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7
Tamuz 5771 / July 9, 2011
What's
the Spiel?
Shabbat
Parshat Balak
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Rabbi's Column
Bamidbar 24:5בְּמִדְבַּר
מַה טּבוּ
אהָלֶיךָ,
יַעֲקב;
מִשְׁכְּנתֶיךָ, יִשְׂרָאֵל
Qu'elles sont
belles tes tentes ô Jacob! Tes demeures, ô Israël! .
 The Shacharit service opens
with these words from our Parsah. Bilam, attempting to curse the Jews but unable,
uttered this now famous line. I remember that as a child I would
secret myself in the balcony of our Shul to
unobtrusively watch wedding
ceremonies. I knew that the wedding was about to begin when finally
the chazzan would walk up the aisle, singing "Ma Tovu".
The commentary in our siddur explains that this passuk, "...expresses love and reverence for
the synagogue that, in the absence of the Holy Temple, is the place
where G-d's glory resides among Israel." Is it not
fascinating that this declaration was made by the non-Jew Bilam whose desire was to issue his malediction,
but simply could not? While we, the Jews in the midst of the camp
sometimes only see quarreling and strife, Bilam
the outsider sees harmony and the presence of G-d.
The Yiddish expression אגאסט אפ אוויייל זעהט אמיייל
captures this incongruity. One who is inside a situation often cannot
see the beauty that the outsider recognizes immediately. We may be so
involved in one aspect or another that the broader picture escapes
us. Ah gast af a
veil zeht a mile -a guest for a while can
see a mile.
This past week, in addition to two yahrtzeits for which our members turned out in
full force, we also had a "get-divorce" and baby naming
take place in Shul. Neither was for a shul-member family, nonetheless, Tiferet Israel
as the Orthodox Home of Austin was able to enable Jews the ability to
keep, observe and celebrate Torah law. At both events it was
commented how beautiful it is that Tiferet opens its doors to Jews
and how we are able to maintain a thriving community. "Ma Tovu Ohalecha Yaakov -
How Beautiful are your tents oh Jacob, your dwelling places oh
Israel." Bilam was forced to say it: a
guest sees it readily and we who have it constantly in front of us
need only to remind ourselves that we have created G-d's Sanctuary in
our midst.
On this Installation Shabbat we extend our thanks
to those officers and Board members
who have volunteered to serve and have committed themselves to
sustain and maintain our Mikdash M'at - Small Sanctuary. (The Holy Temple in
Jerusalem is THE Mikdash - Sanctuary.) A
special yasher koach
to Judy Sorin who is retiring from the board after many years of deicated and devoted service. Judy has been a tremndous help and inspiration during these past
years and contributed so much with time, effort and energy to our
wonderful community and congregation. Judy will now be serving
on the Federation Board and we wish her much success in representing
and presenting Torah views to the community.
.
Shabbat
Shalom,
Rabbi Eliezer
Langer
______________________
The
Holocaust, Rabbi Lau, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
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Donations
Our thanks to the
following for donations received by CTI:
- Harold Blonder -- to the General Fund
- Michael Portnoy --
to the General Fund
- Cele & Hugo Steinfink
-- In honor of Hugo's Aliyot
- Cele & Hugo Steinfink
-- Yizkor donation
- Cele & Hugo Steinfink
--to the General Fund
To donate to CTI you may mail a check to Congregation
Tiferet Israel, PO Box 27254, Austin, TX 78755-2254, or via PayPal by clicking here
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Mazal Tov
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Shown here at the naming of
Sara Jaramilla, (L-R) Gabbai
Matthew Schmerer, father Yaakov, Rabbi Moshe Lans
of Fort Hood and Rabbi Eliezer Langer
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Mazal Tov to the Rika
and Yaakov Jaramilla family of Fort Hood who
named their daughter Sara at Tiferet Israel on Thursday morning. A yasher koach to Chaplain Rabbi Moshe Lans whorecently
returned from a tour of duty in Afganhistan
and serves as Fort Hood Rabbi. Much Hatzlacha
andderech tzelaycha to Yaakov Jaramilla
who leaves to Iraq on Sunday.
