Article published October 31, 2009
A day of enrichment: Workshops offer insight into facets of Judaism
Rabbi Edward Garsek, his head tefi llin already in place, wraps leather thongs
around his arm to demonstrate the Jewish ritual of putting on tefillin.
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THE BLADE/JETTA FRASER
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BLADE RELIGION EDITOR
In the chapel of Congregation B'nai Israel, Rabbi Edward Garsek carefully wrapped leather straps around his arm and forehead, demonstrating the Jewish ritual of putting on tefillin, while across the hall Cantor Evan Rubin taught a lesson on the Book of Genesis.
The Congregation Etz Chayim clergymen led two of the sessions held Wednesday to educate and enrich people about many aspects of Judaism, from tefillin and Torah to the Arab-Israeli conflict and the music of Alan Sherman.
Also leading workshops at the Toledo Jewish Community Senior Enrichment Learning Day were Rabbi Moshe Saks and Cantor Rubin of the host synagogue, B'nai Israel; Rabbi Alan Sokobin, rabbi emeritus of the Temple-Congregation Shomer Emunim; Elliot Gertel of the University of Michigan; Gerald Bazer, and Jim Cihak. Two local people, Lisa Rosen and Paul Causman, spoke on "A Jewish Odyssey," recounting their conversions to Judaism.
Tefillin, or phylacteries, are mentioned four times in the Bible, emphasizing that Jews are to place a sign or symbol "on the hand and between the eyes" as a reminder of God's commandments.
The straps hold leather cubes containing Scriptures that are hand-written on parchment: Exodus 13:1-10; Exodus 13:11-16; Deuteronomy 6:49, and Deuteronomy 11:13-21.
The tefillin that is worn on the head is a sign of intellectual loyalty, and the hand tefillin is a reminder to serve God with all of one's might and strength.Jewish males usually receive tefillin as a gift for their bar mitzvah at age 13, Rabbi Garsek said. In the Orthodox Jewish movement, males are required to put on tefillin every day except the Sabbath and holy days, while women can put them on but are not required to do so, the rabbi said.
Rabbi Garsek told the class that during the Holocaust, some Jews smuggled tefillin into their concentration camp barracks and took turns putting them on.
Rabbi Saks lectured on the topic, "The Chosen People: Chosen for What?"
In Genesis, it says that humanity was created in the image of God, but it doesn't say that only Israelites were created in God's image, Rabbi Saks said. And there is no reference to Israel or Jews in Genesis, the first book of the Bible, until Abraham in the 12th chapter.
The reason is that everyone needs the Torah, not just Jews, the rabbi said. And since everyone was created in God's image, "it means everyone has a spark of holiness."
The Jews are God's chosen people because they were given the special gift of the Torah and were the only ones who accepted his word, Rabbi Saks said.
Arthur Friedman, coordinator of Senior Enrichment Learning Day, said the program is gaining momentum. The first year, 2007, about 20 people participated, he said. Last year there were 40 participants, and this year nearly 100 people took part.
- David Yonke
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