Mazel Tov! (this Sunday)

Mike Wenthe writes in:

I am very happy to announce that on Monday, July 27, Rebecca Boggs gave birth to a healthy baby girl. Mother and daughter are both doing well. (Dad is okay, too.) As of yet, the child has not officially been named, though she has heretofore been known as "the critter" and Juniorina...

But a formal naming ceremony will be held this Sunday, August 2, starting at 2:30 P.M. at Adas Israel Congregation, 2850 Quebec Street NW, Washington, DC (just around the corner from the Cleveland Park Metro, Red Line).

You are most welcome to join us for the event, at which we will reveal our daughter's names and some of the thinking behind the choices thereof. Also, it being a Jewish event, we will eat: probably a buffet of pastries, bagels, fish, fruit, and vegetables, with coffee and tea available, and some bourbon to honor the child's Kentucky heritage.

Best wishes to all,
--Mike

P.S.  Welcome to the world, Shira Rose Boggs Wenthe!

The Voices of Eicha

(suggested by Rabbi Chuck Feinberg)

Who speaks in the Scroll of Lamentations?

Many voices:

• The witness: I've seen such terrible things
  
• The community: How could this happen to us
  
• The survivor: Woe is me!
  
• The angry victim: It's all the fault of our leaders
  
• The narrator: Look at how bad things have gotten
  

On Tishe b'Av, the daled amot of torah (literally “four paces of the law” -- the breathing room for learning torah, a defined space that is nonetheless big enough to move around) shrinks to Megillat Eicha and a handful of other passages. So it makes sense to spend a little extra time pondering a text that is unpleasant and often ignored the rest of the year.

1:1 to 1:10 – The Narrator
1:11 to 1:22 – The Survivor

2:1 to 2:10 – The Narrator
2:11 to 2:22 – The Witness

3:1 to 3:66 – The Survivor
(3:40 to 3:47 – The Community)

4:1 to 4:10 – The Witness
4:11 to 4:16 – The Angry Victim
4:17 to 4:20 – The Community

5:1 to 5:22 – The Community

One voice is completely absent. Though it fills most of the books of the prophets – namely, the voice of the prophet – we never find the people of Israel referred to in the 2nd person: You, Israel, have been laid low, got what you deserved, will yet see redemption, etc., etc.  

Another voice is so expected, yet so sparse, as to cry out in its absence – the voice of prayer. How rarely we ask, on Tishe b'Av, for God to make things better!

What do we ask ha-Shem to do? In many places, we ask ha-Shem to see, to hear, to listen, to behold, to remember – but not to act. Only to acknowledge our existence and our suffering. And we never use the “jussive” voice, may God cause such-and-such to happen, as in, “ha-Shem oz l'amah titen, ha-Shem tivarech et olamah va-shalom” (May ha-Shem bring about strength for Her people, may ha-Shem cause peace to bless Her world)

Our actual requests of ha-Shem are appear to be quite limited:

• 1:22 – Wreak the same misery on my foes as you did upon me
  
• 3:64-66 – Pursue my foes in anger and destroy them 
  
• And the famous second-to-last verse (5:21) – Return us to You, Renew our days as of old
  

What can we conclude from this accounting of the voices present and absent in Eichah? It is an unusual text, because our relationship with ha-Shem and with the future is so blunted. We don't ask ha-Shem to make things better. We just acknowledge, and ask ha-Shem to acknowledge, how miserable everything is.  

That's not a bad description of the function of Tishe b'Av itself. We're not trying to rouse ourselves to teshuvah, as if this were Yom Kippur. Or to tell ourselves of the miracles that ended the misery, as if this were Pesach. We're not even trying to get drunk and forget how bad it was, as if this were Purim. We're just here, permitting ourselves to see, opening our eyes and hearts to just how bad it can get. It's the one day of the year we force ourselves, not to try to make things better, but instead, simply to not turn away.

The last Fri. night Zoo Minyan of summer - July 24

Come for a beautiful evening!

This is our last Fri. night Zoo Minyan of the summer, as we're on an "every 6 weeks" schedule for Fri nights. (By the time the next one rolls around it will be almost the Chaggim!) So come for sweet summer Erev Shabbat.

We'll have spirited songful Davening and delicious dinner (catered entrees from Sienna's). This week we'll be in Woodley Park, at the home of Deborah & Shalom. We're still seeking davenning leaders, and there's always room for davenning treats, special niggunim, etc., just write back to Fridays@ZooMinyan.org to volunteer.

Please make a donation toward dinner and/or bring a potluck contribution (veggie/dairy) -- details below.

The Details:
This Friday night, July 24th
Shmoozing plus set-up: 6:30pm
Rockin' Kabbalat Shabbat -- 7:00pm sharp!
Followed by Ma'ariv, dinner, singing, drashing, more shmoozing....

At the home of Deborah Hittleman Flank and Shalom Flank. For directions, check your Zoo mail, or email per below.

+++ ABOUT DINNER (it's not just a pot-luck!)

