From the Pulpit: A reason to dance

Rabbi Chaim Mendelsohn

By Rabbi Chaim Mendelsohn

Chabad of Centrepointe

Well, my legs are certainly feeling sore. It is not because I ran a marathon. Rather, I write this article one day after Simchat Torah. On Simchat Torah, we dance and dance and dance with the Torah. We celebrate the completion of another cycle of reading the entire Torah.

What you may not be aware of is that the completion of the Torah coincides with the biblical festival of Shemini Atzeret. In other words, our sages selected this biblical holiday to celebrate the annual completion of the Five Books of Moses.

So, what is Shemini Atzeret? Why did the Torah command us to add an independent holiday called Shemini Atzeret at the conclusion of Sukkot?

Ask the average Jew why we celebrate Passover, they will immediately respond that it marks the exodus from Egypt. Ask them how about Shavuot, without a second’s hesitation they will tell you it is the day the Jewish nation received the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai. Or ask why we observe Sukkot and you will likely hear that it acknowledges the protection God provided the people of Israel when they were traversing the desert. And so on and so forth.

But inquire about the reason behind Shemini Atzeret and you will almost certainly receive nothing more than a blank stare.

In fact, the Bible itself offers no clue as to what Shemini Atzeret is about.

In his commentary to the book of Leviticus, Rashi uses an analogy to offer the following beautiful explanation:

[God says to Israel,] “I have detained you [to remain] with Me.” This is analogous to a king who invited his sons to feast with him for a certain number of days, and when the time came for them to leave, he said: “My sons! Please, stay with me just one more day; it is difficult for me to part with you!”

Rashi is telling us that after the High Holy Days of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot, when we connect to God by attending synagogue, by eating in a sukkah and by shaking the four species, God begs us not to leave just yet. He implores us to stay one more day. It is difficult for him to part with us, and us with him.

In other words, Shemini Atzeret transcends reason. We are not marking this day because God did something for us. Rather we mark it because of our collective and individual identity as a child of God. We celebrate our inherent union with God almighty.

It is no accident that we recite Yizkor, a memorial prayer for our departed loved ones, on Shemini Atzeret. We do not miss and reflect on the lives of our loved ones because of what they have done for us, rather we focus on our internal bond that transcends logic.

I would suggest that the ultimate reason for our great joy on this Holiday is because we know that God loves us and cares about us because we are one with him.

And if that is not enough reason to dance, I don’t know what is.

Federal election voting options

By Toby Yan

Community Relations Officer - Ottawa West-Nepean

and Merle Haltrecht-Matte

Community Relations Officer - Ottawa-Vanier

The upcoming federal election will be held on Monday, October 21, 2019. This Election Day coincides with the Jewish holidays of Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah.

There are alternative voting options available to you other than on Election Day – including at an Advance Poll, by Special Ballot at an Elections Canada Office, or by mail. For this election, there will be extra voting kiosks set up to accommodate this phenomenon.

Advance Polls

Advance polls will be held at specific advance polling stations on October 11, 12, 13 and 14, and will be open from 9 am to 9 pm. There are many locations of advance polling stations. The dates and addresses of advance polls will be available on the Elections Canada website, on your voter information card, or by calling Elections Canada at 1-800-463-6868.

The advance polling days that do not conflict with Shabbat or with the first day of Sukkot are Friday, October 11 before 6 pm; Saturday, October 12 after 7:10 pm; and Sunday, October 13 before 6 pm.

Special Ballot

You can register to vote by special ballot on any day until October 15. You can register online, by mail, or in person at an Elections Canada office, at an Elections Canada kiosk, or at a Vote on Campus office at a post-secondary institution. A list of campuses where you may vote will be available at the Elections Canada website.

After registering in person, you can proceed to vote immediately at the location of registration. If you are unable to attend at a voting poll, call your Returning Officer and ask for a ballot package to be brought you. If you vote this way, do it as soon as possible.

Voting at Kiosks

To accommodate Jewish voters in Ottawa, there will be Elections Canada Voting Kiosks at the following locations:

Sunday, October 6, 10 am to 6 pm, at Beit Tikvah Synagogue, 15 Chartwell Avenue, Nepean;

Monday, October 7, 9 am to 7 pm at the Soloway Jewish Community Centre, 21 Nadolny Sachs Private, Ottawa;

Monday, October 7, 12 pm to 8 pm, at Ottawa Torah Centre, 111 Lamplighters Drive, Nepean;

Thursday, October 10, 9:30 am to 7 pm, at Hillel Lodge, 10 Nadolny Sachs Private, Ottawa.

To vote, you must be a Canadian citizen, be at least 18 years old on Election Day, and prove your identity and address. You will need to provide a piece of government issued photo ID with your address, or two pieces of other ID, one of which shows your current address.

You can vote at these Election Kiosks even if you reside outside of the riding where the Election Kiosk is located. You will need to know the name of your candidate for whom you will vote as they will not stock ballots for every riding. You will write out the name of your candidate on the ballot.

Voting by Mail

To vote by mail, apply online or at any Elections Canada office across Canada before Tuesday, October 15, 6 pm. You will receive your voting kit by mail. If you choose this route, you must follow through and vote by mail.

More Questions

If you have any questions about your voting options, contact your local Returning Officer:

Carleton – Jennifer A. Cook, 6179 Perth Street, Suite 1, Richmond 1-866-564-6485;

Kanata-Carleton – Keith H. Anatol, 155 Terence Matthews Crescent, Kanata 1-866-241-7765;

Nepean – Judy DiMilo, 595 Moodie Drive, Nepean 1-866-256-2806;

Orléans – Sylvie Duford, 110 Place d’Orléans Drive, Suite 2016, Orléans 1-866-275-1657;

Ottawa Centre – Gail Lynch, 835 Carling Avenue, Ottawa 1-866-275-1649;

Ottawa South – Eileen Raven, 1800 Bank Street, Ottawa 1-866-275-1775;

Ottawa Vanier – Rachel Crete, 282 Dupuis Street 1-866-275-1778;

Ottawa West-Nepean – Arnold Finkelstein, 60 Tiverton Drive, Ottawa 1-866-275-1841.

Visit the Elections Canada website at https://tinyurl.com/y5uena7c for more information.