Jewish Voice and Opinion - November 2010

THE JEWISH VOICE AND OPINION Promoting Classical Judaism

November 2010

Vol. 24 • No. 3

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UNESCO Recognizes Rachel’s Tomb as…a Mosque; New US Congressional Leadership Says It’s Time to Leave UNESCO

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t the end of October, the executive committee of the Paris-based UN Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) declared that it will henceforth recognize the Tomb of the Biblical matriarch Rachel, which is located between Bethlehem and Jerusalem, not as a Jewish holy site, but rather as the Mosque of Bilel Ibn-Rabach.

The recognition was approved by 44 of the 58 members of UNESCO’s board.

Despite Israel’s bitter opposition, 12 countries from Europe and Africa abstained.

Only the US voted against the proposal.

Four other UNESCO measures passed by similar margins, all calling on Israel to refrain from archeological activities in several

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Rachel’s Tomb, Judaism’s third-holiest site, has been the scene of prayer and pilgrimage for more than three thousand years.

Biblical sites, including the Temple Mount, where Muslims have systematically destroyed priceless artifacts, sometimes burying them under layers of limestone and other times simply discarding them haphazardly.

UNESCO also demanded that Israel remove from its list of Jewish heritage sites the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron, where, according to Jewish tradition, the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and matriarchs, Sarah, Rivka, and Leah, were buried 4,000 years ago.

In Hebron, a Jewish community spokesman, Noam Arnon, noted that the Cave of Patriarchs “was a Jewish site thousands of years before Islam ever existed.”

Muslim Cemetery While there is a Muslim cemetery surrounding Rachel Tomb, the facility itself was never used as a mosque. In fact, according to most scholars, local Muslims

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ZOA Campaign Leads to US Dept. of Ed Announcement: Jewish Students Now Protected from Antisemitic Harassment

fter a six-year campaign by the Zionist Organization of America, the US Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced last month that it will enforce Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act in order to protect Jewish students from harassment, intimidation, and discrimination at federally funded schools.

“This is a breakthrough,” said Mort Klein, president of ZOA. “Until this announcement, OCR wouldn’t enforce Title VI to protect Jewish students, leaving them without the same civil rights protections that have been afforded to other ethnic and racial groups since Title VI’s enactment in 1964.”

Jewish High School for $5,000/Yr.... 3 Kol Ami:One Divergence?.............. 4 The Current Crisis.......................... 5 A Must-See “Wallenberg” ............. 11 EMUNAH Dinner........................ 16 News from Touro ........................ 18 Warm Up With Kosherica.............. 21 Careers for Potential Olim........... 24

Virtually all antisemitic incidents on US campuses stem from activities undertaken by anti-Israel, usually Muslim groups whose animus for the Jewish state rapidly degenerates into what can only be called hate speech and worse against Jews.

Including Jews Title VI, a section of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, requires schools that receive federal funding to ensure that their programs and activities are free from discrimination based on race, color, or national origin.

Violation of the law can cost a school its federal funding.

Inside the Voice Toffler Watch: Jewish Votes......... 28 Remembering Martin Kraar, z”l... 30 School and Camp Open Houses... 30 Holiday Boutiques....................... 31 The Log........................................ 32 New Classes................................. 43 Mazal Tov ................................... 45

Because religion is not mentioned in the act per se, hostility against Jews was not considered a violation. The new decision by OCR changes that position.

Now under Title VI, a school is expected to do more than simply punish the perpetrators of antisemitic harassment.

Other remedial steps, such as counseling the perpetrators about their hurtful conduct, reaffirming the school’s antidiscrimination policy, publicizing how students may report harassment, training teachers to recognize and address antisemitic incidents, and creating age-appropriate pro-

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Ess Gezint: For Chanukah .......... 50 Was It More Offensive?............... 52 Gov. Huckabee at Bet El Dinner .56 Symphonia Music........................ 56 Honor the Professional ............... 57 Index of Advertisers . .................. 59 Letters to the Editor .................... 60 Walk To Shul . ............................. 63

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November 2010

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Pre-College Learning Center: NJ’s New Jewish High School Offering Customized Education for $5,000 Per Year

f all goes according to plan, the Pre-Collegiate Learning Center of NJ (PCLC) will open next fall in the Highland Park area with 30 Jewish ninth and tenth graders whose families have opted for a Jewish secondary school featuring individualized secular and Jewish learning, an ambitious computerbased curriculum, and all for an annual tuition bill of about $5,000 per student.

“PCLC is the next generation of education. Just as Amazon reinvented the experience of shopping for books, we are reinventing the experience of Jewish secondary education.

We have taken every aspect of secondary education and

analyzed it, asking in each instance: can this be done better and cheaper? We live in a time when technology has given us many wonderful ways of doing things. It’s our goal to see that education benefits from this bounty,” said Lauren Ariev Gellman, PCLC’s director.

Ms. Gellman made her remarks last month at a PCLC parlor meeting, held in a private home in Highland Park.

While only a handful of people responded to the invitation, on the evening of the event, dozens of curious parents and a few eighth graders crowded into the living room to hear Ms. Gellman discuss PCLC’s

“exceptional educational opportunity which, by the way, will cost only $5,000.”

Communal Home-School In many ways, PCLC represents the next generation of the home-school model. Not quite communal home-schooling, but very different from the traditional day school or yeshiva, PCLC is definitely a hybrid, a cross between a “real” school and a virtual one. Using stateof-the-art, computer-based instructional materials coupled with community resources and some traditional teachers, it plans to offer a standard high school curriculum of limudei kodesh and secular studies, and then will customize the pro-

gram so each student will be able to focus on the area that most interests him or her.

“There are two million children being home-schooled in the US, and studies show they are getting into top colleges and universities at a substantially higher rate than their traditionally-schooled peers,” said Ms. Gellman.

The ideas behind PCLC have sufficiently excited Jewish organizations handing out grants, giving the new school some seed money to rent its space and secure the necessary computers and programs.

According to Ms. Gellman, PCLC will be self-supporting

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THE JEWISH VOICE AND OPINION, Inc. © 2010; Publisher and Editor-in-Chief: Susan L. Rosenbluth Phone (201)569-2845 Managing Editor: S. Edelman, Advertising: Rivkie Lichstein-Stall The Jewish Voice & Opinion (ISSN # 1527-3814), POB 8097, Englewood, NJ 07631, is published monthly in coordination with The Central Committee for Israel. A one-year subscription is $18. Periodicals postage is paid at Englewood, NJ and additional mailing offices.

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November 2010

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Kol Ami: Singling Out One Divergence?

A NJ Jewish weekly, which, for decades, has been publishing advertisements for treif restaurants, non-Shabbosdik Saturday events, and articles and op-eds endorsing Israel’s giving away land, recently ran an announcement of a homosexual union. A local, rather politically liberal Orthodox rabbi and some members of the community hit the proverbial roof. We asked a few prominent Y local rabbis: Was the outraged Orthodox rabbi correct in singling out this divergence from traditional Jewish law?

The announcement of a homosexual union in an ostensibly Jewish publication represents a new low in the deterioration of the traditional Jewish message. The reason Orthodox Jews might react more strenuously to the homosexual announcement is that, as opposed to treif-restaurant ads or articles on programs that violate the Sabbath, the homosexual unions take aim at the basic, traditional Jewishfamily structure.

Rabbi Yitzchak Eisenman Passaic, NJ

The issue of homosexuality has become trendy. The same is not true of ads for treif restaurants, which have become standard. Even some Orthodox owners of Jewish newspapers carry those ads, believing that notifying people about those establishments is not the same as endorsing them. But the Orthodox community is not used to seeing announcements of homosexual unions, and, when confronted with this trendy issue, their sensitivities came to the fore.

Rabbi Joshua Hess Linden, NJ

Having tired of the simplistic liberalism that informed every commentary, embarrassed by the anti-Torah screeds that have been presented as legitimate Jewish points of view, and, not least of all, disgusted by the constant mischaracterization of my views and opinions when I was interviewed, I have not read that paper in over a decade, and I have urged my congregants to do the same. continued on page 51 Rabbi Steven Pruzansky Teaneck, NJ

Some sins are personal, such as eating non-kosher food or desecrating the Sabbath; others are communal. Celebrating a homosexual union is not only a communal violation of Torah law, but also a desecration of basic concepts of humanity that apply not only to Jews, but also to Gentiles.

The Torah commands man not only to “be fruitful and multiply,” but also to recognize that continued on page 51 Rabbi Moshe Dovid Tendler Monsey, NY

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The Current Crisis: “Even in Laughter, the Heart Can Ache”

When Juan Williams was sacked by National Public Radio last month for publicly confessing that wailing imams dressed in full regalia in airports make him “nervous,” it’s doubtful that anyone, except maybe Keith Olbermann or Anwar al-Awlaki, could fail to identify with his edginess.

A short while later, when Olbermann himself was suspended from the left-leaning MSNBC, his boss said he was being punished for having made donations to politicians who are every bit as left-wing as he is. What we don’t get is why this bothered them at MSNBC. Was there anyone out there who did not know Olbermann is a far-left wacko and, thus, had every right to donate to politicians whose goals were the same as his? Was MSNBC hoping that maybe some of us who turn on O’Reilly might switch to MSNBC if only we could be fooled into thinking that Olbermann doesn’t donate to Democrats?

Maybe that’s why the whole network is about to be bought

by Comcast, an outfit that reportedly donates to Conservative Republicans who favor Israel. You think Olbermann has trouble now? Wait until he has to watch a Conservative in his old spot and can’t even call him “the worst person in the world.” *** Keith Olbermann might not like this ditty from a group that calls itself Elders of Ziyon, but we sure did. Sing along with Mahmoud to the tune of the “Dance of the Hours” by Ponchielli (if it’s too highbrow to remember it’s from the opera La Gioconda, just think of it as Alan Sherman’s “Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah”).

Hello Martyr, Hello Fatah Here I am in Islamic Gaza I must tell you: I’m having great fun In my camp, they teach us how to use machine guns.

We blame things on the Jewish lobby Our hero is Dalal Mughrabi We can march now, we can holler And we love to pray five times a day to Allah.

I keep ammo in my pocket I just learned how to shoot a rocket Just imagine how great I felt When I was fitted for my first suicide belt.

We watch videos of friendly mouses We practice mortars at Jewish houses You remember Ahmed Fakid He just lost his legs practicing to be a shahid.

Now my bombing’s a routine task I love wearing my new ski mask.

Why should I learn a trade?

I just got my first rocket-propelled grenade!

Just one problem, but it’s old news, Lots of weapons, not enough Jews But don’t worry, Dad and Mother, I’ll be practicing my new skills on my brother.

To sing along with music, go to the YouTube video at http://tinyurl.com/28e7ns3 Happy Chanukah Everyone, SLR

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

November 2010

New Jewish High School in about five years.

What Is the Cost?

One of the first questions asked by parents at the parlor meeting was: Will tuition really be just $5,000? Ms. Gellman’s answer was “yes.”

“There may be some additional costs,” she admitted, “but they don’t add up to much.”

For example, parents will be expected to purchase their child a laptop computer with a video camera, good earphones, and a microphone. They will need to buy some school books, and, each year, there will be a $150 registration fee.

“During our start-up phase, there will be some small materials fee, but nothing large is going to jump out at you unexpectedly,” she said.

Normal Day Each student’s day will start with required davening, but students will be expected to attend shacharis services in

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any shul they choose.

“In this way, students can daven in an environment which is personally meaningful to them while, at the same time, helping to support the various minyanim, which can always use a few extra people,” said Ms. Gellman.

When they arrive at school, students will go to their computers to log into their own Portals, which make up PCLC’s technical nerve center. The Portal accounts will do everything from taking attendance to keeping track of assignments and each student’s individual progress.

Using the Portal Once students sign in, the Portal will help them navigate to the proper programs to begin each day’s lessons, keeping track of how much has been accomplished, how long the student spent on each assignment, and even the grade the

student earned.

Onsite teachers will be available, and students will be able to submit work to them (which will then be entered into the Portal), but for the most part students will use distance-teachers through the Portal, which will then keep a copy of the work for future portfolio needs.

Pre-recorded lectures in subjects such as English, history, and Jewish studies will be viewed through the Portal and records kept of each session.

“If a student or parent needs to contact a teacher or an administrator, they can do so through the Portal. And when the time comes that the student needs a transcript and/ or a portfolio for college admissions, all the information is there and can be easily extracted,” said Ms. Gellman.

Common Rooms If the Portal is the proposed brain of PCLC, then the school’s heart will be its common rooms.

“Imagine a cross between a library and a rec room,” suggested Ms. Gellman.

Drawing a mental picture for the parents at the parlor meeting, she envisioned students sitting in carrels, plugged into their headphones, working away at math, language, or other lessons. Some students might talk quietly to each other or to onsite teachers or, perhaps, with a microphone, to off-site tutors. Some students would be sitting at tables in groups, working on various assignments; others would be reading books, taking notes, or even listening to music.

The room will have a refrigerator for storing kosher lunches and a kosher microwave to reheat them. A teacher will be sitting at a table, doing his or her own work, but also there to answer questions and, if necessary, to

impose order—since the students are still teenagers.

Online Programs Ms. Gellman said that while there are many excellent online teaching programs, PCLC students will probably start by using Thinkwell programs for math and science and Rosetta Stone for languages. These self-paced programs allow students to move as quickly or as slowly as necessary.

Some students will probably take classes through the University of California’s open access program, which offers a range of science classes at many different levels from remedial to advanced. Other students may be more comfortable learning from the Teaching Company’s excellent selection of science classes.

According to Ms. Gellman, all science courses will be augmented by weekly comprehensive onsite labs and instructor office hours in which students can discuss all questions they might have.

English and History For English and history, the focus will be on great literature and major historical events. PCLS intends to stress writing, analysis, oral presentations, and, above all, reasoned argument.

Ms. Gellman explained that onsite faculty members will lead small discussion groups twice a week for each course, while also working with students on their writing assignments as well as their analytical, speaking, and presentation skills.

“These seminars will be lively and intellectually challenging. We believe they will inculcate in students an abiding appreciation for the life-changing power of great ideas, events, and literature,” she said.

Eventually, many of the courses will progress to the

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November 2010

New Jewish High School point that the seminars will be offered by outstanding scholars on video.

“The programs our students will use offer lessons that are compelling to watch and easy to understand,” said Ms. Gellman. At the parlor meeting, she encouraged parents to checkout the various websites and even try a sample lesson or two.

Coaches In addition to using computer programs and onsite teachers, the school intends to work with volunteers from the community who, in conjunction with the teachers, will serve as coaches for PCLC students.

“Each student will have a personal coaching team made up of people with expertise in the student’s interests, to help him or her and the family create a unique program.

This will allow the student to pursue his or her own particular interests, to give back to the community, and create a compelling story to tell,” said Ms. Gellman.

For example, she said, for a gifted math student, the school would form a coaching team that would include a math professor from Rutgers, Princeton, or another of the local colleges in addition to a regular PCLC faculty member.

Hi-Tech Communication Students will be able to

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communicate with their team, which, in addition to onsite teachers and coaches, might include some of the online teachers giving the courses, in a variety of ways, such as email, phone, or Skype. Ms. Gellman told parents at the parlor meeting that the technology will allow students to be in touch with teachers and tutors anytime they have questions, 18 hours a day.

“Because the computer programs are self-paced, this gifted math student might well complete the entire four-year high school math curriculum in only two years. Then his coaching team would help him find appropriate online math classes to really expand his math experience and knowledge. By his senior year, this student would probably be ready for university-level math classes, and we will make scheduling these situations a priority. The faculty member on his team would ensure that he is able to arrange his schedule so that he can get to the university and still be able to take his other regular high school classes as well,” said Ms. Gellman.

The same system, she said, would work equally well for a student who had a passion for poetry or Gemara.

“It would also work well— perhaps especially—for the student who hasn’t yet found

that one area of interest but would like to explore different options,” she said, adding that the system allows for, but does not require, a good deal of input from families.

“Parents can be as involved as they like in helping their child and his or her coaches design the optimal program,” she said.

Jewish Studies The new school’s Jewish studies program will combine traditional Beit Medrash learning, including small groups, chavrusas, and, where appropriate, supervised independent study, with online programs.

Most PCLC students will engage in a standard program of four courses each week, two devoted to Tanach and two to Talmud and related subjects.

Because so much of the program will be individualized and computerized, the issue of separate girls and boys classes may not even be raised. Ms. Gellman said the school is comfortable accommodating those families looking for separate classes, and, she said, that may well be what happens naturally in the smaller seminars.

Torah Lishma Rabbi Joshua Ross, who comes to PCLC after 18 years of experience teaching and interacting with Jewish stu-

dents on campus, will serve as head of the new school’s Jewish Studies program. The representative of the Orthodox Union’s Jewish Learning Initiative on Campus (JLIC) at Cornell and then at Princeton, he is now the associate director of JLIC at the OU in Manhattan. A native of Halifax, Nova Scotia, he studied philosophy at Dalhousie University and then received smicha from Yeshivat Hamivtar in Efrat, Israel.

“At PCLC, we believe in Jewish learning inspired by love and interest in the Torah.

I intend to create an environment in which all children can succeed and flourish, not just the geniuses,” he said, adding that advanced students’ needs will of course also be met.

He stressed that the emphasis will be on learning, not grades.

“Grades do not make kids love Torah learning,” he said.

“At PCLC, as long as the student is making an effort, he or she will do fine. We’re not interested in dull, forced memorization. We are interested in learning for the sake of learning, Torah lishma.”

Individualized Program While PCLC students’ work in Hebrew and Jewish studies will be monitored and assessed, they will not be graded.

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November 2010 Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice & Opinion”

New Jewish High School When they enter the school, they will be assessed for placement, to determine if they should be considered beginners, intermediate, advanced, or somewhere in between.

“Because the program is so individualized, a student may be ready for an advanced Chumash shiur while just starting to tackle Gemara,” said Rabbi Ross who will determine which topics each student will cover based on his or her ability, experience, and interest.

Jewish and Israeli history as well as Hebrew language and literature will be part of the school’s Jewish studies core curriculum.

“This is the core curriculum, but it

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is the first word, not the last,” said Ms. Gellman. “As in the general studies department, we will use a planning process to encourage interested students to pursue individualized programs of study.”

Standard Studies The secular program will consist of the usual secondary-school subjects,: English, history, science, math, languages, art and music, and phys ed and health.

“These core requirements correspond to the minimum standards in most states.

We expect that many of our students will go beyond these core requirements and will take many advanced-level, college-level,

and self-guided courses during their time at PCLC,” said Ms. Gellman.

This flexibility is apparent in the school’s approach to all courses. While PCLC will require daily physical education classes, and will offer separate boys and girls programs onsite, Ms. Gellman does not expect many of the students to depend on PCLC for their exercise. Students can substitute private workout programs, video exercises, or even gymnastics and ballet classes if they choose.

Noting that all public high school sports teams must be open to residents whether or not the students attend the school, she said some PCLC students may opt to try out for football, basketball, or swim teams.

Flexibility “PCLC is based on the premise that every student is unique and should have the opportunity to explore his or her own interests at his or her own pace and in the way that is most suitable to his or her learning style,” said Ms. Gellman.

As a result, the school will allow an enormous amount of choice and flexibility in its program.

“If a student wants to take an online math class instead of the one we suggest, great. If she wants to take a writing seminar with a local author, or take private music or composition classes with a university-based composer, terrific. If he wants to take some time off from school and snowboard with the US Olympic team, fabulous. In other words, whatever is best for each student is what we want to make possible,” she said.

While PCLC will do everything it can to keep prices low, Ms. Gellman stressed that families will have to be financially responsible for the additional costs of some of these opportunities.

Credentials Not surprisingly, some parents at the parlor meeting worried that, with all this flexibility, their children may not qualify for high school diplomas, and, even if they do, would colleges recognize the fledgling PCLC. Ms. Gellman explained that PCLC has already arranged for its students’ transcripts to be sent to schools of higher learning from a well-recognized local private school.

Upon completion of a four-year high school

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An Ambitious “Wallenberg” in White Plains Demonstrates the Power of One, the Capacity of Us All

Reviewed by Samuel Morrison he story of Raoul Wallenberg, the young Swedish diplomat who in a sixmonth period during the waning months of World War Two saved more than 100,000 Hungarian Jews from extermination has over the years been told in several books, television programs, movies, and the personal accounts of some of those he rescued. Until recently, however, no one had attempted to dramatize Wallenberg’s

T

School

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program, PCLC students will be eligible for diplomas from both that local private school as well as from PCLC itself.

Although grades will not be the focus of the Jewish studies program, transcripts will be kept so that PCLC students will be eligible to attend yeshivas and seminaries in Israel.

An Answer The reaction from parents at the parlor meeting was mixed. Some felt they were leaving with a great deal to think about; others were less sure. But several were ready to fill out applications on the spot.

One father, who has six school-age children, only some of whom are in day schools and yeshivas because of economic issues, said PCLC could be the answer to his prayers.

“It sounds like the opportunity of a lifetime and it costs only $5,000 per year,” he said.

Traveling PCLC’s next parlor meeting will be held on Monday, Nov. 22nd, at 7:30 pm, in a private home in Highland Park.

To make sure she has sufficient handouts—and applications—Ms. Gellman asked all interested parents to call her at 908-616-0321 or to email pclcnj@gmail. com. The school’s website can be accessed at www.pclcnj.com.

Ms. Gellman said she especially invites parents from areas that are somewhat distant from Highland Park.

“Our children often travel to Bergen, Essex, and Passaic Counties for regular day school high schools. Why shouldn’t parents from those areas look into PCLC? Did I mention the tuition will be only $5,000 per year?” she said. S.L.R.

heroism for the musical stage—a challenging task, to say the least.

That challenge has now been met magnificently by the debut of the musical drama “Wallenberg.” With book and lyrics by Laurence Holzman and Felicia Needleman, music by Benjamin Rosenbluth, and directed by Annette Jolles, “Wallenberg.” is currently in its world premiere at the White Plains Performing Arts Center.

It is not hyperbole to say that the show’s subtitle, “A New Musical Drama,”

is inaccurate. Were it not that the work’s vocal conventions are closer to the naturalism of American musicals, the piece could rightly have been deemed an opera. Mr. Rosenbluth’s score certainly has the gravity and lyricism appropriate to an operatic composition. It is the muscle and bone of the drama, and is integrated beautifully and seamlessly with its libretto.

Historically Correct Mr. Holzman and Ms. Needleman

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Wallenberg

November 2010

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have worked hard to balance the need for historical accuracy with the stringent requirements of their art-form.

In great measure, they have succeeded.

The book corresponds closely to historical fact, although some liberties have been taken in the name of dramatic interest. For example, Ferenc Szálasi, the head of the ArrowCross party (and later the government) of Hungary, is never mentioned; Baron Gábor Kemény, the Arrow-Cross Foreign Minister and the official with whom Wallenberg presumably dealt most frequently, represents the Arrow-Cross government. The story also implies an unconsummated romance between Wallenberg and Kemény’s wife, Elizabeth.

Miklos Horthy, Regent of Hungary and head of its government for two decades prior to Szálasi, is presented

as a sad and somewhat heroic figure, reluctantly acquiescing in the persecution of Jews; but it is worth remembering that as early as 1938, Horthy’s government exacerbated antisemitism in Hungary by establishing Nuremburg-style laws that curtailed Hungarian-Jewish civil rights and citizenship.

Remembering the Tragedy But minor historical quibbles should be set firmly aside.

“Wallenberg,” which never loses sight of the tragedy and enormity of the atrocities committed against Hungary’s Jews, proceeds briskly, never drags, and draws the audience ever deeper into its narrative.

Mr. Rosenbluth’s music magnificently knits together and carries forward the facts of Wallenberg’s story at a pace that makes one forget time. The overall urgency of most of the ensemble music is effectively relieved by alternating it with

solos and duets of sadness, bitterness, regret, or wistful sweetness. In particular, the “Letters” between Wallenberg (Scott Mikita) and his mother (Alice Evans) round out both characters and convey the depth of their love for each other.

