The Aquarian Minyan
….To Renew the Old and Make Holy the New
This Week’s Torah Reading is Sukkot Chol haMoed and the Haftarah is from Ezekiel 38-39 - the War of Gog and Magog
Special Events this Week !
“ Tzu Haltn Troyn un Fried Tzuzamen iz a Masana fun di Eybescher”
To hold grief and joy together is a Gift from the Holy One
Two Open Sukkot Events
Saturday, October 11th 6-9 PM potluck . Open Sukkah at Jake Birnberg's House.
To join on Zoom please click HERE
If you are intending to be at the sukkah in person please RSVP to Jake at jake.birnberg@sbcglobal.net to let him know you are coming and to receive the location info. Enter at the side of the house with care and please let Jake know if you would like assistance.
A Special End of Sukkot / Hoshanah Rabbah Program
Sunday October 12th 4-6:30 PM (begins with the writing of postcards in conjunction with our Mazon campaign to preserve SNAP and food security)
The Aquarian Minyan is hosting an enlightening and inspiring program featuring Holy Person Dr, Maria Michael of the Dine and Lakota Peoples and Jewish Ethnobotany Educator Naomi Stein with contributions by Rabbi Jonathan Seidel. Naomi will illuminate the central role of plants in our earth-based tradition through the light of the "Four Species" . We will also observe this day with directional rituals led by Maria with teachings about rainmaking, music and by benching lulav. We are grateful to Len & Tovia who are opening their backyard sukkah and hosting a potluck dinner to follow the program. Join us for songs, learning and joyous celebration on the Eve of Hoshanah Rabbah (the great Hosana!) and Indigenous People's Day
This is a Tikkun Olam Committee event and donations to the Tikkun Olam fund are very welcome! You can donate when you register
Suggested minimum donation of $18.00 in person Suggested minimum of $10.00 on Zoom. - REGISTER HERE
Hybrid Event: In person and on zoom
Contact Susan Desmond with questions: susandes22@gmail.com
The Tikkun Olam Committee Mazon Postcard Campaign continues
Deadline for the Tikkun Olam Committee’s Postcard Campaign is this Sunday October 12th !
Join us in the National Campaign to fight Food Insecurity and preserve the SNAP program !!
Along with MAZON, the Tikkun Olam Committee is launching a national postcard campaign to flood the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Brooke Rollins, with messages demanding protection for basic needs programs that help Americans put food on the table with the SNAP Program. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formally known as Food Stamps, is on the chopping block.
Throughout the High Holy Days, the TOC will provide opportunities for everyone to take action by writing & decorating postcards provided by MAZON. Postcards will be available during in-person events. Write as many as you can! MAZON is counting on the Aquarian Minyan to help reach their goal of 47,000 postcards which would represent 47 Million users of SNAP.
Send a postcard electronically —
You can fill out this form to send one digitally.*
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfVO83_hi80DuSfh42cS-WDEXSap7R7skxsNrUqgaOr5cFOZQ/viewform
What Should the Postcards Say?* Why we must protect people who are hungry. Why our basic needs benefits are so important. Write from a place of empathy or rage or justice. Write something short or long. Write something that is meaningful to you, and it will be meaningful to others. MAZON will be sure to sign your postcard with only your first name, last initial, and city/state.
A flyer with easy statements will be available at in-person services.
Write as many as you can! MAZON is counting on the Aquarian Minyan to help reach the goal of 47,000 postcards which would represent 47 Million users of SNAP.
Email Ann Litwack for the suggested statements flyer: annlitwack@hotmail.com
There's still time to....
(1) Go online to fill out digital postcards:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfVO83_hi80DuSfh42cS-WDEXSap7R7skxsNrUqgaOr5cFOZQ/viewform
(2) Return your postcards in-person by Oct 12th: at the Sukkot event this Sunday.
(3) Mail postcards directly to: MAZON, 15303 Ventura Blvd. #1100, Sherman Oaks CA 91403. If possible include a note mentioning that you are from the Aquarian Minyan. Remember to sign postcards with only your first name, last initial, and city/state.
