May 26, 2023

The Jewish Press

Making a connection: Rebecca Rosen

ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-

WRIGHT

Jewish Press Editor

For more than two decades, Rebecca Rosen has served as an ambassador between the spirit world and the day-to-day world, “relaying wisdom and insight from angels, guides, and those who have passed on to people seeking answers in the here and now,” her website states.

She is once again sharing her work with the Omaha community June 13 at 7 p.m. in the Alan J. Levine Performing Arts Theater. She has published several books: Spirited, Awaken the Spirit Within and What the Dead Have Taught me about Living Well. Rebecca will be introducing her latest book, What’s Your Heaven? She will participate in an interview, and answer audience questions. She will also demonstrate the work she has done these past 20 years and provide audience readings. And: you can meet her for a book signing! This event is chaired by Melissa Shrago. Rebecca has appeared on countless television and radio

REGULARS

Spotlight 8

Voices 9

Synagogues 10

Life cycles 11

SHIRLY BANNER

JFO Library Specialist

YOUNG ADULT:

The Prince of Steel Pier by Stacy Nockowitz

In The Prince of Steel Pier, Joey Goodman is spending the summer at his grandparents’ struggling hotel in Atlantic City, a tourist destination on the decline. Nobody in Joey’s big Jewish family takes him seriously, so when Joey’s Skee-Ball skills land him an unusual job offer from a local mobster, he’s thrilled to be treated like “one of the guys,” and develops a major crush on an older girl in the process. Eventually disillusioned by

the mob’s bravado, and ashamed of his own dishonesty, he recalls words of wisdom from his grandfather that finally resonate. Joey realizes where he really belongs: with his family, who drive him crazy, but where no one fights a battle alone. All it takes to get by is one’s wits... and a little help from one’s brothers.

See Kripke-Veret Collection page 2

programs, such as Dr. Phil, Entertainment Tonight, Extra, Nightline, and The Rachael Ray Show, among others. Through her own television show, The Last Goodbye, she “connected people seeking answers with their deceased family members and loved ones, helping viewers see that death is not the end and love never dies.”

Rebecca’s own spiritual journey began in 1997 as a college student struggling with depression and a debilitating sleep-eating disorder.

Following months of therapy and medication, Rebecca finally, out of desperation, began to pray. On one particularly unremarkable day while sitting in a bookstore, she felt compelled to write in her journal. That’s when her deceased Grandmother Babe, answered her prayers. Rebecca was flooded with words that she involuntarily transcribed, or channeled, not even realizing what she was writing. The handwriting was Rebecca’s, but the words were her Grandmother’s. Because she, herself, was skeptical, Rebecca asked for proof that what was happening was real.

See Rebecca Rosen page 3

RICH JURO

Fran and I had an exciting two week trip to Libya in 2008. This was earlier than Colonel Qaddafi’s ouster in 2011 and before Libya became a non-functioning nation. At the time, cruises couldn’t stop there. So we flew in to Tripoli, the capital of one million people, and stayed in a modern hotel. That was the last routine thing we did.

One thing that US history buffs know is that after the Revolutionary War, the first foreign escapade was here. In 1801, tired of paying ransom

to the Barbary pirates, President Thomas Jefferson sent a military expedition to Tripoli. Unfortunately, the naval ship USS Philadelphia ran aground and was captured. After another American armed services force was dispatched, the Tripoli pasha was forced to give up his annual bounty (though he did receive $60,000 for the return of the Philadelphia’s sailors).

We met our fellow guests and tour leader. She was Yvonne, a big, brassy, blond from Austria, who See Trip to Libya page 3

For five days, an endangered seal became a celebrity on an Israeli beach Page 4

Salute to the 2023 High School Graduates Page 6

Israel to invest in North American Jewish day schools Page 12

Rebecca Rosen

Tripoli at night Credit: Sanadala Lahfi, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International

Kripke-Veret Collection

Continued from page 1

ADULT:

What’s So Funny?: A cartoonist’s memoir by Davis Sipress

David Sipress, a dreamer and obsessive drawer living with his Upper West Side family in the age of JFK and Sputnik, goes hazy when it comes to the ceaselessly imparted lessons-on-life from his meticulous father and the angsty expectations of his migraine-prone mother. With wry and brilliantly observed prose, Sipress paints his hapless place in the family, from the time he is tricked by his unreliable older sister into rocketing his pet turtle out his twelfth-floor bedroom window to the moment he walks away from a Harvard PhD program in Russian history to begin his life as a professional cartoonist. Sipress’s cartoons appear in the story with spot-on precision, inducing delightful Aha! moments in answer to the perennial question aimed at cartoonists: Where do you get your ideas?

Thieves of Paris by Helen

Schwartz

When France surrenders to Germany in 1940 and Nazi forces occupy France, soldier Max St Denis flees to his childhood home, the Rothschild estate at Ferrières. Max sees a way to redeem himself from his days as a car thief when he’s entrusted to transport valuable paintings

to safety, including an Ingres family portrait dear to him. Overtaken and almost killed by Nazi art looters, he vows to get the portrait back. He needs the assistance of two daring women who condemn his recklessness and self-centered motives. After he agrees to work with Rose Valland, the only French person at the Jeu de Paume depot for looted art, she locates the portrait but lays down strict conditions for stealing it. To meet those, he bargains for the aid of Hannah

Ziegler, a beautiful Hungarian Zionist smuggling Jews out of Paris. He commits his wits and daring, his fluency in German and his blond coloring to fool the occupiers. Max has watched “authorized” Nazi looters, Vichy-French officials and opportunistic French citizens vying to out-steal each other. As oppression of Jews grows and deportations begin, Max improvises new strategies of theft to save the very lives of Jews. Max embraces his role as the best thief of Paris.

During May 2023, hundreds of organizations and Americans of all backgrounds joined together to discover, explore and celebrate the vibrant and varied American Jewish experience from the dawn of our nation to the present day. Nebraska’s Jewish Community Relations Council worked with Sen. John Fredrickson to recognize May 2023 as Jewish American Heritage month in the State of Nebraska.

Celebrating Jewish American Heritage Month helps to strengthen our communities and promote a sense of belonging, shared civic life, and deeper understanding of cultural heritage. For more information, explore unique resources from across the United States by visiting jewish americanheritage.org

Location: Alan J. Levine Performing Arts Theater

Pre and post event receptions at 6:00 pm and 8:00 pm hosted by the Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation in honor of their Fabulous at 40 Anniversary.

JFO: Jeff Zacharia

JCRC: Carol Bloch

Jewish Press: Debra Kaplan

RBJH: Gretchen Hutson

JFO Foundation: Murray Newman

IHE: Toba Cohen-Dunning

Trip to Libya

Continued from page 1 spoke Arabic and wouldn’t take crap even from the machismo Arabs. Our fellow adventurers were a dozen or so, mostly Americans. Because it was modern, the hotel was half-filled with diplomats. Many of them were Swiss, busy doing whatever the American administration wanted (at the time the USA didn’t have diplomatic relations with Qaddafi or his government).

One day we spent visiting Leptis Magna. It was founded as a Phoenician city, but the Roman Emperor Septimus Severus grew up there, and so naturally he built it up when he succeeded to the throne. Now it is reputedly the best preserved large Roman site. Amazingly, it was virtually empty when we toured Leptis Magna.

