Southern Jewish Life, August 2025

Southern Jewish Life Staff

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Lawrence Brook editor@sjlmag.com

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Social/Web

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Columnist

Doug Brook brookwrite.com

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Since the war against Hamas began, Israel has maintained the clear objectives of freeing the hostages and ensuring Hamas was out of power and Gaza could not become a threat to Israel again, lest Hamas regroup and launch yet another war a couple of years down the line.

Also since the war began, anti-Israel activists, and a significant percentage of Jews in Israel and around the world, have accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of prolonging the war to maintain his own political survival. Many cite the corruption trials against Netanyahu, which have seemingly gone on since the days of Maimonides, for things that would be considered trivial in the U.S.

That incredibly cynical, and even demonic, view of Israel’s leader, has taken hold and is especially grasped by those who have a visceral dislike for him to begin with, much like how so many who hate Donald Trump put their reputation on the Russia collusion hoax.

But as Vasily Grossman said, in a quote that is applicable to so much of what happens in the Middle East, “Tell me what you accuse the Jews of, and I’ll tell you what you’re guilty of.” In recent weeks, it has been Western leaders, not Netanyahu, who have put their own domestic political survival at the forefront, prolonging the war in Gaza.

Just a couple months ago, French President Emmanual Macron had a laundry list of conditions for Hamas to meet before Palestinian statehood would be considered. But now he is vocally pushing for such a recognition, planning for a September announcement, despite none of the conditions being met. Why?

Macron is increasingly unpopular in France, with an approval rating under 20 percent. The right wing wants to capture the government, so Macron finds it necessary to appeal to the far left. He feels he needs the support — or at least, an absence of opposition — from the Islamist movements and their very vocal far-left allies.

Similarly, Britain’s prime minister, Keir Starmer, is facing plummeting approval ratings with problems on numerous domestic fronts. A major wedge issue in British politics is now Israel’s war against Hamas, with an increasingly loud red-green alliance of socialists

continued on page 44

Southern Jewish Life is an independent Jewish periodical. Articles and columns do not necessarily reflect the views of any Jewish institutions, agencies or congregations in our region.

Thursday, September 4, 2025 6:30 pm

Presented by Medical Properties Trust

Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express

The Lehman Trilogy

Much Ado About Nothing

Chicken & Biscuits

Disney’s Frozen

Unforgettable: John-Mark McGaha

Sings Nat King Cole

ReCON$truXion

Beautiful: The Carole King Musical

agenda

interesting bits & can’t miss events

Former hostage Omer Shem Tov to speak in Louisiana

Omer Shem Tov, who spent 505 days as a hostage in Gaza, will visit Louisiana and tell his story in two community events.

Chabad at LSU and Greater Baton Rouge will host “505 Days: A Powerful Evening with Hostage Survivor Omer Shem Tov” on Sept. 7, and Chabad in New Orleans is holding a similar event on Sept. 8.

Before October 7, Shem Tov was working in a Tel Aviv restaurant and planning an overseas trip, a few months removed from the end of his military service.

He was among those abducted from the Nova music festival, while trying to flee in a car with his friends, Maya and Itay Regev. They did not previously know the driver, Ori Danino, who took them in as they tried to escape. But Hamas terrorists shot at the car and abducted them into Gaza.

He was initially held with Itay Regev, held above ground. When they were moved between apartments, they were often dressed as women to hide their identities.

The Regevs were released as part of the hostage deal in November 2023. Danino was killed. After the Regevs were released, Shem Tov would then spend 450 days alone in the Hamas tunnels, with very little food.

Omer Shem Tov, 23, an Israeli hostage released by

days held captive in

On Feb. 22, he was one of six hostages handed over in a choreographed ceremony, where he was forced to kiss the head of a Hamas fighter and blow kisses to the hostile Gaza crowd. During the ceremony, a van with two hostages who were not being released drove up, so those two could be tormented at the sight. One of the two, Evyatar David, was the subject of a Hamas propaganda video in early August, showing David in an emaciated state, forced to dig what is described as his own grave in a Hamas tunnel.

A JNS profile just before Shem Tov was released described him as “a resident of Herzliya who dreams of becoming an actor. Known for his talent in mimicry and humor, he is also passionate about music and has his own DJ equipment. Friends and family describe him as funny, popular and always working to make others happy.”

Photo by Tal Gal/Flash90.

Hamas after 505

Gaza, returns to his home in Herzliya on March 1.

Photo courtesy Western Wall Heritage Foundation.

Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.), speaker of the United States House of Representatives, at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, Aug. 3. Story, page 17.

Building Consensus and Delivering Results

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“Deep commitment to service, as David’s work with Alabama Holocaust Education Center, Leadership Alabama and the UAB St. Vincent’s Advisory Board reflects...”

“The City Council and our community would be very fortunate to have David serve...”

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Since being released, he has traveled the world advocating for the remaining hostages. In May, he attended his first-ever baseball game, throwing the ceremonial first pitch at Fenway in Boston.

The Baton Rouge event on Sept. 7 will be at the Crowne Plaza Baton Rouge. There will be a VIP reception at 5 p.m. Doors open at 5:45 p.m., with the program at 6:15 p.m.

Registration is $25 before Aug. 15, $36 after. Preferred seating is $36, $45 after Aug. 15. VIP sponsorship, with preferred seating and the meet and greet is $180, $250 for a couple. Student admission is $5.

In New Orleans on Sept. 8, there will be a VIP reception at 6:30 p.m., with the program at 7:30 p.m. Admission is $36, VIP sponsorship is $180 or $300 per couple. The Uptown location will be provided upon reservation.

Proceeds from both evenings go toward Shem Tov’s recovery fund.

Jacobs Camp sets multi-city party

The Henry S. Jacobs Camp will have an unprecedented simultaneous party in numerous cities to launch its Capital Campaign.

The Nov. 16 event, at 11 a.m. Central, will “celebrate our shared love for camp and unveil a vision that will shape our community’s future for generations to come.”

Thus far, the Reform movement’s summer camp in Mississippi has 14 communities signed up for the event, with more to come. Most locations are in the South, but events will also take place in Austin and Denver.

Additional locations already announced are Atlanta, Baton Rouge, Birmingham, Hattiesburg, Houston, Jackson, Little Rock, Memphis, Nashville, New Orleans, Pensacola and Shreveport. Details for each community event will be announced later.

B’ham Federation celebrating 90 years

The Birmingham Jewish Federation is celebrating its 90th anniversary at the 2026 Campaign Kickoff event, Aug. 24 at 3 p.m. Tickets are $36 in advance, and the location will be given upon registration.

The kickoff will include presentations about the Federation’s past, present and future, and there will be a display from the Federation archives.

The Birmingham United Jewish Fund began in 1936, raising $24,000, with Dora Roth as the first executive secretary, a position she would hold until 1965. The fund grew each year, especially after 1948.

In 1971, the Fund became the Federation, and its activities expanded to include community relations, and seeding what would become the N.E. Miles Jewish Day School and Collat Jewish Family Services.

Do you know your Jewish cemetery?

The Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience in New Orleans will be hosting “Get to Know Your Jewish Cemetery,” an in-person interactive workshop covering cemetery basics, Sept. 11 at 6 p.m.

Emily Ford will lead a discussion of cemetery preservation basics, including cleaning and documenting burial sites. It will address monument care, transcriptions, and when to seek professional help. The workshop will also explore cemetery record research and broader stewardship topics, such as supporting long-term preservation, caring for abandoned cemeteries, and community involvement.

Ford is a cemetery preservationist, monumental mason, writer of New Orleans cemetery history and owner of Oak and Laurel Cemetery Preservation. She has worked in New Orleans cemeteries since 2011 and wrote her graduate thesis on historic craft in Lafayette Cemetery No. 1.

She has performed hundreds of tomb, monument and statuary restorations throughout the American Southeast including in Savannah, Pensacola, Natchez, Mobile and New Orleans.

The free workshop is a program of the museum’s Chapman Family Research Center, and registration is available on the museum’s website.

SJL wins two Nola Press Club awards

Southern Jewish Life magazine received two recognitions at the Press Club of New Orleans’ 67th annual Excellence in Journalism Awards. The awards were presented at The Cannery on July 19.

First place in business reporting went to SJL for “Stay and Shop: New Orleans Landmark Rubensteins Celebrates a Century of Fine Clothing by Opening a Boutique Hotel.”

Third place in light feature reporting was for “Acrobatic Stars to New Orleans Recluses,” the story of “Nita and Zita,” Hungarian Jewish sisters who performed around the world in the 1920s through the 1940s, then retired to New Orleans and became recluses, ultimately leaving behind a house containing a huge quantity of handmade clothing and crafted items, and the story behind their previous fame.

Alan Smason of Crescent City Jewish News received two awards. Second place for Best Critical Review was for “Jewish Songwriting Couples are Focus of ‘Beautiful: The Carole King Musical’.”

CCJN also received a third place for breaking news reporting for “Police Remove Illegal Pro-Palestinian Encampment on Tulane Campus.”

Given the events of the past year, with protests and encampments at universities across the nation, including Tulane, it is no surprise that the topic of Israel’s war against Hamas made a few appearances in the ceremony, including seven award-winning entries from Verite News and The Maroon.

The American Jewish Press Association’s competition, the Simon J. Rockower Awards, were handed out in June in Pittsburgh. SJL did not submit any entries this year.

JFS Nola gets top charitable recognition

Jewish Family Service of Greater New Orleans has been given the top four-star rating by Charity Navigator.

The agency scored 100 each on accountability and finance, and culture and community. The agency has not been evaluated in the impact and measurement or the leadership and adaptability categories.

In a statement, JFS said “This recognition reaffirms our promise to uphold the highest standards as we serve the Greater New Orleans community,” and reflects the trust the community places on them.

We have more stories than pages!

Among the recent stories on our new Substack:

“Horrific antisemitic attack” in St. Louis area on American who served in IDF Jewish advocacy group joins Birmingham’s celebration of Ukraine’s independence

Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders visits the Western Wall on Tisha B’Av

Elmore County 250th anniversary celebration includes event about Alabama’s first Jewish resident

Artist-in-residence Houzenga holds workshops at New Orleans JCC

ZAKA deploys to flood-ravaged region of Texas

University of Kentucky suspends professor who called for global military action against Israel

Member of antisemitic hate group arrested for alleged assault of Jewish man in Tennessee

Read and subscribe! southernjewishlife.substack.com

Together in Teal

Butterfly Release for Ovarian Cancer Awareness

Featuring live music, vendor displays, and educational booths, and a release of over 500 painted ladies and monarchs

We host this annual event to raise awareness of ovarian cancer’s silent signs and symptoms, remember those who have lost their lives and honor those who are battling or have beaten ovarian cancer. You will not want to miss this beautiful, informative and moving program.

Sunday September 14, 2024

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2:30 p.m. Gate Opens, Registration, Live Music, Announcements

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3:45-4:30 p.m. Enjoy the Festivities & Live Music

Event will take place Rain or Shine! cureovariancancer.org

Course explores the complex history and nature of Southern Jewish women

The Jewish Women’s Archive and the Jackson-based Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life are offering an online history course in September, “Belles and Butches: Jewish Women in the American South.”

The four Thursday sessions will explore how Jewish women in the South defy stereotyping. All sessions will be at 7 p.m. Central.

On Sept. 4, Shari Rabin will lead “Jewish Women in the Civil War and Reconstruction.” Rabin is associate professor of Jewish studies, religion and history, and chair of Jewish studies at Oberlin, and author of the recently-released “The Jewish South: An American History.”

On Sept. 11, London-born writer and historian Rachel Cockerell will lead “The Galveston Movement and its Legacy,” about the 10,000 Russian Jews who immigrated to Galveston, one of whom was her great-grandfather. Her first book, “Melting Point,” was an experimental history of her family’s search for a promised land, centering around the Galveston Movement.

Rachel Gelfand will lead “Queer, Jewish, Southern” on Sept. 18. An assistant teaching professor in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at North Carolina State University, she will weave reflections from Jewish lesbian activists in the 1970s and 1980s with more recent interviews.

The series concludes on Sept. 25 with Marcie Cohen Ferris on “The Edible Jewish South.” She will explore how the politics of power established a complex regional cuisine shaped by both privilege and deprivation. Ferris is emeritus professor of American Studies at the University of North Carolina and author of “Edible North Carolina: A Journey Across a State of Flavor” and “Matzoh Ball Gumbo: Culinary Tales of the Jewish South.”

