Congregation Beit Simchat Torah

Celebrate at the Jewish Veg Hanukkah party, hosted by CRRF Deborah Megdal, including songs and storytelling! Bring your hanukkiah and your vegan latkes and gather around our virtual table for a bright and festive evening. Find out why the Maccabees were vegetarian, sing along to old favorites, and share what motivates you to stay dedicated to veg living. You’re invited! Hosted by Visiting Rabbinic Scholar Deborah Megdal, joined by Rabbi Eli Soiefer, Ariel Pulver, and Cantor J...uval Porat. Lights and Latkes: A Jewish Veg Hanukkah Party Sunday, December 13 at 5-6 PM EST Click here to register: https://bit.ly/jewishveg13dec

Mussar Meditations Series (#44): Rabbi Moskowitz teaches Path of the Just by Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto, also known as the Ramchal. These 15-minute sessions meet every day except Saturday. https://www.sefaria.org/Messilat_Yesharim.1

(#7) Mussar Meditations Series: Rabbi Moskowitz teaches Path of the Just by Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto, also known as the Ramchal. These 15-minute sessions meet every day except Saturday. https://www.sefaria.org/Messilat_Yesharim%2C_Introduction

In honor of Chanukah, we feature the CBST Community Chorus and Ba’alei T’filah David Fair and Julia Ostrov, singing two well-known holiday songs, in an excerpt from CBST’s 2019 Shabbat Chanukah service. The words for the first selection, Al Hanisim (arr. by Elliott Levine), form the opening for a special prayer that is inserted into the Amidah for Chanukah, Purim, (and LGBTQ+ Pride), as well as the Birkat Hamazon (the Grace after Meals). The words express our gratitude to God... for the miracles, redemption, mighty deeds and victories that God performed for our ancestors in past days at this time. The second piece, S'vivon (Dreidel) (arr. by Stephen Glass) is a joyous song about spinning the dreidel on Chanukah, and reminds us that this is a holiday of happiness for our people. It says, A great miracle happened there! Glass’ jazzy arrangement brings fresh life to this well-known children’s song.

CBST members are voting and getting out the vote! Marsha Melnick and Susan Meyer outside the post office in Warwick, New York, and inside with other folks taking part in Vote Forward's Big Send, holding trays of letters to voters. More than 1,200 letters went out! Simon Dratfield wrote postcards to voters from his home in the West Village (NYC).... In New York City, Sabrina Farber sent out the final 899 CBST Vote Forward letters. Liz Galst wrote 100 postcards to voters in Pennsylvania, Georgia, and Ohio. Noreen Dean Dresser (and Josie!) get ready to send out postcards to voters. Mazal tov to Marsha, Susan, Simon, Sabrina, Liz, and Dean! PHOTO CALL! We want to see your photos, too! We'd love to see: You and your "I Voted" sticker You dropping your ballot in the mailbox You outside (rather than inside) your polling location A photo that shows what you've been doing to encourage other voters E-MAIL YOUR VOTING PHOTOS TO US at [email protected]. We can't wait to see them!

CBST members are getting out the vote, writing postcards to Georgia voters to remind them to get out and vote on January 5, 2021, for the two open U.S. Senate seats from that state, which will determine the majority and minority parties in the U.S. Senate. A special thank you to the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism (RAC) for the postcards! https://bit.ly/racGApostcards "Exciting stuff for someone who's never done this before," Mark Meyerhoff said. "Loved doing it!" M...erryl Soloway wrote postcards to Georgia voters to remind them to get out and vote on January 5, 2021. "Mailing 60 postcards today!" Simon Dratfield said. Marsh Melnick and Susan Meyer wrote postcards to Georgia voters. Gail Winter wrote postcards to Georgia voters with her dog, Charlie, by her side. Dean Dresser wrote postcards to Georgia voters. Sara Sloan wrote postcards to Georgia voters. Meryl Meisler wrote postcards to Georgia voters.