We flew south in a small plane to a town in the midst of the Libyan desert. It was dramatically sandy, especially in our tent. One of the other couples was named Paul and Mary. Paul was one of the most fastidious people I’ve ever met. He wore pressed pants and a clean white shirt every day. He refused to get on the camel, but Mary had long yearned to go. She mounted the camel with help of the locals. Paul wanted to get a picture of Mary on the dromedary. He stood in front of the camel and aimed his camera. Just then, the animal vomited; it went all over Paul’s immaculate shirt. Paul was the worst person who could be the target of the camel. We didn’t know for sure if the camel did it on purpose or not.

The food was surprisingly good, except for the camel meat.

Rebecca Rosen

Continued from page 1

Grandma Babe told her three specific things she wanted Rebecca to share with her father, Grandma Babe’s son. All three turned out to be true and were things only her father and Grandma Babe could possibly know. For the next 18 months, Grandma Babe was Rebecca’s guide, giving her life lessons and even predicting specific personal events that would later come true. At the end of this time, her Grandmother told Rebecca to fulfill her life’s purpose, and ultimately help others.

Rebecca’s journey as a medium started with personal readings for family and friends, which were uncannily accurate. These experiences were shared with friends, and then friends of friends. Soon strangers began asking for readings too, and Rebecca realized she had officially arrived as a professional spiritual medium. Now, over 20 years later, Rebecca’s passion lies in transforming people’s lives by helping them connect to their deceased loved ones, angels, spirits and guides through small group readings, larger audience events, and a variety of spiritual growth products and resources.

Her incredibly accurate and detailed readings have amazed and empowered clients and led Rebecca to national media appearances on The Dr. Oz Show, E! News Specials, Fox & Friends,

It was all fresh, but the meat was gristly and chewy at best. We don’t think we ate the camel that violated Paul. He was too valuable for riding to cook and eat.

After a couple of days in the desert, we flew up to Benghazi, Libya’s second major city. It was founded as an ancient Greek settlement. Benghazi was the co-capital until Qaddafi became Libya’s ruler and made Tripoli the sole capital. The antiQaddafi revolutionaries may have started here in 2011. Now Benghazi is infamous for the 2012 al-Queda attack on the American diplomatic mission that killed the US Ambassador and several other Americans. But that was several years before our tour group got there.

After visiting Benghazi we were supposed to fly back to Tripoli, but a sandstorm was approaching, and the next day it was the Islamic holiday when all flights were suspended. At the airport, our tour leader, Yvonne, demanded that the group be allowed to board the plane and fly over the sirocco. Finally, the officials acceded to Yvonne’s repeated requests, and we flew back to the capital.

Just a few years later, the revolt against Qaddafi began. His despotic rule was 42 years, from 19692011. Later the all green flag that he instituted was replaced by another. When we were in Libya, Fran insisted on my buying one of my all-time souvenirs: a watch with Qaddafi’s face on it. It stopped working about the time that Qaddafi was killed by insurgents, but I still have the watch.

If you want more of our tours to weird places, visit our blog: FranAndRich’sTravelAdventures.com

Dr. Phil, Entertainment Tonight, Extra, Nightline and The Rachel Ray Show, among others. In addition to her two books, Spirited, published in 2012, and Awaken the Spirit Within, published in fall 2013, Rebecca’s newest book, What the Dead Have Taught Me About Living Well was released in February 2017. In her newest book, Rebecca shares the daily practices and tools that she uses to connect with support from beyond, showing readers how they can learn to recognize the signs and harness divine guidance for their everyday lives. Rebecca was also on LMN’s (Lifetime Movie Network) show The Last Goodbye

Through the show, Rebecca connected people seeking answers from their deceased loved ones, and shed light on the truth that death is not the end and love never dies.

Tickets to this event are $75 and can be purchased by scanning the QR code or visiting www.jewishomaha.org. For more information on Rebecca, please visit rebeccarosen.com

Trade scholarships available for the 2023-24 academic year

An anonymous donor in our community has created two trade school and/or cosmetology school scholarship opportunities, up to $5,000 each, to go towards the 2023-24 academic year.

Not every student who advances into higher education signs up for a four-year curriculum. Some high school graduates seek job training that lasts a year or two and then places them in the workforce. Such opportunities include, but are

not restricted to: Information Technology, Construction, Industrial, Transportation and Horticulture. It is not too late to apply for this upcoming school year!

Qualified students who have unmet needs regarding tuition for either a two-year trade school program or a trade certificate program can contact the Jewish Press at avandekamp @jewishomaha.org or jpress@jewishomaha.org for more information.

Above: Leptis Magna Credit: Joe Pyrek, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. Below: Fran and Rich with their Camel (the beast is in the middle).

CD Rates

Israel looks to make history at under-20

men’s World Cup

JUAN MELAMED

BUENOS AIRES | JTA

Israel’s under-20 men’s national soccer team has arrived in Argentina and is preparing for its first-ever appearance in FIFA’s under-20 World Cup, which begins this weekend.

Israel has only made the general World Cup one time, in 1970.

“I’m 48, and coming to Argentina to play soccer was my dream since I was 10 years old,” said manager Ofir Haim, a former professional player, referencing the level of play in the country that won the most recent World Cup last year.

On May 17, the team received a warm welcome upon arriving at a hotel in Buenos Aires. Around 80 members of the local Jewish community joined the team at a two-hour event that included speeches and an introductory video. An organizer said it sold out in person within five minutes.

But at the same time as the welcome event, around 10 blocks away, a group of demonstrators participated in a protest commemorating the Nakba, the term meaning “catastrophe” that Palestinians use to describe their displacement during and after Israel’s founding.

“The [Israeli] national soccer team is the most representative team in the country because it is composed of the diversity that comprises the state of Israel, a state of all of its citizens, regardless of religion or ethnicity,” said Alejandro Mellincovsky, the director for Spanish-speaking countries at the World Zionist Organization, which organized Monday’s welcome event. The Israeli team includes three Arab players.

The tournament was not originally slated to be played in Argentina. Former host country Indonesia objected to Israel’s participation, arguing that it had agreed to host the tournament before knowing that Israel would qualify.

In response, FIFA, the global soccer organization that runs the World Cup and its accompanying tournaments, stripped Indonesia of its hosting rights in March.

“We knew that Indonesia would reject us, but we were confident to represent Israel with pride everywhere,” Haim said to applause at Monday’s event.

On the field, the squad will be eager to prove the surprise success that got them to the World Cup — a run to the finals of the UEFA under-19 European championship last year —

was not a fluke. In the initial group stage, they will play Colombia on Sunday, May 21; Senegal on Wednesday, May 24; and Japan a week from this Saturday, May 27. The top two teams from each group advance to the next stage.

“We came here to win the trophy,” midfielder El Yam Kancepolsky told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

Kancepolsky was born to a surfer father in Hawaii but raised in Israel, where his dad opened the country’s first “surf center” (El Yam means “to the sea”). He will be one of the team’s top players after it was announced that lead scorer and star Oscar Gloukh did not obtain permission to play in the tournament from his club team, Austria’s Red Bull Salzburg.

The only other player on the roster who currently plays on a European team is Tai Abed, who suits up for Dutch club PSV Eindhoven. (Rising Israeli star Manor Solomon, who plays in the English Premier League for Fulham, is 23.)

The team has the opportunity to make history: The only goal Israel scored in a major FIFA tournament was kicked by Mordechai “Motaleh” Spiegler against Sweden, in the Mexico 1970 World Cup.

Israel was kicked out of the Asian Football Conference in 1974 and since 1994 has played in international tournaments through UEFA, the European soccer federation that offers more difficult competition.

