THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

Synagogue

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United Synagogue Official
Guest of Beth Shalom

Services

ADAT SHALOM SYNAGOGUE: Servi6es 6 p.m. today
and 9 a.m. Saturday. Rachel Charlip and Amy Berke,
Bnot Mitzva.
CONG. BNAI ISRAEL: Services 8:30 a.m. Saturday. An-
drew Weiner, Bar Mitzva.
DOWNTOWN SYNAGOGUE: Services 8 a.m. Saturday.
Rabbi Gamze will speak on "The Element of Joy in
Faith."
TEMPLE EMANU-EL: Services 8:15 p.m. today. The
Adult Choir will perform "Avodat Hakodesh," the sac-
red service by Ernest Bloch.
TEMPLE ISRAEL: Services 8 p.m. today. Rabbi Syme,
Rabbi Loss and Cantor Orbach will deliver a multi-
media sermon on "Purim at the Zoo." Dana Harris and
Andrea Sherman, Bnot Mitzva. Services 11 a.m.
Saturday. David Schrott and Jason Cooper, Bnai
Mitzva.
TEMPLE KOL AMI: Services 10:30 a.m. Saturday. Rabbi
Conrad will speak on "Time for Celebration." Michael
Adler, Bar Mitzva.
LIVONIA JEWISH CONGREGATION: Services 8 p.m.
today. Rabbi Gordon will speak on "Don't Take Survi-
val for Granted." Services 9 a.m. Saturday.
CONG. SHAAREY ZEDEK: Services 6 p.m. today and
8:45 a.m. Saturday. Marc Lofman, Bar Mitzva.
CONG. T'CHIYAH: Services 10 a.m. Saturday, conducted
by Drs. Marilyn and Ron Poland.

.

Regular services will be held at Cong. Bais Chabad of
Farmington Hills, Cong. Bais Chabad of West Bloomfield,
Cong. Beth Abraham Hillel Moses, Cong. Beth Achim,
Temple Beth El, Cong. Beth Isaac of Trenton, Temple Beth
Jacob, Cong. Beth Shalom, Cong. Beth Tefilo Emanuel
Tikvah, Cong. Beth Tephilath Moses of Mt.Clemens, Bir-
mingham Temple, Cong. Bnai David, Cong. Bnai Israel-
Beth Yehudah, Cong. Bnai Jacob, Cong. Bnai Moshe, Cong.
Bnai Zion, Cong. Dovid Ben Nuchim, Cong. Mishkan Israel
Nusach H'Ari, Sephardic Community of Greater De-
troit, Cong. Shaarey Shomayim (Jewish Center Jimmy
Prentis Morris Branch), Cong. Shomrey Emunah, Cong.
Shomrey Israel (18995 Schaefer), Cong. Solel, Young Israel
of Greenfield, Young Israel of Oak-Woods and Young Israel
of Southfield.

Zvi Gitelman to Deliver
Bnai David 'Politics' Talk

Dr. Zvi Gitelman, profes-
sor of political science, Uni-
versity of Michigan, will
speak on "The Final Di-
vorce: Soviet Jews and the
Regime" 11 a.m. March 29
at Cong. Bnai David.
Prof. Gitelman is an in-
ternationally known expert
on Russian and East Euro-
pean politics and has pub-
lished extensively on the
problems of Soviet Jewry.
He will appear for the Bnai

Seminary Cites
Ex-Detroiter

Rabbi Stanley Gordon,
the son of Rabbi and Mrs.
James I. Gordon of Oak
ark, will be among those
..ionored at the trienniel
semikha convocation of the
Rabbi Isaac Elhanan
Theological Seminary of
Yeshiva University next
week.
The younger Rabbi Gor-
don attended Beth Yehuda
Schools in Detroit and was
graduated from the Hebrew
Theological College in
Skokie, Ill. He studied in Is-
rael at Yeshivat Hakotel
and Yeshivat Itri.
Upon return to the
United States, he entered
Touro College where he re-
ceived a BA degree. He
earned a MA degree in
Jewish studies from the
Bernard Revel Graduate
School of Yeshiva Univer-
sity and was ordained at the
Rabbi Isaac Elhanan
Theological Seminary of
Yeshiva University in 1978.

Rabbi Benjamin Z.
Kreitman, executive vice
president of the United
Synagogue of America, will
be the scholar-in-residence
for Cong. Beth Shalom's.
Encounter Weekend March
27-28.
Theme of Rabbi Kreit-
man's talks will be "Can
Judaism Survive in an
Open Democratic Society'?"
He will speak 8:30 p.m.
March 27, and at 9 a.m. and
6 p.m. services and at
Shalosh Seudot March 28.
Rabbi Kreitman is the
rabbi emeritus of Cong.
Shaare Torah of Flatbush,
N.Y., and the consultant to
the World Council of
Synagogues. He was or-
dained at the Jewish
Theological Seminary, did
graduate work at Yale Uni-
versity in philosophy and
Semitics and earned a Doc-
tor of Hebrew Literature
degree from the seminary in
rabbinic law.
He had been the chair-
man of the Committee on
Law and Standards of the
Rabbinical Assembly,
was the first rabbi to be
appointed to the New
York City Board of
Health and was president

Bnai Moshe
Reunion for
College Students

Rabbi Stanley M. Rosen-
baum, Cantor Louis Klein
and representatives of
Cong. Bnai Moshe invite all
University of Michigan and
Eastern Michigan Univer-
sity area students from
Bnai Moshe to join them as
their guests for a reunion
dinner and get-together at
the Bnai Brith Hillel Foun-
dation at U-M, 1429 Hill,
Ann Arbor, at 5:30 p.m.
March 29.
For information and
reservations, call the
synagogue office, 548-9000.

