OurChildren IN THIS ISSUE: ABOUT OUR CHILDREN - BACK TO SCHOOL

About
Our
OurChildren
About
Useful Information for
the Next Generation
THE NEW RABBIS ON THE BLOCK page 6
OUT FROM AFRICA: CHECKING IN WITH ETHIOPIAN JEWS page 10
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Money Smarts
Getting Your Sleep A Bounty of
Too Cool for School After-School,
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Supplement to The Jewish Standard September2017

AUGUST 25, 2017
VOL. LXXXVI NO. 47 $1.00 2017
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80 years ago
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2 Jewish Standard AUGUST 25, 2017


Not-quite-
total eclipse
of the sun
l At the Jewish Home
at Rockleigh on Monday,
residents and guests had the
chance to look at the sun as
the moon passed over its face.
Miu Miu removes clothing line
featuring yellow star
l File this under: What were
they thinking?
How did the designers at
the Italian fashion house Miu
Miu, a subsidiary of Prada,
come up with the idea of put-
ting a yellow star on some of
the items in their fall clothing
line?
Did they come up with the
idea of a name patch, and as
they played with permutation
(some items included a red
or purple star patch, or a rectangular
patch) the yellow star popped up and
nobody recognized it?
Did the designers misinterpret a
subconscious recognition as a flash
of creativity?
Was it a deliberate effort to be
transgressive?
Or is there an actual cell of neo-
Nazis laboring in secret in the Italian
fashion industry that decided this
moment was ripe for their message?
Sadly, the press release from the
World Jewish Congress announcing
that Miu Miu was withdrawing the
items failed to get to the root causes
of this fascist fashion fail.
In a message to WJC, Preia Naren-
dra, senior vice president of market-
ing and communications at Miu Miu,
said: Thank you for bringing this to
our attention. It was not Miu Mius
intent in any way to make any politi-
cal or religious statement, and we
apologize for any offense that may
have been taken. Kindly note that ef-
For convenient home delivery,
call 201-837-8818 or bit.ly/jsubscribe
fective immediately these items will
be removed from the collection.
Just to be clear: This is high end
back-to-school wear. A dress with the
yellow star was being sold online for
$2,170.
The World Jewish Congress com-
mends Miu Miu and its parent com-
pany Prada on its swift attention and
action to the concerns we raised re-
garding the use of the yellow star on
its clothing items, Robert Singer, the
World Jewish Congress CEO, said in a
statement. At this critical time, when
anti-Semitism and bigotry are rear-
ing their heads in the public sphere,
we must continue to exercise caution
and show sensitivity in every sphere
and sector.
Three years ago, the international
clothing chain Zara apologized for
selling a blue-and-white-striped shirt
with a six-pointed yellow star on the
chest. The shirt, for toddler boys, was
identified as a striped sheriff T-shirt.
Larry Yudelson
Page 3
Billy Joel wears yellow star
l Billy Joel didnt light
the fire of anti-Semitism
and hatred that many see
sweeping the country.
Myrna M. Suarez/Getty Images
But on Monday night,
he showed that he doesnt
disregard the danger.
For the encore of his
monthly concert at Madi-
son Square Garden, he
came back on stage wear-
ing a sports jacket with
two yellow Stars of David,
one on the front, the other
on the back .
Billy Joel is from Long Island. His mentary, The Joel Files.
parents are Jewish, but he was not At the concert, Joel invited singer
brought up practicing any religion. Patty Smyth on stage to sing her hit
He has been described as a secular song Goodbye to You with him
Jew, a cultural Jew, and an athe- while a screen behind them flashed
ist. But his fathers family lost their pictures of fired White House staff-
fortune and many family members ers including chief strategist Stephen
lost their lives in Nazi Germany, Bannon, press secretary Sean Spicer,
where they lived. That fascinating and communications adviser Antho-
story has been told in a 2001 docu- ny Scaramucci. JTA Wire Service
Candlelighting: Friday, August 25, 7:21 p.m.
Shabbat ends: Saturday, August 26, 8:20 p.m.
CONTENTS
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jewish world 25
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oPINION 28 does not constitute a kashrut endorsement. The publishing
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THE FRAZZLED HOUSEWIFE 36
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real estate 45
Jewish
Jewish
Standard
Standard
August 3, 2017 3
march25,
Noshes
CALLING OUT TRUMP:
From Berlin
to Charlottesville
Musicians REGINA
SPEKTOR and
PINK (aka Alecia
Moore), both 37, issued
moving statements right
after the Charlottesville
riot and the death of
Heather Heyer on
August 11. Both hap-
pened to be playing
Berlin. Pink, whose
mother is Jewish, said,
Its incredible to watch
Neo-Nazis march in
2017, while I, a Jewish
woman, headline a show
in Berlin where these
tunnels [to my audito-
riums stage] were built
by him [Hitler] My
heart aches for the
amount of hatred in the
world. Spektor, a child
refugee from the Soviet
Union who grew up in
Fair Lawn, said on
Facebook, I am in
Berlin where after a dark
history, it is illegal to be
a Nazi or say hate
speech.. I never
dreamed [when I
became a U.S. citizen
that] the hate speeches
and the normalizing of
institutionalized preju-
dice that would be
falling over the land in
such a short time. The
haters coming out of the
shadows, and being
empowered. Also, the
day after the riot,
Charlottesvilles mayor,
MICHAEL SIGNER, 44,
was widely quoted
when he said on Meet
the Press: When you sion; EMMY ROSSUM,
Want to read more noshes? Visit facebook.com/jewishstandard
4 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017
Were worried that even at this
high price we wont be able to get
one this holiday.
Rabbi Avraham Wolff of Odessa talking about how his congregation
might not be able to find an etrog from Calabria. A killing frost wiped
out 80 percent of the crop, so an etrog costs $500 this year. Chabad
communities around the world try to buy at least one. The fruit is a vital
part of Sukkot observance; Chabad ties Calabria to Esau, whom the Bible
says inherited the earths richness. Thus Calabrian etrogim are rich and
Calabrian etrog growers become rich too.
dance with the devil, the On August 15,
devil changes you. And I TERRY GROSS, 66,
think they made a the host of the
choice in that [Trump] NPR program Fresh Air,
campaign, a very interviewed MAX
regrettable one, to really BROOKS, Mels son. Max,
go to peoples prejudic- 45, is most famous as the
es, to go to the gutter. author of The Zombie
Predictably, he was Survival Guide and
deluged with anti-Se- World War Z. His new
mitic hate mail right novel is Minecraft: The
after the program aired. Island. Its central
character is a nameless
The twittersphere Regina Spektor Michael Signer Albert Brooks person who wakes up in
exploded after the world of the popular
President Trumps video game Minecraft
news conference on and must learn how to
August 13, in which he survive there. Max and
said, again, that both his wife, playwright
sides were at fault MICHELLE KHOLOS, 49,
both neo-Nazis and their have one child, HENRY
ilk and anti-bigotry BROOKS, now 11. He was
protesters. Here are born two months before
some tweets from the death of Anne
Jewish celebs. ALBERT Bancroft, Maxs mother
BROOKS, 70: Dont and Mels wife of 31
blame Donald Trump. He years. Max talked about
just found out yesterday how his sons birth
the Nazis lost World War Chelsea Handler Danny Zuker Nat Wolff saved Mel. Mel would
II; JOSH GAD, 36: come over every night
Sound the alarm. This 30: Who exactly are side that is full of hate, August 25. Flicie (Elle and hold the baby and
country is on fire. And you condemning? Call it bigotry, and fear. Fanning), leaves an fall asleep with Henry in
the arsonist is the what it is. Nazi. KKK Horrible speech, who r u orphanage. She sets off his lap. Max says that Mel
President; CHELSEA BARBRA STREISAND, trying to protect? for Paris hoping to still visits every day, to
HANDLER, 42: It is time 75: W/o a prepared Also, on August 14, five become a dancer. Shes Henrys delight. Max add-
for all the generals that statement, this Pres says members of the Joint joined by her best friend ed: They love each
Trump has appointed to what he really believes: Chiefs of Staff issued Victor (NAT WOLFF, other. And my son is
declare him unfit for Equating neo-Nazis to statements condemning 22), an orphan who irreverent just like my
office. He is unfit and those protecting civil racism. They include Gen. wants to be a famous father. And now my
unstable. This is mad- rights is disgraceful & DAVID GOLDFINE, 57, inventor. Flicie has to father has this protg.
ness; JUDD APATOW, crazy and DANNY the head of the Air Force pretend to come from a And so when my son was
49: Fk this guy. He ZUKER, 53: Yes Hitler and a decorated com- rich family to get into a pretending to be FDR in
has such passion for all was bad but those Jews bat pilot. top ballet school. Shes his notable Americans
of the evil corrupt did some stuff, too. helped by a mysterious class, he goes, Hey, Dad,
people on this planet. Blame to go around on Leap!, an mentor (Carly Rae can I do FDR, a polio
Never any rage at the both sides,. Im sorry animated film set Jepson). MEL BROOKS, comedy? And I said, No,
murderers. No compas- how many sides are in the late 19th 91, voices the head of no, you cant do that.
there? Theres only ONE century, opened on the orphanage. N.B.
California-based Nate Bloom can be reached at
Middleoftheroad1@aol.com
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Local
Synagogues welcome new, and not so new, rabbis
LOIS GOLDRICH
Rabbi Don Rossoff
Barnert Temple, Franklin Lakes
As interim rabbi of Barnert
Temple, Rabbi Don Rossoff
will serve as the rabbi and
do whatever it is that rabbis
do in the context of that con-
gregation, he said.
A friend of now-retired
Rabbi Elyse Frishman
they graduated from HUC
the same year, Rabbi Frish-
man from the school in New
York, Rabbi Rossoff from
the one in Cincinnati Rabbi Rossoff said that Barnert has
its act together on a very high level, in terms of leadership
and programs.
I respect Elyse tremendously, he added. She did an
amazing job, nurturing an incredibly dedicated and talented
leadership.
Rabbi Rossoff said the role of the interim rabbi is to help
the congregation make the transition from the previous rabbi
to the settled rabbi.
When a rabbi, such as Rabbi Frishman, has been there a
long time, its really difficult for another person to move in,
he said. What often happens, if they replace a longtime rabbi
with a settled rabbi, is that he or she becomes an unintentional
interim rabbi. An interim needs to find a balance between a
sense of continuity and initiating whatever changes would be
helpful, to make it easier for the next person to come in.
People have been welcoming and open, continued Rabbi
Rossoff, who took up his position on July 1. Its tough, but
they know that change is what happens. Transition is how you
experience change and move on. They understand theyll be
in a better place. As an interim rabbi, he brings 34 years of
congregational experience and a sense of calm to the con-
gregation, personifying the sense that the congregation has
a future. He also brings music he is a flutist, and uses the
instrument during services.
This is Rabbi Rossoffs third year as an interim rabbi, fol-
lowing a long tenure from 1990 to 2015 as the religious
leader of Temple Bnai Or in Morristown. The rabbi has a plan:
several years as an interim rabbi, and then a new career as a
marriage and family therapist. I wanted to retire from the
congregation, he said. My long-term goal is to be a therapist.
My intermediate goal was to do four years of interim work.
His earlier interim positions were at a Reconstructionist
synagogue in Illinois and a Reform synagogue, Temple Beth
Am, in Framingham, Mass. Their problems were totally dif-
ferent, he said, calling the experience very interesting.
He pointed out that the training he and other interim rab-
bis receive through the Interim Ministry Network which is
mostly Protestant presents a model for service that differs
somewhat from what rabbis experience. Most of their inter-
ims serve from 18 months to two years, he said. Shuls dont
want an interim that long.
Last year, Rabbi Rossoff was called upon to tutor bnai mitz-
vah students, something that pleased him greatly. I loved
that, he said. I hadnt really done that for a long time. He
also had a Saturday morning Torah study minyan for senior
citizens. Those were the two activities I loved the most, he
said. Noting that Barnert has an amazing preschool, he said
he looks forward to working with the children.
6 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017
Rabbi Rossoff was born in Red Bank, but he and his fam-
ily moved to St. Paul, Minn., when he was 2, so Im really a
Midwesterner, he said. Now he lives in Towaco an unin-
corporated part of Montville with his wife, Fran, and has
four children, ranging in age from 26 to 31. Listing their order
as boy, girl, girl, boy, he said that each child is different. The
youngest is with us right now. Later he will fly to Israel to teach
English there for a year.
Rabbi Rossoff loves the life he has chosen. The challenges
are always different, and each place we go, we make new
friends, which adds to our lives, he said. Because his wife
works for a national insurance company and therefore can
do her job online, she joins him at his interim congregations.
He pointed out that Rabbi Steven Wylen [another interim
rabbi, introduced below] graduated the same year as he and
Rabbi Frishman, and that a few people from my class have
done this.
Some of my friends have been at it for many years, finding
it their specialized calling.
Rabbi Steven Wylen
Temple Beth Rishon, Wyckoff
Rabbi Steven Wylen is no
stranger to the Jewish com-
munity of northern New
Jersey he was the religious
leader of Waynes Temple
Beth Tikvah for 20 years.
But for the last several years
he has worked as an interim
rabbi, temporarily heading
communities in Glaston-
bury, Connecticut, and Jack-
son, Mississippi.
(Incidentally, while those synagogues no doubt labeled him
as clergy, its a word he dislikes. I refuse to be demoted to
clergy, he said, defining the term as people who dispense rit-
uals of the church. Its not appropriate for a rabbi, he added.
Rabbis, he said, are scholars of Torah.)
This year, as interim rabbi of Temple Beth Rishon in Wyck-
off, Rabbi Wylen has come home. Hes quite happy about that
not least because he literally gets to come home to his wife
Cheryl. Last year, theyd had to live separately; Cheryl Wylen
stayed up north to help with their grandchildren while her
husband worked in Mississippi. So this year is much easier
for them. Weve been married for 36 years and were pretty
tight, he said.
The couple has four grown children son Jeremy and
daughters Elisheva, Shoshana, and Golda and eight
grandchildren.
Rabbi Wylen is from Philadelphia; he met Cheryl in Seattle,
where he went after he graduated from HUC in 1980. His first
job was as assistant rabbi at Temple DeHirsch Sinai in Seat-
tle. Cheryl was a Seattle native, he said. Were a bicoastal
family. The two older children were born out west, the two
younger ones in the east.
His years as an interim rabbi have been instructive. Living in
Mississippi, despite its cultural differences, showed him that
in some ways people are just people. If the racism there is
a bit more overt, those who denounce racism up North deny
the reality that its even more built in here, he said. Its easy
to look down on racists when your town is all white.
The Jewish community in Jackson is divided on the issue,
he said. When I went down there, they told me their history
with great pride. Rabbi Perry Nussbaum, who headed Beth
Israel Congregation in Jackson for 19 years, was an outspoken
critic of racism and segregation and a strong civil rights activ-
ist. So active, in fact, that the Klan blew up the synagogue in
1967 and then blew up his house. He survived both incidents.
He was lucky, Rabbi Wylen said.
Since the congregation was boasting, I thought we were
all on the same team, he continued. Accordingly, he devoted
his first Rosh Hashanah sermon to the 50th anniversary of the
Voting Rights Act, which, he said, had been significantly nar-
rowed by the Republicans in Congress. But I almost got fired
before Yom Kippur. After a discussion with the synagogue
president, we agreed to disagree, Rabbi Wylen said.
Still, life in Jackson was good. Folks from the Deep South
are very hospitable, he said. I loved that part of it. When
you go through a supermarket line, you dont just check out.
First you chat about the weather. Yankees are in such a hurry.
I took to Mississippi like a catfish to a muddy pond, he
added. He might have considered becoming their permanent
rabbi, but interim rabbis cant do that. Its part of the code.
Besides, with his wife up north and with babysitting responsi-
bilities for one of his grandchildren, it wouldnt have worked.
As it was, he commuted back and forth.
Now, back in New Jersey, I try to be an all-around rabbi, he
said. And what makes a rabbi, he added, is daily Torah study.
You take the wisdom acquired through Torah and apply it
to life. But while a rabbi may serve as a model of Jewish liv-
ing, I have learned in raising four children that you cant tell
anybody anything. Congregants, he said, will decide for
themselves what lessons to draw from his example. In the
meantime, hes gratified to be in a position where I can make
a difference in the world.
I had a congregant being installed as president of a county
medical society, he said. I was asked to do the invocation. I
mentioned that when I told my mother I was going to rabbini-
cal school, she said, You could have been a doctor. After my
talk, I was surrounded by doctors who said, We have plenty
of doctors. Its a good thing you became a rabbi.
One of his favorite jobs is working with children. I love
my involvement in religious school, working with children of
every age, preschoolers through high-schoolers, he said. He
takes pride in being a good teacher and is most gratified by
the fact that during his last year in Wayne, he had 19 post-
confirmation students.
Rabbi Wylen said his two goals as interim rabbi in Wyckoff
go hand in hand. I hope to maintain the continuity of con-
gregational life make sure it functions as it should [but
also] pave the way for a successful future. I want to establish a
setting in which the new rabbi is set up for success. How that
is accomplished depends on the congregation, on the place,
time, and people youre dealing with.
Beth Rishon is a thriving congregation, Rabbi Wylen said.
And its unaffiliated. The members can be described as lib-
eral Jews, but some are closer to the Reform movement, oth-
ers to the Conservative. They have found what works well for
the membership, he said. Well build on that.
The congregation doesnt need fixing, he added. But it
will be hard for a rabbi to follow Rabbi Kenneth Emert, who
recently retired after 22 years at the shul. Congregants have
deep emotional feelings for a rabbi, even if theyre reluc-
tant to admit it, he said. Theyre not ready to accept a new
rabbi. As an interim rabbi, I can smooth the transition.
Ive come to see how valuable this is, he said. Any
congregation in transition that doesnt use an interim
rabbi is missing an opportunity for a year of growth, devel-
opment, and evolution. Its not treading water. Youre
cherishing the inheritance from the past and setting the
 Local

paving stones for growth into the future. because I always wanted a large congregational internship,
Viewing synagogue members as a community of stake- and job. This is an excellent place to be. The synagogue has
holders with slightly differently stakes, with people inevitably nearly 450 families as members.
wanting to influence things in their direction, his job, he said, Those members, she said, are of all ages, and I work
is to take all the input and really listen, making sure its not with the entire range. In addition to her duties with the
pulled too much in this or that direction. preschool program, she assists Rabbi Wylen on Shabbat,
Rabbi Wylen said he was a passionate bike rider for 25 visits congregants at camp, and conducts special pro-
years. An accident last year, however, involving several bro- grams in the religious school.
ken ribs, ended his bike-riding career. Now I take morning I like to bring the joy of creative experience to the
walks, bake bread, and play golf, he said, adding that golf is membership, she said, noting her artistic bent. Working
a better sport as one begins to age. with sixth graders, I made the entire class experiential.
Every student made a tallit and at least one or two mezzu-
Rabbi Lois Ruderman zot. Incorporated into those projects are real Judaica les-
Temple Beth Rishon, Wyckoff sons. What is the meaning of the tallit? How do we tie the
knots? The students picked various designs and we dis-
Rabbi Lois Ruderman is cussed what they meant. Not only did each sixth grader
starting her fourth year at have a tallit he or she could wear, but they had learned a
Temple Beth Rishon. A rab- lot about the items they made, Rabbi Ruderman said.
binic intern there for three Rabbi Ruderman also conducts workshops for the religious
years, she was formally school as well as parent-child workshops. Within that time
ordained by the Academy period, they get a lot of creative modality work, like writing
for Jewish Religion in April rap songs or drawing, she said. She also works with bnai
and now joins Rabbi Wylen mitzvah students and their families.
there as assistant rabbi. For the slightly older crowd, Rabbi Ruderman teaches
She speaks glowingly of a Torah study class, called Nosh and Drash, on Saturday
the recently retired Rabbi mornings, an hour before services. Its very participatory,
Emert. It was fantastic she said. Each Saturday, I pick out an interesting idea, pro-
working with him, she said. I couldnt have asked for a bet- vide a source sheet, and we discuss how it relates to our lives.
ter internship experience. While one of her internship years Some people come to the class with great knowledge, some
was as the visiting student rabbi of a synagogue along the Gulf with minimal knowledge. All are welcome, and everyone gets
Coast of Mississippi, she is particularly happy to be in Wyckoff, a chance to participate.
This year she hopes to add in more interaction with
the religious school and preschool and ramp up pro-
gramming for high school youth. My first two years I ran
several classes for older high school kids, with a focus on
mental health, she said, noting that her thesis, A congre-
gational response to teen and young adult mental health
issues, dealt with such topics as substance abuse and sui-
cide. At the shul, she has run sessions featuring experts on
relevant topics. For example, Youre looking forward to
college what choices will you need to make?
Rabbi Ruderman grew up in West Orange and raised her
three daughters now all young professionals in War-
ren Township. But it was time to move closer to North
Jersey, she said. Now she lives in the Montclair area.
According to Rabbi Ruderman, the rabbinate is her
third career. She earned her bachelors degree from Rut-
gers University and her masters of science in speech
pathology and audiology from Adelphi University. Then
she had her first career, as a speech therapist in the Edi-
son Township school system. Her second career was rais-
ing her daughters.
I wanted to be a rabbi since I was 8 years old, she
said. Both her great grandfather and great uncle were
rabbis. But she didnt know that women could be rabbis.
This was pre-internet and we were all very uninformed,
she said, adding that this was true despite her being
entrenched in the Conservative movement synagogue,
camp, and USY.
So she became a speech therapist and then a full-time
mom. But you cant play tennis four times a week, she
SEE NEW RABBIS PAGE 27

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JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017 7

Local

Do I own me?
Dr. Adena Berkowitz looks at tattoos, plastic surgery,
organ donation through bifocal lens in Englewood
JOANNE PALMER autonomy and personal choice with halacha. The main

D
o our bodies belong to us?
American culture tells us that they do. We
can change them, reshape them, tattoo and
pierce them.
Jewish law tells us that they do not. We are restricted
by God-given laws, interpreted and refined for changing
situations by generations of great scholars
and decisors; those boundaries restrain us
from changing, reshaping, tattooing, or pierc-
ing them.
Those are gross oversimplifications, need-
less to say, but there is basic truth to them.
As in so many other areas, there is a tension
between the two cultures in which Jews par-
ticularly, although not only, modern Ortho-
dox Jews live.
Rabbanit Dr. Adena Berkowitz will explore
those tensions on September 9. Thats a Shab- Dr. Adena Berkowitz
bat, and Dr. Berkowitz will be the speaker at
the Lunch and Learn at Minyan Tiferet, the partnership
minyan that meets more-or-less monthly in Englewood
or Tenafly, and hosts a scholar who will meet the com-
munitys need to talk with intellect, passion, and depth
every year.
Dr. Berkowitz, who lives on Manhattans Upper West
Side with her husband, Rabbi Zev Brenner, and their chil-
dren, is scholar in residence and co-founder of Kol HaNe-
shamah in her neighborhood. It is dedicated to re-ener-
gizing the spiritual life of both affiliated and non-affiliated
Jews, the group says, and Dr. Berkowitz has the back-
ground to initiate such a mammoth undertaking. She has
a doctorate in Jewish ethics; shes been to law school; shes
modern Orthodox but also has studied at the Conservative
movements Jewish Theological Seminary and is a visit-
ing lecturer at Yeshiva Chovevei Torah, open Orthodoxys
flagship institution. Shes written a siddur for Orthodox
women, shes writing a Haggadah, and as past director
of the Secretariat of the International Jewish Committee
on Interreligious Consultations, shes met Pope Francis.
The list of her accomplishments is long and formidable;
to leaven it, shes also an engaging speaker.
At Minyan Tiferet, Dr. Berkowitz will talk about Am
I My Body? She was inspired by a sign she saw at the
Womens March in Washington on January 21. The sign
read, My Body, My Choice, she said. That encapsulates
the intersecting challenges, particularly for those within
the observant Jewish community, of balancing personal
halachic viewpoint, the traditional Jewish view, is that we
dont own our bodies.
This is a jumping-off point for me, she said.
The topics shell cover range from the relatively friv-
olous tattooing to the unavoidably serious organ
donation most likely stopping to examine questions
about piercings and plastic surgery on the way.
It is odd, she said, but she has been told
that the one question that the advice col-
umnist known as Dear Abby received more
than any other was whether Jews with tat-
toos could be buried in a Jewish cemetery. It
tells you a lot about the outsize role of Jews in
the American imagination, she said. Youd
think thered be many millions of us. But
that idea that if you get a tattoo you cannot
be buried in a Jewish cemetery is the rea-
son many young Jews are given when they
consider getting one. How many 16-year-
olds care about where they are going to be
buried? she said.
Not only are tattoos extremely popular in American
culture in general right now, in Israel, particularly in
Tel Aviv, theyre more or less ubiquitous. Moreover, she
added, in Israel, younger third-generation Holocaust
survivors are tattooing their grandparents numbers on
their arms. Tattoos arent necessarily self-mutilation, or
the result of a drunken whim. They can have real emo-
tional content.
She tells the story of an Israeli nurse who takes care Tattoos like this one evoke emotional reactions in
of Holocaust survivors, and who has tattooed the word the Jewish community.
zachor remember on her arm. I am in no way con-
doning it, Dr. Berkowitz said, but she recognizes that it Orthodox person do about reproductive rights?
comes from emotion, even love. It is a very nuanced discussion, she said.
What do we do, say, or think about that? Shell talk The idea of organ donation has changed as science
about some creative responses. They exist, she said. has evolved. In the 1960s, Dr. Berkowitz said, Rabbi Isser
And then there is cosmetic surgery. If God gave us our Yehuda Unterman, Israels Ashkenazi chief rabbi, allowed
bodies, how are we allowed to do this? she said. This corneal transplants, based on the halachic understanding
surgery is not pikuah nefesh it is not saving a life. If of someone who is blind being seen as someone who is
I dont like my nose? If I want liposuction? How about a almost not fully alive. Therefore, if you can give sight to
little nip and tuck? Permanent eyelashes? someone, its almost like getting them a new life. Donat-
What about the issue that reveals fissures not only in ing a cornea, therefore, was seen as pikuah nefesh.
the Jewish world, but in American life as well? Abortion? Rabbi Moshe Feinstein, the great 20th-century scholar,
Most people think, Its my decision, but then how do thought that you could not donate your heart, and you
you balance that with halacha? The question of ownership couldnt take a donated heart. Thats because it was like
of our bodies, the issue of autonomy, which is ingrained a double murder. He was writing during the time when
in the American psyche and legal tradition what do we heart transplants were new, the concept of brain death
do when it butts up against Jewish tradition? What can an was new and controversial, and heart recipients didnt

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 Local

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live for very long. So you were killing the person who
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At the same time, you have a lot of Orthodox Jews pants, sweaters, shirts, ties,
donating kidneys to strangers, which is incredible, Dr.
Berkowitz said. So even if someone is not comfortable
shoes and accessories.
being an organ donor, the public focus has spurred
more people to say, I am going to do an incredible
act of chesed as a living donor. So we have more and
more instances of people being living donors.
We are living in extraordinary times.
There is another wrinkle. (There is always another
wrinkle.) When you set something down as a chiuv FIRST PLACE
an obligation you cant force someone to put her- MENS SHOP
self at risk, Dr. Berkowitz said.
The example of that is pru urvu be fruitful and
multiply. (Thats from Genesis 1:27.) That is an obli- Visit the
gation only on men, not on women, the rabbis say,
although of course they hope that women decide to do
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physically, or emotionally.
She was led to study this set of issues the interplay
between autonomy and halacha because I always
was fascinated by medical ethics, from an American
legal point of view and from Jewish tradition. I see it
come up constantly. It is one of the biggest intellectual Scarpa
and practical challenges facing the Orthodox commu-
nity, because societally we are being told one thing
and halachically we are being told something else.
We see people grappling with it more and more in
our communities.