The duets are paralleled in turn by two-person dialogue set pieces that effectively spotlight the stresses on the characters: Horthy (Michael Scott) being pressured by Adolf Eichmann (Joe Cassidy) and pushing back in turn; the frustrated and longing exchanges between Baroness Kemény (strong soprano Leah Horowitz) and Wallenberg; and the exasperation and love Wallenberg feels in trying to contain the feistiness and obstinacy of his heart-wrenchingly doomed driver Vilmos (Nick Verina) and the young boy David (Benjamin Milan-Polisar).

Pitch Perfect The entire Wallenberg cast deserves special praise for infusing the show with a fever pitch of passion. The ensemble is excellent, but the casting of the principal characters is truly inspired. Mr. Mikita does more than play Wallenberg; he is the man, utterly and completely.

He is wonderfully supported by fine performances from Ms. Evans, Ms. Horowitz, Mark Campbell (Baron Kemény), Lauren Lebowitz (as Rosa), and Messrs Cassidy,

Verina, and Milan-Polisar. Mr. Scott, Craig Waletzko (Wallenberg’s fellow diplomat Per Anger), and Darrel Blackburn (as Gen. Schmidthuber) are also first-rate.

As portrayed by Mr. Mikita, Wallenberg is a sort of diplomatic McGyver, who is at the top of his game when everyone else’s resources, imagination, and patience are at low ebb. He is never stronger than when he has to solve problems by improvising in a hurry from whatever materials are at hand: Yellow stationery, complete with legal mumbo jumbo and the seal of the Swedish legation, become “Schutz-passes” (official-looking but bogus safe-conduct documents that saved the lives of thousands of Hungarian Jews), and strong swimmers with knives rescue people tied together in threes and thrown into the Danube (with the middle person in each trio having been previously shot to death by the Fascists in order to save bullets).

The show serves as a reminder of what those charged with rescuing Jews had to face.

It must have taken every ounce of strength and moral courage Wallenberg had in order to deal with the heart-breaking mathematics of the Danube rescue missions and his failure to save everyone on the train transports. Though he is riven

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November 2010

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with anguish at the loss of all those he was unable to rescue, he never stops working to save whom he can. He never loses hope or heart.

A magnificent bluffer, Wallenberg fearlessly scrambles on top of transport trains with Nazi rifles pointed at him. He personally confronts Eichmann and Arrow Cross officials, all of whom are secretly plotting his murder. He engages with his enemies when it suits his purposes, bribing officials to secure the release of Jewish prisoners and blackmailing high-ranking Nazis into halting the extermination of Jews, by threatening the officers with adverse testimony at future war-crimes tribunals to be held by the advancing Allies.

Minimalist Design In drama and spectacle, “Wallenberg” uses ellipsis masterfully: less always does

more in nearly every aspect of the show. Brilliant but minimalist set and lighting design (by Lauren Helpern and Chris Dallos, respectively) work handin-glove with a few furniture props to suggest a broad variety of scene changes.

The sets do away with internal walls altogether, relying on windows, flywires, and a few furniture props to hint at interiors. Narrow flats, painted as sections of architectural stone wall, slide on an ingenious track system and allow an economy of motion in scene changes.

A single background silhouette, unchanged throughout the performance, serves for both urban and rural landscapes.

Behind the silhouette, a loosely stretched backlit scrim creates a variety of atmospheric cloud effects as colored lights and a fan play across it.

Raoul Wallenberg (Scott Mikita) faces off with Adolf Eichmann (Joe Cassidy) in “Wallenberg” Reminders “Wallenberg” is a drama of reminders, that hope and connection are essential, that there are allies (as well as enemies) in the world, and that behind the numbers, there were individuals, someone’s wife, someone’s son, someone’s mother.

In the midst of hatred, ignorance, misunderstanding, and absolute evil, hope and love also abide, awaiting a chance to flourish openly.

“Wallenberg” reminds us that we are of the world, not out of it; once we have dared to extend our reach and connect with it, we can no longer cut it off or isolate ourselves from it.

“Wallenberg” reminds us of our obligation to engage with both friends and enemies—and those in between, teetering on the fulcrum, who by dint of our efforts or lack of them, might

be swayed either way, toward love or hate.

On DVD The message of “Wallenberg” is summed up in its final, deeply moving number, “A Million Tomorrows”: each of us, by our choices and actions, can make an enormous positive difference in the world. If for no other reason, this is why “Wallenberg” should be heard and seen as soon as possible by everyone, especially the young.

In the interest of “Wallenberg” reaching larger audiences, it is to be hoped that the show’s producers can find a way to create a version of it on DVD and market it to schools, television, and the general public.

Wallenberg will be at the White Plains Performing Arts Center until November 21st, 2010. For tickets and information, please call 877-548-3237, or visit www.wppac.com. Y

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What Love Can Do: EMUNAH Dinner Celebrates the Lives of the Children They Support

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otzei Shabbat, Nov 20, at the EMUNAH Save a Life Dinner, being held at the Brooklyn Marriott, two sisters will tell supporters how the organization saved them.

For Leah and Mali, childhood had been a time of turmoil, disappointment, chaos, and often much worse. Things became intolerable for the family ten years ago, when their father was sent to prison and their mother found herself too ill to care for her young daughters. Israel’s Social Services brought them to the EMUNAH Bet Elazraki Children’s Home in Netanya, where they were given the chance to experience life filled with stability, security, and, most importantly, love.

At Bet Elazraki, the two girls thrived. They made friends, excelled in school, and felt part of a family.

Illness Just as they were discover-

ing the joys of love and nurturing support for the first time in their young lives, Leah fell gravely ill. Her EMUNAH parents, Yehuda and Rikki Kohn, the directors of Bet Elazraki, made finding a cure for Leah their uppermost priority. They embarked on a worldwide search for the best possible treatment, and, with G-d’s help, their efforts were successful.

Now a strikingly beautiful and intelligent 18-year-old, Leah says she is coming to New York to attend the EMUNAH dinner because she wants to share her amazing and miraculous journey with supporters of the organization that made her life possible.

Accompanied by her sister, Mali, and Mr. and Mrs. Kohn, Leah will tell her story with a dramatic multi-media presentation. She will also pay tribute to the evening’s honorees whose

staunch support made her life and the lives of her many friends at Bet Elazraki possible.

Honorees The evening’s dinner chairmen are Fran Hirmes and Shaynee Kessler.

At the dinner, EMUNAH National President Mindy Stein will present awards to Hila and Naphtaly Abenaim and Dr. Elliot and Rena Steigman and family of Teaneck, Tali Goldberg and Elianna Sable of Manhattan, Carol and Harold Finkel of Jamaica Estates, Inna and Dr. Jeremy Koppel of North Woodmere, Karen and Robert Spitalnick of Great Neck, and Adie Ehrlich of Brooklyn.

“EMUNAH has been rescuing children like Leah and Mali from crisis situations in Israel since before the birth of the state. EMUNAH is their lifeline, giving them hope and a chance to overcome their many challenges and difficult pasts,” said Ms. Stein.

Title VI Victory grams to educate students about the history and dangers of antisemitism must be taken.

Ending the Silence In addition, OCR now recommends that schools publicly label specific incidents as antisemitic. According to Mr. Klein, this is “critical.”

“We know firsthand from

Services Services EMUNAH offers its young charges include counseling, occupational and/or physical therapy, tutoring, and many other specialized therapies.

“EMUNAH is committed to meeting the needs of each child in its care—including finding the best possible medical care when the need arises,” said Ms. Stein.

Reservations to join Leah and Mali at the EMUNAH dinner can be made online at rsvp@emunah.org, or by visiting the organization’s website, www.emunah.org, or calling 212-564-9045 ext 305.

“We hope as many people come out as possible to show support to Leah and Mali as well as our wonderful honorees. There is nothing more rewarding that seeing the fruits of our work and the future that Leah and Mali now have thanks to the love and devotion of EMUNAH’s supporters,” she said. Y

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students that a school’s failure to publicly identify and condemn an incident as antisemitic is almost as hurtful as the incident itself,” said Mr. Klein.

Silence, he said, sends the message to the school community that antisemitism is acceptable and tolerable when,

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Touro Graduates Master Judaic Studies Teachers in Jerusalem, Inspires Undergraduates to Integrate Torah Values, and Will Hold Open Houses for Students Seeking the MSW Degree

he approach of the Israeli Supreme Court regarding Jewish law is unacceptable, according to an eminent law professor and former attorney general of Israel.

“The Court’s interpretation of ethical issues is, in the main, antithetical to the interpretation Jewish law offers. For example, the question of the land of Israel.

As a value, the notion of ‘the Land of Israel’ does not exist for Israel’s Supreme Court,” said Prof Nahum Rakover.

An Israel Prize laureate, Dr. Rakover made his remarks in Jerusalem as part of his keynote address to graduates of the

master’s program in Judaic Studies at the Machon Lander Institute, an affiliate of the Touro Graduate School of Jewish Studies in New York.

Dr. Rakover’s address was entitled “The Ethics of Jewish Law and the Ethics of the Supreme Court.”

Fitting Subject It was a fitting subject for the 75 men and women who were graduating from the Lander program. Most of them are Israeli educators who sought to study at Lander because it places Judaic Studies in a framework that respects the mesorah of Jewish learning and practice.

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Most of the school’s students are from the Greater Jerusalem area, but a full 38 percent come from throughout the country, from as far as Tzfat in the north and Netivot and Yeroham in the south.

Thirty percent of the students reside in Judea and Samaria.

Established in 1986, the school currently enrolls 1200 students who combine their studies with family and professional obligations.

Jewish Perspective The graduation ceremony opened with an address by the chairman of the Knesset Education Committee, Jewish Home MK Zevulun Orlev, a former leader of the nowdefunct National Religious Party.

He pointed out that the expanded access to higher education that has made the Lander Institute possible “has proven itself, most significantly, in the increased number of graduates of the School of Judaic Studies.”

In separate remarks, IDF Gen (Res) Yaakov Amidror, vice-president of Machon Lander and former head of assessment for Israeli military intelligence, emphasized the unique character of the institute’s School of Judaic Studies. “In contrast with other Judaic studies programs, at Machon Lander, we learn Judaic Studies from a Jewish perspective,” he said.

Making Reality Like Messrs Amidror and Orlev, Dr. Rakover credited the accomplishments of Machon Lander to its namesake, Touro’s founding president, Rabbi Dr. Bernard Lander, z”l, who died last February at the age of 95.

“Rabbi Dr. Lander was able to turn dreams into reality,” said Dr. Rakover of his long-term friend.

Rabbi Noah Greenfield, director of the Division of Teacher Training in the Israeli Ministry of Education took particular note of the high percentage of teachers among the graduates.

“Machon Lander has enabled teachers to pursue academic degrees and, thus, to grow and develop professionally. This is not only a degree in Judaic Studies. The degree incorporates the study of education as well,” he said.

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LCW Dean Dr. Marian Stoltz-Loike, left, and Dr. Alan Kadish, center, welcomed Rabbi Steven Weil, right Network of Schools Among the degree recipients, 76 percent were women, but men represented the record for age diversity. The youngest graduate, 25, and oldest, 65, were men.

In addition to its affiliation with the Touro College Graduate School of Jewish Studies in New York, Machon Lander in Jerusalem is an independent Israeli academic institution, accredited by Israel’s Council of Higher Education. It is one of several Touro College branch campuses, locations, and instructional sites throughout the world.

Established in 1971 primarily to enrich the Jewish heritage and serve the larger American community, Touro is a system of Jewish-sponsored institutions of higher and professional education. More than 18,000 students are currently enrolled in its various schools and divisions.

Ethics and Integrity Last month, at one of those divisions, Touro’s Lander College for Women (LCW) in Manhattan, Rabbi Steven Weil, executive vice-president of the Orthodox Union, presented a lecture to the school’s student body and faculty entitled “Torah Ethics and Communal Integrity.”

Introducing Rabbi Weil, Dr. Alan Kadish, Touro’s president and CEO, explained that the college has maintained a long-standing close relationship with the Orthodox Union and the National Conference of Synagogue Youth (NCSY).

Rabbi Weil was the inaugural speaker of this year’s Distinguished Speakers Series, hosted by the honors program at LCW. “Students need to hear about integrating a Torah perspective into everything they do,” said Dr. Marian Stoltz-Loike, LCW’s dean.

School of Social Work This is true also at Touro’s Graduate School of Social Work, where the founding dean, Dr. Steven Huberman, has invited

Kislev 5771 potential students to attend upcoming open houses.

“Social work is one of the fastestgrowing professions with enormous job potential,” said Dr. Huberman, adding that there are still a few openings in the new semester beginning in Jan 2011. Classes are held in the school’s new Manhattan Graduate Center and state-of-the-art Brooklyn Graduate School.

Touro’s recent Masters of Social Work graduates have secured outstanding positions, he said.

Recession-Proof Touro has an extensive financial-aid program for graduates pursuing their MSW degrees. The school’s program leads to

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licensure, the LMSW and LCSW. The program includes work-study options, 1200 supervised field-work hours, and specialized internships in agencies in the tristate area. Supervised internships are available in more than 55 agencies in NY and NJ in all major human-services fields.

The school’s open houses will be held on Thurs., Nov 11, and Thurs., Dec 2, at 6pm, at 43 West 23rd Street in Manhattan.

For more information, Dr. Huberman can be reached at 212-463-0400 ext 5278 or by email at steven.huberman@ touro.edu. The website can be accessed at www.touro.edu/msw .

“Social work is virtually recessionproof,” said Dr. Huberman.

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Warm Up the Winter with a Kosherica Cruise or Pesach Program

By Yochanan Gordon hile most of us cannot get away for the entire winter season (like birds do), for the week or so that we can, Kosherica is going to the Caribbean. For those already thinking about Pesach, Kosherica has announced a “Passover at Its Best” sale.

Kosherica’s leading 2011 Passover program will take place at the triple-A, four-diamond luxury Palm Beach PGA Resort. To celebrate the hotel’s $65 million renovation, Kosherica is offering a 15 percent reduction to customers who book before November 30.

“We are honored to have wonderful guests, and it is our goal to provide each of them with excellence,” said Kosherica owner and CEO Yehuda Shifman.

The Kosherica family has been committed to excellence, setting new standards in both cruise and on-land getaways for over a decade and a half.

Anyone who has traveled with Kosherica may be hard pressed to pinpoint exactly what they enjoyed most in the overall experience, but the constant attention to details and consideration to the ideas and suggestions of their clientele continue to bolster and solidify their stellar reputation.

Five Cruises In order to accommodate the Jewish community’s dispa-

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rate schedules, the vacation experts at Kosherica have designed five Caribbean cruises, four of which leave on different dates, beginning with Dec 26 (which is nearly sold out), then on Jan 16 and two on the 23rd (one on Norwegian and one with Celebrity Solstice), and finally an all-new cruise on Feb 25, 2011.

Offy Shifman, one of the founders of the Kosherica Company, said that Kosherica creates each cruise vacation with customers in mind. While most people would be satisfied with the basic amenities found aboard any of the worldclass cruise liners, there are some who join specifically to partake in the intellectually stimulating lectures, symposiums, and workshops, or to enjoy a series of shiurim from world-renowned lecturers and educators in a relaxed environment. This is why Kosherica goes to great lengths to invite new and exciting personalities on every getaway.

For example, Mrs. Shifman is excited to report that Harvard law professor and high-profile attorney Alan Dershowitz will join the Jan 16 cruise to the Caribbean. A jurist, political commentator, and Mid East analyst, Mr. Dershowitz is sure to shed some keen commentary, profound insights, and most importantly, truth, behind this dizzying dispute.

Joining Mr. Dershowitz as a scholar-in-residence will be Washington, DC-based Rabbi Levi Shemtov, who has acted as a sort of liaison to government, carrying Jewish awareness to the White House. He is responsible for the famous annual Chanukah menorahlighting on Capitol Hill.

In addition, the January 16 cruise will be Kosherica’s renowned “Jewish Music Festival at Sea,” featuring some of the Jewish world’s most exciting entertainers, including Avraham Fried, Dudu Fisher, Lipa Schmeltzer, Cantors Chaim Adler, Ben Zion Miller, Naftali and Netanel Hershtik, Yaakov Motzen, Yaakov Stark, and others. Amateur singers looking to make inroads into the industry can participate in the next “Kosherica Idol” competition and be heard by the most talented vocalists and musicians of our time.

Children’s Programs Coinciding with the yeshiva midwinter break, Kosherica’s Eastern Caribbean seven-night cruise embarks on Jan 23, 2011. The entertainment for this cruise features Cantors Yitzchak Meir Helfgot and Shlomo Simcha along with world-renowned cantorial accompanist Daniel Gildar.

For a limited time, this yeshiva-break cruise has a starting rate of $1,299 and no charge for third and fourth

child cruisers. Bring the children because the Norwegian Cruiseline’s Kid’s Crew has a program of activities to keep the little ones occupied. With places to go and kids to meet, it will be like recess, only longer and sleep-away camp, only better.

Children won’t get homesick or be underfoot. Parents can enjoy a massage while the kids are on a treasure hunt; play roulette while they’re camping out; or head for the chocoholic buffet while they’re having a pillow fight at a pajama party.

The Kid’s Crew program is carefully supervised by a staff of youth counselors from leading universities and organizations. Prior to coming aboard, they attend a special training course on team and confidence building, communication skills, safety, and working with special-needs children. The result is an impressive bag of tricks for your kids, including circuses, crafts, parades, sports, games, stories, parties, as well as campouts with flashlights and tents. There will be t-shirt and face painting, treasure hunts, and sand castle competitions on their private island.

Families that want time together will have that, too, for shooting hoops at the basketball court, enjoying a magic show, or playing table tennis.

Everyone can enjoy bowling at the three-lane alley at sea.

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Kosherica Cruises Other options include a pickup game on the sports deck, Wii™ on a two-story screen, or a video game in the arcade room. Families can scale the huge rock-climbing wall or play a game of darts, pool, or foosball. With this much for the entire family, children will beg for another hour before bed.

Once on-shore, there will be excursions designed just for families.

Renowned Speakers Also leaving on Jan 23 will be a cruise featuring scholarin-residence Rabbi Eliezer Shusterman of Share Torah Congregation of Pittsburgh, PA. A dynamic speaker to Jews of all ages and backgrounds, Rabbi Shusterman will address topics from tefillah to Jewish mysticism as well as Judaism for beginners.

This year, Kosherica has decided to extend its winter cruise season, adding another

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cruise on Feb 25 to the Eastern Caribbean region on the Holland America Cruise Line.

Like the other cruises, this one is for seven nights and will make ports of call in some of the most exciting destinations in the world, such as Turks and Caicos, Puerto Rico, St. Maarten, Antilles, and the Bahamas.

World-Class Pesach Those who take advantage of Kosherica’s Passover program will enjoy a five-star vacation experience with gourmet meals

by Prestige Caterers. The entire Palm Beach PGA Resort will be kosher for Passover under the supervision of the ORB. The hotel’s rooms and suites are paired with a world-class 40,000-square-foot spa. In addition, there is a 33,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art fitness center; a five-tournament, award-winning golf course; and 19 Har Tru tennis, basketball, handball,

and racquet courts.

“The lush zero-entry swimming pool and separate children’s pool are just icing on the kosher-for-Passover cake,” said Mr. Shifman.

Programming Kosherica’s programming director, Helit Edelstein, said the effort that goes into children’s programming makes it “enriching while giving it a feel of a Jewish Disneyland.”

Adult programming, too, is taken seriously at Kosherica, she said. “We hire engaging scholars, incredible performers, and an inviting staff. Our focus is to give our guests a five-star experience filled with the most enriching Pesach program around.”

Mr. Shifman agreed. “It is Kosherica’s daily mission to provide its customers with a vacation experience of a lifetime. Our new 5-star Passover program is the perfect example

of Kosherica’s long-established tradition of combining the best in luxurious kosher travel with unparalleled food and customer service,” he said.

With a brutally cold winter lying just ahead, children and adults deserve to get away and there is no more fitting getaway than a Kosherica midwinter cruise and/or its Passover program. To reserve space, call 877 Sail Kosher, 877-724-5567, or 305-695-2700. The email address is information@kosherica.com, or visit www. kosherica.com.

“The world is at your fingertips with Kosherica luxury cruises and Passover travel. If you have cruised before and think you know what to expect, Kosherica’s many new added features will catch you off guard.

If this is your first cruise with Kosherica, be prepared for it to be the first of many,” said Mr. Shifman.

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Nefesh B’Nefesh Focuses on Careers for Potential North American Olim

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hroughout North America last month, hundreds of Jews flocked to hotels and offices to attend career fairs conducted by Nefesh B’Nefesh and the Jewish Agency. In Toronto, New York, Baltimore, and Miami, they came to learn more about their career options if they choose to make aliyah.

Nefesh B’Nefesh conducts these Aliyah Fairs on a regular basis, but now the focus is on careers, one of the most significant issues for potential olim.

“There are two important things when moving to Israel,” said Ari Schuchman, associate director of Nefesh B’Nefesh’s Overseas Programs. “One is communities and the other one is finding a job.”

Networking According to Mr. Schuchman, Nefesh B’Nefesh not only helps olim learn about the differences between jobs in Israel versus those in North

America, but also teaches them how to network.

“A lot of Israeli employers don’t want to hire unless you’re physically there,” said Mr. Schuchman, adding that while some people come to Israel after having secured a job beforehand, others need six to nine months to find work after they have arrived.

Nefesh B’Nefesh encourages all potential olim to travel to Israel on a pilot trip a number of months before making aliyah so that they can go on “informational interviews.”

Potential Employers These “informational interviews” connect potential olim with “employment buddies” who then pass on their CVs to potential employers in Israel.

Once the aliyah process is complete, the olim can then interview with the same people with whom they met on the pilot trip in hopes of advancing

their careers in Israel.

Often the potential employers are themselves former olim who have gone through the experience of finding a job in Israel. Other potential employers are with companies in regular contact with Nefesh B’Nefesh. Sometimes potential employers contact Nefesh B’Nefesh directly because they are impressed with the publicity the organization’s chartered flights receive.

Municipal Assistance Participants at the recent Toronto fair were offered sessions on a wide variety of topics, ranging from job-search strategies in Israel to information on specific fields such as law, education, and hi-tech industries. Also on hand were financial planners, taxation experts, and even representatives from shipping companies and Israel’s health maintenance organizations.

Israeli cities such as Haifa and Jerusalem were also represented at the fair. According to Mr. Schuchman, Israeli cities now allot budgets for the purpose of reaching out to potential olim. Haifa and Jerusalem regularly send senior representatives to Nefesh B’Nefesh events with the goal of marketing their cities to potential future citizens.

In fact, said Smadar Stoller Porat, the Haifa municipality’s project manager for olim from English-speaking countries, her city offers newly arriving olim assistance in almost everything they first need, including finding temporary housing in the heart of the city, enrolling children in schools, and help in finding employment.

Youthful Social Networking A unique session at the Toronto fair was entitled “Social Networking in Israel”

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for singles and young professionals. According to Nefesh B’Nefesh, 25 percent of olim from English-speaking countries are younger than their predecessors were, and the number of young people making aliyah is growing.

“They need something different. They need careers, but they also need the social aspect of things,” said Mr. Schuchman.

The session was led by Tel Aviv resident David Matlin, a regional co-coordinator with Nefesh B’Nefesh. “He’s their age and they can identify with him. That’s what we’re all about, actually being able to forge a relationship,” said Mr. Schuchman.

Growing Numbers Since 2002, Nefesh B’Nefesh has helped 25,000 individuals from North America and the UK make aliyah. Thousands of others have moved to Israel on their own. According to Mr. Schuchman, the estimated number of olim in 2010 is 5,000, up from 4,500 in 2009.

“As more North American and British olim make successful lives for themselves in Israel, we are noticing it is having a snowball effect on their friends, family, and peers back home,” said Tony Gelbart,

co-founder of Nefesh B’Nefesh.

On one of more than a dozen Nefesh B’Nefesh flights last summer, the youngest new resident was five months old; the oldest, Zelda Weiner, was 95. Of the 232 new immigrants (and four dogs) on that flight, 60 were single adults and 27 men and women said they would be volunteering to serve in the IDF. They came from 21 states.

“Amazing” “The first time you sing ‘Hatikva,’ not as a visitor or because you’re going to a school in America, but finally as my national anthem in my country, it’s amazing,” said Yossi Gove, a popular plumber formerly of Passaic.