Registration is available at jwa.org.

Nola JCC announces cultural series

The Cathy and Morris Bart Jewish Cultural Arts Series at the Uptown Jewish Community Center will bring four very different events to New Orleans this season.

All events are open to the community, but advance registration is required.

On Sept. 7 at 5 p.m., Instagram sensation Idan Chabasov, the Challah Prince, will provide a hands-on experience of culinary creativity and Jewish tradition and storytelling. Dough for the event will come from Chabad in Metairie.

Oct. 18 will be a “Laura Nyro Live Tribute: A Great Jewish Songwriter.” Nyro, a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member, was referred to by Joni Mitchell as her only female peer. She released several of her own albums, and many of her pieces became hits for other artists, including the 5th Dimension, Three Dog Night, Barbra Streisand and Peter, Paul and Mary.

Nyro, who died of ovarian cancer in 1997, was inducted into the Hall by Bette Midler.

The 7 p.m. concert will feature numerous New Orleans female musicians, including Ainsley Matic, Alizah, Hannah Kreiger-Benson, Katarina Boudreaux, Lilli Lewis, and Meryl Zimmerman

On Nov. 13 at 7 p.m., there will be a screening of the new satirical Jewish horror-comedy “Bad Shabbos,” starring Kyra Sedgwick, David Paymer, and Cliff “Method Man” Smith. The film will be followed by a discussion led by Shir Chadash Rabbi David Cohen-Henriquez.

The fall series concludes with artist Loli Kantor presenting her autobiographical “Call Me Lola — In Search of Mother,” about the mother she was named after but never met. Her presentation will be on Dec. 9 at 7 p.m.

We treat your family like our family agenda

Rabbi Adam Wright of Temple Emanu-El in Birmingham will be leading an interfaith class at Independent Presbyterian Church this fall, “The Biblical Prophetic Purpose: A Jewish and New Testament Juxtaposition.” The series will explore the shared roots of the faiths, and how each faith understands and interprets the prophetic figures. The series will be on Sundays at 10 a.m. from Sept. 7 to Nov. 23, skipping Nov. 2.

The Jewish Federation of Oxford is co-sponsoring a celebration of Ron Shapiro, known as “Ronzo,” who spearheaded art and imagination in the town. He created the Hoka Theater, “a gathering place for students, writers, and counterculture icons alike.” He also was a founding board member of the Federation. The “King of Oxford” died in August 2019. The event starts at the Growler on Aug. 29 with a happy hour from 5 to 6 p.m. A Second Line will then proceed to Powerhouse for an art reception, and at 7 p.m. there will be a screening of the documentary “Ronzo.” The event is free, reservations are available through the Yoknapatawpha Arts Council, and donations are welcome.

Shir Chadash in Metairie announced that it will hold a gala dinner on Nov. 16 at 5:30 p.m. to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the merger between Chevra Thilim and Tikvat Shalom, which resulted in Shir Chadash.

The Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans will hold its 112th annual meeting on Sept. 4 at 7 p.m. at the Uptown Jewish Community Center.

As part of its 175th anniversary celebration, Gates of Prayer in Metairie is holding a Cheers to 175 Progressive Dinner, Sept. 6 at 5:30 p.m. There will be a guided French-Germanic wine tasting led by local sommelier and Gates of Prayer member Rebeca Pinhas, and a threecourse dinner at three members’ homes. The evening starts with Havdalah and appetizers, the entrée at the second location and dessert at the final stop. Al three locations are very close, even within walking distance. Base tickets are $72, patron tickets are $144 and include raffle tickets toward special bottles of wine. Space is limited.

The next Honor Our Parents multi-generational Shabbat service will be Aug. 29 at 11 a.m. at the Levite Jewish Community Center in Birmingham. The service will be led by Rabbi Yossi Friedman, and there is a complimentary lunch with registration by Aug. 27.

Kesher, the joint post-B’nai Mitzvah educational venture between Birmingham’s Temple Beth-El and Temple Emanu-El, announced

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More important than any comedy show

Pro-Israel actor Michael Rapaport has gig cancelled, leading to a far more meaningful appearance

A comedy show was cancelled, but the event that resulted was seen as far more important and meaningful.

On Aug. 5, actor Michael Rapaport was supposed to perform at the Stardome, a longstanding venue in Hoover, south of Birmingham. He was coming to Birmingham to shoot a movie with Jaime Pressley, and figured he could do a comedy show on an evening he had off, so his management arranged it with the Stardome about two weeks in advance. But on the afternoon of Aug. 4, some of those who had tickets got word the show had been cancelled.

While a couple people who contacted the venue to find out why were told initially that it was due to a “schedule conflict,” club owner Bruce Ayers said two days later, on the afternoon of Aug. 6, that the show was cancelled “out of concern for the safety and experience of guests, staff, neighborhood and the performer,” after over 100 messages on social media, including threats, apparently from anti-Israel activists.

Unlike what happens around appearances by other pro-Israel performers, local anti-Israel groups did not appear to have an active protest campaign on social media.

Rapaport has been outspoken in supporting Israel, especially since October 7. Rapaport has been in over 60 films since the early 1990s, and starred in the sitcom “The War At Home.” He also played Gary in “Friends,” and appeared on “Boston Public,” “Prison Break,” “Justified” and “Atypical.” He also has the “I Am Rapaport” podcast.

At a quickly-organized event at Bais Ariel Chabad in Birmingham the morning of Aug. 7, where about 200 turned out for breakfast and to meet Rapaport and take pictures with him, he said “Forget the show. This is way more valuable than anything I could do professionally.”

Rapaport then spoke about his connection to Israel and how he has become one of the leading — and few — voices in Hollywood supporting Israel.

The morning was an example of a mitzvah going viral for the sanctification of God’s name, said Chabad Rabbi Yossi Posner. In February, he noted, Auburn Basketball Coach Bruce Pearl hosted Jewish high school students from around the country for a basketball tournament in Auburn,

Jewish actor and comedian Michael Rapaport speaks at Bais Ariel Chabad in Birmingham, 36 hours after the show he was supposed to do on Aug. 5 was cancelled.

and the students attended the Auburn-Oklahoma game.

During the students’ visit, Pearl put on tefillin on the floor of Auburn’s arena. “Someone took a video of it, and the video went viral,” Posner said, and perhaps he inspired others to put on tefillin.

Similarly, Posner told Rapaport that he wasn’t in Birmingham for a movie or a comedy show. “You came here to ignite the hearts of so many people in this community… you should always ignite the hearts of the Jewish people.”

Rapaport’s initial comment on social media after learning of the cancellation included a photo of himself at the Chabad center, putting on tefillin. That post on X has been viewed almost 700,000 times.

He encouraged everyone to go to Israel, saying it’s “totally fine.” There might be a meal in a bomb shelter, but “that’s a great way to go viral — ‘I came from Birmingham and now I’m in a bomb shelter’.”

On Aug. 5, while the Chabad rabbis were having lunch, Birmingham Jewish Federation Interim CEO Florina Newcomb called to see what response the community could do. That was quickly followed by a similar call from Brooke Bowles, CEO of the Levite Jewish Community Center. The event at Chabad was then put together, with barely a day and a half of lead time.

The Federation met with Stardome leadership on Aug. 6. “That conversation was well-received and gave us an opportunity to introduce the Federation and explain why this decision was so disappointing for the Jewish community. In that conversation, we learned more about the security concerns that led to that decision and shared how it impacted our Jewish community.”

Posner’s introduction of Rapaport at the event on Aug. 7 was an example of the Chabad approach of meeting hate with light, and a resolve to be more Jewish. By the comedy event being cancelled, Posner said, “every single person in this room is going to eat kosher” with the large breakfast that was served. Over 50 men put on tefillin in the foyer, some for the first time. And there was a table with mezuzahs for those who need to put one up at their home.

“Let’s put our enemies to the side,” Posner said. “Let’s forget about them, because we are so much bigger and stronger.”

While statements from the Stardome indicated “the club decided in agreement and with full support of Michael’s management team to cancel the event” Rapaport said in his remarks at Chabad that he found out about the cancellation when someone in the community reached out to him online the morning of Aug. 5, and that the club did not reach out to him or his agent.

He said on social media that day “I did not

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cancel. I would never cancel—especially since I’m already here in Birmingham, ready to perform.”

Initially, he did not want to comment about the cancellation, saying he was “embarrassed” because “I don’t want anybody to feel ashamed or afraid or hesitant to be able to speak out in whatever way they can,” but decided to speak out when the venue started to claim he had agreed to cancelling the performance.

Ayers said the cancellation “wasn’t about silencing anyone… It was about avoiding a potentially volatile situation and keeping things safe and peaceful for everyone involved.”

Hoover Police Chief Nick Derzis attended the event at Chabad, and indicated he was not aware of any concerns expressed by his department about being able to handle security for the show. As is typical for any Jewish gathering these days, there was security for the breakfast at Chabad.

Online, some who applauded the cancellation charged that Rapaport dehumanizes Gazans. He said that is “fake news” and “I don’t explain myself to terrorist sympathizers” or debate them.

Getting involved

After commenting on the novelty of meeting Jews with Southern accents, Rapaport explained how he went from being mostly uninvolved Jewishly to an active participant and advocate.

A New York City native, he grew up in a home where there was little discussion of the practice of Judaism. His mother was a Long Island “pitbull Jew,” and his father grew up facing antisemitism in New York. His father’s lesson to him about Judaism was to be proud of who he was, and then when he moved to Hollywood, a second bit of advice was added — don’t do the Woody Allen or Larry David nebbishy Jewish stereotypes.

While he was proud of being Jewish, he never spoke about it much, until the white supremacist march in Charlottesville in 2017, “with a bunch of kids with tiki torches and khaki pants and they were saying Jews will

He said “that was the first time that I spoke out on social media about something that was a little bit more serious… it was alarming.”

That year, his wife began the process of conversion to Judaism, completing it in 2022 when Kanye West was making news for anti-Jewish tirades. Rapaport said “this is not gonna happen, if I have a platform, whatever he says I’m going to continue to match it with the fervor and the tenacity, because I just felt like it was necessary — although it’s probably

On October 7, he watched in disbelief as Hamas was uploading their atrocities in real time. Once it started to register, he started posting on social media, and “my life and who I am and how I’m viewed in the world has changed after that first time that I spoke out.”

He said it is hard to imagine that it had been 671 days and “there would still be 50 hostages, two of whom were American, and we’re still in this” and being questioned about what really happened on Oct. 7.

By Oct. 10, hostage flyers were being torn down in New York City and there were already charges of Israeli genocide even before the response took place. “Everything was being blamed on Jews and Israel,” so they planned their first trip to Israel for December.

In November, there was the massive rally for Israel on the National Mall in Washington, and Rapaport was one of the speakers. He wasn’t originally going to speak but he decided to “because there was no other male celebrity from show business.” He said “it baffles me as to why the Jewish people and the non-Jewish people aren’t speaking out… to not say anything at the most obvious time when there’s so much anti-Jewishness is astonishing to me.”

When he went to Israel, one of the first stops was Kibbutz Be’eri, one of the hardest-hit communities on Oct. 7. Going from house to house, he

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was able to still smell the fire from months earlier and see the smeared blood that had not been completely cleaned. He noted that in the 48 minute presentation of raw footage that Hamas filmed on Oct. 7, “not one of these Hamas terrorists says anything about ‘from the river to the sea.’ They don’t say anything about apartheid, they don’t say anything about a genocide, they don’t say anything about that — they proudly talk about killing Jews with their bare hands, they call their mother proudly and talk about the violence that they perpetuated.”

He said the trip was “life changing” and he has been back seven times since then, meeting families of hostages and those who had been released. People would come up to him and thank him for speaking up and being brave, but he said “there’s absolutely nothing courageous or brave about what I’m doing. It feels very Jewish to stand by our people and to fight for our people and be loud and proud.”

In a visit to Sheba Hospital, he met a soft-spoken 22-year-old soldier who was shot in the leg in Gaza in June 2024. Pulling out his phone, he asked Rapaport if he wanted to see the video of him getting shot. Hamas had posted a video of the encounter, “it looks like a video game, there’s editing and sound effects and sound design,” showing about a dozen soldiers going from building to building. The patient was sixth in line, there was an explosion and that is when he was shot.

