Volume 7, Number 9 High Holidays 2017
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Serving the Local New Orleans, Northshore, and Baton Rouge Jewish Communities
HAPPY NEW YEAR! The Jewish New Year at Home The central home ritual of Rosh Hashanah consists of a special festive meal. Since Jewish holidays begin at sunset, most home rituals related to Rosh Hashanah take place in the evening. The central home ritual of this holiday consists of a special festive meal, during which families use
their nicest china and place settings, much like on a Friday evening at the beginning of Shabbat. The holiday celebration begins with the lighting of candles (hadlakat nerot), symbolizing the transition from profane to sacred time, and the recitation of the blessing thanking God for enabling us to reach this season (Shehechiyanu). Next, one sanctifies the holiday by reciting the special Kiddush (blessing over wine) for Rosh Hashanah. It is a custom to ensure that all family members and guests are able to participate by holding and drinking from their own cup of
wine or grape juice. As with all other festivals, it is traditional to recite the Shehechiyanu prayer again after the Kiddush and before drinking. Before partaking of the meal, one recites hamotzi, the blessing over bread. This is also a feature of Friday night Shabbat meals in which this blessing is made over known and popular customs of Rosh Hashanah is to eat apples dipped in honey. Why? It is a tradition to eat a newly ripened fruit for the first time that season, and since Rosh Hashanah falls around the beginning of apple season, the apple has become that “first fruit.” This provides us
people to use a different newly ripened fruit of the season, such as pomegranates. This is a popular Rosh Hashanah fruit for several reasons, first because it is mentioned as being one of the native fruits of the land of Israel (see Deuteronomy 8:8), and second, because
challah, the traditional twisted egg loaves. However, because Rosh Hashanah celebrates the cyclical passage of time and the recurring progression of seasons and holidays, it is customary to make the blessing over round loaves of sweet raisin bread, symbolizing the circle of life and the revolving seasons. And because we want to ensure that the coming year will be a sweet one, filled with good and joyous experiences, the bread is sweetened by drizzling honey over the pieces of bread as one is about to eat. To express the hope that it will be a sweet year, one of the most well- with the opportunity to recite the blessings both over the apple (bore pri ha’etz: who creates the fruit of the tree) as well as another shehecheyanu. And then, before eating the fruit dipped in honey, we ask God “to renew this year for us with sweetness and happiness.” After the meal, one recites the birkat hamazon, the “grace after meals,” including all the special additions marking the festival of Rosh Hashanah. Since Rosh Hashanah is a two-day festival, all of the above rituals are repeated the second evening as well, except that there is a tradition among some
there is a tradition that there are 613 of the juicy sweet seeds in each fruit, which corresponds to the number of commandments in the Torah. When eating a pomegranate, it is not necessary to dip it in honey since its seeds are sweet enough by themselves. A festive meal with Kiddush over wine and hamotzi over round loaves of raisin bread can also be enjoyed for lunch each day of Rosh Hashanah. At this time of year, one greets one’s friends and family with the greeting “Shanah Tovah,” which means “(May you enjoy) a good new year.”ì
Community News Monday, September 18 1:30 - 3:00PM New Orleans JCC - Uptown
JCC Book Club
Typically meeting the third Tuesday of each month at 1:30 PM, the JCC Book Club offers engaging and insightful discussions in a laid back environment. All are welcome. JCC Book Club is free and open to the community. JCC Book Club will review the book Rav Hisda's Daughter, by Maggie Anton. No charge members and nonmembers. Books are available for purchase at Octavia Books.
For more information, or to RSVP, contact Judy Yaillen, Director of Jewish Family Life, at 504.897.0143 judy@nojcc.org ì Monday, September 18 3:00 - 8:00PM Special Children's Activity 4:00 - 6:00PM In the breezeway @ Whole Foods, Corner of Magazine and Arabella St. ocation
Kosher Day Fall 2017
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Sunday, September 24 Breakfast at 9:15 am Talk at 9:45 am Congregation Gates of Prayer
Sunday Morning Health Program and Bagels & Lox Breakfast
Dr. Michael Wasserman Suggested breakfast donation: $5 For parents, grandparents and all who care about kids’ health! Dr. Michael F. Wasserman is a pediatrician with 40 years of medical service, and with 26 years experience at the Ochsner Clinic Foundation in New Orleans. A native New Orleanian, he received his degrees from Cornell and Tulane University School of Medicine and completed a pediatric residency at Vanderbilt University Hospital and Tulane Affiliated Hospitals. Dr. Wasserman is board certified in Pediatrics and is a member of numerous professional societies. Trained as a general pediatrician, his areas of special interest include middle ear disease, asthma, and childhood obesity. Dr. Wasserman has been on WWL TV’s Morning News Show for 15 years, answering viewer questions about their children’s health.ì Sunday, September 24 Congregation Gates of Prayer
Meet And Welcome: Lexi Erdheim Wednesday, September 20 Chabad Jewish Center of Suburban New Orleans 4141 West Esplanade Ave. Metairie, LA 70002 504-454-2910
Rosh Hashanah Community Dinner
Join with family and friends for a traditional & delicious Rosh Hashanah community dinner. Make a sweet start to the new year with apples & honey, round Challot and a full course catered Yom Tov holiday meal!
The Dinner will take place on Rosh Hashanah Eve, Wednesday, September 20 immediately following services. (approx 7:45pm) Please RSVP by Sunday, September 17 ì 2
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Congregation Gates of Prayer is pleased to welcome Lexi Erdheim asour Oscar J. Tolmas 20-30s Outreach Professional. Lexi is a 4th year rabbinical student at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Los Angeles. She is also pursuing her Masters Degree in NonProfit Management. A native of New Jersey, she has developed a love of the Jewish South during her two summers leading education and worship at the Henry S. Jacobs Camp. She will be coming to New Orleans monthly. In addition to conducting Tribe Shabbat services throughout the community, she will also be working with 20-30s singles, couples, with and without children within the congregation during her monthly visits. Come to the Brotherhood Program
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with Dr. Mike Wasserman, then spend time with Lexi to formulate possible activities for the year, which respond to your needs.ì
As is our custom, we will escort the new Torah with music and fanfare to the shul followed by a dedication ceremony and light dinner.ì
Tuesday, September 26, 5:30PM Chabad Jewish Center 4141 W. Esplanade Ave. Metairie, LA 70002
New Torah Dedication
Monday, October 16, 2017 11:30AM – Cash Bar 12 Noon – Luncheon New Orleans Marriott 555 Canal Street New Orleans
Join us for a joyous dedication of our new Torah! *Torah Completion *Chupah Escort *Music & Dancing *Hahafot *Buffet Dinner Torah dedication opportunities We are excited about the Sefer Torah being completed in honor of the children in our New Orleans Jewish Community. Since the mitzvah of writing a Sefer Torah is something that not everyone can personally fulfill, it is customary to share this mitzvah by offering opportunities to participate on this great occasion in many meaningful ways. This is also an opportunity to honor someone by donating in their name.
National Council of Jewish Women, Greater New Orleans Section is pleased to announce Kim Sport as the recipient of the 2017 Hannah G. Solomon Award. Join us for the 2017 Hannah G. Solomon Award Luncheon Honoring Kim Sport. Please send your reservation payable to NCJW, GNO by October 6, 2017 to: Kathy Shepard, 3311 State Street Drive, New Orleans, LA 70125. $65 per person. Reserved tables for 8 to 10 people. Valet parking available at $17 special event rate.ì
NCJW Announces 2017 Hannah G. Solomon Award
Table of Contents Community News
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Chai Lights
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Holiday Features
7
Education
11
Bookshelf
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Sports
15
Entertainment
16
Southern & Jewish
17
The Nosher
18
Focus on Issues
21
National
22
Kveller
23
Jewniverse (Jewish Culture & History)
24
Israel Under Radar
25
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Community News
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Jewish Family Service of Greater New Orleans Fall 2017 Groups
LGBTQ Adults with Anxiety
sions will be held at JFS on Tuesdays, September 5 - October 10, 4:00pm -5:30pm. Total cost is $60 per person.
A support group for adults in the Girl Power LGBTQ community seeking a safe, supportive environment to explore their anxiety. Six sessions will be held at JFS on Wednesdays, August A confidential support group for 23 – September 27, 4:30pm - 6:00pm. girls ages 8 - 13 who want to Total cost is $50 per person. increase their self-confidence, learn Playful Parenting to cope with stress, and improve their social skills. Six sessions will be held at the Goldring-Woldenberg Jewish Community Center on Mondays, September 11 - October 16, An interactive seminar for par- 3:30pm - 5:00pm. Total cost is ents and caregivers of children ages $240 per person. 3-10 who want to learn play therapy Parenting LGBTQ techniques to improve their childparent relationship. Eight sessions will be held at JFS on Tuesdays, September 5 -October 24, 4:30pm Teens An educational support - 6:00pm. Total cost is $280 per group for parents looking to gain couple or individual. support and insight about their Caregiver Support Group teens in the LGBTQ community. Six sessions will be held at JFS on Wednesdays, October 4- November 8, 4:30pm -6:00pm. Total cost A support group for family memis $50 per couple or individual. bers, partners, and other caregivers For more information call 504to explore the stresses, challenges, 831-8475 or visit www.jfsneworand rewards of caregiving. Six sesleans.org ì
If your group has an event that you would like for us to include on the Community Calendar please e-mail the information to jewishnews@bellsouth.net. All submissions are subject to acceptance by the Editor. ì
Inspiring Jewish Pride and Identity and Jewish Children - the Future of Judaism.
IMAGINE! Imagine a Hebrew School where kids don’t want to miss a day! They come in with a smile and leave humming the tune to a Hebrew song. Imagine a child who feels the warmth and spirit of Judaism… and then imagine the pride of his parents! At Chabad Hebrew School, we offer a stimulating yet friendly environment where children embrace their Jewish roots and gain a true sense of Jewish pride, no matter their level of observance or affiliation. Children, ages five through ten, acquire a broad knowledge of Juda-
JEWCCY CALENDAR Welcome back! We’ve got plenty of fun events planned for this month:
Saturday, September 16 11:30AM - 1:30PM Danneel Park (on Octavia St. and Danneel St.) JewCCY Juice Picnic in the Park Open to 1st - 5th graders and their parents/guardians. Please RSVP to jewccy@gmail. com with attendee names, grades, and dietary restrictions. Thursday, September 21 3:30PM - 5:00PM Morning Call coffee stand in City Park Tashlich and Beignets Open to 6th - 12th graders We will meet at the Morning Call coffee stand in City Park from 3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. for a youth community Tashlich event that will also THE
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include beignets and coffee. The event fee is $5. Please RSVP to jewccy@gmail. com with attendee names, ages, and dietary restrictions.
ism through a motivating and challenging venue. Our students gain an appreciation for the joys, values and traditions of our heritage as it is vividly brought to life by the dedicated and enthusiastic teachers whose creativity and dynamism make every lesson a unique learning experience. At Chabad our goal is simple: We want our students to view Judaism in an intelligent, relevant and upbeat light. By year's end, along with the Aleph-Bet, Holiday learning and Hebrew literacy, your child will have developed a deep love and appreciation for their precious heritage, imbuing their every day with a sense of pride and purpose. * Our student body is made up of children from various backgrounds and levels of religious awareness. This allows for a fascinating and interesting learning environment for all. Don't take our word for it; come in and see our school in action! 4141 West Esplanade Avenue, Metairie, LA 70002 504-454-2910ì
Saturday, September 30 2:00pm - 3:30pm Audubon Park Pickle Your Sins Away Open to 6th - 12th graders We will meet in Audubon Park for a teenled program and conversation relating to the significance of Yom Kippur, while we make our very own pickles. Look for an email from jewccy@gmail.com with further info. Please RSVP to jewccy@gmail.com with attendee names and grades. For further info on any JewCCY events, contact Charlie Cox at jewccy@gmail.com.ì www.thejewishlight.org
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Community News
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Touro Synagogue
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ELECTION DAY IS SATURDAY, OCTOBER 14 Early Voting is Available September 30 – October 7 “As a Civil District Court Judge for over a decade, I have worked hard to ensure all litigants receive a fair and timely day in court. I humbly ask for your support as I continue my pursuit to work for equity, respect and justice for all who come before the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeal.” – JUDGE TIFFANY CHASE
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You are cordially invited to join us for lunch after Rosh Hashanah Morning Service on Thursday, September 21 in the Jacobs Social Hall Open to All - $20 adults / $10 children RSVP online www.tourosynag o g u e . c o m / ro s h - h a s h a n a h luncheon.ì September 30 Bowsky Garden Break-The-Fast Reception All are welcome to join us for a light break-the-fast in the Bowksy Garden following the Neilah Concluding Service on September 30. The Break-the-fast is generously underwritten by a gift made by the Sisterhood to Touro Synagogue’s Foundation.ì Selichot Evening Saturday, September 16 5:00 Film Viewing and Discussion 7:15 Dinner 8:00 Contemplative Selichot Service-Music & Reflections
Taking care of each other is what
Touro Synagogue From Slave To Criminal With One Amendment
community
is all about.
