From Rabbi Ostrich:

If Elizabeth Barrett Browning were ever looking in the mirror on Rosh Hashanah, she might have said something like, "How can I fix thee?

Let me count the ways." Fixing is certainly the theme of the day, and we are bidden to take a close look at ourselves and resolve to do better. Are our goals good goals? Are we investing enough of ourselves in our aspirations? Are we making progress in mastering life?

Some see the Teshuvah (Repetance) process in terms of a Divine Parent inspecting us and holding us accountable, while others look at it in more humanistic terms. But regardless of the imagery, we are urged to look within and work on ourselves.

We are each a complex combination of motivations and aspirations.

Each of us has often behaved admirably, and yet each of us has too frequently fallen short of the goal. There is much for us to celebrate, but there is also much for which we should be ashamed.

The Hebrew word for repair is tikkun, and we often hear it in regard to Tikkun Olam, the Repair of the World. Modern social activists speak of Tikkun Olam in terms of freeing the captive, feeding the hungry, and healing the sick, but the term goes back to the Kabbalistic teachings of the ARI, Rabbi Isaac Luria. He saw God and God's world in a state of injury, and he taught that every act of piety or compassion can help in the healing that God and the world need. Each prayer uttered, each act of justice or generosity, each mitzvah performed, each attitude improved: these are the many categories of tikkun which he saw as leading to a healing of the Divine.

In the Hassidic world, the term tikkun (here pronounced TICK un) refers to a kind of spiritual therapy that the rebbe prescribes for his hassidim. This course of correction/repentance was designed to fix the inner flaw.

Some may remember the famous story about the gossiping hassid whose rebbe told him to open up a feather pillow and place a single feather on every doorstoop in the village. When the hassid returned, the rebbe then instructed him to go back, gather all the feathers, and replace them in the pillow case. Trying unsuccessfully to complete this tikkun, the exhausted hassid reported that the feathers had all blown away. That's the problem with gossip," the rebbe taught. "What is said here travels far away, and there is no way to take it back."

The tikkun, in this case, took place in the man's heart and mind: the next time he considered the delectability of gossip, he would hopefully remember the feathers blowing all through the town.

We too are blessed with advisers who can help us with a tikkun for our various flaws. Parents can help-as can siblings or spouses or friends. Bosses sometimes turn on the heat, and rabbis and counselors are available too. Sometimes the moment of realization just comes to us when we least expect it. Moral and spiritual truths have ways of working into the consciousness and presenting us with the corrective measures we really ought to pursue.

Let us open our hearts and our souls to the good advice that is provided us. We are all in need of tikkun, and the time for awareness and action is now. L'shanah Tovah Tikateivu! May you be written for a good year in the Book of Life.

From Joy Vincent-Killian, President

Happy New Year 5770

On Behalf of Congregation Brit Shalom's board of trustees and the professional staff, it is with greatest pleasure that I wish you all a New Year of blessing for you, your loved ones, and our Jewish people. May Elohai, the Holy One, lead us all in straight and honorable paths. The calendar of Jewish life is full of feasts and fasts, historic memories, and sacred experiences. At no time during the year is our experience of Judaism as meaningful as it is during the Days of Awe... the Aseret Y'mei T'shuvah...the Ten Days of Repentance beginning with Rosh Hashanah and culminating with Yom Kippur. Issues of faith and belief, identity and affiliation, and commitment and practice take on a greater urgency, more so at this time than at other times during the year and at other seasons our calendar. During the New Year of 5770, renew yourself with renewed involvement at Brit Shalom. You will find new friends as you bring your commitment to strengthen our Jewish community.

This spring, I attended the Union for Reform Judaism's Scheidt Seminar with 100 other presidents. For four days we prayed, studied, and discussed synagogue issues together. Most congregations shared the same challenges regardless of size. I participated with peers struggling with the current dramatic economic changes and seeking to create solutions. Most presidents personally paid their own expenses to attend. What can we, as a synagogue community, offer our members to enrich their spiritual lives and to engage their involvement? In the next year we will see new some of the ideas in membership and programming that were successful at other congregations.

Your attendance at services and participation in programming is an opportunity to meet other members and cultivate community. Here are some recommendations:

Tamar London, new chair of Programming, is planning a year of activities for all ages. She has a growing committee. You will see fresh programs and exciting events and you can be a part of the committee. Email her tamar@londonwolfe.comor call 861-4360 to volunteer.

Jennifer Norton, new chair of Membership, welcomes the opportunity to call or meet with prospective members and discuss Brit Shalom's warm community. Know someone who should be a member? Email Jenn at jsn4@psu.eduor call 867-5370. Our synagogue's strength lies within the diversity of our families of all ages and all stages of life.

Bennett Hoffman, chair of Social Action, organizes g'milut chasdim (deeds of loving kindness) in our community. From the annual Mitzvah Day to blood drives for the Red Cross, and Operation Snowflake, when Brit Shalom members volunteer at Mount Nittany Medical Center on Christian holidays, the Social Action team has a large, fun committee doing meaningful work. Email Bennett bhoffman@teamworks2002.comor call to join 867-3280.

Each year Brit Shalom's general operating budget depends on donations from the Kol Nidre Appeal. Your generous donation during the upcoming appeal will sustain our ability to serve you, your family, and the Jewish community in central Pennsylvania. The Kol Nidre Appeal is a 12-month pledge that provides support beyond your membership dues.

This annual appeal is your gift to assist our young families just starting out and our members who cannot afford full dues. It is how we at Brit Shalom ensure that all Jews are welcome as members in our congregation. The Kol Nidre Appeal is an act of gratitude and generosity and is how we can perform mitzvot and tzedakah supporting our small Jewish community. Thank you for your gestures of kindness and generosity.

Did you know that Congregation Brit Shalom subsidizes 50% of all religious school fees to keep Jewish education affordable? It is important to stress that families continued their membership after the Bar or Bat Mitzvah for the other young families in school. All families benefit from our 100% scholarship of the Nursery School, 50% scholarship of Hebrew School, Religious School, and Hebrew High, a total of over $22,000 a year (not including utilities, office staff/supplies, insurance, and janitorial services.) Synagogue membership includes life cycle services from Rabbi Ostrich (weddings, funeral, counseling, bar/bat mitzvah tutoring) and supports our vibrant Jewish life in State College. Each family many vary in their faith, observance, and attendance. However, every member is essential for Brit Shalom to have the finances to support a full-time Rabbi and Religious School. Maybe you have a family member or a friend that could join our Temple family. The New Year is a time for a new start. Please invite family members, friends, acquaintances, and strangers who are not currently members of the congregation to join us during the High Holy Days. We hope every visitor and member finds the holiness and community that they seek when they enter the doors of our synagogue.

L'Shana Tova,

Joy Vincent-Killian