Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle 11-1-24

Pittsburghers gather to

An overflow crowd of more than 400 people gathered Sunday evening at the Squirrel Hill Jewish Community Center to commemorate the lives lost, survivors and legacy of Oct. 27, 2018.

The sixth annual ceremony was the first to be held at the JCC — previous commemoration events were held in Schenley Park — and included in attendance Jewish community members, spiritual and lay leaders and a bevy of politicians.

Maggie Feinstein, director of the 10.27 Healing Partnership, said the commemoration working group decided to change the location of the event after considering that there may be fewer people attending over the next several years. Additionally, the Jewish community gathered for several large events this past year, including the Oct. 7 commemoration, which all pulled on public safety resources.

Joyce Fienberg, Richard Gottfried, Rose Mallinger, Jerry Rabinowitz, Cecil Rosenthal, David Rosenthal, Bernice Simon, Sylvan Simon, Daniel Stern, Melvin Wax and Irving Younger — members of Congregation Dor Hadash, New Light Congregation and Tree of Life Congregation — were murdered when a gunman entered the Tree of Life building and committed the deadliest act of antisemitic violence in U.S. history.

The ceremony, which included both familiar and new elements, was opened by Feinstein acknowledging those murdered, as well as the continued trauma felt by the Jewish community, amplified by the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terror attack in Israel and the

“Here in Pittsburgh, we all hold the legacy from 10/27/18, that we are stronger together,” she said before noting that the attack brought out “some of the best that Pittsburgh had to offer.”

Feinstein’s remarks were followed by the lighting of 11 yahrzeit candles by loved ones of the 11 victims.

New Light Rabbi Jonathan Perlman, a survivor of the attack, chanted “El Malei Rahamim,” followed by a recitation of Psalm 90 by Dor Hadash Rabbi Amy Bardack.

Feinstein noted that one of the remarkable things to come out of Oct. 27 and the subsequent trial was the growth of relationships. One example is the bond formed with Nicole Vasquez Schmitt who, as assistant U.S. attorney, was part of the team that successfully prosecuted the case against the shooter.

Along with her son Hudson and keyboardist Shay Carter, Vasquez Schmitt performed two songs —Leonard Cohen’s familiar “Hallelujah” and “A Million Dreams” from the film “The Greatest Showman.”

“I think it really speaks to dreaming about a better world and making a better world,” she said. “And that’s something we want to do in honor of the 11.”

Congregational readings by New Light’s Barbara Caplan, Tree of Life’s Robin Friedman and Dor Hadash’s Bruce Herschlag followed the musical performance.

Before Rabbi Hazzan Jeffrey Myers led the crowd in a rendition of “Mi Sheberach,” Asher Goodwin and Ilan Gordon addressed the audience. The two college students were attacked

When Rabbi Andrew Busch and Rabbi Debbie Pine were deciding whether to accept positions at Rodef Shalom Congregation in the early 1990s, the young rabbinic couple asked around about its Senior Rabbi Walter Jacob. They noticed a trend.

Everyone who didn’t know Rabbi Jacob personally talked about his professional accomplishments: his decades on the pulpit of one of the leading Reform congregations in the country, the depth and breadth of his scholarship across hundreds of articles and books, the institutions he had created and the leadership positions he had held.

Everyone who knew him personally talked about his kindness.

The late Rabbi Joseph Glaser put it more succinctly when he said Jacob combined “scholarship with menschlichkeit,” a Yiddish term conveying compassion and decency.

Jacob died on Sunday, Oct. 20, at the age of 94. His death brings to a close one of the most admired and globally significant rabbinic careers in the history of this region.

Jacob was born in Augsburg, Germany, on Purim day 1930. He came from a German

Lenda

Et odictiumqui andae amusam quistium si de net voloritat

Fodictiumqui aut entis andae asimuss

 Rabbi Walter Jacob was affiliated with Rodef Shalom Congregation for 69 years, likely the longest rabbinic tenure in the history of western Pennsylvania.

 Pittsburgh synagogue shooting survivor Audrey Glickman at microphone leads a reading along with other survivors of the attack. From left: Martin Gaynor; Deane Root; Carol Black; Rabbi Hazzan Jeffrey Myers; Augie Siriano; Andrea Wedner; Rabbi Doris Dyen; Stephen Weiss

Photo by Joshua Franzos

Headlines

ADL regional director on the state of antisemitism in Pittsburgh

By David Rullo | Senior Sta Writer

Kelly Fishman believes Pittsburgh universities are striving to protect their Jewish students.

“I feel like places like Pitt and Carnegie Mellon are really trying to make attempts to keep students safe,” she said. “They’re willing to work with organizations like the ADL and Federation and AJC to make sure they have the resources they need.”

Fishman is the regional director of the Anti-Defamation League’s Cleveland office, which serves Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia and western Pennsylvania. She recently spent time in Pittsburgh with the ADL’s Rabbinic Fellow Rabbi David Wolpe, providing an update on antisemitism, as well as honoring former ADL board member and Pittsburgh native Justin Ehrenwerth, who died in 2023.

In an interview with the Chronicle, Fishman said that one of the bright spots after Oct. 7 has been seeing so many Jewish college students embrace their Jewish identity. Jewish institutions like Hillel JUC and Chabad on Campus have been instrumental in supporting these students, she said, especially during anti-Israel protests and encampments, which often involve people who are not affiliated with the schools.

“I think that what we’re seeing at places like Pitt, the attacks that happened were from people that weren’t part of the campus,” she said.

And while much of the antisemitism on college campuses has been generated by the far-left, Fishman said that since Oct. 7 there’s also been a rise in hate activity from white extremists and white supremacists.

“They are equally opportunity haters,” she

said, noting that the groups are attempting to co-op the moment.

“If they have an opportunity to double down on antisemitic tropes and to spread fear about people of different racial backgrounds, people from different countries of origin, people of different sexual orientations, they’re going to do that,” Fishman said.

She said relationships — even relationships with people who might seem at odds in the current political climate — are necessary to combat the hate of these groups.

“Even in the Muslim community, I have great connections with people who maybe we don’t see eye to eye on everything — we might have different points of view on Israel — but at the end of the day, they care about who I am as a person and what’s happening now and how I’m feeling,” she said. “That’s something that gives me a lot of hope.”

As for those amplified voices on the left

“Everyone has a right to their viewpoint, but when that viewpoint becomes harmful to someone else, that goes against Jewish values.”

–KELLY FISHMAN

in places like college campuses, Fishman believes they always existed but Israel’s response to the Oct. 7 Hamas attack provided an impetus for protests.

“I feel like what we’re seeing right now, especially when we think about what’s happening on campuses, is these extreme left, pro-Palestinian groups that were already there…[Oct. 7 was] a jumping off point to bring the issue to the forefront,” she said.

It could be helpful if those on the far left examined Jewish history, especially pre-1948, Fishman said.

“Truly being able to acknowledge that there is pain and trauma on both sides,” she said. “There is a long history. There’s so much at play; it’s not a black-and-white issue. My hope is that people can take the time to see what’s going on and to learn what isn’t on TikTok or YouTube or Snapchat.”

Fishman said that campaigns to remove Hillels and Chabads from campuses — fronted by anti-Zionist groups like Jewish Voice for Peace — are problematic.

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“You don’t see Jewish groups calling for universities to drop Islamic clubs or groups that support Palestinian lives,” she said.

Just as frustrating for Fishman is JVP’s opposition to the ADL. She noted that the ADL supports a two-state solution and wants Palestinians to have a safe place to live.

“Everyone has a right to their viewpoint, but when that viewpoint becomes harmful to someone else, that goes against Jewish values,” she said.

The Jewish state, she continued, offers a safe place for more than just the Jewish community.

“Israel has been an open place for Arabs and Muslims and Christians and Baha’i,” she said. “It’s important to remember that.”

The ADL, Fishman said, has a toolkit of educational resources to help people learn more about Israel, Zionism and hate.

“Our K-12 resources are pretty extensive,” she said. “We have a great new online program for teachers about how antisemitism is manifesting in the classroom. If you’re a data nerd, our Center on Antisemitism has some really phenomenal reports.”

The organization, she said, also has programs for law enforcement to help understand extremist ideology.

The ADL recently created a working group of Pittsburghers to keep an ear to the ground locally and is looking to restart a Black/Jewish fellowship group here, Fishman said.

Asked about a dedicated ADL employee located in Pittsburgh, Fishman was a bit cagier.

“Stay tuned,” she said. PJC

David Rullo can be reached at drullo@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org. 5915 Beacon St., 5th

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Headlines

Eradicate Hate follows the money of extremist groups

By David Rullo | Senior Staff Writer

Hate, it appears, is fed by money. And, on Oct. 23, the final day of the Eradicate Hate Global Summit at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, the breakout session “Follow the Money: Disrupting Hate Financing” attempted to give a detailed understanding of who and how that hate is being funded.

Moderated by Laura Ellsworth, summit founder and board co-chair, the panel included Hans-Jakob Schindler, senior director of the Counter Extremism Project; Mark Dwyer, extremism funding investigator at the Anti-Defamation League; and Alexander Ritzmann, senior advisor of the Counter Extremism Project.

While hate groups were once self-funded organizations where a few people fronted the costs of printing flyers, creating pamphlets or burning CDs — often through donations or ticket sales at white power concerts — that dynamic has shifted, professionalizing the finances of many hate groups that embrace the newest technological trends.

“Through the use of cryptocurrencies,” Schindler said, “we are already in the online sphere.”

In addition to virtual currency, he said, hate groups are generating income though music production, sales and management of bands, influencers on TikTok, combat sports and gym management, along with ticket sales, online T-shirt and ticket purchases, crowdfunding sites and even sales through Etsy.

Some have expanded into opportunities like buying real estate.

“In East Germany, there are villages where right-wing extremists are trying to buy every plot of land and every house to create a rightwing extremist community,” Schindler said.

These organizations work to stay one step ahead of regulations, constantly being updated by financial institutions and governments, moving from cryptocurrency like Bitcoin, which Schindler said is completely transparent, to more secure virtual currencies like Monero.

Some groups even began embracing nonfungible tokens — digital creations, often pictures — sold for cryptocurrency.

One of the issues facing groups attempting to combat hate financing is the lack of internal monitoring by many financial organizations.

As an example, Schindler said, Canada has required crowdfunding platforms to report financial crimes, terrorism financing, extremism fundraising and money laundering on their platforms.

“In the following year, zero reports were filed by Canadian crowdfunding platforms, which only leaves two conclusions: Every Canadian is a law-abiding citizen or these platforms don’t have internal monitoring mechanisms,” he said.

Another barrier, he said, relevant to the United States, is the legal definition

of the word extremism. Some European countries, the United Kingdom and Germany, in particular, have a legal category for extremism, which brings with it the ability to prosecute financial institutions and companies that do business with hate groups.

“Here in the United States,” he said, “you can be a citizen, you can be a criminal, you can be a terrorist — primarily a foreign one — but you cannot be an extremist. There is no legal category. There is a strategy against extremism but there is no legal category.”

The ADL’s Dwyer said that white supremacists have raised nearly $9 million through 33,000 donations since January 2023 on the crowdfunding platform GiveSendGo.

Cash apps like Venmo continue to drive income streams, as well, he said, noting that the apps are used at white power music shows to buy and sell merchandise.

Sometimes, those apps can assist in shutting down those income streams, Dwyer said. For example, Stripe stopped doing business with a publisher that printed neo-Nazi books. Often, though, what the apps are being used to buy can be elusive if they are sold through individuals with no clear company behind them.

The end goal of extremist groups, Dwyer said, is to use credit and debit cards.

The ability to set up an ongoing donation stream is attractive to these groups.

In addition, he said selling property has become a viable income stream.

One group, Return of the Land, purchased 158 acres of property and sold it in 20-acre parcels.

“They raised at least $330,000 selling that property,” he said.

Although many of these groups are using legal means to raise money, Ritzmann said, many of the groups are connected to organized crime.

Money laundering, tax evasion and drugs are just some of the illegal enterprises in which these groups take part, which in theory leaves them open to criminal prosecution, including through the RICO act.

“When you break the law,” he said, “the government can go after you, and this is the idea. This is one of the tool kits that we have.” PJC

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

p The Eradicate Hate Global Summit took place Oct. 21-23.

Photo by David Rullo

Headlines

The Great Divide: Jewish voters navigate partisan shifts ahead of the polls

By Toby Tabachnick | Editor

Rona Kaufman is a lifelong Democrat and considers herself to be “very liberal.”

But this year, the Duquesne University law professor will be voting for Republican candidates.

The reason? Israel.

“I’ve never voted for a Republican,” Kaufman said. “I took my kids with me when I voted for Hillary. I supported Kerry. I’ve supported every Democrat, certainly at the presidential level, and also just in general.”

She believed the Democratic Party was more aligned with her values on social issues than the Republican Party, she said. She’s a feminist who cares about minority rights, the environment and eradicating poverty.

Kaufman, whose parents grew up in Israel and whose daughter serves in the Israel Defense Forces, also thought the Democratic Party was aligned with her foreign policy concerns. Now, she’s not so sure.

“I took for granted the fact that both the Republican Party and the Democratic Party were Zionists, supportive of Israel, recognizing the significance of having Israel, the only democratic country in the Middle East, as our ally,” she said.

But now she is “having difficulty voting Democrat.”

Kaufman is one of many Jewish voters who are struggling with the choice of candidates this year and are considering voting across party lines. Some Democrats who are worried about Israel and antisemitism are considering voting for Republican candidates, and some Republicans disenchanted with Trumpism are thinking about voting for Democrats.

‘Infiltration’ of the Democratic Party

Kaufman sees the Democratic Party as leaning away from its historically staunch support of the Jewish state, and attributes that movement to the inclusion of candidates associated with the Democratic Socialists of America, which explicitly declares itself to be anti-Zionist. Following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel, some chapters of the DSA glorified the Palestinian “resistance” and other U.S.designated terror organizations backed by Iran.

