December 28, 2007

Vol. LXXXVII No. 16 Omaha, NE

Celebrating 87 Years of Service to Nebraska and Western Iowa

19 Tevet, 5768 December 28, 2007

Talented musicians in finals of competition

by SUSAN ROTHHOLZ Event Chairman Sokolof Music Fund When the Karen Sokolof Javitch Music Fund sent applications around the world for its Emerging Jewish Composers’ Competition, they had no idea of the response. But not to worry. Entries poured in in great quantity with extraordinary quality.

A concert featuring the Jonathan Comisar Arielle Galler-Rabinowitz music of the finalists will be held at the Jewish group. Carmel, a composer and violinist, Community Center on Thursday, Jan. is from Israel and studied music in Berlin 10, 7 p.m. There are three finalists in the and at the University of Chicago. She has 21 years of age and older section and two received a Carnegie Fellowship in addiin the 20 years and under group. The tion to many other awards, and has curwinner in each category will be awarded a rent commissions from the Aspen Music prize of $1000.

Festival and Musica Nova Israel.

Carmel Raz is a finalist in the older Raz has played under the batons of

Christmas resolution in U.S. Congress renews debate over ‘Christian nation’

Danielle Galler-Rabinowitz Jamie Klenesky Carmel Raz Pierre Boulez, Daniel Barenboim and Young Artists Award. His studies continClaudio Abbado among others. This year ued at Oberlin College, and then the she will be touring Europe with the Israel Hebrew Union College School of Sacred Contemporary String Quartet.

Music. Cantor Comisar serves the Another talented finalist is Jonathan Community Synagogue of Rye, NY, Comisar of Mamaroneck, NY. He studied where he teaches classes on the history of piano at the Eastman School of Music and Jewish music and directs a children’s choir. at age 17 won first prize in the Eastman Continued on page 2

Hey you up there!

by BETH YOUNG WASHINGTON (JTA) -- A seemingly benign U.S. congressional resolution supporting Christmas has become the latest fodder in the debate over whether America is a “Christian nation.”

Nearly all the members of the House of Representatives, including a majority of Jewish members, voted for the Dec. 11 resolution acknowledging the celebration of Christmas and the role Christians have played in U.S. history.

Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) is the author of a U.S. congressional resolution supporting Christmas.

Credit: Office of Rep. Steve King But the resolution’s author, Rep. Steve King (RIowa), has since lashed out at the nine “liberal Democrats” who voted against the resolution and questioned how they had supported a different resolution supporting Ramadan.

In a Dec. 12 appearance on Fox News, King said: “I would like to know how they can vote yes on Ramadan, yes on the Indian religions and no on Christianity when the foundation of this nation and our American culture is Christian.”

The rhetoric over the so-called Christmas wars has been toned down this year, with Christian conservatives less vocal than in the past about the need to “protect” Christmas from those who would downplay its public and religious significance.

At the same time, the congressional dust-up comes as Jews and others express discomfort with the decidedly central role of faith in the race for the Republican nominee for president.

Continued on page 2

Inside

RAMAT GAN, ISRAEL -- It seems that Denise the giraffe has got an appeal that other female giraffes just do not have. Last week Denise, now 17-years-old, gave birth to her 10th calf. Following her 15-month pregnancy Denise’s latest offspring was seen for the first time today at the Ramat Gan Safari Park. The two animals are left to their own devices in a small protected covered enclosure and the Safari’s veterinary staff says that from their observation the new calf looks very well – after all Denise has had a lot of experience with her previous offspring.

Credit: ISRANET

This Week: Monthly Calendar for January: Pages 8-9 Coming Next Month: Tax and Financial Planning on Jan. 11

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

End of tragic tale as Herzl’s grandson is reburied in Israel: Page 3

NETV1 to premiere documentary on Jewish Americans: Page 7

Intel develops eco-chip with Israeli help: Page 10

Page 2

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

December 28, 2007

Beth Israel’s Rabbi-in-Residence to address “Lev Banim”

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by MARY BORT for Beth Israel Synagogue In August, Beth Israel began a new educational program, “Lev Banim al Avotam: Hearts of Children upon Their Parents.” The program is funded through a grant from the Legacy Heritage Innovation Project. The goal, in part, of the Project Grant is “... to integrate adult, family, Rabbi Jonathan Rosenblatt and children’s education into home and communal Shabbat and holiday practice on a systemic basis.” Beth Israel is actively creating educational recommendations and innovations that will lead to systemic change in educational curriculum.

As part of the Grant programming, Beth Israel will welcome Rabbi-in-Residence Jonathan Rosenblatt on Friday-Saturday, Jan. 11-12. Rosenblatt will share his extensive expertise with the congregation at two different events.

“We are so fortunate to have Rabbi Rosenblatt come to Omaha,” noted Beth Israel’s Executive Director, Beth Cohen. “When we applied for the grant, we knew from the start that we would want him involved with our new educational program.”

Rosenblatt is the senior rabbi of the Riverdale Jewish Center in New York. He holds a B.A. and M.A. from Johns Hopkins in Comparative Literature, a Ph.D. from Columbia University in Modern British Literature, and was ordained at the Theological Seminary of Yeshiva

University. He has lectured widely in the United States, the United Kingdom, South Africa and Israel and is the author of a book on the sociology of zoos throughout history. Some Omahans may remember Rosenblatt’s “Jew and the Zoo” program held in March of 2006.

Rabbi Rosenblatt is also active in mentoring young rabbis throughout North America, including Beth Israel’s Rabbi Jonathan Gross. He again visited Omaha in November of 2006 when he served as senior rabbi and mentor for the Nebras-Kallah Rabbinic Conference.

“Just as in basketball there is Michael Jordan and in hockey there is Wayne Gretsky, among rabbis there is Rabbi Rosenblatt,” said Rabbi Gross. “In addition to his large pulpit, his congregants include young rabbis like myself from all over the globe. His influence is felt in virtually everything I do in Omaha. If anyone can assist Beth Israel with this new Lev Banim venture, it is Rabbi Rosenblatt.”

On Friday, Jan. 11, 4:56 p.m., Kabbalat Shabbat is followed by a Shabbat dinner. After dinner, Rabbi Rosenblatt will speak on “Lev Banim: What the Jewish World Can Learn from Beth Israel.” Cost for the dinner is $12 for adults, $6 for children ages four to 12 and free for children ages three and younger.

On Saturday, Jan. 12, morning services begin at 9 a.m. with Rabbi Rosenblatt giving the sermon, “Creating a Culture of Honor.”

“We expect a large turn-out at both events during Rabbi Rosenblatt’s visit,” said Cohen. “Our congregation has enjoyed his previous visits to Beth Israel and we look forward to what he will share with us during this visit.”

To RSVP for the dinner, call the office at 556.6288.

Debate over ‘Christian nation’

UNO Maverick Hockey Mavericks vs. Yale Friday • December 28 7:05 p.m. • Qwest Center Omaha Tickets: 554-MAVS • gomavs.unomaha.edu

Why fight it?

Continued from page 1 King had voted "present" on the two other recent religious resolutions, one honoring Ramadan, which passed on Oct. 2, and one recognizing the Indian holiday of Diwali, which passed on Oct. 29.

Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.) was the only Jewish representative to vote against the Christmas resolution.

In 2005 he had led the charge against another resolution on Christmas -- one to “protect” the holiday.

During that debate, Ackerman publicly wondered whether Santa Claus had been mugged or there had been threats of elf tossings.

“Congress has better things to do than to infringe upon the separation of church and state,” Ackerman told JTA last week.

“If the Christmas resolution did what the Ramadan measure did, recognize the importance of the holiday and denounce hatred, with no reference to Mohammed, or what the Dawali resolution did, recognize the festival and the pluralism and diversity in the Indian and American society, and stayed away from all the religiosity and innuendo that a specific religion and not freedom of religion was a founding principle of America, I would not think it pushed on the separation clause.”

He added, “Make no mistake: I like Santa Claus. I love the separation clause. But being that it passed, they owe me eight resolutions for Hanukkah.”

Most of the 30 Jewish lawmakers voted for the resolution. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), Jan

Shakowsky (D-Ill.), John Yarmuth(D-Ky.), Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Allyson Schwartz (D-Pa.) had voted recently for a resolution commemorating the importance of Ramadan, yet did not vote on the Christmas resolution.

Ackerman also had voted for the resolution commemorating Ramadan. Two other Jewish lawmakers, Tom Lantos (D-Calif.) and Robert Wexler (D-Fla.), were not present for the Christmas resolution vote.

The ’05 resolution, which strongly disapproved “of attempts to ban references to Christmas” and expressed “support for the use of these symbols and traditions,” had even greater support from Congress than the current Christmas measure. It was sponsored by Rep. Joanne Davis (R-Va.), who died this year.

Rep. Steve Israel (D-N.Y.) had countered the ’05 resolution by drafting a similar bill honoring Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and Ramadan. Israel’s bill died in committee.

Israel voted in favor of this year’s Christmas resolution.

“The resolution in 2005 implied that Christmas was under attack,” Israel’s communications director, Meghan Dubyak, told JTA, adding that Israel believed the current resolution was written in the spirit of the previous two commemorations of Ramadan and Diwali.

Though this year’s resolution makes no mention of other religious holidays, language was added to make clear that the United States was built by people who had “Judeo-Christian” beliefs, not just Christian beliefs.

Talented musicians Continued from page 1 He is in the advanced program of the prestigious Lehman Engel BMI Musical Theater Workshop which grooms composers and lyricists to write for the Broadway stage, and he is currently working on two musical theater productions.

The third finalist in the 21 and older group is Jamie Klenesky of Wharton, NJ. She is a 23-year-old award winning composer who works in both acoustic and electronic mediums. Kelensky is an accomplished choral singer and has sung with choirs around the world. Jamie majored in both music and East Asia studies, and the Asian influence can be heard in her music.

DEADLINE NOTICE Please send all articles, photos and ads to the Press by Thursdays, 9 a.m., for all regular issues. Early deadlines will be announced in advance. Questions? Call 334.6448.

Amazingly, the two finalists in the 20 years and younger competition are 16-year-old twins from Boston -- Arielle and Danielle Galler-Rabinowitz.

Danielle is a composer and pianist who has written over 30 chamber works and was a winner of the 2005 ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composers Competition.

