1. religion and spirituality
2. judaism

HAGESHER
The Bulletin of Congregation Ner Tamid
1250 Quintara Street, SF 94116 (415) 661-3383
[email protected]
Rabbi Moshe Levin, Cantor Rudy Hassid
Ba’al Koreh Zvi Kalinski
Administrator Adele Shafer
Bulletin Editor Pablo Libedinsky
TEVET/SHEVAT 5775
JANUARY 2015
Better to light a candle than to curse the darkness
A MENORAH FOR THE WORLD IN THE NEW YEAR
by Rabbi Moshe Levin
I
t must have been during the presidential election of 1956 when I heard the
grownups talk about Adlai Stevenson and Dwight D. Eisenhower. Stevenson lost the election by a landslide even greater than the one he lost four
years earlier. I remember being told that Eisenhower was the general who
led the successful invasion of France and Germany in 1944–45 and became the
first supreme commander of NATO, and that Stevenson was an intellectual. As
a young lad I assumed that Eisenhower’s smiling photo on a campaign button
with the simple words, “I Like Ike!” won him the election. It was probably more
complicated than that, but perhaps not much more complicated.
Anyway, Stevenson was not only witty but also
well read. One of the many quotes
that sprinkled his speeches was a
Chinese proverb, “Better to light a
candle than to curse the darkness.” I should have had that
quote on my breakfast table years
ago, because as I read the daily
newspaper I found myself often in
despair about the human-made
tragedies around me. Today it is
Global Warming, schoolgirls kidnapped, child soldiers, human
trafficking, deadly rockets from
Gaza and deadly bombings from
Israel, children suffering from untreated sicknesses, so many wars
and so many refugees, starvation
resulting from rebels or governments stopping food from reaching those in need, the Taliban,
ISIS, kidnappings in Mexico and
torture in American prisons, the
absurd way we fight the War on
Drugs, racism and police brutality,
mob riots as a self-defeating way
to achieve justice … the list goes
on and on.
The New York Times “Year in Pictures” published three days before
the ball fell in Times Square to
announce the New Year, had
seven photos of good and happy
events from 2014 – Bolshoi ballerinas in Moscow, a rock concert in
Brooklyn, Bishops in the Vatican
conferring sainthood on Pope
Paul VI, a woman in India casting
her first ballot, Brazilian fans at
the World cup, New Jersey Gov.
Christie shaking hands on both
sides of the aisle, and Yankee
(Continued on page 2)
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DISCOVER SHABBAT dinners
shortstop Derek Jeter thanking fans at his last game
after a 20 year career. Seven positive events pictured
– out of 49! The rest were Ebola and South Sudan
and the Ukraine and protests and refugees and rubble
and devastation. Forty-two of the forty-nine’s “Year
in Pictures” were not what we want hanging over the
mantelpiece.
But Adlai Stevenson’s philosophy reached into a tradition as old as ours that said, “Better to light a candle
than to curse the darkness.”
Our way of teaching that wisdom was with the holiday
ritual we celebrated before the Western World
brought in 2015 –
we lit candles,
and we lit more,
not less, each
night. That
means, do not
succumb to despair, so not give
up even though
the task is so
great. Do a little something that makes the world better. The Talmud records a debate between the great
sages, Shammai and Hillel. Shammai said that we
should start with eight and each night take one away,
which is what happened to the oil – it diminished by
one eighth each night as the supply of oil burned until
new oil was available. But Hillel said, “No. We increase the number each night, not reduce the lights.
Jews don’t diminish sacred acts, we increase them.”
The world needs more, not fewer, candles lit. In reality, our world is probably no worse and probably
much better than it was in history – we just have
more photos than they did hundreds and thousands
of years ago. But because of exhibits like the “Year in
Pictures” we see and know the suffering endured by
so many of our fellow human beings worldwide. And
so we, who see their misfortune have a responsibility
to diminish the darkness until every human being,
made in the divine image just like us, lives in a world
filled with light.
The secular New Year has a High Holy Day-style tradition of its own– “Make a New Year’s Resolution!”
