KOL JAN-FEB 2016

‫קול דור חדש‬
THE VOICE OF CONGREGATION DOR HADASH
An Affiliate of the Jewish Reconstructionist Federation
Volume 57 Number 7
From the President
In a rare moment of candor and humility,
the president of this congregation is compelled
to admit that he is still searching for just the
right inspirational words for this month's KOL.
Though preferring to ponder for a few more
days, my latest motion for an extension of time
has been firmly denied by the KOL editor and
my continuation in office rests in the balance
so…..
Tonight marks the winter solstice which
today is not only the shortest day of light this
year but also wet, chilly and gloomy. It is
difficult for many of us to be cheerful and
forward-thinking about the approaching season
yet for whatever reason we all have chosen to
live in Pittsburgh so how can we best deal with
the elements especially in a spiritual context?
My best words of advice to anyone still
reading this article is to go outside in the winter
and remain an outdoors person! Bundle up,
wear futuristic high tech gear
Jan/Feb 2016, Tevet/Shvat 5776
outdoor activity and I suggest that opportunity is
available to us at whatever level meets our
comfort zone.
Nature has always been in part a spiritual
experience for me. Time alone, time with family,
time with friends and especially time with our
dog in the woods, trails or parks offers the best
opportunity for reflective, meditative and
spiritual moments. Abandoning the outdoors for
winter would also leave a spiritual void in my life.
Sunshine and fresh air is needed not only for the
body but also the soul all four seasons a year.
Mark Rubenstein
Please join us as we honor the memory of
HOWARD BRAUN
in the unveiling of his headstone
at the Homewood Cemetery
Star of David Section
Sunday, March 13, 2016 at 11:00 a.m.
.
and seek whatever sunshine and fresh air you
can find. Rather than merely impatiently
awaiting spring, make your best effort to live in
the moment and get out there in the snow,
slush and ice. Experts have indicated that the
lack of exposure to sunshine & fresh air can
lead to seasonal depression, restlessness and
other not so great things. My personal winter
barometer in many ways has been substantially
enhanced by a continued commitment to
Luncheon will follow at our home:
Dithridge House
220 North Dithridge Street
(Oakland)
RSVP to:
Dottie Braun by March 6
412-683-1152 or
[email protected]
Dottie Braun and Family
‫קול דור חדש‬
THE VOICE OF DOR HADASH page 2
Religious School News
Remember that this year, “Hanukkah on Ice” has
been transformed into “Tu B’Shvat on Ice.” It will take
We have an annual tradition at Dor Hadash
place on Monday, January 25th, at the Schenley Ice Rink.
Religious School called Shared Learning Days, during
It will start at 6 PM with a Tu B’Shvat ceremony and
which parents come to class to learn with their children.
potluck dinner, then ice skating starts at 7 PM. You don’t
It’s a great tradition that allows parents to get to know
have to be a skater (I’m not) to come and have a good
their child’s teacher and their teaching style. We had our
time and celebrate with our community. Lots of school
first Shared Learning Day of the year on December 9th,
families will be there, and it is a good chance to meet
when the parents of Kitah Heh/Vav attended class. During some of them.
the sessions, the students practiced reading and singing
On Saturday, February 13th at 9:30 AM, we
prayers they had been working on in class: V'shamru and
celebrate the Bar Mitzvah of Simon Aizenstein. Simon is
Sim Shalom. Students and parents then played a dreidel
one of our Community Day students, who is also attending
trivia game whereby the students challenged and soundly the MItzvah class this year. His parents, Barbara Baumann
defeated the parents: everyone learned a great deal about and Howard Aizenstein are very active members of the
Hannukah.
congregation, and it will be wonderful community and
Our next Shared Learning Day will be on January 13th,
family morning.
when the Gan/Aleph class and the Bet/Gimel class will both
On Saturday February 20th the Heh/Vav & Mitzvah
have their parents attending.
classes will attend the Dor Hadash informal Shabbat
On December 9th, for the last half-hour of the 2service and Torah Study Service. These students are
hour session, all the classes came together for a Hanukkah learning the prayers of the Shabbat morning service, and
celebration. It was the 4th night, and we had a about a
they will study that week’s portion in class so they can
dozen Hanukkah menorahs blazing after we said the
participate in the discussion. Parents of the students are
blessings. We sang Hanukkah songs, had “the silent
also encouraged to come and they usually do.
sufganiyot quiz,” then ate sufganiyot (round jelly donuts)
and fruit. We had a great turn-out of parents, and it was a Hal Grinberg, Principal
opportunity for everyone to get together.
