Hineinu, July 24, 2024

Tisha B'av: Beginning to Turn
(Learning and Ritual)
8 pm to 9:30 pm, Monday, August 12 
– Havurah Shalom and/or Zoom, TBD
Tisha B’Av is a powerful holy day in our cycle of Jewish time. Yet, it is often overlooked, considered as just a day of mourning for the destruction of the temples. We will look at how Tisha B’Av came to be the collecting point of Jewish loss, grief, and displacement as well as what Alan Lew calls “the moment of turning, the moment when we turn away from denial and begin to face exile and alienation as they manifest themselves in our own lives...Teshuvah – turning is the essential gesture of the entire High Holiday season.” We will also commemorate Tisha B’av with a short ritual that helps us being the process of Teshuvah. All are welcome. Stay tuned for an update on the location/medium of delivery: This event will be held at Havurah Shalom and/or on Zoom. RSVP

Havurahniks, please contact Deborah Eisenbach-Budner, deborah@havurahshalom.org if you would like to help plan this ritual.

Call for Visual Art
This September, Havurah's social hall will be transformed into a visual art gallery to celebrate and contemplate the themes of the High Holidays and the month of Elul. Members are invited to create and share artwork, photography, and other physical media that reflect on any aspect of the High Holidays experience, whether arising from our tradition’s core concepts of teshuvah (return) or seliḥah (forgiveness), or from any other aspect of your own process of looking inward during the time leading into the holiday season.

Reach out to Rachel Pollak (rachel@havurahshalom.org) to learn how to participate. More information here.

General Info

Thank you for following our COVID safety guidelines for in-person gatherings, which were updated on June 15, 2023. 

Contacting your fellow Havurah members: If a member's name is hyperlinked, you can go directly to their contact page in the directory by clicking on their name and then logging into your Havurah account. Or search in the online Havurah member directory (log into the website and go to the Contact tab). 

Zoom Room links can be found near the end of this email.

Regular Havurah Happenings

Weekly Torah Study​ 
9 am, Saturdays – Havurah Shalom and Zoom Room Bet
An in-depth look at the weekly Torah reading, led by congregants. No prior knowledge or study is necessary. All viewpoints are welcome as we try to draw lessons from our holy books. (On the third Shabbat of each month, there will be a multi-synagogue Torah Study led by Emily Simon.)

Shabbat Morning
10 am, Saturdays – Havurah Shalom and Zoom Room Aleph
All are welcome at our Shabbat services, including b'nei mitzvah services. Upcoming b'nei mitzvah (Sebastian Mellman, August 10) are listed below and in the website calendar.

Mahjong Group
1 pm, first and third Mondays – Havurah Shalom Library
Mahjong is a fun, social activity that builds community, encouraging new friendships and cementing old ones. Prospective members of Havurah Shalom interested in our mahjong group are invited to attend a game to become better acquainted with our group, but we ask that you already know how to play before coming. Please contact the Havurah office to schedule your visit. Havurah members, reach out to Leah Hershey if you want to be added to the group email list and receive notices of meeting changes.

Jewish Mindfulness & Meditation
12 pm, Tuesdays – Havurah Shalom (Sanctuary or Library) and Zoom Room Bet
We gather 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, Deborah Eisenbach-Budner, Nancy Becker, or Ria de Neeve.

Morning Minyan
8:30 am, Wednesdays – Havurah Shalom and Zoom Room Aleph
For all who want a regular prayer practice and those saying Kaddish. All are welcome.

Upcoming Havurah Events

Palestinian Justice Letter Writing Group
6 pm to 7:30 pm, Monday, July 29  – Zoom Room Heh
We will resume our monthly letter writing to write letters to our lawmakers for Israel/Palestine justice. Questions? Contact David Lewis (member log-in required to access directory). Non-Havurah-members very welcome as well. RSVP for Zoom info.

Rosh Ḥodesh Tov! Gender-Inclusive New Moon Ritual
7 pm to 8:15 pm, Monday, August 5 – In Person or Zoom Room Heh (to be announced)
Our gender-inclusive New Moon group celebrates each Rosh Ḥodesh with learning and ancient and contemporary ritual. Everyone is invited to connect with our closest heavenly body, the Moon. Gatherings take place on or near the new moon of each Hebrew month. Attend any or all sessions. RSVP to be updated on the location and other details throughout the year.

