Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle 6-23-23

GUILTY

Pittsburgh synagogue shooter guilty on all 63 counts

By Chronicle Sta and Union Progress Sta

More than 4½ years after the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre that left 11 worshippers at the Tree of Life building dead, a jury found the shooter guilty of all 63 counts filed against him.

With the conclusion of the guilt phase of the trial, the jury will now consider whether the shooter is eligible for the death penalty.

At approximately noon last Friday, U.S. District Court Judge Robert Colville read the 63 separate federal counts against the defendant and the jury’s verdict. The shooter sat quietly, facing forward and showing no emotion as he was found guilty on all charges, including 11 counts of obstruction of the free exercise of religious beliefs resulting in death, which carries the death penalty as a possible sentence.

The defense team asked the jurors to be polled when the judge completed reading the results, and all stated that they agreed with the verdicts as they were read.

After a trial that lasted 13 days and that often featured heart-rending testimony, audio recordings and photos, the jury deliberated for about five hours before returning its unanimous guilty verdict.

Only one clarifying question was asked by the jury during deliberations, regarding

charges 40-47 and the intent to kill the eight survivors who were in the building at the time of the attack but not physically injured: Carol Black, Joseph Charny, Martin Gaynor, Audrey Glickman, Rabbi Jeffrey Myers, Rabbi Jonathan Perlman, Stephen Weiss and Barry Werber. The jury inquired if the shooter had to have known or seen each person who was in the building to satisfy the requirement that he had the intent to kill them.

Colville debated the matter with the defense team, asking: If a person planted a bomb in a random car, would that show intent to kill? The defense argued it would not show intent to kill a specific person.

After deliberation, Colville responded that he could not answer the question for the jury, and instead, referred them to page 55 of his original instructions.

The shooter’s legal team offered little in way of a defense during the trial, focusing its opening statement and closing argument on trying to distance the shooter from the obstruction of religion charges — the charges which carry the possibility of the death penalty. Despite not convincing the jury of that argument during the guilt phase of the trial, the defense team almost certainly will

to

a record’: Community reacts to synagogue shooter’s guilty verdict

By Andrew Goldstein and Harrison Hamm | Contributing Writers

he highly anticipated but long-awaited guilty verdict last Friday of the gunman in the 2018 mass shooting at a Squirrel Hill synagogue — the deadliest antisemitic attack in American history — drew swift reaction from the Jewish community and civic leaders in Pittsburgh and around the world.

At a news conference held a block away from Pittsburgh’s federal courthouse and in statements from around the world, community leaders praised the strength and courage of the survivors who testified, and encouraged community members to take care of themselves as old wounds are reopened.

“We’re happy this first phase is beyond us,” Jeff Finkelstein, the CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, told reporters at the Pennsylvanian apartments portico in Downtown. “While we’re pleased with the verdict, we know there is still more to come.”

The federal jury found the defendant guilty on

‘There has

be

p Alan Hausman, president of the Tree of Life Congregation, and Barbara Caplan, co-president of New Light Congregation, hug after a news conference after the jury found the Pittsburgh synagogue shooter guilty of federal hate crimes on Friday, June 16.

Photo by Alexandra Wimley/Pittsburgh Union Progress

Headlines

Volunteers sew clouds to support witnesses and families during synagogue massacre trial

— LOCAL

By Abigail Hakas | Sta Writer

—

On June 14, a lively group of volunteers of all ages at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh in Squirrel Hill sewed blue and white clouds as a part of the 10.27 Healing Partnership’s latest initiative: crafting sensory objects for those testifying in the synagogue massacre trial.

Julie Arnheim suggested the crafting project after being inspired by her aunt Nancy Rosenthal’s work in the Women of Rodef Shalom’s sewing group.

The design was chosen for its easy-to-replicate shape, making it accessible to those with no experience cutting fabric, and the blue color represents solidarity with the community. The first batch of clouds was delivered on June 16 to the courthouse where survivors, families and loved ones of the victims could use them.

The clouds, Arnheim said, illustrate the community’s love.

“I hope that they literally can feel the love knowing that these were handmade for them,” she said.

Dormont resident Jillian Traynor felt compelled to help when she heard about the program.

“When this opportunity came to help, I thought it was only right that I chip in where I can,” she said. “If they can provide just a little bit of comfort or grounding to people who had their world turned upside down, then that’s all we can hope for.”

Eli Kurs-Lasky, a Temple Sinai congregant, said his inexperience in sewing did not stop him from supporting those testifying.

“The idea of giving these survivors and families and friends, loved ones, something to

hold just felt very necessary,” Kurs-Lasky said.

“I just felt kind of called to do it even though I don’t know what I’m doing in terms of sewing. I want them to know that Pittsburgh is behind them, the Jewish community is behind them.”

Amy Kennedy, one of the few volunteers with stitching experience, believes handmade gifts can offer a message of support.

“I do a lot of hand-stitching, so I enjoy making this,” Kennedy said. “And with all the stitching I do, I feel like every stitch is a prayer, so to speak. I think it does carry a lot of good feeling or warm wishes to whoever you give your stitching to.”

Each volunteer had a connection to the shooting that led to them stitching in the same room. Traynor quit her job as a news producer in Columbus, Ohio, after Oct. 27, 2018. Kennedy lived on Shady Avenue and worked as a pharmacist in the same building as Dr. Jerry Rabinowitz, who was killed in the massacre. Kurs-Lasky was a member of Tree of

Life for 16 years.

“I think that, for years now, I’ve been trying to find a way to not only communicate with others about it but also just kind of contribute something,” Kurs-Lasky said. “But I didn’t know how. I’m not a very loud person or vocal … I just thought this seems like something that I can do. It’s a small way to give back.”

The 10.27 Healing Partnership’s outreach coordinator, Emery Malachowski, said all emotions — from joy to grief — are welcome at the crafting events and hopes that the sewing is as therapeutic for the volunteers as it is for those receiving the clouds.

“It’s also a huge reminder that the community is behind the people at court, that people are being supported, that people have a large community of love, and that love has existed before Oct. 27 and will continue to exist in the future,” Malachowski said.

The 10.27 Healing Partnership is a temporary 10-year organization whose aim is to

give community members the tools and techniques to continue to ease trauma after it closes in 2028. During the trial, it is offering support to the victims, their families and witnesses. It is also offering walk-in therapy sessions to all community members and has a calendar of other healing programs, like yoga and drum circles.

Another crafting event will be held on June 21 from 5-6 p.m. in the Squirrel Hill JCC. The Partnership provides materials and instructions, and all skill levels are welcome. PJC

Abigail Hakas can be reached at ahakas@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

This story is part of ongoing coverage of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting trial by the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle and the Pittsburgh Union Progress in a collaboration supported by funding from the Pittsburgh Media Partnership.

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p Community members gather at the 10.27 Healing Partnership to make plush clouds for the victims and families of victims during the synagogue massacre trial. Photo by Abigail Hakas

p Plush clouds made during the crafting project Photo by Abigail Hakas

The Exit Interview: Jennifer Bails

By Adam Reinherz | Sta Writer

Since 2014, Jennifer Bails has been a sounding board, strategic thinker and compelling voice at Community Day School. After a decade of helping the institution navigate communal and national challenges, Bails is leaving her role as director of marketing and communications.

Before exiting the senior leadership position on June 30, Bails spoke with the Chronicle about her time at CDS, the line between parent and professional and why a substantive Jewish education is important.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Can you tell me a little about your responsibilities at CDS?

Sure. I’m responsible for leading, planning and directing all strategies for marketing communications with the goals of raising the school’s visibility, advancing the brand of CDS, supporting fundraising, admissions and messaging to both internal and external stakeholders.

Tell me what brought you to CDS.

My older daughter started here in kindergarten and my younger daughter was in the very first pre-K early childhood class at CDS, so I was an invested parent at the school. I had been doing freelance writing and editing for a number of years for universities, hospitals and foundations, and, when this position opened, I saw the need within the school. Through conversations with Avi Munro (CDS’ head of school) I just felt like it would be a really good fit and partnership, and that I could make a difference in a place that was important and meaningful for my children and my family.

What’s it like working in a way that not only immediately impacts your family but so many others as well?

I think for the most part I’ve done a good job establishing healthy boundaries for my parent and professional role. It can be complicated, as a lot of Jewish professionals know, to work in the community and be part of the community, to work at a Jewish institution and be part of that institution. That said, you have that extra investment — like this matters for your children, for people that you care about, for the community that you care about — and I think that makes the work even more meaningful.

Every generation faces its own challenges, but recent years have presented young people with numerous devastating events.

Whether it was the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, COVID-19 pandemic or a “national youth mental health crisis” as declared

by the U.S. Surgeon General, what’s it been like working through these experiences?

They’ve fundamentally shifted my job. Starting on Oct. 27, 2018, nothing has been the same since. We’ve gone from one crisis to another crisis. We’re sort of emerging from that and still feeling its after-effects in ways that I don’t think we’ll begin to know for a long time.

Can you identify some takeaways?

The year of the shooting was a dark and daunting place for the community as a whole and for the school. But I feel it was an affirmation about the important work our teachers are doing every day — and why it matters. I saw the strength of the community and the relationships that I’ve built, so I’m grateful for that. I think that heading into the pandemic my background was in science and public health, so that positioned me to be able to help communicate clearly and effectively through COVID. It definitely was all-consuming and all-encompassing, but I feel very proud of how the school was able to pivot, how our educators put kids first above their own fears and how we all sort of banded together to make it work.

Why do you think you’ve been able to succeed and what would it take for others to do the same?

I feel very grateful that I worked for a leader — Avi — that really understood the value of this role. I never had to advocate for why I exist, why it’s important. There has to be buy-in at that level, of understanding why this role is so important. And then I think it’s really finding that person who’s so dedicated to your mission and is on the

Munro recently announced that after two decades as head of school, she’s retiring next year. What can the community expect moving forward?

The institutional advancement team is going to be really strong, really focused in helping bring CDS into the next era. We’re coming at it from a position of strength. I’m excited to see what’s going to happen and to offer whatever support I can as an alumni parent and a past employee.

Whether it’s at CDS or in other settings, what advice do you have for those who also want to be change agents?

I think it takes a lot of careful listening. I think I spent my first year here just building relationships, asking “How can I help,” “What can I do” — just trying to be of service to people. After you build a level of trust, and you listen carefully, you learn that a decision ultimately has to be made for what’s best for the school. We need to speak with a unified voice, so while we can all disagree behind closed doors at a leadership level, when it comes to communicating at-large we all need to be on the same page. This is something that I never took lightly. I tried really hard to professionalize the way we communicate to both our internal audiences and the broader community.

As you mentioned, your role required developing meaningful relationships within school and externally. What does the community need to know about

The future of Jewish Pittsburgh, and the future of the Jewish community, is fundamentally tied to Jewish day schools. There is no other place where you can get 24/7/365 Jewish education for your children that is so integrated into the life of the family. Jewish day schools help children understand who they are before sending them off into the world empowered to view themselves, to live a Jewish life of their own choosing — of their own making. This education and experience gives children the knowledge that they need to begin to see that life for their own family and their own future. It’s fundamental for the community to invest in Jewish day schools. It really lays the groundwork for the future of our community. Your heart is in this work. Why leave and what comes next?

It is not a decision that I took lightly. It took a lot of personal work and reflection to build these relationships and to make this decision. I’m approaching what comes next with the same kind of intentionality. I don’t have a grand life plan yet. I’m trying to stay open to the universe. Thanks for all the work you’ve done for the community.

My pleasure. A lot of times with change comes growth. It’s an exciting chapter for CDS, and it’s important for the community to continue supporting the school and to continue investing in the excellence of its Jewish professionals. I’m really excited about what’s coming. PJC

Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

p Jennifer Bails, left, is shadowed by Community Day School student Lucy Brown.

Photo courtesy of Community Day School

Judge rejects defense request for hearing on victim impact statements in synagogue shooting trial

By Torsten Ove | Contributing Writer

The judge in the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre trial says he won’t hold a hearing on a defense request to limit victim impact statements during the penalty phase of the ongoing trial.

U.S. District Judge Robert Colville last week rejected the defense team’s motion for a hearing or to make the government provide written statements describing the testimony of witnesses when the trial reaches that stage.

Instead, he said, he’ll carefully evaluate the impact statements to make sure they comport with the law and the precedent set in other cases, such as that of Dylann Roof, a white racist convicted of murdering nine black worshippers at a South Carolina church in 2015.

Essentially, he said, he’ll allow some testimony from victims’ families and friends but not too much, and he’ll permit some testimony about the impact of the defendant’s attack on the religious community, as in the Roof case.

Defense lawyers had asked for the hearing and the limits because they are afraid that too much emotional testimony will unduly influence the jury. The defense team is trying to spare the defendant the death penalty while the government wants to execute him for the killing of 11 worshippers at the Tree of Life synagogue on Oct. 27, 2018.

Colville said that victim impact evidence in capital cases requires him to “engage in linedrawing to address both the government’s right to introduce such evidence and defendant’s rights under the Constitution and the FDPA (Federal Death Penalty Act).”

He said he’ll let witnesses describe the life “which the defendant chose to extinguish, should

a guilty verdict be returned on a capital offense, or demonstrating loss to those close to the victims and the targeted community at issue in this case which has resulted from the crimes in question.”

But he said the witnesses may not give their opinions about the crime, about the defendant or about the appropriate sentence.

Colville said he also agrees with other courts about how to handle photos or videos of victims, generally allowing a limited number of images but not, for example, long montages of someone’s entire life set to music.

He said he’ll allow a “reasonable” number of photos or short videos of victims at or near the age of their deaths as well as a “reasonable” amount of evidence such as family heirlooms or special artifacts. If the defense lawyers don’t like it, they can object at the time, he said.

The lawyers had also asked the judge to block testimony about when someone found out their relative was killed in the shooting or details

about their last contact with a victim, but the judge said he won’t do that.

Colville said there’s “no merit” to the defense contention that those kinds of details offer “no factual information” about the impact of the loss and only serve to stir emotions.

