Happy 4th of July! A huge thank you to all our volunteers who helped spread the word about our Temple to the East Bay community at the El Cerrito One World Festival. Thanks to your hard work, we received a lot of inquiries and interest from passersby about joining our community. At the same time, the festival itself was a huge success as everyone who attended was eager to make the celebration one of the largest since Covid. And as we all settle down from our barbecues and fireworks shows, we would like to take a moment to reflect on the impact of American Independence Day on both the American and Jewish communities around the world. July 4th celebrates not so much the approval of the independence of the British colonies from the mother country (which actually happened two days earlier) but of the printing of a declaration outlining the reasons the Founders gave for why independence needed to happen at that time. Never before had a colonial population give written reasons for launching a rebellion against the authority of an empire. This first ever written declaration in the modern era went on to inspire many other independence movements over the years, including the Declaration of the Rights of Man in France and the independence movements in Latin America against the Spanish Empire. Just as importantly, in 1948 the creators of the State of Israel were partly inspired by the United States to publicly issue their own declaration of independence and outline the reasons why Jews around the world needed their own state. As a result, the Jewish people in the State of Israel carried on the tradition set by the Founders of the United States, whose first generation included thousands of Jewish citizens. As members of the Jewish community in the United States, we can take pride in the heritage of our own ancestors in creating the tradition that inspired so many others, including in Israel, to celebrate independence through a written declaration.
In other news, now that we have reached July we have several fun events planned for the summer. Unfortunately, our planned showing of “Room With a View” on July 8 had to be canceled but it will be rescheduled. If you have any questions, email Jane Kemp at jckemp5674@gmail.com. On July 29 at 4:00 p.m. we will host our Movie Night Potluck, with our own Michael Cohen providing background, trivia, and other fun facts about the movie. There will be plenty of snacks and popcorn! Finally, starting on August 19 and continuing through September 4, our own Mercedes Cohen’s play “Faeries of the Moonlight” will be showing at John Hinkel Park in Berkeley every Saturday and Sunday at 4:00 p.m.
Finally, the next Shabbat Service will be held this Friday, July 7 at 7:30 p.m. We hope to see y’all there. Thanks 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 B Stein and David Zimring, Co-Presidents, Temple Beth Hillel
From the Presidents – July 6, 2023
July 6, 2023 by tbhrich •
Happy 4th of July! A huge thank you to all our volunteers who helped spread the word about our Temple to the East Bay community at the El Cerrito One World Festival. Thanks to your hard work, we received a lot of inquiries and interest from passersby about joining our community. At the same time, the festival itself was a huge success as everyone who attended was eager to make the celebration one of the largest since Covid. And as we all settle down from our barbecues and fireworks shows, we would like to take a moment to reflect on the impact of American Independence Day on both the American and Jewish communities around the world. July 4th celebrates not so much the approval of the independence of the British colonies from the mother country (which actually happened two days earlier) but of the printing of a declaration outlining the reasons the Founders gave for why independence needed to happen at that time. Never before had a colonial population give written reasons for launching a rebellion against the authority of an empire. This first ever written declaration in the modern era went on to inspire many other independence movements over the years, including the Declaration of the Rights of Man in France and the independence movements in Latin America against the Spanish Empire. Just as importantly, in 1948 the creators of the State of Israel were partly inspired by the United States to publicly issue their own declaration of independence and outline the reasons why Jews around the world needed their own state. As a result, the Jewish people in the State of Israel carried on the tradition set by the Founders of the United States, whose first generation included thousands of Jewish citizens. As members of the Jewish community in the United States, we can take pride in the heritage of our own ancestors in creating the tradition that inspired so many others, including in Israel, to celebrate independence through a written declaration.
In other news, now that we have reached July we have several fun events planned for the summer. Unfortunately, our planned showing of “Room With a View” on July 8 had to be canceled but it will be rescheduled. If you have any questions, email Jane Kemp at jckemp5674@gmail.com. On July 29 at 4:00 p.m. we will host our Movie Night Potluck, with our own Michael Cohen providing background, trivia, and other fun facts about the movie. There will be plenty of snacks and popcorn! Finally, starting on August 19 and continuing through September 4, our own Mercedes Cohen’s play “Faeries of the Moonlight” will be showing at John Hinkel Park in Berkeley every Saturday and Sunday at 4:00 p.m.
Finally, the next Shabbat Service will be held this Friday, July 7 at 7:30 p.m. We hope to see y’all there. Thanks 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 B Stein and David Zimring, Co-Presidents, Temple Beth Hillel