Rosh Hashana 5781 | 2020 א׳׳פשת הנשה שאר

בס׳׳ד

Rosh Hashana 5781 | 2020 ראש השנה תשפ׳׳א

Let the year and its blessings begin!

2 |Rosh Hashana 2020

New Synagogue of Netanya

7 McDonald Street P. O. Box 1115 | Netanya 42262 | office 09 861-4591 | fax 09 887-0059

email: [email protected] | www.macshul.org

Rabbi Raphael Katz: Office 09 887-5079 | Mobile 054 767-3421

Chairman: Jeremy Rosenstein – 09 862-8328Vice Chairman: David Marriott – 09 832-1747Hon. Treasurer: Colin Frankel – 053 530-5751

Hon. Secretary: Barbara Cardash – 09 861-5178Gabbaim: Israel Shapira – 09 861-7608 | Bernie Wolff – 09 834-0333

Irgun Nashim: Chair: Betty Olswang

Henry Koor Judaica Library: 09 884-0458Open: Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday mornings from 9:30 am until noon

Chair: Tsipi Wexler

Magazine Team: Therese Berkowitz, Elizabeth Dorfman, Melissa Dubinsky, Jacques Korolnyk, Monique Korolnyk, Laura Shuck, Paulette Woolf

Advertising Team: Edward Pearlman, Alegra Green, Anita Leigh, Jacques Korolnyk, Laura Shuck

בית כנסת מרכז קחילתי ע׳׳ש גולדשטיין

קהילה דתית לאומית אשכנזית נתניה

McDonald International ShulO R T H O D O X A S H K E N A Z I C O M M U N I T Y N E T A N Y A

Join the honorable company of our past and present community by linking your name, or the name of a loved one with the McDonald International Shul. Memorial Boards • Sponsorships • Philanthropic Donations

are all available and can be easily arranged through the shul office: 09 861 4591 • Mon-Thu, 8:30 – 11:00 am

3 | ראש השנה תשפ׳׳א

Rosh Hashana 5781 | 2020 ראש השנה תשפ׳׳א

Contents4 McDonald International shul Board Members / Committees 5781

5 Letter from the Editor by Therese Berkowitz

6 Rosh Hashana Message 5781 by Rabbi Raphael Katz

8 From the Chairman by Jeremy Rosenstein

10 Chatan Torah – Michael Raz

11 Chatan Bereshit – Chagai Lyst

12 One Beating Heart– Rosh Hashana תשפ׳׳אby Rabbi David Woolf

15 Our Synagogue Family

18 The 2020 Pandemic & Jewish Resilience by Bernie Wolff

20 Israel — A Diamond In My Own Backyard by Suzie Schwartz

23 Flare of Insight – Poem by Miriam Michaeli Feigelman

24 Music To Our Ears – A Coronavirus Concert by Elizabeth Dorfman

27 Pesach — Alone... But Not Lonely by Laura Shuck

28 Malka Fink Memorial Shabbaton 10/11 January 2020 by David Marriott

30 There’s Nothing Funny About Covid-19. Or is there? by Paulette Woolf

32 Resilience by Dr Joseph Berger

34 G-d is With Me, I Shall Not Fear by Andee Goldman

36 Technology Comes to Our Aid by Melissa Dubinsky

38 When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonade by Tsipi Wexler

41 Rosh Hashana Greetings

45 Judging a Book by Its Cover by Therese Berkowitz


McDonald International shul Board:Executive:Jeremy Rosenstein - ChairmanDavid Marriott - Vice Chairman and Cultural CommitteeColin Frankel - Financial RepresentativeBarbara Cardash - Honorary SecretaryLaura Shuck - shul Secretary

Management:Ivor Baum - ShammasElizabeth Dorfman Al DubinskyShlomo GarberHenry HirschLinda HirschRenie HirschRuth MarriottBetty Olswang - Irgun Nashim Israel Shapira - GabbaiBernie Wolff - Gabbai

Blank Committee:Michael BlissBarbara CardashColin Frankel - ChairJacques KorolnykDavid Marriott

Henry Koor Judaica Library: Tsipi Wexler

Hospitality Committee: Jacques Korolnyk

Good Neighbours Scheme - Volunteers who will visit housebound membersBarbara CardashMonique Korolnyk**Volunteers needed

Landscaping Committee: Susan Wolff Sharon WilenskySteven Rose Therese BerkowitzPaulette Woolf

Table Tennis Group (weekly): Nobby Smith

McDonald International shul

Board Members and Committees 5781:

Volunteers are always welcome. No one can do everything, but everyone can do something.

Katie Woolf ................................................... page 34Millenium Laundry ................................. page 40Pope-Geri....................................................... page 22

Directory of Advertisers

We are grateful to our advertisers for their support. We encourage you to patronize these local businesses and let them know that you saw their ad in the McDonald shul magazine.

Pronat ..............................................................page 37Yochanan Nalkin ....................................... page 44 Yossi Yeffet ............................. page 48 back cover


Our tradition teaches us that the ten days between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur are a time for introspection and reflection, a time to look back at the year that has gone by, and... I find myself getting stuck right there! How do we look back at this year? What are we to make of this illness that has gripped the entire planet? How do we understand the loss and devastation that this contagious and deadly plague has left in its wake?

As bewildering as it may feel, there is reason for hope, as we are blessed with a tradition for which this is not new. In fact in a few short weeks we will read exactly that in Kohelet:

מֶשׁ חַת הַשָֽ וְאֵין כָל־חָדָשׁ תַַ...there is nothing new under the sun.

Our cover illustration includes images of the seven species that G-d tells us will grow in this promised land. I think of these fruits thriving in this land as truly resilient. In connecting the image with our theme, I searched for a verse that would resonate with the challenges of this year. I did not have to look far. In our Rosh Hashana Machzor, following Mincha on the first night is a Piyut called Achot Ketanah (The Little Sister). We, the Jewish nation, are the little sister. The name is taken from a reference made lovingly by G-d in Shir

Hashirim. The Piyut describes the travails that have plagued us throughout the year and implores G-d to accept our prayers. Each stanza ends with the prayerful refrain: Let the year and its curses conclude! The final stanza ends with an expression of hope: Let the year and its blessings begin!

In spite of illness and loss, isolation and fear, there have been bright and beautiful moments of community, learning and connection. It is no small accomplishment that we have found ways to cope and recover. The stories of resilience abound.

We’ve received wonderfully moving and touching reflections and insights of coping and recovery. We are grateful to all of our contributors for sharing their stories with us. We hope that you will find them as uplifting and inspiring as we have.

I would like to personally thank the magazine team—Elizabeth Dorfman, Melissa Dubinsky, Jacques Korolnyk, Monique Korolnyk, Ed Pearlman, Laura Shuck, and Paulette Woolf—for their patience, creativity, integrity, diligence and humor.

Together, we wish the entire kehilla a year absent of curses and filled with blessings! A

Letter from the EditorTherese Berkowitz


Rosh Hashana Message 5781by Rabbi Raphael Katz

Before I share a brief Rosh Hashana message, I wish to record my heartfelt thanks especially to our dear Chairman Jeremy who during the ENTIRE period of the Covid outbreak, has made a concerted and continuous effort to maintain the functioning of the shul. From erecting a covering for protection of outdoor minyanim, to supplying free masks for those who forgot, to ensuring that there is always a supply of gel, to physically constructing the “capsules” together with Moshe, beside a host of other functions that he has done single-handedly without assistance (banking etc.). Jeremy receives little acknowledgement but large doses of criticism. Jeremy, yashar kochacha!