“Such information is clearly probative of the harm alleged in this case,” he said.

The defendant was found guilty on all 63 counts he faced last week, including the obstruction of the free exercise of religion resulting in death. The penalty phase of the trial begins Monday, June 26. PJC

Torsten Ove writes for the Pittsburgh Union Progress. He can be reached at jtorsteno@gmail. com. This story is part of ongoing coverage of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting trial by the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle and the Pittsburgh Union Progress in a collaboration supported by funding from the Pittsburgh Media Partnership.

Ahead of penalty phase in synagogue shooter trial, prosecutors want to limit defense efforts in arguing against the death penalty

By Torsten Ove | Contributing Writer

Prosecutors have moved to block the convicted synagogue shooter and his defense team from presenting certain evidence to the jury during the next phase of the trial, such as comparing the case to others or putting a witness on the stand to argue that the death penalty is not a deterrent to murder.

The defendant was convicted last week of using an AR-15 to slaughter 11 worshippers from three congregations at the Tree of Life synagogue building on Oct. 27, 2018, because of his hatred of Jews.

Among the 63 counts on which he was convicted, 33 carry the potential death penalty.

The penalty phase starts Monday. The government will present its evidence — called “aggravating factors” — for why prosecutors think the shooter should die in the federal execution chamber in Indiana. The defense will present its case for life in prison — “mitigating factors.”

Prosecutors are asking the judge, Robert Colville, to rein in the defense team. Not surprisingly, the defense has objected to nearly all of the government’s requests.

Under the Eighth Amendment, a jury in a capital case is required to consider all mitigating evidence and decide how much weight to give it. But prosecutors said that doesn’t mean the defense has “unfettered discretion” to present anything the lawyers consider mitigating.

“Rather,” they said, “the Supreme Court has clearly established that relevant mitigating evidence must be related to the defendant’s background, character, or record, or the circumstances of his offense.”

The government said it anticipates that defense lawyers will try to introduce evidence and argument that has no “probative” value and risks misleading the jury.

For example, they said the lawyers

may try to tell jurors that they aren’t required to impose death or that they can consider sparing the defendant out of a sense of “mercy.” The prosecutors say that shouldn’t be allowed because the law prevents the jury from disregarding its findings. If the jury decides that the aggravating factors outweigh the mitigating ones, they must choose death, prosecutors said, and aren’t allowed to consider “some arbitrary sentencing discretion.”

In its own motion filed Monday, the defense balked at that notion, saying the government’s approach presumes a “mechanical weighing process rather than an individualized, personal moral judgment.”

The lawyers said that while Colville won’t instruct the jury on mercy, “it should not prohibit the defense from asking the jury to consider mercy.”

The government also said it believes the defense will call Kevin McNally, a Kentucky death penalty lawyer, who is expected to talk about the “arbitrary application” of the federal death penalty. Prosecutors said his opinions have nothing to do with the shooter’s background, character or the murders he committed.

The defendant, they said, has now been convicted of killing 11 people and trying to kill others.

“Any argument that the decision to seek the

death penalty was arbitrary was grossly undercut by the jury verdict and should not be allowed,” the government said.

But the defense team said that the law provides for a broad interpretation of mitigating factors and that McNally should be allowed to present evidence that a death sentence would be “disproportionate to sentences received in equally or more aggravated cases.”

The defense also wants to call Michael Radelet, a Colorado anti-death penalty professor who will presumably say the death penalty doesn’t deter anyone from killing. Prosecutors want Colville to block that testimony, too, because they say it has nothing to do with the defendant or his crimes.

Defense lawyers say, however, that Radelet should be allowed to present his evidence because the history of the Federal Death Penalty Act “makes clear that the deterrent effect of the death penalty is an appropriate consideration for the jury.”

The prosecution team similarly says the defense should not be allowed to bring up the fact that the defendant offered to plead guilty in exchange for his life. The government says those plea offers were “transparent attempts to avoid a capital trial, and they provide little, if any, insight into a possible claim of remorse or regret the defendant might assert.”

But the defense lawyers said the plea offer is relevant to the defendant’s state of mind, “which in turn is relevant to acceptance of responsibility.” They said the jury can decide how much weight to give it.

Defense lawyers are also expected to call three witnesses to talk about what life will be like for him in prison, but prosecutors said those witnesses’ opinions are also irrelevant.

In addition, the defense may try to introduce evidence about how executing the defendant will affect his family. That too is irrelevant, prosecutors said, and an “impermissible plea for sympathy.”

The defense team said the jury should hear the impact evidence because they say it is admissible under the Eighth Amendment and the Federal Death Penalty Act.

Finally, the prosecution said Colville should prevent the defendant from offering an unsworn statement to the jury and preclude the defense from telling the jurors that he will never be released from prison if they sentence him to life.

The prosecutors said, essentially, that no one can say for sure if that’s true.

As to the defendant’s right to present a statement, his lawyers say he absolutely has that right under the Fifth Amendment due process guarantees.

On the issue of release from prison, the defense said Colville already told potential jurors during the selection process that there is no parole in the federal system, so he will never be released.

The lawyers said they should be allowed to tell the jury the same thing. PJC

Torsten Ove writes for the Pittsburgh Union Progress, where this first appeared. He can be reached at jtorsteno@gmail.com. This story is part of ongoing coverage of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting trial by the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle and the Pittsburgh Union Progress in a collaboration supported by funding from the Pittsburgh Media Partnership.

p The Joseph F. Weis, Jr. U.S. Courthouse

Photo by Adam Reinherz

Vandals deface public property with messages of hate

that exists,” she said, but noted there are no known threats associated with the stickers.

For at least the third consecutive week, criminals have vandalized public property in the city’s eastern neighborhoods. This time, white supremacist stickers were found in Schenley Park and Squirrel Hill affixed to public bulletin boards, city signage and trash cans.

Law enforcement is aware of the vandalism, which is a criminal violation of both state and city ordinances.

In Pittsburgh, vandalism is covered under the city’s public mischief statutes. It is a summary offense and carries a penalty of up to 90 days in jail if the damage is less than $150.

Shawn Brokos, director of security for the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, said the vandalism is meant to shock and generate attention.

“The stickers are a reminder of the hate

The vandalism was reported by many members of Pittsburgh’s Jewish community, as well as non-Jewish community members.

The city is in the process of removing the stickers.

Brokos said she expects the vandalism, which increased in frequency with the start of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooter trial, to continue throughout the trial and urged anyone who sees any antisemitic or suspicious activity, flyers or stickers to report it to local law enforcement and Federation online at https://jewishpgh.org/ explore/community-security. PJC

— David Rullo

This story is part of ongoing coverage of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting trial by the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle and the Pittsburgh Union Progress in a collaboration supported by funding from the Pittsburgh Media Partnership.

Pittsburgh’s newest mohel helps families fulfill the covenant of Abraham

By David Rullo | Sta Writer

Like a desert sprouting life after the rainy season, Pittsburgh, it appears, has begun an age of plenty when it comes to mohels.

The newest mohel to join the community is Rabbi Mordechai Jaffa, a Steel City transplant born in Lakewood, New Jersey, who studied in South Fallsburg, New York, before moving to Israel where he attended Mir Yeshiva. He made his way back to Lakewood before relocating to Pittsburgh in 2021 to study at the Pittsburgh Kollel.

While his might be a new name to the community, Jaffa has a strong local connection: His wife, Chedva, is the daughter of Young Israel of Pittsburgh Rabbi Shimon Silver.

“I grew up expecting to be a rabbi,” Jaffa said. “I was interested in learning all the different parts of being a rabbi.”

Jaffa isn’t necessarily talking about the typical life cycle events that other rabbis might cite when describing the reasons they became rabbis.

“I learned how to slaughter chickens,” he said, adding that he also acquired less esoteric skills, like writing scroll.

There is one aspect of Judaica in which he is now more than knowledgeable — that of brit milah, or circumcision.

When Jaffa came to Pittsburgh, he said, he was recruited to learn the skill by Rabbi Elisar Admon, a mohel who noted then that the city needed more people trained in the ritual.

Jaffa was first uninterested after learning that there was nearly a two-year wait to begin training at the London School of Circumcision. He eventually decided the delay made sense for him and, after spending a year-and-a-half on the waitlist, traveled across the pond for his training.

“It was a beautiful experience,” he said. “I didn’t have much time for sightseeing but instead spent a lot of time going from house to house with a mohel learning the trade.”

Jaffa isn’t a doctor, but said he learned everything he needed to perform safe circumcisions.

“Part of the training,” he said, “is actually performing the job. You’re tested on the

medical procedure before you receive an official certificate.”

The rabbi said that while waiting to get into the London school, he shadowed Admon. Jaffa assisted the mohel during that time, so he had already learned a lot before boarding a plane to England.

Jaffa wanted to ensure that he was performing the safest and best circumcisions possible, so he had a medical doctor present when he performed the ceremony several times, earning the doctor’s endorsement.

So important is safety that Jaffa named his website safecircumcisions.com. Its tagline is “Where safety and care come together.”

“My top concern is making parents feel comfortable about circumcising their son,” he said. “I know, as a parent, the big concerns are ‘Is it harmful?’ and ‘Are there any aftereffects?’ It’s not painful. We use anesthetics, and it’s extremely safe.”

Jaffa said the procedure is also extremely quick, pointing out that speed is one of the benefits of employing a mohel instead of having a circumcision performed at a hospital.

Jaffa recognizes the significance of serving families as they perform the first life cycle ritual of their new sons’ lives.

“I feel very honored and privileged to be a part of bringing boys into the covenant of Judaism, of bringing them into the covenant of Abraham,” he said. “It’s something that makes me feel proud and humbled.” PJC

David Rullo can be reached at drullo@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

p Rabbi Mordechai Jaffa is Pittsburgh’s newest mohel.

Photo provided by Mordechai Ja a

Submit calendar items on the Chronicle’s website, pittsburghjewishchronicle.org. Submissions also will 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.

SUNDAY, JUNE 25

Shaare Torah Congregation and archivist Eric Lidji host a special Hill District Jewish historytour by trolley featuring sites and stories significant to the shul’s history. 10:30 a.m. $36 per person. RSVP by June 16. shaaretorah.net/event/jewishhistory-tour.html.

Everyone is welcome to join Rodef Shalom Congregation for a light breakfast and an important discussion on the threat of antisemitism, with Pennsylvania Rep. Dan Frankel. Preregistration for this free event is required at rodefshalom.org. 11 a.m. Free. 4905 Fifth Ave. rodefshalom.org.

Women are invited to join Chabad of Squirrel Hill on Zoom for a Rosh Chodesh gathering. Learn insights about the month of Tammuz during the presentation. 7:30 p.m. chabadpgh.com.

Fill your cup with Chabad of Squirrel Hill by exploring the teachings of Tanya during Full Circle, a monthly women’s growth group. 7 p.m. 1700 Beechwood Blvd. chabadpgh.com.

SUNDAYS, JUNE 25 – DEC. 3

Join Chabad of Squirrel Hill for its Men’s Tefillin Club. Enjoy bagels, lox and tefillin on the first Sunday of the month. 8:30 a.m. chabadpgh.com.

SUNDAYS, JUNE 25 – DEC. 17

Join a lay-led online Parshah study group to discuss the week’s Torah portion. No Hebrew knowledge needed. The goal is to build community while deepening understanding of the text. 8:30 p.m. For more information, visit bethshalompgh.org.

MONDAYS AND WEDNESDAYS, JUNE 26 – JULY 12

The Jewish people has given the world a range of extraordinary gifts. Without Jews, these amazing contributions might not exist at all. In the 10-part series, The Gift of the Jews, Rabbi Danny Schi will detail the most significant 10 gifts that Jews have given to civilization and will explain their importance to humanity as a whole. Mondays and Wednesdays, 9:30 a.m. $140. jewishpgh.org/event/the-gifts-of-thejews/2023-06-12.

MONDAYS, JUNE 26 – DEC. 18

Join Congregation Beth Shalom for a weekly Talmud study. 9:15 a.m. For more information, visit bethshalompgh.org.

TUESDAYS, JUNE 26 – DEC. 19

Join Temple Sinai for a weekly Talmud class with Rabbi Daniel Fellman. Noon. On site and online. For more information and for the Zoom link, contact Temple Sinai at 412-421-9715.

Join Women of Temple Sinai for Yoga at Temple Sinai, a relaxing class taught by certified yoga teacher Bre Kernick. All levels welcome. No experience required. Ages 16 and older. 7 p.m. $15 a session. templesinaipgh.org/programs-events.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 28

Young children and their grown-ups are invited to join Rodef Shalom librarian Sam Siskind for a story in the Biblical Botanical Garden followed by a crafty activity. 12:45 p.m. Free. rodefshalom.org/ garden.

WEDNESDAYS, JUNE 28 –JULY 12

Join New Light Congregation for Pittsburgh is our Home: Honoring Authors Among Us, three lectures featuring local Jewish authors. Stay afterward to chat with the authors and enjoy light refreshments. On June 28 meet Rabbi Mark Goodman to discuss “Hassidut for the People.” On July 5 meet with Rachel Kranson to discuss “Is this the Golden Medina we expected? Upward Mobility Among Jews after WWII.” On July 12 meet with Lee

Gutkind to discuss “The Godfather Speaks! How I breathed new life into Non-Fiction!” 6:30 p.m. In person and on Zoom.

5915 Beacon St. Registration is required at janet@newlightcongregation.org. newlightcongregation.org/events.

WEDNESDAYS, JUNE 28 –DEC. 20

Join AgeWell for an intergenerational family dynamics discussion group. Whether you have family harmony or strife, these discussions are going to be thought-provoking and helpful. Led by intergenerational specialist/presenter and educator Audree Schall. Third Wednesday of each month. Free. 12:30 p.m. South Hills JCC.

WEDNESDAYS, JUNE 28 –DEC. 27

Bring the parashah alive and make it personally relevant and meaningful with Rabbi Mark Goodman in this weekly Parashah Discussion: Life & Text 12:15 p.m. For more information, visit bethshalompgh. org/life-text.