Besides the general World Cup, which takes place every four years, and the U-20 World Cup, which takes place every two years, FIFA also holds an U-17 World Cup.

“I’m very proud to represent Israel in a World Cup, it is a huge dream,” Kancepolsky said.

For five days, an endangered seal became a celebrity on an Israeli beach

DEBORAH DANAN

TEL AVIV | JTA

For much of the week of May 8, Israel’s latest unlikely celebrity lounged on the Jaffa beach, drawing throngs of onlookers, constant media attention and round-the-clock protection from the government as she sunbathed and slept the day away.

Then on May 9, the unwitting star named Yulia — a rare 6-foot species of seal weighing hundreds of pounds who has traveled the eastern Mediterranean — waded into the water and swam away. She left no sign of whether she would ever return.

Her departure has left some local residents bereft and others hopeful that she may find a safer home than a bare beach with little shelter, other animals and litter. News of her departure spread quickly through the area’s social media and WhatsApp groups, one of which had even changed its name from “Friends of Jaffa” to “Friends of Yulia.”

Yulia, who is also known as Tugra, visited Israel after spending time in Lebanon, Greece and Turkey.

“Of course I know she’s not smiling, but her lips are formed in a way that makes her look like she is. She’s so utterly calm — even while a million people are watching her,” said Aya Zaken, a resident of the ancient city adjacent to Tel Aviv, who added that she was “deeply sad” that Yulia had returned to sea.

Seeing the mammal for the first time was a “much more

moving” experience than she had expected, Zaken said — partly because of the seal’s size but also because of the effect she had on onlookers.

“When faced with her, I felt an overwhelming sense of calm, like a deep meditation,” Zaken said. “The feeling that this is so much bigger than me or my troubles.”

Yulia, who was given her name by a local boy who first discovered her, arrived on Jaffa’s beach on Friday. She had since been the subject of 24-hour surveillance both by the press and the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, which had sent volunteers to keep watch and ensure that the crowds of people who have gathered since her arrival didn’t disturb her.

Yulia is a Mediterranean monk seal, one of roughly 600-700 left in the world, according to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, though other estimates put the number even lower. The species is classified as endangered. When Turkish researchers at the International Union for Conservation of Nature, or IUCN, received images of Yulia, they recognized her as a monk seal they had already seen, named Tugra, who is known to have a penchant for both swimming great lengths and napping for extraordinarily long stretches of time. Read more at www.omahajewish press.com

A view of Israel’s team at the 2022 UEFA U-21 championship in Dublin, Ireland, Sept. 23, 2022. Credit: Eóin Noonan/Sportsfile via Getty Images

Credit: Yehiel Lamesh

In spite of being busy with BBYO elections and the Spring Regional Convention, Adria Tipp found some time to answer questions about what it means to be a donor. This is the first in a series of short write-ups about philanthropy, how we give and what it means. Stay tuned!

WHO ARE YOU?

My name is Adria Tipp and I am a Junior at Elkhorn South High School. I am 17 years old and the daughter of Alan and Sonia Tipp.

HOW DO YOU GIVE?

I give heavily with my time and support towards others. I am a strong leader in BBYO and work hard to make change and promote development within the organization. I made my first donation to the Jewish Federation during the Campaign Kickoff event last year. I’m learning more and more about just how far our Federation’s support reaches.

WHY DO YOU GIVE?

I give because I hope to make a difference in my Jewish community and allow others to receive the same opportunities I have. I also feel good giving and strive to do so when I can.

WHO TAUGHT YOU TO GIVE?

My family has always taught me to give. Growing up, we have always had a tzedakah box in our house and we donate to causes that we feel strongly for. My parents and grandparents instilled in me that it is so important to help those less fortunate than me.

WHERE AND HOW DO YOU HOPE TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE?

I hope to make a difference in my Jewish Community through leadership and philanthropy. I also hope to inspire others to give, as it is a mitzvah and helps repair our world.

ORGANIZATIONS

B’NAI B’RITH BREADBREAKERS

The award-winning B’NAI B’RITH BREADBREAKERS speaker program currently meets Wednesdays via Zoom from noon to 1 p.m. Please watch our email for specific information concerning its thought-provoking, informative list of speakers. To be placed on the email list, contact Breadbreakers chair at gary.javitch@gmail.com

Awards Night and Annual Meeting

ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT Jewish Press Editor

Join us for our Awards Night and Annual Meeting, Monday, June 5 from 6-8 p.m. We will gather in the Alan J. Levine Performing Arts Theater to celebrate our community, and many of our lay leaders. We invite you to vote for the Jewish Federation of Omaha’s new board slate as well as the merger of the Nebraska Jewish Historical Society, and discuss the state of our Federation.

Pre- and post-event receptions at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. are hosted by the Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation.

“The Foundation is thrilled to be part of JFO’s Annual Meeting and Awards Night,” Executive Director of the JFO Foundation, Amy Shivvers, said. “In celebration of our 40th anniversary, The Foundation is hosting a pre and post reception, something new to this event. We will enjoy savory and sweet Kosher treats! Plus, you’ll want a good seat in the theater for our video debut, highlighting community voices and stories. The Foundation personally invites you and your family to attend this special event as we honor the amazing lay and professional leaders along with celebrating The Foundation’s 40 years of assuring Jewish tomorrows.”

The 2020 award recipients include Hannah and Natan

Schwalb, our JFO Humanitarians of the Year, who will be featured in the May 26 edition of the Jewish Press; Geoff Silverstein, recipient of the Bruce Fellman Memorial Young Leadership Award; Allly Freeman, who receives the Lois Jeanne Schrager

Memorial Young Leadership Award; Margie Utesch, recipient of the Jody and Neal Malashock Award for Professional Excellence; the Jewish Community Relations Council, who will receive the Jewish Federation of Omaha Community Service Award; Lauren Dolson and Alex Kugler, recipients of the Robert and Ellen Gordman Teen Leadership Award and, finally, the recipients of our Agency Volunteer of the Year Awards. Margie Gutnik and Norm Sheldon, recipients of the Phil and Terri Schrager Spirit of Federation Awards, will be honored at our Annual Campaign Community Event in October of this year. There is no need to RSVP and attendance is free. We hope you will mark your calendars and help us celebrate! For more information about the Awards Night and Annual Meeting, please visit jewishomaha.org

Antisemitism is the focus

RON KAMPEAS

WASHINGTON

| JTA

In songs and in speeches, an event at the White House marking Jewish American Heritage Month celebrated the presence of Jews in America since colonial times — and fretted about threats to American Jewry today.

“For some reason it’s come roaring back in the last several years,” President Biden told a crowd of Jewish supporters in the White House’s East Room on Tuesday evening. “Reports have shown that antisemitic incidents are at a record high in our history — a record high in the United States.

The emphasis on antisemitism was evident even in the entertainment — which featured a selection of songs from Parade, a Broadway musical about the 1915 lynching of a Jewish man. That theme was a departure from past White House Jewish American Heritage Month events, which focused on Jewish accomplishments and spotlighted legendary Jewish athletes, scientists, artists and performers.

Biden says he was shaped as a child by his father’s fury with the United States for not doing enough to stop the Holocaust. On Tuesday, he spoke again of how he was spurred to run for president in 2020 after the deadly NeoNazi march in Charlottesville, Virginia three years earlier — and former President Donald Trump’s equivocation when he was asked to condemn the marchers.

