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Page 18 THE SOUTHERN ISRAELITE December 12, 1986
Synagogue Directory
Candle I ighting T ime: 5:1 2 p.m.
Ahavath Achim (Conservative), 600 Peachtree Battle Ave..
N.W., 355-5222. Arnold Goodman, rabbi; I)r. Harry H.
Epstein, rabbi emeritus; Marvin Richardson, asst, rabbi; Isaac
Goodfriend, cantor. Daily services, 7:15 a.m. and 6 p.m.; Fri
day, 5:30 p.m. and S: I 5 p.m.; Saturday 8:35 a.m. (followed by
k iddush), Minha, 4:45 p.m.; Sunday, 8:30 a.m.. 5:30 p.m.
Anshe S'Fard (Orthodox), 1324 North Highland Ave.. N.E.,
874-4513. Label Merlin, president; Nathan Katz, rabbi. Satur
day, 9 a.m. (followed by kiddush).
Atlanta llillel (N on-denominational). Drawer A, Emory Uni
versity, Atlanta 30322, 727-6490. Zvi Shapiro, rabbi; Dr.
Aaron Shatzman, program director. Friday. 6 p.m. (followed
by dinner. Oneg Shabbat).
Bet Haverim (Gay and Lesbian) Quaker House. 1384 Fairview
Road. 642-3467. Friday night services, first and third Friday of
the month.
Beth David (Reform), Meeting at 869 Cole Dr.. Lilburn, But
ton Gwinnett United Church of Christ. Mailing address. P.O.
Box 865. Snellville 30278. 662-4373. Student Rabbi Daniel
Schiff. Harry Bloch, cantor. Fridav, 8 p.m.; Call for Sun
day Hebrew school hours; bar bat mitzva classes available.
Beth Jacob (Orthodox), 1855 LaVista Rd., N.E., 633-0551.
Emanuel Feldman, rabbi; Ilan Daniel Feldman, asst, rabbi-
educational director. Daily morning minyan. Monday and
Thursday, 6:50 a.m.; Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. 7 a.m.;
Daily evening minyan, 5:20 p.m. (Class in Halacha nightly
between Mincha and Ma'ariv); Friday 5:15 p.m.; Shabbat
morning, 8:30 a.m. (followed by kiddush): Shabbat evening. 5
p.m. (Talmud group one hour prior to Minha, followed by
Shalosh Seudot); Sunday. 8 a.m. (followed by breakfast).
Beth Shalom (Conservative), 3147 Chamblee I ucker Rd.. 458-
0489. Leonard H. Lifshen, rabbi, 451-9414 (h). Friday, 8 p.m..
followed by Oneg; Saturday. 9:30 a.m., (followed by kiddush).
Beth Tefillah 5065 High Point Rd.. 843-2464. Rabbi Yossi
New. Friday, 6:15 p.m.; Saturday, Torah discussion. 9 a.m..
service 9:30 a.m. Kiddush will follow.
B'nai Israel (Reform). P.O. Box 383, Riverdale, 30274. 471-
3586. Meeting at Christ Our Hope Lutheran Church, 2165
Hwy. 138. Riverdale. Student Rabbi Debbi Pipe-Ma/o. Fri
day, 8 p.m.; Saturday. 10:30 a.m., services and religious school.
Hebrew school, Wednesday.
B'nai Torah (Traditional). 700 Mt. Vernon Hwy.. Atlanta,
30328. 257-0537. Juda H. Mint/, rabbi. Morning services,
Monday and 1 hursday, 6:50 a.m.; Sunday, 9:30 a.m.; evening
services, Tuesday and Wednesday, 6 p.m.; Friday, 8 p.m.;
Saturday morning. 8:45 a.m. Kiddush follows Friday and Sat
urday services. Shabbat e\ening Minha. Shalosh Seudot. Hav-
dalah begin at the candlelighting time ot the week.
Etz Chaim (Conservative). 1 190 Indian Hills Pky.. Marietta,
30067, 973-0137. Shalom Lewis, Rabbi. Friday. 6:30 p.m.;
Saturday, 9:30 a.m.; Torah studs. 10:15 a.m.; Monday and
Thursday, 7 a.m.
Jew ish Home 3 I 50 H owell Mill Rd.. N.W.. 351-8410. Nathan
Becker, chairman. Religious Committee. Friday. 7:30 p.m.;
Saturday, 9:30 a.m. Relatives and friends of residents are
welcome.
Kehillat Chaim (Reform). Office: 141 W. Wieuca Rd., N.W.,
Suite 202-A, Atlanta, 30342, 252-4441. Harvey J. Winokur.
rabbi. Friday. Northwest Unitarian Congregation. 1025 Mt.
Vernon Hwy., 8:15 p.m.