We will have main courses from Siena's! Kosher, lots of dairy plus at
least one non-dairy option, all veggie, and all yummy! Vegetable
lasagna, eggplant parmesan -- send in your requests

For shabbat dinner, the community provides some hearty entrees. You
can:
1) Contribute to the kitty to help pay for the entree
AND / OR
2) Bring a side dish, salad, drink, or desert as a dairy / veggie pot-luck contribution.

Don't worry about whether your kitchen is kosher (or “kosher enough”), everyone gets to contribute. But please be prepared to explain what's in your dish, to help people avoid allergy or kashrut issues.

If you're worried about whether you'll be able to eat at Zoo Minyan, there is always a critical mass of pot-luck contributions with a heksher or cooked in someone's heksher-only kitchen. There are always hekshered challot and grape juice, plus the entree is hekshered. And you'll get to know people as you ask who brought which dish. Questions? Ideas? Want to help? Need the address or directions? Write back to Fridays@ZooMinyan.org. Shabbos is coming!

!!! NEXT ZOO -------
And the next time Zoo Minyan meets will be Shabbat Shoftim --right after Rosh Chodesh Elul-- Saturday morning, August 22nd, when folks have returned from NHC Summer Institute. Grab your leyning slot early, at www.TinyURL.com/Leyning
-------

For more FRIDAY NIGHT INFO, get all the details here. And for all the upcoming Friday night dates (through September), check the Zoo Minyan Google calendar.

Changed August date to: Aug 22nd

Greetings Zoo Minyanites,
after some discussion, the date for the August Zoo Minyan has been changed (due to a Bar Mitzvah in the greater community).

We will now be meeting on Sat. Aug. 22.
------

Please adjust your calendars. The Zoo Minyan Google calendar has been updated - and if you are a Google Calendar person, feel free to add the Zoo Minyan Events calendar to your view.

Shavua Tov.

Good ol' fashioned Sat. at Zoo Minyan - July 11th

We'll be gathering for davenning, lunch, shmoozing, singing, etc., this Saturday in Woodley Park at Deborah and Shalom's house.

Volunteers still sought for Zoo Minyan veggies, davenning treats (i.e. Kavanot or creative tidbits, not actual food ;) also Torah Transporter, and davening leaders – write back to info@ZooMinyan.org.

If you'd like to Leyn there's one aliyah left (Revii)...use the self-service leyning spreadsheet to sign up, or email leyning@ZooMinyan.org.


The Details:

Zoo Minyan
This Saturday, Pinchas, 11 July
10am sharp, with a joyous Psukei d'Zimrah
Pot-luck dairy/veggie lunch -- main courses especially appreciated

At the home of Deborah Hittleman Flank and Shalom Flank. For directions, check your Zoo mail, or email info@ZooMinyan.org

Shabbat Shalom, hey!

July 11th - coming soon

Shabbos is coming!

Reb Deb here with a brief reminder that Zoo Minyan will be meeting next week, Parshat Pinchas, July 11th.

(I kinda' wish it was this week so i could drash on Parshat Balak, and use my famous utterance from a Tish preceding a wedding ceremony, where i had the opportunity to shout as the groom spoke about Balak & Balaam, "Tell us about your as&!" (referring to the talking donkey, not groom's backside of course!) Oy!

So, re: Pinchas, come bring your thoughts on Brit Shalom, or on continuity or succession (Joshua & Moses). Or just come for the Ruach and the singing ;)

Leyners, davenners, davenning treats, Zoo Minyan veggies, torah schlepping-- it's all yours for the asking. Just write back to info@ZooMinyan.org. Or for leyning, head to tinyurl.com/leyning to claim your slot.

(location Details in your next Zoo Mail)

Shabbat Shalom!
zoominyan.org

**Afternoon** Sat. June 27 - Seudah Shlisheet / Minchah

Zoo Minyan Sat. **afternoon**
for
summertime Seudah Shlisheet!

Something for everyone -- eating, singing,
brief davenning / leyning, a little learning
---
(We've taken two items as a sign - not a lot of Leyners signed up this week, and there's a farewell Community Lunch for Cherrie Daniels & Jeff Fistel (moving to Oslo - she's a diplomat!) in a nearby party room (see Adas Trad Egal Minyan for details if you're interested.)
Now back to Zoo Minyan...
-----------------------------

The Details:

Zoo Minyan
Saturday, SEUDAH SHLISHEET, 27 June
**5pm**, niggunim, noshing, & Minchah
Pot-luck dairy/veggie supper

Last minute volunteers for davenning and davenning treats are all welcome, just write back to info@ZooMinyan.org

At the home of Deborah Hittleman Flank and Shalom Flank in Woodley Park.
For directions, check your Zoo Mail, or write to info@ZooMinyan.org.

-----------------

And don't forget to mark your calendars for the fast approaching July 11th Zoo Minyan (Sat.). Grab your leyning slot early, at www.TinyURL.com/Leyning

For more FRIDAY NIGHT INFO, get all the details here. Next Fri night Zoo Minyan - July 24th. And for all the upcoming Friday night dates (through September -- can you believe it?), check the Zoo Minyan Google calendar.

Fri night June 19th - Cleveland Park

Zoo Minyan davenning in the Miller -&- Potluck at Stefan's (Under the Stars)!

