Shabbat Shalom, CRUSY! This week's RGB D'var Torah is from Ilana Sufrin!

Candle Lighting/Havdalah Times

Pittsburgh- 4:36 / 5:38

Toledo- 4:46 / 5:50

Cleveland- 4:39 / 5:43

Columbus- 4:49 / 5:51

Cincinnati- 4:57 / 5:59

Louisville- 5:05 / 6:06

Lexington- 5:00 / 6:01

Dayton- 4:54 / 5:56

Grand Rapids- 4:51 / 5:55

Ann Arbor- 4:45 / 5:49

Indianapolis- 5:02 / 6:04

Detroit- 4:42 / 5:46

Have a marvelous Shabbos, CRUSY!

Dorit Adams

Religion / Education Online Coordinator '09 - '10

Hey;

just another reminder if any chapter has a website that is not already on
crusy.org please send it to me so i can link it up

***if you would like help, making a website, just facebook or email me, i will
be happy to help***



-Pickles

Shabbat Shalom, CRUSY! This week's RGB D'var Torah is from Molly Mangel!

Shabbat Shalom, CRUSY! This week's RGB D'var Torah is from Josh Siegal!

Dear Crusy,
   Do you feel yourself in the blue lately that fall kinnus has ended?
   Do you miss singing ruach?
   Do you LOVE slow ruach?

WELL THEN THIS EMAIL IS FOR YOU!!!

go to this page:
http://www.youtube.com/user/BuckUSY#p/a/u/2/Sj8VG3D6jIY

And check out CRUSY doing slow Ruach from the 2009 SATO Dance!


-Always,
Pickles.

Dear CRUSY,


This weekend at Fall Kinnus, applications will be given out for BuckUSY's SA/TO
Dance 2010!


But what is SA/TO Dance?

It is a mini-convention Winter Wonderland in Columbus on January 29-31!

The weekend will included:
*Kabballat Shabbat on Friday night
*USY service on Saturday morning followed by lunch, ruach, and Social Action
programming
*Formal Dance at the JCC Saturday night followed by an awesome lock-in at the
synagogue!

And the best part is: all of CRUSY is invited!

Last year, the cost was about $75, much less than a normal convention, and all
proceeds will be going to SA/TO!

If you have any questions feel free to ask!


Love, your Co-Chairs:
Molly Mangel and Rami Ungar

Hey guys,

So we've worked hard in planning a really fun (and yummy) senior activity. In
order for it to workout everyone is going to need a flashlight. If you could all
please bring a flashlight this weekend and also if you can, bring extra in case
someone forgets. That will make the night really fun and we can't wait to see
you all this weekend J

On a side note, those of you who ordered sweatshirts are going to need to bring
$20 to the convention, if you're not coming please talk to someone who is who
can bring your money and bring home your amazing, outstanding, intimidating,
mind boggling, eXtreme senior sweatshirt!
See you soon!

Love, your senior programmers, Elana and Emily

Hey Guys! J

As we all know that USY awareness week is here and each day is devoted to a different part of USY. The most important part in my opinion, (some would argue) is happening on Wednesday! The MEMBERSHIP part!

As we all know, in these hard economic times members are scarce, but we need to prove to international USY that CRUSY is a force to be reckoned with! We need an increase in membership, and this is the program that will help you do that!

I am here to present you with a challenge. A MEM/KAD SCAVENGER HUNT!

The challenge is on! Everyone is your competition so watch out! Watch your back! Whoa! So below is a list of things that you need to either find or complete, and different points will be awarded for each thing you do! Each thing is awarded a different amount of points, and the more points that you get the closer you are to winning!! And what does it mean to win? If you are the CRUSYite with the most points, you will win a special prize!

So here’s the list! Get to work, and remember, although the membership part is Wednesday, you should be doing all of the things on the list everyday! Good luck, and may the force be with you!

Also, each thing that you do needs to be signed as proof that you completed the assignment. 

Shabbat Shalom, CRUSY! This week the RGB D'var Torah is from Eli Kaufman!

This week's Torah Portion is Parshat Vayera.  In the Parsha, God tells Abraham that he will destroy the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.  Abraham bargains with God over destroying the cities.  Abraham, in an attempt to save the city, asks God to spare the city of destruction if fifty righteous people can be found.  After God reassessed the situation, Abraham's logic of sparing the city backfired, as there were not fifty righteous citizens in the cities.  Abraham decided to bargain again with God.  Abraham asks God to spare the city of destruction if there are ten righteous people in the cities.  God once again reassessed the situation and to Abraham's surprise, there were not even ten righteous people in the cities.God decided to destroy the evil cities and Abraham saved his relative Lot, and his family.  Lot's family consisted of his two daughters and his wife.  As Lot's family is exiting out of the city, they were told to not turn back and face their former home.  As they exited, Lot's wife turned around.  In an instant, she was turned into a pillar of salt. 