“I think that what happened is that the Democratic Socialists of America — people who have either been members or who feel that that fringe party represents their views — have been running as Democrats in elections, from local politics, where we see someone like (Allegheny County Executive) Sara Innamorato, to congressional races, where we see Summer Lee, to presidential races, where we saw Bernie Sanders, who’s not a member of the DSA but who represents himself as a Democratic socialist,” Kaufman said.

Innamorato is a former member of the DSA, but denounced the group after Oct. 7, 2023. Lee also was affiliated with the group, which supported her 2018 campaign for state representative. Innamorato and Lee, along with Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey, issued a

joint statement on the one-year anniversary of Hamas’ Oct. 7 incursion into Israel, seeming to blame the Jewish state for the terrorist attack.

“I don’t think that the DSA represents the values of a significant number of Americans, but somehow they have infiltrated the Democratic Party, and the Democratic mainstream party has not prevented them from infiltrating the party,” Kaufman said, adding that the DSA is not only anti-Zionist, but also anti-capitalist.

“I’m not anti-capitalist, so that’s a different problem with them,” she continued. “But my major problem with them is that they’re anti-Zionists, that they want to see the state of Israel eradicated. And I don’t have any room in my personal politics for that perspective.”

The Democratic Party, Kaufman said, is being swayed by the DSA and “other radical leftist elements.” Those elements, she stressed, “are not liberal.”

“They don’t believe in individual rights,” she said. “Even though I think that they think that they’re pro-woman, the values that they’re aligned with are not pro-woman. Eradication of the state of Israel is anti-woman. It’s also anti-minority. Jews are the minority in the Middle East. And to be anti-Zionist is anti-minority.”

Backing Trump

Kaufman said she is finding herself in a “weird situation” this election cycle.

“I think that you have a scenario now where, unfortunately, you have a candidate like (Kamala) Harris, who appears to be torn and appears to really have difficulty making it clear that there is nothing about the anti-Zionist movement that is acceptable to the Democratic Party,” Kaufman said. “I don’t know what she really believes in her heart, but she has not made that clear enough for me. For me, there’s no moral ambiguity here. It’s really clear.”

Kaufman will be voting for Donald Trump for president.

While there are many things about Trump that Kaufman doesn’t like, his administration’s policies toward Israel were good, she said.

“The Abraham Accords were excellent,” Kaufman said, “and they were important, and they continue to be important. And we saw the significance of those relationships when Iran attacked Israel, and the ways in which the countries in the region allied with

Israel and the United States and the United Kingdom. That is so stabilizing for the region, to have those alliances that were created by the Abraham Accords. And that happened in Trump’s administration.”

She does not believe that democracy would be threatened by a Trump presidency.

“I just don’t believe that four more years of Trump is going to destroy American democracy,” Kaufman said. “When I think of Jan. 6, and how horrific that was, and when I think of the violence on college campuses and how horrific it is, it seems to me that neither Democrats nor Republicans have a very good handle on this new trend in the U.S., which is toward actual violence as a form of political protest. This is something that both parties need to very clearly object to, and all of our elected officials — local, national — need to be on the same page that violence is not an acceptable form of protest. But I don’t see it as just a weakness on the right.”

Still, she is not giving up on the Democratic Party forever.

“I really hope my party will wake up soon and hope to be part of that effort after the election,” she said. “Jewish security at home and abroad should not be a political issue.”

The ‘cult’ of the Republican party

Robbie Kramm, a 24-year-old labor union employee and native Jewish Pittsburgher, registered as a Republican when he turned 18. He aligned with the Republicans, he said, because he was dismayed by the left-wing antisemitism proliferating on college campuses and is “ideologically conservative.”

Although 2020 was the first presidential election in which Kramm was eligible to vote, he did not cast a ballot.

That was the year that “Trump started losing me,” he said. “And I saw all the Democrats rallying around Biden, and I could tell that they didn’t mean it, and it was just annoying me. So I didn’t really want to vote for either of them.”

But Kramm has already cast his mail-in ballot for Democrats Harris and Sen. Bob Casey, and for Republican James Hayes, who is seeking to unseat Lee in the 14th congressional district.

Kramm didn’t vote for Lee, he said, “mainly because of what she has said about Israel. I feel like she ignores what the Jewish people want.

And when we tell her, ‘This is offensive to us, it’s antisemitic,’ she doesn’t care.”

While Israel is an important issue to Kramm, “as long as you’re not saying it doesn’t deserve to exist and all that stuff, I’ll give somebody leeway.”

When it comes to Israel, Harris is “supportive enough,” Kramm said. He pointed to Lee being excluded from the Harris rally in Pittsburgh last month that featured former President Barack Obama, as “a good gesture for [Harris’] support.”

Trump’s support for the Jewish state is “ironclad,” Kramm said, but “to me, it doesn’t really seem like he cares much about Jews in the U.S. It seems like he cares more about Israelis than us, and that’s something that went against him.”

“The main thing with Trump is that he has a kind of a cult of personality, and you can use it for good or you can use it for bad,” Kramm continued. “And I don’t feel like he’s using it for good.”

Howard Erlichman is a registered Republican, but for the last several years, the former Port Authority supervisor voted primarily for Democrats. He will do the same on Tuesday.

A lifelong Jewish Pittsburgher, the 67-year-old will be casting his ballot for Harris.

“She actually aligns more with my views now than the Republicans,” Erlichman said.

“The Republican ticket is — to me it’s a cult. It’s just Donald Trump and whatever he wants. The principles of the party are gone.”

Harris is pro-union, he said, and also pro-business, both of which are important to Erlichman, who used to operate a business in Squirrel Hill. He also appreciates Harris’ pro-choice stance.

Erlichman sees Trump as an “existential threat” and a “symptom of fascism and hatred” emanating from the Republican Party.

“I will not vote for a Republican unless I know that they refute Donald Trump,” said the Wilkins Township resident.

While many Republican candidates profess their support of Israel, Erlichman questions their motives.

“I think a lot of them just pay a lip service,” he said. “More than anything, I think their motives— I don’t think they are anti-Israel — but I think their motives are Christian nationalist motives. I’m sure all of them don’t feel that way. But Trump, he just has no moral compass.”

For Kramm, voting decisions should come down to pragmatism rather than party loyalty.

“I feel this applies to all Americans, but for us Jews specifically,” he said. “We have to be pragmatic. We cannot align with just one party. Because, I mean, obviously in the Republican Party, I would agree more with the not-Trump camp, but the Trumpism has really been growing in these past years, and it’s starting to lose me. And in the Democratic Party, I would agree more with the moderate camp than the farther-left Democrats and the Democratic Socialists that are also growing.” PJC

Toby Tabachnick can be reached at ttabachnick@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

Image by chayka1270 via Pixabay

Headlines

Kavod Garden grows near Flight 93 memorial site

By Adam Reinherz | Senior Sta Writer

STOYSTOWN, PA — A garden planted with memories is budding with new meaning. Down the road from the Flight 93 National Memorial in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, is the Remember Me Rose Garden. Visible 30,000 feet above land, the garden commemorates the 40 individuals aboard United Airlines Flight 93, who overtook terrorists and downed a plane headed toward Washington, D.C., on Sept. 11, 2001.

For years, volunteers have planted, pruned and weeded in hopes of preserving a story and fostering peace. On Oct. 27, overseers of the garden joined members of Pittsburgh’s Jewish community to dedicate the Kavod Garden.

Located 40 feet from the Rose Garden, the Kavod Garden is “part of an effort to create more spaces for reflection and prayer,” Squirrel Hill resident Lauren Mallinger said. “This project has been created in the spirit of interfaith connection and trust in the hopes that the garden can continue flourishing to provide safe places for all — for those of all faiths — to feel welcome.”

The two gardens are located on land purchased and donated by Families of Flight 93, a nonprofit formed by loved ones of those lost on Sept. 11.

Winter is coming

Months before Sunday’s dedication, Mallinger, a master gardener whose mother-in-law, Rose Mallinger, was among those murdered in the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, visited the Rose Garden and Memorial. The trip gave her insight into how certain plants survive Somerset County’s harsh winters.

Along with being located in Zone 5 (Pittsburgh is Zone 6), the Rose Garden sits atop “one of the highest points in Pennsylvania,” Clay Mankamyer said.

Mankamyer, the garden’s chairman, planted nearly 300 Knock Out roses there about 15 years ago.

“The first winter they all froze out,” he said.

Mankamyer experimented with other varieties also deemed hardy enough for the climate. Some worked. Most failed. Finally, Stephen Scanniello, curator of the New York Botanical Garden’s Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden, introduced Mankamyer to the Julie Andrews rose.

“He managed to get us a donation of about 350 of them. And the first winter I planted them we didn’t have a single loss,” Mankamyer said.

Over time, the garden evolved. Other shrubs and flowers were introduced. To date, there are more than 600 roses, 3,000 perennials, 51 trees, and nearly 1,000 daffodil and hyacinth bulbs in the spring, Mary Alice Mankamyer said.

“Mary Alice and Clay, they’re the heart and soul of this whole thing,” John Vento, a volunteer and Rose Garden board member, said.

Growth from ashes

On the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, Clay Mankamyer, a retired state trooper who lives “just over the ridge,” was among the first to arrive at the Flight 93 crash site.

“I toiled with it early on — the anger and the bitterness,” he said. “How do you get back at these people…the absolute hate and vitriol that was expressed by the hijackers that caused that plane to explode and forever change and shake up our little village of Shanksville and my home next door?”

Mankamyer’s answer arrived through prayer, he said. “When evil comes, when terror strikes, the answer is love, peace and beauty.”

For years, the Mankamyers have aided volunteers who regularly come to tend the garden.

Bill Cenk, vice president of the Rose Garden, got involved around 2010.

“My son Ryan was adamant that he would do his Eagle Scout project in some way to honor the heroes and their families, so he raised about $14,000 to buy teakwood benches and all the platform materials that are placed around the perimeter of the Remember Me Rose Garden,” Cenk said.

Ryan Cenk was diagnosed with a brain tumor in childhood and given a two-year

On Oct. 27, between dedicating the Kavod Garden and preparing the Rose Garden for winter, volunteers — some of whom arrived with the 10.27 Healing Partnership — quietly perused the area.

“It’s nice to know that this is out here,”

— for both Sept. 11 and Oct. 27 — is really important. We need more spaces like this in the country for people to come together instead of being split apart.”

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 Clay Mankamyer helps clean the Remember Me Rose Garden. Photo by Adam Reinherz  Volunteers prepare the Remember Me Rose Garden for winter on Oct. 27. Photo by Adam Reinherz

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Join Young Peoples Synagogue (Forbes and Denniston) for a Molly’s Trolley tour of Jewish Pittsburgh, led by Eric Lidji, director of Rauh Jewish Archives. A light breakfast will be followed by the tour. $36 per person, capped at 30 guests. 9 a.m. breakfast; 10 a.m. tour. For information or reservations email Rebecca.spiegel1@verizon.net.

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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.

 SUNDAY, NOV. 10

As the Jewish community commemorates the 86th anniversary of Kristallnacht, the November pogrom, the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh presents Music in Theresienstadt: A Conversation with Anna Hájková. The event connects the outbreak of public anti-Jewish violence in Nazi Germany with the remarkable cultural production in the Theresienstadt ghetto. 5:30 p.m. Free. Rodef Shalom Congregation, 4905 Fifth Ave. eventbrite.com/e/music-intheresienstadt-a-conversation-with-anna-ha.

 SUNDAY, NOV. 10–THURSDAY, NOV. 14

Congregation Beth Shalom will be hosting its firstever Jewish Book Festival. The festival is presented by the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle, and Carolyn Slayton and Seth Glick. Support Jewish authors. More information to follow. 5915 Beacon Street.

 TUESDAY, NOV. 12

Current Arab alliances in the Middle East reflect a complex web of relationships influenced by political, economic, and security interests. Understanding the Shifting Dynamics in the Middle East: Current Arab Alliances examines how the Israel-Hamas War has

a ected those relationships. 6 p.m. $10. Congregation Beth Shalom, Helfant Chapel, 5915 Beacon Street. tinyurl.com/2s3rampa.



WEDNESDAY, NOV. 13

The Squirrel Hill AARP Lunch Bunch will meet at Taipei Tokyo in Monroeville. Call Geri Linder at (412) 421-5868 for reservations by Nov. 7. President Marcia Kramer can be reached at (412) 656-5803 for further questions. 1 p.m.

Join Chabad of the South Hills for its senior lunch featuring a presentation on diabetes, meal planning and healthy eating. 1 p.m. $5 suggested donation. Call 412-278-2658 to register. 1701 McFarland Road. chabadsh.com.

 WEDNESDAYS, NOV. 13–DEC. 18

Chabad of the South Hills presents “Nurturing Relationships,” a new six-week course with Rabbi Mendel Rosenblum. Learn Jewish wisdom for building deeper connections in all your relationships. 7:30 p.m. Bower Hill Road. chabadsh.com.



TUESDAY, NOV. 19

Israel at War: Analyzing the Israeli Policies and their Implications will delve into the complexities behind the current Israeli government’s steadfastness in negotiating a peace deal, despite widespread protests both within Israel and internationally. It will explore the political, social and ideological factors contributing to this stance, examining how shifts in leadership, public sentiment and security concerns play a role. 6 p.m.

Congregation Beth Shalom, Helfant Chapel, 5915 Beacon Street. tinyurl.com/2xv7dk75.

 WEDNESDAY, NOV. 20

Join the Squirrel Hill AARP for its November meeting as it welcomes Christen Trenbulak, who represents all Medicare health insurance carriers. She will discuss changes in the 2025 health plans. 1 p.m. Rodef Shalom Congregation, Falk Library, 4905 Fifth Ave.

