the NEW BEAUTYREST ®

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On DOC,

BY

How we answer this question
shapes the character of our
existence.
When a person believes he
has lost mastery over his life,
he has abdicated his moral
power. From a Jewish
perspective as well as a
psychological point of view,
timidity is a worse sin than
chutzpah.
The person who believes he
is helpless has made himself
helpless. He who has declared
he can do nothing has created
a self-fulfilling prophecy, or
even worse, a self-justifying
prognosis.
The Yiddish term for fate is
bashert. Those who misinter-
pret this concept have written
their own prescription for
failure. We should say bashert
only after the fact. The stu-
dent who begins the semester
with the attitude that he has
no influence over his
academic achievement will
fail. A husband and wife who
take a detached view of their
marriage, uncertain as to
whether they will be joyful or
miserable, will have an
unhappy and unfulfilled rela-
tionship. The businessman
who forfeits all initiative
because the market forces are
not under his control already
has begun his journey into
bankruptcy.
Where does the truth lie?
Are we driving or are we
driven; are we the masters of
our fate or its subjects?
Judaism, in the fulness of its
wisdom, declares that both
positions are true, with each
side having a legitimate
claim. Man is both strong and
weak, powerful and helpless.
Much of his life is beyond his
control, but a margin of
freedom is available to each of
us. Within that slice of life
which is ours, we are judged.
This is where our humanity
is tested and our responsibili-
ty as Jews is measured.
Judaism articulates this
polarity of man's
powerlessness and his moral
strength with greatest inten-
sity on the High Holy Days.
Our prayers contrast the
power and glory of God with
the weakness, confusion and
fragility of human existence.
But that same tradition
issues the bold statement
that "when the righteous per-
son issues a decree, the
Almighty carries it out?'
If we want to achieve our
moral purpose with all our
heart and soul, God will help
us exercise that will. This
helps explain the miracle of

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Jewish survival, which we af-
firm this week of Chanukah.
It was not fate that has
enabled us to endure and
create as a people, despite the
oppression and cruelty to
which we were subjected. We
lived by commitments that
were so strong and compell-
ing that the persecution of
our enemies and the hostili-
ty of our environment could
not break our spirit.
Therefore, we are challeng
ed to discover the area of
freedom in which to make our
moral choices, to shape deci-
sions uniquely our own and to
demonstrate that we are the
masters of our destiny. 0

B'nai Moshe Sets
Family Retreat

Congregation B'nai Moshe
will hold its second annual
family weekend retreat at the
Butzel Conference Center in
Ortonville Jan. 12-14. There
is a fee, which covers lodging
in private rooms with bath,
kosher meals and programs
for children and adults.
Programs will include out-
door sports, toddler activities,
Friday evening oneg, Shabbat
services, singing, dancing and
story-telling. These activitie
will be conducted by staff in
conjunction with Jewish Ex-
periences For Families Fresh
Air Society personnel.
Group child care will be pro-
vided. Some night-time
coverage will be available. For
information, call the
synagogue, 548-9000.

Party Planning
Showcase Is Set

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TELEGRAPH AT 12 MILE I I I I MON., THURS., FRI. 'TIL 8:30
TUES., WED., AT. 'TIL 5:30
356-2222

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Temple Beth El Sisterhood
will hold its Party Planning
Showcase 10 a.m. Feb. 4.
Forty-three exhibitors, in-
cluding party planners, room
decorators, florists, caterers,
confectioners, stationers,
photographers, limousine and
valet services will be on hand.

Specializing in
Knit Separates .. .
That take you anywhere,
Anytime

Mon: Fri. 10-4 • Sat. 10-3

29107 Northwestern Hwy.
Southfield, Michigan

Sisterhood Has
Study Series

Adat Shalom Sisterhood
will sponsor a three-part
study series with Rabbis Efry
Spectre and Elliot Pachter 1
p.m. Jan. 9, 16 and 23.
Classes will be based on
Back To The Sources: A
Survey of Classical Jewish
Texts. There is a charge for
the textbook.
Those interested in par-
ticipating should contact
Sylvia Starkman, study series
chairman, 642-4249.

SIMMOWS

3 5 8-408 5

CECI ORMAN JEWELRY
855-5580

14 Mile & Farmington Rd. •

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Thursday

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9:30 a.m.-7 p.m.

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THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

55