Weekly Parsha Study Saturdays, 9 am, Zoom Room Bet & In Person
Join Havurah for a community-led study session of the weekly Torah reading before each Shabbat service.
Shabbat Morning Service Saturdays, 10 am, Zoom Room Aleph & In Person
All are welcome at our Shabbat services, including b'nei mitzvah services. You don't need to receive an invitation. Just come celebrate with the b'nei mitzvah, their family, and the community! Check our online calendar for details about all Shabbat services.
Jewish Mindfulness & Meditation Tuesdays, 12 pm, Zoom Room Bet & In Person
We gather mostly via Zoom to find moments of quiet and shalom in a welcoming space. Various styles of Jewish meditation are explored. No meditation experience necessary. All are welcome to drop in. Led by Rabbi Benjamin, Adela Basayne, or Nancy Becker.
Morning Minyan Wednesdays, 8:30 am, Zoom Room Aleph & In Person
For all who want a regular prayer practice and those saying Kaddish.
Upcoming Events
Book Group – Palestinian Walks: Forays into a Vanishing Landscape Tuesday, July 26, 7 pm – Zoom Room Bet
Author Raja Shehadeh enjoys heading out into the countryside that surrounds his home. We accompany Raja on six walks taken between 1978 and 2006. The earlier forays are peaceful affairs, allowing our guide to meditate at length on the character of his native land. But recently his hikes have become less than bucolic and sometimes downright dangerous because his home is Ramallah, in the West Bank. In this book, Raja Shehadeh's elegy for his lost footpaths becomes a heartbreaking metaphor for the deprivations of an entire people estranged from their land. Led by Joel Beinin. Learn more here.
Bat Mitzvah of Charlotte Wise Saturday, July 30, 10 am – Zoom Room Aleph & In Person
Please join us in welcoming Charlotte Wise as a bat mitzvah and member of our community. No invitation is required. All are welcome.
AlteRockers Movie and (Optional) Dinner Afterward – Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, A Journey, A Song Thursday, Aug. 4, 4 pm, Cinema 21, 616 NW 21st Ave
We will watch the film "Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, A Journey, A Song," about one of the most influential songwriters, singers, poets, and spiritual leaders of our lifetimes. The interviews and the previews of this film are tremendous. We will meet for the matinee, followed by an optional dinner afterwards. Please RSVP to Ted Scheinman with your name and the number in your party. (See Directory for contact information.)
Tikkun Olam Updates
Gun Safety Success!
The Havurah-sponsored, gun safety initiative by Lift Every Voice Oregon collected 161,485 signatures! They started out with 2 petitions but dropped one (IP 18) to focus on requiring permits, background checks, training, and a ban on large-capacity ammunition magazines (IP 17). This is what you will have the chance to vote into law this fall. You can watch Barbara Gundle travel to Salem with the LEVO group to deliver the petitions here.
Volunteer Projects with The Common Good Project
We would love your help! There are many opportunities to work with our homeless neighbors in a safe and effective way. YOU ARE NEEDED.
We have established an Amazon Wish List and will continue to update it as needs change. Please consider purchasing an item or two if you can.
Some of you have time and resources to help cook. Sign up here.
Some people have offered to donate funds. That's really kind and so very, very helpful. Venmo = @jenn-louis
Tuesday delivery caravan is always in need of drivers. Sign up here.
Lastly, the website has been updated to include information on this homeless initiative. Please go to jennlouis.com for more information and links. Contact: Jenn Louis
Havurah Leadership Handbook
Havurah has a one-stop resource on our website for all aspects of leadership participation at Havurah Shalom! Log in as a member, then scroll to the bottom of the “Committees” heading and click on Leadership Handbook. While it is geared to provide resources and support to Steering and committee leaders, all members can peruse the table of contents and explore the foundations and processes that help sustain our participatory governance structure. A collaboration of Transparency/Inclusivity, MACG, Leadership Development, Presidents, and especially, Teri Ruch. Contact: Shelley Sobel and Eve Berry
Community Announcements
Antisemitism & Israel-Related Speech: Resources from the Joint Israel Commission (JIC) of the Reconstructionist Movement This web page features links to five different contemporary definitions of antisemitism that address Israel-related speech. Each of the five texts also presents different opinions about when statements and actions that relate to Israel “cross the line” into antisemitism. Without endorsing any of the competing definitions, Reconstructing Judaism's resource is designed to help Reconstructionists learn, discuss, and give careful thought to this matter.
