December 24, 2021

A N AG E N C Y O F T H E J E W I S H F E D E R AT I O N O F O M A H A

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DECEMBER 24, 2021 | 2 0 TE V E T 578 2 | VO L. 1 02 | NO. 1 1 | CANDLELIGHTING | FRIDAY, DECEMBER 24, 4:42 P.M.

Additions to the Kripke Library’s collection

Europe’s unlikely leader in kosher foie gras production Page 4

SHIRLY BANNER JFO Kripke Jewish Federation Library, Library Specialist

MARY SUE GROSSMAN for Beth Israel Synagogue ou have heard the words, read the articles, and viewed a variety of Facebook posts about the importance of taking care of oneself. The mind, body, and soul are truly interconnected and there is solid science behind the concept of taking the time to focus on self. Think not? Then close your eyes and take a few deep breaths.

Ask a few questions about how you are feeling. When ready, open your eyes and you most likely will feel more relaxed, more focused, or more energized.

While taking care of oneself is a wonderful concept and it is so important to follow that advice, the reality of making it happen is more often than not a daunting task.

Beth Israel is stepping up to provide an evening for the Jewish women of Omaha, focusing on the mind, body, and soul, and providing a jump start for attendees to make changes toward a healthier self. The event committee members Laura Dembitzer, Anna Priluck, Shiran Dreyer, Helene Shrago, Melissa Shrago, Sharon Kirshenbaum, Karen Cohen, Patricia Kanwiesky, Stephanie Beneda, and Andrea Shnayder, have planned

Y

HBO spotlights Amar’e Stoudemire’s journey from the NBA to Orthodox Judaism Page6

Jewish musician Navah Perlman Frost pivoted to designing cakes Page 12

a wonderful evening with a variety of activities. “Mind. Body. Soul – A evening of fun and wellness for women” will take place Saturday, Jan. 29, at 7 p.m. at Beth Israel Synagogue. Registration is required to participate.

Open to the women of Omaha Jewish community, 16 years or older, registration will include a wine bar, SHiNE Dance fitness class, and a healthy dairy snack bar. Certified SHiNE Fitness instructor, Melissa Shrago, will lead the fitness class. Optional add-ons include a $15 mini facial by Stephanie Beneda, a certified aesthetician with Forever Natural Skin. The facial includes customized cleansing, mask, and jade stone therapy.

Chair massages will also be available for $10.

“I am super excited to be part of this event,” shares Laura Dembitzer. “We are looking forward to a wonderful evening of fun, laughter, friendship, relaxation and hopefully a little inspiration. One of my favorite parts of the evening is that it is hosted by our community of women coming together to share their talents to offer something we can all enjoy. Physical, mental and spiritual wellness is a theme to which we can all connect and benefit.”

See Mind. Body. Soul. page 2

Fed and Football

REGULARS Spotlight Voices Synagogues Life cycles

7 8 10 11

SPONSORED BY THE BENJAMIN AND ANNA E. WIESMAN FAMILY ENDOWMENT FUND

JUVENILE: Gitty and Kvetch by Caroline Kusin Pritchard Gitty and her feathered-friend Kvetch couldn’t be more different: Gitty always sees the bright side of life, while her curmudgeonly friend Kvetch is always complaining and, well, kvetching about the trouble they get into.

One perfect day, Gitty ropes Kvetch into shlepping off on a new adventure to their perfect purple treehouse. Even when Kvetch sees signs of impending doom everywhere, Gitty finds silver linings and holds onto her super special surprise reason for completing their mission.

But when her perfect plan goes awry, oy vey, suddenly it’s Gitty who’s down in the dumps. Can Kvetch come out of his funk to lift Gitty’s spirits back up?

MAREN ANGUS JFO Israel Engagement and Outreach Coordinator The smell of coffee and donuts filled the bus bright and early on Sunday morning for the first annual Fed and Football event. Nineteen individuals met at the Staenberg Omaha JCC at 6:30 a.m. on Dec. 12 for a smooth ride to Kansas City for a day at Arrowhead Stadium featuring the Kansas City Chiefs and Las Vegas Raiders.

The event included round trip bus fare, tailgating and game ticket for $80 with help from the Milton S. & Corinne

Sivan Cohen, left, Maren Angus and Sam Kricsfeld

N. Livingston Foundation Fund.

Much to the surprise of everyone, the group from Omaha boarded an official Nebraska Cornhuskers football team bus and garnered the attention of almost every car on the

interstate and in the parking lot.

After parking just outside right field of Kauffman Stadium, the group gathered the cornhole boards, bags and belongings to bring to the tailgate See Fed and Football page 2

ADULT: A Deadly Act: An Adam Lapid Mystery by Jonathan Dunsky Israel, 1951: Private investigator Adam Lapid has never had a case like this.

Five years before, his client lied to the police, giving a false alibi to her husband. Now, she’s sure he See Kripke Library page 2

2 | The Jewish Press | December 24, 2021

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Kripke Library

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Fed and Football

Continued from page 1 set up by the Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City.

Bowls of chili, burnt ends and smoked chicken legs filled the plates of everyone in attendance. The kids played cornhole and the adults schmoozed for about an hour and a half before it was time to head in to the stadium.

The entire group sat together, cheered and high-fived one another as the Chiefs rolled to a 48-9 victory.

Everyone returned to the site of the tailgate immediately following the game to get one last bite of food in before the bus ride back to Omaha.

The weather was perfect, the company was welcoming and the Chiefs won. Because of the early success of this program, Kansas City agreed to do more co-hosted programming in the future with Fed and Football being an annual event for both communities.

Continued from page 1 committed murder, and she wants Adam to prove it.

But can Adam really trust her? Is she telling him the whole truth?

The case is a puzzle, the victim a mystery wrapped in a riddle.

And the murder scene? That’s the most baffling thing of all.

Why did the killer choose that particular spot? Why take some of the victim’s possessions and leave others behind?

It’s a cold case that’s about to get hot. The more Adam unravels the mystery, the greater the danger. Is the killer plotting to kill again? Is Adam’s life in danger as he closes in on the murderer?

Social Graces by Renée Rosen 1876. In the glittering world of Manhattan’s upper crust, women are valued by their pedigree, dowry, and, most importantly, connections. They have few rights and even less independence—what they do have is society.

The more celebrated the hostess, the more powerful the woman. And none is more powerful than Caroline Astor—the Mrs. Astor.

But times are changing.

Alva Vanderbilt has recently married into one of America’s richest families.

But what good is dizzying wealth when society refuses to acknowledge you? Alva, who knows what it is to have nothing, will do whatever it takes to have everything.

Sweeping three decades and based on true events, this is the mesmerizing story of two fascinating, complicated women going head to head, behaving badly, and discovering what’s truly at stake.

Mind. Body. Soul.

Continued from page 1 Event registration is $15 per person plus the fees for any "add on" activities. Those registering before January 16 will receive a free t-shirt. Space is limited and registration closes Jan. 21. The registration link is tinyurl.com/bisrael women and will also be provided on Beth Israel’s weekly email. Registration and inquiries can also be made to execu tiveasst@orthodoxomaha.org or 402.556.6288. Attire is workout casual and properly worn face masks are required.

Above: Margie Utesch, left, and her father Dan Mueller; above right: Friends of Ben Cohn enjoying their tailgating meal; and right: Nancy Rampey-Biniamow, left, Alan Biniamow and grandson.

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The Jewish Press | December 24, 2021 | 3

JFO Scholarships DIANE WALKER JFO Foundation Fund and Scholarship Administrator 2022 is just around the corner! Have you started planning for next year’s adventures? Are your kids ready to get back to camp? Do you have little ones at the ELC or Friedel? College students? Thanks to the generosity of our community, a variety of funding sources are available to Omaha’s Jewish families to help with the financial burden of residential camp, JCC summer camp, Israel programs, the Pennie Z. Davis Early Learning Center, Friedel Jewish Academy, and youth group activities. Assistance is also available for post-high school studies.

Grant programs, funded by the Jewish Federation of Omaha, are available to any Omaha Jewish family meeting the program requirements, regardless of the family’s financial situation.

Jewish Experience Grants provide up to $2,000 for Jewish children in the metro area to attend a residential summer camp. Grants are paid over two years with no more than $1,000 per summer.

Israel Experience Grants provide up to $1,500 to students in grades 9 – 12 or young adults aged 18 – 25 for an Israel peer program. An additional stipend of $1,000 is provided for the bi-annual community teen trip to Israel.

