Five Towns Jewish Home 7.7.22

July 7, 2022

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Dear Readers,

I

was recently talking to a friend who is a talented chef. I asked her how she discovered her talent and she answered, “Simple, my mother used to put me in the kitchen with no directions and one rule: clean up after yourself!”

Feeling, I guess, Jewish mother’s guilt, I replied, “Oh, there’s just too much going on at dinnertime for me to try something like that with my kids.”

But my friend explained that she is the youngest in the family and this exercise took place when the other kids were in sleepaway camp. She was bored, home alone with only her parents, and her mother wanted to keep her entertained.

OK, so I’m definitely doing that with my youngest once the rest of my children are in sleepaway camp. I will thoroughly enjoy my daughter’s Dunkin’ Hines cake topped with marshmallows, colored sprinkles, chocolate chips and more marshmallows – although I hope her cooking repertoire will include more than boxed cake mixes.

The summer is a great time to encourage our kids’ talents to blossom. Whether it is swimming, cooking, crafting, music, magic, or gymnastics, it seems like not having school or homework pressures free up the creative juices. And, in a certain way, the experience of developing talents can be as important as spelling and arithmetic.

While at a park recently, I observed a young boy struggling on a climbing wall. A few times, the boy called down to his father, wanting to quit.

But the father tried to encourage him, not wanting him to back down, and he called up, “Juggle fire!

Juggle fire!” The boy kept climbing.

I was incredulous — why was it that every time the father called “juggle fire” the boy seemed to get a jolt of inspiration to keep climbing?

Finally, I asked the man what the secret was.

He explained that several months ago his son wanted to learn how to juggle – and not just juggle balls but to juggle fire, as well. The boy spent hours learning the techniques. At first, he started with juggling two balls. Then he graduated to three. He eventually started to juggle other objects, and now he is able to juggle sticks that are on fire.

“This has shown him that if he applies himself, he can succeed,” explained the father. “So, ‘juggle fire’ has become our code word to continue plugging at a task until you get it right.”

That conversation inspired me. I was inspired by the young boy who kept practicing and working, never giving up. And I was inspired by the father who believed in his son and encouraged him and showed him the power of his success. With a cheerleader like that, that boy is bound to succeed at anything he attempts to do.

The summer is the perfect time to develop latent talents that can be hidden during the year.

The season gives us the headspace to explore our interests and hobbies.

Perhaps, at the end of the summer, you’ll be able to look back at the past few months and see how you and your kids were, in your own way, able to “juggle fire.”

Wishing you a wonderful week, Shoshana

Yitzy Halpern, PUBLISHER

publisher@fivetownsjewishhome.com

Yosef Feinerman, MANAGING EDITOR ads@fivetownsjewishhome.com

Shoshana Soroka, EDITOR

editor@fivetownsjewishhome.com

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The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

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Contents LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

8

COMMUNITY Readers’ Poll

8

Community Happenings

34

This Week We’re Talking to…Camp Shira

54

Voice Notes

57

NEWS

14

Global

12

National

30

That’s Odd

32

ISRAEL

Israel News

22

World Builder

68

JEWISH THOUGHT Rabbi Wein on the Parsha

60

The Language of the Generation by Rav Moshe Weinberger

62

The Spiritual Concept of Clothing by Rabbi Shmuel Reichman

64

Delving into the Daf by Rabbi Avrohom Sebrow

66

PEOPLE Julia Blum: Song of Her Soul

70

Jewish Heroes of World War II by Avi Heiligman

93

HEALTH & FITNESS Ordering Up Organic Foods by Aliza Beer, MS RD

78

FOOD & LEISURE The Aussie Gourmet: Crepe Suzette

83

LIFESTYLES

78

Dating Dialogue, Moderated

by Jennifer Mann, LCSW

74

Parenting Pearls

80

JWOW!

82

Mind Your Business

84

Your Money

Dear Editor, There are many pros and cons of living in a constitutional republic such as ours, one of which is the freedom to be

uninformed about current events. But I must say that, for the longest time, it’s always bothered me that those of us who are informed citizens and vote responsibly should always be outvoted by those who are not informed and do not vote responsibly.

So, here’s an idea, though it’s not entirely my own: let’s require a civics test as a condition of voting. If you pass the civics test, you get to vote, and if not, you do not.

Now, I’ve already anticipated the flood of responses to this proposal, so I’ll address at least two arguments right off the bat: (1) Civics tests are unconstitutional; and (2) Voting is a constitutional right which cannot be infringed upon in any way.

Argument #1: Civics tests are unconstitutional: During the Jim Crow era, literacy tests were imposed on the formers slaves to prevent them from voting. The primary reason these tests were declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court – see Guinn v. United States (1915) and Katzenbach vs. Morgan (1966) – was because the tests were applied unequally, and clearly discriminated against certain groups of people, mainly black people. This, of course, was a violation of the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause. However, if such tests were applied equally to all citizens, then there is certainly a strong case to be made that they don’t violate the 14th Amendment.

Continued on page 10

100

Where are You Heading?

by Rivki D. Rosenwald Esq., CLC, SDS 103

HUMOR Centerfold

58

POLITICAL CROSSFIRE Notable Quotes

86

Nearly Every American Has a Foreboding by David Ignatius

90

A Credible Argument for Trump Supporters by Marc A. Thiessen

91

Weaken the Filibuster Before a Wave Election? by Marc A. Thiessen

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CLASSIFIEDS

Dear Editor, I cannot agree more with your “note to readers” this week.

I am truly grateful to be living in the United States of America. And I am truly grateful for the freedoms that we are granted as residents of the country. But I am concerned that this country is soon going to be one that we will no longer recognize. You are right that they will soon tell us that we can’t say that “up” is “up” and “down” is “down.” There is nothing sacred anymore in the United States, no beliefs that can be relied upon – everything is up to people’s interpretations.

As the left moves more towards the left, though, the right is more confident in their beliefs. If you look at Republican states, you will see that they are firm in their beliefs. They believe in G-d and country and in many biblical laws and values that we also hold dear.

Perhaps very soon we will become just Two States of America – and not a United States. There will be states that adhere to conservative values and states that adhere to liberal ideas (I can’t call them values) – and it will be obvious to which states you’d belong.

Sincerely, Hillel Lef kowitz Brooklyn, NY

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of the Electoral College.”

Dear Editor, George Will’s article this week with regards to praying at schools was so insightful. People have become too sensitive – not to others’ sensitivities, but to their own inability to “live and let live.”

Everything becomes a topic of stress, of tension, of not being able to handle what comes our way.

Previous generations produced people who had grit and determination.

They did not allow the little things in life to stand in their way. They pushed past prickles that bothered them and didn’t even pause to ponder that they were annoying.

Now, the slightest things bother us.

And we can’t move on. We complain and protest and whine about the unfairness of it all.

As parents, we need to raise children who aren’t unnerved by the trivialities in life. It starts with us rising above our sensitivities. By role-modeling the fortitude to rise above, we will raise children who hopefully possess those traits as well.

Sincerely, Molly Greenberg

Rafi Metz

Brooklyn, NY

Continued from page 8

Argument #2: Voting is a constitutional right which cannot be infringed upon in any way: This may come as a shock, but there is no federal guarantee to vote. Even though the 15th and 19th Amendments prohibit the states and the federal government from denying citizens the right to vote on the basis of race and sex, respectively, there is still no explicit constitutional and federal right to vote. First, Article II of the Constitution reads, in part: “Each state shall appoint, in such manner as the legislature thereof may direct, a number of electors…”

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The Week In News

Floods Overwhelm Sydney

Hundreds of homes have been flooded in and around Sydney, Australia, causing an emergency that is affecting 50,000 people.

Emergency teams on Tuesday carried out rescues of hundreds of people trapped in vehicles on flooded roads or

trapped in flooded homes, State Emergency Service manager Ashley Sullivan said.

Several days of torrential rainfall have caused dams to overflow and waterways to break their banks, leading to the fourth flood emergency in 16 months.

New South Wales Premier Dominic Perrottet said, “This event is far from over. Please don’t be complacent, wherever you are. Please be careful when you’re driving on our roads. There is still substantial risk for flash flooding across our state.”

Meanwhile, the New South Wales state government declared a disaster across 23 local government areas overnight, activating federal government financial assistance for flood victims.

Bureau of Meteorology meteorologist Jonathan How noted, “The good news is that by tomorrow afternoon, it is looking to be mostly dry but, of course, we are reminding people that these floodwaters will remain very high well after the rain has stopped.

“There was plenty of rain fall overnight and that is actually seeing some rivers peak for a second time. So you’ve got to take many days, if not a week, to start to see these floodwaters start to recede.”

Taliban Wants International Recognition

A Taliban-run gathering over the weekend included thousands of religious and ethnic leaders and ended with a call to foreign governments to officially recognize Afghanistan’s new regime as the country’s legitimate government.

Western governments have withdrawn funding and enforced sanctions against the Taliban since the terror group took control last year.

In a statement issued at the gathering on Saturday, the Taliban said, “We ask regional and international countries,

especially Islamic countries … to recognize the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan ... release all sanctions, unfreeze (central bank) funds, and support in development of Afghanistan.”

Though the Taliban initially promised that girls’ schools would reopen when it took control, it later backtracked, leaving the girls to remain at home.

Speaking on state television, the Taliban’s deputy leader and Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani said that these issues take time. But the Taliban’s Supreme Leader Haibatullah Akhundzada insisted that foreigners should not give orders to the Taliban.

The group also promised not to interfere with neighboring countries and asked to receive the same courtesy in return.

An article by Heather Barr of Human Rights Watch last month noted, “Since the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan in August, a grave human rights crisis has been unfolding, especially for women and girls…. The Taliban’s March 23 decision to continue their ban on girls’ secondary schooling may be the first time a rights violation prompted near simultaneous condemnation from the EU, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and 16 female foreign ministers.”

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Eiffel Tower Needs Help

The Eiffel Tower in Paris is in need of repairs. The iconic structure is riddled with rust. For now, instead of the repairs it so greatly needs, it is being given a cosmetic 60-million-euro paint job ahead of the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, according to confidential reports cited by French magazine Marianne.

The wrought-iron 324-meter (1,063 ft) high tower, built by Gustave Eiffel in the late 19th century, is among the most visited tourist sites in the world, welcoming about six million visitors each year.

“It is simple, if Gustave Eiffel visited the place he would have a heart attack,” one unnamed manager at the Tower told Marianne.

Some 30% of the structure was supposed to have been stripped and then have two new coats of paint applied but delays to the work caused by the COVID pandemic and the presence of lead in the old paint means only 5% will be treated, Marianne said.

Societe d’Exploitation de la Tour Eiffel is reluctant to close the Tower for a long time because of the tourist revenue that would be lost. This is the twentieth time the Tower has ever been painted.

Hacker Steals 1 Billion Records

A hacker may have stolen one billion Chinese residents’ records from the Shanghai police. If the report is true, it would possibly be the biggest data breach in the country’s history.

ChinaDan posted on “Breach Fo-

rums,” listing the information “on one billion Chinese national residents and several billion case records” in exchange for 10 Bitcoin, or the equivalent of about $200,000.

The poster added that the information included the “name, address, birthplace, national ID number, mobile number, all crime/case details.”

The post has not yet been verified but has drawn attention both in China and abroad.

Forum administrators on Sunday night closed the thread, which had received one offer of six Bitcoin.

In a tweet, Kendra Schaefer, a partner at consultancy firm Trivium China, said that if the report is true, the breach would be “bad” for several reasons.

“Most obviously, this would be among the biggest and worst breaches in history,” she explained. “Two, China’s Personal Information Protection Law just came out late last year. It requires government bodies to protect the info of citizens, which, if the source is indeed MPS, MPS has failed to do.

“I would be surprised if they don’t also contain files on celebs and minor officials,” she added.

Shooting in Denmark

two Swedes were in critical but stable condition.

In a statement, police said three people sustained light injuries from stray bullets, and a total of 27 were wounded or injured in the shooting, 20 of them lightly and during evacuation. The arrested man is the only suspect in the shooting, and there is no indication he acted together with others, Thomassen reiterated, adding that an investigation is ongoing and that the shooter did not have a gun permit.

In a statement, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen sent sympathy to the wounded, their relatives and the bereaved, as well as “all the Danes who were close to these frightening events.”

“We have all been brutally ripped from the bright summer that had just begun. It is incomprehensible. Heartbreaking. Meaningless. Our beautiful and usually so safe capital was changed in a split second,” Frederiksen said.

The shooting took place at Field’s shopping mall on the outskirts of the capital of Denmark flooded with teenagers around the time of a concert that was scheduled to begin shortly. The concert was subsequently cancelled.

Victims of the shooting will be remembered at the Tour de France this week with a moment of remembrance.

The last shooting on this scale in Denmark was in February 2015, when a 22-year-old man was killed in a shootout with police after an attack in the capital that left two people dead and five police officers wounded.

North Korea Slams Trilateral Military Cooperation A 22-year-old Danish man arrested on suspicion of carrying out a shooting in a Danish mall is being remanded in a psychiatric facility for 24 days.

The shooting that took place on Sunday left three dead and several others injured. The suspect, who was known to psychiatric professionals and was named by authorities as an “ethnic Dane,” has been charged with manslaughter.

For now, the court has placed a gag order on the names of the suspect and victims.

At a press conference, Copenhagen’s Head of Police Soren Thomassen said two 17-year-old Danish citizens, one male and one female, and a 47-year-old Russian national had been killed in the gunfire. He also said that two Danes and

North Korea on Sunday blasted the U.S., South Korea, and Japan for working to increase their trilateral military cooperation targeting the Hermit Kingdom.

North Korea warned that the trilateral move is prompting calls for the rogue nuclear power to reinforce its military capacity.

In a statement, North Korea’s Foreign

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Ministry said, “The prevailing situation more urgently calls for building up the country’s defense to actively cope with the rapid aggravation of the security environment of the Korean Peninsula and the rest of the world.

“The chief executives of the U.S., Japan and South Korea put their heads together for confrontation with (North Korea) and discussed the dangerous joint military countermeasures against it including the launch of tripartite joint military exercises,” the statement added.

It also claimed that the U.S. exaggerated rumors about North Korean threats in order to “to provide an excuse for attaining military supremacy over the Asia-Pacific region including the Korean Peninsula.”

In June, the defense chiefs of the U.S., South Korea, and Japan agreed to resume their combined missile warning and tracking exercises as part of their efforts to deal with North Korea’s escalating weapons tests.

Cairo Confiscates Historic Houseboats

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Egypt’s Irrigation Ministry last month gave official notice that the houseboats in the Nile corniche on the west side of Cairo would be confiscated within days. The government has named a variety of reasons for the decision, among them that some of the boats were not licensed.

Meanwhile, residents and their lawyers have called government contacts seeking clarity about the plans.

Some of Cairo’s residents see the seizures as an affront to their country’s heritage and culture.

The houseboats on the Nile date back to the Ottoman era, when Egyptian elites used the houseboats as a place to entertain guests. By the mid-20th century, the number of houseboats had reached into the hundreds, and they were featured in classic Egyptian literature and films. But over time, most of the houseboats were

destroyed: just 32 were kept as private homes, until authorities impounded over half of them, among them three boats belonging to the Muslim Brotherhood.

In 2016, officials began to raise the rents, prompting many to stop paying in protest. Some filed lawsuits. Last year, the Egyptian military told some houseboat residents that it would take over the administration of the properties.

The Egyptian military controls the Nile’s banks.

Aymen Anwar, head of the Central Administration for the Protection of the Nile River in Greater Cairo, spoke on Egyptian television saying that the houseboats are dilapidated, noting a 2020 presidential directive prohibiting residential houseboats but allowing people to keep their boats if they apply for commercial or tourist licenses.

U.S. to Provide Ukraine with Missile Systems

The United States has announced that it will provide Ukraine with $820 million in new military aid, including new surface-to-air missile systems and counter-artillery radars.

The new package brings the total amount committed by the U.S. to over $8.8 billion in weapons and military training. Of that, approximately $7 billion was announced since Russia invaded Ukraine in February this year.

At a press conference, U.S. President Joe Biden said, “We are going to support Ukraine as long as it takes.” He added that the aid gives Ukraine “the capacity” to allow them to “continue to resist the Russian aggression.”

“And so, I don’t know how it’s going to end, but it will not end with a Russian defeat of Ukraine in Ukraine,” Biden added.

Russia has recently launched dozens of missiles across Ukraine, prompting Ukraine’s leadership to request additional military support from the international community.

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The new package will include two systems known as NASAMS, an anti-aircraft system that is used to protect the airspace around the White House and Capitol in Washington, as well as four counter-artillery radars. Meanwhile, Ukrainians are being trained to use the new systems.

At the same time, the Pentagon will provide additional ammunition for the medium-range rocket systems it provided to Ukraine in June.

In a Facebook video, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said, “I am especially grateful today to the United States and to Biden personally for the package of support for Ukraine announced today, which includes very powerful NASAMS — an anti-aircraft missile system that will significantly strengthen our air defense. We have worked hard for these supplies.”

Glacier Kills Hikers A large chunk of an Alpine glacier on Sunday broke loose and tumbled down a mountain in Italy, killing at least six hikers and injuring nine others.

Civil Protection official Gianpaolo Bottacin emphasized that since the situa-

tion is “evolving,” the death toll may climb; there may be up to 15 people missing.

Italian prosecutors have opened an investigation into the disaster, to examine whether there was any foul play.

Record Deforestation in the Amazon

Two of those hospitalized are in grave condition.

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It’s been a tough year for Brazil’s Amazon rainforest. The first half of 2022 saw the world’s largest rainforest deforested by a record amount, according to the country’s Space Research Institute (INPE).

Data from INPE satellites shows that 3,750 square kilometers (1,448 square miles) of the Amazon were lost in Brazil between January 1 and June 24, the largest area since 2016, when the institute began this type of monitoring.

In May, INPE detected 2,287 fires in the rainforest, the highest number for that month since 2004.

Destruction of the world’s largest rainforest has surged since President Jair Bolsonaro took office in 2019 and weakened environmental protections.

Although he has passed several executive orders and laws to protect the rainforest, he has cut funding to certain government-run environmental protection and monitoring programs.

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday said his military is not deterred in its efforts to break Russia’s will to pursue the war. At the same

time, Russian President Vladimir Putin praised his military’s victory in Luhansk.

The city of Lysychansk in eastern Ukraine fell to Russia on Sunday, ending one of the largest battles Europe has seen in generations and giving the Luhansk province to Russia.

In his nightly video message on Monday, Zelensky told his nation, “There have been no significant changes on the battlefield in the past 24 hours. The Armed Forces of Ukraine respond, push back and destroy the offensive potential of the occupiers day after day. We need to break them. It is a difficult task. It requires time and superhuman efforts. But we have no alternative.”

Earlier that day, Putin told his military that those who participated in the conquest of Lysychansk should “absolutely rest and recover their military preparedness,” and congratulated his forces on their “victories in the Luhansk direction.”

Serhiy Gaidai, the Ukrainian governor of Luhansk, said, “We need to win the war, not the battle for Lysychansk....

It hurts a lot, but it’s not losing the war.”

On Monday, during the opening of the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Switzerland, Zelensky told world leaders, “The reconstruction of Ukraine is not a local project. It’s not a project of one nation, but a common task of the entire democratic world, all countries who can say that they are civilized.”

The Ukrainian president also said that restoring his country means restoring the principle of life, “restoring the space of life, restoring everything that makes humans human.”

European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen announced on Monday that the European Union has proposed setting up a reconstruction platform to help the Ukrainian government rebuild the country after the war with Russia.

She noted that the Kremlin’s aim is to “undermine Ukraine’s very existence as a state” and pursue the “the military, political and economic destruction” of the country and that the European Union “will never let that happen.”

Von der Leyen added that the EU has already mobilized 6.2 billion euros in financial support and that “more has to come and more will come.”

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said that the country’s recovery plan will cost an estimated $750 billion. He added that confiscated Russian assets should be a key source of funding.

“Who should pay for the recovery plan which is already estimated at $750 billion?

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We believe that the key source of recovery should be the confiscated assets of Russia and Russian oligarchs. The Russian authorities unleashed this bloody war. They caused this massive destruction, and they should be held accountable for it,” Shmyhal said during the conference, adding that “Russia’s frozen assets, according to various estimates, range from $300 billion to $500 billion.”

NATO Welcomes Finland and Sweden

Ambassadors for each of the 30 countries that make up the NATO alliance signed the accession protocols for Finland and Sweden to join the trans-Atlantic partnership this week.

Although the protocols were signed on Tuesday, each allied government needs to ratify them before the Nordic countries become the newest members of the NATO alliance.

“With 32 nations around the table, we will be even stronger and our people will be even safer as we face the biggest security crisis in decades,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said.

Russia’s war in Ukraine, which is now in its fifth month, prompted Finland’s and Sweden’s push to join the alliance. Ironically, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that NATO’s eastward expansion in Europe prompted his invasion of Ukraine. The alliance has already grown more unified as a group throughout the war and will soon include another country on Russia’s border.

Finland and Sweden applied to join the alliance on May 18, although their bid was held up by Turkey. Turkish leaders opposed their attempts to join the alliance previously, claiming that both countries have supported “terrorists” on the grounds that both countries have refused to deport Turkish nationals that Ankara has accused of loyalty to an ethnic Kurdish militant group.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Er-

dogan warned last week, however, that he could change his mind if Finland and Sweden do not hold up their end of the deal. Applying nations need unanimous support to enter the alliance.

Ethiopia and Sudan Agree

Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said on Tuesday he had reached an agreement with the leader of neighboring Sudan to peacefully settle a border dispute that has led to clashes.

Abiy met Sudan’s military leader, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, in Kenya’s capital Nairobi on the sidelines of a meeting for the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), an eight-member regional bloc for the horn of Africa and neighboring states.

“We both made a commitment for dialogue (and) peaceful resolution to outstanding issues,” Abiy tweeted on Tuesday.

The long-running dispute over a contested fertile border region, al-Fashqa, has fueled a surge in tensions between the two countries in recent years, including clashes.

In the latest trading of accusations between both nations, last month Sudan accused Ethiopia’s army of executing seven Sudanese soldiers and a civilian who had been taken captive. The men had been seized on Sudanese territory on June 22 and were taken into Ethiopia where they were killed, according to the Sudanese foreign ministry.

Ethiopia denied responsibility and blamed the killings on a local militia.

A day after the countries traded accusations over the killings, an Ethiopian official said Sudan’s armed forces had fired heavy artillery during clashes in the disputed area.

Confession in Journalist’s Death The man accused of detonating a car bomb that killed a prominent Maltese journalist has confessed to the crime in

an interview with a Reuters reporter and says he will soon implicate others in plotting to assassinate her.

Speaking from jail in his first comment on the case, George Degiorgio said if he had known more about Daphne Caruana Galizia – the journalist he and two others are accused of killing in 2017 – then he would have asked for more money to carry out the hit.

“If I knew, I would have gone for 10 million. Not 150,000,” he said, referring to the sum in euros that he said he was paid for killing the journalist. “For me, it was just business. Yeah. Business as usual!” he told a Reuters reporter. He later added, “Of course, I feel sorry.”

The interview with Degiorgio was conducted during research for a podcast into the Caruana Galizia case, entitled “Who Killed Daphne?”

His admission came after several attempts by Degiorgio’s lawyers since 2021 to secure a pardon in return for testimony about Degiorgio’s role in Caruana Galizia’s murder and other alleged crimes involving prominent figures on the island.

On June 22, Malta’s Appeal Court rejected remaining legal challenges by Degiorgio to the murder charges against him and his brother Alfred, who is co-accused. The judgement clears the way for trial to go ahead.

The car-bomb assassination of the investigative journalist and blogger caused shock across Europe. Maltese authorities charged Degiorgio and two other men – his brother Alfred and an associate, Vince Muscat – with murdering Caruana Galizia in October 2017 at the behest of a top island businessman.

Until now, both of the Degiorgio brothers had denied involvement in the killing.

Caruana Galizia was killed after she levelled a series of corruption allegations against prominent people, including ministers in the island’s Labour Party government. Her murder raised suspicions that some of the people she was investigating could be involved in plotting her death.

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Climate Activists Target Painting

On Monday, two climate activists glued themselves to a 200-year-old masterpiece at London’s National Gallery, the latest in a string of disruptive protests by British environmentalist group Just Stop Oil. The pair covered John Constable’s famous landscape painting “The Hay Wain” with a modified version of the image before sticking their hands to its frame.

A day before, five Just Stop Oil activists disrupted Formula 1’s British Grand Prix by sitting on the Silverstone racetrack. Last week, members of the

group glued themselves to the frames of paintings in London, Glasgow and Manchester, including Vincent van Gogh’s famous “Peach Trees in Blossom.”

Completed in 1821, “The Hay Wain” is among Britain’s best-known artworks.

Depicting the Stour River, which divides the English counties of Suffolk and Essex, it is considered one of Constable’s quintessential paintings.

The protesters’ modified version of the painting, which they placed on top of the original, depicted the river replaced with a paved road, with factory smokestacks depicted in the background and airplanes flying overhead.

Just Stop Oil is calling for the UK government to block licenses for future oil and gas extraction. Hannah Hunt and Eben Lazarus, the two who participated in Monday’s stunt, were arrested by police.

In a press release issued by the group on Monday, 23-year-old Hunt said the protests would only end when “the UK government makes a meaningful statement that it will end new oil and gas licenses.”

“Ultimately, new fossil fuels are a death project by our government,” the psychology student is quoted as saying.

“So yes, there is glue on the frame of this

painting, but there is blood on the hands of our government.”

Corrosion Caused Deadly Helicopter Crash

Rare corrosion in a motor component was the cause of an otherwise mechanically sound helicopter falling into the sea earlier this year, the IDF said on Sunday following an investigation.

Two pilots, Lt. Col. Erez Sachyani and Maj. Chen Fogel, were killed when the AS565 Panther helicopter, known as an “Atalef,” crashed on January 3 into the Mediterranean Sea. A third officer on board, Cpt. Ron Birman, managed to jump out and was rescued with relatively minor injuries.

The investigation showed that the corrosion was located on a part well within the motor which is not part of the routine checks recommended by the manufacturer.

The IDF added that the malfunction was the first of its kind and not known to either the manufacturer or the IAF. It also said that the corrosion was likely due to the craft’s constant proximity to the sea and noted that the “rinsing process” which aims to prevent corrosion was “not optimal.”

In a statement, the IDF said, “This is due to a problem with the manufacturer’s design. Following this, the helicopter manufacturer will release safety information regarding the aluminum components in the engine.

“We emphasize that the crew was competent, skilled, and faced a sequence of challenging malfunctions … in complex flight conditions in the dark of night over the sea.”

Greece Frees Israeli

A Greek court freed an Israeli man from jail on Tuesday after he was held for 14 days on what Israel claims is a mistaken Interpol warrant. Still, despite his freedom, the court ordered Dudi Ashkenazi to remain on Rhodes Island until a final decision is made on the matter.

Ashkenazi, 52, was vacationing in Greece when he was arrested two weeks ago on an Interpol warrant for a dual Israeli-Azerbaijani citizen also named Dudi Ashkenazi, who allegedly trafficked drugs between Peru and Russia in 2012.

He was held on the Greek island of Kos until the court hearing that granted his partial release.