Temple Sinai’s Rabbi Daniel Fellman presents a weekly Parshat/Torah portion class on site and online. Call 412-421-9715 for more information and the Zoom link.

THURSDAY, JUNE 29

Should plagiarism be considered a form of theft?

In the internet era, should electronic plagiarism be regarded as a less serious or a more serious infraction?

plants and other natural phenomena mentioned in the Tanach, to using information about these plants to shed light on their use in prophetic metaphor. 2 p.m. Rodef Shalom Congregation, 4905 Fifth Ave.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 5

Join Rodef Shalom on the first Wednesday of the month for free, docent-led tours of its Biblical Botanical Garden. For groups of eight or more, please contact biblicalgarden@rodefshalom.org to schedule a tour. Noon. Free. rodefshalom.org/garden.

THURSDAY, JULY 13

Women are invited to join Chabad of Squirrel for Loaves of Love and bake Star of David challahs. 7 p.m. $12. 1700 Beechwood Blvd. chabadpgh.com

MONDAYS AND WEDNESDAYS, JULY 17 – AUG. 2

There has never been an age in Jewish history without internal Jewish controversies. In the six-part series Contemporary Jewish Controversies, Rabbi Danny Schi will lead robust discussions about significant Jewish controversies that echo across the contemporary Jewish landscape, including Zoom prayer, intermarried rabbis, the death penalty for acts of terror against Israelis and much more. $85. Mondays and Wednesdays. 9:30 a.m. jewishpgh.org/event/ contemporary-jewish-controversies/2023-07-17.

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 9

JCC participates in Summer Food Service Program

The Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh in Squirrel Hill is participating in the Summer Food Service Program, providing children with nutritious meals and snacks when school is not in session.

Kosher meals will be provided to all children, ages 18 and under, without charge.

The federally funded, state-administered program will run from June 19 – Aug. 18, Monday through Friday, excluding July 4.

Children are invited to “Come for Milk” at 10 a.m. and stay for arts and crafts before lunch, which begins at 11 a.m. A snack will be provided from 2 to 3 p.m.

Kosher food is under the supervision of the Vaad and will be available at the JCC in Squirrel Hill, 5738 Forbes Ave. PJC

In the CLE Plagiarism in the Internet Age, Rabbi Danny Schi will survey the plague of plagiarism and what Jewish law has to say about it. Open to all — you need not be a lawyer to attend. 8:30 a.m. jewishpgh.org/event/2022-2023-continuing-legaleducation-series-5.

Ethnobotanist Dr. Jon Greenberg will present how the study of how people use plants can help us better understand the Torah, from identifying the

Join the Chronicle Book Club!

The Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle invites you to join the Chronicle Book Club for its July 16 discussion of “Call It Sleep” by Henry Roth. From the Jewish Book Council: “When Hen ry Roth published his debut novel ‘Call It Sleep’ in 1934, it was greeted with considerable crit i cal acclaim though, in those troubled times, lackluster sales. Only with its paperback publi cation thir ty years lat er did this novel receive the recognition it deserves and still enjoys. Hav ing sold-to-date millions of copies worldwide, ‘Call It Sleep’ is the magnificent story of David Schearl, the ‘dangerously imaginative’ child coming of age in the slums of New York.

“First published in 1934, and immediately hailed as a master piece, this is a novel of Jewish life full of the pain and honesty of family relationships. It holds the distinction of being the first paper back ever to receive a frontpage review in The New York Times Book Review, and it became a nationwide bestseller.”

Your Hosts: Toby Tabachnick, editor of the Chronicle David Rullo, Chronicle staff writer

How and When:

We will meet on Zoom on Sunday, July 16, at noon.

What To Do

Buy: “Call it Sleep.” It is available from online retailers including Barnes & Noble and Amazon and through the Carnegie Library system.

Email: Contact us at drullo@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org, and write “Chronicle Book Club” in the subject line. We will send you a Zoom link for the discussion meeting.

Happy reading! PJC

Join members of the community for the annual Jewish Heritage Night as the Pittsburgh Pirates battle the Atlanta Braves. This year, an optional pre-game meal is available in the Picnic Park from 5:30-7 p.m. from Elegant Edge Catering. Each game ticket purchased will also include a limited edition Pittsburgh Pirates Hebrew T-shirt. 7:05 p.m. $16-44. PNC Park. jewishpgh.org/event/ jewish-heritage-night. PJC www.pittsburghjewishchronicle.org

Toby Tabachnick

Toby Tabachnick

p The Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh, Squirrel Hill

Photo by Adam Reinherz

Headlines

US House passes bill to establish special envoy for advancing Abraham Accords; Summer Lee votes no

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By Jacob Magid | The Times of Israel

Congresswoman Summer Lee, who represents Pennsylvania’s 12th District, which includes Squirrel Hill, was one of only 13 representatives to vote against a bill mandating the Biden administration to appoint a special envoy for the Abraham Accords.

Lee did not respond to a request for comment.

The U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed the legislation last week. The special envoy will be tasked with encouraging additional countries to follow the lead of the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco, which normalized relations with Israel in 2020.

The envoy will also be expected to strengthen those existing agreements between Israel and Muslim-majority countries while “coordinating efforts across the U.S. government and engaging diplomatically with foreign governments, nongovernmental organizations, and other stakeholders,” reads the bipartisan legislation introduced by Democratic Rep. Ritchie Torres and Republican Rep. Michael Lawler.

The State Department appointee would have the rank of ambassador, thereby requiring Senate confirmation — a stipulation likely to politicize the process in an already polarized Washington.

The bill passed 413 to 13, with 11 of the no votes being from progressive Democrats known for their Israel criticism who were joined by conservative Republican Reps. Thomas Massie and Rich McCormick. Among the no votes were so-called “Squad” members Rashida Tlaib, Cori Bush, Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

The bill still needs to make it through the Senate before becoming law. Leadership in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee has

announced that it will introduce its own bill aimed at boosting the Abraham Accords and a congressional aide told The Times of Israel that it will include a section comparable to the House version passed last week.

The aide, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the Senate bill would offer a more holistic approach to strengthening the Abraham Accords than the House bill, which is specifically focused on establishing a special envoy position. The Senate legislation will also encourage the expansion of the Negev Forum — a Biden administration initiative that seeks to establish regional projects in a variety of fields while also improving Palestinian livelihood.

The House bill was passed days after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken already announced that the Biden administration was planning to soon announce the appointment of a point person for the Abraham Accords.

The congressional aide insisted that the new legislation was still necessary since it would codify the position for future administrations.

But an administration official hinted to The Times of Israel that some in the administration feel that the congressional efforts are overkill and won’t actually contribute to the shared goal of advancing the Abraham Accords.

“We’ve made clear from the beginning that this is a priority for us… We recognize that it’s a very popular issue and that Congress wants to get its slice of the pie, but these various efforts are not what’s going to move the needle,” the administration official said.

“Nonetheless, we appreciate the initiative and look forward to working with Congress to advance this important issue,” they clarified.

On the other hand, proponents of the congressional initiatives to boost the Abraham Accords argue that

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p Negev Forum participants hold a meeting in Abu Dhabi on Jan. 10, 2022.

Photo courtesy of the UAE Foreign A airs Ministry, via The Times of Israel

Please see Abraham Accords, page 8

A superhero in a tutu: Winnie the therapy dog, and her Jewish owner

— LOCAL —

By Abigail Hakas | Sta Writer

It’s not every day that you see a dog wearing a little pink tutu in the Pittsburgh International Airport, but if you do, you’ll probably see Martha Luzer on the other end of the leash.

Luzer and her dog Winnie are regulars at the airport because Winnie has an important job: calming passengers by using her therapy dog training.

Luzer, a 70-year-old Bell Acres resident and Gemilas Chesed congregant, decided to raise therapy dogs as an extension of her work as a nurse.

“I wanted to get into something — and then really get involved once I retired — that combined being with people, helping people out and then my love for dogs,” she said.

A typical day on the job for Winnie at the airport starts with going through security.

“I put her in a sit-stay, I walk through security, and then I call her through — which immediately everyone in the security lines is in awe of the fact that she’s just walking through,” Luzer said. “She doesn’t have to do the hands-up through the security gate.”

After clearing security, the two log in at the United Service Organizations club before heading to the gates of any delayed flights. Occasionally, they’ll get called back in by the airport public address announcer.

“It’s hysterical. You’ll hear, ‘Will Miss Winnie please come to the USO club? Miss Winnie to the USO club,’ and then we’ll go back over,” Luzer said.

Winnie occasionally dons the tutu, a sort of superhero suit for a dog who often finds herself calming children who have never flown and sometimes comforting children flying with Make-A-Wish.

One of Luzer’s favorite stories to tell about Winnie is when she was able to calm down a sobbing boy who refused to get back on an airplane after it turned around on the runway. Unbeknownst to Luzer, her neighbor was sitting at the gate.

Abraham Accords:

Continued from page 7

consistent pressure from the Hill is what keeps the administration focused on these issues.

In his remarks announcing the administration’s decision to establish the new post, Blinken said “Israel’s further integration in the region contributes to a more stable, a more secure and more prosperous region. That’s why President Biden has made it a cornerstone of his Middle East policy.”

“We will soon create a new position to

“There was a boy, who I could tell was just sobbing into his mother, who was terrified,” Luzer recalled. “And I said to the mom, ‘Would he like to say hello to the therapy dog?’ So, when I went to leave, my neighbor recognized my voice and came over and says, ‘Marty, you would not believe how upset that young man was and how calm he is now.’”

And Winnie’s work doesn’t stop at

departure gates. Luzer also takes Winnie to the Beaver County Courthouse to provide comfort to witnesses preparing to testify — the majority of them are children.

Luzer has seen firsthand the impact Winnie has on children who are scared to testify. After working with a young girl for four months, Winnie was called into the courtroom for the first time when the girl refused to talk.

“The judge said, ‘Miss Marty, I understand

that Winnie’s a special dog.’ I still get choked up. And for the first time in almost an hour, the little girl put her hand down and said, ‘Winnie’s my special friend,’” Luzer said. “And every time she would stop talking, Winnie would use her head to grab her hand to bring her hand down to pet her. You don’t teach a dog that.”

Luzer knows that while an incident may just be a small moment in her and Winnie’s lives, it could be monumental in other people’s lives.

“It’ll be two years since that first event in that courtroom, and I get teared up,” Luzer said. “I get chills telling the story to other people. At the airport, I mean, I’ll never see most people again, but you know, for that brief moment in time I changed somebody’s life with something that I love doing.”

Winnie, a 9-year-old Labrador-whippet mix, came from a prison training program in Ohio where inmates were taught to train dogs. When Luzer put Winnie in a crate for the first night, Winnie immediately started crying. Luzer realized that since Winnie had spent every night in the cell with her trainer, she had never slept in the dark.

Eight years later, Winnie has yet to lose her youthful energy. You could mistake her for a puppy were it not for the dappling of white around her otherwise ebony muzzle.

“When she’s out in the woods, she’s a Lab-whippet. She’s everywhere. She’s looking for deer, she’s looking for rabbits,” Luzer said. “But she knows when this goes on, when the halter goes on, she’s working. So, her attitude? She has a lot of it.”

Luzer said her Jewish upbringing inspired her to live the life she does now with Winnie.

“I had a very extensive religious upbringing in McKeesport, in White Oak,” she said. “I went to Hebrew school from the time I was 4 years old until I was about 13. It just got ingrained with me that caring for others, that’s what we do. That’s who we are. That’s our religion. The tenant is caring and being open.” PJC

further our diplomacy and engagement with governments and private sector, nongovernmental organizations, all working toward a more peaceful and a more connected region,” he added.

The secretary of state did not elaborate further on the nature of the new position, but a U.S. official confirmed to The Times of Israel last month that former U.S. ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro’s name has been floated for the post.

Blinken traveled to Saudi Arabia the next day and raised the idea of Riyadh normalizing with Israel during his meeting with Saudi Crown Prince

Mohammed bin Salman.

The Biden administration has worked over the past year to further integrate Israel in the region, forming the Negev Forum and I2U2 to boost cooperation across the Middle East and beyond, coaxing Saudi Arabia and Oman to open their skies to Israeli airliners, and brokering a maritime deal between Israel and Lebanon.

But responsibility for that effort has been scattered across different offices, with the White House’s Brett McGurk, Biden’s energy envoy Amos Hoschstein, and Yael Lempert from the State Department among those playing integral roles.

Lempert is slated to serve as U.S. ambassador to Jordan and will have her plate full with other issues.

Notably, the decision to tap a point person for advancing the Abraham Accords comes following a decision by Biden not to appoint a special envoy for the IsraeliPalestinian peace process, as previous presidents have done.

The administration maintains that the conditions are not currently ripe for the launching of a high-stakes peace initiative. PJC

Toby Tabachnick contributed to this report.

Abigail Hakas can be reached at ahakas@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

p Winnie in her tutu

Photo by Martha Luzer

p Martha Luzer and Winnie

Photo by Abigail Hakas

Headlines

Australia moves toward banning Nazi symbols in wake of neo-Nazi incidents

In the wake of a series of neo-Nazi incidents, Australia’s government is moving toward passing legislation to ban the use of Nazi symbols on clothing, flags and websites and in other domains, JTA.org reported.

Trading in Nazi memorabilia will also be banned, but religious, academic and other exemptions will be allowed. Before the Third Reich, the swastika was known first and foremost as a religious symbol in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism.

“There is no place in Australia for symbols that glorify the horrors of the Holocaust,” Australia’s Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus said on June 15. “And we will no longer allow people to profit from the display and sale of items which celebrate the Nazis and their evil ideology.”

The Senate’s Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee recommended a ban last month in a move that was applauded by Jewish leaders. Dreyfus, who is Jewish, said that the law will penalize offenders with up to a year in prison.

Peter Wertheim, co-CEO of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, said, “There has been a proliferation of the public display of Nazi symbols in different parts of Australia” since the end of 2016.