Scholarships, awarded by the Financial Aid Committee of the Jewish Federation of Omaha, are funded by a number of endowments established through the Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation, outside entities, and through the Federation’s Annual Campaign. Scholarships are available for JCC summer camp, residential Jewish summer camp, Israel peer programs, Friedel Jewish Academy, the Early Learning Center, and youth group programs. Jewish students, who are residents of the Omaha metropolitan area, can apply for scholarships for undergraduate, graduate, vocational, technical, professional or yeshiva studies. While the majority of scholarships are based on financial need, some college scholarships are merit-based.

The revised 2022 Scholarship and Grants booklet and applications will soon be available on the Jewish Federation of Omaha website. The deadline for applications is Tuesday, March 1, 2022. The 2022 Scholarship and Grants booklet will be available as an insert in the Dec. 31 issue of the Jewish Press.

I would like to highlight a few special funds: Gary and Barbara Goldstein Jewish Youth Camp Fund

was established to enable metro Omaha Jewish youth under age 18 who need financial assistance to attend summer residential camps and day camps sponsored by the Omaha JCC, Omaha-area synagogues, or other summer camping programs sponsored by a Jewish organization and approved by the JFO. Lazier L. & Harriet B. Singer Memorial Fund for Youth is committed to helping Jewish children experience overnight summer camp and all that entails – encouraging social and physical growth, building life-long friendships, solidifying Jewish identity and will provide scholarships to children with demonstrated financial need for the 2022 summer camp season.

Edward Zorinsky Endowment Fund was established by Sonia Zorinsky in memory of her son, Senator Edward Zorinsky. It is intended to facilitate education through scholarships for Jewish summer camps, summer study trips to Israel for high school students, and university tuition for college freshmen.

Barry E. Epstein Memorial Health Care Fund was established by Geraldine and Irving Epstein in memory of their son, Barry. Barry Epstein was trained as a radiation oncologist at Johns Hopkins Medical School and served on the faculty of the Fox Chase Cancer Institute. The purpose of this fund is to provide scholarships for graduate or professional school in the health care fields.

Jacob Friedman and Betty Tarnoff Friedman College Scholarship Endowment Fund was created to enable metro Omaha Jewish residents in need to attend college as undergraduate or graduate students. One third of the award is available to a Creighton University student, one third to a University of Nebraska Omaha student, and one third to a student at the University of Iowa in Iowa City.

Several scholarships outlined in the 2022 Scholarship and Grants booklet are outside the realm of the Financial Aid Committee. These include Sokolof Honor Roll scholarships, Fellman/Kooper scholarships, A.A. and Ethel Yossem scholarships for Creighton University and the Bennett G. Hornstein Endowment Fund.

Omaha’s Jewish families are encouraged to take advantage of these funding opportunities. All financial information is kept completely confidential. For any questions, please call Diane Walker at 402.334.6551 or via email at dwalker@jew ishomaha.org.

ADL joins as co-counsel in D.C. lawsuit

ADL (the Anti-Defamation League) joined with D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine, States United Democracy Center, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP and Dechert LLP in filing a federal lawsuit to hold two violent groups accountable for the role they played in planning and carrying out the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

The lawsuit specifically claims the groups, and their leaders and members, caused extensive damage to the District of Columbia, and particularly to the law enforcement officers who risked their lives to defend the Capitol, those in it, the District, and our democracy.

The civil lawsuit is the first by a government entity against the Jan. 6 insurrectionists. The lawsuit seeks to hold the Proud Boys, Oath Keepers, and their leaders and members accountable for their actions in planning and carrying out the Jan. 6 attack and violating federal and District laws. It seeks to recover damages they caused to the District, particularly the physical, mental, and emotional injuries suffered by Metropolitan Police Department officers.

“ADL has been at the forefront of strategically monitoring, exposing, and countering extremist threats from across the ideological spectrum for decades,” said Jonathan A. Greenblatt, ADL CEO and National Director. “We have deep expertise when it comes to the groups and individuals involved in the planning and execution of the Jan. 6 attack and are honored now to be putting that expertise at the service of the District of Columbia and the brave officers who were injured or killed as a result of that day. Those who perpetrated the attack will not readily abandon their convictions. Domestic extremists, like the Proud Boys, Oath Keepers, and others, continue to present a serious, credible, and dangerous threat to our democracy and to us all. Accountability for Jan. 6 is critically important to preventing another violent insurrection from happening in D.C. or in state capitols across the country.”

Filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, the lawsuit alleges that the Proud Boys, Oath Keepers, and

more than 30 of the individual members and affiliates of these groups participated in a coordinated violent attack on Jan. 6.

In the complaint, the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) details how the groups planned, recruited, publicized, funded, and then carried out the attack – breaking through police barricades, forcing their way into the Capitol building, terrorizing members of Congress and their staffs, and brutally assaulting those who tried to stop them, including officers of the District’s MPD. With ADL serving as outside co-counsel, OAG filed the suit under federal and local laws, including the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871, a Reconstruction-era federal law designed to provide a remedy against violent conspiracies that target our democracy like the attack that unfolded on Jan. 6.

With the lawsuit, ADL is seeking to hold these groups and individuals accountable for their violent and unlawful acts, deter them and others from ever taking such action again, and recover damages for the costs the District incurred as a result of the attack. The damages include the millions of dollars spent to deploy an unprecedented number of police officers to the Capitol, emergency medical care, and ongoing medical and mental health care for the numerous officers who were injured in the attack and continue to face trauma.

ORGANIZATIONS B’NAI B’RITH BREADBREAKERS The Monsky Lodge of B’nai B’rith is pleased to announce the resumption of its award-winning speaker program via ZOOM. Although the Home auditorium remains temporarily closed, we’ll continue presenting an outstanding lineup of thought-provoking keynoters. For specific speaker information and/or to be placed on the email list, please contact Breadbreakers chair Gary Javitch at breadbreakersomaha@ gmail.com or leave a message at the B’nai B’rith JCC office 402.334.6443.

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Europe’s unlikely leader in kosher foie gras production

Following the ban in Belgium, a large slaughterhouse for CNAAN LIPSHIZ chickens relocated last year from Antwerp to Hungary to stay JTA Europe’s two kosher foie gras factories aren’t in France, by in business. And when the COVID-19 pandemic caused a far the leading consumer of the fatty product made from the shutdown of kosher slaughterhouses in the United Kingdom, liver of geese. Nor are they in England, home to Europe’s sec- the ones in Hungary upped production. One of the abattoirs ond-largest Jewish population. for geese, Kosher Poultry in the village of Csengele about 75 Instead, they are both in Hungary — where there are few miles southeast of Budapest, switched to poultry to alleviate Jews and no more than half a dozen kosher eateries in total. the shortages.

Part of the reason may England and France have to do with Hungarian “provide for us with the Prime Minister Viktor consumption of our kosher Orban’s reputation among products” yearlong, Slomo his many critics for Koves, a rabbi from Buweaponizing xenophobia — dapest whose group, EMIH, including against Jews. supervises kashrut at The European Union has Kosher Poultry, said at the grown increasingly critical of time. “Now it is our turn to Orban, condemning his relook after them.” fusal to admit asylum seekThe slaughterhouse has ers, erosion of the judiciary’s since returned to its speindependence and, most reciality: killing, preparing cently, making it illegal to and dismembering geese share information about ho- Rabbis examine the production line at Quality Poultry KFT in Csen- that had been force fed to gele, Hungary, February 2017. Credit: Zsolt Demecs mosexuality with minors. make their livers large for But Belgium, where the EU is based, recently banned the the production of foie gras. production of kosher and halal meat — and the EU’s top court At Kosher Poultry, dozens of workers, most of them from recently upheld the ban. countryside Roma communities, work in a state-of-the-art The saga provided the Orban government with a fresh op- factory, which was designed around two principles: strict obportunity to level allegations of civil rights violations at his de- servance of kosher laws and minimum waste. Hundreds of tractors similar to the ones they are flinging at him, while thousands of birds are slaughtered there annually. presenting Hungary as the guardian of liberties that are being The birds are loaded in cages directly from the farmer’s curtailed elsewhere in Europe. truck to the slaughter area, where four schochets, or Jews with The bans and ruling on them are “not just an attack on re- training in the production of kosher meat, use very sharp ligious freedom, but an attack on our Judeo-Christian heritage knives to cut through each bird’s windpipe and main artery. and the Jewish communities in Europe,” Orban wrote earlier The technique — prescribed under ancient Jewish laws — this year to Israeli President Isaac Herzog. runs afoul of the bans in several countries on slaughter done “Consequently, my government has quickly condemned this without the animal first being stunned. Animal rights advoharmful decision, and we will do our utmost to raise our voice cates say slaughter without stunning is inhumane, while exagainst it in all possible international fora.” perts in kosher laws say it’s possible to minimize trauma to Hungary has been doing more than advocating against re- animals without violating ritual law. strictions on kosher slaughter, or shechitah. It also gives sub“Done well, the sudden blood loss shuts down the nervous stantial government subsidies and concessions to kosher system,” Rabbi Jacob Werchow, the head shochet at Kosher slaughterhouses that operate within the country.

