Atlanta Jewish Times, Vol. XCI No. 38, September 30, 2016

L’Shana Tova 5777 Atlanta VOL. XCI NO. 38

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SEPTEMBER 30, 2016 | 27 ELUL 5776

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

INSIDE YOUR ROSH HASHANAH AJT HAPPY TALK Benjamin Netanyahu has a surprise for the U.N. General Assembly. Page 9; Our View, Page 10

WITH HER Janice Rothschild Blumberg gives us a glimpse at the Hillary Clinton she knows. Page 11

TOGETHERNESS Consul General Judith Varnai Shorer shares a New Year’s message of unity.

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AGE-APPROPRIATE Torah Day School’s Rabbi Elimelech Gottlieb explains why Rosh Hashanah is perfect for millennials. Page 48

GOOD AND BAD SOJOURN’s Rebecca Stapel-Wax reflects on some tough times, while The Sixth Point’s Michelle Krebs Levy doesn’t need anyone telling her she’s a bad Jew. Page 14

PLANTING CHANGE Humane Society food policy coordinator Rebecca Portman suggests ringing in 5777 without meat. Page 18

NOT THIS TIME Find out why Chabad’s Shifra Sharfstein doesn’t plan to pray this Rosh Hashanah. Page 68

SHANA CYCLE Ariel Rabbi Binyomin Friedman explains how changing and repeating go together. Page 81

HOT STUFF DeKalb firefighters and the Hebrew Order of David were the big winners at the kosher barbe-

SEASON’S SPIRIT Robbie Medwed offers three special cocktails to start the year with a smile.

Page 22 cue cook-off. Page 82

SAD NOTE Cantors help make the High Holidays special, but they’re rare to hear around here. Page 24

ATONING Eric Robbins is trying to make a difference at Federation, and he’d like your forgiveness. Page 30

NO HATE Let this be the year Georgia enacts a law against hate crimes, the ADL’s Shelley Rose says. Page 34

INDEX Calendar ������������������������������� 4 Candle Lighting ������������������� 5 Israel News �������������������������� 8 Opinion ������������������������������ 10 Rosh Hashanah ����������������� 14 Local News ������������������������� 82 Health & Wellness ������������ 83 Education ���������������������������84 Arts �������������������������������������� 85 Obituaries �������������������������� 86 Marketplace ���������������������� 88 Crossword ��������������������������90

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On the cover: An Orthodox man prays at the Kotel. Photo by Ziv Koren

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Daily shofar blast. Rabbi Brian Glusman sounds the shofar at 11 each week morning on Main Street in the Marcus JCC’s Zaban-Blank Building, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, to wake people up to Rosh Hashanah’s approach. Free and open to the community; 678-8124161 or rabbi.glusman@atlantajcc.org.

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Contributors This Week MARITA ANDERSON

JANICE ROTHSCHILD BLUMBERG MARK FISHER CAROL GELMAN YONI GLATT JORDAN GORFINKEL R.M. GROSSBLATT LEAH R. HARRISON RABBI PAUL KERBEL REBECCA MCCARTHY ROBBIE MEDWED TOVA NORMAN REBECCA PORTMAN EUGEN SCHOENFELD TERRY SEGAL AL SHAMS

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THURSDAY, SEPT. 29

High Holiday workout. The Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, gets blood pumping with a low-impact dance/fitness class and spirits soaring with insights from Rabbi Brian Glusman at 7 p.m. Free; rachael.rinehart­@ atlantajcc.org or 678-812-4022.

Holiday cuisine. “A Healthy Taste of Rosh Hashanah” at the Marcus JCC’s Kuniansky Family Center, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, helps prepare for Rosh Hashanah with a mix of Ashkenazi and Sephardi recipes at 7 p.m.

The cost is $50 for JCC members, $65 for others (advance registration required); atlantajcc.org or 678-812-3971.

Financial talk. Atlanta Falcons minority owner Ed Mendel addresses “Don’t Obsess About the Election: Focus on Your Personal Financial Future” at 7:30 p.m. at the Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody. Free to all but advance registration required; atlantajcc.org/financialfuture or 678-812-3981.

Send questions for Mendel to answer to financialfuture@atlantajcc.org.

SATURDAY, OCT. 1

Jazz show. Pianist Joe Alterman, newly returned from New York, performs a night of jazz, blues and funk with Jazz Orchestra Atlanta at 8 p.m. at Ogle thorpe University’s Conant Performing Arts Center, 4484 Peachtree Road, Brookhaven. Tickets are $20; oglethorpeuniversity.thundertix.com.

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 5

Exposed opening night. The six-week Exposed festival of Israeli dance and theater opens with solo dances by Ella Ben-Aharon and Ido Tadmor at 7 p.m. at CORE Studios, 139 Sycamore St., Decatur. Free but reservations required; coredance.secure.force.com/ticket.

College advice. The Center for Israel Education and the Institute for the Study of Modern Israel kick off a threepart series for 11th- and 12th-graders on “Choosing a College: Atmosphere & Jewish Engagement,” led by Emory professor Ken Stein, with a community forum about the questions to consider when applying to college at 7 p.m. at the Weber School, 6751 Roswell Road, Sandy Springs. The series continues in February. Free, but advance registration required; www.israeled.org/rsvp.

Life skills for teens. The Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, launches a four-week workshop on “adulting” for eighth- to 10th-graders at 7:15 p.m. The other classes are Oct. 19 and 26 and Nov. 2. Admission is $50 for JCC members, $65 for others; atlantajcc.org or 678-812-4082.

SATURDAY, OCT. 8

BeltLine performance. The Exposed festival shows a site-specific work called “Beltline Playground” at 1 p.m. at Historic Fourth Ward Park, 680 Dallas St., Atlanta. Free; exposedfestivalatl. com/event/beltline-playgound.

Wine tasting. The Ketura Group of Hadassah Greater Atlanta holds a tasting of five wines at 7:30 p.m. in East Cobb.

Admission is $22; RSVP and pay by Sept. 30. Details from Harriet Trackman, h.trackman@yahoo.com.

SUNDAY, OCT. 9

Pride. As part of the two-day Atlanta

Remember When

10 years ago Sept. 29, 2006 ■ Sherry Frank retired as regional director of the American Jewish Committee at the end of August, but a tribute featuring Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin, Congressman John Lewis, Coca-Cola Foundation head Ingrid Saunders Jones, and “the prince of kosher gospel,” Joshua Nelson, sent the message that the community is not ready for her to go.

■ The bat mitzvah ceremony of Sarah Elana Dubrow of Atlanta was held Saturday, Sept. 9, 2006, at Congregation Beth Shalom. Sarah is the daughter of Herbert and Lisa Dubrow.

25 Years Ago Oct. 4, 1991 ■ Operation Isaiah, the Yom Kippur food drive to benefit the Atlanta Community Food Bank, raised 11 tons of non-

Pride Festival in Piedmont Park, where SOJOURN has organized a Jewish community tent, the Pride Parade marches at noon from Civic Center MARTA station to the park on 10th Street in Midtown. Free; atlantapride.org or www. sojourngsd.org/calendar/atlpride.

B’nai mitzvah dress sale. A pop-up sale of used dresses for bar and bat mitzvah parties, from noon to 4 p.m. at the Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, benefits Federation’s Holocaust Survivor Support Fund. Each dress is $10 or $20. Admission is free; popupdressshop@gmail.com.

Tashlich. Rabbi Brian Glusman leads a Tashlich program at 12:15 p.m. at the Marcus JCC’s Lake RB, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, followed by a bubble show, boating, a shofar blowing contest and other activities. Free; atlantajcc. org or 678-812-4161.

How the Nazis did it. The Georgia Commission on the Holocaust screens the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum documentary “The Path to Nazi Genocide” at 1 p.m. at the “Anne Frank in the World” exhibit, 5920 Roswell Road, Suite A-209, Sandy Springs. Free; holocaust.georgia.gov.

Tashlich in the Highlands. The Atlanta Scholars Kollel and Anshi host Tashlich and a family barbecue at 4 p.m. at Orme Park, 774 Brookridge Drive, VirginiaHighland. The recommended donation is $5; www.anshisfard.com or info@ anshisfard.org.

THURSDAY, OCT. 13

Game design. An expert from the New York Code + Design Academy teaches computer game design and programming to eighth- to 11th-graders in three sessions, starting at 6:45 p.m., at the Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody. The program continues Oct. 20

perishable items, enough to feed 564 families for four days.

Thirteen Jewish schools, agencies and synagogues collected food on the eve of Yom Kippur in the first attempt at a communitywide High Holiday food drive.

■ Ellen Frauenthal and Leonard Silverstein of Atlanta announce the birth of a daughter, Laura Suzanne Silverstein, on Aug. 30.

50 Years Ago Sept. 30, 1966 ■ The almost 1,000 worshippers at Adas Yeshurun Synagogue in Augusta were enthralled with the trained baritone of Cantor Joseph Schwartzmann of Atlanta, who led prayers at Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Cantor Schwartzmann recently retired after more than a quarter-century with Ahavath Achim Synagogue in Atlanta.

■ Mr. and Mrs. Charles Schulman of Atlanta announce the engagement of their daughter, Anita Schulman, to Philip Simon Levy, son of Mr. and Mrs. Victor Levy of Tampa.

CALENDAR CANDLE-LIGHTING TIMES

Nitzavim Friday, Sept. 30, light candles at 7:04 p.m.

Saturday, Oct. 1, Shabbat ends at 7:58 p.m.

Rosh Hashanah Sunday, Oct. 2, light candles at 7:01 p.m.

Monday, Oct. 3, light candles after 7:55 p.m.

Tuesday, Oct. 4, holiday ends at 7:54 p.m.

Vayelech Friday, Oct. 7, light candles at 6:55 p.m.

Saturday, Oct. 8, Shabbat ends at 7:49 p.m.

Yom Kippur Tuesday, Oct. 11, light candles at 6:50 p.m.

Wednesday, Oct. 12, holiday ends at 7:44 p.m.

FRIDAY, OCT. 14

Family Shabbat. The Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, presents a Shabbat-related activity, a story, songs and blessings with Rabbi Brian Glusman, and the Weinstein School Shabbat Dinosaur for families with young children at 5 p.m. Free; atlantajcc.org or 678-8124161.

Intown acoustic Shabbat. Drew Cohen and Rabbi Brian Glusman lead an interactive, Shabbat-themed musical experience sponsored by the Marcus JCC, the Atlanta Jewish Music Festival, HAMSA and InterfaithFamily/Atlanta at 7 p.m. at San Francisco Coffee, 1192 N. Highland Ave., Virginia-Highland.

Free; atlantajcc.org or 678-812-4161.

SUNDAY, OCT. 16

Doubles pickleball. People can sign up as doubles teams or as singles and be paired up for a tournament at 10 a.m. at the Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody. Entry is $25 for JCC members, $35 for others, with advance registration required; atlantajcc.org or 678-812-3861.

Sukkot in the Highlands. The Atlanta Scholars Kollel and Anshi hold a festive meal in the Anshi sukkah, 1324 N. Highland Ave., Morningside, at 6:30 on the first night of Sukkot. The fee is $18; www.anshisfard.com or info@anshisfard.org.

THURSDAY, OCT. 20

Learn with a rabbi. Congregation Or Hadash Rabbi Analia Bortz leads the monthly lunch-and-learn session at noon at the Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody. Bring lunch or buy food at A Healthy Touch. Free; atlantajcc.org or 678-812-4161.

FRIDAY, OCT. 21

SOJOURN in the Sukkah. SOJOURN holds a breakfast program about its work in the Southeast at 7:30 a.m. in the sukkah at Congregation Shearith Israel, 1180 University Drive, Morningside. Tickets are $18; www.sojourngsd. org/calendar/sukkah.

SUNDAY, OCT. 23

Sukkot celebration. The Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, holds a fall festival, including a petting zoo and live bluegrass, for families to celebrate Sukkot from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m.

Free; atlantajcc.org or 678-812-4161.

Send items for the calendar to submissions@atljewishtimes.com.

Find more events at atlantajewishtimes.com/events-calendar.

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MA TOVU

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A Distracted Generation

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I have an embarrassing confession: Sometimes, almost always, I dread the High Holidays.

When you live the life of a clergy family, this time of year often feels rushed and overwhelming. Even if you are not clergy and are unaware of the enormous effort to stage the big Jewish reunion with G-d (or at least your friends), this happens to be one of the busiest months of the year. We are all jolted out of the summer lull, with little grace, into the routine of latenight meetings, homework fights and carpool. As the pace of life accelerates, I begin to notice that I can’t catch my breath, waiting to exhale until after Sukkot.

The past few years, the traditional practice of contemplation and spiritual reflection during Elul, the Hebrew month leading up to Rosh Hashanah, has softened my dislike for the High Holidays.

This year I joined an online class of learners attempting to slow things down through the Hasidic practice of Hit’bodedut — “self-seclusion” or “being alone with oneself.”

For several weeks, with the help of a Zoom Room video chat, I made a virtual pilgrimage to hear the teachings of Rebbe Nahman of Breslov, whose modality of Jewish meditation addressed my discomfort with the High Holidays.

“It is very good to pour out your heart to G-d as you would to a true, good friend,” Reb Nahman said a few centuries ago. And you are not just supposed to say pleasant words of gratitude, but to share it all, even your grievances and sorrows.

In my practice, this was a radical concept. What would it be like to pray out loud, talking to G-d without formula, as if speaking to a friend?

Before you decide that you wouldn’t try something that would make you look like a crazy person, think about it. What if we engaged in an ongoing, audible conversation with the divine?

In many ways, the ritual pageantry of the High Holidays is the opposite experience of a personal quest to know G-d, and so much of the formulaic liturgy can alienate the modern prayer. Theologically, it’s hard to digest all the names used for G-d over the High Holidays that make us feel separated and small, including Our Father, Our King, Judge and Ruler.

The disturbing nature of communal sin confessions as we beat our chests for transgressions we may have

never committed often results in mental gymnastics and deep discomfort.

Reading of the binding of Isaac, with little time to process or ask questions, can render us sleepless for nights.

Rabbi Lawrence Hoffman, a professor of Hebrew liturgy whose focus is on making prayer relevant in contemporary times, argues that “we need these prayers now, more than ever,” as they contain ageless wisdom about what it means to be human.

From my perspective, as our plugged-in lives are rapidly changing and we are barely keeping up with

Guest Column

By Marita Anderson

the pace, we could certainly use more reminders of what it means to be human. We could use the reminder that our tradition has hundreds of names for G-d, including G-d of Mercy, Grace and Compassion.

During Elul, we are given the time and space to look inside the nooks and crannies of our inner world, try new practices, ask questions and nurture a more intimate conversation with G-d.

The High Holidays don’t have to be an annual reunion that we tolerate for the sake of tradition. The experience can be so much more if we can only bridge the distance between alienation and belonging.

The Hasidic masters, who retained the teachings of Hit’bodedut, tell us that the gap between “G-d as friend” and “G-d as King” is an age-old problem. We are not the first generation to wrestle with the disconnect.

However, in the saturated world of sensory overload, we may be the most distracted generation ever. Which means that the distance we have to travel toward a feeling of intimacy and closeness is that much greater. We can’t make the leap in one day.

Rosh Hashanah is also known as Yom Hatruah, or the day of shouting or making noise. With all of the noise of attending synagogue with hundreds, if not thousands, of people and the cacophony of communal prayer, remember to look for the silent pauses to have your private conversation with G-d as an intimate partner. Between the groans and wails of the shofar, there just might be enough space for our hearts’ offering. ■

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ISRAEL NEWS

Israel Pride: Good News From Our Jewish Home Qualified for the World Baseball Classic. Israel qualified for the World Baseball Classic for the first time with a 9-1 win over Great Britain in the finale of a four-nation qualifier Sept. 25 in Brooklyn, N.Y. Israel defeated Britain twice and also beat Brazil to become the 16th and final team in the fourth World Baseball Classic next spring. Israel will start play March 7 in Seoul, South Korea, in a bracket with the host nation, the Netherlands and Taiwan. Team Israel was composed almost entirely of Jewish American minor leaguers and former major leaguers, including former Atlanta Braves Ryan Lavarnway, Jason Marquis and Nate Freiman. Such major leaguers as Ian Kinsler, Joc Pederson, Ryan Braun and Alex Bregman are eligible to play for Israel in March.

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IDF vets making a difference. Three army officers set out on an adventure to Thailand in 2012 after completing their service in the Israel Defense Forces. Nothing unusual there: An estimated 40,000 post-army Israelis every year go backpacking for extended periods to cheap and exotic destinations in the Far East, Africa and Latin America.

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But these three had a new idea: to capitalize on the large number of post-IDF travelers already in needy countries to make a positive difference and show the world the compassionate face of IDF veterans. So Gili Cohen, Yair Atias and Boaz Malkieli in 2013 founded Fighters for Life, which organizes annual volunteering missions for young Israeli backpackers heading to Ethiopia, Argentina and India. The two-week missions typically include agriculture and construction projects as well as the teaching of English, math, music and personal hygiene to children. The program is seeking a sponsor to expand to Mexico, Brazil and South Africa.

Divine deliveries. From all over the world, letters to G-d are sent to Israel without a return address. The Israel Post lost and found department collects the letters and, every few months, gives them to Western Wall and Holy Sites Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz to be placed between the stones of the Kotel.

Ahead of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, employees clean out the Western Wall and take old notes to be buried on the Mount of Olives. On Sept. 19, Israel

Post Director General Danny Goldstein brought Rabbi Rabinowitz the latest consignment of letters, addressed to “G-d,” “Jesus,” “Our Father in Heaven” and “the Western Wall.” The letters came from Russia, China, France, Nigeria, Spain, the Netherlands, the United States, Britain and other nations.

Somebody’s watching you. A great idea for an app was born out of a maddening experience for Ohad Maislish, an Israeli who walked with crutches for years after a skydiving accident.

When he arrived for Shabbat dinner at his brother’s house, the sole handicap spot was occupied by a car without the proper permit. Because parking inspectors don’t work on Friday nights, he had to go to a police station and file a report, wait for the case to be processed, and face the possibility of testifying in court in front of the offender. So Maislish created Capester, a platform that enables users to report parking violations by filming and submitting legally admissible videos anonymously.

Capester authenticates the video and sends it to the relevant local authority, which then determines whether to

ticket the vehicle owner. The app was released for Android in April and soon will be available for iOS. About 4,000 people in Israel have used it.

A wacky world record. A swuggling (swimming while juggling) world record was set at the 2016 Sea of Galilee Swim, an annual open-water swimming event. Shahar Cohen, a 46-yearold juggling entrepreneur, upped the ante for the popular race when he opted to swim the 3.5 kilometers (2.2 miles) while doing the backstroke and juggling three balls. Cohen runs Speevers, a company in Yakum in central Israel that develops circus equipment for shops and distributors around the world. Cohen was the only swimmer to complete the course on his back while juggling. He did it in just over three hours even though he swam extra distance because he zigzagged much of the way. American Joe Salter is credited with inventing swuggling in 2010 and introducing it to the global juggling community.

Compiled courtesy of Israel21c.org and other news sources.

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ISRAEL NEWS

The following is excerpted from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s remarks to the U.N. General Assembly on Thursday, Sept. 22.

What I’m about to say is going to shock you: Israel has a bright future at the U.N. Now I know that hearing that from me must surely come as a surprise, because year after year I’ve stood at this very podium and slammed the U.N. for its obsessive bias against Israel.

And the U.N. deserved every scathing word — for the disgrace of the General Assembly that last year passed 20 resolutions against the democratic state of Israel and a grand total of three resolutions against all the other countries on the planet. …

So when it comes to Israel at the U.N., you’d probably think nothing will ever change, right? Well, think again.

You see, everything will change and a lot sooner than you think. The change will happen in this hall because back home your governments are rapidly changing their attitudes towards Israel. And sooner or later, that’s going to change the way you vote on Israel at the U.N. More and more nations in Asia,

in Africa, in Latin America, more and more nations see Israel as a potent partner, a partner in fighting the terrorism of today, a partner in developing the technology of tomorrow.

Today Israel has diplomatic relations with over 160 countries. That’s nearly double the number that we had when I served here as Israel’s ambassador some 30 years ago. And those ties are getting broader and deeper every day. World leaders increasingly appreciate that Israel is a powerful country with one of the best intelligence services on Earth. Because of our unmatched experience and proven capabilities in fighting terrorism, many of your governments seek our help in keeping your countries safe.

Many also seek to benefit from Israel’s ingenuity in agriculture, in health, in water, in cyber, and in the fusion of big data, connectivity and artificial intelligence — that fusion that is changing our world in every way. …

We recycle about 90 percent of our waste water. … Given that the next country on the list only recycles about 20 percent of its waste water, Israel is a global water power. ■

Today in Israeli History

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

Sept. 30, 1986: Mordechai Vanunu, an Israeli nuclear technician who leaked details of Israel’s nuclear program to the British press, is brought to Israel one day after being lured to Italy from London by an undercover female Mossad agent posing as an American.

Oct. 1, 1981: President Ronald Reagan announces a plan to sell military aircraft to Saudi Arabia.

Oct. 2, 1187: After a siege that began Sept. 20, the crusader-controlled city of Jerusalem falls to Saladin, the sultan of Egypt.

Oct. 3, 2005: Sarah Levy-Tanai, one of Israel’s foremost choreographers and contributors to Israeli cultural life, dies at the age of 95.

Oct. 4, 1992: El Al Flight 1862, a

747 cargo plane bound from New York to Tel Aviv, crashes into an apartment complex in Bijlmermeer, an Amsterdam suburb.

Oct. 5, 1941: Retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis, an ardent Zionist, dies in Washington at the age of 84.

Oct. 6, 1914: Responding to a plea from Henry Morgenthau, the U.S. ambassador to Turkey, the American Jewish community, under the leadership of philanthropist Jacob Schiff and the American Jewish Committee’s Louis Marshall, quickly raises $50,000 for the distressed Jewish community in Palestine.

Photo by Graham van der Wielen

A statue of Saladin stands in Damascus.

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‘A Potent Partner’

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OPINION

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Our View

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

At the U.N.

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The annual gathering of the United Nations General Assembly carries some unmistakable similarities to that other great gathering of people in New York each fall — the Jewish High Holidays: • Folks are together for the only time all year.

• Important people stand on a platform and deliver powerful speeches full of metaphors and biblical allusions to drive home crucial, life-or-death points, while most of the people in the hall are busy socializing with all the friends they haven’t seen in a year.

• Most of what is said, and all of what is heard, is the same as the year before and the year before that, just as it surely will be the same each year to come.

• You’ll hear an appeal or two or three for money.

• People are going to talk about Israel and the need for a two-state solution with the Palestinians, leading to a back-and-forth about settlements and terrorism and leadership (or lack thereof).

• The rest of the world begrudgingly gives the Jews our time.

You could watch the proceedings in September with the volume muted and know President Barack Obama was vowing that the U.S.-Israeli relationship was stronger than ever while also nudging his not-sogood friend Benjamin Netanyahu to freeze the settlements and put a bit of effort into making peace.

You didn’t even have to watch to know that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas was again telling tales from some alternate-reality Middle East, the one where Israelis want to blow up Al-Aqsa mosque and sell Palestinian organs on the black market. All in an effort to compel Europe to force a proPalestinian deal on Israel.

It’s clear that Abbas, well into the 12th year of his four-year term as president, not only isn’t a leader who can sell an agreement to his own people, but he isn’t interested in trying. At age 81, he’s running out the clock, knowing that in the Arab Middle East these days, the only assurance a political leader has of dying happy is to stay in office.

Naturally, we expected Netanyahu to play his part, blaming Abbas and Hamas for the lack of a peace process and the continued attempts to kill Israeli civilians, whether by knife, rifle, car or rocket; warning of the threat Iran poses to the world; presenting Israel as a besieged outpost of Western-style democracy; and blasting the United Nations for its latest assortment of anti-Israel (if not anti-Semitic) atrocities, such as denying the Jewish history of Jerusalem and the land of Israel.

But Netanyahu pulled a surprise, hitting the unfriendly crowd with a positive vision of a not-toodistant future when Israel is the belle of the U.N. ball instead of the scapegoat destined for a desert death.

Israel will soon be popular in the U.N. halls, Netanyahu argued, because Israel is becoming a valued friend and partner all around the world. Those medical and technological and agricultural wonders we love to celebrate on the Israel Pride page each week are making Israel an irreplaceable nation.

That’s why more than 160 countries now have diplomatic relations with Israel, and that’s why each year promises to be a little bit sweeter for the Jewish state. ■

Cartoon by Yaakov Kirschen, Dry Bones

Roll Out the Red Carpet for 5777 the crowd during her delightful keynote address The end of one year and start of another always at the 10th anniversary celebration for the Intown create a melancholy time, at least in part because Jewish Academy on Thursday, Sept. 22 (more on that I’ve reached that age when I likely have more Rosh next week).

Hashanahs behind me than ahead of me. But I’m Regardless of the outcome, the end of the eleceager to get 5777 started. tion should ratchet down the rhetoric and the bullyNot because I have any particular regrets about ing both ways. It was bad enough that we canceled 5776. While our progress at the Atlanta Jewish Times plans to run a series of Trump-vs.-Clinton issue-fohasn’t been as dramatic in the Jewish year just cused columns leadending as it was in 5775, I think ing up to election. we’re slowly but surely building a It has been clear newspaper most of Jewish AtlanEditor’s Notebook for some time no ta can appreciate, benefit from

By Michael Jacobs one on either side is and take ownership in. There are mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com listening, and most stories we’ve missed, and those of the efforts to win we’ve misplayed, and any honest over those who are newspaperman will always have either undecided plenty of atonement to make or leaning toward a third-party option have boiled with his fellow man as Yom Kippur approaches. down to an infuriated and infuriating “How can you I’ll always wish we had more subscribers, more help elect (blank)?” advertisers, more space and, above all, more time.

These really aren’t historically bad candidates, But I’ll confess to some pride in the big things we’ve nor is this a historically contentious election. But it done right — three Rockower Awards won by Dave might be the election we’re all happiest to forget so Schechter for stories he wrote for the AJT and the we can focus on things that matter. positive response to the ongoing series on heroin adPersonally, I’m looking forward to life as an diction written by Leah Harrison, for example. empty-nester (at least during the school year), and And I won’t soon forget standing in line to I’m determined that 5777 is the year my wife and I check in at the recent dementia lecture given by neurologist Gavin Brown at the William Breman Jew- visit Israel together for the first time.

I’m looking forward to how my younger son ish Home. A woman ahead of me was asked how she changes over the course of his first year away from heard about the lecture. She spotted me and said, home as a college freshman. If nothing else, he has a “From him,” because it was in our calendar. future as a Facebook philosopher.

It’s more fun, however, to look ahead than to And I’m looking forward to how my older son look behind.

I’m looking forward to this presidential election makes his way in the movie business now that he’s taken the leap and moved to Los Angeles. I just need being over. After Donald Trump stumbled through a few more Rosh Hashanahs to get into shape so I the first debate, I think I know how it will turn out, don’t look like the Penguin hobbling down the red and I’m a stronger believer than ever that it won’t carpet when he gets that first Oscar nomination. make much difference either way.

For now, we at the AJT wish all of Jewish Atlanta Even if it does, the next election is only four a sweet, healthy, happy new year. L’shana tova. ■ years away, as Navy Lt. Cmdr. Laurie Lans reminded

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

OPINION

Observing Hillary’s Softer, Warmer Side She didn’t tell me, but I soon learned that she was also working full time as an attorney, the first female partner in the city’s most prestigious law firm, as well as serving on several

Guest Column

By Janice Rothschild Blumberg

corporate boards. Being first lady of a state entailed a job description of its own, enough to keep most women on a schedule too full for other responsibilities.

We were just beginning to understand that it was possible for a young mom to tackle even one job outside her home. Hillary was getting rave reviews with many more.

The next time I had personal contact with her was in Washington at the funeral of a friend.

I was living in D.C. when the Clintons came to the White House, and I had a number of friends who volunteered for work in the first lady’s

office.

They had done this during previous administrations and were thus acquainted with other first ladies. All were pleasant, my friends agreed, but no one came close to Hillary in their praise.

Others made them proud for having had the contact. She evoked love and loyalty. She treated them as individuals and in many ways demonstrated her appreciation for the time and effort they were giving as muchneeded aides to her staff.

First lady Hillary demonstrated her personal interest in her volunteers in numerous ways, but none so effectively as she did at Washington’s Temple Sinai when she gave a eulogy at the funeral of my friend Muriel Alpert.

No speechwriter could possibly have captured Muriel’s character as Hillary did.

Muriel had a sense of humor like no other and chutzpah to match, all of which Hillary brought out in her remarks, giving anecdotes that caught the essence of the friend we knew and mourned.

She had us laughing through our tears. That’s a talent, but it requires

a deep understanding of a person’s character to pull it off.

Hillary also demonstrated her sensitivity by changing the customary practice of herding everyone together for a group photograph with the president and first lady at the annual Christmas party for White House volunteers. She insisted on individual pictures with herself and the president.

My friends proudly display in their living rooms the signed photographs of themselves and their husbands with both Clintons for each year that they worked at the White House. More important, they treasure the memories.

I have a picture not of myself, but of my husband with the Clintons taken on that August night in 1985 when we first met them in Little Rock.

When dinner was over, we walked with them from the hotel ballroom out to the parking lot.

When we parted to find our cars, the first thing David said to me was, “You watch that young man. He’s going to be our president someday.”

Neither of us had the foresight to predict, “And her, too.” ■

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Many people criticize Hillary Clinton for lacking warmth and for failing to project sincerity. Few of them have more on which to base their opinion than what they read and see of her in the news.

From the several occasions that I’ve had to observe her personally and to speak with others who have had extensive personal contact with her, I have quite a different opinion.

I first met Hillary Clinton at a dinner in Little Rock in 1985 when my husband, David Blumberg, presented an award on behalf of B’nai B’rith to her husband, the governor of Arkansas.

She and I were seated together in the center of the dais next to them.

Having little opportunity for conversation with anyone else, throughout dinner we kept company with each other, much to my delight.

I came away awe-struck by this attractive young woman who spoke enthusiastically about her 5-year-old daughter and her work in several volunteer initiatives for helping children and improving public education.

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OPINION

Magic vs. Divine Decree In the Shtetl

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Reb Chaim Berger was my grandfather’s neighbor in Talamas, a tiny village at the crest of the Carpathian Mountains.

The Jewish community in the village consisted of about six couples and their teen children so that there were enough males Friday evening and Shabbat morning to have a minyan.

Reb Chaim was a little more modern than the rest of the old-time Jews with their long beards and caftans. He trimmed his beard a little more severely than the other Jews, and his payes (ear locks) were shorter.

His wife, unlike the other married Jewish women, didn’t cut off her hair, nor did she wear a kerchief over her hair or a sheitel (wig).

In spite of his supposed modernity, Reb Chaim’s children had a propensity for the occult. His children about my age loved to tell Yiddish stories about magical events and magicians.

In fact, they bewildered me when they began to command the table to perform magical effects.

They loved to sit around a table where, with the help of other children holding on to the table with their fingers spread in a “V” in the manner of the ancient priests blessing the Jews in the Holy Temple, they made the table respond to questions. One tap with its leg meant yes, and two taps was no. We were (perhaps I alone was) overawed with their magic skills.

Each summer I spent two glorious months with my grandparents in Talamas, which became my ShangriLa, and while there, I frequently visited Reb Chaim’s daughters, whom I befriended. One day, I looked at the transom of their main door, and in addition to the handsome mezuzah, high over the door I beheld a small bat with its wings in a Christ-like spread nailed to the wall.

“Why did you nail the bat to the wall?” I asked one of the girls.

“Don’t you know? It is for good luck. A bat on the wall averts troubles and calamities in the house.” But to initiate the bat’s magical power, she informed me, it must be killed by slitting its neck with a flattened and sharpened silver coin.

Magic and superstition were a part of Jewish shtetl and village life.

Early in my life, for instance, I learned a brief ditty designed to save me from

attacking dogs.

During the late fall and winter, darkness fell early in my city, and I walked home from the yeshiva about 5 p.m. by the light of a candle enclosed in a lantern. There were always unchained dogs roaming the streets, and

One Man’s Opinion

By Eugen Schoenfeld

my greatest fear was being attacked by a rabid animal.

I heard all kinds of stories of the pains that boys had to endure from the anti-rabies serum invented by Louis Pasteur, which was injected into the abdomen.

To avoid being bitten, most of us boys resorted to magic for protection.

When seeing a dog, especially at night, I began reciting, “Hint, hint, ich bin Yaakov’s kind” (Dog, dog, I am Jacob’s child), and by the power vested in these words I was guarded from being bitten.

Did it work?

I lived over 18 years in my shtetl and was never attacked by a dog, day or night.

The noted cultural anthropologist Bronislaw Malinowski, a professor at the London School of Economics and at Yale University, spent four years studying the life and culture of the natives of Trobriand Islands, and he described his observations in the book “Magic, Science and Religion.”

Among the Trobriand Islanders, religion and magic were independent social institutions, each with its own function.

The primary function of religion, as in Judaism, was to mark and celebrate lifecycle events, most associated with seasons or with functions such as marriages, births, agricultural activities and fishing. These were celebratory functions and not problemsolving ones.

But in all aspects of life people encountered problems they could not solve because of the absence of empirical knowledge. The function of magic was not to serve as a substitute for empirical knowledge, whose efficacy was proved by reliable and repetitive outcomes. Magic and magicians existed to provide solutions to

problems when proven knowledge was not available.

Judaism, however, denounced both magic and its practitioners.

Magicians and their craft as a mode of problem solving were outlawed by the Torah. The text in Exodus (22:7), Leviticus (20:27) and Deuteronomy (18:7-13) forbids Jews to engage in witchcraft or to use incantations, oracles or astrology.

The reason for this ban, most likely, is that such activities stand in competition with G-d and challenge His powers.

When Moses came to Pharaoh and demanded in G-d’s name the release of the Jews, he used magic (turning his staff into a snake) as a sign of G-d’s power and hence his legitimacy as a divine messenger.

Pharaoh countered with his own magicians, who were able to perform the same act.

But denying the legitimacy of magic does not end its practice. Magic did not disappear among the Jews.

When King Saul was in trouble, he turned to the Witch of Endor, who summoned the spirit of the prophet Samuel so that Saul could consult him.

When problems cannot be solved by empiricism, people turn to cults and to magic. Only the advent of science can make magic obsolete.

When magic was forbidden as an independent social institution, Jews moved it into religion itself. The belief in the evil eye became a part of religious belief, and its existence and solution were discussed in the Talmud in the same manner as were religious matters.

I remember well that in 1934, long before the discovery of antibiotics or even sulfa drugs, pneumonia was usually a terminal illness.

You must have seen movies with scenes in which a mortally ill person is lying in bed, and the family helplessly sits and waits for the crisis to come.

The crisis is the point when either the ill person is overcome by the disease and dies, or the fever breaks and the person goes on living.

Such an event occurred in my family.

My sister Esther-Elyke at the age of 6 months was infected by bacteria.

She suffered a high fever, and the diagnosis was pneumonia. Nothing could be done for her with the exception of applying cold compresses. There weren’t any medications to alleviate her condition.

Though my family believed in and accepted the idea that G-d during the High Holidays decrees who shall live

and who shall die, they couldn’t sit still when confronted with the possible death of my sister. In spite of their great belief in G-d as a true judge, they turned to magic for additional help.

First, my paternal grandmother, a great believer in the existence and power of the evil eye, thought that someone out of jealousy of my sister’s beauty deployed the evil eye (ayin hara in Hebrew or nehoreh in Yiddish), and its manifestation brought on her illness.

She set about to counteract that evil power. She lighted four candles and set them on the corners of the crib, onto which she also attached four pieces of red ribbon as guards against added evil eyes.

My grandfather, however, believed in the curative powers of Tehillim and thus continued to recite the Book of Psalms.

My father sought to obfuscate the decree G-d had written in the Book of Life. We went to the synagogue and opened the ark, and in front of a minyan my father renamed my sister by adding an additional name.

Thus, theoretically, if G-d decreed that Esther-Elyke, the daughter of Chayim, should die, the decree would not apply to my sister, whose name became Esther-Elyke Naomi.

Similarly, I performed my own antidote to black magic through advice given in the Shulchan Aruch, the summary of Jewish religious laws written and edited by Judah Karo. His instructions were that Jews should not cut their finger and toe nails serially but instead should cut every other nail, then cut the others, and the clippings should be burned, thus avoiding any attempt by people to use them for black magic.

I have also seen many pregnant women who after Sukkot took a husband’s etrog, the citron used as one of the four species with the lulav, and bit off its end to ensure a male offspring.

And so on.

Magic in Judaism never disappeared; it was merely absorbed into the body of religion and became part of religious practice.

For instance, during Shemini Atzeret we pray for rain (geshem) and direct our prayer to Af-Berie, who many scholars believe was an ancient god of rain.

Magic will continue to exist so long as science cannot solve the problems that threaten humanity. I am sure that somewhere people are responding to pollution and the warming of Earth with both prayer and magic. ■

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Yom Kippur Menu

OPINION

AJT 13

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ROSH HASHANAH

Community’s Embrace Eases Tough Year 5776 has been a very difficult year.

Immediately after the Supreme Court’s decision to make marriage equality the law, there was a backlash with 200 legislative bills spread across the country proposing to discriminate against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people.

Eight of those bills were right here in Georgia.

Most of these bills claimed religious freedom as a reason to deny people access to services.

More concerning was that just by their existence, these bills encouraged distrust, fear and hatred of others.

