November is Jewish Book Month in Portland. This year’s selection is Mitchell Kaplan’s By Fire, By Water. This book, out in paperback, follows Luis de Santángel, chancellor to the king of Aragon and a converso, as the Inquisition creeps closer and closer to him and his loved ones. Based on historical fact, the book makes history come alive.
Rabbi Ariel’s d’var Torah on Friday, November 11 will address the major themes of the book: history, identity and belonging.  Advertised in the Jewish Review’s calendar of activities, Rabbi’s presentation is open to the public. The support and participation of the Shir Tikvah community is welcomed and encouraged.
To learn more about the book, watch a video here, which details the plot while showing paintings of the Spain of the middle ages; you can also visit the author’s website. To see the Jewish Review article with all of the month’s activities, click here.

Our kehillah has developed a wonderful minhag over the years: for us, Simkhat Torah is a time to celebrate what is truly central to our learning congregation – the Torah! We’ll be dancing seven hakafot with our Torah scroll, and then opening it up completely (ever seen a completely unrolled Torah scroll? it goes around the room much more than once.) We’ll read the end of the Torah and follow that immediately with the beginning again. We’ll take breaks between hakafot to have a drink or a bite of something to keep our dancing strength up. The music will be fantastic, with more instruments and more voices this year.
Please bring wine, beer, or a dairy/vegetarian nosh to share.
Dancing shoes are required; prepare to blow off some High Holy Day Steam.
Everyone is welcome!

***Please note: erev Shabbat Tefilah for Oct 21 has been moved to a Shabbat at Home. Contact the office if you would like to host or be hosted!***

Come to congregant Joyce Shields’ urban farm house to celebrate in the community sukkah!

(Maps/address available at services Wednesday or through the office–it’s not the one in the directory!)

(our sukkah does not look like this one…)

Bring apples, decorations for the sukkah (yard trimmings, fruits, vegetables, etc,) and a dairy/ vegetarian dish or goodie to share. There will be a craft project for the kids, and a cider press for apples. Bring chairs to sit in: the ground is not suitable for picnicking! Dress for the weather, and be prepared for mud.
A reminder from Joyce: Please be aware that we have chickens, ducks, dogs, and cats and this is a “pocket urban farm” (very small but fun!) We require closed toed shoes (no flip flops or sandals) for obvious reasons…
Caution: The ground is very uneven; those with mobility issues should probably not attend unescorted, as navigating the terrain is difficult. Wheelchairs won’t do too well here.

Parking may be a challenge, so car pooling is encouraged.
Bring your lulav and etrog, we will offer the blessings for Sukkot and for the Sukkah;
if you are able to come early or stay late, you can fulfill the mitzvah of helping share the work of our celebration!

Hag Sameakh!

The Long Confession of Yom Kippur lists all the ways we distance ourselves from each other and from life through accidental sin, willful sin, and angry, rebellious sin. Some sins are incredibly banal, and embarrassing. Some are so common that we realize that we are offered the opportunity to commit them every day, even though we know we shouldn’t. Other acts seem so typical of human interaction that we may not even recognize them as wrong. Then there are sins we commit because we are lazy, or self-absorbed, or thoughtless.
The Al Heyt is repeated over and over in the Yom Kippur prayers, perhaps due to an assumption that we won’t really be ready to listen to the words we are saying the first, second, or third time we recite them. Perhaps for this same reason, we are still writing new versions of this prayer – may we hear them!

‘For the Sin We Have Sinned Against You by Desecrating Your Name’–link to blog post by Rabbi Dr. Ariel Picard

‘For the Sins We Have Committed Before You’–link to pdf from Rabbis for Human Rights

Yom Kippur

October 7
8 pm Kol Nidre**

**Evening services for Kol Nidre are limited to members and their guests only, with regrets, due to limited space in the sanctuary. Day services are open to all who have registered. To RSVP for all events, email the office at shirtikvahoffice@shir-tikvah.net, or call us at 503.473.8227.
October 8
9 am Yom Kippur morning tefilah; Yizkor will follow the Torah reading
12:30 pm Family Tefilah
2 pm Rabbi’s Discussion
3:30 pm Afternoon Services, including Minkha and Ne’ilah

Break the Fast to follow after sunset.

All services will be held at the Bridgeport Building, 621 NE 76th Street.

Please see our calendar for complete details of each service.