The Judaica & Art Shop Partners with Shoresh

 

The Judaica & Art Shop will now be carrying products by Shoresh. We are super excited about this. Here’s why.

 

Shoresh is a nature-based Jewish charity, which both aims to be and inspires others to be Shomrei Adamah, protectors of the earth. Founded in 2002 as Torat HaTeva, The Jewish Nature Centre of Canada, Shoresh began by offering hands-on educational programs and hosting an annual Tu B’Shvat Seder. With the help of grants and donations over several years, Shoresh created Kavanah Garden (now run by York Region Food Network), Maxie’s Garden (now called Dawne’s Garden), and Bela Farm; and it developed a range of educational experiences and camp programs for children and adults. Along the way, Shoresh received loads of well-deserved awards and media attention. You can read all about it on their website.

 

But how does this relate to the Judaica & Art Shop, you may be wondering?

 

Bela Farm, established in 2013, is Shoresh’s 100-acre rural home for land-based sustainable Judaism. On the site, Shoresh planted 11,000 trees and created an extensive program to protect native pollinators, such as bees. The beekeeping program includes planting flowers, monitoring pollinator counts, working in the apiary, and harvesting honey and beeswax. That honey has deliciously found its way to our shop. We also carry beeswax candles for Shabbat, Chanukah, and Havdallah, made by local artisans partnering with Shoresh, and Shoresh’s naturally dyed challah covers.

 

This new relationship between The Shop and Shoresh is a win-win. Sabrina Malach, the Director of Community Engagement for Shoresh’s Jewish Environmental Programs, feels the same way.

 

We are very pleased to partner with the Judaica and Art Shop at Holy Blossom Temple. At Shoresh, we believe that we are better together. Any opportunity to collaborate in meaningful ways is important to us. We are eager to share our earth-friendly Jewish products with the Holy Blossom community and to help community members bring sustainability home, by offering eco-friendly ritual items.

 

Purchasing Shoresh products supports Holy Blossom Temple and Women of Holy Blossom. It also supports Shoresh, in their efforts to propagate the bee population of Ontario and, by extension, to sustain Ontario’s ecosystems and food systems, all of which uphold the Jewish values of mah rabu ma’asecha, to hold a sense of radical amazement for the natural world; l’ovdah u’l’shomrah, to be responsible stewards of the earth; and tzedek tzedek tirdof, to pursue justice for the earth and its creatures. Sabrina notes, “As a Jewish organization, Shoresh grounds its work in these Jewish teachings and values”.

 

If this isn’t enough, honey is good for our bodies and delicious.  But don’t take our word for it. Try it yourself.

 

Visit the Judaica & Art Shop, operated by Women of Holy Blossom, for more on the Shoresh products and to get ready for the High Holy Days. Hours and contact information are on our webpage.

Av is the 5th month of the year counting from the month of Nissan, the name means ‘Father’. During this month the Jewish people, G/d and Torah become ONE. It is during this month that the destruction of the two temples happened, and the expulsion of the Jews from Spain also took place during this month. The month conjures up a mixture of conflicting moods and the Mishna says: “As AV enters, we diminish joy”.  During Av one sees the true love of a Father (G/d) and his unconditional love for his children in spite of his children not following his commandments.

The final Nine Days of Tisha B’AV and the Three Weeks are a time of intensified mourning.  There are times when we’re told to be sad and this period is one of several during the year because without these times of sorrow and consolation, our joy would flow falsely and from sorrow, joy will permeate.

The Tribe of the month is Shimon, from the word Shema which attributes to hear, in the previous month of Tammuz Reuben sees. Hearing vs seeing, if you truly want to become ONE with G/d, one has to listen. Listening is greater than Seeing G/d.  The limb of the month is the left kidney, signifying emotion.

The permutation of the month of Av: (ה.ו.י.ה) appears in the word הוֹיָ֗ה describes in Exodus 9:3 the plague of pestilence.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The letters begin reversed (ה.ו) but end in order (י.ה). This indicates that while the judgment over the first half of the month is harsh and strict, the month concludes with Divine mercy. In fact, the letters ‘yud’ and ‘heh’ are not only “in order” and connote mercy; their numerical equivalent is 15. This reveals that the second half of G-d’s name for this month literally correlates to the last 15 days of Av and corresponds to the teaching of the Talmud which states (Ta’anit 26b), “There are no greater days for the People of Israel like the 15th of Av and Yom Kippur”.  The 15 of AV is known as one of the happiest days in Jewish history, Tu B’Av, signifies rebirth after destruction and is a day for new beginnings. The Talmud considers it the greatest festival of the year, followed by Yom Kippur, as its essence represents the future redemption.

The letter of the month is Tet, which appears first in the Torah on the word “Tov” (Good) mentioned during the creation G/d says: “it was good”.  Tet has a numerical value of 9 for Tisha B’Av which is a day of mourning.