As Jews we can relate to being scapegoats and targets. Fortunately, our Jewish community responded with love, kindness and voices.

Over the past year two dozen rabbis came to rallies, gave speeches, spoke from the pulpit, wrote emails and informed their congregants about how to Jewishly stand up for equality. In addition, 40 organizations will partner with SOJOURN on Oct. 8 and 9 at Atlanta Pride, and 200 to 300 people will march down Peachtree Street.

It is an incredibly humbling sight to see this hugely diverse group of Jewish babies through bubbes modeling for Atlanta that people of faith not only accept LGBT people, but also encourage them to be full members of their families and organizations.

At Pride, the first LGBT Guide to Jewish Atlanta will debut. Each of our

partners is listed with the programs and services they provide and their invitation to people who are LGBT to join them. With rapidly changing social

Photo by Jamie L. Collins/SOJOURN

Jewish community representatives gather for the 2015 Pride Parade.

Forty Jewish organizations are partnering with SOJOURN for this year’s festival and parade Oct. 8 and 9.

Guest Column

By Rebecca Stapel-Wax SOJOURN

and legal developments, SOJOURN has also included a glossary of terms to be a resource throughout the year.

Since our inception in 2013, SOJOURN has demonstrated that with the almost 10,000 people who have attended our workshops, the building of awareness, exposure to differences and education make an impact and cause significant change.

Almost all of us know (and love) someone who is gay, but the same isn’t true about someone who is transgender. With the state of the world, we need to be unified. We need to really grasp the concept that our differences aren’t to be feared. We produced a T-shirt that says, “Love your neighbor (even if they are not) like yourself.”

We must be intentional to embrace our neighbors, co-workers, parents of our kids’ friends and sometimes even our own family.

Join us for a future workshop or invite us to customize a learning opportunity for your group to expand

your knowledge and experience the shoes of another.

After the United States’ largest massacre in Orlando, Atlanta hosted a vigil of thousands. It was also the same night as SOJOURN’s Parent Discussion Group. These 10 families chose to meet as an intimate group instead of attending the larger gathering.

Recently one of those parents wrote: “I don’t think I would have my child right now if it weren’t for you.

There is no exaggeration the resources you provided and you taking the time, it saved my child. I know the suicide rate of the LGBTQ community is high.

I also know had we not had the chain of events that started with you guys we would be part of that statistic.”

Tell your friends and colleagues there is support, and they are not alone. Alienation is a threat to our safety and well-being, so having a sense of normalcy and belonging is the remedy.

We at SOJOURN are so grateful for how persistent and vocal our community has been. We recognize that it

is essential to celebrate our successes.

So this year we honor two clergy who have responded to the injustices the LGBT community has faced.

On Feb. 25 we will honor Rabbi Pamela Gottfried and Rabbi Michael Bernstein with the Michael Jay Kinsler Rainmaker Award at our annual fundraiser, Purim off Ponce. Over the past three years they have been continuous sources of support to the LGBT community, and they embody the role of the ally.

We rely on each other to achieve a genuinely happy, healthy and safe new year. In 5777 I encourage us to be intentional about our compassion, our patience and our appreciation for those we love and those we don’t know yet. May we discover that in extending ourselves, even when it is uncomfortable, we reach a more enlightened future. ■

eat chametz during Passover. I build a pretty awesome sukkah (although I don’t sleep in it). I give to charity. I volunteer in the community. I’ve spent my entire career in the nonprofit sector, trying to make my corner of the world a better place.

I truly and sincerely strive to be a kind, honest and generous person, and I spend every single day trying to raise my son with the same good values.

If I’m a good person, then aren’t I a good Jew? I can’t count how many times someone has identified himself or herself to me as a “bad Jew.” Naturally, I then expect them to tell me that they have a meth lab in their garage. Or that they embezzle money from their company. Or at least that they crossbreed cattle or something.

But, no, the explanation that

follows is always something less dramatic. “I never go to synagogue.”

“I’m not going to a seder this year.” Or, my personal favorite, “I’m sorry, I just really love bacon.”

On the eve of this new year, it’s time for a change. This year (and every year henceforth), let’s all resolve to stop judging ourselves. There is no need to label anyone a good Jew or a bad Jew, a secular Jew or a cultural Jew, an observant Jew or a Jew of no religion. We’re just Jews. And it’s up to us to choose for ourselves how we want to be Jewish and how we want to do Jewish. ■

Rebecca Stapel-Wax is the executive director of SOJOURN: Southern Jewish Resource Network for Gender & Sexual Diversity.

Who’s a Bad Jew?

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

“I’m such a bad Jew.” Have you ever heard someone say this? Have you ever said this about yourself? Where did this guilt come from? Who planted the idea in our heads that we are “bad Jews”?! Whose idea of a “good Jew” are we comparing ourselves with anyway?

(And before you even think of suggesting that Jewish mothers had something to do with this, I’ll just stop you right there. Having recently added that title to my résumé, I take offense at that notion.)

Am I a bad Jew if I enjoy shrimp sometimes? And the occasional crab cake?

I also drive on Shabbat and use electricity and never put down my 14 phone. Does that make me a bad Jew?

AJT

Guest Column

By Michelle Krebs Levy The Sixth Point

If I’m a married woman, but I don’t cover my hair, am I a bad Jew? I use birth control, too. Surely that tips the scale, right?

If you catch me on the wrong day, you’ll find me cursing like a sailor. I have gossiped on more than one occasion, and I can hold on to a grudge like it’s a prized possession. Now do you think I’m a bad Jew? I should probably also mention: I’ve never killed anyone. I don’t worship idols, and I don’t have any tattoos.

Also, I don’t have sex with animals.

I lead a heck of a seder, and I don’t

Michelle Krebs Levy is the founder and CEO of The Sixth Point, an independent, nondenominational Jewish community in Atlanta for adults in their 20s and 30s (ish).

AJT

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SEPTEMBER 30 â–ª 2016

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ROSH HASHANAH

Options for the High Holidays

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

For people who are new to town, are otherwise unaffiliated or are just looking for something different for the High Holidays this year, here are some of the opportunities. If you don’t see the congregation that interests you on this list, check out its website (we have links at atlantajewishtimes.com), or give it a call. Also, note that for cases of financial hardship, just about any congregation will make accommodations so that no one is shut out from the community.

• Chabad of Atlanta at Congregation Beth Tefillah, 5065 High Point Road, Sandy Springs, offers educational services led by Rabbi Isser New from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Oct. 3 and 4 for Rosh Hashanah and Oct. 12 for Yom Kippur. Children are welcome. A donation of $72 is suggested. Advance registration is required; www.bethtefillah.org or 404-843-2464, ext. 104.

• Chabad of Cobb, 4450 Lower Roswell Road, East Cobb, offers traditional services blended with contemporary insights for all the holidays, with children’s services and babysitting available by reservation. Open seating is available on a first-come, first-served

AJT 16

basis, or you can purchase seats at 770-565-4412, ext. 300, or www.chabadofcobb.com. Rosh Hashanah services are at 7 p.m. Oct. 2, 9:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. Oct. 3, 9:30 a.m. and 7 p.m. Oct. 4.

For Yom Kippur, Kol Nidre is at 7 p.m.

Oct. 11, and Oct. 12 services are at 9:30 a.m., noon and 6 p.m.

• Call Temple Beth Tikvah (bethtikvah.com), 9955 Coleman Road, Roswell, at 770-642-0434 for nonmember tickets. No tickets are required for the tot family service at 2:30 p.m. and Tashlich at 4 p.m. Oct. 3 and for the tot family service at 2:30 p.m. and the final Yom Kippur services starting at 4 p.m. Oct. 12.

• Guardians of the Torah under Rabbi Richard Baroff holds services that are free and open to the public at Northminster Presbyterian Church, 2400 Old Alabama Road, Roswell, at 9:30 a.m. Oct. 3 and Oct. 12. Donations are appreciated.

• The Kehilla in Sandy Springs (www.thekehilla.org), 5075 Roswell Road, offers free High Holiday services with no reservations. Rosh Hashanah services are at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 2 and 9 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. Oct. 3 and 4 (Tashlich

at 5:30 p.m. Oct. 3). For Yom Kippur, Kol Nidre is at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 11, and services are at 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Oct. 12.

• Congregation Shaarei Shamayim welcomes all for any services at its new home, 1600 Mount Mariah Road, Toco Hills. A donation of $100 is recommended but not required for High Holiday tickets; www.shaareishamayim.com.

• Services are always free at Chabad of Peachtree City, 632 Dogwood Trail, Tyrone, where the morning services are at 9:30 and the evening services are at 7:30 during the High Holidays. A festive Rosh Hashanah meal is at 8 p.m. Oct. 2. For more information, call Rabbi Yossi Lew at 678-595-0199, or visit www.chabadsouthside.com.

• Congregation B’nai Israel (bnaiisrael.net), 1633 Highway 54 East, Jonesboro, welcomes all to its services at no charge. Call 678-817-7162 for tickets.

Services are at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 2, 10 a.m.

Oct. 3 (followed by a luncheon), 7:30 p.m. Oct. 11 and 10 a.m. Oct. 12.

• Chabad Intown is offering free High Holiday services, including learners and children’s services both days of Rosh Hashanah and on Yom Kip-

Congregation B’nai Israel member Jaron Rosenberg, 13, of Peachtree City gets in some shofar practice.

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pur and a young professionals slackers service the first day of Rosh Hashanah.

The full schedule is at chabadintown. org/high-holidays-schedule. Reservations and donations are appreciated but not required.

• Congregation Bet Haverim (www.congregationbethaverim.org) is holding free Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur services with no tickets required at St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, 1790 LaVista Road, Toco Hills.

Seats fill up, however, so early arrival is advised. Services are at 8 p.m. Oct. 2 (with sign language interpretation), 10 a.m. Oct. 3 and 4, 6 and 8 p.m. for Kol Nidre Oct. 11 (the latter with sign language), and 10 a.m., 3 p.m., 4 p.m. and 5:15 p.m. Oct. 12.

• Chabad of Forsyth and Congregation Beth Israel present High Holiday services at the Collection, Suite 208, 410 Peachtree Parkway, Cumming, with no charge but donations welcome. Make your reservations at jewishforsyth. org/highholidays. Services include 6:30 p.m. Oct. 2, 3 and 11 and 9 a.m. Oct. 3, 4 and 12. A children’s holiday adventure is at 10 a.m. during the morning services. A Rosh Hashanah dinner at 7 p.m. Oct. 2 is $36 for adults and $15 for children.

• Congregation Kehillat HaShem

(www.rabbiatlanta.com), 640 Stone House Lane, Marietta, offers free services under Rabbi Jeffery Feinstein at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 2, 10 a.m. Oct. 3, 7 p.m.

Oct. 11, and 10 a.m., 3 p.m., 4:30 p.m. and 5 p.m. Oct. 12. Reserve seats by calling 770-218-8094.

• Congregation Beth Jacob, 1855 LaVista Road, Toco Hills, offers free educational services at 10 a.m. Oct. 3 and 4 and 11 a.m. Oct. 12. Child care is available with reservations; www.highholidaysATL.com.

• All services are free at Young Israel of Toco Hills, 2056 LaVista Road.

Email office manager Leslie Mallard at leslie@yith.org to attend. See the service schedule at www.yith.org.

• Ahavath Achim Synagogue, 600 Peachtree Battle Ave., Buckhead, wants to give all nonmembers a home for the High Holidays. To get details or purchase tickets, visit www.aasynagogue. org, or call 404-355-5222.

• The Atlanta Scholars Kollel (www.atlantakollel.org) is offering services with a suggested donation of $18 at the Kollel Dome at Congregation Ariel, 5237 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, under Rabbi Daniel Freitag and at Congregation Anshi S’fard, 1324 N. Highland Ave., Virginia-Highland, under Rabbi Mayer Freedman. Call 404-321-4085 or

email ask@atlantakollel.org for tickets.

• Anshi/Atlanta Scholars Kollel at 1324 N. Highland Ave., VirginiaHighland, is offering a free family Rosh Hashanah experience Oct. 3 featuring yoga for children and a game show for adults at 11:15 a.m., ending with a shofar blowing at 12:15 p.m. and a light lunch. Get details or RSVP via www. anshisfard.org, info@anshisfard.org or 404-969-763.

• Congregation Beth Shalom (bethshalomatlanta.org), 5303 Winters Chapel Road, Dunwoody, sells High Holiday guest tickets to Atlanta-area residents for $180. Services at 8:30 a.m.

Oct. 4 are free to all, and college students are welcome free at all services by showing a college ID at the door.

• Temple Kol Emeth (www.kolemeth.net), 1415 Old Canton Road, East Cobb, offers family services at 3:45 p.m.

Oct. 3 and 12, a tot service at 3 p.m. Oct. 12, Tashlich at East Cobb Park at 5 p.m.

Oct. 3, second-day Rosh Hashanah services at 10:30 a.m. Oct. 4, and all services from 4:30 p.m. through Havdalah Oct. 12 at no charge with no reservation.

• All services are free on a firstcome, first-served basis at Chabad of North Fulton (www.chabadnf.org), 10180 Jones Bridge Road, Alpharetta. In

addition to standard services, inspirational and children’s services are available at 10 a.m. Oct. 3, 4 and 12.

• Temple Sinai (templesinaiatlanta.org), 5645 Dupree Drive, Sandy Springs, opens Erev Rosh Hashanah (8 p.m. Oct. 2) and second-day Rosh Hashanah services (9 a.m. Oct. 4) to the public.

• Temple Beth David (www.gwinnetttemple.com), 1885 McGee Road, Snellville, offers free admission to services for college students and activeservice members of the military with a photo ID. For other nonmembers, tickets are $100 for either Rosh Hashanah (7:30 p.m. Oct. 2, 9 a.m. Oct. 3) or Yom Kippur (7:30 p.m. Oct. 11, all day starting at 9 a.m. Oct. 12) or $175 for both or $250 for a family (two adults and any children under 18). Email Wendy Fine at afine@charter.net.

• Congregation B’nai Torah (www. bnaitorah.org), 700 Mount Vernon Highway, Sandy Springs, offers a series of free community services: 6:30 p.m. Oct. 2; 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. (youth service) Oct. 4; 5 p.m. (tot service), 6:30 p.m. (family service) and 6:40 p.m. Oct. 11; and 2:15 p.m. (Torah study), 4:45 p.m.

(Yizkor) and 5:30 p.m. Oct. 12. Call Executive Director Natalie Sarnat for required free tickets at 404-257-0537. ■

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

ROSH HASHANAH

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ROSH HASHANAH

Traditional Holiday Feast Need Not Include Meat

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

By Rebecca Portman

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Brisket, potato kugel, roasted chicken, squash casserole and matzah ball soup. Sounds like a traditional Rosh Hashanah meal.

Those items have certainly been staples on my table during many Jewish New Year’s celebrations. Four years ago, when I started replacing animalbased ingredients with plant-based ones, I wondered whether I could continue those traditions.

After learning about the health and environmental benefits of eating fewer animal products and more plantbased foods, not to mention the obvious benefit to the animals who suffer in our industrialized food system, I was determined.

Happily, it didn’t take long to find tasty plant-based versions of matzah balls and kugel, chicken-inspired dishes sans the chicken, and many other meals that are part of my family’s tradition. Not only has it been easier than I could have imagined, but my Rosh Hashanah table is now filled with variations that are more nutritious, more flavorful, and, get this, less costly.

Rosh Hashanah, as a time for introspection, provides the perfect opportunity to make better food choices, especially when one considers tsa’ar ba’alei chayim, the ban on inflicting unnecessary pain on animals.

As a nation, we’ve become more conscientious about where our food comes from and how it gets onto our plate. Many of the animals we consume for food are pumped full of hormones and antibiotics, fed an unnatural diet, and kept in egregious conditions.

Many people aren’t aware that the only dietary source of cholesterol is food made from animal products, which are also high in saturated fat.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, chronic diseases such as diabetes and obesity may be prevented by replacing some animal products with fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds.

Eating less meat also helps the environment. The Environmental Working Group warns, “Meat production is one of humanity’s most destructive and least efficient systems, accounting for astounding levels of wildlife losses, land and water pollution, deforestation and greenhouse gas emissions.”

It’s easier than ever to improve our eating habits, especially with the abundance of plant-based food now

available in most stores where we buy our groceries, including Target and Walmart.

Here are some simple ways to provide the tradition and taste our guests enjoy during the holiday season while maintaining the values and goals of eating a healthier, sustainable and more humane diet.

Many foods you eat are already plant-based: potato and pasta dishes, sautéed and grilled vegetables, hearty whole grains and salads. Matzah ball soup can be homemade with vegetable broth (such as Not Chick’n broth), and there are recipes for plant-based matzah balls.

As for alternatives to brisket, there are great recipes using seitan (wheat gluten), which can be found at your local Whole Foods, Earth Fare or Fresh Market. An example is this recipe at OneGreenPlanet: www.onegreenplanet.org/vegan-recipe/braisedseitan-short-ribs-in-spicy-chile-sauce.

Although the recipe includes instructions for making homemade seitan, store-bought may be used to save time.

And, of course, the flavor can be modified to taste.

Instead of chicken, why not try tofu or tempeh? A whole head of cauliflower roasted makes an impressive (and delicious) centerpiece to the meal.

Not only are these options better for our health, planet and animals, but they’re also better for our wallet.

A Rosh Hashanah dinner for 12 with kosher meat costs approximately $150 to $200, based on my seasoned mother-in-law’s shopping list. Rosh Hashanah dinner for 12 excluding animalbased products costs approximately $70, including soup and dessert.

The final key is to remember that eating with a conscience doesn’t have to be all or nothing. Rather, it might simply mean following the three R’s of eating: “reducing” or “replacing” consumption of animal products and “refining” our diets by choosing products from sources that adhere to higher animal welfare standards.

With a few updates to your recipe repertoire, you can enjoy a happy holiday with all your favorite dishes while supporting better health for your loved ones and for the planet.

I hope you all have a happy, healthy and sweet new year. ■ Rebecca Portman is the Georgiabased food policy coordinator for the Humane Society of the United States.

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ROSH HASHANAH

A Day for Sight, Insight and Vision

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

The themes of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are familiar to us: repentance and return, forgiveness and atonement, our ability to reflect, to self-assess, to change and return.

Our High Holiday mahzor focuses on G-d as king and Creator of the Universe (and we celebrate Rosh Hashanah as the birthday of the world), the symbol and meaning of the shofar, and the importance of memory and forgiveness.

Rabbi Shlomo Riskin has taught me that tikkun olam is also a vital theme of these Days of Awe. But there is another theme, not immediately seen on the surface but imbedded in our Torah readings for Rosh Hashanah, that I encourage us to reflect on: Rosh Hashanah focuses on sight, insight and vision.

One could argue that these Days of Awe encourage us to experience these holy days with all of our senses: the smell of the fresh, round challah we eat at the beginning of the holiday

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meal; the taste of apples and honey carrying the wish for a sweet year; the touch of extending hands of friendship and welcome in the synagogue and to our family and friends; and the sounds of the shofar.

But if we read not only the Torah

Guest Column

By Rabbi Paul Kerbel

readings of Rosh Hashanah, but in context the series of narratives from Genesis Chapters 16 to 22, the word and sense that appear the most often are forms of the word “to see.”

“See” — in Hebrew, ra-ah or roeh — is a watchword of all of these portions in the middle of the Book of Genesis.

The portions we read on Rosh Hashanah, Genesis 21 and 22, focus on the themes of remembrance (G-d remembered Sarah by enabling her to have a son, Isaac) and faith in G-d

(exquisitely presented in the story of the binding of Isaac in Chapter 22).

Ultimately, these stories about the first family of Judaism reflect the themes of many families: jealousy, favoritism, infertility, heritage and inheritance.

Throughout these narratives, sight and vision play an important part. Here are just a few examples: • “Raise your eyes and look out from where you are, to the north and the south and the east and the west, for I give all the land that you see to you and your offspring forever” (Genesis 13:14).

• After a marital spat between Abraham and Sarah regarding Hagar in Genesis 16:13, Hagar calls G-d “El Ro’i” because He has seen and heard her.

• The Torah portion we read from on the first day of Rosh Hashanah, Vayera, begins: “G-d appeared to Abraham” (Genesis 18:1).

• Most important about the selection we read from Vayera on the first day of Rosh Hashanah, the word “see” appears at least three times, as when G-d opens Hagar’s eyes and she sees a

well of water.

• As we read about the binding of Isaac, the Torah says, “Abraham looked up and saw the place from afar.” And, at the end of this chilling portion, when G-d stops Abraham from fulfilling his act of faith, the Torah teaches, “Abraham looked up, his eyes fell on a ram. … Abraham named that place Behar Adonai Yay-ra-eh, on the mountain where I saw G-d” or “on the mountain of G-d, there is vision.”

What we learn from reading these portions on Rosh Hashanah and when we read parshiyot Lech Lecha and Vayera in November is how much our senses — seeing, hearing, feeling, tasting and touching — play a role in what it means to be a human being and feel G-d’s presence.

Martin Buber, the great Jewish philosopher of the 20th century, wrote a series of essays on the Bible, which he and Franz Rosenzweig translated into German.

Buber wrote an essay titled, “Abraham the See-er.” After quoting many of the sources I just shared with you, Buber wrote: “We are shown the perfection of seeing — as seeing and

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as being seen — as one. The prophet of our day was formerly called ‘a seer.’ Of the two titles — seer and prophet — seer is the older, as seen in the Book of Samuel. Abraham becomes a prophet, but a seer is what he was from the very first moment when ‘G-d let Himself be seen.’ ” As a seer, Abraham goes on to achieve the perfection of seeing.

The symbols of this seeing (in all the stories we are referring to) become united for us into one mighty “themeword.”

The Torah teaches that Hagar was crying when she and Ishmael ran out of water. “Then G-d opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water.”

On the second day of Rosh Hashanah, after G-d calls out Abraham’s name and Abraham responds hineini (“here I am”), He tells Abraham, “Do not raise your hand against the boy or do anything to him.”

The next line brings the replacement sacrifice onto the scene: “When Abraham looked up, his eyes fell upon a ram, caught in the thicket.”

Did G-d create the well for Hagar, or was it there and she could not see it?

Was the ram in the thicket during

the entire story of the binding of Isaac, or did G-d use some “Star Trek”-type transporter to beam the ram to the top of the mountain exactly when Abraham needed one?

We know the answer: The things we need are in front of us, if we only recognize them, appreciate them, take advantage of them.

The spiritual questions I would like for us to think about on this Rosh Hashanah: • What do we see in front of us?

• What do we see in life?

• Do we see reasons to grumble or be grateful?

• Do we feel that the cup is halffull or half-empty?

Rabbi Sidney Greenberg wrote a sermon over 60 years ago titled “What Did You See?” He wrote: “When you look at life, do you see only your own life and your needs, or do you see the lives and needs of others as well? Do you see life as a campaign for acquisition or as an adventure in sharing? How do you regard your fellow human being? One whose main function in life is to serve as a stepping-stone to your success or someone with hopes and needs just like yourself? One more question?

When you look at life, do you look at it with fear or faith?”

The Torah portion we read in part has, in total, 147 verses.

The pneumonic given by the rabbis for the number 147 is emunah, the Hebrew word for faith and a summary of the test of Abraham.

Abraham was ready to give everything he had for G-d.

Professor Jon Levenson, in his reading of the story of the binding, says: “Know forevermore that this new faith will be a radical departure from what you know. It will never demand child sacrifice as surrounding faiths do. Instead it will demand ultimate trust and that you have earned on this mountain today.”

Rabbi Greenberg concluded his sermon with these words: “The cardinal irreverence in Judaism is to be afraid of life, for when we fear life, we betray a lack of faith in G-d. To believe in G-d is to have faith that G-d, amidst all vicissitudes, will give us the strength to endure, the power to hold on and see it through.”

On Rosh Hashanah, may we be like Abraham the “See-er.”

May we look upon this new year with faith and optimism, vision and

insight.

May we see in the new year the aspiration of all of the potential and the possibilities it brings — the opportunity to open our eyes to new love and new friendships, new careers, or growth and learning in our chosen profession and volunteer positions.

And may we do so with faith and trust in G-d, with a commitment to live a meaningful life with our eyes wide open to the possibilities the new year brings to us.

On Rosh Hashanah, we are seeing and being seen by everyone we know.

That includes G-d.

G-d sees us here. G-d is happy, but He also cares about what we do with this High Holiday experience. Let’s see how we can make 5777 the best year it can be. ■ Rabbi Paul Kerbel is the associate rabbi of Temple Beth Sholom in Roslyn Heights, N.Y., where he arrived in the summer of 2015 after serving 12 years as the associate rabbi of Congregation Etz Chaim in East Cobb and as a leader of the Atlanta Rabbinical Association.

Rabbi Kerbel recently was appointed to serve on the Commission on the Jewish People at UJA Federation of New York.

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

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ROSH HASHANAH

Cocktails Capture Spirit of Season

By Robbie Medwed As the sun sets and the year begins with the observance of Rosh Hashanah, families across the Jewish world will sit down to enjoy food, family and companionship. These times together help us prepare for powerful spiritual experiences at our synagogues and in our communities.

As part of our observance, many of us will indulge in dishes with symbolic foods that are said to bring us wisdom, success, fortune and luck, such as apples, honey, carrots and beets.

Tradition teaches that our holiday meals should be grand feasts fit for royalty. We’re supposed to pull out all the stops to make these times something special, and there’s no better way to turn a good meal into a great meal than with some incredible seasonal cocktails.

All of the ingredients in these recipes (except for the liquor) can be found at just about any grocery store.

Almost all distilled spirits are inherently kosher and don’t need kosher certification, as long as there are no additives and they’re not aged in sherry

or wine casks.

The label will say if there are any spices or extra flavors or if the alcohol has been aged in sherry or wine casks.

(Avoid “spiced” rum and go for a nicer, barrel-aged or dark rum.) Angostura’s aromatic bitters and orange bitters are certified kosher.

Replacing whiskey with rum makes the old-fashioned new again.

Rum Old-Fashioned The old-fashioned is widely regarded as the first cocktail. (It was originally called simply a “whiskey

cocktail” until the Manhattan came along, which was new and hip. In return, the whiskey cocktail was seen as old-fashioned.)

Just as Rosh Hashanah is a chance to take what was old and make it new again, substituting rum for whiskey in this cocktail makes for a fun and unexpected update to a classic. If you don’t like rum and you want to stay traditional, you can substitute a whiskey of your choice for the rum, and the results will be just as delicious.

Ingredients 1½ ounces gin ½ ounce lime juice (about 1 lime half) 1 ounce pomegranate syrup Soda water or sparkling wine Pour the gin, lime juice and pomegranate syrup into a Collins glass (or a tumbler) with ice and stir well. Top with the soda water (for not-so-sweet) or sparkling wine (slightly sweeter). I like to garnish with a slice of lime on the rim.

Ingredients 2 ounces dark or barrel-aged rum 1 teaspoon white sugar 2 drops aromatic bitters 2 drops orange bitters 1 teaspoon water While the old-fashioned traditionally calls for a sugar cube, I don’t keep them around, and I’ve found that regular white sugar works just as well. Add the sugar, the bitters and the water to the bottom of a glass and mix well. Add the rum and some ice and stir. Garnish with an orange or lemon peel and enjoy.

Apples and honey combine in a bourbon cocktail that’s ideal for the new year.

Sweet Apple Punch

The pomegranate gin fizz features a seasonal fruit ripe with symbolism in Judaism.

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Pomegranate Gin Fizz

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Pomegranates are one of the most symbolic foods in Judaism, and because they come into season at the end of the summer, they are perfect for Rosh Hashanah. They’re also no stranger to cocktails: Grenadine is simply sweetened pomegranate syrup.

This version uses an unsweetened mixture that’s easy to make: Simply boil some bottled pomegranate juice until it’s reduced by about half. Let it cool, and you’re good to go. The syrup will last about two weeks in the fridge if you want to make it ahead.

Of all the symbolic foods for Rosh Hashanah, apples and honey are the stars. Any kind of good apple juice will work, though I prefer a higher-end, unsweetened version. If you want to use your kid’s juice box, reduce the amount of honey syrup to balance it out.

To make the honey syrup, heat equal parts honey and water in a saucepan until they’re well combined. Once that cools, it will last at least a few weeks in the fridge.

Ingredients 2 ounces bourbon 1 ounce apple juice or cider ½ ounce lemon juice ¾ ounce honey syrup 2 drops aromatic bitters Ginger beer Pour all ingredients except the ginger beer into a cocktail shaker with ice. Cover, shake well and strain into a glass. Top with ginger beer to your liking. (You can use ginger ale for a sweeter taste or skip the ginger entirely.) This recipe can be prepared ahead in large quantities; just mix all the ingredients, including the ginger ale/beer, in a punch bowl. Add ice to the bowl about 15 minutes before serving. ■

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ROSH HASHANAH

Where Have All the Cantors Gone?

Few Atlanta congregations employ a full-time professional in the role

By Tova Norman

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

The High Holidays are a traditional showcase for cantors, but few local hazzans are preparing to lead services for what surely will be Atlanta synagogues’ biggest crowds of the year.

Out of about 40 Atlanta-area congregations, only four, all Reform, employ full-time professional cantors.

No Conservative synagogue in Atlanta employs a full-time cantor.

“For a large city, Atlanta is the exception to the rule,” said Hazzan Stephen J. Stein, the executive vice president of the Cantors Assembly, which is affiliated with the Conservative movement. “Most of the major Jewish communities have cantors who are engaged by their congregation.”

Rachel Roth, the chief operating officer of the American Conference of Cantors, which is affiliated with the Reform movement, said her organization has seen an increase in hiring of cantors the past three years nationally.

“Congregations are now looking for an ordained ACC cantor to add to their team,” she said.

Rabbi Neil Sandler of Ahavath Achim Synagogue tied not having a full-time cantor to finances. “It’s a rare congregation that doesn’t have to make resource choices.”

Hearing a traditional cantor is an important part of the High Holiday experience to many congregants, which is why AA brings in a cantor to lead the service in the main sanctuary.

“That voice, that quality, that traditional hazzanut still speaks to a number of people,” Rabbi Sandler said, adding that perhaps it reminds them of the late Isaac Goodfriend, who served as the congregation’s cantor for 30 years.

But Rabbi Sandler also sees a shift in what communal worship means to his congregation. In fact, he plans to spend his upcoming sabbatical studying communal worship to help AA “prepare for the future in that regard.”

“What is communal worship all about? What brings us spiritual uplift?”

Rabbi Sandler said. “In general, there is a movement away from the classical cantor.”

The same is true in the Orthodox movement, but for different reasons.

“The profession of Orthodox cantor has diminished greatly,” Cantor Sherwood Goffin said. “We lost many full-time positions that had been there for generations.”

24 Cantor Goffin, the renowned

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(From left) Cantors Barbara Margulis of Temple Kehillat Chaim, Nancy Kassel of Temple Beth Tikvah, Lauren Adesnik of Temple Emanu-El and Deborah Hartman of The Temple perform a cantorial concert at Emanu-El as part of the 2015 Atlanta Jewish Music Festival. Cantor Margulis left Kehillat Chaim this summer.

cantor of Lincoln Square Synagogue in New York who retired in January after more than 50 years and is a faculty member at the Philip and Sarah Belz School of Jewish Music at Yeshiva University in New York, is also the copresident of the Cantorial Council of America, which is composed of alumni of the Belz School and affiliated Orthodox cantors in North America and Israel.

He said many Orthodox congregations in this generation are full of knowledgeable, yeshiva-educated members who think they can lead a service, although many do not have the background knowledge to do so properly.

“If Mr. Schwartz in the front row has a beautiful voice, let him serve, and it won’t cost us anything,” he said.

“That became a groundswell.”

Congregations began to replace a full-time cantor with an assistant rabbi and have lay people lead services free.

At Congregation Beth Jacob in Toco Hills, congregants now lead services, and the choir consists of the entire congregation.

“Our High Holiday service has a significant amount of singing, but if you came, you would hear hundreds of voices,” said Rabbi Ilan Feldman, explaining that congregants also desired a more participatory service in which they would not be “entertained” but would be “inspired in their own prayer.”

This move toward a more participatory service is happening across the Jewish world. Ahavath Achim, for example, offers an alternative High Holiday service without a cantor.

“There are more people today who experience spiritual uplift in engagement, in hearing the voices in the service, as opposed to hearing that one

voice,” Rabbi Sandler said.

In a Sephardic prayer service, congregational singing plays an integral role traditionally, said Rabbi Hayyim Kassorla of Congregation Or VeShalom.

Although Or VeShalom does not have a full-time cantor, it brings in a cantor for the High Holidays “to inspire us,” Rabbi Kassorla said. “When it comes to the High Holidays, we need someone more professional.”

He attributed the need to the importance of the days, pointing out that the hazzan (cantor) is known as a shaliach tzibur — a representative of the community.

“The cantor is our representative in front of the Lord, and we take it very seriously,” he said.

Because the community is so diverse at Or VeShalom — comprised of Sephardim from many lands and Ashkenazim from many areas — it is important for the cantor to bring in tunes from all of those traditions.

“A cantor who does too many solos would not be looked at as a success in a Sephardic congregation,” Rabbi Kassorla said. “There are various landmarks in the prayer book, where this is the tune that has been sung for hundreds of years, and this is the one that we want our children and grandchildren to know, and this is the one that we want to be transmitted to the next generation.”

At The Temple, Cantor Deborah Hartman works with the other clergy and a musical team to craft a High Holiday worship experience.

“We have an amazing musical team at The Temple: a professional quartet, each of whom has been with The Temple for decades; two organists; and a pianist,” Cantor Hartman said.

“Because we provide multiple worship

opportunities in various worship spaces, it takes all of us to accommodate our worship needs.”

Before the holidays, “the clergy of The Temple come together to discuss every aspect of our worship,” Cantor Hartman said. “We talk about the flow, the arc, the timing and the music that serves each text.”

That type of planning is one thing a trained cantor offers a congregation.

“There are things and training that an ordained cantor brings to the table that a cantorial soloist does not,” Roth said.

Cantor Hartman, who arrived at The Temple in 1987, began as a cantorial soloist, a person who leads prayers but does not have formal cantorial training (she held bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music from Ithaca College).

She became a certified cantor in 1998 after five years of “intensive training and mentoring with rabbis and cantors alike.”

“When I was a soloist, I was a Jewish woman who sang Jewish music,” she said. “When I became certified as a cantor, I became part of the clergy team here at The Temple.”

Cantor Hartman said that although she plans and leads services, the position of cantor entails much more, including pastoral duties, program planning and worship visioning.

“I think every cantor makes the job their own and brings certain specialties to the position,” she said.

“They work side by side in the congregation with their clergy partners,” Roth said, explaining that many cantors tutor b’nai mitzvah students, teach children and adults, and provide pastoral care, along with leading services.

Cantor Stein said that the Conservative movement is seeing a similar expansion of the cantorial role.

“The cantor does so many things in the congregation,” he said. “The profession has never been more exciting than it is today because of the variety of things that cantors are involved in.”

Cantor Goffin thinks the Orthodox community will again value the important role of the cantor.

“People are going to realize that the quality of the service is deteriorating. Eventually, the Orthodox cantorate will revive,” he said. “In the future, I think synagogues will pay cantors to do multiple tasks and be active members of the clergy staff. That’s what many are doing now.”

Cantor Deborah Hartman sings during the ribbon cutting for the Metro Atlanta Community Mikvah on Nov. 15, 2015.

Congregation Beth Jacob Rabbi Ilan Feldman says his congregants desire a more participatory service with more inspiration than entertainment.

Cantor Goffin himself was the head of the Hebrew school at Lincoln Square Synagogue for 41 years while he was also head cantor.

He emphasized that without a trained cantor, traditional tunes are being lost. “I believe that the most important thing now is to stress that there are rules of conducting services that have been handed down to us over the last five or six hundred years.”

Every paragraph in the prayer book has a certain musical mode — a type of scale, coupled with a set of characteristic melodic phrases, Cantor Goffin said. The Ashkenazi tradition has six modes.

To have a lay leader, even a knowledgeable one, lead services is not the same as having a trained cantor, he said. “We’re academics. We have studied this our entire lives.”

Preserving the traditional nusach (melody of the service), which is different for each holiday, is important.

“The music creates an aura in the synagogue of the particular holiday,” Cantor Goffin said. “That musical aura envelops the congregants and puts them into the mood of the particular day.”

Being trained in the nusach and the mode enables the cantor to improvise and connect with the prayer.

“There is no rhythm to it,” he said.

“It’s a plea. It’s an interpretation of the words, and it’s ancient.”

He also said the music helps the congregants pray. For that very reason, many halachic sources declare that one may not change the musical tradition of the synagogue.

“It’s important for congregants to be able to concentrate to have kavanah, and the music adds to it,” Cantor Goffin said.

“Melodies are the language of the soul,” said Rabbi Feldman, who agreed that preserving the traditional nusach is important. “Prayer is not a purely intellectual undertaking. It’s a very spiritual and emotional undertaking. It’s about connecting.”

While Cantor Goffin wants to preserve the tradition, the Reform and Conservative movements aim to weave traditional melodies with new texts to engage their congregations.

“We naturally bring back the beloved, established melodies from one year to the next, but at the same time add new musical versions of some texts,” Cantor Hartman said. “If a contemporary composition sets the text appropriately and speaks authentically to the nature of the prayer, it is a good candidate for inclusion.”

Cantor Stein said the cantor plays an important role in introducing a variety of melodies.

