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Issue of agunot comes to area
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In those days, at this time Protester from Michigan at Nov. 8 rally in Kettering
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Reentry citizen Eric McCorry
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Reentry citizen Eric McCorry shares his story at the JCRC Chai-er Project breakfast on Nov. 4 at the Dayton Racquet Club, as U.S. District Court Judge Walter H. Rice (Standing) and John Theobald, assistant to County Commissioner Debbie Lieberman, listen
Story and Photos By Marshall Weiss The Observer “God has allowed me to have a second chance at doing the right thing — being a respectable citizen in society, and not taking anything for granted,” Eric McCorry tells employers from Dayton’s Jewish community over breakfast at the Dayton Racquet Club. “It’s made me a very humble person because I’m so grateful for the opportunities to get myself back in order,” he says, welling up with tears. “I don’t sit and cry the blues about where I’ve been. I try to inspire other people who want to get their lives back in order.” McCorry is a graduate of the Reentry Career Alliance Academy, a program of the Montgomery County Office of ExOffender Reentry. The Nov. 4 breakfast marked the Jewish Community Relations Council’s formal entry as a partner in the county’s reentry programs. According to retired Vandalia Municipal Court Magistrate Bonnie Beaman Rice, chair of JCRC’s Chai-er Project, its aim is to encourage employers in the Jewish community to consider hiring ex-offenders who have gone through the county’s reentry academy program. Rice’s husband, U.S. District Court Judge Walter H. Rice, and Montgomery
County Commissioner Debbie Lieberman co-chair the Community-Wide Reentry Task Force. “I see the faces of their families who show up at their graduations,” Bonnie Beaman Rice says of academy participants. “And what a mighty, mighty example that parent is setting, that you can turn a life around and contribute to society. This program reaches into the next generation, and the generation after that.” Walter H. Rice describes the reentry program as “the best public safety measure to come on the scene in all of my time here in Dayton.” “If a person is helping himself, and open to receiving help from the community, if the community is lending a helping hand instead of the back of the hand, then that person is working, he’s paying taxes, he’s raising a family, he’s a role model for his community, and he or she is not out committing additional crimes.” Approximately 1,500 ex-offenders return to Montgomery County each year. The judge and Lieberman launched the reentry task force 10 years ago. Five years ago, the county opened its exoffender reentry office. According to John Theobald, assistant Continued on Page Six
IN THIS ISSUE Calendar of Events....................26
Opinion...........................18
Family Education.........................35
Obituaries.............................38
Internet............................. 37
Religion..............................27
Kve l l i n g Co r n e r. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Wo r l d . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
DAYTON
Issue of agunot comes to Kettering Protest to free ‘chained woman’ puts Dayton area at center of issue few beyond Orthodox understand ORA
Story and Photos By Michelle Tedford Special To The Observer More than 80 demonstrators stood along Far Hills Avenue in Kettering as passing cars slowed to read their signs: “Eli Shur. Free Adina Now.” The rally, held Sunday, Nov. 8, primarily drew supporters from Orthodox communities across Ohio and Michigan, including a handful of Orthodox and non-Orthodox Jews from the Dayton area. It was organized by the New Yorkbased Organization for the Resolution ORA’s video of Adina Porat and her plight of Agunot (ORA). Agunot, Hebrew for went viral hours after its Oct. 21 upload chained, refers to women in the Orthodox world whose husbands refuse to “We have very few options for what provide them with a get, a religious bill we can do,” said Stern, whose organizaof divorce. tion annually works on about 60 agunot Rabbi Jeremy Stern, executive direccases and conducts about two dozen tor of ORA, said the demonstration was demonstrations each year. part of ORA’s increasing attempts to “This is what we can do: Assert our pressure Kettering resident Dovid Porat, First Amendment rights of freedom of known locally as Eli Shur, to grant a get speech, freedom of assembly, and state to his wife, Adina Porat. She and her five factual information that he’s refusing to children live in Israel. give his wife a get. It’s a form of domesAccording to ORA, in 2007, Shur left tic abuse. It’s shameful.” his family and has refused to provide his Stern said one goal of the demonstrawife with a get. Within halacha (Jewish tion was to shame Shur and inform his law), a divorce isn’t final until a husband neighbors in the hopes that they will also provides his wife with a get. Without pressure Shur to grant the get. one, an agunah is unable to remarry. He approached Shur’s house durThe demonstrators were impassioned ing the demonstration. His intention, but respectful; Stern said they followed he said, was to present Shur with the the rules outlined by the Kettering Police Department. The rally included a march past the white brick home where Shur lives, according to ORA. Despite ORA’s private attempts over several years to obtain a get from Shur, he has refused. Main banner at the website freeadina.com
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documents for an issuance of the get. If Shur signed it, Stern said the demonstration would have been called off. No one answered the door. Attendees had various motivations for participating. Rabbi Mel Granatstein and his wife, Malka, traveled with others from Cleveland. The Granatsteins know the parents of Adina Porat and said they came to support the family. Rabbi Yechiel Morris organized a busload of 17 protestors from Akiva Hebrew Day School in Southfield, Mich. Nati Faber of Southfield, Mich. holds a sign at the ORA-sponsored Morris said Shur and rally on Nov. 8 in Kettering community,” Elisheva Malloy said. “I his wife taught at the just think it’s wrong that someone’s life school in the late 1990s. “Students who once looked up to him is in limbo.” Marci Vandersluis of Oakwood and as a role model now see him acting this Susan and Dr. David Joffe of Kettering way,” Morris said. “We believe withlearned of the demonstration through holding this get is a form of domestic family and friends in Cleveland and abuse.” Chicago. While many demonstrators said they “We think it’s wrong, and we want to learned of the rally through ORA’s social support this woman to get on with her media campaign, Dayton attendees life,” Vandersluis said. learned of it in other ways. Education about agunot was an objecElisheva Malloy from Oakwood was tive of the weekend, which began with conflicted about joining the protest. teaching sessions at Torat Emet, a modBut she attended with her daughter, ern Orthodox synagogue in Columbus. Meaghan. Elisheva Malloy is friends ORA conducted classes about matriwith the woman Shur is living with. “I care about everyone in the Jewish Continued on Page Four
From the editor’s desk Talk about a great Chanukah present. The Israel Antiquities Authority announced on Nov. 3 that it has discovered the remains of a fortress built by Antiochus Marshall IV Epiphanes, the bad guy in the Weiss Chanukah narrative. The Times of Israel reported that a section of the fortress was found under a Jerusalem parking lot in the City of David, south of the Old City walls and the Temple Mount. “The fortification is believed to have been part of a system of defenses known as the Acra fortress, built by Antiochus as he sought to quell a Jewish priestly rebellion centered on the Temple.” Simon Maccabee captured the Acra fortress in 141 BCE. The Israel Antiquities Authority hopes to have the site open for the public in time for Chanukah.
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Menachem Roetter from Oak Park, Mich. attended the Nov. 8 rally to support all chained women — including his mother, an agunah for 13 years
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Continued from Page Three mony at Torat Emet, endorsing the use of halachic prenuptial agreements to ensure the granting of a get if the marriage ends. ORA also encouraged matrimony class participants to travel to Dayton for the demonstration. A solution to the agunot dilemma that has gained traction in the modern Orthodox world is the use of halachic prenuptial agreements to provide for a get. According to JTA, these prenups are only now making their way into segments of the haredi community. Meagan Buren of Columbus attended the matrimony classes at Torat Emet. She said she came to the rally to support Dayton’s community. “Just because it’s a small community doesn’t mean it should be forgotten, and we’re here to offer it support,” Buren said. Menachem Roetter from Oak Park, Mich. said he came to the demonstration to support all chained women — including his mother, an agunah for 13 years.
‘Stuck in a prison’
In Dayton, Shur is the owner of Shur Wellbeing and works as a life, leadership, health and fitness coach. Since ORA put up the freeadina.com website and a video interview with Adina Porat on Oct. 21 — and both went viral overnight — he pulled down Shur Wellbeing’s website. “In my life, I’m stuck in a prison,” Adina Porat says in ORA’s video. “I can’t move on, I can’t continue. The kids never had a chance to have a stepfather, a new family, and to continue on with their lives.” Through ORA, Adina Porat declined to be interviewed by The Observer. “My dad left, he abandoned us when I was 16 years old,” says 24-year-old daughter Rachel in the video. “But ever since I was 10 or 11, all he could speak about was the fact that he hated being a father, he hated being tied down by family, he hated the fact that the money he earned went to feeding his kids, and how much he would have preferred buying electronics or books or anything else.” Continued on Page Five
Observer Advisor Martin Gottlieb Published by the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton Judy Abromowitz President David Pierce President Elect Melinda Doner Vice Pres. Mary Rita Weissman Vice Pres. Bruce Feldman Vice Pres. Cathy Gardner CEO The Dayton Jewish Observer, Vol. 20, No. 4. The Dayton Jewish Observer is published monthly by the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton, a nonprofit corporation, 525 Versailles Dr., Dayton, OH 45459. Views expressed by guest columnists, in readers’ letters and in reprinted opinion pieces do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Dayton Jewish Observer, The Dayton Jewish Observer Policy Committee, the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton or the underwriters of any columns. Acceptance of advertising neither endorses advertisers nor guarantees kashrut. The Dayton Jewish Observer Mission Statement To support, strengthen and champion the Dayton Jewish community by providing a forum and resource for Jewish community interests. Goals • To encourage affiliation, involvement and communication. • To provide announcements, news, opinions and analysis of local, national and international activities and issues affecting Jews and the Jewish community. • To build community across institutional, organizational and denominational lines. • To advance causes important to the strength of our Jewish community including support of Federation departments, United Jewish Campaign, synagogue affiliation, Jewish education and participation in Jewish and general community affairs. • To provide an historic record of Dayton Jewish life.
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THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
Continued from Page Four affected, this issue affects all of Judaism,” Despite repeated atGinsberg said. tempts, Shur declined to While the New Yorkbe interviewed by The based Jewish OrthoObserver. dox Feminist Alliance In agunot cases, it’s not encourages prenuptials, unusual for husbands to it also advocates for attempt to extort wives changes to rabbinic and their families for law that would better money or property in protect all women, said exchange for a get. In Sharon Weiss-GreenAdina’s video, she says berg, JOFA executive Shur hasn’t asked for directive. anything. “Religion should not “He told the children allow for or provide before he left the coungroundings for a man to try, and he told various abuse a wife,” she said. people (that) among all The fact that two the years he has not given Demonstrators at the Nov. 8 rally near the home of decades after prenupa get, the only reason he Eli Shur, a Kettering man who has refused since tial agreements began is not giving the get is for 2007 to grant his wife a get being used, all rabbis revenge,” she says in the services the day before the rally. still do not require them, means video. “Just to hurt somebody. a halachic solution is required, Ginsberg said about 30 conHe has never asked for anyWeiss-Greenberg said. gregants stayed for the session, thing in eight years.” “There are hundreds of which presented the underlying According to ORA, in 2009, women out there who are waitthe Israeli Rabbinate ruled that issues and source texts, how Jewish law has handled divorce, ing and waiting and waiting,” Shur must give his wife a get. she said. and possible solutions avail“In Israel, they would have Aviad Tabory, from the Israeli able in rabbinic literature and put him in jail, and that’s one settlement of Alon Shevut, atcontemporary society. of the reasons he fled,” Stern tended the demonstration to “When they were laid out, said. “But America, thank God, thank the participants for their some in attendance found it has a separation of church and support of his sister, Adina. surprising, others perplexing, state, and that’s a very good “To see so many people come and some even disturbing,” thing, but the downside in this together and help one another, Ginsberg said. situation is that they’re unable He said that in the 1950s, the it’s a very old Jewish ideal that to enforce Jewish law.” is alive today,” Tabory said. Conservative movement adIn 2010, Shur arrived in Stern said ORA is considering opted a solution to the issue of Dayton to serve as ritual director of Beth Jacob Congregation. agunot. Marriage now includes its next actions against Shur. “There has been a lot going the addition of a clause in the He had presented himself as a on behind the scenes, and due ketubah, the marriage contract, single man with no children. to the pressure of the rally, we that stipulates divorce will be Nearly six months later, volunadjudicated by a bet din (rabbin- have started to see important teers with ORA showed up at ic court) to prevent the problem. progress towards resolving the one of Shur’s evening classes case,” he said. “We will continHe also urged congregants at the synagogue and urged with unmarried Orthodox fam- ue to pressure Eli as effectively him to sign a get for his wife. as possible until he finally gives He refused. In short order, Shur ily members to be aware of the was no longer employed by the need for prenuptial agreements Adina a get.” to allow for religious dissolution synagogue. of the marriage. Marshall Weiss contributed to this Stern said ORA chose the “Even if they are not directly report. date for the rally two months ago to coincide with the Columbus study session. As it turned out, a number of rabbis and other leaders in the Dayton Jewish community were out of town at conferences on Nov. 8: at Jewish Federations of North America’s General Assembly in Washington, D.C.; Union of ReKEVIN A. BRESSLER, CFP®, MBA form Judaism’s Biennial in OrFinancial Advisor lando; and Chabad-Lubavitch’s CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ practitioner International Conference of • 29 years of experience Shluchim and Shluchos (emissaries) in Brooklyn. Stern • Ameriprise Hall of Fame said this was an unintentional • Ameriprise Exceptional Client oversight. Satisfaction Award, 2014 An article on the plight of 10050 Innovation Drive, Ste 310 Adina Porat posted at DaytonMiamisburg, OH 45342-4933 jewishobserver.org prompted 937.312.8008 Rabbi Joshua Ginsberg at Dayton’s Beth Abraham Synakevin.a.bressler@ampf.com gogue — the community’s only ameripriseadvisors.com/kevin.a.bressler Conservative congregation — to CA Insurance: #0823959 lead a study session about the issue of agunot after Shabbat
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“Only you can decide if Those who don’t have clean hiring ex-offenders is right for drug screenings or decline the voluntary testing are connected your business,” she says. “We Continued from Page Two have found that it certainly proto services to help them with to Montgomery County Comvides much more opportunities addiction and substance abuse missioner Debbie Lieberman, than it does challenges. Recruitissues, he adds. Montgomery County had a 44 ment and retention are some “It’s been tremendously percent recidivism rate in 2005. of the biggest challenges in successful with the reentering “Today, our recidivism rate business today. There are more population but we also know is 27.5 percent,” he tells the it’s not for evgathering, referring to the rate eryone. It’s only of ex-offenders who return to for those who prison. are committed For those ex-offenders who to making posiparticipate in the county’s tive change in three-week Reentry Career their lives.” Alliance Academy program, Bruce FeldTheobald estimates the recidiman, president vism rate is at 18 percent. of Economy To date, 115 ex-offenders have graduated from the Reen- Linen, says his company began try Career Alliance Academy hiring ex-ofthis year. fenders 15 years “Seventy-five percent of Linen President Bruce Feldman and Kelly participants in our program are ago. Last year, Economy Saliba, Economy VP of human resources, talk about approximately their experiences hiring ex-offenders being successfully placed in 37 percent of mainstream employment oppositions than there are people the employees Economy hired portunities,” Theobald says. to fill them. So in a lot of ways, in its plant were ex-offenders. The ex-offenders who enroll they (ex-offenders) are a very “But like any business that in the academy learn about fiuntapped labor market.” nancial literacy, credit manage- has a good idea that starts at Walter H. Rice says that from the top, we need strong, great ment, how to relieve stress in his experience, employers are the workplace and in the family, people to help implement it,” reluctant to hire ex-offenders Feldman says. and the importance of contribHe cites his vice president of because they are concerned uting to the community. about liability and insurance Theobald says academy par- human resources, Kelly Saliba, risks. for making the program work ticipants voluntarily submit to “There have been changes in drug testing as they go through at Economy. Ohio law,” he says. “There is the program. legislation, there are processes Pros and cons “We will not recommend a that limit if not eliminate your “People of all walks of life returning citizen for a job with risk vis a vis members of the any employer if they can’t dem- can make mistakes,” Saliba general public.” says. “Their ability to recover onstrate long-term, continual from mistakes, to a large extent, drug screenings,” Theobald is based upon the work ethic of Jewish perspective says. Rabbi Bernard Barsky, now each individual.” retired from Beth Abraham She says the turnover rate Synagogue, became involved and length of retention at with the reentry task force a Economy are the same for exdecade ago. He serves on the offenders as non-offenders. Reentry Office Policy Board “However we have found and volunteers with the Montthat they are very appreciagomery County Jail Chaplaincy tive of the opportunity to be Ministry. gainfully employed,” she says. From a Jewish perspective, “They don’t always get that next opportunity or that second he considers the county’s reentry program “as important as chance.” anything I’ve ever done.” The only challenge Saliba “I’ve met so many righteous says Economy has experienced in hiring ex-offenders is a drop- humanitarian heroes who have humbled me by their service, off in commitment when some and who have enriched my life ex-offenders have met their legal obligation to be employed. and my faith: my faith in God, and my faith in people,” he says “But we always have to be of reentry staff and volunteers. reflective of that, and think “We have found the power what we can do to improve that to break the yoke,” he tells the situation,” she says. gathering, referring to the proSaliba adds that in addition phetic vision of Isaiah. to the guarantee of drug-free “Our tradition insists that the employees entering the workgoal of punishment is teshuplace and federal bonding, the vah, repentance. The prophet reentry program offers up to Jeremiah said, ‘Return, my $2,400 in federal Work Opbacksliding children.’ And in portunity Tax Credits for each ex-offender a company hires, as the interpretation of our rabbis, that means that any criminal well as possible state tax credwho sinned and then repented, its, depending on the category we accept that person forever.” of employment. THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
DAYTON
Beth Or to honor Burstein Temple Beth Or will host a dinner dance on Saturday, Dec. 12 at 6:30 p.m. to honor Rabbi David Burstein, who leaves his position as the temple’s assistant rabbi at the end of December. Burstein arrived at Beth Or in 2001, the year of his ordination from Hebrew Union ColRabbi David lege-Jewish Burstein Institute of Religion in Cincinnati, and was the longtime director of the temple’s religious school. For reservations to the dinner, call the temple office, 435-3400.
Community Chanukah party On Wednesday, Dec. 9 from 6 to 7:30 p.m., the JCC will present Festival of Lights Fire Show in partnership with Beth Abraham Synagogue, Beth Jacob Synagogue, Chabad, Hillel Academy, Temple Beth Or and Temple Israel, at the Boonshoft CJCE, 525 Versailles Dr., Centerville. The event will include a fire spinning show, dinner, and family games. Community members are encouraged to bring their own menorahs and candles. The cost is $6 ages 13 and up, $3 ages 4-12, free ages 3 and under. R.S.V.P. to Karen Steiger at 610-1555.
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Chabad of Greater Dayton will present its Glow in the Dark Chanukah Party on Sunday, Dec. 13 from 5 to 7 p.m. Dinner includes latkes and doughnuts, followed by glow-in-the-dark activities. For more information, call 643-0770.
Chinese & movie Dec. 24
Beth Abraham Synagogue will offer a Kosher Chinese Dinner followed by a movie for adults and one for children on Thursday, Dec. 24 beginning at 5:30 p.m. The cost is $10 adults, $6 ages 3 to 12. R.S.V.P. by Dec. 17 to 293-9520.
