A message from Rabbi Ruth about Purim
Nava Tehila
Chodesh Tov,
Megillah reading, the humorous musical Maariv, and other Purim eve shenanigans have been an integral part of what Nava Tehila offers in recent years. To be honest, not everyone connects with the silly spirit of Purim, and many of our regulars haven't attended, but there are also those who only come for Purim or who really look forward to it.
Nava Tehila is, at its core, a space for experimenting with original ideas to renew tefilla b’tzibur, music, learning, and Jewish culture. What happens within Nava Tehila during our twenty years of existence was always the initiative of the leadership team together with many volunteers who invest time, enthusiasm, and effort to create our community experiences. Purim was always "my thing." Daphna and Yoel, who were my partners in leading and creating Kabbalot Shabbat and holiday services, weren't so much into my style of doing Purim, but in their generosity, they gave me their full support. In practice, I was the engine that led, created, produced, and organized Purim, and every year I gathered young musicians around me, most of them rabbinical students from abroad (and some of them my family members, who came to support their Ima) to create something fun.
This year I am in a year of mourning for my late father, in addition to the weight of the war, and I cannot find in my heart the strength and desire to create something for Purim. Slicha.
Furthermore, we are now in a period of changes at Nava Tehila; the leading musical team has already changed, and the new team leads wonderful Kabbalat Shabbat services that continue and will continue to take place regularly once a month. As I shared with the community about a year ago, I am also beginning to envision my retirement in the coming years. We have a Nava Tehila think tank that is mapping out the upcoming changes for the better, identifying and conversing with emerging forces from the ground who will take on creativity and leadership in the future. The renewing of our musicians' tours to Jewish communities abroad, as we shared with you in our last email is the first change.
So... farewell to Purim evening as it has been until now, and in the future, creative new ideas will surely arise to breathe life into it. In the coming months, we expect glimpses of new and creative things that we haven't had before, here in our Jerusalem community as well, so stay tuned for announcements, and in any case, we'll see you at the next Kabbalat Shabbat, 21st of Adar, March 21, at our regular venue in Spitzer Hall.
And to answer your question: So where should we go? Our friends in the Jerusalem Reshut Harabim communities will publish Megillah readings offerings. The link is just starting to fill up - I recommend you check closer to Purim.
Blessings,
Rabbi Ruth and the Nava Tehila team
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