 WEDNESDAYS, NOV. 20; DEC. 18

Join AgeWell for the Intergenerational Family Dynamics Discussion Group at JCC South Hills. Led by intergenerational specialist Audree Schall. The group is geared toward anyone who has children, grandchildren, a spouse, siblings or parents. Whether you have family harmony or strife, these discussions will be thought-provoking, with tools to help build strong relationships and family unity. Free. 12:30 p.m.

 SATURDAY, NOV. 23

Tree of Life’s November Torah Studio is honored to host the Rev. Liddy Barlow. Rabbi Je rey Myers will join the Rev. Barlow for an interfaith Shabbat service and Torah discussion on Nov. 23 at 9:45 a.m. in Levy Hall at Rodef Shalom. 9:45 a.m. 4905 Fifth Ave. treeoflifepgh.org.

 SATURDAY, DEC. 7

Families with young children are invited to spend Shabbat morning with Rodef Shalom at its Shabbat with You. Drop in for a light breakfast, play date, sing-along with Cantor Toby and a Shabbat activity with Family Center Director Ellie Feibus. 9 a.m. $5 per family. 4905 Fifth Ave. rodefshalom.org/ shabbatwithyou. PJC

The Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle invites you to join the Chronicle Book Club for its Nov. 3 discussion of “Target Tehran: How Israel Is Using Sabotage, Cyberwarfare, Assassination — and Secret Diplomacy — to Stop a Nuclear Iran and Create a New Middle East,” by Yonah Jeremy Bob and Ilan Evyatar.

“Target Tehran” was the Wall Street Journal’s Best Book of the Year (politics) and winner of the Jewish Book Council’s Natan Notable Book Prize.

“One of the most accurate and fascinating books so far” (Michael Bar-Zohar, coauthor of “Mossad”) about how Israel used sabotage, assassination, cyberwar — and diplomacy — to thwart Iran’s development of nuclear weapons and, in the process, begin to reshape the Middle East.

Your hosts

Toby Tabachnick, editor of the Chronicle

David Rullo, Chronicle senior staff writer

How it works

Book Club” in the subject line. We will send you a Zoom link for the discussion meeting.

Bonus

Author Ilan Evyatar will be the keynote speaker at the Pittsburgh Jewish Book Festival, Nov. 10, at 7:30 p.m. at Congregation Beth Shalom. For more information about the Book Festival, go to bethshalompgh.org/ pjbf-november2024/.

Happy reading! PJC

We will meet on Zoom on Sunday, Nov. 3, at 1 p.m.

What to do

Buy: “Target Tehran.” It is available at some area Barnes and Noble stores and from online retailers, including Amazon. It is also available through the Carnegie Library system.

Email: Contact us at drullo@pittsburgh jewishchronicle.org, and write “Chronicle

Toby Tabachnick

Headlines

New chapter for Pittsburgh Jewish book festival

By Adam Reinherz | Senior Staff Writer

Pittsburghers are turning the page on a Jewish book festival. Nearly five years ago, Squirrel Hill residents Seth Glick and Carolyn Slayton brought a reading series to Rodef Shalom Congregation. Authors arrived, listeners came, the series eventually moved to Congregation Beth Shalom, “then COVID hit,” Glick said. “We tried it on Zoom, but like many things it lost steam.”

The Pittsburgh Jewish Book Festival is back, and Glick (a Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle board member) is eager to welcome new authors and new partners. Between Nov. 10-13 and again on Nov. 20, Pittsburghers can hear readings from celebrated writers including Ilan Evyater, Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove, Michael Solomonov and Steve Cook.

“We got a really good lineup,” Glick said. On the evening of Nov. 10, Evyater will read from his book, “Target Tehran: How Israel Is Using Sabotage, Cyberwarfare, Assassination — and Secret Diplomacy — to Stop a Nuclear Iran and Create a New Middle East.” The following night, Cosgrove will read from his book, “For Such a Time as This: On Being Jewish Today.” Solomonov and Cook, authors of “Zahav Home: Cooking for Friends & Family,” are slated to speak on Nov. 20.

Before the Nov. 10 and Nov. 11 keynote addresses, local writers will share selections from their works. Included among a bevy of talented authors is the Chronicle’s Senior Staff Writer David Rullo, who will read from his book “Gen X Pittsburgh: The Beehive and the ’90s Scene.”

Beth Shalom member and Derekh Coordinator Shari Woldenberg has dedicated many hours to the upcoming festival. After joining the Jewish Book Council and listening to more than 200 pitches from authors, she pared down the list and worked with Glick and Slayton to bring a select few to Pittsburgh.

The festival isn’t only about hearing from authors, Woldenberg said. It’s an opportunity to engage with community.

Kicking off the festival is a yoga session with Edith Brotman, author of “Mussar Yoga: Blending an Ancient Jewish Spiritual Practice with Yoga to Transform Body and Soul.”

During the festival there also will be a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a Hebrew book lending library, family programming and panel discussions, Woldenberg said. Eric Ackland, owner of Amazing Books & Records, is offering the authors’ books for

sale in the Beth Shalom lobby on Nov. 10-11 from noon to 6 p.m.

Several partners are making the festival possible. Along with Glick and Slayton’s support, the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle is the festival’s lead Community Partner.

Money raised from the festival will support Beth Shalom, “which has always given me a spiritual home,” Glick said. “This is a way to pay them back.”

Woldenberg expects more than 200 people to attend the festival. She hopes the event promotes more than empty words.

“I think people need to engage in diverse subjects, have civil discourse and learn,” she said. “It’s the only way we can understand our complicated world.”

The festival’s timing necessitates cool heads and meaningful discussion, Woldenberg continued.

“We will be coming out of our elections… We need to move forward,” she said. “The

world needs more opportunities to engage and not be so polarized.”

A full schedule of festival events is

p Shari Woldenberg

Photo courtesy of Shari Woldenberg

Headlines

Community Day School keeps memories alive during Oct. 27 commemoration

By Adam Reinherz | Senior Staff Writer

When teaching history, sometimes recent events are the hardest to cover. Six years after the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, Community Day School teachers wished to convey the story of Oct. 27, 2018, to middle schoolers. With help from survivors, victims’ families and representatives of the 10.27 Healing Partnership, educators framed Oct. 27 in an age-appropriate way.

“Six years ago, 11 souls were killed while they were davening, while they were praying to God, on a Shabbat morning,” Casey Weiss, CDS’ head of school, told students Monday morning. “To be at a Shabbat service, to spend your time reflecting in peace and love, is one of the most beautiful acts that we can do as Jews.”

Within the Tree of Life building were three congregations: Dor Hadash, New Light and Tree of Life, Maggie Feinstein, director of the 10.27 Healing Partnership, said. “It’s really important to us that we always remember that all three congregations worshiped there together. There were three different congregations, with different congregational leaders and different communities, but all doing the same thing and they frequently joined for lunch afterwards.”

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Y0066_SPRJ83891_C SPRJ83891

As services began, “unfortunately that day somebody who had hate in his heart came in and caused a lot of harm. Eleven people were murdered and 11 people survived and were able to get out that day.”

Part of what Oct. 27 entails is remembering “incredible people,” Feinstein continued. Several individuals from Pittsburgh’s Zone 4 police station entered the synagogue to save worshippers.

A lot of times in school, people talk about helpers; some of the “helpers” from that period were the jurors and others who participated in a judicial system, Feinstein added. “So as you guys are learning about the American government, it’s really important to think a little bit about what it takes to have a just society.”

While Oct. 27 is a day to recall the helpers and heroes, it’s also a chance to remember

“When we remember the 11, we remember acts of kindness, we remember generosity of spirit and we also remember the joy of being Jewish.”

—MAGGIE FEINSTEIN

“The police officers who came were heroic. They came quickly, and they wanted to help. And there were a lot of people who came to help them, and we remember them. And we remember their acts of heroism and bravery that day as well, that they were able to apprehend the person in the building.”

On that day and afterward there were other people, across the city and elsewhere, who stood up and stood together “against antisemitism, and that was really important for a lot of us who felt very scared after that event,” Feinstein said.

Almost five years from that day a trial began against the person who caused so much harm, and that person was “found guilty, and they’re in jail for the rest of their life,” she said. It’s important to remember that “there was a justice system that made sure that there was accountability.”

the 11 people who died and the things that made their lives special, Feinstein told the students.

For some of the 11, it was making a minyan. For others, it was putting out siddurim (prayer books) for people at shul. Some people would set up food for a kiddush lunch. Other people would lead services.

“When we remember the 11, we remember acts of kindness, we remember generosity of spirit and we also remember the joy of being Jewish,” Feinstein said. “They came for Shabbat, which is a joyous time. They showed up every week, and that’s something that we carry forward as a tradition as well.”

Following Feinstein’s remarks, short bios were read of Joyce Fienberg, Richard

p An Oct. 27 commemoration brought survivors, victims' families, community members and students together for an ageappropriate program at Community Day School on Oct. 28, 2024.

Photo by Adam Reinherz

Headlines

Mayor of Portland, Maine, says he regrets voting to divest from Israel

Last month the mayor of Portland, Maine, shocked Jewish communities in his backyard and beyond when he expressed full-throated support for his city council’s successful resolution to divest from companies linked to Israel. Now, Mayor Mark Dion is taking it all back, JTA reported.

“Upon personal reflection and following many private conversations I have had with our Jewish neighbors, I have come to the conclusion that my vote on the divestment was wrong,” Dion said during prepared remarks at last week’s city council meeting.

He went on to call his stance on divestment “pretentious,” “a serious mistake in judgment” and “a betrayal to the trust that Jewish people should expect from the mayor’s office.” Dion concluded his remarks by giving what he called a “sincere apology” for his vote.

The about-face was another whiplash moment in the battle around divestment that has taken on new urgency since Israel’s war with Hamas began after the terror group’s Oct. 7, 2023, attacks last year. Many colleges and universities have seen deep divisions over divestment proposals, and local governments have experienced their share as well.

Portland became the fourth, and highest-profile, American municipality since last Oct. 7 to back some form of divestment when its council unanimously approved a plan in September to withdraw city funds from dozens of companies it said were “complicit in the current and ongoing

humanitarian crisis in Gaza and occupation of Palestine.” Divestment proponents say the move is necessary to curb Israel’s retaliation in Gaza that has killed tens of thousands of people and reduced most of the enclave to rubble.

The vote came over the stern objections of many in the local Jewish community, including the Jewish Community Alliance of Southern Maine, the local federation arm, which denounced the move as a “one-sided” and “performative gesture.” Local Jewish pro-Palestinian activists voiced support for it, with the Maine chapter of the anti-Zionist group Jewish Voice for Peace celebrating its passage.

At the time, the mayor supported divestment, calling it “the greatest act of friendship” and said it was the city’s role to “grab [Israel’s] shoulder and say, ‘It’s enough. It’s simply enough.’”

UCLA allowed antisemitism to fester amid pro-Palestinian protests, task force concludes

A new report from a campus antisemitism task force accused the pro-Palestinian movement at the University of California, Los Angeles of triggering a torrent of abuse directed at Jewish and Israeli students, faculty and staff, according to JTA.

The 93-page report, released Oct. 22 by UCLA’s Task Force to Combat Antisemitism and Anti-Israeli Bias, said Jews on campus were assaulted and threatened while hateful expressions, including a swastika drawn on a classroom chalkboard and a protest sign that read, “Israelis are native 2 hell,” proliferated amid last spring’s pro-Palestinian encampment movement.

Made up of students and faculty members, the Task Force to Combat Antisemitism and

Today in Israeli History

Nov. 1, 1945 — Jewish resistance blows up rails across Palestine

The Jewish Resistance Movement sets off explosions at more than 150 sites along the railway system of Mandatory Palestine and blows up three British gunboats in the Jaffa and Haifa harbors on the Night of the Trains.

Nov. 2, 1955 — Ben-Gurion regains premiership

Israel’s first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, regains the post, replacing his successor, Moshe Sharett. Ben-Gurion largely retired in 1953, but he returned to the government as the defense minister Feb. 17, 1955.

Nov. 3, 1840 — Ottomans, Allies capture Acre

A coalition of Austrian, British and Ottoman forces commanded by Austrian Archduke Friedrich bombards the port city of Acre and drives out the garrison of Egyptian ruler Muhammad Ali’s last stronghold.

p Samuel A. Mitchell’s atlas, published in 1839, shows the seaport of Acre in the northwestern corner of the highlighted area.

Anti-Israeli Bias at UCLA said the impact of antisemitism and anti-Israel bias on campus could have been lessened if administrators had taken more action against violations of campus rules, such as the ban on camping overnight on university property.

The report said administrators took a light hand out of respect for UCLA’s tradition of free expression, but that this particular protest movement was an aberration of that tradition because it is the first in UCLA history to foster bias and hate against a national, ethnic or religious group.

“The post-October 7th protest movement is different from past movements: it claims to be aimed at protecting Palestinians and demanding greater accountability from the Israeli government, but it has at the same time unleashed hate speech and symbols, bias, and illegal and offensive behavior against Jews and Israelis on campus,” the task force said in the report.

Almost simultaneously with the release of the report, a group of pro-Palestinian campus members condemned UCLA’s leadership for being too harsh in its response to the protesters as they occupied parts of campus to demand the university divest endowment funds from companies doing business with the Israeli military.

11 pro-Palestinian protesters arrested at U of Minnesota for occupying and damaging administration building

Eleven protesters were arrested Oct. 21 at the University of Minnesota after storming an administrative building and vandalizing it as part of an effort to push the university to

divest from Israel, JTA reported.

The administration said they caused property damage and restricted access to the building.

The protest is the latest bout of campus activism to result in arrests during a new wave of anti-Israel activity this fall. It echoed a similar demonstration at Columbia University last spring, during the nationwide pro-Palestinian encampment movement, when activists occupied a campus building, leading to a police raid and dozens of arrests.