“It’s the task of the cantor to make sure that that liturgy remains fresh and impressive, and the cantor can do that by introducing different musical settings,” he said. “We understand that people want to be engaged.”

The music helps engage them.

“Music moves the text. The text is more important, but music adds that layer of emotion that enhances its meaning,” Cantor Hartman said.

“When you’re able to transmit the emotion of the prayer through the music, it brings the prayer to life. I always like to say that G-d hears all our prayers, but when we sing them, they get there faster.”

Cantors help make that musical inspiration more effective.

“I think cantors bring their love of music and liturgy to the Jewish people in a way that can touch them,” Roth said. “It’s a portal to a worship experience or a community experience that you don’t get in many other ways.”

While Cantor Stein acknowledged that the nontraditional movements are facing real demographic challenges, he argued that a cantor offers something worth adding to the budget because “music is so important to the vibrancy of a religious institution.”

“Those that thrive and continue to thrive are going be those that engage a professional to carry out the musical aspect of congregational life,” he said. ■

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ROSH HASHANAH

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

A Look Back, A Look Ahead

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The High Holidays are a time of reflection. Many of us will dedicate time to think about what we’ve accomplished this past year and identify the changes we hope to make in our lives in the coming year. For me, it is impossible to reflect on my life without thinking about the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta.

The MJCCA has been an integral part of my life for 37 years. Growing up, my summers were spent joyfully at MJCCA day camps and Camp Barney Medintz. During the school year, I could most always be found playing with friends in a sports league or gaining valuable leadership skills through my involvement with BBYO. It was the MJCCA that made me feel proud to be Jewish and gave me a sense of belonging.

When an opportunity arose in 2005 for me to become part of the MJCCA’s staff, I seized it. Today I am humbled and proud to be leading this dynamic and transformative agency.

Looking back on this past year at the MJCCA, there is much to be proud of. The MJCCA affected the lives of more than 55,000 participants and 12,000 members. We offered more than 10,000 ways for people of all ages to engage and connect.

At Camp Barney Medintz, more than 1,250 campers developed lifelong friendships and a stronger connection to their Jewish identity. Our 2,000 MJCCA day campers splashed and smiled through the summer as they tried new things and made lasting memories.

Our 400 preschoolers were ensconced in a warm, nurturing Jewish environment while learning Shabbat songs and all the skills needed for kindergarten. At the same time, more than 3,500 mature adults were able to engage in programs that allowed them to maintain an active, healthy lifestyle and form crucial social connections.

Our Book Festival brought more than 10,000 book lovers exceptional cultural and educational opportunities. Through our teen programs, almost 3,000 Jewish teens connected with one another, establishing lifelong social networks and stronger Jewish identities.

Our inclusion program enabled children with special needs to learn and play side by side with their typi-

cally developing peers through inclusive preschools, day camps, and sports and recreational programming.

I could share so much more about the life-changing impact the MJCCA had on our community this past year, but I also want to share my excitement for what the new year holds.

Guest Column

By Jared Powers Marcus JCC

We will continue to innovate and expand our program offerings while investing in our facilities at Zaban Park and Camp Barney Medintz. As we did with our day camp programs, expanding to Emory, East Cobb and North Fulton locations this past summer, we will be focus on identifying additional avenues for extending our stellar programming throughout metro Atlanta.

We will develop new partnerships, enabling us to have an even greater impact and allowing collaborative solutions. We will invest in our people, recognizing that a dynamic partnership among our staff, lay leaders, members, participants and the greater community is at the core of what we do.

As a father of two wonderful boys, it is so meaningful for me to watch as they, through their participation in multiple MJCCA programs, are now building their own lifelong friendships and proudly speak of their Jewish identity. As the CEO, I recognize how fortunate I am to work for an agency that turns everyday minutes into Jewish moments that are remembered for a lifetime.

During this time of reflection, I want to recognize the impact that our board, donors, volunteers, partners, members, staff and the community make on the MJCCA each and every day. We thank you for your continued involvement and support. If 5776 is any indication of what we will achieve in 5777, the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta is about to embark on a very sweet year.

On behalf of the MJCCA, l’shana tova. ■ Jared Powers is the chief executive officer of the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta.

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SEPTEMBER 30 â–ª 2016

ROSH HASHANAH

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

A Year Wondrous Beyond Imagination

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We are coming into the hometen a wonderful book on boredom. stretch before Rosh Hashanah, and And I want to share just four of her 10 one of the main issues bedeviling us suggestions with you today. on all sides and for all ages is the probIf you like these, then get her lem of boredom. book, “Spiritual Boredom,” and read So let me share with you one of the rest. my very favorite passages in the Torah.

First, avoid the language of Moses gathers the people together and gives them his last instructions. He says to them: “Take to heart all the Guest Column words which I have given

By Rabbi Hayyim Kassorla Congregation Or VeShalom you this day. Command them to your children that they may observe faithfully all the words of this Torah.”

And then he says, “Ki lo davar reyk boredom. Language not only describes reality; it also molds reality. If we use hu mikem; ki hu chayeychem”: This is boring words, they will color the way not an empty thing; it is your life. in which we understand reality.

The Midrash adds an insight Dr. Brown gives to this passage. It just one example of a says, “Ki lo davar There is a bracha phrase that we should reyk hu”: This Torah is not something for inhaling spices, try our best to keep using: “Been empty, and if it is, it and one for seeing from there, done that.” is mikem, because the ocean, and one Have you ever of you. used that phrase? Or If you find the for seeing the flowers heard your friends use Torah boring, if you open in the spring, it? It means that if you find the commandments empty, it’s and one for drinking have done something you don’t need to because of you. If water, and many once, bother doing it again. you are a bored permore besides these. If you have been some son, then everything place once, you have that you encounter, no need to go back there again. If you including the Torah, will seem boring have read a book, you have no reason to you. If you are a sensitive and pasto read it over again. sionate person, everything that you Is that really true? Are there no encounter, including the Torah, will be books worth rereading, no movies sensitive and passionate to you. worth seeing again, no places worth At the heart of Judaism is the revisiting? If so, it is because we are sense of wonder. Our faith is not just bored, not because these books or that G-d made the world once upon a these movies or these places are bortime, but that G-d creates the universe ing. every single day.

Dr. Brown’s second suggestion Our faith is not just that G-d can comes from the Harvard School of be found in the sanctuary, but that Education. It has a study in which it G-d can be found in the sunrise and asks you to look at something — it in the sunset, in the ocean and in the could be a painting or a book or a mountains, in the rainbow and in the mountain view — and then identify thunder and in the lightning, that G-d 10 things that you saw in it. And then can be found wherever and whenever you are asked to try to locate 10 more we look — provided that we look with things you notice in it. eyes that are open to wonder.

If you do that, you will learn And our faith declares that if we something about the art of looking, do not see G-d in the working of the and you will see how many wonders world around us, it is mikem — bethere are in things that we tend to pass cause of us — and not because the by without noticing. wonders are not there.

The third suggesting for overcomI want to give you some suggesing boredom comes from Eleanor Rootions in how to fight boredom. These sevelt, who once said, “Do something suggestions come from Dr. Erica Brown, a Jewish scholar who has writevery day that scares you.”

I don’t know if Mrs. Roosevelt had skydiving or mountain climbing in mind. It could be something much safer, like dancing a new dance or learning a new language or acquiring a new skill.

The fourth suggestion that she makes is to listen with your eyes.

There is a fascinating expression that is found in the Bible. We are told that G-d spoke to Moses panim el panim — face to face. What does that expression mean? I think it means that when G-d spoke to Moses, He looked directly at him. And that made all the difference.

If you look at someone casually, you might hear something of what is said, but you will not be able to grasp the full depth of what he or she is saying. You may hear the words, but you will not understand the soul that lies behind the words.

The Jewish tradition contains a whole network of blessings that can help us become more sensitive to the wonder around us and inside us.

There is a bracha for putting on a new garment because wearing a suit or dress for the first time should not be a casual event.

There is a bracha for inhaling spices, and one for seeing the ocean, and one for seeing the flowers open in the spring, and one for drinking water, and many more besides these. Say them when the occasion occurs, and when you do, realize that these are not things to be taken for granted. They are wonders to those who have a heart with which to see and a soul with which to be grateful.

Boredom can numb the soul and dull our lives. And therefore, as the year 5777 begins, let us lift our eyes and our hearts up to the heavens and say, as did Isaiah: “Mi bara eleh?” Who created these wonders?

And let us lift our eyes and our hearts to the wonders of the world around us and realize how marvelous they are. And let us open our eyes and our ears and our souls to the wonders inside us, and let us guard the capacity to be astonished, for it is on this that our spirits depend.

Let us fight the encroachment of boredom so that we may live truly human lives.

On behalf of my family and Congregation Or VeShalom, I wish all readers a shana tova, a year of health and peace in Israel and beyond.

Amen. ■ Rabbi Hayyim Kassorla is the spiritual leader of Congregation Or VeShalom.

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

ROSH HASHANAH

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ROSH HASHANAH

Forgiving Federation

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

One of the many things I love about being Jewish is the inner spiritual work we are called to do during the month of Elul. This year I am doing that personal work and leading the same process for the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta.

I am looking closely at our history — what we were built on and what we have become today. It has meant doing a lot of listening to our internal team, the organizations we partner with in the community, our donors, and individuals who have never found a place to connect with us.

Jewish Federation has been an integral part in building this incredible community, and yet it has been challenging and sometimes painful because we clearly have flaws and some fractured relationships. For real change to take place, we must connect with the ways we fall short, understand them and emerge with inspiration for what the future should look like.

Personally, as I gain firmer footing as your chief executive officer and begin to live in my new role, I have also been looking inward. I feel renewed excitement about how being Jewish makes life richer, fuller and more purposeful. I believe that Judaism offers an amazing template for living a meaningful life, and I love that it is not a prescriptive template — it is actually open and flexible.

For me, being Jewish is a blueprint for living a life of community, core values and the openness to explore spiritually. Federation is the perfect vehicle for tapping into this template, offering unlimited opportunities to

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make the world better and invest in our community.

And finally, because Elul and the holiday of Yom Kippur are a time of forgiveness, I am asking for yours —

Guest Column

By Eric Robbins Jewish Federation

both personally and for the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta.

This is a difficult job, and I am still new at it. If I have missed the mark or said something upsetting or hurtful, please forgive me. If we as a Jewish Federation have failed you, or have not been there for you in the way you want us to be, we also ask for your forgiveness.

For Federation to flourish in a new world, we all need to change our expectations. We will never be all things to all people, but we can be a place that welcomes all and respects and nourishes their perspectives.

My ultimate goal for 5777 is to partner with you to build a more resilient community where the next generation will always find meaning and connection.

As our tradition says, mitzvah goreret mitzvah — doing good leads to more doing good. I would take it one step further and say that building a community that allows Jews to connect more deeply with their identity can only make more good people and create more good in the world. ■ Eric Robbins is the CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta.

Wishing you a Sweet New Year ~ L’chaim!

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Where Atlantans Say Cheers!

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www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ROSH HASHANAH

How to Bribe the Ultimate Judge

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

The presidential election has uncovered a loathing among Americans for our current political system, in which the wealthy have more influence and the not-so-wealthy are ignored or worse.

Recent Supreme Court rulings that allowed one to make ever-larger political donations have only reinforced this perception. The impact of large political contributions on politicians gives the impression that the difference between large donations and bribes is marginal.

If justice or a desired political outcome can be bought, the wealthy and the poor are no longer equal under the law. That’s why average people have detached from our political system, and we have seen the rise of Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump.

The Torah (Exodus 23:8) takes an

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unequivocal stance against bribery: V’shochad lo tikach, “Do not accept a bribe, for the bribe will blind the clearsighted and subvert the cause of those who are just.” Take note that the Torah isn’t simply concerned with the act of bribery, but how it distorts the perspec-

Guest Column

By Rabbi Mark Hillel Kunis Congregation Shaarei Shamayim

tive of those who receive bribes, privileging the haves over the have-nots.

Certainly the revelations of the relationship between the Clinton Foundation and Hillary Clinton as secretary of state are disappointing. To argue otherwise reflects a profound naïveté.

I don’t, however, want to focus on the appearance of bribery in politics

but rather on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur how we should think about bribing G-d — yes, bribing G-d.

Listen to this scenario. Moshe is a sinner and knows it. But he thinks his good works — donations to the shul and worthy causes — will earn him a seat in heaven, as if the great Judge of the Universe will accept his bribe and turn His cheek to all his bad behavior.

As Jews, we believe that one day we will have to stand before G-d in heaven and give an accounting of our lives. G-d is the perfect judge and judges with perfect justice. Is it possible then to bribe G-d?

The three-times-a-day prayer routine of the Jew teaches us never to give up and never to stop praying for what you want. But what if you could play “let’s make a deal” with G-d and give Him a bribe to speed up the process?

Don’t be shocked. It’s actually a time-honored Jewish custom to bribe G-d. A classic example of this is the Mishebeyrach prayer for the sick that we say when the Torah is read. In it we make a pledge to charity and ask: “In reward for this, may the Holy One, blessed be He, be filled with compassion for him/her (whom we pray for) to restore his/her health.”

Please note that the gift or pledge to charity is really not conditional on G-d answering your prayers in a timely manner.

And the gift need not be just money. It can be time and/or effort for a worthy cause. It can be pledging to perform a mitzvah with greater energy and focus, from making your Shabbat more meaningful to visiting the sick.

Whatever it is, when you seriously need G-d’s help, it’s a great idea to make a deal with G-d by pledging to do something you feel is significant to draw closer to Him. But it appears from elsewhere in the Torah (Deuteronomy 10:17) that G-d does not accept bribes. Listen to how Moses describes G-d: “For Hashem your G-d … does not show favoritism and does not accept a bribe.”

Rashi on this verse explains that G-d doesn’t accept a bribe of money.

One can’t have an ongoing adulterous affair, write a check to the shul and think everything will be fine. Is there a way G-d can be bribed?

There’s a great Midrash (Bamidbar Rabbah 11:4) on the third verse of the priestly blessing: Yisa Hashem panav eylecha v’yaseym l’cha shalom (May G-d lift up His face to you and grant you peace).

“Lift up the face” is an expression also meaning “to overlook,” because when you lift your face, you don’t see everything. In other words, the blessing may be understood as “May G-d overlook your sins and grant you peace.”

The Midrash has G-d saying: Ani nosey panim, “I will overlook.” Thus, G-d takes bribes in the sense that if people do other good deeds, He will take this into account when judging them.

So within the totality of judgment, G-d does accept bribes.

An old story tells of a businessman who dies and finds himself on the line where it’s decided whether he gets into heaven. In front of him he sees a man being asked to tell about the good deeds he has done. He lists them, along

with how much he has given to charity over the years. After he finishes, the angel in charge tells him to proceed through the gates into heaven.

When it’s the businessman’s turn, he clears his throat and says he did not have time for many good deeds and did not give much to charity over the years. He then takes out his checkbook and says, “Just tell me how much it’ll cost, and I will write you a check.”

The angel says to him: “Checks?

We don’t take checks. Up here in heaven we only take receipts.”

It’s not a joke. Do you want to bribe G-d and find yourself in the Book of Life for the coming year? Come up with receipts. Be overly generous.

It’s said, “You can’t take it with you.” That’s true. So ask your family to bury you with your charitable receipts. These kinds of bribes are welcome in heaven.

What about in our relationships?

If you have a dispute with longtime friends or relatives who have hurt you, are you going to punish them? What about the good memories? What about the wonderful things that have happened over the years between you? Are they not worthy as a bribe?

G-d doesn’t accept bribes only from the person being judged. If your father or mother did acts of kindness for others, this is also an acceptable bribe in heaven. So if someone from the family who is close to you — whose immediate family did so much for you — hurts you, accept that as bribe.

A judge doesn’t take bribes, but the Torah does not prohibit a litigant from taking a bribe from the other side.

How can you be angry at your husband or wife? After all, he/she married you. Remember how the other ones didn’t want you? So the next time you get upset at your spouse, remember how, when life was dark, when you needed help, he/she was there for you. Remember some of the wonderful things he/she did for you and accept that as a bribe.

No, we shouldn’t bribe our politicians — not that most of us are in any position to do so. But we can and should bribe G-d with our good deeds to develop and heal our souls. And we should accept bribes from our loved ones to keep us close. And if we do, we have reason to hope we will find ourselves in the Book of Life for the new year. ■ Rabbi Mark Hillel Kunis is the spiritual leader of Congregation Shaarei Shamayim.

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

ROSH HASHANAH

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www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ROSH HASHANAH

Finding Bright Spot in World of Hate

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

The work of the Anti-Defamation League has never been more important. Between the increase in global anti-Semitism, challenges in the pursuit of peace in the Middle East, the rise of Islamic extremism and the ensuing anti-Muslim bigotry, and the incivility in the current election cycle, we at ADL have our work cut out for us.

The challenges we face as a Jewish people remain as potent as ever.

Anti-Semitism continues to spread in Europe as the Jews of France and other countries worry about their future. This year ADL announced a partnership with the European Jewish Congress, the representative body of Europe’s Jewish communities, to maximize ADL’s impact by cooperating on cyberhate, advocacy, boycott, divestment and sanctions, and other areas.

Here at home, anti-Semitic incidents on campuses increased during the past year, while BDS campaigns spread to new campuses.

At the same time, ADL welcomed its dynamic new CEO, Jonathan Green-

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blatt, who began his tenure at ADL the day after Abraham H. Foxman’s retirement. Mr. Greenblatt recommit-

Guest Column

By Shelley Rose Anti-Defamation League

ted the agency to our 103-year-old dual mission to “stop the defamation of the Jewish people and secure justice and fair treatment to all.”

ADL is still staying true to itself, whether in leading the fight against anti-Semitism, in supporting a besieged state of Israel or in serving as a partner in the struggle for equal rights for minorities in this country.

The horrific murders in Charleston, S.C., were a wake-up call: In spite of all the progress we have made as a country, racism and hate crimes persist. ADL was acutely aware that the shooting took place in one of the five states that do not have hate crime laws. That’s why on the 100th anniver-

sary of the lynching of Leo Frank — a Jewish man from Georgia, which still has no hate crime law — ADL last year announced a bold new initiative.

CEO Greenblatt stood with noted civil rights leader and U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D-Atlanta) to announce the initiative together. The coalition for 50 States Against Hate: An Initiative for Stronger Hate Crime Laws (#50StatesAgainstHate) is mobilizing to pass hate crime laws in Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, South Carolina and Wyoming and to strengthen laws in states that fail to protect victims targeted for sexual orientation, disability, gender and gender identity.

No one is better positioned to get it done: ADL created the first model statute for a state hate crime law — 45 states and the District of Columbia have laws based on or similar to it — and led the coalition that passed the most important federal hate crime enforcement law in 2009.

In a world where bigotry and extremism are flourishing, ADL is more important than ever. Every day, ADL policies and programs help us get back to our nobler vision as a country. To

fight global anti-Semitism and advocate for Israel, we work with government leaders all over the world. To counter cyberhate, we partner with the leading tech companies, including Facebook, Twitter, Google and Microsoft.

Our acclaimed No Place for Hate initiative curbed bias and bullying and promoted respectful behavior in 1.6 million students last year alone. In the past year we trained 14,000 law enforcement professionals to combat hate crimes, counter terrorism and extremism, and understand their pivotal role in protecting individual rights.

Our values drive other ADL efforts as well: removing obstacles to voting; securing fair treatment for members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community; and ensuring religious freedom for all.

As the new year approaches, it is our wish that this work affects generation after generation, promises a bright future, and moves ADL forward to the day we can say that we live in a world without hate. ■ Shelley Rose is ADL’s interim Southeast regional director.

L’Shana Tova

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ROSH HASHANAH

Prayer’s Feminine Touch

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

It has been a politically eventful summer, and just as our Jewish holiday season comes to a close, our country may find itself with a glass ceiling shattered and a woman in the highest office of the United States of America.

The times they are a-changin’.

The United States is a little slow in this area: Most other developed countries had women at the top of government decades ago. Women make incredible political leaders, and they bring a unique feminine energy to everything they endeavor to do.

Rosh Hashanah is sometimes referred to as “G-d on the campaign trail.” This raises two questions: What is G-d running for? And why are we expected in synagogue for his campaign?

If you ask a person of (any other) faith as he is leaving his house of worship, “Do you believe in G-d?” he is surprised by the question. He responds, “Of course. Why else would I be here?”

If you ask the same question of a Jew leaving the synagogue on the High Holidays, he will look at you quizzically and respond, “Me? I don’t know.

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That’s a question for the rabbi.”

You might prod on, “Are you religious?” and his response is hearty laughter: “I am the furthest thing from religious.” So you ask him, “Why are you here?” He tells you that belief in G-d doesn’t have anything to do with going to synagogue on the High Holi-

Guest Column

By Dena Schusterman Chabad Intown

days. “I’m a Jew, and even if I don’t believe in G-d and am not religious, a Jew belongs in shul on the High Holidays.”

This seeming contradiction is the essence of being Jewish. It is what makes us who we are. We don’t know if we believe in G-d, and we don’t want to be religious. But on Rosh Hashanah we show up because that is where He wants us to be.

During the month of Elul preceding Rosh Hashanah, we are mostly preparing. Maybe we are preparing ourselves spiritually or planning

menus, organizing synagogue tickets or making Tashlich plans with friends.

Then when the holiday arrives, we go to shul and do a lot of eating. The ratio of praying to eating should have praying as the higher number, but for many of us, it’s simply not that way.

The prayers are long, and they are tedious, and what are we praying for or about? I showed up; isn’t that enough? As the previous anecdote tells us, it really is. If you show up and hear the blessings and the sounds of the shofar, your holiday is complete.

But is it enough?

Showing up on Rosh Hashanah is so essential and so basic because it is the foundation of our relationship with G-d. A relationship that supersedes our practice and our commitments, our prayers and our piety. It is establishing the Jews as His people and G-d as our king. That is what all of Judaism is about. G-d’s raison d’etre.

The relationship between G-d and the Jews is described many ways.

Sometimes it is defined as a marriage, teacher-student or parent-child. But on Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of the year, we have new opportunities to grow, prosper and change. This is when our relationship with G-d takes on the imagery of kingship.

We envision a benevolent king under whose protection we find ourselves, a king who will only take the throne at the request of His people.

Thus our job on Rosh Hashanah is to crown G-d as king. And that is why we show up. No matter what we did all year, and no matter how much we really believe in it all, we don’t want to miss the coronation: the shofar blast.

But as long as we show up, we may as well pray. And here is where it gets personal. We often do it in a group, but really it is about the individual’s faith vulnerability.

Extending meaning to Rosh Hashanah beyond the shofar and the food to prayer brings us back to women as leaders because everything we know about how a person prays the Jewish way is from a woman, a prophetess, named Chana.

We read about Chana in the haftarah on Rosh Hashanah because her story took place almost 3,000 years ago, on this very day. Her story is fascinating, with many Midrashic details. I encourage you to find it and read it.

Chana was the ultimate feminist, a timeless heroine. There is much from her story that is relevant to us today. Chana was childless, and as was the custom, she traveled with her

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

husband, Elkanah, to the mishkan in Shiloh to offer a sacrifice to G-d. But instead she approached the sanctuary and poured out her heart to G-d. Her prayers were answered.

Until that point, most supplication and connection to G-d happened through animal or flour sacrifices.

It took a woman to create the best practices for prayer. These include the Amidah (standing in prayer) and silent prayer while moving your lips. Before her supplication, the common practice was to pray aloud, announcing the intent. From her we learn that silent prayer alludes to our recognition that G-d knows us from the inside.

She went to Shiloh with an entourage, gathered stragglers on the way north and brought them all to be part of the community. Partly from this merit her prayers were answered.

From this we learn how meaningful it is to pray with our community. (This does not preclude solitary prayer.)

She prayed for her own want and desire, not just in praise of G-d, yet she prayed from a place of helplessness and vulnerability, not from depression and anger, and she prayed with tears.

An authentic state of being.

She offered praise, her request and then her thanks in advance of her vow to do good. This is how formal prayer is set up to this day.

Furthermore, she created the space to have this type of relationship with G-d. She was the first person to converse with G-d in a way that our sages deemed most appropriate and effective and therefore the norm for what you will recognize as tefillah.

What was so special about her prayer? She called out to G-d with a humility and sincerity that have not been experienced since and thereby opened the supernal gates of faith. It is this female faith energy she brought forth that we can all tap into, especially in services on the High Holidays.

Try it. On Rosh Hashanah, if you follow the prayer book, you will be praising and crowning G-d. But on Yom Kippur, after you have asked forgiveness, you can ask for all of your personal needs. Our health, our livelihood and world peace!

This year, if you are asked, “Do you believe in G-d? Are you religious?

Why did you come?” perhaps you can take your Rosh Hashanah journey a step further and use this feminine talent of deep faith and prayer and tap into it. It is there for the taking.

Happy crowning and praying. ■ Dena Schusterman is the director of the Intown Jewish Preschool.

A Wish for Unity L’shana tova to our friends in the Southeastern United States and to our new friends in the Midwest.

As you ready your homes and communities for the High Holidays and the subsequent beginning of the Jewish holiday season, I’d like to extend to you my greetings and hopes for the new year.

In Israel, Rosh Hashanah is universally felt as a day of calm and solidarity.

The feeling of unity and renewal that day transcends differences between

Guest Column

By Ambassador Judith Varnai Shorer Israeli Consulate

traditions.

I hope these High Holidays will inspire a sense of unity throughout

the world and bring us into this next year with a revitalized commitment to promoting peace.

On Rosh Hashanah, Jews are asked to shed the stresses of the past year in order to spend time on meditation, prayer and self-reflection so that we may come into the year 5777 renewed and able to focus our attention on tikkun olam and matters of higher importance.

This is our opportunity to consider what positive changes we can make both in ourselves and in the world.

I wish you all the warmest and sweetest greetings for the new year. ■ Ambassador Judith Varnai Shorer is the consul general of Israel to the Southeast.

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

ROSH HASHANAH

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ROSH HASHANAH

For Women and Children

National Council of Jewish Women, Atlanta Section, is proud to present “Frankly Speaking With Sherry Frank,” a new discussion group for our members and friends.

Moderated by Frank, an NCJW past president and noted Atlanta Jewish advocate extraordinaire, this monthly luncheon meeting will focus on current events through a Jewish lens. Bring your lunch, and we’ll treat to dessert and beverages.

The luncheon discussion series will be held at noon Thursday, Sept.

29, Oct. 27 and Nov. 17.

The meetings will be at the NCJW Atlanta office, 6303 Roswell Road, Sandy Springs. Please RSVP for each meeting by calling Christine at 404-843-9600 or emailing christineh@ncjwatlanta.org.

NCJW is a grassroots organization of volunteers and advocates who turn progressive ideals into action. Inspired

by Jewish values, NCJW strives for social justice by improving the quality of life for women, children and families and by safeguarding individual rights and freedoms.

The Atlanta Jewish Coalition for Literacy is our signature local program. Over 120 volunteer tutors donate their time in eight metro Atlanta Title 1 schools. Most of our tutors work with multiple students, so in total we help over 300 children. I have heard it said that “tutoring is the best thing I do.”

Please consider volunteering; new tutors are always needed.

For the second year in a row we

supplied over 100 backpacks filled with all required school supplies to the neediest children at Hightower Elementary, one of our Title 1 schools.

In addition, we collected items for a school supply closet that Hightower teachers can access for students during the year. We plan to continue this program for years to come.

For our annual Mother’s Day Jewelry Store project, we collected over 6,000 pieces of jewelry, which enabled

Guest Column

By Rachel Rosner National Council of Jewish Women

us to provide Mother’s Day gifts for the mothers or caregivers of nearly 5,000 kindergartners through fifth-graders in four metro Atlanta Title 1 schools.

This was a massive and rewarding volunteer effort.

Some of the most important work that NCJW does is out of our Washington, D.C., office. Advocacy programs include BenchMark, a judicial nominations campaign; the Promote the Vote, Protect the Vote initiative; and Voices for Reproductive Choices.

NCJW is a volunteer-run organization. Please consider joining us in the new year.

Shana tova u’metuka; may you enjoy a sweet, happy, healthy new year. ■ Rachel Rosner is the president of NCJW Atlanta.

New Year’s Blessing

By Rabbis Analia Bortz and Mario Karpuj Congregation Or Hadash Haverim yekarim, dear commu-

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

nity:

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In this beginning of the year 5777, we gather our voices to celebrate our kehillah kedoshah, and we pray: • Avinu Malkeinu, bless us with a heart filled with wisdom.

• Avinu Malkeinu, bless us with a mind filled with love.

• Avinu Malkeinu, bless us with ears opened to the cry of those who are in need.

• Avinu Malkeinu, bless us with eyes that can appreciate the beauty of Your creation.

• Avinu Malkeinu, bless us with a

year in which diverse voices will be heard.

• Avinu Malkeinu, bless us with a year of understanding and mutual respect.

• Avinu Malkeinu, bless us with a year of spiritual growth.

• Avinu Malkeinu, bless us with a year of intellectual growth.

• Avinu Malkeinu, bless us with a year in which we can strenthgen our relationship with the land and the state of Israel.

• Avinu Malkeinu, bless us with a year, 5777, sheltered with peace.

L’shana tova tikateivu b’tehateimu. ■ Rabbi Analia Bortz and Rabbi Mario Karpuj are the spiritual leaders of Congregation Or Hadash.

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SEPTEMBER 30 â–ª 2016

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ROSH HASHANAH

Hope and Opportunity Happen Here

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

For 125 years Jewish Family & Career Services has made the needs of our community our priority. Our purpose is to understand what individuals and families need to be stronger, healthy, stable, safe. Of equal importance, we strive to determine how to make vital services accessible to those who need them.

As we prepare to celebrate 5777, we pause to reflect on the journey of JF&CS the past year.

Thanks to the compassion and generosity of our community, we completed our capital campaign for our campus. This includes the renovation of our clinical space, construction of a new IndependenceWORKS building for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and a new gathering space.

The driving force behind our renovations is client care. Our Dunwoody campus is being transformed to provide the best service, ensure the highest level of confidentiality and promote the thorough integration of our services. Our new clinical space will open in a matter of weeks.

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We completed a strategic plan with three fundamental goals: impact, adaptability and sustainability.

Instead of measuring success by how many people we serve, we now focus on our impact on those individuals.

We are committed to a more person-

Guest Column

By Rick Aranson JF&CS

centered approach through coordination of services within the agency.

In addition, we are continuing to strengthen our impact through intentional community collaborations: • We forged a strong collaboration with Jewish Home Life Communities around services to older adults.

• We enhanced our partnership with the Atlanta Community Food Bank by ensuring that food collected through Operation Isaiah lands on the shelves of our Kosher Food Pantry.

• We partnered with Federation

JF&CS has adopted a new logo while moving away its longtime identity as the place for “your tools for living.”

and the Marcus JCC on two Senior Days, which brought older adults to the Marcus JCC using our Alterman/ JETS Transportation.

• We continued to work in partnership with synagogues and schools to supplement their programs and serve as a resource to their constituents.

In addition, we brought One Good Deed, a friendly visitor program for

older adults, into our Aviv Older Adult Services area. We are continuing to explore new collaborations and to strengthen existing bonds.

Reflecting our new direction, we have refreshed our logo and tagline and the language we use to describe what we do. We have a whole new brand.

Our community has come to know us for providing “your tools for living.” While we still provide the tools our clients need to live successful, independent lives, JF&CS is about so much more. We’re about improving the quality of our clients’ lives and maximizing their self-sufficiency.

Early this year, we introduced a new vision of what we aspire to achieve: a community of empowered lives. Our mission — what we focus on every day — is to make hope and opportunity happen for those we serve.

We would like to thank our community for its support. And on behalf of our board and staff, I would like to wish you shana tova — a very happy, healthy and meaningful new year. ■ Rick Aranson is the CEO of Jewish Family & Career Services.

ROSH HASHANAH

A True Judge? me in the fall of 1944 as I worked in a Nazi slave labor detail.

I was helping to build a factory for the manufacture of jet planes with which Hitler intended to continue his conquest of the world.

I was Schutzheftling No. 90138.

Dressed in a striped cotton uniform, with my number and a yellow triangle sewn on it, I was working with a group of other Jews on top of a parapet.

The long poles we held jabbed at the

One Man’s Opinion

By Eugen Schoenfeld Shema Yisrael

freshly poured cement.

Suddenly, a man I knew from my hometown, a devout man, a rabbi, who at an earlier time had spoken of his fear of G-d, declared quietly to us: “Jews, according to my calculations, today is Yom Kippur. Let us pray.”

And so we did.

Every person in his own way contributed what he could remember to our prayers on that terrible day of Yom Kippur.

But now I had come face to face with some of the questions that were no longer thoughts encountered in the relative comfort of the synagogue.

Isn’t G-d violating His own description of Himself as a just G-d?

Did He lie to Abraham when He declared that He would not destroy the righteous together with the unrighteous?

Can He be the true judge that we declare Him to be on this Day of Awe? Well, is He a true judge or not?

Somehow, I survived that Yom Kippur.

A year later, with World War II at an end, I was a free man. But the thoughts of that day are still with me, and they still resonate 72 years later.

My thoughts — about G-d’s responsibility to us and our responsibility to G-d — are still at the heart of my understanding of what it means to be a Jew. ■ Eugen Schoenfeld will speak on his thoughts about divine responsibility during the Yom Kippur service at Shema Yisrael — The Open Synagogue, which holds Yom Kippur services at 7 p.m. Oct. 11 and 11 a.m. Oct. 12 at Atlanta Unity Church, 3597 Parkway Lane, Norcross.

A Healthy and Happy New Year Alan, Merrill, Ariella, Ben, Avi & Jayden

ROSH HASHANAH

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SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Unlike all other holidays in the Jewish calendar, Yom Kippur is a holy day but is not a holiday. For unlike holidays, Yom Kippur is not a celebratory day.

With regard to other holidays, the Torah instructs us, “V’samachem bechageychem,” commanding us to rejoice in our holidays. But we are told that on Yom Kippur we should do the opposite: We are instructed to make our souls suffer.

In my shtetl of Munkacs in the Carpathian Mountains, where I was born, Yom Kippur was a joyless and fearful day. I would call it the day when the community sighed, sobbed and cried.

Just as the hazzan began to chant Kol Nidre, the sound of sobbing and crying began.

“Oy, Master of the Universe, write us into the Book of Good Life.”

“Please, Master of the Universe, give us a year of freedom, a year of health and a good economic year of sustenance.”

Those were some of the words that rose from the congregation.

Central to Yom Kippur was the belief in judgment and punishment.

Most men in the synagogue would lift the tallit over their heads, and in the ensuing privacy and with trepidation they would chant Rabbi Amnon’s prayer that reminds all of us that this is the Day of Judgment.

On this day everyone is judged and sentenced: who shall live and who shall die, who will succeed in the coming year and who will not.

Unfortunately, our religion has instilled in us the idea that suffering is a consequence of violating G-d’s commandments. One of the first truisms that I was taught as a child was not the love of G-d, but, to the contrary, a passage from the Book of Proverbs supposedly written by King Solomon: “The beginning of wisdom is the fear of G-d.”

I further took it for granted that the Mussaf prayer is true when it states: “Because of our sins we were exiled from our land.”

We, the Jewish collective, were punished for our sins.

But the years of the Nazi occupation of much of Europe during World War II forced me to question how G-d can hold us accountable for all the circumstances of our lives.

This became particularly clear to

L'Shanah Tovah

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ROSH HASHANAH

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Superman and Batman, You and Me

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As everyone who has ever studied superheroes knows, almost every superhero (with the notable exception of the Fantastic Four) has a secret identity. An alter ego.

As the poet T.S. Elliot would say, “They prepare a face to meet the faces that they meet.”

The traditional reason for a secret identity is “My enemies will strike at the ones I love!”

Hence, Superman doesn’t want Lois Lane hurt, and Peter Parker is defensive of his elderly Aunt May. In examining Superman and Batman, it is clear that the concept of a secret identity is different for these two archetypes.

Bruce Wayne is the REAL person.

Batman is his alter ego. Bruce Wayne, burdened by the Oedipal loss of his parents, takes on the guise of a mystic creature of the night.

Superman, however, is the REAL person. He came to Earth with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men. He has always been Superman and always will be. It is Clark Kent who is a disguise, a madeup persona. Clark Kent, wearing geeky glasses and always stooping, is supposed to fool you into thinking that he is a wimp when in fact he could bench press — well, he could bench press an entire planet, should he choose to do so.

Bruce Wayne is real. Batman is a disguise. For Superman, the inverse is true: Superman is real; Clark Kent is a disguise.

And as I was saying about the High Holidays, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are all about the faces that we wear each day in order to meet the faces that we see on the street. One hopes that the face we wear is the true one, but different circumstances and conditions can elicit a change in face, or personality, at least temporarily.

In fact, the Hebrew word for prayer, tefillah, means quite simply “to look at one’s (face) in the mirror.”

Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur call us to look directly into the mirror of our lives and to ask ourselves: “Am I the person that I was meant to be?

Am I the best father/mother/child that I could be? Where have I erred, and where have I gone off track?”

It is not necessarily a pleasant task to look intently in that mirror,

particularly if we find something in our souls that is wanting. We don’t always live up to our own best intentions.

Maybe we could have done better this past year.

Maybe we should try harder in this coming year.

Guest Column

By Rabbi Steven Lebow Temple Kol Emeth

This difficult soul work is what makes Judaism more a philosophy than a Western-style religion.