Where do we get the Tov? From the first two letters of Tov; Tet-Vav have a value of 15.  The 15th of Av (as stated above) is a day of rejoicing. This demonstrates that one has the ability to transform, rebuild and arise from ashes.

An old Chassidic proverb goes, “Sadness is not a sin, but its effect on the person is worse than any sins.” The soul was sent to this world not to be, but to do; not to merely exist, but to achieve. To retreat into the self is to reverse the flow of life. Joy is revelation.

 

Ken YehiRatzon,

Teresa Quiroz – On behalf of Women of Holy Blossom

 

Rosh Chodesh Av:  Shacharit Service, Wednesday, July 19, 7:30 am ET, in-person or via Zoom at https://zoom.us/j/93902401402?pwd=dGlOR2dEcGs1RVc0OVFwdkFtOVo5UT09

Password: 667580

For more dates and the connection to women see https://holyblossom.org/rosh-chodesh/

About the Month of Sivan – Zodiac sign Gemini

Sivan is the third month of the Hebrew calendar counting from Nissan. The number three in Judaism has a mystical connotation. Moses was the third child in his family, the Israelites began the three-day process of preparing themselves to receive the Torah on the third of Sivan and God divided the Jews into three groups with different roles: the Kohanim, the Levites and the rest of the Jews Yisrael. There are three Patriarchs, Abraham, represents Kindness, Isaac represents Prayer, Jacob represents the study of Torah. Jacob’s name equals 182 as Jacob (in Hebrew, “Yaakov”): yud-ayin-kuf-beit = 10 + 70 + 100 + 2 = 182.  Also in Gematria is equal to seven times the name of G/d or 182, as it is 7×26=182.

The letter ז tzain, is the 7th letter in the alphabet and its significance alludes to Teferet which means beauty.  Moses was the seventh generation from Abraham, the world was created in 7 days, Torah was given on the 7th day of the week etc.

The Tribe of the Month: Zebulum, he was the supporter of his brother Issachar (Nisan), both were partners Zebulum worked while his brother studied Torah.

The Limb of the Month: the left foot. How the Israelites came to Sinai?  By foot, in Nissan, the limb of the month was the right foot. Now they used both feet, making it easier to travel. Therefore, the attribute of this month is Motion, meaning walk, move. Through the study of Torah, you move and travel from one level to another higher level which leads you through pleasant and peaceful pathways wide and narrow ultimately bringing you harmony to the soul, your home, your work or the world.

In Sivan, we celebrate the holiday of Shavuot, when the Torah was revealed and given from G/d to the Jewish people on Mount Sinai. The Torah is considered the world print of the world. Our sages have compared it to a wedding between G/d and the Jewish people, each one being a ½ to make a Whole, as in the written and oral Torah each aspect can’t be one without the other.

The permutation of the month is יוהה ( yud-vav-hei-hei) from the Book of Exodus, chapter 26, v19-20.

On Shavuot, we read the story of Ruth, the Moabite princess who abandoned everything safe and familiar to follow her mother-in-law Naomi to Israel, to a life of physical rigour and spiritual truth. Her story is the story of all of us this month, as we try to move beyond our limited grasp of truth and move closer to the whole picture we saw at Sinai.

The month of Sivan gives us the unique opportunity to go beyond the surface of the physical world and reveal the deeper spiritual meaning hidden within us.

Ken Yehi Ratzon!

Tere Quiroz, on behalf of Women of Holy Blossom

Sunday May 21, 2023, 9am ET

Please visit this page for the Zoom link and details https://holyblossom.org/rosh-chodesh/

Women of Holy Blossom invites you to our Rosh Chodesh Service to welcome the month of Nissan next Thursday, March 23rd, 2023 at 7:30 am. The service continues to be online and the link can be found below.

Please join us for breakfast after the service and stay to reconnect, after a long time of confinement it is actually refreshing to see friends again in person. I personally find it stimulating and rewarding. I hope you can join in.

Here is some information about the month of Nissan:

Zodiac sign: Aries, Attribute of the month: Speech, Letter: ה

The month of Nissan is referred to as Chodesh ha-aviv (month of spring). It is considered the first month of the Jewish calendar, and the spiritual Roshashana, (Tishrei, is considered the first month of the physical world). It is in spring when nature and every living soul wake up from hibernation, a month of renewal and hope. It is the month of double miracles as Nisan has two Nuns ( נ for Nes) and these are the miracles that G/d did to redeem us from slavery in Egypt. The limb of the month is the “right foot” because we have to make a quantum leap with the right foot, to start a transformation for 49 days from Pesach to Shavuot.