His commander came over to pull him out, and was also shot in the shoulder. They bioth survived, but the soldier told Rapaport that in the video, Hamas claimed both of them had been killed. “Can you help me show them that I lived, my commander lived?” he asked.

Rapaport said “Hollywood could only wish that they could promote

movies as incredible as Hamas promotes terror.”

Another encounter was with one of the hostages who had been in Gaza for 550 days. “He couldn’t be a sweeter, more regular guy, and he’s talking to me about his experiences,” but then a siren went off and they had to run for the nearby shelter. “The irony was crazy to me, that there’s no break — they just got out of being a hostage for 550 days” and had to run to the basement.

In the shelter, he saw Yarden Bibas, who had been a hostage and whose wife and two redheaded sons became the most recognized symbols of the hostages, and who were murdered by Hamas. Rapaport said he tries to be calm around the hostages, as they are regular people and don’t need to be burdened with his emotions, but standing in fromt of Bibas, “I just was hysterical” knowing what he had been through.

The first thing Bibas said to him was appreciation for what Rapaport had been posting about his family’s ordeal. He said that when facing things like a show cancellation or social media backlash, one can feel alienated or isolated, but moments like that, “I don’t care if I’m talking in a vacuum” and he is not trying to change opinions. “They see it. Those families see it, and it means something to them.”

In the past couple of years, a New York rabbi told him that being Jewish is “a participation sport… you have to play.” Rapaport said he has learned that “the more you put into it, the more it gives you.”

He reiterated that being with the community that morning “is way more valuable than any comedy show, any movie set, any TV appearance,” and he encouraged everyone to “stand tall, stand loud, stay proud, never forget and never doubt.”

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During Israel visit, Louisiana’s Johnson makes historic trip to Ariel Delegation

organized by U.S.-Israel Education Association in Birmingham

By Akiva Van Koningsveld

(JNS) — House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana declared that Judea and Samaria belong to the Jewish people “by right” during a historic visit to Ariel on Aug. 4, according to a statement issued by the Samaria capital.

While Axios reported that Johnson’s tour of Samaria was designated as a private trip, the speaker was joined by U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, as well as Reps. Michael Cloud (R-Texas), Michael McCaul (R-Texas), Nathaniel Moran (R-Texas) and Claudia Tenney (R-N.Y.).

Other participants included Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Heather Johnston, the founder of the U.S.-Israel Education Association in Birmingham, which organized the trip.

According to the Israel Hayom daily, Johnson visited Ariel with the express consent from the White House and the U.S. State Department.

“The Bible teaches that the hills of Judea and Samaria were promised to the Jewish people and belong to you by right,” Johnson said during the tour with local leaders, according to a readout of his remarks provided by the Ariel Municipality.

“The world may not see it that way, but we do,” he continued, according to the readout.

Johnson’s office had not responded to a request for comment at the

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Photo courtesy Ariel Municipality.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) takes part in a vine-planting ceremony with Ariel Mayor Yair Chetboun at the city’s National Leadership Center, Aug. 4.

community

time of publication.

The municipality described the visit as a “clear sign of deep support and a boost to Ariel’s standing as a leading Israeli city.”

The delegation took part in a vine-planting ceremony with Mayor Yair Chetboun at the city’s National Leadership Center, “meant to represent the strategic partnership and a shared future commitment,” it stated. The Center was developed by JH Israel in Birmingham, led by Heather Johnston.

MORE FETCHING. LESS WAITING.

During a meeting with leaders from across Judea and Samaria, Yesha Council head Israel Ganz presented Johnson and Huckabee with a diplomatic plan to extend Jerusalem’s sovereignty over the region.

“We feel your support in advancing this vision, and we are deeply grateful that you came and expressed your support here in Judea and Samaria,” said Ganz, who represents the 500,000 or so Jewish residents of the region, according to a Yesha Council readout.

Marc Zell, chairman of the Republicans Overseas Israel branch, described the visit as “historic,” noting that Huckabee said “while America has many allies and friends in the world, it has only one true partner: Israel.

“Today’s visit proves this beyond any doubt. This is a clear expression of President [Donald] Trump’s unwavering support for Israel, and recognition that Jewish presence in Judea and Samaria is not an obstacle to peace, but rather an expression of the Jewish people’s historical and legal right to their land,” added Zell.

According to Zell, Johnson criticized those “erstwhile allies” who seek to create a Palestinian state in the area.

Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, who met Johnson on Aug. 5, praised his U.S. counterpart for becoming the “highest-ranking American official ever to visit Judea and Samaria, our cradle as a people.

“Even on a private visit,” Ohana wrote on X, Johnson’s “commitment to our shared Judeo-Christian values and history remains unwavering.

“Thank you, Mike. May God bless you,” the Knesset speaker added. Meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority’s Foreign Ministry condemned the U.S. visit to Ariel and what it described as Johnson’s “provocative and inflammatory statements in support of annexation.

“Such actions encourage settlement expansion and settler crimes and clearly contradict the U.S.’s declared position on settlements,” it said.

In May, Huckabee became the first U.S. ambassador to pray at the  ancient Shiloh biblical site in southern Samaria on an official visit.

“I have never used any term other than Judea and Samaria,” the envoy declared during his visit to the site, adding: “It would be a historical in-

Photo courtesy Israeli Foreign Ministry. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar meets with House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and a congressional delegation with USIEA in Jerusalem, Aug. 3.

community

justice and a denial of the Bible to use other terms.”

Western Wall visit

Before visiting Ariel, Johnson offered a prayer at the Western Wall in Jerusalem on Aug. 3 that America should always stand with Israel.

Johnson is known for his strong support for the Jewish state. A Christian who is very public about his faith, his visit took place against the backdrop of burgeoning relations between Israel and American evangelicals.

“We are grateful for the privilege of being here in Israel today, on the day we recognize the destruction of the Temple twice in history,” Johnson said, as Jews around the world marked Tisha B’Av. “Our prayer is that America will always stand with Israel and for the preservation and peace of Jerusalem.”

The delegation met with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar and Defense Minister Israel Katz, who thanked them and U.S. President Donald Trump for their strong moral support for Israel.

Sa’ar said that it was an honor to meet the delegation and that Johnson is “a true friend of Israel.”

“We discussed the alarming global wave of antisemitism, including efforts by countries like Ireland to delegitimize Israel,” the minister stated. “I also described the horrific attacks against the Druze in Syria, the same kind of barbarism perpetrated by Hamas.”

Johnson had postponed a scheduled address at Israel’s parliament in June due to the 12-day war against Iran.

“May God continue to bless and protect the people of Israel and its greatest friend and ally, the United States,” Johnson wrote in the guest book at the Western Wall.

Echoes of history

Doctor and patient discover astounding connection

Many years ago, Atlanta orthopedist Reuben Sloan decided to emulate his mentor and get to know his patients on a more personal level. Little did he realize what sort of connection he would make with one of his patients, Gail Cohn, in 2012.

They will present the story of that connection in Birmingham on Sept. 18. “Corresponding Angles: The Story of a Survivor’s Son and a Liberator’s Daughter” will be at the Levite Jewish Community Center at 6:30 p.m.

The event is presented by the Alabama Holocaust Education Center, through the assistance of Tracy and Al Cohn. His grandfather, Judge Aaron Cohn — Gail Cohn’s father — was a liberator from the Columbus, Ga., area. He also was the longest-serving and oldest sitting juvenile court judge in the country.

Judge Cohn had been part of General George S Patton’s 3rd Calvary Regiment, which had liberated the Mauthausen concentration camp. Among those who were liberated was Itzik Slodowski, who was the only member of his family to survive.

Sloan is Slodowski’s son.

Sloan and Gail Cohn have traveled the country, sharing their personal story of connection and memory. In January 2024, they spoke in Montgomery and at the Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience in New Orleans.

Gail Cohn has been a facilitator, speaker and workplace coach for over 40 years. She is also the former creator and host of a radio show called “Book Talk with Gail” on Radio Sandy Springs, and Governor Zell Miller appointed her as an original member of the Georgia Human Relations Committee.

Sloan is a physiatrist with more than two decades of experience specializing in spine care, and serves as an Assistant Clinical Professor at Emory School of Medicine in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

Advance registration is required, tickets are $18.

“Ever-expanding”

NCJW installs co-presidents

Susan Greenberg and Diana Mann were installed as co-presidents of the National Council of Jewish Women, Greater New Orleans Section at its annual installation and closing meeting on June 8 at Temple Sinai.

Greenberg has served as NCJW vice president of administration in charge of many of NCJW’s special events. She also has served as an NCJW Fox 8 Defenders volunteer helping consumers in the greater New Orleans area tackle a host of issues.

Mann has served as an active board member and as corresponding secretary.

They presented their vision for the next two years leading the organization. Greenberg vowed to “reach out to both new and established members of NCJW to help us as we advocate for women, children, families and human rights.”

Board members

Barbara Greenberg, Baty Landis, Wendy Goldberg, Carole Neff, Susan Hess

Mann said that “Now it is more critical than ever to stand up for the injustices which are seen increasing on a daily basis. NCJW has many pathways in which to support our community. Choose your passion and say YES.”

Nominating Committee Chair Susan Hess explained the move to having co-presidents. “As the outreach of our Section has grown with more and more duties for our presidents, we decided this year to have co-presidents in order to efficiently execute the ever-expanding role. These two admirable and capable women will do an exceptional job of running our Section for the next two years.”

Outgoing President Gail Naron Chalew was recognized for her years of outstanding and dedicated leadership heading the organization.

Chalew expressed pride for the many NCJW accomplishments over her two-year term. She cited the Advocacy Workshop on Repro Rights, the Israel discussion group that has spawned a Jewish Conversation

and

Co-Presidents and Vice Presidents: Susan Greenberg, Robin Goldblum, Carol Newman, Diana Mann, Leslie Fischman, Michelle Gelman, Killian Philipson

Co-Presidents

Other Officers: Loel Samuel, Kathy Shepard, Susan Greenberg, Gail Chalew, Diana Mann, Tricia Kirschman, Lilli Geltman Vohs

Diana Mann, installing officer Loel Samuel and Susan Greenberg

Susan Hess receives Salmon Award

Past Harold Salmon Award recipients Tricia Kirschman, Dana Shepard, Ina Davis, Shellye Farber, Barbara Kaplinsky, Susan Hess, Loel Samuel, Sue Singer, Barbara Greenberg and Kathy Shepard

Circle currently meeting to facilitate respectful discussions on difficult issues, and the revival of Moonlighters, which will engage a new generation of members in NCJW’s work.

The Harold Salmon, Sr. Award was presented to Hess, honoring her exceptional volunteerism, leadership, and service to NCJW. This award, named after a man who exemplified dedication to the organization’s mission, recognizes individuals who contribute significantly to NCJW’s visibility and effectiveness through innovation, motivation, and service.

The award is presented at the discretion of the president only when a member shows an extraordinary level of commitment and leadership to the section.

According to Chalew, “Hess has directed her strategic thinking, leadership skills, innovative thinking, and energy that she uses to improve the well-being of the general community — and for which she was recognized with the Hannah G. Solomon Award in 2018 — to the betterment of NCJW ever since.”

Hess led the Section as president from 2019 to 2021, steering the organization through the challenges of the pandemic. She initiated a virtual series on antisemitism that engaged a broad community audience and continued to serve in multiple leadership roles. These included chairing the Hannah G. Solomon luncheon, numerous NCJW fundraising events, the 2025 nominating committee, and co-chairing the Endowment/Legacy committee.

“Hess maintains this level of commitment to the Section while keeping family a priority and staying involved in City Park, UNO, the World War II Museum, the SPCA and Temple Sinai,” Chalew said.

“Receiving the Harold Salmon award is a tremendous honor. It goes to the heart of the things we do as a section,” Hess said. ”In truth, among Jews, there are no six degrees of separation. We are an incredible extended family. We are taught from our youth to have a care for our worldwide family.”

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Harold Salmon Sr. Award recipient Susan Hess and outgoing NCJW President Gail Chalew

Feeding Israel while reducing food waste

Leket representative visiting Louisiana

Over the past two years, Leket Israel, the leading food rescue organization in Israel, has had to pivot due to the wartime footing and occasional shutdown in Israel. Despite the challenges, they are still feeding those in need, even if they have to change how they do it.

Sally Poolat, regional director of U.S. development for Leket, will be in Louisiana in September to talk about their mission and how to become involved — including in person. She is working her way throughout the region, and will visit other areas in November.