Christianity is a Western-style religion. It has happy holidays: Christmas and Easter.

Judaism has somber holy days: the Days of Awe and the Days of Judgment.

In English we use the phrase “People celebrate Christmas.” Imagine fitting Yom Kippur into that phrase.

No one I know “celebrates” Yom Kippur.

Christians, it is said, celebrate their holidays. Jews observe ours.

One isn’t better than the other.

It is just that each has a different emphasis.

For this reason, no one I know looks forward to Yom Kippur. Who wants to spend the day beating their breast, looking into the mirror and wondering how they might have done better?

And yet, every Jew I know feels cleansed after the holy days have come and gone.

On Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur we stand revealed, with no mask and no disguise to hide us from our Creator or ourselves. We are most assuredly neither Superman nor Batman. We have no Bat Cave and no Fortress of Solitude to which we can escape.

The Jewish holy days: no mask, no cape. Just us. Just you. Just me.

And all that we can do at the holidays is sit in the synagogue for a few hours, stripped of all disguises and secret identities, and ask ourselves, “If I leave my disguise behind, who do I want to be this year?” ■ Rabbi Steven Lebow is the senior rabbi at Temple Kol Emeth.

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ROSH HASHANAH

Seeing the World Without a Filter yodeah teruah, “Happy is the nation who hears the sound of the teruah.”

According to the Degel Machane Ephraim, the grandson of the founder

Guest Column

By Rabbi Daniel Dorsch Congregation Etz Chaim

of Hasidism, the Baal Shem Tov, this verse is speaking about the light of G-d’s countenance that is contained within each of us.

During the remainder of the year, our vision of the world is cloudy. We see things only through filters and lenses. We are unable to experience this light.

Yet each time we hear the sounding of the shofar on Rosh Hashanah, for a brief second, a small amount of that light is released. We rejoice as the sound of the shofar allows us to see the world not through a filter, but instead as it should and ought to be.

Making a change in our lives is hard. Living a Jewish life also takes commitment. No change we make comes without risk.

But each year the High Holiday

season reminds us of the benefits of positive change. Making the right change in your life can be the difference between seeing the world through the lenses and filters we create for ourselves and seeing the world with your own eyes.

This year, when we hear the shofar and the light of G-d’s countenance shines through, let’s seize the opportunity to answer the call by seeing the world through our own eyes with positive change. ■ Rabbi Daniel Dorsch is the new spiritual leader at Congregation Etz Chaim.

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

On the evening news I recently saw that there has been a remarkable breakthrough in technology that will soon make reading glasses obsolete.

A new eye implant known as the “raindrop” takes approximately five minutes to complete and has had very promising results. If they undergo the relatively simple procedure, previously farsighted people will no longer need to use their reading glasses.

Will you make the switch? I am far from a medical expert, but there seem to be several factors to consider.

The operation was only recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration, meaning that you’ll be one of the first to undergo the procedure. The surgery costs $3,000 and is not covered by insurance. It is also elective, and while it’s an absolute pain to put on reading glasses (not to mention the frequency with which they get lost), seeing things through lenses is what you’re used to doing.

In other words, if you suppose life is working for you the way it is at the moment, is it really worth the risk to change? What is the price you are willing to pay to see the world through unfiltered eyes?

Each year, as we approach the High Holiday season, each of us weighs the prospects of doing teshuva, repentance. We do cheshbon hanefesh, a soul accounting, and a kind of costbenefit analysis of the lives we currently live. We weigh our options.

Most of us recognize that there is always room in ourselves for improvement. But we also may be satisfied with a pair of lenses through which we see the world at our present moment.

Unfortunately, sometimes the glasses we live with are tinted, and it is only after the fact that we realize the way we may not have acted in our own best interest. We may hurt another person in a way that, through the lenses that we wear, we couldn’t foresee happening.

We know or suppose that living a Jewish life enables us to see the world in a more meaningful fashion. However, the lenses we wear may present the world differently.

Each Rosh Hashanah we again ask ourselves: What is the price that we are willing to pay to see things through unfiltered eyes?

After the sounding of the shofar, the congregation recites Ashrei ha’am

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ROSH HASHANAH

Inspiring Jewish Journeys As our collective Jewish journey continues into 5777, it is worth noting that North American Jewish camps have been the launchpad for hundreds of thousands of joyful Jewish journeys.

As a veteran camp director, I have witnessed firsthand countless individuals deepening their connection with Judaism and the Jewish community because of camp. In my 25 summers at Coleman I have also been able to see what so many people have chosen to do with their lives and how Coleman played a part in their journeys.

Below are three separate Coleman journeys — of a camper, a staff member and parents — that illustrate how each and every day we have the opportunity to touch and shape lives, no matter where they are on their journey.

Emily Groff: From the Back Row to Front and Center In June I asked Emily to write a song to help launch our Health and Wellness Initiative at Coleman. Within

a few days she wrote the lyrics to a song she called “Shine,” reflecting on how her journey nurtured her: I’ll stand up, stand tall, even when I’m scared to fall I’ll be loud, be proud, and be myself because I know “I’m enough”

Guest Column

By Bobby Harris Camp Coleman

Here at my home, Camp Coleman, I cannot wait to show them Everything I can be with my Mind, Body, and Soul Just watch me grow, I am here for a reason, Every Day and Every Season It’s time for me to shine.

We’re one Kehillah Kedosha (holy community). I’ve got me and I’ve got you too.

“Shine” became an instant hit with campers and staff because it seemed to capture what so many people felt about their own Coleman journeys. I am sure it will be part of

our camp repertoire for many years to come.

What is amazing about this story is that when Emily attended camp in her elementary school years, she was on the quiet side. She sat in the wooded chapel and loved the music during Shabbat services. Inspired by the experience, Emily decided that she wanted to become a song leader and bring this same joy and faith to others.

As a ninth-grader, Emily and several other campers recorded an original piece, Ani Yehudi. Since then, she has delved more deeply into music and is currently studying music education at Vanderbilt and is a Coleman song leader in summer.

Bert Rosenthal: Lifelong Leadership One of the first people I interviewed upon taking the Coleman job in the spring of 1992 was Bert Rosenthal.

Bert, then a freshman at UGA, had grown up in Augusta, and in high school he joined SEFTY (Southeast Federation of Temple Youth), eventually becoming its president in 1990-

l’shanah tovah to all of our friends and family.

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

BAGELICIOUS Tom, Carol, Alex , Hannah , Mick, Landon & Jaxon

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91. Though he was never a Coleman camper, Bert attended what was called SEFTY Camp for a week at Coleman each August.

I hired him, and, as expected, he did a wonderful job and ended up returning to camp in various capacities, including the year that he led Coleman’s first Israel trip in 1994. After graduation, Bert consistently talked about how much both SEFTY and Coleman provided him with a foundation for leadership in the workplace and in the community, and he made it clear to me that, going forward, he wanted to give back to Coleman.

Just a few months after Rosh Hashanah, Bert will become the chairman of Coleman’s Camp Committee.

This marks the first time in my tenure at Coleman that a former counselor will work in partnership with me as the chair.

The journey continues as Bert and his wife, Robin, have been sending their children to Coleman for the past four summers.

Mark and Linda Silberman: Engaged Parents When Mark and Linda Silberman moved from New York to Alpharetta in 1992, they were interested in connecting their daughters to the Jewish community. Rabbi Harvey Winokur of Temple Kehillat Chaim suggested that they enroll the girls at Camp Coleman, where they happily attended for many summers.

Thinking back to those days, I still remember that Mark was usually one of the last parents to leave camp after dropping off his daughters on Opening Day. I later found out that it was because he had spent every summer of his youth at Brant Lake Camp in Upstate New York and just loved being at camp.

A few years later when we needed to make some capital improvements at Coleman, I reached out to Mark, who stepped up and was a phenomenal leader. Until that point, the Silbermans had mostly been involved in their temple and less so in the greater Jewish community.

During Mark’s time working with Coleman, the Silbermans soon became friendly with the innovative philanthropist Harold Grinspoon, who had just become interested in Jewish camping.

From there, Mark and Linda became very active in PJ Library, the Foundation for Jewish Camp, and the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta,

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ROSH HASHANAH

A Call to Action for Jewish Atlanta Guest Column

By Doug Ross and Jessica Katz Yonatan Birthright Israel Foundation

crease in coming years as an estimated 1.8 million young Jews reach the age of eligibility.

Birthright Israel Foundation, the U.S.-based fundraising arm of Birthright Israel, has more than 30,000 donors from diverse backgrounds, including individuals, foundations, Jewish institutions like the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta, family philanthropies, and dedicated alumni and their parents and grandparents.

Birthright Israel was originally funded through the generosity of co-founders Charles Bronfman and Michael Steinhardt and a handful of passionate visionaries. As the program has grown beyond anyone’s wildest imagination, however, so has the need.

Recognizing that many of the Jewish world’s future leaders, donors and benefactors will come from the ranks

of Birthright Israel alumni, communities across the country are stepping up and taking responsibility for providing this experience to and engaging with new generations of young adults.

In short, Birthright Israel is a powerful, direct investment in our collective Jewish future, which is why we are working so hard to expand our Atlanta donor base. Truly every dollar counts.

Our priority is to continue providing the gift of Birthright Israel for many generations to come as we continually adapt and add trips to meet the increasingly diverse interests of our participants.

While most contributions go toward the cost of a standard 10-day trip, Birthright Israel also designates funding for customized trips, including those with special needs, an extended

13-day trip allowing participants to earn college credit, and an abridged seven-day trip for those unable to take off as much time from school or work.

Niche trips also serve such diverse populations as the LGBTQ community and those interested in culinary arts, to name just two, as Birthright Israel provides many different trips in an effort to reach all corners of the Jewish world.

As we gather with our families to celebrate Rosh Hashanah, we want to wish the entire community a happy and healthy new year and thank those who are already part of our growing Birthright Israel Atlanta family. Let us join together in the coming year to ensure that even more young Jewish adults can receive this life-changing gift. Shana tova.

To learn more about the Birthright Israel Foundation, visit BirthrightIsrael.Foundation. ■ Doug Ross chairs the Birthright Israel Atlanta Leadership Council and is a member of the Birthright Israel Foundation national board. Jessica Katz Yonatan is the Birthright Israel Foundation’s associate regional director in Atlanta.

L’shana Tovah from

THE EPSTEIN SCHOOL

Continued from page 44 where Mark created a camping task force that helped, in the past three years, send 600 Atlanta kids to Jewish camp, increasing the number by 30 percent.

Bert, Emily, Mark and Linda. Four people — campers, staff and parents — who were inspired by Coleman and are continuing to make positive contributions in our community today.

On this Rosh Hashanah I am thinking about all the Jewish journeys that I hope our camp and community continue to spark and support throughout the year. ■

We invite you to experience Epstein. Meet our Head of School and educational leadership, SCHOOL learn THE aboutEPSTEIN our academic program and tour Solomon Schechter School of Atlanta our campus. Learn more and register at www.EpsteinAtlanta.org/ExperienceEpstein THE EPSTEIN SCHOOL Solomon Schechter School of Atlanta

335 COLEWOOD WAY NW SANDY SPRINGS, GA 30328-2956 EPSTEINATLANTA.ORG

Bobby Harris is the director of Camp Coleman and the director of youth and camping services for the Southeast Region of the Union for Reform Judaism.

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THE EPSTEIN SCHOOL

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SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Birthright Israel has provided a life-changing experience to over half a million young Jewish adults, ages 18 to 26, from 66 countries since the program’s inception in 1999. This is quite remarkable given the fact that there are only an estimated 8 million non-Israeli Jews in the world.

It has become the leading organization of its kind, partly because of its ability to engage meaningfully with Jewish millennials, allowing them to forge a connection with Judaism and their Jewish identity during a transformative time in their lives. We are proud to have sent more than 6,000 young adults from Atlanta’s rapidly growing Jewish community on this trip, but, for all the success we’ve had, there is much work left to do.

The powerful effect of the Birthright Israel experience cannot be denied. Study after study has shown that participants share an increased commitment to marrying a Jewish partner, raising a family in the Jewish tradition, celebrating Jewish holidays, joining Jewish and pro-Israel organizations, having Jewish friends, and returning to visit Israel.

Thanks in part to Birthright Israel, we see an engaged, thriving network of young Jewish professionals here in Atlanta who are getting involved and making a difference.

While most people in the Jewish world have heard of Birthright Israel, many are unaware of our fundraising needs and of our growing nationwide network of donors. At $3,000 per participant, the cost of sending this year’s 45,000-plus young adults exceeds $135 million. This amount is projected to in-

9/9/14 11:33 AM

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ROSH HASHANAH

Make the Most of Every Moment

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

At this moment of writing, I sit in my study at Temple Emanu-El, the early morning quiet contoured by impending rain clouds that promise a wet Atlanta morning.

The clock on the wall, set above my ordination degree, bearing signatures of my teachers before me, softly ticks and tocks with each second. The sound both soothes and beckons me with potential and with challenge.

And in front of me, a blank page stares back, demanding words to share that are ripe with inspiration, aspiration and meaning.

Perhaps in the space between the ticking seconds, and through the glaring white page, the metaphor calls out to us: “Yes, it is right here. Open your eyes and be awake!”

The High Holidays are around the corner. Each year the weeks leading up to them are heavy with a certain weighted intensity that our Jewish tradition fosters as a positive and necessary experience. The backdrop of the harvest (yesteryear), the new semester,

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and a return to the fast-paced workplace after the summer lull are part of the atmosphere.

But the real pressure that Judaism prescribes is the proverbial tick of the clock and glaring white pages of our lives still to be lived. There is a spiritual urgency that stirs in us.

Guest Column

By Rabbi Spike Anderson Temple Emanu-El

What will we do with our time to make the very most of the days that we have left? (Tick-tock.)

In the Book of Life (Sefer HaChayim), where we implore G-d to inscribe us each new year, what will we choose to write on that glaring blank page?

For the pen is in our hands, as are the stories, words and deeds.

These questions form the backbone not only of our High Holidays, but of Temple Emanu-El of Greater Atlanta and of our collective lives.

The stakes presented in these existential questions are far from hypothetical, but rather are intensely personal.

For this reason, the High Holidays are often referred to as the Yomim Noraim, the Days of Awe, for it is with awe that we are cautioned to approach the honest assessment we are asked to make of ourselves and our lives. Our liturgy calls this a Heshbone HaNefesh, an accounting of the soul.

Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel helps us understand the concept of awe and our approach to it by asking us how we might approach the Grand Canyon. Perhaps you have been there.

Imagine standing right on the edge, looking out and down. It is vast. It is truly incredible. It makes us simultaneously feel insignificant and luminous. With our toes on the edge of the precipice, we gaze into the abyss, all the while knowing that our feet rest on firm and unshakable ground. That is awe, a mixture of elation and fear.

Elation for what we could yet achieve with our lives, our relationships and our ability to appreciate the invaluable worth of each moment.

New Mahzor

Temple Emanu-El is moving to a mahzor with more inclusive language for the High Holidays in 5777. The Central Conference of American Rabbis’ Mishkan HaNefesh completed a pilot period and began rolling out to Reform congregations across the country last year, including The Temple and Temple Sinai. Temple Beth David was a pilot site.

Fear of falling far short of our potential, squandering our relationships, and closing our eyes to the beauty and meaning that permeates our precious days.

On Rosh Hashanah, when we pray to be inscribed in the Book of Life, we are not just praying for more time on Earth, but we are also jolting ourselves awake to really, truly live!

Avinu Maleinu, kotveinu b’sefer chayim tovim. Our benevolent G-d, inscribe us (and may we have the courage to inscribe ourselves) in the Book of Lives Well Lived.

May our congregations everywhere and our congregants be blessed and in turn bless one another.

And may this year be a sweet year for us all. ■ Rabbi Spike Anderson is the senior rabbi at Temple Emanu-El.

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ROSH HASHANAH

Our Thoroughly Millennial Holiday A recently published article I read encouraged readers who attend synagogue only once a year to skip the High Holidays and find some other time to go.

After all, if you are going to go annually, there are more believable, relevant and easily understood observances and holidays that are more positive choices.

All true. The advice is sound.

If I have to pick one or two days to connect to Judaism, these seem to be better alternatives. There are plenty of heartwarming themes that don’t involve finger wagging, chest beating, and, of course, that oh-so-awful guilt.

What I would suggest is that Rosh Hashanah is the most thoroughly modern of all the holidays.

The three major festivals of Pesach, Shavuot and Sukkot-Shemini

Atzeret are often grouped into one category, the shalosh regalim. This is popularly translated as the three

Guest Column

By Rabbi Elimelech Gottlieb Torah Day School of Atlanta

festivals but alludes to the mitzvah of going to Jerusalem at these times.

They are connected in another significant way as well.

Pesach is about freedom. Wonderful. We love it. We get it: the Fourth of July with matzah.

The second night of Pesach, though, we start counting up to the holiday of Shavuot, for which no date is given. We are commanded to

observe it 50 days after Pesach.

These holidays are linked because Shavuot marks the acceptance of the Torah, which is where our freedom finds its purpose and destiny. As Rabbi Samson Rafael Hirsch puts it, Pesach is the physical creation of the people.

Sukkot, the harvest holiday, celebrates the physical nourishment of the nation but is immediately followed

by Shemini Atzeret, which contains its spiritual sustenance.

These holidays are spiritual, historical and national.

But Rosh Hashanah is all about me. Quite the millennial message.

Following the call of the shofar, we say, “Hayom haras olam”: Today is the birthday of the world. On this day a single, solitary person was created.

It is the world’s birthday because it is for me that this universe came into existence.

Make Year Sweet for More Children It’s an honor to be a part of this Rosh Hashanah issue as it affords us an opportunity not just to wish everyone shana tova, but also to share how readers can help make it a shana tova for those less fortunate.

Who are we? ORT is the Jewish organization meeting the world’s educational needs since 1880. We are the largest nongovernmental educational network in the world. And just as we did at our establishment, we are still identifying the most pressing needs of our Jewish youth, and, yes, we are meeting them.

Take our Atlanta-adopted Galilee project, the Hodayot youth village.

What a difference this year has made in the lives of so many youths at risk.

Hodayot is home to more than 250 seventh- to 12th-graders. Almost all are

Guest Column

By Jay Tenenbaum ORT

new immigrants, 60 percent Ethiopian and 30 percent from the former Soviet Union. The great majority are from dysfunctional, problematic families ranked “very low” on the socio-economic scale.

Many just couldn’t fit in at standard schools and might have become street kids were it not for the dedication of ORT supporters and the magnificent and caring staff at the school.

We’ve raised more than $500,000 to renovate or build the dining hall, the kitchen, the student lounge, three smart classrooms, a special needs facility and a state-of-the-art science lab.

A dozen mezuzot have been dedicated on campus. All of these projects were dedicated in the donor’s name or in memory of loved ones.

In the year to come, we intend to fund four more smart classrooms, create a welcoming foyer for students and visitors alike, and complete a desperately needed renovation of the auditorium, which is in serious disrepair.

Together with our board, our president, Harvey Spiegel, our national board member, Hilly Panovka, and the rest of our growing cadre of ORT advocates, we continue to share the Hodayot story of how you have a

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

48

unique opportunity to directly change lives, now and for the future.

I’m also so proud to say that when our supporters make significant contributions for a project, the work gets done. The funds do not go to some nebulous work somewhere that one can neither see nor touch.

If you fund it, we build it.

In the coming year, as we reflect and ask ourselves how we can change the world, think of the Israeli kids you can help to benefit from a high-quality Jewish education, just as you or your children experienced at Epstein, Davis, TDSA, AJA, Weber or Temima.

Join in our efforts, and 5777 will truly be a shana tova for all of us. ■ Jay Tenenbaum is the regional director of ORT America in Atlanta.

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In the quintessential Rosh Hashanah prayer, we say that every single person passes before G-d for inspection. It’s a little scary but also life-affirming. Rosh Hashanah infuses life and living with meaning and importance.

If we are individually scrutinized, it is because our lives matter, because everything and everyone is significant. Every individual is born with the potential to fulfill the purpose of creation.

Our global and technological world seems to hold more promise for freedom and prosperity than ever before, yet it often makes us feel small and insignificant. Rosh Hashanah elevates and inspires. Happy birthday. ■

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ROSH HASHANAH

Take the Plunge To Start the Year Fresh

mikvah, after a divorce or in celebration of a milestone birthday, has the opportunity to connect contemporary Jewish life with the ancient past. Bernstein said: “The waters that fill ritual wells are drawn from the same natural waters shared for thousands of years,

Guest Column

By Rabbi Ruth Abusch-Magder MACoM

and the breadth and depth of the mikvah pools remain as they were in biblical times. That said, today’s Jewish expression and mikvah experience are, by necessity, not what they were a generation ago, let alone hundreds or thousands of years ago.”

One needs no special knowledge or institutional affiliation to make an appointment. Everyone in the Atlanta Jewish community is welcome to call 404-549-9679 or reach out by email (immerse@atlantamikvah.org) and schedule a dip.

People of all ages and backgrounds have been making plans, but there are still slots available through Sukkot.

Rabbi Heller, who works next door, likes to go to the mikvah before the holidays begin “as a way to focus my energy to be a better rabbi and a better person in the coming year.”

The new year of 5777 is already shaping up to be a great year for MACoM­. Barbara LeNoble, who recently joined the MACoM team as executive director, feels that this Rosh Hashanah is particularly auspicious for the young institution. “We are blessed to start this landmark new year with a clean slate. We have passionate supporters, and as we build our capacity, we are hoping people come for a visit and return a second and even a third or fourth time.”

Board Chair Caryn Hanrahan is “excited to have our first gala March 16, honoring the work of Rabbis Joshua Heller and Alvin Sugarman, without whose vision and commitment this resource would not exist.”

She urges all to save the date and stay tuned for more details. ■ Rabbi Ruth Abusch-Magder is an active advocate of MACoM.

Wishing you a Happy and Healthy New Year

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Apples and honey, the sound of the shofar and a trip to the mikvah.

All of these traditions signal the coming of a new Jewish year. As familiar as the first two are, the mikvah is less common as part of the holiday tradition. The Metro Atlanta Community Mikvah is changing that.

In less than a year since it opened, MACoM has facilitated over 200 ritual dips and raised awareness across greater Atlanta. But 5777 marks the first Rosh Hashanah that the mikvah is open for High Holiday preparation and reflection.

“Mikvah is an incredibly powerful Jewish way to make a new start, to literally wash away all the things we want to leave behind,” said Rabbi Joshua Heller, a MACoM board member and chair of the Clergy Advisory Group. “Hearing the shofar, swaying in prayer, eating apples and honey, or fasting, each touch a part of our body, but immersing in water is a way to renew our whole selves. In ancient times the high priest would immerse in the mikvah five times in preparation for the Yom Kippur ritual. Modern Jews who may no longer connect to priests and sacrifices can transform the ritual.

Instead of having a priest go on our behalf, we seek our own cleansing and renewal.”

MACoM is dedicated to making this opportunity accessible to the entire Jewish community. Set up to facilitate traditional and nontraditional ritual immersions, a team of trained guides is ready to help veterans and newcomers to mikvah.

According to Tracie Bernstein, who runs the guide program at MACoM with Dr. Beth Tieman, “Mikvah guides are an evolved group of extraordinary men and women who come from all Jewish backgrounds, range in age from 25 to 80, and are prepared to provide a rare space for personal and meaningful exploration on one’s own terms.”

And those who dip can decide on how much or little guidance and supervision they want and need.

“Those coming to immerse before Rosh Hashanah and throughout the holiday season can draw from a menu of prayers or follow their own path,” Tieman said.

Even the most modern use of the

AJT 49

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ROSH HASHANAH

To Turn Our Hearts As the new year approaches, our thoughts are drawn to the imperatives of tefillah, teshuvah and tzedakah.

My rabbi would be pleased that a sermon has always stuck with me.

He explained that although teshuvah is understood as repentance, it really means “to turn.” We are to turn our hearts, examine our actions, look at how we have treated others and seek forgiveness from those whom we may have hurt.

What a moving image it is of turning one’s heart.

Is this the moment we recognize an individual responsibility to advance a pluralistic society that values and respects differences among people and seek forgiveness for ways in which we hinder it?

In a year marked by public vitriol from leaders who deride the values of others, foment divisiveness and give license to expressions of hatred, have we lost the ability for civil discourse and shattered the notion of dignity and respect for those different from us?

A sense of obligation for the other in our communities and the recognition of religious tradition as a means of its expression were reported by the 2013 Pew Report to be characteristics common to Conservative Jews.

As a network of nearly 600 North American congregations, the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism and its leadership are committed to fostering pluralism. I am proud of the many ways that value is demonstrated globally, communally and individually.

In Israel, the Conservative/ Masorti movement has actively pursued religious pluralism. Rabbi Steven Wernick, the USCJ CEO, and Rabbi Julie Schonfeld, the executive vice president of the Rabbinical Assembly, represented North American Conservative Jewry in negotiations with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for an egalitarian prayer space at the Kotel. USCJ, the RA and our partners advocate the implementation of this fully negotiated and signed agreement.

The goal is a dignified worship setting accessible to all, including people with disabilities, and open to egalitarian prayer and to monthly women-only Rosh Chodesh observance by Women of the Wall. In the words of Isaiah (56:7), “My house will be called a house of prayer for all people.”

At the communal level, every synagogue seeks to be welcoming. But what does welcome feel like for people with disabilities, for the LGBTQ community,

for the elderly, for family members of other faith traditions? USCJ’s awardwinning inclusion programs are helping congregations transform attitudes and embrace actions that recognize the dignity and sacredness of each member of the community.

I was pleased to learn recently that in Canada, several Conservative kehillot are preparing to help resettle

Guest Column

By Margo Dix Gold United Synagogue

Syrian refugee families coming to their communities. And Zionism and Israel continue to be dominant foci in Canadian congregations, unfettered by the politically charged acrimony and uncivil discourse that confound some American congregations.

A story from a teen participant in this summer’s USCJ United Synagogue Youth Poland-Israel Summer Pilgrimage shows how an unexpected encounter in Jerusalem can foster a moment of indelible understanding.

Jack’s group had gathered in Yemin Moshe for Kabbalat Shabbat and found the park filled with Muslims celebrating Ramadan’s end. All around were musicians, children playing games and families enjoying picnics.

Undeterred, the teens gathered in a circle and started their service.

When they reached Lecha Dodi and prepared to welcome the Sabbath bride, they realized the musicians around them were playing percussion in time to the Shabbat melody. And that’s how they concluded the prayer: a group of American teens welcoming Shabbat in Jerusalem to the accompaniment of Muslim musicians.

That serendipitous connection forged an image of coexistence and its possibilities that this young man will carry for a lifetime.

In 5777, may we turn our hearts, learn to appreciate the value and gifts of a diverse society, and recognize the power we each hold to make a difference by our actions, by our attitudes and through our words.

On behalf of my husband, Larry, and all our family, I extend heartfelt wishes for a peaceful new year. ■ Ahavath Achim Synagogue member Margo Dix Gold is the international president of USCJ.

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ROSH HASHANAH

Teaching Israel’s History, Not Someone’s Narrative students. College administrators and board members avoid imposing their values on faculty classroom decisions.

An obvious antidote to the impact of anti-Israeli courses on campus is to increase substantive Israel education before students arrive at college.

In working with thousands of Jewish teachers (80 from Atlanta) and Jewish students through our Center for Israel

Guest Column

By Ken Stein Emory University

Education, we have found that telling Israel’s story with all its complexities works for students and teachers alike (israeled.org/workshop-evaluations).

Two anecdotes reveal contemporary realities about Jewish students after they get to campus.

The first is about a student who grew up in a practicing Jewish environment in an American Southern city where going to shul happened a few times a year. Shabbat was oc-

casionally practiced, and some Jewish holidays were observed.

The second is about a West Coast student who took a high school course on modern Israel at a Jewish day school. Coincidently, both students ended up at Ivy League schools.

The first student took a course from a professor whose career has been marked by not being a fan of Israel’s policies toward the Palestinians. After writing an opinion column in the school newspaper that was highly critical of Israel, the student sent a copy of it to relatives in Israel; consequently, the Israelis disinvited the student as a summer house guest.

The upset parents wondered whether there was remedial learning that could be undertaken to straighten out the student. I had no answer.

No conclusion is known about what happened with the student’s outlooks, but we strongly assume that the faculty member probably had a direct impact on the student’s critical views of Israel, which the parents were not anticipating.

After taking the course on modern Israel at the West Coast day

school, the second student was sitting in a freshman college class. He was somewhat baffled by the professor’s assertion that the Jews had taken all the land from the Arabs.

The student told the professor that he was wrong about the spurious claims about Israel being an apartheid state. And the professor listened as the informed student explained to the class about the details learned in that Israel history class at the day school.

The student wrote to the day school teacher, recounting the incident. “I just wanted to let you know how grateful I am for your teaching me this material. I no longer have the feeling of a lonely, helpless, freshman Jew on campus who is afraid to speak out.”

As we enter the new year, let’s commit ourselves to diligently telling Israel’s story to our children and only then responding to the narratives thrown at Israel. The best defense is a great offense. ■ Emory professor Ken Stein is the president of the Center for Israel Education and the director of the Institute for the Study of Modern Israel.

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

When I studied at the University of Michigan, I took courses in history.

I never took a course in Middle Eastern, British or Israeli narrative. Today, narratives and bias tend to replace histories, particularly when topics of emotion and controversy are taught.

History is the study of the way it was. Telling it is often complicated, time-consuming and nuanced. It requires blending different sources and proven facts into one story. Narratives, on the other hand, usually contain highly charged terms, claims and preselected views. They are reflected in articles, books and blog posts aimed at generating one-sided marketable viewpoints.

This biased written matter is assigned to students to read in college.

When one-sided readings, for which Israel is the target, appear in syllabi, the objective is frequently to undermine Israel’s legitimacy. It is sometimes a professor’s or teacher’s goal to turn Israeli supporters or the unknowing student into opponents not only of Israeli policies, but also of Israel’s right to exist.

That is the core of boycott, divestment and sanctions.

Examples abound in college courses where Israel is a topic and antiIsrael narratives are assigned readings (type into your browser “anti-Israel courses” and choose a school). This past summer, we did our own research at the Emory Institute for the Study of Modern Israel (www.ismi.emory.edu).

We reviewed 139 syllabi offered at more than 85 North American colleges and universities. These syllabi had in their titles the terms Middle East Politics, Arab-Israeli Conflict, Israel, Zionist and Palestinian.

We were not able to collect every syllabus from every school. But from our sampling, nearly 25 percent of the course syllabi were either moderately or highly anti-Israeli in either assigned readings or topics chosen by the teacher or professor.

What is the unsuspecting student to do?

Look closely at the syllabus before signing up for the course. If it’s in high school, appeal to a principal or Board of Education member. Or take the syllabus to experts and have them debunk and rewrite the contents.

In college that is more difficult to do because professors have an absolute say on what they assign to

AJT 51

ROSH HASHANAH

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As we joyfully celebrate Rosh Hashanah, hopes are high that the Jewish new year will be a good one.

We dip apples in honey as we pray for sweetness and replenishment. Our round challahs symbolize the circle of life and renewal, and with the sound of the shofar, we are called to begin the process of introspection and repentance.

As we examine our lives the past year and look to 5777, we ponder how we could have done better.

What improvements can we make going forward?

As we look inward, we also must look outward. How have our lives affected the lives of others? Have we been there for those in need? Have we worked to repair the world?

The tree of life is often bountiful but sometimes fails to bear enough fruit for everyone. As we join together at our Rosh Hashanah dinner tables, let us not forget those who don’t know where their next meal is coming from.

Those who don’t have access to fresh, nutritious food. Those who don’t have the means to feed their families. Those who depend on their school lunch to last them throughout the day.

Through community action, social change is possible. Second Helpings Atlanta, a nonprofit food rescue organization, has proved that working together toward a common goal can produce a community of change in the lives of people who are food-insecure.

Twelve years ago during High Holiday services at Temple Sinai, we issued a clarion call for our congregants to unite and take a stand against hunger. What started as a grassroots project open to congregants of all ages quickly morphed into a legion of volunteers committed to rescuing excess food and delivering it to the people seeking assistance in our community.

As our numbers grew, so did the need for the food we rescued. Today, SHA is a thriving, efficient, caring and volunteer-driven organization. We are neighbors helping neighbors. We are making a meaningful difference daily.

Our 400-plus volunteer drivers devote just 90 minutes each month to a rescue-and-delivery route, picking up leftover food from one of our 60 food donors (corporate good citizens such as Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Publix, The Fresh Market, Sprouts and Cox Enterprises) and delivering it to one of

our 31 partner agencies (Community Assistance Center, Malachi’s Storehouse, Atlanta Mission, Jewish Family & Career Services’ Kosher Food Pantry, Toco Hills Community Alliance, etc.).

In May we rescued our 5 millionth pound of food. With monthly collections averaging over 100,000 pounds,

Guest Column

By Alli Allen Second Helpings Atlanta

we are providing meals for over 3,000 people per day.

We recently introduced our Food for Thought Program. Through this initiative, we are partnering with schools throughout metro Atlanta to educate, inspire and engage students, parents, teachers and school administrators about hunger, food waste and environmental impacts.

This program provides opportunities for schools to adopt a route, picking up food from their cafeterias and delivering it to our partner agencies.

We also have a new Corporate Kitchen Food Rescue Program, in which we work with corporate kitchens to rescue nutritious food from dining halls to deliver to those in need.

On Nov. 12, our first Taste of the Trucks festival takes place from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the Concourse Office Park.

This family-friendly event with 15 food trucks, a craft show, live music and activities will raise funds to support our mission of driving out hunger and reducing food waste in metro Atlanta.

If you’re committed to tikkun olam (repairing the world) in your own community, please consider joining our dedicated army of SHA volunteers (www.secondhelpingsatlanta.org). We can assure you a fulfilling experience.

L’dor vador, from generation to generation, are words we will hear throughout the High Holidays. As we think about the future and set examples for our children to follow, let’s remember that often the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Here’s hoping our Rosh Hashanah apples of committing to positive change are fruitful and multiply. ■ Alli Allen is co-founder of Second Helpings Atlanta.

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ROSH HASHANAH

Finding Community, Meaning in Mountains Limmud gatherings in the United States, LimmudFest has drawn the attention of individuals hoping to establish Limmud programs in other cities and countries and has become a model for programming throughout the Limmud world.

In fact, preceding this year’s LimmudFest, Limmud Atlanta+Southeast hosted representatives from several Limmuds in the United States and

Guest Column

By Edward Queen Limmud Atlanta+Southeast

Canada to discuss the creation and structure of a Limmud North America umbrella organization.

LimmudFest is klal Yisrael at perhaps its best, a community engaged in learning, sharing, eating, drinking and talking.

It is driven by dozens of volunteers, most in their 20s and early 30s, who spend hours planning the programming, organizing the daven-

ing, coordinating the schedule and handling the myriad of details the weekend requires.

Led ably by this year’s chairs, Sandrine Simons and Whitney Kweskin, the volunteers delivered a weekend of fun and meaning.

The learning at LimmudFest is intense, deep and eclectic. This year’s sessions addressed a diverse array of subjects and themes — contemporary and timely, historical and universal.

Several sessions took on the issues of mental illness and addiction in the Jewish community. Some sessions asked what makes a text sacred or cheese and wine kosher.

Still others examined the history and halachah of Jews and agriculture, and yet others invited us to examine the daily life of the Safed kabbalists.

An entire series of sessions was dedicated to the topic of Zionism, including an examination of the founding documents of Zionism and the struggle within Zionism to define and create the new Jew to populate the restored homeland.

We made cheese from goat’s milk and tallitot from duct tape while chil-

dren and youths were engaged in their own camp within a camp.

We enjoyed Jewish-themed music from the Cohen Brothers Band and Joe Buchanan, whose roots and Americana-based songs gave us reflective and meaningful insights into Judaism and our religious journeys. And we laughed along with Amanda Marks, whose stand-up routine reflected on the life complexities of a modern Jewish woman.

We also prayed. Three formal minyanim, plus options incorporating yoga, chanting and nature walks. We said Kiddush and Motzi, and, yes, we joined with those who needed to say Kaddish.

We sang and talked. And we celebrated our Judaism and our Jewishness in all their forms and all their glories. We did it with joy, we did it with seriousness, and we did it together, a community where Jews of all beliefs, ages, colors, genders, families and commitments lived and learned together in joy and hope. ■ Edward Queen was a program cochair at LimmudFest 2016.

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Getting away for the Labor Day weekend conjures, for many, visions of beach, mountain or lake, cookouts, and football. For about 300 or so people this past Labor Day, it also meant a trip to the mountains.

We went seeking not merely the serenity of a hilltop retreat, which we got, but also an opportunity to spend four days and three nights engaged in Jewish learning, prayer, art, music and community. We found it at LimmudFest 2016 at Camp Ramah Darom.

An annual gathering organized by Limmud Atlanta+Southeast, LimmudFest brings together a remarkable spectrum of participants: Orthodox, Reform, Conservative, Reconstructionist, humanist, secular, seeking, Jewish Renewal and unaffiliated.

While the overwhelming majority of participants are recognized as Jews by at least one movement in the United States, non-Jews also attend.

Most are either partners of Jews or individuals whose religious journey has begun to lead them on a Jewish path, but some are just there with friends and for the learning.

LimmudFest is families with children, singles, retirees, couples of all forms (the youngest attendee this year was 2 months old, while the oldest was 90) and seeks to create an engaged and welcoming environment where everyone is valued for what they help build and contribute to the shared learning and experience of the community.