“That’s when I knew... our work was not done,” he said, turning to address a delegation of Jewish Democratic lawmakers who were attending the event, and who have pressed for a more aggressive response to antisemitism. “Hate never goes away.”

This was the first Jewish American Heritage Month event at the White House since 2016. Trump’s administration paid less attention to the commemoration, which was enshrined in a law passed with bipartisan support in 2006. Biden’s hopes of staging an event were delayed in the past couple of years by the coronavirus pandemic.

Describing current antisemitism, Biden re-

ferred not just to attacks from the far right, but to attacks on visibly Orthodox Jews, which have proliferated in the northeast, and to the threat some Jewish students describe on campuses.

He listed incidents including “violent attacks on synagogues and Jewish businesses, Jewish institutions under armed guards, Jews who wear religious attire beaten down in the street, Jewish students harassed and excluded from college campuses, swastikas on cars and cemeteries and in schools.”

Biden’s emphasis on a broader understanding of antisemitism, beyond the far right, came after a number of Jewish groups met in December with Doug Emhoff, the Jewish Second Gentleman, and asked him and other top officials to consider a more holistic approach to the problem.

A task force led by Emhoff, who also spoke at the event on Wednesday, is expected to release a strategy to counter antisemitism in the next few weeks.

Biden, in his remarks, said the strategy “includes over 100 meaningful actions that government agencies are going to take to counter antisemitism.” He did not detail any of those actions, except to say that the strategy would increase understanding of antisemitism and Jewish heritage, provide security for Jewish communities, reverse the normalization of antisemitism and build coalitions.

“It also includes calls to action for Congress, state and local governments, technology, and other companies, civil society, faith leaders to counter antisemitism,” he said.

A backgrounder to the event sent to reporters focused entirely on antisemitism, listing five actions Biden had taken to combat the phenomenon, including signing a bill to combat hate crimes and increasing funding for security at vulnerable institutions.

There were lighter elements to the event, including recognition of the services Jews have provided to the United States over the centuries, and a rendition of Hava Nagila by the Marine Band.

Read more at www.omahajewishpress. com.

Mazel Tov, Jemma!

parent(s), high school from which student graduated, and college which the student will attend.

INFORMATION

ANTISEMITIC/ HATE INCIDENTS

If you encounter an antisemitic or other hate incident, you are not alone. Your first call should be to the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) in Omaha at 402.334.6572, or email JCRCreporting@ jewishomaha.org. If you perceive an imminent threat, call 911, and text Safety and Security Manager James Donahue at 402.213.1658.

Love, Mom, Sasha, and Grandpa

We are proud of your accomplishments and look forward to your future endeavors.

Evan, and

Memorial Day Service

Sunday, May 28 • 11 a.m.

Speaker: Mary-Beth Muskin

1350 East Pierce Street, Council Bluffs, Iowa

For directions, call Patty Lee Nogg, 402/578-7461 Cemetery Manager Steve O’Neill, 712/328-1579

Nogg, President; Bob Kully,V.P.; Gail Krasne Kenkel, Secretary; Doug Krasne,Treasurer Beth Seldin Dotan, Mark Eveloff, Elyse Gallner, Michael Gallner, John Goldner, Larry Goldstrom, Jay Katelman, John Katelman, Joshua Katelman, Rick Katelman, Marti Nerenstone, Sissy Silber, and Marty Ricks

Everyone is so proud of you and can’t wait to see what you accomplish in the future!

President Joe Biden poses for a selfie with Amanda Berman, May 16, 2023. Credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

SP O TLIGHT

PHOTOS FROM RECENT JEWISH COMMUNITY EVENTS

SUBMIT A PHOTO: Have a photo of a recent Jewish Community event you would like to submit? Email the image and a suggested caption to: avandekamp@jewishomaha.org

GENEROUSLY SUPPORTED BY

Above: Bob Goldberg and Sandy Friedman flanking Eric Fingerhut, CEO of the Jewish Federations of North America, during his recent visit to Omaha.

The reception highlighting Maestro Francesco Lotoro at the JCC. Above left: Cantor Joanna Alexander, Dana CohnWear, Nikki Cohn-Knepell and Jamie Meyerson; above right: Susie Cohn accompanied by Maestro Lotoro and the Italian singers; below right: Ann Marie Kenny and Ducky Milder.

Above: The Yom HaZikaron service at Beth Israel was an incredibly beautiful and moving event, especially with the gathering of so many Israelis in one place, many of them in tears.

Left and above: The recent NCSY Shabbaton delegation road-tripped all the way to Chicago. Rabbi Yoni made eight homemade pizzas for the trip (what a mensch) so they could have a picnic along the way.

Top, above, below and bottom: The Beth Israel Lag Baomer celebration at the Grossmans Thank you Alex Grossman and Mary Sue Grossman for an amazing event as usual, and thank you Bruce and Cindy Goldberg and Howard Kutler for sponsoring!

Above and below: The Omaha Momentum Men’s trip participants were hosted in our Partnership region.

Editorials express the view of the writer and are not necessarily representative of the views of the Jewish Press Board of Directors, the Jewish Federation of Omaha Board of Directors, or the Omaha Jewish community as a whole.

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The mission of the Jewish Federation of Omaha is to build and sustain a strong and vibrant Omaha Jewish Community and to support Jews in Israel and around the world. Agencies of the JFO are: Institute for Holocaust Education, Jewish Community Relations Council, Jewish Community Center, Jewish Social Services and the Jewish Press Guidelines and highlights of the Jewish Press, including front page stories and announcements, can be found online at: www.jewishomaha.org; click on ‘Jewish Press.’ Editorials express the view of the writer and are not necessarily representative of the views of the Jewish Press Board of Directors, the Jewish Federation of Omaha Board of Directors, or the Omaha Jewish community as a whole. The Jewish Press reserves the right to edit signed letters and articles for space and content. The Jewish Press is not responsible for the Kashrut of any product or establishment.

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Letters of thanks should be confined to commending an institution for a program, project or event, rather than personally thanking paid staff, unless the writer chooses to turn the “Letter to the Editor” into a paid personal ad or a news article about the event, project or program which the professional staff supervised. For information, contact Annette van de Kamp-Wright, Jewish Press Editor, 402.334.6450.

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Real News

ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT

Jewish Press Editor

Recently, I learned a new word: ‘doomscrolling.’ It’s when you open a news app on your phone, click on a terrible headline, and then you click on the next, and the next, until an hour has passed and you realize you’ve just read 23 different stories about school shootings. Or maybe you’ve jumped down a rabbit hole regarding the debt ceiling. Random diseases, environmental disasters, crime and punishment. Whatever it is, it’s Bad News and you can’t stop looking.

We talk about it often: the convenience of having the news at your fingertips; I love it, finding things out in real time, not having to wait. And when bad things happen, I enter the spiral and by the time I realize the downside, it’s too late. Sound familiar?

Here’s one of those headlines that does this to me: “Ice Cream truck Outside Auschwitz Provokes Criticism.” I mean, what? How can you not click, right? But then, it leads me to this: “Austrian police charge 2 men after Hitler speech plays on public train’s loudspeakers.” And this: “Jewelry with Nazi ties fetches record prices at Christie’s auction amid controversy.”

Of course, there was also that story about the seal who ended up on an Israeli beach, but we tend to not dwell on the fluff news. That’s not “Real News,” we tell ourselves.

