Celebrate Purim at Congregation Beth Israel
While Purim officially starts Monday night, our Purim festivities begin this Sunday afternoon!
All are welcome!
Pre-Purim Family Friendly Breakfast for Dinner
Sunday Afternoon, March 5, at 5:00 pm
Additional Details Below
Back to the 90's: The Big Purim Party & Megilliah Reading
Starts with Maariv, 6:30 pm Monday Night, March 6
Additional Details Below
Purim Day Shacharit & Megillah Reading
Tuesday Morning, March 7, at 7:00 am
Pre-Purim Family Friendly Breakfast for Dinner
Kids of all ages are invited to our free pre-Purim family event! We’ll be prepping for the holiday with lots of crafts, including making masks and DIY upcycled groggers, decorating (and eating!) hamentaschen, and, of course, enjoying a delicious “breakfast for dinner” in honor of the festival when everything gets turned inside out and upside down!
Start collecting your recyclables now to make “green” groggers at the event — empty water bottles and paper towel rolls are perfect for Purim noisemakers and help reduce waste, so be sure to bring a few!
Back to the 90's: The Big Purim Party & Megillah Reading
It’s Purim and that means it’s time to party! We are teaming up with JNola to throw an absolutely off-the-hook 90’s-themed party on Purim evening, Monday March 6th at Beth Israel. Megillah reading will begin at 6:45 and the drinks start pouring at 8pm! Come dressed in your very best 90’s costume and get ready to groove to the LIVE music of Big in the 90’s, playing all of our favorite retro hits. $20 includes unlimited food, drinks, AND an Uber ride to and from the party. Beth Israel members get in free! Register here!
Welcome Noah Jacobs, Our New Administrator
I am extremely happy to announce that Noah S. Jacobs has been hired as our new administrator for Beth Israel and will start on January 17th!
Noah is a lifelong resident of the New Orleans Jewish community and lives in Metairie with his wife Elizabeth – who he met at Henry S. Jacobs camp – and daughter Cassie. Noah comes to us with a master’s degree in public administration. Though having started his post g
raduate life as an analyst for PricewaterhouseCoopers and later spent two years as the mayor of Biscayne Park, Florida, most of his career has been in the teaching profession. Noah is a free-lance grant writer and an organization specialist who has been looking to transition into the New Orleans Jewish professional community.
As a first-time synagogue administrator Noah knows the learning curve will be steep. But he is looking forward to helping us organize and migrate our current information into a new comprehensive synagogue database administration management system, all while getting to know the inner workings of Beth Israel. It may take a little time for everything to come together, but I know you will be patient, as we work and learn together to return Beth Israel to smoother operations.
L’ Shalom,
Harold
Harold A. Pesses
President - Congregation Beth Israel
Metairie Eruv Is Kosher - Get Involved!
The Metairie Community Eruv, established by Beth Israel in 2012, has enabled the observant community in the Metairie area to grow over the past decade. An eruv is a critical component of Jewish communal infrastructure, allowing for the carrying of items beyond a person's private domain on Shabbat.
Over the past six months, we have worked with Rabbi Stephen Belsky, an eruv builder and consultant, to restore our community eruv. After a significant amount of work rerouting the eruv and physically rebuilding its infrastructure, we are thrilled to announce the completion of the Metairie Community Eruv earlier this week!
This timing is most appropriate, as we find ourselves in the midst of a series of Torah portions devoted to the building of the Mishkan, a communal project which relied on the freewill donations of community members. These donations came in multiple forms; both through the giving of time and of "treasure." We, too, are asking for your contributions in each of these areas to firm up the ground upon which our eruv was built.
Find out more about how to donate your time and financially support the Metairie Community Eruv.
Congregation Beth Israel - Participate Online
As we at Congregation Beth Israel begin to emerge from the pandemic, we will continue to gradually shift our offerings towards in-person while maintaining a strong virtual presence. Please reach out for the Zoom links to our virtual classes, or feel free to join us in person (proof of vaccine required) for our in-person services and programs.
What's even better than watching? Joining in! Click below to join via Zoom.
Note, for those participating in closed meetings, check with Rabbi Phil or our shul leadership for meeting specific Zoom invitations.
Upcoming Events