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Dear friends,

This week's Parsha, Va'Etchanan, continues Moshe's discourse to the Jewish people before they enter the Promised Land. It contains the first paragraph of the Shema as well as the Ten Commandments. Moshe lays out what the Israelites must do to attain the greatness that they have been promised since the days of Abraham, and how they will grow and thrive. 

In his commentary on the Parsha, Rabbi Sacks z"l is puzzled by one fact.  After speaking about the great nation they have become and how they will thrive and grow, Moshe tells the Jewish people that they are "the fewest of all peoples." Even after growing since the time of our forefathers, they were still tiny compared to the other nations they would be battling. The simple answer is that many had died in Egypt but the Israelites would continue to grow while other nations disappeared over the course of time. 

The deeper reason is more compelling. Moshe is telling the people that there is a fundamental difference between being many and being great. A small nation can still be great, and a large nation can crumble. When a mighty nation succeeds, no reason is given. It's obvious. But when a tiny nation triumphs, we are forced to figure out why. As we read in Zecharia: "not by might, nor by power, but by My spirit." Everything we accomplish is thanks to Hashem. 

The parallel to our shul is obvious. We are a small synagogue but have continued to serve our community for over 30 years, through hard work and faith in Hashem. Full text of the devar is here . 

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Now that we have left Tish B'Av behind, we can start getting ready for the High Holidays and the rest of the year. We’ll have a tent again for davening for both Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. If you haven't already, please send in your membership dues so your seat(s) will be assigned. 

For those of you who have not yet seen the sisterhood lineup, Holly, Brooke and their team have planned a tremendous variety of activities for the coming year. The Israel monthly lecture series will kick off in November with speakers on Israeli culture, history and politics. The Rabbi has also organized lectures and a shabbaton over the next few months, as well as a book signing for the newly completed biography of his grandfather, Rabbi J J Hecht, z"l.  Mazal Tov to him and his family on this tremendous accomplishment!

I want to thank everyone who commented, applauded or offered constructive criticism for the code of conduct. It’s to serve as a framework going forward for how we want our Shul to be, and what we can do to get it there. Just to be clear, the code was sent to everyone, and was not meant to address any issues in the past, but only as a guide going forward.

I'd like to take this opportunity to wish a special Mazal Tov to Mitch and Beth Garbow on the birth of a baby boy to their children Chana and Elya in Israel. May they all have great nachas from him and may he grow into Torah, Chupah and good deeds.  

Wishing you all a peaceful and meaningful Shabbat Shalom,

Steven Inker

Dear friends,

This week, we read Parshat Devarim on Tisha B'Av, the saddest day of the Jewish year when we mourn the destruction of both Holy Temples.

There are differing customs as to how to treat Shabbat Tisha B'Av. The most common tradition is to celebrate Shabbat Tisha B'Av as a regular Shabbat, with all of its inherent joy and spirituality, and then fast after Havdalah through the next day on the 10th of Av.

Rabbi Beryl Wein, in his commentary of the Parsha and the nine days, believes that the reading of Devarim may make up for delaying the fast, as it a listing of all of the mistakes and missteps that the Israelites committed through their forty years of wandering. The episodes not only bring the past into sharp focus, but are also the harbingers of the future disasters that will befall the Jewish people, including the destruction of the Temples. 
 
Throughout the retelling, however, Moshe displays disappointment but does not berate. He does not threaten the inevitable success of the Jewish people in attaining redemption. The same dichotomy we see with retelling the sins of the past while still referencing the promise of the future, it's the same lesson we see with Shabbat and Tisha B'Av. We see that when the two fall on the same day, Shabbat trumps Tisha B'Av. We mourn the destruction, but we also pray for redemption. 
 
Tisha B'Av is transitory but Shabbat is eternal. We have to remember our mistakes and learn from them, but more than that, we have to keep looking forward. And remember that prioritizing the lessons of Shabbat allow us to live more fully. 
 
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Culminating the nine days, we have a full Tisha B'Av roster of services and inspiring lectures throughout the day. See the flyer abovefor the full list. 
 
Speaking of the nine days, I want to thank everyone who came and celebrated our backyard siyyum barbecue with us. Now that we have done this twice, next year will be a chazakah and it will make a great tradition of siyyumim at CBA.

The shul’s Code of Conduct and the minutes from the previous board meeting were sent to the membership this week, and I hope to have the mid-year budget information available for next week. And I'm happy to announce that an assistant for the Rabbi started this week. 

The Israel lecture series dates are being confirmed, and the Rabbi is also planning lectures and Shabbatonim for after the Chaggim. Stay tuned for these dates.

Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are right around the corner. The plan is to continue with outdoor davening in the tent. Feedback from last year indicates the tent was the overwhelming preference so we will be sticking with it. We will have Chazzan Goodman and Rabbi Shushan leining all of the services for both Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. We are also considering auctioning off aliyot and Psichot for Yom Kippur this year. More to come on this.

Lastly, we’ve been in touch with the NYPD and they will be conducting a security survey in the next few weeks to provide recommendations about staffing and physical improvements we can implement. In the meantime, I urge everyone who uses the Synagogue building to make sure the front door is locked after coming in and to not allow entry to anyone they don’t know. Ask questions or tell someone if you see anything questionable. We all have to work together to protect our Shul. 

Wishing you all a peaceful and meaningful Shabbat Shalom as well as an
easy and meaningful fast.

Steven Inker