The Minnesota protest was organized by the campus’ chapter of Students for a Democratic Society, a left-wing activist group that first rose to prominence in the 1960s. The chapter has called on the university to end its policy of “neutrality” in its investing strategy, to divest from the country and to boycott its academic institutions, including by ending study abroad programs there.

In a post on X calling for students, faculty and alumni to “occupy” Morrill Hall, the university’s administrative headquarters, the protest organizers accused the school of “complicity” in “a year of the genocide in Palestine.” It also demanded that the university grant “full amnesty for students, staff, faculty, and community members disciplined or fired for pro-Palestinian actions, including renowned genocide scholar Raz Segal.”

In June, the university rescinded an offer to Segal to serve as the faculty director of its Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, after he said Israel’s military campaign in Gaza was “a textbook case of genocide unfolding in front of our eyes.” PJC

–Jarrad Saffren

Nov. 4, 1966 — Syria, Egypt sign defense treaty Egypt and Syria sign a mutual defense treaty and create a joint military command amid constant, low-level violence on the IsraeliSyrian border. U.S. intelligence reports suggest that the Soviets are behind the treaty.

Nov. 5, 1933 — Hebrew U. presents expan sion plan

Judah Magnes, the president of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, opens the academic year by outlining a plan for the university’s expansion, including the hiring of 14 professors ousted in Nazi Germany.

p Hebrew University President Judah Magnes delivers his yearopening speech Nov. 5, 1933. Courtesy of Arthur Goren from “Dissenter in Zion,” 1982

Nov. 6, 1884 — Hovevei Zion holds first gathering

Delegates gather in Katowice — now in Poland, then part of Prussia — for the first conference of the rapidly spreading Hovevei Zion (Lovers of Zion) movement, almost 13 years before the First Zionist Congress.

Nov. 7, 1944 — Hannah Senesh is executed Haganah paratrooper and poet Hannah Senesh is killed by a Hungarian firing squad in Budapest five months after being captured on a mission to free prisoners of war and organize Jewish resistance. PJC

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

ISRAEL —

Headlines

October 27:

Continued from page 1

on Aug. 30 at the University of Pittsburgh’s campus by a man wearing a keffiyeh.

Goodwin noted that what he and Gordon experienced paled in comparison to the horrors of Oct. 27, but he never thought he would be attacked in Pittsburgh while walking on Shabbat. The antisemitic attack on a friend just a short time after his own assault, Goodwin said, “shattered my reality more than the initial attack.”

Gordon said that although he came to Pitt three years after the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, he felt the impact of the day. The Jewish community at Pitt, he said, is strong and filled with pride, even in light of recent campus unrest.

“You cannot live constantly looking over your shoulder in fear of being attacked on the street for being visibly Jewish,” he said. “You can, however, be proud of who you are. You can wear your kippah, wear your Magen David and go to shul, embrace the love of your community and hold hands with your neighbors who are

Continued from page 1

rabbinic lineage stretching back 15 generations, into the 1600s.

He was born into an era of unprecedented cultural inclusion for German Jewry, but his childhood followed the decline of the country into the depravity of the Nazi era.

His family lived on the grounds of their Augsburg synagogue, and so he witnessed firsthand the Kristallnacht attacks on Nov. 9, 1938. His family spent two years in transit, frantically escaping Germany for London, then sailing to New York, and finally settling in Springfield, Missouri, where his father was hired as a congregational rabbi.

Although he was actively discouraged from becoming a rabbi, Jacob saw the rabbinate as a way to pursue his twin interests of scholarship and social justice with more authority and autonomy than he might find as either an academic or a social worker.

In addition to the typical responsibilities of pastoral care, moral guidance and religious education, Jacob believed a rabbi could pursue non-religious communal initiatives based around personal enthusiasms. He called this work “the broader role of the rabbi” and felt it was America’s unique contribution to the history of the rabbinate.

And so, when he and his wife Irene were unable to find compassionate living arrangements for their daughter Claire, who had severe developmental disabilities, they joined with other parents in the mid-1970s to create Horizon Homes, which sponsored the first group home in the region. Starting from a single home on Negley Avenue, it now supports some 350 people living in more than 50 homes as Mainstay Life Services.

After decades pursuing gardening as a hobby, Jacob assisted his wife Irene’s efforts to build the Biblical Botanical Gardens on the grounds of Rodef Shalom Congregation in the 1980s. It became one of the most successful interfaith initiatives in the history of the congregation, bringing thousands of people through the synagogue.

Well aware of the limitations facing small Jewish communities throughout the country,

followed by “A Prayer for Our Country,” led by first responders Justin Sypolt, Jerry Wasek, Officer Michael Smidga and Mandy Tinkey.

Amy and Eric Mallinger and Steven Wedner, grandchildren of Rose Mallinger, read “A Prayer for Peace” before concluding thoughts were delivered by Noah Schoen, the Holocaust

of October 27, an oral history project that

S choen connected the yearly cycle of Torah readings and the annual commemoration ceremony.

“Let’s keep telling stories about that day, about the people who we lost and the people who touched us, about what we can’t yet seem to get over and about what we never expected

Jacob launched the Associated American Jewish Museums in the 1990s to create traveling exhibits, attracting more than 50,000 visitors nationally on a small budget.

And in his retirement, Jacob embarked on what amounted to a second career, reviving liberal Judaism in Germany. Working with Rabbi Walter Homolka, Jacob founded the Abraham Geiger College in 1999. It was the first rabbinic seminary in Germany since World War II. It has since ordained and invested more than 50 rabbis and cantors, leading to a revival of liberal Judaism across Central and Eastern Europe.

Jacob spent most of his active career at Rodef Shalom working alongside Dr. Solomon B. Freehof, one of the most prominent Reform rabbis in the world at the time.

Like Freehof, Jacob’s scholarship focused on developing a liberal interpretation of halakha, the Jewish religious system guiding human activity. His primary vehicle was responsa, the ancient rabbinic tradition of answering practical religious quandaries.

Jacob first served under Freehof on the Central Conference of American Rabbis’ Responsa Committee and later succeeded Freehof as its chair, writing hundreds of responsa. He left the committee upon becoming president of the CCAR in the early 1990s but continued to write private responsa. Jacob later founded the Freehof Institute of Progressive Halahkah to further develop the intellectual underpinnings of the movement.

Jacob was part of a traditional wing of the

Attendees were greeted by mosaics inspired

Reform movement that sought to develop standards for a progressive approach to daily Jewish living. By the mid-1990s, he was actively calling for the movement to set enforceable community standards to offset the growth of individual autonomy. Few were enthusiastic to

Despite this conservative stance, Jacob accommodated radical changes when he felt it served he interests of liberal Judaism as a whole. His 1983 responsum justifying patrilineal descent is among the most consequential religious documents in American Jewish history, firmly setting eform Judaism apart from the rest of global

Jacob graduated from Drury College in Springfield in 1950 and was ordained at Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati in 1955. Before settling in Pittsburgh, he held student positions at small congregations in Indiana, Kentucky, Oklahoma and Texas, and served as a traveling U.S. Air Force chaplain across a gigantic swath of the South Pacific.

He first arrived at Rodef Shalom in 1955 as an assistant rabbi, while still a rabbinic student. He returned to the congregation in 1957, after his ordination and tour of duty, and he remained with the congregation the rest of his life, becoming an associate rabbi, and then senior rabbi, and settling into a long role as rabbi emeritus. His 69-year affiliation at Rodef Shalom is likely the longest rabbinic tenure in local Jewish history.

Jacob was senior rabbi of Rodef Shalom from 1966 to 1996, a three-decade stretch when American Jewry experienced unprecedented cultural acceptance, requiring community leaders to adopt new strategies for maintaining religious identification.

In his years leading the congregation, Jacob navigated generation gaps, calls for bringing social justice initiatives into religious life, a desire to integrate traditional observances into a liberal setting, the growing importance of Israel in Jewish identity, the integration of Soviet Jewry, the need to address gender inequalities within the synagogue, the demand of gay and lesbian Jews to be treated as equals, the rise of intermarriage, and growing divides between the movements of liberal Judaism and traditional Orthodoxy.

by grief and healing and created by students at Community Day School, Kentucky Ave. School, Pittsburgh Greenfield K-8, St. Edmund’s Academy and Sterrett Classical Academy.

Local politicians who attended the ceremony included Allegheny County Chief Executive Sara Innamorato; Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey; State Rep. Dan Frankel; State Sen. Jay Costa; City Council members Barb Warwick and Erika Strassburger; City Controller Rachael Heisler; Allegheny County Council members Sam DeMarco and Paul Klein; County Controller Corey O’Connor; U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio; former Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald; Dave McCormick, the Republican candidate for U.S. Senate; and James Hayes, the Republican candidate for Congress, District 14.

Commemoration activities conclude this year on Nov. 18 and 19 with Torah study at the Squirrel Hill JCC, honoring the yahrzeit of the 11 people killed in the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting. PJC

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

Jacob was skilled at managing change, always looking for the right moment and the right partners, and taking care to address the needs of older and younger generations.

Perhaps more consequential than any ritual or liturgical innovation, Jacob helped change the emotional tenor of Rodef Shalom, leaving behind the austere reverence of the early 20th century in favor of warmth, collaboration and informality. “Anything that makes the rabbi more distant from the congregation is, to my mind, wrong,” he once said.

Jacob wore a suit instead of rabbinic robes. He encouraged congregants to call him “Walter,” rather than “doctor” or “rabbi.” He embraced the pastoral side of being a rabbi, sometimes making dozens of hospital calls in a single day to visit sick congregants.

Among his most astonishing accomplishments was his relationship to personal hardship. His childhood was marked by dislocation and poverty. All three of his children died during his lifetime, and his parents died from a carbon monoxide leak. His beloved wife, Irene, and younger brother Herbert both died from difficult illnesses. The final years of his life were spent watching painful challenges unfold at the Abraham Geiger College.

Jacob seemed to understand that these experiences gave him the authority to compassionately assist others through the struggles of their life. But otherwise he insisted on viewing his own life with gratitude and optimism and an eye ever toward the future.

“The future is ours to shape as we please, for our success, or our needless doom,” he said in his college commencement speech. “Success can only come with hope. We can not look for hope in external sources, we must look toward ourselves as individuals. We must rebuild a faith in the basic goodness of mankind by more fully trusting ourselves as individuals, knowing and believing that each of us can stop the imminent disaster.” PJC

Eric Lidji is the director of the Rauh Jewish Archives at the Heinz History Center and can be reached at rjarchives@heinzhistorycenter. org or 412-454-6406. He is the author of “The Seventeenth Generation: The Lifework of Rabbi Walter Jacob.”

Jacob:

p Rabbi Walter Jacob receiving the Knight Commander of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic from German Ambassador to the United States Juergon Chrobog, June 1999

p More than 400 community members gathered to honor the victims and survivors of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting.

Photo by Joshua Franzos

Headlines

Garden:

A star is born

Continued from page 5

The Kavod Garden is based on a design by landscape architect Natalie Plecity. Mallinger, Vento and other volunteers came to the site months ago to arrange the shrubs, perennials and grasses according to Plecity’s drawing.

“I like to joke that we don’t have enough plants in the garden. We only planted 500,” Vento said.

Pointing to the bushes, Mallinger said the lilacs were chosen to withstand both the climate and local deer.

With time, the 500 plants will grow and achieve an aerial effect like the Rose Garden’s compass design. Once the Kavod Garden’s lilacs mature and its flowers bloom, pilots, flight attendants and travelers 30,000 feet above can peer down and see the plantings, which form a Star of David.

Squirrel Hill resident Alan Mallinger called the Kavod Garden a “wonderful project of unity between different religions.”

“The fact that their community, which faced such a tragedy, reached out to our community who also faced such a tragedy — and that we can join communities through our mourning and revitalization — it’s a rebirth,” Lauren Mallinger said. “Out of the ashes comes the phoenix.”

The Kavod Garden rests 40 feet from the Rose Garden. On the other side of

Commemoration: Continued from page 8

Gottfried, Rose Mallinger, Jerry Rabinowitz, Cecil Rosenthal, David Rosenthal, Bernice Simon, Sylvan Simon, Daniel Stein, Melvin Wax and Irving Younger. Victims’ families, survivors of the attack and students read prepared pieces before lighting yahrzeit candles. Mourner’s Kaddish was recited.

Before the program’s close, Michal Schachter, a first grade Hebrew teacher at the school, displayed a mosaic that she and sixth graders made. In the work, a tree pushes out into the sky while burying its roots.

There’s a lot of symbolism in the piece, Shachter said. Beneath the tree are 11 roots, and bursting forth above are 11 branches. There are also 11 colors included in the mosaic.

the Rose Garden, also 40 feet away, is a large wooden cross.

Mankamyer erected it at the crash site shortly after arriving on scene in 2001, he said. When the memorial was established, there were concerns about displaying a religious symbol at a national park. The cross was eventually moved to the Rose Garden and placed at a “point of prominence.”

The tree, Schachter said, was made of glass “because it’s bulky and it’s strong.”

A corresponding piece includes the Hebrew names of each of the 11 people who died on Oct. 27. Both works will be displayed at the Jewish day school.

Leigh Stein, a first grade teacher at CDS, organized Monday’s program. Her father, Daniel Stein, was among the 11 murdered

‘We must cultivate our garden’

Lauren Mallinger and her husband, Alan, attended the Oct. 27 dedication wearing hats bearing rose emblems.

Being here is sort of ironic, Alan Mallinger said. “My mother’s name is Rose. We actually have a garden outside of the JCC, which is called Rose’s Garden. The Remember Me Rose Garden is not in memory of my mother but there’s a parallel, and the Kavod Garden certainly ties it all together.”

In Hebrew, kavod means honor or respect. The word’s three-letter root “דבכ” means heavy or weighty. Throughout the Bible, the word is used in both a negative and positive sense.