At LimmudFest a Lubavitcher can unself-consciously describe his conversation with an out lesbian as simply “two Jews talking Yiddishkeit.”

The Limmud movement (limmud is Hebrew for “learning”) began in England in the 1970s and has spread throughout the world. The essence of Limmud is that it is a volunteer-driven movement (Limmud Atlanta+Southeast has one half-time paid administrative assistant) committed to the vision that everyone is a learner and everyone is a teacher.

Additionally, Limmud presenters receive no payment, and titles are not used. Everyone is there to share, to build and to grow.

Limmud came to Atlanta in 2008 and for several years was a one-day event held at Oglethorpe University before moving to a multiday event over Labor Day weekend at Ramah Darom. As one of the few multiday

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SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Dr. Tuck is a Board Certified Podiatrist with almost 30 years of experience, he is a firm believer in the “concierge” concept of medicine. He accepts same day appointments for Urgent foot and ankle issues. He performs comprehensive diabetic foot evaluations, and post-surgical patients are given Dr. Tuck’s personal cell phone number for immediate 24-hour access.

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Village Podiatry Centers 5445 Meridian Mark Rd., Ste 390 Atlanta, GA 30342

Phone: 404.237.3668 Fax: 404.237.9562 Pediatrics to Seniors Most Insurances Accepted

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ROSH HASHANAH

What, Not Who, Is the Question Recently, while I was watching television, I saw an advertisement for a new show starring one of my favorite personalities, Morgan Freeman.

The show asks the question “Who is G-d?”

I was intrigued and thought I should probably watch.

Then, abruptly, a light bulb went off in my head, and I realized that this was the wrong question. I think the correct question should be “What is G-d?”

When we ask who, we are automatically envisioning a personified being. In more academic terms, we are anthropomorphizing G-d. We are seeing G-d in human terms.

In Western civilizations, governed by the Judeo-Christian rules and regulations, we follow the Ten Commandments. One of the big 10 is “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.”

We have interpreted this to mean there is a prohibition against making idols or any rendition of what G-d looks like.

Even though we know that this is forbidden, we do it all the time. All one has to do is look at the great works of art created during the Renaissance or for that matter even today.

In Judaism, the most egregious occurrence of creating a tangible god was the golden calf incident at the foot of Mount Sinai. Many Orthodox and even some not-so-observant Jews think we are still atoning for that one even today.

Let’s take a brief look at how this plays out in some other Western and some not-so-Western religions.

Christianity has developed an earthly human representation of at least part of G-d: Jesus Christ. Christianity has divided G-d into three parts: G-d the father, who is unseen, although the use of the term father certainly is anthropomorphizing; G-d the son, Jesus, certainly human in form; and G-d the holy spirit, the only part not in human form.

Although many Christian segments wear or display a bare cross, some, including Catholics, actually display the figure of Christ on the cross in both their places of worship and when worn around their necks as a crucifix.

If not actual idolatry, that is certainly bordering on it.

Although not specifically a West-

ern religion, Islam has given human aspects to G-d through the veneration of the prophet Mohammed. Although Allah remains unseen, there is the father connotation.

The major Eastern religions — Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism

Guest Column

By Rabbi Jeffery Feinstein Kehillat HaShem

— all have a plethora of deity shapes and forms. Eastern Orthodox actually venerates paintings and statuary.

Why do we do this?

One major reason may be that our minds are incapable of coming to terms with something that isn’t there.

So we create gods that are recognizable and easy to comprehend.

When we stop asking who and begin asking what, we are challenged to dig deeper into our own personal belief system. If you take away the old man with the flowing beard sitting on the golden throne in heaven (another mythical construct), what are we left with?

We are left with the two basic constructs we find in Judaism: • Echye asher echye, I will be who I will be. It’s the statement given to Moses at the burning bush.

• I will make all My goodness pass before you, but you cannot see My face and live. This statement is given to Moses when he asks to see G-d and instead is placed in a crevice in the rock and allowed to gaze on G-d’s creations — past tense.

When we buy into a depiction of G-d, we are all, as a group, buying into a common conception of G-d. G-d becomes communal.

When we accept the notion that G-d cannot be defined or depicted, G-d must remain personal.

So as we approach Rosh Hashanah, let us remember that the question “Who is G-d?” is irrelevant. The question “What is G-d?” allows us to have a special, private relationship with “echye asher echye,” I will be who I will be.

L’shana tova. ■ Rabbi Jeffery Feinstein leads Kehillat HaShem.

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ROSH HASHANAH

Camp Reality Is Better World vot, seeking ways to treat one another with kindness and striving to be their best selves. What happens here is very real and profoundly important.

Caught as we are in a global climate of violence and vitriol, there’s also much hand-wringing in our Jewish community as the results of the Pew study continue to ring in our ears.

The message that I come to share as

Guest Column

By Geoffrey Menkowitz Ramah Darom

we enter a new year is that our future is indeed bright.

I am witness to an extraordinary cohort of emerging adults. Don’t dismiss them as a generation whose games and phones obfuscate what matters in life.

The children with whom I spend the summer are proud and knowledgeable about their Jewish heritage. They lead lives informed by the values of inclusiveness, kindness and justice.

Community is important to them, and they strive to access Jewish experiences to construct moments filled with meaning.

My personal experience as a camp director is not novel.

Across North America, thousands of children recently completed inspiring, life-changing summers at Jewish overnight camps.

As I write, we are preparing to travel to Charlotte, N.C., to host camp reunions and meet new families.

Again, a stark contrast and, again, an opportunity for critics to dismiss our energies as misguided.

How, at a time when the city is in the middle of protests and riots, can we be engaging families in conversations about summer fun?

Indeed, given the events unfolding in Charlotte, we are especially motivated to recruit for camp — not in spite of the current social climate, but because of it. We believe in the power of Jewish

camp to create the next generation of leaders who will increase light in our world by bringing Jewish values and wisdom to bear on their contributions as professionals and community volunteers.

In the year ahead, may we all renew our support of critical educational experiences like Jewish camp, on personal and communal levels, affirming the power of this enterprise to shape identity and instill commitment.

May we all find the strength and openness to encourage the passion that kids bring home from camp and not dismiss it as juvenile.

And let us make room for their leadership. The future of the Jewish community and the health of our broader society depend on them. ■

I am witness to an extraordinary cohort of emerging adults. Don’t dismiss them as a generation whose games and phones obfuscate what matters.

Geoffrey Menkowitz is the director of Camp Ramah Darom.

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

I live in a bubble. At least in the summer I do. It is a precious bubble, a sacred retreat and a cherished respite from everyday life. A place where kids begin each morning with joyous song and end each evening holding hands in a circle.

It is a busy place where sports, arts, aquatics and outdoor adventure occupy our days. A place where the evening soundscape is filled with Hebrew language, infectious laughter and crickets.

It is admittedly idyllic.

It is a blessing and a joy to work long days caring for children in this environment. Still, it is a challenge to suspend my life at home.

Beyond the basic logistics of house sitters and long-distance lawn care, it is difficult suspending personal relationships, commitments and involvement in community for so long. The re-entry is generally more difficult than making arrangements for departure because, in addition to the transition, there is so much catching up to do.

This past summer, though, while there was a lot of troubling news to digest, sadly very little was novel: continued global terror, distasteful presidential contest and enduring racial tensions. What did I really miss this summer? The Pokémon obsession!

For someone who missed the “Pokémon Go” mania unfold, it has been nearly impossible to wrap my head around this whole phenomenon.

After I finally figured out what everyone meant by “real-life Pokémon,” I still could not connect with the sheer craziness it inspired.

Gamers fell into lakes and walked off cliffs chasing their prize. People were arrested for trespassing and even quit their jobs to pursue all of the Pokémon.

My intent is not to disparage a game that served as enjoyable entertainment for so many this summer.

Creating fun happens to be what I do professionally. I point out the Pokémon craze in stark contrast to the experience of my own summer. For all the chiding I receive from friends about living in a fairy tale for three months, disconnected from the “real world,” summer camp sure feels more real than this.

Instead of chasing after digital monsters, I was surrounded by kids and young adults chasing after mitz-

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ROSH HASHANAH

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Don’t Forget There’s Always a Next Day

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How often do we focus on the here and now, this battle, this fight, tonight, and not what happens the next day?

The traditional Rosh Hashanah Torah reading, the binding of Isaac, exemplifies this challenge. The story is familiar: Abraham is commanded to sacrifice his son.

They ascend the mountain, and he raises the knife. At the last moment, G-d stays his hand and substitutes a ram. But what happens the next day?

If we continue reading Genesis, it is not clear how Isaac and Abraham move on from their experience on Mount Moriah.

Whereas the text repeatedly emphasizes that they ascended the mountain together, it says of Abraham that “he” (singular) came down the mountain and went home with his servants. Isaac is not mentioned.

Rashi and some of the other classic commentators say Isaac went off separately to study. Through the rest of Genesis, we don’t see Isaac and Abraham interact. They live in different cities. Isaac’s sons, Jacob and Esau, are born while Isaac is still alive, and we don’t hear of their participation.

Of course, our sages and commentators found creative ways to fill or explain the missing years of relationship, but I think the text, as written, has a powerful message for us. I imagine that Abraham was fully prepared for the horrible possibility that Isaac would die up there on the mountain.

How he would break it to Sarah. How he would bear his own grief.

He had no idea what he would do if Isaac lived. His son, his heir, his hope, was alive and yet was lost to him just as surely if he had brought down the knife after all. The sacrificial knife was held back by an angel’s words, but it had still managed to cut a deep gap between those generations. They each walked down the mountain alone.

There were only two Jewish men in the whole world, and they were not talking to each other. Seems plausible.

We live in a world where there is a different kind of gap among Jews, between generations and segments of our community. Those who speak the language of Jewish history and those who speak the language of social justice seem to have increasingly less in common, seem to be walking down

different sides of the mountain.

Each year our community is faced with a new life-or-death issue. Last year, it was the Iran nuclear deal. This year, we are in the midst of an election season that promises to be one of the most contentious in history. The

Guest Column

By Rabbi Joshua Heller Congregation B’nai Torah

debate over how best to support Israel is a perennial one.

Discussions get heated. Relationships are sundered. Accusations are made. People are unfriended, on Facebook and in real life.

The stakes are indeed high, but Jewish history predicts that no matter who wins in November, there will be a new issue next year.

We live in a world where it is possible to become so focused on winning the debate or argument at hand, as important as it may be, that we lose sight of what may come afterward.

This issue of “the next day” is not just something played out on the world stage or our communal stage.

It’s played out on our personal stage as well. Think about how often we “play for keeps” in office politics.

One can’t ever truly “win” a fight with one’s spouse. (I can’t with mine.)

In fact, even a supposed win in a battle with an ex can end up being a loss in the long term.

Our sages chose, wisely, to end the Rosh Hashanah reading not with Abraham coming down the mountain, but with news from the old country back in Aram that Abraham has new nieces and nephews, including Rebecca, who will marry Isaac.

The Torah is teaching us that no matter what the conflict, the stress, no matter how pitched the battle, eventually there will be the next day. Eventually, there will arise a new normal, and we have to figure out how to live with those who were our foes the day before.

In 5777, may we be blessed to be able to see beyond the conflicts of 5776 and enter a year of greater shalom. ■ Rabbi Joshua Heller is the senior rabbi at Congregation B’nai Torah.

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ROSH HASHANAH

The Power Within

thing inside us in our very core that is awe-inspiring and larger than life.

Often this godliness lies dormant for years, covered by layers of concealment. With every proclamation of G-d’s glory, we attempt to tap into the reservoirs of godliness inside and discover what we really want out of life.

We beseech Him: “G-d, intellectually I know You are the king of the world,

Guest Column

By Rabbi Binyomin Alon Kollel Ner Hamizrach

since I landed from Israel, but it seems like a lifetime. My sister and I are hardly the same people we were then.

I’m married with several children, living in a city that was foreign to me.

Just before Rosh Hashanah, Batya will tie the knot. It has been quite a journey, and as my sister stands under the chuppah (bridal canopy) with her groom, ready to start a new chapter in life, I know I’ll be rooting for her: “Batya, embrace your inner awesome.

Unleash the godliness, the unlimited

potential, and let it influence your every action to build a life of virtue.”

Rosh Hashanah is an opportunity for all of us to begin a new chapter.

Jews all over the globe will gather to proclaim G-d as king. For many, this will be lip service; for others it will be a challenging, soul-searching journey to discover their inner godliness, whose most fervent desire is to serve G-d. ■ Rabbi Binyomin Alon is part of the faculty at Kollel Ner Hamizrach.

but let me feel that truth. Let me live a life that will proclaim Your glory. Help me understand that You orchestrate all world events and everything is part of Your master plan. Help me strive to be a better Jew, a more loving soulmate and a caring parent. Let it be clear to me that I should emulate You and be a giver, not a taker. Let me experience the sublime beauty of prayer and the unparalleled joy of Torah study.”

It has been only a short few years

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

It was on the plane ride home from studying in Israel that I began to think seriously about my future. I was single and eager to begin a family of my own. Having spent close to a decade in the insular confines of a yeshiva, I hardly felt confident embracing the outside world and balked at the idea of teaching in a public forum.

My sister Batya, ever the outgoing, confident type, would constantly prod me with a carefree smile, “You have to embrace your inner awesome,” coaxing me to emerge from my shell.

The entire Rosh Hashanah prayer seems to revolve around the obvious theme of declaring G-d’s kingship. In fact, nearly every prayer seems to mention this fact, making the entire service seem rather redundant. Wouldn’t it suffice to state once that G-d is king?

Why the endless repetition?

King David writes in Psalms that the performance of mitzvot (divine commandments) brings great joy. If this is true, why is it such a struggle to go to synagogue or to study a Jewish text? Surely we should eagerly await the unique opportunity to serve G-d.

Perhaps the answer lies in what the Talmud refers to as “the concealment of the heart.” Our heart, in its most pristine, purest form, wishes to perform G-d’s will and would derive great joy in doing so, but the daily routine of life with its endless distractions desensitizes our moral sensitivities.

We’re bombarded with headlines in the media that hardly inspire us to strive to be more perfect Jews. That’s when tragedy strikes, our heart is hardened, and the joy in divine service dissipates. Like a corrupted palate that can no longer discern the fine tastes of wine, we remain indifferent and unmoved in the performance of mitzvot as we lose our ability to detect the unique joy that King David described.

As we stand in prayer on Rosh Hashanah, repeating the ultimate truth, we attempt to unwrap the layers of concealment and, as my sister would say, unleash our inner awesome. Not in the way the word is often used, as something cool or hip, but in the way the word actually means: to describe something so great that it evokes a sense of awe or fear in a person.

The kabbalists tell us that the soul or essence of a person is referred to as “a daughter of G-d” because the soul is actually formed from a part of G-d Himself. That means there is some-

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www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ROSH HASHANAH

BDS Requires Active Response

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

I just returned from Israel, where I attended the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism’s 16th annual international conference. From that perspective, Israel, the United States and many countries around the world did not have a very good year.

The public safety prospects for 5777 are not looking much better. At a time when we all wish others and ourselves a good, sweet, healthy and prosperous year, the prospect of increased terrorism looms large above the horizon.

On Sept. 11 we commemorated 15 years since the worst terrorist atrocity in the world’s history. A new generation is growing up for whom Ground Zero is but a tourist site.

While the danger to personal safety is still far larger from vehicular accidents, drug abuse, health malpractice, natural disasters and other factors, none captures the imagination, attention and often misperception of individuals and states as much as man-made disasters — terrorism.

The understanding in the profes-

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sional community is more of the same this coming year, and many point to the likelihood of using nonconventional means to carry out their operations.

For us, as Jews, there is yet another dimension. “Consoling” ourselves that now terrorism hits indiscriminately many individuals and countries

Guest Column

By Robbie Friedmann GILEE

and not just Israelis and Jews is the consolation of fools. Of course terrorism is an international menace, and its aims are more than Israel.

That has more to do with the pyrotechnics of terrorism. Namely, the mode of attack. If it shoots, explodes, stabs or runs over, it gets wide media attention. But there is another mode of attack that is specifically aimed at Israel and Jews and that is a modern incarnation of the old anti-Semitism.

Years after World War II many Jews refrained from resorting to the

use of the concept of anti-Semitism so as not to inflate it and thus make it less meaningful and accurate. Yet there is no other way to describe what is happening in arenas such as the United Nations, where the majority of the resolutions are anti-Israel.

There is no way to describe BDS activities but as anti-Semitic. They are on an exponential rise on U.S. and European university campuses. The vitriolic incitement is often translated into intimidation and violence.

Criticism of Israel is legitimate, and Israel should not be immune from criticism when it is appropriately applied. But when such criticism is aimed only at Israel, and other countries with far worse practices are not getting the same treatment, then such criticism ceases to be meaningful and constructive, and it turns into what it should be called: a hate fest.

It is not meant to improve and correct flaws in Israel. It is aimed at eliminating Israel altogether. Under the guise of “human rights,” BDS is aiming to deny those exact rights from Israel and from Jews. The fact that some Jews and Israelis take an active role in the BDS campaign does not make it any less anti-Semitic. It is not who you are, but rather it is what you do that defines one’s actions.

The BDS movement is attempting to debase the moral foundation that Israel stands on by calling it an apartheid state, by claiming that Israel is a colonialist, settler entity that stole the land from its rightful owners, and by making a host of similar claims that are nothing less than a modern and sophisticated use of the Big Lie technique.

In Atlanta, as in other cities, BDS is focusing efforts on cutting the ties between the Atlanta police and the Israel Police as Black Lives Matter and pro-Palestinian groups join forces as strange bedfellows of “intersectionality.”

Mayor Kasim Reed has publicly said he is “not going to do that” and will also not agree to divest the police budget for other purposes.

This is where the gloomy yet realistic characterization of the outgoing and coming years turns optimistic.

Mayor Reed has demonstrated what public resilience can be in the face of such attacks. We cannot ignore, wish the problem away or hide. The onslaught is vigorous, well-funded and deadly serious. (Yes, pun intended, metaphorically and physically alike.)

Israel developed an expertise in fighting terrorism, and the Israel Police accumulated professional and organizational knowledge that made it one of the world’s best police forces.

It works in partnerships with many sister agencies in many countries, and it has a great deal to contribute to better policing and is eager to do so.

GILEE is proud to play a role in bringing law enforcement agencies in closer partnerships, not only between Israel and other agencies, but with many countries and many states as well. These partnerships and knowledge sharing constitute a contribution to and an impact on public safety, individual and statewide, not pseudo human rights propaganda. That will not contribute to the betterment of life of Palestinians or of their supporters.

By denying Israel what is seen as elementary for anyone else, the BDS efforts are doomed to fail, but not until we proactively cope with this threat.

The lessons of strong partnerships can and should be adapted from police practice to civil society. Partnerships offer an effective way not only to serve citizens better, but also to display fortitude and resoluteness against looming threats.

Perhaps no less important, being proactive through building partnerships also provides a moral compass that reinforces our well-being and sends a message to those who wish us harm that we are more than ready not to be taken for granted.

With best wishes for a shana tova.

May it truly be a good year. ■ Robbie Friedmann is the founding director of the Georgia International Law Enforcement Exchange and a professor emeritus of criminal justice in the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University.

BDS Defeat California enacted anti-BDS legislation Saturday, Sept. 24, following the examples of Georgia, New Jersey and other states.

While Georgia’s law requires companies that want to do business with the state to certify that they do not boycott Israel, the California measure expands the principle to apply to boycotts of any sovereign nation. But the impetus for the legislation was the decade-old boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against Israel.

The bill received nearly unanimous support in the California Legislature.

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ROSH HASHANAH

My friends, I fervently pray that the year 5777 will be a year of blessing and sweetness for you and your loved ones, for the Jews of Atlanta and around the world, for the people and state of Israel. I hope that the new year will be more peaceful and hopeful for the world than 5776.

The genius of the Jewish calendar has always been the possibility of renewal.

Revitalization is built into the Jewish day as we begin with Modeh/Modah Ani (I give thanks). We thank G-d for renewing our life each morning as we awaken.

Each week, of course, we reflect on Shabbat about the miracle of creation and the rhythms of work and rest. The Sabbath is a profound idea.

The seventh day is set aside for rest and reflection. It allows each of us to reset and replenish our spirits.

We also are reborn as a people each and every week. This is the miracle of Shabbat.

The idea of a Sabbath, which was scandalous to the Romans, became by modern times almost a universal custom. The Sabbath allows people to be fully human.

The rhythm of work and rest guaranteed by the workweek has been a great boon to humankind. It has been one of Judaism’s great gifts to the world.

By analogy, the seventh month, Tishri, is the sabbatical month. Rosh Hashanah occurs, from the point of view of the religious calendar, somewhat paradoxically not in the first month, but rather in the seventh. So the motif of Shabbat extends into the new year.

Each seventh year is also, again by analogy, a year of rest, when the ground in ancient Israel lies fallow.

During the seventh year (Shemita) debts are forgiven. The sabbatical academic year is a remnant of this ancient practice.

Each new month (Rosh Chodesh) is also a time of renewal. The cycle of the moon has had a deep impact on human civilization, including Jewish religious life.

We celebrate the new moon because we are grateful to G-d for the possibilities of renewed action inherent in the lunar cycle.

Rosh Hashanah is the most important of the new months, and it serves for us as a sort of archetype for

Rosh Chodesh.

Renewal occurs daily, weekly, monthly and yearly. It also occurs in cycles larger than a year, even in 50year cycles. The sounding of the shofar signals the new year, to be sure, but

Guest Column

By Rabbi Richard Baroff Guardians of the Torah

also spiritual replenishment on many levels. It is this rebirth of the spirit that has allowed our people to be so hopeful.

We at Guardians of the Torah pray that we all recognize that G-d’s gift of renewal allows all of us to be hopeful people despite the obstacles that we face in life. That more than anything else is the greatest gift of Rosh Hashanah.

L’shana tova. ■ Rabbi Richard Baroff is the leader of Guardians of the Torah.

Southern Community When coming to Georgia, you find a warmth and friendliness second to no other place in the United States.

You can imagine my family’s surprise when we learned there was a thriving Reform Jewish community south of the city of Atlanta.

Our original impression was that all the Jewish population was north of the city. But tucked away at the border of Fayetteville and Jonesboro, off Highway 54, is a wonderful Reform synagogue, Congregation B’nai Israel, founded over 25 years ago with hope and determination to provide a Reform Jewish experience to those who cannot make the hour-plus schlep to the next Reform community.

CBI is the “little engine that could.” Boasting over 75 families and growing, it draws people from four counties south of Atlanta proper.

Friday night services are incredibly inspirational. When not led by a guest rabbi, religious services are led by a motivating cantorial soloist/religious lay leader, Susan Burden, who incorporates members, students and

Torah each week and brings everyone together in a truly meaningful way.

The warmth and family atmosphere are not to be missed.

CBI has an active Brotherhood, a new Sisterhood, a strong youth group

Guest Column

By David Rosenberg Congregation B’nai Israel

presence, and multiple adult and family activities every month.

If you have been wondering where you can find a thriving Reform Jewish community south of the city, look at CBI. We cordially invite you to visit us for any Friday night service or join us for the High Holidays.

To learn more about CBI and how to become a part of this amazing community, visit www.bnai-israel.net. ■ David Rosenberg, the president of Congregation B’nai Israel, can be reached at drosenberg@bnai-israel.net.

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Our Continual Renewal

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O T V A A N A SH

Congregation Gesher L' Torah invites you to join us to celebrate together, discover new insights in our timeless traditions, and be part of our warm and welcoming community.

4320 Kimball Bridge Road, Alpharetta, GA • (770) 777-4009 • info@gltorah.org

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Everyone has a story. Come share yours at GLT.

AJT 60

ROSH HASHANAH

Supporting Possibilities That Build Hope Dear friends, Rosh Hashanah is a time of new beginnings.

I remember as a child getting new clothes for Rosh Hashanah, going to shul, seeing friends. Even now, so many years later, it is with a sense of anticipation that I prepare for the holidays with the cooking and the coming together of family and friends.

Everyone I meet is talking about what they are doing for the holidays.

This year as Hadassah Greater Atlanta’s centennial year comes to a close, I also feel a sense of poignancy. It has been a very special year.

So many of our community have attended the events we planned — even more than anticipated — and shared in what makes Hadassah special.

As part of our planning, we had a chance to look back at our chapter and the women who had their part in its history. Passionate, caring women facing many of the same challenges we have today took the time to create and be part of something wonderful.

During those years, women received the right to vote, advocated for civil rights, watched husbands and sons go to war, and still had the optimism to believe that they could make a difference for our Jewish community and the world at large and would witness the establishment of the state of Israel.

We still embody those values.

More and more, we stand strong to face the challenges that come to us personally, professionally and as part of the amazing Jewish community we call home.

We greet those challenges with fortitude as we know that we have the ability to make a better world.

All of us who share in Hadassah’s mission know we have embraced the Jewish value of tikkun olam, repairing the world. We work hand in hand with the doctors, nurses, researchers, teachers and staff at the Hadassah Medical Organization to fight the good fight against disease, prejudice and apathy.

We are the backbone of Israel’s current health system. We are there when disaster strikes anywhere around the world because Israel is first on the ground in so many countries

when there are natural disasters.

It makes us proud to know we as a people have the rachmones to reach out to others despite our differences. It is also a fact that when there are attacks against the people of Israel, the worst cases are brought to Hadassah to be

Guest Column

By Paula S. Zucker Hadassah Greater Atlanta

treated.

It is inconceivable to imagine our world without an Israel.

It was Henrietta Szold, our founder, who, when asked by an artist how she would like to be portrayed, said, “Make my eyes look toward the future.”

Simple but wise words, for the past has been, and we must learn from it, but it is the future that holds unlimited possibilities.

It is possibility that builds hope — hope for a better future, a better world and a better self.

Hadassah has always been an organization of visionaries. That is why it is the leader in research in service to humanity. Hadassah envisions what could be. Its sophisticated, state-of-theart, visionary medical research has led the way, resulting in clinical trials in the treatment of ALS and macular degeneration and experimentation with vaccines for diabetes and cancer.

In the United States we have made our voices heard in advocating for genetic equality in medical research, led in launching a national Coalition for Women’s Health Equity, confirmed our opposition to limit or deny civil rights to members of the LGBTQ community, and stood strong with Israel to combat the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement.

So with this new year, 5777, let us come together in peace to make our community stronger, embrace the stranger as Abraham did, and support the state of Israel.

To each of you and your families, shana tova u’metuka: May you be inscribed in the Book of Life and have a very happy and sweet new year. ■ Paula S. Zucker is the president of Hadassah Greater Atlanta.

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ROSH HASHANAH

Whether to announce the new Show up in the arena that is the moon, the new year or a calling Atlanta Jewish community and fail, together of people, the shofar was our achieve, show great devotions and do cellphone in the biblical age. so by daring greatly. Bite into your Each blast is an SMS, Facebook nonmetaphorical, nondigital apple as message, BBM or iMessage from the Rambam, telling us to “arise, you who are Guest Column fast asleep, and awaken, By the residents of Moishe House Atlanta-Toco you who slumber.”

Hills and Moishe House Atlanta-Inman Park The shofar blowing is the ultimate call to action.

With every blow, the breath should permeate your body, you listen to the shofar this year and ridding your mind of “empty, futile arise. pursuits” and forcing you to “search The seven of us Atlanta Moishe your deeds, repent and be mindful of House residents welcome all JewG-d.” ish twentysomethings in the greater Brené Brown quotes President Atlanta community to be present in Theodore Roosevelt early in her book, Jewish life all year long.

“Daring Greatly”: “It is not the critic Whether through celebrations who counts, not the person who points of Jewish holidays, participation in a out how the strong man stumbles. community service event that works The credit belongs to the person who to better our community, a Jewish is actually in the arena, whose face is learning program or one of the 158 marred by dust and sweat and blood, total programs we hold annually, who strives valiantly; who errs, who “awaken, you who slumber.” ■ comes short again and again … who knows enthusiasms, the great devotions … who at best know in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if they fail, at least fails while daring greatly.”

Rosh Hashanah teaches us to show up in the arena, be fully present and make ourselves vulnerable in an effort to know “great enthusiasms.”

The days from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur are the Yamim Noraim, the Days of Awe. We encourage you to truly make these days and all the days of 5777 awe-full.

Say yes to events throughout the community. Donate to the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta. Celebrate Shabbat. Join a sports league. Lie on the grass at Piedmont Park. Skip down the BeltLine. Volunteer with VIA. Grant yourself a good and sweet new year.

When the shofar blows this holiday, allow yourself to receive that SMS and let it be your call to action.

“Arise” with the Rambam. “Rise up” with “Hamilton.” “Let’s do it” with Home Depot. “Hey! Oh! Let’s go!” with the Ramones. “Seize the day” with the “Newsies.”

Strive valiantly through Atlanta.

We do not need you to mar your face with dust, sweat and blood, but with smiles, accomplishment and maybe some hummus residue.

A Genetic Mitzvah With 5777 nearly upon us, we reflect on the past year and look forward to a bright future as the next year approaches. As we strive to be better people, do more good deeds and live a fulfilling life, we must take into consideration how we can positively affect the lives of our friends, family members and the entire Jewish community.

The public health initiative bringing this issue to the forefront is JScreen, a national nonprofit genetic screening initiative based out of Emory University that brings the innovative technology of genetic screening and peace of mind to your front door.

JScreen tests for over 100 genetic diseases, including more than 40 diseases that are common among people of Jewish ancestry. Even more, JScreen’s genetic counselors provide results by phone or secure video conference so you can ask questions, better understand your results and talk through all of your options.

JScreen is proud to be helping thousands of singles and engaged and married couples across the United

States plan for the health of their future families.

We have a suggestion for your first good deed to start the year off right (and we promise that it’s much easier than starting some new-wave diet). JScreen challenges you to men-

Guest Column

By Karen Arnovitz Grinzaid JScreen

tion genetic screening to five people over the course of the High Holidays.

Whether at a meal, at services or in passing, you have the capacity to change a life. Tell people to check out JScreen.org to learn more, request that a highly subsidized DNA spit kit be mailed to their home, or gift a genetic screening kit to someone they love.

JScreen wishes you and your family a happy, healthy new year. ■ Karen Arnovitz Grinzaid is JScreen director at the Emory University School of Medicine.

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As one year ends and another begins, it’s a great time to both reflect and look forward. Personally, I began a new job in February as the regional director of youth engagement for NFTY Southern Area Region and the Union for Reform Judaism. As if that title weren’t long enough, I also serve as the Machon director for URJ Camp Coleman, which is the staff-in-training program for 12th-graders.

Because most people have no idea what I actually do, I thought I’d take this opportunity to share both some successes of the past year and some goals for the coming one.

My job really has five parts to it. The first is serving as a mentor and adviser for the six teens who’ve been elected to NFTY-SAR regional board.

It is inspiring to work with such a passionate and dedicated group of teens. Three of the six hail from greater Atlanta, and the others live in Charlotte, Jacksonville and Columbia.

The past several months, the board members have worked to reimagine our annual leadership weekend to be more inclusive and offer more skills-based training.

They’ve expanded the opportunities for leadership at the regional level by creating several appointed positions.

In the year to come, we hope to deepen the content of our programming at regional events and to create some programmatic themes that continue throughout the entire year, rather than focus on just one event at a time.

The second part of my job is working with the regional board and local youth groups and their advisers to plan and run seven weekend events a year. This past year we served 531 unique teens (316 from greater Atlanta) at our regional events, each attending on average two or three events.

New for this year, we are offering a winter break ski trip for middleschoolers. We’ll also be offering a few half-day events for middle-schoolers in targeted geographic areas in Atlanta.

The third part of my job is serving as a resource and consultant to congregations looking to strengthen their youth programs.

This year I’ve helped to recruit three new youth professionals in Atlanta and one in Charlotte to attend a new national training program for youth workers offered by the Union for Reform Judaism. These four advis-

ers from our region will be part of a cohort of 40 youth workers from around the country who will participate in in-person and online trainings throughout the year.

I’m also working with several small congregations in Atlanta to start or expand their youth programs.

The fourth part of my job is one of the most exciting and rewarding. Our region has partnered with our sister region in South Florida for many years to run a program called Camp Jenny, which gives children from F.L. Stanton Elementary School the opportunity to receive the love of big “brothers and

Guest Column

By Adam Griff NFTY

sisters,” three nutritious meals a day, fun camp activities, and encouragement for the future during Memorial Day weekend at Camp Coleman.

This year will be the 30th anniversary of the program, and we are already working to plan a special event honoring all of those who have contributed to its success. Along with the regional director from South Florida, I work with our congregations and teens to raise approximately $75,000 each year for this program.

Teens apply to be camp staff, serving as counselors, unit heads, specialists and even the directors. It’s an inspiring program and provides a remarkable experience for the NFTY teens and the F.L. Stanton students.

Finally, I serve as the Camp Coleman Machon director. My first summer at Coleman was fantastic. I had a great group of Machon to work with, and I look forward to seeing many of them come back as staff next summer.

This past summer I worked with some of the camp’s specialists to develop an internship program for Machon. We also piloted a joint program with Mitzvah Corps: 12 of our Machon traveled to Costa Rica for 10 days of service before continuing at camp.

Next summer we’ll be offering a new service opportunity, and I look forward to further integrating my camp and NFTY roles. ■ Adam Griff is the regional director of youth engagement for the North American Federation of Temple Youth’s Southern Area Region.

Growing Size, Impact “More Jewish Teens, More Meaningful Jewish Experiences.”

This is the mission of BBYO, the leading international Jewish youth movement, which has been providing Jewish teens with a safe space to engage with their peers for over 90 years.

Atlanta Council BBYO, in partnership with the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta, has been active in the community for 88 years, and this past year of 5776 saw some of our most memorable programmatic experiences, moments of growth and collaborative partnerships to date: • In November, BBYO partnered with the Breman Museum to bring four Holocaust survivors to a weekend-long convention with 245 teens from Georgia and South Carolina. As part of BBYO’s Global Shabbat to Remember, teens had an opportunity to hear survivors’ stories firsthand, ask questions in a panel format, and share their enthusiasm for Judaism and BBYO with their guests, making an impactful experience for the teens and our guests.

• In the spring, Atlanta was selected as one of six BBYO communities to pilot a Boys Engagement Initiative, which included staff training, programmatic resources and a multiyear grant that allowed us to onboard a new full-time staff position. This development and the installation of a new teen board position focused on eighthgrade recruitment were two of the many factors that helped us reach the milestone of 900 members in Atlanta for the first time in over 13 years.

• One of BBYO’s most impactful programs for teens is the wide array of international immersive experiences we offer each year. This year Atlanta was home to 119 participants in BBYO’s summer programs. Our teens traveled to Italy, Bulgaria, Costa Rica and all over America; participated in social action journeys to Chicago, Washington, Nicaragua and South Africa; learned leadership skills at the Chapter Leadership Training Conference; and were the largest delegation at both BBYO’s International Leadership Seminar in Israel and BBYO’s flagship camp experience, Perlman Summer, which included the International Leadership Training Conference and International Kallah. Atlanta also sent over 120 teens to BBYO’s International Convention, a delegation second in size only to the host community.

• Over our five local conventions during the year, Atlanta Council BBYO partnered with 22 community organizations and guest educators, including Emory’s Institute for the Study of Modern Israel and Center for Israel Education, American Jewish Committee, Alpha Epsilon Pi, Friendship Circle, SOJOURN, Jewish Family & Career Services, and American Hebrew Academy.

• Atlanta Council BBYO also expanded its relationships with partners outside the Jewish community, facilitating an interfaith panel that included two pastors, a representative from the Islamic Speakers Bureau,

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The Language of Space

What if G-d spoke to YOU? What if you knew for sure that the Creator of the universe was communicating with you personally?

How would you expect it to be?

Would it be a booming Cecil B. DeMille voice? Or a whisper in the dark?

Would it be a gentle voice, or it would it be forceful and demanding?

I would like to propose that, in truth, G-d actually does communicate with us and that we are fully capable of understanding G-d.

I believe that G-d’s language is not English or Hebrew but a universal code. I believe that one way G-d speaks to us is through the language of universal space.

Yes, space, the final frontier.

Scientists have told us that man’s future is in outer space. To this our tradition responds, “Man, you ARE in outer space!”

You are on a globe that is spinning and revolving its way through universe. You live on a big blue-green ball that circles a yellow star, and that star is one of trillions and trillions that make up a galaxy that itself is turning and turning and turning in space.

G-d is saying to us: “This is your world. I am giving you a space in it, your very own place to be. And I am giving you a physical body so that you can participate in the world that I have created. It is My proclamation of being, like the cry of joy you give forth when you are born. You have a place here that is all yours.

“Know then that the whole world is your home. Don’t look just to the walls of your house and say that this is your home or even to the city in which you dwell or to the country you pledge allegiance to. No. Look up to the stars.

When you sit by the ocean late at night and feel in your heart that there is a Creator, that is Me talking to you.

“Yes, you are flying through outer space, and the whole universe is your home. When you think of the universe as your home, you will feel connected to all of humanity, and you will consider all humanity to be your family.

“Look around to the people who are sharing this space with you. Look closely at the people who surround you. There are many people in your world. This is their home, too. The clouds are also theirs. The rain is also

theirs. The plants that grow in the earth are theirs, too.

“You are sharing your world with others. So ask yourself: How much of this world do you think you deserve?

