CYIR: Council of Young Israel Rabbis in Israel     WEEKLY UPDATE

Parashat Va'Etchanan 5768 | 15 Menachem Av 5768 | August 15-16, 2008

HAVE YOU RECEIVED YOUR INVITATION FOR THE CYIR 18TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION???

CLICK ON THE INVITATION NOW!!!

In this Issue:

Torah Related Items and Rabbinic Resources

Back to School with the Children of SDEROT and GUSH KATIF

CYIR to Sponsor Blood Drive and YESHA Fair Monday, August 25 at Heichal Shlomo, Jerusalem

Focus on CYIR Leaders Awardees: Rabbi Simcha Krauss

Good and Welfare

Current and Upcoming Events

Pomeranz Bookseller's Weekly Selection

Torah Related Items and Rabbinic Resources

a) Divrei Torah Bulletin for this Shabbat: Please find NCYI’s Divrei Torah Bulletin for VaEtchanan written by Rabbi Evan Shore, Young Israel of Syracuse, NY by clicking this link.

b) Our chaver Rabbi David Mescheloff informs us that he has created an online biography on the life and times of his father, Rabbi Dr. Moses Mescheloff OB"M. The story of his 75 years of active rabbanut, the generations that he spanned and his meeting the challenges he faced, can inspire any rabbi. "My father z"l left a deep spiritual imprint on the souls of tens of thousands whom he taught and served over the years" Rabbi Mescheloff said. Click here to access Rabbi Dr. Mescheloff's biography.

c) TWO NEW FEATURES COMING TO "TORAH RELATED ITEMS..." - in the near future, we will presenting weekly book reviews and CYIR audio/visual Divrei Torah available on the internet. Contact CYIR for more information: info@youngisraelrabbis.org.il

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Back to School with the Children of SDEROT and GUSH KATIF

As summer vacation comes to a close, the furthest thing from anyone's mind is the start of the next school year.

However, for the some 3000 elementary school students from the city of Sderot and the ex-Gush Katif communities, going back to school can be a source of major financial stress.

CYIR: Council of Young Israel Rabbis in Israel invites you to join us in its "Back to School with the Children of Sderot and Gush Katif" campaign. It’s very simple: we want to place a fully stocked pencil case filled with writing implements and other “goodies” on each child’s desk as a “welcome back” message of solidarity. Our aim is that when these students arrive in their classrooms for the first day of school on September 1, there will be a pencil case waiting for them on their desk.

Help put a smile on the faces of these students that have gone through so much. The cost of each pencil case is $10 (or NIS 35) and we need to reach a total of 3000 pencil cases to ensure that every student receives this small but significant token of the oneness of our people.

Donations can be made in US Dollars via PayPal for $10 USD by clicking this link.

Donations can be made in Israeli Shekels via PayPal for NIS 35 by clicking this link.

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CYIR to Sponsor Blood Drive and YESHA Fair Monday, August 25 at Heichal Shlomo, Jerusalem

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Focus on CYIR Leaders Awardees: Rabbi Simcha Krauss

Having served as president of CYIR for the past 2 years, Rabbi Simcha Krauss played a significant role in the revival of CYIR and its programming. And even though his term of president has come to a close, he continues to be an integral part of CYIR as Chairman of the Executive and Yosheiv Rosh of its Va’ad Halacha.

Rabbi Krauss' history with the Young Israel movement dates back to his years as spiritual leader of Young Israel of St. Louis, MO and his 2+ decades of service to the Queens, NY Jewish community as rav of Young Israel of Hillcrest, NY.

It is precisely for his dedication and decades of service to the Young Israel movement that CYIR will honor Rabbi Krauss with the presentation of a Leaders Award at its 18th Anniversary Celebration.

Rabbi Krauss will be honored with other awardees at CYIR's 18th Anniversary Celebration on Friday morning, September 5, 2008 at the Ramada Hotel (formerly the Renaissance) in Jerusalem. Click here for more information.

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Good and Welfare - send your announcements to: office@youngisraelrabbis.org.il

Current and Upcoming Events

Pomeranz Booksellers of Jerusalem - Weekly Selection

"Bread and Fire" is about the everyday lives of Jewish women and the struggles and aspirations, failings and triumphs of their spiritual endeavors.

This book asks: What does it mean to be a Jewish woman today? What does Jewish tradition offer to modern women who are looking for practical ways to bring spirituality and meaning to their lives and the lives of their loved ones?

The women whose writings appear in this book span a wide range of ages, backgrounds, perspectives and professions. In her own way, each one reveals God as an anchoring force in her life: from the birthing room to the boardroom, cleaning in the kitchen or scrubbing up for surgery. In places as far apart as Jerusalem, Washington, DC and southern India, these women help us find the sacred within the apparently mundane.

Readers will find themselves laughing, crying and gaining reassurance and strength as they come face-to-face with these women – women just like them – who are moving forward in the ancient quest to find God in the everyday.

About the Editor: Rivkah Slonim, an internationally known lecturer and activist, addresses the intersection of traditional Jewish observance and contemporary life with a special focus on Jewish women. Over the past two decades, she has appeared before audiences in hundreds of locations across the United States and abroad and served as a consultant to educators and outreach professionals. Slonim is the editor of Total Immersion: A Mikvah Anthology (Jason Aronson, 1996; Urim, 2006). Slonim and her husband, Rabbi Aaron Slonim, have been the shluchim of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, of blessed memory, to Binghamton, NY since 1985. Together they founded and direct the Chabad House Jewish Student Center at Binghamton University. Rivkah and Aaron Slonim are the parents of nine children.

Dr. Avivah Zornberg says that "bread and Fire" is an eloquent expression of contemporary Jewish women's spirituality..... Deeply felt and powerfully expressed, these essays should touch the hearts and minds of those who seek the sacred within the mundane."

Price: $29.00 Free Shipping. Ordering instructions: send an email to: Pomeranz@netmedia.net.il. Please include in your order, your name, address and phone number. For your security, Pomeranz Bookseller will call you for your credit card details.

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