Dear Congregation Beth Israel members and friends,

The verdant beauty of Berkshire summer is upon us. The hills are spectacular in their new green cloaks. The pollinator garden at CBI is bright and blooming. During "no-mow May" I watched as wildflowers sprung up all over our lawn and butterflies danced from one to the next. Sometimes I feel a little bit sorry for everyone whose synagogue and environs aren't as beautiful as ours are. We are in a really stunning place. It still sometimes takes my breath away.

And there can be cognitive dissonance between the beauty of the natural world around us, and the news we watch or read or hear on the radio. As I write these words, war continues in Ukraine. Families in Buffalo and Uvalde are still burying their dead. Even close to home the headlines can be grim. Violence touches our country too. Costs are rising, and the pandemic continues even though all of us wish that it were over. Many are struggling.

Judaism offers us tools for navigating that cognitive dissonance. One of them is gratitude practice. Aspiring to say 100 blessings each day is a mindfulness practice that reminds us of how good it is to be alive. Saying modah ani upon waking, and pausing for gratitude with the bedtime shema, help us bookend our days with presence and sweetness. These are small things, but practiced regularly, they really make a difference. I know this because I feel it when I fall out of these habits.

There's a story about Rabbi Simcha Bunim who kept two slips of paper in his pockets. One read, "For my sake was the world created." The other said, "I am but dust and ashes." Judaism calls us to balance those truths. We mustn't close our eyes to the reality that our lives are finite, and the lives of others are finite... but neither should we close our eyes to the reality that life can be extraordinarily beautiful, and we were placed in this world in order to savor and sanctify its sweetness.

We can't pretend away what's broken. (That would be bypassing — using the facade of spiritual life as an excuse to avoid facing what hurts.) Our tradition calls us to always be striving to repair the world. And as I taught at services one morning recently, if we say a blessing and then don't do the action associated with it, the blessing is considered "nullified" — an empty, even sinful, act. We can't just pray for a better world; we have to build one, with our own hands and hearts and care.

And Judaism invites us to find reasons to rejoice even as we build. "To life, to life, l'chaim," as the song from Fiddler on the Roof reminds us. "Life has a way of confusing us, blessing and bruising us" — so we raise our glasses to life, and we dance! I think often about Jews who lived a hundred years ago, a thousand years ago, two thousand years ago. The difficult things unfolding didn't keep them from living and loving, learning and praying. As for them, so for us.

May the start of glorious Berkshire summer bring you sweetness. May you find opportunities to walk our meditation labyrinth, watch the butterflies in our pollinator garden, and marvel at the beauty of this place where we live. And may you be blessed to hold that gratitude alongside readiness to face what needs mending in our world, and to do whatever small thing you can do today to bring repair. As our sages remind us, that task isn't ours to finish, but neither may we refrain from beginning it.

Blessings to all,

— Rabbi Rachel

Dear Congregants and Friends,

Our congregation is growing and now exceeds 100 families. I think that it is due to our warm, welcoming community as well as our growing list of events and activities. Young families won’t want to miss the “Family Walk in the Woods” coming in late June. Everyone is welcome at our outdoor summer Shabbat services where we can join prayer and nature.

I’d like to extend a warm welcome to our newest members, Ziva Larson and Barbara Feder Mindel, who recently joined the CBI community!

Ziva Larson lives in Adams and is eager to share their interest and skills in chanting Torah, music and dance, liturgy, and Hebrew. We are pleased that Ziva has agreed to lead some of our Shabbat Services when our regular service leaders are not available. Ziva and Rabbi Rachel also plan to co-lead two Kabbalat Shabbat services this summer, one in June and one in July.

Barbara Mindel was born and raised in North Adams and now lives in Poughkeepsie, NY. Her family has a long history at CBI and she is looking forward to reconnecting with our community. When you see new faces at services and events, in person and on Zoom, please introduce yourself.