He said that when he landed last July, he blessed his children to grow, succeed, and multiply. “Where can you do that more than here?” he said.

Elana Frankel, a recently graduate of the University of Maryland, said she had wanted to make aliyah since she was 15. Asked by her parents to wait until she graduated from college, she nevertheless maintained her enthusiasm. For seven years, she said, her phone message asked caller to “leave a message at the beep, call me back, make aliyah.”

30 Years to Get There It took another passenger on that flight 30 years to fulfill her dream of aliyah. Varda (Wendy) Derovan said that it is “really hard” to be part of the conversation about maintaining a Jewish country if one remains in the US. “After 120 years, when you go before Hashem and you have to answer ‘Why didn’t I go?’ I don’t what we’re going to say. Very few people have a good answer,” she said.

Like many others who encourage aliyah, Ms. Derovan said an influx of 100,000 American Jews would drastically change Israel’s political situation for the better.

From Western Europe The Nefesh B’Nefesh olim were joined this year by thousands of others from France, Britain, South Africa, and various countries in South America. At the end of July, 1,000 such olim came in one week on 23 flights.

Upon arriving in Israel, these new citizens received many initial absorption services—from opening bank accounts to signing up for health insurance—at a miniexpo organized by the Jewish Agency. They

http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com also received their new Israeli ID cards at a ceremony held at the Western Wall.

Among the Jews making aliyah this year was French businessman Baron Edouard de Rothschild, 53, who took up residence in his Tel Aviv home while maintaining his businesses in France.

Happiness By throwing in their lot with the Jews of Israel, these new olim may have included themselves among the world’s happiest people. According to researchers at the Gallup World Poll, who surveyed thousands of respondents in 155 countries between 2005 and 2009, 62 percent of Israelis consider themselves to be “thriving,” making Israelis the 8th happiest people in the world. They tied with Canada, Australia, and Switzerland, and were bested by Denmark (82 percent), Finland (75 percent), Norway (6 percent), Sweden and Netherlands (68 percent each), and Costa Rica and New Zealand (63 percent each).

The US came in at number 14 with 57 percent of its citizens who said they were “thriving.” The United Kingdom ranked 17th with 54 percent who said they were “thriving.”

The poll was based on a number of questions asking people if, in their daily experiences, they felt well rested, respected, free of pain, and intellectually engaged.

Despite Finland’s high ranking, the country has one of the highest suicide rates in the world, and Denmark’s alcohol consumption is among the ten highest in the world. Israel, on the other hand, has one of the world’s lowest suicide rates as well as a high fertility rate, which, some say, is an indication that Israelis are “happy.”

Many Options Nefesh B’Nefesh offers four flight options for people making aliyah: aliyah charter flights which operate during the summer out of New York; group aliyah flights in which olim fly together on a regularly scheduled El Al flight; individual flights; and a USAir flight if there is no El Al flight in the area.

“Your aliyah flight is free as a gift from the State of Israel,” explained Mr. Schuchman.

In the next few months, Nefesh B’Nefesh will be hosting aliyah events in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, and Northern New Jersey.

Kislev 5771 For more information about Nefesh B’Nefesh or to open an aliyah file, visit the Nefesh B’Nefesh website at www. nbn.org.il.

“At a time when Israel is dealing with de-legitimization around the world, it is important to see that our brothers and sisters throughout the Jewish world not only support us, but even choose to join us and make aliyah to Israel,” said Natan Sharansky, the head of the Jewish Agency.

He said the series of flights with new immigrants especially from North America and the UK “expresses, to my joy, the fruitful partnership that exists between the Jewish Agency for Israel and Nefesh B’Nefesh.”

S.L.R.

The Jewish Voice and Opinion

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The Jewsh Voice and Opinion joins the greater Teaneck community in mourning the loss of Officer John Abraham, who died last month just hours after, true-to-form, he saved a Jewish choking victim in one of Teaneck’s kosher restaurants. Officer Abraham served our community for many years with devotion and commitment. He leaves behind his wife and child, Jake, who is in a special autistic program.

Donations can be made to the Jake Abraham Fund and sent to: Teaneck PBA, PO Box 12, Teaneck, NJ 07666

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

November 2010

Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice & Opinion”

Toffler Watch: Teaneck Councilwoman Suggests Votes by Her Colleagues Who Were Supported by Orthodox Jews Should Not Carry Equal Weight

A

ccording to a number of Teaneck residents, Teaneck Town Councilwoman Barbara Toffler, a self-proclaimed “ethicist” who sees no ethical issues in reading private emails in public as long they can be misconstrued to further her anti-Orthodox agenda, has been at it again.

A few weeks ago, when her side was outvoted on a controversial issue, her response was to instruct residents “to get out and vote” because, she said, the members who voted in favor of the measure were “elected by six districts” while “the three of us who voted ‘no’ won by 15.”

Her conclusion was that this vote was “not representing the town of Teaneck.”

In a letter, Teaneck resident Keith Kaplan understood well her implication. She meant, he said “that those council members

were elected by only the districts with large numbers of observant Jews and, somehow, those votes mean less than the votes of citizens in other districts.”

Public Safety The debate that caused the uproar was whether Teaneck should create a department of public safety and abolish the police and fire departments and their respective chiefs’ positions.

Dr. Toffler, who opposed the public safety director position, set herself up against members of the Orthodox community on the town council who favored the change because, they said, it would save the town approximately $220,000 in salaries and benefits.

Eventually, the Teaneck Town Council voted for the change, which would have put the day-to-day operations of the fire and police departments in the hands of deputy chiefs. The plan was for current

Teaneck Police Chief Robert Wilson to resign and assume the duties of deputy manager of the township until May 2011, when he would assume the position of director of the new department. The waiting time was necessary because NJ prohibits a former police chief from supervising police personnel for six months after his retirement. Teaneck’s town manager William Broughton was scheduled to serve as acting public safety director until Mr. Wilson was eligible to fill the position in May. At the end of October, the Teaneck PBA filed a lawsuit alleging that implementation of the new ordinance would violate state law. The PBA maintains that state pension rules require that a local government officer (which Mr. Wilson would become) wait one year prior to seeking other employment with the same municipality. PBA president Gerard

Rosano said Mr. Wilson’s appointment would violate Teaneck’s ethical code.

In response to the lawsuit, Teaneck has received permission to stay the implementation of the new ordinance and Mr. Wilson will continue to serve as police chief.

Beyond the Pale In her arguments against the appointment of a public safety director, Dr. Toffler, the ethicist, seemed to imply that the murder of Teaneck activist Joan Davis, who died last summer in a fire authorities have concluded was deliberately set, and the lack of an arrest in the case, was somehow the fault of Mr. Wilson and the people in Teaneck who support him.

The investigation into Ms. Davis’s murder is being conducted by the Bergen County prosecutor’s office.

Dr. Toffler’s public pronouncement of this position

http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com led members of the community to call her comments “beyond the pale.”

“To drag the horrific death of Joan Davis into this discussion as if the Teaneck Police Department or any resident has anything to do with that investigation is appalling. It was revolting enough when I heard it the first time—by Toffler’s husband, Charles Powers, at the Good and Welfare portion of a town council meeting, but to hear Toffler use her death to bolster a political argument is truly saddening,” said a Teaneck resident.

Another resident called Dr. Toffler “a disgusting person who has stooped to new lows in this response.”

“What are you doing to find Joan Davis’s killer?” the resident asked Dr. Toffler.

Family Ties When another member of the community, in an email, noted that other towns have public safety departments that seem to work and suggest-

ed that Teaneck could be “a leader in the field of hiring a public safety director, similar to Teaneck being a leader in the nation on integrating schools,” Dr. Toffler used that as the impetus to launch into a defense of her family, whom she has credited with joining “an amazing group of bright, educated, successful people who worked together to fight antisemitism and racism.”

She instructed the proPublic Safety Department Teaneck resident to read about those years and then “bow your head in shame.”

Mr. Kaplan, however, was not buying it. “Though Toffler prides herself on her parents’ role in integration, she seems intent on creating divisiveness,” he said.

Irresponsible He pointed out that the issue that was being discussed at the meeting during which she tried to make some districts seem more important than others “had nothing to

Kislev 5771

The Jewish Voice and Opinion

do with religious affiliation, what part of town you live in, or whether you voted for a particular council member.”

“It is irresponsible, disrespectful, and plain prejudiced of Toffler to undermine her colleagues by demeaning the votes cast for them,” he said.

In fact, all candidates for the seven-seat Teaneck Town Council are elected by residents irrespective of the district in which they reside. In Teaneck, none of the council members represent any particular district; all are considered “at-large representatives” and each has an equal vote on the council.

“Toffler apparently disdains those council members who received votes from a majority of observant Jews, which speaks volumes to her previously voiced deep-seated sentiments,” said Mr. Kaplan.

Just Like Monsey Dr. Toffler’s anti-Orthodox attitude was disseminated on the pages of the New York Times in 2007, when she told a reporter,

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“People worry that there’s a group that wants this [Teaneck] to become an Orthodox community like some of the ones in Rockland County. This has always been an incredibly diverse community, and from my perspective, I don’t want it to become any one thing.”

Several months later, in an apparent attempt to sooth ruffled feathers in the community she had offended before she attempted to be appointed to public office, Dr. Toffler sent an email to Yitz Stern, a well-respected member of the Orthodox community who has served off and on the Teaneck Town Council for many years. Last May, in fact, Mr. Stern was once again elected to the council, although, when Dr. Toffler wrote to him, he was not serving.

In her email to Mr. Stern, Dr. Toffler asked for his suggestions as to what she could do to make amends. He suggested that she begin by apologizing and then viewing, with an open

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

November 2010

Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice & Opinion”

Remembering Martin S. Kraar, z”l

M

artin S. Kraar, who, for more than four decades, was one of the most prominent leaders of the Jewish community, died on Nov 1. He was 69 and had recently completed ten years as executive vicepresident of the American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science.

Before that, he served ten years as executive vice-president of the Council of Jewish Federations, and was the first director-general of the Israel office of the Council of Jewish Federations.

As president of the Israel Center for Excellence through Education, he helped guide an innovative educational organization that provides programs and services for highly motivated students in Israel.

A frequent lecturer and facilitator for organizations in the Jewish and secular communities, he addressed such

School and Camp Open Houses Wed., Nov 10

Early Childhood Information Center, for parents of 2, 3, and 4-year-olds, Wendy Pollock, YMHA, Riverdale, 7pm, 718548-8200 ext 220 Moshe Aaron Yeshiva High School, girls division, South River, 7:30pm, 732-613-7460

Thurs., Nov 11

Camp “K” at Kutshers, Bobby Kaplan, private home in Englewood, 8pm, 201-408-5221 or 201-314-4152

Sun., Nov 14

issues as board/staff relations, leadership development, and non-profit management. He was considered an expert in Israel-Diaspora Affairs and frequently spoke on “MiddleEast Realities.”

A resident of Teaneck, Mr. Kraar is survived by his wife, Lynda, née Szedlecki, and their four children, Miriam Borden of New York, Yona McGraw of Teaneck, Shanna Kraar of Belleville, and Anita Kraar of Michigan.

Funeral arrangements were conducted by Eden Memorial Chapels of Fort Lee. Y

Kushner Yeshiva High School, 8th graders and parents, Livingston, 9:30am, 973-597-1115 Bat Torah the Alisa M Flatow Yeshiva High School, 8th grade girls and parents, Paramus, 9:30am, 201-843-8103 Yeshivas Ohr Yosef Torah High School, 8th grade boys and their parents, New Milford, noon, 201-977-2990 or 212-7262390 Ma’ayanot Yeshiva High School for Girls, 8th graders and parents, Teaneck, 1:30pm, 201-833-4307 ext 255 Camp “K” at Kutshers, Bobby Kaplan, private home in Teaneck, 7:30pm, 201-692-8858 or 201-314-4152

Mon., Nov 15

Lubavitch on the Palisades Kindergarten and First Grade, for parents of children ages 2-6, Tenafly, 8pm, 201-8711152 ext 505

Tues., Nov 16

Camp “K” at Kutshers, Bobby Kaplan, private home in Suffern, 8pm, 845-362-3832 or 201-314-4152

Mon., Nov 22

Pre-Collegiate Learning Center of NJ Parlor Meeting, for Jewish day school high school beginning Sept 2011 with a tuition cap of $5,000 annually per student, private home in Highland Park, 7:30pm, 908-616-0312

Mon., Dec 6

Last Day for Gan Miriam Early Learning Center Registration Discount, for children ages 2-4, Riverdale Jewish Center, 718-543-2553 Y

Toffler Watch mind, some of the issues that are important to the Orthodox community, such as considering variances when synagogues seek to expand.

Outrageous Evidently outraged by his recommendation, Dr. Toffler proceeded to take Mr. Stern’s thoughtful, well-reasoned email to a town council meeting, where she read it aloud as if Mr. Stern had written it as an unsolicited demand.

Dr. Toffler now says that when she gave her quote to the New York Times back in 2007, she was referring not to Mon-

continued from page 29 sey, as everyone believed, but, rather, to the Chassidic Satmarrun village of Kiryas Joel.

Her explanation has fooled no one. As another Teaneck resident said, “First, Kiryas Joel is in Orange County, not Rockland, and, second, it really doesn’t matter. Her implication is that because Orthodox Jews are moving into Teaneck, they’re trying to take over, and that is outrageous. It would never be tolerated if she had spoken that way about any other community, and her anti-Orthodox bigotry should not be tolerated either.”

S.L.R.

http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com Thurs., Nov 11

Holiday Boutiques

Suzanne Breast Cancer Pre-Chanukah Boutique, Veronica Brett Trunk Show, on behalf of Sharsheret, featuring luxury swimwear for breast cancer survivors and those who have had risk-reducing mastectomies, private location in Englewood, 6:30-9:30pm, 201-364-1994

Motzei Shabbat, Nov 13

Bead for Life Sale: Bracelets, Necklaces, and Earrings, Riverdale YMHA, 8-10pm, also Sun., Nov 14, 1-6pm; Sun, Nov 14, 1-6pm; Thurs., Nov 18, 8:30-9:30am and 7-8pm; Motzei Shabbat, Nov 20, 8-10pm; Sun., Nov 21, 1-6pm; and Mon, Nov 22, 8:30-9:30pm Pre-Chanukah Boutique, spons by Cong Adas Israel, at the Jewish Educational Center, Elizabeth, 8-11pm, bexla1@yahoo.com

Sun., Nov 14

Kislev 5771

Pre-Chanukah Fall Boutique, JCC, Tenafly 10am-5pm, also Mon., Nov 15, 9am-4pm, 201408-1448 Breuers Chanukah Boutique, includes entertainment (a monkey and other animals), Chanukah art centers, and food for children, Washington Heights, Manhattan, 10:30am-2:30pm, 718-549-7582 Shomer Shabbat Cub Scout Pack 5 of Cong Ahavas Yisrael of Edison Holiday Bazaar, at Shalom Heritage Center, East Windsor, 11am-3pm, 908-415-4979 Holiday Boutique, Montebello Jewish Center, Suffern, 11am3pm, zimbalison@aol.com Chanukah Mini-Mall, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 3-7pm, rtjzme@gmail.com Fashion Show and Boutique, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 4pm, 201-638-6239

The Jewish Voice and Opinion

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Wed., Nov 17

Bunny Hain’s Jewelry Chanukah Sale, to benefit Sharsheret for Jewish women facing breast and ovarian cancer, private home in Teaneck, 5-10pm, 201-837-8437 Adolph Schreiber Hebrew Academy of Rockland County (ASHAR) Chanukah Boutique, Monsey, 7-10pm, 845-357-1515

Motzei Shabbat, Nov 20

“A Touch of Class Chanukah Boutique,” Riverdale Jewish Center, 7:30-11pm, includes special youth events for boutique shoppers: Gym Sports and Movies, grades K-5, 6:45-9:45pm; 718-548-1850

Sun., Nov 21

Holiday Boutique and Ceramic Studio Sale, YJCC, Washington Twnshp, 9am-4pm, also Mon., Nov 22, 9am-4pm, 201-666-6610 Reading Rocks, poetry reading, face-painting, crafts with Wendy Rosenoff, scavenger hunt, giftbuying guide for books and CDs, spons by Ben Porat Yosef, at Barnes & Noble, Riverside Square Mall, Hackensack, 10am-4pm, 201-845-5007 Gift Boutique, Synagogue of the Suburban Torah Center, Livingston, 1:30-4:40pm, 973-994-0122 Pre-Chanukah Celebration: Joshua Nelson and His Kosher Gospel Singers and Band, YMHA, Wayne, 3pm, 973-595-0100 ext 237 SINAI’s Annual Chanukah Boutique, at Torah Academy of Bergen County, Teaneck, 5:30-9:30pm, asiletski@sinaischools.org Rabbi Pesach Raymon Yeshiva PTA Pre-Chanukah Boutique, at the school in Edison, 5:30-9:30pm, 732-247-3073

Thurs., Dec 2

Holiday Sale, to benefit the Senior Department, JCC, Tenafly, 9am-3pm Y

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion Apply Now

Manischewitz Cook-Off Cooking Competition, share your favorite recipes and compete for $25,000 in GE Profile kitchen appliances. Recipes must include one of the Manischewitz all-natural broth flavors, have no more than a total of eight ingredients, and be prepared and cooked in one hour or less.

Contestants must be US citizens at least 18 years old. Deadline is Dec 31, 2010. Entry forms at www.manischewitz.com Areyvut’s Bnai Mitzvah Video Essay Contest, for students in grades 5-10, create a video that captures why and how you incorporated, or will incorporate, the values of chesed, tzedaka, and tikkun olam into your bar or bat mitzvah celebration and how you have con-

November 2010 Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice & Opinion” tinued your project, deadline is Dec 31, 2010, info@areyvut.org or 201-244-6702 StandWithUs “Divest from Terror” Campaign, in response to the increasingly aggressive boycott, divestment, and sanctions movement against Israel. StandWithUs will award prizes and a trip to Israel for the best essays and editorial cartoons that focus on the intolerance, misogyny, homophobia, and barbarism of those who would benefit from the obliteration of the only democracy in the Middle East, deadline is Dec 31, 2010, details at www.standwithus.com/contests Yiddish Book Center Fellowship Program, for college graduates who are passionate about Yiddish language and culture and want to work at the book center in Amherst, MA, with a stipend,

The Log:

for a year, beginning Sept 2011, application deadline is Jan 3, 2011, 413-256-4900 ext 142 Bronfman Youth Fellowships in Israel Applications, for North American Jewish students who will be in 12th grade in Sept 2011 and are looking to spend five weeks of intellectually engaging study in Israel, summer 2011; deadline to apply online at www. bronfman.org is Jan 20, 2011, ava.charne@ byfi.org or 518-475-7212 Yiddish Book Center Summer Program, offers college students a tuition-free, six-credit, seven-week intensive course in Yiddish language, history, and culture, June 12July 29, 2011, at the book center in Amherst, MA; no prior knowledge of Yiddish required, deadline to apply is Feb 1, 2011, rachel.surden@gmail.com Alisa Flatow Memorial Scholarship Fund Applications, for those planning to be spend the academic year 2011-2012 pursuing Jewish studies in Israel, Dr. Wallace Greene, deadline in Feb 15, 2011, www.alisafund.org Holocaust Remembrance Project Essay Contest, for high school students, no more than 1200 words analyzing why it is vital that the remembrance, history, and lessons of the Holocaust be passed on to a new generation and suggesting what young people can do to combat and prevent prejudice, discrimination, and violence in our world today, spons by the Holland & Knight Charitable Foundation, prizes include college scholarships from $250 to $5,000, deadline is April 15, http:// holocaust.hklaw.com/index.asp Looking for boys who can sing and will be 7 by next Rosh Hashana, to participate in next year’s High Holiday Choir, Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob and David, West Orange, sschwartz@gmail.com Teaneck Baseball Organization Applications, for children with a Teaneck address who will be ages 5-14 as of July 31, suefeuer@yahoo.com

Wed., Nov 10

SAR Honors Veterans, all veterans are invited to come to the school to be honored for their service, Riverdale, 9am, 718-5481717 ext1294 “Achieving Happiness and Fulfillment through Yiddishkeit,” for women, Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller, private home in Monsey, 11am, 646-961-4961 Kosher Lunch and Learn: “Shalom,” CASE Museum, Jersey City, 12:45pm, 973943-2306 Cooking Circle, for special-needs children ages 6-12, spons by the Friendship Circle, at the Rosenbaum Yeshiva of North Jersey, River Edge, 5:30pm, 201-262-7172 Union for Traditional Judaism Din-

http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com

Kislev 5771

“Separate Yourself Not from the Community”

ner, honoring TV actress Dr. Mayim Bialik and Rabbi Martin and Marylin Berman, at the Jewish Center of Teaneck, 6pm, 201-8010707 ext 201 “Who Is a Muslim? Who Are the Islamic People? Why Is Palestine Important to Muslims?” Mohammed el Filali of the Islamic Center of Passaic County, Saint Peter’s College, Jersey City, 6pm, 201-935-6492 Challah Baking, for girls in grades 4-5, Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob and David, West Orange, 7pm, aabjdyouth@gmail.com Confidential Abused Women’s Support Group, Jewish Family Service, Teaneck, 7:15pm, 201-837-9090 Support Group for Caregivers, Vivian Green Korner, JCC, Tenafly, 7:30pm, 201-408-1454 “Unfinished Business,” Lee Kravitz, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 7:30pm, 845362-4400 Kristallnacht Program: “Wrestling with G-d: Theology in the Ghettos,” Erin Leib Smokler, spons by Cong Etz Chaim and The Synagogue of the Suburban Torah Center, at the Synagogue of the Suburban Torah Center, Livingston, 7:30pm, 973-994-2620 Siyyum on Seder Nezikin, Dr. Ronnie Warburg, Cong Rinat Yisrael, Teaneck, 7:30pm “Chicks with Sticks Knitting Circle,” hats for preemies, children with cancer, and IDF soldiers in Israel, private home in Highland Park, 8pm, 732-339-8492 “Unlocking the Five Secrets of Middle School Academic Success,” Daniel Jaye, private home in Englewood, 8pm, 201-2629898 ext 213 Rabbi Isaac L. Swift Memorial Program: “Materialism in the Jewish Community,” Wall Street Journal’s Greg Zuckerman, in discussion with Orthodox Rabbi Shmuley Boteach and Conservative Rabbi Reuven Kimelman, JCC, Tenafly, 8:15pm, 201-408-1426 Zumba, for women, Yeshivat Noam, Paramus, 8:15pm, aforman9@aol.com “Emes and Yaakov: How Do They Fit Together?” for women, Rabbi Yaakov Neuburger, Cong Beth Abraham, Bergenfield, 8:30pm

Thurs., Nov 11

Rally for Gilad Shalit: “1600 for 1600,” spons by the ZOA of the University of Maryland, at the National Mall in Washington, DC; this is Gilad Shalit’s 1600th day in captivity and the group wants at least 1600 people at the rally, contact Carla Davis, 1600for1600@ gmail.com Documentary: “60 Years On: From Despair to Joy,” 55 men who traveled from their homes in Bergen County to the Warsaw

Ghetto and Auschwitz and on to Israel, narrated

by Matt Lauer, with director Clive Gershon, JCC, Tenafly, 10:45am, 201-408-1426 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Jews and Baseball,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 12:30pm, 732-940-8343 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Berlin ‘36,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 3:15pm, 732-940-8343 NJ Young Professionals Multi-Group Mixer, organized by Jewish Young Adults of Hoboken and hundreds of young professionals ages 21-39, private location in West Orange, 6:30-10:30pm, hobokenjyah@yahoo.com “Successful Fundraising Programs Even in Today’s Tough Economic Climate,” Nancy Perlman, UJA, Paramus, 7pm, 201-

The Jewish Voice and Opinion

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820-3904 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Ajami,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 7:30pm, 732-940-8343 “Semper Cool: One Marine’s Fond Memories of Vietnam,” Barry Fixler, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 7:30pm, 845-362-4400 “Inconvenient: Growing Up Russian and Jewish,” for teens, Margie Gelbwasser, Barnes & Noble, 765 Route 17 S, Paramus, 7:30pm, 201-445-5950 Jewish 12-Step Meeting, JACS—Jewish Alcoholics, Chemically Dependent Persons, and Significant Others, Jewish Family Service, Teaneck, 7:30pm, 201-837-9090, ask for IRA (Information and Referral) or

continued on page 34

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

The Log

November 2010

Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice & Opinion”

continued from page 33

201-981-1071 Mother-Daughter Challah Baking, for grades 7-12, Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob and David, West Orange, 7:30pm, aabjdyouth@gmail.com Mishmar with Rabbi Steven Miodownik, Rutgers Hillel, New Brunswick, 8pm “Don’t Nobody Know My Troubles but G-d: The Rabbis of the Talmud and the Creation of Good and Evil,” Rabbi Ben Skydell, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 8:15pm

Fri., Nov 12

“Resume-dicine”: Free Individual Resume Evaluations and Advice, Dr. Steve Safier, private office in Teaneck, appointments available 9am-3pm, stevesafier700@ofbothworlds.com Hospice Volunteer Training, includes kosher lunch, EG Solomon Berman, Grace Healthcare Services, Edison, 10am, 866447-0246 Minyan Tiferet’s Shira Hadasha-Style Kabbalat Service, private home in Englewood, 5pm, 201-567-7343 “Glamour and Inspiration,” former Radio City Music Hall Rockette Darlene Wendy Frank, includes dinner, Chabad Center, Wayne, 6pm, 973-694-6274 Junior NCSY Oneg, for 8th Graders, private home in Teaneck, 7:30pm, 201-928-4040 “Pepper, Silk, and Ivory: The Exotic Jews of China and Japan,” Rabbi Marvin Tokayer, scholar-in-residence, private home in Englewood, 8pm, 201568-7768 Bat Ami Shabbat, hosting Sheirut Leumi Girls, Young Israel of Monsey and Wesley Hills, through Shabbat, Nov 13, 845-

354-5218 Yachad Shabbaton, Cong Beth Abraham, Bergenfield, through Shabbat, Nov 13, 201387-0439 Check Out Cherry Hill Shabbaton: Get a Taste of South Jersey’s Fastest-Growing Orthodox Community, featuring babysitting, home hospitality, Friday night oneg, Shabbat learning programs, Saturday night bowling and party, Sunday morning minyan, bagel breakfast, and tour of Politz Day School, through Sun., Nov 14, 856-667-1013 “Creating Connections” Shabbaton, for Modern-Orthodox single men and women ages 23-30, includes meals with families, and a Motzei Shabbat “Game and Café Night,” Riverdale Jewish Center, through Motzei Shabbat, Nov 13, tamtzvi@aol.com

Shabbat, Nov 13

Mommy and Me, for children newborn-3 with a parent, Shira Grunstein, Cong Arzei Darom, Teaneck, 10:45am “The Heroic Escape to China and Japan during the Holocaust: The Fugu Plan,” Rabbi Marvin Tokayer, scholar-in-residence, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 11am Young Members’ Lunch, Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, noon Ramat Rachel Shiur: “The Enduring Legacy of Rachel Imeinu,” in memory of Rochi Lerner, z”l, Rabbi Larry Rothwachs, Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 3:15pm “Unknown Jewish Heroes of China, Japan, and India,” Rabbi Marvin Tokayer, scholar-in-residence, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, seudah Shlishit, 4pm

The Log is a free service provided to the Jewish community in northern and central New Jersey, Rockland County and Riverdale. Events that we list include special and guest lectures, concerts, boutiques, dinners, open houses, club meetings, and new classes.

