NOVEMBER 30, 2018

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2 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018


Speed
Dreidel
for the
digital age
I
t seems downright scrooge-
ish to talk ill of the game
of dreidel. Say what you
want about the holiday of
Chanukah, but at least it comes
with its own game — which
is more than you can say for
any of the many other Jewish
holidays, with the exception
of Passover and its hide-the-
afikomen game. (There’s no
Shavuot Chutes-and-Ladders
or Tisha B’Av Twister.)
And yet, and yet. The fact is
that as games go, dreidel is not
nearly as exciting or fast-paced
as betting on which candle
is going to go out first — a
Chanukah pastime my mother
grew up playing.
In part, there is the opacity of
the rules that must be googled
from year to year. We remem-
ber that the letters Nun, Gimel,
Hey, and Shin stand for “nes
gadol haya sham” — a great
miracle happened there — but
we forget the Yiddish words
that they abbreviate, which
spell out the rules: shin (=shtel
arayn, put in a piece); nun (=nit,
not, i.e., nothing); gimel (=gants,
whole/everything, meaing you
get the whole pot); and he
(=halb, half). The letters served
as a means to recalling the rules
of the game, which turn out to
have been directly translated
from the German. Indeed, you
can find German toys — they
were called teetotums in their
British incarnations — with the
letters S, N, G, and H on them.
But it’s also the game itself
that drags on. It’s fun enough
when there’s nothing better to
do, and indeed versions of tee-
totum were popular a century
Vintage teetotum from WWI.
ago in the trenches of World
War I. With all the entertain-
ment options of the 21st cen-
tury, however, we expect more
from our games.
Which is where Speed
Dreidel comes in.
Speed Dreidel was invented
four years ago by Ben Blatt,
then a writer for Slate. Mr. Blatt
performed a double service for
dreidel spinners.
First, he calculated just how
boring a game dreidel is when
played by the traditional rules.
He ran computer simulations —
more than 8 million of them —
of dreidel games with a variety
of starting situations. He found
that a typical game — four
players starting with 10 pieces,
each spin lasting eight seconds
— would take 1 hour and 54
minutes before someone won
all the pieces and the game.
“Perhaps if you were waiting
out a siege by the Seleucid
Empire this would be ideal,” he
notes, “but two hours is exces-
sive if you’re just trying to kill
30 minutes before the latkes
are ready.”
For his second act of service
to the community, he created
a better game. So here, as per
Ben Blatt, are the complete
rules of Speed Dreidel.
LARRY YUDELSON
Everyone starts with the same number of tokens.
Since this is a Chanukah game, we’ll peg this
number at eight.
Everyone gets a dreidel.
Before the first round, and each subsequent
round, each player puts one of his tokens in the
middle.
To start the game, everyone spins his dreidel at
the same time.
Everyone whose dreidel landed on a shin
must put one token in.
Everyone whose dreidel landed on nun does
nothing.
Everyone whose dreidel landed on hei gets
to take one token out. If there are fewer
tokens in the middle than there are people
who spun a hei, no one who spun a hei gets a
token.
Everyone whose dreidel landed on gimel
splits the remaining tokens evenly. If the
number of tokens in the middle is not divis-
ible by the number of people who spun a gimel,
the remainder is left in the middle. For instance,
if there are seven tokens in the middle and five
players spin a gimel then every player should
take one piece leaving two pieces in the middle.
If there were seven tokens and 10 players spin a
gimel, no one would take a token.
Everyone spins his dreidel again, repeating the
above process.
A player is eliminated when he is forced to put
a token in but has none left. The game continues
until all but one player has been eliminated. If a
situation arises when all remaining players would
be forced to lose because they have no tokens
left, that’s called a Menorah Mishpucha and ev-
eryone has to sing the Dreidel song in harmony. It
also means they ignore that spin and keep spin-
ning until there is a sole winner.
Page 3
Page 27
CONTENTS
NOSHES ..................................................................... 4
BRIEFLY LOCAL ....................................................20
COVER STORY ....................................................... 22
JEWISH WORLD ................................................... 36
OPINION .................................................................. 38
CHANUKAH GREETINGS ...................................44
D’VAR TORAH .......................................................54
ARTS & CULTURE ................................................. 55
CALENDAR ............................................................. 56
THE FRAZZLED HOUSEWIFE .......................... 59
CROSSWORD PUZZLE ....................................... 59
OBITUARIES ............................................................61
CLASSIFIEDS ......................................................... 62
REAL ESTATE......................................................... 65
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Noshes
“I loved every religion and almost
converted to Judaism… but then
the semester ended.”
— Folk singer Dar Williams, at her Jerusalem concert
this week, describing her experience as a college
religion major, as reported by the Times of Israel.

STREAMING ALONG:

Mrs. Maisel still

sounds marvelous
The second episodes is now online with MAYA RUDOLPH,
season of the at IMDB.com. Here are 46, and NATASHA
mega-hit Ama- just a few highlights LYONNE, 39, to create
zon Prime series “The to whet your appetite, original series for them.
Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” should you choose not They are both talented
will be streamed, in its to look at IMDB: Midge so I look forward to
entirety, beginning faces challenges like what they come
Wednesday, December telling her parents that up with.
5. As most of you know, she plans to make com- A revival/reboot of
the show is set in the edy her career; several “Northern Exposure,”
late 1950s and the title episodes take place at the hit ’90s series about
character, Miriam a Jewish Catskills resort a Jewish doctor in rural
“Midge” Maisel (Rachel where the Weissmans Alaska, is in the works.
Brosnahan), is a Jewish and the Maisels vacation Michael Zegen Kevin Pollak Caroline Aaron ROB MORROW, 56,
woman in her 20s, from together; tensions reach who starred as Dr. Joel
an affluent Jewish a fever pitch at a dinner Fleischman, is produc-
family. Her housewife marking the end of Yom ing the series, which is
life falls apart when her Kippur. A year before, on now in the development
Jewish husband, Joel Yom Kippur day, Joel and stage at CBS. “Variety”
Maisel (MICHAEL Midge separated. calls JOSHUA BRAND,
ZEGEN, 39), leaves her “Best Friends: Three 67, who co-created the
for another woman. Crazy Nights” is a Netflix show and wrote many
Eventually, he wants to comedy special that original episodes, the
come back to Midge began streaming on No- reboot’s writer. Noth-
and their two kids. But vember 27. The real-life ing is certain: they
by that time, Midge has best friends are come- haven’t even shot a pilot
found out she can be dians DAVE ATTELL episode or secured the
independent and that and JEFF ROSS, both services of the surviving
she has a real talent for 53. Part of the special Maya Rudolph Natasha Lyonne Rob Morrow members of the origi-
stand-up comedy. has the duo appear- nal cast.
As I have noted before, ing on stage, cracking on NBC on Thursday, or movie title. I wouldn’t ment during the eve- Weird sidelight: Mor-
Emmy-winner Rachel jokes and trading insults. Nov. 29 at 10 p.m. The call this a Jewish mile- ning. That explains why row and his wife of 20
Brosnahan is not Jewish. There also are some advance description stone. But the main- a reboot of the game years, DEBBON AYER,
Neither are the actors outdoor scenes. The ce- says: “The investigation streaming of alta cocker show “Deal or No Deal” 59, have one child, a
who play her parents, lebs making cameo ap- into a promising new does make me chuckle a will premiere on CNBC daughter named Tu. Put
Abe and Rose Weiss- pearances include BOB author’s death leads to bit. (Don’t despair if you on December 5 at 10 it together: Rob’s wife’s
man (Tony Shalhoub and SAGET, 62, and GILBERT a decades-old secret are reading this after the p.m. HOWIE MAN- name sounds like the
Marin Hinkle). How- GOTTFRIED, 63. The between two reclusive air date. You can watch DEL, 63, who hosted word debonair, and his
ever, the actors on the special was directed by brothers.” The reclu- the episode online at the show from 2005 daughter’s full name
Maisel side all are Jew- ANDREW JARECKI, 55, sive alta cocker Jewish NBC.com or via the to 2009, returns as the sounds like tomorrow.
ish: Michael Zegen, who who is best known for brothers are played by NBC app — download host. We are promised Morrow once said it was
plays Joel Maisel (and directing the hit HBO JUDD HIRSCH, 83, and to phone or just click that there will be chang- “family tradition” that
grew up in Ridgewood), series “The Jinx” about WALLACE SHAWN, 75. on NBC app on stream- es in the format that will led them to name their
KEVIN POLLAK, 61, as accused killer ROBERT I checked; this appears to-TV devices like Roku make it more exciting. daughter, now 17, Tu
Michael’s father, and DURST, 75. to be the first time that and Amazon Fire.) Morrow. No word if Tu
CAROLINE AARON, 66, The “Law and Order: the Yiddish term “alta CNBC, long a cable Upcoming Morrow has chosen to
as Michael’s mother. Special Victims Unit” cocker” (polite transla- station covering busi- Amazon Prime use one of her middle
A synopsis of each episode called “Alta tion: “old fart”) has ap- ness news, is turning Video has just names instead.
of the second season Kockers” premieres peared as a TV episode more toward entertain- signed a deal –N.B.

California-based Nate Bloom can be reached at

Want to read more noshes? Visit facebook.com/jewishstandard Middleoftheroad1@aol.com

E L E V A T E Y O U R S T A N D A R D S

T W O L O C A T IO N S T O S ER V E Y O U B ET T E R - E N G L E W O O D , N J & H A RR IM A N , N Y - B E N Z E L B U S C H . C O M

4 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018

As you journey across California wine country, subtle changes in climate and soil produce
Cabernet Sauvignon in a spectrum of aromas and flavors; a beautiful palette to work
from. By blending the grapes of these regions, different characteristics are contrasted and
complemented. In each variation, this series carefully blends Cabernet Sauvignon to
showcase the combinations, creating a harmonious and complex wine. C aC lai lf iof ro nr ina i a
JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 5
Local
‘This is what America looks like’
In Pittsburgh’s aftermath, faith communities unite to celebrate Thanksgiving
LOIS GOLDRICH

O
n their surface, interfaith
services — particularly those
designed to celebrate yearly
events, such as Thanksgiving
— seem pretty much the same. Members of
different religious groups come together to
worship, paying tribute to each other’s tra-
ditions and sharing something from their
own culture.
But not so fast.
They are not all the same, according to
Rabbi David Fine, who leads Ridgewood’s
Temple Israel and Jewish Community Cen-
ter and is a former chair of the Interfaith
Religious Council of Ridgewood.
“There are two opposing approaches,”
he said. One is marked by “the lowest
common denominator of certain state-
ments and values. The other approach is
to embrace and celebrate differences.” The
second way, “every different group is free
to express its uniqueness. It’s the mix of all
those traditions and cultures that makes
the community so rich.”
This year’s Ridgewood interfaith ser-
vice was held on November 20 at Temple
Israel. For at least the past five years the
observance was based at the “old Dutch
Reformed Church in Paramus, the old-
est house of worship in the community,
which goes back to the colonial period,” The service at Congregation B’nai Israel in Emerson drew from across the faith spectrum.
Rabbi Fine said. “But after the shooting
in Pittsburgh, it immediately became in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pitts- “we have a Martin Luther King Day ser- Church of Woodcliff Lake delivered the
apparent that the right thing to do would burgh,” the site of the mass murder on vice, a special needs service, and last year main address. “His sermon dwelt on
be to change the venue. The event drew October 27. “It’s where her parents were about a dozen of us went on an overnight concrete ways to bring gratitude into the
250 people, at least 100 more than usu- married and she was named. She said it’s retreat to the shore to learn with Rabbi world,” Rabbi Orenstein said. “Not just to
ally attend. not so different from Ridgewood — the Noam Marans, one of the founders of the feel good for the moment, but to raise up
“The service was wonderful,” he contin- same type of community.” group.” (Rabbi Marans, who now lives in what we want to increase in the world,
ued. It drew representatives from Chris- Rabbi Fine said that rather than hold a Teaneck and is the American Jewish Com- reaching out to people who are different.”
tian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist vigil at his synagogue in response to the mittee’s director of interreligious and Talking about the concept of gifts, the
houses of worship. Speakers included the Pittsburgh shooting, he suggested that his intergroup relations, also is Rabbi Fine’s Rev. Stutzel said that “One of the skills
Rev. Nolan Palsma, minister of the Upper members support the larger community predecessor at Temple Israel.) we need to learn is how to name all our
Ridgewood Community Church, and gathering that was organized by the Jew- Rabbi Fine was the final speaker at the gifts out loud. Because it’s a gift that we
Ridgewood’s Mayor Ramon Hache, who ish Federation of Northern New Jersey and Thanksgiving service. “We took ourselves are here tonight, celebrating 50 years of
read a proclamation from the village coun- the Kaplen JCC on the Palisades in Tenafly. from a place of sadness and were able to interfaith partnership and support in the
cil delivering a message of solidarity. But “because the Thanksgiving service was turn it into an expression of thanksgiving Pascack Valley. It’s a gift that we, together,
The service highlighted the diversity of only three weeks away, I said let’s use it as for a society not of hatred but of accep- can choose to love, care, and be with each
Thanksgiving traditions, Rabbi Fine said. an opportunity to show solidarity. That’s tance and love,” he said. “As the Muslim other — even though there are forces in
Muslims chanted from the Koran, the Jew- the best response.” speaker pointed out, looking out over the this world that want to tear us apart. It’s
ish cohort led a song, teaching the group The Ridgewood interfaith group meets congregation, ‘This is what America looks a gift that I, a Christian, was invited to say
to recite “ki l’olam chasdo,” and the Bud- on a regular basis, gathering at the shul for like.’ We were responding to one of the these words tonight even though the his-
dhist leader offered a reading from his reli- a communal Yom HaShoah service. “This worst events in American Jewish history, tory of anti-Semitism in a twisted version
gious tradition. The service also featured a is the first time that we’re meeting at the and we felt we weren’t alone.” of my faith has led to incredible horrors
Christian-style hymn — minus overt Chris- synagogue not for a Holocaust service,” Rabbi Debra Orenstein, who leads Con- against the Jewish people — an evil that we
tological references, Rabbi Fine said — as Rabbi Fine said. Similarly, the AME Zionist gregation B’nai Israel of Emerson, said will continue to denounce, fight against,
well as a presentation by a Hindu chil- Church hosted a gathering after an attack that the service held at her synagogue on and do whatever we can to remove.”
dren’s choir. Temple Israel’s choir director, on a church down South. November 18 “was a very special night.” The Thanksgiving service rotates
Tamar Freeman, led a Jewish hymn. “We’re so proud of our interfaith com- The evening — the 50th annual Pascack among houses of worship, and this
“She introduced it and told the congre- munity,” Rabbi Fine said. “We meet once Valley Interfaith Association’s Thanksgiv- year’s hosting responsibilities fell to B’nai
gation that her first synagogue was the a month for breakfast and learn from each ing service — drew some 300 people. Israel. “We recently had many clergy for
Tree of Life — Or L’Simcha Congregation other.” The group has about 20 members, Pastor Marc Stutzel of Christ Lutheran Solidarity Shabbat, so it felt especially

6 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018

 Local

potent this year, with everything hap-
pening in the world in terms of anti-Sem-
itism,” Rabbi Orenstein said. “We usu-
ally get between 100 and 200 people. I
think we had a bigger turnout this year
because people had a need to be together
and express what unites us. The service
was only positive and uplifting, but the
context around it was troubling. It felt so
important to be together.”
Rabbi Orenstein offered a prayer for
peace — “largely taken from the Sim Sha-
lom prayer book” but including some con-
tent from a Christian prayer — speaking to
the responsibility and opportunity that
exists in our schools and houses of wor-
ship to further positive values. The music
was performed by a joint interfaith choir
drawn from churches and synagogues.
Led by conductor George Swope, selec-
tions included “Hinei Ma Tov” and Debbie
Friedman’s “Tefilat ha-Derekh.”
At the beginning of the service, every-
one received a blank thank-you card and
a short meditation to get them to consider
what and whom they’re thankful for. “The
intention was for them to go home, fill it
out, and then read it to someone they care
about,” Rabbi Orenstein said. They also
discussed “passing the peace,” a practice
used in many Christian congregations.
Worshipers stand up and shake hands with
as many people as they can reach, saying
“Peace be with you” to each one.
“We talked about the spiritual power of
passing the peace, the release of spiritual
intention and energy, and the beginning
of a relationship, creating bonds you hope
will continue,” Rabbi Orenstein said. “It
builds a sense of community.”
Rabbi Orenstein said this was the first
time the clergy council had Muslims par-
ticipate in prayers from the pulpit. See-
ing many women in headscarves “sent an
important message about diversity and
inclusion,” she said.
She also noted that every year, a plate
is passed around to collect funds for a
particular charity. “This year it was HIAS,
expressing people’s pain about wanting
to be welcoming to the stranger, to pro-
tect refugees. It was also a vote of sup-
port for the Jewish community,” since
HIAS’s activities were used as an excuse
for the Pittsburgh attack.
“Being together was celebratory,” she
said. “There was a sense of looking for-
ward to the next 50 years. This is our ongo-
ing commitment.”
In yet another interfaith service, about
100 members of Sha’ar Communities,
the Peace Islands Institute, and the Cen-
tral Unitarian Church in Paramus came
together on November 18. Hosted by CUC
and led by Reverend David M. Horst,
the evening also included remarks from
Shaar’s Rabbi Adina Lewittes and Nuray
Yurt of the Peace Islands Institute. (The
institute, according to its website, “envi-
sions a future in which people work
together to bring solutions to common
global problems of humanity.”)
“Our three communities have collabo-
rated on several initiatives in the past,”
Rabbi Lewittes said. “We reinforced the
bonds we share and the values that unite
us as Americans and as people of faith,
and our sense of gratitude for and respon-
sibility to one another. For us, in the wake
of Pittsburgh, it was another show of soli-
darity with communities of Americans of
different backgrounds who are committed
to building a world of love.”
She said that the service had two high-
lights. “Firstly, in addition to speaking
about Jewish teachings on gratitude —
Reverend Horst spoke about Christian
teachings, from a mystical perspective,
and Nuray Yurt shared Muslim teachings
— I also taught and led everyone in sing-
ing ‘Olam Hesed Yibaneh’ — I will build
this world from love, and you must build
this world from love, and if we build this
world from love, then God will build this
world from love...’ Secondly, the CUC choir
sang a hauntingly beautiful ‘Oseh Shalom’
in Hebrew. Again, especially after the mas-
sacre in Pittsburgh, it was deeply moving
to hear another faith community offer a
prayer for peace that they had made the
effort to learn and express in our language.
“It was another uplifting and hopeful
experience of what happens when differ-
ent corners of the world come together in
fellowship and humility, creating shared
space in which to feel at home in this
country in the fullest expression of who
we are,” Rabbi Lewittes said.

Words Matter
The Transformative Power of Speech
CELEBRATING 8 NIGHTS WITH

In Memory of Rabbi David M. Feldman,

KOSHER
commemorating his 4th yahrzeit
Please join the Jewish Center of Teaneck on
1ST CUT
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 4 AT 8:00 PM BEEF
to remember Rabbi David Feldman z’l BRISKET
Featuring reflections on Rabbi Feldman's belief in the power of words
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and Rebecca Feldman, as well as the impact of words in international BALL LATKES
diplomacy from Dr. Tal Becker, Legal Advisor to the Foreign Ministry SOUP.

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70 Sterling Place • Teaneck, NJ
Entrance is by ramp on Sterling Place
Please contact office 201-833-0515; email office @jcot.org.

JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 7

Local

‘They just want to be regular people’

Orthodox parents of LGBT children talk about their annual Eshel retreat
JOANNE PALMER

W
hen you live in a close-
knit community, you
benefit from its warmth
and support; you share
its values and vocabulary and world-view;
you are guided by its rules and guarded by
its vigilance; you are nourished by its love.
But sometimes it’s hard to be different,
particularly if you are different in some
way that you cannot help, and if you are
different in a way that goes against deeply
ingrained beliefs, it’s particularly hard.
Sometimes you need a break. Some-
times you need another community, one About half of the parents at the Eshel retreat fit into this group photograph.
that understands you and understands
both your background and your backstory.
Sometimes, if you are the Orthodox
parent of a lesbian, gay, bisexual, or trans-
gender child, you need the annual Eshel
parent retreat. A place where you can let
down your guard, just for a bit, before you
return to your own world.
Eshel is a nationwide organization dedi-
cated to supporting Orthodox LGBT Jews
and their families; its annual East Coast
parents retreat, held last week, brings
together parents from across the Ortho-
dox world, from modern to charedi. (See
box for more information on how to reach
Eshel, and on the local support group it is
planning to create.) These parents, in shots from earlier retreats, get support from a community that understands them.
This year, as they have for the last six
years, Mark and Ellen Schwartz of Engle- “He’s an iconoclast, and he doesn’t “One of the first things that Ellen and I “There seem to be more parents of trans
wood went to the retreat. It’s always held mind ruffling feathers,” Mr. Schwartz did when we came back from the retreat children. We broke into smaller groups,
over a weekend, including Shabbat, so said. “Not the feathers of the rabbinate was contact Rabbi Goldin and ask for a and in one group I would say that out of
participants have to drive there on Friday in Israel, and not of their counterparts meeting” — that’s Shmuel Goldin, who now the 14 or 15 people there, there were only
morning. This year, it was complicated in the RCA,” the Orthodox Rabbinical is rabbi emeritus of Congregation Ahavath two other people who did not have a trans
by the snowstorm that snarled traffic and Council of America. “He came out very Torah. “I just don’t know if you can do child. This is a small sample, I know, but I
fractured nerves the day before; some strongly in favor of the inclusion of our that, ask to talk to the rabbi about this — in am astonished by how prevalent it is.
parents who had planned to go found that LGBT children in the community. some of the charedi or yeshivish places.” “The sense of alienation they experi-
they were too wiped out by their unex- “He described the unconditional love The response at Ahavath Torah has ence is so enormous that having a bisexual
pected multi-hour trips back home to go. that we have to feel for our children, and changed over the years, he said, but he daughter seems easy now.”
Still, Mr. Schwartz said, “This seemed to that we have to make space for them. never was tempted to leave, to move to There is a big difference between being
us to be by far the biggest retreat, and one “Rabbi Riskin is fearless, and he seems a synagogue that was more responsive L, G, or B and or being T, he said. Being
of the reasons was because Rabbi Shlomo to have taken on this issue. It’s not because to LGBT issues. The Orthodox world is lesbian, gay, or bisexual determines who
Riskin was there. He was a riveting speaker.” any of his children are LGBT, but I think it’s home, he said. “In the first Eshel retreat, you love; being transgender is profoundly
Rabbi Riskin is the modern Orthodox because he’s seen what so many other par- someone who very clearly was struggling about who you are.
larger-than-life leader who left his influen- ents and their children go through.” in his own life asked ‘Why do you want to The retreat has been held six times, so
tial pulpit at Lincoln Square Synagogue on Mr. Schwartz has seen some changes shove this down the throats of the Ortho- the Schwartzes have been to each one of
Manhattan’s Upper West Side — which he in the people who come to the retreat. dox? Why don’t you just go Conservative? them. Their impetus for going has changed
founded — to move to Efrat, in the West “There certainly are more charedi people They’d welcome you with open arms.’” over the years. At first, they went because
Bank, where he became chief rabbi and there than usual,” he said. But he was not going to do that. Aha- they needed the support; now they go
founded the network of schools called Ohr “In the first year or two, it was by and vath Torah is home. “My wife’s parents, because they know they are well posi-
Torah Stone. (He recently retired as chan- large a modern Orthodox crowd, with a Evelyn and Herbert Deresiewicz, were tioned to offer support.
cellor there; the next chancellor is Rabbi smattering of charedi and yeshivish peo- members there for more than 40 years. Mr. Schwartz is enthusiastic about
Kenneth Brander, who made aliyah from ple. I have to think that it’s much more dif- Ellen’s brother had his bar mitzvah there. another Eshel project, the Eshel high
Teaneck to take that job.) ficult for them to associate with Eshel. Ellen and I were married there, our daugh- school pledge. The pledge is a plea to
ter Jamie was named there and grew up Orthodox day schools to agree to treat
there, and our son Daniel had his bar mitz- LGBT students with the same respect
Eshel is online at http://www.eshelonline.org. vah there. and dignity that every student deserves,
The parents’ support group will meet in Teaneck; it will help parents of LGBT children “We don’t want to go to another syna- to make Orthodox day school communi-
share information and support each other. It will begin in early January. To get details, gogue. This one is ours.” ties inclusive and loving, to ensure that
email newjersey@eshelonline.org He also noted another difference in LGBT students at those schools survive
this retreat. SEE LGBT PAGE 10

8 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018

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Local
LGBT
FROM PAGE 8
their adolescences as relatively unscathed
as other students do. It’s also a got a strong
anti-bullying component.
So far, local Orthodox high schools have
not taken the pledge, but some of them have
incorporated some of the inclusive language
the pledge recommends.
Miryam Kabakov is Eshel’s executive
director. She agrees with Mr. Schwartz that
there seem to be more parents of trans chil-
dren; this is a mirror of what’s happening in
the outside world, she said. More people are
coming out as transgender.
“We had a couple who were new this year.
The kid came out to them three months ago
as gay; he came out as trans yesterday.
“At every retreat there are always new
people who are in shock and grief and mis-
erable, and then people will keep coming
back every year.”
Despite the changes in the outside world
and within the community, “we always have
the same mission,” she said. “It is to keep
So they come
here, to this
retreat, and even
if it’s the first
time, they can
share so much
love, so much
support, and
they think ‘I can
finally breathe.’
families intact, to have parents do no harm,
and see that children are not harmed, and
to have parents learn to love their children.
“One thing that struck me particularly
this year is that the people who showed up
have something that separates them from
their own community, and that they cannot
relate to their communities and their fami-
lies and their friends because of it.
“So they come here, to this retreat, and
even if it’s the first time, they can share so
much love, so much support, and they think
‘I can finally breathe.’”
Rabbi Jeffrey Fox, who lives in River-
dale, N.Y., and is the rosh yeshiva of Yeshi-
vat Maharat, led Kehillat Kesher of Tenafly
and Englewood for seven years, from 2003
to 2010. He also is a longtime participant in
the Eshel retreat.
“My son, who now is a senior in high
school, at SAR, came out to me and my wife
the summer before he was a freshman in
high school, and he came out publicly that
December,” Rabbi Fox said. “I went to the
first retreat just as a parent — it was around
Martin Luther King day in 2015. I was just
trying to process.
10 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018
“Since then, I have come back as both a
parent and also as a teacher.
“There are people there who have built a
pretty deep community. It is often the case
that when the kids come out of the closet,
the parents go into it. The retreat really
is the only setting where people can be
fully integrated.
“I thank God that we live where we do
and when we do,” Rabbi Fox continued.
“I can’t say enough good things about my
son’s school in general, and in particular
about how they responded when he first
came out. It was a non-issue. His friends
were great. His teachers were great. He
was the first one in the school to come out
so publicly.
“I think that my son is a very courageous
young man, but I also think that in some
communities it is getting easier.”
That’s particularly true in the modern
Orthodox community, where people are
not insulated from the outside world.
“Twenty years ago, the average age of
coming out was 35,” Rabbi Fox said. “Ten
years ago it was 25. Now it’s closer to 15.”
That statistic is a general one, but true for
the Orthodox community as well. “That’s
great, but it means that there is a whole
series of Jewish institutions that never had
to deal with the issue, and now they do.
High schools, shuls, camps — obviously
there always were gay kids, but they didn’t
have to confront it in the modern Orthodox
or yeshivish worlds. But now students are
coming out in their teens, as they discover
their sexuality, and the schools and shuls
and camps have to deal with it.”
Rabbi Fox has become a resource for
LGBT Jews. “After my son came out there
were a bunch of kids who weren’t out yet
but who were coming to him. Some of the
kids were really struggling. Some of them
leaned on him, and some leaned on me
through him,” he said.
What does he tell them? “I tell them
that it gets better,” he said. “And that’s the
truth. It does get better. The needle moves
very quickly.
“When my son was a freshman, there
were seniors at the school who just
couldn’t be out, and now when gay kids
come into the school it’s just not what
defines their identity. Not for them, not
for the friends, not for the school.”
How did it change so quickly?
“I don’t know, but I do think that it’s like
in the outside world. In every school, and
in every community, everyone knows some-
one who is gay,” Rabbi Fox said.
Acceptance of LGBT people is one thing,
but what about the halachic prohibitions?
“I think that most kids who are coming
out — and most adults too — don’t think
about that first,” Rabbi Fox said. “The first
question the community wants to figure out
is about Jewish law, but most people just
want to live their lives, and for the most part
those kinds of questions are way down on
their lists. It’s more about how to be honest
with themselves and with their parents, and
for some adults it’s about how to be honest
Rabbi Shlomo Riskin gave the keynote talk this year. Miryam Kabakov, Es-
hel’s executive director, is at the left; Peninah Gershman and Suzi Fuld, right,
chaired the retreat.
with their spouses. There are many older
adults coming out, people who have been in
the closet all their lives, and it causes enor-
mous pain.
“So when they are trying to figure this
out, most people aren’t bothered by Vayi-
kra” — that’s the book of Leviticus, which
includes the proscription against a man
lying with a man as if she was a woman.
“They want to figure out how to live
human, integrated, productive lives. They
just want to be regular people.”
There is some work being done on the
issue, he said, but right now there are more
questions than answers. “People are ask-
ing the harder questions. In the Orthodox
world, you take for granted a set of givens,
so how do we operate within that structure?
“I have worked with a number of lesbian
couples. How do they observe hilchot nid-
dah?” That’s family purity. “And gay men
want to know halachically what type of
behavior comes with what kinds of punish-
ment. Are there some things that are less
bad than other things?
“There aren’t too many addresses
for these kinds of questions.” Eshel is a
main address.
Rabbi Fox got involved in the trans
community through a conversion he did
years ago, he said. “That is even more
complicated in just about every way,”
he said. “There, the halachic issues are
far more complex and confused.” He’s
worked with about 50 Orthodox trans
Jews. Among the situations he’s con-
fronted was a closeted trans man — he
had been born a woman but presented as
a man and was known as a man — whose
mother had died. He had dealt with his
situation until then by showing up in shul
late enough never to have to be counted
in the minyan, and never accepting any
honors. But what should he do about say-
ing kaddish for his mother? And being
counted in the shiva minyan?
Later, the man, who is in his 50s, called
again, with questions that arose as a result
of his mother’s death and his own mor-
tality. “Most of his family relates to him
fully as a woman, but he wants to make
sure that he is buried as a man. How does
he ensure that when his time comes, he
is buried with a headstone with his cur-
rent name?”
“I put him in touch with a funeral cha-
pel for pre-need planning, but this kind of
question has nothing to do with halacha.
It’s deeply powerful, moving, and pain-
ful, and people have no place to go with
them. So part of what is so important
about Eshel is that it creates an address for
these questions.”
There are pitfalls for well-meaning
people who try to help without knowing
enough. “One of the mistakes that rab-
bis often make is trying to answer these
questions in a vacuum,” Rabbi Fox said.
“That’s dangerous if you’ve never encoun-
tered a trans person. People sometimes
say things that are destructive. The wrong
comment can send someone to a very dark
place. And often the loudest voices are the
most hurtful.”
Rabbi Fox talked about Rabbi Riskin’s talk
at the retreat. (Rabbi Riskin does not often
give interviews.)
“He was great,” Rabbi Fox said. “He
is coming at this with a different kind of
understanding. He is almost twice my age
and has twice my experience.
“He said that from his time both at Lin-
coln Square and in Efrat, he understands
the need for compassion. Compassion has
to be embedded in rabbis’ responses, in
terms of both pastoral care and halacha.
“His main theme is that compassion is
part of halacha. It’s not as if there’s halacha
here, on one side, and compassion there,
on the other side.
“No. He said that the system of halacha
demands compassion.”
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Local