A proud member of the Dignity Memorial network new orleans
504-486-6331 LakeLawnMetairie.com High Holidays 2017
critically acclaimed documentary, 13th. The title of DuVernay’s documentary refers to the 13th Amendment of the US Constitution, which reads “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States…” The progression from that second qualifying clause to the current rate of mass criminalization and the state of the American prison industry is easily and articulately laid out by DuVernay, with a host of featured guests throughout the film. Mark your calendars and plan to join us for this important conversation. RSVP to info@tourosynagogue. com.ì Friday, October 6 Tuesday, October 10 Wednesday, October 11 Touro Synagogue Sukkot at Touro Join Us For Lunch In The Sukkah Come be with our clergy for a lovely lunch in our congregational sukkah, hand built by Touro Synagogue members. Bring yourself and a brown bag lunch, and we’ll provide drinks and a gorgeous courtyard sukkah on these fall days. Join us for one, or all three – we’d love to be with you! Friday, October 6 Lunch with Rabbi Silverman 12 - 1 PM Tuesday, October 10 Lunch with Rabbi Berk 12 - 1 PM Wednesday, October 11 Lunch with Rabbi Pinsky 12 - 1 PM ì Friday, October 6 Touro Synagogue Shabbat Sukkah
We’re proud to serve our community with personal, compassionate care.
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Touro Synagogue Presents: From Slave To Criminal With One Amendment A Mirror Of Conversation And Contemplation With The Documentary Film 13th. Please join us for a screening and discussion surrounding Ava DuVernay’s Oscar-nominated and www.thejewishlight.org
Touro Synagogue Presents: Shabbat Sukkah: Vintage Wines & Harvest Moon Join us for an elegant Shabbat dinner after Services in our courtyard in celebration of Sukkot! ScrumpTHE
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tious food, delicious wines and great company – under the twinkling white lights in the trees of our Bowsky Garden. Bring a bottle of your favorite wine to share!ì Wed., October 11, 2017 At Danneel Park and Octavia Streets Simchat Torah
Join us at Danneel Park for a Simchat Torah picnic and a community celebration, as we lift our voices in song, hear the chanting of the Torah and dance into the evening with the Panorama Jazz Band! Bring your favorite snacks and drinks; Load up your blankets and chairs; On-site restroom will be provided. 5:15PM – Picnic Together Picnic; Bring your favorite dinner to share and enjoy – whatever you fancy! 5:45PM – Dance with Panorama Jazz Band. Hold the Torah; join
Temple Sinai September 16 at 6:00PM Temple Sinai Selichot Movie & Discussion Join us for a special movie screening of The Music of Strangers: Yo-Yo- Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble on Selichot on Saturday, September 16 at 6:00 p.m. Created by Oscar-award-winning filmmakers, The Music of Strangers follows the creation, performances, and journey of a collective of singers, composers, instrumentalists, and visual artists from a wide array of Eurasian traditions. The screening will include dinner and discussion. A Selichot service will follow at 8:00 p.m. ì
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in the celebration! 6:15PM – Torah Unroll. Hear the whole Torah in fifteen minutes! Special stories and interpretations with your Rabbis. 6:45PM – Games and fun! Bring your footballs and frisbees! In case of inclement weather, the celebration will move back to Touro Synagogue -- indoor picnic and all! ì Thursday, October 12 10:30AM Forgotston Chapel Simchat Torah Festival Service with Yizkor The Torah instructs us to set the first and last days of our festivals apart to make them special and holy. Touro Synagogue will hold festival morning worship services, which will be a beautiful way to set our festivals of Simchat Torah, Passover, and Shavuot apart from other days. To have the name of your loved one read at Yizkor services, please call the office and speak to Donna.ì
MazelTov
ChaiLights features announcements of births, B'nai Mitzvahs, engagements, weddings, and honors. To request your special event be published in The Jewish Light send your material to United Media Corp., P.O. Box 3270, Covington, LA 70435 or e-mail jewishnews@bellsouth.net. Events are published on a first come, first served basis, as space permits. Photographs are welcom; professional ones preferred. The must be clear and in focus. ì
Gates of Prayer
Mazel Tov to... Jeff & Kay Lahasky on the birth of their daughter, Eliana Grace.
Beth Israel
Mazel Tov to... Alex & Julie Steinhaus on the birth of a baby boy! Parents Brittany & Efraim Prero, big sister Daliha, grandparents Pam (Blotner) & Stuart Thomas and great grandparents Joe & Lee Blotner on the birth of Sarah Rayzel Prero.
Touro Synagogue
Mazel Tov to... Randy Roig on being presented the 2016-2017 Outstanding Mentor Award by the LSU School of Medicine Faculty Assembly Karen and Lance Turkish on the birth of their granddaughter Harper Sloan Brinn and to great grandmother Harriet Stern. Jenny Katz and Greg Nichols on the birth of their daughter Emma Ruth Nichols. Kimberly and Aaron Novod on the birth of their daughter Josephine Viola Novod. Lisa and Adam Horwitz on the birth of their son Logan Joseph Horwitz and to big sister Maja Horwitz.
Temple Sinai
Mazel Tov to... Craig Baum and Sarah Marshall on their recent wedding. Mazel tov as well to Craig’s parents Dr. Neil and Linda Baum, and grandmother Charlotte Gottesman. Dr. Neil Baum for being the guest speaker at the August meeting of the Kiwanis Club of Algiers, an organization dedicated to helping children in need. The following members for being honored at the 104th Annual Meeting
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of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans and the Jewish Endowment Foundation of Louisiana: • Joan Berenson (Roger Bissinger Award) • John Haspel and Lisa Heller (Anne Goldsmith Hanaw & J. Jerome Hanaw Tikkn Olam Award for Campaign Excellence) • Ashley Merlin Gold (Herbert J. & Margot Garon Young Leadership Award) Mitch Klein, co-founder of Patent-Dive, for Patent-Dive receiving investor financing for the development of its patent registering software. Elizabeth Mauldin Lowenburg and Jeremy David Woodcock on their recent wedding. Mazel tov as well to Elizabeth’s parents Harry Lowenburg and Jane Mauldin, and to Elizabeth’s grandmother Anne Lowenburg. Leann Opotowsky Moses for being selected as a Young Leadership Council (YLC) Role Model. Valorie Polmer for earning an M.A. in Art and Design Education from Vermont College of Fine Arts. Karoline Schleh for being honored for her artwork at the New Orleans Museum of Art’s Love in the Garden event. Harel G. Schwartzberg for graduating magna cum laude from LSU. Harel will attend LSU Medical School in New Orleans. Mazel tov as well to his grandparents Harvey and Betty Schwartzberg. Clint and Stephanie Simoneaux on the birth of their son Tyler Joseph Si-moneaux. Mazel tov as well to Tyler’s grandparents Stephen and Veron Bernstein. Marcus St. Julien for becoming the subdean of the New Orleans Chapter of the American Guild of Organists.ì
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Life Cycle
(CONDOLENCES)
Gates of Prayer
Touro Synagogue
CONDOLENCES IN MEMORIAM To Susan Green on the death of Judy Agular cousin of Randal her father, Billie Hammond. Pick and Lisa Conescu To Dee Dee Dulitz on the death of Sylvia Berman Rosenberg, her brother, Robert Alan Polunsky mother of Leona Stich Father John C. Arnone IN MEMORIAM Deborah Cotton Leonard Kancher
Temple Sinai
IN MEMORIAM Fleurette Koltun, wife of the late Allen B. Koltun and the mother of Douglas (Elia) Koltun, Fran Avette, and the late Lawrence Koltun Julie Nowak, grandmother of Michael Singer Rowan Smith Spanier, daughter of Wayne and Karen Spanier, and niece of Barry and Janet Spanier
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Hug a Chicken and 4 Other Twists on Traditional High Holidays Rituals By Ben Sales NEW YORK (JTA) -- Picture services for the High Holidays: A roomful of congregants sitting with heavy books in their laps listening to a rabbi sermonize or a cantor chant is what likely comes to mind. Baking pizza? Embracing a chicken under a tree? Not so much. Sarah Chandler leads a twist on the kapparot ritual in which participants hug chickens rather than swinging them over their heads. (Courtesy of Chandler)
(JTA) But those are some of the things that Jewish clergy, educators and activists want Jews to do during their holiest days of the year. Aside from attending synagogue or dipping apples in honey, the extensive body of High Holidays traditions includes rituals that are participatory, intricate and even acrobatic -- but also obscure, inaccessible and sometimes distasteful. In recent years, Jewish educators have tried to reclaim these rituals -- changing and innovating them to be more engaging, understandable and relevant. Here are five ways Jews are getting creative with the High Holidays this year. 1) To merit forgiveness, hug a chicken. If you walk into a haredi Orthodox neighborhood the day before Yom Kippur, don’t be surprised to see men swinging live chickens above their heads. The ritual, called kapparot, aims to symbolically transfer a person’s sins onto the chicken, who then is donated to the poor and slaughtered for food. Some observant Jews, unable or unwilling to gain possession of a live chicken, now swing money over their heads that then goes to charity. Others have taken to protesting communities that still use chickens. But at the Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center, Sarah Chandler has a different response: Instead of grabbing the chicken and whipping it through the air, just give it a hug. Chandler, who was ordained as a Hebrew priestess at the Kohenet Institute and also goes by Kohenet Shamira, will take a group to the center’s chicken coop on the Sunday before Yom Kippur and begin THE
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to recite the kapparot prayers. Then, if the chickens agree, the assembled will take them, retreat to a shaded area and individually embrace them while completing the prayers, confessing their sins or meditating. At the end of the ritual, the worshippers will simply let the chickens walk free. Although Chandler is a vegan, she appreciates the parts of ancient Jewish rituals that involve connecting to animals. This version of kapparot, she said, strengthens the relationships between people and animals while causing the animals no harm. “How can we include these chickens in our Jewish life?” she asks. “I want the ritual to be so embraced that people really really believe that this chicken, and this moment looking into the chicken’s eyes, will help them be written in the Book of Life.” 2) The crowdsourced confession Every year on Yom Kippur, no matter where he's lived, David Zvi Kalman has joined other congregants at synagogue in standing through a long list of communal sins recited by the entire congregation. The confessional prayers, known as the Viddui (Hebrew for confession) each begin “For the sin we have sinned before you …” The laundry list of transgressions, covering everything from eating impure foods to berating a friend, is a central piece of the day’s liturgy and is repeated eight times. Worshippers are supposed to gently beat their chests at each line. Kalman had trouble identifying with the prayers, finding the confessions to be overly general and prescriptive. They're the sins the liturgy says you should feel sorry for, not necessarily the ones you actually committed. So in 2013, he created AtoneNet, a bare-bones Tumblr where people can anonymously post the sins they would like to confess and receive forgiveness for. While the response rate has tapered off in the four years since it launched, the past couple of weeks have seen a fresh batch of See CHICKEN on Page
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Figuring out What Shemini Atzeret Is. Finally. By Carla Naumburg
Shemini Atzeret is a day to take it easy near the end of Sukkot. (Pexels)
(Kveller via JTA) -- I know something about most Jewish holidays. I can tell you that Hanukkah is about miracles, Passover is about slavery and freedom, and Shavuot is about cheesecake. (I have no idea why, but when it comes to matters of cheesecake, it is not mine to question.) The one holiday that has baffled me for years is Shemini Atzeret. I can’t remember the first time I became aware of it, and to be honest, I didn’t care much about it until last year when my older daughter started attending Jewish day school. I understood why we needed two days off for Rosh Hashanah and to get out of school early on the day before Yom Kippur. I was even
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willing to accept the two days off at the beginning and the end of Sukkot and Passover. But Shemini Atzeret? What exactly is this holiday, and why does it merit yet another day off from school, another day in which I have to scramble for child care in hopes of getting a little work done while feeling guilty for not spending the day with my girls? I started asking around, and I heard a variety of fairly uninspiring responses, most of them about Shemini Atzeret being the eighth day of the seven-day holiday of Sukkot. I didn’t buy it. Judaism is all about narratives and meaning and symbolism. I just couldn’t believe that we would have a holiday that was nothing more than an extra day. A little online research gave me some more information about the holiday, all of which was helpful but not entirely clear. Shemini Atzeret is clearly connected to Sukkot ("shemini" means “eighth” in Hebrew), but according to the Talmud, it is also its own independent holiday. In the Diaspora, a second day is added to all Jewish holidays
except Yom Kippur, so Shemini Atzeret coincides with the eighth day of Sukkot everywhere except Israel. In Israel, Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah fall on the same day. In the Diaspora, Simchat Torah is celebrated on the day after Shemini Atzeret. You follow? I also learned there are a few ways in which Shemini Atzeret is different from Sukkot, several of which are related to the ancient Temple service and no longer relevant. The other ones have to do with subtle differences in the liturgy, such as saying the Shehechiyanu, reciting the prayer for rain for the first time in the season and saying the Yizkor prayers. Other than that, there are no specific rituals or objects mentioned other than avoiding work. And that’s where it gets interesting. Most Jewish holidays have a fairly clear reason for their existence (commemoration of a historical event, redemption, etc.) and a fairly clear set of activities we’re supposed to engage in to honor the holiday (eat matzah, light the menorah, etc.). Shemini Atzeret doesn’t
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have any of these. What it does have is a word — "atzeret" —which many people define as “assembly,” although as Rabbi Paul Steinberg notes, “The inherent problem is that no one really knows exactly what atzeret means.” It is possible it comes from the Hebrew "atzar," which has been variously translated as to stop, to pause, to hold back or to keep in. The midrash basically says that Shemini Atzeret is like God’s afterparty with the Jewish people. We’ve just been through the World Series of Jewish holidays, and we were seriously busy. We were eating too much, not eating at all, praying our little tushies off, building our sukkahs and then welcoming everyone in town to come dine with us. There are so many messages, so many ideas, so many lessons and learnings that happen through all of this — about gratitude and blessings and the errors of our ways and the joys of redemption and the transitory nature of life and the importance of welcoming neighbors, all See SHEMINI ATZERET on Page
