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VOLUME 60 EDITION 12 1 August 2018

20 Av 5778

Congregation Sha’arai Shomayim Founded 1844

Springhill Avenue Temple

The Temple Bulletin springhillavenuetemple.com

We are coming together as a caring, inclusive community united in a common commitment to Judaism and to

furthering our spiritual growth. We desire to do this recognizing that worship of God, study of Torah, caring for the

Jewish people and our community, are central to our being as a Reform Jewish congregation. With these principles

as our foundation and guided by a historic past, we anticipate our future, one of continual lifelong self-renewal.

RELIGIOUS SERVICES

Friday, August 3 6:00 p.m. Evening Shabbat Service Saturday, August 4 9:30 a.m. Shabbat Breakfast

10:30 a.m. Morning Shabbat Service Friday, August 10 6:00 p.m. Shabbat Evening Service Friday, August 17 6:00 p.m. Shabbat Evening Service Friday, August 24 6:00 p.m. Shabbat Evening Service Friday, August 31 6:00 p.m. Shabbat Evening Service

Torah Selection:

Deuteronomy 7:12-11:25

Haftarah – Isaiah 49:14-51:3

ALL SHABBAT SERVICES ARE CONGREGATIONAL SERVICES.

PLEASE JOIN US IN WORSHIP

DATES FOR HIGH HOLY DAYS

Selichot – Saturday, September 1

Erev Rosh Hashanah – Sunday, September 9

Rosh Hashanah – Monday, September 10

Cemetery Memorial Service – Sunday, September 16

Kol Nidre – Tuesday, September 18

Yom Kippur – Wednesday, September 19

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From The Rabbi

Reconciling God in the Garden with God the Creator

If you read the Book of Genesis carefully, you will

see that God was a very physically active God for

a divine being. God seems to have been present in

the Garden of Eden, personally planting the

garden and then, when necessary, making skin

garments for Adam and Eve and clothing them.

God appears to have lived in the garden or

certainly made the divine presence felt in the

garden. After Adam and Eve ate the fruit from the

Tree of Knowledge of Good and

Evil, they heard the sound of God

walking around the Garden of

Eden just as an evening breeze

was blowing through. So, Adam

and Eve did the only thing they

could think of doing. They hid.

Possibly, it worked because God

called out to Adam. Some would

say that God knew where they

were and God was just testing

Adam, but you could make the

argument that maybe God really

didn’t know where Adam and

Eve were hiding and was seriously asking. So, how can we reconcile a God who seems to be

a part of the garden’s ecosystem with the God

described at the beginning of the Book of Genesis

who creates the entire universe. One explanation

is that there are at least two different texts here

coming out of two different cosmologies. In the

story of the Garden of Eden, the writer or writers

may not see God as an omnipotent figure at all nor

as the divine creator of the entire universe. In

contrast, the first chapter of the Book of Genesis,

describes a God who is the creator of everything.

But just because the first chapter in the Book of

Genesis is the first chapter that we read today does

not mean that it was the first conception of God to

be developed by the ancient Israelites. If we look at what most biblical scholars today

believe to be the most ancient texts in the Tanach,

God is not a creator at all. For example, Exodus

Chapter 15, which may very well be the oldest

textual excerpt from the entire Torah, describes

God as a warrior who will protect the children of

Israel by killing the Egyptian soldiers if necessary.

The text talks about singing to God for God has

thrown both Egyptian charioteers and horses into

the sea to drown. If we understand that the Tanach is a series of

texts that developed over thousands of years in an

everchanging cultural context, we can then see our

Holy Scriptures as a fascinating

collection of documents that help

us to understand how our religion

developed. But if we see it as one

text that we believe has absolute

moral authority that has not

changed and should never change

then and only then do we have a

big problem. How can we possibly

justify much of God’s behavior?

The answer is that we can’t and we

shouldn’t. And we don’t have to. So, if the God of Israel started out

with a much smaller mandate then

it would imply that the Israelites accepted the

existence of other gods, perhaps many other gods.

