Ahavat Olam

Ahavat Olam Synagogue and Hamakom welcome everyone to join us outdoors in person for thoughtful, moving Kabbalat Shabbat evening prayers on August 27, 2021 at 7:00pm, mostly sung, much in Hebrew, some in English, some in the language of the heart and in the speech of the angels, followed by an Erev Shabbat picnic dinner. We will maintain physical distance, meeting at Locarno Beach, near Marine Drive and Sasamat Street (https://goo.gl/maps/RLkTCGxuyRLzXwhi9). Please bring your own picnic Shabbat dinner, and a blanket or chair to sit on. (Note the early start time: 7:00pm, *not* 7:30.) RSVP to cantorshira@gmail.com.

In order to keep us all as safe as possible from COVID-19:

• We ask that all attendees over age 12 be fully vaccinated.
• Please do not attend if you have had symptoms consistent with COVID-19, or have been diagnosed or in contact with someone with COVID-19, during the past 14 days. (Please see the BC Centre for Disease Control COVID-19 Self-isolation guidelines for more details: http://www.bccdc.ca/health-info/diseases-conditions/covid-19/self-isolation.)
• Please maintain physical isolation, staying at least 6 feet apart from anyone not in your household or bubble.
• Please bring a mask to wear while using the washrooms or in other restricted public spaces.
• Please bring your own food, and do not share food or beverages with others except those from your own household or bubble.

The Torah portion this week is Ki Tavo (Deuteronomy 26:1 – 29:8). It includes the lines we recite every year during the Passover Seder: “My father was a fugitive Aramean. He went down to Egypt with meagre numbers and sojourned there; and there he became a great and very populous nation….” It also contains some of the most terrifying curses to be found in all of Scripture: “The sky above your head will be copper and the earth beneath you iron. HaShem will give the rain of your land over to dust, and sand from the sky will descend on you until you are destroyed.” The juxtaposition of these passages, during this time of climate crisis and climate refugees, is startling. It reminds us, urgently, of our twin obligations to solidarity with the driven of this earth, and to probing, finding, and choosing ways to live in harmony with that beloved earth. I’m finding these words from Rabbi Robin Podolsky of T’ruah, the Rabbinic Call for Human Rights, helpful as I grapple with this portion: https://truah.org/resources/thirsty-for-justice/.

If you have questions, write to info@ahavat-olam.ca.

https://ahavat-olam.ca/event/shabbat-evening-august-27-2021/
https://www.facebook.com/events/270184527923156/