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Yom Kippur Is a Reminder of the Awesome, and Awful, Power of Words By Joyce Newmark (JTA) -- For nearly 50 years, my father had a best friend named Al. They grew up in the same neighborhood in Brooklyn, and after returning from the service in World War II, they each married and moved to the same Long Island town and opened related businesses. They were closer than brothers. In fact, when my brother and I were growing up, our parents’ wills named Al and his wife, rather than any relatives, as the people who would become our guardians should that become necessary. Even after my parents moved to Nevada, the two couples remained close, speaking on the phone every week or so and visiting back and forth every couple of years. Almost 40 years ago, Al’s daughter was getting married and my parents were planning to travel to New York for the wedding. One day, the two couples were on the phone talking about the wedding. My mother had recently undergone foot surgery and was walking around in ugly post-surgery shoes. “I may have to wear blue jeans and sneakers, but we’ll be there,” she told Al's wife. The response: “But the wedding is formal!” My mother was hurt. She thought the only proper response to her statement was, “We don’t care what you’re wearing, we just want you to be there.” Al’s wife was hurt, too. She felt that my mother had to know how stressed she was trying to plan the perfect wedding and shouldn’t have teased her. Neither would apologize. The phone calls became less frequent and my parents began saying that traveling to New York would be expensive and uncomfortable -and in early September it would be hot and humid. They decided not to attend the wedding. Nine months later Al was dead of lung cancer and my father finally flew to New York to be a pallbearer at the funeral. Like many men of his generation, my father wasn’t one to talk about his feelings, but from the day Al died he insisted that when you were invited to a simcha you must go, no matter the circumstances. Still, it was too late to repair what had been broken. THE
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All this hurt resulted because no one involved could take back a few unthinking words spoken in haste. The power of words has a very real, almost physical presence on Yom Kippur. Look at the list of "al chets," or confessions, that we recite again and again on this day. We confess our sins of using foul language, speaking falsehoods, idle chatter, slander, disrespecting our parents and teachers, and spreading gossip. On and on; perhaps half the sins we confess are sins of speech. Why? Because, despite our communal confessions on Yom Kippur, most of us are not thieves or doers of violence. We are not evil people, but sins of words are easy to commit. We do it every day. That’s why at the end of every Amidah we recite the prayer of Mar, son of Ravina, “My God, keep my tongue from evil, my lips from lies,” rather than praying “God, help me not to steal, help me not to murder.” The truth is, you can never take back words, you can’t go back to the time before the words were spoken. There's a story about a man in a small village in Eastern Europe who didn’t like the rabbi. No one knew why he didn’t like the rabbi; perhaps even he didn’t know. But there was no doubt that he didn’t like the rabbi. So, no matter what the rabbi did, this man had something nasty to say about it -- often, and to whomever would listen. One year, as the High Holidays approached, the man realized that his nasty gossip was a terrible sin, so he went to the rabbi’s office to ask for forgiveness. The rabbi said, “Of course I’ll forgive you, but first you must do something for me. Go home, take your fattest pillow up to the roof, open it up, and shake it out.” The man thought this was odd, but he did as he was asked. It was a windy day and the feathers from the pillow were blown in every direction. He returned to the rabbi and asked again for forgiveness. The rabbi replied, “There’s one more thing. First you have to pick up all the feathers.” Like feathers turned loose, words have a life of their own. You can’t take them back and pretend they were never said because words have power. “Taking back” only happens in children’s games. You can’t forget, but you can
forgive. The Torah tells us that the first luhot, the tablets of the Ten Commandments that Moses shattered after the sin of the Golden Calf, were made by God. The second luhot, given after Moses persuaded God not to destroy the Israelites, were made by Moses. God said to Moses, “Carve out two stone tablets like the first ones.” The new ones would not be the same because the people’s sin could not be undone or forgotten, but God could forgive them Rabbinic tradition holds that the second tablets were given on Yom Kippur as a sign that God forgives and that people must forgive. Forgive doesn’t mean forget, but it is possible to gather the broken pieces and build a new relationship. The rabbis teach that both the second set of tablets and the broken pieces of the first were placed together in the Holy Ark. Why? To teach us that just as the second tablets could be broken as easily as the first, relationships are fragile, so we must guard our tongues. Moreover, even if a break occurs, the relationship can be repaired. It won’t be exactly the same, but a break should not be permitted to last forever. And most important, the time to do something about broken relationships is now and not next year or someday. Nothing is more precious than love and friendship. Because words have power, not
only to hurt but to heal. (Rabbi Joyce Newmark of Teaneck, New Jersey, is a former religious leader of congregations in Leonia, New Jersey, and Lancaster, Pennsylvania.)ì
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Simchat Torah Doesn't Have to Be a 'Men's Holiday' By Sarah Rudolph (Kveller via JTA) -- There seems to be a widespread misconception in the Orthodox world that the upcoming holiday of Simchat Torah is a “men’s holiday.” I can understand the confusion, stemming from what we celebrate and how we celebrate it. Simchat Torah has evolved as a celebration of the annual cycle of weekly Torah readings —readings that in Orthodox shuls occur purely on the men’s side of the mechitza, or divider.
And we celebrate it by taking all the Torah scrolls out of the ark — also on the men’s side — and dancing seven circuits, or hakafos, with them. There is much joyful singing, generally in a masculine timbre, and the dancing men take turns holding the heavy scrolls. With so much action naturally taking place on the other side, I can understand — sort of — why things tend to be much less lively on my side of the mechitza. Depending on
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the community, the women might dance, but it is rarely as exuberant, as populated or as sustained as the men’s dancing. My childhood memories of the holiday involve a core group of women who enjoyed dancing and would try to get things going, while most of the women might join for a few minutes in between their primary activities of chatting, chasing sugared-up children (did I mention excessive candy often plays a role in the celebrations?) and watching the men. From what I have experienced and heard since, my shul was fairly typical, though in many places the women don’t dance at all — or even show up. My husband likes to tell of the girl he once dated who was surprised at the suggestion that she might go to shul on Simchat Torah. “Why would I go?” she asked. “I have no one to watch!” For her, I think, it was accepted as a matter of course that dancing on Simchat Torah is what men do, and she wouldn’t have ever imagined that she could — or should — have a part in it. For others, the questions around women and Simchat Torah are more fraught — and many focus on the Torah scrolls themselves, arguing that if the women can’t dance with a Torah, then they feel excluded, like their dancing is pointless. Indeed, in more recent years, as this sort of discomfort with gender disparities has increased, many rabbis have concluded that there is no real halachic problem with a woman carrying a Torah scroll, and in some shuls a scroll or two will be passed to the women’s side for the dancing. This is the part where I have a harder time understanding. So often I hear some version of either, “My rabbi lets the women have a Torah, so the women’s dancing is nice,” or “The women in my shul don’t have a Torah, so it’s lame; they just stand around talking and watching the men dance.” It is really easy to blame the men and the rabbis. It is really easy to say, “If only we were granted equal rights and could dance with a Torah scroll, we would dance and celebrate, too.” It is really easy to say, “I’m not going to shul if the women are just going to sit around schmoozing and watching the men. It’s a men’s holiday; I don’t feel a part of it.” It’s really easy to say those
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things, but if I may be frank, I think it’s all baloney. We have an equal right to Torah. I’m not talking about holding the scroll; that, to my mind, is secondary. The real point is that we have an equal right to rejoice in our sacred heritage. Nobody is making us chat; ultimately, no one is stopping us from dancing. If it’s a men’s holiday, that is because we let it be. We can unite and take back Simchat Torah. We can choose to dance. And we don’t need a scroll to do it. What are we dancing for, after all? On Simchat Torah, I dance for the concept of Torah, not the object. I dance for myself and my love of Torah study. I dance for the joy of the completed cycle of reading, and I dance for the joy of beginning all over again. I dance because I will shortly have tears in my eyes, like I do every year, as I listen to the account of Moses’ death in the last few verses of the Torah. I dance because I will shortly be awed, as I am every year, when we begin again and read, “And it was evening, and it was morning, one day.” The very beginning of everything; something, where there had been nothing. I, too, can make something from nothing, in my own little way. I can walk into a women’s section full of schmoozing women and wild kids, grab some hands and create a circle of joy. I can rejoice in Torah, and nothing — no object or lack of it, no mechitza, no rows of chairs presenting a logistical challenge — will stop me. I only hope, this year, the other women on my side get up and dance, too. (Sarah Rudolph lives in Cleveland with her family. She has been teaching Jewish text studies for over 10 years to students ranging from elementary school to retirement age.)ì THE
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Education
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This Jewish Pre-College Program Uses Coding and Cooking to Build Jewish Identity By Ira Stoll
Students work on bench skills in the lab during the Genesis science course. (Ty Ueda)
WALTHAM, Mass. — Mary Pridgen is an innovation-minded teenager who doesn’t like to waste time. Volunteering in politics in Biloxi, Mississippi, Pridgen long had been vexed by a recurring problem: how to diplomatically extricate herself from meetings with long-winded people. So when she arrived at the Brandeis campus this summer for the technology track of a pre-college summer program focused on experiential learning and Jewish community, Pridgen came up with a solution: She designed a pair of shoes that generates a call to your cellphone when you click the heels together, giving you an excuse to leave. It was one of the things that Pridgen, 15, said she loved about the Genesis program, which draws high school students from around the world for two- or four-week minicourses ranging from culinary art and anthropology to science and social entrepreneurship – all with a Jewish lens. Another reason Pridgen enjoyed her time at Brandeis, she said, was because there are “not a lot of Jewish people in Mississippi, but there are a lot of Jewish people here.” (I wanted to continue my conversation with Pridgen, but I was worried her phone was going to ring.) Experts in the field teach the courses. The wearable technology laboratory track was led by Russel Neiss, a software engineer at the Jewish text website Sefaria. Many of the program participants arrived with no coding experience, he said, and in the space of two weeks learned the skills to complete projects like the shoes or a “fairy dress” that lights up when it moves. THE
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“It’s sort of a magical thing,” Neiss said. The wide range of participants — North Americans, Israelis and Russians, from a smattering of nonJews to Orthodox Jews and everything in between — means that students are practically guaranteed to be living, eating and “figuring out how to work with people who are radically different,” said Rabbi Charlie Schwartz, the Genesis program’s director and one of Brandeis’ Jewish chaplains. With about 40 percent of participants from overseas, the conversations that the students have with each other often are radically different from what they are used to at home, he noted. “Each course integrates Jewish content in some way,” Schwartz said. “On the theater track, participants studied a Jewish text through the lens of an artistic medium. This year it was the Book of Jonah. On our gender and sexuality track, participants talked with each about not just how gender is constructed in society, but also in Jewish tradition. We place a big emphasis on building pluralistic, dynamic communities.” This summer, about 30 percent of the program’s participants were of Russian extraction, including students who came from Moscow, Kiev, North America and Israel. They collaborated with peers from Israel and North America in building and programming wearable technology – or, in the culinary art and anthropology track, debating whether latkes or hamentaschen are the quintessential Jewish food. One student argued not just in favor of latkes, but a particular kind of potato pancake: “Belarussian draniki” of the sort her family eats with sour cream and milk every Sunday morning. Making her case, she and her teammates noted that latkes have more Google search results than hamentaschen and a longer entry in Gil Marks’ Encyclopedia of Jewish Food, and that Hanukkah is more widely celebrated than Purim. The latke, unlike See PRE-COLLEGE on Page
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5 New Kids' Books for the High Holidays By Penny Schwartz (JTA) — A challah-baking Jewish giant, a young baseball champ and an endearing boy in a pumpkin patch are among the stars of five delightful new books for kids published just in time for the High Holidays. This year's crop includes new stories by two of the country's most prominent children's book writers, David A. Adler and Eric A. Kim-
mel, who have entertained and informed decades of young readers. Three of the books are set during the holidays — Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year; Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement; and Sukkot, the seven-day fall harvest festival. Two others are uplifting, kidcentered stories about good deeds and repairing the world — themes that reflect the spirit of the holidays as a time for reflection as well as renewing commitments to do better in the year ahead.
