January 27, 2023

The new B’nai Israel Part 2: The Present

Additions to the Kripke-Veret Collection

SHIRLY BANNER

JFO Library Specialist

February is Black History and Jewish Disabilities Awareness, Acceptance, and Inclusion Month.

GABBY BLAIR Jewish Press Staff Writer

Resilience is perhaps the best word to describe B’nai Israel. From its humble grassroots beginnings in the 1880s through today, B’nai Israel’s resilience has been illustrated time and again, a true testament to the pure grit, heart and soul of its congregants.

In the previous installment of this series, we learned that B’nai Israel was originally called Chevra B’nai Israel. Thanks to the vision and dedication of its first congregants, a group of 14 men and their families, the cornerstone for B’nai Israel was laid in 1904 after receiving the donation of a Sefer Torah and $900 from Temple Emanuel, a small shul that closed its doors that same year.

See The new B’nai Israel page 2

Join Clean Speech Nebraska!

JCRC Assistant Director

Clean Speech Nebraska is a community-wide, monthlong campaign to clean up our conversations, one word at a time. By encouraging mindfulness and personal awareness, we can create a more peaceful and respectful world, where our communities are united and connected.

Presented by the Jewish Community Relation Council (JCRC) Clean Speech Nebraska will kick off in February 2023 with a month of

videos and a workbook focused on being mindful of how we speak to each other when we disagree, inspired by Jewish values.

Just as Jewish tradition offers guidelines for respectful, community-oriented speech, Clean Speech Nebraska encourages people of all faiths to cleanse their speech and be more mindful of the language they use. In fact, Clean Speech Nebraska will be

the first local initiative to focus specifically on respectful, communitybuilding speech.

There is no cost to participate. During the month of February 2023, you’ll receive a daily lesson featuring community members and Jewish organizations to watch or read. There are also weekly challenges to try out, and inspiring memes, too.

Participating organizations include: BBYO, Beth El Synagogue, Beth Israel Synagogue, B’nai Israel Synagogue, Boomer Radio, Friedel Jewish Academy, Institute for Holocaust Education, JCC Performing Arts, Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC), Jewish Family Service, Jewish Federation of Omaha, Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation, Jewish Press, Jewish Social Services, Kohll’s Pharmacy, Nebraska Jewish Historical Society, Omaha ForUs,

JUVENILE:

A

Gordy and his family live in Detroit, Michigan, the heart of the United States automobile industry. Every night after coming home from work at one of the plants, Gordy’s father teaches him how to box. Their hero is the famous American boxer Joe Louis, who grew up in Detroit. But the Great Depression has come down hard on the economy. Detroit’s auto industry is affected and thousands of people lose their jobs, including Gordy’s father. When his mother takes on work with a Jewish tailor, Gordy becomes friends with Ira, the tailor’s son, bonding over their shared interest in boxing and Joe Louis. As the boys’ friendship grows, Gordy feels protective of Ira, wanting to help the new boy fit in. At the same time, America is gearing up for the rematch between Joe Louis and the German boxer, Max Schmeling. For many Americans this fight is about good versus evil (US against Nazi Germany). Against the backdrop of the 1938 Fight of the Century, a young boy learns what it means to make a stand for a friend.

Itzhak: A Boy Who

Loved

the Violin by Tracy Newman

Before becoming one of the greatest violinists of all time, Itzhak Perlman was simply a boy who loved music. Raised by a poor immigrant family in a tiny Tel Aviv apartment, baby Itzhak was transformed by the sounds from his family’s kitchen radio — graceful classical symphonies, lively klezmer tunes, and soulful cantorial chants. The rich melodies and vibrant rhythms spoke to him like magic,

Fist for Joe Louis and Me by Trinka Hakes Noble

PAM MONSKY

“It is our hope that as a living history and working synagogue, B’nai Israel can add context and understanding to the present while helping us appreciate our past, culture, ideas and traditions into the future.” - MARY-BETH MUSKIN

The new B’nai Israel

Continued from page 1

B’nai Israel served as a vibrant home for Council Bluffs Jewry for the next 25 years until a fire in March of 1930 destroyed the original synagogue. Thanks to the quick thinking of a young neighbor boy who sounded the alarm, and to the bravery of some of the congregation’s women, the Torahs, religious items and many valuable books were saved from the flames.

When faced with the reality that insurance would barely cover 1/5 of the estimated cost to rebuild the destroyed synagogue, and considering that America was in the midst of the Great Depression, the logical conclusion would have been that this was the end for B’nai Israel. However, this little-shul-that-could found amazing support and raised enough money to rebuild within a year. During the construction of the new synagogue, congregants opened their homes to host services and events ensuring that B’nai Israel remained alive, making the best of difficult circumstances. B’nai Israel rebuilt smarter and stronger and from the salvaged cornerstone and ashes, one of the most modern buildings of its time in the region replaced the wooden structure with brick and mortar, which still stands today.

As time went on, membership surged and declined. Services changed from Orthodox to Conservative, Conservative to Reconstructionist, and Reconstructionist to non-affiliated. Some people moved away, others passed on. Buildings need upkeep and purpose and B’nai Israel was no different. Storms damage, pipes burst, technology changes. Upkeep and updates require people who care enough to donate their time, energy and money. So many times in its long history, the easy choice would have been to close yet, through it all, B’nai Israel has remained. The resilience that B’nai Israel was founded on has led not only to B’nai Israel’s survival as a synagogue, but to its evolution to becoming at Historically Registered Living History Museum, today.

Mary-Beth Muskin, who serves on the B’nai Israel board, shares the following: “My husband’s family helped to start this synagogue in the 1880’s and B’nai Israel is a passion project for me and for others who serve on the board.” Indeed. B’nai Israel has no paid staff and is fully volunteer run.

Muskin continues, “Our board is unique and truly non- traditional. Each board member is there because of their commitment to B’nai Israel and has a self appointed job... a responsibility they have chosen to undertake... communications, security, maintenance, minutes, museum curation, service and guest speaker organizer, grant writing etc. of which we all take ownership. B’nai Israel is too big a job for one person alone and we work as a team.”

Long time board member Rick Katelman adds, “My wife and I joined the synagogue in the late 1990s after my father died. He and his family were founding members and congregants of the synagogue. Within the next few years I became a board member. The building was in very poor condition needing much renovation and repair. As a board, we were able to raise money through donations and grants to renovate, repair and remodel the entire building. It was a major task to convince people that we could really make something viable happen at B’nai Israel in Council Bluffs. Little by little, over many years we were able to renovate the building from top to bottom, inside and outside. We finally had something that we could be proud of and that merited the current improvements and additions we are now undertaking. For me, it is very important to continue this work as a testament to the founders of our synagogue and the history of Jewish life in Council Bluffs, Iowa.”

Katelman hopes that a new generation will also take interest in B’nai Israel and help to preserve it into the future.

Janie Kulakofsky, who’s father’s family hails from Council Bluffs shares, “the Council Bluffs of yesterday had a bustling and vibrant Jewish Community. Many Omaha families and businesses have roots that started here. Today, B’nai Israel is amongst the last vestiges of Council Bluffs based Jewish institutions. A small synagogue in a town with very few Jewish families left in a neighborhood that has declined, we cannot serve the greater Omaha community in the ways the Omaha synagogues can. Thanks to the hard work of our dedicated board members and with the support of the Omaha Jewish Community - the Synagogues, the Rabbis and The Jewish Federation of Omaha, B’nai Israel has been restored, reinventing itself as a Living History Synagogue Museum.”