'Friday, March 20, 1981 29

A STRAIGHT ANSWER

Why Is G-D's Name Not Mentioned In The Megillah?

RABBI KREITMAN

of the Association of
Jewish Chaplains of the
Armed Forces. He also
was visiting professor at
Brooklyn College and at
the seminary.
The public is invited free
of charge. The weekend is
sponsored by the Chomsky
Family in memory of Max
Chomsky.

Choir to Sing
Work by Bloch

The adult choir of Temple
Emanu-E1 will perform
"Avodat Hakodesh," the
sacred service by Ernest
Bloch, 8:15 p.m. today in the
temple.
Cantor Norman Rose will
direct the choir, accom-
panied on the organ by Mar-
jorie Grulich. Davis Gloff, a
member of the choir, will be
the cantorial soloist.

One of the most interesting curiosities about the
Megillah of Esther is the complete absence of G-d's
name. Throughout the ages, scholars have dealt with
this obviously intentional omission.
Rabbi Avrohom Ibn Ezra .(1089-1164), in his
commentary, explained that the omission was the
result of historical factors. The Megillah was in-
cluded, according to his interpretation, as part of the
official records of the kingdom. Mordechai, the prin-
ciple author of the Megillah (Esther 9.20), was con-
cerned that the Persians might later substitute the
name of a pagan deity for that of G-d.
Rabbi Isaac Halevi (d. 1917), probably our
foremost Jewish Historian, maintained that the
omission was due to Halachic considerations. Accord-
ing to the Talmud (Rosh Hashana 18b), the name of
G-d should not be written in a document that may be
discarded after use. Since the main body of tlAe Megil-
lah was originally sent in the form of a letter (Esther
9.20), G-d's name was left out.
According to the Vilna Gaon (1720-1797), the
uniqueness of the "miracle" of Purim is that none of
the laws of nature were circumvented. G-d guided its
action and directed its ultimate course while seem-
ingly uninvolved. In fact, Purim is not only a com-
memoration of an incident which took place twenty-
five hundreds years ago, but it is an indication of how
G-d plays a subtle but decisive role in all our lives.
The events of Purim occurred after the destruc-
tion of our first Temple. During our galuth (disper-
sion) amidst the cosmopolitan empires of Babylon
and Persia, there was great pressure to conform to a
non-Jewish society (Megillah 15). G-d dealt with us
in a manner which was to become symbolic of His
relationship with us in our current galuth.
Today, our society often speaks of G-d's nonexis-
tence, but the "miracle" of our survival clearly tes-
tifies that only G-d's name is hidden.

IF YOU HAVE A QUESTION, CALL

THE RABBI OR HIS WIFE AFTER-
7 Pm. AT 968-1268

11 Community Service Of The Kollel Institute

In honor of the
most auspicious
day in the life
of the Jewish
boy and girl---

Rabbis Conduct
Study Sessions

DR. GITFLMAN

David series of lectures
"Political Concerns of the
American Jewish Commu-
nity."
The series is sponsored by
the Bnai David Cultural
Commission. The public is
invited free of charge.

Purim Dinner
at Bnai David

Cong. Bnai David Sister-
hood and Men's Club will
hold a Purim family dinner
party 6 p.m. Sunday in the
synagogue.
Traditional refreshments
will be served, and
entertainment will high-
light the evening. All are
welcome.
For reservations, call
Bernard Maness, 557-6269:
or Norma Gealer, 557-2516.

Leads Services

Dr. Irving Freedman will
lead Sabbath services 8 p.m.
today at Franklin Club
Apts.

Rabbi James I. Gordon
and Rabbi Feive] Wagner
will conduct a special insti-
tute covering the Birkas
Hahama 8 p.m. March 30 at
Young Israel of Greenfield.
A session on the special
laws related to Shabat erev
Pesach will be held 8 p.m.
April 6 at Young Israel of
Oak-Woods. Rabbis Gordon
and Wagner will conduct
the session.

Men's Shabat
at Beth Achim

Beth Achim Men's Club
members will participate in
Men's Club Shabat services
March 28.
President Dave Goldis
has appointed Leslie
Hubert as chairman. A spe-
cial kidush will follow the
service.

Lecture Slated

"The Superiority of Sci-
ence" will be the topic of a
lecture to be given by Rabbi
Sherwin Wine 8:30 p.m.
Monday in the Birmingham
Temple. The public is in-
vited at a charge.

AT
THE J
MITZVAH
BOOK
with certificate attesting to the

Inscription of the Honoree in the Sefer
Bar Mitzvah in Jerusalem

A superbly illustrated volume to be treasured forever containing
descriptions of the traditional ritual objects, a survey of great
figures in Jewish History, a story of Zionism in
A Beautiful Gift
America, an account of how JNF transformed the
land, and a chronicle of Jewish culture and heritage

'36

CALL THE

JEWISH NATIONAL FUND

27308 SOUTHFIELD ROAD SOUTHFIELD, MICH. 48076

PHONE 557-6644