OrH Newsletter

Weekly Newsletter

12 November 2019

OrH Hanukkah Party Date Change

We wanted to alert you to an important change of date: the annual OrH community Hanukkah party will now take place on Sunday evening, December 22. Stay tuned for more details. 

Installation of Rabbi Mikelberg

As this coming weekend is Fall Fair at Unitarians, we will not be holding a Shabbat service. Some members may be interested in attending the formal installation of Temple Israel’s new Rabbi Daniel Mikelberg at Temple’s shabbat morning service on Saturday, November 16 at 10:15am. More information is available here.

CAMP HAVAYA – The Reconstructionist movement’s awesome summer camp in the Poconos
 
If you are considering a sleep-away summer camp for the first time, put CAMP HAVAYA at the top of your list. Both of my children thrived there and loved it, asking to go back the second they got home each summer. It’s an easy drive from here (I’ve done it, and so have a few of our member households – they’ll tell you, too!). Take a look at the short video on the camp web site, and talk to me about the summers I spent as a visiting Rabbi, back in the camp’s early days - one three-week session and 36 kids in a rented facility - through to the current thriving summer-long adventure with 1, 2, 3, and 7 week options, as well as a family camp session.
 
The immersive, inclusive, joyful Jewish experience of a summer at CAMP HAVAYA can’t be matched. I’m a believer – check it out!
 
Rabbi Liz
 
Registration is now open for Summer 2020: https://camphavaya.org/

Upcoming Services and Events

Bar Mitzvah/Shabbat Morning Torah Service
Saturday, November 23, 2019
9:45- 12:15, Worship Hall

Chanting and Chocolate
Sunday, December 1, 2019
7:30pm - 9:00, Room 5

Guf Va'Nefesh: Mind-Body-Spirit Integration Class
Wednesday, December 4, 2019
7:30 - 9:00pm, Room 5

Reconstructionist News

Reconstructing Judaism will be participating in the Global Day of Jewish Learning on Sunday, November 17, 2019 at 1:00 p.m. EST with a talk by Rabbi David A. Teutsch, Ph.D. on “Feedback that Works: The Art of Tochecha.” If you are unable to join us in PA, please join us (maybe by even hosting a live watch party at your location) by using this link: https://www.theglobalday.org/teutsch19. 

Find more information about The Global Day of Jewish Learning and Reconstructing Judaism’s participation at https://www.reconstructingjudaism.org/2019-global-day-jewish-learning. If you have any questions about the day of the event, please reach out to Jackie Land, Associate Director for Thriving Communities at JLand@ReconstructingJudaism.org.

The latest issue of Reconstructionism Today can be found at: tinyurl.com/yyuz9qop . The archive of back issues is available at: https://www.reconstructingjudaism.org/article/newsletter-archive

Learn to Read Hebrew in Two Weeks. Tamar Kamionkowski, professor of Bible at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, is offering a FREE online Hebrew course: you will learn how to pronounce every Hebrew letter and vowel. By the end of the course you will be reading from the prayer book and the Bible in Hebrew! Devote 10 minutes three days a week and you'll be able to sound out any Hebrew word in two weeks. Visit https://kamionkowski-bet-midrash.teachable.com/p/the-hebrew-alphabet-and-how-to-read

In The Ottawa Community
* = New item this week
 
Community Events and Announcements
    
Expanding the Circle: A program for interfaith families at the Soloway JCC. Join us for a series of discussions, hands-on workshops on holiday traditions, and social events. Explore ways that your family can be part of the Jewish community, puzzle over how the different traditions in your family co-exist, and share experiences with other families. Sunday, November 24, 4-5:30. Free. Babysitting available. For more ino contact Maxine Mirska at 613-798-9818 ext 263 or mmiska@jccottawa.com

“From Dachau to Cyprus”: Jewish Refugees and the Cyprus Internment Camps, 1946-1949. Photo exhibit and talk with historian Dr. Eliana Hadjisavvas; Special guest and Holocaust survivor, Rose Lipszyc will share her story. Wednesday, November 27 at 7pm, Soloway JCC, Social Hall A, 21 Nadolny Sachs Pvt. RSVP appreciated to Anne Read at aread@jewishottawa.com, or call 613-798-4696, ext. 355

Jewish Refugees from Arab Lands. November 25, 7 - 9 pm. Two women writers explain the journey of Sephardic women exiled from North Africa. Nina Lichtenstein: author of Sephardic Women’s Voices Out of North Africa, PhD in French literature, and Chochana Boukhobza: author of "For the Love of the Father", filmaker of "Terezin the Nazi Sham." Sponsor: Sephardi Association of Ottawa, Jewish Federation of Ottawa, SJCC. info@sephardiottawa.ca for updates of the event or viviane_ohana@hotmail.com. Soloway JCC, 21 Nadolny Sachs Pvt.

Na'amat Canada Soup Extravaganza. November 27, 7 - 9 pm. Featuring 5 different soups crafted by Jackie Sitwell. Sip and slurp these delicious soups while listening to our guest speaker Aviva Rotenberg, founder and administrator of Ottawa Kosher Jewish Foodies. She will discuss “The role of food in bringing the Jewish community together.” Funds raised support Na’amat projects helping women, children and families in Israel and Canada. Snacks and refreshments will also be served. Cost $30. Location to be confirmed, Centrepointe. Contact Marilyn at marilyn_sch1970@yahoo.ca

Community Opportunities

Hiring a Director of Jewish Campus Life: Hillel Ottawa is looking for a creative professional with strong organizational, interpersonal, programming, and communications skills to serve as the Director of Jewish Campus Life. The successful candidate will have a strong Jewish and Israel background, be a self-starter and capable multi-tasker who can engage students and drive Hillel Ottawa’s mission forward. More info at jewishottawa.com/careers/hillel-ottawa-director-of-jewish-campus-life-1572018281

Get Involved! Opportunities for Community Involvement
Are you looking to get involved with OrH activities? We are always in need of helping hands with event planning and other activities. All are welcome, including High Schoolers who are looking for community volunteer opportunities. Please contact info@orh.ca or visit the OrH home page (look for the Get Involved! banner). 

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.

Potluck Protocol
Our community’s long time practice is to welcome egg, dairy and fish on the potluck table. Please label your meal contributions with all ingredients to help people with food allergies or sensitivities; also advise kitchen staff whether dish is to be served hot or cold.

Wearing of Scented Products
Out of concern for our fellow members and guests who have chemical sensitivities, and out of respect for the commitment of the First Unitarian Congregation to ensure that the space we share be fragrance-free, the Board respectfully requests that OrH members and visitors refrain as much as possible from wearing scented products, such as perfume, cologne, and hair or body sprays, at OrH services, events and activities. We appreciate your attention to this issue and for supporting our commitment to be an inclusive and welcoming community.

We Are Listening
How do you feel things are going in our community? Do you have ideas about programs or events that we should pursue? What aspects of Or Haneshamah do you feel are working well, and what do you think can be improved?  In the interest of making OrH the best community that it can be, the board and rabbi invite you to submit comments and feedback at any time. Please send your thoughts to feedback@orh.ca or directly to any member of the board (email addresses below).

Board of Directors
​​​​​​​
November Board Chair: Timna,  member.at.large-timna@orh.ca

Treasurer: Ari, treasurer@orh.ca
Communications: David, communications@orh.ca
Membership: Barbara, membership@orh.ca
Member-at-Large: Sharon, member-at-large.sharon@orh.ca
 Member-at-Large: Timna, member.at.large-timna@orh.ca

Rabbi Elizabeth Bolton: rabbi@orh.ca
Members are welcome to contact Rabbi Liz, 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.