Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle 2-21-20 by Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle

February 21, 2020 | 26 Shevat 5780

Candlelighting 5:44 p.m. | Havdalah 6:44 p.m. | Vol. 63, No. 8 | pittsburghjewishchronicle.org

Rabbis Against Gun Violence leader comes to Temple Emanuel

Culturally Jewish: Proud of heritage, but not religious

NOTEWORTHY LOCAL Grappling with Wexner

$1.50

By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer

Fellowship recipients talk about the billionaire’s mixed reputation. Page 2

LOCAL Pittsburgh’s immigration story

 Mavra Stark, Lori Levin, Susan Forrest, members of the Pittsburgh Secular Jewish Community, celebrating Chanukah. The group observes the cultural aspects of some Jewish holidays. Photo provided by Susan Forrest

of exactly what a “cultural Jew” is, according to Matthew Boxer, one of the researchers here is a lot about Judaism that who conducted the Pittsburgh study. But appeals to Lewis Braham. it is a way by which some people who But the God thing, not so much. continue to identify as Jewish, though not Braham, 49, admires Judaism’s commit- connecting with many of the religious ment to activism, its encouragement of precepts, self-define. intellectual curiosity and its emphasis on the Eighty-two percent of Jewish adults importance of community. in Pittsburgh (about Although he belongs 35,100 individuals) to a Reform congregation Studying community identify as Jewish by in Pittsburgh, he attends religion, which is a This is the sixth in a services infrequently. He higher proportion 10-part series, exploring than that of the overall has trouble believing in the data of the 2017 Jewish population in a “just and loving deity” Greater Pittsburgh Jewish the United States as when there is suffering in Community Study through reported by the Pew the world, he said. the people it represents. Research Center (about Braham, a financial 78%). The remaining writer who moved to 18% of Jewish adults Pittsburgh from New York here instead identify as “Jews of no reliin 2009, considers himself to be a “cultural gion” or “Jews of multiple religions.” A little Jew” rather than a “Jew by religion,” and more than half of these individuals identify is among about 4,300 other Jewish adults in Pittsburgh who describe themselves as having no religion, but nonetheless still that way, according to the 2017 Greater consider themselves Jewish for “ethnic or Pittsburgh Jewish Community Study, cultural reasons.” Braham was raised as culturally Jewish, he commissioned by the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh and conducted by said, and has always identified that way. researchers at Brandeis University. There seems to be no conclusive definition Please see Study page 9

By Toby Tabachnick | Senior Staff Writer

The Holocaust Center brings a layered history to life. Page 4

NATIONAL The first Jewish president?

Sanders and Bloomberg vie for a historic nomination. Page 8

uthor, national thought leader and activist Rabbi Menachem Creditor will visit Temple Emanuel of South Hills Feb. 28 and 29. Creditor, the Pearl and Ira Meyer Scholar in Residence at UJA-Federation New York, will serve as scholar-in-residence and address topics ranging from uses and abuses of power in the Jewish community, to gun violence and LGBTQ concerns. Prior to his arrival in the Steel City, Creditor shared thoughts on his work and expressed an eagerness to enjoy “a textured experience of the community.” “The goal of my visit is to provoke thinking that isn’t reactive,” he said. “The Jewish community in Pittsburgh resembles the Jewish community around the world, which is to say, we are bigger than any one moment of our history. That being said, there are sometimes things that occur in a local community that begin to redefine it.” Creditor developed such ideas in his recently published book “Loud, Proud, and Jewish.” There is a value in “seeing ourselves as rooted in a long beautiful history, and with a sense of purpose in the world that guides us when we have hard moments,” he said. Being able to come to Pittsburgh, which has been at the center of recent Jewish thought and conversation, and share ideas on sensitive matters is humbling, continued Creditor: Apart from appreciating the “strength and resilience of the community,” there is much to say regarding the events of October 2018, and how it redefined the American Jewish experience of the gun violence epidemic. “But that doesn’t make it an only Jewish experience. My work with Rabbis Against Gun Violence has really Please see Rabbis, page 19

keep your eye on PittsburghJewishChronicle LOCAL

Jews on ice

BOOKS

Beth Shalom takes ‘Flight”

FOOD

Hal Klein, food critic

Headlines Report that Les Wexner ignored harassment at Victoria’s Secret renews misgivings among fellowship recipients — LOCAL — By Josefin Dolsten | JTA

ike many recipients of the Wexner Graduate Fellowship, Avigayil Halpern depends on the stipend to cover her living expenses. Halpern, 23, uses her scholarship money to pay for food and rent while she pursues rabbinic ordination through Yeshivat Hadar, an egalitarian Jewish educational institute in New York City. Shortly after Halpern found out she had received the prestigious fellowship last year, its founder, Leslie Wexner, landed in the news because of his close ties to Jeffrey Epstein, a financier and convicted sex offender who later committed suicide in jail. Then, this week, The New York Times reported on a culture of sexual harassment and bullying of female employees and models at Victoria’s Secret, the lingerie brand owned by Wexner’s LBrands. The article alleges misconduct at the hands of an executive, Ed Razek, and says employees who reported the misconduct to Wexner said they did not see any action taken as a result. Employees also alleged that Wexner himself made offensive comments about women, according to the article. The new article has renewed Halpern’s discomfort about benefiting from Wexner’s philanthropy. “It hurts to read these things,” Halpern said. “I’m a woman in my early 20s. I’ve experienced sexual harassment. I know what that feels like, and to think about the ways in which I might be contributing

requests for comment by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. In August 2019, it released a letter from Wexner himself addressing his relationship with Epstein. “To be clear, I never would have imagined that a person I employed more than a decade ago could have caused so much pain,” Wexner wrote. “I condemn his abhorrent behavior in the strongest possible terms.” Wexner’s impact goes far beyond any one program. His foundation has also given millions of dollars to Jewish causes in the United States and Israel. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum has a center named after him. And his influence is particularly large in his home city of Columbus, Ohio, where a Jewish nursing home and a center at the Hillel at Ohio State University are among the many p Leslie Wexner, left, and Ed Razek pose backstage institutions bearing his name. But it is the fellowship programs at the 2016 Fragrance Foundation Awards presented by Hearst Magazines in New York, that are perhaps inducing the most June 7, 2016. Photo by Astrid Stawiarz/ soul-searching among benefi Getty Images for Fragrance Foundation/via JTA ciaries of Wexner’s largesse. The prestigious Wexner Graduate to upholding the reputation of someone Fellowship/ Davidson Scholars Program, who’s been contributing to that behavior is founded in 1988, has more than 570 gradreally horrifying.” uates working in synagogues, schools, Halpern said the breadth of Wexner’s nonprofits, and other Jewish institutions. giving deepens her concerns. Yehuda Kurtzer, president of the Shalom “It creates a class of Jewish leaders who are Hartman Institute of North America and in some ways beholden to Les Wexner, and I a past fellowship recipient, addressed The worry about what the impact of that is going New York Times report in a lengthy public to be,” she said. Facebook post on Sunday. The foundation did not respond to “Many of us have felt since the Epstein

stories started breaking that we had to engage in some reckoning with our adjacency to this scandal and all that it represented, as beneficiaries of Les Wexner’s wealth, our bios and reputations marked with his name,” he wrote. He added that he had cautioned against reckoning publicly in the past but now felt compelled to do so. Kurtzer said that he does not view money as “tainted” but said he regretted “participating in the limited set of activities that involved lionizing Les himself,” such as the foundation’s 30th-anniversary party that was held in an airplane hangar. He also called for a greater separation between the Wexners and the fellowship. “The most legitimate thing that the Wexners can do right now for the benefit of their historically valuable nonprofit work is to endow the Foundation either with money now or with a set of binding longterm pledges; to step aside from its board, or flood it with outsiders who have equal votes; to give over all autonomous leadership of its direction to its capable professional leaders; and to cement the Chinese wall that will make clear that that charitable work is not defined by, and should not continue to reverberate from, whatever is revealed from any ongoing investigations,” he wrote. Similar debates have played out recently following scandals around other Jewish megadonors. Some institutions are no longer accepting donations from the Sackler family, the Jewish family whose pharmaceutical company is at the center of the opioid crisis, and allegations last year that Michael Steinhardt, the billionaire who Please see Wexner, page 7

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Headlines Local representatives attend Jewish Council for Public Affairs’ national conference in DC — LOCAL — By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer

ittsburgh Jewish communal professionals returned from the nation’s capital energized by their time at JCPA2020. The Feb. 8-11 gathering, which served as the Jewish Council for Public Affairs’ national conference, was an opportunity to hear from thought leaders and connect with fellow professionals, explained Laura Cherner, assistant director of Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh’s Community Relations Council. Her colleague Joshua Sayles, director of Pittsburgh’s Community Relations Council, agreed: “It’s always nice to convene with colleagues and lay leaders from all around the country who care so much about community relations and combatting anti-Semitism,” he said. Sessions throughout the three-day affair ranged from “Elevating Jewish Values on Poverty and Human Needs” to “Speaking About Israel in Progressive Circles.” Apart from featuring well known panelists such as historian and author Deborah Lipstadt, Rep. Brenda Lawrence (D-MI) and Rabbi Asher Lopatin, this year’s conference

promoted particular strategies in addressing the presidential election. Specifically, many of the sessions addressed the need to amplify civic engagement, explained Sayles. “This is going to be a much more contentious and polarized election than I think we are typically used to, but the message is the same: Get out and vote. No matter what your party preference is, it’s important to express your opinion at the polls,” he said. Along these lines, it’s critical that “everybody has fair access and is able to get to the polls no matter what community they’re part of or what their income level is.” While portions of each day were dedicated to addressing familiar topics, such as Israel or Jewish communal security, increased attention was given to black-Jewish relations. Whether by referencing rising tensions resulting from the slew of recent anti-Semitic incidents in New York and New Jersey, or by advancing new means for joint advocacy, panelists discussed developments in the historic relationship. In a JCPA tweet during a session titled “Changing Communities: Black-Jewish Relations in a Time of Growing AntiSemitism and Racism,” Rabbi Shais Rishon, a New York-based black-Jewish rabbi, was quoted as saying, “When we talk about black-Jewish relations, we’re speaking with invisible parentheticals: (non-Jewish)black(white)Jewish community. Unless we address

1O TONY AWARDS

this, we will continue to talk past each other.” Sayles was pleased to see such focus on the topic. “Black-Jewish relations is something we’re working on in Pittsburgh,” he said. The national conference is not only about hearing ideas, but cementing thought through action. To further the work of JCPA staff and affiliates and build consensus among JCPA’s 17 national agencies and 125 community relations councils, conference-goers adopted resolutions. Among the resolutions passed this year were those concerning a working definition of anti-Semtism, gun violence prevention, restorative and rehabilitative justice, marijuana legalization and federal judicial nominations. “We are proud that Pittsburgh was a lead co-sponsor on the critically important resolution that defines anti-Semitism for the entire Jewish community relations field,” said Sayles. “The language standardizes the International Holocaust Remembrance Association’s definition of anti-Semitism, which was broadly used by both the Obama and Trump administrations, as a standard definition for CRCs throughout the country. This will serve as a useful tool for us to educate our legislators, school administrators, clergy and community leaders when working to explain the nefarious nature of hate targeting the Jewish community. Our

INCLUDING

newfound ability to say that the IHRA definition is broadly accepted by an entire field of Jewish communal advocates throughout the country only strengthens our ability to do this important work.” Cherner and Sayles are eager to impart lessons learned at the conference. Joining them in sharing ideas will be JCPA board member and CRC member Randy Whitlach, who also attended the D.C. gathering. “I’ve been to several of these before, and the JCPA leadership mission to Israel, and I always walk away with not only more insight and new understanding about issues that affect us as Jews but with a better understanding of how these issues affect other allied diverse communities,” said Whitlach. As the Steel City contingent develops a plan for disseminating the information received, Cherner noted the immediate benefits gained by having gone to the conference. “I thought it was great to share best practices with experts in the field and to hear from some of the most well-respected voices on issues relating to anti-Semitism, Jewish community security and Israel,” she said. “We’re looking forward to bringing that expertise back to our community.” PJC Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

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Headlines Holocaust Center exhibit tells story of Pittsburgh Jewish immigration

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he story of Steel City Jewish immigrants is currently on display at the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh. Through May, an exhibit titled, “For You Were Strangers: Jewish Immigration to Pittsburgh, 1880-1990” will allow visitors to better understand the makeup and origins of Pittsburgh’s Jewish community. Jackie Reese, marketing and education associate at the Holocaust Center, researched and designed the exhibit. Doing so was “one of the most fascinating and rewarding experiences of my career to date,” said Reese. “It means so much seeing how it has resonated with people and how it’s encouraging others to explore their own family histories.” “Response to the exhibit since last week’s opening has been enormous,” said Lauren Bairnsfather, the Holocaust Center’s director. “It’s clear that the story appeals to so many of us. It’s personal, it’s our story. So many people in Pittsburgh have really deep roots.” Although Steel City landsmen often take pride in marking how many generations their families have resided here, the longtime presence of Jews in the city isn’t as well known by the community at large. During a program with the Pittsburgh Police during the week after the October 2018 murders at the Tree of Life building, a member of the police force asked Bairnsfather if all of Pittsburgh’s Jewish residents came to the city following the Second World War. She was surprised by the question and thought, “It isn’t really a fair assumption that everyone knows this history.” So the Holocuast Center decided to tell the history, along with help from local historian Barbara Burstin and Eric Lidji, director of the Rauh Jewish History Program & Archives. At the entrance to the exhibit, there are