Poultry, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency during a recent tour.

The subsidies, combined with the animal-slaughter policies But especially with geese, “doing it fast enough takes skill elsewhere in Europe and the supply chain interruptions in- and practice,” he said. “The geese have tough cartilage rings in duced by the COVID-19 pandemic, has turned Hungary into their windpipes and you need to hit between those rings or an unlikely major producer of kosher meat for consumption you will not make the cut in one motion — and dull the knife in Europe and Israel. Among its slaughterhouses are the only for the next one,” he said while stretching open the incision on two devoted to kosher geese in Europe. a dying goose to inspect the incision and show it to a reporter.

The Orban government’s opposition to bans or severe limiInjuries other than the one that caused death render anitations on kosher slaughter, which animal-rights advocates mals unkosher, so as the geese are processed, their parts are have succeeded in putting on the books in at least seven Eu- examined closely. If any defects are discovered, the meat is ropean countries, date back at least to 2014, when Ferenc transferred to a separate, non-kosher production line for use Kumin, a senior government spokesman, vowed to oppose in the general market. any efforts toward bans locally.

See Kosher foie gras page 5

Omaha Community Playhouse to present Bright Star Bright Star is opening Jan. 21 at the Omaha Community Playhouse. Nominated for five Tony Awards®, written by Steve Martin and Edie Brickell and inspired by real events, Bright Star is a story of enduring hope woven through time and set against the backdrop of the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. Young teenager Alice Murphy is devastated when her infant son is ripped away. But 20 years later, a young man enters her life and ushers in an unexpected glimmer of

hope. With a Grammy®-nominated bluegrass score that will seep into your veins, Bright Star is as much a musical experience as it is a journey of the heart.

The show opens Jan. 21 and runs through Feb. 13 in the Hawks Mainstage Theatre at the Omaha Community Playhouse. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online at OmahaPlayhouse.com or by calling the OCP Box Office at 402.553.0800. Reserve your seats early for the best pricing and seating options.

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The Jewish Press | December 24, 2021 | 5

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Kosher foie gras

pens here too.” ber in a country of only 9.5 million residents.

Continued from page 4 In both production lines, the liver is exWerchow disputed this, saying that the In other European countries, animal-rights tracted, cleaned, weighed and packed raw or force feeding nowadays is painless because activists pursuing causes similar to those cooked for freezing and delivery. Each liver the food is transferred to the geeses’ stomachs sought by Kapin have become strange bedfelweighs about 28 ounces and is worth about using flexible silicone sleeves that cause lows with right-wing politicians in their efforts $100 in France, where the only to bar slaughter without stunkosher foie gras sold is Hunning. Geert Wilders, the Dutch garian. anti-Islam politician and the Animal welfare groups in Vlaams Belang party in BelHungary have noticed the gium are among the right-wing growth in the country’s kosher leaders that have promoted meat industry, and they are bans on kosher and halal not happy about it. slaughter, in keeping with their “Kosher slaughter is extra goal of limiting what they call cruel not only because it offers “Islamization,” or the influence no anesthesia from the pain of of Muslim immigrants. having the animal’s necks cut, Orban shares those parties’ but also because fully-concritical view of the EU and has scious the animals see their used similar language to theirs families being slaughtered. about Muslims, calling immiThey know what’s coming,” grants from the Middle East said Richard Kapin, a founder László Györfi invites patrons into his kosher restaurant in Budapest, Hungary, “Muslim invaders.” He is particof the Hungarian animal wel- Aug. 29, 2021. Credit: Cnaan Liphshiz ularly at odds with George fare group Soccer Fans for the Animals. Kapin, much less discomfort and injuries than the Soros, the Hungarian-born philanthropist who was born in Budapest, is not Jewish. metal ones they replaced in recent years. who opposes Orban and funds liberal causes His organization and others are lobbying “As for the cut — it is its own anesthesia. It’s in Hungary and around the world — includaggressively to get Hungary to ban both too swift and sharp to cause pain and the an- ing the EU (Mazsihisz, Hungary’s largest Jewkosher slaughter and the force feeding of imal is made unconscious by the drop in ish organization, has accused Orban of geese, which has been banned in Israel, the blood pressure. They’re out before they actu- emboldening antisemitism with billboards United Kingdom, Finland and Poland, among ally die,” he said. criticizing Soros; EMIH, the Chabad-affiliated other places. Many animal welfare activists But to Kapin, both the slaughter and the rival group, has defended the government.) say both practices are cruel. force feeding are “extremely cruel,” he said.

Orban’s disagreements with the EU are one “I am very happy that Belgium banned The group headed by Kapin, 36, has 100,000 reason the Orban government is likely to kosher slaughter,” Kapin said. “I hope it hap- followers on Facebook — a significant num- withstand public pressure on slaughter with-

out stunning, according to Kalman Szalai, the secretary-general of Hungary’s Foundation for Action and Defense, a watchdog of the local Jewish community.

Szalai said he believes that Orban cares about Hungarian Jews and freedom of worship. But he noted that inviting kosher slaughterhouses to Hungary “makes sense politically, because it shows up the EU as intolerant, and it’s financially beneficial, providing jobs. So that’s a double win.”

Koves, the Budapest rabbi, said he didn’t think Orban was politicizing kosher slaughter in his fight with the EU. But, he added, “the issue does show the hypocrisy of a body that accuses Hungary of human rights violations even as they commit them against Jewish communities and Muslim ones.”

Any further debate about kosher slaughter or the production of foie gras in Hungary would run up against a matter of national identity.

“Foie gras is a lucrative local tradition,” Szalai said. “Banning it or its kosher component would also raise an outcry.”

Among Budapest’s few kosher meat retailers, the government’s pro-shechitah stance is reassuring news.

“But it’s not just the government, Hungarian society itself is traditional,” László Györfi, the owner of a kosher eatery, Kosher MeatUp, told JTA. “This has disadvantages and advantages — but it means that these kinds of bans are not on the menu here for the moment.”

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HBO spotlights Amar’e Stoudemire’s journey from the NBA 25-year-old settler dies after his car is to Orthodox Judaism ambushed in the West Bank LOC AL | N AT I O N A L | WO R L D

Dimentman was riding in a CNAAN LIPSHIZ car with two others to the outJTA post when they were ambushed A 25-year-old Israeli was by shooters with automatic killed in a shooting attack in weapons. The other passengers the West Bank late Thursday. sustained minor injuries.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Dimentman, who is survived Bennett has vowed to find the by his wife and 9-month-old people responsible for killing son, was buried in Jerusalem Yehuda Dimentman, a 25-yearFriday. At his funeral, the head old who lived in the West Bank settlement of Shavei Shomron A view of the southern edge of the Israeli settlement of Homesh of the yeshiva where he studied and studied at a yeshiva in in the northern West Bank prior to its evacuation in 2005. and others vowed to defend Homesh, and his brother said Homesh, an outpost of Israeli Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Neriah Haroeh Dimentman was committed to living and studying there. settlers located about 20 miles east of Netanya.

The Homesh outpost was set up without authorization The attack comes amid a spate of violent attacks by Palesfrom the Israeli government next to the one-time settlement tinians against Jews in the West Bank and Jerusalem. Dimentof the same name. The government evacuated and demol- man is the second settler to be killed this year in the West ished the Homesh settlement in 2005 as part of its efforts to Bank, after a 19-year-old yeshiva student was shot and killed withdraw from Gaza and some West Bank settlements. while waiting at a bus stop in May.

Israeli Orthodox rabbi receives threats

SHIRA HANAU JTA Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky, one of the top haredi Orthodox rabbinical authorities in Israel, and his family have received threats from anti-vaxxers after Kanievsky came out in support of vaccinating children ages 5-11 to protect against the coronavirus.

The threats have been communicated in phone calls, emails and letters, according to a report by Ynet. Some have even tried to break into Kanievsky’s home, the rabbi’s head of security told the Israeli news site. Security around the home and surrounding the rabbi when he attends events has been increased.

“Some people are trying to intimidate the ‘prince of Torah’ and his family to change his decision regarding vaccines, but of course he is of the opinion that it is necessary to get vaccinated,” Meir Gross, Kanievsky’s head of security, told Ynet, using the rabbi’s honorific.

Kanievsky met with officials from Israel’s Ministry of Health on Nov. 25, according to the Jerusalem Post. At that meeting, the officials asked for Kanievsky’s support for the country’s child vaccination campaign. Due to the higher birth rates in the haredi Orthodox community, a large portion of Israeli chil-

dren ages 5-11 are haredi.