Why is that? I’ve noticed it before, when the local news ends their broadcast with stories about church-basement fundraisers for a community member, or a lost family pet who was miraculously found. We roll our eyes at each other and call it a

‘slow news day.’

But good news is also news. Happy events, shouldn’t they at least receive the same amount of attention as the tragedies? Or am I being too naive? (Don’t answer that).

Sometimes our reminders of what’s important come from unexpected sources.

“The day after a gunman killed four people out-

gress, said:

“Something beautiful happened. They had a brit milah in Djerba, even with all the chaos. Jewish life goes on.” You can read the full story at our website at www.omahajewishpress.com, but it comes down to this:

side an ancient place of Jewish worship on the Tunisian island of Djerba,” Ron Kampeas wrote for the JTA, “men gathered in the same synagogue not to mourn, but to celebrate. They were there to witness the blessing of a new life: a brit milah, or ritual circumcision.”

Rabbi Isaac Choua, a sephardic rabbi living in New York and the Middle East and North Africa communities liaison for the World Jewish Con-

“The Tunisian Jewish Diaspora would not be deterred. Jewish Tunisians are still going to either visit family [or] visit this pilgrimage site. Jews are resilient.” (JTA) When bad things happen, we dust ourselves off and we keep going. Isn’t that similar to what we hear out of Israel each time a rocket is fired? It’s kind of the opposite of dwelling in tragedy—which is easy to say when you are not personally involved in said tragedy. However, if the Jews in Djerba can get muster up the courage to have a bris right after a terrorist attack, surely we can collectively climb out of that rabbit hole. Also, correct me if I’m wrong, but ‘doomscrolling’ seems a typical thing to do for people in peace. Who has time to stare at their phone when bad stuff is actually going down.

Next time I’m tempted to fall for the clickbait, I am going to remind myself of that Bris in Djerba. Resilience like this should dominate the headlines. Because it’s a message about life, hope and endless optimism that continues to exist in the most unlikely places. And that is the kind of rabbit hole I’d rather live in.

Meir Shalev and Yehonatan Geffen were Israeli cultural royalty.

GILAD HALPERN JTA

Over the last few months, since the far-right government announced its plans for an overarching constitutional overhaul, Israel’s embattled liberal camp has experienced a renaissance. Unprecedented mobilization on the part of protesting masses, business leaders and the IDF vanguard has left the government in disarray and, in the wake of a seemingly endless string of electoral defeats, invigorated the left to an extent that it had not seen since the 1990s. The left may be dead, but it is not quite buried yet.

But amid this process of rejuvenation and weeks before Israel celebrated its 75th anniversary, the Israeli left experienced two symbolic blows in ironic proximity when two cultural titans died within days of each other.

Meir Shalev, an eminent novelist, and Yehonatan Geffen, an incredibly prolific journalist, author and songwriter, were also prominent public intellectuals. Both had spent decades dabbling in current affairs as columnists for the mass-circulation dailies Yedioth Aharonoth and Maariv, respectively.

Shalev was 74 when he died on April 11. Geffen, who died on April 19, was 76.

The symbolism did not stop at their premature and almost simultaneous passing. It was, rather, the final chapter of two lives that also began in great proximity: Shalev and Geffen were born a little over a year apart in the agricultural community of Nahalal, the Camelot of the Labor Zionism movement. Both were descendants of Zionist aristocracy: Shalev’s father was the Jerusalemite author and educator Yithzak Shalev, and Geffen’s maternal uncle the legendary general-turned-politician Moshe Dayan. Like many of their cohort, they were groomed for the driving seat of the newborn State of Israel.

Their formidable life’s work, thus, was largely an ongoing attempt to deal with the burden bestowed upon them by their pedigrees. And this is where they differ, despite the eerie similarities in their biographies.

Many of Shalev’s novels, especially the earlier ones, were loving tributes to his lineage. They included A Pigeon and A Boy, which is set during the War of Independence and won the National Jewish Book Award in 2006, and The Blue Mountain, set on a moshav (an agricultural cooperative) shortly be-

fore the founding of Israel. Though never overly sentimental and always strewn with a heavy dose of irony, Shalev’s writings were adoring accounts of a bygone generation, complete with their shtick and quirks and foibles. His protagonists were shrouded in a certain mythology, which Shalev did not labor to deconstruct entirely; he was just attempting to humanize and bring them down to earth.

But while Shalev looked up to his parents’ generation, Geffen blew a raspberry in their faces. He was part of a tight cohort of musicians and artists who grew up in Israel post-independence — a tribe that included David Broza, Arik Einstein, Gidi Gov, Shalom Hanoch and Yehudit Ravitz, all household names in Israel. Geffen’s song Could It Be Over?, featured on Arik Einstein’s 1973 album sporting the deliberately ironic title Good Old Israel, exemplifies the challenging relationship. From the opening line (“They say it was fun before I was born, and everything was just splendid until I arrived”), the song is a mischievous and self-deprecating take on Israel’s founding myths. Enumerating them one by one — the draining of the swamps, the heroic battles for Jewish sovereignty, the nascent Hebrew culture in the pre-state Yishuv — Geffen sarcastically concludes: “They had a reason to get up in the morning.”

More broadly, Geffen was bent on smashing every aspect of the Zionist ethos. In defiance of the image of the Hebrew warrior, of which his uncle Moshe was the poster boy, Geffen was an adamant pacifist as well as, famously, a very bad soldier himself. Having been called for reserve service during the first Lebanon War, in 1982, he was performing for soldiers ahead of the IDF offensive on Beirut when he was dragged off stage by the commanding officer for calling on the troops to refuse. His song The Little Prince of Company B (sung by Shem-Tov Levy), about a timid and frail fallen soldier praised as a hero against his will, was one of the first and bestremembered anti-war songs in the Hebrew canon.

Geffen’s counterculture instincts were informed by his great American heroes — notably the Jewish iconoclasts Bob Dylan and Lenny Bruce — and this admiration was in itself a jab at his upbringing, characterized by vain parochialism masquerading as self-sufficiency. Geffen felt more at home in New

York (where he spent several years) and Tel Aviv than in the fields of the Jezreel Valley; his tools were not a sickle and a plow, but rather a pack of cigarettes and a bottle of whisky.

Shalev, in his political writing, also advocated for left-of-center politics that is sometimes derisively described as “Ashkenazi”: moderate, civil, Western

in its orientation, calling to rally around a common good — a type of political discourse that, as recent events show, speaks to fewer and fewer Israelis. “The Israeli public is moving more and more to the right. The war in 1967 may have destroyed Israel,” he told an interviewer in 2017. “We took a big bite that is now suffocating us. All Israel has done since 1967 is deal with aspects of the occupation. Israel has not been dealing with the things I feel it should deal with.

With my political views, I am a minority in Israel.”

Shalev was a pastor of sorts; Geffen was sometimes a Jeremiah and sometimes a court jester, and often both. They were representatives of two distinct streams within the traditionally fragmented Israeli left; the very same left that, despite the current resurgence, seems too often to have more streams than members.

Gilad Halpern is an Israeli journalist, broadcaster and media historian. He is co-host of the English-language podcast The Tel Aviv Review and founding co-editor of The Tel Aviv Review of Books, an English-language literary journal. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of JTA or its parent company, 70 Faces Media.