Let’s do something different, something better, than
the year before. G-d knows our world has room for
improvement. So let us all commit ourselves to lighting even just one candle. It’s called Tikun Olam: Fixing a Broken World. It is a lot more effective than
cursing the darkness.
These are the dates and sponsors for the upcoming Discover Shabbat dinners.
February 27—No sponsor yet
I will be away on this date and would like
someone to assume the responsibility of organizing the dinner. The committee will be
available to help but someone needs to be the
organizer. Rabbi Levin has a caterer that we
can use and if that helps, the organizer would
just have to work with the caterer. Adele can
help with seating. So if you’d like to be the one
to “save the day” please let me or Adele know.
March 27 April 24 May 22 June 26 -
Susie Julius
Pablo and Irena Libedinsky
No sponsor yet
Tanya and Slava Yasnovsky
celebrating their 50th Anniversary
July 24 - Susie Julius
August 28 - Warren and Bianca Hirsch
NEW
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A
FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION OR PAY
YOUR DUES TO NER TAMID WITH
STOCK OR SECURITIES
YOU CAN DO SO NOW
PLEASE CALL THE SYNAGOGUE
OFFICE TO MAKE ARRANGEMENTS
(415) 661-3383
2
CO-PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
pants receive holistic care in a dignified setting.
D
ear Friends,
Over the High Holydays, Rabbi Levin
spoke about homelessness and his sermon fueled the
fire that would eventually have
Ner Tamid members become involved in a community service
project. Right after the rabbi’s
sermon, member Susan Dean
came to me and told me about her
experience with Project Homeless
Connect. She and I agreed that it
would be a great project for us to
do. Susan also had the idea to
pair our volunteer experience with
the celebration of Chanukah.
Each volunteer was given a specially designed card that we could
fill out saying that we volunteered
on somebody’s behalf as a Chanukah gift. Later, that card would be
mailed by Susan to the recipient.
Project Homeless Connect is an
organization that connects the
most vulnerable San Franciscans,
homeless and low income to vital
resources throughout the city. At
their one-stop shop events and in
their office every day, they link
participants to difficult-to-obtain
services. By mobilizing city and
community agencies, as well as
thousands of volunteers, they are
able to ensure that their partici-
At this event, over 1700 participants were able to receive assistance from more than 150 service
providers all under the same roof
at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium.
Because of this one-stop-shop
model, what often takes months to
accomplish can be completed in
one day. During the event, corporations, nonprofits, and government agencies provided participants with services such as dental
care, eyeglasses, HIV testing,
housing information, food, hygiene products, medical care,
mental health services, SSI benefits, legal advice, California identification cards, voice mail accounts, employment counseling/
job placement, wheelchair repair,
addiction services, and more.
Our volunteer day began with a
rally where the organizers cheered
us on and told us about the positive results brought about by Project Homeless Connect. The organization that was created in
2004 by then Mayor Gavin
Newsom is celebrating their 10th
anniversary and both Gavin
Newsom and Bevan Dufty, who
was appointed in 2012 to serve as
the Director of HOPE, (Housing
Opportunity Partnerships and Engagement) spoke about the positive impact that PHC has on the
homeless in our city. They
thanked the volunteers by name
and of course, when the name of
Ner Tamid was read, we all
cheered, already feeling the impact of what we would soon be
doing.
Then, with other volunteers (there
were about 700 in total for the
day) we went to our stations. Our
job was to be escorts. That meant
3
that when a participant (client)
registered to receive services, they
filled out a form that indicated
what kind of services they might
be interested in. Our job was to
escort each participant to the area
of service and remain with them if
they wished to receive help filling
out their forms and to make their
experience at PHC a positive one.
We were instructed to ask their
names and to tell them our name.
Each client, as they are called, had
a different need and it was our job
to listen to them and try to give
them what they were asking for.
I’m sure that all of us who volunteered had a different experience
with our clients, but it was clear
that all of them were in need of
services that they could not get
anywhere else or would have to go
to many different agencies to obtain. I think that we all agreed
that volunteering on this project
gave a “human face” to the problem of homelessness, alcoholism,
drug addiction and mental illness
and gave a real story about people
who are suffering and that we often pass by.