A salary slip from the same month Ashkenazi was said to have committed the crimes showed the innocent Ashkenazi was in Israel working as a driver for the Dan bus company. Regarding another incident, Ashkenazi was celebrating his child’s bar mitzvah at the same time that a crime was being committed.

Yair Lapid, at the time Israel’s foreign minister and since last week the prime minister, spoke with Greek counterpart Nikos Dendias last Wednesday and requested Ashkenazi’s immediate release.

Polish Envoy to Come to Israel

Poland will send its ambassador-designate to present his letter of credence to Israel in the coming days, Polish leader Andrzej Duda told President Isaac Herzog on Monday, in the strongest indication yet that the two countries are moving beyond a bitter year-long diplomatic spat.

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Poland and Israel have been in a tiff since last year. This initiative seems to be an indication that the two countries may be warming towards each other once again.

In July 2021, Poland’s legislature passed a law effectively cutting off any future restitution to the heirs of property seized by the Nazis during the Holocaust.

In response to the legislation, signed into law by Duda, Foreign Minister Yair Lapid

called it “antisemitic and immoral.”

The following month, Israel recalled its envoy to Warsaw. Lapid advised Poland’s ambassador to Israel to remain on vacation in his homeland, and instructed Israel’s new ambassador to Poland, Ya’acov Livne, to remain in Israel.

Slowly, things are returning to normal. In February, Livne went back to Warsaw. Two Polish lawmakers visited the Knesset in June, the first to do so

since 2017.

According to the president’s office, in this week’s phone call, “Both presidents expressed their hope that any future issues between Poland and Israel will be solved through sincere and open dialogue and in a spirit of mutual respect.”

Poland is part of the four-member Visegrad Group, a bastion of support for Israel within the European Union. The Poland-Israel group in Poland’s parlia-

We're Coming to the

ment is the largest such caucus in the legislature, with 127 out of 460 deputies in the group.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is driving the two countries back together, Polish MP Marek Rutka noted last month.

Still, disagreements remain. Last month, Israel canceled educational trips to Poland for thousands of high school students this summer, charging the Polish government is trying to control the Holocaust studies curriculum taught to Israeli children.

The Polish government wants formal rules to regulate the terms under which Israeli schoolchildren conduct Holocaust study visits to the country, including the presence of armed Israeli guards.

IDF Shoots Down Hezbollah Drones

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An IAF fighter jet and an Israeli Navy missile ship on Saturday intercepted three hostile UAVs from Lebanon which approached the airspace over Israel’s economic waters.

The UAVs were identified by detection systems and monitored by ground control units throughout their flight. The UAVs were identified at an early stage and intercepted at the optimal operational point, the IDF said.

An initial inquiry suggests that the UAVs did not pose an imminent threat.

The UAVs were intercepted over the Mediterranean Sea. The detection and alert systems functioned as required, embodying the concept of multi-layered air defense in the best possible manner in unison with the professional activities of the soldiers at sea and in the air who carried out the defensive mission with great success.

The UAVs belong to the Hezbollah terrorist organization and flew from Lebanese territory in the direction of the “Karish” gas platform. They were intercepted at a safe distance from the platform.

One UAV was intercepted by an F-16 “Barak” fighter jet which was dispatched

Lapid: “Israel is More Important Than Every One of Us”

Israel’s interim Prime Minister Yair Lapid on Saturday evening gave his first statement to the press since taking office.

In his speech, Lapid thanked outgoing Prime Minister Naftali Bennett (Yamina), who will serve as Alternate Prime Minister until a new government is formed, for his “decency and friendship” and for the smooth transition.

“I want to thank the thirteenth prime minister of the State of Israel, Naftali

Bennett, for his decency, his friendship, for leading the government over the past year to economic and security achievements which have not been seen here for years,” Lapid began. “A special thank you for the fact that the citizens of Israel saw this week an orderly transition between people who keep agreements and believe each other.”

Lapid declared, “The State of Israel is bigger than all of us. It is more important that any of us. It was here before us; it will be here long after us. It does not belong only to us. It belongs also to those who dreamed about it for thousands of years in exile, and to those who have not yet been born, to the coming generations.

“For them and for us, we must choose the common good, what connects us.

There will always be disagreements, the question is how we manage them, and how we ensure that they do not manage us.”

Lapid continued, “Disagreement isn’t necessarily a bad thing so long as it doesn’t undermine the stability of the government and damage our internal resilience.So long as we remember that we all have the same goal: a Jewish, democratic, liberal, strong, advanced, and prosperous Israel.

“The deep Israeli truth is that on most of the truly important topics, we believe in the same things.”

According to him, “We believe that Israel is a Jewish state. Its character is Jewish. Its identity is Jewish. Its relations with its non-Jewish citizens are also Jewish. The book of Leviticus says, ‘But the stranger who dwells with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself.’

“We believe that so long as Israel’s security needs are met, Israel is a country that seeks peace. Israel stretches out its hand to all the peoples of the Middle East, including the Palestinians, and says: the time has come for you to recognize that we’ll never move from here, let’s learn to live together.”

Lapid continued, “The people of Israel won’t dwell alone. It is our job to continue to strengthen our position in the world, our relations with our greatest friend and ally, the United States, and to harness the international community in the struggle against antisemitism and the delegitimization of Israel.

“Many people who didn’t vote for this government are listening to this speech, many people who don’t and won’t support it. I thank you for your willingness to listen. I ask to work together with you for the good of our country. I’m commit-

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to the scene from the 109th Squadron in Ramat David. The two other UAVs were intercepted by the INS “Eilat” missile ship using “Barak” interceptors.

Defense Minister Benny Gantz (Blue and White) said, “The State of Israel is prepared to defend its infrastructure against any threat. The Hezbollah terrorist organization is preventing the state of Lebanon from reaching an agreement regarding maritime borders, which are critical to the economy and prosperity of the Lebanese nation. This is despite the willingness of the State of Israel to move forward in the negotiations and to reach a solution on the issue. The State of Israel will continue to defend its assets; we are obligated and will preserve our right to operate and respond to any threat.”

IDF spokesman Ran Kochav noted that Hezbollah suffered a “significant operational defeat” with the downing of three UAVs it dispatched from Lebanon.

Speaking on Radio 103FM, Kochav said, “Hezbollah sustained a significant operational setback when it attempted this operation that did not succeed. It appears that the drones were not armed.”

He added that the threat did not justify moving the rig to a possibly safer position.

“These are Israeli territorial waters, and Hezbollah is trying to harm our sovereignty in all kinds of ways. But they have suffered a significant setback here,” he said.

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ted to serving you as well. I embrace the words of my predecessor, and want to repeat them: we are brothers.

“The challenges before us are immense. The struggle against Iran, terror at home, the Israeli education crisis, the cost of living, strengthening personal security. When the challenges are so great, we can’t let disagreements consume all our strength. In order to create a common good here, we need one another.

“Our children are watching us.

What do we want them to see? We want our children to see that we did everything to build a Jewish and democratic, strong and advanced, benevolent and good Israel.”

Iran Arrests IRGC General for Spying for Israel A senior general for the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC) was secretly arrested earlier this month on suspicion of spying for Israel.

The report cited officials with close ties to the IRGC, who spoke on condition

of anonymity.

According to them, the arrest of Brig.-Gen. Ali Nasiri, a senior commander in the IRGC Protection of Information Unit, marked a growing level of distrust among the country’s senior leadership partly attributed to Israel’s alleged recent operations in the country.

Nasiri’s arrest follows the arrests of a few dozen security officials involved in Iran’s missile program. Those officials were arrested around two months ago for allegedly leaking classified information to Israel.

Several weeks ago, two Iranian scientists died due to poison in their food. Iran has blamed Israel for their deaths.

U.S. Examines and Returns Bullet

The United States on Monday released the results of the ballistic examination of the bullet which killed Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh.

Abu Aqleh was killed in a shootout between IDF soldiers and armed Palestinian Authority terrorists in May. On Saturday evening, Kan News reported that the Palestinian Authority (PA) agreed to a forensic investigation by the U.S. of the bullet that they claim killed Abu Aqleh.

The news outlet quoted a statement by the Palestinian Authority’s general prosecutor to Al Jazeera: “We will not give the bullet that killed Shireen Abu Aqleh to Israel at all. Due to our belief that the occupying forces fired the bullet, we have agreed that the Americans examine it. We received several guarantees from the American coordinators that the bullet will not be passed to Israel.”

In a Monday statement, the State Department said, “After an extremely detailed forensic analysis, independent, third-party examiners, as part of a process overseen by the U.S. Security Coordinator (USSC), could not reach a definitive conclusion regarding the origin of the bullet that killed Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh.”

It added, “Ballistic experts determined the bullet was badly damaged, which prevented a clear conclusion.”

The State Department said that it was most likely that Abu Aqleh was accidentally shot by an Israeli soldier, but it could not say for certain.

“In addition to the forensic and ballistic analysis, the USSC was granted full access to both Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Palestinian Authority (PA) investigations over the last several weeks,” the State Department said. “By summarizing both investigations, the USSC concluded that gunfire from IDF positions was likely responsible for the death of Shireen Abu Aqleh. The USSC found no reason to believe that this

was intentional but rather the result of tragic circumstances during an IDF-led military operation against factions of Palestinian Islamic Jihad on May 11, 2022, in Jenin, which followed a series of terrorist attacks in Israel”.

Also on Monday, the IDF released a statement saying, “Since March 2022, 19 people have been killed in multiple terrorist attacks in Israel. In response to this deadly wave of terror, the IDF and Israeli security forces have been carrying out counterterrorism activities in Judea and Samaria with the aim of thwarting potential terror attacks, stopping terrorist activity and protecting Israeli civilians.

“On May 11, 2022, IDF soldiers conducted counterterrorism activity in the area of Jenin. During the IDF’s operational activity, Palestinian gunmen fired heavily and indiscriminately, including directly toward IDF soldiers.

In addition, explosives were hurled and hit IDF vehicles and nearly hit soldiers.

Near the conclusion of the IDF’s counterterrorism activities in the area, the journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh was hit.

“Ever since this tragic incident, the IDF has been examining and reviewing the circumstances of Ms. Abu Aqleh’s death. The Chief of the General Staff ordered a special task force composed of experts in different fields, among other things, to reconstruct and model the circumstances of the incident as accurately as possible.

“The IDF investigation concluded that the source of the fire that led to the death of Ms. Abu Aqleh could not be determined based on the available information. The IDF investigation conclusively determined that no IDF soldier deliberately fired at Ms. Abu Aqleh.”

Israel Not Limiting Refugees Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday praised Israel’s Supreme Court for knocking down a government decision capping the number of Ukrainian refugees allowed into the country.

In its ruling, the Supreme Court said that Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked (Yamina) cannot restrict the number of non-Jewish refugees entering Israel to just 5,000.

In a tweet, Zelensky said, “The rule of law and respect for human rights is exactly what distinguishes a true, developed democracy!”

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He added, “I commend the decision of the Supreme Court of the State of Israel, which obliges the government of [Israel] to abolish any additional restrictions on the entry of citizens of [Ukraine].”

Israel has already taken in thousands of Ukrainian refugees fleeing the Russia-Ukraine war. Ukrainians currently do not need to receive a visa prior to entering the country.

In addition, Israel is currently housing 20,000 Ukrainian refugees who were in Israel prior to the war’s outbreak either illegally or on tourist visas. These Ukrainians were permitted to remain in Israel despite their lack of visas, due to the war in their homeland.

Responding to the Supreme Court ruling, Shaked said that her policy was “proven to be a success,” as it enabled relatives of Israelis to arrive and work, while “preventing an unprecedented flooding [of refugees].”

“In recent weeks, thanks to this system, more Ukrainians are leaving the country than arriving,” she said in a statement. “Unfortunately, the Supreme Court has ruled, practicing extraordinary judicial activism, that this system will be halted if it isn’t discussed in the Knesset.

“It is clear that we can’t allow the unlimited entry of foreign citizens, while we don’t know whether and when they are going to exit,” she said.

The Tomer Warsha law firm, which had filed the petition to the Supreme Court, responded to the decision, saying: “We are very satisfied that the High Court accepted our claims and ruled that the Interior Minister acted against the provisions of the law. We are happy that Ukrainian citizens, who are still in the war, can find quiet in Israel alongside their family and friends.”

It added, “It is important to make clear that from now on there is no more Shaked framework, there is no limit of only 5,000 people, there is no need to fill in an online form.”

Ben & Jerry’s Fallout

The fallout from an attempt by ice cream manufacturer Ben & Jerry’s to boycott parts of Israel will have an effect on other corporations eyeing the similar measures, investor Michael Ashner predicted.

Ashner is a longtime corporate activist who bought a stake in parent company Unilever after the boycott announcement and led a group opposed to the move. According to him, other conglomerates should take heed of the repercussions suffered by the UK multinational since Ben & Jerry’s announced a boycott of the “occupied Palestinian territories” last year.

Fallout from the boycott was swift and included multiple U.S. states, as well as a consumer boycott of Ben & Jerry’s products not produced in Israel. In addition, the Securities and Exchange Commission also launched an investigation into Unilever’s response to the boycott.

The boycott was a decision by Ben & Jerry’s, independent of Unilever.

If the boycott had gone into effect at the end of this year, Israeli licensee Avi Zinger would have lost the plant. However, Unilever and Ben & Jerry’s Israel last week announced a deal under which Zinger would receive the independence to continue operating in Israel, essentially cancelling the boycott.

Ashner told the Times of Israel, “Other multinational companies will think twice before they engage in BDS activities in the future. That’s the lesson from this.”

He added, “If multinational companies could start cutting off Israel because of BDS, that was as dangerous to the existence of Israel as Iran. It’s a very bad, slippery slope,” he added. “The first and loudest to do it was Unilever and somebody had to confront Unilever, not just because what Unilever was doing was wrong, but to send a message to all the other multinationals that this is not a good idea.”

Ashner had formed an organization

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Mazel Tov! Congratulations to our dear, distinguished alumnus and Yeshiva parent

DOVI SAFIER On receiving a total of four Simon Rockower Awards from the American Jewish Press Association for articles you authored and co-authored for Mishpacha Magazine in 2021, including three first place awards and one second place award.

Your deeply-researched and engaging writing and choice of subjects reflect not only your illustrious upbringing, your stellar yeshiva education and your inborn talents, but also your own deep-seated appreciation for our nation’s rich history and the seminal figures that helped shape it.

May you continue inspiring Klal Yisrael in good health until 120!

Yeshiva Darchei Torah and Mesivta Chaim Shlomo Far Rockaway, New York Rabbi Yaakov Bender

Rabbi Moshe Benoliel

ROSH HAYESHIVA

DIRECTOR OF ALUMNI AFFAIRS

JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

‫ חוץ מבנו ותלמידו‬,‫בכל אדם מתקנא‬

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called the Coalition to Hold Unilever Accountable with a number of law firms, lobbying groups and scholars. In addition, he and his partners also pushed the Securities and Exchange Commission to investigate Unilever, claiming the company did not properly disclose to investors the risks stemming from the boycott.

“It wasn’t over ice cream,” Ashner explained. “What if Nestle decided to cut Israel off? What if Nike, all these other companies? What would that do to Israel’s standing in the world? What would it do to it economically?”

Regarding Unilever, Ashner said, “I think they’re going to have to modify their business model. Shareholders want profitable companies that are non-controversial. They’re not here to buy into investing controversy like this.

“I think Unilever believed that it was just going to go away, and it would be able to deal with Avi [Zinger] in a quiet matter, and it did not go away. He dug his heels in and stayed the course all the way through and I think, in his own way, he’s heroic for what he did.”

Meanwhile, Ben & Jerry’s said it did not agree with the decision to sell to Zinger and that it will no longer profit from ice cream sales in Israel.

COVID-19 Fraud Schemes

U.S. federal prosecutors on Wednesday announced charges against 21 defendants for their alleged involvement in COVID-19 fraud schemes. The schemes resulted in over $149 million in losses.

Among the defendants are physicians, medical businesses, and marketers in nine U.S. federal districts.

According to the Department of Justice, several of the defendants are accused of offering testing to prompt patients to

provide personal information along with saliva or a blood sample. These samples and information were then used to submit false and fraudulent claims to federal health insurance for unrelated and unnecessary tests or services.

DOJ added that in one scheme, two owners of a California lab are accused of fraudulently billing over $214 million lab tests and over $125 million in fraudulent COVID-19 claims and respiratory pathogen tests.

Other cases in Maryland and New York involve the owners of medical clinics who allegedly obtained confidential information from patients seeking drive-thru COVID-19 tests and submitted fraudulent claims for office visits which never took place, investigators said.

Assistant director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division blasted the defendants’ actions as “unacceptable” and said, “These health care fraud abuses erode the integrity and trust patients have with those in the health care industry, particularly during a vulnerable and worrisome time for many individuals.”

Meanwhile, DOJ has seized over $8 million in cash, along with “other fraud proceeds” in connection with the cases.

Albany Alters Gun Laws

New York State lawmakers last week passed new gun laws in an attempt to mitigate the effects of a Supreme Court ruling which brought down state licensing rules.

In its ruling last week, SCOTUS decided that a New York clause requiring gun applicants to provide a satisfactory reason for concealed carry was too strict and infringed on citizens’ right to bear arms.

The Concealed Carry Improvement Act was adopted 43-20 by the New York State Senate on Friday afternoon last week, and then 91-51 by the New York State Assembly later that night. Under it, applicants will be required to display

“good moral character,” pass a firearm safety course, and provide data from their social media accounts as part of strengthened background checks.

The Act also defines “sensitive locations” where weapons will be off-limits for most permit holders and prohibits the use of firearms on private property, unless the property’s owner permits it.

Speaking to reporters, Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said, “We are trying to create uniformity, which is what really the Supreme Court asked us to do and … we hit that mark and are making New York safe.

“People will be very clear about how they can go about getting permit,” she added.

Counsel to the Governor Liz Fine said during a press conference, “The moral character standard was not an issue in the Supreme Court, and it’s been issued in other states. I don’t think there is a question that the state has the authority and the responsibility to review applicants for licenses to make sure that they are not going to pose a danger to themselves if they are able to get a gun.”

The Act will go into effect on September 1, provided New York Governor Kathy Hochul signs it. She is expected to do so.

CA: Free Healthcare for Undocumented Immigrants

California last week became the first U.S. state to guarantee free health care for all low-income immigrants, regardless of their legal status. The move is expected to provide coverage for an additional 764,000 people and cost approximately $2.7 billion annually.

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a $307.9 billion operating budget to make state Medicaid available by 2024 for all low-income adults, regardless of their immigration status.

The federal government does not provide Medicaid to illegals.

Anthony Wright, executive director of

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Health Access California, said, “This will represent the biggest expansion of coverage in the nation since the start of the Affordable Care Act in 2014. In California, we recognize [that] everybody benefits when everyone is covered.”

Not everyone is happy about the change: Jon Coupal, president of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, noted that the free health care will turn California into “a magnet for those who are not legally authorized to enter the country.”

He added, “I think many of us are very sympathetic to the immigrant community, but we really wish we had better control of who enters this nation and this state.”

Terror at Parade A mass shooting during a Fourth of July parade in the Chicago, Illinois, suburb of Highland Park has left six people dead and 30 others injured.

The injured in the attack range in age from age eight to 85, Dr. Brigham Temple, medical director of emergency preparedness at NorthShore University health center, said. NorthShore is treating 26 of the injured; at least four of the

injured are believed to be children.

The person of interest has been named as Robert E Crimo III, 22. He was arrested by police hours after the attack after a brief chase by North Chicago police. It is believed that he carried out the shooting from a rooftop of a business just minutes after the parade started. He was using a high-powered rifle.

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker told a news conference, “If you are angry today, I’m here to tell you to be angry. I’m furious. I’m furious that yet more innocent lives were taken by gun violence.

“While we celebrate the Fourth of July just once a year, mass shootings have become our weekly – yes, weekly – American tradition.

“There are going to be people who say that today is not the day, that now is not the time to talk about guns. I’m telling you, there is no better day and no better time.”

Highland Park’s mayor, Nancy Rotering, said her community was “terrorized by an act of violence that has shaken us to our core.”

She added, “On a day that we came together to celebrate community and freedom, we are instead mourning the tragic loss of life and struggling with the terror that was brought upon us.”

According to police, five adults died at the scene and a sixth died in a local hospital; one child was critically injured and taken for medical treatment.

Two Mexicans were among the wounded, and a third was among the dead. A Jewish woman, Jacki Sundheim, was also killed.

Hot Dog! Well, he did it again.

Competitive eater Joey Chestnut once again won the Nathan’s Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest, making it his 15th win as he devoured a stomach-popping 63 hot dogs and buns in 10

minutes on Monday in Coney Island.

Chestnut has won the long-running Independence Day contest seven consecutive times and 15 of the last 16 years.

He put away 15-and-a-half more hot dogs than his closest competitor, Geoffrey Esper, but came up well short of his own personal record of 76 set last year.

Truthfully, Chestnut should have been on the DL list, as he was plowing through hot dogs with his right foot in a cast. According to Joey, though, he was feeling OK (I guess it’s all relative) despite the injury.

In the women’s contest, Miki Sudo won her eighth championship, slamming 40 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes. Sudo has now won eight of the last nine women’s titles after missing last year’s competition while pregnant.

One drawback of Isla’s intelligence is her lack of sleep. Many children who are highly intelligent tend to sleep less. It’s tough on the McNabbs to have to wake up at 4a.m. for their toddler – even if she can read the cereal box they place in front of her.

Mensa Member at 2

Walking the World

It’s official. Isla McNabb is pretty smart. In fact, she’s smarter than 99 percent of people in the world.

Isla is 2½ years old. A few months ago, her parents noticed that someone was putting toy letters spelling the words of objects around the house. Turns out, it was Isla.

The spelling shenanigans sparked their curiosity and they had Isla’s IQ tested in May. Her results proved that she had scored in the top 1 percent of the population, qualifying her for membership in Mensa, an organization of people who score in the top 2 percent on IQ tests.

That makes her the youngest Mensa member in the country, American Mensa spokesperson Charles Brown noted.

When Isla turned 2, in November, her parents bought her a tablet for her birthday and showed their daughter how to sound out certain letters of the alphabet.

Then, Isla took off and began spelling and sounding out words.

“Everything we threw at her, it just seemed like she picked it up right away,” Jason, Isla’s dad, said. “It was incredible.”

Now she is able to read.

She is also able to count – and can even count backward. She can do simple math, and even has learned how to write.

Although she’s intelligent, Isla is also a normal toddler. She likes “Bluey,” an Australian cartoon about a blue heeler cattle dog, and “Blippi,” a children’s show on YouTube. Last month, she started going to preschool and has become obsessed with making friends and with her teacher, Miss Abigail. She also enjoys doing jigsaw puzzles and playing outside.

“Normal kid stuff,” her mother said, adding that Isla is, of course, a fan of reading and the library.

Tom Turcich is now the tenth person on record to walk the world.

Yes, on March 21, 2022, Turcich, from New Jersey, finished his journey around the globe. His dog, Savannah, had accompanied him. Savannah is now the first dog to ever complete the feat.

It took the duo seven years. During that time, they walked 29,826 miles.

“It was very surreal,” Turcich said when he got back home. “I had imagined what the ending would be like for a long time. And when it happened, there were people lining the streets and walking with me.

“The primary emotion was just relief.

This had dominated my life for 15 years, and to finally be able to kind of put it behind me was amazing.”

The inspiration for the trip stemmed from a sad loss in 2006, when his longtime friend Ann Marie died in a jet ski accident at the age of 17.

Turcich, who has been compared to Forrest Gump, the character Tom Hanks played in the 1994 movie, decided he needed travel and adventure in his life and began looking into all the different ways he could After reading about Steven Newman, listed by Guinness World Records as the first person to walk around the world, and walking adventurer Karl Bushby, who has been circumnavigating the globe on foot since 1998, Turcich became set on taking on this challenge himself.

“It [walking] seemed like the best way to understand the world and be forced into new places,” he says. “I didn’t just want to go to Paris and Machu Picchu, I really wanted to understand the world and see how people were living day to day.”

Almost nine years after he first came up with the idea, Turcich took the first step of his walk around the world. He set

off on April 2, 2015, just before his 26th birthday, pushing a baby stroller containing hiking gear, a sleeping bag, a laptop, a DSLR camera and a plastic crate, which he used to store his food.

He devised his route with two major factors in mind: he wanted to “hit every continent and travel with as little bureaucratic trouble” as possible.

Turcich’s journey was not just a walk in the park. At one point, he fell ill with a bacterial infection. He was also held up at knifepoint while in Panama. But Turcich was also invited to local weddings in Turkey and Uzbekistan.

Turcich walked from New Jersey to Panama. He found his four-legged friend in an animal shelter in Austin, Texas.

Once they reached Panama, the pair flew over the Darien Gap, a treacherous stretch of jungle between Panama and Colombia, they walked from Bogota, Colombia to Montevideo, Uruguay, where they took a boat to Antarctica.

Turcich walked across Spain, France and Portugal and eventually crossed over to North Africa. Then they walked through Italy and the other countries nearby.

After Greece, they headed to Turkey, where Turcich became the first private citizen to be permitted to cross the Bosphorus Bridge on foot.

During their world walk, the pair walked across six continents and 38 countries together, spending most nights camping.

Guinness World Records sets the requirements for a circumnavigation on foot as traveling 18,000 miles (around 30,000 kilometers) and crossing four continents – a goal surpassed by Turcich.

On an average day, he and Savannah walked between 18 to 24 miles (around 29 to 38 kilometers).

“Seven years is a long time,” he says.

“Once the end was in sight, I just couldn’t wait to be back. I was just ready to be

hanging out with my friends and family again, and not be packing up my tent every single morning.”

Hey, Turcich, we can’t judge a man until we’ve walked a mile – or 29,000 miles – in his shoes.

Flying High

Bette Nash is not slowing down.

The 86-year-old has been working as a flight attendant for the past 65 years.

Recently, she was named the world’s longest-serving flight attendant by Guinness World Records.

Nash started working as a flight attendant in 1957 for Eastern Airlines and continues to this day at American Airlines without any lapse in employment, according to Guinness.

She has spent most of her career working on the New York-Boston-Washington shuttle because it allows her to return home at night to care for her son, who has disabilities.

Guinness said Nash is also the oldest currently serving flight attendant in the world.

Recalling what the job was like years ago, Nash told WJLA-TV, “You had to be a certain height, you had to be a certain weight. It used to be horrible. You put on a few pounds, and you had to keep weighing yourself, and then if you stayed that way, they would take you off the payroll,” she said.

That’s something that just wouldn’t fly today.

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JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

According to Nathan’s, legend has it that the first contest of its kind was held on July 4, 1916, as four immigrants competed to show how patriotic they were.

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Community Rosh Chodesh Tammuz at Siach Yitzchok

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JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

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And the Winner Is? Our Community

W

hile across New York State voter turnout numbers were pervasively low, the members of the Far Rockaway-Five Towns community once again showed that we vote.

The overall state numbers showed 14% of Republicans and Democrats came out to vote in this primary election. In great contrast, the Far Rockaway/Bayswater area came out strong, with roughly over 45% of the registered Republicans and Democrats voting. The Far Rockaway/ Bayswater Jewish community represents only 10% of the Assembly District’s population; however, in this election our strong voter turnout made up 25% of the Assembly District’s total voters. Once again, our community has strengthened its voice in the halls of government.