Kol F.meth (Reform), P.O. Box 71031. Marietta, 30007-1301,
3822 Roswell Rd.. Suite 6. Marietta. 30062. Steven Lebow,
rabbi. Friday, 8 p.m.. Chestnut Ridge Christian Church, 2663
Johnson Ferry Road. For information, call Marsha Fried berg,
973-3533.
Or VeShalom (Sephardic), 168 1 North Druid Hills Rd., NT:..
633-1737. S. Robert Ichay. rabbi. Friday, 6:30 p.m.; Saturday.
8:45 a.m.; Sunday, 8:30 a.m.
Reform Jewish Students Committee, Drawer A. Emory Uni
versity 30322, 727-6496. Beth Fleet, director. Shabbat service, 6
p.m. Nov. 21 and Dec. 5, Turman.
Shearith Israel (Traditional), I 180 University Dr.. N.E.. Atlanta,
30306, 873-1743. Judah Kogen. rabbi. Weekday Minha,
Sunday-Thursday, 5:40 p.m.; Weekday mornings, Monday
and Thursday, 6:50 a.m.; Tuesday. Wednesday and Friday, 7
a.m.; Friday night. 5:15 p.m., Saturday, 8:30 a.m., 4 p.m.
(followed by Minha and Havdalah); Sunday. 9 a.m.
Temple Emanu-EI (Reform). 1580 Spalding Dr.. Dunwoody
30338, 395-1340. Barry R. Friedman, rabbi. Fridav, 8 p.m.;
Saturday, 10 a.m.
Temple Sinai (Reform). 5645 Dupree Dr., N.W., 252-3073.
Philip N. Kranz, rabbi; Sid dottier. Cantor. Friday, 8:1 5 p.m.
(except November-May, when first Friday ol the month is at
7:30 p.m.); Saturday, 10:30 a.m.
The Temple (Reform), 1589 Peachtree Rd., 873-1731. Alvin
Sugarman, rabbi; Samuel Weinstein, assoc, rabbi. F riday, 7:30
p.m.; Saturday, 10:30 a.m.
Yeshiva High (Orthodox). 1745 Peachtree Rd., N.W., K73-
1492. Rabbi Herbert Cohen, dean. Weekday services. 8 a.m. at
theAJCC: Minha. 2:10 p.m. Community Beit Midrash meets at
Beth Jacob Synagogue Sunday-1 hursday, 8 p.m.
United Jewish Congregation of Knckdale-N'ewton ( I radition-
al): Services at 7 p.m. Fridav evenings, at Oxford College
Chapel.
SIILOMO RISKIN
Shabbat shalom
Vayetz
EFRAT, Israel Children of
rabbis sometimes tell their fathers,
“You never give us enough time,
we always come last." We ean
yell to high heaven we have a
congregation to wrestle with,
people to counsel, yeshivas to
build and columns to write, but
when push comes to shove, we
can only blame ourselves. My
busy life may be necessary and
even justified, but actions have
consequences, and who learned
this lesson better than Jacob?
He stole his brother’s blessing
from right under his nose, and
even if he might justify it by sav
ing that his mother instigated the
w hole plot after hearing directly
from God that "the elder shall
serve the younger"; and even if
Esau had sold his birthright to
Jacob for a mess of pottage,
proving that it had little meaning
for him; and yes, even if it was
critical to the future of the Jews
that Jacob, the wholehearted,
righteous and pure, be the flag-
bearer of the Jew ish people, and
not Esau, the hunter, the hus
band of Hittite wives; after all is
said and done, Jacob deceived
his blind father Isaac and no
matter how attractively you wrap
the package, a sin has its own
special taint which can’t be deo
dorized by justifications.
It doesn’t take long before
Jacob starts suffering the conse
quences. First, this stolen “bless
ing" he gets from his father pro
vokes Esau's wrath to the point
w here Jacob is now in danger of
being murdered b\ his older
brother and has to get out ol the
house at all costs. But things
aren't so wonderful away from
home. He doesn’t yet know' it’s
going to take 22 years before he
can return. In the meantime, de
ception becomes a w ay of life for
Jacob, except that he’s become
the victim.
As the son of Isaac, and the
grandson of Abraham, he sports
excellent familv credentials and
we might have expected to see
him arrive bearing enough pre
cious gifts so that he wouldn t
have to work a day tor his future
bride. But because he’s been re
duced to a penniless wanderer,
he’s no longer in any position to
complain about the agreement
with his Uncle l.aban to labor
seven years for the hand of his
first cousin, only to discover the
morning after the festivities that
his lawfully wedded wife is none
other than Feah, substituted by
his deceptive father-in-law,
Laban. "It’s not our practice to
give the younger before the older."
Laban says. So why didn’t Laban
say something before digging his
grip into Jacob’s back lor another
seven years of indentured servi
tude? Jacob knows his father-in-
law’s deception is a not-so-subtle
reminder to Jacob of his own
trickery. In other w ords, my dear
nephew, you should be the last
person in the world to complain
about a deception in which the
older is substituted for the
younger. Look into your own
heart, first.