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Participants on Temple Beth Or Women’s Trip to Israel pose at the ancient aqueduct at Caesarea during their Oct. 11-22 tour. Front (L to R): Sue Nelson, Rachel Haug Gilbert, Rabbi Judy Chessin, Nancy Newman, Heidi Kaplan. Standing: Teresa Wyman, Leslie Buerki, Cathy Cohan, Linda Chessin, Vickie Shortal, Cathy Chessin, Melissa Drolet, Kathy McAlpine, Edie Tannenbaum, Pam Driscoll, Gina Kahn, Diana Gilroy, Kelly Gilroy, Lorraine Fortner, Teanna Neskora. MediaMoments.com/Peter Wine
MediaMoments.com/Peter Wine
Rabbi Sherre Zwelling Hirsch shares photos of her children with Tanny Feerer (R), a cousin from Columbus, and Sue and Don Zulanch during her program at Oakwood’s Wright Memorial Public Library on Oct. 28 as part of the JCC’s Cultural Arts & Book Fest. Hirsch is the author of Thresholds: How To Thrive Through Life’s Transitions To Live Fearlessly And Regret-Free.
Columbus Dispatch Sports Writer Bill Rabinowitz answers questions about his new book, The Chase, at the JCC’s Cultural Arts & Book Fest event on Nov. 5
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Temple Israel brought ample representation to the Union for Reform Judaism Biennial, Nov. 4-8 in Orlando, Fla. Shown here, Front (L to R): Cherish Cronmiller, Sara Faust, Rabbi Ilene Bogosian, Amy Margolin, Carol Finley, Molly Blumer, Bart Weprin. Back: Rabbi Karen Bodney-Halasz, Mitchell Faust, Courtney Cummings, Paul Cooper, Judy Heller, Katherine Cooper, Linda Novak. THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
THE WORLD Ben Sales
Terror shakes suburban normalcy of Gush Etzion By Ben Sales, JTA ALON SHVUT, West Bank — A soldier stands inside a U-shaped concrete barrier at a quiet roundabout at the Gush Etzion junction, helmet strapped on and armored vest tied to his torso. The barrier is a recent addition to the junction, a major transit point for the area, and residents have already adorned it with political art. On one side is a painting of boxy, white homes sitting on brown hills with the slogan “Gush Etzion, an Israeli home.” On the other is a poster with bold, black letters reading “Kahane was right,” a reference to Meir Kahane, the extremist rabbi who wanted to expel Palestinians from the West Bank. The artwork reflects the tension between security and normalcy that is a fact of life for Gush residents. Gush Etzion, a group of bedroom communities about 30 minutes south of Jerusalem, typically feels much like
any other Israeli suburb. But a string of terror attacks in recent weeks has shattered the area’s calm, putting its residents on high alert and prompting calls for an increased military presence here. On Nov. 19, a Palestinian man opened fire at the junction from a moving vehicle before ramming his car into another car, killing three people, among them an American yeshiva student. On Nov. 22, a 21-year-old Israeli woman died after sustaining multiple stab wounds. Several other stabbings and attempted stabbings have been reported at the junction in the past month. “Our neighborhood looks like Vietnam,” said Rivka Epstein Happin, who lives in this Gush settlement adjacent to the junction, where she led a protest Nov. 23. “Every day there are more and more soldiers. Once a terrorist gets to our neighborhood, it’s too late. We need to stop the flow of terrorists in our neighborhoods.”
Living life to the fullest...
Protesters in Gush Etzion hold a banner of Israelis killed in terrorist attacks, Nov. 23
Located between Jerusalem and Hebron, the 21 settlements that make up Gush Etzion are home to about 70,000 Jews. Most residents live in two cities, Efrat and Beitar Illit, the remainder in smaller settlements. The entire area is widely expected to remain part of Israel in any eventual peace agreement. The first Jews settled in Gush Etzion before the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948, but the area fell to the Arabs in the War of Independence. The area
was resettled following Israel’s victory in the 1967 Six-Day War. Gush Etzion junction is a major commercial and transit hub for the southern West Bank. Buses pass through en route to Jerusalem and Hebron, while locals often use it as a hitchhiking spot. A strip mall has sprung up on its southwestern corner containing a supermarket, café, gas station and tire repair shop. Many local Palestinians work in Jewish-owned homes and businesses, and Palestinians
and Israelis shop and work together in the supermarket. Now an armored vehicle stands in front of the market, which is fenced off from the street, and Palestinian workers have been barred from entering the settlements. Pairs of soldiers stand at each exit from the roundabout ready to check passing Palestinian cars. Concrete blocks sit in front of bus stops to guard against vehicular attacks. Overall, about 20 soldiers now patrol the junction, while the Israeli army is making some 30 arrests per week in nearby Palestinian villages to head off potential attacks. The area’s seeming normalcy is what makes it such an attractive target, said an Israeli military commander stationed in the area. Beyond killing Israelis, he said, terrorists hope to turn a tranquil place into a war zone. “This isn’t just about hurting people’s lives,” said the commander, who asked to remain anonymous per Israel Defense Forces protocol. “It symbolizes a fabric of life, and the steps we’re taking, from their perspective, represent a certain kind of success.”
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For Jewish groups, Syrian refugees are a reminder — not a threat Spencer Platt/Getty Images
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Migrants waiting to be processed at the increasingly overwhelmed Moria camp on the island of Lesbos in Greece, Oct. 21
By Ron Kampeas, JTA WASHINGTON — American Jewish organizations don’t see the Syrian refugees as a threat; they see them as a reminder. With rare unanimity on an issue that has stirred partisan passion, a cross-section of the community has defended the Obama administration’s refugee policy in terms recalling the plight of Jews fleeing Nazi Europe who were refused entry into the United States. “The Jewish community has an important perspective on this debate,” the Orthodox Union said in its statement. “Just a few decades ago, refugees from the terror and violence in Hitler’s Europe sought refuge in the United States and were turned away due to suspicions about their nationality.” Echoed the Conservative movement’s Rabbinical Assembly: “We can sadly remember all too well the Jews who were turned away when they sought refuge in the United States on the eve of, and during, World War II.” Eleven Jewish organizations joined another 70 groups in pleading with Congress to keep open the Obama administration’s program, which would allow in 10,000 refugees over the next year from among the 200,000 to 300,000 in Europe. Neither the Orthodox Union nor the Rabbinical Assembly signed the letter. Among the signatories were mainstream bodies like the Reform movement, the Anti-Defamation League, the
American Jewish Committee and the National Council of Jewish Women, as well as HIAS, the lead Jewish body dealing with immigration issues, and the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, the umbrella body for Jewish public policy groups. However, the parallels to the Nazi era raised hackles among some conservatives. “The refugees from Syria are not fleeing a genocide, it’s a civil war,” said Matt Brooks, who directs the Republican Jewish Coalition. Officials from the organizations that support allowing in the refugees said they were not likening the magnitudes of the two catastrophes, but could not help noting the reluctance in the 1930s, as now, to accept refugees and the accusations that the refugees posed a danger. “It’s obviously a sensitive comparison, but it’s the right point to make,” said Nathan Diament, executive director of the Orthodox Union Advocacy Center. The consensus among the three major streams of U.S. Jewry — Reform, Conservative and Orthodox — is derived from a shared understanding of Jewish scripture, said Rabbi Jonah Pesner, who directs the Reform movement’s Religious Action Center. “Our role is to be the pure rabbinic voice that lifts people up beyond their narrow partisan views,” he said of rabbis. Continued on Page 18
A crosssection of the community has defended the Obama administration’s refugee policy
THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
THE WORLD
Israel approves immigration for 9,000 Ethiopian Jews
inspired by arctic beauty inspired by arctic beauty
Miriam Alster/Flash90
eling for up to a month By Ben Sales, JTA on foot. From there, in a TEL AVIV — The mission called OpIsraeli government has eration Moses, Israeli approved entry of the Defense Forces planes “last” group of Ethioairlifted about 8,000 to pian Jews awaiting imIsrael. migration to Israel. In 1991, with EthioThe move comes two pia’s government on years after the arrival of the cusp of being over450 Ethiopian Jews then thrown by rebel groups, deemed to be the “last” mass aliyah resumed such group. Indeed, with the clandestine there have been several Operation Solomon, groups said to be the which brought 14,500 last since Ethiopian imJews to Israel on 40 migration began in the Falash Mura arrive in Israel, Aug. 28, 2013 flights in just 36 hours. 1970s. post-biblical holidays like The initial wave was supChanukah and Purim, and they Some of the flights held double their normal capacity to save posed to have ended with a maintain their own unique celtime. giant military-style operation ebrations, like the fall festival Debates over who is an in 1991. Then Ethiopian aliyah of Sigd. Ethiopian Jew have drawn “ended” again, in 1998. Then Successive Ethiopian out the aliyah process. After again in 2008. And again in governments persecuted the Watch with brown ceramic links and sapphire crystal. Operation Solomon, advocates 2010. Each time, advocates of Jews, leaving them impoverWatch with brownfrom ceramic links and sapphire crystal. Ring combination the Arctic Symphony collection. for the community urged the continuing Ethiopian immiished and relatively isolated in Ring combination www.beringtime.com from the Arctic Symphony collection. gration prevailed upon the agrarian communities amid the government to let another www.beringtime.com group of Ethiopians move government to let country’s northto Israel. The group, whose in not just more ern mountains. members are known as Falash Jews, but other Contacts with Happy Chanukah Mura, has Jewish ancestry but groups with Jewoutside Jewry inish ancestry. creased in the 20th is descended from Ethiopians who converted to Christianity Experts and century. In 1973, about a century ago. Ethiopian comOvadia Yosef, Some Israeli officials opmunity members then Sephardic posed the aliyah of the Falash say this group chief rabbi of Ismay actually be rael, ruled that the Mura, saying their ties to 2800 Miamisburg Centerville Rd., Judaism were too weak. But in the one capping Ethiopian comDayton OH Centerville 45459 2800 Miamisburg Rd., the 1990s and 2000s, successive three decades of Ethiopian munity was Jewish, paving the www.simplyhyacinth.com Dayton OH 45459 governments brought waves immigration. But when the way for their immigration. www.simplyhyacinth.com of Falash Mura to Israel, who new arrivals hit Israel, they’ll Thousands came to Israel underwent formal conversion encounter a whole new set of via military operations. Ethiochallenges. Ethiopian-Israelis pian aliyah began with a trickle to Judaism after their arrival. Simply Hyacinth_4x7,5_112015.indd 1 16.11.15 Experts say this wave may Simply Hyacinth_4x7,5_112015.indd lag in employment, wages and in 1977. Between 1984 and 1 this? So is the entire Jewish community. 16.11.15 Are you reading really be the end of Ethiopian education, and have protested 1985, thousands of Ethiopian Contact Marshall Weiss at MWeiss@jfgd.net aliyah because it includes every what they call institutional Jews fleeing famine crossed to advertise in The Observer. discrimination. into Sudan, some of them travContinued on Page 39 “The need is not to just bring olim to the land, but to invest in their integration,” said Roni Akale, director-general of the Ethiopian National Project, Rehab CenteR at which develops educational programs for Ethiopian youth. LinCoLn PaRk ManoR “If they don’t invest, there will Please join us for services be damage. The state needs to Dr. Louis Heckman – Medical Director take care of them.” held every Friday evening Your trusted neighbor! Here’s who Israel’s 135,000 at 5:30 p.m. Ethiopian Jews are, why their Have a knee or hip replacement scheduled? aliyah has taken more than 30 Contact us to learn about Call to RSVP years and how the immigrants our therapy programs. have fared. 937-298-0594 Jews have lived in Ethiopia 937-297-4300 for 3,000 years. Many believe that Jews first arrived in Ethiopia three millennia ago after splitting off from King Solomon’s ancient Jewish kingdom. LincolnPark-Manor.com LincolnParkSeniors.com Since then, Ethiopian Judaism 694 Isaac Prugh Way, Kettering 590 Isaac Prugh Way, Kettering developed mostly in isolation from the rest of world Jewry. Located near Temple Beth Or Ethiopian Jews do not celebrate
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PAGE 11
10:51 10:51
THE WORLD
Though confined to NY, Jonathan Pollard can explore the Internet for the first time
PAGE 12
By Ron Kampeas, JTA WASHINGTON — His every move tracked by GPS, his computers monitored 24/7, his outings subject to a curfew, Jonathan Pollard will nonetheless for the first time be able to enjoy a 21st-century indulgence so many others take for granted: surfing the Internet. A filing by the convicted spy for Israel’s lawyers reveal that they won a single concession from the U.S. government in months of wrangling over his parole conditions: Pollard may access the internet without prior permission. The filing in the U.S. District Court in Manhattan on Nov. 20, just hours after Pollard’s release from a federal prison in North Carolina 30 years into his life sentence, was for habeas corpus. Pollard’s lawyers, Eliot Lauer and Jacques Semmelman, argued that the restrictions attached to Pollard amounted to illegal detention and were “statutorily and constitutionally impermissible.” The revelations in the contentious filing — along with statements Nov. 20 by the White House, supportive Jews and Jewish groups, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — bury for now any hope Pollard’s release would end three decades of pronounced disagreement between the United States and Israel over what Pollard represents and whether his punishment was just. Pollard wants to make aliyah, (immigrate to Israel). Every signal the U.S. government has sent suggests that is not going to happen in the near term. The Justice Department has said it will stand by the conditions of Pollard’s parole, which do not require a review for another two years. The White House has said, again emphatically on Nov. 20, that it will not intervene. The U.S. Parole Commission, after announcing Pollard’s pending release in July, issued parole conditions that would require Pollard to submit to GPS monitoring, obtain commission approval to access the Internet and agree to monitored computer use, with unannounced inspections of his equipment at any time, according to the filing by Pollard’s lawyers, The commission also said Pollard’s probation officer could subject him to curfew and “exclusion zones,” which would be in addition to the statutory requirement that Pollard request permission to travel outside the area of New York City, where he will reside. Pollard’s lawyers appealed the conditions to the commission’s appeals board, which removed only the need for the commission’s approval to access the Internet. The GPS requirement was “reasonably related to the need to deter you from further criminal conduct,” the appeals board said, although, according
Justice for Jonathan Pollard
Jonathan and Esther Pollard after his release from prison, Nov. 20
to the filing by Lauer and Semmelman, the board did not explain how Pollard, 30 years in prison, would be able to spy now that he’s out. The lawyers included statements from Robert “Bud” McFarlane, the national security adviser at the time of Pollard’s 1985 arrest, and former Sen. Dennis DeConcini, D-Ariz., who was on the Senate Intelligence Committee at the time, that whatever classified information Pollard still knew is now useless. The computer monitoring, the appeals board ruled, was warranted for home and business computers because “the boundaries between personal and business computer use are blurred.” That requirement, Pollard’s lawyers argue, will make it almost impossible for the Stanford University graduate to find work. The Probation Office charged with monitoring Pollard’s release “exacerbated the conditions,” the filing said, apparently requiring Pollard to wear a tracking device. “GPS monitoring does not require a monitor attached to the body,” the lawyers said and claimed that because of Pollard’s diabetes, “any restraint place on his ankle or leg” would be dangerous. A handful of Jewish organizations welcomed the release of Pollard, an American Jew and a former Navy intelligence analyst who pleaded guilty in 1987 to sharing classified information with Israel. A recurring theme was that the sentence was disproportionate. “While we still believe his sentence was disproportionate, we hope that after having paid his debt to society, he should now be able to rebuild his life together with his wife,” the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations said in a statement. Pollard appeared relaxed and pleased to be out of prison. After his pre-dawn release from the federal prison in Butner, N.C, he traveled to New York City, where he checked in with his parole officer.
THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
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THE WORLD
Is EU discriminating against Israel by labeling settlement goods?