Announcements are requested by the 25th of the month prior to the month of the event. Due to space and editorial constraints, we cannot guarantee publication of any announcement. Please email them to : susan@jewishvoiceandopinion.com.

“Ashkenazim and Sephardim in the Middle Ages: Contact and Conflict,” Rabbi Dr. Jacob Schacter, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 4pm

Motzei Shabbat, Nov 13

Parent-Child Learning Session, Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 6pm, 732-618-9473 Parent-Child Learning, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 6:30pm Middle School Bowling Trip, leave the Jewish Educational Center, Elizabeth, 7pm Recreation Night, for boys and girls in grades 3-5, separate swim and gym, Jewish Center of Teaneck, 7pm, 201-833-0515 ext 205 Pre-Chanukah Chocolate Class, for girls ages 7-9, learn to decorate, create, and wrap parve Chanukah chocolates, private home in Passaic, 7pm, 973-777-3260 Progressive/Round Robin Dinner, spons by Cong Netivot Shalom, private homes in Teaneck, 7pm, 201-837-7849 “Movies under the Stars,” for children in grades 5-7, who are not yet bar/bat mitzvah, private home in Teaneck, 7:30pm, alicht13@aol.com Junior High School Basketball, to benefit the Ilan Tocker Foundation for Head Injuries, Rosenbaum Yeshiva of North Jersey, River Edge, consolation game between either SAR or Westchester and either YNJ or JEC, 7:15pm; Championship game, 8:45pm; 212-444-8952 Film: Chiune Sugihara, World War II Japanese Consul in Lithuania Who saved Thousands of Jews, including the Entire Mirrer Yeshiva, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 7:30pm Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Nora’s Will,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 7:30pm, 732-940-8343 “Patience,” Ridgewood Gilbert and Sullivan Opera Company, at YMHA, Clifton, 7:30pm, 973-4230300, also Sun., Nov 14, 2:30pm Am Kodesh with Asher Burstein, in concert, Smokey Joe’s Kosher Restaurant, Teaneck, 7:30pm, 201-836-7427 “If the Rambam Were Alive

Today: Contemporary Medical Ethics through the Eyes of Maimonides,” Rabbi Dr. Edward Reichman, spons by the Orthodox Forum, Cong Ohav Emeth, Highland Park, 8:30pm, 732-572-5241 Social Event, includes dinner, drinks, and music, Cong Rinat Yisrael, Teaneck, 8:30pm, 646242-6019 “Voice over IP: From History to Reality,” Alon Cohen, founder of VocalTec Communications, in Hebrew, spons by Israel Business Circle, JCC, Tenafly, 8:30pm, 201-408-1427 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Father’s Footsteps,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 9:30pm, 732-940-8343

Sun., Nov 14

Exhibit by Tzfat Artist Sheva Chaya Shaiman, artwork, prints, and original hand-blown glass and jewelry, Cong Shomrei Torah, Fair Lawn, 9am-noon “Resume-dicine”: Free Individual Resume Evaluations and Advice, Dr. Steve Safier, private office in Teaneck, appointments available 9am-3pm, stevesafier700@ofbothworlds.com Trip to the Franklin Mineral Museum, spons by Shomer Shabbat Cub Scout Pack 613 of Cong Ahavat Achim, Fair Lawn, 9:30am, jschachter2@gmail.com Bikur Cholim of Raritan Valley Eli and Frieda Stern Memorial Volunteer Appreciation Brunch, honoring the “Shofar Blowers Squad,” Rabbi Neal Ginsberg, David Katzenstein, Davil Krul, Saul London, and Rabbi Josh Rapps, Cong Ohav Emeth, Highland Park, 9:30am, 732-3930506 or 732-819-9371 “Parents at Home: What Is Involved,” a workshop for caregivers and seniors, Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob and David, West Orange, 9:30am, 973-736-1407 Hebrew Free Burial Breakfast, honoring Rabbi Michael Stein and Carole Oshinsky, Riverdale Jewish Center, 9:30am, 212-239-1662 “The Asperger Parent: How to Raise a Child with Asperger Syndrome and Guns A’Blazing:

http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com How Parents of Children on the Autism Spectrum and Schools Can Work Together without a Shot Being Fired,” Jeffrey Cohen, JCC, Bridgewater, 10am, 908-725-6994 x210 Defensive Driving, take two points off your driving record and lower insurance rates, Cong Beth Abraham, Bergenfield, 10am, 718-702-2432, drivesafenj@gmail.com Groundbreaking for Cong Shaarei Orah’s New Building, first Sephardic Synagogue in Teaneck, 10am, info@sephardicteaneck.org or 201-988-5728 “Shlemiel Crooks” for children in grades 3-5, Anna Olswanger, Glen Rock Jewish Center, 10am Challah Baking, first grade, Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob and David, West Orange, first grade, 10am; grades 2-3, 11am; pre-k and K, noon, aabjdyouth@gmail.com “The Chanukah Story Puppet Show,” for children ages 3-8, Magic Puppet Theatre, Riverdale Jewish Center, 11am Chug Ivrit Hebrew Club, for intermediate to advanced Hebrew speakers, spons by Hadassah, for men and women, not necessarily

members of Hadassah, private home in Highland Park, 11am, 732-8199298 or 732-572-4701 “The College Search Process,” for parents and students, Dr. Rachelle Wolosoff, JCC, Tenafly, 11am, 201-408-1469 Bone Marrow Drive for Ezra, an 18-month-old Jewish toddler, held at the Rutgers Jewish Film Festival, Royal Cinema Conference Center, New Brunswick, 11am-5pm, ruthymsher@ gmail.com ABLE Special-Needs Resource Fair and Symposium, Ellen Sabin, chance to connect with parents and professionals, JCC, West Orange, noon-3pm, 973-929-3129 Jewish Film Festival: “Leap of Faith” and “Leaving the Fold,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, noon, 732940-8343 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Father’s Footsteps,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 12:15pm, 732-940-8343 “Kids in Action Club” Travel to Hawaii for a Great Volcano Show,” Chabad Center, Wayne, 12:45pm, 973-694-6274

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

“This Is a Soul: The Mission of Dr. Rick Hodes,” Marilyn Berger, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 2pm, 845-362-4400 “Sharing the Message of Auschwitz: Muslims Bear Witness to the Holocaust,” Rabbi Jack Bemporad, Imam Abdullah Antepli, Prof Marshall Breger, spons by the Sister Rose Thering Fund for Education in Jewish-Christian Studies, Seton Hall University, South Orange, 2pm, 973-761-9006 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Green Dumpster Mystery,” with a Genealogy Program, Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 3pm, 732-940-8343 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Jews and Baseball,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 3:30pm, 732-940-8343 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “To See if I’m Smiling,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 5pm, 732940-8343 “What’s the Point of Punching,” self-defense from a Jewish perspective, Shihan Joel Levy, Rutgers Hillel, New Brunswick,

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6pm, 732-545-2407 “The 21st Century: Agenda for Remembrance,” for those whose parents, grandparents, or great-grandparents were Holocaust survivors, featuring Dr. Michael Berenbaum, spons by Stockton College, at the Jewish Family Service, Margate, 7pm, 609-652-4699 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Berlin ‘36,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 7:30pm, 732-940-8343 Raritan Valley Hadassah Book Club: “The Pity of It All,”

by Amos Elon, private home in Highland Park, 7:30pm, 732545-3147 “A Night of Hope and Healing: The Blessings of a Broken Heart,” Sherri Mandel, to benefit the Koby Mandell Foundation, private home in Highland Park, 8pm, 732-572-2614 Cong Beth Abraham Sisterhood Recipe Exchange, private home in Bergenfield, 8:30pm, 201-379-5356 “US Tax Issues all Prospective Olim Need to Know About to Avoid Unanticipated Taxes

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and Other Nasty Surprises,” Michael (Matis) Sklar, private home in Bergenfield, 8:30pm, 201-387-9116 Interactive Video Shiur on Zemanim: “Time Controversies in Jewish Law,” Bill Gewirtz, Cong Ohr Torah, Edison, 9pm, wgewirtz@att.net

Mon., Nov 15

Last Day to Order “Pies for Prevention,” homemade, kosher baked goods, spons by Sharsheret to support programming for Jewish women and families facing breast and ovarian cancer, 201-837-7837 Last Day to Submit Recipes, for Cong Ahavat Shalom of the Teaneck Apartments Sisterhood Cookbook, sisterhood10@ teaneckapartments.com or allyjsteinberg@gmail.com “Every Day Is Thanksgiving: Thanksgiving in Jewish Liturgy,” Regina Lambert-Hayut, JCC, Tenafly, 11:15am Mama’s Loshen Kugel, in concert, JCC, West Orange, 1pm “The Kosher Baker: 160 Dairy-Free Recipes from Traditional to Trendy,” Paula Shoy-

er, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 7:30pm, 845-362-4400 “Path to Peace: Any Roads Left?” Dr. Daniel Gordis, Temple B’nai Abraham, Livingston, 8pm “The Centurions: 4th Century CE,” Rabbi Steven Pruzansky, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, 8:15pm “Spiritual Drum Circle,” for women, Richard Reiter, Cong Ahavat Achim, Fair Lawn, 8:30pm, 201-797-0502 Parenting Workshop Teleconference: “Siblings without Rivalry,” Adina Soclof, www. parentingsimply.com, 9pm Interactive Video Shiur on Zemanim: “Time Controversies in Jewish Law,” Bill Gewirtz, Cong Ohr Torah, Edison, 9pm, wgewirtz@att.net

Tues., Nov 16

“Jewish Broadway: Jewish Contributions to Broadway,” Doug LeBlang, YMHA, Riverdale, 10:15am, 718-548-8200 “Building Ruchnius through Our Home and Marriage: An Exploration in Sefer Ohel Rochel,” for women, Debbie Green-

blatt, spons by Neve Passaic Torah Institute, private home in Passaic, 11:30am, 908-278-4059 “Walking Israel: A Personal Search for the Soul of a Nation,” Martin Fletcher, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 7:30pm, 845-362-4400 Jewish Book Month: “Taking Judaism Personally,” Judy Petsonk; “Dina’s Lost Tribe,” Brigitte Goldstein; and “Two Jews Can Still Be a Mixed Marriage,” Azriela Jaffe, spons by Hadassah, at Highland Park Conservative Temple, 7:30pm, 732-549-2897 Support Group to Help Orthodox Women Cope with the Painful Process of Divorce, Dr. Carol Glaser, private home in Teaneck, 8pm, 201-833-8822 “Sin and Sanctity in the Suburbs—A No-Nonsense Look at Parshat Kedoshim: Elder Care and the Sandwich Generation,” Rabbi Shalom Baum, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 8:30pm

Wed., Nov 17

“Thanksgiving Memories,” Linda Storfer, YMHA, Riverdale, 10:30am, 718-548-8200

Jewish Community Council’s Riverdale Volunteer Recognition Award and Preparing Community Chanukah Packages for the Homebound Elderly, presented to Lotte Bravermann, at SAR, Riverdale, 10:30am, 212-836-1674 Challah Baking, boys in grades 4-5, Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob and David, West Orange, 7pm, aabjdyouth@gmail.com Book Club: “Have a Little Faith” by Mitch Albom, facilitated

by Arlene Sandner, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 7pm, 845-362-4400 “Holocaust Denial: What Is It? Who Are the People Behind This Assault on Our History? What Is Their Motivation?” Dr. Alex Grobman, Second Generation discussion group for children of Holocaust Survivors, Jewish Family Service, Teaneck, 7:15pm, 201-837-9090 Victims of Domestic Violence Support Group, confidential, privacy preserved, Jewish Family Service, Teaneck, 7:15pm, 201-837-9090 Sheitel, Fall, and HandMade Headband Sale, private

http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com home in Riverdale, 7:30-9:30pm, 917-592-8705 Live from the 92nd St Y by Satellite: Lewis Black with Connie Chung, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 8pm, 845-362-4400 Pre-Chanukah: Make-YourOwn Glass Project, for women and children in first grade and up, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, 8pm Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller, Cong Beth Abraham, Bergenfield, 8:15pm Zumba, for women, Yeshivat Noam, Paramus, 8:15pm, aforman9@aol.com Parlor Meeting for Mossad Harav Kook and Its Objective of Publishing Seforim and Making Them More Widely Available, Rabbi Sender Shizgal, private home in Edison, 8:30pm, wgewirtz@att.net

Thurs., Nov 18

La Leche League of Bronx/ Riverdale, Mia Damond Padwa, pregnant women, babies and small children welcome, healthy snacks, Riverdale YMHA, 9:30am, 718543-0314 “The Banality of Evil: The Use of Social Psychology in the Classroom Study of the Holocaust and Mass Murder,” for teachers, Harry Furman, Luciano Center for Public Service and Leadership, Cumberland County College, Vineland, 4pm, lois. genovese@gmail.com Chabad Center of Northwest NJ Founders Dinner, honoring Raphael and Susan Weizman and Leonard Solondz, Crystal Plaza, Livingston, 6pm Challah Baking, for bat mitzvah girls and their mothers, Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob and David, West Orange, 7:30pm, aabjdyouth@gmail.com “Saving Henry: A Mother’s Journey,” Laurie Strongin, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 7:30pm, 845-362-4400 “Save the Deli: In Search of Perfect Pastrami, Crusty Rye, and the Heart of Jewish Delicatessen,” David Sax, JCC, Tenafly 8pm, 201-408-1411

Fri., Nov 19

Scholar-in-Residence, Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald of the National Jewish Outreach Program at Cong Ahawas Achim, Bnai

Jacob and David, West Orange, through Shabbat, Nov 20 Hospice Volunteer Training, includes kosher lunch, EG Solomon Berman, Grace Healthcare Services, Edison, 10am, 866447-0246 Junior NCSY Chinese Food Shabbat Dinner, grades 6-8, Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 5pm, 201-247-7961 “Cholent and Chill,” for children in grades 5-7 who are pre-bar/bat mitzvah, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 7:15pm Carlebach Shabbos, with Dr. Elli Kranzler, includes Shabbos Seudos and Tisch, Cong Bais Torah, Suffern, through Shabbat, Nov 20, 845-352-1343

Shabbat, Nov 20

Beginners Shabbos Morning Service, followed by Kiddush, Rabbi David Pietruszka, spons by the Jewish Learning Experience, at the Jewish Center of Teaneck, 9:45am, 201-966-4498 “Mystery Shabbos,” spons

by Cong Ahavat Shalom of the Teaneck Apartments, lunch and dessert oneg at private homes in Teaneck, 11:30am, sisterhood10@ teaneckapartments.com Rabbi Howard Jachter, scholar-in-residence, Cong Kehillas Bais Yehudah (KBY), Wesley Hills, noon, joshblass@yahoo.com Shabbat Lunch, for K-1, Cong Rinat Yisrael, Teaneck, noon, youth@rinat.org Oneg Shabbat, for grades K-1, Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 2pm, 732-618-9473 Junior NCSY In-Shabbat, for grades 6-8, Cong Ahavat Achim, Fair Lawn, 3pm, 201-797-0502 Bat Mitzvah Girls Learning Program, Rebbetzin Peshi Neuburger, private home in Bergenfield, 3:15pm, shiragreenberg18@ gmail.com “For the Sake of Ancestors, Deliver the Children: Reflections on Parshat Vayishlach,” Esti Rosenberg, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 4:15pm

Motzei Shabbat, Nov 20

Film: “What’s Cooking,” Cedar Lane Cinemas, Teaneck, 6:45pm, 201-836-0114 Pre-Chanukah Chocolate Class, for girls ages 7-9, learn to decorate, create, and wrap parve

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

Chanukah chocolates, private home in Passaic, 7pm, 973-777-3260 Film: “Network,” Cedar Lane Cinemas, Teaneck, 7:15pm, 201-836-0114 Junior NCSY Banner Night, for grades 6-8, Cong Ahavat Achim, Fair Lawn, 7:30pm, 201-797-0502 Brian Gelfand Trio, in concert, Smokey Joe’s Kosher Restaurant, Teaneck, 7:30pm, 201836-7427 FabFaux in Concert, spons by the ATID Society of the Kushner Academy and Yeshiva High School, Livingston, 7:30pm, 973597-1115 Ladies Tomchei Shabbos Awareness Melava Malka, featuring Tova Nechamkin, Rebbetzin Sarah Leah Weissman, and Rav Zacharia Wallerstein, Ohel Rivka Hall, Passaic, 7:45pm Mikvah Café Night, to support Mikvah Yisrael of Springfield, includes raffle for trip for two to Israel, private home in Springfield, 8pm, 908-692-8610 Film: “Neshoba: The Price of Freedom,” Jewish Center of Teaneck, 8pm, 201-836-0114 “Ditch the Workout, Join the Party”: Free Zumba Class, for women, Rachelli Cohen, Jewish Center of Teaneck, 8pm, ZumbByRachelli@gmail.com Sensational Silent Auction, Sushi, and Martini Night, Cong Arzei Darom, Teaneck, 8:30pm, auction@ArzeiDarom.org Film: “Eyes Wide Open,” Cedar Lanes Cinema, Teaneck, 9:15pm, 201-836-0114

Sun., Nov 21

Sunday Morning SlowerPaced Instructional and Explanatory Minyan, includes bagels and learning afterwards, Rabbi David Pietruszka, spons by the Jewish Learning Experience, at Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 9:30am, 201-966-4498 Pack Meeting, spons by Shomer Shabbat Cub Scout Pack 613 of Cong Ahavat Achim, Fair Lawn, 9:30am, jschachter2@ gmail.com Trip to Bogota Sports and Golf Center, for grades K-5, meet at Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 9:30am Caregivers Support Group,

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Dina Niewood, Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob and David, West Orange, 9:30am, 973-7361407 ext 260 Boker Iyun, to benefit the displaced Jewish Gush Katif residents, featguring Rabbi Saul Berman, Nechama Price, Rabbi Dr. Jacob J Schacter, and Dr. Shira Weiss, spons by YU’s Center for the Jewish Future, at Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 10am BirthrightNEXT Super Sunday Breakfast, free breakfast for any Birthright alumni who will volunteer at any UJA Super Sunday event, Rutgers Hillel, New Brunswick, 10am, 732-545-2407 “Getting What You Want from Your District: Practical Strategies to Support Your Educational Requests,” Christine Soto, Esq, Good Talking People, Teaneck, 11am, 201-837-8371 Chai Pushka Brunch: “Cousin Marriage in Jewish Custom and History,” Dr. Nathan Reiss, spons by the Raritan Valley Chapter of Hadassah, private home in Edison, 11am, 732-549-2897 Theatre Trip to See “Wallenberg the Musical,” spons by Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, at the White Plains Performing Arts Center, leave Teaneck, noon, 201-862-0191 Make Your Own Ceramic Menorah, for grades K-4, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, noon, rivki19@yahoo.com Rabbi Jacob Joseph Yeshiva Ladies Luncheon, at the school, Edison, noon, 732-985-6533 Film: “Eyes Wide Open,” David, Saperstein, and Solomon, Teaneck, 12:45pm, 201-836-0114 “Happily Ever After: The Musical,” for children, Pushcart Players, JCC, Tenafly, 2pm, 201408-1493 Uncle Moishy and the Mitzvah Men, in concert, YMHA, Clifton, 2pm, 973-777-7638 Author/Storyteller Peninnah Schram, for children over 7 and adults, The Esplanade, Palisades, NY, 3pm, 845-359-7870 Film: “At Home in Utopia,” Puffin Cultural Forum, Teaneck, 4pm, 201-836-0114 Film: “What’s Cooking,” Cedar Lane Cinemas, Teaneck, 4pm, 201-836-0114

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BJE’s After-Party, for 8th graders, movie and ice cream sundaes, Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 5pm, 201-247-7961 Latkefest, for children and families, Cong Rinat Yisrael, Teaneck, 5:30pm, youth@rinat.org Film: “Neshoba: The Price of Freedom,” Davis, Saperstein, and Salomon, Teaneck, 8pm, 201836-0114

Mon., Nov 22

Last Day to Drop Off Toys for Bergen County Chanukah Toy Drive, new, unwrapped gifts go to thousands of children from infants to young adults through Tomorrow’s Children (Hackensack University Medical Center), Shelter Our Sisters, Jewish Family Services, Project Ezrah, JADD, Tomchei Shabbos, UJC, Bikur Cholim, Bris Avrohom, Sharsheret, OHEL, Chai Lifeline, EMUNAH, and Tikvah Orphanage in Odessa; local discounts, coupons, and drop-off information at www.bctoydrive.com or marla@bctoydrive.com Film: “The Frisco Kid,” discussion led by Stan Goldberg, JCC, Tenafly, 1:30pm, 201-408-1457 “The Jewish Japanese Factor”:Teaneck Mikveh Assocation Inaugural Dinner and Show, featuring Rachel Factor, for women, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 7:30pm, www.TeaneckMikvah.com/event “We Leave No Jewish Child Behind: How to Help Maximize Your Child’s School Experience,” Rabbi Leib Kelemen, Cong Tifereth Israel, Passaic, 8pm, 973-685-4215 “The Centurions: 5th Century CE,” Rabbi Steven Pruzansky, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, 8:15pm Parenting Workshop Teleconference: “Siblings without Rivalry,” Adina Soclof, www. parentingsimply.com, 9pm

