T orah P ortion
The Art of Building Community
BY RABBI JASON BONDER
Parashat Vayakhel 5782
IN THIS WEEK’S Torah
portion, we meet Betzalel, son
of Uri, son of Hur, from the
tribe of Judah for the second
time. He is God’s pick to
lead the construction of the
Mishkan — the Tabernacle.

The Torah says that God
gave Betzalel special talents.

“God has endowed him with
a divine spirit of skill, ability
and knowledge in every kind
of craft and has inspired him
to make designs for work in
gold, silver and copper, to cut
stones for setting and to carve
wood — to work in every kind
of designer’s craft” (Exodus
35:31-33). But this shouldn’t be news
to us. Regular readers will
likely recognize that the Torah
says almost the exact same
thing back in the 31st chapter
of Exodus. Why again?
In W. Gunther Plaut’s
“The Torah: A Modern
Commentary,” we find an
answer. “Such repetition was
an integral part of the narra-
tive style of the ancient Near
Daniels Continued from Page 23
streets walking to school. I was
truly grieving the estranged
relationship with my mother,
former peers and neighbors. By
2015, I was ex-communicated
and found myself homeless. I
went to Bubby Roz’s home to
find comfort. I didn’t expect
her to open her home to me,
but she welcomed me to live
with her, like a one-eyed cat
receiving warm milk.

For nearly two years, I was
Bubby’s new roommate. Her
home was an unlisted shelter
for decades where many cis
male Jews who were homeless
were given a roof over their
heads: the failed Talmudist
28 FEBRUARY 24, 2022
CAN DL E L IGHTIN G
Feb. 25
March 4
5:30 p.m.

5:38 p.m.

East” (Plaut, 621).

But that was then, and this is
now. Can we still find meaning
in this repetition today?
I think so. I see two lessons
for us in our times. First, a
lesson about art. Second, a
lesson about community.

There was inherent risk in
putting an artist at the head
of the project of building the
Mishkan because art is subjec-
tive. Would everyone appreciate
the designs that Betzalel made?
Would everyone understand
the symbolism? Would the
design be suitable to the Divine
Presence that would repeatedly
descend upon that portable
structure? Judging by the Torah’s
descriptions, the project
seemed to be a major success.

Yet I can’t avoid thinking that
at least one ancient Israelite
visitor to the Mishkan must
have quipped, “I really just
don’t see what all the fuss is
about this Betzalel guy.”
I see in this imagined
dissenter’s opinion the first
lesson about repetition in
this week’s portion. Perhaps,
through telling the story twice,
the Torah is talking to the
critics among us. If you don’t
see something in acclaimed art
at first glance, look again. You
might pick up something that
you hadn’t perceived before.

This doesn’t only apply to
visual art. It applies to our
prayers, too. I often think back
to when I was a rabbinic intern
preparing for Rosh Hashanah
and Yom Kippur services. I was
just meeting this community
for the first time, so I sought
input from members.

“What are you looking for
in the services?” I asked. “We
want you to make it feel like
home,” they said. To which I
replied, “Great. Which home?”
Our first experiences in
synagogue powerfully impact
how we see Judaism forever
after. We are sometimes
inclined to think that the tunes
we first hear are the exact ones
sung at Mount Sinai.

It took me longer than I
would like to admit to realize
that many of my favorite tunes
from synagogue services aren’t
even 100 years old, let alone
ancient. Nurit Hirsh’s “Oseh
Shalom,” written in the 1960s,
is my favorite example. For so
long, I was sure that Moses
sang that tune.

Many people cringe when
certain tunes in synagogue
are not “their” tunes. Perhaps
the repetition we find in this
week’s portion is encouraging
us to give some tunes a second
chance. If we must revisit artwork
or a piece of music to truly
appreciate it, it is all the
more important to revisit our
communities as well. This
brings me to the second lesson
I find in this Torah portion.

I don’t think it’s an accident
that this repetitive portion is
named “Vayakhel.”
Bringing people together is
messy business. Sometimes it
takes more than one try.