It appears that over the course of time this

acceptance of polytheism narrowed and eventually

most Israelites came to believe in monolatry,

which can be defined as the consistent worship of

only one deity even though you believe in the

existence of many gods. Other Israelites may

have leaned toward henotheism, in which the

person worships only one god and conceptualizes

their belief system in light of that one god without

denying that other people might believe in and

worship other gods. So, over the course of

perhaps many hundreds of years, Israelite religion

evolved, in particular in terms of how God was

conceptualized. Eventually, the religious leaders

of Israel brought the nation into full-fledged

monotheism, the belief in existence of only one

god that created the world and can intervene in

that world.

(cont’d on next page)

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(cont’d from previous page) Today, we speak of Judaism as being defined

by its belief in one god and we may not be

aware that that belief system was only achieved

after many hundreds of years of theological

debate and political infighting. But there is a

great deal of evidence that the Israelites only

adopted monotheism after a tremendous

struggle which lasted for a very long time. You

can see this struggle in many parts of the

Torah, even in the texts that were edited long

after Israel had embraced monotheism. The

classic example appears in our prayer book.

“Who is like you, O God, among the gods that

are worshipped.” (Mishkan T’filah, pg.158).

The literal meaning of this is that God is far

greater than any of the other gods. We can accept that our Bible reflects a slow

evolutionary approach to monotheism without

allowing scholarship to undermine our faith.

That is because our faith as Reform Jews is

based on scholarship done using the most

rigorous scientific methodologies. We want to

find out the truth and then we can mold an

emotionally compelling image of God based

upon historical and cultural truth.

Rabbi Dana Evan Kaplan

Max Fuchs: A Jewish GI and Cantor By Gil Laden

As you may have seen in recent columns, our archivist, Susan Thomas, has called upon congregants to

gather information and even artifacts from those who may have served in various wars.

This is a worthwhile cause to recognize those who have honored our country with their military

service. Recently, a distinguished veteran from New York died at the age of 96. His name was Max

Fuchs.

Mr. Fuchs was a cantor and also worked in the diamond industry, but most significantly, on October

29, 1944, he sang at an open-air Shabbat service on a German battlefield with 50-plus Jewish GIs, with

the sound of artillery punctuating the service. There is a stirring clip of this service with Mr. Fuchs’

commentary on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCn0ZKanKFk.

Mr. Fuchs was featured earlier this year on the PBS series “GI Jews.” His obituary can be found on the

New York Times website at https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/04/obituaries/max-fuchs-gi-cantor-

dead.html.

Gil Laden’s father, Phil Laden, served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1936-1945 and saw combat action in the South

Pacific. He attended a service in the South Pacific officiated by Rabbi Solomon Cherniak, who later served at the

Temple.

Jewish Family Services of Mobile

From time to time, we all develop life situations that we need some help dealing

with. Talking out problems often helps. JFS provides you with information,

assistance, direction, referrals, and much more. If you or someone you know needs assistance or for more information about the

services provided by Jewish Family Services of Mobile, please contact Priscilla

Gold-Darby at 251-454-1924; Patricia Silverman at 251-610-9188; Joanne

Luterman at 251-533-9348, or your rabbi. All contacts are kept confidential.

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From Our President

In a telephone conservation a few weeks ago,

Dr. David Meola mentioned that he was doing

research concerning the early reform movement

in Berlin. Knowing that Rabbi Kaplan had

delivered a paper in East Germany, I asked him

about the early reform movement in Germany,

that is when he told the study group at the

Satori Coffee House of Israel Jacobson. Being a lover of history and having never heard

of Mr. Jacobson, I did some reading on my

own. Israel Jacobson was born in 1768 in the city of

Halberstadt and died in Berlin in 1828.

Jacobson was born into a wealthy family,

acquired more wealth as a financier, and even

had business dealings with Napoleon’s brother,

Jerome. He is considered one of the early

pioneers of what was to become Reform

Judaism. To quote the Jewish Virtual Library, “Jacobson

erected the first synagogues in which services

were held according to his program of religious

reform.” Jacobson created synagogues where

some prayers were in German, sermons were in

German, and confirmations were performed. Later as a lay leader, as he was not a rabbi,

Jacobson created the “Temple” in his school in

Seesen. He conducted its opening ceremony

dressed in the robes of a Protestant minister,

had music played with the pipe organ, and

hymns sung in German. His school in Seesen

educated both Jewish and Christian children.