Interior of La Ghriba Synagogue, Djerba, Tunisia Credit: Chrystie Sherman/Diarna Geo-Museum of North African & Middle Eastern Jewish Life

Yehonatan Geffen, a journalist, songwriter and actor, and Meir Shalev, an award-winning novelist, were part of the first generation of Israeli artists and entertainers to grow up after the state gained its independence. Credit: Geffen: Tomer Neuberg/Flash90. Shalev: Lesekreis/Wikipedia

B’NAI ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE

618 Mynster Street

Synagogues

Ari; Mincha/Ma’ariv 8:30 p.m.; Parsha Class 9 p.m.

Familly; Shabbat Candlelighting, 8:29 p.m.

Council Bluffs, IA 51503-0766

712.322.4705

email: CBsynagogue@hotmail.com

BETH EL SYNAGOGUE

Member of United Synagogues of Conservative Judaism

14506 California Street Omaha, NE 68154-1980

402.492.8550 bethel-omaha.org

BETH ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE

Member of Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America

12604 Pacific Street Omaha, NE. 68154

402.556.6288 BethIsrael@OrthodoxOmaha.org

CHABAD HOUSE

An Affiliate of Chabad-Lubavitch

1866 South 120 Street Omaha, NE 68144-1646

402.330.1800 OChabad.com email: chabad@aol.com

LINCOLN JEWISH COMMUNITY: B’NAI JESHURUN

South Street Temple

Union for Reform Judaism

2061 South 20th Street Lincoln, NE 68502-2797

402.435.8004 www.southstreettemple.org

OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE

Capehart Chapel

2500 Capehart Road Offutt AFB, NE 68123

402.294.6244

email: oafbjsll@icloud.com

ROSE BLUMKIN JEWISH HOME

323 South 132 Street Omaha, NE 68154

TEMPLE ISRAEL

Union for Reform Judaism (URJ)

13111 Sterling Ridge Drive Omaha, NE 68144-1206 402.556.6536 templeisraelomaha.com

LINCOLN JEWISH COMMUNITY: TIFERETH ISRAEL

Member of United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism

3219 Sheridan Boulevard Lincoln, NE 68502-5236

402.423.8569 tiferethisraellincoln.org

Monthly Speaker Series Service, Friday, June 9, 7:30 p.m. with our guest speaker. Our service leader is Larry Blass. Everyone is always welcome at B’nai Israel!

For information on COVID-related closures and about our historic synagogue, please contact Howard Kutler at hkutler@hotmail.com or any of our other board members: Renee Corcoran, Scott Friedman, Rick Katelman, Janie Kulakofsky, Howard Kutler, Carole and Wayne Lainof, Ann Moshman, Mary-Beth Muskin, Debbie Salomon and Sissy Silber. Handicap Accessible.

B’NAI ISRAEL BETH EL

Services conducted by Rabbi Steven Abraham and Hazzan Michael Krausman.

VIRTUAL AND IN-PERSON MINYAN SCHEDULE: Mornings on Sundays, 9:30 a.m.; Mondays and Thursdays 7 a.m.; Evenings on Sunday-Thursday 5:30 p.m.

FRIDAY: Beth El Office Closed; Shavuot Day One Morning Service, 10 a.m.; Kabbalat Shabbat, 6 p.m. at Beth El & Live Stream.

SATURDAY: Shavuot Day Two and Graduation

Shabbat Morning Services — Yizkor will be said, 10 a.m. at Beth El & Live Stream; Havdalah, 9:30 p.m. Zoom Only.

SUNDAY: Torah Study, 10 a.m.

MONDAY: Beth El Office Closed.

TUESDAY: Kamp Kef, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

WEDNESDAY: Kamp Kef, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

THURSDAY: Kamp Kef, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

FRIDAY-June 2: Kamp Kef, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.; Kabbalat Shabbat 6 p.m. at Beth El & Live Stream.

SATURDAY-June 3: Shabbat Morning Services and Judah Kohen Bar Mitzvah 10 a.m. at Beth El & Live Stream; Havdalah, 9:35 p.m. Zoom Only. Please visit bethel-omaha.org for additional information and service links.

BETH ISRAEL

FRIDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Mincha/Kabbalat Shabbat, 7:30 p.m.; Candlelighting, 8:28 p.m.

SATURDAY: Shabbat Kollel, 8:30 a.m.; Shacharit 9 a.m.; Tot Shabbat, 10:45 a.m.; Kids Class, 7:20 p.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv 8:20 p.m.; Laws of Shabbos/Kids Activity, 8:50 p.m.; Havdalah, 9:37 p.m.

SUNDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 8:30 p.m.

MONDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Daf Yomi, 7:50 p.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 8:30 p.m.

TUESDAY: Nach Yomi, 6:45 a.m.; Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 8:30 p.m.

WEDNESDAY: Nach Yomi, 6:45 a.m.; Shacharit, 7

a.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 8:30 p.m.

THURSDAY: Nach Yomi, 6:45 a.m.; Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Character Development 9:30 a.m. with Rabbi

FRIDAY-June 2: Nach Yomi, 6:45 a.m.; Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Mincha/Kabbalat Shabbat, 7:30 p.m.; Candlelighting, 8:34 p.m.

SATURDAY-June 3: Shabbat Kollel, 8:30 a.m.; Shacharit 9 a.m.; Tot Shabbat 10:45 a.m.; Kids Class 7:20 p.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv 8:20 p.m.; Laws of Shabbos/Kids Activity, 8:50 p.m.; Havdalah, 9:43 p.m. Please visit orthodoxomaha.org for additional information and Zoom service links.

CHABAD HOUSE

All services are in-person. All classes are being offered in-person and via Zoom (ochabad.com/academy). For more information or to request help, please visit www.ochabad.com or call the office at 402.330.1800.

FRIDAY: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Inspirational Lechayim, 5:45 p.m. with Rabbi and friends: ochabad.com/ Lechayim; Candlelighting, 8:28 p.m.

SATURDAY: Shacharit 9:30 a.m. followed by Kiddush and Cholent; Shabbat Ends, 9:36 p.m.

SUNDAY: Sunday Morning Wraps: Video Presentation 9-9:30 a.m. and Breakfast, 9:45 a.m.

MONDAY: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Personal Parsha, 9:30 a.m.; Intermediate Biblical Hebrew Grammar, 10:30 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Parsha Reading, 6 p.m. with Prof. David Cohen.

TUESDAY: Shacharit 8 a.m.; Intermediate Biblical Hebrew Grammar, 6 p.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Introductory Biblical Hebrew Grammar, 7 p.m. with Prof. David Cohen.

WEDNESDAY: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Mystical Thinking (Tanya), 9:30 a.m.; Introductory Biblical Hebrew Grammar, 10:30 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Parsha Reading, 11:30 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen.

THURSDAY: Shacharit 8 a.m.; Advanced Biblical Hebrew Grammar, 11 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Talmud Study (Sanhedrin 34), noon; Introduction to Alphabet, Vowels & Reading Hebrew, 6 p.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Kitzur Shulchan Aruch (Code of Jewish Law) Class, 7 p.m.

FRIDAY-May 26: Shacharit 8 a.m.; Inspirational Lechayim, 5:45 p.m. with Rabbi and friends: ocha bad.com/Lechayim; Candlelighting, 8:28 p.m.

SATURDAY-May 27: Shacharit 9:30 a.m. followed by Kiddush and Cholent; Shabbat Ends, 9:36 p.m.

LINCOLN JEWISH COMMUNITY:

B’NAI JESHURUN & TIFERETH ISRAEL

Services facilitated by Rabbi Alex Felch.

Note: Some of our services, but not all, are now being offered in person.