As the National Food Bank, Leket is unique among organizations that serve the poor in Israel and among food banks worldwide, as their sole focus is rescuing healthy, surplus food and delivering it to those in need through partner nonprofit organizations. They harvest surplus agricultural produce and collect cooked meals from farms, packing houses, hotels, restaurants and army bases. The items are then sorted and distributed to the needy throughout the country.

The Cheri Fox Nutrition and Quality Department ensures that the collection and distribution of the food is held to the highest food safety regulations. Additionally, they only donate 100-percent nutritious food. Leket Israel works with a staff of professional dieticians who conduct nutrition workshops for targeted populations geared toward raising awareness of proper nutrition.

Leket was founded by Joseph Gitler in 2003, as a response to his observation that there was growing hunger and poverty in Israel alongside significant food waste.

Today, they have over 60 dedicated food rescue vehicles and a large distribution center, relying on thousands of volunteers. Through the center, they coordinate with 300 nonprofit partner agencies that receive the food from Leket and deliver it to 415,000 Israelis in need per week.

The war has led to a 25 percent increase in the number of people seeking assistance from Leket. At the same time, the initial outbreak after Oct. 7, and the national shutdown during the 12-day conflict with Iran, significantly interrupted Leket’s usual supply routes. After Oct. 7, for the first time they had to purchase some food in order to serve those who rely upon them.

Poolat said that she is not only raising funds and awareness when she travels, she also works to “get people excited about coming to Israel and volunteering with us.”

On July 14, a group of retirees from Rosh Ha’Ayin visited Be’erotayim, a moshav in central Israel, to pick mango, tomatoes and peppers. Rosh Ha’Ayin is New Orleans’ Partnership2Gether community and Birmingham’s sister city in Israel.

Visitors to Israel are welcome to volunteer year-round. Possibilities include going into the fields to help harvest produce, sorting and packaging rescued items, or helping Israeli farmers plant their crops.

Last summer, Leket estimated that volunteers had helped rescue over 35,000 tons of produce, worth tens of millions of dollars, as farmers were hard-hit for labor due to military callups.

“The war has caused severe damage to Israeli agriculture and its consequences will be felt for many years to come,” said Gidi Kroch, CEO of Leket Israel. “Strengthening local agriculture is not only an essential economic need but a necessary condition to ensure food security and strengthen national resilience for Israel’s citizens.”

Much of Israel’s agricultural land is near the borders, and especially in the north, wide areas were evacuated for long stretches due to rocket fire. Now, the farmers are returning to rebuild and repair.

Bar or Bat Mitzvah students can team with Leket for a mitzvah project, with personalized web pages for fundraising, and ideas for events to raise funds and awareness.

Poolat will arrive in New Orleans on Sept. 1, and will be available for additional meetings during the times when she does not have anything scheduled.

On Sept. 3, she will spend the day in Baton Rouge, centered around a noon event at the Unified Jewish Congregation of Baton Rouge.

On Sept. 4, she will speak at noon at the Uptown Jewish Community Center in New Orleans. She will speak at Beth Israel in Metairie during the Shabbat evening service on Sept. 5.

On Sept. 7, she will head to Louisville, Ky., for three days. She will return to the region from Nov. 9 to 14 to visit communities in Alabama, Mississippi and Arkansas. She recently visited Georgia, the Carolinas and Tennessee.

AHEC webinars explore rise of Nazism

The Alabama Holocaust Education Center in Birmingham is taking part in a series of Zoom webinars, “What History Teaches: The Rise of Nazism.” Each session deals with an aspect of history exploring how democracy eroded and extremism took hold in 1930s Germany, and lessons that can be gleaned for today.

Other participating Holocaust museums and education centers include Los Angeles, Montreal, Illinois, Seattle and Buffalo.

The next session, “Scapegoating and the Politics of Othering” on Sept. 16 at 2 p.m., with Beth Greich-Polelle, the Kurt Mayer Chair of Holocaust Studies and Associate Professor of History at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Wash. Her most recent publication is a revised and expanded edition of “Antisemitism and the Holocaust: Language, Rhetoric and Traditions of Hatred,” and her most recent research involves examining the persecution of “Catholic non-Aryans” in Nazi Germany.

Greich-Polelle will examine how Nazis leveraged fear, nationalism and antisemitism to scapegoat Jewish people and other minorities, and what societal and psychological dynamics made this strategy so effective.

The following session, “Women’s Loss of Rights During the Third Reich,” will be on Oct. 16 at 11 a.m., with Deborah Barton, Associate Professor of modern European history at the Université de Montréal. She will discuss the loss of women’s rights, particularly for Jewish, Black, and political opponents in 1930s Germany, and how Aryan women were able to negotiate roles for themselves.

On Oct. 29 at 11 a.m., the Nancy and David Wolf Holocaust and Humanities Center in Cincinnati will lead a program on “Universities, Education and the Role of Intellectuals.”

All sessions are free. Registration information is at ahecinfo.org.

babies

Southern Jewish Election

Silverstein

seeks to “give back” on Mountain Brook City Council

In today’s political environment, David Silverstein figures “most people would like to see more consensus building and less controversy.”

With his decades of experience working on high-impact projects around the Birmingham area, he is now looking to bring his skills of collaboration and innovative thinking to the Mountain Brook City Council.

Silverstein is running for Place 2 in the Aug. 26 election against incumbent Gerald Garner.

Two years ago, Silverstein made his first foray into politics, running for an open seat on the Jefferson County Commission. But Mountain Brook has a special place in his heart.

Silverstein’s family has been part of the Mountain Brook community for “well over 80 years.” All five of his children were raised there and “went through the Mountain Brook public school system, which provided them with an extraordinary foundation.” He added that 11 of his 14 grandchildren will also go through Mountain Brook schools, and that the school system should never be taken for granted.

He also praises the city’s “wonderful first responders” and said continuing to adequately fund and train them “is certainly a priority.”

“This city means a great deal to me and I cherish the values and the uniqueness of the community,” he said. “We have a great foundation to build upon, and I look forward to giving back.”

Service to Mountain Brook is also a family legacy, as his sister, Helene Elkus, served on the city council. “Maybe I will be able to slightly fill her shoes… I’m sure she will give me some instruction, as big sisters do.”

He said the city council has done a great job in moving the city forward, and he has a set of skills that would continue the momentum. He said Mountain Brook is positioned for the future, and he would prioritize working “collaboratively” with neighboring cities for the good of all.

He has extensive experience in public/private partnerships through his career in commercial real estate, and looks forward to working with neighboring communities to “make sure we do things the right way.”

One example of a longstanding collaborative issue that needs addressing is the lack of a walkway for pedestrians and bicycles on the Hollywood Boulevard bridge over Highway 280, connecting Mountain Brook and Homewood. Saying it is a public safety issue, he said “it’s not building the lunar module, but it will require continued collaboration” between the communities and the state Department of Transportation.

Similarly, what to do with the now-vacant Brookwood Village remains an ongoing issue, and it is located partially in Mountain Brook and partially in Homewood.

His first stint of giving back governmentally was through serving on the Mountain Brook Planning Commission from 1994 to 2003. Back then, the big challenge was what to do with the “dirt pile” on a prime stretch of land along U.S. 280, and there was a lot of controversy. “I got involved because I wanted to help the city deal with the situation.”

Through discussions with traffic engineers, the decision was made to re-route Green Valley Road to help the traffic flow, along with redeveloping the site. “I believed in it, it was the right thing to do,” he said. Today, Cahaba Village provides a little more than 10 percent of the city’s sales tax

Southern Jewish Election

revenue. “Most importantly, the blight is gone.”

He, along with Jeffrey Bayer, also took part in developing The Summit, and the restoration of the Pizitz Building in downtown Birmingham. Those, too, required public-private collaboration.

Silverstein also enjoys philanthropic work. He is the former president of the Alabama Holocaust Education Center.

After his daughter was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, he, along with his dear friend Benny LaRussa, led efforts to establish the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Comprehensive Diabetes Center. He has been president of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and the Alabama Chapters of the American Heart Association, and currently sits on the boards of First Horizon Bank Birmingham and UAB St. Vincent’s Health System, and the board of Leadership Alabama.

Silverstein said that the city doesn’t face a crisis, he just wants to work on an even better future. “My grandkids are going to live in this community,” he said. “I just want to make sure we keep moving forward.”

Woodfin cites Birmingham economic growth in seeking third term

By Lee J. Green

In Randall Woodfin’s almost eight years as mayor of Birmingham, employment rates have skyrocketed and the Magic City experienced significant economic growth.

But Woodfin, who is seeking his third term on Aug. 26, said the most important investments have been devoted to education and safety.

“What I’m most proud of are our partnerships with the community and Board of Education to strengthen our public schools and providing the necessary tools that help students to thrive,” said Woodfin. “When we invest in our schools we create a safer environment for learning, and opportunities for the future leaders of our great city.”

In 2019, these partnerships created the Birmingham Promise. One of the programs in the plan has provided more than 2,000 students free college tuition. Another program allows students to earn a living wage while learning a trade.

“We’re seeing increases in graduation rates and students who feel prepared for the next step in their lives – whether that’s college, trade school, internships, apprenticeships or any other high-quality, hands-on learn-

In July 2022, Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin greeted diplomats from Israel and the Abraham Accords countries for the planting of a Tree of Peace during the World Games.

Southern Jewish Election

ing opportunities,” said Woodfin.

He said that through Birmingham’s BOLD program, the city partnered with 43 local organizations to transform $3.8 million in city funds into $11.6 million in total investments to fuel inclusive growth across Birmingham.

Woodfin said he appreciates his many friendships and partnerships with the Birmingham Jewish community.

“The Hesses and The Shevins are some of our best friends,” he said. “We’ve worked with the (Birmingham Jewish Federation and other community organizations) on ways the city can help with keeping the community safe. It’s so important to us to protect the safety at the synagogues, the LJCC and in residents’ homes.”

Ronne and Donald Hess said they have supported Woodfin since he decided to run for his first term. ”Since first being elected, Randall has worked hard to connect with and understand our Jewish community. That includes showing up for events, concerns about security, reaching out when he has questions and lighting a Menorah in front of City Hall,” they said.

Woodfin said he was proud of the way the city has provided for the needs of its citizens during difficult times, such as during Covid.

“Real leadership is how you respond in times of prosperity and times of crisis,” he said. “During Covid, we had non-profits and businesses (temporarily) close and there were so many in need. I’m proud of the way our administration and our city came together to handle a significant health and economic crisis.”

The mayor added that supporting the arts and tourism have been central to his administration. “Birmingham is the cultural hub of Alabama and the Deep South. We must preserve and support the arts, culture and history,” he said. “We’re blessed to have the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, Vulcan Park and Museum, the Alabama and Carver theatres, Sidewalk Film Festival and so much more. These are such important parts of our city’s fabric and we want to share them with the world.”

The mayor said that a strong focus will always be put toward inclusivity, equality and organic growth.

“In my next term, I’ll continue to accelerate inclusive growth by attracting new employers, championing home-grown entrepreneurs and sparking innovation,” said Woodfin. “At the same time, we’ll breathe new life into neighborhoods by expanding affordable housing, improving infrastructure and supporting local small businesses. Prosperity should be shared across all 99 of our neighborhoods.”

ZAKA deploys to Texas

Following the devastating floods that swept through the Hill Country region of Texas in early July, ZAKA Search and Rescue, Israel’s volunteer emergency response organization, deployed a specialized team to assist in recovery efforts, responding to an urgent call for support from Texas emergency authorities. The disaster, caused by the rapid and unprecedented rise of the Guadalupe River, left a path of destruction across multiple counties, with lives lost and many still missing.

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From BYJew to Bayou Jews

QB Jake Ratzlaff transfers to Tulane

Quarterback Jake Retzlaff has gone from being a rare BYJew to being part of a large community of Bayou Jews.

The former quarterback from Brigham Young University, where he was reportedly one of only three Jews on campus, has transferred to Tulane, which has one of the highest proportions of Jewish students in the country.

The novelty of a Jewish quarterback at the LDS institution led to an endorsement deal with Manischewitz.

On July 11, Retzlaff officially withdrew from BYU after “a lot of prayer, reflection and conversations with those I trust.”

In May, a woman sued Retzlaff, alleging sexual assault in November 2023. His attorney said they had consensual sex. On June 30, the suit was dismissed “with prejudice,” meaning the case was closed and could not be re-filed.

