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ewish Press
CelebnangMonThan 75 Yean of Service VflLUXIVNo.* OmidUiNE
BChediv«n,B757 October 18,1996
Rabbi Kripke looks back on 50 years in Omaha
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Uri Regev gives pluralistic perspective on Israel
by Carol Katzman In the middle of the Bummer of '46, Rabbi Myer "I am pleased with the letters I get frequentKripke, then spirily, thanking me for my influence on the Jewish tual leader of a personality of the writers," he wrote in 1992. "My ConBervative conown greatest single outside satisfaction has been greeation in New in teaching. I taught at the Municipal University London, CT, flew of Omaha (now UNO) for 10 years, while I was still out to Omaha for in the pulpit. There were nearly a thousand stuan interview. dents who came through my classes. When The late Dave Dorothy became ill, I had to give up teaching. Blacker chaired the "After my retirement, I began teaching again in search committee 1976, this time at Creighton University...! have of Beth El Synabeen teaching about 60 students a year, in Bible gogue. Rabbi Kripand general Jewish subjects. Thus there are ke had been told by another 800-1,000 students who have been in my firiends in the rabclasses." Some of Rabbi Kripke's students have binate that *it was become ministers or priests; some are teachers. considered to be a Their 50 years here has not been Umited to progood position and I viding scholarly pursuits for the rabbi only. Mrs. should take a look." Kripke's book career started in Omaha. Two weeks prior Joel Grishaver of Torah Aura will be publishing to Rosh Hashanah, her latest book. Let's Talk About Sabbath, later Mr. Blacker called this fall. and offered the job Dorothy and Habbi Kripke When asked about the changes he has seen in to Rabbi Kripke. Omaha over a half-century, Rabbi Kripke said, 1 couldn't leave my congregation in the lurch, so "The city has exploded. When I first came, there Rabbi David Goldstein stayed on at Beth El and I were cornfields where Crossroads Mall is located. arrived after the holidays," he recalled. *My wife, But the Jewish community is smaller; we lost a lot Dorothy, came in December with toddlers Saul and of people after World War II. Madeline; Netta was bom here in Omaha." "We had many immigrants in those years from The late Joe Rice was president of the congrega- Europe; now we also have Jews in Omaha from the tion and Sam Rice was chairman of the Beth El former Soviet Union, South America, South Africa, school board. Israel, even Cuba. *Belli El was my fourth congregation,'' he said, *I "And all the congregations have moved to the did expect to stay for life." right, religiously." And stay he has. For 60 years. Rabbi Kripke has Rabbi Kripke continues to write a column for the taught, counseled, written, lectured and cared for Jewiah Preaa, Sparks from the Word, as he has congregants and non-congregants alike. According for many years. to long-time friend Bemice Wolfson, "Rabbi Kripke 1 have rarely missed a week," he wrote in 1992, was active with churches and other organizations "It has given me pleasure to have people about in the community long before it was popular." town tell me they appreciate these columns and "Every rabbi has his own approach to his duties. read them regularly. My columns, they tell me, I thought the pulpit really important. I never challenge their thinking. approached it without a thoroughly thought-out "Retirement, to sum up, need not be limited to sermon or Uvar T6rah in mind, though I never had feolf and TV, though both of these and other divera manuscript," said Rabbi Kripke recently. 'My sions, used judiciously, may be good. Retirement chief responsibility was teaching Judaism, i.e., allows time for reflection, time for being human, Jewish tradition as it affects our lives now." time for probing the values of life. Today, he sees retirement as a great opportunity. "When the race has entered into the final Members of Beth El still consult him, still attend straightaway, every step should be deliberate," he his lectures and classes. concluded, "Every step Should count."
»Jewish
War Veterans establish schoiarship endowment fund
by Claudia Sherman, Foundatioii Public Relationa Coordinator A new scholarship, for Jewish students who are residents of the Omaha metropolitan area to attend a university, business or vocational school, has been established by the Jewish War Veterans Epstein-Morgan Post #260 in memory of Nathan Marcus. The scholarship will be awarded to a student who has demonstrated financial need and has achieved a GPA of 2.0 or better. Preference will be given to veterans of U.S. military service or to children and grandchildren of veterans. Susan Draien, Director of the Bureau of Jewiah Education, "was instrumental in aniating us to Mrt up the scholarthip fund," Mr. Benton gratefully acknowledged. Mr, Marcus served in the U.S. Air Force during Member* of the Jewiah War Veterana World War II. After leaving the service, "he was Bpateln-Morfan Poat MaO signed the scholactive immediately in the Post," said his wife of arship endowment fund agreement in almost 60 yean. Babe Marcus. He was commander September. Front row, from left: Leater oftbe poat from 1963-64 and from 1964-67. Ha died Waxman; Sheldon A. Bernstein, Foundation in 1994. Endowment Direetar; and Jay Benton, Poat *Th« acholarahip was orifinally Nate's idea," Coaunander. Baek rowi Jaeque Dolfoff, 8am according to membars of Post f 360 who hope that Kapkn, Dr. Milton Margolin, Sol Mann and the endowment award will perpetuate his dream. Oeorfe Schapiro.
by Carol Katsman Ostensibly, Rabbi Uri Regev is in the United States with his family on a short sabbatical, but he's also here with a message. "We need the moral and financial support of the American Jewish community for religious freedom for Jews in Israel," he said in a D uu- wi • n recent interview. fJust Rabbi Un Regev ^g they did for Jews in the former Soviet Union before the fall of communism, for blacks in the U.S. during the civil rights movement, American Jews need to help us gain fi'eedom for Jews in Israel, too." It may be difficult to view Jews in Israel as a minority, but with an Orthodox lock on conversions, marriages, burials and even state support of religious schools, Reform, Conservative and even secular Jews have been and continue to be denied civil rights that Americans take for granted. Even Orthodox Jews are not immune to having their lifestyles questioned by rabbinic courts. In a recent case, a young American man who made aliyah was denied the opportunity to marry his Israeli fiancee because his Orthodox conversion was revoked after the court learned he occasionally answered the phone on Shabbat. "The religious kibbutz movement, the Orthodox (Continued on page 16)
Bobbie Epstein represents Omaha at International Lion of Judah conference UJA Women's National Board member Bobbie Epstein flew to Israel last week for the first-ever Lion of Judah conference to be held there. Entitled "Beyond Boundaries," the four-day conference brought together more than 600 women firom 59 communities around the world. Participants came from as far away a.s Morocco, India, Hung ary, Serbia, Lithuania, South Africa and | Australia. Accompanied by I Bobbie ^wtein Women's Campaign Director Jan Perelman, the two women heard from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former refusenik Ida Nudel, Jewish Agency Chairman Avrum Burg and Ambassador Colette Avital, Consul-general of Israel in New York, and others. In addition to the workshops and plenary sessions, the participants visited Jewish Agency sites, including Lifeline for the Old, a sheltered workshop for the elderly, and Kiryat Yaarim, a youth aliyah village. Mrs. Epstein was also ehoaen to serve as a mentor for two Jewish women from Croatia for the four day conference. Other conference guests included CBS News Corrsapondeot Bob Simon, Academy-award winner Gerda Klein, author of On< Survivor Remember*; Alice Shalvi, founder oftbe Israel Women's Network; and South African Member of Parliament Helen Suzman. Following the Lion of Judah conference, Mrs. Epstein and Mrs. Perelman will attend a Partnership 2000 conference. The Jewish Federation of Omaha voted in June to participate in this program which will link Omaha with communities in the Western Galilee for the purpose of economic, educational and human service exchanges of information and reaources.
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