Connect, collaborate
Federation’s SynaCon gives synagogue leaders
a chance to hear practical tips and build relationships
JOANNE PALMER

T
here might not be any better
way to get across the idea that
you don’t have to reinvent the
wheel than to say, “You don’t
have to reinvent the wheel.”
There are some things that people have
to invent or create or imagine for them-
selves. But there also are things in this
world that already have been invented or
created or imagined that are so close to
perfect that there is no reason to reinvent
or recreate or reimagine them.
So why reinvent the wheel? Why not just
teach wheel-making?
Why struggle for another metaphor?
Why not just go with the one that works?
And yes, because this really is getting
somewhere, why should each new cohort
of synagogue leaders have to relearn how
to run a synagogue? And why should syna-
gogue leaders have to figure out what their
synagogue needs, instead of learning from
the leaders of other synagogues?
Why not collaborate? Why not learn
from each other?
And why not let the local federation —
that’s the Jewish Federation of Northern
New Jersey — kickstart that process?
So on the Sunday before Thanksgiving,
lay and professional leaders met at the
Crowne Plaza in Saddle Brook for a half-
day conference called SynaCon; it, like the
rest of the Synagogue Leadership Initiative,
is funded by the Henry and Marilyn Taub
Foundation. The SLI’s mission is to work
with synagogue leaders, offering training —
in the form of workshops, counseling, and
other resources — to allow them to grow
as leaders as their institutions flourish as
a result of that training. It’s an unusually
comprehensive program, thanks in large
part to the Taub Foundation.
This was the second SynaCon, Lisa Har-
ris Glass, the federation’s chief planning
officer, said. This synagogue conference,
like the first one, “is a direct response to
feedback from users and potential users
about making this type of learning more
accessible to them.
“Last year, we tried this new format,
on a Sunday morning, offering a lot of
resources, so that people could choose the
classes that were most interesting to them.
So this year we decided to do it again.”
This year, “we had representatives from
29 synagogues, of every denomination as
well as independent synagogues,” she said.
“We estimated that those 29 synagogues
represented about 8,200 member units,
and that’s roughly 16,000 people — and
that’s a conservative estimate. And then
there’s the ripple effect.
Rabbi Lindsey Healey-Pollack and Steven Haber of Congregation Kol HaNeshamah in Englewood listen as Lisa Harris
Glass, the Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey’s chief planning officer, talks about collaboration.
“We can touch over 16,000 Jew-
ish people in northern New Jersey.
That’s incredible.”
The conference had a twofold goal, Ms.
Glass said. One was essentially top-down —
to teach information that the leaders could
bring back home. The second was more lat-
eral, more elusive, and perhaps more long-
lasting — to give leaders the chance to meet
each other and form the relationships that
will allow them to work together.
Nanette Fridman, the keynote speaker,
is a Boston-based consultant who special-
izes in Jewish organizations; here, she
talked about what she called “cultivating
collaboration”; later, she led workshops.
“I started by saying that I think that syna-
gogues are here to stay, but that being said,
synagogues are going to have to change the
way they do business,” she said. “We have
seen that over and over again.”
A key to positive change is to collabo-
rate, Ms. Fridman said. “When we talk
about collaboration, some people auto-
matically think about joint programming,
and other people automatically think
about mergers. But collaboration is a con-
tinuum. It can mean so many things. So
I try to highlight trends that we are see-
ing in synagogues across the country —
things like programmatic collaboration;
joint advocacy, mainly for state funding;
sharing facilities intradenominationally,
interdenominationally, and in an inter-
faith community; and building commu-
nity campuses.
“We also are seeing very creative col-
laborative programming, like a syna-
gogue partnering with senior housing.
And then there’s sharing staff; we’re see-
ing a lot of that in the teen space, the reli-
gious school space, with rabbis in syna-
gogues and day schools.”
Can Ms. Fridman provide some specif-
ics? Well, yes, she can, because this was
a conference that dealt in specifics and
offered practical advice.
“There are projects like the ChaiVil-
lageLA, a collaboration between two syna-
gogues in LA that allows people to age in
place,” she said. “There is a concept called
the village movement; it’s about helping
people to continue to live in their homes
as they age, and improving their lives by
providing them with services so they can
live in a more healthy and happy way.
“ This is the first synagogue-
based village.
“ These t wo synago gues have
responded to a problem in a creative way.
Neither one could have done it alone, but
they were able to do it together.”
And then there is the far end of the
collaboration scale, the thing that some
synagogues hope will save them and oth-
ers dread.
“That is the big M,” Ms. Fridman said.
“Merging, or consolidation. We spent
some time talking about when collabora-
tions are successful, and we also talked
about why partnerships fail. Sometimes
they do fail, and it’s important to be hon-
est about that.
“When we collaborate, we encourage
people to use design thinking.” What’s
that? “It’s when you try to solve a prob-
lem, and you are being creative and exper-
imental. You go through iterations, maybe
many iterations. It’s not perfect at first, so
you fail and try again, using what you’ve
learned from the last time.
“If we adapt that to partnerships —
instead of saying that we tried that once
and it didn’t work, so we won’t try it again
— then we have a better chance.
“Collaboration is a good way for innova-
tion to happen, because often when we’re
doing it alone we don’t have the resources
to be innovative, but we do when we do
it together.”
There is no one rule for all communi-
ties; their economies, histories, geogra-
phy, and overall demographics make each
one unique.
“Housing prices are a big predictor of
community growth,” Ms. Fridman said.
On the one hand, rising prices mean that
a community is desirable; on the other
hand, it also easily can mean that young
people are priced out, so it will age and
wither. Communities often cycle through
those phases of growth and decline; col-
laboration often is a way to handle all parts
of that cycle.
Ms. Fridman also led two workshops,
one about “building a culture of ambassa-
dorship” and the other about fundraising.
“We talked a lot about making the ask,” she
said; about gathering up the moral convic-
tion to be able to ask for money for the
institution you love. “Synagogues cannot
exist on earned income alone,” she said.
“We know that we already are asking for
dues and for money to support a Hebrew
school. So how can we ask for more?
“People have to flex their muscles,
and make the ask. They have to make the

12 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018

 Local
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Ms. Fridman thinks that there is something
unusual about the Jewish community in northern
New Jersey, and she thinks that the SynaCon displays
it. “I work with a lot of federations,” she said. “They
tend to help synagogues with resources or speakers
or some consulting services.
“But this is wonderful, that the federation brings
together the synagogue leaders, so they can form
W I N T E R
relationships with each other.
“That’s because if we are to collaborate, we have
to be in relationships with one another, and we can’t
be in relationships with one another if we don’t meet
each other.”
Henry Ramer is an executive vice president at Shom-
rei Torah in Wayne, which means that he is in line to
become its president. He went to the conference, and “I
thought that it was very helpful,” he said.
Like most (if not all) of the participants, security was
much on his mind. The murders of 11 Jews, killed at the OPEN THIS SATURDAY NIGHT DEC. 1st*
Tree of Life Congregation in Pittsburgh by a deranged
white supremacist, was a specter that haunted the meet-
ing. Security became the topic that almost everybody
wanted to discuss; because the meeting was so practi-
cal in orientation, they went home with practical advice
rather than philosophical takes.
“I went to the workshop on synagogue security,
which probably was the best attended at the meet-
ing,” Mr. Ramer said. “I thought that it was very help-
ful. Debbie Gottlieb,” a lawyer who manages the fed-
eration’s group purchasing initiative and has had a
great deal of experience working with FEMA security
grants and other security projects, “was very authori-
tative on what some other synagogues were doing
and the effwicacy of some of the other measures that
were undertaken.
“It was very practical,” Mr. Ramer added. “Where
should a mailbox go? Where should packages be
delivered? Where should the Saturday morning
greeter be positioned? Inside the sanctuary? Outside MEN’S and BOY’S
the sanctuary?”
He also was able to hear an expert, “who was very
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of Homeland Security, talk about how to harden a
building,” he said.
Not only did he have the chance to hear a discus- The Perfect
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ees meeting soon, and I will present a summary of Call us to arrange purchase and
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He found the meeting very helpful. “I was able
to talk in person to some of the people I’d already *6:30pm to 11pm
talked to on the phone,” he said. “It was a good 13th Ave. and
opportunity to meet face to face.
“I was very happy I went,” Mr. Ramer concluded.
“And I used the occasion to make my pledge to fed-
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JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 13

Local
‘Sense and Sensitivity’
Orthodox Union’s program offers development session for mikvah attendants
ABIGAIL KLEIN LEICHMAN
G
oing to the mikvah can make
a Jewish woman feel spiritu-
ally exhilarated and physically
pampered. This Torah-man-
dated water ritual prepares her to resume
intimacy with her husband after a period of
abstinence following menstruation or birth.
But depending on her personal circum-
stances, “mikvah night” also can make
her feel anxious and vulnerable. She may
be struggling with infertility, postpartum
depression, cancer, obsessive-compulsive
disorder, or body-image issues. If her hus-
band is abusive, she may be afraid about
what will happen when she goes home.
Or perhaps she’s simply feeling over-
whelmed or exhausted that particular night.
One person is in a unique position to
affect how each woman will feel about the
experience. That’s the mikvah attendant,
the woman who first checks that the client
prepared correctly for immersion and then
immerses in the pool properly. She answers
“amen” to the client’s blessing and envelops
her bare body in a sheet or robe afterward.
Dina Leffel, a Fair Lawn mikvah attendant
Rabbi twirls sport into spiritual practice
Glen Rock Jewish Center will ‘Light Up the Night’ during Chanukah
LOIS GOLDRICH
P
rayer is intensely personal.
Some people close their eyes
and pray quietly. Others speak
their prayers with joy, despair,
or religious fervor. Still others find a spiritual
connection through movement, whether
whirling, dancing, or shuckling.
Rabbi Jennifer Schlosberg, who leads the
Glen Rock Jewish Center, has found another
way. Fire-baton twirling.
Rabbi Schlosberg, who will demonstrate
her skill at her synagogue’s December 8
“Light Up the Night” Chanukah festivities
— has turned her talent into “an emotional
and spiritual practice.”
“It’s a very special spiritual outlet and
way of expressing my Judaism,” she said.
She started twirling a baton when she was
6, she said “though I didn’t add the fire until
later.” And, she said, she has burned herself
only once.
“This past year I tried a trick I hadn’t done
before,” she said. It was at a congregational
gathering. “There was a lot of energy in the
group. It was very exciting.” Unfortunately,
however, she caught the baton by its fire
end. “The trick is to catch it in the middle,”
she said. But most of the people there didn’t
14 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018
Dr. Adina Shmidman, left, founder of the OU Women’s Initiative, listens to an
attendee at the professional development day for mikvah attendants.
for the past 18 years, said she is “always
open to hearing what advice people have
about how I can do the job better.”
Ms. Leffel was among 40 participants
in “Sense and Sensitivity,” a recent profes-
sional development session for mikvah
attendants sponsored by the year-old Ortho-
dox Union Women’s Initiative in New York.
realize what had happened.
At any rate, “The scar is gone,” she said.
Did her mother worry when she added
fire to her twirling? “No,” she said, “I don’t
think so.” But just to be sure, she put her
mom, Marjorie Schlosberg, on the phone.
(The interview took place by phone during
the Thanksgiving holidays, and Rabbi Schlos-
berg was staying at her mother’s house.)
Her mother, not surprisingly, had a differ-
ent take. “Yes of course I worried,” she said.
Rabbi Schlosberg began her twirling
career in Green Lane, a small town in Penn-
sylvania, where hers was “the only prac-
ticing Jewish family,” she said. Urged by
a friend “who was responsible for a local
baton school,” she began to twirl. “I added
fire because I was part of the high school
marching band front,” performing at foot-
ball games. She also twirled competitively
at local, regional, and state competitions. “It
brought a lot of fun and pleasure,” she said.
“I twirl more than just fire batons,” she
added. “I twirl one baton, two batons, three
batons, flag batons, streamers, hula hoop
batons, and fire batons. I even just added a
new baton that came out — a Lumina baton,
which has multi-colored LED lights on the
end that leaves a fun, illuminated trail in the
sky as you twirl it.”
Topics included choosing words care-
fully when speaking to clients, addressing
the medical needs of ill clients, supporting
obsessive-compulsive clients, and under-
standing how to relate to clients at different
stages of a woman’s life.
Ms. Leffel, who also has been an atten-
dant at mikvahs in Englewood and Paramus,
Rabbi Jennifer Schlosberg twirls her
fire baton.
Now she’s a full-time rabbi, and she no
longer twirls on a regular basis. But she does
twirl “as a special treat for congregants,
once a year, at what has become our annual
Light Up the Night event, when we come
together the Saturday evening of Chanukah
and light the outdoor menorah.” She plans
to debut the Lumina baton that evening.
She also has created Havdalah routines
said that she encounters a very diverse pop-
ulation of clients in Fair Lawn. She is well
aware that the attendant can make or break
a woman’s experience and overall attitude
toward this religious practice, which is con-
sidered a cornerstone of a Jewish marriage.
“Sometimes women come to our mikvah
rather than the one where they live,” she said.
“I’ve heard people say it’s because they don’t
like the mikvah lady in their own town.”
Dr. Adina Shmidman, the founding direc-
tor of the OU Women’s Initiative, said that
21st century women have different expecta-
tions about their mikvah experience than
women in previous generations have had.
“There is more of a relationship between
attendants and clients, so the attendant
needs a high emotional quotient,” she said.
“It’s not a business transaction. People are
looking to feel nurtured, uplifted, and reli-
giously touched when they leave, and the
mikvah attendant plays a role in making
women feel safe and supported.”
Dr. Shmidman, who is co-chair of the
Lower Merion Synagogue Mikvah in subur-
ban Philadelphia and rebbetzin of the syna-
gogue, is an educator whose Ph.D. is in edu-
cational psychology. She said that mikvah
and performed for nursery school children
during summer camp.
Like anything else, she said, people who
are well trained in the art are not likely to find
it dangerous. But it’s not a sport for novices.
“My own children” — she has two daugh-
ters, 2 and 5 — “love watching mommy do
it. The older one picks up the baton, but
nothing serious.” No, she said, 5 is not too
young to start learning how to twirl. “Some
children do it even younger.”
Rabbi Schlosberg started to look at twirl-
ing as a spiritual exercise after reading an
essay by Jane Martin, called “Twirler,” “that
talks about how the twirler throws up her
baton,” she said. “I identified this with
‘throwing up’ all our stuff to God and not
knowing where it’s going.” Sometimes you
catch it on its way down, and sometimes it
drops. “You’re juggling all the time.
“The poem made me think about twirling
on a spiritual level,” she continued. “Twirl-
ing, to me, is a form of prayer. It is an outlet
for self-expression. I throw my baton up into
the heavens. Sometimes I catch what God
throws back down to me. At other times, I
don’t. But the pursuit to continue trying is
always there.”
Seeing your rabbi engage in an activity like
twirling a baton — bringing home the fact
 Local A Night of Comedy with
Rabbi Bob Alper
attendants “are a core pillar of our communities,” and
the Sense and Sensitivity program was part of an effort
Sunday, Dec. 9 at 7:30 pm
to standardize and professionalize the work they do.
“We deeply appreciate mikvah attendants, and we’re Rabbi Bob Alper’s stand-up act is fast-paced,
here to support them and enable them to serve their with impeccable timing and material that’s
role effectively and impactfully,” she said. “I know from
our own mikvah that when attendants feel they are
definitely sharp yet gentle and unhurtful.
equipped with knowledge and confidence they’re play- Tickets required - $36 per person
ing at the top of their game.”
One of the training sessions Ms. Leffel found
(dessert and coffee too)
“extremely helpful” suggested appropriate ways of Call office for tickets information
speaking to clients coming to the mikvah after a mis-
carriage or stillbirth — if the client chooses to share that (201) 391-4620
information — emphasizing acknowledgment and empa-
thy for the loss.
Another addressed OCD, a disorder that can cause cli-
TEMPLE BETH SHOLOM
ents to take an unusually long time preparing for immer- 32 Park Avenue, Park Ridge NJ
sion because they may check over and over that each step,
from bathing to removing impediments such as makeup
and stray strands of hair, has been done correctly.
Melissa Rosen, director of national outreach at
Teaneck-based support organization Sharsheret, out-
lined the needs of mikvah clients with breast or ovarian
cancer. For example, it may be best for the attendant not
to react when encountering a woman with a bald head
or an implanted port under her skin.
Avital Levin, director of education at Shalom Task
Force, an organization that serves Jewish individuals
and families struggling with troubled relationships at
home, talked about how to be on the lookout for signs
of abuse and what to do about it. (Many mikvahs dis-
play literature or posters with the number of the Shalom
Task Force Domestic Abuse Hotline.)
SEE SENSITIVITY PAGE 64

that the rabbi has different skills — may also be valuable

in helping congregants relate to their religious leader in a
more personal way. Still, Rabbi Schlosberg is hesitant sim-
ply to class twirling as a “different skill,” because “I see this
as a way of expressing Judaism, not as a separate thing, a
separate hobby. It’s an emotional and spiritual practice.
Another way of connecting with Judaism.”
This Chanukah’s festivities will of course include some
reference to the synagogue massacre in Pittsburgh. The
rabbi said there is no real concern about holding the
outdoor event, expected to draw some 150 people from
both the synagogue and the community, but since the
shooting, “we have doubled down on security mea-
sures. We want people to come and feel safe. We were
very good on security even prior to Pittsburgh. We’re
very proactive, not reactive.”
The events in Pittsburgh “won’t hinder us from
expressing our Jewish identity,” especially when the
Chanukah message she wants to convey is the ideal of
“strongly identifying, being proud to be Jewish, and
using our identity to serve as a motivation to bring more
light into the world.”

Who: The Glen Rock Jewish Center

What: Will host its annual “Light Up the Night”
celebration. The outdoor menorah lighting is
followed by fire-baton twirling by Rabbi Jennifer
Schlosberg, arts and crafts, and make-your-own
pizza for children; latkes and vodka bar for adults.
Includes hot cocoa, donuts, dreidels, chocolate gelt.
When: On December 8 at 5:45 p.m.
Where: 682 Harristown Road, Glen Rock
For more information: Call (201) 652-6624
or email office@grjc.org.

JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 15

Local

From payroll to morale to pensions

Torah Education Network tackles day-to-day issues of Orthodox day schools
LARRY YUDELSON

E
ducation is a calling; helping children grow.
Jewish education, with its spiritual compo-
nent of guiding young souls, is even more so.
But it is also a day-in, day-out job.
And for whom in a school is that more the case than the
executive director, who focuses not on the school’s vision
but on its day-to-day management, even unto payroll?
Which is where the Torah Education Network comes in.
The story of how the executive directors of 10 local
Jewish day schools found themselves in a room in Flor-
ida earlier this month, under the auspices of the newish
Jewish network, begins with a conversation Rabbi Perry
Tirschwell had with his financial planner two decades ago.
Rabbi Tirschwell then was the head of Boca Raton’s
Weinberg Yeshiva High School, which he founded and led
for 15 years before moving to Teaneck. The financial plan-
ner advised him to join the Rabbinical Council of America.
Rabbi Tirschwell knew that many of his former classmates
at Yeshiva University’s rabbinical school were members —
those who had chosen to work in synagogue pulpits rather
than as educators. What his financial planner told him was
that the RCA’s pension plan offered a
benefit he couldn’t get from a stan-
dard 401-K: the ability to take out
retirement benefits as tax-free par-
sonage payments.
(Parsonage, to recap for those not
familiar with clerical accounting, is
income that clergy receive to pay for Executive directors of Jewish day schools in Bergen County convene in Fort Lauder-
their housing. The original idea was dale, Florida.
that the IRS would not tax the cash-
free housing benefits of priests and This year, 64 executive directors members, rather than on individual school staff. Its con-
ministers who live in church-owned came from across the country, ference, Rabbi Tirschwell said, tends to bring in experts,
properties. This has expanded to including representatives of 10 Ber- as opposed to his peer-to-peer approach. “There has to be
include clergy who are paid in cash, gen County schools. The program a venue for people just sharing good ideas from the front
and clergy has been defined broadly was mostly presented by the execu- line,” he said. “I hope we’re complementing each other.”
to include religious studies teachers, tive directors themselves, with top- And of course, TEN plans to offer a pension plan,
even if they are not ordained.) ics including budgeting, pay scales, “hopefully at some point later this year.” This week,
Rabbi Tirschwell started thinking and maintaining staff morale. because he was “making sure all the I’s are dotted and T’s
about parsonage plans — and how Rabbi Perry Tirschwell “All the research says that if your are crossed,” he attended the Church Benefits Association
there was no retirement fund for faculty’s happy, your students convention in New Orleans.
Jewish educators that qualified, as does the RCA pension will be happy and your parents will be happy,” Rabbi “One of the lessons I took away from living in Florida is
plan, as a church plan under IRS regulation. Tirschwell said. “If your faculty is unhappy, that trickles that people are living much longer but they’re not work-
He urged the RCA to open itself — and its pension plan down.” ing much longer,” Rabbi Tirschwell said. “I know people
— to Jewish educators. Holding on to teachers will be an increasing challenge who are playing tennis twice a week at 85, but not a lot
No dice. for schools, Rabbi Tirschwell said. “We have the tightest of teachers going to work in their 70s. It’s not unusual to
“RCA is a pulpit rabbi organization,” Rabbi Tirschwell employment market in 50 years. Every year since 2006 live after 100 now. The question is how are they going to
said. “It’s like dermatologists and brain surgeons. They the number of people applying to graduate schools of edu- afford that?
went to the same medical school but do vastly different cation has gone down. People are not going into teaching. “If there’s a way to extend the savings of every Jewish
things. We went to rabbinical school together, but we do YU’s Azrieli School of Education has the same challenge.” studies teacher by a third” — that is, through tax-free par-
vastly different things for a living.” In June, the network will hold its second conference for sonage payments — “a totally legal way, that every Roman
After leaving Florida for New Jersey — Rabbi Tirschwell Jewish studies teachers from modern Orthodox schools. Catholic priest has and every Protestant minister, that
taught at the Frisch School, where he had been a student, Last year, 125 teachers came from 22 high schools across every pulpit rabbi has — someone should take care of it.”
for two years at the beginning of his career — he realized the country. This year’s conference will include middle Most of the day schools, he said, pay some of their Judaic
that there was no forum that brought together different school teachers as well. studies teachers’ salaries as parsonage. This includes
Orthodox Jewish educators, let alone that offered them a In May, TEN will revive a conference that NCSY ran women, who are not ordained as rabbis but qualify under
pension plan. in 2010 and 2011 for experiential Jewish educators from the IRS guidelines.
So he founded the Torah Educators Network. Its imme- schools, summer camps, youth groups, and synagogues. Rabbi Tirschwell said he expects the plan to be admin-
diate goal is to allow educators to network, and to share “We’re trying to bring together people who do the same istered by an organization such as TIAA, the pension fund
information that will help them in their day-to-day jobs. thing for a living, in this case trying to inspire teenagers,” that many schools use. “People will have choices in how
Its longer-term mission is to offer an IRS-compliant church Rabbi Tirschwell said. the money’s invested,” he said. “When they retire, start-
pension plan. So how does this tie into Prizma, the umbrella orga- ing at age 70 1/2, they’ll be able to put in for parsonage,
Last year, Rabbi Tirschwell’s first conference for Ortho- nization for Jewish day schools of all denominations? whether they’re living in Century Village or Beit Shemesh
dox day school executive directors brought 38 of them. One difference is that Prizma is focused on schools as or are still in Teaneck.”

16 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018

 Light the Menorah,
Spin the Dreidel...
Celebrate
Chanukah! From ShopRites of
Paramus Englewood
224 Route 4 East, 40 Nathaniel Place
Forest Avenue
See stores for complete details on
Kosher Holiday Platters and Catering

Full Service Kosher Meat Dept.

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Prices, programs and promotions effective Sun., Dec. 2 thru Sat., Dec. 8, 2018 in ShopRite ®Stores in Paramus and Englewood, NJ only. Sunday sales subject to local blue laws. No sales made to other retailers or wholesalers. We reserve the right to limit
purchases of any sale item to four (4) purchases, per item, per household, per day, except where otherwise noted. Minimum or additional purchase requirements noted for any advertised item exclude the purchase of prescription medications, gift cards,
gift certificates, postage stamps, money orders, money transfers, lottery tickets, bus tickets, fuel and Metro passes, as well as milk, cigarettes, tobacco products, alcoholic beverages or any other items prohibited by law. Only one manufacturer coupon
may be used per item and we reserve the right to limit manufacturer coupon redemptions to four (4) identical coupons per household per day, unless otherwise noted or further restricted by manufacturer. Sales tax is applied to the net retail of any
discounted item or any ShopRite® coupon item. We are required by law to charge sales tax on the full price of any item or any portion of an item that is discounted with the use of a manufacturer coupon or a manufacturer sponsored (or funded) Price
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your Price Plus® club card IN STORE at the service desk, kiosk or contact 1-800-ShopRite.

JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 17

Local
A gala evening of caring
On Sunday, November 18, Jewish Family
and Children’s Services of Northern New
Jersey held its annual gala at the Edge-
wood Country Club in River Vale. Passion-
ate JFCS supporters Shira Feuerstein, Alan
Scharfstein, and Jayne Petak were hon-
ored for their long-term contributions to
the organization.
After a strolling dinner, Susan Green-
baum, the organization’s CEO, and Debbie
Beth and Jay Nadel
Rabbi Irving Spielman, Shira Feuerstein, and Selma Spielman
Gala committee chairs Sue Ann Levin and Suzette Diamond, Susan
Greenbaum, and Debbie Harris
18 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018
Harris, its board president, talked about
JFCS programs and services and staff
members told the stories of some of their
clients. The evening’s proceeds will sup-
port the agency’s operations, including
mental health counseling, senior services,
kosher meals-on-wheels, services for Holo-
caust survivors, and food pantries.
To learn more about JFCS, go to www.
jfcsnnj.org.
Gail and Robert Loewenstein
Mark and Diane Seiden
Lu Simon and Steve Frank
Harold and Suzette Diamond Susan Greenbaum and Debbie Harris
Shira Feuerstein, Alan Scharfstein, and Jayne Petak Dana and Jim Adler
Karen, Rob, Shira, and David Feuerstein
 79¢
Chanukah
Candles
44-ct. pkg.,
Rokeach
4 $ 00
FOR
1
Chocolate
Coins
.53-oz. pkg., Dark or
Milk Chocolate,
Manischewitz

99¢
Dreidel
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1.07-oz. pkg.,
Paskesz

$ 49
3 Chanukah House
Decorating Kit
47-oz. box, Manischewitz
$
1099
Joyva

3
Chocolate
Jelly Rings
9-oz. box, Any Variety,
Chanukah
Donut Mix
11.5-oz. box (Where Available,
$ 49
Marshmallow Twists or While Supplies Last) Manischewitz

$ 99
2 3$
5 2$
3 4 1
$ 00

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FOR FOR ea. Offers

SAVE 70¢ Manischewitz

LIMIT 4 PER VARIETY Tabatchnick Lipton Kosher Egg Noodles
Kedem Broth Soup Mix 12-oz. bag (Excluding
Whole Grain, Gluten Free
32-oz. carton, Any Variety 1.9 to 4.09-oz. box (Kosher Only)
Grape Juice Noodle or Onion & Kluski) Any Variety
64-oz. btl., Any Variety Manischewitz
Matzo Ball
Soup Mix

$ 99
1 99 ¢ 3 $10
4.5 to 6-oz. box, Any Variety,
Soup or Matzo Ball Mix or

FOR Manischewitz
Potato
SAVE 70¢ LIMIT 4 PER VARIETY Pancake Mix
LIMIT 4 PER VARIETY 6-oz. box, Homestyle
Potato Latke or
Kedem Streit’s Potato Golden Potato Discount will be applied when you
Sparkling Juice Pancake Mix Pancakes buy in increments of 4 only.
(Frozen) 10.6-oz. pkg., Less or additional items will scan at $1.25 each.
25.4-oz. btl. (Plus Dep. or Fee 6-oz. box, Any Variety
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Prices, programs and promotions effective Sun., Dec. 2 thru Sat., Dec. 8, 2018 in ShopRite® Stores in NJ, North of Trenton (excluding Ewing, Hamilton Square, Hamilton Marketplace, Pennington and Montague, NJ and Rockland County, NY) including E. Windsor, Monmouth &
Ocean Counties, NJ. Sunday sales subject to local blue laws. No sales made to other retailers or wholesalers. We reserve the right to limit purchases of any sale item to four (4) purchases, per item, per household, per day, except where otherwise noted. Minimum or additional
purchase requirements noted for any advertised item exclude the purchase of prescription medications, gift cards, gift certificates, postage stamps, money orders, money transfers, lottery tickets, bus tickets, fuel and Metro passes, as well as milk, cigarettes, tobacco products,
alcoholic beverages or any other items prohibited by law. Only one manufacturer coupon may be used per item and we reserve the right to limit manufacturer coupon redemptions to four (4) identical coupons per household per day, unless otherwise noted or further restricted by
manufacturer. Sales tax is applied to the net retail of any discounted item or any ShopRite® coupon item. We are required by law to charge sales tax on the full price of any item or any portion of an item that is discounted with the use of a manufacturer coupon or a manufacturer
sponsored (or funded) Price Plus® club card discount. Not responsible for typographical errors. Artwork does not necessarily represent items on sale; it is for display purposes only. Copyright© Wakefern Food Corp., 2018. All rights reserved. Digital Coupon savings can be loaded to
your Price Plus® club card IN STORE at the service desk, kiosk or contact 1-800-ShopRite.

JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 19

Briefly Local

Hadassah honors Arlene Weiss

Judy Shereck, left, the national Hadassah division coor-
dination for PRAZE (Programming, Advocacy, Zionism,
Education and Health & Wellness) and a past presi-
dent of Pascack Valley Hadassah, joins Arlene Weiss of

PHOTO PROVIDED
Hadassah’s Pascack Valley & Northern Valley chapter
as the Northern New Jersey Region of Hadassah hon-
ored Ms. Weiss at its annual Myrtle Wreath brunch on
November 18 in West Orange.

Yachad will present awards

Temple Sinai’s sisterhood executive board, from left, Hilary Baris, Hilary Eth,
Ruth Seitelman, Lauren Kluger, board president Franci Steinberg, Sari Hollender,
Jessica Hirsh, Noah Smalley, and Anne Fleisher.
Englewood Health
provides advice
on nutrition
at Temple Sinai
More than 50 people attended the member-
ship brunch for the sisterhood of Temple Sinai
of Bergen County in Tenafly. The speakers
were representatives from Englewood Health
and the Graf Center for Integrative Medicine
at Englewood Health. They included Jennifer
Graf and Dr. Alexandra Gottdiener, the chief of
medicine at Englewood Health. The discussion
focused on healthy eating and how important
it is for women to take charge of their lives.
PHOTOS COURTESY TEMPLE SINAI
Jennifer Graf, left, and Dr. Alexandra
Gottdiener
during reception in Teaneck
The New Jersey Yachad Gala Melava Scholarship Fund and dedicate the
Malka reception is on Saturday, Decem- annual Camp Mesorah/Team Yachad 5K.
ber 1, at 8 p.m., at Congregation Keter
Torah in Teaneck. Local honorees
Close to 500 people are expected at the
reception, which benefits the New Jersey
include Joey and Shira Shatzkes, the chapter of Yachad, the National Jewish
guests of honor; Benny and Sara Berlin,
Young Leadership awardees; and David,
Council for Disabilities. The global organi-
zation addresses the needs of all Jews with
Susan, and Binyamin Richman, who will disabilities and ensures their inclusion in
receive the Yachad Family award. every aspect of Jewish life.
That evening, Yachad also will estab- To support the gala and New Jersey
lish the Chani Rubin a”h Yachad Summer Yachad, go to Yachad.org/NJGala2018.
Chanukah in Woodcliff Lake
Michael Winschuh, right,
manager of Acme in
Woodcliff Lake, joins
Rabbi Yosef Orenstein
of Valley Chabad Teen
Leadership Initiative
and his daughter, Chaya,
at the supermarket’s
Chanukah event
on November 23.
Customers were treated

VALLEY CHABAD
to latkes and other
kosher items Acme sells,
provided by kosher
distributors. 

COURTESY CONGREGATION BETH AARON

Rabbi Avremy Kanelsky, left, Tzvi Odzer, Moshe Furer, Rabbi Mordechai Kanelsky,
state Lieutenant Governor Sheila Oliver, Shterney Kanelsky, and Rabbi Berele
Zaltzman. COURTESY BRIS AVROHOM

Bris Avrohom celebrates 8 couples

On November 11, Bris Avrohom held its
annual gala wedding ceremony at the
Sheraton Parsippany. It hosted more than
400 guests.
Eight couples from the former Soviet
Union, including two from Fair Lawn,
were married according to Jewish tradi-
tion. To date, Bris Avrohom has married
about 960 couples since it began the
annual event 33 years ago.
New Jersey’s lieutenant governor,
Sheila Y. Oliver, gave the keynote and was
presented with a menorah and a bouquet.
Rabbi Mordechai Kanelsky presented
the Community Service award to three
honorees from the Port Authority of New
York and New Jersey who help Bris Avro-
hom celebrate Chanukah with travelers
by lighting menorahs under their jurisdic-
tion. They are Dianne Ehler, director of
tunnels, bridges, and terminals; Jennifer
Davis, chief of intergovernmental affairs;
and Janice Stein, engineer of projects.
A thank-you with trimmings
from a shul to firefighters
On Thanksgiving morning, as part of
Congregation Beth Aaron’s Project
Thanks, nearly two dozen shul children
and their families went to Teaneck Fire
Department headquarters on Teaneck
Road. Rabbi Larry Rothwachs and Alden
Leifer, the chair of Project Thanks,
joined them for the sixth Project Thanks
firehouse visit. Acting Fire Chief Jordan
Zaretsky helped coordinate the event.
The program gives thanks to the
town’s firefighters by providing a tur-
key dinner with all the trimmings to the
Teaneck firefighters on duty in all the fire
stations on Thanksgiving.
Beth Aaron families contributed to
the endeavor, which was catered by
Ma’adan of Teaneck. Surplus funds will
be used to enhance the shul’s safety
and security.

20 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018

May the light of Chanukah shine
from our family to yours

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JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 21

22 Jewish standard nOVeMBer 30, 2018
 Chanukah Cover Story

What you need The Chanukah connection

to know about the Sharing the light with far-away families
holiday’s backstory
DEBORAH FINEBLUM

F
LESLI KOPPELMAN ROSS

T
or generations, lighting the
his year, Chanukah starts on the evening
Chanukah candles together
of Sunday, December 2, and ends at night-
has been the stuff lifelong
fall on Monday, December 10.
memories are made of. But
As we prepare, here’s a look at its story.
today’s far-flung families are increas-
In 168 BCE, the ruler of the Syrian kingdom, Antio-
ingly challenged to share the sight of
chus Epiphanes IV, stepped up his campaign to
the candles aglow, the sound of the
quash Judaism, so that all subjects in his vast empire
blessings and traditional songs sung
— which included the Land of Israel — would share
by old and young alike, the feel of a
the same culture and worship the same gods.
perfect dreidel spin, and the smell
(Note: There is some dispute about the exact dates
and taste of latkes fresh from the pan.
of the Maccabean revolt and its various battles.)
Long-distance offspring may be
He marched into Jerusalem, vandalized the Tem-
away at college, on a gap-year pro-
ple, erected an idol on the altar, and desecrated its
gram, studying in a seminary or
holiness with the blood of swine. Decreeing that
yeshiva, a lone soldier serving in the
studying Torah, observing the Sabbath, and circum-
Israel Defense Forces, or working and
cising Jewish boys were punishable by death, he sent
living in another town, with or with- Hadassah Sabo Milner, the mother of three lone soldiers in the Israel
Syrian overseers and soldiers to villages throughout
out kids of their own. That leaves Defense Forces, who lives with her youngest son and husband in New
Judea to enforce the edicts and force Jews to engage
today’s parents (and grandparents, York, stands with with sons Naff, Aryeh, and Avraham.
in idol worship.
too) called upon to apply ingenuity,
When the Syrian soldiers reached Modin (about
creativity, flexibility, and some basic students receiving Chanukah love the kind of mom who needs to talk to
12 miles northwest of the capital), they demanded
technical know-how to successfully from home is never more appreci- my kids every day — they need to live
that the local leader, Mattathias the Kohein (a mem-
span the miles with Chanukah spirit. ated than in these days of anti-Israel their lives without having to check in
ber of the priestly class), be an example to his peo-
In fact, says “The Red Tent” author — and often, outright anti-Semitic — all the time — when we light here, it’s
ple by sacrificing a pig on a portable pagan altar.
Anita Diamant, who’s also generated influences on many North American the middle of the night in Israel, and I
The elder refused and killed not only the Jew who
a library of guidebooks on modern campuses. can’t just pick up the phone and call.”
stepped forward to do the Syrian’s bidding, but also
Jewish life, including “How to Raise “Even celebrating a happy Jewish
the king’s representative.
a Jewish Child: A Practical Handbook holiday like Chanukah can get tricky Begin new traditions
With the rallying cry “Whoever is for God, follow all their own
for Family Life,” “my family enjoys on campuses today,” says Tammi
me!” Mattathias and his five sons ( Jonathan, Simon,
Chanukah kitsch so much we keep it Rossman-Benjamin of AMCHA Initia- But at least college students and
Judah, Eleazar, and Yohanan) fled to the hills and
going over the miles.” tive, a watchdog organization moni- IDF soldiers have built-in communi-
caves of the wooded Judean wilderness.
When her daughter was a college toring North American campuses. ties to celebrate Chanukah with. For
Joined by a ragtag army of others like them, simple
student, Diamant would send a box “And yet, the Chanukah story — about young adults working and living far
farmers dedicated to the laws of Moses, armed only
of “Chanukah stuff as counterweight the few against the many — has so from their families, it can be a lonely
with spears, bows and arrows, and rocks from the
to the Christmas decorations.” The much to say about the threats that existence.
terrain, the Maccabees, as Mattathias’ sons, partic-
“stuff ” — menorah, gelt, candles Jewish students face today. We know That’s why Rabbi Rachael Klein
ularly Judah, came to be known, fought a guerrilla
(flame-free ones for those in dorms) what happened thousands of years Miller makes it a point to host events
war against the well-trained, well-equipped, seem-
can include modest (think: socks) ago on this small piece of land, which designed just for young adults at
ingly endless forces of the mercenary Syrian army.
gifts for each of the eight nights, she the anti-Israel forces are telling us we Temple Emanu-El, a Reform congre-
In three years, the Maccabees cleared the way
says, including notice that a donation have no historical right to. It reminds gation in Atlanta.
back to the Temple Mount, which they reclaimed.
was made in their name to a non- students that, even more basic than “It might be tough to be away from
They cleaned the Temple and dismantled the defiled
profit organization that’s meaningful the latkes and sufganiyot, is that this home because they haven’t quite mas-
altar and constructed a new one in its place. Three
to them. awesome story and this ancient land tered the latke recipe, they’re putting
years to the day after Antiochus’ mad rampage
Indeed, many of us find that Cha- truly belong to them.” together a makeshift menorah, or
(Kislev 25, 165 BCE), the Maccabees held a dedica-
nukah invites us to shelve our refined Lone soldiers are reliving that story they simply miss the sounds of par-
tion (chanukah) of the Temple with proper sacrifice,
sensibilities for eight days. There’s no every day as they protect the land and ents telling them to ‘Be careful! Watch
rekindling of the golden menorah, and eight days of
such thing as bad taste when it comes its citizens. But it’s not always easy on the flame! Don’t let the wax drip!’ says
celebration and praise to God. Proper Jewish wor-
to Chanukah — the tackier, the better, their parents, many time zones away. Miller. “But being away from home
ship had been re-established.
according to some people. “Chanukah is when I miss them the also means that they’ve started to
Perhaps the most famous part of the story is what
And here is where technology can absolute most, and when we light, I pave their own path; it’s a chance to
happened next: a tiny jar of oil kept the candles
be a parent’s best friend. Diamant usually cry,” says Hadassah Sabo Mil- share traditions from home and begin
burning for the full eight days. But this detail does
recommends sending long-distance ner, a mom of three IDF lone soldiers new traditions all their own.”
not appear in any Jewish texts until 600 years later in
kids a “light-hearted, light-themed” (one of whom just completed his ser- And when they pose for a group
the Talmud, mentioned in a larger discussion of why
text or email on each night, complete vice) who lives with her youngest son candle-lighting photo to post on Face-
Chanukah observance is so important.
with a holiday story and a link to a and husband in New York. “On Cha- book or Instagram, “there’s a glimpse
MY JEWISH LEARNING/JTA WIRE SERVICE
REPRINTED WITH PERMISSION FROM “CELEBRATE! Chanukah song, “plus a video of you nukah, we were always singing ‘Maoz of peoplehood — of feeling connected
THE COMPLETE JEWISH HOLIDAY HANDBOOK.” lighting your hanukkiah at home.” Tzur’ (‘Rock of Ages’) really badly to the Jewish community and loving
Whatever form it takes, college together. And even though I’m not see CONNECTION PaGe 32

Jewish standard nOVeMBer 30, 2018 23

 Chanukah
Menorahs, magic,
and memories
Chanukah conjures up
startling senior moments
DEBORAH FINEBLUM of a menorah ablaze or a child’s

T
he menorah’s candles
illuminating the dark
outside never truly burn
out. The latkes sizzling
in the pan still give off their heav-
enly perfume, and the dreidel of
youth spins on and on, preserv-
ing forever the wonder of long-ago
Chanukahs.
So even the sound of the Chanu-
kah blessings and “I Had a Little
Dreidel,” or if you are Sephardic,
quite possibly “Chanarot Hallalu”
Margery B. Sterns, 96, lights the menorah with her daughter Sandra. (“This Candle”),” even the sight
chubby fingers prying open the
gold foil hiding chocolate gelt can
awaken the memories from their
slumber, suddenly as clear as those
starry December nights more than
a half-century ago. Here are nine
seniors’ memories to savor, one
for each candle:
First Candle
For Sarah Devorah Henning, the
holiday’s sights, smells, and fla-
vors are set against the backdrop
of her grandparents’ apartment
in Washington, D.C., populated

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24 Jewish standard nOVeMBer 30, 2018
by endless aunts, uncles, and cousins.
There are dancing candles in the meno-
rah, a mountainous platter of latkes
topped with cinnamon applesauce, a
brisket, chocolate coins, and little gifts
for all of the children. Also locked in her
memory are the smells and sounds of
“the men folk smoking cigars and play-
ing pinochle, and the ladies cooking and
chatting.” And since the highlight of the
evening was the lively dreidel game, the
kids went straight to the special drawer
in the buffet, where their grandparents
stashed their dreidel collection, and
took over the coffee table in the liv-
ing room for a game that lasted hours.
While Henning has traveled far over the
years — now 67, she makes her home in
Ramat Beit Shemesh, Israel — ”there are
so many warm memories,” she says six
decades after the last latke was eaten and
the last dreidel put back in the drawer.
“Chanukah was always a special time.”
Second Candle
Besides the traditional dreidel spinning,
the Goldstein family of Brooklyn devel-
oped its own Chanukah version of the
game “Hide-and-Go-Seek.” Jacob ( Jack)
Goldstein, 85, of East Northport, N.Y.,
remembers that “we’d find Judaic items
throughout the house: tallis, mezuzah, a
Star of David on a chain, and, of course,
the menorah.” Because money was tight
for his dad, a tailor, the holiday was an
opportunity to stock up on new shoes,
pants, and maybe a winter coat when
their old ones got too snug. “But that
didn’t matter to us. We each got to light a
candle, starting with the oldest on down,”
he recalls. “Our father sang the blessings
while our mother made the latkes, and
they were absolutely delicious.”
Third Candle
Back in the 1980s — when Miriam
Kitrossky was still known as Marina
and living with her husband, Levi, and
their small daughter in Moscow — Jewish
observance was risky business, includ-
ing lighting the Chanukah candles. “I
remember when we began keeping the
holidays in 1979,” recalls Kitrossky, a
refusenik granted permission to leave
the former Soviet Union eight years later
with their three children, destination
Israel. But before they were released,
they would attend an underground Jew-
ish school in Moscow, where Chanukah
meant performances, celebrations, and
menorah-lighting. “We weren’t allowed
to have Jewish schools at the time, so if
you were found attending one, you were
called in for interrogation, or you’d find
your house has been searched.” One
friend who was printing Jewish holiday
books for children in his home received
a warning from the government: “If
you continue doing this, there will be
WE LIGHT UP FACES YEAR-ROUND.
trouble.” Another school organizer was
imprisoned. “But we still went. In Rus- HELP US SPREAD LIGHT THIS
sia, Chanukah was powerful for people
Chanukah
needing Judaism, but not yet able to keep
Shabbat or kashrut,” says Kitrossky, who
at 60 now lives with her husband in the
Jerusalem suburb of Ma’ale Adumim,
and is the mother of seven and a grand-
mother many times over. “Here in Israel,
our grandchildren celebrate Chanukah in
school, but in a way, it was more special
in Moscow. In Moscow, you had to really
want it, and it was something great.”
Fourth Candle
For Esther Hasser, Chanukah always will
be remembered as a mountain of dirt
alight with dozens of candles. Each of
the children in the neighborhood would
bring a candle, and her parents would
stick them in the ground like a giant
menorah. “We’d each get to light one,
and we’d sing songs and dance around
them,” says Hasser, who was born in
1949, the first of 12 siblings to be a native
Israeli, when the country was a mere year
old. Her parents and three older siblings
were part of the tidal wave of immigra-
tion from Yemen and other Arab lands in
the 1950s, and were given a plot of land
in Pardes Hanna and told to build a home
on it. The home her father built, stone
by stone, consisting of a kitchen and a
second room, housed the family of 14 for
Happy Chanukah
years. “This was a small village then with
more clementine orchards [pardes] than
houses,” she recalls. Now, Hasser gath-
ers her six children, 15 grandchildren,
and her little great-granddaughter for a FROM AMERICAN FRIENDS OF MEIR PANIM
boisterous celebration every Chanukah.
“My son sings the blessings with the old
Yemenite melody,” says Hasser who still
Meir Panim works every day to alleviate the
lives on the same block she was born on. harmful effects of poverty on thousands of
“It’s a happy time.”
families across Israel through a network of
Fifth Candle Restaurant-Style Soup Kitchens, Meals-on-
Potatoes did double Chanukah duty for
the family of Marty (“Mayer”) Weiss, Wheels, After-School Youth Clubs, school lunch
one of nine children growing up in the programs, and prepaid food card distribution.
small Czechoslovakian town of Polana.
“We had no menorah, and there were
no candles back then.” So his mother
cut a potato in half, dug out nine holes,
and filled each one with oil and a wick
she made by twisting cotton balls. “It
worked,” says Weiss, now 89 and living
in suburban Washington, D.C. The kids
got out of cheder ( Jewish school) ear-
lier than the usual 8 p.m., rushing home
with great excitement. “We were allowed
MEIRPANIMUSA.ORG
to eat many latkes and doughnuts with INFO@MEIRPANIMUSA.ORG | 888.404.3590
homemade preserves, spin dreidels
American Friends of Meir Panim
my brother carved out of wood and
play cards way past our bedtime,” says 5316 New Utrecht Avenue, 3rd Floor - Brooklyn, NY 11219
Weiss, who regularly speaks with school Contributions are tax-deductible in the U.S. Tax ID #20-1582478
see SENIOR MOMENTS PaGe 33
Jewish standard nOVeMBer 30, 2018 25
 Chanukah
Keepin’ the celebration really cozy
with traditional Scottish ‘keepin’ cakes’
Sure, latkes are on the menu, but so are these
buttery treats, which take tastes to a new level
ETHEL G. HOFMAN
G
et ready to light the first candle, sing songs,
play dreidel games, and, of course, eat. But
are we ready to indulge in all the rich holiday
dishes in honor of Judith the Jewish heroin
Diet be damned! I’ll bake, serve and savor every morsel
of my mother’s buttery cakes. Memories, unbidden, flash
through my mind; I’m transported to my mother’s Shet-
land Island kitchen. (The Shetlands are a group of islands
in the North Atlantic, north and west of Great Britain, part
of Scotland, and home, among other things, of ponies and
Fair Isle knits.)
For Jean Greenwald, Chanukah was more than latkes,
though she fried up dozens every night, only to be
devoured by me and my brothers as soon as they were
cool enough to eat.
26 Jewish standard nOVeMBer 30, 2018
But it was her Chanukah cakes that spring to mind all
these years later. “Keepin’ cakes,” she called them. She
was probably influenced by the extensive make-ahead
baking that Scots do in preparation of Hogmanay (the
riotous Scottish New Year’s Eve celebration). Rich, but-
tery (and a different oil of sorts), and studded with dried
fruits and spices, they were baked in advance, and tightly
wrapped and stored.
The highlight for the first night of Chanukah was Whisky
Fruit Cake. Forget the tough, tasteless, shamefully “lac-
quered” fruitcake that appears every winter in stores
throughout our nation. My mother’s version was baked six
weeks earlier. The whisky-infused cake was crowned with
a layer of marzipan, toasted, and again wrapped in whisky-
soaked cheesecloth before storing in an airtight container.
Unwrapped, each slice was moist, rich and aromatic with
a kick. What else when it had been doused with Dad’s best
single-malt whisky?
These “keepin’ cakes” won my mother the highest com-
pliment: “a superb baker.” On our island home, doors
were never locked. Friends and neighbors would drop in
unannounced, especially during the eight days of Chanu-
kah. They were sure of a welcoming pot of tea, and kept
warm under a padded tea cosy and a luscious variety of
Jean Greenwald’s “keepin’ cakes.” Tea, cakes and gossip,
repeated every afternoon in our bright, warm kitchen.
At these tea times, my mother never failed to tell the
story of the biblical Judith, who fed Holofernes, the enemy
general, enormous quantities of cheese (possibly a smooth
rich ricotta or cream cheese that slips down easily), then
plied him with copious drafts of heavy red wine to quench
his resulting thirst. As planned, he fell into a stupor so
deep that he was quickly beheaded by Judith. Without
their leader, the enemy fled, and Judith’s town was saved.
 MICHAEL LEBSON PRIGOFF, ESQ
Managing Attorney

WILLS & ESTATES

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LEBSON & PRIGOFF, LLC TRICKY TRAY TOYS
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Her bravery is said to have inspired Judah Maccabee
and his followers to clean and rededicate the sacred
Temple in the second century BCE.
Not only at Chanukah, but year-round, Roly-Poly was
hands-on favorite. A cross between cake and cookie,
it’s a catchall for the last spoonful of jam left in the jar,
any variety of dried fruits and candied peel, even a
diced apple. My mother made her own flaky pastry — a
laborious job. No need these days. We can pick up fro-
zen puff pastry at the market, thawed and ready to use.
I can still smell the spicy sweet aromas greeting me
when I came home from school on cold winter days.
Half a dozen cakes, including Glazed Cherry Loaf, Car-
away-Seed Cake, Coconut Coffee Cake and that star —
Whisky Fruit Cake — resting on wire racks with several
more still in the oven. When the cakes were completely
cooled, I helped wrap each one tightly in grease-proof
paper (the British version of our wax paper), sealed
with adhesive tape and tied with string.
Although my mother’s “keepin’ cake” custom
originated many years ago, the bake and store-ahead
method fits in admirably well with contemporary fran-
tic schedules. Other than the Whisky Fruit Cake, these
desserts — all rich in butter — can be stored three to
four days before serving. Wrap and store in a cool, dry
place; the day of serving, bring to room temperature.
All of these cakes may be frozen, removed from the
freezer about four to six hours before serving. Chanukah, one creamy
bite at a time.
Ingredient lists are simple. You probably have most
of them in the house, such as eggs, sugar, butter and
flour. A list of ingredients to buy and cook’s tips are
included with each recipe.
Happy Chanukah from the Shetland Islands!