Today, Shabbat services are held on the second Friday of every month in the B’nai Israel chapel. These monthly services are led by lay leader, Larry Blass. B’nai Israel also hosts High Holiday Services which are led by Jeff Taxman. Additionally, the Synagogue is available to host community and life cycle events. A funeral luncheon, baby naming and wedding are events that have already taken place inside the synagogue walls! B’nai Israel is also open by appointment for tours to schools, social groups, and history buffs. One of the main niches that B’nai Israel hopes to fill is that of a regional Jewish History Museum. Having never visited B’nai Israel, Mary-Beth Muskin met me one chilly December morning to provide a private tour. Driving up to the building, it was immediately recognizable from the many photographs I have seen of it. As Mary-Beth unlocked the doors, the first thing I noticed was a beautiful bright blue quilt honoring our area’s Jewish Veterans hanging in the entry way. Mary-Beth shared that it was a new addition made by a local quilt maker.

As we went upstairs our first stop was the sanctuary. Pristine in condition and traditional in style, the raised Bimah sat in the front with a stately wooden Ark and Ner Tamid. Sunlight streamed in through the tall windows, colored glass shining blue, yellow and red light across the rows of neat pews with a balcony overlooking it all. On the far side of the room, bronzed yahrzeit plaques lined the wall with many familiar Omaha surnames, a testament to B’nai Israel’s rich history and deep roots. The sanctuary was comfortable, beautiful and had a certain quiet holiness about it that one might expect from the oldest synagogue in the area. Almost 100 years of prayer, b’nai mitzvot, weddings and more happened in this space and in that quiet morning, I could feel it was a place that though silent, was very much alive.

The next stops on the tour included the old offices and classrooms which have been beautifully transformed into interactive exhibits highlighting the rich history of both the synagogue and the Jewish history of Council Bluffs and Omaha. The Rabbi’s office has a virtual guide accessible through scanning a QR code. Rabbi Chaim Menahem Kramer, who led B’nai Israel from 1944-1947, provides an overview to visitors. It should be noted that Rabbi Kramer directed B’nai Israel’s first ever Bat Mitzvah in 1946 for 12 year old Sissy Silber who today serves on the board! Full of time appropriate furniture, art, religious artifacts and texts, I was expecting the rabbi to appear any moment. Visitors to this exhibit are also invited to place a note into a cobblestoned corner... who knew Council Bluffs had recreated a tiny Kotel!?

Down the long hall, doorways to the old school classrooms stood open, some adorned with rich, deep blue velvet valances, embroidered with Hebrew, ready to be explored. The first room highlights Businesses and Professions. Full of framed doors that visitors can open, each one highlighted a business born in Council Bluffs. Full of original memorabilia, historical facts and touchable artifacts, each doorway to the past was engaging and interesting. There is also a program available so that visitors to the museum can add their family business/profession. This creates an archival record. I really loved how interactive the exhibits were and am pleased to report that additional doorways are planned.

Another favorite was the exhibit room that honored the women of the area. “In so much of history, women play important roles, but their names are hard to find, relegated to being “Mrs. Husband’s name”, shared Muskin. This room honors many of the remarkable women who contributed so much to our region, our area and to the world. Beautiful clothing, trunks full of treasures and keepsakes, writings and a digital database provide a window to the past and keep the memory of these ladies and their contributions to our community and beyond, alive.

One of the last exhibits I visited was named, ‘Explore, Discover’ and it featured a recreated Hebrew school classroom.

Small desks faced forward to the teacher’s desk. Old pictures of B’nai Israel students, posters and embellishments lined the walls and bookshelves featuring local authors sat across the back wall under a window that let in a fabulous amount of natural light. The highlight of this room was the masterfully painted mural along the far wall that gave the room depth and the illusion of being much larger than it actually was. Muskin

The new B’nai Israel page 4

Mary Beth Muskin sharing some of the local history behind “The Fabric of America’s Furniture Stores”; one of the many fabulous interactive exhibits at The B’nai Israel Living History Synagogue and Museum.

Join Clean Speech

Continued from page 1

Staenberg Family Foundation, Staenberg Omaha Jewish Community Center, Temple Israel and Tri Faith Initiative.

Why participate? Just about anyone who develops a greater awareness of the way they communicate with others will enjoy smoother, more pleasant interactions and relationships. It’s just no fun to live in a nasty, back-biting world filled with careless speech that causes us all discomfort and pain. This will help!

Scan the QR code to sign up and get your FREE Clean Speech Nebraska merch!

Kripke-Veret

Continued from page 1

filling his mind with vivid rainbows of color. After begging his parents for an instrument, Itzhak threw his heart and soul into playing the violin. Despite enormous obstacles—including a near-fatal bout of polio that left him crippled for life—Itzhak persevered, honing his extraordinary gift.

When he performed on the Ed Sullivan Show at only 13, audiences around the world were mesmerized by the warmth, joy, and passion in every note. Gorgeously illustrated with extensive back matter, this picture-book biography recounts Itzhak’s childhood journey—from a boy with a dream to an internationally acclaimed violin virtuoso.

ADULT:

The Soul of Judaism: Jews of African Descent in America by Bruce D. Haynes

What makes a Jew? This book traces the history of Jews of African descent in America and the counter-narratives they have put forward as they stake their claims to Jewishness.

ORGANIZATIONS

BREADBREAKERS

The award-winning B’NAI B’RITH BREADBREAKERS speaker program currently meets Wednesdays via Zoom from noon to 1 p.m. Please watch our email for specific information concerning its thoughtprovoking, informative list of speakers. To be placed on the email list, contact Breadbreakers chair at gary.javitch@gmail.com

The Soul of Judaism offers the first exploration of the full diversity of Black Jews, including biracial Jews of both matrilineal and patrilineal descent; adoptees; black converts to Judaism; and Black Hebrews and Israelites, who trace their Jewish roots to Africa and challenge the dominant western paradigm of Jews as white and of European descent.

Blending historical analysis and oral history, Haynes showcases the lives of Black Jews within the Orthodox, Conservative, Recon-

struction and Reform movements, as well as the religious approaches that push the boundaries of the common forms of Judaism we know today.

Putting to rest the simplistic notion that Jews are white and that Black Jews are therefore a contradiction, the volume argues that we can no longer pigeonhole Black Hebrews and Israelites as exotic, militant, and nationalistic sects outside the boundaries of mainstream Jewish thought and community life. The volume spurs us to consider the significance of the growing population of selfidentified Black Jews and its implications for the future of American Jewry.

Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism by Barry M. Prizant

Autism therapy typically focuses on ridding individuals of “autistic” symptoms such as difficulties interacting socially, communication problems, sensory challenges, and repetitive behavior patterns. Now,

this updated and expanded edition of Dr. Barry M. Prizant’s Uniquely Human tackles new language such as shifting from “person-first language” to “identity-first language,” diversity of identity in the autism sphere, and the future of autistic advocacy by amplifying the voices of autistic and neurodivergent individuals.

“A must-read for anyone touched by autism... Dr. Prizant’s Uniquely Human is a crucial step in promoting better understanding and a more humane approach” (Associated Press). Instead of classifying “autistic” behaviors as signs of pathology, Dr. Prizant sees them as part of a range of strategies to cope with a world that feels chaotic and overwhelming.

Rather than curb these behaviors, it’s better to enhance abilities, build on strengths, and offer supports that will lead to more desirable behavior and a better quality of life.

