The Jewish Star by The Jewish Star

The JEWISH Vayislach • Nov. 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779 • Torah columns pages 18–19 • Luach page 18 • Vol 17, No 45

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For American olim, sweet Thanksgiving By Deborah Fineblum, JNS Thousands of modern-day Pilgrims have thrown the journey into reverse, leaving North American shores behind and crossing the ocean to begin life anew in the old-new country of Israel. But one thing the roughly 300,000 “native Americans” who’ve made aliyah in the last seven decades have in common with the Pilgrims of yore is the attitude of gratitude — the sense of feeling truly thankful. And yet, even though the vast majority of them are happy in their new home, many of these American-born olim insist on celebrating a holiday that most of their sabra neighbors have never heard of: Thanksgiving. “When we made aliyah 14 years ago, I told my husband” I would never give up Thanksgiving, says Wisconsin native Hilary Faverman. “And I haven’t.”

So determined was she to do Turkey Day right that she imported a big American oven, she revealed, “just for this one day.” Unlike in the United States — where every grocery store is stocked with deep inventories of turkey, cranberries and every kind of piecrust imaginable — each November, Faverman wrestles with the butcher near her Beitar-area home to order her a bird big enough to serve 30 guests. She also relies on friends to scout round for the other necessities. One summer (six months before Turkey Day), she got a call from a friend in Ra’anana. “She was excited to tell me she’d just found some cans of pumpkin. Of course, I asked her to pick them up for me.” But these days, Faverman knows at least the cranSee Holiday on page 4

Serving our Orthodox communities

Here’s how turkey got its kosher

The American Jewish Committee hosted lone American soldiers in Jerusalem for a 2011 Thanksgiving dinner.

By Jackson Richman, JNS Thanksgiving usually consists of cooking on a level that Jews do every week for Shabbat preparation — soup, salad and all those sides that accompany the main dish. And while chicken has been a staple from the agricultural era and was never a stranger to kashrut, the turkey was initially an unknown bird, as it didn’t exist in the Old World, thus presenting a dilemma about whether or not it was acceptable for Jews to eat according to dietary laws. Rashi said that only birds that See Turkey on page 4

Airbnb hops BDS wagon The online marketplace and hospitality service Airbnb announced on Monday that it will no longer permit listings in Judea and Samaria due to what it alleges as “Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank that are at the core of the dispute between Israelis and Palestinians,” according to a company statement. “We know that people will disagree with this decision and appreciate their perspective. This is a controversial issue,” the company said. “There are many strong views as it relates to lands that have been the subject of historic and intense disputes between Israelis and Palestinians in the West Bank. Airbnb has deep respect for those views.” “Our hope is that someday sooner rather than later, a framework is put in place where the entire global community is aligned so there will be a resolution to this historic conflict and a clear path forward for everybody to follow,” added Airbnb. Airbnb spokesperson Nick Papas declined to answer when asked by JNS if this is the first time there has been a ban in a conflict zone, and if there will be one in the Golan Heights area, eastSee Airbnb on page 4

The Jewish Star Schools Lots of smiles! Top: SKA girls at Shabbaton; Rabbi Shmuel Strickman with firstgraders at Yeshiva Darchei Torah; a HAFTR seventh-grader proudly preps for his bar mitzvah. Below: Snow falls on DRS’s Shabbaton; and HALB Lev Chana kindergartners meet Hatzalah. There’s more school news on pages 16–17.

New foods coming soon to kosher markets near you By Josefin Dolsten, JTA SECAUCUS, NJ — Once a year, this swampy neighbor of New York City turns into kosher food heaven. Jews from across the country gather at the Meadowlands Exposition Center for Kosher-

fest, the world’s largest kosher food trade show. There’s plenty of nosherai, Yiddish and kippahs to go around at an event where attendees skew Orthodox and male. Some 300 exhibitors showed their products on Nov. 13 and 14 to an

audience of some 5,000 food industry professionals, vendors and journalists. JTA rounded up some unusual products at the 2018 Kosherfest, from plantain croutons to dessert ravioli and a menorah-shaped ice cream cake.

Plantain croutons Home cooks looking to spice up their salads need look no further. These plantain croutons, which are manufactured in Ecuador and won KoSee New foods on page 10

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November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779 THE JEWISH STAR

Save a Life!

An El Al plane at Ben Gurion International Airport.

Moshe Shai/Flash90

Everyone’s cranky over El Al Shabbat diversion By Marcy Oster, JTA JERUSALEM — An El Al plane bound for Israel that was delayed from taking off in New York was diverted to Athens last Friday to allow Sabbath-observant passengers to disembark. That’s what we know for sure. What happened on the plane? That’s another story. The flight, which had been scheduled to leave JFK at 6:30 pm Thursday — the day an early-season snow closed New York — took off more than five hours late. Bad weather had delayed the arrival of the crew by at least a couple of hours, and then prevented the departure of hundreds of planes. The plane required de-icing more than once as it waited in line to leave. By 11:30 pm, dozens of passengers demanded to disembark in New York, fearing they would still be airborne after Shabbat began. The passengers were told to take their seats so the plane could return to the gate, but instead it took off. Here is where the stories diverge. Some passengers on social media posts accused religious passengers of being physically and verbally abusive when they realized that they would not land in Israel in time for Shabbat. Others said the El Al flight attendants withheld information and then service to the religious passengers during the flight, and did not tell them until several hours later that the plane would land in Athens. Ben Chafetz, director of Client Services for 121eCommerce.com, said he was among those who asked to leave the plane, even if it meant losing his ticket. “Four hours into the flight the Captain announced that because of the ‘haredim’ the plane would stop in Athens,” Chafetz wrote, using the word for fervently religious Jews. “At which point, all the people who want to get off for Shabbos can get off the plane first, and then (and here is the kicker), all the people who want to continue to Israel will also have to get off the plane and go on a different plane from IsraAir to go to Israel. “What a shame … I wish El Al had announced the truth. We were stopping in Athens because El Al made a series of bad calls, and once they landed they could not depart on Shabbos which is why they needed an non El Al plane to continue to Israel on Shabbos.” The national carrier is not allowed to fly on Shabbat. The decision to land in Athens angered both Orthodox and non-Orthodox passengers, for different reasons. “To be very clear, no one was angry at the stewardesses; everyone understood that they did not make the decisions,” Chafetz wrote. “We were requesting to speak to the pilot or someone who can speak for the pilot. Again, there was [sic] no attempts to break into the cockpit, there were no physical altercations. Yes, there were some raised voices, but most of the time (I have the videos to prove it), it was secular Israeli passengers who came to yell at the passengers who were concerned about

Shabbos that we were ruining their weekend.” Passenger Roni Meital told a different story in a post on Facebook. “After 24 hours to reach Israel, I am broken, broken mainly because of the lack of respect of people who are observant, who observe tradition and Shabbat, who took this issue a step too far,” Meital wrote. Meital thanked the flight crew for its patience despite the aggressiveness of some of the passengers. She wrote that “after six hours of flying, I suddenly heard screaming and saw a flight attendant crying after she was hit, pushed, amid threats they would break open the door to the cockpit.” She also wrote: “I found myself standing and [physically] protecting flight attendants who were crying and who just wanted to catch their breath after the [violent] behavior toward them.” Meital called on others to share her post. Yehuda Shlezinger, religious affairs reporter for the Yisrael Hayom newspaper, was on the flight and said reports of the behavior of the religious passengers were exaggerated. “I must confess, when I opened the news sites Saturday night and saw the crazy headlines about ‘bad’ haredim who ‘pushed flight attendants and threatened to break into the cockpit,’ I was livid,” he wrote. “Thousands of likes, hundreds of shares, tons of venom on social media, and the news was completely fake. I doublechecked the boarding pass in my pocket to make sure we were talking about the same flight.” Chafetz went on to describe the beauty of the Shabbat spent in the hotel across the street from the airport, with meals provided by the local Chabad. “Hasidim sat and schmoozed with Zionists, Modox [Modern Orthodox] sat with black hats … I only use these labels so you can visualize the seating, but there were no labels at this seuda [meal]; we sat in true achdus [unity],” he wrote. El Al issued a statement saying that extreme weather in New York caused numerous cancellations and delays for hundreds of flights, including one that departed for Israel on Thursday evening. “Despite the cancellation of many flights, we succeeded in releasing Flight 002 from New York for our passengers, including an intermediate stop in Athens,” the airline said. “El Al arranged onward flights to Israel that day for all passengers. Passengers who preferred to remain in Athens for Shabbat were cared for by company representatives, and El Al will return them to Israel after Shabbat is over. “We apologize for any discomfort caused to our customers, but as said we preferred to have the flight leave New York the same day.” Arutz Sheva, meanwhile, reported that the chief Sephardic rabbi of Israel, Yitzhak Yosef, gave permission for another delayed El Al flight from New York to land on Friday afternoon after the start of Shabbat. Yosef invoked an exception that says Shabbat may be violated in order to save a life; a passenger on the flight was said to be seriously ill.

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Holiday… Continued from page 1 berries are in the bag; her mom makes a habit of throwing fresh ones into her suitcase when traveling from the United States for the holiday. Noa Choritz of Efrat is another committed Thanksgiving hostess. Since making aliyah from Pittsburgh in 2002, each year she “scours the area” to make sure hers is as authentic a holiday as possible. Only in Israel: Sitting in a restaurant in Jerusalem, she overheard an American teenager’s phone conversation with his parents. “He was telling them what he needed them to bring with them, so I asked him, ‘Could you ask your parents to add a can of pumpkin-pie filling?’ And they did.” Choritz also covered her bases by posting on a website frequented by Anglos and got a response from a woman who had a couple cans of pumpkin lying around. Though Choritz thought she was covered, it turned out that the woman’s canned pumpkin had expired three years earlier, and the teen’s parents’ cans had no hechsher. “We just ended up using the expired ones,” she says. Thanksgiving-loving Israelis are invited to savor some of the flavor of the holiday thanks to the Association of Americans and Canadians in Israel (AACI). Since its founding in the 1950s, AACI has marked the holiday. This year’s celebration: “Throwback Thanksgiving” featuring an oldies band, and traditional pumpkin and apple pies. “Since Americans, unlike so many others, make aliyah by choice and not to escape hard times, as much as they love it here, they have a lot of feelgood nostalgia for their old home,” says AACI pro-

gram manager Miriam Barth. “Some even bring their kids and grandkids, who don’t have that same connection with American culture.” But truth be told, unlike Faverman and Choritz, most American expats pay little attention to Turkey Day. “The first year we did do it,” recalls Nancy Milgram, originally from Randolph, NJ. “But that was 30 years ago. You just absorb Israel’s cultural cycle, and we have so many holidays here that you don’t really miss it.” Still, there is the lingering taste of her mom’s candied sweet potatoes back in the Bronx and the family stories of her greatgrandfather, Moshe Fuchs, who, escaping poverty and persecution in Austria-Hungary, immigrated to America in 1895. “He was a learned, traditional Orthodox Jew, so he’d have nothing to do with Christmas, of course, but every year, he insisted the family celebrate Thanksgiving,” says Milgram. “He always said we Jews have so much to be thankful to America for. It’s true that it’s the one holiday when all Americans eat the same basic feast and watch the same Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on TV.” That one day of national unity is something Israelis experience year-round, adds Milgram. “It’s great living in a country where our Jewish holidays are the national holidays — no need to take time to observe our holy days,” she says. “It’s wonderful to be completely part of the national culture.” The only piece of Thanksgiving Scott Pizor says he expects to miss is quite frankly the pie … well, along with the turkey and stuffing. “It really is the best meal of the year, and all those amazing leftovers!” says the 28-yearold basketball player from Texas, who this summer made aliyah with Nefesh B’Nefesh to

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Eilat, where he’s playing for the Hapoel Hevel Elot team. “But shawarma and schnitzel, they’re pretty good, too, and I’ve never felt so welcome as I do here.” For that sense of welcome, it comes back to feeling thankful — a recurring theme with many Israeli pilgrims. As the Faverman family of six returned from a recent visit to the States, “this was the first time I wasn’t jealous of the big houses and the big yards,” says Hilary. “I realize that it’s only here in Israel where our family truly fits, where we have a community that’s like family. Thanksgiving is a real opportunity to remind ourselves of how thankful we are to be here.” So long after they’ve sworn off turkey leftovers for the foreseeable future, it’s the ex-

Airbnb... Continued from page 1 ern Jerusalem and the Palestinian territories. Airbnb has had mixed reception in Israel. As of last month, some Tel Aviv luxury property developers have prohibited owners from leasing through the website. However, it was applauded in 2016 for waiving service fees and allowing hosts to list for free during a wave of fires that swept through Israel. Some slammed the decision, while others celebrated it. Former Israeli Ambassador to the United States Michael Oren called for a boycott. “Airbnb blacklists Jewish apartments in Judea and Samaria — not Palestinian apartments, not apartments in Turkish occupied Cyprus, in Moroccan occupied Sahara, not in Tibet or the Crimea,” he tweeted. “Airbnb’s policy is the very definition of anti-Semitism. No one should use its services.” “.@airbnb says it won’t list places in ‘disputed territories’ when those residences are owned by Jews, and not otherwise,” tweeted law professor Eugene Kontorvich. “That’s not a policy about disputed territories, but about Jews.” “The discriminatory nature of this decision is only rivaled by the degree of sheer ignorance that went into it. Given the fact that in July of 2000, former Israeli Prime Ehud Barak had offered the Palestinians 92 percent of the West Bank, or Judea and Samaria, if you will, and the Palestinians walked away from the table,” Sarah Stern, founder and president of the Endowment for Middle East Truth, told JNS. “The response came a few months later in the form of a renewed intifada. “Yet the Israelis are the ones that are being punished by companies such as Airbnb,” she continued. “When Israel and Israelis are being held to a double standard that no one else in the world could be expected to meet, there is one and only one word for this: anti-Semitism.” Farley Weiss, president of the National Council of Young Israel, said “it should be noted that the international definition of anti-Semitism includes support for BDS. Airbnb’s action could be interpreted as supporting BDS and engaging in anti-Semitic conduct, especially when the delisting appears to be based upon the religion of

pats’ attitude of gratitude that lingers. New olah Nechama Cheses, a grandmother from Newton, Mass., says, just two months after making aliyah with her husband Aryeh, she’s thankful for everything from “the friendly guy at the local makolet to my sabra neighbor who took me around to show me the good shopping and practice my Hebrew, to the lady in the bank who gives recommendations for good kosher restaurants, to Yossi across the street who already has a shidduch for our son.” And Cheses says there’s something else she’s thankful for. “These last two months have been a celebration of living Jewishly in the moment,” she says, “of starting a new chapter in life and feeling our place in making new history in this holy land.” those who have the rentals.” Duvi Honig, founder and CEO of the Orthodox Jewish Chamber of Commerce, said the Airbnb announcement reflects a bigger issue. “BDS is all poison,” he told JNS. “We can’t pick on Airbnb, all these things. These are all children of the problem.” He said “the direct problem is the hate and momentum being built out by BDS, and is multiplying and everyone is quiet. The hate is all over the place and is growing every single day, and we have to stop it from the root.” However, Rebecca Vilomerson, executive director of the left-wing Jewish Voice for Peace, declared victory, tweeting: “WHEN WE FIGHT WE WIN!! This is a seriously great decision that is the result of several years of work by many organizations all over the world.” —JNS

Kosher… Continued from page 1 had been traditionally eaten by Jews could be considered permissible to eat; hence, any new birds discovered could not be deemed kosher. Although the turkey appeared in Jewish legal literature in the 18th century, the issue surrounding whether or not the New World bird was kosher had been decided primarily because the Mishnah Hullin dealt with new, unfamiliar birds. For kosher certification, birds must consist of specific physiological features: a crop, an extra toe and a muscular, thickwalled part of its stomach that is easy to peel. Additionally, there is a behavioral requirement in that kosher birds cannot have particular kinds of predatory manners. Jews celebrating Thanksgiving in Israel are, like most of their counterparts in the United States, not frowned upon in that, along with observing Jewish law, Israelis annually consume twice as much turkey meat as Americans do. According to Israel’s Ministry of Agriculture, Israelis eat approximately 28 pounds of turkey every year — almost double the 16.4 pounds eaten annually by the average American. And it’s all good business. Nearly half of Israel’s turkey production is exported to Europe.