However, the admission of consensual sex violates the LDS institution’s honor code prohibition of premarital sex, and he faced a seven-game suspension, leading him to withdraw and find a new situation.

Last year, Retzlaff threw for 2,947 yards and 20 touchdowns, with 12 interceptions. BYU finished with an 11-2 record.

ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported that Tulane spent more than a week vetting Retzlaff, including a Title IX review of the circumstances that caused his departure from BYU.

By the time Retzlaff started looking around, the transfer portal was over for the season and most teams had their quarterback situations settled — which, in the new era of college football, means that big money has been invested in them through the Name, Image and Likeness agreement. He also could not redshirt this year and wait for next year’s cycle, because he is a fifth-year player in his final season. Also, because of the circumstances, he did not receive an athletic scholarship, but is classified as a walk-on.

Because of the NIL system, Tulane found itself needing help at the pivotal position. Last year’s starter, Darian Mensah, had transferred to Duke, reportedly on an $8 million deal over two years. T.J. Finley, who was at LSU in 2020, Auburn in 2021 and 2022, Texas State in 2023 and Western Kentucky last season, was brought in as a seasoned replacement, but he was suspended indefinitely following an arrest in April, and left the program.

Retzlaff steps into a quarterback room that includes Donovan Leary, who transferred from Illinois, Kadin Semonza from Ball State, and Iowa transfer Brendan Sullivan, who started three games last year, and had been at Northwestern the previous two years. None of them were at Tulane before this past January. Retzlaff was told he would not be guaranteed a starting role and would have to earn it, despite missing spring practice.

Photo

Jaren Wilkey/BYU Photo

Quarterback Jake Retzlaff playing for Brigham Young University against West Virginia in 2023.

Polina Schlafer Wheeler, REALTOR “Putting You First since 2009”

Retzlaff said the effort involves “hours and hours of studying” and a lack of sleep.

Another reason why Tulane made sense for Retzlaff is that Coach Jon Sumrall had recruited Retzlaff while he was the coach at Troy University in Alabama. While quarterback for a junior college in California, Retzlaff made an official visit to Troy and received an offer. He also got to know several staffers that are now at Tulane. But BYU entered the recruiting process at the last minute and attracted him away from Troy.

Sumrall is in his second year at Tulane, having gone 9-5 last year.

Bill Connelly of ESPN said that if Retzlaff becomes the starter at Tulane, he would be one of the 40 most important college football players this season. He wrote, “With both defending American Conference champion Army and annual contender Memphis losing loads of production, Tulane has a massive opportunity to make a run in 2025, but it will require a quarterback. Jon Sumrall clearly knows this, as he brought in four QB transfers, and the latest might be the most vital.”

Retzlaff said New Orleans is “a different world,” from Provo, “a different galaxy,” though the first example he gave was the difference between the mountains of Utah, and the sun and humidity of Louisiana. He said BYU helped him grow as a person and he loved playing there. In a 2024 interview, he told JNS “It’s so much easier to grow in your faith when you are around people of faith. It’s simple. Surround yourself with people of faith because you will become like them and that’s how it’s been. I’ve been able to grow in my faith as a Jew.”

But now, he says he is focused “about where my feet are,” and winning games for Tulane. The season begins at home against Northwestern on Aug. 30.

“Likely

the

last” Walker Percy weekend

Festival benefits restoration of Jewish landmarks

When the 10th Walker Percy Weekend is celebrated in September in St. Francisville, it may be the final such weekend. Organized by the Julius Freyhan Foundation, the literary festival has benefited the restoration of the Julius Freyhan High School building, which served students until 1950, and the neighboring Temple Sinai.

The two buildings are part of a new cultural and conference center. After restoration, the Temple has been open since 2012, having been listed by the Louisiana Preservation Alliance in 2006 as a Top Ten endangered site. The building was constructed in 1902, but by 1922 the congregation closed and the building was sold to the Presbyterians, who used it until the 1970s.

The school was the first public school in St. Francisville, the result of an $8,000 bequest by Jewish businessman Julius Freyhan, a major figure in the history of St. Francisville, who died in 1904 in New Orleans. The building was completed in 1905, but burned in 1907 and was rebuilt the following year. His granddaughter, Pauline Friedman of California, left a bequest to restore the building. That restoration is now being completed.

A Birmingham native, Percy wrote a series of philosophical novels set in New Orleans. He died in Covington in 1990.

The weekend, which will be Sept. 19 and 20, includes a Saturday lecture series, a Taste of Louisiana Southern Supper, lunchtime book club series, the famous Progressive Front Porch Tour and Bourbon Tasting, and a live concert featuring Grammy-nominated Louisiana native Sonny Landreth Trio. The weekend concludes with Late Night Pub Trivia with Father Brad Doyle.

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>> Agenda community

continued from page 11

a new initiative for grades 11 and 12. “Antisemitism: Then and Now” will be a 12-session class designed to prepare students for college and adulthood. It is developed by Jonathan Wiesen, professor of history at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and an expert on antisemitism and the Holocaust. The class will also feature visiting college professors from around the region, and other guest speakers. Students will also be able to share their own experiences. The sessions will be on Sundays at 11 a.m., starting Aug. 24. Registration is available through Margaret Norman at the Birmingham Jewish Federation.

The New Orleans Jewish Community Center announced that this year’s Center Celebration on Nov. 8 will be “Make It Pop!”, a high-energy tribute to iconic Jewish pop stars of the 1970s and 1980s. The live musical variety show will feature Grammy-nominated Joe Gelini of Cha Wa and Broadway’s Alix Paige. Proceeds from the evening support JCC programs, including early childhood education, summer camps, older adult enrichment, Alzheimer’s care and cultural arts events.

Temple Sinai in New Orleans will have a brunch honoring its past presidents, followed by a silent film ensemble spectacular, with world renowned musicians Donald Sosin and Alicia Svigals, Oct. 26 at 11 a.m. The brunch will be organized by Rommel’s Catering.

The Birmingham Jewish Federation’s Jewish Community Relations Council will host a lunch and learn training session on workplace discrimination and its effect on the Jewish community. The Sept. 3 program will be at 11:30 a.m. at the Levite Jewish Community Center, and is being held with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

Yair Brenner, a native Israeli educator, will be teaching a Learn Modern Hebrew class in Birmingham this fall, in partnership with Rabbi Adam Wright of Temple Emanu-El and the N.E. Miles Jewish Day School. The class will begin on Aug. 26 and will last for 12 Tuesday sessions, from 6 to 7 p.m. It will meet at the Day School, and registration is $460, including materials. The class is open to all, in the Jewish and non-Jewish community, interested in exploring Israeli culture through language, food, music and conversation.

The next Torah on Tap with Rabbi Steven Henkin of Temple Beth-El in Birmingham will be on Sept. 3 at 7 p.m., at Avondale Sour Room. This month’s gathering will be in partnership with Temple Emanu-El, with Cantor Robby Wittner. First round is complimentary.

Falafel Sunday returns at Bais Ariel Chabad in Birmingham on Sept. 7, with all you can eat falafel, pizza and Mediterranean salads. Adults are $13, children are $9.

The new season of Southern Jewish Voices, oral history interviews at Birmingham’s Levite Jewish Community Center, kicks off on Sept. 17 with criminal defense attorney Richard Jaffe. The sessions are at noon, and a complimentary lunch is available with advance reservations. The series will continue on Nov. 12 with Birmingham Jewish Federation Interim CEO Florina Newcomb, and Dec. 17 with Pizitz family members Richard Sr., Richard Jr. and Andrew.

Young Adults of Shir Chadash in Metairie will hold Torah on Tap with Rabbi David Cohen-Henriquez, Aug. 26 at 6:30 p.m. at Wrong Iron. First drink is complimentary.

The New Orleans Section of the National Council of Jewish Women is partnering with several groups to co-host a Mayoral Candidate Forum, Sept. 2 at 6:30 p.m. at Junior League of New Orleans headquarters. Space is limited to 200 registrants.

Birmingham’s Levite Jewish Community Center will be offering

community

“Building a Jewish Home,” a class for interfaith couples, for those who are dating, engaged or newly married. Rabbi Steven Henkin of Temple Beth-El will lead the 18-session course, meeting from Aug. 14 to June 18 at 6 p.m. Registration is $118, but no one will be turned away due to a lack of funds.

The next Shabbat Halicha hike for Birmingham’s Temple Emanu-El will be on Aug. 30 at 10 a.m. at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens.

The final Summer Union Shabbat joint service for Temple Sinai, Touro Synagogue and Gates of Prayer in the New Orleans area will be the weekend of Aug. 29. The 6:15 p.m. service at Temple Sinai on Aug. 29 will also commemorate the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.

Bais Ariel Chabad in Birmingham will host “A Mother’s Prayer: A journey of infertility, faith and miracles,” with Ariella Kamen, on Sept. 10 at 7 p.m. The Miami native will share her story of having been born without a uterus, and the journey that led to the miraculous birth of her daughter, including moving from Israel to receive a uterus transplant in Birmingham. Details of the event will be announced.

The North Louisiana Jewish Federation is partnering with PACE Louisiana at their OUTnorthLa Film Festival at Robinson Film Center in Shreveport. On Sept. 7, there will be a screening of “Unspoken,” a coming-of-age story about a young adult who is struggling to understand his own identity and where he fits into the world. Noam, a closeted Orthodox Jewish teen, discovers his grandfather might have loved another man, prompting a journey towards self-discovery.

The Levite Jewish Community Center Theatre in Birmingham will hold auditions for the youth production of “Matilda Jr.” from 4 to 7 p.m. on Aug. 25 and 26, with callbacks on Aug. 27 and 28. Show dates will be Nov. 13 to 16. The production will be directed by Alie B. Gorrie with assistance from Kristin Staskowski.

The JCC Sock Hop at the Uptown Jewish Community Center in New Orleans returns on Sept. 6 for grades 5 to 7. The neon-themed night will include a live DJ, dance competitions, snack bar, and glow-tastic, neon vibes. The event will be from 7:30 to 10 p.m. Tickets are $30 in advance, $40 day of, and there is a $10 snack pass add-on available.

Tulane Hillel and Students Supporting Israel will have a welcome back party, Aug. 28 from 8 to 11 p.m., with a live DJ. Location to be announced.

The JNOLA Chai Society will have a soiree on Sept. 16 at Morris Bart’s Metairie office, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. The event is for those ages 21 to 39 who do a minimum individual gift to the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans’ Annual Campaign of at least $15/month, $180/ year. There will be cocktails and hors d’oeuvres.

B’nai Israel in Columbus will have a Hillel Shabbat service, Sept. 12 at 7:30 p.m.

The Gates of Prayer Brotherhood in Metairie will have an opening dinner and whiskey tasting in the newly-renovated Manheim Social Hall, on Sept. 27. Havdalah will be at 6:15 p.m., followed by whiskey tasting at 6:30 p.m. and dinner at 7:15 p.m. Reservations are $50.

Hadassah New Orleans will have a self-guided group tour of “Most Fortunate Unfortunates: The Jewish Orphans’ Home of New Orleans” at the Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience, Sept. 11 at 10:30 a.m. No charge for Hadassah members or museum members.

Birmingham’s Levite Jewish Community Center is debuting Mensch & Mingle, spotlighting local organizations making a difference. The first will be Greater Birmingham Ministries on Sept. 4, with Rev. Carolyn Foster and board member Karen Weinrib. Happy hour starts at 4:30 p.m., program at 5 p.m.

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Coach Bruce Pearl is also outspoken on early detection for prostate cancer

Will be the honoree for the Mike Slive Foundation’s Blue Shoes Ball

September is prostate cancer awareness month, so the Mike Slive Foundation in Birmingham is holding its annual Blue Shoes Ball on Sept. 4, raising funds and raising awareness for men to get tested for early detection. The ball’s honoree is someone who has no problem raising awareness of whatever cause is on his mind.

Auburn Basketball Coach Bruce Pearl is a longtime supporter of the Mike Slive Foundation and friend to the late SEC Commissioner Mike Slive, and raising awareness of cancer prevention has been a passionate cause of his for years.

Slive was commissioner of the Southeastern Conference from 2002 until his retirement in 2015, after serving as founding commissioner of two conferences — the Great Midwest and Confer-ence USA. Inspired by his own fight against prostate cancer, he teamed with Ed Meyerson, a prostate cancer survivor, to form the foundation upon his retirement, and served as the first president. Slive died in May 2018.