B’NAI B’RITH

The new B’nai Israel

Continued from page 2 shared that the mural, which depicts a fully stocked library featuring Jewish authors and a large picture window overlooking a small house, is also a nod to the past as that little house once stood where the synagogue is now.

The tour continued downstairs to the social hall and chapel, where services are held today. Spaciously appointed with tall eastern facing windows, the social hall was set up and looked ready to host. An adjacent fully updated kitchen still retained charm of being from a slightly different era thanks to decor. A small hallway opened to the chapel. Bright and comfortable, the chapel along with the social hall was fully restored, painted, carpeted and newly furnished. Rick Katleman shares that these renovations were completed just before the Covid pandemic hit. “Thanks to our hard-working grant writers, board members and community supporters, we have been able to save the building. Now that B’nai Israel has been restored, we needed to find it a purpose to keep it alive. Thanks to the continued efforts of those interested in the history and the future of this synagogue, we hope to complete and add to our living history museum and Synagogue.”

The B’nai Israel Board is actively looking for wedding photographs taken at

B’nai Israel and is interested in speaking to those who have stories to share with the hopes of including these into exhibits. New board member and former long time director of the Nebraska Jewish Historical Society, Renee Corcoran, shares that she had family in Council Bluffs and finds the renovation, preservation and curation of these exhibits an unparalleled experience. I had the pleasure of working with Renee over many years at the Jewish Press while researching for historical pieces and am looking forward to seeing what she and the board create.

To ensure the future of this important project it is imperative to gain the sup-

Trade scholarships available for the 202324 academic year

An anonymous donor in our community has created two trade school scholarship opportunities, up to $5,000 each, to go towards the 2023-24 academic year.

WOMEN

port of younger generations. Everyone is welcome to attend B’nai Israel’s monthly services and guest speaker series. The building is ready to host life cycle events and the museum will continue to be expanded, eventually adding traveling exhibits. The development of creative programming is underway. Consider helping support this unique Living History Synagogue and Museum by scheduling a visit, volunteering, or by making a fully tax deductible donation. While yearly memberships are $250, no amount is too small and are much appreciated!

Visit the B’nai Israel webpage at: www.Cblhs.org.

Not every student who advances into higher education signs up for a four-year curriculum. Some high school graduates seek job training that lasts a year or two and then places them in the workforce. Such opportunities include, but are not restricted to: Information Technology, Construction, Industrial, Transportation and Horticulture. It is not too late to apply for this upcoming school year!

Qualified students who have unmet needs regarding tuition for either a two-year trade school program or a trade certificate program can contact the Jewish Press at avande kamp@jewishomaha.org or jpress@jewishomaha.org for more information.

INFORMATION

ANTISEMITIC/HATE INCIDENTS

If you encounter an antisemitic or other hate incident, you are not alone. Your first call should be to the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) in Omaha at 402.334.6572, or email JCRCreporting@ jewishomaha.org. If you perceive an imminent threat, call 911, and text Safety & Security Manager James Donahue at 402.213.1658.

Annette van de Kamp | avandekamp@jewishomaha.org

The Bimah at B’nai Israel

Monuments honoring fascists, Nazis and murderers of Jews?

LEV GOLINKIN

Editor’s note: Since this article was originally published on Jan. 26, 2021, a town in Belgium has voted to remove a sculpture honoring Latvian collaborators with the Nazis.

The most curious thing about last year’s protests that toppled statues of slavers and colonizers is that the monuments of Holocaust perpetrators didn’t even make headlines.

Yet a Forward investigation reveals there are hundreds of statues and monuments in the United States and around the world to people who abetted or took part in the murder of Jews and others during the Holocaust.

The Nazi collaborators of Central and Eastern Europe weren’t as fastidious at keeping records as their Third Reich allies, which makes it difficult to arrive at a precise number of their victims. As a rough estimate, the Nazi collaborators honored with monuments on U.S. soil represent governments, death squads and paramilitaries that murdered a half million Jews, Poles and Bosnians.

Holocaust perpetrators is the correct term for these men and organizations, for they played an integral part in the Final Solution, arresting and deporting Jews to concentration camps or gunning them down in the forests and fields of Eastern Europe (one-third of all Holocaust victims were killed in what’s called the “Holocaust by bullets”).

Without collaborators like the ones who occupy pedestals across America, the Holocaust as we know it couldn’t have happened.

On Jan. 27, International Holocaust Remembrance Day, The Forward is publishing the first-ever database of monuments to Nazi collaborators and Holocaust perpetrators. It lists 320 monuments and street names in 16 countries on three continents which represent men and organizations who’ve enabled — and often quite literally implemented — the Final Solution.

In downtown Manhattan, along Broadway’s “Canyon of Heroes,” are memorial plaques to Henri Philippe Pétain and Pierre Laval, the head and prime minister of France’s collaborationist Vichy government which hunted down and deported 67,000 Jews to the concentration camps. In addition to his Broadway plaque, Pétain is honored with 11 streets in the U.S. France has gotten rid of its Pétain streets, but the ones in America remain.

Pétain, at least, was a WWI hero before turning traitor. The same cannot be said for some of the other honorees with statues in America. Here’s a sampling of other honorees in the U.S.:

• Stepan Bandera and Roman Shukhevych, who have busts in upstate New York and Wisconsin. Bandera headed a faction of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists, which allied itself with the Nazis and whose members eagerly participated in the Holocaust. Shukhevych, another Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists figure, was a leader in a Third Reich auxiliary battalion that carried out lethal antisemitic operations in service of the Nazis. Later, Shukhevych commanded the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, which massacred thousands of Jews and 70,000 to 100,000 Polish civilians. There are additional Ukrainian nationalist busts in New York and Ohio.

• Andrey Vlasov, the Soviet general who went over to the Nazis and raised an army of over 100,000 men for the Third Reich, has a memorial just outside New York.

• Dragoljub Mihailovic, who led the Serbian Chetnik paramilitary that fought with Nazi Germany and carried out ethnic cleansing of Bosnian Muslims, has statues in Cleveland, Milwaukee and two Chicago suburbs.

• Chicago also has a memorial to Adolfas RamanauskasVanagas, who commanded a unit of the Lithuanian Activist Front, a Nazi-allied organization whose members slaughtered Jews across Lithuania in the summer of 1941.

The situation in America pales in comparison to European nations which are teeming with hundreds of statues and streets honoring collaborators.

Even more worrying than the sheer number is the overall trend. The vast majority of these statues were erected in the past 20 years. Recent studies point to the staggering spread of Holocaust ignorance: two-thirds of U.S. millennials don’t know what Auschwitz is, while a third of Europeans know little to nothing about the Holocaust. The growth of statues to perpe-

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trators, however, evinces a far deeper problem. The Holocaust isn’t just being forgotten, it’s being perverted via historical revisionism that is turning butchers into heroes.

The biggest reason to pay attention to this disturbing pattern is that these monuments signal not only an attack on Holocaust memory, but the presence of organized white supremacy that is focused on far more than history.

In 2017, America was shocked to see neo-Nazis with torches march in the defense of Robert E. Lee’s statue in Charlottesville. But the marchers didn’t chant about Robert E. Lee — they chanted “Jews will not replace us,” a chief tenet of the white genocide theory that motivated the Pittsburgh synagogue and El Paso terrorist attacks. The white supremacists rallied around a 19th century general, but their minds and actions were focused on the present, with deadly results.

The same is happening across the Atlantic, only to a greater degree. Wherever you see statues of Nazi collaborators, you’ll also find thousands of torch-carrying men, rallying, organizing, drawing inspiration for action by celebrating collaborators of the past.

