July-August, 2025 Megillah
WITH LOVE
This may sound a little crazy, but here goes.… Like so many of us, I read the headlines every morning and I agonize. It is so terrible: what can I DO about [name any of the cruelties of the day here]??? I can send some money, but what I can send won’t make a dent of difference. I can call my government official and have my opinion added to a checklist, but then what? We all know this line of thought.
The truth is that, about many of the terrible things happening in our community, country and world today, I can do pretty much nothing. I and my action or inaction don’t matter much, either positively or negatively, in the drama that is unfolding.
I am not used to being helpless. My upbringing, my schooling, the stories of my childhood, my whiteness, my Jewishness—all this makes me feel that, if I set my mind to a problem, I should be able to fix it, at least partially. But I can do vanishingly little about many of the goings on in the world today that I care about most: the decimation of government aid to poor countries, mass killing and starvation in Gaza, threats to medical care and food aid for poor people in the U.S., abduction and jailing of immigrants, discrimination against trans people, the abandonment of Ukraine, the dismantling of the government…. I care, deeply, but I have very little agency to make things change.
So I find myself asking this apparently nonsensical question: “What can I do when there is nothing I can do?”
This question takes me on a kind of inward odyssey. It begins in a tender place of my heart hurting. Sometimes I find myself imagining: what is it like to be in a bombed city? What is it like not to be able to get lifesaving medications? I just think, softly, curiously, sorrowfully.
Then I may notice a frantic part of myself that is flailing around, saying over and over: there must be SOMETHING I can do to help! And I notice the part of me that wants to be on the right team, doing the right thing, my horror that future generations will look back at me and ask, “What did YOU do when my grandmother was starving?” I might want to find some expert who will tell me what will really work if I’m brave enough to do it. I might want to find some risky, heroic action where I can show up in a big way. I might want to brainstorm up some brilliant new lifesaving idea and be the one to make it happen.
And then another wave of that soft sadness; it really isn’t so much about me. I really am not the center of the story here. I am just so sad and so sorry at this brutal time. It’s not the same as despair. It’s not a conclusion, just an awareness.
I am interested in this soft space of just caring. It feels real to me, honest. On Shabbat morning when we pray for peace, I have taken to saying, “Think about a place in this world that is in need of peace. That can be very close to home, at your own dinner table or in your own heart, or it can be somewhere else on the globe. Picture that place in its vulnerability. Just hold it. Know that your prayer for peace will arrive there.” Sometimes I imagine our little minyan week after week, dotting the hurting places of our world with prayers for peace, little bits of soft care, tender concern.
I’ve taken lately to lighting candles. A candle flame is just about the softest thing there is. But it has a kind of assertiveness too. I’ve put pictures on votive candles of a few people that I think of as doing really heavy lifting to bring repair to broken places. There are many I could add, and I hope I’ll make more candles in days to come. I look at their pictures and hope that they are well today. I send them a little prayer for peace.
I think that brave, bold public acts matter; taking a stand matters, activism matters, financial contribution matters, organizing matters, litigation matters, the press matters, all of it. Even little bits. Even being one in a crowd. Even being one on a tally sheet at a representative’s office or a roster of donors.
But I think that there is something in that place of not being able to do anything that is important too, being in that place without self-hate, without aggrandizement, tenderly holding what is broken and cannot easily be fixed and just caring and wondering and loving. At least I hope so.
DOF CHODSHI
Last week, we began the fiery Hebrew month of Tamuz. After the full moon next week, the 17th of Tamuz will begin a three-week period called bein hametzarim, “between the straits.” This phrase comes from the Book of Lamentations: “all who pursued her (Judah / Jerusalem) caught her between the straits” (Eicha 1:3). Thus, the rabbis blessed this three-week corridor from the 17th of Tamuz, when the walls of Jerusalem were first breached, to the 9th of Av, when the Temple was destroyed—first in 586 BCE and then again in 70 CE—as a sacred season of constriction.
We honor this constriction during the brightest season of the year, near the Summer Solstice. During these long days of sunlight, we have the capacity to stay balanced amidst entering spiritual shadows. In alignment with that balance of light and dark, the Maggid of Kozhnitz, in the late 1700s, taught that these three weeks are also a time in which the gates are uniquely open for a more intimate closeness to the Divine Source of Life. For those who truly desire and seek out divine connection, somehow, in the narrowest part of the year, the channel for closeness is most direct.
These days feel narrow not just because our Jewish tradition tells us they are, but because the news tells us they are. The Maggid’s teaching resonates with me this year particularly because the fear, loss, and deep grief of this time truly feels like a Divine portal. If we choose to, we can allow the pain of our world to draw us closer to the divine. The brokenness can crack us open, as Leonard Cohen says in “Anthem,” and let the divine light in. The heartbreak can awaken our yearning.