(4) Contact MAZON with any questions: outreach@mazon.org
NEW YESHIVAH CLASSES
Wisdom of the Hebrew Letters - new start date Oct. 15th
with Rabbi Charna Rosenholtz
Oct. 15th - Nov. 12th for five weeks
Suggested minimum donation $72
texts and recordings provided to all registrants
REGISTER HERE
Each Hebrew letter is a treasure chest, with an inside and outside meaning. The Kabbalists say that the world was built through these letters and that they reveal concentrated light which has an impact on consciousness. In this 5 week workshop we will explore some of these letters, their numerical significance, and the way in which they create vessels to contain the flow of Creation. We will explore through lecture, contemplation, discussion, and embodied exploration.
Rabbi Charna Rosenholtz is a Jewish spiritual director and educator. Founder of Shulchan™,an on-line learning center, where she teaches Hebrew wisdom though Torah study, Kabbalah teachings, and Mussar work.
Earth, Water, Air, Fire: A Kabbalistic Journey
with Rabbi Brielle Paige Rassler D.Psy
Tuesdays October 21,28 November 4,11 2025
12 PM to 1 PM PDT
Suggested minimum donation $72
REGISTER HERE
Join Rabbi Dr. Brielle Paige Rassler on a four-week, Four-Worlds journey, exploring the interplay of the natural and mystical elements of existence. Each week will be grounded by one of the natural elements: Earth, Water, Air, and Fire. From this foundation, we will dive into several Kabbalistic systems, uncovering the multifaceted dance between the natural and the mystical. Together, through rich conversation, chant, text study, guided meditation and more, we will learn how the weaving of these sacred systems can help enrich our lives and bring meaning to the mundane, as we travel forward from the High Holiday season and into the vast potential that awaits in this new year.
Texts and recordings provided to all registrants!
Leadership and Ethics: Biblical Models and Contemporary Reflections
with Rabbi Daniel Pressman
Mondays: November 3rd, 10th, 17th and 24th 2025
12 pm - 1 pm PST
Suggested minimum donation - $60.00
REGISTER HERE
From the very beginning, Judaism and Jewish life have depended on leaders of character. It started with the criteria for the elders appointed at Mount Sinai, setting up a governance structure even before the giving of the Torah. Join Rabbi Daniel Pressman as we look at texts from the Torah, and then at some of the many teachings in the Rabbinic literature that develop the moral qualities and behaviors expected of leaders. We will then examine some texts from the post-Talmudic period, and conclude with selections from contemporary Codes of Ethics from the rabbinic organizations of different American movements. We will discover that Judaism has very high standards for leaders. There are many courses and a vast literature on how to be an effective leader. This course is how to be a leader who inspires others by their high ethical character.
Texts and recordings provided to all registrants!
The Parsha through the Lens of the Sephirot - new series for the fall
with Rabbi Shlomo (Barya) Schachter
$72 Suggested contribution
REGISTRATION INFO TO APPEAR SOON!
My Holy father Reb Zalman taught (based on the Bais Yaakov of Izhbitz) that when the combined Parshiot are put together, we end up with 49 weekly parshas throughout the year. This makes the entire Torah the same process as sefirat HaOmer, working from Chessed SheB'Chessed at Bereishit through the 49 gates to Malchut of Malchut at Zot HaBracha. The Torah, the Sacred Year and the Human all share the same Seferotic anatomy, and by understanding them together we can know them all deeper. In this class, we'll look at each Parsha with the eyes of the Sefirah to which it corresponds. A discussion heavy class, this will be an experimental collaborative Torah jam session to help us see the Torah and the Sefirot together. Please come to the class having at least read through the Parsha, and together we'll see the mystery of the Sefirot unfold through the Torah.
The 50th Anniversary Celebration has no Expiration Date !!
To read the J Weekly article about our 50th celebration click here:
Reviving, Renewing and Celebrating the Old Aquarian Minyan Spirit, Serving up Joy to the Divine in Difficult Times - Mazal Tov to all of us and thank you to the Planning Committee that worked HARD on the Jubilee
Aquarian Minyan Groups and other offerings
Healing Circle
with Rabbi Diane Elliot
Weekly, Fridays, 8:30am – 9:30am Pacific Time
Zoom link HERE (new zoom link!)
The Aquarian Minyan Book Club
next meeting is July 22nd
at 2 PM
To Join the book club on Zoom click HERE
*New members are cordially welcomed. For more information, please contact Shoshana Dembitz (sdembitz@gmail.com)
Sunday Nights Minyan Sharing
Weekly, Sundays, 7pm Pacific Time
in Memory of Martin Potrop Sept. 23, 1951- April 1, 2024. Z”L
