March 13, 2009

Vol. LXXXVIII No. 28 Omaha, NE

Celebrating 88 Years of Service to Nebraska and Western Iowa

17 Adar, 5769

March 13, 2009

Three leaders of three faiths to meet this month in ‘Abraham’s Tent’

by CLAUDIA SHERMAN Temple Israel Communications Coordinator “Shalom, Salaam, Peace” is the theme of a discussion between three faith leaders during “Dinner in Abraham’s Tent: Conversations on Peace,” a community-wide event, on Friday, March 27, 5:30 p.m., at the Qwest Center Omaha.

Sponsored by the TriFaith Initiative, a collaboration of Temple Israel, the Episcopal Diocese of Nebraska, and the American Institute of Islamic Studies and Culture, the dinner will be preceded by services.

Rabbi Peter S. Knobel, president of the Central Conference of American Dr. Ingrid Mattson Rabbis (CCAR), is one of the three speakers. Spiritual leader since 1980 at Beth Emet in Evanston, IL, Rabbi Knobel is a graduate of Hamilton College in Clinton, New York. He was ordained by Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in 1969 and earned a master's in philosophy and a Ph.D. from Yale University. He served Temple Emanu-El in Groton, Connecticut, before moving to Beth Emet.

In addition to his congregational duties, Rabbi Knobel serves in leadership roles in the Reform movement on a national level and is actively involved in the Chicago-area community. He served on the CCAR Siddur Editorial Committee, is a past chair of the Liturgy and Reform Practice Committee, and was a member of ad hoc com-

mittees on human sexuality, homosexuality and the rabbinate, and patrilineal descent.

A member of the ARZA (Association of Reform Zionists of America) National Board and chair of its Institute for Reform Zionism, Rabbi Knobel is also a

Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori member of the Board of Trustees of both the Union for Reform Judaism and HUC-JIR. He is a member of the Board of the Council of the Parliament of World Religions as well.

Having taught extensively at colleges including HUC, Yale University, Connecticut College, and Spertus Institute, Rabbi Knobel has been an instructor on subjects ranging from Biblical Aramaic to Jewish mysticism to Israel in Christian thought, and Jewish bioethics. He has also written and edited numerous articles and publications on Jewish bioethics, liturgy and Zionist thought, and is the editor of a guide for the Jewish New Year.

President of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) and director of The Macdonald Center for the

Study of Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations at Hartford Seminary in Connecticut, Dr. Ingrid Mattson is the first convert to Islam and the first female to lead the ISNA. Born in Canada, she studied philosophy at the University of Waterloo, Ontario. From 1987-88, she lived in Pakistan where she worked with Afghan refugee women.

She earned her Ph.D. in Islamic Studies from the University of Chicago in 1999. Director of Islamic Chaplaincy at the Macdonald Center, Dr. Mattson’s research focused on Islamic law and society. Among her articles are studies on slavery, poverty, and Islamic legal theory.

Rabbi Peter S. Knobel Describing her personal journey to Islam, Dr. Mattson said, “In the summer of 1987, I was riding the train out to British Columbia. I had just finished my undergraduate degree in philosophy and had only recently begun my personal study of Islam. I came across Fazlur Rahman’s ‘Islam’ in a bookstore. Reading that book as I traveled across the Canadian prairies, I made the decision to apply to graduate school in Islamic Studies.”

Rahman’s book sparked a keen desire in Dr. Mattson to study the classical heritage of Islamic theology and law. Eventually, she decided to go to Chicago after being invited by Rahman to study with him. Although he died before Dr. Mattson arrived, “It was his book and his Continued on page 4

Synagogue hails Dutch lawmaker as a hero

by PENNY SCHWARTZ STOUGHTON, Mass. (JTA) -- In his home continent, Dutch politician Geert Wilders is something of a pariah, banned from the United Kingdom and facing prosecution in the Netherlands for his harsh views of Islam.

His calls to end immigration from Muslim countries and ban the Koran -he compared it to Hitler’s Mein Kampf and said it incites to violence -- have earned him broad condemnation in Europe and forced him under the protection of a security detail, a rarity for Dutch leaders.

But in some quarters of the American Jewish community, Wilders is more akin to a hero. At the very least, he was greeted as such by about 250 people last week at a Conservative synagogue in this Boston-area town.

The boisterous crowd at the Ahavath Torah Congregation gave Wilders, who heads the Dutch Party for Freedom and serves in the parliament, a standing ovation and shouted “Bravo” at the conclusion of his speech.

In an event co-sponsored by the Middle East Forum’s Legal Project and the Republican Jewish Coalition, Wilders made his only synagogue appearance on his recent tour of the United States, where he appeared on cable news networks and radio talk shows, spoke at the

Inside

National Press Club and held a private showing of his anti-radical Islam film Fitna for senators and their staff on Capitol Hill.

The Middle East Forum’s director, Daniel Pipes, said he doesn’t agree with Wilders that the Koran should be banned. But Anton Sadovnikov, left, a Babson College student, on the bimah at he does Congregation Ahavath Torah with Geert Wilders and Antonius Van believe that Wijngaarden, a student from the Netherlands.

Credit: Courtesy of Antonius Van Wijngaarden W i l d e r s should be able to publicly present that Muslim immigration and what they see as view, which is why his organization co- a religion irrevocably at odds with sponsored the talk and is raising funds for Western values. In the Netherlands, renowned for its liberalism and tolerance, Wilders’ legal defense.

“I don’t need to agree with him to see the debate has often been particularly the importance of him making his argu- fraught.

A former parliamentary colleague of ments,” Pipes said.

Wilders is among a small number of Wilder’s, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, was forced into European political figures who have spo- hiding for her work on a film critical of ken out forcefully about the impact of Islam’s treatment of women. Theo Van

This Week: Home & Garden Section starts on Page 9

See Front Page Stories & More at: www.jewishomaha.org, click on ‘Jewish Press’ Opinion Page see page 12

Two local professors sign anti-Israel boycott petition: Page 2

Gogh, a Dutch filmmaker and Hirsi Ali’s partner, was murdered on an Amsterdam street in 2004.

Pim Fortuyn, another Dutch politician outspoken about immigration and Islam, was murdered in 2002.

In Europe, where freedom of speech laws are generally more restrictive -Holocaust denial, for example, is widely outlawed -- figures like Wilders have pushed the boundaries of acceptable discourse. But in the United States, with its comparatively looser speech laws, the violence and intimidation directed at Islam’s harshest European critics is seen by some as allowing radical viewpoints to flourish.

“If our collective voice is impeded from speaking” or “shut down,” said Pipes, then “the way is paved for radical Islam to move ahead.”

Pipes says hate speech laws, which also have been used to prosecute Holocaust deniers in Europe, are a bad idea. “I believe in the First Amendment,” he said.

Republican Jewish Coalition executive director Matt Brooks takes a similar position, saying that while he also opposes banning the Koran, he believes Wilders’ views should still be given a hearing.

“If we only had speakers we agree with 100 percent of the time, it would be a very small universe of speakers,” Brooks said.

Continued on page 3

Coming This Month: Primary Election Issue: March 27 New Blumkin therapy suite means former synagogue still healing: Page 8

Torah in hand, farming the land: Page 16

Page 2

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

March 13, 2009

Local professors sign anti-Israel boycott

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The boycott and divestment campaign doesn’t stop at

by CAROL KATZMAN keeping scholars and academics out of the U.S. In Los Editor of the Jewish Press Two of the signators of the U.S. Campaign for the Angeles, even dance groups are not immune.

In an article in the March 2 issue of the Daily Bruin at Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (USACBI) live in Omaha. Naser Z. Alsharif, a professor in Creighton the University of California at Los Angeles, Juliana University’s School of Pharmacy, and Mansour Zand, a Gabrovsky wrote, “ Approximately 50 people protested computer sciences professor at the University of at the performance of Israel’s Batsheva Dance Company Nebraska-Omaha, are listed at #14 and #234 on the list in hopes of drawing attention to the recent Israeli incurof “endorsers” at the organization’s website at: sion into Gaza. The protest was organized by the usacbi.wordpress.com/ USACBI, which saw its endorsers. membership rise from 15 The group’s mission to more than 230 acastates: “Responding to the demics since its inception call of Palestinian civil sociin January.” ety to join the Boycott, The group calls for Divestment and Sanction academics to “compremovement against Israel, hensively and consistently we are a U.S. campaign boycott all Israeli academfocused specifically on a ic and cultural institutions boycott of Israeli academic until Israel withdraws and cultural institutions, as from all the lands occudelineated by PACBI pied in 1967, including (Palestinian Campaign for East Jerusalem; removes the Academic and Cultural all its colonies in those Boycott of Israel).” lands; agrees to United When called for comNations resolutions relements about why he vant to the restitution of signed the petition, Dr. A Harvard student draped in an Israeli flag debates with an anti- Palestinian refugee rights; Alsharif responded, Israel activist at Harvard Square in Cambridge, MA, on March 5. and dismantles its system Credit: The David Project of apartheid.”

“Based on principle, it’s a different story. There is nothing that is anti-Israel” in the It is that boycott that both Alsharif and Zand have boycott. “I would not be comfortable to do this by endorsed. phone, but I’d be happy to talk to you after I get back But while the PACBI is extending its reach, the Israel from a trip out of the country,” Alsharif offered.

Consulate is bringing three filmmakers to university camWhen pushed to set a meeting before he left, however puses this month in honor of International Women’s he declined, insisting that the conversation was “off the Month: Ibtisam Mara’ana and two Jewish Israelis. The record,” even though the purpose of the call to both tour opens with the award winning documentary filmAlsharif and Zand and the identification of this writer maker Mara’ana showing her new film Lady Kul Eland newspaper was stated up front. A series of e-mails Arab. Her work “advances women and speaks to the has not yet provided an answer from Alsharif to the relationships of women within Palestinian-Arab society.”

She has lectured widely in Israel in a variety of settings.

Press’ only question: “Why did you sign the petition?”

“I probably have more Jewish friends than A Palestinian-Israeli citizen, she graduated from the Palestinians,” he offered, noting that he serves on the school of cinema and television at the Jewish-Arab acaTri-Faith Initiative, founded by Temple Israel, the demic center of Givat Haviva.

But according to the PACBI, she would not be Episcopal Diocese of Nebraska and the American Institute of Islamic Studies and Culture, of which allowed to lecture at U.S. universities.

In addition to boycotts, the PACBI is involved with Alsharif is secretary. As to the scholars who might be affected by the boycott, Alsharif said, “I think you have anti-Israel divestment campaigns. In recent years, these have sprung up at Columbia University, the University to look at each individual.”

But the PACBI petition does not distinguish between of Wisconsin, Haverford College, Macalaster College, Muslim, Christian or Jewish Israelis, so the goals of the the University of Rochester and Hampshire College organizers would mean that Israeli Arabs would be pro- (whose board made it the first college in the United hibited from lecturing at American institutions of higher States to actually divest from Israel).

The campaigns are aimed at pushing universities to sell learning as well.

When Rabbi Aryeh Azriel, spiritual leader of Temple stock in companies that do business with Israel, from Israel, learned that Alsharif had signed the boycott peti- Caterpillar, General Electric, Motorola and ITT among tion, he told the Jewish Press, “It pains me to see the sig- others, which employ hundreds of American workers.

In an article at FrontPageMagazine.com, noted nature of my friend on the PACBI boycott statement.

Our ongoing academic and cultural conversations are of lawyer and author Alan Dershowitz stated, “The divestthe essence at this time of turmoil in the Middle East. ment campaign applies to Israel and Israel alone.

Full honest and sincere exchange between all parties is Hampshire will continue to deal with companies that what that region really thirsts for.” supply Iran, Saudi Arabia, China, Cuba, North Korea, Rabbi Azriel, who just returned from a two-week visit Zimbabwe, Libya, Syria, Sudan, Belarus and other bruto Israel, added, “Hearing the debate and witnessing the tal dictatorships around the world that routinely murder serious divide among the Israelis on the political, territo- civilians, torture and imprison dissenters, deny educarial agenda, only increased my desire to continue invest- tional opportunities to women, imprison gays and ing more of my energies to create more intense relation- repress speech. Indeed many of those who support ships with the Muslim community here in Omaha.” divestiture against Israel actively support these repressive But, he said, “I will continue sitting next to Alsharif on regimes. This divestment campaign has absolutely noththe Tri-Faith board.” ing to do with human rights. It is motivated purely by The Press attempted to reach Prof. Zand at UNO hatred for the Jewish state.” multiple times by e-mail and phone, to no avail.

On the other hand, more than 2,400 academics Dr. Guy Matalon, who also teaches at UNO and has been around the world have signed a “No to Anti-Israel named the director of the new Schwalb Center for Israel Boycott Calls” at www.PetitionOnline.com. and Jewish Studies, stated that he does not know him.

