Each week after Shabbat Shacharit services, Congregation Etz Ahaim throws the best Kiddush in town, and you can be part of that.
Sponsor a Kiddush in honor of an event or maybe in the memory of a loved one. Or, for no reason at all just because you're a nice person.
Once again, you can sponsor a particular kiddush right from our webpage. Just select the Sponsor a Kiddush from the menu on top of our webpage.
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Israel has unleashed a devistating attack on Iran and Iran is vowing a massive retaliation — probably starting over Shabbat. The attack has damaged Iranian nuclear assets and killed top Iranian military commanders.
We are asking everyone to say Telhilim for the safety and protection of our brothers and sisters in Isreal.
The following Psalms should be recited: 20, 23, 43, 79, 83, 91, 118, 121, 130, 142.
You can also find them on Sefaria on the link below.
It is forbidden to eat or derive benefit from overt chometz that a Jew owned during Pesach. Overt chometz includes items such as cereal, cookies, crackers, pretzels, grains, and flour. Products that contain vinegar, such as mayonnaise, ketchup, and mustard, may be purchased, as it is likely that the vinegar is not chometz.
The following is a partial list of local stores and their status regarding the purchase of chometz after Pesach:
Vaad-supervised stores are acceptable for the purchase of chometz. The Vaad encourages the community to patronize local kosher establishments whenever possible.
Dunkin Donuts on Raritan Avenue, under Vaad supervision, is acceptable for purchasing chometz. However, baked items should not be purchased before 9:35 PM on Sunday, April 20th (so as not to benefit from melacha performed on Yom Tov). In general, one should wait one hour after Shabbos or Yom Tov throughout the year before purchasing baked goods from Dunkin Donuts.
Super Fresh in Highland Park is acceptable. The ownership and supplier of chometz (other than the Heimishe brands) are not Jewish. The Heimishe supplier sells its chometz for Pesach.
The following supermarkets and their suppliers are non-Jewish-owned, and chometz may be purchased there immediately after Pesach:
Acme (Acme in E. Brunswick has closed),
Aldi
BJ’s
Costco
CVS
Duane Read
H Mart
Rite Aid
Sam’s Club
Super Fresh
Target (non-frozen chometz items. C&S supplies frozen food items to Target)
Trader Joe’s
Walgreen’s
Walmart (in-store purchases; online purchases are discussed in 5),
Wegman’s
Whole Foods.
ShopRite: Purchasing chometz from ShopRite before Lag B’Omer, Friday May 16th, is problematic. ShopRite operates as a franchise, with each store individually owned. While most locations are owned by non-Jews, some have Jewish ownership. Purchasing chometz from a Jewish-owned ShopRite is clearly prohibited after Pesach.
Online retailers such as Amazon.com and Walmart.com may sell products from their own inventory or third-party suppliers. Chometz from their own inventory is acceptable. However, chometz from third-party suppliers may originate from Jewish-owned companies. Therefore, customers must make a reasonable effort to determine whether the supplier is Jewish.
Non-chometz items (e.g., fruits, vegetables, eggs, cooking oil, etc.) may be purchased from any Jewish- or non-Jewish-owned store.
Alcoholic beverages (excluding wine) may not be purchased from a Jewish-owned store until after Shavuos, unless the chometz was properly sold. This is because alcoholic beverages may be chometz, and inventory turnover in liquor stores tends to be slower than in supermarkets.
Locally, one may purchase alcoholic beverages from Rite Aid in Highland Park, a non-Jewish-owned corporation.
Friday, April 11 from 9:30am to 11:30am
There will be a communal burning of chametz available in Congregation Ahavas Achim’s parking lot.
Please save a very small amount of chametz from the bedikah the night before and burn it. Please do not place plastic bags with the chametz into the fire. If burning is not possible, one may flush the chametz down a drain.
Friday, April 11 from 7:00am to 11:30am
Kehilla of Raritan Valley has B’H once again arranged for Biyur Chametz and Pesach Waste Disposal in Edison.
Garbage, recycle trucks and chametz burning will be available at the corner of North Eighth Avenue and Edgemount Road (Tennis Courts/Earl Schenck Miers Park).
Please limit chametz burning to what is ritually necessary and note that this is for Edison residents only.
Friday, April 11 from 6:30am to 1:00pm
A Chometz disposal drop-off service is offered for any resident to drop off garbage and recycling materials, the morning before Passover (Wednesday, April 5, 2023). Chometz disposal will be offered during the hours of 6:30am to 1:00pm at the Department of Public Works building, 444 Valentine Street in Highland Park.
Please follow our regular recycling rules and separate garbage and chometz from recycling items such as glass, plastic, paper and cardboard
Please note: All Chometz should be dropped off by 1:00pm. Please do not leave items after this time, as there is no garbage storage at this location.
For additional information please call (732) 247-9379.
We like to thank our two municipalities for offering these services for their Jewish residents. Please be respectful of the workers and follow the rules and regulations.
If you would like a chart to help you remember to count Sefirat HaOmer, you can download it from https://shalmon.com/sefira (pick your nusach) and print it out to keep in your siddur or on your fridge. If you go to this page you will also see the current day’s count, with the beracha.
You can also get a Sefirat HaOmer app from Rusty Brick for your smartphone.:
Ashkanazim First Born need to fast. Sephardim aren't required to fast.
Etz Ahaim will offer a Siyum after Shacharit, and it is highly recommended for everyone to attend. Everyone is welcome to participate. For those fasting, you can come to the siyum and you can end your fast.
If you're planning on eating chametz on Shabbat, you should nulify your chametz after you finish your meal when you destroy your chametz on Shabbat.
If you're not planning on eating chametz on Shabbat, you should nulify your chametz after burning it.
- No Youth Groups
- Latest Shema is at 8:58am
- Youth Groups for ages 3 to 8 in the Upper Classrooms: 9:30am to End of Shacharit
- Recite Shema: by 8:58am
- Youth Groups for ages 3 to 8 in the Upper Classrooms: 9:30am to End of Shacharit
- Recite Shema: by 8:58am
In the opening paragraph of the Haggadah recited at the Seder, we declare: All who are hungry, let them come and eat. Our nation is a singular entity, and in order to experience freedom ourselves, we must also ensure that our brothers and sisters have the means to celebrate freedom too.
In preparation for the Passover holiday, it is age-old tradition to contribute generously towards funds that ensure that indeed everyone who is in need has the necessary provisions for the holiday—food, matzah, wine, festive clothing, etc. Rabbi Tal has been collecting money through his charity fund to allow those in need to be able to buy what they need in order to celebrate Pesach.
Please continue this tradition by contributing whatever you can to the Rabbi’s Charity Fund.
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Since Pesach falls right after Shabbat this year, there are some differences in the preparation for Pesach and how we can smoothly move from Shabbat right into Pesach. For example, the Fast of the First Born is moved to Thursday rather than having someone fast on Shabbat. We search for Cchametz on Thursday and burn the chametz we won’t be using for Shabbat, we do not nulify our chametz until Shabbat.
All of these halachaic changes for both Ashkenazi and Sephardi Jews is documented in this booklet.
Rabbi Yehuda Boroosan, Rabbi Emeritus of Netzach Israel in Atlanta, Georgia.
This guide was created by Rabbi Yehuda Boroosan who works for the Orthodox Union, the largest Kosher certification agency in the world, as the Rabbinic Field Representative and Mashgiach for the southeast region of the United States. He has over 20 years of experience working in the food industry and has extensive knowledge regarding the commercial production of food and household products.
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