Mazal Tov to Adi Miller on her birthday. Mazal Tov à la réception
du Prix Anderson
High School première
récompense pour la langue
française.
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Here Come the Judges and...
Deborah, Samson
and the Delilah, Concubine in Giva'
What do these
all have in common?
They are all in
the Book of Shoftim-Judges which
We will be
studying the book starting
Monday July 11
at 7:00PM.
Come
Join Us in for
An excursion in
History, Hebrew and Ethics.
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Refuah Shelayma
To:
- Chaya bat Penina
- Sarah bat Matel
- Shlomo ben Chana
- Hinda Feiga Tova bat Gitel
- Rachel bat Hinda
- Moshe ben Bluma
- Moshe Ber ben Binya
- Moshe ben Raizel
- Yehudit Yael bat Ahuva
Rut
- Laya Adina bas Chaya
Esther
- Bryndel bat Rivka
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Schedule
of Services
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Friday Night
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JCAA ECP Building
(Multipurpose Room)
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Minchah & Kabalat Shabbat
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7:00 PM
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Candle Lighting
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No later than 8:21 PM
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Saturday
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JCAA ECP Building
(Multipurpose Room)
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Shacharit & Musaf
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9:00 AM
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Mincha & Seudah Shelishit
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8:00 PM
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Maariv & Havdalah
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9:20 PM
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Weekday Services
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Room 147 Education Wing
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Shacharit
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Sunday
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8:00 AM
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Monday & Thursday
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6:45 AM
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Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday
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7:00 AM
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Mincha & Maariv
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8:25 PM
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Candle Lighting and Havdalah
times are for zip code 78731 at 254.75 meters above sea level, the
elevation of the JCAA. Due to differences in elevation, please
adjust accordingly.
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Upcoming
Events
- The first Yahrtzeit
of our good friend Alex Sole follows the High Holidays. A
committee is being formed to create an appropriate commemoration.
Please email
to join the Tribute Committee.
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Adult
Education Classes this week
Shavuot: All night
Class Schedule will be sent separately
 Daily: Daf Yomi, Tractate Chulin Sunday 9:00
AM, Monday-Friday 6:00 AM, Shabbat and Yomim Tovim 8:00 AM
Daily: How to Pray-- following Shacharit and Mincha
Monday evening: Tanach - 7:00 PM
Starting Shoftim Monday July 11 Text and review
Torah Tidbits - Thursday 2:00 PM
Shabbat Afternoon: Parsha
Ponderings - 8:45 PM at Seudah Shelishit
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Kashrut
Korner
On July 24th, the cRc hosts a
once-in-a-lifetime day of education & taste in the Halachic adventure of unique birds & animals.
From 10 AM to 12:30 PM a Mesora Yom Iyun will take place (free of charge) at KINS and
from 6 PM to10 PM these rare dishes will be served at a multi-course
dinner at Shallots Bistro. Each dish served will be interspersed with
related audio-visual presentations by the cRc
Rabbonim and world-renowned Ari Greenspan
& Ari Zivotofsky of famed Halachic Adventures. Call Shallots in Chicago at (847) 677-3463
to book a seat at this limited-seating dinner.
Please click on the link
bellow for additional information on this wonderful opportunity.