Thank you to all of the shul leaders/ captains who made this campaign a success. Thank you to everyone who took out the five minutes to help our community by voting. A special thank you goes to the

Agudas Yisroel of Bayswater and their shul captain Chaim Boruch Schneider.

The Agudah led with the most votes on KlalVote and did an amazing job getting everyone out to vote.

When we join together and put in the little bit of effort, we can accomplish so much. These strong numbers will be looked at for years to come, ultimately making our community a greater focus of our government.

Hempstead Town Councilman Anthony D’Esposito attended the 60th graduation of the Yeshiva of South Shore on June 12 at Congregation Beth Sholom in Lawrence

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The Boys at Camp Matov Enjoyed a Spirited Week

The Avnet ’22 Adventure Begins

E

xcitement was everywhere as campers at HALB’s Avnet Country Day School enjoyed the first few days of their summer adventure.

The preschool campers in the Tipot division settled in while making special Independence Day treats and projects.

The Ma’ayanot girls were thrilled to reconnect with their friends and enjoyed engaging activities like Zumba, Music, Country Cooking, and a trip to Launch Trampoline Park. The Agamim and Naharot girls started off with a game of “Get to Know You” BINGO and a special Rosh Chodesh program as part of their packed schedules.

It was back to the action for the Ma’ayanot boys, who were on the fields

and courts playing baseball, basketball, soccer, and dodge ball. They also enjoyed more relaxing pursuits during Fine Art and Culinary. Over at the DRS Campus, the boys in the G’vaot and Harim divisions kicked off their Softball and Net Leagues and cooled down during swim.

“It’s incredible to walk around the halls and fields and see the smiling and happy faces of Avnet campers,” said Daniel Stroock, Director. “We have enormous gratitude to our staff, campers and our parent body who have each played a crucial role in helping to ensure that we got off to an amazing start.

We can’t wait to share more fun next week.”

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JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

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A New Yeshiva in the Five Towns Yeshiva Ateres Eitz Chaim

by Menucha Levin

R

abbi Boruch Oppen is the principal of a new yeshiva in Cedarhurst called Yeshiva Ateres Eitz Chaim. Having grown up in Cedarhurst, which he describes as a “warm, beautiful community,” he and his family now reside in Hewlett, a seven-minute commute away from the yeshiva. He attended Yeshiva Ateres Shmuel of Waterbury for Beis Midrash where he learned under excellent rebbeim including Rabbi Moshe Kestenbaum of Hechal HaTorah who wrote many seforim so his students learned directly from the source.

Rabbi Boruch Oppen received his rabbinical ordination from the Rosh Yeshiva, Rabbi Ahron Kaufman, shlita. After obtaining a bachelor’s degree in Business Science, Rabbi Oppen considered working in real estate but was given the opportunity to teach a class at the Yeshiva Ketana of Waterbury. That life-changing experience of teaching students hands-on turned out to be so inspiring and positive he decided to continue as an educator with the guidance and encouragement of his family.

He has written a book on self-introspection and chinuch called “Lessons Learned from My Children,” an educational text utilized by parents, educators, and others world-wide. However, he soon became aware of the void in the educational system, that the traditional method based only on grades was not suitable for every student. “It did not meet the needs of boys who love Torah but want to learn a trade,” he points out.

He realized it was time to start a new yeshiva, based on individual attention to each student inspired by a verse in Mishlei (Proverbs): “Educate a child according to his way.”

Explaining how the yeshiva’s name was chosen, he refers to the pasuk: “Eitz Chaim hee limachazikim ba, [Torah] is a tree of life for those who take hold of it.”

The “tree of life” is a life saver to those who hold to it in the stormy waves of society.

“Yeshiva Ateres Eitz Chaim prides itself on instilling love and a positive connection to Torah by being a life support for students who seek a “tree of life” to cling to. The Ateres, crown, of the Eitz Chaim are the students who elevate

themselves by applying the words of Torah to their daily lives.”

The yeshiva began in September 2021, on Central Avenue, with Rabbi Boruch Oppen as the principal and administrator and Rabbi Gedaliah Oppen as the Rosh Yeshiva.

Rabbi Gedaliah Oppen learned in Eretz Yisrael at Yeshivas Bais Hatalmud and Yeshivas Beis HaKerem. After studying at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, he obtained certification in their program “Improving Schools: The Art of Leadership.” He is also a Refuah Institute certified life coach, noted Talmud scholar, lecturer and presenter of workshops on parenting and education.

An experienced educator who understands the needs of today’s high school students, teachers, and parents, he is well respected by his colleagues, the parents and the community, and has built long-lasting personal connections with his students.

“The goal of Yeshiva Ateres Eitz Chaim is to provide high school students with a warm, caring Torah environment and love and appreciation for Yiddishkeit, to obtain a diploma or GED together with the skills and experience they will need for a future occupation,” explains Rabbi Boruch Oppen.

“Starting their day with a solid seder of davening and shiurim, the students from 9th to 12th grade learn in small groups, with discussions to apply what they learn. In the afternoon, they learn work skills with balabatim as apprentices, and gain experience in the workplace,” Rabbi Boruch Oppen says. Topics include resume building, finance, budgeting, business management, accounting, real estate and more.

Some students take internships to utilize their talents and abilities. After graduation, others may continue in other yeshivas or apply to college, take a job or enroll in programs in Israel. The greatest challenge for the yeshiva is fundraising, through sponsorships and donations from the community. Yeshiva Ateres Eitz Chaim is now looking forward to its second year and currently enrolling more students who will benefit from its specialized program.

Rabbi Gedaliah Oppen

Rabbi Boruch Oppen

One eleventh grade student expressed, “What I love about my Yeshiva are the loving Rabbeim who treat every person like their own child and give us everything we need. You feel like you have someone to talk to. It is a very special thing that I never really had before.

I love the trips that are exciting and give us a great opportunity to build relationships with the other students. The environment in Yeshiva is warm and inviting, which is why I love Yeshiva Ateres Eitz Chaim.”

“The Yeshiva helped me a lot spiritually and academically,” a twelfth grader said. “I am appreciative of the opportunity to build a kesher with my Rabbeim and fellow classmates, as well as having an internship where I am gaining a tremendous amount of experience. The Yeshiva has helped me grow and progress in my academic studies. B”H with the help and guidance of the Yeshiva I was able to pass

my GED exam.”

Members of the Board of Directors are also unanimous in their praise of the yeshiva: “Yeshiva Ateres Eitz Chaim, through the leadership of Rabbi Oppen, provides a great service to the community,” Gabi Schechter says. “It instills Torah values into all its students and prepares them for the next stages in life. I’m proud to be a part of it.”

Avi Englard adds, “It’s easy to be part of and support a Yeshiva like Ateres Eitz Chaim. Starting with the Rosh Hayeshiva, Rabbi Oppen, who radiates warmth and a love for each and every individual. With over 30 years in chinuch, he expertly blends Torah Yiras Shamayim and Middos, showing how to be a mentch. With a yeshiva that has the ability to match your child with his interests and include skills that will help him in life, what better way is there to educate?”

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Hillel Day Camp is Back

By Evan Leibowitz

H

illel Day Camp is our campers home away from home! Here, we focus on our social and emotional successes. We gain experiences that we do not ordinarily participate in, and every single camper can excel in something. We are so excited to be back for summer 2022!

Our specialty heads have been planning an incredible summer 2022. Our aquatic, music, and sports departments have planned amazing curricula and special events. Our programming de-

partment continues to shine. There is a jam-packed schedule of in-camp and trip activities for every single day!

Hillel Day Camp represents closeness, community, and camaraderie.

Many of our counselors, lifeguards, and staff grew up at Hillel Day Camp and now take on leadership roles here. Our staff share one common goal: to ensure that campers and staff have an incredible and safe summer experience. For the past few days, I have witnessed this goal come to fruition. Campers are excited

to be in camp, staff are ensuring their safety with careful supervision, and our lifeguards, sports, and specialty staff are implementing a program that ensures excitement throughout the day. We are so excited to be back!

We’re off to a fabulous start and that is thanks to those who put their heart and soul into getting our camp ready.

Sharon Fried is our business/office manager and breathes camp all year long. Not a day or hour went by without me speaking with Shana Pollack, our assistant di-

are prepared to Hundreds They transfer to yeshivah. of Jewish children Their parents are ready are in Public school to send them to yeshivah

ALL WE NEED IS YOUR HELP!

rector and our director of programming Ilona Diamond. The staffing team of Adam Brick and Penina Ginsberg started in November. Shani Seewald and Tamar Freundlich created magical promotional graphics. Sam Velez and (Morah) Abi Guttman were excellent liaisons between Hillel Day Camp and the bus companies. Thank you to our entire custodial staff who physically got camp ready, and our nurses and Iris Bertram for filing and reviewing every medical form.

We are excited to be back!

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Fun, Friends and Smiles at Areivos

Ezra Academy Summer Series

F

our years ago, a rebbe at Ezra Academy envisioned a summer that involved Torah learning for all his students. He set out to create a program that invited the Ezra men and women (9th -12th graders and alumni) to attend a shiur once a week. Many staff members who agreed that it was indeed an ideal were dubious about the success of such a plan. Rabbi Tzachi Diamond was adamant that as much as he wanted the students to learn, they craved the Torah infusion as well.

He was right.

For four straight summers, one night a week, Ezra students (newly accepted students, current students, and alumni)

gather together once a week to eat dinner, listen to shiurim (one for men and one for women) and daven arvit. The program has only grown over the years and attendance has increased. There are approximately 30-40 students per week and the excitement is palpable to everyone there.

Last Wednesday night, June 29, began the Ezra Academy Summer Series 2022 with two popular rebbeim from Ezra as the first speakers. Thank you to Rabbi Diamond (again) who spoke to the women, and to Rabbi Pinchas Fink, who addressed the men. The host for this summer is the family of an alum who has graciously provided two outdoor locations for shiur and a lovely area for dinner. It is a great zechus to be a part

of such an exciting event every week and I am personally looking forward to some

great shiurim and a lot of positive growth as a result of Ezra’s Engaging Program.

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E A T

O U T

A T

E H O M

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CHOPP PACKAGES MENU

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Around the Community

Sports, Swimming, and So Much Fun at Simcha Day Camp

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Around the Community

Inspiring Chanukas Habayis for New Campus of Yeshivas Acheinu in Eretz Yisrael Gedolei Yisrael led by Rav Binyomin Finkel Grace the Event

By Chaim Gold

I

t was at the beautiful chanukas habayis for the striking building of Yeshivas Acheinu L’Tzeirim and the mayor of Kiryat Sefer, Rabbi Yaakov Gutterman, was addressing the crowd. His words encapsulated the unique nes that is Yeshivas Acheinu.

“Why does this yeshiva exist in Kiryat Sefer?” asked Rabbi Gutterman. “The bachurim who attend Yeshivas Acheinu are not even from Kiryat Sefer?! They come from all over Eretz Yisrael. Furthermore, why did the city agree, at my urging, to give the yeshiva not just room for one building but a large campus that could really contain two large yeshivos?

“You know why? I will tell you. Kiryat Sefer is a city of avreichim. The lion’s share of this city’s residents are kollel yungeleit. I felt that this city also needed something that could serve as a tremendous lesson for the yungeleit. Do you know what Yeshivas Acheinu is? It is a corner of Kiryat Sefer that teaches us achrayus for Klal Yisrael. Yes, of course, the limud haTorah of these avreichim holds up the world! It is the most important thing in the world! Talmud Torah k’neged kulam. Yet, there is another lesson to be learned by our wonderful residents, that is the lesson of achrayus for Klal Yisrael.

We must all feel a responsibility to share our Torah and to plant Torah in soil that that has heretofore not been hospitable to Torah. That is Yeshivas Acheinu!

“When one observes the hanhalah of Yeshivas Acheinu,” Rabbi Gutterman continued, “do you know what you see?

You see the ‘meshugaim’ of Acheinu, the hanhallah of the yeshiva who have not gone into harbotzas haTorah to say a k’nock of a shiur, or to have talmidim running after them. They work and work to imbue in the yeshiva’s bachurim new horizons, new musagim.”

Perhaps those remarks from the mayor encapsulate the historic nature of the chanukas habayis for Yeshivas Acheinu in Kiryat Sefer, dedicated in memory of Reb Nosson Notta and Mrs. Chaya Sarah Hofstedter, and explain the mission of Yeshivas Acheinu L’Tzeirim and the reason why the founder and greatest backer of the yeshiva, HaGaon HaRav Aharon

Leib Shteinman, zt”l, invested his heart and soul in ensuring the yeshiva was established and thrived against all odds.

Yeshivas Acheinu was Rav Aharon Leib Shteinman’s brainchild, his baby.

In its early years in Har Nof, the yeshiva faced all kinds of difficulties, and members of the hanhallah were often overwhelmed at the magnitude of the task before them. Rav Shteinman never let them give up. He pushed and pushed, and eventually they began to see the most wonderful fruits of their labor.

Several years ago, the yeshiva moved to Kiryat Sefer. As the yeshiva established itself as a premier yeshiva catering to Torani students, Rav Dovid Hofstedter, the Nasi of Dirshu, undertook to build a beautiful campus with all the amenities necessary to assure maximum hatzlacha for the bachurim.

Last week, the chanukas habayis for the stunning new campus was held. The day began with a grand bechina on the masechta that the bachurim were learning. The bechina was given by Hagaon HaRav Yitzchok Shaul Kanivesky, shlita, a son of the Sar HaTorah, Hagaon HaRav Chaim, zt”l. It was amazing to see how Rav Yitzchok Shaul asked the bachurim difficult questions. When a bachur would give an excellent answer, Rav Yitzchok Shaul would give him a bracha that sounded like those given by his father, Rav Chaim. “You should merit to know all of Shas as well as you know this!”

Rav Binyomin Finkel became emotional when he observed the bachurim and the beautiful campus. “I didn’t come to speak,” he said, “I didn’t come to get kavod or to give kavod. You know why I came tonight? I came to spend time with my dear friends, the chavrei Acheinu, the wonderful Yidden who lead this unique yeshiva. I can say without doubt that the hanhalah of this yeshiva works completely l’shem shomayim. All they care about is making Torah beloved in the eyes of their talmidim.”

One of the highlights of the evening was the deeply moving drasha given by the Nasi of Dirshu, Rav Dovid Hofstedter, shlita. Rav Dovid spoke with great feeling about his parents, Reb Nosson

HaRav Binyomin Finkel delivering Divrei Chizuk at the Acheinu Yeshiva Chanukas Habayis

Nota and Mrs. Chaya Sarah Hofstedter, after whom the campus is named.

He spoke about one of the defining characteristics that he saw in his parents; the middah of achrayus, of taking responsibility not only for their own family and well-being but also on behalf of Klal Yisrael.

Rav Dovid depicted what the world was like in the aftermath of the Holocaust, when his parents came to Toronto, after having lost so much and suffered so much. He said that so many Holocaust survivors were scared to rebuild the life, the Torah life that they had seen in their youth. They were afraid that being “too Jewish” would arouse anti-Semitism.

They preferred just to blend in. The chinuch situation in Toronto was not optimal at all in those days. There was no post-elementary school yeshiva in town, and no one had even heard of a concept called kollel at that time.

“My father undertook to build a yeshiva, mikvaos, shuls... He felt a deep sense of responsibility for Klal Yisrael and, despite the tremendous prevailing atmosphere of yiush during those first decades after the war, he persevered and was instrumental in raising the level of chinuch and Yiddishkeit in Toronto to levels that could not even be contemplated earlier.

“My mother, in addition to supporting my father in all that he did, similarly possessed great compassion for everyone and a love of Torah and mitzvos and a sense of idealism. I remember how, towards the end of her life, when we were talking about Acheinu and the need to reach out and draw Israeli youth close, showing them the beauty of Yiddishkeit,

she said that she would be ready to sell her jewelry and give the proceeds to help support Acheinu. ‘Why do I need jewelry? There is so much good that can be done with it!’ she exclaimed.”

Rav Zev Hofstedter, who has served as Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivas Acheinu since its inception, explained that throughout his own life he has seen his own parents, Rav and Rebbetzin Hofstedter, follow in the path of their parents, always focusing on their responsibilities to the klal. They carry the ol, the yoke responsibly on their shoulders and have inherited this feeling of obligation to constantly give back to Klal Yisrael, further enriching Klal Yisrael with more Torah and more mosdos of Torah and chessed.

Another deeply moving event was the test that the bachurim in Yeshivas Acheinu were given by HaGaon HaRav Shraga Shteinman, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshiva Orchos Torah, a son of Rav Aharon Leib Shteinman and a son-in-law of the Sar HaTorah, Rav Chaim Kanievsky, zt”l.

The farher took place in the hallowed home of Rav Aharon Leib, between the Torah-saturated walls that had absorbed the pure Torah of Rav Aharon Leib for more than seventy years. As Rav Shraga asked question after question, he became emotional. He had been privy to his father’s mesiras nefesh for the yeshiva and, seeing the fruits of his father’s labor – boys who clearly came from homes that were far from Torah and who have progressed so much – filled him with joy.

Rav Shraga was so moved that he told the rebbeim, “It is so sweet to sit and talk in learning and ask questions to these bachurim that I don’t want to stop!”

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The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

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Around the Community

A Torah Movement Reaches a New Milestone Thousands Around The World Celebrate Oraysa Siyum on Maseches Eruvin

T

housands of men and their families recently gathered in numerous locations around the world to celebrate a momentous siyum on one of the most complex and challenging Masechtos in Shas.

These scores of dedicated men are the participants in the Oraysa Amud V’chazara program, which has taken the Torah world by storm since its initiation just two-and-a-half years ago and has created a movement that is changing the landscape of limud haTorah in communities everywhere.

The Oraysa Amud V’chazara program’s innovative format and schedule calls for lomdim to study one Amud a day, 5 days a week, in a thorough manner, simultaneously undertaking a chazarah program of what they are learning so that they are “koneh” the material.

Each day, the previous day’s Amud is reviewed, and a new one learned for the first time. Friday and Shabbos are dedicated to reviewing the 2-and-a-half blatt learnt over the week, furthering one’s kinyan on the Amud. Thus, each Amud is reviewed at least three times – with a 4th chazarah completed when reviewing for the optional monthly bechinah. Through this program, participants complete 120 blatt a year, learning them well and reviewing each Daf numerous times.

The handy, easy-to-use calendar is one of the resources produced by Oraysa.

It provides a clear outline of the program and one’s ongoing progress. Additionally, the Oraysa website and phone line feature excellent Maggidei Shiur teaching the p’shat of each Amud Gemara, in addition to having valuable resources for those that want to learn more in-depth, such as iyun shiurim on the Amud.

Oraysa also provides masterfully created booklets of marei mekomos and explanations, which are utilized as important aids to help with the learning by thousands of lomdim. There are also optional tests which are a powerful tool to help retain one’s learning. It was recently announced that the tests on the next Masechta, Maseches Pesachim, will, for the first time, include a monetary incentive.

Oraysa has now completed three Masechtos: Brachos, Shabbos and Eruvin. The completion of each Masechta was marked with a festive siyum, with each celebration

A view of the dais with Hagaon Rav Uren Reich speaking

Dancing at the siyum

getting larger than the previous one.

Over time, the program has become more and more popular. With the start of each new Masechta, more and more men have joined and new chaburos have been formed in communities worldwide. Today, wherever one finds a frum community, he will certainly find Oraysa chaburos. In Lakewood alone, there are over fifty Oraysa chaburos, with new chaburos forming regularly. Similar chaburos now flourish in cities like Baltimore, Chicago, L.A., Philadelphia, Milwaukee, Toronto, Atlanta, Cleveland,

Five Towns, and many more, as well as many in Brooklyn, Passaic and Monsey, and additional branches throughout Eretz Yisroel, the United Kingdom and other international locations.

The completion of Maseches Eruvin was a true milestone. As Rav Uren Reich, shlita, Rosh Yeshivas Ohr Zachariah, said at the Lakewood siyum, learning Eruvin and gaining a clear understanding of all the complex sugyos was once reserved for only the greatest scholars.

Today, with the help of Oraysa, thousands of men are celebrating that very

achievement!

The largest of the siyumim was held in Lake Terrace Hall in Lakewood, where, in addition to thousands of Lakewooders in attendance, people traveled from communities far and wide to be a part of this momentous event, with some driving for hours to attend and some even flying in.

In addition, five large siyumim were held in communities around Eretz Yisroel – in Yerushalaim, Telzstone, Rechasim, Beit Shemesh, and Rechovot – with the participation of leading Gedolei Yisroel and Roshei Yeshiva. One large siyum was held

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JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

Rabbanim dancing at the siyum

in the U.K., and many local siyumim were held in communities around the world.

In his stirring drasha in Lakewood, Rav Reich explained that Oraysa has created a system that combines the best of two worlds – the commitment to a daily limud that provides a person with a sense of hischayvus to his learning, as well as a level of learning that appeals to both the ba’al habayis who wants gain a clarity in his learning and the yeshiva men who spend hours to complete the sugyah in all of its depth and thoroughness.

He stated, “Oraysa has broken new barriers in teaching the world how much everybody can be koneh and how much everyone can be zocheh to learn and understand… Oraysa has taught us that it is possible to learn all of Eruvin, with a kevius and with a clarity. They have proven that it is possible to stick to a daily schedule and still thoroughly understand such a difficult Masechta. They have raised the bar for everyone. Ashrei chelkachem!”

The program in Lakewood actually began with a shiur on the last Amud of Eruvin delivered by popular Oraysa Maggid Shiur, Hagaon Rav Aharon Sorscher, shlit”a, as well as a shiur given by Hagaon Harav Moshe Trachtman, shlit”a, mechaber of Sikumei Oraysa, on how to review and retain a Masechta. The siyum was made by Rav Shlomo Avigdor Altusky, shlita, Rosh Yeshivas Darchei Torah and a Lomed Oraysa himself, who praised the accomplishments of the mesaymem and encouraged them to keep it up for Maseches Pesachim, saying that with the Oraysa program, one will eventually become a true baki in Shas.

The huge crowd then broke out in joyous dancing, with festive live music and singing led by the famed singer Naftali

Kempeh, as they celebrated this incredible accomplishment.

The Nasi of Oraysa, Rav Noach Isaac Oelbaum, shlita, rav of Khal Nachalas Yitzchok of Queens and mechaber of many well-received sefarim, capped off the program with his moving words.

Amongst his remarks, he proclaimed, “It’s a great pleasure and simchas hanefesh to see such a tremendous display of kavod haTorah. Gedolei Yisroel, Lomdei Oraysa and bnei Torah in general have come together to celebrate this great simchas haTorah, the siyum on Maseches Eruvin.

For this we say ‘Shehechiyanu V’Kiyimanu V’higiyanu Lazeman Hazeh!’”

He added that a siyum is different than any other simcha. All other simchos are basically times of joy for the family, but a simchas haTorah brings joy to the entire world and to the briah itself. He quoted Rav Chaim Volozhiner as saying that every word of Torah sustains and benefits the world. Not only did Torah create the world, the perpetuation of the world also is dependent on Torah. “Therefore, the entire Creation and Hashem Himself are rejoicing with the Lomdei Oraysa.”

Rav Oelbaum praised the founders of Oraysa and the vision they had to come up with this incredible idea, put it in place and constantly think of new innovations and insights to improve it. He also lauded R’ Shlomo Yehuda Rechnitz, who has accepted a crucial leadership role in Oraysa and is helping to spread its presence across the globe in order to make it easily accessible to everyone.

The festive evening concluded with a lively and inspiring kumzitz led by Naftali Kempeh, with the community at large and many bochurim joining the lomdim

Hagaon Rav Noach I Oelbaum, Nasi of Oraysa, speaking

in their simcha.

At the well-attended U.K. siyum, the joyful siyum was followed with warm divrei bracha from Hagaon Rav Avrohom Gurwicz, shlita, Rosh Yeshivas Gateshead, who said that the community was privileged to be home to so many men who have devoted themselves to learning on such a high level and with such dedication. Renowned speaker and Magid Shiur, Rav Shimon Kaplan of Manchester, then delivered a powerful drasha, in which he declared that he had been so inspired by conversations he had recently had with some of the Lomdei Oraysa who were proudly about to finish Maseches Eruvin that he decided to join Oraysa himself for the start of Maseches Pesachim.

Rav Kaplan exclaimed, “I have no words! It is amazing to witness so many people finishing Eruvin with a program like this, with such a tremendous hischayvus that allows one to learn each

Amud with clarity. I have realized that this is the way forward to go through Shas! I am sure that everyone here who has finished Eruvin and now has a Masechta like that in his pocket truly feels like a billion dollars! Everything else in the world pales in comparison and is completely insignificant in relation to limud haTorah on a level like this!”

The impact of the siyum was immediately felt. Many men have joined chaburos to become Lomdei Oraysa for Maseches Eruvin and new chaburos have been formed in new locations. Many others have signed up for the voluntary tests and are learning with diligence in preparation. It is certain that the siyumim on Maseches Pesachim will be even more vibrant and massive and the effects of the explosion of limud haTorah brought about through Oraysa will continue to reverberate and be amplified throughout the Torah world as the lomdim make their way through the rest of Shas!

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T H E S E B U I L D E R S H AV E A L R E A DY S T E P P E D F O R WA R D . W I L L YO U J O I N T H E M ?

