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Bet Alef’s 2nd Annual Phone-a-Thon

March 12, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Happening Now!

 You spoke and the Board listened! Rather than spending enormous volunteer time creating an auction or other fundraising event, the consensus at last year’s community meeting was that a phone-a-thon fundraiser was the easiest and most direct way to raise the additional monies needed to meet our annual budget.

Your additional gift to Bet Alef will help your spiritual community thrive, and continue to be a place for you to connect with others seeking to learn, grow, and live conscious lives of wholeness, joy and celebration.

Our amazing community exists ‘for you’ and ‘because of you’. There’s no one else to pick up the slack…We need everyone’s participation and energy.

Our goal is $10,000, so please, when you receive your call, give generously to YOUR Community. Here are some examples of what your donation could support:
$3000…insurance for one year
$1200…sponsor one Shabbat service at Unity
$ 800…our accountant for 4 months
$ 500…music for one Shabbat service at Unity
$ 135…light and sound for one Shabbat service at Unity
$ 50…phone bill per month

Every single gift makes a difference. We are very grateful for your continued support.

You can send a check to Bet Alef Meditative Synagogue P.O. Box 50201, Bellevue, 98015 or donate online below.

 

 

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Torah Reflections: March 4 – 10, 2012

March 9, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Parashah (portion) Ki Tissa – When You Lift Up The People  
Exodus 30:11 – 34:35

The holy day of Purim is this Thursday. The main commandment that our tradition calls us to fulfill on Purim is that of reading the relatively short tale recounted in the Book of Esther. Purim is also known to be a day of great rejoicing; of carnival where people wear costumes and masks, and engage in raucous partying that includes a certain level of inebriation. But one of the more wholesome components of this unique holiday is that of gift giving. With the somewhat happy ending of the Book of Esther, we read: “Therefore the Jews of the villages, that dwelt in the unwalled towns, made the 14th day of the month of Adar a day of gladness and feasting, a holiday, and of sending portions (mishloach manot) to one another.” Excerpted from the text, this “mishloach manot,” this “sending of portions,” has been transformed by our rabbis into a holiday tradition which consists mainly of sending gifts of food to friends and members of the community, as well as to the poor. Our rabbis teach that the Jews of the Book of Esther, in their celebration and gift giving, were responding to the accusation leveled against them by Haman –the evil Jew-hating character in the story– when he castigated them for being “a scattered and divided nation.” Our sending each other gifts, in contradistinction, both demonstrates and reinforces how united we are as a community. It brings peace and harmony within our walls, as our gifts are an expression of our love and care for each other.
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Torah Reflections February 26 – March 3, 2012

March 2, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Parashah (portion) Mishpatim – You Are The Eternal One  
Exodus 27:20 – 30:10

This week’s Torah portion speaks of the ordination of Aaron and his sons into the priesthood. Ornate garments are designed by the artists among the people for the ceremony, sewn together and decorated with gold, precious stones and colorful fabrics. In all, the celebration lasts for a week, throughout which sacrifices are made and a special altar is built at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, in the Presence of the Eternal.

For there I will meet with you, and there I will speak with you, and there I will meet with the Children of Israel, and it shall be sanctified by My Presence. I will sanctify the Tent of Meeting and the altar, and I will consecrate Aaron and his sons to serve me as priests. I will dwell amidst the Children of Israel and I will be God for them, and they may know that I am the Eternal One their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt to dwell in their midst. I am the Eternal One their God. [Exod. 29:42-46]

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Presenting: The New Bet Alef Worship Service Booklet

March 2, 2012 By 2 Comments

Rabbi Olivier has compiled a new worship booklet for our Shabbat services.  This booklet will debut and make its inaugural performance at our March 16 Meditative Services at Unity.  We are excited to give you a sneak peak (see below) of this booklet.