FRIDAY: Shavuot Day One; Evey Friedman Bat Mitzvah and Kabbalat Shabbat Service with Rabbi Alex and Evey Friedman and music by the Star City Kochavim, 7:30 p.m. at SST; Oneg host: The Friedman

SATURDAY: Shavuot Day Two; Evey Friedman Bat Mitzvah and Shabbat Morning Service, 9:30 a.m. with Rabbi Alex and Evey Friedman at TI; Kiddush Lunch is sponsored by the Friedman Family; No Torah Study; Havdalah 9:37 p.m.

SUNDAY: SST Board of Trustees Meeting, 10 a.m.; Men’s Bike/Coffee Group meet, 10:30 a.m. at RockN-Joe, just off of 84th and Glynoaks. For more information or questions please email Al Weiss at albertw801@gmail.com; Pickleball, 3-5 p.m. at TI.

MONDAY: Synagogue Offices Closed for Memorial Day.

FRIDAY-June 2: Kabbalat Shabbat Service led by Sarah Kelen and music by Nathaniel and Steve Kaup, 6:30 p.m. at SST; Oneg host: TBD; Shabbat Candlelighting, 8:34 p.m.

SATURDAY-June 3: Shabbat Morning Service, 9:30 a.m. with lay leadership at TI; Torah Study, noon on Parashat Nasso; Havdalah 9:43 p.m.

OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE

FRIDAYS: Virtual Shabbat Service, 7:30 p.m. every first and third of the month at Capehart Chapel. Contact TSgt Jason Rife at OAFBJSLL@icloud.com for more information.

ROSE BLUMKIN JEWISH HOME

The Rose Blumkin Jewish Home’s service is currently closed to visitors.

TEMPLE ISRAEL

In-person and virtual services conducted by Rabbi Batsheva Appel, Rabbi Deana Sussman Berezin, and Cantor Joanna Alexander

FRIDAY: Shavuot Service and Yizkor, 10:30 a.m. InPerson & Zoom; Tot Shabbat, 5:45 p.m.; Shabbat Service with Celebration of Shavuot, 6 p.m. In-Person & Zoom.

SATURDAY: Torah Study, 9:15 a.m. In-Person & Zoom.

WEDNESDAY: Yarn It, 9 a.m. In-Person

THURSDAY: Thursday Morning Class 10 a.m. with Rabbi Azriel via Zoom; Music Bingo, 6 p.m. In-Person

FRIDAY-June 2: Drop in Mah Jongg, 9-11 a.m. InPerson; Shabbat Shira Service and Farewell to Rabbi Appel, 6 p.m. In-Person & Zoom.

SATURDAY-June 3: Torah Study 9:15 a.m. In-Person & Zoom; Shabbat Morning Service, 10:30 a.m. InPerson & Zoom.

Please visit templeisraelomaha.com for additional information and Zoom service links.

Elon Musk takes aim at the Anti-Defamation League after its CEO says his tweets ‘will embolden extremists’

BEN SALES

JTA

Hours after tweeting that George Soros “hates humanity,” Elon Musk bashed the Anti-Defamation League, appearing to draw praise from a series of white supremacist accounts on Twitter, which he owns.

On May 16, Musk tweeted, “ADL should just drop the ‘A.'” The tweet implied that the group, which is the most prominent antisemitism watchdog in the country, should instead be named the “Defamation League.”

Musk’s tweet came after ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt criticized Musk’s remarks about Soros, marking the latest chapter in the roller-coaster relationship between the ADL and the Twitter CEO. When Musk was poised to buy the social media platform, Greenblatt praised him. But in the months since that acquisition, the ADL has been increasingly critical of Musk, accusing him of taking a lax attitude toward policing hate speech.

When asked for a response, the ADL pointed to Greenblatt’s statement from earlier in the day, in which he took Musk to task for his Soros remarks, including a tweet in which Musk compared the progressive megadonor and Holocaust survivor to a comic book villain. Greenblatt tweeted that

Musk’s comments “will embolden extremists who already contrive anti-Jewish conspiracies and have tried to attack Soros and Jewish communities as a result.” (The shooter in the Pittsburgh synagogue attack in 2018 referenced a conspiracy theory about Soros.)

Another Jewish organizational executive, American Jewish Committee CEO Ted Deutch, echoed that criticism, tweeting, “The lie that Jews want to destroy civilization has led to the persecution of Jewish people for centuries. Musk should know better.” And David Saranga, a senior official at Israel’s Foreign Ministry, tweeted that Musk’s post had “a whiff of antisemitism.”

The current spat is a marked difference from Greenblatt’s attitude last October, when he praised Musk as “an amazing entrepreneur and extraordinary innovator,” and as “the Henry Ford of our time.”

Even though he later acknowledged that “the Henry Ford reference was wrong,” given that Ford was perhaps the most notorious antisemite in American history, Greenblatt added, “We want to be cautiously optimistic about how Musk will run the platform because he successfully has innovated other industries and tackled incredibly complex problems.”

Since then, the ADL has taken a more negative view. Less than a month after the Henry Ford anal-

ogy, the ADL called for an ad boycott of Twitter due to a spike in antisemitism on the site. In the months that have followed, the ADL has criticized Twitter for removing hate speech guardrails by dissolving an advisory body focused on “Trust and Safety” and by allowing antisemites who had been banned to return to the platform.

The Musk-ADL dynamic parallels the deteriorating relationship the ADL had with another social media giant, Facebook. Several years ago, the ADL worked with Facebook to curb hate speech, but later led a high-profile ad boycott of the platform when it judged that Facebook and its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, were not committed to preventing bigotry on the site.

Musk’s tweet about the ADL appears to have unleashed yet more antisemitism on Twitter. In the hours after Musk posted the tweet, he garnered praise from a string of accounts posting antisemitic content, which shared his tweet with their own commentary.

An account called “White Power Ranger” tweeted, “The ADL is a jewish supremacist foreign lobby/spy group.” Another with an avatar of Pepe the Frog, a cartoon that has become a symbol of the alt-right, tweeted a cartoon of a traditional fascist symbol along with the words, “We’re back.” Another posted a GIF of Adolf Hitler smiling alongside the message, “Based.”

Life cycles

B’NAI MITZVAH LETTER TO THE EDITOR

JUDAH KOHEN

Judah Kohen, son of Ari and Sara Kohen, will celebrate his Bar Mitzvah on Saturday, June 3, 2023, at Beth El Synagogue.

Judah is a graduate of Friedel Jewish Academy and is a seventh-grade honor roll student at Kiewit Middle School.

He enjoys running, reading, playing chess, and spending time with his family and friends.

He has three younger siblings: sister, Talia, and two brothers, Micah and Daniel.

Grandparents are Jerry and Belle Kohen of West Bloomfield, Michigan, and Jon and Lyn Lunsford of Richmond, Virginia.

Great-grandparents are Sheri Kohen of Farmington Hills, Michigan, and Zoli Kohen, Leonard and Frances Fink, John and Carolyn Lunsford, and J.D. and Evelyn Hughey, all of blessed memory.

LIAM RIEKES PARCEL

Liam Riekes Parcel, son of Andrew & Carin (Riekes) Parcel, will celebrate his Bar Mitzvah on Saturday, June 3, 2023, at Temple De Hirsch Sinai in Seattle.

Liam is a seventh-grade student at Islander Middle School, Mercer Island, Washington.

Liam spends his time playing golf, running cross country, mountain climbing and volunteering at Friendship Circle. He enjoys skiing, coding, creating digital art, designing video games, playing D&D with his friends and reading.