You’ll see it in Viktor Orban’s Hungary, where far-right figures use elaborate ceremonies anchored to WWII anniversaries to draw neo-Nazis across Europe; Ukraine, where the rehabilitators of Bandera work to turn the country into a hub of transnational white supremacy; Croatia, where men carrying WWII fascist symbols marched in support of Donald Trump; and France, where the far-right Marine LePen rallies supporters by insisting that France has no responsibility for the Holocaust. You’ll see it in a dozen other nations as well.

The monuments and the figures they honor stand at a crossroads of fascism and neo-fascism, the losers of WWII and today’s white supremacists who believe they’re on the brink of a global race war. It’s impossible to understand one without understanding the other, which is why tracking the growth of Nazi collaborator monuments is so crucial. These statues don’t just disparage the dead; they warn the living.

This article was shortened for inclusion in this publication. The Forward has also documented more than 1,000 additional streets named for and monuments honoring such dubious figures – 625 in countries that were on our original list, and 520 in nine new countries, including Germany and Austria, nations generally seen as models for reckoning with their Holocaust history.

You can read about those German and Austrian examples, and the Belgian debate that led to the decision to remove the Latvian monument, along with details about the additional monuments discovered in Western Europe, along with 11 more monuments discovered in seven U.S. states, at The Forward online. Additional submissions can be made to editorial@for ward.com

Lev Golinkin is the author of A Backpack, a Bear, and Eight Crates of Vodka, Amazon’s Debut of the Month, a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers program selection, and winner of the Premio Salerno Libro d’Europa. A graduate of Boston College, Golinkin came to the U.S. as a child refugee from the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkov (now called Kharkiv) in 1990. His writing on the Ukraine crisis, Russia, the far right, and immigrant and refugee identity has appeared in The New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, CNN, NBC, The Boston Globe, Politico Europe, and Time.com, among others; he has been interviewed by MSNBC, NPR, ABC Radio, WSJ Live and HuffPost Live.

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Nazi collaborators and collaborator monuments. Credit: The Forward

2023

HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS

The JFO welcomes author Jean Rochelle Meltzer

MARK KIRCHHOFF

Community Engagement and Education

This year’s Jewish Author Event promises to be wonderfully engaging. Mark your calendars for Thursday, March 2 for an in-person Jewish Author Event featuring Jean Rochelle Meltzer. Come ready to enjoy the time with an inspirational author as Jean discusses her book, Mr. Perfect on Paper. The event begins at 2 p.m. at the Staenberg Omaha JCC in the Goldstein Community Engagement Venue. Come to hear a fascinating story and to enjoy a delectable dessert. Following her talk, Jean will hold a book signing. Books will be available at the door. Further information about the event and registration availability will be communicated soon.

Jean has the unique distinction of being the world’s only Emmy-award winning, chronically-ill and disabled, rabbinical-school dropout. It is this extraordinary background — coupled with a firm belief in holding onto your joy and seeking out happy endings — which forms the basis of her diverse work. What better time could there be than the present to hear an uplifting narrative from a woman of strength, optimism, and determination? This is the ideal time.

The Jewish Press

Jean draws upon her life experiences as she writes about Dara Rabinowitz, a 34-year-old

CEO of a popular Jewish dating app. The job seems to be a natural since she comes from a long line of Jewish matchmakers. Dara contends with chronic Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) and is open about the challenges this presents to her. When she and her Bubbe are invited to a daytime talk show, Dara’s carefully planned appearance goes off the rails after Bubbe tells the entire TV audience Dara’s list of qualities for the perfect man. For a person with GAD, “bumps in the road” are never easy, and reacting to this disclosure isn’t easy for Dara. As a romantic comedy, Mr. Perfect on Paper is a good mix of serious and funny – and occasionally silly. Along the way, the characters reveal much about what it is to be Jewish.

Jean is the author of the popular novel The Matzah Ball, the story of Rachel RubensteinGoldblatt – a nice Jewish girl with a shameful secret: she loves Christmas. When her publisher requires that she write about Hanukkah, she desperately looks for inspiration.

Join Jean Rochelle Meltzer for this Jewish Author Event, and bring a friend with you. This program is made possible by the JFO’s membership in Jewish Book Council, with the support of the following JFO Foundation funds: Kenneth Ray Tretiak Memorial Fund and the Foundation IMPACT Grant.

Jean Rochelle Meltzer

SP O TLIGHT

PHOTOS FROM RECENT JEWISH COMMUNITY EVENTS

GENEROUSLY SUPPORTED BY

Left and below: The Residents of RBJH got all shook up as we celebrated the King of Rock, Elvis Presley! Elvis would have turned 88 on Jan. 8. Elvis mysteriously appeared (aka, Angela Jones, a revered retired RBJH C.N.A.) for a grand finale of Elvis events throughout the week. Thank you, Angela, for being a tremendous sport with lots of hip action!

SUBMIT A PHOTO: Have a photo of a recent Jewish Community event you would like to submit? Email the image and a suggested caption to: avandekamp@jewishomaha.org

Above: Mazal Tov to Judah Beneda and family on his Bar Mitzvah! Good to see some serious Omaha representation.

Below: Friedel graduates Lily Goldberg and Isa Wright reconnect in front of the school.

Above: A group gathered at the cemetery on Wednesday to commemorate Rabbi Grodzinsky, former chief Rabbi of Omaha, a great scholar, and author of many halachic books. Some even came from as far as Lakewood in New Jersey to commemorate his yahrzeit. Chabad gathered together for minyan to say kaddish in his memory.

Above and below: Participants at the JFO Foundation’s Chamber of Commerce breakfast.

Below, bottom and right: Art for the ages with Opening Minds through Art at RBJH.

Above and below: Third and fourth graders designed balloon-powered vehicles and predicted how they will perform in Innovations class. Next, they will test their prototypes and adjust them to see if they can improve their original designs.

The Jewish Press

(Founded in 1920)

Margie Gutnik President Annette van de Kamp-Wright Editor Richard Busse Creative Director Lori Kooper-Schwarz Assistant Editor Gabby Blair Staff Writer Sam Kricsfeld Digital support Mary Bachteler Accounting

Jewish Press Board

Margie Gutnik, President; Abigail Kutler, Ex-Officio; Seth Feldman; David Finkelstein; Ally Freeman; Mary Sue Grossman; Les Kay; Natasha Kraft; Chuck Lucoff; David Phillips; and Joseph Pinson.

The mission of the Jewish Federation of Omaha is to build and sustain a strong and vibrant Omaha Jewish Community and to support Jews in Israel and around the world. Agencies of the JFO are: Institute for Holocaust Education, Jewish Community Relations Council, Jewish Community Center, Jewish Social Services and the Jewish Press

Guidelines and highlights of the Jewish Press, including front page stories and announcements, can be found online at: www.jewishomaha.org; click on ‘Jewish Press.’

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Editorial

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Knowing who we are

ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT Jewish Press Editor

Here’s what you might have missed: “The painting in a key room in the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy was as striking as it was massive: Jesus, his arms outstretched, hovered over a lifeboat packed with grateful sailors, lost at sea.”

The story by JTA’s Ron Kampeas continues: “Eighteen people (!) — including five Jews — among the school’s thousands of midshipmen, alumni, staffers and faculty decided they did not want to see such a sectarian symbol in a room that is home to events, classes and ceremonies where attendance is mandatory. Last week, they asked the Military Religious Freedom Foundation to appeal on their behalf to the academy.”