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10 years after Mumbai, a son flourishes in Israel By Marcy Oster, JTA JERUSALEM — “Everything is good.” Sandra Samuel is riding on a bus from Afula in northern Israel to the city apartment in Jerusalem that she shares with four other women from India, and has agreed to talk to a reporter. She is coming from a weekly visit with her “Moshe-boy.” Ten years ago, everyone knew Samuel and the child, then dubbed Baby Moshe. The photo of the terrified-looking Samuel running from the terrorist-besieged Nariman Chabad House in Mumbai clutching Moshe Holtzberg, the 2-year-old son of Chabad emissaries Rabbi Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg, was on the front pages of newspapers around the world. On Nov. 26, 2008, 10 members of Lashkar-e-Taiba, an Islamic terrorist organization based in Pakistan, carried out a series of 12 coordinated shooting and bombing attacks on locations throughout the Indian city. The Chabad House was targeted. Moshe and his nanny were a bright spot in a tragedy that left 164 dead and hundreds wounded. Among the dead were Moshe’s parents and four other visitors to the Chabad House. “It went so fast, 10 years” Samuel, 54, remembers the attack and their escape clearly. “It is not something a person forgets. It will be in my mind forever,” she tells JTA. But she is happy that Moshe remembers nothing. Samuel took refuge in a storage room on the first floor at the time of the attack, but hours later she heard Moshe’s cries from the second floor. She left her hiding place and ran up the stairs to a room where she found the rabbi and his wife bleeding on the floor — she did not know if they were unconscious or dead — and Moshe splashed with their blood, crying. She grabbed the baby and ran from the house. “It went so fast, 10 years. My Moshe-boy has become so big,” Samuel says, noting that he is as tall as she is. “It is so beautiful to see him.” Immediately after the attack, Samuel and Moshe flew to Israel to stay with Rivka’s parents. They attended the funeral of the rabbi and his wife. Samuel was granted Israeli citizenship in recognition of her heroism. Today she lives in Jerusalem with a group of younger Indian women who work as caregivers in the city. She works at ALEH, a network for children with special needs, caring for disabled children. Her Hebrew has not improved much past the basics she learned in ulpan, but Samuel says she manages fine. During her weekly visits with Moshe, who lives with his grandparents, they play games and talk about how he is doing in school. When he was younger, they would go to the park and out for ice cream or other treats, but Samuel says he has outgrown that. She plans to remain in Israel for another four or five years “to see Moshe-boy grow up,” and then she will return to India. Her husband died more than a decade ago, months before the attack, but she has two adult sons, aged 29 and 35, who still live there. She visits about once a year, but does not visit the Chabad House, a two-hour drive from her sons’ homes. In July, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Israel to mark 25 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries; it was the first visit to Israel by an Indian head of government. Modi met with Moshe, who said he missed India. Modi invited the boy to return at any time. In January, Samuel and Moshe joined Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on a trip to Mumbai. Moshe visited the home in which he had spent the first two years of his life, sat in his former bedroom, was measured for the height chart that his parents had kept for him on the wall. He saw the bullet holes that still mark the walls of the Chabad House. “My heart is moved to return to my parents’ home, the Chabad House that has been rebuilt and refurbished,” the boy said as he

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and Netanyahu unveiled a plaque to memorialize the attack. He pledged to return to Mumbai to serve as an emissary as his parents once did. He also said the blessing for when one returns to a place from which he has escaped great danger: “Baruch she’asah li nes b’makom hazeh — blessed is the One Who performed a miracle for me in this place.” His bar mitzvah will reportedly be held next year in the Mumbai Chabad center. “What would the Holtzbergs do?” The center, meanwhile, has new leadership. Seven years ago, Rabbi Israel Kozlovsky and his wife, Chaya, arrived at a Chabad House in Mumbai still pockmarked with bullet and mortar holes, with bloodstains on the wall. It had, Rabbi Kozlovsky says, “a great emotional impact on us.” He feels the presence of the Holtzbergs around him — from their photos, to the bullet hole in the wall of the sanctuary where the body of Gavriel Holtzberg, or Gabi, was found. Three years ago, Kozlovsky’s own son had his brit milah next to that spot, and was given the name Gavriel Noach, the late rabbi’s full name. Starting a Chabad from scratch is not easy. During their five years in Mumbai, the Holtzbergs raised money to buy a six-story building in a city where real estate prices are exorbitantly high. They provided programming and Shabbat meals. In addition, they had two children born with Tay-Sachs — one older and one younger than Moshe — who died at very young ages. Rivka Holtzberg was five months pregnant at the time of the attack. Kozlovsky says that if he could have one wish granted, it would be to have a 10-minute conversation with Gavriel Holtzberg. When he becomes mired in a problem, he often asks himself: What would the Holtzbergs do? A community of about 2,000 Indian Jews still lives in Mumbai. Called Bene Israel, they are considered by local legend to be one of the lost tribes of Israel. Thousands moved to Israel after the establishment of the state in 1948, many facing religious discrimination. In the 1960s, Israel’s Chief Rabbinate ruled that they were halachically Jewish. The community that continues to live in Mumbai has seen assimilation through intermarriage and lack of interest, and has been virtually swallowed up by a congested city with nearly 20 million inhabitants. It is a great challenge for the Kozlovskys. Three floors of the Chabad building have been restored since the attack. The windows of the building have been replaced with bulletproof glass. A security booth was put on the ground floor. Walls and steel reinforced gates now surround the building. Se-

curity concerns prevent the Kozlovskys from living there; their home is a few minutes away. They cannot host people in the guest rooms. While living in the shadow of the murdered first emissaries may seem like a burden, the rabbi says it gives him and his wife “great honor to know we are building their dream.” Kozlovsky says he has videos of the young couple talking about their future plans for Chabad in Mumbai: a Jewish school, a nursery and afterschool activities — things the Kozlovskys have established. “We know they are looking from above,” the rabbi says. “We know they are still on their mission.” A near miss Israeli businessman Gary Spund, 59, was supposed to be at the Mumbai Chabad the night of the attack. A resident of Petach Tikvah, Spund spent most of his time in Mumbai and had become very close to the Holtzbergs. The Holtzbergs invited him for dinner on Nov. 26, 2008. He had been scheduled to take a business trip to China the next morning, but at the last minute the airline moved up the flight to the night before. Spund called the rabbi to cancel, and they agreed to get together the following Sunday. It was the last time they spoke. Spund was allowed into the building days after the attack. He saw a Torah scroll that had been pierced by a bullet, in the Torah portion that comes right after the death of the sons of Aaron, the High Priest. It is titled “Acharei Mot,” or after the death. To this day Spund, who owns a real estate investment company, keeps a photo of himself and Gavriel Holtzberg on his desk, and a copy of the rabbi’s Travelers’ Prayer card in his wallet. Spund worked for months in Mumbai after the attack. Chabad remained a presence in the city, sending yeshiva boys for two weeks at a time to run Shabbat services in a local hotel. Spund was the middleman, passing the keys to the building from one group of emissaries to the next. He has not returned since his business ended there. “I don’t think I ever want to go back to India,” he told JTA. Spund said he visited the young Moshe occasionally at his grandparents’ home for about two years after the attack, but that the boy didn’t really remember him. He still says Kaddish for the rabbi and his wife each year on their yahrtzeit. Earlier this month, while on business in the United States, Spund visited the Squirrel Hill neighborhood in Pittsburgh and paid his respects in front of the Tree of Life synagogue building, where a week earlier a gunman killed 11 worshippers during Shabbat services. “We’ve gotten numb to it,” he said. Spund sometimes wonders what G-d had in mind when his flight to China was changed and kept him away from the Chabad building on the night of the attack. And, he wonders, “Am I living up to it?”

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Moshe Holtzberg with his nanny Sandra Samuel in 2010. She rescued the boy from the Chabad House attack in Mumbai and followed him to Israel. Abir Sultan/ Flash 90; pictured left: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met on July 5, 2017, with Moshe Holtzberg and his nanny Sandra Samuel at the Nariman Chabad House in Mumbai, site of the 2008 terrorist attack that left Moshe’s parents dead. Atef Safadi/AFP/Getty Images

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November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779 THE JEWISH STAR

By Cnaan Liphshiz, JTA BRUSSELS — Europe has pro-Trump populists more powerful and better known than Mischael Modrikamen, the leader of Belgium’s small People’s Party. There’s Marine Le Pen of France, who clinched 10 million votes in the 2017 presidential elections with her nationalist and anti-Islam platform. Or Mateo Salvini of Italy and Heinz-Christian Strache of Austria, who occupy top positions in their countries’ governments. Steve Bannon has met most of them. But the former White House chief strategist didn’t partner with any of them when he set out to unite Europe’s hard right under what he calls “The Movement.” Instead, Bannon, whom many believe played a critical role in getting Donald Trump elected, chose Modrikamen as his man. He’s a lawyer of Jewish descent whose party has one seat in parliament. In Belgium, the partnership has provoked anger from the far right, which resents Modrikamen’s criticism, and the left, which accuses him of betrayal. But for many, the main response is puzzlement — Bannon possesses the heft to bring in bigger names. “It’s not an obvious choice and, frankly, I don’t have an explanation for it,” said Nicolas Zomersztajn, editor in chief of the leftleaning Jewish Belgian Regards magazine. Modrikamen said there was “an instant click” when the two men met earlier this year. Bannon did not respond to JTA’s questions. Whatever the reason for the choice, the fact that Modrikamen, 52, has led the charge against anti-Semitism in his country can’t be bad for the movement he heads — his members are regularly accused of xenophobia, racism and anti-Semitism. Modrikamen’s Jewish father, Marcel, was in the resistance when the Gestapo arrested him at age 16. Shortly before his arrest, he warned two Jewish women hidden at a safe house to flee. But it was Mischael’s Christian mother, Raymonde Legroux, who “brought us, my father and I, closer to Judaism,” her son said. A “philo-Semite,” his mother studied Hebrew and insisted they go to synagogue. Modrikamen’s wife, Yasmine, converted to Judaism, and they have raised their three children Jewishly. Compared to Bannon, who often accuses critical journalists of being “fake news,” Modrikamen’s mannerisms are better suited to the European style. But they share the conviction that Europe, as Bannon said in May, is a battleground “for this populist, nationalist movement.” The Movement calls for tight borders, limited immigration and economic self-interest. They share a disdain for what Modrikamen calls censorship and

Mischael Modrikamen at home near Brussels holds an anti-Semitic Cnaan Liphshiz caricature favored by anti-Israel circles in Belgium.

media manipulation (he has sued the public broadcaster in Belgium for refusing to interview him). He has made statements against Muslim immigrants that critics call racist and warnings of “civil war.” Bannon often uses what critics term apocalyptic language, saying social tensions can be resolved only when taken to a “climax.” With 40 million unemployed in Europe and “empty national coffers,” Modrikamen said in a 2016 film, “newcomers are predominantly young, uneducated, unqualified men — mostly Muslims, with different, archaic values that we can’t change.” Modrikamen denies that the video took his party from centrist to far right. But he conceded that his positions have “hardened.” “Having to go to synagogue under armed guard, the horrific terrorist attacks of 2014 at the Jewish Museum of Belgium, the 2016 jihadist bombings of Brussels, it played a role,” he said. A corporate lawyer, Modrikamen does more than pray with Belgian Jews — he fights for them in court. In 2013, he represented pro bono a gay Jewish woman whose neighbors allegedly threatened to “finish what Hitler started” after she put up a mezuzah on her door. These pursuits have left him suspicious of radical Islam, with its inherent anti-Semitism, and of large parts of the European hard right, he said.

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In his own country, the leading far-right party, the Flemish Interest, “are not people I’m particularly keen on having contact with because of their history,” he said. Nazi collaborators supported the movements that eventually evolved into the party of today. In 2014, he said in an interview, “We condemn the far right, we condemn racism.” In 2010, the French edition of news site Slate called Modrikamen “Belgium’s Sarkozy.” But now these positions may have come back to haunt him, compromising his ability to unite the right with Bannon. The Movement is not a political bloc, he said, but “a club meant for the exchange of ideas from nationalist, populist movements across Europe.” Like socialist platforms on the left, “The Movement would do well just to get populist leaders in the same room to talk strategy. That would be an achievement in its own right.” It is planning an international summit next year, he said. Modrikamen’s centrist credentials have already cost The Movement potential allies. Last month, Gerolf Annemans of Flemish Interest said his party would not join The Movement. He called Modrikamen a “charlatan.” Marcel de Graaff, the leader of the Dutch Party for Freedom in the European Parliament, said, “We welcome Steve Bannon’s support, but within The Movement there are people whom we absolutely do not want to be associated with.” Separately, Modrikamen’s Jewishness is being used against him in mainstream media. In July, the Le Vif weekly published a caricature featuring Bannon telling Modrikamen: “First, we de-kike Europe.” The caricature is “scandalous,” Modrikamen said, because “it uses anti-Semitic language.” Modrikamen dismisses claims that Bannon’s rhetoric against “globalists” betrays an anti-Semitic agenda, or that under his leadership, Breitbart became home to what the Anti-Defamation League called “white nationalists and unabashed anti-Semites and racists.” “Bannon has worked with Jews from the very beginning of his career,” Modrikamen said. He noted that Breitbart News tilted strongly toward Israel. The anti-Semitism allegation against Bannon is “a cheap smear, just like the one against Donald Trump.” Like Bannon, who has said “ethno-nationalists” are not welcome in The Movement, Modrikamen walks a fine line between promoting strongly individualist nation-states, and the xenophobia prevalent on the far right. “I want to protect The Movement from extremists, from racists. I want to be its guardian,” he said.

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THE JEWISH STAR November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779

Jewish lawyer is Bannon ally with Europe’s right

Russian shul rebuilt 80 years after Kristallnacht By Cnaan Liphshiz, JTA KALININGRAD, Russia — Twice a day, Michael Wieck passed one of Europe’s most spectacular places of worship: Koenigsberg’s New Synagogue. The mammoth shul was built in 1896 in the bustling port city, now called Kaliningrad. Its two enormous spires were dwarfed by an even larger dome. “The synagogue was never empty,” Wieck, a 90-year-old Holocaust survivor, told JTA from his home in Berlin. “It was a very diverse Jewish community. We had a good life.” The New Synagogue was a symbol of that good life and of how integrated and safe Jews felt in Koenigsberg, which the Russians took from Germany in 1945. Its torching in Kristallnacht was shocking to the thousands of Jews who lived there. “We saw the hulking ruin of our historic old synagogue each day, now a silent, accusatory memorial, a memorial to suffering,” Wieck wrote in a 2003 memoir. Now, 80 years after that pogrom, a Jewish community is about to open a replica of the building in the same place, asserting Jewish revival in a place long associated with destruction. “It’s the only synagogue in Russia that was destroyed during Kristallnacht,” Rabbi Alexander Boroda, president of the Chabad-affiliated Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia, said of the New Synagogue. “It’s very symbolic that we’re rebuilding it almost exactly as it was, not only restoring its glory but expanding on it.” On Thursday, thousands of locals gathered outside the synagogue and saw Rabbi Berel Lazar, one of Russia’s two chief rabbis, blowing the shofar for about 1,000 guests at the rededication ceremony. Diplomats and government officials joined congregants in the sanctuary. There were once three synagogues in Koenigsberg, a capital of the former German state of Prussia. Sandwiched between Poland and

rs 35 Yeagrity e Of Int

Nehama Drober, 91, waits to enter the restored synagogue in Kaliningrad, on Nov. 8; Rabbi Berel Lazar affixes a mezuzah to the front door of the New Synagogue in Kaliningrad on Nov. 8. Photos by Cnaan Liphshiz

Lithuania, the enclave had a German-speaking Jewish community very different from the Yiddish speakers in the surrounding impoverished towns. As in Berlin and Munich, Koenigsberg’s Jews were intellectual, liberal and assimilated. They felt so at home that Kristallnacht “took us completely by surprise,” Wieck said. Nearly 100 people died and thousands were wounded during the Kristallnacht pogroms. It was the first large-scale wave of physical violence directed by Nazis against Jews. The day after, Wieck’s parents were “upset and worried.” “They wouldn’t allow me to go to school that day and told me that the synagogue — and that meant our school, too — had been burned down,” he said. He has “no words to describe” his feeling about the re-inauguration. Nehama Drober, another survivor in her 90s who witnessed Kristallnacht in Koenigsberg, came in from Israel. “It feels like a closing of a circle, a measure of compensation,” said Drober, a great-grandmother of four who lost both parents in the Holocaust.

