Temple Beth El Blog

“Mentoring is so much fun—I look forward to it each week.”
“Math mentoring is my best volunteer experience ever!”
“Emerson School is full of positive energy from the kids.”

If you can spare an hour each week during the school day, you can make a positive difference in a child’s education.

Seven years ago, Jewish Congregations for Social Justice “adopted” Emerson School on Madison’s east side, and we have been supporting their academics and family programming ever since.

We would love to have you join us for the 2019–20 school year. We are currently recruiting for adults who want to work with elementary-age children on reading and math skills:

• Reading mentors work with beginning readers. Your job is to help children build skills and discover the joy of reading.
• Math mentors work with children on basic math concepts and lessons. You don’t have to be a math whiz—many kids need support with very basic math facts and strategies that most adults are comfortable with.

For both kinds of mentors, the teachers will provide instructions and materials, and the school will provide training.

Pairing will begin in October. You need to be able to commit to an hour each week, usually at the same day and time, at the school (2421 E. Johnson St.). You suggest some available times, and the school will try to find a match that will work for you.

Emerson is a great community school with a dynamic principal and devoted staff. The student body is diverse in race, income, and English language ability. The school has shown better-than-average growth in the students’ literacy and math skills over the last few years, and we like to think that our mentors have played some small part!

Jewish Congregations for Social Justice is lucky to participate in this special program, and we would love to have you join us. If you want to learn more, please contact Marcia Vandercook at marcia.vandercook@gmail.com.

Tributes, memorial plaques, and  simcha plaques are wonderful ways to honor or remember someone while supporting Temple life. Donations to a TBE fund can be made via our website, by personal check, or even through a donor-advised fund or an IRA.

With a minimum donation of $18 per tribute, an acknowledgment card will be sent, letting the individual or family know about your thoughtful gift. Your gift is also recognized for the rest of the TBE community.

To order a memorial or simcha plaque, go to tbemadison.org/life-cycle or call the Temple office at 608-238-3123.

Thank you for upholding our values through your kind contributions.

Welcome to the first edition of the Giving Spotlight, dedicated to philanthropy at Temple Beth El. As we approach the beginning of 5780 and the start of Temple Beth El’s 80th anniversary year, this newsletter offers a wonderful opportunity to share information about the financial health of TBE and our plans for remaining strong and vibrant for generations to come.

You are a vital partner in sustaining the foundation that we build upon to make our Temple a cherished place. The Development Committee is eager to educate Temple members about topics such as our operating expenses, the cost of educating our students, and the revenue that offsets the expenses of staffing and running TBE. We hope that this information will allow you to better understand the many budget decisions we make with great care. This knowledge will strengthen our partnership, leading to a healthy financial position for years to come.

But beyond the nuts and bolts, this newsletter will offer stories about all of you: the TBE members who are the reason we do our work, the experiences and talents that make us a rich and vibrant congregation, and the ways we touch the lives of others. There are countless ways to have an impact as we find and share meaning as part of the TBE community. Being certain that we can continue to tell these stories is at the heart of our philanthropic goals.

Thank you for reading this inaugural edition. Please share your thoughts or ideas with executive director Stefanie Kushner.