Anna Slive Harwood, his daughter and executive director of the foundation, said that before he died, he said he would not have imagined that his legacy would be more than college sports.

Noting that the foundation’s 10th anniversary is next year, she said “I think he would be very proud of what we have done.”

Slive would say that no man should ever die because of prostate cancer, which is why prostate-specific antigen testing is a major emphasis of the foundation.

Prostate cancer is the second most common form of cancer among men, and the leading form of cancer-related death. According to the Foundation, 1 in 8 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer, and screening and early detection can dramatically change the outcome.

“When you check your PSA regularly and understand your risk, this is almost 100 percent treat-able,” Harwood said. “It’s so simple. Why wouldn’t you?”

Harwood said African-Americans are twice as likely to be diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer. Having a direct relative with prostate cancer also doubles the likelihood of a diagnosis. “It’s the same as breast cancer,” she said. The difference is that prostate cancer doesn’t have the same sort of research funding.

In terms of awareness, Harwood said prostate cancer “is where breast cancer was 40 years ago” — something that was difficult to discuss publicly. She noted it can be difficult for men to talk about it, “because of the potential side effects touching on manhood and masculinity.”

Harwood noted that knowing the foundation would be honoring Pearl would have been very meaningful for her father. “Coach is one of the most generous and engaging persons I know. Coach and my father understand the importance of relationships and helping others. I can’t think of a better time to honor Coach Pearl for all he has done for so many others.”

“Mike Slive was a giant in our industry, changing college sports for the better during his time,” Pearl said. We lost him way too soon to prostate cancer.”

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Pearl added, “We have a real opportunity to use his good name and help raise money for research and make sure men are getting screened. This is important not just for men over 40, but for all young men to know about their family history and their risk. If I can help save some lives, that’s what Mike would want me to do.”

Harwood said when Pearl commits to something, he goes all in. “He makes sure everyone in his universe knows what he is trying to do.”

In this case, that includes educating his players about prostate cancer. Harwood said there are two benefits to that. First, prostate cancer is seen as “an old man’s disease,” but men are in-creasingly being diagnosed in their early 40s. This plants the seeds of awareness so they know to have it checked. “Hopefully by the time these young men are in their 40s, we will have a cure for it,” she said.

Second, by broaching the subject to the players, they go home and ask their fathers and grand-fathers about family history — and whether they get screened.

Each year, Auburn devotes a home basketball game to AUTLIVE, raising awareness of cancer prevention and detection, including prostate cancer. Sales of T-shirts and donations benefit cancer patients and local hospitals.

The program is a version of the OUTLIVE

program Pearl started at Tennessee in 2009, in recog-nition of former Vol Chris Lofton, who beat testicular cancer through early diagnosis and local treatment. He went on to play the entire 2007-08 season while battling the disease.

At Auburn, the game was renamed AUTLIVE, and since 2016 over $1 million has been raised.

For the past six years, the Mike Slive Foundation has partnered with Auburn to provide free PSA blood tests in the arena concourse during the game.

For this year’s AUTlive game, which was against Tennessee, Pearl and ESPN’s Dan Shulman took their PSA tests with the cameras rolling, so it could be shown on the broadcast to raise aware-ness. Harwood said people notice when Pearl, his assistant coaches and the mayor of Auburn get their tests.

Harwood said they have built a regular following for the PSA tests at the game. It takes five minutes, which could be lifesaving. At a recent screening, one fan’s wife convinced him to go ahead and do it even though he had done his annual screening a few months earlier. It turned out his PSA had jumped significantly, and he had a particularly aggressive form of prostate can-cer. Had he waited until his next annual

test, “he might not have had the outcome” that early detection gave him.

The disease hit home again at Auburn recently. In February, Auburn Football Coach Hugh Freeze was diagnosed with an early form of prostate cancer. Further testing showed it to be a form that is “slow aggressive,” so in April he announced that after medical consultations, he would be able to coach the season without distraction, and it would be revisited next January, when he would have a convenient window for the three weeks that treatment would take.

The Blue Shoes Ball will be on Sept. 4 at 6:30 p.m. at Regions Field. There will be a live and silent auction. Black tie is optional, blue shoes are a must. Tickets are $150, with higher levels starting at $500 and going through $25,000.

Coach Bruce Pearl and Mike Slive at the launch of the Mike Slive Foundation in 2016.

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Engineering success: Alabama students win two global Tikun Olam awards

One year after the University of Alabama re-launched its chapter of Tikun Olam Makers, the group won two awards at the Tikun Olam Makers’ Global Innovation Challenge.

The Alabama chapter was among 470 participants from 33 campuses in 13 countries. Alabama was the only U.S. university to win one of the four grand prizes, and one of only two U.S. schools to earn two awards, the other being Vanderbilt. The winners were announced on May 19.

The TOM movement was started in 2004 by Reut, an Israeli social impact group founded by Gidi Grinstein. Local TOM groups create and distribute affordable solutions to neglected challenges of people with disabilities.

Alabama TOM President Jesse Park, a sophomore majoring in mechanical engineering, said “Our goal is to create assistive tech for lesser-known disabilities to make day-to-day life easier.”

Products start with a “need knower,” someone who is living with a disability or has intimate understanding of a particular need. They provide the issue, and the TOM communities work on finding a solution.

“We take a holistic, user-centered approach,” Park said. “It always starts with a conversation: how do they live, what’s not working, and what ideas do they already have in mind? Then we sketch, CAD and prototype — to reach real-world solutions.”

Winning designs are uploaded onto a website for public use. Many solutions involve 3D printing, and the specifications are uploaded so anyone who needs the solution can access it.

Among the four Grand Prize winners, two teams were from Israel, and the other U.S. team was from The Center for Discovery in Harris. N.Y. The two Special Category winners were from Japan and the Palestinian territories.

The Alabama chapter won the Daily Living Grand Prize for its QuickClamp project, which came out of the university’s Adapted Athletics department. Alabama has been a powerhouse nationally in wheelchair basketball.

Jesse Park, Assistant Coach Michael Auprince and Sandra Onyishi

The 3D-printed QuickClamp device is designed for wheelchair users who use motorized scooter attachments regularly and face issues with their current mounting parts.

Lisa Clary-Galibert, a graduate student on the women’s wheelchair basketball team, and other student-athletes noted that their current mounting parts are too heavy, take too much time and effort to attach, are costly to purchase and replace, and dig into their legs, causing bruises.

The QuickClamp can be assembled in minutes, and takes seconds to mount. It also does not remain on the wheelchair after use, and is inexpensive. It can be adjusted to different frame sizes and widths.

In a video about the device, Margaret Stran, associate director of Adapted Athletics, said the clamp “solves so many problems that we currently have. We are just so excited to be working on these projects and seeing the fruits of their labors.”

Clary-Galibert, Sandra Onyishi and Zander Davidson developed the QuickClamp.

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An honorable mention and a PrintLab license went to the Parameterized Prosthetic Leg Cover, developed by Park, Dexter Gard, Camille Catron and Michael Auprince.

The prosthetic leg cover was created in collaboration with Michael Auprince, an assistant coach for the men’s wheelchair basketball team.

“When he wears long pants with his prosthetic leg, it sometimes ruins

the fabric and looks visibly uneven,” Park explained. “The problem with current solutions is that they’re expensive and not very effective. So we asked, how can we use advancements in additive manufacturing to design a lightweight, cost-effective, biologically inspired shell?”

Using parametric modeling, the team created a two-shell mechanism customizable to the user’s exact leg dimensions. “Now, anyone can input their biological and prosthetic leg measurements and receive a 3D-printable model,” Park said. The model is 20 to 30 times less expensive than what is commonly available.

The club, advised by Department of Mechanical Engineering Associate Professor Keivan Davami, includes students in mechanical, electrical and computer engineering, along with students majoring in finance, business and pre-med. “The main skill is CAD — computer-aided design — but also additive manufacturing,” Park said. “You learn that what you design isn’t always what prints, so there’s a real learning curve in building intuition for fabrication.”

Grinstein said “each year, the Global Innovation Challenge brings out the best of our international network of communities, which exhibit inspiring dedication, creativity and generosity in creating their solutions for needs of people with disabilities and then contributing them to humanity.”

Lisa Clary-Galibert models the QuickClamp

Southern Jewish Health

NOLA Detox Expanding Its Mission of Recovery

Special to SJL

NOLA Detox is redefining how addiction treatment is done, and they are just getting started.

Known for bringing world-class care to a city better known for indulgence than sobriety, NOLA Detox is about to open a second campus in Slidell, doubling its detox capacity and adding outpatient services to serve the Northshore. All current services are provided at the Algiers campus in New Orleans.

For co-founder Dan Forman, who comes from a healthcare background and is deeply involved in synagogue leadership, the expansion feels personal. “Recovery is about renewal,” he says. “It is no coincidence that our Slidell opening is happening around the High Holidays. Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are about reflection, making amends, and starting over. Those same principles make recovery possible.”

Co-founder Chris Copeland, whose hospitality roots run deep through his family’s Popeyes

and Copeland’s restaurants, sees the new campus as an extension of their philosophy of care. “If we treat people like honored guests, they are more likely to engage in the hard work of getting better,” he says. “Whether it is our chef-prepared meals or our staff knowing every patient by name, it is about creating a safe, dignified environment to heal.”

The High Holidays theme resonates beyond faith communities. “It is a season when people look at their lives and ask what needs to change,” Forman says. “For some, that means finally making the call for help. We want them to know they can do it here, surrounded by a supportive community.”

Jewish ethics are naturally woven throughout NOLA Detox’s approach to care. From a belief in the value of every individual to the responsibility of helping others, these principles shape how the team supports patients on their journey.

NOLA Detox has expanded its partnership with Tulane School of Medicine, ensuring ac-

cess to top-tier addiction psychiatry and maintaining one of the lowest patient-to-counselor ratios in the region.

Patients still find joy in the NOLA experience, from group outings to live music to the beloved Otis Spunkmeyer cookies before bed. “We remind people that life in recovery can be full of flavor, music, friendship, and purpose,” Copeland says. “Sobriety is not the end of fun. It is the beginning of real living.”

For both founders, the mission goes beyond clinical success. “Every person who gets well ripples out into the community,” Forman says. “Their families heal. Neighborhoods stabilize. It is tikkun olam, repairing the world, one person at a time.”

With the Slidell campus about to open its doors, NOLA Detox is ready to welcome more people into that mission than ever before. As the Jewish New Year begins, their message is clear: the chance to start fresh is here, and it is waiting in New Orleans and now on the Northshore.

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Brisket, Babka and Beats benefit joins Nola’s culinary events landscape

New Orleans is known for its food scene and a wide range of festivals tied to specific dishes or certain styles. Now, the Jewish Community Day School in Metairie is partnering with the Shaya Barnett Foundation to add to the landscape.

The inaugural Brisket, Babka and Beats will be held on Sept. 14 from 4 to 7 p.m. at Nola Brewing and Pizza Co., showcasing Jewish food and chefs, and celebrating the diverse community’s love of dining and music.

The event will feature unique takes on Jewish culinary classics, featuring Alon Shaya of Pomegranate Hospitality, Chris dos Reis of 34 Restaurant & Bar, Samantha Weiss and Kelly Jacques of Ayu Bakehouse, Jason Gonzalez of Gonzo’s Smokehouse & BBQ, and Jared Gassenberger of Bon Ton Prime Rib.

Shaya will do a cooking demonstration, there will be live music by Where Y’acht and The Shanks,

and creative alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. Shaya, who is co-chairing the event with wife Emily, Gabe Feldman and Susan Green, said “I am very excited to throw this incredible festival showing off some of the best chefs in New Orleans to support the growth of the Jewish Day School and the Shaya Barnett Foundation. Through delicious brisket and babka (and more!), and beautiful music we will gather to support education and celebrate community. Come hungry and hang out with us for what will be a really fun time!”

Tiffany Cotlar, JCDS director of institutional advancement, said they encourage the broader New Orleans community to join in the festivities. They plan to make this an annual event that is part of the New Orleans social calendar and can serve as a showcase for Jewish food and cooking, with chefs from around the world.

JCDS currently has students from infants to sixth grade, and will be expanding to eighth grade over the next two years.

The Shaya Barnett Foundation provides culinary education and resources to high school students. Through hands-on curriculum, students are able to gain the real-world skills necessary to gain experience and employment in the ever-growing culinary and hospitality industry.