“Israel is a country that respects freedom of expression When asked what the affect on the new Schwalb Center in academia and in society,” Potash added. “Singling would be should a boycott ever be ratified by America’s Israel out, versus countries that don’t honor freedom of universities, Matalon, director of the Federation’s Center speech, expression and academic freedom, let alone who for Jewish Education, said, “The Center will provide are known to systematically abuse human rights, demoninformation for both the campus and the Omaha com- strates how narrow this group’s interests are. In addition, munity to learn about the issues from a serious academic this boycott also alienates Israeli academicians who are known for being outspoken critics of Israel. And it disperspective, rather than slogans and agendas.”

“Boycotts typically are not effective as well as they tend counts the medical, creative and scientific achievements to alienate future relationships,” said Alan Potash, execu- made by Israeli institutions that benefit the entire world.”

In fact, the ADL has produced a new resource for stutive director of the Plains States Region of the AntiDefamation League. “If anti-Israel divestment and boycott dents, “Fighting Back: A Handbook for Responding to activists were truly interested in aiding Palestinians and Anti-Israel Rallies on College and University promoting Israeli-Palestinian reconciliation, they would Campuses.” It can be downloaded from ADL’s website advocate constructive initiatives between Israelis, at www.adl.org and is being distributed in print Palestinians and others. Unfortunately, most of these through its 30 regional offices (including Omaha), activists ignore such initiatives, and focus solely on bashing through Hillel and other student groups. For more information, call 330.1303.

Israel and promoting punitive actions against the state.”

March 13, 2009

Synagogue hails Dutch lawmaker

Continued from page 1 of Sharon said he wanted to judge for Bjorn Larsen, whose International Free himself whether Wilders is xenophobic, Press Society arranged Wilders’ U.S. tour, and said afterwards that Wilders had not said the Dutch politician was invited per- crossed the line. sonally by the rabbi at Ahavath Torah, “The unfortunate reality is that a lot of Jonathan Hausman. troubling passages in the Koran are being Hausman would not speak on the embraced by militant ideology,” Warren record to JTA about the event. said.

Security was tight in Stoughton, with Louise Cohen of Brookline described bags being checked Wilders as a hero and and guards for a man of courage.

Wilders. After a “What’s disturbing to showing of “Fitna,” me is that no one has Wilders said the said that there is anyKoran is being used thing in his movie as a justification for that is false,” she said. “hatred, terrorism While unaware of and violence against Wilders’ call to ban the world,” and he the Koran, Cohen outlined how he said his film makes a believes the rise of In a still from Fitna, a film produced by Dutch case that the Koran is Islam in Europe is Parliament member Geert Wilders, an a hate document. threatening the tra- Islamic man is shown speaking about the reli- That view troubles ditional Judeo- gion’s thirst for power.

Ron Newman, who Christian values of the West. said Wilders took certain verses from the A staunch supporter of Israel who once Koran that appeared to promote violence lived on a moshav, Wilders also pro- and used them to generalize about all of claimed solidarity with the Jewish state.

Islam.

Israel “is receiving the blows for all Saying that a similar approach could be freedom-loving people,” he said. “We are used with portions of the Torah, all Israel. We have to defend our free- Newman cautioned that the line of readom.” soning could be used to produce an antiWilders noted that while he was banned Semitic film. from the United Kingdom despite being “I don’t like that being done to us,” he a member of the Dutch parliament and said. “I don’t support people who do that carrying an E.U. passport, the head of to others.”

Hezbollah was allowed to enter the counNonetheless, as a staunch supporter of try. free speech, Newman said the attempt to “This is Europe today,” he said. squelch Wilders’ film and the refusal to There were no protests at Wilders’ allow him into Great Britain is a travesty. speech -- there was little advance publicity -- and many in the crowd were sympaStaff writer Eric Fingerhut in thetic to his arguments. Andrew Warren Washington contributed to this report.

The Rabbi Sidney H. Brooks Lecture “Entering a dialogue: Dynamics of conflict management in the Israeli society” presented by

Ran Kuttner, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Werner Institute for Negotiation and Dispute Resolution Creighton University

Tuesday, 24 March 2009 7:00 p.m.

William H. Thompson Alumni Center Bootstrapper Hall Public Welcome

Sponsored by UNO Religious Studies Program, Temple Israel and College of Arts and Sciences The University of Nebraska is an affirmative action/equal opportunity institution

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 3

Temple Israel and JCC to net baskets for Nothing but Nets and youth athletics

by CLAUDIA SHERMAN Temple Israel Communications Coordinator Temple Israel and the Jewish Community Center are teaming up on Sunday, April 19, for the Eddie Belgrade Memorial 3-on-3 Basketball Challenge which will be played at the JCC. This is the first time Temple and the JCC have co-sponsored the event which normally draws 50 teams.

All proceeds from the competition will be evenly split between Nothing but Nets, one of Temple’s Social Justice projects, and JCC youth athletics. Mimi Silverman, Temple Israel 3-on-3 chair, has been working with Michael Siegel, JCC 3-on-3 chair, for months to tweak the tournament just enough to include Nothing but Nets, one of the projects on the Temple God’s To Do List which was introduced to the congregation during the High Holidays last fall.

Rabbi Marla Feldman, director of the Commission on Social Action of Reform Judaism, explained that “Nothing But Nets allows parents and grandparents to teach their children the importance of saving a life by giving the gift of life ... a gift that will markedly improve the living conditions of a family of Sudanese refugees.”

The nets have been proven to protect entire families by reducing transmission of the disease by as much as 90 percent.

Offering a wide variety of athletic programs for children in kindergarten through high school, JCC programs are geared for kids to help keep them active, learn the fundamentals of sports, and above all else, have fun. Professional staff are dedicated to the proper development of youth and know that all kinds of sports

play a significant role in building selfesteem and confidence.

A donation of $250 will provide netting for an entire family. To net a village costs $500; $750 will cover a tribe, and $1000 will protect an entire community from malaria. Donations over $500 can also include the sponsorship of a team. Team sponsorships can be donated; Temple will provide a team in need of a sponsor, or the sponsors can play in the tournament themselves.

Each team will consist of up to five players. Games will be played to 35 points or a 20-minute time limit. If a team has not scored 35 by the 20-minute mark, the team that is in the lead is the winner. If there is a tie game, it will go into sudden death overtime. There is a maximum of 54 teams.

Teams will play a minimum of four pool play games. Following pool play, all teams will advance to a single elimination tournament.

JCC membership is not required to participate on a team. Team registration fee prior to April 1 is $150. After that, the fee is $175. The deadline is April 12.

Individuals who are not on a team but would like to play can contact Tom Krehbiel, JCC Athletic Director at 334.6424.

Teams can register by contacting JCC Registration Associate Cindy Reed at creed@jccomaha.org or at 334.6419 or in person at the Member Services Desk.

Adult competition begins at 9 a.m.

Youth division teams will be determined by grade level starting with third graders.

There is also an open division for the most competitive players who must be at least 16. Youth teams will play at 12:30 p.m.

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

March 13, 2009

Abraham’s Tent

Continued from page 1 encouragement that inspired me to start on the path to scholarship that I have found so rewarding,� she said.

Katharine Jefferts Schori was raised in the Roman Catholic Church until she was eight when her parents brought her into the Episcopal Church. She is now the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States and is the first woman elected primate in the Anglican Communion.

After earning a BS in biology from Stanford University in 1974, Bishop Jefferts Schori was awarded both a Masters in 1977 and Ph.D. in 1983 in oceanography from Oregon State University. In 1994, she earned a Master of Divinity and was ordained a priest. As the assistant rector at the Church of the Good Samaritan, Corvallis, Oregon, Bishop Jefferts Schori was responsible for pastoring the Hispanic community. In 2001, she was consecrated Bishop of Nevada. She is also an instrument-rated and third-generation pilot.

After meeting in General Convention in 2006, the Episcopal Church elected Jefferts Schori to serve a nineyear term as Presiding Bishop. Although her election indicated widespread support in the Episcopal Church for ordaining women, the Diocese of Fort Worth and several other conservative dioceses affiliated with the Anglican Communion Network asked the Archbishop of Canterbury for “alternative primatial oversight� which is equivalent to alternative Episcopal oversight.

At a news conference in 2006, the Bishop-elect indicated a willingness to work with conservatives. She has been traveling to various Episcopal dioceses including a visit to the Diocese of Puerto Rico which separated from the Episcopal Church of the United States in 1978.

Mark Pelavin, associate director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, will be the moderator of the discussion. An attorney, he is also the associate director of the Commission on Social Action of Reform Judaism, a social justice policy-making body relating ethical and spiritual principles of Judaism to current world challenges. He is a senior lobbyist in Washington, D.C. and a leading legislative strategist and is recognized for his expertise on issues concerning the separation of church and state.

To make a reservation, call Mark Pelavin 934.2955 or 888.934.9955 or visit www.trifaith.org. Cost for adults is $50. Patron tickets are $100. Table sponsorships, which include 10 tickets, are $1,000 each. There are a limited number of student tickets at $35.

Temple scholar to apply Jewish tradition, rabbinic text to modern reality people’s wanderings and through the

by CLAUDIA SHERMAN Temple Israel Communications Coordinator present, our tradition has been keenly In an article he wrote while in rabbiniaware of the plight of those who were cal school about the use of genetic engiconsidered ‘outsiders.’ Through inneering to cure genetic diseases, Rabbi depth text study (in English translaAaron Panken, Temple Israel’s scholar-intion with original texts available), we residence from March 20-22, examined will explore how Jewish tradition proscientific, ethical, and Jewish approaches vided guidance on welcoming to the question, “Shall We Counsel Germ strangers, embracing them as part of Cell Gene Therapy?� our community, and the various When Rabbi Panken, dean and vice means and strategies that have president for Strategic Initiatives at informed this priority throughout the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute ages and still speak to us today.� of Religion, gives the d’var Torah at “True Lies: Truth, Gossip, and the Shabbat services Friday, March 20, 7:30 Jewish-American Way� is the title of Rabbi Aaron Panken p.m., he will discuss “the ongoing debate Rabbi Panken’s concluding conversabetween scientific method and religious belief (which) tion on Sunday, March 22, 10 a.m., in the Milder continues to boil in American society. From classrooms Center. “Jewish law has always advocated respect and to capitals, from clinics to courtrooms, the conflict honor for other human beings,� he said. between these two divergent pathways to truth contin“At the same time, it is keenly aware that some very ues to offer new challenges to religious -- and especial- human verbal activities can harm others' reputations ly, Jewish -- Americans that require thought and and injure them in significant ways. During this session, action.� we will explore definitions of gossip and other harmful In his d’var Torah, “Science and Religion: Two modes of speech defined in Jewish law and reflect on: Uneasy Partners," Rabbi Panken will consider how a the spoken word, which even when speaking the truth,� modern Jew can synthesize a valid position that incor- he emphasized, “may be used for good or evil.� porates the wonders of science and religion together in Rabbi Panken’s residency at Temple, funded by the a partnership that provides a satisfying and thoughtful Hermene Zweiback Center for Lifelong Jewish coherence in an ever-changing world.�

Learning, is an opportunity for meaningful learning for “Since biblical times,� he pointed out, “throughout our the entire community.

Shalit family protests across from prime minister JERUSALEM (JTA) -- The parents of kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit are living in a protest tent set up across from the prime minister’s residence. Noam and Aviva Shalit say they will stay in the tent erected Sunday in Jerusalem until their son, captured in a cross-border raid in May 2006, is released or until Ehud Olmert’s term expires. Gilad Shalit is believed to be held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Olmert said that rallies calling on the government to do more to get Shalit released were “unhelpful.� “The prime minister mainly tells us what we can’t do, but we don’t see him doing anything that yields any kind of result,� Noam Shalit told Army Radio Sunday. “Our test of things is the outcome of actions, and under this test Gilad is still being held

by Hamas.� Across the street from the Shalit family's tent, relatives of terror victims set up their own tent to show Olmert that they were against releasing terrorists involved in attacks against Israelis in an exchange for Shalit. The photographs of 180 people, including children, killed by terrorCredit: Brian Hendler ists who had been released in past exchanges were posted in the tent.

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March 13, 2009

Beth El Cantor invites singers to lift their voices with synagogue’s choir

by GARY KATZ Library Administrator On Thursday, March 19, 1 p.m., the Dorothy Kaplan Book Discussion Group will discuss Studs Terkel’s book Hope Dies Last. Turning to a subject more elusive than those of his earlier oral histories (work, race, WWII, the American dream and so on), Terkel focuses here on hope as the universal loss of experience. Terkel worries that Americans are losing hope and consequently losing a collective call to social activism for which hope, he feels, is requisite.

Since the book progresses historically, its collective voice grows younger as the book advances toward the present. Copies are available for purchase.

On Thursday, May 21, the group will be reading the bestseller The Mascot by Mark Kurzem (no April meeting due to Passover). The book discussion group is open to everyone in the community and is encouraged to come.