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named Jacob makes the winning catch in the last inning of his Little League game. If they win the next game, they'll be the champions — but the final game is on Yom Kippur. After reminding Jacob that Yom Kippur is an important holiday, Jacob's father says, “Think about what you want to do.” Over the course of the next few days, Jacob does just that. Will he go to the game or spend the day at synagogue with friends and family, observing the holy Jewish day? No spoilers here, but Jacob eventually realizes that he's part of many teams: his family, friends, his people and Little League. This relatable, deftly told story taps into the reality facing many American Jewish families today – the conflicts between Jewish holidays and the secular calendar of school, sports, recitals and other activities. The story is, of course, inspired by the Jewish baseball legend Sandy Koufax, who sat out the opening game of the 1965 World Series because it was Yom Kippur. In his author's note, Adler introduces the Hall of Fame pitcher to his young readers.
By Eric A. Kimmel; illustrated by Jim Starr Apples & Honey Press; ages 3-8 Samson the Giant, known as “Big Sam” to his friends, sets out to make a giant round challah in preparation for Rosh Hashanah. Big Sam begins by digging a big hole – the Grand Canyon — to use as a mixing bowl. Step by massive step, Big Sam crisscrosses the U.S., filling his bowl with a mountain of flour, a lake of oil, thousands of eggs and more. For water, he dams up the Colorado River and then whittles a giant California redwood into a spoon for stirring. But before he can celebrate the holiday, two bald eagles caution the giant that he's caused an awful lot of damage to the environment — flattening hills and threatening habThe Best Sukkot itats. In the spirit of the holiday, Big Pumpkin Ever Sam considers his misdeeds and By Laya Steinberg; illustrations by sets about to make things right. Colleen Madden When he's finally ready to dig in to Kar-Ben; ages 4-9 the huge challah, Big Sam welMicah can hardly contain his comes in Rosh Hashanah with his enthusiasm for picking pumpkins at American tall-tale pals – Paul BunFarmer Jared's pumpkin patch. He yan and Slue Foot Sue among them. and his family join others from Yom Kippur Shortstop their synagogue who are helping By David A. Adler; illustrated by the farmer pick the last of the seaAndre Ceolin son's pumpkins to donate to a soup Apples & Honey Press; ages 4-8 kitchen. Micah, however, thinks The story opens as a young boy he's searching for the perfect pumpwww.thejewishlight.org
kin to decorate his family's sukkah, the temporary hut Jewish families build to celebrate the fall harvest festival of Sukkot. In this warm tale, Micah learns about generosity -- he picks many more "perfect" pumpkins, turning them over to Farmer Jared to use to help feed the hungry. But what about Micah's own sukkah? As the day at the farm comes to an end, Micah is unexpectedly delighted when he discovers that a pumpkin headed to the compost pile offer up seeds he can plant for next year's "perfect" Sukkot pumpkin.
Moti the Mitzvah Mouse
by Vivian Newman; illustrated by Inga Knopp-Kilpert Kar-Ben; ages 2-5 Moti, a busy little mouse with a big heart, lives under the sink at the Bermans' house. When the Berman
kids — and the family cat — are asleep, Moti secretly wanders the house finding ways to be helpful. Each page finds Moti doing a mitzvah: He feeds the fish, he puts away misplaced toys, he collects loose coins left around and puts them in the tzedakah box. Lively illustrations make this an engaging, interactive read that kids will want to read again and again.
It Only Takes a Minute
By Bracha Goetz; illustrated by Bill Bolton Hachai Publishing; ages 2-5 A young boy in a haredi Orthodox See NEW KIDS' BOOKS on Page THE
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How 'the Red Tent' Invented a New Kind of Fiction By Erika Dreifus
Anita Diamant with a copy of “The Red Tent” in 2000. (David Bohrer/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
(JTA) — Twenty years ago this summer, Anita Diamant — a freelance writer and author of several nonfiction books about Jewish practice, including “The New Jewish Wedding” — was awaiting the publication of her first novel. It was a work of historical fiction, set in biblical times, that focused on the story of Dinah, the only daughter of Jacob and Leah. The book was called “The Red Tent,” and it has since achieved iconic status. The novel has sold millions of copies around the world and was adapted into a 2014 Lifetime miniseries starring Minnie Driver.
NEW KIDS' BOOKS Continued from Page 13 family discovers that small acts of kindness can make a big difference — when he remembers to do them, of course. Throughout the book, the boy learns "it only takes a minute" to do good deeds, such as saying "thank you" or to thoughtfully say a bracha – a blessing – even when he is rushing for the school bus. At a soccer game, he takes a minute to appreciate the nature around him. While aimed at traditional religious families, the narrative touches a universal chord: that even young kids can, and should, make the effort to do what is right. ì
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But “The Red Tent” did not become a bestseller when it first hit shelves in 1997. In fact, Diamant never expected such extraordinary success. “It was not a given that the book was going to get published” at all, Diamant told JTA in a recent interview, describing the difficulties she encountered in trying to find a literary agent to represent the project. The novel, Diamant recalled, seemed to strike people as “a weird idea.” Dinah receives only brief attention in the Bible, and her story is a violent one. In Diamant’s book, the Dinah narrative expands, revealing a fuller, fictionalized understanding of her life — as well as a powerful portrait of ancient feminine community and experience. Alongside her work on other writing projects, Diamant spent about three years drafting “The Red Tent.” Eventually it sold to St. Martin’s Press, and Diamant received a modest advance. The novel sold reasonably well for a debut and subsequently was issued in paperback. Still, the publisher was planning to destroy (or “pulp”) some remaining hardcover copies. At that point, Diamant had an idea: Why not ship the books directly to select groups of readers? The publisher agreed, and several copies went to members of the Women’s Rabbinic Network, a group of women in the Reform rabbinate. Another batch went to members of the Reconstructionist Rabbinic Assembly. In both cases, the books were accompanied by letters of endorsement from the organizations’ presidents, both personal friends of Diamant. From there, word about “The Red Tent” spread. Ultimately, Diamant credits independent book stores and book clubs for making the novel a best-seller. In June 2001, nearly four years after publication, “The Red Tent” won the Book Sense Book of the Year Award for Adult Fiction, now known as the Indies Choice Book Award. Diamant has since published four novels and continued to write nonfiction. (“The New Jewish Wedding” was updated, redesigned and revised as “The Jewish Wedding Now” and re-released earlier this year.) “I’m eternally grateful to readers for whom the book has meant so much,” Diamant said of “The Red Tent.” “And it means such different things to different people.” “I’m still kind of amazed at its success. I’m touched by the way people find inspiration in it for all kinds of things.” Some fans, Diamant notes, credit the book for steering them to work as midwives. Others say “The Red Tent” inspired them to become artisanal bread bakers or to study the Bible — or to write biblical fiction of their own. “It’s a whole category now,” she noted. Thanks to the success of “The Red Tent,” lovers of historical fiction can enjoy an ever-growing number of books that reimagine the lives of biblical characters. In many cases, these novels, like Diamant’s, give voices to lesser-known (and often female) individuals. Here is a sampling of some of the best that have been published in www.thejewishlight.org
recent years. Sinners and the Sea: The Untold Story of Noah’s Wife (Howard Books, 2013) By Rebecca Kanner Although the Bible doesn’t name her, Noah’s wife was on the ark, too. Kanner’s debut novel gives her a voice — but still no name — as she tells us, in the first person, about her early years, her marriage and family, and everything that happened on that giant ship. After Abel and Other Stories (Prospect Park Books, 2015) By Michal Lemberger; foreword by Jonathan Kirsch Each of the nine stories in this book presents a tale of a biblical woman. Some you’ve likely heard of, like Miriam, who sets the basket holding her baby brother afloat in Nile, follows its course and approaches the woman who retrieves it: Pharaoh’s daughter. Others focus on characters who are less well known, such as Zeresh, Haman’s not-so-nice spouse, who suffers consequences, just as her husband does when his evil plot goes awry. The Secret Chord (Viking, 2015) By Geraldine Brooks King David, the focus of this novel, isn’t exactly a minor biblical figure. But his circle was large, and Brooks attends closely to many of the characters — men and women, like the prophet Natan and Nizevet, David’s mother — who were closest to him in this chronicle of key episodes in David’s life. The Secret Book of Kings (St. Martin’s Press, 2016) By Yochi Brandes; translation by Yardenne Greenspan The inspiration for this book was the biblical princess Michal, who is most popularly identified as King Saul’s daughter or as King David’s wife. “But even at the beginning my research,” Brandes wrote in the preface, “I realized that a historical novel about the destruction of the House of Saul at the hands of David could not make do with a single protagonist.” Thus, this novel — which was a best-seller in Israel, where it was published in 2008 under the title “Kings III” — is a compelling, multigenerational saga. David and the Philistine Woman (Top Hat Books, 2017) By Paul Boorstin This novel reimagines tales of King David and his contemporaries, including the fearsome Goliath. Boorstin conjures up a new female character: Goliath’s wife, Nara, who in this telling exerts considerable influence on the outcome of one of the most famous biblical battles.ì
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Anne Frank's Diary Is Now a Comic Book By Cnaan Liphshiz PARIS (JTA) -- In a bid to preserve interest in the Holocaust by future generations, the Basel-based Anne Frank Foundation unveiled the first authorized comic book based on the teenager's famous diary written in hiding from the Nazis in Amsterdam. The 148-page adaptation, which is to be published Sept. 18 in France and in some 40 languages worldwide, was presented to journalists in the French capital Thursday by the graphic diary's illustrator, David Polonsky from Israel, and its writer, the Israeli film director Ari Folman, who is working on the first fulllength authorized animation film based on the comic book. The comic book, referred to as a graphic diary by its developers, was produced in cooperation with the Anne Frank Foundation, or fonds -- the organization that Anne’s father, Otto, entrusted with preserving her memory -- contains colorful illustrations both of realities described in the book, including the teen’s difficult relationship with her mother and sister, and her dreams and fantasies. One full-page drawing, based on
The comic book written by Israeli film director Ari Folman is the first such publication authorized by the Anne Frank Foundation. (Folman)
Anne’s writing about wanting to become a journalist, shows an older Anne sitting at her desk with framed newspapers in the background, including a Life magazine cover featuring a picture of her. Another shows her family members and other Jews with whom they lived in hiding for two years in Amsterdam depicted as animals, corresponding to Anne’s humorous anecdotes about their personalities. Other drawings feature allusions to great visual artworks, including by Edvard Munch and Gustav Klimt. “I’m worried we’re coming to an era where there won’t be Holocaust survivors on Earth, no living witnesses to tell the story,” said Folman, who was born to Holocaust survivors whom he said told him and his sister “way, way too many” horrible stories from the genocide. As they disappear, “the entire story of the Holocaust risks becoming something ancient so it’s essential to find ways to preserve” interest in the Holocaust, he said during a Q&A in Paris. Anne, her sister and parents and several other Jews were deported in 1944 to be murdered following a raid by Nazi soldiers on the socalled secret annex where they lived in hiding with help from the Dutch resistance. Anne died seven months later in a concentration camp. Her mother and sister also died. Only Otto survived, and he edited his younger daughter’s writings and had them published in 1947. Folman, who is well-known internationally for his film about Israel’s Lebanon War, “Waltz with Bashir,” said his first reaction was
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to “immediately say no” after being approached by the Switzerlandbased Anne Frank Foundation, or Fonds. Folman and Polonsky initially turned down the offer, they said, because artistically they doubted their ability to make a contribution that would stand out from the many films, books, theater shows, operas and musicals that have been produced over the story of Anne Frank -- perhaps the world’s most famous Holocaust victim following the publication in dozens of languages of her diary over the last seven decades. There has been “too much done around the story,” Folman said. But he reconsidered after talking to his 95-year-old mother, whom she said is now “living with the goal of seeing the premiere” of the film he is making about Anne Frank. Since the 1940s, many authorized and unauthorized adaptations of the Anne Frank story have been created in many media. In Japan alone, the Anne Frank story has been the subject of several comic books – graphic novels in the Japanese manga style. But these publications were not authorized by the Anne Frank Foundation for historical accuracy corresponding to Anne’s actual writings. The film, Folman told JTA, will treat also the last “horrendous” seven months in Anne Frank’s life, despite the absence of material on this period written by her. “We used other historical sources to address this part of her life," he said. "It was a condition of mine to work on this.” ì THE