Shabbat Morning with Bar Mitzvah of Sebastian Mellman
10 am to 12 pm, Saturday, August 10 – Havurah Shalom and Zoom Room Aleph
Please join us for Shabbat morning services, including welcoming Sebastian Mellman as a Bar Mitzvah and member of our community.

Teen Engagement Committee Meeting
7 pm, Monday, August 12  – Zoom Room Bet
Monthly meeting for the Teen Engagement Committee leadership. Havurah teens and their parents are welcome.

Tisha B'av – Beginning to Turn (Learning and Ritual)
8 pm to 9:30 pm, Monday, August 12 – Havurah Shalom and/or Zoom, TBD
Tisha B’Av is a powerful holy day in our cycle of Jewish time. Yet, it is often overlooked, considered as just a day of mourning for the destruction of the temples. We will look at how Tisha B’Av came to be the collecting point of Jewish loss, grief, and displacement as well as what Alan Lew calls “the moment of turning, the moment when we turn away from denial and begin to face exile and alienation as they manifest themselves in our own lives...Teshuvah – turning is the essential gesture of the entire High Holiday season.” We will also commemorate Tisha B’av with a short ritual that helps us being the process of Teshuvah. All are welcome. Stay tuned for an update on the location/medium of delivery: This event will be held at Havurah Shalom and/or on Zoom. RSVP
Havurahniks, please contact Deborah Eisenbach-Budner, deborah@havurahshalom.org if you would like to help plan this ritual.
 

Steering Meeting
6:30 pm to 8:30 pm, Tuesday, August 13 – Havurah Shalom and Zoom Room Gimel
Steering members and staff will meet to consider matters of governance. All Havurah Shalom members are invited to attend Steering Committee meetings. For Zoom join links, visit havurahshalom.org/zoom (must be logged in) or call the office in advance for assistance (503-248-4662).

More Tikkun Olam 

 

Havurah Shalom Tikkun Olam Partners:
Path Home (formerly PHFS): Volunteer for our monthly Path Home dinner | Interfaith Alliance on Poverty (IAP) | Lift UP | MACG |Jewish Coalition for Immigrant Justice NW ​​​​​​ | Rose Haven |Jewish Earth Alliance | IMIrJ (Interfaith Movement for Immigrant Justice)

Safety Corner

Out in the Community

Safety Through Solidarity- Event at Powell's: Shane Burley & Ben Lorber in Conversation With Eric K. Ward & CJ Alicandro
7 pm, Wednesday, August 7 – Powell's City of Books (1006 W Burnside St. Portland, Oregon)
From Powell's Books: Antisemitism is on the rise today. How can we stand in solidarity with Palestinians seeking justice, while also avoiding antisemitism — and resisting those who seek to conflate the two? How do we forge the coalitions across communities that we need, in order to overcome the politics of division and fear? Using personal stories, historical deep-dives, front-line reporting, and interviews with leading change-makers, Shane Burley and Ben Lorber’s Safety Through Solidarity: A Radical Guide to Fighting Antisemitism helps us break the current impasse to understand how antisemitism works, what's missing in contemporary debates, and how to build true safety through solidarity, for Jews and all people. (This event is co-sponsored by Powell's Books and Jewish Voice for Peace Portland.) Learn more.

Responding to Instability: Viewing our Democracy Through the Lens of 9 Av
10 am (Pacific Time), Tuesday, August 13 – Pre-register for Zoom info
From Reconstructing Judaism: In this session, we will reflect on how the observance of Tisha B’Av might guide us in responding to the instability in our democracy. What might our tradition’s stories of resistance, destruction, and survival teach us about how to respond to the current crisis?  How could the practice of mourning sustain our capacity for hope as we face the challenges of the moment? Speakers include Rabbi William Plevan, Rabbi Sandra Lawson, and more. This program is co-sponsored by Reconstructing Judaism Democracy Fellowship in honor of Rabbi Nancy Fuchs Kreimer, Ph.D., RRC ‘82, and Rabbi Mordechai Liebling RRC ’85. This is a free event. Register | Learn more

Havurah Zoom Rooms

Havurah Zoom Rooms


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

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, please use this 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.