In addition, please note that the Kripke Library has changed its hours to Monday 9 a.m.-7p.m. and Tuesdays through Friday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Call the library at 334.6462 for more information or contact gkatz@jewishomaha.org.

DEADLINE NOTICE Please send all articles, photos and ads to the Press by Thursdays, 9 a.m., for all regular issues. Call 334.6448.

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LOMIR REDN YIDDISH Yiddish brings us closer to our roots! Come join us every Thursday, 1-3 p.m., at the JCC. For information, call Anne Skolkin at 343.1638.

NATIONAL COUNCIL OF JEWISH WOMEN NCJW-Omaha Section will host a fundraiser at California Pizza Kitchen at 10317 Pacific on Saturday, March 28, when patrons can help NCJW by eating lunch, dinner or both at CPK. Just bring in the NCJW flier and 20% will be returned to the organization to support community service projects.

To obtain a flyer, contact Nikki Kirshenbaum at nrkirshe@cox.net.

Page 5

Kripke Library offers upcoming selections for discussion group

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YOUNG ENERGETIC SENIORS Join us Monday for a special musical journey with Steve Fowler. “All Aboard! Magic” fills the air as audiences of all ages embark on a lyrical journey featuring a Broadway Star. Since Fowler’s two-year run on Broadway as “Poppa” (the old steam engine) and the voice of “The Starlight Express” at the Gershwin Theater, he has engineered several musical tracks and has picked up a train of fans along the way.

Lunch is $7 and will begin at noon and the program will begin at 12:30 p.m. Come play bingo at 10 a.m.

Call Theresa for transportation at 330.4272. For information, call Maggie Conti at 334.6521.

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B’NAI B’RITH BREADBREAKERS Omaha’s newest shlicha Tamar Halevy, Israel’s representative to Omaha, will speak to Breadbreakers on Wednesday, March 18, noon, at Regency Lodge. She’s exciting, knowledgeable and very informative. An optional buffet lunch costs $13; beverage service only is $3.

Several choir members recently joined Cantor Schlossberg, right, for a spirited rehearsal: Lisa Lieb, left, Ben Shapiro, Steven Levy and Andy Greenberg.

Schlossberg said. To join the choir or to receive more information, contact the cantor at cantor@bethelomaha.org or at 492.8550, ext. 127.

“In the end,” she said, “the choir will hopefully have enough people in attendance on Shabbat -- perhaps different people on different days -- to really create a beautiful, musical, and spirited service rich in the voices of those in attendance.”

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the singing of Shabbat and holiday prayers. The choir will be an additional opportunity for participation.”

Rehearsals are held on Tuesdays, 7 p.m.; attendance at every practice is not required, Cantor

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by JILL BELMONT Beth El Publicity Coordinator Hoping to invigorate the musical aspect of religious services at Beth El, Cantor Beth Schlossberg is sending out the call to singers in the Jewish community to add their voices to the synagogue’s choir.

Whether young (at least B’nai Mitzvah age) or young at heart, everyone is invited to join the group, which would participate in both Shabbat and holiday services.

“There is so much more to the prayer experience than listening to a cantor daven from the bimah,” Cantor Schlossberg said. “We are a tradition steeped in the ideas of community support and action. By adding a choir to the congregation, we are allowing for a much greater sense of community and belonging. People can take ownership and feel as if they are making a contribution to the service by simply raising their voice in song and helping others to do the same. That feeling of accomplishment in prayer and life is very meaningful.”

Expressing enthusiasm about the new choir, Cantor Schlossberg said her vision for the group is “to create as participatory and welcoming an atmosphere in services as possible.” She stressed that her intention is not to make Shabbat services into a concert, but rather, “to allow congregants to help each other become more comfortable and involved in the service. I am hoping that by adding a choir to the melodies we already sing, we will be able to create a much more spirited and energetic service.”

The cantor added that knowledge of Hebrew is not required for choir members, nor is familiarity with the liturgy or the ability to read music; in addition, she will provide CDs and written materials, enabling members to practice at home.

“The beauty of a choir such as this is that there are no auditions to go through, no selection process,” she explained. “If you love to sing and think this would be a good match for you, all you have to do is show up. By providing music, CD's of individual parts, and transliterations, I am hoping to make the choir approachable to anyone who has a love for music and would like to give it a go.”

Rabbi Mordechai Levin said he looks forward to the choir expansion. “One of the things we are most proud of at Beth El is our participatory religious services,” he remarked. “Dozens of people read Torah and Haftarah, lead daily services, and join in

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

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Page 6

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

March 13, 2009

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IN THE NEWS Scholars around the world can now use an online finding aid to mine one of the nation’s largest archives chronicling the American Soviet Jewry movement, the American Jewish Historical Society (AJHS) has announced.

The organization of these archival materials -- some of them newly uncovered -- into the online tool will likely lead to new scholarly findings across such fields as history, human rights, and policy, AJHS leaders say.

“American Jewry’s uniting thread is its historical memory, and its tradition of archival research is a crucial factor in its survivability,” said Dr. Henry L. Feingold, one of the foremost scholars of U.S. Jewry and chair of the AJHS Academic Advisory Committee for the archive. “Researchers will discover that the successful campaign to gain freedom for Soviet Jewry can serve as a model for what can be done for threatened Jewries abroad.”

AJHS recently created the Archive of the American Soviet Jewry Movement to preserve the crucial work from the 1960s to the early 1990s by Americans of all faiths to obtain freedom for Jews in the former Soviet Union, who sought to practice their religion without state persecution or discrimination or to immigrate to Israel, the United States or elsewhere. The archive at AJHS is the largest repository of its kind in the United States, incorporating dozens of individual collections representing organizations and activists engaged in the movement across the country.

The records of the National Council on Soviet Jewry comprise the core of the archive that can now be searched online, the result of a two-year project funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities and several generous individuals. This component of the archive measures 227.5 linear feet and houses myriad materials, including hundreds of newly digitized audiotape recordings by refuseniks such as Anatoly (Natan) Sharansky, Ida Nudel and Andrei Sakharov and multiple Soviet Jewry movement posters, used by activists to convey despair and hope. These vibrant and memorable posters can be viewed online through DigiTool® at http://findingaids.cjh.org/?fnm=NCSJ&pnm=AJ HS#subIserIX. “Every time we make a portion of the archive accessible to scholars and the public, we help ensure the legacy of the Soviet Jewry movement itself,” said Kenneth J. Bialkin, AJHS chairman emeritus and founder of its Archive of the American Soviet Jewry Movement.

“Opening the National Conference papers to access for research is a key step in this extraordinary effort to capture one of the greatest collective achievements of Jews in America in the Cold War era.”

The National Council on Soviet Jewry, which exists today at NCSJ: Advocates on Behalf of Jews in Russia, Ukraine, the Baltic States and Eurasia, was the most influential organization created by American Jews to coordinate efforts on behalf of Soviet Jews. Since its inception in 1964, the National Conference on Soviet Jewry has promoted the right of Soviet Jews to emigrate by serving as a coordinating, policy-making agency, both in its efforts to influence U.S. foreign policy toward the former Soviet Union in its members’ support for refuseniks and their families.

AJHS continues to accept materials for the Archive of the American Soviet Jewry Movement. A Memory Bank was created to encourage anyone active in the movement to share their recollections. To learn more about the archive, participate in the Memory Bank, donate materials or download the finding aid, go to http://ajhs.org/ aasjm/.

Thousands of blind and visually impaired Nebraskans have depended on the Radio Talking Book Network (RTBN), a statewide radio reading service, since it began in 1974. There are many others who could benefit from it or know people who could. They all need to know that the method of how to receive RTBN has changed for many listeners.

For many years, RTBN partnered with NET Television to use the second audio program (SAP) on their television signal to broadcast Radio Talking Book services. Now that NET Television has switched to digital rather than analog broadcasting, that option is no longer available.

The National Council of Jewish Women-Omaha Section worked with RTB for many years; in 1985 NCJW volunteer Esther Simon was named RTB’s Volunteer of the Year, and in 1987, NCJW was honored

by RTB as its “Community Organization Award.”

John Fullerton, RTB executive director, explains that people who want to use the service will need special

radios which RTBN loans out free of charge on request.

“We’ve already sent out more than 500 of the new radios, and are looking to connect others who are interested and need the service.”

RTBN is a radio reading service for the blind, visually disabled and elderly in Nebraska and surrounding states. Twice a day the Omaha World-Herald and the Lincoln Journal Star are read live by volunteers. Other programs include regional newspapers, grocery and department store advertisements, financial news, health updates, sports, consumer information, short stories, mysteries and nostalgia radio.

Fullerton encouraged interested people to go to www.rtbs.org or to contact RTB directly at 800-7297826 (800-SAY-RTBN) or 402-572-3003 in Omaha.

Project Interfaith and the Rabbi Myer and Dorothy Kripke Center for the Study of Religion and Society present “A Community Conference on Faith and the Environment: Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Native American Ways of Approaching Environmental Issues” on Sunday, March 29, 1-5 p.m. (check-in begins at 12:30 p.m.) at the Harper Center Ballroom at Creighton University, located at 602 No. 20th St. (Free parking is available in the Visitors Lot adjacent to the Harper Center on 20th and California St.) Join us as we explore how different religions and belief systems view the environment and our role in it especially when it comes to caring for it. Hear from four proactive scholars who are active in environmental issues as they speak on how their beliefs have shaped their attitudes and actions towards the environment.

Put your beliefs into action by getting connected with local environmental initiatives at our information fair.

Participants also will have the opportunities throughout the conference to dialogue with each other about these issues. Light refreshment will be served.

Featured speakers include: Dr. Terry Wimberley: A Christian Perspective, Dr. Sandra Beth Lubarsky: A Jewish Perspective, Dr. Safei-Eldin A. Hamed: A Muslim Perspective, and Dr. Rudi Mitchell: A Native American Perspective.

This program is open to the public and offered at no charge. Pre-registration is strongly suggested as space is limited. To register, contact Fran Minear at the Kripke Center at 402.280-2303 or email fminear@creigh ton.edu. For more information, visit our blog at h t t p : / / s r v. e z i n e d i r e c t o r. n e t / ? n = 2 6 7 7 7 6 0 = 85341865 or call 402.933.4647.

Step up with family and community members on Saturday, May 2 for the inaugural Omaha Kidney Walk at Elmwood Park 802 South 60th Street in Omaha presented by the National Kidney Foundation Serving Nebraska. Registration begins at 9 a.m. and the walk begins at 10 a.m.

Walkers of all ages are invited to join in the fun by strolling, running, or wheeling their way past the finish line, individually or as part of a team. Prizes will be awarded to teams with the most walkers and walkers who secure the most contributions.

To register for the Omaha Kidney Walk, log on to www.kidneywalk.org or call the NFK serving Nebraska at 402.210.2436. There is no registration fee but $100 is the suggested pledge amount.

Tom Tomoser, formally the nations largest supplier of Torah parchments, is hosting a radio show with Andy Greenberg on Sunday mornings beginning in April on KFAB 1100 A.M. The show, “The 400,000 mile formula-intelligent car ownership, will run for 27 weeks and will feature insights on how to maintain automobiles so they will last for 400,000 miles.

“This is a much-needed concept for everyone in these tough economic times,” Tomoser explained. “I want to share my years of automotive expertise in this area so that listeners and readers of my 240+ page book, can eliminate car payments and reduce their insurance premiums.”

“I first met Tom through a project I did with Cantor Gaston Bogolmoni on the disaster recovery Cd ‘Waves of Hands’,” explained Andy Greenberg. “He impressed with his genuine spirit and desire to help others and I was honored when he asked me to be the shows announcer and moderator” The complete book can be downloaded or saved on a PC for $5 and is available on Lone Eagle Records.com.

For those that are interested, they can also download “Wave of Hands” for free, starting March 15.

March 13, 2009

Rabbi Azriel to share thoughts of Heschel at Theology Cafe

by CLAUDIA SHERMAN Temple Israel Communications Coordinator Abraham Joshua Heschel (1907-72), the great Jewish theologian, wrote in many languages including Yiddish, German, Polish, English, and Hebrew. He wrote books of essays, philosophy, biblical and historical analysis, and poetry. He also shared his wisdom with diverse audiences.

Rabbi Aryeh Azriel will share Heschelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s understanding of Jewish thought and his contribution to modern Jewish living while sipping coffee at the cafe at Barnes & Noble, 3333 Oak View Dr., on Thursdays, March 19, 26, and April 2, 7 p.m.

Rabbi Azriel welcomes all who are interested in studying the work of the 20th-century American Jewish philosopher to attend â&#x20AC;&#x153;Theology Cafe: Big Ideas in Jewish Thought,â&#x20AC;? which is sponsored by the Hermene Zweiback Center for Lifelong Jewish Learning.