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Sports
JEWISH LIGHT
This Jewish Player Won the World Series of Poker's $8.15 Million with a Pair of 2's
Scott Blumstein won the World Series of Poker in a dramatic finish. (Screenshot from YouTube)
By Marc Brodsky (JTA) — Scott Blumstein admits it: He never expected to get the card he needed to become the World Series of Poker champion. Blumstein, 25, of Brigantine, New Jersey, pulled a deuce on the
river — the final card of a poker round — to win with a pair of twos in a dramatic finish Sunday to poker’s most prestigious event. The Temple University graduate — with a degree in accounting — took home the $8.15 million prize
in the Texas Hold ‘Em tournament at the Rio in Las Vegas, as well as the coveted WSOP bracelet. The odds of Blumstein, a Jewish player making his debut in the event, getting the needed deuce? About 93 percent against. “I’m going to be honest, I was probably not as positive as I wish I was,” Blumstein was quoted as saying by ESPN following his victory. “My mental coach is going to be mad at me that I wasn’t expecting a deuce.” Blumstein topped a field of 7,221 players, the third largest in history, and dominated much of the final table. He grabbed the chip lead on Thursday and never relinquished it. This wasn’t his first major victory: Last year Blumstein won nearly $200,000 at a tournament in Atlantic City, near where he lives. Blumstein has been described in poker magazines and on television as a “grinder” — one who plays a
Doerr Furniture
A Focus on Value After nearly eight decades of selling solid wood furniture in the Faubourg Marigny, family-owned and operated Doerr Furniture is expanding into Covington before the end of the year under the leadership of fourth-generation President and CEO, Shane Mutter. To this day, Doerr Furniture’s clients are looking for design and durability at a fair price. Originally started as a rocking chair wholesaler by Charles Doerr in 1938, the business expanded into retail in 1940s and 50s. In the postwar era, many retailers were focusing on cheap particle board and inferior products. However, the family decided to focus on ‘value’ furniture made of durable and beautiful high-quality solid wood. In the 80s and 90s, the business built relationships with nationally-recognized manufacturers like Durham Furniture, Flexsteel, and Stickley. As Mutter builds his Northshore staff, he has coordinated with these industry leaders to send representatives to personally train the new employees to insure that the public THE
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will have the most informed furniture sales experts around! "We feel that the Northshore location has the customer base for the products that we offer and that it can support it, which is higherquality goods, mostly solid wood, mostly made in the United States," said Mutter. Though the new store will enter a market that boasts competition from large-volume retailers such as Ashley Furniture and Rooms To Go, Mutter is confident that Doerr's product line of "middle-to-upper-end home furnishings" will resonate. Charles Doerr passed down his work ethic and love of the business to his family members, along with pride at offering well-made furniture at bargain prices. Today, the Mutter Family still believes that the focus is on the customer, and strives to provide unparalleled customer service. From the first greeting at the store to the delivery of your new furniture, Mutter’s aim is treat all clients like his great grandfather himself would. ì
lot of poker and considers it a career. It looks like that won’t change for the foreseeable future. “A normally inconsequential [card] — the deuce — changes my life,” he said on ESPN, which televised the tournament. His pair of deuces knocked out Dan Ott, a Pennsylvania, who picked up $4.7 million for finishing second. Frenchman Benjamin Pollak was third and won $3.5 million.ì
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Entertainment
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This Hilarious HBO Executive Picks Her 5 Favorite Jewish Documentaries By Gabe Friedman (JTA) — Sheila Nevins may not be a household name, but she is a legend in the documentary film world. Since taking over HBO’s documentary division in 1979, the network's documentaries have won 26 Academy Awards. In that same period, as a producer, she has won 32 Primetime Emmy Awards and 34 News and Documentary Emmy Awards. Along the way, Nevins has worked on plenty of projects with Jewish themes, touching on subjects that range from Daniel Pearl to the Holocaust. Some of these, Nevins told JTA, influenced her beyond the professional realm, helping her connect with her Jewish identity in a way that her mostly secular upbringing did not. “I feel Jewish and I feel proud of it, and I feel separated from it simultaneously,” said Nevins, who grew up in New York. “I wish that I could go back again and go to the Sunday school with all those cute boys my mother wouldn’t let me go to.” Nevins has been an executive producer or producer on more than 1,000 films, and in May she published her first book, “You Don’t Look Your Age … and Other Fairy Tales.” (She’s 78, by the way, but you’d never know it — she looks and sounds much younger, due in part to multiple facelifts. “I have enough Botox in me to detonate Iran,” the wry filmmaker told the Hollywood Reporter in April.) Nevins candidly addresses this and more in what she calls her “eclectic memoir.” The book consists of stories — some true (one
about a boyfriend whose mom didn’t like her because she was Jewish), some slightly altered (one, based on people she had met, about an elderly couple who sleep in separate rooms) and others that are complete fiction (those are “up to the reader” to figure out, she said). Writing the book, she said, was similar to creating a documentary. "In a documentary, you usually shoot 100 [minutes of film] to one [minute in the final product]. So I wouldn’t say that you make it up, but you determine what to include, which is a form of scripting," Nevins said. "But it's still true to the character." And speaking of characters, thanks to her celebrity-riddled Rolodex, friends such as Meryl Streep, Glenn Close and Lena Dunham lend their voices to the audio version of the book. Still, film is Nevins' bread and butter. Here are some of the Jewishthemed films she is most proud of working on — at least partly because they brought out the Jewish New Yorker in her. “Schmatta: Rags to Riches to Rags” (2009) “Schmatta” covers the rise and fall of the garment industry in New York. Nevins has a bit of firsthand knowledge of the industry: Some of her family worked in the business, and the summer after she graduated from high school, she took a job as a model for a clothing shop. “This wasn’t modeling how we think of modeling," she said. "You put the shawl on, and they’d say, ‘Sheila, come out!’ and someone would be there from Neiman Marcus or some department store. Then
they would say, ‘Now turn around, go back and get the Persian lamb one!’” Working on the film also inspired Nevins to research her great-aunt, who died in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of 1911. “I suddenly felt that I had been an immigrant once, that I was part of this ethnic Jewish culture in New York,” she said. “One Survivor Remembers” (1995) This film, in which Holocaust survivor Gerda Weissman Klein describes how Nazis tore apart her family during World War II, won an Academy Award for best short documentary. Nevins was especially moved by the fact that Klein could not speak about the horrors of her Holocaust experience in her native Polish — she could only describe it in English, since the language “separated her from the experience," Nevins said. “Larry Kramer: In Love & Anger” (2015) Nevins became good friends with Larry Kramer, the Jewish playwright who became one of the 20th century’s fiercest gay rights advocates, while working together on this documentary, which chronicles Kramer’s tumultuous public and private lives. They became close in part because of their Jewishness, she said. “We have a strange kind of historical ethnic connection, as if were family, like he’s my brother,” she said. “I can’t explain it.” One of the chapters in “You Don’t Look Your Age” is a poem titled “The Larry Kramer,” dedi-
Sheila Nevins speaking at the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival, Sept. 10, 2012. (Terry Rice/Getty Images)
cated to its eponymous inspiration. “Heil Hitler! Confessions of a Hitler Youth” (1991) This short film turns the lens on Alfons Heck, a former Nazi who describes his rise to becoming a high-ranking member of the Hitler Youth movement. The Anti-Defamation League called it a "cautionary tale that needs to be seen and discussed by young people everywhere." Nevins became so friendly with Heck that she invited him to her son’s bar mitzvah several years ago. “Grandpa, What’s That Number on Your Arm?” (Coming in 2018) At a screening at New York's Museum of Jewish Heritage of the HBO Holocaust documentary "Night Will Fall" in 2015, Nevins found a book in the museum's library about grandparents talking with their grandchildren about the numbers tattooed on their arms. She thought the idea would make a great film — especially in an era in which children are exposed to tragedies around the world on social media without context or explanation. Nevins has high praise for the current version of the short film, saying it confidently walks the line between being informative and too disturbing for children. "It's important that [children today] know that they, too, are a part of this history of violence and denial," she said. ì
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JEWISH LIGHT
A Spiel and a Yarn
How having an extended family of different faiths built my unique Jewish identity
“Uniquely Qualified To Serve” ;
By Rachel Glazer
I was raised in a Jewish home by Jewish parents, but the two sides of my family have vastly different origins. On my dad’s side, we’re all a similar flavor of Russian craftspeople who settled in places like Brooklyn. On my mom’s side, we are the Scotch-Irish who made the foothills of Alabama, Tennessee, North Carolina and Georgia our sloping home. One side is immigrants with traces of Yiddish speckling their New York accents, and the other has a lilt and twang cutting through their sentences like a river through a valley. Half built a living among the iron and brick of a great city while the other farmed atop veins of metals and clay. Their food and their stories all taste different, but they all taste like home. When I was growing up in Georgia, my mom used car rides as a time for family history lessons, singing old bluegrass ditties and telling folk legends. Many of them included vaguely magical elements — mentions of ghosts and haints, a great-grandmother with the Sight, or mountain medicine that, by all modern accounts, shouldn’t be effective at all. These legends are as much a part of my heritage as that of the Burning Bush or Jonah and the Whale. It has never been a question of whether or not the stories are true. They’re still powerful. Similarly, the lessons from the Torah don’t have to be factually
sound in order to be powerful. We give the stories their power in their retelling, keeping them alive and helping them be reborn in each new generation. Although my extended families come from different faiths, my heritages are two sides of the same coin. I can hold as tightly to moonshiner ballads and pioneer superstitions as I can Hava Nagila and the Golem of Prague, and I firmly believe that the best way to end Passover is with a buttermilk biscuit. When we are invited to explore the richness of our own internal diversity and are encouraged not to reject either side but to embrace them both, the whole becomes greater than sum of its parts. Recently, I have sensed this capacity for narrative evolution in my students who come from interfaith families. Some community members worry that the child will get confused if they are exposed to too many conflicting perspectives, or perhaps that one faith or the other is struggling to become the dominant context in the child’s life. Rather than worry, let’s listen to the story they have to tell: pieces of congruent cultures, faiths, and nations that weave together and imbue us all with the potential for communal growth. Like many Americans, my family’s legacy starts with immigration, but this is not a story about assimilation; it is a celebration of mixed heritage. Likewise, it is not about belief or disbelief in differing histories, but about trust in the wisdom and power of oral tradition, whether independent of or resulting from faith. I will spend my life telling this story, one that is as classically Jewish as it is endearingly Appalachian.ì
; ; ;
20 years of service in E.B.R. Parish School System • French & English Teacher at Baton Rouge Magnet High • Supervisor of Foreign Languages for all E.B.R. Parish schools, K-12 • Assistant Principal in middle & high school 16 years as practicing attorney in Louisiana & in Mississippi Married to attorney Johnnie Matthews for 43 years 3 Adult children: 6 grandchildren
I pledge to uphold the law and to treat everyone who comes before me with dignity and respect. It’s about justice, not politics.
JOHNELL MATTHEWS # 22 CANDIDATE FOR CITY COURT JUDGE
ELECT: JOHNELL MATTHEWS, #22 CITY COURT JUDGE
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William H. Burris J U D G E D I V. E
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in this season of joy and repentance. (o) 985.892.4801 • (c) 985.515.5099 fac e book .com/ Bu r r i sFor Ju dg e
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NOSHER
(food)
High Holidays Feature
Here’s an easy-to-prepare holiday menu rich with flavor and color By Megan Wolf (JTA) -- Two things are especially important to my holiday dishes: ease of preparation ahead of time and, of course, appeal to crowds. When time is short – and really when is it not short? – let’s make things as simple as possible. This menu fits the bill while offering a combination of flavors, textures and colors. The grilled challah Caprese salad is one of my favorite dishes and is elevated with a super flavorful -and incredibly easy to make -- balsamic glaze. The challah can be grilled ahead of time and set aside in a covered container for up to two days. Israeli couscous cooks very quickly and has a simple flavor profile allowing the grain to take on bolder flavors like the toasted sesame oil and dried fruit.
