Baltimore Jewish Home 12-18-25

BJH WISHES YOU A FREILICHEN CHANUKA! Vol. 11 Issue #42 | Dec. 18-24, 2025 | ‫ ד׳ טבת תשפ״ו‬- ‫כ״ח כסלו‬

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Chaverim Of Baltimore Hosts Annual Volunteer Appreciation Pre-Chanukah Celebration

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When Cyclone Byron Brought Families Together

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YESHIVA OF GREATER WASHINGTON BOYS DIVISION TIFERES GEDALIAH

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Meet and hear from our

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Serious learning of Gemara, Chumash, Navi, and Halacha, offered in multiple tracks Challenging, comprehensive general studies program Transportation to and from Baltimore Partial boarding options available

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Dear Readers,

Contents COMMUNITY Around the Community

8

Greater Washington Minyanim

16

Community Calendar

36

Baltimore Minyanim Guide

37

JEWISH THOUGHT Rabbi Zvi Teichman

32

Torah Sparks

33

Sparks Of Light

48

Living Kiddush Hashem

50

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HUMOR & ENTERTAINMENT To Raise a Laugh

46

Chanukah Contest

60

Centerfold

52

Notable Quotes

54

Kids Coloring Contest

68

LIFESTYLES Israel Today

38

Voice Notes

40

My Israel Home

42

Mental Health Corner

44

Dating

58

Relationship Rewired

62

School Of Thought

64

Parenting Pearls

66

In The Kitchen

71

If you’ve been part of our community long enough, you’ve likely felt it yourself: that subtle instinct to check your phone or computer when something important is happening. A road closure. A levayah. A community alert. A moment that requires awareness, sensitivity, or presence. Over time, our sister platform, Baltimore Jewish Life, and its News & Information WhatsApp group have become that trusted tap on the shoulder – the place people turn when they need to know what’s happening, right now. That trust is not something we take lightly. It is built message by message and moment by moment, and it comes with a responsibility to keep that space focused, clear, and dependable.

At the same time, our community is vibrant, busy, and constantly in motion. New stores open. Restaurants and businesses roll out specials. Schools host events.

Organizations launch campaigns. Shuls announce programs. Sales happen, opportunities arise, and information worth knowing is shared, though sometimes that information can clutter a news feed. Over the past few years, we’ve seen this content land everywhere: forwarded messages, flyers, screenshots, statuses, and countless small WhatsApp groups. Useful, yes, but scattered. And often mixed in with the very news people rely on most.

That reality led us to ask a simple question: what if there were a dedicated space for all of that? A place where promotions, events, and community announcements could live comfortably without competing with urgent updates or interrupting the flow of news. A place people could opt into because they want to see what’s happening around town. From that question, The BUZZ powered by The BJH/BJL was born.

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Israel News

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National News

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For ad submissions please email ads@baltimorejewishhome.com

443-990-1941 | www.thebjh.com

These two platforms are designed to work hand in hand.

BJL remains the place you turn to when something matters and time is of the essence. The BUZZ becomes the place you turn when you want to know what’s going on, what’s new, what’s available, and what you might otherwise miss.

Together, they reflect the full rhythm of community life: the moments we need to know about and the moments we want to be part of.

My hope is that The BUZZ becomes a resource you rely on, and one that benefits our community, organizations, and businesses alike. A place that adds value without noise and opportunity without clutter. As always, we are grateful for the trust you place in us, and we are excited to continue building tools that serve our community thoughtfully and responsibly. We invite you to join The BUZZ below, explore what’s happening, and be part of the conversation in the right place, at the right time.

Have a peaceful Shabbos and freilichin Chanukah!

Aaron M. Friedman

The BUZZ is exactly what it sounds like: a steady, curated stream of what’s happening in Baltimore. Restaurant specials. Store sales. School programs. Community events.

Campaign launches. No breaking news. No alerts. No

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Send us your: community events, articles & photos, and mazal tovs to editor@baltimorejewishhome.com to be featured in coming editions!

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Police & Fire 911 Hatzalah 410-358-0000 Shomrim 410-358-9999 NWCP 410-664-6927 Chaverim 410-486-9000 Misaskim 443-265-2300

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emergencies. Just the kind of information people enjoy discovering in one clean, organized feed. It is the modern version of the shul bulletin board, rebuilt for how our community communicates today. Just as importantly, it allows Baltimore Jewish Life and its WhatsApp group to remain what they have always been: focused, trusted, and news-driven.

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The Baltimore Jewish Home is an independent bi-weekly newspaper. All opinions expressed by the journalists, contributors and/or advertisers printed and/or quoted herein are solely their opinions and do not reflect the opinions of BALTIMORE JEWISH HOME, their parent company or affiliates, and may have been previously disseminated by them on television, radio, Internet or another medium. The Baltimore Jewish Home is not responsible for typographical errors, or for the kashrus of any product or business advertised within. The BJH contains words of Torah. Please treat accordingly.

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T

he picture completion test showed an image of a door with the top hinge missing. The psychologist prompted the child to identify what was missing. She scanned the door briefly and answered, “the mezuzah”! Of course she was right, but that answer was not scorable.

Our children see the world through a different lens. As adults, we are proud of their perspective and work hard to maintain it by limiting their exposure to pop culture and the outside world while strengthening their connection to our heritage. When a child has a disability, it was historically very difficult to access services in a culturally appropriate manner.

Twenty years ago, Ms. Marjorie Shulbank was the Section Chief for the Family Support Network in the division of special education at the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE). She recognized that frum families were not accessing special education support services through ChildFind. Childfind is the federally mandated requirement that all public school districts

have to actively identify, locate, and evaluate children from birth to age 21 who may need special education and related services. Ms. Shulbank alerted the then Assistant State Superintendent for Special Education, Carol Ann Baglin, and the State Superintendent, Nancy Grasmick, who all cared deeply about meeting the needs of children. They wanted to make sure that frum children had the same access to educational opportunities as the rest of the children under their watch.

Ms. Shulbank went on a listening tour and Shayna Levine-Hefetz, the director of Special Education at the Center for Jewish Education (CJE), was deputized to collect numbers of students with disabilities. Rabbi Hopfer, shlit”a, recorded a robocall which asked everyone who had children with disabilities to report their information. This was very successful and with the headcount in hand, the MSDE and CJE team coordinated with Ed Miller in Governor Ehrlich’s office and the governor carved out funding for the project. The Partnership for Educational Needs (PEN) was born. Funding is not enough though; it took partnership. Ms.

Kislev 5786 ~ December 2025 To the Beloved Baltimore Community, Baltimore is blessed with many chashuva mosdos and devoted mechanchim who work tirelessly each day to provide an outstanding chinuch for our community’s precious children. Their efforts are immeasurably strengthened by the dedication of our parents/caregivers, who serve as true partners in chinuch, advocating for the unique needs of their children with love, insight and persistence.

As our kehilah kedosha continues to grow and flourish, we have made meaningful strides in supporting the needs of all children. Yet all of us—parents, educators, and rabbonim—recognize that our sacred

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responsibility is far from complete. Every child is a world unto themselves, deserving to be understood, supported, and given the tools to thrive. With Hashem’s help, we remain steadfast in our effort to ensure that each child in our community receives what they need to succeed.

To further this vital effort, we are asking anyone caring for a child (birth through age 21) who is struggling in school or has a special learning need to complete a very brief form. We successfully collected this information twenty years ago and it resulted in significant government support to establish the Partnership for Educational Needs (PEN) project which supports special education instruction in the yeshiva day schools. The information gathered will help identify gaps, highlight opportunities and advocate for the needs of our community’s children.

If you need assistance completing the form or would like to have a confidential conversation, please contact 410-456-9984 (Amian Kelemer, PEN Coordinator). All information will be handled sensitively and shared only in the aggregate.

Thank you for your attention to this important matter by January 20, 2026. Kol tuv- and may you and your

families have a lichtige Chanuka,

Shulbank and Mrs. Levine-Hefetz went to Rabbi Yaakov Schwartz at Talmudical Academy Middle School and identified the first group of boys who had diagnosed disabilities and could benefit from a special class for secular studies.

The crux of PEN was that the State team understood the unique cultural needs of the Orthodox Jewish community. In fact, they shared that there was precedent since the Mennonite children in the Western part of the state are educated in their own public schools with Mennonite teachers. Our children similarly require a culturally and linguistically appropriate educational environment.

Over the years, PEN has evolved. It no longer provides related services such as speech and PT on site at the day schools because that effort is now embraced by the counties. Now, there are 8 classes in four yeshiva day schools where children can learn with their peers. Once, those children would have been at risk of being educated in other settings and with PEN funding and other support, the schools have made great efforts to include children who would otherwise have had to miss out on being in a Jewish environment.

Twenty years ago there were relatively few services and supports. Today, our community is bursting with opportunities for education, advocacy and connection.

According to one mother who remembers the early days, Ms. Shulbank and the support from the state helped everything turn around.

People recognized that they were eligible for services and support and as a result, began to advocate for their children and their needs.

Around the same time, Ms. Shulbank also facilitated the establishment of Kodem Kol which provided access to ChildFind for infants and toddlers in the community and MDSnap which provided parent support and advocacy. This created a new network of professionals in the community including Mrs. Ellen Edinger and Mrs. Naomi Shabtai, a”h, who were ad hoc liaisons between the public system and the Jewish community.

The PEN program was ably coordinated first

by Marjorie, then by Mrs. Chavi Barenbaum, and for the last ten years by Cathy Jurist.

Their commitment to our community’s children allowed the program to continue.

Rabbi Yaakov Hopfer

on behalf of the Va’ad HaRabbonim

Today, the PEN position sits in the department of Family Support and Dispute Resolution at MSDE. Amian Kelemer, who sat on the team at CJE when PEN was

founded twenty years ago, is the new coordinator. With staff turnover, even MSDE employees are largely unfamiliar with the project’s necessity and had to be reintroduced to the PEN concept. Recently, a few members of MSDE’s special education and nonpublic staff teams had the opportunity to visit schools with classrooms supported by the PEN project. By visiting, they understood the value of the project through seeing the commitment of the schools, the cultural needs of the children and the excellence of the teachers.

With the incredible growth of the community, added support services in place and some families opting for testing outside of the public system, the counties might not be as aware of the numbers of children with diagnosed disabilities. There is a provision in the law to provide “proportionate share” funding for testing and services that would benefit children who are parentally placed in private schools. Access and utilization of services is part of what keeps those funds in place. Understanding where children are accessing services and for what needs can help identify gaps.

As a result, twenty years later, Rabbi Hopfer is asking once again for families to fill out a brief form that will help get a handle on the numbers of children. If you have questions about access to services there are many ways to get information. In addition to the PEN project (410.456.9984), there is: Kodem Kol (667-205-4047), Yahalom (667-430-0901) and the Network 410-7355012. There are also school options such as: JEWELS, Binyan Yisroel and Tiferes Golda as well as learning centers supported

by Shemesh student service at JES, Lamdeinu at TA, Shine and L’ayla at TI. There is Menucha respite and programs, as well as other after school classes and programs through organizations like: Bas Melech Imadi, Friendship Circle, YACHAD and Gesher LaTorah.

Despite the wonderful resources, there are still gaps in service and the need for additional funding. If you have a child with a disability who is newborn through age 21, we urge you to please fill out the form (one per child) in order for us to consider what else needs to be done.

Scan QR or visit https://t.ly/CISUH

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DECEMBER 18-DECEMBER 24, 2025

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Around the Community

Miriam’s Library Closes On Permanent Building On First Day Of Chanukah

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n the first day of Chanukah, Miriam’s Library officially closed on the purchase of its permanent building, marking a major milestone for the growing educational initiative.

“This building gives Miriam’s Library the foundation it needs to grow and serve the community in a lasting way,” Mendel Mintz said. “It allows us to move from vision to long-term impact.”

The $2.3 million property, located at 201 Milford Mill Road, will serve as the future home of Miriam’s Library, a center focused on education, after-school programming, and community learning. The closing took place in the presence of local rabbonim, community leaders, and supporters of the project.

The acquisition comes after months of planning and fundraising, supported by over 4,000 donors who contributed to the project. Renovations and build-out plans for the space are expected to move forward in the coming months.

Miriam’s Library is dedicated to strengthening Jewish education through accessible programming, tutoring, and curated Jewish learning spaces for children and families. The newly acquired building will allow the organization to significantly expand its offerings and establish a permanent hub for its programs.

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Yeshivas Toras Simcha Menorah And Dreidel Contest Winners

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eshivas Toras Simcha held a dreidel contest for Grades 1-4, and a Menorah contest was for grades 5-8.

Dreidel contest winners were: 1st place – Azriel Karp,

Menorah contest winners were: 1st place – Yosef Newmark 2nd place – Shraga Friedman 3rd place – Yisrael Hefter A Freilichen Chanukah!

2nd place – Efraim Kohn 3rd place – Hillel Konick

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Rabbi Shai Scherer along with the winners of the Yeshivas Toras Simcha Menorah and Dreidel contest Chanuka 5786.

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Around the Community

Chaverim Of Baltimore Hosts Annual Volunteer Appreciation Pre-Chanukah Celebration By: BJLife Newsroom

C

haverim of Baltimore held its annual volunteer appreciation pre-Chanukah celebration, honoring the dedicated members who serve the community day and night throughout the year.

The uplifting event brought together volunteers and their families for an evening of gratitude, connection, and well-deserved celebration.

The program featured family-friendly entertainment including a balloon artist and a lively photo booth that added a fun, festive atmosphere for both children and adults.

A delicious food spread from 7 Mile Market, with doughnuts generously sponsored by Pariser’s Bakery, added a sweet Chanukah touch to the evening.

The gathering served as a meaningful opportunity to thank Chaverim’s volunteers for their unwavering

commitment and countless hours of service. Their quiet dedication, often behind the scenes, continues to be a cornerstone of safety and support for the Baltimore community.

The pre-Chanukah celebration once again reflected the appreciation and unity that define Chaverim of Baltimore and its mission throughout the year.

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We’re hiring!

DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT OCA is seeking a full-time Director of Development to lead strategic fundraising efforts and help strengthen our vibrant, Torah-driven school community.

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Around the Community

THE BALTIMORE JEWISH HOME

DECEMBER 18-DECEMBER 24, 2025

Agra D’Pirka Baltimore Hosts Special December 25th Programming By: Margie Pensak

A

gra D’Pirka’s ner haTorah continues to burn brightly, this winter, warming the neshamos of its hundreds of participants around the country, including those who meet in Khal Ahavas Yisroel Tzemach Tzedek (KAYTT) under the leadership of HaRav Dovid Heber, shlita.

Next week, HaRav Yaakov Akiva Sofer, Yeshivas Ner Yisroel, will speak about “Christianity and Avoda Zara”.

Director of Agra D’Pirka Baltimore Rabbi Eli Sofer shares, “This Chanukah, as we celebrate the power of a small light to brighten even the darkest spaces, the upcoming legal holiday Agra D’Pirka shiurim offer a unique opportunity to bring that same light into our hearts and minds. Even a brief pause to engage with Torah learning can have a tremendous impact, inspiring reflection, growth, and connection.

When shared with the community, these shiurim amplify the light of learning, creating a ripple effect of

inspiration and spiritual vitality that extends far beyond the program itself.”

HaRav Heber adds, “Agra D’Pirka offers tremendous learning experiences with its shiurim on an array of topics

(partnership) in this most remarkable Harbatzas Hatorah program.”

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Around the Community

Weeks 3 And 4 Of Charm City Ballers Sponsored By Diamond Auto Leasing Featured Some Strong Team And Individual Performances As The Season Gets Rolling In Earnest

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ov Pizza 62 Orshan Legal Group 54

Tov Pizza Bounces Back, Knocks Off Orshan Legal Mordy Reches scored 25 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, and dished out 3 assists as Tov Pizza bounced back from their season opening lost with a strong 62-54 win over Orshan Legal Group. Reches’ cousin Mordi Spero flirted with a triple double and was extremely efficient, finishing with 11 points (on just 6 shots), 9 rebounds, and 7 assists while controlling the pace of the game very well. Isaac Beletskiy had 13 points while Menachem Blackman added 7 and 8 rebounds.

After an extremely slow start, with neither team scoring for the game’s first 4+ minutes, Tov Pizza got rolling. They held first half leads of 17-7

and 23-12, and took a 27-20 lead into the break after a Heshey Green 3 for Orshan Legal. Tov Pizza stretched the lead to 15 midway through the second half, and while Orshan Legal never fell completely out of the game they never got closer than 7 until the final seconds, when they briefly closed to within 4 before Tov Pizza closed the game out at the foul line.

Orshan Legal was again led by Yoni Bobker, who had a game high 27 points including 6 3s. Bobker also grabbed 11 rebounds and had 3 assists. Heshey Green added 13 points and 10 rebounds, while David Raden had 10 rebounds and Yoseph Orshan had 4 assists in the loss. Both teams are now 1-1.

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Up was able to quickly reclaim it and led for the remainder of the game.

Advanced Security erased an 18 point second half defense behind Avi Goldstein’s brilliance and Avi Yudkowsky’s clutch shooting to beat Fired Up Promotions 59-54.

Eitan Hariri had 22 points and 6 rebounds for Schleifer, but the team’s poor shooting ultimately doomed their comeback chances. The team shot 27% from the field and just 14% from 3 in what was their first loss of the season. Nadav Spiegler added 8 points and he and Yeshayahu Schwartz each grabbed 9 rebounds in the defeat.

Fired Up built a 30-23 halftime lead and stretched it to 46-28, primarily behind Yisroel Luchansky who had 16 first half points and 24 total, but only scored 4 in the game’s final 12 minutes after an Advanced defensive shift. Luchansky also had 7 rebounds and 5 assists in the tough loss. Abie Hyatt added 16 points while Yali Rothenberg and Avraham Frost had 7 each.

Avi Yudkowsky had 15 of his 20 points during the comeback, including the game’s final 5 points to provide the final 54-49 margin, while Avi Goldstein had the game tying basket after tying it earlier to close out a 26-8 run which fully erased the deficit.

Goldstein finished with a game high 32 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 assists while “Yud-Jokic-sky” added 7 rebounds and 4 assists as Advanced moved to 1-1.

Fired Up Promotions 53 Councilman Schleifer 42 Fired Up Pulls Upset, Gets First Win Fired Up Promotions knocked off first place Councilman Schleifer and earned their first win of the season, 53-42. Abie Hyatt had a breakout performance, finishing with 21 points including 5 3s in the win. Usual leading scorer Yisroel Luchansky took a backseat on the scoring front but finished with a well rounded 11 points, 11 rebounds, and 3 assists while Avromi Gartenhaus added 7, 10, and 4 respectively.

Fired Up tailed 6-0 early and was down for the majority of the first half, but closed the half out strong and took a 24-21 lead into halftime. Councilman Schleifer came out and regained the lead early in the second half, but Fired

Orshan Legal Group 73 M&S Enterprise 26 Orshan Legal Crushes M&S Enterprise in Stunning Blowout Orshan Legal overcame the absence of leading scorer Yoni Bobker and dominated M&S Enterprises 73-26 in what was easily the biggest blowout in Charm City Ballers league history. Orshan Legal led early but didn’t quite pull away until late in the first half, when a 13-8 lead turned into 23-8 with a 15-0 run leading to a 32-12 halftime advantage. Once the second half started the game quickly got out of hand, with Orshan Legal racking up the points in a hurry.

