This week’s issue of The Park Page is dedicated by Rena and Jerry Gombo commemorating the seventh Yahrzeit (24 Tishrei) of Rena’s father, Norman Dicker – Nachum ben Mordechai ha-Levi z”l. . The Weekly Bulletin of Young Israel of New Hyde Park October 17-24, 2014 Parashat Bereshit ☺ Isru Chag ☺ Shabbat Mevarkhim 23-30 Tishrei 5775 Issue #413 Parasha Page Numbers Parasha, be-simana tava Artscroll 2, Soncino 1 Haftara Artscroll 1130, Soncino 21 Schedule of Services and Classes Friday, October 17 / 16 Tishrei – Simchat Torah Yevamot 13 Shacharit 8:45 am Candle-lighting before 5:54 pm Mincha / Dvar Torah / Maariv 5:55 pm Yevamot 14 Saturday, October 18 / 24 Tishrei Parasha Shiur 8:15 am Shacharit 8:45 am Latest time for Shema MA 9:18, GRA 9:54 am Sermon: “Beginner’s Bad Luck?” 10:30 am Shiur: “Heating Food For or On Shabbat” 5:05 pm Mincha, followed by Seuda Shelishit and Maariv 5:45 pm Shabbat ends 6:55 pm Yevamot 15 Sunday, October 19 / 25 Tishrei Shacharit 8:10 am Gemara Shiur (Sota 7a) 8:50 am Mincha / Mass-Mishna / Maariv 5:50 pm Yevamot 16 Monday, October 20 / 26 Tishrei Shacharit 6:10 am Mincha / Mass-Mishna / Maariv 5:50 pm Yevamot 17 Tuesday, October 21 / 27 Tishrei Shacharit 6:15 am Mincha / Mass-Mishna / Maariv 5:50 pm Yevamot 18 Wednesday, October 22 / 28 Tishrei Shacharit 6:15 am Mincha / Mass-Mishna / Maariv 5:50 pm Yevamot 19 Thursday, October 23 / 29 Tishrei Shacharit 6:10 am Mincha / Mass Mishna / Maariv 5:50 pm Yevamot 20 Friday, October 24 / 30 Tishrei –Rosh Chodesh Shacharit 6:05 am Candle-lighting, before 5:43 pm Mincha / Dvar Torah / Maariv 5:45 pm ▪ Daf Yomi meets Monday through Friday at 5:30 a.m., Saturday and Sunday at 7:30 a.m., and Yom Tov at 8:00 a.m. ▪ Women wishing to use the Mikvah should contact Nehama Teitelman at 518-222-3874 to schedule an appointment. ▪ The Molad for the month of Marcheshvan is Thursday, October 23 at 9:02 p.m. + 16 Chalakim. Drash v'DaSh: A Shabbat Message and Greeting "Bless You" Jewish tradition teaches that if one hears someone blessing G-d, he should respond "Barukh Hu u-Barukh Shemo - Blessed is He, and Blessed is His Name." (See Tashbetz comm. to Pirkei Avot 2:16, and Rosh cited in the article on Haazinu in my "Tishrei Torah".) When instead a person is blessed, proper etiquette is to reciprocate with "Ve-khen le-mar - the same [blessing] should be for you." For a high-school student in Dyer County, Tennessee, however, the response to her "Bless You" - upon a classmate's sneeze - was being sent to the principal's office and getting suspended. The teacher apparently told the student that she had broken a class-rule against invoking "religious terms". While the school administration could not be reached for comment, fellow students were not shy about their reactions, wearing t-shirts emblazoned with the words "Bless You" as show of support. In the Talmud (Sota 14a), Rabbi Simlai famously teaches: The Torah begins with acts of chesed and ends with acts of chesed. It begins with chesed, as it says, "G-d made for man and his wife garments of leather and clothed them." (Gen. 3:21) It ends with chesed, as it is says, "[G-d] buried [Moses] in the valley." (Deut. 34:6) Yet the Torah also begins and ends with another shared phenomenon the act of blessing. The Torah begins with blessing: "And G-d blessed [the fish and fowl] saying: 'Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth... And G-d blessed [man and woman] and G-d said to them: 'Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it... And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it; because on it He rested from all His work..." (Gen. 1:22, 28; 2:3) and the Torah ends with blessing: "And this is the blessing wherewith Moses, the man of G-d, blessed the children of Israel before his death.... Bless L-rd [Levi's] substance, and accept the work of his hands... Blessed of the L-rd be [Joseph's] land... let the blessing come upon the head of Joseph... Blessed be He that expands Gad... O Naphtali, satisfied with favor, and full with the blessing of the L-rd... Blessed be Asher above