MR. & MRS. BERISH & HANNAH FUCHS

SHAAR HATORAH

RESIDENCE HALL AND TORAH CENTER

‫לע”נ מוהר”ר יחיאל מיכל‬ ‫בן ישראל יהודה ע”ה‬ MESIVTA BEIS MEDRASH

MR. & MRS. DOVID & LEAH BRECHER Camp Oraysa Sports Complex

ANONYMOUS

Residence Hall Cornerstone

ANONYMOUS

Entranceway to Mesivta Beis Medrash Building

MESIVTA BEIS MEDRASH BUILDING

‫ה ליב ע”ה‬-‫לע”נ שלום ראובן בן ארי‬

MR. & MRS. BENJAMIN & JUDY LANDA

MR. & MRS. YITZCHOK & SHOSHANA GANGER

MR. & MRS. BENZION & MIRIAM HEITNER

ANONYMOUS

MR. & MRS. YUSSIE & SUSAN OSTREICHER

THE BIVETSKY FAMILY

MEMORIAL EXHIBIT TO THE YESHIVOS OF PREWAR EUROPE

GYMNASIUM WING

‫לע”נ חוה בת דב ע”ה‬ Dedicated by Mr. & Mrs. Yaakov & Rivky Jacobovitch

MR. & MRS. CHAIM & BRACHA SCHULHOF MR. & MRS. NISSAN & SARAH GITTY PROFESORSKE

THE SCHRON FAMILY

DEDICATION OF CAMP ORAYSA CAMPUS

In Memory of Mrs. Marta Schron ‫ע” ה‬

MR. & MRS. MOTTY & HADASA MENDELSOHN

Lobby Mesivta Beis Medrash Building

DR. & MRS. YOSSI & ZIVIA SCHWARTZ

Cornerstone, Mesivta Beis Medrash Building

MESIVTA OTZAR HASEFORIM

DEDICATED ANONYMOUSLY

NAYMAN FAMILY

Dedication Wall Mesivta Beis Medrash Building

MR. & MRS. CHAIM & ROCHELLA TREITEL Gymnasium Wing

MR. & MRS. NASSAN & DEVORAH TREITEL

Preschool Cornerstone

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‫לע”נ ישראל הלוי לעווין ע”ה‬ ‫ואלישבע בתיה קפלן ע”ה‬ Beis Medrash Vestibule Entrance

Dedication of Rosh Kollel’s Office MR. & MRS. NACHMAN & ESTHER GOODMAN Entrance of Beis Medrash Building

THE K TEAM

MR. & MRS. SHIA & ELANA OSTREICHER Beis Medrash Building Vestibule

‫לע”נ הרה”ג ר‘ דוד בן הרב אברהם בנדר זצ”ל‬ ‫והרבנית בתיה חיה בת הרב יעקב הלוי ז”ל‬ ‫לע”נ זעליג בן מרדכי ע”ה‬ ‫לע”נ משה אלעזר בן נטע שלום ע”ה‬ ‫לע”נ דוד בן משה ע”ה‬ ‫הר‘ משה נתן בן יחזקאל ע”ה‬ ‫וישראל בן אברהם ע”ה‬

‫לע”נ ר‘ ישראל‬ ‫בן ר‘ בנימין הכהן ע”ה‬

MR. & MRS. MOTTY & HADASSA JACOBOWITZ Promenade Vestibule

MR. & MRS. KEYVAN & ANN RABBANI

‫ לע”נ‬The children, bochurim, and all 45 neshamos of the Miron tragedy, Lag Baomer 5781

THE BLOOM FAMILY

MR. & MRS. URI & ESTHER KAUFMAN

MR. & MRS. URI & DEVORAH DREIFUS Ner Tamid

MR. & MRS. CHAIM SHOLOM & RIVKY LEIBOWITZ Associate Dean’s Office

MR. & MRS MORDECHAI & ELISHEVA ROSEN Illumination of New Beis Medrash

MR. & MRS. NACHUM & HENNY FUTERSAK MR. & MRS. SHMULI & MIRIAM MENDEL Sha’ar of New Beis Medrash ‫לע”נ משה אריה בן שמואל יצחק‬ ‫הלוי פריעדמן ז”ל‬

MR. & MRS. ARI & DANIELLA SCHWARTZ

Mr. & Mrs. Simcha & Shani Applegrad Mr. & Mrs. Barry & Paula Bokow Mr. & Mrs. Berel & Sherry Daskal Mr. & Mrs. Binyomin & Leah Einhorn Mr. & Mrs. Naftoli & Chani Einhorn Mr. & Mrs. Michael & Mimi Fragin Mr. & Mrs. Evan & Chaya Sara Genack Rabbi & Rebbetzen Chaim Aryeh Zev & Avigail Ginzberg Mr. & Mrs. Samuel & Beverly Goldberger Mr. & Mrs. Tzali & Chana Shira Gutman Mr. & Mrs. Ari & Aliza Haas Mr. & Mrs. Moshie & Naomi Horn Mr. & Mrs. Shlomo & Kayla Horowitz Mr. & Mrs. Menachem & Elisheva Jacobowitz

MR. & MRS. ALON & CHANIE GOLDBERGER Sha’ar of New Beis Medrash MR. & MRS. MENASH & MIMI ORATZ Basketball Court in Elementary School Gym

Plumbing Training Center Dedicated ‫לע”נ אברהם שלמה בן יחיאל מיכל הכהן ז”ל‬ ‫לע”נ הר‘ אברהם בן הר‘ חיים מנחם בן ציון זצ”ל‬ ALL BORO CONSTRUCTION

Mr. & Mrs. Mordechai & Shana Jacobs Mr. & Mrs. Jeff & Tamar Landy Mr. & Mrs. Yosef & Vivi Moskowitz Mr. & Mrs. Yitzy & Rivky Orbach Mr. & Mrs. Ephram & Ilana Ostreicher Mr. & Mrs. Mutty & Bracha Ribowsky Mr. & Mrs. David & Sima Rosenfeld Mr. & Mrs. Dovid & Chani Roll Dr. & Mrs. Zvi & Dina Schreiber Mr. & Mrs. David & Debbie Seltzer Mr. & Mrs. Andrew & Stephani Serotta Mr. & Mrs. Marvin & Judy Sigler Mr. & Mrs. Morris & Devora Smith Mr. & Mrs. Yehuda & Mindy Zachter

Yeshiva Darchei Torah’s new capital project will encompass a Mesivta Beis Medrash and its first-ever Residence Hall. The Beis Medrash building will be comprised of 34,200 total square feet on 4 Stories and will serve 500 talmidim in grades 8-11. It will contain 15 Classrooms. The 43,000 square foot Residence Hall will contain 68 dormitory rooms serving 271 talmidim.

Get in on the ground floor of this monumental project.

To choose from a wide selection of sponsorships at all levels, please contact: Rabbi Zev Bald 718.868.2300 ext. 232 zbald@darchei.org Rabbi Baruch Rothman 718.868.2300 ext. 406 brothman@darchei.org

darchei.org/building

JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

‫לע”נ נחמן יהודה בן יעקב דוד ע”ה‬ ‫ואשתו לאה בת יהודה אשר ע”ה‬ ‫ולע”נ יעקב ליב בן שלמה ע”ה‬

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The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

THIs Week, TJH speaks WITH…

Camp Shira

By SuSan Schwamm

Two months of amazing summer fun! For the last few weeks, our children have been basking in the sun, swimming, singing, and soaking up the fun every day. How are they spending their time away from their desks?

In this series, we speak with camp directors and head counselors to learn more about our community’s amazing, spectacular, incredible, marvelous, unbelievable (you get the point!) camps.

For Five years now, shira has become one oF the hottest camps in town. at camp shira, campers have something to sing about. with a beautiFul campus, energetic staFF, outstanding activities, and nonstop Fun, a summer in camp shira builds memories For a liFetime. we spoke with camp director mrs. yaFFa schreier in the middle oF her busy schedule to learn a bit more about the non-stop Fun.

Mrs. Schreier, this is Camp Shira’s fifth summer! Tell us about Camp Shira.

We are a premier girls and preschoolers camp in the Five Towns. We have kids at Camp Shira from all over, and we try to give them a really enjoyable summer – especially this year! We have a great location and an amazing campus.

That sounds like a blast! Tell us about your changes and your different divisions.

We have three awesome divisions.

Our Juniors are boys and girls Nursery-Pre1A and girls entering 1st and 2nd grade. This division is led by Morah Mirel Krasner with her capable assistant Morah Shani Borenstein.

Shira Travel/Sensations, led by Mrs. Chavsie Friedman, her assistant Mrs. Faigy Gottleib and her head counselor Zoe Poznanski, is for girls

entering 6th – 8th grade. Special for this year, we took the entering 3rd – 5th graders and let them join that program with the launch of Travel Jr. and Sensations Jr.! First half is an action-packed travel program, and second half is called Shira Sensations and focuses on weekly skills classes in activities from volleyball to a variety of art to tennis to cooking!

Each division has its own program uniquely suited to that age group. Our goal is for every camper to feel like the camp was specially designed for them!

Sounds awesome! How many campers enjoy Camp Shira?

We have over 300 kids in Camp Shira. Mostly girls, but our boys in nursery – Pre1A love the specialties we created just for them like sports and karate. Every bunk gets a schedule daily that is jam-

packed with fun activities, specialties and shows.

Shira Travel and Shira Sensations sound like so much fun! Tell us a bit about it.

We started this program last summer, and it was a huge hit. We made two distinct half summer programs that each offered unique activities and excitement.

We wanted every girl who came for a half or for the whole thing to feel like every day was special and exciting. Some girls love the Travel component, and some girls can’t wait for the second half and learning new skills like tennis and cooking!

You have a great campus in a great location.

So true! We are located on the Shulamith campus right in the heart of the Five Towns. We have a huge auditorium for shows, a spacious back-

55

JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

yard, and a lot of summer-only exclusives. Each summer, we add a gymnasium room, a water park, specialty rooms galore and more!

Wow – like Disneyland in Cedarhurst! How is the day structured?

Every day starts with davening. Then we have a schedule of the day for each bunk. Each day is filled with different games, activities, and fun! Some days include trips, others include shows, but every day is packed with specialties run by our very talented adults.

What are the campers’ favorite activities?

Every camper has a different favorite activity. We have a great assortment of specialties led by fantastic morahs. Water park is definitely a favorite of many campers, and this summer, for the first time ever, we secured exclusive slots at North Woodmere Park pools for our campers so that’s been awesome! Campers also really enjoy the variety of art activities and food art activities. This summer, we introduced a special Glow in the Dark specialty! Baruch Hashem, there are so many activities to choose from!

As you walk around camp, what are three things that you hear the most throughout

the day?

The Camp Shira emoji-themed song from this year is super cute! Plus, we hear campers chanting and cheering for their bunk and tons of laughter!

at fitness games. They are having a blast at all their amazing activities!

Your slogan is “Camp Shira: Something to Sing About.” Are you doing

“our goal is For every camper to Feel like the camp was specially designed For them!”

Tell us about some of their other “favorites,” like their favorite specialties, sports, or other activities.

Our oldest girls seem to enjoy their trips. They can’t stop talking about all the places they go and the trips that are still coming up. They also have a great time in camp with needlepoint, food art, baking, sports and more. A real favorite this week was basketball with Rachel Stahler!

The younger campers, meanwhile, are excited by just about everything. They really love the bouncy house and different costumes that they get to dress up in our gymnasium room, and they love all the different emoji activities especially the arts, baking, and food art. They enjoy the different story-times, and music and movement classes as well as glow in the dark. They have fun

anything special in relation to that?

We have featured music significantly since we launched five years ago. Every summer we have a profes-

sionally recorded camp song, and the campers LOVE singing it and dancing with the motions. Some campers still know every past

The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

56

summer’s songs by heart!

Camp shira by the Numbers

4 140 25 1

Water Slide Inflatables

Tell us more about this summer’s theme.

This summer, the theme is “An Explosion of Emotion,” and it centers around emojis and emotions. Our staff got really creative with

building an adorable summer of fun around it. Every week ties back into an emoji/emotion in a really cute way!

What does your trip schedule look like?

Our Travel campers are out most of the week on exciting adventures. They’ve

already gone ice skating and go karting.

The younger campers enjoy going to the pools and on one or two trips per week. They really loved going to the Jewish Children’s Museum.

Travel/Travel Jr. Campers

Different Specialties

Amazing Summer to Sing About!

(917) 612-2300

57

Voice N

tes

James Vilardi being honored by Achiezer for his service on behalf of the Jewish community

S

anitary District #1 has been providing sanitation and recycling service to the residents of the Five Towns since its inception in 1929. Over the years, our community has grown and evolved in many different ways, and our district has evolved to meet the needs of our growing and diverse Five Towns community. In the coming years, we intend to be immersed in the community, represent our residents, and be responsive to an ever-evolving and dynamic community that we are truly proud to serve.

On October 22, 2012, Superstorm Sandy landed squarely in our Five Towns community, causing destruction and home damage which was almost unimaginable. For months after the storm, the dedicated employees of Sanitary District 1 (SD 1) worked to remove 10 million pounds of debris from our streets and restore some semblance of normalcy to our community. Commissioners and staff walked our community for weeks comforting residents whose lives were literally shattered by this unprecedented event.

The entire staff of SD 1 worked selflessly serving residents in their hour of need, and I will always be proud of them for their service.

A few days after Sandy, I received a call from Rabbi Hershel Billet requesting help with shaimos pick up for religious books and other religious articles damaged in the storm. Of course, we worked with Rabbi Billet and other religious leaders to accommodate the needs of shuls and yeshivas adhering to this sacred Jewish tradition.

During my tenure as Commissioner, we have tried to deliver the highest qual-

With Rabbi Zalman Wolowik

for household waste than any municipality on Long Island. Steady financial stewardship is a key element to our success.

Years ago, Mayor Andrew J. Parise of Cedarhurst helped to create the Passover Pick Up Program, which originated as simply a few garbage trucks parked at designated locations. Today, this program has blossomed into all day and on demand pick up for the Passover holiday. The importance of this service for

Dedication to the community is the cornerstone of Sanitary District 1.

ity and cost-effective sanitation service.

Working with other board members like Gwen Campbell and Avi Fertig, we have instituted innovative programs which both increase service and reduce costs for the taxpayers. For example, by operating SD 1 as a “business,” we actually earn income from other municipalities for garbage and recycling services, enabling us to hold the line on taxes. In addition, SD 1 pays the lowest disposal rate

the Orthodox Jewish community was impressed upon us, and we responded.

Partnering with Jewish leaders, we created a program which plays a significant role in the Passover holiday, which is extremely rewarding. In addition, SD 1 provides special pick-up service to shiva homes, in order to assist grieving families in some small way.

Continuing “Back Door Services,” teaching our schoolchildren the impor-

tance of recycling, expanding services, and keeping taxes low are just a few of our priorities in the coming year.

Dedication to the community is the cornerstone of Sanitary District 1. Understanding the needs of the entire community, including the Orthodox Jewish community, enables us to constantly improve the quality of service. We believe that our partnership with Orthodox Jewish religious leaders, community leaders and residents throughout the Five Towns will continue to grow ever stronger, and the services we provide will be reflected in that partnership.

We look forward to serving the Five Towns community for many years to come with ever improving programs.

As always, I look forward to hearing any thoughts or concerns from residents.

My personal cell phone is 516-672-0847.

Sanitary District 1 James J Vilardi, Chairman Commissioners: Gwynn Campbell Frank Argento Irving Kaminetsky Avi Fertig George Pappas, Superintendent

JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

More Than Keeping It Clean

TJH

Centerfold

Well Said…

      

I am a nobody. Nobody is perfect. Therefore, I am perfect.

The future depends on your dreams. So go to sleep.

You all laugh because I’m different – I laugh because you’re all the same.

  

Success is a relative term. It brings so many relatives.

   

Always remember you’re unique, just like everyone else.

Smile, it makes people wonder what you are thinking.

You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say will be misquoted and then used against you.

The things that come to those that wait may be the things left by those who got there first.

Bills travel through the mail at twice the speed of refund checks.

Riddle Me This

A fine is a tax for doing wrong. A tax is a fine for doing well.

The more you learn, the more you know, the more you know, and the more you forget.

The more you forget, the less you know. So why bother to learn?

Practice makes perfect. But nobody’s perfect.

So why practice?

Money is not everything. There’s always Amex.

I don’t get older. I level up.

You are standing over a table that has 4 envelopes.

one envelope B. This matches the rules, and therefore,

You are told that there is a 1909 Honus Wagner baseball

statements on all the envelope are false, except for that

Envelope D: It’s not in here

B and D are true.

Envelope C: It’s in here

If the card is in envelope B, then both

Envelope B: It’s behind A or D

A and D are true.

Envelope A: It’s behind B or C

If the card is in envelope C, then A, C,

envelope read as follows:

and D are all true.

card in one of the envelopes. The inscriptions on each

If the card is in envelope D, then the If the card is in envelope A, then both

one is true. In which envelope will you find the card?

Answer:

Three of the inscriptions are false, and

The card is in envelope D.

The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

1. *

the card is in envelope D.

58

59

each pair of the following words and make a pair

Fill in the Sentence

of synonyms, or near synonyms. For example, if

The blanks in the following sentences will be filled

Move a single letter from one word to the other for

the pair of words is: Boast - Hip, move the ‘s’ from ‘Boast’ to ‘Hip,’ creating two synonyms: Boat - Ship.

in with three different homonyms (words that are spelled differently but sound alike) to make valid sentences. The dashes indicate the number of letters

1. Our - Start

in the words. Can you fill in the blanks?

2. Cash - Broom 3. Routing - Tip 4. Shot - Teaming

1. The cut on his _ _ _ _ won’t _ _ _ _ in time for the

5. Right – Blight race, so _ _ ‘_ _ have to drop out.

2. I couldn’t _ _ _ _ _ any of the _ _ _ _ _ _ in the flower shop, because for some strange reason I had 50 _ _ _ _ _ crammed

5. Bright – Light 4. Hot - Steaming 3. Outing - Trip 2. Crash - Boom 1. Sour – Tart Answers:

up my nose.

You Gotta Be Kidding Me!

3. A bloodthirsty pirate will wander the _ _ _ _ and essentially _ _ _ _ _ everything he _ _ _ _.

At the police station, Bubba explained to the po-

Bubba said, “I stood up and said, ‘Sure, I’m game.’”

Answers:

“From what I remember,”

1. The cut on his HEEL won’t HEAL in time for the

officer interrupted.

race, so HE’LL have to drop out.

“And then what happened?” the

2. I couldn’t SENSE any of the SCENTS in the flower

wanna go hunting?’”

shop, because for some strange reason I had 50

picked up his shotgun and said, ‘Hey,

CENTS crammed up my nose.

a good time drinking, when Jimbo

3. A bloodthirsty pirate will wander the SEAS and

“Well,” Bubba began, “we wuz havin’

essentially SEIZE everything he SEES.

lice officer why Jimbo shot him.

JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

Word Shift

The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

60

Torah Thought

Parshas Chukat

By Rabbi Berel Wein

T

he Torah reading of this week deals with a ritual in the Temple – that of the Parah Adumah – which is characterized as being a commandment beyond the ken of human understanding and rational interpretation. It remains a primary example of certain commandments that, at their very core, are not easily interpreted or made relevant to human behavior nor to moral understanding and judgment.

The Torah itself calls this command-

ment a chok, which must be obeyed without question or doubt, for it is beyond human comprehension and understanding to genuinely appreciate and value its essence and purpose. This is the reason the entire Torah reading of this week is called Chukat – the law and commandments of the Torah for which no explanation will be given.

If we review previous narrative portions of the Torah that we have read and studied over the past weeks, we can eas-

ily conclude that all the events that were described – the murmurings, rebellions, false reports and evil speech and the crimes against Moshe and Aaron – also fit the category of being a chok, something irrational, inexplicable and beyond logical comprehension.

We all believe, somehow, that we live in a rational world, and that we can make

catastrophic decisions brought about by irrational policies and a great deal of human arrogance.

It is noteworthy to see that in world history, almost all the major empires of the world collapsed and eventually fell because of internal pressures of the society rather than by actual external aggression.

These pressures are caused by human na-

Human behavior is almost by definition irrational and inexplicable.

rational decisions based upon knowledge, facts, experience, and history. However, the truth is that very few of our decisions are made rationally and are often based on other factors on a constant and recurring basis. Human behavior is almost by definition irrational and inexplicable. It is because of this truth that the Torah gives us laws and commandments that are rational and inexplicable, to match our human moods and decision-making processes.

We can easily understand that if it were not for the Torah itself guiding us through life, giving us daily support, guidance, and stability, certainly the national life of the Jewish people would be chaotic in the extreme. It is this chaos of irrational behavior which is universally present amongst all people in the world, which leads to the fall of empires and to

ture, both emotionally and ideologically.

Once the original basis and emphasis that brought about success and growth in the empire dissipated because of the irrational behavior of leaders of these empires, the collapse of those would not be long in coming.

I have always found it to be ironic that the most irrational of all creatures – human beings – have the temerity to criticize Jewish tradition as not being rational or easily explained in so-called “factual” terms. It is the purpose of the Torah to instruct us, guide us, and constrain us. It is the purpose of the Torah to counter human irrationality with a form of heavenly certainty that is beyond our understanding. History has proven this assertion correct.

Shabbat shalom.

61

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JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

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62

The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

From the Fire Parshas Chukas

The Language of the Generation

By Rav Moshe Weinberger Adapted for publication by Binyomin Wolf

R

egarding the nature of Moshe Rebbeinu’s sin in striking the rock to bring forth water for the Jewish people, Rav Shmuel Dovid Luzzatto, zt”l, the great-grandson of the Ramchal, wrote, “While Moshe Rebbeinu only committed on sin, the commentaries heaped thirteen or more sins upon him because each one attributed some novel sin based on his own understanding...” The Torah tells us very little about the reason for the drastic consequences of Moshe’s sin. We must therefore understand the commentaries’ explanations rather than inventing any new sins to add to the already-long list.

There is a well-known dispute between the Rambam (Shmonah Perakim, Ch. 4) and Rashi (on Bamidbar 20:12) regarding the nature of Moshe’s sin. According to the Rambam, his sin was excessive anger when he said, (Bamidbar 20:10) “Listen, you rebels.” According to Rashi, however, his sin was disobeying G-d by hitting the rock when he was commanded to speak to the rock. While the Ramban takes issue with both of these explanations, the Maharal in Gur Areye and Rav Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev in Kedushas

Levi explain that, on a deeper level, the Rambam’s and Rashi’s explanations are not mutually exclusive. Each refer to a different stage in one process. The process began with Moshe becoming angry and that anger caused him to disobey Hashem’s command to speak to the rock.

Hashem speaks to us in every generation through the Torah as if it is being given today. We must therefore understand what we must learn from the nature of Moshe’s sin in order to know what is right in our own generation. The first step in that process is understanding the difference between the events in Parshas Chukas and the events in Parshas Beshalach when Moshe first drew water from a rock (Shemos 17:1-7). There, the people lacked water and came to complain to Moshe; Moshe told Hashem that he was afraid they would kill him; Hashem told him to hit a rock; he did so; and water began flowing from the rock to fulfill the Jewish people’s need for water.

What is the difference between these two events? Why was it a mitzvah for Moshe to hit the rock shortly after the Jewish people left Egypt but a grave sin to

do so in their last year in the desert before entering Eretz Yisroel?

The difference was the generation.

Moshe was commanded to hit the rock for the generation who left Egypt.

This older generation grew up as slaves in Egypt. They were familiar with the language of force and harshness. For them, when Moshe hit the rock, using force to extract the water, he was speaking the language of the old style of education understood by that generation. However, the generation in Parshas Chukas lived forty years later. They grew up in the desert protected by Hashem who provided for all of their needs. They were a softer, weaker generation. This new generation, on the brink of entering Eretz Yisroel, understood a different language. Hashem expected Moshe to speak to the new generation in a language it understood, the language of conversation, speech, and dialogue. That is why He commanded Moshe only to speak to the rock and not to strike it.

In our times, too, we see this distinction between the “old generation” and the “new generation.” Our parents and grand-

parents who lived through the war grew up for the most part under the control of totalitarian regimes or dictatorships and were accustomed to the harsh language of force. That generation also educated its children using the language of strict discipline and force. That approach does not work in the current generation. The old generation was not broken by the old approach to education. But if anyone tries to use the old way of discipline on the new generation, he will only shatter the lives of his students. Such an approach to education no longer works. It is simply outdated.

What happened to Moshe Rebbeinu in Parshas Chukas? When he lifted up his staff to hit the rock just as he had done forty years earlier for the previous generation, he revealed that, on his level, he did not appreciate the difference between the generations. As great as he was, he could not speak the language of the new generation. He was still educating people the way it was done in the “old country.” He did not understand how to communicate with the generation in its way, which was through speech, conversation, and dia-

63

For reasons only truly known to Him, Hashem conducts the world in this way.

Each generation has its own unique character. Some people may want to rail against this, asking, “Why does it have to be that way?” “If it worked then, it should work now!” or “That’s our mesorah in education!” They can ask these questions, but if they attempt to educate this generation the way the previous generations educated their children, it simply will not work.

Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai (Zohar 128a) even said in his time that while in previous generations the main point was strictness and fear of punishment, “For us, the matter is dependent on love.” In our generation, too, we see that fear was the modus operandi for prior generations who lived in monarchies and dictatorships. To a large extent, this worked. But we now live in democracies, countries in

ter dispute between the chareidi and the secular elements in Eretz Yisroel today.

Both sides largely carry only the “staff of violence” in their dealings with one another. Each side may only skewer each other with the point of a pen, but that is still violence. Certain voices in the secular media condemn the chareidim as parasites who are a greater threat to Israel than Iran. And some in the careidi camp

Hashem expected Moshe to speak to the new generation in a language it understood, the language of conversation, speech, and dialogue.

which everyone has a right to his opinion.

Now, we communicate with one another by talking things over, with the staff of pleasantness. It goes without saying that we do not turn our houses into democracies, giving our children a vote on all household decisions. There must be authority, limitations, and boundaries. It is difficult to find the correct balance between dialogue with parental authority, but we may not ignore the nature of the generation.

A friend of mine attended parent-teacher conferences for his sixth grade son one year. This son gave my friend a lot of aggravation at home, so he expected to hear a similar report from his son’s rebbe. But the rebbe’s report was glowing.

After confirming that he and the rebbe were indeed referring to the same boy, my friend told the rebbe that he did not understand why his son acted so different in yeshiva than he did at home. This rebbe was a baal teshuva from the Midwest with a very sweet, simple approach, and he asked my friend, “Do you ever talk with your son?” After thinking for a few moments, my friend answered that he really hadn’t. He asked his son to do things.

He learned with him; he disciplined him.

He even told him he was doing a good job once in a while. But he never actually had a conversation with him. The rebbe then suggested that he should talk with his son, because he has some very deep thoughts about things.

We must educate our children in the context of dialogue, of actually communicating with them.

It is the same thing in the caustic bit-

compare anyone who disagrees with them with history’s worst anti-Semites. Neither side is, for the most part, willing to hear out the other side, to have a true conversation. A chassidishe friend of mine says that whenever he travels to Eretz Yisroel, he finds himself in conversations with

secular Israelis, and they inevitably wind up discussing the chareidi draft issue. He explains his perspective and they explain theirs, and at the end, they usually hear where he is coming from and he understands their perspective. But that can only happen when people engage in a true dialogue.

Persuasion through conversation is the way to bring redemption in this generation. In fact, the Hebrew word Moshiach shares the same root as the word sichah, conversation. The Prophet Yeshaya (11:4) says about Moshiach that “he will smite the land with the rod of his mouth and will put the wicked to death with the breath of his lips.” Using only his mouth, words of dialogue, teaching, conversation, and persuasion, he will turn the wicked around and bring about the ultimate redemption.

May we merit to recognize the nature of our generation and education our generation according to its unique path and thereby see the revelation of Moshiach soon in our days.

Rav Moshe Weinberger, shlita, is the founding Morah d’Asrah of Congregation Aish Kodesh in Woodmere, NY, and serves as leader of the new mechina Emek HaMelech.

JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

logue. The new way is one of (Devarim 6:7) “And you shall teach your children and speak to them.” The way of the new generation is speaking with one’s children rather than using force to elicit their compliance.

It was not so much that Moshe was punished by not being allowed to bring the Jewish people into Eretz Yisroel.

Rather, it was a natural consequence of the fact that he was no longer able to understand the true nature of the new generation. He could not be the person who would lead them into the land. But Yehoshua, his successor, did lead them into the land. It is known that Rashi (on Bamidbar 11:28) teaches us that Eldad and Medad has prophesized that “Moshe will die and Yehoshua will bring the Jewish people into the land of Israel.”

What was Yehoshua’s approach to education? The pasuk at the end of the book of Yehoshua (24:27) tells us that at the end of his life, Yehoshua established a large stone as a monument and said that “it has heard all of the words of Hashem which He has spoken to us.” Yehoshua understood that one can also speak to a stone, and it will hear. He understood that the nature of the new generation is one of conversation rather than coercion.

These two approaches to education also manifest themselves in a remarkable teaching by the Gemara (Sanhedrin 24a), which says: Rav Oshea says, “What is meant by the pasuk (Zecharia 11:7), which says, ‘And I will take two staffs. I will call one pleasantness and I will call the other violence.’

The one called ‘pleasantness’ refers to the sages of Eretz Yisroel, who discuss halacha sweetly with one another. ‘Violence’ refers to the sages of Bavel, who do violence against one another in their discussion of halacha.”

