It is great to be back after some time away. We had a wonderful family vacation in Hot Springs, Arkansas and then I had the honor of attending the beautiful wedding of Ori and Alissa Guttman in New Jersey. I’ve been thinking about hospitality over the past several weeks, and the different forms it can take. It can be transactional- like the owners of the home we rented through AirBNB on Lake Catherine, AR, who ensured that our stay was terrific even though we paid for the privilege. It can also be altruistic, like the kind my brother Elia showed me when I stayed with him during my stay in the New York area- bringing me to this week’s Hakarat HaTov Corner.
For years, hospitality for the many travelers who passed through Dallas or came to check us out was handled admirably by Grace Tannin Denemark z”l. With unflappable aplomb, she took care of a thankless and difficult job, made more difficult by the kinds of requests she received. It was not uncommon for her to be contacted by a family of 12 passing through Dallas that needed a place to stay for a week, all of whom had severe allergies and only drank Cholov Yisroel...on a Thursday night. I am exaggerating, but only somewhat- and whenever she reached out, many of you responded with an open heart and open home. Tragically, Grace had to step back to tend to Howard z”l during his illness, and then her own. Into the void stepped Dina Ravitsky, who continued Grace’s mesorah of total dedication to ensuring the placement of guests, and ensuring that their experience here is a warm, memorable one.
In March 2020, our hospitality efforts screeched to a grinding halt with the advent of COVID, only recently resuming, so Dina passed the baton to our new hospitality chair, Meyer Denn. Meyer will be handling all requests coming from visitors, while Caroline Alhadef will continue to arrange meals for existing members (births, shivas, etc.) as well as welcome meals for new members who have moved in.
We owe all the above-mentioned people a debt of gratitude for being the friendly faces of our community’s legendary hospitality, and to all of you who have opened your home. If you are contacted and when you are comfortable, please answer the call and show our chessed and hachnasat orchim!
An administrative note
I am grateful to all of you who enjoy receiving my sermons on Motzei Shabbat and give me feedback about them. This coming Shabbat, I am looking forward to beginning my three part series The King Is In The Field, a sermon series in preparation for the Rosh Hashanah Mussaf. Each sermon will focus on one of the three sections of Mussaf- Malchuyot (Coronation, Zichronot (Commemoration) and Shofart (Celebration). While I won’t be sending out the sermons for the next several weeks after Shabbat, I will be including them in the Rosh Hashanah Guide to the Perplexed, to help enhance your Tefillah experience. If you wish to be among those sponsoring the guide, please contact Sheyna at director@shaaretefilla.org.
Rabbi’s Recommendation
I put together an extensive playlist of some of my favorite music for the Elul and High Holidays season, arranged in liturgical order from the beginning of Elul through the end of Neilah. Click here to watch/listen!
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Ariel Rackovsky
Congregation Shaare Tefilla 6131 Churchill Way Dallas, TX 75230
