Friday, April 23, 12-1

We began last Friday’s discussion of Dancing in God’s Earthquake with a reconsideration of Arthur Waskow’s idealistic promotion of ”rendering unto God what is God’s” at the expense of its often devastating consequences.  Tom Plaut reminded us that speaking out against the government in light of our religious conscience led to massacres in Latin America.  We then turned our attention to the concluding pages of Chapter 7 and Waskow’s thoughts on the need to honor diversity (we are all different parts of a jigsaw puzzle).  Our discussion included a consideration of the Jewish prayer that’s to be recited when we encounter someone who is different (meshanah habriot).

Moving on to Chapter 8, we struggled a bit to make sense of Waskow’s reflections on various pairs of siblings who are in conflict throughout the Book of Genesis.  Waskow points out that, for several generations, the traditional laws of primogeniture (which privilege the older child over the younger) were abrogated, apparently with God’s approval despite the conflict this engenders.  Waskow presents those who sulk about this as being immature; he favors those who ”speak truth to power,” who wrestle with God (”If we fail to wrestle with God [i.e., find mature ways of working out our differences, and suppress our will to dominate], we will murder our brother”).  Jacob, who purportedly did wrestle with God and became known as Israel/God-wrestler, becomes the poster boy in Waskow’s argument.  He is later held up as an example of restorative justice in his reconciliation with Esau, the brother whose birthright he stole.  Some participants took issue with the interpretations Waskow brings to the biblical texts when he makes his case for reconciliation as a means of liberation.  Waskow’s seeming dismissiveness of other readings and interpretations (Are Cain’s motivations as clear as Waskow presents them? Are there other ways of interpreting Jacob’s meeting with Esau?)

When we meet this Friday, we’ll address some of the above questions and then move on to Chapter 9 ”The Sin of Economic Justice” (pp. 141-154); if time permits, which is unlikely, we’ll also get a start on Chapter 10.  

Our informal discussion group is held online every Friday from 12-1.  All are welcome to join us, regardless of their level of expertise or attendance at previous noon study group discussions.  Dancing in God’s Earthquake can be ordered through a variety of internet outlets.  If you have questions, or would like the Zoom link, please contact Jay Jacoby at  jbjacoby@uncc.edu.

With services unavoidably cancelled, the Ritual Committee is working hard to find ways we can support each other as a community when we can’t be together in person. It’s very distressing to be unable to say Kaddish for a loved one, or to contemplate not sharing a Seder meal with friends and family. We’d like to share with you some plans we have for filling these gaps in our lives.

Please join us for Kabbalat Shabbat services via Zoom.  As long as at least 10 adults log in, we’ll be able to say Kaddish, so please consider attending, even if you’re not a Friday night regular.

You can join the service by going to Our Virtual Community here, then scroll down and click on the blue Kabbalat Shabbat Service button.

If you’d like to borrow a siddur for use at home while services are cancelled, we’ll be happy to lend you one!  Please contact the office for details.

Join Justin Goldstein for an hour of Torah study and discussion of the week’s Torah portion.

All are welcome, link to join the Zoom meeting here.

Just as healthy foods nourish us through the blood stream, so Jewish meditation nourishes our “soul stream.” Meditation can be transformative, taking us from the intellectual awareness of ourselves to a deeper spiritual practice that links us to Judaism in the most profound way. Each mitzvah, holy day and cycle of life has its own rhythm, nuance, taste and character. Jewish meditation is a practice of infusing their essence into our daily spiritual lives.

Ready to give it a try? Join us via Zoom (every Sunday from 2:30pm – 4pm. No previous meditation experience necessary.  This opportunity is free and open to all. Please contact Linda Wolf at linda@networktype.com for the online meeting information.

Torah on Tap will now take place at the CBI firepit when weather permits.

When weather permits, we’re now meeting outside at the CBI firepit, with masks and social distancing.  If inclement weather forces us to cancel an outdoor meeting, we’ll meet on Zoom instead (instructions and details for online meetings below).