I found it fascinating to hear the
client’s stories, and to realize that
other than the fact that they are
without a permanent place to live,
they have some of the same personal needs and vanities that I do.
For example, I found it interesting
that all of the men who needed
reading glasses were very particular about how they looked. They
would say that they wanted
glasses that made them look
young, and my first client wanted
new teeth by Christmas because
she didn’t want her picture taken
without teeth. Another client
wanted a haircut before he took
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(Continued from page 3)
his photo for his California ID
card because he wanted to look
good and clean.
My last client of the day was
Brenda, who was in a wheelchair
and was in need of legal help with
a claim that she had with the
state. We were able to get
her the help she needed and
as I pushed her around the
Civic Auditorium, I learned
a great deal about her and
her family. She has a mom
and a daughter who are not
homeless, and she herself
had just been accepted into
a low-income apartment
right next to the opera
house. We had lunch together and went off to look
for cookbooks from the
book table. Although she
has mental illness, she was
very concerned about her homeless friend who was pregnant. We
went looking for her friend but to
no avail and Brenda was very concerned about her friend’s welfare.
At the end of our time together,
we got her a big bag of groceries
and a new jacket. She was really
particular about the style and
color of the jacket. Then she informed me that she needed to go
across the street to get eye drops
for her dog! Yes, PHC even had
tents set up with Veterinarians
and SPCA volunteers to take care
of the animals of the clients.
As the day wound down, I think
we were all pretty tired but still
felt exhilarated by the work that
we had done. Nina Zentner wrote
a letter that is published in this
edition of Hagesher and Roni
Silverberg sent a meaningful
email to us about her feelings: “I
found it sensitizing to become
more aware of the needs of ‘the
anonymous masses;’ people we
pass on the street who are de-
tached from family and friends,
and from those involvements that
give meaning to life. Made me
more aware of the things you and
I take for granted, like getting a
haircut, having a book to read (or
even knowing how to read, or being able to see what you're reading), and dental care. A real
eye opener to the lonely and bereft.”
Having just come off this PHC experience on Wednesday, the idea
of give CARE NOT CASH was
fresh in my mind. Since Civic
Center is filled with homeless people, I have made it a habit to never
give money to the homeless but
instead, give to organizations like
PHC where the money does some
real good. So late Thursday morning I had this experience: I
stopped at Pete’s coffee to get my
morning fix. There was a homeless lady in a wheelchair sitting in
front that I had never seen before
because I am usually much earlier
or she comes later. As I got out of
my car, she asked me for money
and I answered with “Sorry I don’t
carry cash, but I would be more
than happy to buy you a cup of
coffee.” She politely replied:
“thanks but could you make it
chai, with milk and sweetener?”
So I placed my order for a latte for
me and a chai for the lady in the
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wheelchair. Not being an expert
on chai, I asked the barista if I
needed to add the milk myself.
He asked me if the chai was for
me and when I said it was for the
lady outside in the wheelchair he
replied “She likes her chai with a
lot of milk and two packets of the
yellow sweetener. She is a regular
here.” In the past I would
have felt annoyed and even
felt as though I’d been taken,
but that was not my feeling
today. Today I found it humorous and was happy that
the lady who has a permanent
gig at Pete’s Coffee, got to
have her nice hot cup of chai
on a very cold and wet day
and that I made it happen.
Our PHC experience made a
huge difference to all of us
and as Roni said: “ THANK
YOU for giving us the opportunity to become aware and to
hopefully make a small difference,
especially during our Festival of
Lights. (Lighting just one candle
opens ups our eyes to possibilities.)
We thank Susan Dean for not only
bringing us to this remarkable organization, but for organizing us,
making all of the arrangements,
continually emailing us to remind
us of what was ahead and making
this volunteer effort a wonderful
experience. Susan also signed up
several people from JFCS to volunteer under the Ner Tamid
name. They people who volunteered from Ner Tamid were:
Susan and John Dean, Madeleine
Eaton, Roni Silverberg, Mark Shelub, Mike Lips, Howard Simon,
Nina Zentner and me. I’m sure
that next time when Susan comes
a- calling there will be even more
volunteers.