To Laura, Bernie, Susan, Therese, Dr Yitzchak Fineberg, Menashe, Edoardo, Moshe Chakimi, and of course to Rav Taub, who zoomed the ENTIRE period without a break – thank you so much. אחרון חביב to all who have made up the minyan and to all who really want to come but are compelled to be at home.

We can look as far back as Purim

and be content that the shul was, as implied in its name a בית, a home. It was and is a home to all who wanted to daven in a minyan and had no other opportunity to do so.

We have been blessed and privileged due to the founders of the shul to have large swathes of spac e— a large upstairs shul, the Beit Midrash downstairs, the hall, the sukkah area and the amphitheater. All this allows and compels us to share this bounty with all who live in or who are visiting our area. Not every shul has been so blessed. May we welcome all our visitors with graciousness into ‘our–their’ בית כנסת (of course according to regulations).

One of the ten explanations for blowing the shofar is to commemorate the destruction of the Temple.

Question: Wasn’t the mitzvah to sound the shofar given before a Temple existed?!

Answer: The crying sound of the shofar is to arouse one to realize that, on the Day of Judgement, there exists the potential of destruction, which may


Rosh Hashana Message 5781by Rabbi Raphael Katz

be realized or not.Last year as we recited “U-Netaneh

Tokef”, could we imagine that Hashem decreed that the whole world order would change in such an unexpected way? Were we aware of the potential of calamity “Chas v’chalilah” or were we perhaps overconfident that things would basically proceed as usual?

Against the backdrop of the current situation I am sure that the sense of uncertainty will be felt acutely by all during our davening.

So, how do we relate to Hashem in times of uncertainty?

I read a story, perhaps it is not true, but it is one of those stories for which it makes no difference.

It is told that a certain competition took place in a Theatre in the East End of London. Anyone able to recite a poem in the most poignant, articulate and eloquent manner would receive a handsome prize.

In the final round, the competitors were required to render their recital, not of a poem of their liking, but of Psalm 23 – “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want”.

The winner, a graduate of a Shakespearean acting academy, was awarded the trophy and prize money; as he received his prize an elderly Jew at the back of the audience cried out, “Honored Judges, would you permit me to deliver my ‘version’ of the Psalm?”

His request was granted and he walked up to the stage and started reciting the Psalm in his Yiddish accent and broken English to the sneers of a “typical English audience.” But by the time the Jew had finished, the sounds of muffled sobs could be detected in the audience.

The winner approached the Jew and asked, “I know I am the winner, but how come my recital of the Psalm elicited a standing ovation and yet yours aroused so much more genuine emotion?”

To which the Jew replied—“I happened to know the Shepherd...”

During these uncertain times we reconnect and bolster ourselves through אמונה פשוטה—simple faith!

Ketivah v’chatima tova to you and your families. A


From the Chairmanby Jeremy Rosenstein

At the beginning of Adar, the beginning of the Corona outbreak overseas, I sent out a letter to members that was meant to be a Purim joke telling members that they should social distance, wear gloves and masks and more. At the time some saw your Chairman’s Purim sense of humor, some took me seriously and some accused me of being “meshuga”.

Unfortunately, all that I wrote at the time humorously has become a reality over the last seven months. As a kehilla, we made a decision very quickly that whether we will be open or closed, inside or outside, limited in numbers, we will endeavor to keep services running as much as we can within “the spirit of the law”, which has changed nearly every week.

I am proud of the decisions that I made together with the Executive and our esteemed Rav to keep the shul running and open and to endeavor to keep in contact with our members and friends through Zoom, calls, and your Chairman’s “Corona Updates”.

Activities that have moved to Zoom and different to what we have been

used to will not be forgotten, whether it was laining outside in the shaded courtyard, davening in the amphitheater behind the shul with neighbors joining us from their windows, struggling to get a minyan in the morning, Yom Hashoah broadcast over internet, Yom Haazmaut out in the courtyard, Tisha b’Av streaming of Eicha, building capsules in the shul, Shabbat Chatan and Bar Mitzvah with only 10 people allowed in the shul and much more.

We also have had some funny experiences, a number 10 “minyan man” who told us at the end of the service that he was not Jewish, members sharing experiences being in lockdown, some of the humorous masks members have been wearing, the blue plastic gloves that make us look like Donald Duck, and more.

The Yamim Noraim this year will also be very different to previous years, but I am sure with support, patience, cooperation and understanding from our members we will manage to celebrate as a kehilla. We will miss our members, family and friends from


overseas. Special thanks to our Rav Katz,

Laura, Moshe, Bernie, and Meir Lev who have worked so hard throughout the last few months to keep the services and shul running.

Also special thanks to our “garden angels”, Susan, Therese and Paulette who have kept the gardens so well tended throughout these difficult times. I have seen pictures of shuls

overseas that have been left untended for months and it is so sad.

None of us know when we will be back together with a full kehilla, kiddushim, s’machot and all we were used to. We will have to get used to “a new normal”.

Wishing all our members and friends, good health, and to keep positive and smiling.

A שנה טובה חתימה טובה


Born in Uzbekistan, then moved to Poland, Michael was left in the care of his grandmother when his parents were taken to concentration camps. After suffering severe starvation, and escaping Jewish persecution, he and his grandmother made their way to Israel.

He was raised by his grandmother in Haifa, and attended religious school in Kiryat Shmuel. He served in the army tank engineering corps, then received his BA in Political Science and Jewish History at Haifa University. He served in the Israeli police force, then became a private investigator. He has dedicated his life to helping free innocent people imprisoned under false charges.

He has written seven books on innocent prisoners, and one on the dangers of radiation, for which he received a letter from Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II of England, acknowledging his work. His current book is in Hebrew and is called

“Fernanda the Spy” (about his wife). Like his wife, his life revolves around the McDonald Synagogue, in which he has found a welcoming community and a wonderful Rav.

Fernanda was born in Cairo to diplomat parents who travelled often. She was educated in non-Jewish boarding schools in Egypt and at the age of seventeen was recruited as a spy by Israeli Intelligence. She was caught by Egyptian authorities and sent to prison. After escaping from jail, she wandered the world for 15 years becoming a singer of opera and modern music. She spent seven years in Japan and Hong Kong studying pharmacology, and homeopathy. Returning to Haifa, she became involved with Chabad, more religious, and very active in a synagogue in Ahuza, where she met and married Michael. Moving to Netanya and finding the McDonald community has been a wonderful gift from HaShem. A

Chatan Torah – Michael Raz


Our Chatan Bereshit is Chagai Lyst who has been part of the Dor Hemshech for 25 years.

Chagai was one of the founders of Kibbutz Migdal Oz in Gush Etzion. He is an agronomist and works for the Hadera municipality.

He spends his spare time learning Torah and for many years has been responsible for organizing the learning sessions on Hoshana Raba and Erev

Shavuot in our Kehilla, and regular learning sessions.