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some cautionary words: “As we look at the actions taken then, we should ask ourselves now: What is our responsibility to our fellow humans? ‘For You Were Strangers’ examines our history, so that we may learn from seeing where previous generations succeeded and failed.” The exhibit also includes a timeline of U.S. immigration policy and a map of Pittsburgh Jewish migration within the city between 1865 and 1990. Apart from raising questions about responsibilities to immigrants, Bairnsfather hopes the exhibit invites more personal considerations. “Because these stories are personal to so many people, I imagine there will be interest in how you do research at the Rauh,” she said. “I can see a number of public conversations growing out of the exhibit.” As dialogue increases, the exhibit may change, Bairnsfather added. Unlike other exhibitions that employ artifacts for narrative strategy, “For You Were Strangers” relies simply on text-printed-panels. As the weeks and months go on, however, Bairnsfather could see integrating relevant documents and materials from the Holocaust Center’s collection, including “passports of Jewish people with the ‘J’ stamp from Nazi Germany or prayer books that Jewish soldiers took with them when they went to Europe.” Such items could help the larger public understand Jewish Pittsburgh’s makeup, she explained. But for now, it’s worth seeing the panels as is, noted Bairnsfather, who also offered the following advice: “Come prepared to spend some time reading. There is a lot of text in this exhibit because it tells such an incredible story.” It’s a story of more than just the Jewish people, she added: “The exhibit talks about immigration in this country in general. We’re keeping an eye toward the broad appeal.” PJC Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org. PITTSBURGHJEWISHCHRONICLE.ORG

Calendar ZOA Executive Director Stuart Pavilack at 412-6654630 or pittsburgh@zoa.org. q SUNDAY, MARCH 1 Celebrate Purim as a family and bake some delicious hamantashen at the Kid’s Mega Hamantash Event. Bring your kids for an afternoon of fun, giving and hamantash making. Open to all kids 3-11. $10 per child. 1 p.m. Chabad of Squirrel Hill, 1700 Beechwood Blvd. chabadpgh.com/megapurim

q FRIDAY, FEB. 28 Join the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh’s Young Adult Division, Chabad Young Professionals, JGrads CMU and JGrads Pittsburgh for Shabbat Across Pittsburgh at Chabad of Squirrel Hill. Open to grad students and young professionals over 21. 6 p.m. $10 per person. Shabbatpittsburgh.com

>>Submit calendar items on the Chronicle’s website, pittsburghjewishchronicle.org. Submissions will also be included in print. Events will run in the print edition beginning one month prior to the date as space allows. The deadline for submissions is Friday, noon. q FRIDAY, FEB. 21 & SATURDAY, FEB. 22 Sing A New Light presents Yale University’s Magavet at Congregation Beth Shalom (5915 Beacon St.) during Shabbat services, Friday evening at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, 9:45 a.m. For more information, visit singanewlight.org/events. q SATURDAY, FEB. 22 Join Congregation Beth Shalom for Clues & Schmooze, a trivia event including a raffle, open bar and snacks. Trivia will be in teams of three to six players. Bring your own team or be matched up at the door. $30 at the door. Registration: 7:45 p.m., trivia: 8:15 p.m. 5915 Beacon St. bethshalompgh.org/events-upcoming q SUNDAY, FEB. 23 New Light Congregation presents Sing a New Light featuring Yale University’s a capella group Magevet. The concert begins at 1 p.m. at the Squirrel Hill JCC. $10 suggested donation. To RSVP, visit eventbrite.com/e/88441877035. Join the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh’s Volunteer Center at Rodef Shalom Congregation and help assemble emergency Go-Bags for all Jewish community classrooms. Must be 15 or older. A maximum of 20 participants will be accepted. If you require accommodations for a disability, please contact Bex Frankeberger at bfrankeberger@ jfedpgh.org. 1 p.m. 4905 Fifth Ave. To register, visit jewishpgh.org/event/go-bags-assembly. Lend a hand baking and packing hamantaschen to be donated to the Squirrel Hill Food Pantry with the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh’s Volunteer Center. Must be 10 or older. A maximum of 10 participants can be accepted. If you require accommodations for a disability, please contact Bex Frankeberger at bfrankeberger@jfedpgh.org. 1 p.m. 310 Electric Ave. To register, visitjewishpgh.org/ event/pack-baked-goods-with-creative-kosher. q SUNDAYS, FEB. 23; MARCH 1, 8, 15, 22 Learn Hebrew at New Light Congregation. The sixweek class taught by Shai Miller will focus on reading and pronunciation. 10:30 a.m. $85, includes study book and workbook. To enroll, email Janet Cohen at

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janet.cohen@gmail.com or call 412-512-0949. 5915 Beacon St. newlightcongregation.org/events/adulthebrew-classes-guiding-pronunciation q TUESDAY, FEB. 25 Join Moishe House for a happy hour at Mario’s, 5442 Walnut St., beginning at 5 p.m. Appetizers are on them. Moishe House events are intended for young adults age 22–32. q WEDNESDAY, FEB. 26 Join Classrooms Without Borders and the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh for an Open House for the Momentum Women’s Trip to Israel at 7 p.m. The trip will take place Oct. 19-26. Open to mothers with at least one child under 18. Held at a private residence. For more information, email Emily Richman at ERichman@jfedpgh.org or Chani Altein at caltein@chabadpgh.com. q THURSDAY, FEB. 27 Make sushi at Moishe House. Vegetarian options will be available. Email a resident for the address. 7 p.m. facebook.com/events/177412890275656 An Evening With Dr. Channa Newman, Chair, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Point Park University. Please join us on from 7-8:30 p.m. to learn more about Dr. Newman and her current pending legal case. This event is free and open to the public. Address will be providing upon RSVP. Please contact julieparis6@gmail.com if you have any questions or would like to RSVP. q FRIDAY, FEB. 28 & SATURDAY, FEB. 29 Temple Emanuel of South Hills welcomes Rabbi Menachem Creditor for the annual Sajowitz Weekend. Rabbi Creditor will deliver a d’var Torah on Friday followed by an after-service dinner lecture about the uses and abuses of power in the Jewish community. On Saturday he will discuss gun violence and the Jewish community and LGBTQ+ issues in the Jewish community. Free. 1250 Bower Hill Road. For more information and to register, visit templeemanuelpgh.org/event/sef2020. q THROUGH FEB. 29 The Zionist Organization of America: Pittsburgh Israel Scholarship Program is accepting applications through Feb. 29, 2020. Up to three $1,000 ZOA Scholarships will be awarded. Applicants must be Jewish and permanent residents of Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Washington or Westmoreland counties. For complete details about the scholarships, contact

The New Community Chevra Kadisha of Greater Pittsburgh will hold its 15th annual Adar 7 dinner at 6 p.m. The kosher dinner will be held at Temple Sinai. Eric Lidji, director of the Rauh Jewish History Program & Archives at the Heinz History Center will speak about “Why is Death Sad?” Rabbi Jamie Gibson of Temple Sinai will be honored for his continued support and spiritual guidance which contributed to the establishment of the New Community Chevra Kadisha. q MONDAY, MARCH 2 Beth El Congregation hosts First Mondays with Rabbi Alex, its monthly lunch program with Rabbi Alex Greenbaum. This month’s guest is Mila Sanina, executive director of Publicsource. She will discuss truth seeking and local journalism in the era of fake news. Learn how to distinguish fact from fiction and how to think critically as an educated consumer of news. Visit bethelcong.org for more information or call 412-561-1168 with any questions and to RSVP. $6. 11:30 a.m. 1900 Cochran Road. Join the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh’s Young Adult Division’s Fitness Club at Shape Perform, 5877 Commerce Street. 5:45 p.m. jewishpgh.org/event/yad-fitness-shape q MONDAY, MARCH 2 & TUESDAY, MARCH 3 Yeshiva Girls School proudly presents ‘Between the Raindrops.’ The musical production for women and girls tells the story of Rebbetzin Menucha Rochel. 7 p.m. Reserved seating: $25. 6401 Forbes Ave. yeshivaschools.com/production q TUESDAY, MARCH 3 Join Chabad of the South Hills at noon for their Purim Senior’s Lunch with hamantashen and a special chair exercise class presented by Club Pilates. Wheelchair accessible. RSVP to 412-278-2658. $5 suggested donation. 1701 McFarland Road. chabadsh.com Attend An Evening with 2 for Seder to learn about the impact the program had last year. Hear from 2 for Seder co-founder Marnie Fienberg and Pittsburgh community partners including Rabbi Ron Symons of the Center for Loving Kindness and Sara Stock Mayo, storyteller and president of the Sisterhood of Salaam Shalom, Pittsburgh chapter. 7 p.m. 10.27 Healing Partnership, 5738 Forbes Ave. RSVP: info@2forseder.org q WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4 Join women from the greater Pittsburgh area for a fun evening of babka baking at the Big Babka Bake. Bake two babkas, one to bring home and one to donate. $18. 7 p.m. 1700 Beechwood Blvd. Beth Shalom Congregation welcomes Yousef Bashir, as part of their Derekh Speaker Series 2020. The Palestinian-American activist recalls his adolescence in Gaza during the Second Intifada, and how he made a strong commitment to peace in the face of devastating brutality in this moving, candid, and transformative memoir that reminds us of the importance of looking beyond prejudice, anger, and fear. A book signing will follow this event. 7:30 p.m. 5915 Beacon St. bethshalompgh.org/speakerseries

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q THURSDAYS, MARCH 5-APRIL 2 New Light Congregation is offering Sacred Seasons of Christians and Jews, a new interfaith learning opportunity. Rabbi Jonathan Perlman from New Light Congregation and Rev. Taeeta Candy from Rodman Street Missionary Baptist Church will lead the five-week class which begins March 5 and will discuss the connections between Passover and Easter. Free and open to the public. 6111 Rodman St. 6:30 p.m. Please contact Janet Cohen at janet.cohen@gmail.com to register. q SUNDAY, MARCH 8 Join the entire South Hills Jewish community for the South Hills Jewish Community Purim Carnival at the South Hills JCC. Enjoy carnival games and prizes, pizza, hamantaschen, an inflatable obstacle course and slide, moon bounce, DJ, balloon artist, face painting and PJ Library Quiet Corner. 12:15 p.m. Lunch and admission are free. Game bracelets can be purchased for $10 on the day of the event. 345 Kane Blvd. southhillsjewishpittsburgh.org/purim20 q MONDAY, MARCH 9 Join Rodef Shalom Congregation and Tree of Life*Or L’Simcha for a Purim Dinner and Costume Contest. Enjoy an evening of Harry Potter-inspired Purim fun! Dinner begins at 5:30 p.m. $18 for members, $10 for kids and $25 for guests. The Herschel Potter & the Gantse Megillah Purim Spiel begins at 6:30 p.m. followed by a traditional Megillah reading with Rabbi Jeffrey Myers. For tickets, visit rodefshalom.org/rsvp. Temple David presents ‘Shushan Confidential,’ an original “shpiel” at 6 p.m. following the Megillah reading. Set as a TV talk show hosted by Eubie the Eunuch and including an Elvis impersonator, commercials with jingles from the royal city of Shushan’s finest businesses, the shpiel’s six familiar melodies with repurposed lyrics will introduce the everyday “Persian-alities” behind the Purim story. 4415 Northern Pike. templedavid.org q TUESDAY, MARCH 10 Chabad of the South Hills presents Purim in the Air. Enjoy a sit-down dinner served airplane style, inflight entertainment featuring “The Lego Purim Movie,” nail art and face painting party at “Queen Esther’s Xpress Spa,” crafts and fun at kidsport, and Sky Bar for adults. Come in costume (air theme optional). 5 p.m. South Hills JCC, 345 Kane Blvd. $10/individual or $18/ family. Book your tickets at chabadsh.com/purim q FRIDAY, MARCH 13 Bring your family and friends to a very special Shabbat service and oneg celebration in honor of Dr. Walter Jacob on his 90th birthday, featuring artist-in-residence Dan Nichols and the Rodef Shira Choir. RSVPs appreciated. 5:30 p.m. 4905 Fifth Ave. rodefshalom.org/rsvp Enjoy soup and a speaker at Parkway Jewish Center’s ‘Souper Shabbat Plus Lecture Series.’ Tom Dougherty, vice president of external affairs at Allegheny Land Trust, will discuss ALT’s work helping people save local land in the Pittsburgh region. The service begins at 6 p.m., soup and speaker at 7 p.m. 300 Princeton Drive. For directions and more, visit parkwayjewishcenter.org. q WEDNESDAY, MARCH 18 Join Chabad of Squirrel Hill for Ladies’ Lunch and Learn. Enjoy lunch and a class entitled “Family Feud,” exploring the story of Cain and Abel and its deeper message. 1:15 p.m. $18. 1700 Beechwood Blvd. PJC