Germany agrees to record $1.4 billion in annual Holocaust reparations as survivors age

Conditions didn’t seem favorable in early May as Stuart Eizenstat entered annual negotiations with the German government over reparations for the estimated 240,000 remaining Holocaust survivors worldwide, JTA.org reported.

Yet the compensation package that Eizenstat, the special negotiator for the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany obtained — more than $1.4 billion — was the largest monetary figure agreed to for a single year since German reparations began more than seven decades ago. The figure reflected a recognition that, even as the number of Holocaust survivors dwindles with each passing year, the needs of the remaining survivors are increasing as they age.

Some of the $1.4 billion that Germany agreed to spend will be paid directly to survivors; the bulk will fund social welfare services such as home care and food packages, administered through about 300 agencies across 83 countries. Germany also agreed to boost funding for Holocaust education programs.

Total direct compensation to survivors is expected to reach $535 million next year, mostly paid out in pensions to survivors.

Israel wins third place at U-20 World Cup

Israel won third place in the U-20 World Cup on June 11, capping a historic run in its first-ever appearance at the tournament by beating South Korea 3-1, JTA.org reported.

Local Jews and Israeli visitors made up a large

Today in Israeli History

— WORLD —

Items are provided by the Center for Israel Education (israeled.org), where you can find more details.

June 23, 1944 — Photographer Alex Levac is born

Photojournalist Alex Levac, a 2005 Israel Prize winner, is born in Tel Aviv. His photo of a Bus 300 hijacker in custody in 1984 disproves the official story of how the four terrorists were killed.

June 24, 2007

— Israel holds 1st pro baseball game

The Israel Baseball League launches with a 9-1 win by the Modi’in Miracle over the Petach Tikvah Pioneers in front of more than 3,000 fans. The six-team professional league folds after one season.

June 25, 2006 — Gilad Shalit is captured

Palestinian militants using a tunnel from Gaza disable an Israeli tank on patrol, kill two soldiers and capture a third, Gilad Shalit. Shalit isn’t released until Oct. 18, 2011, in exchange for 1,027 Palestinian prisoners.

“Jerusalem of Gold,” dies at 73 after a long battle with cancer. She wrote “Jerusalem of Gold” for a festival in 1967, and singer Shuli Natan made it famous.

June 27, 1945 — Shin Bet head

Ami Ayalon is born

Ami Ayalon is born in Tiberias. A Medal of Valor winner, he commands the Israeli navy from 1992 to 1996, then leads the Shin Bet security service until 2000. He later represents Labor in the Knesset.

June 28, 1967 — Jerusalem

o cially is reunited

Israel publishes the Jerusalem Declaration, announcing the reunification of the city under Israeli sovereignty after the Six-Day War. Prime Minister Levi Eshkol promises full access to holy sites.

June 29, 1946 — British round up resistance fighters

The British launch Operation Agatha, two weeks of raids against Jewish resistance fighters, on a day that comes to be known as Black Sabbath. Some 2,700 Jews are arrested. PJC

portion of the crowd of more than 15,000 at the stadium in La Plata, Argentina, about 40 miles outside of Buenos Aires. Israel’s success at the tournament, meant to showcase the next generation of global soccer stars, was a galvanizing event for South American Jews.

“We were so welcomed,” Ofir Haim, the Israeli team’s coach, said after the match. “How they sing the [Israeli] national anthem, ‘Hatikvah,’ is very moving for me and the players.”

The victory came at the end of a surprising string of wins for the Israeli team, which beat Uzbekistan and Japan before shocking Brazil, one of the world’s best teams, in the quarterfinals. Israel lost 1-0 in the semifinals earlier in the week to Uruguay, which won the tournament in a separate match on Sunday by beating Italy.

JFNA study: Middle-aged and older Jews seek communal engagement

Half of U.S. Jewish adults ages 55 to 74 are not fulfilled with their Jewish community, and less than half feel like they belong, according to a new study released by Jewish Federations of North America, JNS.org reported.

Of those not involved with their local Jewish community, nearly 75% want deeper engagement with other Jews that goes beyond synagogue and religious traditions. Also, 54% want to find ways to connect with others at a similar stage in life.

The survey uncovered the impact that such a deeper experience can have. Older Jews who have many Jewish friends and engagement in Jewish life have a greater likelihood of positive feelings as they enter the next stage of life.

“We in the Jewish community invest

significant attention on engaging younger adults, but this study has shown us that we may have been overlooking another important constituency,” said Sarah Eisenman, JFNA chief community and Jewish life officer.

“Midlife adults represent the largest demographic in the Jewish community, and this study shows that they are looking for contemporary and meaningful ways to connect Jewishly,” she said.

500 neo-Nazi cells uncovered in Brazil last year

Five hundred neo-Nazi cells were identified in Brazil last year, Latin America’s envoy for fighting antisemitism said on June 12, JNS.org reported.

The figure was cited in Tel Aviv at the annual Global Forum of the New York-based American Jewish Committee, which included a plenary with seven international antisemitism envoys and came weeks after the launch of the U.S. National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism.

“People in Latin America tend to think that this [antisemitism] happens in Europe,” said Fernando Lottenberg, the Organization of American States’ commissioner for monitoring and combating antisemitism. “It is not as strong as in the U.S., but it is gaining traction.”

The speakers noted that governments worldwide have joined the struggle against antisemitism that previously fell to Jewish community leaders alone, appointing scores of envoys to combat the scourge and adopting the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism. PJC

Compiled by Andy Gotlieb

p Naomi Shemer performs in Caesarea in 1991.

By Nathan Alpert, Israeli Government Press O ce

p Players participate in the Israel Baseball League All-Star Game in July 2007.

Headlines

Trial:

Continued from page 1

present what it believes to be other mitigating circumstances that would prevent the federal death penalty from being imposed.

Joyce Fienberg, Richard Gottfried, Rose Mallinger, Jerry Rabinowitz, Cecil Rosenthal, David Rosenthal, Bernice Simon, Sylvan Simon, Daniel Stein, Melvin Wax and Irving Younger were murdered by the defendant on Shabbat, Oct. 27, 2018, as they readied for worship services at Congregation Dor Hadash, New Light Congregation and Tree of Life*Or L’Simcha.

The next phase of the trial is scheduled to begin Monday, June 26. It is expected to last six weeks.

Here is a recap of the last days of the guilt phase of the trial. For more extensive and up-to-date coverage, go to pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

Day 10: Details of shooter’s social media posts

On Day 10 of the trial, the prosecution highlighted the shooter’s social media posts on the far-right social network Gab.com.

The defendant went by the username “One Dingo” and posted antisemitic messages frequently in the weeks and months leading up to the shooting. The word “jew” appeared on his Gab.com feed 152 times, through both his own posts and reposts, according to FBI tactical analyst Evan Browne.

Gab, a social media app frequented by white supremacists and white nationalists, provided a platform for the shooter to convene with likeminded individuals. He liked a post saying that Gab was a “fantastic resource” for “networking with white nationalists.”

His posts, reposts and liked posts, which Browne read to the jury, made reference to the Holocaust, Nazis and common white nationalist tropes. He most often highlighted the Jews as being responsible for what he perceived as society’s ills, especially the “invaders” at the southern border.

The posts were a mix of vulgar antisemitic comments and white nationalist social commentary. The shooter lamented thenPresident Donald Trump and the QAnon conspiracy movement, saying that Trump is a “globalist.” He liked a post that featured a long list of social problems that Jews were supposedly responsible for, from immigration to the flat Earth conspiracy theory.

The posts are graphic in their language and sometimes threatening. He reposted images of a cat doing the Nazi salute, as well as an image with the flag of Israel pasted onto U.S. government officials with the caption “wonder why the US is always getting into wars.”

Day 11: Prosecution rests after testimony from shooting victim and SWAT o cer

The prosecution’s final witness, Andrea Wedner, testified about seeing her mother, Rose Mallinger, 97, die after being shot by the defendant — and about being shot herself.

Wedner testified that shortly after Shabbat services began on Oct. 27, 2018, she heard what sounded like a “high shriek sound,” then many gunshots in the hallway outside the Pervin Chapel in the Tree of Life building.

“My mother looked at me and said, ‘What do

we do?’ in a very scared voice,” Wedner recalled.

The rabbi told them to “get down,” so they did. They had no other option.

“My mother couldn’t have run, and we didn’t know if there were other people shooting,” Wedner said.

She recalled seeing the shooter standing toward the back of the chapel, not far from where she and her mother were hiding — under their pew, lying head-to-head.

“I saw a white male with light-colored or gray hair, with a light-colored jacket,” Wedner said, “and he was holding a big, long gun.”

She and her mother “were filled with terror,” Wedner testified. “It’s indescribable. We thought we were going to die.”

Out of the corner of her eye, Wedner saw the shooter walk to the side of the chapel opposite from where she and her mother were taking cover.

“I was frantic,” Wedner said. “I was scared as scared could be.”

She called 911.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Troy Rivetti said that in deference to Wedner’s request, the recording of that nine-minute call would not be played in her presence.

“I saw my right arm get blown open in two places,” Wedner then testified, adding that she also saw cuts throughout her body, and shrapnel throughout her body and face.

Wedner stayed on the floor and didn’t move, she said, in case the shooter “was still there or came back. I didn’t want him to know I was alive.”

She saw her mother was shot and that she “wasn’t going to survive.” Wedner didn’t run to find another hiding place, she said, because “I wasn’t going to leave my mother.”

Wedner stayed in place until she was rescued by SWAT officers.

When she left her mother, she said, “I kissed my fingers and touched my fingers to her skin and cried out ‘Mommy.’”

Wedner was in the hospital for 10 days following the shooting. She’s had two surgeries on her arm and surgeries on her face and hand. A dental hygienist, she has not been able to return to work because of her injuries.

The 911 call Wedner placed that morning was played for the jury after she left the courtroom. Screams are heard in the background as Wedner tries to calm her mother in whispers.

“Oh God, I can’t believe this is happening,” she says.

SWAT Officer Timothy Matson, who was part of the team responding to the massacre, took the stand before Wedner. He described following a trail of gun magazines to the shooter upstairs. He saw doors to the left and right of a landing when he ascended the stairs and decided to enter one of the rooms, which was “total dark,” to protect his team. He was then shot in his leg and his head.

While he doesn’t remember everything that transpired afterward, he does remember telling a fellow officer that he was “f—ed up,” and that he was having trouble breathing.

He also remembers feeling “an indescribable amount of pain” as a tourniquet was being applied to his leg in the ambulance.

As a result of those gunshots, Matson has undergone several surgeries and has suffered permanent injuries, including some memory loss. It was two years before he could go back to work.

When asked if he would make the same choice again — to enter a dark room where a gunman might be lurking — he said, “Absolutely. I would go through any door for my team at any time.”

Earlier Wednesday morning, Peter Hammer, an FBI forensic analyst who examined the computer in the defendant’s apartment the day of the shooting, testified that the defendant had programmed his computer to erase all its data after 200 minutes — a sophisticated process.

“I have never seen anybody set up a time to wipe their data,” Hammer said.

As a result, Hammer was unable to access “any usable content” from that computer.

Day 12: Lawyers deliver closing arguments

During its closing argument, the government implored the jury to convict the defendant on all 63 counts — and to consider “what Tree of Life was and what it became,” prosecutor Mary Hahn said.

In this country, everyone is permitted to observe their faith in their chosen house of worship, and no one is allowed to enter a sanctuary and prevent others from their prayers. However, on the morning of Oct. 27, 2018, Hahn said, the defendant violated that constitutional right when he stormed the Tree of Life building

and attacked three congregations: Dor Hadash, New Light and Tree of Life * Or L’Simcha.

“He stopped their religious services and he tried to stop them from living by their

For more than an hour, Hahn recapitulated the horrifying events of 4½ years ago years ago: how the defendant methodically worked his way through the synagogue building, how he fired at least 100 rounds of ammunition, how he reloaded his rifle at least twice, where he located each victim — whether in a chapel or near another worship room — and how he

These actions weren’t spurred by a “sudden rage or confusion,” she said. “His hatred of

Hahn referred to the defendant’s creation and use of a social media account — on Gab.com —where he posted, reposted and liked virulent white supremacist beliefs.

By the time police officers Dan Mead and Michael Smidga arrived at the Tree of Life building that Saturday morning, the defendant had already killed eight worshippers. Instead of surrendering, though, the defendant kept shooting — first at the responding officers, then at surviving Jewish congregants still inside the building.

When the sirens and police later surrounded the building, the defendant again could have surrendered. Instead, he found a classroom to hide in and continued his rampage. He took chairs that children regularly used during religious school and used them to impede entry. He placed large cardboard boxes on a table to provide cover. He set up the educational space, Hahn said, “to maximize his tactical advantage, then lay in wait, ready to ambush officers.”

Throughout its closing argument, the government stressed the defendant’s “intentionality.”

When a man drives to a synagogue, hunts down worshippers, points a high-powered rifle at them and repeatedly pulls a trigger, he intends to send a message that “you are not safe in your house of worship,” she said.

The defendant relied on his cellphone, posted on social media, and purchased guns and holsters that satisfied the requirements of “interstate commerce” to prove federal crimes, Hahn said. And, “his singular target that day was Jews.”

The defendant’s intentionality, she continued, was further evidenced by his deliberate measures to ensure six separate hard drives on his personal computer would be wiped clean after the shooting.

“It worked,” Hahn said. “The FBI could never recover any information from his hard drives. He knew what he was doing was wrong.”

In the afternoon, the defense presented its closing arguments.

Attorney Elisa Long acknowledged to jurors that after three weeks of not only observing images and videos but hearing testimony of those present in the Tree of Life building on Oct. 27, 2018, it’s clear this “senseless act” was caused by the defendant.

Instead of offering an “excuse or justification” for his actions, however, the defense asked jurors to honor their legal duties and carefully apply the law as Colville instructed earlier that day.

According to the defense, Colville described the free exercise of religion as freedom to observe religious principles.

“This definition doesn’t include good works or conduct,” Long said.

