(1) Contemplative Shabbat this Saturday (2) Spiritual Preparation for the Days of Awe (3) High Holidays Cemetery Gathering (4) Tashlich for All Generations (5) Kol Nidre & Yom Kippur (6) Early Deadlines for Upcoming Community Emails (7) The Poetry of the Soul (8) Be Creative In Our Sukkah (9) Folk Singing in the Sukkah (10) Alter Rockers Sukkot Gathering (11) Shemini Atzeret (12) Simchat Torah (13) Asylum-Seeking Families in Israel (14) Book Discussion of Union Square (15) Looking for a Hebrew Teacher (16) Rafiki Village Project Benefit

Above photo is from the Times of Israel.

(1) Upcoming Shabbat: Contemplative Shabbat, Saturday, Sept. 15, 10:00 am – Rabbi Benjamin will lead us in contemplative practice. Covering less of the liturgy than we normally do, we will take our time chanting particular verses as well as leave plenty of room for silent prayer and/or meditation. We will then connect through some reflective Torah discussion and share blessings through chanting a few aliyot.

(2) Returning Again: Spiritual Preparation for the Days of Awe, Wednesday, Sept. 12, 7:00-8:30 pm – During the month preceding the High Holidays, our tradition instructs us to look closely at our lives. We devote ourselves to teshuvah, literally “returning”— to the path of our most wholesome selves and sincerest intentions. In these sessions, we will come together in support of this sacred work. Through close readings of texts on teshuvah, as well as contemplation and deep listening — to one another and to our own hearts and minds — we will aim to nurture the seeds of teshuvah within and amidst us. Taught by Rabbi Benjamin. We still need several15-minute greeter shifts filled tonight, so please sign up here if you can help!

(3) High Holidays Cemetery Gathering, Sunday, Sept. 16, 10:00-11:00 am, 5656 SW Humphrey Blvd – During the High Holidays season, we gather as a community to remember our loved ones who are no longer with us. Havurah's cemetery is located off the Sylvan Hill, just west of downtown Portland. You can find directions to it here.

(4) Tashlich for All Generations with Tikkun Olam Fair, Sunday, Sept. 16, 12:00 noon, Willamette Park, 6805 SW Macadam – This year Havurah will host a new kind of Tashlich gathering on the Sunday between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Whatever your age and stage in this journey of life, Tashlich is for YOU: younger and older adults, parents of younger and older children, teens, tweens, single people, non-single people, empty nesters, alter rockers, and more. Join us for a potluck lunch, followed by music and a Tashlich service. Enjoy the music, singing, engaging service, casting off ritual at the river, and Tikkun Olam fair. Learn more and RSVP here.

(5) Kol Nidre & Yom Kippur, Tuesday, Sept. 18, 7:00 pm & Wednesday, Sept. 19, 9:30 am, Tiffany Center, 1410 SW Morrison – This year Kol Nidre will start earlier than it has in the past, at 7:00 pm. Click here for our High Holidays schedule. You can find information about Yom Kippur services, including the family service in the morning, middle and high school discussion groups, and the afternoon Tikkun Olam discussion. Please note that due to a Timbers game the night of Yom Kippur, you may want to arrive early for evening services to be sure you find a place to park. We still need several food items for our Break Fast. Please sign up here to bring a tray of food to help. Thank you!

(6) Early Deadlines for Upcoming Community Emails – Havurah's office will be closed on Wednesday, Sept. 19, for Yom Kippur, so next week's community email will go out on Thursday, Sept. 20, instead of Wednesday. Also, because the staff member who composes the weekly emails will be out of town from Sept. 30 through Oct. 10, please submit your posts for the Oct. 3 and 10 emails by Friday, Sept. 28. Thank you for your understanding.

(7) The Poetry of the Soul, Thursdays beginning Sept. 20, 12:00-1:15 pm – We will read the Psalms closely, one by one. How they lend voice to our oscillating emotions, engagement with a sublime Other, and a longing for refuge will help us honor our own truths. We will use English translations and commentaries and refer to the Hebrew. Taught by Rabbi Joey. RSVP here.

Above photo was taken by Michael Heumann at last year's Folk Singing in the Sukkah.

(8) Be Creative In Our Sukkah! – We expect our sukkah to be completed by Friday, Sept. 21. Your decorations, greenery, and creative energy are needed to decorate it. Please gather a few of your friends and come by Havurah on Friday, Sept. 21, or Sunday morning, Sept. 23, to add fabric, lights, ornaments, and greenery to our sukkah. Havurah will provide greenery from our Yom Kippur flower arrangements, colorful lights, and decorations. If you have greenery, cornstalks or ornaments to contribute, please do! We have a big sukkah, so there's room for many branches and decorations. Perhaps you could add a decoration or two on your way to or from Text & Torah, at 10:00 am on Saturday, Sept. 22, which will focus on Sukkot, or before Folk Singing in the Sukkah on Sunday afternoon. (See below.)