Torah from Heaven, a translation of Heschelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Torah Min Hashamayim, has recently been made available in English. According to his daughter Susannah Heschel, who wrote the forward, the book is not â&#x20AC;&#x153;a conventional work of scholarship. Rather it was a â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;sefer,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; a work of religious inspiration that was intended not only for scholars of rabbinic Judaism but also for Jews seeking theological guidance. As typical of my father ... he sought to illuminate parallels in the theological and spiritual problems that faced Jews, Christians, Muslims, and all people of faith ... Commonalities on the level of what he called â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;depth theologyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; were important to him, not the doctrinal difference that set people of faith apart...he always told me that this was the book he hoped his readers would study the most thoroughly.â&#x20AC;?

In the relaxed setting of Theology Cafe, â&#x20AC;&#x153;We will uncover Rabbi Heschelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s understanding of Jewish thought and his contribution to Jewish living in the modern world by reading selected writings,â&#x20AC;? said Rabbi Azriel. â&#x20AC;&#x153;So many years after his death, I still find Heschel one of the most relevant theologians for our times.â&#x20AC;?

To register for Theology Cafe, contact Program Director Wendy Goldberg at wgoldberg@templeisraelomaha.com or at 556.6536.

"

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 7

ENGAGEMENT BLALOCK/ROGERS-MARCOVITZ Max Rogers-Marcovitz is enagaged to Tziporrah Blalock of Beitar Illit, Israel.

The bride-to-be works as a teacher in Beitar. She is the daughter of Serel Kreiger and Zion Blalock.

Her fiance is currently a student at Mir Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

He is the son of Mimi Rogers and Scott Farkas, and Michael Marcovitz of Tzfat, Israel.

Max and Tziporrah will be married this June in Israel.

The weather is always great in a Malibu Sunroom

by TERRI PETERSEN Are you tired of the long winters? Pesky bugs? Rain? Muggy air? Wind? How often do you really enjoy your patio or deck? Why not extend your indoor/outdoor activities in one of the most comfortable, picture-perfect environments available?

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While your comfort is the most important aspect of owning a sunroom, letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not forget how much value you are adding to your home when you improve it with additional living space. Adding glass is adding class!

With more than 1,000 satisfied local customers, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not sur-

prising that Malibu Sunrooms is Nebraskaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and Iowaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leading sunroom builder. Our products come from Patio Enclosures, Inc., the nationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest manufacturer of sunrooms.

With so many products to choose from, we are able to accommodate everyoneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s needs. From patio covers, to screen rooms, solariums, conservatories and year-round sunrooms, we have the ability to custom-design whatever your heart desires.

If you can dream it ... we can build it.

When you choose Malibu Sunrooms, we take care of all the details. Our professional staff will assist you in every aspect of your project. Since your home is typically your biggest investment, our products are designed for maximum comfort and have the Federal Governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Energy Star rating of approval.

And at Malibu Sunrooms, we believe that quality is not expensive, it is priceless!

Control weight with hypnosis

by DIANE ROHLFS Many overweight people who fail with diet programs turn to hypnosis as a safe and reliable alternative. For them dieting never eliminated the subconscious need for excess food. So they continuously go up and down the scale, never letting go of the desire for excess food.

For many, making major changes in eating habits usually turns out to be a temporary situation. Once the weight is achieved little by little there is a return to the old eating habits, weight goes back up and many times with additional weight gain.

Determining what causes the tendency to overeat is important in the process of changing thoughts and attitudes.

In addition to focusing on the subconscious desire for food, hypnosis also addresses emotional and stress issues that may be affecting eating habits. Overeating usually fills a need. Some people overeat to compensate for an unpleasant experience.

Others to reward themselves, to overcome boredom, deal with

frustration, lack of love, grief, and anger as well as many forms of stress to name a few.

Hypnosis is effective because suggestions made to the subconscious mind direct behaviors to change. As these changes take place, the processes of the body that eliminate fat are working and result in fat reduction and weight loss.

Working with a hypnotist will help create a state of awareness in which you learn to reduce stress, look at food differently, change eating habits and reduce cravings. Many people are beginning to see hypnosis as a lasting solution because it makes losing weight fun and easy.

You can become a lean, physically and emotionally healthy person.

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Grades 1 - 6 | A M s 3AT -ARCH ST Â&#x2021; )RUHLJQ ODQJXDJH WDXJKW LQ DOO JUDGHV Â&#x2021; VWXGHQW WR WHDFKHU UDWLR Â&#x2021; &ROOHJH FRXQVHOLQJ LQ JUDGHV ÂŁ Â&#x2021; RI JUDGXDWHV WUDGLWLRQDOO\ JR RQ WR FROOHJH Â&#x2021; 2YHU WKH ODVW \HDUV DSSUR[LPDWHO\ RI RXU JUDGXDWHV KDYH HDUQHG DFDGHPLF VFKRODUVKLSV Contact Julie Adams, Director of Admissions, at 556-3772 or juadams@brownell.edu for information.

Page 8

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

March 13, 2009

New Blumkin Home therapy suite: former synagogue is still a healing space

by OZZIE NOGG patients come to the Blumkin Home to another and when they see someone Now that construction is complete on recover from a fall, surgery, illness or make progress they’ll say, ‘Look how the new therapy suite at the Rose stroke.” good you’re doing.’ They’re like cheer Blumkin Jewish Home, the professional She added, “Getting them back home leaders.” staff is no longer delivering services to to lead independent lives is always our The residents care about the staff, as residents and short-term clients out of priority. Of course, we are equally con- well. “They ask us what we did over the temporary quarters in what was once the cerned about helping our long-term resi- weekend,” Judah said. “They want to Home’s small glass-walled auditorium. dents maintain -- or regain -- their prior know about our families. Originally I “During the renovation we gained a lot functional level.” planned to go into pediatrics, but I chose of space which allows us to better serve That goal is supported by two restora- to work with the elderly instead. They still the residents,” said physical therapist Jill tive aides who help residents with stretch- have so much to offer. I’ve been working Gregg. “We now offer much more equipment, plus an outdoor area to provide even more therapy options. I know the staff and our clients will really appreciate that.”

Speech therapist Abbie Van Vooren explained that previously, she sometimes had to work with patients in the open or in Blumkin hallways. “In our new suite, speech therapy will be one- Left photo: Members of the therapy team are, front Abbie VanVooren, speech-language therapist; Robin on-one, in private rooms. row: Kami Heiss, left, and Sherri Judah, occupation- Brace, PT Assistant; right photo: restorative nursing That change will be a huge al therapists; back row: Jill Gregg, physical therapist; assistant, Sam Hein guides Blumkin Home residents benefit, because many Kayla Hodgson and Ashley Hedden, restorative aides; Selma and Jim Shamberg. patients will feel more comfortable work- ing, balance, ambulation and the use of with the elderly for over 20 years, and I ing on cognitive deficits in a one-on-one various equipment such as NuStep, a learn so much from them.” environment.” recumbent stepper designed to provide a Van Vooren and occupational therapist The therapy suite includes both a work- cardiovascular workout along with arm Kami Heiss, both new brides, have ing kitchen and a bathroom with shower and leg strengthening. Whether long- received a wealth of wisdom from and tub. According to occupational ther- term or short-stay, the Blumkin Home Blumkin residents. “They give us advice apist Sherri Judah, “These residentially therapy patients are a tight knit group. on how to have a long-lasting marriage,” designed spaces will help us prepare our “They care about one another,” said said Heiss. “They share their favorite short-term stay patients to go home and Gregg. “Some were childhood friends, so recipes. These men and women could be safely perform their daily tasks -- such as we hear lots of stories about how they my grandparents. You grow attached after cooking, bathing, dressing, handling rode the streetcar together or went to the working with them,” medications and money. Our short-term same high school. They encourage one The therapy staff considers itself a team,

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with physical, occupational and speech equally important to patient success. “We use a holistic approach,” Judah said.

“This is the resident. This is what he or she needs. Then we all work together to get the maximum results.”

This team approach was an eye-opener for Ashley Hedden, a Creighton University student who spent 10 weeks this past summer as an intern in the RBJH therapy department. “As a student it’s refreshing to see how the three disciplines work so well together,” she said. “I was surprised and impressed with the relationships between the therapists and the residents. You hear so many stories about how people are treated badly in nursing homes, but at the Blumkin Home I saw how well they were treated. Here, there’s a real strong personal connection.”

The new suite is part of the recently completed Phase Three of the Home’s New Beginning. The suite occupies the area that once housed the synagogue -the stained glass Magen David is still a focal point -- the space is filled with light that streams in through a glass block wall, augmented by large banks of ceiling fixtures. A floor-to-ceiling color photo of a forest covers the entire east end, allowing rehab patients to imagine they’re limbering up outside, among cherry blossoms.

“The entire staff is thrilled with the enhanced space and new equipment,” Gregg said. “We look forward to providing the best continuum of care. Whatever we do to help them regain strength, relearn skills or improve their general level of functioning is a step in the right direction.”

March 13, 2009

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 9

How to erase carbon footprints in Israel

comply with new carbon dioxide emissions standards. Through carbon trading, polluting entities such as governments, factories and power plants from developed countries offset the environmental damage they cause by buying carbon credits from an array of greenhouse gas reduction projects in non-developed countries.

This has opened a door of opportunity for Israel and other countries defined as non-developed by Kyoto. It’s how, for example, the decomposition of organic waste being captured and transformed into thermal energy at the Hirya landfill just outside Israel’s main airport is being sold to France’s national electric company as a carbon offset.

Adi Dishon, the co-founder of EcoTraders www.ecotraders-global. com/, the largest carbon trading company in Israel, brokered that and many other such deals in the country.

“When we started out five years ago it was very difficult,” Dishon told JTA. “There was not much awareness of climate change in general. But now the global awareness is huge, and anyone who does business in Europe or the United States understands you cannot sell Schoolchildren in the Negev operate a generator run on human products without pedaling in a project run by the Good Energy Initiative. addressing the issue of Credit: The Good Energy Initiative climate change or “It’s hard to be first, and a challenge, energy efficiency.”

Israeli companies now realize it’s a but we believe in what we do,” said Eyal Biger, founder of the Good Energy “double bonus” to become more energy Initiative www.goodenergy.org.il/, the efficient, she said. They are weaning country’s first and only voluntary carbon themselves off coal, Israel’s major energy offsetting organization. source, because it reduces their own costs The notion of reducing one’s carbon while providing the added revenue source footprint has become a buzzword in the of being able to sell carbon credits United States and Europe, but only abroad. recently has it begun to gain currency in Elysium www.elysiumcarbon.com/ Israel. israel. html, which also deals in carbon Last November, the Good Energy trading, was the first to create “the first Initiative managed some of the carbon Hebrew carbon meter www. elysiumcaroffsetting for the estimated 750 tons of bon.com/home.html,”which calculates carbon emissions produced by the thou- carbon footprints for Israeli individuals, sands of people who attended the United companies and local governments.

Noam Gressel, Elysium’s managing Jewish Communities General Assembly in Jerusalem. To offset the emissions, caused partner, says Israel can be especially comby such uses as air travel, the Good Energy petitive in the carbon offsetting market Initiative subsidized the purchase of solar because it is emerging as a clean technolwater heaters and energy-efficient light ogy hub where local industries can tap into wind, solar and bio-fuel technologies bulbs for disadvantaged Israeli families.

“We see the mechanism of carbon off- being pioneered in the Jewish state.

One of Elysium’s projects is a large cofsetting as a way to introduce, enhance and support social projects on environ- fee factory in the northern town of Safed. mental issues like energy and air pollution The factory burns the waste from its cofbecause we believe social and environ- fee production to create its own steam to mental integrity are two sides of the same replace the polluting heavy fuels it once used. Installing the biomass burner to coin,” Biger said.

In Israel, as in the rest of the world, help create the steam was not cheap, there are two avenues for carbon offset- Gressel said, “but adding the revenue of ting. One is the voluntary route being carbon credits tips the scale and makes it pioneered here by Biger’s organization. that much more profitable.”

Beyond the carbon credits being traded Among other projects, the group helps Diaspora Jewish organizations offset their commercially, credits are also being tradcarbon emissions by investing in Israeli ed on the volunteer market. EcoTraders had been planning to auction voluntary energy-saving projects.

The other avenue is the commercial units from Israel in Europe, but anger in side, which taps into the new multimil- Europe over Israel’s recent operation in lion-dollar-a-year business of carbon trad- Gaza prompted the company to postpone the event. ing.

This, and the nature of carbon trading The handful of Israeli companies that deal in carbon offset trading were estab- itself, underscores the interconnectedness lished in the wake of the Kyoto climate of the world. As the Good Energy Initiative’s Biger put it when speaking treaty, which took effect in 2005.

The treaty assigned different responsi- about how emissions in one corner of the bilities to developed and non-developed globe can be neutralized anywhere else, countries. Developed countries agreed to “Our atmosphere is shared.”

by DINA KRAFT TEL AVIV (JTA) -- Out of a towering mountain of waste near Ben Gurion Airport, methane gas is being captured to create thermal energy for a nearby factory.