Please see Trial, page 11

p Shawn Brokos, center, director of community security with the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, looks back while leaving the federal courthouse, Downtown, with representatives from the impacted congregations, New Light, Dor Hadash and Tree of Life, and local Jewish organizations after the jury found the Pittsburgh synagogue shooter guilty of federal hate crimes on Friday, June 16.

Photo by Alexandra Wimley/Pittsburgh Union Progress

Headlines

Trial:

Continued from page 10

In the weeks preceding Oct. 27, the defendant made a connection between Jews and immigrants and became “almost singularly focused on HIAS.”

HIAS (formerly the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society) is one of nine U.S. resettlement agencies, and the only one that is specifically driven by Jewish values.

Long quoted several posts the defendant made, including one claiming HIAS likes to “bring in hostile invaders,” another that Jews want “illegals” in the United States and one post claiming that “HIAS is a huge enabler of refugee invasions.”

The posts, Long said, “reveal his state of mind.”

She said that more insight into the defendant’s beliefs could be gleaned from things he said after he surrendered. Long recited testimony from officers who heard the defendant say, “I have to take action, they are killing our kids”; “These people are committing genocide on my people”; “Jews are killing our children”; “All Jews must die”; and “Jews are the children of Satan.”

Reaction:

Continued from page 1

all 63 charges he faced, including 11 counts of obstruction of the free exercise of religious belief resulting in death, which carry the possibility of capital punishment.

The verdict was reached more than 4½ years after the Oct. 27, 2018, massacre at Tree of Life synagogue that left 11 dead between the three Jewish congregations holding services in the building — Tree of Life, New Light and Dor Hadash. Six others, including four Pittsburgh police officers, were injured in the attack.

Tree of Life Rabbi Jeffrey Myers, who survived the shooting, said he was grateful to God, the law enforcement officers who rescued him from the building on the day of the attack, and the U.S. attorney who prosecuted the case. But he added that his attention was now on leading his congregation in worship.

“Today, I’m focused on being with my congregation and praying, singing and clapping in praise of God as we do each Shabbat,” Myers said. “In the face of the horror our community has experienced, I can think of no better response than practicing my Jewish faith and leading worship.”

While some community members expressed a sense of relief, they also acknowledged difficult times ahead as the trial continues into a more contentious phase — with the jury deciding whether the shooter should receive the death penalty for his crimes. That portion of the trial will begin June 26.

“There is a degree of trepidation, because this was just the first third of the trial,” said Stephen Cohen, a co-president of New Light Congregation. “In a sense, it was the least complicated part. We don’t know what’s going to happen in the next two sections of the trial, and what the defense will argue. We look forward to a final, just conclusion, and a just punishment, for the horrible, horrendous deeds done 4½ years ago.”

Many community leaders thanked those who helped them get to this point, including the U.S. Department of Justice and the jury.

“Every day for the past 4½ years, I’ve tried to look for the helpers: the public safety department and law enforcement officers, the attorneys, our

The defendant wasn’t at the Tree of Life building to obstruct religious study or religious services, she said. Instead, he was there because of Congregation Dor Hadash’s support of HIAS and because “he wanted to stop that group’s support of HIAS,” Long said. The defendant was motivated by “the irrational thought” that his actions that morning would save children’s lives, prevent genocide and stop immigrants.

“To hear the argument you just heard would be to suggest this was about Dor Hadash only,” U.S. Attorney Eric Olshan Eric Olshan said in rebuttal. “That man went into Tree of Life where three different synagogues were worshipping and he killed people from each of those three congregations.”

The defendant did not isolate Dor Hadash when he entered the building, Olshan said. “He focused on any Jew he could find.”

The defendant hated Jews because in his mind they killed children, were “diseased liars and controlled the government,” Olshan said.

This hatred wasn’t simply spurred by refugee resettlement or immigration. “We are talking about things people have said and believed about Jews for many, many years.”

The question of whether the defendant acted intentionally to obstruct the free exercise of religion could be answered simply by determining where he went that Saturday morning, Olshan said.

“Did he go to a refugee resettlement meeting? No. Did he go to the border to stop Jews from resettling people? No. Did he go to HIAS’ office in Maryland? No.” Instead, the defendant got in his car and drove about 30 minutes from his apartment in Baldwin to Squirrel Hill, “the center of the Jewish universe in the Pittsburgh region.”

He drove to a building, with the words “Tree of Life” written on its facade, on a Saturday morning, at a specific time when the sign outside the front said, “We are having worship services,” Olshan said. “That’s all you need to know to determine intent of what he wanted to do that morning.”

It would be “absurd,” Olshan said, to conclude that the defendant’s actions were strictly related to HIAS.

Olshan closed by raising a bag containing the remnants of a tattered yarmulke.

“A yarmulke is worn to remind someone of

God’s presence at all times,” he said.

“It is a simple meaningful expression of Jewish faith. … This yarmulke, which was torn apart by the defendant’s gunfire, is no longer a reminder of God’s presence but of what the defendant, that man, did to Irving Younger and 10 other people, and what he tried to do to many others.

“No one can put this yarmulke back like it was before,” Olshan continued. “No one has that power, but you do have the power to do justice in this court of law and the only justice is a verdict of guilty on every single one of the 63 counts in the superseding indictment in this case.”

Following an afternoon break, Colville designated five jurors to serve as alternates and the remaining 12 to be deliberating jurors. Each group was sent to a separate room with specific instructions of what could be discussed.

The verdict was delivered the following morning. PJC

This story is part of ongoing coverage of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting trial by the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle and the Pittsburgh Union Progress in a collaboration supported by funding from the Pittsburgh Media Partnership.

Committee said in a press release. “We realize it does little to ease the pain for the families and friends of the 11 people murdered at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh simply for being Jewish and practicing their faith. However, we hope this verdict allows them to continue the slow process of healing if not closure.”

Back in Pittsburgh, Jewish institutions that were instrumental in the response to the shooting said they continue to stand with the community and all who were impacted by the massacre.

As much as this tragedy has become an international news event, said Brian Schreiber, the president and CEO of the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh, “for us, [it] will always be an intimate and neighborhood event.”

fellow Pittsburghers who have continued to offer their care and support day in and day out,” Hausman said. “The way our community and people of all faiths came together after Oct. 27, 2018, has helped me and continues to inspire me and give me strength as we move forward.”

Jo Recht, the president of Congregation Dor Hadash, thanked first responders in particular, many of whom testified during the first phase.

“I want to emphasize our gratitude to the first responders,” she said. “Listening to their testimony [and] recognizing in detail what they did and how they risked their lives to try to save the lives of others was overwhelming.”

Some officials opined that the jury’s decision went in the direction of justice, though they said that the healing process will continue long after the full trial concludes.

“Today’s verdict was a step toward justice in Pittsburgh, but the horror and pain of Oct. 27, 2018, will never go away,” Gov. Josh Shapiro said. “My heart remains with the families of the 11 victims who were massacred as they worshipped at Tree of Life that day.”

“Today’s guilty verdict marks the beginning of delivering justice for this terrible tragedy, but not the end,” said state Sen. Jay Costa, D-Forest Hills.

“Our Jewish friends and neighbors will spend decades to come healing from this attack and mourning the loss of the community members whose lives were lost. While we now have a guilty

verdict, we must also continue fighting to end the hatred and secure safe, welcoming spaces for all of us, no matter how we pray or worship.”

State Rep. Dan Frankel, D-Allegheny, who represents Squirrel Hill, said that survivors who testified did so in service of a greater good.

“Let us remember that the survivors reopened these wounds for us, for humanity, because there has to be a record,” he said. “They told their stories, they told their histories, and now every one of us must grapple with that story.”

U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, D-Swissvale, said, “May the strength and resilience shown by the survivors, the victims’ family members and the entire Jewish community throughout this heartbreaking trial forever be an inspiration to us all.”

The verdict captured attention far outside of Western Pennsylvania.

Ambassador Ronald S. Lauder, president of the World Jewish Congress, said the verdict was “a vindication of the American system of justice. It is also an unmistakable reminder of Jew hatred and racial bigotry left unchecked.

“Society cannot remain complacent and only care about the lives of Jews after an atrocity has been committed,” he continued. “We call on all federal, state, and municipal law enforcement agencies to take all necessary measures to protect synagogues and other Jewish institutions across the United States from any similar tragedy.”

“Justice has been served,” the American Jewish

Jewish Family and Community Services will continue to provide therapeutic support to those in need, according to president and CEO Jordan Golin.

“In the coming weeks, we will continue our efforts to ensure accessible and comprehensive therapeutic services in the courtroom,” he said.

“Our team of highly trained professionals will continue to provide counseling, trauma-informed care, and resources to support bereaved and injured witnesses and families. Therapeutic support is available for all those who are impacted by the shooting — please reach out on 1027HealingPartnership.org to request assistance.”

Even as the jury left the courtroom to begin its deliberations, leaders of New Light Congregation issued a statement to the press: “There can be no forgiveness. Forgiveness requires two components: that it is offered by the person who commits the wrong and is accepted by the person who was wronged. The shooter has not asked — and the dead cannot accept.” PJC

Andrew Goldstein can be reached at agoldstein@unionprogress.com.Harrison Hamm can be reached at hhamm@ unionprogress.com.

This story is part of ongoing coverage of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting trial by the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle and the Pittsburgh Union Progress in a collaboration supported by funding from the Pittsburgh Media Partnership. The PUP’s Steve Mellon contributed.

p Jeff Finkelstein, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, is surrounded by members of the media as he speaks during a news conference after the jury found the Pittsburgh synagogue shooter guilty of federal hate crimes on Friday, June 16.

Photo by Alexandra Wimley/Pittsburgh Union Progress

The end of Phase 1

June 16 marked a milestone in the history of the Jewish community of Pittsburgh, the broader Pittsburgh community and the national Jewish community. More than four years after the massacre at the Tree of Life building, the man who murdered 11 innocent Jewish worshippers in their sacred spaces has been found guilty by a jury of his peers. No longer the “alleged” or “accused” shooter, he is now the convicted shooter. He stands convicted not only of the shooting per se, but also of federal hate crimes and obstruction of religion.

This day has been a long time coming — far too long. In the meantime, some of those who were directly affected have passed away. The

delay was due to a variety of reasons, including the pandemic and the zealousness of the defense, but at least in the end the trial resulted in justice. Whatever our feelings toward the shooter — most likely entirely justified — we should be glad that our government followed the rule of law.

We think it is important that the trial took place rather than the two sides agreeing to a plea bargain. It is the trial, with all the testimony of the witnesses and experts, and all the evidence, that creates the media coverage and historical record to expose the antisemitic motivations and actions of this man to the world. Had there been no trial, far less would be public about what happened and why.

There will now be one or two more phases of the trial to determine whether the shooter is eligible to receive the death penalty and, if

so, whether he should indeed be sentenced to death. However, whatever happens next in the trial, it is the verdict in this first phase that is by far the most significant. As both a historical judgment and as a basis for combatting antisemitism going forward, it was vital that he be found guilty of all 63 counts. Whatever penalty the jury delivers is important, but it is of less consequence than the foundational finding that the shooter is guilty of all the crimes he committed.

Reasonable people can differ in their opinions on the death penalty — both in general as a matter of law, and in particular as applied to this case. As Rabbi Danny Schiff discussed in an opinion piece in the Chronicle a few weeks ago, Jewish law does in fact permit the use of the death penalty. However, as is usually the case when trying to apply halacha to a specific

case, different people can come to different conclusions as to what the ruling should be. Moreover, this case is governed not by halacha but by United States federal law.

The Chronicle respects the legal process which will use precise, technical definitions under the law and all the evidence that both the prosecution and defense can muster during these next phases of the trial. Whatever the outcome, the punishment, as required by law, will be severe.

We continue to remember our cherished community members who were killed just for being Jews: Joyce Fienberg, Richard Gottfried, Rose Mallinger, Jerry Rabinowitz, Cecil Rosenthal, David Rosenthal, Bernice Simon, Sylvan Simon, Daniel Stein, Melvin Wax and Irving Younger. May their memories forever be for a blessing. PJC

We have seen the Jewish future, and it is all about choice

or observing Shabbat, or, in this case, covering your hair with a wig (a sheitel) if you’re a married woman.

Jerome A. Chanes

But in America today, choice has come to occupy a central place not merely in how Jews practice Judaism but in the very way they conceive their religious identity.

Mark Silk

There was a young lady of title

Who insisted on wearing a sheitel. She didn’t care much For kashrut and such, “But the sheitel,” said she, “now that’s vital!”

As the old limerick suggests, there has long been a tradition of picking and choosing Jewish observance in America, whether it involved keeping kosher

Over the past several decades, Americans have come to regard their religion less and less as an ascribed identity — as something they were born into — and increasingly as what they choose to be at the present time.

This shift has had a particularly dramatic effect on Jewish Americans, in whose tradition religious identity had for millennia been ascribed at birth. The tension between ascription on the one hand, and choice on the other, informs American Jewish religion.

How is the Jewish community responding to this new regime of choice? That is the central concern of our new book, “The Future of Judaism in America.” Understanding

religious identity as chosen is crucial to understanding the future of Judaism in the context of its denominations, its numbers, its relationships with other faith communities, its stance on public affairs — and, perhaps most important, its ability to renew itself in response to pressures from outside and from within.

Let’s consider the different denominational streams.

Reform, after steady growth in synagogue membership from the late 1970s until the new century, is no longer the fastest-growing movement. Still, Reform in America, while it struggles with the boundaries of “who is Jewish,” has lowered the barriers to participation in its brand of Judaism. “Inclusiveness” is the byword for contemporary Reform, both externally (outreach to non-Jewish spouses), and internally, by welcoming those Reform Jews who choose to embrace rituals — tallit and kippah and tefillin, mikveh, full synagogue services — traditionally considered outside

the sphere of a movement that does not regard halacha, or traditional rabbinic law, as binding. “Reform Judaism teaches that each of us is an autonomous individual, able to make thoughtful, religious choices,” said Rabbi Rick Jacobs, the president the Union for Reform Judaism, at his installation a decade ago.

Have Reform’s accommodations worked?