Chagai is married to Sara who is a Tanach teacher in Tamar Ariel High School here in Netanya. When Sara was younger, she volunteered in Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv. Today she is active in an organization for “Shmirat Lashon” for ladies.

B”H, Chagai & Sara have 3 children and 2 grandchildren. A

Chatan Bereshit – Chagai Lyst

חגי לייסט: הייתי בין מייסדי קיבוץ מגדל עוז בגוש עציון. אגרונום במקצועי ועובד בעריית חדרה. משתדל לעסוק בלימוד תורה וכן מארגן ערבי לימוד בבית הכנסת

בליל הושענא רבה ואת תיקון ליל שבועות. גם בימים כתיקונם משתדל לארגן ערבילימוד, ולעסוק בעזרה לזולת במה שניתן.ץ

שרה לייסט: מורה לתנ"ך ומגישה לבגרות בבית הספר תמר אריאל בנתניה. התנדבה בצעירותה בבית החולים איכילוב בתל אביב. כיום מארגנת ארגון שמירת הלשון ביחד עם שותפה. המשתתפות בארגון שומרות את עצמן מלדבר לשון הרע וזה

לזכות אנשים הזקוקות לישועה בכל תחומי החיים. ברוך השם יש לנו שלוש בנות A .חתן ושתי נכדות


The most unified we ever were as a people was when we stood at the foot of Mt. Sinai to receive the Torah. Rashi tells us that we were כאיש אחד בלב אחד, as if we were one individual with one beating heart. Where did this unity come from? In reality, we were twelve separate tribes and over a million individuals. And yet we stood together, as one. What was the source of our

unity? What brought us together as one?

It is common that people who persevere through shared experiences create bonds among them that are lasting and unshakable. At Sinai, we were a people who had shared both slavery and salvation, together. We witnessed the miracles that the KB”H performed for us. We could look to our right and our left and know that we

had not only experienced the same traumas and joys but that we had persevered together.

There is another time where we stood together in unity. Before entering Eretz Yisrael, we stood together again, a people born out of the same experiences, knowingly nodding to each other, thinking back on the challenges and miracles of the

previous 40 years and knowing that we had made it. We had persevered together. And we stood kulchem - all of us about to

enter Eretz Yisrael, all of us about to start a new chapter in our history, together.

אַתֶם נִצָבים הַיּוֹם כֻלְכֶם לִפְני ײַ אֱלֹקיכםרָאשֵׁיכֶם שִׁבְטֵיכֶם זִקְנֵיכֶם וְשֹׁטְרֵיכם

ל׃ כֹל אִישׁ יִשְרָאֵֽYou stand this day, all of you, before the LORD your God—your tribal heads, your elders and your officials, all of Israel

We are in the midst of a time,

One Beating HeartRosh Hashana תשפ׳׳אby Rabbi David Woolf

We look at each other with the knowing eyes born out of common trauma. Loved ones lost, weddings missed, grandchildren not held, businesses closed, synagogues closed and the list seems to go on and on.


perhaps for the first time since the Tower of Bavel, where the entire world is going through the same experience at the same time. Words like Covid-19 or masks or social distancing or lockdown do not need to be explained to anyone, anywhere on the planet. Everyone understands. We look at each other with the knowing eyes born out of common trauma. Loved ones lost, weddings missed, grandchildren not held, businesses closed, synagogues closed and the list seems to go on and on.

Unity doesn’t only come from shared experiences. It comes from how one responds to crises and HOW a community comes together. This past year we responded to the crisis and continue to respond to it as Pirkei Avot told us to respond: with Torah, Prayer and Gemilut Chesed.

And now we stand together as we enter into the Yamim Nora’im, the High Holy Days of Rosh Hashana and Yom Hakippurim. We ready ourselves for the sound of the Shofar - the call to unity. The Rav, Rabbi Joseph Soloveichik, explains that there are two aspects to

the Shofar’s call to unity. One is the Teruah; the other is the Tekiya.

The Teruah is a sound broken into many pieces. The Rav says this sound is a communal call to arms. It requires unified community action in the face of a common danger. It unifies everyone, colleagues and competitors alike. In the face of a common threat it is natural to come together. Since Pesach, we have heard the constant staccato of the Teruah throughout our community, bringing us together in the face of the global pandemic.

We have responded to the sound of the Teruah. Our community came together via Zoom to reach out to each other, to continue and deepen our learning. We needed to make sure that no one was left out. We organised and reorganised our synagogue space several times over so that it could remain a safe place to daven and come together. We did this as a community.

But the Rav goes on to point out that unity brought about by the Teruah has a defect. It lasts only as long as the common threat lasts. When it passes, the unity crumbles. The example Rabbi

continued on the following page


Soloveichik gives is the Allied forces during World War II. Once the war was over and the common threat defeated, old rivalries and hatreds resurfaced. The unity was lost and will remain lost until the next Teruah is needed.

But there is a second aspect to the sounds of the Shofar, the Rav explains. That is the sound of the Tekiya. It is the unbroken single blast to call the Eidah, the community, together. The Torah even tells us (Bamidbar 10:7) that the sound of the Tekiya is the sound that brings us together.יעוּ׃ וּבְהַקְהִיל אֶת־הַקָהָל תִתְקְעוּ וְלאֹ תָרִֽWhile to convoke the congregation, you shall blow Tekiya, not Teruah.

It is not to face danger that the Tekiya unites us. Rather, we come together as a community of like-minded people who share a common vision, a common mission and common goals. A Tekiya was sounded at Har Sinai when we stood together as one. It was sounded every day when the Beit HaMikdash stood and testified to God’s presence among us and will be heard at the arrival of the Moshi’ach (may he speedily come).

The Tekiya, the Torah tells us, needs to be sounded at joyous times, on our holidays and at the new moon. The

Tekiya is the unbroken sound of us coming together as one and to remind us that we always stand before the KB”H, in joy and in unity.

Our Rabbis made sure that just before Rosh Hashana, we always read parshat Nitzavim. They wanted us to hear and understand this message:

אַתֶם נִצָבִים הַיּוֹם כֻלְכֶם לִפְנֵי ײַ אֱלֹקיכֶםThe message is that we stand, every

one of us, united and together before the KB”H.

As our common threat, this global pandemic, has not quite disappeared, we still need to continue to heed the sound of the Teruah and continue to wear our masks and to social distance.

