Winter / Spring 2022 Bulletin

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Winter/Spring 2022
Temple Sholom

Contents:

 

Message from President Faye Schulz:
Are We Like Our Ancestors?

What is remembered about the past?

The ancient texts that have survived, archeological sites that have been discovered, and stories of “great” wars and natural disasters can be recalled.

Seldom are individuals remembered, and nations are sometimes forgotten. As I read Torah, I often stumble over the names of the tribes and their leaders. The violent people of the world are written in the history books. There are leaders who are remembered for the actions, words or discoveries such as Gandhi, King Solomon, Confucius, Copernicus, Michelangelo and many more. The rulers who supported amazing building projects and walled cities are remembered.  Sites like Stonehenge, the great cathedrals, the pyramids and the Great Wall of China are admired and studied.

But how about the rest of us?

I like to think of myself as part of a stream. No one notices an individual drop of water, but together with others, I can be a force. I’m part of the stream of the people of Israel and the community of Jewish people in Galesburg.

Each of us is part of our own streams related to our families, our jobs, our politics, our hobbies and our friends. We may not be remembered as individuals, but of a stream of goodness and compassion. That stream can be a powerful influence in the world.

May this be G-d’s will.

Faye Schulz

 

Message from Rabbi Henry Jay Karp
The Seemingly Elusive Gift of Hope

As I sat down to write this article, I knew that I wanted to speak about the gift of hope and the promise of renewal that comes with a New Year. We Jews get the benefit of celebrating both the Jewish New Year and the Secular one, doubling down on our opportunities for self-renewal! But, as is my custom, I went back into my files and pulled up the article I wrote last year at this time. That article, as I stated in it, was written on December 21st, the day of the Winter Solstice, the darkest day of the year; one day earlier than the writing of this article. Its theme centered on darkness & light and the promise of hope; the hope that the time will come when we emerge out of the darkness that enshrouds our lives–the pandemic–and return to a world of light.

It was a hard article to read as the COVID deaths in the U.S. have more than doubled (from 325,006 on December 21, 2020, to 831,943 on December 22, 2021) and worldwide deaths have more than tripled (from 1,703,576 on December 21, 2020, to 5,391,388 on December 22, 2021). It was a hard article to read as we find ourselves struggling with the Delta variant and facing the rapid spread of the highly infectious Omicron variant, as we watch hospitalizations skyrocket and hospital Intensive Care Units literally overflowing. The arrival of the light which will drive back the darkness appears to be, perhaps interminably, delayed.

We talk a lot about so many suffering from “COVID Fatigue” but I think that many of us are also suffering from “Hope Fatigue,” for all our hoping to see an end to this crisis has gone unanswered. How long can we keep hoping for something that simply refuses to materialize? It is only natural to reach a breaking point of hope.

It is at times like this that I am reminded of something that the Chafetz Chaim, one of the greatest Jewish ethicists, said. When asked how he had such an impact as a great sage and leader of the 20th century Jewish world, he answered: “I set out to change the world, but I failed. So, I decided to scale back my efforts and only influence the Jewish community of Poland, but I failed there, too. So, I targeted the community of my hometown of Radin, but I achieved no greater success. Then I gave all my effort to changing my own family and I failed at that as well. Finally, I decided to change myself and that’s how I had such an impact on the Jewish world.”

Even during these dark times of Delta and Omicron, and what seems like a never-ending plague, when our hoping for a better world feels like a futile effort, we still can keep our hope alive if we but direct it inward, focusing on our own personal hopes for a new year of self-renewal. If we cannot make the world a better place, we can still make ourselves better people. We can start by hoping to be better and then striving to make that hope come true. If we do so honestly and sincerely, then like the Chafetz Chaim, our quest for self-improvement can be contagious, inspiring others to seek their better selves. If enough of us hope to be better people in the year ahead, and strive vigorously enough toward that goal, the cumulative effect will be that together, we will make the world a better place as well. We may not be able to eradicate COVID, but we can lead the way on how to live most fully and fulfillingly in our COVID world. If we model lives of caring and helping, in which we realize that by lifting up others, we lift ourselves to heights otherwise unattainable, we can transform our world into a place were “community” is more than a geographic description; a place where “community” means people coming together in unity to make each other’s lives as blessed as humanly possible. These are hopes worth holding onto. These are personal hopes that can change the world.