 

Download (PDF, 289.89KB)

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Torah Reflections: February 12 – 18, 2012

February 17, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Parashah (portion) Mishpatim – Our Highest Spiritual Principles    
Exodus 21:1 – 24:18

When a person’s ox injures a neighbor’s ox and it dies, they shall sell the live ox and divide its price; they shall also divide the dead animal. If, however, it is known that the ox was in the habit of goring, and its owner has failed to guard it, that person must restore ox for ox, and [the neighbor] shall keep the dead animal. [Exod. 21:35-36]

These verses follow the chapter containing the Revelation at Sinai and are part of what the rabbis call the Book of the Covenant, detailing the first rules derived from the Ten Commandments. Though taken at the literal level, these rules might appear antiquated and no longer relevant to our post-modern lives (who among us owns an ox anymore?); they are, at a deeper level, far more than simple rules and legislations.
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Compassionate Listening…Healing the World from the Inside Out

February 17, 2012 By 1 Comment

Compassionate Listening…Healing the World from the Inside Out

Taught by Andrea Cohen

The Sh’ma calls us to a deeper listening; a listening that reaches beyond our words to the One Silence that is at the source of Being. The V’ahavta invites us to love; to love with our whole self the One Who manifests as all that is. Our tradition teaches us that the two are intimately connected. Listening is an act of intimacy; a place where we are able to open ourselves to the other’s truth non-judgmentally, and stand in the other’s presence with greater compassion and understanding. Listening is, indeed, the key that unlocks the gates of love.

Compassionate Listening is a practice that seeks to fling these gates wide open for us. Its powerful tools help transform the energy of conflict into opportunities for understanding, intimacy, and healthy relationships in families, the workplace and in our community. It is a practice that provides a road-map to cultivating the wisdom of the heart as the key to real peace “from the inside out.”

Explore the some of the Core Practices of Compassionate Listening, of deep Sh’ma-ing, and learn the skills necessary to bring them into your daily life:

  • Holding Compassion for Oneself and Others
  • Suspending Judgment
  • Maintaining Balance in the Heat of Conflict
  • Listening with the Heart
  • Speaking from the Heart

Andrea Cohen, M.A., M.S.W., is a Certified Compassionate Listening Facilitator and Senior Trainer. She is author of Practicing the Art of Compassionate Listening and a former Bet Alef member.

Please contact Shellie if you are interested in the Tuesday series beginning in April–or the possibility of a one or two day workshop. Location will be determined based upon participants.

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Torah Reflections: February 5 – 11, 2012

February 11, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Parashah (portion) Yitro – One With The One  
Exodus 18:1 – 20:23

Now Moses went up to God. The Eternal One called to him from the mountain, saying, “Thus shall you say to the house of Jacob and declare to the children of Israel: ‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Me. Now then, if you hear, deeply hear My voice, and keep My covenant, you will be to Me a special treasure among all peoples, for all the earth is Mine. You shall be a kingdom of priests, a holy nation’. These are the words that you shall speak to the children of Israel.” [Exod. 19:3-6]

Thus begins chapter 19 in the book of Exodus, the chapter leading up to the Ten Commandments and Revelation at Sinai. Moving beyond the literal level, I read this chapter as a transmission of a spiritual encounter couched in the literary form of myth. Though the words of Revelation meet us in the next chapter, chapter 19 describes the moment of awakening.

These early verses might, therefore, detail the initial meditation from which the unfolding chaotic, awesome and terrifying vision unfolds. “Moses,” the “house of Jacob,” as well as “the children of Israel,” represent different layers of consciousness being addressed here. Our inner Moses, the always already enlightened part of self, is the one to ascend and channel this transmission. The “house of Jacob” represents the level of ego consciousness, while the “children of Israel” the more spiritually inclined aspects of consciousness.[1]
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Torah Reflections: January 29 – February 4, 2012

February 3, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Parashah (portion) B’shalach – At The Edge of The Wilderness 
Exodus 13:17 – 19:16

