E-KI
April 21, 2005 Vol. II No. 16
Reform Congregation Keneseth Israel
8339 Old York Road, Elkins Park, PA 19027 215.887.8700
Torah Time Online
Shabbat Acharei Mot – Leviticus 16:1
Malachi 3:4
Making a Memorable Passover Seder
Passover is here! We are busy preparing for the week of changed diets, historical remembrances and family. I can already fell that dry taste of matzah and of course we all know the same old Haggadah filled with matzah crumbs will soon be pulled out of the box. But wait, it is not too late! This year, spice up your Passover celebration. It is supposed to be engaging and exciting! So here are a few new things to try!
- Scallion fun - This is a Persian custom. During the reciting and singing of Dayeinu, when the words “Had God taken us out of Egypt…” are said/sung, Seder participants pick up scallions from their plate. When the word “Dayeinu” is said/sung, they hit each other lightly on the back or shoulders with the scallions to remind themselves of how it felt to be slaves.
- Matzah fortune cookies- Break matzah into small pieces, write out fun messages and place them between two pieces of matzah, put some melted chocolate on each tie with a ribbon and serve.
- Elijah ritual –Ask people to pour a little wine from their cup into Elijah’s. As they do have them mention a goal/wish for the coming year. When you stand up and welcome Elijah, it is then not only our hopes for the new year as a people but also as individuals. Don’t worry about mixing wines – Elijah won’t care.
- Act out the Passover story - So much more fun than just reading it from the Haggadah! Imagine how it would have been to be Moses leading the people, or one of the slaves finally facing freedom, or Pharaoh with his “hardened heart” or…!
- Use Plague Bags - Put one together that has a representation of each plague. Guaranteed to make the fun last.
- Inscribe your Haggadah- Ask guests to sign the front page of the Haggadah and that way you have a record of your guests for years to come. You can also remember old boyfriends and girlfriends!
- Update the Music – The Internet provides new Passover music every year. Have a favorite tune? Someone has most certainly rewritten the words to make them fit the Seder table. Enjoy a few laughs.
There are many ways to make your Passover Seder unique. Use the ideas above, or create your own. Please share your new ideas so we can all enjoy them next year! We wish you a wonderful holiday and a fun Seder!
Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach!
Rabbi Peter Rigler
UPCOMING ACTIVITIES AT KI
Worship & Study Opportunities
This Week – Friday, April 22 – Brotherhood Shabbat at 8:00 p.m. in the Sanctuary, with guest speaker, Reverend Keith Hayward, and the gospel choir of LaMott A.M.E. Church. Saturday, April 23 – Torah Study Havurah at 9:00 a.m. in the Library; Shabbat Morning Service at 10:30 a.m. in the Chapel. Passover Begins Saturday Evening, April 23. Sunday, April 24 – Passover Festival Service at 10:30 a.m. in the Chapel.
In the Week Ahead – Friday, April 29 – Shabbat Evening Service at 8:00 p.m. in the Chapel. Saturday, April 30 – Torah Study Havurah at 9:00 a.m. in the Library; Junior Congregation at 10:30 a.m. in the Youth Lounge; Shabbat & Passover Service at 10:30 a.m. in the Sanctuary with Yizkor Memorial Prayers.
Coming Up -- Friday, May 13 – Shabbat Evening Services at 8:00 p.m. with guest speaker, Barbara H. Bergen, of MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger.
Yom HaShoah Observance – on Wednesday, May 4, at 7:30 p.m., at Beth Am. Cantor Lefko and our Adult Choir will participate. Sponsored by the Kehillah of Old York Road.
Listen to Most recent Shabbat evening sermon – click on this link! http://www.kenesethisrael.org/Sermons/ShabbatService.htm
Cultural Opportunities
Israeli Dancing – No session on April 25.
KI Men’s Softball – KI beat Temple Sinai on April 14 – score 17-9!! KI beat Ohev Shalom 18-3 on April 19!!!
KI plays Shir Ami on Tuesday, April 26, at 6:00 p.m. at Mondauk 4 Field in Dresher (Dillon & Susquehanna Rds, behind Temple Sinai). Everyone is invited to come support our team. Next game is Tuesday, May 3, against Temple Shalom at Southampton.
