New Member!
Mazel Tov to our newest member! Welcome to our congregation.
Old friends
Old friends
Sat on their park bench like bookends
A time it was, and what a time it was, it was A time of innocence
A time of confidences
Long ago it must be
I have a photograph
Preserve your memories
They’re all that’s left you (Paul Simon)
Dear Friends,
Though I am the son of a one-time New York taxi driver, my understanding of car mechanics is somewhat lacking. Just last week an unhappy noise was emanating from the engine of my Jeep Wrangler. Our mechanic used what some call the Mechanic’s Stethoscope (a rather long screw- driver) to discover the source of the noise. Turned out it was something called a Synchronizer. I have labored on the internet to discover what that somewhat expensive part is all about. Below is a picture of the same with this brief description: A synchronizer, or “synchro,” lets the collar and gear synchronize their speeds while they’re already in contact but before the dog teeth engage. My reaction after reading that was; “Huh?”
remain unclear what all that means, but as the name would suggest it does have something to do with timing and gears. The noise is now gone, but the bill still remains with a bit of unclarity regarding the synchronizer’s necessary function.
There are innumerable sayings connected to time, such as “A watched pot never boils!” and “There is no time like the present!” or “Timing is everything.” And finally, Tempus fugit, which is a Latin phrase, usually translated into English as “time flies.” The phrase is used in both its Latin and English forms as a proverb meaning “time’s a-wasting.” A kindred phrase Carpe diem, (meaning something like “Seize the day!) also comes to mind.
As we will soon review the Biblical tale of the Wanderings in the Book of Numbers (Bamidbar – In the Wilderness!” in Hebrew) we can well imagine how that forty-year trek to the Promised Land must have taken its spiritual toll on our ancestors. As a kid, my brother and I would say to Pop driving the car, “Whenever will we get there?” Of course, we were unacquainted with the Buddhist saying, “Wherever you go, there you are!” The Jewish and Hindu inspired teacher Ram Daas once mused in his book “Be here now!” the value of being present in the moment. How many of us are speeding along, trying to get to there from here without noticing the “now” of our existence.
Perhaps Moses was taught as much at the burning bush when God answered his question “Whom shall I say has sent thee?” The Divine answered, “I am that I am” or to use one theological idea, “the Eternal Now!” I find that idea inviting. God (the Eternal One) is not only everywhere but also every when, unbounded by time. God is at the splitting of the Red Sea, the signing of the Declaration of Independence and at the moment when each of us will “shake off our mortal coil!”
As we are in the “winter of our discontent” (When will spring please arrive?) we should hopefully take time to “smell the roses” that have not yet bloomed. Let us be in sync as we drive along our road to understanding life and its gifts, now and forever more. Amen!
Yossi Liebowitz, Rabbi
Friends,
I enjoy social media. I admit I don’t find posts that are rants about one thing or another enjoyable. However, I really enjoy Facebook posts that are memes that make me giggle or videos of a family singing a parody of song that reflects some relatable aspect of everyday life and highlights the humor of it.
There are also inspirational aspects of social media I like. Each day I look for a post from a friend that writes a brief history lesson and connects it to current events.
I have another social media friend, a colleague from my days as a teacher, who posts a few thoughts about each day and what she feels she learned from her
interactions with humanity throughout her day.
One of my colleague’s recent posts resonated with me. She posted she was making an effort to become a human being. Wow! Aren’t we already human beings? My friend posted she felt she was a “human doing” instead of a “human being”. Always rushing to the next thing on her “to do” list, making plans of what “to do” next, how to entertain herself and her family in leisure time… and it was exhausting. In the post my friend said she needed to stop and be still, to find quietness in her day, to just be a human who was simply “being”.
This post caused me to reflect for quite some time as I realized I am a “human doing” and needed to strive to become a “human being”.
I thought about what I do to be a “human being”, to find inner peace, stillness and just be. Three things came to mind. Firstly, I make a daily declaration of faith through reciting the Shema in the morning and evening. Secondly, I exercise several times a week. Exercise allows me to shake off any cobwebs in my head and forget about my “human doings” for about 45 minutes or so a few times a week. The third way I strive to become a “human being” is attending services, either in person or virtually.
For some reason, the first two, for me, are easier than stopping for a block of time each week and attending services. However, every single time I stop “human doing” and attend services I immediately become a “human being”. The peace and sense of stillness I receive while attending services always amazes me. It is strange how I always forget how services allow me to be a “human being”, until I am at our Temple or tuned into our virtual service. Listening to our Rabbi, Yossi Liebowitz, and following the service as he leads it, I am still, at peace, and I am a “human being”.
What do you do to strive to be a “human being”? Are you able to think of at least three things you do to allow stillness in your life? It is my hope that our Temple is in your top three and attending services gives you peace and stillness to stop feeling like a “human doing” and simply become a “human being”.
I wish you peace, love, laughter, and many moments of just being this month and beyond.
Tina Lyon
Services will be streamed via Facebook Live. We want everyone to remain healthy for the New Year.
I’d like to introduce myself, I’m Peggy Ann Buchman, the new president of Temple Sisterhood. My husband Brian Hendrickson and I moved here over 5 years ago. Prior to that we belonged to Temple Chai, a large reform congregation in Long Grove, Illinois. I worked there as the clergy secretary for over 15 years. I’m looking forward to working with Tina Lyon and the other sisterhood members to help make our temple a warm inviting place for Jewish families to worship and engage with one another in an active community.
If you have any ideas or suggestions on how to help our congregation to grow as a community, please let me know. I hope to re-start the bake sale in November. With Tina Lyon, I’d like the Sister- hood to welcome any new members and their families to Temple B’nai Israel with a brunch in May or June. What activities would you like to see? What can we do to help you feel more welcome as part of our temple family? I came from a very active, engaged congregation and would like to bring some of that enthusiasm, with your help, to Temple B’nai Israel.
2/4 Lisa Frye
2/7 Michael Gelburd
2/9 Judy Golub
2/17 Shirley Koshak
2/17 Joseph Wachter
2/20 Susan Price
2/21 Sydney Brough
2/24 Ann Kelly
2/27 Christopher Brough
2/27 Arden Levy
2/27 Helga Moglin
2/1 Sarah D. Cohen
2/1 Conley Cook
2/4 Jacob Finke
2/5 Daniel Koshak
2/5 Harry Stemberg
2/12 Aaron Tanenbaum
2/14 Ruth Crosby
2/16 Bernard A. Katz
2/19 Jacob Cohen
2/22 Mary Cooper
2/26 Meyer Bernstein
2/27 Ann Weintraub
2/28 Esther Bromley