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July 2, 2021/22 Tammuz 5781

Dear Friends,

When the young boy was asked by his father to say the prayer over the bread, he realized he didn’t have his head covered…so he asked his little brother to rest a hand on his head until prayers were over. The little brother grew impatient after a few minutes and removed his hand. The father said, This is important…put your hand back on his head! The little boy exclaimed, What am I???? My brother’s kippah?

Today, on my father’s 6th yahrzeit (anniversary of his death), I imagine him telling this joke at shabbos
kiddush, cracking himself up, and getting those around him to smile as well. Haha. Am I my brother’s kippa! Those of you who knew Jules (my father) know it’s true. My father was a shul mensch, a regular in the pews. He appreciated the hazzanut with which we grew up and careful and intentional davenning. He paid close attention to the rabbi’s sermons and enjoyed a good shul joke. He loved to laugh and he laughed the most when something smart emerged from the moment.

Memories of my father rose like heat from the summer pavement in the days leading up to his yahrzeit. Expected yet unexpected. Highlighting his presence and power in my life. Earlier this week, I finally crossed a local adventure off my rather short bucket list with a visit to The Little Red Lighthouse in Fort Washington Park. As a child, I would listen to The Little Red Lighthouse and the Great Gray Bridge, by Hildegarde Swift and Lynd Ward, on cassette tape with my father. Whenever we’d visit my grandparents just over the GWB in Fort Lee, NJ, I’d peer out the window trying to spot the lighthouse. She stood like a family friend offering greetings and pointing the way on our journey. In the book, the lighthouse feels dwarfed, unimportant and unnecessary next to the expansive bridge and its bright light. When a great fog rolls in and the light-keeper fails to come and fire up its light, the lighthouse learns the ships of the river are in great danger. The Bridge calls, “Little brother, where is your light? The Lighthouse wonders ‘Am I brother of yours bridge? Your light was so bright that I thought mine was needed no more.’ The great Bridge calls down, asks it to turn on its light, and explains that the bridge’s beacon is for the ships of the air, not those on the water. Great gray bridge, put your hand on that lighthouse’s keppy and remind it of its worth. Fire up its light so it shines where it is needed most.

This week’s parasha, Pinhas (or Pinchis, as my father would say) introduces the daughters of Zelophehad who come to challenge the laws of inheritance that favor sons, making daughters insignificant. Their reasoned request to claim land in their father’s name goes through Moses to the HolyOne. The Torah teaches, Kayn b’not Zelophehad dovrot naton titayn lahem ahuzat nahalah b’toch achay avihem v’ha’avarta et nachalat avihen lahen/The daughters of Zelophehad speak right. You should give them a hereditary holding among their father’s kinsmen and transfer their father’s share to them (Numbers 27:7). Rashi (11thc) emphasizes we are to understand the word Kayn as right or proper. God said: Exactly so is this chapter written before me on High (The Law has long since been fixed) (Sifrei Bamidbar 134:1). This tells us that their eye saw what Moses’ eye did not see. (They had a finer perception of what was just in the law of inheritance than Moses had.) (cf.Midrash Tanchuma, Pinchas 8). These sisters stepped out of the shadow of fear (tzel pachad) to challenge the status quo. Their lens on the turning kaleidoscope of life exposed wisdom, shape and color that would have been ignored and unseen. Standing together, they held the kippah over Moshe’s head, inviting Gd to affirm holiness in all.

My daughter, the youngest of my father’s 5 grandchildren, carries the name of one of the daughters of Zelophehad, Noa. On Friday night, I bless her in the name of this biblical warrior who stepped into the light with neither fear nor anger, only strength, sanctity of family and a call for justice. My daughter blesses herself on Friday night with her everyday name, Zahara, letting her radiant sparkling light shine. She blesses me too. In those sacred shabbos moments, she reminds me we are each other’s kippah, the one that turns us towards one another to affirm the holy moments, stand by one another and be seen in all our refracted light.

I’m delighted that Jessica Futran joined our senior staff this week as Cantor Halev transitions to emeritus status. We are all each other’s kippah, working to raise up community in love. May we all live as my father did, with light, laughter, integrity, intensity and always as ourselves.
​​​​​​​
Shabbat Shalom
rg

Congregation Habonim
103 West End Ave
New York, NY 10023

Delivered to renee.edelman@edelman.com
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#father #say #joke #laugh #Memories #adventure #laws #inheritance #Torah #Moses #integrity #intensity

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February – born-in-February

March – born-in-March

April – born-in-April

May – born-in-May

June – born-in-June

July – born-in-July

August – born-in-August

September – born-in-September

October – born-in-October

November – born-in-November

December – born-in-December

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Following the break out success of her debut single “New York City Country Girl” – Which reached #15 on the coveted Billboard Hot Singles Chart, 16 year old singer songwriter Ali Isabella will release her new single “Crazy Beautiful Life’ on Friday, August 3rd. Both singles come from her current CD “Say You’ll Be Mine”, released on AIX Records and distributed through Naxos.  more to come…

ring Bells around the World For Peace & a World Without War

UNIVersal PeaCe daY – sunday, august 5th, 2012

CommemoratING the 67th  aNNIVersarY of the BomBINGs of

HIrosHIma and NaGasaKI

WHere:   NEW LOCATION!! UNIoN sQUare ParK by the GaNdHI statUe

located at Union Square West between 14th and 15th Streets

WHeN:       sunday, august 5th, 2012 – 5-7:30Pm

Peace Bell Ceremony at 7:15Pm

PrICe:       Free!

New York, New York – Join in a Peal for Peace Bell ringing Project, a global event of ringing bells around the world for Peace and a World Without War. On sunday, august 5th, join a gathering by the Gandhi statue in Union square Park to commemorate the exact moment of the 67th anniversary of the Hiroshima bombing.

Beginning at 5PM, the public is invited to participate in sharing their visions of Peace with poetry and songs. At

7:15PM, there will be a Bell Ringing Ceremony featuring a 7 foot tall bell from shohola Bells and a Peace Pole from The World Peace Prayer society, with the words, “may Peace Prevail on earth,” in English, Japanese, French and Spanish. Everyone is invited to bring bells to join in. Afterwards, John Lennon’s song, “Imagine,” will be sung.

Bells will ring in numerous places around the world including, Japan, New Zealand, Australia and Mexico. Sharing the moment is the World Peace Bell Association, founded in Japan, which has installed over 20 Peace Bells in 16 countries. Among churches in NYC participating by ringing their bells are: The Riverside Church and St. John the Divine.

This event is organized by Universal Peace Initiative, and co-sponsored by World Peace Bell Association, Search for Common Ground, World Wide Peace Bell Foundation, The World Peace Prayer Society, Good News Broadcast, and Shohola Bells. Printing contributed by Art Institute of New York City.

The concept of Universal Peace Day (UPday) is to bring people around the world together to share their vision of peace and to trans- form a remembrance of horror into a rededication of life. The legacy of UPday, sponsored by Art For The People, began in 1984 in Central Park, where Peter Yarrow and others performed before a candle lighting ceremony at the exact moment of the Hiroshima bomb- ing. Over the years, UPday events have taken place in numerous locations including: Dag Hammerskjold Plaza, Riverside Park, Battery Park, Union Square, The Riverside Church, Church Center of the UN, Church of St. Paul and St. Andrew, and the NY Buddhist Church.

For more information, contact suZen: 917-607-4694 or Barry Gruber: 917-597-6046

ringbells4peace@gmail.com • www.universalpeaceday.com • www.facebook.com/ringbells4peace

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