But at the same time, we all need to remember that we conclude our Shofar service on Rosh HaShana and end Yom HaKippurim with a Tekiya Gedolah. A long unbroken Shofar blast that reminds us that our unity, our real unity, is born out of common purpose, out of joy, and out of love. Let this Tekiya be a reminder that our community is more than a community of convenience; it is, as the Rav said, a community, a shul and a family of shared values committed to each other and to all of Klal Yisrael. A


Our Synagogue FamilyMazal Tov to those enjoying S’machot:

BirthsApril Sharon & Erez Azmon ..........................................................sonSonya & Lawrence Benjamin ........................................................great-granddaughterJudy & Joseph Berger .........................................................................great-granddaughterBrenda & Michael Bliss ...................................................................great-granddaughterElizabeth & Dov Dorfman ..............................................................great-grandsonBella Fielding .......................................................................................great-granddaughterEster & David Friede .........................................................................granddaughterMadeleine & Charles Golding .......................................................grandsonMinnie Goldman ................................................................................great-granddaughterEliezer Greiner ....................................................................................great-grandsonShana & Ephraim Katzman ...........................................................great-grandsonMonique & Jacques Korolnyk ........................................................great-granddaughterRuth & David Marriott .....................................................................great-granddaughterBetty & Peter Olswang ......................................................................great-grandsonEv & Sigi Pugatsch .............................................................................granddaughter Renee Rabinowitz ..............................................................................great-granddaughterFederica & Jack Reiss ........................................................................great-granddaughterKaren & Charlie Sacofsky ...............................................................granddaughterLaura Shuck .........................................................................................great-grandsonRennie Swirski ....................................................................................great-granddaughterSadie Symon ........................................................................................2 great-grandsonsCyril Watson .........................................................................................great-grandson

Bar/Bat MitzvahBebe Feldman ......................................................................................grandsonShary & Manfred Goldberg ............................................................granddaughterShashi & Yaacov Ishai .......................................................................sonRennie Swirski ....................................................................................grandsonBetty Warach ........................................................................................grandson



Special BirthdaysLawrence Benjamin Cyril Watson

B’hatzlacha Raba in the ArmyAmichai Rosenstein Avraham Yitzchak Katz

Wedding AnniversariesIvor & Valerie Baum Linda & Ernie HirschEleanor & Gerald Kirsh

Welcome to New MembersFernanda Shapiro & Michael Raz Shteinkrizer

EngagementsMelissa & Al Dubinsky .....................................................................daughterYvonne & Shraga Haber ...................................................................grandsonRita & Gerald Levy .............................................................................grandson Rennie Swirski ....................................................................................granddaughterJudy & Joseph Berger .........................................................................grandson

MarriagesNina & Elhanan Diesendruck .......................................................granddaughterMiriam & Rabbi Ed Feigelman .....................................................grandson Bebe Feldman ......................................................................................granddaughterBella Fielding .......................................................................................2 granddaughtersSolange & Pinchas Gamliel............................................................grandsonShary & Manfred Goldberg ............................................................grandsonMinnie Goldman ................................................................................granddaughterLinda & Ernie Hirsch ........................................................................granddaughterAnna Rosenfelder ..............................................................................granddaughterDoreen Usden ......................................................................................2 granddaughters Rabbi Yosef & Marsha Wolicki ......................................................granddaughter


Sincerest Condolences to:Miriam Cohen and family on the death of her husband, Jake ז"לLiz Fishman (Fried) and family on the death of her brother ז"לCharles Golding on the death of his brother, Alvin ז"לYvonne Haber on the death of her mother, Betty Horwitz ז"לSon and daughter of Harvey Nyman ז"לEvelyn Isaacs and family on the death of her husband, our member, David ז"לJorgen Konigshofer and family on the death of his wife, our member, Elaine ז"לErez Lerner on the death of his mother, Pnina ז"לJanet Lewis and family on the death of her husband and former chairman, Warren ז"לSuzanne Mannes and family on the death of her husband, Udo ז"לEllen Minaker on the death of her brother, Burt ז"לNobby Smith & Eric Smith on the death of their sister, Barbara ז"לDoreen Usden on the death of her son, Warren ז"לBetty Warach on the death of her husband and former chairman, Akiva ז"ל

Thanks to the sponsors of the Parshiot Videos: Judy & Joseph Berger Rivka & Martin HimmelWarren Cohen & family Evelyn KlaffElizabeth Dorfman & Ruth Marriott Monique & Jacques KorolnykMaureen & Colin Frankel (3) Micol & Edoardo MarascalchiShirley Garber & family Sadie SymonMiriam Bracha Heimler

KiddushimIn accordance with the Ministry of Health, kiddushim have been suspended.

Seudot Shlishit Seudot Shlishit have been suspended during the pandemic, though many generous donations have been made. We thank everyone for their generosity.

Notifications received at the shul Office after August 23, will appear in the next issue. A phone call to the office with your “news” will ensure its appearance on the Family Page.


Hello darkness, my old friendI’ve come to talk with you againBecause a vision softly creepingLeft its seeds while I was sleepingAnd the vision that was planted in my brainStill remainsWithin the sound of silenceIn restless dreams I walked aloneNarrow streets of cobblestone‘Neath the halo of a street lampI turned my collar to the cold and dampWhen my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon lightThat split the nightAnd touched the sound of silenceSimon & Garfunkel – The Sound of Silence

Silence fell on our shul from the end of the Book of Shemot until the beginning of the Book of Bamidbar. The Covid-19 epidemic that had been threatening the world since Purim was now overtaking our normal lives. Within a few short weeks our shul went from the hustle and bustle of morning and evening prayers, shiurim, lectures, library visits, Shabbat kiddushim, and

other social events, to a complete lock down.

What we all considered a normal shul life, now entered a deep sleep.

However, Jews are not to be deterred. They become aroused and galvanized into action in extreme and life-threatening situations, and this was no exception. From quiet and desolate cities, towns and villages across the entire country, the sounds of street minyanim could be heard. From balconies and open windows, from gardens and entrance halls, eyes and ears were tuned in to groups of men, Sephardim and Ashkenazim alike, fully masked and spread out to maintain distancing rules. Megaphones and Internet connections could be heard booming out prayers from rooftops and penthouses to happy attendees standing below, enjoying their brief but comforting minutes together in prayer, in praise of Hashem.

So too, our own shul was not to be deterred. Immediately upon rules being relaxed to allow men to pray together outside a synagogue, our Rav and Chairman announced that a Minyan

The 2020 Pandemic & Jewish Resilienceby Bernie Wolff


would be formed in the entrance courtyard of our shul. As the morbidity rate among the elderly had been particularly severe, many of our senior members were fearful to exit their homes. In the first week, only the Rav and Chairman attended the outside Minyan. However, in the next few weeks, around 15 brave souls were attending morning and evening services on a regular basis.

We are proud to say that, since that first week, our shul has maintained minyanim morning and evening, all throughout Shabbat, and on all Chagim. It has not been easy. First, we were allowed up to 50 attendees, then it was reduced to 20, back up to 30, down again to 20, and finally limited to just 10. The office, staffed by Laura, has remained open daily. Every week the gardens have been beautifully maintained by Susan, Therese and Paulette.

Again, resilience and entrepreneurship became the order of the day. We formed extra minyanim – in the main shul, beit midrash, social hall, and even in the courtyard when

required. Our amazing custodian, Moshe Chakimi, painted the entire exterior of the shul, and strung up a canopy to protect the Minyan against the intense sunshine and heat. Jeremy and Moshe built “capsules” in the main shul to house women and extra men who wanted to attend services. The Rav set up the daily shiurim on Zoom. We hosted a Bar Mitzvah and a Shabbat Chatan. A full Tikun Leyl Shavuot was organized by the members of the Dor Hemshech Minyan, and on Tisha B’Av, Edoardo provided a Facebook link to allow home viewing of Megillat Eicha.

What an inspiring series of events. What will be for the upcoming Yomim Noraim? Only Hashem can foresee this, but rest assured the shul will find a way to handle any eventuality. Every member of our shul should feel very proud of our resilience and how we have overcome these unprecedented last four months.