The solution was the installment of a temporary curtain, while they wait on the permanent curtain, which apparently will be slightly more fancy that the white sheet lookalike that’s hiding the painting right now. Why a curtain? Because the painting is too big too move, and this way when others do want to see it, they can. But during official functions, it will be covered.

While I can already hear people screaming about the dangers of cancel culture, I have thoughts about this. Whether they are valid thoughts, we’ll have to wait and see.

It’s funny, how I can get extremely cranky driving behind a car with a fish bumper sticker. Those fish have always irritated me. It’s like, why are you advertising your Christianity? You live in Nebraska, you’re part of the majority. Who are you trying to

RODGER KAMENETZ JTA

ChatGPT, an AI (artificial intelligence) chatbot with remarkable abilities to mimic human language, has been making big news. One stunt that’s gotten a lot of attention is ChatGPT’s alleged ability to write poetry. If true, this would mark a major advance. If an AI app can write real poetry, it has acquired a soul.

Have we crossed that threshold now with ChatGPT? The program is fun and swiftly generates remarkably lifelike responses to queries and prompts, in grammatically correct if somewhat dull and stuffy sentences. Still, the responses are often full of excellent information.

We’ve certainly made progress in building machines that think. The chess program Deep Blue can beat any grandmaster. Given a prompt like, “Draw me Donald Duck in the style of Rembrandt surfing on an ocean of macaroni” an art-generating AI like DALL-E can produce remarkable illustrations instantly. “Write me a sonnet about e-bicycles in the style of Shakespeare “— presto, ChatGPT can spit out a sonnet.

For many, the difference between these AI-generated products and the real deal is hard to discern — as it was for the congregants of the New York rabbi who delivered a sermon generated by AI this past Shabbat. If ChatGPT is writing poetry it has passed a most difficult version of the Turing test.

Alan Turing, the early computer scientist who helped crack the Nazis’ Enigma code in World War II, speculated on how to tell if a machine has acquired real intelligence: Can it fool a human being into believing it, too, is human? Imagine yourself exchanging texts with an unseen source hidden behind a screen. If you can’t tell whether you are conversing with a machine or a person, the computer has passed the Turing test.

But I’ve found a loophole. What if the human judge is devolving at the same rate that AI is advancing? Perhaps people are becoming more like computer programs as computer programs become more human. I often hear people say, “I am multitasking,” or “I need to recharge my batteries.” They are emulating machines and even a little proud of it. What if ChatGPT seems to be writing poetry because so

convince? Of course, that gut reaction is at war with my aim to treat everyone with respect. If a complete stranger wants a fish on their car, leave them be. It’s none of my business, and it’s not as if I don’t have my own collection of bumper stickers. What we choose to display in public spaces tells

story doesn’t tell us that.

A before and after photo depicting how a painting of Jesus at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, New York, is now obscured by a curtain. Credit: Before: U.S. Coast Guard; After: U.S. Merchant Marine Academy

others who we are, whether that is on our cars, our skin, our clothing or on the walls in our buildings. It’s something we all do on a regular basis: advertising our identity to the world. But sometimes those visual identity markers do something more: they tell who belongs, and who doesn’t.

In the case of the Jesus-at-sea painting, that becomes a problem. Jews, after all, are not the only ones who are excluded by a depiction of Jesus. And it’s 2023; how many have come through this space feeling less-than because of that painting? Why did it take so long before it was addressed? Have others in the past complained, only to be shut down? The

many people have become so mechanical in their thinking they can’t recognize the poetry of life?

Out of the wounded vanity of a merely human poet, I asked ChatGPT to“write me a poem about kabbalah in the style of Rodger Kamenetz.” Here are the first four lines:

Kabbalah, the ancient wisdom of the Jews Enshrined in symbols, stories, and the Tree Of Life, a map to guide us through our dues

After going back and forth in my head, I think I’m glad the painting is still there. There are people who will take comfort from that painting, so getting rid of it seems harsh. Having the option of covering it up when the situation calls for it? I think it’s a decent compromise. Maybe. But then, I have the luxury of working in a place where these types of paintings don’t show up—and I realize how lucky I am. I’m also curious: have any of you, our readers, ever dealt with this? Is this story an outlier, or is it the tip of the iceberg? We can widen the discussion to include other visual reminders, from holiday displays in the grocery stores (Valentine’s, anyone?) to Christmas trees. The live stable I drive by every day on my way to work during the weeks before Christmas. The random packages that show up on my doorstep from neighborhood churches, inviting my family to join. Much of that is simply the consequence of living in a small diaspora Jewish community. The question is, when is it too much, when does it cross the line? At what point do we stop saying it’s ‘just the way things are,’ and decide we have to close that curtain?

I love ending my op-eds with some kind of conclusion. This time, I won’t. I genuinely don’t know my opinion on this—I guess it’s not the kind of thing where we have an easy go-to general rule. Perhaps that is because when we are reminded of our exclusion, we also have an opportunity to stand firm and not give in. A reminder of who we aren’t is also a reminder of who we are. And we know who we are; accidentally seeing a painting of Jesus (or a fish sticker!) doesn’t make us less Jewish.

not value primary imagination. If I can’t tell whether I am talking to a program or a person, maybe the problem is with me. I pity anyone who can’t distinguish verse written by a bot and a poem by Alicia Ostriker or Gerald Stern.

ChatGPT is no more alive than the legendary golem of Prague.

It is said that the Maharal — the great Rabbi Judah Loew of 16th-century Prague — fashioned a magical creature of river mud in order to (what else?) save the Jews. Using permutations of the names of God, the Maharal brought the golem to life by writing “emet” on the creature’s forehead — Hebrew for “truth.”

The legend is rooted in Talmudic discussions of the mystical Book of Formation (Sefer Yetzirah), and further back to Genesis 2:7 which describes a second version of Adam’s creation:

Then the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

And find the spark of divinity within

To those who know and love poetry this isn’t poetry. It is verse — language written in a rough iambic pentameter that has zero felicity.

The verse offers some good clichés about kabbalah because ChatGPT draws instantly from the whole internet. But ChatGPT has no idea what it is saying. It doesn’t care, or have access, to the kind of truths found in poetry. It just cobbles words and phrases together in a plausible way. Since I asked for a poem, it pours the content into a metrical form. But that doesn’t make it beautiful.

In skillful verse, line breaks and end rhymes create variety and emphasis. But what emphasis is served by rhyming “Jews” and “dues”? What does “dues” even mean in this context — unless it’s a reminder to pay your synagogue dues?

Judging from the response to ChatGPT’s verse, many do think it writes poetry. But that’s where the loophole comes in. The Turing test depends on a human judge. For a judge who has never spent time dwelling on what is beautiful in poetry, ChatGPT has passed the test. But that does not prove that ChatGPT is genuinely creative. It just proves that many people have little interest in poetry, and do

Here we see the original transition from matter to life, from a mere golem — a heap of dirt — to an “adam,” a human being. And according to the 2ndcentury translator Onkelos, what marks that transition is the human’s ability to speak poetic language.

When Onkelos translates Genesis 2:7, he renders the Hebrew “nefesh haya” — living soul — as the Aramaic “ruach m’mamila” — a speaking spirit. Poetry is that spirit speaking. Poetry is the utterance of a living soul. And poetry inscribes truth, not on a forehead of mud, but on the human heart.

ChatGPT cannot tell — and doesn’t care — whether what it is writing is true or beautiful. But in the best poetry we hear that strong “speaking spirit” — what Wallace Stevens called “the voice that is great within us.” Poetry rings true — and makes us more beautifully human.

