May the door to this synagogue...

May the door to this synagogue be wide enough
to receive all who hunger for love, all who are lonely for fellowship.

May it welcome all who have cares to unburden,
thanks to express, hopes to nurture.

May the door of this synagogue be narrow enough
to shut out pettiness and pride, envy and enmity.

May its threshold be no stumbling block
to young or straying feet.

May it be too high to admit complacency,
selfishness and harshness.

May this synagogue be, for all who enter,
the doorway to a richer and more meaningful life.

Mishkan T’Filah, p.124


In 2001, a little more than 10 years ago, we opened the new wing to our building and added much needed space. In the years since, we've grown in to it! Now there are times where groups have difficulty finding space anywhere in the building for their activities. Irritating, when that happens, but a great problem to have, nonetheless. Oak Park Temple is bursting with activity. We are not simply aspiring to be a vibrant Jewish community; we are a vibrant Jewish community.

2011 was an exciting year at Oak Park Temple. We have seen growing attendance at our worship activities onFriday evenings, Saturday and Sunday mornings. Our new worship initiatives have been well received: Shabbat Kehillah Services, with music by Tsimmis, on 2nd Fridays and Kabbalat Shabbats on 4th Fridays with Cantor Green accompanied by guitarist, Aaron Bernstein. On Sunday mornings, the Rotunda is abuzz with activity and people and our community hall has been full to over flowing for events including honoring James Crowder, the OPTY Spaghetti Dinner and Dessert Auction, as well as our recent Chanukah Menorah Lighting service.

This past year, as a community, we celebrated births, mourned deaths and illnesses, rejoiced in recoveries, and supported one another in public and private ways. Members of Ozerim provided support and solace to many. We welcomed newcomers and said farewell to others.

Tsimmis, Koleinu, Kolot, Zimrei Ha'am, Mameloshn, the High Holiday choir, Cantor Green,the congregation … the "halls" were alive with the sounds of music!

In 2011, in no particular order, Oak Park Temple found itself energized, informed and sustained by:

A wild Purim Party celebrating Cantor Julie Green’s Bat Mitzvah Year at OPT

We held a joyous Torah Restoration celebration

OPT’s Annual Congregational Retreat was held again at Olin Sang Ruby Union Institute (OSRUI) in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin

Rabbi Weiss led a Congregational Tour of the Jewish Deep South

A delegation of eight of us went to the Union for Reform Judaism Biennial in Washington, D.C. where we heard the new President of URJ, Rabbi Rick Jacobs, present a vision for Reform Judaism going forward and we were addressed as a movement, for the first time in history, by the President of the United States

Jewish FAQ were answered by Rabbi Emeritus Gerson

We had regular Adult Education and study sessions with Rabbi Weiss

Ongoing Torah Study groups met weekly

Social Action activities occurred, providing support to those in need and disseminating important information to the community

We continued to deliver shelter, one night a week through the P.A.D.S. program

An Urban Garden was created and nurtured by our Green Chaverim

Sisterhood ran another successful Annual Rummage Sale that raised funds to assist in the many activities through which they support our congregation

Bagel Boys continued to provide sustenance for our bodies in the form of bagels and schmeers

The Annual Hausman Brunch informed us

We began planning for a renovation of our Harlem entrance, the doors desperately needing replacement

We approved projects for the maintenance of our building, particularly masonry and windows

We began planning future capital needs of our congregation

We began the work of preparing for our biennial Auction, to be held on February 4th that will benefit Oak Park Temple and the Glasser Preschool

We’ve begun planning for the 150th Anniversary of our congregation in 2014

We heard from notable speakers:

Jeremy Ben-Ami, Founder of J-Street

Rabbi Jonathan Greenberg, Midwest Director of AIPAC

Authors Alex Kotlowitz, Anita Diamant and our “own” David Sokol and David Ansell

Alex Ciselsky, a founder of Kibbutz Lotan and The Center for Creative Ecology

Debra Shore, a Commissioner on the Board of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago who discussed threats to our precious water supply

Congregant Daniel Block addressed disparities in access to food in local urban settings

Rebetzen Emeritus Carol Gerson discussed fascinating challenges in Bioethics

We hosted Echad al Echad, 12 Israeli visitors from our sister congregation in Kiryat Tivon