Finally, there’s a saying that to every dark cloud there’s a “silver lining”. Our silver lining is that there’s been no talking in shul during davening!! A


Even after the April/May 2020 lockdown in Israel to combat Covid-19, the aftermath was just as uncertain. In June, much to our regret, we had to cancel our trip to Australia to see our newborn grandson. When the national parks all over Israel started re- opening, we decided instead to travel North. We spent three wonderful days in the Golan Heights, hiking along the Banyas stream and waterfall and visiting Tel Dan. Discovering these gems in our own backyard of Israel made up for the disappointment of

having to shelve our international travel plans due to Covid-19.

My 60th birthday was coming up in July but I realized that because of ‘the virus’, it would most probably be a non-event. Though I resigned myself to this state of affairs, my daughter would

have none of it and insisted that we celebrate this milestone. She suggested that we go to Eilat for a long weekend. My previous visit had been over 30 years ago and it was the last place I would have thought of to spend my 60th birthday. She organized a self-catering apartment that seemed well appointed and included a swimming pool for us to enjoy. With the official rules and regulations continually in flux, I wondered whether our plans would amount to anything as they were threatening another lockdown

(which they always seemed to be doing).

Our designated departure date arrived in mid-July and we were off—to Eilat! On

the way we stopped off to view Ben Gurion’s gravesite at Kibbutz Sde Boker. He and his wife Paula are buried in a beautiful spot overlooking the Negev desert’s landscape. His vision for the Negev was a bold one and a quote of his has been inscribed on a wall by the

Israel — A Diamond In My Own Backyardby Suzie Schwartz

My 60th birthday was coming up in July but I realized that because of ‘the virus’, it would most probably be a non-event. Though I resigned myself to this state of affairs, my daughter would have none of it and insisted that we celebrate this milestone.


entrance to the park: ‘We shall bloom the desolate land and convert the spacious Negev into a source of Force and Power. A Blessing for the State of Israel.’

This was surely coming true before our eyes. Beersheva looked like a futuristic city rising from desert sands and all along the route, there was evidence of various developments in desert agriculture, energy, tourism and infrastructure. We whizzed past the new ‘Ilan and Asaf Ramon Airport’ which blended seamlessly and unobtrusively into the desert wilderness. It was shrouded in the same haze that smudged the distant mountains of Moab with blue.

Below Ben Gurion’s grave, there is a winding road that leads to Ein Avdat. This wadi is a designated national park where one can hike along desert

canyons and follow a spring that brings water and life to the desert. A herd of ibex, or desert mountain goats, had come down to drink and hastily made off just as we came into sight. We watched them clambering effortlessly up the steep, rocky side of the canyon. They were truly spectacular animals to

continued on page 23


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watch as they easily made their way, in leaps and bounds, over loose stones and sharp boulders to reach the top of the cliff.

In Eilat, we swam with wild dolphins at Dolphin Reef and snorkeled among the multi-coloured fish that live in the coral reef at Coral Beach. The waters of the Red Sea were cool and refreshing in contrast to the relentless heat that pushed the mercury upwards to 40°C. Nonetheless we had a fabulous time and it was a 60th birthday celebration

beyond my wildest dreams. I am so glad and grateful that my daughter wouldn’t let Covid-19 get in the way of life.

I now have a new tool in my toolbox: when in doubt, fear or living with uncertainty, I just take a trip somewhere in Israel and it seems to magically disappear. Because Covid-19 made me stay put and at home in Israel, it gave me a chance to discover the diamonds that were in my own backyard. A

Flare of Insightby Miriam Michaeli Feigelman

What are we if not HisAnd what is HeIf not our only source ofHope, courage, freedom and blessing? The veils with which we shroud ourselvesThat separate us from reality and true perceptionTake many forms:Jealousy, anger, despair, envy, doubt But as these veils are torn, or shornOr ripped with blinding LightWe seeWho Is and Was and Always Will BeCarries usIn cradled handsThrough life. A

continued from page 21


Pesach was over and it was Isru Chag. I had made it! I had made a Seder and a week of Pesach at home, and a month earlier we were tossing up which family to go to. I had made a liveable peace with a nasty, catching coronavirus. We had indeed kept away from our precious family according to the guidelines, ordered shopping online and davened over the chag at home, the biggest change of all. I thought we had made the best of the situation ... and, of course, we were indoors on lockdown like everyone else.

I remember exactly what I was doing that afternoon – sorting my collection

of unused Pesach groceries. I could have made a big matzah party!

There was the sound of music outside. Everything I did was slow motion as who was rushing anywhere(!), so I ambled through the salon to our balcony which overlooks the ‘Dolphin’ roundabout, curious at the sound breaking the ‘lockdown silence’. Young men and women in army uniform were on an open truck, microphones in hand, performing and singing to the rather loud but happy music! It was a lovely idea of theirs to entertain us but I thought, ‘Isn’t this the wrong order of things? We aren’t soldiers on an army base or the battlefield after a day of fighting, the

venue for such performances. This is weird!’ That’s when I choked up, and understood the really topsy turvy world the coronavirus had made. We, the people, had become the embattled ones, and the ‘battlefield’ was everywhere. It was a moment I’ll never

forget, along with these coronavirus days, of how touched I felt that the

Music To Our Ears – A Coronavirus Concertby Elizabeth Dorfman

Young men and women in army uniform were on an open truck, microphones in hand, performing and singing to the rather loud but happy music! It was a lovely idea of theirs to entertain us but I thought, ‘Isn’t this the wrong order of things?


army entertainment corps came to Netanya.

These troops had come to entertain the civilians ‘imprisoned’ in their homes. I was still choked and couldn’t have talked if there was someone to talk to next to me! They chose Shlomo Hamelech Street. So very touching. Meanwhile others appeared at their balconies and windows. Then a few brave people began gathering on the street, within their 100 meters allowed, and, please note, if they stood too close

to one another the music stopped playing! The soldiers repeatedly requested of the people to stay at a distance - and then they would resume. The concert continued for two hours until the sun started going down.

I spotted Melissa on the roundabout! She looked pretty small from eight floors up. I sent her a picture of herself and asked her, if she didn’t mind, to look up and take a picture of me for posterity from her phone in return. Her picture captured two other small heads



looking out – my neighbours on the twin balcony whom I couldn’t see over our dividing wall!

Thank you to our army’s entertainment corps. I wonder if any other country has had the same experience.

May Hashem bring an end to this plague, and may He restore health and peace speedily in our days. A

continued from page 25 For me, Pesach is generally the busiest time of the year. Every second year I make Seder for my two sons and their families, a total of twelve. This was my year to host. My sister and her family of seven or more come to spend Pesach in Netanya, every year. So, apart from Seder (every second year), I eat with them or they with me all week.

I go shopping on Rosh Chodesh Nisan and half the kitchen is koshered about 10 days prior to Pesach so that I can start cooking and preparing.

But not this year. I was housebound due to the Coronavirus lockdown and could not go shopping as usual. So what to do?