Mother’s Day Brunch – sponsored by the Brotherhood on May 8, at 10:00 a.m. Cantor Amy Lefko is the guest vocalist. $10/men; $5/women. Send checks to KI, Attn: Brotherhood. RSVP by May 3.
Cultural Council 60+ - Rabbi Simeon J. Maslin —" Aharon Appelfeld: The Story of a Life" on Thursday, May 12. Lunch at 11:30 a.m. KI member luncheon fee is $8.00 with a reservation by May 4, $10.00 for guests and member reservations after May 4. Send checks to KI, Attn: Cultural Council. Information: Doris Parker, 215-886-9267.
Kehillah Celebrates Israel at KI — on Thursday, May 12, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Everyone is invited to sing, dance and jump (moon bounce) for Israel at the community’s fourth annual celebration of Israel’s Independence Day. Israeli dancing with Rak/Dan. Proceeds go directly Israel. Contributions from last year’s event purchased computers for Netivot, our sister community in Israel.
Movin’ Out at the Merriam Theater on Sunday, May 22. This dance musical, which won a Tony in 2003, is choreographed by Twyla Tharp and features 24 of Billy Joel’s classics. $128/person includes brunch (at KI at 10:30 a.m.), transportation (bus leaves at noon) and a seat in the orchestra for the 1:00 p.m. show. Send checks payable to KI (with WRJ Theater Trip on the memo line and envelope) to KI. Limited space available. Questions: Barbara Bronstein (215) 673-1435.
Ruth G. Kahn Concert: The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia – Ignat Solzhenitsyn, Music Director and Conductor, and Leila Josefowicz, violin soloist –music of Stravinsky, Mendelssohn, Hersch, and Schubert, on Saturday, June 4, at 8:00 p.m. at KI. $30 admission includes dessert reception. Send check (payable to KI) to KI, Family Concert Series. Tickets will be held at the door. Seating is limited. KI Music Arts Committee. Information: (215) 887-8700.
Social Action Opportunities
Mitzvah Day is coming – on Sunday, May 1. Blood Drive in the Rothschild from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Join your fellow KI members in serving our community: visit residents at Sunrise of Abington; visit, feed and walk the greyhounds at Greyhound Rescue; spring cleanup at Pennypack Ecological Trust; and more choices. In addition, each Religious School grade will have its own project. You can complete and return the form you received in the mail to KI or e-mail the information to Kevin Parker, kpcyclist7@aol.com.
Help the Homeless – KI needs you. We are committed to help displaced families staying at St. John’s Lutheran Church (Old York Road & Melrose Avenue), May 15-22. Are you available to provide assistance with dinner meals, daytime transportation, evening childcare, or laundering linens? We’d like to build on this program and host families ourselves next year. Volunteers are strongly encouraged to attend a Wednesday training session at St. John’s, on either April 20 or May 11. If you are interested in helping with any part of this project, contact Rabbi Peter Rigler (215-887-8702 or prigler@aol.com) or Marjorie Curtis-Cohen (215-884-6169 or margie7610@comcast.net). Sponsored by the Interfaith Housing Alliance and the KI Social Action Committee.
Cook for Sharing Is Caring –Help assemble meals in the K/G kitchen for clients at Newman Senior Center (Klein Branch JCC) from 9:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. on May 24 (last Tuesday of the month). (No cooking in April due to Passover.) Info: Gladys Segal (215) 635-5815.
Pic”KI”nic—on Tuesday, May 24 – barbecue supper at Alvethorpe Park. Fun run/walk to benefit Mazon: A Jewish Response to Hunger. Mark your calendar!
Announcements
Free Tay-Sachs & Canavan Screening – during May at area locations. Information: (215) 887-0877 or ntsad@aol.com or www.tay-sachs.org. Sponsored by National Tay-Sachs & Allied Diseases Association of Delaware Valley.
News from the Meyers Library— Library hours are: Sunday 9:30-12:15, Tuesday 4:30-6, Wednesday 10-3:30, and Friday before 8:00 p.m. services. (You can also visit the bookcarts at the Oneg.) For adults: Allegra Goodman, Paradise Park; Kathryn Watterson, Not by the Sword : how the love of a cantor and his family transformed a Klansman; Yaacov Shabtai, Uncle Peretz Takes Off; Cynthia Ozick, Bloodshed and Three Novellas; Herbert Krosney, Deadly Business: the Arming of Iran and Iraq, 1975 to the Present. For children: Ben Aronin, The Secret of the Sabbath Fish; Miriam Bat Ami, Dear Elijah; Fran Manushkin, The Matzah that Papa Brought Home: a nice introduction to Passover, illustrated by Ned Bittinger; David Kossoff, The Voices of Masada; Sidney Taylor, All-of-a-Kind Family Uptown.