Orshan Legal had 2 players finish with 20+ points, 4 finish in double figures, and 4 finish with at least 10 rebounds. Yaakov Rosenblum led the way with 23 points and added 10 boards while Heshey Green had 21 & 12. Filling in for the absent Bobker, David Braunstein had 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 7 assists. David Raden had 11 points while Yoseph Orshan had 12 rebounds and 7 assists in the win, which brings his team to 2-1 for the season.

M&S was paced by 11 points from Mitch Gross, while sub Chaim Goldman added 7 points and 5 rebounds.

M&S felt the absence of Chesky Lewin and Jonah Schindelheim in a big way, as the usually dominant rebounding team got out-rebounded a whopping 48-16. M&S drops to 1-2 and will look to bounce back next week against Tov Pizza.

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THE BALTIMORE JEWISH HOME DECEMBER 18-DECEMBER 24, 2025

beth tfiloh congregation

honoring rabbi jonah & sarah lerner Tickets available at atsncsy.org

EVENT COMMITTEE GOBBIE AND SHAYNA COHN / MICHAEL AND LINDA ELMAN / HOWARD TZVI FRIEDMAN / SHUEY AND ADINA GOLDSTEIN / CHAIM AND HALI GOTTESMAN / SHULIE AND AVIGAYIL HOCHMAN / ED AND ROBYN HOFFMAN / SIMCHA AND LEAH KOSSMAN DOVID AND SHANI LISTHAUS / JASON AND SHANI REITBERGER / AZI AND RIKI ROSENBLUM / ELI AND RONNIE SCHLOSSBERG / ELLIOT AND YAEL SCHWARZENBERGER / SHUIE AND ELISE STEINHARTER / DOVID AND GALI WEALCATCH / JERRY AND SORA W0LASKY

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The Week In News

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The Week In News

Terror on Bondi Beach

On the first night of Chanukah, an oceanside celebration in Sydney, Australia’s iconic Bondi Beach turned into tragedy after a father and son terrorist-duo went on a shooting spree, killing at least 15 people and injuring 42 others. The shooting was Australia’s deadliest since 1996.

Authorities declared the attack an act of terrorism and said that the assail-

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Chabad. His cousin, Rabbi Zalman Lewis, remembered him as a “vivacious, energetic, full of life and a very warm outgoing person who loved to help people.”

The last photo of Rabbi Schlanger was of him putting tefillin on a man at the beach during the event. Rabbi Schlanger had five children, who are now orphaned.

Rabbi Yaakov Levitan, 39, a wellknown Chabad coordinator in Sydney, was also killed. Along with serving as general manager at the Chabad of Bondi, he was also a secretary at the Sydney Beth Din. Rabbi Levitan was a “key figure” in educational initiatives at BINA, a Jewish center of learning, according to the crowdfunding page. He was originally from Johannesburg and had four children.

Holocaust survivor Alexander Kleytman died while trying to shield his wife from the bullets. He was 87 years old.

Additionally, an Israeli citizen was killed during the massacre, as was French citizen Dan Elkayam, 27, who loved soccer and connecting with people.

Boris, 69, and Sofia Gurman, 61, a Russian-Jewish couple living in Bondi, struggled with the terrorist during the attack. They wrestled with him and tried to

grab his gun before they were both fatally shot, becoming the first victims of the rampage.

In a statement, the couple’s family said their actions encapsulated who they were, “people who instinctively and selflessly tried to help others.”

“While nothing can lessen the pain of losing Boris and Sofia, we feel an overwhelming sense of pride in their bravery and selflessness,” the family said. The couple were due to celebrate Sofia Gurman’s birthday and their 35th wedding anniversary in January.

Tibor Weitzen, 78, was known as the “lollipop guy” in shul. His family remembers the great-grandfather as kind and giving. Tibor’s grandson, Mendy Amzalak, said that his grandfather was a “man full of life, joy, smiles and laughter,” who died shielding a family friend from the bullets.

Amzalak said he was one of the first responders at the scene when he came across his grandfather’s body. “My family were there for the event, and my wife called me, so I ran down to the beach with my defibrillator, and the shooting was still going. I started treating people,

Greater Washington Weekday Minyanim Guide

6:15 am Young Israel Shomrai Emunah

M-F

Woodside Synagogue/Ahavas Torah

T, W, F

6:25 am Southeast Hebrew Cong., Knesset Yehoshua M-F

Young Israel Ezras Israel of Potomac

T, W, F

8:00 am YGW (High School; School-Contingent)

S-F

Young Israel Ezras Israel of Potomac

S S

6:30 am Beth Sholom Congregation

M-F

7:05 am Kesher Israel

M, Th

Young Israel Shomrai Emunah (Sfardi)

Beit Halevi (Sfardi)

M, T

7:15 am Kemp Mill Synagogue

M, Th

Chabad of Silver Spring

M-F

Kesher Israel

T, W, F

8:05 am Ezras Israel Congregation of Rockville 8:15 am Ohr Hatorah

Ohev Shalom Talmud Torah OLNEY

M-F S

Ohev Sholom Talmud Torah/The National Synagogue

M-F

Young Israel Shomrai Emunah YGW

M, Th

Ohr Hatorah

S

6:35 am Ohr Hatorah

M, Th

6:40 am YGW

S, T, W, F

Chabad of Potomac

M-F

Chabad of Potomac

S

M-Th

JROC

M-F

S

S, T, W, F

Kemp Mill Synagogue

T, W, F

Kemp Mill Synagogue

M, Th

Southeast Hebrew Cong., Knesset Yehoshua M-F

Ohr Hatorah

T, W, F

Young Israel Shomrai Emunah

S

JROC Ohev Sholom Talmud Torah/The National Synagogue Silver Spring Jewish Center

Young Israel Shomrai Emunah

M, Th

Young Israel Shomrai Emunah (Sfardi)

M-F

YGW (Summer Only)

S-F

6:50 am Woodside Synagogue/Ahavas Torah

M, Th

7:45 am YGW (Yeshiva Session Only)

S-F

8:45 am Young Israel Shomrai Emunah

S-F

Silver Spring Jewish Center

M-F

8:00 am Beth Sholom Congregation

S

9:00 am Chabad of Silver Spring

S

Chabad of Upper Montgomery County

M-F

Kemp Mill Synagogue

S

Magen David Sephardic Congregation 6:45 am Beit Halevi (Sfardi)

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ants were “motivated by Islamic State ideology.” Last month, the two murderers visited the Philippines, which has an ISIS presence. Authorities also found two homemade ISIS flags in the younger terrorist’s car.

The suspects were identified as 50-year-old Sajid Akfram, a licensed gun owner who was killed by police, and 24-year-old Naveed Akram, who is being treated for his injuries.

Footage shows crowds of Jews who had been celebrating Chanukah running frantically and screaming during the attack. The two terrorists fired bullets into the crowd from a small bridge near a car park on Campbell Parade. One of the gunmen was tackled by a brave bystander named Ahmed al-Ahmed, who grabbed the assailant’s gun and pointed it back at him. Al-Ahmed, a 43-year-old Muslim fruit seller, was shot several times and is being treated for his wounds.

A 10-year-old girl, two rabbis, and a Holocaust survivor were among those killed.

Rabbi Eli Schlanger, a 41-yearold British rabbi who helped organize the event, was shot dead, according to

6:55 am Young Israel Shomrai Emunah

T, W, F

7:00 am Kemp Mill Synagogue

T, W, F

Southeast Hebrew Cong., Knesset Yehoshua S Silver Spring Jewish Center BETHESDA Magen David Sephardic Congregation [S] 11215 Woodglen Dr, North Bethesda, MD 20852 GAITHERSBURG Chabad of Upper Montgomery County [Ari] 11520 Darnestown Rd, Gaithersburg, MD 20878 OLNEY Ohev Shalom Talmud Torah (OSTT) 18320 Georgia Ave, Olney, MD 20832

S

M-F

7:30 am Chabad of DC

Kemp Mill Synagogue Kesher Israel Ohev Shalom Talmud Torah OLNEY

S S S

Southeast Hebrew Cong., Knesset Yehoshua S Chabad of Upper Montgomery County

S

Woodside Synagogue/Ahavas Torah

S

POTOMAC Beth Sholom Congregation 11825 Seven Locks Rd. Potomac, MD 20854 Chabad of Potomac [Ari] 11621 Seven Locks Rd, Potomac, MD 20854 Young Israel Ezras Israel of Potomac 11618 Seven Locks Rd, Potomac, MD 20854

ROCKVILLE Kehilat Pardes / Berman Hebrew Academy 13300 Arctic Ave, Rockville, MD 20853 JROC 11304 Old Georgetown Rd, Rockville, MD 20852 Ezras Israel Congregation of Rockville Ring House TV Room

For edits or additions email ads@baltimorejewishhome.com

M, Th S

Ezras Israel Congregation of Rockville

S, T, W, F

Kehilat Pardes / Berman Hebrew Academy

S-F

Silver Spring Jewish Center

M-F S

8:30 am Chabad of DC

mincha

S S

mincha/maariv

Before Shkiah (15-18 minutes), S-TH Beit Halevi (Sfardi) Beth Sholom Congregation Chabad of Potomac Chabad of Silver Spring Chabad of Upper Montgomery County Ezras Israel Congregation of Rockville (20 min before, S-F) JROC Kemp Mill Synagogue Kesher Israel Magen David Sephardic Congregation Ohev Sholom Talmud Torah/The National Synagogue Ohr Hatorah Silver Spring Jewish Center Southeast Hebrew Congregation Woodside Synagogue/Ahavas Torah Young Israel Ezras Israel of Potomac Young Israel Shomrai Emunah (Asheknaz) Young Israel Shomrai Emunah (Sefarhadi)

maariv

7:30 pm YISE 8:15 pm SEHC 8:45 pm Silver Spring Jewish Center YGW 9:00 pm KMS 9:30 pm YGW 9:45 pm Ohr Hatorah 10:00 pm YGW

12:30 pm YGW

S

1:00 pm Silver Spring Jewish Center

S-F

2:10 pm YGW

M, T, W

2:45 pm YGW

S-Th

3:00 pm YGW Middle School

School Days

SILVER SPRING Beit Halevi [Sefardic] 1009 North Belgrade Rd., Silver Spring, MD 20902 Chabad of Silver Spring [Ari] 519 Lamberton Dr, Silver Spring, MD 20902 Kemp Mill Synagogue 11910 Kemp Mill Rd, Silver Spring, MD 20902 Ohr Hatorah 1009 Kersey Rd, Silver Spring, MD 20902 Silver Spring Jewish Center 1401 Arcola Ave, Silver Spring, MD 20902

Southeast Hebrew Congregation, Knesset Yehoshua 10900 Lockwood Dr, Silver Spring, MD 20901 Woodside Synagogue/Ahavas Torah 9001 Georgia Ave, Silver Spring, MD 20910 Yeshiva Gedola of Greater Washington (YGW) 1216 Arcola Ave, Silver Spring, MD 20902 Young Israel Shomrai Emunah (YISE) [Ashk + S] 1132 Arcola Ave, Silver Spring, MD 20902

M-Th S-Th S-Th M-Th S-Th M-Th S-Th

WASHINGTON Chabad of DC [Ari] 2110 Leroy Pl. NW, Washington, DC 20008 Kesher Israel 2801 N Street, NW Washington, DC 20007 Ohev Sholom Talmud Torah/The National Synagogue 1600 Jonquil St NW, Washington, DC 20012

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The Week In News and then I came across his body,” he told the Australian.

Matilda Britvan was the youngest victim in the heinous attack. She was ten years old when she was killed and was enjoying the celebrations with her sixyear-old sister when she was fatally shot.

Her aunt, Lina Chernykh, said that Matilda was a “happy kid.”

“Everywhere she goes, she was like a sun,” Chernykh said.

Reuven Morrison was born in the Soviet Union and was killed while throwing bricks at the terrorist to stop the attack.

He was 62 years old.

His daughter, Sheina Gutnick, said, “My dear father, Reuven Morrison, was shot dead for being Jewish at a Chanukah event on Bondi Beach while protecting lives, while jumping up, putting his own life at risk to save his fellow Jewish community members.”

Two police officers were injured in the attack.

The terrorists spent nearly a month in the Philippines, arriving on November 1 and leaving on the 28. It is unclear why they went, though the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) has reported that they visited the country to receive “military-style training.” The older suspect, who came to Australia in 1998 on a student visa, had a recreational hunting license and was legally linked to six firearms. The younger terrorist was born in Australia and was investigated starting in October 19 for his associations with other extremists, though authorities determined that there was no evidence that he posed a threat. He was reportedly close to an IS cell based in Sydney.

The terrorist attack was condemned

by Australian and world leaders. In response to the shooting, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he would make gun laws, which are already strict in Australia, even stricter.

Syria: Jews Can Restore Sites

Last week, officials in Syria gave the Jewish Heritage in Syria Foundation permission to begin the process of returning

stolen Jewish assets and restoring Jewish holy sites in the Middle Eastern country.

“This is a strong message from the Syrian state that we do not discriminate between one religion and another… Syria helps all Syrian men and women of every religion and sect who want to build our new state,” Syrian Social Affairs and Labor Minister Hind Kabawat announced.

The foundation’s president is Henry Hama, who left Syria for the U.S. in the 1990s, along with his father Yusuf Hama, who is said to have been the last rabbi who fled Syria.

The foundation’s president said the group will “work on making an inventory of Jewish properties and returning those confiscated during the previous regime, as well as protecting, caring for and restoring holy sites so that they are accessible to all Jews in the world.”

On Wednesday, Hamra and Kabawat met in Damascus, according to photos released by former opposition leader Mouaz Moustafa. Pictures showed Hamra at the al-Franj Synagogue in Damascus, praying with his son Joseph. Hamra, in February, visited the synagogue with the father, who was once the synagogue’s rabbi.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which is based in London, reported that a group of Jews, including two Israeli rabbis, visited two synagogues in Aleppo, Syria, which have been shut down for decades. Footage from SOHR shows the group in front of the synagogue’s entrance. SOHR said that the authorities were at the scene, protecting the group, adding that the visit “aimed to inspect the assets of Syrian-Jewish people” and coincided with “a religious-cultural event with the participation of an association that operates in north Syria.” SOHR also reported that the governor of Aleppo pledged to help the foundation return stolen Syrian Jewish assets to their rightful owners.

Aleppo was once home to the Aleppo Codex, a 10th-century manuscript of the Hebrew Bible. A Syrian Jewish refugee brought the codex’s remains to the Shrine of the Book at Jerusalem’s Israel Museum in 1958 after it was nearly destroyed during a 1947 antisemitic riot that was triggered by the U.N. resolution to recognize the state of Israel.

Under former president Hafez al-Assad, the father of ousted president Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian Jewish community was able to practice their religion but couldn’t leave the country until 1992.

Now, very few Jews remain in Syria.

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Protests at Dutch Chanukah Event

Shai Abramson, the IDF’s official cantor, performed at the iconic Concertgebouw hall in Amsterdam on Sunday evening at a Chanukah concert. In response, hundreds of proHamas rioters protested at the event, clashing with police, attempting to break through barricades, and defacing walls with antisemitic messages.

Local police detained 22 protesters for breaking public assembly rules and possessing fireworks, among other offenses. Authorities clashed with demonstrators, using batons, while rioters set off smoke bombs. One officer was lightly injured.

“The police intervened several times to keep the demonstrators at a distance and maintain public order,” the police stated.

The following morning, an anti-Israel organization threatened other venues “considering platforming Zionists” and posted images of the concert hall’s walls, which had been vandalized with red-paint graffiti. Painted on the wall were inverted red triangles — a Hamas propaganda symbol meant to signify a target — and other messages, likening the war against Hamas to the Holocaust and celebrating the Hamasled October 7 massacre.

One sign declared that October 7, 2023, when terrorists murdered 1,200 people in Israel and kidnapped 250 others, was “the day indigenous people rose up against their occupier.”

Originally, Abramson was supposed to perform at the Concertgebouw’s annual public Chanukah concert on Sunday afternoon. However, that performance was canceled in early November amid backlash. But then, protests from the other side compelled the venue to compromise, allowing Abramson to do two private concerts at the hall instead of a public one.

Pal Action NL, a pro-Hamas group, published images of the defaced walls to Instagram, declared that the Het

Concertgebouw allowed an “IOF” (Israeli Offensive / Occupation Forces) “war criminal and official cantor of the Zionist settler colony … to perform.”

They added that “some actionists decided to pay a little visit.”

“Het Concertgebouw now has Palestinian blood on their hands, and it will take a LONG time to wash away…” the group said. “A warning to all other venues and institutions in the country considering platforming Zionists, don’t. Or we will be visiting.”

Louvre Staff Strikes Around 8.7 million visitors come through the doors of the Louvre each year, but this week, many were turned away.

On Monday, the famous museum was forced to close when its employees went on strike over working conditions and pay, leaving thousands of would-be visitors disappointed.

The walkout at the world’s most visited museum in the French capital was earlier backed unanimously by some 400 staff, trade unions announced.

They said understaffed museum workers were being required to cope with ever increasing flows of people.

In their strike notice to Culture Minister Rachida Dati, the CFDT, CGT and Sud unions pointed to “deteriorating working conditions” and “insufficient resources” at the Louvre.

“We need a change of approach... regarding the priorities and urgent needs” of the museum, CGT representative Christian Galani said.

The Louvre’s reception and security sector, he said, had “lost 200 full-time equivalent positions in the space of 15 years, while visitor numbers have increased by half.”

The Louvre is always closed on Tuesdays for maintenance. The unions said Louvre employees would gather on Wednesday morning to decide what to do next.

Cuba Struggles with “The Virus” Cuba is facing a severe public health crisis as a wave of mosquito-borne and respiratory viruses sweeps across the island, leaving large portions of the popu-

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experts point to uncontrolled garbage accumulation, fuel shortages preventing fumigation, water scarcity, and frequent blackouts as key contributors to rampant mosquito infestations.

Despite government assurances that cooler weather will bring relief, many Cubans remain skeptical and frightened.

With ambulances failing to arrive, clinics closing due to infected staff, and families left without clear diagnoses or treatment, the outbreak has deepened public mistrust and heightened fears about what— and who—may be next.

Iran Beats Nobel Laureate Iranian authorities beat Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi so severely after detaining her last week that she was taken twice to an emergency room for her injuries, according to a statement released by her family on Monday.

Authorities in Iran had detained Mohammadi, a human rights campaigner in the country, along with other prominent activists, at a memorial service on Friday.

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Her husband, Taghi Rahmani, said she was being held at a detention facility operated by the Ministry of Intelligence in the city of Mashhad.

Rahmani, who lives in exile in Paris, said he had spoken to Mohammadi on Sunday, during which time she said she had been told that she had been accused of cooperating with the Israeli government.

“She didn’t sound well on the phone,” Rahmani said. “We are extremely worried about her health, she has many underlying health issues, and we demand that an independent doctor examine her.”