At the meeting, Kanievsky gave his support for the vaccine drive and said all children ages 5 and up should receive the coronavirus vaccine. Kanievsky had previously given his support for vaccination of children ages 12 and up over the summer when Israel began administering the vaccine to that age group.

Though Kanievsky has consistently come out in favor of the vaccines, his varying directives to Israel’s haredi school system during the height of the pandemic made him a polarizing figure. At times, Kanievsky said the yeshivas should not close even as government officials ordered all schools shut to slow the spread of the virus.

According to Ynet, Kanievsky’s grandson Yanky, who acts as a spokesman and go-between for his 93-year-old grandfather, has received threats on the street. People have reportedly yelled “You are murderers” and have accused him of having “children’s blood” on his hands. The grandson reportedly also received threats that his children would be raped.

Gross said security around Kanievsky would be tightened “to prevent the next madman or the next threat who wants to approach the rabbi.”

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Consider These Two Options: ESTABLISH OR ADD TO A PACE/LOJE FUND Perpetual Annual Campaign Endowment (PACE) or Lion of Judah Endowment (LOJE) funds are permanent funds dedicated to endowing your Jewish Federation of Omaha Annual Campaign gift. PACE and LOJE funds are not intended to take the place of any current annual gifts. Instead they serve as a lasting legacy that will continue to make an annual gift to the campaign in perpetuity on your behalf.

ESTABLISH OR ADD TO A BUILDING FUND

LIMITED FUNDS AVAILAB LE

Establish or add to an existing endowment to help pay costs to repair, replace or renovate the newly renovated JCC. With your help, we will be able to maintain the freshly renovated Staenberg Omaha JCC, keeping our facilities looking like new for years to come.

TERMS • Establish or add to an existing PACE or LOJE fund and the Foundation will add an extra 20%, up to $20,000 into the endowment fund.

• 0DNH D JLIW WR HVWDEOLVK RU DGG WR DQ H[LVWLQJ HQGRZPHQW ZLWK WKH VSHFLÀF SXUSRVH RI PDLQWDLQLQJ UHSDLULQJ DQG UHQRYDWLQJ WKH -&& IDFLOLWLHV À[WXUHV DQG HTXLSPHQW DQG WKH Foundation will add an extra 20%, up to $20,000, into your endowment fund.

• Make a gift to the JFO Facilities Repair & Replacement Endowment Fund, and an extra 20%, up to $20,000, will be added to the JFO Facilities Repair & Replacement Endowment Fund • 0DNH D FRQWULEXWLRQ WR DQ\ RWKHU HQGRZPHQW IXQG HVWDEOLVKHG IRU WKH VSHFLÀF SXUSRVH RI SD\LQJ FRVWV WR PDLQWDLQ UHSDLU DQG UHQRYDWH EXLOGLQJV DTXDWLFV IDFLOLWLHV HTXLSPHQW IXUQLWXUH DQG À[WXUHV ZKLFK DUH RFFXSLHG E\ DQG RU XVHG E\ WKH -&& DQG WKH )RXQGDWLRQ will add an extra 20%, up to $20,000, to the endowment.

• Matching funds will be deposited into the endowment fund designated.

• Your charitable donation must be received before December 31, 2021.

Between now and December 31, 2021, the Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation will match endowment gifts for these two specific options. Make a lasting impact on the Jewish community! The match will be 20% of each gift up to a maximum of $20,000 per gift.

CONTACT: Howard N. Epstein, Executive Director (402) 334-6466 | hepstein@jewishomaha.org www.jfofoundation.org

SHIRA HANAU JTA A new episode of HBO’s Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel that aired Tuesday focused on Amar’e Stoudemire and the retired NBA star’s embrace of Orthodox Judaism.

Stoudemire, who has played for the New York Knicks and Phoenix Suns, converted to Judaism while living in Israel in Au- Amar’e Stoudemire attends the gust 2020. From 2016 to Pegasus World Cup Champi2019, he played for the Is- onship horse racing event in Halraeli team Hapoel landale Beach, Fla., Jan. 23, 2021.

Jerusalem and later for Credit: Alexander Tamargo/Getty Maccabi Tel Aviv. He re- Images for The Stronach Group mains a part owner of the Jerusalem team.

He has since moved back to the United States and lives in Brooklyn, where HBO filmed him at morning prayers in his local synagogue.

On the show, Stoudemire spoke about the transformation he underwent from NBA star to Israeli citizen to Orthodox Jew. “It’s very intense, you’re leaving your old way of thinking, you’re leaving your old way of action to a new concept,” Stoudemire said.

Stoudemire has spoken before about his difficult upbringing, including the death of his father when Stoudemire was just 12, and learning from his mother about his family’s Hebrew Israelite roots at a young age. Ever since learning about his connection to the Hebrew Israelites, who believe they are descended from the ancient Israelites, Stoudemire began reading about Judaism and studying Jewish history. While playing basketball in Israel, Stoudemire began studying for conversion to Judaism and completed an Orthodox conversion last year.

In the HBO show, Stoudemire, who is 39, discusses his struggles learning Hebrew. “Yeah it is hard to learn, especially at my age,” he said.

But even with the challenges, Stoudemire feels he is on the right path.

“It’s just been like a quest for searching for emet, searching for truth,” he said. He added: “I’m for sure a different person than I was before.”

Changing your address?

Please give us the following information: Your name, old address and new address and when you want the address change to go into effect.

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The Jewish Press

The Jewish Press | December 24, 2021 | 7

Above and below: Under guidance of Gary Javitch, the B’nai B’rith Henry Monsky Lodge held its annual bible quiz, Dec. 12. Gloria Kaslow read the questions; Jeannette Gabriel, Cantor Joanna Alexander and Marty Shukert were the judges. First place went to Ethan Finkelstein, followed

by Preston Gordman, Ari Finkelstein and Julian Witkowski.

Above: RBJH Volunteer and Artist Jen Eisenman with her artwork.

Left: Is that a liver? Benny and Ayala Benton play with their Hanukkah gift, while getting an anatomy lesson.

Below: Shlicha Sivan Cohen attended her first Football game at the Chiefs stadium in Kansas City.

SP O TLIGHT

GENEROUSLY SUPPORTED BY

PHOTOS FROM RECENT JEWISH COMMUNITY EVENTS 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 and below: Thank you to all who attended Beth El’s Hanukkah Program on Tuesday, Nov. 30. The evening was filled with awesome food prepared by the men of Beth El, and fantastic entertainment by Omaha Circus Arts.

Right and above: Friedel’s Kindergarteners practicing their Hebrew letters.

Left and below: Friedel’s visual art curriculum focuses on learning about famous artists and then practicing their techniques. Here, students are using oil pastels and watercolors to create Fauvist trees. Fauvism is a 20th century style emphasizing intense color, loose brushwork, and simplified forms.

8 | The Jewish Press | December 24, 2021

Voices

The Jewish Press (Founded in 1920)

Margie Gutnik President Annette van de Kamp-Wright Editor Richard Busse Creative Director Susan Bernard Advertising Executive Lori Kooper-Schwarz Assistant Editor Gabby Blair Staff Writer Mary Bachteler Accounting Jewish Press Board Margie Gutnik, President; Abigail Kutler, Ex-Officio; Danni Christensen; David Finkelstein; Bracha Goldsweig; Mary Sue Grossman; Les Kay; Natasha Kraft; Chuck Lucoff; Joseph Pinson; Andy Shefsky and Amy Tipp.

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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. The Jewish Press reserves the right to edit signed letters and articles for space and content. The Jewish Press is not responsible for the Kashrut of any product or establishment.

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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.

Wish list

ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT Jewish Press Editor With the end of the calendar year rapidly approaching, you probably have questions. I know I do. What happened to 2021? What happened during 2021? I realize we always feel like the year has gone too fast when we hit December, but it seems to be more intense this time. Will we look back 20 years from now and feel like this year simply didn’t happen? Or, here is a thought, do we become more mindful to notice it when good things do occur?

Do we have anything to be excited about right now?

I have a wish list for 2022. And when I say “wish,” I don’t mean I am going to sit back and passively hope for great things to happen. I believe wishes come with a job description. If we want things to happen, we have to be willing to do the work.

First things first: we are finally going to have that party we had planned for March 2020. Remember that?

On Sunday May 1, from 4-7, we will finally celebrate our Centennial anniversary. We will host it outdoors in the Pavillion; it will look very different than what we had originally planned, but that should not hold us back.

We could use some help and are looking for volunteers to assist us with a variety of tasks, like setup and cleanup, hosting and choosing the entertainment. If you think party planning is something you’d enjoy, please contact us by sending an email to avandekamp@jewishomaha.org.