General Tips and Tricks:

• No need to use a heavy Mixmaster, which I’ve
relegated to the basement (just in case one far-off Light up your Chanukah, with the
day I should need it.) A hand-held electric mixer delicious creamy taste of Breakstone’s.
does the job, and it’s easy to clean.
Get yours today!
• For fail-safe turnout, line the bottom of baking pans
with wax paper after spraying with nonstick baking
spray.
• To soften butter, cut into six or seven pieces. Leave
in a covered bowl at room temperature overnight.

see RECIPES PaGe 28

Jewish standard nOVeMBer 30, 2018 27


Glacé Cherry Loaf (Dairy)
serves 10-12
COOK’S TIPS:
• Cut cherries in halves with kitchen
scissors.
• toss with 2 teaspoons flour to avoid
sticking and dropping to bottom of
cake.
• in a pinch, use vanilla extract instead of
almond.
Buy: Glacé cherries, almond extract
Rabbi
Aryeh
Lebowitz
has served as the The event will be held at a private residence in Teaneck, NJ.
‫ מרא דאתרא‬of Beis Haknesses
of North Woodmere since
its founding in 2004. As of
Fall 2016, Rabbi Lebowitz
serves as a Rebbe at Lander
College for Men (Beis
Medrash L’Talmud). Prior
to joining Lander College,
Rabbi Lebowitz was a rebbe
at DRS Yeshiva High School
from 1999 to 2016.
Rabbi Lebowitz is an alumnus
of Yeshivat Kerem B’Yavneh,
Yeshiva University and its
Isaac Elchanan
Theological Seminary.
Rabbi Lebowitz is the author of
Sefer Hakoneh Olamo (2 volumes
to date), a collection of essays
(Hebrew) on contemporary halachic
topics, and has published numerous
articles on practical halacha in
various journals, including the Journal
of Halacha and Contemporary
Society. He has spoken and lectured in
communities throughout the country and
internationally. His thousands of recorded
shiurim on gemara and derush, including a
daf yomi shiur with an abbreviated summary
of a relevant / practical halakhic topic,
are available at YUTorah.org and
have gained widespread
popularity.
28 Jewish standard nOVeMBer 30, 2018
Chanukah
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup glacé cherries, halved
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 sticks (7 ounces) butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon allspice or nutmeg
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Line the bottom of a medium-size loaf
pan (8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2 inch) with wax
paper. spray bottom and sides of pan
with nonstick cooking spray with flour.
toss the cherries with 2 teaspoons of the
flour. set aside.
in a medium bowl, beat the butter, sugar
and almond extract until pale, 1-2 min-
utes. add the eggs, one at a time, along
with about 1/4 cup of the flour. Mix well.
add the baking powder, allspice or nut-
meg, and the remaining flour, gradually
THE FRISCH SCHOOL
‫ישיבת פריש‬
PRESENTS
THE DISTINGUISHED SPEAKERS SERIES
Tell Me You Love Me:
How to Express What
Every Child Needs to Hear
Presentation by
Rabbi Aryeh Lebowitz
Tuesday
December 11, 2018
7:30 pm
Details will be provided upon RSVP.
RSVP to cheryl.leiser@frisch.org or 201.267.9100 ext.221
The Miriam and Daniel Michael Distinguished Speakers
Series was established to provide Frisch students with
opportunities to enhance their understanding of Jewish
thought through exposure to renowned Jewish
scholars in a variety of disciplines. The Speakers
Series, open to students and their families,
seeks to inspire intellectual and religious
growth in its participants by facilitating
greater thoughtfulness and reflection on
the great ideas of the Jewish tradition.
Leading thinkers will discuss
contemporary issues in an
effort to advance the
Jewish future in the
modern age.
mixing to blend. Using a wooden
spoon, fold in the cherries. transfer
mixture to prepared loaf pan, smooth-
ing the top with a spoon.
Bake in preheated oven for 50 min-
utes or until risen, golden and a tooth-
pick comes out clean when inserted
in center. Cool completely before
wrapping.
Coconut
Coffee Cake (Dairy)
serves 10-12
instant coffee for wake-up flavor; un-
sweetened coconut gives crunch.
COOK’S TIPS:
•if using sweetened coconut, omit the
honey.
to buy: Unsweetened shredded
coconut
INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) unsalted butter,
softened
3/4 cup, plus 2 tablespoons sugar
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons instant coffee granules
2 tablespoons honey, warmed
1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
Shredded coconut to sprinkle
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Line the bottom of an 8-inch square
baking pan with wax paper to fit.
spray with nonstick cooking spray
with flour. set aside.
Cut the butter into 6 pieces. in a
medium bowl, beat the butter and
sugar until pale and fluffy (about 1-2
minutes).
add the eggs, one at a time, along
with about 1/4 cup flour. Beat in the
remaining flour, baking powder, cof-
fee and honey. stir in the coconut.
transfer to prepared baking dish.
Bake in preheated oven for 40-45
minutes, or until a toothpick inserted
in center comes out clean. Cool on
a wire rack for 10 minutes before re-
moving from pan to cool completely.
Cut into squares to serve.
Caraway-Seed
Cake (Dairy)
serves 10-12
in the fall, armed with a tin cup, i was
sent to gather the pungent seeds of
the caraway plants that grew wild by
the roadside. Caraway is a popular
scottish (and Jewish) flavoring. if you
love seeded rye bread, then this is
your cake!
COOK’S TIPS:
• substitute frozen orange-juice
concentrate with 2 tablespoons
orange juice and 1/2 teaspoon
orange extract.
• Buy caraway seeds and spices from
a general spice store or natural-
foods market, where you can
measure exactly what you need.
it’s much fresher and cheaper than
buying premium glass jars of seeds
at the supermarket.
to Buy: Caraway seeds, frozen
orange-juice concentrate Or orange
juice and orange extract
INGREDIENTS:
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter,
softened
3/4 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon frozen orange-juice
concentrate, thawed
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons caraway seeds
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Line bottom of 1 1/2 quart cake pan,
ovenproof soufflé dish or 9x5x3-inch
loaf pan with wax paper cut to fit.
spray with nonstick cooking spray
with flour.
in a medium bowl, cream butter and
sugar until pale (about 1-2 minutes).
Beat in eggs, one at a time, with
about 1/4 cup flour. if curdling occurs,
don’t panic! add 2-3 tablespoons
flour and whisk on. Cake will not be
compromised.
add the orange-juice concentrate, or
orange juice and orange extract. Mix
well. add in remaining flour and bak-
ing powder, about 1/4 cup at a time,
mixing well after each addition. stir in
the caraway seeds. turn into prepared
pan, smoothing top with a spoon.
Bake in preheated oven 45 to 55 min-
utes, or until a toothpick inserted in
center comes out clean. Cool slightly.
Loosen edges with a round bladed
knife before turning onto a wire rack
to cool completely.
 Little Joe & John’s
BARBER SHOP
Styles for Men, Women and Children
Senior Discounts Tuesday & Wednesday
Roly-Poly (Dairy)
serves 8-10 We speak Russian and Hebrew
223 Rock Road, Glen Rock, NJ
COOK’S TIPS:
• Purchase puff-pastry sheets from the
supermarket in the frozen-food case.
• any dried fruits or a mixture of them, such as
201-652-8977
raisins, currants or chopped apricots, may be www.littlejoeandjohnsbarbershop.com
used.
• Use up that jam/preserves at the bottom of the OPEN EARLY MORNINGS,
jar. if crystallized, microwave 12-15 seconds until OPEN
melted.
SUNDAYS EVENINGS & SUNDAYS!
• instead of ricotta cheese, a mild grated cheese
like Muenster or white cheddar may be used. 9-2 Hours: Tues-Wed 7:30-6, Thurs 7:30-7,
Kids love getting haircuts in
• no chocolate chips? Grate any chocolate you Fri 7:30-6, Sat 7-6, Sun 9-2 our police car with sirens!
may have on hand.
• Keep cinnamon-sugar on hand. Mix 3 tablespoons
of granulated sugar with 2-3 teaspoons cinnamon.
store in a tightly lidded container in the kitchen
cupboard. Use as needed.
to Buy: frozen puff-pastry sheets, ricotta (or

Being
other) cheese, mixed dried fruits, chocolate chips
INGREDIENTS:
1 sheet (about 8 ounces) frozen puff pastry, thawed
1-2 tablespoons preserves

first.
3 tablespoons ricotta cheese
1/2 cup mixed dried fruits
1/4 cup chocolate chips or grated chocolate
1 teaspoon cinnamon sugar
DIRECTIONS:

It’s in her
Preheat oven to 410 degrees.
Line a baking sheet with foil. spray with nonstick
baking spray with flour.

blood.
Unroll the pastry sheet and lay on a flat surface.
spread with preserves to within 1/2 inch of edges.
repeat with ricotta cheese. sprinkle dried fruits
and chocolate over top.
Brush the top edge with a little water. roll up
loosely, and press ends and top edge to seal. Place
sealed-side down on a prepared baking sheet.
Prick all over surface, about 10 times, with a fork.
Bake in a preheated oven 25-30 minutes, un-
til risen and nicely browned. it should be firm to
the touch. Cool slightly on a wire tray. slice 1-inch
thick. serve warm or at room temperature.

Tehila Brezinger
First Responder

Tehila is one of our first responders who perform more than

500 resuscitations each month. When a call for help goes out,
your support helps power the next-generation technology
Whisky Fruit Cake (Dairy) she relies on to arrive in minutes. We’re Israel’s emergency
medical services organization, Magen David Adom.
serves 15-20
don’t be put off by long ingredient list! after all,
it’s a once-a-year holiday. to help it along, mea-
As we celebrate Chanukah, please give the gift of life, and
sure everything out the night beforehand. Put dry make your year-end tax-deductible donation today.
ingredients in one bowl, and fruits and nuts in an-
other. then mix and bake. Saving lives. It’s in our blood – and it’s in yours, too.
COOK’S TIPS:
• May substitute brandy for whisky.
• Marzipan or almond paste is available in spice
shops and supermarkets. do not refrigerate.
to Buy: Ground almonds, brown sugar, currants, Save a life in Israel with a gift to support Magen David Adom.
raisins, chopped walnuts, diced candied orange Donate on AFMDA.org/give or call 866.632.2763
peel, glacé cherries, marzipan (optional) afmda.org

see RECIPES PaGe 35

Jewish standard nOVeMBer 30, 2018 29

 Chanukah

The Rintel Menorah, which was sold for $563,000, is Holland’s

priciest object of its kind. AMSTERDAM JEWISH HISTORICAL MUSEUM

One of the world’s

costliest menorahs
hides in plain sight
in a Dutch museum
CNAAN LIPHSHIZ

AMSTERDAM — Nothing about the appearance of object

MB02280 at this city’s Jewish Historical Museum suggests
it is the capital’s priciest Chanukah menorah, worth more
than the average local price of a duplex home.
It is only 16 inches tall, and it is shaped like the body of a
violin. Its base cradles eight detachable oil cups intended
to function as candles on Chanukah, when Jews light can-
dles to commemorate a 167 BCE revolt against the Greek
and Syrian oppressors. They are set against the menorah’s
smooth, reflective surface, whose edges boast elaborate
rococo reliefs.
But for all its charms, the Nieuwenhuys menorah — its
creator was the non-Jewish silversmith Harmanus Nieu-
wenhuys — doesn’t stand out from the other menorahs on
display next to it at the museum. Far from the oldest one
there, the menorah certainly doesn’t look like it’s worth
its estimated price of $450,000.
The Nieuwenhuys menorah can hide in plain sight
because its worth owes “more to its story than to its phys-
ical characteristics,” said Irene Faber, the museum’s col-
lections curator.
Made in 1751 for an unidentified Jewish patron, the Nieu-
wenhuys menorah’s story encapsulates the checkered his- Despite its humble appearance, The Amsterdam Jewish Historical Museum’s Nieuwenhuys menorah costs
tory of Dutch Jewry. And it is tied to the country’s royal more than many of the city’s houses. AMSTERDAM JEWISH HISTORICAL MUSEUM

family, as well as a Jewish war hero who gave his life for his
country and his name to one of its most cherished tourist
attractions.
The price tag of the Nieuwenhuys menorah, which does
not have an official name, is roughly known because a very
similar menorah made by the same silversmith fetched
an unprecedented $441,000 at a 2016 auction. A collec-
tor who remained anonymous clinched it at the end of an
unexpected bidding war that made international news. It
initially was expected to fetch no more than $15,000.
Another reason for the more vigorous bidding: The
menorah came from the collection of the Maduros, a
well-known Portuguese Jewish family that produced one
of Holland’s most celebrated war heroes. The Nazis mur-
dered George Maduro at Dachau after they caught him
smuggling downed British pilots back home. In 1952, his
parents built one of Holland’s must-see tourist attrac-
tions in his memory: the Madurodam, a miniature city.
“I imagine the connection to the Maduro family drove
up the price,” said Nathan Bouscher, the director of the
Corinphila Auctions house south of Amsterdam, which
has handled items connected with famous Dutch Jews.
Besides the menorah on display at the Jewish Histori-
cal Museum, the Netherlands has another very expensive
one in the Rintel Menorah. It’s a 4-footer that the Jew-
ish Historical Museum bought last year for a whopping
$563,000. Far more ostentatious than the modest-looking
Nieuwenhuys menorah, the Rintel, from 1753, is made of

30 Jewish standard nOVeMBer 30, 2018

 GLUTEN FREE, NUT FREE KOSHER BAKERY!
Enjoy our delicious Chanukah treats*:
Jelly Donuts • Linzer Tarts • Cookie Platters
Cupcakes • Cocolate Rugulach • Pies • Breads and more...

*Orders must
be placed
2 days in advance
pure silver and weighs several kilograms. It is cur- All baking from scratch and done on premises
rently on loan to the Kroller-Muller Museum 50 miles 204 Diamond Bridge Ave., Hawthorne, NJ • 973 - 304 - 4500
east of Amsterdam. www.ibglutenfree.com • Wed. – Sat. 9 am – 6 pm
The Jewish Historical Museum has no intention of Kitchen certifi ed kosher dairy by OK Kosher
selling the Nieuwenhuys, Faber said, although it could Store supervised by Rabbi Bernhard Rosenberg/Kosher supervision
attract even more spectacular bids owing to its prov-
enance: It was bought by the late queen of the Nether-
lands, Wilhelmina, as a gift for her mother and given to
the museum by her grandson, King Willem-Alexander.
“We don’t know who commissioned the work, but
from the reputation of the artist and the amount of
labor it took, it was probably a wealthy Jewish family,
perhaps of Sephardic descent,” Faber said.
At the center of the object is a round network of ara-
besque-like decorations “that probably contains the
owner’s initials in a monogram, but we haven’t been
able to decipher it,” Faber said. “It’s a riddle.”
The monogram was one of several techniques that
Nieuwenhuys and other Christian silversmiths in
the Netherlands had developed for their rich Jewish
clients.
Before the 19th century, no Jews were allowed to
smith silver in the Netherlands because they were
excluded from the Dutch silversmiths guilds, which
were abolished in the 1800s.
“This exclusion was beneficial [to the guild] because
it kept out competition, but it meant that Christian
smiths needed to become experts at making Jewish
religious artifacts like this menorah,” Faber said.
Works like the menorah on display at the museum
illustrate how some Jewish customers clearly were art
lovers with sophisticated tastes.
Whereas the Maduro menorah was symmetrical,
with Baroque highlights, the Nieuwenhuys is asym-
metrical, with rococo characteristics that were “pretty
avant-garde for its time,” Faber said. The smooth sur-
faces are “another bold choice, showing finesse,” she
added.
Whoever owned the menorah no longer possessed

WHAT THE BEST DRESSED BABIES

it by 1907, when Queen Wilhelmina bought it for an
unknown price at an auction to give it as a gift to her
mother, Princess Emma.
This purchase may appear inconsequential to a con-
IN JERUSALEM ARE WEARING.
temporary observer, but its significance becomes evi-
dent when examined against the backdrop of institu- More than 22,000 babies a year are born at Shaare Zedek Medical Center — among
tionalized anti-Semitism among other European royal the most of any hospital in the world. With Shaare Zedek’s reputation for excellence
houses and governments. and focus on compassionate care, women know that their concerns and comfort will
The German Emperor Wilhelm II, a contemporary receive the attention and respect they deserve.
of Wilhelmina, was a passionate anti-Semite who
famously said in 1925 that “Jews and mosquitoes are a Founded in 1902, Shaare Zedek has spent more than a century helping patients heal
nuisance that humankind must get rid of some way or through exceptional caregiving and cutting-edge treatments. Jerusalem’s preeminent
another,” adding “I believe the best way is Gas.” hospital, Shaare Zedek relies on the generosity of donors from around the world.
Belgium’s King Leopold III was more politically cor- Please join us with a year-end gift today.
rect, stating magnanimously in 1942 that he has “no
personal animosity” toward Jews, but declaring them
nonetheless “a danger” to his country. He raised no
objections when the Germans and their collaborators
began deporting Belgian Jews to their deaths.
But in the Netherlands, where thousands of Jews
found haven after fleeing the Spanish and Portu-
www.acsz.org | national@acsz.org | 212.764.8116
guese Inquisition of the 16th century, royals not only
refrained from such statements but were genuinely
“interested in other faiths, including the Jewish one,”
see HOLLAND PaGe 35

Jewish standard nOVeMBer 30, 2018 31

 Connection
FrOM PaGe 23
the chance to share that pride with the digital world.”
While young adults are celebrating beloved traditions
from childhood, young children are busy forming their
memories, and grandparents want to be part of that
happy process.
Even when she can’t be with them on the holiday, Ann
Wanetik, who lives in the Detroit area, takes advantage of
her visits to her eight grandchildren, all of whom happen
to live in one small country in the Middle East. “Whenever
I’m in Israel in the fall, I take each one out separately and
let them choose what they want for Chanukah,” she says.
“It’s an opportunity to have some time alone with each
one, focus on what that child enjoys most and buy them
something special they pick out themselves.”
Taking advantage of
Skype and the internet
For Boston-area grandmother Ruth Nemzoff, technol-
ogy shrinks the miles between her and her long-dis-
tance grandkids. “You’ve got to get with the program,”
she says.
So Nemzoff, author of “Don’t Roll Your Eyes: Making
In-Laws Into Family,” and known as Mama Ruth to her 11
grands, ages 8 months to 18 years, has developed a full
program of Chanukah connections with the grandkids on
the West Coast and in Washington, D.C.
“No matter what, when you live at a distance you have to
be resourceful in creating Chanukah with your grandchil-
dren, but with interfaith ones, it’s even more important,”
says Nemzoff, who is a board member at InterfaithFamily.
“I’m not big on materialism, and the goal is not to com-
pete with the gifts under the tree, but I do want to share
this special tradition with them,” she adds.
The internet makes much of this possible, she main-
tains. Through it she uses it to send her younger grand-
kids “Shalom Sesame” DVDs and the older ones Chanukah
songs, including Maccabeats Chanukah tunes. She’ll send
small gifts, and in this Skype-able world arrange to light
the candles, open gifts and even make latkes “together”
(doable with her West Coast family three hours away on
Pacific Standard Time). “Sometimes, I also email them a
picture of the gift they’ll get the next time we visit.”
With interfaith families, it’s important to be both sensi-
tive and honest, says Nemzoff. “You need to talk to the
parents first so they won’t feel you are converting the kids
or competing, but [it’s important to] share your family’s
traditions, your early memories of Chanukah and your
heritage since it also belongs to them.”
Sometimes, even with the best of distance-spanners,
it’s hard to beat the appeal of a sloppy sufganyiot-
flavored kiss.
“We usually just get on a plane,” says Baltimore bubbe
Belle Libber with a sigh. Whether it’s going to the grand-
kids in Milwaukee, Atlanta, or Israel (one daughter and
family do live nearby), Libber and her husband Jonathan
have racked up the frequent-flyer miles. “There’s nothing
like being right there with them,” she says.
When that isn’t possible, love itself can travel at the
speed of light — namely, the light of the Chanukah meno-
rah, says Rabbi Yisroel Gordon, principal of Machon Los
Angeles, a high school for girls. “One reason Chanukah
makes a lot of people really homesick is the power of the
menorah light itself, the only remnant we still have of the
priests’ service in the holy temple,” he says. “Chanukah
reminds us of the importance of family since it was one
courageous Jewish family, Matisyahu and his five sons,
who created this miracle and saved the Jewish people.”
“If I were a mystic,” he adds, “I’d say that, gazing at the
lights, you can feel that wherever they are, your child is
gazing at the same lights along with you.” JNS.ORG

R.C.B.C

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Senior Moments
FrOM PaGe 23
groups for the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. All
this halted abruptly in 1944 when the family was taken
to the ghetto, eventually landing the teenaged Weiss
in Auschwitz. “For me, there were no holidays in the
camp,” he says. “We were too tired and too hungry to
even think about that.” Only Weiss and his sister sur-
vived Auschwitz, and they, along with a brother who’d
lived through forced labor in Russia, were the family’s
sole survivors. As for Chanukah, his own four grand-
kids “really know how to celebrate,” he says. “I’m the
only one of my family who lived long enough to have
nachas from grandchildren, so I’m not going to miss
this opportunity to celebrate with them.”
Chanukah
and sisters, to announce that the family would be Catho-
lics no longer, but Jews. “They gave the five oldest kids the
choice of whether or not to become Jewish, but the rest of
us were automatically included in the family conversion,”
recalls Golan. And suddenly, since there were few Jews in
their town, they were now outsiders. “Gone was the tree;
my parents put up a wreath in the shape of a Magen David,
my dad picked up a menorah at the closest Judaica shop,
and pretty soon, our relatives stopped visiting. My parents
said it was just a price we had to pay to be Jews,” she recalls.
Now 64 and a longtime resident of Kibbutz Hama’apil with
her husband (five of the 15 siblings live in Israel), Chanukah
is something that her three children and grandchildren have
as a birthright. “They grew up with no doubt that this tradi-
tion belongs to them,” says Golan. “It’s a wonderful thing.”
Ninth Candle
Margery B. Sterns can recall perfectly the look on her moth-
er’s face when she blessed the Chanukah candles. “She cov-
ered her face and became very quiet in that same old-fash-
ioned way as when she lit the Shabbos candles,” says Sterns,
who, at 96, is a longtime resident of San Francisco. But as
the fifth of six children of Russian immigrants to Grand
Forks, S.D., the family was one of only six families in the
town’s tiny synagogue. Sterns says she also clearly recalls
her father praying his own prayers over the candles. “Some-
times, he was so moved by his davening, he would cry,” she
recalls. “I believed that my father knew everything about
Chanukah and everything about life. Ours was a beautiful
Jewish home, just a beautiful way to grow up.”
JNS WIRE SERVICE

Sixth Candle
Growing up in Ethiopia, Bracha Emees recalls a special
kind of sufganiyot as the treat for Chanukah. But unlike
in other places, the traditional holiday doughnuts con-
tained no filling, she insists through her daughter, who
translates. Instead, the miracle of this Chanukah was
in the dough — so yeasty that it exploded in the bowl to
heights that amazed the children. Then she’d watch,
fascinated, while the candles burned in the menorah,
as her mother boiled the sufganiyot in a huge pot.
Now that Emees, 60, and her six children are in Israel,
arriving among the influx of Ethiopian Jews during the
1980s and early ’90s, Chanukah is a more lively, com-
munal holiday, enjoyed keenly by her seven grand-
children. “It is good to be here because there are Jews
here,” she says with a smile. “In Ethiopia, there were
almost none.”

Seventh Candle
Shlomo Berlinger can still recall every detail of the
Chanukah ceremony in Sweden. It was the only child-
hood home he remembers since his family escaped
Germany in 1931, when he was just 3 years old. “Cha-
nukah was a magical time that my two sisters and I
looked forward to for weeks,” he recalls. On the first
night, his father, a rabbi, would collect the family, and
ceremoniously light the candles and intone the bless-
ings. “Then my father would open the door to the next
room where were three small tables, each holding a
gift for one of us — toys and other things that would
make us happy — with one standout: an elaborate
carved chess set with a clock set in it.” They were also
given “treats we had at no other time,” says Berlinger,
who now lives with his wife, Rut, in a senior home in
Jerusalem not far from their daughter and four grand-
children. “It was a very great moment.”

Eighth Candle
Growing up in a small town in Michigan, Leah Golan
knew next to nothing about Chanukah, or for that
matter, Judaism, until she was 14. Soon after the Six-
Day War, their father called her, and her 14 brothers

Jewish standard nOVeMBer 30, 2018 33

 UPCOMING AT KAPLEN JCC on the Palisades
PATRON OF THE ARTS PRESENTS
FIDF @ THE J PA

Dr. Tal Becker

IDENTITY, RELIGION AND JUSTICE:
A DEEPER LOOK AT THE ISRAELI-
PALESTINIAN RELATIONSHIP

An expert on Israeli foreign policy and

international law, Dr. Becker, principal deputy
legal adviser at the Israeli Ministry of Foreign
Affairs and senior member of the Israeli peace
negotiation team, will speak about what it’s
like to serve on the front lines of so many of
Israel’s most pressing diplomatic, legal and
policy challenges.
Thur, Dec 6, 7:30 pm, $10, jccotp.org/fidf

Give the Gift of Music this

Chanukah Season!
See your child’s face light up as they unveil
a gift that keeps on giving – private music
lessons at the amazing Thurnauer School
of Music! Children learn from distinguished
faculty and enjoy frequent performance
opportunities. For more info call 201.408.1465.

Come Join Us for a Family

Chanukah Celebration!
Light up the night with us. Bring your family to
the J for an exciting night of Chanukah fun
featuring a riveting laser light show, holiday treats,
art, and candle lighting.
Sat, Dec 8, 6-8 pm, $5/person or $20/family;
children under 2 free
Advance registration is suggested. Please register
at jccotp.org/school-age-special-events

KIDS ADULTS KIDS

December Vacation Camps The Simpsons Writer Mike THE LEONARD & SYRIL RUBIN NURSERY SCHOOL

FILL YOUR CHILD'S DAY WITH FUN AND
LAUGHTER WHEN SCHOOL IS OUT!
AGES K-5: Trips to Bounce U, Bowler City,
Liberty Science Center and more!
Mon, Dec 24; Wed, Dec 26; Thur, Dec 27;
Fri, Dec 28; & Mon, Dec 31; 9 am-4 pm
AGES 3-PRE–K: Magic Show, PJ Library
Storybook Theater, Child's Play Challenge
Course, Shabbat Shaboom!, and more!
Fri, Dec 14; Mon, Dec 24; Wed, Dec 26;
Thur, Dec 27; Fri, Dec 28; & Mon, Dec 31;
9 am-4 pm
Contact Melissa Peters at 201.408.1467 or
mpeters@jccotp.org for more information.
Reiss Comes to the JCC PA
Mike Reiss, The Simpsons longest-serving
writer and producer, gives a behind-the-
scenes look at the legendary show that has
been one of the most revered in television
history. He’ll discuss his memoir Springfield
Confidential and share the stories, scandals
and gossip about the series, starring the most
iconic cartoon family ever. Sponsored in part
by the James H. Grossmann Memorial Book
Endowment Fund.
Miss this one and you’ll be saying, “D’oh!”
Sat, Dec 1, 8 pm, $20/$25
Upcoming Open House
3 Months-Kindergarten
Looking for a warm, child-centered preschool with
a progressive curriculum rooted in Jewish values?
You’ve found it! Come see for yourself and tour our
facilities, meet our amazing teachers, and learn what
makes our school academically and developmentally
appropriate for your child. For more info contact us
at nurseryschool@jccotp.org or 201.408.1436.
Tue, Dec 18, 7-8 pm, registration recommended:
jccotp.org/nsopenhouse
TO REGISTER OR FOR MORE INFO
VISIT jccotp.org
STAY IN THE KNOW! LIKE US ON

PA Program offered as part of the JCC Patron of the Arts Program. Find out more at jccotp.org/patrons.
facebook.com/KaplenJCCOTP

KAPLEN JCC on the Palisades TAUB CAMPUS | 411 E CLINTON AVE, TENAFLY, NJ 07670 | 201.569.7900 | jccotp.org
34 Jewish Standard NOVEMBER 30, 2018
 Chanukah
Jewish World

Holland
FrOM PaGe 31
In countless
Faber said. Jews and the Royal House, which under-
wartime
Wilhelmina’s gifting of a menorah to her mother went a “rupture.”
broadcasts, Queen
“isn’t strange for her,” Faber said. “I imagine she found But this was gradually healed in the post-
Wilhelmina of
it fun, something to talk about with her mother, to see war years.
the Netherlands
together how it works.” After all, “Jews have always The fact that King Willem-Alexander, Wil-
mentioned Jews
been under the protection of the royal house.” helmina’s great-grandson, in 2012 gave the
only three times.
Except, that is, during the years 1940 to 1945, when Nieuwenhuys menorah on an open-ended
NATIONAL ARCHIVE OF
Queen Wilhelmina and the royal house fled to the loan to the Jewish museum on its 90th anni- THE NETHERLANDS
United Kingdom. Wilhelmina mentioned the suffer- versary “symbolizes the healing of the rup-
ing of her Jewish subjects only three times in her radio ture,” Faber said. JTA WIRE SERVICE

speeches to the Dutch people during five years of exile.

Whereas before the war “Jews always sought the
royal house,” during and after “it appeared Wil-
helmina didn’t think too much about the Jews,” Faber
said. This was “a strain” on relations between Dutch

HOPE FOR THE

HOLIDAYS
Recipes
FrOM PaGe 29
INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup light-brown sugar

at Arbor Terrace Teaneck

4 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
3 tablespoons finely ground almonds
1 teaspoon nutmeg
2 teaspoons fresh ground pepper
We’re celebrating the holiday season with a fun raffle
1 cup currants for a good cause!
1 cup raisins
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup glacé cherries
Arbor Terrace Teaneck will raffle off fabulous gift
1/2 cup diced candied orange peel baskets. Raffle tickets cost $1, with all money collected
3-4 tablespoons whisky, plus whisky for infusing benefiting the Center for Hope and Safety, a local
weekly
Optional topping: 2 tablespoons apricot jam,
women’s shelter.
melted; 10 ounces prepared marzipan, softened
DIRECTIONS: Stop by any time for a tour and to purchase your raffle
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. tickets. Gift baskets will be displayed at the community
Line bottom of a 9-inch springform pan with wax beginning Monday, November 26.
paper to fit. spray bottom and sides with nonstick
cooking spray with flour. set aside.
Raffles will be held daily, beginning Sunday, December
Cream softened butter and sugar in a large bowl
(about 1-2 minutes). add eggs, one at time, with 2, and ending on the last day, Monday, December 10.
1/4 cup of the flour. add the baking powder and You need not be present at the drawing to win.
remaining flour gradually, about 1/4 cup at a time,
mixing well. stir in all the remaining ingredients.
Mixture will be stiff and sticky. Call for more information 201-836-9260.
transfer mixture to prepared baking pan, smooth-
ing top with a spoon. Bake in preheated oven for 1
to 1 1/4 hours, or until a toothpick comes out clean
when inserted in center. if cake seems to brown
too quickly, cover loosely with foil. Cool slightly
before removing from pan.
while still warm, prick the cake all over the top with
a metal skewer. Use a teaspoon to pour in the whis-
ky. allow to soak in thoroughly. Cool and wrap in
cheesecloth, then in foil. store in an airtight contain-
er in a cool dry place, though not in the refrigerator.
For optional topping: turn cake upside-down so
that the top is flat. Brush top and sides with melt-
ed jam. set aside. roll the marzipan on a lightly
sugared board in a circle large enough to cover
the top of the cake. Place on cake, pressing lightly.
(don’t worry if some of the marzipan hangs down
onto the sides of the cake.) Mark the marzipan
with a metal skewer in a diamond pattern. Place
under a preheated broiler just until beginning to 600 Frank W Burr Blvd., Teaneck, NJ 07666 | 201-836-9260 | ArborTeaneck.com
brown. watch carefully; this takes only seconds!
Cool and wrap as above. JNS.ORG

Jewish standard nOVeMBer 30, 2018 35

 Jewish World

The Orthodox-only rabbis Israel trusts to perform conversions

BEN SALES
Israel’s official Jewish religious authority
has published a list of rabbis it trusts to
perform Jewish conversions. They are all
Orthodox.
Advocates for religious reform in Israel
said the publication of the list of 69 rabbin-
ical courts was a mixed bag: While they are
happy to see a measure of transparency,
they said the list raises more questions
than it answers, such as why some courts
were omitted.
The chief rabbinate, a governmental
body controlled by charedi Orthodox rab-
bis, governs all recognized Jewish conver-
sions, marriages, divorces, and burials in
Israel. In other words, if the chief rabbin-
ate does not recognize someone’s Jewish
conversion, that person would not be able
to get married or divorced legally in Israel,
or buried in a Jewish cemetery there.
The chief rabbinate has never recog-
nized Reform and Conservative converts
or religious ceremonies. In recent years, it
November 21, includes dozens of rabbini-
cal courts throughout the world. Half are
in the United States. The American courts
are in major cities like New York, Chicago,
and Los Angeles.
“What it means is we have something to
work with now,” said Rabbi Seth Farber,
director of Itim, an Israeli organization
that advocates for greater transparency in
the chief rabbinate’s bureaucracy.
Through freedom-of-information
requests and legal proceedings, Itim
repeatedly has coaxed the chief rabbinate
into providing information on its internal
processes.
“Until now, the whole thing was
shrouded in secrecy,” Farber said. “We
kept saying we want the list.... Now the
Jewish world can look at it, and it’s no lon-
Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi David Lau, second from left; Sephardi Chief Rabbi ger shielded in darkness. It’s out there.”
Yitzhak Yosef, third from left; and Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau at a special meeting of Along with the list, the chief rabbinate
the Israeli Rabbinate Council at the Western Wall tunnels in Jerusalem’s Old City established criteria for which rabbinical
on May 24, 2017. SHLOMI COHEN/FLASH90 courts meet its standards, according to
Kobi Alter, the rabbinate’s spokesman.
Orthodox Rabbi Haskel Lookstein, both of whose authority it does accept on con- The criteria, first published as a draft