http://www.crcweb.org/mesorah%20dinner.pdf
From
the cRc Twitter
http://twitter.com/crckosher
- You can eat cut fruit at
a hotel's continental breakfast as per the directions in this FAQ http://bit.ly/pGq2ER
- Our liquor list http://bit.ly/LiquorLst shows which
Scotches are okay and how to determine if others (not listed) are
also okay
- Any product that contains
grape juice or white grape juice concentrate (a sweetener)
requires reliable hashgachah
- Many throat sprays
contain kosher sensitive ingredients and are not recommended, for
details see our OTC list at http://bit.ly/OTCList
- Flavor shots used in
coffee require certification
- All soaps - for clothes,
floors, people, and even dishes - do not require hashgachah
- Plain sugar is acceptable
without hashgachah
- Canned peaches R
acceptable without hashgachah unless
they contain flavors, colors, grape juice, fruit juice, or R
canned in Israel or China
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What Gilad Missed
On June 25, 2006,
Israeli corporal Gilad Shalit was captured by
Hamas in a cross border raid. Since then, Gilad has been held in
isolation and without access to humanitarian organizations like the
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC); a clear violation of
his rights. That was five years ago. Five years without being able to
contact his family. Five years without freedom.
To mark this
unfortunate anniversary and highlight how long Gilad has been gone, the
JCPA launched our "What Gilad Missed" campaign at www.WhatGiladMissed.org. There you can
watch a video that captures some of the many events and figures that
Gilad has missed, from Barack Obama and Lady Gaga to the iPhone and
Arab Spring. There are also links to write a letter of support to his
family and to ask the UN to insist that the ICRC have access to Gilad.
As The Forward recently pointed out, the
importance of freeing Gilad has unified the Jewish community. On
Twitter, #WhatGiladMissed
became a popular trend with individuals, Jewish organizations, and even
the Israeli Embassy of Israel to the United States joining
us in emphasizing how much has happened since Gilad has last been free.
On the Huffington Post, Rabbi Gutow's blog
about What Gilad Missed was a featured story on the Huffington Post
World homepage. And on Facebook, hundreds of people have visited and
become fans of the What Gilad Missed page.
WhatGiladMissed.org and the entire
campaign will continue until Hamas finally let's
Gilad go free.Visit
www.whatgiladmissed.org to watch the video and take action.
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Dear Friends,
I would like to share with
you information on an outstanding program being planned this
summer. The Orthodox
Union, dedicated to strengthening Jewish families, will
present its sixth "Positive Jewish Marriage Retreat" this
summer to help couples enrich and strengthen their healthy marriage.
The retreat will once again be held in a country setting at the beautiful
Woodcliff Lake
Hilton in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey, Friday
to Sunday, July 15-17, coinciding with visiting day for some summer camps.
Couples from throughout the country have participated in past
retreats and it has proven to be an extremely popular program
enriching the family dynamics of participants.
The most successful
marriages are ones in which both partners continually work to nurture
their relationship. A fulfilling marriage allows couples to grow with
each other, not apart, communicate in a positive manner, and
successfully resolve differences as they arise. It should be noted
that parents who serve as role models in a happy loving marriage
represent one of the best gifts that can be given to children.
The retreat aims to enhance
the marriage relationship by focusing on the positive aspects of
marriage, highlighting characteristics found in happy couples.
Participants will be provided with opportunities to interact with
each other through group discussion and activities led by a faculty
of mental health professionals with a specialization in marriage.
Presenters to date include:
Alex Bailey,
Ph.D., Scott Chudnoff, M.D., M.S., FACOG,
Rabbi Mordechai Glick, Ph.D., Nina Glick,
Ph.D., Tobias Jungreis, Marital Counselor,
Josh Kohl, Certified PAIRS Marital Instructor, David Pelcovitz, Ph.D., Rachel Pill, L.C.S.W., Lauren
Roth, LSW, and Marcy Schaffer, Ph.D., and Sylvan Schaffer, Ph.D.
An online registration form
may be found on our website www.oucommunity.org.
Additional information, brochures, and registration forms may
also be obtained by calling (212) 613-8188. The cost of the
weekend is the same as last year; $350 per person plus a $25 p.p.
wait service fee, double occupancy, for a total of $750 per couple.
This promises, once again, to be a most enjoyable, relaxing,
educational, and exhilarating experience. There will be new topics
and new presenters complimenting our
popular speakers of the past.
Sincerely,
Frank Buchweitz
National
Director,
Community
Services and Special Projects
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