“Besides, this city should have a synagogue. Jews should have a place to pray, here of all places.” The restoration cost millions of dollars, largely provided by a local philanthropist, Vladimir (Dan) Katsman, who heads a food conglomerate. It required a massive engineering operation that included the casting, transportation and installation of a 23-ton metal dome earlier this year. The building is still in the last stages of construction, wires and pipes exposed. Even the impressive facade has missing tiles. Still, on the eve of the inauguration, the illuminated stained glass of the base for the dome dominated the waterfront of the Pregolya River. While the original synagogue was a house of worship, the new one is both a synagogue and a Jewish community center with activity rooms, computers and an auditorium. “It’s more than restoration, it’s revival,” Boroda said, a word many Chabad emissaries use to describe the growth of Russian Jewry under Vladimir Putin. Putin is accused by critics of enlisting xenophobic rhetoric for his populist agenda of restor-

ing Russia to the world stage as a superpower, with references to its czarist and even communist past. He undid a decade’s worth of democratization, turning Russia into what many say is once more a police state. Through it all, however, he has remained committed to curbing anti-Semitism. The state gave millions of dollars in funding to Jewish institutions, and regional leaders returned assets seized from Jews under communism, including the land for the Koenigsberg synagogue. Lazar, the Chabad-affiliated chief rabbi, called this “a golden era” for Russian Jews. At a time when the United Kingdom, France and Germany see hundreds of anti-Semitic incidents annually, Russia has a fraction of that sum. Putin’s example and the judiciary’s aggressive handling of anti-Semitism have made them rare. But crediting a dictatorial Putin is cause for concern to many Russian Jews, who wonder about their future in a post-Putin Russia. A growing number of Russian Jews are leaving — especially from Moscow and St. Petersburg, where most of Russia’s 250,000 Jews live. Last year, Russian immigration to Israel grew to 7,224, the highest in over a decade. Russia the largest single provider of immigrants to Israel under the Law of Return that year. This year, aliyah from Russia hit 6,331 in the first trimesters of 2018, compared to 4,701 by that time in 2017. Part of the reason for the surge is the economic crisis hitting Russia as a result of dropping oil prices and sanctions over its territorial conflict with Ukraine. But that’s only part of the story, former refusenik Natan Sharansky, the former chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel, told JTA last year. Amid the erosion of democracy in Russia, he said, Jewish “businessmen, people from the intelligentsia, they are afraid to find themselves yet again closed off from the free world.”

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November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779 THE JEWISH STAR

By Cnaan Liphshiz, JTA AMSTERDAM — Growing up, Jaap Soesan would count the days until his parents would take him to Waterloo Square, a central area that many people here call the Jewish market. “It was a treat to go there,” recalled Soesan, a 95-year-old Holocaust survivor from the Amsterdam suburb of Amstelveen. “It was cozy. It was unique. It was varied, so much different produce. It was the heart of the Jewish neighborhood,” he told the VPRO broadcaster during a 2016 interview about his childhood in the 1930s. The Nazi occupation forces murdered most of the market’s Jewish vendors and customers. Today, only a handful Jews, nearly all of them Israelis, work there. Remarkably, though, the Waterloo Square bazaar, which was set up in 1893 for Jews, got a new lease on life even after its closure by the Nazis. In the 1970s it became a mecca for fashionistas, who were part of an unlikely human tapestry comprising handymen in search of secondhand tools, book collectors, audiophiles and poets. The advent of resale sites like eBay has since hurt sales. But the same mix is still there. At the Waterloo Square today, a bicycle repairman from Nigeria plies his trade next to a Jordanian’s falafel stand, an Amsterdam-born bookseller and an army surplus vendor as tourists from around the world try their hand at bargaining. But a new municipal plan aims to reduce drastically the number of vendors at the market and take advantage of the valuable real estate land taken up by their ramshackle stalls. It’s threatening to deal a death blow to one of this city’s most loved and historically Jewish institutions, activists fighting the plan say. The plan, which the City Council passed this

From left: A prospective customer examines the secondhand bicycle area at Amsterdam’s Waterloo Square market in 2012. Ksenia Novikova/ Flickr. Nissim Kol shows off his merchandise to a prospective shopper at Amsterdam’s so-called Jewish market on Oct. 26. Cnaan Liphshiz

year, does away with a third of the market’s 300 stalls and half of its characteristic storage boxes — metal constructions favored by graffiti artists (and pub crawlers in search of a place to urinate). The new space will feature a mini-mall. “Waterloo Square isn’t doing well,” the city wrote in its plan, which noted how the market’s layout prohibits efficient circulation of shoppers, among other purported problems. “The condition of maintenance and the use of the land is also far below standard,” the report said. But by reducing the space and forcing modern standards on the traditionally chaotic market, “the city is killing its soul,” said Nissim Kol, an Israel-born vendor who has been working at the market since 1992 and sells products from India.

Kol, 60, and other critics of the city’s plan concede that the Waterloo Square market is in need of some change. Sales have decreased gradually to the point that “it’s no longer profitable to open up shop,” Kol said. A decade ago he would often earn hundreds of dollars a day. Today he often is left with no more than $12 to show for a day’s work. The plan to tidy up Waterloo Square is part of a larger drive that began 15 years ago to gentrify a city known internationally for its sex trade, cannabis-dispensing “coffee shops” and atmosphere of freedom. Once the realm of low-income couples, Amsterdam’s famous houseboats are now Airbnb favorites. Vondel Park, where hippies would pitch

tents in the 1970s, is now at the heart of an upscale neighborhood where rents match those of Paris and London. The municipality, which has had success in highlighting its museums, tulips and canals over carnal pleasures, has been cracking down for years on its red light districts, including plans to drastically reduce the number of sex workers. A similar policy on coffee shops has seen their number plummet by 37 percent since 2007, to 166 today. That the Jewish market should now suffer because of gentrification is “ironic,” according to Bart Wallet, a University of Amsterdam historian and author of the book “History of Jews in the Netherlands,” which was published in See Amsterdam on page 12

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THE JEWISH STAR November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779

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November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779 THE JEWISH STAR

The JEWISH STAR

Wine & Dine

Chanukah gifts and more Kosher kitchen

Joni ScHocKETT

Jewish Star columnist

hanukah is coming! Latkes and candles, brisket and gifts, fun family gatherings — these are the icons of this holiday. As a child, I couldn’t wait to get Chanukah gelt from my grandparents. There was always a crisp bill or a silver dollar accompanied by a Hershey bar from my paternal grandparents, and TWO dollars and a package of Juicy Fruit gum from my maternal grandmother. I loved the candles and the singing and the holiday story with good guys and bad guys, like the TV shows I watched. As a mom, I vowed that my kids would understand the true meaning of the Maccabees’ miracle, surviving the attacks from Antiochus and his troops. The victorious Jews then rededicated the Temple and the little bit of holy oil, only enough to last a day or so, lasted for the eight days it took to clean the synagogue and rededicate it. I sent my kids to Jewish day school, and they learned all their lessons well — and then came home and made their wish lists! Beyond the quagmire of gift giving, the holiday is also about the iconic foods we eat. Sufganiyot and latkes, and anything fried, pairs well with brisket and more. And who doesn’t love a jelly donut? There is also a tradition of eating cheese and dairy foods on Chanukah. It goes back to the story of Judith, who saved her village by plying an invading general with salty cheese and wine. When he passed out drunk, she beheaded him and took his head back to her village in triumph. So we eat cheese, cheesecake and more to celebrate her bravery — definitely not the healthiest of holidays! Whatever foods you eat to celebrate, a new cookbook is a great gift for anyone of any age who loves these signature foods and more. Michael Solomonov and his restaurant partner, Steven Cook, exploded into the cookbook world with their debut cookbook Zahav, which

New foods...

Continued from page 1 sherfest’s award for the best new savory snack, pack a salty crunch and are gluten free. Feel free to pour on the dressing: The manufacturer claims they don’t get soggy like the regular ones. Plantain croutons are available in supermarkets throughout the U.S. for around $2.50 for a 5-ounce package. They are flavored with sea salt, but new flavors — including garlic, lemon and spicy — will hit stores soon. “It’s all natural,” said Enrique Villacreses, general manager of TropicMax. “You can use it for soups, salads, and it always keeps crunchy.” Sweet cheese chocolate chip ravioli Craving pasta but also in the mood for something sweet? These unique ravioli will satisfy your craving. The pasta is breaded and stuffed with sweet ricotta cheese and chocolate chips. They are sold frozen and can be heated up in the oven at home. For those seeking a savory version, New York Pasta Authority also sells more traditional flavors, such as spinach cheese, mushroom and

won two James Beard Awards. They have followed it with a new book, Israeli Soul. This is a gorgeous book that presents Israeli cuisine in simple recipes for everyday use. The pictures of Israel are gorgeous, the pictures of the food are gorgeous — the whole book is just absolutely gorgeous! I gush, but I have rarely seen a book that has captured so much of the energy and beauty, the very soul, of a country. There are pictures seem to move, the colors are rich and bright, and the story of Israel and the love that Israelis — and Solomonov and Cook — have for their food comes through in the passionate writing throughout the book. The pair spent 84 days eating their way through Israel. They found their favorite places and included the address of every one of them in the book, along with a map of Israel to show the reader where they are. Eventually, Solomonov and Cook came home and developed simplified versions of more complex recipes, tested them and wrote the book. From hummus to schwarma, to chamo kubbe, Persian meatballs, Jerusalem bagels, homemade pita, bourekas, konafi, zalatimo, the familiar and unfamiliar, this book has recipes that will thrill you and your family and friends, but won’t tie you to the kitchen for hours on end. The hummus recipe takes five minutes and is absolutely delicious. While it uses canned chickpeas, no one will know that you did not soak and cook them. This is a fabulous book if you want to make authentic, outstandingly delicious Israeli food in a fraction of the time. I know anyone who receives this book will love it, although it may take pizza ravioli. The raviolis retail for about $5 for 12 ounces; the sweet variety will be available in about three months in kosher stores. “It’s special because people don’t think that a ravioli would be dessert or sweet,” said Chavi Katzman, who founded New York Pasta Authority with her husband, Moshe. Menorah-shaped ice cream cake Klein’s Ice Cream gives sufganiyot a run for their money with a cake with slices that look like Chanukah menorahs. The pareve (non-dairy) and vegan dessert is made of cherry and passion fruit-mango sorbet and is topped with chocolate icing. The health-conscious can delight — or at least take solace — in the fact that the cake, which comes pre-sliced, is made with real fruit. (Another version has slices that look like candle flames.) The menorah cake is only sold around Chanukah, but those looking for a cold treat can buy other varieties of Klein’s Ice Cream year-round. A 12-slice log costs about $30 and is available in kosher supermarkets. “If you buy it for your kids, your kids will love you,” said Victor Klein, manager of Klein’s Ice Cream. coconut-based butter substitute Betterine positions itself as the perfect solu-

some time to get to the recipes, as the pictures and narrative are so compelling. Here are a few recipes to get you started. All recipes from Easy, Essential, Delicious, Israeli Soul, by Michael Solomonov and Steven Cook. 5-Minute Hummus with Quick Tehina Sauce (Pareve) This recipe builds the hummus by making a tehina sauce first. Tehina sauce: 1 small garlic clove Juice of one lemon 1 (16 oz.) jar tehina 1 Tbsp. kosher salt (or to taste) 1 tsp. ground cumin 1 to 1-1/2 cups ice water Hummus: 2 (15 oz.) cans chickpeas Place the ingredients for the tehina sauce in the bowl of a food processor in the order listed. Process for about 1 minute until the mixture is thick like peanut butter. Add ice water while the motor is running until the mixture is smooth, creamy and lightened in color, like the color of light sand. Add the chickpeas and process for about 3 minutes, until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Stop the machine and scrape the sides a few times during the 3 minutes. If it is too thick, add more water. Taste and adjust seasonings. Makes about 4 cups. Everyday Schug (Pareve) 1/2 lb. stemmed serrano chili peppers 3 Tbsp. kosher salt 3 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 Tbsp. canola oil 2 tsp. ground coriander Place all ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth. Taste and adjust seasonings. Will keep up to 3 weeks in a tightly covered container in the refrigerator. Makes about 2 cups. Schwarma Spice Blends (Pareve) Solomonov and Cook make their own spice blends for schwarma. Here are three of them. Spice Blend #1 (Best for red meat) 1/2 cup ground sumac 1/4 cup smoked paprika 2 Tbsp. garlic powder 2 Tbsp. onion powder 1 Tbsp. cayenne pepper Mix all ingredients and store in a tightly closed container in a cool dry place. Spice Blend #2 (Best for poultry) 1/2 cup turmeric 1/2 cup cumin 1/4 cup black pepper 2 Tbsp. cardamom 2 Tbsp. coriander Mix all ingredients and store in a tightly closed container in a cool dry place. Spice Blend #3 (Best for Vegetables) 1/4 cup turmeric 1/4 cup cumin 1/4 cup fenugreek 1/4 cup cinnamon 1 Tbsp. allspice 1 Tbsp. black pepper Mix all ingredients and store in a tightly closed container in a cool dry place.

Klein’s Ice Cream offers a cake, center, with slices that look like Chanukah menorahs; Kosherfest participants check out the products at the Meadowlands Exposition Center in Secaucus, N.J., on Nov. 13; Pictured left: Gluten-free sambusaks and spinach tarts are available with a cheese or meat filling.

Photos by Josefin Dolsten

tion for consumers who are looking for a nondairy and all-natural butter substitute. It is made from coconut oil and is vegan, organic and GMOfree. Betterine sticks look similar to butter, have a neutral taste and can replace butter or margarine in recipes. The product will be available in two months in kosher stores across the country at a cost of about $5.80 for one pound. “Most [butter substitutes] have chemical ingredients. The ones that don’t taste horrible,” said Akiva Stern, president of Amarlane Foods, which produces Betterine. “This doesn’t have chemical ingredients and it tastes great, so it’s the ultimate solution as far as we’re concerned.” Gluten-free cheese sambusaks These sambusaks taste just like the traditional Syrian savory meat- or cheese-stuffed

dumpling — except they are gluten free. The idea for the dish came to Esther Anzaroot when her son started dating his now-wife, who follows a gluten-free diet. Anzaroot wanted to share her family’s Syrian Jewish culture with her son’s significant other, but found that many dishes contain gluten. “Syrian food is part of our culture, so I felt terrible that she couldn’t embark and taste and share,” Anzaroot said. Her gluten-free sambusaks, which are sold under her brand GlutenFree.sy, beat out regular pastries to snag Kosherfest’s new product award in the breads and baked goods category. They retail for $13.50 per dozen at kosher markets in the New York-area and are available with a cheese or meat filling.