Cantor Green led another congregational trip to Israel

We wrestled as a community with the difficult issues of achieving peace in the Middle East through the "Israel – Can We Talk About It?" series, with speakers from: AIPAC, the Israeli Consulate, J-Street

We played at an OPT Summer Shindig Picnic hosted by the Membership Committee

We held a Social Action Day

We hosted the regional NFTY Retreat

There were regular Chevre Hiddur Mitzvah Arts group activities

Mel’s Movie Matinees entertained and informed us with films relevant to Jewish life

We celebrated Shabbat outdoors with our Nature Shabbat
…

I'm sure that this list is incomplete. There is so much!

Prayer, study, music, social action and community... Reform Judaism is alive and well at Oak Park Temple B’nai Abraham Zion, but let's not be complacent. Together, let's maintain, support and enrich our Jewish community going forward.

L' shalom,

Jeff Blaine

History and Benefits

Auction 2012: "Maxwell Street to the Gold Coast, Rags to Riches". Cutesy title, right? But what does it have to do with Oak Park Temple?

Our congregation's "first building was erected on Des Plaines Street between Madison and Washington streets..." That was only 1.3 miles from the Maxwell Street Market! You'd better believe that Maxwell Street was a big part of OUR history!

Beginning in the 1880s, "Russian" (i.e., Eastern European) Jews became the dominant ethnic group in the Maxwell Street neighborhood, which remained predominantly Jewish until the 1920s. This was the heyday of the open-air pushcart market for which the neighborhood is most famous. Given the timing of the decline of Jewish prominence in the area, it should come as no surprise that it was in 1918 that our congregation purchased the land for the Washington Boulevard Temple, 6.3 miles northwest of the market. Much further away. And, with the move to our current location in Oak Park, we're now 11 miles away.

Join us in a stroll back to the old neighborhood. And, while we're there, let's raise money for Oak Park Temple and the Glasser Preschool. Let's eat, drink and have fun in a way that would make the old neighborhood proud.

And, if the word  "gribenes" doesn't make you think, "guilty pleasure" and "heartburn heaven,"  you haven't lived. You simply have to come to further your 'Jewish delicasies education!' (Gribenes is frequently mentioned in Jewish stories and parables. Gribenes = A favored food in the past among Ashkenazi Jews.)

SAVE THE DATE!                        SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2012

OAK PARK TEMPLE & GLASSER PRESCHOOL SILENT AND LIVE AUCTION!!

LIVE ENTERTAINMENT!!

COME AND BRING YOUR FRIENDS!!

THIS IS GOING TO BE "THE" FUN RAISING/FUNDRAISING EVENT OF THE YEAR!!

BE THERE OR BE SQUARE!!

L'shalom,

Jeff Blaine

"Hillel said: 'Separate not thyself from the community'..." Pirke Avot, 4:7

Back on Rosh Hashanah morning, I encouraged you to “be a part of what makes Oak Park Temple special. Add the secret ingredient, ‘you!’” In addition, I attempted to motivate you to join in the many wonderful programs offered by our congregation and to “make them yours.”

Many of you who are newish to our community, or even those who have been here for many years, may find joining in and making sense of how it all comes together confusing or intimidating. When we go to a new school, or begin a new job, it’s reasonable to expect an orientation of one sort or another. How else can we be expected to understand the inner workings? And, while we might be able to participate without too much effort, to lead and be an active member of any society requires an understanding of the “big picture.” Fortunately, Oak Park Temple has an exciting and effective program to help orient members and to create new leaders for our congregation. It’s called Derech Eretz (literally, “the way of the land”).

In 2009, an effort by a group of congregants, spearheaded by Monte Lewis, working with Rabbi Weiss, created a Leadership Development Program that is designed to ensure that there are well-informed volunteers to lead our congregation into the future.

Comments from prior Derech Eretz participants have included:

“Everyone should do this just to understand how OPT works.”

“Now I feel a part of things.”

“Some of the things that didn't make sense before, I now understand.

Derech Eretz is a series of workshops held on the third Thursday of each month over the six months beginning in January. Topics include the workings and history of our synagogue and the Reform Movement, being a Jewish leader, and skills of successful leaders. At the end of the series, the Derech Eretz committee will help connect participants with activities of interest within Oak Park Temple.

