Dear {{first_name}} Simchas Torah is the most joyful day of the year, our celebration of completing the yearly cycle of Torah reading and starting again from the beginning.
The Torah is G-d's infinite wisdom and has been studied by the greatest Jewish minds as well as the simple throughout all of history and we have yet to uncover its limitless depth of understanding. Yet this celebration belongs not to Torah scholars but to every Jew, no matter what and no matter who. For the Torah itself belongs to every Jew and rejoicing in being Jewish.
We invite you, your family, friends, and neighbors to join us for this amazing celebration of Jewish pride. Saturday October 7 at 7:00pm.
Sincerely, Rabbi Mendel & Elke Zaltzman
Shabbos and Holiday Times
Friday, October 6 Candle Lighting: 6:13pm Evening Service: 6:15pm
Saturday, October 7 Morning Service: 10:00am Yizkor Memorial Services: 11:00am Kiddush in Sukkah: 12:15pm Evening Service: 6:15pm Candle Lighting: After 7:10pm from pre-existing flame Simchas Torah Celebration: 7:00pm
Sunday, October 8 Morning Service: 10:00am Blessing of Kohanim 10:30am Kiddush: 10:45am Evening Services: 6:10pm Yom Tov Ends: 7:08pm
An American tourist was riding in a taxi in Israel. As the taxi approached a red light, the tourist was shocked to see the driver drive straight through without even slowing down. Surprised as he was, he didn't say anything, feeling himself a 'guest' and not wanting to make waves. The trip continued without event until the next intersection. This time the light was green and, to the American's dismay, the cab driver brought the vehicle to a grinding halt. Unable to contain his astonishment, he turns to the driver. "Listen", he says, "When you went through the red light, I didn't say anything. But why on earth are you stopping at a green light?" The Israeli driver looks at the American as if he was deranged. "Are you crazy?!" he shouts. "The other guy has a red light! Do you want to get us killed?!"
WEEKLY eTORAH
Simchat Torah is the day when we celebrate our Jewishness by taking it for a dance—literally. We hold a Torah Scroll, rolled, tied and wrapped, and we hug it and dance with it. And no, as explained elsewhere, it is not normal to dance with a book—especially with a holy book. Books are for thinking about, and your head and feet lie at two extremes.. And yes, scrolls are books. But this is a Jew—one who dances with the divine. This is something that defies logic, because it transcends logic. Call it the birthright dance—because the Torah is the birthright of every Jew, every letter of it. It is a vital dance, and its message lies at the very heart of what it means to be a Jew. In this dance, the Jew touches G‑d Himself, wrapped up in that scroll. And it is with G‑d that the Jew dances. So if the Jew is to come only once a year to celebrate being a Jew with other Jews, let it be on Simchat Torah. Let it be with this dance, and then no Jew would ever be lost. You don’t have to know the words wrapped up in that scroll. And if you do, you don’t need to know whether you agree with them or not. You need only to dance with that scroll, as a married couple dance through life together despite their differences, despite all the unresolved baggage, despite all vicissitudes—because they are one, because their love cannot be extinguished and so they cannot part. So too, you and your G‑d are one, and the Torah is the marriage that binds you and has bound you for the journeys of thousands of years. -adapted from www.chabad.org