Tickets are $100, with full access to the open bar. For those under 21, tickets are $50. Age 5 and under are free. Patron level is $250 and includes a special swag bag. There will be vegetarian, vegan and kosher options available.

Sponsorships range from $1,000 to the entertainment sponsor at $10,000 or the naming sponsor at $25,000.

Proceeds will be shared by JCDS and the Shaya Barnett Foundation.

“Precious Gems” sparkle at JCRS gala

Many JCRS governing board members participated in the style show, with members of their families. Left to

Anna Claire, Jenny and Lilly Pollack; Rose and Karen Sher

On May 17, Jewish Children’s Regional Service showed a different facet of its Jewish Roots series of galas, hosting “Our Precious Gems” at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside.

The evening, which benefits the regional agency’s scholarship programs, included recognition of Amy Gainsburgh Haspel and Jacquelyn Stern, leaders of the college scholarship committee.

Each year, the gala focuses on a different aspect of Jewish history, and “Our Precious Gems”

featured the history of Jewish involvement in the precious gems trade, with a runway-style show by Dillard’s, featuring jewelry from M.S. Rau.

Bill Rau, CEO and owner of M.S. Rau, gave a history of Jews in the jewelry trade, citing the 1492 expulsion of Jews from Spain as a pivotal moment in establishing a worldwide network of expertise in gems. The high literacy rate among Jews, at a time when the world literacy rate was in single digits, was crucial to their being relied upon to conduct complicated, high value transactions.

More recently, Jewish craftsmen have been at the forefront in advancing jewelry-making techniques.

His gallery supplied — temporarily, of course — an array of diamond, emerald, gold, pearl, sapphire and opal pieces for the show. The one-ofa-kind pieces were displayed during the cocktail hour, before the fashion show.

In addition to professional models, several JCRS governing members and their families strutted the runway, including Irina Foxman her daughters Hannah and Ella Ware; Missy Taranto and her daughter Jessica; Jenny Pollack and her daughters Lilly and Anna Claire; Rose Sher and her mother Karen Sher; and Kelly Haber and her sons, Sam and Henry.

The awards were presented after the runway show. JCRS President Michael Goldman

Jessica and

said Haspel and Stern “have helped countless individuals discover their worth and pursue their dreams. Like skilled gemologists, they have seen the beauty and potential within each student and helped them polish their talents to a radiant shine.”

Haspel taught for 10 years before stepping down to raise her two children and volunteer in the community, especially the Jewish Community Center and Isidore Newman School, her alma mater. She has served JCRS in a variety of areas, including every major fundraiser, and has served on the Camp Committee and is a regular at the Chanukah Wrap-a-thon.

As co-chair of the college scholarship committee, she said support for it has grown thanks to Zoom enabling out of town board members to be more involved with committee meetings.

Stern’s involvement with JCRS began as a recipient of summer camp and college aid, and at the gala she spoke of the difficulties she had in

right,

Missy Taranto;

Sam and Henry Haber, sons of board member Kelly Haber.

her childhood, and how JCRS played a pivotal role in her life.

After graduating from Louisiana State, she spent a year on a kibbutz near the border with Lebanon, then returned to New Orleans to teach emotionally disturbed children, then specialized on working with autistic children.

More recently, she has taught incarcerated men at the Orleans Parish Prison, and lobbies the Louisiana Legislature as part of Jews Against Gassing, to repeal that form of execution.

She is co-chairing the 2025 Annual Campaign for the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans, and is also involved with numerous other organizations in the Jewish community.

The inaugural Ned Goldberg Humanitarian and Service Award was presented by Wendy Goldberg to outgoing JCRS president Michael Goldman.

The agency has its roots in the Jewish Children’s Home, which opened in 1855. Since the Home closed in the 1940s, it became JCRS, providing need-based scholarships, offering support and service to Jewish youth and families in the form of college aid, Jewish summer camp grants, and assistance to children with special needs.

In 2024, JCRS reached more than 1,800 youth across seven Mid-South states and, for the first time in the agency’s 170-year history, awarded more than $1 million in scholarships, including over $500,000 in college aid. JCRS provided camp scholarships to 465 children attending 55 different Jewish sleepaway camps, assisted 59 children with special needs, and distributed Chanukah gift bags to 268 Jewish children and adults with special needs.

Additionally, each month 843 Jewish children in Louisiana received books through the PJ Library and PJ Our Way programs supported and administered by JCRS.

The agency serves families in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Tennessee, Texas and Oklahoma.

NEW

Michael Goldman, Amy Gainsburgh Haspel, Jacqueline Stern and JCRS Executive Director Mark Rubin

Leslie and Bill Rau, Angela and JCRS Past President Marc Beerman, and Michael Goldman

culture A “Wicked” return to Birmingham for Kirschbaum

By Lee J. Green

Ethan Kirschbaum’s yellow brick road has led him back to the Magic City.

Kirschbaum came to Birmingham with the “Kinky Boots” national touring Broadway production in 2018. This time he’ll be playing Prince Fiyero in “Wicked” presented by the American Theatre Guild and coming to the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex, Sept. 3 to 21.

“’Wicked’ was the first show I ever saw on Broadway,” said Kirschbaum. “I was 11 years old and I was just in awe the whole time! This is the show that inspired me to start doing theatre. This show is so absolutely iconic and it’s just a dream to be in this cast!”

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He had been living in New York City before moving to Los Angeles in late 2019. “’Wicked’ was always on my periphery when I was in New York. I moved to Los Angeles to do some film and television work. Ironically, I found out about these auditions (in late 2024) and ended up getting back into theatre,” he said.

“Wicked” opened on Broadway in October 2003. It tells the story of a young woman, Elphaba, born with emerald-green skin and possessing an extraordinary talent. When she meets a bubbly blonde, Glinda, who is exceptionally popular, their initial rivalry turns into the unlikeliest of friendships… until the world decides to call one good and the other one wicked.

The play, based on characters from “The Wizard of Oz” and re-imaging their pre-stories, has won more than 100 international awards, including a Grammy and several Tony Awards. It has been performed in more than 100 cities in 16 countries around the world and is the fourth-longest running show in Broadway history, with more than 8,000 performances.

A blockbuster film version of “Wicked” opened this past November and has become the highest grossing film based on a Broadway musical in history.

Kirschbaum joined the cast this past April and will tour with the production through at

least May 2026.

“I really enjoy playing Prince Fiyero because he has such a notable arc. It’s lets me stretch my acting chops from being a carefree character who comes to realize there are certain, important things to be serious about,” he said.

Kirschbaum, 31, hails from Prescott, Ariz., a smaller town a couple hours north of Phoenix. “Keeping the traditions and celebrating together was always very important for my family,” he said. After his Bar Mitzvah, Kirschbaum auditioned for a role in “Annie” and he would get involved in many shows during his teen and high school years.

He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theatre from the University of Arizona and then moved to New York.

“It’s such a thrill being in a beloved show with themes that are so relatable,” said Kirschbaum. “Plus with the movie being so ‘popular’ (pun intended) and the second movie coming out later this year, we’re seeing a new generation of fans who know and love the story.”

He said “Wicked” came to Tempe, Ariz., before he joined the cast, but his family will get to travel and see him on a few stops. “I’m so glad I get to do what I love and to visit new places all across North America. It’s a dream come true.”

Colorful character highlights Sidewalk

Several Jewish-interest films at annual festival, including profile of Pantone inventor

By Lee J. Green

Documentaries about the inventor of the Pantone color matching system, a colorful Jewish comedian/avant garde entertainer, and a Holocaust survivor who tailored suits for presidents color the 27th annual Sidewalk Film Festival.

The Sidewalk Film Festival, which has been rated as one of the nation’s top film festivals by MovieMaker magazine, will screen more than 250 films, host panels, workshops and networking events, from August 18 to 24 across downtown Birmingham.

“The Pantone Guy” (Sidewalk Cinema A, Aug. 23 at 6:45 p.m.) paints the story of Jewish entrepreneur Larry Herbert, who in 1963 came up with the world-renowned Pantone color matching system.

“I’ve always loved making movies that tell the incredible stories of ordinary people doing extraordinary things,” said Director Patrick Creadon. “Larry is now 96 years old, lives in Palm Beach, and he is still very active with his philanthropy. Five minutes after I met him, I knew I had to tell his story.”

Herbert’s parents immigrated from Europe. He was born in Brooklyn in 1929 and during his teen years got interested in the world of printing.

After studying printing in high school and college, Herbert would go on to lead the printing department of a New York advertising agency.

“When he was in his early 30s, he started dreaming up the idea of Pantone but he needed the money to buy the company,” said Creadon. “He befriended a German woman in his kids’ carpool named Elsie Williamson.”

“She agreed to lend him $50,000 to buy this company. One year later he paid her back and asked if he could give her something additionally as thanks,” he said. “Elsie kept refusing, saying that she felt like it was a gift to be able to help a Jewish friend out.”

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, the world was becoming more color and less black and white. The demand for color printing was rampant but it was very difficult to match printing colors with actual colors.

“The world needed a language for color and Larry came up with something that revolutionized not just printing, but created a universal language that humanized color. He spent his entire adult life thinking about color – how it makes us feel and think.”

Herbert and his company continued to expand the Pantone color matching system over the past 60-plus years. He sold the company in 2007 for $180 million and has spent his golden years with his kids, grandkids, as well as being involved in many charitable efforts.

Today the Pantone Color Matching System includes 2,161 colors. Starting in 2000, they began making yearly predictions for what the color of the year will be.

“He really created a tool that has helped so many people and industries across the world… and an enduring legacy,” said Creadon.

Andy Kaufman is Me

Director Clay Tweel culled through 84 hours of audio tapes and videos to paint an unseen portrait of one of comedy’s most enigmatic provocateurs.

Tweel said he had been a fan of Jewish comedian Andy Kaufman for a

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The Pantone Guy

Critical (acclaim)

“He periodically spells my name right.” – Moses

“Yes, we gave him a graduate degree. We’re looking into it.”

– chancellor, Jewish Theological Seminary

“Half of the things he says I said, I never said. Including this.”

– his mother

“He knows more about Judaica than most, and you won’t find any of it in this book.”

– his fourth-grade teacher

“I’ll deal with him.”

– The Almighty Big G

long time, especially his wrestling character, Tony Clifton.

“Andy had this rare gift to make you laugh, cry and gawk at the absurdity,” said Tweel. “I was going to just make a film about his wrestling, but after talking with his siblings and them letting me go through a treasure trove of old photos, videos, audiotapes and journals, we agreed that a pure, full portrait of their brother didn’t exist and deserved to be told.

The film “Andy Kaufman is Me” “gives a window into the more grounded Andy,” said Tweel. It will be screened on Aug. 23 at 12:15 p.m. at the Alabama Theatre.

Kaufman also wrote an uncompleted, semiautobiographical, “surrealist” book in the early 1980s, “The Huey Williams Story” that sheds more insight into the man himself.

Kaufman grew up in a heavily Jewish-populated neighborhood of Great Neck, Long Island. “He had a very close, loving family. His mom, Carol, was a model, and his father, Michael, was a World War II veteran. They exposed Andy to a lot of comedy entertainment and his grandparents were comic storytellers. Andy was performing at birthday parties and Bar Mitzvahs from the time he was nine years old.”

After graduating from Great Neck North High School in 1967, Kaufman enrolled at a junior college in Boston, where he studied television production and starred in his own campus television show, “Uncle Andy’s Fun House.”

“Andy was really into puppetry, so we thought bringing the pages of (Huey Williams) to life with imaginative marionette puppetry would provide a unique glimpse into his creative process,” said Tweel.

Kaufman would hone his comedy craft through developing his signature character, Foreign Man, a sweet, bumbling immigrant who would perform an uncanny Elvis Presley impersonation.

The character helped him land a recurring role on Saturday Night Live and a role as Latka Gravas on the sitcom Taxi.

Another famous persona was obnoxious lounge singer Tony Clifton. He engaged in staged feuds and wrestling matches, blurring the lines between performance and reality.

Tweel said “One of the highlights of making ‘Andy Kaufman and Me’ was being able to interview one of my heroes, David Letterman,” who also serves as a producer. “Through this whole process I wanted to show what a complex person he was and who the true Andy Kaufman was behind these personas he created.”