We see from this Gemara that the way of education for the old generation, the generation of exile, Bavel, is violence, force, and coercion. But the way of education in Eretz Yisroel, the way of the new generation, the way of redemption and Moshiach, is one of pleasantness.

64

The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

Self-Mastery Academy

The Spiritual Purpose of Clothing

By Rabbi Shmuel Reichman

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efore Adam sinned, he required no clothing (Bereishis 2:25). His physical body radiated light, loyally expressing his angelic soul. Once Adam sinned, however, his physical body lost this spiritual level, no longer fully expressing the ohr (light) of his inner soul. The pasuk describes how Adam and Chavah suddenly realized their nakedness and became embarrassed, desiring to cover their bodies with clothing (Ibid. 3:7). What is the meaning behind their embarrassment, and why was clothing the ideal remedy?

One becomes embarrassed when the way they are perceived externally is not a true reflection of who they are or at least how they believe they should be perceived. This is the spiritual concept of bushah (shame). When there is a breakdown between the inner self and its outer expression, the inner self feels ashamed that it is being misrepresented, seen on the outside as something that it is not. For example, if someone tells everyone that you cheated on a test, when you did not, you would feel

embarrassed, as you are being seen as something other than you really are.

And even if you did cheat, you would still be embarrassed, because you know deep down inside that you are better than how you acted and how people now perceive you.

We wear clothes because our bodies, in their current lowly form, are a source of embarrassment. We are souls, holy angelic beings, and yet we appear in the world as physical beings with bodies only marginally different from animals.

For those who understand who and what they truly are, it is embarrassing to be seen as anything less than an absolutely spiritual and transcendent being. This is the ultimate breakdown between the inner and outer self.

The natural response to shame is the desire to hide. For example, if someone is embarrassed in public, their immediate wish is to dig a hole and hide until everyone leaves. If that doesn’t work, they might run away to a quiet room and cry alone. When we are seen as something we are not, or something we don’t

want to be, we feel a need to escape the scene. When Adam and Chava realized their nakedness, their first instinct was to grab fig leaves and hide their bodies (Bereishis 3:7). Hashem then made them garments of ohr (skin), clothing them with dignity (Ibid. v. 21).

However, there are two purposes of clothing. The first is to hide the embarrassment of our nakedness, but the second is to reveal our true selves — to express our dignity as tzelem Elokim.

We use the very means of our failure and embarrassment as the solution to our problem. By eating from the Eitz Ha’daas, our bodies no longer reflect our spiritual selves, and we require clothing, but we use that very clothing to elevate ourselves and reflect who we truly are. This is why Kohanim are required to wear such beautiful clothing; clothing allows our physical bodies to reflect the dignity and greatness of our true selves.

Hashem covered Adam and Chava with ohr (clothing), so that they could uplift it and once again reveal their true ohr (light).

The Potential of Clothing Like all things in this world, clothing has tremendous potential when used correctly. However, it can also be corrupted and misused. When used properly, clothing mitigates the shame of our physical bodies and helps us express our higher, dignified selves in the world. When misused, clothing can hide our spiritual core, portraying ourselves as completely physical beings.

The conflicting uses of clothing are expressed in the Hebrew word for clothing, “beged.” This word is made up of the letters beis, gimmel, and dalet, the three letters that immediately follow the letter aleph. Aleph represents the spiritual root, the soul. If used correctly, our “beged” can loyally express our soul, our inner self, into the world. But the letters of “beged” also spell “boged,” which means traitor and treachery, because our clothing can instead be used to betray our true inner selves. A traitor is one thing on the inside but pretends to be something else on the outside — he adopts a fake exterior, a fake outer garment, that does not

Tzinius One of the most misunderstood ideas

in Judaism is the concept of tzinius especially in regard to women. Many think that tzinius means to hide, that the ideal is not to be seen. However, there is an infinitely deeper approach to tzinius.

In this age, beauty has been corrupted. The term “beauty” generally refers to outer beauty, a surface beauty that distracts from and hides the inner self.

Physical beauty is neither good nor bad;

true self — one’s inner essence — into the world.

The focus must always be on the inner beauty as the ikar. The purpose of tzinius is not to hide you but to reveal you! The true you. Tzinius shifts the focus from the external trappings to the actual self, the neshama, which lies beneath the surface and illuminates the physical vessel. True beauty requires a

and actions all reflect a higher purpose, a higher source, a higher reality. This is the beauty of a Torah life; this is the power of oneness.

Rabbi Shmuel Reichman is the author of the bestselling book, “The Journey to Your Ultimate Self,” which serves as an inspiring gateway into deeper Jewish thought. He is an educator and speaker who has lectured internationally on topics of Torah thought, Jewish medical ethics, psychology, and leadership. He is also the founder and CEO of

Our inner world, thoughts, ideas, choices, beliefs, middos, and emotions are the deepest and most genuine parts of our “self.”

Self-Mastery Academy, the transformative online self-development course based on the principles of high-performance psychology and Torah.

After obtaining his BA from Yeshiva University, he received Semicha from Yeshiva University’s RIETS, a master’s degree in ed-

it is merely a vessel with the potential to be used for good or bad. While our physical body is immensely valuable, our true self is our neshama — our soul, our inner mind, our highest consciousness.

Our inner world, thoughts, ideas, choices, beliefs, middos, and emotions are the deepest and most genuine parts of our “self.” True beauty is when the physical serves as a vessel that expresses one’s

beautiful root and core, and the physical must then be used to project that inner beauty outwards.

True Beauty Beauty is much deeper than a description of how a person looks; it’s a way of life. A beautiful life is a life of oneness where we synthesize all the aspects of who we are; where our thoughts, words,

ucation from Azrieli Graduate School, and a master’s degree in Jewish Thought from Bernard Revel Graduate School. He then spent a year studying at Harvard as an Ivy Plus Scholar. He currently lives in Chicago with his wife and son where he is pursuing a PhD at the University of Chicago.

To invite Rabbi Reichman to speak in your community or to enjoy more of his deep and inspiring content, visit his website: ShmuelReichman.com.

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JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

reflect his true inner identity. When our clothing hides who we truly are, expressing nothing more than our physical surface — our clothing and bodies — our inner self is betrayed.

Another word for clothing is levush, which can also be read as “lo bosh” (not embarrassed). Clothing has the potential to eliminate our embarrassment, but only when used correctly. When the focus of clothing becomes the clothing themselves, failing to reveal our true inner selves, the clothing does nothing to prevent our existential embarrassment.

Me’il is yet another Hebrew word for garment, referring to an outer coat. Yet, the word that shares this same root, “me’ilah,” refers to the prohibition of stealing or benefitting from kodshim, that which was designated as holy for the Beis Hamikdash.

The prohibition of me’ilah is taking that which is kadosh, that which is elevated and belongs to Hashem, and lowering it to a state of chol (mundane). Just as it is a problem to misuse hekdesh (consecrated items), lowering it from its state of kedushah to a state of chol, it is problematic to misuse a garment, failing to reveal anything higher.

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The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

Delving into the Daf

Wednesday is the Day to Wed

By Rabbi Avrohom Sebrow

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azal tov to all those who finished Maseches Yevamos. We began Maseches Kesuvos on Friday.

I remember that a few minutes after I was engaged and we had a mock l’chayim ceremony, my future shvigger opened her notebook. She promptly started a lengthy discourse about the dates available for the wedding. She mentioned that she had already reserved a number of dates in various halls. She explained that this was necessary because halls fill up their available dates very fast. I had thought that our engagement was at least a mild surprise, and I found out that our wedding date was practically set already! However, based on the Gemara we learned, it’s possible to comprehend why there are so few available dates for a wedding.

The very first Mishnah says that for a woman who has never been married, generally the appropriate day to wed is Wednesday. This is because the Jewish courts at the time convened on Monday and Thursday. Chazal wanted the husband to be able to resolve certain halachic issues that might come up after the wedding on the very next day. So, since court was in session on Thursday, Wednesday is a suitable day to have the wedding ceremony. In truth, if it were just for this reason alone, Sunday would also be an appropriate day to have the wedding.

However, there is a rabbinic decree that there should be at least three days of food preparation before the wedding reception to make sure that there is sufficient food for the wedding and for the ensuing celebratory days of sheva berachos.

The Gemara (3a) interprets a statement of Rav Shmuel bar Yitzchak to mean that in a locale where the Jewish courts convene whenever necessary, a woman may marry on any day; if a halachic issue were to arise following the wedding, the husband could request that the court con-

vene to resolve the issues. The Gemara then questions the permissibility of making a wedding early in the week, due to the rabbinic enactment that there should be at least three days of food preparation. The Gemara resolves its dilemma by stating that if, in fac, the groom prepared sufficient food before Shabbos, the wedding may even take place on Sunday or Monday.

It would seem that nowadays, when there is no strict Monday-and-Thursday schedule for beis din, marriage should be permitted on any day. As for the rabbinic decree, food preparations are generally made by others, freeing the groom from this responsibility.

However, Bar Kapara (5a) offers an alternative reason for a marriage to take place on Wednesday. He states that if the ceremony is performed during the day on Wednesday, the consummation of the marriage would be Wednesday night, which is in fact Yom Chamishi, the fifth day of the week. This is an auspicious time for a couple, since on the fifth day of creation Hashem told the fish to “be fruitful and multiply.” To harness this brachah of

the fifth day, the marriage should be consummated on the fifth day. The Tosefos write (2a) that Bar Kapara’s reason for marrying on Wednesday is not halachically binding; it is just good advice for a couple who wish to take advantage of the blessing to marry on Wednesday. However, if they choose to marry on a different day, there is no violation of Jewish law.

Yet it would seem that, as opposed to the other reasons, Bar Kapara’s reason for marrying on Wednesday is applicable even nowadays. The P’nei Yehoshua therefore questions why the Tur and Shulchan Aruch stated unconditionally that where food preparation is not an issue, one may marry on any day of the week. They should have tempered that statement with Bar Kapara’s directive that one should marry on Wednesday to harness the brachah that Hashem gave. Although his advice is not halachically binding, it would seem that it is appropriate and a mitzvah to follow it.

Though the P’nei Yehoshua admits that he can possibly resolve this question, he still directs that “anyone who wishes to fulfill the words of the Sages” should initially try to marry on Wednesday. In fact, he states

further that he believes that it was the custom to do so in many holy communities.

The Rema, although omitting the directive to marry on Wednesday, does write that there is a custom to marry only in the first half of the month. According to the custom, it is considered auspicious to marry in that timeframe rather than when the moon is waning. My rebbi and father noted that the Zohar states that in the first half of the Jewish month, the Divine attribute of mercy is more prevalent. In contrast, the second half of the month is associated with Divine judgement. Perhaps this is the rationale behind the custom.

Based on this, the Sefer Chazon Yeshayah suggests a solution to the P’nei Yehoshua’s question as to why the poskim omitted the mitzvah of marrying on Wednesday. Since the custom at some point was to only marry in the first part of the month, there are only two Wednesdays a month on which to get married (assuming the 15th is too late already)!

Subtract the two available Wednesdays in Iyar due to sefirah. Further, there is a custom not to marry during the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah. In Sivan, if Shavuos falls out on a Wednesday, there will be only one remaining Wednesday available for weddings. The month of Av may have no available days if, for example, Tishah B’Av falls out on a Thursday. Ta’anis Esther and Asarah B’Teves can each eliminate a day if they fall out on a Wednesday. So, if one wants to marry only on a Wednesday and only in the first half of the month, it’s possible to have less than fifteen days to choose from in a year! This was an untenable situation, so the Rema decided not to publicly suggest that individuals should marry only on Wednesday.

A musician commented that Sunday is the day most in demand for weddings.

What could be wrong with making a wedding on Sunday? The Gemara states that

Yom Kippur seudah or a wedding feast.

Nevertheless, the Gemara offers a different resolution to the aforementioned difficult y. The Gemara suggests that we are only concerned that a person may inadvertently violate Shabbos for a post-Shabbos meal that others are invited to. As you can imagine, the pressure of serving so many guests weighs heavily on

authoritative: We are not concerned about a meal after Shabbos if it is a family meal or if it takes place by day on Sunday.

It would seem that according to both answers it is forbidden to make a wedding on Motzei Shabbos. Yet, many Rishonim are of the opinion that at the end of the sugya the Gemara rejects this halacha and decides that one is permitted to marry on

What could be wrong with making a wedding on Sunday?

a person’s mind. We are not concerned, though, that a person will become preoccupied while preparing his own meal.

Consequently, the Sunday erev Yom Kippur meal does not present a problem, because it is generally a small meal for one’s family. According to this answer, it would be forbidden to make a wedding feast on Sunday.

The Hafla’ah (in Sefer HaMakneh) was of the opinion that the two answers are not mutually exclusive and that both are

Motzei Shabbos or Sunday.

The Shulchan Aruch (64:3) writes, “There are those who don’t marry on… the first of the week out of concern for inadvertent chillul Shabbos… And there are those who permit it.” Obviously, the widespread custom is to permit someone to have a wedding on Sunday. Further, Babi Pfeffer reminded me numerous times that she got married on Motzei Shabbos.

(And also how she came late to her own wedding because she visited her ailing

grandfather before her wedding.)

Many people have noted that there were weddings made by gedolim that took place on Sunday. The Chasam Sofer himself got married on Lag B’Omer in the year 5547, a Sunday. The Sefer Likutei Mahariach writes that the Rebbe of Sanz married off his son on a Sunday.

In conclusion, as a matter of practical halacha, on what day should a wedding take place? Should we be concerned about trying to set a wedding date in the first half of a month or on a Wednesday?

The Steipler Gaon, zt”l, in a letter to Rav Tuvia Shechter, wrote that the biggest segulah and brrachah can be achieved by getting married on the earliest possible day! Rav Shach, zt”l, shared a similar sentiment and advised his talmidim likewise. He said that there is an aura of promiscuity that constantly threatens us.

Therefore, the best date for one’s wedding is the earliest available date.

Rabbi Avrohom Sebrow is a rebbe at Yeshiva Ateres Shimon in Far Rockaway. In addition, Rabbi Sebrow leads a daf yomi chaburah at Eitz Chayim of Dogwood Park in West Hempstead, NY. He can be contacted at ASebrow@ gmail.com.

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one should not get married on motzaei Shabbos. The Gemara (5a) concludes that the reason is that we are concerned that one may become so preoccupied with his upcoming wedding that he might forget that it’s Shabbos and begin to prepare for the feast. One can argue that this concern only applies to a wedding on motzaei Shabbos, not on Sunday.

Yet the Gemara challenges this assumption that we are concerned someone may forget and violate Shabbos for an upcoming meal. If we were truly concerned about this possibility, the Gemara argues, we should rework the calendar to ensure that Yom Kippur never falls out on Monday. There is a mitzvah to have a seudah on erev Yom Kippur, and we should be concerned that one may violate Shabbos to prepare for the Sunday seudah! It seems that a meal that takes place on Sunday poses as much a problem as one that takes place on Saturday night.

In truth, though, the Gemara makes this exact distinction to resolve the difficulty.

The Gemara suggests in its second answer that we are only concerned about a meal that takes place immediately after Shabbos with little or no time to prepare, but we are not concerned about a meal that takes place by day, such as an erev

The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

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World

Builders

A Shining Light and a Breath of Fresh Air The Story of Suzanna, Benny, and Levana

By Raphael Poch Suzanna visiting Benny and Levana

Suzanna Sharivker

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uzanna is a student studying water industry engineering at the Kinneret Academic College. She originally hails from the city of Ashdod but currently lives in a kibbutz called Tel Katzir, located to the south of the Kinneret. Suzanna volunteers for Ten Kavod through Impact, a scholarship program for released IDF soldiers which requires its participants to undertake a certain amount of volunteering hours a year. Suzanna visits with a senior citizen named Benny at least once a week.

Suzanna explained that she’s been interested and involved in the field of medicine since a young age.

“From the age of 14, I was already a certified EMT and would go out on ambulance shifts with the team. Later, when I was in the IDF, I took another more advanced course for the army and graduated with honors. I even worked as a lifeguard on the beach. So basically, I love being a first responder and helping others,” she said. “Whenever I would respond to emergencies with my team, I would meet EMTs from United Hatzalah who were always the first ones at the scene. So, when I was reintroduced to the organization and Ten Kavod through Impact, I felt like I finally got my chance to become part of it and I was really excited.”

Now, after volunteering for some time, Suzanna confirms that she definitely made the right decision to join Ten Kavod.

“I have been enjoying it, and I feel like I’m doing something really important. The visits fill a void that I had when I wasn’t practicing being an EMT. I feel part of the organization and connected to the people in it. I have a good friendship with the coordinator of my branch, Meir Hayon, who provides me with whatever I need.”

On top of juggling school and work, Suzanna always sets time aside to visit her beloved new friends Benny and his wife Levana.

“Instead of feeling overwhelmed that I am constantly busy, it’s nice for me,” she said. “I enjoy learning in school, and I enjoy my job, and visiting Benny and Levana always brings me joy and a good change of pace.”

Suzanna described a little bit about Benny.

“Benny is a Holocaust survivor. He has a few disabilities, one of which is that he doesn’t see so well in one eye. It’s hard for him to walk, and he suffers from Parkinson’s and dementia, but all in all, he is healthy and doing well. The first thing I always do when I come over is check his vitals and ask how he’s doing. I also ask Levana if she has any concerns or comments.”

Suzanna stresses that the weekly medical checkup is so important and helpful.

“One time, when I was with my family in Ashdod for the day, Levana called me and told me something that had happened earlier that day. Her husband had lost consciousness so she called United Hatzalah who rushed over and brought him to the hospital. The doctors figured out that Benny’s body reacted badly to the mixture of medications he was taking for Parkinson’s. I was sad that I wasn’t able to be there for them at that moment, but the next day, I came straight there to comfort them.

“Just recently, I noticed that Benny’s blood sugar was unusually high. I got nervous that his body was experiencing something like the past event. In the end, we realized it was just because he had eaten some grapes prior to the checkup, but this just shows how important these checkups are. I was able to catch this and

remind them that diet influences a lot in the body.”

After the quick medical examination, Suzanna and Benny like to sit down and spend some time together.

“We talk about our lives, we play games, and sometimes go outside for a walk,” Suzanna shares. “Benny and Levana have lots of photo albums that they like to show to me and reminisce about. They remember different stories from past years as we look at the photos and they tell me about their family. I think it’s also important for Benny that we do exercises like this to help improve his memory and weaken the dementia fog.”

She added, “Recently, Benny and I have been reading a book about the Holocaust in Libya and Morocco together. It’s really interesting for me, because I mostly hear about the stories from people in Poland, Germany, etc., which are more common.

Benny enjoys it because he was born in Libya and survived the Holocaust there.

We have really interesting conversations as we read the book, and then he always brings his insights to the table. He actually wants to write a book about his and his family’s story.”

Suzanna continued, “Benny is a really funny man with a great sense of humor. We always have a great time filled with laughter and happy memories. Their house feels like home to me, and I feel that they care for me as if they are my own grandfather and grandmother. It’s hard for me sometimes, living far from my family in Ashdod and working hard, but they always manage to lift my morale and make me happy.

I think that’s one of the great things that Benny and Levana have given me – just a sense of everlasting calm and laughter.

And it’s mainly the feeling of family and love – love for me and love for each other – that has helped me through this year.”

Benny and Levana Benny is a 78-year-old Holocaust survivor from Libya who moved to Israel with his parents after the war. They moved to Bat Yam, the same city Levana was also living in. In the 1960s, the two met, fell in love, and got married. (Suzanna mentioned that one of the things that stood out to her and touched her heart was the love that Benny and Levana still have for each other even after all these years.) The newly wedded couple moved to Kibbutz Tel Katzir where they are still currently living. They have four children who are each married and with children of their own.

Levana explained that Benny is sick with Parkinson’s disease and these visits with Suzanna really help him. She said, “He is socially limited and doesn’t spend time with many people other than me because of the Parkinson’s. For him, when Suzanna comes over, it’s like a shining light and a breath of fresh air.

He suddenly opens up and begins to talk and tell stories. He can’t wait for their visits each week and loves their time together.”

Sometimes, Levana joins as well. She said, “When Suzanna comes over, she sits with Benny either in the house or on the porch, and they talk, each time about something else. I noticed that it’s fun for him to talk, and it’s fun and interesting for her to listen. They make a good pair and get along very well together.”

Levana is incredibly appreciative of Ten Kavod and Suzanna.

She said, “Ten Kavod is wonderful and helps a lot of elderly people, ourselves included. We are very grateful for the visits with Suzanna. They are such fun, and we hope that we can continue another year together.”

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Julia Blum

The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

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Song of Her Soul

By Tammy mark

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n the low-lit room, mothers and daughters gathered with anticipation, gazing at the stage as the spotlight hit just perfectly. Julia Blum would soon share her music, her story, and her words of inspiration in a performance that would resonate with women of all ages.

Julia is a singer, songwriter, actress and musician who studied at Harvard and Yale. She is also a baalat teshuva who discovered her path to observant Judaism on a visit to Israel, during a short but powerful and fateful trip that rerouted her career and her life.

In a recent presentation interwoven with music and song, Blum wittily tells her story with tears in her eyes at Congregation Aish Kodesh in Woodmere, New York, sharing the journey of her

idyllic childhood in Los Angeles to her present-day reemergence on the Jewish music scene. She explains how her talent and enthusiasm for performing arts were apparent at an early age and how she trained with the best in the field, at the best schools, flourishing at Ivy League schools, earning top grades, and learning and performing alongside equally talented peers and envisioning her life’s trajectory to be set.

Raised in a culturally Jewish home, Blum always felt strongly Jewish in her heart but didn’t have much knowledge about Judaism itself. She had philosophical questions like: “What does it mean to be Jewish?” and “What happens after you die?” She was determined to one day learn more. After graduating cum laude

with distinction from Yale in 1988, Blum decided to take some time to travel, making big plans to see Greece, Italy, France, and Israel. When she later wanted to cut the trip short, her parents encouraged her to get to Israel before returning home; she made it there and decided to stay a few weeks.

It was a Friday at the Western Wall where Blum encountered Jeff Seidel, a kiruv facilitator known for gathering young tourists to join families for traditional Shabbos meals. He invited Blum for Friday night dinner, and she took the opportunity.

It was a big group of strangers in a small apartment, and the hosts were a warm and welcoming family with lots of young children. To Blum, the experience felt like a quaint, old-world scene out of Fiddler on the Roof – that is, until she

discovered that her hostess had attended Yale, too. To her amazement, the dinner conversation centered on the very same questions about Judaism and life Blum had pondered on her own.

Blum was intrigued and eager to learn more about Judaism. She was recommended to go to Neve Yerushalayim to study, and she remained there for 2½ months.

Blum was awestruck by how brilliant, humble, and thoughtful her teachers were. The experience was a complete game-changer for her, vastly different than her experience at Yale or anywhere else.

Blum recalls her time at Yale with favor, a time when that was the only world she knew. She focused on music composition and studied theater and film.

“I loved being at Yale,” she says. “I

was taught a different mindset – she knew she was not just a body but a soul.

When Blum returned home to LA, she had a tough transition. Every step along the way was a decision to be made.

“I didn’t know how to lead a Torah observant life,” she says. “I had had the inspiration from Neve but not all the nuts and bolts and the logistics. I didn’t know how to keep kosher; I didn’t know what to do for Shabbos. I was making things up and I was making it harder for myself. I didn’t know where to buy clothes…

I didn’t know what to do.”

Blum is the oldest of four girls, and

houses, so I would bring my parents flowers every Shabbos, instead of me being there. It was very amicable,” she recalls.

“The only part that was hard for my parents, other than seeing me go through a rough emotional transition because change is always hard, was I had told them that I wasn’t going to be doing music anymore,” Blum adds.

Blum had been set up for success in her field and was deeply passionate about it. She had taken piano and ballet lessons from an early age. She began acting and singing professionally at age 12, appearing in commercials and studying under

“When you’re an outsider and you choose an observant life, you are a powerful spokesperson.”

fortunately, her family was always closeknit and supportive.

“One of the many incredible things about my family is that they value family to such a degree that, the ethos of the family is that when somebody in the family is doing something, you support it. That’s just what you do. So as soon as I said I was going to be religiously observant, one sister decided to do a report for college on Orthodox women, my siblings would call and wish me Shabbat shalom, and my parents made a special area in the kitchen for me and for my stuff and nobody was supposed to touch it…”

Though undeniably grateful for her parents’ support, Blum needed more experience.

“Eventually, I realized that I needed to be going to people’s

a noted voice coach. She was a regular fixture in her Beverly Hills High School productions and was cast in the Yale graduate school performances, despite being an undergraduate student.

“I didn’t see how I was going to integrate being observant and singing,” she says. “At that time, the landscape that you see now with female singers didn’t exist. When I started singing songs that I wrote, it was a little more on the unusual side. So before that, when I looked around at what it meant to be observant and be a singer, there weren’t really many outlets or

opportunities. I just assumed that it meant that it was going to be my test to see how much I wanted to live an observant life – if I could give up this aspect of myself that was so precious and that had been a part of me for so long.”

Teaching music lessons didn’t feel meaningful enough.

“That was not going to be a career aspiration after studying music at Yale and Harvard,” Blum says. “I wasn’t going to say that’s where I’m going to be channeling my passion and my training. So I just assumed it meant that I couldn’t do it anymore and that was very painful for my parents. They were never excited about the acting part – because they saw how destructive it was for young people – but the music part, which had been so important to me growing up and to my family as a very musical family, they really believed it was a gift that was meant to be used.”

She notes, “I didn’t have a career anymore. I didn’t have a life path anymore. I was struggling. I wasn’t going to give up, but I was really struggling. It took me time to find the frum community.”

Blum’s contacts at Neve helped her find people to connect with in the States, and eventually, after about six months at home, Blum traveled to New York City to learn at the Jewish Renaissance Center under Rebbetzin Leah Kohn. It was there that Blum first met Rav Moshe Weinberger and was inspired by his teachings. She became close to him and to Rabbi Binyomin Cherney and their families, spending many Shabbosim with them in the Jewish community of Far Rockaway and the Five Towns.

At first, they didn’t know about her professional background and were helping guide her in her newly

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felt like I was consistently surrounded by really bright, engaging, creative people. It was like a brain playground and a place that trained me to think critically.

“I didn’t know better, so I thought Yale was the totality of inspiration. I met multiple people there who didn’t seem to have a moral compass and just behaved as though being brilliant was enough and was all that there was. They really just valued the intellect. They didn’t know how to synthesize being a good person with being a smart person. Only after being at Neve did I see what it was to use your brain in synthesis with your heart and to use those two in the service of something bigger than yourself.”

She notes, “If there’s no moral compass, then if you’re the professor, you’re the decider.”

Blum recalls a particular ethics professor who was not known as a good person. “He could teach ethics because it was just a subject; it was a brain exercise, and nobody really cared – and that’s antithetical to a Torah life. I didn’t realize it at the time.”

At Neve, Blum thought about how she had felt like just one replaceable person at Yale but felt like a whole unique world at her yeshiva. She soon realized that she wanted to do something big and important – something more significant than being on a TV show that everyone would inevitably forget.

Blum had to figure out how to bring this new world home. Keeping Shabbos would mean skipping auditions and theater; she loved to move and accomplish, but she loved the holy day of rest. Kosher seemed manageable…. She thought about tzinius and how she would navigate the path of modesty. Blum knew it would be hard, and she realized how much of her life was about her appearance: not only how she looked but also how people told her she looked.