NOW OPEN! even has rejected the authority of leading New York City.
NOW OPEN!
version. True to form, they are all Ortho- earlier this year, mandate that the courts

owle
American Orthodox rabbis, such as liberal This is the first time the chief rabbin- dox, many of them charedi. The list, pub- operate year-round, demonstrate fealty

e owl
Orthodox Rabbi Avi Weiss and modern ate has published a list of diaspora rabbis lished on the chief rabbinate’s website on SEE CONVERSIONS PAGE 64

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REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK
I’m a reporter. I left my synagogue
because of attacks on the media
SAM SOKOL
BEIT SHEMESH, ISRAEL — “What do
you think of Jim Acosta?” Shlomo asked
me several weeks ago as we stood outside
the synagogue chatting during Friday
evening services.
Crowing over the Trump administra-
tion’s decision to revoke the veteran
CNN correspondent’s White House pass
on what were widely seen as spurious
grounds, Shlomo entered into an ear-
nest diatribe regarding both Acosta’s per-
ceived iniquities as well as those of the
fourth estate more generally. I replied
gently, pushing back with an explana-
tion of the often adversarial relationship
between American presidents and the
media.
As Shlomo stood there with an intent
look on his face, listening to my impas-
sioned response, another congregant Israeli photographers at the scene of a deadly truck ramming of
with whom I was unfamiliar interrupted, Israeli soldiers in Jerusalem on January 8, 2017.
insisting that the media were overtly par-
tisan and implying that I was ignorant of how journalism
really worked.
This incident was far from the first time that mem-
bers of my community had come to me to express their
displeasure with my profession. As the only journalist
many of them know, I was and still am a convenient tar-
get for them to vent about “fake news,” media bias, and
other issues.
Several months earlier I had written an essay for the
Columbia Journalism Review describing how expres-
sions of anti-press sentiment had increased dramatically
in my overwhelmingly pro-Trump Orthodox congrega-
tion following the 2016 presidential election. I described
how I was repeatedly subjected to monologues about
the greatness of Fox News and the depravity of the
“mainstream media,” the “corruption” of the press, and
how newspapers ought to “advance [the president’s]
agenda.”
The incidents never were accompanied by anger
or hostility toward me. However, the persistent mis-
representation of my profession and the assertions,
both explicit and implicit, that I was hopelessly naive
about the purportedly sinister inner workings of the
media proved to be too much for me, especially as it
usually came from people who had never set foot in a
newsroom.
Mulling over the latest incident several days later, I
decided to seek a replacement synagogue. Taking to
social media, I tweeted that I had “quit my synagogue
over the pervasive anti-press attitude that many of my
fellow congregants hold. Didn’t make a fuss. Didn’t
announce anything. Just went to a different synagogue
yesterday and don’t plan on going back to the old one.”
My announcement made a small splash, with several
colleagues both in Israel and abroad offering advice and
encouragement. But, so far, nobody from the synagogue
has noticed my absence.
Over the past couple of years I have polled my journal-
ism colleagues at a number of media outlets across Israel
and I discovered that none of them has dealt with the
kind of pushback I have faced. The consensus seemed
to be that because I lived in an especially religiously and
Jewish World
SHLOMI COHEN/FLASH90
politically conservative American immigrant enclave,
my case was not representative. While that is true, as far
as it goes, I do believe that the hostility I have encoun-
tered is a manifestation, admittedly extreme, of the pub-
lic’s declining trust, in the United States and Israel, in
the news media.
According to a recent Gallup/Knight Foundation
report, nearly 70 percent of American adults “say
their trust in the news media has decreased in the past
decade.” Among political conservatives this rises to 95
percent. Polling conducted by the Israel Democracy
Institute in 2017 painted a similar picture in Israel, find-
ing that only 30 percent of Jews, and 18 percent of Arabs
trusted the media as an institution.
“I’ve never been called a liar or addressed in an
aggressive or hostile way,” said Noga Tarnopolsky, a
local freelancer who writes for a number of prominent
American outlets. However, she added, “I often get
asked [by Israelis] why [the foreign media] ‘hates us,’
but not in a way that I have felt is hostile to me.”
One British foreign correspondent who asked not to
be identified said that often when he approaches Israe-
lis, they respond with “mini-lectures.”
“There is this common theme of interfering ... I’ve
found of people asking ‘why are you coming here and
interfering or causing trouble?’” he said. “A lot of this
is on social media rather than face to face and in the
streets, and it seems to be this attempt to delegitimize
the foreign media in Israel.”
Despite the criticism he sometimes endures, this cor-
respondent believes that “in Israel people have more of
a nuanced view and an understanding of the role of jour-
nalists. They are less vitriolic in their criticism.” Most of
the worst criticism “seems to be by groups outside of
Israel.”
“Of course, the media in Israel suffers a stigma of
being more left-wing and liberal so people who would
be less liberal would be inclined to see journalists as
suspect,” said Nadav Eyal, the chief international cor-
respondent for Israel’s Channel 10 News. “This is a
natural thing and happens everywhere in the world in
SEE REPORTER PAGE 63
JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 37
Editorial
It’s Chanukah!
I The Torah vs. Donald Trump
t’s a liminal time of year.
We’re between Thanksgiving and
Chanukah; this is a week where we
could be thankful, if we possibly can
tune out the din of insanity and fear and
loathing that somehow seems even more
threatening because it is so frequently
agrammatic and misspelled.
Even the weather is liminal; it’s con-
stantly changing between freezing and
pouring and gusting, so the snow mixes
with mud and then the wind whips it into
odd shapes.
It feels somehow like change is coming.
The days are so very short now, but the
candles of the menorah glow. So too do the
holidays lights of our non-Jewish friends
and neighbors; one of the many glories of
living in this multicultural world is that we
get to look at them and admire their beauty
without having to perform the feats of elec-
trical engineering and ladder-balancing
that I assume they demand. We can snort
at the deflated Santas and past-their prime
reindeer without having to figure out how
to blow them up once again.
It’s also the season of galas and dinners
and honors and speeches; of realizing the
extraordinary numbers of remarkable
organizations that do so much to make
so many people’s lives so much better.
They also glow (even if they also remind
us that the world is so very full of so much
chicken…).
It seems that this time of year is the
time for community, when the long dark
nights remind us of how much we need
each other.
We wish all of our readers a happy Cha-
nukah, and that its lights usher in a season
of resolution and fresh beginnings, that if
it snows, the snow will be glittery and easy
to shovel, and that we always remember
to be thankful, as we are on Thanksgiving,
and to be faithful and to stand up and fight
for what we know to be right and true, as
we are on Chanukah. (And of course to
eat exactly the right amount of fried food,
enough to make us happy, but not a bite
more than that, because unhappiness lies
in that direction.)
And surprisingly soon it will be spring.
 —JP
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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Heidi Mae Bratt
Publisher
James L. Janoff
Associate Publisher Emerita
Marcia Garfinkle
thejewishstandard.com
38 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018
KEEPING THE FAITH
Free press, independent judiciary:
P
resident Trump’s recent sustained attacks on
the federal judiciary and the media are at best
ill-advised, and at worst pose a serious threat
to American democracy, precisely because the
judiciary and the media are two of our democracy’s most
important pillars.
“Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press,” said
Thomas Jefferson, who also said: “[W]ere it left to me
to decide whether we should have a government with- Extended Cold Blast could shatter ALL RECORDS — What-
out newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I
should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.” Even
after he entered elective office and came to despise much
of what the press wrote about him, he nevertheless contin-
ued to defend its need to be free.
As for an independent judiciary being essen-
tial, we need look no further than Chief Justice
John Roberts’ surprisingly blunt Thanksgiving
Eve rebuke of the president, which he summed
up with these words: “The independent judi-
ciary is something we should all be thankful for.”
The law and religion scholar Dr. John Wood-
land Welch once wrote in the Brigham Young
University Law Review: “The [Hebrew] Bible
was nothing short of the underlying fabric upon
which American society was founded.” What the Shammai
Torah has to say, then, about a free press and an Engelmayer
independent judiciary has great relevance.
The phrase “freedom of the press,” of course,
appears nowhere in the Torah, but the concept of “need to
know” on which it is based looms large. Jewish law considers
it so important that it outweighs the rules regarding ona’at
devarim, verbal wrongs. (See especially chapters 9 and 10 of
the Laws of Gossip in Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan’s definitive
1873 work on verbal wrongs, Sefer Chofetz Chaim.)
The Torah’s overriding principle in this regard is the pro-
hibition against placing a stumbling block before the blind
(lifnei iver; see Leviticus 19:14), a general principle that goes
beyond its simple meaning. As the Babylonian sage Samuel
said, “It is forbidden to deceive people.” (See the Babylonian
Talmud tractate Chulin 94a.)
“Need to know” is essential if our democracy is to be pro-
tected. As Abraham Lincoln reportedly put it, “Let them [the
people] know the truth and the country will be safe.”
Sadly, politicians, especially these days, erect many stum- justice.” As the succeeding verses and others in Deuteronomy
bling blocks. The less we know about what they are doing, or
why they are doing it, the better it is for them —and all too
often, the worse it is for us.
Shammai Engelmayer is rabbi of Congregation Beth Israel of the
Palisades, now in Fort Lee.
Correspondents
Warren Boroson
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Israeli Representative
The president’s defense of Saudi Arabia’s crown prince,
accused of ordering the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi,
comes to mind. Was the president defending U.S. interests in
the Gulf, or his own business interests in Saudi Arabia? He
refuses to release his business records, so we have no way of
knowing which is correct.
Another example came on Thanksgiving eve, when
Trump tweeted, somewhat triumphantly, “Brutal and
ever happened to Global Warming?” The tweet was just the
latest in well over one hundred Trump tweets claiming that
global warming is a hoax.
This tweet, however, was meant as a deliberate “stumbling
block.” Late on the day after Thanksgiving, when it was hoped
no one was looking, the White House released a
report prepared by 13 scientists inside and outside
the administration, including from NASA, NOAA,
and the Defense Department. That report minces
no words. Climate change, it says, “presents grow-
ing challenges to human health and quality of life,
the economy, and the natural systems that sup-
port us.” The U.S. economy will take a deep and
serious blow, the report tells us, and premature
deaths will rise, among other things.
The report had to be released; federal law
requires one every four years. This year’s entry
was supposed to be released in December. Its
premature late Friday release on Thanksgiving
weekend, along with Trump’s tweet, were designed to bury it.
Steven Milloy, who served on the president’s EPA transi-
tion team and now runs the website junkscience.com, said as
much to the New York Times: “It’s better to just have it come
out and get it over with — but do it on a day when nobody
cares, and hope it gets swept away by the next day’s news.”
It did not get swept away, but only because there is a free
press keeping its many eyes on what government is doing.
As for an independent judiciary, in the days before
Thanksgiving and then on the holiday itself, Trump ramped
up his attacks on it. That is what prompted the chief jus-
tice’s sharp rebuke.
Trump has made it clear that judicial independence is not
to be tolerated. The Torah has a different view. According to
Deuteronomy 16:18, judges “shall govern the people with due
make clear, justice that’s not righteous, equitable, kind, vir-
tuous, pure, and pious does not meet the “due justice” test.
So serious is the Torah’s insistence on this, says the Talmud,
that “any judge who judges a true judgment truthfully…, the
verse ascribes to him as if he became a partner to the Holy One,
Blessed be He, in the act of Creation.” (See BT Shabbat 10a.)
Production Manager
Jerry Szubin
Founder
Morris J. Janoff (1911–1987)
Graphic Artists
Deborah Herman
Editor Emeritus
Meyer Pesin (1901–1989)
Bob O'Brien
City Editor
Mort Cornin (1915–1984)
Editorial Consultant
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Editor Emerita
Rebecca Kaplan Boroson

Maimonides, the Rambam, summarized the
Talmud’s interpretation of the Torah’s laws in his
code, the Mishneh Torah. One law in particular
stands out. In Chapter 2 of his volume on judges,
Rambam writes, “A king of Israel must not be
seated among the Sanhedrin, since it is unlawful
to disagree with him or to defy him.”
In other words, if a court majority wanted to
rule one way and the king another, the major-
ity would have to follow him, thus causing the
judges to pervert justice. The judges, however,
are required to mete out “due justice,” and
thus may not be influenced in any way — much
less by trying to avoid the penalty of disobey-
ing the king.
This law, however, also means the “king” must
keep his views of judicial decisions to himself,
even if he is not sitting on the bench, because
that too would be an attempt at influencing the
court. In the words of a sage named Mar ben Rav
Ashi: “A man cannot see [anything] to his own
disadvantage.” (See BT Shabbat 119a.) Lower
court judges hoping to advance may think twice
before ruling against a president who holds their
advancement in his hand.
The sages of blessed memory took a very strict
view about what they meant by what constitutes
improper influence. Mar ben Rav Ashi, for exam-
ple, was disqualifying himself from hearing a
case involving a scholar he did not know. He did
so because he had great respect for scholars in
general, and feared that might influence his deci-
sion. Then there are these three examples cited
by Rambam (23:3):
“It happened once that a judge was cross-
ing a river on a small fishing boat, when a man
stretched forth his hand and helped him get
ashore. That man had a lawsuit, but the judge
said to him, ‘I am disqualified from acting as
judge in your suit.’ It also happened that a man
once removed a bird’s feather from a judge’s
cloak; another man once covered spittle in front
of a judge. In each of these instances, the judge
said, ‘I am barred from trying your case.’”
In Jewish law, there is only one king who has
the right to influence the judiciary — the King of
Kings. Says BT Sanhedrin 6b, for example, the
“judges should know whom they are judging, and
before Whom they are judging, and Who will ulti-
mately exact payment from them.”
Rather than attacking the judiciary, Trump
should echo the words spoken by King
Jehoshaphat of Judah to his judges: “Consider
what you are doing, for you judge not on behalf
of man, but on behalf of the Lord, and He is with
you when you pass judgment. Now let the dread
of the Lord be upon you; act with care, for there
is no injustice or favoritism or bribetaking with
the Lord our God.” (See 2 Chronicles 19:6-7.)
The opinions expressed here
are those of the authors, not necessarily those
of the newspaper’s editors, publishers,
or other staffers. We welcome letters to the editor.
Send them to jstandardletters@gmail.com.
Opinion
The great rabbis in political Orthodoxy
R
ecently, a large modern Orthodox synagogue
hosted the 11th in a monthly lecture series called of Young Israel politicized the terrible tragedy at the Tree of
“Great Rabbis of the Twentieth Century.”
It was not unexpected that an Orthodox syna-
gogue would limit the series to Orthodox rabbis. It was sur-
prising, however, that ten of the eleven rabbis featured so far Jewish people in the US & Israel have never had such great a
had no connection to American Modern Orthodoxy.
These ten all were important and influential yeshiva heads,
chasidic rebbes, chief rabbis, or halachic authorities, but they The letter pointed out that the killer was motivated by anti-
all were born and educated outside of the United States and
did not lead modern Orthodox lifestyles. None were products
of modern Orthodox schooling. Not a one was associated with
modern Orthodoxy’s flagship institution, Yeshiva University.
The 11th was the exception. Born in Brooklyn in 1932, the
11th was raised in a fiercely Zionist home, influenced by the
secular revisionist thought of Zev Jabotinsky. He became the
mazkir (director) of Bnei Akiva (the religious Zionist youth
group) for greater New York. He attended the Yeshiva of Flat-
bush (a renowned modern Orthodox day school) and Yeshiva
University high school. He graduated from secular universi-
ties, where he obtained an undergraduate degree
in political science, a law degree, and a masters’
degree in international relations.
Like many American modern Orthodox rab-
bis of his time, the 11th accepted a position at a
Conservative synagogue, with the understanding
that a mechitzah (wall partition) be installed in the
sanctuary. Ultimately, he would create an activist
— if sometime violent — Jewish organization, initi-
ate the battle for Soviet Jewry, and coin the phrase
“Never Again.” He fulfilled the modern Orthodox Daniel D.
dream of making aliyah, devoting the rest of his Edelman
life to rebuilding a confident and assertive Jewish
homeland in biblical Israel.
The 11th rabbi was none other than Meir Kahane, who most
revile as an extremist and racist toward Arabs in Israel and few zations’ leaders), largely on political grounds. The article’s
would categorize as a “great rabbi.”
While Kahane was a product of 20th century American
modern Orthodoxy, he was far from its representative voice.
During the 20th century, modern Orthodoxy developed inspi-
rational thinkers and visionaries, none of whom have been
featured in the “Great Rabbis” series. There were, of course,
Rabbi Dr. Joseph B. Soloveitchik and his disciples, Walter
Wurtzberger (the editor of the Tradition journal of Jewish
thought) and Norman Lamm (the president of Yeshiva Univer-
sity), who stressed ethical responsibilities toward other Jews
and non-Jews alike. There were the challenging thinkers who
promoted change from within Orthodoxy, such as Emanuel
Rackman (the chancellor of Bar Ilan University) and Eliezer
Berkowitz (from the Hebrew Theological College in Chicago).
And there were the students of these great men, who led
many OU- and Young Israel-affiliated synagogues, taught in
modern Orthodox schools, and spread its vision and ideals
throughout the Jewish community.
Today, though, it may not be too shocking for a politically
active modern Orthodox synagogue to feature an extrem-
ist, like Kahane, as a 20th-century “Great Rabbi.” Now is an
intensely polarized time, when denominational Judaism often
is demarcated by political philosophy and affiliation. Just as
more liberal Jewish denominations frequently promote a pro-
gressive, social-justice Jewish identity, it has become almost
routine for Orthodox synagogues, institutions, organizations,
and periodicals to preach conservative, nationalist, even
nativist political beliefs. It is not unusual in today’s heated were in distress.” (“Abraham’s Journey,” pp. 196-97.)
political milieu to praise the most passionate political advo-
cates with the same fervor one extends toward inspirational
religious leaders.
Politics now dictates religious purity. Demagogues are
favored over thinkers.
A telling example of this occurred after the National Council
Life synagogue by publicly declaring that “The NCYI thanks
President Donald J. Trump for his constant unwavering voice
in defense of the Jewish people and against anti-Semitism. The
champion in the White House.” In response, more than 600
people signed an open letter of disagreement with the NCYI.
immigrant hate at the very same time that the president was
campaigning on an anti-immigrant platform, including the
use of anti-Semitic innuendo and conspiracy theories.
Those who signed the letter identified themselves as prod-
ucts of modern Orthodoxy by writing:
“Many of us were raised and educated in Young Israel shuls
and communities. We were inspired by rabbis, teachers and
spiritual leaders who shared with us our rich tradition of
caring for the stranger, the poor, the mistreated and the vul-
nerable. They taught us that at the core of Judaism was the
ethic of Abrahamic responsibility to our people, our country,
our world and to mankind in general. They
supported their messages through age old
sources and teachings. These made us under-
stand that Jewish values and ethics, not politi-
cal self-interest irrespective of fundamental
Jewish beliefs, must always be our lodestar.”
The NCYI did not respond to the open let-
ter, but on November 20, the Jewish Press
newspaper published an article in response
to it that sought to delegitimize the letter writ-
ers. The article was titled “Fake Orthodox
Jews Against Trump.” The article attacked the
organizations that circulated the open letter
as not genuinely Orthodox (even going so far
as to make specious ad hominem attacks against the organi-
author did not respond to the substantive arguments made
in the open letter. He chose instead to disparage people asso-
ciated with the letter as “leftists,” arguing that their political
views deemed them religiously unacceptable.
This political litmus test perhaps explains, albeit rather
distressingly, why the synagogue’s Great Rabbi series has fea-
tured only Meir Kahane, the architect of an ultra-nationalist
ideology with racist overtones, as the sole American-born
modern Orthodox great rabbi of the 20th century. It is nearly
impossible to try and square fervent nationalist and anti-immi-
grant positions with the teachings and ideas expressed by the
actual great 20th-century modern Orthodox rabbis. Take, for
example, the many times Rabbi Soloveitchik charged his audi-
ences to care for the poor and the immigrant, irrespective of
their religious or ethnic identity.
As the open letter to the NCYI quoted Rabbi Soloveitchik:
“The central experience in Abraham’s life was galut —
homelessness, wandering without knowing the destination….
This passional experience taught Abraham and his descen-
dants the art of involvement, of sharing in distress, of feeling
for the stranger, of having compassion for the other. It trained
Abraham to react quickly to suffering, to try to lighten the oth-
er’s burden as much as possible. No matter who the stranger
was, what he stood for, and how primitive he was, the stranger
had suffered…. We have mercy on all uprooted and defense-
less human beings in exile…. We are burdened with an ethical
norm to help because we remember how we felt when we
Are we really doing our children a service by rewriting his-
tory to forge today’s political battles?
Daniel D. Edelman is a lawyer. He lives in Teaneck.
JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 39
Opinion
Saying tehillim in the rain for a lost daughter
M
y childhood friend’s child
died suddenly and tragically,
and I can’t seem to think
about anything else.
Thanksgiving has just ended, and Cha-
nukah is a week away, but I can’t shake
the image of the bright light that was just
snuffed out, and the unspeakable pain of
her parents and siblings.
With little else that we could do, more Dr. Tani
than 100 of us gathered at JFK Airport to Foger
say tehillim — psalms — just before the
family and the casket boarded their flight
to Israel for burial and shiva (the traditional seven-day
period of mourning). Mirrored in the faces around me,
I saw the same feelings of helplessness, sadness, and
shock that I was feeling. Family members and friends
looked drained, with red, puffy eyes, expressing grief
of unspeakable proportions. We stood under rain-
drenched skies for which our umbrellas were no match.
I heard the loud sobs of her peers, friends that had come
to say a final goodbye and to watch as her casket was
loaded onto the plane.
We said tehillim, bidding her farewell and wishing her a
peaceful journey. The skies seemed to be crying along with us.
Fruit from Tree of Hate created attack at Tree of Life
J ust days before this year’s
Chanukah celebration
begins, we reach the end
of the shloshim for the 11
murdered at Pittsburgh’s Tree of
Life-Or L’Simcha congregation.
As the wave of the initial shock
subsides, we have not only the
opportunity but also the respon-
sibility to remember and reflect. Dr. Mark Gold
We know whose lives were
taken. Two simple and inno-
cent brothers devoted to congregational life. A loving mar-
ried couple. A doctor who left his Torah study in a place
of safety to offer help. A rabbi and a congregational past
president. A research specialist. A great grandmother just
three years shy of turning a century old, a dentist with
strong interfaith ties, and a grandfather who was an avid
baseball fan.
They were the innocent victims of a vicious anti-Semitic
attacker. But why that place and that time? What has hap-
pened to the American vision of a safe haven, of the gold-
ene medina?
In an article published in the Jewish Standard two weeks
ago, Rabbi David Seth Kirschner described the attack as “not
Dr. Mark Gold of Teaneck holds a Ph.D. in economics from
NYU. He is on the executive board of Partners for Progressive
Israel, a member organization of the American Zionist
Movement, and an affiliate of the World Union of Meretz.
Hiam Simon of Englewood is the past chief operating officer
of Ameinu, the leading progressive Zionist membership
organization in the United States. He lived in Israel for many
years, where he was the dean of students at what is now the
Alexander Muss High School, and he served in the IDF as a
noncommissioned officer in the artillery.
40 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018
Sadly, this is not my first friend to lose a
child. Each time an untimely death occurs,
the tragedy feels like an electric current
coursing through my veins, transmitting
a shock that won’t dissipate. The injustice
shrieks out at me. Why her? Why so young?
And the agony of the family haunts me.
The randomness of this tragedy is jar-
ring. It disrupts my life and that of our
community. We who know the family all
seem to be walking around in a daze, con-
fused and disoriented. This is not the nor-
mal way of the world. Children are sup-
posed to bury parents. It is not supposed to happen
the other way around.
Recently there has been a spate of national disasters
resulting in a tremendous loss of life. Hurricane Maria
led to an estimated 2,975 deaths in Puerto Rico, and
the California Camp Fire had a death toll of 87, with
dozens still unaccounted for. Yet for me and those
in my community, the untimely death of one young
woman is all-consuming and feels too much to bear. I
understand anew the meaning of the verse in the Tal-
mud, “Whoever destroys a soul, it is considered as if
he destroyed an entire world.”
your grandfather’s anti-Semi-
tism.” We agree. What happened
at Tree of Life was not an anti-
Semitism stirred up by religion.
This was not a hatred shouted
from the pulpit by either priests
or imams. It was not the same
anti-Semitism that persecuted
and marginalized our ancestors
Hiam Simon and propelled waves of Jewish
migration to America in the 19th
and early 20th centuries.
On the contrary, after this vile act, extensive and sin-
cere expressions of support poured in to the Pittsburgh
Jewish community from people of faith across America.
The hate that left 11 dead at the Tree of Life is more like
the anti-Semitism of our grandfathers’ day — the ethno-
racial chauvinism the Nazi regime promoted in Europe.
It is not exactly the same. This time, unlike Kristallnacht
or the pogroms that preceded it, there was no angry
mob joining in to spread even more violence. Rather it
was a particularly American version, which took Nazi-
like race supremacy and anti-Semitic ideas and cast
them in an American context.
This red-white-and-blue form of racism is not new.
Those ideologies that flourished during the Great
Depression, and had seemed to recede during World
War II, simply have crawled out from the rock they
were hiding under and have blossomed in the fertile
ground of social media, fanned by dangerous political
opportunism.
When he was arrested that bloody Shabbat morning,
Robert Bowers told authorities that he wanted all Jews
to die. Reporters researching his background found an
online trail that provides the answers to the questions
“why now” and “why Tree of Life”?
Judaism teaches that at death the soul departs the
body, but it hovers nearby and is fully aware of every-
thing that happens. We therefore do not leave the body
unattended but rather provide shmira — a constant
guard, as for something precious — in an attempt to
offer dignity and respect to the deceased. By guarding
and saying tehillim it is believed that we also are pro-
viding great comfort to the soul.
May it be so, that her soul finds peace and that the
family finds comfort among the mourners of Zion.
Accompanying the family and the casket to JFK pro-
vided a measure of comfort to us, her neighbors and
friends. It was the last act that we could do before her
casket was loaded onto the plane and the gate closed
shut, leaving us outside in the rain.
My friend’s daughter always had a smile and a
twinkle in her eye. She was genuinely interested in
everyone, helping others, and hearing what others
had to say.
Let us all try to be more like Katie.
Dr. Tani Foger, Ed.D, LPC, of Englewood is an
educational consultant and psychologist. She and her
husband, Soli Foger, are active members of Ahavath
Torah; they are the parents of four sons.
Bowers, a high-school dropout from a broken home and
something of a loner, long had held conservative views;
over time, as his loneliness grew into powerlessness, these
morphed into white nationalism and its soulless brother,
anti-Semitism. Bowers’ evolution was spurred on and
directed by online promotion that supports a growing
community of hate.
In recent weeks we have learned how mainstream social
media became a conduit for fake news and hate messages.
Through networks of accounts under false names, platforms
such as Facebook became the pipeline and inspiration of
hate messaging. Although they were aware of the problem,
these popular social media outlets were slow to address or
manage these issues, not wanting to impact their bottom-
line profitability. While efforts to date have been halting and
inadequate, the mainstream social network sites do have
policies and procedures about harassment and hate that
sometimes are enforced.
In August 2016, a Trump supporter, Andrew Torba, cre-
ated a site called “Gab”; using the cover of “free speech,” the
site was established as a social media forum for people who
had been banned from mainstream sites due to hate speech
or menacing behavior. Gab quickly became known as “Twit-
ter for racists.” Milo Yiannopoulos — you remember him, he
was banned from Twitter due to his campaigns of harass-
ment — signed up for an account, as did Andrew Anglin,
the founder of the neo-Nazi Daily Stormer, and a neo-Nazi
leader, Richard Spencer. We have written about these pure-
bred American hatemongers in these pages before.
In January of this year, Bowers joined these fellows on
Gab with these words: “Jews are the children of Satan
( John 8:44). The Lord Jesus Christ [has] come in the
flesh.” The cover picture was a photo with the number
1488. The description is a reference to “Christian Iden-
tity,” an anti-Semitic and white supremacist movement
that evolved in the U.S. during the 1920 and ‘30s. The

The light we bring burns brightest
I
love Thanksgiving.
In coming together with our fam-
ily and friends, we reconnect with the
people in our lives and emerge with
renewed gratitude for the loving and support-
ive community that surrounds us. Especially
in a year in which we have faced so many chal-
lenges, Thanksgiving provides a much-needed
reminder that no one stands alone.
The Jewish community certainly has had Jeremy J.
more than its fair share of hardship in recent Fingerman
weeks. We remain stunned by the horrific
shootings in Pittsburgh, the devastating fires
of California, and the increasing tensions along Israel’s bor- moment to express in your own words your appreciation
ders. In these challenging times, however, I am inspired
by the way our Jewish professionals and institutions have
responded with indefatigable love and tireless support for
the members of our community who need them most.
These leaders deserve our admiration and appreciation.
They exemplify a love for community to which we all should
aspire. Just as they’ve shown support for our Jewish commu-
nity, we need to show our support for them.
Fortunately, when we light the menorah at the begin-
ning of Chanukah this Sunday evening, we have the perfect
opportunity to continue demonstrating our appreciation
number 1488 is an allusion to David Lane, a founder of a
violent racist organization called the Order. Lane died in
prison after being convicted of crimes he committed as
part of the Order, including the murder of Jewish radio
talk personality Alan Berg.
The number 88 also is a neo-Nazi shorthand for “Heil
Hitler.” (H is the eighth letter in the alphabet — H H = Heil
Hitler.) Bowers’ account shared neo-Nazi content and inter-
acted with a group called GabStapo, which describes itself as
“aware of the deadly threat Jews pose to our very existence.”
Around the time of the Pittsburgh shooting, GabStapo had
more than 800 members.
Sites like Gab and anonymous posting sites like 4chan
have become echo chambers for racists and anti-Semites,
but mainstream social media like Facebook and Twitter also
have been abused to spread lies promoting hate, too often
with deadly consequences. This was especially true this
year. Trump’s efforts to secure Republican wins in the mid-
term election campaign was based on racist fears, particu-
larly about Hispanic immigration, as he pushed lies about
the nature of a caravan of refugees fleeing Central American
gang violence and seeking asylum in the United States.
An article published by USA Today explained how one
lie about George Soros and the migrant caravan was the
spark that rapidly mushroomed through the internet, begin-
ning with a single post that echoed through racist and anti-
Semitic networks, then was picked up and promoted by
Republican members of Congress and then metasticizing
across the worldwide web.
George Soros? Who is George Soros, and why does he
invoke such easily widespread, knee jerk belief in Jewish
conspiracies to destroy America?
George Soros (Gyorgy Schwartz), a Hungarian Jew and
Holocaust survivor, fled to England in 1947 in the wake of
the Soviet occupation. After achieving a master’s degree
in philosophy, he began a career in finance in Great Brit-
ain and later in the United States. Establishing a series of
hedge funds beginning in 1969, he already was a success-
ful investor in 1992, when he made an even larger fortune
through the perfect symbol of Jewish resil-
ience. I would like to propose an idea for
immediate implementation. For each of
the eight days of Chanukah, each one of us
should seek out and thank one Jewish com-
munal professional for their work. This
could be a member of the clergy, a federa-
tion executive, an educator or teacher, a
social worker, a youth worker, a JCC or Hillel
or camp director or staff member, a foun-
dation professional or administrator. Find
someone who dedicates their vocation to
bettering our Jewish community. Take a
for their work. Say thank you for a job well done and for
always being there in times of need.
I reflect on how the shamash lights all the other candles
on the menorah. In sharing its light with others, it pro-
vides illumination and warmth to others without dimin-
ishing its own flame. Our gratitude and love for our Jew-
ish communal professionals and institutions should be like
the shamash: generous, warm, and tireless.
Halacha — Jewish law — teaches that we are not permit-
ted to make use of the lights of the Chanukah candles;
rather we are allowed only to reflect upon them, and in
betting against the Bank of England during the U.K. cur-
rency crisis that year.
Having seen the ravages of both Nazism and Stalinism,
Soros has dedicated large sums of money to promote
democracy in Europe and particularly in the countries
of the former Soviet Union. This has made him an enemy
to the autocrats of the post-Soviet world. Having known
poverty personally, Soros has also donated generously
to promote education and to fight poverty. In connec-
tion with those ideals, he has supported a number of
progressive political causes, including the campaigns of
Democratic candidates.
Soros’ pro-democracy and anti-Nazi support made him
the target not only of post-communist autocrats but also
of neo-fascists and the racist alt-right fringe here in Amer-
ica. Both the post-communists and the neo-fascists have
launched campaigns of innuendo about him and his “hid-
den agenda.”
The attacks on Soros follow classic anti-Semitic templates,
grimly recurrent throughout western history, and some of
the most powerful geopolitical figures in the world are push-
ing it. For the far right in America, Soros is the latest Jewish
manipulator whose extreme wealth finances puppet groups
and publications that exist to drain the prosperity of the
master race. He has been called a puppet master, a demon
working to create a new world order. Right-wing regimes
long have broken down the fabric of political protest by
using the anti-Semitic notion of rich Jewish financiers as the
puppet masters of social unrest. During the Russian Revolu-
tion, the Tsar’s secret police disseminated the Protocols of
the Elders of Zion, a fictional account of a meeting of rich
Jews plotting to break down the society of their host coun-
tries and rule the world through the promotion of social
upheaval. Because of its success, the Protocols has been
translated and promoted by right-wing ideologues around
the world ever since.
The Protocols and such gave us dog-whistle terms like
cosmopolitan, a slur associated with Jews that paints
them as untrustworthy, ready to betray the very nations
Opinion
doing so, to acknowledge and give thanks for the miracles
God continues to bestow upon us. Each night, we add
another Chanukah candle to our menorah, increasing the
intensity as we move from darkness to greater illumina-
tion. In this way, we can think about ways in which we
can meaningfully and increasingly provide light for those
who bear the brunt of our communal burden during times
of darkness.
Chanukah candles are unlike birthday candles or even
Havdalah candles in that we are not supposed to put them
out. Instead, we are supposed to help the light last for as
long as possible. We too should aim to keep the “light” of
gratitude burning, no matter the circumstance. Just as the
menorah’s oil miraculously lasted eight days in the time of
the Maccabees, we can endeavor to emulate this miracle
through ongoing appreciation, support, and kindness.
These professionals care deeply, work tirelessly, and
dedicate themselves to uniting and strengthening our Jew-
ish community. As we move from Thanksgiving to Chanu-
kah, we have a chance to continue expressing our grati-
tude. The eight nights of Chanukah give us eight chances
to increase the light we bring into the world.
Jeremy J. Fingerman has been the CEO of Foundation for
Jewish Camp since 2010, and he is a vice president of JPRO
Network, the network of North American Jewish communal
professionals. He lives in Englewood with his family. Write
to him at Jeremy@jewishcamp.org.
From left, Tammy Hepps, Kate Rothstein, and
her daughter, Simone Rothstein, 16, pray a block
away from the Tree of Life Congregation after the
synagogue shooting on October 27, 2018.
in which they live because they really are in service to an
unseen authority. Today, the term has been reminted as
globalist. It’s a subtle way to cast an implied message that
Jews are a powerful, corrupting influence on otherwise
good and pure people, and that Jews are insidious trouble-
makers with a nefarious agenda at odds with that of the
nation’s good, true citizens.
These same slanderous charges since have been pro-
moted by some mainstream Republicans eager to demon-
ize a contributor to Democratic candidates and to politi-
cal causes that these same Republicans are against. This
demonization typically is couched in ways that engage and
enrage anti-Semites, describing Soros as secretly master-
minding various conspiracies and describing him again as
a “globalist.” (Read: Jew.)
Even before the caravan of asylum seekers was used as an
election tool for Republicans, President Trump was attack-
ing George Soros as the mastermind behind the Kavanagh
hearing debacle. In response to demands that Judge Kava-
naugh, who has been accused of sexual assault, be removed
SEE TREE OF LIFE PAGE 43
JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 41
Opinion
I’VE BEEN THINKING
Still bound for glory after all these years
I
’ve been writing this column for the
Jewish Standard/Times of Israel for
almost three years, but it’s not my
first steady gig as a columnist.
More than 50 years ago, while a senior
at Yeshiva University, I wrote a column for
the Commentator, our college newspaper,
called “In My Opinion.” (I had wanted to
use that title for my column in the Stan-
dard, but since the pages I write in are Joseph C.
headed “Opinion,” my desired title seemed Kaplan
redundant. We therefore decided on “I’ve
Been Thinking,” which connotes the same
general idea — that I’m one opinionated guy who speaks
only for himself.)
My college columns were exactly what you might
expect: a mixture of the parochial (student apathy,
smoking marijuana on campus, college student protests,
adding a Jewish philosophy course to the RIETS curricu-
lum) and the great issues of the day (the Vietnam War,
Soviet Jewry, the draft, McCarthy/Kennedy, the King
assassination). It was, after all, 1968.
But my third column (I have them all in a scrapbook
that my youngest daughter actually read in connection
with an American studies course she took in college —
history for her, current events for me) was neither paro-
chial nor a great issue. Rather it was a remembrance of
Woodrow Wilson Guthrie, who had recently died, and
whom I had learned about through the singing of PP&M,
Bob, Pete, Joan, Phil, Odetta, the Weavers, and Judy
(when the latter was still a folk singer).
It wasn’t difficult to
pick Nora out among
the hundred-plus
women who filled the
hall. Her glorious head
of silver curly hair,
so reminiscent of
Arlo’s, instantly jumped
out at me.
I was a real fan; I had read Woody’s autobiography
“Bound for Glory,” and discussed his life in a presen-
tation I made in my required freshman speech course,
with a musical background played on a reel-to-reel tape
recorder. (Remember those?)
(Parenthetical aside which can be skipped by anyone
who didn’t attend MTA or YU in the 1950s to the 1970s.
After the column appeared, I was summoned to Norman
B. Abrams’ office during beis midrash. This was a first for gram a lesson — one that wasn’t for sale — about home
me, and I couldn’t imagine what I’d done wrong. I was
greeted by Mr. Abrams holding the Commentator open
to my column and asking “Did you write this?” Still not
understanding what was going on, I managed to stammer
“yes.” “Vell, I’m a Voody fan too,” he told me, and, to my nected to it before the sources of that information no
utter amazement, we spent the next 30 minutes discuss-
ing Guthrie’s music. When I returned to the beis midrash
and told my anxious chavruta David what happened, it
took me hours to convince him that my story was true.)
42 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018
So when I saw a recent article in the Stan-
dard saying that Nora Guthrie, Woody’s
daughter (and Arlo’s sister), would be
speaking at Temple Emeth in Teaneck, I
knew I had to attend, even though it con-
flicted with my weekly Men’s Fitness class
at the Rodda Center.
Turns out I made a very wise choice.
It wasn’t difficult to pick Nora out among
the hundred-plus women who filled the
hall. Her glorious head of silver curly hair,
so reminiscent of Arlo’s, instantly jumped
out at me, and I had a chance to chat with
her briefly before the program began.
She spoke personally as a daughter about her beloved
father, with an emphasis on Woody’s Jewish connec-
tions. His wife Marjorie, Nora’s mother, was a dancer
in the Martha Graham modern dance troupe and the
daughter of Aliza Greenblatt, a famous Yiddish poet.
Her upbringing in a sophisticated, well-to-do, educated
New York Jewish family was worlds apart from Guthrie’s
dirt-poor Oklahoma cowboy background. But they met
over music, fell in love, and eventually moved to Coney
Island so Bubbe could help take care of the kids.
While the entire program was terrific, for me the
most fascinating parts were the audio visuals. In addi-
tion to lots of pictures, we saw home movies, includ- Woody Guthrie
ing a rare clip of Woody playing the guitar. Although
it unfortunately was silent, with just a bit of concen- and culture that inspired you as you were growing up.
tration I was able to hear Woody singing along in my And sometimes you can go back to that home again,
head. Simply glorious. as I did at Nora’s lecture.
We also saw Woody and family at a Chanukah party Equally important, so can your children. They can,
at his in-laws’ house, with a background audio of Bubbe and should, learn what it was that once touched their
explaining Chanukah to Woody in Yiddish (which he parents’ hearts. What moved their parents may not
didn’t understand), accompanied by Zayde’s some- move them, but it sometimes can help them see their
time hilarious (mis)translations. But Woody must have parents in another light, perhaps even imagine them
absorbed something, because he wrote dozens of Cha- in their youth, for example, meeting and dancing for
nukah songs, some of which the Klezmatics recorded the first time to the Righteous Brothers “Unchained
in a Grammy award winning CD that lives on my iTunes Melody.” So when that song plays on an oldies station,
together with tons of Woody’s better known songs sung it stirs the entire family, with the 1960s and the 2010s
by him and others. somehow merging for old and young alike.
We also heard about Arlo’s bar mitzvah. He had one I certainly made plenty of mistakes as a father. But
of sorts, though it ended up mainly as a hootenanny one success that I’m proud of, truly, is that all my chil-
with Woody and his friends (Pete, Leadbelly, Cisco, and dren love Peter Paul and Mary. (On the other hand, I
others) playing their music. Now that’s a bar mitzvah I failed miserably in trying to get them to appreciate Mel
would have loved to have attended, even without sushi! Brooks’ humor. Ah well.) But PP&M’s music is something
There was a Jewish element to the bar mitzvah. The that binds us as a family; when I, sometimes joined by
Guthries hired a young rabbi to prepare Arlo for his big my daughters, sing “For Baby/Bobbi” to my grandkids to
day. That didn’t work out too well, though; I think we’ll put them to sleep, it’s three generations evoking the past
have to settle for Arlo’s singing “Alice’s Restaurant” and while looking ahead to the future. And when I dance to
Steve Goodman’s “City of New Orleans” rather than a that same song with my daughter at her wedding (“Ani
haftarah. In any case, the rumors rife on social media Ledodi, V’dodi Li,” July 6, 2018), well, we’re all going
about who that young rabbi was have now been con- home together.
firmed for me, because the short clip of one of those Woody was a seminal folksinger, and he continues to
long-ago Hebrew lessons shows a very young Meir Kah- live on and touch the soul of generation after genera-
ane sitting at a table across from Arlo. tion through his lyrics and music. As Phil Ochs movingly
I didn’t buy any of the CDs for sale after the program wrote and sang: “And now he’s bound for a glory all his
because I already own them all. But I took from the pro- own/and now he’s bound for glory.” But Woody wasn’t
always right; his song “Ain’t Got No Home,” while lovely,
and family lore and traditions. I’ve written about this misses the mark by a bit.
previously (“You Can Go Home Again,” May 11, 2018), We all got a home. Sometimes we just have to search
then concentrating on the literal home I grew up in and for it.
the need to seek out that home and the family lore con-
Joseph C. Kaplan, a regular columnist, is a longtime
longer are available. resident of Teaneck. His work also has appeared in
I ended that column by noting that “you can’t go various publications including Sh’ma magazine, the New
home again if you don’t know where — and what — home York Jewish Week, the Baltimore Jewish Times, and, as
was.” But a significant part of “home” includes the arts letters to the editor, the New York Times.

Jared and Ivanka Kushner:
A ‘blessing and honor’ to Jews
As the lay leader of a nonpartisan PAC, I usually try to
stay above the fray of partisan criticism. However, I was
personally dismayed at the New York Times piece (pub-
lished November 17, titled “Are Jared and Ivanka good for
the Jews?”) that cited partisan Jews who criticize Ivanka
and Jared Kushner as being bad for the Jewish community
because of their participation in the Trump Administration,
claiming their work is an offense to God. It is obvious that
the opposite is true.
I am immensely proud to live in America, where presiden-
tial candidates are proud to have Jews wearing kippot join
them on the campaign trail in predominantly Christian town
halls and other venues. I am proud that President Clinton
and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton were willing to have
their only daughter marry into a Jewish family. I am grateful
that the president of the United States of America is proud to
have as his son-in-law an Orthodox Jew and willingly accepts
his daughter’s sincere conversion to Judaism. American
Jewish involvement in the leadership of our country is, and
should remain, bipartisan.
The Kushner family involvement in the White House
required a huge sacrifice of their personal lives and is per-
ceived broadly by devoted Jews worldwide as both a blessing
and an honor. Both Ivanka and Jared are valued counselors
to the president, who have advocated for more security aid
to Israel, curtailing Iran’s terror ambitions, and moving the
U.S. embassy to Jerusalem.
Tree of Life
FROM PAGE 41
from consideration for the Supreme Court, Donald Trump
tweeted out: “The very rude elevator screamers are paid
professionals only looking to make Senators look bad. Don’t
fall for it! Also, look at all of the professionally made identical
signs. Paid for by Soros and others…”
This was followed quickly by a retweeted anti-Semitic
message from Rudy Giuliani, Trump’s lawyer and a longtime
Republican leader, calling Soros the enemy of Christ: “Fol-
low the money. I think Soros is the anti-Christ! He must go!
Freeze his assets & I bet the protests stop.”
That USA Today chronology begins with an October
14, 2018 posting of an article about the caravan linked by
a twitter account holder “Lorettatheprole” with a single
word comment: “Soros.” The poster, Lorretta Malakie, fre-
quently had posted about “white genocide,” Jews, and the
“invading force” to 6,000 followers. Within 20 minutes,
this was reposted to six pro-Trump Facebook groups with
about 165,000 followers. A Trump supporter then wrote to
the Trump Train group: “Here Comes ANOTHER Group of
Paid New Demoncratic Voters…The Financier aka ‘Win at All
Costs’ ‘Never Let a Good Crisis Go to Waste’ the Evil George
Soros and His 140+ Orgs, Should be Classified as Terrorist
and Terrorist Orgs.”
Just two days later, on October 16, social media accounts
mentioning Soros and the caravan numbered 2 million. But
the big jump happened the following day, when Congress-
man Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) tweeted a video link with the words:
“BREAKING: Footage in Honduras giving cash 2 women and
children 2 join the caravan & storm the US border @ elec-
tion time. Soros? US backed NGOs? Time to investigate the
source.”
This was rapidly retweeted by Donald Trump Jr., ultra-right
commentator Ann Coulter, and Sarah Carter, a frequent Fox
News guest. Jack Posobiec, a correspondent for the conser-
vative cable show One America News and a proponent of
the false Pizzagate conspiracy allegation, augmented the lie,
implying that Soros was renting RVs for the migrants.
As children of Holocaust survivors, the need to be proac-
tive to protect and guard against the dangers posed to Jews
worldwide is very visceral to my wife Esther and me. Most
of our generation try to ingrain this into our children with
mixed success. I expect that Jared’s grandparents z’l, who
were survivors of the Shoah, would be immensely proud of
his work and accomplishments.
In any shul I have attended, there would be a line of mem-
bers grateful to pay for a kiddish to honor the Kushners. It
is improper that the New York Times would be willing to
write such a mean and dishonest column about them. The
strong record of Ivanka and Jared regarding the Jewish com-
munity and U.S.-Israel relations is undeniable and deserves
an unbiased treatment, which was unfortunately denied by
the New York Times in their article.
Ben Chouake, M.D., Englewood
(Dr. Chouake is the national president of Norpac)
Abraham Foxman is wrong:
Trump treated unfairly by media
Concerning Abraham Foxman’s statement that President
Trump has undermined the media and that he is responsi-
ble for the public’s lack of faith in it, the facts do not support
that point of view (“Demagogue who threatens democracy,”
November 9). Nor do the facts support the point of view that
the president is divisive and anti-immigration. Admittedly
he is unpresidential, combative, and not classy. But he is
always on the defensive.
Firstly, concerning the media, one has to be blind and
On Twitter alone, at least 43,000 accounts with a com-
bined 127 million followers carried a message linking Soros
to the caravan between October 16 and October 18.
Then another Republican congressman, Louie Gohmert
of Texas, said in a Fox News interview, “Democrats, perhaps
Soros and others, may be funding this thinking it will help
them.”
By this time, pipe bombs had been mailed to the home
of George Soros and to prominent Democrats. Authorities
arrested Cesar Sayoc, 56, a former pizza deliveryman, strip-
club worker, and virulently partisan Trump supporter.
It was during this time, October 19-20, that HIAS spon-
sored the National Refugee Shabbat to raise awareness of
the suffering of millions of refugees around the globe. HIAS
(originally known as the Hebrew Immigration Aid Society)
was formed in 1881 to help Jewish immigrants arriving in
New York. Today it serves immigrant populations generally.
Over its history, it has helped millions of people seeking ref-
uge from war and persecution. It would be impossible to
imagine just how many readers of this article have had fam-
ily members directly helped by HIAS.
Hundreds of synagogues participated in the National Ref-
ugee Shabbat program. Or Hadash, the Pittsburgh Recon-
structionist community sharing the Tree of Life building,
was one of them.
In the hyped, fevered, and intensely racist online universe
Bowers lived in, fed by lies and exaggerations, the migrant
caravan was an imminent threat. Two days before the shoot-
ing he posted: “There is no #MAGA as long as there is a kike
infestation.” Bowers already had written how he appreci-
ated the list of synagogues HIAS posted, showing congrega-
tions participating in National Refugee Shabbat.
When the caravan was likened to an invasion, Bowers
wrote of his approval of the term. “I have noticed a change
in people saying ‘illegals’ that now say ‘invaders’,” he wrote
less than a week before his killing spree. “I like this.” Just
before leaving for the Tree of Life on his murder mission,
Bowers posted on Gab: “HIAS likes to bring invaders in that
kill our people. I can’t sit by and watch my people get slaugh-
tered. Screw your optics, I’m going in.”
Letters
deaf to what passes for news on CNN, CNBC and the rest
of the media. The criticism is relentless. They can’t wait to
pounce on and denigrate any and everything he says and
does. And this started immediately after he was elected.
Secondly, regarding his divisiveness, let’s look at Max-
ine Waters, a Democrat, who tells her constituents to get in
“their” (Republicans) faces, harass them, follow them. And
“they” do, by going into restaurants and shouting at Repub-
lican congressmen. They bang on the doors of the Supreme
Court.
And how about Diane Feinstein creating chaos by not
following proper protocol and presenting a letter from Dr.
Christine Ford after, rather than during, the hearing on Jus-
tice Kavanaugh. And Dr. Ford, under oath, accusing the jus-
tice of terrible acts. After an FBI investigation (their seventh)
these assaults could not be substantiated. Is it possible the
doctor perjured herself?
In addition, on college campuses it seems freedom of
speech is only for liberals. Others get shouted down. Hillary
Clinton made a statement to the effect that civility will return
with the election of Democrats. So, just who is divisive here?
Lastly, Trump has said many times that he is for legal
immigration and is against illegal immigration as are most
of the electorate.
Writers of the Standard and other news media seem to
think that the Democrats have a monopoly on ethical con-
duct and are more compassionate than anyone else. Based
on my observations, that is not so. It is most discouraging.
Susan Ebenstein, Hackensack
Bowers’ selection of the Tree of Life synagogue was not
random. His timing was not an accident. Primed by caravan
hype and lies that fueled his own racism, Bowers set out to
kill Jews who had participated in a HIAS-sponsored program
that built consciousness about the plight of refugees.
“The problem here is hate,” HIAS CEO Mark Hetfield said.
“The problem is, there is a growing space in this country for
hate speech. And hate speech always turns into hate actions.
And that’s what we are seeing again and again this week.”
Mr. Hetfield has identified the problem correctly. It is not
only anti-Semitism. It is hate. The hate that caused Dylann
Roof to kill nine black churchgoers in Charleston in 2015; the
hate that caused Gregory Bush, the same week as the Pitts-
burgh shootings, to murder two black shoppers at a Kroger
parking lot after failing to enter a locked black church a short
distance away. We must see the deaths at Tree of Life as part
of this broader miasma of racism.
If hate speech leads to hate action, how do we limit hate
speech in a free society? The first step is to hold those peo-
ple who promote and facilitate the lies and racism account-
able. Hate speech is not simply like yelling “fire” in a movie
theater. Hate speech is providing the matches and the gaso-
line to those more than ready to light that fire.
For a brief period, Gab was closed by its online host com-
pany. But it has found a new home and has reopened. Those
who control Gab should be held accountable for the conse-
quences of the hate their site promoted. We must encour-
age an outpouring of protest against such unabashed hatred
within our society. Let us encourage the support that was
palpable in Pittsburgh to grow into a force that will not
allow such anti-American racist hatred room to breathe.
Sadly, instead of protests in the street calling for a return to
civility, we live in a time where lies and innuendo are being
promoted by mainstream Republican representatives for
partisan political purposes. At minimum, Congress should
censure them. Certainly, if there are no consequences to this
behavior, it will continue and expand.
Finally, mainstream media sources must be encouraged
to be more rapid and more active in calling out the racist
and anti-Semitic lies and the liars who promote them.
JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 43
Chanukah Greetings

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D’var Torah
Vayeshev: The repair of unhappy families
I
n his novel Anna Karenina, Tolstoy
writes: “Happy families are all alike;
every unhappy family is unhappy
in its own way.” The principle so
aptly encapsulated by this aphorism has
enjoyed a long and varied career from
ecology to ethics to mathematics, and
might be expressed in this way: A success-
ful endeavor can be defined by the pres-
ence of a number of essential factors, the
absence of any one of which will inevitably
lead to failure. Or to put it another way:
There is only one way to succeed, but
there are an infinite number of ways to fail.
Viewed in this way, the saga of Israel
and his offspring could provide us with an
extensive catalog of different ways for a
family to be unhappy. Although the patri-
archal narratives keep returning over and
over again to the same basic theme of jeal-
ousy and fraternal conflict, this conflict
assumes a rich variety of different forms
as it recurs throughout the book of Gen-
esis — enough variety, perhaps, to prove
Tolstoy right.
Of course, there is some truth to the
assertion that one person’s experience of
pain is necessarily unique and impossible
My grandson stole my usual Shabbat role — and I couldn’t be prouder
LEON MOSS
I
was edged out on Friday evening.
The carefully planned operation
was carried out by grandson No. 2,
the one with the red hair.
“Move over, Pop. I’ll do it,” he said
firmly, prodding me in the ribs with a
sharp elbow.
It’s like this: I say the Friday night kid-
dush. I have been saying it for 50 or 60
years now. I say it every Friday night. Win-
ter and summer. With or without the book.
Sitting, standing or even pacing, if neces-
sary. I can say it backwards, sideways, and
upside down. I can say it faultlessly with
the lights on or off. I can say it quickly in a
monotone — or I can sing it like Pavarotti
and really schlep it out and turn it into
quite a ceremony.
I began saying the kiddush on the Friday
night after my bar mitzvah, when my own
grandfather, who had been saying it since
his bar mitzvah, called me to his side.
“You say it from now on, my boy,”
TALLESIM CLEANED • SPECIAL SHABBOS RUSH SERVICE
54 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018
to compare with that of any other’s. The
circumstances surrounding Jacob and
Esau’s struggle for paternal recognition
are essentially different from those which
motivate Joseph’s brothers to cast him
into a pit and then sell him off as a slave
to a passing merchant caravan. And yet
the underlying issues of parental favorit-
ism and mutual resentment are similar
enough to call into question the particu-
larity of this suffering. Is it not the univer-
sality of this suffering, the ways in which
it echoes circumstances in our own fami-
lies or those of people we’ve known, that
calls out to us and draws forth our sym-
pathy for the ancestors of our people?
It is interesting to note that the Zohar’s
discussion of the problem of evil in rela-
tion to this parsha tackles the issue from a
position that is very nearly the opposite of
Tolstoy. Riffing off of a passage from Kohe-
let which reads “Better a child who is poor
but wise than a king who is old and foolish,
who no longer knows to take care” (Kohe-
let 4:13), Rabbi Shimon ben Yohai inter-
prets the “child who is poor but wise” to
be the yetzer ha-tov, the good impulse,
while the “king who is old and foolish”
he said in his unique accent, which he
acquired first in Lithuania, then in Ireland,
and finally in South Africa.
He gratefully shoved the prayer book
into my hands. In Johannesburg, where
I grew up, the entire family got together
every Shabbat evening to be with our
grandparents and honor them.
“Don’t forget the tune,” he added after I
had taken the book.
The tune, such as it was, wasn’t much.
Over the years it has degenerated into a
toneless drone, which lasts all of a min-
ute and comes to an abrupt end when the
guests yell “Amen!” with enthusiasm, their
eyes already moving hungrily toward the
steaming chicken soup.
This particular Friday evening was like
any other, except now I’m the grandfather
and my extended family lives in Israel, as
do I. We assembled, with hungry children
waiting to bite into the Shabbat special —
chicken soup followed by roast chicken
and baked veggies — and anxious grand-
children milling around wondering why
We want your business and we go the extra
mile to make you a regular customer
is the evil impulse, the yetzer
ha-ra. The good impulse is like
a child, Rabbi Shimon states,
because like the moon the
impulse to good is “constantly
renewing itself ” whereas the
evil impulse is “old” in the
sense that from the day it
came into being it entered into
a state of impurity and never Rabbi Leiah
came out again. Moser
In other words, for Rabbi Reconstructionist
Congregation Beth
Shimon what characterizes Israel, Ridgewood
goodness is not its sameness
but rather its capacity to con-
stantly make itself anew, repairing what
has been broken, strengthening what has
become weak, and adapting to the cur-
rent circumstances. Evil, on the other
hand, is characterized by a dreary same-
ness, a stubborn determination to remain
forever mired in the same old swamp of
impurity. The superficial variety of unhap-
piness is revealed to be a series of masks
covering over the same set of problems,
where as the apparent sameness of hap-
piness is belied by the ongoing process of
renewal and adaptation that is necessary
they have to wait for the kiddush before
they can tuck in.
Finally, silence descends. I fill the old
family kiddush cup with grape juice and
pick up the book. I don’t need it but I
always hold it, just in case. It flops opens
automatically to page 124, as it has done
countless times before. I draw a breath —
but before I can utter a sound, I get the
elbow.
I look down and there stands the red-
head, 8 years old and beaming with con-
fidence. He has learned to read Hebrew
at school, and he can’t wait to demon-
strate his newly acquired skills. And dem-
onstrate he does. He reads through the
kiddush almost without drawing breath,
hardly stumbling over the words that had
once seemed strange and difficult to me.
I thought back to the days when I started
reciting the kiddush, and remembered
with embarrassment how I had stam-
mered and stuttered my way through it
the first few times.
Even more aggravating was that my
WE OFFER REPAIRS
AND ALTERATIONS
to maintain it.
Caught up in the ongoing
churn of dramatic incidents
and interpersonal conflicts,
Jacob and his family have
trouble recognizing that
their difficulties, as many
and as varied as they are,
ultimately spring from a
relatively static set of inter-
personal issues which have
haunted this family from
its earliest days. Seduced
by the idea that “every
unhappy family is unhappy
in its own way,” they fail to see the ways
in which the apparent variety of their cir-
cumstances masks an inability — or unwill-
ingness — to make a change in the fixed
patterns which have dominated their lives.
In the end, on the other side of Joseph’s
exile from his family and his brothers’ grief
and regret, the only way out of the mire of
this family cycle will be something Jacob
and Esau were ultimately unable to attain
— the capacity to repair what has been
broken, to renew the bonds of a shattered
relationship.
grandson clearly understood a lot of what
he was reading. For my first 20 years or
so, I was convinced the prayer was writ-
ten in Mesopotamian or ancient Egyp-
tian, so foreign did it sound. Only after
Hebrew became our adopted language
did things clarify. For my grandson, born
into the Hebrew language, the words have
meaning.
My first reaction at this domestic coup
was one of pride. No one in the family ever
undertook such an important role until
after his bar mitzvah, but that was in the
old country.
I wonder what my grandfather would
think. I’m sure he would be proud.
 KVELLER/JTA WIRE SERVICE
Leon Moss is an 85-year-old retired
construction estimator. He was born in
South Africa and moved to Israel 40 years
ago. After 20 years in Jerusalem, he and his
wife now live in a retirement home in Even
Yehuda, a small town near the coast. He
spends his time writing and painting.
1245 Teaneck Rd.
Teaneck
837-8700