In the Negev Desert, solar panels are on loan to Bedouin villages that don’t have electricity, allowing the residents to run refrigerators needed to store medicine for ill children.

These are two of a small but growing wave of Israeli projects to help reduce the country’s carbon footprint by curbing carbon dioxide emissions -- part of the global battle to arrest climate change.

Along the way, the projects are helping bolster Israel’s energy independence by promoting energy efficiency and homegrown clean technologies.

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The special topic of the day (or should I say issue) is Home and Garden. Well, after the kind of winter Omaha suffered, and everyone wishing spring would hurry, I’ll let you think about the garden part and instead, address “Home.” What’s to say? Let’s see if I can convince you -- there’s plenty!

First of all, I wish somebody would explain to me this question: How is it that frequently the first home a family has is very small, barely accommodating the clan, and years later, when the kids have grown and flown, Mom and Dad are roaming around in 2500 square feet of living space? Does that not sound familiar?

Well, I don’t know about your family, but it’s a true story in mine. When the kids were small and everybody was jealously guarding their space, we lived in our first house, which boasted 1360 square feet. Three bedrooms, which made it convenient for dividing into the “girls’ room and the boys’ room”. We were very proud of the one and a half bathrooms, although there was often some door-banging, accompanied by shouts of “hurry up!” ,This required courtesy and patience, neither of which any of my children recognized.

Of course we managed, while dreaming of maybe just one more full bathroom. After a few years, the “rough plumbing” in the basement was converted into a very unglamourous but extremely useful place to shower and for other necessities. Oh boy, was that a pleasure!

Another big help came as the kids were growing toward teens when their dad decided it was time to finish what was called “a rec room” in the basement. That added a great big room, complete with a barbecue grill we could use even in the winter(!). Also, a fourth bedroom was created and things began to loosen up a bit in the crowded conditions.

An interesting sidebar to all this should include the fact that the new bedroom made room for what was then called “a schoolgirl”. This was usually a girl from some small town someplace in Nebraska or Iowa, who wanted to come to Omaha to go to a trade or business school.

It was a marvelous arrangement for us, the moms of the babyboomers. We gave room and board and in exchange they babysat, did dinner dishes and small chores like maybe ironing. Oh yes, in addition to the room and board, we gave them $5 every week! Yes, every week five bucks! Young moms today are incredulous when they hear about these girls, but they truly existed!

Oh yeah -- we may have been squeezed tightly around

the dinner table, but I felt like a queen when dinner was finished and I could take my coffee (and cigarette!) into the living room, knowing the dishes were being done and the kitchen would soon be in order.

But, as the philosopher said, the old order changeth, the kids grew up and Ma and Pa Kettle decided to sell the house we all grew up in. So here’s where the dilemma comes in: we now live, the two of us, in about 2500 square feet of space, which includes a huge living room we seldom walk into and a bedroom used for visitors and/or office space. We eat dinner on one end of the dining room table, not disturbing the other half, and after dinner settle down in a modestly sized den. It’s where the tv is and the reading lamps, and if you want to know the truth, it’s where we really live.

It’s where my roommate goes to his comfortable chair, in which he reads, sleeps, watches tv, sleeps, you know?

It’s where our bookcases are, hence where the reading matter is found. So where else would we be? True, sometimes I’m at the computer, or less often, in the bedroom watching something on tv that isn’t baseball or some other sport being enjoyed in the den, but that’s ok. By now we each know where to find the other one.

So ok, do you see where I was headed at the start of this? Who thought up this ridiculous arrangement where six people are stuffed into a small space and then later, two of the original six find themselves living where somebody is invariably saying “didn’t you hear me yelling to answer the phone?” Of course not, because chances are better than Vegas gives you, neither one of you hears well anymore! Add that one to all this luxurious space and you can see the questions that start out with “how come?”

Home and garden -- that’s what we started with. And mostly, all of the above is just having fun with some of life's little perversities. It’s just the way it is. When we first moved into our little house, we were thrilled to have it, and furthermore, it didn’t hurt any of us one bit to be crowded into our own space, small though it was.

And today, things are exactly as they should be. My kids are all responsible adults, dealing with their own space, living where they choose to live. None of them are crowded. In fact, I’ve heard one say, “when Jacob goes off to college, this place is going to be way too big for us.” Of course that branch of the family started out in a very modest house too, but it strikes me as funny they can already be thinking of possible down-sizing. Oy, that’s the youngest of the clan too!

And so it goes. I’m grateful that odd though it may be, things are just the way I like them.

Now that I’ve got all that off my mind, I can start thinking about what I want planted in the patio pots pretty soon ... and I do hope it’s very soon!

Bert Lewis can be reached at BertLewis39@aol.com.

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Championship fiddler, Deborah Greenblatt, shares some of the repeatable stories, in song, verse, and prose, about living in The Old Schoolhouse in this charming Cass County village. Stories include “The Old Gym Floor.” “When the Superintendent Wasn’t In,” “Avoca Polka,” “Play Harmony,” “The Quack-Off,” and “Rolling Pencils Down the Floor.”

The concert -- scheduled for Sunday, April 12, 2:30 p.m., will be followed by light refreshments. Avoca is in southern Cass County, on the 13 C Spur, one mile south of Highway 34.

Admission is $5 for adults, and $1 for children and students. Greenblatt and her husband, David Seay, were featured in last month’s issue of International Musician, the official journal for musicians in the U.S. For more information, call 402.275.3221, or e-mail them at g-s@alltel.net.

Carmelita International Entertainment Music Production, Inc. announced a concert on April 16 at the Holland Performing Arts Center.

The performance entitled “Watch What Happens: When Omaha Meets New York City!” will feature live performances from well-known musicians Paul Serrato and Co., Michael Murphy, The Classical Strings Quartet and Omaha’s Queen of International Cabaret, Carmelita de la Guardia.

The artists will bring their unique blend of musical styles together for one night to raise money for the Dystonia Medical Research Foundation and increase awareness of Dystonia in Omaha.

Dystonia is a movement disorder that forces muscles in the body to contract or spasm involuntarily, causing

twisting, repetitive and patterned movements, as well as abnormal postures. Dystonia prevents people from experiencing the freedom to do simple things like getting out of bed, putting on clothes, or even hugging a loved one.

There is currently no cure for Dystonia which afflicts nearly 300,000 people in North America. Often misunderstood by the public and misdiagnosed by physicians, Dystonia has silently become the third most common movement disorder after Parkinson’s disease and Tremors.

The impact of Dystonia on Ashkenazi Jews is also significant. Tens of thousands of these families in North America are besieged by this genetic disorder that disables children and skips generations only to recur again and devastate the same families. Less than one percent of the overall population are carriers of the DYT1 Dystonia mutation; among Ashkenazi Jews, the frequency is three to five times higher.

Carmelita de la Guardia said, “My sister suffers from Dystonia, this debilitating movement disorder of which there currently is no cure. Our goal is to raise $25,000 to support the Dystonia Medical Research Foundation’s mission of finding a cure and supporting the families that are impacted by this debilitating disorder.”

The Dystonia Medical Research Foundation founded in 1976, (DMRF) is a 501(c)3 organization dedicated to serving all people with Dystonia and their families. The DMRF organization is led by a board of directors and network of volunteers with personal connections to Dystonia.

Tickets are $35 and can be purchased online at www.

TicketOmaha.org, charge-by-phone 402.345.0606 or Ticket Omaha box office, 13th and Douglas.

March 13, 2009

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 11

Authors inspire interfaith audience at Temple Israel

by CLAUDIA SHERMAN Temple Israel Communications Coordinator Temple Israelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sanctuary was filled with Jews, Christians, and Muslims one Thursday last month. They had come to hear the story of three mothers, a Muslim, a Christian, and a Jew, who shared the story of their search for understanding that started after 9/11.

Chair of Omahaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Tri-Faith Initiative Board, Bob Freeman, started by briefly describing the past two and a half years of developing a partnership among members of Temple Israel, the Episcopal Diocese of Nebraska, and the American Institute of Islamic Studies and Culture.

As bridges of understanding and respect have been built, individuals have learned more about their own faiths, he pointed out.

Ranya Idliby, the Muslim member of The Faith Club, applauded Omahaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s TriFaith efforts. She went on to acknowledge that â&#x20AC;&#x153;after the first two or three meetings,â&#x20AC;? she and her co-authors, â&#x20AC;&#x153;were all up to our eyeballs in differences.â&#x20AC;? The first conflict was between the Jewish and Christian mothers, â&#x20AC;&#x153;and I was the mediator,â&#x20AC;? Idliby said. Priscilla Warner, the Jewish mother, admitted that she had a stereotype vision of Suzanne (Oliver, the Christian woman) and Idliby. Warner also confessed that she had â&#x20AC;&#x153;a selfish and immature vision of God.â&#x20AC;?

Oliver, an Episcopalian who converted from Catholicism, thought she was â&#x20AC;&#x153;in the best religion.â&#x20AC;?

When Warner asked her Christian counterpart â&#x20AC;&#x153;to leave out the crucifixionâ&#x20AC;? when describing Christianity, because it made Warner feel uncomfortable, Oliver said she couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t do that.

Oliver came to realize that conversations with the other two women helped

her better understand her own religion. appreciation for both the Muslim and She invited Idliby to Easter services. As Christian faiths. As we participate in conOliver listened to the attitudes described versations regarding our differences, it in the scripture through Idlibyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s perspec- becomes clear that we can celebrate our tive, the Christian woman felt uncomfort- similarities.â&#x20AC;?

Nancy Hornstein, also a member of able.

The three discussed suffering and pain. Temple, found the presentation â&#x20AC;&#x153;enlightWarner said that the crater in the ground ening. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve read their book and felt the left after 9/11, represented â&#x20AC;&#x153;a dark evil meeting with them was educational. I holeâ&#x20AC;? to her. But to Oliver, the aftermath enjoyed having all these people from all of 9/11 symbolized â&#x20AC;&#x153;the flowing of different walks of life together.â&#x20AC;? love.â&#x20AC;? Idliby reminded the others that events like 9/11 are â&#x20AC;&#x153;happening all over the world.â&#x20AC;?

They all realized that no one has a monopoly on suffering.

Warner described how she had an awakening while flying. She was brought to tears as she looked out the window of the aircraft and saw the beauty of a sunset. Suzanne Oliver, left, Ranya Idliby, and Priscilla Warner shared â&#x20AC;&#x153;I was humbled,â&#x20AC;? she their story of self-discovery and mutual understanding when they explained. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s spoke at Temple Israel in February. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was so inspiring to know that this something bigger than me.â&#x20AC;? She added that â&#x20AC;&#x153;things have extraordinarily changed book is starting conversations all over the for me. This (Faith Cub) experience has U.S.,â&#x20AC;? added Angela Quadar, who grew up within a Mennonite church in rural given me faith.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have asked the tough questions,â&#x20AC;? Ohio and converted to Islam after meetadded Idliby leading her to believe that ing her husband, a Muslim who grew up â&#x20AC;&#x153;diversity is Godâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s intended design.â&#x20AC;? She in India. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m so passionate about this cause,â&#x20AC;? hopes that â&#x20AC;&#x153;someday, our children will be able to speak of the great Judeo- Quadar said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I feel that it is only through Christian-Muslim tradition in our coun- these non-threatening events that people will become more and more aware of our try.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have a mission,â&#x20AC;? remarked Oliver, similarities than continue to focus on our differences. The authorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; dialogue made â&#x20AC;&#x153;to learn from each other.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was a great learning opportunity,â&#x20AC;? me feel like I was in their living room responded Temple member Andi drinking Chai with them as they were Willensky after the authors spoke. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I exploring their thoughts and feelings gained a deeper knowledge and a greater with each other. I like how each of them

have grown in their own respective faiths as their dialogue progressed. There was no watering down of their beliefs which I think is crucial to interfaith dialogue.â&#x20AC;?

Asra Haq, a Muslim, who came from Lawrence, Kansas, mentioned, â&#x20AC;&#x153;We started a grassroots interfaith, communitywide organization in Lawrence and kicked it off with â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;The Faith Clubâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; authors. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve shared our religion via education and have gone through some of the same difficultiesâ&#x20AC;? as Idliby, Oliver, and Warner.

As the liaison with the authors, Haq said she has formed a great bond with them. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I believe in hope. My children are more at ease with other faiths.â&#x20AC;?

Dru Sampson, an Episcopalian who traveled from Lawrence with Haq to hear The Faith Club authors, said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;These three women were in Lawrence in April last year. We came to Omaha today to â&#x20AC;&#x153;reconnect, be reinspired, and see where their journey has taken them.â&#x20AC;? She believes the authorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; commitment â&#x20AC;&#x153;is much greater than it wasâ&#x20AC;? in April. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They are more comfortable and open with who they are individually and who they are together. They have a vision of people coming together at a grassroots level that can change the world.â&#x20AC;?