Her first symphony, “Deborah’s Song,” was played by the New England Conservatory Youth Orchestra.

Twin sister Arielle is also a talented pianist and composer who has won many awards around the U.S. Both girls have performed at Carnegie Hall and together they perform four-hand piano in concert. They are also U.S. figure skating gold medalists.

With a line up of so much talent, the Jan. 10 concert will be an exciting evening. Don’t miss the chance to hear wonderful music, vote for your favorite composition and enjoy a reception with the composers and musicians.

December 28, 2007

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 3

Rewriting the end of a tragic tale: Herzl’s grandson moved to Israel

by BETH YOUNG area. “It seemed to him there was no at Adas Israel marking Norman’s reburWASHINGTON (JTA) -- Stephen hope for the Jewish people.” ial. Hess read from a passage in Norman’s Theodore Norman was Theodor Herzl’s Klinger had unearthed Norman’s jour- journal in which he reported that the only grandson and the only Jews in Israel other member of the family seemed “tanned, who shared the founder of in control of Zionism’s passion for buildtheir destiny and ing a Jewish state. But in my own land.

Norman’s dream of moving Land that wants to Palestine ended abruptly me.” and tragically on a cold In meeting an November day in 1946. early death and Upon learning that his parthen being ents had died in the reburied in Israel Theresienstadt concentration decades later, camp in Czechoslovakia, the Norman follows 28-year-old foreign officer at in the footsteps the British Embassy here of relatives whose walked to the Massachusetts lives were marred Avenue bridge over Rock by tragedy and Creek Park, laid his tweed mental illness. coat on the railing and His aunt Pauline, jumped to his death. Norman Herzl’s daughter, was buried by the Jewish died in a French Agency for Israel in the ceme- The casket of Theodor Herzl’s only grandson, Stephen Theodore Norman, is lowered sanitorium in tery of the largest Conser- into his final resting place on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem, Dec. 5, 2007.

September 1930.

Credit: Brian Hendler His uncle Hans, vative synagogue in the nation’s capital, Adas Israel Congre- nals in which he wrote after his only visit whom Theodor Herzl had envisioned gation. to Palestine, “to go away is to die a little. would become the prince of the new The story -- the final chapter in the To return is somehow to be reborn and I Jewish state, shot himself several days tragic tale of Herzl’s descendants -- will return.” after Pauline’s death. would have ended there if not for Jerry It was ironic, Klinger said, that Norman The sister and brother were buried in Klinger. The president of the Jewish had died just 18 months after the Bordeaux, France. Their bodies were disAmerican Society for Historic Holocaust and 18 months before the interred and brought to Israel to be Preservation, Klinger began lobbying five birth of the State of Israel, which had buried with their father on the eponyyears ago for Norman to be reburied in been nothing but a pipe dream in his mous Mount Herzl in Jerusalem in 2006, the country imagined by his grandfather. mind. Norman had visited Palestine only according to Theodor Herzl’s wishes that Those efforts paid off this month: After briefly in 1946 while serving as a minor his family be buried there with him. lying 62 years in a Washington cemetery, British foreign service officer.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Norman’s body was moved to Israel.

“He was stunned at the contrast who had proposed that the bodies of “He loved too much. He felt deeply between the Jews he saw there,” said Pauline and Hans be brought to Israel, the pain of the survivors of the Shoah,” William Hess, the president of the was expected to be present for ceresaid Klinger, who lives in the Washington American Zionist Movement, at a service monies when Norman was laid to rest.

American Zionist organizations had signed on to Klinger’s push for Norman to be moved on Mount Herzl. Those who take their own lives generally are not permitted to be buried in the cemetery there, but an exception is made for those who suffered from genetic mental illness.

Psychologists believe that the members of Herzl’s family suffered from a disease known as familial depressive illness.

Avi Beker, a political science professor at Georgetown University, was among the many speakers at the memorial who paid tribute to the way mental illness can be confused with genius and dreams. He told those assembled at the memorial that Herzl and Sigmund Freud had lived on the same street in Vienna, though they had never met.

“Thank God they never met,” Beker said. “[Freud] would have put [Herzl] on the couch; maybe that’s the end of Zionism.”

Herzl was an Austrian journalist and author who published “The Jewish State” in 1896, a response to his fears for the Jewish people stirred up by the conviction of a French Jewish military officer for espionage in a case known as “the Dreyfus Affair.”

The next year, Herzl organized the first Zionist Congress. Israel’s ambassador to the United States, Sallai Meridor, acknowledged during the ceremony that many in Herzl’s time might have thought that Zionism’s founder was mentally ill for daring to dream of a Jewish state.

“So many people at the time thought that Herzl was not a visionary but just a dreamer, a person who was somewhat out of his mind,” Meridor said. “This is the last act of his desire to be buried with his closest relatives.”

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

December 28, 2007

Temple Hanukkah celebration Chabad demonstrates olive press SHEVI KATZMAN out of wood, paint and nuts. tempered by mourning for mall victims byfor Chabad House A creative and unique review session

by CLAUDIA SHERMAN Temple Israel Communications Coordinator With heartfelt words of sadness and sympathy, Rabbi Aryeh Azriel led Temple Israel congregants in prayer and a moment of silence at Shabbat worship services two days after those who died tragically in the Van Maur shooting at Westroads on Dec. 5. Although the service celebrated Hanukkah with songs of joyfulness, many in the well-filled sanctuary bowed their heads in sorrow as the rabbi spoke. Afterwards, many of the families stayed for a Hanukkah dinner including the Saag family: Rachel, David, Sherrie, and Jordan.

Many families stayed for a Hanukkah dinner including the Saag family: Rachel, David, Sherrie, and Jordan. making craft projects. Kindergartners made Hanukkah sticker posters, while

The icy weather earlier this month following the short film which was shown brought out the determination to express and study their Jewish faith.

The students at the Lincoln Jewish Community School warmed the snowy evening with the light of Hanukkah. The students and teachers participated in a demonstration using an ancient olive press to dicsover how olive oil was made for the Menorah in the Temple during the Rabbi Mendel Katzman of Omaha demonstrates how to make oil story of the miracle of using an old fashioned olive press in Lincoln.

Hanukkah.

Fourth grade students, left, and sixth graders made crafts for Hanukkah at Temple.

A drive to raise money for Temple’s Hanukkah tzedakah project, “Nothing But Nets,” kicked off at the dinner leading to more than $1,000 to be used to buy bed nets to protect families, mostly in African countries, from being infected by mosquitoes that transmit malaria.

As the whiff of latkes frying drifted throughout Temple, Religious School students in kindergarten through sixth grade celebrated Hanukkah on Dec. 9 by

first graders fashioned plastic pull-apart cups, second graders designed Hanukkah foam picture frames, third graders worked on stained glass Hanukkah art, fourth graders, including Morissa Miller and Brandon Idelman, decorated their own menorahs, and fifth graders created tiled dreidels.

Sixth graders made colorful fleece blankets which were donated to Children’s Hospital.

Rabbi Katzman assists a student at the Lincoln Jewish Community School Students at the Lincoln Jewish Community School create in lighting the menorah using the freshly pressed their own menorahs using wood, paint and nuts.

The demonstration was performed by proved that olive oil they had squeezed Rabbi Mendel Katzman of Omaha who the students just moments before. explained numerous insights. The stu- listened attentively to the wellspring of dents also created their own menorahs information they were taught.

Wondering How You Can Help Our Community?

The organizations listed below have contacted the Foundation for assistance in funding the named projects.

The 2007 application period has passed for our supporting and other foundations,which will not meet again until well into 2008.

As a resource to the Jewish community,we are advertising these needs to our eighty five donor-advised families, as well as to the entire community should anyone want to assist with funding these needs in whole or in part.

•Anti-Defamation League,Israel Interactive Display for JCC entrance – $30,000 (Note:partially funded) •Beth El Synagogue,Subsidize College Student Care Packages – $2,500 •Beth El Synagogue,Tot Shabbat –$2,500 (Note:partially funded) •Beth Israel Synagogue,Intensive Hebrew Classes – $2,500 •Beth Israel Synagogue,Teen Youth Leadership Conference –$4,000 (for up to 4 participants at a cost of $1,000 each) •Center for Jewish Education (CJE),Religious school tutoring for children with Special Needs – $7,000 •Center for Jewish Education,CornerStones Scholarship Fund (provides need-based scholarships to the Pennie Z.Davis CDC and •Friedel Jewish Academy) – $35,000 (Note:partially funded) •Institutefor Holocaust Education (IHE),70th Anniversary of Kristallnacht community event – $3,000 (Note:partially funded) •Jewish CommunityCenter,Artza 2009 – $79,900 (subsidy to reduce the cost to $2,800 per participant for 34 students) •Jewish Community Center,New playground equipment for the CDC Pre-school –$50,000 •Jewish Family Service,Filing cabinets and storage units for donations – $2,500 •Jewish Federation,20’s and 30’s Mission to Israel Winter of 2009 – $10,000 (subsidize $2,800 cost for 40 participants) •Temple Israel,Chanukah 2008 Family Mission To Israel – $8,000 ($500 subsidy for 16 children in grades 4 – 10) •Temple Israel,Electric Piano – $10,000 Contact Marty Ricks, Jan Goldstein or the respective agency or synagogue for more information on any particular item.

Jan Goldstein,

Marty Ricks,

Executive Director 333 South 132 Street jang@jewishomaha.org 402/334-6433

Executive Director 333 South 132 Street mricks@jewishomaha.org 402/334-6440

December 28, 2007

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 5

Beth El women’s book club keeps members coming back for more

by JILL BELMONT Beth El Publicity Coordinator Some say that a picture is worth a thousand words, but for members of the Beth El Women’s Book Club, thousands (millions!) of well-written words are priceless.

Every Thursday for the past two years, a group of 20-ormore women has gathered in the synagogue’s library to share thoughts, ideas and opinions about a variety of Jewish-themed tomes, both fiction and non-fiction.