I love our tradition’s notion of Divine Yearning, known as devekut. In modern Hebrew, devek means “glue,” glue that you use to attach two things. Glue is sticky, like the sweat that drips off us during this brightest time of the year. We yearn to glue ourselves to something bigger than us, to something safer than war and inequality, to something holier. We yearn for closeness.
Between the straits, the world asks us: what do you long for when you finish reading the news? What holiness do you chase when all else feels unstable? This summer, may we walk these weeks not only with grief, but with divine longing. With fierce tenderness and steady breaths, may the narrow places not squash our faith, but actually help us feel closer to the world and to the Oneness we yearn for.
TISHA B’AV
The holy ninth day of Av falls this year on Sunday, August 3rd. Originally designated to mourn the destructions of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem in antiquity, the day long ago came to be a time to recall and grieve many occasions of social violence. This year, sadly, this observance has particular resonance as we are in the midst of multiple wars and other occasions of mass harm. Traditionally, one fasted on Tisha B’av, sat in a mourner’s posture on low benches, and chanted the tragic book of Lamentations. In our community, as in many contemporary Jewish communities, we have observed the holy day in various ways intended to make space for grief and reflection. There is a tradition that says that the Messiah will be born on the afternoon of Tisha B’av, turning the sorrows of the day into anticipation of relief. So may it be this year. Plans are still being made as the Megillah goes to press, so stay tuned for details.
SHABBAT MORNING SERVICES
A full Shabbat service is led by community members, with singing, chanting and silence, Torah teaching and reading, blessings for healing and peace, and time for mourners to say Kaddish. The teachers for July and August are listed below. We have hybrid services, so come to the shul or Zoom in from 10:30 AM until about 12:30 PM.
| 7/05/25 |
Chukat |
Sandra Wortzel |
| 7/12/25 |
Balak |
Raven Deerwater |
| 7/19/25 |
Pinchas |
Paige Lincenberg |
| 7/26/25 |
Matot-Masei |
Leslie Krongold |
| 8/02/25 |
Devarim |
Raven Deerwater |
| 8/09/25 | Vaetchanan |
Gowan Batist |
| 8/16/25 | Eikev |
Margaret Holub |
| 8/23/25 |
Re'eh |
Margaret Holub |
| 8/30/25 |
Shoftim |
Aviv Kleinman & Reesha Katcher |
If you would like to give a Torah teaching during Shabbat services, or want more information about what’s involved, please contact Raven Deerwater at raven@taxpractitioner.com or (707) 937-1099.
KABBALAT SHABBAT
On July 11th our hosts will be Sandra and Kenny Wortzel in Albion. Please call them at (520) 591-7176 or (520) 591-7001 to RSVP and get the directions. Following a short service, we will share a vegetarian potluck.
On August 29th, Aviv and Reesha K. invite the community to a special Kabbalat Shabbat to kick off the weekend of their wedding. It will be outdoors in Caspar. Location to be determined. Vegetarian potluck contributions are welcome. To RSVP and get directions and details, please email kkfamily513@gmail.com.
We still need hosts for November. If you’d like to be one, but don’t have the space in your home, it’s possible to host at the shul. To schedule a Shabbat gathering, please contact Mina at (707) 937-1319 or mcohen@mcn.org.
AUFRUF FOR PAIGE & BEN
During Shabbat morning services on July 12th Paige and Ben will be called up to the Torah for an aliyah. After the service, we’ll share a celebratory Kiddush lunch of bagels and schmear. Paige & Ben look forward to celebrating their impending marriage with the whole community in this special way. Please email rabbipaige@gmail.com if you plan to attend so they can make sure to have enough bagels.
TORAH READERS FOR HIGH HOLY DAYS
High Holy Days this year start on September 23rd, so it’s time to decide if you are interested in performing the mitzvah of reading an Aliyah from the Torah. If you are, contact Mina Cohen at (707) 367-3390 or mcohen@mcn.org. We have Rabbi Margaret’s beautiful voice chanting them for your listening and tutoring pleasure, and Mina is happy to help you if you need a brush up or are new to this very satisfying experience.
CENTERING SALONS
These days hang heavy on many of us. While it is important for us to do all we can to bring about positive change, sometimes we may need to take a moment to recharge in a more personal way. Rabbi Holub will be hosting “centering salons” at the shul on Monday afternoons twice a month beginning in July. Summer salons will meet July 7th and 21st, and August 4th and 18th, from 4:00 to 5:00 PM. The format will be simple: a song, a period of silence, and an opportunity to share how you are feeling and coping. There will be no persuading or educating—just a chance to be in a caring setting with your own feelings and others’. These gatherings are open to anyone in our Coast community who would like to come, so please feel free to share this announcement.