A member of the Tri-Faith Initiative Board of Directors and All Saints Episcopal Church, Pam Hernandez is also a member of a faith club. She read The Faith Club a few years ago. At their presentation at Temple, â&#x20AC;&#x153;the authorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; honesty, passion, and personalities really came to life, and now Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m re-reading the book with my highlighter in hand. Every page has something that makes me think.

The more I get involved in Tri-Faith activities, the more I learn about my own faith.â&#x20AC;?

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Page 12

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

March 13, 2009

Turning a boycott on its head Last century, the boycott against the Republic of South Africa was successful because it isolated the RSA into a “pariah” state. Unfortunately, there are misguided individuals (and serious Israel bashers) who are attempting to do the same thing to Israel.

But the situations couldn’t be more different.

In South Africa’s case, a white minority ruled the black majority. Blacks had no voice and no vote. They were shoved into slums, given no educational opportunities to advance themselves and their children, and rarely found anything but the most menial jobs.

Led by the imprisoned leader Nelson Mandela, South Africa could no longer fight international opinion. A state of emergency was lifted in 1990 by President F.W. de Klerk, after which the African National Congress came to power. Though still troubled by racial strife and a fast rising incidence of HIV-AIDS, the country is a still new to sharing power. By the way, Jewish activist and parliamentarian Helen Suzman, who died earlier this year, lobbied her fellow activists against the boycott, saying it would do more harm than good and delay South Africa’s turn towards democracy.

While Jews are the majority in Israel, not only have Arabs (whether Christian or Muslim) had the ability to vote since the inception of the state 60 years ago, Israeli Arabs have created political parties and elected members to the Knesset, Israel’s parliament.

Arabs are on staff at all of Israel’s universities and practice medicine at all of Israel’s hospitals. They run newspapers that can (and do) criticize Israel, and worship where and when they please. They have more rights in Israel than in nearby Arab countries!

So just what do supporters of an academic and cultural boycott hope to achieve?

If it’s to keep Israeli scholars (Muslim, Christian and Jewish) from teaching at American colleges and universities, it flies in the face of academic freedom. If it’s only to keep out Jewish Israelis, then of course it’s simply anti-Semitism, in disguise.

So, we ask of the endorsers: if Leonard Greenspoon, Holder of the Klutznick Chair in Jewish Civilization at Creighton University, were to sponsor a symposium that called for papers from members of the three “Abrahamic” faiths and some Israelis submitted inspiring proposals, would the boycott supporters bar them at the door?

What about cultural groups?

The Federation’s Partnership with Israel brought a number of musicians, actors and artists from the Western Galilee last year in a series of performing arts events. One of those groups was the Acco Women’s Theater, composed of Jewish, Muslim and Christian actors. Would boycott supporters prevent them from appearing as well?

If the answer is ‘yes’ then what is the point in continuing an interfaith conversation? If the answer is ‘no’, then what’s the point of a boycott?

It seems to us that the only reason for a boycott, though organizers would not admit this, is to demonize Israel. Twist enough facts and repeat them often enough and the general public may begin to believe the lies.

But here’s the rub: the more boycott organizers limit contact, the less chance there is to know “the other.”

We’ll continue to become more and more faceless to one another which leads to fewer and fewer opportunities for conversation, which leads to more

demonizing ... well, you get the point.

We are not trying to limit dissent or stop people from questioning their leaders. Quite the opposite. One only needed to read the Israeli newspapers before, during and after the recent elections to see how serious those disagreements are! In fact, some Palestinians have voiced (secretly, of course) that they only wish the Arab press was as free!

If only Palestinians, and their friends who support the boycott, would undertake the same introspection and internal struggle that Israelis and Diaspora Jews have. Then maybe honest discussion, instead of spurious tactics, will be the order of a new day.

FOCUS ON ISSUES

by RABBI AVI SHAFRAN

Anyone who raised an eyebrow at charges that the “Hekhsher Tzedek” koshercertification initiative recasts the very concept of kashrut might want to aim an eye at the Feb. 6 Wall Street Journal.

At a column, that is, entitled “A Quarrel Over What Is Kosher,’ by Nathaniel Popper of The Forward -- the reporter who, in 2006, first shone a harsh light on the Agriprocessors slaughterhouse. His reportage of alleged abuse of workers there was followed, in 2008, by a federal raid on the plant, the deportation of hundreds of illegal alien workers and the filing of criminal charges against its owners and others.

In his “Houses of Worship” guest column, Popper reveals some personal cards, of the sort usually held behind the fictional screen of journalist objectivity. Like his comparison of “bearded Orthodox rabbis” who “buzzed around the Agriprocessors plant” making sure kashrut laws, but not ethical norms, were being observed with the “progressive, socially engaged and mostly clean-shaven rabbis” who rode in, so to speak, on white horses to rescue Agriprocessors from itself.

Popper also characterizes efforts to persuade a judge to grant bail to a Rubashkin official -imprisoned before his trial for months despite offering to surrender his passport, wear an electronic bracelet to track his movements and post an exorbitant bond – as a campaign “to spring Rubashkin from jail” because of “an ancient Jewish religious obligation to free Jews from gentile captivity.” No mention of the fact

The essential point of Popper’s piece, though, is both true and important. He characterizes the respective positions of the Hekhsher Tzedek’s proponents and opponents as a dispute over “the proper way to interpret religious law and values.”

The essential point of Popper’s piece, though, is both true and important. He characterizes the respective positions of the Hekhsher Tzedek’s proponents and opponents as a dispute over “the proper way to interpret religious law and values.” Should we, he asks, “read our ancient texts literally or adapt them to a changing world?”

Popper doesn’t mean “literally” literally, of course; presumably he realizes that the Torah’s laws are determined not by literal readings but by the intricate teachings of the Oral Tradition. He is accurate, though, to ascribe to the non-Orthodox rabbinates a willingness to jettison elements of Jewish religious law that discomfit them.

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Blowing the new kashrut’s cover that Sholom Rubashkin’s Jewishness (as it made him eligible for automatic citizenship in Israel) was among the factors cited in denying him bail.

(The bail denial was in fact reversed by another judge -- although Popper might consider the ruling tainted, based as it was partly on the testimony of bearded rabbis.)

Popper’s personal perspective is further on display when he extols “a more explicitly universal vision of mankind, in which a Guatemalan Catholic has the same weight as a Brooklyn Jew” -- as if a spiritual bond to a religious community somehow implies criminal unconcern for others.

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By contrast, Orthodox rabbis are, he writes (with, one suspects, less than reverence), the “Antonin Scalias of the Jewish world.” One such rabbi even told him (you might want to sit down here) that he keeps kosher not out of social consciousness but “because G-d said so.”

When, in the fall, Agudath Israel of America characterized Hekhsher Tzedek as an attempt to redefine kashrut, that judgment was poohpoohed by some. It is, though, precisely the Popperian paradigm.

And its trumpeting in the venerable Wall Street Journal will likely deeply disturb the main proponents of the Hekhsher Tzedek, who have in recent months sought to unbake the cake and recast their initiative as not really a “hekhsher” (i.e. kashrut certification) at all but rather a non-kashrut-related endorsement (oddly, though, only for food), renaming it “Magen Tzedek.”

“Oy,” some progressively clean-shaven clergymen are probably thinking, “Popper’s blown our cover.”

Indeed he has, and with admirable honesty about both his own bias-baggage and the Whatever Tzedek. He doesn’t bother to disguise his feelings for Jews who believe that the Torah is G-d’s will and that its laws, whether fathomable or not, are sacrosanct; and he exposes the now-it’s-a-hekhsher-now-it’s-not initiative as an attempt to “evolve” kashrut into a plank of the social liberal platform.

What Popper seems to not fully appreciate, though, is the trenchant fact that the very same set of Divine laws that Orthodox Jews believe mandate kashrut and other ritual requirements and prohibitions mandate no less interpersonal ethics (including proper treatment of workers) and respect for the laws of the land.

Continued on page 13

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March 13, 2009

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 13

Groups must change or face extinction

FOCUS ON ISSUES

by JONATHAN MIRVIS

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- The recent economic meltdown has created havoc among nonprofit organizations that are totally dependent on philanthropic dollars. Many organizations have developed a business model entirely dependent on philanthropy, and it is these organizations that stand to suffer most if the economy continues its downward slide.

In times when finances were abundant, this model was successful particularly among Jewish organizations, enabling them to provide social services to the community that many could not afford. Now that resources are limited, how can these organizations survive?

Three key strategies seem to come to the fore: The first is to focus on large pools of small donors who support the endeavors of the organization. They may be past beneficiaries or their families who appreciate the social value the organization is generating. A second is to focus on earned income. It is critical that these organizations examine their inventory of services and affix fees for services or products where possible.

A third is seeking government contracts that are awarded to organizations that provide social services to the general public. While the financial support from this

source may be considerable, in this article we will limit ourselves to discussing the ramifications of the first two strategies.

In suggesting the two strategies, we are assuming that the average citizen in the new economy will continue to seek products or services of value, will be willing to pay for them, and support their development and dissemination, if requested. While choices may be far more discriminatory than in the past, people ultimately will continue to make purchases and contribute financially to those organizations they value.

... choices may be far more discriminatory than in the past, people ultimately will continue to make purchases and contribute financially to those organizations they value.

The common denominator of these approaches is that for organizations to survive, they will have to be relevant and meaningful to those they serve and be able to compete in the marketplace. This will require a radical shift in thinking by the leaders of the organizations.

In the former world, there could be a clear distinction between those who were being served and those who were the prime sources of income. In some situations this reached extreme proportions, where organizations were dependent on one family or a number of families who dictated the priorities of the organization even though this may not have been in the best interests of

their constituency.

Since it was far easier to raise large amounts from single donors than it was to raise small amounts from multiple donors, the multiple small donors often have been ignored in favor of the larger. This has led to a systemic danger whereby policy may be dictated by the powerful few who are not necessarily in touch with the market needs.

In the new economy, the economic future of these organizations may be dependent on their constituency.

Thus, these are the first questions that must be asked: Who is our constituency and what do they value?

If these organizations fail to be relevant to their constituency and meet its needs, they may find themselves bereft of support, leading to their ultimate extinction.

Thus the new economy may well lead to a healthy democratization of organizations, leading to a new relationship between the organization and those being served.

The constituency will see itself not only as beneficiaries but as “owners,” and the organization’s leaders will be far more answerable to this constituency, preventing it from making unilateral decisions that may not be in their interests. It is the “small change” that will drive this big change, ensuring that we emerge from this economic crisis stronger than ever.

Dr. Jonathan Mirvis is a lecturer at The Hebrew Universitiy’s Melton Centre and teaches social entrepreneurship to MBA, nonprofit management and education students.

Jimmy Carter Obama

BEHIND THE HEADLINES

by SHOSHANA BRYEN The precipitating factor in Anwar Sadat’s historic trip to Jerusalem was his understanding and fear that President Carter wanted to reprise the 1973 U.S.-Soviet sponsored Geneva Peace Conference.

Sadat had thrown the Soviets out of Egypt after the Yom Kippur War and aligned himself with the West. He calculated that it was better to fly to Israel and speak before the Knesset than to have to do business with the Russians again.

Afghans, no doubt, understand. Having at great, wrenching and bloody cost ousted the Soviets from Afghanistan, Afghans must be looking on with horror as the United States invites the Russians to be part of the coalition to determine Afghanistan’s future.

While the Obama Administration is hoping to “reset” relations with Russia, Russia is laying out its priorities.

First, of course, is to have the United States rescind plans to put Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) radars in Poland and the Czech Republic, but second and rising in importance, is the reassertion of Russian influence in Central Asia. Laying $2 billion on the table, Russia induced Kyrgyzstan to cancel the United States lease on the Manas Air Base that is central to resupplying coalition forces in Afghanistan. Russia has offered the United States alternative routes - through Russia.

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Russian President Dmitry Medvedev was quoted in The Chicago Sun-Times saying, “Let’s hope the new U.S. administration will be more successful than the previous one in dealing with the Afghan settlement. We are ready to work on the most acute issues, such as ... deliveries of non-military cargo.”

In other words, Russia wants to hold a key place in the supply line to the Afghan war that President Obama has called the central front. Medvedev called deliveries of “non-military cargo” an “acute issue.” What about military cargo? Can we ship that? Do we need Russia’s permission? What if we get it today and lose it tomorrow because of the BMD radars or support for Georgia and Ukraine? Or something we haven’t even thought of yet?

Having at great, wrenching and bloody cost ousted the Soviets, Afghans must be looking on with horror as the United States invites the Russians to be part of the coalition to determine Afghanistan’s future.

In the 1980s, wise Americans warned Western European countries against building a natural gas pipeline from the Soviet Union and hinging Europe’s energy future on Moscow’s good will. When the Europeans declined the wise advice, the United States denied them access to pipeline technology and the deal collapsed, leading to increased exploitation of Norwegian and British North Sea oil and gas.

After the fall of the Soviet Union, the Europeans built the pipeline. It is very, very cold in Europe this winter as

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Russia continues periodically to withhold gas to Ukraine, disrupting supplies across the continent.