Products from Western Sahara are sold with a “Made in Morocco” label in the same Danish supermarkets where products from the West Bank are marked as originating in Israeli settlements, according to Morten Nielsen, a Danish journalist active in efforts to raise awareness about Morocco’s occupation of Western Sahara. Denmark, Belgium and the United Kingdom are currently the only EU member states with
as well label Israeli products with a yellow star,” referencing the stars Jews in Nazi-occupied Europe were required to wear. Despite such heated rhetoric, the number of countries labeling at protecting a consumer’s right ing the “inalienable right of settlement products is expected By Cnaan Liphshiz, JTA the people of Western Sahara” to know whether a product to grow following the publicaAMSTERDAM — To Israel to independence. In 2005, the tion of the new guidelines, a and many of its supporters, the was produced within Israel’s pre-1967 borders or in disputed EU called for a resolution to senior European diplomat who new European Union regulathe conflict that would ensure spoke to JTA on condition of tions requiring separate labeling territory. the “self-determination of the In making their case about anonymity said. for settlement goods are dispeople of Western Sahara.” Europe’s double standard, The guidelines are limited criminatory measures reminisBut despite formal objections to Israel, the diplomat said, cent of Europe’s long history of Israeli diplomats have found in recent years by the an unlikely ally: Activists for institutionalized antisemitism. Gershon Elinson/FLASH90 because they came in reNetherlands and Sweden self-rule in Western Sahara, sponse to a letter by 16 EU In a harshly-worded stateto labeling Western Sahaforeign ministers urging ment Nov. 11, the Israeli Foreign a disputed territory in North Africa claimed by Morocco. The ran produce as Moroccan, the European Commission Ministry said that by ignoring the EU has issued no lato implement a decision it other territorial disputes around territory’s government-in-exile beling guidelines compaclaims it is under foreign ocmade in 2012 to label Israeli the world, the EU is discrimirable to those it released cupation. and Palestinian products. nating against Israel. EU ofNov. 11, which require The United Nations General Western Sahara is not ficials dismissed that complaint that certain goods proAssembly endorsed that view the only territorial dispute as emotional and irrelevant, duced in the West Bank, that has failed to prompt saying the guidelines are merely in 1979, declaring Morocco an eastern Jerusalem and the occupying force in the former demands for European a reflection of longstanding Golan Heights be marked labeling. Goods produced European policy and are aimed Spanish colony and affirmto indicate whether they in Chinese-ruled Tibet, were made by Israeli setIndian-controlled Kashtlers or Palestinians. mir and northern Cyprus, Israeli winemakers inspecting grapes at a winery which is occupied by “When it comes to the West Bank settlement of Gush Etzion, products from Palestine in Turkey, do not merit special Sept. 8, 2014 and Western Sahara, there labels in Europe. is a clear double standard in the special labeling for West Bank The “unequal use of legal European Union’s behavior, and products, which, according to tools owes to the fact that the it’s eroding its credibility across estimates cited by the EU, acIsraeli-Palestinian profile, count for less than 1 percent of the board,” said Erik Hagen, because of its historical connotaFiner & Designer Consignments the total annual trade volume a Norwegian geographer and tions, is incomparable to others Specializing in: of $32 billion between the union in the level of interest it draws activist and former chair of • ladies’ clothing sizes 0-2X Western Sahara Resource Watch, and Israel. and its visibility in media and • current season and styles Israeli officials have claimed an advocacy group. politics,” said Hagen. But such • designer handbags and accessories such measures are merely a pre- factors “cannot explain unequal Trade agreements signed in 2000 and 2012 between Morocco lude to a wider boycott of Israel application of international law, • designer fine and costume jewelry and the EU include no mention and have repeatedly drawn which is being eroded.” comparisons to the boycott of Daniel Rosario, an EU ComWishing You A Happy Chanukah of occupied land. Yet in 2012, Jews during the Holocaust. “We mission spokesperson for trade the EU Foreign Affairs CounWalk-in consignments accepted daily until 4 p.m. (or until 6 p.m. on have historical memory of what and agriculture, told JTA that cil issued a blanket guideline Thursdays). After hours or in-home pick up available by appointment. happened when Europe labelled territorial disputes over the requiring that “all agreements 43 W Franklin St, Centerville, OH Jewish products,” Israeli Prime between the state of Israel and West Bank and Western Sahara loraleidayton.com • 937-528-6861 the EU must unequivocally and Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “are of a completely different Open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through explicitly indicate their inappli- said in September. In April, For- nature.” Saturday (or until 7 p.m. on Thursdays). mer Foreign Minister Avigdor cability to the territories occu“E.U. considers Morocco Lieberman said “Europe might pied by Israel in 1967.” as the ‘de facto administrator of the territory of the Western • The •board certified physicians at Dayton Gastroenterology specialize in Sahara’,” the Rosario wrote in an email. ”In this role, the activiprevention, diagnosis and treatment of digestive conditions including: • • ties linked to the exploitation of • Acid Reflux / GERD • Crohn’s disease natural resources by an adminThe board certified physicians•atHemorrhoids Dayton Gastroenterology specialize in the • istrative power in an ‘non-selfdiagnosis and treatment of digestive conditions including: • Bloating / Gas • prevention, • Irritable Bowel Diarrhea governing territory’ are not • • • • Crohn’s disease illegal, provided • Hemorrhoids Acid Reflux / GERD • Celiac disease • Diverticulitis that they take Syndrome into account the needs, interests • • The board certified physicians at Dayton Gastroenterology specialize in • • Bloating / Gas Diarrhea • Irritable Bowel • Lactose Intolerance • Colon Cancer / Polyps • Esophageal Cancer and benefits of the people of this the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of digestive conditions including: • Celiac • Syndrome disease Diverticulitis • Liver disease territory.” • • Constipation • Gallstones • Lactose Intolerance • Lactose• Intolerance • Colon • Esophageal Cancer • Acid Reflux / GERD Cancer / Polyps Esophageal CancerBut to Hagen, such legal • Ulcers • Liver disease • Gallstones • Bloating / Gas • Liver hairsplitting is merely a smoke• Constipation • Gallstones disease • Ulcerative colitis • Hemorrhoids • Celiac disease screen. • Ulcers • Ulcers • Irritable Bowel Syndrome “You can apply any politi• Colon Cancer / Polyps cally expedient definition you • Constipation like,” Hagen said. “But as long • Crohn’s disease as the European Union applies • Diarrhea different standards to issues, • Diverticulitis instead of a uniform standard based on international law, it www.daytongastro.com www.daytongastro.com www.daytongastro.com will not have any credibility when its representatives speak of facilitating peace and solidarSchedule today. 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THE WORLD
At Reform biennial, focus on social justice, tradition Biden and the passage of a By Uriel Heilman, JTA groundbreaking resolution emORLANDO, Fla. — Growbracing transgender rights. ing up in a traditional Jewish Among the steps the movehousehold, Joan Cubell didn’t ment endorsed were transreally know much about Regender cultural training for form Judaism. religious school staff, genderBut after obtaining ordinaneutral restrooms where postion a few years ago from a little-known rabbinical institute sible, and sermons on transgender issues. in suburban New York, Cubell “We can create a 21st-century decided to make her home in Reform Judaism that is incluthe Reform movement. First sive, adaptable and thriving,” she got a job as the leader of said Daryl Messinger of Palo Reform Temple Beth Shira in Alto, California, the new chair Boca Raton, and more recently of the union’s board of trustees she launched her own startand the first woman ever to up congregation in Boca, Beit hold Reform Judaism’s top lay Kulam, Hebrew for House of post. Everyone. For many participants, how“Reform’s the way to go because I believe in pluralism,” ever, the real highlight came not Cubell told JTA in an interview from the well-produced onstage presentations, many of which at the biennial conference of the Union for Reform Judaism, focused on social justice issues, but from the exwhich took place Conference citement of being here Nov. 4-8. “I like what the goers enacted with thousands of other Reform movement has to Jews, connecting offer. They’re more and then old friends, welcoming, and I deconstructed with and choosing think you should different from a rich tapbe welcoming. of sessions You should just be ways to greet estry and religious Jewish and practice the way you entrants to the services. “This is a big, want.” synagogue. liberal Jewish Cubell was conference with among the 5,000 or so participants at the Reform tons of amazing things; it’s conference, which was as much great,” raved one attendee, Lee Epstein, a first-year student at a pep rally and celebration of the Conservative movement’s Reform Judaism as it was a place for Jews to learn, network Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studand strategize about improving ies in Los Angeles who had their congregations and Reform been to two previous Reform biennials. Jewish life. “Just because the conference Highlights included an is based in another denomiaddress by Vice President Joe
Wishing you a very Happy Chanukah.
URJ
in traditional Judaism,” Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, said in his Nov. 5 keynote address, which was devoted largely to bolstering tikun olam, repairing the world, as a gateway to Reform Judaism. “We can and should reinterpret what prayer, kashrut and Shabbat are, how Jewish study and practice can be the underpinning to a life of tikun olam,” Jacobs said. “They can give us the balance and strength to labor daily to do Rabbi Rick Jacobs, Union for Reform justice in our time.” Judaism president, at its biennial Some attendees at the bienconference, Nov. 7 nial wore tzitzit ritual fringes under their shirts, and many nation is not a reason not to come,” Epstein said. “As some- men and women sported yarone studying to become a rabbi mulkes. On the second day of the in America, being here allows conference, the options for the me not only to build relationships with people out there but evening prayer service included an experimental contempoalso to learn. Only good can rary service led by Rabbi Judy come of it.” Schindler, daughter of the Epstein, who is saying the late Reform leader Alexander Kaddish memorial prayer for Schindler; a choir-led Classical his late father, organized an Reform service; and a theatreimpromptu afternoon service style service with song, poetry in a hallway at the biennial, and a dramatic reading by drawing some curious onlookers. While such a service might actors from the 1997 bestseller Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch have been unthinkable at a Reform conference a generation Albom. As is common in the Reform movement, music was a ago, these days many Reform Jews are embracing elements of centerpiece of all three services. While a few moments genertradition. ated headlines – the transgen“Today, we Reform Jews are no longer allergic to everything der resolution, the applause for
Biden when he criticized Israeli settlements, Jacobs’ call on Diaspora Jews not to support the “misguided policies” of Israeli leaders, philanthropist Charles Bronfman’s call for Reform to outdo Chabad when it comes to organizing Birthright Israel trips — much of the conference was devoted to the four subject areas prioritized by URJ organizers: strengthening congregations, “audacious hospitality,” tikun olam, and Jewish study. At one of many sessions devoted to audacious hospitality — a Jacobs term that he has made a centerpiece of his presidency — conference goers enacted and then deconstructed different ways to greet entrants to the synagogue. Among the takeaways from the session, which was led by a professional actress and Jewish educator, Cantor Rebecca Joy Fletcher: Don’t make “in” jokes during synagogue announcements, devise ways to steer clear of being cliquey at Shabbat oneg events, ask newcomers if they would like to be seated with someone, and don’t overdo it if a newcomer wants to be left alone. “Think about the principles of how Abraham welcomed his guests,” Fletcher said. “The first think Abraham does is look, see and discern. If you ask them a question, wait for their answer.”
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THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
PAGE 17
Syrian refugees Continued from Page 10 Rabbi Steve Gutow, a Reconstructionist who is the outgoing president of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, said sympathy for the refugee was written into the Jewish cultural genetic code. “We’ve been facing the need to have refuge since we left Egypt,” he said. “To think about not speaking out flies in the face of who we are.” There is not 100 percent agreement: The president of the Zionist Organization of America, Morton Klein, for one, spoke against allowing in the refugees at his group’s annual dinner in New York on Nov. 22. Still, the overwhelming consensus lines up the Jewish organizational world against the Republican Party. A GOP-backed bill that would pause the refugee program has passed overwhelmingly in the U.S. House of Representatives and virtually every Republican governor has said they do not want to allow in the refugees. At the same time, almost all of the Republican presidential candidates want it paused, if not reversed. There appears to be popular opposition to the resettlement as well. An ABC/Washington Post poll showed 54 percent of Americans oppose accepting refugees, while 43 percent support it. The margin of error was 3.5 percentage points. Being on the losing side of a political debate is nothing new for organizational American Jewry, said the ADL’s CEO, Jonathan Greenblatt, noting that the ADL in 1958 solicited a book from a “young senator from Massachusetts” — John F. Kennedy — to counter rising anti-immigrant sentiment. The future president wrote and published A Nation of Immigrants. “’We were once strangers’ is core to our identity,” Greenblatt said. There are signs that support for the refugees may not always be a partisan one. The U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, which has a rigorously bipartisan board, has weighed in backing the program. And Michael Chertoff, President George W. Bush’s secretary of Homeland Security, who is Jewish and otherwise has been sharply critical of the Obama administration, joined his Democratic successor, Janet Napolitano, in urging Obama to safeguard the resettlement program, describing the current screening program as “robust.” Jen Smyers, the director of advocacy for Church World Service, one of several groups involved in refugee advocacy and resettlement, said she expected more Republican backing for the refugees once grassroots activists contacted their representatives during the Thanksgiving break. “This is a powerful week to be in touch,” she said, referring to the holiday commemorating refuge. Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told JTA that the key to winning over conservatives and Republicans was to take their concerns seriously, which he said the Obama administration had failed to do. Gartenstein-Ross said President Barack Obama was wrong-footed, for instance, in deriding GOP presidential candidates as “scared of widows and orphans.” “Part of being president is you don’t debate against the lowest common denominator on the other side,” he said.
So, what do you think? Send your letters (350 words max., thanks) to The Dayton Jewish Observer 525 Versailles Drive, Dayton, OH 45459 MWeiss@jfgd.net PAGE 18
OPINION
#WeAreNext
like Jews do shiva. We just excel at it. The banlieues of Paris are festering sores of isolated Muslim youths who feel, justly, as French officials readily admit, that they don’t belong in France. But America at its best and most commonplace accepts all comers and enables them to become proud hyphenates. That’s why the elevator in my Koreatown office building is filled with Ethiopians, Koreans, Sri Lankans, El Salvadorans — Muslim, Jewish, Christian — it makes the United Nations look homogenous. America has a race problem, but it never has an immigration problem — until some people try to foment one. And keep in mind, the facts do not support their arguments. Seth Jones, director of the International Security and Defense Policy Center at the RAND Corporation, testified to Congress in June 2015 that the terrorist threat from refugees is low. “Almost none of the major terrorist plots since 9/11 have involved refugees. Even in those cases where refugees were arrested on terrorism-related charges, years and even decades often transpired between their entry into the United States and their involvement in terrorism. In most instances, a would-be terrorist’s refugee status had little or nothing to do with their radicalization and shift to terrorism.” “If a potential terrorist is determined to enter America to do harm,” an Oct. 18 article in the Economist says, “there are easier and faster ways to get there than by going through the complex refugee resettlement process. Of the almost 750,000 refugees who have been admitted to America since 9/11, only two Iraqis have arrested on terrorist charges; they had not planned an attack in America, but aided alQaeda at home.” The threat to America’s well being from 10,000 Syrian refugees pales in comparison to the threat of turning into a hateful, closeddoor society where any of our families could be the next ones kept out, and any of us could be the next ones forced to register. That fear is why the Anti-Defamation League, AJC and 10 other Jewish organizations have joined with 81 other groups in sending a letter to Congress members urging them not to roll back plans to accept Syrian refugees into the United States “It would send a demoralizing and dangerous message to the world that the United States makes judgments about people based on the country they come from and their religion,” the letter states. This is one appropriate response to the surge in one of America’s ugliest and most forgetful impulses. Another is to join with groups like the Jewish Coalition for Disaster Relief and the Democracy Council, which is holding a fundraiser in December here in Los Angeles to help bring teachers and other services to the Syrian refugees. On the list of supporters for the fundraiser are Christians, Jews, and Muslims. But what else would you expect? That’s America.
By Rob Eshman The campaign to keep Syrian refugees out of the United States represents a complete lack of faith — not just in Syrian refugees, and not just in the department of Homeland Security, but in America itself. I would like to be able to say such a campaign is unAmerican, but there has always been a fearful, xenophobic strain infecting the U.S. body politic. The anti-Chinese movement of the 19th century, the calls to keep Jewish refugees out on the eve of the Holocaust, the internment of Japanese Americans, and now the move to block people suffering from the horrors of Bashar Assad and radical Islam in Syria. The leading cheerleader of this thinking is Donald Trump, grandson of immigrants, and he brought it to a new low in calling for a registry of Muslim Americans. “Singling out any ethnic or faith group to register with the government is morally repugnant, not to mention unconstitutional,” American Jewish Committee (AJC) Executive Director David Harris said in a statement. “What Mr. Trump proposes, in this case targeting all Muslims, is a horror movie that we Jews are quite familiar with.” In response to the latest round of xenophobia, non-Muslims have adopted the Twitter hashtag #IamMuslim. And why not? Once it becomes acceptable to single out people based on their ethnicity or religion, all of us are vulnerable, Jews more than others. Perhaps a more accurate protest would be #IAmNext. America was founded by, and to a great degree for, immigrants. Without immigrants, our great country would be just above average, an oversized Scotland. No offense to Scotland. The fact that both these insights are cliché just makes them easier to ignore and take for granted. Immigration is an economic and cultural driver. Europe didn’t fling its doors open to Muslims solely out of the goodness of its heart. Old Europe needs young blood. Otherwise it can never compete with countries like, say, America. It is no coincidence that the governors of the states thriving the least economically are the most steadfast against admitting the Syrian refugees. States that welcome immigrants, like California, do better. “I intend to work closely with the president so that he can both uphold America’s traditional role as a place of asylum, but also ensure that anyone seeking refuge in America is fully vetted in a sophisticated and utterly reliable way,” California’s Gov. Jerry Brown said. “You can be sure that we will do everything in our power to protect the people of our state.” I get that the Republican and Democratic representatives who voted to support a bill putting a hold on the processing of 10,000 Syrian refugees don’t understand the nature of civil war, Islamic extremism or Islam. But more disturbing is that they don’t seem to understand America. America does immigration so well, because America Rob Eshman is editor-in-chief of The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles. does assimilation so well. America does integration
America has a race problem, but it never has an immigration problem — until some people try to foment one.
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THE WORLD
Amid identity crisis, Conservative Jews pay for rebranding Pull up a chair and don’t forget your napkin! Join us for some good eats:
COMFORT FOODS
FRIED CHICKEN at Share Shabbat at 6:00pm on Friday, Dec. 4
SWEET & SPICY CHILI at the Chili Cookoff after 6:00pm services on Friday, Dec. 11
LAST CHANCE LATKES at the Kiddush Lunch after 10:30am services on Saturday, Dec. 19
RSVP to the Temple Israel office for your seat at the table. Temple Israel • www.tidayton.org • 937.496.0050 130 Riverside Drive, Dayton, OH 45405 A Reform Synagogue open to all who are interested in Judaism. Childcare provided during Friday services and Sunday school. PAGE 20
married Jews. By Uriel Heilman, JTA “We’re in an awkward situation where SCHAUMBURG, Ill. — Conservative the sociology is pushing us in one direcJudaism is at a crossroads. The movetion, but our organizational structure is ment’s constituents increasingly are hindering us moving in the direction we leading lives at odds with the core valneed to be moving,” said Rabbi Charles ues and rules of Conservative Judaism, Simon, executive director of the Fedespecially when it comes to intermarriage. The number of Conservative Jews eration of Jewish Men’s Clubs and an outspoken Conservative proponent of has shrunk by one-third over the last embracing interfaith families. 25 years. And even some of the moveThere was perhaps no better illustrament’s brightest success stories, like the leaders of thriving independent egalitar- tion at the conference of the movement’s identity crisis than at its penultimate ian minyans, eschew formal association with the movement. USCJ session. Led by Rabbi David Wolpe of In this movement Sinai Temple in Los committed to Jewish Angeles, some 200 to tradition but seeing 300 participants tried its young people to brainstorm a new walk out the door — tagline for the moveto Reform Judaism ment — something more than anywhere that could convey its else — commuessence, appeal to nity leaders have young Jews and fit on struggled to figure a bumper sticker. out how to appeal to “Tradition and a new generation of change is actually Jews without abannot a slogan; it is a doning their core paradox,” Wolpe said. values or becoming “It says: We stand for a near-facsimile of two exactly opposite Reform. Rabbi Steven Wernick, CEO of the things. We are the “Tradition and United Synagogue of Conservative oxymoronic movechange has long been Judaism, at its conference, Nov. 15 ment.” considered a tagWolpe said he also dislikes the moveline of Conservative Judaism, a concise ment’s name, not least because of its statement of what we are about,” said unwanted association with a political Margo Gold, international president of ideology. the United Synagogue of Conservative “I don’t know of anyone who thinks Judaism, the movement’s congregational Conservative Judaism is a great name,” arm. “But in the 21st century, the vision said Wolpe, who 15 years ago led an of Conservative Judaism requires that unsuccessful proposal to rebrand it Covwe rethink this as a community and see enantal Judaism. “As long as Conservawhat we really want our core message tive Judaism is in the tagline, we start off to be.” with a deficit.” Gold’s remarks came at the United Among the audience’s suggestions for Synagogue’s biennial conference, in a new tagline: mid-November in the Chicago suburb “Our grandparents would be proud. of Schaumburg. As part of the effort to reposition Conservative Judaism, United Our grandchildren will be Jewish.” “The Judaism of dynamic relationSynagogue has launched a $350,000 ships.” rebranding effort and hired a branding “Honoring our past, embracing the firm, Good Omen. future.” “We’ve bought into the narrative of “Traditional Judaism, comfortable in decline of our own movement,” United modernity.” Synagogue’s CEO, Rabbi Steven Wer“Where heritage meets what’s hapnick, said in his address. “We need pening.” to stop shraying our kups (Yiddish for The 2013 Pew Research Center survey screaming our heads off) about everyof U.S. Jews showed that the number of thing that is bad and get to work.” Conservative Jews aged 55-64 who say The focal point for the dilemma over they are synagogue members is almost how much to stick to tradition versus how much to change has been intermar- triple the number among those aged 3544, and that only 13 percent of Conserriage. Though the movement forbids it and does not count as Jews those whose vative Jews attend religious services at least once a week. fathers are the sole Jewish parent, four United Synagogue has seen the numout of every 10 Conservative Jews is ber of its member synagogues fall to 580 marrying out of the faith, and commutoday from 630 in 2013 and 675 in 2009. nity leaders want to reach out to interTHE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
JCRC Update Jewish Federation of GREATER DAYTON
Boonshoft CJCE will be closed the following dates: »»December 25 »»January 1
SAVE THE DATE Sunday, May 15, 2016 › Presidents Dinner
Back in September, Cathy Gardner (flatteringly) asked me to volunteer as the JCRC chair. I said yes shortly before disappearing into the American West on a 5-week driving trip with my parents. My apologies for the delay in getting started. The trip was wonderful, but I’m happy to be back and ready to get busy with all of you on JCRC planning and activities. One thing Cathy and I have discussed is forming a JCRC Speakers’ Bureau. This would be panel of volunteers with specific areas of expertise who could speak to groups both inside and outside the Jewish community. These speakers
would function as local ambassadors, presenting their knowledge in an informative, accessible way.