• Porchlight Men’s Shelter needs cooks, bakers, and servers October 30: Our next Porchlight meal is Wednesday, October 30. We need shoppers, cooks, cookie bakers, kitchen minders, delivery people, and servers. This is a fun way to get to know your fellow volunteers! Sign up here.
• Help with the social justice bulletin board: Any time, at your convenience: Scrapbookers wanted! Are you good with design and decoration? Able to post the occasional poster or photo? The Social Action Committee bulletin board by the office is sadly neglected and needs some love. Contact Marcia Vandercook at marcia.vandercook@gmail.com—you will be surprised at the level of heartfelt appreciation you receive!
• Dane Sanctuary Coalition needs drivers to take immigrants to ICE appointments and court hearings: The Dane Sanctuary Coalition provides volunteer drivers to transport immigrants to important events like court hearings in Chicago and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services appointments in Milwaukee. The project gives volunteers a hands-on opportunity to get involved in immigration work as they provide a needed service. This is a very practical, immediate thing that people can do to help. According to Rabbi Bonnie Margulis of Wisconsin Faith Voices for Justice, “our drivers don’t just drop people off. They provide community support and friendship so the person in need does not feel so alone.” Training is provided, and volunteers can request reimbursement for gas, tolls, and parking. For more information, see here. If you are interested in providing this important service, please contact Rabbi Margulis at rabbibonnie@charter.net.
• Emerson Elementary School needs reading and math tutors for the school year: If you can spare an hour each week during the school year, you can make a positive difference in a child’s education. We have two kinds of volunteer opportunities during the school day and another type of activity in the early evening. All activities occur at the school on East Johnson Street.
  • Reading and math mentors: We’re looking for adults who want to work with elementary-age children on reading and math skills. You don’t have to be a math whiz—many kids need support with very basic math facts and strategies. The teachers will provide instructions and materials each day, and the school will provide training.
  • Family programs: We also help with special events at the school on two Tuesday evenings during the year. We help with pumpkin carving on harvest night (October 29) and serving food for the international dinner in May. These events are fun and a great opportunity for teenagers looking for volunteer hours.

If you are interested, please contact Marcia Vandercook at marcia.vandercook@gmail.com.

Do you have questions or concerns about racial disparities in the criminal justice system and how they play out in our courts and prisons? This fall is a great time for you to learn more!

Several upcoming programs will be of special interest to those who have participated in our forums on racial disparities in the criminal justice system, our Urgency of Now action team, and the court observer program, but all are welcome to attend.

These events are being offered at Fountain of Life Church on Madison’s south side. Fountain of Life and the Nehemiah Center for Urban Leadership are community leaders on this topic, and many TBE members have taken advantage of their illuminating programs.

Lessons from the Court Observer Program So Far
Tuesday, September 17, 6:30–8:00 pm at Fountain of Life, 633 W. Badger Rd.
Leaders will present and discuss aggregate information from the almost 350 submitted observations in the court observer program. What have we learned? Where do we go from here? Please respond to laura.jane.berger@gmail.com if you plan to attend.

Race, Politics, and Punitiveness: Trends in the Racial Patterns of Mass Incarceration
Sunday, September 29, 2:00–3:00 pm, Pyle Center Auditorium, UW Campus
This is a free lecture by Pam Oliver, UW professor emeritus of sociology and a well-known researcher in this area. No registration needed.

Racial Disparities in the Criminal Justice System
Tuesdays, October 8, 15, and 22, 6:000–8:00 pm at Fountain of Life, 633 W. Badger Rd.
These three 2-hour workshops, led by Dr. Karen Reece of the Nehemiah Center for Urban Leadership, are designed to educate the general public on mass incarceration and the criminal justice system in general.

With over 2 million prisoners, the United States incarcerates more people than any other country in the world. The U.S. prison population has quintupled since 1980. Although African Americans are about 12 percent of the U.S. population, they make up approximately 40 percent of the prison population. Wisconsin is widely known for incarcerating more African Americans per capita than any other state.

Still, maybe you ask yourself: Is this something I should worry about? These people did the crime, they are doing the time—what's the problem? How does this affect my community? Join us for one or all of these sessions as we address these questions.

• Mass Incarceration Defined: What's the Problem? We will provide an overview of incarceration in the United States and what it means for our communities.
• The Prison System: Purpose & Programming. We will describe the Wisconsin prison system, its purpose, and what an inmate might experience.
• Community Corrections: Life after Prison. We will explain the ins and outs of Wisconsin's community corrections system, which encompasses probation, parole, and extended supervision.

Podcast on the Court Observer Program
If podcasts are more your style, you’ll be interested in the Reverend Alex Gee’s interviews with three members of the court observer program’s steering committee. Listen to this recent episode of his podcast Black Like Me at
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s3-ep-62-from-informed-to-transformed-how-3-white-women/id1356781014?i=1000446782776.

Marta and Glenn Karlov moved to Madison from Appleton, where they had lived for 12 years and raised a family. As a relatively new member of TBE, Marta spoke with Betsy Abramson about the immigrant action team the congregation had recently formed.

