Beth Israel

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High Holy Days Service Times for 5785 (2024)

High Holy Day services at Beth Israel are led by Cantor Leon Litvack, and are open to all. Tickets are not required. If you would like to become a member, or make a donation in support of the congregation, please click here. Thank you!

Erev Yom Kippur: Kol Nidrei – Friday, October 11th from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. 

Yom Kippur morning service inc. Yizkor – Saturday, October 12th from 9:30 a.m. – 1 p.m.; Memorial plaque dedication after services. The Board has decided that
a prayer for Israel will be offered before the Torah service at approx. 10:15 a.m. If you prefer to come afterwards to enjoy the rest of the service, you are most welcome.

     Beth Israel Children’s Circle: 10am-noon, including story time, paint love rocks and create decorations for community break-the-fast

Yom Kippur afternoon – Discussion on Jewish attitudes to organ donation, led by Cantor Leon Litvack and Dr Dan Houpt (4:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.)

Ne’ilah 4:30 – 7:15 p.m., followed by community potluck breaking of the fast

Community potluck Breaking of the Fast: Following Services, we will gather for a communal meal. RSVP (appreciated!) here.

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October 7th Memorial Event

Friends of Israel invite all who share our grief to gather in honour of the hostages who remain in captivity and participate in sharing readings, reflections, poems and songs on Monday, October 7th at 7pm. Please click here to RSVP; confirmation of the location will be sent to those who register. We look forward to gathering with you to observe this difficult anniversary together.

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Beth Israel Membership for 5785: Renew! Apply!

Enquiring minds want to know: Where is my Membership Renewal Letter? How much are my Dues? Membership renewal notices will go out via email presently. To APPLY for or RENEW your membership for the 2024-25 year, please complete the complete this form. If renewing and none of your information has changed and you just want to send in your dues, please see the membership dues form and remit payment by Thursday, October 31st to remain a member in good standing. Information on how to pay is conveniently included via all of the links above. 

Thank you for being part of Beth Israel Congregation!

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Beth Israel Book Club: RSVP for Your Copy
The Beth Israel Book Club launches with The Art of Leaving: a memoir by Israeli-Canadian author Ayelet Tsabari, meeting Thursday, November 7th, 6:30-8pm. Thanks to the Library, we have 10 hard copies of the book. To reserve yours (first come, first served). RSVP here (for pick up at the Breaking of the Fast, Saturday, October 12th). Digital and paper copies available at the Peterborough Public Library. 

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Community Potluck Breaking of the Fast RSVP

Please join us for the wonderful annual Beth Israel Community Breaking of the Fast Potluck on Saturday, October 12 after services (around 7 pm). This is a kosher-style (vegetarian and fish) meal. All are welcome. Everyone is asked to please bring their dish Ready to Serve, with a list of all the ingredients. Please click here to RSVP. We are also looking for a handful of people to  help set up for approx 1 hour on Thursday, Oct 10th, and/or clean up following the meal. 

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Max Eisen Lecture on Holocaust Studies

You and yours are warmly invited to attend Trent University’s inaugural Max Eisen Lecture in Holocaust Studies, on Monday, September 23 at 7 p.m. at Market Hall Performing Arts Centre (140 Charlotte St., Peterborough). The Shattering of the Assumptive World: A Family Story will be presented by Dr. Peter Suedfeld, Dean and Professor Emeritus, University of British Columbia. This event is free and open to the public, but you are asked to pre-register here to attend. More information on Dr. Suedfeld and a lecture abstract can be found here. 

Lecture Abstract:

Two families, joined in marriage, lived as ordinary Hungarian citizens for several centuries. Their accustomed way of life changed drastically when in the 1940s the Holocaust focused on the Jews of Hungary. Over the next few years, they lost all rights, possessions, and protection from the state. Eventually, all younger men became slave labourers for the army; other family members were deported to concentration camps, mostly to Auschwitz, where many were murdered; and most of the rest were crammed into the ghetto. Peter, the sole child in both families, was hidden in an orphanage. The talk describes the diverse nature of their experiences and of how the survivors rebuilt their lives, with new homes, new work, and in some cases new families.