Robert Alter completes his monumental
translation of the Hebrew Bible
DAVID A.M. WILENSKY
SAN FRANCISCO — “When
God began to create heaven and
earth, and the earth then was
welter and waste and darkness
over the deep and God’s breath
hovering over the waters, God
said, ‘Let there be light.’ And
there was light.”
So begins a monumental new
literary translation of the Hebrew
Bible by University of California
Berkeley scholar Robert Alter.
Yes, “welter and waste” — more
on that later.
Most full translations of the
Bible are done by teams of trans-
lators. Alter is the first person to
complete a major English-lan-
guage translation of the entire
Hebrew Bible on his own.
He began, aptly, with Genesis,
published in 1997. Since then, in
fits and starts, he has translated
several more books of the Bible.
And next month his full three-
volume translation drops. It rep-
resents decades of work.
“Alter’s versions are not des-
tined to replace the King James
Version; they are meant to strip
away its familiarity, to help us see
the Biblical text more closely and
accurately,” wrote the poetry and
literary critic Adam Kirsch.
The results have been widely
ad m i re d , b u t a l s o w i d e ly
debated. The late novelist John
Updike was not a fan, writing in
the New Yorker that in trying “to
achieve absolute fidelity” to the
original Hebrew, Alter “settles on
rather odd English.”
But another novelist, Cynthia
Ozick, loved his translation of the
Five Books of Moses.
“The poets will rejoice,” she
wrote. “Alter’s language ascends
to a rare purity through a plain-
ness that equals the plainness of
the Hebrew.”
Ron Hendel, a professor of
Hebrew Bible and Jewish Studies
at UC Berkeley who was the chief
editor of “The Hebrew Bible: A
Critical Edition,” also praised
Alter’s work.
Alter’s is “the best translation
of the Bible into English ever
made,” said Hendel, who has
taught courses with Alter. “And
to do it as one person is an amaz-
ing achievement.”
Arts & Culture
UC Berkeley professor Robert Alter, at his
“crow’s nest” office in Berkeley Hills, California.
Alter, 83, went to what he
calls “a typical Hebrew school”
at a Conservative synagogue in
Albany, New York. By the time of
his bar mitzvah, he was hardly a
prodigy. “I could read the Hebrew
alphabet, knew about 35 words
and I could do my haftarah,” he
said. “After that, I was about to
ditch it entirely.”
But two Conservative syna-
gogues in the area got together
for a more advanced class.
“I was a competitive guy, so I
made a big effort. It was serious
instruction,” Alter said, in an
interview at his Berkeley Hills
home, where he works in a small
“crow’s nest” office with a sweep-
ing view of Berkeley, the Bay, and
San Francisco.
While he was an undergradu-
ate at Columbia University, he
continued studying Hebrew at
the Conservative movement’s
Jewish Theological Seminary, just
up the street. And there he had a
notion.
“It was the crazy kind of thing
you do when you’re 18: I decided
I would achieve a complete mas-
tery of the Hebrew language,
Alter said. “So I took a Hebrew
dictionary, and I decided I was
going to commit it to memory.”
That went on for a little while,
but as it turns out, there are a lot
of words that begin with aleph.
“I would write down every
word I didn’t know, no matter
how obscure, on flash cards, and
I would study them,” he said.
Alter traveled to the Bronx every
day for track practice, and the
bus was a perfect place to study.
“After about a year and a half, I
was barely finding words I didn’t
know.”
Hebrew-language study
became central to his Jewish
identity, but for most of his pro-
fessional academic career he was
firmly ensconced in the world
of English and other Western
literature. In 1962 he earned a
doctorate in English literature
at Harvard. In 1967 he came to
UC Berkeley, where he has been
ever since, now as a profes-
sor of Hebrew and comparative
literature.
Until the 1980s he worked
on novels of Europe, America,
and modern Israel, delving into
authors like Franz Kafka, Saul
Bellow, and S.Y. Agnon. And then
came the Bible.
“I wrote a feisty piece com-
plaining that Bible scholars spent
all their time hunting down Akka-
dian loanwords hidden in the
text, but they didn’t know how
to read a story,” Alter said. “They Artwork adapted from a series of tapestries is used to illus-
SEE ALTER PAGE 60 trate the boxed set of Robert Alter’s “The Hebrew Bible.”
JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 55
Calendar Anne Road. www. Israel holds its Book of
lamdeinu.org. the Lunch program with
a discussion by Rabbi
Chanukah in Wyckoff: David Fine of Temple
Temple Beth Rishon Israel in Ridgewood on
offers Chanukah Fun Day, Bruce Henderson’s “Sons
10:30 a.m., with candle and Soldiers,” noon.
lighting, games, food, Lunch served. 10-10
drinks, game truck, and Norma Ave. Reservations,
special performances. (201) 796-5040.
585 Russell Ave.
(201) 891-4466 or
bethrishon.org. Tuesday 
DECEMBER 4
Chanukah in Teaneck:
The Jewish Center of
Teaneck’s hosts its
annual youth Chanukah
party, 10:30 a.m., with
a magic show by Alex
Mehl, music, donuts,
and prizes. Use the gym

DAVID ANTON PRODUCTIONS

entrance on Broad Street
off Cedar Lane. (201)
833-0515 or jcot.org.

Latke eating contest: Dr. Shoshana Poupko

Noah’s Ark hosts its
annual latke eating Lunch and learn: Dor
contest, sponsored by L’Dor at Congregation
Cedar Lane Management, Ahavath Torah in
11:30 a.m. Two age Englewood offers a
groups — up to 17 and 18 gala Chanukah lunch
DEC. A new PBS special, “Hanukkah: A Festival of deLights,” starring and older — compete for and learn. Educator and
William Shatner and Lainie Kazan, featuring rabbis, historians, counselor Dr. Shoshana

2,9
prizes. (201) 837-8818,
Poupko will give a talk on
authors, and artists, aims to explore the holiday’s evolution. The ext. 116, or www.
Chanukah and the Frisch
cedarlane.net.
program airs in New Jersey on NJTV on the first and last nights choir will perform. 240
of Chanukah — Sunday, December 2, at 9:30 p.m., and Sunday, December Chanukah in Bayonne: Broad Ave. Reservations,
Congregation B’nai (201) 568-1315.
9, at 5:30 p.m. The show airs nationwide on PBS stations leading up to and Jacob of Jersey City
through the holiday (check local listings). The filmmaker, David Anton (aka
David Antosofsky), comes from three generations of cantors and rabbis. His
and Temple Emanuel
of Bayonne hold
Wednesday 
“Hanukkah - A Blaze DECEMBER 5
previous program for public television, “Hugs and Knishes: A Celebration of of Lights!” at Emanuel,
Our Jewish Foods and Traditions,” featured Fyvush Finkel, Tovah Feldshuh, 5 p.m. Latkes, donuts,
and New York City’s iconic mayor, Ed Koch. children’s entertainment,
and menorah lighting.
735 Kennedy Boulevard
at 7:30; and oneg follows. longest-serving writer vodka cocktails, light (at 29th Street). Parking
Friday  950 Preakness Ave.
(973) 595-6565 or www.
and producer of “The
Simpsons” and a four-
fare, gourmet desserts,
comedians, and NCAA
also in St. Henry’s lot
at Avenue C and 29th
NOVEMBER 30 templebethtikvahnj.org. time Emmy winner, football. 950 Preakness Street. (201) 436-4499 or
will talk about his Ave. (973) 595-6565 or bnaijacobjc.com.
Shabbat in Wyckoff:
Temple Beth Rishon Saturday  experiences and sign his
new memoir, “Springfield
www.templebethtikvahnj.
org. Monday  Rabbi Dr. Yitzhak Berger
marks Chanukah with DECEMBER 1 Confidential,” at the
dinner, 6 p.m., followed DECEMBER 3 Chanukah learning in
at 7 by a musical
Kaplen JCC on the
Palisades, 8 p.m. Tickets,
Sunday  Teaneck: Lamdeinu,
service. 585 Russell $20 for JCC members; DECEMBER 2 a center for Jewish
Ave. Reservations, $25 for nonmembers. learning that meets
(201) 891-4466 or www. www.jccotp.org/adults or Chanukah breakfast at Congregation
bethrishon.org. (201) 408-.1496. in Teaneck: Lamdeinu, Beth Aaron, offers a
a center for Jewish discussion, “In Your
Shabbat in Wayne: Chanukah in Wayne: Light — We See Light
learning that meets
Temple Beth Tikvah has Temple Beth Tikvah — Chanukah Themes in
at Congregation Beth
“New and Returning offers “Latkes and Sefer Tehillim,” led by
Aaron, has its annual
Members Shabbat,” with Vodkas,” a night of food Rabbi Dr. Yitzhak Berger,
breakfast, this year
Rabbi Meeka Simerly and laughs with friends, 10:15 a.m. All welcome.
Mike Reiss honoring Miriam
offering blessings to 8 p.m. Gourmet latkes Book discussion: The 950 Queen Anne Road.
Goldberg and Cyla
participants. Wine and with unique toppings Fair Lawn Jewish Center/ www. lamdeinu.org.
cheese, 7 p.m.; services
Simpsons writer in Steinmetz, at the shul,
Tenafly: Mike Reiss, the paired with signature 9:15 a.m. 950 Queen Congregation B’nai

56 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018


Chanukah in Closter:
Temple Emanu-El has
“Hanukkah on Ice”
with ice skating, an
ice sculptor, and food,
6 p.m. 180 Piermont
Road. Reservations,
(201) 750-9997 or www.
templeEmanu-el.com/
hanukkahBash.
Thursday  Temple Beth El invites
DECEMBER 6
War of 1812: Janet DiNardo
continues a series, “The
War of 1812,” for the CSI
Scholar Fund of the JCC
of Fort Lee/Congregation
Gesher Shalom.
Refreshments at 12:30
p.m.; lecture at 1. Series
concludes December 13.
1449 Anderson Ave. (201)
947 1735.
Chanukah in Park Ridge:
The Pascack Valley/
Northern Valley Chapter
of Hadassah has a musical
Chanukah program led by
Bergen County Players’
members Dr. Bill Cantor
and Nancy Feldman, at
Temple Beth Sholom, 1:30
p.m. Refreshments. 32
Park Ave. (201) 664-5626.
Dr. Tal Becker
Israeli-Palestinian
relationship: Dr. Tal
Becker, deputy legal
adviser at the Israeli
Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
discusses “Identity,
Religion, and Justice: A
Deeper Look at the Israeli-
Palestinian Relationship”
at the Kaplen JCC on
the Palisades in Tenafly,
7:30 p.m. In collaboration
with the Friends of the
Israel Defense Forces
for the JCC’s Patron
of the Arts Program,
411 East Clinton Ave.
(201) 569-7900 or www.
jccotp.org/fidf.
Friday  Chanukah in Ridgewood:
DECEMBER 7
Shabbat in Wayne:
Temple Beth Tikvah has its
annual Chanukah potluck
dinner, 6 p.m.; services
at 7:30. 950 Preakness
Ave. (973) 595-6565 or
www.templebethtikvahnj.
org. RSVP to
totowalangpaula@yahoo.
com to say what you’re
bringing.
Shabbat in Emerson:
The Men’s Club of
Congregation B’nai Israel
hosts its annual Chanukah
dinner with blessings,
latkes, songs, games,
and activities for the
family, 6:30 p.m. Services
follow with Hebrew
school children leading
the prayers. 53 Palisade
Ave. Reservations,
(201) 265-2272 or www.
bisrael.com.
Shabbat in Closter:
the community to “101
Menorahs,” a family
friendly Shabbat/
Chanukah service led
by Rabbi David Widzer
and Cantor Elizabeth
Goldmann, 6:45 p.m.
Bring a menorah and
seven candles. 221
Schraalenburgh Road.
(201) 768-5112 or www.
tbenv.org.
Saturday  noon-6 p.m. Nefesh
DECEMBER 8
Shabbat in Emerson:
The Sisterhood of
Congregation B’nai
Israel hosts its “Miracles”
Shabbat service with
a Chanukah theme,
10 a.m., followed by a light
lunch. 53 Palisade Ave.
(201) 265-2272
Shabbat film in Teaneck:
Temple Emeth’s
“Viewpoints” screens
the award-winning
documentary “Trans,”
2:30 p.m. “Viewpoints”
is a shul committee that
was formed to celebrate
the diversity of the Jewish
community. 1666 Windsor
Road. (201) 833-1322 or
viewpoints@emeth.org.
Chanukah in Tenafly: The
Kaplen JCC on the
Palisades presents
“Let There Be Light —
A Family Chanukah
Celebration!” with a glow-
in-the-dark laser light
show, Chanukah traditions
and treats, and a special
candlelighting experience,
6-8 p.m.
411 E. Clinton Ave.
Reservations,
(201) 408-1467.
Sunday  Hall, 8 p.m. 129 West 67th
DECEMBER 9
Reconstructionist
Congregation Beth Israel
hosts a family-friendly
Chanukah party with
latkes, pizza, salad,
jelly donuts, and soft
drinks, along with candle
lighting. Participants
should bring menorahs
and candles, 4 p.m. 475
Grove St. Reservations,
(201) 444-9320 or www.
synagogue.org.
Chanukah in Glen Rock:
The Glen Rock Jewish
Center hosts an outdoor
menorah lighting with fire-
baton twirling by Rabbi
Jennifer Schlosberg, arts
and crafts and make-your-
own pizza for children;
latkes and vodka bar for
adults. Hot cocoa, donuts,
dreidels, chocolate
gelt, arts and crafts
for children, 5:45 p.m.
682 Harristown Road.
(201) 652-6624 or office@
grjc.org.
In New York
Monday  River Vale, and Westwood
DECEMBER 3
Summit on anti-Semitism
and hate: “Never Is Now,”
the ADL’s annual summit
on anti-Semitism and
hate, is at the Metropolitan
Pavilion in Manhattan,
B’Nefesh will be there
to talk about aliyah. 125
West 18th St. and Seventh
Avenue. NeverIsNow@
adl.org; register at
NeverIsNow.org.
Tuesday  The Chabad Jewish Center holds town
DECEMBER 4
Chanukah klezmer in
the Bronx: The klezmer
trio T-Klez (percussionist
David Licht, accordionist
Psachya Septimus, and
clarinetist Dobe “Dena”
Ressler) gives a free
concert of Chanukah
tunes at the Riverdale Y,
1 p.m. Hebrew, Yiddish,
and Ladino songs,
including an Italian version
of Ma’oz Tzur from the
1700s. 5625 Arlington
Ave., near 256th Street.
877-YIDDISH (877-943-
3474) or www.TKlez.com.
Sunday  www.jewishfairlawn.org/chanukah.
DECEMBER 9
Chanukah concert:
The Zamir Chorale and
Zamir Noded, with guest
artist Cantor Benjie Ellen
Schiller, sing “Healing &
Harmony,” celebrating
Chanukah and Israel at
70, at Merkin Concert
St. (212) 501-3330, www.
KaufmanMusicCenter.
org, or www.
zamirchoralfoundation.org.
Singles
Sunday  Glen Rock’s town-wide menorah light-
DECEMBER 9
Senior singles meet
in West Nyack: 65+
Singles meet for a social
get-together at the JCC
Rockland, 11 a.m. 450
West Nyack Road. Gene,
(845) 356-5525.
Calendar
Chanukah lightings
in the community
These are the town-wide menorah light-
ings we’ve heard about so far. Check
the Jewish Standard’s calendar section
for many Chanukah celebrations in
synagogues and community centers.
Woodcliff Lake, Allendale,
Valley Chabad will host public meno-
rah lighting celebrations with 9-foot
menorahs erected across the Pascack
and Saddle River Valley communities.
Community leaders and local elected
officials will be on hand for meno- Taken at a previous Valley Chabad
rah lighting ceremonies, which will
menorah lighting. VALLEY CHABAD
include dancing, singing, and Chanu-
kah foods. (551) 486-6270, email jewishfamiliesof-
On Sunday, December 2, the meno- glenrock@gmail.com, or go to www.
chabadplace.org, or www.grjc.org.
rah will be lit at the Westwood train sta-
tion at 5 p.m. On Monday, December 3,
the lighting will be at the Old Mill Pond Wyckoff, Mahwah,
in Woodcliff Lake at 6 p.m. On Tuesday, and Franklin Lakes
December 4, the lighting will be in front
hall menorah lightings and Chanukah
of the Gap at Tice’s Corner Marketplace
celebrations with the participation of
in Woodcliff Lake at 5 p.m., and there
will be another in front of the Allendale the mayors and local officials. Judah
Library at 6. On Wednesday, Decem- Maccabee & the Dreidel Man will be
there, and there will be music, hot Cha-
ber 5, the lighting will be in front of the
River Vale Community Center at 6; din- nukah refreshments, crafts, glow give-
ner and a show for children will follow. aways, and a grand raffle.
For more information, go to The menorah lighting in Wyckoff
is in front of Town Hall on Sunday,
ValleyChabad.org/Chanukah or call
(201) 476-0157. December 2, at 5 p.m. There will be
a celebration and lighting at Mahwah
Town Hall on Monday, December 3, at
Fair Lawn
6 p.m. On Tuesday, December 4, at 6
Bris Avrohom of Fair Lawn lights the
menorah in front of Fair Lawn’s Munic- p.m., the lighting will be at the Frank-
lin Lakes Borough Hall.
ipal Building on December 2 at 7 p.m.,
For more information, or to help
with the mayor and council members.
sponsor a lighting, call (201) 848-0449
or go to www.chabadplace.org.
Paramus
Chabad of Paramus lights a menorah Wayne
inside the Whole Foods Court in Bergen Wayne holds a community menorah
Town Center in Paramus on Wednes- lighting with Temple Beth Tikvah,
Congregation Shomrei Torah, Chabad
day, December 5, at 6 p.m. The Yeshivat
Noam Choir will sing. Another menorah of Passaic County, and the Wayne Y,
will be lit inside Paramus Borough Hall, Thursday, December 6, at 7 p.m., at
1 West Jockish Square, with the mayor Wayne Town Hall, 475 Valley Road.
on Thursday, December 6, at 6 p.m.
Fort Lee
The Ben Porat Yosef Choir will sing, and
there will be the “Paramus Gelt Drop,” Members and friends of the JCC of
Fort Lee light the menorah at the
with the Paramus Fire Department. For
Triangle on Main Street and Lem-
information, call (201) 262-7172 or email
oine Avenue, Saturday, December
zeesy@bcfriendship.com.
8, at 5:45 p.m. Afterward, there is
Glen Rock Havdalah at the shul and a Chanukah
party. 1449 Anderson Ave. For more
information, call (201) 947-1735.
ing will be outside Kilroy’s Wonder
Market on Thursday, December 6, at
6 p.m. Glen Rock families, the Chabad Englewood
Jewish Center of Northwest Bergen Chabad of Englewood hosts a com-
County, and the Glen Rock Jewish Cen- munity menorah lighting on Sunday,
ter host a privately funded celebration December 2, at 6 p.m., at City Hall in
with live music, food, and fun. 288 downtown Englewood. There will be
Rock Road. For more information, call Chanukah music and latkes.
JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 57
r Calendar

Marking Rabbi Feldman’s

fourth yahrzeit
The Jewish Center of Teaneck commemorates the fourth

COURTESY JCC ON THE PALISADES

yahrzeit of its rabbi emeritus, David Feldman, z”l, with
“Words Matter – The Transformative Power of Speech,”
including reflections from his family, at the JCT on Tuesday,

BETH CHANANIE
December 4, at 8 p.m. The speakers include his sons, Rabbis
Daniel and Jonathan Feldman; his daughter, Rebecca Feld-
man, and her husband, Dr. Tal Becker, who is the legal advi-
sor to the Foreign Ministry of the State of Israel. For more
information, call (201) 833-0515 or go to JCOT.org. Rabbi David Feldman

Holiday music will fill Tenafly

The Shirah Community Chorus on
the Palisades, conducted by Marsha
Bryan Edelman, performs the annual
Winter Concert celebrating Chanukah
at the Kaplen JCC on the Palisades, 411
East Clinton Ave., Tenafly, on Sunday,
December 2, at 2 p.m. The program
will feature celebratory Jewish songs
in Hebrew and English and will be fol-
lowed by a reception underwritten by
the Weinflash family. For tickets, go to
jccotp.org/Thurnauer.
Chanukah at Home Depot
Chabad of Upper Passaic County partners
with Home Depot in Riverdale for a
Chanukah menorah workshop, Sunday,
December 2, at 10 a.m.
Build a unique wooden menorah, get
a worker’s apron, and eat Chanukah
treats. The Home Depot is at 106 Route
23, in Riverdale. For more information,
go to JewishHighlands.org, or call (201)
696-7609.

Menorah-topped vehicles
to parade through Hackensack
To celebrate Chanukah, Chabad of Hackensack
will host a car menorah parade, leaving 280 Sum-
mit Ave. in Hackensack, on Sunday, December 2,
at 4:30 p.m. The parade route will travel via the
main thoroughfares of Hackensack to the Bergen
County Courthouse. It will culminate in a 9-foot
grand menorah lighting. Anthony Cureton, newly
elected Bergen County sheriff, will join the 5:30
celebration at 10 Main St., Hackensack.
The event is also in conjunction with the 50th
yahrzeit of Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, who
initiated mitzvah campaigns, which laid the ground-
work for public menorahs and the worldwide Cha-
nukah campaign in 1973. For more information, go
to www.ChabadHackensack.com/Hanukkah.
Spring theater trip planned by shul
Temple Beth Tikvah in Wayne is plan- for tickets. For more information, call
ning a trip to the new Broadway musical, Sandy Margolin at (973) 694-2133 or go to
“Tootsie,” in May. Tickets will be on sale www.templebethtikvahnj.org.
soon and a date will be planned. Call early
Colorful healthy latkes
Christina Kamilaris, the in-house dietitian at ShopRite of Paramus, shared this
colorful, healthier latke option for Chanukah. Purple sweet potatoes are available
at ShopRite of Paramus and Englewood.
On top of a car parked She reminds us that eating healthy and making sensible substitutions are impor-
in front of Chabad of tant and easy to do. For information, call her at (201) 638-8514.
Hackensack.

Purple Sweet Potato Latkes

Temple Emeth sponsors annual bazaar
Temple Emeth, at 1666 Windsor Road
in Teaneck, hosts its annual bazaar on
Sunday, December 2, from 9:30 a.m. to
4 p.m. Early birds are welcome at 9 with
a $10 donation.
Items include jewelry, apparel, books,
movies, toys and games, attic treasures,
housewares, stationery, sporting goods,
new and vintage items, a shoe boutique,
and high-end items, many new in boxes.
For bargain hunters, there will be a
Clothing by the Bag booth, where shop-
pers can fill a bag for one price. In addi-
tion, there will be a tricky tray with gift
cards and prizes. A food court will have
lots of options.
For more information, go to the shul’s
Facebook page for bazaar previews and
updates, call (201) 833-1322, or go to
www.emeth.org.
Ingredients
2 medium purple sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped
4 large eggs
4 tablespoons coconut flour
2 tablespoons chopped green onion plus additional for garnish
1/2 teaspoon salt-free garlic & herb seasoning
1/2 cup plain lowfat Greek yogurt
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
DIRECTIONS
In food processor, pulse potatoes to slightly chunky consistency. In medium
bowl, whisk eggs; stir in flour, onion, seasoning, 1/8 teaspoon salt and 1/4 tea-
spoon pepper; stir in sweet potatoes.
Heat large skillet over medium heat. In batches, spray skillet with cooking
spray; using 2 small spoons, drop 2 tablespoons potato mixture into skillet and
spray with cooking spray. Flatten pancakes with back of spatula; cook 6 min-
utes or until golden brown and tender, turning once. Makes about 12 pancakes.
• Serve pancakes with yogurt and applesauce; garnish with chives, if desired.