Stay Safe & Stay Healthy!

God Bless & Protect Us All!

Rabbi Henry Jay Karp

 

Message from our rabbinic intern Jennifer Bunde
What We Know and Don’t Know 

These last six months have been a deep learning experience for me. I have loved being the rabbinic intern for our shul. I have grown in confidence on the bimah, and I hope it has started to show. I am excited to be continuing as your student rabbi next year too. As I’ve been reflecting on my internship this year, it has brought to mind a diagram I once saw at a workshop:

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I know what I know I know what I don’t know
I don’t know what I know I don’t know what I don’t know

 

In any given situation, what we know or don’t know can fit into one of these boxes. The top two boxes are easy–they are the ones where we already have an awareness of our knowledge. But the bottom two boxes? Those are so intimidating because that’s where ignorance lies. We can only learn about what we don’t know when someone else teaches us.

Now in my fourth year of rabbinical school, I’ve studied Talmud, Torah, Hebrew, liturgy, history–and I still feel like a total beginner. So you can imagine how nervous I am at the prospect of teaching an “Introduction to Judaism” course in the coming year. But I’m excited at the same time. As hard as I have studied, there is so much that I don’t know! And that’s just the stuff that I know I don’t know. My goal for teaching an “Introduction to Judaism” class is to provide a broad introduction to members of the community (both the Temple community and people in the wider community who are interested in learning more). Some who take the class may be interested in converting, and some may just want to learn more about Judaism, and of course you all are welcome to participate too! I know that many people receiving this newsletter are from out of town, and you’re more than welcome to Zoom in to the class!

Along with everyone else, I’ll be learning about what I don’t know and what I don’t know that I don’t know. It’s a process, and the beautiful thing about Judaism, like most things in life, is that we can never know it all–not by a long shot! For more information in the class, see the notice below.

Happy (Solar) New Year, and may the joy of learning something new never fade.

Jennie Bunde

 

Temple Sholom to Offer “Introduction to Judaism” Course

This course, developed by the Union for Reform Judaism, is a multi-session course for adults interested in exploring Jewish life through the lens of Reform Judaism. It encourages students to explore a modern take on Jewish life, and to engage with Jewish values, celebrations, and spirituality. Questions are encouraged and multiple perspectives will be explored.

The course is open to all, including Jews who want a meaningful adult Jewish learning experience, individuals considering conversion, interfaith couples, and spiritual seekers. The program welcomes people from all backgrounds and is LGBTQ-friendly. Topics will include holidays, life cycle celebrations, core beliefs, prayer, the Bible and other sacred texts, history, antisemitism and the Holocaust, Israel, the North American Jewish experience, and the diversity of the Jewish people today.

Bi-weekly sessions will begin on January 23, 2022 and will continue for eighteen sessions; students can begin without committing to the full slate of classes. The class will be held in person at Temple Sholom (for those who provide proof of full vaccination) and students can also participate online through Zoom. There is no cost to attend the course, but students are asked to purchase the URJ textbook ($35.00). The course will be led by Jennifer Bunde, rabbinic intern at Temple Sholom, who is in her fourth year of rabbinic study at the Academy for Jewish Religion, California. For more information about the course, contact Jennie at jennifer.bunde@gmail.com or 309-335-7969. 

 

Welcome to those new to the area!

Several newcomers to the area just missed the deadline for the fall bulletin, so a belated welcome to:

Jonathan Lynne is Director of the School of Management and Marketing, Western Illinois University. Jonathan’s family is on the way from England to join him here.

Martin Abraham is Professor of Engineering Technology, Western Illinois University. Martin’s wife Nancy, is living in Florida.

David Braverman recently joined Western Illinois University as Vice President for Student Success and is living in Macomb. David’s wife Mindy Chang is a Professor of Communication at Western New England University and their son is a sophomore majoring in Computer Engineering at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ.

