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FROM THE DESK OF MARK L. GOLDSTEIN
Executive Director | Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley markg@jflv.org
The ‘Four Ps’ of a recent trip to Israel A few weeks ago I returned from representing the Lehigh Valley at the General Assembly, the annual meeting of Jewish Federations of North America. The meetings this year were held in Jerusalem and coincided with the governance meetings of the Jewish Agency for Israel, the largest beneficiary of funds from Jewish Federation annual campaigns, including ours in the Lehigh Valley. Normally, my trips to Israel are with group travel missions, so this one was quite different. While I did have meetings to begin planning our next mission(s) to Israel, most of my time was focused on substantive issues facing Jewish federations, the Jewish people and Israel. When asked about the trip, I easily summarize the visit by noting the “Four Ps” that characterized the content.
PEOPLEHOOD – One theme that
permeated the visit was Jewish Peoplehood, punctuated by Israeli President Shimon Peres and Jewish Agency CEO Natan Sharansky. Informed by his years in the communist Soviet Union, many as an imprisoned “refusenik” yearning to move to Israel, Sharansky noted that Soviet Jews did not have access to Jewish education for 70 years. But they retained and nurtured a sense of being part of a people. And this drives the renewed focus of the Jewish Agency. It is no accident that Birthright Israel programs are not simply touring programs for Diaspora Jews; the program creates bridges for young Jewish adults from Israel and around the world to integrate and dialogue with
each other. Programs like our Partnership2Gether relationship with Yoav do more than provide events and programs; they create a vital link to Jewish Peoplehood.
PLURALISM – World news
sources tend to distribute stories about Israel’s security and matters that affect her relationship with Palestinians and her other neighbors. But religious pluralism is probably as serious an issue in Israel today as security and economic inequality. National service -military or otherwise -- in Israel is a defining value and there is growing sentiment to find ways for all Jews, including the most religious, to appropriately contribute. Similarly, there are active efforts to create a respectful egalitarian prayer space at the Kotel, the Western Wall in Jerusalem. JAFI’s Sharansky was tasked by Prime Minister Netanyahu to meet with all sides to develop a workable and respectful solution, enabling “One Wall for One People.” Whether army service, access to the Kotel or the role of the Israeli rabbinate in life cycle events, it is clear that the role of religion and state in Israel has returned to center stage.
PEW – While the agenda of the
General Assembly was not totally recrafted following the Oct. 1 release of the Pew Research Center’s study on American Jews, several new sessions were added and the Pew study permeated virtually every plenary and session at the conference. This issue of HAKOL contains more information about the Pew study, including summary data
and reactions from local and national Jewish leaders and thinkers. As with most studies, there is both good news and bad news. Without a doubt, there are challenging trends. Some are unique to the Jewish reality (intermarriage, connection to Israel) and others are influenced by our general society (decline in connection to organized religion, decline in affiliation with civic and religious affinity groups). But the study also highlights certain areas where the efforts of the Jewish community might be having an impact. Over the last 20 years, Federations have made day school education, trips to Israel, summer resident camping, etc., a funding priority. While it is too soon to realize the true longitudinal impact, the Pew study might provide a glimpse: (a) as I wrote last month, we are not experiencing a continuing decline in connection to Israel with young Jewish adults, and (b) while intermarriage rates are alarming, Pew reports a dramatic rise in the number of children of mixed marriages being raised as Jews.
PLUTONIUM – The last “P” theme that capitalized attention at the meetings was Plutonium, e.g preventing a nuclear Iran. I was in Israel just as Secretary of State John Kerry completed a mid-East swing and the conclusion of the Geneva meetings with Iran. Israelis from across the political spectrum were concerned (alarmed) by the reports of a deal which would provide relief from sanctions without “roll back” of Iran’s nuclear capabilities. Instead, the deal purportedly simply “freezes”
Now are you ready for some good news? You may not find it in a daily newspaper or in the recently released Pew study on American Jews that we cover in this month’s issue of HAKOL. That study seems to indicate we are growing in all the wrong ways. However, in the year and a half that I’ve been editing HAKOL, I’ve seen some trends, too. That’s because, month after month, you reach out to me, as you did this past month with your creativity,
your educational programs and your leadership. The evidence of all these activities is before you on the pages of this month’s edition. You send photos of meaningful gatherings, like the Holocaust exhibit at Temple Covenant of Peace and the sell out communitywide comedy night, and you keep holding more of such events. Just check the Community Calendar. From my vantage point, it looks like all of these kinds of activities are growing, too, and attracting new people.
LEHIGH VALLEY HAKOL is published 11 times per year for the Jewish communities of Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton and vicinity by the Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley.