There is a moral problem inherent in restoring the Russians to the Afghan mix; there is a practical problem hinging our ability to resupply our soldiers on Russian good will.

Shoshana Bryen is the Senior Director for Security Policy for JINSA, the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs. Read more at: www.jinsa.org.

Blowing the new kashrut

Continued from page 112 Whether any particular Orthodox Jew honors or fails to honor those mandates is beside the point (although the Torah’s ethical system does forbid reaching negative judgments about accused people before a trial). But Orthodox Judaism is entirely as strict about the Torah’s ethics as about its rituals. So the issue is not “adapt[ing] Torah to a changing world,” but rather applying Torah to that world.

And so Popper has the dichotomy only half right. Yes, there is a perspective -- his own and the non-Orthodox movements’ -- that regards the Torah’s laws as entirely mutable. But the Orthodox perspective does not, as he seems to believe, sacrifice ethics to ritual. It, rather, elevates both to the plane of Divine will.

Rabbi Shafran is director of public affairs for Agudath Israel of America and can be reached at: Shafran@agudathisrael.org. This op-ed is courtesy of AmEcahd Resources.

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Page 14

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

March 13, 2009

Candlelighting Friday, March 13, 7:11 p.m.

Synagogue Listings B’nai Israel Synagogue 618 Mynster St. Council Bluffs, IA 51503-0766 322.4705 email: CBsynagogue@hotmail.com

Beth El Synagogue Member of United Synagogues of Conservative Judaism 14506 California Omaha, NE 68154-1980 492.8550 www.bethel-omaha.org

Beth Israel Synagogue Member of Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America 12604 Pacific St. Omaha, NE. 68154 556.6288 BethIsrael@OrthodoxOmaha.org

Chabad House An Affiliate of Chabad-Lubavitch 1866 S. 120th St. Omaha, NE 68144-1646 330.1800 www.OChabad.com email: chabad@aol.com

Congregation B’nai Jeshurun South Street Temple Union for Reform Judaism 2061 S. 20th St. Lincoln, NE 68502-2797 435.8004 southstreettemple.org

Offutt Air Force Base SAC Memorial Chapel 301 Lincoln Highway Offutt AFB, NE 68113 294.6244

Rose Blumkin Jewish Home 323 S. 132 St. Omaha, NE 68154

Temple Israel Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) 7023 Cass Street Omaha, NE 68132-2651 556.6536 templeisrael-ne.org

The Neighborhood Minyan 1317 No. 57 St. Omaha, NE 68132 551.6609

Tifereth Israel Member of United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism 3219 Sheridan Blvd., Lincoln, NE 68502-5236 423.8569 www.tiferethisraellincoln.org

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B’NAI ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE FRIDAY: Services, 7:30 p.m., followed by Oneg with guest speaker, financial adviser Michael Sigmond speaking on Your Money and Saving Taxes. The community is invited. Services will be held in the newly renovated sanctuary.

During the Oneg, there will be a display of the Council Bluffs Grocers Association, and an unveiling of a new plaque honoring Dr. Jerome and Frieda Bleicher for their dedication to the synagogue.

BETH EL SYNAGOGUE Services conducted by Rabbi Mordechai Levin and Cantor Beth Schlossberg.

FRIDAY: Musical Kabbalat Shabbat service, 6 p.m.

SATURDAY: Morning services, 9:30 a.m.; Junior Congregation (37), 10 a.m.; Kiddush is sponsored

by Cindy and Alan Shulewitz and Phyllis and Normand Roffman, in honor of Chad Shulewitz becoming a Bar Mitzvah; Minha/ Ma’ariv, 6:20 p.m.

SHABBAT TUNES & TALES: Saturday, 11:15 a.m. Sing-along and stories for children up to age five and their parents, led by “Miss Patty” Nogg. Open to all families; no charge.

WEEKDAY SERVICES: Sundays, 9 a.m. & 5:30 p.m.; weekdays, 7 a.m. & 5:30 p.m.

SUNDAY: Bible Study Discussion Group; and Navigating our Services with Joy led by Susi Frydman-Levin, 10 a.m.; The Mitzvah Club led by FrydmanLevin; and Synagogue skills class led by Cantor Schlossberg, 11 a.m.; The Choreography of Shabbat led by Cantor Services, Schlossberg, noon.

‘DEATH OF A SALESMAN’ MINI COURSE: Wednesdays, March 18 and 25, 7-8 p.m., facilitator Bob Goldberg will lead an in-depth exploration of this classic play. Cost to attend: $18.

To register, contact the office.

THURSDAY: Rabbi Levin’s Jewish Ideals and Ethics for Everyday Living, noon.

SHABBAT MORNING LIVE Saturday, March 21, 10:30 a.m.-noon. Led by Esther Katz, for 4-8 year olds and their favorite adult(s), with music, creative movement, Shabbat-appropriate games, and more. This month’s theme: Passover. No charge to attend, but please RSVP to the synagogue office.

MEN’S CLUB Sunday, March 22, 10 a.m.noon. Attendees will work on

Yellow Candle Project.

WOMEN’S ROSH HODESH GROUP Thursday, March 26, 7 p.m., at the home of Margie Gutnik, 12924 Hamilton St. Everyone’s input is welcome as we evaluate the group’s programs. RSVP to Gutnik at 492.8550, or programor ming@bethel-omaha.org, Ann Goldstein at 391.1050, or akgoldstein@gmail.com.

BETH ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE Office Hours: Mon.-Thurs., 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.; Fri., 8:30 a.m-2 p.m. Services conducted by Rabbi Jonathan Gross and Rabbi Yitzchak Mizrahi.

FRIDAY: Kabbalat Shabbat, 7 p.m.

SATURDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m. free babysitting, 9:30 a.m.; Children’s Classes, 9:45 a.m. with Torah Parade; Kiddush sponsored

by Mirvish Family in honor of Sidney’s birthday; “Guard Your Tongue”, “The Great Midrash” and “Advanced Parshah Study for Kids” (ages 10 and up) one hour prior to Mincha, 7 p.m., followed

by Seudah Shlishit; Havdalah, 8:11 p.m.

SUNDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Reading the Rambam, 9:45 a.m.; Rabbi Gross’s Teen Class, 10 a.m.

WEEKDAYS: Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Ma’ariv, 8:30 p.m.

TUESDAY: Mishnah Club for fourth, fifth, and sixth graders, 3:45 p.m. at the Blumkin Home; Rabbi Mizrahi’s Weekly Class, 7:45 p.m.

THURSDAY: Women of the Torah class, 9:30 a.m.; Rabbi Gross’s weekly class, 7:30 p.m.

CHABAD HOUSE Services conducted by Rabbi Mendel Katzman. Office hours: Monday-Friday, 7 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

FRIDAY: Services, 7 a.m.

SATURDAY: Maamar class, 9 a.m.; Service, 9:30 a.m.; Youth Minyan, 10:30 a.m. MiniMensch title will be awarded; Kiddush lunch follows; join Rabbi Katzman from 12-1 p.m.

SUNDAY: Service, 8:30 a.m.; Mishpacha Mornings, 10:15 a.m.

For more information or to register for a month email Estie@ ochabad.com.

WEEKDAYS: Services, 7 a.m.

MONDAY: Kabbalistic Insights for Women, 12:15 p.m.; You be the Judge II-exploring Jewish Civil Law, 7 p.m. More information call 330.1800 or email JLI@ chabad.com.

TUESDAY: W.O.W. Prayer, Prophets, and Prayer, 9:15 a.m.

BAT MITZVAH Eva Phillips, daughter of Julie and Dr. Eric Phillips, will become a Bat Mitzvah on S a t u r d a y, March 21, at Beth El. A seventhgrade student

WEDNESDAY: Achieving Integrity, Torah Studies for the Workplace, 7 p.m. For information call Chabad or e-mail TorahStudies@ochabad.com.

THURSDAY: Jewish Thought, 12:45 p.m.; The Parsha Club for Level I beginners, ages 5-6; and Level II for ages 7-9, 3:45 p.m.

Please contact shevi@ochabad. com for a pass.

All events and programs are open to the entire community.

at Westside Middle School, Eva is a Distinguished Scholar.

Her interests include literature, art, cross country, and spending time with friends and family.

She has a two brothers, David and Jacob, and a sister, Lilly.

Grandparents are Marcia Liska and Paul Forch of Lincoln.

CONGREGATION B’NAI JESHURUN Services conducted by Rabbi Ilan Emanuel.

FRIDAY: Shabbat Evening Service, 7:45 p.m. led by Rabbi Emanuel.

SATURDAY: Shabbat Morning Service, 9:30 a.m.; Torah Study, 10:30 a.m. all led by Rabbi Emanuel.

SUNDAY: LJCS Grades 3-7, 9:30 a.m.-noon at Tifereth Israel; Gan-Grade 2, 9:45 a.m.12:15 p.m. at South Street Temple; Hallah High, 10 a.m.noon at Tifereth Israel.

MONDAY: Lincoln Public Schools Yom Hashoah Speaker Series, 1:30 p.m. at Lincoln Southwest’s Main Gym. Carl Wilkens telling of his own experiences in Rwanda puts a human “face” on genocide, showing us that the perpetrators. Contact: mgudgel@lps. org. Other speakers in the series: TJ Leyden on April 8, 10 a.m. at Lincoln Southeast; The Lost Boys of Sudan on April 15, 9:30 a.m. at Lincoln North Star; Bea Karp on April 30, 1:30 p.m. at Lincoln Northeast; and Jen Marlowe on May 7, 1:30 p.m. at Lincoln Southwest.

WEDNESDAY: Hebrew classes (grades 3-7), 4-6 p.m. at Tifereth Israel.

ADULT EDUCATION TUESDAYS, 7 p.m. Sacred Concepts, led by Rabbi Emanuel.

gants; Childrens Choir Rehersal, noon. Lunch provided for choir members and younger siblings.

TUESDAY: Executive Meeting, 6 p.m.; Board of Trustees , 7 p.m.; Crafting a Healing Shawl, 7 p.m.

Please contact Don’L Dacey, 292.0757 with questions.

WEDNESDAY: Grades 3-6, 46 p.m.; All School Dinner, 6 p.m.; Family School, 6 p.m.; Grades 712, 6 p.m.; Religious Worldviews: Primal Religions, Christianity and Islam, 6:30 p.m. with UNO Prof.

Mary Ann Krzemien. Open only to Family School parents.

THURSDAY: “Adult Study with the Clergy” with Cantor Shermet, 10 a.m.; Theology Café, 7 p.m. at Barnes and Noble, 144th and W. Center with Rabbi Azriel. Please contact Wendy Goldberg at 556.6536 or wgoldberg@templeisraelomaha.com. to register.

Scholar-in-Residence-Rabbi Aaron Panken: Friday, March 20, 69th Annual Rabbi Sidney H. and Jane Brooks Institute on Judaism for Christian Clergy, 10 a.m.; Shabbat Worship Service, 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, March 21, 9 a.m.; Sunday, March 22, 10 a.m.

Tot Shabbat & Dinner, Friday, March 20, 6 p.m. led by Rabbi Eric Linder. Child-oriented Shabbat worship service for our youngest congregants and their families. A fun Passover art project follows dinner. Our hosts are Lori Bennett and Toby Fellman.

Cost for the dinner is $5 for adults and no charge for children.

Please contact the Temple office, 556.6536 or mkube@templeisraelomaha.com to make a reservation.

Dinner in Abraham’s Tent: Conversations on Peace, Friday, March 27, 5:30 p.m., Qwest Center. (see full story on page 4.)

NEIGHBORHOOD MINYAN FRIDAY: Minyan, 7:11 p.m.

SATURDAY: Srvices, 9 a.m.

OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE FRIDAY: Services, 7:30 p.m.

ROSE BLUMKIN JEWISH HOME FRIDAY: Shabbat Comes to the Blumkin Home, 2:30 p.m. led by Hadassah Members.

SATURDAY: Services, 9 a.m. led by David Herzog and Jim Polack.

TEMPLE ISRAEL FRIDAY: Shabbat Service, 7:30 p.m. led by Rabbi Aryeh Azriel and Cantor Wendy Shermet.

SATURDAY: Sparks Beneath the Surface, 9:15 a.m.; Shabbat Service, 10:30 a.m.

SUNDAY: Teacher Meeting, 9:30 a.m.; Grades K-6, 10 a.m.; Caring Community Card Making, 10 a.m. Volunteers interested in making cards to congre-

TIFERETH ISRAEL Services conducted by Nancy Coren, Lay Leader. Office hours: Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-3 p.m.

MONDAY and THURSDAY: Minyan, 9 a.m.

FRIDAY: Services, 6:30 p.m.

SATURDAY: Morning service, 9:30 a.m., Talmud study, and Lunch and Learn.

