OrH Newsletter

Biweekly Newsletter

16 August 2022

Loud and Proud

Friends, that static excitement in the air is the promise of good things to come. Pride - and Pride Shabbat - is around the corner. The High Holy Days are also within sight, and we are happily preparing (please don’t forget to renew your membership so that you can join our services in all their glory). There will be music, there will be reflection, and there will be celebration. Speaking of which, we are short on volunteers to leyn during the HHD, so please be in touch below if you’d like to contribute. You can also help us with ushering and general prep, which is a wonderful way to meet other members. Drop us a line if this interests you. Meanwhile, we are busily processing membership renewals. If you attended our AGM, you know that our synagogue is mighty, but it is also quite small. Membership fees are the only way we can offer programming, so please renew soon. And lastly, OrH is expanding our programming for children and youth. Details below. Happy reading!

Membership Renewal
 
It’s time for renewal, spiritually and otherwise! Recently, you may have received an email inviting you to renew your membership to Or Haneshamah. Renewal is fast and simple to complete (and you’ll be helping us continue with our excellent programming - just a small bonus). This year will be especially exciting, as we continue to expand in-person programming and diversify some of our event offerings. Picnics, Kabbalat Shabbat, Sukkot, the High Holy Days… We are thrilled to connect with you all again.
 
A reminder that Rosh Hashanah starts the evening of September 25th this year. You must be renewed as a full or student member or registered as a visitor or guest (for associate members and non-members) before then, in order to attend services / receive Zoom links.
 
While we include a suggested rate as part of your renewal, you can opt to contribute more than the standard amount. This system allows us to give rate reductions to those in need. As we are still a small congregation, these top-ups are immensely helpful, and help us remain flexible for members of all income levels. 
 
If you are not currently a member, consider joining our vibrant and inclusive community! We offer services, celebrations, talks and activities all year round. When you become a member, you help us expand our offerings, and you support our ongoing work. (And, if we may say, this coming year will be fantastic.)
 
Every member matters - we thank you for your incredible support.
If you have any difficulty with your renewal, please don’t hesitate to contact membership@orh.ca and we will sort it out as quickly as possible.

High Holy Days - Leyners Needed

Calling all leyners for the High Holidays! Would you like to chant a few verses of Torah during Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur? At our multi-access services you can fulfill this mitzvah in person or on Zoom. To volunteer or ask questions: rituals@orh.ca

Machaneh Shabbat Resumes 

Looking for a Jewish Family Education program geared for your school age kid(s)? You’ve found it! Shabbat Mornings, Morah Jenny helps your family dive into the world of Torah, Jewish values, Holidays and our Shabbat Prayers, all with the games and fun you usually associate with a summer camp. Learn more here.

Teddy Bear Shabbat

Join us on the second Friday of every month at 5:30pm (starting Sept. 9th) where the sensational Rabbi Deborah Zuker will lead families in Shabbat songs, storytime and family kiddish! We are thrilled to offer this fun and inclusive option to our Shabbat roster, and may we just say, you had us at kiddish.

Ottawa’s Junior Youth Group

Morah Jenny (of Machaneh Shabbat and BMG fame) is now Ottawa’s Junior Youth Group Coordinator. This is programming geared at preteens (grades 5-8), full of board game nights, watch parties, Dungeons & Dragons and Pride Club - all with a Jewish twist. Stay tuned for dates and details of upcoming awesomeness. This is a joint endeavor between Temple Israel and Or Haneshamah. Contact jyg@templeisraelottawa.com for more information.

Ruach Music Circle

OrH is starting up a new music circle! This will be a weekly opportunity to sing a wide variety of liturgical music in a relaxed setting. We will learn new melodies, practice old tunes, and strengthen our harmonizing muscles. Musical instruments are welcome. Ability to read music or Hebrew is not required. Please see the events listing below for details.

Upcoming Services and Events

Ruach Music Circle
Every Tuesday from 7:00 - 8:30pm
Room 5 at 30 Cleary (vaxxed, masked and with a Hepa air filter); or if the weather is good, outside.

Pride Shabbat
Saturday, August 27th, 10:30am - 1:00pm
McNabb Park
Come out to Pride Shabbat on Ottawa Pride Weekend! Join Rabbi Liz and special musical guests for a lively outdoor, song-filled Shabbat celebration, followed by a picnic. Bring your yummy things, lawn chairs or blankets, and a friend or two! Let folks know that OrH is a place where Love is Love, and all genders and gender expressions are welcome.

Pride Parade - OrH Marching!
Sunday, August 28th 
Contact Caroline at manyhands@orh.ca if you would like to join in carrying our banner. We’ll meet near the First Unitarian contingent, details TBA. Please click HERE for further information and for any updates.