Our portion begins, “Moses
then convoked (Vayakhel) the
whole Israelite community ...”
This gathering is also a second
chance of sorts. A few chapters
earlier, the Israelites convoked
themselves (Vayakhel) in a
rebellious way to build the
golden calf. Now they are
trying it again with better
intentions. We must try again
and again to make it work just
right. Frustrations can run high
these days as we try to figure
out the best and safest ways
to gather. People leave their
computers muted or unmuted
at the wrong times. Internet
connections aren’t always
flawless. Vayakhel reminds us that
when we convene, we are
engaged in the process of
creation. If you don’t find the
beauty the first time, go back
again. Try and find something
beautiful despite the frustra-
tion. Vayakhel teaches us that
creating sacred space and
sacred community is an art
form that must be repeated. l
who never got his ordination,
a Chasid who thought he was
the Messiah, an ex-con and
dirt bike rider, an Israeli lawyer
with a cannabis business before
it was legalized — and me, the
first gender non-conforming
artist in her house. Art, nature
and Bubby seemed to be the
only comfort to heal my open
wounds from being disowned.

Eventually, along with my
trans Jewish collaborator Hazel
Katz, I made a documentary
called “Bubby & Them,” which
follows Bubby Roz’s and my
journey through our challenges:
disability, gender dysphoria,
trying to meet our needs and
co-existing in a cluttered home.

The film discusses a two-page
homophobic edict, written
and signed by prominent local
rabbis, which was illegally
mailed to every Jewish and
non-Jewish co-op in the LES to
warn them that Jewish organi-
zations were including queer
Jews. As upsetting as this letter
was, it also reflected the shifting
landscape of the neighborhood:
Where Orthodoxy once held
power, now progress towards
acceptance was being made.

“Bubby & Them” premiered
in Brooklyn through our
sponsor UnionDocs in June
2017, followed by over 25 film
festivals. But sadly, barely any
Jewish venues have shown it.

One major New York producer
told us that our content wasn’t
“appropriate for our audiences.”
They rave about diversity and
showcase gay series, but trans
Jews are told to wait their turn,
even if they’re telling a heart-
felt PG story like mine.

But I refused to be discour-
aged. While the struggle to tell
trans Jewish stories for wider
audiences continues, I hope my
creative expression can protect
and heal wounded trans youth
and educate allies to ensure
that no child is left behind
despite their identity. If a
Jewish film festival will feature
“Bubby & Them,” great. If not,
we will keep taking up space
until all Jews, gentile, trans and
cis allies can show up as their
full selves and know they will
always be loved, supported,
blessed and welcomed.

After witnessing the magic of
our Brooklyn screening, Bubby
said to me, “You’re going to go
places and be a star.” It makes
me cry every time I think about
it or doubt myself from the
daily struggles of transphobia
I face. Our beloved Bubby Roz
now lives in a nursing home in
New Jersey, and her words evoke
resilience. I love you, Bubby. You
provided me a home and made
me feel cherished as my queer-
licious self when I needed it the
most. We should all follow your
example of unconditional love
for all non-conforming kids. l
JEWISH EXPONENT
Rabbi Jason Bonder is the
associate rabbi at Congregation
Beth Or in Maple Glen. The Board
of Rabbis of Greater Philadelphia
is proud to provide diverse
perspectives on Torah commentary
for the Jewish Exponent. The
opinions expressed in this column
are the author’s own and do not
reflect the view of the Board of
Rabbis. This first appeared on Alma.

JEWISHEXPONENT.COM



C ommunity / mazel tovs
B I RTH
B AR MI T Z VAH
SYLVIA LU SCHWARTZ
MAURICE ISAAC KANTER
Joan and Mark Dossick of Langhorne and
Margate, New Jersey, announce the birth of
their granddaughter, Sylvie Lu Schwartz, born
Aug. 9, 2021.

Sylvie is the daughter of Tracie and Matthew
Schwartz of New York City.

