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THURSDAY, MARCH 13, 2014 11 ADAR II, 5774
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Cincinnati’s newest synagogue, Shevat Achim, holds first event
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Skirball Museum to feature work of Moses Jacob Ezekiel and his circle
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When slavery hits home: JCC exhibit looks at human trafficking through a Jewish lens “This year we are slaves. Next year may we all be free…” Each year at the Passover seder, Jews the world over reenact the experience of redemption from slavery to freedom. While we are obligated to see ourselves as though we too were slaves in Egypt, this part of our history occurred thousands of years in the past. Tragically however, slavery remains a reality for nearly 30 million people around the globe today. So is it sufficient for us to merely retell our own story once a year at the seder table? As Jews, should it be our obligation to work toward redeeming those who are still captive and focus attention on their plight? Slavery did not end after 400 years in Egypt, nor did it cease after the Civil War or the Holocaust. As long slavery exists in the world, can anyone consider themselves to be truly free? It’s shocking but true…unless you live on a deserted island, you have slaves working amongst you. Millions of modern-day slaves contribute to the supply chains of products that we use every day. In fact, according to Ohio Attorney General Mike Dewine’s website, there are more than 2,000 school-aged children being forced into human trafficking through exploited labor, domestic servitude or prostitution in our own state. In an effort to shine light on this current epidemic, the Mayerson JCC’s Wolf Center for Arts and Ideas will debut the first in an ongoing series of changing exhibitions: When Slavery Hits Home: Not Just History, But Here and Now. The exhibit, a collaboration between The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, the Klau Library of Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion, the Jacob
Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives, and the Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education, explores slavery from biblical to modern times, in both Jewish and global contexts. The opening event on Thursday, April 3rd will begin with a reception at 6:30pm where guests may preview the exhibit. It will be followed by a 7 pm presentation and panel discussion in the Amberley Room, featuring renowned scholar and lecturer, Arna Poupko Fisher, the Freedom Center’s Luke Blocher, FBI Special Agent Pamela Matson, and End Slavery Cincinnati Coalition Manager Erin Meyer. The event is free and open to the public with advance reservations. The exhibit continues through April 23rd in the JCC’s Amberley Room Gallery.
The exhibit will begin with an exploration of the Jewish experience of slavery as seen through illustrations from the Passover haggadah, some dating back as far as the 15th century. This portion was developed and curated by the Klau Library at HUC-JIR. The exhibit will continue with primary sources and artifacts from the worldrenowned collection of the American Jewish Archives that document slavery as it related to Jewish people and Jewish life in America. The Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education will include photos and a narrative piece exploring slave labor during the Holocaust. The final component of the exhibit, produced by the National Underground Freedom Center, will focus on contemporary times, and
includes a collection of posters depicting the five forms of modern day slavery, commissioned by the US State Department and created by University of Cincinnati DAAP (Department of Art and Architecture) students. “The Freedom Center’s anti-slavery work is centered, in part, around using the public’s familiarity with 19th century American slavery as a springboard to understanding the forms of slavery that both preceded and followed our ‘peculiar institution’, and continue to this day,” explains Luke Blocher, the Freedom Center’s Director of National Strategic Initiatives. “In telling these stories we aim to educate, but also inspire people to believe abolition is possible again,” he adds. “It is therefore an incredible opportunity to collaborate with the Mayerson JCC and our other partner organizations in the making of an exhibit that presents both a historic Jewish perspective on bondage, and a modern window into the problem as it exists today. We’re excited to share this unique exhibit and are grateful for the wonderful collaboration it represents.” The exhibit will also include a video loop featuring thirty, 30 second videos that were created by UC DAAP students on this topic, as well as a display that will include ways visitors can learn and take action, as well as several computer kiosks where visitors can take a simple survey that will tell them “how many slaves are working for them,” based on the items they use and products they purchase. In addition, there will be a special section with materials that Jewish guests (and others who participate in Passover seders) can incorporate into their own seders, as a way to bring awareness to these issues.
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Lecture and exhibition at Skirball Museum to feature work of Moses Jacob Ezekiel and his circle The next exhibition at the Cincinnati Skirball Museum, located on the campus of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, will focus on the work of Moses Jacob Ezekiel (1844-1917). The opening reception, scheduled from 5:30 to 8 p.m., will include a lecture by scholar and writer Peter Nash on Thursday, March 20, at 7 p.m. The exhibition will run through May 11. In his lecture, Nash will describe how he became interested in American expatriate artist Moses Ezekiel, and will tell of his adventures in Rome when he traveled there to find and explore the places in which Ezekiel lived and worked. Nash is the author of a newly published book that describes Ezekiel as a Sephardic Jew, a homosexual, Confederate soldier, Southern apologist, opponent of slavery, patriot, expatriate and artist of international fame in the fin-de-siècle world of artists and intellectuals. The intimate exhibition at the Skirball grew out of a recently acquired gift of works by Moses Ezekiel and his circle from the artist's great-nephew Lee Striker, explains Abby Schwartz, the museum’s interim director. These works, mostly on paper but including three oil paintings by members of the artist’s circle and Ezekiel’s sculpting tools, complement the three bronze and marble pieces already in the museum's collection. “We are delighted to have Peter Nash to discuss his book and describe his journey in words and images into Ezekiel’s world in Rome,” says Schwartz. “Nash is a descendent of the artist, and did much of his research here in Cincinnati. We look forward to welcoming him back to share his insights and give context to the small but choice group of works on view in this spotlight exhibition.” Ezekiel was born in Richmond, Virginia. He was only in his teens when the Civil War began in 1861 and he enrolled in the Virginia Military Institute, becoming its first Jewish cadet. He fought in the battle of New Market in 1864, and was encouraged by General Robert E. Lee to study art: “I hope you will be an artist, as it seems to me you are cut out for one.” Ezekiel wanted to study in Europe, but due to limited finances he entered the Medical College of Virginia in 1867 to study anatomy. A year later the Ezekiel family left Richmond for Cincinnati, which had developed into a major regional art center by 1865. Ezekiel entered the studio of Thomas Dow Jones and began a disciplined study of sculpture. In 1869 Ezekiel left Cincinnati
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Ezekiel studio, pen and ink drawing on paper
Peter Nash is shown here outside the Moses Jacob Ezekiel’s studio in Rome.
for Berlin, where he entered the Royal Academy. Religious subjects, often Jewish, were among Ezekiel’s earliest themes. While in Berlin he sculpted the bas-relief Israel, for which he won the coveted Prix de
Rome, the first American artist to do so. A version of Israel is in the Skirball collection and will be featured during the exhibition. In 1899 Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, the leader of American Reform Judaism and founder of Hebrew Union College, posed for Ezekiel. The resulting marble bust is part of the Skirball Museum’s collection and is also on display, along with a bronze of seventeenth century Sephardic Jewish philosopher Baruch Spinoza, which has been in storage for several years. Ezekiel soon moved to Rome, his home for more than 40 years. Three European monarchs knighted him and he was a favorite among artists, composers and fellow expatriates. One of Ezekiel’s chief works is the Confederate Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery. When he died in 1917, he left behind a specific request that his body be returned to America and buried at the base of the monument, alongside his comrades-in-arms.
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dynamic young artists. The production provides a preview of this summer's production of Carmen as part of the Cincinnati Opera's Summer Festival. "HaZaK" is an acronym, with the letters standing for the
Cincinnati’s newest synagogue, Shevat Achim, holds first event On Saturday evening, February 1st, the Cincinnati area’s newest congregation, Shevat Achim, held its first social event at the home of Ken & Lois Germain. The event was chaired by Nellie Bochner, and her committee included Lisa Ben Hur, Michal Jacobson, Sue Goldmeier, and Lois Germain. The title of the event was “Saturday Night at the Games.” Many attendees participated in a large, spirited game of Pictionary, with many others
observing and enjoying. In addition, everyone enjoyed the live music performed by Jeff Rubinstein, as well as the scrumptious desserts that were provided. The event was attended by 50 people, and a good time was had by all. According to Event Chair Nellie Bochner, "It was wonderful to see so many people from different parts of the greater Jewish community enjoy such a fun evening together." Shevet Achim (a.k.a. The
Sycamore Minyan) opened its doors in January, 2013 in Sycamore Township and has grown steadily ever since. Its members and attendees come from a wide range of backgrounds but come together to enjoy traditional (Modern Orthodox) Shabbat services, followed by superb meals that are prepared by several of the members. As Gabbai Shimon Ben Hur has noted, “Each person cooks their best dishes, so we enjoy an amazing meal togeth-
er.” Beyond the cuisine, the group enjoys sitting together at the Shabbos table, singing songs and hearing Divrei Torah (words of Torah) that can be offered by any and all in attendance. According to their Articles of Incorporation, Shevet Achim seeks to be “a holy community of friends who dwell together (in Hebrew, Kehila Kedosha Shevet Achim), mutually supporting one another, as we strive for spiritual fulfillment.”
Jewish American Heritage month announces 2014 theme and new partnership with the American Jewish Jiont Distribution Committee of WWI, the organization’s ten decades of rescue, poverty alleviation, Jewish community development, leadership train-
Visitors to the JAHM website will find educational resources directly related to the 2014 theme. A simple click
Jewish American Heritage Month (JAHM) is a national month of recognition of the more than 350-year history of Jewish contributions to American culture.
ing and cultivation, social innovation, and disaster relief work has benefitted millions of people and transformed countless lives in Israel and more than 90 countries.
on photos on the home page will link to information provided by the JDC and other institutions. “Speaking of Being Jewish,” JAHM’s online resource for speakers who can
be contacted for JAHM community events and programs, this year includes JDC’s medical director, Dr. Rick Hodes, and JDC disaster relief expert and assistant executive vice president, Dr. William Recant, among other scholars and authors whose area of expertise is American Jewish heritage and history. The interactive website also features a calendar listing of JAHM events and programs nationwide. Jewish American Heritage Month (JAHM) is a national month of recognition of the more than 350-year history of Jewish contributions to American culture, celebrated in May. JAHM acknowledges the achievements of Jewish Americans in fields ranging from sports and arts and entertainment to medicine, business, science, government and military service.
“LET THERE BE LIGHT” THE OLDEST ENGLISH-JEWISH WEEKLY IN AMERICA - EST. JULY 15, 1854
VOL. 160 • NO. 31 THURSDAY, MARCH13, 2014 11 ADAR II 5774 SHABBAT BEGINS FRIDAY 7:25 PM SHABBAT ENDS SATURDAY 8:26 PM THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE CO., PUBLISHERS 18 WEST NINTH STREET, SUITE 2 CINCINNATI, OHIO 45202-2037 Phone: (513) 621-3145 Fax: (513) 621-3744 publisher@americanisraelite.com editor@americanisraelite.com production@americanisraelite.com RABBI ISAAC M. WISE Founder, Editor, Publisher, 1854-1900 LEO WISE Editor & Publisher, 1900-1928 RABBI JONAH B. WISE Editor & Publisher, 1928-1930 HENRY C. SEGAL Editor & Publisher, 1930-1985 PHYLLIS R. SINGER Editor & General Manager, 1985-1999 MILLARD H. MACK Publisher Emeritus NETANEL (TED) DEUTSCH Editor & Publisher JORY EDLIN BETH KOTZIN Assistant Editors YOSEFF FRANCUS Copy Editor JANET STEINBERG Travel Editor ROBERT WILHELMY Dining Editor MARIANNA BETTMAN NATE BLOOM IRIS PASTOR ZELL SCHULMAN PHYLLIS R. SINGER Contributing Columnists JENNIFER CARROLL Production Manager BARBARA ROTHSTEIN Advertising Sales ERIN WYENANDT Office Manager e Oldest Eng Th
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Jewish American Heritage Month (JAHM), a national commemoration of the contributions that American Jews have made to the fabric of our nation’s history, culture, and society, announces the theme for the May 2014 celebration: American Jews and Tikkun Olam: Healing the World. This year, honoring the 100th anniversary of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC), JAHM celebrates American Jews who have made significant contributions to humanitarian causes, social justice, medical and scientific research, community-building, and philanthropy. JAHM is pleased to partner in this milestone year with JDC, which remains the essential Jewish international humanitarian organization, putting into action the precept that all Jews are responsible for one another and for all humankind. Since JDC’s founding in 1914 at the outset
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quences. Filled with some of opera's most recognizable tunes, "Carmen Redux" is a reduced version of the famous opera, set in the present day. Cincinnati Opera Outbound is the touring program of the Cincinnati Opera, featuring
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"HaZaK" is an acronym, with the letters standing for the Hebrew words "Hakhma" (wisdom), "Ziknah" (maturity), and "Kadima" (forward).
Hebrew words "Hakhma" (wisdom), "Ziknah" (maturity), and "Kadima" (forward). The HaZaK programs are for adults 55 and older, and are open to the entire community. In addition to members of Northern Hills, many attendees have come from the Jewish Community Center, Cedar Village, Brookwood Retirement Community, and throughout Greater Cincinnati. There is no charge for the program and lunch, but donations are greatly appreciated. Please RSVP to the Synagogue office by Monday, March 17th.
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A special treat is in store when the HaZaK group of Northern Hills Synagogue Congregation B'nai Avraham holds its monthly program on Wednesday, March 19th. Following a delicious lunch, members of the Cincinnati Opera Outbound will present "Carmen Redux," based on Bizet's beloved classic. The program will take place at Northern Hills Synagogue, and begin at 12 Noon. Beautiful, spirited, and rebellious, Carmen refuses to play by anyone else's rules. When she becomes the object of Don Jose's obsession, his jealousy leads to tragic conse-
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Northern Hills HaZak to enjoy Carmen Redux
THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE (USPS 019-320) is published weekly for $44 per year and $1.00 per single copy in Cincinnati and $49 per year and $2.00 per single copy elsewhere in U.S. by The American Israelite Co. 18 West Ninth Street, Suite 2, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-2037. Periodicals postage paid at Cincinnati, OH. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE, 18 West Ninth Street, Suite 2, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-2037. The views and opinions expressed by the columnists of The American Israelite do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the newspaper.
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The intricacies of the Hebrew calendar leap year By Alina Dain Sharon (JNS) – No, it isn’t nearly as rare as “Thanksgivukkah,” the once-in-75,000-years overlap of the first day Hanukkah and Thanksgiving Day that took the Jewish world by storm in 2013. But this year’s 13-month Hebrew calendar isn’t an annual occurrence, either. As February turns to March on the Gregorian calendar this year, the Hebrew month of Adar Aleph transitions into Adar Bet, which began March 3. The incidence of a second Adar, representing a Jewish leap year, comes up seven times every 19 years on the Hebrew calendar. Traditional lore attributes the standardization of the Hebrew calendar - in which the months represent the course of the moon, but must be aligned with the seasons of the year - to Hillel II, the leader of the Jewish Sanhedrin in the 4th century, but experts believe the evolution of the calendar was much more gradual. “The Bible contains some basic references to solar and lunar elements, but it does not lay out clear rules. Over time, these emerged, and by the rabbinic period the calendar looked very similar to the one we use today, although there were sectarian groups who did not accept it and had their own traditions of calendar rules,” Elisheva Carlebach, professor of Jewish History, Culture and Society and Columbia University in New York City, told JNS. Carlebach is the author of “Palaces of Time: Jewish Calendar and Culture in Early Modern Europe.” Sasha Stern, head of the Department of Hebrew and Jewish Studies at University College London and author of “Time and Process in Ancient Judaism,” told JNS that “a lot of people use the word ‘lunisolar’ to indicate that the calendar is regulated by the moon (which defines the beginning of the month) as well as by the sun (which demands the addition of 13th lunar month every two or three years).” But a core aspect of the original establishment of a Hebrew calendar was the need to determine the timing of biblical and religious holidays, such as Passover, Yom Kippur, and Rosh Hashanah. Later, non-biblical holidays such as Purim and Hannukah, and even Israeli Independence Day, were added to the calendar. “In the Jewish calendar, the addition of a 13th month is required for keeping up with the seasons (e.g. spring for Passover), not with the sun,” he said. In meteorology, the schedule of the seasons does not quite correspond with the movement of the sun.
Therefore, Stern believes the term “lunisolar” is actually a misnomer. The lunar year is 12 lunar months of an average of 29 and a half days each, with a total of approximately 354 days in a year, Stern explained. “This falls short of the seasons by about 11 days,” and thus “an extra month needs to be added every two or three years in order to make up for this and keep up with the seasons,” he said. The ancient Israelite calendar was therefore most likely lunar, with 12 months in the year, each of which begins with a new moon. Stern said all lunar calendars in the world “have always added a 13th (leap) month,” with the exception of the Islamic calendar. According to Rabbi Menachem Posner, one of the rabbis on the team of “Ask The Rabbi” responders on Chabad’ website, the practice of adding a 13th month was once performed by the Great Court in Jerusalem on a case-by-case basis, with an extra month being inserted whenever the rabbis saw that Passover was getting too early or saw the need to delay it for other reasons. “In the modern Jewish calendar, this has been placed on autopilot following a predetermined 19year cycle,” he said. “This means that the extra Adar is added every two or three years.” Another Hebrew calendar is mentioned in some documents from the Hellenistic and early Roman periods, as well as in the books of Enoch, Jubilees, and the famous Dead Sea Scrolls. This non-lunar Hebrew calendar had a fixed year of 364 days - exactly 52 weeks. The festivals recurred every year on the same day of the week. This is the earliest Jewish calendar described explicitly in any Jewish text, but the degree of its actual use at the time is unknown, and it seems to have died out. After the Babylonian exile and the destruction of the first Temple, Jews adopted the Babylonian calendar, from which the names of the modern Hebrew months originate. “The Babylonian calendar was very influential, as the Jews adopted it almost whole piece in the 6th century BCE,” Stern said. “In the Babylonian calendar, the addition of a 13th month was required for keeping up with certain stars.” The lunar Hebrew calendar, as influenced by the Babylonian calendar, prevailed for centuries, but various Jewish communities did not always agree on when the months began, depending on who first saw the full moon. Holidays were celebrated at different times by different Jewish communities. Experts believe that after the
rise of Christianity, the Christian and Hebrew calendars both influenced each other. The Christian Easter holiday originally took place at about the same time as the Jewish Passover, but eventually came to be calculated separately. This also influenced the evolution of the Hebrew calendar from one based on new moon sightings to one based on a calculation. Additionally, for centuries since the Middle Ages, “calculating the date of Easter and trying to separate that calculation from direct dependence on the Passover of the Jewish calendar occupied the energies of great Christian theologians,” Columbia’s Carlebach said. A fixed calculation of the Hebrew calendar was finalized in the 10th century. Some diversity in how the calendar was applied persisted well into the medieval period, but the fixed Hebrew calendar became largely universal over time. “In order to have society marching in synchrony to the music of time (for festivals, new years, to honor contracts, etc.) there has to be a means of disseminating calendars,” Carlebach said. Carlebach describes in her book that following the 15th century in Europe, Jews began to treat calendars not only as conceptual measurements of time, but as material things. Manuscripts of the Hebrew calendar began to circulate in various forms. The printing revolution allowed for the reprinting of the calendar, not only by Jews but also by Christians.
In addition to the calendars themselves, other materials circulated such as “Ibburim,” which explained how to compute the exact times of the the solar equinox and solstice. The first printed Ibbur was actually edited by a Catholic calendar expert, Sebastian Münster. In his partially translated edition, he included a standard Catholic Latin calendar that contained both Saints Days, and the names of the Jewish months in Hebrew in the margins. Later, many Protestants judaized their calendars by giving the names of Jewish months equally prominent placement as the names of the Christian months. The Jews took note of Christian holy days in their calendars, both to avoid potential acts of persecution, which tended to occur more often on holy days, but also to trade with Christians, whose market fairs often took place on holy days. “There are parapegma from ancient Judea, calendars etched on small stones; calendars could have been incised on wood; there are many medieval calendars on parchment and later on paper. Today there are calendars on our phones and on the Internet. The medium is less important than its durability for the time it is needed and its portability,” Carlebach said. Besides the well-known incidence of “Purim Katan,” Hebrew leap years can present some interesting scenarios, such as the challenge of calculating birthdays. For example, Posner asked, if a boy
was born in a regular year but his bar mitzvah falls on a leap month, “When does he reach the age of majority?” “In practice we do not count him for a minyan or call him up for an aliyah to the Torah until after his Adar II birthday. However, because of the possibility that the boy reached adulthood in Adar I, he should begin laying tefillin in Adar I,” said Posner. On yahrtzeits, or anniversaries of the passing of loved ones, “some people mark them only on Adar I and others mark them just on Adar II,” Posner noted. “Since this is a contested issue, many observe yahrtzeit twice [during a leap year],” he said. While the age-old intricacies of the Hebrew calendar aren’t novel, the calendar is gaining newfound relevance in Israel today through a Knesset bill that was approved in a preliminary reading Feb. 26. The bill stipulates that official identification issued to Jewish citizens by a public authority should use Hebrew calendar dates, instead of the Gregorian dates commonly used worldwide. Member of Knesset Elazar Stern (Hatnua) said regarding the bill that the Hebrew calendar “is an integral part of the history of the Jewish people,” Israel National News reported. “This bill, which would increase the use of the Hebrew date, is another step in strengthening Jewish democratic character of the state of Israel,” Stern said.
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After bruising Iran sanctions battle, AIPAC conference is all about comity By Ron Kampeas WASHINGTON (JTA) – You’ve got your rousing church choir, your multi-denominational trio of rabbis quoting Torah, your montages of Israelis and Palestinians coming together and, above all, your pleas to please, please, please be nice to one another. Democrat, Republican, liberal, conservative, Jew, Christian, black, white, Hispanic – the American Israel Public Affairs Committee wants you all to feel welcome under its big, pro-Israel tent. That was the resounding theme of last week’s annual AIPAC Policy Conference in Washington. Expansive outreach, of course, is nothing new for AIPAC. But in the wake of battles over Iran sanctions legislation that pitted the pro-Israel lobbying powerhouse against the White House, many congressional Democrats and liberals more generally, AIPAC’s traditional emphasis on Israel as a bipartisan issue has taken on added urgency. “We must affirm bipartisanship in our own ranks if we want support for Israel to be championed by Democrats and Republicans alike,” Michael Kassen, AIPAC’s chairman, said at the conference’s outset on Sunday. “AIPAC’s political diversity is critical to our continued success.” AIPAC in recent weeks has been bruised by deep differences between Republicans and most Democrats over how best to deal with Iran while nuclear talks are underway.
National Briefs Brooklyn College apologizes for ejection of Jewish students at anti-Israel event (JNS) – The Louis D. Brandeis Center (LDB) for Human Rights Under Law said it “welcomes” an apology by Brooklyn College President Karen Gould for the school’s forcible ejection of four pro-Israel Jewish students at an antiIsrael event hosted by the college last year. On February 7, 2013, Brooklyn College hosted a Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions event, sponsored by Students for Justice in Palestine, which featured anti-Israel activists Judith Butler and Omar Barghouti. Four students – Melanie Goldberg, Michael Ziegler, and Ari Ziegler, and Yvonne Juris – were forced to leave by school public safety officials over allegations by a non-campus event organizer that the students were being disruptive and passing out flyers. A City University of New York
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U.S. House of Representatives Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), at left, and Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) deliver remarks during the American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s Policy Conference in Washington.
Republicans back new sanctions as a means of strengthening the United States’ hand in the talks, and many congressional Democrats, heeding the White House, oppose them, saying they could scuttle not only talks with Iran but the international coalition that brought the Islamic Republic to the negotiating table. AIPAC had been working to bring a new Iran sanctions bill to a Senate vote until backing down last month after it became clear that it lacked enough Democratic support to overcome a promised presidential veto. In the aftermath, Republicans were angry with AIPAC for backing away from its push for a vote, while congressional Democrats resented AIPAC’s pressure on them to break with President Obama on the issue.
The result has been an unusual vacuum for the lobby: The thousands of activists who headed to Capitol Hill Tuesday were not advocating for any new legislation. Instead they were seeking signatories for letters from lawmakers in both chambers asking Obama to make sure that Iran complies with the nuclear inspection and verification regimes mandated by the U.N. Security Council. Additionally, they will advocate for a bill that would enhance security assistance to Israel, something they had already championed a year ago. That bill has been delayed in part because of difficulties with a provision that would allow Israeli citizens to enter the United States without visas.
(CUNY) investigation on the incident concluded that there was “no justification for the removal of the four students,” and Gould acknowledged that the students had every right to “remain at the event.”
cell in North Carolina on Sunday after undergoing emergency surgery on his kidneys, intestines and, gallbladder last week. Pollard’s wife, Esther, said after a phone conversation with her husband that he is “very weak” and “totally drained and worn out,” according to Israel Hayom. “Even though he tried not to let it show, I could hear the pain in his voice. He is still far from his usual articulate self, and far from well,” Esther said.
N.Y. man pleads guilty to violently forcing husbands to give gets (JTA) – A New York personal trainer pleaded guilty to being part of a group of men who used violent means in exchange for pay to force Jewish husbands to give their wives religious divorces. Crowd of 1,000 comes to Times Square to learn about Israel move (JTA) – More than 1,000 Jews gathered in New York’s Times Square to learn about moving to Israel. Jewish-Americans and Israelis living in the United States attended the “aliyah mega” event on Sunday organized by Nefesh B’Nefesh, a group that eases the path to move to Israel. Jonathan Pollard returns to prison after surgery (JNS) – Imprisoned Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard returned to his jail
Jewish umbrella calls for restored funding of U.S.-Israel missile defense programs (JNS) – Jewish leaders from the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations called on Congress to fully restore funding for U.S.-Israel missile defense programs that was recently slashed in President Barack Obama’s 2015 budget proposal. According to the 2015 budget, the Israeli Cooperative Programswhich include the missile defense programs Arrow II, Arrow III, and David’s Sling-will receive $96.8 million, a reduction of nearly $200 million from the previous year’s budget, the Washington Free Beacon reported.
The activists will also seek additional sponsors for the Iran sanctions bill, although they will not press for a quick vote. At the policy conference, AIPAC officials did not shy from tough talk when it came to Iran. Howard Kohr, AIPAC’s CEO, focused his speech Sunday morning on countering the Obama administration arguments. He took aim particularly at Obama’s claim that new sanctions could upend the negotiations. “Pressure brought Iran to the table, and only increasing pressure could bring about a deal,” he said. The Obama administration officials who addressed the conference anticipated the AIPAC pushback on Iran. “Now, in the next two days or so, you may hear some say that the very narrow relief in the interim agreement has unraveled the sanctions regime or eased the chokehold on Iran’s economy,” Treasury Secretary Jack Lew told the conference. “Nothing could be further from the truth.” Notwithstanding the lingering tensions, calls for comity were prevalent at the conference. “It may make you sleep better at night” to criticize President Obama in meetings with lawmakers, Steve Askeroff, an AIPAC lobbyist, said at a lobbying training session, but he emphasized that AIPAC has to work with the executive branch. “It can be very tricky, but you have to navigate these waters in a bipartisan way,” he said.
The images of diverse AIPAC supporters (“I am [fill in the blank], I am AIPAC”) projected in the cavernous Washington Convention Center were interspersed with appeals to be polite to speakers. “Don’t boo, be friendly!” advised Casper the Friendly Ghost in one of the slides. In a closed meeting, AIPAC officials asked members of the group’s executive committee – an advisory body comprising representatives from other American Jewish groups – to break up any arguments they witnessed throughout the conference. An emphasis of the conference was the breadth of AIPAC’s outreach, particularly among African Americans and Hispanics. Chris Harris, a pastor from Chicago’s South Side, described how he had applied in his neighborhood lessons learned from trauma specialists in Israeli communities on Gaza’s border. He closed Sunday night’s plenary by eliciting “Amens” from the AIPAC activists as his church’s gospel choir sang, “We walk with you.” AIPAC has also worked to counter criticisms from the left that it is too closely aligned with the GOP. A month ago, AIPAC advertised for a director of progressive outreach; the job is not yet filled. Until the mid-1980s, such a job description might have seemed redundant – AIPAC was until then strongly identified with Democrats. AIPAC on page 19
Jewish groups express concern on anti-Semitism at California state schools (JNS) – Several Jewish organizations wrote a letter to top California education officials to express concern regarding antiSemitism at California state schools. The AMCHA Initiative, Scholars for Peace in the Middle East, Simon Wiesenthal Center, Zionist Organization of America, and StandWithUs called attention to concerns on the “safety and wellbeing of Jewish students on California State University campuses,” in light of an event hosted by the San Francisco State University (SFSU) College of Ethnic Studies on March 6. The Jewish groups were particularly concerned about meetings the delegation has had with Palestinians who argue “for the use of armed violence against the Jewish state.” House passes U.S.-Israel strategic partnership bill (JNS) – The American Israel Political Affairs Committee (AIPAC) applauded the adoption of the United States-Israel Strategic Partnership Act of 2013 by the House of Representatives.
Last week’s passage of the bill in a 410-1 vote came after AIPAC held its annual policy conference in Washington, D.C. The bipartisan bill, co-sponsored by U.S. Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Ted Deutch (D-FL), Ed Royce (R-CA), and Eliot Engel (DNY), declares Israel as a “major strategic partner” of the U.S. Competition for $250K inclusion prize launched by Ruderman Family Foundation (JNS) – The Ruderman Family Foundation on Tuesday announced the opening of a global competition for its third annual $250,000 Ruderman Prize in Inclusion, to be split equally among five organizations that have “demonstrated their commitment to the full inclusion of people with disabilities into the Jewish community through innovative programs and services.” “It is our hope that by shining a light on the leaders in inclusion in our community that we will encourage other organizations to follow their lead and effectuate lasting change,” said Jay Ruderman, president of the Ruderman Family Foundation, which is headquartered in Boston and Israel.
NATIONAL / INTERNATIONAL • 7
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On Purim, answering to a higher grogger By Edmon J. Rodman LOS ANGELES (JTA) – On Purim, can we really blot out the memory of an evil like Haman, who threatened our very existence, with a noisemaker? When in a popular Purim song we sing “Hava narishah-rash, rash, rash,” “Wind your noisemakers,” all that “rashing” does momentarily make the darkness go away. But in what direction do we turn as we step into the light? It’s not that the sound is supposed to make us entirely forget Haman. In fact Purim, which this year begins at sundown March 15, is the time of year when Jews are supposed to remember what we have been told to forget. On Shabbat Zachor, the Sabbath of Remembrance – the Shabbat before Purim – we read in the concluding Torah reading (Deuteronomy 25: 17-19), “You shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven. Do not forget!” Why the blot out? The Torah reading explains that while the Israelites were on the march in the wilderness, the Amalek attacked “when you were famished and weary, and cut down all the stragglers in your rear.” On Purim, when reading from the Book of Esther and Haman’s name is mentioned, that’s what all the noise is about. Haman is considered a descendant of the Amalek, and when we hear his name, with groggers and noisemakers of every design, we attempt to symbolically blot it out. Works for kids, but what about adults? Since something in my hand that ratchets, clanks or booms at least aurally gets my attention, I pulled a couple of groggers off my bookshelves to hear if they would wake me up to anything else, like the mitzvah associated with Purim of helping the hungry. I gave a colorfully painted wooden one a twist. It would drown out Haman, but its sound didn’t ring any dinner bells. I gave a paper-mache Haman head on a stick with some rice inside a shake – it was cute but empty mouthed, and a hamantashen-shaped grogger – left me hungry for something more. I wondered if I could find a better blotter. The custom of making noise when Haman’s name is mentioned, according to an article titled “Are Jews Still Commanded to Blot Out the Memory of Amalek,” by Rabbi David Golinkin of the Schetcher Institute, goes back to around 1200. Citing a midrash that says “blot out the memory of Amalek even from the trees and the stones,” he suggests that in France to act this out, chil-
dren took smooth stones to write “Haman” on them. During the reading of the Megillah, at the mention of his name, they knocked the stones together to erase it. Since it’s not hard to imagine the result of having kids in synagogue with a couple of river rocks to smash together, a simple noisemaker seems to be a reasonable simulacrum for them. For the big kids, some of us try blotting out with food and other substances. Munching a hamantaschen, which represents Haman’s tri-cornered hat, and downing a shot or two is an easy and tasty way to eliminate his image. In my 20s, to faithfully observe the blotting mitzvah, I baked some pot into a batch of hamantashen; prune, as I recall. But since that’s about all that I remember from the evening, I may have over-blotted. Generally speaking, the past blots out itself without our help. The harder part is to remember what to do about it today. What I needed to move toward some kind of Purimcentered social action was a grogger that also was a jogger of memory. Getting back to those two stones, I needed a noisemaker that would rub two ideas together, erasing my feelings of ambivalence and waking me up to an important Jewish concept. Several U.S. synagogues have turned the grogger into a reminder about the hungry. They ask their congregants to bring boxes of macaroni and cheese to the Megillah reading so they can shake them when Haman’s name is read, and afterward donate them to a food bank. Adding a little sweetness, or even pleasure, I figured a box of Good & Plenty or can of coffee beans would work, too. You can also bang two ideas together – that of blotting out Haman and wastefulness – by using the grogger as a reminder to recycle. Use an empty soda can to which you have added a few dried beans or coins for tzedakah. An organization called Fair Trade Judaica sells a wooden grogger, handmade in India, that gives Purim noisemaking a social action twist. The groggers are made in workshops organized by a group called the Shilpa Trust that works with economically and educationally disadvantaged artisans. The trust, according to the site, “provides artisans with children’s educational assistance, free health check-ups, social security insurance, a loan program, skill training and product development.” Helping to blot out poverty, while making me remember it, this is a grogger that would give others a turn.
With Venezuela in a tailspin, growing number of Jews opting for ‘Plan B’ By Uriel Heilman (JTA) – They left after Venezuelan secret police raided a Jewish club in 2007, and after the local synagogue was ransacked by unidentified thugs two years later. They left after President Hugo Chavez expelled Israel’s ambassador to Caracas, and when he called on Venezuela’s Jews to condemn Israel for its actions in Gaza in 2009. They left when Caracas claimed the ignoble title of most dangerous city in the world – and when inflation hit double digits, food shortages took hold and the country’s murder rate reached 79 per 100,000 people. With Venezuela now roiled by anti-government demonstrations – the death toll reached 18 March 1 – Venezuelan Jews who remain have yet another reason to leave their country: growing despair. “There’s less hope about the future,” said Andres Beker, a Venezuelan Jewish expatriate in the United States whose parents still live in Caracas. “My parents are huge fans of Venezuela. Until last year I thought they would stay no matter what. Now, for the first time, they’re talking about Plan B: leaving Venezuela.” Over the last 15 years, from the time Chavez came to power and in the year since Nicolas Maduro has ruled the country, the Venezuelan Jewish community has shrunk by more than half. It is now estimated at
about 7,000, down from a high of 25,000 in the 1990s. Many of those who left were community leaders. It’s not just Venezuelan Jews who are leaving. Hundreds of thousands of middle- and upper-class Venezuelans have relocated in recent years, swelling the size of expat communities in places like Miami, Panama, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic and Colombia. The exodus of Venezuelan Jews has put a great strain on the community’s institutions. “Emigration has really played a big factor in the community – that’s our main problem,” said Sammy Eppel, a Caracas journalist and Jewish community member who also serves as director of the B’nai Brith Human Rights Commission in Venezuela. “When we were a numerous and prosperous community, we built numerous and heavy institutions,” Eppel said. “A lot of our members have left, and we are left with the same institutions but with less people to take care of them. We have to make serious adjustments while making sure the services we provide to the community don’t suffer.” A high school junior named Allan who attends the Jewish community school, Hebraica, says his grade has shrunk to 85 students from 120 six years ago. The younger grades are much smaller, with 40-50 kids each. The school is now considering combining the first and second
grades, he said. Interested in keeping as low a profile as possible, leaders of Jewish institutions in Venezuela declined to be interviewed by JTA for this story. The massive anti-government demonstrations that began on Feb. 12 were sparked in part by new lows for Venezuela’s economy and an upsurge in violence. “It started deteriorating to the point where a couple months ago you couldn’t get milk, chicken, eggs, toilet paper,” Beker said. “It’s really started to affect all families.” Allan, the high schooler, said the streets long have been off limits for him and his friends, due to threats of violence and kidnapping. But these days, it’s hard to leave the house to go anywhere. “Now it’s more dangerous,” Allan said. “Nobody goes out, nobody goes to parties, nobody goes to dinner. Everybody’s in their houses.” Outsiders might puzzle over why anybody would stay given the challenging circumstances of daily life. But Venezuelan Jews say leaving home is never easy. There are those with jobs that can’t be shifted overseas, and those who lack the money or energy to leave and start over somewhere else. And the changes have been gradual enough that, time and time again, Venezuelan Jews – like their gentile VENEZUELA on page 22
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In Crimea, some Jews feel safer after Russian intervention By Cnaan Liphshiz (JTA) – Shortly after Russian soldiers occupied the Crimean city of Sevastopol, Leah Cyrlikova took her two children out for an afternoon stroll in a city park. When they passed a group of soldiers, they stopped to have a friendly chat and pose with them for photos. While many Ukrainian Jews have strongly condemned the Russian military incursion into Crimea, others see the intervention as restoring order in the wake of a violent revolution that overthrew the pro-Russian government of President Viktor Yanukovych. “I feel safer with them around,” said Cyrlikova, a Jewish Ukrainian who has lived in Sevastopol for five years. “These are crazy times, and now I know that if something bad happens, they will stop it.” Divisions within the Ukrainian Jewish community have deepened in the wake of the Russian movement last week into the Crimean Peninsula, where approximately 10,000 Jews live amid an ethnic Russian majority. Many Ukrainian Jews took part in the opposition movement centered in Kiev’s Maidan, or Independence Square. Jews par-
International Briefs Scribe restores Book of Esther scroll for Catholic nuns in time for Purim (JNS) – Ahead of Purim, a collaboration between an order of nuns and a British Jewish scribe to restore an ancient scroll telling the story of the holiday is drawing attention as a sign of progress in Catholic-Jewish relations. Scribe Mordechai Pinchas restored a megillah (scroll) of the Book of Esther and returned it to the Benedictine Tyburn Nuns at a London ceremony last week. “The need for Esther’s example is ever present in our minds, whether we are Christians or Jews,” Mother General Xavier McMonagle said. “Esther is a memorial, a living point of confidence that God can change things for the better, and he can do it even by working miracles.” U.S. denying visas to Israeli intelligence and defense personnel (JNS) – The U.S. State Department has reportedly begun a policy of denying visa requests from
Courtesy of Courtesy Simerofol Reform Synagogue Ner Tamid
Simferopol Reform Synagogue Ner Tamid on Feb. 28.
ticipated despite the fact that the protests included far-right activists and some political figures who have been known to espouse anti-Semitic views. But support for the revolution is hardly unanimous among the country’s Jews. Rabbi Misha Kapustin, whose Reform synagogue in the Crimean capital of Simferopol was recently vandalized with swastikas, acknowledged that some Jews support Russian involvement in the crisis. “In this area there is considerable support for the Russian invasion, and the local [Crimean Jewish] community is very assimilated here,” Kapustin told
JTA. “You should take into account the effect of Russian propaganda: the television they watch, what papers they read.” But he stressed that he felt his country was being invaded by foreigners. “How would a Brit feel if another nation invaded London? That’s how I feel as a citizen of Ukraine,” Kapustin said. “The city is occupied by Russians, who seem to have decided to take over the Crimea. If this were the case, I would leave the country because I want to live in democratic Ukraine.” Residents of Crimea are at present able to move around freely at all hours, Kapustin said.
members of Israel’s intelligence and defense sectors. Senior security personnel said they have seen “hundreds of cases” in which members of the Shin Bet, Mossad, and Israeli defense industry workers have been told they cannot visit the U.S., Ma’ariv reported.
Arab League head urges ‘firm stand’ against recognizing Israel as Jewish state (JNS) – Nabil Elaraby, the head of the Arab League, has called on Arab countries to take a “firm stand” against recognizing Israel as a Jewish state. On Friday, Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas made similar comments, saying there is “no way” he would recognize Israel as a Jewish state.
U.S. announces transfer of $429 million to Israel for Iron Dome (JNS) – The United States on Monday announced the immediate transfer of $429 million to Israel to continue manufacturing and purchasing Iron Dome anti-rocket batteries. The decision to provide additional Iron Dome funding was first reported by Israel Hayom on Monday. The U.S. Defense Department made the official announcement later in the day. IDF chief Benny Gantz visits U.S. (Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS) – Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz arrived in the U.S. on Sunday for an official visit. Gantz was scheduled to hold a series of meetings with U.S. defense officials during his visit, and to take part in the Friends of the IDF annual gala dinner on Tuesday in New York.
Bulgarian authorities recover DNA from terrorist who bombed Israel tour bus (JNS) – Bulgarian authorities have recovered DNA evidence of one of the terrorists behind the summer 2012 Burgas bus bombing that killed five Israeli tourists and their Bulgarian bus driver. The DNA belonged to a Lebanese-Canadian man named Hassan El Hajj Hassan, who was in charge of logistics for the terror attack, including the remote detonation of the suicide bomb, Sofia News Agency reported. Bulgarian authorities believe Hezbollah was behind the attack. Saudi Arabia declares Muslim Brotherhood a terror organization (JNS) – Saudi Arabia has declared Egypt’s Muslim
They are also free to leave the peninsula for other parts of Ukraine. Kapustin asked his wife, Marina, to leave for Israel until the situation stabilizes. She refused. “I stayed to remain with my community, but I wasn’t very happy my family also stayed,” Kapustin said. “I would rather see them as far away from the action as possible, but I respect Marina’s choice.” The United States has condemned Russian “aggression” in Ukraine and threatened to impose economic sanctions in response. Major news agencies, as well as American and Ukrainian officials, have reported a massive mobilization of Russian troops in Crimea. But speaking at a news conference near Moscow on Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin denied that his troops had occupied Crimea, while reserving the right to act militarily to protect Ukrainian citizens from an “orgy” of radical nationalists and anti-Semites. “We have seen the work of neo-Nazis in Ukraine,” Putin said. “They and anti-Semites are rampant in Ukraine today.” Putin seemed to be referencing the prominent role in the Kiev protests of Svoboda, a xenophobic political party whose members have referred to Jews as
“kikes.” Svoboda leader Oleh Tyahnybok has described his movement as the “worst fear of the Jewish-Russian mafia.” On March 3, Ukraine’s acting president, Oleksandr Turchynov, appointed Svoboda politician Sidor Kizin governor of the Zhytomyr district, pending elections scheduled for May. At the same time, Jewish businessman Igor Kolomoisky was appointed governor of the Dnipropetrovsk district. The protest movement erupted in November because of the Yanukovych government’s prioritizing of ties with Moscow over relations with the European Union. But the revolution has exposed deep divisions between the country’s mostly Ukrainianspeaking west and the more Russian-oriented east and south. “The Maidan Revolution was a dangerous thing,” said Boruch Gorin, a prominent Lubavitch rabbi in Moscow who was born in the predominantly Russianspeaking city of Odessa in southern Ukraine. “The decision to abandon democracy as a tool for change and adopt violence is always frightening, especially to minorities.” Gorin, however, acknowledged that the protest movement
Brotherhood a terrorist organization, the Saudi Interior Ministry declared, Al-Arabiya reported.
Hayom in an interview published Sunday. “Pollard shouldn’t be in jail or in the hospital,” Netanyahu said. “The time has come to release him. I spoke about this with Obama.”
NGO Monitor: Anti-Israel Bethlehem conference funded by U.S., U.K., Netherlands (JNS) – The U.S., U.K., and Dutch governments are helping to fund an upcoming conference called “Christ at the Checkpoint,” which attempts to sway Evangelical Christian opinion against Israel and whose themes have anti-Semitic undertones, according to a new report by the watchdog group NGO Monitor. IDF trains with American troops on V-22 Osprey ‘planecopter’ (JNS) – The Israeli Air Force trained last week with its American counterpart on the Boeing-made V22 Osprey “plane-copter,” which can lift off and land like a helicopter, and then transform mid-flight into a high-speed turboprop aircraft. Time to free Jonathan Pollard, Netanyahu tells Obama (JNS) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with U.S. President Barack Obama about the issue of convicted Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard’s release when the two leaders recently met at the White House, Netanyahu told Israel
CRIMEA on page 22
Hezbollah terrorists attempt to plant bombs on Israel-Syria border (JNS) – The Israel Defense Forces identified two terrorists attempting to plant a bomb on the Israel-Syria border in the northern Golan Heights last week. According to the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit, the terrorist cell was identified as belonging to the Lebanese terror group Hezbollah. European youth group votes against Israel boycott (JNS) – The Youth of the European People’s Party (YEPP), a center-right political youth organization representing 39 European countries, has cast the first-ever vote against boycotting products and factories in Judea and Samaria. Vatican denies cancelation of Pope Francis trip to Israel (JNS) – The Vatican denied reports that Pope Francis was forced to cancel his planned trip to Israel in May due to a labor dispute within the Israeli Foreign Ministry.
ISRAEL • 9
THURSDAY, MARCH 13, 2014
Wounded Ukrainian protesters airlifted to Israel for medical treatment By JTA Staff TEL AVIV (JTA) – For 17-yearold Bolodimir Bedyuk, a Ukrainian who was severely wounded in clashes with Ukrainian police on Feb. 18, Israeli medical care may be his only hope. After a pitched battle with Ukrainian police forces on Institutskaya Street in Kiev, Bedyuk suffered chest wounds and extensive liver damage – his brother Aleksei said Bolodimir’s liver “was torn practically in half.” In that confrontation, Ukrainian police forces advanced with automatic weapons on protesters, leaving dozens dead. While Kiev and its environs have been relatively peaceful since the chaos of Feb. 18 and Feb. 19, hundreds are still suffering from wounds incurred during clashes with riot police operating on behalf of the
country’s then president, Victor Yanukovych. But thanks to the effort of volunteers in both Kiev and Israel, Bolodimir and six other severely wounded patients were airlifted to Israel March 7, where they are scheduled to receive treatment at the Kaplan Medical Center in Rehovot as well as at Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem. Many of the wounded already have undergone multiple surgeries locally. But care in Ukrainian hospitals is deeply lacking, said Tzvi Arieli, a coordinator of the treatment effort who has lived in both Ukraine and Israel. “When you go into a public hospital in Ukraine, you don’t know if you will leave dead,” Arieli told JTA. The initiative stemmed from the desire of Ukrainian Jews to help
their countrymen using the advanced medical capacities of Israeli hospitals, Arieli wrote in an open letter to supporters. “We are a group of Jews from Ukraine,” Arieli wrote. “What binds us together is our Jewish identity and our deep desire to do something to alleviate the suffering of those who have been injured during recent events.” “We love our fellow Ukrainians,” he continued, “and we are proud of the Jewish state, Israel, whose first-class medical treatment will give our countrymen the best chance at resuming a normal life.” The project faced initial obstacles in terms of both hospital access within Israel and funding. Dr. Valeriya Babchik, a physician at Kaplan, helped to organize the project, along with Arieli and Marina Lysak, a Kiev resident.
Courtesy of Shimon Briman
A wounded individual is transported to a waiting plane, where he will be flown to Israel to receive medical care.
Alexander Levin, an American Jewish businessman with extensive ties to Ukraine, donated $50,000 to the initiative, which covered the ini-
tial costs of transporting the first group. But Arieli and others estimate WOUNDED on page 22
Can an Israeli-Palestinian business coalition push leaders to make a deal? By Ben Sales TEL AVIV (JTA) – Two years ago, Israeli supermarket mogul Rami Levy invited Palestinian gas and oil magnate Munib al-Masri to one of his grocery stores. A working-class boy who had become the West Bank’s wealthiest man, al-Masri already had turned his attention to a new challenge: encouraging a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. But the partnership was not to be. Levy, the owner of the supermarket chain Rami Levy Hashikma Marketing, has three stores in Israeli West Bank settlements, and al-Masri decided he could not work with him in good faith. In Levy’s eyes, the West Bank franchises advance peace by employing Palestinians and fostering coexistence. Al-Masri, however, saw them as an impediment to the partnership. Now the pair find themselves together anyway as part of a larger initiative of 300 Israeli and Palestinian businesspeople hoping to nudge their respective leaderships toward a peace agreement. Levy and al-Masri say they can coexist within the larger group, known as Breaking the Impasse, or BTI, despite the significant ideological gaps between them. “The big picture is me convincing them that they shouldn’t be there,” al-Masri told JTA, referring to Israel’s presence in the settlements. “I will always talk to them because if they agree with me, we’ll work together. This is a win-win.” BTI was founded at the World Economic Forum in 2012, but launched its public campaign only recently. So far, BTI has engaged in a mix of public advocacy and quiet diplomacy, holding off-the-record meetings with Israeli and Palestinian ministers and placing large bill-
boards in Israeli population centers touting the benefits of a peace deal. Participants say their interest in the initiative isn’t strictly economic, though a peace agreement surely would bring substantial benefits to the business community. In particular, they say a deal would be key to curbing the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement, or BDS, that seeks to punish Israel economically for its treatment of the Palestinians. “A lot of companies and states and academics want to invest, buy products and do joint academic research” with Israel, said Moshe Lichtman, former president of Microsoft Israel’s research and development center. “If we have an opportunity [for peace] and we miss it, it will have economic and business implications.” In February, BTI ran a series of billboards featuring a large picture of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and slogans such as “Only with an agreement can we secure a Jewish and democratic state,” or “Without a peace agreement we won’t be able to lower the cost of living.” Each statement concluded with a message to Netanyahu: “Bibi, only you can do it!” A parallel effort is underway to exert pressure on Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, but the Israeli and Palestinian members of BTI are operating independently in their respective spheres and the Netanyahu billboards were arranged solely by the Israeli side. BTI members say that while they support a peace agreement that leads to two states, they won’t delve into the thorny details of major issues such as Palestinian refugees, the future of Jerusalem or final borders. Such questions, they say, should be left to the negotiators.
Sticking to broad slogans allows BTI to paper over substantial differences among its participants, but it also could present obstacles for the group should the particulars of an agreement come to light. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is slated to propose a framework for an agreement in the coming weeks. “We know there are disagreements left and right,” said Michal Stopper-Vax, BTI’s CEO. “But if the prime minister signs an agreement, the majority of the group will be
behind it.” The differences between Levy and al-Masri point to the gaps even between Israelis and Palestinians who agree on the need for a twostate solution. Al-Masri talks about a Palestinian state in the 1967 borders, while Levy wants to keep all of Jerusalem under Israeli sovereignty. Al-Masri wants to offer each Palestinian refugee Israeli citizenship, a non-starter for most Israelis. And while Levy believes Palestinians aren’t fully prepared for
a final deal, al-Masri believes Israel is “morally responsible” for the conflict. Both men say that if their respective leaders sign an agreement, and both Israelis and Palestinians approve it in referenda, they won’t object. But the differences between them may make for a tenuous alliance. In February, some BTI members took out a full-page ad in the Israeli daily Yediot Aharonot XXXXXXX on page xx
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Purim and the poor in Israel By Judy Lash Balint (JNS) – Israelis take Purim seriously – kids get the day off school, many towns put on a lively Purim parade, and the streets are filled with people of all ages running about in costumes, delivering mishloach manot baskets of prepared food goodies to their friends and neighbors before sitting down to the seuda, a festive meal that includes plenty of spirits. But all these items add up, and Purim can be a costly event. For the one third of all Israeli children who live in poverty, Purim wouldn’t be Purim without the help of an array of non-profit organizations who take the holiday’s other mitzvah to heart. According to Maimonides, the great medieval Jewish scholar, “Gifts for the poor (matanot l’evyonim) deserve more attention than the seuda and mishloach manot because there is no greater, richer happiness than bringing joy to the hearts of needy people, orphans, widows and proselytes.” Despite Israel’s image as the hitech “start-up nation,” there are plenty of needy people in the Jewish state. In 2012, according to Israel’s National Insurance Institute, there were 1.75 million poor people in Israel (out of a total population of just more than 8 million), among them some 817,000 children. That’s more than a third of all children in Israel. In 1980, only 8.1
Israel Briefs Tel Aviv bus bomber sentenced to 25 years in jail (Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS) – The Tel Aviv District Court on Monday sentenced 20year-old Tayibe resident Mohammed Mafarja to 25 years in jail for placing an explosive device on a Tel Aviv bus in November 2012, an attack that wounded 24 people. Mafarja placed an explosive on Bus 142, got off the bus near the Diamond Exchange in Ramat Gan, and minutes later, an accomplice detonated the device via cellphone as the bus traveled west on Shaul Hamelech Street in Tel Aviv. IDF displays missiles that were seized on Iranian ship (JNS) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday toured a display of Syrian-made missiles that were recently intercepted by the Israeli Navy on a Gaza-bound ship from Iran. The
Courtesy of Nati Shohat/Flash90
A woman dressed up in a costume for the Jewish holiday of Purim walks by a homeless man sleeping outside the Mashbir mall in the center of Jerusalem on March 7, 2012. Many Israeli organizations that are set up to help the poor go into high gear on Purim, to fulfill that holiday's mitzvah of gifts for the poor, in Hebrew “matanot l’evyonim.”
percent of Israeli children were poor, meaning that child poverty has grown fourfold over the past 30 years. Many organizations that are set up to help the poor are run by Torah observant Israelis, and at Purim, they go into high gear to fulfill the precept of Maimonides. Rabbi Yakov Schischa, founder and director of the Tov V’Chesed Foundation based in Jerusalem’s Meah Shearim neighborhood, explains how his group not only prepares and delivers hundreds of mishloach manot Purim baskets packed with prepared foods, sweets,
wine, and toys, but also sends out teams of volunteers who visit singleparent families to spend time bringing Purim joy into homes that may be short on simcha (happiness). A large number of the families also receive a gift of cash in honor of Purim, “but we know it will actually get used to prepare for Passover,” Schischa notes. As the child of a large, poor, haredi family, Schischa remembers the humiliation of standing in line for food handouts, so Tov V’Chesed makes a point of preserving the dignity of recipients by having volunteers make home deliveries. His
missiles are being displayed in the port of Eilat. “Iran, a brutal regime, has not abandoned its deep involvement in terrorism, its systematic efforts to undermine peace and security throughout the Middle East, and its ambition to destroy the state of Israel,” Netanyahu said.
world’s 100 most prestigious universities on its 2014 World Reputation Rankings list, which was published Wednesday. The list is compiled from a survey of 10,536 academics from 133 countries. The academics were asked to list what they considered the best institutions in their field of expertise. “While reputation is based on subjective opinion, in this case it is the informed, expert opinion of those in the know: experienced scholars from around the world,” said Phil Baty, editor at large of Times Higher Education.
2013 sees record number of births in Israel (Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS) – 2013 saw a record number of births in Israel, data published over the weekend by the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics showed. The total number of births rose 0.2 percent to 171,207, compared to 170,904 in 2012. Jewish births increased 1.3 percent to 127,101, compared to 125,409 born in 2012. Some 5,000 babies were born to parents who immigrated to Israel under the Law of Return. Israel’s Technion ranked among world’s top 100 universities (JNS) – Times Higher Education – a weekly business magazine based in London and sponsored by Thomson Reuters – included Technion-Israel Institute of Technology as one of the
Netanyahu says Israel can help California with its drought (JNS) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and California Governor Jerry Brown signed a pro-business pact on March 5. The agreement aims to expand and strengthen cultural, academic, and economic ties between Israel and California, with an emphasis on water conservation, alternative energy, cyber defense, biotechnology, health, agritech, and higher education. Israel can help California deal with its ongoing drought, accord-
organization serves some 2,500 families per year. The motto of Yad Ezra V’Shulamit, another group founded by someone with first-hand knowledge of growing up poor, is “Breaking the Cycle of Poverty One Child at a Time.” Aryeh Lurie, a 50-something religious businessman, named the organization after his parents who despite their own difficult circumstances, managed to help neighbors with food. The organization, which has been running since 1998, operates on a nation-wide scale. Spokesperson Meira Brandwein elaborates on those who turn to Yad Ezra V’Shulamit. “The families we reach are in very deep poverty,” Brandwein says. “They’re not just people who have fallen on hard times. These are people who need immediate relief, “ she adds. The breadwinner in a family dies; someone in the family needs urgent specialized medical care; a working single parent loses her job – situations that can spiral out of control and leave a family with no resources. Brandwein enumerates the programs that serve more than 1,000 children every day with hot meals as well as tutoring and social programs; clubs for teens at risk; food baskets filled with healthy food for 2,800 families per week; vocational counseling for the unemployed; and financial assistance to help with
bar/bat mitzvah and wedding celebrations, winter clothes, and school supplies that are beyond the budget of those at the bottom of Israel’s economic ladder. For Purim, matanot l’evyonim donations to Yad Ezra V’Shulamit are added to the funds that come from a mix of private Israeli and foreign donors, U.S Jewish federations and in-kind contributions from Israeli businesses, to provide needy families with items to enable them to feel part of the holiday. At the restaurants run by Meir Panim, a network of nutrition-related programs for the poor, Purim is a time for increased efforts to bring relief to thousands in need. “Meir Panim means lighting up faces,” explains assistant director Goldie Sternbuch. “We do it all year around, but especially at Purim.” Anyone who has walked from Jerusalem’s Central Bus Station to Yirmiyahu Street has walked past the unobtrusive storefront that opens into a free restaurant. Inside, dozens of hungry Jerusalemites – Arabs, Christians, Jews, elderly immigrants and foreign workers – are served a nutritious lunch with a smile by volunteer waiters. The restaurants operate in six other cities around Israel providing what Sternbuch calls “a dignified approach to feeding the poor.” But needs are burgeoning and while food
ing to Netanyahu.
due to “the ongoing occupation and the army’s invasion of civil life that deepens the notions of chauvinism, militarism, violence, inequality and racism in society.” The letter calls on Israeli youth nearing age 18, the age of conscription, to “carefully examine the meaning of army service.”
Riots in Amman after shooting of Jordanian citizen who attacked Israeli soldier (JNS) – Riots broke out in Amman following Monday’s incident in which a Jordanian citizen was shot and killed at the Allenby Bridge crossing between the West Bank and Jordan after he apparently attacked an Israeli soldier. According to the Israel Defense Forces, the attacker charged at soldiers with a metal pole while shouting “Allah Akbar,” and then attempted to grab a soldier’s rifle. After being shot in the lower part of his body, the attacker began to strangle a soldier, prompting further fire that resulted in the attacker’s death. In letter to prime minister, Israeli teens say they will refuse to enlist JERUSALEM (JTA) – Several dozen Israeli teens sent a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying they will refuse to enlist in the Israeli army. The letter sent on Saturday declared the signatories as conscientious objectors. The teens said in the letter that they would refuse military service
POOR on page 19
Liberman: Israel won’t agree to ‘further conditions’ for talks TEL AVIV (JTA) – Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman blamed the Palestinians for lack of progress in peace negotiations. Liberman also said additional conditions for continuing the talks are a non-starter. “The Palestinians are the ones torpedoing the talks by setting conditions,” Liberman told Israel Radio on Thursday, according to the Times of Israel. “Israel would not agree to any further conditions for the continuation of talks.” Liberman was responding to a call by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas for Israel to freeze West Bank settlement expansion in order for talks to continue.
SOCIAL LIFE • 11
THURSDAY, MARCH 13, 2014
ANNOUNCEMENTS BIRTH
BIRTH
aron and Alyssa BinikThomas are pleased to announce the birth of their son Isaiah Adron (Yeshaya Yisrael). Isaiah was born on the night of February 21 - the 22nd of Adar Aleph. Beth Israel Synagogue in Hamilton had the honor of hosting his Shabbat Bris. His Bubble and Zayay Phylis Binik-Thomas and Michael Thomas, and Saba and Savta - Howard and Carolyn Moss, are just as happy as can be.
r. and Mrs. Kevin Brinn announce the birth of their daughter, Lorelai Anya, on February 6, 2014 in Los Angeles, CA. Grandparents are Stuart & Debbie Brinn and Ritva & the late Dan Hackle. Great grandparents are Deanne & the late Joe Wren and the late Arnold “Ace” Brinn.
A
From our first issue to last week’s issue, it‘s in our
M
online archives. To access go to, www.americanisraelite.com and click on this symbol.
ACCESS TO THE AMERICAN
Isaiah Adron Thomas
OVERNIGHT JEWISH CAMPING AND ISRAEL TRAVEL FAIR On November 24, 2013 prospective campers and travelers and their families met with representatives from a variety of camps and trip providers, applied for generous grants funded by the Jewish Foundation, and experienced a taste of Israel.
Lorelai Anya Brinn
ISRAELITE’S
ARCHIVES
VOL. 12345 • NO. 6
PURIM
SUNDAY, MARCH 16, 2014 / 14 ADAR II 5774
Cincinnati Community Kollel to go on sabbatical By N.J. Lakewood The American Israelite has obtained from an anonymous source a press release dated March 16, 2014, in which The Cincinnati Community Kollel announces that it will be suspending its operations and going on a sabbatical once its current term ends, shortly before the Passover holiday. News of this sent a shock-wave throughout both the Orthodox and the broader Jewish community. How this sabbatical will affect institutions such as Cincinnati Hebrew Day School, the Beit Din (Rabbinic court), and the Vaad
Haoeir (Cincinnati Kosher) is not clear. A Kollel spokesperson explained that the current staff would all receive a package that includes job training, assistance in putting together resumes and other tools, to help in their job search with the hope that many will choose to stay in Cincinnati and return to the Kollel when it resumes operations. For now, the main building will be converted into a nail salon run by the wives of the current Kollel staff. The second building, named after the Rosedale and Weiland families, will become a full service spa including bikini waxing. In keeping with religious
precepts, the salons will be for women only. There is some speculation that the Kollel’s buildings would be highly sought after, should a decision be made to move their operations to another location after their sabbatical. The former location of the RITSS high school had recently been bought to expand space available for an academy for advanced Talmudic study, and some community activists (speaking off the record to the American Israelite) suggested there could be interest from those quarters. Spokespersons from those institutions were unavailable for
comment. A macher at a local synagogue, who insisted on anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter, did say that savings from the suspension of operations would go to support struggling Kollel institutions in Israel. He said “initiatives to help outof-town institutions have impacted local resources. Sometimes one institution needs to sacrifice so that many others can survive.” Most rabbinical and lay leaders refused to comment on the news. One senior official at a major Jewish organization said “The Cincinnati
Community Kollel was here before I moved to Cincinnati and has served the community for over 18 years. Their willingness to compromise for the greater good of the community highlighted how they were different from similar institutions in other cities. While they are on sabbatical we will miss their contributions to the community. I hope that the current staff will take full advantage of their package and that the new enterprises that will initially be housed in their buildings will be of service to the community. I very much look forward to their contributions once they resume their regular programs.”
New Sha’arei Torah building to become thrift shop By Appollonia Schwartz An anonymous source has told us that Sha’arei Torah has gone before the Amberley Zoning Board to have their new building re-zoned as a commerical space. It seems that, having finally completed their new building, they have made a change in plans for how
they plan to utilize their new space. The Chairman of the board has announced that instead of using the building for its original purpose (services/simchas, etc..., they are instead turning it into a thrift shop to help out the area’s people in need. “We can always daven at home, or rent a space to hold a bar mitzvah or
wedding. But the mitzvah of helping others can only be accomplished by sharing what is yours,” says the Chairman of Sha’arei Torah. “It is better to help our fellow man by using this new space for tzdekah instead of ourselves.” The synagogue is hoping that local residents in the area will feel comfort-
able coming to the Sha’arei Torah thrift shop. Donations are now being accepted; anything from used clothes, toys, and housewares to decorative items and furniture are welcome. All donations are tax-deductible.; please bring items to the clubhouse at Amber Acres, off of Section Road. They are open daily from 10:00am-5:00pm.
In addition to the thrift shop, Sha’arei Torah is considering opening a soup kitchen in the basement. “Having a soup kitchen in the Amberley area would be very beneficial,” asserts a Sha’arei Torah board member. “There are hungry people all over, and to have a location closer than downtown would be a blessing for them.”
American Israelite to be sold to Al Jazeera America By Fawn Leibowitz Negotiations are currently underway to sell the American Israelite to Al Jazeera America, for a reported sum of $10 million. Lawyers from Al Jazeera America recently contacted Netanel (Ted) Deutsch, publisher of the Israelite, and made the offer. After weighing all the factors, Deutsch accepted the proposal. “Running a newspaper is a tough job. After seeing what they were
offering, it seemed like a good opportunity,” said Deutsch. “Sometimes you just need to make a change. This offer will work out very well for both the Cincinnati Jewish community and myself.” Deutsch feels strongly that just because Al Jazeera is Arab-based doesn’t mean they can’t report on the Jewish community fairly. “The news is the news. They can’t change those facts.” Part of the terms of the contract
are for Deutsch to resign immediately. Cheers from the entire city came in. A new Publisher and Editor have yet to be named. The content should stay the same: local, national, international, and Israel news will not change. However, some of the features may be altered or eliminated. Jewz in the Newz will likely change to feature Arab folk heroes, and the cooking column will highlight Middle Eastern recipes instead of Jewish favorites. Contacts at Al
Jazeera America also say they’d like to have a least one page fully in Arabic, as well as more advertising from Middle Eastern businesses. When local members of the Jewish community were polled about this sale, most were pretty openminded about it. One of Cincinnati’s top lawyers said he felt it was time for a shake-up at the Israelite, and hopes this buy-out pushes the paper out of its comfort zone. ‘Personally, I think it’s great,” said this lawyer. “There’s
nothing better than a change in ownership; keeps you on your toes.” Deutsch is planning on completing the sale by March 16. Al Jazeera America will take over immediately; the first issue under their ownership will be published on March 20, 2014. The remaining staff at the American Israelite is looking forward to working with Al Jazeera America, and hopes the community at large will join them in welcoming them to our city.
Headlines and stories that we are currently working on
By The Mayor of Schnorrerville – In a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, it has been discovered that there are 715 new planets, of which 4 are somewhat like our planet Earth. Reliable sources
have revealed that one of those planets is an entire planet of Jews! When we found out, the fact that we’re the Chosen People is taken to a new level. Think about it—a planet with all Jews. No more fighting over the Afikomen and an Afikomen for everyone. – Golf Manor Synagogue stages a rebirth after the despicable treatment last year by that rascal of a publisher at the American Israelite who suggested it was for sale. In all seriousness, many people thought it was for real and really got offended; even one of my best friends is still mad to this day - you know who you are. Again it was just a joke, try and relax and have some fun… it is PURIM. – Anti-Semitism is alive and
well here in River City - ask me about the incident at a local tobacco shop that was actually started by Jews. Or about the marketing department of a local orchestra, or even the marketing department of a Health and Hospital venture that leads all the way to the Vatican. – “‘The Lord of the Flies’ synagogue board.” It started out casually and then morphed into an executive board. – “A new synagogue rises from the corner of Ridge and Section.” A home for all, a home for anyone that wants to participate, for anyone that wants to lead a service. Let’s call it egalitarian Orthodox and where all have an opinion and all are welcome. – “Adath Israel Rabbinic
shocker: Rabbi Wise tires of vegetarianism, succumbs to brisket at his brother’s house last Shabbat.” An employee at the Israelite caught the Rabbi with a mouth full of brisket at a Shabbat dinner at his brother’s house just last week. He was also caught not composting the salad at the end of the evening. Wife Kathy became a fruititarian in protest. – Cedar Village has been pulling a ruse on everyone. The new aquatic center is actually a mikveh and they wanted to wait to announce it to the public until its grand opening. They will be competing against Northern Hills for dunking dollars that have been promised by community leaders. – “CZE to eliminate the mixing of genders.” Word on the
street is that CZE will be starting its own day school so that boys and girls can be separated at the age of 3. A project is also under way to build a second staircase to the social hall. One staircase will be for men and the second one for women. The social hall will have a permanent cement barrier installed and each staircase will lead to one side of the barrier. Amberley Village zoning precludes plans for separate sidewalks for men and women leading to the synagogue. – Chabad Blue Ash is changing its name to “We used to be the Boymel Synagogue. Hey, what happened?” – Chabad Mason is changing
CONTINUED on next page
THE AMERICANISRAELITE
SUNDAY, MARCH 14, 2014 / 15 ADAR II 5774
PURIM
Letters to the editor from some of our subscribers Please i needs your help. My Dearest, It is with profound respect and humble submission, I beg to state the following few lines for your kind consideration. I hope you will spare some of your valuable minutes to read the following appeal with sympathetic mind. I must confess that it is with great hope, joy and enthusiasm to write you this mail and I believe by the faith that it must surely find you in good condition of health. My name is nasica John Paul Oulu 24 years old female from the Republic of Kenya, the daughter of Late Mr. John Paul Oulu. My late father was a Kenyan lawyer and human rights activist who was the Chief Executive Officer and Communications and Advocacy Officer of the Oscar Foundation Free Legal Aid Clinic Kenya (OFFLACK). My Father was brutally shot dead on Thursday 5Th March 2009 after a government spokesman accused their group of aiding a criminal gang. What led to the cold blood killing is still unclear but I know that my father life was the target. After the death of my beloved father my wicked step mother along with my uncles team together and sold everything that my late father had and share the money within themselves, I lost my mother long time ago, and since then, my father loved me so dearly at my tender age may he rest in peace and may the great God give him a safe entry in Paradise Amen. Before the death of my father, he told me that he made a fixed deposit of the sum of Eight Million Five Hundred Thousand United State Dollars ($8.500.000.00) in one of the Banks here in Burkina Faso, with my name as his next of kin, which I confirmed his statement positively from the bank. But on my arrival to the Bank to withdraw the fund, the Bank foreign Operation Department Director whom I meet in person told me that my father instruction to their bank is that the fund would only be release to me when I am married or present a trustee/partner who will help me and invest the fund overseas after the transfer, and the bank ask me to go and look for a foreign partner. Therefore my dear, I am soliciting your help for transferring of my inheritance fund into your bank account and investment assistance in
CONTINUED from previous page its name to “The Boymel Synagogue. We love that guy and his wife.” – Northern Hills, after many discussions, is combining with Ohav Shalom, Shevet Achim, and Bnai Tzedek. They will be using Northern Hills as the main sanctuary. They have scrapped plans on building a new Mikveh on the property since Cedar Village has
your Country as my legal appointed trustee as the bank mentioned and it will be my intention to compensate you with 40% of the total fund for your services and help then the balance shall be my capital in your establishment which you are going to establish there in your country or position as my trustee and manger. I have suffered lots of set back as a result of my parents death. I left Kenya, because of incessant family funds. Presently, I am currently residing in Christ De King Refugee camp here in Ouagadougou Capital city of Burkina Faso. Hence, I want to settle in your country to further my education and spend the rest of my life. Please consider my request as my life is being hugely affected. Thanking you a lot in anticipation of your quick response. I will give you details in my next mail after receiving your acceptance mail to help me. Yours Sincerely nasica John Paul.
amount was U.S $22.3M (Twenty two. million, three hundred thousand United States dollars).In fact I could have done this transaction alone but because of my position in the country as a civil servant (A Banker), we are not allowed to operate a foreign account and would eventually raise an eye brow on my side during the time of transfer because I work in this bank.
Read carefuly your urgent assistance is needed, I am Mr. Mohamed Azzouzi, working at the auditing and accounting department, BANK OF AFRICA (B .O. A) Ouagadougou BurkinaFaso West Africa, with due respects and regard I have decided to contact you on a business transaction that will be very beneficial to both of us at the end of the transaction. I know that a transaction of this magnitude will make any one apprehensive and worried, but I am assuring you that all will be well at the end of the day. i came to know you in my Private Search for a Reliable and Reputable Person to handle this Confidential Transaction, which involves the transfer of huge sum of Money to a Foreign Account requiring Maximum Confidence. During an annual auditing of Account's in this bank, my department came across a very huge sum of money belonging to a deceased person who died in a tragic plane crash on the Leanne Peak, Mount Kenya, Saturday, the 19th day of July, 2003 together with his wife Jean, three of their children and their spouses, and four grandchildren, since then his fund has been dormant in his account with this Bank without any claim of the fund in our custody either from his family or relation before discovery to this development. The said
This is the actual reason why it will require a second party or fellow who will forward claims as the next of kin with affidavits of trust of oath to the Bank and also present a foreign account where you will need the money to be transferred into on your request as it may be after due verification and clarification by the correspondent branch of the bank where the whole money will be remitted from, to your own designation bank account. I will not fail to inform you that this transaction is 100% risk free. On smooth conclusion of this transaction, you will be entitled to 45% of the total sum as gratification, while 50% will be for me, also the remaining 5% will be for any expenses such like telephone bills which most involved in this transaction and be rest assured that, any expenses in this transaction would be taken as our burden expenses being incurred, Please, you have been advised to keep this as top secret" as I am still in duty of service and intend to retire sooner than later I will be monitoring your text of application there in the bank until you confirm the money in your account and ask me to come down to your country for subsequent disbursement of our funds in accordance to the percentages, All other necessary, vital information will be sent to you when I hear from you. I look forward to receive your reply urgently. Show your readiness to assist me in this transaction by replying this proposal as early as possible and I want you to assure me of your capability of handling this transfer with trust by giving me the following information's about yourself:through my private email a d d r e s s (mohamedazzouzi011@gmail.com). 1)Your Full Name............................. 2) Your age:.............................. 3) Your occupation:.................. 4) Are you married :................. 5) Your mobile phone number.:
already taken up the cause. See earlier blurb. – “Rockdale Temple discovers it is 191 years old.” Rockdale Temple announced that a document discovered by a researcher in the American Jewish Archives points to the synagogue being 191 years old this year, not 190, putting into doubt the rest of their celebratory events for their 190th anniversary. – Wise Temple is tired of
being the largest temple, and they have decided to divide up the congregants to make services more manageable. If your last name starts with A-J, please continue to attend services at the Wise Center. L-S: all your services will be held at Plum Street Temple. T-Z? Please gather in the abandoned Crest Hills Country Club building. It’s dirty and cold, but think of all the room you’ll have for your kiddush luncheons!
6) Your location and full address 7) Scan and send a copy of your identity card to me. 8) Your Fax Number:............... 9) Sex:.:................ I will tell you how you can apply to the bank as soon as i receive your response towards this mail. Extend my greetings to your family and you should please try and have trust on me in this transaction so that we shall achieve our aim together. Do not take this very transaction as a joke, I am betting you right now that this is just nothing but reality, so you reply and ask me how you can apply for the text of application form of claim of the deceased fund from the bank. It is the foreign remittance departments that are responsible for transference of fund into your account over there. Yours faithfully, Mr. Mohamed Azzouzi. I need your reply immediately Dear Friend, Greetings to you ! I did a lot of searching and prayers before choosing your contact from your country’s website / business online register. It is with trust and sincerity that I approach you for assistance to transfer some funds into your foreign bank account. Please do accept my apologies if my mail does not meet your personal ethics. I want to introduce myself and this business opportunity to you. I know this letter will come to you as surprise but please give me a chance to explain myself. I am Madame Anny Mobio, 'am also a widow, my husband died last year. I am from Ivory Coast but 'am currently leaving in Republic of Benin and 'am with my three children here. The reason why i wrote you this letter is because i will need your help assitance to use your account to received my late husband fund. Please i know there are so many scam around the world an this is why 'am taking my time to explain better to you, this is not a scam and all i need as a woman is to access to my husband fund. As i have told you 'am not interted in colecting money from you and you will never spend a penny on this transaction, all i need is your account – “Dick Weiland and Sarah Weiss look-alike contest.” The winner gets a free page of publicity in The Israelite and the big prize? The winner gets to sit in the Publisher’s chair for 10 minutes, and then you have to get up. No favoritism and be sure to wear clean clothes. – John Marx is going to make nothing but nice comments to everyone for a year or else he promises to enter a monastery and
information and your trust. Please reply for specifics via my private email ( anny_mobio44@yahoo.com ). Kindly reply me so that i can explain to you in details. Expecting to hear from you. Thanks. Madam Anny Mobio. Urgent urgent Dear friend, I know that this message will come to you as a surprise. I am Dr.Abu Salam from Burkina Faso the Accounting and Auditing Manager bank of Africa (B.O.A), Ouagadougou I hoped that you will not expose or betray this trust and confident that I am about to repose on you for the mutual benefit of our families. I need your urgent assistance in transferring the sum of (usd$10.5m) million to your account within 10 to 14 banking days. This money has been dormant for years in our bank without claim. I want the bank to release the money to you as the nearest person to our deceased customer (the owner of the account) died along with his supposed next of kin in an air crash since July, 2007. I don't want the money to go into our bank treasurer account as an abandoned fund. So this is the reason why I contacted you so that the bank can release the money to you as the next of kin to the deceased customer. Please I would like you to keep this proposal as a top secret and delete it if you are not upon receipt of your reply, I will give you full details on how the business will be executed and also note that you will have 35% of the above mentioned sum if you agree ton handle this business with me? And 10% will be set aside for any expenses that warrant on the process before the fund get into your bank account such as telephone calls bills (etc). Finally send your photo or your international passports for more identification. Feel free to Contact me at my here_under email address for more explanations of the fund transfer. (abusalam228@gmail.com) Best Regards, Dr.Abu Salam
not speak for a year. – ...everything was fine until they got indicted. Let’s face it: we don’t discriminate, we just insult everyone. It is hard to write this shtick; it takes weeks and it still stinks. This is our yearly attempt at humor for PURIM. So relax, it’s all a big joke!
14 • DINING OUT
WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM
Pasta and pizza at Pomodori’s are home-made, using fresh ingredients By Bob Wilhelmy Goat cheese is one of those ancient food marvels that excite the taste buds of today. The cheese is salty and tangy and creamy, with a texture profile that is perhaps between a standard cream cheese and an Italian ricotta. Goat cheese is good to eat straight from the package, unembellished, or in dishes and salads, or even breaded and baked or sautéed. I stumbled on a new way to enjoy its remarkable flavor, at Pomodori’s. Try the Roma & goat cheese pasta entrée. Before we dive with fork into the pasta dish, a few words about the central ingredient—the pasta. Pomodori’s makes its pasta from scratch, fresh, in batches. So what does that mean for you, the diner? “We make our own pasta,” said Tim McLane, owner of the Pomodori restaurants in Montgomery and Clifton. “And once you’ve eaten fresh pasta, you can tell the difference between fresh and the dry stuff.” He is right about that. Pomodori’s uses flour from durum wheat, but does not use all those other additives found in the massmade dry stuff. Typically, the dry stuff has a shelf life of at least two and a half years. Preservatives? Bet the ranch on it. So Pomodori’s features fresh pasta, made in its kitchen. Fresh pasta has a more tender finish than the brittle, dry stuff. Freshly made pasta provides a more uniform texture, a more pleasing sensation on the palate. My contention is that you will notice the difference when you try fresh; I know I can tell the difference. Now, what about the Roma & goat cheese pasta dish? It’s made with fresh Roma tomatoes, cream, goat cheese and fresh basil, fresh pressed garlic and extra virgin olive oil. The sauce is cream-based, of course, but the dish has a wonderful flavor that is delicately enhanced by the goat cheese. I loved the dish, and would order it again. For Jewish diners, an interesting stat is that around 50 percent of the entrée dishes and pizzas on the menu are vegetarian, according to Megan Bartl, assistant manager at the Montgomery location. When asked what her favorite dishes and pizzas were, she said: “I love them all, and it’s hard for me to pick favorites. I probably eat the gourmet pizza more than any other one.” That item is covered with fresh pesto sauce, and topped with sautéed fresh mushrooms, green peppers, black and green olives, onions, capers and artichoke hearts, which in turn are topped with mozzarella and provolone cheeses. My favorite is the wood-fired Margherita pizza, which is layered with fresh crushed tomatoes, strips of fresh basil, fresh garlic, and large
A pizza chef, sliding a pizza into the wood-fired brick oven.
The Margherita pizza and Roma and goat cheese pasta, at table and ready to eat.
circular slices of fresh mozzarella cheese. The crust is crisp and crunchy and delicious—a tasty treat, and the approximately 10-inch size is enough for two. The special oven is fired by hardwood. Its baking area reaches 650 to 700 degrees, and the stone baking surface will hold five to six pizzas at a time, according to Mark Rysdon, pizza chef at the Clifton location. McLane said the woodfired oven dates at least back to Roman times, and recent excava-
tions of Pompeii revealed those folks were using such ovens more than 2,000 years ago. So, old technology, but oh what a pizza! What about other pizza and entrée choices? Some of your pizza choices are: the Roma tomato & basil; the goat cheese, with sun-dried tomatoes, fresh pressed garlic and extra virgin olive oil (EVOO); the 5cheese; the Mediterranean, with spinach, red onion, tomatoes, feta cheese, along with mozzarella and provolone; and others such as the
The signage outside the Montgomery location.
caramelized onion, the roasted pepper, the gorgonzola walnut, the eggplant and the sweet dessert apple pizza—all wood-fired and all very tasty and good. Other pasta dishes of interest include: the spaghettini classico, made with EVOO, sweet butter, fresh garlic and parmigiano reggiano cheese; a classic eggplant parmesan; pine nuts and pesto with Roma tomatoes, billed as a strong and satisfying choice); a meatless marinara; gorgonzola and walnut pasta; a clas-
sic fettucini Alfredo; homemade cheese ravioli; and a bianco, combining fettucini with sautéed artichoke hearts, fresh mushrooms, red onion and garlic, topped generously with parmigiano reggiono. See you at Pomodori’s. Pomodori’s 121 West McMillan 861-0080 7880 Remington Rd. 794-0080
DINING OUT • 15
THURSDAY, MARCH 13, 2014
RESTAURANT DIRECTORY 20 Brix
Izzy’s
Pomodori’s
101 Main St
800 Elm St • 721-4241
121West McMillan • 861-0080
Historic Milford
612 Main St • 241-6246
7880 Remington Rd
831-Brix (2749)
1198 Smiley Ave • 825-3888
Montgomery • 794-0080
7625 Beechmont Ave • 231-5550 Ambar India Restaurant
4766 Red Bank Expy • 376-6008
Slatt’s Pub
350 Ludlow Ave
5098B Glencrossing Way • 347-9699
4858 Cooper Rd
Cincinnati
8179 Princeton-Glendale • 942-7800
Blue Ash
281-7000
300 Madison Ave • 859-292-0065
791-2223 • 791-1381 (fax)
Sushi • Steaks • Raw Bar Live Music Every Tues thru Sat! (513) 936-8600 9769 MONTGOMERY RD. www.jeffruby.com
9386 Montgomery Rd Cincinnati, OH 45242 (513) 489-1444
Cincinnati's first and only true wine, restaurant and wine retail store. Come in and enjoy an appetizer or entrée paired with one of the 100 wines we pour daily.
7905 Mall Road • 859-525-2333 Andy’s Mediterranean Grille
1965 Highland Pk. • 859-331-4999
Stone Creek Dining Co. 9386 Montgomery Rd
At Gilbert & Nassau 2 blocks North of Eden Park
Johnny Chan 2
Montgomery • 489-1444
281-9791
11296 Montgomery Rd
6200 Muhlhauser Rd
101 Main St • Historic Milford
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16 • OPINION
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Ukraine-invading Putin plays the anti-Semitism card By Ben Cohen (JNS) – Back in 2004, Russian President Vladimir Putin accused his regional rival Viktor Yushchenko, who was then the pro-western president of Ukraine, of having campaigned on the basis of “antiRussian, Zionist” slogans. Putin’s invocation of the Z word led some observers to briefly fear that Russia was reviving the spirit of Soviet antiSemitism dressed up as “antiZionism.” But a few hours later, Putin’s office clarified that what he’d meant to say was “anti-Semitic,” not “Zionist.” Was Putin’s office lying with this clarification? Was the remark a Freudian slip? We will never know for sure. Two factors, though, do stand out. Firstly, there isn’t much in Putin’s record that marks him out as an anti-Semite, and many Russian Jews speak positively of him, some because they feel obliged to do so, others because they genuinely believe in what they are saying. Secondly, Putin is quite happy to depict his enemies as anti-Semites if it tactically suits him to do so, which is essentially what he’s been doing in Ukraine this past fortnight. Step back for a second, and you can see the rich historical irony at work here. One European nation with a long and bloody history of anti-Semitism has engaged in aggression against another European nation, also with a long and bloody history of anti-Semitism. When this happened almost a century ago, during the horrendous civil war that followed the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, pogroms wracked Ukraine; now, while there have been antiSemitic incidents and speeches reported in Ukraine, there is certainly no state policy of anti-Semitism on either side, much less an event that could deservedly be called a pogrom. At the same time, western intellectuals and activists who instinctively scorn the charge of antiSemitism when it crops up in the contexts of Zionism and Israel are actually arguing that we should take Putin’s claims seriously! For example, there’s Professor Stephen Cohen of New York University, a leading nostalgist for the Soviet era, who compared Ukrainian nationalists to the Nazis in an interview with CNN. And then there’s Michael Lerner, whose Tikkun magazine and its associated “spiritual progressives network” are the closest thing we Jews have to a cult, waxing lyrically about his favorite bete noire: “The neocons seem all too willing to ignore the fascistic and proto-Nazi elements in the coalition that last week overthrew the democratically elected and pro-Russian government.” No one would deny that Ukraine,
in common with nearly every other European country including Russia, has too many anti-Semites. Its farright parties like Svoboda and Pravyi Sektor mirror similar movements elsewhere in Europe, like Jobbik in Hungary and Golden Dawn in Greece. It also should be mentioned that anti-Semitic rabble rousing has come from the pro-Moscow far left, too, like the Progressive Socialist Party that accused Jews of being behind the protests on Kiev’s Maidan. But Ukraine’s bid to free itself from Russian domination has not been driven by anti-Semitic ideology, as many Ukrainian Jewish leaders have themselves pointed out. “I categorically refute the statements appearing in a number of foreign media outlets of facts of massive anti-Semitism and xenophobia in Ukraine that do not correspond to reality!” declared Vadim Rabinovich of the All-Ukrainian Jewish Congress. “The whipping up of the situation around this issue is of a provocative nature and does not contribute to a calm life for the Jewish community of Ukraine.” Why, then, the eagerness with which pro-Moscow circles in America have embraced Putin’s cynical manipulation of anti-Semitism? I don’t think there’s a one size fits all answer to this curious question, but Michael Lerner helpfully provides an insight. The “neocons,” he says, are playing down anti-Semitism in Ukraine because their “primary goal is to protect Israel and destroy all of its potential enemies – a list that grows longer and longer as long as Israel retains its dominance over the Palestinian people and denies them fundamental human rights.” This is insane stuff, not least because neoconservatives aren’t actually running U.S. foreign policy at the moment. Yet we need to pay attention, because, as a cursory search of the Internet will show, there are many people out there who subscribe to this nonsense. And when we do pay attention, we realize that the dots being connected here are reminiscent of a Jackson Pollock painting: the Jewish state and its allies in America are backing an antiSemitic regime in Ukraine in order to continue the persecution of the Palestinians. Like I said, insane. I would therefore advise American Jews to play close heed to any anti-Semitic episodes in Ukraine. (Apart from anything, Ukraine is one of the few governments in the world over which the U.S. still retains some leverage, so our efforts won’t go to waste.) At the same time, let’s recognize Putin’s invasion of Crimea and his threat to the rest of Ukraine for what it is – naked aggression in violation of the United Nations Charter that, ultimately, poses a threat to all of us, whether Jewish or not.
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Al Jazeera America: Twisting Israel news, targeting opinion makers By Myron Kaplan and Eric Rozenman (JNS) – Al Jazeera America, the satellite and cable television news network owned and operated by the wealthy sheikdom of oil and gasrich Qatar, can’t seem to present its Arab-Israeli news straight. This should come as no surprise. The Qatari ruling family supported the Muslim Brotherhood-led government of ousted Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi, and the Brotherhood’s Palestinian spin-off Hamas calls for the destruction of Israel and the Jewish people. Profit isn’t of much interest to Al Jazeera America. “That is the difference that will allow us to maintain our journalistic identity,” the network’s PalestinianAmerican interim CEO, Ehab Al Shihabi, told the Wall Street Journal. Translation: Unlike its commercial competitors (such as ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox, MSNBC, and NBC), the network doesn’t care that much about general viewer ratings. Rather, it aims to influence opinion makers like teachers, broadcasters, and editorial writers. Al Jazeera America’s broadcasts are able to attract opinion makers due to technically skillful, extensive, and seemingly incisive presentations on a wide range of domestic and foreign matters. Coverage of the Arab-Israeli conflict features superficially interesting but substantively biased segments that assail Israel while omitting mention of Palestinian Arab terrorism or Muslim persecution of Christians in the West Bank and Gaza. A long-term effect of such coverage might be to undermine the current strong U.S. public support
of Israel over the Palestinian Arabs. Examples of such coverage are plentiful. In its 2014 Super Bowl advertisement, an Al Jazeera America report strongly but erroneously implied that an advertisement for an Israeli product, SodaStream, was rejected by Fox TV. Al Jazeera America coverage suggested Fox acted because the ad featuring actress Scarlett Johansson promoted an Israeli company (which happens to employ many Arabs) that allegedly operated illegally in the West Bank, where supposedly, Palestinian Arabs are victimized by Israel. Never mentioned by Al Jazeera America was the fact that the SodaStream ad was actually (temporarily) rejected because it dismissed in a jibe two Fox advertising clients (“Sorry, Coke and Pepsi”). In fact, the Super Bowl ad ran Feb. 2 during a commercial break at 9:35 p.m., with the offending phrase omitted. Al Jazeera America’s Jan. 13 reporting on the recently deceased Ariel Sharon, former prime minister of Israel, included a problematic interview by host Stephanie Sy of Adel Darwish, former Middle East editor of the London-based Daily Telegraph. Sy was either unconcerned or unaware that key Darwish points were misleading, if not mendacious. Darwish: “… it was a big mistake he [Sharon] made in Beirut in 1982 when he let the Phalange [Christian Lebanese militia] into the Palestinian camps and that ended his career then because the judiciary commission found him responsible for the death of hundreds. ... He actually confirmed that the Six-Day War in 1967 was about water because the Syrians wanted to divert water away from the Sea
of Galilee which would be putting a lot of pressure on Israel...” First, Sharon neither ordered nor knew beforehand of a planned Phalangist attack. An Israeli commission of inquiry found that Sharon bore “indirect responsibility” for the Sept. 16-18, 1982 killings of hundreds of Palestinian Arabs committed not by Israelis, but by Phalangists. The militia took revenge for previous massacres of Christian Arabs by Yasser Arafat’s Palestine Liberation Organization, and for the Sept. 14 assassination of Bashir Gemayel, Lebanon’s Christian president-elect. The Phalange was tasked with rooting out terrorists. Sharon, as defense minister, erred in underestimating the depth of hatred by Christian Lebanese for Palestinian Arabs and letting them enter the camps. Likewise misleading was Darwish’s assertion that the 1967 Six-Day War was about drinking water and irrigation. The war actually began after Egypt’s closure – in violation of international law – of the Red Sea Straits of Tiran to Israeli shipping, Egyptian expulsion of U.N. peacekeepers from the Sinai Peninsula, the mobilization of hundreds of thousands of Egyptian and Syrian troops and thousands of tanks on Israel’s borders, and Arab threats to destroy the Jewish state. From Dec. 24-25, 2013, the network’s Christmas reporting from Bethlehem promoted the “Israeli Grinch that stole Christmas” cliché. The segments distorted the impact of Israel’s security barrier on Bethlehem and failed to deal with the reasons for construction of the security barrier and “occupation.” One of these reports dealt with a AL JAZEERA on page 19
JEWISH LIFE • 17
THURSDAY, MARCH 13, 2014
our brother – and since the Almighty G-d created us all and is our Parent in Heaven, we are all brothers and sisters. To be sure, there is room for offerings to G-d, for an expression of total commitment to the Divine, for communal meals together with priest-teachers within the spiritual atmosphere of the Holy Temple. Indeed, the Hebrew word korban (usually translated “sacrifice”) actually means “to come near.” Apparently, the sacrificial rituals are a means to an end, a way of attempting to approach the Almighty and to be able to sense His nearness; the sacrifices must be viewed within the context of “And they shall make for me a sanctuary so that I may dwell in their midst” (Ex. 25:8). The sanctuary and the Temple, the sacrifices and the prayers, are all means to the ultimate end of walking with G-d and acting in accordance with His will. Unfortunately, there are times when the means are substituted for the end, when the magnificent edifice becomes a substitute for G-d Himself, when rituals become so central that there is little room left for the acts of kindness they are supposed to inspire. After all, our human definition of G-d is a “Lord of love and compassion, kindness, patience, and truth” (Ex. 34:6) – and having G-d in our midst means that we act in accordance with His divine characteristics! Indeed the Mishna recounts a horrible event which emphasizes the tragedy that can occur when the Temple ritual is not placed in its proper context. Our rabbis have taught: “The story is recorded that there were two priests racing up the ramp of the altar in a contest as to who would perform the ritual of cleaning off the ashes when one seemed to be four cubits ahead of his friend, the other priest took a knife and pierced the heart of his opponent. Rabbi Zadok stood on the Temple steps and said, ‘our brothers of the House of Israel, listen well, if a corpse is found between two cities the elders must bring a sacrifice, we must all make atonement. The father of the fatally injured priest found his son still in the last moments of his life, he cried out, ‘may this be your atonement; my son is still in the agony of the death throttle and so the knife has not been rendered impure’ From this we see that the ritual puri-
ty of the vessels had assumed greater importance than a human life” (B.T. Yoma 23a). Jeremiah bitterly mourned the destruction of the Temple and even cursed the day of his birth because he had to be the prophet of destruction. He understood the value of the sacrifices if they were placed in proper context and were seen as a means to an end and not as an end in themselves. Hence, the prophetic reading which is usually read after our portion of sacrifices concludes with the verse cited by Maimonides at the end of his Guide for the Perplexed, a message which all of Jewish tradition understands is the central focal point of our faith. “Thus says the Lord: ‘Let a wise person not glory in his wisdom, let a strong person not glory in his strength, let a wealthy person not glory in his wealth. But only in this shall the one who glories glory: understand and know Me, because I am the Lord who does loving kindness, justice and charity on earth. These are the things I want’ says Gd” (Jer 9:23-24). Shabbat Shalom Rabbi Shlomo Riskin Chancellor Ohr Torah Stone Chief Rabbi – Efrat Israel
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T EST Y OUR T ORAH KNOWLEDGE THIS WEEK’S PORTION: BOOK OF ESTHER 1. What was the second feast in the Book of Esther a.) Achshvarosh made a party for 7 days for the people of Shushan b.) Esther's party for the King and Haman c.) Feast after the downfall of Haman 2. What were the benches at Achsvarosh's palace made from? a.) Gold b.) Silver c.) Ivory 3. What were Achshvarosh's goblets made from? before the destruction of the First Temple. A,B,C 2:5,5:13,6:10. Mordechai was from the tribe of Benjamin, but all exiles were called Jews. At the end of the Megillah, Mordechai is referred to second or Prime Minister to the king.
EFRAT, Israel – What is the Biblical definition of proper service of the Almighty? To what extent is the sacrificial cult a critical part of Jewish Divine service, and where do we place the sacrifices in our hierarchy of expressions of Religious devotion? What is so striking is that our Biblical portion deals with the most fundamental sacrifices, both obligatory and voluntary, which the Israelites are to bring: the daily offerings, the various sin offerings and the different gift offerings. The prophetic reading opens with the glaring indictment: “Thus says the Lord of Hosts the G-d of Israel, ‘Cease your whole burnt offerings together with your sacrifices and eat (regular) meat. Because I did not speak to your ancestors and I did not command them on the day that I took them out from the Land of Egypt concerning issues of offerings and sacrifices’” (Jer. 7:21-22). It is almost as though our sages are warning us against too great an involvement in the ritual of sacrifices which may lead to a depreciation of ethical and moral activities as the cornerstone of Divine service. Indeed, the prophetic reading continues: “But it was this matter that I commanded them saying, ‘Listen to My voice and I shall be your G-d and you shall be My nation’” (ibid 7:23). Professor Yeshayahu Leibowitz directs us to a later chapter in the prophecies of Jeremiah whose parallel language and repetition of what G-d taught “on the day that He took them out of Egypt” clarifies the meaning. In chapter 34 of the Prophet Jeremiah we read: “Thus says the Lord of Hosts the G-d of Israel, ‘I made a covenant with your fathers the day that I brought them out of Egypt out of the Land of Slavery, saying: At the end of seven years every man must free his brother who has been sold to him’” (ibid 34:13-14). Jeremiah is teaching us that on the day after the exodus, there was one basic command which the Almighty wished to convey to His people: do not enslave your brother, do not take advantage of your brother, do not manipulate your brother, do not make your brother a means for your personal end. Certainly, this means that we may in no way harm
The sanctuary and the Temple, the sacrifices and the prayers, are all means to the ultimate end of walking with G-d and acting in accordance with His will.
a.) Gold b.) Silver c.) Crystal d.) Other materials 4. Where was Mordechai born? a.) Babylon b.) Persia c.) Israel 5. How is Mordechai described? a.) The Benjamite b.) Prime Minister c.) The Jew
2. A, B 1:6 There were colorful blankets on top of the benches. Rashi 3. A,D 1:7 Rashi 4. C 2:6 Mordechai was exiled when the King Yechonya was taken to Babylon eleven years
by Rabbi Shlomo Riskin
SHABBAT SHALOM: PARSHAT TZAV LEVITICUS 6:1-8:36
Written by Rabbi Dov Aaron Wise
ANSWERS 1. A 1:5 The King first made a feast for 180 days to celebrate consolidating his empire, then he a feast for seven for the residents of Shushan the capital city.
Sedra of the Week
18 • JEWZ IN THE NEWZ
JEWZ
IN THE
By Nate Bloom Contributing Columnist TV News: DWTS, Crisis, Rashida, and a Kosher Batman The new season of ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” premieres in March. BROOKE BURKE-CHARVET, 42, the co-host of “DWTS” since Mar. 2010, has been replaced by Fox sportscaster Erin Andrews. Burke-Charvet was kept in the dark about her replacement until the last minute: “I’ve seen my fair share of shocking eliminations in the ballroom,” she said, “but this one takes the cake.” She bravely added that she could pursue other opportunities now that her obligation to DWTS had ended. On the plus side: professional dancer MAXIM CHMERKOVSKIY, 34, is returning to the show after a twoyear hiatus. His brother, VALENTIN, 27, who has been with DWTS since 2011, is also returning. The pros will be put on their toes this season by a new twist, called the “Switch-Up”. A celeb will be switched to a different pro for one week during the season. Audience votes will determine the new pairing. The only Jewish celeb dancer this season is JAMES MASLOW, 23, a very cute guy who is a member of Big Time Rush, a popular “boy band” that was created for the Nickelodeon TV show of the same name (it ran from 2009-2013). Maslow, who grew up in San Diego, was raised in his Jewish father’s faith and had a bar mitzvah. “Crisis” premieres on NBC. The premise: a school van carrying teen students who attend an elite Washington, D.C. private school is stopped on a secluded road and the students, and their chaperones, are kidnapped by terrorists. The teens include the kids of many powerful people, including the president. HALSTON SAGE, 20, plays Amber Fitch, one of the teens. Amber believes her mother to be Meg Fitch (Gillian Anderson), a powerful CEO. Her mother is really Meg’s sister, Susie Fitch, an FBI agent assigned to Amber’s kidnapping. Also in the cast as “kidnapees”: MAX SCHNEIDER, 21, a former male model, musician, and Nickelodeon series actor, as Ian Martinez – and JOSHUA EHRENBERG, 13, as Anton Roth. Ehrenberg played a young SETH ROGEN in “The Green Hornet” (2011) film. RASHIDA JONES, 38, who recently left the cast of “Parks and Recreation,” will star in a yet
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unnamed TV comedy. She’ll play an employee of the Los Angeles police department. A pilot is set to be filmed and while most pilots don't become TV shows, this one almost certainly will. Steve Carrell is directing the pilot for TBS and the talented Alfred Molina is set to play a recurring or featured character. The neatest thing: Jones’ real life parents, actress PEGGY LIPTON, 67, and legendary AfricanAmerican musician Quincy Jones, 80, are playing Rashida’s character’s parents. (Rashida was raised Jewish and firmly identifies as Jewish in a religious sense). DAVID MAZOUZ, 13, has been cast as a young Bruce Wayne (the star role) in the upcoming Fox series, “Gotham”. It’s about Bruce Wayne before he became Batman. The official description of the Wayne character says: “Not a playboy-by-day, vigilante-by-night, but a preteen who has been sentenced to a solitary life after his parents’ tragic murders.” Born and raised in Los Angeles, Mazouz co-starred in the short-lived Fox series, “Touch.” His family is Sephardic, with roots in France and Greece. Mazouz is the first Jewish actor to play the Caped Crusader, who was created by the late BOB KANE. Z to A: Zweig to Anderson Look for “The Grand Budapest Hotel” in local theater listings. It opened to super rave reviews in New York on March 6, and because of those reviews, its more than possible that a lot of cities, like Cincinnati, which are not currently scheduled to have a theater run – might be added in the next month. In any event, make a note to catch it when it shows up in other venues (streaming, DVD, etc). This comedy-drama is set in a mythical Central European country during the 1930s. Anderson says the film’s script was inspired by the novellas of Austrian Jewish writer STEFAN ZWEIG (1881-1942). Here is a short summary: a very rich married woman (Tilda Swinton) mysteriously dies at the hotel and, in her will, leaves a valuable painting to Gustave, her recent lover, and the hotel’s concierge. Gustave (Ralph Fiennes) is framed for her murder and jailed. His escape and the relentless hunt for him is the subject of most of the film’s second half. Those appearing in important supporting roles include: ADRIEN BRODY, 40, JEFF GOLDBLUM, 61, MATHIEU AMALRIC, 48, and HARVEY KEITEL, 74.
FROM THE PAGES 150 Y EARS A GO Insure your animate house as well as your inanimate one. Since a man’s LIFE is worth more to his family than the house they dwell in. The Aetna Life Insurance Company Office, No. 34 West Third Street, gives ample protection and full satisfaction to all who insure in it. For particulars inquire of M. Grosvenor, Manager or that this office. The undersigned, formerly proprietor of the Silvester House, takes this means to thank the public for the liberal patronage hitherto bestowed upon him, and also to announce that, on the 18th, he sold out the above named establishment. John Silvester. – April 8, 1864
world. He was born in Falant, Russia, and came to Cincinnati in 1885 an extremely poor man. In 1888 he started a small matzos bakery on Fifth near Baymiller Street, which gradually grew until it developed into the largest concern of its kind. He was a very charitable man and gave freely of his earnings to deserving persons and instittutions. Surviving Mr. Manischewitz is a widow; five sons, Meyer, Jacob, Joseph, Max, and Harry, the latter at present studying in Jerusalem to become a rabbi; and three daughters, Mrs. Mamie Finklestein of Brooklyn and the Misses Rose and Ray Manischewitz. – March 12, 1914
75 Y EARS A GO
One of the most enjoyable and unique affairs of the week was the five-o’clock tea at the residence of Mr. and Mrs. Obendorfer, No. 300 Richmond Street, celebrating the birthday anniversary of their attractive daughter Bertie. Among those who enjoyed their well-known hospitality were the Misses Bertha Black, Hannah Billigheimer, Ruth Freiberg, Stella Rosenthal, Bertha Rice, Pauline Loth, Minnie Plaut and Nettie Obendorfer, and Master Chas Adler, Jacob Mitziner, Dave Rosenthal, Irwin Bettman, and Theodore Lohr. Jacob C. Harris, an old Cincinnati boy, has embarked in the merchant tailoring business at 123 West Fifth Street. The marriage of Miss Hermine Weil and Mr. Reuben Levi will take place on April 10th, not on March 10th as erroneously announced last week. – March 14, 1889
Myron Schiffer, Jr., young son of Mr. and Mrs. Myron Schiffer, 3836 Reading Road, was awarded first prize in Class A Piano division and Joan Fleischer, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. J. I. Fleischer, 4181 Rose Hill Avenue, won second prize for an original composition in a contest in Columbus on Saturday, March 11th. The contest was sponsored by the Ohio Federation of Music Clubs. Both are pupils of Mrs. Selma B. Meis. Among Walnut Hills High School pupils elected to the National ‘cum laude’ Society, with an average of above 92 for fours years are Miss Janet Greenwald, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Sam Greenwald, and Miss Janet Weiland, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Fred Weiland. Mr. Isaac Pichel was honored for his 50 years as a Cincinnati newspaperman at a testimonial dinner Tuesday, March 14th, at the Cuvier Press Club. – March 16, 1939
100 Y EARS A GO
50 Y EARS A GO
Mrs. Sarah T. Drukker, an account of whose death appeared in these columns last week, was a notable woman. She was an ardent advocate of giving the right to vote to women and was both a writer and public speaker for the cause. She was one of the most active of the suffrage advocates in this city and one of the founders, and at one time president of the Twentieth Century Club; she was also a prominent member of the Press Club which adopted suitable resolutions in her memory. While taking part in many public movements, she did not neglect any of the duites of her home. She was a devoted wife and mother and leaves a sorrowing husband and four daughters to mourn for her and to cherish her memory throughout their lives. Behr Manischewitz, age 57, died on March 8 at his home, 2211 Park Avenue, Walnut Hills. He was a man something out of the common. He was a leader among the orthodox Jews of this city and section and one of the largest matzos bakers in the
Annoucement is made of the engagement of Miss Esther Helen Minson, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Edward Minson to Mr. Jack L. Bein, son of Mr. and Mrs. William Bein. Miss Minson is a graduate of UC and is affliated with Sigma Delta Tau and Alpha Lambda Delta. Mr. Bein attended UC and is affliated with Alpha Epsilon Pi. The wedding is planned for May 24. Miss Nancy Vonderheaide, national women’s archery champion and former world champion, and Mr. Marvin Kleinman, both of Cincinnati, were married March 7 in Atlanta. After a two week honeymoon in the South, the couple will reside in Cincinnati. Mr. Barry Liscow, son of Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Liscow, 7375 Aracoma Forest Drive, has graduated Summa Cum Laude from Columbia University, one of the top seven in his class. He has been elected to Phi Beta Kappa and will enter the College of Physicians and Surgeons in New
125 Y EARS A GO
York City in September. – March 12, 1964
25 Y EARS A GO Mr. and Mrs. Richard N. Bluestein of Scottsdale, AZ, formerly of Cincinnati, will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary April 2. Mr. Bluestein served as the second executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council. He later became assistant to president Dr. Nelson Glueck at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion from 1949-1958. Cincinnati is the host city this year for the Midwest Regional B’nail B’rith Bowling Tournament to be held March 25-26. The Hyatt Regency in downtown Cincinnati will host the event. Bowlers from the entire Midwest will be attending. More than 600 bowlers are anticipated. Four separate bowling alleys will be used. The weekend will consist of a three-game series Saturday evening, March 25, as well as a Hyatt dinner for all registered bowlers. Sunday morning there will be a continental breakfast at the bowling lanes and another three-game series to top off the tournament. This year, Cincinnati is only one of two regional sites hosting sanctioned B’nai B’rith tournaments. The official sponsor is the IBBBA (International B’nai B’rith Bowling Association). Ron Young is local chairman of the tournament and has a large committee working with him. Work began about a year ago. Ron is third vice-president of the international association.– March 16, 1989
10 Y EARS A GO Mikey Hoffman, a seventh-grader at Adath Israel’s Jarson Education Center, has been named the school’s Davener of the Month for Adar. Rabbi Eli Garfinkel gave Hoffman the award to recognize him for winning the “best davener” award at the recent Kadima Convention in Columbus. Mikey is the fifth Adath Israel student to win the Davener of the Month award since Rabbi Garfinkel instituted it in 2003. The award is part of the school’s Prayer Passport program, an initiative that rewards students for learning synagogue skills. Students who demonstrate a mastery of prayers receive canteen coupons in recognition of their accomplishments. Students who show enthusiasm for the program are eligible to be named Davener of the Month. Rabbi Garfinkel records a video of each winner’s skills and puts them on the school’s website for everyone to see. The other four winnres thus far were Michelle Glazer, Hillary Goldsmith, Benji Kriner, and Jonah Guttman.– March 18, 2004
COMMUNITY DIRECTORY / CLASSIFIEDS • 19
THURSDAY, MARCH 13, 2014
COMMUNITY DIRECTORY COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS ORGANIZATIONS Access (513) 373-0300 • jypaccess.org Big Brothers/Big Sisters Assoc. (513) 761-3200 • bigbrobigsis.org Camp Ashreinu (513) 702-1513 Camp at the J (513) 722-7258 • mayersonjcc.org Camp Chabad (513) 731-5111 • campchabad.org Camp Livingston (513) 793-5554 •camplivingston.com Cedar Village (513) 754-3100 • cedarvillage.org Chevra Kadisha (513) 396-6426 Cincinnati Community Kollel (513) 631-1118 • kollel.shul.net Cincinnati Community Mikveh (513) 351-0609 •cincinnatimikveh.org Eruv Hotline (513) 351-3788 Fusion Family (513) 703-3343 • fusionnati.org Halom House (513) 791-2912 • halomhouse.com Hillel Jewish Student Center (Miami) (513) 523-5190 • muhillel.org Hillel Jewish Student Center (UC) (513) 221-6728 • hillelcincinnati.org Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Cincinnati 513-961-0178 • jcemcin.org Jewish Community Center (513) 761-7500 • mayersonjcc.org Jewish Community Relations Council (513) 985-1501 Jewish Family Service (513) 469-1188 • jfscinti.org Jewish Federation of Cincinnati (513) 985-1500 • shalomcincy.org Jewish Foundation (513) 214-1200 Jewish Information Network (513) 985-1514 JVS Career Services (513) 936-WORK (9675) • www.jvscinti.org Plum Street Temple Historic Preservation Fund (513) 793-2556 Shalom Family (513) 703-3343 • myshalomfamily.org
AIPAC from page 6 That traditional base is aging, however, and many liberal activists are expressing greater sympathy for the Palestinians. Within the Jewish community and in Washington, J Street has challenged AIPAC from the left. AIPAC’s leadership has recently sought avenues to younger progressives, and nods to the political left were visible throughout the conference. At a session on “America’s Role in a Changing World,” Brian Katulis, a senior fellow at the liberal Center for American Progress, vigorously – POOR from page 10 is an urgent issue, it is only one component of a holistic approach to help get people “back in the mainstream.” One target group for mainstreaming is teenagers from disadvantaged families. The After School Youth Clubs of Meir Panim reach thousands of at-risk youths, who get motivated by energetic young volunteers and professional counselors to stay in school and continue their
The Center for Holocaust & Humanity Education (513) 487-3055 • holocaustandhumanity.org Vaad Hoier (513) 731-4671 Workum Fund (513) 899-1836 • workum.org YPs at the JCC (513) 761-7500 • mayersonjcc.org CONGREGATIONS CONGREGATIONS Adath Israel Congregation (513) 793-1800 • adath-israel.org Beit Chaverim (513) 984-3393 • btzbc.com Beth Israel Congregation (513) 868-2049 • bethisraelcongregation.net B’nai Tikvah Chavurah (513) 284-5845 • rabbibruce.com Congregation Beth Adam (513) 985-0400 • bethadam.org Congregation B’nai Tzedek (513) 984-3393 • btzbc.com Congregation Ohav Shalom (513) 489-3399 • ohavshalom.org Congregation Sha’arei Torah (513) 620-8080 • shaareitorahcincy.org Congregation Shevet Achim (513) 426-8613 • shevetachimohio.com Congregation Zichron Eliezer 513-631-4900 • czecincinnati.org Golf Manor Synagogue (513) 531-6654 • golfmanorsynagogue.org Isaac M. Wise Temple (513) 793-2556 • wisetemple.org Kehilas B’nai Israel (513) 761-0769 Northern Hills Synagogue (513) 931-6038 • nhs-cba.org Rockdale Temple (513) 891-9900 • rockdaletemple.org Shevet Achim, (513) 602-7801 • shevetachimohio.com Temple Beth Shalom (513) 422-8313 • tbsohio.org Temple Sholom (513) 791-1330 • templesholom.net The Valley Temple (513) 761-3555 • valleytemple.com
(513) 234.0600 • chaitots.com Chabad Blue Ash (513) 793-5200 • chabadba.com Cincinnati Hebrew Day School (513) 351-7777 • chds.shul.net HUC-JIR (513) 221-1875 • huc.edu JCC Early Childhood School (513) 793-2122 • mayersonjcc.org Kehilla - School for Creative Jewish Education (513) 489-3399 • kehilla-cincy.com Mercaz High School (513) 792-5082 x104 • mercazhs.org Kulanu (Reform Jewish High School) (513) 262-8849 • kulanucincy.org Regional Institute Torah & Secular Studies (513) 631-0083 Rockwern Academy (513) 984-3770 • rockwernacademy.org Sarah’s Place (513) 531-3151 • sarahsplacecincy.com Yeshivas Lubavitch High School of Cincinnati (513) 631-2452 • ylcincinnati.com ORGANIZATIONS ORGANIZATIONS American Jewish Committee (513) 621-4020 • ajc.org American Friends of Magen David Adom (513) 521-1197 • afmda.org B’nai B’rith (513) 984-1999 BBYO (513) 722-7244 • mayersonjcc.org Hadassah (513) 821-6157 • cincinnati.hadassah.org Jewish Discovery Center (513) 234.0777 • jdiscovery.com Jewish National Fund (513) 794-1300 • jnf.org Jewish War Veterans (513) 204-5594 • jwv.org NA’AMAT (513) 984-3805 • naamat.org National Council of Jewish Women (513) 891-9583 • ncjw.org State of Israel Bonds (513) 793-4440 • israelbonds.com Women’s American ORT (513) 985-1512 • ortamerica.org
EDUCA EDUCATION Chai Tots Early Childhood Center
and politely – sparred with Michael Doran, an official in the administration of President George W. Bush now at the Brookings Institution. But Katulis first flattered the room, and in progressive terms, praising AIPAC for seeding American engagement overseas at a time, he said, when conservatives were disengaging from foreign involvement. “What AIPAC does to reach out to our citizenry to talk about our engagement with our key ally Israel is vital,” he said. A breakout session on “Civilian Coexistence” in Israel featured an entire panel identified with the Israeli
left, which organizers acknowledged was unusual for AIPAC. The room of about 100 people was warm and welcoming. Ali Waked, an Arab Israeli who heads Merchavim, a dialogue group, drew applause when he said, “I want to be a first-class citizen of the state of Israel, with keeping my Arab and Palestinian identity.” He discussed discrimination against Arabs in Israel. “When 20-25 percent of citizens are uncomfortable, it should be a warning,” he said. No one contradicted him; instead, there were vigorous nods.
education. As soon as the final chunk of money is raised, Meir Panim will launch its most ambitious project to date – a $12 million Israel Nutrition Center located in the southern town of Kiryat Gat and named for wellknown U.S. philanthropist Mortimer Zuckerman and his daughter Abigail. The facility will be the largest food distribution center in the Middle East, set to serve 30,000 meals every day to disadvantaged
school kids, the free restaurants and meals on wheels programs around the country. It is a massive undertaking that will be managed in partnership with a large Israeli catering company. Rabbi Schischa of Tov V’Chesed acknowledges that programs like his “can’t fix the world,” but “at Purim, everyone can take part in the mitzvah of matanot l’evyonim to bring more joy into the world.”
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AL JAZEERA from page 16 Christian Arab resident of Bethlehem, Claire Anastas, and her family. Al Jazeera America correspondent Nick Schifrin cited Claire’s complaint that the barrier, harming her souvenir business, had caused hardship for the family. At one point, Schifrin asks Claire, “Were you able to buy your children presents?” “No, no, I couldn’t,” she answered. “I couldn’t buy them. There’s just not enough money for the gifts this morning, I apologized to them.” Schifrin omits far too much from this tear-jerker. Attractive, fashionably dressed Anastas also runs Claire’s Bed & Breakfast, in addition to a sophisticated Web site that contains an online souvenir purchase facility and solicits contributions. The Web site is well sprinkled with anti-Israel propaganda. A 2008 Associated Press story by Dalia Nammari noted that Anastas was “using the wall [Israeli security barrier] to make money” and “before getting into the souvenir business, she often hosted foreign solidarity [anti-Israel] groups in her home, which became a draw for political tourists because of its setting.” Secondly, the report fails to provide viewers with any context about Israel’s West Bank security barrier, a fence in most places but a wall around parts of Bethlehem. Israel constructed the Bethlehem portions after terrorists from the area simply walked into adjacent Jerusalem neighborhoods to stage bomb attacks during the second intifada, from 2000-2005. Hardship faced by the Anastas family as a result of the security barrier is the consequence of Palestinian terrorism. In its reporting, Al Jazeera America never mentions the fundamental problem underlying the Arab-Israeli conflict: The difficulty, if not impossibility, of making peace with a Palestinian Arab leadership and society whose dominant culture insists that Jews are not a people, do not deserve a state, and have no historical ties to the land of Israel.
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(513) 531-9600 Hatred fueled by a steady stream of anti-Semitic, anti-Israel incitement from Palestinian media, mosques, and schools underlies and typifies the conflict. Meanwhile, Palestinian terrorism proceeds apace. Palestinian Arabs, during January and February, perpetrated 20 firebomb attacks (in addition to numerous rock-throwing incidents) against Israeli vehicles traveling on Route 443, one of only two roads linking Tel Aviv to Israel’s capital of Jerusalem. The Palestinian Authority (PA) also continues to reward terrorists. In February, the PA announced it would “be giving an additional $46 million a year to released prisoners, a category which includes hundreds of murderers of [Israeli] civilians,” according to Palestinian Media Watch. Pervasive cradle-to-grave brainwashing of Palestinians is reflected in opinion polling through the years. For example, the Jerusalem Post in 2011 reported on joint Israeli/Arab polls showing that a majority of Palestinian adults in the West Bank and Gaza support suicide bombings against Jews in Israel and agree with a quote from the Hamas charter (and the Hadith, or tradition ascribed to the Islamic prophet Muhammad) about the need to “kill Jews hiding behind stones and trees.” Not that viewers of Al Jazeera America –which promises “unbiased, in-depth, fact-based” coverage-would know. Myron Kaplan is a senior research analyst with CAMERA, the Boston-based 65,000-member Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America. Eric Rozenman is Washington director of CAMERA. The organization takes no position on negotiated ArabIsraeli agreements. Any opinions expressed above are solely those of the writers.