Who: Rabbanit Dr. Adena Berkowitz

What: Will talk about My Body, My Choice?
When: On Saturday, September 9; Shacharit at
9:30, Lunch and Learn (and talk) after 12:15 BORO PARK: FLATBUSH:
Where: At a private house in Englewood for Min- 5020 13th Avenue 1505 Coney Island Ave.
yan Tiferet
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JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017 9

Local

Helping Ethiopian Jews in Israel and at home

After 35 years, NACOEJ remains active in supporting the Falash Mura
LARRY YUDELSON

Sometimes, its easy to read a continual

drip-drip-drip of headlines and forget
about the people behind them.
Take, for example, the headlines these
past couple of years about the Falash
Mura, the former-and-perhaps-future Jews
of Ethiopia, who want to move to Israel.
In November 2015, the Israeli cabi-
net approved the immigration of 9,000
of Ethiopians of Jewish descent. That
seemed to close a chapter on a three-and-
a-half decade saga of secret rescues, pub-
lic advocacy, and mass immigration. And
then nothing.
And next there was the headline this
June, saying Ethiopian immigrants arrive
in Israel for the first time in seven months.
Wait a minute. What happened? And
what about the real people there?
It turned out that Israel had budgeted
only enough money to bring 100 Ethiopi-
ans to Israel each month. At that rate, it
would take eight years for all of them to
make it to Israel. But almost all of even
that small allocation remained unspent,
and the Falash Mura remained in Ethiopia.
All this is immensely frustrating for Bar-
bara Ribakove Gordon of New York, who
founded the North American Conference
on Ethiopian Jewry in 1982, when the Jews Falash Mura arriving in Israel from Ethiopia in 2013. MIRIAM ALSTER/FLASH90

of Ethiopia werent even on the American

Jewish communitys radar. Despite that, there were real
people suffering, so she went about making headlines.
That helped lead to Operation Moses, which brought
8,000 Jews to Israel in 1984, and Operation Solomon,
which brought 14,000 more in 1991.
Now, Ms. Gordon worries about the thousands of Falash
Mura still in Ethiopia, people whom her organization cant
care for directly.
The condition of the people in Ethiopia is very poor, hundred years ago, some far, far more recently, she said.
she said. They left their homes and villages and farms
years and years ago, because they had to be in Addis
Ethiopian Jewish life is featured in this embroi-
dery comissioned by the North American Confer-
ence on Ethiopian Jewry.
Ababa or Gondar City to register for aliya. They have been
hanging on in Gondar and Addis Ababa for a long time.
Now you have this group that has no home, that persists
in rented hovels, in many cases supported only by what
their families in Israel can scrape together to send them.
Its very difficult and painful.
These are the last remnant of the Falash Mura Jews
who made a pro forma conversion to Christianity. Some a
Despite their conversions, they didnt assimilate into the
Christian majority. They and their neighbors knew they
were different.
In part, this was because their Jewish identity went
beyond religious creed.
In Ethiopia, only the Jews were metal workers and
potters, Ms. Gordon said. Both of those crafts required
being able to control fire, which in many parts of Africa
was considered to have help from the devil.
This was taken very seriously. The men who were
metal workers were considered to be powerful, evil magi-
cians. When I was going to Ethiopia in the 1980s, there
were Jews in jail on charges of having cast a spell on some-
bodys crop or somebodys children.
The Falash Mura continued practicing these crafts,
years after they had supposedly become Christian. There
was no question about it. They themselves knew they
were Jews even if they were no longer practicing. The
Christians knew they were Jews. They were in a kind of
religious limbo.
For many years, NACOEJ ran schools and feeding cen-
ters in Ethiopia. In 2011, it closed up shop in Ethiopia,
giving its programs to the Jewish Agency as part of an Diana Yacobi of Englewood serves on the NACOEJ
SEE ETHIOPIAN JEWS PAGE 34 board and sponsors Ethiopian high school sudents.

10 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017


White supremacist protesters carry Nazi and Confederate flags in Charlottesville, Va., on August 12.
 ANTHONY CRIDER VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
A mixed bag
Abe Foxman considers Donald Trumps
record on racism and anti-Semitism
JOANNE PALMER
A
braham Foxman of Bergen
County, who retired almost
exactly two years ago after
exactly 50 years, to the day,
at the Anti-Defamation League, most
of them at its helm, has had a set of
life experiences that the overwhelming
majority of us have had the luck to avoid.
And he was lucky, almost freakily
lucky, too, once you take into consider- Abraham Foxman
ation the massive ill fortune of having
been born a Jew in Poland in 1940.
Mr. Foxman was brought up by his familys Catho-
lic nanny; his parents were separated by the war but
both survived it. After the war, his parents found each
other and eventually reclaimed him; he was weaned
gently away from the Catholicism in which he had been
brought up while never dishonoring or forgetting the
love of the woman who shared her faith, her home, and
her life with him.
It is his unlikely life story, he says, that makes him an friends. So amazing + will Never Forget!) as irrelevant.
optimist. I have been an optimist all my life, he said;
had he not been, most likely he would not have survived.
This is relevant now, 77 years after Mr. Foxmans
birth, because it makes him somewhat sanguine about
the possibility that Donald J. Trumps presidency might
prove not to have been so bad, once it is all over.
Its a mixed record, he said.
Mixed certainly means not at all good, he said, and
he acknowledged some of the very serious problems
surrounding the 45th president. They are as troubling
to him as to anyone else, he said. Certainly, as Jews
and as Americans, we are very troubled and upset by
the spectacle around Charlottesville. We are troubled
by Trumps on-and-off-again moral equivalence, by his
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inability to say clearly that there are no
good Nazis.
We went to war against the Nazis,
and we lost tens of thousands of our best
to them. And they murdered one third of
our people, and many others.
So for the president to equivocate
about Nazis certainly that is distress-
ing. It is shameful.
But, Mr. Foxman said, there also have
been times when Mr. Trump did as he
was expected to do, and as all other
modern presidents have done. If you
take an honest look, you will see that he went to the
Holocaust Memorial Museum and gave a very good
speech, he said. He gave the right speech. That was
on April 25. It was important that he went and spoke.
He also went to Yad Vashem during his trip to Israel in
May; Mr. Foxman was heartened by that, dismissing the
controversy over the breezy informality of Mr. Trumps Traditional. Modern. Contemporary.
handwritten comments in the guestbook (the presi-
dent wrote: It is a great honor to be here with all of my Traditional. Modern. Contemporary.
Dont go too far back into Mr. Trumps presidency,
though, Mr. Foxman suggested. Mr. Trumps February
27 statement on Holocaust Remembrance Day, which
did not mention Jews in its very general denunciation
of Nazi terror, is too stale a data point to be pursued.
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JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017 11
Local
FIRST PERSON
Another perspective on the Wall
A local rabbi looks at the Kotel, sees room for hope, prays for unity
Rabbi Debra Orenstein
Six months ago, a few days before I left
New Jersey for a sabbatical in Israel, I said
goodbye to a beloved teacher and friend
of mine, who is Orthodox. Having lived
in Israel for an extended period, he had
many helpful suggestions and one plea.
Whatever you do, just promise me that
you wont go to the Kotel on Rosh Chodesh
with Women of the Wall. I was shocked.
Why in the world not? I asked. Because
its provocative, he explained. No it
isnt, I protested. Its davening. Throw-
ing chairs is provocative.
We didnt have time before my depar-
ture to get past these talking points. How-
ever, we know and respect one another
well enough that we could disagree
vehemently and still part lovingly. After
all, we study rabbinic texts together, so
debate and discussions are always to be
continued.
As I write this, newly back in New Jersey
and looking forward to seeing my friend,
there has never been more controversy
about Women of the Wall.
Various commitments prevented me
from joining Women of the Wall on Rosh
Chodesh during my sabbatical. Before I
knew it, the month of Sivan had begun,
and there were no more new moons left in
my stay. I was disappointed, but I looked
forward to telling my friend how things
had worked out. I could just imagine his
smile and, likely, a crack about divine
providence and human inefficiency. The
best-laid plans of mice and women or
mahn tracht un gut lacht (human plans
meet with divine humor).
On my penultimate Shabbat in Jerusa-
lem, I went to Yedidya, a proto-egalitarian
modern Orthodox synagogue. The role of
women is similar to what it was 40 to 60
years ago in the Conservative movement:
women carry the Torah, deliver sermons,
read from the Torah, and lead some of the
prayers, but are not counted in the minyan
or allowed to have aliyot. (One notable dif-
ference is that women rarely sat separately
from men in Conservative congregations,
but they still do so in virtually all modern
Orthodox synagogues.)
In the crowd at Yedidya, I recognized
my roommate of almost 30 years ago at
the Jewish Theological Seminary, Cheryl
Birkner Mack. We had lost touch, and I
Rabbi Debra Orenstein, spiritual leader of
Congregation Bnai Israel in Emerson, is
the author or editor of five books, including
Lifecycles 2: Jewish Women on Biblical
Themes in Contemporary Life.
12 Jewish Standard AUGUST 25, 2017
souls were directed on high, their sense
of community was strong, the weather
was beautiful, and everyone seemed to
treat them like the benign presence they
intended to be. At that time, women did
not read Torah at the Wall. An Israeli-born
medical student was about to lead the
women out of Western Wall area to con-
duct the Torah service at Robinsons Arch,
the southwestern corner of the Temple
Mount area, where egalitarian services are
held. Instead, she suggested on the spur
of the moment: Why dont we read the who wish to read the Torah at the West-
Torah right here? It had been such a won- ern Wall have no more right to do so today
derful morning, and she wanted to remain
together in that special place. Everyone
who attended Women of the Wall services
regularly, including my friend Cheryl,
Rabbi Debra Orenstein had been appointed as a board member.
After a two-minute board meeting, they
didnt even know that she had made ali- decided unanimously to read the holiest
yah. After services we reconnected, and Jewish book at the holiest Jewish site.
she invited me to daven with her and a Almost immediately after they opened
group of women at the Wall. the Torah scroll, three men approached
It was a second chance, and I would not and questioned them. When it became
miss it! The davening was planned for a
Wednesday morning not Rosh Chodesh
and not a Torah-reading day. This wom-
ens davening group was called Original
Women of the Wall. Cheryl promised me
Almost
more information on it, and she filled me immediately after
in, as promised.
The original charter of Women of the
they opened the
Wall was just six Hebrew words, which Torah scroll,
translate as: to advance womens prayer
in the womens section at the Kotel.
three men
The group was relatively small; about 20 approached and
women turned out each month. All move-
ments and nations of origin were repre-
questioned them.
sented, with modern Orthodoxy and the
United States predominating. The women clear that these men were contacting the
would daven as a group. To hear them, police, the women, wanting to avoid fur-
you would have to be standing right next ther confrontation, rolled up the scroll
to them. Yet they were noticeable, because and began to leave the Kotel. The medi-
of the rare sight of group prayer on the cal student carrying the scroll was appre-
womens side, and because many of them hended by the police on her way out, how-
wore tallit and tefillin. ever. They detained her, together with
Passersby at the Wall would make com- the scroll she carried, for three hours of
ments, often nasty ones. The women interrogation.
wearing prayer garb would be stared at, at As a result, Women of the Wall garnered
best; insulted, most typically; or assaulted, more press and support than ever before.
at worst. The following month, a crowd of about
Women of the Wall primarily has grown 300 attended. From that point on, dias-
in response to attacks. When fellow Jews pora Jews traveling to Israel have come in
spat or threw chairs at the women, or large numbers to show their support. Over
when the police arrested them, sabras the years, at least five rabbis have been
and Jews visiting from the diaspora began arrested, as well as many lay leaders. In
to show up, in solidarity and in protest. some cases, they were arrested for wear-
A watershed moment occurred on Rosh ing a prayer shawl (or, believe it or not, a
Chodesh Kislev 2009. The small group too brightly colored prayer shawl). In
of women who attended Rosh Chodesh other cases, they were arrested for carry-
services month in and month out had an ing a Torah into the Kotel plaza or for read-
inspiring and peaceful experience. Their ing from the Torah.
Likewise, many Israeli women who
dont usually daven at the Kotel or daven
with a womens group or, in some cases,
daven with a minyan of any kind have
given of their time and risked detention.
They do so not only because they find
meaning in this prayer group and location,
but because they fervently support the
value that everyone should be welcome to
gather in prayer at the Wall.
To my mind, it is a shanda (a public
shame and embarrassment) that women
than they did when this holy Jewish site
was controlled by the Kingdom of Jordan.
For many years, the Women of the
Wall refused any compromise that would
trade away their right to pray in commu-
nity at the main Western Wall site. The
suggestion long had been floated to move
the womens prayer group to Robinsons
Arch, the southwestern corner men-
tioned above, which already was home to
minyanim that the ultra-Orthodox do not
approve. Women of the Wall argued that
Robinsons Arch never had the crowds
or cachet of the Western Wall. In the first
century, stores were erected there, con-
veying a lesser degree of holiness. For-
eign dignitaries have not been brought
there. Pilgrims did not seek it out. The
Women of the Wall characterized offers
to pray there as akin to an invitation to
ride in the back of the bus.
In October 2013, the Women of the Wall
nevertheless decided to accept a compro-
mise in which they would have a repre-
sentative on the board of the Robinsons
Arch area and hold all their prayer services
there. In exchange for leaving the Kotel
plaza area, they could be assured of an
end to harassment. Natan Sharansky, who
helped broker the deal, also lobbied for
Robinsons Arch to be available for prayer
and pilgrimage 24/7, as the Kotel is.
The liberal movements, which conduct
egalitarian services at Robinsons Arch
already, were pleased. Many people
including me pointed to the significant
archaeological and spiritual significance
of Robinsons Arch. It is no also ran. The
rocks gathered askew here, archaeologists
tell us, are exactly where they fell from
the arch during when the Temple was
destroyed 1,947 years ago. At Robinsons
Arch, you can find a directional sign to the
Shofar Blowers area, from which all of
Jerusalem was summoned to prayer.
Its true that there were stores there;
probably many travelers bought animals
there to offer in sacrifice as part of the
Temple rites. The massive arch, one of the
 Local

largest of the ancient world, served a mas-
sive number of pilgrims.
For many of the founders of Women of
the Wall, this compromise was unaccept-
able. Several modern Orthodox women,
original members who had shown up
to the WOW Rosh Chodesh Services for
decades, no longer would be able to
pray with the group, because there is no
mechizah at Robinsons Arch. Some of the
women who are comfortable with open
seating objected to the compromise, both
because they didnt want to exclude their
Orthodox sisters and because they con-
tinue to regard the Plaza area as the true
Kotel. They believe that the Wall belongs
equally to all Jews and should be available
for prayer and gatherings that reflect that
full range of contemporary Jewish piety.
So that is how I found myself at a
Wednesday morning service sponsored
by Original Women of the Wall, who have
filed their own law suit with the Israeli
Supreme Court. They assert that the direc-
tive issued by the rabbinic administrator
of the Western Wall Heritage Foundation
forbidding anyone from bringing a Torah
scroll into the plaza in fact is discrimina-
tory to women, since men have access to
dozens of Torah scrolls stored on their
side, and women have access to none.
Many Original WOW members attend
WOW services, as well as egalitarian ser-
vices at Robinsons Arch. At the same time,
they have chosen to meet in the womens
area of the main Kotel plaza at a time that
does not conflict with the Rosh Chodesh
services of Women of the Wall. They assert
that no one has the standing to trade away
their right to pray at the Kotel plaza.
I like this group and not just because I
like and missed my old roommate. I appre-
ciate that Original Women of the Wall are
pursuing meetings and conversations with
Conservative, Reform, and Orthodox lead-
ers, as well as with the board of Women of
the Wall. I like the fact that they are neither
discounting nor competing against the
way anyone else prays. They simply show
up and daven together as a group at the
Kotel, as many of them have been doing
for decades.
On the morning I prayed with them, one
man interrupted his own davening to lean
over the mechizah and film us praying.
One woman made some nasty comments.
Several women gave us curious looks. In
other words, it was a normal, relatively
uneventful morning. We gathered a dozen
chairs together in a semicircle toward the
rear of the plaza, a good distance away
from the Kotel, and sang together in soft
voices. Dr. Shulamit Magnus, who led the
prayers, brought meaning and beauty to
the morning service. The stones, in my
hearing, at least, said Amen. Afterwards,
we went out to breakfast, where I learned
some of this history.
At breakfast, several of the women
spoke passionately about inclusion, and
regretfully about the Orthodox women
who arent able to pray in a womens group
that meets at Robinsons Arch. Its a seri-
ous dilemma, I agreed. But your daven-
ing isnt inclusive, either. One womans
eyes widened in surprise, and she asked
me what I meant. At a prayer service on
the womens side of the Kotel, men are
obviously excluded, as are women who are
uncomfortable praying with a mechizah.
The women around the table had been
aware of this, of course, but some had not
considered the restrictions and exclusions
that stem from their mode of prayer.
Women of the Wall no longer works for
women who must, in good conscience,
pray with a mechizah. Original Women of
the Wall does not work for women who
must, in good conscience, pray without
one.
Its not easy to unite the Jews, but it is,
nevertheless, our sacred task.
One way of inching toward unity would
be for liberal Jews to provide dividers or
ropes at Robinsons Arch and thus accom-
modate womens davening groups that
want to pray with a mechizah at Robin-
sons Arch. Mens davening groups pray
with dividers at the Western Wall and at
almost every synagogue in Israel so their
need is met. If liberal Jews can stretch our
spiritual eruv and comfort zone to include
people who daven differently than we
do, it would be a wonderful stride toward
peace and unity in our community and
a great example for the Orthodox and cha-
redi communities to follow.
See wall page 35

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Jewish Standard AUGUST 25, 2017 13

Briefly Local

Hands-on cooking Norpac invites

in Orangeburg Senator Bob Casey

COURTESY NORPAC
Laurie Liner, left, taught a series of cooking Janet and Ken Hoffman will welcome Senator Bob Casey (D-Pa.)
classes at the Orangetown Jewish Center this to a Norpac event on Tuesday, August 29, in Teaneck at 6:30
summer. Students donated a percentage of the p.m. For information or to make reservations, call (201) 788-5133
tuition to support Helping Hands, an interde- or email Avi@NORPAC.net.
nominational organization that feeds and houses
the homeless. There is a Helping Hands center Senator Bob
in Spring Valley, where many houses of worship Casey
in Rockland County take in the homeless during
the winter months. Gavi Lewy, a class partici-
pant, said, OJC is proud of its many volunteers
who give of their time to participate in this Help-
ing Hands program.

Moriah summer outing a big draw

The Moriah Schools
14th annual summer
outing, on August 14
at Edgewood Coun-
try Club in River Vale, Deluxe apartments added
drew a record crowd.
More than 130 golf- at Rutgers Chabad house
ers, 25 tennis players,
and eight cyclists took Three new apartments are being added Chabad is adding furnished apart-
part, and later more to the Chabad House at Rutgers Univer- ments to house nine more students.
than 200 dinner guests sity, which already claims to be the larg- Officials expect the construction to be
COURTESY MORIAH

joined them. est Chabad house in the world. completed before students move onto
Since its inception, Rutgers University has about 7,000 campus on September 1. The expanded
the outing has raised Jewish students. The need for hous- Chabad House is expecting to house 90
more than $2.5 million. ing for Rutgers students who want to students, and to provide kosher meals
All the funds go toward live in a Chabad House has grown, and for 500 students daily. For information,
scholarships and financial aid programs at tennis; Rivka and Dov Gertzulin and Roni the facility is nearing capacity in both call (732) 296-1800 or email housing@
Moriah. and Yehuda Blinder chaired cycling; and its mens and womens dormitories. chabadnj.org.
Ranit and Gabe Shiff, Daniela and Zev Nurit and Haim Chasman and Anna and
Gontownik, Livia and Elias Marcovici, Jes- Kevin Jacobs chaired fitness. The auction
sica and Daniel Yunger, Tanya and Dar- committee included more than 50 cou-
ren Wolf, and Jordana and Adam Altman ples. CBRE Group, Inc., was the Diamond
were event chairs. Melanie and Matt Sos- Title sponsor. For more information, go to Norpac hosts Josh Gottheimer
land and Michal and Noam Sheps chaired www.moriahgolf.org.
Congressman Josh Got-
theimer (D-5th Dist.) was
the guest at an August 16
Send us your vacation photos! Norpac meeting at the
Ridgefield Park office of
Seth Gribetz. Mr. Got-
theimers district encom-
passes portions of Bergen,
Passaic, Sussex, and War-
ren counties, including
Bergenfield, Fair Lawn, COURTESY NORPAC
New Milford, Paramus,
and Teaneck.
Mr. Gottheimer dis-
cussed recent develop-
ments in Congress, includ- Bennett Schachter, left, Congressman Josh Got-
ing the Taylor Force Act, theimer, and Seth Gribetz.
a bill that would stop
payments of U.S. aid to the Palestinian the House and Senate in September or
Elly Rubin, a recent Yeshivat Noam graduate, took a copy of the Jewish Authority that the PA uses to support ter- October, Mr. Gottheimer said. He also
Standard with him on a day trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in rorists and their families. The legislation discussed his recent support of two anti-
Manhattan. Elly, shown here in the Egyptian wing, is the son of Rona aims to target benefit payments to these BDS bills that are circulating in the House
and Jeffrey Rubin of Teaneck. He will attend Torah Academy of Bergen families and would not affect humanitar- of Representatives. One bill aims to push
County in the fall. ian aid. The Senate recently passed its against an international blacklist of
version of the Taylor Force Act through Israeli products, while the other protects
Take a photo with the paper from your vacation or day trip and send it to
the Foreign Relations committee, and it the rights of individual states to divest
PR@JewishMediaGroup.com. Include your names and, of course, where you were.
is expected to come up for a vote in both from companies that boycott Israel.
Enjoy the rest of the summer!