Beverlee Hassid
Co-President
Letters…
TRUE STORY?
A grandson of slaves, a boy was born in a poor
neighborhood of New Orleans known as the "Back
of Town."
His father abandoned the family when the child was
an infant. His mother became a prostitute and the
boy and his sister had to live with their grandmother. Early in life he proved to be gifted for music
and with three other kids he sang in the streets of
New Orleans. His first gains were the coins that
were thrown to them.
A Jewish family, Karnofsky, who had immigrated
from Lithuania to the USA had pity for the 7-yearold boy and brought him into their home. Initially
they gave him 'work' in their house and fed
him. Eventually he remained there and for the first
time in his life was treated with kindness and tenderness.
When he went to bed, Mrs. Karnovsky sang him a
Russian Lullaby that he would sing with her.
Later, he learned to sing and play several Russian
and Jewish songs. Over time, this boy became the
adopted son of this family. The Karnofskys gave him
money to buy his first musical instrument; as was
the custom in the Jewish families. They sincerely
admired his musical talent. Later, when he became
a professional musician and composer, he used
these Jewish melodies in compositions, such as "St.
James Infirmary" and "Go Down Moses."
The little black boy grew up and wrote a book about
this Jewish family who had adopted him in 1907. In
memory of this family and until the end of his life,
he wore a star of David and said that in this family
he had learned "how to live life with
love, commitment and determination."
You might recognize his name.
This little boy was called Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong.
Louis Armstrong proudly spoke fluent Yiddish!
Dear Rabbi, Bev, Madeline, Nina, Roni, Mike,
Mark, and Howard,
Thank you so much for volunteering at Project Homeless Connect. Your
help was greatly appreciated. It was a very busy
day with a lot of clients being served!
Hope everyone has a wonderful Hanukkah and a
healthy 2015.
Sincerely,
Susan Dean
Thanks Susan for organizing this marvelous project for CNT. I left at 1 pm. feeling strangely exhilarated.
I met people with such nagging discomforts as
toothache, foot problems, no eyeglasses, hunger, and many more serious problems; things we
take for granted because all we have to do is
make an appointment and our insurance will
cover it. Most of the clients were plain out of
luck, no family, no friends, no connections. I
hope we were able to make a dent in the huge
homeless dilemma.
Also, it was enormously uplifting to learn of the
many projects and donations in the works.
How many times per year is this project undertaken?
Happy Hanukah to you and John.
Nina
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6
Art ‘n’ Eat
Sunday, February 18, 2015 - 10am
at the Legion of Honor
Join Ner Tamid on closing day for the exhibit
Houghton Hall:
Portrait of an English Country House
And the fascinating Story of Sylvia Sasoon,
the Sephardic Jewish woman who married into the
family and saved this building,
the finest example of an English Country House in
all of Great Britain!
Lunch at the Legion of Honor follows.
Call the synagogue office for details 415.661.3383
7
R
ecently people have
asked me how it is that
I came to be attracted
to Judaism.
In order to answer that question, I
need to first go back in time to my
early childhood.
I developed asthma at the age of 2
and as I got older it became more
severe. Mine was a childhood of
emergency room visits, doctor visits, regimens of medication, not to
mention all the school that I
missed as a result of this condition.
During these episodes I spent a lot
of time in my room reading and
listening to music. When I was
well enough to return to school I
was always out of sync with my
studies and current events at
school.
At the age of 15 after another
acute episode of asthma, my doctor happened to mention to my
mother that he had heard of a
hospital in Denver, Colorado
for asthmatic children and teenagers. He told her that if she were
interested he would look into it
and obtain the information
needed to send me there. He also
told her that it was a Jewish Hospital but that it was not a requirement to be Jewish in order to be
admitted. Both my mother and I
agreed that I would go there if it
were at all possible.