Marta thought it would be a perfect match for her experience. She is an immigrant herself, having come to the United States from Colombia, where, in 1984, she met and married her American husband, Glenn. At the time, it was much easier to immigrate, and she received a green card the day her plane landed. She had no difficulty in becoming a citizen, a process that took her no more than six months.

While Marta understood that many immigrants in this country had stories that were not as straightforward and fortunate as hers, she had not previously become an activist on their behalf. Joining the immigrant action team transformed the trajectory of her interest and passion. Knowing that people seek to be in the United States to improve their circumstances and provide for their families, she wanted to become more involved in helping others negotiate and navigate the tremendous web of obstacles facing them and their children.

More than many of us, Marta realizes what families are facing in countries in Central America. Living in Ecuador and Colombia for many years, she saw firsthand the difficulties people faced in making a living and caring for their children. Sometimes the violence and other unmanageable situations confronting them are truly horrendous.

She became co-chair of the immigrant action team with Erica Serlin and Lynn Silverman, and through them became aware of what organizations like Madison’s Community Immigration Law Center (CILC) are doing. Because of this involvement, she was asked to help Spanish speakers with intake interviews before meeting with attorneys to help them to prepare their cases for asylum.

Marta works for American Family Insurance and is unable to make daytime commitments, but she learned from a non-Spanish-speaking attorney on the board of CILC that a family from Honduras here in Madison needed her assistance. Another Boston-based organization, Together and Free, was trying to help families separated at the border, including this one, with a 15-year-old separated from her father at the border. This young woman had just been released from detention and came here to live with her uncle. Another of her father’s sisters is also here, with her four-year-old.

Marta learned that the grandfather had been killed in Honduras, and then the same gang went after the father and his daughter, because he was a policeman. ICE separated them, deporting the father and placing the daughter in detention.

The social worker in Boston wanted Marta to help this extended family deal with language barriers and other needs. Not long after Marta became involved, the father finally was released from detention after crossing the border again with his pregnant partner, and made his way here with the help of a third organization. Another 17-year-old brother was also detained and deported. The entire family is seeking asylum.

With the help of many volunteers, the father and his partner, the baby born in May, and the 15-year-old were able to get an apartment near their uncle.

Marta also learned that the family member who was deported back to Honduras was sent on a plane with feet and hands bound, traveling all day without food, water, or bathroom privileges: “three hundred people on the plane, all tied like animals.” As Marta aptly expressed the situation: “It just breaks your heart.” Where is the humanity? Where is the justice?

Marta has been helping the family in a variety of ways: making attorney visits with the sister to help her apply for asylum, bringing donations of goods that the family needs, spending time with the 15-year-old to monitor her adjustment. Although some family members have also been helped by Catholic charities, when they called upon Centro Hispano to try to get the daughter psychological help, they were not so fortunate, since the center seems to be overwhelmed with requests for help.

Still, interventions by volunteers within dedicated community organizations have helped the family get much-needed services. Members of TBE have also been very generous with necessities, gift cards, and cash donations.

As for the undocumented brave uncle of this family, whose sister was denied asylum, he has put himself at great risk by helping other family members, because of his own precarious status. Each depressing encounter, such as his brother’s deportation, only deepens his anxiety.

Yet every small act of kindness makes a difference. Marta especially enjoys the way the children light up when she visits with small gifts, such as craft supplies that give them a way to express themselves.

What can others at TBE do to help this family get established? For options to get involved, you can contact Marta, Lynn, or Erica to find how to advocate for immigration reform or to volunteer to assist if and when an undocumented individual or family requests sanctuary.

Through Fabiola Hamdan, immigration affairs specialist at the Dane County Department of Human Services, who works closely with Rabbi Bonnie Margulis, we have since learned that there are at least 12 other families seeking asylum here in Madison.

When we realize how many hoops just one family has to jump through to try to gain asylum, and we multiply that by the needs of many thousands of others, the work can feel overwhelming, but every action we take can make a difference.

Please join us in the long fight for a more just immigration policy and procedure.

Have you noticed people including a line about pronouns at the bottom of their email messages and wondered to yourself, “Why on earth are they telling us that?”