THE JEWISH STAR November 23, 2018 â&#x20AC;¢ 15 Kislev, 5779

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November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779 THE JEWISH STAR

The JEWISH STAR

Wine & Dine

Jerry returns from Israel and the Red Lion Pub Who’s in the Kitchen

JudY Joszef

Jewish Star columnist

he party is over. Life as I knew it over the past 13 days is done! Jerry has landed, back from the Holy Land. Gone are the days when I went to bed and woke up in the morning to find everything exactly as it was the night before — and let’s not forget the snoring. Over the past 3-1/2 years, Jerry has traveled to Israel for the brit milahs of his son Yoni and daughter-in-law Esther’s three youngest sons — Noah, Yedidya, and now Yishai Adam. This last visit was doubly sweet, as his daughter Jordana (not to be confused with my daughter Jordana) also had a baby two weeks earlier, so he had a lot to celebrate. Jerry landed at 5:25 pm, after sleeping only a couple of hours on the flight. As soon as he got to his son in Efrat, the excitement began. He didn’t get much sleep that night either. They all rose early the next morning for the bris. As was the case for the older two boys, a dear friend of Yoni’s, Ben Yishai, was the mohel. He and Jerry are kindred spirits, and always enjoy singing and spending time together. The bris was beautiful and warm with lots of singing led by the mohel, Ben. Later, Yoni told Jerry that his close friend Tom and his band would be giving a concert later that night at a local joint, and he should embrace a night of great music despite his exhaustion. Yoni negotiated the back roads of Efrat and then he mysteriously turned onto a dark dirt road. His headlights lit up a sign that read, forebodingly, “DO NOT ENTER! AUTHORIZED VEHICLES ONLY!” Jerry gasped. Yoni informed him that they were going to the Red Line, and explained that he and his friends went there regularly for concerts. Jerry heard of the Green Line, but never red. He was sure that Yoni was cavalierly driving them into no man’s land, frequented

by Israelis and Palestinians alike, for a concert. When they got there, Jerry noted that all of Yoni’s friends were armed. He was beside himself, but began to calm down. The music was fantastic, and Yoni and his friends compelled him to have a few beers and other drinks, to put him in the proper mood for a great concert at the precarious Red Line. (Jerry, by the way, thinks “drinking” means adding a splash

as an honored guest. He protested, but they wouldn’t take no for an answer. When the speeches and festivities ended, Jerry thought that perhaps now he could get to bed. Ben asked what he wanted to do next. “Go to sleep?” Jerry hazarded. Ben excitedly retorted, “I have a great idea — I know a great bakery and we can buy the best freshest challahs in town lekavod Shabbat.” And off they

Fom left: Jerry and grandson Nadav, who volunteers at a pet store; grandchildren Lia Rose and Noach; and Jerry with grandson Yedidya. From left in photo at right, standing: Esther and husband Yoni Joszef, Jerry’s son and daughter Elliot and Jordana, and Jordana’s son Yisroel; seated: Jerry’s sonin- law Yitz, Jerry, and Jordana’s son Shaya.

of Malaga wine to grape juice). He pondered what to do. His children were adults, and he endeavored never to meddle. He also knew that as Joszefs, they would do their own thing anyway. Silence was golden. When they got home, he finally asked Yoni why he would go to the dangerous Red Line for a concert, or for any reason. Yoni began to laugh. The concert, he explained, was at the Red Lion Pub. By now it was really late, and Jerry was practically incoherent from exhaustion, compounded with inebriation. He popped in his earplugs, hoping to drift off into the sweet peace of a long night’s sleep. During the night, he dreamed that Ben, the mohel, was standing at the foot of his bed à la Fruma Sarah in Tevye’s nightmare. He appeared to be beckoning Jerry to join him on a journey into the unknown. The vision was soundlessly singing as passionately as Ben had at the bris that morning, his eyes closed, his face radiating ecstasy. The dream took a turn for the surreal when the celestial spirit gently tapped Jerry on the shoulder.

Amsterdam... Continued from page 9 Dutch last year. After all, he said, the same market “was born as a result of gentrification.” Wallet was referring to a municipal crackdown on the unofficial Jewish market that had existed in the 19th century along Jodenbreestraat, literally “Jewish Broad Street.” Located outside the center and near the Portuguese Synagogue, the street and its alleys became a crowded bazaar. A rare photograph of the bustling Jodenbreestraat market now hangs at the entrance to Rosh Pinah, the city’s Jewish elementary school. “It was a crowded area full of merchants of all kinds, hauling bags and crates full of every produce available and then selling it on street corners,” Wallet said. “It was a mess.” The proximity of the Moses and Aaron Church to that hub of commerce didn’t help its popularity with churchgoers who needed to pass there on Sundays, he said. So the city banned commerce on Jodenbreestraat and instead offered the Waterloo Square in a move that aroused protests no

Jerry began to ponder the meaning of this nocturnal encounter with the spirit of the mohel. Might he be compelled to wrestle with an angel and emerge victorious, but wounded? He pulled his earplugs out, and was stunned to hear the voice of Ben actually singing to him. The apparition stopped singing for a moment and told Jerry to quickly get dressed as they would be late to the early morning Rosh Chodesh davening.

meeker than the ones on display today around the same market. “The chief rabbi of Amsterdam had to talk to the merchants to convince them to move, which they did quite reluctantly,” Wallet said. During its opening in 1893, the Waterloo Square Market was “a completely Jewish institution,” Wallet said. It was deserted by sundown on Fridays and closed on Saturdays for Shabbat, as well as on all Jewish holidays. A significant number of the stalls offered scripture and Judaica items. Even the market’s name, which today shares its spelling with the Belgian town where Napoleon’s army was defeated, may be rooted in Yiddish. The market stands on land that was claimed from water after the arrival of the Portuguese Jews in the 16th century, Wallet said. “It may have come from a mashup of the Dutch word ‘water’ and the Hebrew word for no, lo. Water-Lo,” he said. The Dutch-language greeting mazzeltof may be another inheritance from the Jewish market.

Jerry stumbled around in a stupor, trying to understand the moment. Could it be that he had made plans with Ben the day before, at the bris, in his overwhelmingly exhausted state? He had no memory of that at all! He felt compelled to meticulously follow Ben’s instructions, fearing that he could morph into Fruma Sarah at any moment. After Rosh Chodesh davening, Ben asked Jerry what he wanted to do next. Jerry mentioned that he’d love to head back to bed. He thanked Ben, who smiled broadly and said, “That’s great! I’m going to be the mohel at another bris on the other side of town soon, and I am overjoyed that you agree to accompany me.” Jerry had made no such promise, but he was outmatched by Ben’s passion. Off they flew to fulfill Ben’s Don Quixotic quest, with Jerry playing Sancho Panza. He tried as best as he could to be inconspicuous, which was impossible in the intimate gathering of close friends and family at this bris. He was relieved when the ceremony ended, hoping to crawl back into bed, until Ben informed him that he was invited to the seudah

flew to the next adventure. Finally, hours after the commencement of his dream with Ben, Jerry returned from Never-ever-again Land to Yoni’s home. By this time he was way too exhausted to “sleep, perchance to dream, ay, there’s the rub…”—Hamlet Since I don’t have much room left for a long recipe, and you should have already prepared your Thanksgiving dinner by now, here’s an easy recipe for a great cocktail … and no, Jerry, you can’t have one.

Meaning “good luck” in Yiddish and exchanged frequently between vendor and customer in the market after a transaction, it was borrowed by non-Jews to mean simply “goodbye.” Mazzeltof is used to this day in the Amsterdam dialect, along with dozens of other Yiddish words such as jatten — meaning to steal, and referring to a person’s hand, or yad in Hebrew — and even the very name of Amsterdam. Locals call it Mokum, from the Hebrew word for place, makom. By the 19th century, Jewish and non-Jewish intellectuals could be found in the cafes that sprang up around the market, Wallet said. When the Germans invaded in 1940, Waterloo Square at first was allowed to operate, but only Jews were allowed to enter. In 1941, Nazi sympathizers who stormed the market, smashing stalls, were confronted by communists, including Jews. The result was a street brawl that ended with the death of a Nazi collaborator. That triggered Nazi retaliations, including the murder of more than 400 Jews rounded up in the ghetto. These events led to the February Strike — perhaps the largest-scale act of resistance anywhere in Western Europe to the Nazis, specifically over their persecution of Jews.

“This market, it had a key role in some formative events not only in Dutch Jewish history, but in the history of the nation,” Wallet said. Some 75 percent of Holland’s 140,000 Jews, most of whom had lived in Amsterdam, died in the Holocaust. After the war, Waterloo Square was reopened, but with few Jews. In the 1970s, many Israeli vendors discovered it, reintroducing a Jewish element to the place. However, in 1977 they had to move out along with everyone else at the market. It was reduced dramatically in size by the municipality, which built offices despite vociferous protests. Waterloo Square returned a few years after construction was completed, experiencing a boom that lasted until the financial crisis of 2008. It has not recovered from that crisis, giving rise to fears that its nine lives are up. Then again, over the past 135 years “this market has pulled itself from the edge of collapse several times, be it after a world war or a city plan,” historian Hans Goedkoop said in a 2016 documentary about the market on the VPRO broadcaster’s “Andere Tijden” television show. “So now, who knows?” he said.

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Curran marks Kristallnacht Liberal Jewish women have with a trip to Berlin Nassau County Executive Laura Curran joined local spiritual leaders and members of the North American Board of Rabbis in accepting an invitation from the Foreign Ministry of Germany and the Goethe Institute to attend the 80th commemoration of Kristallnacht in Berlin. The trip included meetings with German government officials and a talk by Chancellor Angela Merkel. “It was an honor to represent Nassau County, and to witness for our vibrant Jewish community,” Curran said. Curran marched with several Long Islanders and 2,000 Berliners to a service at the Holocaust Memorial, where she read aloud names of Berliners who perished during the Shoah.

‘march’ issues

She attended services at Rykestrasse Synagogue in East Berlin, Germany’s largest synagogue, with keynote speaker Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel. Curran also marked the 29th anniversary of the Berlin Wall coming down, met with members of the Saxon State Parliament and members of the American Jewish Committee’s Berlin Office, visited the Synagogue Hüttenweg in West Berlin and participated in multiple Jewish heritage tours and a Shabbat observance. Her trip was supported through the Visitors Programme of the Federal Republic of Germany, which organizes trips for foreign leaders, and was at no cost to Nassau taxpayers.

Commentary by Guila Franklin Siegel WASHINGTON — On the heels of actress and activist Alyssa Milano’s remarkable statement indicating that she plans to boycott the upcoming 2019 Women’s March because of its leaders’ persistent anti-Semitic behavior, there has been a backlash in our Jewish feminist ranks. Jewish women are being urged not to abandon the national Women’s March, lest we empower white supremacists, who are dangerous to During a service at a Shoah memorial in the Jews and to women and are only too delighted to sow German capital, Nassau County Executive divisiveness among social justice activists. Laura Curran reads aloud names of Berliners We know anti-Semitism when we see it. In fact, who perished during the Holocaust. Linda Sarsour recently hit a new low by invoking on Twitter the pernicious “dual loyalty” canard that has been the basis of persecution of Jews for centuries by accusing progressive Jews of caring more about Israel than they do about preserving American values and ideals. Like almost every other issue these days, the fight Here’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to lead a Torah Judaism and issues of interest to local Orthodox against anti-Semitism is becoming increasingly pocommunities. growing team of staff reporters, correspondents and liticized, pitting right against left in a meaningless photographers at Long Island’s #1 Jewish newspaper in There is also an opening for a P/T Associate Editor to debate about the identity of the worst anti-Semites in print and on multiple online platforms. our midst. But there is no “anti-Semitism Olympics,” edit copy and perform a variety of office functions. where we crown David Duke and Richard Spencer’s Qualified candidates will have demonstrated Send a descriptive cover letter, resume, clips (or links). team with the gold medal as the far more dangerIn subject line, put EDITOR or ASSOCIATE EDITOR. journalistic proficiency and have an understanding of ous, authentic anti-Semites, while Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam come in a distant second and settle for silver. All anti-Semitism emanates from the same age-old tropes of the sinister, untrustworthy, greedy, repulsive Jew. Peddlers of this evil all need to be fought with the same conviction and vigor, reThe Jewish Star’s news reporters will cover community Photographers will cover events in the Five Towns and elsewhere on Long Island or on the Upper West Side and gardless of where they are on the political spectrum events, civic meetings, school news, local personalities Riverdale on a freelance basis. and a range of Jewish issues. Reporting and writing and how their messages are packaged. experience (preferably news coverage) is required. An For decades, and for ethical, laudable reasons, Our newsroom alumni have become news media understanding of Jewish issues is a plus. superstars in New York and throughout America. many Jewish activists have condemned Farrakhan You will not find a better, more professional growth while taking care to keep the lines of dialogue and This position is full-time (although a flexible schedule may opportunity in Jewish media on Long Island. be arranged), with salary, paid holidays, time off, communication open with his supporters. Efforts medical and 401(k). Candidates will also be Send resume, cover letter and clips (or links). In subject to share mutual narratives, collaborate on a huge line, put REPORTER, EDITOR or FREELANCE. considered for freelance work. range of public policy initiatives and nurture deep interfaith bonds have all strengthened connections between Jews and other minority groups in our local communities, and benefited society as a whole. Yet despite all of these noble efforts, a gulf remains. Farrakhan and his loopy yet heinous conspirP/T and freelance (set your own schedule!) with the Write about what you know and care about the most acy theories are becoming more normalized within prospect of fame (a Jewish Star byline!) and if not quite — your community, your shul, your schools, your some minority communities, and many progressive a fortune, a modest stipend. organizations. Jews have begun to feel unwelcome in the very moveSound intereting? E-mail an inquiry to the editor for The Jewish Star is recruiting neighborhood people with ments that their forebears helped to create and grow. a prompt callback. Please put NEIGHBORHOOD a nose for news. Do you like to write and enjoy sharing We are not obliged to passively enable antiCORRESPONDENT in the subject line. what’s happening in your local Jewish communitiy? Semitism because of misplaced guilt or a sincere, values-driven desire to build bridges and heal our fractured RE YOU A COLLEGE STUDENT REworld. YOU THE PARENT OF A STUDENT A palpable impatience and anger is beginningWHO to grip many liberal JewishTHIS women. Many O YOU KNOW A COLLEGE STUDENT WANTS TO EARN SUMMER of the most loyal, passionate feminist soldiers in much more), so your earning potential is outstanding. The Jewish Star's advertising sales and marketing representatives help businesses and organizations the Women’s March — having devoted significant These positions (full-time preferred, but a flex schedule reach Jewish communities on Long Island. time, energy and money to a movement in which may be arranged) offer competitive compensation they now feel disregarded and even perhaps unThe Jewish Star offers its clients an exceptionally broad including a base salary, excellent commission and bonus safe — are simply walking away, at least for now. opportunities, paid holidays, time off, medical and 401(k). range of useful products (including both religious and The fight for the soul of the women’s movesecular publications, digital and email marketing, direct Send resume and cover letter. Put AD SALES in the mail, commercial printing, advertising novelties and ment cannot be waged “halfway,” nor can it be subject line. The New York Press Association Foundation is sponsoring a paid waged only by Jews. Alyssa Milano understood summer internship at this newspaper qualified journalism student. that, whichforisawhy she courageously refused to speak at the upcoming march unless these issues Send all job inquiries to: JewishStarJobs@gmail.com are thoroughly and honestly addressed. Any student currently enrolled in a recognized journalism program The Women’s March does is eligible to compete for an internship with anot have a monopoly on feminist activism. Just askmust the many net $2,500 stipend provided by NYPA. Applicants attendstate and loaffiliates that have broken off from the national college duringcal the 2018-2019 academic year. organization precisely because they find the current national leadership antithetical to the principles for whichdeadline they stand. These are the women with whom Hurry! Application is March 1, 2018. we should be working in common cause. To be sure, there are highly respected progresThe New York Press Association Foundation is Application forms are online sive Jewish organizations and individuals who for sponsoring a paid summer internship at this newspaper at NYNewspapers.com. New York Press Association Application availableto online at: the legitimate reasonsforms will continue work with for a qualified journalism student. Any student currently •Click on Member Services national Women’s March leadership, even as many enrolled in a recognized journalism program is eligible •Click on Internships www. of us choose not to associate with.com the movement to compete for an internship with a net $2,500 stipend at this moment. For those of us in the latter camp, provided by NYPA. Applicants must attend college Deadline: during the 2018–19 academic year. March 1, 2019 F O U N DAT I O N the imperative is to take a firm, clear stand — and to support and encourage trueonallies to join us click on Member Services our click Internships in rejecting Tamika Mallory, Sarsour and their ilk. In the end, can we ask of ourselves any less than Alyssa Milano, a non-Jew, demanded of herself? Hillel’s exhortation calls out to us at this challenging inflection point: “If I am not for myself, who will be for me? And if not now, when?” Guila Franklin Siegel is associate director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington.