Futhermore, just as Jacob
usurped his own father's position
by determining who would get
the blessing, the apple falls not
far from the tree when his son
Joseph, acting as the grand vice
roy of Egypt, assumes a fatherly
role the moment Jacob arrives in
Egypt and acts as a one-man
ministry of absorption by pro
viding for all of his father’s
needs. Although Jacob is revived
by the discovery that his son is
still alive, a father who must
depend on his son in his old age
for life itself is one more re
minder that Jacob once took
over his father’s role. When a
father leads a child, it's good for
the father and good for the child.
When a child leads a father, it's a
tragedy for the father and a
tragedy for the child.
Thus the original deception
has its practical and, seemingly.
cosmic consequences, but there s
a catharsis for Jacob in store five
Torah readings down the road
when he blesses his grandsons,
Ephraim and Menashe. Jacob,
now blind, is in the same spot his
father had been in so many years
earlier. But when Joseph brings
the two grandchildren near him,
and Jacob places his right (that
is, the stronger) hand on the
younger and the left on the older,
Joseph tries to switch the hands.
After all, the major blessing
should go to the older. Hasn’t
papa learned his lesson?
Actually, this is the moment
when Jacob does learn his lesson,
but it’s different than the one
Joseph imagined. Now that he,
himself, is blind, Jacob knows
that it’s hard to deceive a blind
man when it comes to blessings,
and he realizes that his father
Isaac may have, despite the hairy
arms and the tasty venison,
understood that he was giving his
blessing to the more deserving
younger son that, in fact, Isaac
had never really been deceived.
He knew exactly what he was
doing! But while Isaac was too
frightened to do it openly, Jacob,
now referred to in the Bible as
Israel, is now in a position to
openly bless a deserv ing younger
son with his right hand and a less
deserving older son with his left
hand, simultaneously.
The lesson that Jacob's life
rewards us with is the simple but
crucial understanding that actions
have consequences, and that
stealing a birthright, even in the
name of the highest moral goal,
is not something to sweep under
the carpet. Maybe in his heart of
hearts he had known from the
beginning that he would have to
undergo certain painful experi
ences, mistakes and deceptions
before being declared worthy of
bestowing his name. Israel, upon
the future of the Jewish nation.
Congregations
Beth Jacob
Bazaar
Beth Jacob Sisterhood will
hold its annual Hanuka Bazaar
at 10a.m. Sunday, Dec. 21 at the
synagogue.
Available at the Bazaar will be
various make-your-own Hanuka
gifts, personalized jewelry, cards
and other arts and crafts items
that can be made by children as
well as adults.
Also featured will be games
and vendors selling a variety of
items.
Hamburgers, hot dogs and
potato latkes can be purchased.
Auction
Beth Jacob will hold its Goods
and Services Auction at 6:30 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 21. Admission is
free.
During the silent auction wine
and cheese will be served. The
live auction will begin at 7:15
p.m.
Among the more than 100 items
offered will be: 18 hotel motel
accommodations in 10 cities (in
cluding New Orleans, San Fran
cisco and Orlando), one week in
a condo in the Bahamas, a ski
vacation in North Carolina, pro
fessional serv ices of an allergist,
CPAs, lawyers and photographers,
and a VCR and other electronics.
One night for two at the Omni
International Hotel in Atlanta
will be given as a door prize.
Shearith Israel
Consecration Service
Congregation Shearith Israel
will hold a special consecration
service on Saturday, Dec. 13, for
children who are beginning for
mal Hebrew studies.
The I 5 children and their fami
lies will participate in the Shab
bat serv ice and will be honored at
a kiddush follow ing services.
Theater and Brunch
Congregation Shearith Israel
Junior Players will present "Ha
nuka Surprise" at 10:30 a.m.
Sunday, Dec. 14. It will be fol
lowed by a Hanuka party.
Brunch is S3 for adults; $2 tor
children.
* * *
NCSY
National Council ol Synagogue
Youth will hold its monthlv
supper seminar at 6:30 p.m.
Wednesday, Dec. I 7, at the home
of Drs. Edward and Judith Fine-
berg, 1320 Kittredge Court, N.E.
Rabbi Ilan Feldman will dis
cuss “Biblical Prophesies Relat
ing to Arabs and Jews." Dr.
Robert L. DeHaan has been re
scheduled for a 1987 date.
Cost is S3. The community is
invited. For more information,
call the Beth Jacob Svnagogue at
633-0551.
* * *
Shaarei Hayyim
Shaarei Hayyim, an Atlanta-
based network formed to help
people find deeper meaning and
richness through conscious Jew
ish experience, will celebrate the
first night of Hanuka at 6:30 p.m.
Friday, Dec. 26 at the home of
Jacob and Miriam Kabb.
The evening will include light
meditations, singing, telling sto
ries and eating potato latkes.
1 here is a $5 donation for
food.
For more information, call
634-3740.