FEBRUARY 21, 2020 5

Headlines Jewish hockey player joins Penguins — LOCAL —

ewish hockey player Jason Zucker, formerly of the Minnesota Wild, has been acquired by the Pittsburgh Penguins. Zucker played his first game with his new team on Feb. 10 and scored his first two goals for the Penguins on Feb. 14. Zucker, born in Newport Beach, California, is the son of former competitive ice skater Natalie Zucker and Scott Zucker, a general contractor who has built ice and roller rinks. Zucker’s family moved to Las Vegas when he was an infant. He moved to Plymouth, Michigan, when he was 15 to play with the Compuware AAA Minor Midget Team. In 2010, he played in the World Juniors for Team USA, winning a gold medal. He played for the University of Denver in 2010-2011, and was drafted in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft by the Wild. Zucker was traded to Pittsburgh for Alex Galchenyuk, Calen Addison and the Penguins’ 2020 first-round pick (lottery protected). In the 2017 contract year, Zucker totaled 33 goals. Last season, his goals totaled 21. He is under contract with the Penguins for three years. PJC — Toby Tabachnick

 Jason Zucker

Photo by Joe Sargent / Pittsburgh Penguins

American Eagle gives ADL $100,000 to expand anti-bias education in Pittsburgh — LOCAL —

merican Eagle Outfitters has awarded the Anti-Defamation League a $100,000 grant to expand its No Place for Hate program in Pittsburgh-area schools. The program, which provides anti-bias education, currently operates in 24 schools across Allegheny County, reaching nearly 17,000 students and 1,200 educators. This is the second $100,000 commitment from American Eagle in the past two years, and will allow No Place for Hate to more than double its impact in the region since the massacre at the Tree of Life building in October 2018. “Since the Tree of Life tragedy, we have continued to grow our anti-bias education programming in the Pittsburgh area thanks to the generous support of American Eagle Outfitters,” said James Pasch, ADL regional

director. “We know that no one is born a bigot; hate is learned and can be unlearned. That’s why it is so important to reach students in schools so that they are equipped to respond when they encounter hatred and bullying in their daily lives. We remain committed to continuing to make this program available to as many schools as possible in the Pittsburgh region and beyond.” Since 1999, No Place for Hate has helped promote anti-bias education in more than 1,600 public and private schools across the country. The new American Eagle grant will enable the ADL to reach as many as 30 additional schools in the 2020-2021 school year. Anti-Semitic incidents nationwide have more than doubled over the last five years, according to ADL’s Center on Extremism. From 2016-2018, ADL reported a 46% rise in anti-Semitic incidents in K-12 schools. PJC

EKC receives grant for mental health resources — LOCAL —

mma Kaufmann Camp, an overnight camp in West Virginia operated by the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh, was among several camps awarded a grant from the Foundation for Jewish Camp, the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation and the Billie and Bernie Marcus Foundation “to strengthen accessibility and inclusion for JCC campers and staff with disabilities that affect their emotional, mental and social health,” according to a press release from the JCC Association of North America. EKC was among 12 JCC camps, and 32 Jewish camps overall, to be awarded a “Yedid Nefesh” grant — from a total pool of $3.2 million — to help address the mental, emotional and social health (MESH) needs

of campers and staff. “We are deeply grateful for these substantial investments by FJC, which acknowledge and reflect the JCC movement’s vision to make all our Jewish community camps fully accessible, inclusive and supportive of individuals with disabilities and MESH challenges,” said Doron Krakow, president and CEO of JCC Association of North America. “These grants underscore the prominence and importance of our Jewish community camps as the largest and most effective access points to advancing mental health initiatives in our communities.” Funds will be distributed to help camps hire qualified mental health professionals and will be directed to counselor training and wellness programming such as meditation, yoga and journaling. PJC — Toby Tabachnick

— Toby Tabachnick

www.pittsburghjewishchronicle.org

FEBRUARY 21, 2020

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Headlines Wexner: Continued from page 2

helped establish Birthright, had sexually harassed women, raised questions about his role in funding organizations in the Jewish community. One person who responded to Kurtzer’s post said she was sorry he had missed a robust conversation on the topic at this year’s convening of Wexner fellowship recipients. “I’m sorry too,” Kurtzer wrote. “But I don’t really think this belongs entirely in closed door space anymore.” Many recipients of Wexner’s giving have not yet joined Kurtzer in speaking publicly. Most institutions to which JTA reached out for this article did not respond. And many past and present fellows contacted by JTA did not respond or said they did not want to speak on the record. Attempts by the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle to obtain comments from several past and present local participants in Wexner programs yielded the same result, with no one willing to comment on the record. One current fellow — not associated with Pittsburgh — agreed to speak anonymously, saying he worried speaking publicly could damage his career prospects. He said that the latest report “confirms a lot of the nervousness and displeasure” that he had felt when he read the reports about Wexner’s ties to Epstein last year. “If the culture of Victoria’s Secret is filled

“ To me it’s an opportunity to take a step back and look at the web of corruption that we’re all a part of and say, ‘OK, me, my particular self, what are the one or two ways that I’m in a position to push the needle on whatever kind of issue away from abuse

”

and towards justice, even just a little bit?

— RABBI SARAH MULHERN

with misogyny, is that something that we want to replicate in the American Jewish community?” he asked. “What does it say that something that this foundation has looked to as a source of leadership that who they look to as a leader has these stories coming out about him?” The fellow said that prior to the stories coming out, he had been “very excited” about the program. “I think this has cast a large shadow over the fellowship, not just for myself but also

This week in Israeli history — WORLD — Items provided by the Center for Israel Education (israeled.org), where you can find more details.

Feb. 21, 1955 — Ben-Gurion returns to government

Party. Hafez al-Assad is named the defense minister, putting him in charge of the military in the June 1967 war against Israel.

Feb. 24, 1874 — Moshe Smilansky born

Moshe Smilansky, whose influence ranges from the military to literature, is born in Ukraine. A delegate to the Seventh Zionist Congress, he advocates peaceful coexistence with the Arabs.

Feb. 25, 1928 — First Tel Aviv soccer derby

David Ben-Gurion, in political semiretirement since December 1953, joins Prime Minister Moshe Sharett’s Cabinet as defense minister. He replaces Pinhas Lavon, forced out over a botched covert operation.

Feb. 22, 1948 — Truck bombs explode on Ben Yehuda Street

Arabs disguised as British troops and two British deserters detonate several truck bombs along Ben Yehuda Street’s shopping district in downtown Jerusalem, killing as many as 58 Jewish civilians.

Feb. 23, 1966 — Officers seize power in Syria

Young army officers take power in a coup against Syria’s Arab Socialist Ba’ath PITTSBURGHJEWISHCHRONICLE.ORG

Maccabi Tel Aviv and Hapoel Tel Aviv hold the first match in the city’s oldest soccer rivalry, a 3-0 home victory for Maccabi. Maccabi wins the rematch on Hapoel’s home field a week later, 2-1.

Feb. 26, 1901 — Labor’s Aharon Zisling born

Aharon Zisling, a signer of the Declaration of Independence and a leader in Jewish labor politics from the 1920s through 1955, is born in Minsk. He becomes Israel’s first agriculture minister in 1948.

Feb. 27, 1974 — Kissinger delivers list of Syria’s Israeli POWs

Secretary of State Henry Kissinger arrives in Israel from Damascus with a list of 65 Israeli POWs held by Syria since the Yom Kippur War, meeting a condition for Israel to negotiate disengagement in the Golan Heights. PJC

for others,” he said. “Now when I talk about being a Wexner fellow, the name Wexner is also associated with these stories that are coming out in The New York Times. Now the name Wexner is associated in some ways with the name Epstein.” Those who are engaging publicly with the latest report said it provides a new chance for reflection. “To me it’s an opportunity to take a step back and look at the web of corruption that we’re all a part of and say, ‘OK, me, my

particular self, what are the one or two ways that I’m in a position to push the needle on whatever kind of issue away from abuse and towards justice, even just a little bit?’” said Rabbi Sarah Mulhern, a Wexner fellowship graduate and faculty member at the Hartman Institute. Mulhern sees part of her answer to that as “committing to pushing the community to have this conversation — and specifically to commit to pushing them to have it in a Jewishly rooted way.” Jeffrey Finkelstein, president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, which supports Pittsburgh’s participation in the Wexner Heritage Program, stressed that “from a Federation perspective our hearts go out to the victims who made these accusations, and sexual harassment is not acceptable. Period.” Finkelstein pointed to Federation’s participation in the national Safety, Respect and Equity Initiative, that is “all about making sure our Jewish organizations are safe places and are free of sexual harassment and sexual violence.” Finkelstein also noted that the Wexner Heritage Program is “the preeminent lay leadership training program offered in North America.” While the Pittsburgh Federation has not made any decisions about its future involvement with the program, he said, he expects that “over time we will work with our other federation colleagues to think about that.” PJC Toby Tabachnick, senior staff writer, contributed to this report.

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FEBRUARY 21, 2020

Headlines Is 2020 really the year for the US’ first Jewish president? As Sanders and Bloomberg surge, here are their paths to victory. — NATIONAL — Ron Kampeas | JTA

ernie Sanders and Mike Bloomberg have much in common besides running for the Democratic nomination for president: They’re in their upper 70s, had hardscrabble upbringings and have had contentious relations with the party whose endorsement they now seek. And both are seeking the chance to make history as the first-ever Jewish presidential nominee. Sanders, the Vermont senator, made a strong bid for the Democratic nomination four years ago and has sustained his avid supporter base into this campaign. Bloomberg, a billionaire media magnate and former mayor of New York City, is mounting his first drive for national office. Together they represent the best chance ever for a Jewish American to hold the nation’s highest office. At one point this week FiveThirtyEight, the leading forecaster of presidential politics, gave Sanders a 1 in 2 chance of winning the nomination and Bloomberg a slim chance of his own — meaning that a Jewish candidate was seen as more likely than not to be the ultimate nominee. (The chances have declined since, even though Sanders won the New Hampshire primary.) The candidates also reflect a tension within the American Jewish community. While most Jewish Americans are Democrats, some are more progressive inheritors of the left-wing activism that characterized early 20th-century Jewish politics. Others, wary of protecting their assets in uncertain times or deeply attached to Israel and the rightwing politics that have prevailed there for a decade, take a more centrist approach. For them, a candidate like Bloomberg is potentially attractive. The path between now and November is long and winding, and it’s totally possible that neither Sanders nor Bloomberg will ultimately appear on the ballot. But here’s how they could — and why that matters for U.S. Jews. Sanders’ path to the nomination is clear, if uncertain The Sanders equation is widely known: Leverage the campaign’s large, committed volunteer base to get out the vote in every primary. Because the elections are no longer winner-takes-all, Sanders can pick up delegates in every primary — and can chip away toward a plurality by the end of the primary season. He has his eye on California, where voters tend to be progressive. The Golden State looms large because it has the largest delegate take — 416 of the 3,768 delegates who vote in the first round at the convention — and because this year it moved up its primary from June to Super Tuesday, the March 3 date when 16 nominating contests take place. Walking away from California with a 8 FEBRUARY 21, 2020

p Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders and wife Jane walk together after greeting his campaigners outside a polling station in Manchester, New Hampshire, Feb. 11, 2020. Photo byJoe Raedle/Getty Images via JTA

majority of the delegates would deliver momentum to the candidate. Sanders has visited the state far more than any other candidate, according to the Sacramento Bee. And at least until Bloomberg entered the Democratic race in November, he also was spending more money there than any other White House hopeful. In past years, it was generally clear by early May who the candidate would be for both parties. In 2020, however, with a crowded Democratic field and the end of winner-take-all primaries, the same timeline might not hold true. That means Sanders and his supporters are under pressure to execute a high-level ground game in every state going forward. Bloomberg’s path would be eased by Sanders’ success Bloomberg, who is funding his own campaign, also is making a play for California. He has spent $13 million on advertising there and campaigned in the state while the other candidates focused on the early states once considered critical to securing the nomination: Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada. Bloomberg is likely pleased to see Sanders take the early lead — the Vermont senator and progressive flag-bearer essentially tied in Iowa with former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg before eking out a victory in New Hampshire. A strong Sanders performance in the early nominating contests will help clear the deck of moderates heading into Super Tuesday, leaving the center lane open to Bloomberg. The former mayor has campaigned in all the Super Tuesday states and built up his staff in them, as well as in the states that vote on the two subsequent Tuesdays, before

investing in other states. That’s a clear indicator of how much he is investing in being a major force by mid-March. The goal, according to people familiar with Bloomberg’s strategy, is to amass enough delegates throughout the primary season that he becomes the presumptive centrist. If that happens, and Sanders maintains his grip on the left, the Democratic Party will have to reckon with the identity issue that mirrors the divide within American Jewry: Do we swing left or carve out a middle lane? Bloomberg is banking on Americans making the second choice — and picking him to face off against incumbent Donald Trump in November. “The results from New Hampshire show that Democrats must urgently consolidate around a candidate who can beat Donald Trump, and Mike Bloomberg is best positioned to build the broad coalition necessary to win in November,” a Bloomberg campaign spokesman told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. What about a contested convention? According to FiveThirtyEight, there is currently a 1 in 4 chance that no one candidate will win enough delegates through the primary process to guarantee a choice at the Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee in July. If it comes down to Bloomberg and Sanders, Bloomberg — or more precisely his money — may have the advantage. The 3,979 pledged delegates will be relieved of their pledges after the first round of voting, and they will be joined by 770 or so “superdelegates,” congressional lawmakers and party officials among them. That’s a crowd that’s ripe for the enticements that Bloomberg has been known to deliver to constituencies that otherwise might