Everyone is welcome to participate in Derech Eretz. I encourage all congregants who are interested in becoming more actively involved to take this as their first step.

For more information, contact Anne Sperling or Sue Blaine.

At Rosh Hashanah, I said, “We all come to Oak Park Temple for different reasons. And, sometimes, we come for one reason and then find other reasons.” Perhaps you can find those other reasons here.

L’shalom,

Jeff Blaine

"Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad."

It probably should not have surprised me, but serving as President of Oak Park Temple has provided me with opportunities to learn - about Judaism, about our congregation, about all of you, about myself. Probably the most important thing that I've learned though, is that I didn't need to be President of the congregation to avail myself of the many opportunities to learn and grow that are here for ALL of us at Oak Park Temple.

Earlier this year, I began a regular practice of attending Pirke Avot study (Chapters of the Fathers) on Shabbat mornings with Rabbi Weiss and a small group of thoughtful, but sometimes irreverent, fellow congregants. We wrestle with the ethical and moral principles offered by our sages, and we do so in a manner that is thought-provoking and stimulating. Laughter is common. I have come to recognize that you can teach an old dog new tricks.

Learning is often thought to be the province of the young. To be sure, Oak Park Temple has stellar programs for the young beginning with the Glasser Preschool program, the OPT Religious School with Gan for our kindergarteners, primary education leading to b'nai mitzvah preparation, Kabbalat Torah study and confirmation for our high schoolers. But, it does not end there. Our OPTY group offers our kids the opportunity to stay connected to Judaism in a fun, safe, and open environment, as well as doing the work of Tikkun Olam.

Showing up is the best way to begin and, once here, the ways to learn are extensive. Listen (I mean really listen) to a sermon, attend a workshop by Rabbi Weiss, Rabbi Gerson, or one of the many speakers brought to Oak Park Temple by our committees. Attend one of the Torah Study groups, Adult Hebrew, Torah cantilation class, the annual Hausman Brunch. Listen to the excellent speakers at our JUF and Israel Bond luncheons, or attend one of the monthly "Mel's Movie Matinees." Prefer a little peace and quiet? Curl up with one of our many good books in the library.

Read, and think about, the 'parsha' summary in Cantor Green's Weekly e-mails, check out the 'Book' section on our Temple website, attend worship services and, most importantly, be curious and ask questions.

Judaism has survived for thousands of years because we are a people that cherishes learning. Indeed we are commanded, in the V'ahavta from Deuteronomy to "teach our children..." We can't teach what we don't know. If we don't continue to learn throughout our lives, we cut ourselves off from the profound richness of our Jewish heritage.

Show up. Take a taste. Be nourished.

L'shalom,

Jeff Blaine

"May you live in interesting times." Chinese proverb or curse. Sounds Jewish to me.

The world can feel like a chaotic place at times, or hadn't you noticed?

Torrential rains, flooding, oppressive heat, tornadoes, tsunamis, earthquakes ... To quote Dr. Ray Stantz of the Ghostbusters, "What he means is Old Testament, Mr. Mayor, real wrath of God type stuff!"

And then there's Washington, D.C., the financial markets...sigh... and, of course, our own personal travails of all sorts - illnesses of loved ones, losses, the vulnerabilities and challenges we all face.

An ever present reality of the human condition is that we are often powerless over forces larger and stronger than we are. No one likes to be confronted with feelings of defenselessness and uncertainty.

Whatever anxieties we carry, about things real or imagined, there are comforts, as well. The rhythm of the seasons, the end of summer and the approach of the High Holidays are comforts on which we can rely.

Whatever the challenges of the past year, and whatever the year ahead holds for each of us, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur offer us an opportunity to connect and collectively reflect on our lives. As you prepare yourself for this time emotionally, intellectually and spiritually, rejoice in the knowledge that we do this as a kehillat kedushah, a holy community.

I am grateful that we share this journey together. My family and I wish you and yours L'shanah tovah tikatevu v'taihatem. May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year.

Ken y'hi ratzon. May it be God's will.

L'shalom,

Jeff Blaine

Tikkun Olam

Justice, Justice shall you pursue, that you may thrive and occupy the land that Adonai your God is giving you. Deuteronomy 16:20

Ask someone you know what they hope to accomplish with their lives and you will often hear, "I want to leave the world a better place than how I found it." What better goal than to have lived a life that matters?