As an actress, Blum was expected to be super skinny and absolutely expected to be pretty – but would then find herself up for role of the “not pretty” friend. She recalls the times young actresses would have to parade around in bathing suits during auditions, only to be faced with rejection just moments after. In the entertainment world, she was just a body, an appearance.

At Neve, she

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observant life.

When Blum opened up to her teachers at JRC about her background, she found everyone to be very supportive. She was encouraged to share her talents, to speak and sing at schools, to tell her story and share her music. Rav Weinberger and Rabbi Cherney were teaching at Ezra Academy in Queens at the time and brought Blum there. Once word got out about her professional training, and the fact that she was a young woman recently out of college, many people in the frum community realized she could be a resource to help inspire other young people.

“One of the things I hadn’t anticipated was, when you’re an outsider and you choose an observant life, you are a powerful spokesperson,” she expresses. “People recognize that you have a powerful voice because the things that a frum girl may be secretly thinking of or dreaming of that seem so exciting are some things that I’ve seen. I know the very ugly underbelly of that world that people don’t think about or realize or experience. So if I can let them know how beautiful their life is by showing them how hard I have to work – to not even get to where they are, but I’m still going to try to work hard to get somewhere – it has the potential to encourage people to be grateful for what they have.”

By 1990, Blum had released her first album, Stand Tall. Her second album, Songs of the Heart, came in 1998, and through those years Blum toured throughout the United States, Canada and overseas, performing for female audiences at Jewish schools and camps.

Blum credits those who supported her during those early days at a time when there was not much on the female artist landscape. Several people in the Orthodox community, notably educators Mrs. Esther Wein and Mrs. Chumie Meisels, felt compelled to give people access to her story and songs and had her performing

at Jewish schools, camps and for a myriad of organizations over a 10-year period.

“I would take the red-eye flight, get off the plane and be doing three concerts a day sometimes for 10 days straight – aside from Shabbos – at schools and organizations, for hundreds to thousands of people,” Blum reveals.

She recalls huge concert events at Brooklyn College with other prominent Jewish female performers. The landscape was growing, and her career was flourishing, yet Blum put it all on pause

for the time before social media and before the vast range of Jewish music available today, when people would purchase the full CDs, helping enable her songs to be passed to the next generation.

“I’m surprised when anyone knows any of my songs,” admits Blum nonetheless.

“I do believe, across the board in the world of creativity, that the more vulnerable and genuine a person is in a song or whatever it is that they’re writing, the more it connects to people,” she says.

“And that can transcend generations – that isn’t limited to age or geography or what someone’s background is, because

“I have been taught that if

you receive a gift, then you’re obligated to use it.”

when it became too challenging to leave home and leave her young, growing family back in California.

Now, as her youngest child is 17, Blum is excited to resume her singing career. Rav Weinberger had been encouraging Blum to perform again, and Rebbetzin Myrna Weinberger invited her to perform at Aish Kodesh for the recent mother-daughter night out.

The women and girls in attendance that evening hung on Blum’s every word as if totally new, yet most were familiar with her songs. The youngest audience members sat mesmerized at her performance.

Blum is grateful to realize the songs she writes have staying power. She is grateful

everyone struggles. When a person really talks about the inner pain and journey of her struggle, people can feel what that is, because they know what that is. If someone is in second grade and struggles to make friends, that’s no less painful than anything that I’m going through. So as long as I can remain purely sincere and genuine, then I’m hoping that the songs will still be able to resonate with people.”

While many performers will admit to having a level of nervousness on stage, Blum relates to a different experience.

“I’m not nervous,” she states. “What I do feel is tremendous pressure any time I sing because people are spending time and money and energy, and they have a vision in mind of what they want the people listening to gain. There’s a reason why

people bring me to perform. I always ask, ‘What are you hoping people are going to gain?’ and then I have to just daven my heart out that Hashem will enable me to do that. It just has to be a miracle from Shamayim that everything works out.”

Things do go wrong at times, technologically or otherwise, but Blum explains that, as a trained professional, one has to manage when something goes wrong.

Being trained in so many disciplines very rigorously taught her how to make each performance appear to go smoothly and to make it feel comfortable to the audience, even if it isn’t; similar to athletes who train intensely and yet make it look easy. Acting classes trained her to be able to tell her story in a very genuine way each time she tells it.

As Blum inspires so many others, she takes inspiration from those around her.

“So many people inspire me – people who are devoted to the Jewish people, people who see a need and try to fill that need. From from teachers to rabbeim, I’m pretty consistently impressed by the Jewish people!”

Asked where she finds inspiration in the Torah, Blum says, “I suppose, for every baalas teshuva, the story of Avraham Avinu resonates deeply; discovering that Hashem exists. I, myself, hadn’t really thought about it before. It wasn’t a part of my thinking and that idea of something so obvious not being a part of my life, and suddenly realizing that it’s there and that it always had been there – that Hashem had been there the whole time, and the joy and responsibility of that discovery, and seeing how Avraham Avinu worked incessantly to share that discovery with people.” She clarifies, “In terms of the greatness of who Avraham was, I don’t relate to that aspect – my

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Julia, when she was younger

life is obviously much smaller and not impactful in that way – but in my little, micro, tiny, small world, I’m inspired by him and all of our Avos and Imahos.”

Blum’s children presently range from 17-30 – all with different personalities, but many are musical.

“I didn’t have any preconception of what my children were going to be like and felt like my job was just to guide them into being their own person.” She shares, “I spend a tremendous amount of time davening to help figure out my role as a parent – whoever this person is and whatever their journey is supposed to be – how can I help, what am I supposed to do and how can I continue to grow so that I can be the best suited to help them on their journey?

“I’m really constantly working on myself,” she adds. “I have so far to go, so many areas in which I need to improve.

Certainly being a wife and mother is my greatest challenge and opportunity to grow, and I’m extremely grateful that I get to do that.”

Blum is also grateful that her husband is very supportive of her work.

During her childrearing years, Blum found herself tutoring and teaching. Her mother is a teacher, and Blum’s strong academic background helped teaching come naturally to her – and she covered a range of topics everything from hashkafa to music to math. Blum was often asked by students about her time in Hollywood. She was initially taken aback that yeshiva girls w h o

Julia, in Israel

had the access to Jewish wisdom that she didn’t have wanted this information on celebrities and other “small information” when they had access to Hashem and His Torah. She understands that curiosity and yet makes it a point to not discuss any “famous” friends.

Blum’s songs are based on her life’s experiences, and the messages are woven into the lyrics and melodies, with various instruments that become part of the story as well. They are rich and theatrical, in English with occasional Hebrew verses, including selections from Tehillim. She tries to convey uplifting messages on universal themes, hoping to especially reach the younger generation.

Blum’s “Princess Song” was written for her students to understand that they are daughters of Hashem. “Diamond” speaks about how everyone has struggles, and, like diamonds in the rough, they have infinite value. “Longing for the Longing” talks about wanting to be your best self, even when you feel disconnected from G-d. “Dream Big Dreams” is a song inspired by a lecture

by Rabbi Yissocher Frand. Blum offers her advice for creative children through her song “Dancing in her Room.”

Blum believes that young people who have the

talent and inclination to create or perform should be encouraged on their individual path in the right way.

“I understand that it could be a challenge because people with creative tendencies often are also sensitive, and they might be sensitive to criticism or rejection. It’s a gift, it’s a genuine gift.

I have been taught that if you receive a gift, then you’re obligated to use it. You don’t necessarily need to use it publicly, but you’re obligated to use it in some way.”

“I would encourage those who love creative people to encourage them – if you’re the parent or sibling or friend or teacher, like so many people did for me, like my parents did for me. There’s a reason I started to study music when I was three – my parents said that when I was little it was obvious that I was so musical…but I believe it was more of a reflection of the encouragement and the space given to me,” Blum says. “So I think it is important for people around the creative person and the person themselves to be able to create outlets, take lessons, create opportunities.”

She adds, “When you were brought into this world, Hashem gave you certain tools, and that creativity is one of those tools, so you have to find a way to use it – you have to. It doesn’t mean it’s going to be where you earn your livelihood, but if that’s a part of you, then I don’t see how a person can function without utilizing or channeling it in some way. It could be just for themselves, that they play piano just for themselves and that’s their enjoyment or it could be that they play for tens of thousands of people.

“The most important thing for me is that the people listening will gain something; I have a responsibility to try to deliver that experience, so that is pressure. I have a very strong drive to be of service for Klal Yisrael; it’s almost an overwhelming drive. Thank G-d, I have people guiding me as to how can I best utilize that desire and whatever else I’ve been given and channel it properly to be able to do something of minimal use for Klal Yisrael.”

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Dating Dialogue

What Would You Do If… Moderated by Jennifer Mann, LCSW of The Navidaters

Dear Navidaters,

My son came back from his third year in yeshiva determined to start dating. This is causing tremendous stress on my marriage since my husband’s business is not doing well and we cannot support him.

Our son really is very independent and will do what he wants at the end of the day. I think we should just go with his plans so that at least he feels

we are on his side. He does not have a degree and says he will “figure it out” in regard to parnassa.

He also says that many girls’ families are more than happy to support the couple.

My husband thinks this is a recipe for disaster. He says this won’t make our son any more capable, or responsible, and will create a dependency that is unhealthy.

I am stuck between my son and my husband. Any ideas how I can get things in a better place?

Thanks, Bracha

Disclaimer: This column is not intended to diagnose or otherwise conclude resolutions to any questions. Our intention is not to offer any definitive conclusions to any particular question, rather offer areas of exploration for the author and reader. Due to the nature of the column receiving only a short snapshot of an issue, without the benefit of an actual discussion, the panel’s role is to offer a range of possibilities. We hope to open up meaningful dialogue and individual exploration.

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The Rebbetzin Rebbetzin Lisa Babich

H

i Bracha, I hear the conundrum you are in, and it is not an easy one.

First and foremost, I believe it is always important to get guidance in these situations from either a trusted rav or a professional therapist who can guide you on how to navigate everything wisely.

However, I will share with you my opinion and insight.

There are two parts to your question.

Firstly, you don’t know how to navigate your husband’s and son’s two opposing feelings and views, and secondly, you need to do this all while maintaining your shalom bayis.

The first part I will address the same way I would with anyone who was having a disagreement. There needs to be a compromise. Your son wants to date, and your husband feels it is completely irresponsible at this point in time. I would be honest with my son and let him know how nervous it makes your husband when there is no “plan.” I would try to come up with a plan with the two of them together where everyone feels like their needs are more or less being met. Perhaps he can learn while attending college at night. Maybe he can take on a side job while dating. Maybe he can give your husband a set time that he will start earning a degree by. At the same time, you and your husband can be clear with him as to what you can and can’t afford so that he can enter shidduchim with an honest expectation as to what you and your husband can do for him.

At the end of the day, he is an adult and will make his own decision but at least you both know you are being fully transparent on what the situation is. If he still chooses to date and then ends up realizing in a few years how pressed for money he is, he will have to figure out what to do with his wife.

Part of being an adult is making decisions and accepting the consequences of those decisions. it’s not always easy but we can’t protect our children from being adults forever. It is part of adulthood to experience and navigate life situations.

In terms of your shalom bayis with your husband, it is very important that he feels heard. One of the most important

things a spouse needs is to feel that their partner is hearing, validating and being machshiv what they say. You can tell your husband that you hear and understand all his concerns and you would like to come to a compromise between him and your son.

When creating a “plan” for your son, ask your husband what are the things that he wants your son to do in order to feel comfortable in letting him get married. Together, everyone can try to come up with a plan that makes everyone feel somewhat satisfied. It may be that not everyone gets exactly what they want in this plan but at least you are trying to compromise and hear everyone’s needs in the most civil way.

Your husband needs to feel like you are a team with him, so it is important that your son understands that there are certain things you need in order to feel comfortable with his dating. The fact that your husband is going through some financial difficulty in his business definitely adds to the stress. This is why it is important for everyone to be honest, open, and upfront about their expectations and intentions and to find a compromise that can allay everyone’s’ fears.

I wish you much hatzlacha.

The Shadchan Michelle Mond

L

et’s put things into perspective. Ka”h, you are married with children, one of which has chosen to start a married life of learning Torah. How fortunate you are! It is very easy to get caught up in the nitty gritty, forgetting that some of our biggest troubles are actually brachos.

In order to get through to your husband, you will have to validate his feelings and concerns. The best way to make him more determined to stand by his position is to stick your foot in the ground in the issue. Take your foot out, and start walking, together. Arm yourself with good points while still validating his perspective. Show your husband that you are truly in this together for the benefit of your son.

Ask your son where he plans to get money to live, as he must have some sort of plan aside for depending on in-laws. Many out-of-town kollels will pay a good stipend

for young couples in kollel.

Explain to your son that it’s imperative to get answers to these questions, so that both you and your husband know he has some kind of realistic vision.

When you talk to your son, make sure the questions come from both you and your husband. Use “we” statements, “Dad and I love you very much, and would support your decision to date but would like to hear what your plan is” is one example.

Present to him from a united front, so he doesn’t feel that you are on his side and his father is not.

Finally, you must recognize that he is his own person, and he will have to live with the consequences of his actions.

From what I hear, the most difficult part of raising kids is watching them grow up and having to watch them learn from their mistakes and navigate without helicopter parents.

When you come to your son united, you have a greater chance of getting through to him. Hatzlacha!

Your only “job” right now is to get out of the middle.

The Single Tzipora Grodko ear Bracha, You’re a loving mother and a devoted wife. As a wife, your instinct is to support your husband, and as a mother, your desire is to provide for your children.

You seem distressed under the notion that your decision will compromise either your husband’s or your child’s needs.

I believe that many readers may oppose what I’m about to share as I type away with humility of my limited knowledge.

I’m not sure if you or your husband really have much power in the decision that

D

JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

The Panel

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76

your son is seeking to make. He is finally independent in his thoughts which determine his major life choices. He is taking responsibility (or learning how to) for the decisions he makes and learning from this new developing life stage. As parents, you can’t really give him “permission” to date or not to date. However, you can set up standards of expectations and clearly express your limitations and concerns.

You can support your husband (most important), while also choosing to support your son. Support can be presented through patience, understanding, and unconditional love, and guidance.

And of course, speaking to a mental health professional is always recommended.

The Zaidy Dr. Jeffrey Galler

W

e can all agree that our yeshivas are doing an excellent job teaching the

value of Torah and of Torah learning.

However, some are doing a very poor job teaching our young men that they will, eventually, need to earn a living and support their families.

Consequently, many of our young men are often clueless about planning for the future. Saying, “When it’s time to do so, I’ll figure it out” is not a viable plan.

Accordingly, your son is only partially correct when he claims, “Many girls’ families are more than happy to support the couple.”

Parents and in-laws will often agree to sacrifice and to help financially, at least initially, but I’m not quite convinced that they’re “more than happy” to do so – especially if the young man has no viable plan for eventual financial independence.

I would like to relate three eye-opening conversations that I had, years ago, with some patients.

Patient #1 was a very religious, extremely personable, highly successful businessman, who was critical of his children’s yeshiva teachers. “It just so happens,” he repor ted, “that

Pulling It All Together The Navidaters Dating and Relationship Coaches and Therapists

D

ear Bracha, Thank you for writing! It is always difficult to be in the middle of a serious disagreement between one’s spouse and child.

Allegiance to one, or even validation to one party, may severely impact or harm the relationship with the other. So many of us have been in your shoes in one way or another, and I think everyone reading would agree and can empathize. And while we know that as a spouse we must present as a unified front, what in the world does one

do when he/she vehemently disagrees with his/her spouse? It’s a very tough spot with no perfect answer.

First and foremost, let’s acknowledge that spouses do not always have to agree or see eye-to-eye. You are allowed to have your own opinion. It’s OK. Let us also acknowledge that you are not responsible to correct the situation. If this issue is getting

I can afford to buy houses for all 8 of my children. But,” he lamented, “there is absolutely no way in the world that I will be able to buy houses for 64 grandchildren! What are they going to do?”

Patient #2 was a wonderful, hard-working kollel wife, married for 6 years, with 3 children. Without complaints or regrets, she had been working one full-time and one part-time job, while taking care of the household and raising the children.

She started crying when she told me, “I took my oldest to enroll her in my old Bais Yaakov. They told me that they couldn’t accept her because I couldn’t afford the tuition.” On the verge of hysteria, she sobbed to the principal, “I did everything you taught me to do, and now you won’t accept my children?!”

Patient #3 was an Assistant District Attorney of Italian heritage, who had been my patient since he was a little boy. One day, he said, “Dr. Galler, why do so many of your people apply for Medicaid, food stamps, and rent subsidy programs?” And,” he continued, “can you believe that some married mothers actually pretend to be single mothers, so that they’re eligible for spe-

cial subsidies?”

I sheepishly tried to explain that studying for the Rabbinate takes many years of dedication and deprivation, that these programs help couples get through this long education process, and that, eventually, these folks would be tax-paying, loyal citizens, with much to contribute to our society. He gave me a skeptical look.

So, while continuing to dedicate ourselves to Torah, let’s remember, as a community and as individuals, that: “Im ein kemach, ein Torah; im ein Torah, ein kemach.” Without bread there is no Torah; without Torah, there is no bread.

in the way of your relationship by way of creating enormous tension between the two of you, I’d suggest speaking with a marital therapist to help you navigate this. You cannot change someone’s mind who does not want his mind changed. You may need a third party to help you and your husband through this.

Your son is a determined kind of guy, and he’s going to do what he thinks is best for him. Your husband is doing what he thinks is best for your son. Your position here is not to change this but to accept that you are not responsible to repair this. Your son is an adult. You can ask him exploratory questions such as: What are your thoughts about being supported by your wife’s family?

Have you thought about the dynamics that ensue when fully supported?

I understand that you are an adult, and you make your own decisions, and I need you to understand that Dad and I cannot help you financially.

And when it comes to conversations with your husband, validate his concerns and highlight your belief that your son is gong to do what he believes is right, and that you can’t convince your son of something, nor do you want to allow this to get in the middle of your relationship with your husband. Invite your husband to therapy.

Your only “job” right now is to get out of the middle. You didn’t cause this situation, and you can’t fix it. You can, however, very lovingly and politely decline the invitation to be in the middle of this.

Sincerely, Jennifer

Part of being an adult is making decisions and accepting the consequences of those decisions.

Jennifer Mann, LCSW is a licensed psychotherapist and certified trauma healing life coach, as well as a dating and relationship coach working with individuals, couples, and families in private practice at 123 Maple Avenue in Cedarhurst, NY. She also teaches a psychology course at Touro College. To set up a consultation or to ask questions, please call 718-908-0512. Visit www. thenavidaters.com for more information. If you would like to submit a dating or relationship question to the panel anonymously, please email JenniferMannLCSW@gmail.com. You can follow The Navidaters on FB and Instagram for dating and relationship advice.

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Health & F tness

Ordering up Organic Food

By Aliza Beer MS, RD, CDN

O

rganic foods are becoming more and more popular and are now being sold in most groceries.

What does organic mean and is it more nutritious?

The word organic describes the way the farmers farm the products. Organic farms do not use artificial fertilizers to add nutrients to the soil, and they have better soil quality, water quality, and growth conditions. In conventional (non-organic) products that we buy, artificial fertilizers, antibiotics or growth hormones, and genetic engineering (genetically modified products for insect resistance and nutritional enhancement) are typically used. Organic produce is grown without the use of most chemical pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers.

Health Benefits of Organic Foods 1. No antibiotics or growth hormones: Conventional poultry and meat usually contain antibiotics that the farmers used to protect the animals against illness and make them grow larger. Many animals, except poultry, are usually giv-

en growth hormones so that they grow quickly and produce more milk. The antibiotics in meat could be damaging to our gut health, and the synthetic hormones used in animals are also linked to an increased risk of cancer. The antibiotics we consume by eating non-organic meat and poultry can weaken our immune systems and make us more susceptible to getting sick.

2. Increased omega-3 fatty acids in organic foods: Organic foods like milk and meat contain 50% more omega-3 fatty acids than conventional milk and meat.

This type of fat can lower the risk of heart disease, improve eye health, fight depression, and lower the risk of other chronic diseases.

3. Fewer pesticides: The chemicals used in conventional produce remain in and on the food we eat. When you eat organic produce, there are no artificial pesticides or fertilizers used.

4. Higher in antioxidants: Research has shown that because organic foods don’t have chemicals that negatively affect vitamin content, there are more antioxidants found in organic foods. An-

tioxidants can help reduce the risk of cancer and other diseases, boost eye health, reduce the signs of aging, and promote healthier skin.

5. Better for the environment: Organic farming can help reduce soil erosion, conserve water, and reduce pollution.

6. Organic food is free from GMOs: Genetically Modified Organisms are foods whose DNA has been altered to make the plants resistant to pests and insects.

7. Better taste: Many people believe that organic foods taste better than their conventional counterparts.

Drawbacks of Organic Foods 1. Expensive: Organic foods can be 7-82% more expensive than their non-organic counterparts. If eating organic isn’t possible for your family, focus on buying quality ingredients and fresh produce instead.

2. Difficult to find: Although organic products are more popular and are found in a lot of grocery stores, it is often difficult to source organic produce.

Organic certification is given by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and requires the companies to meet strict government standards involving how the product is grown and processed.

Different Organic Labels 1. 100% organic: This means that the product must be made up of 100% certified organic ingredients.

2. Organic: To obtain this label, the ingredients of the product need to be organic certified. However, products on a list of allowed substances may be used but cannot make up more than 5% of the product. Essentially, this means that the product must be made up of at least 95% of certified organic ingredients and only a small amount of non-organic contents can be included.

3. Made with organic ingredients: With this certification, at least 70% of the product needs to be certified organic.

However, the inorganic foods used cannot be genetically engineered.

4. Specific organic ingredients: This means the product is made with less than 70% of certified organic ingredients.

79 10. Peppers 11. Pears 12. Cherries Dairy is also an important product to purchase organic. Organic milk has been proven to have a higher nutritional content and contains more antioxidants, vitamins, and omega-3 fatty acids. Most importantly, conventional dairy contains antibiotics and growth hormones from production. Organic milk also has a longer shelf life than regular milk, which can

A common mistake that people make is confusing natural foods for organic foods.

make the higher price more justifiable.

Switching over to organic milk, if possible, could be very beneficial for you and your family.

Resources for Finding Organic Products 1. Trader Joe’s: Trader Joe’s is a fantastic place to find organic prod-

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You Are NoT ALoNe Confidential Hotline

ucts that aren’t much more expensive than non-organic ones. Sometimes, the organic produce is only a few cents more than the conventional ones. Most people are surprised when they realize how many of Trader Joe’s products are already organic.

2. Thrive Market: Thrive Market offers a wide variety of organic foods at a discounted price. This is a great place to order organic beans, ketchup, sauces, legumes, grains, nuts, and seeds.

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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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3. Farmers’ Market: In a recent study, organic products at farmers’ markets were 40% cheaper than neighboring supermarkets. Take advantage of the summertime and research locations of your closest farmer’s markets. This can even be a fun family Sunday activity!

Gardening: Starting your own fruit and vegetable garden has become very

popular and is an inexpensive way to ensure quality produce without the use of pesticides and artificial fertilizers.

Organic produce, meat and poultry, and dairy are better options because they don’t contain artificial fertilizers, antibiotics, or growth hormones. Although there are some benefits to buying organic food, the focus should be on purchasing lots of fruits, vegetables, lean meats, and healthy fats. Switching to organic does not have to be an “all or none” approach. Instead, perhaps start purchasing organic produce on sale or products that aren’t significantly more expensive than the non-organic option.

Farmers’ markets and local stands are also a more economical way to purchase organic produce.

Aliza Beer is a registered dietitian with a master’s degree in nutrition. She has a private practice in Cedarhurst, NY. Patients’ success has been featured on the Dr. Oz show. Aliza can be reached at alizabeer@ gmail.com, and you can follow her on Instagram at @alizabeer.

JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

A common mistake that people make is confusing natural foods for organic foods. “Natural” foods are not regulated and are not given a certification by the U.S. government. Organic certification is the only way to guarantee that the product doesn’t contain pesticides, antibiotics, chemical fertilizers, or growth hormones.

Although a “natural” food doesn’t contain artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives, it does not disclose anything about the way it was grown. This means that a “natural” food could have been grown with toxic pesticides and synthetic growth hormones.

Although buying organic produce is expensive and may not be possible for most people, there are a few fruits and vegetables that you should try to buy organic. These non-organic fruits and vegetables have been tested and contain a lot of pesticides and toxins.

1. Strawberries 2. Spinach and collard greens 3. Peaches 4. Kale 5. Apples 6. Tomatoes 7. Grapes 8. Nectarines 9. Celery

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Parenting Pearls

SCOTUS and Tough Conversations

By Sara Rayvych, MSEd

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efore Shabbos came in, I had an article nearly finished for the upcoming week. It was almost complete, needing just a bit more work.

As always, the house got a bit hectic just before candle lighting but calmed down as Shabbos came in. As we sat around the Shabbos table, the conversation took a surprising turn towards the recent, monumental rulings from the Supreme Court. While normally the country barely notices any judicial changes, this week the Court kept making headlines.

While Roe v. Wade is an unusual enough topic for the fish course, what really made the topic stand out was that the conversation started with my older children asking some tough questions.

This was not an adult-initiated conversation, but a child-introduced one. Clearly, not only had my children heard of the recent rulings, but they had many questions about them, trying to understand what these major issues meant.

It seems my teens are not alone in this one – the rulings have been hard to ignore. Frum newspapers and magazines, social media and letters to the editor have all had coverage of these major adjustments. Divrei Torah and announcements from major Jewish organizations have all been written to let us know the emes of what we’re seeing.

When researching this article, I typed in “recent,” and the first search that was suggested was “recent Supreme Court rulings.” Even Google is hooked! It’s everywhere, and our children have noticed.

While frum parents may have perked up from the potential benefits to yeshivas from the recent case of Carson v. Makin in Maine, clearly it was Roe v. Wade and the right to conceal and carry that have been predominantly making their way into our teenagers’ everyday conversation.

As the kids asked some hard questions that brought up even more difficult answers, our guest turned to me and asked, “Will this be your next article?” I quickly said I wasn’t interested in turning this into an article. I try to avoid politics and controversy while staying within what is relevant to parents of our community – SCOTUS’s rulings generally don’t fit neatly into that category.

After Shabbos, I thought it over more and realized that if my kids were asking these questions, then so were others. Being available and ready to answer these inquiries is very much a parenting issue.

While I will be addressing this issue from the point of view of current events, this discussion is applicable to the many times our children will come to us expecting answers to difficult questions.

As mentioned above, I try to avoid controversy, and these rulings are full of it. At first, I thought it would be impossible to address this topic without stirring up every hornet’s nest on the

island. I then realized that taking sides is irrelevant to the topic at hand. How you answer your children’s questions is unconnected to taking sides. Even more than that, there is no need for me to even take a stand on any of these emotionally charged issues. Fortunately, our Torah hakedosha has all the guidance we need on how to view these and any other challenging issues that will arise.

From personal experience, I can say that one thing I have learned to appreciate from all this controversy is how much I appreciate having divine guidance. The only seichel in this insanity is the Truth as Hashem gave it, and we can all feel fortunate to have received this Ultimate Truth at Har Sinai.