As we move forward with the formation of the JCRC Speakers’ Bureau we want to know: Could a group you know about use a speaker to explain the Jewish holidays? to talk about the history of Jews in Dayton? to demonstrate Israeli cooking? Do you have other ideas for topics? Would you or someone you know want to audition as a possible speaker? Do you have a speaker recommendation? We value your feedback on this important initiative – please email Cathy Gardner at cgardner@ jfgd.net with any of your suggestions. In addition to the Speakers’ Bureau, your JCRC will keep you informed via our email updates on significant issues that arise locally, in Israel and around the world. Your JCRC will continue to be a presence in the community by continuing our work with Partnership2Gether, sponsoring important
Calling all parents of kids ages 9-11! It’s official! PJ Our Way is here in Dayton! We are very proud to
RSVPs are due at least 1 week before event. Events with no price listed are free. PLEASE CONTACT KAREN STEIGER REGARDING ALL EVENTS UNLESS NOTED: 610-1555, ksteiger@jfgd.net
announce that our Jewish community has been chosen as a PJ Our Way pilot city. The PJ Our Way pilot program is the next chapter of the highly successful Jewish outreach program, PJ Library. Sign your kids up at www.pjourway. org. Each month, kids get to choose their FREE book from a selection of 4 high-quality titles. To make the choice easier, every title offered comes with a synopsis and author bios, ratings and reviews, and video trailers. Kids can also take polls and quizzes, participate in monthly interviews and challenges, and comment on blog posts. The best part of all of this is that PJ Our Way has created this program so that our older kids (ages 9-11) can make their own reading choices and feel empowered by doing so.
programs like Yom Hashaoh and producing informational materials like the Five Year Calendar of Jewish Holidays. I am excited for what lies ahead and look forward to working with you all.
MARTHA MOODY JACOBS JCRC CHAIR
GUESS WHO’S COMING TO DINNER?
Save the date for our 2016 Presidents Dinner, May 15, and watch this page for an announcement about our Presidents Dinner keynote speaker in January!
INNOVATION GRANTS Applications for Innovation Grants will be available beginning January 2, 2016. Grants are considered for programs that meeting one of the following core priority areas: 1. Programs designed to reach out to and engage young adults and families within the greater Dayton Jewish community. 2. Programs or events designed to bring the entire Jewish community together. 3. Programs and projects that are collaborative efforts between multiple organizations and/or individuals.
As we beam about being chosen as a PJ Our Way pilot city, we’d also like to announce that our own Judah Schwartz, age 9, was selected by the Harold Grinspoon Foundation (HGF) in partnership with the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton, to join the National PJ Our Way Design Team. Judah is the son of Pam and Andy Schwartz, grandson of Mrs. Lois Gross, Dr. Allan Spetter, both of Dayton, and Mr. Theodore Schwartz of Cincinnati. Judah is a 4th grade student at Hillel Academy of Greater Dayton. Judah and nine other team members from across America have early access to books, and create content including videos and reviews. The team works together to interview authors, participate in workshops and lead the
In addition, programs should aim to enhance life in the greater Dayton Jewish community. Dayton area Jewish non-profit organizations or individuals whose program will be sponsored by a Jewish non-profit organization are welcome to apply. Completed applications are due March 25, 2016. Awards will be announced in May 2016.
If you have any questions, or would like to request an application, please contact Jodi Phares at 610-5513 or jphares@jfgd.net
conversation amongst their peers. Our Dayton kids can see what Judah has to say about book choices. “We are thrilled to have Judah on board” says Design Team Director, Saskia Swenson Moss. “Design Team members are great role models for tweens who want to connect to Judaism in fun and engaging ways.” “I’m excited to get started on the PJ Our Way National Design Team so I can get other kids pumped up about reading and Jewish stuff,” says Judah Schwartz. The PJ Our Way program is supported by the Harold Grinspoon Foundation based in Agawam, MA. Sign up at www.pjourway.org or for more information call Caryl Segalewitz at 937-401-1558.
JEWISH FEDERATION of GREATER DAYTON AGENCY NEWSLETTER | NOVEMBER 2015
Jewish Community Center of GREATER DAYTON Wednesday, December 9 › Community Fire Show 6–7:30PM @ Boonshoft CJCE Join us for a night of Chanukah family fun, dinner, candle lighting, activities, and a unique fire spinning show. 13 and up: $6, 4–12 yrs: $3, under 4: free. Tuesday, December 15 › Basics of Stretching 5–6PM @ Boonshoft CJCE Learn how to stretch properly with instructor Ehud Borovoy as he shows proper form, length of stretching, and targeted stretches for specific muscles. SAVE THE DATE Saturday, February 27 › A Night In Vegas 7PM–11PM @ Boonshoft CJCE JCC Annual Fundraiser.
The Mishpacha class leads over 200 people in kiddush at Early Childhood’s annual Share Shabbat event on November 13. PHOTO CREDIT: EMILY SNYDER
Wellness Classes for the New Year: It’s Time to Take Care of YOU!
NEW IN JANUARY: PILATES Pilates is a mind and body fitness regime combining flexibility and strength to work the entire body using mats. There are many exercises beneficial for rehabilitation, injury prevention, postural alignment, and overall fitness. While focusing on core stability and efficiency of movement, the programs are created to meet the needs and abilities of each individual by encouraging body awareness. Cost: $96 for 8 week session, January 10–February 28 (in case of inclement weather, we will make up sessions) Sundays 10:30AM11:30AM at the CJCE. Bring 2 mats. Instructor Natalie Peppel. Minimum of 10 students. Natalie Malay-Peppel is a Gyrotonic® Pre-Trainer and Gyrokinesis Trainer, Stott pilates trainer, and owner of TRILOGY Movement Studio, established in 2004. In her many years of teaching, Natalie has gained extensive experience and knowledge working with diverse populations and issues; including dancers and athletes of all disciplines, prenatal and postpartum, shoulder, neck, back, and knee issues, chronic pain, fibromyalgia, older populations, scoliosis, MS, Parkinson’s, Ehler’s Danlos, and general fitness. Natalie has worked extensively with Dr. Kurt Jackson, PT & Neurology Coordinator of the University of Dayton’s Doctor of Physical Therapy program on ALIVE AND KICKING: A study on balance and fall prevention for people with MS. Natalie has three children; two in college and one at Oakwood High School. In her spare time, she volunteers as a Pilates instructor for UDLLI and is involved with the local support group for Ehler’s Danlos Syndrome.
RSVPs are due at least 1 week before event. Events with no price listed are free. PLEASE CONTACT KAREN STEIGER REGARDING ALL EVENTS UNLESS NOTED: 610-1555, ksteiger@jfgd.net
Stretching Classes! December 15 @ 5-6PM Basics of Stretching class will help you learn how to stretch correctly. The class will go over proper form, length of stretching, and specific stretching for specific muscles. Cost: $5 per person. Instructor Ehud Borovoy. Minimum 5 students.
JEWISH FEDERATION of GREATER DAYTON AGENCY NEWSLETTER | NOVEMBER 2015
Insanity, Tai Chi & Yoga Continue INSANITY is a cardio-based, total body conditioning program. This intense workout can be modified to fit your needs. January 11–April 14, every Monday and Wednesday, 5–6PM at the CJCE. Instructor Lauren Baumgarten. Minimum 4 students. TAI CHI is meditation in motion and it is known to reduce stress and promote serenity through gentle movement. January 10–April 14 Thursdays 4–5PM. Instructor Debra Stewart. Minimum 5 students. YOGA is a total body workout combining strengthening and stretching poses with deep breathing and relaxation or mediation. January 10–April 14 Thursdays 5–6PM. Instructor Debra Stewart. Minimum 5 students. Debra is an Adjunct Instructor for Sinclair Community College, Hondros College of Nursing, and Ashford University Forbes School of Business. She is an Advisory Board member for the Mental Health Technology Program at Sinclair College and is a certified Vital Life Community Consultant through Vital Nation. In addition, Debra is a Tai Kwon Do and Weapons instructor at Chung’s Academy, holding her 5th degree Black Belt. Debra owns her own business, Picture Yourself Stronger, which provides fitness services for churches and community centers, as well as elderly and home-bound populations. Debra is a certified fitness instructor through ACE, SFA, and Alliance Yoga. Debra earned an Associates of Fine Arts Degree from Sinclair, and a Bachelor of Science Degree from Charter Oak State College, graduating with honors. She has Masters degrees in Business Administration and Teaching & Learning with Technology from Ashford University, with honors. Debra is currently a candidate for a Doctorate in Psychology at the University of the Rockies.
Say Farewell to HELEN HALCOMB Helen Halcomb worked her last day for JFS on Tuesday, November 24, 2015. While Helen worked for JFS in the past (mid- to late- 90s) in a different capacity, most recently she was a driver for just over three and a half years. In her time with JFS, she enjoyed working with the seniors. Helen will be missed. We wish her well in her future endeavors and look forward to seeing her around town and at community events.
Feeding the Hungry: Please Continue to Fill the Barrels! Jewish Family Services of Greater Dayton and the Jewish community support feeding the hungry. We have to! On Thursday, November 5, 2015, Ambassador Tony P. Hall, the Executive Director of The Alliance to End Hunger, addressed those in attendance at the Montgomery County Food Summit. Ambassador Hall, those from the Dayton Foodbank, and other presenters that day shared some harrowing statistics about hunger in Montgomery County. › Dayton is the fourth hungriest city in the United States. › While there are twelve foodbanks in Ohio, the Dayton Foodbank is the smallest but Dayton remains the sixth neediest community. › The Foodbank provides emergency food for an estimated 70,000 different people annually. › 40% of the members of households served by The
National Influenza Vaccination Week
Jewish Family Services Jewish Foundation ofof GREATER DAYTON GREATER DAYTON
(NIVW): December 6 – 12, 2015
Per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Foodbank are children under NIVW was established to highlight the importance of continuing influenza vaccination. The influenza vaccination 18 years old. is particularly important for protecting those at high risk for serious flu complications, including: young children; These are only a small pregnant women; adults 65 years and older; and, anyone handful of statistics. The with chronic health conditions like asthma, diabetes, and statistics about hunger, heart disease. Please talk to your doctor to determine children, and the working whether or not you should be vaccinated! poor could fill this page. For more statistics about hunger A CHANUKAH PROJECT and Montgomery County, The Jewish Community Supports Babies please visit the Dayton and Families at Dayton Children’s NICU Foodbank’s website at but since newborns can only Please help JFS and the http://thefoodbankdayton. see black and white contrast, Jewish community support org/learn/hungeranything that is black and the babies and their families studylocal-stats/ white would be wonderful!) in Dayton Children’s NeoThe Boonshoft CJCE, › Cute receiving blankets natal Intensive Care Unit Beth Abraham Synagogue, › Toiletries for the parents (NICU). In December and Beth Jacob Congregation, (shampoo, conditioner, soap, January, there will be hamChabad, Temple Beth Or, pers at Beth Abraham Syna- lotion, deodorant, toothand Temple Israel all have gogue, Beth Jacob Congrega- brushes, toothpaste) food barrels to be filled. Please continue to donate › Cute notebooks, journals tion, Chabad, Temple Beth non-perishable food items Or, Temple Israel and at the and pens (so parents can take that have not expired. When Boonshoft CJCE. We will be notes or journal) the barrels are full, the › Children’s books collecting those items that Dayton Foodbank will collect are needed for the babies the barrel contents – yearIn late January, there will and for their parents’ care; round. we are including the parents be an afternoon where all are By continuing to fill our as the parents often go from invited to come to the CJCE barrels, you are continuing the hardships of childbirth to and create gift bags. Children to support the hungry in the coping with their baby being who attend can decorate Jewish community and the bags and create cards while in the hospital. The NICU Greater Dayton community requests the following items: adults fill the bags with the at large! donations. More information › Newborn hats to come! › Rattles (color ones work,
On November 12, 2015, the Active Adults enjoyed great company and a
Tuesday December 1 › L’Chaim 2015: The Arts Come Alive in Dayton 1:30–4:30PM @ Boonshoft CJCE In partnership with the CABF 1:30PM – 3:15PM Exhibitors: Local Arts Organizations 3:30PM – 4:30PM Speaker, Eddie Shapiro Thursday, December 10 › Chanukah Party & Brunch 10:30AM @ Temple Israel (130 Riverside Drive, 45405) In partnership with the Yiddish Club, Jewish War Veterans, and Hadassah
› Did you know that the Jewish Federation is a donation site for Clothes that Work? You can drop off new and gently-worn men and women’s clothing and accessories at the Boonshoft CJCE. › Need Assistance Finding a Food Pantry Near You? Call the United Way Information & Referral Line, 225-3000 or Dial 2-1-1. › Are you caring for a loved one who is not in the Greater Dayton area? Visit http://www.ajfca.org/ senior-resource-connect/ to find supports and services provided by Jewish agencies nationwide.
delicious lunch at Ray’s Wine Spirits Grill. PHOTO CREDIT: TARA FEINER
PLEASE CONTACT KAREN STEIGER REGARDING ALL ACTIVE ADULT EVENTS: 610-1555
JEWISH FEDERATION of GREATER DAYTON AGENCY NEWSLETTER | NOVEMBER 2015
Scholarships On December 7, 2015, applications will be available for the following scholarships: RESIDENTIAL CAMP SCHOLARSHIP: Funds are available for local youths planning to participate in a
Jewish Foundation of GREATER DAYTON
Jewish residential camp program during the summer of 2016. This scholarship is made possible through the Joan and Peter Wells Family, Children and Youth Fund and by a generous donation from Carole and Bernie Rabinowitz.
Do you want to make end-of-year donations to your favorite 501c3
TRAVEL TO ISRAEL SCHOLARSHIP: Dayton area Jewish teens and young adults, ages 14-21, are invited to apply for the Wolfe Marcus Trust Youth Travel to Israel Scholarship. Applicants must demonstrate financial need and plan to travel to Israel during the summer of 2016.
organizations,
COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIP: Since its creation in 2006, the Vicky & Robert Heuman Scholarship has been
but can’t seem to
awarded annually to an undergraduate or graduate student who demonstrates both academic achievement and
find the time? Use your Philanthropic Fund! Send an
financial need. The scholarship is open to Jewish Dayton area residents.
If you have any questions, or would like to request an application, please contact Alisa Thomas at athomas@jfgd.net or 610-1796. Completed applications and
email request to
supporting documentation must be received by March 4, 2016. Awards will be
Alisa Thomas at
announced on April 8, 2016.
athomas@jfgd.net, and we will take care of the rest. Processing takes approximately 5 business days. Questions? Call Alisa at 610-1796 to inquire about how to set up a Philanthropic Fund.
Legacies, Tributes, & Memorials FEDERATION
UNITED JEWISH CAMPAIGN IN HONOR OF › Retirement of Hyla Weiskind Dr. Erika and Dr. Felix Garfunkel IN MEMORY OF › Deborah Klass › Janice Garfunkel Dr. Erika and Dr. Felix Garfunkel HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL FUND IN HONOR OF › Speedy recovery of Dr. Ron Gilbert › Dr. Heath Gilbert receiving the Warren G. and Ruth P. Morris Optometrist of the Year Award Helene Gordon IN MEMORY OF › Shari Krauss Helen Halcomb › Brian Appel Elaine and Joe Bettman JFGD ARCHIVES & SPECIAL COLLECTIONS FUND (In Memory of Debra L. Schwartz) IN HONOR OF › Wedding of Arielle and Joshua Handel Pam and Andy Schwartz
IN MEMORY OF › Marcia Jaffe › Leonard Spialter Pam and Andy Schwartz JCC
EARLY CHILDHOOD IN MEMORY OF › Deborah Klass Karen L. Paradise FAMILY SERVICES
ACTIVE ADULTS IN MEMORY OF › Larry Briskin › Sylvia Linsker Shirlee and Dr. Ron Gilbert › Sylvia Linsker Melissa Codespoti and Family Dorothy Engelhardt Clara and David Hochstein JEWISH FAMILY SERVICES IN HONOR OF › Speedy recovery of Allen Seymour › Marriage of Larry Glickler and Charles Quinn Elaine and Dr. Melvin Mayerson
JEWISH FEDERATION of GREATER DAYTON AGENCY NEWSLETTER | NOVEMBER 2015
› Special birthday of Lou Levin › Special birthday of Maxine Rubin › Special anniversary of Jim and Meredith Levinson Susan and Jonas Gruenberg › Wedding of Arielle and Joshua Handel Beverly and Jeffrey Kantor IN MEMORY OF › Debora Horn Beverly and Jeffrey Kantor › Larry Shpiner Susan and Jonas Gruenberg FOUNDATION
JEREMY BETTMAN B’NAI TZEDEK FUND IN MEMORY OF › Dan Schild › Helen Abramovitz Jean and Todd Bettman ADDISON CARUSO B’NAI TZEDEK FUND IN MEMORY OF › Larry Briskin Patty and Michael Caruso & Family
› Mamaloshen A little bit of Yiddish to share with friends, courtesy of the JFS Yiddish Club, in memory of Lynda A. Cohen.
Veykh: \VEYKH\ Adjective Soft, tender. Expression with veykh: › A veykh vort brekht a beyn. A gentle word [can] break a bone. › Er geyt mit im um, vi mit a veykh ey. He walks around with him as with a softboiled egg (i.e. cautiously). › Veykh gebet, ober hart tsu shlofn. Soft (i.e. easy) to go to bed, but hard to sleep (said of someone who has a guilty conscience and therefore can’t sleep).
KVELLING CORNER The Dayton Chapter of the Federal Bar Association will honor U.S. District Court Judge Walter H. Rice for his more than 45 years of service to the judiciary and the Dayton community, with a dinner on Dec. 1 at the Dayton Art Institute. At the dinner, the courtroom portrait of Judge Rice will be unveiled.
Rachel Haug Gilbert Joyce Garver Keller, who retired this year after 25 years as executive director of Ohio Jewish Communities, will receive Israel Bonds’ Israel68 Award at its International Prime Minister’s Club Dinner in Boca Raton on Jan. 31. Russ and Katie Gottesman’s company, CommuterAds, a Dayton-based national transit advertising company, has been selected to work with Michelle Obama’s #BetterMakeRoom campaign. #BetterMakeRoom encourages Generation-Z students to continue their education beyond high school as part of the First Lady’s Reach Higher initiative in support of President Obama’s North Star goal — that by 2020, America will once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world. The movement expects media partners such as CommuterAds to deliver targeted messages that create awareness of the positive impact of continued education in an economy requiring
a well-trained workforce. CommuterAds operates 13 contracts in 11 U.S. cities to deliver targeted, location-based messages inside buses and trains. Elliott Gruber, son of Hindy and Richard Gruber, graduated from The American College with a master of science degree in financial services. He lives in Columbus and works as a sales performance and operations consultant for Nationwide. Rochelle and Mike Goldstein will meet up with members of their Jewish RV group, Shalom Roamers, for its annual Winter Rally, from Dec. 22 to 27 at the Sun-N-Fun RV Resort in Sarasota. Shalom Roamers is a chapter of the Family Motor Coach Association. Rally events will include Shabbat dinner and services, Havdalah, Torah study, a Hebrew class, a tzedakah project, Shalom Roamer Sip ‘N Noshes, and several other recreational activities. Members of Shalom Roamers come from across the United States; their aim is to maintain Judaism in their lives while traveling in their RVs. Avi Gilbert, son of Dr. Heath Gilbert and yours truly, is double cast as Randy Parker in the musical version of A Christmas Story at La Comedia Dinner Theatre in Springboro. The show runs through Dec. 31. Send your Kvelling items to kvellingcorner@gmail.com or to Rachel Haug Gilbert, The Dayton Jewish Observer, 525 Versailles Drive, Centerville, OH 45459.