'Tis a shabbos for diversity within community. Those who participated
in sunrise services on Shavuot experienced first-hand the ruach of
many Minyanim davenning together.

This week Zoo Minyan will be davenning together with Ruach Minyan
(which started as Van Ness Minyan, and is now housed and blossoming at
Adas Israel). Afterwords we will have a joint potluck in the building
next door, at the home of Stefan. Rumor has it, he'll be hosting us
outside under the stars.

Speaking of Under the Stars -- Zoo Minyan cordially invites people to
mix-and-match davenning and dinner with the broader Adas Israel
community's "Shabbat Under the Stars" (http://adasisrael.org/
newsletter/KesherIshi_ThisWeek.htm#stars), the one-year anniversary of
Rabbi Gil Steinlauf's arrival in our community.
If the early 6:15 dinner doesn't match your schedule, join Rabbi
Steinlauf for davenning on Adas's front porch at 7:30, then come down
to Zoo / Ruach at Stefan's for a pot-luck dinner 8:30ish *after*
davenning. If dinner with the Adas community is appealing, but you
prefer a shomer shabbos space for davenning (no instruments), and/or
nusach shivyoni, then come join us in Adas' Miller Chapel at 7pm.

So come enjoy the cool evening, and see old friends and new friends.

We'll have spirited songful Davenning (in Zoo Minyan Nusach Shivyoni -
adapted language) and delicious dinner. We're still seeking davenning
leaders, and there's always room for davenning treats, special
niggunim, etc., just write back to
Fridays@ZooMinyan.org to volunteer.

NOTE: there will not be catering from Sienna's this week. Please bring
a potluck contribution (veggie/dairy) -- details below.

The Details:
This Friday night, June 19th
Rockin' Kabbalat Shabbat -- 7pm sharp!
----> Miller Chapel, Adas Israel

Followed by pot-luck dairy/veggie dinner, singing, drashing,
shmoozing....(main courses especially appreciated)
----> At the home of Stefan, in Cleveland Park.

For directions, check your Zoo Mail, or write to info@ZooMinyan.org.


+++ ABOUT DINNER - it's a pot-luck!

Don't worry about whether your kitchen is kosher (or “kosher enough”),
everyone gets to contribute. But please be prepared to explain what's
in your dish, to help people avoid allergy or kashrut issues.

If you're worried about whether you'll be able to eat at Zoo Minyan,
there is always a critical mass of pot-luck contributions with a
heksher or cooked in someone's heksher-only kitchen. The challot and
grape juice are always hekshered. And you'll get to know people as you
ask who brought which dish. Questions? Ideas? Want to help? Write back
to Fridays@ZooMinyan.org. Shabbos is coming!

And don't forget to mark your calendars for the fast approaching June
27th Zoo Minyan (parshat Korach!). And feel free to grab your leyning
slot early, at www.TinyURL.com/Leyning

For more FRIDAY NIGHT INFO, get all the details here. And for all the upcoming Friday night dates (through September -- can you believe it?), check the Zoo Minyan Google calendar.

A Moveable Feast of Torah

An idle thought about modern minyanim --

We're not very tied down, at Zoo Minyan and its various havurah-nik and minyan cousins. Last shabbos, we comforably fit a Moveable Minyan into one car-load:

• siddurim (three sets)
  
• chumashim
  
• pews (a half-dozen backjacks)
  
• catering (okay, really just dishes, utensils, etc)
  
• tallesim, kippot, madrich, luach, etc
  
• yad, torah blessings, tikkunim, and torah coverings
  

and most important, a sefer torah!

That's pretty much all we need to have a minyan (besides a minyan, of course). No permanent building, no stained glass and no organ (just our vocal chords), not a lot of paraphenalia and bulk. And of course that's by design -- not just a contrast between independent minyanim vs institutionalized religion, but also an essential aspect of yiddishkeit. Maybe it's a reaction to so many generations living in the shadow of so many exiles, needing the ability to flee and then re-establish a community quickly. Or maybe it goes back even earlier...

We just paused in the midst of our Torah-reading cycle in the middle of Perek Dalet in B'Midbar. We're reading about the duties of the various clans of Levites for moving the Mishkan -- the original Moveable Mishkan. Through forty years of wandering in the desert, and some more wandering even after we arrived in Eretz Yisrael, we had to assemble, disassemble, and re-assemble our sanctuary and altar over and over again. The instructions in these parshiot are detailed, practical, and quite a bit of work! Yet everything was clearly designed for mobility from the beginning, with carrying staves built into various large objects, ballasted foundations to support the erection of anything vertical, etc.

But we interrupted the reading of these instructions this past shabbat with a yontiff commemorating our receiving Torah, which happened even before the Mishkan was constructed. And Torah is the ultimate in mobility. A sefer torah is really the only thing that a Jewish community absolutely must have. And some Torah-learning is really the only thing that a Jewish community must know. All the rest, as it says, is commentary.

So how do we take full advantage of this unencumbered religion? What do we do with this weightlessness of the spirit? At Zoo Minyan, it means we get to bring davenning to your living room (check the calendar for dates that still need volunteers to host!). What are your stories of moveable -- and therefore ubiquitous -- torah?