14 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017

upcoming at Kaplen JCC on the Palisades
JCC U Fall Term
Professors and experts present on a variety of topics.
First day features How Propaganda Works with Yale
professor Jason Stanley and For This We Left Egypt
with Emmy-winning original SNL writer Alan Zweibel.
Other sessions include talks on history, science, politics
and art.
Visit jccotp.org/JCCU
4 Thursdays, Sept 14 & 28, Oct 19 & Nov 2,
10:30 am-2 pm, $115/$145; 1 Thursday $35/$42

Creative Arts at the JCC

paint with watercolor or acrylic
Express your creative passion with one of our many
excellent adult programs.
watercolor & watercolor pencil 10 am-12:30 pm
acrylic 1-3:30 pm
8 Tuesdays, Sep 12-Oct 31
For details, call Michele at 201.408.1496.

Beginner Bridge with

Andrea Hershan
First lesson is Free
For those who have never played bridge
before, heres your chance to join the 25 million
Americans hooked on the game. Our hands-on
approach will have you playing bridge before
you know it.
8 Wednesdays, Sep 27-Nov 15, 10 am-12 pm
For details, call Michele at 201.408.1496.

KIDS communIty baby

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For details, call 201.408.1467
MonThur & Seasonal Fri, after school6 pm
Volunteering Opportunity Do you have a friend, family member or neighbor
special games Field day event who just had a baby? Did you just have a baby?
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Kaplen JCC on the Palisades taub campus | 411 e clinton ave, tenaFly, nJ 07670 | 201.569.7900 | jccotp.org
JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017 15
Rockland
Local Charedi community grows;
neighbors responses are not all positive
Ben Sales
AIRMONT When Moshe Pinkasovits
walks down the street with his kids on Sat-
urdays in his new town, he has to watch
out for drivers shouting anti-Semitic slurs.
The Pinkasovits family didnt face this
problem in the neighboring town of Mon-
sey, a heavily charedi Orthodox enclave in
Rockland County, near the New Jersey bor-
der. But since the family moved six months
ago to Airmont, a pastoral town next door,
some residents have made it clear that
they dont want religious Jews around.
Pinkasovits neighbor, another charedi
newcomer, has had eggs thrown in his
yard and found his mailbox bashed in.
People have leaned out of car windows
and shouted fing Jew at Pinkasovits,
or they just have shrieked at him.
What did we do wrong by being here?
his children ask him.
But Pinkasovits isnt leaving. Despite the
abuse, he loves living in Airmont, in my
own house with my own backyard. He
hopes his non-Jewish neighbors will come
to accept the new religious Jews in town.
And if they dont? Its only a matter of
time before the Jews become a critical
mass, Pinkasovits says.
Its going to die out, Pinkasovits said
of the anti-Semitism. People are mov-
ing here because this is how we want to
live. Everyone, theyre all going to move
out. Wherever you look down the street,
you see for sale signs hanging. I dont
mind living between them, but I also dont
mind if they leave and I get more Jew-
ish neighbors.
Pinkasovits is part of a wave of charedi
Orthodox Jews who have ranged from Mon-
sey to the surrounding towns. The towns
green, quiet, and spread out offer the
large families spacious homes at an afford-
able price. Like Pinkasovits, charedi Jews
who moved to these towns say they just
want to live their lives in nice places, just
like their non-Jewish neighbors.
But the charedi influx has led to friction
with longtime residents.
The battle has coalesced around the
construction of an eruv the artificial
boundary that, according to Jewish law,
allows Jews to push and carry objects
outside their homes on Shabbat. The
eruv crosses into Mahwah, Upper Saddle
River, and Montvale New Jersey towns
next to Airmont in order to accommo-
date the growing religious community,
and although they extend only a couple
blocks over the border, it has led to rau-
cous debates, vandalism, and a lawsuit.
Residents of Mahwah, southwest of
16 Jewish Standard AUGUST 25, 2017
A synagogue in Airmont, a town that has seen its charedi population boom in
recent months as families seek larger houses at more affordable prices.
 photos by Ben Sales
Airmont, have complained that the eruv
breaks town ordinances because supports
that mark the boundary are attached
to public utility polls. Others have wor-
ried that a growing charedi population
will mean a large group of residents who
dont support services like the public
school system.
I think people are reacting out of the
unknown, said Vince Crandon of Mah-
wah, who claims that the eruv was erected
illegally. People will always say the worst
when they are left without information.
The Vaad HaEruv, or Eruv Associa-
tion, expanded an eruv in the Monsey
area around the beginning of July. Much
of the eruv consists of existing telephone
wires, but to make it kosher, the associa-
tion had to install PVC pipes that reach
from the bottom of the wire to the ground
and are affixed to telephone poles. The
pipes, called lechis, act as posts for
the eruv. The Eruv Association pays for
their upkeep.
The Eruv Association says it obtained
the necessary permits from the utility
company that owns the telephone poles
and that it installed the eruv under local
police supervision. But the Township of
Mahwah claims that the poles violate an
ordinance that prohibits placing signs on
the poles, and it has threatened to issue
summonses and demand that the poles be
taken down. On August 11, the Eruv Associ-
ation filed a lawsuit against Mahwah, with
Pinkasovits as a plaintiff, claiming that the
demand to take down the lechis violates
residents civil rights.
Meanwhile, on the legal side, more
outsiders entered the eruv fray this week.
In Trenton, New Jerseys attorney gen-
eral, Christopher Porrino, raised the
standing reward for information leading
to conviction for bias crimes to $25,000.
It had been set at $10,000. Although the
award applies to all bias crimes, his office
highlighted the vandalism against the eruv
in announcing it.
This reward is on top of the $1,000
Mahwahs Mayor Bill Laforet already had
offered. Two Teaneck residents Coun-
cilman Mark Schwartz and Keith Kaplan,
who sits on the towns planning commis-
sion also offered a $1,000 reward for the
eruv vandal.
In response to a request for support
from people in Mahwah, the Wisconsin-
based Freedom From Religion Founda-
tion wrote to Mahwah council members
and its mayor, urging that the town take
down the eruv.
Allowing one religion to put up reli-
gious symbols on public property uncon-
stitutionally sends a message to non-
adherents that they are outsiders, not full
members of the political community and
an accompanying messages to adherents
that they are insiders, attorney Madeline
Ziegler wrote.
Meanwhile, however, Mahwah has not
yet issued a summons to the association
that erected the eruv.
The battle isnt just legal. Mahwah resi-
dents, like residents from neighboring
Upper Saddle River, have mobilized in
opposition to the eruv, and to what or
who it represents. A petition opposing
the eruv to Protect the Quality of Our
Community in Mahwah has garnered
1,200 signatures. In late July, 200 Mahwah
residents gathered to protest the eruv. And
a new organization called Mahwah Strong,
also against the eruv, has grown to around
3,000 members.
Local officials arent speaking to the
media because of the legal proceedings.
But activists say the problem is that the
Eruv Association bypassed the town while
putting up the eruv and broke the sig-
nage ordinance. If the Eruv Association
obeyed the law, they say, there would be
no problem.
If someone puts up a garage sale sign,
it gets taken down, said Deborah Kos-
troun, Mahwah Strongs spokeswoman.
Were very diverse, and very inclusive,
and we want people to come to Mahwah.
But if you come to Mahwah, you do have
to abide by the ordinances of the town.
Kostroun did acknowledge, however,
that residents also were wary of how a
growing charedi population might change
the areas character. She pointed to the
example of nearby East Ramapo, where
members of a booming charedi commu-
nity were elected to the local education
board and passed deep cuts in funding for
the public schools, which hardly any cha-
redi children attend.
In 2015, after accusations of mismanage-
ment, the Board of Education there was
placed under state oversight.
There is a concern because of what is
happening one mile away, five miles away,
six miles away, Kostroun said, referring to
Monsey and East Ramapo. Mahwah has
one of the 10 best schools in the state, and
property values are tied to how good the
schools are.
Others have expressed their opposition
in less savory ways.
Beyond the abuse that Pinkasovits and
his neighbors have endured, the PVC
pipes have been vandalized, left cracked
and broken. The online petition to Pro-
tect the Quality of Our Community in
Mahwah was closed after 1,200 signa-
tures because of several anti-Semitic com-
ments. One referred to the satanic verses
of the Talmud.
But Crandon said he was skeptical that
any anonymous online comments actually
were from Mahwah residents.
Its very sad, and I wish it wouldnt
have happened, said Rabbi Chaim Stein-
metz, who oversees the eruv. Its going
to be a long way to fix the relations with
all these towns. We have to fight the legal
[battle] to get permission to put it up, but
we have to have a good relationship with
all these towns.
 Rockland

Airmont doesnt seem the place to cause a pitched ideologi-

cal battle. The town of 25,000 has sloping, winding, tree-lined
streets, often without marked lanes, sidewalks or much traffic.
Large houses are spaced out with yards between them.
Its a stark contrast to Monsey, which has seen an increasing
number of multifamily homes built as its population has grown
more than 25 percent since 2000, according to census data.
In Airmont, Jewish infrastructure already is dotting the town.
Pinkasovits neighborhood alone has three official synagogues,
plus another three or four unofficial minyans that meet in resi-
dents homes. One synagogue, the Congregation of Ridnik,
about a 15-minute walk from Pinkasovits house, was putting
up a fence last week as it planned to expand its sanctuary. The
synagogue, attached to the back of its rabbis home on a resi-
dential street, is awaiting official approval for its expansion.
Nobody is here to take away their homes, said Moishe
Berger, the congregations rabbi. He was talking about the
towns residents. Nobody is interested in big development.
Everybody wants to keep the neighborhood quiet and nice, but
we need places to live.
For sale signs dot the blocks surrounding the synagogue;
there are three on Pinkasovits cul-de-sac alone. They are a sym-
bol of some charedi newcomers confidence that when all is
said and done, demographics will overwhelm whatever fights
are happening now.
Im not worried, said Shalom Kass, the man whose house
was egged. Theyll be gone in a few months, I think. You know
how many houses are for sale? Half my block is on the market.
There wont be that many people left to be upset. 
 JTA Wire Service
You Are Cordially Invited
New City
New City Jewish Center
New City Jewish Center has been at the heart
of Jewish Rockland for more than 50 years. We
view community engagement as central to our
mission and our members proudly serve in posi-
tions of leadership and as volunteers in virtually
every major Jewish communal organization in
Rockland County. We are a warm and inviting
congregation, a Jewish home where lifelong
friendships are formed.
The NCJC Early Childhood Center is a fully
licensed preschool program, providing a stimu-
lating environment for children, rich in Jewish
learning. From Mommy and Me to pre-K, our
outstanding program includes enriching activities
for growing minds, including yoga and movement
through sports. Additionally, a full array of fam-
ily experiences are offered, including our monthly
M&M Shabbat, attracting families from across
Rockland County.
NCJC is also proud of our strong Hebrew school
program, which provides our children with a solid
NCJW offers lecture on social media
Rochelle Welsh, who teaches social media and an introduc-
tion to computers at the Meals on Wheels Adult Learning
Center in Nanuet, presents a program, Social Media 101,
for the Rockland section of the National Council of Jewish
foundation of Jewish knowledge while instilling
a love of being Jewish. Teachers and youth staff
convey a deep love of Judaism while giving stu-
dents the tools necessary to become knowledge-
able participants in the Jewish community.
The NCJC Youth Community brings children and
families together for meaningful social, cultural,
and religious programming with their peers. Our
families are committed to building an intentional
Jewish community and making a difference in and
around Rockland County.
At NCJC, there are a multitude of entrance
points available for people of all ages, including
but not limited to daily morning and evening ser-
vices, young family holiday programming, continu-
ing education opportunities for adults, and social
events for seniors.
Rabbi David Berkman, Rabbi Jeremy Ruberg,
and the rest of the NCJC family would love to
get to know you. Please call the office for more
information at (845) 638-9600, check us out at
newcityjc.org, or just come by!
We are located at 47 Old Schoolhouse Road,
New City, N.Y. 10956, ncjc@newcityjc.org
Women on Wednesday, September 6, at 7:45 p.m. It will
be at the JCC Rockland, 450 West Nyack Road, in West
Nyack. Refreshments will be served. For information, go
to ncjwrockland.org.

Make Your Own Connection

Theres Something for Everyone at New City Jewish Center
At New City Jewish Center, tradition is vibrant and
ever evolving. It is the joy of participating in our time-
honored rituals as well as the satisfaction of creating our
We Uplift own NCJC community traditions. It connects us to our culture
through festive celebrations, educational experiences, life moments, and social
activities. It is also what connects us to YOU.

Join us and connect with your heritage. Youll make lifelong bonds for the present and future.

Connect. NCJC is a dynamic center where children and families share in the joy of
Jewish living and learning. Our community is what makes this synagogue both
spirited and spiritual.
We Educate
We Enrich Learn. Participate in lifelong and diverse learning opportunities, an active K-12
youth community, daily minyan, holiday programming, social action, young members
association, adult education and more with innovative programming that reflects the
interests of our members. In our schools, experienced and creative educators, from
preschool through our award-winning Hebrew school and on to high school, bring
the Jewish experience to life incorporating classes with special family programs
enabling children and parents to learn and rejoice together.

Celebrate. Come be inspired at a Shabbat or holiday service. Bring your family to

celebrate life events with our congregational family. Our rabbis and cantor will help
We Celebrate We Inspire you delight in the knowledge of Torah and find your place as an active participant on
the bimah and beyond. We firmly believe that it is through celebration that we
cultivate a love of Jewish traditions, learning and Israel.

In this New Year, let NCJC be your sanctuary your place to worship, learn,
We Connect celebrate and connect.

47 Old Schoolhouse Road New City NY 10956 (845) 638-9600 www.newcityjc.org New City Jewish Center ... Make your connection

Jewish Standard AUGUST 25, 2017 17

Rockland

Local YU Rockland and Passaic students participate in summer internships

Summer internships provide valuable education, which is a very strong focus
career opportunities. For many Stern Col- of theirs, she said. Her responsibilities
lege students who are passionate about range from reading tour evaluations to
public service, theyre a way to put their preparing group activities and adminis-
talents to work building a better world, on trative tasks. She also organized a sum-

both the local and global levels.
Each summer, Stern College students
dedicate themselves to internships to
serve their communities and also to count-
less others in need, Dr. Joseph Luders,
Sterns David and Ruth Gottesman profes-
sor of political science, said. They work
tirelessly to bring about a positive impact
in hospitals, law offices, advocacy organi-
zations, and elsewhere. They are a great
credit to Yeshiva University in their many
vital contributions, and I am personally
very proud of them.
Whether theyre helping impoverished
children get the heart surgeries they need,
fighting health care fraud, or advocating
for environmental sustainability, heres
a few ways students are making a differ-
ence. Several local residents are among
those students.
Tzivya Beck, a native of Monsey, native
who will graduate with a degree in politi-
cal science in the fall, applied for an
internship at the New Jersey attorney gen-
erals office in preparation for her studies
at Harvard Law School in 2018. At Har-
vard, she will focus on public interest law;
her internship at the attorney generals
office gives her exposure to the area as she
investigates cases relating to government
and health care fraud. The cases typically
employ the False Claims Act to prosecute
people who defraud the state government.
One week, interns including myself
went to a nearby United States District
Tzivya Beck Chani Grossman
Court, where we watched a gang leader
being sentenced for his crimes of murder,
attempted murder, and racketeering,
Ms. Beck said. Afterwards, we met with
Judge Greenaway, who serves on the U.S.
Court of Appeals, Third Circuit, to hear
about his experiences serving as a federal
judge. After eight weeks working along-
side interns and deputy attorney generals,
I know that I will have a lot to look back on
once this internship is over.
At Stern, Ms. Beck has enjoyed her
courses on the Middle East and the
Arab-Israeli conflict, taught by former
Israeli Deputy National Security Adviser
Dr. Charles Freilich, as well as funda-
mental political science courses Dr.
Luders taught. During my sophomore
year, I took a course that provided a
comparison between talmudic law and
U.S. law, which foreshadowed my deci-
sion to learn Talmud in the Graduate
Program in Advanced Talmudic Studies
at YU before pursuing a law degree in
2018, she said.
Rochel Hirsch, a junior from Passaic
who is majoring in history and Judaic
Photos courtesy YU
Rochel Hirsch
studies, also spent her summer at the
office of New Jerseys attorney general,
working with Ms. Beck in the government
and health care fraud section of the Divi-
sion of Law: I wanted an internship that
would allow me to gain exposure to law
and give me insight into the workings of
the government, she said.
Like Ms. Beck, Ms. Hirsch learned about
the opportunity from pre-law adviser
Dassy Chelst. Im considering a career in
law, so this internship is a great opportu-
nity to explore the public service side of
the field, Ms. Hirsch said. During weekly
seminars designed to introduce interns
to the attorney generals wide range of
responsibilities, I also get to learn about
other divisions work.
Chani Grossman, a Jewish history and
biology major from Monsey, is fulfilling
her dream of working behind the scenes
at a museum with her summer internship
at the Museum of Jewish Heritage A Liv-
ing Memorial to the Holocaust in Man-
hattan. I chose the museum because
Id visited it and been very impressed
and Im very passionate about Holocaust
mer conference for teachers at Jewish
schools to learn more about European
Jews before the Holocaust.
One of the best parts of working at
a museum is that you get to go to the
galleries whenever you want, which
has been incredible, Ms. Grossman
said. I also got to go to lectures held
at the museum, which were always fas-
cinating. Another of my favorite things
was being able to interact with student
groups and see what they thought about
their experiences at the museum. Many
of the students come in with almost no
knowledge of the Holocaust and to see
the amount of information and insight
theyve gained is incredible.
Her internships focus on education
fits well with her fascination with Jewish
history, which has flourished at Stern.
Ive had such great Jewish history pro-
fessors Rabbi Dr. Ephraim Kanarfogel,
Dr. Jeffrey Gurock, Dr. Ronnie Perelis
and Im looking forward to having even
more when I start taking courses at the
Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish
Studies this fall, Ms. Grossman said. Im
also really enjoying the experience of
working on my senior honors thesis with
Dr. Perelis, especially as I get to work on
a period of Jewish history 1970s Argen-
tina that I knew little about before, but
relates closely to my family history.
For more information about the pro-
gram, go to www.yu.edu.

Help needy pupils Holocaust museum benefit

with school supplies
L Shana
L Shana
Rockland Jewish Family Service is holding a back-
to-school drive through August 31. If you donate
scheduled for November
Save the date for the Holocaust Museum & Center for Toler-
ance and Educations annual benefit brunch, to be held this

Tovah!
school supplies particularly backpacks, pens, year on Sunday, November 5, at 10:30 a.m., at Congregation

Tovah!
crayons, paper, notebooks, glue sticks, highlight- Shaarey Israel in Suffern. Barbara and Sam Weinberger are

Photo provided
ers, tissue boxes, and rulers by dropping them the honorees. Paul Galan will receive the Elie Wiesel Memo-
off at the federations office at 450 W. Nyack Road, rial award and Dr. Mehnaz Afridi is the keynote speaker. All
Suite 2 in West Nyack, you can help make the first proceeds will benefit Holocaust and tolerance education
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Gift cards and donations also are welcome. For information, c all (845) 574-4099 or go to Brian LeBlanc
Wishing you a sweetyou
For information, call Marissa at (845) 354-2121,
Wishing newa sweet
year. new year.
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18 Jewish Standard AUGUST 25, 2017

BVK SCI #9a JobBVK SCI #9a

No 025012 JobHashanah
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 Rockland Wishing the World
a Sweet
You Are Cordially Invited New Year
Montebello The MJC congregational family prides itself on its
warm community of multi-generational individuals
Montebello Jewish Center and families who are passionate lovers of the Jewish Montebello Jewish Center
community and Israel. We strive to create a home
Montebello Jewish Center, an egalitarian synagogue Conservative, egalitarian,
A Conservative, egalitarian,inclusive,
inclusive,people-oriented
people-oriented
for vibrant, participatory, and musically inspiring
affiliated with the Conservative movement, brings congregation
congregation ledled
by by Rabbi
Rabbi Richard
Joshua Hammerman,
S. Finkelstein,
prayer, engaging educational classes for all ages and
the beauty and depth of Jewish tradition to Western CantorMichelle
Cantor MichelleRubin
Rubinand
andDr.
Dr.Alan
AlanPlumer,
Plumer,President
President
interests, as well as innovative social programming.
Rockland and Bergen Counties. We are a congrega-
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next event! Montebello Jewish Center
faith families and those searching for their place in
We are located at 34 Montebello Road, Monte- www.montebellojc.org 845-357-2430
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bello, N.Y. 10901. (845) 357-2430. www.montebellojc.
loves to sing, laugh, learn, question, and practice our
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Jewish Standard AUGUST 25, 2017 19
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Cover Story
He never told us
Fair Lawn woman learns about her fathers
courage with the NYPD 80 years ago

JOANNE PALMER

Y
ou can think that you
know your parents.
And you can be wrong.
You know that you
dont know everything about
them, of course, but at least you
think you have the basic nar-
rative. When they were born;
if youre not lucky enough to
have them still alive, when they
died, and where they are buried.
Where they went to high school,
and to college; how many sib-
lings they had, how many chil-
dren; their friends and relatives,
their professions and hobbies,
their memberships.
And also, of course, any signifi-
cant honors.
Morris Abramowitz, Roberta
Seltzers father, spent most of
his career as a patrolman in the
Bronx. Ms. Seltzer knows that.
But until she pulled a large certifi-
cate out of a cardboard box as she
packed up her mothers apart- when her oldest son was some-
ment in Hackensack, she had no where in his midteens. Her oldest
idea that hed been inducted into child, Ida, took care of the three
the New York City police depart- youngest children.
ments Honor Legion. During their mothers illness
Nor does she know why he and through the period between
never told her, her sister, or even her death and their fathers
their mother about the honor, or remarriage, however, Morris
about what he did to earn it. and the brother just below him
Ms. Seltzer, a Jewish educator in age, William, were sent to
who specializes in music edu- an orphanage.
cation, lives in Fair Lawn she Thats another part of Ameri-
and her husband, Fred, have can Jewish life in the early 20th
lived there for decades but she century that we dont know
grew up in the Bronx. She knew, much about any more. Orphan-
of course, that her father was a Roberta Seltzer looks at photos of her parents, Morris and Julia Abramowitz. ages then were not only places
police officer, but he never talked Inset, Morris Abramowitz in his NYPD uniform. for children with no parents.
about his work, she said. They also sheltered children
To look at Mr. Abramowitzs life is to grandchildren, with some stories told immigrated to the United States when whose parents could not take care of them
be given a peek at a very specific slice of often and others left untold. Morris was six months old; the other because they were too sick, because they
early- to mid-20th century New York Jew- Mr. Abramowitz was born in Russia in four children were born in this country. were too poor, because they were too des-
ish life, as well as into the way those his- 1905, the second of an eventual six chil- His mother soon got sick and then, like perate, because they simply gave up. In
tories were passed down to children and dren. His parents, Louis and Fannie, so many others, she died of tuberculosis, northern New Jersey, such children often

20 Jewish standard aUGUst 25, 2017

were sent to Daughters of Miriam now
in Clifton, then in Paterson which was
an orphanage as well as an old age home
when it was founded.
There were many places in New York,
funded by local Jewish communities, that
took in Jewish children whose parents
could not care for them, either tempo-
rarily or permanently. Most of them were
grim. It was a very difficult time for the
Jewish people, Ms. Seltzer said.