 

Shabbat & Holiday Services Schedule, Winter / Spring 2022

1/7 Bunde
1/14 Rubin, Tu Bishvat, 1/17
1/21 Gold
1/28 Karlin/Raley-Karlin
2/4 Schulz
2/11 Bunde
2/18 Rabbi Karp
2/25 West
3/4 Jacobs
3/11 Bunde
3/18 Lyon, Purim, 3/17
3/25 Amor
4/1 Rubin
4/8 Bunde
4/15 Passover Seder (first night)
4/22 Satisky/Schulz
4/29 Amor, Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day), 4/28
5/6 West, Israeli Memorial Day, May 4; Israeli Independence Day, 5/5
5/13 Bunde
5/21 Rabbi Karp, NOTE: Shabbat Morning Service on Saturday
5/27 Lyon
6/3 Gold, Shavuot, 6/5
6/10 No services

 

Services are hybrid, with some people present at the Temple and others attending by Zoom. Contact TempleSholomGalesburg@gmail.com for Zoom info.

Need to switch? If you cannot lead services on the date listed, please find someone to switch with. Also let David Bunde know about the switch, as he sends out the weekly reminders: david.bunde@gmail.com or 309-335-7130.

Oneg: If you would like to “host” the Oneg Shabbat, please let Faye Schulz know, fdschulz@comcast.net.  You can bring the oneg to services, or you can drop off any time some cookies, nuts or dried fruit that can be easily put out for those attending in person. All dates in January & February are available.  Thanks!

 

Mazel Tov

To Stephen Lee and Bryce Kidman on their marriage, November 22, 2021; Stephen is now Stephen James Kidman.

To Maury and Susan Lyon on the October 2, 2021 birth of their new grandchild, Isadora Annabelle Lyon, daughter of Gabriel and Alex Lyon.

Zack, JJ, and Darrell Bunde on their first summer OSRUI.

 

Mi Shebeirach

For Bryce Kidman, who will be undergoing a leg amputation on January 23, 2022.

 

Todah Rabah

from Jennie Bunde: Thank you to Penny, Faye, Maury, Hannah, Gabe, Jeremy, Dean, and David for all of your hard work and dedication in teaching religious school. I really appreciate all that you do! You make learning fun for all the children of Temple Sholom.

Many thanks to Jonah Rubin for all the work he has put into the new Temple website. It’s the nature of websites that they are readily adaptable to new information and needs, but that means continuing attention from the person in charge. Thank you Jonah! The addition of all the pages in support of the Capital Campaign has been an especially big job. Do take a look at the site if you haven’t already: https://templesholomgalesburg.org/

 

Temple Sholom/Brookside Cemetery Capital Campaign 

A full update on the campaign will be sent out in January, but here’s a brief preview: The campaign is going very well! We have recently met our original goal of $250,000, and the Board has approved raising our goal to $275,000. We are enormously grateful for the support we have received from members, former members, children (now adults) who grew up in the congregation, former rabbis, Knox students who were involved in the Temple, and other friends of the congregation.

 

Photos for the Website: Thanks to all those who sent photos in this summer, we have a nice array on the website. But we can use more! New photos as well as ones from your files would be most welcome. Please send to Jonah: jsrubin@knox.edu.

 

Religious School: Religious school will resume on Sunday, January 9th, when we’ll be joined by a new teacher, Knox sophomore Adam Gadiel. Welcome Adam!

 

Hesed Committee

Once a year we put a reminder in the bulletin about the Temple’s Hesed Committee. If you know of someone who might need assistance, or if you could use some help yourself, contact Penny Gold, who will follow up from there, pgold@knox.edu. Examples of the kinds of help we can provide:

  • Dinner meals for a period of time when someone is ill, or for a family where a new baby has been born.
  • Rides to services for those who can’t drive.
  • Visits to someone who is ill or in a nursing home.
  • Participation in daily services during shiva, and providing food at the home.
  • Welcoming newcomers to the community.

 

News, Info, and Links (Please feel free to send material of interest to bulletin editor Penny Gold, pgold@knox.edu.)