PS: If you didn't get enough of Megillat Ruth over Shavuos, you can feast on this wonderful reading / drashing by Reb Zalman.

Shavuot at the Zoo

It's the only one-day yontiff of the year, but we've got a lot going on for Shavuot at Zoo Minyan. Check the calendar for details on the Tikkun, starting Thursday night -- until we all reach Sinai and receive the Torah at dawn.

Then sleep to your hearts content on the 1st day of Shavuot, wake up and join us for:

Blintz Fest at Deborah and Shalom's
- 1st Day of Shavuot
- 4pm, May 29

No RSVP necessary.

-----------------------------

Come join Shalom & Deborah for their Annual Shavuot Blintz Fest!
(Fri. 5/29) Come by starting at 4pm.
Blintzes come fresh from Grandma's heirloom blintz pan - you are invited to bring toppings. If you are in the mood, other hekshered potluck items are welcome but certainly not required. Eat bubbelah eat!

Fri. night Davening will follow the Blintz Fest.  It will be both yontiff and shabbos, so there will be an abbreviated Kabbalat Shabbat.  Though since we'll be following the nusach Shivyoni / nusach Sefard minhag, not quite as abbreviated as nusach Ashkenaz -- Ps. 29, 1st two and last two verses of l'cha dodi (no limit on the ya-dai-dai's), and then mizmor shir l'yom ha-Shabbat.

After davenning, we'll have a pot-luck shabbos dinner.  Even if you're stuffed from blintzes, stay, shmooze some more, have a ka-zayit of challah....Unlike the usual Zoo custom, please bring heksher-only pot-luck contributions (if you're not sure whether your kitchen counts as heksher-only, just write back to info@zoominyan.org and ask).

And if we still have any energy after dinner, there could even be a little of learning (a "micro-tikkun"?).  Maybe just some highlights of people's favorite learning from various tikkunim the night before; or if you've got something you want to share, bring it along!

Tossing Desserts in the Desert this Shabbos

With the glorious spring weather we've been having here in DC - the breezes, the greenery, and the rain showers that make all that growth possible, it's a bit of a contrast thinking about this week's parsha - Bamidbar. The desert! Which is similar but slightly different in spelling than 'dessert'. Which reminds me, there will be time during the torah reading for throwing candy, but we're getting ahead of ourselves...

This Shabbat:

We'll be gathering for davenning, lunch, shmoozing, singing, etc. this Saturday at the home of Laura, Darya, Sarah, & Scott. Once again we will be on the Mount Pleasant side of the Zoo. We'll also have the joy of an Aufruf this Shabbos i.e. the traditional pelting with candy of 2 beloveds about to be ritually joined for life under the Chuppah. The whole community is invited, so don't skip this week just because you may not know the Bride or Groom - Nechama and Toby.

Volunteers for leyning are not needed (there is one left if you want it), but volunteers for leading, davenning treats, torah schlepping, and the famous Zoo Minyan veggies are very much appreciated – write back to info@ZooMinyan.org.

The self-service leyning spreadsheet is:
tinyurl.com/leyning
(maybe sign up for June?? 'tis the season of Torah after all, what with Shavuot coming soon!)

Please check out our Google calendar and all sorts of other goodies at
our (still excitingly new) website: www.ZooMinyan.org. Two new drashot are up this week, the link for contributing to the Friday night kitty, plus lots of other goodies. You can even add the Zoo Google calendar to your Google Calendar view --
AND... we now have dates through
THE CHAGGIM (Oct.)

A huge line-up of events for next week, from co-sponsoring the Tikkun Leil Shavuot with TLS and Adas, to Blintzfest and Kabbalat Shabbat.  More details on the Zoo calendar, as always.

For help adding Zoo Minyan to your calendar, email EzratSysAdmin@ZooMinyan.org ;)

The Details:

Zoo Minyan
This Saturday, 23 May 2009
Parshat Bamidbar,
10am sharp, with a joyous Psukei d'Zimrah
Pot-luck dairy/veggie lunch -- main courses especially appreciated

At the home of Laura, Darya, Sarah, & Scott, in Mt. Pleasant.

For directions, check your Zoo Mail, or write to info@ZooMinyan.org.

Professor Robert Alter was the visiting scholar at Adas this past shabbos. His shiur Friday night focused on the use of repetition as a literary device in Tanach. He dismissed the idea that minor variations in re-tellings were a glitch in oral transmission, and pointed instead of the use of those variations to draw comparisons or to intensify a pattern.

Looking fairly randomly into Tanach, two examples in the first and second chapters of Melachim Bet (II Kings 1:9-15 and 2:1-6) jump out. Let's take a quick look.