Jacobson believed in the close association of

children of different religions. Israel Jacobson played a great role in early

reforms and to many was a founding figure in

our Reform Judaism; but this was not without

problems. The leaders of the Orthodox

community did not like Jacobson and regarded

him with suspicion. Much like in Israel today,

the leaders of the Orthodox community

encouraged the government to interfere with

his message of change. (And, I don’t think the

Lutherans cared too much for him either.) Now, what else is new?

Mike Pereira, President

The CONGREGATIONAL CHOIR is looking forward to the fall when we will once again be singing, but we need to increase our numbers!

No experience is necessary.

All you need is a love of music.

Except for the High Holy Days and any special events, we normally rehearse once a month on a Tuesday night. Charmein is a wonderful leader and you will enjoy the other choir members too (we laugh a lot!)

Please contact Barry Silverman or Anne Zelnicker for more information.

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From Our Archives

By Susan Thomas, Archivist

I am sure by now you are aware that the annual

conference of the Southern Jewish Historical

Society will be held in Mobile October 26-28.

Several members of the congregation are involved

in planning the conference; there are also several

who will be directly participating in sessions and

events. Roy Hoffman will be the key note speaker

at the Friday luncheon; Rabbi Kaplan will speak on

Rabbi Alfred Moses during the Saturday lecture

session; and, I will give a presentation on Leon

Schwarz, also on Saturday. The Temple plays a prominent role in many of the

weekend activities. The Temple facility will be part

of a tour of historic Mobile Jewish sites and will

also be the location of a banquet for conference

attendees following services on Friday night. The

Temple Archives helped provide musical

compositions by early congregant Sigmund

Schlesinger, which will be performed live on

Saturday afternoon. Several scholars from all over

the country who have used the resources of the

Archives will be involved in the conference,

including Dan Puckett, author of a book on

Alabama Jewish involvement in World War II;

Judah Cohen, a musicologist who has studied

Schlesinger; and Josh Parshall, who will use

demographics of early Temple congregants to

illustrate a digital mapping project. Each year the conference is held in a different

Southern city; the last time it was held in Mobile

was in 1981. During that conference Phyllis

Feibelman presided over one of the sessions, and Ed

Zelnicker, Jr., presented a talk on Mobile Jewish

history. That conference also featured a banquet

and combined Friday night services at the Temple. Anyone interested in Temple history should attend

this conference; it may be over thirty years before

you have this opportunity again! For a detailed

agenda and information on registration, go to the

SJHS website at

https://www.jewishsouth.org/upcoming-conference.

The Southern Jewish Historical Society Conference (SJHS) is all set and will take place in Mobile, AL from October 26 to 28. For those interested in attending the entire conference, you will need to register at: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2018-sjhs-conference-mobile-alabama-tickets-45481719046. You will also need to register for membership in the SJHS, as only members can attend (it is $36 for the year). This can be paid directly to the SJHS before registration or there is a selection on the Eventbrite page for those who want to pay that way. If you are only interested in attending the Friday night dinner at the Temple, you can register directly with the Gulf Coast Center for Holocaust and Human Rights Education by contacting Don Berry (donaldb@mail.umobile.edu). The cost is $40 per person and you can pay directly by check. FYI, the only way to guarantee a spot for dinner on Friday night is by registering for the entire conference. Conference attendees automatically get preference for dinner, as there will be a cap on total guests (approx. 170-180) due to space issues. For more about this year's conference, see: https://www.jewishsouth.org/upcoming-conference and to go directly to the Conference Program, see: https://www.jewishsouth.org/conference-program-0

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August Birthdays and Anniversaries

Happy Birthday to ...

