Chayei Sarah, the parasha whose name literally means, “the life of Sarah,” immediately tells us that Sarah dies. Death has changed a great deal over these thousands of years. I don’t just mean burial practices. I also mean the way we die. We might ask ourselves, did Sarah have any advanced directives? Did she have a health care proxy? Things have changed. We rely on hospice for palliative care and we are also asked to consider organ donation. The Torah did not take place in a context where any of that was possible. So we look to greater concepts and values to help guide us. Rabbi David Golinkin, Law Committee Chairman of the CJLS states: “It is not merely permissible for a Jew to bequeath his organs for transplantation following his death; it is a Mitzvah for him to do so, in order to save one life, or several lives.” Most of us cannot think of a time when organ donation took place in the Torah, but I recently came across one example and it takes place right at the beginning with Adam and Eve. How did Eve come into being? Adam donated a rib to allow her to live (Genesis 2:20-30)! While this is a bit of a stretch, it’s one that breaks the ice about a challenging topic, the donation of our organs to allow another to live. Research shows that more than 90 percent of New Yorkers support organ donation, but only 30 percent are registered. [1] This tells us that there is a lot of work to do on encouraging organ donation in our community. This Shabbat is National Donation Sabbath for LiveOn NY, an organization the educates the population about organ donation. I bring this to our community in hopes that you will designate yourself as a donor to allow another person to live. We read in Deuteronomy 30:15-20 “Choose life so that you and your descendants may live.” I believe that organ donation is a way in which we can choose life even in the toughest of situations.
Shabbat shalom, Rabbi Bernstein
Mazal Tov
Mazel Tov to the Zuckerman family on the occasion of Jack becoming Bar Mitzvah
Services
Kabbalat Shabbat Service Friday, Nov. 10, 8:00 PM Nosh & Drash Saturday, Nov. 11, 9:00 AM
Shabbat Service Saturday, Nov. 11, 9:45 AM Minyan Sunday, Nov. 12, 9:00 AM Minyan Monday, November 13, 6:30 AM Minyan Monday, Nov. 13, 8:00 PM requested by Roberta Ackerman in memory of her stepfather Bernard Derwitzky Minyan Tuesday, Nov. 14, 8:00 PM requested by Fran Firouzan & Sheila Bashkoff in memory of their father, Rubin Goldmark Minyan Wednesday, Nov. 15, 8:00 PM requested by Iris Astrof in memory of her mother, Shirley Mindlin Minyan November 16, 6:30 AM
Special Shabbat Services TONIGHT Tot Shabbat 6:30pm TONIGHT Shabbat Lounge 7:00pm sponsored by Keith and Kimberli Black Junior Congregation Saturday, Nov. 18, December 2, 9, 10:00 AM Family Kabbalat Shabbat Service Friday, December 1, 6:30 PM
Hebrew School Mitzvah
In the spirit of “Tikkun olam ”, Hebrew for “repairing the world”, our wonderful Herbert Jacobson Hebrew School donated 50 desks and office furniture to an organization called Vilbrun Community Research Center (VCRC) . VCRC is a non-profit organization offering direct assistance to schools in Haiti hit by natural disasters. Our donation is going directly to a school in Haiti.
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Affiliated with United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism