Jewish Action Winter 2021

Winter 5782/2021

Vol. 82, No. 2

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COVER

INSIDE SYNAGOGUE & PRAYER Inside the Mind of the Gabbai

By David Olivestone

Rabbi Joseph Karasick (Karasick family)

JEWISH WORLD The View from Pew: Where We Are Where Do We Go From Here?

Center row, from left: Moses Feuerstein (YU Archives) Stephen Klein (BMG Archives) Rabbi Herman Naftali Neuberger (Ner Israel

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Photo Archives)

Rabbi Herschel Schacter

COVER STORY: Shtadlanim of the 20th Century

(Rabbi J.J. Schacter)

Bottom row, from left: Dr. Marvin Schick (Avi Schick) Rabbi Dr. Israel Miller

The Shtadlan in Jewish History A Conversation with Dr. Henry Abramson

By Faigy Grunfeld • Rabbi Herschel Schacter

By Rabbi Dr. Jacob J. Schacter • Dr. Jacob Birnbaum

By Sandy Eller • Irving Bunim

By Merri Ukraincik • Stephen Klein

By Rochel Licht • Rabbi Joseph Karasick

By Sandy Eller • Zev Wolfson

By Jonathan Rosenblum • Dr. Marvin Schick

By Steve Lipman • Rabbi Herman Naftali Neuberger

By Aviva Engel • Elimelech Gavriel (Mike) Tress

By Jonathan Rosenblum • Rabbi Moshe Sherer

By Jonathan Rosenblum • Moses Feuerstein

By Leah Lightman • Rabbi Dr. Israel Miller

By Steve Lipman

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(Yeshiva University Archives) Rabbi Moshe Sherer (Agudath Israel of America Archives) Zev Wolfson (David Safier) Harold M. Jacobs (YU Archives)

Vol. 82, No. 2

FEATURES

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of America Archives)

Dr. Jacob Birnbaum

Winter 2021/5782 Vol. 82, No. 2

26 32

Top row, from left: Mike Tress (Agudath Israel

Winter 5782/2021

• Harold M. Jacobs

By Dr. Rafael Medoff ART AND LITERATURE What News on the Rialto?

By Allan Leicht

(YU Archives)

Irving Bunim (BMG Archives) Background photos: YU Archives

DEPARTMENTS

02 10 16

24 94 98 102

LETTERS PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Planning Your Communal Role—Yet Again

By Mark (Moishe) Bane FROM THE DESK OF RABBI MOSHE HAUER Looking in the Mirror: Growth Masking Attrition IN FOCUS The Dividends of Diversity

By Nathan Diament KOSHERKOPY Keeping Shemitah in the Technological Age A Q&A with Rabbi Ezra Friedman THE CHEF’S TABLE A Good Fry

By Naomi Ross LEGAL-EASE What’s the Truth About . . . a Minor with a Sefer Torah Counting for a Minyan?

By Rabbi Dr. Ari Z. Zivotofsky

105 112 120 122 124 126 128

INSIDE THE OU

By Sara Goldberg INSIDE PHILANTHROPY Bringing Teen Outreach to a Whole New Level BOOKS Hilkhot Avelut: Understanding the Laws of Mourning

By Rabbi David Brofsky Reviewed by Sarah Rudolph Rav Noach Weinberg: Torah Revolutionary

By Yonoson Rosenblum Reviewed by Steven Gotlib Secrets of the Soul: Conversations with Rav Shlomo Hoffman

By Rabbi Shlomo Hoffman, edited

by Rabbi Meir Simcha Stein Reviewed by Rabbi Dr. Jonathan Schwartz Reviews in Brief

By Rabbi Gil Student LASTING IMPRESSIONS Salvaging Family Supper

By Barbara Bensoussan

Jewish Action is published by the Orthodox Union • 11 Broadway, New York, NY 10004 212.563.4000. Printed Quarterly—Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall, plus Special Passover issue. ISSN No. 0447-7049. Subscription: $16.00 per year; Canadian, $20.00; Overseas, $60.00. Periodical's postage paid at New York, NY,

Jewish Action seeks to provide a forum for a diversity of legitimate opinions within the spectrum of Orthodox Judaism.

Winter 5782/2021 JEWISH ACTION

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LETTERS

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JEWISH ACTION Winter 5782/2021

JEWISH ACTION ARTICLE LEADS TO EXPANSION OF CHESED PROGRAM Your article, “Smart Chesed: Four Ways Anyone Can Make a Difference,” by Zevy Wolman (spring 2021) has already made a real impact in numerous communities.

Among the organizations mentioned was Bobbie’s Place, the children’s clothing charity that I am privileged to lead. As a result of the article, several communities reached out to us to discuss how we can work together to bring Bobbie’s Place to their area. We were able to get one new program up and running in time for the Yamim Noraim, and we will iy”H be operational in at least one additional location before this coming Pesach.

That means that several hundred families will see their Shabbos and yom tov enhanced and their stress diminished because Zevy Wolman took the initiative to spread the message that it is not necessary to “recreate the wheel,” as there are opportunities to “leverage existing organizational infrastructure.”

When Jewish Action speaks, people listen and communities benefit. Keep up the great work!

Michal Schick Director, Bobbie’s Place Brooklyn, New York IS LANGUAGE A BARRIER TO ALIYAH? While I enjoyed reading the “Covid Aliyah” section (fall 2021), I feel the articles underemphasized the barrier that language can pose to making aliyah successfully. I know several individuals who despite taking ulpan and spending years in Israel either did not quickly achieve or never achieved a level of Hebrew that enabled them to work in their professional field. The resulting language barrier meant years of unemployment, under-employment or employment in areas outside their expertise. All of which led to financial and emotional stress on the families.

In one of the articles, one of the olim mentioned that she is relicensing as a fertility nurse, without acknowledging the sophistication of Hebrew that that requires. Writer Aviva Engel describes the Aliyah Risk Calculator, the online resource designed by Rabbi Dr. Avidan Milevsky [which helps families assess their likelihood of aliyah success]. The article mentioned several factors that the Aliyah Risk Calculator considers, none of which is fluency with Hebrew.

My grandfather escaped Hitler’s Europe and settled in Brooklyn.

While he lived more years in America than in his native Poland, language was a barrier for the rest of his life. My father tells stories of going to the bank for his parents when he was a child because they were not comfortable enough speaking English to do that themselves.

Obviously living in Israel is beautiful, but not everyone can telecommute or has the language skills to learn Hebrew well enough to work in their field in Israel. Without mentioning the potential language barrier, perhaps the articles put too rosy a gloss on aliyah.

David Green Baltimore, Maryland

At Yeshiva University, our five core Torah values comprise our moral compass and guide us toward a better future.

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YOU ARE NOT ALONE Confidential Hotline: 888.883.2323 Call. Text. WhatsApp Call our Confidential Hotline to discuss any issues about relationships or domestic abuse. We provide a listening ear to all. Our referrals help our callers gain access to helpful resources, including legal assistance, counseling, and safe shelters. For more information and to speak with a trained advocate, please visit www.shalomtaskforce.org.

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JEWISH ACTION Winter 5782/2021

Rabbi Dr. Avidan Milevsky Responds David, thank you for your letter. You are very correct, language issues are an important part of aliyah success. In fact, our studies clearly show a direct correlation between language proficiency and immigration success. The Aliyah Risk Calculator takes this into account with several items inquiring about language abilities. It should have been highlighted in the article as well.

THE ECONOMICS OF FRUM LIFE The articles about money management in the section “Rethinking the Economics of Frum Life” (fall 2021), especially the one by Rabbi Naftali Horowitz, should be given to every engaged couple. Thanks for great reading.

Sara Goldstein Brooklyn, New York After reading the articles on the economics of frum life, I feel that the recommended solutions miss some important considerations.

First, many of the articles focused on entrepreneurship and stressed that starting one’s own business is a path to economic success. I would argue that a steady job working in a corporation is a career path that should be more strongly considered by frum individuals. While it may not lead to fame and fortune, it will provide a steady income, reasonable benefits and the ability to maintain a strong work-life balance that is so important to our culture.

Second, the articles don’t provide a more reasonable solution to the economic problems related to living in New York City. Leave! There are many wonderful communities throughout the Midwest and Southeast that offer all the amenities a frum family needs. Minneapolis has the full gamut of sports teams and entertainment options that New York has, but at the same time, it offers all the resources a frum family could want—(relatively) affordable housing, wonderful Torah-based schools, yeshivot and learning options galore, and best of all, none of the social and economic nonsense that drives too many frum families into the depths of financial despair that your articles describe.

Third—the concept of needing an annual income of $150K for an adequate lifestyle is simply unrealistic. Everyone wants to be a macher, but the best donation one can make to frum society is to set an example for your family of what true Torah values engender—living a simple life free from external social pressure, and focusing on being a light of holiness to everyone around you, both Jews and non-Jews.

With intelligent choices, frum Jews can live the life they want at a price they can afford.

Daniel Shertok Minneapolis, Minnesota I was disappointed by the articles in the cover story “Rethinking the Economics of Frum Life.” I was looking forward to reading about innovative thinking for how the

We believe in the infinite worth of each and every human being.

frum community could reduce the cost of living and make the economics of frum life work. Instead the articles were focused on how we should try to make more money and reduce our expenses due to the implication that the cost of our schools, shuls, mikvahs and real estate will not come down. The trouble with this approach is that it leads to resentment of the frum lifestyle. As parents with four young children and a good family income, my wife and I have been very concerned about the cost of Jewish day school.

Prior to the pandemic, we were seriously thinking of aliyah, primarily due to the cost of tuition. The pandemic completely changed our outlook on schooling, because we discovered that homeschooling works well for our family. We had written it off as something we would never do, but it has turned out to be a huge blessing for our family. I would like to challenge the community to think outside the box and try things that are outside of our comfort zones. There are ways to make frum life work without needing to significantly boost our income and reduce our quality of life. We must do this because the status-quo is not sustainable.

Yair Treister Silver Spring, Maryland REPLACING HEADSTONES FOR JEWISH HEROES I read “Finally, a Star of David for Jewish Heroes” by Dr. Rafael Medoff (fall 2021) [about an initiative to locate Jewish personnel at American military cemeteries all over the world who were buried under markers incorrectly representing their religion and working to correct that]. Coincidentally, that same week I finished reading The Panzer Killers, which tells the story of how Major General Maurice Rose heroically led the US Army 3rd Armored Division from its landing in Normandy through Belgium and across the Rhine, only to be killed in action as he led his unit deeper into Germany.

In March 1955, after basic training, I boarded a ship for assignment to an infantry regiment based outside Fürth, Germany as part of the post-war occupation of that country. That ship, one of a fleet of troop carriers named after army generals, was named the Maurice Rose. I only found out when I read The Panzer Killers that Maurice Rose was the son and grandson of rabbis and that while he had married outside the religion, he had gone to great lengths, although he was living on a military base, to find a mohel and make a bris for his newborn son.

General Rose was buried under a military-erected wartime cross in Ittenbach, Germany on April 2, 1945, at a ceremony where eleven US Army generals served as pallbearers. Maurice Rose, a true hero, is now eligible, through the efforts of Operation Benjamin led by Rabbi Dr. Jacob J. Schacter, to have his grave re-marked with a Star of David.

Avrum Hyman Riverdale, New York 6

JEWISH ACTION Winter 5782/2021

We believe in bringing values to life.

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Connect and speak personally with representatives from communities across the country and Israel.

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Rabbi Dr. Jacob J. Schacter Responds I want to commend Mr. Hyman for his service to America. All Americans are deeply grateful to you.

Daniel Bolger’s book, The Panzer Killers, is, indeed, an excellent recounting of the brilliant military leadership of Major General Maurice Rose during World War II. Major General Rose was not only the highest-ranking Jewish officer to be killed in the war, but the highest ranking of all US soldiers killed by enemy fire. Rose was buried under a Star of David for more than four years when the decision was suddenly made to replace that headstone with a Latin cross. It was a source of controversy then and has remained so ever since.

We in Operation Benjamin are honored to express our collective hakarat hatov to all of the soldiers who were interred under incorrect headstones. They no longer have the opportunity to fight for their own identities, and we are honored to pick up that flag, do the research, meet and work with the families, petition the government, and with the fabulous professionals of the American Battle Monuments Commission, replace the headstones of the crosses placed in error in beautiful ceremonies that are mekadesh Shem Shamayim.

To date, we have successfully been granted approvals to change eighteen headstones to Stars of David. We are currently working on more than thirty others. Many stories still remain to be told . . . including that of Major General Maurice Rose, with which we are very familiar.

To learn more about our work, visit our website, operationbenjamin.org, and click on the menu “Our Soldiers.”

This magazine contains divrei Torah, and should therefore be disposed of respectfully by either doublewrapping prior to disposal, or placing in a recycling bin.

To send a letter to Jewish Action, send an e-mail to ja@ou.org.

Correction: In our fall 2021 issue, the caption under this image in “Finally, a Star of David for Jewish Heroes” (p. 27) was incorrect.

The caption should have read: The headstone replacement ceremony of First Lieutenant Robert S. Fink on February 12, 2020 at Manila American Cemetery, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City (Manila), Philippines. Pictured from right to left are: Rabbi John Franken (nephew of Private Allan C. Franken, killed in action May 24, 1945); US Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Y. Kim; Israeli Ambassador to the Philippines Rafael Harpaz; Rabbi Dr. Jacob J. Schacter; Steve Lamar; family and friends of the five soldiers killed in action who were being honored with headstone replacements on that day; and to the very left, Shalom Lamm.

COMPASSION We believe in the responsibility to reach out to others in compassion.

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

PLANNING YOUR COMMUNAL ROLE —YET AGAIN

By Mark (Moishe) Bane

A

pivotal inflection point in my life was deciding to attend law school rather than to pursue a career in rabbinics. I had observed that my Talmudic prowess fell short of many of my peers. In addition, I feared that sooner or later my visceral need for job stability would impel me to compromise my principles rather than put a rabbinic career in peril. But since I understood that our mission as Orthodox Jews is to meet the needs of others in addition to our own, I sought a route that could address both.

So with youthful exuberance (and naïveté), I prognosticated the future needs of American Jewry and designed a personal plan both for my personal Mark (Moishe) Bane is president of the OU and a senior partner and chairman of the Business Restructuring Department at the international law firm, Ropes & Gray LLP.

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religious development and for contributing as a lay activist. Some of my yeshivah chevra were encouraging; others saw my planning either as imperious or as childish. Most just smirked knowingly and focused on their own studies. I agreed with them all.

In the subsequent years and decades, I repeatedly revisited and modified the plan; occasionally modestly, other times substantively. Alterations were often necessary because I discovered flaws and oversights. Other times adjustments to the plan were compelled by unanticipated changes within the community or in my personal circumstances. Allow me to illustrate what I mean: A commercial product’s profitability is dependent upon both the quality of the product and the quality of the product’s distribution system. Community projects are no different; I discovered that I much preferred product development but was spending much of my time on distribution. And so I pivoted from launching projects as an entrepreneurial activist, as I had done in law school and immediately thereafter, to working with established organizations that had strong distribution systems, such as the Orthodox Union.

I will never know whether my choices were optimal, but I do know that through my journey as a communal activist, I have spent much time with truly extraordinary Jews. For example, as my wife and I traveled to speak in communities around North America, we developed treasured relationships with remarkable rabbis and rebbetzins.

One rabbi who taught me more during our two-day visit than I sometimes learn in months was the recently deceased Rabbi Aryeh Scheinberg, zt”l, the rav of Congregation Rodfei Sholom in San Antonio, Texas, for almost fifty years. Not only did he share with me invaluable insights into the details of Judaism and communal leadership, but he and the rebbetzin, tibadel l’chaim, also modeled commitment to and love of Klal Yisrael.

Our lives, however, are not static, and plans formulated at each stage of life must be revisited as we approach the next stage. Whether entering the

job market or retreating from the workforce, starting a family or seeing children off into adulthood, the manner of pursuing our goals and life mission deserves reconsideration. And so, as I enter the final year of my tenure as OU president, my wife and I are once again engaged in formulating future plans, both for personal goals and for how we might contribute to the community.

Formulating a plan for communal involvement begins by determining whether our availability has expanded or diminished. Next, we must identify our appropriate role, recognizing that roles contemplated or played in the past may no longer be appropriate because of the changes in our skill set, wisdom, stamina, financial wherewithal, or even in our degree of self-confidence.

Selecting a role is also daunting since we must choose from among countless opportunities to help individuals and the community. As a preliminary framework for discussion, these roles might be grouped into four broad categories: 1. Funding 2. Communal advocacy 3. Organizational involvement 4. Hands-on acts of kindness Below are exploratory observations that might be helpful in one’s initial consideration of each category.

Funding My youthful plans for lay activism were predicated on accumulating the fabulous fortunes I thought necessary to fund the communal ventures I hoped to design and implement. I subsequently discovered that my aversion to financial instability not only precluded a career in rabbinics but also deterred me from taking the types of financial risk necessary to accumulate meaningful wealth. Fortunately, I learned that the financial support of others for charitable ventures is a worthy, if not superior, surrogate for personal wealth.

Hashem, in His kindness, has blessed our community with many wealthy philanthropists who are passionate and magnanimous. Philanthropists may view their monetary donations as sufficient in fulfilling their communal obligations. Is that justified?

We believe in truth, and humanity’s ability to discover it.

While generosity certainly deserves recognition and appreciation, being a philanthropist is entirely different from being a communal activist or leader.

After all, giving charity is the religious obligation of every Jew, and Jews across the economic spectrum are enormously generous. In fact, smaller donations from the less affluent frequently represent greater self-sacrifice than mega donations, which often have minimal if any impact on the donor’s lifestyle or balance sheet.

Perhaps giving charity should be but the preliminary step in a philanthropist’s communal role. Though many institution heads prefer that lay involvement be restricted to check writing, large donors are often uniquely qualified to fill certain communal functions that beg to be addressed. For example: • Funders often have unique skills and expertise that could be harnessed to benefit the community institutions they support, and they also have access to additional sources of funding for these institutions.

• While it is inappropriate and overreaching for philanthropists to leverage their generosity to dictate organizations’ programmatic practices and ideological policies, funders could effectively use their economic clout to monitor and ensure the efficiency and effectiveness of the programs they support.

• Funders can use their role and their leverage to protect the community against the duplication of charitable institutions, and to prevent the perpetuation of resource-consuming institutions and programs that are no longer essential.

• Funders can condition their contributions on recipients’ vigorous adherence to laws, regulations and ethical practices.

• Aside from their interactions with institutions and programs, funders can, and are perhaps even obligated to use their stature and prominence to serve as communal role models in matters such as business ethics, standards of religious observance and manners of lifestyle and consumption (see Rashi, V’al shehayah sipaik b’yadam [Sukkah 29b]).

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Communal Advocacy Another communal role that I entertained as a youngster was that of communal advocate or “shtadlan.” The shtadlan serves to represent the community’s interests to outside authorities and power brokers, presenting communal requests for government funding or tax relief, and addressing thorny issues such as criminal allegations or onerous decrees or regulations, particularly those perceived as anti-Semitic.

When I began to engage in these types of efforts as lay chairman of the OU’s Institute of Public Affairs (now the OU Advocacy Center), I found myself neither attracted to the role nor all that qualified. The shtadlan role is frequently played by a paid advocate or by a particularly gifted communal professional, such as a rabbi or an educator. Admittedly, lay community members may also assume the role, but they are typically individuals who enjoy access and influence by virtue of their personal stature and achievements. Areas of personal achievement include commerce, as exemplified by Moe Feuerstein, z”l, and Zev Wolfson, z”l, and the arts or sciences, as in the case of Elie Wiesel, z”l. Occasionally an Orthodox Jew will become an effective communal advocate by virtue of his other non-communal, personal government roles or appointments, such as Dr. Marvin Schick, z”l, and the Honorable Herbert Tenzer, z”l.

Though shtadlanus did not work for me and has traditionally been the domain of the community’s senior establishment, it is becoming an increasingly accessible role.

Technology and social media, commonly mastered by a younger generation, have introduced contemporary methods of communal advocacy.

Online advocacy and blogs are potent platforms for activism, and those who can exploit them effectively will likely emerge as significant communal players.

Grassroots advocacy has assumed increased influence on government policies and societal expectations. This trend introduces opportunities for new forms of collective communal advocacy.

The broad Jewish community’s pivotal role in affecting the freedom of Jews

in the Former Soviet Union is a powerful example.

Organizational Involvement Over the years my primary communal role has been initiating programs and strengthening institutions. Organizational involvement is challenging and frustrating, but it is essential that we leverage the size and expertise of institutions to address the burgeoning needs of our increasingly large and complex community. Consequently, I encourage volunteers to roll up their sleeves and engage in any of the myriad wonderful institutions that service our community.

When launching your organizational involvement, you must first assess what cause or communal need you are most comfortable advancing. Secondly, you must determine whether you actually have the time and capacity for such involvement beyond attending a sporadic board meeting or providing occasional advice.

Even within a particular cause, there are distinct strategies to effect change.

For many, personality dictates their chosen approach. Others, such as myself, could comfortably choose either of the alternatives described below, and thus select the approach that is likely to be most impactful. The following is an abbreviated sampling of choices I considered when constructing my initial personal plan.

1. Entrepreneurship or corporate Klal Yisrael Just as MBA graduates may pursue their fortune by joining corporate America, an Orthodox activist may seek to make an impact by joining “corporate Klal Yisrael.” “Corporate Klal Yisrael” is our extensive network of communal institutions, from large to small, spanning all aspects of religious, social and other needs. As a young person, I assumed that the old guard of every institution possessively defends its turf by thwarting volunteer interlopers. I quickly discovered, however, that they most often eagerly welcome volunteers who are prepared to do substantive, high-quality work without expecting credit or recognition.

The alternative, however, if you are an MBA graduate or aspiring

REDEMPTION

We believe that humanity’s purpose is to transform our world for the better and move history forward.

community activist, is to create and implement programs on your own.

Entrepreneurship has the advantages of independence, the eluding of endless meetings and bureaucracy, and the joy of calling something one’s own.

The downside, of course, is a lack of support and infrastructure, as well as the inability to build upon preexisting accomplishments.

2. Problem solver or agitator Efforts to improve the community can be pursued from one of two vantage points: either from within the establishment or from outside the establishment. The former requires involvement within communal institutions and developing relationships with communal leaders. By playing a purposeful and productive role within the establishment, opportunities to advance improvements will inevitably arise. This approach requires a willingness to play the long game.

The latter approach involves attaining credibility as an effective activist by generating benefits for the community from outside the established organizations and leadership.

If you are successful in attracting the respect of the community through these projects, your compelling and well-articulated critiques of the status quo, while inevitably rejected, will potentially prompt changes. This approach requires a willingness to be confrontational and to tolerate criticism and, sometimes, ostracization.

Both strategies can succeed wildly or fail miserably, and thus in every situation careful strategic analysis is required to assess which approach is more likely to be effective. For many people, however, the choice is necessarily dictated exclusively by their personality and comfort zone (or by whether they have children to marry off).

3. Narrow mastery or breadth of perspective Many Torah scholars are masters of particular disciplines, such as pilpul, halachah, Tanach or kabbalah. Others are generalists who lack the mastery of the specialists but enjoy in its stead a breadth of knowledge essential to analysis and assessment.

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Communal activists are similarly distinguished. Most focus on one or two areas of communal need, such as chinuch, kiruv or social services. A few, however, pivot every few years from one area of interest to another, seeking to acquire a broad perspective regarding the needs of our community. The community relies heavily on activists who have become experts in their area of philanthropic interest, but it is essential to have at least some activists with less proficiency in specific areas but a broader communal perspective.

Hands-on chesed Having focused for decades on programs and organizations, I feel deficient for not being more involved in hands-on chesed. There are limitless ways of providing assistance directly to individuals, such as visiting the ill, calling on the lonely, mentoring start-up entrepreneurs, studying Torah with beginners over the phone, volunteering as a shul gabbai or guiding singles through the dating process. And the list goes on.

What are the advantages of doing hands-on chesed? It provides the most immediate and perceivable impact, which sometimes may be life-altering and other times may just put a smile on a lonely face. In addition, one often experiences an emotional high when helping others directly, and the sense of holiness, when engaged in such chesed, is frequently palpable.

But is engaging in direct acts of kindness the ideal choice for everyone?

I have encountered two schools of Torah thought regarding how to prioritize when choosing one’s personal role in enhancing the lives of others. One view focuses on the actual function performed; the other emphasizes the impact.

The first view encourages the pursuit of activities that directly provide the benefit. One should choose to be the individual who personally feeds the hungry, teaches the Torah, heals the sick or helps with the shul bulletin— even if greater aggregate good would result were one to facilitate the efforts of many others. Perhaps this approach emerges from the recognition that

it is Hashem’s will, not our efforts, that actually determines the degree of benefits available to others. If we decline to perform chesed, the recipients will receive the same benefits, though perhaps in a different manner or from a different source. Since the outcome is not really in our hands, it follows that our focus should be on the holiness of our activities, not their degree of impact.

The alternate view encourages choosing a role that will have the greatest impact, particularly if the function will otherwise not be filled by someone of equal capability.

Therefore, one should choose to organize, facilitate or recruit in place of performing the direct chesed himself if the net resulting benefit will be greater.

Those advancing this view agree that Hashem determines the amount of benefit generated, but perhaps their understanding is that He considers the degree of effort expended when determining the outcome. Or perhaps those embracing this view believe that an activity designed to have the greatest impact is actually the holiest action, even if the act of kindness is performed by others.

Of course, no rule applies to all cases. Those who lack the skills or will to organize, facilitate or recruit should obviously pursue hands-on chesed. This also pertains to those blessed with such exceptional qualifications that their own hands-on efforts actually produce a greater impact than the collective efforts of many others.

And finally, we should consider whether our performance of hands-on acts of kindness will inspire others to do the same. When others perform chesed that we have modeled, perhaps yet another group may be inspired to do so as well, and so on. We may discover that the most effective way we can maximize the number of people having an impact is simply by doing chesed ourselves.

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FROM THE DESK of RABBI MOSHE HAUER

LOOKING in the MIRROR: GROWTH MASKING ATTRITION

T

he American Jewish community is flooded with a steady stream of numbers. Surveys abound delivering data on the growth and shrinkage of various segments of the Jewish community. Population trends that were once shocking—whether resulting from birthrates of Chareidim or intermarriage rates among the non-Orthodox—are now expected. And while we may not yet have the master strategy to address the issues they have exposed, the numbers have effectively framed and illuminated many of the challenges.

But those same numbers have masked a critical challenge that we face within the Orthodox community—the challenge of attrition.

The dramatic birthrates show a robust community, which, baruch Hashem, is true in the aggregate. But that growth hides a level of attrition, which is the subject of much concern and is visible in studies of all US Jews including the Pew Research Center’s 2020 survey,1 and the more focused Avi Chai school censuses.2 How bad and where is the attrition?

Are we seeing unusually high failure rates or must we accept that no system Rabbi Moshe Hauer is executive vice president of the Orthodox Union.

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has ever produced nor will produce perfect results? Is “one is too many” the ideal we should strive for or is that an impractical goal? Is attrition an issue of the nominally Orthodox who have never received a strong Jewish education or of the Chassidic or Chareidi communities that provide little secular education? Is the defection an at-risk behavior threatening personal health and safety or is it solely an abandonment of religious observance? Does it predominate amongst those struggling with poverty or those blessed with extreme wealth? Is it a symptom of family dysfunction or of vacuous materialism? Is it a product of the permissive college campus or the overly restrictive Bais Yaakov?

Are those who tend to leave children of ba’alei teshuvah or of uninspired frum-from-birth? Is the solution a reduced focus on Talmud study in yeshivot or an increased engagement in yeshivah study for those of college age?

There is no shortage of theories, each of which comes with its own matching set of anecdotes. But the true story would be told by real data that demonstrates where we are failing and where we are succeeding.

That data is not known. If we want to make meaningful positive change, then we need to uncover that data, take a hard look in the mirror and commit to act based on what we see.

Some points to consider: 1. Eye on the Prize: The Goal of Jewish Education Addressing attrition is at the core of our individual and communal mission.

Why do we devote such considerable resources to sending our kids to Jewish schools? We certainly value Jewish literacy and consider Torah knowledge paramount; v’talmud Torah k’negged kulam.3 But the real driver of investment in Jewish education is the desire

of assuring Jewish identity, engagement and continuity. This is the reason for our increased communal commitment to formal education amongst both men—where it continues as a standard for many more years than it had in the past—and for women, where universal formal textual education is altogether a relatively modern phenomenon.

Thus, Rav Moshe Feinstein, zt”l, in a responsum4 regarding the question of whether tuition payments may be paid from charitable dollars, ma’ot ma’aser, wrote the following: In our country there is a legal obligation to enroll children in schools. With God’s kindness to the Jewish people we have been permitted by the government to educate in schools led by sincere and God-fearing Jews. Were we to choose not to educate our children in a Jewish school they would need to enroll in a public school environment without Torah or emunah. As such, we must enroll our children in a Jewish educational framework as the way to fulfill our obligation—even at significant personal expense—to ensure our children grow to be virtuous believers in God and His Torah and faithful to mitzvah observance.

While the goals of Jewish education for both boys and girls vary widely by community, institution, family and individual student, the ultimate objective shared by all is providing an education that serves to enhance Jewish identity, engagement and continuity.

Our goal at the minimum is to see our children and students remain engaged and observant Jews—“virtuous believers in God and His Torah and faithful to mitzvah observance”—who go on to raise their own children as engaged and observant Jews. That is why understanding and reducing attrition is a core responsibility.

2. What Kind of Attrition?

There are those whose defections present as an expression of profound personal upheaval, leaving the individual at-risk lost not only from Torah observance but from derech eretz, the normal and healthy social functioning that must serve as the foundation for a Torah life.

That kind of upheaval can result from psychosocial issues, unresolved educa-

WHEN THE MALBEC SMOKES THE RIBS L I NE A G E M A L BE C C L A R K S B U R G , C A L IF O R N I A

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tional challenges, familial dysfunction, a feeling of estrangement from the community or trauma and/or substance abuse. On the opposite extreme are those who live healthy and productive personal and professional lives but reject religious observance entirely or maintain a significantly reduced level of Torah observance. While defection that is expressed in at-risk behavior would universally be seen as tragic, the latter would depend on the community of origin. For families and communities whose identity is completely bound up in their faith and community, a decline in level of observance would be considered tragic, which might not be the case in familial or communal frameworks that are more continuous to the surrounding culture and whose value system prioritizes success in other areas in addition to religious engagement. Each of these categories may be a universe unto itself requiring its own analysis and interventions.

3. The Blame Game: Whose Fault Is It? Who Should We Be Studying?

Educational outcomes are not the result of classroom methodologies alone, nor are they solely—or perhaps even primarily—the school’s responsibility.

Decades of research have shown that the greatest predictor of success in education is a family environment that supports and reinforces the school’s educational and life goals.5 Family function or dysfunction is a critical contributing factor that requires more granular research. Broader family values tend to be more shared within communities, and in the free market framework in which many Jewish schools operate the institutional priorities are typically designed to be in sync with those of the parent body. And, of course, it takes a village to raise a child, and communal values play a significant role in educational outcomes. Choosing a school is choosing not only an educational methodology but a culture that includes its teachers, students, families and even its host community. “I have learned much from my teachers, but from my peers even more.”6 That leaves us with many possible directions to study—our commu18

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nities and the values they prioritize; our schools and their educational philosophies and methodologies; and our families and their level of function and focus. It also raises the question as to whether studies should be conducted via schools, synagogues or other communal structures.

4. How Do We Assess the Quality of Our Systems?

Decades ago, when my wife and I visited a local yeshivah in which we were considering enrolling our oldest for preschool, the principal began our tour in the eighth-grade classroom.

As he explained, we could focus on exploring either the program or the product. Bright classrooms staffed by educators employing cutting-edge techniques are inspiring to see, but what if the product of the school is a listless and disengaged teenager? And if we were to see a group of well-mannered and curious eighth graders demonstrating a vibrant engagement in Torah, tefillah and overall studies, should we be second-guessing the methods employed to get them there?

Recently, a twenty-year-old man shared how he and a friend had identified that of the fifty men with whom they had graduated eighth grade in their school, all but one were observant and enrolled in a yeshivah-type educational framework, results that matched the goals of their parents, school and community. That is profoundly impressive. Nevertheless, “hein b’kedoshav lo ya’amin,”7 and anecdotal evidence suggests that there may be significant drop-offs beginning in students’ mid-twenties. What would we learn by having that young man and his friend revisit that census ten years later to see the staying power of their education? As he demonstrated in his first phase of research, it may not be very difficult to conduct that study.8 5. What Applicable Data Already Exists?

Israel is far ahead of America in research on attrition from religious schools, with serious studies having been conducted by government ministries, school systems, NGOs and academics. Even given the differences

between America and Israel, it would be most instructive to glean whatever we can from what has already been identified. For example, in an aggregation of studies of religious attrition commissioned by the religious public school system based on the work of Professor Ido Lieberman and others, relative attrition was clearly patterned after the community’s religious intensity. The findings ranged from a 50 percent attrition rate for children from Dati Liberali, liberal religious homes, to 31 percent from Dati, religious homes, to 21 percent from Dati Torani, more intensely religious homes, to an 8 percent rate from Chareidi homes.9 Other Israeli studies have identified significant factors that seem to precipitate Chareidi attrition, pointing to potential corrections on both social and educational levels.10 And finally, attrition from other American faith communities has been studied and may also offer us valuable insights.11 All this data is instructive, and yet, there is a limit to what we can learn from studying other communities. The OU founded its Center for Communal Research both for internal assessment of its programs and because the American Orthodox community needs its own data and information gathering to inform policy.

6. What Are We Prepared to Do Differently?

Do we already more or less know the areas where we can do better, making this simply a matter of committing the necessary resources to effect change? Or are the problems we are encountering the inevitable result of our priorities and values, and therefore not fundamentally subject to change?

Specifically: Seemingly, it is quite possible that attrition on the Chareidi side results from the intensity of and the lack of alternative pathways within the educational and social system. And it seems equally likely that the comfort with secular culture and environments on the Modern Orthodox side produces a level of attrition as well. Possibly, these results may be the price to pay for the greater goals accomplished by adopting each particular system. But is there a

point where the calculus changes?

The principle of acceptable losses was articulated by Rav Eliyahu Dessler, zt”l,12 in a 1951 response to a query from Rav Shimon Schwab, zt”l, regarding his view of the relative merits of the Chareidi and the Torah Im Derech Eretz educational systems: The approach of the yeshivos was to establish a single goal, that being the development of greats (gedolim) in both Torah and fear of Heaven. It is for this reason that they forbade their students to attend university, as they could not see a way to develop “gedolim” in Torah without focusing their students’ sights exclusively on Torah. However, one must not think that they did not recognize in advance that following this method would certainly alienate some who would be unable to subscribe to this more extreme position and would choose instead to leave the path of Torah.

Nevertheless, this was the price they were ready to pay for the “gedolim” in Torah and fear of Heaven that would be raised in their yeshivos. Of course, they would work aggressively to do whatever possible to help those who would not remain bnai Torah, but not in a way that would draw others after them.

The system designed to produce gedolim has had an impact extending far beyond the production of the rare gedolim. The intense and immersive atmosphere of the yeshivah—suffused with striving for Torah greatness and an intense commitment to piety—generates a level of commitment to the centrality of Torah study and yirat Shamayim that continues to inspire huge numbers of those who pass through its doors, and that has had a profound effect on the broader observant Jewish community as well. At the same time, the rigidity and intensity of that system has certainly resulted in substantial losses.

Ironically and importantly, the same willingness to risk losses in order to achieve an ideal can be found in the non-Chareidi position. Rav Dr. Joseph Breuer, zt”l, champion of the Torah Im Derech Eretz, wrote frequently of “the victims” who would be claimed by that approach given its choice to engage with the professions and the 20

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business world.13 And Rav Aharon Lichtenstein, zt”l, wrote of his disappointment in his “batting average” of producing students that could share “the intensity, the sweep, and the scope” [of Torah study] found among some in the Chareidi world. “I would have liked to build a larger community of people who are genuinely, passionately moved by a Mishna in Avot or a gloss of Rav Akiva Eiger.”14 And further, to the essential argument of openness: Our Rightist critics would contend that I am, in effect, trying to square the circle. At least insofar as the masses are concerned, the lack of either passion or spirituality is no accident, but the inevitable result of interest in the cultural and political orders. To an extent, I agree.

Almost inevitably, diffusion does entail some measure of dilution. The pure Torah component within a Torah Im Derech Eretz approach is indeed likely to command less single-minded loyalty than the unitary goal pursued by the advocates of shemen zayit zach (Torah only). But are we to start dismissing and rejecting mishnayot in Avot simply because they produce what someone has described as inferior results?15 Would there be attrition numbers that would represent an objectively inferior—or devastating—result that would change the calculus and make the price of principle not worth paying? What level of religious attrition would motivate parents to relocate to a community or school system where Orthodox retention is higher, or to guide their children away from a secular college campus towards a more religious educational environment? Is there a level of risk at which our principle of either producing gedolim or seeking active engagement with the broader world is rendered impractical or even irresponsible?

If we truly want to make meaningful positive change regarding American Orthodox Jewish attrition, our community will need to pursue the data that will inform that change and commit to act based on what we find.

There are many levels—local and national—where those numbers can be gathered, and there is much to be gleaned from existing research. If we would only look in the mirror . . .

Notes 1. According to Pew, of all Americans raised as Orthodox Jews, only 67 percent still identify as Orthodox as adults. See pewforum.org/2021/05/11/ jewish-americans-in-2020/, p. 44.

2. Although total day school enrollment increased steadily from 1999 to 2019, the large number of incoming four- and five-year-olds masks the loss of older students from the day school system each year that can be identified in a careful reading of the Avi Chai numbers.

3. Mishnah Pei’ah 1:1; daily prayers.

4. Iggerot Moshe, YD II:113.

5. See, for example, Joan E. Grusec and Paul David Hastings, Handbook of Socialization, Second Edition: Theory and Research (New York, 2014).

6. Ta’anit 7a.

7. Iyov 15:15; See Rashi, Bereishit 28:13.

8. In that same vein: Many schools market their programs by highlighting the yeshivot, seminaries or universities their graduates attend, and those institutions in turn advertise the positions and graduate programs that have accepted their alumni. While this information is helpful in demonstrating both the options available to graduates of the program as well as the aspirations of the institution, it would be far more helpful to know where all the graduates of the program have gone on to, rather than just the select individuals the program has chosen to include in their marketing materials.

9. Pew’s study of Israeli Jews reveals a 94 percent retention among Chareidim and 54 percent among Dati’im; (pewforum.org/2016/03/08/israels-religiously-divided-society/, see p. 70.)

10. leshinuy.org/wp-content/ uploads/2019/01/Haredi-Disaffiliation-Risk-Potential-and-Social-Policy.pdf.

11. See, e.g., Adam R. Fisher, “A Review and Conceptual Model of the Research on Doubt, Disaffiliation, and Related Religious Changes,” Psychology of Religion and Spirituality 9, no. 4 (November 2017): 358–67.

12. Michtav MeEliyahu, vol. 3, p. 355.

13. A Unique Perspective: Rav Breuer’s Essays 1914-1973 (New York , 2010), pp. 507, 537.

14. Elka Weber (Editor), Joel B. Wolowelsky (Editor), A Life Steady and Whole: Recollections and Appreciations of Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein, zt”l (New Jersey, 2018), pp. 15-16.

15. “Centrist Orthodoxy: A Spiritual Accounting,” by Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein in Rabbi Reuven Ziegler, By His Light: Character and Values in the Service of God (New Jersey, 2003). All the essays in the book are based on addresses by Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein.

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DIVIDENDS of DIVERSITY

By Nathan J. Diament

“D

iversity” is a current buzzword in many segments of American society.

Corporations, academic and arts institutions, as well as media outlets and other establishments are all discussing how to ensure diversity in their people and programs.

Within the Orthodox Jewish community, diversity—of thought, of perspective, and even of practice—should be valued as well. Why? Because diversity enriches our community and is a pathway to greater knowledge.

Diversity was, in fact, woven into the very fabric of Creation. The Mishnah (Sanhedrin, chap. 4) teaches that a sign of Hashem’s greatness is that humanity was created in the form of a single person—Adam—yet Nathan Diament is executive director of the OU Advocacy Center.

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all of the individuals who followed Adam’s creation have a unique physical appearance. The notion of diversity is amplified in a midrash that comments on the practice of reciting a berachah upon seeing a large gathering of people. The midrash says that this is praiseworthy because “just as people’s physical appearances are unique so too are their thoughts unique from each other.”

What are the benefits of diversity such that Hashem embedded it in our world? There are three ideas worth considering, which can offer immeasurable gains if we are mindful of them.

1. A Path to Greater Knowledge One of the most harmful dynamics in contemporary society is the “great sorting.” This term refers to people who only connect with others who share the same social, political and other outlooks as themselves, and never bother to have their perspectives or assumptions challenged. This is exacerbated by the media that no longer can be said to “broadcast”; instead, the media “narrowcasts” to those individuals whose views they reinforce in a self-confirming loop that shares only information that hardens already-held opinions, irrespective of the truth.

But each of us knows that our individual knowledge is limited.

That is why we consult with experts such as doctors or lawyers in dealing with consequential personal matters. Each of us knows that

Each subset of our community from greater engagement with others across the default divides. wisdom and sound judgment are based upon reliable evidence as opposed to rank opinion. And each of us knows that knowledge is refined and more reliable when tested and challenged and then proven correct.

Surely, this is why a centerpiece of Torah study is learning b’chavruta, with a study partner. Learning a given passage of Talmud or Tanach with a partner enables each chavruta to share his or her perspective and knowledge while challenging the other’s assumptions and understandings.

Indeed, in the view of some commentators, the Talmudic statement “Eilu v’eilu divrei Elokim Chayim, These and these are the words of the Living God” expresses the idea that halachah has embedded within it multiple truths with some to be elicited and highlighted at certain times and others

at other times. That also explains why we accept—even contemporaneously— differing practices between various halachic traditions or minhagim.

Diversity of perspective leads to greater understanding and knowledge and, in the case of the pursuit of the Divine (within the parameters of the halachic tradition) greater closeness to Hashem.

2. Appreciation of the Other In his book The Dignity of Difference: How to Avoid the Clash of Civilizations, Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, zt”l, contends that God created diversity in humanity as a fundamental lesson with regard to the “stranger”: “The supreme religious challenge is to see God’s image in one who is not in our image. That is the converse of [destructive] tribalism . . . It takes difference seriously.”

In the Orthodox Jewish community, those who daven Nusach Ashkenaz do not devalue the prayers or personhood of those who daven Nusach Ha’Ari.

We shouldn’t trivialize this point; we should amplify it and extend it to a proper recognition and valuing of our fellow Orthodox Jews across the spectrum—and, if we take Rabbi Sacks’s teaching to heart—to other Jews and beyond to all humanity.

Extending such value to others is, at a minimum, in our self-interest, as we would wish others to extend the same to us. But Rabbi Sacks is challenging us to see this modus vivendi as a Divine command by the Creator of all humanity.

3. Compelling Successful Collaboration Studies published in the Harvard Business Review and elsewhere have documented that diverse teams are more successful along many metrics. When compared to homogeneous teams, diverse teams were found to focus more on the facts rather than biases related to the challenge at hand, analyze that

information more carefully and be more innovative in problem solving.

These findings should not be terribly surprising. We know from many areas of life that teams of people need complementary skill sets to make “a whole greater than the sum of its parts” and achieve success.

As small as the Orthodox Jewish community is, we further silo ourselves into subgroups—Chassidic, Litvish, Centrist, Modern, liberal and more. While for the most part, this occurs organically and not maliciously, it is counterproductive to achieving the most we can for our community.

Each subset of our community could benefit from greater engagement with others across the default divides.

Each of us can take steps to do this ourselves from a posture of curiosity, meet and speak with others who have a different perspective and grow a groundswell of engagement that will expand understanding across the Jewish world and beyond.

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SYNAGOGUE & PRAYER

INSIDE THE MIND of the GABBAI

By David Olivestone

M

aster of ceremonies, diplomat, event coordinator, social worker, greeter, mediator, mentor—these are just some of the hats that a shul gabbai wears. He has to be both a strategist and a tactician, sometimes patient and sometimes resolute, in some circumstances a heavyweight, in others a charmer. He has to be familiar with the intricacies of the halachot of tefillah, of kri’at haTorah, and of the Jewish calendar, and he has to be a master of interpersonal skills.

The gabbai’s responsibilities are multitudinous. On his arrival in the synagogue, he checks the aron kodesh and the sefer or sifrei Torah to be used that day. He selects the ba’alei tefillah to lead the various parts of the service.

He allocates the many honors related to the Torah reading: who will open David Olivestone, a member of the Jewish Action Editorial Committee, lives in Jerusalem. Among his previous contributions to the magazine are articles on what goes on inside the minds of the ba’al teki’ah, the chazan, and the kohen.

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and close the aron kodesh, who will be called for aliyot, as well as for hagbahah and gelilah, and who will read the haftarah. He stands at the bimah, calls their names, and says the Mi Sheberach for them following the reading. If there is a simchah to be celebrated, he must say one of several special Mi Sheberach prayers as befits the occasion. If a baby girl was born in the community, it is the gabbai who announces what her name will be when the father gets an aliyah. He recites the prayer for those who are sick and, at the appropriate times, the Kel Maleh Rachamim when a congregant is observing a yahrtzeit.

And when newly bereaved aveilim come to shul to say Kaddish, it is often the gabbai who gently and sensitively shepherds and guides them.

As the service progresses, he must keep a watch for any distinguished guests, so as to properly honor them.

He must be aware of any members who have a chiyuv, such as a yahrtzeit that day or in the coming week, or who are celebrating a milestone in their family, and must check to see that they are actually present. If there is any clash

of equally eligible chiyuvim, he must negotiate a solution that is acceptable to all parties.

Meanwhile, the gabbai must be on the alert for all the intricate nuances of the service that are triggered by the calendar, such as which haftarah to say and whether or not to say Av HaRachamim or, at weekday services, whether or not to say Tachanun. If there is a variation in the usual order of the service, e.g., the addition of Ya’aleh Veyavo on rosh chodesh, the gabbai reminds the congregation about it either with a klap (banging on the desk—see the sidebar on page 28), or by calling it out or both. He is also the keeper of his shul’s specific nusach and minhagim, and he must make sure that they are faithfully adhered to.

And while he is involved with all of this, he must keep an eye on the level of decorum, as well as on the clock, monitoring how the service is progressing, not too fast, not too slow.

Why would anyone want to take on a role with such an overload of responsibility, with a need for expertise in such seemingly picayune details, with such

Many gabba’im use a card index file to keep records of members’ Hebrew names and the dates on which they received an aliyah. Photo: Erica Berger

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potential for error or offense, and with such susceptibility to criticism? Yet when asked in a recent informal survey1 of gabba’im, “How much do you enjoy being a gabbai?,” the overwhelming majority gave answers such as “very much” or “immensely.” Yehudah Powers, former gabbai of a minyan in Manhattan, says he “loved it, absolutely loved it.” Ari Ganchrow, of Teaneck, New Jersey, agrees. “Most of the time it is a big thrill,” he says. And when asked for how long they would want to stay in their positions, nearly half responded “forever!”

Most gabba’im say they learned on the job, although some had their fathers or other gabba’im as role models. In some shuls the term of a gabbai is limited and is subject to election by the membership, but in many he can continue for as long as he wants, or perhaps until an objection is raised. There are some, however, who feel trapped in their positions. “No one seems interested in stepping up as my replacement,” writes Effie Love of Queens, New York. Responding from the UK, another gabbai echoes his frustration. “There is no queue of willing replacements,” he says.

Recruiting volunteers to take on roles in the synagogue seems to be a universal problem. Aaron Alweis, a gabbai in Binghamton, New York, points to a major frustration shared by many others—getting people to agree to lead the service. “People whom I know are capable of davening for the congregation consistently refuse to do so,” he reports.

“There are a few who will go up if asked, no matter what,” observes another longtime gabbai, “but as for the rest—it can be like pulling teeth. Trying to create a variety of ba’alei tefillah is very challenging.”

So what do gabba’im look for in a ba’al tefillah on a Shabbat or yom tov? Asked to rank the necessary qualities, they put familiarity with the correct nusach of the day at the top of the list, followed in order by accuracy of reading Hebrew, a pleasant voice, kavanah, reasonable speed, using well-known melodies, popularity, and then level of personal religious observance (perhaps surprisingly) most often in final place.

For a ba’al keri’ah, it is no surprise that accuracy tops the list of desirable qualities, followed by a pleasant voice and a good pace, with level of observance again coming in last.

Monitoring the accuracy of the Torah reading is almost a competitive sport in some synagogues, with many zealots poised to call out a correction at the slightest hint of error.

In fact, when asked whose job it really is to correct the ba’al keri’ah, one gabbai answered “everyone’s,” while another said it was “whoever shouts loudest.” But although in some shuls the rabbi alone takes on that responsibility, more often than not it is one of the gabba’im who must pay the closest attention to the reading.

Many larger congregations have a “ritual” or “religious” committee which sets the overall policy regarding the shul’s minhagim. But the majority of gabba’im report that they have complete freedom in making decisions about whom to honor, with just some occasional input from the rabbi or the synagogue president. “Over time, a good gabbai learns 28

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Continued on page 30

The Gabbai’s Klap

By David Olivestone The gabbai’s hand hovers over the bimah. Like a golfer practicing his swing, he raises and lowers it a few times. As the chazan finishes Kaddish, the gabbai lifts his hand on high, and slams it down with a resounding THUD! For those steeped in the spoken and unspoken language of the shul, an entire siman (chapter) of the Shulchan Aruch could be contained in that klap (Yiddish for clap or bang), as it is universally known.

The purpose of the gabbai’s klap is to alert and remind all those present to say the special additions in the Amidah that are designated to be said on rosh chodesh and various yom tov and other special days.

Today’s rosh chodesh? KLAP! (Don’t forget to add Ya’aleh Veyavo.)

Chanukah? KLAP! (Remember to say Al Hanissim.)

Minchah on a fast day? KLAP! KLAP! (Add Aneinu and also replace “shalom rav” with “sim shalom.”)

Like many things in Jewish tradition, the list of situations when a klap is called for is somewhat fluid.

Certainly some, like the klap for Ya’aleh Veyavo on rosh chodesh, are a given. And rosh chodesh is also the occasion for another essential klap during the morning davening. Since it’s a semi-yom tov, tefillin are removed before saying Musaf. When the gabbai judges that most people have finished packing them away, he gives a resounding klap so that everyone should begin the Musaf Amidah together.

You’ll also always hear a klap right before Musaf on Shemini Atzeret, the first time “mashiv haru’ach” will be said that year. In this case, not only does the gabbai klap, he must also shout out the words “mashiv haru’ach umorid hageshem” as he does so (Shulchan Aruch, OC 114:2). On the other hand, there’s no parallel klap (at least in the Ashkenazic tradition) before Musaf on the first day of Pesach when we stop saying “mashiv haru’ach,” because it’s a little difficult to convey “say nothing!” in a klap.

In all probability, the klap developed because talking is forbidden during most of davening, and certainly between the reading of Shema and the start of the Amidah. However, it is permissible when it is necessary, for example, to clarify something in the order of the service itself. So, as in the case of “mashiv haru’ach,” in some shuls the gabbai always calls out what the klap is meant to refer to. Certainly, if you didn’t develop an ear for the meaning of each klap as you grew up, these coded messages can be hard to decipher without the announcement.

Some gabba’im fail to grasp the rules of the game and klap at every possible opportunity, even when it is superfluous. For them, rule number one seems to be: when in doubt, klap! For example, on chol hamo’ed

The historic Bialystoker Synagogue on New York’s Lower East Side has a special gabbai’s “klapper,” still in use today. Photo courtesy of Rabbi Zvi Romm

mornings, the chazan concludes the Kaddish before Musaf in the yom tov mode, clearly signaling to everyone that the special Musaf Amidah should be said, thus rendering a klap unnecessary. Yet some gabba’im insist on klapping at this point.

There is also the question of whether the gabbai should klap once or twice. Many gabba’im automatically klap twice every time in the apparent belief that they need the extra emphasis to get everyone’s attention. But the classic tradition is that the gabbai klaps just once when there is only one change to be made, such as for the addition of Al Hanissim on Chanukah and Purim, and twice when there are two, for example when one of the days of Chanukah is rosh chodesh and we also need to add Ya’aleh Veyavo. (At Minchah on the fast day of Tishah B’Av there could be three, to include Nachem Aneinu, and the change from “shalom rav” to “sim shalom.”)

It becomes really annoying when individual congregants take it upon themselves to klap. Sometimes it unfortunately even becomes a game, with several men competing for attention. Other offenders think that, despite having heard the klap, they must remind everyone around them of the need to say the special insertions during the Amidah itself, and so they verbalize the initial words (e.g., “Ya’aleh Veyavo!”) in a very loud voice.

Since it’s unlikely that most others are at exactly the same point in the Amidah as they are, all they succeed in doing is detracting from everyone else’s concentration.

Our davening is full of nuances and subtleties, which means that there are many opportunities for things to go wrong. The gabbai’s klap is a tool, nurtured by tradition and minhag, that when used judiciously can help ensure that everything goes right.

The gabbai’s klap is a tool, nurtured by tradition and minhag, that when used judiciously can help ensure that everything goes right.

Winter 5782/2021 JEWISH ACTION

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Continued from page 28

Resources for Gabba’im Pictured: In advance of the Yamim Noraim, in August the OU held a special shiur for gabba’im with Rabbi Mordechai Willig.

While many gabbai’m create their own systems for storing members’ names, recording who got what honor when, and for documenting and safeguarding the shul’s nusach and minhagim, here is a selection of some resources that are available in print and online.

PRINT 1. Sefer Mateh Efraim (on minhagim) and Sefer Sha’arei Efraim (on kri’at haTorah) by Rabbi Ephraim Zalman Margulies (1760-1828).

2. Sefer HaGabbai by Rabbi David Avraham Spector.

Published in 2005, the sefer contains chapters on all the major tasks of the gabbai. An English translation appeared in 2012.

3. The Gabbai’s Handbook (Brooklyn, 1984).

4. T’nu Kavod LaTorah—The Call-Up Book by Rabbi Geoffrey Shisler (geoffreyshisler.com, 2006).

ONLINE 1. “The Gabbai’s Torah” is a free online course developed by the OU’s Pepa and Rabbi Joseph Karasick Department of Synagogue Initiatives to address many of the important issues facing today’s gabbai.

Recognizing that the last year and a half has been extremely taxing on gabba’im and rabbanim as they organize tefillah while taking health and safety priorities into account, the OU launched this digital course that covers topics including “Qualifications of a Shaliach Tzibbur”; “Kaddish Matters”; “Who gets the Aliyah?” and more. Additionally, with the ongoing Covid challenges facing shuls as they prepared for the Yamim Noraim, the OU added a special shiur by Rabbi Mordechai Willig, a rosh yeshivah at Yeshiva University, on “What Will Change and What Will Remain: Assessing Tefilla in Shul after Covid.” The course can be accessed at ou.org/ou-gabbai-seminar.

2. The venerable Ezras Torah Luach is the halachic calendar used in most North American synagogues: ezrastorah.org/calendar.

3. Calling the Shatz: A Forum for Gabba’im (Facebook group).

4. egabbai.com 5. myzmanim.com 30

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the quirks and needs of the members,” says David Zeffren of Los Angeles, California.

But sometimes things can go awry, despite the gabbai’s best efforts. It happens, for example, when a member who is due for an aliyah shows up late. “Rearranging the aliyot on the fly can be very tough,” notes Steve Shach, who has acted as gabbai in congregations in South Africa, Nashville, Tennessee, and currently in Sydney, Australia.

Another difficult situation can arise when a congregant who has a yahrtzeit or is celebrating a significant family milestone just assumes that the gabbai knows about it.

Even though that is usually the case, there can always be instances of miscommunication, and if the congregant does not get what he regards as his due, the gabbai will hear about it, sometimes loudly.

In terms of allocating kibbudim, veteran gabbai Dr. Gerald Mayerhoff of Hollywood, Florida, and many others feel that “the most challenging time of year is the period of the Yamim Noraim,” when shuls are at their fullest. But as an example of an even more pressured scenario, numerous gabba’im cite those Shabbatot when there might be a bar mitzvah, an aufruf and a baby naming all on the same day, calling for all their strategizing, negotiating and persuasive skills. But there may simply not be enough kibbudim to go around.

“Making hard decisions can sometimes even cost you a friendship,” laments Ari Ganchrow.

Yet there’s also another side to the coin. “I enjoyed working with families celebrating semachot,” says Dr. Chaim Himmelfarb, who served as a gabbai for over a dozen years in various congregations. “It’s a tense time for these families, but working together with them to organize the kibbudim was usually much appreciated.”

Adds Chaim Kiss of Teaneck, New Jersey, “The most satisfying part is when they say thank you.”

When asked whether they think that their community appreciates how much effort and judgement goes into what they do, many gabba’im feel that they are usually taken for granted. But speaking of his experiences in shuls in Boston, Massachusetts and Passaic, New Jersey, Rabbi Adam Dubin feels that “the regulars certainly do appreciate it, and they acknowledge it.” Putting it in perspective, Bart Nierenberg of Longmeadow, Massachusetts, a gabbai for over twenty years, feels that “most people are not very aware of the amount of behindthe-scenes work and stage management that is required to do a good job and to keep services running smoothly.

We’re at our best when you barely notice that we’re there.”

When they are criticized, most gabba’im say they can handle it well if they agree they did indeed make a mistake, but if they feel it is unwarranted, many will take it to heart and, after the service is over, even take it home with them.

How do they balance the demands of their roles in shul with the needs of their families? On the whole, it seems that most of their spouses and children share a sense of pride, as long as it does not take them away from home

Early twentieth-century Yiddish sign from a synagogue in London’s East End. It reads: “Notice! None of the members is permitted to take the amud [i.e., lead the davening] without the permission of the gabba’im or the president. By Order, The Committee.” Courtesy of Alan Weisrose

Filling the role of a shul gabbai demands a lot of patience, a thick skin, an organized mind, and an altruistic nature. for too much time. Those with young children, however, feel a pull. “It doesn’t allow me to sit with them in shul as much as I would want,” says Alan Weichselbaum of Lawrence, New York.

Also from Lawrence, Mordechai Schrek feels similarly, but adds, “It’s important to imbue in children the importance of being involved in communal endeavors, especially in a shul.”

It is indeed a great sense of commitment to the community that motivates gabba’im. Rabbi Dr. Hershel Goldwasser of Atlanta, Georgia and others emphasize the need to “maintain high standards for ba’alei tefillah and kri’at haTorah.” Robert Rubin of Livingston, New Jersey, derives great satisfaction in “knowing that I made a difference in people’s lives by helping

to give them a positive shul experience.”

And one after another, gabba’im say that what is important to them is to make everyone feel welcome and included, to have the service run smoothly, and “to get it right.”

Still, however much he may be focused on the needs of those around him, the gabbai also has his own obligation to daven and to fulfill the mitzvot of the day. Is it possible for him to daven with at least a modicum of concentration while his mind is chock-full of all the myriad tasks he needs to handle? With admirable frankness, most gabba’im admit that, unless they attend an earlier minyan first, or daven ahead at home, it is indeed extremely hard. But with equally admirable boldness, they are nearly

unanimous in stating that the sacrifice is absolutely worth it. David Zeffren’s attitude is typical: “While my personal tefillot may suffer, there is great reward in serving the tzibbur.”

Filling the role of a shul gabbai demands a lot of patience, a thick skin, an organized mind, and an altruistic nature. Motivated by a sincere desire to make the shul service pleasing and acceptable to Hakadosh Baruch Hu and to all who attend, the gabbai is the linchpin around whom the whole shul revolves. So what goes through a gabbai’s mind as he enters the synagogue? More than anything else, how privileged he is to be the one who orchestrates and conducts it all.

Note 1. The questionnaire was circulated informally, through social media and word of mouth. Responses came from gabba’im in large and small communities across the US, in Israel, in the United Kingdom and elsewhere. I want to thank all those gabba’im who took the time to complete the questionnaire and who were willing to share their experiences, feelings and opinions with me. My thanks also to those who helped me select the topics to be dealt with.

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The

VIEW from PEW W H E R E W E A R E

B

ack in 2013, when the Pew Research Center released its landmark study entitled “A Portrait of Jewish Americans,” Jewish Action asked various contributors to offer their observations and recommendations. With the release of Pew’s latest report some months ago, we asked some of the same contributors to analyze the newest findings while reflecting back on their suggestions from eight years ago. *Transliterations in the magazine are based on Sephardic pronunciation, unless an author is known to use Ashkenazic pronunciation.

Thus, the inconsistencies in transliterations in this section and throughout the magazine are due to authors’ preferences.

Photos and graphs courtesy of the Pew Research Center

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JEWISH WORLD

We Also Need to Care for Ourselves

By Rabbi Dr. Jacob J. Schacter When I was a little boy, my parents spoke to me only in Yiddish. I remember they told me a story more than once (or was it a joke?) but all I can recall is the punchline, “oyb es iz azoy git, farvus iz azoy shlecht?” (they spoke a Galitzianer Yiddish). “If things are so good, why are they so bad?”

I was reminded of this phrase when I reviewed the Pew Research Center’s latest study entitled Jewish Americans in 2020. Much of the research shows that for Orthodoxy “es iz takeh azoy git,” “it is, indeed, so good.” Most extraordinarily, only 3 percent of American Jews above the age of 65 self-identify as Orthodox and 7 percent between the ages of 50 and 64 do so, but that number jumps to 17 percent of those between the ages of 18 and 29. This indicates that the percentage of all Jews in America who are Orthodox Jews will grow significantly in the years ahead and that, therefore, in the future the Orthodox community will be playing a much greater role in American Jewish life. In 1990, 6 percent of American Jews identified as Orthodox; that number now is 9 percent and shows every indication of growing.

The news for Orthodoxy is, in fact, zeyer git, very good, and our community has a lot for which to be proud. Young people growing

17%

up in our community in the last few decades have no clue how weak Orthodoxy was in America even as little as sixty or seventy years ago.1 But, baruch Hashem, the situation has changed. Not only is Orthodoxy alive in America, defying all prognostications to the contrary, we are growing and flourishing in America.

But es iz nisht azoy git for the rest of the community. Some pundits have been optimistic about the results of the study because it “is evidence of the innovative and ever changing ways Jewish religion is practiced, not grounds for panic.”2 While I welcome different ways Jews connect to their Jewishness, I am concerned for two reasons. First, the study showed that many, even self-identifying, Jews are not at all involved in any way “Jewish religion is practiced,” even most broadly concerned. Fully one-third of those who were raised as Jewish are not Jewish today, either because they identify with a religion other that Judaism (19 percent consider themselves Christian) or because they do not currently identify themselves as Jews in any way. I also wonder how meaningful even practices identified as religious can ultimately be absent any non-negotiable commitment to the notion of mitzvah, or commandedness, a concept more and more problematic in a contemporary world governed by personal autonomy and individual choice.3 The study also shows that among non-Orthodox Jews who got married in the last decade, 72 percent say they are intermarried.

72 percent! How robust could their Jewish religious practice possibly be?

In my response to the Jewish Action symposium on the 2013 Pew

Only 3 percent of American Jews above the age of 65 self-identify as Orthodox and 7 percent between the ages of 50 and 64 do so, but that number jumps to 17 percent of those between the ages of 18 and 29.

study,4 I focused on our responsibility to the larger American Jewish community, but here my interest is in our Orthodox community. To my mind, the current study shows that es iz nisht azoy git for Orthodoxy either.

The following data on even those who self-identify as Orthodox Jews emerges from the study, some based on the very statistics I cited above: • 14 percent do not report that religion is very important in their lives; • 5 percent do not report that being Jewish is at least somewhat important to them; • 25 percent do not report that their religious faith provides them with a great deal of meaning and fulfillment; • 17 percent do not report that observing Jewish law is essential to being Jewish; • 31 percent do not report that being part of a Jewish community is essential to being Jewish; • 23 percent do not report that they often mark Shabbat in a way that is meaningful to them; • 9 percent do not report that it is very important to them that any potential grandchildren are Jewish; • 17 percent report that they attend synagogue a few times a year or less.

I am not sure how to interpret these numbers. What, in fact, does it mean to consider oneself “Orthodox?” But most disturbing and upsetting to me is the finding in this study that 33 percent of Jews raised as Orthodox do not continue to identify with Orthodoxy as adults. I want to repeat this. Fully one third of children (our children) whom we raise (in our homes) as Orthodox leave Orthodoxy! I personally am aware of a number of such cases and in each one of them the parents of these children are wonderful and positive role models; they have done all they could possibly do to raise their children as committed and observant Jews. But, communally, we need to devote much more attention to this than we have been giving it until now.

I want to suggest that we need to take a hard look at re-shifting our communal priorities. Enormous amounts of energy have been expended on kiruv, or bringing Jews into the Winter 5782/2021 JEWISH ACTION

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Orthodox orbit, but this study also shows that we have largely been unsuccessful. There are relatively very few Jews joining Orthodoxy from other denominations (2 percent of formerly Conservative Jews currently identify as Orthodox and 1 percent of formerly Reform Jews do so). It seems to me that this moment requires that we focus much more of our resources on those of us who are already “in the room” to ensure that they not leave. The OU’s Heshe and Harriet Seif Jewish Learning Initiative on Campus (OU-JLIC) educators across the American university landscape are already correctly paying much attention to the Orthodox students on their campuses and they should be given more help. NCSY, historically a kiruv organization, is correctly devoting more and more attention to young girls and boys already in day schools, and this work should be given more resources to expand.

Of course, the entire Jewish people is our concern, but Chazal have already determined that aniyei ircha kodmin, “the poor of your own city take priority” (Bava Metzia 71a).

We need to strengthen ourselves even as we work to strengthen the totality of the Jewish people.

Reading the Future

By Dr. Erica Brown In 1883, the Canadian artist Paul Peel completed his painting “Reading the Future.” That intriguing title does not prepare us for a tender portrait of a young woman looking at the bottom of her gold-rimmed cup, reading the dregs of her tea leaves for a clue about what her future might hold. The artist almost whimsically suggests that with a simple turn of her head, she may be better informed by looking up instead of staring at the residue of an empty tea cup.

It is with that forward eye rather than backward glance that we might approach the Pew study. It seems as if the entire North American Jewish community anxiously awaited these results and responded with a mix of triumphalism, defeat, organizational

hand-wringing and program modifications. It certainly gives everyone a valuable piece of research to analyze.

Statistics often wake us up to certain realities we already recognize anecdotally but need someone with impressive academic credentials to verify.

To be sure, there is much to be proud of here. Ninety percent of Orthodox Jews surveyed in the 2020 Pew study regard their lives as generally good and their respective communities as good or excellent places to live. Attachment to Israel is high, as are fertility rates and our commitment to Jewish continuity. Rising anti-Semitism is a particular concern for Orthodox Jews because dress, geographic density and frequency of synagogue attendance make Orthodox Jews easy victims.

So far, these findings offer no surprises, just confirmations.

There are three findings, however, that should garner attention from an educational standpoint. The first is the large jump in Orthodox Jews who vote Republican and the impact this has in fragmenting Jews within

Notes 1. See my contribution to “The Sea Change in American Orthodox Judaism: A Symposium,” Tradition, vol. 32, no. 4 (1998): 92-93.

2. Rachel B. Gross, “If you’re asking American Jews if they’re religious, you don’t understand American Jews,” the Forward and JTA (May 11, 2021).

3. See my “Halakhic Authority in a World of Personal Autonomy,” in Michael J. Harris, Daniel Rynhold and Tamara Wright, eds., Radical Responsibility: Celebrating the Thought of Chief Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks (Jerusalem, 2012), 155-76.

4. “The Pew Report: It Really Matters,” Jewish Action, vol. 74, no. 4 (summer 2014): 58-60.

Rabbi Dr. Jacob J. Schacter is University Professor of Jewish History and Jewish Thought and Senior Scholar, Center for the Jewish Future, Yeshiva University.

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While a 67 percent retention rate for Orthodox Jews who maintain committed across the lifespan is a “good enough” statistical rate, internally a 30-plus percent drop-out rate is cause for concern. —Dr. Erica Brown

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Orthodoxy and outside it. The shift to more conservative political leanings is attributable to many understandable factors. At the same time, we should be wary of echo chambers that may coarsen our political literacy and result in increased polarization. It may be a good time to provide civics studies in more Jewish day schools so that an emerging generation of day school graduates can be better informed about our government, its workings and the range of valid political views and issues.

The next two findings, which were not apparent to me when I reflected on the last Pew study, is that while a 67 percent retention rate for Orthodox Jews who maintain committed across the lifespan is a “good enough” statistical rate, internally a 30-plus percent drop-out rate is cause for concern and response. When you pair that with the fact that only 15 percent of the current Orthodox population, according to the Pew research, was not born into Orthodoxy, what results is a question of how resources are best spent.

The Orthodox Jewish community has many outreach organizations working hard to bring more teens and older adults into the fold as ba’alei teshuvah. Yet this current data should give us pause. It suggests that those flirting with a more intense Jewish life bound by ritual and law may enjoy Shabbat dinners, free holiday services, great trips and lower tuition rates for pre-school but never fully commit to an Orthodox lifestyle. We have invested human and financial resources in creating Israel programs, youth organizations, camps, retreats, gap year experiences and yeshivot all dedicated to outreach when, if these statistics are accurate, we really need to be investing more of that human and financial capital into the 30 percent of our community before they leave.

The problem is that we don’t know who that 30 percent is. The retention rate seems to be as high as 85 percent among Millennials and Gen Z. That rate is promising indeed. But for the 15 percent of them who leave, we might think carefully about what’s not working for younger Orthodox Jews. Do students feel safe asking 36

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difficult questions in Jewish day schools, whose curiosity dissipates as they find their intellectual and spiritual energy elsewhere? How do we repair spiritually listless morning minyanim in schools and improve the rigor and relevance of Jewish studies classes? How should we best advance professional development for teachers, provide more and better experiential programming for students, and create and more experimental schooling alternatives so that when the next study rolls around the retention rate is even stronger?

So who are the 30 percent? My guess based only on anecdotal evidence is that they are older Orthodox adults.

They may be aging singles who feel increasingly excluded and marginalized in synagogue and other communal settings because they aren’t married with children. What attention is being paid to this growing segment of our community? Perhaps this percentage points to empty nesters whose religious behaviors and attitudes may wane when children leave home and are no longer a driving motivation to maintain a frum home life. To borrow Adam Grant’s language, many older Orthodox Jews may be spiritually languishing, and this, too, may explain the one third who no longer affiliate. We might respond by creating meaningful programming and a centralized structure for online adult education focused on issues unique to this transitional generation in the Orthodox community instead of our current hodge-podge of thousands of online shiurim.

Imagine for a moment that all of the innovative engagement techniques used to bring people to Judaism were directed, in part, to help strengthen those who are already in the room and waiting for inspiration. In crass fundraising terms, it’s a lot easier to solicit someone who gives one hundred dollars to a charity to give a thousand dollars than it is to get someone to give eighteen dollars who has never given a gift. It may be easier—but less of a popular sell—to help people appreciate the gift they already have than to give that gift to someone who

was doing just fine without it. The organized Jewish community tends to focus on everyone who doesn’t show up instead of looking more carefully at those who are actually there.

To look at who actually is in the room, it behooves Orthodox organizations to join forces to do a thoughtfully designed internal demographic study of our own with a much larger sample pool than the 2020 Pew study.

As it is, the Orthodox community should approach the Pew findings with caution. The sample size of Orthodox Jews was under 500 and, because the sample was so small (in contrast to the 2013 Pew Study, where it was larger but not much larger), it was not segmented based on a range of Orthodox commitments. Whereas in the last Pew study, the affluence among Modern or Centrist Orthodox Jews was highlighted, this research pointed to several unsurprising poverty markers that may indicate the Orthodox population in this study was more Ultra than Modern Orthodox.

Conducting an internal study takes a degree of courage. But in order to know how to allocate resources and strategize for the future, we need more information than we currently have. I myself am a product of NCSY outreach efforts, as is my family, and would be the last to minimize the importance of outreach efforts. But I cannot ignore the numbers, nor can our community.

If 30 percent of Orthodox Jews are not retaining their commitments, it’s time to know why and to put our creativity and our limited resources to protecting our current investment. With so many causes for optimism in the current Pew study, we need not be afraid to read our own future and then to write it. We need not satisfy ourselves with old tea leaves. Our cup runneth over.

Dr. Erica Brown is the director of the Mayberg Center for Jewish Education and Leadership and an associate professor at The George Washington University. She is currently working on a commentary on Kohelet for Maggid Books.

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Unity Amidst Disunity

By Eric Fingerhut Perhaps the best-known Jewish organizational motto of all time was the United Jewish Appeals’ (the predecessor to the Jewish Federations of North America) slogan “We are One.” The 2020 Pew Survey of the North American Jewish community seems to scream the opposite message. We are divided, the survey seems to tell us, religiously, politically, even culturally.

Clearly this is cause for concern.

Jews are a small minority in every place outside of Israel. It is hard enough to build flourishing Jewish communities—communities that are healthy, safe, caring, welcoming and inclusive, educated and engaged, involved in our broader communities and deeply connected to Israel and global Jewry—when we are unified, but virtually impossible, it would seem, when we are so divided.

And yet we do come together across these divides with some regularity. In fact, the Jewish community’s unified response to the Covid-19 pandemic would seem to be the hopeful response to some of the more negative conclusions of the Pew Survey, which was conducted just before the pandemic hit in full force. Working with Jewish organizations from across the spectrum of Jewish life and with every denomination, I’m proud that the Jewish Federation system led efforts to raise hundreds of millions of dollars for Covid-relief to meet the basic human needs of those who live in the hundreds of Jewish communities under our umbrella, to support Jewish institutions of all kinds throughout the country, and to leverage over half a billion dollars in federal “paycheck protection” funds to allow Jewish organizations to keep tens of thousands of staff members on the payroll.

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We witnessed this extraordinary communal unity as well from the unprecedented coming together in the face of the recent surge in anti-Semitism and other forms of hatred. More than one hundred other organizations, including the Orthodox Union, joined our letter in May that urged the Congress to pass the Jabara-Heyer NO HATE Act. The Act, signed shortly thereafter into law by President Biden, strengthens the ability of law enforcement, on all levels, to track and prosecute anti-Semitic and other hate crimes, making our society safer for everyone.

We partnered again with the OU and other leading Jewish organizations to press President Biden to take concrete steps against anti-Semitism, including appointing a new Jewish liaison to the White House. And the Day of Action Against Antisemitism, co-sponsored yet again with the OU and other Jewish organizations, featured a rally with members of Congress, faith leaders, and other luminaries that drew more than 30,000 viewers of all different backgrounds.

We will need to stay unified as the pandemic recedes and Jews flock back to synagogues, JCCs, and other Jewish communal buildings, where the threat of domestic terrorist attacks is, experts say, likely to rise. The safety and security of our community depends on us focusing not on our differences, but on our shared priorities. The anti-Semitic attacks witnessed across North America during Operation Guardians of the Walls did not discriminate against religious and non-religious Jews, or inquire as to what the denomination the victim was before they were attacked. It is a threat to all of us and all of us will respond—together.

Finally, the other major finding of the Pew Survey that resonates deeply is that “together” includes a more diverse community than ever before. We are privileged to have on our staff an extraordinary young African American Orthodox rabbi, Isaiah Rothstein, who directs our Initiative for Jewish Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI). Rabbi Rothstein has achieved prominence for his

work in promoting a more welcoming environment for Jews of all racial and ethnic backgrounds. He created two programs in just the last year that are having a transformative effect on the Jewish community: one called Moed, which sponsors holiday celebrations, retreats and other programs for Jews of Color; and the other called Kamochah, which is the first organization geared specifically to the needs of Black Orthodox Jews. For us to care for all in our community, we must be engaged with all. Jewish Federations are committed to this work.

In short, we may be divided in many ways, as the Pew Survey shows, but in the ways that really count, we remain indivisibly, unalterably, and magnificently one.

Eric Fingerhut is the president and CEO of Jewish Federations of North America.

Moving the Needle on Assimilation

By Rabbi Efrem Goldberg In 2013, the Pew Research Center published a thorough demographic study titled, “A Portrait of Jewish Americans.” I suggested at the time that the report yielded two clear conclusions and mandates for our Orthodox community. Firstly, to stem the precipitous and catastrophic rise of assimilation and intermarriage, we would have to recruit a greater swath of our community to meaningfully engage in outreach and not rely on outreach professionals alone. Our Orthodox communities would need to become more welcoming and friendly, more accommodating and sensitive to those without an observant background, and our communal budgets would need to prioritize funding outreach efforts, programs and personnel.

Secondly, I suggested that the Pew report’s findings regarding our Orthodox community should move us to immediately evaluate our assumptions regarding the commitment of our Orthodox youth and their experiences both in our homes and in our schools.

A few months ago, Pew released its latest report with updated findings and an opportunity to measure how well we have done. Tragically, intermarriage outside of the Orthodox community continues to be sky high at over 70 percent, effectively threatening the very future and continuity of a significant segment of the American Jewish community. Among other findings, the report found that “twice as many Jewish Americans say they derive a great deal of meaning and fulfillment from spending time with pets as say the same about their religion.”

Correctly, we are all outraged by and concerned with growing anti-Semitism. Nevertheless, as disturbing as those horrific incidents and troubling trends are, when it comes to Jewish continuity, the statistical threat of anti-Semitism pales in comparison to the damage we are doing to ourselves and our own contribution to the disappearance of our people.

It is evident we have not succeeded in moving the needle on assimilation and intermarriage. The question is, have we really even tried?

There is so much to unpack and analyze from the latest report, but one contrast in particular jumps out at me and, I believe, offers a mandate and charge going forward. Sadly, the report found that members of different denominations of American Judaism generally don’t feel they have “a lot” in common with one another. About half of Orthodox Jews say they have “not much” (23 percent) or “nothing at all” (26 percent) in common with Reform Jews. Similarly, most Reform Jews say they have “not much” (39 percent) or “nothing at all” (21 percent) in common with the Orthodox.

Despite our common history and shared destiny, notwithstanding our overlapping culture, calendar and commitment to Israel, Jews of different streams not only do not 40

JEWISH ACTION Winter 5782/2021

It is evident we have not succeeded in moving the needle on assimilation and intermarriage. The question is, have we really even tried? feel connected, they don’t even feel they have commonality. This likely results from the increased general American trend towards polarization from, and negative associations with, those who are different than us.

There is a significant and startling exception to the rule. Pew reported a denominational shift, particularly among the younger demographic.

Chabad, analyzed for the first time as its own denomination and not an Orthodox subgroup, is now the same size as the Reform and Conservative denominations. Thirtyeight percent of all American Jews have engaged in some way with Chabad programs. Forty percent of those are active on a regular or semi-regular basis. Seventy-five of those who are involved with Chabad do not self-identify as Orthodox.

Reform and Conservative are losing members. While certainly some are walking away altogether, it turns out a significant amount still want to feel connected to their Judaism, and Chabad is where they feel most at home. If we want the next Pew study to report improvements in the statistics regarding intermarriage and assimilation as well as disaffection among the Orthodox, we must take a page out of Chabad’s playbook.

The Lubavitcher Rebbe, zt”l, successfully inculcated a feeling of duty and responsibility into generations, including a growing number who were born after he had already left this world. As fundamental as any other part of their identity, those associated with Chabad feel a powerful sense of shelichus, that they are on a mission and have a mandate to connect and feel commonality with all Jews, to bring them closer to a relationship

with Hashem, and for Judaism to inform and inspire their lives. Their approach is non-judgmental, warm and welcoming, they make Torah and Judaism accessible, relevant and contemporary. And they do it all without compromising on a strict commitment to Torah, halachah and Lubavitch practices and minhagim.

The success, as demonstrated in the latest data, is the result of not relying on rabbis and rebbetzins alone, but the force and focus of an entire movement. Those touched and inspired

by Chabad are not the only beneficiaries of Chabad’s approach. Rather than feel lost, invisible or inconsequential, young people in Chabad feel they have a purpose, they are here for a reason, and that the world is waiting for a difference only they could make.

My intent here is not to glorify or romanticize Chabad as perfect or for everyone, but rather to use their success as a springboard for us to learn from the combination of these two data points in the Pew report. We can both make a measurable impact on stemming the tide of assimilation, as well as inspire our children to be ambassadors of Torah and Yiddishkeit if we embrace taking responsibility for Jewish continuity as a core value of our movement and our lives. Let’s learn and utilize the language of shelichus, being on a mission in our schools, at shuls, and around the Shabbos table. Let’s develop and teach a curriculum of responsibility for the Jewish future and how practically we can better reach out, invite, engage and relate with Jews who don’t have our background or level of observance.

After the last Pew report I suggested we need to work on combating intermarriage and inspiring our Orthodox

youth in parallel, side by side. Perhaps a major takeaway of this latest study is that we can impact both groups with one campaign and focus.

Nobody is better positioned to make Judaism alive, attractive and relatable than those who are both uncompromising on halachah while simultaneously engaged in society and participating in the greater world.

We have the best platform and are poised to have the greatest success, we just need to care enough to try.

In response to the 2013 Pew report, I shared that our shul, Boca Raton Synagogue, has a dedicated outreach rabbi, Rabbi Josh Broide, on our rabbinic team. Given the catastrophic threat of assimilation and intermarriage, we consider his position and efforts a necessity, not a luxury and that is why we prioritize it in our budget. His tireless efforts have yielded significant success measured by the quantity of otherwise unaffiliated people who have participated in his programs, classes and services and by the meaningful changes many have made to their lives.

Until now, we have considered the outreach role and efforts as complementary to our shul and supplemental to our community. The most recent report has driven us to reconsider that perspective and the focus from exclusively directed at the unaffiliated to working with and inspiring our members to create a movement, to feel they are part of a mission. We will only move the needle on the formidable threat of assimilation if we recruit those who are already committed to not only participate in outreach efforts, but to lead them.

A movement requires strategic thinking, intentional programming and mindful messaging from the pulpit, in shul literature, through the youth department and adult education. Themes of taking achrayus, personal responsibility, mesirus nefesh, community, Klal Yisrael and continuity should be emphasized again and again. Tools and training should be provided to help overcome inhibition and to provide skills in engaging the unaffiliated meaning42

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17 percent of those between the ages of 18 and 29 self-identify as Orthodox. This indicates that the percentage of all Jews in America who are Orthodox Jews will grow significantly in the years ahead and that, therefore, in the future the Orthodox community will be playing a much greater role in American Jewish life.—Rabbi Dr. Jacob J. Schacter

fully. These ideas, ideals and efforts must be shared with and stressed to teens and youth. We must involve them, empower them and enable them to see themselves as instrumental to our movement, not only in their youth but throughout their lives.

Let us pray that with our renewed efforts coupled with siyata d’Shmaya, Divine assistance, the next Pew survey will report an inspired, flourishing Jewish people steeped in Jewish values and Torah and feeling a tremendous connection and commonality with one another.

Rabbi Efrem Goldberg is rabbi of the Boca Raton Synagogue in Boca Raton, Florida.

“My Pew Speech”

By Rabbi Steve Weil My children have heard me give what they call my “Pew speech” too many times to count.

When the results of the Pew study of American Jewry were released in 2013, I was devastated by the results. It was Mitzrayim all over again, where 80 percent of our people did not make it out. It was the eerie feeling of déjà vu for the Ten Lost Tribes; lost to our people for good because they assimilated into the foreign cultures in which they lived. I felt an urgency to

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live Jewish lives, who prioritize family time, are multigenerational, discuss ideas, enjoy and cherish Judaism, and at the same time are relatable as family, friends and colleagues. I now believe, however, that grassroots efforts are not going to be enough.

There has to be more of a concerted effort from our rabbis, lay leaders and the Orthodox media to impress upon our communities what a dire need this is and what a tragedy the Jewish nation is experiencing outside the safe walls in which we are ensconced. The message cannot be overstated; we are losing the vast majority of our people to assimilation and intermarriage, and I shudder at the thought that we are “playing the fiddle while Rome burns.” enlist committed Jews everywhere Our Orthodox communities are There is one factor that exists today to become ambassadors of Judaism strong and flourishing. Our educathat did not exist to the same degree to their unaffiliated family members, tional, charitable and social instieight years ago, and may, for better co-workers and neighbors. So I used tutions have improved and grown and worse, aid in our efforts to reach my platform as a teacher and lecturer in quality and quantity. Our media the unaffiliated masses: anti-Semto give my “Pew speech,” an impasoutlets are widespread and have high sioned plea to anyone who would standards that attract the hundreds of itism. According to the Anti-Defalisten in every community I visited: thousands of people who read publica- mation League, 2019 and 2020 had over 2,000 reported incidents of if you are blessed to appreciate living tions like Jewish Action, Mishpacha harassment, vandalism and assaults a life with Jewish values, reach out Magazine and Hamodia. Multion Jews and Jewish institutions across to those who simply do not know tudes of people learn Daf Yomi and the United States, some of the highest what they are missing. Invite them connect to any number of apps and numbers on record since 1979. During to a Friday night dinner. Include websites where countless shiurim on Operation Guardian of the Wall, the them on you mishloach manot list. any topic, on any level, given by the number of anti-Semitic incidents Gift them a book by Rabbi Lord best teachers in the world are accesincreased 115 percent compared Jonathan Sacks, zt”l. Offer a free sible. Whether we are Chassidic, to the same time the previous year. trip to Israel to their kids (through Yeshivish or Modern Orthodox, our Synagogue shootings, random attacks Birthright Israel). The majority of our communities are stronger and more on people in the streets, at restaurants brothers and sisters who are unaffilsophisticated than they were eight or at a Chanukah party and vitriol iated are not anti-religious, they years ago because our focus has been just have never been exposed to the on advancing our institutions. And spewed on Twitter and TikTok are depth, beauty and warmth of Jewish while we build, thrive and revel in our all sobering and painful reminders living. And when they do experience successes, we are losing fellow Jews that no matter how we choose to it, they respond very positively. Who all around us at astounding rates to identify ourselves, to those who wouldn’t be excited to discover a intermarriage and lack of engagement. hate us, we will always be Jews. In rich and enriching heritage they I still believe, as I did in 2013, that Nazi Germany in the 1930s, a large did not even know was theirs? the way to stem the tide is through swath of the Jewish community But eight years and countless “Pew personal, informal peer to peer was similarly assimilated into the speeches” later, I am sad to say we relationships. The best representatives prevailing culture. There was also an have not made nearly enough inroads. of Jewish life are “regular” Jews who onslaught of hatred and anti-Semitism. As a response to being targeted, Jews were forced to reckon with their Judaism. They did not all become Orthodox Jews, but they could no In 1990, 6 percent of American Jews identified longer be complacent either, and they as Orthodox; that number now is 9 percent began to invest time, thought and and shows every indication of growing. effort into exploring their history and heritage. Chazal tell us: “The removal of Achashverosh’s signet ring

There has to be a concerted effort from our rabbis, lay leaders and the Orthodox media to impress upon our communities . . . what a tragedy the Jewish nation is experiencing outside the safe walls in which we are ensconced.

9%

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was greater than the forty-eight prophets and seven prophetesses who prophesied to Israel, for they were all unable to return the Jewish nation to the path of righteousness whereas the removal of the signet ring did return the Jewish people to the path of righteousness” (Megillah 14a). The unfortunate reality is that when we are threatened from the outside, we have nowhere else to turn but within. We look to our fellow Jews for comfort and strength, and we look to see why Judaism matters so much. None of us wish for an increase in hate crimes and anti-Semitism. It is disturbing and frightening. It may, however, play the role it did for the Jews in ancient Persia or for the Jews in Nazi Germany and help bring our lost brothers and sisters back to their roots and back to their people.

The OU Women's Initative is proud to celebrate

The majority of our brothers and sisters who anti-religious, they have just never been exposed to the depth, beauty and warmth of Jewish living.

January

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For siyum information, sign up at When reflecting on the destruction of European Jewry during the Holocaust, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, zt”l, said: “Perhaps we should add another al chet in our Yom Kippur confessional ‘for the sins we have committed in being unresponsive to the cries of our brethren in Europe who were being brutally slaughtered’” (Reflections of the Rav, p. 68). When a significant portion of our population is at risk of being destroyed, physically or spiritually, we have an obligation to intercede and do whatever it takes to save fellow Jews. And there is accountability when we don’t do enough. Let us not be the generation that has to add yet another al chet, for the sins we have committed by being unresponsive to the 80 percent of our brethren in our own backyard who are fading into oblivion through assimilation.

Rabbi Steven Weil is CEO of Friends of the IDF. He is a former senior managing director of the OU and an active OU volunteer and donor.

ou.org/women/siyum

To begin the next cycle of Torat Imecha Nach Yomi, go to ou.org/women/nach22

Sponsorship opportunities available

Winter 5782/2021 JEWISH ACTION

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Rabbi Dr. Jay Goldmintz

Where Do We Go from Here?

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ne of the most troubling findings to emerge from the 2020 Pew study as contributors to the previous symposium indicated (see pages 32-45), is that 33 percent of Jews raised as Orthodox do not continue to identify with Orthodoxy as adults. Even if, as some claim, Pew’s Orthodox sample was too small and therefore the percentage might in fact be lower, it is still a cause for concern. While the study does not identify who comprises the 33 percent, we asked various rabbis, educators and others involved in the world of Jewish education the following questions: • • • •

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What do you see happening among day school and yeshivah graduates?

What are our schools doing well?

What could they be doing better?

Could we, as parents, grandparents and community members, be doing more to address the significant drop-out rate?

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I look at what is happening to yeshivah graduates in much the same way that I look at their parents. A recent survey of the Modern Orthodox community found that 84 percent of men and 52 percent of women always or almost always attend shul on Shabbat morning. Yet only 42 percent of them fully agree that their tefillah experience is meaningful.

There are far too many variables in the formation of religious identity to point to one cause or one solution, but it does seem safe to say that meaningmaking is a key component of Jewish life that needs more attention.

I have often said that we’ve done an amazing job of teaching texts, but we haven’t always done such a great job of teaching students. By that I mean that we have not done enough to address their inner world. We encourage fidelity to halachah, we provide all of the accoutrements of a vibrant Jewish life—from niche schools to restaurants to amazing summer programs—and in the process, we build a commitment to a sense of community and belonging.

But for many, including those who have adopted Modern Orthodoxy as a lifelong practice, there isn’t a lot of attention paid to such questions as: What is your relationship with Hakadosh Baruch Hu? How can you work on that relationship? How does that relationship shape your daily life, your interactions with others, the choices that you make and the kind of person you want to become? How do the texts we have been learning in such depth speak to those questions?

These are questions only the learner can answer, but only if we ask him and are prepared to hear his thoughts.

We tend not to speak this language with our children and our students because we were not raised that way and because many of us are uncomfortable with it. There is also an assumption that students will just “get

it” by virtue of the lifestyle and values we work hard to give them. But we live in a world in which there are a host of conflicting lifestyles and values, ones in which our youth (and we) are much more immersed than we ever were at their age. And as the Piaseczner Rebbe, Rabbi Kalonymus Kalman Shapira, noted almost a century ago, if we do not satisfy our children’s inner lives, they will surely fill that vacuum with the emotional and spiritual solutions

your child is? What are his or her spiritual strengths and weaknesses?

“Educate the child according to his way” (Mishlei 22:6) may mean not only cognitively, but religiously as well. Each of our children may need differentiated religious instruction, experiences and inspiration.

Third, whatever you do, do it with passion and consistency. I recall a student of mine who once told me that in her sports-minded home,

Almost all social science research points to the fact that family is far and the religious development of children and adolescents. of the larger world around them.

Children and adolescents naturally crave spirituality and a sense of meaning and purpose. We ignore that fact at the risk of their neshamot and our communal lives. As parents and as educators, we need to not only acknowledge, but to proactively nurture our children’s inner lives.

What does proactive religious parenting and education mean? First of all, know thyself. Almost all social science research points to the fact that family is far and away the most important influence on the religious development of children and adolescents. What kind of religious role model are you? Think back for a moment and ask yourself: who had the most positive influence on you religiously when you were growing up? Now ask yourself: how can you be that person for your child?

Second, know your child. In the same way that we maintain an awareness of our children’s cognitive, social and emotional development, so too must we be ever mindful of their religious development.

Do you know what kind of soul

the family goes to shul even in a snowstorm because the rule is “if you would go to a football game in this weather, then you go to shul too.”

At the same time, we need to speak aloud with passion and consistency about our love for and commitment to Torah and Judaism. At every opportunity at home and at school, we need to mention our relationship with Hashem or our awareness of His role in our personal and communal lives.

If children don’t hear about a personal God, how can they ever come to have their own relationship with Him? If they do not hear the language of faith from all the adults in their lives, how will they ever be able to speak it?

Finally, we need to talk about this more with one another because, frankly, we do not all have the answers.

We consult with one another about our children’s schooling and summer plans—why not about their souls too?

Like in other aspects of parenting and education, there is no guidebook to follow and no GPS to help us navigate.

Many of us need guidance. It seems to me that this is an area where congregational rabbis can use the pulpit

effectively or bring parents together to share their successes and struggles and to get direction from those who have some expertise. In the same vein, it is an area where parents and schools may need more bidirectional conversations. This is no time to be shy or evasive about the challenges we all face.

The same may be said for educators who are in need of training on how to make Torah learning not less rigorous but more meaningful for students, not more relevant in the sense of current, but in its potential to help students navigate the world after they leave the classroom on any given day. And we need to not preach it, but rather to show them how they might reach for it each in their own way and why it can be a rich and satisfying part of their lives that is worthy of their ongoing commitment.

Even so, there are no guarantees, and the number of variables at play may, God forbid, work against us.

But we will at least have been much more proactive about addressing the challenges of embracing modernity. Our community and our children’s souls deserve no less.

Rabbi Dr. Jay Goldmintz is a veteran day school educator and administrator who currently teaches at Ma’ayanot Yeshiva High School in New Jersey and has published widely on curriculum, tefillah education and religious development. He is the author of the Koren Ani Tefilla Siddur series, winner of the National Jewish Book Award, and writes the “Soul of Parenting” column on the OU website.

Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald, as told to Steve Lipman American Jews have until recently been living in what can certainly be regarded as a “Golden Age,” a time of unprecedented success in the “Goldene Medina.” However, the recent rise of both virulent anti-SemWinter 5782/2021 JEWISH ACTION

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itism and unbridled assimilation seems to mark the end of this remarkable era.

For the past few decades, the Orthodox Jewish community watched from afar as its own community “shteiged” (flourished), while the non-Orthodox community seemed to be unraveling at the seams (with 70 percent intermarriage rates!). We used to say about the general Jewish community in America that our grandparents prayed for a “melting pot” and what they got instead was a “meltdown.” Unfortunately, this now appears to apply to parts of the Orthodox Jewish community as well.

I wish we had better news, but unfortunately the Orthodox Jewish community has a crisis on its hands that hasn’t really been seriously acknowledged. The recent Pew study, Jewish Americans in 2020, reports that about 30 percent of young Jews who said they grew up Orthodox are no longer Orthodox. It seems obvious that the fall-out rate of Modern Orthodox Jews is higher than the losses of the Chareidi/Yeshivish communities, but even those losses are not insignificant.

Corroborating the Pew study is The Hertog Study: Chabad on Campus, issued in 2016 by Brandeis University.

The study found that 45 percent of Modern Orthodox students who attended Chabad programs on campus regularly for four years were no longer religious three years after they graduated. This is not a reflection on the extraordinary efforts of Chabad, but rather underscores the impact of the inimical campus environment and confirms that the blandishments of secular life in America (where 80 percent of contemporary entertainment contains portrayals of either promiscuity or violence) are simply overwhelming Orthodox life.

As one who has spent his entire career reaching out to the so-called non-committed Jews, I have long warned that the number-one issue facing American Jewish life is keeping the already committed Jews committed.

Essentially, what we are seeing in the Orthodox Jewish community is somewhat similar to what happened 48

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in the ba’al teshuvah movement. In the last twenty years, it has become apparent that most young Jews from non-Orthodox homes no longer have any real connection to Jewish life as the previous generations did. These Jews have not gone to Hebrew school, have not had a bar or bat mitzvah and probably have never been at a Shabbat meal. They therefore rarely respond to any efforts to engage them Jewishly. Ironically, with all the wonderful developments in Orthodox Jewish communal life, clearly, a sizable number of frum Jewish parents have failed to transmit to the next generation the beauty and the passion of living Jewishly.

The numberone issue facing American Jewish life is keeping the already committed Jews committed.

A good part of the fault lies with Orthodox Jewish fathers, a significant number of whom have in effect been “missing in action” when it comes to inspiring their children. Contemporary frum fathers seem to have a host of excuses. After all, they have demanding jobs, they are expected to attend services morning and evening, they have to do the Daf Yomi, and the innumerable charity and community obligations seem endless. (Let us not forget the “kiddush club” obligations.)

Our Torah boldly states “veshinantam l’vanecha,” that we must teach our children. So, for instance, a parent who studies Daf Yomi one hour a day should at least devote an hour a day to study with his children or grandchildren . . . or even just

ten minutes a day. We must not use the excuse that we are too busy.

Furthermore, it is absolutely unconscionable that the wealthiest Jewish community in all of Jewish history—and the wealthiest Orthodox Jewish community—has not created a mega endowment fund to help defray the extraordinary costs of Jewish education. The burden is just too great for many parents.

As someone on the front lines of fighting assimilation, it pains me desperately to acknowledge that we have come to the unbelievable point in Jewish life where parents of children who were raised Orthodox and have gone off the derech have to hope and pray that their child will meet the right non-Jewish person who is prepared to convert and perhaps their future children will be brought back to observance.

We need to focus on the frum-frombirth, especially on the vulnerable young people, before they drop out, and give them positive, joyous Jewish experiences. In light of the above, there are several effective programs that need to be supported and strengthened. Among them are the avos ubanim programs, where fathers learn together with their children every Saturday night.

NCSY’s efforts to reach yeshivah and day school students are also noteworthy, as are the efforts of Partners in Torah, which mobilizes significant numbers of frum mentors to learn with non-frum partners.

Of course, having non-religious guests at the Shabbat table can have a mutually meritorious impact on both hosts and guests.

As the Psalmist (34:9) so beautifully declares, “Ta’amu ure’u”—taste and see how good [Torah learning] is!

Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald is the founder and director of NJOP/ National Jewish Outreach Program (njop.org).

Steve Lipman is a frequent contributor to Jewish Action.

For the most part, a child raised in a healthy, happy home does not have a desire to go elsewhere.

By Allison Josephs, as told to Steve Lipman The Pew study is not a surprise.

One of the first to document the trend of people leaving Orthodoxy was Faranak Margolese in Off the Derech: Why Observant Jews Leave (Jerusalem; New York, 2005). In her book, she claims that 40 percent of Modern Orthodox Jews go “off the derech.”

I’m a ba’alas teshuvah. Although I grew up as a proud Conservative Jew, I was raised with a real dislike of Orthodox Jews. My understanding of the Orthodox community was based on negative media depictions. Once I became religious years later, I founded Jew in the City, a nonprofit organization dedicated to changing negative perceptions of Orthodox Jews. Our work now involves both outreach and inreach; our goal is to help people find Judaism relevant and meaningful and to give them a sense of Jewish pride.

Our experience with ex-Chareidi Jews shows that trauma (some sort of abuse from a religious figure) or the lack of a secure attachment figure are the main reasons people leave that community. For the most part, a child raised in a healthy, happy home does not have a desire to go elsewhere.

Another reason young people are turned off from their religious community is hypocrisy. Inner conflict is created when kids learn about various religious practices or ideas in school and then see their parents not taking these things seriously at home. That makes it seem like none of it matters. Sometimes kids may see those around them being scrupulous 50

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about observing mitzvot that are bein adam la’Makom, between man and God, but careless about mitzvot that are bein adam la’chaveiro, between man and his fellow man; they don’t see people practicing “v’ahavta l’rei’acha kamocha,” loving your neighbor as yourself, in their own lives.

One of our members had been taught the concept of derech eretz kadmah laTorah (decency, i.e., kind behavior, should precede Torah learning) by a teacher who then proceeded to yell those very words at him when she grew frustrated with him for speaking out of turn. Ironically, she embarrassed him while screaming about kindness.

I have also seen how some young people relate to Judaism with complete terror as a result of the education they received. They believe that any abuse they suffered is for sins they committed, and punishment from God. They were taught a distorted Judaism.

We need to confront these systematic issues where they exist. Let’s stop the fear-based education and make sure we give frum kids a meaningful, warm, relevant Torah education.

We need to open channels of unconditional love for our Jewish brothers and sisters, no matter where they have gone. A young person who leaves religious life should know that he or she still has a place in our homes and hearts.

Allison Josephs is director of the nonprofit organization Jew in the City. Its media branch Keter addresses negative perceptions of religious Jews, its Makom branch embraces former and questioning Chareidi Jews, and its Tikun branch confronts communal issues.

By Rabbi Yisroel Kaminetsky The Modern Orthodox day school world is wide-ranging, and each school is, in certain respects, its own universe. At the same time, upon reflection, some trends emerge across the spectrum, although in different degrees in the different yeshivot.

Where Modern Orthodox Day Schools Are Successful Modern Orthodox day schools have evolved over the past twenty-five to fifty years. Whereas schools used to focus Jewish studies strictly on Torah content and Hebrew language, today they have recognized the need for experiential education to promote a joyous, participatory Judaism that students will want to continue with after high school. Most Modern Orthodox day schools have a student activities director who plans and implements opportunities for students to experience aspects of Judaism outside the formal classroom setting, such as Shabbatonim, trips and chesed activities, to name a few. In my exit interviews with seniors, they consistently refer to these activities as the most inspiring of their high school careers.

In contrast to a generation ago, Jewish educators today are better trained and more skilled, and having been born in this country, they tend to relate to their students better. In addition, many schools promote a “family” atmosphere, where students are inclined to remain connected to teachers long after they have left high school. At weddings, one often sees high school rebbeim standing alongside community rabbis in receiving honors, attesting to their close relationships with their students.

Unlike decades ago, the Modern Orthodox Jewish community today recognizes the crucial role that yeshivot play in formulating the Jewish identity and practices of the community, and therefore the community financially supports schools in a more dedicated Continued on page 53

A Word on Attrition

By Matthew Williams Many Orthodox readers of the Pew study were concerned to note that only 67 percent of American Jews raised Orthodox continue to identify with Orthodoxy as adults. For all the talk about Orthodox Jewry’s demographic growth, attrition looms as a different measure of communal success, one that does not necessarily point in a positive direction.

The 2013 Pew study, though, found something similar, with a vital caveat that still exists but remains unreported. At that time, Pew reported that among those 65 and older who were raised as Orthodox Jews, a mere 22 percent still identified as Orthodox. However, 83 percent of Jewish adults under 30 who were raised Orthodox were still Orthodox. The vast difference in the Orthodox retention rate between these two age groups can be explained in at least three ways.

Firstly, Orthodox Jews have grown in their commitment to Jewish educational institutions.

In the 70s and 80s, it was not uncommon to find Orthodox shul goers who sent their children to or had themselves attended public schools. Nowadays, such a phenomenon appears increasingly rare. Orthodox institutions are assisting families in building a holistic community that offers compelling reasons to stay.

Secondly, “ultra-Orthodox” Jewish communities have grown dramatically in the last thirty years, so that proportionally they make up a larger segment of the under-45 Orthodox population, while Modern Orthodox Jews make up a larger proportion of the over-45 population. Leaving those communities is very different than leaving Modern Orthodox ones (as dozens of recent memoirs have noted); the costs incurred are higher socially, culturally and financially.

Finally, thirdly, sociologically we would not see attrition until later in a demographic cohort, i.e., fewer 20-year-olds leave than 40-year-olds. This was a theory, which in many ways appears to be inaccurate, offered in response to the 2013 findings; numerous studies have shown that religious attrition in the US actually affects the under-40 age group more so than the over-40 one.

Pew did not offer these findings this time around, and did not further analyze the Orthodox subgroups because the researchers lacked the statistical power to make such claims at Pew’s standards of reporting (they had fewer Orthodox Jews in the 2020 sample).

Matthew Williams is the founding director of the OU Center for Communal Research (CCR).

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Through a Researcher’s Eyes: Orthodox Retention in Context

By Michelle Shain

Among American adults raised as Orthodox Jews, only two-thirds (67 percent) still identify as Orthodox.

In unpacking this finding from the Pew Research Center’s study Jewish Americans in 2020, it’s worth noting at the outset that the 67 percent figure is an imprecise estimate based on a probability sample. The uncertainty can be maddening, but it’s an unavoidable consequence of trying to learn about the Orthodox community from a study that was designed to describe all US Jews. The study simply doesn’t have the statistical power to answer the burning question: Who leaves Orthodoxy?

Fortunately, there is a body of social science literature that hints at some answers. First and foremost, it seems that Millennials and Gen Z1 are far less likely to leave Orthodoxy than were previous generations. Thirty years ago, the Council of Jewish Federations (now called the Jewish Federations of North America, or JFNA) conducted the 1990 National Jewish Population Survey and found that only 22 percent of those who had been raised Orthodox still identified as Orthodox. In other words, American Orthodoxy’s overall retention rate jumped from 22 percent to 67 percent over the past thirty years.

The reason for this dramatic improvement seems to be generational change. Almost all of the respondents to the 1990 survey were born before 1970, whereas half of the respondents to Pew’s 2020 survey were born in 1970 or later. An incredible intensification of Jewish learning and practice occurred in the Orthodox 52

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community in the 1970s, accompanied and supported by institutional growth. This communal shift likely explains why the Millennials and Gen Z are so much more likely to remain Orthodox than Gen X, the Boomers and those born before World War II. What about the Millennials and Gen Zers who did leave Orthodoxy? Who are they? We may get some clues from examining other conservative religious groups in the United States that have retention rates virtually identical to Orthodoxy: Evangelical Protestants (65 percent retention) and Latter-day Saints (64 percent retention).

American Orthodoxy’s overall retention rate jumped from 22 percent to 67 percent over the past thirty years.

Among Evangelical Protestants, those who switch to a Mainline Protestant tradition or leave religion entirely tend to be those who relocate far away from their families and encounter diverse social networks where other Evangelical Protestants are scarce. Evangelical Protestant groups have responded to this challenge by building intensive, identity-strengthening groups on university campuses. These groups seem to be effective in fostering faith and commitment among students from Evangelical families.

Latter-day Saints have a different challenge when it comes to retention: men leave their childhood faith in higher numbers than women.

Some experts posit that the tremen-

dous pressure on LDS boys to serve a mission—that is, to spend two years proselytizing in a location selected by the Church—can be overwhelming and alienating.

Regardless of the reason, there are now five LDS women for every four LDS men. In his book Date-onomics: How Dating Became a Lopsided Numbers Game, journalist Jon Birger documents how the undersupply of men has affected the LDS marriage market, leaving men at a tremendous advantage and many faithful women without partners. Birger suggests a parallel to Orthodoxy’s so-called shidduch crisis. If young men leave Orthodoxy at higher rates than young women, that would cause a gender imbalance in the Orthodox Jewish “marriage market,” which might explain the difficulties faced by single Orthodox women.

Sadly, neither the Pew Research Center’s study Jewish Americans in 2020 nor any other existing study can tell us precisely who leaves Orthodoxy, when and why. To answer those questions, we would need a longitudinal research study—a study that follows the same individuals over time, taking measurements at regular intervals. A longitudinal study would allow us to determine whether particular personal characteristics and/or social environment causes change, or simply reflects processes that were already unfolding. Sadly, this type of study is complex and resource-intensive.

For now, our best guess is that Millennials and Gen Zers, women, those who live closer to home, and those whose social networks are dominated by Orthodox Jews are the most likely to remain Orthodox into adulthood.

Note 1. Gen Z: those born between 19772012; Millennials: 1981-96; Gen X: 1965-80; Boomers: 1946-64.

Michelle Shain is the assistant director of the OU Center for Communal Research (CCR).

Continued from page 50

and committed fashion than in the past. Our schools generally have the resources to provide a high-quality educational experience.

Furthermore, Modern Orthodox yeshivot have successfully promoted study of Torah and connecting to the Land of Israel for a year or more of post–high school study in Israel. This trend has been the single biggest accomplishment of the Modern Orthodox world in the past fifty years in ensuring that our young people lead lives of inspired Torah living.

Challenges to Students Remaining Affiliated in Modern Orthodox Day Schools Due to the Internet and smartphones, as well as a general suspicion of authority, more students than ever are disconnected from their Judaism. The Internet has provided students with a vast world of entertainment and distraction, or worse, and religion is having a difficult time competing. Kids are on their phones during davening, during class, during class trips— and even sometimes on Shabbat.

Moreover, schools don’t speak about God enough. We need to make connecting to God and viewing Judaism as a relationship with God part of our students’ educational

experience. When we teach Torah, it needs to be “Hashem’s Torah.”

Students should be taught early and often that the goal of Torah study is to learn about Hashem and to connect to Him. Students should be trained to imagine that the Master of the Universe is right there listening to every word while they pray. This is one of the reasons why God gave us the power of imagination, although we tend to use it mostly for the wrong reasons.

Partly because we are scared of turning our kids off from Judaism and partly because of poor prioritization of values, we are afraid to push our kids to achieve high standards in Jewish studies in the same way that we push secular accomplishment. Parents and students often opt for honors general studies classes, but settle for easier Jewish studies classes. Many Jewish studies classes end up being watered-down “edutainment”— informal schmoozing or videos about Jewish topics, with little to no rigor or testing. We are doing a lot of teaching “about Torah,” but not enough teaching it, i.e., filling our classrooms with real, high-level Torah content.

After the gap-year experience in Israel, students often fall away during the college years, especially those on secular college campuses. While the challenges used to be limited to

promiscuity, rampant drinking and drug use on campus, perhaps an even greater additional challenge today is the anti-Torah values espoused by “forward-thinking” college professors. Our community pushes secular college too much, and our schools glorify these choices. While perhaps appropriate for some, we are losing too many due to extreme anti-Torah views and values promoted in these venues. The OU should be commended for the great work of the Heshe and Harriet Seif Jewish Learning Initiative on Campus (OU-JLIC), but even this outstanding program reaches only the tip of the college-campus Jewish iceberg. If we continue to send to these schools, we need to figure out a way to have Jewish leaders and role models connect more directly with this segment of our community.

While, as mentioned above, schools are far better supported today than they were fifty years ago, it is still not possible to make a living wage as a rebbe or teacher in 90 percent of our Modern Orthodox high schools. Due to this as well as other factors, fewer and fewer of our best and brightest are entering the field of Jewish education. At our yeshivah, ten years ago we would get seventy candidates for one open position. This year we had four. We need to do a better job of paying those entrusted with securing the Jewish future so we can attract outstanding educators who will teach and inspire our children. Board chairs and fundraisers need to keep rebbeim in mind during fundraising campaigns and budget meetings.

Those of us who have the privilege of serving the Jewish educational community need to reflect on these and other issues to ensure the transmission of our Torah and Torah values to the next generation.

Rabbi Yisroel Kaminetsky is rosh yeshivah of Hebrew Academy of Long Beach in New York and menahel of the Davis Renov Stahler Yeshiva High School for Boys in Woodmere, New York.

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By Rabbi Daniel Korobkin The premise of the questions posed by the editors of Jewish Action is based on only one segment of the data. The very same study indicated that Orthodox Jews under age 30 now comprise 17 percent of all Jews in that age bracket, the highest percentage ever and 8 percent higher than the last survey in 2013. But overall, “among US Jews, both religious poles are growing, proportionally, among the young: the Orthodox and the Jews of no religion.”1 This means that non-Orthodox Jews are disappearing from Judaism at a much more rapid rate than those raised in Orthodox homes. Taken in this context, the need for outreach to unaffiliated Jews is more necessary than ever before.

Still, the need for “inreach” is just as vital. The data beg the question: “What are we doing wrong?” If we are losing a fifth to a third of our own children, who have attended twelve-plus years of yeshivah day school, what does that say about the six-figure investment each family makes into these schools?

And, not to put the entire onus upon our schools, what does it say about the upbringing that we as Orthodox parents—who try to fill our homes with yirat Shamayim and Torah— are providing for our children? The objective here is not to assign blame but to see what needs to be fixed.

In all fairness to our schools and homes, the uphill battle against secularism is at a steeper incline than ever before in recent history.

When my generation was growing up, the basic faith premises of God, Torah min haShamayim and Divine

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Providence were givens. But with the ubiquity of external media and the constant anti-religion and anti-God messages that pervade the Internet, there are no more givens, no matter how frum our homes and schools are. To their credit, many schools have identified this new reality and have introduced new curricula and methodologies in chinuch. In order to succeed, lessons in emunah need to start on the preschool level and must continue throughout. If there is any break in that continuity (as is often the case when curricula are confined to individual grades), this can destroy all the previous foundational work.

Furthermore, while I don’t have hard data to support this (the Pew study did not differentiate by gender), my own observation indicates that young men are dropping out of Orthodoxy at a faster rate than young women.

This may be due in part to our girls receiving more hashkafah/machshevet Yisrael education—the “whys” of being Jewish— than our boys, who are being inculcated with heavy doses of Mishnah, Gemara and halachah—the “whats” of being Jewish and skills that will enable them to develop into bnei Torah and religious balabatim. The precipitous drop-out rate may be a heavy price to pay for this imbalance.

In some yeshivot, there is even an implied suppression of hashkafah, with the subliminal message that all that “fluff” is for the non-serious guys who can’t hack a “geshmak” Tosafot and mefarshim. In fact, however, it is much easier to master halachic and Talmudic topics than it is to gain and impart clarity on theological issues.

But many of our sons are attending yeshivot that do emphasize hashkafah, and they still end up leaving the fold, so this cannot be the sole issue.

Undoubtedly, young men and women

41 percent of 18 to 29 year olds describe themselves as unaffiliated with any particular branch of Judaism.

differ in the way they see the world and process information. As the Maharal stated (Derush al HaTorah) in the sixteenth century, women tend to be more attuned to the spiritual and metaphysical, while men tend to focus more on the tangible and physical.

It is thus inherently more difficult to inspire young men, especially when the manifest world around us is largely oppositional to religion (this may be the underlying cause for the disproportionate number of young women versus young men in the shidduch pool of frum young adults, but this is a different topic for discussion).

If the trajectory indicated by the latest data continues, North American Jewry will become predominantly Orthodox in its external appearance over the next several decades. But this kind of Judaism, an “Orthopraxy” devoid of a deep-seated traditional and thoughtful theology, will only repel the next generation further, when our youth easily detect the spiritual vacuousness of this parroted form of religion. We can only hope that a great spiritual hunger will return to our society at large, as was the case in the 1960s and 1970s. If and when that happens, our community needs to be ready with an antidote.

Finally, let’s remember that Modern Orthodoxy—despite its challenges— is best equipped to address these issues of reconciling emunah with our modern world head-on. We have the ability to be a bridge to our brethren both on the right and on the left, who are suffering from the same plight of drop outs. By working together and for each other, we will have a better chance of instilling the necessary passion and love for Yiddishkeit and Torah to the next generation.

Note 1. washingtonpost.com/ religion/2021/05/11/orthodox-jews-poll-secular-trump-republican/.

Rabbi Daniel Korobkin is mara d’atra of Beth Avraham Yoseph of Toronto Congregation (BAYT) in Toronto, Canada, and president of the Rabbinical Council of America.

A Word on Growth

By Matthew Williams The growth of the Orthodox community presents several policy-oriented challenges that the community has to mull as it considers the reality that in the next several years, Orthodox Jewry will be a million-person-strong American community.

The first is that we likely need a greater level of investment in our educational institutions. Class-

rooms tailored to the present simply won’t have the necessary number of seats in the next decade or so. Perhaps most importantly, our teacher-training institutes and programs need to increase their output so the community will not have to sacrifice quality instruction to meet oncoming demand.

The second is that as any population grows, it naturally diversifies—geographically, culturally and ideologically. In Orthodox Jewry’s current trajectory, a sub-culture of 500 families could very well grow into a culture of 5,000 (if it hasn’t already). How the community thinks about, accounts for, tolerates and respects such diversity might very well be a deciding factor in the not-sodistant future of Orthodox Jewry.

The third outcome of growth we need to consider is the fact that anti-Semitism, focused as it is

National, non-profit initiative

on those who are visibly Jewish, is quickly becoming more of an Orthodox problem. For a community that has traditionally eschewed involvement in large, established Jewish “defense” organizations, it is worth considering what kind of investments, capacities and people are necessary to counter antiSemitism in the US. As we study the contemporary Orthodox Jewish community, I often reflect on how the 1990 National Jewish Population Study is now further away than a hypothetical 2050 National Jewish Population Survey. Orthodoxy today is far larger, more robust and religious, wealthier and growing more than any other time in American history.

Finding the appropriate analogies to help us think through the moment are more difficult to come by, making past experience less instructive than we might like it to be.

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W

hile the recent Pew study revealed some positive trends, including the continued growth and vibrancy of the Orthodox community, the study also confirmed a tragic reality we are all too aware of: we are losing our brothers and sisters due to escalating rates of intermarriage and assimilation. We asked those in the world of outreach the following questions: • Are current kiruv models successful?

• Can we do more?

• What can we do differently?

By Rabbi Micah Greenland Along with the negative intermarriage trend, there is another concerning development as well. Historically, outreach efforts have been most effective with those Jews who already have some religious connection, either through the Reform or Conservative movements.

This is chiefly because those movements commonly include exposure to some traditional practices, as well as at least basic familiarity with Hebrew, both of which help Orthodox practice resonate as comfortable and authentic to those Jews.

With a growing amount of young Jews (41 percent of 18 to 29 year olds) describing themselves as unaffiliated with any particular branch of Judaism, the number of Jews who have the strongest likelihood of being attracted to observance is dwindling.

Corroborating this data is the older age profile for Conservative and Reform Jews, with a median age of 62 for Conservative Jews and 53 for Reform. This makes engagement with young non-Orthodox Jews all the more important—at the same time that it has become more challenging.

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Many kiruv movements have begun effectively adjusting to these trends, but almost all would benefit from at least three continued modifications to previous models. I’ll describe these changes as population, partnership and placement.

Population. Often, focusing on second-generation American citizens in a targeted way can be more effective than the traditional focus on those whose ancestors emigrated from Eastern Europe in the early twentieth century. All eight of my own great-grandparents immigrated to the United States from Eastern Europe in the 1910s, making my children and their cousins fifth-generation Americans. As is common among their generation, nearly all of my children and their cousins fit into one of two categories: Orthodox or unaffiliated. By contrast, among more recent immigrants, especially those from Iran, the FSU and Israel, there seems to be a greater desire to connect to Jewish tradition. NCSY runs programs specifically geared toward the children of Persian immigrants in Great Neck, New York, and others specifically focused on the teenage children of Israelis in multiple cities, often staffed by educators with the same background as the participants, with positive results. According to the Pew study, roughly 31 percent

of Jewish adults today are first- or second-generation immigrants. Those outreach organizations that gear their engagement toward those populations will have greater success.

Partnership. Many successful organizations maintain a specialty focus on a unique demographic group, including NCSY, which focuses on teenagers, and Momentum, previously known as the Jewish Women’s Renaissance Project, which focuses on women. Still, by working together in partnership, the efforts of each can be amplified. Most of Momentum’s women have teenage children, and most of NCSY’s teens have moms. The efforts of both organizations have been enhanced by working together, which creates an environment in which both a mom and her teenager each support the Jewish growth of the other. Finding similar opportunities for synergy and partnership is critical to future success.

Placement. It is imperative that outreach organizations meet their prospective participants in their own environments, rather than expecting prospects to seek out the organizations.

NCSY’s Jewish Student Union (JSU) program facilitates after-school Jewish clubs in hundreds of public high schools across North America, offering teens the opportunity to engage with Jewish role models, with virtually no barriers to entry. Other organizations seeking to reach meaningful numbers of unaffiliated Jews would do well to emulate the “meet-them-on-their-turf” model, however that translates best based on their targeted age or demographic group.

As challenging as the current outlook is for the less-observant segments of the American Jewish community, it is possible to connect with and inspire these Jews by fostering personal and meaningful individual relationships. Through continual innovation and dedication via the above approaches and others, our efforts will yield a vastly stronger Jewish community.

Rabbi Micah Greenland is the international director of NCSY.

By Rabbi Avraham Edelstein Pew and other studies tell us the shocking news. Not only did the kiruv movement fail to move the needle on intermarriage, but it failed to stabilize the intermarriage rate, which got worse and worse over time. If it has now leveled off, I am not sure if that was because of our efforts. It has simply reached rock bottom. And certainly an intermarriage rate where over 70 percent of Jews intermarry represents a massive hemorrhaging of our people—a problem on a gigantic scale.

Does that mean that the ba’al teshuvah movement was a failure?

For those who set reversing the intermarriage rate as the goal of kiruv, the answer would be yes. They might comfort themselves with all the other achievements—and there are many—but bottom-line, the goal was not achieved. Not even nearly.

The Goal Never Was Reversing Intermarriage Personally, I never thought that reversing intermarriage was the goal, or even one of the goals of the teshuvah movement. In fact, I have never seen a single plan by any kiruv organization in the past fifty years that laid out how to do this. It is true that Aish HaTorah UK once commissioned a study showing that it had reduced intermarriage in England by 2 percent, but that was a while ago and it does not appear that this result was sustained.

So what are reasonable goals for the kiruv movement or, put differently, how do we define success in kiruv?

There are three legitimate goals of kiruv: 1. The person becomes observant.

2. The person becomes close enough to Judaism that he or she will want to establish a traditional home, send his or her kids to Jewish day school, and encourage them—with some success—to become observant.

Otherwise, we have to begin our

Photo courtesy of Rabbi Jonathan Shulman

efforts all over again with the next generation. This means that saving a person from intermarriage, while a great achievement, is not a success. It is simply a holding action to buy more time to get to the individual or his children.

3. A community with a core that is observant gets built.

The Goal Is the Individual There is no way from a Torah point of view to determine objectively how many souls is a “successful” number in points 1 and 2 above. This figure is determined by experience and integrity. Would I personally dedicate my life to facilitating the return of one person? No. Because I think I could be the keli (conduit) for more.

But it might be that were I to go to a gadol at the end of my life and tell him that I was a failure because I was only mekarev one Jew, he would tell me that I am totally wrong.

Among the first group of the great outreach personalities were three viewpoints:

• Rabbi Noach Weinberg (Aish HaTorah): Cast a wide net. Prevent intermarriage. Because if you don’t, there will be no one left to bring back. This is akin to stabilizing the patient before treating him.

• Rabbi Mendel Weinbach (Ohr Somayach): Encourage maximum growth in individuals. Invest utmost efforts to help someone go all the way—to graduate into a mainstream yeshivah, for example. Rabbi Moshe Shapiro, who shared this view, said that this is required by “v’ahavta l’rei’acha kamocha,” loving your neighbor as yourself. Just as I want to be able to become a ben Torah who has learned in a mainstream yeshivah, so too I should want that for those Jews I have brought closer to Yiddishkeit.

• Rabbi Yaakov Rosenberg (Machon Shlomo): If the individual did not become frum, you have achieved nothing. By this he meant that when one doesn’t become frum, his or her children invariably move much further away from Yiddishkeit. Less than frum is not even a holding action.

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Measure But Don’t Measure All in One Hakadosh Baruch Hu created Man as a single individual so that we would appreciate the utter and total specialness of each neshamah. He doesn’t want any Jew to become a statistic. He doesn’t want us to think, “Oh, I made five students frum this year.” He wants us to give them names.

To tune into their lives. To realize the awesomeness of each and every one who starts to keep mitzvos.

Building Community The third goal mentioned above, that of building a community, has recently received less attention than it once did, which is very unfortunate.

The teshuvah movement has been remarkably successful in this arena, building Houston, Dallas, Atlanta, Cincinnati and many other thriving Torah communities that started out virtually from scratch. Around the globe, there are tens and tens of such cities, comprising tens of thousands of Jews. In many of these communities, everything—the manpower, the ideas and the funding—initially had to be imported. Outsiders took responsibility for everything. But with time, locals took over and the community expanded with new shuls, Jewish day schools and other infrastructure. Such growth ensures the future of these communities for as long as we are in galus. That is no mean achievement.

Keeping Perspective What is the future of the kiruv movement? It is unclear. The Jewish people have been dealing with Jews leaving Orthodoxy in massive numbers ever since Napoleon opened the ghetto gates over 220 years ago. Impressive efforts were made to stabilize existing communities in the face of Emancipation, and to prevent those who were leaving Judaism from doing so. But until the 1960s, no efforts were made to actively reach out to Jews who had already left. The kiruv movement has been a bold, imaginative effort whose resources were always pitiful compared with the scope of the problem. Intermarriage and assimilation were never made the interna58

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But this kind of Judaism, an “Orthopraxy” devoid of a deep-seated traditional and thoughtful theology, will only repel the next generation further, when our youth easily detect the spiritual vacuousness of this parroted form of religion. tional Jewish emergencies that they should have been. The Jewish people never dedicated the type of effort and commitment that the situation required. Under such circumstances, outreach professionals and their supporters were left to fight a war on behalf of us all. That they achieved so much with so little is truly remarkable.

What’s Next?

Where to from here? The teshuvah movement fell from the sky—literally min haShamayim. And it is difficult to predict—as with anything concerning the Jewish people apart from its radical Messianic vision—where it will end.

There are lots of ideas—new programs, trips, methods of recruitment—regarding how we can do better. But are there any innovations that would radically change the scope of what we are doing and dramatically change our results? I think there are. The potential for online outreach has been vastly underexploited, and it is now possible to get significant support from the Israeli government for such efforts.

But there’s a caveat. Every organizational effort relies on three things: ideas, funding and quality of manpower. Opportunities for ideas and funding I cited above. But unless we can significantly increase the number of high-quality couples who are committed to and passionate about kiruv, we will be missing the primary ingredient. A massive outreach effort involving roshei yeshivah,

posekim, community rabbis, school principals and community activists is required to encourage, support and enthuse our best to dedicate their lives to this highest of callings.

This is an eis la’asos laHashem—a national emergency that requires different priorities than “normal” periods in our history. In fact, never before was such scant attention given to a crisis of such dramatic proportions. This is to our shame.

Optimism I suffer proudly from terminal optimism. It is, after all, the eternal people we are talking about. We have God on our side. Faith-based optimism is the precondition for us to move forward. If we don’t believe that we can make game-changing breakthroughs in kiruv, we won’t even try. If we don’t try, we are only giving lip service to the purity of every soul waiting to emerge through the layers. We won’t always get it right and that is okay. Sometimes God says no. But we need to declare an emergency, set up a war room, and feel in our very bones the absolute crisis that requires our urgent attention.

Rabbi Avraham Edelstein is the educational director of Neve Yerushalayim College for Women and the executive mentor of Olami. He is the author of The Laws of Outreach (Beit Shemesh; New York, 2019) and The Human Challenge— Being Jewish in the 21st Century (Beit Shemesh; New York, 2021).

W W W.NBN.ORG.IL 1-866-4- ALIYAH

From left: Irving Bunim, Dr. Jacob Birnbaum, Stephen Klein, Elimelech Gavriel (Mike) Tress, Moses Feuerstein, Rabbi Dr. Israel Miller, Dr. Marvin Schick, Rabbi Herman Naftali Neuberger, Harold M. Jacobs, Rabbi Joseph Karasick, Zev Wolfson, Rabbi Herschel Schacter, and Rabbi Moshe Sherer.

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Shtadlanim

*Editor’s Note: Special thanks to Sara Goldberg, photo editor of this section, and to the many individuals who assisted in obtaining the photos used in this section. Shulamith Z. Berger and Sara Saiger, Yeshiva University Archives; Judith Dinowitz, Agudath Israel Archives; Ruti Feiner and Rabbi Moshe Rockove, BMG Archives; Joanna Church, Jewish Museum of Maryland; Eli Greengart, Ner Israel Rabbinical College; Paul Jacobs, Avi Schick, David Safier, and Rabbi Dr. Jacob J. Schacter For readers interested in commenting or identifying individuals in photos, please contact ja@ou.org.

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Please note that the section on shtadlanim is limited to those who are deceased, did their advocacy work in America primarily during the twentieth century, and were Torah observant. It is not in any way meant to be comprehensive.

Shtadlan:

An intercessor figure for the local Jewish community.

Beginning in medieval Europe, the shtadlan represented the interests of the Jewish community to those in power.

T

oday American Orthodox Jewry is vibrant, confident and politically savvy. But its current state is, in no small part, due to the efforts of a number of determined and fearless individuals who were dedicated to the cause of Klal Yisrael.

Whether it was saving Jews from the Nazi inferno, rescuing Soviet Jewry trapped behind the Iron Curtain, advocating for the safety and security of Jews in Eretz Yisrael, or championing so many other vital causes, these modern-day shtadlanim were not only charismatic and brilliant, they were driven by a burning sense of achrayut, responsibility to care for their fellow Jews. In the pages ahead, we pay tribute to these forward-thinking visionaries, “shtadlanim of the twentieth century.”

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COVER STORY

THE SHTADLAN in JEWISH HISTORY: A CONVERSATION with DR. HENRY ABRAMSON Jewish Action writer Faigy Grunfeld discusses the role of the shtadlan throughout Jewish history with Dr. Henry Abramson.

The academic dean of Touro’s Lander College of Arts and Sciences, Dr. Abramson holds a PhD in history from the University of Toronto and is a specialist in Jewish history and thought.

Faigy Grunfeld: Let’s start with a definition of shtadlanut. Can you give us a brief historical overview of the concept?

Dr. Henry Abramson: The term shtadlanut (from the Hebrew lehishtadel, to attempt, to try) is often translated as “intercession” and refers to efforts expended by a well-connected Jewish figure to influence public policy on behalf of the larger Jewish community.

The earliest historical reference to the term shtadlan in this context comes from thirteenth-century Spain, but the phenomenon dates back to antiquity. It is certainly a phenomenon most closely related to the minority status of Jewish populations in pre-democratic societies, although in our times the concept of a “lobbyist” comes close.

Faigy Grunfeld teaches English and history. She lives in Detroit, Michigan, with her family.

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A shtadlan was especially valuable in societies governed by capricious rulers seeking financial support for various undertakings, such as foreign wars, who had to contend with rival power sources like the Church or an emerging noble class. The shtadlan, typically a charismatic, wealthy individual with strong skills as a culturebroker, advocated for the protection and advancement of the larger Jewish community with a combination of smooth talk and the promise of financial reward through general expansion of the economy, or even direct financial reward (“contributions,” i.e., bribes).

The last two millennia have amply demonstrated that Jews cannot simply rely on the benevolence of host populations. Shtadlanut emerged as an effective communal tool, one of the many tactics that allowed for the miraculous survival of the Jewish people in often very hostile cultural environments.

The strategy of shtadlanut is not perfect, and it has proven less valuable at certain times—the Nazis, for example, were almost impervious to the efforts of shtadlanut—but in a modified form it still plays a valuable role anywhere that Jews are a minority.

FG: Where do you see shtadlanut originating? Does the reish galuta [exilarch, or head of the Jews in exile] in ancient Babylon loosely encompass the idea of a shtadlan?

What about the medieval parnas?

DHA: The earliest Biblical precedent might be someone like Yosef Hatzaddik, whose elevation to power by the Egyptian pharaoh afforded him the authority to protect the migrant Hebrews in the land of Goshen. We see similar patterns expressed in the careers of other Diaspora figures like Daniel and Esther, whose intercession on behalf of the Jewish community was directly salvific and celebrated for centuries afterward.

In the post-Biblical period, several distinct types of shtadlanim emerged: some, as you correctly identify, were the duly appointed leaders of the organized Jewish community, such as the reish galuta in Sasanian Persia, the Geonim of the great Talmudic yeshivot, or the parnasim of medieval kehillot.

Other shtadlanim were appointed as representatives of the community because they possessed unique communication skills that enabled them to present the Jewish cause to a very foreign audience. These individuals sometimes availed themselves of cultural concessions to improve their effectiveness—the Talmud, for example, describes how one Avtolemos ben Reuven was allowed to sport an otherwise forbidden hairstyle because of his interactions with the Roman government (Bava Kamma 83a).

Some shtadlanim were self-appointed, generously working on behalf of the community at their own expense, philanthropically leveraging their own wealth to effect change on behalf of their coreligionists.

The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara by Moritz Daniel Oppenheim, 1862. The painting depicts the Italian Jewish boy who was seized by the Church to be raised as a Catholic. His mother is seen here fainting from distress. Illustration: Alamy Stock Photo

FG: Shtadlanut can be a dangerous enterprise and can have a negative impact on Jewish-on-Jewish relations (creating internal community conflict) and Jewish-non-Jewish dynamics (giving rise to anti-Semitism, accusations of Jews controlling political leaders, et cetera). What are your thoughts about this? Do any historical examples come to mind?

DHA: Historically, shtadlanim faced an unenviable number of challenges, perhaps from their client communities as much as from the rulers they hoped to influence. When their efforts were successful, they were exposed to the dangerous charge of having too much power, which may have grated on popular sensibilities, the ego of the king or prevailing ruler at the time, or both. One notorious example of a Jew who reached a high level of authority as a financier was Joseph Oppenheimer (Süss). A German Jewish banker and court Jews for Duke Karl Alexander of

Württemberg in Stuttgart in the 1700s, Oppenheimer was arrested on the very day that the Duke of Württemberg died, demonstrating the fragility of his erstwhile relationship, which had been both close and productive. Charged falsely with treason and embezzlement, Oppenheimer refused to save his own life through baptism. With the Shema on his lips, he was executed in 1738, and his corpse was displayed in an iron cage.

At the same time, Jewish communities sometimes repudiated their own shtadlanim for authorizing onerous concessions or failing to protect them in time of need. Sir Moses Montefiore (1784-1885) was widely regarded as an international hero among Jews for his efforts in saving Damascus Jews during a blood libel, the Damascus Affair of 1840, but his failure to rescue Edgardo Mortara, a six-year-old Italian Jewish boy seized by the Church and raised as a Catholic, diminished his profile significantly.*

FG: Despite the occasions when advocacy backfires, does it generally pay off?

DHA: Absolutely! A well-placed word to people in positions of authority has saved innumerable Jewish communities from persecution and even destruction. This is truer for pre-modern times, when the concept of popular sovereignty had yet to penetrate the overall population, but with the development of modern legal guardrails and mandated transparency regulations, shtadlanut is standard operating procedure in democratic societies. Now we use terms like “advocacy,” which is entirely appropriate; in the United States, it is normal for people in any demographic—from labor to farm workers to various industries—to organize themselves and hire advocates to represent their interests to lawmakers. The OU Advocacy Center, for example, describes its mission as “engag[ing] leaders at all levels of government Winter 5782/2021 JEWISH ACTION

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State of Israel, shtadlanut took on an entirely new level, advocating for Jews around the world, such as Golda Meir’s remarkable role as an official of Israel in the former Soviet Union in 1948, or Jewish officials advocating for Ethiopian Jewry leading up to Operation Moses.

Oil portrait of Moses Montefiore by Henry Weigal, 1881. Montefiore was widely regarded as an international hero among Jews for his efforts in saving Damascus Jews during a blood libel.

Illustration: Alamy Stock Photo

as well as the broader public to promote and protect the Orthodox Jewish community’s interests and values in the public policy arena.”

the turn of the twentieth century, the notoriously anti-Semitic Viennese leader Karl Lüger could silence critics who took him to task for responding positively to shtadlanut by saying, “I’ll be the one who decides who is a Jew.” Jewish communities today cannot safely rely on shtadlanim effecting back-room deals as they might have done in the medieval era. Advocacy requires a firm commitment to ethical conduct in a political world that does not always value anything other than expediency, profit and power.

With the establishment of the

FG: Finally, are there any women who filled this role in their communities?

DHA: Historically, women have rarely played the role of official shtadlanim, as they have seldom been recognized as communal leaders. Exceptions to the rule were women who were connected to powerful men, such as Queen Helena of Adiabene, a region in what was once Assyria. A first-century convert to Judaism, she leveraged her position in the royal house to shape foreign aid to Jewish communities in the Land of Israel. Two other fascinating examples would be Dona Gracia Nasi and Benvenida Abravanel, two unusually powerful women in the sixteenth century who utilized their wealth and family standing to persuade various countries to open up cities of refuge for the recently expelled Jews of Spain and Portugal. Gracia Nasi in particular asserted her leadership by organizing a boycott of the port of Ancona after Pope Paul IV cruelly burned twenty-five Jews at the stake.

Since the nineteenth century, there has been an explosion of women’s involvement in shtadlanut [secular women], at first in terms of specifically women’s issues, like Bertha Pappenheim’s heroic attack on human trafficking in the early twentieth century, and increasingly as advocates for Jews as a whole.

FG: What does shtadlanut look like in the twenty-first century?

How has it evolved over the past eighty years or so?

DHA: Notable in the mission statement cited above is the additional element of advocating to “the broader public.” The big change in shtadlanut in the modern era is the recognition that the twentieth century requires Jews to explain themselves not only to those who hold power, but to the world as * Editor’s note: In 1858, officers of the Inquisition arrived at the Mortara residence, a Jewish family in Bologna, Italy, and took Edgardo, their young child. Edgardo had been secretly a whole. This is especially true in the baptized when he was a baby by the family nanny, who was Catholic. According to papal law, age of the Internet, as globalization the child was considered a Catholic who must be educated by the Church. The “Mortara case” has increased dramatically and as spurred a wave of protests, with pressure from Europe and the US on Pius IX to return the power, in many ways, has become child. He refused. Edgardo eventually became a priest, but the kidnapping, which became an international scandal, set in motion far-reaching political ramifications. far more diffuse than ever before. At 64

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Rabbi Herschel Schacter (1917-2013)

of the American Jewish Conference on Rogers to arrange for the group to Soviet Jewry, the organization charged meet with then President Richard M. with coordinating all American Nixon. After some persistent words Jewish efforts on behalf of Jews in on his part, Rogers acquiesced and, in the Soviet Union. In December of short order, the members of the group that year, 1970, the Russians put on found themselves in the Oval Office.

By Rabbi Dr. Jacob J. Schacter trial ten Jewish and two non-Jewish I want to share what our family dissidents who were captured a few repeatedly heard from my father on months earlier attempting to steal many occasions as to what occurred As long as Jews have lived in the an empty Soviet plane at an airport during that meeting. As is evident Diaspora there have been prominent near Leningrad to fly to freedom in in the picture, my father sat next to members of the Jewish community the president in chairs that faced who have advocated for Jewish interests neighboring Finland. The defendants included the well-known dissident the president’s desk on the opposite with those in positions of authority.

Yosef Mendelevich, who received a side of the room (not visible in the The role of these shtadlanim, as they picture). He told the president about his were known, was to intercede on behalf fifteen-year jail sentence; two others, Mark Dymshits and Eduard Kuznetsov, experience liberating the Buchenwald of their coreligionists with those in were sentenced to death for committing Concentration Camp as an American power—from local to national—in “high treason.” On December 30, the military chaplain and how after the whatever country they may have lived, Conference organized several protest Holocaust the world Jewish community to insure that Jews be treated as fairly rallies across the United States with would not tolerate the murder of as possible. Throughout the centuries particular focus on a one-day National innocent Jews. Then, my father told us, they had no legal standing; whatever I turned to Nixon and, pointing to successes they achieved came as a result Emergency Conference for Soviet Jewry held in Washington, DC. With the red phone on the president’s desk of their personal powers of persuasion the help of Max Fisher, a prominent opposite us, I said, “Mr. President. You and their charismatic qualities. In donor to the Republican Party, an see that phone? Just pick it up and tell modern times, as Jews were granted appointment was made with then the Kremlin that they cannot proceed citizenship and equal rights, the with their plan.” Nixon told me that importance of this position diminished Secretary of State William Rogers. At there is no way he could do that. The but in a more limited form it continued that meeting, attended by my father, Fischer, and William Wexler, head Russians would surely not respond to play a significant role in Jewish life.1 of B’nai B’rith, my father pressed favorably to anything he would say.

My late father, Rabbi Herschel Schacter z”l, was an internationally renowned rabbi and communal leader who played a leadership role in many aspects of twentieth-century Jewish life in America, Israel and throughout the world. He is the subject of a recently published book-length biography detailing his many involvements and contributions, among which were fearless, and often successful, intercessions on behalf of Jewish interests in various corridors of power.2 I want to choose one such example to relate here, one that particularly illustrates his determination and personality.

Shortly after completing his tenure as the first Orthodox chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations The meeting with President Nixon in the Oval Office, December 30, 1970. From left (1968-1970), the umbrella group to right: Presidential Adviser John Ehrlichman; Secretary of State William Rogers; representing most of the organized Jewish leader Max Fisher; Rabbi Herschel Schacter; President Richard Nixon; B’nai American Jewish community, my B’rith President William Wexler; and then Director of the Office of Management father was offered the chairmanship and Budget George P. Shultz. Photo courtesy of Rabbi Dr. Jacob J. Schacter Winter 5782/2021 JEWISH ACTION

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After five minutes, I again pointed to the phone and said, “See, it’s right here.

It’s very easy. Just pick it up and tell them that the American people protest this terrible injustice.” Once again he refused. Five minutes later I pointed to the phone again. This time the president said, “OK. I will do it. Trust me.”

At that point, after a conversation that lasted almost an hour, my father got up, thanked the president for his time and his commitment to act and walked out.

One or two nights later, my father concluded, the phone in my parents’ apartment rang in the middle of the night. My father answered and on the line was a reporter who called to tell him that he just got word that the sentences were commuted.3 Once again, with the force of his personality and conviction of his beliefs, this twentieth-century shtadlan proudly shared with us how he interceded with a powerful authority and saved Jewish lives.

Notes 1. For this phenomenon in general, see “Shtadlan,” Encyclopaedia Judaica, vol.

14 (1971), 1462-63; David Biale, Power and Powerlessness in Jewish History (New York, 1986), chaps. 3-4. For more modern examples, see David Asaf and Yisrael Bartal, “Shtadlanut veortodoksiah: Tzaddikei Polin be’mifgash im hazemanim hachadashim,” in Rachel Elior, Yisrael Bartal and Chone Shmeruk, eds., Tzaddikim ve’anshei ma’aseh: Mechkarim bechasidut Polin (Jerusalem, 1994), 65-90; Marcin Wodziński, “Hasidism, Shtadlanut, and Jewish Politics in Nineteenth-Century Poland: The Case of Isaac of Warka,” JQR 95:2 (2005): 290-320.

2. See Rafael Medoff, The Rabbi of Buchenwald: The Life and Times of Herschel Schacter (New York, 2021).

3. There are a number of versions of what took place during and after that meeting. See Rafael Medoff, The Rabbi of Buchenwald, pp. 278-83. See also Yosef Mendelevich, Unbroken Spirit: A Heroic Story of Faith, Courage and Survival (Jerusalem; New York, 2021), 105-06.

Rabbi Dr. Jacob J. Schacter is University Professor of Jewish History and Jewish Thought and Senior Scholar, Center for the Jewish Future, Yeshiva University.

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As long as Jews have lived in the Diaspora there have been prominent members of the Jewish community who have advocated for Jewish interests with those in positions of authority.

Dr. Jacob Birnbaum (1926-2014)

By Sandy Eller Living as we are in 2021, it’s hard to believe that until not long ago Orthodox Jews shied away from publicly advocating for particular issues, instead focusing all their efforts on behind-the-scenes diplomacy. But that was exactly the case until 1964, the year that Dr. Jacob Birnbaum chose to ignore the prevailing sentiment that organized campaigns could spark negative backlash and shone the spotlight on the plight of Soviet Jewry in a rather unconventional way.

Having grown up in London as a World War II refugee, Birnbaum knew even as a child about the carnage that was decimating European Jewry; his father’s job as a British government postal censor had him reading intercepted letters detailing the suffering and bloodshed that the Nazis tried to keep under the radar.

Throughout his life, Birnbaum was haunted by the Holocaust and his inability to save those who were being slaughtered, which drove him to advocate for Jews subjected to spiritual genocide behind the Iron Curtain.

“As a student of history, he clearly felt that we have to learn the lessons of history so that the powerlessness of Jews while their brethren were being slaughtered in Europe shouldn’t be repeated with the Soviet Jews,” explains Birnbaum’s nephew Rabbi Jonathan Guttentag.

Dr. Jacob Birnbaum.

Photos courtesy of Yeshiva University Archives

Knowing that adults would be loath to publicly demonstrate against the dominant world power at the time, Birnbaum turned to a different demographic—students. He headed to Yeshiva University and urged students to join him in the newly created Student Struggle for Soviet Jewry, dubbed SSSJ, which he had founded together with Glenn Richter.

Birnbaum’s multi-pronged approach, which called for mobilizing people to champion the cause, running daily campaigns using contemporary civil rights protest tactics and pressuring Washington to take action, are detailed in a 2017 Russian American Jewish Experience (RAJE) video (https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=CmV2Ismz9Bg).

(RAJE addresses the Jewish communal and educational needs of young Russian American Jews.) In addition

to doing his best to capture media attention, Birnbaum was also hoping to let the Soviet Union’s three million Jews know they weren’t being forgotten.

Birnbaum’s strategies may seem typical today, but at the time they were groundbreaking. Using key phrases like “Let my people go” and Biblical images with universal recognition, he sparked a movement that left American Jews feeling responsible for their Soviet counterparts.

At SSSJ’s first rally, timed to coincide with the Soviet holiday of May Day, 1,000 students demonstrated in total silence for four hours across from the Soviet Union’s mission to the United Nations, the eerie quiet paying homage to Soviet Jewry’s forced silence.1 SSSJ remained at the forefront of the Soviet Jewry movement for years, with a single-minded focus of freeing all those who remained trapped behind the Iron Curtain. Even as it became a global cause, with others taking the lead in many areas, Birnbaum remained SSSJ’s heart and soul, steering its vision and staying in close contact with community leaders and elected officials. Seeing how a small group of students ultimately altered the course of Jewish history was a dream come true for Birnbaum, with American Jewry realizing for the first time that it had the power to take on causes and enact positive change.

Rabbi Guttentag describes his uncle as an idealist, someone who kept his head down and did whatever he could to help others throughout his life.

“Even in the final years of his life, he would agonize over the hardships that were affecting local families, and you could see his pain when he heard of families in Eretz Yisrael going through challenges,” says Rabbi Guttentag.

“That was his lev tov, his good heart, in the macro and the micro.”

Note 1. Yossi Klein Halevi, “Jacob Birnbaum and the Struggle for Soviet Jewry,” AzureOnline, 17 (spring 2004).

Sandy Eller is a writer for numerous websites, newspapers, magazines and private clients.

Seeing how a small group of students ultimately altered the course of Jewish history was a dream come true for Birnbaum.

A group of Yeshiva University students from the Student Struggle for Soviet Jewry (SSSJ) attending a protest in the 1960s.

Irving Bunim (1901-1980)

By Merri Ukraincik For Irving Bunim, the strength and well-being of the Jewish people was more than just his life’s purpose.

“Klal Yisrael was the air he breathed.

Not an activity, but his identity,” reflects Rabbi Aaron Kotler, president and CEO of Lakewood’s Beth Medrash Govoha (BMG).

His son, Rabbi Amos Bunim, described the fire in his father’s soul,

an energy that fueled Irving Bunim’s outsized efforts as a philanthropist and activist. Most notably, he is remembered for his part in rescuing European Jews from the Holocaust and shaping America’s Orthodox Jewish landscape.

Born in Volozhin, then part of the Russian Empire, Bunim immigrated to New York in 1909 with his family.

He became a successful businessman also known for his Ethics from Sinai, a beloved commentary on Pirkei Avos.

But it was his partnership with Torah luminary Rav Aharon Kotler as well as his important connections with Washington insiders that advanced his advocacy on behalf of Orthodox Jewry.

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Just before they left for America, Bunim’s father, who served as the personal secretary to Rabbi Raphael Shapiro, the famed rosh yeshivah of the Volozhin Yeshiva, took his young son to see the rav. Reb Raphael turned to the nine-year-old and said: “I’m giving you a berachah that you’re going to build Torah in America.”

Indeed, Bunim did just that.

Arriving at a time when other Jewish denominations had greater momentum in the US, Bunim developed a quick understanding of the country’s spiritual climate and saw what was necessary to preserve Torah Judaism.

He helped grow the Young Israel movement, which subsequently established an Orthodox infrastructure of day schools, mikvaos and shuls with mechitzahs. The movement’s existence proved critical when gedolim came to America from Europe, looking to rebuild their yeshivas in frum communities during and after the Holocaust.

“At one point, the Young Israel movement was struggling and there were those who wanted to join forces with the Conservative movement.

My grandfather, who was only in his twenties at that time, realized the risks [of such a merger],” says Mina Glick.

“He went to Rabbi Dr. Bernard Revel [president of Yeshiva Rabbeinu Yitzchak Elchanan, which later became Yeshiva University] and asked for his help to prevent this. My grandfather was a ro’eh es hanolad [one who looks ahead].”

As a leader of the Vaad Hatzalah, the emergency rescue committee established by the Union of Orthodox Rabbis of the United States and Canada (Agudath Harabbanim) in November 1939, Bunim was a key player in the resettlement of hundreds of European rashei yeshivah and their talmidim from Soviet and Nazi-occupied territories. Among those who came to America were Rav Aharon Kotler of Kletzk. He and Bunim became close friends and partners in providing for tzarchei tzibbur.

Rabbi Kotler, Rav Kotler’s grandson, remembers them as a “relentless pair, their tasks Herculean, always working together.” He adds, “Irving Bunim was larger than life, a galva68

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Irving Bunim was larger than life, motivation was always pure.

He had no ego. nizing figure because his motivation was always pure. He had no ego.”

Rav Kotler relied completely on Bunim to execute their plans. Bunim, who Rabbi Kotler notes was “mevatel to da’as Torah in all he did,” took up the gauntlet for each cause. A passionate speaker and force of nature, he raised funds for the Vaad’s rescue efforts, and later, for relief supplies to keep refugee Torah scholars in Shanghai and Soviet Central Asia alive during the war. He also publicized Nazi atrocities to bring general awareness and to soften the hearts of officials who remained indifferent to the plight of European Jews.

Bunim and his Vaad colleagues worked tirelessly, providing financial affidavits while lobbying the White House to increase US immigration quotas and the State Department for

visas. In one well-known episode, Bunim drove off on a Shabbos afternoon in a cab with several prominent rabbanim to Brooklyn, where they raised the funds required for the Mir Yeshiva’s escape from Soviet territory.

After America entered the war, Rav Kotler and Bunim petitioned David K. Niles, a Jewish advisor to President Roosevelt, to prevent the Nazis from deporting American Jewish POWs to concentration camps. The two boarded a train, Rav Kotler with a burning fever, to meet him. Niles contacted General Eisenhower, then supreme commander of the Allied Forces in Europe, who threatened retribution against Germany after the war—a ploy that proved successful.

Bunim also devoted himself to securing the future of the klal,

Seated, from left: Rabbi Yosef Ber Soloveitchik, Rabbi Aharon Kotler and Irving Bunim at the Chinuch Atzmai dinner, circa 1956. Photo courtesy of BMG Archives

becoming a champion of Jewish education. In addition to his partnership with Rav Kotler in establishing BMG in Lakewood, Bunim was instrumental in the creation of Chinuch Atzmai, Israel’s independent Torah elementary school system, as well as Torah Umesorah and the Rabbi Jacob Joseph School. He supported numerous other religious institutions, including Yeshiva University.

An outspoken Zionist, Bunim aligned with Zabotinsky’s Revisionist Zionist movement, and Chana Rubin Ausubel recalls that her father “revered Zabotinsky’s memory.”

Bunim secured donations for the Betar paramilitary group following the 1929 Hebron massacre and organized a 1947 rally at Madison Square Garden to secure funding for ammunition in preparation for the War of Independence.

Rabbi Kotler remembers being moved, even as a child, while watching Bunim daven in his grandfather’s yeshivah on Yom Kippur. “He had tremendous kavanah that revealed a close personal relationship with Hakadosh Baruch Hu. It was at the heart of everything he did.”

So, too, was Bunim’s ahavas Yisrael.

Glick recalls that during the seventies and eighties before her grandfather would start the Pesach Seder, he would remind his family around the table of their brothers and sisters locked behind the Iron Curtain. “These Jews do not have the opportunity to celebrate a Seder,” he would say, tears rolling down his cheeks.

When Irving Bunim passed away in December 1980, Rav Moshe Feinstein declared his death an aveilus d’rabim, a loss for the entire klal. But the fire in Bunim’s soul still burns strong today in the legacy he left behind.

Merri Ukraincik has written for the Forward, the New York Jewish Week, Hevria, the Wisdom Daily, Tablet and other publications, including Jewish Action. She is the author of I Live. Send Help, a history of the Joint Distribution Committee.

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Stephen Klein pictured with group of children who were hidden during the Holocaust during his trip to Europe as an officer of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) in 1946. Photo courtesy of BMG Archives

Stephen Klein (1907-1978)

By Rochel Licht In 1938, after the Anschluss, the annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany, Stephen Klein fled Austria and settled in New York. Having been in the chocolate business in Vienna, in New York he founded Barton’s Candy Corporation (initially known as Barton’s Bonbonniere), which produced deluxe kosher chocolate. Almost unheard of at the time, Barton’s, a major retail company with more than several dozen stores, was closed for Shabbos and Jewish holidays. (By the time Klein passed away in 1978, the company had gone public with 3,000 stores across the country.) Furthermore, Barton’s proudly listed Sabbath candle lighting times in the New York Times and other major newspapers. Klein, as a recently arrived refugee, demonstrated that even in America, economic success does not preclude commitment to Torah observance. Almost

single-handedly, he had begun to change the American Jewish narrative.

Hearing of Nazi attacks on Jews in Vienna and other European countries, Klein devoted great efforts to securing visas and sponsorships for family members and friends desperately seeking emigration. He joined the Vaad Hatzalah and became one of its major activists. He provided financial support, raised funds and used his business connections to open doors to government leaders. With the arrival of Rav Aharon Kotler to New York in 1941, Klein became the rosh yeshivah’s devoted disciple. “I never saw such a relationship of total devotion by a philanthropist and lay leader to a rosh yeshivah as that of Stephen Klein to Hagaon Rav Aharon Kotler,” said the well-known late Jewish communal leader Dr. Marvin Schick. “He followed Rav Aharon’s orders like a servant. He did not always agree with him, but he complied with his requests with all his heart and resources.”1 On numerous occasions, Klein joined Rav Kotler and other rabbinic leaders in Washington, DC, to intercede with government officials for the rescue of European Jews.

Klein, as a recently arrived refugee, demonstrated that even in America, economic success does not preclude commitment to Torah observance.

After the war, the Vaad Hatzalah expanded its activities to aid the she’erit hapleita, the survivors in DP camps. As chairman of the Vaad Hatzalah Immigration Committee, Klein was deeply concerned about the welfare of the survivors and their transfer out of Europe. In 1946, he traveled to Europe as an officer of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA), leaving his family and business behind.

During his six-month trip, he visited a number of DP camps and devoted significant time to arranging visas and documents for thousands of refugees. Aware of the importance of the survivors’ religious recovery, he helped establish kosher kitchens, schools and yeshivos, and distributed much-coveted religious books and ceremonial articles. In France, Klein helped establish five children’s homes, where orphans were cared for and educated.

When he returned to New York, his work didn’t stop. He was determined to raise awareness of the survivors’ dire situation and to assist as many survivors as possible.

A 1952 article in Commentary refers to an office in Klein’s company known as the “Office of Immigration,” which was dedicated to attending to the “various technical details for bringing over Jewish displaced persons from Europe.” The article states that [as of 1952], “some fifteen hundred persons have come to America through Klein’s aid.”2 “Stephen Klein had a way of listening to people . . . it did not matter how busy he was . . . and focusing only on you,” said Rabbi Joseph Baumol, founder of the Yeshiva of Crown Heights in 72

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Brooklyn. “When someone came to him with a problem, regardless of who it was, he would listen to every word and genuinely try to help.”3 Throughout his communal activities, Klein was involved in supporting Jewish education. Even in his business life, Klein, who was innovative and forward thinking, found ways to educate his Jewish consumers by including attractive and informative pamphlets about the upcoming Jewish holiday in his chocolate gift boxes.

Klein was vice president of Torah Umesorah/the National Society for Hebrew Day Schools, and helped establish Yeshiva University High School for Girls. He became chairman of Chinuch Atzmai. Along with his generosity, his relentless efforts impacted tens of thousands of children in hundreds of Torah schools in Eretz Yisrael. Remarkably, due to Klein’s persistence, Chinuch Atzmai received support from various factions of American Orthodoxy.

And, of course, Klein provided significant financial support to help Rav Kotler, his revered rebbe, in the establishment of Beth Medrash Govoha in Lakewood, New Jersey.

Shortly before his passing, Klein also aided the struggling Yeshiva R’tzahd in Brooklyn.

At an event honoring Stephen Klein and his lifetime of extraordinary accomplishments, Rabbi Mordechai Gifter, rosh yeshivah of Telshe Yeshiva in Cleveland, Ohio, stated:4 “We have become accustomed to thinking of a gadol only in terms of the great Torah scholar. Chazal define the gadol hador as being . . . anshei ma’asim v’tzaddikim—men of righ-

teous deeds whose lives are representative of never-ceasing action in carrying forth the dictates of the gedolei haTorah of all times. In this sense of gadol hador . . . [Stephen Klein has] justly earned the title ‘gadol ish hama’aseh’ in the highest sense of the word.”

Notes 1. Quoted in Rabbi A. Leib Scheinbaum, The World That Was: America 1900-1945 (Living Memorial; Klein Family ed., Brooklyn, NY, 2004), 417.

2. Morris Freedman, “From the American Scene: Orthodox Sweets for Heterodox New York,” May 1952.

3. Ibid., p. 416.

4. Ibid., p. 433.

Rochel Licht is a Holocaust educator in the New York metropolitan area.

Rabbi Joseph Karasick (1922-2020)

By Sandy Eller Over the years, much has been written about Rabbi Joseph Karasick, a visionary who dedicated his life to strengthening Orthodox Judaism in the United States and beyond. Stepping into a void that existed in the late 1950s, he became a member of the OU’s Board of Directors, the start of a lifelong commitment to the organization that continued until his passing in August 2020 at the age of ninety-eight.

While Rabbi Karasick’s tenure as president of the OU is remembered for his many accomplishments, his appointment in 1966 was by no means expected. At age forty-four, he was considered young for the position, which he attained because of his close relationship with the previous OU president, Moe Feuerstein. During his six years as president, Rabbi Karasick invigorated the OU, recruiting younger people, including individuals such as Rabbi Julius Berman, Larry Kobrin and Fred Ehrman, all of whom are well known today for their contributions

to Jewish life. He was also responsible for arranging the World Conference of Synagogues in Jerusalem, positioning the OU as an international voice for Jewish affairs.

He steered the OU through its significant role during Israel’s Six-Day War, organizing a massive rally in Washington, DC, which had American Jews expressing their support for Israel and calling on President Lyndon Johnson to pledge his assistance to the Jewish State. It was also during his presidency at the OU that Rabbi Karasick undertook what he later considered to be one of the greatest achievements of his life—helping French Jews remain connected to their religious roots.* After stepping down as president, Rabbi Karasick became chairman of the OU’s Board of Directors, continuously expanding the organization’s scope. He invested considerable efforts into growing NCSY into a major powerhouse in the world of kiruv, taking its efforts as far west as California and northward into Canada.

Rabbi Karasick focused on broadening Orthodoxy globally and strengthening ties between Jewish communities all across the world, those efforts making it clear that the OU’s reach extended far beyond American shores. He was passionate when it came to ensuring that synagogues continue evolving in contemporary times without compromising on the tenets of Jewish law, endowing the Pepa and Joseph Karasick Department of Synagogue Initiatives. Today, the department provides a wide array of support mechanisms that allow synagogues and Jewish communities throughout North America to grow and prosper.

While strengthening Orthodox Judaism was a high priority for Rabbi Karasick, that effort wasn’t without its challenges. His son George recalled one instance when a group of Midwestern synagogues, located mostly in the Chicago area, wanted to become members of the OU’s network of synagogues. While their services were technically Orthodox and men and women sat separately, the synagogues had no mechitzot, creating a very real dilemma for Rabbi 74

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Rabbi Joseph Karasick meeting with President Jimmy Carter as part of a delegation of the World Jewish Congress-North America (WJC-NA), circa 1978. From left: President Jimmy Carter; unidentified; Herb Berman, officer of WJC-NA; Rabbi Julius Berman, president of the OU at the time; and Rabbi Joseph Karasick, OU chairman of the Board and former OU president. Photo courtesy of Mark Karasick

jumped into action. He arranged Karasick. On the one hand, how could an Orthodox shul not have a a meeting with the prime minister mechitzah? On the other hand, adding and was able to convince him to let several thousand new members to the students remain in yeshivah. the OU would create the potential As someone who also took on to grow Orthodoxy even further. key roles at Yeshiva University, the As he had on so many other Conference of Presidents of Major occasions in his life, Rabbi Karasick American Jewish Organizations, reached out to his rabbinical authority, the Beth Din of America and the Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, for International Jewish Committee on guidance and was instructed to call Interreligious Consultations, Rabbi Rabbi Ahron Soloveichik, who was Karasick was a strong believer in living in Chicago at the time. “Rav personal involvement and had little Ahron told my father, ‘Don’t do it, patience for spectators who opted to sit they will come around eventually,’” on the sidelines. Instead, he preferred says George. “My father didn’t accept to see people getting into the trenches them as members, and the shuls that of communal life, whether it was on stood the test of time ultimately put the local, national or international in mechitzot. It was an interesting level. And while others might have case at the time because Orthodoxy chosen to step back and enjoy a wasn’t flourishing as it is today, so the well-deserved break after decades thought to include them was tempting.” of activism, Rabbi Karasick chose to In addition to his decades of remain in the loop even after he hit advocacy on behalf of Orthodoxy, ninety. “He was getting called into Rabbi Karasick was extremely OU meetings in the last year of his dedicated to the rabbanim in his life. life,” says George. “Even then, he was After being asked in 1969 by Rabbi still getting nachat from the OU.” Yechezkel Abramsky, head of the Vaad * Much of Rabbi Karasick’s life HaYeshivot at the time, to speak with accomplishments are found in his Israeli Prime Minister Levi Eshkol autobiography: Thirteen Steps: Orthodox about a possible plan to draft yeshivah Judaism in America Comes of Age: My students into the army, Rabbi Karasick Life and Times (OU Press, 2017).

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From left: Stephen Klein, Rabbi Aharon Kotler, Zev Wolfson (standing), and Rabbi Menachem Porush at the Chinuch Atzmai dinner, circa 1956. Photo courtesy of BMG Archives

Zev Wolfson (1928-2012)

By Jonathan Rosenblum Each person is unique, but most at least fall into certain broad categories and possess traits similar to others. Not so, Zev Wolfson. He was absolutely sui generis.

Between the early 1990s and Zev’s petirah in 2012, Keren Wolfson regularly gave away close to fifty million dollars a year in Israel, and sums in the tens of the millions elsewhere around the globe. And even those amounts paled in comparison to the monies he raised from various governments over the preceding three and a half decades.

If one word can capture him, it is relentless. Once he had identified his goal, he barely saw anything between him and that goal. On one of his first lobbying trips to Washington DC, he instructed his friend Amos Bunim to distract the secretary who had denied him access to a particular senator, while Zev vaulted over the office partition, at the risk of arrest, and into the startled senator’s office to plead his case.

It was Rav Aharon Kotler who first recognized that the chutzpah of the 76

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red-haired young businessman—who had arrived in America as a seventeen-year-old, penniless immigrant, after spending the war years in Kazakhstan—could be utilized on behalf of Klal Yisrael. Rav Aharon once sent him to Israel with a letter of introduction to the leaders of Chinuch Atzmai, which stated simply, “He gets things done no one else can.”

Then Israeli Finance Minister Levi Eshkol, on a trip to America to plead the fledgling state’s case for American aid, was shocked to be asked repeated questions about Chinuch Atzmai by the senators on the Foreign Relations Committee, though none could come close to pronouncing the organization’s name. But Eshkol got the point: More favorable treatment of Chinuch Atzmai by the Israeli government would bolster Israel’s case for American aid.

Eshkol may have left DC muttering on that occasion, but he and subsequent finance ministers had reason to be profoundly grateful to Wolfson. A former senior Treasury official once told me that when the economic history of Israel is written, Zev Wolfson will be one of the three seminal figures, along with Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion and long-time Finance Minister Pinchas Sapir. Again and again, Wolfson was

able to use his connections in the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, chiefly with Senator Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii), to save Israel billions of dollars.

In 1985, at a time of hyperinflation in Israel, Wolfson shepherded through Congress an appropriations bill that permitted Israel to refinance existing loans by prepaying the existing loans and taking new ones, with US loan guarantees, at much lower interest rates, thereby saving Israel hundreds of millions of dollars. In 1989, when Israel was desperate for funds to finance the absorption of hundreds of thousands of refugees from the Former Soviet Union, Wolfson played a major role in securing tens of billions of dollars in US government loan guarantees.

During the 1991 Gulf War, Wolfson invited Senator Inouye out on his boat.

Israel was being pounded by Iraqi Scuds, and Wolfson wondered aloud whether there wasn’t anything in the American arsenal that could protect against them. Inouye told him about the Patriot missile and speculated that Israel must not have asked for them. Wolfson immediately called his friend, Defense Minister Yitzchak Rabin, to relay the message. The next day’s New York Times reported that the Patriots were on their way.

For decades, there was a “Seif Wolfson” in the Israeli budget, in gratitude for Wolfson’s immense services to Israel, all rendered behind the scenes and without any publicity.

Monies from that budget went to finance religious schools in France (for which Wolfson had secured the land from President Jacques Chirac), kiruv activities in Russia, and a network of residential religious dormitory schools in Israel for children from disadvantaged backgrounds. All based on Wolfson’s early recognition that governments have much more money to give out than individuals.

When new transparency rules rendered Wolfson’s means of directing funds to religious institutions no longer viable, he simply began donating himself on a scale unprecedented in Jewish history.

Asked by a senior official at Morgan Stanley how he had made his money,

he answered without hesitation, “God gave it to me.” And based on that recognition, he and his descendants after him gave prodigiously.

Jonathan Rosenblum is a journalist who writes for several Orthodox media publications, and has a weekly column in Mishpacha.

Dr. Marvin Schick (1934-2020)

By Steve Lipman A story, possibly apocryphal, is told about the late Dr. Marvin Schick.

During the administration of Nelson Rockefeller, governor of New York State from 1959 to 1973, Dr. Schick, then a professor at Hunter College in Manhattan, was part of a delegation of leaders from several Jewish organizations who were meeting with the governor and his staff in Albany.

Their mission was to request religious accommodations for Orthodox Jews on such issues as the right to observe the Shabbath without endangering one’s employment. Dr. Schick, who always wore a kippah, was the only Orthodox, Sabbath-observant Jew in the group.

Rockefeller reportedly told one of his aides, “I prefer to work with those who observe the Sabbath themselves rather than those who only advocate for it.”

This is one of the many times that Dr. Schick demonstrated an uncompromising commitment to integrity and an example of how his attitude was appreciated by those who recognize and value that unique quality.

Though no one with inside information can prove that Dr. Schick’s presence directly influenced the governor’s subsequent actions in favor of the Orthodox community, Orthodox Jews did receive expanded rights during the Rockefeller administration, and Dr. Schick’s uncompromising, visible assertion of his Jewish observance was credited with playing a role. A typical achievement of a man who served as an unpaid advocate of many Jewish interests.

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Manhattan native Dr. Schick, who died in April 2020 at age eightyfive, ranked among the best-known national spokesmen for Jewish causes.

He had both a PhD (in constitutional law, from New York University) and rabbinical ordination (from the Rabbi Jacob Joseph School). Focusing on the importance of Jewish education, he visited hundreds of Jewish schools around the country. A prolific writer and heartfelt advocate for Jewish children, he decried the “culture of rejection” in our schools. “If Rabbi Akiva and Rabbi Eliezer Hagadol would come to our yeshivos today, they would be turned away,” he once wrote.

“He was a trailblazer, influencing a full generation of advocates [when] Jewish advocacy was in its infancy,” says Ezra Friedlander, who has provided government and public relations counsel, mostly centering on Jewish issues, to nonprofit organizations for two decades. “He wasn’t following in anyone’s footsteps.”

Friedlander attributes Dr. Schick’s success to his public speaking and op-ed writing abilities, his political background, which included a stint as Jewish liaison in the administration of New York Mayor John Lindsay, and his willingness to “appeal to the

Asked by a how he had made his money, he

larger Jewish community” outside of strictly Orthodox circles.

Dr. Schick had a keen eye for vital but overlooked communal necessities and spent years trying to convince the community that it needed to reallocate resources. When he saw an important cause go unaddressed, he wrote and spoke eloquently about it in public and, when necessary, built the necessary organization and infrastructure to begin the important work.

Volunteering for and founding several Jewish organizations, Dr.

Dr. Marvin Schick with then rosh yeshivah of Beth Medrash Govoha Rabbi Yosef Chaim Shneur Kotler, June 1979. Photo courtesy of Avi Schick

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Schick worked on both a micro and macro level for the Jewish community, says his son Avi Schick. “There’s the Jewish People—and Jewish people,” the larger Jewish community and individual, often unsung Jews. “He understood both,” and was equally comfortable dealing with government officials and congregants in his Brooklyn shul, notes Avi. Strongly influenced by the late Rabbi Aharon Kotler, Dr. Schick promised him that he would devote his life to assisting Torah institutions. Thus it was no surprise that among his other achievements in fortifying Torah education, he ended up serving as the unpaid president of the Rabbi Jacob Joseph Yeshiva for more than four decades, helping to educate more than five thousand students.

Among Dr. Schick’s communal accomplishments were: serving as senior advisor for the Avi Chai Foundation, which managed a $50 million fund that provided interest-free loans of up to $1 million to Jewish day schools; founding the now-defunct Commission on Law and Public Affairs (COLPA), a voluntary association of attorneys who represented the observant Jewish community on legal, legislative and related matters; supporting the work of the Israeli-based Chinuch Atzmai educational system; and working alongside both the OU and Agudath Israel of America.

Dr. Schick was not regarded as a representative of any particular Jewish organization, says Dr. David Luchins, longtime chair of the Political Science Department at Touro College. Though he spent more than sixty years in Jewish communal service, “Marvin was an outsider,” not a paid leader of any Jewish organization or beholden to any particular parochial agenda or single constituency.

“He didn’t see labels. He didn’t see boundaries,” says Avi Schick.

Steve Lipman is a frequent contributor to Jewish Action.

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Rabbi Herman Naftali Neuberger (1918-2005)

By Aviva Engel In the heart of Baltimore’s Jewish community sits an exquisite shul reminiscent of an ancient Persian palace. The 20,000-square-foot, three-story building is home to Ohr Hamizrach, an Orthodox, Sephardic-Iranian congregation and vibrant community center. Founded in 1981, the shul is dedicated to the memory of Rabbi Herman Naftali Neuberger, a man without whom the congregation—and the community— might never have existed.

The story of how an Ashkenazi refugee from Bavaria came to save hundreds of Persian Jews following the Iranian Revolution is intriguing. Born in 1918 in the small northern town of Hassfurt, Rabbi Neuberger traveled to Poland as a teen to study at the Mir Yeshiva. “He went to Mir as a German bachur who could barely learn Gemara,” says his grandson Rabbi Boruch Neuberger. “They worked with him along with many other German bachurim—which was not the norm— and . . . they changed his life. He saw that as a life lesson: that people have to think beyond their own daled amos, their own sphere. There’s a greater Klal Yisrael and there’s a greater cause, and we have that achrayus.”

In 1938, as the scourge of anti-Semitism intensified in Eastern Europe, an American relative helped Rabbi Neuberger flee to

pikuach nefesh.

New York. Decades later, Rabbi Neuberger would pay the chesed forward in droves. But first he would help establish Ner Yisroel Rabbinical College, one of North America’s most preeminent yeshivos.

Shortly after his arrival to the US, the young Rabbi Neuberger visited Baltimore and stopped by Ner Yisroel. Founded in 1933, the fledgling yeshivah had under forty talmidim at the time. He nevertheless decided to enroll. Within days, he was handed a key to the administrative office—a privilege that roused the envy of some of his peers who were unaware that he was actually working in the office between sedarim and at night to arrange European Jews’ immigration to America. In 1940, the rosh yeshivah, Rabbi Yaakov Yitzchok Ruderman, asked Rabbi Neuberger to become Ner Yisroel’s official fundraiser and administrator.

For more than six decades, Rabbi Neuberger, as the esteemed president and executive director of Ner Yisroel, fully immersed himself in its advancement. His rapport with developers, vice presidents of financial institutions, and Jewish Federation leaders enabled him to secure funding for two state-of-the-art campuses—the first on Garrison Boulevard in 1941 and the second in 1964 on Mount Wilson Lane, Ner Yisroel’s current home.

In 1956, he and Rabbi Yaakov Weinberg co-founded a mechinah program for high school students.

They also launched the Association of Advanced Rabbinical and Talmudic Schools (AARTS), a national body that accredits affiliated yeshivos as

institutions of higher education. Rabbi Neuberger frequently collaborated with the OU, and Ner Yisroel hosted the popular “NCSY Goes to Yeshiva” summer program for Jewish teens (which later became Camp NCSY Sports) for many years. Thanks to Rabbi Neuberger’s vision and dedication, Ner Yisroel flourished.

“We [his grandchildren] got to see firsthand how involved my grandfather was,” says Rabbi Boruch, “not just . . . in carrying the financial responsibility of the yeshivah but in spending so much of his time involved in Klal Yisrael’s personal needs, always quietly behind the scenes, moving and shaking and making things happen. We took it for granted that this was who he was.” Renowned for his tremendous Rabbi Herman Naftali Neuberger (on right, pointing) showing donors the site for the new Ner Yisroel building on Mount Wilson Lane, circa 1960. Photo: Jewish Museum of Maryland gemilus chasadim, he treated everyone like family and eagerly helped Jewish Iranian leaders sought Rabbi group, literally saved a whole chelek them resolve myriad issues through Neuberger’s assistance to help the of Klal Yisrael?” says Rabbi Boruch. advocacy and mediation at any hour. country’s roughly 80,000 Jews.

Rabbi “And he not only saved them, but he “I distinctly remember two [Pesach] Neuberger brought a small group gave them the ability to regrow their Sedarim where my grandfather of boys back to Ner Yisroel (where roots here in America . . . If you look was not at the table,” recalls Rabbi many studied tuition-free), with the across the US, every community that Boruch. “He was in his study on the intent of sending them back once has a significant Persian kehillah phone dealing with issues of pikuach they had completed their studies. is led by Ner Yisroel talmidim.” nefesh. My father ran the Seder, and But when Ayatollah Khomeini “My grandfather, together with Rav my grandpa’s chair remained empty.” regained power in 1979, Jewish life in Ruderman, had this incredible vision Community and political leaders Iran became increasingly repressive. to create an outstanding yeshivah and admired and respected Rabbi In 1983, Rabbi Neuberger and put it on the international map,” says Neuberger and regularly sought his Agudath Israel of America Chairman Rabbi Boruch. “He created a campus counsel. One such politician was Rabbi Moshe Sherer persuaded the environment that exists almost former Maryland Senator Barbara US State Department to allow Iranian nowhere else in the world. At the same Mikulski, who referred to Rabbi Jews to seek asylum as political time, he never lost his ability to impact Neuberger as “a giant among men.” refugees. Rabbi Neuberger helped both the city of Baltimore and the Rabbi Neuberger’s commitment to nearly 1,000 Persian Jews immigrate world beyond the yeshivah’s walls.” bridge-building both within and to Baltimore, including teenage girls beyond the Jewish community was who were taken in by local families. exemplary, and his influence was Aviva Engel is an award-winning “Rabbi Neuberger considered us his widespread. Among his notable freelance journalist and a director children,” says Ohr Hamizrach’s of communications in Montreal, Canada. connections was Baltimore’s Rabbi Reuben Arieh. “He took our Archbishop, Cardinal William H. boys into the yeshivah without Keeler, who collaborated with Rabbi asking for payment, and helped us Neuberger to lobby the government with food and immigration. In his on issues of joint concern to their zechut, these Ner Yisroel alumni communities.

In 1975, the Shah of Iran toppled the are teaching Torah in Atlanta, Los Angeles, and around the world.” democratically elected government.

Today, sixteen years after his Upon discovering that religious

By Jonathan Rosenblum passing, Rabbi Neuberger’s legacy schools were being utilized by radical endures and his light continues to Muslim clerics to preach resistance, the Shah significantly restricted It is one of history’s ironies that shine. “How many people can say the hours of religious instruction. that they, together with a very small the Agudah movement in America

Elimelech Gavriel (Mike) Tress (1910-1967)

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came about almost entirely through the magnetic personality of a clean-shaven college graduate who never spent a day in any yeshivah.

Mike Tress was twenty-one years old when he first walked into the Rodney Street branch of Zeirei Agudath Israel in 1931, after reading an article on Agudath Israel by Moreinu Yaakov Rosenheim, the world president, in the New York Public Library.

Within six months he had been elected president of the branch, over the strenuous objections of most of the older members. But as Louis Septimus, one of his original opponents, subsequently wrote, the older members who stayed away that night rendered a signal service by paving the way for the transformation of a shalosh seudos club into a world movement.

Gershon Kranzler, who had recently emigrated from Germany, became Mike’s closest assistant in building up Pirchei chapters across New York City, and then in other cities. He described the impact of Mike’s words on a small group of boys gathered for a melaveh malkah in a forlorn shul attic: He addressed them, seriously and sincerely, and the ragged little children were lifted above their small, confining worlds. . . . His sincerity struck home

when he waved the magic wand of his “chaverim”. . . He made all of us, the Pirchim from East New York, the chaverim from the Bronx, the West Side, or Bushwick, feel like soldiers, recruited into the ranks of Hashem’s army, the Maccabees of today.

“He taught us that Judaism is not just a tradition, but our most precious possession, a possession for which he had to be prepared to fight and pay a price,” remembers Torah Vodaath’s Rav Moshe Wolfson. And when the remnant of the European Torah world began to arrive in America, they found a group of

Mike Tress (far right) with Hungarian refugees, December 1956.

Photo courtesy of Agudath Israel of America Archives

young American Jews who had been trained to look upon them as the true leaders of the Jewish people.

Those youngsters were prepared to venerate the newcomers because their first hero had pronounced the names of the leaders of European Jewry, in forum after forum, year after year, with such awe and reverence.

Above all, Mike channeled their youthful idealism into life-saving work. Zeirei Agudath Israel worked endlessly to procure visas for Jews trapped in Europe throughout the war, prepared the applications for seventy Special Visitors Visas, which brought to America leading roshei yeshivah, helped to procure thousands of fake South American passports, conducted endless fundraising campaigns (including closing the yeshivos for three days) in response to Rabbi Michoel Ber Weissmandl’s pleas for funds for his rescue schemes. The six-foot-long forms for visas had to be typed out on manual typewriters, in quadruplicate, by young volunteers.

After the war, volunteers worked around the clock, including yeshivah students after night seder or returning from college night classes, packing cartons sent through the army post office to Orthodox soldiers in Europe for the she’eris hapleita in the DP camps. Some were still existing on less than 1,000 calories a day, and felt abandoned by world Jewry, even after the torments they had undergone.

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1945 and spent more than a month with the she’eris hapleita, sleeping together with them on wooden pallets in extremely overcrowded lodgings. When he returned, he ignited a huge crowd—500 were turned away—with an account of his experiences and of his audience’s obligation to do everything possible to help them rebuild their lives.

Many said of Mike that they never met someone who suffered as he did from another Jew’s pain, and those closest to him attest that he was never the same after what he had experienced in the DP camps.

In 1939, Mike quit his job as an executive at S.C. Lamport, a large textile firm, to devote himself full-time to the rescue work of Zeirei. During one of Agudah’s recurring financial crises in the 1950s, an accountant appointed by the State of New York to review the organization’s books found that Mike had over seventeen years emptied his bank account, then sold off his stock portfolio, and finally mortgaged his home to fund the life-saving work of the Agudah, despite having a family of twelve children.

Toward the end of his life, he lacked the money for a heart operation, which offered his only hope of recovery. One of his daughters read in the paper that a shoe polish company of which he had been one-third owner had been sold for $3,000,000.

“Think how different it would have been had you held on to those shares,” she remarked to her father.

Mike’s only response: “Baruch Hashem, how different.”

Rabbi Moshe Sherer (1921-1998)

By Jonathan Rosenblum Mike Tress’s passion brought Agudath Israel of America into existence; his cousin Rabbi Moshe Sherer’s strategic acumen, administrative savvy, and unrivalled people skills forged Agudath Israel into a large, 84

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Rabbi Moshe Sherer with Robert Kennedy, circa 1960.

Photo courtesy of Agudath Israel of America Archives

highly effective organization. Under Mike, Agudah hurtled from one life-and-death crisis to another—the wartime rescue work, supplying the needs of the survivors after the war and settling them up in America and Israel, and doing the same for refugees from Hungary in 1956—at a time when the Orthodox community lacked almost any financial resources.

As soon as Rabbi Sherer cleared away the accumulated debts of over a quarter century, he set out to realize a long-term vision of building an independent Orthodoxy that would speak for itself to the public and in the halls of power.

He played a lead role in gathering Orthodox legal talent under the aegis of COLPA (Commission on Law and Public Affairs) to battle the American Jewish Congress on issues such as aid to parochial schools. In a 1960 letter to Telshe Rosh Yeshivah Rav Mordechai Gifter, he lamented Agudah’s lack of an organ to speak to the masses. And his first concrete goal upon assuming the helm of Agudath Israel was the creation of a first-class magazine of ideas, The Jewish Observer.

In the mid-1970s, he spearheaded the creation of the South Brooklyn

Community Organization to prevent the decline of Boro Park, as had previously happened to Crown Heights.

That multi-year project required funding from the Ford Foundation, the US government, and private businesses and individuals with a stake in Boro Park. Richard Schifter, a leading housing attorney, wrote off three million dollars in fees to SBCO. (Later, as a senior State Department official, Schifter played a major role in rescuing both Iranian Jews and those from the former Soviet Union.)

The creation of AARTS, an accrediting agency that made possible large-scale federal funding for post-high school yeshivos, was a nine-year project for Rabbi Sherer. It only came to fruition because at every turn the Department of Education official in charge of accreditation, Dr. John Proffitt, waived or interpreted bureaucratic requirements in favor of AARTS. At the end of the project, Proffitt wrote Rabbi Sherer to express how much he prized his friendship and of his regard for Rabbi Sherer “as one of the small group of superior persons I have come to know.”

Rabbi Sherer cultivated a vast array of politicians, senior bureaucrats

in both Albany and DC, as well as young legislative and administrative aides. Many of the latter on whom Rabbi Sherer lavished attention in their younger years went on to senior positions later in their careers.

The amount of thought he put into those relationship astounds. Before the recently widowed Hugh Carey was sworn in for his first term as governor of New York, Rabbi Sherer sent him a list of officials in Albany with children of the same ages as the Carey children, and who lived close to the governor’s mansion. But he treated the janitor and receptionist in the building housing the Agudah offices with the same respect and concern.

Every encounter with a non-religious Jew or a gentile was, in his eyes, an opportunity for kiddush Hashem.

He became, in time, the most respected and effective leader of American Orthodoxy. Then Vice President Al Gore Jr. put it well at an abbreviated Agudah dinner just hours after Rabbi Sherer’s passing. Eulogizing Rabbi Sherer, Gore urged his listeners not to think just of how far they had come since 1941, when Rabbi Sherer joined the Agudah, but of “how far Rabbi Sherer himself brought us.”

Moses Feuerstein (1916-2009)

The OU’s new President Moses Feuerstein weighed in, as we knew he would, with his strong support, reminding the cynics that his father Samuel had faced similar criticism when he started Torah Umesorah a decade earlier.

By establishing this much-needed youth group, Feuerstein and other supporters succeeded in bringing about a revolution, transforming the lives of thousands of teens as well as entire families and communities. Similarly, during his tenure, he laid the groundwork for OU Kosher, enabling it to become the largest and most respected kosher certification agency, today certifying over one million products in more than 13,000 plants worldwide.

Feuerstein strongly believed that rather than isolate themselves from the rest of the world, Orthodox Jews should reach out and build bridges and liaisons with other community organizations and leaders. His efforts resulted in the OU becoming active with other communal organizations such as the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, the National Jewish Community Relations Advisory Council (now called the Jewish Council for Political Affairs), the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies (which later merged and became UJA-Federation of New York), local Jewish community councils and so many others.

“Under his watch, the OU gained purpose and meaning, and Orthodoxy in America became a viable possibility

By Leah R. Lightman The future for Orthodoxy Jewry looked bleak when Moses Feuerstein began his twelve-year tenure in 1954 as president of the Orthodox Union. World Jewry was still reeling from the Holocaust. The non-Orthodox movements were strong and growing. The Orthodox day school movement was in its infancy, struggling to find students. On shaky ground, Orthodox Judaism questioned whether it would ever flourish in America.

Undeterred and equipped with the belief that Torah must pervade all areas of life, Feuerstein spearheaded the planting of seeds that were ultimately responsible for the vibrant American Orthodox Jewish life we witness today. As the late OU Honorary Past President Rabbi Joseph Karasick wrote upon Feuerstein’s passing: “By great fortune, Moses I. Feuerstein appeared on the scene and, knowingly or not, created a tsunami.”

Under Feuerstein’s leadership, the OU founded NCSY, a youth movement that changed and continues to change the face of the American Orthodox landscape.

Recalling the opposition Feuerstein and other lay leaders in support of NCSY faced, Bernard Lander, who went on to establish Touro College, wrote: At the [OU] convention, the New York City delegates were skeptical [about the resolution to create such a movement], but the delegates from out of town were outspoken and enthusiastic. One by one they rose to tell of how badly they needed such an effort, of how Orthodox Judaism would not survive in their communities if it did not happen.

Moses Feuerstein. Photo courtesy of Yeshiva University Archives Winter 5782/2021 JEWISH ACTION

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when it hadn’t been for so many years,” Zev Eleff, an expert in the field of American Jewish history, wrote when Feuerstein passed away in 2009 at the age of ninety-three.

Through Feuerstein’s vision and efforts, Orthodox Jews moved to the forefront of Jewish communal life, among other arenas. Statesman-like, Feuerstein led by example, always publicly wearing his yarmulke at a time when this practice was uncommon.

Feuerstein was also able to relate to the diverse segments of the Orthodox world. As OU Honorary Vice President Michael Wimpfheimer recalls, “He was close to many of the gedolim at that time. He had a very strong connection to Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik and he had close relationships with Rabbi Aharon Kotler and Rabbi Yaakov Kamenetsky. He was also active in Torah Umesorah. He had close friends in all circles of the Jewish world.”

During Feuerstein’s administration, the Rav was appointed as the OU’s official posek, providing halachic guidance to OU leadership on a range of complex social and political issues.

In a tribute to Feuerstein, Rabbi Karasick recalled that “when the Roman Catholic Church’s Vatican II reversed longstanding anti-Semitic teachings, there was a big push for interfaith dialogue. But the Rav felt strongly that discussion between Christians and Jews should be limited to nonreligious subjects, and Moe and the Orthodox Union followed the Rav’s directive.”

Feuerstein’s leadership training commenced as a child in Boston. He learned firsthand about klal work from his father Samuel, a textile industrialist who served in a number of Jewish leadership positions and was the founder of Torah Umesorah.

His commitments on the national Jewish scene notwithstanding, Feuerstein was intimately involved with Orthodox Jewish Boston. He and his wife Shirley, together with the extended Feuerstein family, were the backbones of the Young Israel of Brookline and supporters of the Rav in building Boston’s Maimonides 86

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School. Many university students passing through Boston during that time period were welcomed into the Feuerstein home for Shabbat and Jewish holidays and Feuerstein made himself available to speak with those who sought his advice. “[The Feuerstein home] was a home away from home for hundreds upon hundreds of college students who attended the renowned academic institutions in the area,” wrote OU Honorary Past President Rabbi Julius Berman.

A graduate student in Boston in the early 1970s, Chaya Levine remembers exploring the idea of launching a chesed project on college campuses.

“There was no doubt in my mind that Moses Feuerstein would be the best person to discuss the details of what we were trying to do,” she says. “His understanding of the Jewish world, his focus and attention to detail remain an inspiration to me today.”

After being re-elected to his third term as OU president, he traveled throughout North America trying to fortify Orthodox communities, large and small, strengthen mechitzot in Orthodox shuls, and engage in dialogue with the spectrum of Orthodox Jewry in order to inspire and bolster their growth.

“He viewed himself as a spokesman for Yiddishkeit,” says Wimpfheimer.

Leah R. Lightman is a freelance writer living in Lawrence, New York, with her family.

Rabbi Dr. Israel Miller (1919-2002)

By Steve Lipman In 1988 Rabbi Dr. Israel Miller faced some hardball questions from the hardest thrower in US journalism, which he treated as softball tosses. In a 60 Minutes interview, correspondent Mike Wallace, not always regarded as favorable to Jewish or Israeli issues, confronted Rabbi Miller, a vice president of the pro-Israel AIPAC lobbying organization, with documents that purportedly showed that AIPAC had illegally urged financial support for some political candidates.

Without blinking, the rabbi discounted, accurately, the documents as not representing AIPAC. Then he explained the then-wide support of US Jews for a strong Israel, some four decades after the end of the Holocaust.

“Had you and I been in certain parts of Europe, we would have walked to Auschwitz together,” Rabbi Miller told Wallace, who was born Myron Wallace in a Jewish family in Boston.

Wallace, not generally known to be part of the Jewish community, also did not blink.

Rabbi Miller, a graduate and ordainee of Yeshiva University who during his career dealt with presidents and prime ministers, had subtly made his point. Later that day he described the interview to his family.

Gideon Taylor, the new executive says Charles Rangel (D-NY), who as “My father outed Mike Wallace as vice president of the JCRC who had a member of the House of Represenbeing Jewish,” says Rabbi Michael previously served in that position at the tatives for forty-six years, frequently Miller, executive vice president Claims Conference, calls Rabbi Miller dealt with Rabbi Miller. He called the emeritus of New York City’s Jewish “a giant . . . one of those unsung heroes.”

Community Relations Council (JCRC), rabbi “a credit to the Jewish people.

“He was a uniter,” who worked with You never felt you were different from who followed his father into Jewish Saul Kagan, executive vice president him,” even if you were a member of a communal advocacy activities. of the Claims Conference, to arrange different religion.

“Dad was certain,” Rabbi Michael expanded pensions for Holocaust “It wasn’t lofty rhetoric. He knew says, that the “outing” part of the survivors from reunified Germany. interview “would end up on the cutting what to say and when to say it,” Rabbi “Tens of thousands of people got Michael says. He adds that his father’s room floor,” not part of the report pensions” because of Rabbi Miller’s soft-spoken yet tough personality aired on CBS. work, Taylor says. “This for him was an (“he was tough when he needed to be No prophet (that part of the interobligation of the Jewish people. This tough,”) along with his chairmanship view did air), Rabbi Miller was an was the essence of Jewish leadership.” of the Conference of Presidents of advocate for several Jewish causes In addition, Rabbi Miller sought Major American Jewish Organizations, over a half-century career, serving as a the return of Jewish property stolen pulpit rabbi in the Bronx before joining a consensus body, made him into an during the Holocaust, the sale of which effective advocate of Jewish interests.

YU as senior vice president in 1979. amounted to some $500 million, which “People wanted to talk with him, they The rabbi played an active role as a was subsequently used to fund orgasought his advice.” volunteer, often as the public face and nizations assisting destitute Holocaust Most impressively, for two decades voice of the Jewish community, on survivors. he served as president of the Conferbehalf of the JCRC, Holocaust survi“He infused Torah teaching into ence on Jewish Material Claims vors, Soviet Jews and other causes, as what he did, it was the core of his Against Germany (“the Claims Conferwell as several Orthodox and Zionist beliefs,” Taylor says. “When he spoke, ence”), the designated representative of organizations. everyone listened.” the Jewish community to negotiate for “There was a verse he would invoke in Rabbi Michael says he met Mike and disburse funds to individuals and the family, ‘Netzach Yisrael lo yeshaker, Wallace several years ago at a Jewish the glory of Yisrael is not a falsehood’” [1 organizations. Rabbi Miller’s negoticommunity event, and introduced ations with German and other EuroSamuel 15:29], his son says. Rabbi Miller himself as Rabbi Israel Miller’s son; pean governmental offices resulted in translated netzach as “destiny.” “He did maybe the journalist would have an historic compensation and restitution everything in his power,” Rabbi Michael unpleasant memory of his public agreements, which led to the payment says, “to ensure the netzach Yisrael.” outing as a Jew by the rabbi, Rabbi of some $2 billion (in today’s dollars) “The Jewish community was fortuMichael thought. to more than 400,000 Jewish Holocaust nate to have such a wonderful person On the contrary. “That was one of survivors in over sixty countries. like Rabbi Miller” as its representative, the best interviews I ever did,” the journalist told him.

Harold M. Jacobs (1912-1995)

By Dr. Rafael Medoff

Israel Miller (center) speaking with WEVD, New York City’s famous Jewish radio station, in 1969 on the plight of Soviet Jewry. Photo courtesy of Yeshiva University Archives 88

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In an era when most American Orthodox leaders were accustomed to focusing their attention within the Orthodox community, Harold M. Jacobs was one of the pioneers of a new model of leadership, demonstrating that it was possible in post-World War II America to proudly maintain a traditional religious lifestyle while actively representing Jewish interests at the highest levels of the secular world.

The son of an immigrant peddler, Jacobs grew up in Williamsburg and

Harold Jacobs speaking at the 1968 OU National Biennial Convention. Photo courtesy of Yeshiva University Archives

was educated at Torah Vodaath high the Democratic Party in a years-long school and St. John’s College, eventually campaign that resulted in the eliminacompleting a master’s degree in tion of the law. economics at Columbia University. He Warming to the role of Jewish exhibited a prescient business sense, spokesman to the wider world, Jacobs founding a company to manufacture chaired the Brooklyn Jewish Commuairplane parts just before World War nity Council in the late 1960s and II created an enormous demand for early 1970s, a time of growing tension them, and then manufacturing wooden between Jews and African Americans kitchen cabinets just as the postwar in New York City. He spoke out against surge of suburban home construction the anti-Semitism that erupted during caused a vast expansion of that market. the Oceanhill-Brownsville teachers Jacobs’ business success and subsestrike, and headed a committee of quent prominence in the Jewish Brooklyn Jewish leaders seeking to community paved the way for his persuade Mayor John Lindsay to reinleadership of a number of Orthodox state the teachers. institutions. In the 1950s, he served on As president of the OU from 1972 to the boards of several major yeshivas and 1978, Jacobs oversaw a major expansion was president of Young Israel of Eastern of NCSY’s outreach work, the opening Parkway and the Crown Heights of the OU Israel Center (now the Yeshiva. The Jewish Press reported that Seymour J. Abrams Orthodox Union Jacobs was “active in every major and Jerusalem World Center) and the Zula minor Jewish organization in Brooklyn.” Center (now known as Pearl & Harold Friends nicknamed him “the mayor of Jacobs Zula Outreach Center) and an Crown Heights.”

OU program to help Jewish residents Jacobs’ first foray into the realm of relocate from deteriorating inner city shtadlanut was the battle against New neighborhoods. He also brokered a York State’s “blue laws,” which endancompromise to diffuse controversy gered the livelihoods of Orthodox within the OU over participation in the Jewish merchants by forcing them to Synagogue Council of America. close on Sunday. As chairman of the During his term as leader of the OU Joint Committee for a Fair Sabbath and later as president of the National Law, Jacobs led delegations of Jewish Council of Young Israel, Jacobs cultileaders to Albany to lobby legislators, vated relations with local and national mobilized Christian allies and utilized political leaders in order to advocate for his contacts in the Brooklyn branch of Jewish concerns. He was particularly

active in opposing US pressure on Israel, lobbying against arms sales to belligerent Arab regimes, and combating the influence of anti-Israel elements within the Democratic Party.

At the same time, Jacobs played an increasingly active role in civic affairs, rising to the chairmanship of New York City’s Board of Higher Education in 1976. Jacobs steered the city’s educational system through crises over college admission policies, tuition disputes and campus anti-Semitism.

Harold Jacobs represented a new type of Orthodox shtadlan. The pre-World War II generation of Orthodox leaders, having arrived in the United States relatively recently and still learning America’s ways, had only a limited impact on public policy issues.

Jacobs and other young activists in the emerging class of postwar American Orthodox leaders, however, forged new paths of influence both in the Jewish community and beyond.

Dr. Rafael Medoff is the author of more than twenty books about Jewish history, including Building Orthodox Judaism in America: The Life and Legacy of Harold M. Jacobs (2015). His essay, “Rabbi Meir Bar-Ilan: Forgotten Pioneer of Jewish Activism,” in the fall 2014 issue of Jewish Action, won a Simon Rockower Award from the American Jewish Press Association for Excellence in Jewish Journalism.

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ART AND LITERATURE

BASSANIO: If it please you to dine with us.

SHYLOCK: Yes—to smell pork, to eat of the habitation which your prophet the Nazarine conjured the devil into. I will buy with you, sell with you, talk with you, walk with you, and so following, but I will not eat with you, drink with you, nor pray with you. What news on the Rialto?

WHAT NEWS on the

RIALTO?

By Allan Leicht

Playwright and screenwriter Allan Leicht is the recipient of an Emmy Award, two Emmy nominations, a Writers Guild of America Award, a Christopher Award, and the Silver Gavel Award from the American Bar Association— all for his work in television. His most recent work for the stage, My Parsifal Conductor, a Wagnerian Comedy, premiered on pre-pandemic Off-Broadway.

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*** Signor Reb Shylock, if I may speak with you from the twenty-first century, the news on the Rialto is that Jewish life has changed since you lived in Venice. The Ghetto is open!

Curfews are gone! Jews come and go as we please! This liberation spread from Venice to all of Europe and beyond, walls tumbled down, and we can eat with everyone and drink with everyone, and even, if we like, pray with everyone.

And many of us do. We assimilate. Of course, some of us do keep up the good old Jewish laws and customs. Those who do are called “Orthodox.” The term “Orthodox Judaism” came about around a century and a half ago when the more assimilated, reformed, liberated Jews distinguished the less liberated, the unreformed by naming us “Orthodox”—to make things clear. So today, you, Signor Reb Shylock, would not be simply “the Jew, Shylock,” today you would be “the Orthodox Jew, Shylock.” As for the Rialto, the news of the Rialto, well, it has become something called The Media. And in The Media there are Jews and there are Orthodox Jews.

Orthodoxy in High Cultures Shakespeare was not the first or last creative genius to exploit Jews. In fact, Shakespeare’s Shylock in The Merchant of Venice (1599) is a pussycat compared to Barabas in Christopher Marlowe’s play, The Jew of Malta (1590), which was a London favorite nine years before The Merchant of Venice. The Jew of Malta is a vivid drama that is almost never performed today. No wonder: Shakespeare’s Shylock claimed a mere pound of flesh, Marlowe’s Barabas poisons an entire nunnery to be sure he kills his daughter who has become a Christian. Marlowe would surely win the Oscar for Outstanding Blood Libel.

These are but two examples of artistic anti-Semitism— Jew-hatred in highly nationalistic cultures like Elizabethan England.

Charles Dickens’ Jewish Fagin, in Oliver Twist (1838), is smarmy, greedy, smart and tattered as he turns homeless boys into pickpockets. Dickens himself expressed warm feelings for Jews and softened Fagin in revised editions, but look at the size of actor Alec Guinness’ nose in the movie of Oliver Twist (1948). Hypnotic Svengali, the lovesick villain of George du Maurier’s best-seller, Trilby (1894), casts his sinister, musical Jewish spell over innocent Irish tone-deaf Trilby until she sings herself to death. Jews cast spells.

(Where have we heard that recently?) Creepy Jews sold books and mirrored both aristocratic and popular opinion in Victorian England.

Fill the Void (2012) is one of a growing number of movies produced in Israel that affirm the truth and worth of Judaism. Photo: Norma Productions/AF Archive/Alamy Stock Photo

On the Continent, Richard Wagner, an outspoken, unapologetic antiSemite, surprisingly put not a single Jewish character or Jewish reference of any kind into any of his operas.

Wagner was on friendly terms with Jews personally while venting his bigotry in print, principally in the treatise, Das Judenthum in der Musik, Jewishness in Music (published twice, in 1850 and 1869). Justifiably or not, some Holocaust historians trace the fuse of the Shoah back to Wagner. And could there have been a higher national culture than Germany from the nineteenth century through Weimar 1933?

The Mitteleuropean “Jewish Problem” would seem to have grown more problematic in direct proportion to the height of the culture.

Even so, along with the anti-Semitism in high cultures there was also philo-Semitism. Lessing’s play Nathan der Weise (Nathan the Wise) (1799), George Eliot’s novel Daniel Deronda (1876), Mascagni’s opera L’amico Fritz

(1891), Halevy’s La Juive (1835), and more, all characterize Jews and Judaism fairly with no calumny or caricature.

Nevertheless, there is something in higher, purer, prouder cultures that doesn’t like a Jew, something that chauvinistically values and protects itself from the incompatibility of Jewish influence—Egypt, Greece, Rome, the French Enlightenment—all high cultures with a “Jewish problem.” What is it? And what about our own?

Orthodoxy in Contemporary Media Our not-so-lofty popular culture, “Hollywood” (the catch-all label for the motion picture television culture) seems to be having a Jewish problem lately, in particular an Orthodox Jewish problem. Unfair, untrue and even libelous storytelling and characterizations have hit the screen in recent months.

NBC was forced to withdraw an episode of the Canadian television series Nurses, in which a young Chassidic patient refuses a leg-saving

bone transplant in keeping with the “religious prohibition against transplantation from a non-Jew.” It could be a bone from a goy. Maybe an Arab!

Perhaps even (gasp!) a woman’s bone!

The patient and his father would rather rely on Divine healing or even suffer the loss of the leg.

Alarms went off at the Simon Wiesenthal Center, which then made it clear to NBC that there was no such repulsive religious prohibition in Judaism, and that this was “no slip of the tongue,” but either dense, unchecked ignorance or deliberately scripted anti-Semitic libel. The episode is now gone—at least from NBC, although it may be doing damage elsewhere in the world.

NBC’s long-running Saturday Night Live comedy show (est. 1975) took a cheap political shot when one of its comics quipped, “Israel is reporting that they vaccinated half of their population. I’m going to guess it’s the Jewish half.” Not a crack about the Orthodox Winter 5782/2021 JEWISH ACTION

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precisely, just the entire Jewish State.

And a deliberate and malicious lie.

Netflix, worldwide home-screen streaming channel, features a sub-stream of Orthodox Jewish programming, not entirely unflattering, but occasionally defamatory.

A widely watched Netflix miniseries, Unorthodox, tells a somewhat biographical, mostly fictional story of “Esther Shapiro,” who breaks from the Brooklyn Chassidic community and follows the example of her divorced mother to a life free of religion in Berlin. The inciting issue here is intimacy, very specifically “ultraOrthodox” intimacy, and it is all callously false and adolescently scatological in every derogatory detail.

This hogwash is unfortunately made convincing by a radiant performance

by Israeli actress Shira Haas.

Netflix also presents One of Us, a sensitive, poetically photographed documentary about Chareidim who go off the derech, lose faith, lose marriages, lose ties with children and families, and communities that nurtured them, and find themselves adrift in secular society, unprepared for the “outside world.” It’s well done, honest and it hurts. But where is the other side of the story? There are many more Jews and non-Jews who find fulfillment in religion, many more who discover and embrace Orthodoxy than there are those who turn away. Aren’t the incoming as cinematic as the outgoing?

Where are their stories?

I happen to be among the “incoming.” As a ba’al teshuvah who is a television screenwriter and playwright, I have tried to drum up Hollywood interest in the joyful, powerful appeal of religion and Orthodoxy. So far, no sale. Why not?

The Religion of Assimilation If there is a prejudice against Orthodoxy in the world of motion pictures and television, it is not rooted in anti-Semitism. Sure, there may be anti-Semites in Hollywood, as there may be anywhere, but movies and TV have an Orthodoxy problem for another reason: Jewish Orthodoxy in all of its varieties stands against assimilation.

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Shakespeare got it right in dramatizing Shylock as a Jew who buys, sells, talks and walks with Christian neighbors, but will not go beyond that.

To paraphrase Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, zt”l, Shylock will “integrate” but he will not “assimilate.” Hollywood, in contrast, in all of its varieties, stands very much in favor of assimilation.

In Hollywood, Issur Danielovitch becomes Kirk Douglas.

Assimilation is the undeniable crusade of another Netflix miniseries, a “reality-TV” show called My Unorthodox Life. A narcissistic, exhibitionistic, elaborately produced rampage of anti-Orthodox revenge, the show features a formerly frum consummate control freak who has assimilated into the super-secular world of haute couture, bringing along her dependent, vulnerable, half-grown children while discovering her new Prince Charming adorably non-Jewish husband. A celebration of assimilation.

This could well have been entitled My Glamorous New Life or My New Birth of Freedom, but no, the very title, My Unorthodox Life, is bait devised to take the show off the entertainment page and into the news—a prison break from Orthodoxy—to create controversy: man bites dog; woman bites Jews.

The irony is that with all the glamor and with all the unsophisticated clunky strivings of this would-be glitzy family of doubtful style, the simple decency of their former husband-father back in Monsey seems much more sympathetic by comparison. Sadder even is that for all her assimilated superiority, the heroine seems so bitter—even to the point of tears—because her fourteen-year-old son loves Torah.

Anyway, My Unorthodox, Unorthodox, whatever—Netflix’s menu has rebalanced with the unexpected popularity of the Hebrew-Yiddish miniseries, Shtisel, a sincere, affectionately told story of a flawed, faith-driven, very

Chareidi family in Jerusalem, portrayed by an extraordinary cast of actors.

Netflix did not originate or develop Shtisel. It is an exquisitely directed Israeli production that Netflix had the excellent taste and courage to acquire as-is for international distribution. And it was a big hit.

Shtisel is universal because Shtisel is as specific and as sectarian as it can be. The actors recalled that the most difficult part of their work was not the acting but the early morning hours of hair and makeup. But it’s not the painstakingly perfect beards, peyos and sheitels that make Shtisel special, it’s what that makeup represents. No matter how difficult the loves and struggles in the Shtisel narrative, we feel certain of one thing: there will be no assimilation. Five hundred years from now, the descendants of the characters of Shtisel will be Jewish.

And they will be, whatever it will mean then, “Orthodox.”

So, is Hollywood anti-Orthodox?

Assimilation: The Legacy of Hollywood No. Hollywood is not anti-Orthodox.

Hollywood is not pro-Orthodox, either.

The miniseries Unorthodox resembles an earlier movie, The Jazz Singer (1927), a historic film that was Hollywood’s first “talkie” (feature-length film with spoken dialogue) about a chazan’s son who wants to be a jazz singer.

Compare “Esther Shapiro” (Shira Haas) and “Jackie Robins” (Al Jolson).

Both abandon religious roots for secular fulfillment in music—she classical, he jazz. Both arrive at similar finales: Esther with new non-Jewish Hochkultur Berlin friends, Jackie with his non-Jewish Broadway wife and life, blessed by his Yiddishe Mama.

Al Jolson (aka Asa Yoelson) sings to Esther Shapiro across the century that divides them, a century of assimilation, which has been a dominant theme in the pop-culture of the

Hollywood is not anti-Orthodox, it is pro-assimilation.

Shtisel is a sincere, affectionately told story of a faith-driven Chareidi family in Jerusalem.

Photo: Ohad Romano

American-Jewish melting pot—not in fulfillment of any ideology, but in recognition of the realities of the box office. Business is business and show business even more so.

The movie business can be said to have begun in 1914 with a silent, twenty-minute-long movie, The Squaw Man, directed by a young actor turned director named Cecil B. DeMille. One of its producers was a salesman turned movie producer, Samuel Goldfish. The Squaw Man was an interracial love story, the first movie ever made in Hollywood and a big success. Goldfish changed his name to Samuel Goldwyn and later spoke a cardinal principle of Hollywood, “If people don’t want to go to the picture, nobody can stop them.”

The box office is the arbiter of taste and ultimate control.

The legacy of the Jewish founders of the Hollywood studios lives today and determines what “green lights” productions. Those founders of American mass culture, for whom Yiddish was often their first language, ate with

everyone, drank with everyone, even prayed with everyone. Assimilation was their primary religion. Even today, a concept for a movie that deliberately opposes assimilation, that enhances separation and promotes segregation is no sale. Orthodoxy separates.

Hollywood is not anti-Orthodox, it is pro-assimilation.

Even so movies and television could be nicer to the Orthodox—or at least, not tell lies.

There are happy exceptions—mainly from Israel. It took nearly seventy years, but the Jews of Israel have begun to catch up to what the Jews of Hollywood began a hundred years ago—exporting entertainment worldwide, and some of it is even good for Orthodoxy.

Writers Yehonatan Indursky and Ori Elon’s Shtisel is exceptional but not unique. The ground for Shtisel was prepared by Shuli Rand’s Ushpizin (2004), Rama Burshtein’s Fill the Void (2012) and The Wedding Plan (2016), and Joseph Cedar’s Footnote (2011), all

of which affirm the truth and worth of Orthodox Judaism. Srugim, created by Eliezer Shapiro and Havva Deevon, is a well-watched TV series about Modern Orthodox Jews. *** And so, Signor Reb Shylock, since your troubled time, four centuries of Shylocks have strutted and fretted upon the stage and screen. But as touched on in this brief account, we have had our victories and heroes too. Directly, indirectly, good and ill in every art form, Orthodox Judaism has played a role in every culture. The difference today is that Zion is reborn, Israel is regenerating Jewish culture and sending it around the world at the flip of switches “over the rainbow”1 and, Reb Shylock, “you ain’t heard nothin’ yet!” 2 Notes 1. Yip Harburg (born Isadore Hochberg) (Lyrics); Harold Arlen (born Hyman Arluck, son of a chazan) (Music).

2. Al Jolson (Asa Yoelson, son of a chazan). Famous words said by Al Jolson in The Jazz Singer, which heralded the end of the silent film and the arrival of sound to the movies.

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Keeping

Shemitah

in theTECHNOLOGICAL AGE Jewish Action spoke with Rabbi Ezra Friedman, director of OU Israel’s Gustave and Carol Jacobs Center for Kashrut Education and rabbinic field representative for Israel, about different aspects of the mitzvah of shemitah, including new agricultural technologies that are advancing its observance.

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KOSHER KOPY

Jewish Action: Is shemitah nowadays a Biblical or a rabbinic mitzvah?

Rabbi Ezra Friedman: That’s a good question with important implications since we tend to be more lenient with rabbinic prohibitions. There are, in fact, heterim (leniencies) that may no longer be valid once the mitzvah becomes Biblically mandated. Nowadays, however, the mitzvah of shemitah is considered rabbinic because we haven’t fulfilled the requirement of “biat kulchem,” that is, when all or most of the Jewish people live in the Land of Israel. The concept of biat kulchem is actually derived from the mitzvah of hafrashat challah, separating challah, which is only d’Oraita in Israel when the majority of Jews live in the Land of Israel (Ketubot 25a). Since the time of the Second Temple, unfortunately there has not been a majority of Jews living in the Land of Israel.

JA: Is it feasible that in the near future the majority of the Jewish people will live in Eretz Yisrael, making the mitzvah of shemitah Biblical?

RF: There are opinions that state that in order for shemitah to be Biblically mandated, it does not suffice to have the majority of Jews living in the Land of Israel, but that every Jew has to know to which shevet he belongs and he must dwell in the shevet’s particular nachalah, portion of the Land. So “biat kulchem,” according to this view, means that the majority of Jews must be settled in the Land with each shevet in its own nachalah.

A religious farmer from Bnei Netzarim, a moshav, standing inside his greenhouse, where he grows lettuce and kale. Photo: AP Photo/Tsafrir Abayov

JA: How should one go about purchasing fruits or vegetables during the shemitah year?

RF: Consumers can do one of the following: • Rely on yevul nachri. Most halachic authorities consider produce from fields in Israel owned by non-Jews to be exempt from the laws of shemitah, and therefore the produce does not have kedushat shevi’it. (Fruits and vegetables that have reached a certain stage of growth during shemitah have a special holiness called kedushat shevi’it.) Alternatively, produce from Turkey, Greece or other nearby countries could be purchased without any shemitah concerns.

• Purchase produce from an otzar beit din, a distribution system run by the rabbinic courts. The beit din hires farmers as agents to harvest their own fruits and vegetables and then distributes the produce to the public. Farmers are paid a flat fee for their time but not for the actual produce. Produce from an otzar beit din has the status of kedushat shevi’it. This approach is unique in that it provides people with the opportunity to benefit from the holiness of shemitah produce.

According to some rabbinic opinions, there is a positive mitzvah to consume such produce (see Megillat Esther on Ramban, Shechichat Asin 3).

• Purchase produce that is both grown detached from the ground (i.e., in sealed flower pots) and Winter 5782/2021 JEWISH ACTION

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with a roof covering (such as a greenhouse). Such produce is called matza menutak. According to many authorities, vegetables grown in this manner are exempt from shemitah restrictions.

• Purchase produce grown on land sold to non-Jews, known as the heter mechirah. Some authorities maintain that this approach is halachically problematic. The OU does not rely upon this heter.

• Purchase produce from the lower Negev, which is not within the halachic boundaries of Eretz Yisrael and is therefore exempt from the laws of shemitah. It is important to note that there are different rabbinic opinions regarding the exact halachic boundaries of the lower Negev; therefore different hashgachot will use produce from different geographic locations.

JA: Can you elaborate on the use of greenhouses during shemitah?

RF: There is a dispute among halachic authorities about whether produce grown in a greenhouse is subject to the laws of shemitah. The Gemara suggests that one could plant during shemitah in a house as opposed to a field, “bayit v’lo sadeh,” because such produce is going to be inferior quality due to the fact that a closed environment is not a natural habitat for plants.

The Chazon Ish held that produce planted in an enclosed building, in sealed plants or sealed pots, is exempt from the laws of shemitah.

Rav Nissim Karelitz maintained, however, that despite the fact that greenhouse produce is in a closed structure, it is not exempt from the laws of shemitah. He opined that when the Gemara stated “bayit v’lo sadeh,” it

was referring to growing produce in an ordinary house, not a greenhouse— which is an environment that is specially made for plants to flourish.

In addition, Rav Shmuel Wosner expressed concern that if greenhouse produce is exempt from the laws of shemitah, every farmer in Israel will build a greenhouse. This, he believed, is problematic as the mitzvah of shemitah will, over time, be forgotten.

Most posekim do not agree with Rav Karelitz, and posit that if a plant is not connected to the earth in any way (it is grown in a planter that is sealed on the bottom, or it is grown above ground), the laws of shemitah do not apply. Rav Ovadia Yosef and Rav Tzvi Pesach Frank took this position as well. They state that since plants that are grown in a greenhouse are “lo k’derech,” not the way we plant normally, it is acceptable to plant and grow such crops during shemitah.

For a greenhouse to be exempt from shemitah, the floor should be lined with a thick plastic sheeting to ensure that the produce does not derive any nourishment from the ground; there also must be an intact roof.

Greenhouses are becoming more popular as the technology gets more advanced. Israel is actually quite a leader in this arena. Of course, not every vegetable can be successfully grown in a greenhouse.

JA: How is technology impacting the way we observe shemitah?

Are there modern agricultural techniques that assist in the observance of this mitzvah?

RF: There are quite a few stories involving owners of wineries who decided to observe shemitah and take a break during the seventh year and

There is some extraordinary agricultural technology being developed in Israel that is really impacting the observance of shemitah.

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saw that the quality of their grapes and wine was exceptionally terrific, both in the year before shemitah and the year after. But there is also some extraordinary agricultural technology being developed in Israel that is really impacting the observance of shemitah.

One new development is high-tech storage facilities. I recently visited a company that is developing technology to store cabbage and other vegetables for months at a time. The company built a hangar where nitrogen is used to increase the vegetables’ shelf life (oxygen causes food to spoil faster).

The result is that the cabbage stored there can remain fresh for months.

This could be tremendously helpful during shemitah, enabling vegetables from the previous year to be stored.

Imagine that one day we will be able to store cabbage, tomatoes, peppers and other vegetables for months at a time, similar to the way we store wheat!

Another new technology involves growing produce vertically. According to certain halachic authorities, since vertical hydroponics, which is sometimes grown outdoors, differs greatly from traditional farming, the laws of shemitah do not apply to produce grown in such a manner.

I personally feel that the country could benefit immensely were the Israeli government to invest in high-tech agricultural technologies, as this could result in a steady supply of fresh locally grown produce during shemitah, leading to greater observance of this precious mitzvah.

We at the OU Israel Center’s Gustave and Carol Jacobs Center for Kashrut Education, the kashrut education arm of the OU, are working with the nonprofit Institute for Torah and the Land of Israel (Machon HaTorah VeHa’aretz). The Institute, which approached the OU to learn about our kashrut standards and procedures in Israel, focuses on halachah and mitzvot hateluyot ba’aretz, such as terumah, ma’aser, shemitah, et cetera. It provides training sessions for rabbis, maintains a few greenhouses and oversees a large otzar beit din. OU rabbis are currently working in partnership with the Institute to learn new

Another new technology involves growing produce vertically. According to certain halachic authorities, since vertical hydroponics, which is sometimes grown outdoors, differs greatly from traditional farming, the laws of shemitah do not apply to produce grown in such a manner.

farming technologies with the aim of certifying more agricultural produce.

JA: There seem to be quite a few loopholes and ways to circumvent the mitzvah of shemitah, but aren’t we then defeating the purpose of the mitzvah? What are the lessons of shemitah?

RF: Chazal are clear about what shemitah comes to teach.

Firstly, just as there is Shabbat, a day of rest and spiritual elevation for the world, so too the land must benefit from a spiritual Shabbat, a year of rest.

On Shabbat we focus on our Creator and His world. Similarly, every seven years we spend time appreciating Hashem’s creation and acknowledging the fact that He is the Creator.

Another main theme of shemitah relates to the statement of Chazal: “Zar’u sheish, veshametu sheva, lada’at ki ha’aretz sheli—Plant six and take a break on the seventh to know that the land belongs to Me.” We work the land for six years; we build, we mow, we fertilize, we weed, we water, and invariably we forget that we are not

the genuine owners of the land and begin to think the land is ours. But when we have to keep the land idle for an entire year and not be busy with it at all, we cannot help but realize that it’s not our land, it’s Hashem’s land. During shemitah, the notion of ownership is null and void, and we watch our neighbors, our friends and total strangers walk into our field and take our produce. The message is clear: You think you’re the boss? You’re not.

JA: How does this mitzvah apply to those of us who live in America—does shemitah really affect us here in the States?

RF: When purchasing Israeli products and fresh produce from Israel, kosher consumers in the US must check for a reliable kosher certification.

Oftentimes, Israeli produce or fruit or vegetable sources in Israeli products found in US supermarkets during shemitah are grown on land sold to non-Jews through the heter mechirah or by farmers who do not observe the laws of shemitah. Because during the shemitah year, many in Israel

do not rely on the heter mechirah, farmers relying on the heter increase their export quantities. American consumers must therefore be careful to ensure that all produce from Israel as well as products from Israel have a reliable kosher certification.

The OU will only certify fresh produce in Israel that is either grown prior to shemitah, grown outside of the halachic boundaries of Israel, or grown on land owned by non-Jews. As stated above, the OU does not rely upon the heter mechirah. It is also important to note that the concern about produce grown during shemitah applies in the year following the shemitah year, shanah sheminit, as well.

If you are unsure about the status of produce or products from Israel, contact your local rabbi or the OU office at 212-613-8241.

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THE CHEF’S TABLE

A GOOD FRY

By Naomi Ross

N

othing compares to a fresh latke right out of the pan: crisp and lacy, craggy fried threads of potato so good that you overlook the film of grease on your fingers. “It’s so worth it,” we say to ourselves as we lick our fingers clean.

Every year my latkes get some kind of facelift, a reinvented version that keeps my guests on their toes. But the frying is not limited to latkes. My kitchen smells like a fast-food restaurant for a week; my oil-stained apron is kept at arm’s reach. It’s fun to explore using other vegetables (or combinations), especially with better nutritional values. With sweet potato or other root vegetables, their bolder flavors are well suited to match many different ethnic profiles. Also, then I can pretend my oil-laden latkes are actually healthy!

Old school or new world, fried treats are the making of wonderful oil-stained holiday memories, a momentary pleasure to be enjoyed with family and friends.

The diet starts next week.

Sweet Potato Latkes

Beet & Kohlrabi Latkes

The natural sugars in sweet potatoes can cause sticking. Do not try to move about and flip until a crust forms on the bottom of the latke.

The bold flavors of Central Asia sing through in these healthy root vegetable latkes.

Yields about 20-24 latkes

3-4 (about 2½ lbs) sweet potatoes, peeled and coarsely grated 4 scallions, finely chopped ½ cup all-purpose flour 4 large eggs, lightly beaten 1 teaspoon salt (or more to taste) 1 teaspoon cinnamon ½ teaspoon ginger ½ teaspoon black pepper Canola or vegetable oil, for frying Stir together potatoes, scallions, flour, eggs and spices in a large mixing bowl. Heat about ¼-inch oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot (not smoking). Working in batches, spoon potato mixture (approximately 2 tablespoons per latke) into oil and flatten with the back of the spatula.

Cook until golden brown, flipping once, about 2-3 minutes per side.

Transfer latkes with slotted spatula to a rack or place on paper towels to drain.

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Yields 18 latkes

3 medium red beets, peeled 3 large kohlrabi, stems trimmed and peeled 2 eggs, beaten 2½ teaspoons kosher salt 1½ teaspoons ground coriander 1½ teaspoons ground cumin ½ teaspoon black pepper 2 teaspoons dried dill (or 2 tablespoons fresh minced dill) 1 ⁄3 cup potato starch or flour 1 cup crumbled feta cheese Canola or peanut oil for frying Using a food processor or box grater, finely grate the beets and kohlrabi. Transfer to a large mixing bowl. Add eggs, spices and potato starch or flour; mix to combine well.

Fold in crumbled feta cheese.

Fill a large frying pan with ¼-inch depth of oil. Place pan over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, drop large spoonfuls of the mixture

into the oil, flattening the mound with the back of the spoon for even thickness. Do not overcrowd pan. Fry until crisp and golden brown, turning over latkes once during cooking time— about 4-5 minutes per side. Transfer to platter lined with paper towels to drain.

Repeat with remaining batter.

Serve latkes hot with sour cream.

Cook’s Note: If making ahead, refresh in a single layer on a baking sheet uncovered in a 350ºF oven until warmed through and crisp.

Pakoras

Yields 4 servings Pakoras, a.k.a. pakodas or bhaji, the popular chickpea batter-fried Indian fritters, are a deliciously crispy chaat (street snack) commonly served with green herb chutney or tamarind chutney. You can use this chickpea batter for dredging a variety of vegetables. I recommend parboiling firmer vegetables like cauliflower or potatoes prior to frying in order to ensure they are cooked through and tender once fried.

3-4 cups assorted vegetables: Cauliflower florets (parboil for 4-5 minutes) ¼-inch thick sliced potatoes (parboil for 2-3 minutes) ¼-inch thick sliced Japanese eggplant 1 cup gram flour (fine chickpea flour) 2 tablespoons sweet rice flour ¼ teaspoon baking soda ½-1 teaspoon Indian red chili powder (depending on how spicy you like it)* 1 teaspoon garam masala powder ¾ teaspoon ajwain seeds (carom seeds) or can also use whole cumin seeds 1½ teaspoons kosher salt 2 ⁄3 cup water Canola or peanut oil for frying *Red Kashmiri chili powder is not to be confused with American chili powder spice blend. Cayenne pepper can used as a substitute but is not as hot.

Parboil and prepare vegetables, as needed. Drain and set aside.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together gram and rice flours, baking soda, spices and water until a thick batter forms. Set aside to rest.

Beet & Kohlrabi Latkes Photos: Baila Gluck

Naomi Ross is a cooking instructor and food writer, and the culinary director at Apron Masters Kitchen in Woodmere, New York. She teaches classes throughout the tri-state area and writes articles connecting good cooking and Jewish inspiration.

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Frying Tips Badly fried food can be traumatizing: the oil is oozing, the texture all soggy. It’s an unappetizing mess and who wants to eat that? Free yourself of your frying fears! Follow these tips for perfectly crisp-on-the-outside, moist and tender-onthe-inside results that cook evenly and quickly!

• Choose your cooking oil carefully. You want one with a high smoke point, that is, one which won’t break down and smoke at high frying temperatures. Peanut oil, safflower oil, avocado oil and canola oil are good choices (olive oil is not because it has a low smoke point).

• Choose a deep, heavy pan for frying. Leaving a headspace (space at the top of the pan) of at least one to two inches allows for a safety margin when the oil bubbles up as the food is added.

A good heavy bottomed pan will also conduct heat better, saving you from unevenly cooked, burnt food.

• Make sure that the food you are going to fry is dry. Oil and water do not mix, especially at such high temperatures. Burns from splattering oil are not fun.

• The best temperature for frying is 350-375ºF. When deep frying, the best way to make sure you’ve got it right is with a fry thermometer. With pan frying, the shallow depth of oil in the pan may preclude this. You can tell that oil is ready when a 1-inch cube of white bread dropped into the oil sizzles upon contact and browns in 60 seconds.

• For pan frying, the food should be less than an inch thick (that’s why thin cutlets work best).

If too thick, the surface of the food will burn before the center is cooked; the oil should be no more than half as high as the food so that the same area is not fried twice when you flip it. For deep frying (immersion frying), 2-3 inches of oil are required so that even large items can be immersed in the oil.

• Don’t overcrowd the pan! Carefully add the food, leaving space around each piece so the food will fry evenly and not steam. Too much food added at once can also cause the oil temperature to drop and the food will absorb fat.

• Regulate the heat if necessary to keep the oil temperature steady.

• Use a slotted spoon when transferring to allow oil to drain. Drain in a single layer on paper towels or on a wire rack.

• Discard oil properly: let the oil cool completely, pour it in a jar or container and throw it in the garbage. Don’t pour it down the drain!

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Meanwhile, heat oil for deep frying: fill a deep pot with about 2-3 inches of canola or peanut oil.

Place over medium heat and monitor with fry thermometer until temperature reaches 350-365ºF. Dredge each vegetable piece in batter and allow excess to drip off. Working in small batches, carefully drop dredged vegetables into the hot oil, frying for about 3-4 minutes or until golden brown depending on size. Remove with slotted spoon and transfer to a rack set over a baking sheet to drain. Repeat with remaining vegetables and batter.

Serve warm with chutney (if desired).

Churros

Yields 25-30 churros Fried choux paste dough rolled in cinnamon sugar.

Choux 1 cup water ¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter ¼ teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon sugar 1 cup all-purpose flour 3 ⁄4 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 eggs Canola or vegetable oil for frying Cinnamon-Sugar 1 ⁄3 cup sugar 1 teaspoon cinnamon Mix cinnamon and sugar in a large plate; set aside.

Heat approximately 2 inches oil in a large pot or deep skillet over medium heat until temperature reaches 360-370ºF. Meanwhile, prepare batter. Place water, butter, salt and sugar in a saucepan over moderate heat. Bring to a boil, stirring, until butter is completely melted and mixture is simmering.

Add flour all at once, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir vigorously until dough forms a ball and comes away from the sides of the pan. Transfer to a mixing bowl and let cool for 2-4 minutes.

Add vanilla and egg, beating vigorously with electric beaters or whisk after each addition. Beat until egg is well incorporated. Spoon choux paste into a pastry bag fitted with a large piping tip (no bigger than 1/2 inch open-star tip). Carefully pipe into 5-6 inch length strips, using scissors or a knife to cut and carefully drop into the oil. Do not fry more than 5-6 churros at a time. Cook for about 2 minutes per side, until golden brown. Use a slotted spoon to remove and drain; transfer to rack to cool and then roll in cinnamon sugar while warm. Repeat with remaining churros.

Serve with melted chocolate, ganache or caramel sauce.

Cook’s Note: Add a pinch of chili powder or cayenne pepper to the melted chocolate for a spicy kick!

Sweet Potato Latkes

PRO TIP:

Serve hot with applesauce and sour cream or MapleApple Cream!

Maple-Apple Cream ½ cup sour cream ¼ teaspoon cinnamon 1½ teaspoons maple syrup ½ apple, grated Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Whisk to blend.

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LEGAL-EASE

WHAT’S THE TRUTH ABOUT. . .

COUNTING A MINOR WITH A SEFER TORAH TOWARD A MINYAN?

By Rabbi Dr. Ari Z. Zivotofsky

Misconception: Nine adult men plus a boy holding a sefer Torah constitute a minyan, thus enabling the recitation of prayers such as Kedushah and Kaddish.

Fact: A minyan is defined as ten adult male Jews. Whether a child can be counted is a long-standing controversy.

Background: The basic halachah (Shulchan Aruch, OC 55:1) is that a minyan for prayer1 consists of ten adult male Jews, with the requirement for ten being derived from an exegesis either regarding the ten spies2 (Megillah 23b) or the ten brothers of Yosef3 (Yerushalmi, Berachot 7:3; Bereishit Rabbah 91:3).

The Gemara (Berachot 47b-48a) presents a series of lenient rulings regarding the composition of zimun and minyan, and then concludes that the halachah does not accord with any of them. One of those lenient rulings is a statement by Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi who maintains that even a baby in a crib can count as the tenth in a minyan. Tosafot (Berachot 48a, s.v. v’let hilchata) says that Rabbeinu Tam understood the Gemara’s conclusion to not apply to Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi’s statement; thus even a baby boy can be counted as a tenth. Tosafot also mentions that some only count a child if he holds a sefer Torah, a suggestion that Rabbeinu Tam calls a “minhag shtut” (a foolish custom). Nonetheless, one of Rabbi Dr. Ari Z. Zivotofsky is a professor of neuroscience at Bar-Ilan University in Israel.

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the ba’alei Tosafot known as the Ri says that in practice even Rabbeinu Tam did not count a minor for a minyan.

Throughout the period of the Rishonim, various opinions were expressed about the issue.4 According to the Rosh (Berachot, chap. 7:20), Rav Hai Gaon ruled that a minor can be counted, explaining that the Shechinah is present if there are ten male Jews, as long as nine are adults. The Tur (OC 55) mentions that some permit counting a child holding a chumash, but says that his father, the Rosh, insisted on only counting adults. Indeed, the Rosh (Berachot, chap. 7:20) explains that the erroneous notion of a child holding a Torah comes from a misapplication of a rule found in Pirkei D’Rabbi Eliezer (chap. 8) regarding the number of people involved in intercalating the year.5 The eleventh-century Machzor Vitry6 quotes his teacher, Rashi, as being opposed to counting a child holding a sefer Torah. However, he reports an instance when Rabbi Yitzchak ben Rav Yehudah, a teacher of Rashi’s, counted a child who was holding a chumash. The circa-fourteenth-century Kol Bo (Hilchot Tefillah, pp. 305-307 in Feldheim 5767 ed.) mentions that it is a widely accepted custom to include one, two, or in an emergency, even three boys who are old enough to know to Whom they are praying. But he also cites Maharam miRothenburg that a child is never counted, even when holding a sefer Torah. The Rambam (Hilchot Tefillah 8:4) makes no mention of including a

child and rules simply that a minyan for prayer must consist of ten adult males.

The Shulchan Aruch (OC 55:4) mentions that there are those who permit counting a child older than six who knows to Whom he is davening.7 However, the Shulchan Aruch says that the great authorities reject this position.

The Rema adds that for those who reject this opinion, whether or not the child is holding a chumash is irrelevant. The Rema then notes that there are those who are lenient in time of great need.

Commenting on the Rema, the Magen Avraham (55:5) says that the Levush did not know of such a custom. However, the Magen Avraham observes that in his time and place (seventeenth-century Poland), the practice was indeed to include a child holding a chumash.8 He limits this leniency to obligatory prayers only, thus excluding, for example, the recitation of Kaddish after Aleinu. Despite it being a minority opinion, it is this position of the Magen Avraham that is relied upon by those who include a child in a minyan.

The Aruch Hashulchan (OC 55:10) cites the various opinions and then rules in practice to never count a child.

The Shulchan Aruch Harav (55:5) also cites both halachic positions.9 He rules that the primary position is to not count a child but states that one should not criticize those who are lenient in a “sha’at hadchak” (instance of great necessity) because they do have on what to rely. The Mishnah Berurah (55:24) quotes the Magen Avraham’s report

of the prevailing custom, but says that many Acharonim10 maintain that even in extenuating circumstances, those under thirteen should not be counted.

Historically, it seems that the preference was to not count a minor, but in extenuating circumstances there were authorities willing to permit it. For example, the sixteenth-century Radbaz (8:11) was asked by a group of nine adult men and an eleven-year-old boy on a boat if they could daven as a minyan. He responded that it is a great debate and that although normally one should not count anyone under thirteen, as this is certainly an extenuating circumstance, they could rely on Rabbeinu Tam and include the child. Thus, for those willing to permit this in extenuating circumstances, the question becomes how to define “sha’at hadchak.”

Rabbi Aryeh Leib Frumkin (1845-1916) describes in detail11 the situation of the tiny Ashkenazi Perushi community in Jerusalem in the 1820s-30s, the remnant of the students of the Vilna Gaon who made aliyah to Tzfat and then Jerusalem.

The community was so small that in order to make an Ashkenazi minyan, they would hire a Sephardi to complete their minyan, and sometimes they were forced to rely on a child holding a sefer.

Rabbi Shalom Mordechai Hacohen Schwadron (d. 1911; Shu”t Maharsham 3:162) was asked by a group from Hungary if they could create a new minyan consisting of nine men and a child holding a sefer Torah. They wanted to break off from the minyan they were attending because they felt it was leaning toward Reform Judaism. This great nineteenth-century posek deemed this a true emergency and, relying partially on Shu”t Min Hashamayim, ruled with the minority opinion that they could make the minyan, the child should hold a sefer Torah, and they should minimize optional instances of Kaddish.

Rav Moshe Feinstein (Iggerot Moshe 2:OC :18) was asked by a shul struggling to get a minyan if a child could be counted. He defines this as a sha’at hadchak even though there was another shul in the city because those congregants might not attend the other shul. He then acknowledges

that whether to count a child is an old debate in which it is difficult to take a position.12 However, based on the Ran that the requirement for a minyan for davening is rabbinic, Rav Moshe was willing to rely on a minority opinion and permit counting a child, with several conditions and caveats. He prefers that the boy be twelve years old, and that he grasp the eitz chaim of a sefer Torah (even a pasul one) that is lying on the shulchan, as opposed to holding it.

He also states that instead of reciting Chazarat Hashatz, the shaliach tzibbur should not pray a silent Shemoneh Esrei, but instead wait for everyone to finish theirs and then say his Shemoneh Esrei out loud (with Kedushah).

Rabbi Hershel Schachter reports (MiPninei Harav, 2001, p. 27) that in the early years of the Maimonides School—founded in 1937 in Roxbury, Massachusetts—they were short one for a minyan a few times, and Rav Yosef Dov Soloveitchik would rely on Rabbeinu Tam and count a child. Rav Soloveitchik would rebuff the suggestion that the child hold a chumash, because Tosafot calls it a minhag shtut. He instead suggested the child hold a siddur, which would enable him to daven better.

Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach (Halichot Shlomo, Tefillah 5:9) is quoted as not permitting counting a child even if it will lead to a minyan dissolving.

That was also the opinion of Rav Yaakov Karliner (Shu”t Mishkenot Yaakov 72).

Rav Ovadiah Yosef (Yabia Omer 4: OC: 9) in a very lengthy responsum was strongly opposed to ever counting a minor for a minyan.13 He understood this to be the position of the Shulchan Aruch14 and saw no reason to deviate from the position of the Shulchan Aruch even when it came to small villages that would otherwise never have a minyan.

In fact, he went so far as to quote the position of the Maharam miRothenburg that if one finds himself in a place of nine adults who are about to include a child as the tenth, he should leave so as not to enable this terrible travesty.

Rav Menashe Klein (Mishneh Halachot 4:8) was asked post facto about a case where someone walked out rather than participate in such a minyan, and he lauded that individual

as having acted correctly. He also took issue with Rav Moshe’s definition of sha’at hadchak because in that instance there were other men in the town.

Rav Klein is against counting a minor, but says that if one thinks it legitimate, it must at least be a true sha’at hadchak, such as no possibility of a minyan in town at all. This is similar to the definition that Rav Dovid Tzvi Hoffmann (Melamed Leho’il, 1:OC:4), who is against counting a minor, quotes in the name of Shemen Hama’or—that a sha’at hadchak is such that in the entire village there is no way to have a minyan without including a child.

Rabbi Shraga Feivish Schneebalg (Shraga Hameir 7:76), in a responsum about counting a child as part of a minyan while in a vacation location, succinctly summarizes the halachic history and says it can be done b’sha’at hadchak. He then gives a poignant personal story describing how in 1941 the Russians occupied his town and exiled his family to a small neighboring village in which there was trouble getting a daily minyan. He was nine years old at the time, and the men gave him a chumash to hold and counted him for Barchu, Kedushah and Kaddish.

The question of counting a child toward a minyan has divided halachic authorities for at least a thousand years.

The debate centers around several points: whether there must be extenuating circumstances and how to define such; whether the child may be counted at any age or only once he “knows to Whom we daven,” and/or at specific ages; and whether holding a sefer Torah or chumash gives the child additional standing. The issue continues to be the subject of heated debate until today, with each community following its posek.

Notes 1. Herein we are only discussing counting a child for a minyan for davening. In other areas of halachah, e.g., zimun, the rules for counting a child may be different.

Rambam allows the tenth in zimun to be a child over seven years old (Hilchot Berachot 5:7). The Shulchan Aruch (OC 199:10) says that a child “who knows to Whom we bentch” counts for a zimun (of three or ten), and this is normative Sephardi pesak (Yechaveh Da’at 4:13).

The Rema (OC 199:10) rejects this and rules that a child may never be counted Winter 5782/2021 JEWISH ACTION

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for zimun, and that is the normative Ashkenazi position.

Shu”t Maharsham (3:162) sees a seeming conflict between the rulings of the Rema in OC 55:4 (davening) and OC 199:10 (zimun) and explains why they differ. Rav Chaim David Halevi (Mayim Chaim:11, 5751) opines that Sephardim should also allow two women and a girl over six who understands to Whom she is bentching to form a zimun of three women.

(On women’s zimun, see “What’s the Truth About …Women’s Zimun?,” Jewish Action 60:1 (fall 1999); (jewishaction. com/religion/whats-truth-aboutwomens-zimun/.)

2. The exegesis links Vayikra 22:32 with Bamidbar 16:21 and then with Bamidbar 14:27.

3. Connecting Vayikra 22:32 and Bereishit 42:5. Torah Temimah on Bereishit 42:5 (2) suggests that the Yerushalmi may have preferred this derashah because the exegesis involves two verses instead of three. Rabbi Akiva Eiger (Gilyon Hashas to Sotah 34a, Tosafot s.v. tortani) suggests another reason to prefer this derashah. The Gemara (Ketubot 7b) derives from other sources that ten are needed for sheva berachot, including Boaz seating ten elders when he married Rut (Rut 4:2). Another midrash (Bereishit Rabbah 49:13) assumes that Avraham’s plea that Sedom and its sister cities be spared in the merit of ten righteous people (Bereishit 18:32) refers to a minyan that could gather and pray on behalf of the doomed cities.

4. For an analysis of the early Ashkenaz sources, see Yisrael M. Ta’Shma, Hatefillah Ha’Ashkenazit Hakedumah, chap. 19 (Jerusalem, 2004).

5. Another source for this notion is found in Yerushalmi, Berachot 7:2 and Bereishit Rabbah 91:3.

6. Vol. 1, p. 136, in Rabbi Aryeh Goldschmidt, vol. 1 (Jerusalem, 5769).

7. Note that this differs from the position of Rabbeinu Tam and those who ruled like him and based themselves on Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi, permitting even an infant.

8. Most commentators explain that the reference is not to a printed chumash, or even to a bound handwritten book of chumash, but rather to a handwritten scroll.

9. On (non-prayer) situations where women might count for a minyan, see Aryeh A. Frimer, “Women and Minyan,” Tradition 24:4 (summer 1989).

10. He was referring to Elya Rabbah, Pri Megadim, Derech HaChaim, Chayei Adam (Sha’ar Hatziyun 55:21).

11. Rabbi Frumkin’s description appears in Toldot Chachmei Yerushalayim (Jerusalem, 5689) vol. 3, p. 154, and in Ma’asaf Tzion (5687) vol. 2, p. 145. I thank Dr. Arie Morgenstern for providing these references. Regarding the aliyah of the talmidei HaGra, see the review of Dr. Morgenstern’s book in Jewish Action, winter 2008; jewishaction.com/books/two_hundred_years_in_eretz_ yisrael_the_seminal_aliyah_of_the_talmidei_hagra/.

12. The Netziv (Meishiv Davar 1:9) also notes that all previous generations debated this point. Because it is such a long-standing debate, both sides, he claims, have legitimate halachic grounds upon which to rely. In his view, however, the correct thing to do is not to count a child in such a circumstance, and one should not feel badly about missing those parts of the tefillah that cannot be recited without a minyan since that is the halachah.

13. He also ruled against another “baseless minyan shortcut.”

There are those who recite Kaddish at the gravesite of a tzaddik with nine people and count the tzaddik as the tenth, claming that this is based on a gemara (Berachot 18b) stating that a dead tzaddik is deemed alive (Yechaveh Da’at 6:5).

14. As part of his argument to permit counting a child (Yayin Hatov, OC 28), former Sephardi Chief Rabbi Yitzchak Nissim suggests that the Shulchan Aruch tends toward being lenient or would not even have mentioned that position. Rav Ovadiah disagrees (Yabia Omer 4:OC: 9 and 9:OC:103:5).

INSIDEthe PROGRAMS OF THE ORTHODOX UNION

OU

By Sara Goldberg

The Wisdom of Not Knowing

By Rabbi Dr. Josh Joseph “If knowledge is power, knowing what we don’t know is wisdom.”

— Adam Grant, Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know (New York, 2021).

“I don’t know.” Three words that are so important for any leader, manager, supervisor or parent. And yet they are often words difficult to verbalize. They admit vulnerability, lean in to insecurity and—when used at the wrong time or in the wrong context—can create confusion. And yet, they can also be uttered with what Adam Grant refers to as confident humility, wherein we have enough of a sense of ourselves to admit our own limitations. As David Leonhardt (“The Covid Fable,” the New York Times, Oct. 8) reminds us, when it comes to predicting the path of the coronavirus, “we don’t know, and we do not have to pretend otherwise.”

Being maavir sedra—of course with the All Parsha app!—one comes across interesting comments made by Rashi that might otherwise go unnoticed. In Bereishit 28:5 and 35:13, he comments: “Eini yode’a mah milamdeinu—I do not know what [the addition of] these words intend to tell us.”

Since Rashi’s translation is not linear and there are many places where he writes no commentary, if Rashi doesn’t know something, then he doesn’t need

to say anything. But the Lubavitcher Rebbe explains that Rashi is modeling that when we encounter something we don’t know, we should be honest with ourselves. As Berachot 4a states: “Lameid l'shoncha lomar ‘eini yode’a,’ shema titbadeh v’te’achez—Accustom your tongue to say, 'I do not know,' lest you become entangled in deceit.” We must remind ourselves to sometimes say “I don’t know” because maybe you’ll make a mistake and you’ll be stuck. But it is not just the trap of being caught saying something untrue or unwise. The lesson for humility is to admit both what we don’t know, as well as the sheer recognition that we don’t know.

In my first year at the OU, I’ve learned so much about our activities, yet recognize that I am still learning and experiencing so many new and exciting undertakings. Recent experiences across the OU’s many programs highlight the reason to be humbled by the activities and accomplishments of our colleagues. Our collective and continued growth in Torah learning flourishes unabated!

• Yachad welcomed its first sefer Torah, now hosted at The Marilyn and Sheldon David IVDU Upper Boys School in Brooklyn, with a celebration of its students and donors on Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan.

• So many siyumim!

• We were overwhelmed by ninetyfour-year-old Holocaust survivor Moshe Rubin, who finished Masechta Beitzah using All Daf and met his rebbe, Rabbi Moshe Elefant, for the first time in October.

• Semichat Chaver held a live, in-person kayitz zeman siyum at the Young Israel of Woodmere in New York in October with Rabbi Hershel Schachter, shlit”a, and over twenty maggidei shiur.

• The OU Women’s Initiative will be holding a siyum this winter to celebrate the completion of a two-year Nach Yomi cycle.

Numbers can also be humbling and overwhelming: • Teach NJ received a $5 million STEM grant enabling public school teachers to teach forty-three STEM classes in fifteen day schools and yeshivot across New Jersey this fall.

• Synagogue Initiatives completed its database of over 2,200 shuls across North America.

• A study revealed that participant satisfaction on our Israel Free Spirit: Birthright Israel trips significantly exceeds overall satisfaction of all Birthright participants.

We also recently completed a survey of all OU employees, facilitated by the OU's Center for Communal Research, Continued on page 108 Winter 5782/2021 JEWISH ACTION

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HAPPENINGS

AROUND THE OU

Parenting Partnership Furthering its mission to enhance Jewish communal life and confront ongoing communal challenges, the OU Department of Community Projects and Partnerships, in collaboration with the Cincinnati Jewish community, launched the Empowered Parenting Initiative in August.

This year-long pilot program provides exceptional programs, top experts and family experiences, all focused on strengthening the family unit. The various workshops and sessions will cover topics like guiding good choices, modeling digital responsibility, and creating meaningful family-time moments.

“The parent-child relationship is the nucleus of the childhood experience,” said Rabbi Phil Karesh, Executive Director of the OU Department of Community Projects and Partnerships. “When the leadership of Cincinnati learned about this national initiative that we are planning, they were passionate about affecting change in this vital area. We are thrilled to be partnering with them.”

OU President Moishe Bane addresses community members at the launch of the Empowered Parenting Initiative in Cincinnati this past August. Following the pilot program, the OU Department of Community Projects and Partnerships plans to expand the initiative to several communities next year. Photo: Gailya Sanders

Celebrating Transformation

Participants from the OU Impact Accelerator’s cohorts brainstorming together at a retreat in August. Attended by Accelerator staff, board members, program mentors, and members of all three cohorts, the afternoon of celebration and appreciation highlighted how much the Accelerator—which identifies and advances promising Jewish nonprofits through education, mentorship and collaboration— has transformed the landscape of the Jewish community since its founding three years ago. "We’ve helped to create greater impact in many areas: families struggling with secondary infertility, elementary school experiential education and tefillah, substance abuse education, and more,” said Impact Accelerator Director Jenna Beltser. “The impact that these collective organizations have on thousands of families is tremendous.” Photo: Zush Heirich 106

JEWISH ACTION Winter 5782/2021

Creating Today's Jewish Leaders Thanks to a generous $1.75 million grant, Yavneh—a project of the OU’s Heshe and Harriet Seif Jewish Learning Initiative on Campus (OU-JLIC)—launched YavNext. A Yavneh alumni and young professional network of passionate Jewish leaders in cities around the country, YavNext seeks to develop and mentor the next generation of Modern Orthodox leaders. The grant also enables Yavneh to build and expand its existing programs over the next five years.

“If we are to truly create the leaders of tomorrow, we must support college leaders to transition into adult leaders, capable of thinking both creatively and in harmony with existing Jewish institutions and frameworks,” said Rabbi Jonathan Shulman, Director, Yavneh.

REACH-ing Every Child

Upholding Religious Liberty

In October, Yachad, the OU division for individuals with disabilities in the Jewish community, launched REACH, a new centralized Jewish communal resource and referral service for individuals with disabilities and their families. This free hotline, staffed by a team of trained professionals, provides referrals for a multitude of services—including government-funded programs, special education, therapies, legal services, and social and recreational programs.

“In the past, families of those with disabilities had to rely on reaching out to second- and thirddegree connections only to learn that the referral wasn’t related to their immediate need,” said Yachad International Director Avrohom Adler. “Our hope in creating one centralized system is to give the most accurate referral based on the caller’s specific disabilities and circumstances.”

REACH will initially serve the New York region, and plans are in the works to scale operations over time to accommodate families throughout the US. Call 1-877-REACH-52.

In September, the OU Advocacy Center filed a “friend of the court” brief in the case of Carson v. Makin, urging the US Supreme Court to reverse the decision of the US Court of Appeals (1st Circuit) that allowed Maine to prohibit parents from using state tuition assistance payments at religious high schools. The brief argued that, if adopted, the exclusion of religious people or institutions from government aid programs could well lead to Orthodox Jews and other faith groups being excluded from government-provided programs in the fields of healthcare, safety codes, social services and education. The brief also highlighted the myriad aid programs in which policymakers–often at the OU’s urging—have included religious persons and entities, including federal disaster aid, security grants, Covid relief programs, and more.

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NEW POSITIONS PROMOTIONS AND

Welcome to . . .

. . . Michal Frankel, Director of Strategic Partnerships, OU West Coast. In this role, Michal will

be working to help further the myriad programs and services within the OU, including the Heshe and Harriet Seif Jewish Learning Initiative on Campus (OU-JLIC), NCSY, Yachad, OU Women’s Initiative, and many more. Michal has fifteen years of experience working in the Jewish nonprofit community, and most recently served as the Director of Strategic Development at RAISE Nonprofit Advisors as a senior consultant. Prior to that Michal spent many years in the field working in national Jewish nonprofit organizations such as UJA-Federation of New York and the Jewish National Fund (JNF) on both the East and West coasts.

Congratulations to . . . . . . Maury Litwack, who has been named Managing Director for Public Affairs. In this new capacity, Maury will be overseeing all of the marketing and communications, institutional advancement and political advocacy functions of the OU. He has served as Founder and Executive Director of the OU’s Teach Coalition for the past eight years, which under his leadership has grown into a multi-state network responsible for billions of dollars in funding to nonpublic schools. Prior to joining the OU, Maury was a Federal Affairs Lobbyist for Miami-Dade county and served as a Legislative Staffer in the US Congress. . . . Rabbi Gideon Black on his appointment as CEO, New York NCSY. Rabbi Black joins NCSY after a decade working with OU-JLIC, where he served as a mentor to college students and rabbinic couples, first as a Campus Rabbi at NYU and later as Director of Professional Recruitment and Leadership Development. Rabbi Black looks forward to utilizing his experiences to better reach and impact the next generation of Jewish teens. . . . Becca Zebovitz on her promotion to Director of Donor Services, Institutional Advancement. As Director, Becca will be responsible for supporting department/regional dedicated fundraisers through researching and implementing best practices, lead generation, and facilitating interdepartmental collaboration. Prior to this role, Becca worked for Yachad, where she held roles in both operations and development. She will be bringing her unique mix of experiences to support the growth of the Institutional Advancement Department.

Continued from page 105

assessing culture, employee engagement and the effectiveness of our support operations. The study yielded some fascinating and wonderful learnings while providing insight into areas needing improvement and growth. In essence, the findings help us to answer some of the unknowns, or at least point us in the direction of those answers.

Moshe Rabbeinu, we are told, was “anav mikol adam,” attaining the highest levels of humility. But he also had the temerity at a young age to stand by his convictions, which led to the killing of an Egyptian, speaking directly with 108

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Pharaoh, helping the daughters of Yitro at the well, and more. Perhaps one might consider it ironic that Moshe argued with Hashem about his own inadequacies to be a leader! My father, z”l,* explained that this was part of his confident humility—confident in knowing his strengths and weaknesses, and yet humble—to not seek the mantle, to claim all knowledge, and therein maintain that ability to say “I don’t know.” In the eulogy I delivered for my father, z”l, I noted that he himself modeled this ideal of one who is humble, espe-

cially as expressed by C.S. Lewis: “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less.”

When we can think of ourselves less, we may be more likely to say, “I don’t know” and recognize that there is more for us to learn. That lesson has been reinforced for me with all that is “Inside the OU”; I hope you’ll agree!

Rabbi Dr. Josh Joseph is OU Executive Vice President/Chief Operating Officer. *For more interesting Torah from my father, z”l, tune in to our new shiur on the All Parsha app, based on the Netziv’s Haamek Davar.

WOMEN IN ACTION

Bringing Nach Full Circle

For thousands of women across the globe, this coming January will mark a milestone achievement—the completion of two years of daily Nach learning with the OU Women’s Initiative’s Torat Imecha. Launched in January 2020, this podcast of daily shiurim by women scholars, geared to learners of all levels, has been one of the WI’s most popular programs, with participants from across forty states and thirty-four countries. In celebration of this momentous achievement, WI spoke with several of the talented educators who brought Nach to life in their daily shiurim.

Rebbetzin Smadar Rosensweig Sefer Iyov

Mrs. Shira Hochheimer Yechezkel

“Iyov plays a seminal role in our understanding of personal suffering and faith during crisis. I loved learning the various classical midrashim, commentators and thinkers and introducing this wealth of knowledge to those who were learning with me.”

“I really enjoyed the opportunity to delve into a sefer I never explored before in depth and find ways to make it meaningful and make it my own. The format of Torat Imecha Nach Yomi forces you to understand the sefer and then crystalize your ideas in a succinct manner.”

Mrs. Michal Horowitz Sefer Yehoshua

Mrs. Sara Malka Winter Tehillim

“Sefer Yehoshua reminds us that Eretz Yisrael is the Promised Land, and it is our Land. What I enjoyed the most about teaching Nach Yomi were the many, many new insights that I myself learned from preparing all the shiurim.”

“I don't think I am alone in my opinion that Tehillim speaks to us women more than any other book in Tanach. I found so much comfort in Dovid Hamelech's beautiful praise, startlingly relatable struggles, pain and gratitude. In learning and teaching Nach Yomi, I enjoyed the feeling of connection to so many other women around the world, all studying the same chapter of Nach.”

Mrs. Esther Wein Shir Hashirim “When teaching, I strive to expose students to fundamental Jewish ideas and their eternal truths. Shir Hashirim is replete with analogies which must be understood on a more esoteric level. Many kabbalistic ideas are brought to light as one delves into the nuances of the human-Divine attachment.”

To sign up for the next cycle of Torat Imecha Nach Yomi, visit ou.org/women/nach22.

Mrs. Rachel Besser Yirmiyahu “Yirmiyahu helps us discover truths of the human condition and can help us grow and become better, more thoughtful, honest and kinder people. What I enjoyed greatly in teaching Nach Yomi—and did not anticipate—was the feedback. The many women who emailed me their ideas, reflections and questions pushed me in my understanding of the sefer.”

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NEW FROM OU PRESS R abbi E dwaRd REichman , md

The Anatomy of Jewish Law: A Fresh Dissection of the Relationship Between Medicine, Medical History, and Rabbinic Literature

By Edward Reichman OU Press and Maggid Books

&

I

n this innovative new work, Rabbi Dr. Edward Reichman traces the medical understanding of anatomy, physiology and therapeutics across time and genres of rabbinic literature. Rabbi Dr. Reichman, a world-renowned expert in the fields of Jewish bioethics and Jewish medical history, is professor of emergency medicine and professor of bioethics at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and an attending physician in emergency medicine at Montefiore Medical Center. In addition, he is a talmid chacham of note who received rabbinic ordination from the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary of Yeshiva University.

The book contains five sections, divided into twenty-six chapters. In the section on fertility and reproduction, some chapters include: “Is There Life After Life? Superfetation in Medical, Historical and Rabbinic Literature,” “Midrash, Miracles, and Motherhood: The Birth of Dinah and the Definition of Maternity,” and “Shared Biological Paternity in Rabbinic Literature: From Goliath to Mitochondrial

And Coming Soon…

Nishmat Ha-Bayit

Nishmat Ha-Bayit Contemporary Questions on Women’s Reproductive Health Addressed by Yoatzot Halakha

Nishmat HaBayit: Contemporary Questions on Women’s Reproductive Health Addressed by Yoatzot Halakha Edited by Rabbanit Chana Henkin and Rabbi Yehuda Henkin OU Press and Maggid Books

O

riginally published in Hebrew and now translated into English by Rabbi Elli Fischer, Nishmat HaBayit consists of sixty-three teshuvot (responsa) on subjects related to pregnancy, birth, pregnancy loss, nursing and contraception. What makes this sefer different from others on these subjects is that each of the teshuvot was written by one of a cadre of yoatzot

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DNA and the Three-Parent Embryo.” In the section on anatomy and physiology, chapters include: “The Illusive and Elusive Luz Bone,” and “Are Two Heads Really Better Than One? Halakhic Issues Relating to Conjoined Twins and a Two-Headed Person.” Under diseases and therapeutics, we read about “The Use of Anesthesia in Circumcision: A Reevaluation of the Halakhic Sources,” “Lessons from the First Halakhic Analysis of Vaccination,” and “Precedented Times: The Rabbinic Response to COVID-19 and Pandemics Throughout the Ages.” Other sections discuss death and resuscitation, and medicine and rabbinic literature.

Rabbi Dr. Reichman meticulously analyzes the perspective of Jewish sources, from Tanach through the Talmud and Rishonim, to posekim of our own era, on the medical phenomena under discussion.

Throughout the book, he compares and contrasts the Jewish sources with medical views expressed in secular literature over the centuries, ranging from Galen and Aristotle in antiquity through the scientific literature of the Middle Ages down to cutting-edge contemporary scientific knowledge.

Marshalling a vast array of sources from multiple disciplines, Rabbi Dr. Reichman demonstrates the importance of the historical dimension not only for medical halachic research, but to better understand the unique relationship of Judaism and medicine throughout the centuries. This work is an indispensable resource for anyone interested in the intertwined histories of halachah and medicine.

halachah, or women specially trained in the relevant halachic and scientific material, under the aegis of Midreshet Nishmat, founded and led by Rabbanit Chana Henkin. Each teshuvah was then reviewed by Rabbi Yehuda Henkin, zt”l, and Rabbi Yaakov Warhaftig, shlit”a. In addition, the sefer concludes with five medical appendices by Dr. Deena Zimmerman, herself a yoetzet halachah as well as a medical doctor.

In this volume, distinguished by its clarity of presentation, each teshuvah presents a summary of the practical halachic conclusion, followed by a more detailed look at the classical and contemporary halachic sources on which the decision is based. The Hebrew edition contains the approbations of Rabbi Dov Lior and Rabbi Nachum Rabinovitch, zt”l, among others. The teshuvot are written with sensitivity as well as erudition, and the work as a whole provides an excellent guide to these complex halachot. This first-of-its-kind work is an important addition to contemporary halachic literature.

De-LIGHT-ful Gifts for Chanukah NEW Foundations of Faith: A Tapestry of Insights & Illuminations on Pirkei Avot A commentary on Pirkei Avot, based on Rabbi Norman Lamm’s teachings and writings, edited by Rabbi Mark Dratch and published in memory of Rabbi Lamm. Experience Rabbi Lamm’s characteristic eloquence and mastery of Jewish thought that he draws upon to explicate Judaism’s ideas and ideals. Inspiring and profound, this commentary is a scintillating demonstration of Rabbi Lamm’s invaluable message for contemporary Jewry and a fitting tribute to his memory.

NEW!

The Light That Unites: A Chanukah Companion Rabbi Aaron Goldscheider’s engaging illumination of this beloved holiday, accompanied by inspiring original artwork from Aitana Perlmutter, provides a new appreciation for Chanukah’s message of light and unity.

The Torah Encyclopedia of the Animal Kingdom (Vol. 1) In a lavish volume replete with stunning photographs, Rabbi Natan Slifkin presents a detailed survey of the wild animals discussed in Jewish tradition.

Headlines 2: Halachic Debates of Current Events

Order Today OUPress.org Books of Jewish thought and prayer that educate, inspire, enrich and enlighten.

As with his first successful first volume, Dovid Lichtenstein once again takes items drawn from the news as starting points for in-depth halachic analyses of questions at the forefront of our contemporary conversation.

The Covenant Kitchen: Food and Wine for the New Jewish Table Acclaimed winemakers Jeff and Jodie Morgan take kosher dining to a new level of sophistication – the ultimate kosher cookbook for food-lovers, with detailed suggestions for wine pairing.

Inside

PHILANTHROPY BRINGING TEEN OUTREACH TO A WHOLE NEW LEVEL

Teens in a JSU club in Atlanta, Georgia, showing off their Rosh Hashanah projects.

Photos courtesy of Rabbi Chaim Neiditch

By JA Staff

U

ntil last year, sixteen-year-old Luiz Gandelman, a high school sophomore, wasn’t focused on his Judaism. Nowadays, however, he’s the “go-to person” for anything Jewish at Gulliver Prep High School, the private school he attends in Miami, Florida.

What spurred the drastic change?

“Being involved in the Jewish Student Union led me to become what my colleagues described as a ‘Jewish activist,’” explains Gandelman, who got involved with the program in the summer of 2020.

Established in 2002, NCSY’s JSU is a network of 300 culture clubs for Jewish public school teens throughout the United States and Canada, impacting approximately 12,000 Jewish teens annually. Welcoming students of all affiliations and backgrounds, JSU clubs meet weekly, bi-weekly or monthly in the morning, during lunch hour

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or after school, depending on the extracurricular structure of the participating schools.

“Almost every other Jewish communal initiative puts up a flag post and says, ‘Here we are. Our programs are welcoming and accessible, but you have to seek us out,’” says Rabbi Micah Greenland, NCSY’s International Director. JSU, however, meets teens on their own turf, in their own schools. “It requires almost no additional effort on their behalf. There is virtually no barrier to entry,” he says.

With a focus on experiential learning, JSU teens bake challah, build their own menorahs and run mock Seders. In addition to the learning, JSU offers a broad menu of programming including camping and skiing trips, as well as trips to New York to experience a traditional Shabbat and meet Jewish community leaders.

Those who join Atlantic Seaboard Region’s JSU Project

Inside PHILANTHROPY

Israel get a chance to learn about Israel advocacy and participate in the AIPAC Conference.

Through JSU Explore, JSU’s Community Service Division in the Southern Region, teens help organize beach cleanups, educate school and community members about anti-Semitism and the Holocaust, and connect with Jewish seniors via Zoom to ease their isolation, among other activities.

“JSU drives Jewish connection for teens in public high schools,” says Devora Simon, the National Director of JSU who has more than a decade of experience working with public school Jewish teens. She notes that while the delicious free pizza and other goodies offered is enticing to students, it’s far from what draws them to meetings week after week.

Seeking to advance the extraordinary potential of JSU, Teaneck, New Jersey-based philanthropists Becky and Avi Katz recently made a multiyear pledge of $3 million, taking Jewish teen engagement and kiruv to a whole new level. “We have an achrayut to be involved and engaged, not only to build up and continue to develop the community, but also to ensure that no one gets left behind,” says Avi. “A lot of Jewish teens run the risk of getting left behind.”

“Avi and I have watched NCSY and JSU grow for the better part of a decade and have come to understand that both are incredibly important organizations that serve a great purpose within the wider Jewish community,” Becky told the New Jersey Jewish Link. “Because of our up-close-and-personal relationship with JSU, we are inspired by the potential impact of this initiative.”

According to the Chofetz Chaim, the source for the obligation to engage in kiruv is the mitzvah of hashavat aveidah, explains Avi. Just as we are obligated to return lost items to a fellow Jew, we are obligated to return a lost neshamah that yearns to be reunited with its Creator. “That should be our attitude toward kiruv. If there’s a need out there, you can’t ignore it.”

Currently in twenty-one states across the country and four Canadian provinces, JSU clubs are especially meaningful for Jewish teens in cities with small Jewish populations.

“There are Jewish teens who live in far-flung states around the country. There may be twenty Jewish kids in a school of 800 or 1,000,” says Avi. “That is an incredibly lonely place to be. Particularly nowadays with the rising anti-Semitism some of these kids face in school, JSU provides a much-needed sense of community. This is not something nice to do—it’s something we have to do,” he says.

“JSU helps [teens] feel part of a community of other Jewish teens in their schools and [enables] them to wear their religion more proudly,” Becky told the New Jersey Jewish Link. “Our community needs to create a better connection and relationship, through dialogue, to better understand the individual needs of Jewish teens in public schools.”

Through Avi and Becky Katz’s generosity and vision, JSU will have an even greater impact on teens across the country.

“

We have an achrayut to be involved and engaged, not only to build up and continue to develop the community, but also to ensure that no one gets left behind.

- Avi Katz A Springboard For Growth With Covid restrictions subsiding and JSU clubs slowly returning to a regular schedule, Rabbi Mordi Spero, City Coordinator for Baltimore NCSY, has been inundated with calls from parents and teens reaching out, asking for JSU programming.

“They are itching to get back,” he says.

“I look forward to [attending the clubs],” says Veronica Voskoboynik, sixteen, who attends Pikesville High School in Maryland. “It’s a perfect opportunity to explore religion in a fun, relaxed way.”

Once a teen is in involved in JSU within the school environment, one of the goals is to transition him or her into the world of Jewish programming outside the school walls. “JSU is a springboard for continuous Jewish growth,” says Simon. “It’s where we’ll introduce our Israel trips, like TJJ [The Anne Samson JeruWinter 5782/2021 JEWISH ACTION

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“Jewish Student Union Club is awesome.

It’s a community. It’s a safe place within my school where I am like everyone else. It’s my club. It’s my territory.”

— S., Niles North High School

For years, JSU clubs have been an access point for Jewish teens in public schools to connect with their Jewish heritage, Jewish community and Jewish values.

Now, thanks to the vision and generosity of Becky and Avi Katz, the Katz Family Initiative will transform and enhance JSU clubs through meaningful relationships, Jewish education and continued Jewish opportunities and experiences.

To join Becky and Avi, visit NCSY.org/donate

SUMMER

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salem Journey], which have tremendous yield and kiruv potential. And it’s where we’ll invite teens for a Shabbat meal or a Shabbaton. JSU is a platform for participants to access more, and it’s the greatest opportunity we have to impact the Jewish future on the front lines.”

In 2019, under Avi’s guidance, NCSY and the Center for Communal Research (CCR), the OU’s research arm, examined how JSU could have a greater impact on teen participants. The study showed that while many JSU chapters are successful independently, they could have greater educational impact through enhanced staff training and increased connections amongst student leaders. It also illustrated a need for additional staffing, both locally and nationally.

“Among all of NCSY’s programs, JSU is responsible for reaching the most teens,” says Simon.

“Today we’re deeply and consistently engaging roughly 27 percent of JSU participants and hopefully, with the help of the Katzes’ vision and generosity, we can double that.”

New Strategies and Enhanced Techniques The Katzes’ gift will be used to fund the “Katz Family Initiative Driving Impact in JSU,” which aims to improve retention and students’ transition to Jewish programs beyond club meetings. The effort also includes the development of a curriculum with engaging and relevant modules produced by professional educators, which will be used by JSU staff across the network.

“Currently clubs are largely student-led, and JSU staff serve as outside facilitators. There is no uniform curriculum,” says Rabbi Greenland. “It’s set by the students. Moving forward, lessons will still be student-initiated but greater educational resources will be available.”

The curriculum will offer four well-developed pillars of education that students can choose from: Israel education and advocacy; Holocaust education and combating anti-Semitism; Jewish holidays and the Jewish calendar; and Jewish values, such as tzedakah and ethical considerations.

The Katz Family JSU Initiative also includes the creation of a new position of National Director of JSU, a role to which Simon was recently appointed.

In her new role, she will oversee the program nationally and propel the program forward. Expert field managers will guide JSU directors on broadening the reach of their programming, and a second director will be added to clubs with only one staff member.

“It’s very challenging to build relationships with thirty to fifty teens in a room when you’re also dealing with education, food and attendance,” says Simon.

“Adding staff is a way to really increase teen engagement. We’ve already seen the results in a few cities.”

“We’re extremely thankful to Becky and Avi Katz for everything they do, whether it’s opening their

Inside PHILANTHROPY

home to our programs, helping us to better our NCSY programs, and perhaps most notably in this moment, leading from the front and making this tremendous investment in the Jewish future,” said OU President Moishe Bane.

In addition to its other goals, the Katz Family JSU Initiative will support enhanced staff-training with a specific emphasis on recruiting for JSU summer programs, such as TJJ. “TJJ is our greatest tool at long-term impact of Jewish teens,” says Simon. “We’ve seen that the more immersive the experience, the more impactful it is. Approximately 80 to 90 percent of teens who come back [from TJJ] stay connected with JSU programming throughout the year.”

Finally, some of the most exciting plans the Initiative has in store include a Teen Leadership Program, which will provide coaching and mentorship to club leaders, and a JSU Presidents’ Conference. For the very first time, all JSU club presidents will convene at a two-day conference where they will build leadership skills, meet peers confronting similar challenges and return home empowered and inspired to recruit more members.

The Couple Behind The Gift Serving on the front lines of both the OU and NCSY is something Becky and Avi have prioritized for years, despite their full schedules. The parents of four children, ages fourteen to twenty-two, the Katzes have made time to play active leadership roles in the OU’s growth and development. Becky is deeply involved in many communal initiatives and sits on numerous boards, including the OU Women’s Initiative. The couple regularly open their home to organizations and enjoy the opportunity to host NCSY activities.

Avi, the Co-Founder and CEO of the insurance and technology company Agam, serves as Chairman of the OU’s Board of Governors and previously served as National Chairman of NCSY. “When Avi was the NCSY National Chairman, he was a constant advocate for greater achievement, for setting ambitious goals, and for the measurement of outcomes and accomplishments,” recalls Rabbi Greenland.

“Coming from the world of finance where everything is measured and data is critical, Avi really helped us sharpen a culture that relies on tracking metrics, such as attendance information, on a near constant basis as a means of guiding decisions.”

“The Katzes have a greater vision as well as really big goals for the organization and for JSU,” says Simon.

“They understand the steps we need to take in order to get there and have helped us narrow down the vision and create clarity around our goals.”

A Judaic studies teacher at Yeshivat Noam in Paramus, New Jersey, Becky, who formerly taught at Ma’ayanot Yeshiva High School for Girls in Teaneck, New Jersey, “has been a generous and warm program partner, joining NCSY Shabbatons and relief missions and hosting events,” says Rabbi Greenland.

A JSU participant learns about the mitzvah of lulav and etrog.

Recalling her participation in an NCSY humanitarian mission to New Orleans with Ma’ayanot and public high school students, Becky says she was amazed by “the mutual respect and appreciation” among participants and “the potential impact of introducing public school students to their Jewish heritage.”

Beyond her dedication to NCSY, Becky’s commitment to tzarchei tzibbur spans a number of organizations in Teaneck and Bergen County. Having been raised in a home where her mother, Lois Grossman, was “merkarev people all the time” and had “a passion for helping Jewish people feel closer to Hashem and enjoy being Jewish,” it is no surprise that Becky finds NCSY’s kiruv mandate so meaningful.

Which is why kids like Luiz Gandelman really resonate with Becky.

“NCSY and JSU are such incredible organizations because they help teens experience the beauty of our Torah, our heritage and our customs,” Becky says. “By creating opportunities for positive Jewish experiences, it helps to inspire the next generation of Jewish leaders.”

In recent months, Gandelman’s sense of Jewish pride and identity has only grown.

“I began praying Shacharit daily,” he says. “My connection to Judaism and Israel is stronger than ever.

I have JSU to thank for this, as it provided me with the support I needed to get to where I am today. For that, I will always be grateful.”

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Inside PHILANTHROPY

Rabbi Chaim Neiditch (left) chatting with public school students.

SPOTLIGHT ON

JSU ATLANTA

In public high schools throughout the Greater Atlanta area, something remarkable is taking place: once a month more than 3,000 Jewish teens show up an hour before school starts (at 7:15 in the morning!) to attend a JSU club with the highly charismatic and energetic Rabbi Chaim Neiditch.

“I’m not a morning person,” admits Rabbi Neiditch. But since 7:15 am proved to be the best time for kids to meet (it doesn’t conflict with basketball, play or band practice), Rabbi Neiditch made it happen.

Aiming to create more than just a club, Rabbi Neiditch explains that his programming is designed to get Jewish kids to meet and befriend one another. “I’m trying to build a Jewish community within the school.

Kids grow best when they grow within a chevra [a social group].”

Rabbi Neiditch, who serves as the Regional Director of the Greater Atlanta NCSY and has been involved with JSU for fifteen years, tries to keep the clubs focused on experiential learning— whether it’s blowing a shofar or baking hamantashen (he has been known to bring convection ovens to classrooms!). The meetings offer loads of fun and make the 116

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kids feel good “about being Jewish and about themselves,” he says.

But much of Rabbi Neiditch’s success has to do with his warmth and welcoming personality. As the kids shuffle in in the early morning, ready to attack the 100 pounds of challah dough waiting for them—prepared by Chava, Rabbi Neiditch’s devoted wife—the rabbi stands at the door, greeting each student and thanking him or her for coming. “It’s great to see you!” he exclaims, grinning at a young freshman. And while the teens artistically shape the dough and apply all kinds of delectable toppings, such as poppy seeds and chocolate chips, Rabbi Neiditich circles the room, stopping to chat with each student. “How’s your Mom?” he asks or “What happened at the game last night?” Forming tight bonds with participants is key, he says. “Every teen in my programs has my cell number.”

Thanks to the Katz Family JSU Initiative, Rabbi Neiditch has taken on an additional national role, where he will be mentoring other JSU directors around the country. “JSU directors will take turns coming to Atlanta to see how we operate here,” he says.

But the success of JSU Atlanta goes far beyond the kids in the classroom. “Years ago, when I first starting coming into these schools, there were only Christmas trees displayed,” recalls Rabbi Neiditch.

“Now you see menorahs too, and Jewish kids are proudly wearing their Magen David necklaces.”

Indeed, one year, Rabbi Neiditch served as the keynote speaker at a graduation ceremony at Centennial High School in Roswell, Georgia.

The graduating JSU seniors had a surprise for Rabbi Neiditch, whom they adored. Instead of donning graduation caps, they were wearing yarmulkes, for the first time in public, as a way of displaying their Jewish pride. Later they told him: “We were just so proud that you were representing us up there, and we wanted people to know that Judaism has been a big part of our high school experience. That is all thanks to you and to JSU.” What is perhaps most gratifying for Rabbi Neiditch, however, is the ripple effect JSU has on families.

He recalls that a few days after students built wooden Chanukah menorahs and received a box of candles in honor of the upcoming holiday, one young man came up to him and said, “I took out my menorah the first night of Chanukah.

This is the first time my family is lighting Chanukah candles.”

OU Benefactor Circle members form the cornerstone of the Orthodox Union. Their partnership and deep commitment to our mission allow us to accomplish so much on behalf of our community.

We applaud and thank all those who lead through their philanthropy and whose names appear here, as well as those choosing to remain anonymous. If you are not yet a member, we invite you to join us in making a difference.

To learn more, please call Elaine Grossman, OU Benefactor Circle Coordinator, 212-613-8350 or grossmane@ou.org.

AMBASSADOR $1,000,000 + DAN AND EWA ABRAHAM DRS. FELIX AND MIRIAM GLAUBACH BECKY AND AVI KATZ DR. SHMUEL AND EVELYN KATZ THE MARCUS FOUNDATION INC. IN MEMORY OF ANNE SAMSON A”H

GUARDIAN $100,000 - $999,999 EMANUEL AND HELEN ADLER IN MEMORY OF AHARON BEN YAAKOV SHALOM AND LEAH BAS YITZHAK MARK (MOISHE) AND JOANNE BANE ROBERT AND MICHELLE DIENER ARIELA AND BENITO ESQUENAZI IN HONOR OF THE MENDEL BALK YACHAD COMMUNITY CENTER MR. AND MRS. JACK FEINTUCH ELLIOT P. AND DEBORAH GIBBER ALAN AND BARBARA GINDI THE GUSTAVE AND CAROL JACOBS CENTER FOR KASHRUT EDUCATION

MORDECAI Z”L AND MONIQUE KATZ THE KOHELET FOUNDATION THE JEWISH FEDERATION OF GREATER LOS ANGELES THE JEWISH FEDERATION OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO MICHAEL AND ANDREA LEVEN DAVID AND DEBRA MAGERMAN MAYBERG FOUNDATION RAPHAEL AND RIVKA NISSEL RALLA KLEPAK FOUNDATION FOR EDUCATION IN THE PERFORMING ARTS ERIC AND GALE ROTHNER RUDERMAN FAMILY FOUNDATION MARK AND BARBARA SILBER MORIS AND LILLIAN TABACINIC UJA-FEDERATION OF NEW YORK JOYCE AND JEREMY WERTHEIMER

FOUNDER $50,000 - $99,999 MR. RAANAN AND DR. NICOLE AGUS ALLEN AND DEANNA ALEVY HOWARD AND CHAYA BALTER DANIEL AND RAZIE BENEDICT JUDI AND JASON BERMAN

THE CAYRE FAMILY CRAIN-MALING FOUNDATION: WWW.CRAINMALING.ORG CROSS RIVER BANK GRANT AND JENNIFER DINNER GERSHON AND AVIVA DISTENFELD MITCHELL AND ANNETTE EICHEN FOUNDATION FOR JEWISH DAY SCHOOLS, GREATER PHILADELPHIA RABBI MANFRED Z”L AND LISELOTTE Z”L GANS CHESSED FUND AMIR AND STACEY GOLDMAN DR. EPHRAIM AND RITA GREENFIELD KLEIN, JAFFA, AND HALPERN FAMILIES RICHARD HIRSCH JEWISH COMMUNITY FEDERATION AND ENDOWMENT FUND JEWISH FEDERATION OF NORTHERN NEW JERSEY JEWISH FUTURE PLEDGE DR. EZRA AND LAUREN KEST ETTA BRANDMAN KLARISTENFELD AND HARRY KLARISTENFELD ESTATE OF ETHELYN LIEBLICH CHUCK AND ALLEGRA MAMIYE EITAN AND DEBRA MILGRAM SAMIS FOUNDATION THE SHAMAH FAMILY GARY AND MALKA TORGOW THE WEISS FAMILY, CLEVELAND, OHIO JOSH AND ALLISON ZEGEN

BUILDER $25,000 - $49,999

VISIONARY $18,000 - $24,999

LIOR AND DRORA ARUSSY SUE AND BILL AUERBACH LEWIS AND LAURI BARBANEL SABY AND ROSI BEHAR SHAEL AND JOAN BELLOWS HARRY H. BEREN Z”L MAX AND ELANA BERLIN BRIAN AND DAFNA BERMAN VIVIAN AND DANIEL CHILL DRS. BENJAMIN AND ESTHER CHOUAKE COMBINED JEWISH PHILANTHROPIES THE CONDUIT FOUNDATION SHIMON AND CHAYA ECKSTEIN JEFFREY AND SHIRA EISENBERG JUDITH AND ALLEN I. FAGIN FALIC FAMILY FOUNDATION GREATER MIAMI JEWISH FEDERATION HOWARD TZVI AND CHAYA FRIEDMAN GEORGE AND MARTHA RICH FOUNDATION ARTHUR AND JUDITH GOLDBERG EVE GORDON-RAMEK HARVEY GREENSTEIN ARI AND ALISON GROSS MOSHE AND TIRA GUBIN ESTATE OF ALLEN HABELSON JAMES AND AMY A”H HABER JACK HADDAD DR. ELLIOT Z”L AND LILLIAN HAHN ROBERT AND DEBRA HARTMAN J. SAMUEL HARWIT AND MANYA HARWIT-AVIV CHARITABLE TRUST STEVEN HELLER ALISSA AND SHIMMIE HORN DR. ALLAN AND SANDY JACOB PAUL AND CHAVI JACOBS JEWISH FEDERATION OF GREATER ATLANTA JEWISH FEDERATION OF S. PALM BEACH COUNTY NATALIE AND DAVIDI JONAS MICHAEL AND JUDY KAISER BENYAMIN AND ESTI KAMINETZKY RABBI MARK AND LINDA KARASICK MICHAEL AND ELISSA KATZ KARMELA A”H AND JERRY KLASNER LAIZER AND JESSICA KORNWASSER ALBERT LABOZ JEFF AND MARCI LEFKOVITS M.B. GLASSMAN FOUNDATION IRIS AND SHALOM MAIDENBAUM AZI AND RACHEL MANDEL DR. RALPH AND JUDITH MARCUS MRS. FEGI MAUER MARTIN AND ELIZABETH NACHIMSON HENRY AND MINDY ORLINSKY RALPH S. GINDI FOUNDATION MALKI AND J. PHILIP ROSEN JAMES AND LOREN ROSENZWEIG ROBBIE AND HELENE ROTHENBERG GENIE AND STEVE SAVITSKY MENACHEM AND RENA SCHNAIDMAN NATHAN & LOUISE SCHWARTZ TZEDAKA FUND SHANA GLASSMAN FOUNDATION MEYER AND BAILA SILVERBERG BARRY AND JOY SKLAR DAVID AND AMY STRACHMAN MICHAEL AND ARIANNE WEINBERGER THE WEININGER FOUNDATION INC. DAVID AND GILA WEINSTEIN ESTHER AND JERRY WILLIAMS MR. JERRY AND MRS. SARA WOLASKY DAVID AND BECKY ZWILLINGER

AARON AND MARIE BLACKMAN FOUNDATION DENNIS AND DEBRA BERMAN MARCUS Z”L AND DORIS BLUMKIN HILLEL AND CHARLOTTE BRACHFELD THE CHARLES CRANE FAMILY FOUNDATION PETER AND LORI DEUTSCH LINDA AND MICHAEL ELMAN EMT ACTION FUND MARK AND CHERYL FRIEDMAN ROBYN AND SHUKIE GROSSMAN LANCE AND RIVKIE HIRT JOAN AND PETER HOFFMAN ED AND ROBYN HOFFMAN/HOFFMAN CATERING CHAIM AND SURI KAHN JACK ALBERT KASSIN DANA AND JEFFREY KORBMAN CHAIM AND BARA LOEWENTHAL LYNN AND JOEL MAEL DR. LOUIS AND CHANIE MALCMACHER EZRA AND LAUREN MERKIN STEPHEN AND EVE MILSTEIN IRA AND DR. RIVA COLLINS MITZNER CAL AND JANINE NATHAN YEHUDA AND ANNE NEUBERGER ISABELLE AND DAVID NOVAK MARC PENN ALLEN AND MIRIAM PFEIFFER THE REFUGE - A HEALING PLACE HENRY AND GOLDA REENA ROTHMAN STEPHEN AND JESSICA SAMUEL GEORGE AND IRINA SCHAEFFER TOBY MACY SCHAFFER JEREMY AND DAHLIA SIMONS BARUCH AND SUSIE SINGER MORRIS AND RACHEL TABUSH TRAVEL INSURANCE ISRAEL GEORGE AND JONI WHITE

PARTNER $10,000 - $17,999 ALISA ABECASSIS DANIEL AND LIORA ADLER RABBI SHLOMO AND MIRIAM APPEL ART HARRIS FOUNDATION AARON AND TAMMY ATTIAS RACHEL AND AVRUMI BAK IRA AND SHERI BALSAM YALE AND ANN BARON MRS. ROCHEL LEAH BERNSTEIN MR. AND MRS. ISAAC BERMAN SION AND LORRAINE BETESH YEHUDA AND FAIGE BIENSTOCK ANDREA BIER HARVEY AND JUDY BLITZ MR. LUDWIG BRAVMANN DAVID AND CHEDVA BREAU DR. MOSHE AND BRYNDIE BENARROCH VANESSA AND RAYMOND CHALME CAROL AND JEFF COHEN TZIPPY AND DANIEL COHEN MR. SHELDON J. DAVID A”H MICHAEL AND ALIZA DAVIS FRED AND SUZAN EHRMAN DRS. GILAT AND YOSSI ENGLANOFF FIRST HORIZON BANK NATALIO AND ANNE FRIDMAN EZRA AND RACHELI FRIEDBERG

ILANA AND JEFF GDANSKI ARNOLD AND ESTHER GERSON MARY JO ROBINSON AND GORDON GLASER MURRAY AND BATSHEVA GOLDBERG JOSEPH AND LAURA GOLDMAN RABBI BEN AND AVIVA GONSHER PHILIP AND AVIVA GREENLAND RABBI MICAH AND RIVKIE GREENLAND DR. ALAN AND MIRIAM GREENSPAN ABE AND RONIT GUTNICKI ELAN AND MONICA GUTTMAN SALOMON HARARI MR. AND MRS. DAVID HARTMAN RABBI MOSHE AND MINDI HAUER THE HERBERT SMILOWITZ FOUNDATION HOWARD HOFFMAN AND SONS FOUNDATION IRA WALDBAUM FAMILY FOUNDATION ISAAC H. TAYLOR ENDOWMENT FUND THE JACOBY FAMILY JEWISH FEDERATION IN THE HEART OF NEW JERSEY JEWISH FEDERATION OF GREATER HOUSTON DR. JULIE AND RABBI DR. JOSH JOSEPH RUTHY & AARON JUNGREIS DR. AND MRS. BERNARD KAMINETSKY MORRIS AND SONDRA KAPLAN RABBI JOSEPH KARASICK Z”L RABBI ETHAN AND DEBORAH KATZ SAMUEL AND VICKI KATZ ALICE AND JACOB KLEIN MARTIN AND SARAH KORNBLUM LAWRENCE AND EVELYN KRAUT SCOTT AND AVIVA KRIEGER JONAH AND FRAN KUPIETZKY KIM AND JONATHAN KUSHNER MARC AND RENA KWESTEL DANIEL AND AMANDA NUSSBAUM LAIFER JONATHAN AND SHARI LAUER ANDY AND ISA LEFKOWITZ MRS. SHIRLEY LEVY VIVIAN AND DAVID LUCHINS JEFFREY AND ADRIA MANDEL ELLIOTT AND CHAVI MANDELBAUM DAVID AND MICHELLE MARGULES MASA ISRAEL JOURNEY MR. AND MRS. SHALOM MENORA MR. AND MRS. ASHER DAVID AND MICHELLE MILSTEIN GILA AND ADAM MILSTEIN DANIEL AND JESSICA MINKOFF ETAN AND VALERIE MIRWIS AND FAMILY ALEXANDER AND YOCHEVED MITCHELL SAMUEL AND DEBBIE MOED JAY & JOYCE MOSKOWITZ JACK A”H AND GITTA NAGEL AVI AND DEBRA NAIDER AARON AND AHUVA ORLOFSKY AVI AND ALISSA OSSIP THE OVED FAMILY DREW AND CAREENA PARKER IN MEMORY OF RABBI RAPHAEL PELCOVITZ Z”L, FROM THE PELCOVITZ FAMILY DAVID AND ELANA POLLACK ISRAEL AND NECHAMA POLAK THE RABBI NATHANIAL AND SHIRLEY POLLACK MEMORIAL FOUNDATION MOSHE AND YAFFA POPACK DANIEL AND LEYLA POSNER PROSKAUER ROSE LLP RALPHS GROCERY COMPANY IAN AND CAROL RATNER DR. AZRIEL AND ILANA RAUZMAN BARRY AND HARRIET RAY YARON AND LISA REICH LAWRENCE REIN DRS. CRAIG AND JACKIE REISS ALEXANDER AND RACHEL RINDNER

HENRY AND VIVIAN ROSENBERG KAREN AND SHAWN ROSENTHAL YECHIEL AND NOMI ROTBLAT RALPH RUBENSTEIN KENNETH AND MINDY SAIBEL ETHEL AND STAN SCHER TIBERIO AND ELLYSE SCHWARTZ DAVID SHABSELS JOSEPH SHAMIE LOUIS SHAMIE STEPHANIE AND DAVID SOKOL DR. AND MRS. ETHAN SPIEGLER THE STAENBERG FAMILY FOUNDATION AVI AND DEENA STEIN RONALD AND BETH STERN MARVIN AND DEBRA STERNBERG MARILYN RABHAN SWEDARSKY AND DR. ROBERT SWEDARSKY TALK N SAVE DR. AND MRS. SHIMMY TENNENBAUM DR. CHARLES AND SHARON TRAURING EPHRAIM AND AVIVA VILENSKI STEPHEN AND MIRIAM WALLACH THE JOSEPH LEROY AND ANN C. WARNER FUND STANLEY AND ELLEN WASSERMAN THE WEIL FAMILY JESSICA AND LENNY WEISS TOVA AND HOWARD WEISER MOSHE AND DR. ILANA WERTENTEIL SUSANNE AND MICHAEL WIMPFHEIMER SHIMON AND HENNIE WOLF MEREDITH AND KENNY YAGER DRS. YECHIEL AND SURI ZAGELBAUM MR. AND MRS. ALAN ZEKELMAN MARK AND JESSICA ZITTER YAIR AND DINA ZUCKERMAN

PATRON $5,000 - $9,999 ADM/ROI ARIEL TOURS, INC. ASHFORD HOSPITALITY JAIMIE AND GERSHON BALLON SAMUEL AND RACHEL BARATZ MICHAEL AND SUSAN BAUM MR. HARVEY BELL DR. AND MRS. YITZHAK AND ELLEN BERGER RABBI JULIUS AND DOROTHY BERMAN RABBI GLENN AND HENNI BLACK YEHUDA AND RONI BLINDER LOIS BLUMENFELD BEN AND TAMAR BLUMENTHAL ENID AND HAROLD H. BOXER ENDOWMENT LEE AND ALIZA BRAVERMAN DRS. DAVID & NANCY BRENT MICHAEL AND ALLISON BROMBERG CCS FUNDRAISING HIMAN BROWN CHARITABLE TRUST DANIEL AND DEVORAH CHEFITZ ADAM AND ILANA CHILL SARI AND JASON CIMENT JEREMY AND HILDA COHEN GOBBIE AND SHAYNA COHN PACE AND AILEEN COOPER RABBI ABRAHAM AND ROSALYN COOPER DAVID AND MARILYN CUTLER STEPHEN AND SUE DARRISON DAVID AND INEZ MYERS FOUNDATION ELI AND CHASI DAVIS STEVE AND CHAVI DORFMAN DR. CARYN BORGER AND MARK DUNEC LEA Z”L AND LEON Z”L EISENBERG ROBERT EISENBERG JEFFREY AND JENNIFER EISENSTEIN RINA AND RABBI DOV EMERSON BINAH AND DANNY ENGLANDER DRS. ROBERT AND KAY FAGUET MRS. MARGARET FEDER GLORIA FELDMAN

RABBI DAVE AND CHANI FELSENTHAL ERROL AND PAT FINE MARTIN AND LEORA FINEBERG ARYEH AND DORIT FISCHER RON AND LISA ROSENBAUM FISHER STEPHEN AND ROZ FLATOW JOSEPH AND RACHEL FOX JEREMY AND DANA FRENKEL SURA AND BERT FRIED ALAN FRIEDMAN ALLEN AND RACHEL FRIEDMAN DR. STAN AND MARLA FROHLINGER JOEY GABBAY PAUL AND DIANE GALLANT ANDREW AND YVETTE GARDNER LAWRENCE AND JUDITH GARSHOFSKY LENNY AND ESTELLE GLASS MR. AND MRS. ERNIE GOLDBERGER MR. AND MRS. DAN GOLDISH JERRY AND ANNE GONTOWNIK GOLDIE AND I. DAVID GORDON AARON AND MICHAL GORIN DR. SUSAN GRAYSEN AND FAMILY JONATHAN GREEN FREDA GREENBAUM DR. EDWIN AND CECILE GROMIS ARYEH AND GOLDIE GROSS ARIEL AND ALETA GRUNBERG DR. DANIEL AND TSIPORA GURELL MICHAEL HADDAD JOSH AND MARJORIE HARRIS CHAIM AND ARIELLA HERMAN DOV AND LAURA HERTZ THE HIDARY FAMILY DR. GARY AND CHERYL HOBERMAN YISROEL AND SHIRA HOCHBERG NORMA HOLZER DR. SHALOM AND LORI HUBERFELD DR. DAVID AND BARBARA HURWITZ YAACOV AND RAYME ISAACS RABBI MOSHE AND DEVORA ISENBERG JEWISH COMMUNITY FEDERATION OF RICHMOND DAVID AND MICHAL KAHAN LEORA KAMINER STUART KARON AND DR. JODI WENGER AARON AND JILL KATZ AHRON AND RIVKY KATZ IRA AND RONA KELLMAN DAVID AND ROBERTA KIMMEL AARON AND TOBY KINDERLEHRER MR. ROBERT KORDA AVI AND RAVITAL KORN JOSEPH AND HANA KORNWASSER DARREN AND MARNI KOTTLE JOSH KRAFT DAVID AND FAYE LANDES JOSHUA AND BRYNA LANDES ARMAND AND ESTHER LASKY IN MEMORY OF JUDY LEFKOVITS JOSHUA AND ERICA LEGUM SHULLY LICHTMAN HYLTON AND LEAH LIGHTMAN MORDECHAI AND PENINA LIPTON DAVID AND JUDITH LOBEL JOSEF LOEFFLER DR. LAWRENCE AND SHIRLEY LOEWENTHAL DR. MARIAN STOLTZ-LOIKE AND DR. JOHN LOIKE EVAN AND EVI MAKOVSKY NOAH AND ARINN MAKOVSKY TZACHI AND ELISHEVA MEISEL BENAY AND IRA MEISELS SHMUEL MELAMED MERIDIAN CAPITAL JENNIFER AND DROR MICHAELSON YALE AND GAIL MILLER STEVE AND MALKA MIRETZKY NOAH AND SUZANNE MISHKIN HARRY AND ROBIN MORTKOWITZ JAY AND JOYCE MOSKOWITZ DR. MICHAEL AND ELIZABETH MUSCHEL SHARONA AND IRWIN NACHIMSON MICHAEL AND MICHELLE NACHMANI ANNA BAUM AND BARRY NOVACK

TERRY AND GAIL NOVETSKY PROF. MARTIN PATT PEOPLE’S UNITED INSURANCE AGENCY ALIZA AND MICHAEL PILEVSKY DENA AND SETH PILEVSKY MORDECHAI AND ALIZA POLSTEIN LARRY AND ANDREA PORTAL MR. AND MRS. DAVID PORUSH YITZIE AND NANCY PRETTER GAIL PROPP RICHARD AND ORA RABINOVICH DRS. NATHAN AND RACHEL RABINOVITCH NORMAN AND LINDY RADOW DR. STEVEN AND BELINDA RAIKIN REGALS FOUNDATION SARA AND LAURENCE RICHARDS DR. WESTON AND DENISE RICHTER GAIL AND BINYAMIN RIEDER RALPH AND LEAH RIEDER DR. JAY AND MARJORIE ROBINOW IRA AND DEBRA ROSENBERG YITZHOK AND TAMAR ROSENTHAL JOSHUA AND ALYSE ROZENBERG RABBI DANIEL AND ELISHEVA RUBENSTEIN IDELLE RUDMAN ZVI AND SHARONNE RUDMAN LARRY AND SHELLY RUSSAK MILTON AND SHIRLEY SABIN MARVIN AND ROZ SAMUELS SAPPHIRE WEALTH ADVISORY GROUP DAVID AND ROSLYN SAVITSKY TAMMI AND BENNETT SCHACHTER LISA AND JONATHAN SCHECHTER ROBERT AND ANDREA SCHECHTER DR. MARCEL AND TAMAR SCHEINMAN RONNIE AND SANDRA SCHIFF TERRI AND NEIL SCHLOSS JERRY AND BARBARA SCHRECK MALI AND STEVE SCHWARTZ SHLOMO AND GITTY SCHWARTZ SCOTT AND JAMIE SELIGSOHN ANDREW AND STEPHANI SEROTTA ARI AND SHOSHANA SHABAT RUTH SHANKER BENJAMIN AND MOR SHAPIRO JAYNE SHAPIRO MICHAEL AND TALI SHAPIRO YAAKOV AND SARI SHEINFELD HELEN AND GERALD SILVER DR. MORRIS AND SHARON SILVER MICHAEL SMITH BARRY AND JODIE SOBEL JAIME AND MARILYN SOHACHESKI JONATHAN AND DODI SPIELMAN RUTH BRANDT SPITZER MR. AND MRS. ABRAHAM J. STERN DR. DAVID AND DOROTHY STOLL AARON AND ARIELLA STRASSMAN ABRAHAM SULTAN MATT TEICHMAN JONATHAN AND RACHEL TIGER TAL TOURS SHLOMO & RONNI TROODLER DANIEL AND ZAHAVAH URETSKY DANIEL AND SARA WALZMAN JOSHUA AND LESLIE WANDERER IN MEMORY OF DOVID BEN REB YOSEF WEINBERG A”H ESTHER AND BARUCH WEINSTEIN ARI AND CAROLINE WEISMAN LENNIE AND JESSICA WEISS RABBI ARYEH AND YAEL WIELGUS CHAIM AND MIRIAM WIELGUS HOWARD AND BATIA WIESENFELD DAVID WITTENBERG JORGE AND TAMMARA WOLDENBERG DAVID AND NATALIE WOLF RABBI SHABSAI AND DEBBIE WOLFE FRAN AND DAVID WOOLF List as of 9/1/21 We apologize for any omissions.

If you wish to be acknowledged, please contact Elaine Salvit Grossman at salvite@ou.org.

BOOKS

Hilkhot Avelut: Understanding the Laws of Mourning

R

By Rabbi David Brofsky The Toby Press Jerusalem, Israel, 2019 296 pages

Reviewed by Sarah Rudolph A personal note: When I began writing this review, I was fortunate to have a primarily academic interest in the book.

That changed just as I was finishing the review, with the loss of my father, Dr. Lawrence Davis, Eliezer Chaim ben David, z”l. Though no book can provide definitive answers to all the practical questions and matters of custom that arise, I was grateful for the framework Rabbi Brofsky’s work provided, from which I was able to ask and understand more deeply what I was doing.

abbi David Brofsky’s Hilchot Avelut: Understanding the Laws of Mourning is important not just for the halachic information it provides but for the relationship to halachah it displays. Already in the Foreword, Rabbi Mark Smilowitz, a seasoned Jewish educator, writes movingly of his devastation over the passing of his father, in whose memory the book is dedicated, and how a book on the laws of mourning brought him comfort. How could a legal text bring comfort? To many, the study of halachah might seem dry and technical. Yet, Rabbi Smilowitz’s account illustrates how halachah itself, and his personal connection— both intellectual and emotional—with its study, in all its rich complexity, brought him back from his grief.

Rabbi Smilowitz speaks of “two faces” of halachah, emphasizing that both contributed to restoring order and meaning to his world: the stability of the “firmly anchored permanence of law,” and the more “subjective experience stimulated by thoughtful reflection on . . . the laws and their meanings”; or, more succinctly, action and understanding (p. xvii). Both aspects can reach the soul, opening the door toward a very different relationship to halachah and its study than might be conveyed by some books of halachah and, perhaps, by too many classrooms.

Rabbi Brofsky’s introduction demonstrates his shared commitment to presenting both faces—the laws as well as their meanings—and he structures the book with the goal of ensuring that both faces, as distinct from each other,

Sarah Rudolph is an editor, a Jewish educator and freelance writer and the director of TorahTutors.org. Her essays have been published in a variety of Internet and print media, including Times of Israel, Kveller, Jewish Action, OU Life, Lehrhaus, Tradition and more.

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are served: He first offers a summary of practical law to guide the mourner who must know what to do, and spends the rest of the book delving more deeply into those laws for the sake of the student or the mourner who wishes to develop a meaningful understanding.

In my classes, I speak of two types of “whys”: “Why do we do X?” can be answered in terms of a source for the fact of X (pointing to the text that prescribes X) or in terms of rationale (explaining the meaning behind X, such as ideas reflected or engendered by its observance). The former is historical while the latter is conceptual. In Hilkhot Avelut, Rabbi Brofsky addresses some topics thoroughly from both “why” angles, tracing the historical development of practical rulings and explaining the rationales behind each authority’s position.

Chapter Four, “The Obligation of Avelut: Source, Nature, and Reason,” stands out as a particular example of this balance and to some degree represents the core of the book. Every element of hilchot avelut must necessarily draw its meaning from the fundamental ideas expressed about avelut as a whole, so in a sense, the global discussion in this chapter addresses the meaning of each specific law that arises in the rest of the book. I would have liked to have seen more of this balance throughout the book.

Rabbi Brofsky excels at offering accessible and illuminating historical descriptions of halachah: within a given topic, he cites one or more Talmudic passages, records how different Rishonim rule, states which rulings the Shulchan Aruch accepts and shares what later scholars have said to actually do in particular scenarios. Sometimes he includes rationales behind these rulings, but at times, the reader may find sections that present what feels like a laundry list of opinions without much underlying meaning.

The juggling of all these different faces raises an interesting challenge that ultimately represents a feature, rather than a bug, of the halachic system (as well as of Rabbi Brofsky’s presentation of it). As mentioned, the author’s stated strategy for doing it all involves offering a practical list of laws and then separately delving into their backgrounds and meanings; it turns out, however, that

these different faces of halachah cannot be divided so neatly.

The practical summary contains a number of passages exploring the meaning (or meanings) behind some of the laws. For instance: a brief introductory note that the states of mourning “reflect and correspond to different stages of bereavement” (p. 1); a list of several possible reasons behind burial and indications of its importance (p. 3-5); a summary of a midrashic tradition at the root of the custom to formally greet mourners in shul on Friday night (p. 17). These ideas are not strictly practical and are repeated or expanded in the rest of the book, but the author justifiably includes them here as well because the laws cannot be presented completely bereft of meaning. In halachah, practice and meaning are interwoven and simply cannot be detached. The author’s appreciation for that complexity is palpable throughout this book, forming its backbone and giving life to its content.

Any area of halachah involves, to some extent, a balance between technical, practical, text-based halachah on one hand, and the lived experiences and emotions of those who practice it on the other. This is certainly true when it comes to the emotion-laden area of hilchot avelut, and Rabbi Brofsky repeatedly and importantly notes the need for sensitivity in making halachic determinations under emotionally difficult circumstances.

Rabbi Brofsky is aware of, and sensitive to, issues related to women’s experience of halachah in general.

One example is a footnote at the beginning of the book indicating that despite the author’s use of male pronouns, “the same halakhot generally apply to female mourners as well, except where otherwise noted.” Two issues that could have been addressed in respect to female mourners are burial and Kaddish. Sometimes female mourners or extended family members are not allowed to participate in the mitzvah of burial—shoveling dirt into the grave. A halachic treatment of this subject would be helpful.

In the realm of Kaddish, the author’s presentation of the history and meaning of Kaddish is particularly masterful, from Talmudic passages expressing the power of the line “yehei Shmei Raba mevorach . . .” to the details, comprehensive but without oversaturation, of the development of the Mourner’s Kaddish specifically. The question of whether a daughter may recite Kaddish is also addressed thoroughly, tracing the discussion from the earliest sources and explaining many of the considerations behind different rulings. What is missing, however, is the experiential side—the emotions and complications that arise for a woman in deciding whether or not to say Kaddish and in attempting to do so. Those factors may or may not play a role in determining halachah, but as in other situations fraught with layers of emotional complexity, there is value simply in acknowledgment.

On the whole, Hilkhot Avelut is a thorough, balanced and engaging presentation that, in addition to providing extensive knowledge of its particular topic, offers a window into the vast depth and breadth of halachic literature through the eyes of an expert who lives and breathes halachah in all its facets.

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Rav Noach Weinberg: Torah Revolutionary

By Yonoson Rosenblum Mosaica Press Los Angeles, 2020 454 pages

Reviewed by Steven Gotlib

T

he first noteworthy aspect of Rav Noach Weinberg: Torah Revolutionary is that the biographer, Rabbi Yonoson Rosenblum, is an outsider to the Aish HaTorah world that Rabbi Weinberg founded.

This, it turns out, is by design. As Rabbi Rosenblum writes in the volume’s preface, “Aish wanted the biography Steven Gotlib is an avreich at Beit Midrash Zichron Dov and rabbinic educator at the Village Shul/ Aish HaTorah Learning Centre in Toronto, Canada.

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to be written by someone with no alienated from his earliest attempt to institutional connections, who could create an institution for ba’alei teshuvah provide a more objective overview (what would eventually become Ohr of its subject . . . they did not want Somayach) due to the fact that he the biography to whitewash the “insisted that talmidim (students) first controversies surrounding Rav Noach gain some sort of overview of the Torah and his mission” (p. xv). This not only before entering into complexities of facilitates a representation of Rav Talmudic argumentation on topics Noach’s critics alongside his own ideals totally foreign to them” (p. 75). In and methods, but also allows for the contrast, his former partners felt that presentation of details that may have immersion into Talmudic learning been left out by a biographer closer should be immediate. Furthermore, Rav to the subject. For example, there is Noach’s goal was to see his talmidim no dancing around the fact that Rav eventually fighting assimilation on the Noach’s mission necessarily required front lines, serving as a point of contact sacrificing a great deal of time with between Torah and Jews with little to no his wife and twelve children, and that grounding on the subject. As such, his various challenges to his approach were students “needed to be able to convey not without merit. This clarity greatly Torah hashkafah with clarity. And for enhances the value of the biography. that they required a whole picture.” In The book can be divided into three Ohr Somayach, on the other hand, the overlapping topics. First are the details of goal was for students “to advance to Rav Noach’s life and his unique approach the point where they can integrate to kiruv. A story about the young Rav fully into a mainstream yeshivah or Noach illustrates one of his fundamental reach the equivalent level within Ohr ideas about education that remained Somayach itself ” (pp. 75-76). The consistent throughout his life. He asked fact that these differences proved so his older brother, Rav Yaakov Weinberg insurmountable that Rav Noach chose (later rosh yeshivah of Ner Yisroel to begin his work from scratch rather Rabbinical College), how he knows than compromise his mission showed whether traditionalist Jews are correct in just how much faith he had that Hashem their rejection of the theory of evolution. was behind him and working to ensure After telling readers that Rav Yaakov’s that spiritually drowning members response was to direct his younger of Klal Yisrael would always have brother to books on the subject, Rabbi lifeboats in the form of his students.

Rosenblum writes that Rav Noach: The second topic covered in the book . . . could not simply accept things on is the growth of Aish HaTorah as an the basis of mesorah (tradition). It had institutional brand. Rabbi Rosenblum to make sense to him. He wanted proof. chronicles at length not only the In that vein, he always told newcomers establishment of the Dan Family Aish to Aish HaTorah that it was ridiculous World Center in Jerusalem, but also for them to rely on the secular version of the branches in Tel Aviv, St. Louis, Judaism they imbibed growing up. That Toronto, Los Angeles, New York was tantamount, said Rav Noach, to City, London and Moscow in terms learning capitalism from the Kremlin of both curriculum development or Mao’s Little Red Book. But he would and manpower. No detail is spared always add, “Don’t believe us either. in explaining the intricacies of Rav Check it out for yourself ” (p. 24).

Noach’s famous courses entitled “48 This approach to kiruv, based Ways to Wisdom” and “Five Levels of around developing a rationally and Pleasure” in addition to the birth of Aish personally compelling sense of emunah Discovery Seminars, Aish.com, Hasbara and hashkafah, proved to be a major Fellowships, HonestReporting, and point of disagreement between Rav even the mainstream-oriented Project Noach and his peers. He found himself Inspire. In these chapters, readers

learn not only what each of these programs are and why they were seen as important ventures, but also how Rav Noach and others went about fundraising, marketing and managing logistics in order to get them successfully off the ground. Of particular interest to a reader may be the trials and tribulations faced by Aish LA in being the first-ever organization (Jewish or otherwise) to provide SpeedDating® as a venue for singles to meet in a controlled environment. Though the format would eventually take the nation by storm, it took many conversations with donors, posekim and critics to make it happen.

The third subject consists of the lives and experiences of the individuals who worked with and were inspired by Rav Noach. Even though Rav Noach is the main subject of this book, Rabbi Rosenblum goes out of his way to also introduce and provide the continuous narratives of many individuals who were influenced by him. By the end of the work, I found myself thoroughly invested in the stories of Rabbi Chaim Willis, Rabbi Nachum Braverman, Lori Palatnik, Harvey Hecker, and numerous others whose stories and achievements were driven by their connection with Rav Noach. Reading of their earliest interactions with Rav Noach also did much to help me piece together the ins and outs of what made his approach to kiruv so powerful.

His approach essentially consisted of four steps: 1. know what you know, 2. ask any questions that you have about what you don’t know, 3. search for the answers by exploring Judaism’s core texts on their own terms and challenging your preconceived notions, and 4. have the courage to take the answers you find to their natural conclusions in your life. All of this, however, was done while Rav Noach demonstrated an unyielding confidence in the truth of the Torah as ratzon Hashem (Divine will) alongside a legitimate, heartfelt concern for the spiritual wellbeing of those to whom he spoke. Neither a change in mentality nor in practice can be rushed. Each person has his own pace and any additional positivity that a Jew gains toward Torah and mitzvot is a victory in its own right. How many within our communities possess this level of confidence and ahavat Yisrael? How much better would the global Jewish community be if each and every one of us explored our own convictions more deeply, developed our theological confidence and brought it with us to battle the tremendous desecrations of Hashem’s Name that are religious disillusionment and assimilation?

Rav Noach Weinberg: Torah Revolutionary is not just a moving tribute to a great man and the global movement he started. It is also a call to action to all in our community who tell themselves “kiruv isn’t for me” or are uncertain about the basic principles of our religion. As Rav Noach wrote in his spiritual will: “I instruct, implore and advise each and every one of you to spend ten minutes every night to first focus on the terrible profanation of Hashem’s Name in the fact that a majority of the Jewish people deny the validity of Judaism and our charge of being a light unto the world. Secondly, to focus on the pain of our Creator, the subsequent pain of mankind, and to think what you can personally do about this problem” (p. 551).

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A

Secrets of the Soul: Conversations with Rav Shlomo Hoffman Volume One— Self-Awareness and Dealing with Challenges

By Rabbi Shlomo Hoffman (Author), Rabbi Meir Simcha Stein (Editor) Feldheim Publishers Spring Valley, New York, 2020 357 pages

Reviewed by Rabbi Dr. Jonathan Schwartz Rabbi Dr. Jonathan Schwartz is the rav of Congregation Adath Israel of the Jewish Educational Center (JEC) in Hillside/Elizabeth, New Jersey, and the clinical director of the Center for Anxiety Relief in Union, New Jersey.

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few years ago, I called a rabbinic colleague for whom I was covering while he was visiting family in Eretz Yisrael. “I need a favor,” I told him. “A mental health colleague in Israel was raving about a work that came out in Hebrew, written by a relatively unknown social worker, Rabbi Shlomo Hoffman. Could I trouble you to pick it up for me?”

“Schwartz,” he responded, “I already got you a copy. My brothers told me this is one of the most important musar works of our generation, from one of the biggest thinkers in Israel. It’s already selling here like hotcakes.”

When he got back from Israel, we sat together and shared the brand-new work. We marveled at the author and the breadth of his knowledge. What we found most incredible is that we had barely heard of Rabbi Hoffman.

Who was Rabbi Shlomo Hoffman?

It’s hard to actually pin him down. He was a devoted talmid of gedolei Yisrael, especially of Rabbi Yitzchak Eizek Sher, zt”l, rosh yeshivah of the Slabodka Yeshiva, and of the roshei yeshivah of the Chevron Yeshiva. He clung to their teachings and was granted the privilege not only to learn from their Torah, but to learn from the way they used their Torah knowledge to live and impart life lessons. Rabbi Shlomo Hoffman was also a gifted therapist who utilized his talents to evaluate and help rehabilitate convicts from all spectrums of Israeli society.

His word was accepted as bond in the Israeli secular court system, quite atypical of your average talmid chacham in the Chareidi community.

He was a source of counsel to whom gedolei Torah, most notably Rabbi Elazar Menachem Shach, turned for advice and perspective. And he was a fantastic rebbe to the students who flocked to him to study Torah. But as he used to say, “This isn’t Hoffman’s Torah. It’s the Torah of the Rambam, the Vilna Gaon and Rabbi Yisrael [Salanter].” His humility was probably why he remained such a mystery outside of his circles.

Now, thanks to the efforts of Rabbi Meir Simcha Stein, Rabbi Hoffman’s thoughts and approach have been

published in English for a wider audience. In this work, Rabbi Stein first introduces us to Rabbi Hoffman in a masterful biographical sketch that paints a picture of the uniqueness that lent Rabbi Hoffman the authority to comment on the topics that are the main focus of the book, namely, dealing with challenges and developing a sense of self-awareness. Rabbi Stein then leads us to a seat around Rav Shlomo’s table for a chance to discuss, listen and learn from the master as if we were sitting in the room together with him and his students.

That Rabbi Stein was able to do this in the Hebrew version was not an easy feat, but to achieve the same effect in English is nothing short of remarkable.

To me, this was the best part of the work—getting a feel not only for the responses and advice of the speaker, but also to be able to listen to, consider, appreciate and utilize the discussion, both for myself personally as well as in my pastoral and psychotherapeutic practices with others.

My rabbinic colleague and I debated how to properly read the book. One could read the work as a sefer, focusing on the twelve chapters of Torah thoughts from the Rambam, the Vilna Gaon and Rabbi Yisrael Salanter. One who does so will derive great insight.

Another approach would be to read the work as a self-help guide, and again, the reader will find vast amounts of unique and practical knowledge. A third approach would be to read the stories, which aim to impart life lessons, and benefit from the wisdom inherent in them. My colleague and I agreed that to fully appreciate Rabbi Shlomo Hoffman, you need to read the work with all three goals in mind, possibly necessitating reviewing it three or more times. One who does so will savor each reading and come away with a deeper understanding and appreciation not only of Rav Shlomo but of himself or herself too.

Let me illustrate with an example. In one chapter, the author shares Rabbi Hoffman’s approach to the dilemma of using fear as a motivator in the avoidance of sin. Some argue that one can grow in avodat Hashem when

one experiences guilt and emotional pain as a result of sin. Others believe that this approach will only lead to further spiritual breakdown and even more sin. Rabbi Hoffman notes that one can find sources in the Jewish tradition for both viewpoints, each of which has merit.

If one is driven toward self-advancement as a result of the emotional turmoil brought about by sin, then the turmoil is purposeful. However, if the emotional distress stymies one’s spiritual growth, then it is destructive. To make his point, he shares a comment from the Vilna Gaon (commentary to Mishlei 10:27) who notes that, unlike other fears, yirat Hashem will add to one’s days.

Rabbi Hoffman explains that the Vilna Gaon is giving us a directive in life with regard to yirat Hashem: one must focus not on a particular wrongdoing or sin, but rather on what one must do to grow in avodat Hashem. In other words, focusing on the sin itself, and the guilt and fear associated with it, can destroy a person and prevent progress. Focusing on the means to repair and strengthen one’s relationship with Hashem adds to one’s days and to his quality of life. One needs to find paths in life that uplift him and propel him forward.

To strengthen his point, Rabbi Hoffman tells a story of an aged Rabbi Isser Zalman Meltzer, who, sensing that his death was approaching, used his remaining time on earth to finish his Even HaEzel commentary on Kodashim. He used the fear of death to drive him toward finishing his project.

Rabbi Hoffman describes the difference between how he and Rabbi Shach responded when observing Rabbi Chatzkel Levenstein, the famed mashgiach of the Ponevezh Yeshiva, daven on Rosh Hashanah. Rabbi Hoffman was unable to pray in front of the mashgiach because he sensed the awe of the holy day radiating from Rav Chatzkel’s face, which interfered with his own ability to concentrate. Rabbi Shach, on the other hand, said that the expressions of fear on the mashgiach’s face offered him a more satisfying and deepened prayer experience.

The reader of this book will gain from such insights. The student studying Rabbi Hoffman’s writings as a musar sefer will appreciate the depth contained in the Vilna Gaon’s commentary. The story lover will relish the stories about the private thoughts and actions of gedolim like Rav Chatzkel, Rav Isser Zalman and Rav Shach. But the true beneficiary of this work is the one who can gain from all three approaches and their synthesis into one integrated perspective that personifies Rabbi Shlomo Hoffman.

Additionally, as in the Hebrew edition, the translator included an appendix listing all the sources quoted, as well as interviews with other students so that the reader can get a glimpse into how Rav Shlomo’s advice impacted them. Both contribute much to the overall experience of studying this work.

My only critique of this work is that it is but the first volume. I cannot wait to learn from Rav Shlomo (in Hebrew and in English) so many more topics that affect the human condition today. I’m sure his insights will continue to be far-reaching.

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1. Publication Title: Jewish Action. 2. Publication No. 005-239. 3. Filing Date: September 20, 2021. 4. Issue Frequency: Quarterly and Passover. 5. No. of Issues Published Annually: of Publication: Orthodox Union, 11 Broadway, NY, NY, 10004. Contact Person: Anthony Lugo Telephone: 212.613.8163 8. Complete Mailing Address of Headquarters or General Publisher, Editor and Managing Editor: Publisher: Orthodox Union, 11 Broadway, NY, NY, 10004. Editor: Nechama Carmel, 11 Broadway, NY, NY, 10004. Managing Editor: Maury Litwack, 11 Broadway, NY, NY, 10004. 10. Owner: Orthodox Union, 11 Broadway, NY, NY, 10004. 11. Known Bondholders, Mortgagees, and Other Security Holders Owning or Holding 1 Percent or More of Total Amount of Bonds: None. 12. Tax Status (For purposes has not changed during the preceding 12 months. 13. Publication Title: Jewish Action. 14. Issue Date for Circulation Data Below: October 2021.

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17. Publication of Statement of Ownership required. Will be printed in the Winter 2021 issue of this publication. 17. Signature and Title of Editor, Publisher, Business Manager, or Owner: Anthony Lugo, Production Manager. Date: September 20, 2021.

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Reviews in Brief

By Rabbi Gil Student

PLACES IN THE PARASHA: BIBLICAL GEOGRAPHY AND ITS MEANING

By Yoel Elitzur The Toby Press Jerusalem, 2020 871 pages

T

he geography of the Bible is an obviously important area of study. However, the layperson would be forgiven for finding the subject overly technical, since it focuses greatly on linguistics and obscure aspects of the sacred text. The existence of competing theories among scholars makes these ideas difficult for even the motivated amateur to follow. All of this makes Professor Yoel Elitzur’s work in this area so important.

In relatively brief essays, Professor Elitzur, an expert in the fields of Biblical and historical geography as well as in Hebrew and Semitic languages, takes a topic related to the weekly Torah portion and guides readers through that subject. Taking Rabbi Gil Student writes frequently on Jewish issues and runs Torahmusings.com. He serves as the book editor for Jewish Action and is a member of the Jewish Action Editorial Committee.

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readers on a tour of Israel, he tells stories of the search for Biblical places and connects these places to classical texts and religious ideas. Additionally, he includes a select bibliography for each essay so interested readers can conduct further investigation. The book is full of maps, pictures and diagrams so the reader can “see” the stories, not just read about them. In this way, an obscure but important aspect of the Bible comes alive. The Land of Israel is a reality we can visit today. Professor Elitzur makes the Bible likewise a reality we can “visit.”

We know the Jews in Egypt lived in Goshen, but where was it?

Professor Elitzur argues that Goshen is the Hebrew name for the region known in Egyptian as Ramesses.

The city of Shiloh is well established in modern-day Israel. The question remains where in the historical city the mishkan was located.

Professor Elitzur argues for a creative suggestion offered by Rabbi Yoel Bin-Nun that the mishkan’s location in Shiloh mirrored the (future) Temple’s location in Jerusalem.

Professor Elitzur characteristically incorporates important Torah thoughts within his essays. He does not merely ask where Amalek lived but also why the nation was considered so significant. He answers that Amalek served as something of an evil twin to Israel. Israel wandered

and Amalek wandered likewise; Israel became a nation and Amalek is called a nation at that time also; Israel settled into its land at the same time the Amalek settled into its land. Israel and Amalek developed simultaneously and competed for a place in history. The fight with Amalek is a battle for Israel’s survival.

Offering readers an easy entrance to a highly technical world, Places in the Parasha helps make the Bible a living reality.

THE MAKING OF A MENTSCH: THE LAWS AND PARAMETERS OF INTERPERSONAL MITZVOS

By Rabbi Moshe Walter Feldheim Publishers New York, 2021 336 pages

I

often hear the criticism that Jews today practice Judaism as if it was just a collection of rituals when it is really much broader than that. In Rabbi Moshe Walter’s book, The Making of a Mentsch, he disproves this criticism by showing how halachah applies to a wide variety of human interactions. This is how it should be. Indeed, every few years another book is published in Hebrew or English guiding readers through the many Torah laws regulating human interaction.

Many of these books are excellent and Rabbi Walter builds on them to offer an extremely usable and readable guide to this aspect of Jewish life.

From one perspective, The Making of a Mentsch is a typical halachah guide. The book covers many subjects with clear rulings on distinct cases, amply footnoted with citations from classical halachic sources spanning the generations. Each chapter can serve as a full-length lecture. Well-aware of the

rapidly decreasing attention span of our generation, Rabbi Walter divides each chapter into brief, bite-sized sections, many of which begin with thought-provoking questions. While one can easily stop reading at the end of each section, the reader is drawn to continue on to the next one.

Readers who are familiar with other works in this genre will be surprised by the breadth of topics covered.

The book addresses expected topics such as different types of chesed, lashon hara and judging others favorably. But it expands beyond these to include some common but unexpected subjects like waiting on line, responding to tzedakah requests and endangering one life to save many.

With full command of the halachic literature, Rabbi Walter takes readers through many lesser-known areas of the Shulchan Aruch in which our obligations to others require careful thought and halachic guidance.

TORAH IQ: THE GREAT TORAH RIDDLE BOOK

By David Woolf 2021 430 pages

E

very week, after the first course of our Shabbat lunch, I hand out chumashim to everyone at the table and my son then asks the questions in Rabbi Dovid Y. Schwartz’s weekly “Parsha Challenge.” The questions are difficult but I encourage “cheating”—looking through the chumash to find the answer. I find that it is an enjoyable way to discuss the weekly Torah portion. It also allows those who have not yet reviewed the weekly Torah portion to look through it and see some highlights. And when a child figures out an answer first or thinks of a clever answer, it gives him a sense of pride in his ability to contribute to the discussion.

David Woolf’s Torah IQ provides readers with a few years’ worth of questions of this type. The book

It is an opportunity to learn some new things as a family. Through these questions, we experience the weekly Torah portion together. contains twenty questions for each parashah. The questions are difficult and—even using my method of “cheating”—finding each answer can take five to ten minutes of research and thought. You will probably want to do only four or five questions each week, maybe even fewer. And if you have trouble locating the answer in the text, you might want to keep a Mikraot Gedolot with commentaries nearby for reference (particularly the Baal HaTurim).

Examples of questions include: 1. How old was Yaakov when he finished having children? (Vayishlach) 2. Who coined the phrase “Yiyasher Kochacha”—or colloquially, “Yasher Koach”? (Ki Tisa) 3. I am a firstborn son. Yet, when I receive my inheritance upon the passing of my father, I do not receive a double portion. Why not? (Pinchas) 4. Find one pasuk that contains eight mitzvot (Ekev).

Torah IQ goes one step further, with questions about holidays, laws

and blessings, general trivia and brain teasers. A creative parent or teacher can easily use these questions for edutainment purposes.

To be honest, at my home, we often cannot figure out answers to these questions. However, that isn’t the point. We offer suggestions, sometimes silly ones; we discuss, we argue, we learn. Then we look to see the answer, which is on the next page. It is an opportunity to learn some new things as a family. Through these questions, we experience the weekly Torah portion together.

Answers: 1. Yaakov was ninety-nine when his youngest child was born (he was sixty-three when he was blessed by his father, Yitzchak, followed by fourteen years in yeshivah and twenty years with Lavan, two years on the road).

2. Hashem coined the phrase (Shabbat 87a; Rashi, Devarim 34:12).

3. A firstborn son delivered by Cesarean section does not receive a double portion (Rambam, Hilchot Nachalot 2:11).

4. Devarim 12:17 contains eight different mitzvot.

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LASTING IMPRESSIONS

SALVAGING FAMILY SUPPER

By Barbara Bensoussan

W

hen my sixth child was born, my verytraditional, Moroccan mother-in-law came to stay with us for a long spell. She was a good sport about putting up with the noise and tumult of a houseful of lively children. But one thing that clearly bothered her was our family suppers—or lack thereof.

My husband, like so many beleaguered Jewish husbands, never got home from work and shul early enough to eat with the kids. I was left to manage them alone while dealing with a newborn, and dinnertime was sometimes, uh, a little chaotic.

This one didn’t want schnitzel, he’d had it for lunch. “Fleishigs again!” moaned another one. Another ate the schnitzel but refused to touch the rice or vegetables. Maybe the food wasn’t cordon bleu, but neither were their table manners. They had a perturbing tendency to wander away, permission unasked, when they deemed themselves finished.

This, according to my mother-in-law, was not how family dinners unfolded back in Morocco. Those were formal affairs where children were supposed to be seen and not heard, and were not to leave without permission. They were expected to finish everything on their plates, or oy va’voy. (My husband, who sometimes snuck unwanted food to the dog under the table, claims this was a slightly burnished image of his childhood mealtimes.) Come to think of it, my own suburban childhood A longtime Jewish Action contributor, Barbara Bensoussan is the author of The Well-Spiced Life (New York, 2020) and Pride and Preference (New Jersey, 2014).

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suppers were also pretty civilized affairs: home-cooked meals that dutifully included a protein, starch and vegetable, followed by dessert and tea. It was a chance to fill each other in on our days, or discuss news about friends, family and the wider world.

Does anyone today have such family dinners? We have nice houses, but all too often nobody’s home. Dad is off to Daf Yomi or a simchah; older son has mishmar; high school daughter has play practice; and ten-year-old daughter is eating at a friend’s house.

It kind of discourages the Chief Cook and Bottle Washer from preparing the sort of nice family meals moms from an earlier generation (who typically didn’t work outside the home) used to slave over. If everyone’s going to bolt supper at different hours and run off, what’s the point?

Might as well pick up a rotisserie chicken or a couple of pizza pies.

We take a lot of shortcuts these days, but the faster path isn’t always the better one in the long run. Fast food is full of scary, unpronounceable chemicals. Fast suppers don’t allow for meaningful connection between family members—all the more so if everyone keeps glancing at their phones.

There’s a spiritual price to pay for rushing through meals. Our meals have the potential to make us feel close not only to our family, but to our Father in Heaven. A table is compared to a mizbe’ach (altar), our meals to sacrificial offerings. But when we eat at ninety miles an hour and bentch twice as fast, our meals are spiritually vacuous. We may joke about amazing food being a “religious experience,” but it is important to appreciate food: that we have enough of it, that

Hashem made it tasty for us and that we are able to make berachot over it.

The Covid lockdown forced many families to rediscover the pleasures of family dinner. My own children were already out of the house, but my friend Yael, who has school-age children, told me that family dinner suddenly became the highlight of their day. “The children helped with the cooking, learned to make more things, and our suppers became more elaborate,” she says. “We would sit for a long time schmoozing. Supper became our entertainment!”

Even now, with lockdowns behind us (forever, we hope), at least we have Shabbat to salvage a little family time. Finally, a day where we take two or three meals together as a family, with no gadgets to distract us! Finally, meals that are a social and gastronomic event, not a hasty refueling of our gas tanks! Chanukah is likewise a good opportunity for family time, since everybody comes home to light the menorahs, and families tend to follow with supper (hey, who wants to miss fresh latkes?).

As Jews keep the Sabbath, the Sabbath and holidays will keep the Jews. During these times, we are more mindful of the Source of our bounty; we consume food that’s a notch above the usual and is likely to be made at home with loving, conscious intention.

Shabbat and yom tov keep us on track spiritually and ensure that we spend quality family time together.

But weekday family suppers are also important, and surely we should be making an effort to salvage them. In an age when it’s increasingly hard for families to stay together, we could start by staying together for supper.

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