ewish Press SERVING NEBRASKA AND WESTERN IOWA FOR MORE THAN 75 YEARS VoLLXXVm No. 7 Omaha, NE
Dr. Mary Pipher on Ophelia's Family: Across the Generations by Elyce Azriel Director, Temple Israel Middle/High School
Temple Israel will present its first workshop for middle and high school students and parents on Wednesday, Nov. 10, 6:308:30 p.m., featuring author and lecturer Dr. Mary Pipher.
Dr. Mary Pipher During the discussion of "Ophelia's Family: Across the Generations," Dr. Pipher will examine the effects of our culture on families and explore how the loss of community and the proliferation of media and technology have hurt the oldest institution, th*e family. Dr. Pipher has found that families still deal with the problems they have: always had, plus new ones created by pop-psychology, media and the avalanche of technology- . .' ' ' •.'••••. ••.•••.•• Author of Reviving Ophelia, The Shelter of Each Other: Rebuilding Our Families,. and Another Country: Navigating the Emotional Terrain of Our Elders, Dr. Pipher is a national authority on family issues. She speaks regularly to psychologists, educators, schools and parents around the country, and has listened to many stories about the cultural assault on families and what is being done to change that. Drawing on the fascinating stories of families rich and poor, angry and despairing, religious and skeptical, and probing her own experiences, Dr. Pipher wisely and compassionately challenges each of us to find the courage to nurture and revive the families we cherish. This program has been funded by grants from The Milton S. and Corinrie H. Livingston Foundation and The Lazier L. • Singer Memorial Fund. The workshop is presented in association with "the Jewish Community Center Child Development^Center and the Jewish Senior Services; it is free and open to the Jewish community. For more information, contact Lori at Temple Israel, 556-6536.
NE HIST SOCIETY 1500 R ST LINCOLN NE 68503-1651
Got time? Need lunch? Go learn! by Carol Katzman
On a recent Tuesday, a dozen people gathered in the conference room of the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home for a quick lunch. . .and an hour of learning. It's a "regular" date with some of the participants, noted Marcel Kahn, a loyal follower of Rabbi Paul Drazen's Lunch 'n Learn series. "I enjoy the study," Kahn added as.he read through the four-page article used as the basis for that week's Lunch 'n Learn. Written by Dr. Eugene Fisher, a member of the commission in Rome which works to improve relationships with other faiths, this particular article covered a tough subject: "Catholics and Jews Confront the Holocaust and Each Other." The lively discussion focused on the premise of Fisher's piece.. .that Catholics have come a long way in the last thousand years in their attitudes as well as in the Church's official position towards the Jews. Rabbi Drazen offered his own comments and interpretations of Fisher's article and steered the direction of the group. He kept them focused on the topic, not always an easy task to accomplish among well-read, Jewishly educated participants. This day, however, the group politely exchanged comments on Fisher's, and the Catholic Church's, intent. Steve Riekes made mention of the recent letter written by New York's Cardinal O'Connor to Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel and reproduced by Wiesel as a full-page ad in the Sunday New York Times. "It takes a long time to undo centuries of mistakes," Rabbi Drazen stated, "and.the Catholic Church is currently moving at a pace that is unbelievable (in its speed)." Though this article may have seemed like an unusual choice for Jews to discuss in a one-hour Lunch 'n Learn program, its purpose was apparent, observed Rabbi Drazen, when participants then raised the questions "Where was the American
Rabbi Paul Drazen began the Lunch 'n Learn program at Beth El Synagogue with the idea that interested participants could always squeeze in an hour of learning during lunchtime. Jewish community during the war years?" and "Have we sent a message to our children that to be Jewish is to be a victim?" Stimulating discussion, "food for thought," is exactly the goal Rabbi Drazen had in mind when he arrived in Omaha almost 18 years ago and found a weekly Lunch 'n Learn already established at Beth El. Though this group is a Beth El Synagogue program, it is open to all members of the community, A phone call for-a lunch reservation (cost is $7 per person) is all that's needed for next month's Lunch 'n Learn on Tuesday, Nov. 9, at noon, at the Blumkin Home Conference room. If those hungry for knowledge can't make that date, there are other opportunities for learning during lunchtime in Omaha. (Continued on page 8) ;
'Operation Cigar:' A not-so-secret Cuban aliyah gets world attention JTA Staff Report
NEW YORK, (JTA) - The emigration of hundreds of Cuban Jews to Israel made big headlines this week after the story broke in the British and , Canadian press. Code named "Operation Cigar," the departure was hardly news to Cuban dictator Fidel Castro, who apparently gave his blessing to the exodus years ago. Since 1995, some 400 people have arrived from Cuba with the assistance of the Jewish Agency for Israel, a quasi-governmental agency responsible for "aliyah, or immigration to Israel. A trickle came earlier through the efforts of the Canadian government The mystery surrounding their exodus-confirmed by the Israeli government for the first time this week-seems to stem from Castro's reluctance to publicize special treatment arranged for the Cuban Jewish community, which now totals an estimated 1,300 people. But others see the move as part of Castro's desire to see crippling U.S. economic sanctions lifted. Officially, Cubans are free to emigrate provided they have the appropriate paperwork and airfare. But most are too poor to leave. Cuban Jewish leaders also confirmed that the operation had been taking place, but emphasized that it was not a secret. Who first approached Castro regarding Cuban aliyah is unclear-with many taking credit. Indeed, Israel Radio reported last week that six years ago, Margarita Zapata, the Jewish granddaughter of Mexican revolutionary Emiliano Zapata, had used her friendship with Castro to raise the matter with the Cuban leader. But others
involved with Cuban Jewry 8aid they had never heard of her involvement. But what has emerged since Israeli military censors opened the subject to the media last week is that in 1993 the Jewish Agency entered into an agreement with Castro to keep their activities quiet in return for an obstacle-free operation. A spokesman for the Jewish Agency, Michael Jankelowitz, declined to comment on Cuban aliyah. Cuba and Canada maintain political relations, while Cuba and Israel do not. Cuba dropped diplomatic relations with Israel after the 1973 Yom Kippur War. Officials in the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs have confirmed the existence of a special office in Canada's Embassy in Havana through which • Cuban Jews may apply to emigrate to Israel. Embassy workers in Havana forward emigration requests to the Israeli embassy in Ottawa, which in turn send them to Tel Aviv. The emigrants leave Cuba using Cuban exit visas and passports, and use Canadian travel documents to enter Israel. The arrangement was kept secret for diplomatic reasons, said a spokesperson for Canadian foreign affairs. Most members of the Cuban Jewish community are descended from Polish and Russian Jews who fled czarist pogroms at the turn of the century. When Castro came to power in 1959, most of the then-15,000-strong community managed to flee, with the majority settling in the United States. Hebrew University Cuba specialist Margalit Bejarano told the London Sunday Telegraph that (Continued on page 2)