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NICU Collection Help JFS support babies and their families in Dayton Children’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit during December and January. The NICU requests the following items: » Newborn hats » Rattles » Cute receiving blankets
with Mary Wyke. RSVP to Karen
» Toiletries for the parents
at 610-1555 by December 4.
» Cute notebooks, journals, and pens
Cost: $10 in advance, $15 at the door. Your payment is your reservation.
Hamper locations: Beth Abraham
» Please bring a coloring book and/or crayons for children at area shelters.
» Children’s books
Synagogue, Beth Jacob Congregation, Chabad, Temple Beth Or, Temple Israel and Boonshoft CJCE.
Partnering with Yiddish Club, Jewish War Veterans, and Hadassah.
1306 Troy Street • Dayton 45404 • (937) 223-1213 • furstflorist.com THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
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PAGE 25
CALENDAR OF EVENTS Classes
Temple Beth Or Classes: Wed., Dec. 2, 9, 16, 6-9:30 p.m.: Israeli Folk Dancing w. Janifer Tsou. Wed., Dec. 2, 7 p.m.: Men’s Circle. Sun., Dec. 6 & 20, 10:30 a.m.: Tanakh Study w. Rabbi Chessin. Sun., Dec. 6, 13, 20, 1 p.m.: Adult Hebrew w.
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Rabbi Chessin. Thurs., Dec. 10, 1 p.m.: Socrates Café. 5275 Marshall Rd., Wash. Twp. 435-3400. Temple Israel Classes: Sundays, 9 a.m.: Tanakh Study w. Rabbi Bogosian. Sundays, noon: Exploring Reform Responsa w. Rabbi Bodney-Halasz. Tuesdays, 5 p.m.: Beginner Hebrew w. Judy Heller. Wednesdays, 10 a.m.: Coffee & Commentary, Dorothy Lane Mkt., 6177 Far Hills Ave., Wash. Twp. Wednesdays, noon: Talmud Study w. Rabbi Bogosian. Wednesdays, 5 p.m.: Intermediate Prayerbook Hebrew w. Judy Heller. Saturdays, 9:30 a.m.: Weekly Torah Portion w. Rabbi Bogosian or Rabbi BodneyHalasz. 130 Riverside Dr., Dayton. 496-0050.
Discussions
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Temple Israel Ryterband Brunch Series: Sundays, 9:30 a.m.-noon. $5. Dec. 13: Dr. Mark Verman, Wright State, Innovative Chasidic Biblical Interpretations. Dec. 20: Rabbi Karen Bodney-Halasz, Temple Israel, From My Side of the Bima. 130 Riverside Dr., Dayton. 496-0050.
Children
JCC Winter Camp Shalom: Mon.-Thurs., Dec. 21-24 & 28-31, 8:45 a.m.-3:45 p.m. Before and after sessions (7:30 a.m.-6 p.m.) available. Grades 1-6. Boonshoft CJCE, 525 Versailles Dr., Centerville. Contact Casey Owens, 4011550.
Fitness
JCC Basics of Stretching: Tues., Dec. 15, 5-6 p.m. With Ehud Borovoy. $5. Boonshoft CJCE, 525 Versailles Dr., Centerville. 610-1555.
Seniors
JFS L’Chaim - The Arts Come Alive in Dayton: Tues., Dec. 1. 1:30-3:15 p.m.: Exhibitors. 3:30 p.m.: Author Eddie Shapiro, Nothing Like A Dame: Conversations with the Great Women of Musical Theatre. Free. Boonshoft CJCE, 525 Versailles Dr., Centerville. R.S.V.P. to 610-1555.
JCC Cultural Arts & Book Fest
Author Eddie Shapiro: Nothing Like A Dame: Conversations with the Great Women of Musical Theatre. Tues., Dec. 1, 3:30 p.m. In coordination with JFS. Free. Boonshoft CJCE, 525 Versailles Dr., Centerville. R.S.V.P. to 610-1555. Dan Ephron: Killing A King: The Assassination of Yitzhak Rabin And The Remaking Of Israel. Tues., Dec. 1, 7 p.m. Boonshoft CJCE, 525 Versailles Dr., Centerville. $5 in advance, $8 at door. 610-1555. Novelist Tess Gerritsen: Playing With Fire. Thurs., Dec. 3, 7 p.m. Boonshoft CJCE, 525 Versailles Dr., Centerville. $5 in advance, $8 at door. 6101555. Fri., Dec. 4, 10:30 a.m.: Interview at Centerville Public Library, 111 W. Spring Valley Rd. R.S.V.P. at wclibrary.info.
Community Events
Temple Beth Or Dinner Honoring Rabbi Burstein: Sat., Dec. 12, 6:30 p.m. 5275 Marshall Rd., Wash. Twp. 4353400.
Beth Abraham Synagogue Chinese Dinner & Movie: Thurs., Dec. 24, 5:30 p.m. $10 adults, $6 ages 3-12. 305 Sugar Camp Cir., Oakwood. R.S.V.P. by Dec. 17 to 2939520.
Chanukah
Temple Israel Religious School Chanukah Happening: Sun., Dec. 6, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. 130 Riverside Dr., Dayton. 496-0050.
Chabad Menorah Workshop: Sun., Dec. 6, 3-5 p.m. Home Depot, 345 N. Springboro Pike, Miamisburg. Free. Call Chabad, 643-0770. Chabad Run Around Fun Town: Tues., Dec. 8, 4-7 p.m. 1218 E. Stroop Rd., Kettering. 25 percent off admission, craft, chocolate gelt, cookie decorating, menorah lighting, kosher dinner. R.S.V.P. to 6430770. Community Fire Show: Dinner, menorah lighting, family fun, fire spinning show. Wed., Dec. 9, 6-7:30 p.m. Boonshoft CJCE, 525 Versailles Dr., Centerville. $6 ages 13 and up, $3 ages 4-12, ages 3 and under free. 610-1555. Chanukah Party & Brunch: sponsored by JFS in partnership with JCC Yiddish Club, Jewish War Veterans & Hadassah. Thurs., Dec. 10, 10:30 a.m. At Temple Israel, 130 Riverside Dr., Dayton. $10 in advance, $15 at door. R.S.V.P. to 610-1555. Temple Anshe Emeth Shabbat Service & Chanukah Celebration: Fri., Dec. 11, 7:30 p.m. 320 Caldwell St., Piqua. Call Eileen Litchfield, 937-547-0092. Temple Beth Or Shabbat Service & Chanukah Celebration: Fri., Dec. 11, 7:30 p.m. 5275 Marshall Rd., Wash. Twp. 435-3400. Temple Beth Or Religious School Chanukah Celebration Honoring Rabbi Burstein: Sun., Dec. 13, 9:30 a.m. 5275 Marshall Rd., Wash. Twp. 435-3400. Sinai High Teen Laser Tag: grades 7-12. Sun., Dec. 13, 4:30 p.m. Chabad, 2001 Far Hills Ave., Oakwood. 643-0770. Chabad Glow in the Dark Chanukah Party & Dinner: Sun., Dec. 13, 5-7 p.m. 2001 Far Hills Ave., Oakwood. 6430770.
937-259-9866 Mon-Thu: 10:30 am-10 pm Fri-Sat: 10:30 am-10:30 pm Sun: 11:30 a.m-10 pm PAGE 26
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Patronize our advertisers. Tell them you saw it in The Observer. THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
RELIGION
CONGREGATIONS
Rock of Ages: our survival in song By Cantor Jenna Greenberg We have been on a hiatus from Jewish holidays, and now we prepare to celebrate Chanukah, our Festival of Lights. We commemorate the rededication of the Holy Temple, as well as the two famous miracles of the story: the victory over the Syrian-Greeks, and the oil that lasted for eight days. When I think of this holiday, I hear the sounds of a wide variety of Chanukah songs and prayers that we sing during these eight days. But the iconic song of this festival is unquestionably Maoz Tzur, Rock of Ages. Its melody is familiar
rescues of Jews throughout history, I can’t help but recall the famous comical summary of these occasions: “They tried to kill us, we won, let’s eat!” As we take a walk through the batim, the stanzas of Maoz Tzur, you will see how true this sentiment is. While this translation is not so singable, it most accurately represents the original Hebrew.
Perspectives to many, and is considered to be the most famous tune of the holiday. But music aside, the text is a fascinating poetic rendering of the plights of the Jewish people. Maoz Tzur is a 13th-century piyyut, a medieval poem, about the historic rescues of the Jews, from early biblical times, up through the post-biblical story of Judah the Maccabee. Traditionally, it is sung by Ashkenazim, Jews of central or eastern European descent, immediately following the lighting of the candles on each night of Chanukah. Maoz Tzur was written by a paiytan, a medieval poet, named Mordechai. We know this because many European medieval poets would sign their name vertically, as an acrostic. In the case of Maoz Tzur, he signed his name with the first letter of each verse for the first five stanzas, four of which explicitly refer to different rescues through Israel’s history. Thinking about the various
#1. My refuge, my rock of salvation! It is pleasant to sing your praises. Let our house of prayer be restored. And there we will offer You our thanks. When You will have slaughtered the barking foe. Then we will celebrate with song and psalm the altar’s dedication. We can see from this first verse that, other than the last line, this opening stanza could refer to any of the rescues soon to follow. The final line refers to the very title of our holiday, as the word Chanukah means rededication. Mordechai, the author, is setting the mood for the rest of the poem. #2. My soul was sated with misery, My strength was spent with grief. They embittered my life with hardship, when enslaved under the rule of Egypt. But God with his mighty power brought out His treasured people; While Pharaoh’s host and followers sank like a stone into the deep. This second stanza recalls our Exodus from Egypt, one of the oldest and most famous stories in our Jewish experience, dated around 1200 B.C.E. We recall this story not only on the
Festival of Passover, but this theme is also included every Friday night when we say the words of Kiddush, the blessing over the wine, sanctifying the Sabbath. We remember this story weekly, as it is the first biblical rescue in our people’s history.
#5. The Greeks gathered against me, in days of the Hasmoneans. They broke down the #3. He brought me walls of my towers, to His holy abode; and defiled all the oils. even there, I found But from the last no rest. remaining flask a The oppressor came miracle was wrought Cantor Jenna Greenberg for the Jews. and exiled me, because I served Therefore the sages of strange gods, the day ordained these eight for and drank poisonous wine. Yet songs of praise. scarcely had I gone into exile, When Babylon fell and Zerubbabel Here we are, the rescue from took charge; within 70 years I Antiochus in 164 B.C.E., comwas saved. memorating the very holiday on which we sing this song. The rescue from Babylonia, Our Chanukah story, starring 539 B.C.E., was the next occurJudah the Maccabee, is the rence of returning to our holy fourth of the rescues that has a land after the Exodus from whole stanza dedicated to its Egypt. This exile was predicted holiday. Whereas the first three by the prophet Jeremiah in come from the Tanakh, the Chapter 25:12-13, from Nevi’im, Chanukah story comes from the Prophets, the second of the a post-biblical text, Megillat three sections of our Tanakh, Antiochus, which is alluded to the Jewish Bible: Torah, in the first and second books of Nevi’im, Ketuvim (Writings). Maccabees. #4. The Agagite, son of Hammedatha, plotted to cut down the lofty fir; But it proved a snare to him, and his insolence was silenced. You raised the head of the Benjamite, but the enemy’s name You blotted out. His numerous sons and his household You hanged upon the gallows.
#6. O bare Your holy arm and hasten the time of salvation. Wreak vengeance upon the wicked nation, on behalf of your faithful servants. For deliverance has too long been delayed; and the evil days are endless. O thrust the enemy into the shadows of death, and set up for us the seven shepherds.
From the third section of our Tanakh, Ketuvim, we find Megillat Esther. We recall the famous story of our Purim
This final verse alludes to other rescues throughout our history, the Crusades in particular, as well as to the seven shepherds, referred to in Micah 5:4, who will defeat the enemies of Israel. What can we learn from Maoz Tzur? Perhaps we should focus our energy and strength on combating the evils in this world. May the words of Maoz Tzur inspire each of us to do our part in diminishing our enemies and strengthening the Jewish communities throughout the world. Chag Urim Sameach, Happy Festival of Lights!
December • Kislev/Tevet Shabbat Candle Lightings December 4 4:54 p.m.
Torah Portions December 5/23 Kislev Vayeshev (Gen. 37:1-40:23)
December 11 4:54 p.m.
December 12/30 Kislev Miketz (Gen. 41:1-44:17; Num. 7:42-47)
December 18 4:56 p.m.
December 19/7 Tevet Vayigash (Gen. 44:18-47:27)
December 25 5 p.m.
December 26/14 Tevet Vayechi (Gen. 47:28-50:26)
holiday, in which Queen Esther, with the help of her uncle/ cousin Mordechai, saved the Persian Jews from Haman, a story dated to the 5th century B.C.E.
Chanukah
Festival of Lights
Dec. 7-14/25 Kislev-2 Tevet Eight-day holiday commemorating Jewish victory over the Syrians and the miracle of the rededication of the Temple. One day’s oil for the Temple’s light lasted eight days. A chanukiah (menorah) is lit for eight nights, and latkes (potato pancakes) are fried in oil to commemorate the story. Children play with dreidels and gifts are exchanged.
Cantor Jenna Greenberg teaches Judaics at Hillel Academy of Greater Dayton.
THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
Beth Abraham Synagogue Conservative Rabbi Joshua Ginsberg Cantor/Dir. of Ed. & Programming Andrea Raizen Monday through Friday 6:50 a.m. & 5:30 p.m. Fri., 5:30 p.m. Sat. 9 a.m. Sundays at 8:30 a.m. 305 Sugar Camp Circle, Oakwood. 293-9520. BethAbrahamDayton.org Beth Jacob Congregation Traditional Saturdays 9:30 a.m., Sundays 8 a.m., Sunday through Friday, 7 p.m. 7020 N. Main St., Dayton. 274-2149. BethJacobCong.org Temple Anshe Emeth Reform Fri., Dec. 11, 7:30 p.m. Rabbinic Intern Tina Sobo. 320 Caldwell St., Piqua. Call Eileen Litchfield, 937-5470092, elitchfield@woh.rr.com. Correspondence address: 3808 Beanblossom Rd., Greenville, OH 45331. ansheemeth.org Temple Beth Or Reform Rabbi Judy Chessin Asst. Rabbi David Burstein Educator/Rabbi Ari Ballaban Fridays 7:30 p.m. Kabalat Shabbat 4th Friday, 6 p.m. followed by potluck. Saturdays 10 a.m. 5275 Marshall Rd., Wash. Twp. 435-3400. templebethor.com Temple Beth Sholom Reform Rabbi Haviva Horvitz See Web site for schedule. 610 Gladys Dr., Middletown. 513-422-8313. thetemplebethsholom.com Temple Israel Reform Interim Rabbi Ilene Bogosian Assoc. Rabbi/Educator Karen Bodney-Halasz 1st & 2nd Fri., 6 p.m. Other Fri., 7:30 p.m. Saturdays 10:30 a.m. 130 Riverside Dr., Dayton. 496-0050. tidayton.org Temple Sholom Reform Fridays 6 p.m. 2424 N. Limestone St., Springfield. 399-1231. templesholomoh.com
ADDITIONAL SERVICES Chabad of Greater Dayton Rabbi Nochum Mangel Associate Rabbi Shmuel Klatzkin Youth & Prog. Dir. Rabbi Levi Simon, Teen & Young Adult Prog. Dir. Rabbi Hershel Spalter. Beginner educational service Saturdays 9 a.m. adults, 10 a.m children. Sundays 9 a.m. Tuesdays & Wednesdays. 6:45 a.m. 2001 Far Hills Ave. 643-0770. www.chabaddayton.com Yellow Springs Havurah Independent Services 1st & 3rd Saturdays, 10-noon. Antioch College Rockford Chapel. Contact Cheryl Levine, 937-767-9293.
PAGE 27
RELIGION
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By Dasee Berkowitz, JTA JERUSALEM — There is nothing cuter than my 5-year old daughter coming home from kindergarten with an overly decorated menorah in hand, singing Ner li, ner li, ner li dakik, the Israeli version of This Little Light of Mine. The song speaks about the little candle, so thin, small and all hers to light. Personalizing the holiday for kids is just good pedagogy. Through song, play and creative arts, early childhood educators get these little Maccabees to embody the holiday and feel they have the power to create and even embody the light of Chanukah. And then they grow up. They learn more details about the Chanukah story. They study the Maccabees and the civil war between the Jews. They analyze the military battles that the Hasmoneans conducted to achieve victory over the Assyrian Greeks. And they also learn about the ultimate corruption and failure of the Hasmonean dynasty itself. As they grow, they move further away from the simple message of Chanukah that they had claimed as children — to bring light to dark places. The contrast between the narrative about light that children learn in elementary school and the parallel one about the story of the Maccabean revolt that they learn more about as they get older is not just a developmental one — it’s a profound statement about how we view the world. Stories about war that can provide a sense of unity
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and purpose are ultimately draining, whereas ones about light and miracles are constantly renewing. Experiencing an ongoing war is grueling. Living in Jerusalem right now, I know that feeling intimately. Waves of terrorism, fear, uncertainty and distrust rise and then (eventually) fall. And citizens, Jews and Arabs alike, are left wondering what the future will hold, without any clarity that the once-touted promise to live with “peace and security” will return. It’s hard to dream big or even to believe in miracles at a time of ongoing war. You live for the day, and then the day after. That is the mentality of war. A story of light and oil that lasted only for eight days is one of vision and hope. The rabbis of the Talmud picked up on the distinction. They spent so many more pages expounding upon the miracle of the oil, recounting the details of when and how to light the Chanukah menorah and only a few lines about the military victory achieved by the Maccabeans. Focusing on the light was tactical. The rabbis didn’t want the legacy of Chanukah to be about a victory won by human hands in which God was absent. They wanted to elevate the victory of Chanukah to the heavenly realm. This is a celebration
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of miracles and God’s hand in history, not the brute force of the determined few, the rabbis would have said. The rabbinic approach is most telling in the Haftorah (reading from the Prophets) they selected for the Shabbat of Chanukah, which include the words from Zechariah, “Not by might, and not by power, but by my spirit, says the Lord.” And now, living where I do, I understand the importance and wisdom of the rabbinic emphasis. Focusing on the miracle of the oil helps us put our faith in something bigger than ourselves. It gives us hope to look beyond the political machinations of the day to what the future could look like. It helps us break free of the never-ending cycle of violence and cynicism and can enable us to look forward to the possibilities that the “light driven” narrative can offer to our children and beyond. The rabbis wanted to ensure that a political victory, however needed at the time, wasn’t the end of the story. They wanted to ensure that we didn’t worship our own political might and are guided by a greater power. The Chanukah of the rabbis relies on the personal and embodied light that my 5-yearold sings about. There is a beautiful idea from the Book of Proverbs that we each contain within ourselves a light, “The life breath (the soul) of a human is the lamp of God. With it, God searches all the hidden chambers (Prov. 20:27).” Our internal light is God’s light within us, searching out every part of us, revealing in the hidden places our abilities to manifest that light outward. This Chanukah, how can we return to the pure idea of our own personal lights, or ner li, as my daughter would croon. Not only the one I hold in my hand to light the Chanukah menorah, but the one that I have within me to shine light into dark, seemingly unmovable or unchangeable places around us? Dasee Berkowitz is a Jewish educational consultant and writer living in Jerusalem.
THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
Best new books make best gifts By Victor Wishna, JTA To help you select that perfect Chanukah present for the avid readers in your life, check out our selection of notable new reads, all with a Jewish twist. Whether you’re interested in fiction, non-fiction, memoir or graphic novels, we’ve got you covered. The Devil in Jerusalem (St. Martin’s Press) By Naomi Ragen The 10th novel by bestselling American-born Israeli author Ragen is a crime thriller based on real events from a well-known Jerusalem court case. When two young brothers are brought to Hadassah Hospital with horrific injuries, an Israeli detective finds herself navigating her way through the Old City streets and parsing kabalistic (mystical) texts and cult rituals in pursuit of answers. Although Ragen has often written about the haredi realm — her early bestsellers were set in the Israeli Orthodox neighborhoods of Mea Shearim and B’nei B’rak — she has said in an interview with the Jewish Book Council that this novel “is about psychopaths who happen to be a part of the Jewish world.” Hunger Makes Me a Modern Girl (Riverhead Books) By Carrie Brownstein Before Brownstein made her name nationally as co-creator and co-star of IFC’s Portlandia (alongside Fred Armisen), she was already an icon to fans of her feminist punk band Sleater-Kinney. And before that she was an ambitious Jewish girl growing up in the Pacific Northwest. This deeply personal memoir reveals her journey from her childhood in Washington — with an anorexic mother and a father who would eventually come out of the closet — to her days as a pioneer of an underground music movement, to a career that earned her a spot as the only woman on a Rolling Stone list of the 25 Most Underrated Guitarists of All-Time — and well beyond. The Mystics of Mile End (William Morrow Paperbacks) By Sigal Samuel The half-Chasidic, half-hipster Mile End section of Mon-
treal, where this beautifully written debut novel is set, allows Samuel to explore a range of interlocking and conflicting themes: religion, science, chaos, order, love, grief — and, of course, the many pathways to find meaning in life. The lives of David, a professor of Jewish mysticism, and his two teenage children, are all set on divergent trajectories by the tragic death of their wife and mother. The narrative is energized by a format that gives each of the three main characters the chance to tell their own story from a first-person perspective. Pastrami on Rye: An Overstuffed History of the Jewish Deli (NYU Press) By Ted Merwin For those who have longed for an entertaining academic treatise on the evolution of a distinctly Jewish and American phenomenon, have no fear: “The first full-length history of the New York Jewish deli,” as its blurb announces, is here. Merwin’s tasty exploration of deli cuisine and culture also tracks larger
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shifts in the American Jewish experience, particularly in the post-World War II period when delis upstaged shuls as Jewish gathering places. The book explores how delis faced a period of decline, alongside urban Jewish populations — only to rise again in recent years as an iconic cultural symbol. Falafel Nation: Cuisine and the Making of a National Identity in Israel (University of Nebraska Press) By Yael Raviv Consider this exploration Continued on next page
Alan & Elyse Berg Wishing the community a Happy Chanukah
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Books Continued from previous page
At Hanukkah, Remember the Past, Share Joy in the Present.
of the role food has played in the evolution of Zionism and the state of Israel as a thoughtprovoking alternative to your annual American turkey-andstuffing conversations. Falafel Nation delves into the power struggles, moral dilemmas and the religious, ideological and ethnic affiliations that shape the character of modern Israelis — and how that all relates to the region’s diverse cuisine. Raviv, who runs New York’s biannual Umami Food and Art Festival, gives us quite a bit of intellectual fare to digest.
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Chanukah Fun!
7th-12th grade
Latkes, Dreidels & More!
RESERVATI ONS/MORE I NFO:
937-643-0770 X3 • RABBIHERSHEL@CHABADDAYTON.COM
Montgomery County Commissioner Debbie Lieberman
Wishing you and your family a very Happy Chanukah Committee to Re-elect Debbie Lieberman, Marty Moore, Treasurer, 3630 Berrywood Drive, Dayton, OH 45424
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The Pawnbroker (Fig Tree Books) By Edward Lewis Wallant, with a new foreword by Dara Horn Originally published in 1961 — and made into an acclaimed film in 1964 — this novel about a former Polish university professor and concentration camp survivor in East Harlem was one of the first American works of fiction to deal with the trauma of the Holocaust from the perspective of a character who lived through it. This reissued edition, with a new foreword by novelist Dara Horn (A Guide for the Perplexed), reveals that the tale’s depictions of the Shoah’s traumatic aftereffects (terror-filled dreams, flashbacks, crushing guilt) — and its examination of the sometimes troubled relationships between Jews and other American minority groups — remain just as powerful today. Schmuck (Alternative Comics) By Seth Kushner, with art by multiple contributors The Kickstarter campaign that, well, kick-started this
wonderfully enjoyable work promoted it as “a semi-autobiographic novel anthology about one schmuck’s quest for love and the meaning of life in New York City.” Fair enough, though the description doesn’t begin to capture the hilarity and poignancy that emerges when this collection of 22 comics — all short stories by Kushner, each with a different talented illustrator — is taken as a whole. The portrait painted (or rather, drawn and inked) is of a not-so-young nebbish whose openness to sharing life’s foibles makes his character quite likable. In a heartbreaking twist, Kushner — a respected freelance photographer as well as writer — passed away earlier this year and wasn’t able to see his fine book in print. The Sea Beach Line (Fig Tree Books) By Ben Nadler Izzy Edel, the protagonist of Nadler’s second novel, is the best kind of hero: interesting and deeply flawed. Having been booted from Oberlin for
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drug use, the 20-something drifter returns to “post-Giuliani” New York City, where he attempts to track down his estranged father, who is missing and possibly dead. In the process of seeking answers, he takes over his father’s outdoor bookselling business and delves into his world of hustlers, gangsters and religious characters. Oh, yes — he also meets the girl of his dreams. Rife with references to Jewish folk tales and the Talmud, Nadler’s tale is part mystery, part love story and part tribute to Jewish customs and curiosities. Then Comes Marriage: United States v. Windsor and the Defeat of DOMA (W.W. Norton & Co.) By Roberta Kaplan, with Lisa Dickey Prominent litigator Kaplan — the architect of the 2013 Supreme Court case that brought down the Defense of Marriage Act and compelled the federal government to recognize same-sex marriages — weaves legal drama with personal narrative for a behind-the-scenes look that is both inspiring and genuine. Beyond the account of the Jewish couple at the center of the case — widow Edie Windsor, whose 40-plus-year relationship with her late wife entitled her to zero spousal rights in the government’s eyes — Kaplan delves into her own story, from her fears that coming out as a gay woman would distance her from her Jewish community, to creating a loving, Jewish family with her wife, Rachel. Are you reading this? So is the entire Jewish community. Contact Marshall Weiss at MWeiss@jfgd.net to advertise in The Observer.
THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
FOOD ions in half. Peel garlic cloves. Place potatoes, onion and garlic through food processor for a coarse grate (you can also grate coarsely by hand). Everything Bagel Place potato mixture in a Latkes with Dill Cream large bowl. Add eggs, flour, Cheese and Smoked salt, goat cheese and 2 tableSalmon Before getting spoons everything bagel topYield: 12-15 latkes started on the ping mix. latkes, I advise Heat vegetable oil in a These latkes are both making the everylarge saute pan over medicreamy and savory. thing bagel topping um heat. Form bite-sized Making latkes bite-size and the dill cream mounds of latkes, taking makes the experience a cheese. care not to squeeze too little more fun – guests Add softened cream much liquid out of can easily eat the latkes cheese to a bowl and the latkes. Fry until with their fingers, and combine with fresh golden brown on also feel like they can dill, lemon juice each side, then indulge a little more and salt and pepper place on a wire since the portions are to taste. Place back in rack on top of a baking sheet to small. the fridge until ready to serve. cool. Immediately sprinkle with To make the everything a pinch of salt. 4 Idaho (Russet) bagel topping, mix together When ready to serve, potatoes the sesame seeds, poppy seeds, spread thin layer of dill cream 1 small-medium onion dried garlic, dried onion and cheese on top of each latke. 3 large garlic cloves thick sea salt. Set aside. 2 eggs Peel and cut potatoes and on- Continued on next page 2 to 3 Tbsp. flour 2 tsp. salt 2 oz. goat cheese, left at room temperature sauce — you’ll have your guests raving for months.
Breakfast latkes two ways Everything Bagel Latkes with Dill Cream Cheese and Smoked Salmon
By Shannon Sarna, JTA I first tasted latkes for brunch at a trendy eatery on the Lower East Side about six years ago. Since then, I’ve seen them across the country on brunch menus everywhere from diners to Michelin Star restaurants. Latkes — or potato pancakes, as they’re known to nonJews — are comfort food that provide the perfect base to any number of savory toppings, but especially a runny egg or salty, fatty smoked salmon. After all, a latke is very similar to hash browns, a quintessential breakfast food. It’s traditional to eat fried foods like latkes during Chanu-
kah, celebrating the miracle of the oil lasting for eight nights. And who doesn’t love a holiday that encourages enjoyment of a little extra oil? These breakfast latkes take the best of a classic and add a fun, American twist that screams brunch party. Here, I offer two options: one dairy and one meat. If you keep kosher but want to serve both at a single meal, you could leave out the corned beef from the second latke and just top classic latkes with some fried or poached eggs. If you want to be really indulgent, you could whip up some buttery Hollandaise
For the cream cheese: 6 oz. cream cheese, left at room temperature 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh dill 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice Salt and pepper to taste
1 Tbsp. dried minced garlic 1 Tbsp. dried onion 2 tsp. thick sea salt Thinly sliced smoked salmon Vegetable oil for frying
Wishing you a Happy Chanukah
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898-2761 1130 E. Dixie Drive, West Carrollton, OH 45449 THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
The Pavlofsky Families
PAGE 31
FOOD
S AV E t h e D AT E
A Night in
VEGAS
J C C O F G R E AT E R D AY TO N ’ S A N N U A L F U N D R A I S E R
Where will your chips fall?
Saturday,
February 27, 2016
Breakfast latkes
Continued from previous page Add smoked salmon on each latke and top with sprinkle of everything bagel topping. Serve while still warm. Corned Beef Hash Latkes with Fried Eggs Yield: 12-15 latkes These corned beef hashinspired latkes work best with thinly shredded corned beef. If you can purchase a hunk of corned beef, as opposed to sliced, that would be ideal. If not, make sure to heat up the corned beef before shredding it or dicing into very, very tiny cubes. But don’t skimp on the salt
Corned Beef Hash Latkes with Fried Eggs
in these latkes just because you think the meat will be salty – the potatoes still need salt to make these latkes most flavorful. 4 Idaho (Russet) potatoes
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1 small-medium onion 2 eggs 2 to 3 Tbsp. flour 2 tsp. salt Shredded corned beef Additional salt Additional eggs Fresh parsley Vegetable oil for frying Peel and cut potatoes and onions in half. Peel garlic cloves. Place potatoes, onion and garlic through food processor for a coarse grate (you can also grate coarsely by hand). Place potato mixture in a large bowl. Add eggs, flour, salt and shredded (or diced) corned beef. Heat vegetable oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Form large, fist-sized mounds of latkes, taking care not to squeeze too much liquid out of the latkes. Fry until golden brown on each side, then place on a wire rack on top of a baking sheet to cool. Immediately sprinkle with a pinch of salt. Fry or poach eggs to your liking. When ready to serve, place latkes on platter and top with fried or poached eggs. Top with chopped fresh parsley.
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FOOD
Refresh your dessert table yeast, warm water, and one teaspoon of the sugar and stir. Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes, or until thick. 2. Add the remaining sugar, soy milk, margarine, egg, vanilla, salt, and 1½ cups flour and mix — either with a wooden spoon or with a dough hook in a stand mixer — on low speed. Add 1/2 cup more flour and mix in. Add 1/4 cup flour and mix in. If the dough remains sticky, add more flour, a tablespoon at a time, until the dough becomes smooth. 3. Cover the bowl Vanilla Doughnut Holes with a clean dish towel (nut free & pareve) Doughnuts and potato latkes and let the dough rise are the most traditional Chanu- for one hour in a warm Decorated brownie bites place. I use a warming kah foods. Like latkes, dough7. When the oil is ready, drawer (see note below) on a nuts are best eaten the day low setting (about 200 degrees), add the doughnut holes to they are made, but even on the the oil one at a time, top-side or you can turn your oven on second day you can get good down, putting an edge in first to its lowest setting, place the results by re-heating them. To bowl in the oven, and then turn and then sliding in the rest make doughnuts look festive, of the doughnut; if you drop off the oven. roll them in colored sugar. the doughnuts into the pan 4. After one hour, punch an inch or higher from the oil down the dough by folding it Servings: 50 over a few times and reshaping it can splatter and burn your fingers. You can fry up to eight it into a ball. Re-cover 1/4 oz. dry yeast doughnut holes at a time. Cook the dough and let it 1/4 cup warm water 45-60 seconds. Use tongs or rise for 10 minutes. 1/2 cup plus 1 tsp. sugar, chopsticks to turn the dough5. Dust a cookie divided nut holes over and cook them sheet with flour. 1/2 cup soy milk another 45-60 seconds, or Sprinkle some flour 2 Tbsp. margarine, at room until golden. Lift with a on the counter or on temperature for at least 15 slotted spoon and place parchment paper and minutes on the wire rack to cool. use a rolling pin to roll 1 large egg Repeat with the remaining the dough out until 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract doughnuts. it’s about 1/2-inch 1/4 tsp. salt 8. Place the thick. Using a 2¼–2½ cups all-purpose sugar in a shallow small round cookie flour, plus extra for dusting bowl and roll the cutter about 1 to 1/2 cup plain or colored doughnut holes in the sugar sugar for dusting doughnuts 1½ inches in diameter, cut out to coat. Store covered at room small circles very close to each Canola oil for frying temperature for up to one day other, and place them on the cookie sheet. Re-roll any scraps. and re-heat to serve. 1. In a large bowl, place the Note: A warming drawer can Cover the doughnuts with the towel. Place the cookie be built right into your kitchen cabinet. It is ideal for keepsheet back in the oven ing cooked food hot, warming (warm but turned off) plates, and even proofing bread or warming drawer. Let dough. the doughnuts rise for 30 minutes. Decorated Brownie Bites 6. Heat 1½ inches of oil If you’re looking for somein a medium saucepan thing other than another for a few minutes and doughnut or latke variation, use a candy thermometer these are great, alternative to see when the oil stays treats that can be decorated between 365 and 375 with colored sugars, sprinkles, degrees; adjust the flame nonpareils, crushed candies or to keep the oil in that temperature range. Cover nuts. a cookie sheet with foil. Place a wire rack on top of Servings: 96 one-inch bites the cookie sheet and set it Continued on next page near the stovetop. Vanilla doughnut holes By JNS.org It is a truth universally acknowledged that we never tire of Chanukah latkes and sufganiyot (the holiday’s deep-fried jelly doughnuts). But there’s no harm in adding some culinary variety to this year’s Festival of Lights. Pastry chef Paula Shoyer offers a doughnut recipe with a twist, as well as two alternative recipes for Chanukah to satisfy any sweet tooth. All recipes are courtesy of Shoyer’s The Holiday Kosher Baker. Paula Shoyer
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THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
PAGE 33
FOOD
Desserts Continued from previous page
10 oz. bittersweet chocolate 1/2 cup canola oil, plus 2 tsp. for greasing pan 1½ cups sugar 1/3 cup soy milk 3 large eggs 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract 1/2 tsp. salt 3/4 tsp. baking powder 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa 1¼ cups all-purpose flour At least 3 different colored sugars, sprinkles, nonpareils, crushed candies, or ground nuts
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Use 1 teaspoon oil to grease a 9-X-13-inch baking pan. Line with parchment hand-crafted paper, allowing some to extend pizzas and the sides. Grease up and over much top andmore sides with the other
teaspoon of oil. 2. Break or chop the chocolate into small pieces and melt it, either over a double boiler or in the microwave oven for 45 seconds, stir, heat for 30 seconds, stir, and heat another 15 seconds if needed, until completely melted. 3. When the chocolate is melted, add the oil and sugar and whisk well. Add the soy milk, eggs, and vanilla, and whisk again. Add the salt, baking powder, and cocoa, and mix. Finally, add the flour in four parts and whisk well each time. Scoop the mixture into the pan and spread it evenly. 4. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the top looks dry and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out looking a little gooey. Cool for 30 minutes and H Athen PPY freeze for a minimum of one C H A N U K AH hour.
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5. Place the decorations into small shallow bowls. Pull up the parchment paper to lift the brownie out of the pan. Trim 1/2 inch from the sides and cut the short side of the brownie into long 3/4 to 1-inch wide strips. Cut each strip into small squares. 6. To decorate, press the top or bottom of each brownie into the desired decoration. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days or freeze them for up to three months. Tie-Dyed Mini Black and White Cookies (nut free & pareve) These tie-dyed cookies are a whimsical version of classic chocolate and vanilla black and white cookies that could also be a great, alternative addition to your Chanukah dessert table. You can make any design you like (I provide a few options below). Have fun! Servings: 70 Ingredients for cookies 1/2 cup sugar 1/4 cup canola oil 2 large eggs 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice 1/3 cup soy milk 1 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 tsp. baking powder Dash salt Icing 2 cups confectioners’ sugar 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice Several colors of gel food coloring
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a very happy Chanukah.
PAGE 34 Large party reservations welcome • Private rooms
5331 Far Hills Ave., Centerville
them on the cooling rack. The cookies may be made one day in advance and stored covered at room temperature.
Tie-dyed cookies
Directions for the cookies: 1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 2. Put the sugar, oil, eggs, vanilla, and lemon juice into a large bowl and beat for about 30 seconds with an electric mixer on medium speed until the ingredients are combined. Add the soy milk and mix in. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt and mix until combined. 3. Cover three cookie sheets with parchment paper, or plan to bake in batches. With a measuring teaspoon or melonballer, drop heaping teaspoons of batter onto the cookie sheet, about 1 inch apart. Try to keep the shape of the cookies round. 4. Bake the cookies for 1517 minutes, or until they feel solid when the top is pressed. The color should remain light; only the outside edges of the bottoms should look lightly browned if you lift up one cookie. If the cookies are stuck to the pan, they need a little more baking time. Remove the pan from the oven and slide the parchment onto a wire rack. When the pan has cooled, use a spatula to lift the cookies off the parchment, or peel the parchment off the cookies, and place
Directions for the icing: Put the confectioners’ sugar in a medium bowl. Add two tablespoons of boiling water, vanilla, and lemon juice and whisk vigorously. If the mixture is too thick to spread, add another 1/2 teaspoon (or more) of boiling water and whisk well until you have a thick but still pourable consistency. The icing will thicken as you ice the cookies and you will need to add another 1/2 teaspoon of boiling water to get the icing back to a spreadable consistency. If the white icing gets too loose, whisk in a teaspoon of confectioners’ sugar. Decorating the cookies: There are several ways to decorate the cookies: • Divide the icing among three or more bowls and color each with gel food coloring as desired. Spread about 3/4 of a teaspoon on the flat side of each cookie. You can also ice half the cookie with one color and half with another color. • Squeeze some drops of gel coloring onto a paper plate or waxed paper. Have a toothpick ready for each color. Ice about four cookies at a time with white icing. Use toothpicks to place tiny dots or short lines of different colors on the icing and then use a toothpick to create a marbled effect. • Let the cookies set 15 minutes. Store them covered at room temperature for up to three days, or freeze the cookies for up to three months.