The first example is a classic three-tuple: two identical repetitions with negative outcomes, and a third with a dramatically different outcome that shows what should have happened in the first place. A divine messenger instructs Eliyahu the Prophet to rebuke the wayward King Ahaziah. The message reaches the King, who send a troop of 50 soldiers to...well, it's not clear what the military mission is, we don't hear the orders of the King himself. The captain with the first troops arrives at Eliyahu on the mountaintop, and shouts out that the King orders him to come down ("reida"). Instead what comes down, at Eliyahu's command, is fire from heaven (1:10), consuming the troops and the captain. Events with the second troop of 50 soldiers and their captain unfold exactly the same way, word for word, except that the command is come down NOW! ("meheira reida").

The third captain, a devout or at least an observant soul, tries a different approach, acknowledging the fate of his predecessors, and imploring Eliyahu that his soul, and the souls of these fifty servants, may be precious ("tikar-na") in Eliyahu's eyes. At which point the divine messenger tells Eliyahu to go with them to the King. The message driven home by this three-hold repetition could not be clearer -- in a contest between military force and divine force, there is no contest. And it doesn't hurt to say please.

The second example seems subtler. It is time for Eliyahu's ascent to heaven, and he instructs his disciple Elisha three times to stay behind. Elisha refuses all three times, and eventually accompanies Eliyahu up to the moment of his ascent, and literally assumes Eliyahu's mantle ("aderet Eliyahu"). The three repetitions, as Eliyahu makes his way to Beit El, then Jericho, and finally the midst of the Jordan River, are *nearly* identical, but not quite.

Beit El	Yericho	Yarden
Va-yomer Eliyahu el Elisha, "Sheiv-na...	Va-yomer lo Eliyahu, "Elisha, sheiv-na...	Va-yomer lo Eliyahu, "Sheiv-na...
Eliyahu said to Elisha, "Please stay...	Eliyahu said to him, "Elisha, please stay...	Eliyahu said to him, "Please stay...
Va-yerdu Beit El	Va-yavou Yericho	Va-yelchu sh'neihem
They went down to Beit El	They came to Yericho	They went together

These tiny variations in the midst of a nearly identical three-fold repetition carry a potent message. Eliyahu is about to leave this earthly existance forever; Elisha may or may not be a worthy successor. With each repetition, Eliyahu addresses his friend in just-slightly more intimate ways. And with each repetition, their travel together becomes more unified, until the conclusion of Eliyahu's request that Elisha stay behind is stated with utter clarity: "They went together".

These are small, nicely self-contained examples of the power behind Professor Alter's method, a method which the meforshim (classical commentators) have long employed. What examples in Tanach have you noticed lately?

Now that Lag b'Omer has past, we are into the final stages of Sefirat ha-Omer (and yashar koach to those who are still in the midst of their bracha for the counting).

Sefirat ha-Omer has many cycles and movements within it. But the two poles (separated by Lag b'Omer) are marked by barley and wheat, and by Rabbi Akiva and Rebbe Shimon bar Yochai (the Rashbi). As those who were at Zoo for the last Friday night Raza d'Shabbat drash already know, the Omer period begins with the barley harvest (an "omer" is the measure of barley offered at the altar), starting the day after the Pesach holiday.

Now barley is not an impressive offering. Nowadays, mushroom-barley soup may be comfort food, and foodies may delight in a Barley Risotto with Asparagus and Hazelnuts. But in biblical times, barley was basically animal feed, just barely fit for human consumption.

Sefirat ha-Omer ends with Shavuot, associated of course with Matan Torah (received Torah at Sinai) but also with the beginning of the wheat harvest. Ah, now, wheat -- there's a proper offering: finely ground, baked into challot, rich with oil.

So the first phase of the Omer encourages us to be "barley Jews" -- take whatever we've got, even if it's just barley, and offer it. The important thing is to take action, without worrying about whether it's good enough. But that can't be the end of the story. After Lab b'Omer, we're striving to be "wheat Jews" -- not satisfied until we reach the highest of the high, still striving even after we've given our all.

These are the poles represented by R. Akiva and the Rashbi. Akiva took action, even when one couldn't be sure if it was the perfect time -- most famously, in the Bar Kochba rebellion. But the Rashbi sought only perfection, immersing himself (and his son) in the pure study of Torah for seven years.

So after Lab b'Omer -- we move from Akiva's, "it's good enough, let's just get going already" to, the Rashbi's "we can go to the next madrega; Ha-Shem, make me higher." Lag b'Omer, the Rashbi's yahrzeit, is the day we affirm that dreams don't have to stay dreams.

It would be nice to stop at that point, all aglow from the inspiration of the Rashbi. But Lag b'Omer also involves remember the costs of traveling farther because we dared to reach higher. We remember the thousands of "students" (soldiers) of Rabbi Akiva who did in the "plague" (battles with the Roman Legions). We remember the poor farmer turned to a pile of bones by the fiery gaze of the Rashbi (B. Shabbat 33b). There is nothing linear about the Omer count -- spiritual heights mingle with tragedy, and it can be hard to distinguish one from the other.

So on Lag b'Omer, we not only affirm that dreams don't have to stay dreams. We take on the even harder task, of affirming that the price of turning those dreams into reality can sometimes be worth paying.

May Day at the Zoo

Come celebrate May Day at Zoo Minyan this Friday night!