Adult Education
Dr. Irene Reiter reviews “The King & I: The uncensored Tale of Luciano Pavarotti’s Rise to Fame. . .“on Monday, May 9, at 7:00 p.m. Free to WRJ members; $4 for guests. Book is available in the KI Library. Refreshments. Sponsored by WRJ. RSVP to Joan Kamen by Monday, May 2 (215) 947-5926.
Aaron Lansky Speaks at KI – on Sunday, May 15, at 7:00 p.m. Lansky, recipient of a MacArthur “Genius” Award, is founder and president of the National Yiddish Book Center in Amherst, MA. The Center has created special programming, translated Yiddish titles into English, enlisted Steven Spielberg to digitize the entire collection of Yiddish books, and helped foster a Yiddish renaissance in this country. He is the author of Outwitting History: The Amazing Adventures of a Man Who Rescued a Million Yiddish Books. Event is co-sponsored by KI’s Library Committee and the Meyers Foundation of Philadelphia.
Yale Reisner – “Raising Atlantis: Restoring Jewish Memory in Poland” – on Monday, May 23, 7:45 p.m, at Gratz College (Old York Road & Melrose Avenue in Melrose Park). Reisner is Director of Ronald S. Lauder Foundation Genealogy Project at the Jewish Historical Institute, Warsaw, Poland. $5 at the door. Sponsored by the Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Philadelphia and Gratz College. Information: (610)363-7956 or JGSGP@comcast.net.
Preschool and Religious School
Thanks – to everyone who brought in Passover food for those who cannot afford to buy it. We collected over 200 items!
Preschool Mitzvah Crib - New items (clothing, formula, toys, equipment, diapers) are being collected in the preschool through May 1st for donation to the Tabor Children's Home in Germantown.
Help the Religious School Reach Accreditation. We need several families who would be willing to answer some questions about their family’s Religious School experience. We also need volunteers of different ages (both kids and adults) to complete the following sentence in any creative or traditional way “My synagogue is like a home because. . .” or “My home is like a synagogue because. . .” If you are willing to be a part of this exciting process please email Rob Staples (rstaples13@comcast.net ) or Rabbi Stacy Rigler (Educator@kenesethisrael.org ).
Do you know someone who might be interested in KI’s Preschool or Religious School? We are enrolling now for next year. Please contact either Kathy Goldenberg at (215) 885-2425 or Rabbi Stacy Rigler at (215) 887-8704. We are always happy to speak with and welcome prospective students and their families.
Ways To Get Involved
Human Resources Expertise? Could you offer limited assistance to our congregation? We are in the process of forming a personnel committee and we would very much appreciate your input and participation. Please contact Evan DuBro at edubro@kenesethisrael.org or Carey Roseman at croseman1@comcast.net.
Shabbat Pulpit Flowers --You can now sponsor the Shabbat pulpit flowers in honor of a birthday, anniversary, baby naming, safe travel, recovery from illness, or any other happy occasion. You can also sponsor the flowers in memory of a recent passing or a Yahrzeit anniversary. An acknowledgement will be listed in the weekly Shabbat folder recognizing your generosity. Please make your check for $45.00 payable to KI, Attn: WRJ Sisterhood.
Do you Love KI?—KI’s Membership Committee is looking for current members to partner with our new members and help them become integrated into the KI family. This is a great chance to discuss with new members all the cultural, religious and social action opportunities available at KI. Or volunteer to come to an event and help recruit new members. Call Andy Brookman at (215) 887-0777.
Sharing Our Simchas – Share your happiness with our congregational family. Consider underwriting our beautiful Oneg Shabbat. Contact the Administrative Office, (215) 887-8700, for further details.
Sisterhood Gift Shop –will be open on Sunday mornings during Religious School hours and by appointment. Special Passover hours: Thursday, April 21, 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.; Friday, April 22, 10:00 a.m. to noon. For more information, call Joan Kamen (215) 947-5926 or Administrative Office (215) 887-8700.