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be less than charmed by him. Bloomberg is known for his generosity to the campaigns and causes of potential supporters. He also had a record as mayor of using his own money to mute opposition. As a presidential candidate, Bloomberg has racked up endorsements from AfricanAmerican lawmakers and mayors — many of them past beneficiaries of his largesse — as a means of blunting his past embrace of discriminatory “stop and frisk” policing. It seems to have worked (and Bloomberg has also apologized for the practice): A Quinnipiac poll shows Bloomberg making headway among African-Americans. If not now, then … Let’s say that by June, Elizabeth Warren, the progressive, is duking it out with Pete Buttigieg, the centrist. Thus no Jewish nominee this year. But the notion that a Jewish nominee was unelectable (one that Bloomberg once cited to explain why he chose not to run in 2008) has nonetheless been all but erased. Who’s waiting in the wings? Democrats adored Rep. Adam Schiff of California for his role leading the impeachment of Trump, and there was talk on social media of a possible Schiff run for the presidency. And Trump’s campaign manager, Brad Parscale, has said that the Trumps are set to become a Kennedy-like dynasty. Say what? Parscale elaborated at California’s Republican Party convention last August. “I think you see that from Don Jr. I think you see that from Ivanka. You see it from Jared. You see it from all,” he said. That would be Trump’s Jewish daughter, Ivanka Trump, and her Jewish husband, Jared Kushner. PJC PITTSBURGHJEWISHCHRONICLE.ORG

Headlines Study: Continued from page 1

“My family was fairly atheistic,” Braham said. “Both of my parents were fairly old when I was born, and I think that generation coming out of World War II, a lot of Jews were atheistic given what happened.” Although his family “wanted to be American, wanted to assimilate” they nonetheless “still felt very strongly Jewish.” That Judaism, common among Jews in mid-20th century New York, was marked by a “a long tradition of liberalism,” Braham said. “It was very Jewish and not particularly religious. There was no question in any of our minds that we were Jewish, even though we weren’t particularly religious. And that goes for my parents and actually even my grandparents.” For Braham, it is incongruous to believe in a “just and loving God” when there is suffering in the world, particularly in a post-Holocaust age. “There is the problem of theodicy, of ‘why would God allow this to happen?’ And I actually think that from a Jewish perspective, believing in a just, loving God is very problematic. If a person had the power to stop something terrible from happening, and they just let it happen, what would you say about someone like that? So what do you say about a deity that allows some of these things to happen?” Still, Braham acknowledged that the fact that he contemplates these philosophical questions is actually part of his Jewish identity. “How can you not feel Jewish thinking about these issues?” he said. Despite his doubts about God, Braham occasionally attends synagogue services. “These things are complicated,” he said. “For instance, I think just because I have problems with religion in general doesn’t mean I don’t see any value in it. There is a value to the community. There is a value to standing with other people and supporting them in their times of need. That is one of my frustrations. I don’t feel there is much of an alternative to religion to find that kind of supportive community.” Synagogue membership does not necessarily preclude a person from identifying as a cultural Jew rather than as Jewish by religion, according to Boxer. “As the Pew Research Center showed in their 2013 national study, although the vast majority of synagogue members are JBR (Jewish by religion), there are some who are JNR (Jews of no religion) or JMR (Jews of multiple religions); it’s the same in Pittsburgh,” Boxer wrote in an email. Jewish identity and practice “are complex,” Boxer explained, so the Brandeis researchers took “people at their word” when they said on the survey that they consider themselves to be Jewish for ethnic or cultural reasons but not as a matter of religion, whether or not they belong to a congregation. “I feel very strongly Jewish, even though I don’t feel religious,” Braham stressed, noting

p Lewis Braham identifies as a ‘cultural Jew.’

that he has even fasted on Yom Kippur and used that day to reflect on his actions of the past year and contemplate self-improvement. “There are meaningful lessons to be learned from that, even if you have trouble believing in God,” he said. Braham also pointed to Jewish humor “as a vital cultural touchstone for me — from early vaudeville, to Lenny Bruce to Mel Brooks, Phillip Roth, Woody Allen, Larry David, Jon Stewart. All very distinctly Jewish and not particularly religious.”

Feeling Jew-ish

Alison Karabin, 45, also belongs to a local Reform congregation, although she does not “feel much of a connection to it.” The native Pittsburgher describes herself as “Jew-ish, focusing on the -ish part,” she said. “I don’t feel much of a connection to the religious part of Judaism but I think there is a lot more to it.” Karabin grew up “in a Conservative but not observant household,” she said, and had a strong Jewish education. She lived in Israel for five years following college, and even studied at the Pardes Institute in Jerusalem. Perhaps at least partially because of her immersion in Israeli society, where Jewish identity is not necessarily tied to synagogue affiliation, she finds that congregational life does not resonate with her. Still, she wants her 8-year-old son to have “some religious education,” and for her, membership in a congregation is “a means to an end.” “The things that I like about the synagogue are the social action and activist things that they do,” she said. “But in terms of prayer or synagogue attendance, that’s really not meaningful to me. I don’t keep kosher. I guess I do observe holidays, like lighting Chanukah candles, but I don’t go to services really at all.” While there are philosophical aspects of Judaism that she appreciates, “keeping the 613 mitzvot, that’s not even on my radar,” said Karabin. “And I don’t want to disparage

Photo provided by Lewis Braham

people who find that is very meaningful. It’s just not for me.” Still, she is immersed in the Jewish community. A social worker employed by Jewish Residential Services, Karabin also participates in some activities run by Chabad of Squirrel Hill, is on the board of Hebrew Free Loan Association of Pittsburgh and also volunteers for the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh. “My grandparents were Holocaust survivors and I volunteer with the Holocaust Center as a speaker and I do feel for some reason because of their experience, I can’t quite give up on Judaism all together because I think it’s amazing what they survived, and what Judaism survived,” she said. “I feel like at least in my family, I don’t want to be the one to end the Jewish line. I do feel it is important to be connected to the community but I don’t connect to it through religious observance.” Although she celebrates some Jewish holidays, she does so “in a cultural way,” preparing traditional foods and reflecting on some of the themes of the day. Despite foregoing religious observance, though, Karabin recognizes that “however things work out, my fate is tied in with the fate of the Jewish people whether I want to or not. So I can opt out of observance, but being Jewish halachically you can’t really opt out of.”

Valuing community

Squirrel Hill resident Aaron Schall, 36, identifies strongly as a Jew, but considers himself to be a “culturally Jewish” rather than a Jew by religion. He grew up in the South Hills attending a Conservative congregation. “I’m definitely Jewish,” Schall said. “I had a bar mitzvah, but I never got into religion or really understood it.” The data entry clerk does, however, enjoy being involved with certain Jewish activities, and would prefer to marry a Jewish woman, he said. He has attended events at Moishe House and with Shalom Pittsburgh, and has

participated in Jewish social action initiatives. He enjoys celebrating the holidays with his family, including lighting Chanukah candles and attending Passover seders. But he does not belong to a congregation and rarely goes to services. “I don’t want to give up Judaism,” Schall said. “I just never did religious stuff growing up except Sunday school, and I never understood Hebrew. But I would say it is important to be with other Jews, to at least connect. I am proud of being Jewish. I have a Star of David I wear.” He appreciates the sense of belonging he feels when he is among other Jews, he said. “The community — it seems more supportive, it’s more understanding of what you are going through,” Schall said. “It’s how I grew up. So, I try to find Jewish activities and meet more Jewish people and try to get involved in social activities.” Jewish social and intellectual activities — sans a religious aspect — have been the focus of a group called the Pittsburgh Secular Jewish Community since 2012. The group, which is comprised of about two dozen Pittsburghers who identify as culturally Jewish, celebrates their heritage by meeting one day each month at Panera Bread on Centre Avenue for discussions and socializing. They also get together for Chanukah, Passover and Purim. Identifying as “proudly Jewish,” Susan Forrest, a founder of the group, notes that when observing the holidays, the PSJC “celebrates the cultural parts,” and focuses on “the meaning of the holidays.” For example, when celebrating Passover, the group discusses “the general theme of freedom, what does freedom look like in the current day, with a nod to the story, but not necessarily taking it as truth,” Forrest said. The group also marks the holiday “with the foods and songs that everybody knows and enjoys.” Sometimes, the PSJC will meet for cultural events in the city, like JFilm, lectures, or plays with Jewish themes. They do not worship or acknowledge God, though. Like Braham, members of the PSJC cannot accept a deity that allows suffering, particularly after the Shoah. “Most of us feel that after the Holocaust how can anyone believe there is a God looking out for Jews?” Forrest said. “It’s just a hard pill to swallow.” The sense of Jewish community, though, continues to be important to Forrest and the others in her group. “We are there because we are all likeminded and we enjoy being Jewish with other people who are Jewish,” she said. “I know a lot of people go to synagogue, they might not be religious but they go just for that sense of community.” For Forrest, association with other Jews through non-religious cultural activities is meaningful. “It’s very fulfilling,” she said. “I feel very satisfied.” PJC Toby Tabachnick can be reached at ttabachnick@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org

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FEBRUARY 21, 2020 9

Opinion The stain of misogyny — EDITORIAL —

t’s hard to get people to talk about Leslie Wexner. Or, more specifically, it’s hard to get recipients of his philanthropy to weigh in on how they feel having benefited from his largesse now that accusations of misogyny, or worse, have marred his reputation. In some circles, the name Leslie Wexner has been synonymous with uniquely generous philanthropy in support of the development of Jewish leadership and learning. The Wexner Foundation has, for years, underwritten a suite of fellowships focused on the development of Jewish professional and volunteer leaders in North America, and public leaders in Israel. The numbers and the results are impressive. More than 2,200 North American Jews have participated in the two-year intensive Wexner Heritage Program to learn Jewish history, values and text. Sixty Pittsburghers are part of this group, including 20 emerging

leaders who currently are in the midst of a two-year fellowship. And more than 270 Israeli public officials have participated in the Wexner Israel Fellowship Program, which covers a master’s degree in the mid-career program of Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. Wexner, 82, the man behind this network of support for Jewish learning and leadership, is the billionaire founder of Victoria’s Secret. Reports last week suggested that Wexner was in talks to step down as CEO of parent company L Brands, which also owns Bath & Body Works. Two related causes seem to be a significant part of what is driving Wexner’s departure from the business world. Both can be filed under the heading of toxic misogyny. And the Jewish community is struggling with how to react. First was Wexner’s relationship with businessman Jeffrey Epstein, who died by suicide in jail last year after his arrest for child sex trafficking. Epstein charmed and used the wealthy and powerful, and he and

Wexner became close. Wexner eventually granted Epstein his power of attorney and allowed Epstein wide-ranging access to much of Wexner’s fortune. Wexner now says that Epstein “misappropriated vast sums of money from me and my family.” Second, in an expose this month, The New York Times reported that Wexner turned a blind eye to sexual harassment and bullying of female employees and models at Victoria’s Secret, and took no action after being informed of the improper behavior. Some Wexner fellows have reacted to these stories, expressing concern that the reported improprieties might tarnish the very objectives of the Wexner program, which is designed to deepen Jewish character and strengthen the Jewish community. Indeed, JTA reported that some fellows worry that the Wexner name on their resumes will haunt their futures. (See story on p. 2.) Others who have profited from Wexner’s philanthropy, though, remain mum. We get it. It’s hard to speak out publicly

against one from whose generosity you have benefited, regardless of your personal feelings about his character. And let’s not forget, Wexner has not been found either liable or guilty for his supposed bad acts in a court of law. Still, even if the allegations against him turn out to be true, are all his good deeds completely mitigated by those that are bad? It’s a difficult dilemma. So what should Leslie Wexner do? Some suggest that he continue his philanthropy but remove his name from the programs. Others suggest that he endow his foundation and step aside. But neither of those suggestions provides closure on the question of Wexner’s “role” in either of the tawdry affairs. We hope that Wexner addresses the allegations head on, and explain his involvements. If, in the process of doing so, he feels that some public acknowledgment or apology is necessary, he will only elevate his reputation through such a public pursuit of teshuva, and, by association, the reputation of his programs’ beneficiaries. PJC