Rodger Kamenetz wrote The Jew in the Lotus and The History of Last Night’s Dream. His latest book of poetry is The Missing Jew: Poems 1976-2022 from Ben Yehuda Press. Find him at http://www.kamenetz.com, on Twitter @Jewin thelotus and Instagram @rodgerkam

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of JTA or its parent company, 70 Faces Media.

Editorials express the view of the writer and are not necessarily representative of the views of the Jewish Press Board of Directors, the Jewish Federation of Omaha Board of Directors, or the Omaha Jewish community as a whole.

ChatGPT can write verse, but it is no more alive than the Golem of Prague

An image generated by the AI text-to-image model Stable Diffusion from the prompt, “a golem at a computer writing poetry.” Credit: JTA

Learning Hebrew brought me closer to Judaism and alienated me from Israel

JOEL SWANSON

Speaking to the media in the United States before and after his latest election as Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu reassured American Jews and other supporters of Israel that their widely expressed fears of the undemocratic nature of the new Israeli governing coalition were overblown and would not in fact come to pass.

Netanyahu told the New York Times that he was still at least notionally committed to a peace deal with the Palestinians and told journalist Bari Weiss that policy would be determined by him, and not cabinet ministers like the self-described “proud homophobe” Bezalel Smotrich and convicted criminal Itamar Ben-Gvir, or the haredi Orthodox parties.

Then he returned to Israel, and promptly tweeted, “These are the basic lines of the national government headed by me: The Jewish people have an exclusive and indisputable right to all areas of the Land of Israel. The government will promote and develop settlement in all parts of the Land of Israel — in the Galilee, the Negev, the Golan, Judea and Samaria.” Netanyahu was asserting absolute Jewish sovereignty over the entirety of the West Bank, with no room for Palestinian statehood — as those politicians want and as his many American Jewish critics feared he would do.

That last tweet, despite reflecting the official position of Netanyahu’s newly inaugurated government, did not attract nearly as much attention in U.S. media as Netanyahu’s previous press tour. Because unlike Netanyahu’s fluent English-language interviews with numerous American press organizations, this tweet was in Hebrew — a language in which only 22% of American Jews possess an even minimal degree of fluency.

Like many non-Orthodox American Jews, I was once one of those other 78%. I was brought up attending a Reform synagogue, and I learned how to read enough Hebrew phonetically to have a bar mitzvah ceremony, reciting my Torah portion by rote memorization. I learned the aleph bet, and a few basic words here and there, but not much more. If I read Torah or Talmud at all, it was entirely in English translation.

But unlike many non-Orthodox American Jews, I became interested in learning Hebrew as an adult, as part of a broader interest in learning more about Jewish history, and I enrolled in courses starting in college to study Biblical, Mishnaic and

modern Hebrew. Eventually, after years of study, I enrolled in a doctoral program in Jewish history at the University of Chicago, where I had to pass a rigorous Hebrew proficiency exam as a prerequisite to advance to doctoral candidacy status.

In many ways, this should have made me an ideal American Jew. After all, numerous commentators have opined on the need for more American Jews to learn Hebrew, to bring us closer to both Israeli Jewish culture and to Jewish history as a whole. As one Israeli educator stated, “Once you have Hebrew, all Israeli culture can be injected into your life.”

apparently “cannot read those [Hebrew] newspapers or Israeli literature until it is translated.”

The assumption is clear: If American Jews do not know Hebrew, we cannot be connected to the state of Israel, nor can we truly understand the Israeli politics we might wish to opine about. If we learned Hebrew, one Israeli-American advocate wrote, we would “be more united and support Israel in spectacular ways.”

Except that in my case, the exact opposite happened. As I learned more Hebrew, I saw how Israeli Jewish politicians often spoke in different terms in English and in Hebrew, tailoring their appeals for different audiences. Netanyahu’s recent sojourn to the United States is only one example. Take Ayelet Shaked, who sounded moderate notes to English-speaking audiences on a trip to Britain, while also telling Hebrew audiences that the “Jewish” character of Israel should supersede the notion of “equality.”

A wide array of American Jewish philanthropists and charities have identified funding Hebrew language education for American Jews as a priority. They should see someone like me — who went from knowing barely enough Hebrew to get through my bar mitzvah to now reading Haaretz each day in Hebrew — as a success story.

Except that this call for more American Jews to learn Hebrew often comes with an embedded political assumption: that if more American Jews learned to read and speak Hebrew, we would feel more closely linked to Israel and reverse the declining support for Israel among young American Jews.

There’s even a claim that American Jews do not have the right to criticize Israel without being able to follow Israeli political discussions in the original language. Daniel Gordis, of Shalem College in Jerusalem, complained that left-wing American Jewish journalist Peter Beinart should not be taken seriously as a commentator on Israeli affairs, as Beinart

Of course, there’s nothing inherently wrong with code-switching. Politicians of all kinds do that. But the fact that some Israeli politicians think they have to sound more moderate in English than in Hebrew is telling. And when I opened myself up to what some Israeli politicians say in Hebrew, such as when Netanyahu falsely spread allegations of Arabs stealing votes in the last Israeli elections, something he did in Hebrew and not in English, or when new coalition partner Itamar Ben-Gvir put up a billboard reading, “May our enemies be gone” in Hebrew next to the pictures of three Israeli left-wing politicians, two Palestinian and one Jewish, it opened my eyes to a lot of aspects of Israeli politics that some American Jews would rather not hear.

So yes, it would be good for more American Jews to learn Hebrew. It would be a positive step for more American Jews to engage more heavily with Jewish culture and history. I certainly have no regrets about my time spent studying Hebrew.

But we should be honest about what the effects of that Hebrew language education would be. It might not be to simply make more American Jews “defend Israel” against its detractors. It might mean a more honest engagement with Israeli politics as they truly are, rather than how they are presented abroad to English-speaking audiences. And for some of us, that might even push us further away.

Joel Swanson is a doctoral candidate at the University of Chicago, where he studies and teaches undergraduate courses on modern Jewish intellectual history.

A right-wing activist, carrying a sign that reads "leftist traitors," confronts left-wing activists at an anti-government demonstration near the Knesset in Jerusalem, Dec. 12, 2022.

Credit: MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP via Getty Images

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B’NAI ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE

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TEMPLE ISRAEL

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B’NAI ISRAEL

Monthly Speaker Series Service, Friday, Feb. 10, 7:30 p.m. with our guest speaker. Our service leader is Larry Blass. Everyone is always welcome at B’nai Israel!

For information on COVID-related closures and about our historic synagogue, please contact Howard Kutler at hkutler@hotmail.com or any of our other board members: Scott Friedman, Rick Katelman, Janie Kulakofsky, Howard Kutler, Carole and Wayne Lainof, Mary-Beth Muskin, Debbie Salomon and Sissy Silber. Handicap Accessible.

BETH EL

Services conducted by Rabbi Steven Abraham and Hazzan Michael Krausman.

VIRTUAL AND IN-PERSON MINYAN SCHEDULE: Mornings on Sundays, 9:30 a.m.; Mondays and Thursdays, 7 a.m.; Evenings on Sunday-Thursday, 5:30 p.m.

FRIDAY: Nebraska AIDS Project Lunch, 11:30 a.m.; Kabbalat Shabbat 6 p.m. at Beth El & Live Stream.

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TUESDAY: Pirkei Avot, 11:30 a.m. with Rabbi Abraham at Beth El & Live Stream.