Maybe you have been to a meeting where someone has included their pronouns when making introductions, or you’ve filled out a registration form that asks what pronoun you use.

You may have wondered why people feel the need to make bold announcements about something as small and simple as a pronoun.

If you have ever asked yourself these questions, it is likely that the language people use to describe you matches the gender that you perceive yourself to be (i.e., your gender identity).

Not everyone, however, has the privilege of taking pronouns for granted.

For some, including people in our own Jewish community, being referred to by the correct pronouns is a daily struggle.

It may be because the gender others believe they are, or what it says on their birth certificate, does not match who they know they are inside. It may be because we live in a society that divides people into binary male and female categories, while they see themselves as being something other than one of those mutually exclusive options.

Perhaps they are questioning what words best describe them, only knowing that “he” or “she” doesn’t quite seem right.

When we use pronouns to describe someone, we rely on a whole host of assumptions about their gender identity.

It may not be something you are conscious of, but using a pronoun that does not match a person’s authentic gender identity (whether you are talking to that person or about that person) chips away at their sense of self and communicates that you do not recognize them for who they are.

In 2015, the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) passed the “Resolution on the Rights of Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming People,” which in part “affirms the right of transgender and gender non-conforming individuals to be referred to by their name, gender, and pronoun of preference in our congregations, camps, schools, and other Reform affiliated organizations.”

Jewish organizations like Keshet have worked closely with congregations, camps, and social service agencies to create programs and policies that help move us to full LGBTQ+ inclusion. The URJ, through its Audacious Hospitality initiatives, has created guidelines for congregations to follow in this effort—including the need to use and honor the pronouns with which each person identifies.

The Jewish value of kavod (honor) is instrumental here: By using the correct pronouns, we honor individuals and what they bring to our communities.

If we truly believe that b’tzelem Elohim (we are all made in the image of God), then we have a moral and spiritual obligation to actively affirm all individuals by using their pronouns. Otherwise, we are neither honoring God nor upholding other Jewish values, like g’milut chasadim (doing acts of loving-kindness) and kol Yisrael arevim zeh bazeh (taking communal responsibility).

Now you might be asking yourself, “What about all these pronouns I see on registration forms and online that aren’t ‘he’ or ‘she’? Why do we need to be concerned with those?”

Judaism has long embraced nonbinary or shifting gender identities. With over 1,600 references to nonbinary identities across Jewish texts (e.g., Talmud, Mishnah, Midrash, Kabbalah), Judaic scholars have demonstrated there are at minimum six different genders (including what we refer to as androgynous and intersex), all of which could not possibly be described using only male and female pronouns. With such a strong tradition of using different words to refer to different types of gender identities, how could we possibly restrict modern-day Jews (or anyone else) to using only two?

Even if you recognize the strong Jewish foundation for honoring people by using correct pronouns, you may be still be thinking that plural or gender-neutral pronouns are just a fad or are not “grammatically correct.” In fact, using pronouns other than the binary he/him/his or she/her/hers is not a new idea!

In English writing, use of the singular “they” (referring to one person) can be traced back to the late 1300s and only fell out of favor in the early 1900s. Grammarians have been actively suggesting and debating the adoption of alternative or nonbinary pronouns since at least the late 18th century.

In real life, we use the singular “they” all the time without even realizing it, particularly when speaking about a hypothetical individual whose gender designation is unknown or irrelevant. Don’t believe me? Reread this post from the beginning. I bet you didn’t even notice my choice of pronouns the first time around, even in an article about pronouns!

This usage is both common and accepted in practice today. Most major English dictionaries and style guides now formally endorse the use of singular they/them/their pronouns. (For more historical information, I encourage you to read this recent NPR story.)

Your next question might be, “So how am I supposed to know what pronouns to use?”

The short answer is, you don’t—not unless you ask or someone tells you what their pronouns are. Right now, these exchanges are not a regular part of our culture and could lead to awkward or uncomfortable moments (especially if someone isn’t quite ready to share, or is currently questioning, their gender identity).