These women, passionate readers all, make up the Beth El Women’s Book Club, which came together after facilitator Susan Paley floated the idea of forming a group. “I felt really strongly that we needed to be able to come together as women, to discuss women’s issues in Judaism from social, cultural and historical points of view,� said Paley, a longtime Beth El teacher who has led classes for adults, teens and children. “There are so many wonderful books out there by Jewish women, about Jewish women, for Jewish women, dealing with issues that we as Jewish women grapple with, and I wanted us to have a forum to be able to talk about those ideas and issues.�

Of the dedicated group of women who are drawn to the Thursday meetings, Paley remarked that, “There’s a sub-culture of Jewish women in Omaha who are readers, and this is why this group appealed to them. These are women who are smart, who are thoughtful, who are readers and who are articulate, which always makes for great discussions!�

as Jewish women.�

The book club also explored other non-fiction works such as The Wonders of America: Reinventing Jewish Culture 1880-1950, by Jenna Weismann Joselit; Triangle: The Fire that Changed America by David von Drehle, and I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron.

This year, the group has immersed itself in fictional works, among them short stories by Grace Paley (“All of us were so in love with her writing that we want to read Grace Paley for the rest of our lives and never do anything else!� she exclaimed.); The World to Come by Dara Horn, Peony by Pearl S. Buck, and The Bread Givers by Anzia Yezierska and Alice Kessler-Harris.

In addition, Paley said she looks forward to sampling the works of some new, young authors, “because everyone says we need to be ‘in’ and conversant with what’s going on these days.�

Membership in the book club is fluid, as is the reading list: members come and go, and newcomers are always welcome; there are no syllabi to follow and no time frame required for each book -- the women determine what is read and how closely topics are explored. “We try to have a variety -- we’re not boxed into a particular perspective or bent -- we’re just kind of going along just as everyone wants to,� Paley explained. “We feel our way through how much we want to read each week – when reading essays we’d read one a week, but for our fiction books, we’re loose -- nothing is set in stone.�

Calling the system “very democratic,� she added that “everybody is really the leader of the group -- it’s a

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Every Thursday afternoon, Beth El’s library is packed with dedicated readers who participate in the synagogue’s twoyear-old Women’s Book Club.

Paley was quick to note that she did not envision the book group as a vehicle to discuss only the contents of books. “The purpose is, on one level, to appreciate the literature and writing, but on another level I wanted us to have a forum for Jewish women to articulate, mull over and discuss issues that affect all of our lives, and how we approach the issues, how we relate to them, how we deal with them. I want us to glean knowledge from each other, because Jewish women are tremendously powerful.�

During its first year, the group spent a great deal of time reading about and exploring Jewish women’s experiences in America “from day one at the end of the 17th century,� she recalled. Through historical essays, group members gained a new perspective about what life was like long ago for Jewish women.�

It was so interesting to discover the roles that women took on when they came to America, because American society worked differently, and the struggle was how to maintain the old life -- the elements of Jewish life from whatever country and in whatever time period women came from,� Paley explained. “The struggle, the tension came from deciding which of those elements to maintain while forging a new American identity. “These are real women who left real writings about what it was like for them,� she said, citing, for example, women who settled the Southwest. “How did they keep kosher, how did they keep the holidays, or keep Shabbos? By reading and learning about their struggles we see ourselves through their eyes, and it gives us a deeper and a richer understanding of who we are. It expands our world view about who we are

With a passion for books and an enthusiasm that always encourages participation from group members, Susan Paley leads the weekly book club get-togethers. group of leaders,� she laughed. Said Caryl Greenberg, one of the regular attendees: “I joined last year because I was sure that there would be some worthwhile readings, and I knew that Susan would be a great facilitator.

I have found the discussions to be interesting and indepth, and I come away from the group feeling that the hour has been very well spent.�

Beth Staenberg and Ozzie Nogg also sang praises of their dynamic and enthusiastic facilitator. Staenberg applauded Paley for “being so knowledgeable, bringing such good insights into the books and adding so many Jewish references as well. She is an excellent teacher, she’s good at encouraging responses from us, and I enjoy listening to her.�

Nogg noted that, “I love to read, I learn from the frank, open discussions in the group, and I enjoy Susan’s teaching style -- a mix of modern college professor with I.B. Singer’s Yentl the scholar.�

Paley is genuinely moved and inspired by the women who make up this book club, and says, “I always get more than I give by moderating this group. I glean so much insight and knowledge from them, and what’s nice is that we come away from our discussions with new ways of looking at issues which affect Jewish women; we all come away with new ways to frame our thoughts and reactions to things that are important to us as Jewish women.�

She added, “The collaborative wisdom of Jewish women is tremendously powerful, spiritual and energizing. I will be happy to moderate this book group until the end of time, or until we decide we don’t want to do it anymore. We’re going to do it as long as people want to do it.�

BIRTHS Stephanie and David Eshel of Los Angeles, CA announce the Nov. 29 birth of their daughter, Isabel Sarah.

Grandparents are Pam and Dennis DePorte, Maggie and Larry Kosmin of Long Beach CA, and the late Eli Eshel.

Great-grandparent is Louise Martin.

Dan and Alicia Feldman announce the Dec. 14 birth of their son, Joshua Aaron.

Grandparents are Pam and Ron Feldman, Deb and Paul Hoffman of Plano, TX, Beverly and Joel Dillard of Baumont, TX, and Jan and Don Meriwether of Baumont, TX. Great-grandparents are Lillian Feldman, Hugh and Corinne Levin, and Carl and Jean Wilkes.

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Why fight it?

Page 6

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

December 28, 2007

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IN THE NEWS Lev Nachman, a life scout in Boy Scout Troop #552, is working towards obtaining the rank of Eagle Scout. For his community service project, he is building new bookshelves and collecting new and gently used books in good condition for the Pennie Z. Davis Child Development Center at the Jewish Community Center.

Donors can send a check (made out to the CDC) or books to Lev at 2511 So. 105 Ave., Omaha, NE 68124. For more information, call Lev at 390.0983.

Rachel Katzman graduated from Loyola University in Chicago this month with a BS in Communications. She will become the Circulation and Production Coordinator for the monthly newspaper World Jewish Digest, and the E-commerce Development Coordinator for its International Judaica Exchange. She started at WJD as an intern and has been working there part time for two years.

She is the daughter of Michael and Carol Katzman and the granddaughter of Madeline Katzman and Janie Levin of Miami.

The Israel Project (TIP) has announced its fifth annual summer Media Fellowship. Once again, talented young students from all over the world will have the opportunity to receive strategic communications training from top experts, work with TIP’s dedicated staff and implement acquired knowledge and skills in the trenches of Israel advocacy.

TIP is an international non-profit organization and disseminates factual information available on its website, www.theisraelproject.org. TIP has offices in Washington, D.C. and Jerusalem. The organization has played a key role in disseminating facts to the media about Israel, ranging from the country’s security issues to its desire for peace. More than 2,000 reporters use TIP’s media services each week, and the organization has more than 140,000 supporters and activists on its rolls.

TIP’s summer Media Fellowship program is one of the premier programs of its kind. The Media Fellowship is a paid two-month internship, available this year in two sessions and in two cities during the 2008 summer. The first session is in TIP’s Jerusalem office from June 9 to Aug. 8, and the second session is in TIP’s Washington, D.C. office from July 14 to Sept. 15.

For additional details and to obtain an application, please visit www.theisraelproject.org/mediafellows.

The Better Business Bureau, Inc., serving Nebraska, South Dakota and southwest Iowa, announced that it is now taking applications for the Scott Mecham BBB Student of Integrity Award scholarships worth $2,000. Three scholarships will be awarded to students who reside in the geographic area served by the BBB. These scholarships were established to honor the memory of Mr. Mecham who served as the BBB president from 1991 until January 2006.

“All high schools located in the BBB’s service area are invited to identify “Students of Integrity,” from the class of 2008 or 2009,” said Jim Hegarty, president and chief executive officer of the BBB. “Unlike many other scholarships, grades and ethnicity are not major components of choosing the Student of Integrity Award winners. This award recognizes students’ understanding of ethics and demonstrated commitment to honesty and accountability inside and outside of the classroom.”

Independent panels of judges from the academic and business communities in Omaha, Lincoln, and Sioux Falls will select the scholarship recipients.

Scholarship applicants must be nominated by their high school teachers, principals or guidance counselors. The application materials, including an essay and letters of recommendation, must be sent to a BBB office by Feb. 15, 2008. The scholarship recipients will be announced in April and recognized at one of the BBB’s Business Integrity Award luncheons in September.

The executive committee of the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce Young Professionals Council announced their 2008 board of directors.

Sean Olson, MECA/Qwest Center Omaha sales manager, will serve as the 2008 chairman and will represent the council on the Chamber’s board of directors. This will be Olson’s third year serving on the YPC board.

“The young professional community is continuing to make a difference in Omaha,” said Olson. “The 2007 board accomplished much and I look forward to welcoming the new slate of board members and merging their talents and abilities with returning members.”

Among the new board members is: Beth Katz, Project Interfaith.

Among those continuing to serve is: Rachel Jacobson, Film Streams.

ORGANIZATIONS BOY SCOUTS The 2008 Ten Commandments Hike will be held in Papillion on Saturday, Feb. 2, sponsored by the Boy Socout Council’s Wagon Wheel District.

It is a great outing for scouts and families to hike to several places of worship with the opportunity to discuss a different commandment at each. The scouts are also introduced to different faiths and worships. For more information contact Woody Kline at 292.3357 or visit www.mac-bsa.com for registration forms.

B’NAI B’RITH BREADBREAKERS Congressman Lee Terry will speak at Breadbreakers on Wednesday, Jan. 2, noon at Regency Lodge, according to Gary Javitch, chairman. Terry will cover current issues for 2008. Since we are expecting a large turnout, reservations

are needed. Please RSVP to Lois at 334.6443 or email her at lepstein@jewishomaha.org. All men and women in the community are invited to attend.

Cost is $12 for lunch and $3 for beverage service only.

LOMIR REDN YIDDISH Come to the Yiddish meeting at the JCC on Thursdays, 1-3 p.m. If you have any Yiddish books to donate, please call Anne Skolkin at 343.1638.

VISIONS Reminder: Visions Board Meeting is Friday, Jan. 4, 9:30 a.m. in the Social Hall at the JCC. Membership dues to Visions for 2008 are due. Please mail your check to Visions for $7.50 to: Visions, c/o Beverly Gilinksy, 1406 No. 126 St., Omaha, NE 68154.

