We hope everyone had a wonderful weekend celebrating Father’s Day! Like Mother’s Day before it, this is a day specifically set aside for those wonderful parents even though we should be celebrating their contributions and exploits every day! And just like Mother’s Day, the themes of Father’s Day echo throughout Judaism and the Torah. From the first father Adam through the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to the kings of ancient Israel, all the way to the modern era, the perplexities of achievements of fatherhood are given much attention in Jewish custom. And as shown many times in the Tanach, though fathers are not perfect and can mess up many times throughout their lives, they still provide a critical role in forging the bonds that keep families and communities together. The joke is that Mother’s Day is one day and Father’s Day is one day but everyday is children’s day. In reality, we can and should celebrate our amazing mothers and fathers every hour for all the hard work they do for all of us.
As we look ahead to the summer, the Rabbi Search Committee continues in its efforts to search for a new rabbi for next year. We will start submitting announcements and accepting job applications later this summer, with interviews scheduled for the fall. The Board now plans to have a new rabbi selected by the spring of 2025, just before Rabbi Dean’s retirement. We will provide more updates as we start to hear from our candidates.
Also, next month Temple Beth Hillel will be hosting a booth at the El Cerrito 4th of July festival on Tuesday, July 4. Larry has a sign up sheet for those who would like to volunteer their time to help spread the word about our congregation. Please email me or Larry if you would like to help out. It is always a wonderful time to contribute our efforts to promote TBH and get to know more people in the community. And please mark your calendars for Sunday, August 4, when the Oakland A’s will be hosting their final Jewish Heritage Night (and playing the Dodgers, which is a great bonus!). Please email Larry or Brandy to reserve your tickets. The cost is $36/ticket.
Finally, our next regular Shabbat Service will take place this Friday, June 21, at 7:30 p.m. Family shabbats have completed for the year but will resume in September. Torah Study will take place Saturdays at 10:15 a.m. on Zoom. And of course, although Religious School is completed for the year, we encourage everyone to come to our wonderful Tefillah services once the kids come back for their classes in August. Thank you everyone!
If I am not for myself, who will be for me?
If I am not for others, what am I?
And if not now, when? -Rabbi Hillel
~ Anna and David, Co-Presidents, Temple Beth Hillel
From the Presidents – June 22, 2024
June 22, 2024 by tbhrich • president
Shalom Everyone!
We hope everyone had a wonderful weekend celebrating Father’s Day! Like Mother’s Day before it, this is a day specifically set aside for those wonderful parents even though we should be celebrating their contributions and exploits every day! And just like Mother’s Day, the themes of Father’s Day echo throughout Judaism and the Torah. From the first father Adam through the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to the kings of ancient Israel, all the way to the modern era, the perplexities of achievements of fatherhood are given much attention in Jewish custom. And as shown many times in the Tanach, though fathers are not perfect and can mess up many times throughout their lives, they still provide a critical role in forging the bonds that keep families and communities together. The joke is that Mother’s Day is one day and Father’s Day is one day but everyday is children’s day. In reality, we can and should celebrate our amazing mothers and fathers every hour for all the hard work they do for all of us.
As we look ahead to the summer, the Rabbi Search Committee continues in its efforts to search for a new rabbi for next year. We will start submitting announcements and accepting job applications later this summer, with interviews scheduled for the fall. The Board now plans to have a new rabbi selected by the spring of 2025, just before Rabbi Dean’s retirement. We will provide more updates as we start to hear from our candidates.
Also, next month Temple Beth Hillel will be hosting a booth at the El Cerrito 4th of July festival on Tuesday, July 4. Larry has a sign up sheet for those who would like to volunteer their time to help spread the word about our congregation. Please email me or Larry if you would like to help out. It is always a wonderful time to contribute our efforts to promote TBH and get to know more people in the community. And please mark your calendars for Sunday, August 4, when the Oakland A’s will be hosting their final Jewish Heritage Night (and playing the Dodgers, which is a great bonus!). Please email Larry or Brandy to reserve your tickets. The cost is $36/ticket.
Finally, our next regular Shabbat Service will take place this Friday, June 21, at 7:30 p.m. Family shabbats have completed for the year but will resume in September. Torah Study will take place Saturdays at 10:15 a.m. on Zoom. And of course, although Religious School is completed for the year, we encourage everyone to come to our wonderful Tefillah services once the kids come back for their classes in August. Thank you everyone!
If I am not for myself, who will be for me?
If I am not for others, what am I?
And if not now, when? -Rabbi Hillel
~ Anna and David, Co-Presidents, Temple Beth Hillel