To start making pronoun use a normal part of our community at TBE, we are going to follow the URJ’s (and the Reform youth movement’s) lead by offering pronoun stickers that individuals can add to their name badges. These stickers will say things like “My pronouns are he/him/his,” or “she/her/hers,” or “they/them/theirs.” Some will have space to write other pronouns (see examples and grammar usage here), and some will say, “Ask me about my pronouns.”

These stickers will be made available for everyone, not just people who identify as transgender or a nonbinary gender. The more people who add stickers to their badges, the more normal the practice will become, and the more inclusive our synagogue will be.

These stickers will be available starting at this Friday’s Pride Shabbat, and they will be located by the nametag holders in the coatroom.

I hope that many of you will join me in creating a welcoming and supportive environment by adding a sticker to your name badge before High Holy Day services this fall.

I am very happy to answer any questions you have or provide additional resources, either in person or via email (gcjacobsohn@gmail.com). You may also call the TBE office to talk with one of our clergy or staff members.

B’shalom,

Gwen Costa Jacobsohn

1st Vice President, Temple Beth El Board of Trustees

The Adelanto Detention Center facility is seen in a file photo. (Credit: Los Angeles Times)

Dear fellow members of the Temple Beth El community,

Our hearts ache to see the deplorable living conditions imposed upon immigrants and refugees—and especially the hundreds of children—who have been held in detention camps along our nation’s southern border.

Reports of their going without soap for hygienic purposes, of their sleeping on cold concrete floors with only a foil thermal blanket for a cover, of their receiving inadequate medical care and insufficient nutrition, stun the mind.

We as a nation can act better than this, especially toward those who wish to come to our country seeking a life of liberty and possibility, just as our Jewish ancestors did in the last 150 years, and as did our secular ancestors who came to our shores before the establishment of our country.

Please see below for a list of resources for education and action at this critical time in our nation’s history. This list was lovingly put together by our Social Action Committee and our Urgency of Now Immigrant Action Team, and I am deeply appreciative of their efforts.

Our nation has the potential for acting in great and humane ways. Let us help our elected officials recall that potential at the crucial moment in time.

Faithfully,

Rabbi Jonathan Biatch

---

How to Achieve Humanitarian Aid and Sensible and Humane Immigration Laws

Children should not be dying at the border. The United States needs an immigration policy that combines border security, justice, and humanity. The stalemate on immigration is a choice that Americans do not have to accept. You can help end it.

Here’s how:

Learn: Here is a set of immigrant rights resources compiled by our Temple Beth El Urgency of Now Immigrant Action Team:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/10ENai1QecN5fF9VgCoJngZS1VHxbgqkhtJCZxniNO-4/edit

Call Congress, your mayor, and your local representatives. Contact your members of Congress and tell them that you want impending raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement to be called off and detention conditions improved:

Tammy Baldwin – www.baldwin.senate.gov, 202-224-5653

Ron Johnson – www.ronjohnson.senate.gov/public, 202-224-5323

Mark Pocan – www.pocan.house.gov, 202-225-2906

You can also reach out to your local officials to ask that they initiate plans to help immigrant communities that are affected by the raids. The government website usa.gov provides links to finding your city, county, and town officials.

Report and document raids and arrests. The National Immigration Law Center has suggested reporting raids to local hotlines, such as United We Dream’s MigraWatch.  The Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services [RAICES] has urged that people verify any social media posts saying ICE has been spotted before sharing or retweeting them because false alarms could spread fear in immigrant communities.

Donate to humanitarian efforts. Many immigrants are not informed of their legal and civil rights as they pursue asylum or face deportation. Several nonprofits are providing free legal representation and other services for immigrants and the families of those detained. United We Dream, the American Civil Liberties Union, Mijente, Immigrant Families Together and the Immigrant Justice Corps are coordinating advocacy and services at a national level. Local organizations providing legal aid include the New Sanctuary Coalition in New York, Las Americas in El Paso and RAICES in Texas, Americans for Immigrant Justice in Florida and the Denver Immigrant Legal Services Fund in Colorado. Locally you can help through Together and Free, supporting a local Honduran family, and the Dane County Immigrant Assistance Fund, supporting local undocumented immigrants and asylum seekers. Please check online to see how to make contributions.