When we initially began to plan for this celebra-

tion, we never stopped to think we might have to cancel it. Yet, when we did, we did so fast: a yearand-a-half of planning was wiped out with 6 minutes’ worth of phone calls. Back then, we didn’t call it ‘canceling,’ we said we were merely postponing it.

I remember thinking we would be able to have it in late summer, early fall. Thank G-d we can’t see the future; we would lose all optimism.

Yet, optimism is what will pull us through. While there are still countless reasons to not plan anything (we don’t know what’s going to happen, people are reluctant to come, there might be another variant, what if it rains), at the same time, we really need to plan for future events.

Partially that is because it’s the practical thing to do, considering all the community members who purchased tickets for the original event (did we really call it a “Gala?” Yes, we did). Partially because I think the only thing that’s stopping us from gathering outside is the weather, and we have a decent chance of that being nice on May 1. So please, put the date on your calendar, and wait for further details because we have lots to talk about.

Next: we have started working on our 2022 Passover edition. For that issue, we are collaborating with the Institute for Holocaust Education. Any time we get to collaborate with another depart-

ment or agency, it makes our work better and more meaningful. That is especially the case with the IHE; for those of you who aren’t familiar with our building, the Press has been neighbors with both the ADL/CRC and the IHE for a long time—we see

each other every day and the opportunity to create a special issue together excites us all.

It is that kind of excitement we all need. The pandemic has been particularly challenging in that regard: it’s easy to become too still and too cautious.

There comes a point when we have to remember what it feels like to be passionate about something, about anything. What gets you wound up, what makes your heart beat faster? Whatever it is, I hope you get to experience it. Soon, today. Let’s create some memories together in 2022. Next year, when December rolls around, may we all look back and remember many, many high points.

My Jewish ancestors owned slaves. That’s why I’m a rabbi for racial justice.

RABBI BARRY H. BLOCK JTA In The Social Justice Torah Commentary, Rabbi Brian Stoller describes a turtle-shaped dinner bell that his great-grandmother used to summon a Black butler to attend to her needs at the family’s Shabbat table.

When I got to that line while editing the volume, I felt a jolt of familiarity: An identical bell served the same purpose at my own grandmother’s table.

All of my grandparents and all four of my American-born great-grandparents hailed from the South, and social justice activism was not baked into my DNA. Yet unlike many “old” southern families, I was raised without glorification of the Confederacy. As a preteen, I only learned that both of my parents are descended from Confederate veterans because I asked. My parents, members of the Silent Generation, were not engaged in the civil rights movement of the 1960s. However, unlike most members of the privileged Houston Jewish community in which they were raised and in turn raised my sister and me, they opened their eyes to social injustice in the 1970s and exposed us to progressive thought and activism, rooted in Reform Jewish life.

Then, a distant relative sent me a page of the 1860 Louisiana slave census, the first documentary proof for me that my great-great-great-grandmother, Magdalena Seeleman was a slaveholder.

Magdalena Gugenheim Seeleman was born Dec. 25, 1810, in Zweibrucken, Germany. She first shows up in the U.S. Census in New Orleans in 1850. She is listed in the 1860 U.S. Census as living in the home of her daughter and son-in-law, Simon and Caroline Shlenker, in Trinity, Catahoula Parish, Louisiana.

According to the list of parish slaveholders from June 22, 1860, “M. Seeleman” was the owner of a 29year-old woman described as “mulatto.” Simon is described as the owner of a Black woman, age 25.

Simon’s brother Isaac was married to Caroline’s sister Charlotte; Isaac and Charlotte were my greatgreat-grandparents. Isaac and Charlotte are not on the list of slaveholders, but a document says Isaac received payment from the state of Louisiana for serving as a prosecutor of escaped slaves. In an advertisement dated April 10, 1861, Isaac “and Bro.” offer a “Negro” for sale; the “girl” is described as

“young, healthy and acclimated.” streetcar. He would go on to lead the integration of The information is as horrifying as it is unsurpris- Little Rock’s public library. Later, congregants — ing. When I visited The National Memorial to Peace and Justice in Montgomery in 2019, I found memorials indicting Catahoula Parish, Louisiana, where Seeleman lived, as the site of multiple racist terror lynchings. All five of the other counties and parishes where my family thrived during the lynching era are similarly accused there.

Charlotte Seeleman Shlenker (1838-1920), the author's great-greatAt Montgomery’s Legacy Mu- grandmother, was the daughter of Magdalena Gugenheim Seeleman, seum, I confronted a sign offering who showed up in the 1860 Louisiana slave census, left, as having a reminder that many of the same owned a 29-year-old woman. Charlotte's husband, Isaac, offered a "girl" families who were enriched by en- for sale in an advertisement dated April 10, 1861. Credit: Barry Block slaving Black Americans continue to enjoy that pros- women, in particular, including descendants of the perity today. Their wealth, inherited down the Confederate soldiers who founded the congregagenerations, cannot be separated from the enslaved tion heeded Rabbi Sanders’ call to organize against human beings that their, that is, my ancestors op- segregation in public schools. pressed to earn a generous living.

Rabbi Sanders retired the summer I was born, a Earlier in my career as a rabbi, not yet entirely half century before my arrival in Little Rock. His aware of my family history, I did not focus on racial predecessors and successors, along with their partjustice in my work, but rather on immigration reform, ners in lay leadership, established a legacy of social abortion rights and LGBTQ equality. I became out- justice activism, calling on congregants and me to spoken to the point that, when I was seeking to leave continue that critical work. Their legacy inspires my previous congregation for a new pulpit, a friend my belief that, rather than solely focusing on the in lay leadership hoped that I would look in “blue guilt and shame of historical sins, the best recourse states.” Instead, in 2013, I took the pulpit of Congre- is to take action to repent for and rectify them. gation B’nai Israel in Little Rock, Arkansas, where I As for the woman my ancestor enslaved, my diswas truly awakened for the first time to the moral ur- tant cousin has been working to identify her, in the gency of advancing racial equality in our nation. hope of locating descendants in order to offer at Founded in 1866 on the heels of the Civil War, least some form of reparations. I do not know if we B’nai Israel counts Confederate veterans among its will ever be able to name her or her descendants. I earliest leaders, men who had risked their lives to dedicate The Social Justice Torah Commentary and maintain chattel enslavement of Black Americans. any social activism I can muster to her memory.

But the synagogue’s subsequent history shows how And I pray that the work we all do to advance social a commitment to justice can emerge even in places justice today may serve as tiny measures of atonewhere racism and inequity might initially have ment for the grievous damage caused by our nation, been baked into its DNA. including my ancestors, to her and millions of Black When I joined the congregation, members Americans across four centuries and counting. shared with me the storied legacy of the late Rabbi Rabbi Barry H. Block is rabbi of Congregation Ira E. Sanders, an early hero of the civil rights move- B'nai Israel in Little Rock, Arkansas, and the edment. During his first months in Little Rock in 1926, itor of The Mussar Torah Commentary and Rabbi Sanders lent his body to the struggle against The Social Justice Torah Commentary (CCAR segregation, refusing to move from the back of a Press, 2020 and 2021).

The Jewish Press | December 24, 2021 | 9

Jewish day schools rushed to hold vaccine drives. Mandates may come more slowly.

JULIA GERGELY AND SHIRA HANAU JTA and New York Jewish Week The morning after the Centers for Disease Control recommended a COVID-19 vaccine for children 5 and older, the Abraham Joshua Heschel School on Manhattan’s Upper West Side had news for parents.

By Feb. 1, 2022, the school announced, all children eligible for the vaccine must be fully vaccinated. “Heschel’s policy has been and remains that all eligible members of our in-school community must be vaccinated against Covid-19,” wrote Head of School Ariela Dubler in an email to parents.

Ten miles away in the Riverdale section of the Bronx, the administration at another Jewish school, Kinneret Day School, waited longer before communicating with families about the new vaccines — then delivered a somewhat different message.

“We strongly encourage parents to vaccinate their children,” the school’s top three administrators wrote in an email to parents, underlining that sentence for emphasis. But, they added, “until the FDA gives long-term approval for the vaccination we will stop short of a full mandate.”

The contrasting approaches to the new vaccines come nearly a year after vaccines for adults first became available and after more than 18 months of vexing pandemic-related decisions for Jewish schools.

Children are required to be vaccinated against a host of diseases to attend schools all over the country. But state health authorities haven’t yet added COVID-19 vaccines to the list, leaving it largely up to individual public school districts and private schools to make the call. Many public health experts say it’s not yet the time for sweeping mandates, citing the fact that vaccine adoption is historically most effective when people are first given a chance to opt in.