COMMUNITY SUBMISSIONS Submissions to HAKOL must be of interest to the entire Jewish community. HAKOL reserves all editorial rights including, but not limited to, the decision to print any submitted materials, the editing of submissions to conform to style and length requirements, and the placement of any printed material. Articles should be submitted by e-mail or presented as typed copy; “Community Calendar” listings must be submitted by e-mail to hakol@jflv.org or online at www. jewishlehighvalley.org. Please include your name and a daytime telephone number where you can be contacted in the event questions arise. We cannot guarantee publication or placement of submissions.
HAKOL STAFF Jennifer Lader Editor
Allison Meyers
Graphic Designer
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Advertising Representative TEL: 610-515-1391 hakolads@jflv.org
JFLV EXECUTIVE STAFF Mark L. Goldstein Executive Director
Judy Diamondstein
Assistant Executive Director
Temple Coldren
Director of Finance & Administration
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Jim Mueth
Director of Planned Giving & Endowments
Aaron Gorodzinsky
Director of Outreach & Community Relations
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Barry J. Halper President, JFLV
EDITORIAL BOARD
Monica Friess, Acting Chair Barbara Reisner Judith Rodwin Sara Vigneri
Member American Jewish Press Association
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JEWISH FEDERATION OF THE LEHIGH VALLEY MISSION STATEMENT
Given Pew, how can that be? It makes a person wonder. Shalom, Jennifer Lader
We gratefully acknowledge those individuals who have offered expressions of friendship by requesting that trees be planted in the Yoav--Lehigh Valley Partnership Park. Fischmann Scott and Allison Lipson PHYLLIS FRIES (Mother of Henry Friess) Roberto and Eileen Fischmann ALAN LUSTBERG (Husband of Linda Lustberg) Arlene and Richard Stein
IN HONOR DANA AND NETANEL KIND Birth of daughter, Shachar Kind SHALOM BABY ALYSSA AND ABRAM PURE Birth of daughter, Brianna Naomi Pure SHALOM BABY RABBI DANIEL AND DENA STEIN Birth of daughter, Miri Stein SHALOM BABY
TO ORDER TREES, call the JFLV at 610-821-5500 or visit www.jewishlehighvalley.org. 2 DECEMBER 2013 | HAKOL LEHIGH VALLEY
HAKOL
Phone: (610) 821-5500 Fax: (610) 821-8946 E-mail: hakol@jflv.org
JEWISH FEDERATION OF THE LEHIGH VALLEY IN MEMORY LEAH BUB (Mother of Sam Bub) Marlene and Arnan Finkelstein Roberto and Eileen Fischmann Scott and Allison Lipson (Grandmother of Carol Bub-Fromer) Roberto and Eileen
General Assembly will occur in Washington, D.C. But, before then I know the discussion will continue at our Federation Board of Directors meetings, our Allocations Committee, within program planning meetings with our agencies and synagogues, and within our Israel advocacy meetings of AIPAC and our Community Relations Council.
The dialogue about these issues will continue throughout the Jewish world. Next year’s
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LETTER FROM THE EDITOR Dear Readers,
Iran’s nuclear program. Israeli leaders find this unacceptable and labeled this a “bad deal.” Prime Minister Netanyahu was quite direct when he addressed the General Assembly noting that Iran came to Geneva because the sanctions were working; relief should only be warranted if Iran reduced their nuclear program. Netanyahu denied that the only options were armed conflict or a bad deal. He spoke forcefully for continuing and strengthening the sanctions against Iran. Nevertheless, he offered pointed comments about the strength of the relationship between Washington and Jerusalem, between himself and President Obama, and between the United States and Israel.
In order to unite, sustain, and enhance the Lehigh Valley Jewish community, and support Jewish communities in Israel and around the world, the Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley is dedicated to the following core values:
• Supporting Jews in need wherever they may be. • Supporting Israel as a Jewish homeland. • Supporting and encouraging Jewish education in the Lehigh Valley as a means of strengthening Jewish life for individuals and families. • Supporting programs and services of organizations whose values and mission meet local Jewish needs. To accomplish this mission the Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley is committed to the following operating guidelines: • Raising and distributing funds to support the core values. • Developing Jewish leaders. • Building endowments to support implementation of core values. • Committing to ongoing Jewish community strategic planning. • Fostering cooperation among organizations and community building. • Evaluating all decisions with respect to fiscal responsibility. • Identifying unmet needs and investing in community initiatives to help get them started. • Coordinating and convening a community response as an issue or need arises. • Setting priorities for allocation and distribution of funds. • Acting as a central address for communication about events, programs and services of the Jewish community as a whole. Approved by the JFLV Board of Directors on November 15, 2000