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The salmon dish is perfect roasted, pan seared or grilled. The spinach and walnut chimichurri sauce is versatile; try it on chicken or other varieties of fish. It also lasts a few days in the fridge, so can be made ahead of time. For those who don’t care for spicy flavors, skip the red pepper flakes. GRILLED CHALLAH CAPRESE SALAD
Ingredients: • 2 cups diced challah • 2 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes • 1 1/2 cups mozzarella balls • 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar • 3 tablespoons olive oil plus more for grilling • kosher salt to taste
and vegetable stock, then add couscous and reduce heat to low. 2. Cook couscous until the liquid has almost fully absorbed, about 8 minutes, then add dried fruit and continue cooking until all liquid is absorbed. 3. Toss couscous mixture with sesame oil, season to taste with salt and serve immediately. Note: The couscous can clump if it is cooked and left untouched. Serve as soon as possible after cooking, or toss with a touch of olive oil to help loosen the clumps. SPICY SPINACH AND WALNUT CHIMICHURRI SALMON
Directions: 1. Heat a cast-iron grill pan or traditional grill until very hot. 2. Toss challah with olive oil and place on grill pan, cook until all sides are grilled or slightly charred, set aside. Ingredients: 3. In a large bowl, combine toma• 2 cups raw baby spinach toes and mozzarella and set aside. • 1/4 cup parsley 4. Immediately before serving, • 1 teaspoon dried oregano heat a small saucepan over medium heat and reduce balsamic vinegar • 1/2 cup olive oil + more for fish • 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar until thick. 5. Add grilled challah to tomato • 2 tablespoons honey mixture and drizzle with reduced • 1/2 teaspoon red pepper plus more to taste balsamic vinegar, olive oil and top • 1/4 cup toasted walnuts with kosher salt to taste. • salt to taste 6. Serve immediately. Note: The balsamic glaze can • 4 5-ounce salmon filets harden if it is overcooked or taken Directions: off the heat and left to rest. Reduce 1. Preheat oven to 425 F. immediately before you are ready 2. To make the chimichurri sauce: to serve. In a blender or food processor, combine spinach, parsley and oregISRAELI COUSCOUS WITH ano until finely chopped. Drizzle DRIED FRUIT olive oil and balsamic vinegar, then Ingredients: blend to combine. Add honey, red • 1 cup water pepper and walnuts, pulse until • 1 cup vegetable stock combined then season to taste with • 1 cup Israeli couscous salt and set aside. • 1/4 cup each: golden raisins, 3. Pat dry each salmon filet and traditional raisins and cranberlightly brush salmon with olive oil ries and roast 6-8 minutes, or until the • 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil fish is cooked to your liking • salt to taste 4. Top with chimichurri sauce and additional red pepper flakes Directions: 1. In a large saucepan, boil water and serve hot.ì
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Apple Pie Kugel Recipe By Ronnie Fein
Apple Pie Kugel (Ronnie Fein)
(The Nosher via JTA) -- One day many years ago – during the High Holidays yet — I called my mother early in the morning to yell at her about kugel. Really. In my family kugel meant skinny noodles mixed with eggs, schmaltz, salt and fried onions. I’d heard of the sweet kind from friends who rhapsodized about the ones their grandmas made. But I’d never tasted any of those because my mother told me they were horrible. Years later, when I finally did, it was a watershed culinary moment for me. I was at a friend’s break-fast and she gave me a dishful of what I came to believe was the best noodle kugel I ever tasted. It had bountiful quantities of sugar and cheese, it was rich with dairy sour cream and it had a crunchy, butter-drenched frosted corn flakes crust. “Ma! You were absolutely wrong. What were you thinking!” I yelled into the phone. I brought her a sample and she, no fool, realized how mistaken she’d been (although she still preferred our savory kind, which I still make often). After that I became a sort of a sweet noodle kugel aficionado. I make all kinds: dairy and parve, with fresh fruit or dried, with a plain top or a crispy coat. Although these versions are sweet, I serve most of them with dinner – in the same way I serve applesauce or cranberry sauce with savory foods. Recently I thought about the fact that kugel, being a kind of pudding, could actually make a nice dessert. Like bread pudding but made with noodles So with apples-and-honey season in mind, I decided to go all in. This is it — apple streusel pie kugel, lush with roasted fruit, orange-plumped raisins, cheese and a topping of oat-based streusel. We ate it with vanilla ice cream once and another time topped with lightly sweetened heavy cream that had been whipped but still pourable. Don’t even think about the calories. THE
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Just enjoy. Ingredients: • 1 cup raisins • 1/4 cup orange or apple juice • 2 tablespoons honey • 3 medium tart apples, peeled and cut into bite size pieces • 6 tablespoons sugar • 1 12-ounce package egg noodles • 1 8-ounce package cream cheese • 1/4 pound unsalted butter • 2 cups dairy sour cream • 6 large eggs • 1 teaspoon cinnamon • 1/2 cup uncooked rolled oats • 1/3 cup all-purpose flour • 1/3 cup packed brown sugar • 1/8 teaspoon salt • 4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
crumbs. Sprinkle the oat mixture over the noodle mixture. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until lightly browned and crispy on top. (Ronnie Fein is a freelance food and lifestyle writer. She is the author of four cookbooks and was a contributing editor to "The New Cook’s Catalogue," the 25th anniversary edition of the James Beard original.) The Nosher food blog offers a
Directions: Preheat the oven to 400 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Lightly oil a 9-by-13-inch baking pan. Place the raisins in a bowl. Heat the orange juice and honey in a small saucepan until the honey has melted. Stir to blend the liquids completely and pour over the raisins. Let soak for at least 30 minutes. Place the apples on the baking sheet. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of the sugar and toss to coat all the pieces. Roast for about 15 minutes, tossing the pieces once or twice, or until they are tender. Remove from the oven and set aside. Turn the oven heat to 350 F. Cook and drain the noodles and put them in a large bowl. In an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter until thoroughly blended and softened. Beat in the remaining sugar until well blended. Add the sour cream and blend thoroughly. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Stir in the apples, raisins (including liquid) and cinnamon. Pour the mixture into the noodles and mix to coat them completely. Spoon the mixture into the prepared baking pan. In a bowl, mix the oats, flour, brown sugar and salt. Add the butter and work it into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse www.thejewishlight.org
dazzling array of new and classic Jewish recipes and food news, from Europe to Yemen, from challah to shakshuka and beyond. Check it out at www.TheNosher.com.ì
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• Corrected outdated 1950s zoning in Algiers • Won lower insurance rates by successfully appealing FEMA’s Algiers flood maps • Secured $100K to create new youth workforce development plan • Partnered with community leaders for youth mentoring and athletic camps • Secured nearly $1 million to fully fund the Council on Aging • Secured $1.4 million for street repairs and maintenance in the Algiers Cutoff
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Sukkot
Spiced Lamb and Butternut Squash Burekas Recipe By Shannon Sarna
(The Nosher via JTA) -- By the time Sukkot arrives, and we are three weeks into nonstop Jewish holiday mode, some people might be a little tired of cooking. I don’t blame these people one bit. But Sukkot probably is my favorite holiday of the season to cook for -- I love sitting outdoors in the brisk autumn air, enjoying harvest-inspired dishes with friends and family. This dish is (pretty) easy, totally unique and delish. The husband, who is by far my harshest critic, was in love with this recipe and begged for me to make another batch. Burekas are an easy appetizer to throw together using store-bought puff pastry. If you don’t like ground lamb, substitute ground beef. You can also make a vegetarian version by using tofu or feta cheese with the squash. You can make burekas ahead, freezing them once they are assembled, but before the egg wash. Before the holiday or when ready to bake, glaze with egg wash and pop in the oven per directions below They also reheat well in the oven at a low temperature and can even be served at room temperature. Ingredients: • 2 sheets store-bought puff pastry, left to thaw at room temperature around 30 minutes • 1/2 pound ground lamb • 2 cups cooked pureed or
mashed butternut squash (can also use sweet potato or frozen butternut squash) • 1 tablespoon olive oil • 1 small onion • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin • 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon • Pinch red pepper flakes • 1/4 teaspoon salt • 1 egg beaten for glaze • Sesame seeds, nigella seeds or poppy seeds (optional) Directions: Heat olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat. Sauté onion until translucent. Add spices to pan and cook until toasted, around 1 minute. Add ground lamb and cook until no longer pink, breaking up into small pieces with a wooden spoon as you cook. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Combine butternut squash and lamb mixture in a medium bowl. Preheat oven to 375 F. Roll out each sheet of puff pastry. Cut each sheet into 9 even squares. Using a rolling pin, roll out each square slightly. Scoop 1 heaping tablespoon into the corner of each square. Fold puff pastry over filling, forming a triangle. Using the tines of a fork, crimp the edges. Repeat with second sheet of puff pastry. Brush each bureka with beaten egg Top with sesame seeds, nigella seeds or poppy seeds if desired. Bake 18-22 minutes, until golden on top. (Shannon Sarna is editor of The Nosher.) For assistance, please email help@jta.org.ì
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Crockpot Short Ribs with Pomegranate Molasses Recipe This short ribs recipe is so rich and delicious, no one will know you weren't slaving over a hot stove for hours. • 1 heaping Tbsp tomato paste • 1 1/2 cups chicken, beef or veal
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• 1 1/2 cups red wine • 3 Tbsp soy sauce • 1/3 cup pomegranate molasses,
plus extra for serving • Fresh parsley (optional) • Pomegranate arils (optional)
By Shannon Sarna Using a slow cooker is a great way to save some time for holiday prep. This short ribs recipe is so rich and delicious, no one will know you weren’t slaving over a hot stove for hours. A few notes: The recipe can easily be doubled or tripled for a larger crowd. Try not to skip the step of browning the meat and veggies before putting into your slow cooker. It will add depth to the meat and vegetables and the overall richness of the sauce. But if you are really pressed for time, just throw it all in there. The pomegranate molasses adds a traditional, sweet flavor perfect for the New Year. For an extra festive presentation, garnish the short ribs with colorful pomegranate arils (seeds) and fresh parsley. Crockpot Short Ribs with Pomegranate Molasses Ingredients • 3 1/2 pounds short ribs on the bone • 1/2 tsp cinnamon • 1/4 tsp dried coriander • 1/2 tsp sweet paprika • Pinch red pepper flakes • 1 tsp salt • 1/2 tsp pepper • Olive oil • 1 onion, diced • 3 garlic cloves, minced • 3 ribs of celery, diced
Directions Mix together the cinnamon, coriander, paprika, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Place the short ribs on a large plate and rub the spice mix all over the ribs, covering all sides. Allow to sit in the fridge covered in plastic wrap a few hours if you have the time. Heat a few tablespoons of olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Sear the short ribs on all sides until brown. You will want to do this in batches depending on how many ribs you make. When all the ribs have been seared, place them into the bottom of your slow cooker. Drain off all oil in pan, except for around 2 or 3 tablespoons. Add onion and celery to the pan and sauté until translucent, about 4 to 6 minutes. Add garlic and continue to cook. After a few minutes, add 1 heaping tablespoon tomato paste and cook until the tomato has incorporated into the vegetables. Add the cooked vegetables to the slow cooker with the stock, wine, soy sauce and pomegranate molasses. Set your slow cooker for 6 hours on high and allow to cook, ensuring the short ribs are completely covered with liquid. When short ribs are finished cooking, garnish an extra drizzle of pomegranate molasses, fresh chopped parsley and pomegranate seeds, if desired. Makes 4-6 servings.ì
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Houston Jewish Community on 'Could Take Years' to Recover from Harvey By Josefin Dolsten
Houston residents and rescuers make their way out of a flooded neighborhood after it was inundated with rain following Hurricane Harvey, Aug. 29, 2017. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
(JTA) — The Jewish community in Houston has seen “devastating” damage from Hurricane Harvey and could take years to recover, a federation official said. “Recovery like this — it is a disaster larger than Katrina in terms of the amount of water that fell — we’re going to have short- and long-term recovery plans, but this is probably going to take us years to get back to where we were,” said Taryn Baranowski, the chief marketing officer for the Jewish Federation of Greater Houston. Seventy-one percent of the city’s Jewish population of 63,700 lives in areas that have experienced high flooding, Baranowski told JTA on Wednesday. That includes 12,000 Jewish seniors. Hurricane Harvey first made landfall on Friday evening near Corpus Christi, about 200 miles southwest of Houston. Local officials said at least 31 people are believed or suspected to have died due to Harvey, The New York Times reported Wednesday. Over 30,000 people are in shelters across the state, and rain was expected to continue in Texas until Friday, according to the Times. Three of the city’s five major synagogues have experienced significant flooding,
Baranowski said. The federation is communicating with the rest of Houston’s synagogues – the area is home to 42 congregations and communities — but is focusing on helping people impacted by Harvey. “We still have folks who don’t have electricity, we still have folks who don’t have plumbing,” she said. “It’s a pretty dire situation, so while we’re working to get those numbers, our top priority is getting people safe and to shelter.” On Wednesday, the local Jewish Family Service said that dozens of Jewish families were either evacuated or moved to the second floors of their homes due to the flooding caused by Harvey. Community members have seen up to eight feet of water in their houses, with some houses remaining flooded, Baranowski said. “The majority of people have had to go to the second floor, and then be rescued from their second floor,” she said. The Evelyn Rubinstein Jewish Community Center of Houston, the city’s only JCC, was flooded with 10 feet of water, and Jewish schools remain closed, with some experiencing major flooding. “I’ll be completely transparent, it’s devastating,” Baranowski said. “This is a flood that no one could have anticipated it getting as bad as it did; it was a worst-case scenario. We live in a community that is densely populated in an area that got severely impacted by the weather.” Kosher food is another issue. “We were having an issue getting kosher food into the community for grocery stores. We’re working with some volunteer groups
to get that into the community,” she said. Chabad in Houston has been providing kosher food to some community members, although supplies were running short as of Tuesday, according to Chabad.org. The Hasidic movement is organizing food shipments, including through Amazon, for the community. The Orthodox Union has also started a Help for Houston website. The federation is collecting donations and will start distributing them on Thursday. It is working in conjunction with the Jewish Family Service and the JCC in the relief efforts. Baranowski said the priority in donations is cleaning supplies for those returning to houses that were flooded. Local Jewish camps are housing refugees forced to evacuate their homes, and the Israeli humanitarian group IsrAID is coordinating an aid campaign, including sending volunteers to Houston. In the face of disaster, the Jewish community remains unified, Baranowski said. “We are a resilient community,” she said. “People are already beginning a process, they’re banding together, they’re working with each other to help recovery. “But we do know that recovery is going to be long, it’s going to be difficult. We can do it, but it’s going to be a process for the entire community and the entire city to get through.”ì
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Happy New Year to all my friends and supporters in the Jewish Community!
