Kol Beth El S H E VAT- N I S A N 5 7 7 9
FEB/MARCH/APRIL 2019
New Digital Library Brings NSSBE Teaching Content to Your Home By Rabbi Alex Freedman The world of Jewish learning has revolutionized itself in the digital age.
INSIDE THIS ISSUE Shabbat Schedule....................... 2 President’s Corner...................... 3 Notes from Hazzan..................... 4 Informal Education..................... 5 Pre-School Director..................... 5 Cultural & Learning Center........ 6 Development .............................. 7 Sisterhood.................................... 8 Sisterhood Gift Shop.................. 8 Men’s Club................................... 9 Bikur Cholim................................ 10 Ritual Director............................. 11 Beit Hamidrash Minyan............. 11 Religious School.......................... 12 Inclusion....................................... 12 Youth Community....................... 13 Communications......................... 14 Hamentashen Orders................. 15 Passover Supplement................. 16 Todah Rabbah............................. 18 All in the Beth El Family.............. 24 Social Action................................ 25 February Calendar ..................... 26 March Calendar .......................... 27 April Calendar.............................. 28 More Recent Happenings.......... 29 Events at a Glance....................... 30 B’nai Mitzvah............................... 32
North Suburban Synagogue Beth El 1175 N. Sheridan Road Highland Park, IL 60035 (847) 432-8900 www.nssbethel.org
Then: One needed books upon books to access the troves of Jewish knowledge. Now: One needs only a computer or smartphone to explore the full panoply of Jewish texts. Then: One had to understand Hebrew (and Aramaic) to unlock Jewish legal texts like Talmud.
ever before, and NSSBE is continually seeking to meet people’s needs. Why search for instructions from unfamiliar rabbis and teachers when congregants have relationships with their home team? To date, our Communications Director Abby Lasky, has produced stand-alone videos featuring our clergy and teaching staff on the topics of: Tisha B’Av, Talking Teshuvah from a car wash, and Rosh HaShanah Seder (together, about 1000 views!).
The next step is to build “bookshelves” in this digital library, which are groups of videos connected by a theme. Our first group will be Then: One had “Shabbat at to physically Home,” which travel to Beth El is a series of or another place instructional to access rabbis, videos explaincantors, and ing the whys teachers. and hows of Now: Technology celebrating a enables the Beth traditional El content to Friday night come to you, at Shabbat at home or work. home: overview, lighting https://www.nssbethel.org/learn/video-library/ For all the above candles, reasons, NSSBE singing Shalom Aleichem, blessing the is excited to unveil our own digital library. children, chanting Kiddush, washing Technology permits us to deliver our hands, reciting HaMotzi, singing Birkat teaching content to every member on HaMazon. I host the series and invite diftheir own schedule. So that’s what we’ve ferent guests to teach about the different been doing behind the scenes. aspects in their own ways. Don’t worry, Hazzan Tisser does the singing instead To date, our efforts have taken three of me! Check out our Shabbat at Home forms: collection at: https://www.nssbethel.org/ 1. Video library - People access learn/video-library/. We envision other information from short videos more than Now: Quality English translations are available in print and/or online for nearly every text.
continued on page 15
FEBRUARY/MARCH/APRIL 2019 | KOL BETH EL | 1