Many people who generally go to a hotel for Pesach, could not go and bought take-away meals and throw-away dishes. But I am only one, so I did not consider buying take-away meals until, less than a week beforehand. I saw an email about take-away food for Pesach. I looked at the menu and scrolled up and down a few times. Should I or shouldn’t I? Eventually just as the final date for ordering arrived, I decided to buy the minimum possible. And it turned out to be a wonderful


Pesach — Alone... But Not Lonelyby Laura Shuck

decision. The food arrived on the afternoon prior to Seder. I unwrapped the parcels, divided the food into single meals and put them in the empty freezer. It worked out to be very inexpensive as the meals lasted about two weeks.

Oh dear. I have to have Seder on my own – never in all my life did I have a Seder by myself! My son suggested that I join them on Zoom for the Seder. Somehow the idea did not appeal and also, I did not have a decent camera or a mike. So, we agreed that they would open their Zoom at 5 p.m. and I would speak to their family via phone. We conversed for about ten minutes, each one spoke separately and as we were saying goodbye my son said, wait one minute, and he put on a video.

The idea for this video came from my eldest granddaughter. She got her eldest daughter, aged 16 years, to gather clips from each family group, my children and each of the married children and a grandson who lives alone. She joined the twelve or so clips together and I listened to every one of

my closest family giving messages of love as well as a greeting for the Seder and the Chag. Some of the little great-grandchildren there also were prompted and urged by their parents to wish me Chag Sameach. My son-in-law played a short selection of tunes from the Haggadah on the piano. In the

background, a song which my eldest granddaughter had composed using a popular Hebrew tune for my 80th birthday סבתא לורה אין כמוה was playing. One of my grandsons was also singing this song when his clip was displayed. Can you imagine how emotional this was?

When I sat down to Seder by myself, I did not feel alone. I could feel all those children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren around me. I read every word and sang all the songs that I remembered in the Haggadah.

Yes, I was alone. Was I lonely? NO!! A

In the background, a song which my eldest granddaughter had composed using a popular Hebrew tune for my 80th birthday ....was playing סבתא לורה אין כמוה


This unique Shabbaton was the 40th Annual lecture series/Shabbaton sponsored by Zvi and Carole Fink in memory of Zvi’s mother a”h, all former members of our shul.

In honour of this Shabbaton, Zvi requested a list of the speakers who had lectured over that period. A list was prepared dating forward from 1985 to 2020 inclusive and an artistic certificate of that list was presented at the Friday night dinner to Zvi and Carole Fink, in deep appreciation of their dedicated sponsorship over so many years.

The Scholar in Residence at that Shabbaton was Rabbi Dr Alan Kimche, founding Rabbi of the Ner Yisrael Community in Hendon, London and its extremely popular Rav for 35 years. He and his wife Via had made Aliyah just a few months earlier.

Rabbi Kimche spoke on five occasions, commencing with the Friday evening dinner, giving a D’var Torah titled “Insights into the Friday night Kiddush”. On Shabbat morning his Drasha before Mussaph was “Thoughts on the Parshat

HaShavua”.After Kiddush, Rabbi Kimche gave a

most interesting lecture entitled “The Inside Story of the Battle for the Creation of the North-West London Eruv”. He spoke of the trials and tribulations and ultimate success of creating this Eruv over a 17-year period. This inspired the establishment of many other Eruvim in the UK.

During Seuda Shlishit, Rabbi Kimche’s shiur was entitled “What is a chumra?”

On Motzei Shabbat, Rabbi Kimche gave a public lecture to a large and appreciative audience, the title of which was “The Five Lights of Judaism. When do we Light Candles and Why?”

At the end of the public lecture Zvi and Carole Fink were very warmly thanked for their dedicated and amazingly generous and longstanding support of our community. A

Malka Fink Memorial Shabbaton 10/11 January 2020by David Marriott


Malka Fink Memorial Shabbaton 10/11 January 2020by David Marriott


Did you hear the one about Finland? They just closed their borders. You know what that means. No one will be crossing the finish line.

Jokes (or should I say puns) like these have been making their way into social media since the beginning of the epidemic. Not just moseying along, but running, jumping and leaping into every conceivable venue such as Facebook, WhatsApp and Twitter, to name a few. Memes galore such as this one “I’m going to stay up on New Year’s Eve this year. Not to see the New Year in, but to make sure this one leaves.” And this gem, “Can I enjoy COVID-19 on its own or do I need to see COVID-18 first?”

I could go on, but I think you get the point. The obvious question is this: with such a deadly virus collecting victims by the hundreds of thousands, how could people post items that are in such poor taste? I think the answer lies in the resilience of humanity and specifically the Jewish people.

According to Wikipedia, “Beginning with vaudeville, and continuing through radio, stand-up comedy, film,

and television, a disproportionately high percentage of American, German, and Russian comedians have been Jewish. Time estimated in 1978 that 80 percent of professional American comics were Jewish. Sigmund Freud considered Jewish humor unique in that its humor is primarily derived from mocking of the in-group (Jews) rather than the “other.” Among the Jewish communities of Eastern Europe, the powerful were often mocked subtly, rather than attacked overtly—as Saul Bellow once put it, “Oppressed people tend to be witty.”

We all grew up enjoying the stories of ,the Wise Men of Chelm. To me ,חכמי חלםour ability to poke fun at any tragedy is a matter of survival. Dark humor is our way of dealing with crises – a way to relieve stress under all circumstances. And the jokes circulating during the Covid-19 pandemic are no different. Plus, let’s be honest, there’s so much great material from which to choose. Even in the political arena. Or should I say especially in the political arena.

Who can forget the early days of conflicting advice: masks are critical,

There’s Nothing Funny Aboutby Paulette Woolf


masks don’t work, only certain masks can protect you. It’s dangerous to go outside – exercise and fresh air are vital. You can only catch the virus through person to person transmission, but remember the virus can live for up to 72 hours on certain surfaces. Whaaat?????

And the guidelines - let’s not forget about the guidelines. They literally changed from hour to hour. You can pray with a minyan of 50. No, 20! No, 10! Were these the instructions of the Health Ministry or Avraham negotiating with G-d over the destruction of Sdom?

So, we either laugh or cry. Try to see the humor in the situation or give in to the despair and sense of hopelessness that engulfs us much of the time. Situations that were inconceivable just six short months ago, are the new reality. In our lifetime, which of us remembers a Seder without guests? Weddings performed for family and friends via Zoom? Airports desolate? Broadway shut down and similar famous

heritage sites devoid of tourists? “Today I was in the bank when two men

came in wearing masks. Everyone felt a huge relief when they told us it’s only a bank robbery.” We laugh because we can identify and share a bond with others, even as we sit isolated in our homes.

As I write this, I have no idea how we are going to celebrate the Yomim

Noraim. Will I be allowed to daven with my community, as

I have for my entire life? Will I hear the mournful sound of the Shofar at the conclusion of Yom Kippur? I need to accept that I have no control over any of it. I only have control over my

Emuna in the Kadosh Baruch Hu.

And in my ability to laugh. So, on that note, I’ll leave you with an Israeli joke to start off your New Year: “Israelis were upset that it rained in June – as though what happened during the previous three months was completely normal.” A

Covid-19. Or is there?


Some years ago in Toronto, we were privileged to have as a visiting professor Gavriel Ben-Dor, a very well-known political scientist and former Rector of the University of Haifa, who davened in my shul and whom I came to know quite well.

