For daily event updates, check our calendar. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. Download the Shir Hadash App for Apple or Android
WHAT'S HAPPENING AT A GLANCE
Be Sure to Take Note of High Priority Items Marked in Red!
Our staff continues to work from home and the office as necessary. Messages via phone and email will receive a response within 24 hours. If you need any assistance, you may call Marc Fargotstein at 847-612-6579 or contact Office Administrator Karen Burnham at 847-714-6946. The Rabbi is also available on his cell phone 847-525-7746 at any time. For more information about our COVID-19 response plan, click here.
Creative Worship and Ritual -- Upcoming Services
- Update! Register for High Holidays -- Deadline Extended to September 1
- Zoom Shabbat Evening Service, August 21, 7:30 p.m.
- Shabbat Morning Bar Mitzvah Service via Zoom, August 22, 9:30 a.m.
- Drive-In Havdalah at Shir Hadash Parking Lot, August 22, 7:30 p.m.
The Rabbi’s Corner --
Religious Education
- Update! School Registration and Tuition Commitment Forms Online -- School Starts September 13!
- Sunday Morning Adult Ed Programs Continue Online
- Torah and Jewish Philosophy
- Hebrew Reading
- Modern Israel
- Lunch & Learn with the Rabbi, Thursdays
Membership News and Events
- New! Shir Hadash Virtual Town Hall Meeting, August 27
- Membership Renewals Due -- Complete Your Forms Online!
- Thanks for Your Survey Feedback
- Tonight! Book Club, August 20
- Mitzvah Committee: Meal Support for Pearlman Family
- Shir HaNosh TV: Blintzes with Bev Lieberman, September 13
Social Action
- Save the Date! Multi-Part Book Discussion: White Fragility, Thursdays in September
- One Day Only! Bernie's Book Bank Accepting Donations on August 25
- SH Mask Makers Help Sexual Assault Victims
- Provide Necessary School Supplies for Students in Need
Support for Members
- New Date! Food Distribution for Veterans, August 28
Ongoing Fundraisers
- iGive
- Amazon Smile
- SHOP Shir Hadash
High Holidays Schedule and Registration Now Available: Registration Extended to September 1 -- The High Holidays are approaching! Shir Hadash will be holding all of our customary services, this year via Zoom due to COVID-19. Each registered member will receive a unique viewing code. Visit our website for complete information about services and registration. (You will need to log into Shul Cloud to access member information.) Prayerbook order forms are available as well. Please remember that you must be a member in good standing with up-to-date payments in order to register for High Holidays. If you have any questions about High Holiday services, contact the Creative Worship & Ritual Committee at cwr@shir-hadash.org.
Zooming Kabbalat Shabbat – “Reconstructionist Philosophy 201: Seeking God - Jewish Spirituality for the 21st Century" Friday, August 21, 7:30 p.m. -- Shabbat Shoftim -- Don’t miss our annual exploration of Reconstructionist theology - Recon 201. Throughout the course of our worship, Rabbi Eitan will offer explanations on what Reconstructionism teaches about the meaning of prayer and what we mean when we pray to God.” Online Zoom Shabbat service.
Shabbat Morning Bar Mitzvah Service via Zoom, August 22, 9:30 a.m.
Drive-In/Zoom Havdalah, Saturday August 22, 7:30 p.m. -- We will be ending the Shabbat together with a brief Havdalah service in our synagogue parking lot. Please note: in-car attendance is allowed only for those who have registered. Registration is now closed. But if you did not register to come, you can still attend via Zoom.
For those who are attending in person, you will need to stay in your cars - no bathrooms available – and please turn off your cars during the service. Plan to arrive between 7:15 and 7:30 p.m. You will need to wear a mask anytime that your windows are open. If there are weather issues, we will send out an alert as to postponement or cancellation.
August 21-22, 2020 / 2 Elul 5780 / Shabbat Shofteem
Torah: Deuteronomy 16:18 - 21:9 / Haftarah: Isaiah 51:12 - 52:12
“Justice, Justice”
Dear Friends,
In this week’s Torah portion, Moses speaks some of the most famous words in the Torah, “Tzedek, tzedek tirdof - Justice, justice you shall pursue.” Notice how he doesn’t simply say ‘catch the criminals’ and be done with it. He says, ‘pursue justice.’ From this we might begin to understand that seeking justice means more than locking up the bad guys. The word for justice in Hebrew is ‘tzedek’ which has a root meaning as ‘righteousness,’ which is closely related to compassion and understanding.
Our Jewish approach to the law is not a legal system, i.e. following laws as they are written, catching criminals, and lockin’ ‘em up. It is a Justice system, which has at its core the pursuit of righteousness.
Zay a mentsch – Be a good person.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Eitan Weiner-Kaplow
Read past editions of The Rabbi's Corner on the Shir Hadash website here.
Update! Religious School Tuition Forms Are Now Ready -- We are excited to announce the online 2020-2021 Religious School Registration at Shir Hadash is now live! To register for school this year, school parents will need to complete two forms - the Tuition Commitment form and the School Registration form (in addition to your annual Membership Renewal). Follow the links above to get started! Please note that this registration process is for all grades, Kindergarten through 7th Grade, as well as Madrichim, 8th Grade through 12th Grade. As a reminder, Religious School starts on Sunday, September 13, 2020. More details to follow!
Sunday Morning Adult Ed Programs: Online! All members are welcome to participate. Contact the class facilitator, below, for information.
- 10:00 a.m. -- Torah and Jewish Philosophy via ZOOM
- 11:00 a.m. -- Hebrew Reading via WebEx
- 11:15 a.m. -- Modern Israel: Incredible History and Awesome Guests via Zoom. Contact Rabbi Eitan for more information.