May Day's earlier origins include a focus on May Flowers, indeed the Roman goddess of flowers (Flora). Even with the wild gyrations of April weather, what have you noticed blossoming this season? Either literally or figuratively?

At the Zoo Minyan version of May Day, we'll have spirited songful Davening and delicious dinner (catered entrees from Sienna's). We're meeting this week at Deborah & Shalom's house, on the Woodley Park side of the zoo. We're still seeking davenning leaders, and there's always room for davenning treats, a special niggunim, etc., just write back to
Fridays@ZooMinyan.org to volunteer.

Please make a donation toward dinner and/or bring a potluck contribution (veggie/dairy) -- details below.

The Details:
This Friday night, May 1st
Shmoozing plus set-up: 6pm
Rockin' Kabbalat Shabbat -- 6:30pm sharp!
Followed by Ma'ariv, dinner, singing, drashing, more shmoozing....

+++ ABOUT DINNER (it's not just a pot-luck!)

We will have main courses from Siena's! Kosher, lots of dairy plus at
least one non-dairy option, all veggie, and all yummy! Vegetable
lasagna, eggplant parmesan -- send in your requests

For shabbat dinner, the community provides some hearty entrees. You
can:
1) Contribute to the kitty to help pay for the entree
AND / OR
2) Bring a side dish, salad, drink, or desert as a dairy / veggie pot-luck contribution.

Don't worry about whether your kitchen is kosher (or “kosher enough”), everyone gets to contribute. But please be prepared to explain what's in your dish, to help people avoid allergy or kashrut issues.

If you're worried about whether you'll be able to eat at Zoo Minyan, there is always a critical mass of pot-luck contributions with a heksher or cooked in someone's heksher-only kitchen. There are always hekshered challot and grape juice, plus the entree is hekshered. And you'll get to know people as you ask who brought which dish. Questions? Ideas? Want to help? Need the address or directions? Write back to Fridays@ZooMinyan.org. Shabbos is coming!

And don't forget to mark your calendars for the fast approaching May 23rd Zoo Minyan, where the usual joys of Shabbos and Zoo Minyan will be even further enhanced by the opportunity to celebrate the Auf Ruf of Nechama & Toby! Whether you already know them or want to make new friends, all are welcome and encouraged to attend! Grab your leyning slot early, at www.TinyURL.com/Leyning

For more FRIDAY NIGHT INFO, get all the details here. And for all the upcoming Friday night dates (through September -- can you believe it?), check the Zoo Minyan Google calendar.

Not a good shabbos -- a "great" shabbos

Friday night begins "Shabbat ha-Gadol", the last shabbos before Pesach. We'll be celebrating with a great shabbos at the Zoo Minyan -- and a picnic lunch at the Zoo!

The Details:

Zoo Minyan
This Saturday, Shabbat ha-Gadol, 4 April
10am sharp, with a great Psukei d'Zimrah
Pot-luck dairy/veggie picnic lunch -- bring all your chametz, main courses especially appreciated (note: crumbs left behind at the Zoo are definitely Hefker, ie ownerless)

Last minute volunteers for davenning, davenning treats, Zoo Minyan veggies, and leyning (tinyurl.com/leyning) are all welcome, just write back to info@ZooMinyan.org

Davenning at the home of Deborah Hittleman Flank and Shalom Flank in Woodley Park. Write to info@ZooMinyan.org for directions.

Picnic lunch at the National Zoo, starting at approximately 1:15.
During lunch, we'll have some learning for Shabbat ha-Gadol, including text from the special Yotzer for the day, and/or the haggadah review traditional for the afternoon of Shabbat ha-Gadol. Opportunities for extra brachot abound -- maybe birkat ha-ilanot (the annual blessing on blossoming fruit trees), and certainly mishane ha'briot (the wondrous variety of creation / creatures).

Directions:
From the Conn Ave entrance, walk down the main path (Olmstead Walk) about 250 yards to the picnic tables at the Panda Cafe -- on the right, opposite the Rhea (who lives just past the Zebra -- and how often do you get davenning directions like *that*?)

Spring Davenning on Spring Pl.

Spring Has Sprung! Chodesh Aviv (the first month of the year, also known as Nissan) starts on Wednesday night. Come celebrate the first Shabbat of spring at Zoo Minyan this Friday night.

We'll have spirited songful Davening and delicious dinner (catered entrees from Sienna's). We're lucky to be hosted this week by Avodah House on Spring Pl, just off 16th Street. We're mostly set for davenning (thanks Zach, thanks Sara), but there's always room for davenning treats, a special niggunim, etc., just write back to
Fridays@ZooMinyan.org to volunteer.

Please make a donation toward dinner and/or bring a potluck contribution (veggie/dairy) -- details below.

The Details:
This Friday night, March 28th
Shmoozing plus set-up: 6pm
Rockin' Kabbalat Shabbat -- 6:30pm sharp!
Followed by Ma'ariv, dinner, singing, drashing, more shmoozing....

+++ ABOUT DINNER (it's not just a pot-luck!)