Our Torah portion opens with liberation: “Now when Pharaoh let the people go…” [Exod. 13:17] As we approach biblical stories as myth, we no longer read the text literally; but see it, instead, as the expression of a universal spiritual unfolding. To us, therefore, our text speaks here of our inner Pharaoh-the voice of fear and exclusion within. This inner Pharaoh is finally releasing the grip that perpetuated the illusion of our separate sense of identity. In this first step on the spiritual journey, a spark of light enters into our consciousness that illuminates for us the darkness in which we had forgotten we live, having become numbingly habituated to it. Once the spark is perceived, once the tiniest flash of light has come through, there is no turning back, try as we may.

In the biblical myth, we learn, two paths are laid in front of us; a direct path to the Promised Land of enlightenment and a more circuitous path: “God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although it was nearer; for God said, ‘The people may have a change of heart when they see war, and return to Egypt.’ So God led the people round about, by way of the wilderness at the Sea of Reeds.” [Exod. 13:17-18] Our mystics teach, arguably, that in the early stages of one’s spiritual journey, the direct path might not be the preferred one for it is fraught with inner “battles” that could overwhelm one who is unprepared, causing him/her to abandon the journey altogether. Alternatively, this have been a warning directed at those who, even in biblical days, might have been tempted to shortcut the journey by using mind-altering substances, and ran the risk of not only hurting themselves physically, but also psychologically ill-equipped as one might be to face the inner demons one might awaken in the process.
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Torah Reflections: January 22 – 28, 2012

January 26, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Parashah (portion) Bo – God Acts in Wondrous Ways 
Exodus 10:1 – 13:16

Our Torah portion opens, this week, with the last four plagues to befall Egypt. “Then the Eternal One said to Moses, ‘Go to Pharaoh. For I have hardened his heart… so that I may display My signs among them, and that you may recount… how I made a mockery of the Egyptians and how I displayed My signs among them–in order that you may know that I am the Eternal’.” [Exod. 10:1-2] The Hebrew doesn’t actually speak of plagues but of signs, wonders, miracles or signals. These signs are out-of-the-ordinary events in nature that are meant to trigger a reaction of awe in the hearts of the Israelites. Awe was what God intended for us to feel in the great display of God’s might; for us to know the Divine Presence in our world in unmistakable ways.

Last week–at least for those of us living in Western Washington–we, too, were faced with an “out-of-the-ordinary” event in nature: snow. Though some experienced this record-setting snowfall as a plague, many saw it as a wondrous occasion. Because it is so rare, snow has a great power in our region: it quiets things down. Snow slows everything down to a quasi standstill. Snow does on the outside what meditation does on the inside. When it snows in Seattle, there is nowhere to go and nothing to do. We retreat inward, we Shabbat. We cozy up on the couch with a hot beverage, we grab a good book, dust off a few board games. Suddenly we have time for a few minutes of meditation. We hit the reset button. We reflect on what is most meaningful in our lives. We look out the window in awe of the beauty of our natural world; we look at the people in our lives in awe of the love we share. Snow does for us what Moses was trying to do with Pharaoh: open his heart.

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Torah Reflections: January 15 – 21, 2012

January 19, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Parashah (portion) VaEira – Know Thyself To Be Enslaved 
Exodus 6:2 – 9:35

Every year, as I meet the text narrating the plagues of Egypt, I am confronted with the same paradox. God commends Moses to ask Pharaoh to free the Hebrews. Pharaoh refuses. God brings down a plague. Pharaoh yields to Moses’ demands. Then, inexplicably, God hardens Pharaoh’s heart and the latter, consequently, reverses his edict and keeps the Israelites enslaved. Why is God playing both sides? And why does God need to replay this scene ten times? One can take this questioning further and ask why God sets up the whole thing in the first place? Why, already in the time of Abraham, had God determined that the Hebrews would descend into Egypt, be enslaved there for four hundred years, only to then be liberated and brought to the Promised Land? Why did we have to get there via Egypt?
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