Before returning to Squirrel Hill to gather with family at Rose’s Garden at the JCC, Lauren Mallinger told the Chronicle the burden of responsibility rests on every individual.

The Kavod Garden honors the “diversity of faith that was on that plane that day,” Vento said.

“We know that there were not only four Jewish people on the plane, but there were other people of faith — there was a Buddhist, there were people without faith — and the Kavod Garden represents that diversity that up until today we have not had.”

“It’s very important for people to give of themselves in whatever manner they deem fit. I love gardening. This spoke to me. And this helps me in my grief,” she said. “But if you feel like contributing or doing something else, whether it’s studying Torah or whatever, you should. You should think about ways that you can improve yourself, and give to your community.”

PJC

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

during the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting.

Telling the story of Oct. 27 to middle schoolers is important, and incorporating survivors, victims’ families and community members is a “must,” she said. It’s essential that students make the connection and know that “we’re real people, and

that this is something that happened in our community.”

Stein thanked members of the family group for providing “overwhelming” support and helping “keep the memories alive.”

Recalling history isn’t easy, but it’s imperative, Stein said. “It’s important for the kids to know the story of what happened on that fateful day — Oct. 27, 2018 — and the only way that they’re going to find out is if we tell the story.” PJC

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

p Community Day School educator Leigh Stein speaks about her dad, Daniel Stein, during an Oct. 27 commemoration at the Jewish day school. Photo by Adam Reinherz

p Community Day School educator Michal Schachter describes a mosaic she and sixth graders made. Photo by Adam Reinherz

p Community Day School student Eli Eidinger participates in Monday’s program. Photo by Adam Reinherz

p Lauren Mallinger stands near the Kavod Garden on Oct. 27. Photo by Adam Reinherz

Standing together on Nov. 10

Guest Columnist

William C. Daroff and

Eric D. Fingerhut

As leaders of the American Jewish community, we understand well that our strength lies in our unity. On Nov. 10, 2024, we invite you to join us in Washington, D.C. for the “Stand Together” unity event — a powerful gathering that embodies our collective commitment to stand with Israel, support the hostages, combat antisemitism and thank the U.S. military for its support of our ally. The Jewish community’s diversity is vast — in how we pray, from where we come, for whom we vote and so much more. But on these values that we will celebrate on Nov. 10, the entire Jewish people can come together. In these challenging times, it is more important than ever to show solidarity and unity. The rise of antisemitism is not just a Jewish issue; it is a societal one that threatens the fabric of our democracy. Together, we can

send a clear statement: Hatred and division will not prevail. This is an especially crucial message to convey as we will gather just days after the presidential election. No matter the outcome, we will display to America that the Jewish community stands united.

The “Stand Together” event will also honor our heroes and allies. The day before Veterans Day, this event is also an opportunity to express our gratitude to the U.S. military and to our civic partners, whose unwavering support helps safeguard our freedoms and values. We are grateful for their commitment to justice and security, and we must recognize that our shared values are what bind us.

This event will feature high-level speakers, inspiring performers and stories of heroism that reflect the spirit of our community. We have the privilege of hearing from leaders who have dedicated their lives to the fight against antisemitism and who exemplify the strength of our people. Their insights and experiences will inspire us all to take action in our own communities.

Moreover, we recognize the vital role of young people in shaping the future of our Jewish community. We must engage and empower the next generation to take up the

mantle of leadership, fostering a culture of resilience and unity. This event is a space for students, families and individuals of all ages to connect and share their stories, reinforcing the idea that we are stronger together.

We also know that diversity is a hallmark of our community. Our differences enrich us and contribute to our strength. At “Stand Together,” we celebrate this diversity while reaffirming our common purpose. This gathering is not just about addressing the challenges we face; it is about envisioning a future where our communities thrive, united by shared values and mutual respect.

American Jewry’s dedication to Israel, as it fights a just war on several fronts, will also be spotlighted. Since the Hamas pogrom of Oct. 7, 2023, the Jewish people have mobilized to support the return of our hostages, the elimination of terror threats in Gaza, Lebanon, Yemen and Iran, and the return of peace and stability to the north and south of Israel. American Jews have contributed billions of dollars to our brethren in Israel and stood strong against forms of demonization and delegitimization targeting the Jewish state and Jews as a whole. This has been a communitywide effort,

ranging from IDF soldiers on the front line to our students on college campuses who have not wavered in the face of antisemitism.

As we prepare for this significant event, we encourage everyone to attend. This is a free gathering, but it is vital that you register through your local federation or partner organizations. If you are not connected to a local group, we invite you to reach out to us. We want to ensure that everyone who wishes to be part of this momentous occasion can do so.

Let us seize this moment to gather, celebrate and reaffirm our commitment to one another and to the values we all hold dear. Together, we can make a difference. We look forward to seeing you in Washington on Nov. 10. Stand with us, stand for Israel and stand against hatred. Together, we can create a brighter future for our community and for generations to come. For more information, and to secure free tickets to the event, you may visit: standtogethernovember10.org. PJC

William Daroff is chief executive officer of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations; Eric Fingerhut is president and CEO of the Jewish Federations of North America.

Israel restored deterrence against Iran…for now

Guest Columnist

Amost Yadlin

Nearly a month after Iran’s Oct. 1 missile attack, Israel responded early Saturday morning with an unprecedented, wide, and publicized Israeli strike on Iran. The attack brought Tehran into the line of fire for the first time since the Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s. A year after the Simchat Torah catastrophe, Israel has achieved yet another significant success, strengthening its deterrence against Iran and across the region. However, it is essential to remember that the military achievements across all arenas have not yet been translated by the political echelon into arrangements that would improve Israel’s long-term strategic position. It is equally crucial to temper our perspective on these accomplishments when considering a formidable nation like Iran, which has extensive missile capabilities, strategic patience and a willingness to sacrifice.

In this strike, the Israel Defense Forces demonstrated an operational capacity normally reserved for major powers, involving complex planning, high-quality intelligence and use of large-scale munitions over distances of 1,400-1,600 kilometers, crossing intermediary countries’ airspaces with in-air refueling. Israeli Air Force jets and the munitions they carried managed to penetrate Iran’s defense systems, hit their targets precisely, and return safely, after successfully striking approximately 20 highvalue military and security targets across Iran. Comparing the Iranian attack to the Israeli response underscores the asymmetry between the two sides, due to Israel’s advanced capabilities and its technological and military superiority, partly provided by U.S. resources and partly developed by Israel’s defense industries. Iran

attacked with masses of missiles and drones to overwhelm defense systems, terrorize and inflict damage. Many of its missiles failed during launch or flight, most were intercepted by Israel and the U.S.’ advanced defense systems, while others missed their targets and hit civilian areas. By contrast, Israel executed targeted, precise strikes, where each munition hit its intended target, benefiting from a significant advantage in both defensive and civil preparedness. Still, due to the size difference between the countries, Iran manages to send a large portion of Israel’s population into shelters, while on its vast territory this is not the case, partly due to the lack of an organized warning system.

Despite the powerful blow dealt to Iran, Israel’s response logic appears intended to “close” the current round while signaling a clear future threat. Israel was compelled to respond to the Iranian attacks in April and October but refrained from targeting nuclear or energy sites, and emphasized that only military targets — such as missile and UAV launch and production bases — were struck. The destruction of these assets also serves Western interests, as Iran supplies them to Russia in the Ukraine war. In addition, Israel targeted air defense sites to clear a future operational path and highlight Iran’s vulnerability as a warning against continued escalation. The choice of targets and the logic behind the strike reflect the close dialogue with Washington and U.S. pressure to limit the strike and avoid broader escalation ahead of the U.S. elections. But Israel, too, has a vested interest in avoiding the opening of another attrition front. Therefore, the ultimate purpose of this strike was to restore deterrence against Iran and remove it as a front of direct confrontation, allowing the IDF to focus on consolidating its achievements in the north and increasing pressure on Hamas in the south.

Israel did not seek U.S. approval for the strike but closely considered Washington’s stance, aligning expectations and plans. The impact will unfold in the long term through

joint assessments concerning Iran, and in the immediate term, with the deployment of THAAD batteries to reinforce Israel’s defense against potential Iranian retaliation, alongside American messages to Iran urging restraint.

Coordination with the U.S. administration is crucial, signaling to Iran that continued conflict with Israel could result in even greater damage and might lead to expanded U.S. involvement, especially as political constraints are expected to ease after the Nov. 5 elections. Still, in its public statement following the strike, the U.S. linked itself to the strike solely in a defensive context, supporting Israel’s right to self-defense while distancing itself from direct involvement. Meanwhile, additional reinforcements for Central Command were reported, with fighter jets transferred from Germany.

Regionally, both Israel and the U.S. had previously worried that an overt strike on Iran could trigger responses from Hezbollah in Lebanon and other proxies from Yemen, Iraq and Syria. Today, it is clear that Hezbollah has lost its ability to deter Israel from striking Iran — after Tehran has invested tens of billions in it over recent decades —evidence of the erosion of Iran’s proxy strategy, especially given the significant blows Israel has dealt Hezbollah over the past year.

Before Israel’s strike, the Iranians threatened a rapid response in order to “have the last word,” risking additional Israeli retaliation. However, it appears the Iranian regime has chosen to reassess the strike’s results and determine its response accordingly. Iran is downplaying Israel’s strike as “weak,” attempting to downplay its severity with false claims that most of the munitions were intercepted and caused no significant damage. Thus, four main scenarios can be outlined for Iran’s response:

1. Iran closes the current exchange with no response or a symbolic one, allowing the incident to end.

2. Iran changes its approach and opts for an attritional strategy, launching small numbers

of missiles over a prolonged period. Although challenging for Israel, it can deter Iran from this path and potentially leverage it to hit targets that it left intact.

3. Iran escalates, expanding its attack to Israeli targets or other regional states perceived to support the Israeli strike.

4. Iran concludes its deterrence against Israel and the U.S. using proxies and missiles has been severely compromised, and advances its pursuit of nuclear weapons — the most concerning scenario for Israel.

Even if the first scenario is most likely, Israel must prepare for the worse options, for potential Iranian retaliation including a preventive response with stronger defense augmented by the U.S. THAAD battery. In such a case, it would be prudent to consider the next steps alongside the U.S. immediately following the elections, this time preparing to target higher-value objectives, such as infrastructure, regime assets, or possibly nuclear targets. Israel must reach an understanding with the U.S., which shares its goal of preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, and formulate a strategic and operational plan in case of an Iranian nuclear breakout.

Israel must also avoid a protracted war of attrition with Iran and its proxies, leveraging the closure of the Iranian exchange of strikes to prevent further escalation in the multi-front conflict — a situation that Israel’s political leadership also contributes to. It is time to translate the military successes achieved over recent months into sustainable strategic and political gains, especially in Gaza and Lebanon, with a focus on securing the quick return of the hostages. Only political actions and diplomatic arrangements that complement the military efforts will enable the preservation of the military achievements and prevent them from being eroded in an endless war of attrition. PJC

Major General (ret.) Amos Yadlin, former head of the IDF Military Intelligence Directorate, is the president of MIND Israel.

Chronicle poll results: Which presidential candidate is better for Israel?

Last week, the Chronicle asked its readers in an electronic poll the following question: “Which presidential candidate is better for Israel?” Of the 380 people who responded, 60% said “Kamala Harris”; 32% said “Donald Trump”; 5% said “Other; and 3% said they had no opinion. Comments were submitted by 109 people. A few follow:

I think a more important question would be which candidate is better for our country.

Sadly, Trump is best for Israel but awful for the USA.

Trump did more for Israel than Biden-Harris. Trump will stop Iran’s nuclear program; Harris will not.

I think Donald Trump is a vulgar person who disrespects the office of the president. Nevertheless, I feel he is the stronger candidate when it comes to Israel and geopolitics in the Middle East.

John Kelly, Trump’s former chief of staff, has quoted Trump as saying that “Hitler did a lot of good things.” That, in addition to Trump trying to overthrow the results of the 2020 elections should be enough for any Jewish person not to trust him to do the right things.

Certainly not Harris and who knows with Trump.

Hands down Donald Trump.

Trump is an extremist, an overt antisemite and a fascist. We cannot be one-issue voters. We need to vote holistically. There is no scenario where Trump is better for the U.S. and better for Israel.

In theory Trump’s positions are better for Israel than Harris’, but Trump is so mercurial that no one can count on him. Harris won’t be great for Israel but she won’t be terrible.

They’re both bad for Israel. Harris buys into the delusion that Israel can make Iran and its proxies behave by withdrawing (surrendering),

Democrats are promoting antisemitism, not fighting it

I am responding to various political advertisements in the Oct. 25 issue of the Chronicle and the J Street letter to the editor. I would like to set the record straight.

Sanctions: President Donald Trump imposed sanctions on Iran. President Joe Biden lifted the sanctions. As a result Iran has received billions of dollars that it wouldn’t have received if the Trump sanctions had been in effect. Most of that money has been used to support Hamas, Hezbollah the Houthis, the Iranian military, or other organizations dedicated to the destruction of Western civilization. Kamala Harris hasn’t called for reinstating the sanctions.

Defense of Israel: The Democrats won’t admit it, but their policy toward Israel has been, “We support Israel’s right to defend itself as long as it can find a way to do so without offending Hamassympathizing voters in Michigan”.

On Oct. 8, 2023, President Biden should have cut off all aid to Gaza until the hostages who were citizens of the U.S. or our NATO allies were released. Instead, all that he seemed to care about was helping the Gazans. The Biden administration is opposed to Israel’s destroying Iran’s nuclear program.

If Kamala Harris and Bob Casey are really friends of Israel, why aren’t they campaigning against Rep. Summer Lee and other members of the “Squad”?