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November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779 THE JEWISH STAR

By Victor Wishna, JTA KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The scribbled, shorthand note is faded, but the formal origins of the first modern Jewish state are clear: “H(is) M(ajesty’s) G(overnment) accepts the principle that P(alestine) shld. reconstitute as the Natl. Home of the J(ewish) P(eople)…” Jotted on stationery from London’s Imperial Hotel, the memo was forwarded, with a second, annotated version, to Britain’s foreign secretary, Lord Arthur James Balfour, who revised them into an official declaration on Nov. 2, 1917. “Those are two amazing little pieces of paper,” said Doran Cart, senior curator at the National WWI Museum and Memorial, where a new exhibit probes the impact of the Great War — which ended 100 years ago this week — from a Jewish perspective. “To have them here is an incredible touchstone — not only for the Jewish community, but also for everyone else, because that has really affected the world order.” Besides the original drafts of the Balfour Declaration, the exhibit titled “For Liberty: American Jewish Experience in WWI” offers a remarkable range of artifacts tracing Jewish responses to the war — from early enlistment to outspoken opposition to efforts to help Jews around the globe. Through dozens of photos, placards and personal correspondence, it explores the fortuities and challenges of American-Jewish identity and highlights the consequences of century-old events — from Balfour to the Bolshevik Revolution, also in 1917 — that still reverberate today. Even as it marks its centennial, the first world war is often overlooked in comparison to the one that came after — though not so much in Kansas City, where the museum’s 265-foot-high Liberty Memorial rises above downtown. The site was dedicated in 1921 in front of more than 100,000 people, including the Great War’s five Allied commanders. More than 150,000 showed up when President Calvin Coolidge opened the

tower to the public five years There,” which was to become later. Congress declared it the the best-selling anthem of the nation’s official WWI museum war. in 2004. Yet the exhibit is also Also overlooked — or unalarming, a cautionary tale. derknown — is the outsize imRabbi Stephen S. Wise’s 1917 pact World War I had on Jewish New York Times op-ed declarAmericans, many new to the ing that American military sercountry. Of the 4.8 million men vice will “mark the burial … of and women who served in the hyphenism, and will token the American Expeditionary Force, birth of a united and indivis250,000 were Jews. ible country,” is presented as a “When the time came to dream clearly still unrealized. serve their country under arms, Other documents, such no class of people served with as letters from politicians to more patriotism or with higher American Jewish leaders remotives than the young Jews questing loyalty oaths, notices who volunteered or were draftdemanding “100% Americaned and who went overseas with ism” and a cartoon depicting a our other young Americans,” wall to keep out “alien undeGen. John Pershing, commandsirables” echo anti-immigrant er of the expeditionary force, A handbill made by the Jewish passions and policies of today. said in 1926 to an interfaith Welfare Board in 1918 is on dis- The Communist revolution led crowd in New York City. play at the exhibit “For Liberty: to the earliest Red Scare and Indeed, “For Liberty” offers American Jewish Experience in fears of Russian influence in odes to Jewish commitment by WWI” at the National WWI Muse- America — though after centhose in uniform and beyond. um and Memorial in Kansas City, turies of life under the czars, The large recruitment posters Mo. Gift of the Anne and John P. it was seen as “deliverance” printed by the Jewish Welfare McNulty Foundation by many Russian Jews, as reBoard may be the most eyevealed by a Haggadah supplecatching, as is the fully preserved uniform of ment published to celebrate this newest exodus. Army Sgt. William Shemin — and the Medal of Photos and quotes highlight the anti-draft Honor he was awarded posthumously in 2015. activism of Emma Goldman, who was arrested Also on display is songwriter Irving Berlin’s and eventually deported with hundreds of other draft card, as well as copies of the patriotic music “radical aliens” for “anarchism.” There’s also a he wrote while stationed at Camp Upton on Long hint of Supreme Court controversy, symbolized Island, New York. There’s the score from “Jew- in the robes of the first Jewish justice, Louis ish War Brides,” by Boris Thomashefsky — one Brandeis, whose contentious, months-long conof several Yiddish Theatre productions staged in firmation process was seen as unprecedented. support of the war. A photo shows the Jewish “For Liberty” was planned years ago. A joint singer and vaudevillian Nora Bayes belting out effort of Philadelphia’s National Museum of the first recording of George M. Cohan’s “Over American Jewish History and the American Jew-

Jewish america ish Historical Society in New York, it debuted last year under a different name. Rachel Lithgow, then-executive director of the historical society, wanted the exhibit to travel beyond the Jewish-museum world, so that visitors of different backgrounds could see it. “I wanted any hyphenated Americans to be able to relate to it because the Jewish story is the Italian story, it’s the Irish story, it’s the Asian story,” she said, noting that 18 percent of the American Expeditionary Force was foreign-born. “It’s really, how did people become American, what does becoming American look like?” Cart, the museum’s senior curator, said he was intrigued when Lithgow presented the idea. “It told a new story, that we had dealt with in smaller ways, but never in a real comprehensive exhibition like this,” he said. The local community, home to nearly 20,000 Jews, has shown substantial interest in the exhibit. A crowd attended a July presentation at the museum on the attitudes of American Jews toward the war featuring Michael Neiberg, a professor of history at the U.S. Army War College. On a recent Monday evening, nearly 200 members of the Women’s Philanthropy of the Kansas City Jewish Federation gathered at the museum for an annual meeting. Cart showed a PowerPoint on American Jewish women in World War I, concluding with slides from the museum’s archives: six typewritten pages of women volunteers of the Jewish Welfare Board who had traveled overseas in the war’s waning days. As the names went up, many in the crowd gasped. “You could hear excited mumbling throughout the room,” recalled Barb Kovacs. “‘That’s my last name.’ ‘That’s my maiden name.’ ‘That’s my grandmother’s maiden name.’ It brought it home and made it really personal.”

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THE JEWISH STAR November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779

An exhibit eyes WWI Jewish life in Kansas City

HAFTR students prepare for bar and bat mitzvahs HAFTR’s sixth-grade girls and seventhgrade boys are busier than usual this year as they attend each other’s bar and bat mitzvah celebrations. This rite of passage is exciting, but new to them. How do they conduct themselves at such an occasion? What is the proper way to greet the honoree? What if they drop food on the floor accidentally? What if their cell phones ring during a speech? How can they act like a respectable young ladies and gentlemen? All of those concerns were addressed at HAFTR Middle School’s mock bar mitzvah and bat mitzvah workshops. RSVP’s were required,

along with party attire and most importantly — proper conduct! Students brought parents or family members to share the fun. Girls learned about the mitzvah of challah and had the chance to experience baking challah with Rebbetzin Sori Teitelbaum. They explored the spiritual side of becoming a bat mitzvah with Mrs. Nechama Landau. Boys, many of whom will lein their haftarah or parsha, have the chance to practice and perfect their portion with HAFTR rebbeim in the school’s beit midrash every morning. Many students take on chesed projects to con-

Haschalas Chumash at Darchei

First-grade talmidim of Far Rockaway’s Yeshiva Darchei Torah celebrated Haschalas Chumash with their rabbeim, parents and grandparents last Sunday. YK Images

nect their responsibilities as young adults to a personal mitzvah. All workshop participants enjoyed delicious foods provided by Five Star Caterers and simcha dancing with Azamra and a motivator. Thank you to all of the sponsors! For the mock bar and bat mitzvahs, Mr. Joshua Gold, HAFTR Middle School’s principal, greeted students at the Beth Sholom lobby and told them what to expect at the two staged celebrations — one for girls, and one for boys. Eighth-graders acted in the roles of the honoree’s siblings. At the bat mitzvah program, Alexandra “Alex” Brandsdorfer acted as the bat mitzvah girl; Yonatan Bodner played the bar mitzvah boy. Mr. Gold and HAFTR school psychologist Dr. Yali Werzberger stood in for the celebrants’ parents. “These programs have become an integral part of HAFTR’s Middle School experience as our students prepare for one of the most exciting and important times of their lives — becoming a bar or bat mitzvah,” said Mr. Gold. HAFTR Middle School rebbi and Coordinator of Student Development, Rabbi Yisroel Moshe Siff, acted as the community rabbi. Students learned to stand when a rabbi speaks. “It is important to make sure our students

not only know the proper decorum and behavior at a bar or bat mitzvah, but we also want them to feel comfortable that they know what to do at these affairs,” said Ari Solomon, HAFTR’s Executive Director, who played the grandfather of a bar mitzvah boy. From returning used dishes to greeting coat check employees, students learned respect, and how to make simchos special for their hosts. “The idea of this program is to create kind and passionate Jews who understand how to celebrate with each other,” said Rabbi Siff. “Am Yisrael thrives by being led by passionate Jews who follow the Torah and mitzvot.” Other HAFTR faculty who modeled proper behavior included Mrs. Nechama Landau, Mrs. Elana Mari, Rabbi Judah Hulkower, and Rabbi David Lamm. Eighth-grade volunteers and faculty called or texted the cell phones of a few students to see if they would be distracted during the speeches — an excellent lesson in selfcontrol and respect for the honorees. Speeches were followed by pizza, served by the eighth grade “waiters.” “Bartenders” provided celebrants with soda. A video montage of all the students closed the celebration, and students left having learned to combine good manners with a good time.

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November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779 THE JEWISH STAR

School News

Send news and hi-res photos to Schools@TheJewishStar.com • Deadline Monday Noon • Questions? Call Editor Ed at 718-908-5555

HAFTR ‘bowls’ for Shaare Zedek

HAFTR High School students participated in a Bowl-a-Thon on behalf of Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem. Over 100 students gathered at Woodmere Lanes for a fun-filled night that raised almost $8,000 for a new NICU phototherapy system.

A multi-gen HALB event

Living Bereishis at CAHAL

Of all the lessons that CAHAL kindergartners at HANC look forward to each week, the most eagerly awaited is Parshat Hashavuah. Though the Avot lived thousands of years ago and many miles away, their stories fill the classroom with palpable excitement. On Fridays before our Shabbat lunch, the children dress in costumes to role-play various scenes from the Torah. For Parshat Vayeitzei, Yaakov ran from Esav to Charan where he met Rachel at the well, and then met her father Lavan and older sister Leah. After tending Lavan’s sheep for many years, two marriages and many children, Yaakov and his family leave to return to Eretz Canaan, Hashem’s special land. Acting out each scene gives the children the opportunity to engage their memories for the story’s sequence and details that they have learned, as well as develop language skills as they organize ideas and create the dialogue between characters. Rotating our main actor and actress roles every week enables all of the children to share in the limelight, even the minor roles as straying sheep grazing under Yaakov’s watchful eye. In this language-enriched, experiential classroom, the children truly “learn what they live” each day — the highly memorable stories of their ancestors, the many differences between life in the past and our lives in the present, and the special middot to emulate in their own lives today.

Fall is here — time for the beloved Intergeneration Day at HALB Lev Chana! Grandparents came from as close as the Five Towns to as far as Monsey and Lakewood, not to mention one or two international travelers who planned their vacations around this special event. Grandparents and great-grandparents were totally engrossed in the beautiful voices of their grandchildren, who performed a medley of songs. Family portraits were taken by Ira Thomas Creations. Grandparents and beloved grandchildren enjoy various activity centers, creating cherished memories.

HAFTR Toldot lentil delight

Shulamith inspiration

In honor of Parshat Toldot, HAFTR’s Early Childhood students prepared and then enjoyed some delicious lentil soup.

Daniella Turner involved the entire sixth grade in her bat mitzvah chessed project to support Bayit LePlaytot, an orphanage for girls in Israel.

At DRS, it’s Chromebook 101

DRS’s brand-new ninth-grade Chromebook program offers something for everyone. Students are given an HP x360 multifunctional Chromebook that functions both as a laptop and as a tablet, allowing seamless annotation of any worksheet. Everything is cloud-based, so students can access work from anywhere. The Google Chrome console is combined with GoGuardian, so devices can only be accessed through students’ DRS email accounts. The device acts as if it is in school, even when brought home. DRS partners with parents, giving them the peace of mind. Through GoGuardian, teachers finetune what websites students can access during their classes or altogether. They also administer tests through the Chromebooks, without compromising academic integrity and honesty.

THE JEWISH STAR November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779

The JEWISH STAR

‫כוכב של שבת‬

SHAbbAT STAR

November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779 THE JEWISH STAR

Mourning in strength and suffering Parsha of the week

Rabbi avi biLLet Jewish Star columnist

hile opinions abound as to how old Rachel was at her death, one thing is pretty clear — from the time Yaakov meets her at the well until she dies is no more than 22 years. This means that her children, Yosef and Binyamin, were 8 and a newborn at her passing. It boggles my mind that Yosef’s brothers treated him the way they did into his teenage years, seemingly insensitive to the fact that their younger brother, bereft of his mother, might have needed a pass more often due to his tragic reality. A confession: When I was a novice teacher in high school, I was asked to give a dvar Torah at a school Shabbaton, and somehow in a terrible moment of naïveté I mentioned that “thank G-d it doesn’t happen today, but the Torah teaches us how to treat those who are orphaned at a young age.” An administrator called me over afterwards and told me that one of my students had lost her mother a few years earlier. It was an eye-opening moment. I later apologized to the student for my insensitivity,

and have since tried to be a lot more careful — knowing that the facts of life are simply facts, and that opining about them is where we get into trouble. ince then, I’ve seen too many people pass away far too early. In the last six months, I’ve seen peers of mine, all in their 30s, bury spouses. Among families I know, 15 children are now orphaned. And these died of natural causes. What of those who are killed in terrorist attacks? War? Car accidents? In the context of daas Torah and what it means for rabbis heavily embedded in Torah study to have a keener sense and understanding of the world, Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein shared an incredible anecdote, which has troubled me since the first time I read it. “Many years ago, I travelled to Bnei Brak to console my rabbi and teacher, Rav Yitzchak Hutner zt”l, in his mourning, when his wife had passed away. “When I went to see him, I found him sitting alone. We had a private conversation, and this was conducted in a very open and honest fashion, from one heart to another. Rav Hutner told me that one of the talmidei chachamim who came to console him, tried to convince him and to explain to him how his wife’s passing was

positive, inasmuch as she was now in the world of truth, a world which is entirely positive and other such nonsense. “And indeed, it is not uncommon to hear such things when one goes to console a mourner, especially when the deceased passed away while being involved in a mitzva or has fallen in battle, in sanctification of Hashem’s name. “It is superfluous to state that saying such things is totally unsuitable. I remember that when Rav Hutner told me this, he raised his voice and he applied the following severe words of the Midrash to that talmid chacham (Vayikra Rabba 1): ‘Any talmid chacham who lacks da’at is worse than a putrid animal carcass!’” re there people who are so unaware that they would say the most ridiculous things just to fill the awkwardness of silence in a house of mourning? Rachel’s death destroyed Yaakov. He was never the same again. He didn’t deal with the brothers properly, even as he spoiled Yosef. He was ridiculously overprotective of Binyamin, who is identified as a naar when he is an adult of 30 and the father of ten children, unable to leave his father’s side in case his leaving causes Yaakov to die. But there is one thing we can take from Ra-

He was never the same again.

Luach King of the beasts Fri Nov 23 / 15 Kislev Vayishlach Candlelighting: 4:13 pm Havdalah: 5:22 pm

Fri Nov 30 / 22 Kislev Vayeishev Candlelighting: 4:10 pm Havdalah: 5:19 pm

Sun Dec 2 / 24 Kislev Chanukah begins tonight First candle

Mon Dec 3 / 25 Kislev Second candle

Tues Dec 4 / 26 Kislev Third candle

Wed Dec 5 / 27 Kislev Fourth candle

Thurs Dec 6 / 28 Kislev Fifth candle

Fri Dec 7 / 29 Kislev Sixth candle Shabbos Chanukah / Miketz Candlelighting: 4:09 pm Havdalah: 5:18 pm

Sat Dec 8 / 30 Kislev Seventh candlee

Sun Dec 9 / 1 Tevet Eighth candle

Five Towns times from White Shul

Orthodox Union

Rabbi DR. tzvi heRsh weinReb

friend recently commented to me that nowadays, we not only “multi-task,” but we also have “multi-problems.” When simultaneously beset by a number of problems, he continued, it becomes necessary to prioritize those problems and to decide which one is the worst. Then, we can tackle that problem first before we move on to the others. Personally, I’m not so sure that we are the first generation to be involved in “multi-tasks,” and I’m certain that we are not the first generation to face “multi-problems.” Certainly, we, the Jewish people, have known times in our history when we confronted numerous problems at the same time, and over the course of our history, our problems were innumerable. In fact, the question has been debated over and over again, “Who was worse? Pharaoh or Haman? Haman or Hitler?” he Torah portion gives us the opportunity to compare two of our enemies, Lavan and Esav, with each other. Lavan, to say the least, was inhospitable to Yaakov. He was ungrateful and deceitful. Moreover, we are told in the Pesach Haggadah that he sought to completely undo us. Certainly, he was a formidable enemy. But let’s compare him to Esav. It was because of Esav that Yaakov fled to the house of Lavan in the first place. Rivka herself informed Yaakov of Esav’s murderous intentions against him: “Esav harbored a grudge against Yaakov… And Esav said to himself, ‘Let the mourning period of my father come, and I will kill my brother Yaakov.’” Despite the statement in the Haggadah, there

is no evidence in the Biblical text itself that Lavan wished to kill Yaakov. As we see in the opening verses of this week’s Torah portion, Parshat Vayishlach (Genesis 32:436:43), Yaakov is far more frightened of Esav than of Lavan. From the beginning of their relationship, Yaakov is confident that he can deal with Lavan’s deceitfulness. He has no problem negotiating with Lavan, and much to Lavan’s frustration, eventually succeeds. Lavan may intend to harm Yaakov, but one divine dream dissuades him from doing so. They part company relatively peacefully. On the other hand, Esav comes to meet Yaakov with four hundred men, prepared for battle. “Yaakov was greatly frightened.” He fears the overwhelming threat of Esav’s attack and prepares for this attack by every means at his disposal: bribery, strategic maneuvers, and prayer. Clearly, then, Esav is the greater enemy of the two. recently came across a passage in the Midrash, which I encountered in a weekly sermon delivered by one of today’s Hasidic masters of both traditional Talmudic scholarship and profound spiritual wisdom. I refer to the Tolner Rebbe, Rabbi Yitzchak Menachem Weinberg, may he be well, who currently resides and teaches in Jerusalem. The passage that Rabbi Weinberg brought to my attention begins with a verse in the writings of the prophet Amos (5:19): “As a man should run from a lion and be attacked by a bear…” The Midrash continues: “The man is Yaakov … The lion is Lavan from whom Yaakov fled. He is called a lion because he pursued Yaakov to take his life. The bear is Esav who attacked him on the road … The lion knows shame, the bear knows no shame.” I am certainly no expert on wildlife, but I’m sure we will all agree that the lion has a reputation for greater ferocity than the bear. Yet the Midrash considers the bear more dangerous. Why?

