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APRIL 2014NISAN 5774CONTENTSRABBI’SMESSAGE 1CANTOR’SCORNER 3PRESIDENT’SPERSPECTIVE 4CONGREGATIONALLEARNING 6PREPARING FORPESAH 8CALENDARS 11CONTRIBUTIONS 14UPCOMINGEVENTS 16COMMUNITY 20NEWSANNUAL FUND 22Visit us on line at:bethambaltimore.organd now you can:USONfacebook.com/BethAmBaltimoreRABBI’S MESSAGEIsrael Anyone?Rabbi Daniel Cotzin BurgEvery Shabbat morning, we chant the following words just beforeShema: “V’havianu l’shalom me’arba kanfot ha’aretz may Goddraw us together in peace from the four corners of the earth.Beth Am’s custom, like many other congregations, is to chantthese words to the music of Hatikvah. The liturgical moment issocially and theologically potent. We are part of a thousandsyear-old connection to the ancient land of our ancestors - EretzYisrael - and simultaneously bound to Medinat Yisrael, themodern manifestation of that ancient land and the fulfillment ofour ancient yearning.It has been said in many cultures, including our own, that onecannot truly know another until having had the experience ofanother. It’s equally true that one cannot begin to understand aplace until one has sampled her cuisine, walked her sidewalks,absorbed her language, grappled firsthand with her societalchallenges, navigated her forests or explored the ancient layersof civilization beneath her streets. Perhaps this is why one ofAbraham’s first tasks is to “walk the length and breadth of theland” which he and his progeny are about to inherit (Gen. 13:17).No less than a modern miracle enables us to do what the firstJew did approximately 4,000 years ago - to traverse and explorethe Land of Israel. In doing so, one cannot help but witness hertriumphs and struggles, her joy and sadness. And one discovers, ofcourse, that Israel is a living, breathing thing.learning, growingand adapting as she matures in her sixth decade. To know Israelis to go there, ideally again and again, the way we come back to alover or a friend.Rabbi cont’d on page 5

RabbiBETH AM BOARDOfficersPresident1st Vice President2nd Vice PresidentTreasurerSecretaryDaniel Cotzin BurgScott ZegerJulie GottliebAlyson BonavogliaAlan KopolowElaine WeissTrustees through 2014Betty ChemersJerry DoctrowEmily DemskyAshley PressmanStanding CommitteesAdult Ed ChairAdult Ed Co-ChairFinance ChairFinance Co-ChairHouse ChairKiddush ChairMembership ChairMembership Co-ChairReligious Services ChairSocial Action ChairSocial Action Co-ChairYouth Education ChairElaine WeissCarla RosenthalAlan KopolowJoe WolfsonSam PolakoffMeg HymanSharon NathansonRobin KatcoffJoe WolfsonArthur ShulmanJackie DonowitzDavid LunkenAd Hoc CommitteesTrustees through 2016Annual Fund Honorary Chair Gil SandlerAnnual Fund ChairEliza FellerAnnual Fund Co-ChairJim JacobsBalt. Jewish Council Rep.Ben RosenbergBeth Am ConnectionJoanne KatzRisa JampelBAYITT Co-ChairBrian RossBAYITT Co-ChairErica AllenCongregant to Congregant Joyce KeatingEutaw PlaceEllen Kahan ZagerJack ZagerIn, For and OfLisa AkchinMaggi GainesMarketing ChairEllen SpokesOperations Co-ChairAshley PressmanOperations Co-ChairDavid DemskyPast PresidentCy SmithPast PresidentJack LapidesRHIC Rep.Carol ShulmanHonorary Life MemberLainy LeBow-SachsHonorary Life MemberEfrem PottsOffice HoursAfter hours office phone numbers:Trustees through 2015Eliza FellerCheri LevinDavid LunkenLynn SassinNeil KahnCindy ParadiesDesiree RobinsonJim SchwartzTuesday-Thursday: 9:00-4:00Friday: 9:00-3:00Phone:Tel: 410.523.2446Fax: 410.523.1729Extentions:Rabbi Burg - 14Rabbi Gludt - 15Henry Feller, Exec. Dir. - 20Linda Small, Coordinator - 12Ralph Shaver - Finance Assoc. -18Norm Weinstein, Bookkeeper - 17Marsha Blank, Educator - 16Gail Wohlmuth, Admin. Spec. - 21Nakia Davis, Admin. Assist. - 11Valerie Tracy, Marketing - 10E-mail:Email: nakia@bethambaltimore.orgWeb site: www.bethambaltimore.org2Rabbi Daniel Cotzin Burg443.202.0912 (cell) (emergencies only, please)or ravdaniel@bethambaltimore.orgCantor Ira Greenstein443.759.7807 (home)cantor.ira@gmail.comRabbi Kelley Gludt, Director ofCongregational Learning520.248.9541 (cell)rabbikelley@bethambaltimore.orgScott L. Zeger, Board President410.868.7761scott.zeger@gmail.comIn case of an emergency, please contact:Henry Feller execdir@bethambaltimore.orgExecutive Director 410.602.2124 (home)