Some go homeless and have no place to lay their heads at night. So how nice

Guest Column

Rabbi David A. Katz Congregation Dor Tamid

do you think your house should be?

How secure do you think you should feel?

“When you watch the poor on TV or see the homeless in your own streets, this is My voice speaking to you. It is then that you will be called upon to respond. My voice will urge you to share your space and all that is in it with those around you.

“And if you would just listen to that voice and be ready to rearrange your space by sharing what you have, then all of you will have enough. No one will go hungry, and all of you will have a place to rest your heads.

“You have looked up to the sky, and you have looked around you to your fellow human beings. Now look down to the earth, the very ground that I have created for you. Look at all the flowers that fill your world and ask yourself: What purpose do all these gorgeous flowers serve? I am G-d; I could have created only one type of flower. In fact, I could have created only one type of ocean wave and only one type of sunset. But, no, I have created a world of variety, a space full of wonderful and awesome beauty — beauty that changes from day to day and from moment to moment.

“You are listening for a booming voice from heaven? C’mon, you live in the age of movies. You should be more attuned to messages delivered in pictures. Because that’s how my message is being transmitted to you. I have created beauty that renews itself day by day. I have created a moving picture in front of your very eyes that sings its song of glory every day. Why do you think I created such a world? Sit back in your seat. This beauty is there for you to appreciate.

“I have reserved a place for you in My world, and even though there are

L’ Shana Tova L’Shana5770 Tova 5777

ROSH HASHANAH

“And when you are filled with My presence, this is how I want you to respond. I want you to say to Me: ‘I will share what I have. I want to rearrange the physical world so that everyone has enough. I want to walk down the streets and not feel uncomfortable when I see a homeless person. I want Rosalyn Bush, my feelings of discomfort to vanish.

I Director/Founder want to respond to your voice by help6215 Black Water Trail ing to reorganize the world’s resourcSandy Springs, GA 30328 es. And I will have faith in You, faith 404-256-5542 that I will not be diminished when I the Atlanta Jewish Community A WishingWishing the Atlanta Jewish Community heed Your voice.”

A Year of Peace and Health, and a Blessing of Peace and Health, and a Blessing G-d speaks to us through the In the Book of Life universal space in which we dwell, through the human scenes that evoke From the stirrings of our hearts. With this from The Bush Centre for Ballet new year 5777, let each one of us hear The Bush Centre for Ballet that voice of G-d. ■

In The Book of Life

L’ Shana Tova 5770

Rabbi David A. Katz is the interim spiritual leader at Congregation Dor Tamid.

Redirect Georgia Taxes To Aid Jewish Education The Atlanta Jewish community is diverse, sprawling and growing. It is very much a collection of communities, more than a singular place, with each of our various schools representing significant communal hubs.

The past few decades, study after study has indicated that one of the best ways to promote “being Jewish” is to provide Jewish education for as many of our children as we can.

Nonetheless, whichever corner you are in, you are likely to hear that “it’s expensive to be Jewish.”

Many of those who want to engage and incorporate Judaism more into their lives cite cost as a significant barrier, especially when it comes to educating their children.

So how can we bridge the divide between a community desire for living a Jewish life, the centrality of Jewish education and the ability to afford it?

As we are thinking Jewishly during the High Holiday season, we each have an opportunity, at virtually no cost, to provide scholarships to achieve this goal of more affordable Jewish education.

We can do this because, in 2008, the state of Georgia set aside funds to allow Georgia taxpayers to reallocate some of their state taxes for scholarships to private schools. The ALEF Fund is your vehicle to redirect some of your income taxes.

Year

Since 2008, the ALEF Fund has raised more than $20.7 million for 2,445 scholarships for children to attend Jewish preschools, day schools and high schools.

In your preparation for the High

Rosalyn Bush, Director/Founder

Rosalyn Bush, Director/Founder

6215 Black Water Trail Sandy Springs, GA 30328 404-256-5542

6215 Black Water Trail Sandy Springs, GA 30328 404-256-5542 Wishing the Atlanta Jewish Community A Year of Peace and Health, and a Blessing

In the Book of Life

Guest Column

By Mitchell Kopelman and Jeffrey Lapp ALEF Fund

Holidays, please take five minutes and go to www.aleffund.org to complete an application. Thanks to you, hundreds of local students will receive scholarships toward their Jewish education.

Our hope for the coming year is that as a result of this program, more parents will have the option to give their children a Jewish education, and our community preschools, day schools and high schools will be overflowing with children learning about our heritage, values and mores.

L’shana tova for a happy and healthy new year of helping others. If you have any questions, please contact Jared Novoseller, ALEF Fund manager, at jnovoseller@jewishatlanta.org. ■ Mitchell Kopelman (mitchell. kopelman­@hawcpa.com) is the president of the ALEF Fund. Jeffrey Lapp (jeffrey. lapp@ubs.com) serves as secretary/treasurer of the ALEF Fund.

From

The Bush Centre for Ballet

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billions of you, each one of you has a front-row seat.”

“My name,” G-d says, “is HaMakom, the Holy Place, the Place that waits for you. Come here. Do not avoid Me. I have formed you, and you are Mine.

Come to Me, and I will be present for you.

“Build a dwelling place for Me so that I might live among you. Build temples and come to them. Gather together to acknowledge Me. Give Me a place!

“And when you enter your houses of worship, don’t listen for a booming voice from heaven. Don’t think that you are praying when you hear others sing or talk. Though you may be congregating with others, don’t be distracted by them. Because, in fact, it is you I want to see and hear. It is your presence that I am concerned with.

I am watching you! It is you and Me, sharing this space together.

www.7thwavepictures.com AJT 65

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SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

The Miracle of Birth

AJT 66

Have you ever observed parents holding their newborn for the first time? The infant is either crying, trying out its eyelids, or moving its lips up and down. The baby is helpless; it does nothing consciously. And unless an adult takes full and total control, this infant will be unable to survive.

Thank goodness, parents feel an attachment to this infant like nothing they have ever felt previously. They will dote on this infant: They will dress it, clean it, feed it, play with it, talk to it, and sacrifice nights and days for the welfare of this child. They will do this with love and total devotion and commitment.

They will not, however, receive any compensation. The infant will continue to cry when it feels like it, will be fed whenever it feels like eating, and will return every effort of its parents with a straight, blank stare.

Yet this will not diminish the parents’ love, and everyone around will declare the baby “cute” and “adorable.”

The child may turn out to be an Abraham, a Moses, a King David or a Queen Esther. The infant could change the world or be a kind, sweet and helpful member of humanity. The infant could also be pure trouble, or worse.

The birth of a child, therefore, seems to mean little in the scheme of things. It is impossible to know the outcome of the investment by the parents; the greatest and the worst all came into the world the same way.

But the parents are normally overcome with deep emotion at birth, shedding at least a tear or two. For the parents, this child is an extension of themselves. It is their essence lying in their arms. And when it comes to essence, nothing can get in the way.

The joy upon birth, which is impossible to describe, requires clarification. Both materially and spiritually, the infant was seemingly better off while in the mother’s womb.

Its body is completed months before birth. It is protected from the elements and is fed constantly. Not a moment of crying or discomfort is present for the fetus in the womb.

Similarly, the sages of the Talmud describe the soul of the fetus as being taught the basics of the entire Torah while in a spirit of sanctity in utero.

In the scheme of things, birth seems to be a more appropriate time of concern than celebration.

The answer is, indeed, about the essence — of the parents and the

infant. From the moment of birth, the infant’s life begins to function in its intended manner: body and soul. Even a newborn must begin to use its own physical faculties for life to endure.

The infant’s life is now its own.

True, the child will need decades of guidance, help and assistance to blossom into his or her full potential.

At the same time, from the moment

Guest Column

By Rabbi Yossi Lew Chabad of Peachtree City

of birth, the essence of the complete person begins its revelation.

Birth is a celebration for the infant and the parents because only at birth, freed from total dependency on the mother, can the true essence of the child begin its revelation. This is also the source of celebrating a birthday each year. It is the progress of this element, or the resolution to make progress, that is being celebrated.

Rosh Hashanah, the day marking the creation of the world, thus carries a tremendous, powerful significance: Although the year is in its infancy, it is precisely at Rosh Hashanah when the entire year can be shaped and directed. It is a new slate. New energy is introduced, with untold potential.

How will this coming year be remembered? This question is pertinent to every human being, the highest form of creation: On the day of Rosh Hashanah, 5,777 years ago, the Almighty blew a divine breath into a clump of dust from the earth, creating the soul, the life, of the first human beings.

Each year, this history comes back into play: What will the human soul do with the renewed energy and potential beamed into this world to create a “new year”?

The above is even more pertinent to the Jewish people, who are commanded by the Torah to celebrate and commemorate Rosh Hashanah. These two days contain the call of the shofar, surrounded by extra prayers, customs and foods. It is a birthday celebration with an opportunity to focus on the birth and emergence of new potential in all matters pertaining to Judaism.

When thinking back, this past year seems to have been more shaky and troubling than any in recent memory — for all humans, but especially for the Jewish people.

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ROSH HASHANAH The world, led by the spineless United Nations, holds Israel to different standards. Condemnation continues to pour out of that sorry institution against Israel but never against dystopias like North Korea and Sudan.

When approaching the birth of a new year, with its potentials and hopes, it would help to turn back to the birth of a child and the joy and celebration of its essence.

With that in mind, here is a thought. While Israel’s being held to higher standards is fueled by pure lies, ignoring of facts, and, first and foremost, by rank anti-Semitism, nonetheless a positive point is present in all this: Each Jewish person is bequeathed an inheritance. This is the Torah.

It’s Time to Act First, a contemporary New Year’s wish: Almighty G-d, my prayer for 5777 is for a fat bank account and a thin body. Please don’t mix these up as You did last year. Amen.

There is no question that Judaism is actioncentric.

Philosophy, good intentions, feelings and identity are all wonderful and important. We should all feel very Jewish and be good people inside, but Judaism demands action.

I hear many people say that when it comes to Judaism and their relationship with G-d, what is important is what is in their hearts: Jewish feeling and identity.

What is strange is that with almost every other aspect of life, they recognize that it is the action that counts in the end.

Imagine in a marriage, a man says, “I love in my heart, but I won’t express the love in my speech or behavior.” See how far that relationship goes.

Imagine you tell your boss, “In my heart I felt like coming to work” or “I

Guest Column

Most of the world is familiar with its contents and is aware that Jewish people are expected to follow what it says. The Torah presents a true higher standard for matters pertaining to body and soul. Standards for food, for modesty and for treatment of one another, as well as standards in how to worship the Almighty.

While anti-Semitism and ignorance must be eliminated, the positive side of the higher standards should not be ignored. At Rosh Hashanah, the birth of the year and the anniversary of the birth of all humans, each Jewish person is expected to do something,

anything, toward the effort of maintaining the higher standard.

My family joins me in wishing all shana tova u’mesuka — a good and sweet year. May this coming year bring each of you good health and prosperity, both material and spiritual, nachas (good news and pleasure) from your children and grandchildren, and much success in all your endeavors. And may it be a peaceful year, a year of growth, and a year of inspired life for all Jews and for all people in the entire world. ■ Rabbi Yossi Lew is the co-director of Chabad of Peachtree City.

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had good intentions for getting the job done.” Let me know how long you keep the job.

There is an old Chinese proverb: Talk doesn’t cook rice.

Remember, people will judge you by your actions, not your intentions. You may have a heart of gold, but so does a hard-boiled egg (author unknown).

In Judaism, action is the key. During these High Holidays, let us think about new Jewish actions we can take.

Wishing you a happy and sweet new year. ■ Rabbi Ephraim Silverman is the codirector of Chabad of Cobb.

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L’Shana Tova from

404-CUT-TREE We Save Trees Too!

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

The Middle East continues to be plagued by barbaric viciousness.

Europe has been beset by terrible terrorism as well. The Far East has seen its issues, including passenger planes disappearing. The challenges in Africa continue to be exacerbated by sectarian and religious violence.

For the Jewish people, troubles have exploded during this past year.

Vicious attacks in Israel and elsewhere. A dreadful campaign, specifically on college campuses, to delegitimize Israel, including boycotting its products. This is all on top of the continued threat to its existence that Israel faces each day, especially intensified by the developments of this past year by an implacable enemy in Iran.

AJT 67

L’Shana Tovah

Melanie B. White, CRS Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage Life Member Million Dollar Club Certified Marketing Specialist

Office 770.396.6696 Cell 404.915.9622

Realtor.MelanieWhite@gmail.com

Happy New Year!

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Tax Audit Advisory

AJT 68

404.253.7500 www.frazierdeeter.com Atlanta - Alpharetta - Nashville - Tampa

ROSH HASHANAH

This Year, Don’t Pray I have a confession to make: This Rosh Hashanah, I’m not going to pray.

I won’t be alone. My inspiration goes way back. You see, it happened about 2,000 years ago.

Rabbi Akiva, whose journey in Torah study began after the age of 40, was one of the greatest sages in Jewish history and a leader of our people at the time.

Once during a great drought, the Talmudic sages decreed a fast and public prayers, but to no avail — the rain did not fall. Then Rabbi Akiva came to lead the prayers, and he opened by saying, “Avinu Malkeinu, our Father, our King, we have no king but You.” At once, his prayers were accepted, and rain fell. When the people saw that he was answered with this prayer, they added it to their own prayers, and today those powerful words are part of our own.

Rabbi Akiva did not pray. He connected to his Creator as a father and as a king with all of his heart.

Three hundred years ago in the synagogue of the holy Rabbi Yisrael Baal Shem Tov, great men gathered for the services of the holiest day of the year. They were swaying and singing, reciting ancient prayers. And then a sound was heard from the crowd: “Koo-kariku!”

The congregants turned to find a young farm boy wholeheartedly singing the song of a rooster, “koo-kariku!”

All those nearby tried quieting the boy until the Baal Shem Tov turned from his intense prayer and motioned to them: “Leave him.”

Later the curious congregants approached their rabbi and asked why he had asked them to leave the boy to his noisemaking.

The Baal Shem Tov responded, “What his sincere call of koo-kariku was able to accomplish on high was far greater than that of any of your prayers.”

You see, that farm boy did not pray. He connected to his Creator in the only language he knew, and yet it was with all of his heart.

Our son Zelig was just 2 years old when a heavy rainstorm fell in Atlanta. Our kitchen door then was part window, and little Zelig rushed to peer out. Quite amazed at the sheer amount of rainfall, he said loudly: “HaShem, turn it off! It’s too much!”

Amused, I sent the story to my

family WhatsApp. My father found the beauty in his words.

Zelig did not pray. He simply connected with his Creator as a young child with all of his heart.

Jews don’t pray. We do something called tefillah, which means to connect.

We open our hearts and speak to our Father, our King. To our Creator, with whom we have a deep relationship.

Guest Column

By Shifra Sharfstein Chabad Midtown

And the words written in the siddur, our prayer book, what role do they play? Requests for health, wealth, clarity, peace. Poetic meditation speaking of angels and the beauty found within nature.

I’ve spent years learning the history and depth of those words, and I continue to find inspiration and deeper insight every year. But one thing we must know: These divinely inspired words were designed to reawaken our desire to personally connect with our Creator.

They call Yom Kippur a Day of Atonement.

That couldn’t be more true.

It is a day of At-One-Ment.

It’s about connecting, about the relationship.

In every relationship we need to spend time reconnecting. With my children I try to give each one a few minutes daily of mommy time. Time that is spent completely focused on them and whatever they would like to do or tell me.

My parents taught me to go out with my husband every week, just the two of us, to simply talk to each other.

OK, sometimes that trip will be to Costco, but, hey, we make it work.

In every relationship we have, with friends, family and our relationship with our Creator, we need to take the time to reconnect.

So this Rosh Hashanah, I’m not going to pray. I’m going to focus on my relationship with G-d.

We’re going to spend the day talking, and I hope I do it with all my heart. ■ Shifra Sharfstein is the co-director of Chabad at Georgia Tech and Georgia State.

ROSH HASHANAH

Chaya Mushka Offers Innovative Opportunities The Chaya Mushka Children’s House Elementary-Middle School has begun its school year with top-quality programs to enable your children to truly maximize their learning.

We believe that education is more than teaching students information or teaching for a test. It is about inspiring the hearts and minds of students so that they become lifelong learners.

Under Rabbi Michoel Druin, CMCH uses an array of learning opportunities. These learning tools include: • Gradelink — With this communication portal, parents are able to follow children’s homework, class assignments, tests, grades, etc. They are also able to download Gradelink as an app and set up alerts to be better informed about any updates. The students are excited to see their progress in real time.

• Smartboards — Welcome to the most advanced in smartboard technology (both hardware and software).

With a grant from Center for Initiatives in Jewish Education, our school purchased three of the newest smartboards. Our teachers, who have been trained in the use of smartboards, will apply this 21st century tool as another

means for ensuring our children are getting all the cutting-edge opportunities available in the world of education.

• A tailored education — CMCH strives to provide an education that is tailored to each child. Our classrooms are set up to be modern learning environments with collaborative learning desks, computers, lockers, science carts and more. They enable us to implement blended learning, differentiated instruction and Montessori classrooms.

• Curriculum — CMCH provides students an innovative schedule, an updated and sequenced Judaic curriculum, and current formative assessments. The results of these standardized assessments will be shared with the parents every trimester in our effort to keep parents informed and involved in their children’s education.

With the addition of new technology and innovative ways of educating the students, our teachers will continue to develop relationships through their passion and care. This is, after all, the basis of real learning. We look forward to a wonderful year for all of the 160 CMCH students from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. ■

A Sound Tradition

keit values of wisdom, spirit, respect, righteousness and community.

Our shofar ritual, because of the many children who participate and

Guest Column

Rabbi Micah Lapidus The Davis Academy

the many meanings the shofar conveys, is a reminder of the special diversity that resides at the Davis Academy and in all of our Jewish communities.

Our unique faces, voices, stories, hopes and dreams are an amazing testament to the strength, resolve and enduring mission of the Jewish people.

The sounds of the Davis Academy are, in fact, always bright and beautiful. We welcome all to visit to hear the sounds of laughter, music and learning any time of year. L’shana tova! ■ Rabbi Micah Lapidus is the director of Jewish and Hebrew studies at the Davis Academy.

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

The days leading up to Rosh Hashanah are exciting ones at the Davis Academy. Among the many and varied ways that our school community anticipates the holiday is our daily shofar blowing during morning announcements.

Picture scores of Davis Academy children of all ages carrying shofars of all types. Imagine the cacophony as each child blows the shofar to the best of his or her ability.

It’s a beautiful sound.

Throughout the centuries, the sound of the shofar has come to symbolize many different things. Here at the Davis Academy, the sound of the shofar resonates with ancient and modern messages.

The shofar proudly proclaims that we are here, confident in our Jewish identity. It beckons to us to honor our personal past and collective history.

It reminds us of our commitment to tikkun olam and social action. It evokes for us the spirituality that permeates all aspects of Jewish life and practice.

It challenges us to live our menschlich-

AJT 69

ROSH HASHANAH

Life in the Real World

Wishing all of our Valued Customers and

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Friends a happy, healthy sweet new year

AJT 70

Thanks for another year of support

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One evening as I was out strolling past our synagogue, I was taken in by a peculiar sight. One after another, cars were slowing down on Winters Chapel Road right in front of the shul entrance, then quickly driving off.

My first thought: “Wow, we must have an excellent advertising campaign this year. Look at all these people who are slowing down to check out Beth Shalom!”

Then I noticed that they had their smartphones out as they passed. I thought: “Wow, they’re even taking pictures of the shul!

How marvelous is that?”

For a moment my suspicious side took over and I wondered whether some nefarious group was casing our synagogue before the holidays. (In today’s crazy world, it’s hard for Jewish professionals to avoid having our thoughts travel down that worrisome path.)

But as I watched how they were holding their smartphones, it hit me: They weren’t in the least bit interested in the shul, sadly. What I was witnessing was the latest addictive Internet game craze. They were all playing “Pokémon Go” on their smartphones.

For those of you who have no idea what I’m referring to (and good for you, since that means you have better things to do than live in a virtual world chasing make-believe monsters), this is how the game works. In the world of Pokémon, cute monsters lurk everywhere, and your job is to find and capture them. The smartphone app uses your phone’s GPS to determine your real-world location, then overlays an image of where you are along with various Pokémon on your screen.

You level up as you catch more and more of these adorable creatures.

As it turns out, the good folks at Nintendo placed a Pokémon right next to the sign outside the Beth Shalom entrance, and we didn’t even pay them to do it. (Had we thought of it, it would have been a brilliant marketing idea.)

As I stood watching the stream of cars slow in front of the shul and quickly drive off as the proud owners of newly captured virtual creatures, it dawned on me what a profound insight was embedded in that surreal scene. I wondered: “Is this is what it has come to? People doing a shul drive-by, oblivious to the meaning and transformative power within, only to catch a virtual something that isn’t even real?”

This is precisely the challenge posed to us by the High Holidays. Too

often the spiritual side of the holidays gets short-shrift as we become overly focused on the artificial and neglect what is supposed to be happening deep within ourselves.

In the words of Pirkei Avot (Ethics of the Fathers), “Al tistakel b’kankan, elah b’mah she-yesh bo”: “Don’t look at the cover; concentrate on that which is within.”

Guest Column

By Rabbi Mark Zimmerman Congregation Beth Shalom

If you want to deepen and enhance your life, you start with your soul or neshama. The High Holidays are all about seeing our true, inner selves.

But in this new world, more and more of us live in cyberspace. We’re no longer rooted in real communities.

We live life in a virtual world where all consequences are temporary, lasting only until the game is restarted.

But real life doesn’t work that way. Technology has allowed the real to be overtaken by the virtual. We interact with real people, face to face, far less than we used to. Our “community” now consists mainly of Facebook “friends” and fellow gamers.

As the community where we once cherished real interaction is slowly replaced with online social networks, Jewish traditions are being cast aside as antiquated baggage. When the genius of our Jewish heritage no longer dictates our core values, the surrounding environment ends up doing so.

There is too much depth and meaning in our own spiritual backyards to allow that to happen. As Jews, we must never shy away from embracing our distinctiveness or from aspiring to be more than what society expects of us.

So what are the most important values and principles that you hold dear? That is the central question we need to ask ourselves during the High Holidays. And we should use these holidays to formulate our action plan, turning our aspirations from the intangible into the real. It will take prayer, focus and real introspection for us to get that job done. In 5777, may we all succeed in the task. ■ Rabbi Mark Zimmerman is the spiritual leader of Congregation Beth Shalom.

ROSH HASHANAH

Backing Israel’s Soldiers

Program, which grants college scholarships to Israeli combat veterans of modest means.

We in Atlanta and the Southeast proudly serve these brave young men and women. During the 2016-17 academic year, the Atlanta community is sponsoring 35 FIDF IMPACT! scholarships for IDF veterans to pursue their academic dreams.

Guest Column

By Seth R. Baron FIDF

Three years ago, as part of the FIDF Adopt-a-Brigade Program, the FIDF Southeast Region, which includes the Atlanta community, adopted the IDF’s Combat Intelligence Collection Corps, for which we have raised more than $925,000 — and hope to surpass $1 million before the end of 2016.

The program allows supporters to go beyond their donations and to get more involved, providing financial aid for IDF soldiers in need and their families, supporting Lone Soldiers, and funding general well-being activities and weeks of rest and recuperation for soldiers of the adopted brigade.

FIDF also recognizes the important need to think about the next generation and to recruit and cultivate future leaders. The FIDF Southeast Region’s Young Leadership, under the guidance of our development director, Jamie Perry, has seen tremendous growth the past two years and has become an essential part of FIDF’s success in Atlanta.

Our Young Leadership Casino Night in Atlanta has become one of our flagship fundraising events for young professionals in the Atlanta community, and we continue to expand our programming throughout the year.

On behalf of FIDF, I wish you a good and sweet new year — shana tova. Please help us wish the same to Israel’s brave men and women in uniform by signing our Rosh Hashanah card online at www.fidf.org/ signthecard. For more information or to support FIDF, please visit fidf.org/ Southeast, or call 678-250-9030. ■ Seth R. Baron is the Southeast executive director of Friends of the Israel Defense Forces.

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SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

In mid-September a record 5,500 Lone Soldiers — Israel Defense Forces soldiers with no immediate family in Israel — gathered at Israel’s largest water park, just outside Tel Aviv, for the largest-ever Lone Soldier Fun Day, a day of rest and recreation hosted by Friends of the Israel Defense Forces in partnership with the IDF. There are some 6,400 Lone Soldiers from 80 countries serving in the IDF today.

Almost 900 of them are American, with 30 of them originally from Georgia.

The Fun Day is just the latest example of how FIDF cares for Lone Soldiers financially, socially and emotionally during and after their challenging military service. FIDF also sponsors flights for Lone Soldiers to visit their families and friends in their countries of origin. FIDF’s Lone Soldiers Program is one of its flagship initiatives — and a source of pride for the Atlanta community.

FIDF’s national director and CEO, Maj. Gen. (Res.) Meir Klifi-Amir, recently said: “The Lone Soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces, who choose to leave their lives behind and come to serve in the IDF with a strong sense of mission and mutual responsibility, act in the most noble way. It is an expression of solidarity and Zionism — and represents one of the greatest contributions of world Jewry to the state of Israel, both from those who come to serve and also from their parents who instilled these values in them.”

He added: “Military service brings numerous challenges and struggles, and without the support system of those closest to the soldier, it’s almost impossible to succeed. As a parent, I personally experienced many days of fear and worry. I ask myself how American parents must feel when their children serve in one of the most sensitive regions in the world, thousands of miles away from home, when they get information from the media about the situation in Israel. That’s why we are also committed to providing these parents of Lone Soldiers the necessary support.”

Besides caring for the well-being of Israel’s Lone Soldiers, FIDF initiates and supports many other educational and well-being programs for IDF soldiers. The Lone Soldiers at the FIDF Fun Day also received essential information about life after their military service, including information about the FIDF IMPACT! Scholarship

AJT 71

L’Shana Tovah!

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AJT 72

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ROSH HASHANAH

Land, Legacy, Bonds This year during the High Holidays, new generations of parents and children filling the sanctuaries and classrooms of our synagogues have: • Never used a dial to make a phone call.

• Never typed directly on paper.

• Never lived in a world without a state of Israel.

That last “never” means: • There has always been an IDF. • They have always been able to pray at the Kotel.

• They can eat falafel at the JCC. One way to ensure that the nevers and alwayses continue is by investing in Israel Bonds during the High Holidays and throughout the year.

For 65 years the Israel Bonds organization has provided Israel’s supporters with a rewarding opportunity to strengthen Israel and participate in its economic achievements. Closing in on $40 billion in sales since 1951, Israel Bonds, like the sky above and the ground below, has always been there for Israel. When you invest, you too will be there, like Israel Bonds, standing with Israel and the Jewish people.

The 5777 High Holidays Campaign is an opportunity to send a message of support to the people of Israel and against BDS. Every investment sends a clear message to Israel’s enemies and to the world: We are determined, we are united, and we are strong.

Most of us learned about Israel Bonds from our parents and grandparents. Now it is our turn to act and teach the next generation.

A physical impulse drove the first generation of Israel Bonds investors — and the next two. It was a need they felt in their kishkes, born from countless generations of longing and hope.

Tears often smudged the words “State of Israel” on the check as many were overcome with the reality and the meaning and the emotion of investing in the state of Israel. The long-dreamed miracle of a Jewish state, harbored for many generations, had come true in their lifetime.

The new generations will never have the same gut connection their grandparents felt. That’s a good thing.

History created the longing and the yearning and the kishkes connection, but that era is gone, never to return.

It is up to us to create a different connection, a more joyful and mean-

ingful “head and heart” connection, for our children and grandchildren.

Israel Bonds can help us do it.

Embedded in every Israel Bond is mitzvah, Zionism and legacy: • Mitzvah. It’s an opportunity and obligation to build, strengthen and support our homeland.

• Zionism. Israel is where we come

Guest Column

By Arthur Katz and Brad Young Israel Bonds

from. It is a large contributor to our identity, character and strength as individuals and as a community.

• Legacy. Israel is our immortality, our connection to generations that came before and those that will follow.

These values are the bridge for current and future generations to connect to a nation: • That drained the swamps and made the desert bloom and has taught the world for decades how to grow fruit, vegetables and grains with less water and greater yield.

• Whose innovative technology sector attracts billions of dollars in foreign investment, hosts development centers for the world’s leading hightech companies and generates global demand for Israeli products.

• Is responsible for some part of a quarter of the medicines, treatments and technologies in use today (The Times of Israel, March).

Not just your grandparents’ Israel Bonds, we can be your Israel Bonds.

The past few years, much effort has been directed to make investing, reinvesting and redeeming the bonds simpler and faster.

Gift bonds are good for any occasion ($36, $54, $72, $90, available only online at www.israelbonds.com).

Other options begin at $100.

Israel Bonds are accessible to almost everyone. Current terms are two to 10 years. All bonds are in book-entry form (no certificates to store, lose, forget about or sign), and redemption checks are mailed automatically at maturity. Instead of cash or a check, give an Israel Bond — a gift and a mitzvah. ■ Arthur Katz is the chairman of the Atlanta Israel Bonds Advisory Council.

Brad Young is the executive director of Israel Bonds’ Southeast Region.

ROSH HASHANAH

Everyday Aid to Israel region start to understand that capitulating to pressure to avoid Israel is not in their best interest.

Conexx’s dedication to and support for Israel is rooted in facilitating pathways to business-driven relationships among diverse groups of men, women and the next generation of Israel supporters in the Southeast and

Guest Column

By Benjamin Fink and Guy Tessler Conexx

within the Start-Up Nation.

These efforts result in a profound and long-lasting impact on the ways in which they and their companies relate to Israel. Conexx connects people to Israel who might not otherwise be linked in tangible ways that are different from most other organizations.

Similarly, Conexx is able to work directly with Israelis. Our organization promotes and encourages Israeli tech companies to learn about the many assets the Southeastern United States has to offer, and we encourage them to become part of the local, innovation-focused community.

As part of our mission, Conexx supports Israeli innovators and entrepreneurs as they enter the U.S. market and helps them become inspiring ambassadors for Israel’s contributions while creating value on both sides.

Conexx is proud of the role it has played in increasing economic development and enhancing job creation in the Southeast by attracting Israeli companies to our region.

It is, unfortunately, a safe bet that Israel will continue to need our support in every way possible. You don’t have to be in business, tech or innovation to join Conexx and support Israel.

We’re not a national organization.

We are an Atlanta-based, Southeastern organization that relies on local support. Conexx is an opportunity for you to support Israel and Israelis in a way no other organization does. For more information, visit www.conexx.org.

May this year bring happiness, peace and prosperity to the world.

Shana tova u’metukah. ■ Benjamin Fink is a shareholder with Berman Fink Van Horn and the chair of Conexx: America Israel Business Connector. Guy Tessler is the president of Conexx.

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SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Innovation should be a Hebrew word. Israel has become the go-to source for groundbreaking, innovative inventions, technologies and businesses.

(By the way, the Hebrew word for innovation is chedoosh).

In the first half of 2016, Israeli startup companies sold for $3.32 billion. Indeed, the Start-Up Nation is making strides every day in medical technology, cybersecurity, financial technology and so many other areas.

But while Israel succeeds in the world of business, she struggles in the world of public opinion.

This past year, like many others, has been a difficult one for Israel. While violence and terrorism have struck within her borders, Israel is also at the brunt of a rising tide of renewed antiIsrael sentiment.

With the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement all over the country, many people, especially college students and young professionals, have been left with a sense of helplessness. That is why it is important that we not only find our voices for Israel and stand up against anti-Israel and anti-Semitic rhetoric, but also that we actively support Israel.

But what kind of support will elicit the most change? Posting on social media, attending meetings and rallies, being politically active, making donations — yes, those are all incredibly important to drive awareness and support to Israel. but why not actually assist Israelis, and by extension Israel, in their livelihoods, their businesses?

Conexx: America Israel Business Connector is an organization that supports Israelis and Israel at the very heart of the matter. We’re an organization capable of changing people’s lives in real time. Conexx is the premier connector creating business opportunities for Israelis looking to expand in the United States and for American companies and business people looking to access Israeli innovation.

Operating in the Southeast for 25 years, Conexx has run programs, events and business missions that help shine a light on Israel as a source for good. Conexx engages with and guides governments, companies, academia and other organizations that might not otherwise demonstrate an interest in or affiliation with Israel.

It is through these activities that companies and organizations in our

AJT 73

ROSH HASHANAH fun 5777

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ROSH HASHANAH

WORD FIND

Rosh Hashanah is observed on the first two days of Tishrei. Rosh Hashanah literally means “Head of the Year” as it marks the beginning of the Jewish year. It is actually the anniversary of mankind, the day that HaShem created Adam and Chava. The primary theme of the day is to accept HaShem as King. The central mitzvah of Rosh Hashanah is the sounding of the shofar, the ram's horn.

The shofar is sounded on both days of Rosh Hashanah, but it is not sounded on Shabbat. The sound of the shofar represents the trumpet blast when people proclaim their king, as well as a call for teshuva (repentance). The day is the first of the “Ten Days of Repentance” which ends on Yom Kippur. The shofar is blasted 100 times. The traditional greeting on Rosh Hashanah is "May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year". It is also customary to go to a body of water and symbolically cast our sins into it and recite Tashlich prayers. On Rosh Hashanah, candles are lit each night and Kiddush is said at the evening and daytime meals.

Can you discover the Secret Message? Find and circle the bold, italicized words from the Rosh Hashanah summary in the Word Find. Write the unused Word Find letters in the spaces below to spell the Secret Message.

Have Fun!

M R O S H E Y D O U

F

B E

C R A

T

K

I

B E D

Y

I

A R N N A D E

E

L

S

S

S

Which one is different?

Hint: Rosh Hashana PRAYER

TESHUVA

ROSH CHODESH

HALLEL

SHOFAR

CROSSWORD Complete the crossword by translating each Hebrew word into English. Use the reference from Parsha Bereishit, read on Rosh Hashanah, for help.

ACROSS

2

3

4 5 6

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

7

AJT 74

N G R E

I

A

D

T

S

E D E R T O R Y

A F

H H

M G B

A S

T

L

O N S

R A S D G

A O O S O U N D E O A O D D Y O B O T L

H B

I

E C

S O D A R M E

A

L

S

SECRET MESSAGE

___ ___ __ _________ ___ ______ ___ _ ____ ____

YOM TERUAH

1

A

I

C H A V

A

spot the difference

A C H A Y W

1. ‫( זרע‬21:12) 2. ‫( משתה‬21:8) 5. ‫( שמע‬21:6) 6. ‫( רב‬21:34) 7. ‫( באר‬21:19)

DOWN

1. ‫( שבע‬21:23) 3. ‫( היום‬21:26) 4. ‫( שבע‬21:28)

gematria

Hint: A sound the Shofar makes.

‫ד‬ +‫א‬

‫רי‬ ÷‫ג‬

‫כו‬ - ‫טז‬

‫ס‬ +‫מ‬

‫ד‬ x‫ק‬ ‫ת‬

‫א ב ג ד ה ו ז ח ט י כ ל מ נ ס ע פ צ ק ר ש ת‬ 400 300 200 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10

9

WORD CMRLESAB

RFEIONFG ________ BLMA ____

NBDI ____ SETT ____

8

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

(scramble)

ENALG _____ RTAAL _____

Hint: The Binding of Yitzchak

CANDLELIGHTING IN JERUSALEM 5:43 P.M. weekly chinuch podcast - about 150 posted! parsha + chinuch < 5 minutes www.thefamousabba.com/podcasts

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ROSH HASHANAH

The Path to Make Every Day Better I heard about a preacher who lamented that for an hour each week

Guest Column

By Billy Planer Etgar 36

his congregation would gather and there would be love and harmony among the parishioners, but the minute services were over, they would be honking and cursing at each other in the parking lot as they drove out.

During the Etgar 36 summer journey, we spend a day at the Grand Canyon, and I have the teens go sit in silence around the rim of the canyon, pondering their lives and the issues they may be grappling with. When we gather again as a group, they all reflect on what a spiritual and affirming time

Answering Shofar’s Call In the coming days, Jews throughout the world will celebrate Rosh Hashanah with the sounding of the shofar — a sound that calls us to a higher aspiration and asks us to commit ourselves to a year that not only is pleasant, but is filled with meaning, purpose and service to causes greater than ourselves.

Great schools — those that promote a culture of study, with rich content and critical discussion of great ideas — have enabled the Jewish people to survive and thrive through triumph and tragedy. We must ensure that Jewish schools offer students an environment and culture where they can cultivate the wisdom, critical thinking and ethical judgment that empower them to change the world.

At the Weber School, we engage in teaching and learning every day in an effort to fulfill the higher aspiration represented by the call of the shofar.

In this spirit, we launched the new year at the Weber School with a record student enrollment and innovations in curriculum and programming: • An expanded array of advanced interdisciplinary electives in English and Hebrew literature, math, science, social studies, and the arts.

• The launch of a January Haskalah (Enlightenment) term that will of-

fer a broad range of intensive courses.

• The introduction of three professional student fellowships — Social Entrepreneurship, the Weber Teaching Fellows, and the Public Relations &

Guest Column

By Rabbi Edward Harwitz The Weber School

Marketing Fellowship.

• The expansion of travel abroad programs with Spanish immersion experiences in Argentina and Cuba.

• An exciting partnership with the Tri-Cities High School Visual and Performing Arts Magnet Program.

• Our move to the Georgia High School Athletic Association after distinctions that included region titles in volleyball, girls soccer and tennis and Positive Athlete Georgia awards.