Be Their Trusted Source You know your child, and you know if they’re going to pick up on the news buzzing around them. You want to be their main source of information – not their friends, social media or even

newspapers. Those articles – as helpful as they may be – are usually written for adults.

While it’s natural that children – teens, in particular – turn to friends for advice and knowledge, this isn’t always ideal. Peers are often inaccurate when being sources of information and can inadvertently mislead others. Sadly, friends sometimes don’t have the most altruistic intentions and have been known to unintentionally, or even intentionally, give poor advice.

Additionally, when a child goes to someone else, it takes away from our ability to play that role in their lives.

When your child knows they can come to you about one complicated topic, it increases the odds they’ll come to you when another thorny issue arises. It’s emotionally healthy for a child to know they can trust their parents and turn to them as life gets more complex.

Please note, it is my humble opinion that if a parent is unable to have these discussions, it is better for someone else to stand in rather than leave a child without a resource.

Be Prepared Once you know they’re going to have questions, you should be prepared to have answers. Often, it can be best if parents bring up the discussion. Whether you or they bring up the topic, you want to have answers ready. You don’t need to know everything, but a basic understanding of the subject matter is important. We are unlikely to anticipate all the potential questions, but at least we can come into the discussion having an elementary understanding or background of the matter.

While others may have a different approach, I can share a bit of how the discussion occurred in our home. For

are busy people and can’t always speak on-demand. Just make sure to prioritize having this discussion at a later time with them. Children notice if we push them off and then forget about the issue.

Children can be very black and white thinkers. It can be frustrating for parents to speak with a child who is unable to understand the nuances of an issue.

Some children may even sound irrational

ally ready yet. As parents, we can only do our best.

Making the Conversation Easier Some parents may find it helpful to discuss the issue using clear facts and less emotion. For some parents, medical facts, technological details, and statistics are less frightening. Use your and your

Being the first to bring up the topic shows that you are truly open to the conversation.

in their opinions, unable to even consider a different viewpoint from their own. It certainly can complicate an already difficult discussion. It may help to remember that it takes time for children and teens to develop the cognitive ability to understand the “gray” in life. They don’t intend to make your life difficult; it happens accidentally – try to be patient. It may not be possible to have the full discussion if your child isn’t cognitively or emotion-

child’s personalities and personal comfort to guide you.

Even when discussing a serious topic, the atmosphere need not be tense. The discussion is intense enough, there’s no need to make it feel more painful. Some families will prefer having the discussion as the main focus, while others will benefit from doing another activity simultaneously, such as eating a meal or playing a board game. As counterintuitive as it

sounds, it can sometimes be easier to have a difficult conversation when there is something else around to lessen the intensity. Games and other child-friendly activities are often brought into the therapy room to make children feel more comfortable; parents can do similarly.

For example, discussing a heavy topic may feel less burdensome if done over a game of checkers – the talk will still take place, but the mood will feel calmer.

With a world that feels ever-changing, our children need us more now than ever. We don’t need to welcome hard conversations to be willing to have them. By showing we are available, especially when life feels confusing, we can show our children we’re present for them whenever they need. We don’t need to know everything to still share the wisdom we have with the next generation.

May Hashem help us to always find the correct words to guide our precious youth.

Sara Rayvych, MSEd, has her master’s in general and special education. She has been homeschooling for over 10 years in Far Rockaway. She can be contacted at RayvychHomeschool@gmail.com.

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example, when it came to Roe v. Wade, I explained the Torah viewpoint first. I then explained both sides and contrasted their views with the Torah’s teachings.

Baruch Hashem, my older children were able to recognize the truth from the sheker. They had plenty of questions, and I tried to answer each to the best of my ability. My little ones – those who were too young to understand – simply enjoyed their dinner and didn’t seem too bothered. If I was concerned that the subject was too mature for a given child, I would have requested that the discussion take place when less ears were present.

There are times that it is best to initiate the discussion. Being the first to bring up the topic shows that you are truly open to the conversation. It also makes it easier for the hesitant child to ask rather than remain closed and confused.

Parents don’t need to know everything, and there’s nothing wrong with looking something up before answering.

Many parents may find it helpful to ask their rav, rebbetzin or other appropriate professional before having an important talk. If you need more time or want to have the conversation at a later point, then just let your child know. Parents

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jewish women of wisdom

Function vs. Form

By Miriam Liebermann, MSW

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round twenty-five years ago, I found myself doing a great deal of research into eating disorders.

It was hard for me to even fathom that there are those who would simply starve themselves, deprive themselves of delicious, nourishing food. The concept was so foreign to me that I just had to delve into the world of those suffering from this strange ailment in order to understand their mindset. Eating disorders are illnesses of the mind and psyche; successful treatment involves the intervention of trained, experienced professionals – a medical doctor, along with a nutritionist and, of course, a mental health professional.

Anorexia, binge eating, and bulimia are very serious illnesses with ramifications for the general health of the patient.

A child suffering from an eating disorder can create havoc in her home and her family. Within our communities, sadly, we are not immune. Not at all. I did my research, consulted with professionals, and found myself writing about this phenomenon, speaking in public, and encouraging families to pursue help when necessary. Today, we have thankfully many more resources available than we

had three decades ago when I began my research. But it is still a major struggle to overcome this malady. It must be taken very seriously.

We should be working on a proactive approach. If we learn to appreciate our bodies and respect them, if we truly love ourselves, we would not embark upon disordered eating but would do our utmost to protect and nurture our health. There is much to elaborate on. This is not the right time or place. Just one point please, which you may want to share with children and grandchildren. This may literally be a lifesaver.

Throughout my readings and research, there was one concept in particular that I found super relevant. Forgive me, I no longer recall the source – it’s been decades – but the teaching is more relevant than ever.

We are encouraged to regard our bodies in terms of function rather than form.

I may not be thrilled with the shape/form of my legs, but they carry me beautifully!

They enabled me for years to enjoy the Israeli dance classes that enhanced my life so. Many thanks to my dear teacher, Mrs. Shulamis Shputz. And how many weddings have I enjoyed, dancing with

the beautiful kallah and family, soaring on the wings of joy! My legs have carried me on many fabulous walks through Riverside Park, Central Park and now, Sutton Park. BH, they function beautifully!

Hips? Form may be nothing to write home about, but function – that’s another story. How many adorable babies have I balanced on my hips!

Hands? Fingers? Broad and wrinkled.

But they’re my father’s hands which I can still picture in my mind today. We would walk home from shul, hand in hand together, every Shabbos morning. I can still feel the warmth and strength of his hands. When he died, I would wear his sheepskin gloves in order to hold onto his warmth. One day, one winter, I could no longer find them. I was bereft. Then I realized that I no longer need his gloves; his essence is within me, within my heart and soul.

And these fingers –they’ve been playing the piano for half a century, bringing me enormous joy. They’ve enabled me to create fabulous needlework projects that enhance our home. Scenes of Yerushalayim. Pastoral scenes. Tefillin bags for our grandsons. Birchot Habayis/Blessings for the Home for our adult, married children.

Thank you mighty fingers. Carry on!

Wait! I’m not yet done. These fingers have been working the keyboard for the last five decades, enabling me to communicate with family, friends, with the entire world! How can I not absolutely love these fingers of mine?

My arms? How many ka”h gorgeous, adorable, lovable children have I cuddled and hugged with these arms? Older children, too! Still adorable and gorgeous ka”h. And adult children?!

Regarding my body in terms of function rather than form puts a whole new spin in my approach. Thank you, dear G-d, I love my body. It works! It plays!

It dances! Sings! It enables me to live a full, rich life!

Forget the form, that’s irrelevant. Let’s focus on function and take heart. Especially as we age, we are incredibly grateful to find ourselves mobile and agile, active and alert. So much to be grateful for!

Dance on. With G-d’s help. Forever!

JWOW! is a community for midlife Jewish women which can be accessed at www. jewishwomanofwisdom.org for conversation, articles, Zoom events, and more.

tchen

Crepe Suzette

By Naomi Nachman

I am writing up this recipe from Paris, France. I am working for Kosher River Cruises this coming week on a river cruise leaving from Paris up the Sienne River to the Normandy Beaches. I was asked to join the crew to do cooking demonstrations on French cuisine.

I actually got this recipe from my dad over 20 years ago. My dad has always enjoyed French cooking and toyed around with recipes in the kitchen. He once served this to me and my brother at the dinner table; my dad brought the pan to the table and lit the sauce on fire, as it is traditionally prepared. We loved the dramatic effect and always looked forward to this dessert.

Ingredients ◦ 3 eggs ◦ 1 cup flour ◦ 1½ cups water ◦ 1 teaspoon oil ◦ ½ teaspoon salt Sauce ◦ 1/3 cup butter or margarine ◦ 1/3 cup honey ◦ ¾ cup orange juice ◦ 1 teaspoon orange zest ◦ 1 teaspoon vanilla ◦ ¼ cup orange Liqueur ◦ 3 tablespoons brandy

Preparation

Prepare the crepes: Mix all the ingredients in a food processor and let stand for 15 minutes.

Heat a 9-inch nonstick frying pan or crepe pan over medium heat. Coat pan with a drop of oil and spread it around carefully with a paper towel.

Pour enough batter into the pan to just cover it, about ⅓-cup. Gently swirl the pan to coat the entire bottom with batter. Cook until the top is just set and the crepe is cooked through. Remove from pan to cool.

Repeat with remaining batter.

Fold crepes into half, then half again. Set aside.

Prepare the sauce: In a 12-inch frying pan, heat butter and honey until melted Add remaining ingredients except brandy and cook on low heat for a few minutes till it thickens a bit.

Once slightly thickened, add 4 crepes into the pan and spoon sauce around to make sure each crepe is bathing in the sauce.

When ready to serve, do this part at the table to impress your guests.

Swirl brandy around crepes.

Set a match to it carefully and watch the small flame dance over the crepes. The flame burns off any alcohol.

Naomi Nachman, the owner of The Aussie Gourmet, caters weekly and Shabbat/ Yom Tov meals for families and individuals within The Five Towns and neighboring communities, with a specialty in Pesach catering. Naomi is a contributing editor to this paper and also produces and hosts her own weekly radio show on the Nachum Segal Network stream called “A Table for Two with Naomi Nachman.” Naomi gives cooking presentations for organizations and private groups throughout the New York/New Jersey Metropolitan area. In addition, Naomi has been a guest host on the QVC TV network and has been featured in cookbooks, magazines as well as other media covering topics related to cuisine preparation and personal chefs. To obtain additional recipes, join The Aussie Gourmet on Facebook or visit Naomi’s blog. Naomi can be reached through her website, www.theaussiegourmet.com or at (516) 295-9669.

JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

In The K

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The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

Mind Y

ur Business

Marc Bodner & Lee Brower: Gratitude and Motion

By Yitzchok Saftlas

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his column features business insights from a recent “Mind Your Business with Yitzchok Saftlas” radio show. The weekly “Mind Your Business” show – broadcasting since 2015 – features interviews with Fortune 500 executives, business leaders and marketing gurus. Prominent guests include: John Sculley, former CEO of Apple and Pepsi; Dick Schulze, founder and Chairman Emeritus of Best Buy; and Beth Comstock, former Vice Chair of GE; among over

400+ senior-level executives and business celebrities. Yitzchok Saftlas, president of Bottom Line Marketing Group, hosts the weekly “Mind Your Business” show, which airs at 10pm every Sunday night on 710 WOR and throughout America on the iHeartRadio Network.

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n a recent 77WABC “Mind Your Business” broadcast, Yitzchok Saftlas (YS) spoke with guests Marc Bodner (MB), CEO of L&R Distributors, and Lee Brower, founder of Empowered Wealth. This discussion immediately followed L&R’s Ignite event, which brought together 1,100 employees to celebrate the company’s core values.

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Yitzchok Saftlas: We’re recording from Monroe, New Jersey, where we just celebrated the L&R Way. Let’s take a step back and talk about the importance for a company to understand that, even from a finance level, investing in your team is so critical. Why is

that so important?

Lee Brower: You know, we talk about corporate culture but it isn’t really blue jeans Friday, is it? I think so many people confuse it with “how can we please our employees? How can we make them more happy?” I subscribe to Clayton Christiansen, who was a professor at Harvard, who said, “Great companies, that have great culture, know how to make great decisions and repeat them.” So, if you can create a culture within your company that’s principle based, they’re going to be better decision makers. And when you’re a better decision maker, guess what? The culture is better.

That sense of feeling, that sense of pride, that sense of meaningfulness that comes from being a good choice maker and being trusted in making those choic-

es makes all the difference in the world.

Marc Bodner: I’ve always said that culture is not software that gets installed.

It has to evolve. It has to take on a life.

You need to gather the stories of certain behaviors and share those stories so that people can learn from them. I don’t want people to think, “Okay, great. Let’s go work on this for three months, put a bunch of principles on a paper, and throw a party and then we’ll just keep on doing what we’ve always done.” So, we start with gratitude, because if there’s one thing that I’ve learned over the years is that it really begins with gratitude, doing something for someone else with no expectation of anything in return. What does that mean to a business? It means that when I’m doing this thing, I’m not thinking about myself. I’m doing this thing with the mindset

of who is going to have to pick up what I’ve done next and I’m going to make it easier for that person.

YS: It’s two hours after the event.

There must be so many emotions going on. What’s your takeaway and feelings from today?

LB: We had over 200 people live here today. So, how do you go big and get them to express gratitude? Because the minute you just think about gratitude, science tells us that it releases dopamine and serotonin into your system. Imagine every time you start a meeting, if you can start it by beginning in gratitude, that big burst of serotonin and dopamine you’ll get. I was wondering, how is Marc going to start out? Just one person say-

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YS: Lee, you’re known as the “gratitude guy.” And my understanding is that you’ve been involved in a very famous movie. Perhaps you can just talk about that experience.

LB: It’s really weird. That movie’s over ten years old and still I get emails.

The Secret was a book and ultimately ended up being a movie. I think it was broadcast over 60 million times or something like that. But the interesting part about it is that I didn’t even know I was in it. I was speaking at an event, and they asked me if I would come back and answer some questions. They said, “What do you think is the greatest secret in the world?” And I said, “Well, gratitude.” I told them a story and that story ended up being dramatized in the movie. And it wasn’t until afterwards that I got a call from somebody, and they said, “I saw you in the movie.” But, you know, unintentionally, because of the story around gratitude and the things that I’ve learned about it, it put me in a position where I was not deserving of it, in my mind.

To be called the “gratitude guy” is something that to this day humbles me. But I was in a unique position where people expected it of me, and I learned more from more people. Once I started practicing it even more, I developed such a belief in the power of gratitude. I mean, it’s a real, real power. And it’s a driver for all other virtues.

YS: Marc, there are so many, but what are some reflections you are holding

onto from today?

MB: It was kind of like a town hall.

We had people from multiple locations live-feed into here in New Jersey. And we brought people in, had them speak about their experiences, speak about our concept of LEAD (Listen and Learn, Engage, Appreciate, and Decide). As I reflect back, and I think of these people, who are not limelight people, having the courage to get on that stage and be interviewed, I was kind of surprised and proud. I was really proud of them. At the very end, there was a montage of video clips of people expressing gratitude to me. That was a very emotional moment.

And then Dirk put me on the spot there and asked for my final thoughts. I actually walked over to Lee afterward and asked, “What did I say?” I was just in a state of emotion, and I felt like every-

And then Decide. Make decisions. And if sometimes the result is not what we expected it to be, just come right back around to Listen and Learn.

You can link a letter of LEAD to every one of our principles. And we’ve done that as an exercise, as a group many times. So, this is how you keep it going.

You introduce it and you make it part of conversations. You make it part of your meetings. You make it part of everything that you do.

YS: What is a takeaway that everyone can really hold on to as a foundational thought to be successful in their everyday life?

LB: I’m going to combine two. In today’s world, where we’re constantly paralyzed, we tend to think to ourselves that

“If we’re in a mindset of doing things for others without the expectation of anything in return, then we have a much better shot of living meaningful lives.”

thing just slowed down. And whatever I said did not come from my mind. It came from my heart because I had don’t have a really clear recollection of exactly what was said because I was really, really emotional.

At the end of the day, you have a business, and you want to create services that people will reward you for. But along the way, we have this opportunity as businesspeople to create something that’s bigger than the actual business. Helping teach people what it is that we do, why we do it, it was a really, really rewarding and engaging experience for me. I learned a ton today. It was a great learning experience for me. As I reflect and kind of recap it in my mind, one thing we went through was our concept of LEAD, that everyone can follow the attributes of a leader. This starts with Listen and Learn. You make mistakes and go from losing to learning and you make your learning greater than the experience.

Next is Engage, which mean to challenge the status quo. Appreciate, which is appreciative gratitude, being grateful in doing something for someone else with no expectation of anything in return.

the conditions are so bad that we can’t do anything about it. My recommendation is, one, if you move into gratitude, then you have to do that by expressing it. You know, gratitude unexpressed is ingratitude perceived. Sometimes, we hold it inside. But until we can get it out there, until people can hear it and you can tell the person, maybe ask yourself the question, “Who can I see today that I see all the time, but I wouldn’t normally see them unless I thought how grateful I was for them?” Express gratitude to that person, express a smile to them. I think that the power of that gratitude going out is something that is extremely important.

What I’ve done is merge two things.

One is to move into gratitude and then secondly, to be in motion. The enemy of thriving is arriving. Whether you’ve arrived because you’re paralyzed or you’ve arrived because you feel like you’ve made it, either way you’ve stopped contributing. So, you put those two together, gratitude with motion, even if it’s the smallest step that you can take. You only have to lift the anchor an inch to get the boat in motion. So just lift an inch. Be in motion, be grateful, and amazing things

will happen even in a VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity) world.

MB: I’ll give credit to my sister-inlaw for telling me this, “Comparison is the theft of joy.” And I listen. That’s a very powerful statement. You know, “I’m grateful for being healthy as compared to that person.” We do things like that automatically. When we hear someone, G-d forbid, young passed away, the first question we ask is, “Was he sick?” Why are we asking that question? Because you’re comparing. “He was sick, but I’m not sick. So, I’m going to be fine.” And that’s a natural thing to do. It’s hard in today’s world with all the social media out there and all this messaging coming at us, and news being fed to us. It almost feels like we don’t have control of what we’re seeing.

Today was about controlling the narrative in the four walls of L&R. And would you agree that if we can control the narrative within the walls of L&R, there’s a likelihood that you can maybe control the narrative in your home? If people in our building are latching on to the L&R way (understanding gratitude better, understanding intentionality, colleague-strengthened), when they go home, they take that with them. It gets shared with their families, their friends, their colleagues. If they choose to leave here and go to a different company, it gets shared in that company. We create ripples.

You know, we’re not going to protect ourselves from the information flying in at us. But if we’re in a mindset of gratitude, if we’re in a mindset of doing things for others without the expectation of anything in return, then we have a much better shot of living meaningful lives.

JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

ing it doesn’t do it. You have to involve everybody. And they did it magically, everybody just throwing up what they were grateful for, all brought together at one time. To me, that kicked off the meeting and made me just very grateful to be there.

MB: When we did this in 2016, it felt like “the Marc Show.” I was up there the whole time. But this time I was determined on it not being my show. And so, we had you [Yitzchok], Dirk Beveridge, and Jonathan from my team directing this. And then we created a group of “ambassadors,” and they put this whole thing together. Think about that for a second. We talk about culture and how it’s not software you install. They knew that to start the meeting we have to go big and begin in gratitude. What that tells you is that culture has taken hold in this company. That’s the message I take from that.

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Notable Quotes “Say What?!”

Therein lies the truth about BDS… They are not interested in healing. They are not interested in conflict-resolution. It’s clear enough on their website: “The BDS movement does not advocate for a particular solution to the conflict and does not call for either a ‘one state solution’ or a ‘two state solution.”

More alarming still is their statement of intent.

It cites “ending [Israel’s] occupation and colonization of all Arab lands,” which is a coded denial of Israel’s right to exist.

BDS organizers are so blinded by their political ambitions that they lose their sense of humanity.

- Winston Marshall, former guitarist for Mumford & Sons, in an Op-Ed in the Jewish Chronicle, after a popular band canceled a concert in Israel because of pressure by BDS

My message to the companies running gas stations and setting prices at the pump is simple: this is a time of war and global peril. Bring down the price you are charging at the pump to reflect the cost you’re paying for the product. And do it now.

What do you say to those families that say, “Listen, we can’t afford to pay $4.85 a gallon for months, if not years?“

- Tweet by Pres. Biden about how to address inflation

- CNN in an interview with Biden’s National Economic Council Director Brian Deese

Ouch. Inflation is far too important a problem for the White House to keep making statements like this. It’s either straight ahead misdirection or a deep misunderstanding of basic market dynamics.

This is about the future of the Liberal World Order, and we have to stand firm.

- Deese’s response

- Amazon founder Jeff Bezos in response

Working on it, Mr. President. In the meantime – have a Happy 4th and please make sure the WH intern who posted this tweet registers for Econ 101 for the fall semester.

- Tweet by the U.S. Oil & Gas Association mocking Pres. Biden’s tweet

I don’t need to have numbers. I don’t need to have a data point to say this.

– Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) when asked at a press conference if she has data that substantiates her preposterous argument that it is lawful gun owners that commit most gun crimes

Do you really? You really spend five hours a day?

Get a life!

- Martin Cooper, 92, who invented the cellphone, during an interview with “BBC Breakfast,” responding to a co-host who claimed she spends upwards of five hours per day on her phone

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88 I think Ron DeSantis would work as a good president. I mean, what he’s done for Florida has been admirable. I feel like what he did for Florida, a lot of people gave him a lot of grief, but ultimately, he was correct. He was correct when it comes to like deaths – he was correct.

And when it comes to protecting all vulnerable populations, he was correct in terms of distribution of monoclonal antibodies.

– Joe Rogan

When I grew up, you had family, you didn’t have drugs, you didn’t have gang-banging. You could walk down the street. There was a change in our society. I think that these programs certainly had an impact. Just go back to Savannah and take a look around you. Our worst fears were realized.

We didn’t want to be right; we wanted to be wrong. It wasn’t about winning an argument.

No, we wanted to lose the argument. We did not want the damage to occur; that’s why we were involved.

I don’t particularly like public life; I never wanted to be in public life. I’d like to go to football games. I’d like not to make decisions about other people’s lives, but what drags you into it is when you see these principles being undermined, which leads to such destruction. The policies destroy people, and, ultimately, I think, we’re going to destroy the very thing that allows us to have liberty and to have a free society.

– Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas in his newly released book

I want to enjoy life without walking and even traveling. I’m so over it right now. I just want to be in one place and get into a rhythm.

- Tom Turcich, of New Jersey, who recently became the 10th person on record to travel the entire world by foot (29,826 miles in seven years), in an interview with CNN

Trump’s not a little guy, right? And the space to actually be able to lunge towards the wheel is not that big. I don’t mean to sound disparaging to the former president, but just his girth would prevent him from actually getting to the steering wheel.

- An unnamed Secret Service agent explaining to Business Insider why the story about Pres. Trump trying grabbing the steering wheel of “the Beast” on Jan 6th in order to get the driver to go to the Capitol is false

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I don’t know how they wanted to get undressed…. But I think it would be a disgusting sight in any case.

– Russian leader Vladimir Putin responding to the G7 leaders mocking him by saying that they should take their shirts off in a photo-op in order to look tough, as Putin has presumably done in the past

Everything in a person should be harmonious: both body and soul, but for that to happen it’s necessary to stop abusing alcohol and other bad habits, do physical exercise and take part in sports.

– Ibid.

My dad died two years ago today. I miss him, but he’s always with me. And knowing how much he loved a good comeuppance story, he’d be thrilled to see what’s happening to Trump.

– Tweet by filmmaker Rob Reiner

Nothing is sacred to a TDS sufferer.

- One of many response tweets pointing out Reiner’s absurdity

I kept telling them, “I have a shotgun with three shells in it.”

- Homeowner Joe Teague, age 93, of Moreno Valley, California, explaining to reporters what happened before he shot and critically wounded one of several thieves that broke into his home in the middle of the night

The President launched this inappropriate attack when he was asked about whether or not we are on the right track as a country. The President needs to take a look in the mirror. The Supreme Court isn’t responsible for inflation, high gas prices, crime in the streets or chaos at the border. He is. No amount of blame shifting on the global stage will change that.

- Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnel (R-KY) responding to Pres. Biden’s attacks on the Supreme Court during a press conference at the G7 Summit

The only people who care about January 6 are the Democrats in Washington, D.C. These are the same people who have given us five and six dollars a gallon for gasoline.

- Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO)

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The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

Political Crossfire

Nearly Every American Has a Foreboding the Country They Love is Losing Its Way

By David Ignatius

J

ohn F. Kennedy, a young war hero running in his first congressional campaign, delivered a speech on July 4, 1946, at Faneuil Hall in Boston. It was mostly patriotic bromides about G-d and country. But it included a haunting meditation on the American soul.

“A nation’s character, like that of an individual, is elusive,” Kennedy said. “It is produced partly by things we have done and partly by what has been done to us. It is the result of physical factors, intellectual factors, spiritual factors…. In peace, as in war, we will survive or fail according to its measure.”

What does our national portrait look like on this Independence Day? Many of us see an angry, traumatized face, rather than the radiant glow of the Founders.

That’s the odd thing about this hyper-partisan moment: Nearly every American, whatever their political perspective, has a foreboding that the country they love is losing its way.

How great is the danger of national decline? The Pentagon’s in-house think tank, which has the mysterious name “Office of Net Assessment,” commissioned a study of the problem by Michael Mazarr, a senior political scientist at the Rand Corp.

It was just published, under the title “The Societal Foundations of National Competitiveness.” It’s hardly upbeat summer reading, but it can be downloaded free online, and it’s well worth the time.

Mazarr’s disturbing conclusion is that America is losing many of the seven attributes he believes are necessary for competitive success: national ambition and will; unified national identity; shared opportunity; an active state; effective institutions; a learning and adaptive society;

and competitive diversity and pluralism.

Let’s start with American ambition and confidence, once our most notable trait. “Writers and scholars alike…have argued that the spirit of adventurousness, experimentation and determination to remake the future have all ebbed in the American character,” Mazarr writes.

He notes polling that three-quarters of those surveyed in 2019 were unhappy about where the country is headed. A 2018 study reported that more than 60% of those polled had “more fear than hope.”

And Americans across party lines don’t trust our country’s institutions. A 2018 poll registered only 10% who were “very satisfied” with how democracy is working; it also found that two-thirds of respondents agree that “public officials don’t care what I think.”

National unity and cohesion are declining, Mazarr believes. A country that

was effective (sometimes brutally so) at assimilating diverse groups is more fragmented, and the idea of America as a “melting pot” seems archaic to many people. But our separate identities come at a cost: “A country with a rapidly diversifying population – though it gains competitive advantages from this diversity – will also face greater hurdles to sustaining a sense of coherent national identity,” Mazarr writes.

America remains an opportunity society, in principle, but Mazarr sees growing constraints. He cites the evidence of rising inequality. Between 2001 and 2016, the median net worth of the middle class fell 20% and that of the working class plummeted 45%. He notes evidence that in each generation since 1945, children have been less likely to make more money than their parents.

These problems are obvious, but gov-

ernment hasn’t been willing or able to correct them. Mazarr quotes a World Bank assessment of gradually declining “governance effectiveness” in the United States over the past 20 years. It isn’t just a government problem, though. Private-sector productivity has been stagnant for decades, and corporations struggle with bureaucracy and bloat. Universities spend nearly as much on administration as teaching, and administrative costs account for a third of total health-care spending.

