Weekly Newslinks

Announcements & Upcoming Events

Schedule for the Weekend

I am very excited for the opportunity to share words of Torah with you. Each week, in this spot, I look to share an idea I've found that speaks to me and that I think will resonate with you as well. This week, I share with you an excerpt from an article by Rabbi Avraham Kovel entitled "Love Is Not All You Need" discussing the mistake of the sons of Aharon and the lesson we can take from it in our lives.
 

[...] Throughout the Torah, we celebrate spontaneous actions: Moses smashing the tablets in righteous anger, Pinchas defending God's honor with zealous intervention. Spontaneity expresses our individual desires and uniqueness. But the Mishkan's service demanded something different—precision and restraint rather than personal expression. Creating sacred space for another requires us to quiet any assertion of "me," "my," and "I."

To bring God in, we must take ourselves out—a principle Nadav and Avihu tragically overlooked. They prioritized their religious enthusiasm over humble obedience to God's specific instructions.

The Zohar highlights a revealing textual detail: the Torah describes their offering as "strange fire" rather than "strange incense." Why? Because fire symbolizes arrogance—the strange fire of their pride pushed aside God's presence. God responded measure for measure: His divine fire pushed them out of His world. Their tragic deaths teach us the eternal lesson that loving God requires respecting relationship boundaries, even for the most spiritually elevated among us. Through teaching this painful but necessary lesson, Nadav and Avihu's deaths sanctified God's name.

You might be wondering, “By limiting ourselves, don’t we reduce the amount of love that we express in our relationships?” Quite the opposite. Look around: over-farming leads to dust-bowls. Unbridled passion leads to sexual immorality. Overtraining leads to injury. Limitations don't just prevent disaster—they create the conditions for flourishing.

The same principle answers the classic question, "Why does Judaism have so many nitpicky rules?" The many laws of Judaism channel our spiritual ambitions with laser-like precision. Unbounded, we are like a shotgun, scattered in all directions. With proper direction, we are like a sniper rifle, hitting the target from miles away. Only through respecting and embracing the boundaries that God establishes can we form a true relationship with Him. As we've shown, this divine template extends to all our connections—from our marriages to our friendships, from our communities to our world. The lesson of Nadav and Avihu reminds us that real love, whether for God or for others, flourishes not despite boundaries but because of them. [...]

Hoping and praying for a Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Davies
Rabbi@SOICherryHill.org

We are excited to be partnering with Mizrachi World Movement to provide their publication of HaMizrachi Parasha Weekly.

World Zionist Congress Elections

Every five years, the World Zionist Organization (WZO), one of the most influential
organizations in the Jewish world, of which 30% is controlled by US Jewry, holds a
crucial election. This election, which runs from March 10, through May 4, gives American Jews the opportunity to vote for representatives in the World Zionist Congress. The number of seats a slate receives directly impacts leadership decisions, policies, and the allocation of over $1 billion annually toward Jewish education, aliyah, security, and other vital causes.

I am strongly encouraging our members to vote for Orthodox Israel Coalition (OIC)
Mizrachi, slate #5. Coalition partners include RZA-Mizrachi, YU, OU, RCA, Amit, Bnei Akiva, NCYI, Touro University, and Sephardic organizations such as Shvilim and UMJCA. Your vote will ensure that our Religious Zionist voice is heard. An authentic Torah voiceof integration and unity: integration between Judaism and Zionism; Torah learning and army service; between Torah u’Madda; and balancing Israel and Diaspora needs.

All Jewish American residents who are 18 (by June 30, 2025) can vote. There is a voter registration fee of $5.00. Click here to register and vote.
Please share this link with your family and friends. If you’d like to volunteer to help us mobilize our community, please let me know.

​​​​​​​Rabbi Michael Davies

Join Our Team: Event Manager Wanted!
SOI is looking to hire a friendly and organized per diem Event Manager to oversee and assist with various events, such as Bar/Bat Mitzvot, parties, graduations..etc. This position involves being on-site to ensure everything runs smoothly—from coordinating with office staff and renters to making sure the building is set up and ready before and after each event. You’ll also help with any on-site needs, work closely with caterers, and warmly greet guests as they arrive.
This is a paid position. If you’re interested, or to learn more,  please reach out to Heshy Chaitoff at CoPresident@soicherryhill.org

Volunteers Wanted!

Kiddush: Volunteers wanted to help with Kiddush - preparation, set up, and clean up! Please contact Yaakov Linder to get involved.

SOI Gala: We are looking for volunteers to help with all aspects of the SOI Gala. Please reach out to Ilana Weiss, Avital Zeffren, or Yaeli Sokolic to get involved.

Do you enjoy small fix-it projects or just love helping out? We’re looking for friendly hands to assist with minor repairs, like sealing doors and patching up little gaps. No special skills needed! Just a willingness to pitch in and help make a difference! If you’d like to help, please reach out to Dan Malamud or Oriel Weinberg. We truly appreciate it!

Website Update:
We are pleased to share that thanks to a grant from the Jewish Community Foundation of Southern New Jersey, SOI will be redesigning our website. As a ShulCloud-based site, updates take place in real time. This means that users will see updates to the design, navigation, and pages as they take place in all phases of the project, rather than only once the project is completed. It may take a few months for the website to display in its final form. We look forward to our site being easier to navigate for our members and better communicate what we offer to those seeking information about SOI. We appreciate your patience throughout this process! 

Thank you to Sylvia Levine for dedicating her time and care to repairing Siddurim and Chumash. If you have books in need of repair, please continue placing them in the designated box located at the back of the sanctuary. 

Mazal Tov to Reuven and Ava Pinon on the birth of baby girl, Maya Tamar.

Mazal Tov to parents Leeba and Rabbi Yoni Laub on the birth of their son. Grandson of Rabbi Todd & Dr Eve Sullivan, and Great grandson of
Karen and Richard Sullivan

Thank you to Debbie Pester, David Mendelovitz, Jeff Liss, Steve Koloski, Shlomo Aronoff, Steve herzberg, Blake Daugherty, Debbie Fineberg and JFed Security Officer Bill DiCola.
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A complete list of Cholim and Chayalim that have been submitted to SOI can be  www.soicherryhill.org/cholim-chayalim
To add or remove from these lists, please email  
​​​​​​​memberhotline@soicherryhill.org

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Congregation Sons of Iarael
720 Cooper Landing Road
Cherry Hill, New Jersey 08002