Why Penn State’s THON is an elaborate trick Guest Columnist Jake Schwartz

enn State’s Dance Marathon (THON) is the largest student-run philanthropy in the world. Every year, more than 16,000 students raise tens of millions of dollars, which goes directly toward paying the bills and medical expenses of families dealing with pediatric cancer. But … it’s all a trick. Let me explain. I am a professional magician. I’ve been practicing the art of magic since I fell in love with it at 2 years old. I got into magic not for the personal joy of deceiving others, but rather for the joy that I was able to give to other people by amazing them. I still remember my first real magic show, which I performed at my synagogue in exchange for a frozen yogurt gift card. I was a kid performing for other kids. Magic is such a unique art form in that it has this incredible ability to keep people in the moment. I often explain this to others by saying, “When something vanishes in front of your eyes, you are not thinking about the taxes you have to do when you get home, or where

the kids need to be dropped off and when.” When magic is done right, the spectators are truly and totally in the moment, and everything else melts away. The real magic isn’t in the sleight of hand, but rather the disappearing act of making other people’s troubles, woes and daily stresses vanish even for just a moment. Magic was and still is an escape because magic is the guaranteeing of a moment in which nothing else matters. Growing up Jewish, in Hebrew school we often talked about times in our lives in which we felt G-d’s presence, and felt true to ourselves. Performing magic has always been, and still is that time for me. The famous magic word abracadabra comes from a Jewish term Aborei KiDavra or “It is created according to my word.” Judaism teaches us to come together as a community, and be present with each other on Shabbat or any night of the week. THON is the epitome of community as thousands of students come together to impact lives. What can be more magical than that? I have been involved with THON since my first semester at Penn State. I always loved what THON stood for, and how THON was able to impact the lives of others. So it was a no brainer for me to join a THON organization as soon as I got to Happy Valley. I will never forget the epiphany I had during a meeting when all the members of my organization stood in a circle, all of us holding on to

a clothesline from which there hung different squares of fabric. On each square of fabric was printed a name, a date of birth and something else that was very strange — a second date. Each square represented a THON child who did not survive his or her treatment. This took a moment and a few deep breaths to really wrap my head around — especially when across from me hung the fabric square of a child with my same birthday, born a year earlier. In my hand was the fabric of a boy born exactly two days after my younger sister. THON’s impact on the lives of others is what drew me to it in the first place, but this was also my misunderstanding. What I have learned from getting to know these families who are fighting an unimaginable fight is that while we dance and fight for a cure, we are dancing and fighting not for others, but for ourselves. For each other. We dance so that every child can take for granted the things we took for granted. We dance so that every child’s top priority can be which tricks to do at his or her synagogue during that first show. I was a kid performing for other kids, and now I am a big kid dancing for other kids. It has been incredibly rewarding to explore the different ways in which the art that I fell in love with while growing up can be a gift to those who had to grow up much faster than I. My organization has two “adopted” families

that we check up on, do activities with and help through their journey. Our THON kids love when I give them the important job of guarding a quarter, only for it to vanish from inside their hand every time. I have donated shows to raise money for THON, and do hundreds more a year, but the time with them and their smiles are why doing that one trick for an audience of six is always my favorite show. So why is it all a trick? When I say Penn State’s THON is a trick, I mean in my eyes, THON is just one big magic trick. A magic show is very different than THON for many reasons, but the gift/result is just the same. For 46 hours every year, we give these kids who have to worry about things no one at any age should have to worry about, the gift of an escape. THON provides that “oh my goodness” moment when something vanishes right in front of your eyes, but for 46 hours. Just as good magic makes all the day-to-day stresses vanish for a spectator, THON allows these kids, who are stronger than I have ever had to be, to just be kids. THON is for these kids what magic has always been for me: the guaranteeing of a moment in which nothing else matters. That is real magic. PJC Jake Schwartz is a professional magician from Bucks County, Pennsylvania.

The Jewish nightmare of Bernie vs. Trump Guest Columnist Yossi Klein Halevi

sk British Jews what advice they would offer to American Jews, based on their experience fighting

10 FEBRUARY 21, 2020

Corbynism, and the answer is unequivocal: Don’t wait until it’s almost too late to fight for your political home. Don’t pretend it can’t happen to you. They mean: Pay attention to how quickly a mainstream party with a long pro-Israel tradition and deep roots in the Jewish community can be transformed into a home for enemies of the Jewish people. Bernie Sanders is not Jeremy Corbyn,

and the Democratic Party is not Labour. Sanders has repeatedly affirmed his support for Israel’s right to exist (though he is far more equivocal about its right to defend that right). We all know about his time on a kibbutz. And the Democratic Party has an overwhelming majority of pro-Israel legislators. But more than any other leading politician, Sanders is responsible for mainstreaming

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the Corbynist wing of the Democratic Party. The party’s anti-Zionists, like Linda Sarsour, have gathered around Sanders. And Sanders himself supported Corbyn — ignoring the fears of British Jews, who overwhelmingly saw Corbyn as an anti-Semite. Corbyn has shown us how quickly the politics of the fringe can become mainstream. Please see Halevi, page 11

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Opinion Middle East conflict — Groundhog Day no more Guest Columnist Stuart V. Pavilack

he Arabs have walked away from every peace proposal since 1937 (1937, 1948, 1967, 2000, 2008, 2014). All of these were based on a similar concept — land for peace and confidence building measures by the Israelis. Anytime Israel did something the Arabs didn’t like, they walked away, thus giving them veto power. The only thing missing in each of these scenarios was Bill Murray. President Trump recently introduced his vision for peace for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. It is radically different from past

Halevi: Continued from page 10

Under President Sanders, those still-renegade voices within the Democratic Party would have intimate access to the White House. In his first months in office, President Trump emboldened the far-right fringe. President Sanders would do the same with the far left. Sanders recently spoke movingly about the impact of the Holocaust on his sensitivity to racism and injustice. And yes, he hates anti-Semitism — right-wing anti-Semitism. The anti-Semitism in his own camp seems to leave him indifferent. Bernie is that Jew who has taken his people’s suffering and offered it entirely outward, in the service of other causes. After his stay on a kibbutz, Bernie the Jew seems to have gone AWOL. Did he stand with Israel in 1967? 1973? In 1975, when the UN labeled Zionism racism? Did his Holocaustdriven pain lead him to active involvement in the movement to free Soviet Jewry — the

proposals, incorporating basic realities on the ground, and understanding geopolitical changes in the region. Rather than trying to understand it or giving it time to be analyzed, the media was quick to condemn it. Dan Simpson was no different in “Trump’s pathetic plan for Palestine” in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Feb. 5. He called it a “joke” and a “raw deal,” incorrectly comparing it to apartheid South Africa, and ignored every legal right the Israelis have on the land of Israel under various international laws and treaties of the last 100 years. He also questioned its effect on American and Israeli politics, thus insinuating it is a political tool of the president and the prime minister. Simpson also gave the impression that no other Arab states support the proposal by

stating that “the Arab League has already rejected the Trump proposal.” The politics of the region are very different and more difficult from what we know. A number of states that voted no at the Arab League meeting have individually expressed support for discussion of the plan. And not everything is as it appears. In the case of Jordan, which has a peace treaty with Israel, one would not expect it to vote against the Arab League because a significant portion of its population is of Palestinian descent. Other countries issue statements for and then voted against the plan. That’s the politics of the Middle East. The plan has two paths, one for the Israelis and one for the Palestinians. Where it differs from plans of the past 100 years is that each side is required to

most important American Jewish political response to the Holocaust? And then there’s the video clip of Sanders, taken during his Soviet honeymoon in 1988, sitting bare chested in a sauna and toasting Soviet officials. That astonishing scene portrays a Jew indifferent to his people’s torment. Those on the right who try to portray him as a “communist” only confuse the essential debate over Bernie with foolish accusations. The reality is problematic enough: Bernie is a European-style socialist, which means he is a democrat with a soft spot for anti-democratic revolutionaries. Bernie is also a uniquely American irony: The first serious Jewish candidate for president turns out to be a man-child who never left the ‘60s, who delights in the rhetoric of “revolution,” and recklessly threatens to undo the American economy and, with it, American power. (Asked in a recent interview how many trillions his programs will cost, he effectively shrugged and said, Who knows? No one knows! How should I know?)

A Trump-Sanders contest would be a political nightmare for American Jewry. It would undermine whatever minimal consensus still holds the American Jewish community together. In that toxic atmosphere, pro-Sanders and pro-Trump Jews would each accuse the other of betraying Jewish values. And both would be right. Those Jews who passionately support Trump need to ask themselves whether their man is at least partly responsible for the threat of a Sanders presidency. The politics of rage, from whatever source, are never good for Jews. Inevitably, the ecstasy of the crowd blurs political lines. When all norms shatter, anything becomes possible. A Trump-Sanders race would cut to the heart of American Jewish identity. It would reduce the two essential elements of contemporary Jewish identity — particularism and universalism — to farce. In that race, Trump would be the “Jewish particularist,” chastising universal-minded Jews for betraying Israel. And Sanders would be the “tikkun olamist,” drawing on Jewish history only to justify his

— LETTERS — Immigrants

Regarding the column by Albert Eisenberg (“Immigration: Left-leaning rabbis push ahistorical agenda”), he may be missing the point, and the history. We in the U.S. have no shortage of liberty: let those in need come and share it! There is no limit on freedom – come, accept our rules, and participate in our bounty! All who are hungry, let them come and eat! All who are in need, let them come and celebrate with us. Where in our commandments does it say, “scrutinize all before allowing them in”? I don’t see any rule saying, “cage the children so they cannot taste your freedom.” Where is it written that we must “send them back into danger and death, lest they taint our waters, eat our food, and go to school with our sons”? Yes, our immigration practices could use scrutiny. But over the past three years, the waters have only been further muddied with poison that threatens not only those asking to enter but us, too. And that poison spills over to our citizens who believe Jews should not encourage immigration: I believe that was one thing in the shooter’s mind as he gunned for us in mid-Kaddish DiRabbanon in the Tree of Life building. Mr. Eisenberg says laws of kashrut, etc., are for separateness. I differ. We were given the laws to go forth and set examples, to be a light unto the nations. (“Nations,” including us, not “other PITTSBURGHJEWISHCHRONICLE.ORG

achieve various goals, A., B., C. The major difference is that if the Palestinians balk along the way, they can’t stop or veto the plan. Israel can continue to fulfill its parts that don’t depend on the Palestinians or their actions. We hope and pray for peace between the parties. But statements from the Palestinian Authority are no different than in the past, it is always no to any discussion about peace. It is evident that Israel does not have a peace partner in the Palestinians and they still want nothing less than the entire land of Israel. Let’s hope they don’t see their shadows. PJC Stuart V. Pavilack is the executive director of the Zionist Organization of America: Pittsburgh.

dismissal of explicitly Jewish concerns. Bernie Sanders is not an enemy of the Jewish people. He simply doesn’t care enough about Jewish concerns to be considered a friend. President Sanders would be taking office at a time when the stakes could not possibly be higher for Israel. The current low-key Israeli-Iranian war could transform at any moment into a full-scale, multi-front regional conflict. The IDF has repeatedly warned that, in the next phase of this ongoing war, tens of thousands of missiles and rockets will fall on Israeli cities. Israel, according to the IDF, will respond with a massive invasion of southern Lebanon and the destruction of Lebanon’s infrastructure. The Israeli counter-attack could widen to include targets in Iran itself. In that entirely realistic scenario, whose side would President Bernie be on? PJC Yossi Klein Halevi is a senior fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute. This article originally appeared in the Times of Israel.

nations.”) When I leave the corners of my field to the less fortunate, I observe a commandment equal to the commandment Mr. Eisenberg observes not boiling a calf in mother’s milk. The result of my observance helps others; I am sharing the holiness of mitzvah. We must share it as far as we possibly can. It’s not only about us, it never was only for us to be insular and follow our own interpretations and permutations and extrapolations of the Law. It’s about the world. As rabbis teach us, it’s about the whole world. This is America, and many Jews of all political stripes feel it is still a good idea – based in law and in history – to reach out a hand to help others. Audrey N. Glickman Pittsburgh We invite you to submit letters for publication. Letters must include name, address and daytime phone number; addresses and phone numbers will not be published. Letters may not exceed 500 words and may be edited for length and clarity; they cannot be returned. Mail, fax or email letters to:

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Headlines Rabbis: Continued from page 1

exposed me to bigger picture thinking that I can help move forward as a Jew.” After years of writing about the nation’s gun violence epidemic, Creditor formed Rabbis Against Gun Violence in January 2016. With its reliance on social media and public events, the organization seeks to save lives “without infringing on Second Amendment rights.” One mechanism for doing so is calling regular attention to the subject through Facebook posts. On Feb. 6, Rabbis Against Gun Violence highlighted Parkland parent Fred Guttenberg’s presence at the State of the Union: “Here’s what happened: Guttenberg was in attendance as a guest of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. When Trump said he will ‘always’ protect the Second Amendment — which he described as being ‘under siege’ — the grieving Jewish dad yelled out, ‘What about my daughter?’ Fred Guttenberg, thank you for sharing your grief out loud. May your precious daughter’s memory, and your sacred activism in her name, move more leaders’ hearts to finally act to save lives.” A Feb. 11 post from the organization read, “A 16-year-old in Texas was gunned down by a 15-year-old last week after stepping in to defend a classmate from bullying.” Similar to his active online presence,

Creditor has published more than 20 books, including “None Shall Make Them Afraid: A Rabbis Against Gun Violence Anthology” and “Holding Fast: Jews Respond to American Gun Violence.” Creditor’s interest in gun violence grew after the 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. During that period, Creditor was a pulpit rabbi in Berkley, California. To mark the one-year anniversary of the murders, he wrote a prayer titled, “A Newtown El Malei: For 26 Souls and 30,000 More.” “The prayer ended up being used in Congress and in different houses of worship around America, and a friend of mine, a pastor, invited me to join a delegation to the White House to present a path for healing the soul of our nation,” he said. “During that visit it became clear to me that my understanding of gun violence had been very shallow, and it had been flavored with a very specific Jewish experience.” Creditor said he “immersed” himself in the realities and varieties of gun violence, and Rabbis Against Gun Violence eventually emerged. Creditor no longer serves as a pulpit rabbi, but remains cognizant of the challenges rabbis face when addressing topics such as gun violence. “Judaism is a non-dogmatic religion and what that means is we have to think carefully and communally as we navigate a political world,” he said. “Truth is always bigger than one opinion. So we have to do our best, while

p Rabbi Menachem Creditor

fighting for justice, to just think together about what that means.” Isolating oneself in echo chambers and ideological silos is contrary to “what it is to be a person,” continued Creditor. “To stand alone and to fight for a notion of truth that tolerates no dissent is not Jewish and isn’t democratic, and I would say represents a fundamentalism that would destroy society. “A truth that tolerates no dissent is very destructive and that isn’t the message for rabbis nor is it just a message for Jews. I think we as people are witnessing a world that is challenging the idea of what to think when we disagree.”