Tues., Nov 23

“Abraham Lincoln and the Jewish Community: An Historical Insight,” Carl Epstein, spons

by New Beginnings, Jewish Center of Teaneck, 1:30pm, 201-8330515 ext 200 “Sin and Sanctity in the

Suburbs—A No-Nonsense Look at Parshat Kedoshim: Texting While You Drive,” Rabbi Shalom Baum, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 8:30pm Jewish Stuttering Association Support Group, for women who stutter, private home in Monsey, 8:30pm, 347-855-7520, info@Jstutter.org

Wed., Nov 24

Thanksgiving Feast, for seniors and guests, JCC, Tenafly, 11:15am Confidential Abused Women’s Support Group, Jewish Family Service, Teaneck, 7:15pm, 201-837-9090 “Chicks with Sticks Knitting Circle,” hats for preemies, children with cancer, and IDF soldiers in Israel, private home in Highland Park, 8pm, 732-339-8492

Thurs., Nov 25, Thanksgiving

Last Day to Donate Winter Outerwear to Needy Residents of Middlesex County, project taken on by several Jewish high schools, bins at Highland Park Community Center, jschlussel@rkyhs.org Trip to See “Disney on Ice: Toy Story,” IZOD Center, Meadowlands, East Rutherford, spons

by Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 11am, 201-833-0801 Thanksgiving Flag Football Tournament, Shoresh NCSY, Votee Park, Teaneck, noon, shoresh@ ncsy.org

Fri., Nov 26

Recreation Day, for grades 3-5, sports, games, swimming, pizza, music, and raffles, spons by Cong Bnai Yeshurun, at the Jewish Center of Teaneck, 10am

Shabbat, Nov 27

Shabbat Lunch, grades 2-3, Cong Rinat Yisrael, Teaneck, noon, youth@rinat.org Thanksgiving Seudah Shlishit, for grades 2-5, includes a discussion of “Thanks,” Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 2pm, 732618-9473

Motzei Shabbat, Nov 27

Parent-Child Learning Session, Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 6pm, 732-618-9473 Melave Malka, for grades K-1, Cong Rinat Yisrael, Teaneck, 7:30pm, youth@rinat.org

Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice & Opinion” “Antisemitism: Can It Be Stopped?” Prof Ruth Wisse, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, 8pm Senior NCSY Bowling, Eagle Rock Lanes, West Orange, 9:30pm

Sun., Nov 28

Den Meeting, spons by Shomer Shabbat Cub Scout Pack 613 of Cong Ahavat Achim, Fair Lawn, 9:30am, jschachter2@gmail.com Senior NCSY Paintball, leave Rabbi Pesach Raymon Yeshiva, Edison, noon, 732-991-2252 Cantorial Concert: “Every Day is a Holiday: Yesh Li Yom Yom Chag,” Caitlin Bromberg, Estelle Epstein, Orna Green, Ronit Josephson, Regina Lambert-Hayut, Ilan Mamber, Lenny Mandel, David Pepper, Faith Steinsnyder, and Sam Weiss, JCC, Tenafly, 2pm JACS Meeting, 12-steps meeting for Jews in recovery, Rabbi Steven Bayar, Cong B’nai Israel, Millburn, 7pm, 973-379-3811 Rabbi Moshe Dovid Tendler, Cong Kehillas Bais Yehudah (KBY), Wesley Hills, 8pm, joshblass@yahoo.com

Mon., Nov 29

Last Day to Bring a Chanukah Toy Donation for OHEL, to Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob and David, West Orange “The Centurions: 6th Century CE,” Rabbi Steven Pruzansky, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, 8:15pm

Tues., Nov 30

Last Day to Buy a Raffle, for a dream vacation for two to anywhere in the US or a silver menorah, spons by Passaic-Clifton Kollel, 845-709-9340 Last Day to Contribute to the TeaneckShuls list’s choice as beneficiary of this year’s fundraiser: Helping Hands Pantry, which was founded in 2009 by Teaneck Councilman Elie Y Katz and Pastor Daniel Meys. The food pantry is committed to helping Teaneck’s neediest residents secure sufficient food. More than 160 eligible individuals and families pick up food weekly at the pantry, which is staffed by volunteers and operates strictly through donations and products. Those who contribute at least $25 are eligible

for a chance to win a free, round-trip airline ticket to Israel. For rules, go to www.teaneckshuls.org. All entries must be received by 6pm, and the drawing will be at 6:30pm, kevie@ teaneckshuls.org, ruthie@teaneckshuls.org, or 201-833-1950 Webcast Program “How to Engage Parents in Youth Programming,” Rabbi Shlomo Einhorn, spoins by the OU, 5pm, www. ou.org/ouradio/webcast_synserv, 212-613-8149 “Mitzvah Clowning and Bikur Cholim,” Daniel Rothner, spons by Areyvut, for 8th grade students, Temple Emanu-El, Westfield, 7pm, 201-244-6702 “Detoxifying Toxic Temperaments and Tendencies among Members of Synagogues,” Rabbi Dr. John Krug, UJA, Paramus, 7pm, 201-820-3904 Support Group to Help Orthodox Women Cope with the Painful Process of Divorce, Dr. Carol Glaser, private home in Teaneck, 8pm, 201-833-8822 “Sin and Sanctity in the Suburbs—A No-Nonsense Look at Parshat Kedoshim: Visiting Mekubalim: Fact or Witchcraft?”

Rabbi Shalom Baum, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 8:30pm

Wed., Dec 1

Senior Adult Chanukah Party, Lautenberg JCC, Whippany, 11am, 973-530-3474 Chanukah Party, for seniors and guests, JCC, Tenafly, 11:15am “How to Interview like a Pro,” Barbara Safani, West Orange Public Library, 3pm, www. wopl.org “Who Is a Jew? Who Are the Jewish People? Why Is Israel Important to the Jewish People?” Allyson Gall, Saint Peter’s College, Jersey City, 6pm, 201-935-6492 Hebrew Institute Community Choir of Riverdale in Concert, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 7:30pm, also Sun., Dec 5; Wed., Dec 8; and Sun., Dec 12, all at 7:30pm, 718-543-6527 “Menorahs, Dreidels, and Gelt…Oh My,” make them and eat them, Rutgers Hillel, New Bruns-

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wick, 9pm, 732-545-2407

Thurs., Dec 2

“Chanukah on the Hudson,” spons by HudsonJewish and the Bayonne Jewish Community Center, featuring food, music, dancing, and menorah lighting, at the JCC, 6-8:30pm, 201-436-6900 “Maybe I’ll Sleep in the Bathtub Tonight: And Other Funny Bedtime Poems,” Debbie Levy, for children, JCC, Bridgewater, 6:30pm, 908-725-6994 x210 Jewish 12-Step Meeting, JACS—Jewish Alcoholics, Chemically Dependent Persons, and Significant Others, Jewish Family Service, Teaneck, 7:30pm, 201-837-9090, ask for IRA (Information and Referral) or 201981-1071

Fri., Dec 3

Holocaust Educators Conference: “Strength, Spirit, and Resilience—Women and Children in War and Genocide,” Holocaust, Genocide, and Human Rights Education Center, Brookdale Community College, Lincroft, “Children with a Star,” Deborah Dwork, 9:15am; “Experience Etty: A Conversation Using the Diaries and Letters of Etty Hillesum, a 29-Year-Old DutchHolocaust Victim,” Susan Stein, 10:45am; Survivor Testimony, 11:15am, 732-224-2769 Shabbat Chanukah Dinner, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 5:30pm Carlebach Minyan, for Kabbalat Shabbat, Cong Darchei Noam, Fair Lawn, 5:15pm Shabbat Chanukah Tish, with Rabbi Dr. Abraham Twerski, zmirot, chassidishe Torah, chulent, kugel, and liquid refreshment, Cong Rinat Yisrael, Teaneck, 8pm

Shabbat Chanukah, Dec 4

Beginners Shabbos Morning Service, followed by Kiddush, Rabbi David Pietruszka, spons by the Jewish Learning Experience, at the Jewish Center of Teaneck, 9:45am, 201-966-4498 Bat Mitzvah Girls Learning Program, Rebbetzin Peshi Neuburger, private home in Bergenfield, 3:15pm, shiragreenberg18@ gmail.com

Shabbos Mevorchim Shiur, for women and mature students, private home in Passaic, 3pm, 973-773-5640

Motzei Shabbat, Dec 4

Chanukah Bar Crawl, spons by Jewish Young Adults of Hoboken, event begins with menorah lighting and Chanukah treats, followed by a celebration along Washington Street, 6pm, bhaze726@gmail.com Chanukah Kumzitz, Lubavitch Center, West Orange, 6:15pm NCSY Scavenger Hunt, for grades 9-12, Garden State Plaza Mall, Paramus, 8pm, 201797-0502

Sun., Dec 5

Sunday Morning SlowerPaced Instructional and Explanatory Minyan, includes bagels and learning afterwards, Rabbi David Pietruszka, spons by the Jewish Learning Experience, at Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 9:30am, 201-966-4498 “Celebrate Chanukah with Shalom Sesame,” JCCs in Margate, West Orange, Tenafly, and West Nyack, 10am “The Town That Fought Hate: Billings, Montana,” featuring the Catskill Puppet Theater, Cong Shomrei Torah, Wayne, 10:30am, 973-696-2500 Jewish Learning for the Family with Special-Needs Children: Chanukah, JCC, Tenafly, 2pm, 201-408-1489 Chanukah Treasure Hunt, Cong Ahavat Achim, Fair Lawn, 2pm, 201-797-0502 “Out of This World” Chanukah Celebration, for the community, Space Odyssey, in Englewood, spons by Cong Ohr HaTorah, Bergenfield, 2-4pm “What’s the Real Point of Chanukah: The Book of Maccabees,” Rutgers Hillel, New Brunswick, 3pm, 732-545-2407 Koenig Family Chanukah Concert: A Funkey Moneys Chanukah, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 4pm, 845-362-4400 Chanukah Family Event, featuring bowling, building a 6-foot jelly belly menorah, menorah lighting, and sandy candy

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inspirational role models • character building • conducive learning environment • in-depth torah study • preparation for professional success • accessible rebbeim • inspirational role • opportunity to continue developing spiritumodels • ally and personally • world-renowned rebbeim • world class faculty • state of the art facilities Learn about our new • competitive sports leagues • superior education • character build• scholastic opportunities • individual attening • honors a quality educational experience • tion •program rigorous academic curriculum • committed, tional role models • character building • for outstanding conducive learning students! environment • in-depth torah study • preparation for professional success • accessible rebbeim • opportunity to continue developing spiritually and personally • world• state of the art facilities • scholastic renowned rebbeim • opportunities • competitive sports leagues • superior education • beautiful seven-acre campus • competitive sports leagues • superior education • character building • a quality educational experience • individual attention • rigorous academic curriculum • committed, motivated students • opportunities for academic achievement • inspirational role models • character building • conducive learning environment • in-depth torah study • preparation for professional success • accessible rebbeim • op portunity to continue developing spiritu

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75-31 150th street, Flushing, nY 11367 For further information, please contact rabbi Barry nathan: 718.820.4884/4904 or bnathan@touro.edu

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

The Log

November 2010

Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice & Opinion”

continued from page 40

activity, spons by Chabad Center, at T-Bowl Lanes, Preakness Shopping Center, Wayne, 4pm, 973-694-6274

Mon., Dec 6

“Jewish Holiday SOS: Chanukah,” Rabbi Gary Katz, for seniors, JCC, Tenafly, 11:15am Hillel Chanukah Party, Rabbi Ely Allen, Ramapo College, Mahwah, 1pm, 201-820-3905 Chanukah Chagigah, for children, Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 7pm “The Front Lines of Israel: A YNET Photojournalist’s Point of View,” Yaron Brener and Miri Yehuda, YMHA, Washington Twnshp, 7:30pm, lkarass@yjcc.org Live from the 92nd St Y by Satellite: Elaine Stritch with Jordan Roth, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 8pm, 845-362-4400 “The Centurions: 7th Century CE,” Rabbi Steven Pruzansky, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, 8:15pm

Tues., Dec 7

Chanukah Luncheon and Concert, for seniors, Laura Wetzler, YMHA, Riverdale, noon,

718-548-8200 ext 223 Hillel Chanukah Party, Rabbi Ely Allen, William Paterson University, Wayne, 12:45pm, 201-820-3905 Hillel Chanukah Party, Rabbi Ely Allen, Fairleigh Dickinson University, University Chapel, 3:30pm, 201-820-3905 “Devotion: A Memoir,” Dani Shapiro, JCC, Tenafly, 8pm “Sin and Sanctity in the Suburbs—A No-Nonsense Look at Parshat Kedoshim: Shabbat Lunch: Celebration or Abomination?” Rabbi Shalom Baum, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 8:30pm Cong Ahavas Achim Sisterhood Book Club: “Girl in Translation” by Jean Kwok, private home in Highland Park, 8:30pm, 732-572-6741

Wed., Dec 8

Confidential Abused Women’s Support Group, Jewish Family Service, Teaneck, 7:15pm, 201-837-9090 Support Group for Caregivers, Vivian Green Korner, JCC, Tenafly, 7:30pm, 201-408-1454 Chanukah Women’s Eve-

ning, featuring Russian-style cooking class and gift exchange, spons by the Chabad Center, private home in Wayne, 7:30pm, 973-694-6274 “The Rebbe: The Life and Afterlife of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson,” Samuel Heilman, spons by the Center for the Study of Jewish Life, Trayes Hall, Douglass Campus Center, 7:30pm, 732-545-2407 “Chicks with Sticks Knitting Circle,” hats for preemies, children with cancer, and IDF soldiers in Israel, private home in Highland Park, 8pm, 732-339-8492

Thurs., Dec 9

Hillel Chanukah Party, Rabbi Ely Allen, Bergen County Community College, Paramus, 12:30pm, 201-820-3905 “Walking Israel: A Personal Search for the Soul of a Nation,” Martin Fletcher, JCC, Bridgewater, 7pm, 908-725-6994 x210 Mishmar, with Rabbi Dov Linzer, Rutgers Hillel, New Brunswick, 8pm, 732-545-2407 Senior NCSY Winter Regional to Hudson Valley Resort and

Spa, Kerhonkson, NY, for grades 9-12, participants will be picked up at the various schools, through Sun, Dec 12, 201-862-0250

Fri., Dec 10

“Shabbat Gilad,” initiated

by Ari Hagler, 12, in conjunction with his upcoming bar mitzvah; he is asking schools and synagogue rabbis to focus on Gilad Shalit and the mitzvah of pidyom Shvuyim, redeeming a captive, for their drashas,,through Shabbat, Dec 11, info@shabbatgilad.com

Motzei Shabbat, Dec 11

Café Night, featuring comedian Elon Gold, light dinner, coffee bar, cash bar, and Chinese Auction, Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob and David, West Orange, 8pm Project Ezrah Dinner, honoring Rabbi Zvi and Rebbetzin Efrat Sobolofsky, Chaya and Mark Goldsmith, and Dr. Michael and Fayge Novogroder, at Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 8pm, 201-569-9047 Chanukah Disco Ball, spons

by Hillel, Rutgers Student Center, New Brunswick, 9:30pm, 732545-2407 Y

http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com

Sundays

The Jewish Voice and Opinion

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New Classes this Month

Review of the Past Week’s Daf Yomi, Mark Berman, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 7:30am Hilchos Niddah, Rabbi Zvi Sobolofsky, Cong Beth Abraham, Bergenfield, 7:30am “Practical Halachic Topics,” Rabbi Mordechai Gershon, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 8am “Sefer Samuel,” Rabbi Nathaniel Helfgot, for 8th graders preparing for BJEs and their parents, Cong Netivot Shalom, Teaneck, 8:30am, president@netivotshalomnj.org Arts and Crafts, for grades 2-4, Merri Pyle, Riverdale Jewish Center, 8:30am, 917-548-2703 Breakfast and Learn, for children in grades 5-8, Rabbi Shalom Baum, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 8:30pm Gemara, Rabbi Posen, Cong Agudath Israel, Highland Park, 9am, 732-829-8300 Chassidic Thought, Rabbi Bryan Kinzbrunner, private home in Highland Park, 9am, 732-247-0532 Highland Park Football Club, must be over 18, turf field behind the Junior High and High School, 9am, hpfootballclub@gmail.com Simcha/Israeli Dance, for grades 1-2, Jodi Senter, Cong Beth Abraham, Bergenfield, 9am “Hilchos Shabbos,” for men, Rabbi Aaron Cohen, Cong Tifereth Israel, Passaic, 9:15am “Bagels and Books: Jewish Authors,” Rabbi Avi Baumol, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 9:45am “Flipping Forward: Beginners Gymnastics for Girls,” Devra Markowitz, at Quality Martial Arts, Passaic, 9:45am, 973-773-0717 Sefer Tehillim, for women, Rebbetzin Rivka Eichenstein, Cong Agudath Israel, Highland Park, 10am, 732-829-8300 Simcha/Israeli Dance, for grades 3-4, Jodi Senter, Cong Beth Abraham, Bergenfield, 10am “Melachim Aleph: Shlomo’s Kingdom—What Made It Great and What Caused It to Break,” Rabbi Menachem Leibtag, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 10am “Live a Life of Purpose and Passion: In-Depth Study of the 13 Ikrei Emunan,” for women, Ayala Berney, private home in Monsey, 10am, 914-924-3794 “Flipping Forward: Intermediate Gymnastics for Girls,” Devra Markowitz, at Quality Martial Arts, Passaic, 10:45am, 973-773-0717 “Flipping Forward: Advanced Gymnastics for Girls,” Devra Markowitz, at Quality Martial Arts, Passaic, 11:45am, 973-773-0717

Mondays

Kislev 5771

Recession Kollel, Rabbi Uri Goldstein, Cong Ahavat Achim, Fair Lawn, 9:30am, 201-797-0502 Beginners Ulpan, Ronit Levy-Zilberstein, JCC, Tenafly, 9:30am, 201-820-3908 Beginners Plus Ulpan, Nava Revev, UJA, Paramus, 9:30am, 201-820-3908 Advanced Beginners Ulpan, Ronit Levy-Zilberstein, JCC, Tenafly, 11am, 201-820-3908 Tehillim with a Taste of Parsha, for women, Rabbi Steven Pruzansky, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, 11am Yachad’s Relationship Building Course, a social skills group for adults over 18 with developmental disabilities, Chani Herrmann, includes dinner, Yachad, Teaneck, 6pm,herrmann@ou.org Friendship Circle Mitzvah Volunteer Training Program, for boys and girls in 6th grade who want to learn how to interact with special-needs children, Zeesy Grossbaum, Cong Beth Tefillah, Paramus, 7pm, 201-262-7172 Learn B’Chavruta, for boys in grades 7-8 to learn with Torah

Academy of Bergen County juniors and seniors, refreshments, TABC, Teaneck, 7pm, 646-706-2553 or 201-663-0818 Beginners Ulpan, Ronit Levy-Zilberstein, JCC, Tenafly, 7:30pm, 201-820-3908 Advanced Beginners Ulpan, Pirhia Rozman, Fair Lawn Jewish Center, 7:30pm, 201-820-3908 Intermediate Ulpan, Orna Green, Jewish Center of Teaneck, 7:30pm, 201-820-3908 Parsha, for women, Rebbetzin Rivka Eichenstein, Cong Ohr Torah, Edison, 8pm, 732-777-6840 Gemara, Rabbi Yosef Adler, Cong Rinat Yisrael, Teaneck, 8pm Navi Shiur: Melachim Aleph, Rabbi Ian Shaffer, Young Israel of Fair Lawn, 8pm, 201-797-1800 Resident Scholar Lectures, Riverdale Jewish Center, Bronx, 8pm, 718-548-1850 Sefer Shoftim, for women, Aviva Orlian, private home in New Hempstead, 8:15pm, 845-364-5148 “Hilchos Shabbos” and “Duties of the Heart: Shaar Cheshbon HaNefesh,” for women, Nachum Rackoff, private home in Passaic, 8:30pm, 201-213-1426 Tefillah, Rabbi Chaim Presby, Cong Agudath Israel, Highland Park, 8:30pm, 732-829-8300 Teleconference Class: “How to Talk So Kids Will Listen and Listen So Kids Will Talk,” Adina Soclof, 9pm, asclof@parentingsimply.com “Aruch HaShulchan: Hilchos Seuda,” Rabbi Ezra Wiener, Bais Medrash of Bergenfield, 9pm, ryan@bmob.org Gemara Shiur: Masechet Megillah, Rabbi Steven Miodownik, private home in Highland Park, 9pm, 732-565-0744 Hilchos Shabbos, Avi Bodlander, Cong Agudath Israel, Highland Park, 9:30pm, 732-829-8300

Tuesdays

Hadassah Early Morning Walking Group, meet at Highland Park Post Office, 7:30am, 732-819-9298 “Gems of Torah,” Rabbi Moshe Goldberger, Cong Ahavas Achim, Highland Park, 8:30am, 732) 247-0532 Teleconference: “Parenting Based on the Classic Teachings of Rav Shlomo Wolbe, z”tl, as Taught by Rebbetzin Sima Spetner,” given

by Rivka Levitansky, 9:30am, 641-715-3900 ext 49557 or 216-397-2954 Mishnayot Yoma/Rosh Hashana, Rabbi Avigdor Weitzner, Cong Ahavas Achim, Highland Park, 9:30am, 732-819-9298 Navi: Intermediate Level, for women, Shoshana Sperling, spons

by Neve Passaic Torah Institute, private home in Passaic, 9:40am, 908278-4059 Parshat HaShavua, for women, Rabbi Ari Zahtz, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, 10:15am Basic Talmud, Rabbi Shmuel Goldin, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 10:30am Parshat HaShavua, Rabbi Shmuel Goldin, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 11am Navi Shiur: Sefer Trei Asar, Rabbi Shalom Baum, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 11am “A Deeper Understanding of Tanach through the Eyes of Rav Dessler,” for women, Chavi Becher, spons by Neve Passaic Torah Institute, private home in Passaic, 11:30am, 908-278-4059, begins Nov 23 Night Out on Main Ave, many of Passaic’s Jewish-owned shops and those that cater to the Jewish community will be open on Tues evenings throughout Nov, 7-9pm Gym Night, Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob and David, West Orange, grades 4-5, 7pm; grades 6-8, 8:15pm

continued on page 44

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

New Classes

November 2010

Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice & Opinion”

continued from page 43

Frum Boy Scout Troop, for boys 11-17, Rabbi Chaim Davis, YMHA, Clifton, 7pm, 973-472-0365 “Prayer Book Hebrew,” Rabbi David Pietruszka, spons by the Jewish Learning Experience, at the Torah Academy of Bergen County, Teaneck, 7:30pm, 201-966-4498 Beginners Plus Ulpan, Orna Green, Jewish Center of Teaneck, 7:30pm, 201-820-3908 Advanced Beginners Ulpan, Drora Arussy, UJA, Paramus, 7:30pm, 201-820-3908 Tehillim Group, Rebbetzin Michelle Jacobson, private home in Wesley Hills, 8pm, 845-354-5218 Parshat HaShavua, Rabbi Aharon Ciment, Cong Arzei Darom, Teaneck, 8pm Tefillah Shiur, Rabbi Dr. Abraham Twerski, Cong Zichron Mordechai, Teaneck, 8pm, 201-836-4334 Masechet Berachot, Rabbi Tuly Polak, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, 8:15pm Parsha Shiur, Rav Meir Goldwicht, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, 8:30pm Parsha HaShavua, Rabbi Uri Goldstein, Cong Ahavat Achim, Fair Lawn, 8:30pm, 201-797-0502 “Introduction to Mishna,” Rabbi David Pietruszka, spons by the Jewish Learning Experience, at the Torah Academy of Bergen County, Teaneck, 8:30pm, 201-966-4498 Parsha, Rabbi Binyamin Hammer, Englishtown Synagogue, West Orange, 8:30pm, 973-243-0876 Halacha, Avi Kamelhar, Cong Agudath Israel, Highland Park, 8:30pm, 732-829-8300 “Tehillim: More Than Just Tears,” Rabbi Yaakov Glasser, Young Israel of Passaic-Clifton, Passaic, 8:30pm Igros Moshe, Rabbi Dr. Mel Zelefsky, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, 9pm Community-Wide Men’s Tehillim Group, Cong Ohr Torah, Edison, 9:50pm