Professor Ben-Dor was an excellent speaker in English, and he became so well-known around Toronto that a wealthy family from the leading reform congregation invited him back each year to give a couple of lectures, that always received a large attendance.

One year, he spoke about Resilience, starting off by saying that this was a quality widely possessed among many Israelis that had enabled them to survive so many challenges.

One of my own observations of Resilience came from my experiences with having patients who were involved in the political arena, and my own involvement in medical politics.

I developed a number of what I call “rules” about politics, but the one that is relevant here is that a characteristic that separates successful politicians from the rest of people—including

people often much smarter intellectually—is that successful politicians have the capacity to bounce back immediately—the next day—after they have been attacked, criticized, shown up to be quite wrong about something, while the rest of us will mope and feel upset for four to six weeks about the unjust, unfair, hurt, attack we have received.

That is an illustration of resilience. My dictionary does indeed offer as a

definition “springing back” as well as “readily recovering” and “resuming”.

Applying these to Israel, we can see how appropriate the term is, because in its relatively short existence on the world scene, the modern State of Israel has had to bounce back from a number of wars, starting on day one, as well as from countless terrorist attacks, as well as ‘intellectual’ or verbal assaults that, if anything, have increased in their vehemence in recent years.

Indeed, one of the most painful things as Jews we have to tolerate are those who claim some sort of Jewish identity, but have public platforms from which they incessantly and

Resilienceby Dr Joseph Berger


viciously attack the State of Israel. But as Jews we have had to be

resilient from the earliest days of our history—whether being attacked from the outside by Amalek and Amalek’s wannabee successors, or from the inside by our numerous historical examples of in-fighting such as Korach and his followers, the anti-annexationists of biblical times otherwise known as the ‘meraglim’, the corrupt rulers of Am Yisrael such as Izevel and Achav, the ‘protesters’ who put a stop for some time to the rebuilding of the Beit Hamikdash, and of course the ‘biryonim’ who destroyed the stored food that could have kept the population of Yerushalayim alive during the siege that led to the destruction of the first Beit Hamikdash.

Those of us who believe that our inheritance is authentic, that we are indeed the children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren of ancestors who preserved our wonderful tradition through four thousand years of history, therefore know that we are the descendants of people who had extraordinary levels of resilience. To still be here today as observant Jews—after everything our more than one hundred generations of ancestors went through—is astonishing. It makes the casual abandonment of our tradition and our values by the highly assimilated, privileged young people, especially in North America, so truly sad.

No major western country has not suffered from the ravages of the horrible corona virus. In many countries including Israel, there has been at times premature boasting in claiming to have overcome it, and at other times near-panic in terms of both the physical morbidity - illness and death - and harsh economic effects. Overall, I think it is reasonable to say that Israel has done reasonably well compared to others.

We are mostly an Ashkenaz community which means our ancestry goes back to Europe, and most families have stories to tell about survival, coping, and recovery, that our ancestors made to enable us to be here. For our Sefardi and Edut Mizrach cousins, the same applies. Most of their ancestors in recent years have had to leave countries where Jewish communities flourished for centuries, and they also have rebuilt their lives and their communities here.

We Jews seem to have an extraordinary capacity to bounce back, and in these difficult times, it is worth remembering that this is a very special quality that virtually all of our families have had, and that when times are difficult for us we can reflect that they did it and so can we.

We hope that the coming Jewish year, will be a happy and healthy one for all of us, that we won’t have for much longer the limits and restrictions in our davening together as a kehilla. A


G-d is With Me, I Shall Not Fearby Andee Goldman

Coronavirus has turned the world upside down, or maybe it was always upside down, and G-d has now corrected what was lacking? We have a choice on how we will handle situations that are thrown our way. Will positive or negative attitudes

determine our success, or will FAITH and TRUST in our Creator give us inner peace?

Daily we say Adon Olam in Hebrew, but do we really know, or listen to the words in English?

Master of the universe Who reignedbefore any form was created.

At the time when His will brought all into beingThen as “King” was His Name proclaimed.

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After all has ceased to be,He, the Awesome One, will reign alone.

It is He Who was, He Who is,and He Who shall remain, in splendor.

He is one, there is no secondto compare to Him, to declare as His equal.

Without beginning, without conclusionHe is the power and dominion.

He is my God, my living Redeemer,Rock of my pain in time of distress.,

He is my banner, a refuge for me,The portion in my cup on the day I call.

Into His Hand I shall entrust my spirit,when I go to sleep and I shall awaken!!With my spirit shall my body remain.

G-d is with me, I shall not fear.

When we are busy, running, chasing, it is easy to forget, G-D is with me.When we live a life full of abundance, and now things are lacking,

G-d is with me.When we don’t feel comfortable to go to go to a friend’s because there will

not be any social distancing, G-d is with me.When we can not travel across the world to see our children, G-d is with me.

When someone speaks Lashon Hara, G-d is with me.When we are not able to go to synagogue, G-d is with me.

When we are worried about our health, G-d is with me.

No matter what life throws my way, G-d is with me.The stars and moon appear every night, and the sun rises in the morning.

The tide goes in and out.Faith and Trust will keep us going.

May G-d bless you and keep you!! A


We have all been struggling with making a new life for ourselves in this time of Corona. No longer thought of as a two month “time out” or “lockdown”, the entire world realizes that things are not ever likely to be the same.

Sometime along the way, most of us started reaching out to reclaim into our lives people and activities important to us. Many of us, raised in the pre-computer age, didn’t fully appreciate the way that technology could enhance

our lives. We know, of course, about the computer age, space travel, Moovit, the Iron Dome, and other grand technological accomplishments. But we may not have brought the benefits of technology into our own homes the way we have in 2020.

Consider Zoom (and other similar programs). Formerly, typically one would need to go to a shul or community center to hear a shiur or a lecture. Now we can select from thousands of options, from all over the world, at any hour of the day, and bring the presenter into our living room via a computer or smart phone. Web based options allow us to visit museums and zoos worldwide, play bridge with our regular partners or strangers, or learn a

new skill via online tutoring. While the jury is still out on the effectiveness of distance learning for schoolchildren, it is undeniable

that the technology now exists to permit this.

Perhaps most importantly, technology allows us to connect closely with family and friends who are scattered over the world.

Once the lockdown prevented us

Technology Comes to Our Aidby Melissa Dubinsky

Formerly, typically one would need to go to a shul or community center to hear a shiur or a lecture. Now we can select from thousands of options, from all over the world, at any hour of the day, and bring the speaker into our living room...


Technology Comes to Our Aidby Melissa Dubinsky

from seeing our neighbors daily, we were challenged to fill our social calendars. How many of us are now able to use the power of technology, at no additional cost, to reach out across the world? How many of us have been able to attend a Zoom wedding or bris?

We sometimes see comparisons to how our grandparents handled the flu pandemic of 1918-1919. Really, there is no comparison. They would probably say they were resilient in the face of daily tragedy, and they would be right.

Today, we would say we are resilient in coming to grips with changes in the way we travel, shop, communicate, and fill our days. Technology smooths the roughest edges of lockdown, providing us the means to extend ourselves beyond the confines of our homes. We have only to apply ourselves to our technology. A

wish all the Kehilla

שנה טובה ומבורכת

www.pronat.co.il


When confronted with adversity, some people get stuck in the muck, while others work their way out. I call it making lemonade, turning the sour into something positive. During lockdown, we had time to think about Resilience, Faith, Isolation, and Community. I am presenting a list of books from the Henry Koor Judaica Library which deals with these subjects, books that focus on the 'lemonade'.