For his Mitzvah project, Liam has partnered with the Save A Child's Heart organization, a children's hospital based in Israel, raising funds to sponsor a child receiving treatment for congenital/rheumatic heart disease. To donate to his efforts please visit: www.classy.org/fundraiser/4636265.

He has two sisters, Sydney and Dylan.

Grandparents are Zoë and Carl Riekes of Omaha, and Judy Carroll and Randy Parcel of Denver.

To the donors of the Jewish Federation of Omaha and the Foundation, I wanted to take a moment to express my gratitude at receiving a scholarship to send my two children, Naomi and Gabriel to the Pennie Z Davis Early Learning Center. We have been nothing but impressed with our experience with the ELC. Not only are we able to go to our jobs without worrying about our children’s well-being; we know that they are growing up in a stimulating, intentional and Jewish environment.

I have dedicated the last few years of my life to Omaha’s Jewish Community. Whether as Development Director at the JFO, Executive Director at Beth Israel, or as the Executive Director at Temple Israel, I spend most of my awake hours working for the advancement of this community. I am lucky in the sense that I get to see how beautiful and how generous the community is, and I am very grateful to be the recipient of that generosity.

The Early Learning Center is an incredible facility, and the tuition reflects that quality. Honestly, it’s out of our price range. However, it’s the sole option for a Jewish daycare facility, and so, we make it work. The scholarship granted to us helps financially in a big way, but what it represents is much more important. It says to me and my family that the community wants us to be a part of it as much as we want it. It’s a partnership.

Sometimes it is hard to talk about money. I see it almost everyday. There are a lot of folks in our community that are having a hard time, and on top of that, they feel a sense of shame when asking for help. The truth of the matter is that most of us will find ourselves in various financial positions. Sometimes we can give to others, and sometimes we could use a little help. I’ve been a proud donor to the JFO since I started working there in 2015. I am also a proud recipient of scholarship funds since I started sending my children to the ELC because I know there are folks that give donations and set up foundations because they want to ensure a Jewish future, and they do that by providing scholarships.

In closing, I want to thank the Financial Aid Committee of the Jewish Federation of Omaha and all the funders that made these scholarships available to our community’s families.

ON BEHALF OF ALL OF US, NATE, CARLY, NAOMI AND GABRIEL SHAPIRO

Pittsburgh synagogue shooting trial to begin

JTA

The trial of the alleged shooter in the Pittsburgh synagogue attack is slated to begin May 30. Jury selection for the federal trial began last month and is expected to end next week, according to the Pittsburgh Union Progress, a local publication, and the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle, which are jointly covering the trial. The defendant, Robert Bowers, is accused of killing 11 worshippers from three congregations who were praying

together on Oct. 27. 2018. He faces the death penalty. Most observers expect the defendant to be convicted, which would result in a third phase of the trial focused on sentencing during which victims’ family members and other community leaders would testify. Some relatives of the massacre’s victims have pushed for Bowers to be executed, while leaders of two of the three congregations have previously advocated against the death penalty. Read more at www.omahajewishpress.com

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Israel to invest in North American Jewish day schools

JACKIE HAJDENBERG AND PHILISSA CRAMER

JTA

Citing “a major crisis in Jewish education,” Israel’s Diaspora ministry plans to pour about $40 million into training educators at Jewish schools in the US and Canada.

Amichai Chikli, Israel’s minister of Diaspora affairs, announced the initiative, called “Aleph Bet” after the first two letters of the Hebrew alphabet, on Monday. He hopes enrollment will increase at Jewish day schools, fearing that “we are losing large parts of the Jewish people,” and said the initiative would “focus on training teachers for Jewish education and Israel studies as well as principals for Jewish day schools,” according to the Jerusalem Post Chikli did not elaborate on how his ministry would spend the allocation of NIS 150 million, nor did he detail when funds could start making their way into North American Jewish schools. His office did not respond to a request for comment. Israel’s governing coalition plans to approve a state budget next week, ahead of a May 29 deadline.

North American Jewish schools have received varying levels of Israeli government support for years, according to Paul Bernstein, CEO of Prizmah, a nonprofit supporting Jewish day schools. He said staff members of day schools were optimistic about the additional funding despite lacking details about where it would go.

“There’s quite a lot of chatter. People are excited by the fact that the State of Israel really sees the importance of Diaspora education, and is recognizing that the strength of the Diaspora is integral to [a] strong Israel and strong relationships,” Bernstein said. “Irrespective of all that’s going on in the world, that is a very positive and important long-term development.”

The announcement comes at a time of tension between Israel’s right-wing governing coalition and North American Jewish communities. A chorus of U.S. Jewish leaders has criticized the government’s proposed overhaul of Israel’s judiciary, and last month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can-

celed a speech at a signature conference of North American Jews in Tel Aviv in the face of anti-government protests. Chikli, who assumed his role in January, has defended the judicial overhaul while acting as an ambassador of sorts to an often skeptical audience of Diaspora Jews.

at times out of range for the average family,” he told Hamodia, a haredi publication, in April. “This is where we step up to the plate. This isn’t to say we’re giving out free scholarships … but we invest, as noted earlier, in the teachers, in the school systems, to ensure Jewish education, and continuity of Jewish generations. We want to raise the pride of Jewish studies teachers.”

Attending a Jewish school is widely considered a strong predictor of lasting Jewish identity, although that may be because parents who prioritize Jewish identity are more likely to send their children to Jewish day school. Enrollment in Jewish schools in North American Jewish schools is growing, largely because of the growth of Orthodox communities, where the vast majority of children attend private Jewish schools.

Outside of those communities, most North American Jewish children do not attend Jewish day schools. But the pandemic saw Conservative, Reform and nondenominational day schools grow as well, according to a survey by Prizmah, following more than a decade of decline. The survey found that schools have maintained those enrollment gains even as the pandemic has ended.

Chikli, whose father is a Jewish educator in Mexico, had previously indicated that he sees Jewish day schools abroad as an important destination for Israeli aid. He has said repeatedly — including on Monday — that children who do not attend Jewish day schools are at risk of being lost to the Jewish people.

“We are in the midst of a crisis where it is possible to lose an entire generation of Jews,” he said during the funding announcement.

Early in his tenure, Chikli floated the idea of working with philanthropists to subsidize day school tuition in the Diaspora. More recently, he has signaled that covering tuition — which can range from several thousand dollars at haredi Orthodox yeshivas to more than $40,000 a year — is less of a priority.

“Jewish education in private schools is very expensive, and

Meanwhile, Hebrew schools and other supplemental Jewish schools have shrunk by nearly half since 2006, according to a recent report by the Jewish Education Project. Chikli did not specify whether any of the new funding could go to such schools.

Chikli’s father, Eitan Chikli, is the rector of the Hebraic University in Mexico City, which receives some funding from his son’s ministry. Previously, he was the longtime director general of Israel’s TALI Education Fund, which promotes pluralistic Jewish education in Israeli schools and also produces materials for use in Jewish schools abroad.

The elder Chikli told the Jerusalem Post in January that he would not discuss the funding his university receives with his son, who he said is fastidious about avoiding conflicts of interest. But he said that teacher training was an urgent problem for Jewish schools.

Amichai Chikli, head of Israel’s Diaspora Affairs and Combat Antisemitism Ministry, announced Monday an initiative to increase Jewish day school enrollment in North America. Credit: Geffen: Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90