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Jews Fleeing Hurricane Irma Are Taking Refuge in Atlanta's Synagogues By Ben Sales (JTA) -- Rabbi Adam Starr was returning from an emergency trip to Houston, where he had helped a colleague clean up his synagogue after Harvey swept through that city, when his phone began to buzz. Jews from Florida had begun contacting Starr’s Atlanta synagogue seeking a safe haven from Hurricane Irma. So on Tuesday, right after Starr got back from pulling out drywall and moving holy books in Texas, he “THE MOST WELL TRAVELED VEHICLES ON EARTH”
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began organizing his own relief effort back home. By Thursday night, he and a team of local volunteers were sitting around folding tables in Beth Jacob, a suburban Atlanta Orthodox synagogue, each working on laptops to coordinate shelter for Florida Jews. “We were starting to get inquiries about Irma -- two, three, four people asking about coming for Shabbat,” said Starr, rabbi of the Young Israel of Toco Hills, near Beth Jacob. “We realized this is going to be a real need, and instead of dealing with a one-off, let’s open our community.” Irma, a Category 4 storm, has been called one of the worst hurricanes in decades. It ravaged the Caribbean this week and is expected to make landfall in Florida late Saturday. The number of families seeking refuge in Atlanta’s Orthodox community is up to 250 -- and growing. The community has turned into a landing spot for religious Jews from Florida seeking home hospitality, a local synagogue and meals for Shabbat funded by the Orthodox Union. Starr estimates that about 600 Orthodox families live in the area; many of them will be hosting impromptu guests on Friday night. “What’s been going on for the past 36 hours is making shid-
duchim,” Starr said, using a Hebrew word for matches. “We’re the largest [nearby] Orthodox community that’s not directly in the path of the hurricane We can do a tremendous kindness in assisting these people who want to get out of harm's way.” The Orthodox synagogues are two of nearly a dozen Atlanta Jewish institutions that have pitched in to help Irma evacuees from Florida, which has one of the country’s largest Jewish populations. Members of B’nai Torah, a Conservative synagogue, are hosting about 150 people, including some non-Jews. On Saturday morning, a few dozen members of the Conservative Aventura Turnberry Jewish Center, on Florida’s coast, will attend services and lunch at B’nai Torah. A few other synagogues have opened their doors, as have three nearby Jewish camps that are hosting evacuees. The campus Chabad at Georgia Tech is welcoming students from out of state, and the local Jewish community center is offering free passes to evacuees. Jewish Family and Career Services has a hotline where evacuees experiencing trauma can talk to clinicians. The rabbis aren’t sure how long they will have to host the Floridians, though Heller estimates they will be in Atlanta at least until
SHEMINI ATZERET Continued from Page 8
hold back and keep in. According to my friend Rabbi Ariel Burger, this is a day of just being, an opportunity to process everything that has happened, to integrate what we have struggled with and learned. I don’t know about you, but that makes my little social work heart soar. It turns out it is just an extra day after all — just the kind of extra day that most of us need. I’m not sure how, or even if, we’ll honor Shemini Atzeret this year in my house. It’s true that my girls don’t have school, but I’d already planned to take them to visit their great-grandmothers in New York. But I can tell you this: Shemini Atzeret has gone from two words that meant nothing to me to a day that will forever remind me that sometimes I do need to stop doing
the while celebrating the crazy, chaotic, unpredictable beauty of this world we live in. Needless to say, it’s a lot. Shemini Atzeret is the vacation to recover from the holiday. (If you’ve ever gone on a trip with kids, you know exactly what I’m talking about.) But in this case, we’re not doing laundry and shopping for groceries. We’re just taking it all in. The story is that after we just spent seven days rejoicing in the beauty of nature during Sukkot (after all, what’s more welcoming than building a little house with no door on it?), now God wants one more day with us, the Jewish people, to just be together. To just chill and take it all in, to stop, pause,
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Volunteers in Atlanta’s Orthodox Jewish community coordinate homes for evacuees from Hurricane Irma, which is set to hit Florida this weekend. (Courtesy of Adam Starr)
Wednesday. And though Atlanta is inland, there is a chance that Irma could bring damage there, too. Savannah, Georgia, and Charleston, South Carolina, are also in its path. “All of Florida is trying to come to Atlanta at the moment, and Savannah and Charleston are close behind,” said B’nai Torah Rabbi Joshua Heller, who was up at 1:30 a.m. Friday inflating air mattresses in his basement for evacuees. This isn’t the first time Atlanta’s Jews have mobilized to help out-ofstate hurricane victims. Melissa Miller, public relations manager for the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta, recalls the community making a similar effort in 2005 to shelter Jewish victims of Hurricane Katrina as it swept through New Orleans. Some of those evacuees never left Atlanta. “We had whole families in the middle of the night who came to Atlanta, left all their belongings,” Miller said. “There’s a tradition of loving kindness and Southern hospitality that all goes hand in hand. We’ve just always mobilized.” ì
and just be for awhile. Maybe our family will enjoy one last meal in the sukkah under the changing leaves of fall. That I can definitely do. (And in case you were wondering, you can still eat in your sukkah, but please don’t shake your lulav and etrog, and don’t say the Sukkot blessings. Shemini Atzeret might get jealous.) (Carla Naumburg, Ph.D., is a clinical social worker and writer. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times and The Washington Post, among many others. She is the author of two books: "Parenting in the Present Moment: How to Stay Focused on What Really Matters" [Parallax, 2014] and "Ready, Set, Breathe: Practicing Mindfulness with Your Children for Fewer Meltdowns and a More Peaceful Family" [New Harbinger, 2015].)ì THE
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Kveller
How the High Holidays Snapped Me Out of My Mom Boredom By Dasee Berkowitz
(Kveller via JTA) -- A few nights ago, when I was cleaning up the kitchen after supper, it struck me. I’m really bored as a parent. I have the efficiency thing down pat. A food schedule for each night of the week. The ease of an afternoon spent with our three kids — snack, followed by craft, followed by dinner, bath, books, and then bed. Sure, there are outliers: my 3-year-old who doesn’t conform to my plans, or the erupting feud between my eldest and middle child. “I’m on it” (or in Hebrew, “katan alai” — this is small stuff), I say to myself, and handle whatever the issue is with aplomb. But at the end of the day, with a cup of mint tea in hand, I ask myself, “Is this all there is?” I joked with my son the other night when he inquired, “What awesome thing are we planning to do this afternoon?” I answered, “Nothing special.” His response was, “That’s so boring.” And then I said to him deadpan, “Let me teach you a little life lesson, son. Most of life is boring, except for occasionally when it’s not.” Was this really me talking? Who have I become? Manager mom. That’s who. It was bound to happen. Nobody can possibly keep this well-oiled machine called “our family’s life” going for eight years without falling into autopilot. It kind of says it all when you find yourself at the gas station, and in the quick business exchange of the attendant asking for your credit card, getting it back and checking a text about the homework for your first-grader, you think that the gas is already in the car and you start to drive away. But the yank of the gas nozzle, the spurting of gasoline everywhere, and the aforementioned attendant running frantically your way yelling “giveret, giveret!” (“madam, madam!”) becomes strong evidence to the contrary. And for the record, you know you have achieved manager mom status when you are called giveret, as opposed to “miss.” Just sayin’. Thank God the Jewish holidays are upon us and I can receive an enormous shofar blast in my ear to knock me out of my middle management stupor and inject a bit of vitality into me. THE
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Any milestone is an opportunity to take stock. And the Jewish High Holidays put the idea of taking stock on steroids. Renewal. Judgment day. Life held in the balance. Starting over. The liturgy, rituals and customs of these days invite the big questions. Who am I? What and to whom am I responsible? How can I mend broken relationships? How will I spend the finite time I have on this earth? These are the big questions and they are triggered by simple, even childlike metaphors — God writing our deeds in a book of Life or Death, a shofar blast that, beyond all of the layers and layers of prayers uttered on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, brings us back to a primal cry and beckons us to think beyond our day to day. But in all honesty, after years of observing these holidays, I never feel quite ready. And my cynical side often creeps in and says, “Is anything really going to change? After a couple of inspiring days, I will probably just go back to my old habits and old routines.” There was a moment last year that broke me out of the manager mom malaise. It happened for a few minutes right before the start of Yom Kippur. My husband and I bless our children every Friday night, but last year he reminded me to the free flow blessing that parents traditionally say to their children pre-Day of Atonement. Make it personal; feel free to go off script, he recommended. I placed my hands on their freshly shampooed heads and shared with each child what I hoped and dreamed for them, and a quality or two that I wanted to work on in myself so I could be a better parent to each of them. More patient with one, less distracted with another, better at following through on plans we agree on with the third. I took a good two to three minutes to clear away the part of me cluttered with extraneous thoughts, to be present for them (or as present as you can be when the 2 1/2-year-old starts to squirm away). www.thejewishlight.org
With all the hours logged in synagogue for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, it was in that moment that I felt like I was encountering Ultimacy. The manager mom who had commanded them just a few moments earlier to get dressed in their new outfits and to put their shoes on gave way to mortal mom, the one who didn’t know what the year would bring, who would get sick or hurt, who would succeed, who would have good friends. All that this mortal mom knew for certain was that these relationships in front of me were real, alive, pulsing, and in need of my presence and love. I want to bring that awareness to my experience of the holidays this year, too. And if I’m lucky, I’ll be able to promote manager mom to fully-living-in-the- present-mortal-mom (try fitting that on a name tag) At least for the two to three minutes that it takes me to bless my children. (Dasee Berkowitz lives in Jerusalem and works as an educational consultant, writer and mom of three kids. She also direct's Ayeka’s Becoming a Soulful Parent project. To find out more about Becoming a Soulful Parent, contact her at mailto:dasee@ayeka.orgil.)ì
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Jewniverse
A Hilarious, Forgotten Jewish Comedian Named Stanley
By Abby Sher Which great Jewish comedian had oversized glasses, a nebbishy smile and a hilarious way of trying to get a date? The late, great Stanley Myron Handelman. In the ‘60s and ‘70s, Handelman cracked up audiences on the most popular TV variety shows: The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, The Ed Sullivan Show and The Flip Wilson Show, among others. He opened for Frank Sinatra. He was such good friends with comedian Rodney “I don’t get no respect” Dangerfield that not only did he write material for him for many years, but when Dangerfield died, he left ongoing pay-
ments to Handelman in his will. Born in Brooklyn in 1929, Handelman was voted “class wit” in high school. He went on to work in the Catskills as an entertainment director before trying his own hand on stage. Throughout the 1950s, Handelman could be found trying out new material and honing his craft at comedy clubs around New York, with his thick Brooklyn accent and trademark pageboy cap. He was especially endearing when he talked about kids’ fairy tales and the harsh reality of talking frogs. Handelman continues to inspire loyal fans and singing reviewers.