(#6) Mussar Meditations Series: Rabbi Moskowitz teaches Path of the Just by Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto, also known as the Ramchal. These 15-minute sessions meet every day except Saturday. https://www.sefaria.org/Messilat_Yesharim%2C_Introduction

Mussar Meditations Series (#43): Rabbi Moskowitz teaches Path of the Just by Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto, also known as the Ramchal. These 15-minute sessions meet every day except Saturday. https://www.sefaria.org/Messilat_Yesharim.1

October 24 / 6 Cheshvan - Shabbat Shalom! Please join at 9:30am Ba’al Tefillah: Cantorial Intern Sam Rosen, Service Leader: Rabbi Yael Rapport, D’var Torah: Cooperberg-Rittmaster Rabbinical Intern Dave Yedid for Shabbat Service on Zoom https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86279874061. The Siddur can be downloaded at https://bit.ly/Kol-Haneshamah Please include your full name to admitted into the service. If you need help logging-in you can text 646-450-3556 for immediate assistance.

October 23 / 6 Cheshvan -- Shabbat Shalom! Please join us for Kabbalat Shabbat services with Cantorial Intern Sam Rosen, Music Director Joyce Rosenzweig, Rabbi Yael Rapport, and Cooperberg-Rittmaster Rabbinical Fellow Deborah Megdal. Follow along with our program at bit.ly/ProgramOct23 and our prayerbook at bit.ly/SiddurFridayNight. We strongly encourage you to only read the siddur pages online. If you print out the pages, you cannot throw them out because they contain the He...brew name of God, and they will need to be disposed of properly in the Genizah (repository for documents that contain the sacred name) when we reopen the synagogue. Through a gift from a generous donor, we are now offering purchase of the CBST Friday Night Prayerbook at a reduced price here. We hope to see you tomorrow for Shabbat Morning Liberal Minyan at 9:30 am via Zoom. Like our livestream? Given the coronavirus, our livestreaming is more vital than ever in keeping our community tight-knit and vibrant. Livestreaming costs around $2,000 per week, which was not an originally budgeted expense so if you want to sponsor a service to help us continue to hold Shabbat services and other programming during this challenging time, it’s a great mitzvah! You can sponsor the livestream in honor or in memory of someone you love. To contribute and make it possible for CBST to continue livestreaming, click: bit.ly/CBSTLivestream

Early voting in New York starts Sat, Oct 24, and ends Sun, Nov 1. Your early voting location is generally NOT your regular voting location, and hours are shorter and vary by day. (For example, some days are 7am to 3pm, 10am to 4pm, or noon to 8pm.) Make your voting plan today! Click here to find your early voting location and hours: https://findmypollsite.vote.nyc

We look forward to being in community with you tonight for Kabbalat Shabbat services

(#5) Mussar Meditations Series: Rabbi Moskowitz teaches Path of the Just by Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto, also known as the Ramchal. These 15-minute sessions meet every day except Saturday. https://www.sefaria.org/Messilat_Yesharim%2C_Introduction

In these challenging times, we show up for each other with an open heart and loving presence. Join Cooperberg-Rittmaster Rabbinical Fellow Deborah Megdal for a short text study and discussion in small groups, as we transition into Shabbat. Newcomers and drop-ins always welcome! No registration required. Fridays, 3pm-4pm. Click here to learn more: http://bit.ly/cbstconnecting

(#4) Mussar Meditations Series: Rabbi Moskowitz teaches Path of the Just by Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto, also known as the Ramchal. These 15-minute sessions meet every day except Saturday. https://www.sefaria.org/Messilat_Yesharim%2C_Introduction

Pope Francis: "Homosexuals ... are children of God and have a right to a family. What we have to create is a civil union law. That way they are legally covered." From an interview in the documentary "Francesco", which premiered Wednesday at the Rome Film Festival. Same-sex civil unions began in Denmark in 1989. More than 30 years later, the Vatican is catching up to a concept that gained popularity in many developed democracies in the 1990s. Though we applaud the incremental step forward in justice and equality for LGBTQ couples, civil unions remain separate and unequal from marriage. We look forward to the day the Vatican sees LGBTQ couples, their love, and families, as equal to the love and families of heterosexuals.

THU, OCT 22 Join Keshet as Rabbi Moskowitz speaks on Allyship as a Spiritual Experience and Commitment. Rabbi Moskowitz is the Scholar-in-Residence for Trans and Queer Jewish Studies at Congregation Beit Simchat Torah, the world’s largest LGBTQ synagogue, and is a deeply traditional and radically progressive advocate for trans rights and LGBTQ equality. A visionary activist, scholar, and educator, Rabbi Moskowitz will be honored this November at Keshet’s fall online gala, O...UTstanding! 2020 for his work to advance LGBTQ equality in Jewish life. This online video conference is free. Please register in advance: http://bit.ly/keshet22oct Login information will be provided shortly before the start of the event.