Tips for doughnut-making success • If made properly, fresh doughnuts are never greasy and have a soft bread-like interior. To make healthier doughnuts, bake the doughnuts in a 350-degree oven for 20 minutes instead of frying. • If the oil is the proper temperature, frying seals the outside layer of the doughnut and prevents the oil from seeping in. If the temperature of the oil is too low, it cannot form an exterior seal, resulting in greasy doughnuts that have absorbed
too much oil. If the oil is too hot, the outside will burn before the inside is fully cooked and your doughnuts will be gooey and raw inside. Check the oil temperature between batches and adjust heat if necessary. • The best oils for frying are canola, safflower, or peanut oils. • Do not crowd your doughnuts; it causes the oil temperature to drop. Fry no more than six to eight doughnut holes at a time and no more than four or five larger doughnuts in one batch.
• While frying doughnuts, stay put and watch them. They can go from perfect to burnt in moments. • Use the following equipment: round cookie cutters in different sizes, a rolling pin, a heavy medium saucepan that can hold 1½ inches of oil with space for the oil to bubble up, a candy thermometer — there is no way to fry properly without maintaining oil temperature between 365 and 375 degrees — chopsticks or silicone spatula for gently turning the doughnuts, a slotted spoon to lift doughnuts out of the oil, a wire rack, and an aluminum-foil covered cookie sheet to put under the wire rack. — JNS.org
THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
Happy Chanukah
JEWISH FAMILY EDUCATION
Jew in the Christian World
Christians and not for Jews. Part of the answer is that personal salvation is not central to Jewish life, which is primarily Especially popular during the Christmas season, Handel’s focused on repairing and bringing holiness into this world. Messiah celebrates the mystery A more accurate response, of Jesus, the messiah or redeemhowever, is that any single aner in Christian tradition. The oratorio’s scriptural text swer is incomplete, only part of an interlocking web of theologitraces Christian thought about cal concepts. God’s promises of redemption However, at the risk of unfrom the prophets through Jesus’ birth to final ascension to due brevity, the following are at the core of the Jewish response. heaven. God. The most fundamental Jewish prayer, the Shema, proclaims the singularity of God: Candace R. “Hear, O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord alone/is one Kwiatek (Deut. 6:4),” meaning “there is no other (Deut. 4:39).” God is also described as supernatural: “…not a man… Central to Christian theology are the doctrines of sin and nor a son of man (Num. 23:19).” personal salvation. As repreConsequently, sentatives of all humans, Adam Judaism canand Eve introduced sin to all not embrace the future humanity according to ideas of a trinity Christianity. or “God made In this narrative, every newborn is marked by sin, both into man” as in Christian tradiby heritage and by personal tions. choices throughout life. Revelation. Because of their sinful One doctrine has remained nature, Christianity teaches, humans are unable to fulfill the constant throughout 3,300 years of Jewish history: the revelation perfect standards of biblical at Sinai. Among the thousands Law. of religions in the world, only Rather, the Law (Torah) as Judaism is founded upon a naviewed in Christianity was designed to teach that one cannot tional revelation, asserting that the entire Jewish people heard attain God’s kingdom through the message at Sinai. imperfect human actions, but The sheer number of witonly by God’s grace through nesses, the historical constancy Jesus. of the narrative, and the faithful In other words, salvation is attained by a personal relation- commitment to its covenantal ship with Jesus and belief in his message attest to the authenticity of revelation. role as messiah — the divine The public nature, historiredeemer from sin through his cal longevity, and far-reaching perfect sacrifice — the “Good impact of Sinai’s revelation News” of Christianity. are powerful bases for Jewish For 2,000 years, Jews have intransigence. been asked why we don’t acCovenant. According to cept Jesus as the messiah. Many the Jewish Bible, the covenant Jews are at a loss to explain, between God and the Jewknowing only that Jesus is for
ish people is forever: “He has commanded his covenant for eternity (Ps. 111:9).” More specifically, the commandments of the Torah are eternally binding upon the Jewish people. They cannot be replaced, but are described as an “eternal covenant (Ex. 31:16),” an obligation for “always (Deut 11:1)” and “forever (Deut 28:46),” to be kept “throughout their generations (Gen. 17:10).” Furthermore, nothing can be added to or subtracted from the covenant (Deut 13:1). In God’s own words, the Divine covenant with the Jewish people is sacrosanct. Salvation. There is no concept in Judaism or in any verse of the Torah or prophets that belief in a messiah leads to salvation, personal or otherwise. Rather, eternal life with God in the world to come requires of Jews only that they love and fearfully revere God and keep God’s commandments (Deut. 30:15-19; Ecc. 12:13-14). Not limited to Jews, however, salvation for all other people depends only upon their individual ethical behavior, according to Jewish tradition. Messiah. The biblical moshiach (Gr. christos, Lat. messias) at first referred to individuals anointed with oil for a divine office, such as king or priest, symbolically endowing them with God’s spirit. As historical and social conditions deteriorated, the prophets began to speak of national redemption in a perfect future era, an end of days ushered in by a divinely-inspired king. Later still, the Jewish doctrine of moshiach and the messianic
Why don’t Jews accept Jesus as messiah? Any single answer is incomplete.
Literature to share The Anatomy Lesson by Nina Siegal. This dramatic frame narrative traces the events that take place throughout the day of the medical dissection immortalized in Rembrandt’s famous masterpiece The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp. Tales of a thief, a pregnant woman, a curio collector, an art restorer, and Descartes intersect within the frame to create a masterful drama of European culture, history and intrigue. Emanuel and the Hanukkah Rescue by Heidi Smith Hyde. Set in 18th century New England, this adventure tale is also a well-received addition to historical fiction for early elementary ages. It is a story that begs to go beyond the pages into discussions about bravery, freedom, and the promise of America.
To advertise in The Observer, call Marshall Weiss at 610-1555.
“
The health of the soul can only be achieved after the
“
Expression of the spirit
age was clarified and refined by the rabbis of the Talmud. Based on Jewish biblical texts, the rabbis of the Talmud described a future age in which a virtuous and fully human anointed king (moshiach), a genealogical descendant of the ancient King David, will gather the Jews to Israel from the four corners of the earth. He will restore Torah law; establish universal justice, righteousness, and peace; and bring knowledge of God to the world, ushering in the world to come. Because Jesus did not fulfill these messianic criteria, the Jewish people still wait for the prophesied redeemer. Despite widely differing convictions about his nature and purpose — the divine personal savior who came as Jesus and will return again, or the anticipated national redeemer and harbinger of the world-to-come — the messiah is the supreme expression of the spirits of both Christianity and Judaism.
health of the body
has been achieved.
—Maimonides
HEALTH & WELLNESS BASICS OF STRETCHING Tuesday, December 15 5–6PM @ Boonshoft CJCE
Learn how to stretch properly with instructor Ehud Borovoy as he shows proper form, length of stretching, and targeted stretches for specific muscles.
PILATES For additional reading about Jewish views of Jesus, you may find the following of interest:
Sundays, January 10–February 28 10:30–11:30AM @ Boonshoft CJCE
Modern Jews Engage the New Testament by Rabbi Michael Cook
Combining flexibility and strength, Pilates works the entire body. Especially good for rehabilitation, injury prevention, postural alignment, and overall fitness. Bring 2 mats. Instructor Natalie Peppel. Minimum of 10 students.
Twenty-Six Reasons Why Jews Don’t Believe in Jesus by Asher Norman
Call Karen @ 610-1555 to RSVP.
Why the Jews Rejected Jesus by David Klinghoffer
THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
A WORLD OF CULTURE » jewishdayton.org
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THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
FOOD THE JEWISH INTERNET
Tunes for 8 nights Far be it from me to question the resilience and immortal appeal of tunes like Oh, Chanukah! Oh, Chanukah! and Sevivon. But if Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel is boring a hole in your head, there are some lovely recent songs you can turn to. Here are eight fairly recent tunes for eight Chanukah nights — and they’re Adam Sandler-free.
Mark Mietkiewicz Night 1: Light One Candle – Peter, Paul and Mary, 1983
There is a classic disagreement between the ancient sages, Hillel and Shamai. Hillel argued that a single Chanukah candle should be lit on the first night with additional candles added on succeeding nights. Shamai argued the opposite: eight on the first night decreasing nightly to one on the final night. Meaty material for a song, no? Well, I would never have thought so if I hadn’t come across Neal Katz’s The Great Menorah Debate, from his CD Be A Light — Chanukah Songs for Grown Ups.
catchy songs about the Jewish holidays, you will love this band (bit.ly/chanusong8).”
(bit.ly/chanusong9) Lipa Schmeltzer may have flowing peyot (earlocks) as part of a Chasidic American community, but don’t be surprised that his Believe in a Miracle is a techno blast from the present. Combining neon lights, a garish paisley shirt, sizzling pancakes and a chorus of kids singing Ness Gadol Hayah Sham, (A Great Miracle Happened There), Lipa somehow makes it all work.
Night 7: Eight Days of Night 4: The Dreidel Song – Julie Silver, 2007 Hanukkah – Sen. Orrin Hatch (lyrics), Madeline (bit.ly/chanusong16) Stone (music), 2009 OK, it’s not really a new song. But I’ve never heard Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel performed as if it were ready
A Chanukah who’s who
Night 6: Believe In A Miracle — Lipa Schmeltzer, 2012
(bit.ly/chanusong10) How’s this for a musical team: Madeline Stone, a Jewish songwriter from the Upper West Side and Orrin Hatch, senior United States Senator for Utah. The senator had mentioned to Jeffrey Goldberg, then writing for the New York Times Magazine (now national correspondent for The Atlantic) that Hatch had penned some love songs and Christian spirituals. Goldberg challenged him to write something for Chanukah. To Goldberg’s surprise, nine years later, Hatch dispatched Eight Days of HanukLipa Schmeltzer’s Believe in a Miracle kah. Goldberg explains: “I have always felt that the song canon for the Grand Ole Opry. Julie Silver’s twang sounds great and for Chanukah, a particularly interesting historical holiday, so do her new lyrics. is sparse and uninspiring, in part because Jewish songwritNight 5: Light Up ers spend so much time writing the Night — The Christmas music.” So I guess Fountainheads, 2011 turnabout is fair play (bit.ly/ (bit.ly/chanusong17) chanusong11). Lest you think that all new Chanukah music originates on this side of the Atlantic, there is Night 8: The Maccabeats Night 2: Hanukkah Blessings — Barenaked Israel’s The Fountainheads and — Candlelight, 2010 (bit.ly/chanusong12) their lively Light Up the Night. Ladies, 2004 Would it be possible to The Fountainheads are gradu(bit.ly/chanusong3) include a roundup of recent ates and students of the Ein On an album replete with Chanukah songs without menPrat Academy for Leadership; Yuletide tunes (as well as a its goal is to “create new Jewish tioning the Maccabeats? Hardly. couple of Chanukah classics), there’s an original song by Ste- artistic content for today’s Jew- Their high energy 2010 song Candlelight is based on Mike ish World.” ven Page that makes no bones Tompkins’ a cappella cover of Mostly in English with about the Festival of Lights Taio Cruz’s Dynamite. some Hebrew lyrics, the video not being the Jewish version Candlelight made the whitefor the song features a mix of of Christmas. What is particushirted and black-tied guys shots of young people dancing larly surprising was how he from Yeshiva University into included the menorah blessings with the Negev desert as their stars. landscape, reenactments from in his song. The Matrix, and imagery from Mark Mietkiewicz writes about vintage Apple iPod ads. Night 3: The Great resources for Jewish life to be found Haaretz was a bit catty when Menorah Debate – on the Internet. Contact him at it wrote: “If you like cheerful, Neal Katz, 2009 highway@rogers.com. cheesy, and yet infuriatingly (bit.ly/chanusong15) (bit.ly/chanusong1) First, a relative golden oldie in this batch of new songs. Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul and Mary fame wrote Light One Candle in 1983. Although it starts by retelling the story of the Maccabees, its message was very much a contemporary one. Rabbi Allison Bergman Vann wrote that Light One Candle ”became a defining song for my generation of high school and college students to become activists, to make the world a better place. I heard Peter Yarrow sing that song on the steps of the Capitol in 1987…during the march to free Soviet Jews. Listening to him sing, surrounded by literally thousands of like-minded individuals, I learned of my obligation to change the world; to engage in tikun olam, repair of our broken world. And, during that incredible day, I knew that we could, indeed change the world (bit. ly/chanusong18).”
LESHON IMA — MOTHER TONGUE
Chanukah, the holiday of lights, is at our door. The candles we light during this lovely holiday stand as a yearly reminder of the Jewish struggle against tyranny and religious oppression. Chanukah is a celebration of the victory of the human spirit, where the few, led by the Maccabees, overcame the many, the Seleucid-Greeks, and established the independent Jewish Hasmonean dynasty in the Land of Israel (167-37 B.C.E). The questions arise: why were the Jewish fighters called
Dr. Rachel Zohar Dulin Maccabees and why was the dynasty which they established called Hasmonean? The struggle against the Greeks was initiated by Mattathias, a priest from the village of Modi’in in the foothills of the Judean mountains. His refusal to obey the Greek demands that contradicted Torah law and his teaching that self defense is permitted on Shabbat sparked the beginning of a guerrilla war against the occupying regime (I Mac 2:27-41). Judah, Mathathias’ third son, led the struggle after his father’s death and turned it into a full-scale war. Due to his charismatic personality and fierce combat ability, Judah was known among the warriors as Judah The Maccabee (I Mac 3:11). There are two theories for the origin of the title. Some say that it is an acronym for Mi chamocha, ba’elim Adoshem, translated, Who is like You, God, among the gods, a declaration taken from the song sung by Miriam and the people of Israel after crossing the Reed Sea (Ex.
THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
15:11). These words rallied the Jews in their fight for freedom and the title Maccabee, bestowed honor upon their leader. Others explain that Maccabee is derived from the word makevet meaning hammer and exemplified the strong hand and zeal of the man who stood at the head of the revolt. In the end, all those who joined with Judah the Maccabee were known as Maccabees and the fight for freedom was named The Maccabean Wars. Hasmonean, on the other hand, is the name of the Jewish dynasty that rose to power in Israel after the Maccabean victory. The origin of the name and its meaning are not clear. According to some, Mattathias the priest, the patriarch of the dynasty, was a descendent of a priestly line, which originated in the town of Heshmon on the Judean southern border (I Mac 2:1; Neh 12:6). The town of Heshmon was mentioned twice in the Bible (Num. 34:29; Josh. 15:27) and those who came from that town were known as Hasmoneans. Others claim that the name of the dynasty, which ruled Israel for more than 100 years, is based on the Hebrew word hashmanim. This word appears only once in the Bible (Ps. 68:32) and means minister, leader and marquis. From the Middle Ages onward, hashmanim in Hebrew referred to cardinals of the church. And so, as we light the Chanukah candles to commemorate the Maccabean Wars and the Hasmonean era, we should remember the bravery and the zeal exhibited by our people throughout time in the fight for national identity and religious freedom. Dr. Rachel Zohar Dulin is a professor of biblical literature at Spertus College in Chicago and an adjunct professor of Bible and Hebrew at New College of Florida.
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OBITUARIES Clara “Candy” Davidson, age 86, passed away Nov. 2. Mrs. Davidson was preceded in death by her husband, Dr. David Davidson; parents, Morris and Sarah Abromowitz; daughter, Elaine Nemzer; brothers Martin (beloved sister-in-law Shirley D. Abromowitz) and Leonard (Shirley) Abromowitz. She is survived by daughters, Julia (Philip) Weinerman, Miriam (David) Portman; sons, Michael (Martha) Davidson, Elliot (Natasha) Davidson and Steven (Esther) Davidson. Her grandchildren are: Elaine’s children, David, Louis (Florence), Sarah (Yakov), and Rachel (Oren); Julia’s children, David (Daniella), Rachel (Ben), Rebecca (Raanan), Sarah (Noah) and Debbie (Josh); Michael’s children, Arin (Ryan), David (Allie), Jeff (Joey) and Jonathan (Emily); Elliot’s children,
Davora (Kurt), Zachary, Hallie and Gregory; Steven’s children, Joshua, Daniel and Arielle; and Miriam’s children, Jacob, Aaron, Noah and Rebecca; as well as 23 great-grandchildren; and brother, Dr. Herman (Joyce) Abromowitz. Mrs. Davidson graduated from Xenia Central High School and The Ohio State University, where she met her beloved husband, David. They had six children together as she worked as a social worker for the Dayton Public Schools. Mrs. Davidson was very active in Jewish causes. She and her husband were founders of Hillel Academy Day School and officers with Beth Jacob Congregation. She was an amazing inspiration for her six children, 37 grandchildren and their spouses, and 23 great grandchildren (with two more on the way), and numerous nieces and nephews.
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Interment was at Beth Jacob Cemetery in Dayton. Memorial contributions may be made to Columbus Torah Academy or Beth Jacob Congregation, 7020 N. Main St., Dayton, 45415. Bernard Gutmann, 94, passed away peacefully Nov. 7 surrounded by his family at Zusman House in Columbus. Mr. Gutmann was born in Germany to Ida and Selli Gutmann. At the age of 16, he immigrated to the U.S. sponsored by his great uncle. He attended night school to finish his education while working in a shoe factory and saving money to help his family escape Germany. Mr. Gutmann served in Patton’s Third Army on the European front during the Normandy campaign, narrowly escaping death more than a few times. He was the ultimate workaholic, filled with determination and drive. Mr. Gutmann never forgot where he came from and was grateful for his achievements in all facets of his life. He had a brilliant mind and natural common sense which led to his success in his professional and family life. He deeply loved his family as they loved him. Mr. Gutmann worked his way up in the shoe industry beginning in a factory in Cincinnati putting labels in shoes. He traveled the ranks as a shoe store manager and then a district manager. He became prominent and highly respected in the shoe industry as president and founder of CanMart Shoe Ltd. in Canada and then as EVP of merchandising at Shoe Corp of America. He went on to become president of BeeGee Shoe Company. After retirement, he volunteered at SCORE, but missed working, so he formed T-Shirts and Uniforms by Bernie. He operated his business until two months before his death. He was a great storyteller and well versed on current events. Mr. Gutmann had many friends and colleagues. He was a devoted family man and loved his family unconditionally. He was proud of the life he lived and not a day went by that he didn’t talk about how lucky he was to find the love of his life, Mary, with whom he shared 68 wonderful years of marriage. Mr. Gutmann was preceded in death by his parents and his brother, Max Gutmann. Mr. Gutmann is survived by his loving wife and best friend, Mary; their four children, Sandy (Jeff) Glassman, Norman
(Gracie) Gutmann, Jeffrey Gutmann and Becky Gutmann; sisters-in-law, Rose Frank and Darlene Gutmann Marlowe; grandchildren, Erin Glassman, Matthew (fiancé Vicky Zhou) Glassman, Candi and Manny Holden, Melanie (fiancé Michael Emond) Gutmann, Jake and Zack Yablok, five great-grandchildren and many nieces, nephews, and friends. Interment was at Temple Israel Cemetery, Columbus. The family requests donations to Zusman House at Wexner Heritage Village, 1151 College Ave., Columbus, OH 43209 or the charity of your choice.
discuss sports, especially golf, which was the best gift for him when they came to visit, and no matter what the weather was, they played together. Mr. Levinstein was a member of Zeta Beta Tau and was captain of his tennis team while at The Ohio State University. He had an outgoing personality and will be missed by his family and many friends.