Photo courtesy of Rabbi Menachem Creditor

Throughout the scholar-in-residence weekend, there will be ample opportunities for discussion, disagreement and accord, noted Temple Emanuel Senior Rabbi Aaron Meyer: “Rabbi Creditor is a national thought leader on both the Jewish uses and abuses of power, as well as the rabbinic voice on gun violence prevention. As our synagogue and Jewish community at large are looking at our responses to the greater world in which we live in, I’m excited to take advantage of his wisdom and experience.” PJC Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

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FEBRUARY 21, 2020 19

Life & Culture Novelist Julie Orringer opens speaker series, discusses Pittsburgh roots and novel ‘The Flight Portfolio’ —BOOKS — By David Rullo l Staff Writer

uthor Julie Orringer discussed her family’s Pittsburgh roots and her latest novel, “The Flight Portfolio,” on Sunday, Feb. 16, at Congregation Beth Shalom. In addition to her latest work, Orringer is the author of “The Invisible Bridge” and the award-winning short-story collection “How to Breathe Underwater.” She is the winner of The Paris Review’s Plimpton Prize for Fiction and has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, Stanford University and the Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers at the New York Public Library. Orringer was the inaugural speaker at Beth Shalom’s 2020 Speaker Series, funded by Seth Glick and Carolyn Slayton and sponsored by Temple Ohav Shalom, Sisterhood of Salaam Shalom and the Jewish Book Council. The free series is presented by Derekh, dedicated to enriching lives through community, lifelong Jewish learning and spiritual growth. The writer opened her talk by discussing her Pittsburgh family history: Great-greatgrandfather Jacob Orringer, owned a grocery store in Pittsburgh on Beechwood Boulevard in the 1920s and ’30s. His son, Harry, bought a house on the same Squirrel Hill street. Orringer’s father lived in the home until he was 15 and moved to Florida. The stories the author’s father told her — Colfax Elementary School, the Jewish

p Author Julie Orringer discusses her novel “The Flight Portfolio” at Congregation Beth Shalom’s 2020 Speaker Series. Photo by David Rullo

Community Center, Temple Sinai and Mineo’s Pizza — were familiar to audience members. Her father’s Pittsburgh stories were “part of the fabric of my childhood,” she said. “They were a kind of vision of an ideal Jewish life in this country, one that felt like an aspirational goal of how you really wanted to live.” The first time she came to Pittsburgh, Orringer wanted to see her old family home but couldn’t bring herself to knock on the door, so Glick went with her. To her surprise, Judith, the wife of Beth Shalom Senior Rabbi Seth Adelson, answered the door. Even though her family has been gone from Pittsburgh for a long time, Orringer said the shooting at the Tree of Life building affected her.

“The Invisible Bridge,” Orringer explained, is a fictionalized account of the real-life Varian Fry, an American journalist who helped more than 2,000 Jews escape France during World War II. He was the first of five Americans to be recognized as Righteous Among the Nations by the state of Israel. As Orringer recounted, Fry was motivated to action after learning of a policy called Surrender on Demand (which later became the title of the journalist’s memoirs). The law, Article 19 of the Franco-German armistice, required France to turn over any Germans living in the country. Because of the policy, German Jews faced the possibility of deportation and murder. Fry’s original mission was to rescue 200

Jews from the country under immediate risk of deportation by the Gestapo but stayed to help others. The American offered not only money and advice but falsified papers and found a means of escape. He achieved these daring escapes through the Emergency Rescue Committee, an organization he founded with several friends. The committee was supported by Eleanor Roosevelt and other powerful Americans. Numerous artists and notable names were saved by Fry, including Andre Breton, Marc Chagall, Marcel Duchamp, Max Ernst and Sophie Taeuber. Orringer explained that the committee’s original intent was to simply rescue the artists and authors it had identified in the country. Fry, however, “realized the work had to be expanded, that people’s situations were so dire, and everyone’s case was important, whether or not they happened to be famous.” The novel also discusses Fry’s homosexuality. For a variety of reasons, this aspect of Fry’s life was the most difficult for Orringer to convince people was true. In fact, she said, it “actually took a letter from his son to The New York Times to clear up this issue once and for all.” The talk concluded with a question and answer period and a book signing by the author. The 2020 Beth Shalom Speaker Series continues March 4 with Yousef Bashir, author of “The Words of My Father,” who will speak at 7:30 p.m. Marra Gad will discuss her book “The Color of Love” on March 25. Steve Israel closes the series on May 6. PJC David Rullo can be reached at drullo@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

From ‘bialy’ to ‘Jew York,’ OED adds dozens of Jewish-themed words and phrases — LANGUAGE — Gabe Friedman | JTA

t’s not just “yiddo.” The Oxford English Dictionary has just added a slew of Jewish-themed and Yiddish terms, some of which are sure to offend. The venerable institution’s list of new entries for January 2020 contains dozens of items with Jewish content, from “bialy” to “Jewfro” to “yeshiva bochur.” Responding to debate about the inclusion of “yiddo,” a term for fans of the British Tottenham Hotspurs soccer club that borrows from a derogatory term for Jewish people, the dictionary’s compilers said they judge proposed additions by their significance, not whether they offend. “We reflect, rather than dictate, how language is used which means we include words which may be considered sensitive and derogatory. These are always labelled as such,” the OED said in a statement.

20 FEBRUARY 21, 2020

A few other new additions also tread potentially offensive ground, including a derogatory application of the word “bagel” referring to Jews that the dictionary says is used in South Africa. Most of the others run little risk of offending anyone (though some might object to the designation of a few terms, such as “kibitz,” as rare). Here’s the full list of Jewish additions: anti-Semiticism, n.: “Prejudice, hostility, or discrimination toward Jewish people on religious, cultural, or ethnic grounds; = anti-Semitism n.” bialy, n.: “A chewy bread roll having a circular indentation filled with finely chopped onion. Cf. Bialystok n.” Bialystok, n.: “a chewy bread roll having a circular indentation filled with finely chopped onion; = bialy n.” bochur, n.: “A boy or young man; spec. a student of Talmudic and rabbinical writings at a yeshiva (yeshiva n.). Cf. yeshiva bochur n.” chrain [Yiddish], n.: “Horseradish; spec. a piquant sauce made with grated horseradish, vinegar and (sometimes) beetroot, used as a

condiment and traditionally served with…” chutzpadik [Yiddish], adj.: “Esp. in Jewish usage: showing chutzpah; impudent, impertinent; audacious, very self-confident.” farbrengen, n.: “A Chasidic gathering, usually with eating, drinking, singing and discussion of Chasidic teachings, held especially on the Sabbath and other festivals…” farkakte [Yiddish], adj.: “Covered in excrement. Rare.” futzing [Yiddish], n.: “Ineffectual or trifling activity; messing about; tinkering. Chiefly with around.” glatt kosher, adj.: “Designating food prepared according to a strict interpretation of Jewish dietary law; of or relating to such food; strictly kosher.” hanukkiah, n.: “A candelabrum holding eight lights and a shamash (shamash n. 2), used during the eight days of Hanukkah. Cf. menorah n.” Jewdar, n.: “An ability, attributed esp. to Jewish people and likened humorously to radar, to identify a (fellow) Jewish person by intuition…”

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Jewfro, n.: “A curly, frizzy or bushy hairstyle worn by some Jewish people, reminiscent of an Afro.” Jew-hating, n.: “Hatred of Jewish people or culture; anti-Semitism.” Jew-hating, adj.: “That hates Jewish people or culture; anti-Semitic.” Jewish American, n. and adj.: “An American of Jewish origin or descent.” Jewish-Christian, n. and adj.: “Church History. A member of a Jewish-Christian church or community (see sense B. 1). Cf. Judaeo-Christian n. 1.” Jewish Christianity, n.: “The state or fact of being Jewish-Christian. Also: Jewish-Christian culture, beliefs, etc. Cf. Judaeo-Christianity n.” Jew town, n.: “A name for: an area inhabited predominantly by Jewish people. In later use, esp. such an area within a larger urban environment…” Jew York, n.: “A name for: New York.”

Please see Dictionary, page 24

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Life & Culture ‘I have this wonderful life’: Pittsburgh food critic Hal B. Klein — FOOD — By Justin Vellucci

hen food writer Hal B. Klein sat down to review the Oakland restaurant Legume in August, he hoped that chef de cuisine Csilla Thackray would provide a juicy respite from the jet lag of a half-day flight. Klein just had returned from a 10-day family trip in Israel, his first visit to the country and one he savored as he toured Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and the Golan Heights. He was greeted at Legume with a chilled, sour-cherry soup — its olive relish provided “a leathery bass note,” he later wrote — and a rice crepe with chickpea wot, among

Pittsburgh’s ever-growing foodie scene — one of the many critics who has worked to unravel the story of the region’s cuisine, food systems and habits. He has provided readers of several publications with valuable context about food and the stories behind their meals as readily as he has interpreted menus. And, yes, he’s quick to admit Jewish life colors his palate and influences his views of Western hospitality. Raised in New York, Klein emigrated to Los Angeles as a young man to chase his acting dreams. After the economy bottomed out, he moved to Pittsburgh in 2010 to pursue a master’s degree in food studies, which was then a groundbreaking, new program at Chatham University. Klein started freelancing, writing about drinking for Pittsburgh City Paper and landing a piece

“ The Jewish kitchen is a kitchen of hospitality and comfort through food.” — HAL B. KLEIN

other adornments. It not only reinforced his faith in Thackray and Legume; the meal moved him. It was not the first time food had left its fingerprints on Klein. “I have this wonderful life where I get paid to eat in great restaurants,” said Klein, 44, of Bloomfield, who took a full-time gig as Pittsburgh Magazine’s dining critic and associate editor five years ago. “I think the idea is to try to get a sense for what a restaurant is and go from there. I don’t want to impose my biases or anything. I’m going to meet you where you’re putting out everything, instead of demanding how you’re supposed to be.” Since 2015, Klein has become a fixture in

at Pittsburgh Magazine about the former Garfield hot-spot Salt of the Earth. “I began in an era where there’s a lot of information out there — there’s social media, there’s influencers, there’s Yelp. My job is to be more of a trusted guide,” Klein said. “I have a broader overall understanding of the context of a restaurant in Pittsburgh, more than, you know, ‘The hamburger is good.’” Brian Hyslop took Pittsburgh Magazine’s top editorial post in 2017 after working as an editor at newspapers like the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and Print. Hyslop said Klein’s passion for Western Pennsylvania’s food and beverage scenes leaves a strong impression.

“I grew up in the ’80s, in the worst age of industrial food production,” Klein said. “[I ate] pasta with butter on it, chicken breast. I didn’t eat a lot of vegetables.” That changed when Klein was at a Shakespeare festival in Santa Cruz, California, in 2003. All it took was a single strawberry. “Having a strawberry grown in strawberry season, it tasted like acidic candy,” Klein recalled. “Having grown up on strawberries that didn’t taste like anything, it was like, ‘Whoa! What else is here?’ That opened the door to everything.” Klein, who continues to open doors for his readers, is happy to applaud the work of others cataloging the intricacies of Pittsburgh food, be it specialized southeast Asian cuisine or the Lenten fish sandwich. “If it’s a way to get people engaged,” he said, “I think that’s really exciting.” PJC Justin Vellucci is a freelance writer living in Pittsburgh.