Antisemitism: The primary source for modern antisemitism in the U.S. is not the “Great Replacement Theory” or neo-Nazi organizations. It is the interaction of DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) programs with critical race theory and intersectionality. Under these progressive doctrines you are not an individual. You are a member of a group, and the world is divided by groups into victims and oppressors. White people are oppressors, and all Jews, including Black, Hispanic, and Asian Jews, are considered white. Palestinians are considered to be victims. The Democrats have mandated the teaching of DEI to federal employees, including the military.

In 2023 Gov. Tim Walz signed a Minnesota a law mandating the teaching of “liberated ethnic studies” in public schools. Once the program is implemented, every public school student in Minnesota is going to be taught that Israel is engaged in settler colonialism. A student will need to either be an antisemite or fake being one to graduate from a public high school (and maybe eventually grade school).

The Democrats are promoting antisemitism, not fighting it.

Kamala Harris is, and has always been a progressive, or if you prefer, a San Francisco leftist. The political left is not supporting Israel and is promoting antisemitism. Anyone who wants to fight antisemitism or to help Israel should be voting Republican, especially for James Hayes who is running against Summer Lee.

Jim Silverman Squirrel Hill

and Trump is a fickle friend who won’t really support Israel if his friend Putin objects.

They both prevaricate, waffle, mislead, and dissemble about Middle East issues. Actions speak louder than words. The Abraham Accords were a huge accomplishment, but I think that achievement was mostly a mirage and not a true revelation of any genuine motives.

Trump is a true friend to Israel and Jews. Harris is a threat to democracy, peace, America, Israel and the free world.

I care first about the American Jewish community and which candidate is best for us. And unless the American Jewish community is allowed to thrive, Israel is in grave trouble.

Harris would be a disaster for Israel and the USA as we know it. Any Jew voting for Harris-Walz is voting against his own people.

Trump’s former national security advisor John Bolton said his support for Israel cannot be counted on in a second term like it was in the first. J.D. Vance will likely play a dominant role in the administration and he voted against aid for Israel and has isolationist views and rhetoric on this. In Michigan, Trump and his allies have been targeting Muslim voters with attacks on Kamala Harris for supporting Israel. No president has done more for Israel than Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will continue that.

Without a Palestine solution, Israel cannot achieve lasting peace. Lasting peace involves coexistence with Arab nations that require a stable Palestine. Donald Trump does not support Palestinian rights. Kamala Harris is both committed to the well-being of Israel and the fair treatment of Palestine citizens.

Only because Trump is so unpredictable, I have to go with Harris, but I am concerned about her current choice of Middle East advisers.

Right-wing Jews will say Donald Trump. And they have a point if “better” means providing unconditional U.S. military aid and giving Israeli leadership a free hand to do whatever. But Harris may be better for those who want to see Israel remain a democratic, Jewish state — one that the rest of the world still respects and that respects and abides by international norms and laws.

I would say Donald Trump but frankly I don’t believe any promises or commitments he makes. Further, Harris is a panderer, so who really knows what she’ll do, either? PJC

— Compiled by Toby Tabachnick

Chronicle weekly poll question: Do you think the level of security at the synagogue you frequent is sufficient? Go to pittsburghjewishchronicle.org to respond. PJC

We live in a challenging time to be Jewish in the United States. After what happened at the Tree of Life synagogue, we do not need to be reminded of the timeless danger of “the antisemitism of the right.”

At the same time, the “antisemitism of the left” laid bare since Oct. 7 has been jarring. We have a lot of work to do, in education, outreach and mutual understanding, as do our many friends in such communities who rallied to our support after the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting.

This is an important job, and it will take decades. But as an existential threat, this is tomorrow’s issue. The existential threat of an authoritarian government is staring us in the face Right Now. No one hearing the racist (and not infrequently antisemitic) hate spewing from Trump and his campaign should have any illusions about a second Trump term. The people who at least partly reined in Trump’s first term are gone, and they almost all describe Trump as unfit and dangerous. If this election is about “making sure the country is safe,” as Ms. Schachter argues, should this erratic and rage-filled man command the military and hold the nuclear codes?

There also is no assurance that this nightmare would last only four years. Would there be fair elections in 2028 and beyond? That’s not what autocracies do. When is the next fair election in Russia? China?

As Ms. Schachter points out, Israel is a central issue. In our community, there is a range of deeply held views as to what is best for Israel. I respectfully submit that, wherever you are in that range, Trump winning would not be better for Israel. Trump is transactional, impulsive and fundamentally untrustworthy. Who knows how Trump would react to any given issue? Trump also bows to autocrats, especially Putin, who has an important relationship with Iran. How will that play out?

The most important thing for the preservation of Israel is the maintenance of a free society in the United States, where 40% of the world’s Jews live, and which is essential to the survival of Israel.

Kamala Harris would not be a perfect president. But she’s normal, the way that candidates from both parties over the years have been normal. The critiques of Kamala Harris, as to Israel and otherwise, are overwhelmingly outweighed by the risk that Trump presents.

It would be tragic if, six years after the greatest wake-up call to Jews in the history of this country happened in the heart of Squirrel Hill, the Jewish community of Pittsburgh played a leading role in bringing a revenge-driven authoritarian back to power, by voting for Donald Trump or not voting at all. Please vote for Kamala Harris.

Mike Lowenstein Pittsburgh

A Trump victory would not be better for Israel

Thank you for the Oct. 11 opinion pieces from Rabbi Jamie Gibson (“What do you value?”) and Abby Schachter (“Why vote Trump? To let Israel win”). It is important for our community to consider opposing viewpoints on vital issues. I strongly agree with Rabbi Gibson and respectfully disagree with Ms. Schachter.

We invite you to submit letters for publication. Letters must include name, address and daytime phone number; addresses and phone numbers will not be published. Letters may not exceed 500 words and may be edited for length and clarity; they cannot be returned. Send letters to: letters@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org or Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle, 5915 Beacon St., 5th Floor, Pittsburgh, PA 15217

We regret that owing to the volume of correspondence, we cannot reply to every letter.

Life & Culture

Olive and rosemary focaccia

By Jessica Grann | Special to the Chronicle

We had so many meals with challah or pita during the last few weeks and I was ready for a change.

This recipe takes me back to eating in Italian restaurants with baskets full of warm bread and lots of olive oil for dipping. It’s a versatile recipe and beginner bakers can make this easily, although it takes about three hours because the dough needs to rise several times — but the dough is soft and easy to work with and it bakes quickly.

The best thing about this bread is that you can eat it shortly after you remove it from the oven. When I make baguette or sandwich loaves, it’s hard to wait for them to cool completely.

This recipe gives almost instant gratification after baking. The edges get crispy from the olive oil and it can get a bit addictive. Use a stronger, good quality olive oil for the best flavor.

Omit the olives if that’s not your thing, but the rosemary adds a beautiful and subtle scent. Choose Kalamata olives or any other flavorful, salty olive. I happened to have some leftover mixed green and black Israeli canned olives. While I didn’t care for them in my salad because they were soft from soaking in brine,

they were amazing in the focaccia. There is almost always a way to repurpose ingredients into something that you’ll love.

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons yeast

2 cups warm water

4 cups all-purpose flour, plus 2-4 extra tablespoons, if needed

2 ¼ teaspoons kosher salt

3 tablespoons olive oil, divided ¾ cup pitted Mediterranean olives

1 ½-2 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves

Boil 1 cup of water, pour it into a liquid measuring cup and add 1 cup of cool water. The best water temperature for proofing

yeast is about 110 F; 100 F is too cold and 120 F is too hot. If you don’t have a digital thermometer, put your finger into the water to test it. If the water would be too warm for a baby to bathe in, then let it cool for a minute and try again.

When the temperature is right, sprinkle 2 teaspoons of yeast over the top of the water. Allow it to make a bit of a skin over the top, which takes a minute, then give the water and yeast a quick stir with a fork.

Allow the yeast to proof for 10 minutes. This is a low yeast to water ratio, so you won’t see huge amounts of bubbling.

You can hand-mix this dough, but be forewarned: It’s super sticky in the beginning stages. I use a stand mixer with a dough hook.

Add 1 cup of the flour to the mixing bowl, start the mixer on a low setting, and gently pour the yeast and water into the bowl, using a spatula to scrape any extra yeast from the measuring cup.

Add 3 more cups of flour, one about every 30 seconds.

When the dough is about halfway combined, add the salt and knead for 10 minutes, until the dough forms a ball. If your mixer seems like it’s struggling, increase the speed.

If the dough is not coming into a ball after being kneaded for a few minutes, add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to help it along. The dough ball can be a bit soft — it should come up the dough hook and detach completely from the walls of the mixing bowl. Once you get used to making different kinds of bread dough, you start to sense if it needs more flour or not. Every time I cook or bake I make notes. Eventually things get where I like them but experimentation never ends.

While the dough is mixing, set the oven to a low temperature, such as 200 F, so that the dough has a warm place to rise on the stovetop.

Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a large glass bowl. When the dough is ready, pour it from the mixing bowl into the bowl with oil. The dough ball will be sitting in the olive oil; flip it over so all sides are coated in oil, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a tea towel, and allow it to rise on the stovetop for 1 ½ hours, when it should be about double in size.

The dough will be very easy to work with at this point because it has mixed in with the olive oil. Punch the dough down for a few minutes and form it back by pulling it up from the sides and tucking it into the center to form a ball.

Put the seam side down and repeat with the plastic wrap and towel. The second rise takes about 35-40 minutes, or until it

has doubled in size again.

Use a metal sheet pan with sides to bake this bread, measuring about 10-by-13 inches. It’s important to use a metal pan to get crispy edges.

Brush the pan with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and turn the dough onto the baking pan.

Use your fingers to press the dough evenly over the pan and as close to the edges and corners as possible. You will see extra oil around the edges of the pan and that’s OK.

Drizzle with 1 more (the third) tablespoon of oil and allow it to rest uncovered for 10 minutes.

Turn the oven temperature up to 475 F. The oven should be hot before baking, so be sure that the temperature rests at 475 F for at least 10 minutes before baking.

Press the fresh rosemary between your fingers to release the scent a bit before sprinkling it over the dough.

If you’re using olives, press them down into the dough over the rosemary leaves. The olives can be randomly placed or in rows.

Let this rise uncovered one more time for 20-25 minutes.

Spread your fingers out, like you’re about to play the piano, and press into the dough until you feel the bottom of the pan. Start at one of the narrow ends of the pan, and repeat until you get to the other end of the tray. This is what makes the indentations in the bread. Bake for 18 minutes until golden brown. Be careful not to overbake or the crumb can get dry. Remove the pan from the oven, allow it to cool for 5 minutes before using a spatula to guide the entire loaf out onto a wire rack to cool.

The focaccia should not stick to the pan because you used plenty of olive oil — it should just slide right out.

Allow the bread to cool for 10 more minutes. You can eat it warm or allow it to cool until you’re ready to serve your meal.

Cut into small squares or into wedges.

The best way to eat this is with a side of olive oil for dipping. You can add some salt, pepper, chili oil, or even za’atar to the olive oil.

Stored loosely wrapped in foil, the focaccia should last about 2 days before going stale. My husband used the leftovers to make a “quick” pizza after Shabbat. By “quick” pizza, I mean quick: spread the sauce and cheese and bake. I felt like I had some gourmet Chicago deep dish — it was amazing! Enjoy and bless your hands! PJC

Jessica Grann is a home chef living in Pittsburgh.

p Olive and rosemary foccacia

Photo by Jessica Grann

p Preparing the foccacia to bake

Photo by Jessica Grann

Life & Culture

Poetry, philosophy

and a gambling rabbi: A colorful history of Venice’s Jewish ghetto

— BOOKS —

By Rich Tenorio | The Times of Israel

When British author Harry Freedman asks audiences to name a historical Jew from Venice, one name almost always comes up: Shylock.

The moneylender who sought a pound of flesh for a transaction gone wrong in “The Merchant of Venice” is one of Shakespeare’s best known characters. He’s also fictional. This has not prevented Shylock from capturing the popular imagination, even as the real-life inhabitants of Venice’s Jewish ghetto over the centuries remain largely forgotten today. This paradox stayed in Freedman’s mind as he penned his most recent book, “Shylock’s Venice: The Remarkable History of Venice’s Jews and the Ghetto.”

“I think the story of the ghetto is fascinating,” Freedman told The Times of Israel. “Once I started to write, I couldn’t do this without including Shylock.”

Based in London, the author explored the world of Elizabethan drama in which Shakespeare wrote “The Merchant of Venice” — and where the Bard possibly had an influential Jewish girlfriend. Freedman also visited contemporary Venice and the site of the former ghetto, where he marveled at the historic buildings stretching upward instead of outward, hemmed in by ghetto walls that confined Jews from their establishment in 1516 until their destruction by Napoleon in 1797.

Freedman’s previous works address subjects as varied as the Talmud, Kabbalah and Leonard Cohen. His latest book contains a vivid cast of real-life characters — rabbis and kabbalists, musicians and merchants. Seventeenth-century rabbi Simone Luzzatto opined on a theological issue appropriate for Venice: In the wealthy island city, center of a maritime empire, was it permissible to traverse a canal by gondola en route to Shabbat services? Luzzatto was known for encouraging interfaith outreach in one of his works, the “Discorso.” And overall, Venice afforded Jewish ghetto inhabitants rare-in-Europe possibilities to interact with Christian neighbors, according to the book.

“Each group was of interest to the other group,” Freedman said. “Once there were separate spaces, it was safer to engage than if they were living as neighbors. With neighbors, there are always disputes.”

Such interchanges occurred in academia, in the literary salon, or via the printing press — all with limits. Although the selfstyled Most Serene Republic did not expel its Jews, it taxed them progressively more harshly over the centuries. Officials of the Catholic Church sometimes objected to Christian-Jewish relations, with occasional severe repercussions, including the burning of hundreds of copies of the Talmud in St. Mark’s Square in 1553. The city-state periodically made threats against its Jews, ordering their expulsion several times. Yet

Freedman notes that such expulsions were never carried out.