Part of America’s DNA is the idea that our problems are fixable. I’m still in that party of optimists. But I found Mazarr’s conclusions chilling. When countries begin to fail, he argues, “it is a negative-feedback loop, a poisonous synergy.” The energy that could reverse decline becomes sapped by mistrust and misinformation.

Some people get so angry they want to burn the house down and start over.

We’re not at that cataclysmic point yet.

I see positive signs in the slow but growing Republican willingness to challenge Donald Trump, and in the broad, bipartisan anger at the extremism of recent Supreme Court decisions. But bad things can happen to good countries, as our modern history shows.

The American character was once easy to define. We were a young, optimistic nation, fusing “one out of many,” as the Latin phrase engraved on our coins puts it.

Wherever Americans had come from, they embraced the aspiration for “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness,” written in the Declaration of Independence. May it ever be so. (c) 2022, Washington Post Writers Group

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Political Crossfire

By Marc A. Thiessen

T

he House select committee on Jan. 6 has failed to dampen support among Republican voters for Donald Trump. Fifty-three percent of Republicans say they would support Trump if he ran again in 2024. They believe that he was a great president and that he was treated unfairly by the media and the political establishment, which tried to delegitimize and destroy him with false accusations of collusion with Russia. Many accept Trump’s claims that the 2020 election was stolen. No bombshell revelations from the Jan. 6 committee will dissuade them from supporting him.

But is there an argument that might persuade Republican primary voters to nominate someone else? Here is one that could do so: If Trump wins, he can serve for only four years – whereas any other Republican could serve for eight.

Whenever a new president is elected, his supporters anticipate the start of an eight-year presidency. There is a good reason for that. Though presidents are elected to four-year terms, most of those who took office over the past three decades ended up serving for eight. The three presidents who preceded Trump – Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama – each served two full terms.

(And before that, George H.W. Bush was arguably elected to serve a third Reagan term.)

But if Trump were to win back the White House, he would be limited to four years – making him a lame duck from his first day in office. Ask yourself: Why does President Biden, who is obviously struggling under the burdens of his office, get irked when Democrats suggest he not run for reelection? Because without the

prospect of a second term, his presidency would be hobbled. The second Biden were to declare he was not running, the jockeying to replace him would begin, and his

left in 2028. The power of incumbency is enormous. In the past 12 presidential elections with incumbent candidates, incumbents won eight times, while just

Why would we risk handing the White House back to Democrats four years from now, when we can hold it for eight?

ability to get his agenda through would be compromised. Even if Biden does not end up seeking reelection, he needs to keep up the appearance that he might.

But Trump could not do that. Why would Republicans nominate someone who is constitutionally barred from seeking another term? A four-year presidency would cede a major advantage to the

four – Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush and Trump – lost.

Part of the reason is that while a presidential candidate can only make promises, a sitting president controls the levers of power – and thus has the ability to deliver concrete results for key constituencies. The president commands an unparalleled bully pulpit. He has already won

the office once so he has a presumption of victory. Barring some catastrophe (or, in Biden’s case, serial catastrophes), the election is his to lose.

It makes no sense to cede all those advantages and let Democrats contest an open seat they are much more likely to win after just four years. Besides, it will take more than four years to dig our country out of the mess Biden has created. The next Republican president will have to tamp down the worst inflation in four decades, the worst crime wave since the 1990s and the worst border crisis in American history. He – or she – will have to restore U.S. energy independence, our economic vitality and our credibility on the world stage. Any one of these would be an enormous challenge in a single term; but achieving them all in four years would be all but impossible. It’s at least an eight-year job.

If Democrats take back the presidency after four years, they could easily undo any progress the next Republican president makes in his or her first term --- just like they wiped out so much of Trump’s progress in a matter of months. The United States simply cannot afford that.

Attacking Trump’s character won’t move Republican voters. But a Republican challenger can credibly say: I love Donald Trump. He was a great president.

I agree with his agenda. We’ll both bring you the same policies. The difference is: He can deliver them for only one term, and I can do it for two. Why would we risk handing the White House back to Democrats four years from now, when we can hold it for eight? (c) 2022, Washington Post Writers Group

JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

A Credible Argument for Trump Supporters to Back Someone Else in 2024

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The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

Political Crossfire

Weaken the Filibuster Before a Wave Election?

By Marc A. Thiessen

D

o Democrats never learn from their mistakes?

In an act of stunning political and legislative incompetence, President Joe Biden is calling on Senate Democrats to bypass the filibuster to pass legislation codifying Roe v. Wade – even though he knows full well he does not have the votes to make this happen. Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin III (W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (Ariz.) don’t support weakening the filibuster to codify Roe. Biden is raising expectations among his base that he will almost certainly dash –further dispiriting them before the November midterm elections.

But even if he did have the votes, it would be foolish to weaken the filibuster just months before a wave election that is expected to sweep Democrats out of power on Capitol Hill. The president’s party has lost, on average, 27 House seats in midterm elections since 1946. And this will not be an average midterm election. Biden has been the most unpopular president since the modern polling era began with Harry S. Truman. Republicans are all but certain to win back the majority in the House, and need only a net gain of one seat to take back the Senate.

It’s possible that Democrats could somehow manage to hold off a GOP Senate takeover in 2022, but the field is even more tilted toward Republicans in 2024. Democrats will be defending 23 seats, while the GOP will be defending just 10. None of those GOP seats are in states Biden won in 2020 – and only one, Florida Sen. Rick Scott’s, is in a state that Donald Trump won by less than five points. So the odds are overwhelming that if Republicans don’t win back the Senate this year, they will do so in 2024. And considering the unprecedented serial disasters Biden has unleashed in his first term, Republicans are more than likely to control the House, Senate and White House in just over two years’ time.

Given that grim political reality, why on earth would Democrats want to do anything to weaken the filibuster? Let’s say they succeeded in using a filibuster carveout to codify Roe. Two years from now, Republicans could use that same carve-out to reverse the Democrats’ action and pass a

the precedent for Republicans to eliminate it for Supreme Court justices as well when Trump came to power – paving the way for the 6-3 conservative majority that just overturned Roe. If Democrats dilute the legislative filibuster by setting it aside when it comes to

If Democrats like the string of victories the Supreme Court’s conservative majority handed down this term, they will love what a Republican-controlled, filibuster-free Senate will do.

national abortion ban in its place.

That would be just the beginning. History shows that partial filibuster carve-outs don’t last. During the Obama administration, then-Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid, D-Nev., eliminated the filibuster for all federal judicial appointments except Supreme Court nominees. That set

their key priorities, that will set a precedent for Republicans to eliminate it entirely when they take over. If Democrats like the string of victories the Supreme Court’s conservative majority handed down this term, they will love what a Republican-controlled, filibuster-free Senate will do.

They should look back on all the leg-

islation they stopped Republican majorities from enacting because of the filibuster – from entitlement reforms to lawsuit reforms, election reforms, border-wall funding, an end to sanctuary cities and restrictions on cash bail, the elimination of restrictions on oil and gas exploration, national right-to-work legislation, expanded gun rights and the defunding of Planned Parenthood – and then imagine all that and more being enacted by simple majority vote when Republicans regain control of both Congress and the presidency. In the words of my Post colleague Ruth Marcus, “Welcome to the apocalypse.”

What is remarkable is that despite these obvious consequences, Senate Democrats would eliminate the legislative filibuster without hesitation were it not for Manchin and Sinema. They justify this legislative vandalism by arguing that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., will eliminate the filibuster anyway when Republicans take power, so they might as well do it now while they have power.

There is no evidence to suggest that he would. Quite the opposite, McConnell wisely refused to scrap this rule at a time when Republicans controlled the White House, Senate, and House of Representatives, despite President Trump’s repeated urging that he do so, because, McConnell said, “There are no permanent victories in politics.”

Biden once understood this. Back in 2005, when Democrats were filibustering President George W. Bush’s judicial nominees, then-Sen. Biden took to the Senate floor to warn Republicans against eliminating the filibuster to get them through.

“You may own the field right now, but you won’t own it forever,” Biden said. He’d do well to remember those words and take his own advice. (c) 2022, Washington Post Writers Group

93

Forgotten Her es

By Avi Heiligman

Soldiers in Buna, New Guinea

M

ost of the war heroes known to the public are the stories of Medal of Honor recipients and top-ranking officers that make headline news telling of their bravery on the battlefield. Yet the vast majority of war heroes’ stories are often relegated to books that were printed years ago or documents not easily accessible. Even historians may have a tough time tracking them down and spend years of research to properly document their history. After a lot of research, more stories of Jewish Forgotten Heroes during World War II have come to light with some incredible acts of bravery to be told.

PFC Albert H. Feingold from New Jersey was an infantry soldier during the Battle of Sicily. In July 1943, his squad from Company G, 2nd Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division was held up by intense fire coming from a machine gun pillbox. Feingold voluntarily went forward and despite a hail of bullets was able to drop grenades into the emplacement. The pillbox exploded, and his unit was able to advance. Feingold was awarded the Silver Star for his actions.

The Americans sent troops to New Guinea to block the Japanese advance on the island and to bolster the Australian fighting force. In addition to the intense fighting on New Guinea was the inhospi-

Captain George Laven

table terrain and difficult fighting conditions. If the Japanese were to take control over the entire island, then Australia would have been threatened. Captain Rafael Gamso was a medical officer from the 32nd Division stationed near Buna, New Guinea. On December 29, 1942, Gamso was one of five men who volunteered to go through Japanese lines to bring medical supplies to a surrounded company. The men went unarmed and unescorted but made it through safely. Gamso stayed all night treating the wounded. The enemy fire was so intense that the wounded were wounded again, but Gamso kept on going despite the danger. He made it back to American lines the next day and was awarded the Silver Star for his actions.

Even with research, there are some stories with only scant details available.

The entire story of First Lieutenant Sylvan Feld, for example, may never be known.

Feld, a fighter pilot, was credited with shooting down nine German planes before becoming a prisoner of war. His POW camp was bombed, and Feld was killed during the bombardment. His nine aerial victories made him an ace but few details on how they were achieved came up during research.

While we may not be able to dig up details on some servicemen, others, are like fighter pilot George Laven, are more

U.S. soldiers taking cover during the Battle of Attu

accessible. Born in Illinois and calling San Antonio his hometown, Laven flew with the 54th Fighter Group and the 343rd Fighter Group of the Eleventh Air Force in the Pacific – Alaska, to be specific. He flew in both P-38 Lightning and P-39 Aircobras.

The Japanese had invaded the Aleutian islands of Attu and Kiska as a diversionary tactic during their attempt to invade Midway in June 1942. Considerable resources were spent building up American bases in the region in preparation for an invasion. Air units were sent to the area on both reconnaissance and offensive missions. On one mission, Laven flew six hundred miles from his base in Umnak and destroyed a Japanese flying boat, strafed enemy gun emplacements, and scored a hit on a small boat. He also reported a previously unnoticed antisubmarine net in the harbor at Kiska. During this mission, he had been under constant anti-aircraft fire and was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.

In total, Laven had four aerial victories to his record and had destroyed many locomotives on air-to-ground missions.

After the war, he continued working for the air force as the leader for combat units. He retired in 1969 and became a consultant for McDonnell Douglas while in Israel.

Oftentimes, the stories that come up

Captain Edward Rothkrug was only 5-foot-3, the shortest combat man in the 98th Bomb Group

while doing research are those of airmen serving in the Army Air Corps. Many of these air heroes were pilots, navigators, bombardiers and gunners on heavy aircraft, such as the B-17 Flying Fortress, B-24 Liberator and B-29 Superfortress.

Captain Edward Rothkrug was a navigator with the 98th Bombardment Group on a B-24 Liberator named the “Northern Star.” He flew in 80 missions totaling 300 hours and took part in the raid over the Ploesti oil fields. In addition to serving in Europe, he also flew combat missions in North Africa; on one mission, his plane was so badly damaged by enemy fire that the plane was forced to make an emergency landing on the bomb-ridden island of Malta. He was awarded eleven medals for heroism in the air.

Over 550,000 American Jewish servicemen and women served during World War II, with thousands earning medals and commendations for bravery on the battlefield. These Forgotten Heroes’ stories are history deserving to be remembered.

Avi Heiligman is a weekly contributor to The Jewish Home. He welcomes your comments and suggestions for future columns and can be reached at aviheiligman@gmail.com.

JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

Jewish Heroes of World War II

The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

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WOODMERE/HEWLETT NECK House Rental Magnificent 6 Bedroom Home. Formal Dining Room, New Gourmet Kitchen W/High End Appliances & Cabinets, Large Living Rm & Den, 3 Car Attached Garage, Hardwood Floors, Sd#14. 5 Bedrooms On One Level, Fabulous MBR Suite W/ New Bathroom. gas heat. central air conditioning, long driveway, parklaike property,& So Much More. Call for details Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

WOODMERE Totally renovated bright and sunny 1 bedroom corner unit apartment with a washer/dryer. Features quartz countertops, ss appliances, recessed lighting, bathroom with chrome fixtures, close to the railroads, shopping and houses of worship.

Call for details Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

HEWLETT Bright and sunny 2 bedroom 2 bathroom co-op, elevator, doorman building, in ground pool storage, card room, indoor and outdoor parking, washer/dryer in the apartment, renovated kitchen with granite countertops, ss appliances, master bedroom with en-suite bathroom, formal living room and dining room, close to all $479k Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

HEWLETT TWO 3 BEDROOM 2 BATH CO-OPS with central air conditioning, terrace, washer/dryer, hard-wood floors, recessed lighting, magnificent kitchens, ss appliances, l/r, d/r, close to the railroad, shopping, and houses of worship.

Mark Lipner Associate Broker Berkshire Hathaway Laffey International 516-298-8457 mlipner@bhhslaffey.com

JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

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The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

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Classifieds classifieds@fivetownsjewishhome.com • text 443-929-4003

APT./COOP/CONDO SALE

HELP WANTED

HELP WANTED

HELP WANTED

WOODSBURGH Magnificent 2K sq. Ft. Co-Op. 3BR/2BTH, EIK, LR, DR, W/D in Unit, GAR, 2 STOR UNITS, ELEV, NEAR ALL $775K 516-846-1032 ~ NO BROKERS

JCCRP is looking for a full-time Director for the kosher food pantry and volunteer services. Competitive salary, terrific environment and benefits.

Send resume to info@jccrp.org

A Yeshiva in Queens is looking for an experienced part/full time secretary, 2-year-old morah, kindergarten morah, kindergarten morah assistant and Pre-1A English teacher for the 2022-2023 school year. Nice and timely pay. Please email resume to mshelt613@gmail.com or call/text 718-971-9799.

JOIN OUR TEAM! NURSING HOME MANAGEMENT Company in Brooklyn Looking to fill the following positions: ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT MS office suite proficiency required AdminAssistant experience required

COMMERCIAL OFFICE FOR RENT – LAWRENCE AVE & Bayview. Renovated. HVAC. Internet. 12’ ceiling. Parking. Minyan.

Kitchen. LIRR. First month: $999 CALL, TEXT, WhatsApp 516-206-1100 info@mbequitygroup.com

HELP WANTED Looking for someone for a busy Alterations/Design store in Cedarhurst Tuesday Wednesday Thursday mornings 11-2 alternate Sundays 12-5 Must have knowledge of garment construction contact: sheva.muller@gmail.com

Director of Operations - 5 Towns Director of Operations position available in a busy Five Towns office.

Flexible schedule. Basic Microsoft Office experience required. Please send resume and inquiries to 5tpositions@gmail.com CAHAL is seeking a highly motivated Rebbe for the 2022-23 year to teach a 1st grade class for students with special education learning challenges in the Five Towns.

The ideal candidate will have or be working towards a Masters in Special Education and have some prior teaching experience with young children. Call 516-295-3666 or send resume to shira@cahal.org.

MILKY FORST PROPERTIES

516-239-0306

CEDARHURST

OLD WOODMERE

OPEN HOUSE 12:00-1:30 • 500 HEMLOCK DR.

OPEN HOUSE 3:00-4:30 • 156 LEFFERTS AVE

Spacious Colonial Home with Water Views. Beautiful Open Entry. Luxurious Master Suite with Loo Closets and Bath Plus 4 Master Size Bdrms and Bath. FLR and FDN, Chefs EIK opens to Family Room with Fireplace. Plus Main Floor Guest Suite/Home office. Full Height Finished Basement, Playroom, Gym, Laundry and Low Taxes! $1.8M

Wide Line Expanded Ranch in Old Woodmere, with Flr/Fpl Fdnr Eik Magnificient Huge Main Level Den with Fpl and WetBar, Main Flr Masterbdrom with Bth and Walk in Closets +5 Bdrms and Room for More, Beautiful Lush Manicured Property on Most Prestigious Street $1.399M

LAWRENCE

Magnificent Waterfront Property with Breathtaking Panoramic Views in Prestigious Village of Lawrence Brick s/h col with 4+ Bdrms Spacious Entry, flr, fdnr, Beautiful Main Level den/fpl, eik study/Bdrm and mds rm full height finished basement with lots of storage space, this. house has endless potential. $2.45M

WOODSBURGH

REDU CED

Spacious s/h col,1/2 Acre Property in a Most Serene Setting, with Beautiful Waterviews, and Magnificent Sunsets . Flr Banquet fdnr, Brkfst rm Main Level Den/fpl, Master Bdrm Suite with his and her Closets and bth + 4 bdrms, new Bths, Newly Renovated finished Basement with Laundry rm, Playrm, lots of storage, many special details thruout. $1.999M

www.Milkyforstproperties.com

DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANT A multi-tasker needed for general office work. The ideal candidate is someone who is detail-oriented, responsible, and can take ownership.

Looking for someone who is eager to learn, and expand his/her skill set while possessing the ability to work independently and as part of a team.

Experience with Excel required. Five Towns location. In-office position only, not remote.

Please send resume to 5tpart.timecareer@gmail.com General Studies teaching positions for elementary grades available

BOOKKEEPER Excellent growth potential Frum environment Excellent salary & benefits Email resume to: resumetfs1@gmail.com 5 TOWNS BOYS YESHIVA SEEKING ELEM GEN ED TEACHERS Excellent working environment and pay. Only lic/exp need apply.

Email resume to yeshivalooking@gmail.com GROWING BACK OFFICE Accounting firm looking for experienced accountants and bookkeepers. Please email us at jobs@riveredgeadvisors.com or call 516-548-1622

Classifieds

99

HELP WANTED

HELP WANTED

HELP WANTED

MISC

A Yeshiva in Queens is looking for an experienced part/full time secretary, 2-year-old morah, kindergarten morah, kindergarten morah assistant and Pre-1A English teacher for the 2022-2023 school year. Nice andtimely pay. Please email resume to mshelt613@gmail.com or call/text 718-971-9799.

FAR ROCKAWAY BASED

MDS REGIONAL NURSE: 5 Towns area Nursing Home management office seeking a Regional/Corporate level MDS Nurse to work in our office.

Must be an RN. Regional experience preferred. 2-3 years MDS experience with good computer skills required.

Position is Full Time but Part Time can be considered.

Great Shomer Shabbos environment with some remote options as well.

Email: officejob2019@gmail.com

GEMACH ZICHRON YEHUDA In memory of R’ Yehuda Aryeh Leib ben R’ Yisroel Dov. We have a library of books on the subjects of loss, aveilus, grief, & kaddish. We have sets of ArtScroll Mishnayos to assist with finishing Shisha Sidrei Mishna for Shloshim or yahrtzeit. Locations in Brooklyn, Far Rockaway, & Lakewood.

Email: zichronyehuda@yahoo.com

BAIS YAAKOV ATERES MIRIAM Elementary school is seeking growth oriented, Preschool and Elementary teachers, for the coming school year.

Located in Far Rockaway. Professional and warm environment.

Please email resume to rhorowitz@baisyaakovam.org SHEVACH HIGH SCHOOL IN QUEENS seeks experienced General Studies teachers for English, Biology (Regents Prep), Gym, SAT Prep and Electives.

Part-time Limudei Kodesh positions available as well. Please send resume to office@shevachhs.org

Real Estate company looking for part time office manager. Duties include monitoring rent collections, organizing expenses, and dealing with the needs of individual properties, as well as assisting with tenant screening and expansion.

Afternoon hours, hourly pay.

Computer literacy required. Real estate experience preferred.

Email resume to office@ rockbeachgroup.com LOOKING FOR AN ENGLISH Speaking housekeeper/babysitter in Far Rockaway with experience

Reach Your Target Market

Classifieds

working in a kosher home. Primarily Weekends with more hours possible.

Please call 718-820-3108

­

DER T UN TRAC N CO

The HALB Lev Chana Early Childhood Program is looking for

Head and Assistant Teachers

133 Combs Ave, Woodmere

ST JU LD SO

36 Lafayette Pl, Woodmere

for the 2022-2023 school year.

Competitive salary and benefits.

If you are interested in joining our warm, fun, loving environment, please email resumes to: lzakutinsky@halb.org and morahfelecie@halb.org

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The Jewish Home | JULY 7, 2022

Your

Money

Crook on the Hook

By Allan Rolnick, CPA

F

ifty years ago, on June 17, a former CIA officer and four Cuban anti-communists carrying bugging devices found themselves handcuffed outside the Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C. What started out as “a third-rate burglary” morphed into “a cancer on the Presidency” and then a “long national nightmare” before President Richard Nixon finally resigned in disgrace two years later. Even now, Watergate is the gold standard of scandals.

Controversies don’t go prime time until someone sticks a “-gate” to the end of a word. Remember Bountygate? Deflategate? (There’s a word for it: gatesuffixing.)

Today, no one remembers Nixon without thinking of Watergate. But the breakin opened the door to a second controversy that would have cemented Nixon’s legacy as “Tricky Dick” all by itself. It started when the DNC sued the Watergate burglars for civil damages – and a deposition from that case tipped off a reporter to shenanigans with (you guessed it) Nixon’s taxes: • Politicians used to be able to claim charitable deductions for donating their official papers. But critics objected that the papers should be treated as public property. The Tax Reform Act of 1969

slashed the value of that deduction to the literal cost of the paper the documents were printed on. But Nixon claimed a $576,000 deduction for 1,176 boxes of papers he claimed he gave to the National Archives while Congress was debating the new rule.

• Also, in 1969, Nixon sold his New York apartment for a $143,000 gain. He

the first $1.25 million of his original purchase price applied to that land, and just $250,000 applied to the 9,000-squarefoot oceanview house and remaining 5.45 acres.

The whiff of scandal curdled into a stench when the Providence Journal-Bulletin revealed that for 71-1970, Nixon had paid just 1,670$ in tax on 525,326$ of

The whiff of scandal curdled into a stench when the Providence JournalBulletin revealed that for 1970-71, Nixon had paid just $1,670 in tax on $525,326 of income.

deferred tax by rolling the proceeds into a new $1.5 million “Western White House” in San Clemente, CA. However, that rule applied only when sellers rolled their gain into a new principal residence – and Nixon was clearly living in an eastern White House at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

• In 1970, Nixon sold 23 of those 27 acres in San Clemente for $1.25 million.

He claimed no gain on that sale, arguing

income. Three weeks later, he released his returns and asked the Joint Committee on Internal Revenue Taxation to audit them. That November, the embattled President stood before cameras at a press conference (at Disney World, of all places) to utter the defining words of his career: “I’m not a crook.” He wasn’t talking about Watergate at all; he was defending his taxes.

Five months later, the JCIRT heaved up a thousand-page report on the document donation, the apartment rollover, and San Clemente acreage. They recommended he cough up an extra $444,022 in tax, along with $32,409 in interest.

Interestingly, there’s no record that he actually paid a dime of it. And Gerald Ford’s “full and unconditional pardon” for any crimes Nixon might have committed while President meant he was off the hook for the taxes, too.

Three years after resigning, Nixon sat down with the British journalist David Frost to launder his reputation. During one interview, Nixon advised Frost to “make sure you pay your taxes. Otherwise, you can get in a lot of trouble.”

While no one thinks of Nixon as a role model, sometimes he told the truth. The good news is, a sound tax plan makes for less to pay. So call us when you’re tanned, rested, and ready to run, and we’ll make sure you’re ready for the Washington Post to start digging!

Allan J Rolnick is a CPA who has been in practice for over 30 years in Queens, NY. He welcomes your comments and can be reached at 718-896-8715 or at allanjrcpa@aol.com.

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Life C ach JULY 7, 2022 | The Jewish Home

Where Are You Heading?

By Rivki D. Rosenwald Esq., LMFT, CLC, SDS

M

y daughter always says that whenever I run out of topics to write about, I always resort to

food.

I say, What’s surprising about that?

Most people definitely turn to food a lot.

Upset? Food.

Bored? Food.

Anxious? Food.

Studying? Food.

Traveling? Food.

Entertaining? Food.

Should I keep going?!

Honestly, when don’t we resort to food?!

After all, food is fuel.

It feeds both body and mind. And

What else exists that has this level of absorption or distraction?

Well, let me give you a hint. It can depend on who you are.

There are the shoppers, for instance….

You know just who you are! You’re bored, anxious, need to study, etc. You either grab your pocketbook and you’re out the door, or easier yet, you’re on your computer and you know exactly just where to go to look for what you need or even what you don’t need!

That can keep you busy and absorbed for hours.

For others, it might be a good book.

I know you may feel like a fizzling-out breed but, for those who still enjoy reading or learning, this can do the trick.

It feeds both body and mind.

shows up in endless variety – tastes, colors, textures, and multiple levels of healthiness.

Food is so diverse and so multidimensional that it goes without argument that if everyone else can use it when they need something to do, why not me?!

But I’m going to use it in a unique way today. I’m going to give you food for thought.

Then there are those captivated by games or TV. This can certainly take you down a pretty slippery slope for hours.

And of course, there are those who just get stuck on the computer or social media.

The bottom line, though, is this: whenever you take your break from your activity, guess where you’re heading?

Sooner or later, we all wind up in front of

Rivki Rosenwald is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist working with both couples and individuals and is a certified relationship counselor. Rivki is a co-founder and creator of an effective Parent Management of Adolescent Years Program. She can be contacted at 917-7052004 or at rivkirosenwald@gmail.com.

the fridge or staring at the shelves in the pantry wondering what is that you’re in the mood for.

So here I am. I have been doing so

much reading and writing lately, that I just got here first.

And that’s why I’m waiting here at the food point already!

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ACHIEVED MY GOAL!

Short-Term Care | Long-Term Care | Hospice Care

“

I want to personally thank my primary therapists, Ronnie Sta.Teresa and Darren Gonzales, for the great job getting me to where I am today. When I started therapy in December, I had doubts that I would walk again. With their patience and effort, I achieved that goal. My gratitude to Ronnie and Darren and to the entire therapy staff. - ER, Queens

New modern look.

Same tradition of care.

• 85% Private Rooms • Separate Kitchens for Meat & Dairy (Cholov Yisroel | VHQ) • Full time Rabbi On-Staff • Special Shabbos & Holiday Meals • Beautiful Outdoor Gardens • Shabbos Elevator • Community Eruv

Unique to Margaret Tietz • Virtual Reality REAL Therapy System • Shabbos Minyanim • Full Holiday Schedule • Shabbos Hospitality Apartment

718-298-7806 • 164-11 Chapin Parkway, Jamaica Hills, NY 11432 • margarettietz.org/jewish