In a post to Mohammadi’s social media accounts on Monday, her family said she told them she was beaten on the head and neck as she was detained. Her assailants vowed to send her “mother into mourning,” a comment the family described as a “direct death threat.”

The general prosecutor in Mashhad, the city where she was detained, said that Mohammedi and the other detainees were “being held in a lawful detention facility with their citizens’ rights respected” as a legal investigation was conducted.

The prosecutor, Hassan Hemmatifar, said on Friday that “the legal process of the

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DECEMBER 18-DECEMBER 24, 2025 THE BALTIMORE JEWISH HOME

deaths in a single week, including 21 children, though many Cubans believe the true toll is significantly higher.

Medical workers, speaking anonymously, allege that deaths linked to the outbreak are often recorded under unrelated causes such as heart attacks or chronic illnesses. Diagnostic testing is severely limited due to a lack of reagents, leaving doctors unable to confirm which virus patients are suffering from. Many are diagnosed instead with “non-specific febrile syndrome.”

The crisis is exacerbated by widespread shortages. Cuba currently faces an estimated 70% deficit in medications, forcing patients to rely on home remedies or purchase drugs on the black market.

Food scarcity further weakens recovery, as recommended protein-rich diets are inaccessible to most families. Hospitals are overwhelmed, understaffed, and undersupplied, with tens of thousands of healthcare workers having left the system or emigrated in recent years.

Officials have attributed the outbreak to heavy rains, high temperatures, and a population with limited prior exposure to some viruses. However, residents and

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Health experts say the crisis is driven by a combination of arboviruses transmitted through mosquitoes and ticks—including dengue, chikungunya, and Oropouche—alongside respiratory infections such as influenza, RSV, and Covid-19. According to Cuba’s Ministry of Public Health, more than 38,000 chikungunya cases have been reported, with dengue active across all 14 provinces. The government recently acknowledged 33

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Condemnation over the arrests has poured in from human rights groups, the European Union and the Nobel committee. The 2025 Nobel Peace laureate, María Corina Machado, called for the “immediate and unconditional release of Narges Mohammadi and all others detained at the memorial.”

Mohammadi won the Nobel while in prison in 2023, following her three-decade campaign for women’s rights and the abolition of the death penalty in Iran.

Belarus Prisoner Release

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The Belarusian government announced over the weekend that it has released 123 people, including foreigners, a Nobel Prize winner and several political opposition leaders, who were being held in prison on “espionage, terrorism, and extremism” charges.

Belarusian government officials said that the release is part of “agreements reached with U.S. President Donald Trump” and involves the United States lifting sanctions on the Belarusian potash mineral industry.

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U.S. Special Envoy for Belarus John Coale said on Saturday that the U.S. was lifting sanctions against Belarusian potash producer Belaruskali, one of the European country’s largest state-owned companies. According to Coale, the goal is to normalize relations between the U.S. and Belarus and that “more sanctions will be lifted” in the future.

Among the prisoners released were two prominent Belarusian activists: Nobel Prize winner Ales Bialiatski and opposition figure Maria Kalesnikava.

Of the detainees, 114 were transferred to Ukraine while the remaining nine, including Bialiatski, were transferred to Lithuania, according to the Ukrainian government.

Shortly after her release, Kalesnikava was seen arriving at the Ukrainian border and reuniting with Viktar Babaryka

and Maxim Znak, both of whom were former Belarusian prisoners. Babaryka was imprisoned during the 2020 election while trying to run against Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.

Kalesnikava was his campaign manager and took his place after he was arrested.

IDF Kills Top Hamas Commander Israel eliminated top Hamas commander Raed Saad in a Saturday afternoon airstrike, the Israeli military announced.

Saad was second in rank only to Hamas military chief Izz al-Din Haddad. Saad, one of Hamas’s last surviving top commanders, led the terror group’s weapons manufacturing headquarters, was one of the planners behind the October 7 massacre, and founded and commanded the Gaza City Brigade.

Israel noted that the targeted attack was in response to the terror group’s violations of the ongoing ceasefire. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said the assassination was in response to an attack that injured two Israeli soldiers in an explosion in southern Gaza just a few hours earlier.

He was “one of the architects of the October 7 massacre and in recent days had been engaged in restoring the terror organization and in planning and carrying out attacks against Israel, as well as rebuilding an attack force, in blatant violation of the ceasefire rules and Hamas’s commitments to respect President [Donald] Trump’s plan,” Netanyahu and Katz said in a joint statement, adding that Saad was actively engaged in the terror group’s rearmament. “Anyone who raises a hand against Israel and harms IDF soldiers, his hand will be cut off in Gaza and anywhere else.”

“Repeated attempts by the Hamas terror organization to carry out terrorist attacks were identified, including the use of explosive devices against IDF troops, actions that constitute a blatant violation of the agreement, as occurred this morning,” the IDF said. “In parallel, the IDF

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The Week In News identified attempts by the organization to restore and build up its capabilities.”

The airstrike targeted a vehicle traveling along the coastal Rashid Road, which is under Hamas control, according to reports from Palestinian sources.

“Saad was a leading figure in the leadership of Hamas’s military wing in recent months and was directly responsible for violations of the ceasefire agreement by the Hamas terror organization. In addition, in his role, he led the continued production of weapons in the Gaza Strip during the ceasefire,” the IDF stated, adding that he was responsible for “the production of all types of weapons for Hamas’s military wing ahead of the October 7 massacre, and later also for the rehabilitation of Hamas’s weapons production capabilities during the war.”

The assassination was made possible thanks to new intelligence from the Intelligence Directorate. Saad has, for years, been a target, having survived a number of Israeli assassination attempts. According to an IDF source, Haddad is also a target.

Saad played a role in establishing Hamas’s naval force and its Nukhba Force, which led the terror group’s October 7, 2023 attacks. He was one of the chief planners of the October 7 massacre.

In 2021, Yahya Sinwar, the then-leader of Hamas in Gaza, demoted Saad from his position as operations chief due to their personal disagreements. Saad eventually became the chief of Hamas’s weapons manufacturing headquarters and Haddad’s chief.

High Court Annuls AG Firing In a unanimous 7-0 decision, Israel’s High Court of Justice ruled on Sunday to reverse the government’s firing of Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, claiming that the government’s decision lacked proper legal justification.

The court said the government’s controversial move in August to redesign the rules by which an attorney general may be fired was approved “hastily” and “without an appropriate factual or legal basis, without consulting professional bodies, and without considering other alternatives.” The government’s opponents have accused it of firing Baharav-Miara for political reasons.

The ruling was authored by Supreme Court President Isaac Amit, who ruled

that Baharav-Miara should stay in her position and that no further attempts to change her role would be legal.

Though every justice, including the most conservative ones, agreed with Amit’s ruling, Justice Minister Yariv Levin and Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi have urged the government to defy the court’s decision.

The government maintains that it has the authority to change the rules of how attorney generals are hired and fired because that system was specified in a cabinet resolution rather than legislation.

Still, the court has argued that resolutions are nonetheless bound by administrative law. Amit said that the government didn’t ease concerns about how the decision was made — the new resolution was adopted two days after its text was published, and relevant professionals were not consulted on the measure’s legality — adding that the government also failed to send a legal representative to argue on its behalf earlier this month.

Amit suggested that a constitutional crisis would occur should the government defy the court’s ruling.

Opposition leaders, including Yair Lapid, praised the high court’s decision.

Immediate Response

On Tuesday, the United States Central Command hosted a conference in Qatar with dozens of partner nations to discuss plans for an International Stabilization Force for the Gaza Strip.

The conference includes sessions on the command structure and other unresolved issues relating to the force.

Egypt, Indonesia, Qatar, Jordan, the UAE, Italy, France, the UK, and Azerbaijan are among the attendees, with more than 45 countries attending. Turkey, a powerful regional rival of Israel and backer of Hamas, was not invited to the gathering. It has accused Israel of genocide and has compared it to Nazi Germany. It has also called Hamas “freedom fighters.” Qatar and Turkey were both pressuring the White House to allow Ankara’s participation.

Other countries at the summit include Cyprus, Georgia, Canada, Germany, Netherlands, Jordan, Japan, Greece, Singapore, the EU, Saudi Arabia, Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Kuwait, Morocco, Bahrain, Bosnia,

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The Week In News

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Fentanyl is WMD This week, President Donald Trump signed an executive order classifying fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction.

The order gives the U.S. government additional legal firepower in its efforts to combat illegal trafficking of the synthetic drug.

The drug kills tens of thousands of Americans every year. The order noted that transnational criminal groups the Trump administration has designated as foreign terrorist organizations use the sale of fentanyl to fund activities that undermine U.S. national security.

Speaking in the Oval Office as he signed the order, President Trump said the amount of drugs coming into the U.S. by sea has decreased by 94 percent (most drugs, including fentanyl, enter the U.S. via land ports of entry). Trump added that drug flows are “a direct military threat to the United States of America.”

The Trump administration has spent considerable resources on combatting the fentanyl epidemic as it secures the border between the U.S. and Mexico. Trump’s strict immigration limits and border security measures have led to a drop in domestic consumption of fentanyl.

“With a secure border, lives are being saved every day, … trafficking has plummeted, fentanyl has plummeted,” White House border czar Tom Homan said on Monday.

While classifying a narcotic as a WMD is a nearly unprecedented presidential action, there has been public debate about characterizing fentanyl that way before.

The Biden administration had previously faced pressure from a bipartisan contingent of attorneys general to classify fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction.

Fentanyl, even in tiny quantities, is potent enough to kill large numbers of people very quickly through overdoses.

The synthetic drug, which has some limited legal pharmacological uses, mostly comes to the United States via Mexico, where drug cartels manufacture fentanyl using “precursor chemicals” imported from China. Fentanyl production is also

booming in the Golden Triangle region of southeast Asia, which includes the countries of Laos, Myanmar and Thailand.

Fentanyl can be easily made in makeshift labs, adding to the challenge authorities have faced in eradicating production within their borders.

3 Americans Killed in Syria

On Sunday, a gunman attacked American and Syrian troops near the city of Palmyra, Syria, killing two U.S. soldiers and an American civilian interpreter and injuring three U.S. soldiers and three Syrian security forces, the Pentagon announced. The soldiers were guarding a meeting regarding countering ISIS held between a local U.S. commander, a lieutenant colonel, and a Syrian Interior Ministry official.

President Donald Trump, in a social

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Finland, Kosovo, Kazakhstan, Indonesia, Spain, and Yemen.

The countries at the conference were each asked to say whether they were interested in joining the force and whether they would go as far as confirming their participation. The forum also discussed next steps, including a follow-up meeting of military chiefs of staff in January.

The U.S. State Department sent formal requests to over 70 countries asking for troops or money for the emerging international security force it hopes will keep order in Gaza, an endeavor that has so far struggled to get off the ground. At least 19 of those countries responded affirmatively.

The countries in talks with the U.S. to send troops have stipulated that they will only do so if they are deployed solely within Israeli-controlled areas — behind the so-called Yellow Line that marks the boundary of the roughly 53% of Gaza still controlled by the IDF. But the U.S. would appear to be dissatisfied with this, as the report alleged that it is still pushing them to agree to operate in the Hamas-controlled “red zone” of the war-torn enclave.

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BRING LIGHT AND HOPE

This Chanukah, imagine a world built on compassion, hope and the power of community. A world where we say yes to the challenges that matter most and bring light to the places that need it most.

As you light each candle, say

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The Week In News media post, said the shooting was “an ISIS attack against the U.S., and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria,” vowed to retaliate, and said that Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa “is extremely angry and disturbed by this attack.”

After the gunman popped up in a window and fired at troops, U.S. and Syrian forces returned fire. Syrian forces then chased after the gunman and killed him. U.S. Central Command, which supervises Middle East military operations, said the attack was carried out by a “lone ISIS gunman.”

“We mourn the loss of three Great American Patriots in Syria, two soldiers, and one Civilian Interpreter,” Trump said. “Likewise, we pray for the three injured soldiers who, it has just been confirmed, are doing well.”

The meeting took place in an area not yet controlled by Al-Sharaa’s government. Most of Syria’s northeast, which has seen over 100 ISIS attacks since the end of August, is controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces, a Kurdish-led militia. The Trump administration is currently attempting to broker an agreement that would merge the two governments, though talks have been

thus far largely unsuccessful.

“The savage who perpetrated this attack was killed by partner forces,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth posted to social media. “Let it be known, if you target Americans—anywhere in the world—you will spend the rest of your brief, anxious life knowing the United States will hunt you, find you, and ruthlessly kill you.”

On Monday, the Army identified the two soldiers who had been killed: Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, Iowa, and Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, Iowa. Both were members of the Iowa National Guard.

Kids Aren’t Reading In American high schools, the age of the book may be fading.

Many teenagers are assigned few full books to read from beginning to end — often just one or two per year, according to researchers and thousands of responses to an informal reader survey by The New York Times.

Twelfth grade reading scores are at

historic lows, and college professors, even at elite schools, are increasingly reporting difficulties in getting students to engage with lengthy or complex texts.

Some education experts believe that in the near future, even the most sophisticated stories and knowledge will be imparted mainly through audio and video, the forms that are dominating in the era of mobile, streaming media.

We wanted to find out how students and teachers feel about the shift and what role schools can play. So the Times asked educators, parents and students to tell us about their experiences with high school reading. More than 2,000 people responded.

Many were longtime teachers who reported assigning fewer whole books now than they did earlier in their careers. Some complained about the effect of technology on students’ stamina for reading and interest in books. But more pointed toward the curriculum products their schools had purchased from major publishers.

Those programs often revolve around students reading short stories, articles, and excerpts from novels, then answering shortform questions and writing brief essays.

Andrew Polk, 26, teaches tenth grade

English in suburban Ohio. As a high school student less than a decade ago, he was assigned many whole books and plays to read.

But as a teacher, Polk must use StudySync, which centers on excerpts. Many colleagues do not believe students will read whole books, he said, though he noted his own experience had not borne that out.

He still assigns several longer works each year and has taught “Macbeth” and “Fahrenheit 451.” Teenagers still feel “passion for a good story,” he said.

“Students absolutely can and do rise to the occasion. It’s just a matter of setting those expectations.”

When whole books are assigned, they are most often from a relatively stagnant list of classics, according to research from scholars Jonna Perrillo and Andrew Newman.

What may have changed most is the number of these classics students have read. During the 2008-09 school year, one survey found high school English teachers assigned an average of four books annually, with a significant minority assigning seven or more books.

A 2024 survey of English teachers

by Perrillo and Newman found they assigned an average of 2.7 whole books per year. (© The New York Times)

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By Rabbi Zvi Teichman

A

s a nation we have just begun healing, with the return of the hostages, from the traumas of October 7th, when once again the earth beneath us rocked with the horrific terror attack in Sydney, Australia.

How can we possibly survive the repeated traumas we continue to face?

After departing from Yosef having just purchased grain the brothers discover upon opening their bags of grain that the money they had used to pay for was returned in their sacks.

Suspecting this is part of a scheme devised by the viceroy, and realizing the predicament they were in, they exclaim — seemingly in exasperation, ‫“ — מה זאת‬What is this that G-d has done to us?”

Despite their having begun to question their own guilt — when after being accused by the viceroy of being spies they say to one another, “Indeed we are guilty concerning our brother inasmuch as we saw his heartfelt anguish when he pleaded with us, and we paid no heed” — they are suddenly oblivious to their own culpability and wonder what G-d wants from them.

Is that how the children of Yaakov react to challenges in life, by complaining? Aren’t difficulties that fall into our path in life meant to be accepted rather than rejected?

In a similar vein, Yosef, when deciding to name his child Menashe — as the verse attests — for G-d, ‫ — נשני‬has made me forget all my hardship, and my father’s household — it seems to be shunning the

notion of embracing challenge and seeking rather to ignore and forget.

Could it possibly be that Yosef celebrated having forgotten the home of his father?

Rav S.R. Hirsch offers a revolutionary understanding of what is being said here.

He claims the root of this word, ‫נשה‬, is more appropriately translated as ‘to be a creditor’, as when the Torah forewarns one who is owed money from someone who can’t pay, “You shall not act toward him as a creditor.”

What Yosef was expressing in Rav Hirsch’s own words was quite the opposite: G-d has made my misfortunes and my family into creditors. What has seemed to me to be hitherto misfortune and mishandling, G-d has made the means to my attaining the greatest joy, so that I am deeply indebted to my misfortune and my family.

To see all of one’s life’s challenges, and difficulties, as a gift conferred by G-d that obligates one to an even greater sense of indebtedness, is truly marvelous.

Rav Yaakov Zvi Mecklenberg, in his masterful work, HaK’sav V’HaKabbalah, addresses our earlier verse where the brothers seem to complain.

He suggests — after noting that under the initial expression of ‫זאת‬ ‫ — מה‬what is this, the cantillation note of a Tevir appears which signifies a stop — indicating the verse is two distinct statements.

Their first reaction was to note a strange occurrence, the return of the money, and react by stating, “What is this?” They instantly realized that the hand of Hashgachah — Providence, was lovingly directing them and thus declared with joy, ‫ — עשה אלוקים לנו‬G-d is orchestrating our fate!

The use of the Name ‫— אלוקים‬ The G-d of Judgment is used here to indicate that although they were facing a challenge, they accepted it with a sense of equanimity and mission.

During the eight days of Chanukah, we recited the full Hallel.

We expressed the sentiment, ‫ — אהבתי‬I love [Him], '‫— כי ישמע ד‬ for Hashem hears, ‫ — את קולי‬my voice, ‫ — תחנוני‬my supplications.

Is that a big deal to love G-d because He listens to me?

The next few verses portray the times when King David found himself encircled by pains of death, stressed from grief, drenched in tears, and stumbling on his feet.

It seems that King David is expressing his sensing the love of a G-d, who always hears him. But his gratitude is not simply for the resulting salvation alone that his supplications sought, but for all that he endured, knowing that every difficulty was purposeful and part of the instruments in G-d’s arsenal that prods us to greatness and closeness to Him. The Zohar teaches that the word ‫זאת‬, refers to the Shechinah — The Divine Presence.

The first letter ‫ ז‬represents the

number seven, alluding to the seventh in the set of emotive attributes or emanations of G-d, called Malchus — Kingship, where G-d’s presence manifests itself in this lower world.

It has added the letters ‫ א‬and ‫ת‬, that together with the ‫ ז‬spell out ‫ — זאת‬This, pointing to the Divine Presence in the feminine gender as opposed to ‫ זה‬in the masculine.

Although G-d is identified in the masculine, as the ultimate giver who needs not receive, He is identified in the feminine here, the essential receiver, Who graciously rewards us as givers despite our being beholden debtors for the endless kindness G-d showers upon us. (‫)באר משה‬ When we emulate the understanding of Yosef and the brothers of our indebtedness to G-d, even for the difficulties, we merit that G-d perceives us as creditors to whom He happily pays His debt to, by showering us with blessing.