CANTOR’S CORNERChad GadyaCantor Ira GreensteinTowards the end of a Passover Seder,children of all ages like to sing thecumulative song Chad Gadya (One LittleKid). It is one of several such songs whereineach verse builds on the one before. Butunlike the other favorite Echad Mi Yodei’a(Who Knows One), Chad Gadya is writtenin (or translated into) Aramaic. There areseveral ways to see this allegorical little ditty,details of which I personally only learned asan adult.The musicologist A.Z. Idelsohn notedthat the oldest print version is found in1590 in Prague, but we also know thatthis song was used in the Southern Frenchcommunities of Provence, and has beenpart of the Ashkenazic, Oriental-Sephardic,and Baghdad rituals. It dates back at least asfar as the 13th century. This is not uniquelyJewish and Passover-related, though forexample, there are similar “nursery” songsin France, Bosnia, Spain, and Germany. Thetheme crosses cultures and centuries.Chad Gadya is a mini-history lesson. In abrief tiptoe through Internet sources andmy personal bookshelf, there are numerousvaried renditions of what the “victims” ofthe song might mean. The Father seems tobe consistently God, but did He buy theKid or sell it? There are two versions, bothof which I have seen in recent Hagaddahrenditions: the word dizvan in someHagaddot means bought, while the dizabenin other sources means sold. Given themateriel below, let’s go with buying.“My father bought for 2 zuzim”: Idelsohnnotes that David paid 24 zuzim total forthe Temple place, collecting 2 zuzim fromeach tribe. The Vilna Gaon interpreted thatthe 2 zuzim were the bread and stew thatJacob paid Esau for the birthright given byIsaac, and then beginning with the Fatherbeing Jacob, goes through the “victims”as Egypt, Moses’ staff, idolatry, and so on.Perhaps most logical (and my preference) isthat God “bought” the Israelites with twotablets at Mount Sinai. The more commoninterpretation of rest of the allegoricalreferences goes like this:One Kid the Temple or the JewishpeopleThe Cat Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonianking who destroyed the Temple and exiledthe Jews (in one early version, this was adog rather than a cat)The Dog Cyrus, the Persian king whoconquered Babylonia and allowed the Jewsto return and rebuild the TempleThe Stick Alexander the Great, theGreek / Macedonian leader who subduedPersiaThe Fire The Maccabees, who werevictorious over the GreeksThe Water Rome, which destroyed thesecond Temple and crushed the Jewishpeople againCantor cont’d on page 53

PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVEIn Like a Lamb, Out Like a LionScott ZegerThis March - in like a lion - has been anaverage of 19 F colder than the long-termaverage. It is a hard end to a long Baltimorewinter. At Beth Am Shabbat services,Yahrzeit lists are longer than usual reflectingthe toll of winters’ past. Our congregationlost many special members or relativesthis winter. May their memories serve asa blessing to their loved ones in the yearsahead.Last month I wrote about Beth Am’s B’naiMitzvah, when a family worships withthe congregation in celebration of theirdaughter’s or son’s acceptance of adultstanding as a Jew. Beth Am’s