“You have to live alongside people,” he said. “Jews were used to this treatment for hundreds of years. They made the best of it. Jews were economically important to the Christians as pawnbrokers or small-scale moneylenders. Christians needed to trade with them. Jews needed to trade. They needed some sort of stable relationship.”

A period of cautious, separate and unequal, existence

As the book explains, some of Venice’s original Jews arrived in the 14th century, as German refugees fleeing pogroms in central Europe, where they were blamed for the Black Death. Venice allowed them to live in the surrounding area and work as moneylenders — employment forbidden to Christians. In the late 15th century, these Tedeschi or Germans were joined by Spanish and Portuguese Jews expelled by Catholic monarchs. During an early 16th-century war, Venice permitted Jews to reside in the city proper, which stirred debate among the Christian population.

“One group [of Christians] wanted to

keep them, one did not want them there,” Freedman said. “The solution was to keep them there — in one place. It was the beginning of the ghetto.”

The book addresses possible explanations for the term “ghetto,” noting its similarity to geto, Italian for “foundry” — a foundry once occupied the site where Jews were confined. The ghetto became overcrowded and unsanitary, with access closed from dusk till dawn. Despite these limitations, points of contact arose between Jews and Christians.

“Venice was the center of printing Hebrew and Christian books,” Freedman noted. “Scholars came into the town to have their book printed. Scholars are curious people. They want to learn from one another. They do engage in intellectual activity.”

Although Jews were not allowed to be printers, they found other opportunities to work in printshops, including as censors. The Catholic Church mandated censorship of printed texts, which created ways for Christians and Jews to interact in the printing industry, according to the author.

In this complex environment, some Jews made a name for themselves, most notably Rabbi Leon Modena. Over the course of eight decades, he would become an authoritative voice on diverse matters, as a rabbi, cantor, author, playwright and musician who helped Jews and Christians learn about each other’s faith. While filled with accomplishment, Modena’s life was also marred by tragedy: Of three sons who survived to adulthood, two died and one disappeared abroad. The rabbi’s addiction to gambling caused added financial and personal stress.

“He’s a fascinating character,” Freedman said, calling a rabbi with a gambling problem “very atypical.”

Another 17th-century luminary was Sara Copia Sulam, a trailblazing Jewish female head of a literary salon and a distinguished poet.

“Salons were quite common in those days,” Freedman said, “maybe like book clubs today. People got together to discuss things — music, drama, art… She obviously had very sophisticated cultural tastes.”

Although it closed after six years due to

Sulam enduring misogyny and vilification from male participants, during its existence it offered Christian participants a chance to enter the ghetto and discuss the fine arts at Sulam’s home.

Of Jewish-Christian interaction in general during the centuries of the ghetto, Freedman said, “You would go out into the streets, talk to them, and cut out again. That was the psychological basis of it.”

What kind of a man asks for a “pound of flesh”?

Psychology plays a significant part in “The Merchant of Venice.” It is hard to pin down how, exactly, Shakespeare felt about the character of Shylock.

“We don’t know if Shakespeare was antisemitic or philo-Semitic,” Freedman said. “Shakespeare did not say all the things about Jews that people were typically saying in those days — that they killed Christian children… started plagues, poisoned wells. It’s a more sympathetic picture of a Jew. At the same time, there was the stereotype of Jews as moneylenders.”

In the play, Shylock agrees to lend the merchant Antonio a sum of 3,000 ducats. Antonio needs it to help his friend Bassanio woo the heiress Portia. The loan comes with an unusual penalty for default — a pound of flesh. When news breaks that Antonio has lost a cargo-laden vessel at sea, Shylock vows to claim his revenge upon a man who hates him because of his religion, and who only deals with him out of necessity.

Yet there are hints of authorial sympathy toward Shylock: His daughter Jessica leaves him to marry a Christian, and absconds with some family treasures. In a courtroom scene, Portia masquerades as a lawyer and outwits Shylock, forcing him into the loss of his riches and conversion to Christianity, which Jessica has promised to do as well. In a famous soliloquy, Shylock gives a moving response when asked why he wants a pound of Antonio’s flesh.

“He hath disgraced me,” Shylock explains,

p Harry Freedman, author of “Shylock’s Venice: The Remarkable History of Venice’s Jews and the Ghetto.”

Courtesy Photo via The Times of Israel

p Book cover

p One of the canals going through the Venice Jewish ghetto, Dec. 28, 2019

Photo by Giovanni Vigna/ Times of Israel Please see Freedman, page 22

Bar Mitzvahs

Dylan Michael Kushner, son of Lauren and Jason Kushner, will celebrate his bar mitzvah on Nov. 2, 2024, at Rodef Shalom Congregation. Dylan is the older brother of Logan Kushner and the grandson of Sandy and Louis Kushner, and Sandi and Bernie Pinsker. He is currently in seventh grade at Shady Side Academy. Dylan has a passion for building and creating, excelling in activities such as robotics, woodworking and 3D printing. He is also an avid snow skier and water skier. For his bar mitzvah project, Dylan is donating to Beverly’s Birthdays from the proceeds of his lemonade stand, which he designed and built himself. Beverly’s Birthdays provides birthday celebrations for children experiencing homelessness and for families in need. Over the years, Dylan has been actively involved in donating toys and volunteering in its warehouse.

Owen Sy Weisberg, son of Dan Weisberg and Sara Braun, will become a bar mitzvah at Beth Samuel Jewish Center in Ambridge, Pennsylvania, on Nov. 2. His proud grandparents are Richard and Cheryl Weisberg, and Doris and the late Seymour Braun. His loving brother is Wes Weisberg. Owen attends seventh grade at Quaker Valley Middle School. He’s an avid reader and LEGO builder, a Boy Scout and a die-hard Mets fan. For his bar mitzvah project, Owen organized a book drive, collecting over 500 books to donate to local hospitals and charities. PJC

he Torah begins with the words, Bereishit Bara Elokim Eis Hashamayim ”—“In the beginning of G-d’s creation of the heavens and the earth.”

Rashi, quoting his father, Rabbi Yitzchak, poses a question: Why does the Torah start with the story of creation instead of the first mitzvah (commandment)?

This question is rooted in the idea that the Torah is not intended as a history book. Rather, it is G-d’s gift to humanity, guiding us in the mitzvot we can perform to connect with Him. The Torah is a practical guide to the here and now. If its purpose is to teach us how to draw closer to G-d in our daily lives, why begin with the entire story of creation? What practical relevance does it hold?

R abbi Yitzchak reasons that G-d began the Torah this way to address a future question: “When the nations of the world say to the Jewish people, ‘You are thieves; you conquered the land of Israel from the Seven Nations,’ the Jews can respond, ‘The entire earth belongs to G-d; He created it and can give it to whomever He deems fit. He gave it to them when He wished, and He gave it to us when He wished.’”

established our right by resolution,” to legal ones, such as “The land was won in a defensive war.” These are all legitimate responses. Yet, Rashi emphasizes that we are missing the core point. Israel belongs to the Jewish people not merely for these reasons but because the Creator of heaven and earth gave it to us. He made it; He has the ultimate authority to distribute it.

The misunderstanding that we need to explain our right to Israel comes from forgetting how the world itself was created. If we acknowledge that G-d created the world and everything in it, we must also accept that He designated the land for us.

In this week’s Torah portion, we see what happens when the world forgets this foundational truth: “The world had become corrupt before God, and the land was filled with robbery. God saw the world, and it was corrupt, for almost all flesh had p erverted its way on the earth.” It took a flood and 10 more generations before Abraham would reestablish awareness of G-d’s sovereignty among humanity.

History repeats itself. The world questions our right to Israel because it has forgotten the Creator.

According to Rabbi Yitzchak, the Torah’s opening serves to establish the Jewish people’s right to the land of Israel. It is as if he foresaw our own times, where the nations repeatedly question this right. They ask this in their own countries, they ask us directly, and they bring it up at the United Nations.

Our responses vary, from historical arguments like “The world owed it to us after the Holocaust” or “The United Nations

Our foremost priority must be for us, as the Jewish people, to truly understand that our right to Israel is given by G-d Himself. If we believe deeply that G-d created the world and gave us this land, we will express our connection with conviction. But if we rely solely on man-made arguments, we will struggle to convey our rights convincingly to others. PJC

Rabbi Henoch Rosenfeld is the director of Chabad Young Professionals of Pittsburgh. This column is a service of the Vaad Harabonim of Greater Pittsburgh.

Allen Joseph Cousin, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. Born Nov. 25, 1929, Allen was the beloved husband of the late Winnie Ann Cousin, and is survived by his wife Bonnie Cousin. Loving and proud father of Dr. Jeffrey (Jolie) Cousin and Jennifer A. (Michael J.) Zampogna. Brother of the late Norman Cousin, Lillian Schwartz and Anne Pirchesky. Adoring grandfather of William, Jack and Benjamin Cousin, and Cooper and Winnie Zampogna. Pittsburgh born and bred, Allen was the president of Noralco Corporation, a demolition company he founded in 1952. A self-made success, he worked tirelessly to transform the Pittsburgh skyline through demolition and excavation projects including Forbes Field, Jenkins Arcade, the Civic Arena and many other iconic structures. He was still passionately going into the office until six months ago. Allen was a longtime devoted member of Tree of Life Congregation, an active supporter of the United Jewish Appeal, a past Grandmaster of the Masons and a member of the Chaine des Rotisseurs. He was extremely generous, caring and charitable, and enjoyed a full life of fine dining, wine collecting, world travel and Florida sunshine. Most importantly, Allen was an inspiration and guiding light to his family. He loved them dearly and instilled that love within his children, grandchildren and many nieces and nephews. Services were held at Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. Interment Tree of Life Memorial Park. Contributions in Allen’s memory may be made to Tree of Life Memorial , specify Cemetery Donations under Type); Jewish Association on Aging, 200 JHF Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15217; Jewish Community Center of Pittsburgh, 5738 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15217; or a charity of the donor’s

With great sadness, we announce the passing of Gary Lee Kaplan, age 66, on Oct. 24, 2024, after a yearslong battle with cancer. He died peacefully surrounded by his family. He leaves behind his beloved sons, Andrew and Sam, his brother, Richard (Sharon), and two nephews, Daniel and Jonathan, as well as many cousins and many friends. He was the son of the late Sidney and Charlene Kaplan. Gary was a graduate of Yale and the University of Chicago Law School, a lawyer, a pianist, a golfer, and a dog lover. Graveside service and interment were held at Homewood Cemetery. Please make donations to the Jewish Association on Aging, 200 JHF Drive, Pittsburgh, PA, 15217 in his honor. schugar.com

Jerome “Hershey” Milch passed away on Oct. 24, 2024, following a brief illness. Hershey was born and raised in East Liberty. He attended Peabody High School, after which he continued his studies at the University of Pittsburgh. Hershey graduated from the School of Pharmacy in 1954. Following graduation, Hershey was united in marriage to Audrey Milch. Following their wedding, Hershey was drafted into the U.S. Navy and served honorably, stationed in Jacksonville, Florida. Following his military service, Hershey and Audrey returned to Pittsburgh. Hershey joined his father and brother in business. Hershey retired from The Joseph Milch Company in 1996. Throughout his years of working at The Joseph Milch Company, Hershey also worked evenings as a pharmacist. Following his retirement, Audrey and Hershey relocated to Fort Lauderdale, where they lived for more than 20

Please see Obituaries, page 20

David

Alvin

William

Dr

Shirley

Shirley

Shirley

Jean

Sylvia

Sheila

Mitchell

Iris

Sunday November 3: Gabriel Abramovitz, Morris Beck, David Cohen, Evelyn Hepps Cushner, Fanny Davidson, Sarah Samuels Finkelhor, Bertha Handelman, Adolph Klein, Louis Klein, Bertha Kruman, Rhea K Landau, Ruda Bella Rose, Mollie Finegold Ruttenberg, Israel Samuel, Jacob Schnitzer, Abe Shulman, Tibie Verk, Abraham Wechsler, Sigmund Yahr

Monday November 4: Yetta Angel, Benjamin Bondy, Herman Brown, Sarah Schnitzer Elling, Mollie Goldenberg, Sorly Cukerbaum Gordon, Jay Helfant, Miriam Shifra Heller, Benjamin Herskovitz, Jacob Kaufmann,Samuel Levinson, Anne B Litman, Belle Rosenson, Meyer Rosenthal, Adolph Rutner, Samuel Shire, Morris Shulgold, Ben Spokane, Samuel J Sugerman, Meyer Veshancey, Jacob Weinstein

Tuesday November 5: Phillip Americus, Dora Berenfield, Claire Ann Block, Fanny C Caplan, Ethel Epstein, Ida Sadowsky Frankel, Jack Goldman, Feige Gottlieb, Rae Hadburg, Nachame Levine Horvitz, William I Isaacson, Ida A Klodell, Alvin S Mundel, Rose Ratowsky Ohl, Gertrude Palkovitz, Morris Pattak, Sheila D Siegman, Frank Silverberg, Lois Snyder Krash, Edith B Thall

Wednesday November 6: Mary Beth Alman, Janice Gay Barovsky, Anne Tauber Dym, Louis Kaddell, Fannie Klein, Elizabeth Rothstein, Saul Schilit, Molly Schutte, William Schwartz, Frank Shakespeare, Gilbert Shepse, Freda Ulzheimer, Abe Wekselman

Thursday November 7: Jules Joseph Anatole, Hyman Bales, Albert Blumenthal, Raye Coffey, Rachel Cohen, Jennie B Glass, Minnie Hoffman, Louis Kaddell, Robert Klein, Jerome Meyer, Sylvia Steinberger Moskovitz, Arthur B Moss, Helen Sachs, Michael Stone, Wolfe Tex, Roxine M Weinthal

Friday November 8: Milton Cohen, Rose Elinow, Fannie Titlebaum Frank, Elizabeth S Kalovsky, Frank Mayer Marcosky, Dr Geneva Markus, Mary Opter, Elaine R Rubin, Morris Spector, Fae Velardi, Dorothy Weinberg, Harry Wishnev

Saturday November 9: Sol Feinberg, Isadore Feldman, Milton Gottlieb, Isadore Krouse, Sylvia R Melnick, Minnie Toig Pearlman, Louis Rosner, Arthur Sonnenklar, Harry Sparks, Regina Brown Wand, Sarah Weinbaum

“Be kind, for everyone you meet is ghting a battle you know nothing about.”