The last day of Chanukah is called, ‫'זאת' חנוכה‬, since it is the concluding day of the Yom Tov that reflects on the many open miracles G-d has wrought, that stimulate us to the realization of how G-d performs daily ‘miracles’ couched within nature, prodding us — even in what appears as painful — towards greatness and closeness to Him. May we succeed in implementing this awareness, always and in all circumstances sensing His love! (Based on a Shiur from the famous Belzer Chossid, Rav Yisroel Reizman) You may reach the author at: Ravzt@ ohelmoshebaltimore.com

33

Yosef is taken out of prison and interprets Pharaoh’s dreams. Unlike the wise men of Egypt, Yosef’s interpretation is “heard” by Pharaoh and satisfies him. Yosef is revered and appointed as ruler of Egypt, second in command to Pharaoh. Menashe and Ephraim are born to Yosef in Egypt. Famine ensues.

Yosef’s brothers come to Egypt. Brothers unite.

Goblet is found by Binyamin. Brothers are sent home.

Torah parks S Inspiration. Everywhere.

Parshas Miketz

Quote

”

“A little bit of light dispels a lot of darkness.“

-Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi

GEMATRIA

There are 146 pesukim in Parshas Miketz, the parshah that usually falls out on Shabbos Chanukah.

Ironically, there are also 146 pesukim in Parshas Bereishis, the very first Parshah of the Torah. There is indeed a connection between Chanukah and Creation, after all, the word Chanukah - ‫ חנוכה‬- means inaugural and beginning.

Rabbi Ori Strum is the author of “Ready. Set. Grow.” “Dove Tales,” and “Karpas: The Big Dipper.”

His shiurim and other Jewish content can be found on Torah Anytime and Meaningful Minute. He may be reached at 443-938-0822 or rabbistrumo@gmail.com

The Midrash Rabbah (91:6) points out that up until now, when the Torah describes food, it uses the word ‫( אכל‬ochel) or ‫( בר‬bar), but here the Torah uses the word ‫( שבר‬shever). Why is that so?

The Midrash explains that homiletically speaking, the word ‫( שבר‬shever) can also be read as ‫( שבר‬seiver), which means “hope.”

Rashi (on 42:1) explains that Yaakov Avinu saw through a Holy lens ‫שעדיין יש לו שבר‬ (she’adayin yesh lo seiver) – that he still has hope in Egypt.

Yosef, his beloved and holy son, was in Egypt, which gave Yaakov the courage to know that he still had hope, even in the darkness of Egypt.

Egypt, from a Kabbalistic perspective, is the root of all exiles. The vision of Yaakov Avinu, to be able to see HOPE amidst the darkness of Egypt, still rings true today, thus giving us the strength to realize that we too can survive the travails and darkness of our current state of exile.

We just need to always have hope, and with hope, everything else is possible!

The Kotzker Rebbe points out that the difference between a Jew and a goy is how they wake up in the morning.

By Yaakov, it says: ‫וייקץ יעקב משנתו ויאמר‬ (vayikatz yaakov mishnaso va’yomer) – Yaakov woke up and said Modeh Ani.

By Pharoah, it says: ‫( ויקץ פרעה ויישן‬vayikatz pharaoh vayishan) – Pharaoh woke up and went right back to sleep!

Are we awake or sleeping through life?

Yaakov Avinu teaches us the importance of being awake and truly experiencing life to its fullest.

Did You Know?!

Most Chumashim, at the end of the Parshah, record the number of pesukim.

At the end of Parshas Miketz, it is unique in that it also records the number of words!

The only mitzvah that is described by the Rambam as the “Most beloved” is Ner Chanukah (see Hilchos Chanukah 4:12)

Points to Ponder Parshas Miketz is filled with dreams of Pharaoh, which foretold his destiny. What do dreams and Chanukah have to do with one another? Why are the parshios read around Chanukah time (Vayeishev and Miketz) filled with dreams?!

Chanukah is coming soon! My book on Chanukah, DOVE TALES, is now available on Amazon. I would honestly be so thrilled, humbled, and honored for you to get a copy. If you wouldn’t mind leaving a review too, that would Scan the QR code to view Torah classes from be so appreciated.

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The word ‫ – וקם‬to get up – is also gematria 146. Chanukah is an auspicious time to create a new flame, and re-spark your connection with Hashem.

In Parshas Miketz, Chapter 42, Verse 1, the Torah tells us: ‫וירא יעקב כי יש שבר במצרים‬ (va’yar yaakov ki yesh shever b’mitzrayim) – “Yaakov saw that there was grain in Egypt.”

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Eight New Olim Celebrate Their First Hanukkah As Israelis The holiday of light takes on new meaning for new immigrants building a home in Israel

This Hanukkah, eight new Olim will gather around their menorahs for the first time as Israeli citizens. In a year when light has felt particularly precious, the festival of lights carries new meaning for those who chose to begin their lives anew in the Jewish homeland, through Nefesh B’Nefesh in cooperation with the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, The Jewish Agency for Israel, Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael, and Jewish National Fund-USA. For many, the most striking difference is simply being surrounded by the holiday rather than explaining it. Etty Wiener, who moved from New York to Jerusalem this summer with her husband and two children, still marvels at seeing menorahs in store windows and hearing her son come home from school excited about what he learned about Hanukkah. “In New York, Hanukkah was beautiful, but always overshadowed,” she said. “Here, it feels like the whole country is celebrating with us.” Her family plans to adopt the custom of placing their menorah outside, something people in the Diaspora often can’t do. “Hanukkah is about showing the miracle of the Jewish people. Being in Israel for that, it feels like the light at the end of the tunnel.

It’s Jewish pride illuminated.”

That sense of belonging also resonates deeply with Nicole Horne, who moved to Tel Aviv from Washington, D.C. in May. “Elsewhere, you sometimes feel like an outsider for being Jewish,” Nicole said. “But here? Hanukkah isn’t the alternative holiday, it’s just part of life.” She laughed remembering how early her workplace in Israel began decorating, and she admitted she is “unreasonably excited” for sufganiyot. “Seeing so many menorahs everywhere is something I’ve never experienced before.

It feels special. It feels like home.”

In Ra’anana, Irving Safdieh, who made Aliyah recently from New Jersey, noticed his children embracing their new sense of independence, something he and his wife hoped Aliyah would offer them. “Our kids take the bus on their own now. They have made so many friends. They’re thriving,” he said. Celebrating Hanukkah in Israel has only amplified that joy. Instead of Christmas décor, their outings are filled with glowing Hanukkiot, and they’ve turned sampling sufganiyot into a family-wide ranking competition. Irving said, “going to public menorah lightings with Israelis, really makes you feel part of something bigger.”

Yaffa Troodler, a Bat Sherut (National Service Volunteer) that made Aliyah from Philadelphia, has spent her sherut leumi (volunteer service) working in schools for children with disabilities.“Doing anything in my power to give back to the country is my way of bringing more light into Israel as an Israeli,” Yaffa explained.

“After making Aliyah, I finally felt a sense of belonging,” she reflected. Celebrating Hanukkah in Israel has only strengthened that feeling. “You really feel the presence of Hanukkah here, it’s warm, it’s home,” she said. For Yaffa, lighting the menorah this year isn’t just a personal milestone, it’s the beginning of a legacy. “Because of me, my future generations will celebrate Hanukkah here,” Yaffa said.

For Daniel Friedman, who moved from New Orleans, Louisiana to Tel Aviv this summer, Hanukkah brings his Aliyah experience full circle. His first visit to Israel was during Hanukkah a few years ago, and returning as a citizen feels symbolic. “Rededicating myself to Judaism, returning to the land, it mirrors the Hanukkah story. You get eight nights instead of one. Now I am here, and that alone feels like a miracle.”

Just a few months into her life as an Israeli, Adina Spiewak is looking forward to building her own traditions. After years of celebrating Hanukkah in the U.S. with events, gifts, and obligations, she’s embraced the quieter, more intentional rhythm she’s found in Israel. “I want to bring light to other people,” she said. “Each of us is a vessel for our neshama (soul), and when our lights come together, they shine brighter.” A former campus Chabad president who helped

guide students through the turmoil of October 7th, she said her move feels deeply right. “There’s no time like the present.”

In the northern city of Maalot Tarshiha, Scott Friedman and his family, who joined a cohort of English-speaking families that also made Aliyah, are preparing to celebrate Hanukkah in a tightly knit, warm community in Israel’s periphery. “Growing up in the States, the holidays sometimes felt like a third-person story,” Scott explained. “Here, it feels like first-person. It feels like ours.”

Their daughter has already integrated into school, and the community even created a special Hanukkah program for the new Olim. “We finally get to use a pey on our dreidels,” he laughed. “And we’re even looking for a box so we can put our menorah outside like everyone else.”

For Dr. Talia Sudai, a family physician from Toronto now working in a kupat cholim (health clinic) in the center of Israel, Hanukkah brings a sense of warmth during a challenging transition. “In Canada, the holiday could feel isolated,” she explained.

“Here, I feel connected, even to people I don’t know, the sense of community is so strong.” She hopes to organize a candle-lighting with her brother, who also made Aliyah, a small gesture of the light she wants to bring to her new home.

As these eight new Israelis prepare for the holiday, their journeys reflect the story of Hanukkah. A story of resilience, renewal, and an unwavering belief that even in difficult times, light endures. This year, their candles burn not only for ancient miracles but for the modern miracle of coming home.

35

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Sunday Sunday Kislev 24

Teves 1

Teves 2

Kislev 25

Monday

13

6

30

Kislev 26

Teves 3

Teves 24

Teves 17

‫עשרה בטבת‬

Teves 10

YGW Open House see page 3

23

16

Tuesday

14

7

31

24

17

Friday

Kislev/Teves

Thursday Thursday

4:31 PM

Teves 6

‫פרשת ויחי‬

3

‫פרשת ויגש‬

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‫פרשת מקץ‬

Teves 21

5:40 PM

Teves 14

5:35 PM

Teves 7

5:31 PM

‫ראש חודש‬

Kislev 30

20

4:36 PM

10

Teves 13

Teves 20

‫פרשת וארא‬

5:54 PM

Teves 28

5:47 PM

4:43 PM

Teves 27

4:50 PM

17

‫פרשת שמות‬

Kislev 29

19

Kislev 28

2

9

16

4:27 PM

18

Next BJH Issue

Teves 12

Next BJH Issue

Teves 19

Next BJH Issue

Teves 26

26

Chanukah 7th night!

1

8

15

Teves 5

Chanukah 6th night!

25

Chanukah 5th night!

Saturday

2025 December/January

Teves 25

Teves 18

Teves 11

Darchei Noam Fundraising Campaign see front cover

Teves 4

Kislev 27

Wednesday

COMMUNITY CALENDAR 15

22

Teves 23

Teves 16

Teves 9

Chanukah 8th Day

29

5

12

THE BALTIMORE JEWISH HOME

14

21 ‫ראש חודש‬ Donut Contest Deadline see page 60

Teves 15

Teves 8

Chanukah 8th night!

OCA Basketball Tournament

28

4 Mesorah Women's Brunch see page 7

Teves 22

Ner Yisroel 92nd Anniversary Dinner

Mesorah Scholar In Residence Program Begins see page 9

DECEMBER 18-DECEMBER 24, 2025

11 NCSY Concert see page 15

Next BJH Issue

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Baltimore Weekday Minyanim Guide

Shacharis Mercaz Torah U’Tefillah: EVERY 15 MINUTES

M-F S, T, W, F T, W, F S T, W, F T, W, F S S T, W, F M-F S, T, W, F S, M, TH T, W, F M-F T, W, F M-F

7:05 AM Machzikei Torah (Sternhill's) 7:15 AM Kedushas Yisrael Kol Torah

M, TH S S

For edits, additions, or sponsorships, email ads@baltimorejewishhome.com

M, TH M-F M-F M, TH M, TH

7:30 AM Agudah of Greenspring Agudath Israel of Baltimore Ahavat Shalom [Sefaradi] Bais Haknesses Ohr HaChaim Bais Hamedrash and Mesivta of Baltimore Bais Medrash of Ranchleigh Beit Yaakov [Sefaradi] Bnai Jacob Shaarei Zion Congregation Chabad of Park Heights Community Kollel Tiferes Moshe Aryeh Darchei Tzedek Kedushas Yisrael Khal Bais Nosson Ner Israel Rabbinical College (Mechina) Ohr Hamizrach [Sefaradi] Shomrei Emunah Congregation

S S, T, W, F S S-F S-F S S S S S-F S S-F S S-F S, T, W, F T, W, F

7:45 AM Bnai Jacob Shaarei Zion Congregation Talmudical Academy Darchei Tzedek Mesivta Kesser Torah Mesivta Shaarei Chaim 7:50 AM Derech Chaim Ner Tamid Ohel Moshe

M-F S-F M-F S-F S-F S S M-F

8:00 AM Agudath Israel of Baltimore Bais Dovid-Bais Medrash of Summit Park Beth Abraham Chabad Israeli Center Darchei Tzedek Khal Ahavas Yisroel/ Tzemach Tzedek Kehillas Meor HaTorah Ohr Yisroel Pikesville Jewish Congregation Shearith Israel Congregation Shomrei Emunah Congregation The Shul at the Lubavitch Center Tiferes Yisroel Tzeirei Anash Yeshiva Tiferes Hatorah

S-F S S M-F S S S S S S S-F S S S S-F

8:15 AM Kehilath B'nai Torah Kol Torah 8:20 AM Bais Haknesses Ohr HaChaim 8:25 AM Ohr Chadash Academy (School Days Only) 8:30 AM Agudath Israel of Baltimore Chabad Israeli Center Machzikei Torah (Sternhill's) Ohel Moshe Ohr Hamizrach [Sefaradi] Shomrei Emunah Congregation Shomrei Mishmeres Hakodesh 9:00 AM Aish Kodesh Bais Haknesses Ohr HaChaim Beth Tfiloh Congregation Bnai Jacob Shaarei Zion Congregation Moses Montefiore Anshe Emunah Shomrei Emunah Congregation Suburban Orthodox Congregation Toras Chaim

S S S-F S-F S-F S S-F S S S-F S S S S S S S-F S-F

Mincha

Mincha Mercaz Torah U’Tefillah Gedolah

Khal Ahavas Yisroel/Tzemach Tzedek 12:30 PM Agudath Israel of Baltimore (S-F) 12:50 PM One South Street, 27th Floor, Baltimore, MD 21202 Kol Torah

1:00 PM Agudath Israel of Baltimore (S-F) 10045 Red Run Blvd Suite 295 Milk & Honey Bistro 1777 Reisterstown RD 1:25 PM Bais Haknesses Ohr HaChaim 1:30 PM Agudath Israel of Baltimore (S-F) 1:45 PM Ohel Moshe Wealcatch Insurance 1:50 PM One South Street, 27th Floor (M-Th) 2:00 PM Agudath Israel of Baltimore (S-F) Big Al @ The Knish Shop Party Room Kol Torah (Sunday) Market Maven Mercaz Torah U’Tefillah Reischer Minyan - 23 Walker Ave 2nd Floor 2:15 PM Pikesville Beis Medrash - 15 Walker Ave 2:30 PM Bais Medrash of Ranchleigh Community Kollel Tiferes Moshe Aryeh Tov Pizza Mincha Minyan Ner Israel Rabbinical College Mercaz Torah U’Tefillah Mesivta Shaarei Chaim (Etz Chaim Building) Shearith Israel Congregation 2:45 PM Kollel of Greenspring Shearith Israel Congregation (S-Th) 3:00 PM Agudath Israel of Baltimore (S-F) Bais Haknesses Ohr HaChaim Mercaz Torah U'Tefillah 3:05 PM Kedushas Yisrael 3:15 PM Hat Box 3:22 PM Ohr Chadash Academy (School Days Only, Call to Confirm) 3:30PM Mercaz Torah U’Tefillah 4:00 PM Agudath Israel of Baltimore (S-Th) Mercaz Torah U'Tefillah 10 Min Before ShkiAh Chabad Israeli Center 14 Min Before ShkiAh Kol Torah

Mincha/Maariv Before Shkiah Aish Kodesh Agudath Israel of Baltimore Agudah of Greenspring Bais Dovid-Bais Medrash of Summit Park Bais Haknesses Ohr HaChaim Beth Abraham Bnai Jacob Shaarei Zion Congregation Darchei Tzedek Derech Chaim Kehillas Meor HaTorah Kehilath B’nai Torah Khal Ahavas Yisroel/ Tzemach Tzedek Machzikei Torah (Sternhill’s), 5:00pm Mercaz Torah U’Tefillah Ner Tamid Ohel Moshe Ohr Hamizrach [Sefaradi] Ohr Yisroel Pikesville Jewish Congregation Shearith Israel Congregation Shomrei Emunah Congregation Shomrei Mishmeres Suburban Orthodox Congregation Toras Chaim The Adas: Chofetz Chaim Adas Bnei Israel The Shul at the Lubavitch Center Tiferes Yisroel

Maariv

Mercaz Torah U’Tefillah: EVERY 15 MINUTES 6:00 PM, 6:15 PM, 6:30 PM, 6:45 PM, 7:00 PM, 7:15 PM, 7:30 PM, 7:45 PM, 8:00 PM, 8:15 PM, 8:30 PM, 8:45 PM, 9:00 PM, 9:15 PM, 9:30 PM, 9:45 PM, 10:00 PM, 10:15 PM, 10:30 PM, 10:45 PM, 11:00 PM, 11:15 PM, 11:30 PM 6:00 PM 6:30 PM 7:00 PM 7:30 PM 8:00 PM 8:30 PM

Agudath Israel of Baltimore Agudath Israel of Baltimore Agudath Israel of Baltimore Agudath Israel of Baltimore Agudath Israel of Baltimore Agudath Israel of Baltimore Derech Chaim

8:45 PM Darchei Tzedek Ner Israel Rabbinical College (Mechina)

Maariv continued Ohr Yisroel

8:50 PM Mesivta Shaarei Chaim (Etz Chaim Building) 8:55 PM Community Kollel Tiferes Moshe Aryeh 9:00 PM Agudath Israel of Baltimore Arugas Habosem Bais Dovid-Bais Medrash of Summit Park Shomrei Emunah Congregation Suburban Orthodox Congregation Toras Chaim

9:20 PM Kol Torah 9:30 PM Agudah of Greenspring Agudath Israel of Baltimore Kedushas Yisrael

9:40 PM Ahavat Shalom [Sefaradi] 9:45 PM Bais Haknesses Ohr HaChaim Kollel Erev Birchas Yitzchok (Luries) Kollel of Greenspring Machzikei Torah (Sternhill's) Ohr Hamizrach [Sefaradi] Yeshiva Tiferes Hatorah

9:50 PM Aish Kodesh Community Kollel Tiferes Moshe Aryeh Ohel Moshe

10:00 PM Agudath Israel of Baltimore Darchei Tzedek Kehilath B'nai Torah Khal Ahavas Yisroel/ Tzemach Tzedek Shearith Israel Congregation Shomrei Emunah Congregation

10:05 PM Kol Torah 10:10 PM Ner Israel Rabbinical College 10:15 PM Derech Chaim Khal Bais Nosson