One February day in 1960 I
boarded a United Airlines flight to
Denver. I had never been on a
plane before and certainly had
never been so far away from
home. It was very exciting! After
all, I was only 15 and to my understanding I was going to a place
where I would meet others who
suffered from the same condition.
WHY I AM HERE?
By Doreen Martinez
The name of this hospital was The
Jewish National Home For Asthmatic Children. When I arrived
at The Home I was surprised to
discover that it was not some sort
of formidable tuberculin looking
building as I had imagined, but
rather an interesting layout of
modern modular style buildings
that were spaciously scattered
throughout a large area. Outwardly, there was nothing to indicate that it was a hospital.
Boys were housed in one building,
the girls in another and the
younger children in yet another
area. We attended regular school
outside of the "Grounds" and were
allowed to go downtown and all
the things that teenagers like to
do, movies and shopping.
We enjoyed a great freedom that
some of us had never had at home
because we were too ill.
I must briefly mention that because of my sheltered childhood
due to the asthma, and all that
book reading and listening to classical music and jazz I wasn't developing socially along the same
lines as my peers at school. The
kids in my neighborhood were
dating and going to proms and
such. I on the other hand was
reading Jack Kerouac, James
Baldwin, J.D. Salinger etc, etc.
My boyfriends were Johnnie
Mathis and Vic Damone and
Robert Goulet.
This was not a recipe for popularity in my heavily Hispanic
neighborhood and certainly not at
school where I was heckled frequently.
And so I arrived in Denver one
weekday afternoon and was taken
to The Home.
I was introduced to everyone and
in the manner of adolescent girls
8
was befriended by my new roommate, a Christian girl from Tennessee. She took me aside an explained the social hierarchy of the
girls dorm. Who was who and
other pertinent information. She
told me that most all of the kids
living here were Jewish. I didn't
have a clue what that meant except that it was a religion of some
sort.
And I soon discovered that the
other girls were suspicious of me
because I was Mexican. They had
never met a Mexican person before. Also they had been - I suspect influenced - by the then
popular West Side Story and had a
preconceived notion that all Hispanics went around with stiletto
knives and I might be "dangerous"
not to mention a being a gang girl.
This did not bode well for me because here I was coming from a
place where I had been rejected by
the other Mexicans for not being
Mexican enough and over here I
was being rejected for being Mexican!
Wow! What a conundrum. What
to do?
One day after dinner I heard
through the grapevine that the
leader of our dorm was talking
behind my back in the dining
room. I was incensed. By this
time I had just had enough of the
cold reception I had been receiving from the dorm girls.
So I stormed into the room of the
girl who had been talking about
me and confronted her. A tense
exchange of words ensued and
then I happened to look down at
her desk and spotted a Johnnie
Mathis album that I had badly
coveted. To make a long, long
story short (if that’s possible) our
mutual love of Johnnie Mathis
(Continued on page 9)
(Continued from page 8)
brought us together and all of our cultural differences and suspicions dissolved. And we became
the closest of friends. And it was through this encounter that I came to be accepted into her little
universe and discovered that many of these kids
had been reading the same books as I was, and
listening to the same music. At last I had found
people who were just like me! What a wonderful
discovery that was for me. I had never felt such
acceptance and had never been so validated in my
entire life not by my peers back home and even
some in my own family. And I thought, who are
these wonderful people?
I spent one year at The Home and because I arrived in early February, I had the opportunity to
experience the entire Jewish calendar cycle. The
kitchen was kosher and we ate out of two sets of
plates; everyone had to participate in the Jewish
holidays and we all lived a Jewish life. There were
very few non-Jews and the Jewish kids were more
than willing to explain the meaning of things to us
goyim.
I was 15 after all and my mind was still pretty pliant. I felt so drawn to these people. And because
they had validated me I felt such an intense camaraderie towards them. And so when I left to return to California I was a changed girl. Upon my
return home it was business as usual. But now I
felt fortified in the knowledge that I had a team of
people on my side. A Jewish team!
My experience in Denver launched me on a lifelong odyssey and fascination with Judaism, which
reached its bloom when I discovered Ner Tamid
and was given the opportunity by Rabbi Levin to
fulfill my dream of Jewish learning. 