Sylvie is named in loving memory of her
maternal great-grandmother Sylvia Dossick
and paternal great-grandmother Lucille
Meirowitz. Sharing in their joy are grandparents Randi and Gary Holsten and Steve and
Lenae Schwartz; great-grandparents Al Meirowitz and Claire and Al Schwartz;
aunt and uncles Alyssa and Sean Perlman and Jesse Schwartz; and cousins Dylan
and Sydney Perlman.
Photo by Tracie Schwartz
Maurice Isaac Kanter became a bar mitzvah
on Feb. 19 at Temple Beth Zion-Beth Israel in
Philadelphia. Maurice is the son of Gregg Kanter and Sheri
P. Rosenberg z”l, the brother of Markus and
Margaux, and the grandson of Seymour and
Rhoda Kanter of Philadelphia and Marcus z”l
and Ann Rosenberg of Dallas.

Maurice is a seventh-grader at Jack M.

Barrack Hebrew Academy. His interests include
creative writing, music composition, basketball,
skiing and travel.

Photo by Gregg Kanter
COMMUNITYBRIEFS Philadelphia Orchestra to Present ‘Fiddler’
in Partnership with University of Michigan
Musical Theater Students
THE PHILADELPHIA ORCHESTRA will
co-present a new semi-staged concert production of
“Fiddler on the Roof” on March 3, 5, and 6 in Verizon
Hall at the Kimmel Center for Performing Arts In
partnership with the University Musical Society at
the University of Michigan.

The performances will feature the orchestra and
Broadway performers sharing the stage with students
from the university’s Department of Musical Theatre.

They will perform John Williams’ Academy
Movie poster of “Fiddler on the Roof”
JEWISHEXPONENT.COM Courtesy of MGM
Award-winning orchestrations, which will be heard
in their entirety for the first time in live performances
of the musical. Williams adapted the score composer
Jerry Bock created for the 1971 film.

“It’s amazing to me that 50 years have transpired
since this production was made,” Williams said.

“Presenting this wonderful score and show in a
form that’s never been heard or seen reanimates and
extends the life of a great project that means so much
to so many people. The story is never going to be old.

It’s as basic and human as any story can ever be.”
Broadway veterans Chuck Cooper (who won a
Tony Award in 1997 for “The Life”) and Loretta
Ables Sayre (nominated for a Tony in 2007 for “South
Pacific”) will star as Tevye and Golde, respectively,
while Chad Jennings plays butcher Lazar Wolf, along-
side many U-M students.

Conductor/Music Director Andy Einhorn will
lead the performances, which are directed by Sarna
Lapine and choreographed by Alison Solomon.

Brother Murdered by Terrorists in Jerusalem
to Speak at Temple Beth Hillel-Beth El
Temple Beth Hillel-Beth El in Wynnewood will host
at 7 p.m. on Feb. 27 Kasriel Kay, whose brother Eli was
murdered by terrorists on Nov. 21 in the Old City of
Jerusalem while on his way to work.

Kay and his wife, Shani, will speak on “Lessons
Learned from Eli’s Death, Including His Love for the
People and Land of Israel and How Everyone Can Be
a Hero” and also discuss the struggles lone soldiers
face in the Israel Defense Forces.

Eli Kay was a recent immigrant from South
JEWISH EXPONENT
Africa who was employed as a tour guide at the
Western Wall, according to The Times of Israel. He
was walking to work when East Jerusalem resident
Fadi Abu Shkhaydam, a Hamas activist, opened
fire and fatally wounded him, injuring four others.

Abu Shkhaydam was killed by police at the scene
following a brief gun battle.

Eli Kay previously volunteered in Kibbutz Nirim
in southern Israel for a year and served in the IDF
as a lone soldier in the Paratroopers Brigade until
August 2019.

On Feb. 1, security forces demolished Abu
Shkaaydam’s home.

For more information, contact Lisa Richman at
morah1@gmail.com. Attendees must be vaccinated
and wear masks. l
— Compiled by Andy Gotlieb
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FEBRUARY 24, 2022
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