December 28, 2007

B’nai B’rith to launch membership drive with top legislative reps

by LOIS EPSTEIN Henry Monsky Lodge #3306 Coming just before and right after the Iowa Caucuses, the next two B’nai B’rith Breadbreaker speakers will add their comments and insights on the events surrounding the premier opening salvo in the 2008 election campaign that will take place across Iowa on Jan. 5.

After many months of campaigning, at press time, no candidate in either party dominated the race for their respective party’s presidential nomination.

“That’s just one of the reasons we got Rep. Lee Terry (R-Neb.) to speak on Jan. 2, just before the election, and Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) to talk just after,” stated Marty Ricks, Breadbreakers co-chair.

“They will offer some great insights because of their connections in the political community.” (The Jewish Press will cover both lunch presentations.)

“For the last five years, we have been a leader in the community in bringing the top people in the region to speak at our mini-press conference forums,” added Gary Javitch, president of the Henry Monsky Lodge, the local B’nai B’rith affiliate.

“Sen. Nelson and Rep. Terry are typical of the interesting and influential speakers that make presentations. We have also had world-renowned UNMC scientists like Drs. Howard Gendelman and Kenneth Cowan present as well,” he added.

“For our creativity, diversity and breadth in our programming, our lodge has been nominated for a national award by B’nai B’rith International. Our lodge is one of the most active in the United States.”

Javitch said.

“Since we do so many things, like support students in BBYO with scholarships and loans, sponsor a Bible and a Trivia Quiz, honor the most outstanding scholar-athletes in the city, and do other public service projects, we are going to highlight those contributions in our annual membership drive being launched at the beginning of the year with our Breadbreakers program, Javitch explained.

“We are starting the new year out with speakers who have always attracted a big audience. That’s another reason we asked Rep. Terry and Sen. Nelson to talk.

Both have provided overwhelming support for Israel and the Jewish community,” concluded Ricks.

Membership information can be obtained by calling me at 334.6443 or emailing bnaibrith@jewishomaha.org.

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A new three-part public television documentary series the Union and whose brother later founded the Spiegel written and directed by Emmy Award-winning filmmak- Catalogue Company; and Anna Solomon, a 19th-centuer David Grubin explores 350 years of Jewish American ry frontier woman who operated a successful store and history, from the first settlement in the 17th century to hotel in an Arizona town that would eventually be the present, including the experience of immigration named for her family.

Examined is the separation of church and state and and assimilation.

The Jewish Americans premieres on Wednesday, Jan. how that opened up the door for Jewish immigrants to 9, 9 p.m. CT on NET1 and in high-definition on NET- establish a home in which they were on equal footing HD. It continues on Wednesdays, Jan. 16 and 23, 8 with their neighbors and from which they would not have to fear being driven. But the series also documents p.m. CT on NET1 and NET-HD. While the story of Jewish life in America is emblemat- a long history of anti-Semitism in the United States, epitomized by the virulent ic of the American immigrant attacks of automotive magstory, it is also a unique story nate Henry Ford, who creof ongoing discrimination ated a newspaper for the and stereotyping coupled express purpose of spreadwith some of the most ing anti-Jewish sentiment; remarkable accomplishments the lynching of Leo Frank in American history, the arts, in the South; and the estabcommerce, science and acalishment of Jewish quotas at demia. elite universities.

The Jewish Americans offers Ultimately, The Jewish a revealing portrait of a peoAmericans is an exploration ple who epitomize the immiof the opportunities, freegrant experience. Even as they have faced bigotry and doms and prosperity that rejection, Jews have Jews have found in embraced American culture America, after struggling while keeping alive their trathrough millennia of perseditions and heritage. cution. The series includes “Throughout the series interviews with prominent there is a recurring theme,” Jewish Americans, includfilmmaker Grubin said. ing playwright Tony “With each wave of Jewish Kushner, Supreme Court immigration, Jews expressed Justice Ruth Bader an immense desire to become The Jewish Americans tells the stories of Jews who have par- Ginsburg, comedians Carl American while retaining ticipated in major milestones and cultural phases of U.S. his- Reiner and Sid Caesar, actor their own identity. Out of tory, among them these immigrants arriving in their new and singer Mandy Patinkin Credit: Corbis and numerous other Jewish this struggle emerged not homeland. just a Jewish-American culture, but also the integration leaders in entertainment, academia, business and politics of Jewish culture into the larger American landscape.” who share their personal reflections on what it means to The series begins with the story of the first Jewish be Jewish American. immigrants to arrive in the American colonies -- a group After each Wednesday broadcast, the programs will of 23 Jews who fled in 1654 from Brazil to New repeat the following Sundays, 12:30 p.m. CT on Amsterdam, where the governor, Peter Stuyvesant, tried NET1. They can also be seen on NET2 on the followto reject them. His superiors in the Netherlands, how- ing Thursdays, 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. CT, Saturdays, 5 ever, overruled him on the grounds that the Jews would p.m. and Sundays, 7 p.m. contribute to the economic well-being of the colony.

NET1, NET2 and NET-HD are part of NET The Jewish Americans goes on to tell the stories of Jews Television, a service of NET. For a complete program who have participated in major milestones and cultural schedule, visit NET’s website: netNebraska.org/televiphases of U.S. history. Among these are Judah P. sion. The complete six-hour PBS broadcast will be availBenjamin, who owned slaves and served as attorney gen- able in January 2008 from PBS Home Video and eral, secretary of war and secretary of state for the Paramount Home Entertainment in a two-disc DVD Confederacy; Marcus Spiegel, who fought and died for set.

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Kripke Library Story Time, 10:30 a.m.

Youth Department New Year’s Eve Overnight, 6:30 p.m.

New Year’s Eve Game Night, 8 p.m. at Beth Israel TUESDAY, JANUARY 1 WOW Parsha, Prophets and Prayer, 9 a.m. at Chabad Parshah Roundup, 7 p.m. at Chabad WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 2 JCC 5-8th Grade Winter Camp, 9 a.m.

Kabbalah Circle, 7 p.m. at Chabad THURSDAY, JANUARY 3 Women of the Torah, 9:30 a.m. at Beth Israel Insights and Values from the Torah, noon at Beth El Yiddish Group, 1 p.m.

Women’s Book Group, 1:15 p.m. at Beth El Class with Rabbi Gross, 7:30 p.m. at Beth Israel FRIDAY, JANUARY 4 Visions Board Meeting, 9 a.m.

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SUNDAY, JANUARY 6 Reading the Rambam, 9:45 a.m. at Beth Israel Bible Study Group, 10 a.m. at Beth El Lessons for the Jewish Soul, 10 a.m. at Beth El BESTT Classes Resume, 10 a.m.

Mishpacha Mornings, 10:15 a.m. at Chabad Rosh Hodesh: It’s a Girl Thing, 1 p.m.

Beyt Shalom Religious School, 1:30 p.m. at JCC

MONDAY, JANUARY 7 JSS Senior Luncheon, 9:30 a.m.

The Life of Joshua, Son of Nun, 7 p.m.

ADL Workshop Dr. Amy Jill Levine, 7 p.m.

Beth El Women’s Rosh Hodesh Group, 7 p.m.

Derech Torah: Judaism 101, 8 p.m.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 8 WOW Parsha, Prophets and Prayer, 9 a.m. at Chabad ADL Workshop with Dr. Amy-Jill Levine, 11 a.m.

Eye on Israel, noon BBYO Night, 6 p.m.

Parshah Roundup, 7 p.m. at Chabad The Many Faces of Extremism, 7 p.m. at Beth El ADL Cyberbullying Class, 7 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 9 Shabbat Tunes and Tales, 11:15 a.m. at Beth El AIPAC Nebraska Council Meeting, 11:45 a.m.

Friedel Executive Board Meeting, 5:30 p.m.

Know Thy Neighbor, 6:30 p.m. at Temple Israel Board Meeting, 6:30 p.m. at Beth Israel JFS’s Love and Logic Parenting Class, 7p.m. at Beth El Kabbalah Circle, 7 p.m. at Chabad Board of Directors Meeting, 7 p.m. at Friedel NCJW Board Meeting, 7 p.m.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 10 Women of the Torah, 9:30 a.m. at Beth Israel Adult Study with the Clergy, 10 a.m. at Temple Israel Insights and Values from the Torah, noon at Beth El Yiddish Group, 1 p.m.

Women’s Book Group, 1:15 p.m. at Beth El Javitch Music Composition Concert, 7 p.m.

Class with Rabbi Gross, 7:30 p.m. at Beth Israel

FRIDAY, JANUARY 11 Rabbi-in-Residence Jonathan Rosenblatt, 6 p.m. at Beth Israel Tot Shabbat and Dinner, 6 p.m. at Temple Israel SATURDAY, JANUARY 12 Hazak Shabbat, 9:30 a.m. at Beth El SUNDAY, JANUARY 13 The Living Torah, 9:30 a.m. at Chabad Reading the Rambam, 9:45 a.m. at Beth Israel Bible Study Group, 10 a.m. at Beth El Mishpacha Mornings, 10:15 a.m. at Chabad Four B’s: Know Thy Service, 10:30 at Temple Israel Israel Fair, 1 p.m.

Beyt Shalom Religious School, 1:30 p.m. at JCC MONDAY, JANUARY 14 Kripke Library Story Time, 10:30 a.m.

Sisterhood Mah Jongg, 1 p.m. at Beth Israel The Life of Joshua, Son of Nun, 7 p.m.

Derech Torah: Judaism 101, 8 p.m.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 15 WOW Parsha, Prophets and Prayer, 9 a.m. at Chabad Eye on Israel, noon BBYO Night, 6 p.m.

ADL Youth Leadership Mission 2008 Meeting, 7 p.m.

Parshah Roundup, 7 p.m. at Chabad Board Meeting, 7 p.m. at Temple Israel The Many Faces of Extremism, 7 p.m. at Beth El WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 16 The Art of Jewish Stenciling, 8 p.m. Beth El

THURSDAY, JANUARY 17 Women of the Torah, 9:30 a.m. at Beth Israel Adult Study with the Clergy, 10 a.m. at Temple Israel Insights and Values from the Torah, noon at Beth El Kripke Library Book Discussion Group, 1 p.m.

Yiddish Group, 1 p.m.

Women’s Book Group, 1:15 p.m. at Beth El ADL Youth Leadership Mission Meeting, 7 p.m.