With deep appreciation and gratitude for the students, families, and dedicated teachers and staff of the Weber School, I wish all of you l’shana tova u’metuka — best wishes for a happy and sweet new year and a year filled with growth and change. ■ Rabbi Edward Harwitz is the head of school at the Weber School.

they just experienced.

The next day we go to Las Vegas.

After a day in the distracting glitz, noise and stimulation of Las Vegas, I ask if they are able to connect to that feeling of spirituality and reflection that they had just a day earlier. The answer is always no.

We challenge the teens to see if they can find it by understanding the connection to our fellow human beings. We emphasis that every day, regardless of whether we are in a place such as the Grand Canyon or if it is a specific day of the year such as Yom Kippur, lends itself to a connection to living better by giving us an opportunity to look at the people across from us not as the other, but as another.

Another human being, another person made in the image of G-d, is deserving of our concern, compassion, humanity and holiness. We are each other’s keeper, and the world is dependent on our actions.

As Elie Wiesel said: “To be Jewish today is to recognize that every person is created in the image of G-d and that our purpose in living is to be a re-

minder of G-d. … We must be sensitive to the pain of all human beings. We cannot remain indifferent to human suffering, whether in other countries or in our own cities and towns. The mission of the Jewish people has never been to make the world more Jewish, but to make it more human.”

At the end of the documentary “I Am,” we hear about how The Times of London asked prominent authors “What is wrong with the world?” and G.K. Chesterton answered, “I am.”

On behalf of Etgar 36, and as the director of the movie suggests, may this be the year when we can flip the question to what is right in the world and we can answer “I am.” ■ Billy Planer, a native Atlantan, has been working in Jewish experiential education for 30 years. He is the founder and director of Etgar 36 (www.etgar.org), a program that during the summer takes Jewish teens across America to teach them about history, politics and activism.

During the academic year Etgar 36 takes day schools and synagogue groups on civil rights journeys.

Donna and Michael Coles and Their Family Wish all of Our Friends a Happy and Most Importantly Healthy New Year SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

One of the reasons rock ’n’ roll caught on with the younger population was that it challenged the puritanical conservative lifestyle of 1950s America. The music asked the questions “Why can’t Tuesday night be a night of careless fun like Saturday night? Why can’t Wednesday night also be a night of dancing?”

In a few days Jews will observe Yom Kippur, and we have a 25-hour period to reflect and grapple with what it means to be a better person, how to interact with our world in a more positive manner, and what it means to be alive. Imagine what would happen if three weeks after Yom Kippur we could still be as self-reflective and considerable of positive change as we are on Yom Kippur. As rock ’n’ roll asked, why can’t March 1 also be a Yom Kippur?

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ROSH HASHANAH

Getting Past the Holidays Rosh Hashanah and the Jewish holidays can be a dreaded time for anyone, especially when pleading with G-d for a miracle.

I remember sitting in synagogues over the holidays, praying, “G-d, when will I find my true love and start a family?”

Thankfully, I found a husband (eventually), but the tears and frustration weren’t gone yet. I felt the pain for several years more because the rest of what I wanted, being a mommy, seemed impossible.

The holidays for me, while I was trying to conceive naturally and then through fertility treatments, were brutal, physically and emotionally. This festive time of year is meant to be for family gatherings and new beginnings, but for me it meant emotions I didn’t know how to deal with and depressing endings I didn’t want to discuss.

If that weren’t enough, rabbis were joyfully calling out names of newborns, kids were running all over the place, laughing and smiling, holiday gatherings were being planned around children’s bedtimes in every corner of the synagogue — ugh, it felt as though G-d was taunting me and enjoying it.

Thankfully, it’s not all gloom and doom for me anymore. Whether from

G-d or excellent doctors or both, I got lucky, twice, and finally have two

Guest Column

By Elana Bekerman Frank Jewish Fertility Foundation

beautiful boys who call me mommy.

And though treatments also failed twice more, I no longer feel alone during my continued journey, thanks to the amazing support I’ve found. Below are some tips I wish someone had shared with me earlier to help deal with the dreaded holiday season.

6 Tips to Overcome Infertility Gloom

• Be selfish. Nothing can make the pain of infertility disappear. Acknowledge that this may be a sad and uncomfortable time for you (and your spouse), and pay attention to your own needs, no matter how rude you feel that might be. People who love you will understand, and those who don’t don’t matter.

• Prepare for awkwardness. Plan how you will handle awkward situations or insensitive questions from family and friends and even strangers.

You don’t have to open up, but you may

consider (and be surprised) how loved ones can make you feel better if you do.

• Make it a mini-vacation. If you typically travel to visit family and friends, consider staying at a hotel to have personal space at your disposal.

Especially if you know being surrounded by small children, pregnant relatives or other painful reminders of your infertility will affect you.

• Lean on someone. Talking to someone, be it a therapist, a friend or a support group, can be helpful and comforting. The Jewish Fertility Foundation’s Wo/Men’s Infertility Support Havurah (WISH) meets the second Tuesday of the month (starting in November) at MACoM. • Remember each other. Emotions run high over the holidays. Set aside time to plan something fun with your spouse. It can be helpful to have something exciting to look forward to and give you a chance to talk with each other about your feelings. Your partner may be able to help you through the rough times. And if you plan something really cool, it can be a talking

point for you with family and friends.

• Don’t give up. There is a bit of comfort knowing that Jewish women (much holier than I am) have been dealing with infertility since biblical times. On Rosh Hashanah, we will hear the heartbreaking story of Hannah, a barren wife whose prayers are answered when she gives birth to a son, Samuel. Maybe G-d responds to our prayers after all.

Wishing you and your families a fruitful year of happiness. ■ Elana Bekerman Frank, a native of Atlanta, lived, studied, worked and did her breeding in Maryland, Manhattan, Israel and New Jersey. (The breeding was only in Israel.) She is quite vocal about her fertility struggle and her desire to help others. She is the director of public relations and marketing at the Weber School and president and founder of the Jewish Fertility Foundation, a nonprofit that provides financial assistance, educational awareness and emotional support to Atlanta Jewish families who have medical fertility challenges.

JFF, WISH Merge The Jewish Fertility Foundation announced Sept. 9 that it had gained federal taxexempt 501(c)3 nonprofit status, meaning that all donations to the organization going back to its founding in December are tax-deductible. The status also makes the organization eligible to apply for certain government and foundation grants.

The foundation’s founder and president, Elana Bekerman Frank, called the status “a major milestone.” JFF also has acquired another young organization focused on similar issues, the Temple Sinai-based Wo/Men’s Infertility Support Havurah, which will resume monthly meetings Nov. 10.

The WISH committee is now part of the JFF education committee.

Interest-Free Response to Student Loan Crisis

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Sadly, today’s student loan statistics in the United States have become a hot topic. The figures are staggering. According to Consumer Reports, the average 2016 graduate has $37,172 in student loan debt, up 6 percent from last year.

Shortly after I started my work with the Jewish Educational Loan Fund, a member of Atlanta’s Jewish community whom I had known for a number of years reached out to congratulate me on my new position.

However, he shared that he does not support JELF, as he doesn’t believe in organizations that contribute in any way to student loan debt.

While he was familiar with our program, he felt that, despite the loans being interest-free, JELF was not the solution. Though sympathetic to his concern, I responded to him with 76 these important points:

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• When compared with typical student loans, recipients of a $5,000

Guest Column

By Jenna Shulman JELF

interest-free loan from JELF save over $2,600 in interest. So, for example, a student who borrows $5,000 per year from JELF from undergrad all the way through medical school will save upward of $20,000 in interest alone.

• JELF’s last-dollar lending policy serves students in need who would otherwise have to take out high-interest loans, run up credit card balances or simply put off their education.

• As the Torah portion Mishpatim tells us, interest-free lending is actually the highest form of tzedakah. After all, we all know that teaching a man

to fish is more empowering than just giving him a fish, right?

• If JELF had been granting scholarships, we could never have sustained ourselves for 130 years and counting.

Nearly two years later, I ran into this person again at a gathering. We exchanged cordial greetings, but then he took me by surprise by confiding that it had been a difficult year.

He was going through a divorce and had two college-age children, whom he was now supporting on his own. Faced with this new and unforeseen situation, he recognized that he could not meet the expense of tuition, room, board, food and all of the other inevitable costs of sending a child to college.

He also realized that JELF was not only an option, but it was the only interest-free option available to him.

Today I am proud to report that JELF was able to help this man’s son by lending him the additional funding he

needed to complete his freshman year.

While JELF cannot solve the country’s student debt problem on its own, with the support of the community we can contribute crucial funding to Jewish students in need who often have nowhere else to turn.

JELF provides them with hope and a sense of community, and they in turn thank us for being there for them in a time of a need.

In fact, many have maintained their relationship with JELF as board members and donors.

Each year as JELF’s impact continues to grow, we thank the Atlanta Jewish community and all of the other communities that support us for enabling us to help so many deserving Jewish students to have a sweet new year. ■ Jenna Shulman is the chief executive officer of the Jewish Educational Loan Fund.

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ROSH HASHANAH

Every year, as we get ready for the High Holidays, there is one sound that rings in our ears. It is the sound of the shofar. What is so meaningful and deep about the sound of the shofar?

How is it relevant to us, and how does that sound help us repent and become closer to G-d?

The shofar is mentioned a few times in the Bible. After Abraham was tested and was willing to sacrifice his only son, he found a ram with its horns, the shofar, stuck in the branches.

When G-d descended on Mount Sinai to give the Torah, there was the sound of the shofar.

On the year of jubilee, when all slaves are freed, there is a commandment to blast the shofar.

We find that the shofar was used in the battle of Jericho as the Jews entered the land of Israel. They circled the city seven times and blew the shofar, and the walls fell down, allowing them to conquer the city.

There is a common thread that runs through all of these shofar appearances. As we see from the battle in Jericho, the sound of the shofar knocked down the wall. It took away the barrier and let us in. The blast of the shofar signifies penetrating through, breaching outer barriers and reaching the inside. When we free slaves, we are removing their barriers and letting them free.

When Abraham was challenged, he was able to remove the personal barriers that would hold him back and reached his inner self to do the will of G-d over his own. When he broke through that wall of personal challenge, what he found near him was a shofar.

When G-d gave us the Torah, the

tool to reach into our inner selves and break the external walls of selfindulgence and temptation, the walls of external challenges, there too the shofar was sounded.

We all have strengths, and we all have struggles. We know our own struggles. As we head into the new year, heading toward Judgment Day, we need to make an accounting of our struggles.

Guest Column

By Rabbi Avrohom Tkatch Yeshiva Ohr Yisrael

If we can overcome our struggles and beat them, we will be stronger and better people. If each individual is stronger, then as a nation we will be stronger.

Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzato, a prominent Italian rabbi, kabbalist and philosopher who lived in the 1700s, said that overcoming a person’s challenges is the way to achieve greatness.

If a person can work on what is hard and improve, that person will be great.

The shofar resonates with all of us. We all have the ability to overcome challenges. We are all confronted with challenges, and we all need strength to overcome them. The shofar reminds us to reconnect with our inner goodness and connection with G-d, and there we will find the strength to overcome all of life’s challenges.

May the shofar blast this year give us all the strength to conquer our challenges, become better people, and have a happy and healthy new year. ■ Rabbi Avrohom Tkatch is the menahel of Yeshiva Ohr Yisrael of Atlanta.

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For a Happy 5777, Leave the Ifs in 5776 This past summer I came across a quote from famed pianist Arthur Rubinstein that I believe sums up the theme of these High Holidays: “As long as we have what we have inside, the capacity to love, to work, to hear music, to see a flower, to look at the world as it is, nothing can stop us from being happy. … But one thing you must take seriously. You must get rid of the ‘ifs’ of life. Many people tell you, ‘I would be happy … if I had a certain job,’ or ‘if I were better looking,’ or ‘if a certain person would marry me.’ There isn’t any such thing. You must live your life unconditionally, without the ifs.”

The High Holidays are designed to give us the opportunity to make sure that we do not live a life of ifs. Life, with all of its peaks and valleys, all of its joys and oys, all of its celebrations and its challenges, is a precious gift given to us, and we dare not squander its value.

The message of these Days of Awe is that human beings are works in progress. Each of us is an unfinished product. Our lives are what we choose to make of them — unless we allow ourselves to be shackled to the ifs of life.

Our tradition, our faith, celebrates that very notion. All of our holidays, all of our festivals, all our ritual objects, all of our traditions are designed to turn our hearts and our souls to living lives that are meaningful, that are devoid of ifs.

Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are the very formula for that life. They help us recognize we are both more and less than the sum of our parts.

We are capable of being more than we are, and we are cognizant of being less than we can be.

These holy days find us judging ourselves against the backdrop of our deeds, our actions, our accomplishments and our disappointments.

Thus, we stand between two

Guest Column

By Rabbi Brad Levenberg Temple Sinai

years: the one that was and the one about to be.

We decide, each one of us, whether we are going to live a life of ifs or whether we are going to truly live life.

Certainly there are going to be disappointments, and there are going to be failures.

We will in some way harm those we love and will each make promises we cannot keep. But there will also be moments of levity, moments of life and love, and moments of joy and compassion.

May we seize the opportunity to live less if and live with more determination.

May we make the changes necessary to embrace the goodness that is available to us all.

And if we need help, may we look to our faith and our heritage.

In that way, we more readily prepare for a sweet and good year ahead.

Shana tova u’metuka. ■ Rabbi Brad Levenberg is the associate rabbi at Temple Sinai.

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The Shofar’s Message

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ROSH HASHANAH

Wake Up to the Needs of Women and Girls During the High Holidays, the shofar echoes throughout the walls of our synagogues and temples, reminding us to wake up, to take an account of our actions and to commit to being better in the year ahead.

For us as individuals, this might mean being more patient with our children, being more generous with our volunteer time, or committing to be less judgmental and more loving. For us as a greater Jewish community, there is also much for us to wake up to, to take an account of and to commit to improving.

We must wake up to the fact that “chained women” (agunot) in our community, both locally and around the world, are trapped in marriages by husbands who will not grant their wives a legal Jewish divorce. As a community, we must acknowledge that this is a form of abuse and commit to supporting these women and prevent future agunot through education and advocacy.

We must wake up to the fact that women working full time in Georgia earn, on average, 70 cents for every dollar men earn. The gender wage gap is even wider once part-time workers are considered. As a community of organizational and business leaders, we must take an account of our own institutions and commit to eliminating the gender wage gap by compen-

Guest Column

By Rachel Wasserman Jewish Women’s Fund of Atlanta

sating equal work with equal pay.

We must wake up to the fact that nearly one in five undergraduate women will experience attempted or completed sexual assault before graduation, and we must understand that our Jewish daughters and granddaughters are not immune. We must commit to preventing sexual assault

by educating our sons and daughters about healthy relationships and by encouraging them to be active bystanders if they witness a potential crime.

We must wake up to the fact that many of Atlanta’s Jewish institutions are still not offering paid parental leave, limiting the economic and career possibilities of their employees.

We must commit to investing in those who run our congregations, teach our children and plan the programs we attend by providing supportive work environments where they can care for elderly parents, sick spouses or new babies without taking unpaid time off.

To address these issues, as well as the myriad issues affecting Jewish women and girls, we must talk about them in our community. Then we must commit to eliminating them.

At Jewish Women’s Fund of Atlanta, over 100 female philanthropists are pooling their time, treasure and talent to facilitate social change for Jewish women and girls with strategic grant-making, education and advocacy through a gender lens. We operate

as a giving circle, where women work collaboratively to effect change in the areas of economic empowerment, girls and youth, leadership development, violence against women, legal security, and educational advancement.

In our first four years, we have granted nearly $350,000 to secure a safe, healthy and equitable future that is full of possibility. No other organization is as exclusively and passionately dedicated to the advancement of Jewish women and girls in Atlanta and around the world.

This Rosh Hashanah, as the shofar reminds us to wake up, take an account and commit to change, please join Jewish Women’s Fund of Atlanta by investing in our community’s girls and women. You can learn more by visiting our new website at www. jwfatlanta.org or by reaching out to me directly at 678-222-3716.

L’shana tova u’metuka. ■ Rachel Wasserman is the executive director of Jewish Women’s Fund of Atlanta.

Playing Defense City by City, State by State On Rosh Hashanah, we not only reflect on the past, but also look ahead to the future. That’s something American Jewish Committee has done since its founding 110 years ago and more than 70 years ago in Atlanta — seeking to build a future of peace and security for Jewish communities around the world.

Today, as we look to the future, we face extraordinary challenges: an alarming rise in anti-Semitism, growing radicalism and extremism, and constant assaults on Israel’s very legitimacy.

In Atlanta, we have worked purposefully and diligently to achieve tangible results on these issues:

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Assaults on Israel’s Legitimacy AJC is determined to confront and expose BDS — the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement, which seeks to isolate and ultimately destroy Israel.

In June we launched a new initiative: Governors United Against BDS. Through this campaign, 21 governors, including Georgia’s Nathan Deal, have already gone on record condemning BDS and demonstrating their states’ 78 steadfast support for Israel.

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Nationally, AJC helped secure passage of anti-BDS legislation in several states, among them California,

Guest Column

By Greg Averbuch and Dov Wilker American Jewish Committee

Georgia, New York and Pennsylvania.

Now we are working toward federal legislation.

Also, AJC provided legal assistance that proved indispensable in blocking the multicampus University of California system from boycotting Israel, just as we defended student leaders — Jewish and non-Jewish — who were targeted by BDS activists.

Countering Extremism After news broke that a leading charity was funneling money to Hamas, AJC Berlin learned that the German government was one of the charity’s funders. AJC demanded a suspension of the funding, setting off a chain of events that induced the German government to do just that.

Hamas wasn’t the only terror

group AJC Berlin took on. Acting on a legal brief commissioned by AJC, the Berlin State Senate banned the display of Hezbollah insignia at the city’s annual pro-Iran/anti-Israel Al-Quds rally and issued wide-ranging restrictions on anti-Semitic banners and chants.

Through our local office in Atlanta, we continue to meet with members of the consular corps to counter the voices of radicalism and champion democratic values.

Combating Global Anti-Semitism AJC created the largest public statement against anti-Semitism in history with our Mayors United Against Anti-Semitism campaign. To date, more than 500 European and American mayors, representing over 150 million people, have signed a pledge to combat any and all forms of anti-Semitism in their jurisdictions, including the exploitation of opposition to Israeli policies to promote anti-Semitism.

We are fortunate that Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed was one of the first mayors to sign and was joined by the mayors of Augusta, Decatur, Johns Creek, Macon-Bibb County, Roswell, Sandy Springs and Savannah, as well as mayors from Alabama, Louisiana,

Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

Looking Toward the Future AJC is tackling the challenges and meeting the opportunities of the 21st century.

Over the past year, AJC has begun writing the next chapter in MuslimJewish relations, bringing Muslim leaders from Africa, Asia and the U.S. to see Israel firsthand. These complement our continued efforts to meet with the diverse Muslim community that we have in Atlanta and advise Jewish communities across the Southeast how they can do the same.

Such breakthroughs are possible only because of friends like you.

So during the High Holidays, as you contemplate the past and reflect on what’s to come, consider the difference you can make through AJC in building a safer and more peaceful future.

Your AJC Atlanta family thanks you for your ongoing support and friendship and wishes you and yours a happy, healthy and sweet new year. ■ Greg Averbuch is the president and Dov Wilker is the regional director of AJC Atlanta.

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ROSH HASHANAH

Time for Inspiration

Our 150th Anniversary

Quoting the third century Abbaye, the Talmud states: “Now that it has been agreed that signs are significant, a person should make a regular habit of eating symbolic foods at the beginning of the year.”

On Erev Rosh Hashanah, after saying Kiddush, based on this passage from the Talmud, many have a custom of eating various foods as part of the evening meal. Each type of food in this meal represents an aspect of our wishes and desires for the upcoming year. These symbolic foods signify our optimism and hope for the new year.

While this custom is beautiful, it also demonstrates that we are able to find the seeds of hope and desire even in simple things like fruits, vegetables and honey. However, I raise a question: What does it mean that symbols are “significant”?

On the first night of Rosh Hashanah, each of us, in our own unique way, is thinking about the future, praying that starting the year with positive intentions will lead to positive results.

Rosh Hashanah brings with it a sense of newness, as we are all brimming with optimism and hope. There is inspiration all around us; we just need to be tuned in to feel it.

The truth is, to feel the inspiration, the nostalgia and the awe of the day is not particularly challenging.

We spend the week leading up to the holiday exchanging good wishes with family and friends as we anticipate hearing the special melodies of Rosh Hashanah. The anticipation and the energy are almost palpable.

While the energy and inspiration are majestic, all too often these hopes and dreams diminish in the days ahead as we lose the ability to

This year will mark the 150th anniversary of Kehilat Gemilat Chased — The Hebrew Benevolent Congregation, affectionately known as The Temple.

As such, it is a time for tremendous introspection as we look back on a small group of pioneers who started Atlanta’s now-thriving Jewish community.

Our history includes Leo Frank, “Driving Miss Daisy,” the Temple bombing in 1958, but it also includes heroic stories of rabbis and members who have left an indelible impact upon our city and Jewish community. Our history inspires our future.

Rosh Hashanah, too, is a celebration of time. In all other civilizations, time flows from yesterday to today to tomorrow.

The past shapes the present, and the present shapes the future. We call it cause and effect: Something happened yesterday or last year or 10 years ago, and because of that, something will happen today; that something today will cause something to happen tomorrow. It is the past that determines the future.

Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik teaches that, for Jews, the future determines the present, and that defines the meaning of the past. Our job is to ask: Was something a tragedy or a spur to growth? Was something a mistake or a learning experience?

We can’t answer those questions simply by looking at what happened in the past. We can only understand yesterday in light of what we choose to do today and tomorrow. We are conditioned to internalize Freudian psychoanalysis, which teaches that we are shaped by our past, by our experiences in childhood.

Rosh Hashanah teaches: Don’t be

Guest Column

By Ari Leubitz Atlanta Jewish Academy

bring us back to the time when our optimism and our hopes were at their peak. The Satmar Rav wrote that the purpose of the High Holidays is to allow us to experience G-d and feel inspired so that we will have a goal to strive for during the remainder of the year.

But it is not only about our own growth. If we are able to harness this energy and inspiration beyond that initial moment of hope and allow it to continue over the next few days, with the help of G-d we will be able to extend this energy to our families, throughout Rosh Hashanah and, please G-d, throughout the year.

May we all be blessed to fill ourselves and others with powerful and effective reminders of optimism and hope not just this new year, but throughout the upcoming year.

Shana tova! ■ Rabbi Ari Leubitz is the head of school of Atlanta Jewish Academy.

stuck in the past. We are free to shape our future, and when we do, we go back and redefine the past.

This is the time of year during which we look deep inside ourselves.

In what areas could we have accomplished more? We did not do enough to fulfill our capacities for love, for understanding, for enriching our knowledge base.

As parents and grandparents, we often demand obedience instead of inspiring it. We prefer to nurse hurt feelings rather than to put ourselves

Guest Column

By Rabbi Peter Berg The Temple

in the place of our supposed offenders.

We want instant success rather than to put forth the slow but steady efforts to produce personal growth.

The shofar calls out to each of us to take a look in the mirror of consciousness. What do you see there?

You are a little older than last year, but are you a little wiser, nobler and kinder?

Let us remember, as we pray to be inscribed in the Book of Life, that we are the ones who write our own stories. Let our stories of hope and glory inspire our deeds and lead the world to its ultimate redemption.

P.S.: You are cordially invited to a yearlong celebration of The Temple’s 150th anniversary, including the Alliance Theatre’s production of “The Temple Bombing” and a night of Jewish music with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. Details to follow. ■ Rabbi Peter Berg is the senior rabbi at The Temple.

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evoke this very moment of inspiration.

Symbolic representations are significant, which means that these small, symbolic acts are also significant.

When taken sincerely, these symbols or rituals can create gateways through time, allowing us to recall the very moment of our heightened inspiration.

The message is that first we need to internalize our feelings of hope to tap into as an inspiration to change.

With these moments secured in our mind, we can use the rituals of Rosh Hashanah as a conduit to

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ROSH HASHANAH

A Responsible Paradox Rosh Hashanah is a bit of a paradox. On the one hand, it is considered a scary day. G-d is sitting in judgment, reviewing how we performed this past year. Based on what He finds, we will either be blessed with a year full of success or, G-d forbid, the opposite.

On the other hand, Rosh Hashanah is a joyous day. It is a holiday, and we are supposed to dress in our finest, eat the usual holiday delicacies, and celebrate with our friends and families.

How can we be joyous on a day that is so aweinspiring? Would one be happy on a day in which he is due in front of a judge for sentencing? Of course not! One would be frightened and nervous.

All the more so, it would seem, that we should be frightened and nervous in front of the judgment of G-d.

To understand this paradox, let’s delve a bit more into the essence of Rosh Hashanah.

Rosh Hashanah is considered the birthday of mankind. What separates man from animal is that we are responsible for our actions. We have the ability to choose between right and wrong, and this ability obligates us to be responsible for what we do.

Our job as members of the human race is to work hard and accomplish.

We celebrate the work ethic and revel in the fact that we are responsible for our actions. In other words, we cel-

ebrate that we are human beings.

The day on which it is most clear that we are responsible for our actions and that we have the ability to affect our own destiny is Rosh Hashanah, when we are being judged. The fact we can be judged shows that we have the ability to choose our own path.

Guest Column

By Rabbi Mayer Freedman Anshi

Animals cannot be judged for their actions, as they can act only based on instinct. We can be judged for our actions because we have the ability to act based on choice.

It is this ability to choose, this responsibility for our actions, that we are celebrating on Rosh Hashanah.

Rosh Hashanah, it turns out, is a holiday celebrating the fact that we have the ability to judged. This is how these two ideas — a day of judgment and a holiday — are able to join together.

On behalf of all of us at Anshi and the ASK Morningside Center, I wish the Atlanta community a kesiva vechasima tova, a sweet new year of health, happiness and personal growth. ■ Rabbi Mayer Freedman is the rabbi at Anshi and the director of the Atlanta Scholars Kollel Morningside Center.

To Life!

During the High Holidays we focus on the theme of chayim — life.

All of the four liturgical insertions that we make in the Amidah during the Aseret Yemei Teshuvah (10 Days of Repentance) refer to the theme of life.

The first insertion, in fact, has a fourfold repetition of chayim as we recite, “Remember us for life, O King who desires life, and write us in the Book of Life for Your sake, King of Life.”

On the High Holidays we positively affirm the call in the Torah to actively choose life, as the Torah tells us, “Choose life so that you and your offspring shall live” (Deuteronomy 30:19). We are reminded to appreciate the gift of life and not take it for granted.

We offer thanks to G-d for all the blessings that we have been given in our lives, from the small to the big. We also focus on appreciating our family, friends and community, with whom we have been blessed to share our life.

It is during this season, despite the personal and communal challenges we and our people face, that we continue to celebrate G-d’s gift of life.

The High Holidays are not only about appreciating and celebrating life; they are also about choosing to transform and enrich our lives. During this period of introspection we have the opportunity to choose to grow spiritually, making our lives more meaningful and purposeful. It is a

Audience Deserves Best Festival Ever

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

As AJFF heads into a new year of programming, we want to wish everyone a happy, healthy Rosh Hashanah and thank each and every member of our community for their continued support.

Because of you, AJFF has established itself both as one of Atlanta’s favorite cultural experiences and as the world’s pre-eminent showcase of great movies that explore Jewish and Israeli life. Because of you, our audience, we are dedicated more than ever to making the 17th annual festival our best ever. And because of you, we are introducing new programming events throughout the calendar year.

But most of all, you are the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival. We applaud the donors, volunteers and industry lead80 ers who fuel the behind-the-scenes

AJT

work of our dedicated, talented staff.

Some 200 film enthusiasts, who are a cross-section of ages and religious and cultural backgrounds, work

Guest Column

By Kenny Blank Atlanta Jewish Film Festival

to evaluate hundreds of film entries over a six-month period.

Others brainstorm and collaborate to identify compelling guest speakers to introduce festival screenings and facilitate dialogue.

Still more give of their time in fundraising, marketing, hospitality and other needs that underpin a world-class, three-plus-week show.

We couldn’t do any of it without you who turn AJFF into a passion project and reinvigorate our fervor for the mission of the festival. I am ceaselessly amazed at the community that is AJFF. Rosh Hashanah is about new beginnings, new ideas and new possibilities. To every ticketholder who steps into an AJFF movie theater during the festival, thank you. Each of you is opening up to the realms and ideas that cinema explores in such a uniquely immersive way. By investing yourselves, you are each building social and cultural understanding, broadening your sense of the world, and delighting in one of the great art forms of the modern world.

As we embark on this new year, AJFF is taking your spirit and inspiration to heart with exciting new programs and initiatives. We look forward to sharing those with you in

time to ask ourselves important and even challenging questions: • Are we living up to our potential?

• How can we live more Jewishly engaged lives?

• What more can we do to help others in need?

• What is each of us doing to ben-

Guest Column

By Rabbi Adam Starr Young Israel of Toco Hills

efit our community?

• What are we doing to support Israel?

• How can this year be better than the last?

If we take this time of year seriously, it has the power to elevate and enrich our lives.

When is the best time to make the decision to choose life? The mahzor answers that question with the final prayer of the Musaf service, “Hayom”: It is today, by living each day of the year 5777 to its fullest.

L’chayim!

Talya, Maayan, Yakira, Adin and Ezriel join me in wishing you and your loved ones a shana tova filled with all the blessings life has to offer. ■ Rabbi Adam Starr is the spiritual leader of Young Israel of Toco Hills.

the coming months.

In the meantime, we hope you will mark your calendar now for the 17th edition of the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival, returning to theaters Jan. 24 through Feb. 15, 2017, with our Opening Night Gala at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre and Closing Night at the Woodruff Arts Center’s Symphony Hall.

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to contribute to the cultural enrichment and civic dialogue of a vibrant community. It’s the best job imaginable, whose rewards derive from everyone in our AJFF family. We invigorate one another and always come away better for the experience.

For that, and for another new year, thank you, and l’shana tova! ■ Kenny Blank is the executive director of the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival.

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ROSH HASHANAH

Students Face Struggle For many Jews, holidays are a time of togetherness and family. But for college students, the High Holidays are a time of anxiety and stress.

The Jewish new year and accompanying holidays occur in the fall semester and regularly coincide with midterms. Because the High Holiday season is more than three weeks long, it is impractical for students to simply return home and tough for them to go about their daily regimen without encountering difficulties.

Students are faced with the burden — sometimes for the first time in their lives — of deciding between religion and academic success. This dilemma does not extend only to Orthodox students but also applies to those who simply want to hear the shofar or want to attend a Yizkor service for a dead relative.

Just last year, an Emory student was told that if she skipped class for Rosh Hashanah services, she would receive a zero on the weekly math quiz. But because the lowest quiz grade of the semester would be dropped, she should feel free to attend services.

The professor imagined that she was graciously accommodating the student’s religious needs, without realizing that she was discriminating against her by punishing her for attending services. Why should the student lose the right to drop her lowest quiz grade, as all of her classmates would, because of an excused absence?

In truth, the professor did not intend to act with prejudice against the Jewish student, but in the end she did.

I do not contend that classes should be canceled for each religion’s holidays, but in the United States, where the semesters are fashioned after the Christian calendar, the reality

must be taken into consideration.

Whether a college employs the quarter, semester or trimester system, Christmas is always during winter break. This is not a coincidence. The academic calendar was fashioned with the Christian holidays in mind.

Indeed, the modern academic calendars employed in British academia are mainly descended from the English law court, and it is the same in the United States. Therefore, Christians never need to sacrifice their religiosity

Guest Column

By Rabbi Russ Shulkes Hillels of Georgia

in the name of academic success.

Students shouldn’t need to choose if they want to be a good Jew or get an A; if they want to take notes in class or hear the shofar; if they want to be penalized just for being Jewish. The case must be made before university administrators and officials that it is the professors’ duty to not discriminate; it is not the students’ job to deal with discriminatory policies and sacrifice grades in the name of religion.

We reject the notion that Jewish students must seek accommodations class by class for the holiday calendar and hope for understanding; rather, all universities should implement a religion protocol, handed out at the start of each semester as part of the class syllabus, that sets universal guidelines for accommodating religious life, that does not penalize students in any way and that encourages them to feel free to follow their religious beliefs. ■ Rabbi Russ Shulkes is the executive director of Hillels of Georgia.

Shana: Change, Repeat High Holidays again. Same old, same old — especially if you go Orthodox. Same shofar, same cantor, same choir, same prayer book. Same Torah reading, same songs. Even the same sermon — or at least so it seems.

In an Orthodox synagogue the rabbi will probably speak about G-d as King and/or about repentance. This is somehow illustrated by the shofar, with a feel-good story to sweeten it all up. How did we get stuck in this place while time has been marching on? I would offer the very name “Rosh Hashanah” as an explanation.

The Midrash tells us that G-d created the world in Hebrew. That is curious.

Did G-d really audibly say, “Let there be light”? If so, who heard it?

What this Midrash is really telling us is that the Hebrew language contains the keys to understanding the essence of creation. Many Hebrew words have multiple meanings. All of the meanings of a given word when taken together reveal its truth and, oftentimes, very sublime messages.

Let’s look at the word shana, as in Rosh Hashanah. The most popular understanding is “year.” However, shana also means “repeat” and “change.”

Repeat and change seem to be opposites. Things that change cannot truly repeat. How does one word have opposite meanings?

Our sages teach that the Torah does not view time as linear but rather as circular. What goes around really does come around. The same seasons and holidays and birthdays and events come our way in the same sequence.

Shana is a unit of time repeating itself.

On the other hand, at the height of the High Holiday services we recite a prayer called Unesaneh Tokef. You are

probably familiar with its end: “Who will live and who will die,” etc.

In this prayer we are told that on Rosh Hashanah we pass before G-d on an incline. This is referring to the belief that a Jew does not experience life on a level plane but rather is always going up or down. In essence, time is like a cylinder, with each of us spiraling up or down it.

With this insight we understand why a shana is a year that repeats from an external perspective yet

Guest Column

By Rabbi Binyomin Friedman Congregation Ariel

changes from a personal perspective.

A cycle of repeat and change equals a year, and Rosh Hashanah is the beginning of a new cycle.

Same-old, same-old world — but a new me, hearing the shofar and cantor and choir for the first time from this new place. From my new perspective, it is a new prayer book and a new Torah reading and new songs.

As for the sermon? It might be the same, but it is being delivered by a “brand new” rabbi and heard for the first time by the new you. Why bother changing the props when the new audience has not seen it yet?

So before you arrive in synagogue this Rosh Hashanah, your assignment is to take stock of this past year and all of its events and experiences. Then, go to synagogue ready to experience something you have never seen before.

Wishing you a shana (repeat and change) tova of goodness. ■ Rabbi Binyomin Friedman is the spiritual leader of Congregation Ariel.

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AJT 81

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LOCAL NEWS

New Rabbi Leads B’nai Torah Education

By Al Shams

Congregation B’nai Torah installed Rabbi Hillel Konigsburg as its associate rabbi during Friday night services Sept. 9.

The installation included Rabbi Konigsburg’s father, sister and brother-in-law, all of whom are rabbis, and continued at the next morning’s Shabbat services, during which he outlined his hope to contribute to the congregation’s understanding of Judaism and spiritual growth.

It was the latest in a series of changes at the Conservative synagogue in Sandy Springs the past three years.

Most of those changes involved the physical structure, which after nearly 30 years went through an extensive renovation and expansion in response to strong membership growth since Rabbi Joshua Heller arrived as senior rabbi in 2004.

Among other improvements, the renovation enlarged and refurbished the main sanctuary, installed a loop

Rabbi Hillel Konigsburg is a native of south Florida.

system for people who use hearing aids, improved staff offices, added classrooms and incorporated a computerized yahrzeit board. The mikvah was rebuilt and reopened as a community facility under the management of a new nonprofit, the Metro Atlanta Community Mikvah.

Rabbi Konigsburg was hired in July to replace Rabbi Eytan Kenter, who left after six years as B’nai Torah’s first associate rabbi to become senior rabbi in Ottawa.

Rabbi Konigsburg was hired in the spring and assumed his duties at the start of July. I recently had the pleasure to visit with him and gain some insight

into his life and thoughts.

The rabbi was born and raised in south Florida. He is the third of three children.

He attended Alfred List College, earning bachelor’s in sociology and Jewish history, then earned a master’s in Jewish studies from the Jewish Theological Seminary.

From his dad, Rabbi Konigsburg gained insight into the life of a rabbi.

He saw how his dad had to handle the demands of being a spiritual leader and educator while also being a father, husband, son and friend. His dad was an important role model, showing that we all must balance various aspects of our lives and relate to different people in different ways and that, in the end, rabbis are human beings like the rest of us.

In school Rabbi Konigsburg gave serious thought to pursuing a career in sociology but ultimately decided that he could be of benefit to a congregation and that the position of a pulpit rabbi was gratifying.

He has focused on B’nai Torah’s education efforts and is serving as the education director of the religious school and the preschool. The preschool recently added a full-day Reggio Emilia program.

Teen programs are another special interest, with a focus on programs that are inclusive, embracing spiritual, social, educational and recreational themes.

Rabbi Konigsburg has known his wife, Sarah, since middle school. They have been a couple since she was at New York University while he was at Alfred List.