IgoR Rants
Torah, which introduces us to what might be called, “the
possible.” In a sense, Torah is a guide to human relationships. It is filled with examples (lessons) of how
people… individuals, families, friends, enemies, strangers… interact. Therein are many role models… the
good, the bad, and the ugly, but a consistent theme is
the element of choice; the idea being if we choose
wisely, things go well, but, if not, they don‘t.
Of course, the wisdom inherent in Torah teachings,
along with those of the sages, is only a start. No teaching can succeed without achieving learning, but learning
by itself is not enough either. The true test for teacher
and student alike is doing or action, i.e., the result of the
teaching and learning. While aging, I have developed
an affinity for aphorisms and one of my favorites is from
Mishle (Proverbs 4:7), “ … with all thy getting get understanding.” Among other interpretations, I take this
to mean that learning without understanding is incomplete.
How many times do we hear, “you can’t teach an old
dog new tricks?” Yet, when learning (and doing) stops,
one might contend so does living. In the midst of “the
storm of the decade” in early December, I saw people
out walking their dogs and how each picked up their
pets’ droppings. It reminded me how many, including
me, made fun of Supervisor Harvey Milk’s ‘pooperscooper law,’ but the joke’s on us because it worked.
In today’s world, where each day brings tidings of unthinkable savagery, people at home and around the
globe suffering from disease and hunger, and a slew of
other atrocities, one might ask if anything were more
inconsequential than dog droppings. I’d be hard
pressed to disagree, except that, quite often, it is those
‘little things’ that unite and, as a result, do make a difference. One guide I use for myself is that, if I do all the
little things well, then the big things will, necessarily, be
subsumed in the effort.
Whether babe or boob, a universal truth applies to
us all. We’ve come a long way! A few moments of
reflection dispel any doubt and permit hindsight
to sharpen our perspective. In welcoming a new
secular year, we are confronted by the challenge of
what’s ahead. As we flip a page on the calendar to
usher in 2015, whether it will be a turning point or
more of the same remains unknown.
I’m not one to make “new year’s resolutions,” since I
fear “resolutions are made to be broken.” Even so, if I
were to make a resolution, it would be to find meaning
and understanding in my learning, to find the wherewithal to translate what I learn into action, to pay more
attention to those little things, and to make better
choices. I know that’s a tall order, but I believe reach
should always exceed grasp. May 2015 be a year for you
to treasure, one in which happiness, health, and peace
adorn many blessings.
In our community, we have a unique reference,
igoR Rogi
WHAT’S AHEAD?
9
What If …?
THE JEWISH ETHICIST
“Is it okay to light Shabbat candles
after dark on Friday? My son and
daughter-in-law often have guests
for Shabbat dinner on Friday
nights, and even when they don’t,
they still have a Shabbat dinner
with their children. But my
daughter-in-law doesn’t light candles until they are ready to sit
down at the table. I think it’s
wrong. My mother never would
strike a match after sundown and
neither do I. Am I old fashioned or
am I right?”
ing wood on Shabbat, and he didn’t
even start the fire yet! Kindling a
flame on Shabbat is called an Av
Melakha, an entire category of
work prohibited on the Shabbat.
On the other hand, the candles at a
Shabbat table have come to symbolize the sanctity of that special
day, not a means of light or heat as
it was when the prohibition was
enacted. Our movement’s Law
Committee clearly opposes lighting
candles once Shabbat begins. But
many rabbis, myself included, have
been to homes of people who celebrate Shabbat every week, who invite guests to participate, and who
insist that their children are
schooled in this practice as well.
And in most of those homes we see
people light the candles when they
are about to dine, whether it is long
before sunset as in summer, or
much after the sun has set in winter. And I am sure that my colleagues, like me, are impressed
with their commitment to observing Judaism in a positive and inspiring way, and I have never criticized them.