They taught my
father such
practical things.
He was very
domesticated.
He would cook
and clean
and shop.
The Cottage School in Pleasantville, a
pretty suburban town in northern West-
chester County, was the first of a new
model of orphanages, a model both for
Jews and then for non-Jews as well. The
school was funded by wealthy Jews, who
sent money from around the world for this
exciting social experiment. Children at the
school lived in small groups, about 25 to
a cottage, and each cottage had a pair of
house parents. The students were taught
both academics and practical skills. At
least some of the time, the fact that chil-
dren and teenagers are people, with real
emotional needs, was not only acknowl-
edged in the abstract but put into practice
as well. Lessons that educators and social
reformers learned at that school later
influenced other institutions.
They taught my father such practical
things, Ms. Seltzer said. He was very
domesticated. He would cook and clean
and shop. He learned it there. And he had
such beautiful handwriting!
My father got such a wonderful back-
ground there, she continued. He was
The memorabilia of Morris Abromowitzs career as a New York policeman include the proclamation of his membership in
the NYPDs Honor Legion, a 1934 letter from the Bronxs district attorney, his police badge, and his slapstick.
very happy. Every year, hed take my sis-
ter and my mother and me there. But his
brother hated it, she added. His mother
was dying, and he didnt have the same
maturity, and he just hated it. She knew
a bit about the depth of her uncles loath-
ing by the fact that he changed his name,
going from Abramowitz to Adams. His
experience at the Cottage School was
enough to put him off Jewishness for life.
Although her father loved the Cottage
School, he did not talk about his expe-
riences there very much, Ms. Seltzer
said. Most of what she knows about the
school, other than what she could see on
her familys annual outings, comes from
later research.
Morris Abramowitz left the Cottage
School when his father married Sarah,
who became his beloved stepmother.
He was still in school; his high-school
diploma, earned around 1923, came from
the local public school, Evander Fields.
And then Mr. Abramowitz had to figure
out what to do next. The Depression had
not yet hit it was on its way but there
were not many promising options for
young men in the Bronx. He did some odd
jobs. He banged around a bit. He did what
he could. And then, his daughter said, a
friend told him that the police department
was hiring.
In 1930, Morris Abramowitz joined the
New York City police department. He
remained with the department until he
retired in 1966.
I dont think that there were many Jews
on the police force, Ms. Seltzer said. Most
of the cops were Irish. He used to say that
on Ash Wednesday, the Irish cops would
say, Bend down, Abramowitz. Ill put ash
on your forehead.
Her father looked more Irish than ste-
reotypically Jewish, whatever that might
mean, she said, and his pictures show it.
He was in very good physical shape, Ms.
Seltzer said. He loved sports; he was on
the police departments basketball team.
He wasnt particularly tall about 57
but people were shorter then, she said.
And he was slender, but very muscular.
The Shomrim Society, the organization
for Jewish police officers and later for their
families as well shomrim are people who
watch, and who by extension stand guard
was founded in the early 1920s. Morris
Abramowitz was an enthusiastic member,
and his daughter still is.
Morris Abramowitz and Julia Newman
got married in 1934. They met cute. Julia
was born on the Lower East Side, but later
the family moved up to the Bronx, where
Morris was walking his beat. He must
have looked at her and thought she looked
Jewish, Roberta said. And that, more or
less, was that.

Jewish Standard AUGUST 25, 2017 21

 Cover Story
Morris and Julia Abramowitz lived in the Bronx,
close to his father and stepmother, Louis and Sarah.
Louis was a tailor. He used to fix my little spring
coats for Passover, Ms. Seltzer said. I think he was
a good tailor. We wore spring coats back then, and I
remember that they always were pretty.
Ms. Abramowitz worked transcribing Dictaphone
recordings, but what she really loved was music. She
sang in Abraham Binders chorus at the Y in New
York, Ms. Seltzer said. She would get on the subway
every Wednesday to go there. And she sang in Carn-
egie Hall with the chorus. (Abraham Wolf Binder was
a composer who taught at the Hebrew Union College
in downtown Manhattan; he also was the founding
musical director of the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue
on Manhattans Upper West Side.)
When she was young and her mother sang opera,
or even listened to opera on the radio, I would cover
my ears, Ms. Seltzer said ruefully. She is, after all,
a music teacher now. I wasnt crazy about opera
then, she admitted. And my mother had a wonder-
ful natural voice.
The Abramowitzs marriage was happy, and it
lasted until 1977, when Morris died.
Her father was a uniformed patrolman in the 46th
precinct for most of his career, Ms. Seltzer said. Once
he was too old and too tired for that job, he trans-
ferred to the Bronx County Courthouse, on the Grand
Concourse. Later, in a career highlight, he was one
of the phalanx of cops guarding Pope Paul VI as he
presided over a mass in Yankee Stadium. It was the
The Studio Museum in Harlem,
East Mezzanine
KAPLEN JCC on the Palisades
TAUB CAMPUS | 411 E CLINTON AVE, TENAFLY, NJ 07670 |
1 22 Jewish Standard AUGUST 25, 2017
first time any pope had gone anywhere in the West-
ern Hemisphere, and the first time any pope had left
Italy since 1809. It was a big deal for the city, and a
major big deal for the Jewish cop guarding him.
In general, though with the popes trip a major
exception Mr. Abramowitz never talked about
work, Ms. Seltzer said, and her husband confirmed.
Of course, he carried a gun. Hed take target prac-
tice at the Kingsbridge Armory, hed always have the
gun in its holster when he was walking his beat, and
when he was at home it would be up on a shelf in the
closet. Today, gun safety experts would be very and
appropriately! horrified. No one ever used to lock
anything up, Ms. Seltzer said. We just knew never to
touch it. And they never did. We were good girls,
she said. We were told not to touch it, so we didnt.
And no, she doesnt shoot. Never has. I had no inter-
est, she said.
He wouldnt show me the gun either, Mr. Seltzer
said. He just didnt want to take it out.
The dangers were implied. Mr. Abramowitz never
talked about it.
The risk of carrying a gun, the responsibility that
came along with it, weighed heavily on Morris, both
Seltzers said. But after he retired and had grand-
children, he mellowed. He smiled more. He unbent
more. Still, he never talked about his work, neither
while it was ongoing nor after he retired from it. That
was an unbreakable rule. Clockwise from left, Ida, Paula, Fannie, Louis, Morris, and
The only other clear sign she remembers of her baby William Abramowitz. Morris poses like the policeman he
fathers job, other than the uniform and the gun, was will become one day.
Whats New in Art?
Trips, Tours and Talks with the JCC this Fall
EXPERT-LED MUSEUM TRIPS
The Studio Museum
(featured in our Harlem Art Excursion)
Brooklyn Museum
(featured in our Brooklyn Day Trip)
GALLERY TOURS
Led by well-known artists
and art historians
Tobi Kahn,
winner of New York Magazines
Best Art Gallery Tour Director
Ronnit Vasserman,
contemporary art expert from
the Art Connect Group
LECTURES AND DISCUSSIONS
Led by art experts
Topics include:
Find out more at New Contemporary Artists
JCCOTP.ORG/ADULT-PROGRAMS Art from the Romanovs
or call Michele at 201.408.1496 or to the Russian Revolution
mschaffer@jccotp.org The Dinner Party by
feminist artist Judy Chicago
jccotp.org
 Cover Story

the small notebook that he always kept by the door. He

wrote everything in it, in beautiful penmanship, she said.
But he never talked about the stories those beautiful cur-
sive letters told.
Ms. Seltzer remembers her father as a very brave man.
Once, when I was a little girl, I accidentally locked myself
in the bathroom. He was ready to go along the ledge out-
side the building we were on the fifth floor to get me
out, she said.
Morris also was sensitive. He took his daughters
Roberta and her older sister, Joan to the movies. We
saw Bambi, Ms. Seltzer said. My father cried.
There was another part of Mr. Abramowitzs life,
a part that was as important to him as his identity as a
policeman, a husband, and a father. He was deeply, pro-
foundly Jewish.
We lived across the street from an Orthodox shul, and
my grandpa Louie was a very Orthodox man, Ms. Seltzer
said. He would go to minyan every day. Morris Abramow-
itz would go as often as he could. Like many Orthodox
men of his generation, he often worked on Shabbat. It was
painful, but it was the cost of holding a job back then.
Or at least Ms. Seltzer thinks thats what her father
must have felt. He never talked about it. Once he retired,
though, he started going to minyan every day, as his father Julia Newman and Morris Abramowitz in their 1934
had done. wedding photo.
He cared for his stepmother after his father died, and
he visited his cousin in the Veterans Home, Ms. Seltzer Center. It was a very well-known synagogue, and its rabbi,
said. He did mitzvot. He worked on being as good a Jew, Israel Miller, also was famous. He was a vice president at
and as good a person, as he could. Yeshiva University and the president of the Conference Morris Abramowitz played basketball for the NYPD
The familys shul was the Kingsbridge Heights Jewish of Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, among many league; his team was St. Martins.

YASHER KOACH COMING

to the hundreds of children and adults in
our community who participated this summer
in our fifth annual SWIM for SINAI and
SOON
our first annual SWEAT for SINAI

SEPTEMBER 1
Thank you Camp Shalom for your role as our founding SWIMATHON site, Synagogue Directory
and for enthusiastically supporting this event since its inception.
SEPTEMBER 15
Thank you Chabad Kidde Camp for your participation again this year in our
SWIM for SINAI event.
Healthy Living & Adult Lifestyles
Thank you Camp Shira and Camp Al Haderech for becoming the first camps SEPTEMBER 22
to join our SWEAT for SINAI team. Fall Spice - Fashion - Home Design - Real Estate
Thank you to our dedicated Swimathon committee: Jenny Gans, Miriam
Kaminetsky, Miriam Motechin, and Ilana Rauzman (Chair), and to Akiva M. OCTOBER 27
Goldfarb, Esq., who underwrote the entire summer fundraiser event series. Events & Celebrations
Most of all, thank you to the parents and sponsors for encouraging your
children to engage in this wonderful act of chesed. To advertise call 201-837-8818, ext. 121 or email
The thousands of dollars that you raised will directly benefit SINAI Schools natalie@jewishmediagroup.com
Scholarship Fund.
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turn to us for the uniquely special education they need.
Thanks to your efforts, these children will receive More than 411,000 likes
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Arrange a synagogue tour and/or join
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3 24 Jewish Standard AUGUST 25, 2017
at Chestnut Avenue
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Our Spirited Rabbi identify herself as belonging to any one
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Cover Story
other things. But to Ms. Seltzer, he was
my rabbi, she said; she was inspired by
him, and she loved him.
So the Abramowitzes were an inter-
esting family, partly prototypical,
partly idiosyncratic. But what about
the certificate?
In the 1970s, the Abramowitzes moved
to Hackensack, where they became
active members of Temple Beth El, a
distance of their new home. Morris, who
had retired in 1966, died in 1977; decades
later, in 2011, Julia died.
Meanwhile, the Seltzers flourished.
They have been married for 50 years
now, and they have two children and
two grandchildren. Fred, who has
retired, was successful as a marketer,
and Roberta has developed relation-
ships with synagogues across most
of the Jewish world, from Chabad to
Reform, as she has taught music to their
students. If you add up all the years I
have worked at all these places, I have
worked more than 100 years, she said.
Although Ms. Seltzer is reluctant to
Jewish stream I say I am Jewish, she
said. I cant put myself in a category
the family is a longtime member of a
Conservative shul, the Fair Lawn Jew-
ish Center.
In 2004, Ms. Seltzer convinced her
mother to move to the Jewish Home at
Rockleigh. The night before I took here
there, I was in my mothers apartment,
going through things, and I just hap-
pened to look in a drawer, she said. I
found a copy of a letter from the Bronx
district attorney. The letter detailed, in
a striking combination of formal, slightly
pedantic language and vivid, unex-
pected images, an act of heroism Morris
Abramowitz had performed.
It was written in 1934; the copy she
found in Hackensack had been sent in
fathers death. Most likely, her mother,
overcome with grief and details, saw
that it wasnt a bill and never even had
taken it out of the envelope. Certainly
she never focused on it.
It was such a surprise! Ms. Seltzer
Fred and Roberta
Seltzer of Fair
Lawn have been
married for
50 years.
said. Who knew?
Later, she found a handwritten docu-
ment hidden in a cardboard box, along
with her fathers other job souvenirs.
He lived very modestly, she shrugged.
It was the proclamation of his induction
into the Honor Legion.
The story the typewritten letter told
was that the defendant walked into a
restaurant, ordered something to eat,
and after satisfying himself that there
was no one else in the store except two
workers, to wit, Peter Zydes and George
Russell, he immediately directed them
to go into the back of the store and put
their hands up. He brandished a very
large carving knife, and he also had
his other hand in his pocket point-
ing forward as if there was a revolver
therein. When he passed by, Patrol-
man Abramowitz noticed the two men
with their hands up, so he immedi-
ately drew his service revolver and
plunged into the store and subdued the
defendant. True, there was no gun,
but until he had the bad guy, Robert
Coyle, under control, he had no way of
knowing that.
Mr. Abramowitz also recovered the
money Coyle had stolen from the cash
register $10.75, according to the letter.
Later he learned that Coyle had
recently been released from Elmira
Reformatory. He was dangerous.
Why had her father never mentioned
any of this? I dont know why, Ms.
Seltzer said. Her parents were engaged
when it happened, but not yet married.
I think he didnt want my mother to
worry, she added. But really, she said,
she has no idea why he never talked
about it, either then or later. It was such
a surprise, she said. The document had
been in its cardboard box for 81 years,
unrecognized.
We are told that if you save one life, it
is as if you save the universe, Ms. Seltzer
said. My father saved two universes.
And he never told us.
Finding out something like this about
your father after so many years is heart-
warming and very emotional, she said.
And sort of surprising, and sort of not
surprising at all.
 Jewish World

Converence of mayors, ADL announce agreement to combat hate

BEN SALES
The mayors of Americas largest cities are launching a
partnership with the Anti-Defamation League to combat
hate and bigotry.
Nearly 200 mayors have joined the agreement, which
was announced Friday, since it was first circulated Tues-
day night among the U.S. Conference of Mayors. The
community leaders to combat bigotry, with those who oppose them. Steve
and strengthening anti-bias education Adler, the mayor of Austin, Texas, who
programs in schools. is Jewish and has volunteered for the
Many of the points echo a plan of ADL in the past, said during the call that
action that the ADL called on the White mayors dont need a teleprompter to say
House to adopt earlier this week. The Nazis are bad.
group proposed the plan following the Theres a clear lack of a moral com-
white supremacist rally in Charlottes- pass, Mayor Shane Bemis of Gresham,

COURTESY OF THE ADL

mayors are agreeing to explicitly condemn racism, white
supremacy, and bigotry, and to implement educational
and public safety programs to safeguard vulnerable pop-
ulations and discourage discrimination.
Signers include the mayors of New York City, Los Ange-
les, Chicago, Houston, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C, and
Phoenix.
For decades, Americas mayors have taken a strong
position in support of civil rights and in opposition to rac-
ism and discrimination of all kinds, the Mayors Compact
reads. We are now seeing efforts in our states and at the
highest levels of our government to weaken existing civil
rights policies and reduce their enforcement. We have
seen an increase in hate violence, xenophobic rhetoric,
and discriminatory actions that target Muslims, Jews, and
other minorities.
The compact sets out a 10-point program that includes
publicly condemning bigotry, ensuring public safety
while protecting free speech, training and funding law
enforcement to enforce hate crime laws, working with
ville, Virginia, and President Donald
Trumps response, which the ADL and
many others have slammed.
The events in Charlottesville once
again showed us we have much work
to do to bring Americans together,
said Jonathan Greenblatt, the ADLs Jonathan Greenblatt
national director, on a conference call
with reporters. We know that hate is on the rise. ADL
cant wait any longer for the president to act. ADL is ready a balance between protecting civil liberties while guard-
to work with communities across the country to combat
hate.
The announcement of the compact comes during a
high-profile week for the ADL, which combats anti-Semi-
tism and bigotry. The group received $1 million donations
from Apple and 21st Century Fox CEO James Murdoch,
and announced a partnership with Bumble, a dating app,
to block bigoted profiles.
Other mayors also portrayed the compact as a response
in part to the presidents equating white supremacists
Oregon, a city of 100,000 east of Port-
land, said on the call. This shouldnt be
a surprise to anyone, how he has contin-
ued to divide us since the election. It is
clearly, in my view, an absence of any sort
of moral leadership from the president.
But mayors were divided on a couple of
contentious issues, including the removal
of Confederate monuments from cities and how to strike
ing against incitement and threats to public safety. Tom
Cochran, CEO of the mayors conference, said policy on
how to deal with Confederate memorials should be left up
to individual cities.
This discussion is not about monuments, he said in
the call. This conversation is about coming together to
denigrate all acts of hate wherever they occur, and making
sure we protect public safety while making sure that the
right to free speech will always be protected.
JTA WIRE SERVICE

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JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017 25
Jewish World/Local

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An anti-Nazi protest in front of the German legation in New York in 1933.

When American Jews

fought Nazis in Newark
JOSEFIN DOLSTEN
The Nazi punching debate (is it OK to punch a Nazi?)
went viral in January after a liberal protester slugged
white supremacist Richard Spencer in the face during
President Donald Trumps inauguration.
It was reignited this month following the violence in
Charleston, which came mostly from the assembled
neo-Nazis, Ku Klux Klanners, and other white suprema-
cists, but also in part from some counterprotesters asso-
ciated with the combative antifa movement.
Although most eyewitness accounts of the events in
Charlottesville pin much of the blame for the violence
on the far-right marchers, and a counterprotester was
killed by a car driven by a suspected white supremacist,
critics like attorney Alan Dershowitz disapproved of the
anti-fascists who showed up at the rallies.
They use violence, and just because theyre opposed
to fascism and to some of these [Confederate] monu-
ments shouldnt make them heroes of the liberals, Der-
showitz said on Fox & Friends.
But whether its OK to confront hatred with violence
is not a new topic of conversation. American Jews
debated the question in the 1930s; they were faced
with the rise of Adolf Hitler in Germany and Nazi sym-
pathizers at home.
One hotbed for the debate was Newark, which was
home to a large German-American population and a
fair share of supporters of the Nazi cause. Though only
around 5 percent of the citys German-American popu-
lation of some 45,000 sympathized with the Nazis, they
made it known, said Warren Grover, a historian and the
author of the 2003 book Nazis in Newark.
Following Hitlers rise to power in 1933, Jews in
Newark saw Nazi sympathizers marching down their
citys streets.
The threats they faced were physical, because the
Nazis were marching in uniform, Grover said of resi-
dents of the citys Third Ward neighborhood, where
In Newark, however,
the Minutemen took
hold, aided by another
Jewish gangster,
Abner Longy
Zwillman, and led by
former professional
boxer Nat Arno
many Jews and Nazi supporters lived side by side. Many
of them were armed. They broke windows, and they
attacked merchants, but never with fatal consequences.
Nazis also screened movies with anti-Semitic mes-
sages and hung anti-Jewish posters in the city, Gro-
ver said. At a local election in neighboring Irvington,

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 Jewish World/Local

they plastered posters across the city
urging residents not to vote for Jewish
candidates.
In response, Jews started organizing
to defend themselves. Across the coun-
try, Jews would fight Nazis on an ad hoc
basis. But in Newark, a more organized
group emerged: the Minutemen. Jewish
mobster Meyer Lansky had started the
group in New York, but the Minutemen
were shut down there by the authorities
KEYSTONE-FRANCE/GAMMA-KEYSTONE VIA GETTY IMAGES
take care of it, he said. Those who
opposed the group tended not to live in
the Third Ward.
Yet the mostly Jewish group, which
also had a few Irish and Italian members,
became a powerful tool to fight Hitler
sympathizers.
The Minutemen were ready for them.
The Minutemen had clubs and stink
bombs, and they attacked the partici-
pants of the event, Grover said of one
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Wednesday, September 20, 7:15 pm
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Tashlich following services 1:30 pm
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after some Jews reported them, fear-
ing the use of violence would lead to an
increase in anti-Semitism.
In Newark, however, the Minutemen
took hold, aided by another Jewish gang-
ster, Abner Longy Zwillman, and led
by former professional boxer Nat Arno.
On Oct. 18, 1933, JTA reported on a typi-
cal clash, outside a Nazi meeting at a Ger-
man auditorium: The meeting, at the
Schwabenhalle, under the auspices of
the Friends of the New Germany was
the target for stones and stench bombs
thrown by the anti-Nazis in the crowd of
about one thousand who waited outside
the hall.
The following May, JTA reported on
a melee in Irvington: A Nazi meeting
terminated in fisticuffs, a miniature riot,
arrests and injury to many persons.
Though the Minutemen were cheered
and accepted by the majority of the New-
Nazi mass demonstration in 1933. Police Mincha 5:00 pm Neilah 6:00 pm
came, and there were some arrests, and Break-the-Fast 7:15 pm
people said later that the Jews, the Min-
SUKKOT
utemen, had no right to attack a peaceful
Erev Sukkot: Wednesday, October 4
gathering in a Newark hall.
The Minutemen boosted Jewish SHEMINI ATZERET
morale. Thursday, October 12 7:30 am (Yizkor)
Physical prowess as exhibited against
the Newark Nazis, Irvington Nazis, was a SIMCHAT TORAH
matter of pride for the Eastern European Thursday, October 12 7:30 pm
Jews who came because of the pogroms Come dance with us!
in Russia in the 1880s, Grover said. We would love to have you join us but tickets are required.
They took pride in it because they saw For more information please call Cathy
the newsreels coming from Germany in the office on (201) 391-4620
showing how the Jews in Germany were
being treated and all the different anti-
Jewish legislation.
Temple Beth Sholom of Pascack Valley
Ultimately, Grover said, the group 32 Park Avenue Park Ridge, NJ
served its purpose: deterring Nazis from
organizing in Newark.
Just the thought of having Minute-
men present at any of their meetings

ark Jewish population, Grover said, not
everyone was enthusiastic.
Some Jews, especially those affiliated
with Reform synagogues, felt it gave
Jews a bad name to be engaged in brawl-
ing, and they felt the government would
Frame IT
discouraged a lot of the Nazis from
holding public meetings, he said.
They were successful because a lot
less propaganda was brought out by
the Nazis because of fear of the Min-
utemen. JTA WIRE SERVICE

New Rabbis
FROM PAGE 7
said. Once she learned that she could
indeed become a rabbi, and that the
academy accepted older students
embarking on a new career, she never
looked back.
While she would like to run a con-
gregation someday, Im happy being
an assistant rabbi, she said. I would
rather be in a large congregation, to
deal with the full range of ages and do
creative programming. She enjoyed
her experience in Virginia, working
with an 80-family congregation six
times a year, but that kind of setting
is not her ideal. It was a phenomenal
experience, she said. We moved for-
ward, but I couldnt do creative proj-
ects without a critical mass.
Beth Rishon, unaffiliated, lib-
eral, and independent, is a nice
blend of people with different back-
grounds, Rabbi Ruderman said. She
noted that the survey taken when the
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Her goal this year is to continue Needlework Artwork
serving in all the ways that I do,
including helping bnai mitzvah stu-
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All work done on premises
tion, bringing them some awareness Owner Gail Stussi-Lettera
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one that will be emotionally helpful.
She pointed out that last year, the
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know its coming up, I will urge all teens
to go. Knowing how to respond will keep
them emotionally secure and safe.

JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017 27

Editorial
Facing hate
I a recidivist anti-Semite
love podcasts.
In fact, I dont really remember what
I did without them. I put my earbuds
in my ears, put the leashes on my dogs,
stow their treats in my pockets, and head out to
walk and to listen.
Theres a wealth of podcasts available, all of
them free. (Although its always good to support
the ones you love financially, its not at all nec-
essary.) Some tell stories, some explore science
or history or biography or economics. And
some, of course, in this extraordinarily politi-
cal time, look at politics.
The New York Times has a daily podcast,
released at about 6 each weekday morning,
logically if unexcitingly called the Daily. Its a
not-quite-half-hour in-depth look at something
in the news, created by the reporter and excel-
lent interviewer Michael Barbaro.
The Daily has been out for maybe six months
or so, and its been refined and polished and
evolved until now it can be counted on to offer
an unusual, and often unusually personal and
therefore unusually moving, take on something
you otherwise might or might not have heard
about. Its provided unforgettable insights not
always favorable, because people reveal them-
selves, and sometimes thats good, and some-
times its not into a coal miner who has black
lung but said that if he had the choice hed do
it all over again; a woman who lives in Ken-
tucky, has a medical condition, voted for Don-
ald Trump, is on Obamacare, and now worries;
and Chelsea Manning, who came across not as
a selfless truth teller but as a self-obsessed, con-
fused, not particularly admirable person.
Tuesday mornings Daily was an interview
with Derek Black, the son of one of the lead-
ing white supremacist families in the country,
whose father started and runs the foul white
supremacist website called Stormfront. He is
the godson of David Duke, he was brought up
in the movement, and until he first went off to
college, about a decade ago, Derek knew no
truths other than the lies with which he had
been brought up.
This is not the first time Ive heard about
Derek, and it probably isnt the first time
youve heard of him either, but no matter
how strong an impression stories about him
have made, the effect of hearing his voice
directly in your ears, early in the morning,
is more powerful still.
Jewish Editor
Joanne Palmer
Standard Associate Editor
Larry Yudelson
1086 Teaneck Road
Community Editor
Teaneck, NJ 07666
Beth Janoff Chananie
(201) 837-8818
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James L. Janoff
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28 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017
The thing is, Derek no longer believes that
stuff, so its a story of salvation. But he knows
it cold. And the part that he most wants to get
across, it seems, the part that he finds it hard-
est to explain, is the part that Jews play in this
ideology, and also the part that Jews played in
his redemption.
You have to understand, he says, that Jews
are central to the white supremacists world-
view. They believe that Jews run the world,
and that belief is central to everything else,
is connected to everything else, in ways
that are not logical. There is no clear way to
explain it, he says, because he doesnt really
understand it himself. He just knows it. We
dismiss it at our peril.
And then there is the story of how he left
his childhood. It really is a complicated story,
because layered under the political is the deeply,
painfully personal. In order to break with his
ideology, Derek had to break with his family;
his relationship with them now is distant, for-
mal, and sad. It makes the drama of his break,
and his rebuilding his life in ways he could not
have imagined, even more potent; some people
who cannot imagine being in or leaving the far-
right racist world maybe can imagine betraying
their families or being betrayed by them, and
then having to live without them.
Derek said that he was invited to Shabbat
dinners by another young man at college, an
observant Jew who enjoyed bringing diverse
people together and showing them the beauty
of Shabbat. Slowly, slowly, he was made to
realize exactly how untrue everything hed
believed really was. It was not the first step in
his change if he had not made many steps
already, he would not have been at all welcome
at that table, and he would not have been able
to bring himself to sit at it anyway. But it was
through the people he met there, the discus-
sions that followed, that he was able to see past
the hatred of his childhood to the love in the
real outside world.
Derek Black now is in graduate school. On
the Daily, he said that hed hoped to fade into
obscurity, to have a regular life, but he feels
compelled to speak out now because he feels
in part responsible for the hatred thats been
newly unleashed but had festered underground
where we didnt see it. We didnt even smell it.
But it was there, and now its been set free.
We should pay attention to Derek Black. JP
Correspondents
Warren Boroson
Lois Goldrich
Banji Ganchrow
Abigail K. Leichman
Miriam Rinn
Dr. Miryam Z. Wahrman
Advertising Director
Natalie D. Jay
Classified Director
Janice Rosen
KEEPING THE FAITH
Call Trump what he is:
D
o what is right and good in and repeated it, it becomes something
the sight of Adonai, that it he or she finds acceptable to repeat.
may go well with you. For Trump, anti-Semitic behavior and
That statement is statements are acceptable to repeat. To
repeated, in one form or another, those who excuse Trump by saying he
throughout the Book of Deuteronomy, is just pandering to his racist and anti-
including three times in last weeks Semitic base, but that he himself is not
parashah, Reih, and in the very last anti-Semitic, the record of just the last
verse of this weeks parashah, Shoftim. nine months screams otherwise.
In every way that counts, Do what is ITEM: From his first day in office
right and good in the sight of Adonai is on January 20 until he spoke to Con-
Judaisms prime directive. It is the way gress on February 28, Trump could
we must live our lives. not bring himself to address a wave of
In my last column, I argued that con- anti-Semitism that the ADL called the
tinuing to support President Trump worst since the 1930s. So blatant was
is a communal sin for which we must this constant dance around condemn-
repent in the season of repentance that ing anti-Semitism that it made head-
got under way on Tuesday with the start lines around the world.
of the month of Elul. It was my intention Even Trumps own vice president,
to go on to other areas we Mike Pence, recognized
need to consider as Rosh the need to do some-
Hashanah and Yom Kip- thing dramatic. In mid-
pur come ever closer February, he traveled to
(and, God willing, I will St. Louis to help clean up
do so over the next few a Jewish cemetery that
columns). had been badly damaged
Then, however, the by anti-Semitic vandals.
events in Charlottesville Even then, with Pence
and their aftermath hap- grabbing the headlines,
pened, and are continu- Shammai Trump would make no
ing to happen around the Engelmayer public comment until his
nation. While many voices speech to Congress eight
were raised against the days later.
president within the Jewish community, ITEM: On International Holocaust
some continued to support him, includ- Remembrance Day, Trump could not
ing from among Israels leadership. bring himself to mention the word Jew
One in particular stands out. Economy in his statement marking the day. It is
and Industry Minister Eli Cohen of the with a heavy heart and somber mind,
Kulanu faction said, Efforts to portray his statement said, that we remember
Trump as anti-Semitic are pathetic, and honor the victims, survivors, and
especially since Trump is one of the heroes of the Holocaust, but the state-
most sympathetic [presidents ever] ment never mentioned that Six Million
toward Israel. Jews were the prime victims, survivors,
The Talmud has something else to and heroes of the Shoah.
say. In the Babylonian Talmud trac- Make no mistake. This was deliber-
tate Sota 22a, we are told that once a ate. Trumps statement was drafted by
person has committed a transgression the State Departments Holocaust issues
Shammai Engelmayer is rabbi of Temple Israel Community Center | Congregation
Heichal Yisrael in Cliffside Park and Temple Beth El of North Bergen.
Advertising Coordinator
Jane Carr
Production Manager
Jerry Szubin
Founder
Morris J. Janoff (19111987)
Account Executives
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Deborah Herman
Editor Emeritus
Meyer Pesin (19011989)
Peggy Elias Bob O'Brien
Brenda Sutcliffe City Editor
Mort Cornin (19151984)
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Editorial Consultant
P.O. Box 7195 Jerusalem 91077
Max Milians (1908-2005)
Tel: 02-6252933, 02-6247919
Fax: 02-6249240 Secretary
Israeli Representative Ceil Wolf (1914-2008)
Editor Emerita
Rebecca Kaplan Boroson

office, and it specifically singled out our martyred
Six Million. Trump deleted all such references
before issuing his statement.
ITEM: While visiting Poland, Trump did not
go to the monument honoring the heroes of the
Warsaw Ghetto. Ever since the fall of Commu-
nism in 1989, every president and vice president
of the United States who visited Poland went to
the ghetto to pay tribute, but Trump could not
make the time to do so himself. (His daughter did
. find the time to go, although the White House
sought to keep her visit private, so no media
were invited along.)
ITEM: After first denying it, Trump finally
- admitted to owning a copy of Adolf Hitlers book
t of speeches, a book Hitler titled My New Order.
t (Trump originally said it was Mein Kampf, which
is bad enough.) This is a book his former wife Ivana
Trump told a Vanity Fair reporter that Trump kept
- by his bed and read from on many nights. She said
this in 1990 27 years ago, long before he needed
f to pander to anyone on the right; long before he
ever heard of Steve Bannon.
Trump defended owning the book by saying
- it was given to him by a Jewish friend in the film
- industry, as if that made it okay. The friend, how-
ever, was not Jewish, and said as much to report-
, ers who asked him to confirm giving the book to
Trump.
- ITEM: Why did Trump think his friend was
- Jewish? It was because the friend was Martin
Davis, head of Paramount Pictures and its par-
ent Gulf + Western, and, as the White Suprema-
t cist world will tell you, the Jews control the film
industry and the media. It follows that some-
. one heading a media conglomerate must be
Jewish.
, ITEM: Trump is the man who went before the
Republican Jewish Coalition in December and
almost immediately invoked a most egregious anti-
t Semitic stereotype as if it was an established fact
that Jews enjoyed hearing: Im a negotiator like
t you folks, we are negotiators. Is there anybody that
t doesnt renegotiate deals in this room? This room
w negotiates them perhaps more than any other
room Ive ever spoken in.
Once a person has committed a transgression
r and repeated it, says the Talmud, it becomes
something he or she finds acceptable to repeat.
- Trump commits anti-Semitic transgressions as
a matter of routine. He is a racist generally and
, an anti-Semite specifically. Supporting Israel has
nothing to do with his liking Jews; it has every-
- thing to do with pandering to the religious right
y that supports Israel because it is a part of his base.
As I noted in my column two weeks ago, however,
Trumps actions as president show just how half-
hearted and insincere that support really is.
This is not about politics, however. This is about
Do what is right and good in the sight of Adonai,
that it may go well with you.
It will not go well with any of us if we continue
to stand silent. It will not go well with us if Trump
is not called to account for his politics of division
and hate.
SEE TRUMP PAGE 31
The opinions expressed in this section are
those of the authors, not necessarily those
of the newspapers editors, publishers, or
other staffers. We welcome letters to the editor.
Send them to jstandardletters@gmail.com.
Opinion
Amazingly, the older I get,
the smarter my parents become
I
t is customary to say to some-
one commemorating a yahrzeit
May the deceaseds neshama
have an aliyah may their
soul merit a spiritual elevation as a
result of your prayers and mitzvot.
While I say that too, I confess I dont
really believe it. As I once told a good
friend on a parents yahrzeit, after fol-
lowing that custom, his father really
earned his souls elevation on his own
merit, by the stellar way he lived his
life dedicated to serving (and loving)
his family, community, people, and
God. Nothing we do can top that.
So when I recite kaddish, lead ser-
vices, learn Torah, or chant the hafto-
rah on my parents yahrzeits, its not
to aid their souls; its to nourish mine.
Its a demonstration of my continu-
ing love of and respect for them and
their (and my) traditions, an oppor-
tunity to reflect on the values they Gertrude and Simon Kaplan
imparted to me, my siblings, and our
children, and to remember some of the many lessons they
taught us. And thats what I did recently on my fathers yah-
rzeit (and am doing on their wedding anniversary, when this
column is appearing).
Let me share with you some of those memories.
Neither of my parents believed in teaching
by preaching. Rather, they usually taught and
inspired by action and deed. They epitomized
the maxim The mediocre teacher tells, the good
teacher explains, the superior teacher demon-
strates, the great teacher inspires.
Here are two examples.
A good friend once told me that he personally
met Rav Ahron Kotler zl, the renowned founder
of Beth Medrash Govoha (a/k/a Lakewood). He
was introduced when he happened to be in his Joseph C.
fathers office in New York City, where Rav Ahron Kaplan
had gone to work with his father on a project. I
was impressed, and when I told the story to my
father I asked if he ever had met Rav Ahron.
My father answered that he also worked on various projects
with Rav Ahron, and had gone to his office in Lakewood a num-
ber of times it was quite a shlep from Far Rockaway to dis-
cuss them personally with him. My fathers demonstration of
the importance of living to its fullest the concept of kibud cha- heard R. Greenberg speak and had a similar conversation with
chamim the deep respect owed to wise and learned people
was a tad subtle for my high school self. But as I grew older I he reacted, I replied With warmth, and seemingly very pleased.
realized I had been taught that respect included accommodat-
ing the convenience and comfort of a venerable sage. A subtle
yet powerful message.
And a maternal story. My mother, together with two friends,
volunteered her time on a weekly basis to help care for a
young Far Rockaway girl who was one of the first home dialysis
patients in the United States. While that might not sound like
a big deal today, considering our compact and relatively easy-
to-use dialysis units, back then it was a very big deal. I learned embrace and practice of the tradition they lovingly transmit-
that one Friday afternoon, when my mother asked me to spell
her for about an hour.
When I entered the small room, my jaw dropped to the
floor. Every inch was crammed wall-to-wall with machines
and dozens of tubes filled with blood, urine, and other fluids.
And in the midst of it all, my mother and her friends calmly
executed all the complicated and messy procedures involved.
I wondered how they could almost
cheerfully take on and perform this
onerous and difficult task, and with-
out professional schooling no less.
As I grew a bit older I understood
my mothers unstated message: know
what youre capable of, rise to the
occasion (which sometimes means
stretching beyond your comfort
zone), and, most critically, do what
you have to do.
Sometimes, however, my par-
ents understood they had to hit us
over the head a bit. Once, my older
brother, now a well-known scholar
but then a budding one, wanted to
write an article for the YU newspa-
per on Isaac Bashevis Singer, whose
recent books in English translation
had received rave reviews. Lawrence
wanted to make the article personal
and mentioned to my father that he
wished he could meet Singer to dis-
cuss his books and ask some ques-
tions. So call him and ask for a meeting, my father said.
Lawrence: Me? Who am I to call such a famous author and
why should he meet with me? My father: Hes listed in the
white pages. (Remember them?) Pick up the phone and
invite him to have a glass of tea with you in a nearby cafeteria.
(Remember them?) And so my brother did, and
thats how he shared a glass of tea with I.B. Singer
and wrote a fine essay.
My example of direct parental instruction was
with my mother. I had returned from a program
run by Yavneh, the 1960s and 70s organiza-
tion of Orthodox college students, where Rabbi
Dr. Irving Yitz Greenberg was the featured
speaker. (As my kids eyes glaze over at the men-
tion of Yavneh, I direct you to the definitive book
about it, The Greening of American Orthodox
Judaism, by my classmate and friend the late
Dr. Benny Kraut, and my review of it in the Jew-
ish Week.) My mother asked if I enjoyed it, and
superlatives dripped from my mouth.
Did you tell R. Greenberg? my mother asked. My answer
mimicked that of my brother: Me? Who am I to tell R. Green-
berg that his speech was wonderful?
But I was a dutiful son, at least sometimes, so the next time I
my mother, my answer was Yes. When my mother asked how
No one, no matter how famous or important, is ever
unreachable or insulted by a compliment, my mother said,
with a gentle pat on my cheek. And wasnt that the same lesson
my father taught my brother?
Perhaps Im wrong. Perhaps our parents souls continue to
be elevated after their deaths. No, not by virtue of our seem-
ingly independent actions, but by virtue of their eternal role as
our teachers and inspiration, as demonstrated by our ongoing
ted to us.
Our actions truly are their actions.
May their neshamot have an aliyah.
Joseph C. Kaplan, a Teaneck resident for more than 31 years, is
a frequent contributor of essays to Jewish publications when not
he is not practicing law in Manhattan.
JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017 29
Opinion

On the roots of Jewish self-hatred

T
he concept of Jewish self-
hatred first popped up in Ber-
lin in 1930, in German philoso-
pher Theodor Lessings book
Der Juedische Selbsthass.
Lessig declared it a psychotic pathol-
ogy and cited Jews who actually invited
Aryans to exterminate them like vermin.
He had converted to Christianity while he
was a student, but became Jewish again
after reading Zionist anti-assimilationist
literature, and used the term to castigate
anti-Zionist Jewish intellectuals.
At 28, German poet Heinrich Heine
abandoned Judaism for Lutheranism.
Three years earlier, in 1822, the Prussian
government had introduced a law bar-
ring Jews from academic positions. Heine
claimed that the only reason he con-
verted was because Christianity was the
entrance ticket to Western Civilization.
In one of his satiric poems, Heine
described Judaism as the Jewish sick-
ness of the centuries, without a cure, a
gloomy sorrow passed from father to son.
Karl Marx, Heines third cousin once
removed, was a good deal more vehe-
ment. A descendant of a long line of rab-
bis, he also converted to Christianity. In
his tract, Zur Judenfrage, he wrote that
Money is the jealous God of Israel.
The social emancipation of the Jews is
the emancipation of the society from
Judaism.
He borrowed money from the Bam-
berger family and referred to father and
son as Jew Bamberger and little Jew
Bamberger. He wrote to Engels that the
holiday resort where he stayed contained
many Jews and fleas.
In his article The Russian Loan,
he was harsher: We find every tyrant
backed by a Jew. . . .The cravings of
oppressors would be hopeless, and the
practicability of war out of the question,
if there were not. . .a handful of Jews to
ransack pockets.
. real work is done by the Jews,
and can only be done by them, as they
monopolize the machinery of the loan-
mongering mysteries by concentrating
their energies upon the barter trade in
securities. There is ever one of these
little Jews ready to make a little sugges-
tion or place a little bit of a loan. The
fortunes amassed by these loan-mongers
are immense, but the wrongs and suf-
ferings thus entailed on the people and
the encouragement thus
afforded to their oppres-
sors still remain to be
told. It is only because
the Jews are so strong that
it is timely and expedient to
expose and stigmatize their
organization.
The German Jewish states-
man Walter Rathenau didnt Dusty Sklar
help his people when he
published Hear, O Israel
in 1897. He suggested the conscious self-
education and adaptation of the Jews to
the expectations of the Gentiles. As the
first step toward self-criticism, he pro-
posed: Look at yourselves in the mirror!..
Nothing, unfortunately, can be done about
the fact that all of you look frighteningly
alike and that your individual vices, there-
fore, are attributed to all of you. As soon as synagogues? asks the visitor. Ah, well,
you recognize your unathletic build, your
narrow shoulders, your clumsy feet, your
sloppy roundish shape, you will resolve to
dedicate a few generations to the renewal
of your outward appearance two thou-
sand years of misery cannot but leave
marks too deep to be washed away by eau
de cologne.
Assimilate and imitate the
Gentiles, Rathenau ordered.
He did. He later withdrew
the essay from his collected
writings. He served as for-
eign minister in the Weimar
Republic and was assassi-
nated in 1922.
People often call Jews self-
hating if they dont see eye
to eye with them. One of
my favorite jokes is about
the Jew whos been stranded alone on a
deserted island for years. One day a boat
appears and a man approaches him. The
Jew gives him a tour of the island, proudly
pointing out the house that he built, the
synagogue that he built, the other syna-
gogue that he built. Why does a Jew liv-
ing alone on a deserted island need two
answers the Jew, that one I wouldnt be
caught dead in.
The term sometimes is used to discredit
Jews who differ in their lifestyles, interests,
or political positions from their accus-
ers. Jews who are critical of Israel may be
considered self-hating by those devoted
to Israel. Orthodox, Conservative, and

What the Jews can learn from African Americans

I
n the movie Casablanca, Cap-
tain Renault (falsely) claimed to
be shocked, shocked to find that
gambling is going on in here,
though he allowed it to flourish under
his watch for years.
Likewise, after Charlottesville, the
majority of the mainstream Jewish com-
munity seems to be shocked, shocked to
find out that anti-Semitism is not only
alive and well but flourishing. It is hard
to understand how that can be, since
like Captain Renault, the Jewish people
have been seeing it for years. They just
choose to look away. They also were
warned that the anti-Israel sentiment
that masked itself as anti-settlement
or anti-apartheid was just old-fash-
ioned anti-Semitism cloaking itself in a
new, politically correct form.
Unlike the Jewish people with anti-
Semitism, African Americans under-
stand that racism always has existed in
this country, still exists now, and unfor-
tunately always may exist. They under-
stand that even though our immediate
past president was an African American,
that did not do away with racism. It just
drove it further underground during
(other than the Orthodox
and those involved with
or familiar with the large
African Jewish organizations like
AIPAC, the federations,
Americans the AJC, etc.) seem to have
understand that 100 percent acceptance of
anti-Semitism. In part, that
racism always is because it is much easier
has existed in for most of us to hide our Daniel
Judaism from the rest of Shlufman
this country, still the world. Unlike African
exists now, and Americans, who are imme-
diately identified by the color of their
unfortunately skin and face prejudice constantly as a
always may exist. result, the majority of the Jewish peo-
ple are not immediately identifiable.
Fortunately for us, for the most part we
his presidency. Now that the racists see can walk around and live our assimi-
a more favorable political landscape, lated lives in any American community
they are surfacing, like worms coming without having to contend with anti-
out after a rainstorm. As a result of this Semitism. However, just because our
understanding, the African Americans skin color is the same as neo-Nazis and
have a zero tolerance for racism which white supremacists, we are fooling our-
they are quick to identify (albeit some- selves if we believe that they consider us Jewish people, as victims of discrimina-
times incorrectly) and quick to address as anything more than Other.
it. Anything that even smacks of racism Due to our ability to hide in plain
is called out and addressed. sight as long as anti-Semitism does
Paradoxically, the Jewish people not affect the mainstream Jewish
community directly, most
Jews are happy to ignore
it. Only when that changes
does it become an issue to
them. When synagogues
and JCCs are targeted with
graffiti and vandalism, it
does not become a prob-
lem. It is somehow justified
as an isolated incident or
the acts of an isolated crazy
person. When Jewish peo-
ple in France and Belgium
are openly terrorized and routinely tor-
mented, it is not even on the radar for
most Jewish people in American. More-
over, when it occurs in Israel, especially
when it is in the settlements, not only is
it not an issue, but a blame game goes
on to identify with the terrorists. (For
example, if they [Israelis] had not taken
the Palestinians land they would not
have been attacked.)
In the early- and mid-20th century,
tion, were instrumental in helping Afri-
can Americans organize many of their
lobbying organizations and succeed
in the civil rights movement. Some of

30 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017

 Opinion

Reform Jews may feel intolerant about differences, as may
religious and secular Jews in general. Its impossible for
some people to embrace huge swathes of humanity sim-
ply because they share an accident of birth.
And let us not forget the antipathy which sometimes
exists between Eastern and Western European Jews,
between Ashkenazim and Sephardim, between Zionists
and anti-Zionists. Can someone be opposed to the very
existence of Israel without being a self-hating Jew? A lead-
ing critic of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Noam Chom-
sky, characterizes Israel as a mercenary state and has
earned the enmity of Israels supporters.
Some blame the European Enlightenment for making
Jews feel inferior. It was believed that Judaism was primi-
tive, tribal, and devoid of ethics. When Jews were granted
emancipation and citizenship, they often felt that they had
to prove their loyalty.
New York psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Arlene Hey-
man writes that if someone hates you, your first impulse
may be to feel you deserve it. A child makes sense of the
world and gains the illusion of control by believing he is
badly treated by his mother because he deserves it. If you
have a cruel mother, if youre in the hands of an angry
god, you dont have a chance; but if your mother is hit-
ting you for your own good, then you can keep a tie with
a good mother and take your anger at her out on your-
self: you are bad, you will try harder, your self-esteem suf-
fers, you dont deserve better, you are lucky to get slapped
around. So you add self-destructiveness to your mothers
hatred and you help do yourself in. On a larger scale,
when Hitler declared war on the Jews and people through-
out the world joined him, some Jews felt they must have
brought this on themselves, they must be getting what
they deserved, otherwise why would the universe (the
mother) treat them so?
One moves toward the New Testaments To them that
hath shall it be given, and from them that hath not, even
what they hath shall be taken away.
It is also a fact that some of the most vehement anti-
Semites were converted Jews. Torquemada, the Grand
Inquisitor of Spain, came from a family of conversos, Jews
who had converted to the Catholic faith. The psychologi-
cal mechanism here may be identification with the aggres-
sor. One takes on the views of the majority and persecutes
ones fellows. On a more homely level, children who have
been beaten often grow up to beat their own children.
These days, a popular form of anti-Semitism is per-
ceived as being anti-Israel. It goes beyond legitimate
opposition to Israeli government policy. Its also prevalent
among ultra-nationalists who declare that the Jews con-
trol government, media, international business and the
financial world.
Bigotry against Jews is far from over. Lets hope that Jew-
ish self-hatred is.
Dusty Sklar of Fort Lee is a writer whose stories and
articles have appeared in many places. She is the author
of Gods And Beasts: The Nazis and the Occult.
Trump
FROM PAGE 29
It is time for the Jewish community to rise up with
one voice and declare, ahd kan vlo yoter up to
now but no further. We will not stand silent any lon-
ger. We will not continue to support a racist and anti-
Semite in the White House.
It is time for us as individuals and as a Jewish com-
munity to demand of Congress that it formally cen-
sure Donald Trump, to let him know his racist and
anti-Semitic leanings have no place in our society.
Write letters. Make phone calls. The time is now
because, as history teaches us, if not now, when.
If we do not stand up to hate today, there may not
be a tomorrow for us to wish we had.
WHOM TO
WRITE AND CALL
Tell Congress its time to censure the
president, and to tell him there is no place
for racism in America.
The Honorable Robert Menendez
United States Senate
528 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
(202) 224-4744

The Honorable Cory A. Booker

United States Senate
359 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
(202) 224-3224

The Honorable Mitch McConnell

these tactics included fundraising and community
Majority Leader, United States Senate
organizing as well as challenging unlawful activities
through the courts. This helped and continues to help 317 Russell Senate Office Building
African Americans fight the insidious racism that still So now its time for Washington, D.C. 20510
exist in our country.
So now its time for the Jewish people, to learn from the Jewish people, (202) 224-2541

our African American friends and to stand up against to learn from our The Honorable Charles Schumer
discrimination once again.
This time, we need not only to fight racism, which African American Minority Leader, United States Senate
we must continue to do, but also to fight anti-Semitism. friends and to 322 Hart Senate Office Building
And we need to do it often and always. We need to
oppose subtle anti-Semitism for example, the idea stand up against Washington, D.C. 20510

that the Jews control Hollywood and overt anti-Sem- discrimination (202) 224-6542

itism, like what we saw in Charlottesville. We also need

to do it with passion. We need to understand that an
attack on any Jewish person because of our religion,
even if this person looks different or prays differently,
is an attack on all Jewish people. And an attack on
Israels existence, not its political policies (which we
should all debate) is an attack on all Jewish people.
We must follow the lead of African Americans and
stand for zero percent tolerance for anti-Semitism.
This will mean that occasionally we will be wrong and
need to apologize. But even this will be a step in the
right direction as people will understand again, as
they did before, that like racism, anti-Semitism is not
acceptable and never will be acceptable in the United
States of America.
If we fail to do this, then we should be prepared to
once again. The Honorable Josh Gottheimer
United States House of Representatives
be shocked, shocked by the number of anti-Semitic 213 Cannon House Office Building
attacks we will see. We also will allow the cancer of anti-
Washington, D.C. 20515
Semitism to grow larger and stronger. And like the fight
against cancer, the earlier it is identified and the more 202-225-4465
aggressively it is treated, the better the result will be.
In the United States, we are at Stage 2 of anti-Semi- The Honorable Bill Pascrell Jr.
tism. If we allow this to get to Stage 3 or, God forbid,
United States House of Representatives
Stage 4, it may be too late to save the Jewish people.
2370 Rayburn House Office Building
Daniel Shlufman of Tenafly is on the board of trustees Washington, D.C. 20515
of the Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey and one 202-225-5751
of its current cohort of Berrie Fellows. He is an attorney
and a mortgage broker.

JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017 31

Opinion
Stop pay-for-slay now!
B
ut whatever it is,
I dont know who
you are and I dont
know what weve
been playing here. So I was cry-
ing because I dont know if I love
you anymore and I dont know
what Im going to do without
that.
Ordinary People (1980) Martha
The Taylor Force Act (S-1697) Cohen
passed the Senate Foreign Rela-
tions Committee on August 3
with bipartisan support. The vote was 17-4, allowing the bill
to go to the full Senate. The four senators who voted against
the measure are Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Tom Udall (D-N.M.),
Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.). They
voted against a bill that, put in its most simple terms, would
end American taxpayer money going to Palestinian Arab
terrorists who are paid to kill Americans and Israelis. The
original bill didnt have any exemptions, because all money
is fungible, but some do exist in its current form. The bot-
tom line is that if the Palestinian Authority rescinds its law
and stops paying terrorists for killing people and supporting
their families once they commit these heinous acts, PA fund-
ing will not be touched.
The money is far from de minimis. According to the 2017
PA budget, the payments will constitute almost 50 percent
of all foreign aid contributed, almost $350 million to kill
innocents. In a report published by the Jerusalem Center
for Public Affairs, according to MEMRI, the 2016 budget for
the PLOs Institute For Care For The Families of Martyrs
says that the Institute provides allowances without dis-
crimination in other words, also for members of Hamas,
Islamic Jihad, and so on. It appears that theres no issue
between all these factions and the so-called moderate Pal-
estinian Authority when it comes to cold-blooded murder
and money.
Since my column last October, I have been thinking
about why there doesnt seem to be the will within the
Jewish community to make the passing of the Taylor Force
Act an overriding priority. Yes, there have been a few orga-
nizations that have been working hard to pass this legisla-
tion and more have become supportive with the revised
version, but there doesnt seem to be the type of com-
mitted, strong American Jewish organizational push that
we have experienced with other issues. And so I wonder,
Letters
What he should have said
In The speech President Trump should give on Charlot-
tesville (August 18), Shmuley Boteach writes wishfully
about what Donald Trump should have said. I found his
column amusing at best, and pointless at worst.
In the spirit of putting words into other peoples
mouths, here is what Shmuley should have said about
Donald Trump, Charlottesville, and recent events.
I, Shmuley, am a resident of Chelm. I backed the wrong
horse in the election. I have now come to understand the
error of my ways. No Jew on earth, including me, should
take the side of a bigot who surrounds himself with racists,
anti-Semites, white supremacists and neo-Nazis.
32 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017
what do we mean when we say never again?
How can we willingly send our taxpayer money to incentiv-
ize those who want to kill anyone who is or is perceived to be
Israeli, Jewish, or American and believe in never again? If
we cant come together as a community to support a bill that
will stop what Senator Lindsay Graham termed pay to slay,
then I have to echo the quote above, I dont know who you
are and I dont know what weve been playing here.
Let me paint you a picture. Since the Taylor Force Act
passed in committee, I received two communications from
an umbrella organization that says it is the representative
voice of the organized Jewish community. One came on
August 10, with a list of issues to support and oppose that
range from alleviating poverty to the RAISE Act, with an
update on the Syrian refugee crisis and the Combat BDS
Act. No mention of the Taylor Force Act. Then on August 14,
I received a statement of condemnation of white suprema-
cist violence in Virginia from the same organization. Again,
nothing about the Taylor Force Act nor the senators who
voted against it, one of whom may be running for president
in the near future and one who is part of a political fam-
ily referred to as the Kennedys of the West. If standing up
against white supremacists is a no-brainer and deserves
formal condemnation, doesnt legislation ending funding
for those who kill and support the killers of Americans and
Israelis also warrant our explicit support?
There are countless Israelis of all religions and back-
grounds who have been murdered by Palestinian Arab
terrorists since 1948, but these killings also predate the re-
establishment of the state of Israel. However, if we want to
concentrate just on American lives, according to the Koby
Mandell Foundation and StandWithUs, since 1993 the year
the Oslo Accords were signed 64 Americans have been
murdered by Palestinians. Since the pay-for-slay incentive
was constituted secretly by Yassir Arafat after signing Oslo
and Abbas did not codify it until years later, this means that
we may have been unwittingly complicit in each of these
lives being taken.
Perhaps we need to remind these senators about the peo-
ple behind the statistics. Of course, there is Taylor Force,
only 28, whom I wrote about in October, an Army vet who
served in Iraq and Afghanistan on a Vanderbilt University-
sponsored trip to Israel when he was stabbed in Jaffa in
2016. Ezra Schwartz, only 18, from Massachusetts, was killed
when a terrorist fired on cars stuck in a traffic jam in 2015.
New Jersey residents include Leah Stern, a Holocaust survi-
vor from Passaic who was murdered in Mahane Yehuda in
I beg forgiveness from my fellow Jews for having
committed this error in moral judgment, for trampling
on the memory of the Shoah, and for not remembering
the injunction to blot out the memory of Amalek. Now,
as I enter the month of Elul, I pledge to start atoning
for my errors. With Yom Kippur near, I promise to be
a better, more moral, human being. It is a vow before
Hashem.
Oh and by the way, I wholeheartedly endorse Josh
Gottheimer and will also try to tear down the fences
that separate me from my former friend, Senator Cory
Booker. Life is too short for adding more hatred and dis-
respect to this world.
1997, Sara Duker of Teaneck, murdered in a bus bombing
in 1996, and Alisa Flatow of West Orange, murdered in a
bus bombing in 1995. Richard Lakin, originally from Con-
necticut, was on a bus in 2015 when he was shot in the head
and then stabbed repeatedly in his head, face, and stomach.
Richard advocated for Muslim-Jewish co-existence.
Kristine Luken, an American living in the U.K. who went
to Israel for a visit, was stabbed to death while hiking. Alan
Beer from Ohio was killed in a bus bombing in Jerusalem in
2003. Who can forget the bomb that exploded in the cafete-
ria at Hebrew University in 2002, killing Janis Ruth Coulter
and David Gritz of Massachusetts, Marla Bennet of Califor-
nia, Benjamin Blutstein of Pennsylvania, and Dina Carter
of North Carolina? They ranged in age from 24 to 37. And
90-year-old Hannah Rogen, who was killed in the infamous
Netanya Passover seder suicide attack in 2002. Aaron Ellis,
a young man from Chicago, was killed in a shooting attack at
a bat mitzvah while he was performing in 2002. Dr. Moshe
Gottlieb, originally from California, who regularly provided
free chiropractic care to handicapped children, was mur-
dered in a bus bombing in 2002. Rabbi Hillel Lieberman,
only 36, from New York once traveled through dangerous
territory to make a condolence call to the family of a Israeli
Druze soldier who was killed defending the Tomb of Joseph.
He was murdered while trying to rescue Torah scrolls from
the burning Tomb of Joseph in October 2000.
Tragically, this list isnt even a third of the 64 and Im list-
ing only Americans who were killed. This doesnt include
the injured and it doesnt include Israelis. To learn about the
others, read, The Forgotten Victims or go to www.jewish-
virutallibrary.org.
We must share these senselessly lost lives with our com-
munities and our leaders, because anyone who could vote
against the Taylor Force Act or not actively engage in sup-
porting its passage has definitely forgotten them and what
never again means. How much better would the world be
today with their ingenuity and compassion? How many chil-
dren and grandchildren would they have had by now? Each
one cruelly cheated out of their full lifes journey.
At the end of the climactic scene in Ordinary People,
Conrad, the young man, tearfully asks his doctor if he really
is his friend, and the doctor responds, I am. Count on it.
The question is: Can we be counted on to stop funding those
who want to kill us and our children?
Martha Cohen is an award-winning producer and creative
executive. She lives in Fort Lee with her husband and son.
This letter-writer never expects to see those words
emerge from the pen of Shmuley Boteach. Neither should
Rabbi Boteach expect to see Donald Trump say, write, or
tweet any other kind of non-hate speech, or demonstrate
any sort of common decency. Trump can no more change
his behavior than a leopard can lose its spots.
But one can continue to hope that a Jewish spiritual
leader can do better, and follow the ways of Torah, Rab-
beinu Moshe, Amos, Isaiah, Hillel and so many other
sages. We, the Or lGoyim, must be able to discern the light
from the darkness.
Eric Weis
Wayne

Lets talk about sex the aftermath of Charlottesville
T
he scene is Paris in the
late 19th century.
At a glittering ball,
a handful of eligible
gentilhommes eagerly circled the
charming Comtesse de La Roche-
foucauldsomething of an Ivanka
Trump in her dayin the hope of
being granted a dance. But when
the comtesse finally took to the Ben Cohen
dance floor, the man on her arm
was Arthur Meyer, the scion of
a rabbinical family who had risen from modest origins to
become a newspaper magnate.
The spectacle of the comtesse dancing with Meyer the
Jew was shocking to the anti-Semites in France and, this
being the time of the Dreyfus trial, there were plenty of those
around, as there are now. Their figurehead, the writer and pro-
pagandist Edouard Drumont, took pen to paper thusly: This
adorable young woman, this ravishing Aryan, with her proud,
virginal figure, whom one would not even dare to look at too
intensely for fear of harming the pure bloom on the maturing
fruit honestly, Im not making this up she gives herself to Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump walk down the West Wing Colonnade in the White House in February.
one of these frightful cosmopolitans, mangy, evil-smelling, a
man who used to hawk oranges on the quays of Tunis or Alex-
andria, or who worked as a waiter in some Russian village inn.
And then, as an ending, Drumont provided this flourish:
Everything falls to the Jew.
Now fast forward to Charlottesville, Va., in August 2017. Sit-
ting down for an interview with a reporter from Vice, a neo-
Nazi activist named Christopher Cantwell worked himself up
into a Drumont-esque frenzy of sexual jealousy, expressed in
the language of anti-Semitism. The reason for his anger was
Ivanka Trumps ongoing marriage to Jared Kushner, and his
disgust that Donald Trump a president he likes, but wishes
was more racist had given his daughter to a Jew. is sometimes unfair, that you dont always land the girl of your
Flashing a defiantly adolescent grin at the Vice reporter,
Cantwell warmed to this theme even more. I dont think you
can feel about race the way I do and watch that Kushner bas-
tard walk around with that beautiful girl, okay? he panted,
shortly after informing viewers that he was increasing his
capability for violence with a pistol in his pocket and regu-
lar visits to the gym.
You dont need to be a Freud or a Jung or a Lacan to figure
out what these two stories have in common. While Drumont
is indubitably more flowery and eloquent than Cantwell
who became a Nazi after failing spectacularly in his previous
Seeing whats coming
I do not seen enough progress in stopping the obvious and
insidious seeping of anti-Semitism into this country, let alone
in the world. I do not see dramatic measures being taken
toward the perpetrators of this sickness. Apparently, those
who have forgotten history or just belittle what happened to
the six million who perished at the hands of the Nazi regime
do not care.
Who will take the steps necessary to obliterate the rise of
so much hate? Our government is not an asset to the Jews.
Our Jewish organizations have not yet taken to the streets. Our
individual Jews have not raised a voice strong enough to be
heard. In fact, like so many I know, they are a bit embarrassed
careers as a drug dealer and congressional candidatethe
underlying psychosis is exactly the same. Just as Drumont
was driven into his rage by his unrequited fantasies of the fair
comtesse, Cantwell apparently believes that all that stands
between him and the fair Ivanka is a pesky Jew. Like Drumont,
Cantwell is driven slowly mad by the realization that things
just dont add up: Jews like Kushner are weak, selfish, grasp-
ing, and oilyall the things he is convinced, as a proud Aryan,
that he isntand yet its the same Kushner who is taking
Ivanka to the prom.
For Nazis as for all totalitarian ideologies, the notion that life
why they pepper their ravings with words like cuck a ref-
dreams, that you might lose your job or your home because
of bad debts, and all the other day-to-day miseries of modern
existence, is too hard to bear. That is as Edouard Drumont
noted many times the simple elegance of anti-Semitism: it
gives you both an answer and a target as to why the world is
such a dreadful place without demanding that you consider
your own weaknesses, failings, and idiocies first.
From this psychic matter are such emasculated individuals
as Cantwell created.
Many scholars of anti-Semitism such as Stephen Wilson,
whose excellent book Ideology and Experience includes
by the displays of anti-Semitism and do not acknowledge it as
directed at them, but at the others. Sounds familiar to me.
This was exactly the experience of Jews living in Germany at
the time when it all began, much in the same way.
I am not saying anything new. Thats what you are thinking.
But I am a step further and fear the events of todays world
as huge warnings to all of us. As portents of what will come
if there is no dampening of their actions and words. Yes, we
live in a nation of free speech. But perhaps we should rethink
this. Hasnt anyone learned yet about the power of masses of
people reciting slogans that they dont even understand? That
even if explained would be futile? Remember Hitler youth.
Those young boys and girls who were taught hate and grew
Opinion
CHIP SOMODEVILLA/GETTY IMAGES
the above quote from Drumont have closely examined the
threads that link anti-Semitism with unfulfilled sexual desire.
The great paradox that the Jew represents a racial and politi-
cal polluter, and yet successful in winning the affections of
Aryan women is never resolved, but only exacerbated with
words like bestial and lustful, words soaked in sexual
envy. Indeed, this very theme was the driving force behind
the lurid propaganda of the Nazi rag Der Sturmer, edited by
Julius Streicher, who was a close friend of Hitlers well before
the Nazi leader became Fuhrer.
Todays American racists are similarly obsessed, which is
erence to a man whose wife indulges in extramarital sex, often
with black men. That they can be so transparent and yet still
win supporters tells us that there are plenty of other angry
white men out there who share Cantwells neurosis.
More than a century separates them from Edouard
Drumont, and still we havent found a cure. JNS.ORG
Ben Cohen writes a weekly column on Jewish affairs and Middle
Eastern politics. His work has been published in Commentary,
the New York Post, Haaretz, the Wall Street Journal, and many
other publications.
Letters
up to be soldiers of the Reich.
What can we do? Certainly not sit around waiting for the
next march or rally. Being more prepared for how to handle
their words, how protest before another event such as the one
in Charlottesville. Maybe to alter the language of the right to
free speech.
I dont know. I am not a political person, but I do remember
and shudder at the things my mother told me that happened
before she fled Germany. And I wonder what gave her the
courage to flee at 19, and in turn to save many of her family.
She, at least, understood what was coming.
Sandra Steuer Cohen
Teaneck
JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017 33
Local
Ethiopian Jews
FROM PAGE 10
agreement that would lead to a resump-
tion of aliyah. It did get the aliyah started,
but it has never been completed, Ms. Gor-
don said.
For the past year and a half, NACOEJ has
been funding programs that the Ethiopian
Jews run themselves. In particular, the pro-
grams provide food for children. Were
now very concerned about a report from a
health clinic in Gondar, Ms. Gordon said.
It found that over half of the children are
seriously malnourished. Some are also ill
with things like malaria, typhus, intestinal
parasites, pneumonia.
It is clear that a great deal of atten-
tion has to be paid to feeding these kids.
I have no doubt that most of them, if they
survive, will be in Israel eventually. The
only question is what shape will they be in
when they get there. We very much want
them to arrive healthy.
Helping the Ethiopians in Israel also
long has been one of NACOEJs missions.
We decided the future of the community
in Israel depended on education, and that
was what we wanted to work in, Ms. Gor-
don said.
The first project was having American
Mixed bag
FROM PAGE 11
guarded optimism, despite last weeks
confrontations over race and ethnicity.
But there still is much work for Mr.
Trump to do to regain the countrys trust,
Mr. Foxman said. He still needs to say, I
made a mistake. He has to get up in some
public forum and say, There are no good
Nazis, not in Europe, not in the United
States. He has to say to the Nazis, I dont
want your vote. He needs to say, No, Mr.
David Duke, I dont want you as my friend
or as my supporter.
What about Donald Trump? Is he really
a racist, a neo-Nazi, or a white suprema-
cist? Mr. Foxman doesnt know.
Nobody really knows what is in
Trumps heart, he said. A lot of people
who know him up close say that he is not
a bigot, not a racist, not an anti-Semite. I
would subscribe to that.
What about those shocking images,
those blond glowering men marching
with their guns and shields and swastikas,
shouting Blood and soil and Jew. Shall
not. Replace us.?
I think Trump is all about Trump, Mr.
Foxman said. Its all about making Amer-
ica great again; its all about opportunism.
Its a mixed bag, he repeated.
Mr. Foxman does think that the elec-
tion campaign, and Mr. Trumps behavior
at the time, encouraged racists and neo-
Nazis to become more overt. They always
have been here, he said. I am not old
enough to remember it, but I have seen
the film clips of Madison Square Garden,
full of Nazis. And that was in New York, not
34 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017
Jews sponsor Ethiopian college students
to provide living stipends.
The government of Israel was paying
for their college education. But they were
having difficulties, since their families
couldnt support them, Ms. Gordon said.
Thousands and thousands have gradu-
ated as a result.
Diana Yacobi of Englewood is one of the
sponsors. She sits on the board of NACOEJ.
Her interest in Ethiopian Jews was
sparked by their embroidery. In 1990,
when thousands of Jews were in Addis
Ababa before they were allowed to emi-
grate, NACOEJ commissioned needlework
from them, to give them jobs. As many as a
thousand workers created pillowcases, tal-
lit bags, challah covers, and other objects
featuring Ethiopian Jewish life and Jewish
themes.
At one point, I went in and bought a
whole bunch, Ms. Yacobi said. Based on
that gesture I became more involved.
She has been sponsoring high school
students through NACOEJ. Each child
requires a $350 supplement to pay for
their textbooks and school trips, she said.
Their parents cant afford that.
As a sponsor, she has been able to shep-
herd kids through their high school years.
in Virginia. And the Ku Klux Klan had ral-
lies in the thousands in New York State and
in New Jersey. But in the postwar period,
thanks in large part to such organizations
as the ADL, the American Jewish Com-
mittee, the American Jewish Congress,
and the civil rights movement, and many
other Jewish and general organizations,
for many years they were hiding. They
had paramilitary training in forests, so we
passed anti-paramilitary training legisla-
tion. We passed anti-hate legislation. So for
a long time, they didnt show their faces or
their identities.
And then they had a sort of comeback
on the internet. But now, as a result of the
last election, that has changed. Mr. Trump
has a responsibility, because while he did
not support bigotry or racism or anti-Sem-
itism, in his effort to get elected he broke
every taboo in our social contract.
And when they saw what this man
could get away with, they were embold-
ened, and now they are in-your-face arro-
gant, with chutzpah.
For them to give the kind of inter-
views they gave, to show their faces as
they did, is because they believe that
America is different than it used to be.
And thats because of the rhetoric. So
President Trump has a responsibility to
use his bully pulpit, to say to them, No,
I dont want your support. To say that
there are no good Nazis.
But because I am an optimist, because I
have spent a lifetime talking and engaging
and interacting not just with our friends
but also with our enemies, because I do
believe and I continue to believe that one
She has a chance to meet the students
when she visits Israel. It keeps these kids
connected, keeps them afloat, gives them
resources to participate with all the other
students, she said.
There are many more Ethiopians who
are moving ahead in Israeli society. There
are many who are not succeeding, who go
through the system and struggle. There
are stories of the young Ethiopians in the
army caught between a rock and a hard
place. Because theyre helping a sibling or
had to do something at home, they dont
get back to the army base on time and
bump up against the system that penal-
izes them.
NACOEJ offers younger students Limu-
diah a supplementary classroom pro-
gram that adds 10 hours of education to
the school week and offers lunch every
day. Right now, we have 718 students in
16 schools in seven communities, Ms. Gor-
don said.
That number includes some non-Ethio-
pian students.
A year ago, the government mandated
that all programs for Ethiopians that take
place in government facilities must be inte-
grated, she said. Now we have about 30
percent non-Ethiopians in the Limudiah
can change peoples hearts and minds, I
continue to believe in epiphany, Mr. Fox-
man said.
I will continue to believe that this man
who is now president of the United States
is capable of understanding the bully
pulpit that he has, and that he will yet
unite us.
But as events continue to unfold, Mr.
Foxman finds that even his industrial-
grade optimism is fading. He was shaken
by the presidents campaign-style rally in
Arizona on Tuesday night.
How terribly sad, he texted as he
watched the president roar words of
divisiveness and the crowd roar back. A
president unwilling or unable to face up
to the truth. He may never be able to set
it straight as long as he denies the truth.
I am not giving up hope yet as to an
epiphany but I am getting close!
So how can you still hold onto any
hope, given what youve seen, Mr. Fox-
man? Where do you see hope? His
answer is a bit of verbal jujitsu. We might
be united not as much because of the
president, but almost almost! despite
him, Mr. Foxman said.
Its because of the American people,
he elaborated. The response has been
very encouraging, from all leaders of phil-
anthropic organizations who say that they
will not stand near him at Mar-A-Lago, to
all the corporate leaders who have said
thank you but no thank you. And this issue
has brought thousands and thousands of
young people into the streets.
Because he is a populist, he will con-
tinue to raise his finger to test the air. And
classroom. I wish the government would
pay for it, but that hasnt happened yet.
We have been told when it comes to
going to high school, people can always
tell which of the kids have been to Limu-
diah, because they are well prepared, she
said.
But Ms. Gordon wants to focus on the
people, not the problems.
We have Ethiopian judges, lawyers,
medical doctors, nurses, teachers, scien-
tists, rabbis, Knesset members, other gov-
ernment functionaries, authors, dancers,
singers, actors, filmmakers, she said.
We have Miss Israel Yityish Titi
Aynaw, who won the title in 2013 and
while she was never in one of our pro-
grams, we recently had the librarian of the
year. He was somebody we rescued from
Ethiopia as a child, who had been crippled
by polio and couldnt work. He graduated
from Bar Ilan University with a NACOEJ
sponsor and became a librarian.
We think there is very great evidence
that even though the early years are hard
and expensive, the Ethiopian community is
a great asset to Israel and will be a greater
one as time goes on. We think the ones who
are waiting in Ethiopia now will get into
Israel and make Israel very proud too.
once President Trump sees which way the
wind blows, Mr. Foxman said, I do believe
that he is going to get the message.
I dont believe that people are inca-
pable of changing, and I want to believe
that this person who probably doesnt
like to apologize very much, who prob-
ably has apologized very few times in his
life I want to believe that hes capable of
an apology.
I think that his daughter and son-in-
law should walk in and show him that
Vice video and say that they are going to
talk about us. (The video is a short docu-
mentary that Vice News released the day
after the rally. Its a close-up look at neo-
Nazis, narrated by a reporter, Elle Reeve,
who exhibited extraordinary courage in
her reporting. Its easy to find it online by
googling Vice video Charlotttesville.)
I think we have a responsibility to raise
our voices, to criticize him, to challenge
him, to tell him what we think, Mr. Fox-
man said. We have to be able to stand
up, to say what hurts us, to say that this
is wrong.
The protests in Boston, massive and
peaceful, against bigotry and hatred and
racism and anti-Semitism, cheered Mr.
Foxman. He thinks that such well-run
displays of civic virtue might help per-
suade the infinitely persuadable Donald J.
Trump to move toward it, away from the
dark side.
Mr. Trump engaged in moral equiva-
lence, and that is wrong, Mr. Foxman
concluded. I will urge and I will noodge
and I will advocate that he will have to fix
what he did.