WEDNESDAY: BESTT (Grades 3-7), 4:15 p.m.; Hebrew High (Grades 8-12), 6 p.m.

THURSDAY: Take a Break, 6 p.m. with Sivan Cohen.

FRIDAY-Feb. 3: Pre-Neg & Tot Shabbat, 5:30 p.m.; Kabbalat Shabbat 6 p.m. at Beth El & Live Stream.

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Please visit bethel-omaha.org for additional information and service links.

BETH ISRAEL

FRIDAY: Nach Yomi, 6:45 a.m.; Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Mincha/Kabbalat Shabbat, 5:16 p.m.; Candlelighting, 5:17 p.m.

SATURDAY: Shabbat Kollel, 8:30 a.m.; Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Tot Shabbat 10:45 a.m.; Shabbat Brisket Kiddush, 11:30 a.m.; Mincha, 5:10 p.m.; Laws of Shabbos/Kids Activity, 5:40 p.m.; Havdalah, 6:20 p.m.

SUNDAY: Shacharit 9 a.m.; Daf Yomi 4:40 p.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 5:20 p.m.; Mishna Class (2nd-6th), 6 p.m.

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THURSDAY: Nach Yomi, 6:45 a.m.; Shacharit, 7

a.m.; Character Development 9:30 a.m.; Daf Yomi 4:40 p.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 5:20 p.m.; Parsha Class, 5:50 p.m.

FRIDAY-Feb. 3: Nach Yomi, 6:45 a.m.; Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Mincha/Kabbalat Shabbat, 5:24 p.m.; Candlelighting, 5:25 p.m.

SATURDAY-Feb. 4: Shabbat Kollel, 8:30 a.m.; Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Tot Shabbat, 10:45 a.m.; Mincha, 5:10 p.m.; Laws of Shabbos/Kids Activity 5:40 p.m.; Havdalah, 6:28 p.m.

Please visit orthodoxomaha.org for additional information and Zoom service links.

CHABAD HOUSE

All services are in-person. All classes are being offered in-person and via Zoom (ochabad.com/academy). For more information or to request help, please visit www.ochabad.com or call the office at 402.330.1800.

FRIDAY: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Inspirational Lechayim, 5 p.m. with Rabbi and friends: ochabad.com/Lech ayim; Candlelighting, 5:16 p.m.

SATURDAY: Shacharit, 9:30 a.m. followed by Kiddush and Cholent; Shabbat Ends, 6:19 p.m.

SUNDAY: Sunday Morning Wraps: Video Presentation, 9-9:30 a.m. and Breakfast, 9:45 a.m.

MONDAY: Shacharit 8 a.m.; Personal Parsha, 9:30 a.m.; Hebrew Grammar, 10:30 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Parsha Reading, 6 p.m. with Prof. David Cohen.

TUESDAY: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Hebrew Grammar, 6 p.m. with Prof. David Cohen.

WEDNESDAY: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Tanya Class, 9:30 a.m.; Hebrew Grammar, 10:30 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Hebrew Reading, 11:30 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen.

THURSDAY: Shacharit 8 a.m.; Hebrew Reading, 11 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Talmud Study (Sanhedrin 34), noon; Hebrew Reading, 6 p.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Jewish Law Class, 7 p.m.

FRIDAY-Feb. 3: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Inspirational Lechayim, 5 p.m. with Rabbi and friends: ochabad. com/Lechayim; Candlelighting, 5:25 p.m.

SATURDAY-Feb. 4: Shacharit, 9:30 a.m. followed by Kiddush and Cholent; Shabbat Ends, 6:27 p.m.

Services facilitated by Rabbi Alex Felch.

Note: Some of our services, but not all, are now being offered in person.

FRIDAY: Shabbat Candlelighting, 5:20 p.m.; Kabbalat Shabbat Service with Rabbi Alex and music by Nathaniel and Steve Kaup, 6:30 p.m. at SST; Oneg host: TBD

SATURDAY: Shabbat Morning Service, 9:30 a.m. with Rabbi Alex at TI; Torah Study, noon on Parashat Bo; Havdalah, 6:22 p.m.

SUNDAY: LJCS Classes, 9:30 a.m.; Men's Bike/Cof-

fee Group continues to meet during the winter months, 10:30 a.m. at Rock-N-Joe, just off of 84th and Glynoaks. For more informatoin or questions please email Al Weiss at albertw801@gmail.com; SST Board of Trustees Meeting, 1:30 p.m.; Pickleball, 3 p.m. at TI. For more information please contact Miriam Wallick by text message 402.470.2393 or email at Miriam57@aol.com. Wear comfortable clothes and appropriate footwear.

WEDNESDAY: LJCS Classes, 4:30 p.m.; Adult Ed class: The Modern History of Israel, 6:30-8:30 p.m. at SST.

FRIDAY-Feb. 3: Shabbat Candlelighting, 5:28 p.m.; Kabbalat Shabbat Service with Rabbi Alex and music by Nathaniel and Steve Kaup with the Star CIty Kochavim, 6:30 p.m. with guest speaker: Amy Zlotskyat SST; Oneg host: SST.

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BLUMKIN JEWISH HOME

The Rose Blumkin Jewish Home’s service is currently closed to visitors.

TEMPLE ISRAEL

In-person and virtual services conducted by Rabbi Batsheva Appel, Rabbi Deana Sussman Berezin, and Cantor Joanna Alexander

FRIDAY: Drop in Mah Jongg, 9-11 a.m.; Shabbat B’yachad Service, 6 p.m. In-Person & Zoom; Confirmation Class & Dinner, 6 p.m.

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THURSDAY: Thursday Morning Class, 10 a.m. with Rabbi Azriel — In-Person & Zoom.

FRIDAY-Feb. 3: Drop in Mah Jongg, 9-11 a.m.; Shabbat Shira/Regugee Shabbat Service, 6 p.m. InPerson & Zoom; Confirmation Class & Dinner, 6 p.m. SATURDAY-Feb. 4: Torah Study, 9:15 a.m. In-Person & Zoom.

Please visit templeisraelomaha.com for additional information and Zoom service links.

Weapons from Israel to Ukraine — out of an American stockpile

PHILISSA CRAMER

JTA

A significant portion of the weaponry that the United States has sent Ukraine for use in its defensive war against Russia has come from a stockpile in Israel, according to a new report in The New York Times.

The location of the stockpile is significant because Israel has declined to supply Ukraine with weapons out of concern over inflaming Russia, which controls the airspace in neighboring Syria.

Israel maintained that stance even as Russia scaled back its position in Syria, where it is seen as constraining the use of weapons aimed at Israel.

The right-wing government inaugurated last month in Israel has signaled that it is open to closer ties with Russia than its predecessor, which had not met with Russian officials since the invasion.

Under the previous government, Israel condemned Russia’s invasion despite declining to send weapons, in a stance that has drawn specific criticism from Ukrainian officials:

In a June 23, 2022 live streamed address to students, faculty and staff at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged Israel to join the network of countries around the world that have placed sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.

“We are grateful to your great nation. But we would like to also get support from your government,” Zelensky said at the time. “Tell me, how can you not help the victim of such aggression?”

In that address, Zelensky recognized the connected histories of Ukraine and Israel, noting the Ukrainian origins of Yiddish writer Sholem Aleichem, Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir, Zionist leader Zev Jabotinsky and many others.

“Many European countries act together with us against Russian aggression.” he said. “And unfortunately, we have not yet seen Israel join the sanctions regime.”

The transfer of the American weapons to Ukraine should not be interpreted as a change in Israel’s stance, unnamed Israeli and American officials told The New York Times, which reported that Israel initially balked at the request.

