Spirituality Torah Portion/Synagogues Will This Be The Year We Get It Right? Shabbat Haazinu: Dueteronomy 32:1-52; Hosea 14:2-10; Micah 7: I 8 - 2 0; Joel 2:15-27 T his Shabbat is one of the most significant Shabbatot of the year. It is Shabbat Shuvah, the Shabbat of repentance. The Shabbat following Rosh Hashanah and preceding Yom Kippur features additional phrases in the liturgy that are said during the High Holiday period and a special haftorah beginning with the word Shuvah: "Return Israel, to your God." The Torah portion for this week consists mainly of a poem, a song of Moses, which looks back on the histo- ry of the people with all of its high points and low points. This is an appropriate reading for this Shabbat when we are in the midst of looking back and looking ahead and evaluat- Robert Dobrusin is rabbi of Beth Israel Congregation in Ann Arbor. ing our lives through the process of the Mishnah. teshuvah, repentance. I think that the double statement, There is an interesting teaching in "I will sin and repent; I will sin and the Mishnah regarding Yom Kippur. repent," refers to this year and next The Mishnah teaches: The person year. The Mishnah is referring to the who says, Echteh v'ashuv, echteh feeling we all occasionally have that v'ashuv, "I will sin and repent; I will we are trapped in an endless cycle of sin and repent," will not accomplish moving away and coming back, of repentance. making mistakes and repenting. There It seems that this text is saying that is a good side to this in that when we while Yom Kippur is on our conclude the process of calendar every year and teshuvah, we are in a better teshuvah is a given within place than we were before. Judaism, these should not be But, the fatalistic view that looked as giving us permis- we will never get out of this sion to sin during the year. cycle limits the power teshu- Obviously, we can't say, "I'll vah can have. do what I want now because I believe the Mishnah I can always repent." That wants us to see that for isn't the way repentance teshuvah to be successful works in Judaism. and meaningful, we can not Repentance is the way of RABBI ROBERT look beyond this year. We dealing with failings after the absolutely have to believe DOBRUSIN fact not as permission to act that this year we'll get it Special to the improperly in the first place. right. We have to believe Jewish News There may be, however, that this year our lives and another point that this state- the life of the world will ment from the Mishnah is m aking. reach perfection. We have to believe Note that the text speaks of a person that this is the year for redemption, who says these words twice. I think both personal and universal. that that fact is vital to understanding If we look down the road and "I think Shabbos candles are very important for every Jewish woman and girl because it is a time that you can pray for anything you desire. I like to pray for peace in the world and that the sick should get better." Bassie Rabin, 13, Oak Park To submit a candlelighting message, call Miriam Amzalak of the Lubavitch Women's Organization at (248) 548-6771 or e-mail: miriamarnzaIakl@juno.com CONSERVATIVE ADAT SHALOM SYNAGOGUE 29901 Middlebelt, Farmington Hills, 48334, (248) 851- 5100. Rabbis: Daniel Nevins, Herbert Yoskowitz, Rachel Lawson Shere. Rabbi emeritus: Efry Spectre. Cantor: Yesvey Gutman. Cantor emeritus: Larry Vieder. Services: Friday 6 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m., 7:30 p.m.; weekdays 7:30 a.m., 6 p.m.; Sunday 8:30 a.m. B'nai mitzvah of Sam Brickman, son of Risa and Bruce Brickman; Mathew Herman, son of Teri and Jeffrey Herman. AHAVAS ISRAEL (GRAND RAPIDS) 2727 Michigan St. SE, Grand Rapids, 49506-1297, (616) 949-2840. Rabbi: David J.B. Krishef. Cantor: Stuart R. Rapaport. Services: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, 7:30 a.m.; Friday, 7 p.m.; Saturday, 9:30 a.m. BEIT KODESH 80 CONGREGATION SHAAREY ZEDEK AGUDAS YISROEL MOGEN ABRAHAM Rabbis: Joseph H. Krakoff, Jonathan E. Berkun, Eric S. Yanoff. Rabbi emeritus: Irwin Groner. Cantor: Chaim Najman. Ritual director: Leonard Gutman. Southfield: 27375 Bell Road, Southfield, 48034, (248) 357-5544. Services: Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday 7:30 a.m.; Monday, Thursday 7:15 a.m.; daily 6 p.m.; Friday 6 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m., 8:15 p.m.; Sunday 8:30 a.m. CONGREGATION BETH SHALOM TEMPLE ISRAEL BETH TEPHILATH MOSES CONGREGATION BETH AHM 6800 Drake, West Bloomfield, 48322, (248) 788-0600. Rabbi: Elliot Pachter. Cantor: Earl Berris. Services: Friday 6 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m., 7:15 p.m.; Monday- Thursday 7 a.m., 6 p.m.; Friday 7 a.m.; Sunday and legal holidays 9 a.m.; Sunday 6 p.m. Haftorah, Mark Roth. Rosh Hashanah: Friday, 8:15 a.m., 6 p.m. Haftorah, Alan Pinter. G-5240 Calkins Road, Flint, 48532, (810) 732-6310. bi-monthly