Besides family and synagogue, the rabbi enjoys science fiction and astronomy. He is warm, gracious, soft-spoken, compassionate and knowledgeable and appears to have the skills and desire to serve B’nai Torah’s needs. ■ Al Shams is a Sandy Springs resident, a member of B’nai Torah, a former CPA and an investment professional with more than 35 years of industry experience.

Flame On

It was an unseasonably hot day for late September with temperatures that peaked at 92 degrees. But that didn’t stop the fourth annual Atlanta Kosher BBQ Competition & Festival from smoking up a storm at Brook Run Park in Dunwoody, with 26 teams, including the AJT’s Meat the Press, fighting for the title of best kosher ’cuers in town.

For the second year, the Hebrew Order of David-organized event raised thousands of dollars for several charities with tickets sales for samples of each team’s barbecue at $1 each. ■

Photos by David Adler Photography unless otherwise noted

The AJT’s Meat the Press team went with a western theme and took second place in booth design and team name as well as fourth in brisket and fifth in beans.

Last year’s Servicemen’s Cup winners, the Dunwoody Police Department, handed the trophy off to the DeKalb County Fire Department, which finished seventh overall with a first place in chicken, second place in beans and third in ribs.

The Top Ten Scores in six categories - brisket, ribs, chicken, beans, team booth and team name were totaled to decide the grand champion Grillin’ Tefillin, who won the title for the second year in a row.

Grillin’ Tefillin 166.08 The Brisketeers 164.51

The Brisketeers lived up to their team name and won first place in brisket and second overall in the competition.

Photo by Michael Jacobs

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Moshe RIBaynu 162.25

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Cloven Hoof BBQ 160.24 Adam & Eve’s BBQ 159.79 Meat the Press 159.71 DCFR SmokeShowing BBQ 159.46 The Epstein School of Rack 159.24 Hakadosh BBQ 158.59 Char Kol Nidre 158.59

Various inflatables and games were set up at the competition, providing a welcome distraction from the hot temperatures.

Grillin’ Tefillin, made up of Atlanta Kosher BBQ Competition founders (from left) Keith Marks, Brian Mailman and Matt Dickson, took top honors at the competition and donated the $400 grand prize to charity.

A pickle eating contest was one of the final competitions held at the event.

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

HEALTH & WELLNESS

St. Joseph’s Impresses Western Galilee Delegation

By Carol Gelman Radiation oncologist Shannon Kahn shows off the Winship Cancer Institute’s gamma knife brain surgery machine, something the Western Galilee Medical Center also wants.

Photos courtesy of Emory St. Joseph’s Hospital

A Western Galilee Cluster delegation visits Emory St. Joseph’s Hospital on Sept. 13.

pressed by the quality of clinical care, with special regard to the patient rounds, during which a team of medical professionals visits with patients on a daily basis to enhance the continuum of care.

“Emory treats patients with love using an excellent bedside manner, which is something we could improve,” Yechilei said.

Scheinberg said the Israeli delega-

tion had a memorable visit. “When I met with them later that evening, they continued to rave about their experiences here and look forward to collaboration between Western Galilee Medical Center and Emory St. Joseph’s Hospital.”

Besides Yechilei, the Israeli delegates were Maalot Tashiha Mayor Shlomo Bohbot, Maale Yosef Mayor Shimon Gueta, Mateh Asher Mayor Yoram

Chief Medical Officer Paul Scheinberg and City Council member Andy Bauman join the tour in surrounding the Emory electronic intensive care unit, from where physicians and nurses can monitor patients around the state.

Israeli and Deputy Mayor Moshe Davidovich, the Western Galilee Cluster administration’s Yael Ron, and CEO Yariv Hameiri of Treasures of the Galilee, a nonprofit tourism organization.

On the Sandy Springs side, the tour included Bauman, Sandy Springs/ Perimeter Chamber of Commerce CEO and President Tom Mahaffey, and city Economic Development Director Andrea Hall. ■

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Emory St. Joseph’s Hospital felt like a new world of health care for a delegation visiting Sandy Springs from the Western Galilee on Tuesday, Sept.

13.

The delegation from Israel’s Western Galilee Cluster of a dozen municipalities and local authorities was making a weeklong reciprocal visit to Sandy Springs for a week as part the five-year Sister City agreement Mayor Rusty Paul signed during a trip to Israel with City Council member Andy Bauman and other city officials last October.

Sandy Springs and the Western Galilee agreed to focus on developing business and cooperation in the areas of tourism, cybersecurity and technology, and health care.

Paul Scheinberg, Emory St. Joseph’s chief medical officer, visited Western Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya during a Jewish National Fund medical mission early this year, laying the groundwork for the tour of the hospital he led Sept. 13.

The group also visited Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta’s Scottish Rite hospital.

At St. Joseph’s, the visit included an inside look at gamma knife radiation therapy for the treatment of brain cancer, robotic cardiac surgery, the electronic ICU, and patient rounds.

“The visit felt like worlds apart,” Kfar Vradim Mayor Sivan Yechilei said.

“In Israel the concentration is in acute medicine while here it is more the management of disease and treating people as a whole.”

The gamma knife drew particular interest because the Western Galilee Medical Center has been trying to obtain one, and the delegation took careful notes on costs and capacities.

Yechilei said getting such technology would allow the hospital to diversify and deliver the latest technology to people living in Israel’s outlying areas.

“The tour of the hospital, it’s very important for us, the cooperation on the medical side. I’ll tell you why,” Yechilei said.

“We’re in the periphery of Israel.

We specialize in emergency medicine and stuff like that because our main hospital is close to the Lebanese border, but we always compare ourselves to Tel Aviv. We have decided we have to cut that link to Tel Aviv and start looking at the world.”

The delegates were equally im-

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www.atlantajewishtimes.com

EDUCATION

Kol Nidre Christian Rock Parents Have Homework to Welcome Dawgs Home

By Rebecca McCarthy

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

For Rachel Schwartz, the president of Hillel at UGA, it was bad enough that the University of Georgia Homecoming Planning Committee booked a concert on Yom Kippur. Both Hillel and Rohr Chabad at UGA were told weeks ago about the Oct. 11 conflict.

But then Schwartz learned that NEEDTOBREATHE, the group playing the homecoming celebration, is a selfclassified Christian rock band.

Taken together, those two developments were just too much. She had to speak out, even if Jewish students are only 5 percent of the UGA population.

“When we realized how upset Jewish students were, we contacted the administration to learn what we can do to make sure they feel included,” said Schwartz, 20, an international affairs major from Roswell. “I don’t think any of it is intentional, but we want to make sure this doesn’t happen again. It was like adding insult to injury.”

Two years ago, the independent UGA Athletic Association set the home-

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coming football game on Yom Kippur.

The planning committee for homecoming events schedules “something every night, with the homecoming parade on the Friday before the game,” said Stan Jackson, the director of student affairs communications and marketing initiatives at UGA. “It’s unfortunate the University Union didn’t schedule the concert on a different day, but I know it wasn’t done from a malicious place but from a lack of recognition,” Chabad Rabbi Michoel Refson said. “The university administration is understanding and sympathetic to Jewish students; they recognize it’s an oversight that shouldn’t have happened.”

Jackson said the date for the concert was the only day the band and venue, Stegeman Coliseum, were available.

The date and time were set months ago; of course, the dates for the High Holidays were easily available then.

“They said this is the only day available,” Schwartz said. “We understand why it was done, but it doesn’t mean it was OK that it was done.” ■

While many parents of high school seniors have prodded students to work on college applications, the tables are turned as of Saturday, Oct. 1.

Students should urge their parents to begin working on the Free Application for Student Aid. Parents are used to starting the FAFSA on Jan. 1, but no more. This is the first year for the October date.

The FAFSA is not only for federal aid. Colleges use it for all types of financial aid. In Georgia, the FAFSA is one of two ways to enter HOPE competition rather than complete a simple form, meaning your student may be HOPE eligible but you do not want any other aid from colleges.

Beware: Financial aid scams and moneymaking ventures are around.

The FAFSA website is www.fafsa. ed.gov. Don’t fall for a web address that is a little different.

Are there advantages to the October date?

Absolutely. The base year used for your taxes is your 2015 tax return.

Most families submitted that return long ago. With the Jan. 1 date, you would have used 2016 and usually guessed the numbers because you hadn’t finished your tax return.

Now the numbers are right there.

When you apply online, you can use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool to automatically populate data from your 2015 tax return. It makes the process easier, errors are reduced, and your chance of being selected to verify your FAFSA information will be much less.

How else will the new procedure affect the aid process?

The financial aid application process may be better aligned with the admissions process. Some colleges say students will receive their financial award letters earlier; others are not quite sure. The process is also new for colleges.

In past years, students sometimes had to wait and wait for financial award letters, delaying student decisions about which college to attend.

If colleges get on board with the new financial aid schedule and make their awards earlier, students will be in a better position to make college decisions.

You must adhere to each college’s FAFSA deadline. Miss the deadline and you may miss the money. Do you have to complete the form amid the holidays the first week in October? No,

but don’t wait until the deadline date of a particular college. If a college runs out of financial aid money, and you procrastinate, you might find that the vault is empty even if you are eligible for aid.

About 10 million students are getting ready to line up for financial aid. If you enjoy waiting in line at the airport or a supermarket, change your

The Admissions Game

By Dr. Mark L. Fisher drmarkfisher@yahoo.com

habit. It could cost your family.

Upon completing the FAFSA, you will receive information that will indicate your “expected family contribution.” You might be shocked by what the FAFSA thinks you can afford, but don’t despair.

Depending on the money available, a given college might give you more than you think, depending on how much it wants your student.

Merit money is available at many colleges. It is based on academic record and/or factors such as community service, artistic endeavors and athletics, not need.

Don’t be fooled by a scary sticker price at some colleges. You never know whether merit money will be awarded or how much aid will be given.

A student in Georgia applied to a public institution and a private college in Georgia. The private school’s sticker price was far more, but the private college cost only $1,000 more per year with aid. You just never know.

To start the FAFSA process, obtain your FSA ID at the FAFSA website. A student and a parent obtain separate IDs. With that number, you can electronically sign federal student aid and loan documents and access your confidential FAFSA information.

Another FAFSA-type document, the CSS/Financial Aid Profile, is required by about 300 colleges, most of them private. Go to www.collegeboard. com for more information. This form is not free, but if a college wants the Profile, you have to complete it. ■ Dr. Mark Fisher is a college and career consultant at Fisher Educational Consultants (www.fishereducationalconsultants.com) and a consultant for the College Planning Institute (www.

GotoCPI.com).

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ARTS

AJMF Offers $1,800 for New Music The Atlanta Jewish Music Festival is moving from producing and promoting events to commissioning original Southern Jewish music.

The AJMF is holding a contest for Southern Jewish music acts to create at least two original pieces of music to premiere at the eighth annual spring festival in March.

“As the South’s only year-round producer and promoter of Jewish music, AJMF holds a unique opportunity and responsibility to our community,

particularly Southern Jewish musicians,” the festival said in announcing the competition.

It’s fulfilling that responsibility by offering an $1,800 prize to the winner, who will retain ownership of the music.

The winning act can be an established solo performer, band or collaboration and must be available to rehearse in early 2017 and perform a 75-to-90-minute set in Atlanta in March (tentatively scheduled for March 9).

The performance will be recorded.

The only rules are that a solo performer or the majority of any group must self-identify as Jewish and live in the South, which for purposes of the contest covers Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky, the Carolinas, West Virginia and Virginia.

Applications are being accepted through Oct. 31 by email to info@ atlantajmf­ .org, which is also the address to use for more information.

The application should include a description, in 250 or fewer words, of the new music, its purpose and how you will premiere it.

Also submit a draft run of show that includes door time and set time and either an electronic press kit or some recorded songs, videos and biographical information.

The festival plans to announce the winner Dec. 1 and to pay the first half of the commission ($900) by the end of the year. ■

6-Week Festival to Expose Israeli Dance

Photo by Gadi Dagon

Members of the Niv Sheinfeld & Oren Laor Dance Projects perform “Cowboy,” which will have its U.S. premiere Nov. 3 at 7 Stages Theatre as part of the Exposed festival.

The festival includes workshops and classes in addition to public shows.

“Ever since I saw their work in Israel, I’ve wanted to showcase them to Atlanta audiences and facilitate collaborations with our local arts community,” Schroeder said. “The scope of the festival will reveal the richness, creativity, imagination and strength of

contemporary dance and physical theater now taking place in Israel.”

Exposed will offer three U.S. premieres, two regional premieres and one Atlanta premiere. Two of the shows will be collaborations between Israelis and Atlantans: a CORE Performance Company show with the Niv Sheinfeld & Oren Laor Dance Projects and a Ken-

nesaw State theater department effort with Ofir Nahari and Michael Haverty.

Kennesaw State also has commissioned a piece by Ben-Aharon.

Other Israeli artists scheduled to participate are Hillel Kogan, Ofir Nahari and Vertigo Dance Company.

Festival coordinator Mira Hirsch said the length of the festival and the venues in Atlanta, Decatur and Kennesaw should make performances convenient across the metro area.

“I am delighted that Atlantans will have the opportunity to see examples of the thriving contemporary dance and physical theater being created and performed in Israel,” said Ambassador Judith Varnai Shorer, Israel’s consul general to the Southeast. “Art is a universal language that connects people through shared experiences and fosters understanding. I hope Exposed will continue the strong partnership between Atlanta and Israel’s arts communities and arts supporters.”

The complete schedule is at www. exposedfestivalatl.com. ■

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

A six-week festival joining together several theaters and three universities will bring some of Israel’s top choreographers, dancers and performance artists to Atlanta.

Exposed, a festival of contemporary dance and physical theater, opens Wednesday, Oct. 5, at 7 p.m. with a free performance by two solo Israeli artists, Ella Ben-Aharon and Ido Tadmor, at the CORE Studios on Decatur Square. It closes with three Emory Dance Company performances of works it commissioned from Yossi Berg and Oded Graf and from Anat Grigorio at Emory’s Schwartz Center for Performing Arts on Nov. 17, 18 and 19.

“We are thrilled to bring this amazing group of choreographers, dancers and performance artists from Israel to Atlanta,” said Sue Schroeder, the artistic director of CORE, which is organizing and serving as one home of the festival. Also part of the collaboration are 7 Stages Theatre, the Emory dance program, Georgia State University’s Rialto Center for the Arts and Kennesaw State University.

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OBITUARIES

Morris L. Benatar 58, Atlanta

Morris L. Benatar, 58, passed away unexpectedly after surgery complications Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016.

Morris was born in Atlanta to Louise and Leo Benatar. He and his loving wife, Diane Lourie Benatar, celebrated 33 years of marriage in August. Morris was proud of, and is also survived by, his two children, Leah Gordon (David), 28, a counselor, and Steven, 25, in medical school. Additionally, he is survived by his two sisters, Ann Silver (Mike) and Ruth Falkenstein (David) in Atlanta; brotherin-law Alexander Lourie (Mary Beth) in Chicago; and nine nieces and nephews.

The closeness of the extended family was evident when enjoying family vacations at least every other year, including cruises, a dude ranch, Caribbean islands and resorts; 17 recently enjoyed a barge trip in the south of France in July.

In 1965 the Benatar family moved to Belgium, and Morris, age 8, became fluent in French, having attended Lycee de Anvers for a number of years. Morris graduated from Lakeside High School in Atlanta, graduated from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, with honors, and was a member of Phi Beta Kappa, an honor society for outstanding students, and Tau Epsilon Pi, a social fraternity.

He also received his M.B.A. from the Darden School of the University of Virginia.

Upon graduation from U.Va., he worked for Hammermill Paper Co. in Erie, Pa., then was transferred to Boston as general manager of the distribution unit.

Wishing to return to Atlanta, he accepted a marketing position at Kimberly-Clark and after a few years was recruited by Georgia-Pacific as marketing manager of its paper towel division. Riverwood Packaging offered him and his family an opportunity in Bristol, England, to be marketing manager for Europe. The family was there for approximately four years. The company was subsequently sold, and he and his family returned to Atlanta. Shortly thereafter in 2008, Morris joined Greater Southern Home Recreation, a home recreation business, where he was the president of the retail stores, selling pool tables, shuffleboards, theater seats, barstools and other home recreation items. In approximately 2012, he and his father bought the retail business and have operated two stores in greater Atlanta.

Morris was a sports enthusiast since childhood, when he played baseball. He was an avid Georgia Tech sports fan and attended all home football and basketball games and some away games when possible, including bowl games. Morris was involved in the community with the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America and was very active in Congregation Or VeShalom, where he was a past president and longtime board member. He was also active in the Cohen Home, where he was a past president. Morris and Diane were also honored by Israel Bonds for their community activities. Aside from his business acumen, he was well known for his love of his family, Jewish religion, community activities, love of dogs and concern for the welfare of others. He was truly a great and caring person.

Sign the online guestbook at www.edressler.com. In lieu of flowers, any contributions should be sent to Congregation Or VeShalom, 1681 N. Druid Hills Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30319, or CCFA, 2250 N. Druid Hills Road NE, Suite 2250, Atlanta, GA 30329. Graveside services were held Friday, Sept. 23, at Arlington Memorial Park in Sandy Springs with Rabbi Hayyim Kassorla officiating. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.

Clara Eisenstein

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

103, Bethesda, Md.

AJT 86

Clara Eisenstein, age 103, of Bethesda, Md., formerly of Atlanta, died in Bethesda on Saturday, Sept. 24, 2016.

Survivors include daughter and son-in-law Pola and Peter Rosan, Poughkeepsie, N.Y.; son and daughter-in-law Aaron and Shelly Eisenstein, Jerusalem; son and daughter-in-law Harry and Rhonda Eisenstein, Bethesda; grandchildren David Chandler, Candace Eisenstein, Shuli Sacks, Penina Cohen, Deena Ben-Zeev, Ethan Eisenstein, Aryeh Eisenstein, Matthew Eisenstein, Yakov Eisenstein and Sara Eisenstein; and 10 great-grandchildren.

Clara Eisenstein, a Holocaust survivor, was preceded in death by her daughter Irene Eisenstein and her husband, Leon Eisenstein, both of blessed memory and each a Holocaust survivor.

Sign the online guestbook at www.edressler.com. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Children’s Diabetes Foundation. A graveside service was held Monday, Sept. 26, at Greenwood Cemetery. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.

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OBITUARIES

Florence Friedman 90, Chicago

Florence Friedman, 90, of Chicago died Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2016.

She is survived by her children, Barbara (Michael) Horowitz of Bloomfield Hills, Mich., and Atlanta and Mark (Joanne) Friedman of Upper Montclair, N.J.; grandchildren Lisa Friedman Stewart, Rachel (Ben) Sahn, Susan Horowitz, Adam Horowitz, Sandra Friedman and Geoffrey Horowitz; and great-grandchildren Isaac, Hannah and Isabelle Sahn and Graham and Schuyler Stewart. Mrs. Friedman was the loving wife of the late Dr. Irving A. Friedman for 55 years.

Interment was held at Oak Ridge Cemetery in Chicago. Contributions may be made to Weinstein Hospice, www.weinsteinhospice.com; Halcyon Hospice, www.excellenceinhospice.com; or to a charity of your choice. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.

Theodore Levitas 92, Atlanta

Sylvia Goldstein Sylvia Goldstein (Swartzman) of Atlanta passed away peacefully in her home Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2016.

A Brooklyn native, she married Jack Goldstein of Atlanta in 1947. They were married for 68 years until his passing in November 2015. They started their family in Atlanta on Atlanta Avenue and later settled in Silver Spring, Md. They also enjoyed vacation homes in Ocean City, Md., and Boynton Beach, Fla. Sylvia and Jack returned to Atlanta four years ago and resided at the Renaissance on Peachtree. Sylvia worked in various government positions, her favorite being the Armed Forces Biological Institute, and later in life she earned an associate’s degree. She loved traveling and cruising with her husband and visited her daughter in Israel several times. She enjoyed many hobbies and crafts, including playing piano, singing, ice skating, sewing, needlepointing, knitting and doing papier-mâché. She was also an avid reader and carried on lively discussions about current events and politics. She was an excellent cook and served her family a full four-course dinner every night of the week. Sylvia was loving, witty and devoted to her husband and family. She treasured Skyping and Facetiming with her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

She is survived by three children, Dianne Peikin (Stan) of Fairfax, Va., Dr. Michael Goldstein (Fern) of Atlanta and Griffin, and Nancy Ely (David) of Ra’anana, Israel; seven grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren. She will forever be remembered. She will forever be missed. The family would like to thank to Sylvia’s caregivers, Hattie Marcel, Linda Magee and Karrie Grierson, for their warm, professional and loving attention. They also wish to express their appreciation for the compassionate care provided by everyone associated with Gentiva Hospice.

Sign the online guestbook at www.edressler.com. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to the American Heart Association. Graveside services were held Friday, Sept. 23, at Arlington Memorial Park in Sandy Springs with Rabbi Ronald Bluming officiating. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.

Stephen P. Krosner 74, Marietta

Stephen P. Krosner, 74, of Marietta died Thursday, Sept. 22, 2016. Dr. Krosner is survived by his wife of 49 years, Nancy Krosner; sons and daughters-in-law Jeff and Christy Krosner and David and Yudit Krosner; and grandchildren Sam Krosner, Zach Krosner, Reesa Krosner and Jonah Krosner.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society. Graveside services were held Monday, Sept. 26, at Arlington Memorial Park with Rabbi Shalom Lewis officiating.

Dentist Theodore “Dr. Teddy Bear” Levitas keeps a stuffed friend nearby.

Dr. Theodore Clinton “Ted,” “Dr. Teddy” or “Dr. Teddy Bear” Levitas, 92, died Thursday, Sept. 15, 2016.

Dr. Levitas was a leading figure in pediatric dentistry for over 60 years and was a prominent member of the Atlanta Jewish community. He was born in Atlanta on April 9, 1924, to Louis J. and Ida G. Levitas and graduated from Boys’ High in 1941, where he served as editor in chief of the school newspaper. From there he went on to Emory University on a journalism scholarship and served as editor in chief of the Emory Wheel. Ted interrupted his studies to serve in the U.S. Navy during World War II, where he had his first experience in health care as a pharmacist’s mate aboard the USS Hoggatt Bay in the Pacific. He returned to Emory after the war, intending to pursue a career in journalism, but his cousins Irving and Marvin Goldstein, who were both practicing dentistry in Atlanta, persuaded him to accept a position at Emory University Dental School, where he received a D.D.S. degree in 1950. That launched one of the most distinguished careers in the history of American dentistry, spanning more than six decades.

In 1959, Dr. Levitas began to concentrate his practice on dentistry for children, and in 1966, after attending Emory Dental School on a part-time basis while continuing to treat patients, he was awarded a master of science in dentistry degree with a concentration in pediatric dentistry. For the next 45 years, Dr. Levitas was a recognized leader in the field of children’s dentistry, serving as president of both the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry and the American Society of Dentistry for Children, as well as of the Southeastern Society of Pediatric Dentistry (which holds an annual lecture in his name), the Northern (Georgia) District Dental Society and Atlanta’s Thomas P. Hinman Dental Society. Dr. Levitas served in many other leadership roles with national, state and local dental associations and was active in planning and organizing many dental meetings and conferences, including the Hinman Society’s celebrated annual meeting. He was a frequent and sought-after lecturer on children’s dentistry, nationally and internationally, and expressed his love for writing by contributing extensively to dental literature.

For the last several decades of his career, Dr. Levitas devoted himself to the care of medically compromised and handicapped children and was appointed a diplomate of the American Board of Special Care Dentistry. He was a longtime member of the staff of both Scottish Rite Children’s Hospital and Egleston Children’s Hospital (now known as Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta). He was the first dentist to become president of the hospital medical-dental staff of Scottish Rite Children’s Hospital and started the dental surgery program at Egleston Children’s Hospital. Throughout his career Dr. Levitas served the community by providing free dental care one morning a week at the Ben Massell Dental Clinic, where he was chief of staff for many years and chief emeritus beginning in 1998. He also devoted a substantial portion of his practice to serving Medicaid patients and other children who did not have easy access to quality dental care. He touched and improved the lives of thousands of children and their parents, who lovingly referred to him as Dr. Teddy Bear. Dr. Levitas’ many honors and awards include the American Society of Dentistry for Children’s Award of Excellence, the Geor- 87 SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Atlanta

AJT

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

OBITUARIES gia Dental Association’s Award of Merit, the Wood Lovell Award for service to patients at Scottish Rite Children’s Hospital and the Emory University Dental Alumni Association Award for Meritorious Service, and he was honored in 2006

by Families of Children Under Stress (FOCUS). He was included in the 2007 edition of Who’s Who in America. Like his parents before him, Ted was a proud and observant member of the Jewish faith and was actively engaged his entire life in Atlanta’s Jewish community. He was a lifelong member of the Ahavath Achim congregation. He celebrated his second bar mitzvah at the age of 83 by reading his original bar mitzvah portion at Shabbat services with all of his immediate family, extended family and friends in attendance. He celebrated his 90th birthday in 2014 by reading from the Torah with all of his immediate family, extended family and friends in attendance. Ted was a leader in many Jewish organizations, including the Anti-Defamation League, AZA/B’nai B’rith (in which he won a number of oratory competitions in his youth and later in life co-wrote and produced several musical comedies) and the Tau Epsilon Phi fraternity. He was also deeply devoted to his extended family, maintaining close relationships with dozens of cousins

and their children across the country. A lifelong Democrat, Ted was passionate about politics and was an early supporter of civil rights and remained dedicated to social justice throughout his life. He took great pride in the career of his brother Elliott who served in the Georgia legislature and U.S. Congress from 1966 through 1984, and he played an important role in the management of his brother’s many campaigns. But more than partisan causes, he was a staunch believer in the enduring strength of America’s political system and had an unwavering confidence in the democratic process. Ted was an enthusiastic sportsman and sports fan. He enjoyed considerable success as an amateur fencer on the national and international levels and was an avid ping-pong player and golfer (known on the Standard Club golf course for his flamboyant attire). He was devoted to Atlanta’s sports teams, having been an original Falcons season tickets holder and an ardent fan of the Braves and Hawks. A particular highlight was seeing Hank Aaron break Babe Ruth’s career home run record with his sons in 1974, the day before his 50th birthday. But for all his accomplishments and interests, the most important thing to remember about Ted Levitas is that he never met a stranger. He always had a

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OBITUARIES smile on his face and a kind word or a joking comment for anyone he encountered, which continued with nurses and visitors to the very end of his life. Everyone who met him, from whatever walk of life, felt at ease in his presence.

Ted was preceded in death by his first wife of 22 years, Earlyne Shankerman Levitas. He is survived by his wife of 40 years, Miriam Strickman Levitas; brother and sister-in-law Elliott and Barbara Levitas; children Steven and Betsy Levitas, Leslie Levitas and Richard Martin, Dr. Tony Levitas and Robyn Rousso, Andrew Strickman, and Dr. Brian Strickman-Levitas, Craig Strickman-Levitas, and Deron Strickman-Levitas; and grandchildren Jake, Emmy, Graham and Chloe Levitas.

Sign the online guestbook at www.edressler.com. A funeral service was held Friday, Sept. 16, at Ahavath Achim Synagogue in Buckhead, with Rabbi Neil Sandler officiating; burial followed at Arlington Memorial Park in Sandy Springs.

The family requests that in lieu of flowers donations be made to Ahavath Achim Synagogue or the Ben Massell Dental Clinic. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.

James Pepper 73, Atlanta

years. He had what amounted to a front-row seat to the dynamic times and growth of the city, including as a driver for the governor, an early employee of the Atlanta Hawks and a game-day presence on the sidelines of the Atlanta Falcons from their debut in 1966 through last season. Jimmy seemingly knew everybody, from the star quarterbacks and sportswriters who wrote about them to the policemen who directed traffic on the streets of Atlanta, streets Jimmy knew better than anybody.

He reveled in helping people get around town and knew the fastest routes at any time, long before GPS navigation was a thing. For many years, he could be seen on the basketball courts of schools and rec leagues around town as a referee.

Survivors include a son, Keith Pepper; daughters Meredith (Craig) Bass and Hilary (Stuart) Nelson; five grandchildren; and a brother, Thomas Pepper. He was preceded in death by his loving wife, Shelley Steinman Pepper, of blessed memory.

Sign the online guestbook at www.edressler.com. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Shelley Steinman Pepper Fund at Kate’s Club (www.katesclub.org). A graveside service was held Sunday, Sept. 25, at Crest Lawn Memorial Park with Rabbi Peter Berg officiating. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.

Death Notice

James Maurice Pepper, age 73, of Atlanta died Friday, Sept. 23, 2016.

Jimmy was born in Cincinnati but called Atlanta home for more than 70

Edith Kurzweil, 81, wife of Marty Kurzweil and mother of Temple Sinai member David Kurzweil, Larry Kurzweil and Steven Kurzweil, on Sept. 19.

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CLOSING THOUGHTS

Tishrei’s Jeweled Crown Of Holy Moments

SEPTEMBER 30 ▪ 2016

Rosh Chodesh Tishrei always begins on Rosh Hashanah, which this year is Monday, Oct. 3.

Hashem blesses Tishrei on the last Shabbat of Elul. Based on the Book of Formation, we address Tishrei’s challenges through the zodiac sign Libra, Hebrew letter lamed, tribe Ephraim, sense touch and controlling organ gallbladder.

We exfoliate the tough outer skin developed over the last year, strip down to our essence, and ready ourselves for self-reflection and reinvention.

For me, Tishrei conjures images of a jeweled crown and an enchanted journey. Do you remember this from childhood? “We’re going on a treasure hunt; X marks the spot.”

Each year, at the same time on the Hebrew calendar, we take this journey.

Yet each year it appears to be different.

No matter where we are, conscious of it or not, we hear the sound of the shofar during Elul. It awakens us and signals that we must prepare for what’s ahead.

We are HERE, at the open gate.

We may have different starting points each year, but our goal is always to arrive at and stand firmly on the X, the crossroads where we intersect and humbly realign ourselves with Hashem.

At each stop on our treasure hunt, we gather a jewel for the crown. I imagine these jewels and their teachings coordinating with the chakra colors. Chakras are the wheels of energy and colored light located in a column at the body’s points of opening.

We actually began our preparation in Elul. We went out into the field to meet Hashem and collect the deepred first chakra jewel for the crown.

It joins us to our tribe and the way we walk on Earth.

Next, we honor the creation of Adam, the first man, on the first day of Tishrei with the orange of the second chakra stone. Then there is Rosh Hashanah, the “head of the year,” represented by the place of wisdom, knowledge and learning through which we examine our words and actions over the past year.

The color of the gemstone located at the third eye, or sixth chakra, is indigo. Yom Kippur brings the energies 90 down to the verdant, fertile, fourth

AJT

chakra green of the heart.

After the contemplation of Rosh Hashanah, we experience the cleansing and compassion for ourselves and others. Sukkot brings vulnerability and connects us, at our core, to Mother Nature and her rhythms. This third

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ACROSS 1. Borei Pri Ha’___ 6. Selznick hired him to play Butler 11. Like Israel’s supply of hummus 16. Josephus became one 17. J.J. Abrams-created show 18. Mystical being 19. What Jack Bauer might serve on 47th St.?

22. Sammy Davis and Cal Ripken: Abbr.

23. Israeli billionaire Sammy or Idan 24. “Jewish” bread 25. Chok, in France 26. Takes advantage of a schnook 27. Melon befitting the new year 32. Protect a Torah, in a way 34. Many an Israeli, e.g.

35. Archaeological find at Hatzor 36. What might be served to Trey Anastasio?

39. It follows “X” for Simon Cowell 41. “There ___ there there” (Gertrude Stein) 42. Make like Logan Lerman 43. New yid 44. Rehavia to Talbiya dir.

45. What might be served to Mario & Luigi?

50. Ron Blomberg or David Ortiz 53. Part of a Carrie Fisher do 54. Underwater Eilat site 55. Salt-N-___, group that inspired Amy Winehouse 59. Shalom Aleichem, e.g.

61. What might be served to Tim Cook’s headphones employees?

64. Actor Bridges who was never in a Coen Brothers film 65. Nora Ephron quality 66. “Take Me to Shul” might be a shlock version of his hit 67. With 76-Across, what can be found in 19-, 36-, 45- and 61-Across 70. Boat full of schmutz 72. Foreign general serving in Israel?

73. Aviv starter?

74. Over-the-top bar mitzvah, perhaps 75. Thirty-two years after the Second Temple’s destruction, to a 16-Across 76. See 67-Across 83. Like the burning bush 84. Moves like honey 85. Disorder that could ruin one’s Shabbat rest 86. Lord a Portman character loved

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chakra stone is the citron color of the etrog.

During Simchat Torah we raise our voices in song and celebration.

The crown receives its blue fifth chakra stone. Once we’ve arrived at the integration of the head and heart in thought and deed, we align with Hashem and receive the final violet seventh chakra stone.

Libra reminds us to balance the scales of justice. The letter lamed invites us to reach above our personal lines on the path ahead.

The tribe, Ephraim, means “procreation.” It’s a time to balance our masculine and feminine energies to birth our fully empowered selves to heal, achieve, contribute to tikkun olam and progress in the coming year.

The sense of Tishrei is touch. We don’t just touch other human beings with our hands. We can also touch them with our words. In doing either, there’s connection.

This month we become present again. We pray with kavanah, or intention. We ground ourselves, reconnect to our souls, reach out to join with others and realign with Hashem. The goal is to remain as conscious all year as we are at this time.

The ruling organ is the gallbladder. It stores and excretes bile. Bile translates to bitterness that we need to expel by forgiving, connecting and clearing ourselves to begin anew.

Meditation focus: Scan the events of this past year that felt like they were injected with poison. Now draw them up to a head and visualize releasing them. Ask the Angels of Peace to carry the poison away from you. Then fill the empty space with gratitude for all that you have received this past year.

Whisper the words “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Hashem.” ■

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Dr. Terry Segal tsegal@atljewishtimes.com

“Apple Alternatives”

By Yoni Glatt, koshercrosswords@gmail.com Difficulty Level: Medium

1

45

New Moon Meditations

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87. Approaches, like David when fighting Goliath 88. The longest parsha (Var.)

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(Gen 1:26) 48. Spike or Stan 49. 1974 Gould-Sutherland spoof 50. Chagall touches 51. Lewis who sang with the News and in Paltrow’s “Duets” 52. Chalav or Sofer 56. Issues of this publication 57. Heads the Sanhedrin 58. Mechanics who make El Al work?

60. Workplace for El Al mechanics 61. Using one of its pens or WiteOut in a Torah would be a no-no 62. Foundation founded by Spielberg 63. Modim action 65. President who said, “In Palestine shall be laid the foundations of a Jewish commonwealth” 68. “Significant” one to a chatan 69. Michele who played Rachel Berry on “Glee” 70. Not as meshuga 71. Bar Ilan setting 74. Hamas headquarters 75. Manilow song setting 76. Jewish title 77. “Scent ___ Woman” (Martin Brest film) 78. Caesar who was Jewish 79. Realm that issued a “Charter of Protection” to Jews in 825: Abbr.

80. Tool not used by one observing the sabbatical year 81. Maccabi supporter 82. ___ Paulo, home of most of Brazil’s Jews

DOWN 1. Ein Hod output 2. Where some Israeli stocks might be found 3. Like many who move to Ramat Beit Shemesh 4. “___ Search for Meaning” (Frankl) 5. One in a line entering a sukkah?

6. Campaign mistake for Trump or Sanders 7. Ahava ingredients 8. ___ Chametz 9. “Curb Your Enthusiasm” lead, for short 10. Where some funds might be placed before moving to Israel 11. Say amen 12. Israeli name that can be masculine or feminine 13. Ramallah grp.

14. It gives Shahar Pe’er another serve 15. Start and end of Parshat Mishpatim?

20. He was buried in Mitzrayim and Eretz Yisrael 21. Novelist Rand 25. Where Samson slew Philistines 26. Troop gr. Lewis Black has worked with 27. Snarky laugh or Hebrew letter 28. Kids who sing “Shabichi” and “V’ohavta,” for short 29. Spoil, with “on” (like a Jewish grandmother) 30. Grandson of Eve 31. End of a 1973 Streisand hit 33. Friday fusses at the shuk 34. Liberal 1 2 3 4 5 S A L M O advocacy group 14 T H E A R 37. Kosher 17 J A M M I youngster in the 20 woods L O 23 24 25 38. Part of the K A B U L 29 seventh plague F L U K E 33 39. An Israeli visa C I T might have one 36 37 38 F I N S 40. Holy item 42 O P some believe is in 46 47 48 L A S S O Ethiopia 52 53 A P T K 43. Moolah 56 57 46. Airer of David F O R F E 60 Simon’s “The F L O U N 66 Wire” A L L S 69 47. “Let us make S O L E man in ___ image”

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30 34

H

15

B

16

R

E

L

A

R

I

E

S

S

31

32

A

Y

D L

I

I

I

H

E

X

M A

R

T

54

I

T

D

E

O

R

C

T

S

A

67 70

61

R

58

Y

50

A

55 59

S

E

A

49

13

K

19

S

T

S T

C

43

12

T

H

35

A

E

S

39

11

L

28

A

A

V

A

L

E

S

40

E

44

41

S

45

B

A

H

A

V

A

A

N

E

S

51

R

A

E

L

D

I

L

A

N

E

I

N

U

M U

L

L

E

T

62 68 71

63

L

64

O

65

N

AJT

91

SEPTEMBER 30 â&#x2013;ª 2016

AJT

92

SEPTEMBER 30 â&#x2013;ª 2016