Shofar (TBE Newsletter)

The Shofar, Temple Beth El’s monthly publication, keeps community and temple members up to date on what’s going on. Take a look at this month’s Shofar to see what’s coming up or browse through the archives to see all that we’ve done!

March 2024 – Shofar (pdf)


Rabbi Jonathan Klein’s Reflections

Forward March

March might have been named thus because of the march of time. The earth is showing signs of awakening:
     ● Blossoms fill the almond trees just east of the I-5 as I wind my way to the wonderland of our community.
     ● The coldest days are over; the rains are lessening.
     ● The last of the lingering Chanukkah decorations that we keep forgetting to put away are finally, ridiculously, shoved into the Chanukkah box.
     ● Weird Pesach memes start to appear in social media:

On March 21 st , 2018, I woke up bright-eyed and posted on Facebook “Happy Spring!” 10 hours later, I admitted myself to Cedars-Sinai Hospital at the urging of the urgent care, only to discover that I was having a heart attack. A week later, I was falsely accused by an employee of horrid activity. A downward spiral shifted my reality in multiple ways; how could I have known that my life would change so radically? I should have, indeed, heeded the soothsayer’s advice: “Beware the Ides of March.”

And yet, the seasons have gone round. That challenging March gave way to so many blessings in my life. Were it not for that upheaval, I would not have found Temple Beth El. I would not have taken on the personal journey of self-discovery that has led me to far more self-actualization than ever before (and as we know, the journey is NEVER over). I would not have come to understand what matters, and what doesn’t. I would not have seen so many more possibilities than I had conceptualized for myself, prior to that transitional March in 2018.

Perhaps March is not just another month; perhaps it is a call to action.

Forward! March!

Rabbi Jonathan Klein

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