Class with Rabbi Gross, 7:30 p.m. at Beth Israel FRIDAY, JANUARY 18 Friedel No School/In-Service Chabad House One Shabbat, One World Parent/Toddler Class, 9:30 a.m. at Temple Israel Visions Luncheon Meeting, noon BBYO Kallah Weekend at 4H Camp, 5 p.m.

SATURDAY, JANUARY 19 Chabad House One Shabbat, One World Sisterhood Shabbat, 9:30 a.m. at Beth El BBYO Kallah Weekend, 5 p.m.

SUNDAY, JANUARY 20 Reading the Rambam, 9:45 a.m. at Beth Israel Bible Study Group, 10 a.m. at Beth El BESTT Tu B’shvat Family Program, 10 a.m.

Visions Film Streams, 11:30 a.m.

Beyt Shalom Religious School, 1:30 p.m. at JCC Rose Blumkin Jewish Home Open House, 2 pm Tu B’Shevat Seder, 5p.m. at Beth Israel MONDAY, JANUARY 21 Friedel Academy No School/ Martin Luther King Day JSS Senior Luncheon, 9:30 a.m.

The Life of Joshua, Son of Nun, 7 p.m.

Derech Torah: Judaism 101, 8 p.m.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 22 Friedel Jewish Academy Tu-B’shvat School Activity WOW Parsha, Prophets and Prayer, 9 a.m. at Chabad Eye on Israel, noon BESTT student Tu B’Shevat Seder, 4:15 p.m.

BBYO Night, 6 p.m.

Parshah Roundup, 7 p.m. at Chabad The Many Faces of Extremism, 7 p.m. at Beth El WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 23 Rabbis & Presidents Meeting, noon BESTT student Tu B’Shevat Seder, 4:15 p.m.

Campaign Leadership Mission Meeting, 7 p.m.

The Art of Jewish Stenciling, 8 p.m. at Beth El THURSDAY, JANUARY 24 Women of the Torah, 9:30 a.m. at Beth Israel Adult Study with the Clergy, 10 a.m. at Temple Israel Center for Jewish Education Board Meeting, noon Insights and Values from the Torah, noon at Beth El Yiddish Group, 1 p.m.

Women’s Book Group, 1:15 p.m. at Beth El LOVE Auxiliary Board Meeting, 7 p.m.

Class with Rabbi Gross, 7:30 p.m. at Beth Israel SATURDAY, JANUARY 26 Halil BaGalilee Performing Arts Series, 7 p.m.

Family Havdalah for Halil BaGalilee, 7 p.m.

SUNDAY, JANUARY 27 Reading the Rambam, 9:45 a.m. at Beth Israel Bible Study Group, 10 a.m. at Beth El Know Thy Service, 10:30 a.m. at Temple Israel Beth El Tu B’Shevat at Lauritzen Gardens, 1:30 p.m.

Beyt Shalom Religious School, 1:30 p.m. at JCC OTYG Spaghetti Dinner, 5 p.m. Temple Israel

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Federation Executive Committee Meeting, 6 p.m.

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December 28, 2007

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by DEBORAH FRENKEL experience garnered during the Israeli development of HAIFA (ISRAEL21C) -- For a long time, the world the Centrino processor, Bahar told ISRAEL21c. Such of high tech has been all about chasing after superlatives expertise has ensured that “Moore’s Law”, a high tech -- after the newest, smallest, fastest and sleekest. Now axiom which predicts that transistor counts double it’s possible to add another superlative to that wish list, about every two years, thrives well into the next decade. thanks in part to Israeli know-how, with the launch of The latest development, though, adds a new buzzthe greenest computer chip in the world. word to the old imperatives of size and speed: ecoOn Saturday global computer company Intel unveiled friendliness. Penryn boasts an ability to reduce the its latest addition to its processor family: a new chipset power leakage which normally manifests itself in a provisionally named ‘Penryn.’ The innovative hafnium- processor unit as heat, with the new hafnium-based based “Hi-k” processor, which reduces electricity loss, chips measuring a mere 45 nanometers each -- so small, or “capacitance,” through the use of third-generation that is, that more than two million could fit onto the silicon materials, also does away with the need to incor- period at the end of this sentence. That doesn’t leave porate eco-unfriendly lead and halogen materials in the much room for energy loss -- making the Penryn, in production process.

Intel’s phrase -- the “These are the biggest “coolest” processor techtransistor advancements in nology to date.

40 years,” Intel coThe company also has founder Gordon Moore replaced lead-based solder said. components used in existWhile the Penryn innoing designs with tin, copvation was initially develper or silver alloys, and is oped at Intel’s centers in also set to remove halogen California, the offices of based materials, which can Intel Israel, centered at generate ozone-damaging their mammoth Research gases during production. and Development Center What this all means, Intel in Haifa, played a crucial claims, is a new ability to role in working out how deliver “faster and more the new chip micro-archienergy-efficient processors tecture could be manufacthat are better for the envitured on a commercial ronment.” The global scale. behemoth is marketing the The Haifa center forms a processor with an image of major component of sunflowers -- so chosen for Intel’s global product the plant’s ability to pipeline. Founded over 30 The latest Penryn innovation, according to an Intel spokesper- remove heavy metals from years ago with only five son, drew upon expertise and experience garnered during the contaminated soils -- as a staffers, Intel Israel -- with Israeli development of the Centrino processor. visual metaphor for the large facilities also located at Petach Tikva, Jerusalem lead-free, green image which the company hopes to culand Kiryat Gat -- now employs nearly 7,000 people, and tivate. last year pumped more than $1.2 billion of export revMeanwhile the Penryn processors, depending on enue into the Israeli economy. model specifications, will become available commercialIntel Israel scored its biggest coup to date in the 2003 ly within the next 30 days. development of the Centrino mobile chipset, which While manufacture is currently centered in Arizona, came, according to company spokesman Koby Bahar, as the product is soon set to gain a further Israeli flavor. a “true breakthrough” in computing performance. The Next year, Intel is due to open a state-of-the-art chipset Centrino technology, initially designed for use in laptop production facility near Kiryat Gat -- in an area known, computers, proved so fast and energy-effective that it rather appropriately, for its sunflower fields. rapidly began to appear in desktop PCs around the Deborah Frenkel is a freelance writer for world as well.

ISRAEL21c, a media organization focusing on 21st The latest Penryn innovation drew upon expertise and century Israel.

Israelis find Chabad on Hanukkah Yachad enjoys latkes and laughter

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For the fifth consecutive year, Chabad ensures that Israelis far away from home experience a joyous Chanukah celebratin, complete with a lively menorah lighting, fresh doughnuts and a delicious Israeli-style dinner. Members of the group pose with event organizers Rabbi Mendel and Shani Katzman under a sign made by Gan Israel Campers that reads “I am proud to be a Jew.” Indeed, despite all discomfort, Israelis who work in local malls are proud to be Jews and support our country.

Earlier this month Yachad members gathered to celebrate Hanukkah with their families. According to Duane Pieper, Yachad program coordinator, the festive event was filled with latkes and laughter as the members lit the hanukkiah, sang songs and played a spirited game of dreidel. “As the rays of light shown on the faces of the Yachad members, there was a real sense of joy and appreciation for the gift of life,” he said. “Special thanks to Debbie Salomon for hosting the event in her home.”

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 11

Can you believe this number -- 2008?

by BERT LEWIS Wasn’t it just a short time ago the world was in an uproar because it was a new century we were approaching? And here we are again, ready to toss out the old calendar and start with a new one that proudly proclaims 2008. Wow. Enough to boggle the mind.

And it’s an election year too, on top of the rest of the excitement. I can’t even begin to imagine how that’s going to turn out, but I’m certain I’m not alone when I say I’m sick and tired of all of the debates, speeches, interviews, mud slinging, polls and talk shows devoted to hearing what the prospective candidates have to say. I shudder to think how many more months of it before the big day next November.

No use being so negative however, since I’m hopeful it will be a good year in many other ways. There must be lots of you out there who will plan a wedding, or a bar/bat mitzvah, or maybe a trip to Israel to celebrate its 60th anniversary in the new year.

Maybe a family will hold meetings, planning a big party to honor a 50th anniversary, or a graduation from medical school or law school -- you know, a simcha! I do so hope that’s the case for you, because what could be better than gathering the clan for a happy occasion, no matter what kind.

Of course none of us know what the year will bring, and that’s a little scary, but we have to look forward to the

I don’t know if people still make new year’s resolutions anymore, but I never did think it was a good idea. It’s so typical to get enthused about something like diet or giving up smoking, or any personal discipline ... somebody who needs to lose 20 pounds might try using that as a resolution. You know, “I’m gonna lose it before my granddaughter’s wedding.� After all, there’s six months before that happens. But the best laid plans, like the best made resolutions, often get lost in the passing days.

So it’s another new year. I guess we’ll do what we’ve always done as the old year fades away. We’ll try to remember to use the correct numbers when we write a check or a letter for starters. And we’ll probably walk around saying, “I

can’t believe it’s 2008� for a while, until everybody gets accustomed to it.

And by March, we won’t think about it so much, except when we write 2007 on that check. If we (or you) made resolutions, I’d guess most have been conveniently forgotten. In other words, we’ll do what we do when it rains: we’ll let it and just go about our business, sighing about how fast time flies!

That leaves me with the obvious message to you: From our house to yours, we wish you a new year filled with the blessings of good health, contentment, naches from your children and great joy.

Of course, if you get what I wish you, the joy will be automatic! Happy 2008.

Bert Lewis can be BertLewis39@aol.com.

The halls of Beth El were filled with shoppers several weeks ago during Sisterhood’s fifth annual boutique event. Left: More than 30 vendors, offering items such as jewelry, clothing, home accessories, books and artwork, kept visitors, including Judy

C

Brookstein, left, and Lois Wine, browsing and buying during the event. Above: the synagogue social hall was teeming with activity from mid-morning to late afternoon. All proceeds from boutique will be used to supplement synagogue programming.

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BERT’S EYE VIEW

future days and hope and pray our loved ones will be blessed with the important gifts, starting with good health. After that it gets easier ... then it’s okay to be more specific. For example, if one of your kids has a newly written and published book, surely you can be forgiven for saying, “Oh boy I hope this is the time for that book to take off like a rocket!�

It’s just human nature to wish for the good stuff and to hope you’ll “luck out� this time. Why not in this new year? It could happen. If there’s a new baby due, who wouldn’t walk around with a silent prayer constantly in mind, for the health and welfare of the future newest member of the mishpacha?

