Reactions on Israel/Palestine

Hevre,

We are in distress about the current violence in Israel/Palestine which has inflicted suffering on both Palestinians and Israelis. The situation is both achingly familiar and distressingly different. We hope that through our committee we can provide some opportunities in the near future for us to come together as a congregation to discuss the root causes, the ever-changing situation on the ground, and paths forward. There is no shortage of webinars, opinion pieces, and analyses. Below, there are many links with a range of perspectives on the situation — not in any particular order.

Statement by Reconstructing Judaism/Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association

The Progressive Israel Network, of which Reconstructing Judaism is a member, has links to a variety of statements from member organizations. Here is a recent webinar they sponsored.

Democracy Now Interviews with Palestinians Rashid Khalidi & Hanan Ashrawi

U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib’s speech to the House of Representatives

Mark Blattner's statement from Portland Jewish Federation

Opinion piece by Nadav Tamir, Head of J Street Israel, in the Times of Israel

– Israel/Palestine Committee

The Census is Here!

We need all Havurah households to complete the Havurah Census you have received in your email. The demographic information we are collecting is critical for understanding who is part of the Havurah community and how we project forward in our Long-Range Plan. All information is confidential and being aggregated by a third party.

Please complete your Havurah Census as soon as you can! If you have any questions, or did not receive the Census email, contact Sam Sirkin via the Havurah Member Directory.

Havurah COVID Guidelines Update

As you know the Crisis Core Team has been meeting since the beginning of the pandemic to address how we will continue to be in community. This group includes the staff, Vice President, Co-Presidents, Immediate Past President, Rachel Plotinsky, MD, Michael Heumman, MPH, MA and Richard Goldenberg, MD, who are lending their public health and medical expertise. We continue to meet to review the most recent public health guidance and how best we can ensure safety of our members while creating opportunities for connections. We recently updated our guidelines and before we had the chance to share them with you, the guidance has changed once again. Our Core Crisis Team has not had the opportunity to discuss what the updated guidance means for Havurah. We are meeting on May 27 and will provide an update to you after that meeting.

We appreciate your patience with us as we digest the newest information and how to apply that to our community, It is our hope and desire to be together in person as soon as we can and to do so safely. For now you can read our current guidelines here.

B'shalom,
Core Crisis Team

Curious About Our Budget Process?

Understanding Havurah's Finances & Budget Process
Wednesday, June 2, 7-8:30 pm – Room Gimel
If you are curious about Havurah finances and wonder how the annual budget is built, we invite you to join former Treasurer and Finance Committee member Janet Byrd and current Treasurer Shari Raider for a closer look at our budget process. We will have a conversation about who is involved, what is considered, and how choices are made. This conversation is for all members – those who never think about organizational budgets and those who do!

How Recent Steering Committee Decisions Affect Next Year’s Budget

Our congregational meeting is on the horizon (June 6 at 10 am in Room Aleph) and that means it will be time to look at and vote on the 2021-22 budget. There are decisions that the Steering Committee made this year which will impact next year’s budget. Click here to read an article about the work Steering has done this past year to move us forward on a financially prudent path that gives us greater certainty around our Reserve Fund and our annual building maintenance investments. Also, learn about Steering’s decision to direct this year’s operating budget surplus towards investments in our people, our values, and our facility.

Upcoming Classes

Intergenerational Conflict and Sexuality in Yiddish Poetry
Wednesdays, May 26, June 2, June 9, 12-1:15 pm – Room Gimel
Themes of change, family loyalty, and the struggle for autonomy permeate early 20th century Yiddish literature. Using sexuality as a focal point, we will see how Jewish language and culture are used to explore themes of generational conflict, identity and cultural transition. Malka Heifetz Tussman and Anna Margolin are among the poets that we will read together in English translation (but we will have the Yiddish available for reference). Led by Deborah Eisenbach-Budner. Please register here.

Upcoming Events

Bikkur Holim Visioning Meeting
Thursday, May 20, 7-8:30 pm – Room Bet
After its first year of activity, the Bikkur Holim Committee is looking at lessons learned and visioning how best to continue providing contact and comfort for those who are ill or in mourning, and supporting Rabbi Benjamin in the pastoral care he provides our community. Interested Havurah members are invited to join with current committee members to explore ideas and options. RSVP here.

Kabbalat Shabbat Ruach
Friday, May 21, 7 pm – Room Aleph
A musical, soulful way to welcome Shabbat, after a week of great sorrow for Israel/Palestine — and great joy for standing together at Sinai one more time at Shavuot. Songs of hope, joy, and peace. Led by JD Kleinke.

Community Minyan
Saturday, May 22, 10 am – Room Aleph
Please join us for Shabbat morning! This service includes davening, Torah reading, and discussion led by Barbara Slader, Susan Brenner, and Emily Simon.

Discussion on Poverty
Sunday, May 23, 4-5 pm – Room Bet
Join us for our third poverty discussion led by Havurah member, Fran Weick. With years of experience Fran will enlighten us on issues of poverty in Portland, answer questions, and challenge us to be a part of the solution to what we see on our streets. RSVP here.