Judy Chicago Exhibit Tour and Rooftop Reception For People Ages 45 and Under Thursday, Aug. 4, 5:30 pm: Register here For People Ages 45+ Tuesday, Aug. 23, 11 am: Register here
OJMCHE and the Jewish Federation of Greater Portland invite you to join them for a special summer event for younger adults ages 45 and under on Aug. 4 (Co-hosted by OJMCHE, JFGP, One Table, Moishe House & Moishe Pod West PDX) or a special event for people ages 45+ on Tuesday, Aug. 23 (Co-hosted by OJMCHE, JFGP, MJCC). Take a guided tour of "Turning Inward: JUDY CHICAGO,” from the Collections of Jordan D. Schnitzer and His Family Foundation, which traces Judy Chicago’s development as an artist and Jewish woman across six decades. Both events will be followed by a reception on the museum’s stunning rooftop patio. Cost is $10/person.
Resources
Do You Need Support?
If you are facing emotional, financial, or health challenges and would welcome support, please consider contacting the (a) Bikkur Holim (Visiting the Sick) Committee for spiritual support, (b) Lotsa Helping Hands for help with food, transportation, or other errands, or (c) Rabbi Benjamin, for spiritual and moral support – benjamin@havurahshalom.org or 503-248-4662 ext. 3. If you're interested in being on a list of people who support others in concrete ways, such as grocery shopping or running other errands, please contact Lotsa Helping Hands. To request that the name of a relative or Havurah member be read during the Misheberach (healing prayer) at Shabbat services, use this new Misheberach Request Form.
Questions About Havurah? The Transparency & Inclusivity Committee is an avenue within Havurah Shalom to help members find the answers to questions or concerns they have wondered about. Please send your questions to transparency@havurahshalom.org. We will anonymously answer your question in Hakol. Everyone in our community benefits from this clarity.
Naming the Unnameable: Exploring Theology and Practice through Rabbi Toba Spitzer’s God is Here Wednesday, Apr 17th 7:00p to 8:30p Facilitated by Rabbi Benjamin. In this class, we’ll be exploring various ways in which the Divine is represented and imagined in Jewish tradition. Beyond simply the intellectual, our lens will be more one of spiritual reflection and practice. In other words: As we encounter and interact with the metaphors that the tradition offers for experiencing and connecting with God/Spirit/Life, what do we notice within our hearts and minds? How do particular images shape our consciousness and perception? As a guide for this exploration we will read Rabbi Toba Spitzer’s book, God is Here, which should be purchased for the class (contact Rabbi Benjamin for a free copy if needed). RSVP here by March 1.
Hakol Deadline is April 18 Thursday, Apr 18th (All day) Click to learn how to submit your contributions to our monthly newsletter. The deadline for the May 2024 Hakol is Thursday, April 18.
Prayer Flags for Our Planet Thursday, Apr 18th 11:00a to 3:00p This exhibit is about science and art.
It is meant to be a learning experience, about the top 60 solutions to climate change, as researched by over 5,000 scientists.
And most importantly it is about hope.
It is about learning about these solutions to climate change and
changing the hearts and minds of those around us,
so that we can all work together.
Anne Nesse, 2024
(HYB) Shabbat Morning Shabbat, Apr 20th 10:00a to 12:00p Led by community members and Rabbi Benjamin, this service includes davening, Torah reading, and discussion. For Zoom link (Zoom Room Aleph), email info@havurahshalom.org.
(IP) Tot Shabbat Shabbat, Apr 20th 10:30a to 11:30a Young children (0-5) and parents celebrate with singing, movement, blessings, and storytelling. All are welcome.
Shabbat School Shabbat, Apr 20th 3:00p to 5:15p This program gives children a foundation for lifelong Jewish learning and engagement while integrating parents and children in a caring Jewish community.
(HYB) Meeting of Palestine Justice working group Sunday, Apr 21st 7:00p to 8:30p Our regular monthly meeting of the Palestine Justice working group will take place on the third Sunday of every month, at Havurah and in Zoom Room Bet. The agenda will be distributed in advance on the listserv. If you are interested in being added to the listserv, please email David Lewis.
Experience the Omer: Making it Count! Tuesday, Apr 23rd 7:00p to 7:30p [RSVP to be emailed a recording of the April 9 intro session.] The Omer is an ancient tradition marking time between the Exodus from the Narrow Place to the Expanse at Sinai. Explore tools and practices to facilitate your own learning and experience from Liberation to Revelation. We will have an intro class followed by half-hour check-ins, one for each Sephira. Led by Andrine de la Rocha. 7 pm, Tuesdays, Apr. 9 (Intro), 23 (Chesed), 30 (Gevurah); May 7 (Tiferet), 14 (Netzach), 21 (Hod), 28 (Yesod); Jun. 4 (Malchut) Led by Andrine de la Rocha.