The lion has a reputation for greater ferocity than the bear.

chel’s death, because just before she died she gave birth to a child. The same verse that she says she named him “Ben Oni” says that his father called him “Binyamin.” Some commentaries say Ben Oni means “the son of my suffering.” Others, such as the Malbim and Ramban, suggest that Oni means “strength.” Ramban essentially says that Yaakov took from pain and turned it into strength, while Malbim says the “change” reframes the name and makes it more clear. Calling him Binyamin (“son of right hand”) means the same thing: “son of strength.” Rabbenu Bachaye also says “Son of Strength” (30:23), noting that Rachel’s name for her son, Ben Oni, denotes G-d’s name of judgment, while “Binyamin” invokes G-d’s name of mercy. And this, I think, leads us to the most equitable response. The death of a loved one, at any age, combines G-d’s attributes of Judgment and Mercy. We understand neither, so for us there is only sadness. But there is hope. When we visit mourners, we give them a blessing that G-d should be their ultimate comforter. We bless a surviving spouse to find strength amidst the pain. We commit as a community to be as helpful and supportive as we can. And we also must take extra care and be as sensitive as possible to the reality that while everyone is sad when losing a parent, children who still live at home are the orphans of which the Torah speaks — the ones who must be protected, cared for, watched over, and supported in any way possible. They are G-d’s children, and he expects us to fill the void. Rabbi Weinberg focuses on the essence of Esav’s personality. He reminds us of the verse in last week’s Torah portion: “they called him by the name Esav.” Rashi informs us that “they” — all who knew him — called him “Esav,” which means “completely made, all done, finished.” Esav was a finished product. He was born resembling an adult, physically and behaviorally. And he remained that person throughout his life. He never changed. There are people who are so confident of themselves, of their motives and actions, that they see no reason to change. They are not open to criticism. They have not a measure of self-doubt. Such people, our Midrash suggests, can never be ashamed. They are bold and brazen and impervious to criticism. That is the nature of the bear. Such a person is truly dangerous. So was Esav. The lion, on the other hand, is open to opinions. If he errs and is made aware of his errors, he feels ashamed. As a result, he takes his errors to heart and alters his behavior. He develops and grows and changes in the course of his interaction with others. He is willing to consider other people’s perspectives. He can change his mind. Perhaps this is why he, and not the bear, is the king of beasts. et us move on from the animal kingdom and reflect upon two very different types of human beings. There are those who, like the bear, insulate themselves from the opinions of others. They shut the door to suggestions and close their ears to constructive criticism. Not only do such individuals not develop over their lifetime, but they pose a threat to society, especially in positions of leadership. But there are others who, like lions, not only tolerate criticism but seek it out. They know the 48 qualifications for a Torah scholar: he must “love mankind, love righteousness and justice, and love admonishment” (Avot 6:6). That’s right — love admonishment, love constructive criticism, love rebuke. That’s how one grows to be a lion, a royal personality, a true talmid chacham. We can now comprehend that when our Sages speak of the eagles and bats and lions and bears, they are not being simplistic. Quite the contrary, they are wisely employing those simple creatures as templates for teaching us profound lessons about personal development. Hopefully we will take those lessons to heart.

Angel for Shabbat

RAbbi mARc d. Angel

ome years ago, I participated in a symposium on interfaith dialogue and cooperation. One of the participants, a highly respected Orthodox rabbi, cited a statement of Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai: “It is a halacha that it is known that Esav hates Yaakov.” He applied this statement of Rabbi Shimon as an iron law of history: non-Jews hate Jews! When I challenged his usage of this text, he raised his eyebrows in surprise: “Just look at our history. It is a long story of anti-Jewish hatred. Esav will always hate Yaakov; non-Jews will always hate Jews.” I’ve heard and read words of other rabbis who have echoed this understanding of Rabbi Shimon’s statement. Jews are universally and always hated. There is no escape from antiSemitism. It is a built in “law of nature.” I bristle at this line of thought. While indeed Jews have faced — and still face — hateful enemies, it is also true that tremendous numbers of non-Jews don’t hate us at all! They respect us, work with us, and stand up for us in times of trouble. To view ourselves as the eternal vic-

tim is psychologically problematic. At worst, it generates a self-fulfilling prophecy. If we assume everyone hates us, then we alienate ourselves from those who are perceived to be our enemies. What did Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai mean when he asserted that it is a law that Esav hates Yaakov? His comment relates to this week’s Torah portion. sav hated Yaakov for having won their father’s blessing. Yaakov fled home and stayed away for many years, ultimately returning with his wives and children. Yaakov was afraid that Esav would attack him and his family. Instead of a hostile reunion, though, Esav hugged Yaakov and kissed him. In the Torah text, the word vayishakeihu (and he kissed him) has small dots on top, as though to imply added meaning to the word. Rashi, citing Rabbi Shimon, suggests that Esav’s kiss was insincere; he still hated Yaakov. The kiss was a ruse. In spite of Esav’s outward signs of love, he was steeped in hatred for Yaakov. Rabbi Shimon’s statement, thus, can be understood simply as an interpretation of a particular biblical text involving just two people, Esav and Yaakov; it has nothing to do with ongoing relationships between Jews and non-Jews.

However, it is possible to apply his statement to a larger context. Rabbi Shimon was known for his deep hostility to Rome. He despised Roman rule over Israel and spent years of his life hiding from Roman authorities who wanted to execute him. It would not be unreasonable, then, to interpret Rabbi Shimon’s statement as an expression of visceral opposition to Rome and mistrust of Roman rule. By identifying Rome with Esav and the Jews with Yaakov, Rabbi Shimon was warning Jews to maintain their resistance to Roman rule, and not to trust any peace overtures they may offer. Roman hatred, in his eyes, was implacable. lthough Rabbi Shimon’s statement can be understood both in terms of the biblical passage and his own personal historical setting, it is a huge stretch to cast his statement as an iron law of history for Jews and non-Jews in all places and all times. Even if one would want to extrapolate his statement so broadly, why should the views of one rabbi, living several thousand years ago in a highly hostile relationship with Rome, be taken as the one authentic view on Jewish relations with non-Jews? And why should anyone today cite this statement in a way that condemns Jews

Many nonJews don’t hate us at all!

A wonderful new siddur from the RCA Kosher bookworm

AlAn JAy geRbeR

Jewish Star columnist

ast week I presented an excellent essay, Achieving Kavana: Praying from the Heart, by Rookie Billet, featured in a new prayerbook, Siddur Avodat Halev (Rabbinical Council of America, 2018). This week, some other features in this new siddur. In any evaluation of any commentary on the siddur, one must take into serious consideration how the texts that use Tehillim are given serious attention. As you should know,

many sections of the siddur are made up of selections from the Psalms. What makes this siddur unique is that the editors have elected to use an outstanding English translation of the Tehillim, the Koschitzky edition of the Da’at Mikra Bible, for all the Tehillim-based prayers. This translation has the approbation of Rav Aharon Lichtenstein, zt’’l, who wrote that in his opinion, it “will surely help to enhance the worshiper in better comprehending the deep meaning of this sacred text.” Another important feature of this work is that unlike most other Hebrew/English siddurim, this edition contains the entire Book of Psalms in both the original Hebrew and the English translation. According to the edi-

tors, the reason for this decision, in spite of the many pages it adds to the siddur, is that as more and more people recite Tehillim in the original Hebrew, they now have the opportunity to utilize a high-quality English translation to better understand the Hebrew text. he prayerbook’s commentary, according to its editors, draws on a wide range of sources. In addition to referencing basic Biblical, Talmudic and Midrashic literature, the commentary incorporates a wide-ranging inclusive spectrum of rabbinic-based sources spanning from the early 11th century to modern times. This range includes the insights of many of great rabbinic thinkers of all eras, highlighting novel insights and analyses of key prayer texts and themes by leading rabbis,

scholars, and teachers. Another feature is the recognition given by the editors to the many halachic aspects found in the text. This section, reviewed by Rav Hershel Schechter, takes into consideration traditional practices that have been sanctioned by recognized sources in halachic literature, and respected minhagim that have been widely adopted and practiced in the Orthodox community here and elsewhere. In terms of practical halacha as related to prayer, this edition conveniently provides numerous and detailed instructions directly on the relevant pages that serve to answer whatever questions might arise. I highly recommend this new siddur as a valued addition to your personal library.

We are Yaakov, we are Yisrael Torah

RAbbi dAvid eTengoff

Jewish Star columnist

efer Bereishit presents three celebrated name changes declared by the Almighty or one of His angels. The first two were Avram and Sarai, whose names were changed to Avraham and Sarah. Midrash Bereishit Rabbah makes it very clear that Avraham’s name change is absolute and universal, to the extent that it is forbidden to call him by his previous name. According to our Midrash, however, Sarah’s name change is directed solely to Avraham, since the verse reads: “Your wife Sarai — you shall not call her name Sarai, for Sarah is her name.” In other words, Hashem gave Avraham a clear-cut personal directive to help him understand that his beloved wife was no longer his princess alone (“Sarai”), but was ready to take her place on the stage of world history as “Sarah.” As the verse states: “I will bless her, and she will become [a mother of] nations; kings of nations will be from her” (17:16). ur parasha contains the third divinely-decreed name change in Sefer Bereishit: “And he [Esav’s angel] said, ‘Your name shall no longer be called Yaakov, but Yisrael,

because you have commanding power with [an angel of] G-d and with men, and you have prevailed’ ” (32:29). Later, G-d says, “Your name is Yaakov. Your name shall no longer be called Yaakov, but Yisrael shall be your name” (35:10). On the surface, these pesukim seem quite similar. A considered reading reveals, however, that there are two different speakers; in 32:29, Esav’s angel declares Yaakov’s name change, whereas in 35:10, the speaker is the Almighty. In addition, the first incident appears to depict a permanent name change — “Your name shall no longer be called Yaakov, but Yisrael” — whereas in 35:10, Hashem somewhat curiously reminds Yaakov, “Your name is Yaakov,” before stating that his name “shall no longer be called Yaakov, but Yisrael.” he confluence of these two verses lead our Midrash to ask: Was Yaakov’s name change to Yisrael similar to his grandfather’s transformation from Avram to Avraham, or was it substantively different? Is one who calls Yaakov “Yaakov” in violation of a positive commandment, as is the case for Avraham? The Midrash says no, and offers two

opinions: either Yisrael is now his primary name, and Yaakov secondary, or vice versa. Yaakov, unlike Avraham, retained his original name — the only question under debate is whether or not “Yaakov” remains his essential name, or if is it somehow eclipsed by “Yisrael.” In my opinion, the Midrash is teaching us a profound lesson regarding Yaakov’s nature: henceforth he has a dual persona, reflected by each of these names. As such, there are periods when he thrives as Yaakov and lives as “an innocent man, dwelling in tents,” (25:27) and there are times when he must rise to existential challenges and be Yisrael, the one who has “commanding power with [an angel of] G-d and with men” (32:29). The Yaakov persona is illustrated by the prophet Micha, who speaks of Yaakov in this manner: “You (Hashem) shall give the truth of Yaakov [emet l’Ya’akov], the loving-kindness of Avraham, which You swore to our forefathers from days of yore” (7:20). In my estimation, “emet l’Ya’akov” is only possible when Yaakov lives a tranquil and introspective existence. Little wonder, then, that the first pasuk

He has a dual persona, reflected by each of these names.

of next week’s parasha states: “Yaakov dwelt [vayeshev] in the land of his father’s sojourning, in the land of Canaan” (37:1). The Midrash Rabbah, Bereishit 84:3 interprets “vayeshev” as Yaakov’s manifest desire to dwell serenely, b’shalva, in the Land of Canaan, the land of his grandfather and father. n contrast, there are periods in history when Yaakov must project Yisrael, and act as one “with commanding power with men.” At these moments in history, Yaakov as Yisrael must become a Maccabi, as our people did during the battles with Amalek, the Syrian-Greeks, the War of Independence, and in each succeeding war that our beloved Medinat Yisrael has been forced to fight when threatened by the forces of darkness and hatred. As we have demonstrated time and time again, however, both as a people and a nation, our goal is shalom. This idea was given powerful voice by Prime Minister Golda Meir, who declared, “When peace comes we will perhaps in time be able to forgive the Arabs for killing our sons, but it will be harder for us to forgive them for having forced us to kill their sons.” May we merit to see the fulfillment of emet l’Ya’akov, and the final words of the Kaddish realized in our time: “May He Who makes peace in His celestial heights make peace in His ultimate compassion for us and for all the Jewish people.”

19 THE JEWISH STAR November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779

Does Esav always hate Yaakov?

to eternal victimhood? If Rabbi Shimon’s statement is to be taken in its largest context, I would suggest an entirely different understanding of it. The Torah and Midrashim describe Esav as a physically powerful hunter. In contrast, Yaakov is described as a quiet person “dwelling in tents.” Esav was strong and aggressive. He personifies the bully who depends on his strength to cow others into submission. Yaakov was essentially a shy, hesitant person … an ideal target for bullies. Rabbi Shimon’s statement was not about Jews and non-Jews; it was about bullies and patsies. It is indeed a “law of nature” that bullies will hate and oppress those whom they perceive to be frightened weaklings. Esav-types will always look down on and try to hurt Yaakovtypes. The lesson is: don’t be a victim! Don’t allow bullies to humiliate you or to physically hurt you. Yaakov was able to overcome Esav by outsmarting him and outmaneuvering him; by defeating the bullying tactics of Esav, Yaakov won his own liberation. The Esavs of the world — whatever their religion or nationality — are hateful and arrogant bullies. The Yaakovs of the world — whatever their religion or nationality — need to stand up to those who would humiliate and crush them. When people succumb to the self-image of victimhood, they live as perpetual victims. When the Yaakovs develop their strength and self-confidence, they can resist — and defeat — the bullying tactics of Esav.