We welcome the youngest member of our community — Ori Max Kol, born April 5 to Shira Sternberg Kol and Kfir Kol. Ori and his one year old sister, Zoë Barr Kol, were given their Hebrew names (Ori Kol and Puah Barr Kol, respectively) in a joyous ceremony a week ago, led by Rabbi Jarah Greenfield. We wish Shira, Kfir, and their children (including Maple, age 3) much joy in the years ahead. We also extend a hearty mazel tov to Maisie Lentzner, her parents Nina and Joel Lentzner and her family, on her recent bat mitzvah.

With days rapidly warming, we look forward to more outdoor services and events, weather permitting. Our Adult Programming Committee is hard at work developing a robust schedule of events, including the Family Stories Workshop (on Zoom) on June 9 and the CBI Book Club, led by Suzanne Levy Graver, launching on Zoom on June 15. I hope you’ll join us!

Our programming for young families continues with our “Family Walk in the Woods” on June 26 (time to be determined). I hope you’ll also join us at Jewish Federation’s “Get the Scoop... Community Day at High Lawn Farms” on Sunday, June 12 from 2pm to 4pm — it’ll be fun for all ages.

Rabbi Rachel and I are involved in a wonderful interfaith collaboration with Erin Keiser-Clark, Youth Minister at St. John’s Episcopal Church and Anne O’Connor, Director of Family Engagement at the First Congregational Church of Williamstown. Together we are conducting a 3-session after school program called “Caring for Our Earth and Each Other” for children in kindergarten through grade 3. Sessions rotate between the three religious spaces and each has a community service component. The children will be at CBI on June 15 and will tour our sanctuary, see an open Torah, walk the labyrinth, and make tote bags to welcome children newly immigrating to this area.

Please continue to check our weekly CBI Announcements, as well as the CBI website, for the latest information on services and programs. Wishing all of you a wonderful summer.

Warmly,

— Natalie Matus

Saturday, June 4, 8pm: Shavuot Evening Services on Zoom
We’ll celebrate the revelation of Torah with learning, song, poetry, and more! As we did at Tu BiShvat and Pesach, we’ll join together with Temple Beth El of City Island and Rabbi David Markus for a joint festival celebration online via TBE’s Zoom room. We’ll begin at 8pm with Festival Ma’ariv (evening prayer) featuring some beautiful melodies we don’t usually hear and the joyful psalms of Hallel. After the service, we’ll segue into Tikkun Leyl Shavuot (late-night learning) at 9pm, themed around doorways, liminal moments, and opening ourselves to transformation and revelation. Please note that this service will be held on Zoom only.

TBE's Zoom Room: https://zoom.us/j/801261043?pwd=SHowL0NMTzNyRTBYY0VycysrdmhLdz09
Meeting ID: 801 261 043
Passcode: 374415

Thursday, June 9, 7pm: Family Stories Workshop
Do you have memories of family members and events that you treasure? Would you like to capture them in a meaningful way? This free workshop, presented over Zoom by Janice Dexter-Ganek, will introduce you to ways to preserve your family stories through recording, writing, photography, and art. Janice — a writing specialist at Bryant University and member of Congregation Agudas Achim in Attleboro, MA — will present ideas that you can build on in any direction that interests you. Please bring to the workshop three meaningful photographs, three objects connected to your family memories, and a list of five or six memories about people or events. Janice’s goal is to gently guide the workshop, open up more avenues to travel, and encourage group members to share their ideas — though sharing your ideas is not required. Please RSVP via our website if you wish to participate; you will receive the Zoom link next week. A second workshop to follow up on these activities will be available if there is sufficient interest.

Saturday, June 11, 9:30am: Multi-Access Shabbat Morning Service
Multi-access Shabbat morning service will be held at 9:30am. All are welcome to join us onsite, but you must RSVP via our website if you plan on attending. Singing will be permitted, so please bring a mask to wear during service. (Please note that we will not be holding a kiddush / oneg at this time.) Service will still be available online for those who wish to participate on Zoom; those joining digitally are invited to get a digital copy of the siddur, available as a free flipbook at the publisher’s website, or as a Kindle download for your Kindle, phone, tablet, or computer.