Wednesdays

Tefilla Shiur, Rabbi Shalom Baum, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 7:45am Parsha, Rebbetzin Miri Cohen, private home in Highland Park, 9:15am, 732-249-5116 Chumash, Susan Weissman, for women, spons by Neve Passaic Torah Institute, private home in Passaic, 9:15am, 908-278-4059 Intermediate Ulpan, Orna Green, JCC, Tenafly, 9:15am, 201820-3908 Beginners Plus Ulpan, Drora Arussy, YMHA, Wayne, 9:30am, 201-820-3908 Advanced Beginners Ulpan, Nava Regev, YJCC, Washington Twnshp, 9:30am, 201-820-3908 “Understanding Israel: Reading between the Lines,” Rabbi Art Vernon, YMHA, Clifton, 10am, 973-779-2980 ext 121 Advanced Ulpan, Orna Green, JCC, Tenafly, 11am, 201-820-3908 Women’s Chumash Class, Rabbi Yosef Adler, Cong Rinat Yisrael, Teaneck, 12:30pm Lunch and Learn, for seniors, Rabbi Michael Taubes, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, lunch, 1pm; shiur, 1:30pm Navi Shiur: Sefer Shoftim, Rabbi Rabbi Steven Miodownik, Cong Ahavas Achim, Highland Park, 732-819-9298 “Pay It Forward” Club, training high school students to be tutors to help elementary-school students with homework, Ma’ayanot High School for Girls, Teaneck, 4:30pm, 201-833-4307 ext 233 Karate Club, for boys age 6 and up, Sensei Marty, Cong Tifereth Israel, Passaic, 6:30pm, 973-773-2552

Matan Bat Mitzvah Class, Rebbetzin Debbie Baum, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 7pm Tehillim: “Finding Ourselves in Conversation with G-d,” Rabbi Chaim Poupko, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 7:30pm Yachad Program, for boys and girls, Rebbetzin Michelle Jacobson, Young Israel of Monsey and Wesley Hills, 7:30pm, 845-354-5218 Advanced Beginners Ulpan, Pirhia Rozman, Fair Lawn Jewish Center, 7:30pm, 201-820-3908 Tanach Shiur: Sefer Yehoshua, for women, Rachel Frazer, Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 7:30pm, 201-836-4309 Chicks with Sticks, making hats for Israeli soldiers, Riverdale Jewish Center, 7:30pm, 718-796-3775 Ahavas Israel, Women’s Project, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 8pm Chumash, Rabbi Marc Spivak, Cong Ohr Torah, West Orange, 8pm, 973-669-7320 Gemara: Masechet Peah, Rabbi Duvie Weiss, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 8pm Women’s Mishnah Class, Rabbi Yosef Adler, Cong Rinat Yisrael, Teaneck, 8pm “The Maharal’s Tiferes Yisroel,” Rabbi Dovid Hirsch, Cong Kehilas Bais Yosef (KBY), Passaic, 8pm, kby613@gmail.com Women and Girls Only Swim, Jewish Center of Teaneck, 8-9:30pm, 201-833-0515 ext 205 Men’s Basketball, Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob and David, West Orange, 8pm, amirgold2@gmail.com “What’s More Important Than Mitzvos?” Rabbi Zev Reichman, based on his new translation of Haser Ka’as MiLibecha, Remove Anger from Your Heart, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 8:15pm Mishna Berurah Hilchot Pesach,” Rabbi Richard Wolpoe, Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 8:20pm “Hidden Secrets of the Three Mitzvoth of Women,” for women, Mandana Bolour, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 8:30pm Halacha, Rabbi Hoffman, Cong Agudath Israel, Highland Park, 8:30pm, 732-829-8300 “Kitchen Kashruth,” Rabbi Mordechai Gershon, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 9pm “Aruch HaShulchan: Hilchos Seuda,” Rabbi Ezra Wiener, Bais Medrash of Bergenfield, 9pm, ryan@bmob.org Halacha Sugya Shiur, Rabbi Zvi Sobolofsky, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, 9:15pm

Thursdays

Gemara Sukkah (Iyun), Rabbi Shlomo Nussbaum, Cong Ahavas Achim, Highland Park, 8:35am, 732-819-9298 Chassidic Insights into the Parsha, Rabbi Mechel Horowitz, Cong Ahavas Achim, Highland Park, 9:35am, 732-819-9298 Jewish History, Rabbi Shmuel Landes, YMHA, Clifton, 12:15pm, 973-779-2980 ext 623 Jewish Bereavement Group, for widows and widowers, Jewish Family Service, Teaneck, 1:45pm, 201-837-9090 Mishmar, for 8th-grade Jewish boys in public, Jewish day school, or yeshiva, regardless of learning background, Rabbi Herschel Grossman, at Yeshiva Ohr Yosef, New Milford; fun dinner and a chance to mingle with the yeshiva’s high school boys, 6pm; learning program for each boy at his own level, 6:30pm; Ma’ariv, 7:20pm; pick up at the yeshiva, 7:40pm, 201-921-4921 “Crash Course in Judaism,” spons by the National Jewish Outreach Program, West Orange Public Library, 7pm, begins Dec 9, www.wopl.org Chumash Shiur, Rav Eli Mansour, live via Internet, Cong Beth Tefillah, Paramus, 7:45pm, 201-265-4100 Parsha HaShavua, Rabbi Simcha Schwartz, Temple Beth Abra-

http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com ham, North Bergen, 8pm, 201-868-1813 Men and Boys Only Swim, Jewish Center of Teaneck, 8-9:30pm, 201-833-0515 ext 205 Krav Maga, Dr. Eitan Savir, Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob and David, West Orange, 8:30pm, 973-736-0969 Shiur/Mishmar and Cholent, for boys in grades 7-8, Rabbi Dovid Rubin, Cong Knesses Yisrael, Spring Valley, 8:45pm, 845-354-1037 Chumash Shiur, Rabbi Yissocher Frand, via satellite, Cong K’Hal Zichron Mordechai, Monsey (845-356-7188);Young Israel of Fair Lawn (201-797-1800); Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck (201-907-0180); Cong Ohr Torah, West Orange (973-669-7320); Cong Tifereth Israel, Passaic (973773-2552), Cong Ahavas Achim, Highland Park, 9pm Parsha and Chassidus, Moshe Weinberg, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, 9:15pm Parsha, Rabbi Y Eichenstein, Cong Agudath Israel, Highland Park, 9:15pm “Halacha from the Parsha,” Rabbi Michael Taubes, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, 10:15pm

Fridays

Bergen County Kollel for Baalei Batim, includes mussar, gemara, and halacha, Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 8am, 201-280-1780 or 201-261-1453 “What Is this Midrash Telling Us?” Sandy Alter, Cong Ohav Emeth, Highland Park, 8pm, forsang@juno.com Parsha, for grades 5-8 and their parents, Rabbi Shmuel Goldin, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 8:30pm Beis Medresh Program, for men and boys, Rabbi Michael Zauderer, Cong Ohr HaTorah, Bergenfield, 9pm, 201-385-1761

Shabbat

Junior Congregation, for children in grades 5-7 who are pre-bar/ bat mitzvah, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 9:15am, begins Nov 20 Clifton-Passaic B’nos, for girls in grades K-5, at Cong Adas Israel, Passaic, 2:30pm Chofetz Chaim, for women, Rabbi Eliezer Moskowitz, spons by Neve Passaic Torah Institute, private home in Passaic, 3:15pm, 908-278-4059 Class, for children ages 8-11, Rabbi Marc Spivak, private home in West Orange, 3:50pm, 973-669-7320 Mishna Berurah, for ages 11-15, Rabbi Marc Spivak, Cong Ohr Torah, West Orange, between mincha and ma’ariv, 973-669-7320

Motzei Shabbat

Topics in Halacha, Rabbi Michael Taubes, Cong Zichron Mordechai, Teaneck, 75 minutes after havdala, 201-836-4334 Avos U’Banim, Cong Agudath Israel, Highland Park, 6pm, 732829-8300 Parent and Child Learning, Avi Lichtenstein, Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck, 6:30pm MishMash, parent-child learning, Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob and David, West Orange, 7pm, aabjdyouth@gmail.com Avos U Banim, Cong Ohr HaTorah, Bergenfield, 7pm Saturday Night Learning, for parents and children in grades K-6, Riverdale Jewish Center, 7pm, finesams@gmail.com Avos U’Banim Parent-Child Learning, Cong Knesses Yisrael, New Hempstead, 7:45pm, 845-354-1037 The West Hills Trio: Bnai Jazz, featuring Dave Scher, Steve Wien, Ray Butler, Josh Marcus, and Seth Chosak, Hamsa Restaurant, Tenafly, 8pm, 201-871-6060 Mishmor, parent-child learning, includes pizza, donuts, raffles, and prizes, Rabbi Pesach Raymon Yeshiva, Edison, 8pm Tanya, for men and women, Rabbi Yosef Krasniansky, private home in Monsey, 9pm, 845-354-0716 Navi, Rabbi Yisroel Reisman, live via satellite, Young Israel of Fair Lawn (201-797-1800); Cong Ahavas Achim, Highland Park; Cong Tifereth Israel, Passaic; JEC, Elizabeth (908-591-5929); Cong Khal

Kislev 5771

The Jewish Voice and Opinion

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Zichron Mordechai, Monsey (845-356-7188); Cong Keter Torah, Teaneck; Cong Ohr Torah, West Orange (973-669-7320), 9pm Halacha/Navi Shiur, Rabbi Yosef Viener, Cong Agudas Yisroel of Passaic Park, 9:15pm, 973-614-0196

Specials

Passaic-Clifton Community Kollel Night Seder, Hilchos Shabbos or Hilchos STA’M, Rabbi Menachem Zupnik, at Cong Bais Torah U’tifilah (BTU), Passaic, 8:30pm, 845-709-9340 Sha’ar HaShamayim Night Seder Program, HaRav Yosef Viener, Maseches Kesubos: Mishna on Daf 50b in the 5th Perek, including “Spousal Responsibilities: Husband to Wife and Wife to Husband,” Beis Medrash, Wesley Hills, Mon-Thurs, Night Seder, Chavrusah Learning, 8:30pm; Shiur, 9:15pm; Ma’ariv, 9:45pm, 845-354-1027

Chesed Opportunities

A NJ battered-women’s shelter needs cribs, crib sheets, car seats less than five years old, twin beds, diapers, and wipes, marciart5@ gmail.com or 201-820-3948 The Bikur Cholim of Raritan Valley’s Wheelchair Loan Program can be accessed to reserve a wheelchair at www.bcwheelchairs. com or 732-572-7181 Supporting Our Jewish US Troops One Package at a Time, when shopping at Wesley Kosher in Wesley Hills, NY, look for the Koshertroops can in front of the store and, to support Jewish US soldiers, drop in a grape juice drink box, halva, Israeli pickles and olives in cans, chewing gum, Meal Mart Amazing Meals, La Briute Meals, jelly squeeze bottles, cookies, tuna in a pouch, salmon in a pouch, instant soup in a cup, beef jerky, www.KosherTroops.com Stein Hospice, the only Jewish hospice caring for patients in Central NJ, needs Yiddish, klezmer, early Israeli folk, big band, and American folk and country music CDs and tapes; there is also a need for volunteer visitors, 732-227-1212 or 732-819-8668 Y

Mazal Tov

Mazal Tov to the Bat Mitzvah Girls: Racheli Blech, Rivkah Chelst, Ariella Ciment, Shira Cohen, Talya Gellis, Dina Jawetz, Esti Knapp, Leora Moskowitz, Michal Ness, Yocheved Pittinsky, Hannah Rosen, Miriam Elisheva Schloss, Olivia Schwartz, Avia Sinai, Dani Wind; and the Bar Mitzvah Boys: Yona Benjamin, Yosef Berger, Shlomo Deutsch, Eyal Freedman, Tai Gerzberg, Moshe Glinn, Yakir Judas, Aaron Kahane, Willy Kluger, Ezra Mann, Jonathan Meiner, Ezra Mermelstein, Asher Minchenberg, Eliezer Morell, Ben Nissim, Oren and Zachary Oppenheim, Bezalel Pittinsky, Ely Schudrich, Sruly Schwarz, Jonathan Seidel, Avi Siegal, Menachem Wassner, Aryeh Weinberg Mazal Tov to the Russian-Jewish couples who celebrated their Jewish weddings through Bris Avrohom’s “Celebration of Religious Freedom.”

Mazal Tov to Kushner Yeshiva High School’s Eliana Geretz and Benjamin Lewinter on being named Commended Students in the 2011 National Merit Scholarship Program Mazal Tov to Jaime M Weiss on being named Greater Fort Lee Chamber of Commerce Person of the Year. A realtor for more than 43 years, he is the founder and president of the Moonachie-based Weiss Realty. He is being honored for his years of service to his profession, including, in Fort Lee, the sale of a 2500-square-foot medical coop, development of the Starbucks Coffee drive-through, and the Bank of America kiosk, for which he received the “Beautification Award” for redeveloping a closed gas station. Under his leadership, Weiss Realty has assembled a national portfolio of more than 2 million square feet of office, industrial, and retail property. He and his wife, Susan, have three children, Matthew, Jordan, and Hayley.

Y

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

Rachel’s Tomb have also traditionally referred to the site as Rachel’s Tomb or “Kubat Rahel,” in Arabic.

Muslim travelers in the Middle Ages used that terminology.

Muhammad al-Idrisi, the great Muslim geographer of the 12th century CE wrote: “On the road between Bethlehem and Jerusalem is the Tomb of Rachel, the mother of Joseph and Benjamin.”

Even under Ottoman rule, the tomb was recognized as a Jewish holy place to which Jews had free access. It was never regarded as a “Palestinian-Muslim site.”

“Holy War” Although the PA and its supporters now claim the tomb is “a 1,000-year-old mosque,” historians say Muslims began referring to it that way only 44 years ago at most.

Nevertheless, the PA has insisted that, as part of the territory won by Israel in 1967, Rachel’s Tomb, like everything else in Judea and Samaria, must

November 2010

Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice & Opinion”

continued from page 1 be turned over to them judenrein in any final peace agreement.

This, they insist, includes the last vestige of the Second Temple in Jerusalem, the 2,000-year-old Kotel, as well as the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron.

After the announcement

by UNESCO, PA President Mahmoud Abbas warned that if Israel does not relinquish the tomb as a Jewish heritage site, it will set off a “holy war.” His sentiments were echoed by Hezbollah in Lebanon, Iran, Egypt, Syria, and Jordan. Hamas blatantly called for violence.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Mr. Abbas of conducting a “deceitful campaign of lies and hypocrisy” by referring to Jewish sites as Moslem mosques.

No Jewish Prayer Rachel’s tomb, which is located within Bethlehem’s city limits, remained under Israeli control when the rest

of Bethlehem was transferred to the PA in 1995. Israel has maintained control of the part of Hebron where the cave is located as well as the Old City of Jerusalem and the Kotel.

PA leaders say that when the Jews relinquish those sites to them, Jewish prayer will no longer be allowed because they will all become mosques. In fact, the Palestinian narrative now insists that there never was a Temple in Jerusalem and that Jews have no right to pray at the Cave of the Patriarchs.

Jews, of course, beg to disagree. In an ironic coincidence, the week UNESCO ordered Israel to relinquish its claim on the Cave of the Patriarchs, the portion of the Torah read in synagogues throughout the world was Chaye Sara, the chapters in the Book of Genesis which recount how Abraham, in his search for a burial site for his beloved wife, Sarah, bought the Cave and its adjacent land from Ephron the Hittite for 400 shekels of silver as a deed in perpetuity.

No Jewish Heritage According to UNESCO director Irena Bokova, the decision to declare Rachel’s Tomb a mosque was made out of “concern” after Israel named the facility as well as the Western Wall in Jerusalem and the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron “Jewish heritage sites.”

In its report ceding Rachel’s Tomb to the Muslims, UNESCO appeared to support the PA’s demand for the Temple Mount as well, asking that Muslim officials be allowed to examine the Mughrabi Gate near the Western Wall. Muslim leaders have accused Israel of attempting to damage the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount under the guise of effecting repairs to the Mughrabi Gate.

Israeli officials have warned

that if the gate is not properly maintained, it could collapse, putting Jewish worshippers at the Kotel at risk.

Centuries-Old Site The action taken by UNESCO has angered Jews throughout the world, many of whom feel particularly devoted to the matriarch Rachel and her tomb. On the 11th of Cheshvan, which, this year, fell on Oct 19, thousands of Jews visit the tomb to mark the traditional anniversary of the matriarch’s death, her yahrtzheit.

In the Talmud, written centuries before Islam was founded, it notes that Jacob buried his beloved Rachel on the road to Efrat because he foresaw that future generations of Jews would later pass the site on their way into exile and he wanted her to pray for them.

In 333 CE, a Christian known as the Bordeaux pilgrim recorded seeing Rachel’s Tomb on the outskirts of Bethlehem, as did Jerome, the early Church father who moved to Bethlehem from Rome in 386 CE. Free Worship “The attempt to disconnect Israel from its heritage is absurd,” said Mr. Netanyahu. “If the locations in which the mothers and fathers of the Jewish people were buried are not part of the Jewish heritage, then what is?”

He called it “unfortunate” that UNESCO, which was “established to promote historic sites around the world is trying, for political reasons, to uproot the connection between Israel and its heritage.”

He also stressed the difference between Israel and its Muslims neighbors regarding holy sites. “The State of Israel, in contrast to its neighbors, will continue to maintain freedom of worship for all religions at these sites, as well as their preserva-

continued on page 48

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

Rachel’s Tomb

tion for posterity,” he said.

Under Israeli sovereignty, the administration of the mosques on the Temple Mount has been allocated to the Muslim Waqf, which, ironically, forbids Jews to utter even silent prayers at the site. Israel has agreed to share space with Muslims at the Cave of the Patriarchs, an arrangement the Muslims say will end when the Jews vacate the area.

Reaction Not surprisingly, Jewish religious leaders received the news of the UNESCO statement with fury. Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, spiritual leader of the Western Wall and other Jewish holy sites, called it “an outrageous distortion of history” and advised the Israeli government to consider curtailing any further cooperation with the UN group.

Even secular groups reacted with indignation. The Simon Wiesenthal Center, the AntiDefamation League, the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, the World Jewish Congress,

Title VI Victory in fact, it isn’t.

First Complaint In 2004, ZOA filed an 11page complaint with the OCR, charging that Jewish students at the University of California Irvine (UCI), had been routinely subjected to years of antisemitic

November 2010

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continued from page 46 and the Zionist Organization of America, among others, issued scathing denunciations of UNESCO, arguing that its statement flies in the face of the organization’s mandate, is one-sided, and presents “an affront to history.”

Mort Klein, president of the ZOA, noted that it was “particularly dishonest and offensive” of UNESCO to issue its proclamation in light of the many Jewish holy sites that have been destroyed, vandalized, or left in disrepair by the PA. Nablus and Jericho The Od Yosef Chai Yeshiva at Joseph’s Tomb in Shechem (Nablus), for example, was destroyed in 1996 by Palestinian rioters and the tomb itself was demolished in 2000 by Palestinian mobs as soon as IDF forces were temporarily withdrawn.

Another Jewish site, the Shalom Al Yisrael synagogue in Jericho, which was discovered only after the 1967 Six-Day War, was also deliberately devastated by Palestinians in 2000.

Despite claims that Ra-

chel’s Tomb is holy to Muslims, the site has been the target of extensive Palestinian shootings, bombings, rioting, rockthrowing, and vandalism.

“The Palestinian denial of Jewish history and rights only too clearly underscores why peace is unfortunately not possible with Mahmoud Abbas and his Fatah-backed PA. UNESCO’s similar denial only underscores its complete servility to the Arab-Muslim war on Israel and invalidates it as an organization worthy of Western funding or participation,” said Mr. Klein, noting that this episode “is simply the latest, albeit one of the most egregious chapters in the history of Israel-bashing

by UNESCO.” Congressional Test According to some reports, the UNESCO actions against Israel’s holy sites were instigated by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan last spring after the flotilla incident. American diplomats reportedly tried to ward off the UNESCO decisions, tell-

ing colleagues that the actions would hurt not only the Jews and Israel but also the credibility of UNESCO itself.

By its actions, UNESCO has given a gift to those who oppose US membership—and dues—to support the group. In 1984, then-President Ronald Reagan withdrew the US from UNESCO, arguing that American funds were being wasted on a group known for excess and corruption. In 2003, the Bush administration rejoined.

By issuing its newest antiIsrael announcement, UNESCO has presented the new US Congress with its first post-election test. The new presumptive Speaker of the House, Rep John Boehner (R-OH), and the new majority leader, Rep Eric Cantor (R-VA), were among the first to call on the US to withdraw from UNESCO. According to Messrs Boehner and Cantor, terminating American support for UNESCO would save taxpayers an annual $78.1 million.

S.L.R.

Campus programs entitled “A World without Israel” and “Israel: The 4th Reich,” were not unusual.

A frequently invited speaker compared Jews to Satan, calling them baby-killers and “the new Nazis.”

Violence According to Mr. Klein, the verbal bigotry inevitably escalated into violence.

“Students were physically threatened and assaulted. A Holocaust memorial was destroyed and swastikas defaced campus property,” said Mr. Klein.

UCI Jewish students repeatedly complained to administrators about feeling harassed and intimidated. Some, fearing for their physical safety, stopped wearing Stars of David or pro-

Israel tee shirts.

At least two students left UCI to study elsewhere because, according to Mr. Klein, “they couldn’t endure the antisemitic hostility anymore.”

Nevertheless, the UCI administration either blatantly ignored the students’ concerns or made only superficial efforts to address them.

Foot-Dragging ZOA’s complaint to OCR sought to compel the UCI administration to rectify the unrelenting antisemitism.

Although OCR initially agreed to investigate the UCI incidents, after three years of what ZOA called “foot-dragging,” the complaint was dismissed.

continued from page 16 harassment, intimidation, and discrimination. Further, said ZOA, the university was aware of this behavior and did not thing to redress it.

UCI allowed speakers on campus who condoned and even advocated terrorism against Jews.

continued on page 62

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

November 2010

Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice & Opinion”

Ess Gezint: Perfect for Chanukah

Chanukah is no time for diets. Everything is sweet and fattening, and these recipes, from cheese-filled donuts to fried apple fritters, are no exception. Oil is the name of the game for this holiday, so enjoy the miracle and the freedom. There will be the rest Y of December to watch calories. Happy Chanukah, everyone.

Romanian Cheese Dumplings (Papanasi)

4 cups cottage cheese 1 tsp vanilla extract 1 cup sugar 1½ cups flour ½ tsp baking powder Oil for frying 2 eggs Sour Cream or Jam Mix the cheese with the sugar and baking powder. Add eggs and vanilla extract, and then the flour. Mix with a mixer for better homogeneity. If the batter is too moist, add another Tbs of flour. It should be easy to handle but not too sticky. Heat oil in a pan. Make small balls of dough. With your finger, make a hole through the center. Carefully enlarge the hole and flatten the ball of dough a little. Fry the donuts in oil on both sides until golden, about 5 minutes. Serve with sour cream and/or jam.

Deep Fried Apple Rings

1 egg 4-5 apples, peeled and ¼ cup liquid (apple juice, sliced into rings, about cider, white wine, or beer) ¼-inch thick ½ cup flour Oil for deep frying 2 tsp powdered sugar Beat together the egg with the liquid. Add flour and sugar and mix well to make a smooth batter. Heat the oil. Dip each apple ring into the batter and fry in oil until golden on both sides.