10:30 PM Agudath Israel of Baltimore 11:00 PM Agudath Israel of Baltimore Agudah of Greenspring - 6107 Greenspring Ave Agudath Israel of Baltimore - 6200 Park Heights Ave Ahavat Shalom - 3009 Northbrook Rd Aish Kodesh - 6207 Ivymount Rd Arugas HaBosem - 3509 Clarks Ln Bais Dovid-Bais Medrash of Summit Park- 6800 Sylvale Ct Bais Haknesses Ohr HaChaim - 3120 Clarks Ln Bais Hamedrash and Mesivta of Baltimore - 6823 Old Pimlico Rd Bais Medrash of Ranchleigh - 6618 Deancroft Rd Beit Yaakov - 3615 Seven Mile Ln Beth Abraham - 6208 Wallis Ave Beth Tfiloh Congregation - 3300 Old Court Rd Bnai Jacob Shaarei Zion Congregation - 6602 Park Heights Ave Chabad Israeli Center - 7807 Seven Mile Ln Chabad of Park Heights - 3402 Clarks Ln Community Kollel Tiferes Moshe Aryeh - 3800 Labyrinth Rd Darchei Tzedek - 3201 Seven Mile Ln Derech Chaim - 6603 Pimlico Road Greenspring Sephardic Synagogue 6611 Greenspring Ave. Kedushas Yisrael - 6004 Park Heights Ave Kehilath B’nai Torah - 6301 Green Meadow Pkwy Kehillas Meor HaTorah - 6539 Pebble Brooke Rd Khal Ahavas Yisroel/ Tzemach Tzedek - 6811 Park Heights Ave Khal Bais Nosson - 2901 Taney Rd Kol Torah - 2929 Fallstaff Rd Kollel of Greenspring - 6504 Greenspring Ave. Machzikei Torah - 6216 Biltmore Ave Mercaz Torah U’Tefillah - 6500 Baythorne Rd Mesivta Kesser Torah - 8400 Park Heights Ave Mesivta Shaarei Chaim - 5415 Greenspring Ave Moses Montefiore Anshe Emunah - 7000 Rockland Hills Dr Neuberger, Quinn, Gielen, Rubin & Gibber One South Street, 27th Floor Ner Israel Rabbinical College - 400 Mt Wilson Ln Ner Tamid - 6214 Pimlico Road Ohel Moshe - 2808 Smith Ave Ohel Yakov - 3200 Glen Ave Ohr Chadash Academy - 7310 Park Heights Avenue Ohr Hamizrach [Sefaradi] - 6813 Park Heights Ave Ohr Yisroel - 2429 Lightfoot Dr Pikesville Jewish Congregation - 7644 Carla Rd Shearith Israel Congregation - 5835 Park Heights Ave Shomrei Emunah Congregation - 6221 Greenspring Ave Shomrei Mishmeres Hakodesh - 2821 W Strathmore Ave Suburban Orthodox Congregation Toras Chaim - 7504 Seven Mile Ln Talmudical Academy - 4445 Old Court Rd The Adas: Chofetz Chaim Adas Bnei Israel - 5915 Park Heights Ave The Shul at the Lubavitch Center - 6701 Old Pimlico Rd Tiferes Yisroel - 6201 Park Heights Ave Tzeirei Anash - 6706 Cross County Blvd Wealcatch Insurance - 37 Walker Ave 2nd floor Yeshiva Tiferes Hatorah - 6819 Williamson Ave

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7:00 AM Aish Kodesh (upstairs Minyan) Agudath Israel of Baltimore Ahavat Shalom [Sefaradi] Arugas HaBosem (Rabbi Taub's) Bais Medrash of Ranchleigh Community Kollel Tiferes Moshe Aryeh Greenspring Sephardic Synagogue Khal Ahavas Yisroel/ Tzemach Tzedek Kol Torah Moses Montefiore Anshe Emunah Ohr Hamizrach [Sefaradi] Shearith Israel Congregation Shomrei Emunah Congregation Shomrei Mishmeres Hakodesh The Shul at the Lubavitch Center Tiferes Yisroel

7:20 AM Agudath Israel of Baltimore Beth Tfiloh Congregation Kol Torah Ohr Hamizrach [Sefaradi] Shomrei Emunah Congregation

Mincha continued

DECEMBER 18-DECEMBER 24, 2025

Beit Yaakov [Sefaradi] M-F Mercaz Torah U’Tefillah S-F Ohel Yakov S-F 6:00 AM Shomrei Emunah Congregation M-F 6:10 AM Agudath Israel of Baltimore M, Th 6:15 AM Kol Torah M, TH Shearith Israel Congregation M, TH M, TH 6:20 AM Agudah of Greenspring Agudath Israel of Baltimore S, T, W, F Arugas HaBosem (Rabbi Taub's) S-F Bais Dovid-Bais Medrash of Summit Park M-F Bnai Jacob Shaarei Zion Congregation M-F Kehilath B'nai Torah M, TH Pikesville Jewish Congregation M, TH Shomrei Emunah Congregation S, M, TH 6:30 AM Agudah of Greenspring T, W, F Chabad of Park Heights M-F Darchei Tzedek M-F Kehilath B'nai Torah T, W, F Khal Bais Nosson M-F Khal Ahavas Yisroel/ Tzemach Tzedek M-F Kol Torah T, W, F Ohr Yisroel M-F Pikesville Jewish Congregation T, W, F Shearith Israel Congregation T, W, F Shomrei Emunah Congregation T, W, F 6:35 AM Aish Kodesh (downstairs Minyan) M, TH Ohel Moshe M, TH 6:40 AM Aish Kodesh (downstairs Minyan) T, W, F Bnai Jacob Shaarei Zion Congregation M, TH 6:45 AM The Adas: Chofetz Chaim Adas Bnei Israel M, Th B”H and Mesivta of Baltimore (Dirshu Minyan) S-F Beth Abraham M, TH Greenspring Sephardic Synagogue M-F Ner Tamid M-F Ohel Moshe T, W, F Suburban Orthodox Congregation Toras Chaim M-F 6:50 AM Agudath Israel of Baltimore M, TH Ahavat Shalom [Sefaradi] M, TH Bais Medrash of Ranchleigh M, TH Bnai Jacob Shaarei Zion Congregation T, W, F Community Kollel Tiferes Moshe Aryeh M, TH Derech Chaim M-F Kol Torah M-F Ohel Moshe S Ohr Hamizrach [Sefaradi] M, TH Shomrei Emunah Congregation M, TH The Shul at the Lubavitch Center M, TH 6:55 AM The Adas: Chofetz Chaim Adas Bnei Israel T, W, F Beth Abraham T, W, F Kol Torah M, TH Neitz

S, T, W, F S-F T, W, F S S S M-F

THE BALTIMORE JEWISH HOME

M-F: 6:15 AM, S-F: Neitz, 6:30 AM, 6:45 AM, 7:00 AM, 7:15 AM, 7:30 AM, 7:45 AM, 8:00 AM, 8:15 AM, 8:30 AM, 8:45 AM, 9:00AM, 9:15AM, 9:30AM, 9:45AM, 10:00AM

Machzikei Torah (Sternhill's) Ner Israel Rabbinical College Shearith Israel Congregation Shomrei Emunah Congregation Suburban Orthodox Congregation Toras Chaim The Adas: Chofetz Chaim Adas Bnei Israel Tzeirei Anash

37

DECEMBER 18-DECEMBER 24, 2025

38

Israel Today

When Cyclone Byron Brought Families Together A Pre-Chanukah Miracle in Carmei Gat

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THE BALTIMORE JEWISH HOME

By Aron Schoenfeld

S

unday night, the warnings started arriving. Cyclone Byron, a massive storm system, was bearing down on Israel with predictions of torrential rain from Wednesday night through Friday. Right in the middle sat our Thursday pre-Chanukah party for military families in Carmei Gat. We faced a decision: cancel the event or push forward into what meteorologists were calling one of the season’s worst storms.

Our rule at Smiles for the Kids is straightforward: if the roads are open and we can get there, we show up. We’d made a commitment to these families, and we weren’t going to let a forecast break that promise.

The event had been planned for weeks with our partners at Helping Israel Fund in Boca Raton, Florida. Two sessions were scheduled: the first for families with fathers currently serving in Miluim (reserve duty), the second for families whose fathers had served during the year but were home now. Mosaic menorah-making kits had been ordered. A drumline vendor was booked. An ice cream truck confirmed.

As Thursday dawned with steady rain that grew heavier throughout the day, we watched the forecasts. The peak storm hours aligned perfectly with our scheduled party time. Most would have cancelled.

But the supplies were stocked. The drumline vendor, himself an IDF reservist trying to keep his business afloat between service rotations, called to confirm he was coming. The ice cream truck driver prom-

ised he’d make it through flooded streets and would bring jelly doughnuts on top of the planned treats.

We went forward.

Mosaics, Pizza, and Drums The community center filled despite the downpour. We’d covered tables with tiny mosaic tiles in blues, silvers, and golds. Children sorted through colors, designing patterns for menorahs that would sit in their windows for years to come.

Mothers guided small hands pressing tiles into grout, creating something beautiful while their husbands served far away.

At least, that’s what we thought was happening.

ed flooded roads to keep his promise.

Sufganiyot, traditional jelly doughnuts, were piled high in boxes alongside the ice cream pops. Kids grabbed them with tile dust still on their fingers, powdered sugar mixing with grout on their clothes. Pure joy on their faces.

Then the drumline began.

Our vendor set up his equipment and distributed drums to eager hands. Small ones for children, larger ones for mothers who’d been holding households together alone. As Chanukah music filled the room, he called out rhythms and showed patterns. The space erupted with sound— dozens of hands hitting drums in sync, offbeat, finding individual rhythms, creating

The event we’d planned for families missing their fathers transformed before our eyes.

Pizza boxes arrived hot and fresh, cutting through the chill that seeped in whenever the door opened. We know these families are running on stress and whatever can be microwaved quickly between managing households alone. Watching them sit together for a prepared meal, seeing that small relief on their faces—it reminded us why we do this work.

The ice cream truck pulled up right on schedule, its driver having navigat-

noise that drowned out the storm outside.

For those minutes, children laughed freely. Mothers smiled. The rain couldn’t reach them.

A Pleasant Surprise Then fathers started walking through the door.

Soaked from the rain but smiling. One, then another, then more.

We hadn’t known. That morning, as

the storm forecasts worsened, the IDF had made a call: send everyone home from the front. Get soldiers out of tents in Gaza and back to their families before conditions deteriorated. But the message hadn’t reached us. We’d been so focused on making sure our event happened, on getting through flooded roads with supplies and vendors, that we had no idea the fathers were already on their way home.

The event we’d planned for families missing their fathers transformed before our eyes.

Children who’d expected to create mosaic menorahs while wondering about their father’s safety suddenly had him sitting beside them. Small hands worked alongside larger ones, pressing tiles into patterns they designed together. Fathers who’d been separated from their families for weeks grabbed drums alongside their kids, bit into doughnuts they hadn’t tasted in too long, and watched their children’s faces light up.

The drumline vendor, still wearing his reserve uniform under his vendor shirt, led these fathers through rhythms. One reservist helping other reservists remember what presence feels like. What making joyful noise means when it has nothing to do with operations or missions.

L’bracha, v’lo l’klalah. For a blessing, not a curse.

The storm that threatened cancellation had already delivered what no amount of planning could arrange: fathers sent home early, arriving just in time for families to be whole.

Why These Moments Matter

ent, hands covered in tile grout, making something beautiful with his children.

As the rain continued falling Thursday evening in Carmei Gat, the community center pounded with drumbeats and rang with laughter. Fathers we hadn’t expected sat with families who’d steeled themselves for another celebration alone.

Mosaic menorahs took shape under four

Smiles for the Kids was founded by Aron Schoenfeld, who grew up in Woodmere, on October 8, 2023, in response to the outbreak of the war. To learn more or donate, please visit www. smilesforthekids.com

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Beyond Expectations

hands instead of two.

This went beyond our expectations.

We’d planned a good event. We’d hoped to bring some light to families during a dark time. What we got, because of a storm and a military decision we didn’t know about until fathers walked through our doors, was families reconnecting after long periods apart. We got to witness the power of being together, of creating memories that will outlast the war, the

39

THE BALTIMORE JEWISH HOME

At Smiles for the Kids, we focus on helping families create positive memories during impossible times. We know what extended separations do to families. The holidays celebrated with empty chairs.

The bedtime routines managed alone. The weight of carrying a household while wondering if your husband is safe in a tent in Gaza.

Events like our Carmei Gat celebration address a need that goes beyond material aid. Yes, we provide equipment for soldiers, deliver weekly meals to military families, and distribute gift cards for struggling families. Since our founding following the October 7, 2023 attacks, we’ve distributed over $1.4 million in aid across two years, operating with zero overhead so every donation reaches those who need it.

But this work is also about moments.

The need to feel normal. To experience joy.

To make menorahs and eat doughnuts and bang on drums without the shadow of war hanging over everything.

These families carry weight most people can’t imagine. They deserve moments when that weight lifts, even briefly. When a child can just be a child creating art. When a mother can just be a mother watching her kids laugh. When a father can just be pres-

separation, the hardship.

Families headed home through the storm carrying menorahs they’d made together and memories they’d created together. We packed up supplies, wiped down tables covered in grout and tile dust, and felt the weight of what had just happened.

Sometimes, you can’t control when storms arrive. But you can show up anyway, stock the supplies, keep your promises, and create space for miracles to happen.

That’s what we do at Smiles for the Kids.

We show up. We create opportunities for families to celebrate together, to reconnect, to experience pure joy even in the darkest times. We help them build positive memories that will carry them through whatever comes next.

Thursday in Carmei Gat, the storm gave us more than we’d planned for. It gave us a surprise we didn’t see coming and exactly what these families needed.

Because when it rains, sometimes it really does pour smiles.

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THE BALTIMORE JEWISH HOME

DECEMBER 18-DECEMBER 24, 2025

40

Voice N

tes

Where Have All the Good Men Gone?

A Chanukah Call for Jewish Courage in Uncomfortable Times

By Moshe Bodner and Jeff Eisenberg

“W

here have all the good men gone?” It’s a line from an old song — but it feels painfully relevant today, especially as we light the Chanukah candles and retell a story that was never meant to be nostalgic.

Across the globe, antisemitism is no longer whispered. It is no longer carefully disguised. Increasingly, hostility toward Jews — and toward anything publicly Jewish — has become reflexive, even fashionable.

And across the Jewish world, antisemitism has become something even more dangerous: normalized. Excused.

Explained away. And far too often, met with silence.

In recent weeks alone, we’ve seen a visibly religious Jew physically attacked on the streets of New York City. A mob gathering outside a synagogue on Fifth Avenue. A Holocaust survivor silenced at a public school. Antisemitic incidents surging on college campuses. And abroad, a brutal and murderous terror attack in Australia — a reminder that hatred does not stay contained to “other places.”

The most dangerous part is not any single incident. It is that each incident is increasingly treated as normal.

Antisemitism is frightening.

What is even more frightening is complacency.

Last week, we had the opportunity to speak with sixty seniors at a well-regarded yeshiva high school. When asked what they did as tenth graders in the days immediately following October 7, 2023, 100% of the students said they “joined the fight” — packing bags for Israel, attending rallies, saying Tehillim, even going on missions to Israel.

When asked what they had done in response to the physical attack on a

Jewish man in Midtown Manhattan, the mob outside the Fifth Avenue Synagogue, or the cancellation of a speech by an 85-year-old Holocaust survivor, none had done anything. In fact, fewer than five students were even aware that these incidents had occurred!

In other words, neither their parents nor their teachers had spoken with them about these events — and not one student had been encouraged to respond, reflect, or act. Not one student — who two years earlier had jumped into action — joined the fight.

Complacency has always been the greatest ally of hatred.

Since October 7, 2023, people — students, parents, educators — have been asking a simple question: What should we be doing?

That question matters. Because Jewish history teaches a consistent lesson: when Jews wait for others to act on our behalf, we lose. And when we stand up together — visibly and unapologetically — we change outcomes.

Chanukah is not the story of passive faith. It is the story of action.

The Maccabees did not eat latkes while hoping someone else would fight their battles. They stood up, publicly and defiantly, against a culture that sought to erase Jewish identity. They were outnumbered. They were unpopular. They were uncomfortable. And they acted anyway.

We’ve been here before in modern times as well.

In the 1960s, ‘70s, and ‘80s, Soviet Jews were trapped behind the Iron Curtain — denied religious freedom, denied the right to emigrate, denied basic dignity. The world largely looked away, until Jews in America refused to remain silent.

There were rallies. There were march-

es. There were protests outside Soviet embassies. There were teenagers, parents, rabbis, and community leaders standing in the streets, demanding justice. Those efforts were not polite. They were not quiet. And they worked.

Soviet Jews did not come home because of diplomacy alone. They came home because Jews around the world made it impossible for the world to ignore their plight.

That is the model we need to remember now.

Today, antisemitism wears different clothing — academic jargon, “anti-Zionist” language, moral relativism — but the core hatred is unchanged. And just as troubling is the hesitation many Jews feel about standing up. Fear of backlash.

Fear of being labeled. Fear of discomfort.

But Jewish history has never been written by those who chose comfort over courage.

Regardless of party or policy, leadership signals norms — and norms shape what becomes acceptable. On January 1, New York City will inaugurate a mayor who openly identifies as an anti-Zionist, supports the BDS movement, and refuses to affirm Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state. Silence will not be interpreted as nuance. It will be interpreted as acceptance.

This is not about politics. It is about responsibility.

No one is calling for violence. No one is calling for chaos. What is needed is something far simpler — and far harder: presence.

Showing up. Speaking out. Refusing to normalize what should never be normal.

Whether it’s a rally in Washington, a gathering in a local park, an in-school program, or a student-led initiative, Jews standing together send a message far loud-

er than any press release ever could.

The Chanukah candles remind us of a timeless truth: a few lights can push back enormous darkness — but only if they are lit. Oil left in a flask does nothing. Courage left unexpressed changes nothing.

And Chanukah teaches us that a small group — willing to stand when it would be easier to sit — can change the course of history.

So where have all the good men gone?

They haven’t gone anywhere.

They are parents deciding whether to speak up.

Students deciding whether to organize.

Educators deciding whether to lead.

Communities deciding whether to be visible.

The good men – and women – are all around us. They are asking, “What should we do?”

But that’s not the real question.

The real question is: Will we do something?

And if the answer is yes, we will succeed. History tells us that. Chanukah tells us that when we act, we accomplish.

Every generation is given its moment.

Chanukah reminds us that the heroes are not always loud, powerful, or famous — only willing.

The good men and women are already here.

What remains is the courage to act.

Moshe Bodner and Jeff Eisenberg are co-founders of the Israel Chesed Center, an organization established immediately following the October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel. Since its inception, the ICC has facilitated over $20 million in donations to Israel and has taken a leadership role in advocating on behalf of Israel and issues critical to the Jewish community.

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42

My Israel Home

One Man, One Language, One Nation

By Gedaliah Borvick

W

alk through almost any major Israeli city, and you’re likely to find a street named for Eliezer Ben-Yehuda. Many people are familiar with Jerusalem’s Ben Yehuda Street, a lively pedestrian promenade in the heart of downtown, filled with cafés, street musicians, and shops. It’s a fitting tribute to the man who led the remarkable cultural feat of reviving the Hebrew language.

When Ben-Yehuda arrived in Eretz Yisrael in 1881, Hebrew had not been spoken in daily life for nearly 2,000 years. It was the language of prayer and study – not conversation or commerce.