We will have main courses from Siena's! Kosher, lots of dairy plus at
least one non-dairy option, all veggie, and all yummy! Vegetable
lasagna, eggplant parmesan -- send in your requests

For shabbat dinner, the community provides some hearty entrees. You
can:
1) Contribute to the kitty to help pay for the entree
AND / OR
2) Bring a side dish, salad, drink, or desert as a dairy / veggie pot-luck contribution.

Don't worry about whether your kitchen is kosher (or “kosher enough”), everyone gets to contribute. But please be prepared to explain what's in your dish, to help people avoid allergy or kashrut issues.

If you're worried about whether you'll be able to eat at Zoo Minyan, there is always a critical mass of pot-luck contributions with a heksher or cooked in someone's heksher-only kitchen. There are always hekshered challot and grape juice, plus the entree is hekshered. And you'll get to know people as you ask who brought which dish. Questions? Ideas? Want to help? Need the address or directions? Write back to Fridays@ZooMinyan.org. Shabbos is coming!

And don't forget about *next* Shabbos, when we'll celebrate Shabbat Ha-
Gadol (the really big shabbos) together on Saturday morning, April
4th. Grab your leyning slot early, at www.TinyURL.com/Leyning

For more FRIDAY NIGHT INFO, get all the details here. And for all the upcoming Friday night dates (through September -- can you believe it?), check the Zoo Minyan Google calendar.

Solidarity (Taanit Esther)

In Megillat Esther (4:16) we read:

לֵךְ כְּנוֹס אֶת-כָּל-הַיְּהוּדִים הַנִּמְצְאִים בְּשׁוּשָׁן, וְצוּמוּ עָלַי וְאַל-תֹּאכְלוּ וְאַל-תִּשְׁתּוּ שְׁלֹשֶׁת יָמִים לַיְלָה וָיוֹם--גַּם-אֲנִי וְנַעֲרֹתַי, אָצוּם כֵּן; וּבְכֵן אָבוֹא אֶל-הַמֶּלֶךְ, אֲשֶׁר לֹא-כַדָּת, וְכַאֲשֶׁר אָבַדְתִּי, אָבָדְתִּי

Esther asks Mordechai to convey a message to everyone in her community, asking them to stand in solidarity with her as she prepares to risk her life for their sake: "gather the Jews...and fast for me...and if I perish, I perish."

In honor of Esther's call for solidarity, we...well, what do we do today? Many fast, though technically it is a "voluntary" not obligatory fast. What else can we do that recognizes and builds on the midot (character) of our holy ancestor Esther?

Feel free to add your own thoughts in the comments. Here's one suggestion:

The Global Call to Action Against Poverty is campaigning in countries around the world, asking people to pressure their own governments to fulfill commitments to fight poverty, increase education, and end gender inequality. They have issued a call to solidarity (perhaps a bit like Esther's, but without the risk of death), welcoming everyone to make an individual pledge in response to that call:
http://www.whitebandaction.org/act-now


Here are some great pictures that people have posted along with their personal pledges:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/inmyname/sets/72157607345873610/

Whether it's through GCAP, the Purim mitzvah of matanot evyonim, or something else -- what's your response to Esther's call?

Multiplying Simcha

Our sages taught, Mi she-nichnas Adar, marbim l'simcha – whoever enters the month of Adar, their joy increases. “Marbim” connotes multiplying. That is, the joy in Adar doesn't come out of nothing. It multiplies, based on what was there before. “Marbim” also connotes multitudes. That is, by being amongst many, joy increases.

So come bring whatever joy you have, and come be in the midst of community for this Shabbat Zachor, the shabbos before Purim.

Leyners, davenners, davenning treats, Zoo Minyan veggies, torah schlepping-- it's all yours for the asking.  Just write back to info@ZooMinyan.org.  Or for leyning, head to tinyurl.com/leyning to claim your slot.

The Details:

Zoo Minyan
This Saturday, Shabbat Zachor, 7 March
10am sharp, with a joyful Psukei d'Zimrah
Pot-luck dairy/veggie lunch to follow -- main courses especially appreciated

At the home of Deborah Hittleman Flank and Shalom Flank in Woodley Park (for directions, write to info@ZooMinyan.org)

Purim is coming! We get to partake of the four mitzvot of purim (a warm-up for the four cups of pesach, but that's another story):

• Reading the Megillah
  
• The Purim Seudah (a feast during the day)
  
• Mishloach Manot (e.g., giving out hamentaschen)
  
• Tzedakah (Matanot l'Evyonim or Gifts to the poor)
  

This year, there are some new opportunities to help fulfill those mitzvot:

Tikkun Leil Shabbat is having its first-ever Megillah reading on Monday night, starting 6:45pm at the Josephine Butler Parks Center (2437 15th St NW). More details at www.tikkunleilshabbat.org.

Deborah is reprising her delicious JSC course from last year, hosting a hamentaschen baking on Sunday at 1pm, at her and Shalom's house. RSVP to yummm@zoominyan.org.

Finally, among the many, many deserving places for tzedakah: Purim is the only holiday that commemorates something that happened to us in a foreign land (without an exodus from that land). If you're looking for opportunities to help the poor help themselves in foreign lands,check out www.GlobalGiving.org

*****

Make sure you have Shalom & Deborah's annual Erev Shira on your calendar! Next Shabbos, March 14th, In honor of their joint birthday-week

5:30pm to ???