With so much of CBI’s programming unavoidably cancelled, we’re working hard to find ways we can support each other as a community when we can’t be together in person. Please join me this Sunday, April 26, at 4:00pm, when we will be holding Torah on Tap. A link to the online discussion group is below.  Zoom is easy to use and will let us see and hear each other as we speak.  If you haven’t already downloaded Zoom to your computer or phone, you must do so before joining the meeting on Sunday at 4:00pm.  You only need to download Zoom once, after that you simply log in, always using the same Meeting ID: 819 7668 2790.  Easy instructions are below this message. This is a temporary measure to keep us all connected while we can’t be together physically. Alan Silverman Torah on Tap Host Instructions for Downloading Zoom The first time you ever use Zoom on a computer, do the following: Go to https://zoom.us Hover over (don’t click) “RESOURCES” on the top right and then click “Download Zoom Client” from the drop-down menu that appears Click “Download” under “Zoom Client for Meetings” If it asks you to allow it to download “zoom.us”, click “Allow” or “Yes” Open the downloaded file and follow the instructions to install Zoom on your computer The first time you ever use Zoom on a smart phone, do the following: Go to the App Store and find “Zoom Cloud Meetings” and download it (it is free) Instructions for attending Torah on Tap on CBI’s Zoom Account: Right before the start of services, either go to https://zoom.us on your computer or open your Zoom app on your smartphone Click “Join a Meeting” Type in this Meeting ID: 819 7668 2790 and click “Join” If you’re using the computer and Zoom asks you to allow it to open “zoom.us”, click “Allow” or “Yes” or “Open” and then click “Join With Computer Audio” If you’re using a smart phone and Zoom asks you to allow using the microphone/camera, allow it If it says “Waiting for the host to start this meeting”, just wait a few minutes for Alan to start the meeting Join us on the last Sunday of the month online for a refreshing and often provocative discussion. Each month, we take on a new topic – often ripped from the headlines of today’s news. We spend the first 45 minutes wrapping our arms around it, defining it, dissecting and analyzing it from various viewpoints. Then we spend the rest of the time discussing it from Judaism’s point of view. What’s Judaism’s take on universal healthcare? Would Moses walk the streets of Chicago today packing heat? Is it okay to punch a white supremacist? Torah on Tap gives us a chance to learn, vent, share and, most of all, understand what 4,000 years of cultural development, debate and dialogue has to say about some of the issues that confront us today. Torah on Tap is free and open to all. Varying viewpoints are not only welcome, but encouraged. See you there!

Friday, April 23, 12-1

We began last Friday’s discussion of Dancing in God’s Earthquake with a reconsideration of Arthur Waskow’s idealistic promotion of ”rendering unto God what is God’s” at the expense of its often devastating consequences.  Tom Plaut reminded us that speaking out against the government in light of our religious conscience led to massacres in Latin America.  We then turned our attention to the concluding pages of Chapter 7 and Waskow’s thoughts on the need to honor diversity (we are all different parts of a jigsaw puzzle).  Our discussion included a consideration of the Jewish prayer that’s to be recited when we encounter someone who is different (meshanah habriot).

Moving on to Chapter 8, we struggled a bit to make sense of Waskow’s reflections on various pairs of siblings who are in conflict throughout the Book of Genesis.  Waskow points out that, for several generations, the traditional laws of primogeniture (which privilege the older child over the younger) were abrogated, apparently with God’s approval despite the conflict this engenders.  Waskow presents those who sulk about this as being immature; he favors those who ”speak truth to power,” who wrestle with God (”If we fail to wrestle with God [i.e., find mature ways of working out our differences, and suppress our will to dominate], we will murder our brother”).  Jacob, who purportedly did wrestle with God and became known as Israel/God-wrestler, becomes the poster boy in Waskow’s argument.  He is later held up as an example of restorative justice in his reconciliation with Esau, the brother whose birthright he stole.  Some participants took issue with the interpretations Waskow brings to the biblical texts when he makes his case for reconciliation as a means of liberation.  Waskow’s seeming dismissiveness of other readings and interpretations (Are Cain’s motivations as clear as Waskow presents them? Are there other ways of interpreting Jacob’s meeting with Esau?)

When we meet this Friday, we’ll address some of the above questions and then move on to Chapter 9 ”The Sin of Economic Justice” (pp. 141-154); if time permits, which is unlikely, we’ll also get a start on Chapter 10.  

Our informal discussion group is held online every Friday from 12-1.  All are welcome to join us, regardless of their level of expertise or attendance at previous noon study group discussions.  Dancing in God’s Earthquake can be ordered through a variety of internet outlets.  If you have questions, or would like the Zoom link, please contact Jay Jacoby at  jbjacoby@uncc.edu.

Join us for Shabbat morning services via Zoom every other Saturday morning at 10:00am.

Join the service by going to Our Virtual Community here, then scroll down and click on the blue Saturday Morning Service button.