May/June 2013 - Beth Tikvah Synagogue, Toronto

Getting TorahRabbi Howard MarkoseThe Book of Numbers – continues onWednesday mornings until May 29th(except for May 15th), from 9:30 –11:00 a.m. Rabbi Markose will discuss“Metaphors in the Book of Numbers”, thetopic of his doctoral thesis. Men andwomen at all levels of Jewish education areinvited to participate. No previous knowledgeof Hebrew is required.Passover Seder 5773 at Beth TikvahSynagogue“On Monday March 25th, a communalPassover Seder was held at Beth TikvahSynagogue for the very first time. We werepleased to have had eighty-one peopleattend this Seder, which represented 36 families.The event was a resounding success due tothe efforts of an outstanding committee ledby Dr. Len Sadinsky, the participation ofRabbi Grover and Cantor Kovari, alongwith the support of the office & maintenancestaff.As the participants were leaving, requestswere heard for “Next Year at Beth Tikvah”!Ritual CommitteeRitual Committee ReportBy Robert FeldgaierAt the meeting of the Beth Tikvah Board ofGovernors held on March 28, 2013, theBoard overwhelmingly approved a series ofrecommendations from the RitualCommittee, which I am pleased to report toyou.1. Guide to Service Times Throughoutthe YearThe Board adopted a Guide to Service TimesThroughout the Year, to be used as a workingguide, with the schedule to be evaluatedBeth Tikvah Jewish Education Centreduring the course of the year. The guideattempts to standardize the times of servicesand also includes several changes from previouspractice. For example, services onSunday morning will be held a half hourearlier when there is an elongated service.On Erev Yom Tov and certain other YomTov evenings, service times will generally followthe scheduling for Erev Shabbat to allowpeople to return home for dinner as early aspossible. On Friday night, Rabbi Markoseand Rabbi Grover have ruled that starting at6:00PM is too early in the summer and thatMa’ariv cannot begin until Plag Haminhah,which is calculated as 1¼ halakhic hoursbefore sunset (a halakhic hour is 1/12 thetime between sunrise and sunset). Therefore,Friday night services during several monthsin the spring and summer will vary dependingon the time of sunset, but begin no laterthan 7:00PM.2. Policies for Implementation of TorahEgalitarianism and Revised Policies forAssignment of Torah Honour.On February 7, 2012, the Beth Tikvahmembership adopted a resolution implementingTorah egalitarianism. The RitualCommittee was directed to bring forwardmore detailed policies for consideration bythe Board of Governors addressing theimplementation of the resolution. To addressthose issues that were not deemed by RabbiMarkose (in his capacity as mara d’atra) tobe assur (forbidden) or hovah (mandatory),the Ritual Committee spent the past yearreviewing the existing policies directlyimpacted by the implementation of Torahegalitarianism as well as policies dealing withappropriate dress for men and women participatingin services and policies for theassignment of Torah honours. Several of theexisting policies were deemed to be outdated,unclear, not practical or not sufficientlyflexible to deal with the increasingly diverseneeds of our membership. Whilenew/revised policies were being prepared,the Ritual Committee was able to monitorand assess the reaction of Beth Tikvah membersto changes that were introduced as partof the implementation of Torah egalitarianism.At the March 28th Board meeting, theBoard of Governors adopted a report entitledBeth Tikvah Synagogue, Policies forImplementation of Torah Egalitarianism andRevised Policies for Assignment of TorahHonours. In order to allow for greater flexibility,one of the key principles is that theassignment of Torah honours will be guidedby attempting to balance the generallyaccepted principles of Jewish tradition andcustom with regard to persons who haveentitlements or priorities in receiving Torahhonours, the policies contained in the document,requests for Torah honours by thosecelebrating a life-cycle event, special requestsfor Torah honours, and the goal of honouringas many Beth Tikvah members as possiblewith Torah honours during the course ofa year, while maintaining the flexibility toaccommodate special circumstances such asthe desire of the congregation to honour amember or guest. It is explicitly recognizedthat it may not be possible at every serviceto assign Torah honours to all those who areentitled to or wish to receive a Torah honour,especially on weekdays, on those occasionswhen the number of Torah honours isfixed, or when there are several kohanimand/or leviim who are entitled to or wish toreceive a Torah honour. When assigningTorah honours, preference shall generally begiven to persons who have entitlements orpriorities in receiving Torah honours accordingto the generally accepted principles ofJewish tradition and custom or the policiescontained in the document.3. Revised Policies for Bar/Bat MitzvahCelebrations at Beth Tikvah SynagogueThe Board adopted a report entitledProposal for Bar/Bat Mitzvah Celebrations atBeth Tikvah Synagogue, which was preparedby Rabbi Markose, in consultation with theritual staff, and incorporates input from theRitual Committee. The report providesmember families with several options for thefestive meal (seudat mitzvah) following aBar/Bat Mitzvah celebration, in response torequests by Beth Tikvah members for amore flexible policy than the previous policy.4. New High Holiday MahzorPrior to last Rosh Hashanah, a sub-committeeof the Ritual Committee, chaired by LouVanDelman, was struck to review two newHigh Holiday mahzorim approved for considerationby Rabbi Markose and RabbiGrover, and to make a recommendation tothe Ritual Committee whether to switch toone of these new mahzorim or continueusing the Silverman High Holiday PrayerBook. The sub-committee comprised attendeesat one or both of the Sanctuary orPage 6 Hakol - May/June 2013