Sylvia Mandel Linsker, age 90, passed away Oct. 25. Mrs. Linsker was a beloved wife, mother, sister, aunt, great- and great-great aunt. Mrs. Linsker was preceded in death by parents Karl Mandel and Ruth Mandel, husband of 59 years Lisa R. Jennings (Mayerson), Gene, sisters Pauline Scott age 73 of Kettering, passed and Ruth Mandel, and brother away peacefully Oct. 29 at The Bruce Mandel (Barbara). She is Oaks of West Kettering. Her survived by son Jeffrey (Myra), daughter and Hospice were at her bedside. She is survived by many nieces, nephews, great and great-great nieces and her daughter and son-in-law, nephews, and special friends Staci and Garrison Harris; her Jane and Gary Hochstein, two grandsons, Joshua and and Harriet and Don Klass. Noah, who meant the world to Mrs. Linsker was a devoted her; her sister and brother-inlaw Sondra and Richard Martin; volunteer for the Jewish Community Center, the City and her nieces and nephew, of Kettering, and other groups Alison Cowan, Stephanie and organizations, as well as an Lipscomb, and Todd Martin amazing baker and cook, and and their families. Interment a loving, caring friend to all was at Beth Jacob Cemetery. who knew and loved her. She Memorial contributions was also a devoted pet parent may be made to Beth Jacob to many rescued dogs and cats. Congregation or Kindred at Donations are requested to Home Hospice. the Jewish Community Center or Hospice of Dayton, who Arnold Levinstein, age 93, lovingly cared for Mrs. Linsker passed away peacefully Oct. in the last weeks of her life. 10 in Mission Viejo, Calif., where he was a patient at Elaine J. Mayerson, 85, of Soleil Senior Living for the Kettering, passed away last five months of his life. He peacefully on Nov. 7. Born was the son of the late Fanny in Denver in 1930, Mrs. and Michael Levinstein of Mayerson moved with her Columbus. Mr. Levinstein had parents to Dayton, where a wonderful, full life with the love of his life, Rozanne, having she attended Fairview High School and became a member recently celebrated 60 years of Temple Israel. She then of marriage. They moved to went on to receive a bachelor California after having lived of arts degree from The Ohio in Boca Raton for 25 years. State University, majoring When Mr. Levinstein became in English. In 1953, Elaine ill, their son Tom moved them married Dr. Melvin Mayerson to California, where he visited and worked alongside him them daily. Mr. Levinstein in his orthodontic practice is survived by two sons, before starting a family. Mrs. Thomas (Susan) of Aliso Viejo, Mayerson was an active Calif., and Richard of Pepper member of the Dayton Dental Pike, Ohio; grandchildren, Auxiliary and a volunteer in Jaclyn (Scott) Heller, Lindsey special education at Charles Levinstein, Adam, Daniel L. Loos School. She was a and Hannah Levinstein; and passionate philatelist, avid two great-grandchildren, gardener, loved to play golf Aiden and Danielle Heller, and travel, and made new as well as his twin sister, friends wherever she went. Rosalyn (Ro) of Boulder, Colo. (formerly of Dayton) and many Mrs. Mayerson was preceded in death by her parents, Jessica devoted nieces and nephews. and Sam R. Gordon, and Mr. Levinstein had a close her aunt, Evelyn Flaxer. She relationship with his two sons is survived by her beloved and spoke to them daily to THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
OBITUARIES husband of 62 years, Dr. Melvin Mayerson, daughter and son-in-law, Mandy and Ezra Riber, son, Lloyd Mayerson, grandchildren Lilly and Sam Riber, and many nieces, nephews, and cousins. The family would like to express their heartfelt thanks to the staff members of Walnut Creek, Hospice of Dayton, and Home Instead for the wonderful care they gave Mrs. Mayerson. Interment was at Riverview Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Dayton, Temple Israel, or the charity of your choice. Charna Slonim Weisman. Born May 31, 1924 to Marx and Flora Slonim, Mrs. Weisman grew up in Brooklyn, N.Y. She attended Public School 152, graduated from Erasmus Hall High School, and completed her B.A. in fine arts and architecture in three years at Cornell University (Class of 1945). As the night-editor for the Cornell Daily Sun newspaper, she was
Ethiopian Jews
Continued from Page 11 Falash Mura known to Israel. Its primary purpose, according to the government, is to reunite families split by earlier immigrations. To qualify for this round, candidates need to have family in Israel and arrived in prealiyah compounds in Ethiopia run by the Jewish Agency by the start of 2010. Ethiopian-Israelis lag in education and employment. For many Ethiopians, getting to Israel is only half the battle. Ethiopian immigrants, often
notified about the Pearl Harbor attack and published the story before it appeared in The New York Times. Mrs. Weisman married Philip A. Weisman in 1945, and lived in Dayton for 60 years, moving to Charlton, Mass., after Mr. Weisman’s passing in 2012. She was a friend to many and reached out to neighbors to build close communities wherever she lived. In addition to raising a family and supporting her husband for 68 years, Mrs. Weisman was actively involved in many community activities, including Woman’s Literary Club, American Field Service Committee, Girl Scouts, Cub Scouts, Community Chest, Dayton Art Institute, Montgomery County Medical Society Auxiliary, Philharmonic Kinder Orchestra, Harrison Township Committee, Temple Israel Sisterhood, McFarlane Middle School PTO, and training and showing her champion husky, Mikuhrov. She was a consummate cook,
enjoyed entertaining, and was a skilled knitter. Mrs. Weisman died on Nov. 6 surrounded by children, grandchildren, grand dogs, and a serenade. She is survived by her children: Cathy and son-in-law Sam Topal of Northampton, Mass., James Weisman and daughter-in-law Felicity Tuttle of Winchester, Mass., Thomas and daughter-in-law Mary Ann Weisman of Lunenburg, Mass.; seven grandchildren: Simone, Rachel, Claire, Katherine, Alexandra, Kara, and Emma; and six great-grandchildren: Rowen, Sasha, Jacob, Zachary, Ender, and Ari; and by sister Diane Cline, and brother Alan Slonim. Donations may be made to your favorite charity or to The Friendship Fund c/o The Dayton Foundation, 2100 Kettering Tower, Dayton, OH 45423-1395. The Friendship Fund, established by Dr. Philip and Charna Weisman, awards scholarships to high school seniors in the Dayton area who contribute to harmonious race relations.
from poor and uneducated families, have struggled to integrate. According to data compiled by the Myers-JDC-Brookdale Institute, a government-sponsored think tank, as of 2013 only 27 percent of EthiopianIsraeli students qualified for university, as opposed to 51 percent of all Israelis. Average wages for Ethiopian-Israelis were more than a third lower than the Israeli average. Ethiopian-Israelis claim that state institutions discriminate against them. Following the emergence earlier this year of a video showing police officers
beating an Ethiopian-Israeli soldier, Ethiopians massed in protest. Police responded with stun guns and a water cannon. Following the unrest, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised to take steps to address the discrimination. “Among the general population, I’m sure there are some stereotypes, prejudices that affect access to employment,” said Myers-JDC-Brookdale director Jack Habib. “How much of that is perception and how much of that is reality we don’t know. But there are these strong feelings of discrimination. It’s not an issue we can ignore.”
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Arts&Culture
Steinem’s frustrations, fears, and hopes Book Review By Tara Metal Jewish Women’s Archive It feels so unimaginative to write that Gloria Steinem is my hero. But, Gloria Steinem is my hero. She’s the woman I most admire, and the only consistent guest at my fantasy dinner party. Reading her new memoir, My Life on the Road, is probably the closest I’ll ever get to actually having dinner with Gloria. The book is a winding account of Steinem’s years of travel — organizing, working on political campaigns, selling ads for Ms., writing, and speaking: on campuses, at conventions, with world leaders, and on book tours. It becomes clear after a few chapters that most of Gloria’s life has been spent traveling, and so this isn’t really a book about just one slice of her life. It’s a sweeping account of her work and why she did it. Do you know how many hours of Gloria Steinem’s life have been spent organizing people into productive, proactive groups? Me neither, but the answer is somewhere between “dizzying” and “countless.” Steinem’s tireless, decades-long diligence as an organizer is described in illuminating detail. For every successful conference, there were months of sleepless nights, phone calls, fund-raising, redeyes, and research. For each well-publicized article, there were men in the wings scoffing at her writing, disparaging her as a means of undercutting the women’s movement. I’m floored by the sheer amount of work — gritty, urgent, detailed, administrative work — that dominated much of Steinem’s daily life. And yet she goes to great pains to point out how many others were doing this work alongside her. I learn about her friend and speaking partner Florynce Kennedy, whose company she calls “better than any college education.” I find myself balancing the book on my knees to pause and look up names like Margaret Sloan,
Barbara Jordan, and LaDonna Harris on my laptop. I realize that I’ve never heard of any of them. And that all of them are women of color. I realize that in these pages, Steinem is still fighting the battle she began in the early ‘70s: to make all women’s voices heard, to help people understand that gender equality is impossible without inclusivity. I learn that for many years, Steinem refused to lecture or organize unless a woman of color was invited along with her. I learn that Betty Friedan yelled at her for bringing Flo Kennedy to the founding meeting of the National Women’s Political Caucus. I start believing that fourth-wave feminists like myself identify so strongly with Steinem because the issues that we are championing today were her issues decades ago — racism, sexual violence, police brutality and LGBTQ rights, to name a few. Any young reader of My Life on the Road will recognize their own frustrations, fears, and hopes in these pages. And then there’s the stomach-turning stories about the challenges Steinem faced as a young journalist, then as a feminist activist. She recalls sharing a cab with Gay Talese and Saul Bellow while working on Bobby Kennedy’s Senate campaign. Mid-conversation, Talese leaned over Gloria to tell Bellow, “You know how every year there’s a pretty girl who comes to New York and pretends to be a writer? Well, Gloria is this year’s pretty girl.” Later, she tells of being confronted with protesters at a Catholic church where she was invited to speak. Their signs read “Gloria Steinem is a baby killer” and “Gloria Steinem is a murderer.” She calls the scene familiar: “repetition can take the surrealism out of anything.” More than 50 years of sexism and personal attacks fill the pages of My Life on the Road. Gloria Steinem’s greatest gifts,
beyond even her talents for writing and bringing people together, are resilience and optimism. Her faith in other people — including and at times especially the taxi drivers, stewardesses, community leaders, and cowboys she met on the road — to educate her and enhance her understanding of the world strikes me as the most optimistic, hopeful way to go about life. Steinem never stopped learning and never underestimated the people around her. She withstood attacks on her character in service of a movement fighting to make lasting change for other people. The changes brought about by Steinem’s work are of course profound: when she first spoke at Harvard Law School, the faculty was 100 percent white and male. At the time, the men’s bathroom there was simply labeled faculty. Yet the work left to be done in the name of equality remains vast, underscored by the fact that at 81, she’s still at it. Recent steps (leaps?) backward in certain areas, especially in women’s health and abortion rights, are especially sobering. As I read My Life on the Road, Texas defunded Planned Parenthood, an organization that Steinem recalled as “one of the most trusted organizations in America.” My Life on the Road opens with a moving dedication to Dr. John Sharpe, who in 1957 referred a 22-year-old Steinem for an illegal abortion. He told her, “You must promise me only two things. First, you will not tell anyone my name. Second, you will do what you want to do with your life.” “Dear Dr. Sharpe,” writes Steinem, “I believe you, who knew the law was unjust, would not mind if I say this so long after your death: I’ve done the best I could with my life. This book is for you.” What would the world look like today had she been unable to get a safe abortion? Would another woman have risen to fill her shoes had she become a wife and mother, relegated to listening to stories of the women’s movement on the radio rather than writing them herself? I finished My Life on the Road certain that no other woman would have appeared in Gloria’s absence, despite what her own humility would have you believe. Gloria Steinem was and is a singular leader, the exact right person at the exact right time, here to tell us to listen, to learn from everyone we meet, and to keep moving.
Ross urges U.S. to get real on Mideast By Gary Rosenblatt adviser under Obama. Indeed, “Insanity,” it is said, “is donews stories on the publication ing the same thing over and of Doomed To Success focused on over again and expecting difRoss’ criticism of Rice as symferent results.” bolic of those in the administraFormer Ambassador Dennis tion wary of Israel. In internal Ross, who helped shape U.S. discussions, he wrote, she foreign policy in the Mideast “nearly always took the view for nearly 30 years, has written that the Israelis were hurting us an important book that applies and never took our needs into the “insanity” thesis to relaaccount.” tions between Washington and Ross offers a more nuanced Jerusalem for more than six take of the president, asserting decades. It offers a thorough that Obama cares deeply about catalog of examples of tensions, the survival of the Jewish state based in part on American but that his “distancing from presidents failing to learn obviIsrael was deliberate and tied ous lessons in Mideast truths. to the desire to reach out to the The book, Doomed To SucMuslims.” He writes that while cess: The U.S.-Israel Relationship Obama’s military and strategic From Truman to Obama, is a support for Israel has been unmust-read for those who seek a precedented, his “instinct to see deeper understanding the Palestinians as of the complex, lovethe victims in the hate dance between conflict remained successive U.S. and Istoo strong” to alraeli leaders. But Ross low for an “unhas set a higher goal critical embrace” of for his target audience. Israel. He told me in an interRoss describes view that the primary several occasions reason for writing the when he disagreed book is to provide the with Obama, most next president, and his Dennis Ross notably over the or her senior advisers, president’s insis“an understanding of some of tence on a settlement freeze the key assumptions embedin 2009, his unwillingness to ded” in American Mideast visit Israel immediately after policy that “go back decades” his Cairo speech that year, his and “are not rooted in reality.” insistence on characterizing Two theories Ross focuses Israeli settlements as illegal on in his book are that a close (not just unhelpful), and, in U.S. relationship with Isgeneral, his pressuring Israel rael has a negative impact on far more than the Palestinians dealing with the Arab states, on peace negotiations, openly and that unless and until the criticizing Prime Minister BenIsrael-Palestinian conflict is jamin Netanyahu while giving solved, there is little the U.S. Palestinian Authority President can accomplish in the region. Mahmoud Abbas a pass. He cites numerous examples to He also notes that Israel show that these assumptions hurts its cause by failing to persist but have been proven “share its bottom line” with wrong time after time. The administrations on how far it Arab states, he writes, are more would go on concessions to the concerned about U.S. support Palestinians. The Israelis fear for their own governments than that to do so would lead them Washington’s relationship with to being pushed for more. But Jerusalem. Ross believes candor increases Israel frequently is viewed trust, and the U.S. should asby those in the White House as sure Jerusalem that it would more liability than asset — the honor Israel’s security red lines. chapter on the Obama adminOn the Iran deal, Ross told istration is the longest in the me Iran’s supreme leader is book — and according to Ross, certain to test the U.S. once “our approach too often has sanctions have been removed, missed the mark,” with U.S. and that the U.S. should form policy makers failing to undera “joint consultative committee stand “the fundamental realiwith Israel on implementation” ties in the region,” and seemand make certain that Tehran ingly “unwilling or incapable understands “there will be a of learning lessons.” price to pay” for violations. He Ross calls out Susan Rice for favors making the consequencbeing in the “liability” camp es clear to Iran. in her role as national security Continued on next page
THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
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Ross Continued from previous page
report the next day. In May 2011, The New York Times published a front-page story suggesting that Ross, “by almost No one has more solid credentials than all accounts…Israel’s friend in the White House,” was a stumbling block Ross in writing on U.S.-Israel relations. to Obama’s plan to essentially make the He has helped make Mideast policy pre-1967 borders the basis for a negotiunder four presidents, Republicans ated settlement with the Palestinians. and Democrats, most recently with the The leak, Ross said, “clearly was deNational Security Council under Obama signed to undercut me for opposing the as special assistant to the president on president.” And he scoffed at the suggesthe Mideast, Persian Gulf, Afghanistan, tion that his views would trump those of Pakistan and South Asia. He helped the the head of state. Israelis and Palestinians reach interim Ross said that his years of experience agreements during the Clinton years, in dealing with Mideast leaders gave when he was special Mideast coordihim an advantage. “You get to read them nator. He also played a key role in the and know when they are lying or telling Israel-Jordan peace agreement and took the truth.” part in talks between Israel and Syria. In his many dealings with Yasser Ross, 66, has been an effective diplomat. He attributes his successes to build- Arafat, did he ever feel the leader of the PLO was trustworthy? “No,” Ross said ing trust with key figures of authority after a brief pause, citing a remark a colin the Mideast by maintaining personal league had made of Arafat: “If someone relationships with them and speaking is ready to die for his cause, wouldn’t he forthrightly. lie for it?” Not surprisingly, given his Jewish The cumulative effect of reading identity and the nature of his work, he Ross’ 400-page book is that his insider has been criticized both as being too experience reveals, over and over again, pro-Israel and as a self-hating Jew for his diplomatic efforts. All part of the job, how successive presidents and their key advisers have failed to recognize or was his attitude, especially regarding accept the benefits of openly embracing occasional charges in the Arab media Israel for its role as a strong democratic that Ross favored Israel. But he spoke ally in an increasingly troubled region. with a hint of irritation in recalling two And that to do so would enhance, not “ugly” media leaks, no doubt from hurt, the possibilities for Mideast peace. administration sources, that raised the specter of dual loyalty against him. Both, Still, as Ross implies in his book’s ironic title, given the shared values and overall he noted, took place during the Obama goals of Washington and Jerusalem, years. The first, in 2010, was a report in there is reason to believe that efforts to Politico that accused Ross of appearing to be “far more sensitive to Netanyahu’s strengthen these ties would result in a positive outcome. coalition politics than to U.S. interests.” Ross noted with satisfaction that Denis Gary Rosenblatt is editor and publisher of McDonough, the president’s chief of The New York Jewish Week. staff, issued a vigorous denial of the
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THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
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THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • DECEMBER 2015
11/5/15 4:27 PM
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Happy Hanukkah! Let love and light fill your home this Season.
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Let love and light fill your home this Season.
Kroger is pleased to help you and your family enjoy the tastes and traditions of Hanukkah. With a complete selection of Kosher foods, you can stock up on all your favorites for less.
It’s important to you. It’s important to us.
Come in and check out our wide selection of Kosher meats.
A large selection of Kosher items are available to serve your needs at the following Kroger locations:
Blue Ash Kroger (Full Service Kosher Department) 4100 Hunt Road Cincinnati, OH 45242
Centerville Kroger
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Stroop Road fresh fare by Kroger 530 E. Stroop Road Kettering, OH 45249
Harper’s Point Kroger 11390 Montgomery Road Cincinnati, OH 45249
Blue Ash Kosher Service Hours:
We invite you to stop by our Blue Ash Kroger Store and meet our Mashgiach, Elizar. He and his staff are happy to assist you, providing the special attention and service you and your holiday events deserve!
SUNDAY-WEDNESDAY 9am-8pm; THURSDAY 9am-8pm; FRIDAY 9am-4pm; SATURDAY CLOSED Fresh Packaged Meats Available 24 Hours Daily ELIZAR
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Enjoy a great feast with all your favorite foods from Kroger. Friday 11/13 Jewish Observer 1541
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