Shabbat Morning Torah Service
Saturday, September 10th, 10:00am - noon
In-Person and Zoom

Saturday night Selichot program
Saturday, September 17, 8:00pm - 9:00pm
Details TBA

Reconstructionist News and Events

Read this beautiful poem, the Alchemy of Blessing.

Read this d’var Torah: ‘ Our Sustaining Hope ’
On this Shabbat Nahamu/Shabbat of Comfort, Rabbi Lewis Eron writes: “We do not have the insight to foresee the final resolution of the many complicated issues that confound the relationship between Israel and the Palestinians. We can, however, pray with the words of the Psalmist that our prophet’s vision of a Jerusalem prosperous, secure and at peace will someday be realized.”

Listen: ‘ Rethinking Circumcision, Part 1 ’
In the first of a two-part series examining circumcision, two critics of the practice — best-selling novelist and memoirist Gary Shteyngart and Max Buckler, author of the Evolve essay, “Be Honest About the Bris” — discuss circumcision from the perspective of morality, Jewish tradition, medicine gender norms, and the rights of parents and children.

Read: ‘ Miriam’s Well Healing Ritual ’
This Havdalah ceremony, based on an ancient minhag (custom) of going to a natural spring or well after Shabbat, and drawing and drinking water, was created by Martha Hurwitz and Rabbi Janet Madden.

Watch: ‘ God Through Our Hands/Hiddur Mitzvah ’
This panel focuses on how creative works — the works of art, drama, music, and the like — can be called forth to meet our experiences of God/divinity/holiness.

Community Events and Announcements
* Indicates new this week

*Reparations & Indigenous Land Back Teshuvah
Healing Visions for 5783
This is a three-week mini-series facilitated by Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb in the year of her rabbinic jubilee. We will meet September 5, 12, and 19 from 4:30 pm to 5:45 pm PDT (7:30 pm to 8:45 pm EDT)
Register here.

Donations to OrH

Donations are a significant part of the funding for activities and rabbinic support in our community. You can direct your contribution to different areas of Or Haneshamah’s activity, including: general donations to fund programming, rabbinic leadership, donations in honor or in memory of a person or event, or dedication of ritual objects. We also welcome donations to the Gita (Tova) & Zvi Taub Memorial Fund, the Rabbi's Discretionary Fund, the Or Haneshamah Endowment Fund. Federal employees or retirees can also give to OrH through the Annual Government of Canada Workplace Charitable Campaign. Information on all these programs and how to give can be found at this link, or by clicking on the "Donate" tab on the main menu of the OrH website.

Board of Directors

Chair: Carolyn, president@orh.ca 
Treasurer: Ben, treasurer@orh.ca
Secretary: Nicola, secretary@orh.ca
Communications: Andrea, communications@orh.ca
Membership: Myrna, membership@orh.ca
Many Hands Coordinator: Caroline, caroline@orh.ca


Rabbi Elizabeth Bolton: rabbi@orh.ca
OrH Members are welcome to contact Rabbi Liz, the Hesed team (hesed@orh.ca),
or any member of the board, regarding pastoral needs.

Or Haneshamah
30 Cleary Ave., Ottawa, ON, K2A 4A1
613-239-4988
www.orh.ca
info@orh.ca

** Disclaimer Regarding Community Event Postings **

Or Haneshamah frequently receives requests to post notices of upcoming events in the community at-large.  These events run the range from cultural, educational, and in some cases explorations of topical political issues.  In the interest of providing information to our congregation about the diversity of interesting events in the Ottawa community we will post notices of these events in our regular newsletter.

We recognize also that from time to time we are requested to post notices of events which are highly controversial in nature and reflect a wide range of opinions among our congregation on particular issues.  We are, however, of the opinion that it is appropriate for us to post events taking place in the community which may challenge us, which may cause discomfort, and which may cause us to reflect on some of our beliefs.  Our openness to post notices for a wide range of community events, however, does not mean that we have abdicated our responsibility to show discernment and to distinguish between those events which demonstrate an open-minded and thoughtful approach to specific issues and those which do not appear to reflect such values.  So, we will make judgments about what notices we believe are appropriate to post and those which we believe will not contribute to a thoughtful and balanced exploration of ideas and issues.

Will we make mistakes along the way?  Probably.  But the possibility of errors of judgment does not mean that we can excuse ourselves from the responsibility to show judgment in posting notices about events in the community and we promise to do so with openness tempered by a sense of responsibility.

In agreeing to post any notice of an event in the community, Or Haneshamah does not endorse, support or promote any perspectives, positions or ideas expressed in the events which are posted in our newsletter.