The Israeli stockpile is one of two that the U.S. military is accessing in countries where it has strategic interests, according to the report, which called the stockpile “vast but little-known.” The other is in South Korea.

The Israeli stockpile dates back to 1973, when the U.S. Department of Defense built in to avoid a situation like the one that unfolded during the Yom Kippur War, when the Americans had to send in supplies from abroad to help the Israelis. While the

weapons are intended mainly for use by U.S. forces, the Israeli army was permitted to draw from the stockpile during two conflicts, with Hezbollah in Lebanon in 2006 and Hamas in Gaza in 2014, according to the report.

ROSE

LINCOLN JEWISH COMMUNITY: B’NAI JESHURUN & TIFERETH ISRAEL

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addresses Hebrew University in Jerusalem, June 23, 2022. Credit: Screenshot from YouTube

Life cycles

SOFFIA RAPHAEL GENDELMAN

Soffia Raphael Gendelman passed away on Jan. 21, 2023. Services were held Jan. 24, 2023 at Montefiore Cemetery in Jenkintown, PA.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Seymour Gendelman; and sisters; Marcia Notis, Helen Pollack and Libby Wein.

She is survived by son and daughter-in-law; Howard and Bonnie Gendelman; grandchildren: Lesley and Eric Greenfield, Sierra and Jason Tobias, and Adam and Jennifer Gendelman; seven great-grandchildren; and 12 nieces and nephews.

Soffia graduated Temple University’s College of Education and Human Sciences then pursued graduate studies in Secondary Education. She taught in Philadelphia’s school district until her retirement at age 92. She was also an Associate Food Editor for the Philadelphia Jewish Exponent together with being a dedicated mother, grandmother, aunt, and great grandmother.

Memorials may be made to the University of Nebraska Medical Center Alzheimer's and Pakinson's Research Fund in care of Dr. Gendelman.

You’re Invited!

Please join us for the Ethical Wills Workshop. This twopart interactive virtual workshop will be a wonderful opportunity for all ages to learn about and begin to create their ethical will!

Ethical wills, sometimes called spiritual or legacy letters, are resources Jews have used for centuries to articulate and pass on deeply held values and beliefs. Historically, they were letters written by parents to children; now they often address a wider circle of friends and family, and can come in audio, video, or other creative formats. They contain a person’s moral legacy, including stories, life lessons, and blessings for the future. Unlike wills that govern material assets and property, ethical wills are not enforceable by law. They are values articulated, saved, and passed on for future generations. This workshop is for all ages!

Our facilitator for the two-part workshop is Dirk Bird. Dirk resides in Colorado and is the Vice President, Planned Giving & Endowment and Managing Director of the Jewish Federation of North America.

To learn more and register visit Jewishomaha.org

2023 JCC Summer Camp Registration Opens Soon

Even though the Omaha winter is definitely here, summer is closer than you think. We will feel that summer sun before you know it and now is the time to start thinking about CAMP!!

Registration for the 2023 summer session of our American Camping Association Accredited Camp(the only day camp in the city) opens in February.

JCC Members can begin to register Wednesday, Feb. 1 at 10am. We are anticipating camps to fill up quickly again this year.

Registration may be done online, in person or over the phone. We encourage members to go our JCC website (www.jccomaha. org), set up their online account and familiarize themselves with our NEW Daxko Operations System. Please watch for an email or go to the website for more details on how to complete online registration.

For members who need a little extra help navigating the camp registration process, we will have staff members in the Goldstein Community Engagement Venue from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 1

Registration for Non-JCC Members will open on Wednesday, Feb. 15 at 10 a.m. Our Early Bird Registration will close on Wednesday, Mar. 1. We are excited for another amazing camp season. If you have questions please contact Amanda Welsh, JCC Youth and Camp Director at awelsh@jccoma ha.org or 402.334.6409.

Israel’s Supreme Court bans lawmaker from minister post, setting up potential coalition crisis

RON KAMPEAS

JTA

In a decision that could lead to the dissolution of Israel’s new government coalition, the country’s Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that a minister who has been previously convicted in multiple fraud cases is not fit to serve in government.

The Court ruled 10-1 to disqualify Aryeh Deri, a longtime lawmaker and leader of a haredi Orthodox party, from his role as health and interior minister, citing his conviction last year for tax fraud. Deri had also previously served nearly two years in prison for taking bribes two decades ago.

If Deri pulls the 11 lawmakers from his Shas Party out of the ruling coalition, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would lose his majority. The coalition currently controls 64 seats in the 120member Knesset, or parliament.

Leaders of the coalition issued a statement vowing to use “legal means … to correct the injustice,” The Washington Post reported.

Netanyahu did not issue a statement on Wednesday. If he ignores the decision, he could plunge Israel into a constitutional crisis at a time when his new far-right government is

already facing massive domestic protests and is under international scrutiny for proposals that would curtail the Supreme Court’s power. In recent years, the Supreme Court has banned Israeli construction on private Palestinian lands in the West Bank, forced the acceptance of non-Orthodox conversions and guaranteed some rights to gay couples — all of which the new government opposes.

Netanyahu has also been under investigation in multiple corruption cases for years.

The prime minister appeared at least initially to sympathize with Deri, visiting him at his home. “When my brother is in distress, I come to him,” The New York Times quoted Netanyahu as saying.

Deri wields considerable power as head of the interior and health ministries, each with a massive budget. The Interior Ministry also helps determine policy on civil and immigration issues, an area of interest for the haredi Orthodox community as it seeks to expand its influence.

A statement on Twitter suggested Deri would not go gently. “I intend to continue with great strength and boldness the social revolution our rabbis of blessed memory launched for Jewish identity and assistance for the weak,” he said. “We will do this with power, standing tall, with God’s help.”

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STROKE AND Cardiovascular disease are leading causes of death, according to the American Heart Association. Screenings can provide peace of mind or early detection! Contact Life Line Screening to schedule your screening. Special offer - 5 screenings for just $149. Call 1-844-893-8016.

FOR SALE - UTILITIES

THE GENERAC PWRcell, a solar plus battery storage system. Save money, reduce your reliance on the grid, prepare for power outages and power your home. Full installation services available. $0 Down Financing Option. Request a Free, no obligation, quote today. Call 1-833-513-0190.

GUN SHOW

GUNS GUNS Guns Guns Guns Guns Gun Show Feb 4th & 5th, Fonner Park, Grand Island.

HOME REPAIR

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SENIOR CARE

CARING FOR an aging loved one? Wondering about options like senior-living communities and in-home care? Caring.com’s Family Advisors are here to help take the guesswork out of senior care for you and your family. Call for your FREE, no-obligation consultation: 1-888-495-3288.

NEBRASKA STATEWIDE CLASSIFIEDS

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, sits next to Interior and Health Minister Aryeh Deri during a weekly Cabinet meeting at the prime minister's office in Jerusalem, Jan. 8, 2023.

Credit: Ronen Zevulun/Pool/AFP via Getty Images

Winter Carnival

On Sunday, Jan. 8, over 200 people celebrated together at the Jewish Federation of Omaha Winter Carnival.

Children learned about “Sharing is Caring” as they created a Tzedakah box and explored the fun activities at the Children’s Museum.

Thank you to the kids who donated their Tzedakah to the 2023 Annual Campaign. Every penny counts!

The Jewish Federation of Omaha thanks our Event Sponsor, Mutual of America, and the Tzedakah Boxes Sponsor, Nebraska Medicine.