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“He’s not just interested in fine dining, but in the way food connects us as a community,” Hyslop said. A good portion of that, Klein said, has to do with cultural and socioreligious context. Klein grew up in what he called “a very Reform family” that self-identified mostly as “culturally Jewish.” “Like a lot of people, my grandparents were more observant,” Klein said. “But we’re very much proud and part of the cultural heritage.” Klein attended Hebrew school on the weekends and became a bar mitzvah at Temple Beth Sholom in New York. Alongside his brother Scott, three years his junior, Klein went to eight-weeklong “traditional” sleep-away camp at Camp Kennybrook p Hal Klein in the Catskill Mountains, 90 minutes north of Manhattan. And he fondly looks back on growing up surrounded by “comfort food and Ashkenazi flavors.” “The Jewish kitchen is a kitchen of hospitality,” Klein said. “‘Have some honeydew, have some cantaloupe.’ It’s a thing we do. As Jewish people, we share a lot of hospitality and comfort through food. The cultural history of that is my cultural history — and it’s something I’ve really embraced.” Those sentiments are reflected in the restaurant Klein calls one of his all-time favorites — Zahav, in Philadelphia, which serves, among other things, Israeli, Lebanese and Sephardic cuisine. Zahav is owned by Chef Michael Solomonov who grew up in Pittsburgh. “The hospitality they run that place with is something that’s so special,” Klein said. “It reminds me of all the great cultural generosity of the Jewish kitchen. You feel it there.” The food writer regrets that, as a child, he was “a super-picky eater.”

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Rabbi Mendy Schapiro Parshat Mishpatim Exodus 21:1-24:18

ollowing the revelation at Mount Sinai, G-d legislates a series of laws for the Children of Israel, over 50 of which are listed in this week’s parsha, Mishpatim. These include the laws of the indentured servant; the penalties for murder, kidnapping, assault and theft; civil laws pertaining to redress of damages, the granting of loans and the responsibilities of the “Four Guardians”; and the rules governing the conduct of justice by courts of law.

The first person in the Torah to refer to G-d as “Master” was our patriarch Abraham. The Talmud tells us: “From the day G-d created the universe, there was no man who called G-d “Master” until Abraham came along and called him Master” (Tractate Berachos 7b). Abraham was the first person in history to recognize G-d in the world and to teach others that there is a “Master of the Universe.” The second expression, “the G-d of Israel,” is first found in the saga of our Patriarch Jacob. Immediately after the story of his fight with Esau’s guardian angel — the angel who gave him the name Israel — the Torah tells us (Bereishis 33:20) that Jacob built an altar, and named it “L-rd, the G-d of Israel.”

In the journey of life, a person must complete a certain ‘pilgrimage.’

Also included are laws warning against mistreatment of foreigners; the observance of the seasonal festivals, and the agricultural gifts that are to be brought to the Holy Temple in Jerusalem; the prohibition against cooking meat with milk; and the mitzvah of prayer. With regard to the festivals it is written that “three times a year, at Passover, Shavuos and Sukkos” we are to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Throughout the Torah, this mitzvah, called “Aliyah L’Regal,” is mentioned three times. While we understand the importance of going to join in the holiday celebration at the Holy Temple, why the need for the Torah to repeat this commandment three times? Let us take a closer look at the three instances in which the Torah mentions this mitzvah, we may discover something very interesting. Our parsha states: “Three times during the year … before the Master, the L-rd.” In other words, the reason for this pilgrimage was to see “Ha’Adon Hashem,” “the Master, the L-rd”— as in “Adon Olam,” “Master of the Universe,” the opening words of a familiar prayer. The second time this mitzvah appears, in the portion of Ki Tisa, the Torah (Shmos 34:23) states: “Three times during the year… before the Master, the L-rd, the G-d of Israel.” Here the Torah adds to “the Master, the L-rd” also “the G-d of Israel” — referring to a special relationship Israel has with Him; He is the “G-d of Israel.” The third time this mitzvah appears in the Torah is in the Book of Devarim, in the Torah portion of Re’ei (16:16). There it states the following: “Three times a year… before the L-rd, your G-d…” Here, the Torah states that the pilgrim is not coming to see “the Master” or “the G-d of Israel,” but “your G-d.” Here it gets personal: “your G-d,” in the singular — the G-d that belongs to you. By mentioning the mitzvah three times, the Torah is not merely underlining its importance, rather it is conveying to the understanding that our relationship with G-d can be experienced on three levels.

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Finally, we come to the expression “your G-d.” This phrase is familiar to us from the Aseres HaDibros, the Ten Commandments — which begin with the words, “I am the L-rd your G-d…” What the Torah essentially wants to teach us is that “Aliyah L’Regel,” the thrice-annual pilgrimage, was not just a physical journey but more than that — a spiritual journey. In the journey of life, a person must complete a certain “pilgrimage.” We must go from Point A to Point B — and beyond, always progressing from level to level. We can find the steps of this journey in the different words used by the Torah to describe this mitzvah. At the outset of the spiritual pilgrimage, one must first acknowledge that there is a “Master” — a Higher Power. The person must come to the realization and acceptance that there is something greater than him or her that guides the universe. This is merely recognition of an existence, not necessarily something that impacts our day to day life. At the next level, however, one should come to the realization that being Jewish means nurturing a deeper relationship with G-d. It is thanks to that realization that the Jew can truly be “a light unto the nations.” The ultimate goal of the pilgrimage is to connect with G-d as an individual. We must ultimately arrive at a personal relationship with G-d — a relationship in which we can personally turn to G-d and know that G-d is listening, He hears our prayer, feels our pain and shares our joy. Sometimes we need not look too far to find this personal connection with G-d. At other times it may take a little searching. But we’ll go to the end of the earth to find meaning. PJC Rabbi Mendy Schapiro is the director of Chabad of Monroeville. This column is a service of the Vaad Harabanim of Greater Pittsburgh. FEBRUARY 21, 2020 23

Dictionary: Continued from page 20

kibitz [Yiddish], n.: “A spectator of a game, esp. of cards. Cf. kibitzer n. 1. Rare.” kvetching [Yiddish], adj.: “Characterized by complaining or criticizing; that complains or criticizes.” kvetchy [Yiddish], adj.: “Given to or characterized by complaining or criticizing; ill-tempered, irritable.” Semiticist, n.: “A person who studies Semitic languages, literature, etc.; = Semitist n.” Shabbat goyah, n.: “In Jewish usage: a non-Jewish woman who performs for strictly Orthodox Jews tasks forbidden to them on the Sabbath (see Shabbat n.)…” shaliach, n.: “An emissary or agent; a representative or proxy. Also (in Jewish worship): a person responsible for leading the communal worship of a synagogue; =…” unterfirer, n.: “In Jewish usage: (at a Jewish wedding) a person who leads or accompanies the bride or groom to the chuppah (chuppah n.).” yeshiva bochur, n.: “A student of Talmudic and rabbinical writings at a yeshiva (yeshiva n.). Cf. bochur n.” yiddo, n.: “A Jewish person. Also in extended use: a supporter of or player for Tottenham Hotspur Football Club.”

The dictionary also added several new phrases with Jewish content, as well: Hanukkah gelt in Hanukkah, n.: “money or (now chiefly) chocolate coins, traditionally given to children at the Jewish festival of Hanukkah and used as a stake when playing dreidel…” Jew-free in Jew, n.: “characterized by the absence of Jewish people.” Jew joke in Jew, n.: “a joke making fun of Jewish people; cf. Jewish joke n. at Jewish adj. compounds .” Jew-like in Jew, n.: “(a) adv. in a manner (stereotypically) regarded as characteristic of a Jewish person; (b) adj. (stereotypically) characteristic of a Jewish person.” Jewish calendar in Jewish, adj.: “a complex ancient calendar used in Judaism, typically to determine the date of religious festivals, holidays, etc., throughout the year.” Jewish emancipation in Jewish, adj.: “the fact or process of ending legal discrimination against, and establishing equal rights for, Jewish people as national citizens.” Jewish Enlightenment in Jewish, adj.: “a movement among central and eastern European Jews during the late 18th and 19th centuries, having as its object the modernization of Jews and…” Jewish joke in Jewish, adj.: “a joke told by or considered characteristic of Jewish people; (also) a joke making fun of Jewish people (cf.

Jew joke n. at Jew n. compounds 3a).” Jewish mother in Jewish, adj.: “used as the type of a person who is overprotective, overbearing, or interfering…” Jewish New Year in Jewish, adj.: “the Jewish festival marking the start of the new year, celebrated on the first (and in the diaspora also the second) day of the month Tishri…” Jewish penicillin in Jewish, adj.: “(a humorous name for) chicken soup, strongly associated with Jewish culture, and popularly considered as a remedy for all ailments…” Jewish quarter in Jewish, adj.: “an area of a city or town inhabited mainly by, or traditionally associated with, Jewish people.” Jewish question in Jewish, adj.: “(usually with the) a question or debate about the appropriate status, rights, and treatment of Jewish people within a nation state or in society…” to make Shabbat in Shabbat, n.: “to make Shabbat: (in Jewish usage) to observe or celebrate the Sabbath. Cf. to make Shabbos at Shabbos n. Phrases.” shiksa goddess in shiksa, n.: “a non-Jewish woman regarded as attractive to Jewish men.”

New senses (or uses added to existing definitions):

anti-Semite, adj. and n., sense A: “Characterized by prejudice, hostility, or discrimination toward Jewish

Anonymous .............................................................Martin Mattes Gertrude Adams........................................... Ruth Weinberger Rachel Letty Americus ..............................Leo M. Americus Rachel Letty Americus ...........Bessie Taback Americus Elton L. Bailiss ......................................................Lucille Pollock Faye Bleiberg ....................................................Diane Friedman Faye Bleiberg ........................................................Jack Mallinger Faye Bleiberg ...................................................Esther Mallinger Judith Blumenfeld ..................................Morton Blumenfeld Mrs. Caplan............................................................Arlene S. Apter Linda G. Ehrenreich ........................................Thelma Marder Ruth K. Goldman...................................................Ethel Golanty Edward M. Goldston .............................................David Brown Ruth Haber.......................................................Ella Judith Levine Ms. Marjorie Halpern.............................................Mary Farber Rhoda Judd .................................................................Jacob Marks Karen R. Jurgensmier ..................................Issac Rosenfeld Amy R. Kamin.......................................................Samuel Kamin

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people on religious, cultural, or ethnic grounds; anti-Semitic.” bagel, n., sense 2a: “slang. U.S. derogatory and offensive. A Jewish person.” bagel, n., sense 2b: “slang. South African (usually derogatory). A type of wealthy young Jewish man characterized as being spoilt and materialistic with a distinctively…” chutzpah, n., sense 1: “An impudent act; an impertinence; an affront. Now rare.” gelt, n.2, Additions: “Money or (now chiefly) chocolate coins, traditionally given to children at the Jewish festival of Hanukkah and used as a stake when playing dreidel…” PJC

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THIS WEEK’S YAHRZEITS — Sunday February 23: Abraham B. Amper, Philip Anolik, Sophie Auerbach, Gertrude Brody, Leah Canter, Esther Covel, Anne M. Darling, Harry Friedman, Mendel Helfand, Morris Herr, Julius Skigen, Mary Davis Solomon*, Esther Spiro, David Zytnick Monday February 24: Meyer Borofsky, David Brown, Morris Goldberg, Gertrude Grossman, Edward Haims, Leeba Hausman, Lillian Hoffman, Abram Katkisky, Helen Klein, Sam Lavine, Jacob Levine, Max Malkin, Morris Malt, Minnie Rosenberg, Rachel Sheffler Shuklansky, Abe Weiner, Louis Weiss, Gussie Wolf Tuesday February 25: Bessie Taback Americus, Louis Cohen, Isadore Dektor, Rachel Eisenberg, Dora Feldman, Sarah R. Fineman, Ida Goldberg, Adolph Graff, Jacob Horewitz, Joseph R. Kaufman, Isadore Libson, Milton Emanuel Linder, Morris T. Mason, Ben Neiman, Anna Goldie Pearlman, Martha Trachtenberg, Anna H. Wolfe, Ann Yecies Wednesday February 26: Milton Abes, Max H. Barnett, Izzy Brown, Harry Cohen, Joseph Cohen, Sarah Finkelstein, Leonard M. Friedman, Norman B. Goldfield, Sadye Goldstein, Minna Hohenstein, David Kaplan, Dr. Edward Kaplan, Sarah Kaufman, Rose G. Klein, Isaac Rosenberg, Bertha B. Rosenfeld, Joseph Rosenthal, Freda Rosenthall, Blanche Schultz, Celia Soloman, Samual Spokane, Ruth Steiger, Isaac Zuckerman Thursday February 27: Samuel Barasch, Henrietta Caplan, Ida Danenberg, Morris Finkelstein, Milton I. Freedman, Abe I. Friedman, Rose Goldenberg, Dorothy Goldstein, Carl Gussin, Sadye Judd, Lily June Kanarek, Jack Leff, Lena Lefkowitz, Aaron Mallinger, Bella W. Marks, Solomon Neustein, Betty F. Paull, Emanuel Perlow, Lee Radbord, Bertha Rosenfeld, Alice Shapiro, Miriam Silberman, Julius Silverman, Janina Winkler, Pauline Zalevsky Friday February 28: Lewis Amper, Sarah Louise Bernstein, Esther Eisenstadt, Maurice Finkelpearl, Dorothy Frankel, Lena Friedman, Hyman Gerson, Alice Goodstein, Elizabeth Green, Ilse Halle, Ephraim Hurwitz, Gizella Kovacs, Saul Kurtz, Rose S. Levine, Orin J. Levy, Tillie Lipson, Max A. Loevner, Jane Margowsky, Lucille R. Mermelstein, Sam Osgood, Rev. Samuel Rattner, Pearl R. Rosenberg, Ida R. Roth, Edward Schlessinger Saturday February 29: Joel Baum, Helen Buck, David Canter, Leonard Chotiner, Yetta Cohen, Raymond Friedman, Samuel Gescheidt, Joseph Goldstein, Saul I. Heller, Emanuel Horewitz, Gus Kline, Anna Kurtz, Jeannette G. Kurtz, Lynette A. London, Rose Mendlow, Charles Mervis, Solomon J. Metlin, Yitzchak Aaron Nadler, Milton D. Patz, David C. Pollock, Lena Robin, Pincus P. Rosenthal, Edward Schugar, Martha Shapira, Jack Steinfeld, Anna Tarshis, Donna Mae Zimring