LOVE OF WISDOM
Once a month, on the first Wednesday, the Philosophy Circle gathers to explore a thought-provoking topic related to ethics, existence, or reality. On July 2nd at 5:30 PM, at the shul, the circle will discuss Truth. For August 6th, we are pondering what to ponder. No outside reading or work is required. Just show up, hear a few profound sentences from a Jewish philosopher—anybody from Ido Abram to Chaim Zhitlowsky—then get lost in a stimulating discussion with members of our community. For more information, contact Rabbi Paige at rabbipaige@gmail.com.
ZOOM ADDRESS
We are using the Zoom address below for many MCJC events. Password is shalom. Disregard the numeric passcode at the bottom of the invitation unless you’re dialing in on a landline. If you have questions or problems, contact susan.tubbesing@gmail.com.
Join: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/7071836183?pwd=NzFaTkpjOXVYMDNnNnprOXlnZjVhQT09
Meeting ID: 707 183 6183
Passcode: shalom
Numeric Passcode: 776001
BIRTHDAYS
Please reach out to the celebrants noted below and spread love. If you would like your natal day listed, email rabbipaige@gmail.com with your birth date. (We list the day, but not the year, and your name will be featured only during the actual month of your birthday.) Below are the July and August birthdays:
7/4 Daniel Mandelbaum, 7/7 Devora Rossman, 7/9 Carla Jupiter,
7/14 Andrea Luna, 7/21 Jennifer Kreger, 7/28 Raven Deerwater
8/5 Zev Schlosser, 8/10 Joy Lancaster, 8/10 Oona Hofberg Lee
8/19 Nina Ravitz, 8/22 Dawn Hofberg Schlosser, 8/26 Jane Corey
HERE FOR YOU
Rabbis Margaret & Paige want to remind you all that we’re always available for you in any way we can be! Please don’t hesitate to reach out to one of them to go on a walk or have tea with you.
HOODWINK PREVENTION
On July 23rd from 2:30 to 4:30 at the shul (no Zoom) there will be a video presentation and discussion on how to identify and avoid being hoodwinked by fraudulent e-mails, texts, and phone calls. We will learn some ways to spot spam, phishing, and grandparent scams when they come our way. Please let Nina ninabo@mcn.org or Donna dmthebeez9@gmail.com know if you have any questions before the event.
ELDERS CONVERSE
The Elders’ Conversation continues ever onward, with intimate, exploratory, ever deepening conversation about topics of our choice. We meet every second and fourth Tuesday of the month, 3:00 to 4:30 PM on Zoom. July dates are the 8th and 22nd. In August we’ll meet on the 12th and 26th. Topics are voted on at the end of the prior meeting, and questions to stir the pot are shared in the MCJC announcements that Susan Tubbesing sends out before the meeting. People of all ages are most welcome to join the conversation.
SHARE YOUR GIFTS
Papermaking will be the fun activity at the Sunday, July 27th Matanah. Participants will create a natural pulp using a variety of materials. Feel free to bring onion or garlic skins or other dry plant matter (lignocellulosic materials) to add to a pulp. If you can, please bring your own blender and any plastic or metal mold such as a bowl or mask. Think of the papier-mâché process you may have participated in back in grade school. If you plan to attend the Matanah, please RSVP to Leslie Krongold at elkrong@yahoo.com. Matanah is taking a summer hiatus during August.
JUSTICE GROUP
MCJC’s Justice Group meets in-person (only) at the shul at 5:30 PM on the last Monday of the month. In July, that will be the 28th, and in August, we will meet on the 25th. All are invited. If you'd like, bring a prayer for justice, a poem, a snack, an open mind, or just YOU. Come hear updates on the Justice projects, Citizenship Scholarship and Indigenous Relationships. Share updates on organizing for immigration rights and other local justice activities. For information or to receive Justice Group announcements, contact Donna Medley at dmthebeez9@gmail.com.
BOOK GROUP
The Constant Readers will meet Monday, July 21st to discuss The Coffee Trader by David Liss. In Amsterdam in 1659, Miguel Lienzo, a sharp-witted trader in the city's close-knit community of Portuguese Jews, has lost everything in a sudden shift in the sugar markets. Impoverished and humiliated, living on the charity of his petty younger brother, Miguel must find a way to restore his wealth and reputation. He enters into a partnership with a Dutch woman who offers him a chance to corner the market on an exotic new commodity called "coffee."
At the August 18th meeting, Properties of Thirst by Marianne Wiggins will be the focus. The sweeping masterwork set in the Owens Valley of California during World War II examines the meaning of family and the limitations of the American Dream. Rockwell “Rocky” Rhodes has spent years fiercely protecting his California ranch from the L.A. Water Corporation, but when the government begins to build an internment camp for Japanese-Americans next to the ranch, Rocky faces even bigger threats than the watermen he’s battled for years. His son is off in the Pacific fighting and his daughter has gotten involved with the Department of Interior man who’s in charge of building the camp.