So far, the answer appears to be “yes,” as the percentage of Reform in American Jewry has remained stable at around 35-40% for decades.

For its part, the question for the Conservative movement is more about ascribed identity than about anything else. The movement is struggling with the question of how long it can sustain its policy of forbidding its rabbis from performing marriages between Jews and non-Jews. (The question is of a piece with the angst always felt by Conservative leaders when their commitment to halacha collides

Please see Chanes and Silk, page 13

Summer is almost here. It’s time to learn the Torah of the garden.

My mother died in February, and since then I’ve been caring for her home. At the time of her death, she had over a hundred plants — and that’s only inside the house. Outside, there were hundreds more — roses and lilacs and dahlias, lilies of the valley and irises and daffodils, violets and honeysuckle and sunflowers. They bloom in almost all seasons, from late winter to late autumn. Except when the ground is frozen, there is never a moment when something is not blooming in my mother’s garden. And “she celebrated when they bloomed, whether once a season or once every 10 years. They were, in many ways, the great work of her life, and it’s powerful for me to be caring for them now.

I grew up surrounded by those plants. I ate wild strawberries, chestnuts and pears. I used pine needles for doll beds and hickory nuts for toy food. I slept (or pretended to) on carpets of moss and used branches of sumac as scepters. Once, I dug up some daffodils near the creek and moved them to my “garden” in the woods. My mother was furious (though those daffodils still bloom in the woods every spring). But my early plant experiences were mostly good. I planted peas with my father, and watched him guide the young bean plants up their poles. I noted when the violets came out and when the chestnuts fell from their trees. I particularly loved the wild roses that bloomed in June (in fact, they’re blooming now). For me, as for my mother, the plants are their own kind of people — beings I try to nurture, appreciate and understand.

So it’s moving to me that the Jewish tradition sees plants in a similar way — as beings with voices. Psalm 96:12 states: “Let the fields rejoice and all that is in them; let the trees of the forest sing for joy.” Psalm 17:33 proclaims:

“Let the trees of the forest sing at the presence of God.” In Psalm 48:8, the fruit trees offer praise. In Isaiah 55:12, the trees clap hands. Maimonides understood these verses to be metaphors, but the Midrash — writings that fill in gaps in biblical texts — claims that trees do in fact speak with one another and with other creatures, and that they discuss the earth and its well-being. The Jerusalem Talmud too understands these verses expansively, saying that when Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai began to teach mystical secrets, the trees started to sing. The Zohar, the mystical Torah commentary, imagines that when the Creator visits the Garden of Eden at midnight, the trees burst into song.

This description of plants is a reflection of the way many of us experience plants — as alive, and in relationship to us. And it’s likely they reflect how our ancestors did too. Many indigenous spiritual practitioners consider plants to possess intelligence, so it’s certainly possible our ancestors saw plants this way as

well. And it might be time for us to be mindful of this too, given that we are breathing in what plants breathe out, and vice versa.

A team of researchers at Tel Aviv University has recently discovered that plants make sounds, albeit at a frequency we can’t hear, and that they make more sounds when distressed. This claim was made long ago in the Midrash, which teaches that when a tree is cut down, its cry goes from one end of the world to the other but no one hears. How differently might we act if we could hear the cries of trees and plants? And how much richer might we be if we could tune into their songs?

Indeed, this might not be as far-fetched as it sounds. In some kabbalistic understandings, we have plant consciousness inside us.

According to the mystic Hayyim Vital, plants are a category of beings known as the tzomeach — the growing ones. They exist among four kinds of living creatures: humans, animals, plants and stones (yes, even stones

Please see Hammer, page 13

Guest Columnist

Rabbi Jill Hammer

Guest Columnist

Guest Columnist

Chronicle poll results: Jury service

Last week, the Chronicle asked its readers in an electronic poll the following question: “Have you ever served on a jury?” Of the 244 people who responded, 59% said “no” and 41% said “yes.” Comments were submitted by 58 people. A few follow.

As a lawyer, I have wanted to be chosen to see how it all works from the other side, as it might make me a better advocate. So far this litigator has only been able to serve on high school mock trial competition juries.

It was a difficult experience because of the nature of the crime discussed — child sexual abuse — but worthwhile because I learned a lot about the jury system. As a result, I don’t have a great deal of confidence in the system! I did feel that, in the end, my jury’s decision fit the crime.

Wanted to. Called two times but not selected.

It’s my civic duty; I never try to get out of it.

Chanes and Silk:

Continued from page 12

with the movement’s commitment to change.)

The question of intermarriage is central to the future of Conservative Judaism, as its contemporary identity is defined and has always been defined by the clear line it draws between Jew and non-Jew. This dilemma, in addition to the host of serious issues that plague the movement — not the least of which is a precipitous decline in Conservative’s numbers, from 43% to 17% of those who identify with a denomination over some two decades — suggests that the future of the Conservative qua independent movement is highly uncertain.

Many analysts (including several authors in our book) suggest that Reform and Conservative Judaism will ultimately merge and become a single heterodox movement. That, or Conservative will remain as a smaller movement, concentrated in large population centers.

Orthodoxy, meanwhile, claims 17% of Jews ages 18 to 29, compared with just 3% of Jews 65 and older, according to Pew. If current trends continue, their proportion of the entire Jewish population in

Hammer:

Continued from page 12

are considered beings). Vital says that the human soul reflects all these kinds of beings, and so perhaps we are kin to all of them. Even God has plantlike aspects: The kabbalists call the

Have you ever served on a jury?

In 1990, I was a member of a jury which convicted a man of horrific sex crimes against a minor girl. The case had an interesting twist: The defendant had suffered severe burns inflicted by someone who was enraged over what he had done. He was sentenced to 27 years in federal prison. I was proud of my role as a responsible citizen.

I have lived in Allegheny County for 40 years as an adult and have never been called.

I was part of a hung jury, which seems to have disqualified me from ever serving again, since I’ve been eliminated by either the defense or the prosecution ever since. Not a pleasant experience. We went from a jolly group to snarling finger-pointers as the division grew among us.

It was for a murder case and was one of the most challenging parts of my life. It really made me see that a murder case can have so many gray areas that aren’t known to the general public.

Serving on a jury is a privilege and an experience that every adult should have if called upon and accepted as a juror. I served on a criminal trial for a murder in Westmoreland County and it was a most enlightening experience. I would do it again.

The number of stupid people serving on my jury was frightening. Comments like “if they weren’t guilty, they wouldn’t have been arrested.” PJC

Compiled by Toby Tabachnick

I was called for jury duty six times over more than 30 years (in Howard County, Maryland). I served on three juries, one time as foreman. I’m proud that I was able to perform an important civic duty.

America will grow from a small minority to a dominant majority by the end of the century.

Yet there is no one “Orthodoxy” in America. Orthodoxy is expressed in Modern and Centrist forms, the many flavors of Hasidism, the numerous forms of non-Hasidic “haredi” Orthodoxy, Chabad-Lubavitch and the Orthodoxies that push the religious and ritual envelope in countless ways. It’s about choice.

But the price for Orthodoxy may be high, as the increased fractionalization of the movement demonstrates. Haredi groups (what we call Sectarian Orthodox, and others call “ultra-Orthodox”) operate by preventing choice, especially in some of the more sectarian Hasidic groups that create barriers to prevent adherents from leaving. More progressive Orthodox groups have adopted strategies that accommodate choice.

Orthodoxy will remain strong, but its future presents no consistent pattern.

Understanding Jewish Renewal is central to understanding the present and future of American Judaism. The varied expressions of Jewish Renewal that took root in the 1960s and ’70s — the havurah movement, Jewish feminism, practices that

structure of the divine personality the Tree of Life, and in the Zohar, the Divine Presence is called the gan, the garden, or the  chekel detapuchin kadishin , the holy apple orchard.

My own small New York apartment has many fewer plants than my mother’s home, but I care for them lovingly. Once, while I was away, the cat sitter forgot to

Too often, the first person who offers an opinion on the jury persuades others, even if they are incorrect. It is difficult to stand your ground against a majority, even if you believe the majority is wrong.

bear its spiritual approach — found newer expressions in communities such as Kehillat Hadar in New York; Yeshivat Maharat, which provides Orthodox ordination to women; The Kitchen in Los Angeles; “partnership” minyanim that maximize women’s participation within the parameters of traditional halacha, or Jewish law, and New York’s unaffiliated B’nai Jeshurun congregation. Indeed, while the formal structures that generated Renewal recede in memory, Renewal has had a broad and deep impact on American Judaism and on American Jewish life.

The impulse of Renewal, whatever its varied expression, was and is to create alternatives to the prevailing Jewish movements and forms. These alternatives are “chosen” ways of participation, and Renewal is yet vibrant.

The wildcard in American Judaism is, of course, the “nones,” those who identify as Jews of no religion. According to Pew, the percentage of U.S. Jews who do not claim any religion is 27% — higher among the young and going up. The future of Judaism in America will depend in part on the relative percentages of Jews with religion and Jews of no religion: Which will grow, and which will decline?

What has changed in American Jewish religious life? It is what Will Herberg, in his landmark book “Catholic-Protestant-Jew,”

water the fuschia and when I came home it was nearly dead and had only five living leaves left. I slowly nurtured it back to health, watering often but not too much, and now, a year later, it has bloomed many times. I may not be able to hear its voice, but I can see its beauty and I can feel the power and persistence of its life-force. As the summer solstice approaches, I invite

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Chronicle weekly poll question: At what age should a person be allowed to join a social media platform? Go to pittsburghjewishchronicle.org to respond. PJC

did not see in the 1950s: There is no longer any pressure to remain within any given religious community, nor in any movement or stream of Judaism, nor within Judaism itself (as the rise of the “nones” suggests). The American Jewish religious future — for all the movements, denominations and post-denominationalists — will be positioned in this dynamic.

When religious identity is increasingly seen as a matter of personal choice, groups that have depended upon ascribed identity to guarantee their numbers will be challenged to develop not only new means of keeping and attracting members but also new ways of conceptualizing and communicating who and what they are. PJC

Jerome A. Chanes is co-editor with Mark Silk of “The Future of Judaism in America” and the author or editor of four previous books and more than 100 articles, reviews, book-chapters and encyclopedia entries on Jewish public affairs, history, and arts and letters. Mark Silk is director of the Leonard E. Greenberg Center for the Study of Religion in Public Life and professor of religion in public life at Trinity College, Hartford. This first appeared on JTA.

all of us to celebrate, protect and listen to these green beings, these creatures who eat light and who create the very air we breathe. PJC

Rabbi Jill Hammer is an author, teacher, midrashist, mystic, poet, essayist and priestess. This article, published by JTA, originally appeared on My Jewish Learning.

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Chimichurri sauce; tomato and jalapeño salad

By Jessica Grann | Special to the Chronicle

Grilling season is in full swing, and we’re outside making dinner most nights of the week. My husband loves grilling so he takes all of the credit on that front, but I usually make the salads and sides that complement his cooking.

I don’t generally cook with marinades because I really like the taste of the meat to shine through, but I am a big fan of salsas and salads to add flavor and acidity to the meal. Chimichurri sauce is a South American condiment that adds a punch to grilled beef and chicken. You can adjust the level of heat and use only parsley if you don’t care for cilantro. I like to make this recipe with half parsley and half cilantro. Choose your favorite cut of meat and grill it to your preference. A spoonful of this on the side is one of the simple pleasures in life!

Chimichurri sauce

Ingredients:

1 bunch parsley (use 2 bunches if you omit the cilantro)

1 bunch cilantro (a bunch is about 20 stems)

4 cloves garlic

Half an onion, roughly chopped

1-2 jalapeños with seeds, stemmed and sliced in half

1 rounded tablespoon dried oregano

½ cup red wine vinegar

½ cup olive oil

1 rounded teaspoon kosher salt

To avoid spending an hour finely mincing vegetables, use a blender or food processor to do the hard work for you. Put the onion, whole garlic cloves and one jalapeño into the blender or food processor bowl and pulse until the pieces are finely chopped. Add one bunch of parsley, with stems, and pulse it until the leaves reduce. Add

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the cilantro, with stems, (or the second bunch of parsley) and pulse it until the leaves reduce.

Add the salt, oregano and red wine vinegar and pulse until well blended. Taste test to see if you’d like to add in a second jalapeño. I find that their level of heat varies and often a second one is needed, but sometimes one is spicy enough to do the job.

There are two ways to add the olive oil, which yield different results. The more traditional way is to mix the olive oil in by hand. The leaves will fall to the bottom so you will always need to give it a stir when serving. The Brazilian way is to add the olive oil last into the food processor and pulse until the mixture is emulsified. I usually prepare it this way because the oil doesn’t separate (see photo). It makes for a thicker sauce and seems less oily on your plate. Either way, it tastes amazing and it keeps for up to a month in the fridge.

Tomato and jalapeño salad

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This is a simple tomato salad that is typical in the Middle East. If you like peppers, it’s a great way to spice up a plain tomato salad. I use only a drizzle of olive oil in most of my salads, so they are super healthy and great to have on hand and ready to eat.

You can use any kind of tomato — Romas and cherry tomatoes work great, but both stem and beefsteak tomatoes work as well; just expect more liquid in the bowl.

Ingredients:

2 cups chopped tomatoes (for cherry tomatoes, slice them in half once)

Half of one jalapeño, about 1 tablespoon, stemmed and minced — reserve the seeds

1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice, more to taste

A drizzle of olive oil (less than a tablespoon)

A sprinkle of sea salt

In a medium-sized bowl, add the tomatoes, jalapeño, lemon juice, salt and olive oil and gently turn it a few times until the tomatoes look well coated. I don’t typically add the jalapeño seeds until I taste test the salad to see if it has enough heat. If you feel that you’d like more, add about ⅛ teaspoon of seeds to the salad.

As a variation you could also add in a whole, diced avocado, giving this salad more of a Latin flavor. Enjoy and bless your hands! PJC

Jessica Grann is a home chef living in Pittsburgh.