November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779 THE JEWISH STAR

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Is the New York Times good for the Jews? Politics to go

JEff DuNEtz

Jewish Star columnist

he New York Times asked a strange question on Saturday: “Are Jared and Ivanka Good for the Jews?” The very title of the article was a display of Times bias. Can you imagine the uproar if in November 2010, the Times had run an article titled “Is Obama Good for the African-Americans?” The article’s premise is Jews who are proTrump likely think the couple is just fine, but to those who are anti-Trump, such as Reform and Conservative Jews, along with the majority of the New York Times readership, it is clear that Jared and Ivanka are bad for the Jews. The piece starts off with a canard proven false many times: “To some Jews, the couple serves as a bulwark pushing the Trump administration toward pro-Israel policies, most notably the decision to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. To many others, they are the wolves in sheep’s clothing, allowing Mr. Trump

to brush aside criticism that his words have fueled the uptick in violent attacks against Jews.” According to the Times, this split within the American Jewish community was caused by the Shabbos massacre at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh. “Mr. Kushner and Ms. Trump serve as senior advisers in the White House. At a time when Judaism is under assault — the F.B.I. said this week that anti-Semitic attacks have increased in each of the last three years — they are unabashedly Orthodox, observing Shabbat each week, walking to an Orthodox Chabad shul near their Kalorama home in Washington, D.C., dropping their children off at Jewish day school and hanging mezuzas on the doors of their West Wing offices.” utting politics aside, I for one believe it is “good for the Jews” for America to see a young, politically powerful, observant Jewish couple who publicly practices their Jewish faith despite being in the fishbowl of the White House. The Times piece cites left-wing Jews who al-

lege that the president’s Jewish daughter and son-in-law are a mere “fig leaf” for the antiSemites who support the administration, but others who disagree: “Haim Saban, an entertainment magnate and pro-Israel Democrat, is optimistic about Mr. Kushner’s efforts. He said in an interview from his hotel in Israel that although he disagrees with some of Mr. Trump’s policies, ‘Jared and by extension the president understand the importance of the relationship between the U.S. and Israel on multiple levels — security, intelligence, but most of all, shared values.’ ” For the most part, according to the Times, secular-oriented and Reform Jews tend to be more liberal and thus anti-Trump. But more observant and Orthodox Jews tend to be more conservative and pro-Trump. The key idea of the article is essentially that liberals hate Trump and conservatives like him. The real purpose of this Times piece is to push aside Jared and Ivanka Kushner in order

Liberals hate Trump and conservatives like him.

Putin plays with the Holocaust Viewpoint

BEN COHEN

ack in January, the unlikely figure of Paddington Bear — a cuddly cub adored by young children — ran afoul of the Russian government. As part of its policy of limiting the influence of foreign culture, Vladimir Putin’s regime delayed the release of the movie “Paddington Bear 2” by two weeks to prevent it from competing with locally produced films that hit screens at the same time. That decision was enabled by legislation from 2015 that also permits Russia to — in the words of culture minister Vladimir Medinsky — “set financial, political or ideological priorities” for its film industry. Nine out of every 10 films produced in Russia are funded by the regime, under regulations that forbid movies “defiling the national culture, posing a threat to national unity and undermining the foundations of the constitutional order.” Russia’s use of film as propaganda is nothing new; the same policy prevailed in its So-

viet predecessor. That doesn’t mean that the films lack artistic merit — Sergei Eisenstein’s “Battleship Potemkin,” about a 1905 mutiny of Russian sailors, is regarded by some critics as the greatest film of all time — but it does mean that Western audiences should understand that their purpose goes beyond entertaining. According to culture minister Medinsky, a Russian nationalist and admirer of the late Soviet dictator Stalin, the goal of art in Russia is to “consolidate the state and society on the basis of values instilled by our history.” Those of you planning to see the Russian movie about the uprising of inmates in the Nazi death camp of Sobibor in October 1943, which is being released in the United States this week, may wish to bear that in mind. The film, titled “Sobibor,” was, according to publicity materials, “largely funded by the Russian government.” Why? Apparently, said the press release, “Russia [read: Putin] hopes to raise awareness of the uprising, which a Jewish Red Army officer led, but which has never received wide public recognition.”

utin’s regime sadly resembles the tyrannical Soviet Union in many ways, but differs in one important respect. Unlike his predecessors, Putin himself has shown little evidence of personal anti-Semitism and seems well disposed to his country’s Jewish community. But he is also a former KGB officer and a current dictator — one who is wedded to the ideology and theology of Russia’s elevated place in the world, in common with Tsarist ministers, Russian Orthodox clergy, Communist Party apparatchiks and, not least, his own culture minister. Giving a Russian dictator control over how a historical episode is reconstructed for a modern audience is a bit like appointing an arsonist as a fire safety warden: the last person you want in charge. Located in eastern Poland, Sobibor was one of three camps dedicated solely to the extermination of its prisoners — the other two being Belzec and Treblinka — that were constructed in 1942 as part of “Operation Reinhard.” The operation was named for the leading Nazi official, Reinhard Heydrich, who was assassinated

Appointing an arsonist as a fire warden.

to soil Trump with the label of “anti-Semite.” One of the typical responses to the charge of anti-Semitism against Trump is that his daughter, son-in-law, and grandchildren are Jewish. By labeling them as bad for the Jews, that response is eliminated. hen I saw the headline, my first thought was “How does the Times know what’s good for the Jews?” During the Shoah, the Times consistently placed major stories about the Nazi treatment of European Jews on back pages. In September 1996, it finally ran a statement about its Holocaust coverage, saying, “The Times has long been criticized for grossly underplaying the Holocaust while it was taking place. Clippings from the paper show that the criticism is valid.” The New York Times reporting about Israel has been so biased that the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting (CAMERA) bought a billboard directly across from the windows of the Times newsroom and put up messages such as, “Hamas attacks Israel: not surprising. The Times attacks Israel: also not surprising.” CAMERA said their reason for posting the billboard was the Times’ biased coverage: See NY Times on page 22

by the Czech underground in June that year. Gas chambers were used to murder Sobibor’s inmates, and the corpses were then burned by grate fires in open pits. In September 1943, a fresh batch of Soviet Jewish prisoners of war found themselves in Sobibor, among them Alexander Pechersky, who had served in the Red Army as a lieutenant. With extraordinary bravery, Pechersky and his comrades coordinated a camp uprising the following month, killing several SS officers and Ukrainian collaborators in the process. Three hundred inmates, including Pechersky, escaped into the nearby forests. Pechersky and about 50 of the others went on to survive the war. There is no question that the Sobibor uprising was a critical example of Jewish resistance to the Nazis, one that flies in the face of the demeaning “lambs to the slaughter” myth. It is a tremendous subject for a movie — depending, of course, on who is behind it. gain: Russia does not make movies for the sake of art, but for politics. American Jews should be wary of this latest attempt at seduction by Putin. After all, we’ve been here before: during World War II, Stalin correctly calculated that American Jews could be an important source of support for the Soviet war effort, so he sent members of the “Jewish Anti-Fascist Committee” to the United States on a successful awareness-raising tour. See Putin on page 22

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’ve been thinking a lot about “M.,” the heroic lieutenant colonel who was killed in a top-secret intelligence-gathering mission in Gaza. His name is under military gag order due to the secret nature of the operation. He was part of an elite Special Forces unit, so senior that revealing his identity or photo could risk the safety of his sensitive security work, as well as the safety of his fellow soldiers in the unit. Netanyahu said only, “I bow my head in sadness at the loss of Lt. Col. M., a glorious fighter who fell during an IDF operation in the Gaza Strip.” These soldiers are subjected to the most complex, life-altering scenarios, emotions and traumas. It pains me to think of what the soldiers who survive must carry around with them. But this week, there’s the mystery of “M.” Who are you, M.? You, so devoted to your land and your country, to our Israel and to her se-

curity, so much so that you knew going in how dangerous a mission it was. You knew you were risking your very life, and that if one day you should fall, your name would never be known, your heroism never recognized nor lauded. You knew this, yet you chose it. It speaks volumes of your nobility and heroism. ho is your family, M.? I wondered. They must have shaken in fear of a terrible day like this arriving. Every time you left, part of them must have known you might not return. And this week, for you, that devastating day came. You, a heroic Israeli Druze soldier, threw your destiny in with that of the nation of Israel. You elected to sacrifice your life, as a member of a minority, for the nation of Israel; the poignancy of your loss is magnified that much more. It is not lost on us. At moments such as these, it truly does feel like we are brothers in destiny. Your village is our village. Although your name may not be known,

he election of Ilhan Omar to the House of Representatives has stirred fears that the Democratic Party is turning against Israel. Omar, who will represent Minnesota in the next Congress, is the first Somali-American to be elected to the House. But she may also have the distinction of being the first open supporter of BDS — the movement advocating boycott, divestment and sanctions against the State of Israel — to hold federal office. After her victory in an overwhelmingly Democratic district formerly represented by fellow Muslim and Israel opponent Keith Ellison, who was elected the state’s Attorney General, Omar made it clear that she “believes in and supports the BDS movement.” Despite her attempts to confuse the issue during the campaign, her true views were no secret. Omar had previously tweeted anti-Semitic slurs about an “evil” Israel “hypnotizing the world.”

port for Israel, been accused of dog-whistling to the far-right. Yet now that Omar has dropped any pretense about support for an anti-Semitic movement, the onus is on Democrats and those in the organized Jewish world who wish to maintain good relations with Omar. They need to be at least as tough on someone whose ties to an anti-Semitic movement don’t require a partisan connect-the-dots, but are instead brazenly proclaimed. The first point to make clear is that BDS is an expression of anti-Semitism. Those who wish to deny to Jews what they don’t deny to others — namely, the right to live in their homeland in peace and security — are committing an act of bias. Acts of discrimination against Jews are defined as anti-Semitism. Everywhere BDS raises its banners, open acts of anti-Semitic intimidation and often violence usually follow. As Students for Justice in Palestine — the main pro-BDS movement in the United States — makes clear, its goal is the eradication of the Jewish state, not an effort to change Israel’s policies or oppose Jewish settlements. Nor is there any comparison between anti-Israel

efforts and opposition to other ethnic movements, like those of the Kurds or the Basques. Only opponents of Israel can muster an international movement aimed at opposing the expression of Jewish rights as uniquely sinister, and they do so employing the classic tools of Jew-hatred. Omar’s backing for an anti-Semitic movement crosses a red line about hate that would be considered unacceptable for any politician, no matter what their ethnic or religious origin, or their political party. hat is troubling about Omar is why her party and much of the organized Jewish world won’t seek to ostracize her. The obvious answer is that since she and Tlaib are the first Muslim women to be elected to Congress, many fear being smeared as Islamophobic for calling out their prejudicial stands. Others will not accept the idea that antiSemitism is a growing problem on the left, with more influence than the small, sometimes violent, factions of anti-Semites on the far-right. Many Jews are enraged by Trump and buy into the narrative that an epidemic of anti-Semitism has been unleashed since he became president. There seems to be little appetite to confront fellow members of the antiTrump “resistance.” That’s why a group like the Women’s See BDS on page 22

We are brothers in destiny. Your village is our village.

Drawing the line at BDS Jonathan s. tobin

cial forces Reconnaissance Unit (Sayeret Matkal) and a childhood playmate of mine. I last saw him at the tender age of 11 (before I moved to America) as he playfully chased me around the neighborhood with his dog Blackie. To this day, his photo, too, is under military seal due to the outstanding nature of his secret military operations. Yet I can still see his 11-year-old face in my mind’s eye. In his lifetime, he was so humble. He never wore his military uniform in civilian life, downplaying how senior an officer he was. In his community he was known simply as a devout and modest person who engaged in endless acts of kindness. Only in the military was his greatness known. Posthumously, he has been dubbed a modern Bar Kochba for his valiant strength, suffused with incredible faith and a deep sense of mission as a Jewish soldier defending his people. Apparently, his tolerance for risk was legendary. That strength, among many other factors that make up a valiant elite IDF fighter, led him to rise above other outstanding soldiers, becoming the one who penetrated the deepest of terrorist cells. Emmanuel Moreno planned and executed anti-terror missions so daring, sophisticated and complex that they are said to defy the imagination. He has officially been recognized by the State of Israel as one of its most heroic soldiers. See Malach on page 22

She is far from alone. Rashida Tlaib, who was elected to Congress from Michigan this month, is a Palestinian-American who also makes no pretenses about her views and has spoken about supporting BDS advocates, though she hasn’t gone as far as Omar. Democrats are sadly divided about the Jewish state, with many influential Democrats highly critical. Most of their leadership, especially in the House, remains broadly supportive. Still, the key point is not whether Omar and Tlaib will have a say in determining what the new Democratic majority in the House does, but what Democrats and Jews will do in response to an open expression of anti-Semitism. n the aftermath of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, many are asserting that there must be zero tolerance for those who enable or facilitate Jew-hatred. Most of those comments are directed at U.S. President Donald Trump, who has, despite unprecedented sup-

Her backing of an antiSemitic movement crosses a red line.

Distracted obsessions of progressive US Jews melanie PhilliPs

aving spent the past week in Los Angeles, I have been struck once again by the deep anxiety in the American Jewish community over demonization of Israel on campus, and over self-styled progressive Jews. I have also been exposed to the even more intense divisions within that community over President Donald Trump. One of the conceits among those who hate Trump is that he’s an anti-Semite, or at the very least knowingly encourages anti-Semites. A guest of the Chanukah celebration at the White House last year told me he had the opportunity to observe the president up close. Surrounded by Jewish friends and Republican colleagues, Trump said proudly when his family arrived: “Here are my Jewish grandchildren.”

It was simply inconceivable, said my informant, that anyone could seriously believe there was an anti-Semitic bone in his body. For those who hate him, however, it’s as if all the evils and problems in the world are somehow his fault. It’s not simply a question of finding his uncouthness or his personality objectionable. He has become their obsession. The same people, however, are overwhelmingly silent about the anti-Semites and Israelbashers in the Democratic Party, more of whom have been elected to Congress in the midterms. There’s silence over Ilhan Omar, elected in Minnesota, who once said: “Israel has hypnotized the world, may Allah awaken the people and help them see the evil doings of Israel.” Silence over Rashida Tlaib, elected in Michigan seat, who, asked if she would vote against

military aid to Israel, replied: “Absolutely … I will be using my position in Congress so that no country, not one, should be able to get aid from the U.S. when they still promote that kind of injustice.” Silence, too, over Women’s March leaders Tamika Mallory and Linda Sarsour, despite their support for Louis Farrakhan, who raves about “satanic” Jews. This evacuation of morality has echoes of the way Israel itself is treated: demonized by falsehood and distortion while Palestinian depravity is ignored or sanitized. Among many progressive Jews, Trump and Israel intersect in a further distressing way. They hate Trump for his decision to move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, which they think has prevented peace in the Middle East. And they hate Israel, because Israel sees Trump as a friend. So Trump, himself toxified through a thought

They hate Israel, because Israel sees Trump as a friend.

process that casts him as an enabler of anti-Semitism, is in turn toxifying Israel in the eyes of progressive Jews — and all because he is one of the most pro-Israel presidents in American history. eanwhile, the problem of BDS on campus remains. This weekend, despite an outcry, a conference is taking place at UCLA held by National Students for Justice in Palestine. NSJP has advocated not only Israel’s eventual destruction and supported pro-terrorism figures, but has also bullied and intimidated pro-Israel and Jewish students with vicious and sometimes anti-Semitic rhetoric and even physical violence. UCLA Chancellor Gene Block has refused to cancel the conference on the basis that all forms of speech must be permitted on campus. He acknowledged that anti-Israel statements can turn into “hostility against the Jewish people.” However, he said, NSJP had a legal right to host its conference, even if it was “infused with antiSemitic rhetoric.” “Ultimately,” he wrote, “we must combat speech that is distasteful with more and better See US Jews on page 22

21 THE JEWISH STAR November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779

M is for Malach

your values and your legacy of sacrifice, of profound humility, of responsibility to the community of Israel, is crystal clear to us all. Like Biblical Ruth, M., you symbolize a person who highlighted for the nation of Israel what is truly important. It is amazing how much gratitude and pride you can have for someone one never actually knew, someone who is not only a total stranger, but a stranger without a face. Yet you know in your bones that with their life, they secured the existence of Israel. It is amazing how much sorrow you can feel for someone you never met, yet feel so bonded to; someone you know made a choice. It does not mitigate the sorrow one bit. M. makes you think of so many other soldiers who choose to endanger themselves, whose secret missions never come to light. They walk among us like regular people. We have no idea. ach year, there are tens, if not hundreds of such intelligence-gathering operations, each made up of unsung heroes. The news of “M.” sent me back to the monumental loss of another true modern-day hero, Lt. Col. Emmanuel Moreno, a senior commander of a spe-

Putin....

Continued from page 20 After the war ended, the committee was brutally liquidated by the Soviet authorities, along with most of its members. With that began a half-century of Soviet distortion of the Holocaust, as Communist authorities viciously persecuted Jewish citizens in the name of “anti-Zionism.” The extermination of the Jews was swallowed into a general tale of Russian heroism against the Nazis, which, of course, left out the inconvenient detail that Stalin and Hitler negotiated a non-aggression pact in 1939. Anyone who described the Holocaust as a Jewish event was denounced as a “Zionist.”