American Jews may need less of a push than others. They had the least COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy of any religious group in the United States according to a July survey by the Public Religion Research Institute. And in the days surrounding the pediatric vaccine’s approval last month, Jewish parents posted online about how they eagerly anticipated their children’s inoculations — and even prepared prayers to accompany

them. Capitalizing on that excitement, Jewish institutions across the country, including day schools, were some of the first to arrange on-site vaccine clinics and photo opportunities.

At Beit Rabban Day School in Manhattan, students could get their first shot on site Nov. 14 during an event in which teachers helped children say Shehechiyanu, the blessing recited upon reaching a new milestone, as they received their

A child holds a sticker she received after getting a COVID-19 vaccine in Novi, Mich., Nov. 3, 2021. Credit: Jeff Kowalsky/AFP via Getty Images

shots. Afterwards, kids were treated to a rooftop party with cupcakes and an art station where they could make their own pom pom coronaviruses. Beit Rabban’s policy is that all students and staff must be vaccinated against COVID-19 within 60 days of their eligibility.

Not all Jewish day school parents are rushing to get their children vaccinated; parents in two different states told JTA that they knew about a family leaving their children’s school over vaccination expectations. The landscape is particularly different in Orthodox communities, which tend to be more right-wing and where misinformation about the pandemic, including false claims about the vaccines’ effect on fertility, has spread widely.

Vaccination rates in many haredi Orthodox neighborhoods remain among the lowest in New York City, and when the city recently mandated vaccines for all employees at private schools, including yeshivas, haredi Orthodox leaders immediately objected. Parents at yeshivas, which have not widely en-

forced masking or distancing and in some cases operated in person when that was barred, say they have had no communication at all about COVID-19 vaccines for their children.

Across the country, a few non-Orthodox schools schools are setting hard and fast vaccine requirements. Like Heschel in New York City, Milton Gottesman Jewish Day School of the Nation’s Capital is requiring children to be vaccinated by Jan. 31; that’s the school attended by the children of Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump until late last year, when the family withdrew amid tension over its noncompliance with COVID-19 guidelines.

But other schools that have expressed excitement about the vaccines aren’t yet requiring vaccination as a condition of enrollment — or have signaled that they may not in the near future.

At Hannah Senesh Community Day School, a nondenominational school in the Carroll Gardens neighborhood of Brooklyn, administrators have said vaccines will be required for children — but they have not yet set a vaccination deadline.

Two miles away, Luria Academy, a nondenominational school in Prospect Heights, held vaccine clinics on campus. But administrators there know that the school enrolls some families that are apprehensive or outright skeptical of the vaccines.

A parent at New York City’s Shefa School, which serves Jewish children with disabilities, said the stakes attached to the school’s decision around whether to require COVID-19 vaccines felt high.

“If you didn’t want to get a vaccine at Heschel, you could find another Jewish school in the city without a mandate,” said the parent, who asked for anonymity because of a personal policy against speaking on the record about her children. “It’s not the same for Shefa students.”

But she said she thought most families would choose vaccination regardless of what the school requires, both because they want to protect their children’s health and because they are ready for the life that vaccination promises, so long as another wave or variant of COVID-19 doesn’t upend everything yet again.

“It’s not having to quarantine, it’s being able to travel and see family in Israel,” she said. “It gives the kids so much more freedom.”

This story was edited for length; to read the full article, please visit www.omahajewishpress.com.

HEALTH+WELLNESS

Publishing date | 01.21.22 Space reservation | 01.11.22 Contact our advertising executive to promote your business in this very special edition.

SUSAN BERNARD | 402.334.6559 | sbernard@jewishomaha.org

Synagogues

10 | The Jewish Press | December 24, 2021

B’NAI ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE

618 Mynster Street Council Bluffs, IA 51503-0766 712.322.4705 email: CBsynagogue@hotmail.com

BETH EL SYNAGOGUE

Member of United Synagogues of Conservative Judaism 14506 California Street Omaha, NE 68154-1980 402.492.8550 bethel-omaha.org

BETH ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE

Member of Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America 12604 Pacific Street Omaha, NE. 68154 402.556.6288 BethIsrael@OrthodoxOmaha.org

CHABAD HOUSE

An Affiliate of Chabad-Lubavitch 1866 South 120 Street Omaha, NE 68144-1646 402.330.1800 OChabad.com email: chabad@aol.com

LINCOLN JEWISH COMMUNITY: B’NAI JESHURUN

South Street Temple Union for Reform Judaism 2061 South 20th Street Lincoln, NE 68502-2797 402.435.8004 www.southstreettemple.org

OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE

Capehart Chapel 2500 Capehart Road Offutt AFB, NE 68123 402.294.6244 email: oafbjsll@icloud.com

ROSE BLUMKIN JEWISH HOME

323 South 132 Street Omaha, NE 68154 rbjh.com

TEMPLE ISRAEL

Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) 13111 Sterling Ridge Drive Omaha, NE 68144-1206 402.556.6536 templeisraelomaha.com

LINCOLN JEWISH COMMUNITY: TIFERETH ISRAEL

Member of United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism 3219 Sheridan Boulevard Lincoln, NE 68502-5236 402.423.8569 tiferethisraellincoln.org

B’NAI ISRAEL Join us In-Person on Friday, Jan. 14, 7:30 p.m. for evening services with a guest speaker. The service will be led by the members of the congregation. Everyone is always welcome at B’nai Israel!

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

Handicap Accessible.

BETH EL Virtual 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: Operation Grateful Goodies Pick-Up Boxes for Delivery, noon-1 p.m. at Temple Israel; Kabbalat Shabbat, 6 p.m. at Beth El & Live Stream.

SATURDAY: Shabbat Morning Services, 10 a.m. at Beth El & Live Stream; Havdalah, 5:40 p.m. Zoom only.

SUNDAY: Torah Study, 10 a.m.

MONDAY: Women’s Book Group, 7 p.m. Zoom only.

TUESDAY: Mussar, 11:30 a.m. with Rabbi Abraham at Beth El & Zoom.

FRIDAY-Dec. 31: Kabbalat Shabbat, 6 p.m. at Beth El & Live Stream.

SATURDAY-Jan. 1: Shabbat Morning Services, 10 a.m. at Beth El & Live Stream; Havdalah, 5:45 p.m.

Zoom only.

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

BETH ISRAEL Virtual services conducted by Rabbi Ari Dembitzer.

Classes, Kabbalat Shabbat and Havdalah on Zoom, WhatsApp or Facebook Live. On site services held outside in pergola, weather permitting. Physical distancing and masks required.

FRIDAY: Office Closed: Nach Yomi — Daily Prophets, 6:45 a.m. with Rabbi Ari (WhatsApp); Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Deeping Our Prayer, 7:45 a.m. with Rabbi Ari (Zoom); Mincha/Kabbalat Shabbat/Candlelighting, 4:42 p.m.

SATURDAY: Shabbat Kollel, 8:30 a.m.; Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Torah Class/Kids Class, 10:30 a.m.; Tot Shabbat, 10:45 a.m.; Kiddush, 11:30 a.m.; Mincha, 4:40 p.m.; Shalosh Seudos/Laws of Shabbos, 5 p.m.; Ma’ariv/ Havdalah, 5:47 p.m.

SUNDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Daf Yomi, 4:20 p.m. with Rabbi Ari; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 4:40 p.m.

MONDAY: Nach Yomi — Daily Prophets, 6:45 a.m. with Rabbi Ari (WhatsApp); Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Deeping Our Prayer, 7:45 a.m. with Rabbi Ari (Zoom); Daf Yomi, 4:20 p.m. with Rabbi Ari; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 4:40 p.m.

TUESDAY: Nach Yomi — Daily Prophets, 6:45 a.m. with Rabbi Ari (WhatsApp); Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Deeping Our Prayer, 7:45 a.m. with Rabbi Ari (Zoom); Daf Yomi, 4:20 p.m. with Rabbi Ari; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 4:40

p.m.

WEDNESDAY: Nach Yomi — Daily Prophets, 6:45 a.m. with Rabbi Ari (WhatsApp); Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Deeping Our Prayer, 7:45 a.m. with Rabbi Ari (Zoom); Daf Yomi, 4:20 p.m. with Rabbi Ari; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 4:40 p.m.

THURSDAY: Nach Yomi — Daily Prophets, 6:45 a.m. with Rabbi Ari (WhatsApp); Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Deeping Our Prayer, 7:45 a.m. with Rabbi Ari (Zoom); Character Development, 9:30 am. with Rabbi Ari (Zoom); Daf Yomi, 4:20 p.m. with Rabbi Ari; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 4:40 p.m.

FRIDAY-Dec. 31: Office Closed: Nach Yomi — Daily Prophets, 6:45 a.m. with Rabbi Ari (WhatsApp); Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Deeping Our Prayer, 7:45 a.m. with Rabbi Ari (Zoom); Mincha/Kabbalat Shabbat/Candlelighting, 4:47 p.m.