20 • WANDERING JEW / FOOD
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Silversea’s Silver Spirit: escape from winter blahs Wandering Jew
salsa cooking class. We were each given a plate of fresh ingredients and then taught the steps of making authentic Mexican salsa and guacamole. We then devoured our concoctions with tortilla chips and washed them down with complimentary margaritas. Afterwards, our guide showed us how to step, sway, and get into the groove of Latin America's most famous dance…The Salsa. Following step-by step instructions, those who by were ready for the dance floor did Janet Steinberg their thing. Day 5: When Silver Spirit reached I was lucky to “get out of Dodge” Santo Tomas de Castilla, Guatemala, just in time. Well, it wasn't really some 212-nautical miles later, we Dodge City, Kansas, but it was opted for the Amatique Bay Resort Cincinnati, Ohio just before the ice tour that allowed us to chill out comand snow piled up. I headed south, pletely in one of Central America's way south, for fifteen glorious sunny finest resorts. days, which I am about to share with Departing the pier via a Panga you. boat (a modest-sized, open, outboardDay 1: As Silversea's Silver Spirit powered, boat) we sailed to the fiveset sail on the first leg of its 1726-nau- star Amatique Bay mega-resort. The tical mile round-trip Caribbean cruise Amatique Bay Resort features a from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, the botanical garden surrounded by ship's 476 passengers and I settled in Mayan archaeological sites, exotic for a relaxing evening at sea. landscaping, and a wide array of lush Day 2: Another day was spent flora and fauna. sailing the Florida Upon arrival, Straits and we could do as we Caribbean Sea as pleased…sunwe continued our bathe or swim at 536-nautical mile the pool with wet cruise to bar and water Cozumel. By this slides…explore second day, I was the private beach, already so pambutterfly and turpered and spoiled tle gardens…visit that I didn't care if the Jade I never got off the Museum…shop ship. for souvenirs…or Day 3: The join in an invigorSilver Spirit ating game of docked at beach volleyball Courtesy of Janet Steinberg Cozumel, Mexico A single order of Havana nachos and two or soccer (if we at 8 AM. Smaller sloppy Ritas. were a few, few, than Cancun, few, years Cozumel is a marriage of commerce younger). A barbecue buffet lunch and Mother Nature. When it came was served before we boarded the time to select a shore excursion, I Panga boat to return to the pier. chose Silversea's “Living History Day 6: Belize, 124-nautical miles Mayan Traditions and Island Tour”. from Santo Tomas, is nestled between During our visit to the Mayan Mexico and Guatemala on the Village we saw traditional thatched- Caribbean coast of Central America. roof Mayan houses, medicinal gar- Formerly known as British Honduras, dens, cooking techniques, and Mayan the colony's name was changed to ceremonies. We also learned about the Belize in 1973 in anticipation of its myths, histories and beliefs of the independence. On September 21, Mayan World. 1981 independence finally came to Following our tour of the village, Belize. we traveled across the island to the Belize, the only English-speaking eastern shore for stunning views of country in Central America, is one of the island's undeveloped coastline. the few remaining unspoiled places Traveling past ancient black rock for- on earth. Silver Spirit anchored in mations protruding from the sea, we Belize waters and we were tendered saw beautiful white-sand beaches, ashore to Belize City, home of the tropical low-jungle vegetation and the country's commercial center and the iridescent waters of the Caribbean largest concentration of Belizeans. Sea. Sarita, from S&LTours, zipped us Day 4: Having sailed 116-nautical around to Belize City's many sights of miles from Cozumel, we arrived at interest that included the following: Costa Maya, Mexico where I opted Museum of Belize that was built in for a Silversea fun tour called “Salsa 1857 as “her Majesty's Prison”; Baron & Salsa Beach Break”. Bliss Lighthouse, built in honor of the We were transferred to a beach benefactor who left Belize $2-million; restaurant for a hands-on Mexican St. John's Cathedral, constructed in
1812 from red bricks originally used as English ship ballast; and the Swing Bridge that has connected the downtown area since Colonial days and is one of the few manually operated bridges still in use in the world. BE laid back…BE unleashed…BE-LIZE! Day 7: Once again we were cruising the azure Caribbean Sea and the Straits of Florida. We had to sail another 566 nautical miles before reaching Key West, Florida. And I loved every minute of it…more time to be coddled and indulged on Silver Spirit. Day 8: I can best describe our final port stop, Key West, Florida, in three letters: F-U-N! This city of contrasts is a place where pirates once preyed and presidents once played. It is a place where straight meets gay, where drunk drinks with sober. Sloppy Joe's, the favorite haunt of the late Ernest “Papa” Hemingway, is much more than a honky-tonk saloon. It is a symbolic personification of Key West. One order of their yummy Havana Nachos, with Sloppy Joe Mix, is enough for two. Add to that an Original Sloppy Joe Sandwich and their award-winning Sloppy Rita (“Best Margarita in Florida”) and I guarantee you, you won't be hungry for days. Key West is Caribbean and continental, traditional and avant-garde. It is the Conch people, conch fritters, conch chowder, the Conch Tour Train, Conch High School, and Conch cheerleaders known as Conchettes. By the time you leave this end of the Florida Keys…this end of the highway…this end of the rainbow…I can assure you, you'll be conch-ed out. Only 172 nautical miles remained until we returned to Ft. Lauderdale and our heavenly cruise would be over. Day 9: Having been immersed in the easy-going culture and clear blue waters of the Caribbean for eight glorious days, I was not ready to face up to the icy winter weather that awaited us back home. So what did I do? I checked back into the Embassy Suites Ft. Lauderdale (where I had spent several pre-cruise days) for a few more days of sunshine, thus allowing the icy reality to sink in slowly. Days 10-15: Our 2-room suite at Embassy Suites Ft. Lauderdale was beginning to feel like home…like a place at which we could spend the entire winter. Complimentary home cooked breakfasts every morning…maid service every day…complimentary cocktails every evening. What's not to like? We lazed around the beautiful pool area, hung out with our kids and grandkids who live minutes away from the hotel, and ate at simple, down-home restaurants such as: Coco, Tamarindo, Joes Cafe, 17th Street Grill, Marina Deli, Il Mulino, Pomperdale Deli, and Greek Islands Taverna. And then, before I knew it, it was all over. Day 16: Back home… Brrrrr!
Filling the refrigerator Zell’s Bites
by Zell Schulman After five wonderful years at the St. James in Eden Park, I moved into my new home at The Kenwood by Senior Star. Though moving can be stressful, this fourth move in my life turned into a good adventure. Travel became the only problem. The St. James was only a five to ten minute drive from wherever I needed to be or wanted to go. Now, before leaving my apartment I need to do a run through in my head to make certain I will arrive on time for a special event or dinner at my families and friends homes. I moved, bringing along containers filled with “favorites” that were in my freezer, like my favorite butter cookie dough, soups and casseroles I had cooked and frozen, and a variety of frozen staples I keep on hand along with my home baked strudel. Believe me, I only make strudel twice a year as it’s a two day process. I arrived at the Kenwood to a new space for my furniture to fit in, a new kitchen with an electric range, not the gas range I loved , and an empty refrigerator. These two weeks have been filled with trips to the grocery and specialty stores to replenish my “Must Haves” for cooking. Entertaining the way I did in the past will need to be creative. I’m in good shape with frozen soups, cookie dough and casseroles. My baking pans, cookware, dishes and glassware have been paired down. “Dinner for two, James” will work well, but invitations of 100 to attend an Open House are over. It will be a challenge, but I know I can meet it head on and eventually get it down pat. I will start slowly, with a small group coming for cocktails at my apartment, then having dinner with me here in the private dining room at the Kenwood. A cocktail party is an easy way to entertain. The variety of recipes are endless, and they
need to be interesting and tasty, not filling. Here are a couple of my favorites. Swiss Cheese Squares These are so simple, you wouldn’t think people loved them so much. They’re very popular, so you may wish to double the recipe for a large crowd. If making these for 4 to 6 people, remove no more than 3 or 4 slices of Swiss cheese. Use high quality Swiss or Gruyere cheese rather than a processed cheese. There are a variety of mustards available today and you may wish to try something new besides Dijon mustard. Ingredients One 8-ounce package of Swiss cheese slices. 1/2 cup Dijon mustard or any other interesting mustard Method 1. Cut the Swiss cheese slices into l inch squares. 2. Lightly spread the mustard between two squares. Press them together. 3. Insert a toothpick in the center for easy pick-up. 4. Garnish the platter with escarole or large bib lettuce leaves, place the squares on top of the lettuce and serve. Tapenade Makes 2 -1/2 cups This keeps well in the refrigerator for up to one week. Use a good quality rye bread. Ingredients 2 cups pitted Nicoise olives 2 garlic cloves, peeled & diced 8 anchovy fillets, rinsed & dried 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, finely chopped 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil or less A pinch of sugar Sliced Rye bread Small, round cookie cutter Method 1. Place all ingredients, except the olives, in the container of a food processor, fitted with the steel blade. 2. With the motor running slowly add just enough olive oil to make a smooth paste. 3. Place in the refrigerator for at least one hour. 4. Serve on rye rounds of bread that have been cut with a round cookie cutter
AUTOS • 21
THURSDAY, MARCH 13, 2014
2014 Audi A8 LTD1 luxury sedan with power and style The 2014 Audi A8 L TDI is the newest luxury sedan powered by a six-cylinder instead of an eight, more proof that the engine downsizing trend is hitting all segments. At first, it's odd to find something smaller than a V-8 or a mighty W-12 under the A8's hood, but this is the second V-6 Audi has recently stuffed under the A8's hood, after the 3.0T model's gas-powered, supercharged 3.0-liter. In TDI trim, the A8 gets a 3.0-liter V-6 turbodiesel that sends 240 hp and 406 lb-ft of torque to all four wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission. The engine's most noteworthy benefit, of course, is its best-in-class fuel economy. EPA-rated at 24/36 mpg city/highway (beating the 3.0T by 6 city and 8 hwy
feet, responding well to steering inputs and staying planted through corners. Much credit goes to its aluminum body construction, which enables the A8's comparatively light curb weight of 4529 pounds. The interior is heavy with luxury and tech. It features a gorgeous two-toned nougat brown and black color scheme. Accents included a mix of polished burl walnut, piano black inlays, and metallic trim. Standard items for the base price include four-zone climate control, navigation, and power rear sunshades. (The TDI is only offered with the long-wheelbase variant.) That's $3700 more than the base A8 3.0T L, but $5100 cheaper than the 4.0T L. Next up is a $4000 Premium pack-
The engine's most noteworthy benefit, of course, is its best-in-class fuel economy. EPA-rated at 24/36 mpg city/highway
mpg), the engine works in tandem with the A8's 23.8-gallon fuel tank to produce a bladderpunishing range of more than 800 miles. The oil-burning engine is no slouch, either. Running from 0-60 mph took 5.8 seconds (half a second slower than the 3.0T) and the quarter mile required 14.5 seconds with a trap speed of 92.6 mph (13.8 seconds at 101.3 mph for the 3.0T). What these times don't convey, however, is the experience from behind the wheel. Step on the go pedal from a stop and the tach needle doesn't move much before you feel the engine churn out all the torque it's got. Acceleration is smooth, quiet, and effortless, with the engine humming at an easybreezy 1700 rpm once you've reached highway speeds of 7080 mph. Complementing the powertrain is a solid chassis highlighted by an adaptive air suspension that ensures the A8 glides on the road. The A8 also feels relatively light on its
age that adds blind-spot monitoring, LED headlights, and 22-way adjustable and massaging front seats that alone are worth the premium. A Driver Assistance package ($3250) includes high-beam assist, lane keeping assist, and an adaptive cruise control that also has the ability to bring the A8 to a full stop and accelerate (perfect for traffic). The package also comes with a topview camera system, a helpful tool for nervous parkers as it provides a clear 360degree view of obstacles surrounding the large sedan. Completing the options list is a panorama roof ($1300) and 20-inch rims ($1200). From a value standpoint, the A8 L TDI starts to look more attractive when compared to its closest competitor, the MercedesBenz S350 BlueTec. It’s obvious that the A8 is the king of luxury diesels. Pricing starts at $83,395.
22 • OBITUARIES
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D EATH N OTICES DUNKELMAN, Melville J., age 93, died March 3, 2014; 1 Adar II, 5774.
VENEZUELA from page 7 SEELIG, Eva, age 87, died March 4, 2014; 3 Adar II, 5774. SCHWARTZ, Edward A., age 98, died March 10, 2014; 9 Adar II, 5774. BUSINESS from page 9 touting the group’s message, but Levy chose not to sign on because it didn’t sufficiently address Israeli security concerns. “We are not politicians,” Levy told JTA, echoing several other BTI members. “We don’t make the decisions. In a democratic state, the majority decides. No one can come and dictate if the majority says something else.” Even before the latest round of negotiations began last July, skepticism abounded among both Israelis and Palestinians about the chances for a peace agreement. The American negotiating team appears to be struggling to bridge gaps between the sides on several major issues, but BTI participants say the talks may be Israel’s last good opportunity to end the conflict.
countrymen – simply have adjusted to the new reality. “It’s a matter of adjusting, I think, not a matter of survival,” Eppel said. “That’s what the community has been trying to do: adjust to adverse circumstances.” Sandra Iglicki, who left Venezuela for South Florida a decade ago but still goes back often, says it’s also been emotionally difficult to leave a country that for decades was good to Jews, serving as an antiSemitism-free refuge for European Jewish families who fled the Nazis. “It’s very painful for the community in Venezuela,” she said. And there’s still some hope, even among expats, that the country eventually will right itself. “If you talk to a lot of Venezuelans that are here, they’re waiting for this to be over,” Iglicki CRIMEA from page 8 was larger than just nationalist diehards and included both Jewish and non-Jewish liberals, as well as ordinary Ukrainians angered by rampant corruption and poor economic policies. Amid the months of unrest leading up to Yanukovych’s ouster, unknown assailants staged two violent attacks on Jews in Kiev. On Jan. 17, an Orthodox Jew was stabbed after leaving a synagogue. The week before, another Orthodox Jew was beaten outside his home. Both men are expected to recover fully. On Feb. 23, the day after Yanukovych’s ouster, a synagogue was firebombed in southeastern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhia. It sustained only minor damage. Last week, unidentified individuals drew swastikas and wrote “Death to the Jews” on the front door of Kapustin’s WOUNDED from page 9 the cost of transportation and medical care for 20-30 severely wounded individuals to reach into the hundreds of thousands of dollars, if not higher. For now, those involved in the project are feeling thrilled. “Our plane has taken off!” wrote one Kiev volunteer, exuberantly, on her Facebook page. “All the sleepless nights are worth it.” For project volunteers in Israel, however, the work is just beginning. According to Anna Zharova, who is coordinating volunteer help in Israel, volunteers have helped arrange ambulances for the arriving wounded. A request for translation of medical documents from Russian or Ukrainian into Hebrew or English went viral, arranged through a Gmail account. More than 100 volunteers have
said in a phone interview from Florida. “I would love to go back to Venezuela.” Many emigrants still work in Venezuela, commuting back for weekdays to run their businesses while their families adjust to life in a new country. In Miami, the last few weeks have been particularly fraught for Venezuelan expats, filled with anxious phone calls to relatives back home and endless agitation on social media. With state media in Venezuela blacking out news of the massive demonstrations, the expats have occupied the peculiar position of funneling news to relatives back home in Caracas about what’s happening in Venezuela, often via Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Offline, there have been large demonstrations in Miami against the Maduro government, which is blamed for
Venezuela’s tailspin. “This is something that in Miami is top news every day,” said Juan Dircie, associate director of American Jewish Committee’s Latino and Latin American Institute in Miami. “The exile community of Venezuelans has been holding rallies, doing interviews on TV, writing letters to the editor. The demonstrations are in favor of democracy and human rights, but of course there is a big component of opposition to the Maduro government.” Beker, who left Venezuela eight years ago at age 17 to go to Emory University, said he recently did a quick tally to calculate whether he had more family members in Miami or Caracas. He said he was shocked when he realized Florida won out. “It’s a little sad,” Beker said. “You think: I’m just going to college for a couple of years and coming back. But that never happens.”
Simferopol synagogue in Crimea. Some leaders of Ukrainian Jewry, including a Kiev-based Ukrainian chief rabbi, Yaakov Dov Bleich, suggest that at least some of these incidents may have been provocations by proRussian forces seeking to justify Russian involvement in the crisis. At a press conference in New York on March 3, Bleich called on Russia to withdraw from Ukraine. He drew a parallel between Russian actions in Crimea and the false pretenses Adolf Hitler used to justify his invasions and annexations of other countries in the 1930s. But others say the threat of anti-Semitic violence is real and that Russian protection is vital for Ukrainian Jews. Baruch Fichman, founder and president of the Ukrainian League Against Anti-Semitism, based in the western Ukrainian city of Chernivtsi, said Ukrainian neo-
Nazis are feeling emboldened by the revolution’s success and are more dangerous now. “The threat of Russian intervention is a good thing because it will cause the neo-Nazis to rethink their attacks on Jews,” Fichman said. “Russian intervention in other places in Ukraine would be a positive thing for the safety of the Jewish population.” Putin’s suggestions notwithstanding, Gorin says Russia’s mobilization in Ukraine is not motivated by its concern for Jews but by the new Ukrainian government’s scrapping of a law recognizing Russian as an official language. Russian intervention, he said, was an error that would mainly serve to reignite Ukrainian nationalist fervor. “All said and done,” Gorin said, “Jews and non-Jews in Ukraine perceive Russian military intervention as a bigger threat than any revolutionary government.”
been recruited through a Facebook group, “Israel Help Maidan Wounded.” “Every injured person will have a volunteer to get everything he needs: food, a place to stay for his family that’s coming with him,” Zharova said. “My vision is that there won’t be politics here. There are different sides and opinions, but we’re careful to come from a place of assistance. It’s a matter of life and death. Over there, they’re volunteering 24 hours a day.” Zharova and others interviewed expressed frustration that government sources have been largely unresponsive to the group’s efforts. Hennadii Nadolenko, Ukraine’s ambassador to Israel, pledged support but has not fulfilled initial promises, Zharova said. “This was all through private hands. There’s no time to waste. People are dying from simple things
because there are no medical supplies, no medicine, nothing,” she told JTA. The Israeli government has been largely silent on the issue, despite the large population of Jews from Ukraine living in Israel. “We want to reach the government. There’s no shortage of Ukrainians here with family or friends there, and it’s important to them. This isn’t coming from a political standpoint. It’s humanitarian, to help people,” Zharova said. “It’s important for us to connect to Hebrew speakers. We want Israelis to know about this initiative, anyone who can help, because that’s our way of doing tikkun olam.” (Reported by Ben Sales from Tel Aviv, Talia Lavin from New York and Cnaan Liphshiz from Amsterdam)
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17 24 The Home Issue
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5 12 The Car Issue *SECTION
15 Bar/Bat Mitzvah *SECTION
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29 Travel Guide *SECTION
J U LY
AU G U S T 7 Back To School *SECTION
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SEPTEMBER 4 Best of Jewish Cincinnati *SECTION
10 Health & Beauty *SECTION
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17 The American Israelite at 160
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25 Rosh Hashanah *ISSUE Jewish Year in Review *SECTION
N OV E M B E R
DECEMBER
31 Mature Living *SECTION
O C TO B E R 2
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9 Financial Planning *SECTION
4 Gift Guide #2 *SECTION
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11 Chanukah *ISSUE
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18 The Car Issue *SECTION
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27 Gift Guide #1 *SECTION
25 The Year in Review
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30 Event Planning *SECTION
1st Week: Legal | 2nd Week: Travel | 3rd Week: Arts & Entertainment | 4th Week: Business | 5th Week: Health & Fitness Business: publisher@americanisraelite.com | Editor: editor@americanisraelite.com | Production: production@americanisraelite.com | Phone: 513.621.3145 Dates of Special Issues & Sections may change without formal notice.