Two Jewish congregations in our region (Rock Island, IL and Davenport, IA) have recently moved out of their long-time buildings into a building in Davenport that they now share, along with the Jewish Federation of the Quad Cities. This article explains the move: https://www.jta.org/2021/11/01/united-states/4-cities-2-states-1-synagogue-campus-and-rabbi-the-jews-of-the-illinois-iowa-quad-cities-are-learning-to-share

from Mary Howell, an interesting story from WWII: https://fbindependent.com/when-my-daddy-went-to-war-mystery-of-unexploded-shells-p11053-89.htm

from Penny Gold: I recommend a podcast segment from Ira Glass’s This American Life. The episode is called “The Weight of Words,” and it’s the first 7 minutes that are of particular interest, where Ira talks about how he’s never understood the notion of why it matters for humans to “love God.” The experience of saying the Kaddish is part of the story. You can read a transcript at this link, but I highly recommend listening to it. I found it moving to hear parts of the Kaddish recited on NPR. https://shortcut.thisamericanlife.org/#/clipping/741?_k=wepc56

 

Save the Date!

Sunday, January 16, 11:00 a.m., TU BISHVAT SEDER, led by our rabbinic intern, Jennie Bunde; all members of the congregation are invited to attend. Details of how we will do the sesder will depend on the circumstances with Covid in mid-January. More information will come when we get closer to the date. In keeping with our current Covid protocols, anyone attending in person needs to be fully vaccinated.

 

2022/5782 Festival Schedule

(Note: festival begins the previous sunset)

 

Tu B’Shevat                  Monday, January 17

Purim                           Thursday, March 17

Passover                      Saturday-Saturday, April 16-23

Yom HaShoah              Thursday, April 28

Yom HaZikaron             Wednesday, May 4

Yom HaAtzma’ut           Thursday, May 5

Lag BaOmer                 Thursday, May 19

Shavuot                        Sunday, June 5

Tish’a B’av                    Sunday, August 7

 

Donations (September 1, 2021 to December 28, 2021)

In support of Temple Sholom

Jonathan Lynne

In memory of Khaya Taymanova

     The Fayman Family

In memory of Eugene Endicott

     Carol Grodjesk

In memory of Yeva Faynova
The Fayman Family

 

Don’t see your name?  If you have made a donation but do not see your name on this list and/or have not received an acknowledgement by mail, please let Nancy Eberhardt know. Sorry in advance for any slip ups!

 

Making a donation to Temple Sholom?  If you would like to make a donation to Temple Sholom, please send your check to: Maury Lyon, Treasurer, Temple Sholom, Box 501, Galesburg, IL 61402-050, identifying the nature of the gift (e.g., in memory of, in honor of, or for the speed recovery of a particular person). Maury will notify Nancy Eberhardt, who takes care of correspondence concerning such gifts (e.g., notifying the family of the deceased that a gift has been made in memory of that person).

 

Happy Tree of Life Donations

Donations may be made in recognition of a variety of events, for example: in honor of a happy occasion (anniversary, birth, bar/bat mitzvah, birthday, etc.), or in honor of an individual or family. Donations may be made by an individual or a group, and may be made at three levels:  a leaf ($200), an acorn ($500), and a stone ($1,000). A leaf can be engraved with four lines of text with 20 characters in each line, plus a brief fifth line (often a date). Acorns and stones are larger than leaves and can accommodate more text.  Sample wordings can be found by looking on the Happy Tree of Life. If you want to make a donation, you can send your gift, along with specification of wording, to Maury Lyon, Treasurer, Temple Sholom, Box 501, Galesburg, IL 61402-0501

 

Memorial Plaques:  If you would like to purchase a memorial plaque ($250), send your donation and desired wording to Maury Lyon, Treasurer, Temple Sholom, Box 501, Galesburg, IL 61402-0501. You will find samples of what to include on the plaque by looking at ones already on the memorial board.

 

Gift Shop

Gift shop offerings have been pared back to candles (Shabbat, memorial, Hanukkah) and mezuzot.  The easiest times to access the case are Friday evenings before or after services.  For access at another time, contact Faye Schulz, 335-7192.

 

Corrections and Additions:  If you have corrections or additions for the new edition of Temple contact list, please send them to Penny Gold, pgold@knox.edu.

 

Access to Brookside Cemetery

For security reasons, car access to Brookside Cemetery is controlled by having a locked gate at the entrance, but you can always walk in through the smaller gate to the side. Make a note of the lock combination (0311) so that you have it when you go to visit the cemetery. Please make sure the gate is closed after you exit, with the padlock re-locked. If you have any questions, please contact one of the cemetery trustees: Bob Bondi, David Amor, Jeremy Karlin.