SATURDAY-Jan 1: Shabbat Kollel, 8:30 a.m.; Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Torah Class/Kids Class, 10:30 a.m.; Tot Shabbat, 10:45 a.m.; Kiddush, 11:30 a.m.; Mincha, 4:40 p.m.; Shalosh Seudos/Laws of Shabbos, 5 p.m.; Ma’ariv/Havdalah, 5:52 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/Zoom hybrid (Ochabad.com/classroom). 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, 4:30 p.m. with Rabbi and friends: ochabad.com/Le chayim; Candlelighting, 4:42 p.m.

SATURDAY: Shacharit, 10 a.m. followed by Kiddush and Cholent; Shabbat Ends, 5:46 p.m.

SUNDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Parsha and Coffee, 9:45 a.m.

MONDAY: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Personal Parsha Class, 9:30 a.m. with Shani Katzman; Advanced Biblical Hebrew Grammar, 10:30 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen.

TUESDAY: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Virtual Pirkei Avot Women’s Class, 7 p.m.

WEDNESDAY: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Mystical Thinking (Tanya), 9:30 a.m. with Rabbi Katzman; Introductory Biblical Hebrew Grammar, 10:30 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Introduction to Hebrew Reading, 11:30 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen.

THURSDAY: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Advanced Hebrew Class, 11 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Talmud Study (Sanhedrin 18 — No advance experience necessary), noon with Rabbi Katzman.

FRIDAY-Dec. 31: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Inspirational Lechayim, 4:30 p.m. with Rabbi and friends: ochab ad.com/Lechayim; Candlelighting, 4:47 p.m.

SATURDAY-Jan. 1: Shacharit, 10 a.m. followed by Kiddush and Cholent; Shabbat Ends, 5:51 p.m.

LINCOLN JEWISH COMMUNITY: B’NAI JESHURUN & TIFERETH ISRAEL Services facilitated by Rabbi Alex Felch.

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

FRIDAY: Kabbalat Shabbat Service, service lead-

ers/music: TBD and Elaine Monnier, 6:30 p.m. at SST; Shabbat Candlelighting, 4:46 p.m.

SATURDAY: Shabbat Morning Service, 9:30 a.m. with lay leaders at TI; Torah Study on Parashat Shermot, noon; Havdalah, 5:50 p.m.

SUNDAY: No LJCS CLasses; Men's Jewish Bike Group of Lincoln meets Sundays at 10 a.m. rain or shine to ride to one of The Mill locations from Hanson Ct. (except we drive if its too wet, cold, cloudy, windy, hot or humid) followed by coffee and spirited discussions. No fee to join, no dues, no president, no board or minutes taken. If interested please email Al Weiss at albertw 801@gmail.com to find out where to meet each week; Come learn and play Pickleball, 7-9 p.m. at Peterson Park. Everyone is welcome; just wear comfortable clothes and tennis or gym shoes. If you need a paddle, contact Miriam Wallick by email at Miriam57@aol.com or by text at 402.470.2393 before Sunday.

TUESDAY: Tea & Coffee with Pals, 1:30 p.m. via Zoom.

WEDNESDAY: No LJCS Classes.

FRIDAY-Dec. 31: Kabbalat Shabbat Service, service leaders/music: Rabbi Alex and Elaine Monnier, 6:30 p.m. at SST; Shabbat Candlelighting, 4:51 p.m.

SATURDAY-Jan. 1: Shabbat Morning Service, 9:30 a.m. with Rabbi Alex at TI; Torah Study on Parashat Vaera, noon; Havdalah, 5:55 p.m.

OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE

FRIDAY: Virtual Shabbat Service, 7:30 p.m. every first and third of the month at Capehart Chapel. Contact TSgt Jason Rife at OAFBJSLL@icloud.com for more information.

ROSE 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 Brian Stoller, Rabbi Deana Sussman Berezin and Cantor Joanna Alexander.

DAILY VIRTUAL MINYAN: Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. via Zoom.

FRIDAY: Office Closed; Shabbat B’yachad: Sages of the Talmud: Personalities and Legacies, 6 p.m. via Zoom or In-Person.

SATURDAY: Torah Study, 9:15 a.m. via Zoom only.

SUNDAY: Office Closed.

MONDAY: Office Closed; Jewish Law & the Quest for Meaning, 11 a.m. via Zoom.

TUESDAY: Office Closed.

WEDNESDAY: Office Closed.

THURSDAY: TOffice Closed.

FRIDAY-Dec. 31: Office Closed; Shabbat B’yachad: Sages of the Talmud: Personalities and Legacies, 6 p.m. via Zoom or In-Person.

SATURDAY-Jan. 1: Torah Study, 9:15 a.m. via Zoom only.

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

Berlin has 290 streets named for people who expressed antisemitic views CNAAN LIPSHIZ JTA The 19th-century German historian who coined the phrase, later popularized by the Nazis, “the Jews are our misfortune” has a street named for him in Berlin. So does a 15th-century official who supported a murderous purge of Jews from his region.

In all, at least 290 streets or squares in Berlin are named for people who espoused antisemitic views, according to a new analysis conducted by the city’s commissioner in charge of fighting antisemitism.

Samuel Salzborn, a scholar of political science who was appointed to the commissioner role last year, is not calling for the names to be changed. Instead, he told the German broadcaster RBB that his office initiated the study to “create a systematic basis for an important social discussion.”

That discussion includes how to reckon with the fact that antisemitism was a mainstream view for centuries in Germany, meaning that many people who made significant contributions to the broader society may have expressed antisemitic views. For

example, Martin Luther, the 16th-century German theologian who initiated Protestantism, called to persecute and banish Jews. Martinlutherstrasse runs through a trendy area of Berlin.

The report notes several streets that are named for people who became active in the Resistance to the Nazi regime but previously expressed antisemitic views.

One prominent example is Martin Niemöller, a pastor who opposed Nazism and in 1946 wrote the famous poem “First They Came,” which lists many victims of Nazism and decries the silence of other Germans about the persecution.

Pastor-Niemöller-Platz, a public square and subway station in the northern part of Berlin, honors him.

But Niemöller expressed antisemitic views, accusing Jews of deicide. Harold Marcuse, a professor of modern German history at the University of California, Santa Barbara, in 2003 wrote that Niemöller “was certainly a racist antisemite.”

Niemöller, who was eventually imprisoned with

Jewish inmates by the Nazis for opposing them, in 1963 acknowledged his antisemitism and apologized for it. He died in 1984 at the age of 92.

Other people whose names can be found on streets in Berlin, which has 4,000 roads in total, have more clear-cut track records. Otto Dibelius, a bishop who died in 1967 and before the rise of Nazism had written about the “solution” to the “Jewish Problem,” has a two-block street named for him. Dibelius’ proposal was to stop immigration by Jews and wait for the number of German Jews to plummet.

Meanwhile, a four-block street named for Heinrich von Treitschke, who coined the phrase “the Jews are our misfortune,” ends at a mall that includes a Zara clothing store.

The study’s author, a political scientist named Felix Sassmannshausen, suggested that renaming might be appropriate in some cases. In others, he said, adding a plaque or some other marker of the street’s namesake’s antisemitic history might be a good step.

Life cycles IN MEMORIAM ESTHER S. KAHN Esther S, Kahn passed away on Dec. 18, 2021, in Omaha. Services were held on Dec. 21, 2021, at Beth El Cemetery Omaha and officiated by Rabbi Steven Abraham.

She was preceded in death by her daughter, Linda Kahn and husband, Allen I. Kahn.

She is survived by daughter and son-in-law, Pam and David Gross; son and daughter-in-law, Marc and Kim Kahn; grandchildren: Julie, Greta, Stephanie Gross, Nathan and Christina and Zachary Kahn.

Esther was born in Louisville, Kentucky to Nathan and Friedel Shersky, youngest of six children. She spent her married life in Omaha. Esther was a talented artist in quilting, needlepoint and fabrics. She was also a great baker and creative cook.

Memorials may be made to the Nebraska Humane Society, 8929 Fort Street, Omaha, NE 68134.

SUBMIT OBITUARIES TO THE JEWISH PRESS: Email the Press at jpress@jewishomaha.org; mail to 333 So. 132 St., Omaha, NE 68154; or online at online at www.omahajewishpress.com/site/forms/.

The Jewish Press | December 24, 2021 | 11

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New York street to be named for Shimon Peres SHIRA HANAU JTA Shimon Peres will soon receive a major honor for a nonNew Yorker: the late Israeli prime minister will have a New York City street corner named in his honor.