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Page 12

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

December 28, 2007

The first woman president? The first black? The first Mormon?

How about the first president that truly represents all of the people? Maybe someone with integrity and a strong moral compass? A person with character who doesn’t flip-flop on the issues or maybe a leader who understands the burden of responsibility and leads according to principles instead of polls.

Okay, so we’re wishing for the best and preparing for the worst. This coming year is about to put all prior election years into obscurity as dozens of politicos jockey for first place. Everything you knew to be true you can now toss out the window: don’t plan on placing any bets on any candidate. Our only prediction is that there are no surefire winners.

What can we predict? This will be the most expensive race ever in the history of presidential politics. The field, one of the heaviest ever with dozens of candidates still hanging in there, is likely to decrease once the Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina primaries are over. Still that leaves Super-Duper Tuesday on Feb. 5 with 20 states participating. Count on most of the would-be presidents going home to figure out how they’ll pay off their loans.

So who will be left? For the Dems, we’ll see Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.

We might still see Sen. John Edwards, but don’t expect to find Gov. Bill Richardson, Senators Joe Biden or Chris Dodd, or Rep. Dennis Kucinich on later ballots.

On the Republican side, we’ll be watching former New York City Mayor Rudi Guiliani battle it out with former Governors Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney. There’s a small chance that Sen. John McCain will still be a viable candidate, especially after an endorsement from Sen. Joe Lieberman. But we don’t think there’s a chance that he, Representative Ron Paul or former Sen. Fred Thompson will survive the 20-state primary six weeks from

Tuesday (Rep. Tom Tancredo dropped out last week).

Then again, we could be wrong. Look at Huckabee (and a lot of people are now). He was nowhere a month ago and just overtook Guiliani in both the Iowa and NH polls.

Obama, too, has closed the gap between himself and Clinton. Wish we had a crystal ball, but that would take all the fun out of watching the runup to the Nov. 4 general election.

So enough about national politics. What about the local races?

The Jewish Press predicted months ago that neither former Sen. Bob Kerrey or current city of Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey would run for the seat currently held by Sen. Chuck Hagel. And with former mayor Hal Daub and Attorney General John Bruning dropping out, that pretty much leaves former Gov. Mike Johanns as Nebraska’s next Senator.

Western Nebraska’s Scott Kleeb has been mentioned as a draft choice (this is Husker nation after all), but so far we’ve no official announcement of a declared candidacy.

In the House races, it looks like it will remain the status quo. Unless there are some dramatic changes, we hope there’s enough excitement generated by both parties in order to draw voters to the polls.

And finally ... where do we in the Jewish community stand?

Well, there’s no single answer to that. Though Jewish voters vote overwhelmingly Democratic, we’re not monolithic. It’s not only a candidate’s position on Israel that affects our votes, it’s also where he or she stands on immigration, reproductive rights

and abortion, stem cell research, fiscal policy (a flat tax would wipe out the deduction for charitable gifts), and the war in Iraq. Jewish voters also want to hear candidates’ views on health care, fighting global terrorism and educating our young people.

It’s tough to be running for public office in this country, but if these folks want our vote, they need to answer our questions. As voters, you should be asking ... make that demanding answers. And if you’re not registered to vote or have moved, go to www.votedouglascounty.com or call 444.VOTE (8683) for information so you can make sure your voice is heard.

Religion in the presidential race: a troubling new precedent

BEHIND THE HEADLINES

by ABRAHAM H. FOXMAN NEW YORK (JTA) -- Republican candidate Mitt Romney’s speech to the American people about his Mormonism and faith in America was an important contribution to our ongoing national dialogue regarding the appropriate role of religion in politics.

We agree there is no place in our society for bigotry and that one’s religion should never be a test for political office. We also realize that Governor Romney is fighting an unacceptable prejudice against him because of his faith and understand his need to proclaim himself a Christian.

Yet the speech was also a reminder that it has become part of our political culture for candidates to be forced into asserting their religiosity. The creeping emphasis on religion in our political culture, with some candidates openly professing their beliefs on the campaign trail -at times even hawking them -- is something that should deeply concern all Americans.

Forty-seven years have passed since thenpresidential hopeful John F. Kennedy found it necessary to openly declare he was “not the Catholic candidate for president” but “the Democratic Party’s candidate who happens also to be a Catholic.”

Who would have thought the same nagging questions raised about Kennedy’s fitness for office would surface again in the 2007 presidential campaign, especially after the 2000 campaign when Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut proved that an observant Jew could run for the office of vice president without his religious faith being a factor in deter-

mining the outcome.

Fast forward to the 2007 campaign, and there are more ominous signs that we haven’t quite reached the point when one’s religious beliefs are less important than his or her qualifications.

It is disturbing that any candidate should feel compelled or even pressured to explain his religious views to voters. It is outrageous that a candidate should face religious bigotry and questions about his fitness for office because of his faith. And it is disconcerting that some candidates are now engaged in a dangerous game of political one-upmanship in an effort to win over the “religious vote.”

...candidates should feel comfortable explaining their religious convictions to voters ... there is a point at which an emphasis on religion in a political campaign becomes inappropriate ...

In his address, Governor Romney made four points that should resonate with every candidate and with all Americans. First, our nation has a “grand tradition” of religious tolerance and liberty.

Second, we separate church and state affairs in this country, and for good reason -- “no religion should dictate the state, nor should the state interfere with the free practice of religion.”

Third, “a person should not be elected because of his faith, nor should he be rejected because of his faith.” And finally, no president should put the doctrine of any church above “the sovereign authority of the law.”

We welcome these four points, but there was a subtext to the speech that provided some cause for concern. The speech was not truly a

reaffirmation of the importance of the separation of church and state. Rather it reflected an effort we have seen in the current campaign -indeed on the part of many of the candidates -to appeal to religious voters on the basis of shared religiosity.

Unlike candidate Kennedy’s appeal to voters, candidates this year are not seeking to convince the American people that one’s religious beliefs should not be a test for office.

Rather they are emphasizing that their strongly held religious beliefs are yet another reason to vote for them.

The Anti-Defamation League has previously called on Americans to judge candidates on the basis of their views on issues and their qualifications, and not the nature or depth of their religious commitment. Appealing to voters along religious lines can be divisive, contrary to the American ideal of including all in the political process, and can open the door to promises that violate the separation of government and religion.

As we said during the 2000 campaign with regard to Senator Lieberman, candidates should feel comfortable explaining their religious convictions to voters. At the same time, however, we believe there is a point at which an emphasis on religion in a political campaign becomes inappropriate and even unsettling in a religiously diverse society such as ours.

Anyone who legitimately aspires to the presidency of the United States must be prepared to set an example and be a leader for all Americans, of all faiths and of no faith.

Abraham H. Foxman is national director of the Anti-Defamation League and the author of The Deadliest Lies: The Israel Lobby and the Myth of Jewish Control.

ADL, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, neither supports nor opposes any candidate for political office.

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 13

Should we fear faith?

The problem with Huckabee isn’t his public religiosity, but his trading on prejudice

BEHIND THE H EADLINES

by JONATHAN S. TOBIN One hundred and twenty-three years ago, a presidential election may well have been decided by a matter of religion.

On the eve of the close 1884 race between Democrat Grover Cleveland of New York and Republican standard-bearer James G. Blaine of Maine, a Presbyterian minister named Rev. Samuel Burchard earned infamy by characterizing the Democrats as the party of “rum, Romanism and rebellion” in a speech given in Blaine’s presence.

Everybody -- including Blaine, who failed to rebuke the clergyman -- knew what he was talking about. What Burchard meant was that he saw the Dems of his day as a party of drunken immigrants (an insult aimed at IrishAmericans), Roman Catholics and exConfederates.

The slur had the unintended consequence of enraging immigrants and Catholics, and causing them to turn out to vote. Most contemporary observers believed that it provided the margin of victory for Cleveland in New York and handed the Democrats their first presidential win since before the Civil War. Another ‘Man From Hope’ Ever since then, the dour shade of Rev. Burchard has hung over any campaign that consciously seeks to invoke religious prejudice for gain. The moral of the story is that no matter how deeply ingrained such biases might be in the body politic, ours is too diverse a democracy for such a scheme to ultimately succeed.

Yet, with the Iowa caucus only a couple of weeks away, the question is whether Mike Huckabee, Southern Baptist minister and former governor of Arkansas, is

aware of this chapter of history. If so, it would seem that he is bent on, if not erasing it from our political primers, at least providing a new interpretation.

Huckabee, who possesses a personality widely hailed as being as charming as the previous “man from Hope” (fellow Arkansan Bill Clinton), has emerged in recent months as a serious contender for the Republican nomination.

He has taken aim at former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, his primary competition for the votes of religious conservatives, in ways both subtle and overt, while raising questions about Romney’s Mormonism and touting himself as a “Christian leader.”

Romney responded earlier this month with a speech defending not only his own religion, but also asserting his own belief that religious faith had a place on the public square.

It’s unclear whether it did him much good. It certainly did not deter Huckabee from continuing to harp on his Christianity. His latest gambit is a disarming television ad that seeks disingenuously to tone down the debate for the holiday season while still talking about the primacy of “the birth of Christ” while a cross-like image hovers over him in the background.

It remains to be seen if this revival tent act can win Huckabee Iowa or any other

Our experience as an oppressed minority in Europe may have bred in Jews a phobia for public Christianity, but that’s irrelevant to present-day America where it is believers, rather than unbelievers, who are more likely to stand up for Jewish rights and Israel.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR To the Editor: I am renewing my subscription to the Jewish Press. I love Omaha; being a 1960 graduate of Central High School, I can’t believe how fast the city has grown and how beautiful it has become.

I am in Omaha quite often. My mother, Ida Forbes, was a resident of the Blumkin Home for seven years and my dad, Irving Forbes became a resident this month.

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state. He may turn out to be a 2008 version of Howard Dean, whose Democratic star peaked in late 2003 and then plummeted to earth with a scream in the Hawkeye state. Should the Republicans actually nominate Huckabee, there’s little doubt that almost any Democrat would dispatch this evolution-doubting foreign policy ignoramus in a landslide.