Shabbat dinner, services, kids' programs, family school and Hebrew school for all ages. West Bloomfield, B'nai Israel Center: 4200 Walnut Lake Road, West Bloomfield, 48323-2772, (248) 357- 5544. Services: Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday 7:15 a.m.; Monday, Thursday 7 a.m.; daily 6 p.m.; Friday 6 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m., 8:15 p.m.; Sunday 9 a.m. 14601 W. Lincoln, Oak Park, 48237, (248) 547-7970. Rabbi: David A. Nelson. Cantor: Samuel L. Greenbaum. Ritual director: Rev. Samuel Semp. Services: Friday 6 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m., 6:30 p.m.; Sunday 9 a.m., 5 p.m.; weekdays 7 a.m., 6:30 p.m. CONGREGATION B'NAI MOSHE ISAAC AGREE DOWNTOWN SYNAGOGUE 1457 Griswold, Detroit, 48226, (313) 961-9328. Conversations How can we truly make this year different? Chazan: Cantor Usher Adler. Baal Kriah: Rabbi Craig Allen. Cantorial soloist: Neil Barris. Ritual director: Dr. Martin Herman. President: Dr. Ellen Kahn. Services: Saturday 8:30 a.m. 2000 Washtenaw Ave., Ann Arbor, 48104, (734) 665- 9897. Rabbi: Robert Dobrusin. Services: Friday 6 p.m.; Saturday 9:30 a.m.; weekdays 7:30 p.m.; Sunday 5 p.m. 146 South Ave., Mt. Clemens, 48043, (810) 465-0641. Services: weekdays 7:15 a.m.; Saturday 10 a.m.; Sunday 8 a.m. BETH ISRAEL (FLINT) 9/17 BETH ISRAEL (ANN ARBOR) CONGREGATION 31840 W. Seven Mile, Livonia, (248) 477-8974. Cantor: David Gutman. President: Larry Stein. Vice presidents: Martin Diskin, Al Gittleman. Services: Friday 8 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m. 5075 W. Maple, West Bloomfield, 48322, (248) 851- 6880. Ritual director: Joseph Mermelstein. Rabbi emer- itus: A. Irving Schnipper. Cantor Emeritus: Shabtai Ackerman. Guest rabbi: Aaron Bergman. Visiting schol- ar: Dr. Howard Lupovitch. Services: Friday 6 p.m.; Saturday 9:30 a.m., 7 p.m.; weekdays 7 a.m., 7 p.m.; Sundays and civic holidays: 8:15 a.m., 5 p.m. 2004 Cantor emeritus: Sholom Kalib. President: Leonard Meizlish. Services: Saturday 9:30 a.m., 6 p.m.; week- days 7:30 a.m., 6 p.m.; Sunday and legal holidays 8 a.m., 6 p.m. lvriah religious school (810) 732-6312. assume we will be back doing teshu- vah next year, we are just trapped in an endless cycle of moving away and coming back, which, while it is cer- tainly better than other ways to con- ceive of life, is not the ideal. The ideal is to fulfill our potential as human beings and as a world and together return to the perfection of Eden. It may not happen this year. But, if we look ahead to next year and see nothing but sin and eventual repen- tance, we have succumbed to the cyn- icism that we can never reach what God truly intended for us. Moses looks back on the history of the people and sees disappointment. There may be little reason to believe that this year will be any different. But, at least, let's commit ourselves to taking one year at a time and hope that this year is the year that we have been praying for and waiting for. ❑ 2300 Center Ave., Bay City, 48708; (989) 893-7811. Cantor: Daniel Gale. President: Dr. Jonathan Abramson. Services: Saturday 9:30 a.m. A liberal, egalitarian con- gregation serving the tri-cities area. Religious and Hebrew education programs for children and adults. INDEPENDENT AHAVAT SHALOM 413 N. Division St., Traverse City, 49684, (231) 929- 4330. Rabbi: Chava (Stacie) Bahle. Weekly Shabbat cel- ebrations, holidays, year round programming, children's education. Summer programming for downstate visi- tors. ORTHODOX 15751 W. Lincoln, Southfield, 48075, (248) 552-1971. Rabbis: Dov Loketch, Asher Eisenberger. President: Irwin Cohen. ANN ARBOR CHABAD HOUSE 715 Hill St., Ann Arbor, 48104, (734) 995-3276. Rabbi: Aharon Goldstein. Services: Friday at sundown; Saturday 9:45 a.m., 20 min. before sundown; week- days 7:30 a.m.; Sunday 9 a.m. Times for weekdays and Sunday are for the academic year. ANN ARBOR ORTHODOX MINYAN 1429 Hill St., Ann Arbor, 48014. Rabbi: Rod Glogower. Services: Friday at sundown; Saturday 9:30 a.m. and 20 minutes before sundown; weekdays during the aca- demic year 7:30 a.m.; Sunday 9 a.m. BAIS CHABAD OF FARMINGTON HILLS 32000 Middlebelt, Farmington Hills, 48334, (248) 855- 2910. Rabbi: Chaim Bergstein. Services: Friday sun- down; Saturday 9:30 a.m.; Sunday 8:30 a.m.; week- days 6:50 a.m. BAIS CHABAD OF NORTH OAK PARK 15401 W. 10 Mile, Oak Park, 48237, (248) 872-8878. Rabbi: Shea Werner. GROSSE POINTE JEWISH COUNCIL BETH TEFILO EMANUEL TIKVAH (313) 882-6700. Rabbi: Nicholas Behrmann. Cantorial soloist: Bryant Frank. 24225 Greenfield, Southfield, 48075, (248) 559-5022. Rabbi: Yisroel Menachem Levin. JEWBILATION BIRMINGHAM BLOOMFIELD CHAI CENTER P.O. Box 130014, Ann Arbor, 48103, (734) 996-3524 or 995-1963. Rev. Lauren Zinn. Services: Friday 6:15, fol- lowing dinner. Jewish Roots with Interfaith Wings holds 37357 N. Woodward, Bloomfield Hills, 48304, (248) 203-6721. Services: Saturday 10 a.m.