Oak Park Temple has a long tradition of engaging in acts of "Tikkun Olam," repairing what is wrong with the world. At Oak Park Temple, our dedicated Social Action Committee has been the most visible manifestation of that tradition. In recent years, committee members have helped heal the Mississippi Gulf Coast in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, raised awareness of the on-going humanitarian crisis in Darfur and advocated for accessible and affordable health care. With the deep recession and the rising number of foreclosures, they have encouraged us to turn our attention to housing and homelessness. Mitzvah Days, Project Sandwich, P.A.D.S and our program of support for our sister community in Daugavpils, Latvia have led us to reach out to those in in greatest need in our communities, near and far.

I am certain, though, that these are not the only ways that the spirit of tikkun olam is expressed at Oak Park Temple. There are many, many members of our congregation who are engaged in daily acts of social justice and tikkun olam in their professional, volunteer and philanthopic activities. Recently, OPT member, Dr. David Ansell, published his memoir, "County: Life, Death and Politics at Chicago's Public Hospital." In his book, David describes his work addressing the healthcare inequities that have led to shortened lives and suffering born of the politics of race and poverty. Thank you for all of your efforts, David. But, I know that you are not alone in your good works. There are many others at Oak Park Temple who make tikkun olam an important part of the fabric of their lives. We just don't always know about these activities. Wouldn't it be nice to know? Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could join with others in supporting important work that will improve the world? Think of the added power that our collective efforts could bring to bear on conditions in need of repair.

To allow for this sharing of knowledge, connections and energy, we are conducting a "Tikkun Olam Inventory." Please go to the questionnaire that will be on our temple website in the very near future, http://oakparktemple.com and let us know how you express your impulse to “…leave the world a better place." Please understand, I am not encouraging this effort in order to engage in mutual self-congratulation and admiration. I make this invitation to allow us all to know of the myriad opportunities that we have within Oak Park Temple to make the world a better place. Perhaps someone in the congregation shares a passion that you have, might wish to learn more from you and would like to join you in your good works.

Rabbi Tarfon used to say: "It is not for you to complete the work, but neither are you free to desist from it. Pirkei Avot 2:21

Let's do the work of tikkun olam together.

L'shalom,

Jeff Blaine, President

A Moment to Reflect...

The rhythm of the academic year makes this a season filled with endings. Graduations occur, kids get promoted, parties happen and we move into the more laid back days of summer. In the midst of this hubbub, let's take a moment to reflect.

This month, a community-wide effort to fulfill one of our tradition's most sacred duties, repairing our Torah, will be completed. This year-long "Torah Project", culminates with the return of our fully repaired, Sefer Torah. Rabbi Yochanan Nathan, our sofer ("scribe"), has educated us about the intricacies of creating and repairing a torah. In the process, we've been reminded that Torah defines us as a people, ties us to one another and to our ancestors. To all who have supported this sacred task, todah rabah and yasher koach (thank you very much for using your strength in this way!)

This year has also seen creative changes in our worship. The worship initiatives suggested by our congregational survey, created by the Worship Committee, in concert with the efforts Rabbi Weiss and Cantor Green, have led to new engaging opportunities for communal worship. Our 4th Friday Kabbalat Shabbats and new Shabbat Kehillah dinners, on the 2nd Friday of each month, have filled us with ruach ("spirit"), song and connection. If you've not been to Shabbat services in a while, you're missing some very special times. Don't be a stranger. And did I say, 'you never call!'

At the High Holidays, Rabbi Weiss asked us, "Israel, Can We Talk About It?" This year we've had three, well-attended opportunities to listen, learn and discuss very difficult issues relating to Israel and peace in the Middle East. Most importantly, the dialogue that occurred was respectful and thoughtful. Thank you to all who participated and especially to the ARZA committee for its work in creating a safe place for the dialogue to occur. I look forward to many such opportunities in the future.

And finally, to James Crowder, who has faithfully served Oak Park Temple for more than 25 years, we extend our sincere gratitude. Our thanks to you for all that you do, and have done, with efficiency, warmth and good humor to make Oak Park Temple the special place that it is.

L'shalom,

Jeff Blaine
President