• Seudah shlishit, with plenty of niggunim and chassidic stories
• Into Havdalah, then we break out the guitars
  
• And the copies of Rise Up Singing (bring your own if you have them)

Zoo Minyan next shabbos (March 7th)

There will not be a Fri. night Zoo Minyan tonight after all.

Heartfelt apologies to those who had planned to celebrate Shabbat at Zoo Minyan this evening. Zoo Minyan management only just returned from safari in South Africa, where planning was stymied due to lack of internet access (i.e. none at all). The next Fri night davenning extravaganza will be *March* 27th instead. The calendar on the here on the website is now fully up to date.

We will daven as planned *next* shabbos morning, March 7th (Shabbat Zachor, the shabbat preceding Purim). Volunteers for leyning, leading, davenning treats, torah schlepping, and the famous Zoo Minyan veggies are very much appreciated – write back to info@ZooMinyan.org.

Or use the self-service leyning spreadsheet:
tinyurl.com/leyning

We bring regards from Jeff Dorfman, former Zoo Minyan Leyner with red hair & ponytail who left a few years ago to research malaria in Kenya. We wish him Mazal Tov on his wedding to Karen in Cape Town. They are part of a new Minyan you might enjoy. Let us know if you'll be in Cape Town and you are interested, and we'll connect you.

Shabbat Shalom,
the Zoo Minyan Maskirah

This Friday night, Zoo Minyan will be meeting again to welcome Shabbat with prayer, food, & song. What a fine way to finish this festive and joyous week in the political hothouse that is our home here in DC.

If you came last time (for the "inaugural" Fri night davening) welcome back! if you're already a Saturday Zoo Minyanite, come enjoy the "change" as we add Friday nights to our regular schedule. If you are new to Zoo Minyan, we "hope" you will join us.

The Details:

• This Friday night, January 23rd
  
• Shmoozing plus set-up: 5:30pm
  
• Rockin' Kabbalat Shabbat -- 6pm sharp!
  
• Followed by Ma'ariv, dinner, singing, drashing, more shmoozing....
  

ABOUT DINNER (it's not just a pot-luck!)

We will have main courses from Siena's! Kosher, lots of dairy plus at least one non-dairy option, all veggie, and all yummy! Vegetable lasagna, eggplant parmesan -- send in your requests (and vote for your favorite -- the poll on the left side of this site). 

For shabbat dinner, the community provides some hearty entrees. You
can:

1. Contribute to the kitty to help pay for the entree  AND / OR
   
2. Bring a side dish, salad, drink, or desert as a dairy / veggie pot-
   luck contribution.
   

To contribute to the kitty, please go to: http://tinyurl.com/ZooDinner

Don't worry about whether your kitchen is kosher (or “kosher enough”), everyone gets to contribute. But please be prepared to explain what's in your dish, to help people avoid allergy or kashrut issues.

If you're worried about whether you'll be able to eat at Zoo Minyan, there is always a critical mass of pot-luck contributions with a heksher or cooked in someone's heksher-only kitchen. There are always hekshered challot and grape juice, plus the entree is hekshered. And you'll get to know people as you ask who brought which dish.

• Questions? Ideas? Want to help? Write back to
  Fridays@ZooMinyan.org. Shabbos is coming!
  
  

At the home of Deborah Hittleman Flank and Shalom Flank in Woodley Park. For address and directions, please write to Fridays@ZooMinyan.org


+++ A few things to expect (besides the unexpected)

** Creative rituals and Kavanot
For example: To add sweetness from the week to shabbat, we will pass around the kiddush cup during kabbalat shabbat. For each of the mizmorim (psalms, corresponding to each of the days of the week), a few people at a time will share something from their week to add to our overflowing cup of joy.

** Nigunim
Both soulful and spirited tunes, with lots of repetition and space to sink into the melodies. (Sometimes, you don't really start singing a good melody under you've been singing it for 20 minutes!)

** Nusach shivyoni
Davenning leaders will be using our photocopied siddurim with egalitarian language (see the Guide for the Perplexed).  Other siddurim will also be available, and everyone is welcome to
daven from their own siddur. Certain kinds of cacophony / pluralism create their own harmony.

** Raza d'Shabbat ("the mystery of shabbos")
Between Kabbalat Shabbat and Ma'ariv, where Nusach Sefard has a passage from the Zohar and Nusach Ashkenaz has a passage from the Mishnah, we will have a (three minute) drash. Drawing on the text of the tefillot (or parshat shavua or other relevant texts), we aim to provide kavannah for davenning and for our entry into shabbos.

+++ LOGISTICS -- Helping out:

• Procure dinner entrees from Rockville
  
• Helping to organize clean-up
  
• Leading Kabbalat Shabbat
  
• Raza d'Shabbat: Kavanah / Torah between Kabbalat Shabbat and
  
• Ma'ariv
  
• Leading Ma'ariv
  
  Write back to Fridays@ZooMinyan.org to help out!
  
  Shabbat Shalom.