24 FEBRUARY 21, 2020

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Obituaries late Ray Melani. Stepbrother of Ramie Melani, Ronny Melani, Renee Dunbar and Dee-Dee DeSalvo. Also sur vived by nieces and nephews. Services were held at Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. Interment Beth Shalom Cemetery. Contributions may be made to Adat Shalom Congregation, 368 Guys Run Road, Cheswick, PA 15024. schugar.com

APT: Joan Frank Apt, co-founder of the Pittsburgh Public Theater and leader of Pittsburgh cultural organizations for over 60 years, died suddenly on Feb. 15, 2020, at her home in Pittsburgh. She was 93, born on the Fourth of July, 1926, in Wilkinsburg, and lived in Pittsburgh most of her life. She was the granddaughter of Pittsburgh industrialist and civic leader Isaac W. Frank, and the daughter of Cecelia Kaplan Frank and Robert Jay Frank, an engineer and the vice president for sales of Copperweld Steel Company. She grew up initially on Inverness Avenue. When she was 13 her family moved into a home on Woodland Road they commissioned from famed architects Walter Gropius and Marcel Breuer. Living in this modernist masterpiece inspired her lifelong interest in the arts. After graduating from the Winchester Thurston school in 1944 she attended Wheaton College, where she majored in art history. She married Jerome Apt Jr. on Aug. 10, 1947, at a ceremony at her parents’ home. The couple settled in Springfield, Massachusetts, where her husband was an engineer for Monsanto Chemical Company. In 1949 they moved to Pittsburgh. They purchased land in the East End and engaged architect James Speyer, a student of Mies van der Rohe, to design a striking steel and glass home in which she loved to entertain, most recently on her 90th birthday. She began her service to Pittsburgh’s cultural institutions as a founding member of the board of the Civic Light Opera, where she later served as treasurer. She helped found the American Wind Symphony and the Three Rivers Shakespeare Festival. She served the Pittsburgh Symphony Association at various times as treasurer, vice president of Season Subscriptions, VP of planning, and VP of development as well as on the executive committee and nominating committee. She was a board member for the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, and on many of the board’s committees. In 1971-’72 she was responsible for conceiving, planning and implementing the subscription sales campaign for the symphony’s move into the newly renovated Heinz Hall. The campaign resulted in a 20% increase in subscription sales and a completely sold-out series that enabled an expanded concert series and other programs and healthy acceptance of Heinz Hall by the public and all constituent cultural groups as well as a general rebirth of the adjacent downtown area. She and Margaret Rieck founded the Pittsburgh Public Theater in 1974, initially raising $370,000 ($1.9 million in today’s PITTSBURGHJEWISHCHRONICLE.ORG

dollars) from 37 corporations and foundations, 934 individuals, and the Pennsylvania Arts Council. She was the PPT’s first treasurer. The first Public Theater production was mounted in September 1975, with Ben Shaktman as director in the Allegheny Theater on the North Side. Three plays were produced in the first season, with stars Leonard Nimoy, Tom Atkins and Carol Teitel. The season expanded to five plays two years later, and later to the current seven plays. She was active on the PPT board throughout the remainder of her life, rarely missing a meeting. She served as citywide chair of the United Way’s Community Fund, city-county chair of the American Cancer Society, chair of WQED’s Ford Foundation challenge campaign, and was one of the founders of the Woman’s Division of the United Jewish Federation of Pittsburgh. Among her many awards she was named a Distinguished Daughter of Pennsylvania, the Governor’s Award for “the highest level of individual distinction with unwavering commitment to family, community and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania”. In 1999 Pittsburgh Magazine named her one of the “Pittsburghers of the Century.” Carlow College presented her with their “Woman of Spirit” award in 2002. She was the recipient of the Vectors/Pittsburgh Woman of the Year award in arts and music, the CNG Volunteer of the Year award, and the YMCA Leadership Award in Arts and Letters. Mrs. Apt is survived by her brother, Alan I.W. Frank of Pittsburgh, her son Jay Apt (Carolyn Hess Abraham) of Pittsburgh, her beloved grandchildren David Nathenson (Randi), Michael Nathenson (Gabriela Steier), Robert Nathenson (Alison Zisser-Nathenson), Steven Nathenson, Sarah Apt and Ru Emmons, and five great-grandchildren. Mrs. Apt was predeceased by her husband Jerome Apt Jr. in 2010, their daughter Judy Nathenson in 2000 and by her sister Barbara Frank Dane in 2004. Visitation was Tuesday, Feb. 18, at Rodef Shalom Congregation in Oakland, followed by services. Burial in Homewood Cemetery was private. Rose Funeral Home on Frankstown Road in Penn Hills is handling arrangements. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Pittsburgh Public Theater, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, or a charity of choice. BAYER: James “Jamie” Bayer, on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2020. Beloved husband of Gail (Farkas) Bayer. Beloved father of Jared and Alexis Bayer. Son of Eileen and the

GREENSTONE: Theodore Charles Greenstone (Feb. 27, 1941-Feb. 11, 2020). An avid musician, kite maker, bread baker, and tinkerer, Ted passed away Tuesday from complications of cancer. A native of New York City, he relocated to Pittsburgh for most of the last 35 years. He is survived by his daughter, Anna, his son, Ben (Jackie) and grandchildren; Matilda, Caleb, and Toby. He was preceded in death by his wife, Ilene Solomon Greenstone. He will be remembered for his puns and his hugs, but mostly his songs. Service were held at Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. Interment at Shaare Torah Cemetery. “Kind friends all gather round, there’s something I would say. What brings us together here, has blessed us all today. Love has made a circle that holds us all inside. Where strangers are like family, loneliness can’t hide.” A donation in his memory can be sent to the American Cancer Society or WQED. schugar.com L A N D A U : Dr. Philip “Phil” Meyers Landau, 69 years old, of Pittsburgh, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020, after a long and courageous battle with advanced heart failure. Surrounded by a family that adored him, he lived a life of unconditional love and kindness and will be forever missed by his devoted wife of almost 44 years, Myra; his three daughters, Lauren (David) Goldberg, Meredith (Rishi) Maheshwary and Erica (Brian) Kelly; his grandchildren, Paige, Liza, Will, Emily, Jacob and Brooke. He was preceded in death by his beloved parents, Ruth and Herbert Landau. Born on Nov. 21, 1950, Phil grew up in Squirrel Hill and graduated from Taylor Allderdice High School. He was a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of The Pennsylvania State University and The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Board certified in internal medicine, with a geriatrics focus, Phil’s medical career spanned 37 years. He was a devoted physician who practiced at St. Margaret’s Hospital, HealthSouth Harmarville Rehabilitation Center, and Allegheny Health Network. He served as medical director at Longwood at Oakmont from 2003-2017. During the course of his career, Phil’s knowledge, professionalism, compassion, and dedication was always apparent in the level of love, attention, and care he gave to his cherished patients. At the heart of Phil’s life was his family, who will forever call him their best friend and hero. The embodiment of love, devotion,

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selflessness and integrity, Phil was the ultimate husband, father, father-in-law and pop-pop whose greatest joy came from spending time with those he loved. As his family grieves this loss, they hold close Phil’s legacy of genuine and unparalleled kindness. Phil Landau made the world brighter. The Landau family would like to thank all of those who have given them strength, especially Dr. Craig Alpert and the heart failure team and staff at Allegheny General Hospital. Services were held at Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. Interment private. Contributions may be made to the American Heart Association, 444 Liberty Ave., Suite 1300, Pittsburgh PA 15222 or the Friendship Circle of Pittsburgh, 1922 Murray Ave., Pittsburgh PA 15217. schugar.com ROSNER: Eugene Rosner, age 93, of Greenfield, passed away in his home Monday, Feb. 10, 2020. Beloved husband of 70 years to Irene, father of Candi (Stuart) Shapiro of Oil City; grandfather of Justin and Robert of Pittsburgh and Brandon of Washington, D.C.; uncle of Steven, Gabriel and Richard Beckmann of Arizona. His family would like to thank Theresa Germany for the care and compassion she provided as his caregiver. Eugene always told acquaintances that he graduated from the School of Hard Knocks, a polite way of saying he was a Holocaust survivor. Born in Bixad, Romania, in 1926, he was liberated from Auschwitz in 1945, emigrated to the United States in 1946, married fellow survivor Irene in 1950, moved into his Greenfield home in 1952, and lived there for the rest of his life. He established and ran Gene’s Food Market in South Oakland at Kennett Square and Ophelia Street from 1949-1975. Graveside services were held at Beth Shalom Cemetery. Arrangements entrusted to the Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc., family owned and operated. schugar.com WAGNER: Arnold N. Wagner, on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2020; beloved husband of the late Jacklyn “Jackie” Wagner; loving father of Amy (Steven) Perilstein, James (Rochelle) Wagner and the late Harry N. Wagner. Beloved brother of Sandra “Sissie” (late Gerald) Margolis. Adoring Zadie of Joshua (Nicole) Perilstein, Evan (Amanda Posteraro) Perilstein, Samantha (Anthony) Iellimo, Michael (Kyle Oldfield) Wagner and David (Rebecca) Wagner. Proud great-grandfather of Haylee and Ethan Perilstein. Arnie was a dedicated Zionist, community leader and a partner at Wagner Agency, Inc. – Insurance, for over 30 years. He was a past president of B’nai Israel Congregation and ZOA. He was a community campaign chair for Israel Bonds, and an active leader with JNF, B’nai Zion, and the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh. Arnie participated as a delegate at several World Zionist Congresses. He was a recipient of many awards for his lifetime of commitment to Jewish community and world Jewry. Arnie enjoyed playing golf, poker (which he was quite good at), traveling, holidays with his family, skiing and time spent with his family at Seven Springs. Arnie was an avid storyteller, loved by all who knew him. Services were held at Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. Interment B’nai Israel Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh or to a charity of the donor’s choice. schugar.com PJC FEBRUARY 21, 2020 25

Community Learning with Spikey

Keeping cool

p By exploring the basic living needs of living creatures, Nevo Shelef and Tomer Pishoto have learned more about Spikey, the classroom’s pet bearded dragon. Photo courtesy of Community Day School

p Federation’s Young Adult Explorin’ Pittsburgh traveled to Schenley Park for ice skating on Feb. 9. Photo courtesy of Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh

Young thespians We’re nuts about trees Students gathered at Hillel JUC to celebrate Tu B’Shevat, the New Year for Trees, by planting and decorating succulents and enjoying nuts and fruits.

p Elana Weisfield, Ariel Rieger and Ilyssa Bails are playing the Von Trapp sisters in Pittsburgh Musical Theater’s ‘The Sound of Music.’ The show runs March 5-15 at the Byham Theater. Photo courtesy of Pittsburgh Musical Theater p Noah Rubin, Dionna Dash

Partying with the plants

p Melanie Silver, Arianna Heilbrunn

26 FEBRUARY 21, 2020

Photos courtesy of Hillel JUC

p Women from Chabad Young Professionals celebrate Tu B’Shevat with salads and succulent making. Photo by Henoch Rosenfeld

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Community Rainy day activities

Pop quiz t Jewish Federation’s Young Adult Bar Club played trivia at Bigham Tavern on Jan. 30.

Photo courtesy of Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh

Community Day School students celebrated Tu B’Shevat with outdoor activities in the rain, including planting, making fruit salad (and exploring the ecological impact of the produce we eat) and playing air quality awareness Jeopardy.

Let’s get physical

p Ava Velazquez, Alisssa Syvak

p Federation’s Young Adult Fitness Club traveled to Orange Theory on Feb. 9. Photo courtesy of Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh

Man’s best friend

p Lior Amram, Omri Barak

Photos courtesy of Community Day School

Domo arigato Lego Hillel Academy of Pittsburgh students in grades 1 and 2 are learning to build and code their own robots using Lego WeDo. The robots come complete with motors to make them move.

p AHAVA’s house pug Reggie and his best friend Alan get some quality time together. Photo courtesy of Jewish Association on Aging

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p Noa Raphael and Isaiah Schachter build a robot with a working fan. Photo by Becca Huff

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FEBRUARY 21, 2020 27

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Available at 28 FEBRUARY 21, 2020

and PITTSBURGH JEWISH CHRONICLE

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