Yet within decades, it became the living, breathing language of practically an entire nation. That transformation is largely thanks to Ben-Yehuda’s vision and tireless dedication.

Born Eliezer Yitzhak Perlman in Lithuania in 1858, he was inspired by nationalist movements in Greece, Italy, and Bulgaria that revived historic languages and identities. Ben-Yehuda dreamed of a modern Jewish state in its ancestral homeland, unified by its ancestral tongue.

His plan to revive Hebrew was both radical and practical. He pledged to speak only Hebrew in his home and raised his son as the first modern native Hebrew speaker. He believed that if one child could grow up in Hebrew, so could a generation. It required extreme discipline, as his son Itamar was shielded from other languages.

To build a spoken language, Ben-Yehuda coined thousands of new words. He drew heavily from Jewish texts – Bible, Mishna, and Talmud – reworking ancient roots into modern vocabulary. His aim was not to invent something new but to reconnect the Jewish people to their past while preparing them for the future.

Ben Yehuda is his house in the Talpiot neighborhood, circa 1918-1922

He launched the newspaper HaTzvi to promote the use of Hebrew in daily life and to introduce new terms. He also championed Hebrew as the language of

he was not anti-religious; his conflict with Jerusalem’s rabbis stemmed from his belief that Hebrew should function not only as a sacred language but also

He pledged to speak only Hebrew in his home and raised his son as the first modern native Hebrew speaker.

instruction in schools, understanding that children were the key to national revival. If the next generation could learn math and science in Hebrew, the language would flourish.

As one would expect, Ben-Yehuda faced fierce resistance. Though secular,

as a national one. Drawing on Biblical, Mishnaic, and Talmudic sources, he aimed to modernize Hebrew without severing it from its roots. Still, many religious leaders viewed everyday Hebrew as sacrilegious and excommunicated him. In 1893, he was briefly imprisoned

after rivals accused him of incitement.

The opposition only strengthened his reputation among early pioneers, who embraced Hebrew as a unifying force bridging diverse communities.

Ben-Yehuda didn’t live to see the full impact of his work. He died in 1922, just one month after Hebrew was officially recognized by the British Mandate as the language of the Jewish community in Eretz Yisrael. But his legacy endured.

His 17-volume Complete Dictionary of Ancient and Modern Hebrew, finished posthumously by his wife Hemda and son Itamar, remains a cornerstone of modern Hebrew. He also founded the Hebrew Language Council, which became today’s Academy of the Hebrew Language – the body responsible for coining new Hebrew terms to this day.

Ben-Yehuda’s life was a study in single-minded devotion. He battled illness, poverty, opposition, and ridicule but never wavered in his belief that the rebirth of the Jewish nation depended on the revival of its language. As he wrote in HaTzvi in 1886: “The Hebrew language will go from the synagogue to the house of study, and from the house of study to the school, and from the school it will come into the home and...become a living language.”

It’s fitting that so many Israeli streets bear his name. The Hebrew spoken on those same streets is the clearest testament to the legacy of Eliezer Ben-Yehuda.

Gedaliah Borvick is the founder of My Is rael Home (w w w.my i s rael home. com), a real estate agency focused on helping people from abroad buy and sell homes in Israel. To sign up for his monthly market updates, contact him at gborvick@gmail.com.

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44

Mental Health Corner

Therapy And Marriage

By Rabbi Azriel Hauptman

Therapy is complex and marriage is complex. When you put the two together, the level of complexity reaches a whole new level. In this article, we will focus on two distinct situations that can arise in a marriage relating to therapy. One situation is when an individual shares about his or her spouse with a therapist who has never even met the spouse, and the other situation is when an individual does not go to a therapist and instead relies on his or her spouse for the level of emotional support that is typically provided in therapy.

The first situation can be illustrated with the following anecdote.

Rachel had been feeling depressed for some time and finally she decided to see a therapist. As the sessions unfolded, her therapist discovered that Rachel was a warm, friendly, and thoughtful person.

Rachel’s husband, Yissachar, on the other hand, seemed to be - based on Rachel’s reporting - a narcissistic and angry man who was extremely difficult to live with. It came to the therapist as no surprise that Rachel had become so depressed being that she was trapped in an unfulfilling and difficult marriage.

As time went on, the sessions started revolving around how Rachel should deal with Yissachar, and Yissachar’s “reputation” in the therapy room evolved into some sort of a monster that might be worthwhile getting rid of in order to have the freedom to build a happier and more meaningful life.

Eventually, the therapist decided to invite Yissachar in for a joint session with his wife in order to get more insight. What she saw shocked her. Rachel, who had been sweet and gentle with her therapist, was short-tempered and bickering with Yissachar. Yissachar, on the other hand, was a pretty friendly fellow who did have some interpersonal shortcomings that were triggering his wife, but he was a far cry from a narcissistic monster.

It turned out that both Rachel and Yissachar were contributing to their marital discord. Each one of them was individually fine, but their style of relating to each other needed some work. Had the therapist not met Yissachar, she would have remained convinced that Rachel needed help getting out of a dysfunctional relationship and the

results would have been catastrophic for them and their family.

This true story (with all identifying details changed) is a cautionary tale. Your therapist is not blessed with Ruach Hakodesh and his or her only source of information about your life is from you. We all like to believe that we are objective reporters, but we all know deep down in our hearts that our version of reality is quite subjective. The role of the individual therapist is to help the individual and not the marriage. The marriage by definition is the combination of its two parts, the husband and the wife, and therefore trying to ascertain the dynamics of an individual’s marriage without meeting both of its components would be similar to a physician who is trying to diagnose the patient’s illness but is only allowed to check one half of the patient’s body.

As mentioned, another scenario that can occur is when someone excessively relies on his or her spouse for emotional support.

Although normally your spouse is the most appropriate person to turn to for emotional support, there are times when one’s needs are more appropriate for a therapist, and in such a situation it can be risky for a spouse to play the role of the therapist. This is because even if you have an incredible relationship with your spouse, there are parts of therapy that should not be done with a marital partner.

One reason for this is that the therapy room offers you a place to kvetch as much as you want. Sometimes you need a place to release all of that negative energy in order

that you can be cheerful and smiling when your spouse walks in the door.

Having a place other than one’s home to have that therapeutic experience can be vital for maintaining a happy home.

A more subtle concern would be the imbalance of the relationship. In a healthy marriage, both members of the marriage rely on each other and offer support to each other. This includes emotional support. However, when one member of the marriage needs help on a clinical level, there is a risk of one spouse becoming the caretaker and the other one becoming the “patient”. In the realm of emotions, this can lead to lack of equilibrium in their relationship which can have unhealthy consequences.

Furthermore, the therapy room is a place where you can say whatever is on your mind. Although one should not keep secrets from a spouse, that does not mean that one should tell a spouse something that would be upsetting to them and better left unsaid.

The overarching takeaway of our discussion is a much larger message. Your marriage is the most precious part of your personal life and needs to be handled with care. And if you are not sure how to proceed, do not be hesitant to utilize the services of a trained and experienced clinician. It may be hard work, but it is worth it.

This is a service of Relief Resources. Relief is an organization that provides mental health referrals, education, and support to the frum community. Rabbi Yisrael Slansky is director of the Baltimore branch of Relief.

He can be contacted at 410-448-8356 or at yslansky@reliefhelp.org

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To Raise a Laugh Greece Fire

P

eople often think about eating latkes – too often, for some people – but not a lot of people think about how much sweat and tears goes into making thousands of latkes four at a time. A LOT of tears, it turns out, because you have to grate onions.

we’re at it, why not just do everything to taste?

Who needs cookbooks?

So here is a recipe, cobbled together from various other published recipes just enough for the numbers I give to be useless so I don’t infringe on any major copyrights. For example, one recipe I saw said to use 5 potatoes and 1 onion, and another said to use 10 potatoes and 2 onions. It was the same recipe. So to not get into any shaylos here, I would say to use either 5 potatoes and 2 onions or 10 potatoes and 1 onion, or even 1 potato and ten onions.

- 1 signed permission slip from your doctor

Point is, this recipe is for educational reasons only. The idea here is so that people should know what you’re going through in the kitchen, and that you’re not just taking a potato and hammering it into the shape of a latke.

That said, making this recipe can be hazardous to your health. On the other hand, making latkes altogether can be hazardous to your health.

It’s a fatty food made from potatoes deep-fried in splattering oil in a room full of onion fumes with a slippery floor. So do what you want.

Just don’t come crying to me if you used the ten-onion version and it didn’t work out.

YOU WILL NEED

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By Mordechai Schmutter

- 1 gross of potatoes. Most potato snobs prefer russets.

- 1 Hammer - 1 large onion. (Note that the word “large” is subjective, and cookbooks are very vague about what they consider to be a large onion.)

- 3-12 Eggs, raw -5/16 cup all-purpose flour. Some use whole-wheat flour for healthy latkes, or because they have something against all-purpose flour, such as that they call it “all-purpose flour”, but you mostly can just use it for cooking. You can’t, say, use it to powder a baby.

- Salt and pepper to taste. Actually, while

- Frying oil or rendered chicken fat. If chicken fat isn’t already rendered, then for goodness sakes render it.

- 6 rolls paper towels - Shoes or oven mitts. Do not fry barefoot.

- First aid kit - Goggles INSTRUCTIONS: 1. Remove all batteries from the smoke alarm, using the hammer. This will make the entire process even less safe, so have someone stand behind you with a fire extinguisher. Don’t make any sudden moves, or he’ll spray you.

2. Fill a pan with oil at least ankle deep.

Turn on the flame and start heating it.

3. While the oil is heating, peel the potatoes.

Or don’t. You’re grating them and then frying them until they’re brown. Who’s gonna know?

4. Grate the potatoes by feeding them, one at a time, through the top of a food processor.

Some people prefer to use a hand grater, like the Chashmonaim did way back before we discovered potatoes. The main difference, as far as we can tell, is that a food processor processes your food, while a hand grater grates your hand. There’s also the time factor.

5. For the crispiest latkes, you want the potato shreds to be as dry as possible. Squeeze out as much potato water as you can, using a cheesecloth (l’kovod Chanukah), or, if you’re feeding an army, a reasonably-clean bath towel.

No amount of squeezing is too much here. Put the towel in the driveway and back your car over it, for all we care.

6. Turn down the oil, because this whole potato process is taking too long.

7. Peel your onion. If you’ve never peeled an onion before, what you do is you take off the top layer, and then possibly the next layer, and then the next, until you get to the middle and realize that it’s empty. (“Where’s the onion?”)

This is why you should start with a large onion.

This is why Hashem made the outside few layers a different color so you’d have some idea of when to stop peeling.

8. Shred onion with a food processor or hand grater, and add to potatoes.

9. Wipe tears with the paper towels.

10. Crack open eggs, one at a time (so not all at once) and check for blood spots or shells or any small, dinky prizes. Add to mixture.

11. Also add flour, salt, pepper, and note from doctor. Now you’re ready for frying!

12. Wait, you forgot to reheat the oil.

13. Test oil to see if it’s hot enough. The most common way to do this is to splash in a few droplets of water. If they make a cool “Tssss” noise, it’s ready. But make sure to use only a few droplets. If you pour in a significant amount of water, you will send up a fireball, and the guy behind you will react with the fire extinguisher.

14. Start the frying process with a test latke to see if all your measurements are right. If they’re not, make some adjustments and run another test latke. Then another. And so on.

15. Make a new batch for everyone else.

Start with a test latke.

16. When you see browning around the edges, flip the latkes.

17. With a spatula, genius.

18. When a latke is done, put it on a cooling rack while you put a new one in the pan, then transfer it onto 18 layers of paper towels.

19. Serve with paper towels, applesauce, sour cream, and a large refreshing glass of potato water.

20. Your house should smell like latkes for 12 hours. And be slightly out of focus. Your eyebrows should grow back by Purim..

Mordechai Schmutter is a freelance writer and a humor columnist for Hamodia and other magazines. He has also published eight books and does stand-up comedy. You can contact him at MSchmutter@gmail.com.

47 _˷̇ͅ˓˓ Å˷ͣʹǸ˷ʹ˓ζ

́΃̇ʹɤȿζ˰ζͣɤ˓ʅռɆ̇˰

Ęʧʅɤ Å˷ͣ΃ͅǸ˷Ɇɤ

A΃ͣʧ˷ɤͣ​ͣ ̇ͅ΃̻ Ŷ̇˓ʧɆʧɤͣ

Å˷ɒʧΤʧɒ΃Ǹ˓ Ǹ˷ɒ Ǹ˰ʧ˓ζ Tɤ˷ʹǸ˓ Å˷ͣ΃ͅǸ˷Ɇɤ

TʧͣǸȿʧ˓ʧʹζ Å˷ͣ΃ͅǸ˷Ɇɤ

ƙͅǸΤɤ˓ ģɤɒʧɆǸ˓ Å˷ͣ΃ͅǸ˷Ɇɤ

I ĘĘ‫ڑ‬ƥƋ‫ڑ‬ƙŀT ǕԱ‫ڑ‬ԓԏԎռԓԘԒռԘԘԘԘ

Ǖ̇΃ ɆǸ˷‫ڑ‬Ǹ˓ͣ̇ ɤ˰Ǹʧ˓‫ڑ‬Ǹ‫ʹ̇΃́ڑ‬ɤ ͅɤ́΃ɤͣʹ ʹ̇տ‫ڑ‬ ́΃̇ʹɤՃʹʔɤɆ̇˓΃˰ȿʧǸʊ̇ͅ΃̻ռ˷ɤʹ

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48

Sparks of Light

The Salvation Has Been Too Long

By Rabbi Benny Berlin

C

hanukah has arrived. Dreidels spin, sufganiyot appear, and the kedusha of Chanukah candles fills our homes. And of course, there is the music that defines this time. Some songs are slow and soulful, while others are fast and joyful, each capturing a different register of the chag. Still, one of the most well-known Chanukah songs is Ma’oz Tzur.

At first, Ma’oz Tzur seems like a song of gratitude. The opening verses recall G-d’s kindness throughout Jewish history, praising Him for saving us again and again from persecution, destruction, and exile. From Pharaoh to Haman, from Greece to Rome, G-d has always stood by His people.

But in the last stanza, the mood shifts. Instead of recalling past rescues, we turn to G-d and ask for what is still to come. We say, “Ki archa lanu hayeshua,” the salvation has been too long.

That line stands out. We might expect to say the exile has lasted too long. So what does it mean to say that the salvation itself has taken too long?

The Sfas Emes offers insight that cuts to the heart of this question. During galus, we experience moments of rescue but not full redemption. The Chanukah lights, he teaches, remind us not only of the miracle that happened but also of the miracle we still hope for. A small light helps us keep going, but it also makes us long for the full daylight.

This sense of incompleteness runs through our entire experience of exile.

The Maharal (Netzach Yisrael, Chapter 1) describes galus as a state of bilti tamim.

Even when we find peace and success in exile, we remain vulnerable, missing the spiritual wholeness that only comes when the Beis HaMikdash stands. He captures what it means to live perpetually exposed, perpetually waiting.

Think of a traveler walking alone on a dangerous road. A snake appears, and somehow the traveler escapes. Later, a wolf threatens, and it’s driven away. Each time brings rescue, yeshua, gratitude.

But the journey continues, the road still dangerous, home not yet in sight.

Dr. Bessel van der Kolk describes

brings only short relief before the next one, something shifts. We begin living in what he calls “perpetual anticipation,” thankful for each rescue but never able to fully relax, always bracing for the next challenge.

This is our story as a people. We celebrate Purim because Haman’s decree

A small light helps us keep going, but it also makes us long for the full daylight.

what happens when crises keep coming with only brief respite between them.

The human nervous system can handle stress if there is time to recover. But when threats persist and each crisis

was overturned. We light Chanukah candles to thank Hashem for victory over the Greeks. We survived centuries of pogroms and expulsions. Even after the Holocaust, after the greatest

destruction we ever knew, Am Yisrael found the strength to rise again. And yet, the journey did not end.

We have felt this in our own lives.

We lived through a pandemic that kept families apart and took so many people we loved. When it finally eased, we were grateful just to sit together again, to daven in the same room. And then October 7 shattered whatever sense of calm we had rebuilt. The pain, the fear, the cruelty was dreadful. But even then, there were moments of light. People showed courage. Strangers became family. Lives were risked for one another.

We cried when hostages were returned.

Each of those moments mattered. Each was a real salvation. And still, we find ourselves waiting.

That is what we mean when we say, “Ki archa lanu hayeshua.” Not that we fail to see the miracles. Not that we are ungrateful. But being rescued again and again is not the same as being home. It is not the same as living with safety, with peace, with a sense that the ground beneath us is finally steady.

This Chanukah, as we stand by the lights and sing Ma’oz Tzur, we hold both truths at once. We thank Hashem for every miracle, for every narrow escape, for every bit of light that carried us through. And we also allow ourselves to hope, to pray, and to long for the time when rescue is no longer needed, when the long journey finally ends and we are home.

Wishing everyone a freilichen Chanukah.

Rabbi Benny Berlin is the rabbi of BACH Jewish Center located in Long Baeach, New York. For more information, visit: https:// www.bachlongbeach.com/.

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50

Living Kiddush Hashem

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Redefining ‘To Jew’

By Rabbi Shraga Freedman

R

abbi Noach Greenberg (name changed) brought his wife to the hospital for elective surgery. They arrived on the night before the operation, and the nurse asked if she had followed all the instructions, including taking specific pills. Mrs. Greenberg frankly admitted that she had not.

“You can’t go into surgery without this medication,” the nurse responded. “The operation will have to be postponed.”

The distraught Mrs. Greenberg raced to the pharmacy downstairs, hoping to obtain the prescription, but it was a few minutes after closing time and the doors were locked. She pounded frantically on the door until a pharmacist came out and she explained the situation to him. “I’m sorry,” he said kindly, “but our computers are already

turned off, and I have no way to take payment for the prescription from you.”

“Please,” Mrs. Greenberg begged, “my husband will bring the money first thing in the morning.”

The pharmacist hesitated. “All right,” he finally relented, “but you need to realize that if he doesn’t pay for the pills, the money will be coming out of my paycheck.”

The next morning, Rabbi Greenberg returned to the store and asked a pharmacist where he could find his benefactor in order to pay his debt. Another worker overheard the conversation and piped up, “Dan won the bet!”

It emerged that the pharmacists had taken wagers on whether the money

would be repaid. One of the losing pharmacists turned to a colleague and remarked, “You didn’t tell me the woman was Jewish. I wouldn’t have taken the bet if I had known!”

Rabbi Shimon Schwab once commented, “Webster’s Dictionary contains a verb ‘to jew,’ which it defines, ‘to cheat, to be engaged in sharp practices.’ I live with the hope to see the day when there will be a new edition of the dictionary that will define ‘to jew’ as ‘to be scrupulously honest, to be decent.’

That would be a real kiddush Hashem.”

Mashiach will surely come as soon as such a transformation takes place.

It seemed that someone had already begun to alter the dictionary definition of the term “to jew.”

Rabbi Shraga Freedman is the author of Sefer Mekadshei Shemecha, Living Kiddush Hashem, and A Life Worth Living.