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BDS... Continued from page 21 March, whose leaders are also tainted by antiSemitism, retains mainstream support. Indeed, one of its leaders — anti-Zionist activist Linda Sarsour — went so far as to brand Jews who denounce Omar as being guilty of dual loyalty, another classic anti-Semitic trope. When confronted with Omar’s stand, leaders of the Jewish community in Minnesota stated their opposition but declared a need for continued dialogue and a willingness to work together on other issues. orging alliances despite differences is what Jewish community-relations councils do. But there is a difference between agreeing to disagree about social or economic issues in order to make common cause about vital interests, and saying that support for an anti-Semitic cause doesn’t necessarily mark a public figure as beyond the pale. That is especially true for BDS, a movement whose real target is American Jewry. It’s not Israel’s powerhouse economy that is suffering as a result, but Jewish kids on college campuses, who are targeted for abuse and must live in a hostile environment created by BDS activists. They continue to be the victims of its efforts. Are Jewish Democrats and JCRCs so influenced by the myth that there can be no real enemies for Jews on the left in the age of Trump as to be unwilling to utterly repudiate any member of Congress who openly embraces anti-Semitism? What’s needed now is not more dialogue with Omar or groups like the Women’s March. Rather, it must be made clear that as long as they openly embrace anti-Semitic movements like BDS, there can be no acceptance of them

Continued from page 21 His comrades-in-arms, be they secular or religious, shower his name with unbridled love and awe. He was killed young, after completing a successful anti-terror operation. Although his face is illegal to publish, “Emmanuel Moreno” has become a household name in Israel since his death. People respond to his name with incredible pride, whispering of his greatness, his legend. They know, we know, he secured Israel’s existence with his very life. nd so it is this week again, with “M.” Omer Levy relates that as he was driving his son to school, they heard on the radio that a soldier called M. had been killed. “Abba, who is ‘M.,’ who was killed in Gaza?” his son asked. “I don’t know,” he said. There are many names that begin with the letter mem.” “But is it someone we know?” “Sweetheart, I have no idea.” “Yossi’s father’s name is Menachem and he is in the army — could it be he?” “I don’t think so. But it’s an IDF soldier, and we all feel pain for his loss.” “Abba, let’s call him malach — angel — it starts with the letter mem.” Out of the mouth of babes. Emmanuel Moreno, may his memory be a blessing, and all of the IDF soldiers, are our M.s, our angels. May G-d watch over and protect them, and may the day come when soldiers will no longer be needed at all. Copyright Intermountain Jewish News

US Jews... Continued from page 21 speech.” Would he say the same if, say, David Duke or the Aryan Nations group wanted to speak on campus? Of course not; they would rightly be seen as contributing nothing to rational debate but posing a threat to minority students. Despite expressing concern about NSJP, Block implicitly accepts that there is some validity in what they say. But if he accepts that their discourse is “infused with anti-Semitic rhetoric,” he should consider no part of it to be acceptable. He writes of “democracy’s commitment to open debate,” thus appearing to believe that democracy has a commitment to permit anti-Semitism. As Judea Pearl, professor of computer sci-

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Malach...

ence at UCLA and father of slain journalist Daniel Pearl, wrote to the Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles: “This is ‘viewpoint neutrality’ UCLA style.” He continued: “When xenophobic Milo Yiannopoulos requested to speak at UCLA [he was invited by Republican students last February to speak on ‘Ten things I hate about Mexico’] Chancellor Block wrote (paraphrased): I can’t stop you legally but be aware, you are not exactly welcome on this campus, you are in fact disgusting, your values clash with ours. “When antisemitic-Zionophobic NSJP requested to speak at UCLA, Chancellor Block wrote (paraphrased): I can’t stop you legally, but I won’t stop you even if I could, here’s why.” The Los Angeles City Council unanimously called on UCLA to cancel the conference, with one member telling Block he was “shocked and disappointed.” Responses by Hillel and the Anti-Defamation League echoed Block’s feebleness. UCLA Hillel Director Aaron Lerner said: “The Chancellor has made his voice heard, and confirmed his opposition to BDS. That’s a win.” What would he consider a loss? As for the ADL, it said it was “deeply concerned about the potential impact the SJP conference might have on the campus climate at UCLA,” and “on the safety and security of all students on campus.” It called upon the university to ensure “that all UCLA communities are treated with respect, free from vilification and harassment, and to continue to denounce messages coming from SJP that are to the contrary.” But allowing NSJP to spread their poison on campus makes all students unsafe. Despite acknowledging this, though, the ADL accepts their right to do so. Free speech is not an absolute right. It must be limited if it incites harm. Yet like other campuses, UCLA permits this while kowtowing to those who want to silence free speech merely to spare people’s feelings. Progressive Jews and others accuse President Trump of sowing social division, hatred and antiSemitism, even as they themselves effectively enable social division, hatred and anti-Semitism by their tunnel vision and double standards. The more they scream about Trump, the more they create an alibi for that very same ugliness in their own souls. And that, of course, is precisely what anti-Semites do to the Jews and to Israel. Melanie Phillips is a British journalist, broadcaster and author.

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under any circumstances. Anything less is a fatal compromise that gives unwarranted legitimacy to hate and undermines the security of Jews, no matter what political views they may hold. Jonathan S. Tobin is editor-in-chief of JNS.

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Continued from page 20 “Our billboard highlights the newspaper’s habit of misrepresenting facts, omitting key information and skewing headlines, to encourage the newspaper of record to commit itself to its own promise of ethical journalism. The New York Times consistently distorts the truth about Israel — on the news pages and on editorial pages, in the body of the article or in the headline.” During the eight years of the Obama presidency, the Times ignored his anti-Israel activities. In 2015, its editorial board opined that the “Iran Nuclear Deal … Reduces the Chance of War.” After Congress voted on the JCPOA, the paper ran a list of lawmakers who had voted against it, including the columns “Jewish?” and “State and estimated Jewish population.” Jewish lawmakers and those who represent districts with a larger-than-average Jewish population were singled out with yellow highlights, perpetuating the anti-Semitic stereotype of a powerful Jewish lobby. The New York Times has a long history of hiding anti-Semitism and opposing pro-Jewish issues, is bad for the Jews. Jared and Ivanka are representation of the modern, publicly observant Jewish family. Who is bad for the Jews, and who is good?

Similarly, “Zionists” were depicted as the real authors of the Holocaust because they had willfully collaborated with the Nazis. This appalling manipulation of the historical record was defied rather beautifully by the Soviet writer Yevgeny Yevtushenko, in his poem about the 1941 Nazi massacre of Jews at Babi Yar in Ukraine — an episode that was officially commemorated as the extermination of “Soviet citizens.” Putin’s regime, even as it reinvents World War II as an epic solo fight against an enemy bent on exterminating the Jews, has never acknowledged (let alone apologized for) the abuse of the Holocaust in Soviet propaganda. Moreover, far-right and far-left forces across Europe today — all of whom deny or exploit or abuse the Holocaust in their messages — look to Putin as a source of financial, logistical and political support. However uplifting and exciting the “Sobibor” movie is, any claim that its purpose is to commemorate Jewish heroism should be balanced against Russia’s shameful record of Holocaust abuse, as well as its present geopolitical ambitions.

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November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779 THE JEWISH STAR

CAlendar of Events

Send your events to Calendar@TheJewishStar.com • Deadline noon Friday • Compiled by Rachel Langer Thursday November 22

Thanksgiving Kollel: Shiurim by Rabbi Menachem Penner on tefillah and Rabbi Moshe Tzvi Weinberg on miracles, open to men and women. 9:30 am, 10:30 am. 859 Peninsula Blvd, Woodmere. YUlongisland@YU.edu. Thanksgiving Yom Iyun: Chanukah shiurim given by Rebbetzin Aviva Feiner, Chevi Garfinkel, and Rabbi Eli Portal. For women and girls only. 9:30 am; 10:30 am; 11:30 am. 137 Lawrence Ave, Lawrence. $10 per shiur; $25 for all three. 516362-5000.

Saturday November 24

ganiyot). RSVP at NYCjewishtours.org by Nov 28 Chanukah Telethon: Emceed by Rabbi Anchelle Perl. Starring 8th Day, cantor Avi Albrecht, and the Dancing Rabbis. Co-hosted by Mickey B, Ken Grimball, Jill Nicolini, Jay Oliver, Kive Strickoff. Broadcast live on ChanukahTelethon.com. YU Dinner: Annual Chanukah dinner and convocation, honoring Hadassah Lieberman, J. Philip Rosen, and Bennett Schachter. 5 pm. New York Hilton. YU.edu/Hanukkah.

Tuesday December 11

Tefillah BeShanah [weekly]: Dr. Jay Goldmintz of Koren Publishers will speak at Young Is-

rael of North Woodmere in a series exploring Jewish prayer. 8 pm. 634 Hungry Hollow Rd, North Woodmere. YINW.org/event/tb.

Thursday December 13

Kulanu Chai Dinner: Celebrating 18 years of Kulanu, honoring volunteers Michelle Sulzberger and Eta Bienenstock, and Amudei Chesed Barbara & David Goldenberg. Comedic entertainment by Steven Scott. 7:30 pm. 775 Branch Blvd, Cedarhurst.

Tuesday December 18

Tefillah BeShanah [weekly]: Rabbi Moshe

Taragin of Yeshivat Har Etzion will speak at Young Israel of North Woodmere in a series exploring Jewish prayer. 8 pm. 634 Hungry Hollow Rd, North Woodmere. YINW.org/event/tb.

Sunday January 6 HASC Concert: A Time for Music 32 at Lincoln Center. HASCconcert.com. #CommUnity: Achiezer holds its annual gala dinner at the Sands Atlantic Beach, honoring Yossy & Miriam Lea Ungar, Dr. Martin Kessler, Dr. Ari Hoschander, Michael H. Goldberg, and Shalom & Leah Jaroslawicz. 1395 Beech St, Atlantic Beach. Dinner@Achiezer.org

Midnight Madness: Super blowout sale in Cedarhurst. 8 pm to midnight. ShopCedarhurst.com

Tuesday November 27

Wednesday November 28

County Clerk: Nassau County Clerk is offering mobile services, including land records and notary services, at the Peninsula Public Library. 11 am. 280 Central Ave, Lawrence. 516-239-3262 x 216.

Sunday December 2

Gala Dinner: 36th annual dinner to benefit American Friends of Bet El, honoring Thomas & Debbie Herman, Daniel & Razie Benedict, and Yair & Chana Leah Matan. Hear from Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein. 6 pm. Broadway at 46 St, Manhattan. $500 per couple. RSVP beteldinner.org. Menorah Lighting: With Chabad of Hewlett, at the Hewlett Veterans Memorial Triangle. 6 pm. Ribbon cutting at Chabad Center followed by latke fry-off competition, crafts, and face paint. 3:30 pm. Merrick LIRR, thereafter 2174 Hewlett Ave, Hewlett. 516-833-3057. Free admission.

THE COMMUNITY-WIDE Motzei Shabbos Tanach Shiur Please join us for the 23rd season of the Community -Wide Tanach Shiur

NOVEMBER 24, 2018 7:00PM jkahu ,arp e"amun

Monday December 3

Benefit Concert: By Nevut, to benefit IDF lone soldier veterans. Featuring Lazer Lloyd, “the best guitarist in Israel.” 8 pm. 894 Woodmere Pl, Woodmere. Nevut.org/Chanukah.

Tuesday December 4

PROGRAM HOSTED BY: Young Israel of Lawrence-Cedarhurst 8 Spruce Street

Rabbi Yosef Goldberg will be learning

Laughter and Latkes: Comedian Elon Gold at event benefitting Kids of Courage. 7:45 pm. 140 Central Ave, Lawrence. Events@kidsoc.org

Perek 45 of Tehillim

Wednesday December 5

v"g jubn rzghkt crv ,c kyhd ,nab hukhgk

Party at JFK: The International Synagogue in Terminal 4 invites you to its annual Chanukah party, featuring musical performances and a silent auction. 5 pm. JFK Airport, Terminal 4, fourth floor. 718-656-5044. Chanukah on Ice: Go ice skating with Chabad of Hewlett. Enjoy games, raffles, crafts, face painting, and decorate your own doughnuts. 6:30 pm. Grant Park Skating Rink, Broadway, Lynbrook. $7 plus skate rental. 516-295-3433.

Friday December 7

Chanukah Fun Day: Chabad of Hewlett with a fullday Chanukah party. Build a dreidel robot, make your own candles, and more. 8:30 am-2:30 pm. 44 Everit Ave, Hewlett. $30 per child; space is limited. RSVP at JewishHewlett.com/chanukahfun.

Saturday December 8

Kosher Komedy: A fun-filled evening, from glatt-kosher gourmet dinner to hilarious standup show. 8 pm. 2359 Flatbush Ave. 718-338-1110.

Sunday December 9

Book Mini Tour: The All-of-a-Kind Family returns with a special new Chanukah book. Join the author and illustrator for a mini tour of the Bialystoker Synagogue, readings, Q & A, and book signing. 2 pm. 7-11 Willett Street/ Bialystoker Place, Manhattan. $25 (includes hardcover book and suf-

Sponsored by Mr. and Mrs. Mordy Kriger in memory of their beloved parents: k"z rhtn cegh "r ic ctz 'r wv"g kmrv hk,pb 'r ,c gmbj vhj ,rn wv"g ehzhht ejmh 'r ,c vsbhv vbj

Co-Sponsored By:

Agudah of the Five Towns Rabbi Yitzchok Frankel Agudah of West Lawrence Rabbi Moshe Brown Bais Haknesses of N. Woodmere Rabbi A. Lebowitz Bais Medrash D’Cedarhurst Rabbi Dovid Spiegel Chofetz Chaim Torah Center Rabbi Aryeh Z. Ginzberg Cong. Bais Avrohom Rabbi Osher Stern Cong. Anshei Chessed Rabbi Simcha Lefkowitz Cong. Bais Ephraim Yitzchok Rabbi Zvi Ralbag Cong. Bais Tefila Rabbi Ephraim Polakoff Cong. Beth Sholom Rabbi Kenneth Hain Cong. Kneseth Israel Rabbi Eytan Feiner

Cong. Shaaray Tefila Rabbi Uri Orlian HILI Bais Medrash Rabbi Dov Bressler Kehillas Bais Yehuda Rabbi Yaakov Feitman Cong. Tifereth Zvi Rabbi Pinchas Chatzinoff Y.I. of Bayswater Rabbi Eliezer Feuer Y.I. of Far Rockaway Rabbi Shaul Chill Y.I. of Hewlett Rabbi Simcha Hopkovitz Y.I. of Lawrence-Cedarhurst Rabbi M. Teitelbaum Y.I. of North Woodmere Rabbi Yehuda Septimus Y.I. of Woodmere Rabbi Hershel Billet

A Priority-1 Community Initiative

For more information or dedication opportunities, please call Priority-1 at 516.295.5700.

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Tefillah BeShanah [weekly]: Rabbi Evan Hoffman of Cong. Anshe Sholom will speak at Young Israel of North Woodmere in a series exploring Jewish prayer. 8 pm. 634 Hungry Hollow Rd, North Woodmere. YINW.org/event/tb.

THE JEWISH STAR November 23, 2018 • 15 Kislev, 5779

The JEWISH STAR

Certified Pre-Owned Luxury Vehicle Lease Specials

We are passionate about the vehicles and services we provide, along with the quality of our support.

2017 Infiniti QX80 AWD 7 Passenger

629

month*

24 month lease 10,000 miles per year

2017 Land Rover Range Rover SE

759

month*

24 month lease 10,000 miles per year

Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t delay. Call us today for your deal

718.975.9000 2750 Nostrand Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11210, www.PlazaAutoLeasing.com Lowest prices. Any make. Any model. Any time. Open: Sunday 10am - 1pm | Monday - Thursday 9am - 7pm | Friday 9am - 1pm Ad expires on 11/30/2018. Due at lease signing; 1st month payment, Bank Fee (Range Rover $695, Infiniti $695), Registration Fee and applicable taxes. Some deals may require lease loyalty or lease conquest. Residency restrictions may apply. Not responsible for typographical errors. (*While supply lasts)

DCA Lic#: 1312589 DMV#: 7084665

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November 23, 2018 â&#x20AC;˘ 15 Kislev, 5779 THE JEWISH STAR