7 58 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018


“AND WHEN IT’S DRY AND READY…”
BY YONI GLATT, KOSHERCROSSWORDS@GMAIL.COM
DIFFICULTY LEVEL: MEDIUM
ACROSS
1. Doughnut filling
4. “Man on the Moon” band
7. Nickname for Steve Rogers
10. Coolers, for short
13. ___ L’Tzedek
14. Muhammad whose grandson had a Bar
Mitzvah
15. Latke liquid
16. Bulls in boxscores
17. Hibernation site
18. When the 17th of Tammuz falls out
some years
20. Squared cracker that’s a hexagon?
21. ___ Zemirot
23. Some calendars have two
24. It’s used to walk the dog?
25. Sephardic cousin of cholent
27. NYC airport recently overhauled
28. Aired Seinfeld, say
29. Cooperative interactions
32. Location question (answered two ways
in this puzzle) regarding the events
alluded to by a dreidel
33. “___ shorts!” (Bart Simpson)
35. Hatzalah letters
37. Notable ancestor of the Maccabees
39. Emerald Isle
42. Screen that blips
45. Rugrats character that observes
Chanukah
46. Company that collapsed in 2001
47. Rink surface
48. Certifies by oath
51. Flight stat.
52. Dimes and agorot, e.g.
54. Achilles’ victim in “The Iliad”
56. Fashion lines
58. Author ___ Stanley Gardner
59. It comes at the end of the year
62. Comedy duo Key & ___
64. Made like the Giants, for most of the
season
68. Ancestry
69. ___ ante (raise)
70. The “Last Jedi”, maybe
71. Former prime minister born “Mabovich”
72. Stiffly formal
73. Play dreidel
The solution to last week’s puzzle is on page 63.
Crossword
Down
1. A Maccabee
2. Sports venue
3. Notable agricultural sheva
4. Shofar provider
5. Oscar winner Kazan
6. Setting of the Maccabee rebellion, in
modern-day terms
7. Like the Maccabees
8. Suffers from a plague
9. Tissue layer
10. Adam Sandler, e.g.
11. Wife of Rabbi Menachem (Mendel)
12. A Maccabee
19. (Ageless) hockey wonder Jaromir
22. It barely mentions the events of
Chanukah
24. All-too-agreeable fellows
26. TV’s Science Guy
28. Emeritus: Abbr.
30. Supporter of arms, for short
31. Actor McKellen who has played a Nazi
and a Holocaust survivor
34. Word before Shamayim or Hashem
35. Bana of Munich
36. ___ Hach (Bnei Akiva Israel trip)
38. 1 or 66, abbr.
40. Caramel-filled chocolate candy
41. ___’acte (play break)
43. Narc’s org.
44. What Matisyahu might have felt when
he rebelled
46. Donkey, in Berlin
49. “Time flies,” with “fugit”
50. Kind of movie glasses
53. 19-Down, e.g.
55. Human body’s 50,000,000,000,000
or so
57. YK month, often
58. K-12, in education
59. Tree that’s an anagram of legend
Brooks
60. One can be told for “Shalom Bayit”
61. College, to an Aussie
63. TLV posting
65. Kosher label with an extra caveat
66. Word with “jet” or “water”
67. Sons of Haman
The Frazzled Housewife
The very last time
L
ife is full of firsts. through puberty and that is
The first time you why he had become so chal-
roll over, the first lenging in class. Yes, son
time you walk, the #2’s teacher, who himself
first time you lose a tooth, had probably just started
the first time you ride a bike puberty, was telling us
… and on and on and on. about our son. Anyway, our
The first time I pretended to reports were all wonderful,
be asleep was the night my because our kids are per-
parents came home from my Banji fect. Aren’t yours? So these
parent-teacher conferences. I Ganchrow conferences went on twice
had a sneaking suspicion that a year every year until we
my reports were not going to graduated out of the school.
be stellar, so when I heard the garage door Enter high school. One conference, the
open, I knew it was time to quickly turn off Monday after Thanksgiving. Three differ-
the lights, get into bed, and shut my eyes ent time slots. Survival of the fittest… The
like my life depended on it. Because at the teachers sit in the gym, behind desks with
time, it did. I am such a delightful human their names on placards so we knew who
being, it is probably hard to imagine that they were. And we had five minutes to
my teachers didn’t like me. My parents discuss our precious sons. Good reports,
got a lot of “She has such potential, if she not so good reports.… It was all fine until
would only pay attention.” Or another today. Today’s parent-teacher conferences
favorite, “If only she would do her home- were special. They were my very last par-
work, she could really be something.” And ent teacher conferences EVER.
then there were the really bad comments, FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE.
“She doesn’t do her work. She talks back WHAT??????
in class. She leaves to go to the bathroom Who is going to tell me about his poten-
and doesn’t come back.” tial? Who is going to tell me how he is
I was looking forward to having chil- behaving in class?? My Very Last Parent-
dren in the hopes that they
wouldn’t take after me when it
came to parent-teacher confer-
ences. Maybe they would take
after their mild-mannered father,
I was looking
who was beloved by almost every forward to having
teacher he ever had in his entire
life. That is what I was hoping for.
children in the hopes
that they wouldn’t
And wouldn’t you know it, with
son #1, it came to be. Our very
first parent-teacher conference at
take after me when
3-year-old nursery school was 10 it came to parent-
minutes of pure nachas. He dav-
ens nicely; yes, even 19 years ago
teacher conferences.
my little rabbi was a good dav-
ener. He plays well with others…. Really, Teacher Conference. How can I continue
it was the perfect first parent-teacher to be a parent when I don’t have a teacher
conference. passing judgement on my parenting and
When the boys started elementary how that reflects itself into my son’s behav-
school, parent-teacher conferences ior in school?
became more about the sign-up process So this was my milestone, and I wanted
than really caring what the teacher would to share it with the person who cares so
say about your kid. Sign-up was a chal- deeply about these conferences, husband
lenge — you had to schedule meetings for #1. “Honey, it’s our last one. I need you
all of your kids within the same time frame there with me to share this very special
or you would be going back and forth to time together.” “Um, Banj, I think you just
school at three different times during the want me to come so you have a column to
day to meet your kids’ teachers. That was write about.” Yup, he busted me. It seems
not going to happen, so I waited until 11:59 that for every first we celebrate, there is
for the information to come online and going to a last that we also try to celebrate
then I made my reservations and danced without bawling, and this was the first of
around the house with glee, celebrating many related milestones to come this year.
the amazing time slots I had reserved. Excuse me, I must end now because I
Ahh, the exciting life of a then, almost need to get some tissues…
middle-aged housewife.
So all of my boys were, and still are, Banji Ganchrow of Teaneck is a big fan of
perfect, so their conferences were perfect the milestones — developmental, emotional,
as well. Except maybe the one where son physical, and, of course, anything that has
#2’s teacher told us that he must be going to do with cake….
JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 59
Arts & Culture

Alter an interconnected series of works of litera- out to do it. In fact, the project was more previous translations, plus a few books
FROM PAGE 55 ture using the tools of literary analysis, as or less an accident. he’d been putting off — including works
study all kinds of useful things. Historical he had been doing with Western novels in An editor from Norton approached that stretch his idea of the Bible as liter-
facts, archaeology — they pick up a couple of his career to that point. At the time it was him about doing a critical edition of ature almost to a breaking point, small
ancient languages, Akkadian and Egyptian. revolutionary. He looked at the Bible not as “maybe something from Kafka because pieces of the big picture but a slog to
But one thing that is never studied is style.” sacred, not as historical, but as art. I had just written a book that involved translate.
Alter figured the piece, published in Com- The book was recognized immediately as Kafka.” Maybe something from the Bible, “Listen, the first nine chapters of
mentary, would be a one-off, a small blip in a gem, hailed by critics and colleagues as Alter said offhandedly. Genesis, perhaps. Chronicles 1 is nothing but a list of
his career. revolutionary. It earned the 1982 National “But the problem is, there’s some- names,” he said. “You can’t call that liter-
“But then I started receiving an outpour- Jewish Book Award in Jewish thought. In thing really wrong with all of the exist- ature. And what is there to do as a trans-
ing of letters,” he said. It had struck a nerve. terms of academic volumes, it was a sales ing translations,” he told the editor. “If lator? Not much other than transcribe
“I had a few more ideas about it, so I kept sensation. It has been in print more or less I were to do this, I’d have to do my own the names. You just have to get through
going.” continuously since it was published. translation.” Alter said it without think- it because you can’t decide to edit out
Then, in 1982, he wrote “The Art of Bibli- Hendel said Alter’s literary approach to ing twice about what he was getting him- part of the Bible.”
cal Narrative.” reading the Bible has contributed signifi- self into. Alter doesn’t think much of Leviticus,
There are two common approaches to cantly to how the Bible is taught today in “I’d been reading the Bible in Hebrew either, with its long passages on priestly
the Bible: It’s either a sacred revelation academic settings. since my teens, and the beauty of the conduct and procedures for ritual
whose existence is to be taken at face value, One book about the literary style of the Hebrew spoke to me in all sorts of ways,” slaughter.
or a historical artifact to be dissected and Bible is a far cry from a handsome three-vol- he said. “I wanted to see if I could get “I don’t even like going into butcher
contextualized. ume translation of the whole thing. You’d more of that into English than English shops, and here I am translating all the
But in “The Art of Biblical Narrative,” Alter expect a weighty undertaking such as this to readers have been able to see so far.” instructions for cutting up the animals,”
proposed a third way: Analyze the Bible as have been a lifelong goal. But Alter didn’t set Which brings us back to “welter and he said.
waste.” The Hebrew term he renders But ask about his favorites, and Alter
in English is “tohu vavohu.” In his com- all but cruises through the table of
mentary, Alter wrote: “Tohu by itself contents.
means ‘emptiness’ or ‘futility,’” while “I love Genesis,” he began. “And I love
vavohu appears nowhere else in the Psalms and David’s story. And then there
Bible — “coined to rhyme with the [tohu] are later books. Kohelet [Ecclesiastes]
and reinforce it, an effect I have tried to speaks very strongly to me. And Job, of
approximate in English by alliteration.” course, the poetry is amazing …”
Hence, welter and waste. And then there’s his pride in his trans-
Compare the elegance of his solution, lation of a mysterious word in the Sam-
You are personally invited bringing to the English reader the sonic son story, one that appears only twice
to be our guest for dinner and poetry of the Hebrew, with this from the in the Bible: “halitsah.” It’s generally
a free informative presentation 1985 Jewish Publication Society trans- agreed that it refers to clothing, some-
lation of tohu vavohu: “unformed and times translated as tunic or simply gar-
about the benefits of pre- void.” ment, but identifying it more specifically
arranging your funeral Alter’s Genesis turned out better than has long given translators a good deal of
he expected and was well received. trouble. Alter, however, offers a novel
(Dietary laws observed) “So I said ‘I think I’ll do one more,’” he translation.
Your Life. recalled.
That one more was “The David Story,”
In the story, Samson carries 30 of
these unclassified garments after striking
Your Legacy. which included the books of 1 Samuel
and 2 Samuel, largely concerned with
down the men wearing them. By com-
paring it with the only other instance of
...Plan To Make It Right Seminar the life of King David. Published in 2000, the word in the Bible, Alter identifies it

the translation’s David comes across like as a kind of armor — a translation that
Wednesday, Dec. 12th a true literary character, flawed and brings new meaning to the story. The
heroic. image of Samson carrying 30 sets of
at 6pm In 2008, Alter expanded his translation armor reinforces his legendary superhu-
of Genesis and did “The Five Books of man strength.
Westwood Woman’s Moses: A Translation with Commentary.” Alter believes he’s the only person in
In 2009 came “The Book of Psalms.” In history to have translated it accurately.
Club 2011, “The Wisdom Books: Job, Proverbs, “I’m 100 percent certain that’s right,”
205 Kinderkamack Road and Ecclesiastes.” 2014: “Ancient Israel: he said.
The Former Prophets: Joshua, Judges, His colleague Hendel said Alter tri-
Westwood, NJ 07675 Samuel, and Kings.” 2016: “Strong as umphs as both a translator and critic.
Presented By: Death Is Love: The Song of Songs, Ruth, “His work on reading the Bible is going

Esther, Jonah, and Daniel.” to be as long-lived as his translation.
Gutterman & Musicant His translations are read by a broad They’re works of genius,” Hendel said.
range of audiences, Jewish, Christian “They’re going to be a part of his long-
Jewish Funeral Directors and otherwise — academics and their term legacy as much as the translations.”
Alan Musicant Mgr. NJ Lic. No. 2890
students, readers of literature, devotees Alter is comfortable with that.
402 Park St. Hackensack, NJ 07601 of the Good Book. “A friend of mine once said to me that
201-489-3800 “The Hebrew Bible: A Translation the shelf life of a book of literary criti-
Seating is Limited. Please RSVP by with Commentary” is proudly displayed cism is six or seven years. But ‘The Art
December 11th on a coffee table in Alter’s home, and of Biblical Narrative’ has been in con-
with good reason. The final product is a tinuous print for 37 years,” he said. And
Patrick Biondo NJ Lic. No. 4899
DIGNITY MEMORIAL boxed set — beautiful and colorful, with surely an entire translation of the Bible
201-489-3800 ext. 111 artwork adapted from a series of 10 tap- will be in play at least as long.
Should this invitation reach your home where there is an illness
estries designed in the late 1970s by the “So, good,” Alter said, satisfied.
or sorrow, we deeply regret the intrusion, for this is not our
Israeli artist Mordecai Ardon. J. THE JEWISH NEWS OF NORTHERN
intention.
The boxed set gathers all of his CALIFORNIA/JTA WIRE SERVICE

60 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018

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Gary Schoem – Manager - NJ Lic. 3811
A World War II Army Air Force veteran, his career was in November 21.
Jordan E. Schoem – Funeral Director - NJ Lic. 5146
film distribution, and he was a lifetime member of Motion A World War II Navy veteran, he graduated from
Conveniently Located
Picture Pioneers. Union College and was an insurance broker and W-150 Route 4 East • Paramus, NJ 07652
Predeceased by his wife, Rose, and brothers Harold and financial adviser in Clifton. 201.843.9090 1.800.426.5869
Norman, he is survived by children, grandchildren, and He is survived by his wife of 70 years, Beryl, née
great-grandchildren. Cohen, three daughters, and six grandchildren and
Arrangements were by Gutterman and Musicant Jewish their families.
Funeral Directors, Hackensack. Donations can be made to Union College,
Schenectady, N.Y. Condolences can be sent to Beryl
Carol Fine Zankel, Jewish Home at Rockleigh. Arrangements were
Carol Fine, 61, of Highland Park died November 20. by Robert Schoem’s Menorah Chapel, Paramus.
A graduate of Rutgers University and New York Law
School, she worked with Legal Services of North Jersey
Funeral Planning Simplified
and law firms, taught law at Monmouth and Rutgers BergenJewishChapel.com
universities, and was a career counselor at Berkeley
College. She served on state Supreme Court committees www.thejewishstandard.com 201.261.2900 | 789 Teaneck Road, Teaneck, NJ 07666
and was a trustee of Somerset Community Action.
She is survived by brothers, Joseph and Robert Owner/Manager Daniel W. Leber, NJ Lic. No3186

(Barbara), and a niece, nephews, great-nieces, and a

great-nephew.
Graveside services will be December 2. Arrangements
are by Robert Schoem’s Menorah Chapel, Paramus.

Esther Paik-Goodhart
Esther Paik-Goodhart of Demarest died November 19.
Obituaries are prepared
with information
Chevra Kadisha Taharath Jacob Isaac
She is survived by her husband, Alan, mother, Joyce provided by
Paik, sons Jacob and Isaac, and sisters, Mary and Joan. funeral homes. Serving the needs of the Jewish community for 35 years
Donations can be sent to the Jewish Education Project, Correcting errors is the with respect, dignity and strict adherence to halacha
the Dystonia Medical Research Foundation, and N.E.D. responsibility of the through many funeral homes in the tri-state area.
The service was at Temple Emanu-El of Closter. funeral home. Family operated for three generations.
Arrangements were by Gutterman and Musicant Jewish
Funeral Directors, Hackensack. For emergencies, 24 hours, 201-530-5822
Gutterman-Wien Chanukah JS_Layout 1 11/26/13 10:33 AM Page 1
Edward Gosdin
Edward “Ed” Gosdin, 88, died November 25.

HAPPY CHANUKAH
Before retiring, he was an engineer in the aerospace
industry with Bendix, Rockwell International, and
Honeywell. He was active in the Harvey Dorman Lodge of
B’nai B’rith.
He is survived by his wife of 57 years, Florence; sons,
Allan (Noreen) and Craig (Rachael); and grandchildren,
Harry, Charlotte-Anne, Nathaniel, and Leah.
TO YOU AND
YOUR FAMILY
Donations can be made to Temple Emanuel of the
Pascack Valley and Hadassah. Arrangements were by
Robert Schoem’s Menorah Chapel, Paramus.

Mark Steinfeld From the entire staff

Mark S. Steinfeld, 65, of Westwood, died November 27.
He is survived by his wife, Ellen; children, Jason (Kelly of Gutterman-Musicant and Wien & Wien
Heaton), and Elana Koesterich ( Jacob); siblings, Roy, and
Joan Kramer (Keith); and grandchildren, Caitlyn, Collin, Observing traditions and holidays like Chanukah
Hazel, and Talia.
Contributions can be sent to the Crohn’s and Colitis is an important way to celebrate our faith.
Foundation. Arrangements were by Gutterman and
Musicant Jewish Funeral Directors, Hackensack.
GUTTERMAN AND MUSICANT WIEN & WIEN, INC.
JEWISH FUNERAL DIRECTORS MEMORIAL CHAPELS
Alan L. Musicant, Mgr. N.J. Lic. No. 2890
201-791-0015 800-525-3834
LOUIS SUBURBAN CHAPEL, INC.
Martin D. Kasdan, N.J. Lic. No. 4482
Exclusive Jewish Funeral Chapel 1-800-522-0588 Fax: 201-489-2392 1-800-322-0533
Sensitive to Needs of the Jewish Community for Over 50 Years
402 Park Street, Hackensack, NJ 07601
May You Enjoy
Serving all of Florida
A Very Happy Chanukah
Advance Planning conferences conveniently arranged at our chapel or in your own home
13-01 Broadway (Route 4 West) · Fair Lawn, NJ
Richard Louis - Manager George Louis - Founder www.GuttermanMusicantWien.com
NJ Lic. No. 3088 1924-1996

JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 61

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 Jewish World

Reporter
FROM PAGE 37
democratic countries in which the govern-
ment does not control the media.”
Eyal said people begin to perceive the
press as “sources of opposition.”
Regarding face-to-face confrontations
with disgruntled viewers, he said that “the
number of times it’s actually happened
to me is very limited” but “what they do
online is different.”
What happened to me in the synagogue
is what happens to him online, Eyal said.
“I have been accused of [everything
from] being a spy to working for George
Soros, everything you can imagine,” he said.
Eyal said that Israeli outlets having
taken down leaders from both sides of the
political divide. The extended length of
time that Prime Minister Benjamin Netan-
yahu has been in power, however, has
served to reinforce a belief that the media,
which largely is doing its job in digging
into the secrets of those in power, is a par-
tisan actor. This, coupled with a relative
“deficiency of cultural understanding of
the importance of journalism to a healthy
democracy,” has led to widespread suspi-
cion of the press.
However, Eyal pointed out, “people say
they don’t trust the press, but when you
look at the consumption of journalism in
this country, I don’t think there is any-
where in the Western world that consumes
more news than Israelis. They might be
critical, but they are buying.”
This dichotomy between high media
consumption and low trust likely stems
from the fact that Israel is, in many
respects, a “war zone,” said media
reporter Oren Persico of the Seventh Eye,
a local press outlet that reports on media
issues. “There is an atmosphere that any
minute you can end up with a missile on
your head, so you want to be up to date
with what’s happening.”
And while Israel is filled with good jour-
nalists trying to do the best job possible,
he said, the owners of local outlets often
attempt to interfere with coverage in order
to advance their interests, he said.
As examples, Persico noted how Netan-
yahu allegedly attempted to negotiate
a quid pro quo with the owner of the
Hebrew daily Yediot Acharanot in which
the paper would tone down its criticism of
his administration in exchange for eroding
the influence of the free right-wing Israel
Hayom tabloid. Israel Hayom, meanwhile,
bankrolled by the American Jewish philan-
thropist Sheldon Adelson, largely has been
unabashed in its pro-Netanyahu coverage.
“So in this environment it’s hard for the
Israeli citizen to trust the newspaper,” Per-
sico said.
However, understanding the roots of the
problem do not make it any less pleasant
to bear the condescension of media skep-
tics. My search for a new congregation
continues. There’s one near my house
where I hear they don’t discuss politics.
I’ll give it a try. JTA WIRE SERVICE

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JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 63

Real Estate & Business

Chanukah parties demand celebratory wines

GABRIEL GELLER
Winter has come early this year, with
significant snowfalls on the East Coast
already in mid-November. As far as
wine is concerned, my immediate
thoughts when I see snow is “time to
take out the Port!” This year the snow
also reminded me that Chanukah was
around the corner.
Every year I’m always asked which
wines pair best with donuts and latkes
— but Chanukah isn’t only about deep-
fried traditional delicacies.
It is a holiday on which we recite
Al Hanissim for eight nights and days. It
is a holiday on which we celebrate the
extraordinary nissim that God sends us all
the time, and in particular those that God
sent us more than 2,000 years ago, when
the tiny army of the Maccabim defeated
the great Greek army of King Antiochus IV
Epiphanes.
It is therefore only natural that many
parties are organized during Chanukah
to celebrate the great chessed God has
granted the Jewish people. There are many
meals and dishes that are served at such
parties, from donuts and latkes of course
to brisket, steaks, salads, sushi, chicken
wings, and what not.
Here are a few wines that will enhance
our Chanukah parties tremendously:
Champagne des Barons Rothschild Brut:
When someone says “party!” I always
respond back saying “Champagne!” It is
the ultimate celebratory wine. The Roth-
schild Champagne is a luxurious, mineral-
driven bubbly with creamy lemon curd
notes as well as hints of white stone fruits
and classic notes of freshly baked bread.
Sparkling wines in general and Cham-
pagne in particular also happen to be, in
my humble opinion, the best wines to pair
with deep fried foods such as latkes. The
high acidity, the lemony notes, and the
vibrant bubbles cut through the oiliness.
Stay tuned — a new Champagne from the
Barons de Rothschild is coming out soon!
Ramon Cardova Albariño 2017 is the
newest and most exciting addition to the
ever-growing selection of great white
wines. This ones comes from the R’as
Baixas region, on Spain’s southwestern
coast. Albariño is a rising star among white
grape varieties. This is the second kosher
wine of its kind to come to the market,
following this summer’s introduction of
the intriguing, innovative Herzog Special
Reserve Albariño from California’s Edna
Valley. The Ramon Cardova features a
crispier, delightful profile with notes of
lime and pear, as well as some herbaceous
and saline undertones, showcasing the
proximity of the vineyards to the Atlantic
Ocean. If you’re planning on serving sushi
for your Chanukah party this is a wine you
must check out.
Château Malmaison 2016 from the Mou-
lis-en-Médoc appellation from the north-
ern part of Bordeaux’s Left Bank is one
of the estates owned and managed by the
Rothschild family. The Rothschilds’s com-
mitment to the highest standards of qual-
ity once again has been renewed with
upgraded vineyards, technology, and
equipment, and it shows in this excellent
wine. Beautifully balanced, with a velvety,
elegant texture as well as notes of ripe red
berries and a long, earthy finish. Truly
great value from Bordeaux. The Malmai-
son will be great with grilled lamb chops.
Jeff Morgan from Covenant Wines was
always a globe trotter. He has lived in dif-
ferent parts of America but also in Europe,
including a former career as a musician
in France and Switzerland. No surprise
there. Making wine is very akin to com-
posing or playing music, as both a com-
poser/musician and a winemaker must
achieve balance and harmony in
their creations. Jeff ’s travels and
his reconnecting bounds with his
Jewish roots over the past 15 years
have lead him to fall in love with
Eretz Yisrael. Just a few years ago he
started making wine in Israel and
launched Covenant Israel, in par-
allel with his award-winning Cov-
enant wines from California’s Napa
Valley and Sonoma which keep
collecting high accolades from the
Wine Spectator and Wine Enthu-
siast. The Covenant Israel Blue C
Adom 2016 is a blend of Cabernet
Sauvignon and Syrah grown in the Golan
Heights. This wine features Jeff Morgan’s
signature of well-rounded, fruit-forward,
and balanced wines with notes of black
and blueberries as well as freshly cracked
pepper, Israel’s roasted Mediterranean
herbs and aromatic spices. Exactly what
you need with a juicy, savory brisket on
Shabbos Chanukah.
Last but not least, the Port, Porto Cor-
dovero Ruby, will warm you up in delight
on a cold, snowy day (or night). But its
sweet notes of blackberry jam, caramel-
ized pecan nuts and dried figs will also
compliment scrumptious strawberry jelly
or chocolate donuts like no other type of
wine. And if you want to try something
comparable from Israel, then give a try
to the Zion Fortissimo or the Or Haganuz
Har Sinai.
Chanukah sameyach. L’chaim!
Gabriel Geller is the director of public
relations and client services for Royal Wine.

Sensitivity
FROM PAGE 15
Psychologist Ditza Berger
of Lander College for Women
spoke about anxiety, OCD, water
phobia, and related mental-
health issues relevant to using
the mikvah. Registered nurse
Estee Silver, who works in a
medical practice serving women
experiencing infertility, talked
about what mikvah attendants
need to know about clients in
this situation.
Cheryl Epstein, co-chair of
the Lower Merion Synagogue
Mikvah, addressed the needs
of the typical client and encour-
aged attendants to employ
empowering language to help
women feel more in control of
the mikvah experience, even
when there are no extenuating
life circumstances.
Ms. Leffel said that the impor-
tance of sensitivity in choosing
what to say to clients cannot be
overstated. “I have learned to
take my cues from the women
who walk in,” she said. “Some-
times they are hyperventilating
from rushing, a stressful day,
difficulty finding parking, etc. I
tell them to relax for a moment
or two or ask them, ‘Did you
have a stressful day?’” Some-
times a hug is in order, she
added.
Dr. Shmidman said that
based on the positive feedback
from attendees, the OU Wom-
en’s Initiative is planning simi-
lar programs in Silver Spring,
Maryland, and in Central Jer-
sey, as well as a webinar series
for mikvah attendants any-
where in the world.
“It’s important that mikvah
attendants are viewed as pro-
fessionals, and having profes-
sional development gives them
the support they deserve,” she
said.
Conversions
FROM PAGE 36
to Orthodox Jewish law and tradition, and are
endorsed by a major Orthodox organization. That
means non-Orthodox courts will not make the cut,
along with some liberal Orthodox courts and those
that meet on an ad hoc basis to serve smaller Jew-
ish communities.
“It was published now because the criteria were
approved now and this was part of that issue,”
Alter wrote in a text message. “The list includes
those that were approved.”
Alter left room for other bodies to qualify.
“Of course, if a rabbinical court does not appear
[on the list], that does not mean that it’s not
accepted. That is why we set criteria,” he said.
Many Israelis and some American Jews long
have protested the chief rabbinate’s monopoly
over Jewish religious life in Israel. Surveys consis-
tently show that large majorities of Jewish Israelis
want to institute civil marriage in Israel and liber-
alize conversion policy there, along with a slate of
other reforms.
American Jewish leaders, likewise, have called
for Israel to recognize Reform and Conservative
rabbis and religious ceremonies. But the issue
does not resonate as much among rank-and-file
U.S. Jews. A recent poll commissioned by J Street,
the liberal Israel lobby, showed that only 17.5 per-
cent of U.S. Jewish voters in 2018 know about the
Orthodox monopoly over religious policy in Israel
and are unhappy about it.
(The recently published list of approved rab-
bis, it should be noted, is unrelated to the so-
called “blacklist” of diaspora rabbis the chief rab-
binate released last year. That list was of rabbis
whom the chief rabbinate did not trust to con-
firm the Jewish identities of people who were
born Jewish. This list shows the rabbis it trusts to
perform conversions.)
“The list of rabbinical courts that was pub-
lished is one step forward and two steps back,”
Shmuel Shattach, executive director of Ne’emanei
Torah Va’Avodah, a group that advocates for
more freedom of religious choice in Israel, said
in a statement.
“The fact that the current list does not include
important rabbis and communities abroad is a
source of profound concern,” he said. “We expect
and hope to see a completion of the process of
recognizing rabbis abroad, which can lead to the
mending and healing of the great crisis between
Israel and diaspora Jewry.” JTA WIRE SERVICE

64 JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018

  Real Estate & Business

Englewood first responders collect toys Wishing you a

The Bergen County Police Benevolent Association, in
partnership with the Englewood firefighters and police
Fire Department at 81 South Van Brunt St.; The Gym at 20
Nordhoff Place; Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza at 10 Sterling
Happy Chanukah
unions, has announced the annual Englewood toy drive
will take place through Monday, December 17. Toys are
Road; Evergreen Fine Fresh Food at 260 Grand Ave.; Blue
Moon Mexican Cafe at 23 East Palisade Ave.; Englewood
from all of us at
being collected for children ages 3 to 15. The community
is asked to bringing a gift certificate or unwrapped toy
City Hall at 2-10 North Van Brunt St.; or bergenPAC at 30 Anhalt Realty
North Van Brunt St.
to any of the following locations: the Englewood Police For more information visit www.englewoodnjchamber.
Department at 75 South Van Brunt St.; the Englewood com or call (201) 567-2381. 240 Grand Avenue
Englewood, NJ

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Mortgage Bankers—NJ/NY/CT (561) 302-9374
JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 65
Real Estate & Business

Accreditation awarded to Holy Name’s

Russell Berrie simulation learning institute
The Russell Berrie Institute for Simulation
Learning at Holy Name Medical Center is
now the only fully accredited program in
New Jersey. The Society for Simulation in
Healthcare (SSH) recently granted accredi-
tation to Holy Name in the areas of teach-
ing/education and systems integration.
“This accreditation validates the
efforts of our healthcare team, high-
lights the power of community sup-
port, and showcases the successful
results of our innovative approach to
improving quality care and patient
safety,” said Michael Maron, president
and CEO of Holy Name Medical Cen-
ter. “We look forward to continuing to
make an impact in this transformative
and expanding field.”
“The Russell Berrie Foundation is
proud to support The Russell Berrie
Institute for Simulation Learning, which
has become a trusted resource for pro-
viders in the state,” said Angelica Ber-
rie, president of the The Russell Berrie
Foundation. “By providing cutting-edge
training to healthcare professionals, this
program truly aligns with our mission to
improve the quality of life for the people
of New Jersey.”
SSH seeks to improve performance and
reduce errors in patient care through the
use of simulation in training and educa-
tion. Full SSH Accreditation recognizes
simulation programs with a minimum of
two years of experience that show dem-
onstrated outcomes for each of these
core standards: Mission & Governance,
Program Management, Resource Man-
agement, Human Resources, Program
Improvement, Ethics, and Expanding
the Field.
“Earning accreditation is a rigorous
and thorough process,” said Andrew
Spain, director of accreditation and
certification, SSH. “Simulation centers
experience a peer-reviewed, customized
evaluation of their healthcare simulation
programs to determine if they meet the
accreditation standards. Since launch-
ing in 2010, more than 103 simulation
This accreditation validates the
efforts of our healthcare team,
highlights the power of
community support, and
showcases the successful
results of our innovative
approach to improving quality
care and patient safety.
programs from 13 countries have earned and bleed. Holy Name’s simulation experts
accreditation.” work with physicians, nurses, first respond-
Holy Name’s Institute for Simulation ers, students, and other members of the
Learning is a 4,800 square-foot facility community. Simulation education is not
where real-world life-threatening scenarios limited to teaching technical skills, but also
unfold in a high-tech, controlled environ- can help to enhance cultural competency,
ment. Those scenarios include responding sensitivity, communication, and more.
to trauma, drug overdoses, complications For information about The Russell Ber-
during childbirth, and heart attacks. The rie Institute for Simulation Learning at
hands-on training and education program Holy Name Medical Center, visit https://
uses patient simulators that speak, breathe, www.simulationlearning.org/.

NVE-3560 Fall Mortgage $549 Ad 5x6.5_NVE-3560 Fall Mortgage $549 Ad 5x6.5 9/27/18 10:43 AM Page 1

Financial literacy comes to Leonia High

Visions Federal Credit Union has teamed
up with author and motivational speaker
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high school seniors. Moodie has been fea-
tured in The New York Times, USA Today,
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He takes his experience over the last
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strategies to create a highly engaging
School on December 3.
After the presentation, students will
receive a copy of Moodie’s book “The Stu-
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to win one of five $500 scholarships.
Visions Federal Credit Union is a non-
profit financial institution completely
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1966, Visions serves nearly 200,000
members at 51 branches in communities
throughout New Jersey, New York, and

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students.
With the help of Visions Federal Credit
Union, Moodie will speak at Leonia High
Pennsylvania. Services include bank-
ing as well as auto, home, personal, and
business loans. Visit visionsfcu.org for
more information.

Jimmy J
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*APY is the Annual
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JEWISH STANDARD NOVEMBER 30, 2018 67