At the January 9th Shabbat morning service, which
will be led by Julie Newman, our two youngest classes will
be participating. The Gan/Aleph class will lead the Sh’ma
with sign language and act out a very short story. The Bet/
Gimel class will sing a song and each student will do a
short individual reading from The Child’s Reconstructionist
Prayerbook. And I am sure Julie will engage these
students. It should be a great morning.
Hannukah 2015
Hannukah Party Guys from left: Daniel Mos
Harry Levinson, Mark Rubenstein, Hal Grin
On Friday, December 11, we welcomed our newest members of the congregation with a special New Member Shabb
and Hanukkah celebration. New members were honored with a special blessing, and a copy of the book, Hineini,
containing stories and memories written by some of our members. Following the service, we enjoyed a delectable
pot luck dinner, complete with latkes. The evening culminated with a scrumptious Oneg Shabbat and a Chanukah
sing-a-long.
Lisa Budd
sse,
nberg
bat
‫קול דור חדש‬
THE VOICE OF DOR HADASH
page 3
ADULT EDUCATION:
Mark your calendars
for January 24, 2016. The adult education
committee will present
"Judaism and Same Sex Marriage"
featuring keynote speaker
Evan Wolfson, Founder and President of
Freedom to Marry, the
campaign to win marriage equality
nationwide. Mr. Wolfson
earned his B.A. at Yale, served as a Peace
Corps volunteer in Togo,
West Africa, and graduated from Harvard
Law School. During the
1990's, he served as co-counsel in the
historic Hawaii marriage case
that launched the freedom to marry
movement; Wolfson argued
before the United States Supreme Court in
the case involving the Boy
Scout's ban on gay members and leaders.
Newsweek/Daily Beast has
called Wolfson "the godfather of gay
marriage,"; Time Magazine named him as one of "the 100 most influential people in the world"; and
in 2012, he received the Barnard Medal of Distinction alongside President Obama. Wolfson
authored the book "Why Marriage Matters: America, Equality, and Gay People's Right to Marry,"
published by Simon & Schuster in 2004. The Godfather has shared his expertise on CNN, MSNBC,
ABC's Nightline, Cspan, Fox, The Today's Show, Good Morning America, and soon ... Dor Hadash.
Stay tuned for details.
RECONSTRUCTIONISM 101: SUNDAY
MORNING FEBRUARY 14 FROM 10
AM TO 12 NOON
Geared both to those unfamiliar with the
Reconstructionist movement and a refresher
for longer time members of Dor Hadash, this
is a chance to come learn and nosh. There
will be something fun for kids to do on a
wintery morning while their parents learn.
The multi-media session will describe how the
movement started with Rabbi Mordecai
Kaplan, the core concepts and ideas behind
the approach, and current practices. Key
concepts include Judaism as a civilization
rather than just a religion, the rejection of
chosenness, and discussion of the role of
belonging, believing and behaving. Session
leaders: Pam Goldman and Sarah Angrist
Barbara Baumann and Howard Aizenstein
invite the Dor Hadash community to join in celebrating
as our son
Simon Alex
is called to the Torah as a Bar Mitzvah on
Saturday, February 13, 2016.
Services will begin at 9:30 am
in the main sanctuary.
All are warmly invited to the lunch immediately
following the service
‫קול דור חדש‬
THE VOICE OF DOR HADASH page 4
DorHadash’sNewCemeterySection
CongregationDorHadashhaspurchasedanewsectionof66plotsatHomewoodCemetery.
Thisnewsection,onaflatplaceoverlookingFrickPark,isnotfarfromourpresentarea,which
isnownearlycompletelysoldout.Thenewsectionwillbededicatedsoonand,come
springtime,plantingsofhardydeerresistantshrubswillbeaddedalongeithersidetomarkit
offasanewseparateburialplaceforthecongregation.
Thenewplotsareavailableforpurchasebymembersofourcongregationonly.Eachplotis
availabledirectlyfromthecongregationatacostof$1880.Thisfigurerepresentstheactual
costperplotpaidbyDorHadash.Ourcongregationmakesnoprofitatthispointintime.Base
pricesperplotelsewhereinthecemeteryforindividualsvarygreatly,butbeginata
significantlyhigherprice.