SUNDAY: LJCS Grades 3-7, 9:30 a.m.-noon at Tifereth Israel; Gan-Grade 2, 9:45 a.m.12:15 p.m. at South Street Temple; Hallah High, 10 a.m.noon at Tifereth Israel.

TUESDAY: Women’s Lunch, noon at The Olive Garden.

WEDNESDAY: Men’s Lunch Group will meet at the Knolls, 12:30 p.m. Contact Yale Gotsdiner at 423.7066; Hebrew classes (grades 3-7), 4-6 p.m. at Tifereth Israel.

Free Haggadah from The Jewish Heritage for the Blind Obtain a Braille or large print Haggadah free of charge by contacting the Jewish Heritage for the Blind at 800.995.1888; or fax 718.388.0653; or e-mail to jhb.ny@verizon.net.

March 13, 2009

A miscellany of facts, ideas and case law

SPARKS FROM THE WORD

by RABBI MYER S. KRIPKE Parashat Ki Tisa If you ever wondered why Jews count themselves like this: not one, not two, not three and so on -- consult our Sidra. And if you wondered why there seems to be an ointment that is widely used for its gentle healing properties, look in this week’s Torah portion. And, if you are amused at the fifth grader who asked, “When are the Children of Israel going to become adults and practice adultery?” -- consult our Sidra once again!

What we have in this week’s Sidra is “case law.” I know nothing about law, but we have some cases in our Sidra.

If this and that happened, then thus and so will be the resulting decision. But if thus and so occurs, then this and that is the law.

There is a miscellany of subjects here. We are told that the Lord commanded Moses to set up 12 great columns of stone on which were to be written “all that follows.”

Perhaps what is meant is all of the Ten Commandments and the laws that followed, or perhaps it is the entire Bible.

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these 12 stones are. Actually they are not stones, but vast stone writing surfaces, erected after the Israelites crossed into the land of Canaan, which was to become the Land of Israel.

Further, there are instructions that a man must give to his children: they must avoid heathen worship and stay with the holy days of the House of Israel. It is also to be noted and not taken for granted that whatever instructions the Lord gave to Moses, he gave to the People of Israel, unembellished with any ideas he had on his own.

There are also more instructions on building the sanctuary, such that it could be carried through the wilderness. One question you need not ask about the sanctuary, made of of precious metals and finest of timbers, is: “How did they get all these materials for its construction in the wilderness?” The answer is, of course, that they carried all of it from Egypt for 40 years in the desert. If you think “carrying them” is not as accurate as “schlepping them”, you may be right!

But they had wagons, some of their own, and some supplied willingly and unwillingly by Pharaoh, for the materials and eventual erection of the Tabernacle. Here we meet Betzalel and the idea of artistry rather than simple construction. The Tabernacle was not only to be holy, but beautiful as well.

Moses entreats the Lord that His presence remains among the Israelites. The Lord promises that He will be among them forever.

DEATHS GERTRUDE (GUSS) FORMAN Gertrude (Guss) Forman died at the age of 96.

Graveside services were held March 10 at Mt. Sinai Cemetery.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Charles Forman.

She is survived by her son, Michael J. Forman of Los Angeles; brother, Milton Guss; and sister-in-law, Pauline Guss of Omaha.

Memorials to charity of choice.

Yachad members Avi Wolfson and Josh Parsow planted flower seeds at Mulhall’s with Jewish Family Service intern Ryan Moss. The young adults will be back to see the new blooms. For more information about upcoming Yachad programs, call 330.2024.

Temple focuses on tough Jews

by CLAUDIA SHERMAN Temple Israel Communications Coordinator Jeremy Wright, a child and family therapist who practices in Omaha and Fremont, believes in raising kids to be “strong and self-confident because of their faith, not in spite of it.”

So, in his class, “Tough Jews: The Good, the Bad, and the Kosher,” which begins Wednesday, March 25, 6:30 p.m., at Temple Israel, he’ll give examples of tough Jews from biblical times to Jews we see portrayed in the media today. Other class dates are Wednesdays, April 1 and 29.

When we think of something being especially ‘Jewish,’” pointed out Wright, who is a member of Temple, “we often think of piety or learning. But tough?

Isn’t tough reserved for bullies and Cossacks? We’ll look at what it means to be both tough and Jewish.”

He’ll introduce his class to a biblical hero who fought four kings to save his nephew and two others who took on a whole town to avenge their sister. “This session will tell the not so-G-rated stories that you may not remember from Hebrew School,” Wright acknowledged.

Moving on in history, he asked, “Were the Jewish mobsters merely thugs or is the story more complicated than that?” He also noted that “not so long ago, a Jewish character on TV was probably a nebbish or a schlemiel. But, seemingly overnight, we have started to see unapologetic, ‘tough’ Jewish characters, musicians, and athletes.”

To register, contact Wendy Goldberg at 556.6536 or at wgoldberg@templeisraelomaha.com. Fee is $18 for Temple members and $25 for all others. There is no fee for members of Temple’s Family School.

LEON CHESNIN Leon Chesnin died March 4 in Lincoln at the age of 89. Graveside services were held March 5 at Mt. Carmel Cemetery.

He was a distinguished Professor Emeritus of the University of Nebraska College of Agriculture. Born in the Bronx, NY, he became a faculty member of UNL in 1947 and remained a Lincolnite until his death. He had a long and distinguished career as a scientist, receiving many awards and honors.

He was preceded by his wife of 67 years, Esther Rae. He is survived by his sons, Sidney Chesnin of Dallas, and Harold Chesnin of Seattle; daughter and son-inlaw, Nancy and Charles Coren, Lincoln; and son and daughter-in-law, Gary and Miriam Chesnin, Beersheba, Israel; nine grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.

Memorials to Tifereth Israel Synagogue in Lincoln.

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

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Page 15

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To submit obituaries: E-mail to the Press at jpress@jewishomaha.org; fax to 402.334.5422, or mail to 333 So. 132 St., Omaha, NE 68154, or online at the Jewish Federation of Omaha website: www.jewishomaha.org. Click on “Jewish Press” and go to Submit Announcements.

CORRECTION It was incorrectly noted in last week’s Press that Noah Kohll was living in Boulder, CO. He is still in Omaha and his school friends, who accompanied him to Israel for his Bar Mitzvah, also live in Omaha. The Jewish Press regrets the error.

PASSOVER CLOSINGS & EARLY DEADLINE NOTICE The Jewish Press will be closed Thursday-Friday, April 9-10 for the first two days of Passover and Wednesday-Thursday, April 15-16, for the lat two days of the Jewish holiday. There is no regular news in the April 3 Passover issue; synagogue schedules for that week are due to the Jewish Press by March 16. Questions? Call 402.334.6448 The deadline for all ads, synagogue schedules, articles and photos is 9 a.m. as follows: Issue Deadline April 10 Thursday, April 2 April 17 Monday, April 6 April 24 Monday, April 13

NEBRASKA HORSE Expo, March 13-15; Lancaster Event Center, Lincoln, NE. Featuring Ken McNabb, Dianne Olds Rossi, Julie Goodnight, and Richard Shrake.

Numerous vendors, demonstrations, model horses, entertainment, more. 402-2909076, www.nebraskahorsecouncil.org.

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Page 16

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

March 13, 2009

Farming the land, Torah in hand

they can farm any land Jewishly. It doesn’t have to be Israel.

For most North American Jews who made aliyah to kibbutzim 30 years ago, the draw was Israel, not farming.

“The people I knew in Habonim were hippies, but we were Jewish hippies,” says 51-year-old Dani Livney, who immigrated to Israel in 1980 and joined Kibbutz Gezer, where he still manages its olive grove. “No one ever said, ‘let’s start a farm in America.’ Farming wasn’t the major focus. Israel, Zionism and kibbutz were the focus.”

Many of this new generation of Jewish farmers have connections to Israel, either through family or past trips.

But it doesn’t pull them the way it pulled their parents.

Tali Weinberg, 31, spent the last few years farming for a seed company on Salt Spring Island, just off the coast of British Columbia.

Her parents met in the late 1960s on the Israeli kibbutz where her father grew up.

Her grandparents were members of Labor Zionist youth groups in 1930s-era Poland.

Whereas her parents and Adamah alumni Jackie Topol carrying hay that will be used grandparents believed they to mulch garlic at Adamah's annual alumni garlic-planting were helping a struggling festival celebrated each November. Credit: Sabrina Malach new country, Weinberg grew Stevenson is also preparing for their up with an Israel that seemed strong an future, working as the farm manager at independent.

“I feel a call to be connected to the the Adamah Jewish environmental program at the Isabella Freedman Jewish land, like my grandparents, but I don’t Retreat Center in Falls Village, CT. She is feel it has to be in the land of Israel,” she in charge of a four-acre field where she says. “What’s more critical is that we conand the Adamah fellows, young Jews on nect, period. It’s less about where we’re three-month internships grow pesticide- going to do it and more that we have to free fruits and vegetables that they pro- do it because of the direction the food vide to the retreat center, make into pick- system is moving in.”

The few young North American Jews les and sell through a community supwho are actually working full-time as ported agriculture agreement.

Through the agreement, people buy farmers are part of a much larger group of weekly boxes of fresh produce directly environmental and food activists who come out of a growing number of new from local farmers.

Stevenson, too, introduces herself as a Jewish farm-education initiatives such as Jewish farmer, even though she thinks the Adamah; the Philadelphia-based Jewish title is “kind of gimmicky.” But it Farm School; Kayam Farm near describes what she does quite accurately. Baltimore; the Teva Learning Center, a She hoes, plants, weeds and harvests, but program of Surprise Lake Camp in Cold she also teaches, studies Jewish texts and Spring, N.Y.; and Hazon, an advocacy organization that promotes sustainable rests on Shabbat.

“You work your butt off for six days environmental practices and sponsors an and you really need Shabbat,” she says. annual Jewish food conference.

The goal of the Jewish farm-based “You appreciate Shabbat physically as well schools is not to churn out farmers but to as emotionally as well as spiritually.”

Hanau and Stevenson are part of a small make gardening and farming normative but growing number of young activists in practice within the wider Jewish commuthe new Jewish food movement who are nity. The leaders of these programs say turning to the land as a way of expressing they look forward to the day when every their Jewish values. They are not farmers Jewish community center, synagogue and who just happen to be Jews. They are day school will have it own garden. These Jewish farmers, working the land accord- efforts will be spearheaded by what they ing to agricultural laws set down in the hope will soon be 180 young Jews gradTalmud, teaching their peers and trying uating each year from the Jewish farm to promote the importance of growing school programs.

Through farming, these farm school one’s own food within the greater Jewish alumni grew closer to their Judaism. community.

They leave a corner of their field unhar- “Before I did the Adamah program, I vested for the poor, in accordance with would say I was a farmer first who hapthe Mishnaic Tractate Pe’ah, or corner. pened to be a Jew,” Weinberg says.

Across the board, Jewish environmental They don’t plant wheat and barley together, a teaching from Tractate and farm-education initiatives are enjoyKilayim. They slaughter goats and chick- ing similar increased interest.

“Today we are being supported by the ens they raise themselves, practicing “tzar community,” says Simch ba’alei hayim,” the commandment to Jewish show kindness to domestic animals. They Schwartz, 30, who co-founded the Jewish say a bracha, a blessing, before they eat. Farm School with a $2,000 Hazon grant.

Some keep kosher, some do not, but all Schwartz in five or six years hopes to are committed to Jewish dietary practice. establish an agriculturally based Jewish Unlike the Labor Zionist youth of the high school at the new site. “We don’t all 1960s and ’70s, who learned farming so need to be farmers,” he says. “To have they could move to Israel and join kib- farming be a little part of every Jewish butzim, today’s young Jewish activists say person’s life, that’s our goal.”

by SUE FISHKOFF SAN FRANCISCO (JTA) -- Naf Hanau lives in the Bronx, an odd choice forsomeone who calls himself a Jewish farmer. But Hanau, 23, is in the heart of New York City only for horticultural school, to learn skills he’ll put into practice when he and his girlfriend 27-yearold Anna Stevenson, buy land near Rochester, N.Y., and start their farm.

“Five years from now I see myself farming with Anna,” Hanau says. “Growing food, growing vegetables, feeding people real food and making a living from that.

Supporting a family without being a lawyer, a doctor, a teacher or a accountant.”

Radical Amazement: THE SPIRITUALITY OF CHILDHOOD A Center for Faith Studies Conference April 2 - 3, 2009 Richard Louv

Dr. Susan Linn

Leave No Child Inside: Saving Our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder

The Case for Make Believe: Why Play is Essential to Body, Mind and Spirit

Thursday, April 2, 2009 at 7:00 PM

Friday, April 3, 2009 at 9:15 AM

Conference breakout sessions with local professors and community leaders to follow. Seating limited for all events.

Registration, costs and information available at www.radicalamazementomaha.org

LAST CHANCE LAST CHANCE Countryside Community United Church of Christ, 8787 Pacific St., Omaha, NE 68114 | Questions? cyndik@countrysideucc.org

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