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PRE-COLLEGE Continued from Page 11 hamentaschen, has even been mentioned in a U.S. Supreme Court case, County of Allegheny v. American Civil Liberties Union. Liz Alpern and Jeffrey Yoskowitz, cookbook authors and cofounders of the popular Gefilteria, a trendy Brooklyn food company that serves up classic Jewish dishes with a modern twist, provided guidance. Alpern is herself a graduate of the Genesis program. In building their arguments, the students also consulted via email with Brandeis professor Jonathan Sarna, the renowned expert in American Jewish history whose participation in a latkehamentaschen debate a decade ago is fondly remembered on the Brandeis campus. Regardless of who prevailed in the debate, there was no arguing that the versions cooked and baked by the participants were uniformly and exceedingly tasty. The latkes came in two varieties — one traditional potato, another that incorporated parsnips and turnips. They were accompanied by fresh lox and homemade sour cream, cinnamon applesauce and pickled green beans. The hamentaschen were made with seven different fillings: raspberry, apricot, potato and herb, ricotta and honey, cheese and veggies, nutella and butterscotch In a different Brandeis campus building, another group of students was bent over wires, batteries and laptop computers with the same intensity and creative energy that the cooks had gathered around their
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frying pans. Benjamen Pinsky, a 15-year-old from Toronto who likes magic, designed and built a hat that when tilted asks if you’d like to see a magic trick. For Brandeis, the pre-college programs — they include an app design boot camp, a global youth summit and other courses focused on Israel studies and arts — are a way to make the Brandeis experience available to younger students, many of whom eventually apply to the university. The Genesis program was founded in 1997 with a grant from Steven Spielberg’s Righteous Persons Foundation. These days a big supporter is the Genesis Philanthropy Group, which focuses on building Jewish identity among Russian Jews and is known for the annual Genesis Prize, a $1 million award that has been won by Michael Bloomberg and Michael Douglas. For Neiss, the technology teacher, this was his eighth year as an instructor. Neiss, a St. Louis resident, said he looks forward every year to the weeks he spends at Brandeis surrounded by wires and computers and, most of all, “a group of teens really interested in the subject matter who want to be here.” (This article was sponsored by and produced in partnership with Brandeis University, a university founded by the American Jewish community, dedicated to academic excellence, critical thinking, openness to all and tikkun olam. This article was produced by JTA’s native content team.) ì
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Why More Israelis Are Moving to the US
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NEW YORK (JTA) -- Six years ago, the Israeli government released a series of controversial ads to show its expatriates that they would never feel at home in the United States. But last year, Israeli Cabinet members lined up to address a Washington, DC., conference celebrating Israeli-American identity. The ad campaign, which was pulled following a backlash from Israelis and Jews abroad, represented Israel’s traditional attitude toward citizens who left its borders. Emphasizing its image as the Jewish national homeland -- and ever concerned about its Jewish-Arab demographic balance -- Israel’s government has long encouraged Jews not only to move to Israel but to stay there. In 2014, then-Finance Minister Yair Lapid called Israelis who moved to Berlin “anti-Zionists.” But the parade of Israeli ministers who spoke at the 2016 conference of the Israeli-American Council attested to a shifting reality: Whether the Israeli government likes it or not, the Israeli-American diaspora is real, growing and leaving its mark on the United States. Here are four things to know about the Israelis who live in the United States. No one knows how many Israelis live in the United States -- but it could be a million. There’s no real way to know how many Israelis are living in the United States. Any first-generation child of Israelis is considered an Israeli citizen, and Israel can’t force its expatriates to register with their local consulate. Estimates of Israelis in America vary widely -- from about 200,000 to as many as a million. According to statistics from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, some 250,000 Israelis acquired permanent residence in the United States between 1949 (when 98 Israelis left the infant state) to 2015 (which saw THE
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about 4,000 Israelis move stateside). But that number does not chart deaths or Israelis who moved back. The 2013 Pew Research Forum study on American Jews found a similar number: About 300,000 Jews in America were either born in Israel or born to an Israeli parent. In total, Pew found that first- or second-generation Israelis account for about 5 percent of American Jews. Even the Israeli government produces two different numbers. Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics reports that a little more than 500,000 Israelis in total moved abroad from 1990 to 2014 -- and nearly 230,000 came back. But Israel’s U.S. Embassy told JTA that between 750,000 and 1 million Israelis live in the country. Adam Milstein, chairman of the IsraeliAmerican Council, an umbrella group for Israelis here, told JTA that includes 400,000 children born to an Israeli parent. In recent years, Israel has lost more people to the United States than it has gained. From 2012 to 2015, according to Homeland Security, 17,770 Israelis took up residence in the United States. During that span, fewer than 13,000 people made the move from the United States to Israel. They are centered in New York and Los Angeles. Israelis tend to go where the Jews are. Milstein estimates that about 250,000 Israelis each live in the Los Angeles and New York City metro areas, which also boast the two largest Jewish communities in the United States. Smaller concentrations of Israelis (and Jews) live in South Florida, Chicago and San Francisco. Those cities, in turn, have developed a range of services for their Israeli diasporas. Israel’s Immigrant Absorption Ministry maintains Israeli Houses in nine American cities that host cultural events and political activism. The IsraeliAmerican Council has chapters in 15 cities. And communities boast active Facebook groups: “Israelis in New York” includes 18,000 members. The cities also provide ample See MOVING on Page
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MOVING Continued from Page 25 opportunities for Israeli culture. Israeli cuisine is a staple of New York’s restaurant scene, from chef Einat Admony’s mini empire of eateries, to Dizengoff, an Israeli restaurant with branches in Philadelphia and New York. Aroma, the iconic Israeli coffee chain, has branches in New York, New Jersey, Washington, D.C., and Miami. And Israeli musicians -- from Idan Raichel to Shlomo Artzi to Sarit Hadad -- are never hard to find on New York’s concert scene. An adaptation of Israeli novelist David Grossman’s book “To the End of the Land” opened recently at the the annual Lincoln Center Festival. They come for education and work. Neither the Israeli Embassy nor the Israeli-American Council tracks why Israelis move to the U.S., but Milstein suspects it’s for professional and academic reasons. Israel’s small size means Israelis with college or advanced degrees often seek to advance their careers in places with more opportunities abroad. Israelis “don’t have the roots [of] someone whose family lived in Italy for 20 generations, or who lived in America for the last 150 years,” Milstein said. “The Jewish people, the most valuable asset they have is their brain. They can take their brain[s] anywhere.” Israel, conversely, has begun to worry about its “brain drain” recently. A 2013 study by the Taub Center for Social Policy Studies found that for every 100 Israeli scholars who stayed in Israel, 29 left for positions abroad in 2008. The drain is happening in the tech industry, too: According to the Israeli Executives and Founders Forum, an Israeli tech association, there are nearly 150 Israeli startups in Silicon Valley. Israel still wants them back. Israel’s government may have recognized that it can’t bring back all the Israelis from the United States, but it’s still trying. The appeal is both emotional and economic. The 2011 ad campaign, for example, featured a series of shorts highlighting the Israeli-American cultural divide. In one, a child of Israelis in America, video chatting with Israeli grandparents, talks about the upcoming winter holiday
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of Christmas, not Hanukkah. In another, an Israeli woman comes home to commemorate Memorial Day in Israel with a candle -- her American boyfriend mistakes it for romantic lighting. More recently, Israel has also laid out financial incentives to draw expatriates back, including a program set to launch later this year called “Returning at 70,” a reference to Israel’s 70th Independence Day in 2018. The Immigrant Absorption Ministry will provide returning Israelis with financial assistance for six months, and will even cover a portion of their salaries in order to ensure they can find work in their old-new home. The government is also offering free professional development courses and consulting Israelis who have opened businesses stateside, meanwhile, will receive about $14,000 for the costs of relocating the business. And Israelis who move to the country’s underdeveloped northern and southern regions are eligible for grants as well as loans with low interest rates. But Milstein says that even with these programs, Israeli officials still understand that it’s better to embrace expatriates than shame them into coming home. “By trying to raise our guilt feeling, it backfired,” he said. “The State of Israel is getting to the realization that [our] being here, they can’t do too much about it. We can help the State of Israel a lot. They understand we can be their strategic asset.”ì
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CHICKEN Continued from Page 7 posts regarding “sins,” such as not giving enough charity or getting angry. One post reads, “For caring more about being perceived as woke or the least racist than about the actual impact I have on the people of color around me.” Or another: "for taking housemates' food that isn't mine without asking." Kalman prints out the entire site each year as a booklet and ships it to those who order it for use on Yom Kippur. He hopes the booklet allows them to atone for sins they feel are closer to their lived experience. “A lot of people have specific regrets about the way they treated a family member in the time of illness,” said Kalman, a doctoral student in Near Eastern languages at the University of Pennsylvania. “You don’t see a recognition of that in the traditional confession.” 3) Casting away pizza crusts One of the more physical rituals of Rosh Hashanah is tashlich -- literally, “cast away” -- a ritual where people take bread to a natural body of water and throw it in, representing the casting away of their sins. (Sensing a theme here?) But Rabbi Jeremy Fine of the Conservative Temple of Aaron in St. Paul, Minnesota, could never get people to come to the Mississippi River for the ritual after they had sat through a long service. So this year he’s involving the congregation’s kids. The Sunday before Rosh Hashanah, about 100 Hebrew school students will come to the synagogue and bake pizza for lunch. Then they’ll eat the pizza, but not the crusts -- they will go in bags marked with the kids’ names to be stored in the synagogue refrigerator. After services on the first day of the holiday, the kids will retrieve their crusts, head with their parents to the river and chuck them in. Last year, Fine got about 50 worshippers to tashlich. This year he expects 150. “If we just did a little piece of bread, we don’t know if it’s so important,” Fine said. “But when the kids see the crust cut off, it’s like there’s actually something we’re giving away.” 4) Yizkor for gun victims Yizkor, the memorial service for deceased relatives, is among the most well-known and attended THE
Holiday Features
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JEWISH LIGHT
parts of the High Holidays service. But what to do if you live in a place where people are regularly getting killed? That’s the challenge confronted by Tamar Manasseh, a rabbinical student and anti-gun violence activist on Chicago’s South Side. Manasseh runs Mothers Against Senseless Killing, a group of moms that patrols a street corner in the violence-plagued neighborhood of Englewood. Given the local strife affecting the largely non-Jewish neighborhood, Manasseh felt a service focused only on relatives who passed would be inadequate. So last year, Manasseh organized a Yom Kippur service on her street corner that along with a shofar blast and prayers included a reading of the names of Chicago’s gun violence victims that year. Just reading the list, she says, took 15 minutes -- and she hopes to do it again this year. “A lot of times the funeral is closure,” she said, regarding the families of victims. “It’s not like their loved ones are spoken of after that, and they’re definitely not prayed for.” At the Yizkor service, she said, “You get to remember, you get to pray.” 5) Atonement by meditation and performance art For Ashkenazi Jews, the kickoff to the High Holidays happens this year on the Saturday night before Rosh Hashanah, when congregations gather to say selichot, or prayers of atonement. Depending on a congregation’s tradition, the prayers range from a lively calland-response to long, complex poems muttered almost silently. But this year, two people are doing it differently. At Lab/Shul, an experimental Jewish congregation in Manhattan, Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie noted that Rosh Hashanah this year coincides with the beginning of the Muslim year — so the synagogue’s theme for the High Holidays is interfaith worship. The congregation will be praying with Muslims throughout the holidays, but for the Selichot service, it will partner with the New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care, a meditation space. The service will intersperse Selichot prayers from a range of traditions with meditation practices. “It’s a way to begin the season by taking responsibility and accountability for who you are in front of God,” Lau-Lavie said. “The liturgy
and the assumption of saying sorry to God feels a little challenging, so we feel that scaffolding and pairing [that] with introspection and the tools of meditation and contemplation are everyone-friendly. They don’t assume faith." Another take on Selichot is happening in Providence, Rhode Island, where musician Noraa Kaplan is turning the service into a concert. Kaplan has invited fellow musicians to perform, and is ending the night with a piece of performance art that challenges a range of Jewish rituals. It will include her parodying a bad bar-mitzvah DJ, as well as swinging a rubber chicken over her head. The event will be a benefit for charity, but Kaplan is going to let the crowd decide where the money goes at the end of the night. To her, there’s not a lot of difference between traditional Selichot and a weekend show. “Selichot is supposed to happen in this late-night setting, and in many communities you see these Jewish people gathering at midnight or later,” she said. Playing a DJ, she plans to “ask people to clap their hands, and then ask them to clap their hands if they’ve ever wronged someone.” ì
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