But even if all Huckabee gets is a Deanlike 15 minutes of front-runner status before being consigned to the dustbin of history alongside Blaine and Burchard, the ensuing debate about the role of faith in politics is still worth pondering.

In a riposte to Romney, AntiDefamation League head Abe Foxman blasted Romney for the “subtext” of his defense of the separation of church and state.

Comparing Romney’s stand with John F. Kennedy’s famous 1960 speech, in which JFK answered those who opposed the election of a Catholic to the presidency, Foxman said that there was a big difference between the two. While Kennedy disavowed any impact his faith might have on his politics or his decisions as a leader, Romney made it clear that while religious tests are abhorrent, he had no intention of running away from his faith.

“I will take care to separate the affairs of government from any religion, but I will not separate us from the God who gave us liberty. Nor would I separate us from our religious heritage,” declared the candidate.

Romney is signaling Americans that while we should have no state church, he believes religious faith has not only helped shape America but that it ought to continue to influence us.

That is a message that alarms the ADL, whose strict separationist principles deem any overt political religiosity as a potential danger to our liberties.

To Foxman’s credit, this is not the first time he has expressed his discomfort with a candidate speaking in this manner.

Seven years ago, the object of his ire was Sen. Joseph Lieberman, whose message embracing faith was earning him ecumenical applause as the Democrat’s vice-

I will be back in Omaha in April for Passover at the Home and see my dad and family. I was there in November.

I love Omaha and how close the Jewish community is. And I love the Jewish Press and keeping up on what is happening in the community.

It’s a fantastic paper!

Karen Forbes Meyer Simi Vally, CA

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presidential candidate.

Though it was largely lost amid the hallelujah chorus sung for Lieberman’s historic achievement, Foxman then saw a danger in the popularity of this faith talk.

As with Romney, Foxman took Lieberman to task for flaunting his religious observance and his status as a person of faith as being a credential for high office.

The Faith Card Though the ADL’s position certainly speaks to the fears of both religious minorities and secularists who worry about the future of church-state separation, it is tone deaf both to the sensibilities of the American people and the reality of our politics.

One need not agree with either of their very different political platforms to understand that the point here is there is a big difference between the likes of Lieberman and Romney, and that of a Huckabee. The former are men whose faith informs their consciences and policy decisions, and who rightly understand that Americans consider these to be trustworthy attributes. The latter is one who employs religion to trade on prejudice.

Contrary to the strict separationists, religious liberty in this country is not based on what philosopher Will Herberg once described as the “naked public square,” in which faith is unwelcome.

Though atheist books are the literary rage this season, the idea that the unique blessings of American freedom stem from a hostility to faith is an absurd misreading of history.

While their theology and their history could not be more different, both Judaism and Mormonism are safe in this country, not only because we do not “establish” any single religion, but because our shared national heritage of deep faith is inherently welcoming to all denominations that support the values of political freedom.

Our experience as an oppressed minority in Europe may have bred in Jews a phobia for public Christianity, but that’s irrelevant to present-day America where it is believers, rather than unbelievers, who are more likely to stand up for Jewish rights and Israel. In 2008 -- as has been the case in the past -- the ability of American voters to understand the difference between principle and prejudice is something that we can all have faith in.

Jonathan S. Tobin is executive editor of the Jewish Exponent in Philadelphia.

He can be contacted via e-mail at: jtobin@jewishexponent.com.

Page 14

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

December 28, 2007

Candlelighting Friday, Dec. 28, 4:43 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

Beyt Shalom An Affiliate of the Jewish Reconstructionist Federation 3012 S. 119 St. P.O. Box 390352 Omaha, NE 68139 660.2395 www.beytshalomomaha.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 333 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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Allan Handleman, 334.6451, or Terri Greenwood, 334.6559.

B’NAI ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE FRIDAY: Services followed by Oneg, 7:30 p.m.

BETH EL SYNAGOGUE Services conducted by Rabbi Mordechai Levin and Cantor Gastón Bogomolni.

FRIDAY: Musical Shabbat services, 6 p.m.

SATURDAY: Morning services, 9:30 a.m.; Kiddush given by Beth El; Minha/Ma’ariv, 4:50 p.m.; 5:15-6 p.m. PJ Havdalah, followed by songs, stories, a snack, plus an art project, led by ‘Miss Patty’ Nogg who will wear her pajamas and encourages everyone else to also! No charge to attend, but RSVP to Margie Gutnik at margie.gutnik@gmail. com or call the office.

Sitter Service is available during Friday night and Saturday morning services, on a drop-in basis, at no charge.

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

ADULT EDUCATION SUNDAY, Bible Study Discussion Group, 10 a.m.

THURSDAY: Rabbi Levin’s Insights and Values from the Torah class will not meet this week; Women’s Book Club will meet next on Jan. 17.

MEN’S CLUB RAFFLE: Tickets available at $5 each or $10 for three. To purchase, call the office; for more information, contact Gabe Meyer at 445.0275, or gabe@meyer717. com.

TOT SHABBAT: Friday, Jan. 4, 6 p.m., led by “Miss Patty” Nogg. Dinner will follow. Cost is $5 for adults, free for children ages six and younger. Open to all Jewish families in the community.

For more information or to RSVP for dinner, call the office.

WOMEN’S ROSH HODESH GROUP Monday, Jan. 7, 7 p.m., at Beth El. Theme: “A New Twist on Challah Baking.” RSVP to Margie Gutnik in the office.

ADULT ED MINI-COURSES: “The Many Faces of Extremism”, taught by ADL Director, Alan Potash, Tuesdays, 7-8 p.m. beginning Jan. 8; “The Art of Jewish Stenciling,” taught

by Daniel Christensen, Wednesdays, 8-8:45 p.m., beginning Jan. 9. Cost of each class is $18.

For information or to register, contact the office.

LOVE AND LOGIC PARENTING CLASS Wednesday, Jan. 9, 7-8 p.m.

Monthly class led by Karen Gustafson, director of Jewish Family Servic.

SHABBAT MORNING LIVE Saturday, Jan. 12, 10:30 a.m.noon. New program led by Esther Katz, for 4-8 year olds and their favorite adult(s). Program includes music, puppet theater, dance, Shabbat-appropriate games and crafts. No charge, but RSVP to Margie in the office.

HAZAK SHABBAT Saturday, Jan. 12, 9:30 a.m.

Lunch following services will feature a musical performance by Jonathan Rathsam and Esther Katz. Cost is $9 for adults, $5.50 for children 6-12, and free for children five and younger. RSVP

by Jan. 8 by sending a check to Tootie Simon, 8725 Izard St., Omaha NE 68114. For information, call Gloria Goodman at 333.3351.

YOUNG FAMILIES’ SHABBATON Feb. 22-23 at Lied Lodge in Nebraska City. Deadline for early bird registration is Monday, Dec. 31. All registrations needed by Monday, Jan. 15. For more information, call the office.

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

MONDAY: New Year’s Eve Game Night, 7 p.m.

TUESDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; office is closed.

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

Stanfield on Tuesdays, Jan. 15 and 22, 7-8 p.m., in the Temple Social Hall.

BEYT SHALOM

FRIDAY: Shabbat Comes to the Blumkin Home, 2:30 p.m. hosted

by Temple Israel.

SATURDAY: Services, 9 a.m. led by Andy Greenberg.

FRIDAY: Shabbat in the Home.

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.; Kiddush luncheon follows the service.

SUNDAY: Service, 8:30 a.m.; Mishpacha Mornings will resume Jan. 6.

WEEKDAYS: Services, 7 a.m.

MONDAY: Maamar Kabbalistic Insights for Women, 12:15 p.m.; Halacha, 7 p.m.

TUESDAY: W.O.W. Parsha, Prophets, and Prayer will resume Jan. 8; Parshah Roundup: Weekly Torah Portion Class, 7 p.m.

WEDNESDAY: Kabbalah Circle, 7 p.m.

THURSDAY: Jewish Thought, 12:45 p.m.

All events and programs are open to the community. For more information or to register, call the office or visit our website.

CONGREGATION B’NAI JESHURUN Office Hours: Mon.-Thurs.,

BETH ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE

8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.; Fri., 8:30 a.m-2 p.m. Services conducted by Rabbi Jonathan Gross.

FRIDAY: Kabbalat Shabbat, 4:43 p.m.

SATURDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m. free babysitting, 9:30 a.m.; Children’s Classes, 9:45 a.m. with Torah Parade; Kiddush is sponsored by Ira and Sheila Priluck in honor of the anniversary of Aaron’s Bar Mitzvah; Mincha, 4:15 p.m., followed by Suedat Shlishit; Havdalah, 5:50 p.m.

SUNDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; “Reading the Rambam” is canceled as Rabbi Oxman is out of town; Rabbi Gross’s teen class is on winter break.

Services conducted by Rabbi Ilan Emanuel.

FRIDAY: Shabbat Evening Service, 7:45 p.m., led by Rabbi Emanuel, with oneg following provided by Sue Schreiber.

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

SUNDAY: No LJCS classes.

TUESDAY: Temple office closed for New Year’s Day. WEDNESDAY: No LJCS Hebrew classes.

ADULT EDUCATION: “Lincoln and King: Prophetic Leadership in American History” will be taught by Dr. Scott

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

ROSE BLUMKIN JEWISH HOME

TEMPLE ISRAEL FRIDAY: Shabbat Comes to You at the Blumkin Home, 2:30 p.m.; Shabbat Service, 6 p.m. Rabbi Eric Linder and Tami Field will lead the service.

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

SUNDAY: No Religious School.

SITTER SERVICE: Available Wednesday evenings during Family School hours, Friday evenings service except when there is a Tot Shabbat, Saturday mornings when there is a B’nai mitzvah, and Sunday mornings during Religious School. Advance reservations and a $5 donation appreciated. Young children, including infants, are welcome.

WEDNESDAY: No Religious or Family School and No Middle/High School.

NEIGHBORHOOD MINYAN FRIDAY: Minyan, 4:43 p.m.

SATURDAY: Services, 9 a.m.

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. Contact the office to arrange for a minyan.

FRIDAY: Services, 6:30 p.m.

SATURDAY: Morning service, 9:30 a.m. followed by kiddush lunch and Talmud study.