Sadly, Kaufman had only scratched the surface on what he could become as an actor, comedian and performer. He passed away from lung cancer in 1984 at the age of 35.

Tweel premiered “Andy Kaufman is Me” at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York. He has also made other well-known documentaries, including “Gleason,” about the New Orleans Saints great safety who had become a champion for ALS since being diagnosed in 2011. Gleason became a part of New Orleans history when he blocked a punt early in the Saints’ first game back in the city a year after the devastation of Katrina, a play that provided a major spark and reverberated psychologically through a weary city. Tweel also made a 2007 movie about champion Donkey Kong players, “King of Kong.”

Coroner to the Stars

“Coroner to the Stars,” Aug. 24 at 10 a.m. at Carver Theater, chronicles the career of Dr. Thomas Noguchi, a Japanese immigrant who served as the chief medical examiner-coroner for Los Angeles County during a turbulent period, and became known for his autopsies of Hollywood celebrities and other high-profile individuals.

Producer Billy Ray Brewton, an Alabama native who wrote and directed the “We Three Queens” play and revival coming to Theatre Downtown Sept. 5 to 21, said the film by director Ben Heathcoat showcases Noguchi’s groundbreaking work in forensic science and the impact of his investigations, including autopsies of Marilyn Monroe (who converted to Judaism), Robert Kennedy, Sharon Tate and Natalie Wood.

“Dr. Naguhchi struggled to maintain an apolitical stance within the politically charged medical field,” said Brewton. “He also faced racism as a Japanese immigrant.”

That part of the story is discussed by actor and Japanese-American activist George Takei. Other key individuals interviewed and featured in “Coroner to the Stars” include Naguchi’s Jewish attorney, Rosalind Marks. The Presidents’ Tailor

Martin Greenfield learned to sew while mending shirts for the Gestapo in Auschwitz when he was 15 years old.

He would go on to make suits for celebrities and several U.S. presidents. In 2014, he was described as “the best men’s tailor in the United States.”

“The Presidents’ Tailor” at the Alabama School of Fine Arts on Aug. 23 at 5 p.m., looks at his extraordinary life, talent and success story. In 1947, a Czech immigrant guided him to GGG Clothing in Brooklyn, where he was hired as a floor boy.

His first major client in the early 1950s was General Dwight D. Eisenhower, when he was running for the presidency. In 1977, Greenfield bought GGG clothing and renamed it Martin Greenfield Clothiers.

Greenfield’s clientele included President Bill Clinton, President Barack Obama, actors Paul Newman and Ben Affleck, talk show hosts Conan O’Brien and Jimmy Fallon, and athletes Shaquille O’Neal, LeBron James and Wayne Gretzky.

Beautiful Evening, Beautiful Day

“Beautiful Evening, Beautiful Day,” on Aug. 23 at 7:30 p.m. at Carver Theater, paints an intimate look into the lives of four queer friends who fought against the Ustashas and Nazis. Sixteen years later in 1957 Communist Yugoslavia, their sexual orientation raises suspicion. A community party loyalist is assigned to sabotage their careers as filmmakers, and their lives.

Some short films of interest include “Babka.” In the heart of Hasidic Williamsburg, Brooklyn, a newly blind Jewish Orthodox baker forms an unlikely friendship with a gay, Catholic, Latino guide dog trainer. The 17-minute short will be part of the Connections series of short films, Aug. 24 at 10 a.m. at the Alabama School of Fine Arts.

“Escape: The True Story of Morris Schnitzer” depicts a Jewish teenager fleeing Germany before the onset of World War II. Schnitzer assumes false identities, endures imprisonment, joins the resistance in Belgium and ultimately saves the life of the man who protects him. “Escape” is part of the “Animated Shorts: From Around the World” at ASFA on Aug. 24 at 3:20 p.m.

“Escape: The True Story of Morris Schnitzer”

>> Editorial

and Islamists, led by former Prime Minister Jeremy Corbyn, known for his strident anti-Israel stance, and who is part of a new effort to establish a far-left party.

Corbyn had been kicked out of the Labour Party for his blatant antisemitism, and Starmer has worked to eliminate such rhetoric from the party. Starmer has also been reluctant to go along with the “genocide” canard against Israel. With much of the anti-Israel press piling on as more British politicians urge recognition of Palestine, Starmer felt it necessary to give something and try to stall the crocodiles at the door.

Recently, Canada decided to join the Palestinian statehood coalition, with Australia not far behind.

All those countries have some things in common — unpopular leaders, media that are insitutionally slanted against Israel, routine large anti-Israel demonstrations and a large, vocal and sometimes violent Islamist immigrant community. In France’s case especially, life for Jews has become difficult due to rampant antisemitism, mainly from Islamist immigrants.

Note that in Muslim countries, there are no such anti-Israel demonstrations, and widespread distrust over the idea of Palestinian statehood and Palestinian leadership under current circumstances.

A couple days before this edition wrapped, Netanyahu himself weighed in on the issue, saying “Many leaders tell me, look, we know you are right. But we can’t stand in the face of public opinion in our country. Especially European leaders, they tell me that, over and over again. And I say, that is your problem, it is not our problem.”

Something else that could become their problem is the prospect of Israel halting the sharing of intelligence with these countries, intelligence that has been vital to their battles against terror. Not to mention

continued from page 5

that the Islamists, with the sense of victory over Palestinian recognition, would press those countries further with additional demands.

Back in the Middle East, Hamas also cheers the decisions of these virtue-signaling countries. They celebrate it as a victory — they are being given so much, without having to give an inch to Israel. Israel is rightly incensed that these nations are, in essence, rewarding the Palestinians for what they did on Oct. 7, without trying to ensure that the Palestinians have changed their ways and have any interest in having a state while Israel still exists.

And as for prolonging the war? From mid-July, as Israeli pressure against Hamas grew, and with the U.S. pushing negotiations, there were optimistic reports that a deal was very close.

Then Macron swooped in, gave Hamas all the chips, and Hamas wondered why it was continuing to negotiate. They can keep running out the clock and wait for the world to pressure Israel even more. That is also when they doubled down on the fake starvation reports, to make it even more difficult for Israel to operate, and to make the world pressure Israel toward even more concessions. Remember, the theft and taxation of aid is the primary way Hamas is financed, now that Iran is mostly out of the picture, so any solution must be opposed.

Even the United Nations admits that 90 percent of its aid trucks do not make it to their distribution points, they are taken over and diverted. The “controversial” U.S. and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation? No such problems, and over 120 million meals delivered in under three months — and a refusal by the UN to work with them.

In short, the world leaders who cynically announced plans to recognize a Palestinian state have directly prolonged the war, the suffering,

the bloodshed. They simply do not want Israel to win the war, though such victory would be a godsend for the long-suffering Palestinian people, caught under the grip of a genocidal terrorist group that simply does not care how many of them are killed in service of their jihad.

ISJL launches group for Southern converts to Judaism

Conversion to Judaism is a unique process, and the Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life recently launched a new online group, the ISJL Convert Cohort, to support and serve Southerners who are in the conversion process or who have recently converted.

Lawrence Brook, Publisher/Editor

Propping up Hamas is immoral, and Palestinian statehood must wait until the Palestinians are in a position where they can live as a neighbor, with a Palestinian state beside Israel and not instead of Israel. Sadly, after October 7, it is going to take a lot to establish that level of trust.

>> Rear Pew Mirror continued from page 46 anti-pope. Some cardinals elected their own pope to serve instead of him. This alternate electee served under the name Innocent II, and for eight years supporters of both sides committed many acts that were far less than innocent.

So, when it comes to Jewish popes – like most things these days – it depends on who you ask. Thus, as with most things these days, be mindful of who you ask.

In the immortal, controversial words of the timeless Jewish composer William Joel, “Catholic girls start much too late.” Whatever that might mean, a reasonable corollary is that – depending on which claims one believes – Jewish popes are off to a late start, too.

Doug Brook is still lobbying for consideration next time. To acquire both FIVE-star rated Rear Pew Mirror books, read other past columns, or listen to the FIVE-star rated Rear Pew Mirror podcast, visit http://rearpewmirror.com/

The monthly virtual sessions are led by ISJL Director of Spirituality Rabbi Salem Pearce, herself a Jew-by-choice. While those who converted in the past are welcome, some topics may not be directly applicable. The cohort is not for those born Jewish, or who are in the initial phase of learning about Judaism but not in the conversion process.

Sessions are self-contained, so one need not attend all sessions. The cohort began on Aug. 13 with “what is great (and hard) about being a convert.” On Sept. 15 at 5 p.m., the discussion will be “talking to families and friends of origin,” and Oct. 21 at 11:30 a.m. will be “building a Jewish spiritual practice.”

Future sessions include navigating winter holidays, “surviving” well-meaning questions and micro-aggressions from born Jews, and how to handle the fifth commandment of honoring one’s parents.

The cohort is a learning space, not a conversion class, but supplements and builds on current or past conversion work. Only a very basic level of Jewish knowledge is assumed.

The discussions are an hour, with a half hour afterward of social time. There will be an in-person session in June 2026, as part of the ISJL Southern and Jewish conference, which will be held in Charlotte.

Registration is available on the ISJL website, isjl.org.

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To the Families of New Orleans

Our decision to join the professionals at Lake Lawn Metairie allows us to continue our mission to provide families the highest caliber of care in the most beautiful of surroundings. Lake Lawn Metairie proudly serves all congregations and all local cemeteries. Whether planning in advance or at the time of need, we’re dedicated to serving families with professionalism, compassion and attention to detail that is second to none.

Sincerely,

Stephen Sontheimer & Billy Henry

Neis Gadol Haya Pope

Every Chanukah, people in Israel say “Neis Gadol Haya Po” – literally “a great (gadol) miracle (neis) happened (haya) here (po).”

Earlier this year, the Vatican voted to place its first order for Chicago-style deep dish. With a feather in his cap that he called macaroni, Pope Leo XIV was ordained to the tune of the wickedly famous, traditional Steveschwartzian chant “Pope-ular, you’re gonna be Pope-ular…”

Faster than the White Sox can lose a game, the Jewish community in Chicago joined the city-wide celebration with a communal chorus of “Neis Gadol Haya Pope.”

While having the first American pope is nice – and nicer due to some Crescent City ancestry – this promulgation of papal firsts begs the question of whether there’s ever been a Jewish pope.

But nobody needs to beg. The question isn’t as ludicrous as it sounds. The answer, however, is exactly that ludicrous given that, like most things related to Judaism, it depends on who you ask rather than it being a simple yes or no.

For example, while no paperwork exists to corroborate it, Peter is accepted as having been the first pope. Of course, he and his fellow disciple-narians were Jewish. So, there’s that.

For a more substantive yet less direct example, one must become acquainted with Baruch Pierleone. This is challenging because he lived in the Eleventh Century a lot more than in the Twenty-First Century.

Nevertheless, he was a wealthy Roman Jew whose entire family converted to Catholicism for Easter in the year 1030. It’s not clear why they converted, whether it was theologically or economically advantageous, or the advent of Cadbury Eggs. Despite this type of conversion being unusual in the Middle Ages, in his middle age he ushered his family through the transition.

Is the Pope Catholic?

Well, maybe not always…

Some historians believe that Gregory VI, originally known as John Gratian Pierleone, was the son of Baruch who, by no small coincidence, would thus have been his father. John Gratian paid his predecessor to resign due to scandal, only to see his own papal term endure for under two years before he was himself deposed.

Nearly 30 years later, another Pierleone descendant was ordained as Gregory VII. His papacy lasted over 15 years, during which he is known for instituting numerous pivotal changes in the church. Among many other things, he established obligatory celibacy within the clergy – despite which he is regarded as one of the great popes in history.

In perhaps the most direct tie to his potentially Jewish origins, and in a prophetic act of foreshadowing, Gregory VII instituted the Gregorian Reform many centuries before the founding of Judaism’s Reform movement. For its time it was a radical set of reforms, but he was one Gregorian who would leave nothing to chants.

Only some historians believe that these two popes might have been of the described Jewish lineage, which means that other historians don’t believe it. Thus while for every two rabbis there are three opinions, it appears that for every two papal historians there are, in fact, two opinions.

Nevertheless, Judaism has a long tradition in comedy and, given the Talmudic edict that comedy works in threes, so does this string of potentially Jewish papal progeny.

Baruch Pierleone’s great-grandson Pietro ascended to the papacy in the year 1130 as Anacletus II. Some historians regard Anacletus II as an