Pollock 8 2 Abram Abes 9 3 Julia Miller 9 3 Beverly Stone 9 3 Harry Maglin 10 4 The following names will be read at services on Friday, June 30 Continued… Tammuz July Ruth Levin 10 4 Sandra Rosenthal 10 4 Bernard Apple 11 5 Pearl Schwartz 11 5 Bernard Max Baron 12 6 Our Sincerest Condolences go out to the following people Upon the death of their loved ones... The Family Of Ruth Bernstein Lovingly Remembered By The Family Of Ruth Lipsky Belkin Berer Her Children; Merissa Bernstein, Lori BernsteinAnsaldi (Jack), Julie Bernstein & Grandchildren; Jesse & Jaime Bernstein-Ansaldi Lovingly Remembered By The Family Of Her Children; David, Diana (Dina) and Sarah Nieces; Sally Lipsky, Barbara Alden, Cara Wiehl & Grandchildren; Nina, Yoel, Hanan, Julia, Ruthie, Ariel, Aaron, Debra Refuah Sh’leima This list is updated for each bulletin to include only those people whom we know are still in need of healing. Please call the synagogue with the names of those whom you would like added to this list. Beej Bonner Grace Cronin Herb Wolfson Diane Hildebrand Marty Speer Joanne Ufner Bud Weir Sue Yaras Tom Rivoli Kathy Porter Patti Porter Henry Anna Ryan Petrak Jack Mellor Laura Felder Roberta Gallagher Angelique Faith Conrad Donna Lyden Ruth L. Friedland Lovingly Remembered By Her Children; Geanne (Richard Dean) Thompson, Nathan (Ilene) Friedland Brother; Henry Parish & Grandchildren; Leah (Anthony) Selvaggio, Benjamin (Brittany) Friedland, Samuel (Misha) Thompson, Jeremy Friedland The Family Of Robert D. Baron Lovingly Remembered By Kathy J. Kerry “Comfort ye, comfort ye, My people Saith your G*d. For the Lord hath comforted his people; He hath redeemed Jerusalem.” Isaiah 40:1 YAHRZEIT MEMORIAL PLAQUES Larry Grossman July 22, 1927-August 12, 2016 Please Note: At the cemetery entrance there are now pots of white stones to mark the Headstone(s) of the grave(s) you visit. Yahrzeit plaques for the Memorial Tablets can be purchased to honor our loved ones who have passed away. The cost is $150.00 and can be purchased by contacting Shirley Grossman at (724) 287-1544. Checks for all of the above are to be made out to B’NAI ABRAHAM MEMORIAL FUND and sent to Shirley Grossman, 203 Beech Road, Butler, PA 16001. 11 Congregation B’nai Abraham 519 N. Main Street Butler, PA 16001 (724) 287-5806 [email protected] www.CongBnaiAbraham.org Eric Levin, President Cantor Michal Gray-Schaffer, Spiritual Leader PLEASE USE THIS FORM TO MAIL IN YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS Date ____________ Yahrzeit Fund B’nai Abraham Cemetery Fund Religious School Library Arnovitz Handicap Access Fund ____ In Memory Of ____ In Honor Of General Fund Cantor’s Discretionary Fund Torah Restoration/Maintenance Fund ____ For Recovery Of ____ In Appreciation Of ____ Other I am enclosing $ _________ Donation for: ___________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ Interest-Free Loans Available Your Name: ____________________________________________________________________ Your Address: __________________________________________________________________ City, State, Zip: ___________________________________________________ Phone No. ______________________ E-Mail Address: _________________________________________________________________ All families whose income is under $115,000 are eligible! Your rabbi, as part of the Greater Pittsburgh Rabbinical Association, has donated from his/her discretionary fund to make HFL interest-free loans more available to congregants. You are encouraged to inquire about HFL’s quick and confidential process. • • • • • • • • Tuition Car Purchase or Repair Home Improvement Debt Consolidation Small Business Adoption Fertility Treatment Medical Expenses 4307 Murray Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15217 www.hflapgh.org 412-422-8868 Interest-Free Loans Available Let’s put our two cents together! All families whose income is under $115,000 are eligible! Your rabbi, as part of the Greater Pittsburgh Rabbinical Association, has donated from his/her discretionary fund to start a GPRA Fund at HFL to make interest-free loans more available to congregants. Your rabbi, as part of the Greater Pittsburgh Rabbinical Association, has donated from his/her discretionary fund to make HFL interest-free loans more available to congregants. You are encouraged to inquire about HFL’s quick and confidential process. • • • • • • • • Tuition Car Purchase or Repair Home Improvement Debt Consolidation Small Business Adoption Fertility Treatment Medical Expenses But your rabbi cannot do it alone. Please direct your tax-deductible donation designated for the GPRA Fund to the website or address below. • • • • • • • • 4307 Murray Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15217 www.hflapgh.org 412-422-8868 12 Let’s put our two cents together! Your rabbi, as part of the Greater Pittsburgh Rabbinical Tuition Car Purchase or Repair Home Improvement Debt Consolidation Small Business Adoption Fertility Treatment Medical Expenses 4307 Murray Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15217 www.hflapgh.org/donate 412-422-8868 NON-PROFIT US POSTAGE PAID BUTLER, PA PERMIT #198 Congregation B’nai Abraham 519 N. Main Street Butler, PA 16001 CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED Come Join Us For Shabbat Service Most Friday Nights At 7:00 PM! Officers of The Board Contributions to the various B’nai Abraham funds are appropriate for any occasion. Minimum donation is $5.00. Donation form is the last page of the Bulletin. President: Eric Levin Vice President: Chris Hood Treasurer: Eric Levin Secretary: Shirley Grossman
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