ritual practiceat the end of life imparts similar meaning.While each of our member’s deaths hasaffected the lives of many, permit me tobriefly mention two recent end-of-lifeevents as representative of them all.Within one week in January, 2014, theFeller family lost its beloved Blancheand the Freeman family lost a Baltimoreoriginal in John. For each family, Beth Am’sclergy, staff, and members created a lovingspace in which mourning could begin.Two hundred people assembled at BethAm when the Feller family returned fromBlanche’s Monticello funeral for a memorialservice in our social hall. As Rabbi Burg soinsightfully recognized on that occasion,Blanche would have been proud of the loveand support the membership feels for itsExecutive Director and his family.4John Freeman’s funeral at Sol Levinson’sassembled a diverse audience of extendedfamily, Beth Am congregants, colleaguesfrom Johns Hopkins, and people from themany families whose lives John touched.The attendees were regaled with stories ofJohn’s clinical prowess and of his love of agood wager by his sons by Ron Peterson,Johns Hopkins Hospital President. Atthe Freeman shiva house, I went upstairsto hang our coats. The hallway was filledwith photographic portraits of Elaine onher wedding day. She was such a beautifulbride, tears formed in my eyes. And now,when I see Elaine at a Beth Am Shabbat, Isee her with new eyes, touched by her otherrelationships with her family, so apparent inthe ceremonies surrounding John’s passing.Births, B’nai Mitzvah, weddings, andfunerals are life events which delineate anindividual’s life and its influence on family,friends and community. They contributeto strengthening our social fabric. Judaism,as practiced at Beth Am, is the fabric thatbinds us as a nurturing community. MayBeth Am provide a home for all suchevents, celebrations and recollections, forthe next 40 years as it has for the past 40.And about March - out like a lamb.

Rabbi Burg cont’dWhich brings me to the pitch: Nextcalendar year, I hope to lead my secondBeth Am mission to Israel. I’ve beenworking with a tour company boasting agreat deal of experience and an excellentreputation. Together we’ve developed anitinerary we believe will be of interest toadults of any age and perhaps teens aswell – one that combines some “mustsees” with newer and different experiencesfor veterans, the cultural with thepolitical, spiritual and educational. Thelikely dates for the trip are:February 11-22, 2015. Right now weare trying to gauge interest. If you thinkit possible or likely you will join mefor this trip, please send me an email atravdaniel@bethambaltimore.org as soonas possible. I will be happy to put you intouch with “alumni” from last year’s tripif you want feedback on their experiencesand I’m hoping we’ll have some returnersas well.Cantor cont’dThe Ox the Saracens, who conqueredPalestineThe Slaughterers the Crusaders who recaptured the land (in one version, this was arope that tied up the ox)Angel of Death the Turks, who becamerulers over Palestine (in that earlier version,this was a mouse that ate through the rope,which was in turn eaten by a cat) theTurks would also fit best given the timeframe in which it is thought the song wasincorporated into the Seder.The Holy One God, who will save theJews and Israel (thus bringing us back tothe Kid).Of course, for the children in the house,it’s simply a fun song and it’s NOT fun toanalyze it too much. But as adults who readthis column, there is much to appreciate.L’shana haba’ah birushalyim!Next Year in Jerusalem!Welcome Ralph Shaver!Beth Am welcomes ournew Finance Associate,Ralph Shaver. Ralph will beassuming accounting and auditresponsibilities from long-termvolunteer, Efrem Potts.Email:ralph@bethambaltimore.org5