Sunday, June 12, 2pm: Journey Into Judaism Zoom Class
CBI's Journey Into Judaism class will meet over Zoom.

Wednesday, June 15, 7:30pm: CBI Book Group
Are you interested in having lively discussions of outstanding books of Jewish interest? Join us over Zoom for the inaugural meeting of CBI’s new Book Group, led by Suzanne Levy Graver, CBI member & Emerita Professor of English Literature at Williams College. For this initial meeting, we will dive right into a discussion of Molly Antipol’s "The Old World," a wonderful short story dramatizing a search for identity and meaning that begins in a Brooklyn dry-cleaning store and ends on a lonely honeymoon in Kyiv. Among the questions we will ponder are "what is this story’s effect?" and "how does the author achieve it?" We will start to draft a future reading list at this first meeting and welcome your suggestions. Please RSVP online if you plan to attend; a Zoom link will be sent out to participants before the meeting.

Friday, June 17, 7pm: Multi-Access Kabbalat Shabbat Service
Multi-access Kabbalat Shabbat service will be held at 7pm. All are welcome to join us onsite, but you must RSVP and wear a mask if you plan on attending. We'll start our services by blessing candles, so be sure to have candles and matches or a lighter on hand if you wish to participate over Zoom!

Saturday, June 25, 9:30am: Multi-Access Shabbat Morning Service
Multi-access Shabbat morning service will be held at 9:30am. All are welcome to join us onsite, but you must RSVP via our website if you plan on attending. Singing will be permitted, so please bring a mask to wear during service. (Please note that we will not be holding a kiddush / oneg at this time.) Service will still be available online for those who wish to participate on Zoom; those joining digitally are invited to get a digital copy of the siddur, available as a free flipbook at the publisher’s website, or as a Kindle download for your Kindle, phone, tablet, or computer.

Sunday, June 26 (Time TBD): Family Walk in the Woods
Join CBI teacher Jane Shiyah for a guided walk in the woods and trails surrounding the Clark Art Institute. Observe nature and talk about the beauty of G-d’s creations in these beautiful surroundings. Gather twigs, leaves, flowers, and other natural materials to make mandalas on the ground when we stop for refreshments. RSVPs and masks are required; we will send you instructions about where to meet up once the date gets closer. Please bring snacks and water for your family and something portable to sit on.

Sunday, June 26, 2pm: Journey Into Judaism Zoom Class
CBI's Journey Into Judaism class will meet over Zoom.

Saturday, July 2, 9:30am: Multi-Access Shabbat Morning Service
Multi-access Shabbat morning service will be held at 9:30am. All are welcome to join us onsite, but you must RSVP via our website if you plan on attending. Singing will be permitted, so please bring a mask to wear during service. (Please note that we will not be holding a kiddush / oneg at this time.) Service will still be available online for those who wish to participate on Zoom; those joining digitally are invited to get a digital copy of the siddur, available as a free flipbook at the publisher’s website, or as a Kindle download for your Kindle, phone, tablet, or computer.

Shabbat & Havdalah Times

If you want to light Shabbat candles and make havdalah at the halakhically-accepted times, the times for the upcoming month can be found below:

June 3 light at 8:07pm (18 minutes before sundown)
June 4 (Erev Shavuot) light at 9:08pm
June 5 (Shavuot I) light at 9:09pm
June 6 (Shavuot II) havdalah at 9:09pm (42 minutes after sundown)

June 10 light at 8:11pm
June 11 havdalah at 9:12pm

June 17 light at 8:14pm
June 18 havdalah at 9:15pm

June 24 light at 8:16pm
June 25 havdalah at 9:17pm

July 1 light at 8:16pm
July 2 havdalah at 9:16pm

If it is your practice to light candles at a different hour of the day (perhaps not quite so early as halakha indicates during the winter, and not quite so late as halakha indicates during the summer), that's also a legitimate Reform Jewish choice. What's most important is that you're finding a way to incorporate Shabbat into your life!