The spiritual birthday of the world is in Nissan, Head of the Months, [ניסן]/Nissan in the Gematria equals two times [פה]/mouth [(50+10+60+50)=170 = Nissan; 80+5=  [פה] Peh ([פה] x 2 = 85×2 =170)

The connection to the letter is to “speech”, as we are to re-tell the story of the exodus from Egypt through the Haggadah. We celebrate the eight-day holiday from the 15 to the 22nd of Nissan (April 5-13) and following the rituals we experience true spiritual freedom when after 210 years of being slaves G/d took us out of Egypt and we became superhuman and appreciated the power of nature reaching the zenith in the spring.

It is through Pesach that we became a nation of priests (Am-Kohanim) and we became subjects of our King, G/d. Yehuda is the tribe of the month of Nissan as he is the King of the 12 tribes. The permutation of this month is the four letters of G/d in the proper position יהוה  because it is the first month of the year and this permutation can be found in the book Psalms 96:11 “יִשְׂמְחוּ הַשָּׁמַיִם, וְתָגֵל הָאָרֶץ,” “Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice.”

This verse reveals the energy of the month that brings joy and happiness in heaven and on earth. In the interest of Rosh Chodesh, each month is a new beginning, each month brings new energy and we are revitalized. Chodesh in Gematria equals 312 and the word G/d יהוה equals (10+5+6+5) 26 if we multiply 26 by 12 months of the year it equals 312.

During the month of Nissan, we must rejoice together, Heaven and Earth, the spiritual from G/d and the physical from Man and it reflects it in our wishes for each other “chag Pesach kasher vesame’ach” Kosher for the sake of heaven, and sameach for our sake.

We must step into this month with the ‘Right’ foot, some believe, we should be positive and act with Chessed during the first 12 days of the month and beyond as we then ‘plant’ positive roots for the entire year and renewal of
our lives. Ken Yehi Ratzon!

I wish you all a Chag Pesach Kasher V’Sameach.

Teresa Quiroz, on behalf of Women of Holy Blossom

Weekday Morning Shacharit Service:
https://zoom.us/j/93902401402?pwd=dGlOR2dEcGs1RVc0OVFwdkFtOVo5UT09
Password: 667580

Lady Justice: and a Conversation about Women’s Fight for Democracy and the Work of Tikkun Olam

By Shelley Birenbaum

On Wednesday, January 18, the Women’s Advocacy Group was honoured to welcome Dahlia Lithwick, in conversation with Rabbi Yael Splansky and the Honourable Justice Rosalie Abella. The Mishkan was full and the event was livestreamed to more than one hundred others.

Dahlia Lithwick, a Canadian-American lawyer, award-winning journalist, author, and podcast host, discussed her 2022 New York Times bestseller, Lady Justice – Women, The Law, and the Battle to Save America.  Lady Justice celebrates the tireless efforts, legal ingenuity, and indefatigable spirit of women lawyers fighting injustices across the US and seeking social justice.

In the wake of a barrage of assaults on the fundamental tenets of democracy in the United States, from the ban on immigrants from Muslim countries to the reversal of Roe v. Wade and abortion rights for women to interfering with the voting rights of U.S. citizens, Dahlia highlighted the depth of commitment and courage of women lawyers to protect equality and democratic rights for all.  Dahlia highlighted the work of Sally Yates, the acting attorney general of the United States, who refused to sign off on the Muslim travel ban, Roberta Kaplan, who sued the neo-Nazis in Charlottesville and Stacey Abrams, whose efforts protected the voting rights of millions of Georgians.  Her message was clear – it is up to each of us to ensure that democratic rights are protected – we cannot rely on the other – it is an obligation that each of us carries, to repair the world. She believes that women have a special approach that fosters the protections of the law.

The Honourable Justice Rosalie Abella, who was appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada in 2004 and recently retired in 2021, reminded the audience of some of the key differences between Canada and the US legal systems, including the independence of the judiciary in Canada as opposed to the election of judges in the United States. She spoke to the need for an ethos of democracy.  For example, what Hitler did was permissible at law (he changed the law to permit discrimination against Jews and other groups). It is not a question of merely respecting the rule of law, but rather ensuring that the law continues to reflect and protect democratic principles and the progress made to date in recognizing and respecting the equality, autonomy, and diversity of all people.

Rabbi Yael Splansky hosted the conversation with insightful questions, and her teaching and words from Rabbi Joshua Heschel encouraged the panel and audience to think about the balance of justice with love, and love with justice.  The panellists noted that law is both the cause of and potential solution to, many problems.  The law must reflect a commitment to democracy, moral behaviour and respect for the autonomy and diversity of all individuals.  Each of us must do what we can to protect the rights and freedoms of others – to participate in tikkun olam.

This event was generously sponsored by The Women of Holy Blossom. If you would like to view the event, the recording can be found here.