Pilar Weiss, project director of the National Bail Fund Network, says one of the most effective ways to reunite immigrants separated from their families is to assist with paying their bail, which can cost anywhere from $1,500 to $80,500. You can find and donate to a bail fund in your city through the National Bail Fund Network.

Inform yourself and your community. The A.C.L.U., which joined forces with Brooklyn Defender Services, has shared a “Know Your Rights” page for encounters with ICE. It has also provided a video to help understand your rights and what to do if ICE officials come to your home.

This coming Sunday, June 30, 2:00–4:00 pm, come to a “Know Your Rights” seminar here at Temple Beth El. For yourself, or for your work in the future with the Dane Sanctuary Coalition, understanding your role and responsibilities is crucial.

Hold political candidates accountable. While the presidential primaries are at least seven months away, you can prepare to cast your ballot for a more humane border policy by following what each candidate has shared about his or her plans for immigration reform.

Speak up. Protest marches and other civic actions to end detention camps and squalid conditions for children and families are expected across the country in the coming weeks. You can also take part in Lights for Liberty, a nationwide vigil on Friday, July 12. The location for the vigil in Madison is at Brittingham Park, 829 West Washington Avenue, 7:15–9:15 pm.

Adapted from the New York Times, Opinion, June 24, 2019.

In August, the Madison community celebrates its ongoing commitment to equity and quality of life for all LGBTQ+ people. On Friday, August 16, Temple Beth El will start the weekend with our annual Pride Shabbat at 6:30 pm. This event is in the planning stages, so if you have an interest in being involved, please contact Aleeza A. Hoffert at engage@tbemadison.org.

The broader Madison community has traditionally celebrated Pride Week with a parade, but this year the celebration will take the form of a new OutReach Magic Festival, to be held on Sunday, August 18, 2019, at Warner Park.

The OutReach Magic Festival will recognize the 50th anniversary of Stonewall and the 30th anniversary of Madison’s first Pride parade. There will be activities for all ages, entertainment, food and merchant vendors, information booths, and more. The festival will focus on bringing the community together for celebration, healing, and rejuvenation. For more information, see outreachmagicfestival.org.

In May, TBE congregants Jane Taves and Marta Karlov joined 1,200 fellow Jews from around the country in Washington, DC, for a deeply inspiring, spiritual call to action at the biennial Consultation on Conscience, organized by the Religious Action Center (RAC) of the Union for Reform Judaism.

Rabbi Jonah Dov Pesner, director of the RAC, opened the session with excitement and joy, and we celebrated the accomplishments of congregations around the country since the last meeting, in 2017. Many impressive speakers followed with their personal stories and calls for action. You can watch all of them at rac.org/livestream. Following are summaries of what some of them shared.

Sister Norma Pimentel, executive director of Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, spoke about the respite center she runs for asylum seekers at the border. Every day they help thousands find a place to sleep and bathe and to find safety, not as a political issue, but as a humanitarian reality. She urged us to not walk away and to bring consciousness to others about this very human issue, reaching out to those who don’t understand.

Peter and Jill Kraus honored his grandparents, Gilbert and Eleanor Kraus, who saved 50 Jewish children from Vienna before World War II, at great risk to their lives and reputation in their Philadelphia community. There was not a dry eye in the room when they told of how parents and children were not allowed to wave to each other as they said goodbye, as Jews were prohibited from waving their arms in public. Peter and Jill pledged to deepen their support for the RAC to welcome refugees and asylum seekers in our midst.

Three incredible college students recounted their personal journeys of losing friends in school shootings and, for one of them, living in fear of being deported after becoming undocumented as a minor in this country after the death of a parent. They are leading nationwide advocacy efforts around immigration rights and gun violence prevention.

Eric K. Ward, national field director of the Building Democracy Initiative of the Center for New Community and organizer of Which Way Forward, dove into the complex stories behind antisemitism, reminding us that “hate groups organize hate that is already there.” He emphasized that during this historic moment, if we want to successfully combat hate, we must join hands with every vulnerable community whose lives are being assaulted.