Ki Teitzei: Listen to the shofar in troubled times
W
ith the arrival last week
of Rosh Chodesh Elul, we
resumed one of our peo-
ples most cherished, and
certainly most poignant traditions, the
sounding of the shofar. Without a doubt,
words cannot fully capture that annual
experience of hearing the shofar for the
first time in nearly a year, and the feelings
of anxiety and trepidation it elicits, signal-
ing the impending arrival of the Days of
Awe. As the prophet Amos inquired, rhe-
torically, Will the shofar be sounded in
the city, and the people not tremble?
Yet, these powerful emotions notwith-
standing, what is the conceptual basis of
this most cherished custom? Would it not
be more effective to wait until the day of
Rosh Hashanah itself to hear the shofar for
the first time?
True, according to the Midrash, the
practice is rooted in an event which
occurred some 3,340 years ago: As Moshe
ascended the mountain on the first of Elul
to receive the second set of tablets, a sho-
far was sounded throughout the Jewish
encampment, to help avert any relapse
into the calamitous behavior surrounding
the Golden Calf.
Still, one cannot help but wonder why
the Sages saw fit to memorialize annually
what appears to be a highly contextual
one-time practice, deeply rooted in a par-
ticular historical moment?
Dvar Torah
It seems to me that the different in these two dif-
answer lies in the very nature ferent cases. While we are
of the mitzvah of shofar itself, enjoined to blow the shofar
and may even provide some during the jubilee year, on
direction in these deeply Rosh Hashanah, by con-
troubled times in which we trast, we are commanded
are living. to hear the shofar. If the
The Torah is famously terse sounding of the shofar
when it comes to the cele- during the jubilee year is
brated commandment of sho- Rabbi Daniel a declarative gesture, pro-
far. Nowhere does the Torah Fridman claiming the emancipation
explicitly state that one blows Jewish Center of of the indentured bonds-
Teaneck, Orthodox
the shofar on Rosh Hashanah, men and return of the
restricting itself to obliquely ancestral homestead, Rosh
referring to the day as zikhron Hashanah, apparently, is
teruah, and later, yom teruah, a remem- about listening. tally, with the social media platforms that
brance of the teruah, or day of teruah, If this is true, we can well understand,
respectively. Even once the Sages derived from this alternative point of view, the cus-
from verses concerning the jubilee year tom which developed to sound the shofar
that a shofar was to be utilized on Rosh the entire month of Elul. Learning to lis-
Hashanah to produce the aforementioned ten is a skill. To train ourselves to prop-
teruah sound (itself quite ambiguous), the erly hear the voice of the shofar demands
Sages of the Mishnah and Talmud did not intentionality and considerable exertion.
explicitly characterize the nature of the Thus, to truly hear the sound of the sho-
commandment. Are we commanded to far on Rosh Hashanah, to internalize its
blow the Shofar, or perhaps, are we com- message, to arise from our sleep and to
manded to hear the blowing of the shofar? wake from our slumber as Maimonides
Maimonides view of this topic is at once inimitably wrote, to move towards our
highly counterintuitive and deeply illumi- Creator and in His light to discover our
nating. While conceding that the very basis best selves, a month of preparation in the
of the use of the shofar on Rosh Hashanah art and science of listening seems more
is the derivation from the jubilee year, than appropriate.
Maimonides maintained that the nature In our deeply troubled times, when the
of the commandment was qualitatively ever-present embers of racial and religious
hatred have been stoked to a temperature
unseen in generations, we would do well
to remember that the pathway to reconcili-
ation can be found only through rediscov-
ering the importance of engaged, empa-
thetic listening.
Let us remember, as our Sages taught
in the context of shofar, one who hears
an echo has not fulfilled the mitzvah. One
must hear the actual sound of the shofar:
its timbre, its pitch, its actual voice. The
same must maintain with respect to hear-
ing the voices of those around us, espe-
cially those with whom we disagree. It
simply cannot be done virtually, or digi-
decouple the capacity to make public dec-
larations from the responsibility of truly
listening in response.
The modern day echoes which our
Sages taught us were invalid in the con-
text of shofar are the emails, blogs,
texts, tweets, and Facebook posts which
are equally impotent when it comes to
healing our deeply broken polity. This
will only be achieved by listening to the
actual voice of the Other, in all of its dis-
tinctiveness, with all of its vulnerability.
And, as is the case to fulfill the mitzvah of
shofar, this listening must be done with
deep intentionality, with kavanah1, with
a recognition of our mutual humanity,
and an aspiration to honor that which is
Divine in each of us.

Wall
FROM PAGE 13
We also have to address the role of the
Ministry of Religion in religious life in Israel.
If the Western Wall were under control
of the National Parks Department instead
of the Office of the Rabbinate, it would,
like the synagogue at Masada, be open
to everyone. What does it say that the
involvement of rabbinic officials increases
the likelihood of exclusion, conflict, and
even violence?
When I went off to the Kotel that
Wednesday morning, I told my husband, I
should be back by 10, but if I get arrested,
it will be later. He answered, You go,
girl! affirming once again my excellent
choice in a life partner. But it is wrong that
possible assault or arrest by fellow Jews (or
anyone) should be a consideration in pray-
ing at the Kotel.
We can do better. And sometimes we
actually do.
My grandparents traveled to Israel in
1968, almost exactly one year after the
Kotel came into Jewish hands. They stood
at the Wall together and prayed. There
was no mechitzah. The Wall, at that time,
united Jews and inspired only gratitude,
not controversy.
I have been to the Kotel on half a dozen
Friday nights when young women from
Birthright groups sang the Friday night
prayers in full voice, and Shabbat peace
prevailed. Calls and responses and hora
dances among the women occasion-
ally have eclipsed the excitement on the
mens side. And no one minded. In fact,
its beautiful to see soldiers in their uni-
forms, mixing with tourists and civilian
locals in all kinds of garbs, representing
the glorious variety of Jewish communi-
ties and practices.
Daily, a variety of mens minyanim over-
lap and adjust their voices and locations
to make sure that those praying together
can hear one another. On the womens
side, which is about one third as large as
the mens, women often stand in line to
touch and pray at the wall. It may be the
only line in all of Israel where no one is
hurried or jostled.
Cheryl told me about one Rosh
Chodesh when Women of the Wall were
praying at the Kotel, as usual. As usual,
too, the mechitzah at the Western Wall
was imperfectly honored, with many
husbands and wives talking over the
partition, and some women standing
on chairs, leaning over to witness the
goings-on on the mens side. Before the
womens service started, Cheryl noticed
one woman who was peering over the
mechitzah to see what appeared to
be her sons bar mitzvah service. It
was clear from the mothers repeated
glances back at Woman of the Wall that
she was anxious about hearing her sons
reading. Cheryl talked to the mother and
asked her to signal the women when
the boy began his aliyah to the Torah.
At her signal, Women of the Wall low-
ered their voices to a whisper. Shortly
afterward, the mother exited, together
with the rest of her female family and
friends, and she thanked the Women of
the Wall profusely.
It may not be possible to achieve full
inclusion or perfect pluralism, but we
can all do better. Lets imitate God, who
retracted the Self to make room for the
Other. Lets imitate Cheryl Birkner Mack
and the Women of the Wall, who did the
same on that Rosh Chodesh/bar mitz-
vah morning.
First, we have to be willing to see that
there is another: another Jew who wants
to daven in another way, which has its own
claims to and in Torah.
Speaking of which, I shared this essay
with my Orthodox friend before going
to print. He pointed out that individual
prayer by women is approved at any time
at the Kotel. He felt that true tzimtzum
(holy retraction) would require women
to abstain from praying in groups there
altogether. He also offered a challenge
to the liberal Jewish community: come
pray at Robinsons Arch in large num-
bers. Develop a commitment to regular
prayer on a par with that of the Ortho-
dox community.
I look forward to continuing the
conversation.

JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017 35

The Frazzled Housewife Crossword
HEDGE YOUR BETS
BY YONI GLATT, KOSHERCROSSWORDS@GMAIL.COM
DIFFICULTY LEVEL: CHALLENGING
When you gotta go
BANJI GANCHROW taking a lot of Advil for the pain (sprained

T
he Island of Long is the affec- yes, second car accident in my family this
tionate term I have given to
Long Island.
More specifically, the five
towns (are there other places aside from
those five towns? Yes, I know
there are I just always hap-
pen to end up in one of those
five lovely towns.) Why do I call
it the Island of Long? Perhaps
it is because it takes such a
long time to get there. Bridges
and tunnels and highways, oh
my. In all my years of driving
there, there rarely has been a
time where there was no traf- Banji
fic. How is it possible that some Ganchrow
road is always under construc-
tion? What are they doing?
And if they are doing something, they have
very poor engineers, because nothing ever
seems to change, except that the lanes get
smaller and I am always convinced that I
am going to hit the divider. Unless my car
has just gotten fatter. Who knows.
When the boys were little, the
bridges became a geography les-
son. Who can name the three bor-
oughs that the Triborough Bridge
connects? And then we have the
And there was the
wrist, bruised rib, even more bruised car
summer, but we are all alive, thank God,
and the rest doesnt matter) and my stom-
ach was having some issues. And they
decided to appear when we were walking
home. Lost. In the Island
of Long.
After the first dead end
we ran into, I started get-
ting a little nervous, wor-
rying that I was going to
have a different kind of
accident. My family, true
to form, was making fun of
me. They wouldnt let me
knock on anyones door.
It was late, after all. And
then husband #1 walked us
into another dead end. And
that is when I looked around and realized
how much construction was going on in
the neighborhood.
It seemed that every other house was
Across Down
adding on or building new. And what did
1. Dances like Davis Jr. 1. Lhasas land
they all have in common? Porta-Potties.
5. One with one sign of kashrut 2. Div. for Angels
9. Larry, Moe, and Curly, e.g. 3. Stick ones head through the shul
14. Why should ___ you? door, e.g.
15. Contemporary of Isaiah 4. Ahab might have ridden one in battle
16. Like Efron
17. Like one needing a new parnasah
5. 1984 novel about the life of Ishmael
(with The)

Throgs Neck Bridge, which the Porta-Potty like a source

boys used to call the Froggy
Neck Bridge. Really it was hours
and hours of entertainment.
You can leave early in the
morning and sit in two hours
19. Senator of Watergate fame
6. Ani ohev, in Latin
7. Garment for a High Priest
mirage in the 20. Mauna ___
21. Jewish slaves might have had holes
8. Many an Ephron work
9. Israel Security Agency
desert. I heard my put into them
23. Name derived from Adams wife
10. Capeks 1920 sci-fi play with the
character Jacob Berman
mothers voice in 24. Shes The Divine Miss M 11. Make like Jordan in 1967

of traffic. You can leave late at the back of my 28. Avner and Amichai
30. Way more than 5777 years
12. Rabbi Eiger and writer Goldsman
13. Solomon, e.g.
night and sit in two hours of traf-
fic. And then, of course, you can
head: Dont do it!! 31. Chills and fever
33. Best (wines)
18. Mate of Brodericks Simba
22. Get a mortgage adjustment from
give yourself extra time because They are dirty! 34. Trent who criticized Carter over the
Palestinians
Leumi, briefly
24. Nut that sounds like the house of
you really need to be somewhere 36. Makes a rabbi G-d?
and it ends up taking you 43 minutes. Mur- I wish I was joking. My boys said, Just 38. Ice cream alternative 25. Sacrificial sounds?
phys Law. You gotta love it. One boy I met go in the woods. No one will see you. I 40. The L-rd shall ___ to me another 26. Many Jack Kirby creations had an
in college told me that he would never date didnt have the strength to go into a les- son (Gen. 30:24) alter one
41. Of course! 27. Like a kibbutz, often
a Jersey girl because we were geographi- son on the female anatomy. After all, I
44. Like Primo Levy 29. Take back lashon hara, in a way
cally undesirable. Back atcha, buddy! was the mom who could drive through 47. Aussie actress Stone 32. Carrie Fishers father
This past weekend my family had an the entire state of Indiana without having 49. Home for women who are almost 35. Like Eichmann in Israel in 1961
aufruf in the Island of Long. Husband #1s to stop to go to the bathroom. And there certainly not Jewish 37. It comes thirteenth, occasionally
first cousin got married on Sunday, so we was the Porta-Potty like a mirage in the 52. Praying to him wont result in a shi- 39. Notable Bea Arthur co-star
duch 42. Redeem for some kesef
all went to celebrate this very momentous desert. I heard my mothers voice in the
54. ___ Lanka 43. She was worshipped in Greece
occasion. The meals werent at the syna- back of my head: Dont do it!! They are 55. It was satirized in Kubricks Dr. 45. Jolson and a king
gogue that the family usually goes to, they dirty! I thought of when my guys were Strangelove 46. Easter preceder
were a bit further away but the length of little and they needed to go. I wouldnt 57. Event that might be followed by a 48. ___ Abner
the walk didnt matter because we were all let them use the Porta-Potty we would lchaim 49. Make like Marcel Marceau
59. Super time?: Abbr. 50. Damon character first brought to
so happy to be there. pick a lovely tree or find a more proper
60. One going to MTA or YULA the screen by Doug Liman
Friday night dinner was lovely. The rest room. 62. Shesh, to a 44-Across 51. It could make a kittel look like new
flowers, the food, the people perfect. But when you have no idea how much 63. ...___ like to call it... 53. His massive home run totals werent
Speeches were funny and all was right longer it will take you to get home, a girls 65. Words that might be followed by exactly kosher
with the world. gotta do what a girls gotta do. And in this Ok bro, yer on!...or how to solve 56. Jose of Wilpons Mets
this puzzle 58. Dwellings for Jews 3300 years ago
And then we had the walk home. girls case, it gave me some good copy for
70. Like Samsons hair, for most of his life 61. Where thousands of Jews were
What happens when four people from a column. 71. Lady Libertys Lazarus brought after the Temple fell
New Jersey have to figure out how to get And hopefully, I didnt get hepatitis. 72. A good girls name? 64. Basketballer Bird
back to a house they dont live in and there 73. Little laugh 66. Meryl played her Jewish therapist in
is no Waze or Google Maps? Normally, get- Banji Ganchrow of Teaneck is hoping no 74. Red and White Prime
75. Kibbutz near Kiryat Shmona 67. ...and the bush ___ not consumed
ting lost wouldnt be an issue, but I was one was offended by this column. She also
(Ex. 3:2)
having an issue. You see, I had gotten into hopes that the person whose Porta-Potty The solution to last weeks 68. Rabbi Weiss of note
a car accident a few days earlier and was she used doesnt read this puzzle is on page 43. 69. Zionist youth movement

36 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017

 Arts & Culture
Hey, Alma!
New site aims at unmarried Jewish millennial women
BANJI GANCHROW
B
eing Jewish can be complex.
Being a Jewish woman can be
even more complex.
Throw in work, dating, parent-
ing, and, well, life in general, and its really,
really complex. And also you have a plethora
of things to talk about, and even more specifi-
cally, to write about.
Jewish women who have chosen to bare
their souls, both emotionally and literarily,
now have a new place to do it. 70 Faces Media
the new name for the organization that
grew out of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency,
which now styles itself simply as JTA, when
it merged with My Jewish Learning offers
several websites that give them the chance Molly Tolsky, Almas editor, is writing
and the freedom to do so. for people in her own cohort now.
The creative energy the company exudes is
practically palpable at its Manhattan office.
Kveller, from the Yiddish word kvell, meaning feeling
happy or proud, is a site where Jewish moms can liter-
ally kvell about their children and also talk about issues
surrounding parenting with honesty and compassion. Of
course, as every parent quickly learns, it isnt all about the
kvelling those issues are also brought forth with honesty
and compassion. Kveller was launched back in the fall of
2010, as a project of My Jewish Learning.
The founding editor was Deborah Kolben. Molly Tolsky
came on as an intern that summer while she was in gradu-
ate school studying writing. According to Ms. Tolsky, I
was able to play a big role in shaping the voice of the site
and I watched it grow from nothing to a robust, engaged
online community of parents, mostly women.
In 2015, when the Jewish Telegraphic Agency and My
Jewish Learning became 70 Faces Media, Deborah Kolben
became the COO and editorial director of all its brands.
Those include not only JTA, My Jewish Learning, and Kvel-
ler, but also the Nosher, Jewniverse, and now Alma. Ms.
Tolsky went on to become the editor of Kveller.
The job was great, she said, but not quite a perfect fit
for her. While I loved everything about editing Kveller
working with amazing writers, helping women share their
personal stories and connect with others who have gone
through similar things Im not a parent myself, so my
own personal connection to the content was always lack-
ing, she said.
So Ms. Tolsky and Ms. Kolben put their heads together.
Debbie and I had been very casually throwing the idea
around for a website like Kveller, but for younger Jews, for
a few years, Ms. Tolsky said. But it was during a mid-year
review in 2015 when I broke down in tears over feeling
stuck in my career and lets be honest, my life and the
idea for Alma really came to fruition.
The Hebrew word Alma means a woman of child-
bearing age who hasnt yet had kids. It also describes
the websites target audience. Were looking for mil-
lennial Jewish women who arent super affiliated with
COURTESY ALMA
organized Judaism they
probably dont belong to a
synagogue or keep kosher,
but they do take pride in
being culturally Jewish,
Ms. Tolsky said. The goal
is to form an online com-
munity for these women,
where we can talk about all
aspects of our lives build-
ing a career, dating, rela-
tionships with our family,
travel, fashion, and so on
while also talking about
how our Jewishness fits
into the rest of our identity.
Almas message is that
young Jewish women have
opinions and things to say,
and this is an online forum Alma, a site for ladies with chutzpah, announces itself on Instagram.
for those thoughts to be
shared in a communal, safe space, she continued. These their lives. For many readers, being Jewish is part of their
women can benefit from connecting with each other and life, but not their whole life.
hearing each others voices. We are already hearing from Alma readers how much
She hopes that Almas content will attract millennial they are enjoying and appreciating the site. And for us, this
women of all backgrounds, from Orthodox to Reform and is an opportunity to expand our reach and develop a prod-
even to the unaffiliated. Everyone has a story; some of uct thats aimed specifically at a younger demographic.
those stories are intertwined with their faith, while others Alma did a soft launch on social media, including Insta-
are not. But in both cases, those stories are important and gram, Facebook, Twitter, and Medium, in March. Accord-
readers can learn from and empathize with them. ing to Ms. Tolsky, we launched our website this past June.
Ami Eden is 70 Faces Medias CEO and executive editor. The reaction has been overwhelmingly positive, with a lot
We are constantly looking for new ways to engage differ- of women reaching out to say how long theyve been wait-
ent audiences, he said. And we are consistently analyz- ing to see a publication just like this for Jewish women.
ing what is and isnt working. Ms. Tolsky has been receiving several emails a week
To that end, we realized a few important lessons from from readers who would like to write for Alma, or who
our parenting site, Kveller. It was something about a niche are really enjoying what the site has offered so far.
site, aimed at women, with a mix of Jewish and non-Jew- Alma is at heyalma.com. Anyone who is interested in
ish content that didnt necessarily put the Jewish first, becoming a contributor should write to hello@heyalma.
because we realize that that isnt how many people lead com with their ideas.
JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017 37
Calendar
Friday
AUGUST 25
Shabbat in Wayne:
Temple Beth Tikvah hosts
Shabbat Under the Stars,
led by its spiritual leader,
Rabbi Meeka Simerly.
It begins with outdoor
services, 6 p.m., and is
followed by a potluck
picnic. If it rains, services
and dinner move indoors.
950 Preakness Ave.
(973) 595-6565 or www.
templebethtikvahnj.org.
Sunday
AUGUST 27
Film in Paramus:
The JCC of Paramus/
Congregation Beth
Tikvah shows One
Flew Over The Cuckoos
Nest, 3 p.m. Optional
deli dinner follows the
movie. East 304 Midland
Ave. Reservations,
(201) 262-7691.
Tuesday
AUGUST 29
Hot topics in Bayonne:
Temple Beth Am
continues its Point/
Counterpoint series,
a Jewish take on
current events, led
by Rabbi Cathy Felix,
1:30 p.m. 111 Avenue B.
(201) 858-2020.
Wednesday
AUGUST 30
The American medical
system: The CSI Scholar
Fund of the JCC of
Fort Lee/Congregation
Gesher Shalom
concludes a three-part
series, the American
Medical System, with
38 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017
scholars Dr. Eli Kirshner,
Bob Schermer, and
Peter Correale. Mr.
Schermer reviews the
Affordable Care Act and
repeal, replace, or revise
proposals. Refreshments,
12:30 p.m., speakers at
1. 1449 Anderson Ave.
(201) 947-1735.
Blood drive in Teaneck:
Holy Name Medical
Center holds a blood
drive with New Jersey
Blood Services, a
division of New York
Blood Center, 2-8 p.m.
718 Teaneck Road.
(800) 933-2566 or www.
nybloodcenter.org.
Friday
SEPTEMBER 1
Shabbat in Jersey
City: Temple Beth-El
sponsors Eat, Pray,
Shabbat. Potluck dinner, AUG. The Matt Chertkoff Quartet performs at the JCC of Fort
6:30 p.m., followed by Lee/Congregation Gesher Shalom for the CSI Scholar Fund
services with September
birthday blessings and
oneg Shabbat, 7:30. 2419
28 program on Monday, August 28, at 1 p.m.; refreshments at 12:30.
Mr. Chertkoff offers a narrated concert with a new presentation
Kennedy Boulevard. of liturgical and secular tunes. 1449 Anderson Ave. (201) 947-1735.
(201) 333-4229 or
office@betheljc.org.
children, at the Kaplan
Monday Thursday Preschool 5:30 p.m. Barbecue in Clifton:
North Jersey Jewish
SEPTEMBER 4 Regular services at
SEPTEMBER 7 shul at 7. 115 Park Ave. Singles Meetup group,
ushpreschool@gmail. 50s-60s, a group
Lunch and learn: Rabbi College campus com. sponsored by the Clifton
Aaron Katz leads a movements: Seffi Jewish Center, hosts a
discussion over lunch Kogen, director of barbecue (rain or shine)
on current topics at
Congregation Bnai
campus affairs for
the American Jewish Singles
with activities, 4:30 p.m.
18 Delaware St. A concert Announce
Jacob in Jersey City,
noon. 176 West Side Ave.
Committee, discusses at nearby Main Memorial
your events
(201) 435-5725 or www.
BDS the boycott,
divestment, and
Sunday Park will follow at 7:30.
1395 Main Ave, Clifton. We welcome announce-
bnaijacobjc.com. sanctions movement AUGUST 27 (973) 772-3131 or www. ments of upcoming events.
on college campuses, for meetup.com. Announcements are free.
TorahWeb event: Rav the Jersey Hills section Singles event in NYC: Accompanying photos must
Mayer Twersky will
discuss Yiras Shomayim:
of the National Council
of Jewish Women at
YUConnects holds
Foodie Fantasy! a
Friday be high resolution, jpg files.
Send announcements 2 to 3
Balancing Love and Fear Temple Beth Sholom in walking/noshing tour SEPTEMBER 1 weeks in advance. Not every
in a Feel-Good Society, Fair Lawn, 7:30 p.m. 40- on the Lower East Side release will be published.
at 8 p.m., and at 8:45, 25 Fair Lawn Ave. Sheila, with a professional Shabbaton: Sharon Include a daytime telephone
Rav Hershel Schachter (201) 794-0970 or Ruth, guide and facilitators, Ganz & Friends hosts number and send to:
will talk about Torah
Learning After the Year in
(201) 791-1096. 10:30 a.m., for modern
Orthodox singles, 30 to
a Shabbaton for
Jewish singles, late
pr@jewishmediagroup.
com 201-837-8818 x 110
Israel: Prioritizing Torah
and Secular Education in Friday 40. Sample treats and
view the artwork of the
20s, 30s, and 40s, at
Congregation Bais Tefilah
College, at Congregation SEPTEMBER 8 Bialystoker Synagogue. of Woodmere, N.Y.,
Beth Aaron in Teaneck. www.yuconnects.com/ through Saturday night.
950 Queen Anne Road. Shabbat in Hoboken: upcoming-events, Fee includes Shabbat
(201) 836-6210 or www. The United Synagogue of (516) 603-8141, or meals, Woodmere tour,
bethaaron.org. Hoboken hosts Shabbat yuconnects@yu.edu. and Saturday night
in the Park for children party. 409 Edward
and adults of all ages, Ave. (646) 529-8748 or
especially with young (718) 575-3962.