1 Joseph “Jay” Handmacher 16 Eric Gottlieb

1 Robbie Nadas 17 Marsha Ann Dittman

2 Margaret Brown 17 Deborah Sack

2 Andrew Frenkel 19 Ashley Bergman

2 George Kidd 19 Pauline Brown

3 Jennifer Altmayer 19 Eileen Susman

3 Michelle Dobbins 20 David Fishbein

4 Milton Brown 21 Cole Appelman

4 Priscilla Gold-Darby 21 Susan Koffler

4 Stacey Silverman Shostak 22 Carrie Friduss

4 Carol Zimmerman 23 David Ennis

5 Pamela Thompson 23 Jeffrey Miller

8 Anna Brown 24 Jeremy Borak

8 Miriam Fry 26 Michael Aronson

8 Joyce Toubiana 29 Tamara Fulford

9 Alicia Pereira 29 Manuel Arthur Gardberg

10 Megan Dobbins 30 Jeffrey Kahn

11 Lindsey Gottlieb 30 Abe Solomon

11 Phillip Magnes 30 Joe Solomon

12 William Handmacher 31 Joshua Altmayer

14 Brooks Fishbein 31 Leah Brown

15 Marian Berkin 31 David Harris

15 Fred Miller

16 David Gardberg

Happy Anniversary to … 2 Cece & Jim Spain

7 Marian & Mark Berkin

11 Barbara & Seth Cherniak

17 Rebecca & David Hochhauser

17 Ellen & Bill Shulman

22 Kim & David Zimmerman

25 Judi & Paul Bergman

25 Elaine & Ron Berman

28 Amy & Jack Friedlander

28 Joyce & Gerard Toubiana

30 Iris & Nate Ginsberg

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September Birthdays and Anniversaries

Happy Birthday to ...

1 Jacob Holberg 12 Iris Ginsberg

2 Benjamin Frenkel 12 Brandon Miller

4 Jon Fusco 12 Fran Passero

4 Mona Loeser 13 Madelyn Friedlander

5 Sam Feibelman 18 Cindy Magnes

5 Matthew Weinstein 19 Bill Denson

5 Buzzy Zivitz 22 Jonathan Fratkin

6 Craig Ginsberg 22 Billy Kahn

6 Daryn Glassbrook 22 Megan Moore

7 Iris Klein 23 Amanda Miller

8 Richard Frank 23 Adrian Pereira

9 Steven Hirsch 25 Sam Eberlein

10 Aaron Ayers 26 Mary Ann Friedlander

10 Pat Bloom 26 Leonard Wells

10 Howard Silverman 27 Terry Harris

11 Barbara Paper 28 Roland Fry

11 Keith Spain 28 Meredith Hoffman

12 Michael Gardberg 28 Sandra Nadas

29 Alton Sack

Happy Anniversary to … 1 Sandy & Ralph Holberg

2 Susan & Jeff Friedman

4 Sandra & Harvey Gandler

7 Deborah & Alton Sack

29 Diane Garden & Michael Monheit

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Shana Tova! New Year’s Greetings

Dear Friends: The New Year of 5779 begins at sundown on Sunday, September 9, 2018. Temple

Sisterhood has given congregants the opportunity to extend New Year’s Greetings to each

other in a special portion of our New Year’s bulletin which has become a tradition for our

Temple. If you would like to have the names of your family members published in the bulletin,

please send a contribution made out to Temple Sisterhood before Monday, August 20.

Your contribution will be used to support the various vital services that Sisterhood

provides for our Temple. Because we don’t want anyone left out, we cannot emphasize enough the importance of an

early response. Happy New Year and many thanks,

Please PRINT your information in the form below and enclose it with your tax-deductible

contribution made payable to “Temple Sisterhood” and mail to Mrs. Charles H. Brown,

3807 Claridge Road, Mobile, Alabama, 36608. --------------------------------------------------------clip here--------------------------------------------------

NEW YEAR’S GREETING Please print the names as you want them to appear in the bulletin (please print legibly):

_______________________________________________________________________

Amount of donation: $______________________

The Springhill Avenue Gift Shop The Temple Gift Shop is the place to shop for all your

Judaica. Several new necklaces have arrived as well as we

can order that special piece for you. We have honey plates

for Rosh Hashanah, mezuzahs, Shabbat candlesticks,

kiddush cups, and more. Stop in and browse in the gift shop.