Amended Israel/Palestine Film Discussion
Sunday, May 23, 7-8:30 pm – Room Heh
The Israel/Palestine Committee is hosting a discussion on Sunday of the Film In Between (Bar Behar). The discussion will take place as planned. We realize, however, that emotions are running high because of the crisis in Israel/Palestine and we want to provide a space for people to share their reactions. To do this, we will end the film discussion at 8:15 and keep the meeting open until 9 to allow everyone an opportunity to express their concerns. This will not be a policy debate. Everyone's reactions will be accepted. RSVP here.

Jewish Mindfulness & Meditation
Tuesday, May 25, 12 pm – Room Bet
We gather to find some moments of quiet and shalom. Led by Rabbi Benjamin, Adela Basayne, or Nancy Becker.

Book Group Reads Pogrom: Kishinev and the Tilt of History by Steven Zipperstein
Tuesday, May 25, 7 pm – Room Bet
So shattering were the aftereffects of Kishinev, the rampage that broke out in late-Tsarist Russia in April 1903, that one historian remarked that it was “nothing less than a prototype for the Holocaust itself.” Steve Zipperstein, who may be the most eminent historian of eastern European Jewry in the United States, uncovers sources in Russian, Yiddish, and English that show not only why this bloody event ignited the Jewish imagination, its sense of embattlement in exile, but also why it had such lasting resonance internationally. Discussion led by Joel Beinin. This event is put on by the Havurah Book Group.

Morning Minyan
Wednesday, May 26, 8:15 am – Room Aleph
For all who want a regular prayer practice and for people saying Kaddish. Led by Rabbi Benjamin.
 

Cemetery Workshop
Wednesday, May 26, 7-8:30 pm – Room Dalet
If you're interested in our beautiful cemetery, come to our workshop! The goal is to help members be more cognizant of the cemetery, and to see if we can develop a group who are trained to sell graves. We'll give a brief history of why we have a cemetery and why it's in the Jones Pioneer Cemetery. We will talk about who can be buried there and what options are available when it comes to grave site selection. Also to be covered: the process of selling a grave site and how we know what graves are sold and which are still available. Questions? Call Dave Weil via the Havurah Member Directory and leave a message. He'll call you back. RSVP here. This event is put on by the Cemetery Committee.

Tikkun Olam

News & Events from Our Tikkun Olam Partners

Portland Homeless Family Solutions (PHFS) | Interfaith Alliance on Poverty (IAP) | Lift UP | MACG

Space Jam Q&A

Q: Why do we need a new building or more space at our current building?
A: Over the last 20 years, our membership has steadily grown. We now have more than twice as many members as we did when we moved into our current building. There are more students in Shabbat School and the long-term viability of the Lutheran Church for classroom space is far from certain. We have a need for more parking, a commercial kitchen, more bathroom stalls, and more space for staff and meetings. Havurah needs to plan and invest now to meet our projected space needs over the next 10-20 years.

Can You Help Maria Find a Job?

Do you have experience connecting job seekers to employers? Or connections that could lead to a job? Is your business hiring? The Sanctuary Committee seeks leads, as well as volunteers to join our "employment navigators" supporting Maria, a Guatemalan asylum seeker being sponsored by Havurah. Vaccinated, with a work permit, and improving (though limited) English, Maria needs our support in her transition to independence. Interested, or have a tip to share? Please contact Deborah Kallen (contact info in Havurah directory).

Want to joing our team of employment navigators helping Maria find work? We are looking for leads and volunteers. Please contact Deb Kallen via the Havurah Member Directory.

Community Events & Offerings

A Community Call to Confront Hate
Wednesday, May 26, 9-1 pm – Register here
In this time of national and local reckoning with our country and state's grim legacy of discrimination and hate, we have come together as a broad coalition of partner organizations and allies to create a virtual summit. A Community Call to Confront Hate is the culmination of a collaborative effort by several local area organizations that previously presented webinars on the history of discrimination and bigotry in Oregon.

COVID-19 Vaccines & Assistance

Congregation Neveh Shalom COVID-19 Outreach and Services (CNSCOS)
Congregation Neveh Shalom COVID-19 Outreach and Services can help you make sense of all there is to know about the pandemic, testing, and vaccines. For those who have been exposed to the virus or tested positive and need to quarantine, CNSCOS can assist with and cover costs for things like grocery shopping, finding housing, childcare, or transportation. For those who have been affected by Covid-19 in an indirect way, CNSCOS can help with finding and applying for financial resources, running errands, accessing food assistance, finding other helpful services, or just calling to chat with folks who are feeling isolated or lonely. The CNSCOS team also provides timely information online here and via a weekly email here. Contact covid19@nevehshalom.org or call 971-990-5652 if you need COVID-19 assistance.

Do You Need Help?

Havurah Zoom Rooms

To see our full Zoom room instructions, click here. Member sign-in required.

Questions About Havurah?

The Transparency & Inclusivity Committee is an avenue within Havurah Shalom to help members find the answers to question they have wondered about. Please send your questions to transparency@havurahshalom.org. We will anonymously publish your question in Hakol and then answer that question. Everyone in our community benefits from this clarity!