Rabbi's Lunch and Learn, Thursdays at 1:00 p.m.-- The Rabbi's Lunch and Learn discussions resume this week. Join an engaging examination of the week's Torah portion via Zoom.
New! Shir Hadash Town Hall Virtual Meeting, August 27 -- Click here to participate via Zoom (password 516516; call in (312) 626-6799) Join Shir Hadash as our leadership team shares some important updates and discusses how we are responding and continuously adjusting to the Covid-19 Pandemic. Key topics include High Holiday Preparations, School Activities, Finances and Building Facilities support. This is an excellent opportunity to hear about what is happening in the synagogue, ask questions, and contribute ideas.
Our panelists will include our President, Rabbi, Education Director, V.P. for Education, V.P. for Creative Worship and Ritual, V.P. Finance and V.P for Building Operations. Congregants are invited to watch and submit questions over the chat function. The Town Hall will be hosted as a Zoom Webinar and only panelists will be seen. A Shir Hadash Members Only Facebook Live Stream is planned as well.
Complete Your Membership Renewal -- We are very happy that so many people have renewed their memberships and signed up for High Holiday services. For those that haven't done so yet, please don't delay! Click this link to renew your membership, or become a new member. If you require a paper registration form, call the office at (847) 498-8218.
Thanks for Your Feedback -- Thanks to everyone who responded to our survey. The results will be very helpful as we continue to plan our fall/winter services and events. For those of you that added comments, please know that they have been seen and "heard".
Tonight! Book Club Meets August 20 -- Our next book club Zoom meeting will be Thursday, August 20 at 7:30 p.m. We will discuss The Weight of Ink, a novel by Rachel Kadish. Click here to join via Zoom.
Mitzvah Committee: Meals for the Pearlman Family -- For the next few weeks, we are supporting the Pearlman family by providing them with tasty home cooked meals. This is a wonderful way to help in a time when Shiva visits can't happen. Cindy Grills has graciously taken charge of coordinating meals and contributions. Please contact her at homes@cindygrills.com to help. Thank you!
Shir HaNosh TV, September 13 – Save the date for our next episode: Shir HaNosh TV: Beautiful Blintzes, Sunday, Sept. 13, 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. Bev Lieberman will demonstrate her family blintz recipe! Blintzes are a perfect part of a Yom Kippur break-the-fast meal. Bev will teach us how to make this classic Ashkenazi dish and will tell us about her family's cooking history. Questions? Contact Melanie at fmandes@comcast.net.
Virtual Bingo Recap - Shir Hadash's very first virtual Bingo event on Sunday was a huge success! Participants of all ages from eight SH families played five games with gift card prizes, followed by more fun. We will definitely do this again. Stay tuned for more virtual events coming up sponsored by our Family Activity Committee. If you'd like to get involved in planning future programs, contact Elliott Simon.
SOCIAL ACTION
Save the Date! Multi-Part Book Discussion: White Fragility – Thursdays in September: As we prepare for the High Holidays, this is a season of personal reflection in the Jewish calendar. In partnership with Or Shalom, we will be engaging in this personal reflection when it comes to race and racism by reading and discussing the book White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DeAngelo.
This in-depth book discussion will have four sessions, all via Zoom: September 3, 10, 17 and 24, at 7:00 p.m. Participants are expected to attend at least three of the four sessions, and preferably all of them. Registration will open soon.
For now – please get a copy of the book and begin reading if you plan to participate! Questions? Contact our Social Action Chair, Lisa Burton Radzely, SocialActionSH@gmail.com.
One Day Only: Bernie's Book Bank Accepting Donations August 25 -- For one day only, Bernie's Book Bank welcomes new and gently-used books for birth through 6th grade reading level, with contactless dropoff from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm on Tuesday, August 25 at 917 N. Shore Drive in Lake Bluff. They do not accept textbooks, dictionaries, activity books, coloring books, reference materials, religious books, or foreign language books.
Our Magnificent Mask Makers Help Sexual Assault Victims -- Maggie Cain and Sue Davis, Shir Hadash's Magnificent Mask Makers, recently made 50 masks for Northwest Center Against Sexual Assault (CASA). Thanks to Maggie and Sue, sexual assault advocates can go to ERs and work in-person with victims. Maggie, Sue and Nancy Kleine Kekst also have made hundreds of masks for cancer patients, and they already are working on face coverings for domestic violence shelters and local schools. A very big thank you to Shir Hadash's Magnificent Mask Makers for spending so many hours creating face coverings and keeping people safe!
SUPPORT FOR MEMBERS
New Date! Free Groceries for Veterans, August 28-- If you are a veteran and need food assistance, Northern Illinois Food Bank will distribute free groceries to veterans on Friday, August 28, 12pm-1:30pm at Midwest Veterans Closet, 2323 Green Bay Road, North Chicago. A volunteer wearing protective gear will place the box and/or bag of groceries in your vehicle. You will not be allowed to exit your car. Food will be distributed on a first-come, first-serve basis, while supplies last.
ONGOING FUNDRAISERS
If you are home and shopping online, be sure to consider these donation programs that support Shir Hadash at no extra cost to you!
iGive -- There are 2500 online retailers helping to make donations happen through iGive. Click here to learn more. or contact Sandi Schleicher, sschleicher@onebox.com.
Amazon Smile -- Amazon will automatically donate 0.5% of your purchase to when you sign up at smile.amazon.com. Be sure to select "Shir Hadash Reconstructionist Synagogue-Congregation Shir Hadash" in Wheeling as your charity of choice.
Shop with Scrip -- ShopWithScrip gift cards are available for more than 750+ brands and each purchase provides a donation to Shir Hadash. Click here for complete details!
To view past editions of the Newsletter, please visit our website.
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