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As a Beth Israel member you are considered to be very special.  Find out more:

Why wait until September to become – or renew – your Membership in Beth Israel Congregation? All of the programming, communications, beautiful space, religious leadership, holocaust and anti-semitism education, community outreach, and security that Beth Israel provides as an expression of our vibrant, growing unique regional Jewish community are made possible by members. Members also get special rates for booking space at the shul, and a discount on community cemetery plots? For more information or to apply for membership in Beth Israel Congregation, click here (beta). Join now and receive an invitation to a special members-only conversation about our community on September 5.

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Annual Meeting & Dessert Party

In accordance with Beth Israel’s By Laws, notice is hereby given for the 2024 Annual General Meeting to be held on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 at 7 pm at Beth Israel, 775 Weller Street, Peterborough, Ontario. Voting members and guests will have the opportunity to receive updates on activities at the synagogue, receive the 2023-2024 Financial Statements and elect the Board of Directors for the coming year. The program will also include a presentation and discussion on the synagogue’s new Mission, Vision and Values Statement.
 
To add to the celebrations the Board is throwing a dessert party for attendees. All individuals who have paid their 2024 dues by June 25 shall be entitled to vote at the AGM. Nominations for Director positions close on June 11, 2024. Nominees/nominators must be voting members of Beth Israel. For details on the positions open and the nomination process, click here.
 
Come out and join in the celebration for another successful synagogue year!
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Nominations Now Open for Beth Israel Board of Directors

 
The Beth Israel Board of Directors Nominating Committee is now accepting Nominations from interested Voting Members (current members in good standing) to join the Beth Israel Board of Directors for the 2024-2026 term. There are 4 positions available for election – 3 directors (Mike Fox, Heather Pollock and Sandra Grainger) are seeking renewal for an additional 2 year term and there is 1 vacant director’s position. This is an excellent opportunity to help shape and guide the future direction of Beth Israel. The Board meets once a month and all Board members are expected to serve on at least one committee.
 

In accordance with Beth Israel’s By Law 6.2, 6.3 and 6.5, the Nominating Committee is now accepting Nominations from interested Voting Members (current paid members) to join the Beth Israel Board of Directors for the year 2024-2026. Nominations close on June 11. Nominations are not permitted from the floor of the AGM.

Criteria for Nominees

Nominees must be a Voting Member in good standing, not be an employee of the Congregation, not have an undischarged bankruptcy and be legally competent under the laws of Canada and its Provinces to conduct business and enter into contract.

About the Beth Israel Board

The Beth Israel Board of Directors is composed of 8 directors. They are responsible for holding regular meetings to deal with the business of Beth Israel Congregation, and appointing its executive officers (President, Vice President, Treasurer and Secretary). Board meetings may include governance and financial issues, oversight of committees and programming, and much more! The Board helps shape the future of our synagogue.

To Nominate Someone

Any two members may submit the name of a Voting Member for nomination to the Board. The nomination may be made via email to the Chair of the Nominating Committee, Mark Siegel president@jccpeterborough.com or by mail to: 775 Weller St., P.O. Box 144 Peterborough ON K9J 6Y7.

For information on the Annual General Meeting and Dessert Party, click here.

 
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Yom HaShoah Events

Learning about the Holocaust and Its Meaning Today

Below are a set of links to Yom HaShoah events of note for our local community. 

Online participation is possible. 

Click on the links below to reach the event or learning materials.Yom HaShoah Candles

Yizkor:  Our Commitment to Remember

6 million worlds extinguished.

6 million pairs of hands that could no longer be held

6 million lifetimes of stories that could no longer be told

We cannot undo these horrors

What we can do is honour

We honour 6 million worlds in our candle lighting

We honour 6 million worlds in our remembering

We honour 6 million worlds by saying Never Again

We honour by bearing witness, by teaching this difficult history to our children. We honour by asking:

Where is the seed of this hate?

How was it made to blossom?

How was this hate elected?

Who is feeding it today?

To every soul that perished in the Nazi Holocaust, Jewish, Roma, disabled, gay, trans, to the millions of universes we can no longer explore,

To each of you, we pledge: We will keep learning, we will keep teaching, we will keep speaking, we will keep thinking, we will keep loving, we will keep building relationships across difference

We refuse to believe that we are powerless against hate, we refuse to abandon faith in humanity, we refuse to take anything for granted. In your memory, in the shadow of 6 million worlds, We will do everything we can to make never again mean never again.