(9) Folk Singing in the Sukkah, Sunday, Sept. 23, 2:30-4:30 pm – Bring your voices, your instruments, and your spirit. We will have some copies of “Rise Up Singing” to guide us. Questions? Contact Susan Rosenthall at sarosenthall@msn.com or Judy Heumann at mjheumann@gmail.com.

(10) Alter Rockers Sukkot Get-Together, Wednesday, Sept. 26, 4:00-7:00 pm – Come any time between 4:00 and 7:00 pm. Bring a nosh and whatever you are drinking, and spend some time shmoozing with friends, old and new. Please RSVP to sarah.r.rosenberg@gmail.com so we have an idea about setting up.

(11) Shemini Atzeret Service, with Yizkor, Monday, Oct. 1, 8:00 am – Our Shemini Atzeret Service begins at 8:00 am on Monday, Oct. 1. Please note that this will be our weekday service for the week, and we will not have a Wednesday morning minyan on Oct. 3.

(12) Simchat Torah Celebration, Monday, Oct. 1, 6:30-8:30 pm – Join us for a family-friendly, joyous evening! Potluck desserts from 6:30-6:50 pm, followed by music, dancing, and celebrating Torah. Please RSVP here.

(13) Join the NW Effort to Help Sudanese and Eritrean Asylum-Seeking Families in Israel Find Safe Homes on a Kibbutz – There are currently 35,000 African asylum seekers living in Israel after fleeing violence and genocide in Sudan and Eritrea. Life in Israel has been very difficult for asylum seekers. In response, kibbutz communities around Israel recently stepped forward to help families currently living in dire conditions in South Tel Aviv. The Consortium for Israel and the Asylum Seeker wants to resettle 100 families before Sukkot, when we celebrate temporary shelter, and the kibbutzim need help to cover initial costs of moving, job training, apartment repairs, counseling, school supplies, and other expenses. Washington and Oregon have a goal of collectively raising $5,000 to cover one family’s resettlement by Sukkot. If you would like to help, please visit the Never Again Coalition's website ​​​​​​​ for more information on where to send a check.

(14) Book Group Discussion: Union Square by Meredith Tax, Tuesday, Sept. 25, 7:00 pm – Union Square paints a complex, believable picture of the life of socialist workers and confirmed Marxists within a Russian-born immigrant family in Manhattan during the tumultuous years between World War I and World War II. This book brims over with the passions and struggles of five indomitable women: Hannah Levy, the Russian immigrant matriarch; Sarah, a communist organizer who sides with the union - and against her Bolshevik husband - in opposing the Hitler-Stalin pact; Ruby, who covertly undercuts her department store magnate husband's business with her own clothing designs; Rachel, a wealthy widow dedicated to bohemian life and the pleasures of the Jazz Age; and Rachel's sister-in-law, Tish, a lesbian expatriate who seeks sexual and artistic fulfillment in the salons of Paris and Weimar Germany. Discussion will be led by Sharon Reyes. Questions? Contact Marjorie Walters at marjoriewalters@gmail.com​.

(15) Hebrew Teacher for Youth Needed, 16 Saturdays, Sept. 22, 2018, to May 11, 2019, 1:30-2:40 pm – Are you interested in working with youth, devoting some time to your own Hebrew learning? We need somebody who can teach beginning Hebrew reading with a very clear curriculum to children. Hours of instruction are 16 Saturdays before Shabbat School (already scheduled) between Sept. 22 and May 11, 1:30-2:40 pm. 7-14 children per class. Competitive compensation. Please contact Deborah Eisenbach-Budner, Education Director, at deborah@havurahshalom.org ​​​​​​​. Describe your experience and expertise.

(16) Benifit Concert for the Rafiki Village Project, Sunday, Sept. 23, 5:00-8:00 pm, Subud House, 3185 NE Regents Dr, Portland - Please join the Rafiki Village Project for a fun-packed evening benefiting the work of the Rafiki Village Project. Dance to the fiery rhythms of Portland's own Pa"lante! Latin Jazz Quintet, eat delicious African food, drink rum punch, socialize with friends, bid on auction items, win raffle tickets, and learn about the Rafiki Village Project; all while supporting a good cause. Cost: sliding scale starting at $20. Children are free. Click here to purchase tickets. To learn more about the Rafiki Village Project visit www.rafikivp.org ​​​​​​​. Questions? Email David Newman at davnew2@earthlink.net.

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Havurah Shalom is an engaged, vibrant, egalitarian, and diverse Jewish Reconstructionist community. Steeped in Jewish values, Havurah promotes spirituality, learning, and acts of social responsibility.

Find our calendar and learn more at www.havurahshalom.org.

825 NW 18th Ave, Portland, OR 97209
503-248-4662