JCC art show
features work
of Boris Lyubner
The Kaplen JCC on the Palisades Waltuch
Art Gallery in Tenafly presents Portraits
of Brooklyn and a Few old Friends, paint-
ings and drawings by Boris Lyubner. The
show will run from September 3 to 28,
with a meet-the-artist-reception on Tues-
day, September 5, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Boris Lyubner graduated from the
St. Petersburg Academy of Art the
same school where Marc Chagall failed
to pass the entrance examination some
75 years earlier and then immigrated
to the U.S. For the next 20 years, he built
a successful career as an illustrator with
national and international clients that
included Bank of America, Microsoft,
The Maccabeats
Doo-wop, rock, Maccabeats
are coming to bergenPAC
The Bergen Performing Arts Cen-
ter in Englewood has tickets for Oh
What a Night of Doo-Wop & Rock N
Roll, a show scheduled for Saturday,
November 4, at 7 p.m. Hosted by Cool
Bobby B of Sirius Radio, who is a host
of 50s on 5, LAR Enterprises presents
seven doo-wop and rock n roll groups
including the Happenings (See You In
September), The Capris (Moon Out
Tonight), Larry Chance & The Earls
(I Believe), Kid Kyle (The Diary), or call bergenPACs Box office at (201)
Jimmy Gallagher & The Passions (Just
The Capris
COURTESY JCCOTP
Painting by Boris Lyubner.
Intel, Standard & Poors, Motorola, IBM,
Ernst & Young, Toyota, Chrysler, and Nike.
For information, call Nina Bachrach at
(201) 408-1406 or go to www.jccotp.org.
PHOTOS COURTESY BERGENPAC
To Be with You), The FireFlies (You
Were Mine) and The Quotations
(Imagination). Some acts may not
contain all original members.
The Maccabeats are set to perform
on Wednesday, December 6, at 7:30,
and Kristen Chenoweth will be there
on Sunday, December 10, at 8 p.m.,
as part of the Benzel-Busch Concert
series. For these and other upcoming
shows, go to www.ticketmaster.com
wood Hospital and Medical Center Foun-
227-1030.
Run/walk to aid TUAC and YIOT
The Teaneck Volunteer Ambulance
Corps and Young Israel of Teaneck are
joining for YIOTs second annual 5K
Run/Walk. It is set for Sunday, Septem-
ber 10, from 9 to 11 a.m., and will go
through Teanecks Country Club section.
All are welcome to join, from experi-
enced competitive runners to anyone
who just wants to walk. There also will
Cookbook is OBOC selection
The Jewish Federa-
tion of Northern New
Jerseys Celebrating
Israel @ 70 celebra-
tion continues with
the announcement of
this years One Book,
One Community book
selection.
It is Zahav: A World
of Israeli Cooking by
Michael Solomonov and Steven Cook.
Although it is billed as a cookbook,
the book is filled with text that lets
readers into Chef Michaels life and his
desire to bring Israeli cuisine to Amer-
ica. The mouthwatering recipes are ill-
lustrated and feature vignettes of color-
ful people.
It takes more than a restaurant to
move a person to write a cookbook, Mr.
Rev up for charity ride
Andiamo Restaurant will host its 18th
annual Benefit Motorcycle Run on Sun-
day, September 10, at 10:20 a.m., bring-
ing together nearly 1,000 riders and
thousands of participants in one of New
Jerseys largest fundraisers on wheels.
Led by a motorcycle police brigade,
with representatives from police depart-
ments from all over New Jersey and New
York, the ride leaves from Andiamo
Restaurant in Haworth and follows a
70-mile course through Bergen and Rock-
land counties. The ride finishes at Andi-
amo Restaurant with a block party cele-
bration featuring food and entertainment.
Proceeds will help support the Engle-
event in support of additional charity
dation, Haworth Volunteer Ambulance,
Special Olympics, Haworth Police Auxil-
iary, Andiamo Scholarship to St. Therese
Alzheimers walks set for the fall
Alzheimers New Jersey invites residents
to participate in upcoming walks to fight
Alzheimers in Jersey City, Paramus,
Princeton, and Point Pleasant Beach.
The Jersey City walk at Liberty State
Park will be on October 7 and the Para-
mus walk is set for October 29 at Bergen
Community College.
Calendar
be a family run for children.
The run will support both TVAC and
YIOT. Friends and family can donate
money through a personal fundraising
page to support each participant. To
register, go to www.TeaneckAmbulance.
org, click on donate, and follow links to
the 5K page.
Solomonov said. For that
matter, it takes more than
being a cook to move a per-
son to open a restaurant.
This book is a chronicle of
a journey physical, emo-
tional, personal. As inevi-
table as it likely seems now,
since you are holding this
book in your hands, noth-
ing in my life happened the
way it was supposed to.
One Book, One Community is a proj-
ect of Synagogue Leadership Initiative,
a program of the Jewish Federation of
Northern New Jersey in partnership
with the Henry and Marilyn Taub Foun-
dation. To become an OBOC partner, or
for a resource guide of programming
ideas, email ElisaH@jfnnj.org or call
(201) 820-3918.
PHOTO PROVIDED
School, and other local charities.
Don Dickstein, owner of Andiamo
Restaurant, initially launched the run in
2000 to raise funds for the Cresskill Police
Department, and has since expanded the
beneficiaries.
To register, go to andiamorun.com or
call (201) 384-1551.
Every team that registers by August
31 will receive five purple ALZNJ brace-
lets for team members. All funds raised
will support New Jersey individuals and
families.
To start or join a team today, go to
walk@alzNJ.org or call (888) 280-6055.
JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017 39
Jewish World
State Department criticizes Israel
for inaction on religious freedom reform
AMANDA BORSCHEL-DAN
A
broad-strokes statement of reli-
gious disunion, the U.S. State
Departments International
Religious Freedom Report for
2016 pans the stagnant lack of progress on
the part of the Israeli government.
To chart the religious-ethnic teetering
balance that is Israel, the report, released
last week, uses a tit-for-tat formulation
highlighting the positives and even
more negatives that occurred in the area
of religious freedom in 2016. Of note, the
word continued appeared almost 70
times, an apt signal of the scant reforms
implemented in the past year.
For example, the report stated that
Israel continued to permit non-Jews,
including Muslims and Christians, to pray
at the Western Wall, but continued to
enforce a prohibition on non-Orthodox
(including mixed gender) Jewish prayer
services. One plus interfaith religious
freedom and one minus lack of plural-
ism thus creates a net nil balance.
Likewise, the report stated, The govern-
ment and non-Orthodox activists reached
a compromise in January to accommodate
egalitarian prayer, i.e., Reform and Con-
servative Jewish services, near the Western
Wall, but the government did not imple-
ment it. Again, one, minus one, makes
the score zero for Israel.
According to Zionist Union Knesset
member Ksenia Svetlova, an immigrant
from the former Soviet Union who is a
well-known activist on behalf of the sepa-
ration of church and state, The U.S. State
Department report clearly indicates that
the Israeli government is not implement-
ing its own decisions and thus compro-
mises religious pluralism in Israel. I call
on the government to serve all Israelis,
and not only specific ultra-Orthodox pres-
sure groups.
Written in diplomatic language and
covering a massive scope of religions and
their accompanied strife, there are trivia
gems in the report The government
continued to allow Christians and indi-
viduals who spoke Aramaic to register
with their national or ethnic group listed
as Aramean instead of Arab as well as
depressingly grim statistics on those killed
or persecuted due to the strained rela-
tions among religious and ethnic groups.
There continued to be reports of charedi
men spitting at non-charedi Jews and per-
sons of other faiths, including those wear-
ing Christian clerical clothing, it stated.
Interestingly, among other facts and fig-
ures, it tracked the total budget allocated
by the government for religious purposes
(NIS 828 million or $215.57 million for reli-
gious services for Jewish communities and
NIS 121 million or $31.5 million for religious
40 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017
MK Ksenia Svetlova  Rabbi Uri Regev Rabbi Seth Farber
 YOUTUBE  COURTESY URI REGEV  IDIT WAGNER
minorities), and discussed inequality in mens section, and the government contin-
religious education. ued to enforce these rules.
But in reading it, one cannot help but A four-pronged diplomatic slam, that
think of the famous biblical adage about statement underlined the fact of separa-
nothing new being found under the sun. tion between the sexes, the discrepancy
However, according to Rabbi Uri Regev, between the sizes of the two genders
a lawyer and the head of NGO Hiddush: prayer sections, the inability for pluralis-
Freedom of Religion for Israel, One can- tic denominations to have a vote on guide-
not over-exaggerate the importance of lines of observance, and finally, the gov-
this report being unique in its systematic ernment of Israels complicity with all of
monitoring and scope of coverage. Regev the above. Four huge strikes.
applauded the reports comprehensive Further, the report stated the prohibi-
attention to detail and its annual nature, tions against bringing in privately owned
which aids in tracing trends and progress Torah scrolls to the Western Wall plaza,
over the course of years. and on women from accessing the public
Additionally, Regev noted, the report Torah scrolls or giving priestly blessings at
reflects the U.S. governments strong the site. Again, huge problems in egalitar-
focus on and value attached to reli- ian, democratic eyes.
gious freedom.
Unfortunately, however, Regev said, Conversion
the report underrates the breaches of In the section on conversion, the State
religious freedom on a number of issues. Department report described the trend
As examples, he cites the inattention paid of modern Orthodox rabbis who have
to the lack of freedom of marriage, civil begun to set up their own conversion
burial, and the many assorted issues sur- courts to push back against the lengthy
rounding the Western Wall, which are and unwieldy process offered by the Israeli
more geared against Jews than against chief rabbinate.
Christians and Muslims. These abuses Called Giyur Kahalacha (or in idiomatic
of religious freedom are a clear indica- English, Conversion the Correct Way, by
tion of the wide gap between Israel and Jewish Law), the group of respected rabbis
other enlightened Western democracies, and thinkers have already converted hun-
such as the USA, which are considered dreds of Israelis many children who
the gold standard for religious freedom, were classified as of no religion, a grow-
Regev said. ing group of some 400,000 citizens.
That being said, the report did touch on A ruling by the Supreme Court on
a series of hot button issues of concern to March 31 expanded immigration rights
the American people, including the West- under the Law of Return to those who
ern Wall plaza, conversion outside of the completed private (non-Rabbinate) Ortho-
Orthodox chief rabbinate, and Jewish dox conversions in the country. The Chief
prayer at the Temple Mount and its restric- Rabbinate continued not to recognize non-
tions for security reasons. Orthodox converts to Judaism as Jews,
although they continued to be accepted
The Western Wall for the purpose of immigration under the
In a section discussing the Western Wall, Law of Return, stated the report.
arguably the holiest site where Jews are A founder of Giyur Kahalacha, Rabbi
allowed to pray in Israel, the report factu- Seth Farber, the head of an NGO called
ally stated that all faiths are permitted to Itim, which aids Israelis in navigating the
pray at the Western Wall. It highlighted, religious institutions, responded favorably
however, that the rabbi of the Western to the reports depiction.
Wall continued to set the guidelines for The discussion of Giyur Kahalacha in
religious observance mandating separa- the State Department report is further rec-
tion of women and men, with the womens ognition of the significance of this initiative
section being less than half the size of the on the international scene, Farber told
The Times of Israel on Tuesday.
Giyur Kahalacha had gradually
increased its client base following the
Supreme Court ruling that ITIM was part
of which took the monopoly of conversion
recognition on Israel away from the rab-
binate, Farber said.
The discussion of Giyur Kahalacha in
the State Department report is further rec-
ognition of the significance of this initiative
on the international scene
He noted, however that the legal suc-
cesses of 2016 since have led to proposed
new restrictive legislation, such as the con-
version bill that was brought to the Knes-
set and is currently shelved, which was
reactionary and would have made the
chief rabbinate the sole legal authority for
Israeli conversions.
Also on the theme of conversion, the
report emphasized that in four inci-
dents during the year, the Chief Rabbin-
ate also refused to recognize conversions
approved by the chief presiding rabbinical
judge of the Rabbinical Council of Amer-
ica (Orthodox) cases which have roused
American Jewish congregations.
Prayer and restrictions
on the Temple Mount
Traditionally, Orthodox rabbis have been
against prayer on the Temple Mount for a
number of reasons, including fear of step-
ping where the Holy of Holies may have
stood a clear prohibition.
As recorded in the report, however,
Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi David Lau stated
in June 2016 he would like to see a Third
Temple built on the site without demolish-
ing Muslim structures. Likewise, increas-
ing numbers of the self-identified national
religious Zionist community stated they
found meaning in setting foot on the site.
As another example of this trend of
increased Jewish presence on the Temple
Mount, the report cited the November
2016 creation of a Temple Mount lobby by
ruling party Likkud MK Yehuda Glick, who
also held an annual Temple Mount confer-
ence in the Knesset.
The State Department also reported
that the Waqf, the Jordanian Muslim reli-
gious authorities who maintain the Temple
Mount, continued to restrict non-Muslims
from entering the Dome of the Rock shrine
and the Al-Aqsa Mosque and prohibited
individuals from wearing non-Muslim
religious symbols on the Temple Mount/
Haram al-Sharif.
Israeli authorities also restricted move-
ment on the Temple Mount. In addition to
restricting Muslim access according to ages
during heightened security situations, in
some instances barred specific individuals
from the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif
site, including Jewish activists believed to
SEE INACTION PAGE 46
 Robert Schoems Menorah Chapel, Inc
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Audrey Chesis
Audrey Chesis, ne Stenberg, 93, of North Bergen
died August 16.
Born in West New York, she was an administrative
assistant at North Bergen High School before retiring
and tutored English at the International School in
New York City.
Predeceased by her husband, Lawrence, and a
daughter, Barbara Chesis Olney, she is survived
by daughters, Robyn Lowenthal (Phil Brown) of
Teaneck, and Linda Chesis ( John Guiton) of New
York City; a son-in-law, Larry Olney; grandchildren,
Eric Olney (Emily Feinstein), Matt Olney (Katie), and
Sophie Guiton; three great-grandchildren, and nieces
and nephews.
Arrangements were by Eden Memorial Chapels,
Fort Lee.
Ellen Futterman
Ellen Futterman, 65, of Paramus, died August 18.
Born in Elizabeth, she was an LPN for Dr. Selma
Mitchel in Paramus for many years and then worked
for the Paramus Board of Education.
She is survived by a son, Justin Cantor; brothers,
Bruce ( Joan) and Mark ( Jeri); nieces and nephews,
Robyn (Barry), David (Kerry), Matthew, Carly, and
Jamie, and a grandniece, Scarlett.
Donations can be made to the Valley Hospital
Foundation. Arrangements were by Robert Schoems
Menorah Chapel, Paramus.
Esther Eliasof-Pinhas
Esther Eliasof-Pinhas, ne Litsy, 96, of Oradell and
Singer Island, Fla., died August 13.
Predeceased by her husband, Harry, and a son,
Richard, she is survived by a son, Michael; Elias
Hy Eliasof and Carol Eliasof; and nieces, nephews,
grandnieces, grandnephews, and cousins.
Arrangements were by Gutterman Musicant
Funeral Directors, Hackensack.
Dr. Andrew Tager
Dr. Andrew M.Tager, 58, of Brookline, Mass., formerly
of Tenafly, died August 11.
A pulmonologist, he graduated magna cum laude
from Brown University and Harvard Medical School.
He was associate physician at Massachusetts General
Hospital, associate professor at Harvard Medical
School, and director of the Massachusetts General
Hospital Fibrosis Research Center. He received the
Marvin I. Swartz Research Award in Pulmonary
Fibrosis and the Recognition Award for Scientific
Throughout USA
Prepaid & Preneed Planning
Your Familys Needs
Handicap Accessibility From Large
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Gary Schoem Manager - NJ Lic. 3811
Conveniently Located
W-150 Route 4 East Paramus, NJ 07652
Obituaries are prepared with 201.843.9090 1.800.426.5869
information provided by funeral homes.
Correcting errors is the responsibility
of the funeral home. The Christopher Family
serving the Jewish community
since 1900
Paterson Monument Co.
Accomplishments from the American Thoracic MAIN BRANCH
Paterson, NJ 07502 Pompton Plains, NJ 07444
Society. 317 Totowa Ave. 681 Rt. 23 S.
He is survived by his wife, Carolyn Ho, a son, Sam; 973-942-0727 Fax 973-942-2537 973-835-0394 Fax 973-835-0395
in-laws, Nancy and Chien Ho; brother and cousins, TOLL FREE 800-675-0727
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Michael Tager, David and Lisa Tager, Geoffrey Tager,
Edward Blackman and Annette Rockwell, Allen and
Clara Beshoar Blackman, Susan and Gary Bank,
201-791-0015 800-525-3834
and Amy Kantor; aunt, Anne Kantor; sister-in-law,
Jeanette Ho; and nephews and nieces. LOUIS SUBURBAN CHAPEL, INC.
Donations can be made to the MGH Fibrosis Exclusive Jewish Funeral Chapel
Research Center. Arrangements were by Gutterman Sensitive to Needs of the Jewish Community for Over 50 Years
Musicant Funeral Directors, Hackensack. Serving NJ, NY, FL & Israel
Graveside services at all NJ & NY cemeteries
Dr. Philip Wasserman Prepaid funerals and all medicaid funeral benefits honored
Dr. Philip S. Wasserman, 70, of Upper Saddle River Always within a familys financial means
and Westport, Conn., died August 15. 13-01 Broadway (Route 4 West) Fair Lawn, NJ
A Brooklyn College and Temple University Dental Richard Louis - Manager George Louis - Founder
School graduate, he was a pediatric dentist for over NJ Lic. No. 3088 1924-1996
40 years in Bloomfield, where he owned Dentistry
for Children. He was a captain in the medical service
corps in the U.S. Army.
Predeceased by his wife, Rona Wasserman, he is
survived by children, Scott (Stacy), and Nicole Troisi
( Jon); a brother, Herbert; four grandchildren, and
dear friend, Ann Ali and her family.
Donations can be made to the The Nature
Conservancy. Arrangements were by Robert
Schoems Menorah Chapel, Paramus.
www.thejewishstandard.com

A Traditional Jewish Experience We continue to be Jewish family managed,

knowing that caring people provide caring service.

Pre-Planning Specialists Graveside and Chapel Services GUTTERMAN AND MUSICANT

Barry Wien - NJ Lic. No. 2885
Frank Patti, Jr. - NJ Lic. No. 4169
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Advance Planning Conferences Conveniently Arranged
at the Funeral Home or in Your Own Home
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JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017 41

Classified
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42 Jewish Standard AUGUST 25, 2017

 Classified

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 Tr a d i t i o n !
Wish your family, friends, Jewish Standard
Best Wishes
for a
Joyous
Warm wishes for a
filled with Health, H
New Year
appiness
and Special Blessin
gs
New Year
readers and customers a Sweet New Year in our
-NAME-

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Fax to 201-833-4959 or mail (with a check if you prefer) to: Ad #5 - 5w x 6.5d $350
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DEADLINE: SEPTEMBER 18
44 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017
 Real Estate & Business

Conference will fast-track seniors TM

to car-less options on transportation
Age-Friendly Englewood is hosting a Transportation
Options Mini-Conference on September 28 from 8:30
a.m. to 12:30 p.m.at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, 401 South
Van Brunt St., Englewood.
The conference will introduce older adults, their care-
givers, family members, and service providers to the
range of transportation options available to those who
do not have an automobile or those who no longer drive.
As people age, there may come a time when many
find they either do not want to drive or are no longer
safe drivers, said Janet Sharma, coordinator of the
Age-Friendly Englewood project. This conference will
provide these people, as well as those who never have
driven or do not own an automobile, with information
about various ways they can get where they need to go.
The conference will include presentations by:
New Jersey Transit information about routes,
traveling by bus, and special services for those with
disabilities;
Bergen County Community Transportation and
B
Access Link information about booking low-cost rides
and special services;
Independent Travel Network a membership
program in which volunteer drivers provide low-cost
transportation;
GoGoGrandparent a service that allows use of
Uber and Lyft through a land line.
Information will also be available about various safe
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Henry and Marilyn Taub Foundation.

Variety of events
at Farmers Market BANK-OWNED PROPERTIES
Got any safety questions?
Teaneck Fire Lt. Martin Rolaf and community police High-Return
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Investment Opportunities
The following week, on September 7, a food tasting
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JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017 45

s RealEstate&Business/JewishWorld
Black Box Performing Arts Center to present Hand to God
The Black Box Performing Arts Center con-
tinues to emerge as one of the Tri-State
areas premiere destinations for cutting-
edge professional theater and collaborative
performing arts education in the heart of
Teaneck just a quick ride over the George
Washington Bridge.
Robert Askins Hand To God opens the
BBPAC 2017-18 season, which is scheduled
to include six mainstage productions, two
immersive late-night rock musicals, two
shows for kids, and the development of at
least three original works for the stage.
This new production of Hand To God,
presented in arrangement with Dramatists
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Play Service, Inc., is directed by BBPAC artistic
director Matt Okin, produced by Huey Esquire
and Black Box Studios, and features a cast of
BBPAC mainstays: Shari Cohen, Michael Gar-
diner, Sara Giacomini, Joseph Ramondino and
Laurence Wallace, with assistant director/pro-
duction designer Jason Felix.
Hand To God will play over four week-
ends, from Thursday, September 14, through
Sunday, October 15, at Black Box Perform-
ing Arts Center, 200 Walraven Drive just off
Palisade Avenue. GPS: 290 Walraven Drive,
Teaneck, NJ 07666.
In Hand to God meek Jason finds an
outlet for his anxiety after the death of his
Cell: 201-615-5353
WE
Att
De
W
CALL
We
father at the Christian Puppet Ministry,
in the devoutly religious, relatively quiet
town of Cypress, Texas. Jasons compli-
cated relationships with the town pastor,
the school bully, the girl next door, and
most especially his mother are thrown
into upheaval when Jasons puppet,
Tyrone, takes on a shocking and danger- shows are at 8 p.m.
ously irreverent personality all its own.
Hand To God explores the startlingly
fragile nature of faith, morality, and the
ties that bind us.
Hand To God plays on the following
dates: Thursday, September 14, Friday,
September 15, Saturday, September 16,
Inaction
FROM PAGE 40
have violated rules against non-Muslim
prayer, Muslims believed to have acted
violently against non-Muslim visitors
to the site, and public figures, includ-
ing members of the Knesset, whose
presence authorities feared would
inflame tensions.
The issue of Jewish prayer on the Tem-
ple Mount and at the Western Wall has
common threads, Regev said.
From the perspective of religious
freedom, there is a direct line connect-
ing the Jewish aspirations to be able
to pray on the Temple Mount and the
Women of the Wall and non-Orthodox
attempts to pray at the traditional Kotel
[Western Wall] plaza, and both should
fall under the protection of religious
freedom, said Regev, who in addition
to his law career and heading Hiddush
is an ordained Reform rabbi and former
leader in the movement.
The difference being overweighing
security considerations, Regev contin-
ued. Whereas the Jewish prayer on the
J
Jim
im
More than 411,000 likes.
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on Facebook.
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do not
Sunday, September 17, Saturday, Septem-
ber 23, Sunday, September 24, Thurs-
day, September 28, Sunday, October 1,
Friday, October 6, Saturday, October 7,
Sunday, October 8, Thursday, October
12, Friday, October 13 8pm, Saturday,
October 14, and Sunday, October 15. All
Tickets are $30 ($25 for students/
seniors) and are available at www.
blackboxpac.com. Group rates for 10 or
more are available. Tickets can also be
purchased at the venue; call (201) 357-
2221 for box office hours or go to www.
blackboxpac.com.
Temple Mount is likely to result in wide-
spread extremist Muslim-perpetrated
violence and potential escalating con-
flict with 200 million Muslims around
the world, the non-Orthodox and wom-
ens prayer at the Kotel is threatened
by ultra-Orthodox violence and politi-
cal extortion.
He said that while the decision not
to allow Jewish worship on the Temple
Mount can be justified and upheld for
security reasons, using these reasons or
political extortion to prevent non-Ortho-
dox or womens prayer at the Kotel is a
shanda a scandal in every respect,
and should be declared illegal and
unconstitutional, Regev said.
The State Department report, how-
ever, does not delve into the philosophy
behind prayer restrictions. As it stated
dryly, The law grants the government,
not the courts, the authority to decide
the scope of the right to worship at cer-
tain religious sites, and the Supreme
Court has upheld this governmen-
tal authority.
TIMES OF ISRAEL
trans
 Enjoy Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot or even a Vacation
away from home knowing your loved one is cared for at CareOne at Teaneck

Many families who are taking care of a loved one cannot go on vacation or spend Yom Tov away from home.
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Traditional Yom Tov meals
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One complimentary beauty appointment (Based upon availability, reservation required)

Lunch or Dinner in our private dining room (Based upon

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Large on site Sukkah
Our respite care program is
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Other Services Include:

Room and board, Housekeeping, Medication consultation, Dietician consult and nutrition management,
Disease education, Planning and resources given for community support,
Home Care or companion coordination, Long-term care

For more information please call

(201) 287-8505
Care One at Teaneck. 544 Teaneck Rd. Teaneck, NJ 07666

JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 25, 2017 47

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