If you are not currently in the Book Group, please contact Fran Schwartz for the Zoom invitation at franbschwartz@gmail.com. Books are usually at Gallery Bookshop.
MCJC BOARD MEETING
The MCJC board will meet on July 9th at 5:30 on Zoom. The August meeting is on the 13th. If you wish to attend part of the meeting, please contact Susan Tubbesing for the Zoom address at (707) 962-0565, or susan.tubbesing@gmail.com.
THE MAIL GOES THROUGH AGAIN
Julie and Bob Melendi came back from Dallas just in time to prepare the June Megillah for mailing. Now that’s dedication and the old can-do spirit! With spirit and dedication like theirs, this mitzvah can be yours. Please contact Sarah at 962-0565 or sarah.nathe@gmail.com.
MEGILLAH SUBSCRIPTIONS
The Mendocino Megillah is published monthly as an emailed PDF and an online version. The online Megillah is posted on the newsletter page of the MCJC website: www.mcjc.org/newsletter. Any information on changes in email address or in email notifications should be sent to Sarah Nathe at sarah.nathe@gmail.com. If you choose not to be a contributing member of MCJC, we request a $54 annual fee for the Megillah.
THANK YOU TO THE FOLLOWING DONORS
Donna Weintraub, Myra Beals, Laura Goldman & Dennak Murphy, Iris Cutler, Patricia Brown on behalf of the Alvin and Peggy Brown Family Charitable Foundation, Steven Lavine & Janet Sternburg, the Linda Jupiter Trust, Kath Disney Nilson, Susan & Gary Levenson-Palmer, dobby sommer, Tracy Salkowitz & Rick Edwards, Ronnie James, Ruth Rosenblum & SA Ephriam, Ronnie James, Meadow, Harriet Bye and Larry Sawyer
Annett & Jonathan Lehan in memory of Bill Garrett
David Levine in honor of Daniel Plotinsky and in memory of his father, Howard Levine
Harriet Bye & Larry Sawyer to the Justice Group’s Citizenship Scholarship Fund
EDITORIAL POLICY
The Mendocino Megillah is published monthly, except for August. The deadline for article submission is the 20th of the month before publication. The editor will include all appropriate material, space permitting, with the exception of copyrighted material lacking the permission of the author. Divergent opinions are welcome. Material printed in the Megillah does not necessarily represent the policy or opinions of the MCJC Board of Directors.
Please Support Our Generous Underwriters
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Frankie's Pizza and Ice Cream Parlor: Homemade pizzas, Cowlick's ice cream, and other yummy things to nosh on. Beer and wine available. Open every day but Monday from 1:00 pm - 7:00 pm at 44951 Ukiah Street, Mendocino, (707) 937-2436. www.frankiesmendocino.com
Out of this World: Telescopes, binoculars, & science toys. 45100 Main Street, Box 1010, Mendocino. (707) 937-3335. www.OutofThisWorldShop.com. Serving all your interplanetary needs since 1988.
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| Chevra Kadisha |
Clare Bercot Zwerling |
956-571-0945 |
clarebercot@icloud.com |
| Cemetary |
Donna Montag |
707-877-3243 |
montag@mcn.org |
| Outreach (new to the community), Finance Committee, Announcements |
Susan Tubbesing* |
707-962-0565
|
susan.tubbesing@gmail.com |
| Justice Committee |
Donna Medley* |
707-962-9493 |
dmthebeez9@gmail.com
|
| Women's retreat, Annual dinner |
Harriet Bye |
707-937-3622 |
bysawyer@mcn.org
|
| Kabbalat Shabbat Coordinator |
Mina Cohen |
707-367-3390 | mcohen@mcn.org |
| Volunteer Coordinator |
Joy Lancaster* |
510-703-9955 | martyjoy@sbcglobal.net |
| Building Maintenance |
Marnie Press* |
707-937-1905 | marniepress@gmail.com |
| Treasurer, Finance Committee |
Raven Deerwater* |
707-964-8333 | raven@taxpractitioner.com |
| Landscaping, Library |
Nina Ravitz* |
707-357-6462 | ninabo@mcn.org |
| Secretary, Finance Committee |
Alix Sabin* |
415-238-1342 | alixsabin@gmail.com |
| Book Group, Bikkur Cholim |
Fran Schwartz |
707-937-1352 | franbschwartz@gmail.com |
| Web dude |
Gus Mayeno |
webmaster@mcjc.org | |
| Megillah Editor, Name & Address & Subscription changes |
Sarah Nathe |
707-962-0565 |
sarah.nathe@gmail.com |
| Rabbi |
Margaret Holub |
707-734-0311 | mholub@mcn.org |
| Rabbi |
Paige Lincenberg |
rabbipaige@gmail.com |