Working with Marks Elder Law when planning for your family’s future can help you make better decisionskeeping more of your money during your lifetime

p Chimichurri sauce

p Tomato and jalapeño salad Photos by Jessica Grann

Life & Culture

‘Frida … A Self Portrait’ paints a moving picture

By David Rullo | Sta Writer

“Frida … A Self Portrait” is unlike any of the previous stage or screen works examining the Mexican artist’s life and painting.

Written and performed by Vanessa Severo, the one-woman play focuses on disability — both that of Frida Kahlo and, in several asides, the actor’s as well.

The show runs through June 25 at Pittsburgh Public Theater’s O’Reilly Theater. Afflicted with polio as a child, which affected the use of her right leg, and bearing physical injuries after being hit by a bus at 18, the artist spent most of her life plagued by pain and medical problems.

Kahlo’s life is portrayed in vignettes through a fictionalized interview between the artist and a writer for an architectural magazine, sent to document her ancestral home.

Throughout the production, Kahlo’s anguish — physical and mental — are presented through the dialogue and the contortions of Brazilian-born Severo. The actor’s movements are tightly choreographed, at times seemingly difficult to perform and make great use of the minimal staging — just three clotheslines with

various dresses and suits hanging, two boxes and four posts, which are open on three sides and framed with an incomplete roof. And yet, despite the lack of intricate sets or additional actors, we see a portrait of Kahlo’s complex marriage to artist Diego Rivera, whom she would divorce and remarry; her numerous miscarriages; and her affairs, portrayed in the play as primarily lesbian but rumored to have included several famous men as well.

We also learn about her relationship with her father. Kahlo had said that the family’s patriarch insisted that she learn to walk and run despite the damage to her leg from polio.

The artist also claimed that the German-born Guillermo Kahlo was of Hungarian-Jewish background. This claim was widely accepted until a pair of German historians traced Kahlo’s lineage to that of German Lutheran Protestants.

Severo doesn’t mention this in her intimate portrait of the artist, but she does talk of her own disability. She was born with a congenital defect on her left hand and uses the presence of Kahlo’s injuries to discuss her challenges. She recalls the doctor who wanted to graft her toes onto her hand in place of her ill-formed fingers when she was 4. She decided not to undergo the procedure:

She could already do handstands and play on a jungle gym, things the surgeon said she would be able to do after his untested technique, and she wondered how she could dance without digits on one of her feet.

And Severo can dance. Whether it’s through the brief opportunities she has to dance during the play, her movements in dresses and suits hanging from the clotheslines or the poses she strikes, which are more like the self-portraits Kahlo painted than an actor’s stance, she fills the stage with grace and presence.

The connection Severo feels with Kahlo is highlighted by a quote from the artist’s diary, which opens and closes the work: “I used to think I was the strangest person in the world but then I thought there are so many people in the world, there must be someone just like me …”

Directed by Joanie Schultz, “Frida … A Self Portrait” gives voice to the strength of the artist who searched for truth, both because of and through the pain she endured, and who proclaimed, “My truth is that I will die, a woman on my own terms.” It also points to Severo’s truth — that no matter how strange a person feels because of disability or hardship, there is always a connection to the larger universe. PJC

David Rullo can be reached at drullo@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

p Vanessa Severo in “Frida ... A Self Portrait,” running at the Pittsburgh Public Theater through June 25 Photo by Michael Henninger, provided by Pittsburgh Public Theater

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Howie Mandel and Rachel Bloom headline an LA comedy ‘roast of antisemitism’

By Jacob Gurvis | JTA

LOS ANGELES — The White House recently released a detailed strategy for combating antisemitism, complete with more than 100 action items.

One thing not on the list? Comedy.

That’s where Jewish celebrities such as Howie Mandel, Rachel Bloom and Michael Rapaport came in on Wednesday night at the Saban Theater in Beverly Hills, at a so-called “Roast of Anti-Semitism.”

As event organizer Dani Zoldan put it, the comedy show was focused on “making fun of people that hate Jews.”

Emceed by longtime standup and occasional TV actor Elon Gold — who joked that there were no Proud Boys in the audience, only “Jewish mothers who are proud of their boys” — the evening was full of Yiddishisms, circumcision jokes and poking fun at the likes of Kanye West and Donald Trump.

There were countless jokes about antisemitic stereotypes — more than one performer mocked the idea that Jews control the weather, noting that the auditorium was uncomfortably warm. There were bits about conversion, Jesus and Hitler, and even a

starred in, “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.”

The sold-out crowd of 1,900 also heard from Montana Tucker, the social media star who has become known for her Holocaust education content, and Noa Tishby, the actor and Israel’s former antisemitism envoy, who was fired after criticizing the current government’s proposed judicial overhaul.

Israel itself was not a big topic at the show,

aside from a few jokes about flying El Al and Gold proclaiming, to considerable applause, Zoldan, whose Manhattan comedy club Stand Up NY produced the show, said he and his collaborators hope to pitch the show, which was recorded, to streaming platforms to help it reach an even wider audience.

“There’s obviously so many different initiatives around the world fighting antisemitism, so this was just our contribution, hoping to make some small difference,” Zoldan told

the Jewish Telegraphic Agency in a phone interview prior to the show. Zoldan is also the creator of the Chosen Comedy Festival, a touring Jewish comedy show featuring many of the same comics.

Daniel Bernstein, who works at nearby Wilshire Boulevard Temple, said he attended the roast because he is “pro-semitism.”

“I think we’ve been through so much, the only way to get through it is to laugh,” he said.

Bernstein was there with his friend Talia Amoyal, who added that “a lot of pain comes out through humor.”

Tehran Von Ghasri, who goes simply by Tehran on stage, also performed on Wednesday. A comedian and actor based in LA, Von Ghasri said he often seeks opportunities to use comedy to address difficult topics. He is half Iranian and half Black, and his maternal grandmother is a Mizrahi Jew from Egypt.

“I wanted to add some literal and metaphorical color to this lineup,” he said. He added that his close bond with his grandmother made Judaism a big part of his life growing up. He celebrated Jewish holidays and had a bar mitzvah.

“It’s good to show that there’s no monolith of Judaism,” he said. “There’s no one thing or person that it looks like.”

p Howie Mandel, Jeff Ross, Elon Gold and Tehran backstage Photo courtesy of Dani Zoldan

Please see Roast, page 20

Dreaming and the futility of the zero-sum game

Rabbi

According to Yale law professor Amy Chua in her book “Political Tribalism,” every country on earth was founded with a ruling elite, often in the minority, sometimes in the majority, which determines the primary ethnic status of the country — who gets to lead and who gets to be a citizen according to law — and establishes cultural and religious norms. The one exception is the United States that, despite its rocky history, offers equality to all. You could argue that equality meant different things as history progressed. Yet as America progressed forward, especially in the last two centuries, it became a place that was open to all. Work, business and politics were arenas where Americans of differing backgrounds could pursue the American Dream, a promise to everyone. Even the idea of bearing a child on American soil was different than in other countries. In America, a newborn instantly became American.

Still, throughout its history and especially now, America could be a place of exclusion when it comes to who gets to be elite. Since the election of President Barack Obama in 2008, there has been a rising political tension between parts of our nation. Different subgroups (red and blue) suddenly feel threatened by government and culture, and there is a tug-of-war (imagined or real) between coastal elites and rural America.

In the last three parshiyot, there is a common theme of struggle between competing elites. God

and Moses are supposed to be in charge, but the revolution still simmers as the Israelites move closer to their destination, the Promised Land.

In Parshat Beha’alotcha, we have the “rabble” who provoke “the People” and demand a better menu beyond the daily manna rations that God provides. “Who will feed us meat?”

Commentators say that this “rabble” is the mixed multitude who joined the Israelites in fleeing Egypt and at times assert their authority against God and Moses. The People acquiesce to this leadership to their own detriment.

In Parshat Shlach, we have 12 “prominent men” who have not been mentioned before — except for Joshua and Caleb — who act alone, in their own interests. They are called “prominent” according to the commentary in the Zohar 158a, because they saw themselves above the rest of the Israelites. They promoted themselves to elite status.

According to this radical reading in the Zohar, they were wary of the Israelites entering the land too soon because they worried that they would be replaced as leaders. This was their scheme: They would become a 12-person executive committee, a top brass, that would first delay entry into the land. In 40 days, the Torah reports that they only visited Hebron and its vicinity. As 12 “prominent” men, this was no secretive spying mission. What did they do with the rest of their time? The tour was a public affair and perhaps it was an occasion to do business with the Canaanites. Perhaps they acquired land for themselves with the idea that they alone would apportion it to the people. This was part of a scheme of power retention — a 12-person executive committee or top brass council that would decide how to conquer and settle the land.

Celebrations

Zachary Evan Morgenstern will become a bar mitzvah on Saturday, June 24, 2023, at Temple Emanuel of South Hills. He is the son of Eric and Marsha Morgenstern and the grandson of Mark and Margery Morgenstern and Richard (z” l) and Rose Solock. Zachary is passionate about baseball, which is evident whether he is cheering on the Pirates or actively playing for Bethel Park Baseball’s recreational and travel teams. He also cherishes quality time with family and friends and enjoys video games and watching and playing various sports. For his mitzvah project, Zachary raised an impressive $1,400 for the Miracle League of the South Hills (MLSH). He has also dedicated his time as a volunteer buddy, supporting an MLSH player.

They fooled the people, but they could not fool God. They thought they would make an end-run around God because they believed that God could not defeat the powerful people of the land. Everybody loses because God punishes the entire nation with a 40-year migration through the wilderness before the settlement of the Promised Land.

Finally in Korach, there is a backlash against Moses and Aaron from their own tribe, the Levites, who already represent a spiritual elite. Moses and Aaron are undermined by a small minority of Levites who join with the others who are already angry at Moses. One could argue that Moses has set himself up for this. He shows ambivalence in his leadership. Prior to this, Moses dealt with the “rabble” when they demanded meat; in this instance he and Aaron “fell on their faces” (Numbers 14:5) and despaired when the people asked to reverse course to Egypt after hearing the report of the 12 “prominent” elites (Numbers 14: 3-5). Earlier, Moses instituted shared power with a Sanhedrin and made the puzzling statement “would that the entire people be prophets” (Numbers 11:28). One could argue that he tempted Korach and company to come forward with his remarks and ambivalent behavior.

Throughout these three episodes, God, Moses and the people could not share the same dream of leadership. Various forces from within sought to lead the people along a different path, through the desert or a return to Egypt. They needed to become a United Israelite nation under God.

America is the only country in the world that at least in theory wanted the dream to be shared by everyone. Equality was the ideal after liberating itself from an all-powerful monarch in England.

And despite our own missteps in the history

Births

of equality and inequality, we keep getting ripped apart because people fear that the power they achieved in America will be taken away from them. Whether it is through voting or welcoming immigrants to our country, whether it is through culture or tastes in music or sexual orientation, the older elites feel that their country is being taken away from them. America’s national identity is no longer defined by WASPs, nor by any of America’s countless ethnic subgroups. But there is a tug-of-war that persists as to who will have their say and who should be counted out.

The American dream is a promise of freedom and hope for every individual on these shores. Like the Israelites who struggled with elitism as they formed themselves into a nation, we still share a struggle that cannot end with a zero-sum option.

On this Independence Day, we recall the words of poet Langston Hughes in his 1935 poem, “Let America be America Again”: Let America be the dream the dreamers dreamed —

Let it be that great strong land of love

O, let America be America again — The land that never has been yet — And yet must be — the land where every man is free.

O, yes, I say it plain, America never was America to me, And yet I swear this oath — America will be! PJC

Rabbi Jonathan Perlman is the spiritual leader of New Light Congregation.This column is a service of the Greater Pittsburgh Jewish Clergy Association.

Wyatt Zeno Blackman, son of David and Kim Blackman, son and daughter-in-law of Susan Blackman (Temple Sinai), born Friday, June 9, 2023.

Moshe and Yael (Gazit) Hagbi of Azriel, Israel, joyfully announce the June 9, 2023, birth of their second son, Hillel Yosef, brother of Shaiel Yaacov. The thrilled grandparents are Shmulik and Lynne (Wolfson) Gazit and Menachem and Oshra Hagbi all of Tel Mond, Israel. The ecstatic great-grandmothers are Donna Levenson Wolfson of Monroeville and Yemima Gazit of Rishon LetZion, Israel. PJC

Joseph H. Janeda, Deceased of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania No. 02-23-03127

Linda L. Snyder, Executrix; 9487 Viewcrest Drive, Allison Park, PA 15101, or to Bruce S. Gelman, Esq., Gelman & Reisman, P.C., Law & Finance Building, 429 Fourth Ave., Ste. 1701, Pittsburgh, PA 152190

Obituaries

FALEDER: Stanley I. Faleder. It is a great loss that we announce the passing of our family patriarch Stanley Irwin Faleder on May 5, 2023 (Iyar, 14). He was born in Pittsburgh on May 2, 1931. While he proudly served his country by serving in the Korean War, he returned to Pittsburgh to create memorial monuments in service to those who have passed and their families who yearned to honor their loved ones in a final way. The meticulous way in which he artistically created by hand the messages and ornamentations that adorned the monuments is testament to the man he was and the family he built. Leaving behind a devoted wife of 61 years, Natalie; beloved father to Ellen Sue, Marcy (deceased) and Adam (Yael — wife of Adam and devoted daughter-in-law ) a son; grandfather to Zachary (Adi), Oliver (Kaila), Isabella (Joseph), Alex, Aviva, Lexi, Orley and Coby; great-grandfather to Miri, Noa, Sophie, Miles, Poppy and Abie; uncle to Barbara and Ron; great-uncle to Ryan, Matthew and Sydney; friend and confidant. He will always be remembered with love.