Al Sharpton continued the theme of the crossroads we’re in and urged us to do what is uncomfortable, now, and to work together with the African American community, saying, “We either fight all hate or we are not fighting hate at all.” He reminded us about how Jews and African Americans have collaborated to fight for injustice and human rights over the years, and how we must remain united.

Finally, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi reminded us that America’s heart is full of love, and that no one demonstrates this more with value and actions than the RAC.

Toward the end of the session we learned about important changes to RAC initiatives. Two years ago, congregations including TBE, signed a Brit Olam around the RAC’s Urgency of Now Campaign, focused primarily around immigration rights and racial justice.

This year the RAC will establish collaborative cohorts for issues including racial justice, gun violence, climate and environmental justice, immigration, and reproductive justice. The latter cohort will be possible with support from Women of Reform Judaism.

We invite you to be part of the conversation about how TBE will participate in this RAC initiative. Please contact Aleeza Hoffert at engage@tbemadison.org if you are interested in learning more.

We also encourage you to learn more about the RAC’s advocacy and activism and to join us in two years for the next Consultation on Conscience. We promise it will be worth your time!

We were moved to our very core by seeing nine young adults at their confirmation yesterday. These students went through their b’nai mitzvah process three years ago and have now taken individual responsibility for this next level of expressing their Judaism. It was a beautiful and stirring service and we are excited to share our feelings about it with you.

These students worked together to create a Saturday morning Shabbat service. They each personally wrote a part of the service and expressed it in their own words. Confirmation falls on Shavuot, when God gave the Torah to the Jewish people at Mount Sinai. With vigor and energy each student read Torah and as a collective group recited the 10 commandments in both English and Hebrew. We were amazed to see the extent by which they exerted their growing involvement in this Shabbat morning service. Their smiles radiated across the congregation. They were laughing together, supporting one another through hugs and fist bumps and connected as they progressed through the service.

Another special aspect of yesterday’s service was how the students chose to double this Confirmation service with a Bar Mitzvah for one of the other students who never celebrated becoming a bar mitzvah when he turned 13. It was beautiful for the student who was celebrating his bar mitzvah individually, but it was also a great example of the group caring for one another as a Jewish community. This confirmation class learned the importance of doing a mitzvah for someone else.

As a parent I particularly identified with Rabbi Biatch’s message to the students that their choice on this Saturday morning was to confirm their commitment to Judaism rather than conforming to the pressures of their teen years. Witnessing to choose Jewish study at age 16 was inspirational as a parent. These nine amazing teenagers choose to invest their time, their creativity and their passion and confirmed their commitment to taking these ideals into adulthood.

When I think of the Jewish people on Mount Sinai receiving the Torah from God they must have been totally present in the moment. You can see radical commitment in the faces of these nine teens that will live forever on the wall at Temple Beth El.

Imagine you are homeless, being treated for cancer, are a mother with small children, and have just been released from the hospital after surgery. You may be given hotel vouchers for three to five days, so you have a place to recuperate, but you have no meals, no childcare, no way to get medication follow-up or medical attention, and no way to get to follow-up appointments.

The Healing House, a program of Madison-Area Urban Ministry (MUM), is the response to this problem. This eight-bed facility, which recently opened at 303 Lathrop Street in Madison, provides 24/7 recuperative care by medically trained staff and volunteers for up to 28 days. It is the first medical respite program of its kind in Wisconsin and provides care to families who are homeless and have an immediate family member in need of ongoing medical care during recovery. The Healing House will provide clients with three meals a day, childcare assistance, and case management to end the cycle of homelessness. It is a cost-effective alternative for hospitals and the community, promoting wellness for homeless families in Dane County. Nationwide, there are 63 medical respite programs, a proven model of care.

As an interfaith organization, MUM is responding to the call across faith traditions to care for the sick. In Judaism, bikur cholim (Hebrew for “visiting the sick”) includes a wide range of activities that include providing comfort and support for people who are ill. Bikur cholim is a mitzvah, a moral and spiritual obligation.

The Healing House is partnering with The Road Home for case management and volunteer assistance. Temple Beth El has partnered with both MUM and The Road Home in the past, and therefore it seemed natural for us to continue that partnership by volunteering with the Healing House. Volunteers are being asked to assist with dinner by cooking and dropping off meals and by serving and cleaning up after dinner at the house. Volunteers will also shop for grocery items for breakfast and lunch. Sign up to help with this mitzvah at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E0E48A8AC22A4FF2-healing.