                This sounds familiar, doesn't it?  A place was full of sins and God destroyed it.  If we go back a couple of weeks, we read about Noah, his ark, and how God destroyed the world.  The story of Sodom and Gomorrah is a watered down version of the great flood.  

                In the story of Noah, God spared Noah's family.  In the story or God destroying Sodom and Gomorrah, God spared Abraham's family.  These two instances are very similar.  I had never connected these two stories together, but you learn something new everyday.

Shabbat Shalom,

'09-'10 CRUSY Co-Service Coordinator,

Eli Kaufman

Shabbos Suggestion: Invite some friends over and look at old picture albums! Yes - the actual, tangible photograph! This activity is 100% Shabbos Proof!

Candle Lighting/Havdalah Times

Pittsburgh- 4:54 / 5:53

Toledo- 5:06 / 6:06

Cleveland- 4:49 / 5:59

Columbus- 5:07 / 6:06

Cincinnati- 5:15 / 6:13

Louisville- 5:21 / 6:19

Lexington- 5:16 / 6:14

Dayton- 5:12 / 6:11

Grand Rapids- 5:11 / 6:12

Ann Arbor- 5:05 / 6:06

Indianapolis- 5:20 / 6:19

Detroit- 5:02 / 6:03

Have a spectacularly superior Shabbos, CRUSY! See you next week at Fall Kinnus!

Dorit Adams

Religion / Education Online Coordinator '09 - '10

Hi Seniors!
If you are interested in ordering a senior sweathshirt (which you all should)
let Elana ( ELPChocolate@... ) or myself ( Emilyyy306@... ) know
ASAP!!!  We are hoping to get the sweashirts by Fall Kinnus, so we need to know
sizes by middle of next week! Please Please Please email us!!  Can't wait to see
you in Pittsburgh in three weeks!!!!
X

-Emily Sofayov

This week's RGB D'var Torah is from Ben Hutchinson!

Hey CRUSY.  This week's parshah is that of Noach, which mostly focuses on the flooding of the world, though it interestingly also contains the story of the Tower of Babel – two of the more famous stories from the Torah.

In the very beginning of the parshah we find God pretty wrathful, not uncommon those days.  What struck me as odd, however, was the source of His ire.  The Torah says,

11. Now the earth was corrupt before God, and the earth became full of robbery.

12. And God saw the earth, and behold it had become corrupted, for all flesh had corrupted its way on the earth. 

                In other words, the crime for which the entire Earth was flooded wasn't one of the ones we typically consider particularly reprehensible in the eyes of God.  God wasn't worked up about murder, or deceit, or even heresy – one of His favorite choices throughout the Torah.  No, it was because people had engaged in robbery and had participated in what is loosely translated as sexual deviancy.  This was so widespread that even animals were mating with other species.  Now, I can definitely see God having a problem with robbery.  And I understand the biblical God having a big problem with sexual deviancy.  But does it merit destroying the entire world?  I mean this is a God who just last week let Cain off the hook for having murdered his brother out of spite.  Cain killed his brother and was protected for the rest of his life but the world got a taste of thievery and a few *insert favorite childhood animal*s fornicated with bears.  In all seriousness though, this contradiction is difficult to reconcile.

                So at this point, it is important to ask what the real meaning is.  What lesson are we supposed to take from this story?  I should hope that we do not read a Torah portion and our main conclusion is that sexual deviancy in animals really, really upsets God.  No, I think that the real lesson to be taken from this portion comes from what God says AFTER the flood.  First, he speaks to Himself, saying,

21. And the Lord smelled the pleasant aroma, and the Lord said to Himself, "I will no longer curse the earth because of man, for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth, and I will no longer smite all living things as I have done.

                This, however, needs to be taken in contrast to his later quote,

5. But your blood, of your souls, I will demand [an account]; from the hand of every beast I will demand it, and from the hand of man, from the hand of each man, his brother, I will demand the soul of man.

6. Whoever sheds the blood of man through man shall his blood be shed, for in the image of God He made man.

7. And you, be fruitful and multiply; swarm upon the earth and multiply thereon."

                When you put these two ideas together, it seems to me that God is acknowledging that man is flawed and that this was in part because of the way in which God created us.  But, at the same time, God still has high expectations of us, and he is watching over us to make sure we do not sin too grievously.  While God accepts that sin exists in humanity as a whole, he asks – well, more like commands – every individual to do right on their own.  And, in return for a safe and prosperous earth, this doesn't seem all that difficult after all.

                Shabbat Shalom.

Ben Hutchinson,

Heschel Chairperson '09-'10