ResilienceRoad to Resilience: from Chaos to Celebration by Sherri Mandell. This primer presents guidelines for

resilience by moving through the 7 C's: chaos, community, choice, creativity, commemoration, consecration, and celebration.Living beyond Terrorism: Israeli Stories of Hope and Healing by Zieva Dauber Konvisser. This collection of stories, focuses on resilience, recovery, and growth. Survivors of terror attacks and the bereaved tell how they did not just continue life but moved on to a life with new purpose and they contributed to society.

EmunaFaith after the Holocaust by Eliezer Berkovits. Rabbi Berkovits wrote this book before and during the Six Day War. He speaks to people of faith yet doesn't degrade skeptics. He feels that Gentiles failed him, not G-d.The Garden of Emuna by Shlomo Arush. This book can be compressed into three sentences:

• Everything comes from G-d, including unpleasant things.

• Anything unpleasant in life is for

When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonadeby Tsipi Wexler


the best; after all, it comes from G-d.• One must find the good in the

unpleasantness (soul searching).This book is a lesson in resilience

and faith. Read it for more details and stories.

IsolationFear No Evil by Natan Sharansky.Isolation is difficult for many people. I admire Sharansky, not just for surviving isolation without Zoom and text messages, but also for his courage and hope.

CommunityOur country is made up of people

who overcame their challenges as individuals. Somehow, individuals form communities and a nation that overcomes immense odds.

Israel: Life in the Shadow of Terror: Personal accounts and Perspectives from the Heart of the Jewish People edited by Nechemia Coopersmith and Shraga Simmons. This collection of stories is similar to Konvisser’s book,

yet the vignettes aren’t necessarily written by bereaved. It’s more a report of life in Israel during the Intifada and an explanation of why each writer, despite the difficulties, lives in Israel.

Miracle Nation:70 Stories about the Spirit of Israel by Israela Meyerstein. Our national community is a patchwork of people and values; the author collected 70 stories for our 70th year of independence. Stories are about immigrants, values, justice, needy citizens, technology and inclusiveness for the disabled, anything positive about our country.

Wishing all of you a year of Emuna, Resilience, Connectedness and Blessings! Shana Tovah! A



Shiurim on ZOOM Please check the weekly newsletter for up-to-date start times

Sun -Thurs 8:30am Gemara Express Rabbi Raphael Katz Meeting I.D. 4806088269 / Password 8RXUmm

Sun 7.30pm Shiur Rabbi Raphael Katz Meeting I.D. 4806088269 / Password 8RXUmm

Sun 5:30pm Chiour en Français Rabbin Eliahou Touitou Contact Jacques Korolnyk: 054 752 2179 for Zoom address

Mon 7:00pm Parshat HaShavuah Rabbi Baruch Taub Meeting I.D. 888974573

Tue 10:00am Shiur Rabbi Raphael Katz Meeting I.D. 4806088269 / Password 8RXUmm

Alternate Tuesdays 10:45 a.m. Matan Gina Junger Contact Doreen Usden: 09 862 8984 for Zoom address

Wed 7:00pm Halacha Topics Rabbi Baruch Taub Meeting I.D. 709706986


Sacred words, which we read on a page or a scroll, have connected us, the Jewish people, through millennia and around the globe. Standing in a shul in a foreign land, holding an unfamiliar siddur, but reading the familiar words that we would be reading were we at home, has always felt awe-inspiring to me, and immeasurably comforting.

While its “what’s inside that counts”, there is importance in appearances, too.

To comply with each new set of guidelines that we have received from the Ministry of Health, those who have been fortunate enough to be able to attend services in our sanctuary may have found themselves socially distancing by sitting in a different seat, a different row, or in an entirely different section of the shul. But change is good. It

affords us a fresh perspective. It gives us the chance to discover something we might never have noticed before.

It was this experience of finding ourselves in different seats in our

Judging a Book by Its Coverby Therese Berkowitz

This siddur crumbled in my hands, but I was struck by the date: 1897


sanctuary that prompted my dear friend, Susan Wolff, to suggest a new initiative for which she was requesting my help: “a siddur and chumash refresh.” I agreed. So, after a quick Shabbos discussion, we made plans to meet at shul the following Sunday. Masked and gloved, we began to open each book box, seat by seat, row by row. What we discovered was what we had sadly suspected: many of our books that had been lovingly used over the years were now no longer in good shape. Their spines were broken, covers warped and cracked, some had become completely unglued. They could no longer be easily held. Their pages were yellowed, dried out, worn or torn.

We talked about our own experiences in shuls that we’d visited in our travels, both here in Israel and abroad. Then, we considered the content of our book boxes and our book shelves and the poor impression they might give to a visitor or a

TOP LEFT: A bookplate that honors an entire famlly who perished in the Holocaust—what resilience it took to make a new life in a new

country without them. BOTTOM LEFT: A sketch found on an inside cover—I just love the creative

spirit, spontaneity and the visual record of a moment captured in time.


returning congregant.Our goals were basic. First, we

wanted to clean out the book boxes of debris, remove the tattered books and replace them with books that were in better condition. Second, we wanted to create a system of social distancing by leaving alternate book boxes empty, which would be a visual reminder in compliance with health ministry regulations. Third, we felt that during this pandemic of illness and death, perhaps by changing the books in our sanctuary, we might reinvigorate the positive energy of our space. And fourth, we envisioned that when congregants would finally return to shul, they would be greeted with clean, freshly organised bookshelves and freshly stocked book boxes that would confirm that our shul is a vital and up-to-date house of worship.

We discussed our options with the Chairman and the Rabbi and it was agreed that we would prepare a preliminary selection for the Rabbi’s review. If the Rabbi was in agreement with our choices of “ready-to-retire” chumashim and siddurim, we would check each book for a bookplate, record

the names for whom the books had been dedicated, and then deliver the books to the genizah.

It is this second-to-last step, the checking-for-bookplates-and-recording-the-names process, that continues to blow me away.

Each bookplate conveys the story of another generation, a glimpse into another era—honored parents, beloved siblings, adored children and grandchildren, treasured spouses. They tell the stories of s'machot, milestones and loss. Each book has served these families with the reliability of its every word, and bears the signs of being held with devotion through daily minyanim, countless Shabbatot, and joyous Chagim. Each well-used volume has been exemplary in its many years of service in honouring these family names, and now stands ready to be laid to rest.

I imagine we have all experienced the sadness of burying a loved one. The finality of seeing an open gravesite can feel unbearable. Yet, I know that there can be unexpected comfort derived from seeing a loved one laid to rest surrounded by a selection of well-worn


A worn and torn, palm-sized soft-cover soldiers siddur

prayer books and chumashim. It is this image of these sacred books providing one final act of consolation, one last moment of inspiriatoin of resilience and strength for the surviving family

members, which I find myself coming back to, as Susan and I proceed with our “refresh” project, and continue judging our books by their covers. A

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Rosh Hashana 5781 | 2020 א׳׳פשת הנשה שאר