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The New Shul

Parshat Tzav/Shabbat Hagadol

This week’s parashah, Tzav, begins with the laws of theolah, the whole burnt offering that was sacrificed twice daily when the Temple stood. When the priests removed the ashes of the olah from the altar, they were not permitted to dispose of them just anywhere. They had to bring them to a place that was ritually pure.  Even the ashes remained holy.

Rabbi Yaakov of Ishbitza explained that those ashes are a metaphor for people who seem to have no spark of holiness left burning in them.  No matter how far from God we drift, the possibility of return is always there.  As images of God, we have a holiness that never leaves us.  We must never give up on the possibility that the embers can re-ignite.

A true spiritual community is a place where even those who feel farthest from God can find a home, and perhaps renew the spark of holiness inside them.  As we look toward Pesah, our season of rebirth, may we always trust in our potential for renewal.

  • Shabbat services at The New Shul are on Friday evenings from 6 to 7 pm, and on Saturday mornings from 9 am to 12 noon. The kiddush-lunch this Shabbat, March 28, is sponsored by Valerie and Adam Brodsky.
  • Childcare is available from 10 am to noon on Shabbat mornings. Our learning service for pre-K to grade 2 is from 11 to 11:45 am.
  • Minyanim at The New Shul during the week are on Sunday mornings at 9:30 am, Monday evenings at 7 pm, Wednesday mornings at 7:00 am, and Wednesday evenings at 7 pm.
  • Services for the first days of Pesah are on Friday evening April 3 at 6 pm, Saturday morning April 4 at 9 am, and Sunday morning April 5 at 9 am. The kiddush-lunch on the first day of Pesah, Saturday April 4, is sponsored by Youssef Zohar in memory of his mother.
  • Services for the last days of Pesah are on Friday morning April 10 at 9 am, Friday evening April 10 at 6 pm, and Saturday morning April 11 at 9 am. The service for the eighth day, Saturday April 11, will include Yizkor, the memorial prayer.
  • Please note that there will be no e-bulletin for the next two weeks.  The next bulletin will be sent on April 16.