Remove and drain on a paper towel. Serve warm with jelly and/ or whipped cream.

Cheesecakes

Hot Punch ¾ cup liquid (water or apple or orange juice) ¾ cup white sugar 1 cinnamon stick 2 oranges halved with 5-6 whole cloves stuck into

the peel 1 bottle sweet red wine or cranberry juice 1 unpeeled orange, thinly sliced, for garnish Brandy, optional

In a saucepan, combine water and/or juices, sugar, and cinnamon stick. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer. Add the clove-studded orange halves and continue simmering for 30 minutes, until thick and syrupy. Pour in the wine or cranberry juice and heat until steaming but not simmering. Remove the orange halves. Take pan from the heat. Add brandy if desired.

Serve hot in mugs with orange slices for garnish.

http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com

Kol Ami: R. Tendler

cont. from p. 4

G-d did not create the world to be empty. The newspaper’s celebration of homosexuality attacked the Jewish concept of society and family, and that is worse than accepting ads for treif restaurants or events requiring the desecration of the Sabbath.

But the outrage goes even further because many members of the Orthodox community recognize that what is at work here is a planned agenda.

Several years ago, I attended a medical AIDS conference to which ethicists were invited.

I asked one of the presenters, who favored same-sex marriage, why he felt that legal step was necessary. After all, I said, homosexuals now may, like any two people, declare themselves domestic partners; legally, they can walk holding hands; they can even adopt children. Why is marriage necessary? The same-sex marriage proponent told me: “Because I want your son to have a choice.”

This said to me that his major goal was to proselytize, to push acceptance of homosexuality to the point that all of society ap-

proves of it as normal.

Proponents of homosexual “marriage” are not, as many of them profess, merely working to ensure that homosexuals are neither bullied nor threatened with violence, be it physical, fiscal, or professional. American law already provides them with this security, and no one in the responsible, mainstream Orthodox-Jewish community advocates hurting homosexuals. We are not the aggressors.

Rather, because the proponents of the homosexual agenda are seeking to force us to accept something the Torah clearly forbids, it is they who are the attackers, demanding that we renounce G-d’s law.

The effect, like the newspaper’s announcement celebrating a homosexual union, is to enhance the liberal community’s worship of the god of autonomy. Their mantra is: Don’t tell me what to do.

Jewish values, by definition, espouse the opposite, which is why there was outrage over a “Jewish” paper’s running that announcement.

Rabbi Moshe Dovid Tendler Monsey, NY

Thus, I was unaware of the Standard “wedding” announcement until it was brought to my attention by members of the community.

Given the rampant rate of intermarriage in the predominantly non-Orthodox community that paper reaches, when the paper carries ads for treif restaurants and activities that require participants to desecrate the Sabbath, it must be recognized that a sizable percentage of the paper’s readership is not halachically Jewish and, therefore, entitled to eat and behave on Saturday as they see fit. But, from a Jewish perspective, the

issue of homosexuality affects the non-Jewish world, too, making it harder simply to dismiss the paper’s actions as irrelevant.

Although it is offensive that the paper still identifies itself as “Jewish,” its base has always been the non-Orthodox community whose commitment to Torah and Jewish causes is waning from generation to generation. Many of these people now perceive the right of homosexuals to equal treatment across the board as a sacrament.

The Orthodox outrage over the paper’s announcement (with picture) of two beaming Jewish

Kol Ami: R. Pruzansky cont. from p. 4

continued on page 52

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

November 2010 Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice & Opinion”

Why Was the Community More Offended by the Gay Wedding Announcement Than by Other Transgressions?

In 25 years, we have never had so many Orthodox rabbis refuse to be quoted as when we asked them why they thought the Orthodox community reacted so negatively to the Teaneck-based Jewish Standard’s announcement of a homosexual union.

Not that these rabbis had no opinions. In one-on-one conversations, virtually all of them were eager to expound on what Jewish law has to say and why they believed the community found the homosexual marriage announcement more egregious than advertisements for lobster

dinners or special sales that take place on Saturday afternoons, or articles for Earth Day celebrating the goddess Gaia.

But most were pretty adamant that they did not want to be quoted by name.

Hidden Sins “All the transgressions committed by that paper are serious, but the community jumped on the homosexual wedding because we have been inured to the others. That pushed the envelope, and that’s why there was a reaction,” said one Passaic rabbi.

One of his colleagues said that with

other wedding announcements, possible violations are “simply hidden.”

“There may be an announcement of an intermarriage, but unless the announcement makes clear that either the bride or groom is not Jewish, we can assume that it isn’t an intermarriage, no matter what the last names are. If the wedding notice

continued on page 53

Kol Ami

cont.from p. 51

males who are “marrying” each other is not unlike the reaction to wedding notices of intermarriage. Both involve forbidden love that is repugnant to the Torah and should not be legitimated in Jewish life notwithstanding their prevalence.

A paper that aspires to Jewish standards (pardon the pun) should naturally embrace the Torah’s standards of right and wrong, of the permissible and the forbidden. Adhering to this standard is not “pandering” to the Orthodox; it is merely recognizing that, like it or not, the Orthodox bear the burdens (and privileges) of the preservation of Torah and Jewish life. Without exaggeration, but for Orthodox Jewry, Torah and the Jewish people would be lost within a generation—and that is why we should be “pandered to” in the matter of homosexual unions as well as in issues concerning kashruth, conversion, marriage, divorce, and on any question of elementary morality and Torah tradition.

When the local paper first apologized for carrying the homosexual-marriage announcement and then, under pressure from the left and other advocates of the homosexual agenda, apologized for the apology, the paper’s claim was that because homosexuals are part of the Jewish community, they have a right to be treated as such. But not everything a Jew does is necessarily “Jewish.” Our (hopefully small) share of miscreants does not deserve recognition and acclaim by the Jewish community. Newspapers often detail the sins and failings of man, but they need not celebrate them.

The announcement of the homosexual union was a celebration of sin and had no place in any organ that carries “Jewish” on its masthead.

Rabbi Steven Pruzansky Teaneck, NJ

http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com said, ‘And the bride refused to go to the mikveh,’ there might be raised eyebrows in the Orthodox community, but usually those things are not mentioned, and no one knows. In the case of the homosexual union, the transgression was there for everyone to see,” he said.

“Toevah” One rabbi, saying he had “no interest in speaking to readers of a newspaper,” insisted we not even mention his town (one which has many Orthodox pulpit leaders), because, he said, “Everyone will know who it is.” He agreed we could call him a prominent rabbi in New Jersey.

He pointed out that homosexuality is not just a sin, but, rather, is referred to in the Torah as “toevah,” a word generally translated as “abomination,” but some scholars say it can just as easily mean “that which is morally outrageous about other cultures.”

But this rabbi’s concern was not with semantics.

Severance “Homosexuality undermines the structure of Jewish survival and the Jewish way of life. That outweighs its importance as a sin in relation to other transgressions.

Like intermarriage, homosexuality represents a total severance from Jewish life,” he said.

He likened it to the issue of Jews who convert to Christianity but then insist they are still part of the Jewish community.

“On the surface, these Jews who have converted to Christianity seem to have a lot in common with committed Orthodox Jews, maybe even more than Reform or secular Jews have with the Orthodox.

These converts to Christianity believe in the power of prayer; they believe the Torah was given by G-d on Mount Sinai; they may even believe in keeping many of the commandments. But they cannot be part of the Jewish community because, in converting to Christianity, they have severed themselves completely from the Jewish people. It’s not just a question of the sin of apikorsis [heresy and denial of G-d’s unity], but something even worse: being cut off from the Jewish people,” he said.

The “Real Killer” A rabbi who completely disagreed was Shmuley Boteach, a member of the Englewood-Orthodox community who has become a popular author and com-

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mentator. According to Rabbi Boteach, rampant divorce in the Jewish and general communities and the disruption of untold numbers of children’s lives is “the real killer” of Western civilization, not homosexual unions.

“I do not deny the Biblical prohibition on male same-sex relationships. Rather, I simply place it in context,” he said, pointing out that, of the 613 commandments in the Torah, one prohibits homosexual sex and another requires men and women to marry and have children.

Therefore, he said, when Jewish homosexuals come to him for counseling, he suggests: “You have 611 commandments left. That should keep you busy.

Now, go create a kosher home with a mezuzah scroll on the door. Turn off the TV on the Sabbath and share your chal-

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lah with many guests. Pray to G-d the prescribed three times a day for you are His beloved children. He desires you and seeks you out.”

No Harm He pointed out that the word “toevah” appears 122 times in the Torah, referring not only to homosexuality and idol worship, but also to eating non-kosher food, a woman returning to her first husband after being married to another in the interim, and bringing a blemished sacrifice on G-d’s altar.

As opposed to most other Orthodox rabbis, Rabbi Boteach insisted that homosexuality is a religious sin, but not a moral one, because “it involves no injury to an innocent party.”

“Who is being harmed when two,

continued on page 54

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

More Offensive? unattached, consenting adults are in a relationship? Rather, homosexuality is akin to the prohibition of lighting fire on the Sabbath or eating bread during Passover. There is nothing immoral about it, but it violates the Divine will,” he said.

Great Harm Yet another Bergen County rabbi, who asked not to be identified, disagreed.

“Homosexuality destroys families,” he said, adding that he knows whereof he speaks.

“Men who leave their wives for other men leave children much more damaged than those who leave for other reasons. It may be fashionable to ‘come out of the closet’ and tell parents they must accept this ‘or else,’ but it leaves those parents desolate, alone, heartbroken, and ashamed. If the parents insist on trying to get psychological help for their child, the parents risk the wrath of the organized homosexual community whose agenda is completely opposed to normative Orthodox Judaism,” he said.

He said that, like the couple who appeared in The Jewish Standard’s announcement, many homosexuals strenuously insist that their lifestyle be accepted and even celebrated by their families, friends, and community.

“When they are thwarted in any way, their rage is over-

November 2010

continued from page 53 whelming,” said the rabbi.

A glance at the Internet and the blogs that have commented on the wedding announcement in The Jewish Standard seems to bear him out. Rabbi Shmuel Goldin of Englewood, a comparatively politically liberal Orthodox spiritual leader who has enjoyed a close relationship with The Jewish Standard for many years, has been mercilessly vilified online ever since he explained that it was he who took offense at the wedding announcement and then spurred the paper to offer its initial quasi-apology for having run it.

When the advocates of same-sex marriages castigated The Jewish Standard for having issued its apology, the paper backtracked once again, apologizing for its first apology and admitting it is now unsure as to how it will proceed in the future.

Vilification Rabbi Moshe Dovid Tendler, a rosh yeshiva and professor of biology at Yeshiva University, director of medical ethics at the Albert Einstein School of Medicine, and spiritual leader of the Community Synagogue of Monsey, recalled the “tsunami of rage” that struck the Association of Orthodox Jewish Scientists (AOJS) last summer when the group agreed to allow a representative of Jews

Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice & Opinion” Offering New Alternatives to Homosexuality (JONAH) to address their conference.

JONAH, a non-profit international organization dedicated to educating the world-wide Jewish community about the social, cultural and emotional factors which lead to same-sex attractions, helps those struggling with unwanted same-sex sexual attractions overcome them. The group also works with families whose loved ones are involved in homosexuality.

“As soon as we announced that JONAH would be allowed to speak, our computers were literally deluged with threatening, abusive emails, warning we would be sued, that we were about to ruin lives, and that our members would be vilified in other professional venues. All because we simply allowed a group to present their ideas,” said Rabbi Tendler.

Intimidation Arthur Goldberg, founder and co-director, with Elaine Silodor Berk, of JONAH, said his group, which denies that there is anything even approaching a “gay gene,” has had many successes helping people rid themselves of unwanted samesex attractions. JONAH does not proselytize and opposes any form of persecution of homosexuals or coercive tactics.

“Through psychological and spiritual counseling, peer

support, and self-empowerment, JONAH seeks to reunify families, heal the wounds surrounding homosexuality, and provide hope,” he said.

The animosity encountered by AOJS did not surprise him, he said. “It’s the gayadvocates’ standard operating procedure to silence any opposition in any way possible.

Their intimidation can be very intense,” he said.

Victims Nevertheless, Rabbi Boteach sees homosexuals as victims.

“I have countless gay friends whose greatest fear, like so many straight people, is to end up alone. Should we merely throw the book at these people?

Does not the same Bible also say: ‘It is not good for man to be alone,’” he said.

For starters, he said, he is asking the Orthodox community not to take its opposition to homosexuality lightly.

“All I’m asking from my religious brethren is this: Even as you oppose gay relationships because of your beliefs, please, for the love of G-d, be tortured by your opposition.

Understand that when our most deeply held beliefs conflict with our basic humanity, we should feel the tragedy of the conflict,” he said.

How to Help In fact, all the Orthodox rabbis—and JONAH—said

http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com they would like nothing more than to be of help to suffering homosexuals. Most of those who spoke to The Jewish Voice, even anonymously, simply disagreed with Rabbi Boteach on how best to offer that help without betraying their own principles.

In 1986, the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Schneerson, z”tl, addressed the issue, saying that the focus should not be “airing of political arguments and then calling for a consensus,” but, rather, “to evaluate whether [homosexuality] is helpful or destructive, and to act accordingly, to correct and remedy the negative.”

Believing that “empirical truth has shown us that this form of abnormal relationships has been totally negative,” the Rebbe advised his followers to understand that it is the duty of the family and the community to help the individual overcome the tendency towards same-sex attraction.

Duty to Cure The Rebbe recognized the argument that “an act that brings pleasure and gratification is, or even must be, good.” However, he said, that rationalization is analogous to offering a deadly poison coated with sugar. Even if the victim knows what it is and wants it anyway, it is deadly, he said.

The community’s duty, he said, is “to cure the malady,” even if the patient presents “vehement and vociferous arguments…that he is really well and that his condition is a healthy instinct—or at least not destructive.”

This, like calling it “an alternative lifestyle,” the Rebbe said, “does not change the severity of the ailment.”

The Rebbe recognized that the individual might have been “born with this nature,” however, he said, that did not excuse those who care for him from trying to find a cure, just as one does for any other congenital destructive tendency.

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According to Mr. Goldberg, the Rebbe’s foresight that “despite the misguided way of the past, everyone has the power to change” his or her sexual orientation, foreshadowed what is known today as “reparative therapy.”

“The basic premises of reparative therapy (also known as reorientation or change therapy) are that a person tends to eroticize that with which they do not identify and therefore an internal sense of incompleteness of one’s own gender becomes the essential foundation for a homoerotic attraction. However, through therapy and spiritual counseling, individuals conflicted about homosexual desires can reclaim their wholeness in terms of their gender identity.

Since an individual’s perception or recollection of past events shapes his or her response to new situations, appropriate reorientation counseling assists the homosexual struggler to break down old patterns of

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avoidance and defensive detachment from their own sex,” said Mr. Goldberg.

Consistency But none of this was of any interest to the California-based homosexual group that called The Jewish Voice and Opinion in between the Standard’s first and second apologies. The caller wanted to know if The Voice was “the alternative Bergen County paper that would take gay wedding announcements.”

We told the caller that The Jewish Voice doesn’t even accept treif restaurant ads.

“Well, at least you’re consistent,” the group’s representative said.

A rabbi from Highland Park, who also asked for anonymity, said if American-Jewish newspapers adopted that position, it could be the solution.

“There might be a loss of revenue, and that might be hard, but the community would be better served,” he said.

S.L.R.

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November 2010

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28th Annual Beit El Dinner Will Feature former Arkansas Gov Mike Huckabee

O

n December 5, at the Marriot Marquis Hotel in Manhattan, American Friends of Beit El and the Beit El Yeshiva Center will honor the residents of this community who have sacrificed for the survival of their town and the State of Israel.

The first guest speaker will be former Governor of Arkansas and Fox News host Mike Huckabee, who has been to Israel nine times and is a tireless advocate for the state and the Jewish communities of Judea and Samaria.

A staunch believer that Israel was promised to the Jews, Mr. Huckabee has called the Jewish state “America’s ally and greatest friend in the region.”

The second speaker will be Malcolm Hoenlein, executive

vice-chairman of the Conference of Presidents of AmericanJewish Organizations.

The dinner will honor Dr. Joshua and Shifra Fox, Dr. Joseph and Karen Frager, Dr. Jeffrey and Esther Weber, and Rabbi Dr. Richard and Sandy Weiss.

Modern Pioneers Spearheaded by Jean and Eugen Gluck, Beit El, where the Biblical patriarch Jacob slept and dreamed of angels going up and down a ladder, has grown from a small community of seven caravans in 1977 to a town which now boasts a population of 5,500. A diverse religious-Zionist community, whose residents include Jewish immigrants from throughout the globe, including India, Beit El is home to an impressive yeshiva center, which educates students

from nursery school through post-college programs.

It is also home to Arutz Sheva, the Israeli media network that offers online news in English, Hebrew, French, and Russian in three formats: written, internet radio, and internet television. Israel’s only independent national radio and television station, Arutz Sheva is widely regarded as a counterbalance to the negative, post-Zionist attitudes prevalent in most of Israel’s liberal-left media.

“The people of Beit El are modern pioneers who have established a blossoming town right next to Ramallah, where Yasir Arafat based his reign of terror. Away from the comforts of city life, Beit El’s residents have persevered in their mission in the face of Arab at-

tacks,” said Rabbi Dr. Weiss, spiritual leader of the Young Israel of Hillcrest and one of the dinner’s honorees.

Premier Event Now celebrating its 28th year, the dinner itself has become one of New York’s premier events.

“And this one will be no exception,” said Mr. Gluck, who is serving as the dinner’s honorary chairman. “It is very exciting that the importance of Beit El is recognized and supported throughout the US by the Jewish and greater community.”

For more information and to attend this year’s dinner, call 718482-4134 or 718-268-8291.

“Israel’s heartland needs the help of the American-Jewish community more than ever,” said Mr. Gluck.

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However, once he established Symphonia, he expanded the orchestra’s reach throughout the NY-NJ metropolitan area, Israel, England, Canada, and South America.

In addition to his mag-

nificent voice, Mr. Katz has also become a very resourceful entertainment coordinator, not only for events featuring Symphonia, but also for those sponsored by other orchestras and corporations as well.

Many Venues Symphonia has provided music and entertainment for weddings, bar and bat mitzvahs, dinners, holiday parties, corporate and private events, Passover hotel programs, fundraisers, house parties, anniversaries, reunions, school functions, camp programs, bungalow colony shows, and many other celebrations and venues.

For the past 13 years, Symphonia has coordinated Pesach program entertainment for hotels from the Catskill Mountains in NY to the sunny shores of Florida. Starting as the in-house orchestra for the Bonaventure Hotel, operated by

the Lasko Family, Symphonia then expanded to include the Hudson Valley Resort, operated by the Hochdorf family.

Since then, the orchestra has coordinated music and entertainment for over 25 Pesach programs.

Following on that success, Mr. Katz and Symphonia undertook to coordinate entertainment for bungalow colonies in the Catskills, including Vacation Village, Beaver Lake, Moonlight, Green Tree (Lobos), Clearview, and many others. This past summer, Symphonia presented more than 15 Saturday-evening shows.

Unique Performers In addition to providing the memorable musical sound which it brings to all its events, Symphonia offers a wide variety of performers, many of whom are veteran entertainers in Atlantic City and Las Vegas.

continued on page 63

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“Honor the Professional According to Your Need”

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

November 2010

Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice & Opinion�

MANY VOICES: ONE MESSAGE

Project S.A.R.A.H. Community Awareness Campaign 2010 Rabbis, community organizations and Jewish Family Service agencies across the state have spoken out on behalf of Jewish victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse. We thank the following participants for taking public action to send the message that the Jewish community does not tolerate domestic violence and sexual abuse: Rabbi M. Abramowitz, Congregation Bais Yitzchok Chevra Thilim, Elizabeth Rabbi B. Adler, White Meadow Temple, Rockaway Rabbi Y. Adler, Congregation Rinat Yisrael, Teaneck Rabbi E. Allen, Hillel of Northern New Jersey, Paramus Rabbi J. Arnowitz, Congregation Beth El, Voorhees Rabbi D. Bassous, Congregation Etz Ahaim, Highland Park Rabbi S. Baum, Congregation Keter Torah, Teaneck Rabbi S. Bayar, Congregation B'nai Israel, Millburn Rabbi M. Becher, Gateways, Passaic Rabbi A. Benson, East Brunswick Jewish Center, East Brunswick Rabbi H. Bialik, Congregation Agudath Achim, Bradley Beach Rabbi M. Biller, Adath Shalom, Morris Plains Rabbi A. Bloom, Congregation B'nai Israel, Rumson Rabbi E. Bogomilsky, Beth Ephraim - Maplewood Jewish Center, Maplewood Rabbi M. Bogomilsky, Chai Center for Living Judaism, Millburn Rabbi S. Bogomilsky, Mount Sinai Congregation, Newark Rabbi A. Bolton, JFS of Bergen County, Teaneck Rabbi N. Borovitz, Temple Avodat Shalom, River Edge Rabbi A. Bossov, Adath Emanuel, Mount Laurel Rabbi D. Bravo, Temple Emanu-El, Edison Rabbi K. Brickman, Temple Beth El, Jersey City Rabbi Y. Carlebach, Chabad House Jewish Student Center, New Brunswick Rabbi G. Chirnomas, Adat Israel Congregation, Boonton Rabbi S. Choueka, Ohel Simha Congregation, Elberon Rabbi A. Cohen, Tifereth Israel, Passaic Rabbi J. Cohen, Temple Emanuel, Franklin Lakes Rabbi M. Cooper, Oheb Shalom, South Orange Rabbi C. Davis, Bais Medrash L'Torah, Passaic Rabbi D. Drizin, Valley Chabad, Woodcliff Lake Rabbi L. Dubinsky, Chabad Lubavitch of Mountain Lakes and Denville, Denville Rabbi D. Dubov, Chabad Lubavitch of Mercer County, Princeton Rabbi M. East, Mt. Freedom Jewish Center, Randolph Rabbi R. Y. Eisenman, Ahavas Israel, Passaic Rabbi K. Emert, Temple Beth Rishon, Wyckoff Rabbi S. Engelmayer, Temple Israel Community Center Congregation Heichal Yisrael, Cliffside Park Rabbi E. Epstein, Congregation Sons of Israel, Cherry Hill Rabbi S. Evers, Young Israel of Margate, Margate City Rabbi I. Farhi, Edmond J. Safra Synagogue, Deal Rabbi A. Feldman, The Jewish Center, Princeton Rabbi D. Feldman, Etz Chaim, Teaneck Rabbi C. Felix, Jewish Center of Sussex County, Kinnelon Rabbi D. J. Fine, Temple Israel & JCC, Ridgewood Rabbi S. Fineblum, Temple Sinai, Cinnaminson Rabbi J. Forman, Or Chadash, Flemington Rabbi G. Fox, Temple Beth Shalom, Brigantine Rabbi M. Fox, Rodef Sholom Congregation, Atlantic City Rabbi J. Frenkel, Congregation M'kor Shalom, Cherry Hill Rabbi G. Friedman, Temple Beth Sholom of Pascack Valley, Park Ridge Rabbi J. Friedman, Jewish Community Center of LBI, Spray Beach Rabbi E. Frishman, Barnert Temple, Franklin Lakes Rabbi A. Gaber, Congregation Beth Judah, Ventnor Rabbi M. Genack, Congregation Shomrei Emunah, Englewood Rabbi G. Gladstone, Temple Beth Am, Bayonne Rabbi Y. Glasser, Young Israel of Passaic/Clifton, Passaic Rabbi E. Glazer, Temple Emanu-El, Westfield Rabbi I. Glazer, Temple Beth El of North Bergen, North Bergen Rabbi A. Gluck, Temple Beth-El, Hillsborough Rabbi H. Gold, Teaneck Rabbi S. Golden, JCC on the Palisades, Tenafly Rabbi S. Goldin, Congregation Ahavath Torah, Englewood Rabbi B. Goldstein, Temple Beth El Mekor Chayim, Cranford Rabbi J. Goldstein, Sha'arey Shalom, Springfield Rabbi U. Goldstein, Congregation Ahavat Achim, Fair Lawn Rabbi A. Greenbaum, Chabad @ TCNJ and Ewing, Ewing