L’shana tova, Amy and Judy

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FROM THE SISTERHOOD

By Priscilla Gold-Darby, President Celebrating the High Holy Days was very strict when I was

growing up. As kids, we spent the days visiting every shul in

the area and listening to the cantors. My shul, Temple

Emanu-El, had one of the four Kusevitsky brothers. For many

years, he led services at Temple Emanu-El at 14th Avenue and

49th Street in the Borough Park section of Brooklyn, which

was a block from Temple Beth-El where his brother Moshe

was cantor. On the Sabbath and holidays, many Brooklyn

worshipers would split their prayers between the two

synagogues to hear and compare them! Despite the fanfare -

new clothes, no elevators, no school, big family meals - the

meaning of the holidays was never clear. In adulthood, I have learned that purpose of the High Holy Days is to acknowledge the past year,

deal with it, ask for forgiveness for my failures, and think about what and how I want to

improve. The hope is that we leave the negative behind and begin our new year with a clean

slate and a fresh outlook. The holiday gives me a chance to regroup and think about how I would like to move my life

forward. I am especially interested in becoming more spiritual, thinking positively, being an

active Temple Board member, staying centered during change, learning how to dance, taking

better care of myself, reading more, and watching TV less! You know, typical resolution hacks,

but powerful nonetheless. I have enjoyed following a new site on-line, called ARQ. It is full of Jewish news from around

the country with ideas about how the holidays and shabbat are celebrated in non-traditional

ways. Here are some new plans that the Sisterhood and Men's Club will implement and we hope that

you will find some connection and interest and join in:

➢ Volunteer with Feeding the Gulf Coast. Cindy Bloom has many projects

for us from sorting food donations, gleaning fields, packing weekend food

packs for kids, and volunteering in a community garden.

➢ Donate Jewish or other ethnic cookbooks to the kitchen library we are

starting. Temple librarian, Maude Patterson, will help us organize these

books and city librarian, Steve Prager, will install some book shelves in the

kitchen area.

➢ Sponsor an Oneg in connection with a special event or memory in your

life.

➢ Join a group that wants to recognize interfaith couples and find ways to

support them in our Temple.

➢ Work in our kitchen. Come by before services and see how you can help

set up the oneg or help Larry Miller prepare a meal.

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Thank You for a Year of Oneg Shabbats

‘Thank you’ is the best prayer that anyone could say. Thank you expresses

extreme gratitude, humility, understanding. - Alice Walker

Thank you for my year as Oneg Shabbat Chairperson. I am

grateful for the opportunity to serve with so many amazing

members of our Temple Family - from cakes and dips, to

challahs and Mandelbrot - it was all delicious! Along the way,

we celebrated milestones: baby namings, birthdays,

anniversaries, and a bar and bat mitzvah. We observed the

Jewish holidays and shared oneg joys with the Men’s Club and

Sisterhood. In fact, there are so many people to thank for their

Friday contributions that it would take up the whole bulletin,

so I will express a very enthusiastic “toda raba” to you all.

The weekly oneg Shabbats would not have been possible without Priscilla Gold-Darby, Alicia

Lucas, and Gail Chadwick who provided weekly support and ever so tasty contributions. Larry

Miller, thank you for the menu ideas and your kitchen expertise. I am also grateful to Chineeka

Wilson, our professional staff member, who greeted us every Friday with her smile and

consummate skills in the kitchen. Thank you all for making the kitchen such a joyful place.

I am sad about leaving the oneg Shabbats, but know a very special Temple member will take

them over. That is because this is Springhill Avenue Temple with a wealth of talented, caring

people who will carry on the Sisterhood’s vision of a warm and welcoming oneg for our

members and guests each week after services.

L’shalom,

Susan Fox

FROM OUR RELIGIOUS SCHOOL

by Patricia Silverman, Th.M., Religious School Director

Religious School and Hebrew School will be starting soon! A Teacher’s Workshop is TENTATIVELY being scheduled for Sunday, August 19, at 10:00 am. All teachers will be notified as soon as the date and time have been confirmed. Sunday, August 26, will be our first day of school. See you there!

More detailed information will be disseminated as it becomes available.