Aspreviously,thepurchasepricecoversonlytheplotitself.HomewoodCemeteryalso
requiresthepurchaseandinstallationofaconcretegravelinerandfeesfortheopeningand
closingofthegrave.Thoseadditionalfeesarenegotiatedbyeachindividualpurchaserdirectly
withHomewoodCemetery.Asapromotionalincentive,HomewoodCemeteryisofferinga10%
discountonallserviceandmerchandisetoDorHadashmembersduringthemonthsofJanuary
andFebruary,2016.Theseservicesandmerchandiseincludeconcretegraveliners,
headstones,coffins,andthefeesforopening/closingagraveatthetimeofneed.
Likeotherexpenditures,thecostsassociatedwithburialcontinuetoincrease.Oneofthe
reasonsbehindthecongregation’sgrouppurchaseofplots,bothinthepastandatpresent,has
beentominimizethesecostsovertime.Theoverarchingrationale,however,isthedesire
expressedbymanycongregantstobeburiedtogetherinacongregationalburialspace.Wefeel
thatthisnewsectionoffersthosereassurances.
Mostofustendnottowanttodevotemuchattentiontothedetailsandcostsofourburial
arrangements,yettheparticularswillhavetobemanagedatsomepointforeveryoneofus.
Makingarrangementsbeforeneedingtohavethemenactedcanbelessstressfulaswellasless
expensive.Itcanalsoprovidethegreatadvantageofclearcommunicationwithinfamilies
aboutone’swishes.
PleasecontacttheHesedCommitteeifyouwishtopurchaseaplotinourcemeterysectionor
discussanyaspectofthetraditionsanddetailsrelatedtoendoflife,death,orburial.Weare
heretohelpwithsensitivityanddiscretion.
RabbiDorisDyenDanielLeger
6416ForwardAvenue5679BeaconStreet
Pittsburgh,PA15217Pittsburgh,PA15217
[email protected]@verizon.net
H412-521-7570H412-422-9078
C412-260-3600C412-926-4289
‫קול דור חדש‬
THE VOICE OF DOR HADASH
page 5
‫קול דור חדש‬
THE VOICE OF DOR HADASH page 6
January/February2016
Tevet/Shevat/AdarI5776
st
Saturday,January2/21 ofTevet
ShabbatMorningServiceandTorahStudy
10:00–noon,Rabbi’sStudy
Parsha:Shemot,Exodus1:1-6:1
Haftarah:Isaiah27:6-28:13;29:22-29:23
Kiddushluncheonfollowingtheservice
th
Saturday,January9/ 28 ofTevet
TorahStudy,9:00amintheRabbi’sStudy
ShabbatMorningService,10:00am
GuestServiceLeader:JulieNewman
Withparticipationfromthe
Gan/AlephandBet/Gimelclasses
Parsha:Vaera,Exodus6:2-9:35
Haftarah:Ezekiel28:25-29:21
Kiddushluncheonfollowingtheservice
th
Sunday,January10/29 ofTevet
BoardMeeting,10:00am
Rabbi’sStudy
Allareencouragedtoattend
st
Monday,January11/ 1 ofSh’vat
RoshChodeshSh’vat
Friday,January15
ErevShabbatService,8:00pm
Serviceleader:BruceHerschlag
Sedrareviewer:SarahAngrist
OnegSponsor:LynneReder
th
Saturday,January16/6 ofSh’vat
ShabbatMorningServiceandTorahStudy
10:00–noon,Rabbi’sStudy
Parsha:Bo,Exodus10:1-13:16
Haftarah:Jeremiah46:13-46:28
Kiddushluncheonfollowingtheservice
Friday,January22
ErevShabbatService,8:00pm
Serviceleader:EllenSurloff
Sedrareviewer:JerryRabinowitz
OnegSponsors:LoisandIraRubin
th
Saturday,January23/13 ofSh’vat
ShabbatMorningServiceandTorahStudy
10:00–noon,Rabbi’sStudy
Parsha:Beshalach,Exodus13:17-17:16
Haftarah:Judges4:4-5:31
Kiddushluncheonfollowingtheservice
th
Sunday,January24/14 ofSh’vat
AdultEdProgram
EvanWolfson,"JudaismandSameSexMarriage"
(WatchDHNfordetails)
th
Monday,January25/15 ofSh’vat
TuB’ShvatOn-IceattheSchenleyIceRink
PotLuckdinnerat6:00pm
IceSkating–7:00–9:00pm
WatchDHNfordetails
CALENDAR
th
Saturday,January30/20 ofSh’vat
ShabbatMorningServiceandTorahStudy
10:00–noon,Rabbi’sStudy
Parsha:Yitro,Exodus18:1-20:23