At Ner Tamid, when sunset takes
place before we begin Kabbalat
Shabbat, the Service that ushers in
the weekly period of rest and harmony, we stop lighting candles before Services. But I do not condemn nor criticize what people do
at home. In fact, I’m thrilled that
they have a Shabbat at home and
that they do it in a meaningful
manner. Which brings me to a second point – your relationship with
your daughter-in-law. I trust that
In any case, your question deserves
you not only keep in mind that the
a direct answer, and so I will atdecisions about Jewish practice in
tempt one. No, you’re not being
their home, like all decisions in
“old fashioned” by being very untheir home, are their decisions and
comfortable seeing a match struck
not yours. I’m sure that there are
after sundown on Friday. The prothings your parents did that you
hibition is a biblical one, and the
have changed because you found a
Torah itself recounts the story of a
more meaningful and relevant way
man who was executed for gatherto live Jewishly for yourself. Your
The Jewish Ethicist answers: This
is a very difficult question because
it is about lots more than the kindling a flame once Shabbat has begun. It really deals with balancing
Tradition and Change, which became the watchword of Conservative Judaism when Rabbi Mordecai
Waxman compiled a book of decisions made by the Conservative
Movement.
10
son and his wife have the right to
do the same. It is not enough
merely to refrain from criticizing
your daughter-in-law. You must
also compliment her for making
Judaism so sacred in the home
where your son and grandchildren
live. You are among the more fortunate parents – let her know it. 
JEWISH MORALITY
In Judaism, the realm of morality is not
restricted to deed but rather includes
man’s inner world of consciousness:
thoughts, emotions, intentions, attitudes,
motives. All are to a degree subject to
man’s control and qualify for moral
judgment. Thus the Bible warns against
coveting (Exodus 20:14; Deuteronomy
5:18), against hating one’s brother
(Leviticus 19:17), against “hardening
one’s heart” (Deuteronomy 15:9,10),
while the rabbis inveighed against envy,
desire, and anger (Mishnah Avot 2:11)
and noted that “thinking about transgression may be worse than transgression itself” (Babylonian Talmud,
Yoma29a).
Biblical sensitivity to the harm as well
as the good that could be done by
speech was unprecedented: “Death and
life are in the power of the tongue”
(Proverbs 18:2 1). Man must be careful
not to lie, curse or slander (Leviticus
19:11,14,16), nor to receive a false report or speak evil (Exodus 23: 1, Deuteronomy 19:16-18). The rabbis also
condemned the use of flattery, hypocrisy, and obscene speech and urged the
practice of clean, pleasant, and nonabusive language. In terms of the good
that could be achieved by speech, the
rabbis encouraged proper greetings to
all, the need to cheer people with good
humor, rebuke properly, and comfort
with words in times of bereavement
(Babylonian Talmud, Bava Batra,
Ta‘anit. 22a). The halakhah [Jewish
law] endowed the spoken word with
legal force and in the area of vows and
oaths applied the biblical teaching: “He
shall not breach his word, he should do
according to all that proceeds from his
mouth” (Numbers 30:3).