Email LivingKiddushHashem@ gmail.com for a free sefer. Visit LivingKiddushHashem.org for more resources Living Kiddush Hashem was founded with the goal of imbuing every Jew with a powerful sense of mission — the mission to be mekadeish Sheim Shamayim in his or her own unique way. We strive to accomplish this by raising awareness of the paramount importance of the mitzvah of Kiddush Hashem and its centrality in everything we do.

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Centerfold

Oil Fueled Up 1. What is the standard size of a barrel of oil? a. 5 kiloliters b. 76 liters c. 42 gallons d. 55 gallons 2. One fifth of the oil shipped worldwide passes through which checkpoint? a. Strait of Hormuz b. Panama Canal c. Suez Canal d. Black Sea Port 3. Which U.S. city is built on top of a major oil field? a. Houston b. Los Angeles c. Anchorage d. Miami 4. Which of these states is not in the top five oilproducing U.S. states? a. Alaska b. Texas c. Oklahoma d. New Mexico 5. How much did a gallon of gas cost after the 1973 Arab Oil Embargo? a. $5.76

b. $3.23 c. $2.12 d. $1.89 e. $0.55 6. Which country is the world’s biggest producer of oil? a. U.S. b. Russia c. Saudi Arabia d. United Arab Emirates 7. What is ethanol? a. It is a type of oil which is extracted from the ground without causing adverse environmental impacts b. It is an alcohol c. It is oil which is ethical d. It is a natural gas Answers: 1) C- A barrel of oil’s refined products includes about 20 gallons of gasoline, 12 gallons of diesel and 4 gallons of jet fuel and other products like liquefied petroleum gases and asphalt.

2) A- The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow strait located between the

Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf.

Iran borders the Strait of Hormuz to the north, and the United Arab Emirates and Oman’s Musandam Peninsula border it to the south.

3) B 4) C 5) E 6) A- In 2024, the U.S. produced 20.1 million barrels of oil per day.

Saudi Arabia produced 10.0 million per day and Russia produced 10.8 barrels per day.

7) BEthanol is a clear, colorless liquid. In the U.S., over 80% of ethanol is produced from corn. (When you fly over the heartland and see millions of acres of corn fields, it’s not just because corn is a great BBQ side dish.)

Wisdom Key: 6-7 correct: You must be Prince Salmin Abba Abdul Achmad Hassan bin Tzbir al Waheed.

3-5 correct: You are regular unleaded.

0-2 correct: Slip on an oil patch and bang your head?

53

Regular People

12. Drop drain plug into

25. Crawl under car (get-

1. Pull up to Jiffy Lube or Valvoline

pan of hot oil. Splash hot oil

ting oily kitty litter em-

Instant Oil Change when the mileage

onto your hands and face in

bedded in neck and arms).

reaches 3,000 miles since your car’s

the process.

Tighten drain plug with

last oil change.

2. Drink a cup of coffee while they change the oil. credit card and leave with a properly maintained vehicle.

Cost: $29.99 oil change, $2.00 coffee. Total $32.00

Rednecks 1. Wait until Saturday, drive to the

crescent wrench, but this time, it’s

hot oil from hands and face. Throw

slippery. Bang your knuckles on the

some kitty litter on the spilled oil.

frame while tightening drain plug.

14. Open another beer while watching the last drops of oil drain.

15. Spend 30 minutes looking for the oil filter wrench.

16. Give up looking for oil filter

26. Throw crescent wrench across the garage in anger. Throw a fit because crescent wrench hits bowling trophy (which wife wouldn’t let stay in the house).

wrench. Crawl under car and ham-

27. Open another beer and drink it.

mer a flat-head screwdriver through

28. Clean hands, bandaging where

the oil filter and twist it off.

needed to stop blood flow.

auto parts store. Buy a case of oil, oil

17. Crawl out from under car,

29. Pour in five quarts of fresh oil.

filter, kitty litter, hand cleaner (don’t

splashing hot oil everywhere from

30. Lower car from jack stands.

forget a little tree air freshener). Write

newly made holes in oil filter.

a check to the auto parts store for ap-

18. Cleverly hide used oil filter in

Smile at your handiwork. Open another beer and drink it.

trash to avoid those pesky environ-

31. Move car back to discover oil

2. Stop by 7/11 on the way home,

mental penalties. Open another beer.

puddles you missed; apply more kitty

buy a case of beer. Write a check for

19. Install new oil filter, making

proximately $50.

$20.00.

3. Drive home with oil and beer.

4. Open beer, enjoy it.

5. Spend 30 minutes looking for the jack stands.

sure to apply a thin coat of oil to the gasket.

20. Pour the first quart of new oil into engine.

21. Oops! Now remember the drain plug (removed in step 11). It’s still

der the kid’s pedal car, jack the car up.

swimming in the now-warm oil in

7. Open another beer, drink it.

8. Place drain pan under engine.

9. Look for 9/16” box end wrench for drain plug.

10. Give up looking ten minutes later. Find crescent wrench.

11. Unscrew drain plug.

the drain pan.

22. Throw more kitty litter on the quart-sized oil puddle on the floor.

32. Test-drive car to make sure oil doesn’t leak.

33. Get pulled over a block from the house by local police, get arrested for DUI. 34. Call loving wife and bail bondsman.

35. Next day, get car out of impound yard.

Cost: $50 parts, $20 beer, Impound

23. Open another beer and drink it.

fee $75, Bail $1,500, DUI $2,500 min-

24. Find drain plug with a min-

imum.

imum of spillage, hand-tighten in drain plug socket. Drink beer.

Total: $4,145 (but you know the job was done right!)

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6. Find the jack stands (finally) un-

litter to missed areas.

DECEMBER 18-DECEMBER 24, 2025

3. Fifteen minutes later, swipe your

13. Crawl out from under car, wipe

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Redneck v. Regular Oil Change

54

THE BALTIMORE JEWISH HOME

DECEMBER 18-DECEMBER 24, 2025

Notable Quotes “Say What?!”

What healing factor comes out of hating Jewish people? … Nothing. Nothing. Charlie always would say very clearly, Jew hate was brain rot. He would always say it.

- Erika Kirk at a CBS town hall

If there was a linkage in the money that they had stolen going to terrorism, then that’s a failure of the FBI and our court system in not figuring that out.

- Somalian Ilhan Omar, who gained her citizenship through fraudulently marrying her brother and now represents her Somalian neighborhood in Minnesota in Congress, arguing on “Face The Nation” that it’s the government’s fault that Somalians have been committing fraud and sending the money to terrorist groups in Somalia

Smart, well-educated, young people from our own country, from around the world, where were they getting their information? They were getting their information from social media, particularly TikTok. That is where they were learning about what happened on October 7, what happened in the days, weeks, and months to follow. That’s a serious problem. It’s a serious problem for democracy, whether it’s Israel or the United States, and it’s a serious problem for our young people.

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– Hillary Clinton at a New York conference hosted by the Israeli newspaper Israel Hayom, talking about why young people are turning on Israel

It’s not just the usual suspects. It’s a lot of young Jewish Americans who don’t know the history and don’t understand… They are seeing shortform videos – some of them totally made up, some of them not at all representing what they claim to be showing – and that’s where they get their information.

- ibid.

You have TikTok just smashing our young people’s brains all day long with video of carnage in Gaza. And this is why so many of us can’t have a sane conversation with younger Jews, because anything that we try to say to them, they’re hearing it through this wall of carnage.

- ibid.

55

THE BALTIMORE JEWISH HOME

Of course, I’m going to say a few words about the terrible shooting in Sydney, Australia, OK? So, and first, of course, as I always say, no matter what, go, Bills! They beat the Patriots today. It’s a big deal.

- How Sen. Chuck Schumer started his press conference on Sunday

I was never into drugs — but as you hear about drugs, you gotta take more and more and more and more and more to get to the same level.

Well, gambling’s the same way. You start out at $5 a hand, and then it’s $20, and then it’s $50, and then it’s $100, and then it’s $1,000, and then it’s $5,000.

– Country music star John Rich on Fox News Digital talking about his past gambling addiction

- ibid.

It just seemed so gross to me that I was living that way and thinking that way that I just stopped.

I just literally went “bang.” I didn’t ratchet it down little by little. I literally just stopped. 2010 was the last time I played a hand of blackjack.

- ibid.

No, she meant that I’m — you see, I don’t drink alcohol. So everybody knows that — but I’ve often said that if I did, I’d have a very good chance of being an alcoholic. I have said that many times about myself, I do. It’s a very possessive personality.

- President Trump defending his Chief of Staff Susie Wiles who told Vanity Fair that Trump has an “alcoholic’s personality”

I’ve said that many times about myself. I’m fortunate I’m not a drinker.

If I did, I could very well, because I’ve said that — what’s the word? Not possessive — possessive and addictive type personality. Oh, I’ve said it many times, many times before.

- ibid.

DECEMBER 18-DECEMBER 24, 2025

One day, I realized that is was so disrespectful to take what G-d had given me and blessed me with success, and I’m taking this success and instead of giving it to people, helping other people with it, or helping my own family with it, I’m putting it on a stupid blackjack table, hoping that the cards turn in my favor and I can make some more money.

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DECEMBER 18-DECEMBER 24, 2025

Exchange between Rep. Bennie Thompson(D-Miss.) and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem about the horrific Thanksgiving Eve attack on National Guardsmen in Washington, D.C., in which one young National Guardswoman was killed and another was severely wounded

REP. THOMPSON: Madam Secretary, you and the gentleman from NCTC referenced the unfortunate accident that occurred with the National Guardsmen being killed.

HOMELAND SECRETARY NOEM: You think that was an unfortunate accident? It was a terrorist attack… He shot our National Guardsman in the head!

REP. THOMPSON: Look, Mr. Chairman, will you direct the witness to allow me to ask my question? It was an unfortunate situation…

I will consider your asking me to resign as an endorsement of my work.

- Homeland Sec. Kristi Noem in response to Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-MI) scolding her that she should resign

It’s an absolute betrayal for Israel and for the worldwide Jewish community, like, whether it’s France or Australia or any of these nations, our Western allies, now calling for a two-state solution, when Hamas refuses to disarm and are actively trying to kill Jews. I can’t imagine why anybody would do that at this point. That is not the appropriate reward after 10/7 and this thing. So I absolutely support Israel’s continuing to take out leaders from Hamas and Hezbollah as well too.

For example, I believed in the crazy conspiracy theory back in 2020 that it was stupid to mask 3-year-olds at the height of the Covid pandemic, that we should actually let them develop some language skills.

You know, I believed in this crazy conspiracy theory that the media and the government were covering up the fact that Joe Biden was clearly unable to do the job.

- Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) on Fox News

And I believed in the conspiracy theory that Joe Biden was trying to throw his political opponents in jail rather than win an argument against his political opponents.

So, at least on some of these conspiracy theories, it turns out that a conspiracy theory is just something that was true six months before the media admitted it, and that’s my understanding.

- Vice President J.D. Vance responding to claims that he is a conspiracy theorist

As Jews around the world gather around our menorahs on this first night of Hanukkah, we are reminded how desperately the world needs more light and more kiddush Hashem.

- From a tweet by Ivanka Trump on Sunday

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58

Dating Dialogue

What Would You Do If… Moderated by Jennifer Mann, LCSW of The Navidaters

Dear Navidaters,

Thanks for your column. I love to read it every week!

I was wondering what I should do about a particular friend of mine. I’m married and dabble in shidduchim and have tried setting her up multiple times over the years.

She’s 29 years old, an amazing girl. Every time I try to set her up with a guy who has said yes, her parents make it impossible. The father demands to sit with the boy first to see what he’s all about and if he will “shtim” with the family.

This is not something that’s regularly done and comes across as strange and pushy on his part. (No, they’re not chassidish who commonly date with a b’shoh first where the parents meet the single.)

After a few times of experiencing this, I just stopped setting her up all together.

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I recently saw her and I feel so bad for her as I’m sure this has impacted many potential ideas from coming to fruition. Is there anything I could or should do, or should I leave it alone?

Thanks, Ariella*

Disclaimer: This column is not intended to diagnose or otherwise conclude resolutions to any questions. Our intention is not to offer any definitive conclusions to any particular question, rather offer areas of exploration for the author and reader. Due to the nature of the column receiving only a short snapshot of an issue, without the benefit of an actual discussion, the panel’s role is to offer a range of possibilities. We hope to open up meaningful dialogue and individual exploration.

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60

The Panel

Dear Readers, We want to offer YOU an opportunity to be part of the discussion!

Please email us at MichelleMondShadchan@gmail.com, subject line “reader’s response,” if you would like to participate in the new “A Reader’s Response” columnist spot. We will send you a question and publish your answer in an upcoming Navidaters edition.

If you have a question you would like the Navidaters to answer, please reach out to this email as well.

Looking forward!

Michelle, the “Shadchan”

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The Shadchan

the impetus for her to do so. After a conversation like this, you’ll have done the best you can do.

Tizki l’mitzvos!

Michelle Mond

A

riella, you’re awesome for trying to set up your friends! You are doing a huge mitzvah and should be proud of every suggestion you try, even if it doesn’t lead to a date. More people should be like you and try to set singles up.

I understand how frustrating this particular conundrum is for you, as I have been in the exact same boat.

Singles and parents don’t realize how much we put ourselves out there when we work on suggestions. Then, when they make things uncomfortable with ridiculous questions and uncomfortable demands, we end up feeling like fools when reporting back to the other side. I am highlighting this so that our readers can be more aware of the norms when somebody sets you/your child up.

As for your particular question, I believe that since you are a devoted friend, your heart is going out to her. You realize her father’s demand has been an impediment to her shidduchim. Unfortunately, though, as a friend, there is not much you can do to change this.

The one thing you can do is sit down and have a talk with her about your experiences setting her up. Explain to her gently how the way things have gone in the past is highly out of the ordinary, which is a turnoff to potential matches and their families. Once she knows the information, the ball is in her court to make changes. At this point, it would behoove her to be in charge of her own shidduchim, and hopefully this will be

The Zaidy

the overprotective, inappropriate parental control here.

Good luck, and let’s hope that your friend has the good sense to definitively put a stop to her father’s misguided demands. And let’s hope that her father has the good sense to understand that what he thinks is helpful is actually harming his daughter’s opportunities.

Unfortunately, all too often today, common sense is very uncommon.

Reader’s Response Fellow Shidduch Dabbler Chani Smith

D

ear Ariella, Thank you for your question. It shows you are a truly caring and compassionate friend who wants the best

Knowing she’s supported, remembered, and not alone in this can make a huge difference.

outcome for both parties. I’ll start by saying that every family has its own style. This is also true regarding shidduchim. However, it can get to a point where lines are unintentionally crossed.

In this case, I believe the parents may be unaware of how their demands are affecting their daughter. In their minds, they are simply trying to protect her and ensure the happiest outcome.

Dr. Jeffrey Galler

I

t’s wonderful that you are trying to help your amazing friend. What you describe is a very real problem. I can’t imagine that a mature young man would agree to subject himself to an interview and interrogation before being able to date your friend.

(I can’t help but wonder if your friend still lives at home. If yes, why?

It would be a lot smoother for a potential date to pick her up at her own place, without her father’s “helpful” intervention.)

May I respectfully suggest that you take your friend out for a coffee and discussion. She already knows, I’m sure, how in our circles, a 29-year-old single girl already has a tough time getting dates with “normal” guys; insisting that the guy first meet the father makes it infinitely more difficult and unlikely.

You may wish to tell her, “I find it very difficult to set you up with guys, because they are very, very uncomfortable with having to first meet your dad.

What do you think we can do about that problem?”

After that, there’s not much more that you can do. You don’t know the family history and dynamics, and you, personally, certainly cannot override

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61

Pulling It All Together

coming from, a place where you just want the best for her.

Let’s hope that her father has

A Single’s Perspective Malka Miller

O

h, wow—there’s really a lot to say.

First of all, it’s truly amazing that you’re trying to set her up. As a single person, it genuinely makes me so happy when married friends make an effort to think about and advocate for their single friends—it really means more than people realize.

It’s definitely a tough and delicate situation because you’re continuing to try to help her, yet her father is making it difficult for her to even go out on a first date. That can be incredibly frustrating for everyone involved, especially when your intentions are coming from such a good place.

Personally, I think the most import-

the good sense to understand that what he thinks is helpful is actually harming his daughter’s opportunities.

ant thing is just letting her know that you’re always thinking about her and that you care. Even if nothing can move forward right now, knowing she’s supported, remembered, and not alone in this can make a huge difference.

The Navidaters Dating and Relationship Coaches and Therapists

D

never made it past the starting line.

You didn’t do anything wrong by stepping back from setting her up. That wasn’t giving up on her.

That was recognizing your limits and not wanting to keep putting people into situations that felt uncomfortable or unsustainable.

As for whether you should be honest with her, this really depends on the relationship you have and on your sense of her emotional bandwidth. If you feel genuinely close to her and believe she could hear this without feeling criticized or overwhelmed, there may be room for a gentle, loving conversation – not one where you tell her what to

independent of the controlling person as there are often varying consequences to pay. It can takes years for people to trust their own instinct and stop walking on eggshells. If this is the case, my heart goes out to your friend.

If your instinct is that even a gentle conversation would create more pain or loyalty conflict for her, it’s also completely OK to leave it alone and simply continue being a kind, steady presence in her life.

You’re allowed to care deeply without intervening. And you’re allowed to say something. Whatever you decide to do, I hope you will be gentle with yourself. You’re in a really tough spot, and you deserve to be kind to yourself.

Warmly, Jennifer

Jennifer Mann, LCSW is a licensed psychotherapist and certified trauma healing life coach, as well as a dating and relationship coach working with individuals, couples, and families in private practice at 123 Maple Avenue in Cedarhurst, NY. To set up a consultation or to ask questions, please call 718-908-0512. Visit www.thenavidaters.com for more information. If you would like to submit a dating or relationship question to the panel anonymously, please email JenniferMannLCSW@gmail.com. You can follow The Navidaters on FB and Instagram for dating and relationship advice.

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ear Ariella, Thank you so much for reading the column. I really appreciate you writing in.

What you’re describing is genuinely hard to watch. You’re trying to help someone lovely, and you keep running into the same wall over and over again.

In most non-chassidish dating circles, a father insisting on meeting a potential match before the couple even goes out is unusual. Even when it comes from care or protection, it often lands as intense and controlling, and many people quietly opt out rather than engage.

And the part that always gets me is this: the person most affected usually isn’t the parent. It’s the daughter, often without ever knowing how many ideas

do, and not one where you analyze her parents, but one where you simply name what you’ve noticed.

Something like: “I want to say this carefully, because I care about you. I’ve sometimes wondered whether the way dating is being handled on your parents’ end might be making things harder for you, not easier. I might be wrong, but I wanted to share it gently in case it’s helpful.”

And then you stop. You don’t push.

You don’t convince. You let her take it or leave it.

She may already know. She may feel stuck. Or she may not be ready to see it yet. All of those responses deserve respect. If her father is controlling, your friend may have a very long road ahead of her toward her emotional independence. It can be very hard to take action

DECEMBER 18-DECEMBER 24, 2025

family respects. She could explain the situation and share her feelings. Perhaps the rav could intervene and help her parents understand her perspective.