SUNDAY: No LJCS classes WEDNESDAY: Men’s Lunch Group will meet at the Knolls, 12:30 p.m. Contact Yale Gotsdiner at 423.7066; No LJCS Hebrew classes.

Scroll power: Nicaraguan Jews celebrate first Torah in 28 years

by BRIAN HARRIS MANAGUA, Nicaragua (JTA) – After 28 years without a Torah scroll, Nicaraguan Jews joyously welcomed a new Torah in a ceremony community members say helped rekindle the Jewish spirit in this turbulent Central American country.

The morning after the Dec. 16 ceremony, the Torah was used for the first time in a minyan, at the bar mitzvah of Joshua Kain Teplitskaia. Some two dozen people, including a rabbi from neighboring Costa Rica, attended the service. It represented the first real service in the country since it last had a Torah.

“We are taking the Torah once again to Nicaragua,” said Rabbi Hersch Spalter, the Chabad-

Lubavitch rabbi from Costa Rica who presided over the festivities.

“This is the rebirth of Judaism in Nicaragua.”

Never a large community, Nicaragua Jews began leaving the country during the political deterioration of the 1970s. After the Soviet-backed Sandinista Revolution in 1979, the few Jews who remained went into exile, taking their Torah with them.

Jews began returning to Nicaragua after the Sandinistas were voted out of office in 1990, but their Torah remained in Costa Rica until a suitable home in Nicaragua could be constructed for it.

With no synagogue or community center to serve the estimated 60 Jews in the country, this week’s festivities were held at the

“It looks to be that little by little this community is growing,” Spalter told JTA. “For now it is perfectly fine if services are at the Najman’s house, so long as there are services.”

Najman’s son, Moshe David, is well versed in Hebrew and likely will lead prayer services for now.

During the Hachnasat Eddy Translateur, the president of the Sefer Torah ceremonies to Nicaraguan Jewish community, carries the welcome the Torah, the country's first Torah in 28 years at a ceremony scroll was taken from its in Managua on Dec. 16. Credit: Brian Harris ark and paraded down the Torah’s interim home, the house cul-de-sac the Najmans live on at of Jimmy Najman, a Shabbat and the southern end of the city. kosher observer who attends Under a chupah, the Torah was Spalter’s synagogue when in feted with songs while curious, Costa Rica. non-Jewish neighbors looked on.

December 28, 2007

The great escape

SPARKS FROM THE WORD

by RABBI MYER S. KRIPKE Parashat Shemot Jews are generally used to give the title of a book by its first important word. In the English Bible, the King James scholars followed the use of the Septuagint, the first Greek translation of the Pentateuch. They therefore called the Book -- Exodus, meaning the departure of ancient Israel from Egypt.

The first chapter is fascinating by itself because of the names given of those Jews who left Egypt. The names themselves are fascinating. Not many of us are now called by the names given here. And Hillary might ask us why there are no women’s names at all.

The Book looms large in Jewish history because the Exodus is referred to again and again, including in so unexpected a place as the Shabbat evening kiddush.

Shemot is important in its own right, too. Among other things there is the emptying of the waters of the Sea of Reeds, so that Israelites might pass through on dry land. Furthermore, it is in this Book that we are presented with the so-called Ten Commandments, which, at least in the name, has left its mark in the literature of Europe and the Western continents.

Archeaologists tell us that they can find no historic proofs of a phenomenon so exceptional as the parting of the waters of the sea. Nor, they say, is there any archaeological evidence of Israel’s traversing the great desert to get to the Promised Land.

Actually that makes little difference. What matters is the way the “myth� has really influenced later Jewish thought. “Myth� in this sense does not mean a false story, but rather an accepted lesson of history which influenced later thought and action of the people.

Thus, for example, we might say that the landing at Plymouth Rock, historical or not, became a great “American myth.� It bolstered the great American thought that the colonization of these States had specifically to do with the search for religious freedom.

Religious freedom has become a pillar of American democracy.

Here we see clearly that historical events become the roots of the great forest, which is the impenetrable and invulnerable basis of the American system of government.

Here we have the opposite of the influence of historic events on the thought process of a people. Here we have the thought-process of the people determining its history. The Exodus and all that goes with it, in thought and fact, is the determining factor on all Jewish history.

DEATH JENNIE LEDERMAN Jennie Lederman died Dec. 18 in Lincoln at the age of 83. Services were held Dec. 20 at Butherus, Maser & Love Funeral Home in Lincoln.

She retired from her position as an accounting clerk with the Nebraska State Department of Agriculture, and was active with Tifereth Israel, the American Legion Auxiliary, Eagles Auxiliary, and Does.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Meyer; brother, Meyer Hacht; and sister, Dora Gotfred.

She is survived by her sister, Bess Copp of Denver, CO; and many nieces and nephews.

Memorials to Tifereth Israel Synagogue.

To Submit Announcements to the Jewish Press: Announcements may be e-mailed to the Press with attached photos in .jpg or .tif files to jpress@jewishomaha.org; faxed to 402.334.5422, or mailed to 333 So. 132 St., Omaha, NE 68154 (with photos we will scan and return).

Forms are available through Omaha and Lincoln synagogues, by contacting The Jewish Press at 402.334.6448, or by e-mailing: ckatzman@jewishomaha.org.

Readers can also submit other announcements -- births engagements, marriages, commitment ceremonies or obituaries -- online at the Jewish Federation of Omaha website: www.jewishomaha.org. Click on “Jewish Press� and go to Submit Announcements. Deadlines are normally eight days prior to publication, on Thursdays, 9 a.m. Check the Jewish Press, however, for notices of early deadlines prior to secular and Jewish holidays.

JTA NEWS BRIEFS • The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews will give the Jewish Agency for Israel $15 million per year for the next three years. The Jewish Agency made the announcement last week, adding that the fellowship will be able to appoint members to the agency’s lay leadership boards. The money will go toward the Jewish Agency’s core budget, which traditionally comes from the dues collected by the United Jewish Communities from North American Jewish federations and the agency’s international fund-raising mechanism, Keren Hayesod. The UJC gave $140 million to JAFI for its core budget in 2007, but the Jewish Agency has been told to expect a decrease of about $2 million, according to its Board of Govenors chairman, Richard Pearlstone.

The agency’s total budget this year was $317 million.

The Jewish Agency is calling the new arrangement with the charitable fund, which is headed by Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, a “strategic partnership.â€? This year, the fellowship contributed more than $8 million to the Jewish Agency. “The nature of our new partnership will be expressed by proudly placing the fellowship alongside our loyal, longtime partners, the UJC -- the federations of North America and Keren Hayesod,â€? the chairman of the Jewish Agency’s Executive, Ze’ev Bielski, wrote in a letter announcing the arrangement. • Israel’s Technion came 25th in an international ranking of technical colleges. Britain’s Times newspaper this week published a table of the world’s best technical colleges, ranking the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology at 25th. Topping the list was the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Officials at Technion, which is located in Haifa, described the citation as an especially welcome vindication. • A new synagogue was dedicated in a German town nearly 70 years after Nazis destroyed its former one.

The applause for the growth of Germany’s Jewish community was tempered, however, by warnings about new forms of anti-Semitism in Europe. The $10 million synagogue in the center of Bochum, located in the Ruhr Valley, was financed by the Jewish community, the state of North-Rhine Westphalia and the German gvernment.

Among the guests at the recent dedication ceremony for the cube-shaped building were the president of the Bundestag, Norbert Lammert; the president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, Charlotte Knobloch; and state governor JĂźrgen RĂźttgers.

RĂźttgers warned against complacency in the face of “anti-Semitism in new garb.â€?

He said Germany must not allow “adherents of totalitarian, inhumane ideologies to destroy� Germany’s cosmopolitan, multicultural identity. Members of the Jewish community brought Torah scrolls from the location of the former synagogue to the new building.

The original synagogue, destroyed during Kristallnacht on Nov. 9, 1938, was not rebuilt.

According to the Tagesschau online news site, Bochum’s Jewish community now has 1200 members, as many as it had before the Nazi period. • WASHINGTON (JTA) -- Two U.S. senators cited the Holy Land’s dwindling Palestinian Christian community in a letter to President Bush. The purpose of the letter, sent Friday, but dated Dec. 25 for Christmas, was to laud the president’s renewed peace efforts. “We commend your efforts to reinvigorate the peace process with last month’s international meeting in Annapolis, and your vision of ‘two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security,’â€? stated the letter by Sens. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) and Kit Bond (R-Mo.), referring to last month’s U.S.-convened peace talks in the Maryland capital. “As you work to achieve this vision, and as Christmas approaches, we wish to draw your attention to the decline of the Holy Land’s Christian community.â€?

The letter alluded both to reported threats against Palestinian Christians made by radical Islamists, as well as restrictions on movement imposed by Israeli security measures. “Caught in a storm of violent conflict, religious extremism and economic deterioration, often unable to access their holy sites, and lacking reliable law and order, many Christians are emigrating,� read the letter. “Progress toward resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict would greatly improve the lives of the Palestinian Christians, who will play a critical role in any future democratic and pluralistic Palestinian state.�

The letter was praised by Churches for Middle East Peace, a coalition of mainline Protestant, Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox and other churches.

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

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Page 16

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

December 28, 2007

Omaha Performing Arts Presents

Trumpet in the New Year!

Chris Botti

New Year’s Eve 2007 Celebration

Experience a tantalizing blend of fine jazz and pop music with the sounds of GRAMMY®, nominated trumpeter, Chris Botti.

Chris Botti New Year’s Eve 2007 Celebration Monday, December 31, 2007 | 8:30 p.m.

Kiewit Concert Hall | Holland Performing Arts Center Additional support provided by Midlands Choice Hospitality Host: Hilton Omaha Media Partners: Classical 90.7, The Jewish Press of Omaha and metroMAGAZINE

Preview this artist at www.omahaperformingarts.org Following the performance, all patrons are invited to ring in the new year with a post-concert celebration featuring The Personics in the Holland Center’s Scott Recital Hall.

Photo: Fabrizio Ferri

Tickets start at $45

Upgrade your evening with the New Year’s Eve Party Package!

Contact Holly Kaffenberger for more information hkaffenberger@omahaperformingarts.org or call 402.661.8454

| 402.345.0606 | www.ticketomaha.org | 13th and Douglas streets