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CONTRIBUTIONS

In memory of Albert Klein – Bettina & Steve Prager, Diane & Richard Frank, David Rose, Phyllis

Feibelman, Lynn & Vincent DeLuca, Mike Pereira & Alicia Lucas, Alan Hirsch,

Ellen & Bill Shulman, Liz & Randy Fry, Debbie Clolinger, Amy & Jack Friedlander,

Iris & Nate Ginsberg, the Sunshine Fund of Stonebridge Court Neighbors, Jane Sims,

Arvid & Tim Gaston, Kimi & Allen Oaks, Fannette Blum, Odette & Mel Sternberg, Earl Rogers,

Lynne Raider, Mimi Holberg, Ellie & Cole Appelman, Christine & Jeff Conrad, Barry Silverman,

Nancy & Morris Kurtzman, Margaret & Milton Brown, Jacqueline Barker, Beverly & Arvin Robinson,

Penny & Joe Adamo. Pricilla Gold-Darby, Enid & Gil Laden, Susan Klarrieich & family In memory of Moshe Rozenberg – Iris & Nate Ginsberg, Priscilla Gold-Darby In memory of G.B. Kahn – Minna Ree & Ed Miranne, Billie & Russell Goodloe,

Ellen & Bill Shulman, Bill Lusk, Lynne Raider In memory of Harriet Kahn – Morris Brook, Kathy Brook Palefsky & family, Cindy & Phil Magnes In memory of my mother, Ruth Eichold – Mrs. Anthony Montag In memory of Douglas Shapiro – Paul Bergman In memory of Dolores Loeb – Leslie & Larry Miller

YAHRZEIT

It is a true Mitzvah to honor those whose memory we hold dear by attending services

on the Shabbat Yahrzeit (year’s time), joining your congregation in reciting Kaddish,

and the giving of charity in their memory.

August 3 Edwin A. Zelnicker, Jr., Emma Raider, Raymond Frankel, Herman Patterson,

Anne Heart Bergman, Lillian Muhlfelder

August 10 Frederick H. Vogel, David Wagman, Evelyn Feibelman, Charles Hoffman, Sigmond Kahn,

Abe Levine, Marian Berkin, Evelyn Hoffman, Paula Raider Olichney

August 17 Helen Edelbaum, Murry Benenson, George Wagenheim, Bennie Friedlander,

Anne Teles Fink Aratchofsky, Becky Friedlander, Irving Jacob Buchman, J.B. Friedlander, Reuben

Kamil

August 24 Heather Marie Pereira, Juliette Harries Garb, Norma Kihyet, Geraldine “Gerre” Koffler,

Sam Shulman, Janice Fry Goldman, Claris McDaniel, Abraham Gardberg,

Edwin A. Zelnicker, Sr., Gail Stone Bergman, William Paul Warren

August 31 Julien Marx, Eleanor Ruth Frenkel, Lucille Zelnicker Herman, Aris Schoonderbeek,

Melvin Bauer, Jr., Martin Dreyfus

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CALENDAR

Hebrew School & Religious School: Sunday, August 26 First day of School More detailed information will be disseminated as it becomes available. ❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖

Friday, August 3 6:00 p.m. Evening Shabbat Service Saturday, August 4 9:30 a.m. Shabbat Breakfast

10:30 a.m. Morning Shabbat Service Friday, August 10 6:00 p.m. Shabbat Evening Service Friday, August 17 6:00 p.m. Shabbat Evening Service Friday, August 24 6:00 p.m. Shabbat Evening Service Friday, August 31 6:00 p.m. Shabbat Evening Service

THE TEMPLE BULLETIN

(USPS-966-900) is published monthly

by Springhill Avenue Temple,

1769 Springhill Avenue

Mobile, AL 36607.

“Periodicals Postage Paid at Mobile,

Alabama.” POSTMASTER:

Send address change to:

1769 Springhill Ave. Mobile, AL 36607

DATES FOR HIGH HOLY DAYS

Selichot – Saturday, September 1

Erev Rosh Hashanah – Sunday, September 9

Rosh Hashanah – Monday, September 10

Cemetery Memorial Service – Sunday, September 16

Kol Nidre – Tuesday, September 18

Yom Kippur – Wednesday, September 19