Rabbi K. Greene, Freehold Jewish Center, Freehold Rabbi J. Greenfield, Reconstructionist Temple Beth Israel, Maywood Rabbi D. Greenstein, Congregation Shomrei Emunah, Montclair Rabbi M. Grossbaum, Chabad of Paramus, Paramus Rabbi D. Grossman, Adath Israel Congregation, Lawrenceville Rabbi D. Hachen, Temple Beth El of Northern Valley, Closter Rabbi D. Hakimi, Teaneck Sephardic Center/Lev Haim, Teaneck Rabbi N. Helfgot, Congregation Netivot Shalom, Teaneck Rabbi A. Herman, Elmora Avenue Shul, Elizabeth Rabbi A. Herson, Chabad Center of North West NJ, Rockaway Rabbi M. Herson, Rabbinical College of America, Morristown Rabbi J. Hess, Congregation Anshe Chesed, Linden Rabbi D. Hirsch, Kehilas Bais Yosef , Passaic Rabbi R. Isaacs, Temple Sholom, Bridgewater Rabbi H. Jachter, Shaarei Orah, Teaneck Rabbi M. Kanelsky, Congregation Shomrei Torah Ohel Yosef Yitzchok, Hillside Rabbi D. Kirshbaum, String of Pearls, Princeton Rabbi A. Korenblit, Clifton Jewish Center, Clifton Rabbi J. Kornsgold, Beth El Synagogue, East Windsor Rabbi A. Krupnick, Congregation Beth El, Voorhees Rabbi S. C. Kushner, Temple Ner Tamid, Bloomfield Rabbi E. Labaton, Congregation Magen David, Ocean Rabbi D. Levy, Temple Shalom, Succasunna Rabbi S. Lewis, Chabad of Sussex County, Sparta Rabbi S. D. Lubin, Congregation Shaya Ahavat Torah, Parsippany Rabbi S. D. Lubin, Chabad Jewish Center, Madison Rabbi L. Malinger, Temple Shalom, Matawan Rabbi M. Mallach, Temple Beth Ahm, Springfield Rabbi B. Mark, Congregation Beth Tikvah, New Milford Rabbi R. Mark, Shomrei Torah, Wayne Rabbi E. Milgrim, Temple B'nai Shalom, East Brunswick Rabbi J. Millstein, Temple Sinai of Bergen County, Tenafly Rabbi S. Miodownik, Congregation Ahavas Achim, Highland Park Rabbi A. Moskowitz, Congregation Shomrei Torah, Fair Lawn Rabbi R. Musnitsky, Temple Har Shalom, Cherry Hill Rabbi A. Mykoff, Congregation Poile Zedek, New Brunswick Rabbi D. Nesson, Morristown Jewish Center - Beit Yisrael, Morristown Rabbi L. Neubort, Anshei Lubavitch, Fair Lawn Rabbi Y. Neuburger, Congregation Beth Abraham, Bergenfield Rabbi D. Orenstein, Congregation Bnai Israel, Emerson Rabbi M. F. Panken, Temple Shaari Emeth, Manalapan Cantor E. Perlman, Jewish Congregation Concordia/Monroe Township, Passaic Rabbi D. Pietruska, Jewish Learning Experience, Teaneck Rabbi R. Pilavin, Congregation Sons of Israel, Manalapan Rabbi S. Pollack, Har Sinai Temple, Pennington Rabbi M. Pont, Temple Beth Ahm, Aberdeen Rabbi S. Pruzansky, Congregation Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck Rabbi S. Rapoport, Chabad of Atlantic County, Margate City Rabbi Y. Rapoport, Sons of Jacob Synagogue, Vineland Rabbi H. Rosenfeld, Congregation Beth Am, Teaneck Rabbi D. Rossoff, Temple B'nai Or, Morristown Rabbi F. Roston, Congregation Beth El, South Orange Rabbi J. Roth, Princeton Hillel Center for Jewish Life, Princeton Rabbi R. Roth, Fair Lawn Jewish Center/Congregation Bnai Israel, Fair Lawn Rabbi S. Roth, Congregation Eitz Chaim, Passaic Rabbi I. Rothstein, Temple Beth Shalom, Manalapan Rabbi L. Rothwachs, Congregation Beth Aaron, Teaneck Rabbi S. Rybak, Adas Israel, Passaic Rabbi D. B. Saltzman, Lakeland Hills Jewish Center, Ringwood Rabbi S. Schevelowitz, Perrineville Jewish Center, Perrineville Rabbi K. Schiowitz, Shaare Tefillah, Teaneck Rabbi B. Schlesinger, Congregation Beth Shalom, Teaneck Rabbi A. Schonbrun, Congregation Torat El, Oakhurst Rabbi N. Schuman, Congregation Beth-El, Rutherford Rabbi Dr. J. Schwartz, Congregation Adath Israel, Elizabeth

Rabbi R. Semah, Congregation Magen Abraham, West Long Branch Rabbi B. Shull, Temple Emanuel of the Pascack Valley, Woodcliff Lake Rabbi R. Simon, Temple Har Zion, Mount Holly Rabbi S. Singer, Passaic Torah Institute, Passaic Rabbi S. Sirbu, Temple Emeth, Teaneck Rabbi Z. Sobolofsky, Congregation Ohr HaTorah, Bergenfield Rabbi M. Solomon, Ahavat Torah - Chabad at Short Hills, Short Hills Rabbi Y. Spalter, Chabad of Montville Township, Montville Cantor K. Spencer-Shapiro, Congregation Adas Emuno, Leonia Rabbi C. Stanway, Temple Beth Miriam, Elberon Rabbi B. Susman, Congregation Kol Am, Freehold Rabbi K. Tarlow, Congregation Beth Torah, Florham Park Rabbi M. Taubes, Congregation Zichron Mordechai, Teaneck Rabbi E. Teitz, Jewish Educational Center, Elizabeth Rabbi E. Tepperman, B'nai Keshet, Montclair Rabbi N. A. Tow, Glen Rock Jewish Center, Glen Rock Rabbi A. Tucker, The Jewish Center, Princeton Rabbi E. Webb, Chabad of Princeton University, Princeton Rabbi D. Weber, Temple Rodeph Torah, Marlboro Rabbi P. Weinberger, Young Israel of Teaneck, Teaneck Rabbi A. D. Weiner, JCC of Paramus, Paramus Rabbi J. Weinstein, Young Israel of East Brunswick, East Brunswick Rabbi E. Wiener, Bais Medrash of Bergenfield, Bergenfield Rabbi N. Winkler, Young Israel of Fort Lee, Fort Lee Rabbi E. Wisnia, Congregation Beth Chaim, Princeton Junction Rabbi D. Wolff, Congregation Beth Tefillah, Paramus Rabbi R. Wolkoff, Congregation B'nai Tikvah, North Brunswick Rabbi J. Woll, Progressive Havurah of Northern New Jersey, Fair Lawn Rabbi S. M. Wylen, Temple Beth Tikvah, Wayne Rabbi B. B. Yoffe, Congregation Sons of Israel - Park Ave., Lakewood Rabbi B. Yudin, Congregation Shomrei Torah, Fair Lawn Rabbi A. Zahtz, Congregation Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck Rabbi M. Zalma, Congregation Beth Mordecai, Perth Amboy Rabbi B. Zaltzman, Bris Avrohom of Fair Lawn, Fair Lawn Rabbi M. Zamore, Temple B'nai Or, Morristown Rabbi A. B. Zeilicovitch, Temple Beth Sholom, Fair Lawn Rabbi G. L. Zelizer, Congregation Neve Shalom, Metuchen Rabbi L. Zierler, Jewish Center of Teaneck, Teaneck Rabbi E. Zwickler, Ahawas Achim B'nai Jacob & David, West Orange Dr. Cheryl Kramer, Englewood Jewish Family and Children's Service of Greater Mercer County Jewish Family and Children's Service of Monmouth County Jewish Family and Children's Service of North Jersey Jewish Family and Children's Service of Ocean County Jewish Family and Children's Service of Southern NJ Jewish Family Service of Bergen County Jewish Family Service of Central NJ Jewish Family Service of Clifton/Passaic Jewish Family Service of MetroWest Jewish Family Service of Middlesex County Jewish Family Service of Somerset, Hunterdon & Warren Counties Jewish Federation of Greater Clifton/Passaic Ma'ayanot Yeshiva High School for Girls National Council of Jewish Women-Bergen County Section National Council of Jewish Women-Concordia Section New Jersey Jewish News Rachel Coalition c/o Jewish Family Service of MetroWest Shelter Our Sisters, Bergen County The Frisch School The Jewish Community News The Jewish Community Voice The Jewish Voice and Opinion The Jewish Standard Torah Academy of Bergen County

To contact Project S.A.R.A.H. call (973) 777-7638 Ext. 154 or visit our website: www.projectsarah.org

This outreach initiative was supported by Grant No. 2009 UWAX0008 awarded by the Office on Violence Against Women, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed in this publication/program/exhibition are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women.

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Index of Advertisers

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

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Ob/Gyn, Dr. Efrat Meier-Ginsberg.....57 Psychotherapy, Chana Simmonds.......57 Miscellaneous AJ’C Cleaning Service........................57 Dr. Leon of Tzfat Jewelry.....................3 Frumster.com......................................11 Glitter Galore......................................14 HD Tech Home Systems.....................42 Jewish Baseball Cards........................23 NARTH/JONAH.................................52 Project S.A.R.A.H...............................58 RetroCollage.com.................................4 Y&D Jewelry Repair.............................8 Musicians Jeff Wilks..............................................8 Symphonia..........................................48 Photography/Video Aptowitzer.....................................57 Judah S. Harris....................................49 Real Estate.

Riverdale House for Sale....................63 Teaneck Luxury Apartments...............63 Vacation Village Home for Sale..........63 Zimuki, Property in Jerusalem............21 Travel & Vacations Emunah in Israel.................................26 Emunah Yeshiva Break in Israel.........35 “Flakey” Jake Thanksgiving...............33 Jewish Heritage Tours.........................19 Kosher Cruise Adventures..................53 Kosherica Caribbean Cruise...............64 Kosherica Passover.............................17 MatzaFun Tours Passover...................27 Mendy Vim’s Holidays Passover........29

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

November 2010

Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice & Opinion”

Letters to the Editor

Remembering Moshe Stillman, z”l

I was terribly saddened to learn through the Jewish Voice and Opinion of Morris (Moshe) Stillman’s passing while in his beloved Israel [“For These We Mourn: Intrepid Warriors for Jewish Rights and Survival,” Oct 2010].

For years, Moshe was a powerful ally in our battle for the liberation of Jews from the USSR, and a passionate advocate for the defense of Israel. His devotion to the Jewish people will be long remembered by his friends and compatriots.

Glenn Richter Student Struggle for Soviet Jewry Amcha-Coalition for Jewish Concerns New York, NY

Morality Supersedes the Constitution

In a very recent study conducted by Hahvahd (sic), Yale, Stanford, and Stockton Universities, it was found that Jewish men had the strongest back muscles and the weakest minds in the Western world. The study looked at Messrs Michael Bloomberg, Ed Koch, Jerrold Nadler, and Anthony Wiener and their comments about building a 30-story high mosque on the hallowed ground area of the 9-11 murders, especially considering that 15 of the bombers came from our friends in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The subjects of this study do not yet recognize that morality and the love of the laws of G-d supersede the Constitution, which though excellent was devised only by men.

The subjects of the study were nevertheless awarded the Gold Yoga Medal for bending over backwards at least 100 times during their careers.

Herbert Sorkin Clifton, NJ

Changing Yom HaShoah to Tisha B’Av

After reading Yaakov Astor’s important book on the Holocaust, The Hidden Hand, I am more convinced than ever that the commemoration date for the Shoah should be moved to Tisha B’Av, the traditional day of mourning for the Jewish people.

I predict that if we, as rabbis, do not invent some new Holocaust liturgical traditions, the memory of the Holocaust will be forgotten by most Jews within 75 years and will be nothing more than a tragedy in which 50 million lives were lost in World War ll. The revisionists are already busy at work.

There are those who will insist that the existing dates for the Shoah commemoration must remain as is, November for Kristallnacht and the end of Nissan for Yom HaShoah. Actually, as long as Holocaust survivors are still alive I, too, would advocate observing those dates. However, without a religious foundation for observance, such as Tisha B’Av would provide, I fear these dates will not in the future be observed by many.

Besides, the number of events and incidents during the Holocaust linked to Tisha B’Av are unbelievable. If nothing else this concept is worth discussing.

Rabbi Dr. Bernhard Rosenberg Princeton, NJ

Supporting Amy Neustein

As an avid reader of your important, impressive, and cutting edge periodical, I applaud all your accounts of how Dr. Amy Neustein has labored to right the wrongs perpetrated against so many people who have suffered in so many ways [“Amy Neustein: Victory in Court Could Lead to a Personal Victory, Too,” Oct 2010].

Not the least of her battles is knowing many people who should be fighting on her behalf but are actually fighting against her and others in similar predicaments.

I was, therefore, particularly heartened to read in your paper of Dr. Neustein’s recent personal victory in court so that her parents’ legacy will finally be honored in her favor. I am equally heartened by her concern for her disabled niece, Sandy. It is my sincere hope that your article will quickly prompt the Riverdale Jewish community, to join Dr. Neustein in her struggle to help her niece, who is under the guardianship of her father.

Like others, I do not claim to know all or even most of the facts personally, but I believe that Dr. Nuestein’s proven record of idealistic activities and the recent court victory justify supporting her and her work on behalf of others.

Kudos to The Jewish Voice and Opinion for sharing this latest intriguing and heartrending story with its readers. May you, Dr. Nuestein, and all other institutions, periodicals, and individuals who help those in need of assistance and justice, have the strength and the help of G-d to continue in good works.

Rabbi Aaron I. Reichel, Esq. Manhattan, NY SLR Responds: Thanks so much for your kind words.

Israel Was Better Off with “No Peace” Mahmoud Abbas is quoted as saying “settlements or peace.”

The last exhibition of Palestinian “peace” was the Palestinian National Council’s December 1998 vote to allegedly annul the onerous clauses of the Palestinian covenant which declared the establishment of Israel illegal and void and called for armed resistance until Israel was destroyed.

This vote was supposed to be the culmination of the Palestinian promises in the Oslo and Wye accords in which Israel ceded control of segments of the West Bank in exchange for Palestinian promises of peace, including major modifications of the Palestinian covenant.

Subsequent events proved the uselessness of Palestinian promises of peace and the lack of validity of that December 1998 PNC vote.

There were 1,194 Israeli civilian fatalities caused by Palestinian terrorists in the 11 “peace” years (1999-2009) since that December 1998 PNC vote, an average of 108 per year.

There were 1,407 Israeli civilian fatalities in the 50 “nopeace” years of 1949-1998, an average of 28 per year.

If the wall had not been built, and if many more checkpoints had not been created, Israeli fatalities in those 11 years would have been more substantial.

Unless and until the Palestinian leadership can demonstrate to the complete satisfaction of Israel that their formalized intent to destroy the Jewish State has been irrevocably eradicated from their mind-set, Israel should not spend one minute in peace negotiations with the Palestinians.

William Langfan Palm Beach, FL

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

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“Thought Is the World of Freedom” (R’ Dov Ber of Mazeritch) Stop the Mosque at Ground Zero

Imam Fejsal Abdul Rauf has become a known figure not only in America, but also far beyond its borders. This servant of Allah and his backers have conceived building the Communal Centre and Mosque at Ground Zero, which was the site of the New York World Trade Center, destroyed by their terrorist co-religionists who murdered 3000 Americans. Ground Zero is not simply a memorable place of tragedy; it is a sacred communal grave of our children, fathers, and mothers, who will always be the victims of these modern hatemongers.

Their choice of a place for a mosque was not made casually.

This is part of the historic Muslim tradition of building mosques on the sacred sites of their conquered nations. American traditions and morals repudiate this blasphemy and mockery, which seeks to assert itself over the remains of innocent victims.

This is why, across America and other countries, too, thousands of people adamantly oppose allowing this building to go forward. We are former Soviet émigrés, and we love this country, which is why we oppose this mosque.

Imam Rauf tries to prove that all the legal issues connected with the building have been resolved. The reaction of decent Americans is one of indignation and insult. When the Muslims ignore our feelings, it only inflames anti-Muslim attitudes and sentiments in America. The Muslim insistence on this mosque at that site violates American traditions.

It is possible to gain insight into the Imam’s purpose in erecting an Islamic temple at the place where America’s heart was broken.

What is known, however, is that he has refused to condemn Hezbollah and Hamas. Neither he, as a spiritual leader in the Muslim community, nor any of his congregants, has ever publicly and unequivocally condemned the actions of their co-religionists, the terrorists who, for the sake of their beliefs, destroyed the World Trade Center and murdered thousands of innocents.

We know something else, too. Whatever his intentions in building a mosque at Ground Zero may be, he certainly does see it as a symbol of his community’s repentance or as an instrument of reconciliation with the Western World.

By accepting the erection of a mosque at Ground Zero, US President Obama, MY Mayor Bloomberg, and the city authorities show they have no intention of protecting the moral values of American society. Rather, they are indulging radical Muslims by supporting the Imam’s ideas.

It is a shame and a disgrace that among the Imam’s supporters are a number of Jewish organizations and their leaders who

apparently have lost their own connection to their Jewish roots of morality and conscience, as well as their feelings of compassion for all the Ground Zero innocent victims.

“For he who avenges murder cares for the helpless. He does not ignore the cries of those who suffer” (Holy Bible, Psalm 9.13).

Does He forgive those who condone murder?

We are all old enough to remember some Jewish organizations and their leaders during the World War II who refused to use their political influence for rescue Holocaust victims. Today, it seems we have Jewish organizations and leaders willing to support terrorism in America.

We ask all good Americans: Condemn the building of a mosque at Ground Zero. It is incompatible with universal morality and American traditions, and it flies in the face of the will of the American people.

Please send your response to: sdonkihot@aol.com Leonid Belyavsky, historian (ТХ) Lev Vershinin, writer (NY) Anatoly Gerzhgorin, political scientist (NY) Sofia Gandler and Michael Miller, publicists (NY) Alexander Dymshits, publicist (WA) Peter Efimov, journalist (МА) Simeon Itskovich, the journalist (IL) Simon Klanaman, publisher (РА) Joseph Lakhman, АААI (МА) Ilya Levkov, publisher (NY) Polina and Lev Mendelevich, public figures (NY) Michael Margolin –publicist (NJ), Yury Okunev – writer (NY), Vladimir Opendik, writer (NY) Sabina Pello, “Americans By Values” (IL) Vitaly Raevsky, publicist (MD) Vitaly Smelyansky, “Khaveyrim” (МА) Victor Snitkovsky, journalist (МА) Michael Khazin, writer (МА) Michael Hurgin, PE (NY) Igor Tsesarsky, publisher (IL) Nehama Schwarz, journalist (NY) The Jewish Voice and Opinion welcomes letters, especially if they are typed, double-spaced, and legible. We reserve the right to edit letters for length and style.

Please send all mail to POB 8097, Englewood, NJ 07631.

The phone number is (201) 569-2845. TThe email address is susan@jewishvoiceandopinion.com

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The Jewish Voice and Opinion

Title VI Victory It was later reported that OCR investigators had actually concluded that “ZOA was right that Irvine students faced levels of discrimination that were so severe, pervasive, or objectively offensive as to limit their educational opportunities.”

Persistence ZOA and its affiliated Center for Law and Justice, led by Susan B. Tuchman, Esq, continued to raise the issue of campus antisemitism, especially at UCI, with members of Congress, and finally with the US Commission on Civil Rights.

In his letter last month, Russlyn Ali, the Education Department’s assistant secretary for civil rights, wrote that Jewish students would join the ranks of others who merit protection under the law.

“Antisemitic harassment can trigger responsibilities under Title VI,” he wrote, adding that while Title VI does not cover

ALAN L. MUSICANT

November 2010

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continued from page 48

discrimination based solely on religion, “groups [such as Jews] that face discrimination on the basis of actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics may not be denied protection under Title VI on the ground that they also share a common faith.”

Recourse In a joint statement praising OCR’s ruling, Mr. Klein and Ms. Tuchman recognized that, in the wake of the new decision, when Jewish students are harassed, intimidated, or forced to face a hostile antisemitic school environment, “their schools will no longer be able to ignore the problem.”

“There will now be financial and other consequences under federal law if colleges and universities do not respond to end the antisemitic harassment and prevent it from recurring,” they said.

The noted with satisfaction

that while no Jewish children should ever be confronted with antisemitic bigotry at their schools, now there is legal recourse for them.

“OCR is obligated to respond to the problem, and schools are obligated to fix the hostile environments so that Jewish students can get their education in a safe environment that is conducive to learning,” they said.

Happening Elsewhere The new ruling did not come a minute too soon. According to Mr. Klein and Ms. Tuchman, Jewish college students have experienced antisemitic incidents “from Columbia to the University of Dakota, to UC Berkeley, and elsewhere.”

That is why ZOA’s next goal is to have Title VI amended so that it specifically encompasses religious discrimination. Otherwise, said Ms. Tuchman and Mr. Klein, it is conceivable that OCR

or another agency could undo or diminish the protection.

Palestine at Columbia At Columbia University in Manhattan, where antisemitism masquerading as anti-Zionism has caused frequent incidents, Palestine is now a recognized country. Last month, the school opened the first US Center for Palestine Studies.

Some Columbia students and faculty members pointed out that, during the British Mandate, from 1917 until the reestablishment of the State of Israel in 1948, the term “Palestine” referred to all of what is now Israel, including Judea and Samaria, but was allocated for a Jewish homeland in the Balfour Declaration. The Palestinian Authority uses the British Mandate term and teaches in its textbooks and media that Arabs should have sovereignty over the entire area, precluding the State of Israel.

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Live Where You Can Walk to Shul

Title VI Victory When asked to identify who is a Palestinian, the new center’s co-director, Rashid Khalidi, who serves as the Edward Said Professor of Modern Arab Studies at Columbia and has had numerous acrimonious run-ins with Jewish students on campus, said Palestinians are “defined as those who describe themselves as such.”

Although Mr. Khalidi has ambitious plans for the center,

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he has little funding. He said he wants to “have post-docs, be able to bring students here from Palestinian universities, and fund research.”

No State of Israel None of that seems to involve determining how Palestine plans to live in peace with the Jewish state next door. The word “Israel” does not appear once in the center’s 500-word mission statement, but the term

“occupied territories” appears several times.

The apprehension with which the pro-Israel community views the new center was captured by Columbia undergraduate Ethan Perets who, in a public letter to the school’s daily newspaper, implored Dr. Khalidi not to allow the Center for Palestine Studies to be “transformed from an institute for higher learning into

a safe haven for anti-Zionist propaganda.”

It is exactly what Mitchell Bard, author of The Arab Lobby suspects will happen.

“I wonder if this is going to become the center for antiIsrael studies,” he said.

If it leads to harassment, it is a safe bet ZOA will be watching, armed with the OCR’s new decision to defend Jews. .

S.L.R.

completely tasteful “roasters” from Los Angeles, and an electric violinist from Italy.

Exciting and Elegant Symphonia and Mr. Katz work with and are recommended by many well-known New York, New Jersey, and Israeli event coordinators and caterers.

Demos and references for all their musicians and entertainers are available upon request.

For more information, Mr. Katz can be reached by phone at 201-837-9783 or email at symphkatz@aol.com. The website is www.Symphoniaentertainment.com.

When Mr. Katz and Symphonia are engaged to handle a celebration, the customer gets a production that is truly personalized, enjoyable, exciting, and elegant.

Y

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These include stand-up comedians, mentalists, improv-comedy troupes, game shows, roasters, jugglers, sugar/glass blowing artists, and many other performers who have entertained at Symphonia events.

Recently, Mr. Katz was challenged to arrange a synchronized-swimming performance for a private pool party.

Undaunted by the unusual

request, he embarked on his research project and, in short order, located the captain of the US Olympic synchronizedswim team, who presented a synchronized-swimming performance to rousing applause from the guests at the party.

Other “off-the-beaten-path” performers secured by Symphonia over the years include an Israeli-Chassidic-Irish fiddler,

Periodicals

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