Todah Rabbah
For your donations…from a Grateful Congregation
[The following donations were received between November 1, 2014 and December 24, 2014]
Constance Marvin
Sheila Gropper Nelson
Dr. Leslie Preger
Mark Rand
Aliyot
Charles Drucker
Theodore Reich
Jacob Rosenstein
Paul & Loretta Ruby
Samuel & Jeanne Sonnenblick Jeanne Sassoon
Sue Scheiter
Galina Shekhtman
Birthday
Herschel & Joan Solomon
Barbara Davis
Barbara Krause
Samuel & Jeanne Sonnenblick
Judith Udall
Mini Fox
Bella & Henry Slamovich
Raymond Weisberg
Holly & Al Wong
Rabbi Moshe Levin
Barbara Krause
General Donation
Joseph Artillaga
Discover Shabbat Dinner
Barbara Krause
Sponsors
In memory of father, Alfred
Doreen Martinez
Lyon
Toby Sherwood
Martin T. Lyon
Get Well Soon
End of Year Donations
Rose Goldkind
Lorna Altshuler
Sue Scheiter
Joseph Anmuth
Leon Levy
Norman and Terezie Bohrer
Susie Julius
Margot Braun
Ernie Rosenthal
Paul & Alica Breder
Rudy Rosenthal
Floyd & Sarah Butler
Inge Schaffer
Sarah Davis
Trude Meyer
Leo & Regina Deutsch
Sue Scheiter
Madelaine Eaton
Joseph Ehrman III
In Honor Of
Ann Eliaser
Beverlee Hassid
Arlene Finn
Toby Sherwood
Minyannaires Torah Study
Melvin Flyer
Group
Heinz Frankenstein
Charles Drucker
Susie Julius
Beverlee Hassid
Kiddush “Kitty”
Victor & Lorraine Honig
Susie Julius
Quentin & Mara Kopp
Sue Scheiter
Barbara Krause
Miryam Raphael & Leon Levy
Kiddush Sponsors
Pablo & Irena Libedinsky
In memory of grandparents,
Melvin & Bettie Lichtman
Anna & Nathan Levenson and
Byron Lippman
Esther & Morris Belloff
Jerome Manning
Toby Sherwood
Treva Jo Marcus
Rabbi’s Discretionary Fund
Otto & Idell Weiss
In Memory Of
Pola Ash
Mervin Ash
Karl Blick
Steven & Patricia Blick
Morris Bloom
Carole Krug
Norman W. Brodsky
Cheryl Coco
Simon Charlip
Muriel & Clyde Fox
Cedric Lamar Coco
Cheryl Coco
Eva Ruth Cooper
Donna Cooper
Miriam Daniel
Colman Daniel
Max Drucker
Charles Drucker
Rebecca Fox
Bella & Henry Slamovich
Martha Frankenstein
Heinz Frankenstein
Sidney Gevertz
May Gevertz
Sam Godes
Harold & Rosalie Gevertz
Abe Goldkind
David Goldkind & Rebecca
Robinson
Al Goorin
Sarah Davis and Family
Fran & Herb Kurlan and Family
Gregory Grossman
Moses Grossman
Valerie D. Harvey
Cheryl Coco
Joseph Hassid
Reine Hassid
Rudy & Michele Hassid
Abraham Katz
Arlene Finn
Ann & Jim Meisner
Sophia Lambert
Tom & Sally Lagerquist
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Claire Leeb
Bruce Leeb & Rona Eagle
David Levy
Leon Levy
Susi Lewinski
Susie Julius
Salomon Machbitz
Oscar & Huguette Machbitz
Dori Faith Morris
Thelma J. Morris
Cheryl Coco
Benoit Nahon
Dany Gerard
Oscar & Huguette Machbitz
Bernhard Namm
Hilda Namm
Paula Reich
Susie Julius
Sabina Reich
Theodore Reich
Irwin Sheldon Rose
Aaron Rose
Julius Scheiter
Sue Scheiter
Curtis Cedric Seigle
Richard Elwood Seigle
Cheryl Coco
Leonid Shekhtman
Michael Shekhtman
Galina Shekhtman
Norman Shelub
Mira Shelub
Sheila Spindel
Howard Spindel
Jack Strichard
Jonah & Roni Miller
Rose Tauber
Cynthia Tauber
Norman Tauber
Ivy Zielin
Monty Zielin
Vivien Zielin
Yakov Zheleznyak
Marina Israel Yan
Lina Zheleznyak
Co-Presidents
Beverlee Hassid
Gerald Spindel
Vice Presidents
Treasurer
Warren Hirsch
Secretary
Nina Zentner
Immediate Past President
Gerald Spindel
Board of Directors
Ilse Arons
Al Bernzweig
Michael Bernzweig
Moshe Blum
Dina Cefalu
John Dean
Helen Dunavetsky
Shirley Edelson
Susan Julius
Leon Levy
Mark Shelub
Henry Slamovich
Aaron Straus
Past Presidents
Charlotte Hyman
Pablo Libedinsky
Ira Poretsky
Ner Tamid
Phone (415) 661-3383
1250 Quintara Street
San Francisco CA 94116
We’re a 1st class Congregation
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