Do you have some free time? We have lots of great opportunities to help out in our community.

• Wednesday, May 30: Shop, bake, cook, or serve dinner for the Porchlight Shelter Program. Sign up at https://signup.com/go/CoxuSvR.

• Sunday, June 30: Attend the Dane Sanctuary Coalition’s Know Your Rights training, hosted by TBE. This training is one of the steps required to be able to help out anyone in sanctuary through the Dane Sanctuary Coalition, of which TBE is a proud member. Learn more at https://www.tbemadison.org/event/uon-know-your-rights-training.html.

• June 16–22: Help provide meals and friendship at the Healing House. Sign up at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E0E48A8AC22A4FF2-healing.

• This summer, join our group of dedicated tutors helping children from the refugee family supported by TBE volunteers and Jewish Social Services. Contact Sherie Sondel for more information at sherie.sondel@gmail.com.

• Any time, at your convenience: Scrapbookers wanted! Are you good with design and decoration? Able to post the occasional poster or photo? The Social Action Committee bulletin board by the office is sadly neglected and needs some love. Contact Marcia Vandercook at marcia.vandercook@gmail.com—you will be surprised at the level of heartfelt appreciation you receive!

Our Visit to Auschwitz

The gloominess of this day matched our mood and our feelings about being in Auschwitz, near to the city of Krakow, Poland. Together, Auschwitz and Birkeneau concentration camps make up approximately one and a half to two square miles of area, and we saw the museum and some of the hundreds of old, dilapidated, and non-existent barracks for the prisoners.

These camps exterminated approximately 1.1 million people, and they have served as an icon of the Holocaust. We spent approximately 3 and 1/2 hours touring the museum, 2 and 1/2 hours seeing only parts of the massive prisoner camp, also with its decaying gas Chambers and crematoria.

One question to be debated is whether one should maintain and restore, perhaps, this camp, or whether it should be let to deteriorate further and have the Earth reclaim it. We guess that the answer has to do with the purpose of what we call memory. Does memory serve to bring us emotions and feelings only, or does it also serve to teach humanity lessons about the future?

These questions and others will be debated for many years, and your Rabbi challenges you to wonder about it as well.

.

Shoes. Seventy-two pairs of bronzed shoes on the shore of the Danube River in Budapest.

And this is how many of the Jews, numbering between 2500 and 10000, were murdered by the Nazis in 1944 and 1945 before the end of the war. They were brought to the river, told to remove their shoes, and then were summarily shot and their bodies pushed into the flowing water.

This stunning memorial, dedicated in 2005, is one way that the Hungarian government is trying to properly remember and venerate the victims of the Holocaust who were killed at this spot. Primarily but not entirely Jews, the victims had no opportunity for defense, no opportunity for trials for evaluation. They simply died because they were Jews.

Thus began our stay in Budapest, Hungary. Today, in a constant drizzle, we toured the city seeing many of the sites that distinguishes this place following the fall of communism: a former secret police building turned into a hotel, former Soviet offices turned into apartments and museum spaces, and a burgeoning recognition of the role of Hungary in the Holocaust.

Such recognition spreads among the people. In fact, this evening, during dinner, a pianist in the restaurant where we dined played a selection of Jewish tunes. Now, it is likely that such a concert was offered because they knew that there were 19 Jews dining there. Be that as it may, there are many recognitions of the Jewish presence in this city around, and on Friday, we hope to visit the famous Dohany Synagogue, the largest synagogue building in the European continent. it is quite the tourist spot and destination. We will also learn more about Raoul Wallenberg, the Swedish diplomat who saved an estimated 120,000 Hungarian Jews.

We will also visit a liberal Jewish synagogue for Shabbat evening services, followed by a meal with one or more of its members. We will be fortunate to learn about the various controversies regarding both hungary's president orban and the internal disputes among members of the Jewish community of Hungary.

Stay tuned for more. We are thinking of you as we travel through Eastern Europe.