Jewish Association on Aging gratefully acknowledges contributions from the following:

gift from ... In memory of... Morton Alman Mary Beth Alman

Obituaries

from page 19

may be made to a charity of your choice. Arrangements entrusted to Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. schugar.com

Chesed Shel Eme th Cemetery

Chesed Shel Eme th Cemetery

years. Hershey and Audrey returned to Pittsburgh in 2019. Hershey and Audrey were married for 69 years, until Audrey’s death in 2023. Hershey and Audrey are survived by their children, Barbara (Etty) and Dr. Eric (Leah) as well as grandchildren Li, Maya, Dalia, Kimberly, Allyson, Benjamin, Elizabeth and Caroline, as well as 10 great-grandchildren. Graveside services were held on Sunday, Oct. 27, 2024, at Beth Shalom Cemetery. Hershey will always be remembered as a man of integrity, kindness, humility, compassion and great faith. Hershey was the epitome of a mensch. Donations

TODER: Sol W. Toder, born in Canonsburg on Oct. 7, 1931, to the late Sam and Sadie Toder. Sol loved traveling, opera, good food, playing poker, intellectual conversations about politics, and good jokes, but most of all, his family. His dedication and love for his wife, Lin, spanning over 70 years, was remarkable and admired by countless people throughout their lives together. He was very close to his loving daughters, Dr. Debbie Toder (Larry Reinhold), Etta Menlo (Mike) and the late Nan Toder (1996), and a very special niece, Marcia Toder. His adoration for his grandchildren, Dr. Ben Reinhold (Sarah), Yael Reinhold, Maya Menlo (Johanna Phillips) and Noah Menlo (Sienna Rogers) was unlimited, and he delighted in their love and accomplishments. The gift of his three great-grandchildren was the crowning joy of his life. He is also survived by many beloved family members. Sol had an amazing moral compass, a wonderful example to all who knew him. Services were held privately. Arrangements entrusted to William Slater II Funeral Service, Scott Twp., 412-563-2800. Donations may be made to Doctors Without Borders, doctorswithoutborders.org. slaterfuneral.com PJC

is eld of graves, established in 1913 in Shaler Township when Old Chesed Shel Emeth ran out of space, demonstrates our sacred mission to bury the indigent. In addition, four separate burials of damaged prayer books and other sacred texts, a service provided to the community by the JCBA, were held in 2007, 2013, 2018, and 2021.

is eld of graves, established in 1913 in Shaler Township when Old Chesed Shel Emeth ran out of space, demonstrates our sacred mission to bury the indigent. In addition, four separate burials of damaged prayer books and other sacred texts, a service provided to the community by the JCBA, were held in 2007, 2013, 2018, and 2021. If you would like more

ank you for showing up with your full hearts and for reminding all of us of the strength of our community. Together, we continue the tradition of remembrance, respect, dignity and love for those no longer with us. is is the highest mitzvah as those gone before us cannot thank us. We look forward to working with you again, and we are ever grateful for your unwavering support. Obituaries:

To each of you who joined us for the annual Jewish Cemetery & Burial Association Commemoration Cemetery Clean-Up Day on Sunday, October 27th, we extend our deepest gratitude. Your dedication and compassion brought dignity and honor to the sacred grounds of our ancestors, and we could not have done it without you. A special thank you to all of our returning and newest volunteers, to Matt Cohen, Regional Director, Alpha Epsilon Pi (Pitt Chapter) and AEPi fraternity brothers, to Haliel Selig, Regional Director, Keystone

Mary Gertrude Haughey a/k/a Molly Haughey a/k/a Mary G. Haughey, Deceased August 13, 2024, of North Versailles, Pennsylvania No. 02-24-06079

Patrick Haughey, Executor; 100 Silver Pines Dr., Gibsonia, PA 15044 or to Bruce S. Gelman, Esquire, Gelman & Reisman, P.C., Law & Finance Bldg., 429 Fourth Avenue, Suite 1701, Pittsburgh, PA 15219

If you would like more information on free burial in Chesed Shel Emeth for those who are indigent, please contact us at the information provided below.

esed Shel Eme th Cemetery is eld of graves, established in 1913 in Shaler Township when Old Chesed Shel Emeth ran out of space, demonstrates our sacred mission to bury the indigent. In addition, four separate burials of damaged prayer books and other sacred texts, a service provided to the community by the JCBA, were held in 2007, 2013, 2018, and 2021.

Mountain Region-BBYO, to Rabbi Hindy Finman, Senior Director of Jewish Life-JCC of Greater Pittsburgh and to the 10.27 Healing Partnership.

esed Shel Eme th Cemetery is eld of graves, established in 1913 in Shaler Township when Old Chesed Shel Emeth ran out of space, demonstrates our sacred mission to bury the indigent. In addition, four separate burials of damaged prayer books and other sacred texts, a service provided to the community by the JCBA, were held in 2007, 2013, 2018, and 2021.

We are humbled by the time, care, and hard work each of you contributed.

If you would like more information on free burial in Chesed Shel Emeth for those who are indigent, please contact us at the information provided below.

If you would like more information on free burial in Chesed Shel Emeth for those who are indigent, please contact us at the information provided below.

From raking leaves to polishing headstones to moving ve (5) tons of topsoil to ll graves - every e ort you put forth helped preserve the dignity and memory of those who came before us. You made this solemn day of remembrance for the eleven (11) community members who were taken on October 27, 2018 truly meaningful.

For more information about JCBA cemeteries, to

For more information about JCBA cemeteries, to volunteer, to read our complete histories and/or to make a contribution, please visit our website at www.JCBApgh.org, email us at o ice@jcbapgh.org, or call the JCBA o ice at 412-553-6469

For more information about JCBA cemeteries,

please visit our website at www.JCBApgh.org, email us at o ice@jcbapgh.org, or call the

JCBA’s expanded vision is made possible by a generous grant from the

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Life & Culture

Pro-Trump ‘bubbies’ ad nudging Jews on Israel, antisemitism fears serves up backlash

By Times of Israel Staff

Apolitical ad portraying Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump as the safer choice for Jews is being criticized for appearing to traffic in stereotypes, while putting pressure on the owner of a Philadelphiaarea deli for allowing it to be filmed there.

The 30-second spot, titled “Amen,” is being aired in several swing states with sizeable Jewish populations, according to the Republican Jewish Coalition, which touted the ad as the “closing” pitch of a $15 million campaign to finagle votes for the former president ahead of the Nov. 5 election.

In the commercial, three women, described by the RJC as “bubbies” and speaking with a cadence and accent considered Jewish in the popular American imagination, schmooze about Israel and antisemitism on college campuses while seated at a booth in a deli.

All three are paid actors, according to CNN.

“Israel is under attack,” one woman tells her friends. “Antisemitism like I never thought I would see.”

After her friend mentions hearing of someone’s son who got spit on at the University of Pennsylvania, the third woman asks about Democratic nominee Kamala Harris.

“ Uch, busy defending the Squad,” answers Bubby 2.

“Oy vey,” the first woman adds. “You know, Trump I never cared for, but at least he’ll keep us safe.”

After the second woman concurs, the ad ends with the three women raising their mugs to the Republican nominee and a check coming to the table with the words “Donald Trump will keep us safe” stamped on it.

According to The New York Times, the spot has aired in Georgia, Arizona, Michigan,

The Times described the

ad

in a

headline as

featuring “Jewish stereotypes in service of Trump,” and online some commentators called the pitch cringy, or “a shondeh.”

Nevada and Pennsylvania, where it was filmed.

The five states are all home to large Jewish communities and, together with Wisconsin and North Carolina, are considered key battlegrounds that Trump or Harris must win to have a shot at the White House.

Citing data from analytics firm AdImpact, the newspaper reported that the RJC had spent $360,000 so far airing the ad, which was released on Oct. 20.

The Times described the ad in a headline as featuring “Jewish stereotypes in service of Trump,” and online some commentators called the pitch cringy, or “a shondeh.”

Some went even further, vowing to boycott Hymie’s Deli, the Jewish-style eatery in Merion Station, Pennsylvania, where the ad was filmed.

“I will never set foot there again,”

Sheva Golkow, a longtime patron of the popular restaurant, told the Forward. “This is opening your restaurant to promote someone who promotes hate and division everywhere, but particularly aimed at Jews.”

Louis Barson, the longtime owner of Hymie’s, claimed that the eatery’s name never appears in the ad and denied it constituted any sort of endorsement. He told local Philadelphia media he allowed the deli to be used for

filming as a favor to his friend Matt Brooks, who heads the RJC.

“This is not a statement that Hymie’s is endorsing Donald Trump. That is not the case. I would gladly let Kamala Harris film an ad here tomorrow,” he told Philadelphia Magazine.

According to the RJC, the ad is meant to appeal to Jewish voters who may traditionally vote Democrat but have concerns about Harris’s presumed approach to Israel and anti-Israel protests on college campuses.

The spot “reflects the fear and angst that Jewish Americans across our country are feeling, as we see Israel still under attack and antisemitism skyrocketing to unprecedented levels here at home,” Brooks said in a statement.

“We encourage Jewish voters to listen to their bubbies: it’s OK to vote for Donald Trump,” the statement added.

Since Israel was plunged into a multifront conflict with the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, the RJC has shifted its messaging to focus on what it described as Trump’s support for the Jewish state while accusing Democrats of selling Jerusalem out.

Democrats and other Trump opponents point to the former president’s associations with antisemites, including within the Republican party, and note that he has repeatedly accused Jews of not being loyal for insufficiently supporting him, threatening that the Jewish community will be blamed if he loses.

They have also noted his mercurial and often transactional relationship with Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and his seeming criticism of Israel in the immediate aftermath of the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre.

“Because I’m Jewish, you look at the Republican Party, you have people who are very antisemitic,” a Hymie’s patron named Danny Weiss told CNN. “Then you have people who are back in the liberal party, who are very antisemitic, and we see it on college campuses not too far down the road.” PJC

“and hindered me half a million; laughed at my losses, mocked at my gains, scorned my nation, thwarted my bargains, cooled my friends, heated mine enemies, and what’s his reason? — I am a Jew. Hath not a Jew eyes?”

Freedman notes that a previous Elizabethan-era play — “The Jew of Malta” by Christopher Marlowe — featured a much uglier stereotype of a Jewish villain. He

speculates that in creating a more sympathetic portrayal, Shakespeare may have had an unexpected influence — a Jewish girlfriend named Aemilia Bassano.

The daughter of a Venetian-born converso and musician in the English court, Bassano has been credited as the author of a firstof-its-kind female-written book of poetry in the English language, “Salve Deus Rex Judaeorum.” Some have suggested her as the “Dark Lady” of the Bard’s sonnets, or as the actual author of Shakespeare’s plays.

Freedman is intrigued that Shakespeare penned two plays set in Venice that were first staged around the same time — “The Merchant of Venice” and “Othello.” His alleged lover’s name is seemingly suggested in both: In “Othello,” the wife of villainous Iago is named Emilia, while the name “Bassanio” in “The Merchant of Venice” resembles “Bassano.”

“What Shakespeare probably tried to do is respond to Marlowe,” Freedman said. “His Shylock character is complex.”

The fate of real-life Venetian Jews contained elements of tragedy. As the

republic receded in power, it taxed its Jews ever more oppressively, until a liberator emerged in Napoleon. Intending to emancipate the Jews of France, he did the same for their Venetian counterparts by destroying the ghetto walls in 1797.

Later that year, Napoleon ceded Venice to Austria, which reimposed the ghetto — but without the walls. This paved the way toward steadily greater freedoms, including after Italian unification, until the ultimate tragedy intervened in the 20th century: World War II and the Holocaust.

“Jews seemed to live a fairly free life in Venice until the 1940s, when the Nazis conquered it,” Freedman said.

When he walked the streets of the former ghetto, he noted the paving stones and memorial plaques for victims of the Shoah. Yet he also observed a vibrant contemporary scene.

“The ghetto has come back to life — there are shops there, people living there, restaurants,” Freedman said. “It is alive. I think it’s very positive, a very optimistic thing.” PJC

p A screen capture from ad aired by the Republican Jewish Coalition starting Oct. 20, 2024, showing three actors portraying Jewish women talking about supporting GOP nominee Donald Trump in the upcoming presidential election. RJC/ YouTube

Community

Partnership and paper

Hillel Academy of Pittsburgh students approached the Jewish holidays by partnering and exploring relevant Jewish laws.

enjoyment.

A time to dance

Chabad of Squirrel Hill hosted “A Time to Dance” on Oct. 21. The Ecclesiastes-inspired event celebrated Jewish resilience with soup and salads in the sukkah, speeches and dancing.

Smiles on campus University of Pittsburgh students enjoyed a series of programs and meetups inside a sukkah on campus.

p Double double your

Photo courtesy of Hillel Academy of Pittsburgh

p

Photo courtesy of Julie Paris

Between Sukkot and Simchat Torah, Community Day School students traveled to

Photo courtesy of Community Day School

Fall fun in the field

Hillel JUC celebrated the fall season with an apple picking event at Soergel Orchards.

p

The hues of hopping Friendship Circle of Pittsburgh welcomed members for a coloring activity.

p

Photo courtesy of Friendship Circle of Pittsburgh

p

Photo courtesy of Hillel JUC