The intersection of West 95th Street and Riverside Drive will be renamed “Shimon Peres Place.” Peres, who died in 2016, served three times as Israel’s prime minister in addition to serving as president of the country from 2007 to 2014.

In 1949, he and his wife Sonia and their young daughter moved to an apartment on the corner of West 95th Street and Riverside while Peres studied at New York University and the New School.

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Sections of lost Torah scroll reappear 83 years after Kristallnacht

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The city of Görlitz, which recently completed a refurbishTOBY AXELROD ment of its synagogue, said it plans to work with regional BERLIN | JTA A German Protestant minister has handed over segments Jewish leaders to develop a plan for how to display, or poof a long lost Torah scroll to the city of Görlitz in southeast tentially restore, the fragments.

Germany, 83 years after his father, a town policeman, came Görlitz’s “New Synagogue,” which dates to 1911, is the only into possession of them. one in the state of Saxony to survive Kristallnacht. It was While it is not unheard of for German non-Jews to turn rededicated as a house of worship and space for interfaith over religious objects that have been lost or hidden since the gatherings last summer. There are reportedly some 30 Jews Nazi period, the Torah scroll fragments took an unusually currently living in Görlitz. circuitous journey before coming to light last week.

Some local Jewish leaders and activists were angered by The Torah had not been seen since Kristallnacht, the pogrom against synagogues and Jewish property in German-speaking lands on Nov. 9 and 10, 1938.

According to Pastor Uwe Mader, 79, the minister who turned the fragments over to the town, the story began with his father, Willi Mader. Born in Görlitz in 1914, Willi was a young police officer in training when he was called to the synagogue on the night of the antiJewish pogrom.

Uwe Mader told the Säschsiche Zeitung newspaper that his father never spoke Uwe Mader with the Torah scroll fragments he handed over to the city of Görlitz, Thursday, about what happened that Dec. 16, 2021. Credit: Pawel Sosnowski night, so it is unclear how the four Torah fragments actually the announcement that the fragments had been given to the ended up in the policeman’s hands. Uwe Mader believes they city rather than directly to the representatives of the Jewish must have been cut out by someone who could read the community, which would be the legal successor.

Torah and carefully selected certain passages, including the But Zsolt Balla, state rabbi of Saxony and Germany’s first creation story and the Ten Commandments. post-war Jewish military chaplain, told the Jewish TeleThe fragments changed hands several times over the years graphic Agency that he was optimistic about plans for the of Nazi and later Soviet rule. scrolls after speaking with the town’s mayor, Octavian Ursu, In the late 1930s, Willi Mader brought the parchments for on Dec. 17. safekeeping to a friend in Kunnerwitz named Herta Apelt “We will be discussing strategies next week on how to proand her brother. They in turn brought them to their local ceed,” Balla said. pastor, Bernhard Schaffranek, who was installed in June According to the Säschsiche Zeitung, observers were 1940. Schaffranek hid the Torah parchments in his library. awestruck as city archivist Siegfried Hoche placed the four He died in July 1949. In 1969, his widow, Magdalena, handed fragments on a table at the city hall on Thursday. them to the new vicar in nearby Reichenbach, Uwe Mader, Ursu said in a statement that he was “grateful to have relikely knowing that it was his father who had first received ceived such a valuable historical treasure for our council them in 1938. archive” and that the city would “prepare its exhibition for Magdalena Schaffranek told Uwe Mader to tell no one, the public in close consultation with Jewish representatives and he kept his promise, not even telling his wife. He hid the of Saxony.” parchments inside rolls of wallpaper in his office. When he The governor of the State of Saxony, Michael Kretschmer, moved to Kunnerwitz in 1977, he took the scrolls with him. said the fragments were “like a door into the history of GörWith the political turmoil of 1989 leading to German uni- litz of the past decades, which is now opening.” fication, Mader moved them to a locked steel cabinet, and Local Jewish community chair and cantor Alex Jacobowitz kept the key with him at all times. It wasn’t until the late viewed the parchments on Friday. He told the Jewish Tele1980s that Willi Mader finally told his son how he had begun graphic Agency that some of them appear to be “in relatively this chain of handovers. good shape, and could be used in a future Sefer Torah… othAfter decades of telling no one, last week Uwe Mader fi- ers are no longer usable, and should either be buried in a genally decided that the time had come to bring the parch- nizah or put into a permanent exhibit inside the Görlitzer ments to light.

Synagogue.”

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12 | The Jewish Press | December 24, 2021

News LOC AL | N AT I O N A L | WO R L D

Jewish musician Navah Perlman Frost pivoted to designing cakes RACHEL RINGLER New York Jewish Week via JTA For most of her life, professional pianist Navah Perlman Frost spent at least part of each day practicing her music in preparation for upcoming performances. But when the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March 2020, the music stopped.

Concert halls closed. Recitals were cancelled.

At first, Frost, 51, took the drying up of her concert schedule as “a good moment to recharge my batteries,” she told The New York Jewish Week. She never could have imagined that, as the months progressed, her career would pivot as markedly as it did.

Frost grew up in a musical family. Her parents are musicians; her father is violin virtuoso Itzhak Perlman. Frost began taking piano lessons when she was six years old and performed professionally for the first time when she was 15. By the time the COVID lockdown began, she had been a working musician for 35 years.

But Frost is also an accomplished cook and baker, and she did both enthusiastically for her husband, four children, extended family and friends. As the reality of the pandemic set in and the months passed by, Frost found herself obsessing not so much about music but about buttercream frosting.

Frost said she couldn’t stop thinking about creative ways to use buttercream to decorate her baked goods. Day after day, she was pulled back into the kitchen and what emerged became more elaborate with each iteration.

“The artistry she showed as a musician translated into the beauty of the baked goods she was making,” said her sister-inlaw Stephanie Perlman. “Not just in how they tasted — they were delicious — but in how they looked.”

Perlman along with other friends and family members urged Frost to try to sell her creations. But she demurred. With its wide variety of top-notch bakeries, New York City didn’t need yet another cake baker, she said.

Except nobody else in this great city was beautifying cakes

quite like she was. Frost’s cakes are adorned with botanically themed decorations that are so realistic that one could swear they are looking at fresh flowers. She is best known for her cupcake “bouquets,” bunches of cupcakes presented like floral arrangements.

In a nod, perhaps, to her art history degree from Brown Uni-

During the pandemic, Navah Perlman Frost pivoted from being a professional musician to running her own cake business. And yes, those are cupcakes -- not flowers. Credit: Design

by Grace Yagel

versity, Frost also delights in recreating works of art in buttercream. She made a Casa Azul cake, inspired by artist Frieda Kahlo’s cobalt blue home in Mexico City. Her cake that replicates Van Gogh’s iris painting looks almost too precious to eat.

Her daughter, Frost said, coined the name of her newly minted baking business: Frosted by Navah. At first, she just sold her cakes to a devoted group of friends and family. But word spread beyond that small nucleus, and Instagram further escalated things. Frost then set up a web site, and Frosted by Navah was up and running by December 2020, less than eight months after she began baking and frosting regularly.

Client Ulrika Citron told The New York Jewish Week that, to celebrate her son’s and his girlfriend’s graduation from business

school, she ordered two cakes: one banana, the other a dairyfree chocolate-raspberry creation. “The cake you get is as beautiful as pictured,” she said. “You get what you see on Instagram.”

While her “pivot,” which is how Frost describes her career change may seem anomalous, Frost sees commonalities between playing the piano and cake decorating. Both art forms require intricate handiwork; playing the piano for so many years sharpened her hands’ dexterity and control, allowing her to craft her precise floral applications.

And then there is the interpretation that she brings to both fields. “I may play the same Beethoven sonata 10 times, but each time I play it it is slightly different than the time before because I am not a machine,” she said. “Something may occur to me that didn’t occur the other times that I performed that piece. The same goes with my cakes. I don’t make carbon copies. My work is more of an art than a science. Neither product can be cloned.”

And just as Frost delights in playing to a receptive audience as a musician, she loves getting positive feedback on a cake she made. “It’s a similar feeling of putting something out in the world that makes somebody happy,” she said.

How have her parents reacted to her career change? “My parents think it’s great,” she said. “They are very supportive.

What surprised them about my baking career was the highly decorative stuff that was not a regular thing for me until this moment in time.”

Recently, for her father’s birthday, she made him a special birthday cake — and no, it wasn’t shaped like a violin. Her dad’s favorite candies are Kit Kats, so she prepared a beautiful floral cake with a surprise inside: Between the cake and the frosting, it was layered with Kit Kat bars.

When will her baking end and her musical career begin again? “I am not performing any more,” said Frost. “I am trying to figure it all out, trying to not get ahead of myself. I am having such a good time that it is hard to think of abandoning this. But you never know.”