2. Get help from a sibling or close family member. If she feels it’s necessary, she could have a brother, sister, or trusted relative take charge without informing her father. This way, she can look into and meet those she feels are appropriate, without her father unintentionally creating pressure or coming across as pushy, while still having guidance and support. Although this approach may be complicated, if she truly feels she needs to, it might be worth considering.

Lastly, be sure to remain respectful and nonjudgmental during the conversation. Make sure she understands where you are

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Unfortunately, this can inadvertently create unrealistic expectations and make potential matches feel pressured.

They truly care about their daughter and ultimately believe that this is the best route for her.

If this was my friend, I would take her aside privately to discuss her dating life. I would ask her how she feels about the way her parents deal with the prospective match and the outcomes. If she believes this is the best way to go about finding her match, which would be unlikely (considering the fact she presumably wants to get married), I would leave the matter alone. However, if she does not agree with the way her parents are handling things and feels that it is preventing her from meeting the right one, I would suggest two things.

1. Involve a rabbinical figure that the

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Relationships

Rewired

Burning the Darkness Away

By Bassy Schwartz, LMFT

I

opened Zusha’s Instagram story on Sunday and stopped scrolling.

There was a picture of their can‑ dles, glowing softly, with one short caption underneath: Burning the darkness away. I felt moved. I felt angry. I felt inspired. And I felt unexpectedly seen.

I was also struck that the source was not a therapy account; my feed has two categories: materialism and the heavier stuff. You know, the good stuff; processing trauma, naming pain, unpacking the emo‑ tional weight of the world. And yet, there it was. A sentence that named something I was feeling so strongly inside but couldn’t quite reach or articulate on my own.

“The Zushas” (as I like to call them) have been part of my inner peace journey for years. Their music has accompanied me through moments of grounding, searching, and quiet reckoning. But this felt different.

They did it again. They gave me language for an internal experience that felt raw and unresolved.

That caption stayed with me. It made me wonder what G‑d was imagining when He created fire.

Besides for all of the obvious purposes, fire lights up and burns down (often at the same time). It feels like a perfect analogy for pain.

There are days when pain feels heavy and consuming. Days when the burn feels exhausting and unfair. And then there are

other days when I can see pain different‑ ly. Days when I thank G‑d that wounds exist at all. Because pain, when met with care and steadiness, can become a signal for change. A force that pushes us toward growth, healing, and a healthier future for ourselves and for those we nurture.

Holding both of these truths at once is not simple.

Pain is excruciating.

And pain is powerful.

Managing that tension of allowing pain to be both unbearable and meaningful at the same time is something I believe we

infrastructure that can hold it – something begins to shift. If we can sit with it long enough to reach the other side, the pain changes its shape.

What once felt unbearable can begin to feel different. The pain may still sting, but it no longer overwhelms. It’s present, but less frightening — because over time, we learn that it doesn’t have the power to break us the way we once feared it did.

This topic comes up often on intake calls with prospective clients. I’m very clear with them: we cannot promise that this work will always leave you feeling

Pain, when met with care and steadiness, can become a signal for change.

all struggle with, again and again. Burning the darkness away feels like a resting place for the game of tug of war that pain plays.

It acknowledges the cost; it burns. It hurts.

Fighting through pain, trauma, and loss feels wrong and unsafe much of the time.

And yet, that very burn is how we move through darkness in this world.

If we can find ways to stay with the pain while it burns – not drowning in it, not rushing to escape it, but tolerating it with

“good.” Therapy that is honest and mean‑ ingful is often uncomfortable, tumultuous, and heavy. There will be sessions that stir things up rather than settle them.

What we can offer is a genuinely sup‑ portive space – a place to enter the pain with care, and to see if together we can find a secure way to tolerate it long enough to hear what it needs to teach us. You won’t al‑ ways leave feeling better. But you will leave satisfied, knowing that you showed up for

a part of yourself that has been waiting — sometimes for years — for your arrival.

Darkness exists for all of us.

And it needs to be met, not avoided.

Chanukah reminds us that light doesn’t argue with darkness. It doesn’t pretend the darkness isn’t there. One small flame sim‑ ply shows up, steady, flickering, real. And that is enough to change the room.

My hope for you is that one day you feel illuminated by what happened to you.

Not because it was good or fair or just. Not because it was deserved. But because you learned how to carry its fire without being consumed by it. You see how what needed to burn down lit the way for a future that wouldn’t have been possible without the darkness. Then you can begin living the life you have always deserved to have.

Happy Chanukah to you and yours.

Bassy Schwartz, LMFT is the founder of Core Relationships, a boutique therapy practice in the Five Towns offering individual, couples, and family therapy. Her work centers on helping clients build safer, more authentic connections by healing the patterns that block intimacy and trust. Bassy is trained in Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) and integrates trauma-informed care and relational insight in her approach. She believes therapy is not about “fixing” people — it’s about creating the safety to be fully human.

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64

School of

Thought

By Etti Siegel

Q:

Dear Etti, I remember growing up and watching my mother come home around Chanukah and the end of the year with stacks of cards and gifts from parents. Sometimes, there were even presents sent for other holidays. It made us feel proud. She was respected. She was loved. Her work was seen.

Now I’m a teacher myself. I receive the school’s collective gift or check, with a list of names attached of families who participated. I know I should be grateful, and I am, but it feels so generic. Aside from something similar on Purim, this is often the only recognition I receive all year.

What happened to appreciation?

I know this sounds shallow. I’m not in this for the thank yous. I think about my students constantly, day and night. I am always modifying lessons, trying different strategies for different children, and attending workshops on my own time to learn how to teach and reach my students better. I don’t need accolades.

But the feeling that my work matters, that it is seen, would fuel me. It gets lonely to work so hard and not know if anyone notices.

Signed, - I Care, Do You?

A:

Dear I Care, Thank you for teaching our children and for writing so honestly. I know exactly how you feel, and so do many, many teachers

reading this.

What you are describing is not about gifts. It is about visibility. It is about wanting to know that the countless invisible hours, the thinking, the worrying, the revising, the trying again tomorrow, actually matter to someone beyond your classroom walls.

Part of what you are feeling reflects a much broader cultural shift. In the world at large, handwritten thank you cards have largely been replaced by quick texts, emojis, or nothing at all. Appreciation has become shorter, faster, and more fleeting. Add to that the very real reality that many families today are financially strapped, juggling tuition, rising costs, and endless obligations.

For many parents, even when gratitude runs deep, it doesn’t always translate into something tangible or even expressed.

But while the form of appreciation has changed, the need for it has not.

There is also an unfortunate asymmetry in how

demanding conditions. Imporfeedback reaches teachers. When tantly, the research also shows children are happy and thriving, For many that recognition does not need to parents often feel grateful and be grand, public, or expensive to then move on with their busy parents, even be effective. Gallup’s workplace lives. When children are unhapstudies demonstrate that specific, py or struggling, concerns arrive when gratitude sincere acknowledgment, naming quickly and loudly. Silence, more runs deep, it what someone did well and why it often than not, has come to repremattered, has a greater positive sent satisfaction. The problem is doesn’t always impact on morale and motivation that silence does not nourish the translate into than generic praise or material resoul of a teacher. wards. In other words, a thoughtYou are not shallow for feeling something ful sentence can sustain a teacher this. You are human. longer than a check.

When I began teaching in tangible or Dear Parents: Precise the early 1990s, cards and small even expressed. praise matters. A short note that gifts were more common. Parsays, “Thank you for the way you ents weren’t necessarily more aphelped my child start speaking preciative then; they were simply up in class,” or “My child comes more accustomed to expressing home calmer this year, and I know that didn’t happen it. Over the years, appreciation didn’t disappear; it just by accident,” can fuel a teacher far more than any gift stopped being verbalized. And when effort is no longer acknowledged, even the most dedicated professionals ever could. The message matters more than the object.

Dear Teachers: And to you, the teacher who wrote can begin to feel unseen.

Research bears this out. Decades of research on this, I also want to offer something important. While we hope for external validation, and deserve it, we cannot teacher burnout show that lack of recognition and perceived value, often more than workload alone, is a major let our sense of worth depend on it. This is where self-affirmation becomes not a buzzword, but a professional contributor to emotional exhaustion and attrition. Chrisnecessity. tina Maslach, whose work defines burnout research, Notice the small wins: The student who raises a hand identifies low recognition and lack of meaningful feedafter weeks of silence, the child who regulates instead of back as core factors in professional burnout, particularly melting down, the class that transitions more smoothly in helping professions like teaching. Large-scale studies than it did last month. Notice the smiles, the trust, the from the American Psychological Association (APA) and subtle growth that no checklist captures.

Gallup consistently find that employees who feel seen, Be present enough to see the impact you are having. appreciated, and acknowledged for their specific conThat work is why you do what you do. And even when tributions are significantly more engaged, resilient, and it feels lonely, it is meaningful beyond measure. likely to remain in their profession.

Your work matters. You matter.

In education specifically, the MetLife Survey of the American Teacher reports that teachers who feel valued Happy Chanukah! by parents and school communities report higher job - Etti satisfaction and lower stress, even when working under

Mrs. Etti Siegel holds a MS in Teaching and Learning/Educational Leadership and brings sound teaching advice to her audiences culled from her over 35 years of teaching and administrative experience. Etti is an Adjunct at the College of Mount Saint Vincent/Sara Shenirer. She is a coach and educational consultant for Catapult Learning, FACTS Education Solutions, Brienza Academic Advantage, Yeled V’Yalda; is a sought-after mentor and workshop presenter around the country; and a popular presenter for Sayan (a teacher-mentoring program), Hidden Sparks, and the Consortium of Jewish Day Schools. She is a frequent contributor to Hamechanech magazine and The Journal for Jewish Day School Leaders and has a weekly column in The Jewish Home.

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Parenting Pearls

Gelt Gains

By Sara Rayvych, MSEd

H

appy Chanukah!

There are so many ways to celebrate these eight days, and most children will find some gelt glittering in their hands. Children like money and enjoy imagining all they can do with it. Like everything, money is a tool.

Learning to use it properly doesn’t happen automatically, and this needs to be added to our list of chinuch topics.

I’ve noticed that children have distinct “money personalities.” Some save their money and can’t bear to part with it. They’ll be desperate for a drink yet not buy themselves a bottle of water. Ironically, many of these children will happily spend their parents’ money, forgetting their parents don’t get things for free.

Other children can’t spend their money fast enough. They will find anything to spend it on – as long as they can buy something. Dehydrating because you won’t spend or buying foolishness to get rid of your cash are both unhealthy attitudes towards money. The problem with both of these extremes is that they lack balance. Knowing your child’s personality helps you understand where they most need to be guided.

Money also plays a very confusing role in our life. It’s necessary and can be

used for much good, yet it can take over a person’s mind and have a life of its own.

Having a hashkafically sound attitude towards money is a gift that will carry them throughout adulthood.

Creating Balance Understanding a healthy balance and having a proper attitude towards finances is more important than parents may realize. Sadly, many people come into adulthood without a proper understanding of money, and the results can be financially disastrous. Credit cards maxed out. Mortgages out of reach. Starting marriage in debt. One day, our children will need to take their finances into their own hands, and we want to prepare them for that day.

Most middos are best when balanced, and extremes are rarely healthy. It’s as equally foolish to be a miser as it is to spend frivolously. Money should be spent when necessary but not wasted. Parents will want their children to understand how to save and spend wisely – both skills we can teach them.

Every family will have their own views on finances. I encourage parents to teach their children how to divide money into different categories, helping children learn the different educational financial

goals we have for them.

There are three main categories: tzedaka, savings, and spending money. Savings has a sub-category of shorter term savings. While exact breakdowns will vary, a possible division is 10% for maaser, 30% for spending cash that stays in their wallet, and 60% towards savings. Of that savings money, a portion will go towards their short-term goals with the balance in their long-term savings account.

Learning To Save One of the first things we teach kids about money is how to save it. Taking care of things isn’t the most natural skill for a young child, and many toddlers will simply lose cash forgetting where they put it.

Parents can create savings accounts for even the youngest of children. This can be a great place to put the generous cash gifts that many grandparents and other relatives like to give children. Many children will find it quite rewarding to see how modest sums can add up to more generous amounts.

We mostly associate saving accounts as untouchable until marriage, but children can save for both long- and shortterm goals. Long-term goals are what we usually think of when it comes to savings,

and they are mostly goals that children are not really thinking about. These goals will take years – even decades – to reach.

Other goals can be shorter term, requiring months or a year of savings. This money may be kept in their account or other set location. This goal is something the child wants to earn towards and enjoy in the near future, yet it will still require saving and exercising financial self-control. For an older child, this may be a bike, and for a younger one, it may be a gigantic Lego set. I was very proud when one of my sons decided he wanted to save towards a travel-size Shas. That was a very joyous trip to the seforim store.

These shorter term goals allow children to appreciate the benefits of their savings, as well as feel the reward of their hard work. They can set a goal, reach it and value the item they worked so hard to purchase. Children often don’t value how much things cost nor the items that are handed to them. Having to save towards something makes the item more valuable and teaches the “value of a dollar” in a way that lectures will never do.

Learning To Spend As many children spend so carelessly, we assume they don’t need to be taught

67 vy internet shoppers. For example, more expensive doesn’t always mean better quality, and sometimes it’s cheap for a reason. Reviews can be faked or bought.

Too good to be true probably is. Helping children differentiate is an important skill in today’s shopping market.

that “plastic” is not endless. It also encourages healthy digital spending habits in a world that is going cashless.

Learning True Value As Torah Jews, we understand there is more to this world than what we see

Having to save towards something makes the item more valuable and teaches the “value of a dollar” in a way that lectures will never do.

with our eyes. Tzedaka money can acquire eternity and teach children how to give. Children should feel the pride and accomplishment that comes from using their money for a lofty purpose.

Exactly how to prioritize tzedaka money is a question for a rav, and I will not be addressing that specific aspect. I like to give my children the opportunity to pick where their tzedaka money goes instead of me dictating it. Like adults, children often have a cause they feel

Sara Rayvych, MSEd, holds a master’s degree in general and special education. She has been homeschooling for over 15 years.

Sara provides personalized parent mentoring services, addressing a variety of general and specific parenting concerns. She can be contacted at Sara.Rayvych@gmail.com with comments, questions or for private consultations.

DECEMBER 18-DECEMBER 24, 2025

I usually give my children extra freedom to decide how they want to spend money they’ve personally earned.

They’re still not allowed to purchase anything against our family’s personal standards, but they have a lot of leeway otherwise.

Many banks offer teenage checking/ debit accounts which parents can use as another tool to help children understand spending. They learn they can only spend money that’s in their account and

more connected to, and they will have a greater appreciation of the mitzvah. Allowing them to choose further involves them in the giving and brings meaning that will last them into the future.

We should take the time to educate our children about our family’s and community’s hashkafic views regarding money and gashmiyus. While we hope they will acquire this through living in our homes, there are so many distractions around them that we can’t take any chinuch lessons for granted.

One of the beautiful aspects of a Torah lifestyle is that everything is a lesson and can be used for the good. Chanukah gelt or everyday money can be utilized as one more step in building healthy adults who live a lifestyle balancing ruchniyus and gashmiyus.

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how to spend. Anyone can spend foolishly, but we want our children to learn how to spend wisely. What is considered a “wise” expenditure is very subjective, and learning our individual needs is a separate skill.

While stories of misers make great mussar lessons, it’s not a middah we want to inculcate in our children. Unlike spiritual earnings, money isn’t inherently valuable. The value comes in what we can do with it – hopefully the right goals. When we make money into something it’s not, then we create a very unhealthy personality. On the opposite end, children shouldn’t spend just because the money feels too heavy in their pocket. I’ve seen kids desperate to spend on anything – just because the money is in their hand.

To create a healthy balance, we should help our children to think before spending and understand what they are trying to accomplish. Do they want the slice of pizza now or the nicer toy next week? Are they spending just to spend or because they actually need that particular item?

In modern society, they also need to learn how to avoid scams, recognize false advertising practices, and become sav-

Nir & Noa Dangor on the birth of a daughter

Dovi & Yaffa Stern on the birth of a daughter Mr. & Mrs. Nachum Wildman on the birth of a son

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Aussie Meat Pies

By Naomi Nachman

As an ode to my hometown, I would like to share one of Australia’s best-loved iconic dishes: meat pies. When you make these pies, please think of this beautiful Jewish community and daven for peace around the world. You can also find this recipe in my cookbook Perfect F lavors.

Ingredients

◦ 2 Tablespoons canola oil ◦ 1 onion, finely chopped ◦ 1 pound chopped meat

3. Bring mixture to a boil; reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes, or until the sauce

◦ 2 Tablespoons flour

is thick. Add salt and pepper. Remove from heat; set aside to cool completely.

◦ 1¼ cups beef stock

4. After the meat has cooled, use an immersion blender to make a paste that still

◦ 2 Tablespoons tomato paste

has some texture.

◦ 2 Tablespoons fish-free Worcestershire sauce ◦ Kosher salt, to taste

5. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

6. Using a small plate about 8 inches in diameter as a guide, cut six circles from

◦ Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 sheet of puff pastry. Use them to line the base and sides of six 1-cup pie tins or

◦ 4 sheets frozen puff pastry

ramekins. Fill the pastry with the meat mixture; avoid spilling any on the edges.

◦ 1 egg, lightly beaten

7.

1.

Heat oil in a medium sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onion; sauté until

Using the same plate as a guide, cut 6 circles from the puff pastry. Brush the

pastry edges of the pies with water to moisten; top each with a puff pastry circle (it will extend past the edges of the pie). Press the pastry edges together to secure. Trim the excess pastry with a sharp knife; crimp the edges. Cut a small X in the center of

onion is translucent. Add meat, stirring with a wooden spoon to break up any clumps.

each pie; brush the top with beaten egg.

2. Stir in flour, beef stock, tomato paste and Worcestershire sauce until well

8. Bake the pies until the pastry is puffed and golden, about 35-40 minutes. Serve

incorporated.

the pies with ketchup.

Naomi Nachman, the owner of The Aussie Gourmet, caters weekly and Shabbat/ Yom Tov meals for families and individuals within The Five Towns and neighboring communities, with a specialty in Pesach catering. Naomi is a contributing editor to this paper and also produces and hosts her own weekly radio show on the Nachum Segal Network stream called “A Table for Two with Naomi Nachman.” Naomi gives cooking presentations for organizations and private groups throughout the New York/New Jersey Metropolitan area. In addition, Naomi has been a guest host on the QVC TV network and has been featured in cookbooks, magazines as well as other media covering topics related to cuisine preparation and personal chefs. To obtain additional recipes, join The Aussie Gourmet on Facebook or visit Naomi’s blog. Naomi can be reached through her website, www.theaussiegourmet.com or at (516) 295-9669.

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Preparation

DECEMBER 18-DECEMBER 24, 2025

I a m a real Aussie, born and raised in Bondi Beach, Australia, where this week’s tragedy unfolded.

Although I have lived in New York for over 30 years, I have received thousands of messages from around the world asking how my friends and fa mily are doing. It was a very difficult week; we are a small but unified community, and my thoughts are with my hometown and all of the casualties of this week’s event.

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In The K tchen

A BALTIMORE COMMUNITY WHATSAPP GROUP

NO N EW S . J U S T BU Z Z .

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