sons..." (Deut. 33:1,13, 16, 20, 23, 24) Significantly, it is Moses - and not G-d - who is doing the blessing as his life and the Torah reach their respective conclusions. In the spirit of Imitatio Dei, Moses follows G-d's initial example and offers his words of inspiration to the tribes, no doubt providing the encouragement vitally necessary as the Israelites would undergo a major transition in leadership. Equally significantly, it is not just a Moses whose blessing carries weight. The Talmud (Berakhot 7a) states that the "blessing of an ordinary person (birkat hedyot) should not be treated lightly". So let's each take the opportunity to bless another person - and we need not wait for a sneeze. Techel ha-Torah u-Birkhoteha Let the Torah and its blessings begin anew! Shabbat Mevarkhim Mevorakhat, Rabbi Lawrence Teitelman YOUNG ISRAEL OF NEW HYDE PARK National Council of Young Israel 264-15 77th Avenue, New Hyde Park, NY 11040 ∙ Tel: 718-343-0496 ∙ Fax: 718-343-6509 ∙ www.yinhp.org ∙ [email protected] Announcements Yasher koach to Dovid Gottesman for his laining this Shabbat. Seuda Shelishit is sponsored by Debbie and Chuck Waxman commemorating the first Yahrzeit (26 Tishrei) of Debbie’s mother Frances Glasner – Faiga Malka bat Shmuel a”h. Thank you to Mr. Ernie Einzig for making his Aravos-tree available and to Mark Lerner and Binyamin Teitelman for preparing the bundles for Hoshana Rabba. Proceeds from the sales benefit our Mikveh. Mazal tov to Judy and Sid Fine on the marriage of their daughter Elena to B.J. Weiss in Israel. Food Certificates for A&A Gourmet, Fairway, Pathmark, Stop & Shop, and Waldbaum’s, and Chesed Dollars for many Jewish businesses, can be purchased from Art Feldman 516-227-0707, Paige Finkelstein 718-343-4821, Rena Gombo 718-343-3855, and Ilene Horowitz 718470-9474. Proceeds finance capital improvement projects at the shul. The Clothing Gemach (www.BeautifulMemoriesGemach.org) is looking for volunteers to work Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 11:00 am until 2:00 pm and Monday through Thursday in the evenings. For more information, please contact Mark Krieger at 917-703-4694. Office Hours this week are Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday 10-2. Nach Yomi Study for October 18-24, per Rabbi Abramowitz’s Nach Yomi Companion. For more info, visit www.ou.org/torah/nachyomi. Hosea 5: A Moth, a Worm, and a Lion Hosea 6: Let's Know G-d Hosea 7: A Confused Dove Hosea 8: A Broken Utensil and a Wild Donkey Hosea 9: Crazy Prophets Hosea 10: A Threshing Cow Hosea 11: Like a Lion The Park Page Puzzle “Bless Him” This week’s Puzzle: Which three people in the Torah said Barukh Hashem? Which three people in the Torah said Berukh Hashem? Solution to last week’s Puzzle: Hakafot (circuits) are mentioned in Joshua Ch. 6 in the context of encircling Jericho and in Psalms 19 with regard to the paths of celestial objects. Yasher koach to Susan Isler, Karen Klein, Rita Lenefsky, and Howie Lerner for their solutions. Upcoming Dates, Events and Programs Protest Against The Metropolitan Opera's Production of "The Death of Klinghoffer" Lincoln Center - Broadway & W 65 St., NYC Monday, October 20 at 6:00 p.m. Free bus from Great Neck - call 516-829-1430 or 516-829-6040 The Shabbos Project in New Hyde Park and Around the Globe Friday-Saturday, October 24-25 see www.TheShabbosProject.org Monthly Simcha Kiddush October 25 - Shabbat Rosh Chodesh, Parashat Noach Send sponsorships ($18) and simcha-details to Office Tri-Community Blood Drive, hosted by YINHP Sunday, November 2nd 8:45 am - 2:45 pm Crash Course in Jewish History "Four thousand years of Jewish History ... in five lectures" Tuesday evenings, beginning November 4 The shul gets a “clean slate” - a new outdoor bulletin board - on the eve of Hoshana Rabba, the conclusion of the extended period of awe and atonement. (The board is apparently suitable for self-reflection ... some food for thought.) Thank you to Arlene Feldman for coordinating the project and to Sinai Chapels for underwriting the costs. ARE YOU ON BOARD? -