LAFFERTY: Ronda (Browarsky) Lafferty, age 77, of Monroeville, passed away on Saturday, June 10, 2023. Beloved wife of John Lafferty. Loving mother to Reed Lafferty and Nicole (Joseph) Emanuelo. Preceded in death by her parents, Hyman and Ruth Browarsky. Ronda was born in Pittsburgh on April 30, 1946, and lived in Squirrel Hill until she married at the age of 23. Stay-at-home mom, she managed to take care of an ailing family member (aunt) and receive a college degree in business management. She had an extreme love of animals especially her two golden retrievers (Murphy and Mandi). She had an infinity of knowledge and should have been a “Jeopardy” contestant. There will be no services at this time. Please add or view tributes at jobefuneralhome.com.

PROTETCH: Donald N. Protetch, on Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Beloved husband of the late Miriam “Mimi” Polasky Protetch. Loving father of Jack (Garrett Flaherty) Protetch and Marci Protetch. Brother of the late Geraldine Shulan (late Leonard Shulan) and the late Dolores Protetch. Grandfather of Abbey Plumb. Also survived by dear nieces and nephew Marlene and Jeffrey Kossis and Ilene Shulan, all of Florida, great-nephews Lyle Kossis of Virginia and Jason (Sarah) Kossis of Georgia. Born in Vandergrift, Pennsylvania, to Isaac Protetch and Minnie Krell Protetch, Don spent most of his life in Pittsburgh’s East End. A graduate of Peabody High School, he attended Carnegie Tech (CMU) prior to enlisting in the Army during WWII. Stationed in the Philippines and Japan, he served honorably as staff sergeant. After the war, he attended watchmaking school and like his father, opened a retail store, Donald’s Jewelry, in Pittsburgh’s Manchester neighborhood. Don continued his sales career, working at his brother-in-law’s health and beauty aids business for many years. In 1962, he married the love of his life and soon moved to Stanton Heights where he and Mimi raised their children and later in life moved to Shadyside/Oakland. Prior to retiring, Don returned to the jewelry business that he so enjoyed, working at Bailey Banks & Biddle. He spent leisure time bowling, playing tennis and golf, reading novels, solving crossword puzzles and being outdoors on a sunny day. He enjoyed many family vacations to the Jersey Shore and Florida and keeping updated on current events, faithfully watching the news when reading became a challenge. As patriarch, he delighted in celebrating family events and leading holiday traditions. Ever devoted to his family, he was a blessing to his wife and younger sister, supporting them through difficult illnesses. His wry sense of humor, warm smile and bright blue eyes will be deeply missed by all who knew him. Services were held at Ralph Schugar Chapel Inc. Interment Adath Jeshurun Cemetery. Contributions may be made to Jewish War Veterans of USA at jwv.org or Rodef Shalom Congregation at rodefshalom.org. schugar.com

Please see Obituaries, page 20

Jewish Association on Aging gratefully acknowledges contributions from the following: A gift from ... In memory of...

Cheryl Bloch

Eugene Barovsky

Sandy Gallo Sarah & Samuel Fox

Jean Horne Alfred Cohen

Carole & Jerry Katz

Lucy Katz

Mrs Rachel Le Mel Le

Rushie Le Mel Le

Theodore Pinsker Larry Rudick

Karen K Shapiro Ruth Kuperstock

Susan Weiner Fanny Wolk

Mrs Martin Winkler Benjamin Horne

Contact the Development department at 412-586-2690 or development@jaapgh.org for more information. THIS WEEK’S YAHRZEITS —

Sunday June 25: Oscar Bennett, Linnie R Caplan, Lucille Cohen Katz, Barney Drosnes, Esther Gross, Julius H. Harris, Brian H . Ibe, Louis Katz, Charles Paris, Estelle Schwartz, Bessie Cohen Silverberg, Joseph Swartz, Florence M. Teitelbaum

Monday June 26: Clara Blatt, Jerome Cohen, Gerson Finkelstein, William R . Finn, Charles Fischer, Charles Greenberg, Minnie Hyman, Estelle Kruman, Fannie S. Lattanzio, Jacob M Levine, Mildred Mallinger, Tillie Rider, Harry Ruben, Rosella Herzberg Wanetick

Tuesday June 27: Samuel H . Adler, Jesse Carl Devon, Jeanne Eisenberg, Millie Escovitz, Harry “Alter” Goisner, Marion Bergad Halfond, Curtis I Kossman, Fannie Kisilinsky Lindner, A L Mars, Sidney L. Patz, Harry Santman, Ruth Marks Schenk, Belle G. Schi

Wednesday June 28: Sylvia Americus, Herman Margolis Buck, Ray S Freeman, Morris Glasser, Isadore Goldblum, Madeline A . Harris, Joseph Herskovitz, Helen Ho man, Bertha Jacobs, Fred Kaminsky, Irving Kart, Harry Kurtz, Leah Labovitz, Sarah Linder, Helen Marcosky, Julia L Miller, Rabbi Morris Moskowitz, Elizabeth Sack, Frances G. Stewart

Thursday June 29: Helen K . Davidson, Isaac Glickman, Marcella Cohen Goldberg, Edward W. Harris, Morris L & Mary Ruth Jacob, Edith Liberman, Abe E . Rosenfield, Larry Rudick, Jerome J. Schwartz

Friday June 30: Miriam Bachrach, Mollie Harris Beck, Martin Bergad, Major Donald Broida, Anna R. Fried, Sam Ginsburg, Meier Katzman, Emil Lebovitz, Mel Le , Jacob Lerner, Sarah Litman, Charles J Loevner, Meyer Melnick, Rose Moritz, Jacob Rosenberg, Irving Siegel, Bessie Sigler, Josephine Silberman, Gertrude Stalinsky, Michael Joseph Wagner, Nathaniel I. Walken

Saturday July 1: Lawrence Brodell, Edythe G Canter, Maurice L Caplan, Benno Dreifuss, Pearl Evelovitz, Fannie Greenstein, Norman Halpern, Rose Janavitz, Saul Lundy, Verna Goldstein Plung, Beatrice Pollock, David Schwartz, Gussie Golda Snyder, Jacob Stern, Gus Whitman, Henry Wolk

D’Alessandro Funeral Home

Ltd.

“Always A Higher Standard” Dustin A. D’Alessandro, Supervisor • Daniel T. D’Alessandro, Funeral Director 4522 Butler St. • Pittsburgh, PA 15201 (412) 682-6500 • www.dalessandroltd.com

OPERATIONS MANAGER Full-Time/Hybrid

The Jewish Cemetery & Burial Association of Greater Pittsburgh (www.jcbapgh.org) is seeking a full-time Operations/Administrative professional to join the staff of this growing cemetery association. The Operations Manager will work from home and at the home offices of the JCBA Executive Director and/or Administrative Assistants. Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Serving as primary operations professional for organization that manages 42 Jewish cemeteries in Western Pennsylvania.

• Carrying out day-to-day operations including answering phone, picking up and processing mail, processing donations and invoices, and responding to general inquiries.

• Managing communications with families.

• Managing contractors and vendors, including grave openers, seasonal landscapers and firms working on capital projects.

• Coordinating burials with funeral homes and grave openers.

• Coordinating two fundraising appeals each year including liaising with the printer, potential donor lists, and the mailing house, as well as tracking donations.

• Maintaining databases, including AirTable and Cemsites.

• Updating and improving the JCBA website.

• Updating and improving the JCBA Operations Manual.

• Assisting the Executive Director with communications to the Board of Directors, including setting up and facilitating Zoom meetings (must be able to share screens and documents) and other communications and recording meeting minutes.

• Working with part-time administrative staff to ensure smooth operations.

• Visiting cemeteries for site inspections.

Qualified candidates will:

• Have 3-5 years’ experience in office operations, administration and management.

• Possess strong organizational and time management skills.

• Be self-starting and thrive on working independently as well as with a team.

• Be proficient in Microsoft Office and have excellent computer and technology skills. Quickbooks experience a plus.

• Be able to work with individuals at all levels, including funeral home workers and caretakers, Board of Directors, donors, families, volunteers, and vendors.

The JCBA offers a salary commensurate with experience, mileage reimbursement, bonus potential, health care benefits, paid vacation, and days off for Jewish holidays.

Qualified candidates may apply by submitting cover letter and resume to: Resumes81863@ gmail.com or by mailing to JCBA, P.O. Box 81863, Pittsburgh, PA 15217.

Care Services

Roast:

Making Moments Matter

STOCK: Dr. Robert L. Stock, on Sunday, June 18, 2023. Beloved son of the late Aaron and Isabel Stock. Brother of Dr. Ruth Stock Zober, Dr. E. Lee Stock and the late David Stock. Also survived by nieces, nephews, great-nieces and greatnephews. Services were held at Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. Interment Pliskover Cemetery. Contributions may be made to Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, P.O. Box 9074, Pittsburgh, PA 15224, (pnme. org), schugar.com. PJC

Continued from page 17

Zoldan, who himself is an observant Jew, said the event was largely targeted at a younger, non-Jewish audience. The team behind the show relied on influencers and social media marketing to spread the word and sell tickets.

“I don’t think it’ll help the cause if we just filled the audience with Jews who agree that antisemitism is bad,” Zoldan said. Instead, he said he hoped the show would offer a younger, non-Jewish audience “a different side and a different conversation about antisemitism.”

In fact, multiple comics asked the non-Jews in the audience to make some noise — a prompt which received a few scattered cheers.

The show also featured Orthodox comedian Modi Rosenfeld, who, along with Mandel, received the most laughs of the night; a video from Triumph the Insult Comic Dog (who was created by Jewish comedian Robert Smigel) interviewing

people in London about controversial Pink Floyd frontman Roger Waters; “Roastmaster General” Jeff Ross and others.

Due to the size of the lineup, each comedian’s set lasted only around 10 minutes. Still, Zoldan said, he recognized how big the ask was each time he invited someone to participate.

For one thing, unlike in a typical comedy show, in which traveling comics can repeat their go-to set (which Rapaport and Yamaneika Saunders still seemed to do anyway), this show’s specific theme required the performers to write new material. Plus, Zoldan added, the ongoing Hollywood writers strike may have dissuaded some comics from agreeing to take part, out of deference for the striking writers.

Mandel, who closed out the show, ended by encouraging the crowd to be proud about their Judaism — that is, after he made fun of a woman in the front row for falling asleep during his set.

“We’ve been persecuted for 6,000 years,” he said, “but you can’t sit for a f–ing hour?” PJC

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Ben Helfgott, one of two Holocaust survivors to compete in the Olympics, dies at 93

By Jacob Gurvis | JTA

Ben Helfgott, one of two known Holocaust survivors to go on to compete in the Olympics, died Friday at 93.

Helfgott survived the Holocaust as a teenager, and he went on to become a champion weightlifter and a champion of Holocaust education. He was knighted in 2018.

“Sir Ben Helfgott was one of the most inspirational people I have known,” said Britain’s Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis, according to London’s Jewish News. “He was a charismatic and passionate leader, who promoted the values of compassion, understanding, love and peaceful coexistence. His own horrific experiences inspired him to work tirelessly for a more peaceful and unified world and he inspired us to do likewise.”

Helfgott was born in Piotrkow, Poland, in 1929. He once said his parents were troubled about their future as Jews in Poland, and in 1935 his family had secured paperwork to leave for then-Palestine. But his grandmother did not want to leave, so they stayed.

The Nazis invaded Poland in 1939, when Helfgott was 10. His family was forced into a ghetto, the Nazis’ first in Europe. Helfgott’s father led efforts to smuggle food into the ghetto, while Helfgott himself took advantage of his blond hair by spending time outside the ghetto — without his Star of David armband.

Helfgott would spend three years in the

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ghetto before he and his father were sent to the Buchenwald concentration camp. Other members of his family were deported to Ravensbrück.

Helfgott would ultimately be separated from his father, who he later learned was

killed attempting to escape a death march. Helfgott was sent to the concentration camp in Schlieben and later Theresienstadt, which was liberated three weeks later. At 15, Helfgott was alive and an orphan.

That’s when he jumped at an opportunity to go to England, where he would be reunited with his sister. That’s also where Helfgott would discover weightlifting.

The 5-foot-5 Helfgott would go on to become Britain’s lightweight champion in 1955, 1956 and 1958. He represented the United Kingdom in the 1956 and 1960 Olympics, and he won gold medals at the Maccabiah Games in 1950, 1953 and 1957. He was inducted into the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 1995.

Despite his athletic achievements, Helfgott’s greatest passion was his work supporting fellow survivors. He served as chairman of ‘45 Aid Society, an organization created by and for the young survivors — often called “the boys” — who in 1945 arrived in England, 732 children in all.

“Ben was one of the greatest ambassadors for the Boys and, indeed, for all Holocaust survivors,” read a statement from the organization. PJC

p Ben Helfgott

Photo by Kobi Gideon

Despite his athletic achievements, Helfgott’s greatest passion was his work supporting fellow survivors.

Community

Movie Night in the parking lot

Congregation Beth Shalom and Rodef Shalom Congregation held a Movie Night and Havdalah with musician Dan Nichols.

Diamond anniversary dinner

During its 75th anniversary dinner, Hillel Academy of Pittsburgh honored Dr. José and Annie Sahel for their commitment to the Jewish day school. Rabbi Oren Levy received the Chantze and Donald Butler Teacher Recognition Award.

Celebrating Mimsie

Longtime congregant and retiring Family Center Director Mimsie Leyton was celebrated by Berkman Family Center camp educators.

Summer smiles in the South Hills

Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh’s South Hills Day Camp is in full swing, which means no shortage of summer smiles.

It’s a beautiful day

Yeshiva Schools of Pittsburgh hosted Beautiful Days. The June 4 event celebrated 80 years since Yeshiva expanded into a full-day dual curriculum school. Current and past educators were honored.

p Friends, blankets, lawn chairs and popcorn are the recipe for a great summer night.

Photo courtesy of Beth Shalom USY

p Pinny Herman observes the pop-up exhibit about Yeshiva’s history.

p Alumni members of Yeshiva’s boys choir perform. Photos courtesy of Yeshiva Schools of Pittsburgh

p Members of the Sahel family gather during the June 5 dinner.

Photo courtesy of Hillel Academy of Pittsburgh

p Thanks for the memories.

Photo courtesy of Rodef Shalom Congregation

p Hooray for summer.

Photo courtesy of Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh

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