Haftarah:Isaiah6:1-7:6;9:5-9:6
Kiddushluncheonfollowingtheservice
Friday,February5
REGGELSHABBAT
ErevShabbatService,8:00pm
Serviceleader:Reggelscholar
OnegSponsor:NancyLevine
th
Saturday,February6/27 ofSh’vat
ShabbatMorningServiceandTorahStudy
10:00–noon,Rabbi’sStudy
Parsha:Mishpatim,Exodus21:1-24:18
Haftarah:Jeremiah34:8-34:22;33:25-33:26
Kiddushluncheonfollowingtheservice
th
Sunday,February7/28 ofSh’vat
BoardMeeting,10:00am
Rabbi’sStudy
Allareencouragedtoattend
th
Tuesday,February9/ 30 ofSh’vat
st
Wednesday,February10/ 1 ofAdarI
RoshChodeshAdarI
th
Saturday,February13/4 ofAdarI
BarMitzvahofSimonAizenstein
9:30amintheMainSanctuary
ServiceLeader:MiriRabinowitz
Parsha:Terumah,Exodus25:1-27:19
Haftarah:IKings5:26-6:13
Kiddushluncheonfollowingtheservice
th
Sunday,February14/5 ofAdarI
AdultEdProgramonReconstructionism
10:00am–noon
(WatchDHNfordetails)
Friday,February19
ErevShabbatService,8:00pm
Serviceleader:JudyGrumet
Sedrareviewer:StanAngrist
OnegSponsor:AudreySchoenwald
th
Saturday,February20/11 ofAdarI
ShabbatMorningServiceandTorahStudy
10:00–noon,Rabbi’sStudy
Parsha:Tetzaveh,Exodus27:20-30:10
Haftarah:Ezekiel43:10-43:27
Kiddushluncheonfollowingtheservice
th
Saturday,February27/18 ofAdarI
ShabbatMorningServiceandTorahStudy
10:00–noon,Rabbi’sStudy
Parsha:KiTisa,Exodus30:11-34:35
Haftarah:IKings18:1-18:39
Kiddushluncheonfollowingtheservice
‫קול דור חדש‬
THE VOICE OF DOR HADASH
CONTRIBUTIONS
CHAI FUND
Barbara Baumann and Howard Aizenstein
Tova and Joe Tarr
Debra Bogen
HESED COMMITTEE
James and Donna Lenkner
Robert and Pauline Rogoff
HIGH HOLIDAY
Nancy Israel and Ronald Linden
Adam S. Lowenstein and Irina Royn
Ann Greenberg
E. Joseph Charny
page 7
The Dor Hadash Board
President, Mark Rubenstein
[email protected]
Past-President, Nancy Levine
[email protected]
VP of Administration, Ed Feinstein
[email protected]
VP of Ritual, Lisa Levinson
[email protected]
VP of Youth Education, Tina London
[email protected]
Treasurer, Allen Baum
[email protected]
Secretary, Jo Recht
In gratitude to Dor Hadash during the shiva for her mother,
Sally Lupovitz
Laura Horovitz
In honor of Dan & Ellen Leger for handling the unveiling of
Libby Belov
Charles Andrew Belov
In appreciation of Dan Leger
Judith Rothstein
In honor of Nancy Levine
Linda Arnold
In graditude of Cheryl Klein and Lisa Levinson for making the
Bnot Mitzvah possible
Judith Grumet
In memory of the mother of Mel Melnick
Rob Kraftowitz and Janice Gordon
In memory of Edith Spitz sister of Judith Rothstein
Arnold and Yetta Freedman
Daniel and Lauren Resnick
In memory of Lawrence Saroff
Joan Saroff
In memory of Joe Flicop
Norma Artman
[email protected]
Adult Education, Ellen Surloff
[email protected]
Hesed, Dan Leger & Rabbi Doris Dyen
[email protected]
Social Action, Geoff Clauss
[email protected]
Social Events, Rob Kraftowitz
[email protected]
Membership, Lisa Budd
[email protected]
Member-at-Large, Louis Fineberg
[email protected]
KOL Editor, Beth Hydovitz
(filling in for Beth are Donna Coufal and Miri Rabinowitz)
[email protected]
Congregation Manager, Jean Hartz
[email protected]
Religious School Principal, Hal Grinberg
[email protected]
REMEMBER!!
Tu B’Shvat on Ice
Monday, January 25th at the Schenley Ice Rink.
6 PM: Tu B’Shvat ceremony and potluck dinner, then 7 PM: Ice skating
CONGREGATION DOR HADASH
5898 Wilkins Avenue
Pittsburgh PA 15217