The Melbourne Jewish Report - April Edition 2022

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VOL. 66 Tuesday, 5 April, 2022 / 5 Nissan 5782

Fostering a closer Jewish community

Wishing all our readers a Happy and Healthy Passover.

WORK/LIFE BALANCE

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COLD WAR 2.0

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SIX MILLION COVID DEATHS

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LEAVING HOLLYWOOD

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COMMUNITY ANNE-MARIE ELIAS With Pesach almost upon us, it is not hard to understand why my mind turned to the Exodus.

Biblically, the term refers to the departure of the Israelite slaves from Egypt under the guidance of Moses. Of course, Passover celebrates this Exodus.

Linguistically, exodus means the road out. Historically, we have seen large migrations of those seeking a road out when the status quo becomes untenable. Think of the Russian Jews during the pogroms, starting in 1881 (as depicted in Fiddler on the Roof) or the post WWII migration of Jews from Europe to Australia, Canada and the US. In 2021 we started to see the words “The Great Resignation” being used in social media and news feeds. It is the exodus resulting from the impact that COVID-19 has had on our lives. It is estimated that one in five Australians resigned from their jobs last year.

The reasons include a lack of personal fulfilment, purpose or meaning, career limitations, poor pay and benefits, and

Exodus: the roadmap to work/life balance

mental health concerns. This exodus drove some to make a sea or regional change. The ability to work remotely in a different environment was appealing.

Only last week, my neighbour left for Bali for three months – a tropical change, albeit short term. He ensured he could work remotely, surf daily and have full-time house help.

So, people have started to actively seek ways to make a fresh start. Their new lives were to include a better

work/life balance. For some, work may be as a full-time carer, parent or home manager, while for others it is paid employment or being a business owner.

In order to achieve the balance we are seeking, we need to be intentional about it.

We also may need to redefine or tweak our current value system.

The key to achieving a successful work/life balance relies upon not just what we do while we’re working (i.e.

doing meaningful work and making a positive contribution), but what we do outside work. We can find fulfilment from hobbies or leisure pursuits.

We also need to have tried and true methods for emotional, physical and psychological restoration. This requires a holistic approach that sustains, nourishes and motivates us.

Here is a 10-point plan to achieve balance: 1. Manage your workload.

2. Prioritise physical health: eat well, exercise and energise (rest, relax and sleep) 3. Recognise the danger signs (don’t burn out). Practise stress management.

4. Be social. Maintain connections.

5. Take time off and time out.

6.

Practise effective time management.

7. Set and maintain boundaries.

8. Live in the present. Be mindful.

9. Be flexible.

10. Consider what needs to change to reduce stress.

Anne-Marie Elias is a psychologist in clinical practice for 25 years.

Pesach by the numbers YERACHMIEL ISACOWITZ The number four is abundant at the seder table. We have four cups of wine, four children asking questions and four terms of redemption. The Hebrew letter corresponding to the number four is dalet, which means door.

What does a door have to do with Pesach? Everything.

Of course, the blood on the doorposts saved the Jews in the plague of the first born, but more than that, the door represents the home.

The home is so fundamental to Judaism that our most sanctified places – Beit Kneset (shul,) Beit Sefer (school) and even the Beit Hamikdash (The Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem) – are given that name.

That is because the home is effectively the source from which the seeds of

Judaism sprout and grow. It is the single most powerful force for the continuation of our people.

It is also no coincidence that in the song One is God, we sing about the four mothers of Israel. They are the pillars that were the cornerstones of the Jewish home and the conduit for Godly values.

Pesach is regarded as one of the primary Jewish festivals. Typically, it is held in the home and it utilises all our senses, namely touch, smell, taste, sight and sound. Retelling the story of the Exodus from Egypt links us to the very formation of Judaism. In addressing the four children, the Haggadah speaks to

the wise who needs intellectual stimulus, the wicked who requires boundaries, the simple who needs to be engaged and the one who doesn’t know how to ask who requires coaching.

The implication is that the correct approach can turn any child into a righteous person. That process begins in a properly constituted Jewish home.

Yerachmiel Isacowitz is an independent Torah educator.

E: risacowitz@optusnet.com.au W: torahconcepts.com FB: The Mem Channel

A key to parenting is not so much being right, rather being effective. torahconcepts.com

The Mem Channel

PARLIAMENT OF AUSTRALIA

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

CRAIG KELLY MP 6th April 2022 My fellow Australians Liberal and Labor have given Australia one Trillion Dollars of debt ($1,000,000,000,000) (a million million) At the Government’s proposed rate of repayment, it will take Australians 250 years to repay the debt.

A Trillion Dollars of debt will increase home loan rates to 4% in 2 years and to over 6% in 3 years.

At 4%, over 60% of Australians will default on their mortgages and will lose their homes, and at 6% or more over 80% of Australians will lose their homes.

The real estate market will then collapse and foreign buyers will flood our real estate market as they will have the money to buy up our properties.

We have to stop Australians from losing their homes!

A maximum of 3% interest on Home Loans The United Australia Party will introduce a maximum interest rate for all home loans of 3% per annum for the next 5 years to save Australian homeownership.

My treasurer, Clive Palmer, has a wealth of business experience and the ability to save Australia. The Liberal and Labor finance teams just don’t know what to do and they are keeping you in the dark.

Repayment of National Debt Both Liberal and Labor fail to address the Trillion Dollars of National Debt, but not the United Australia Party.

We plan to address it head-on and save your family from its impact.

Australia supplies over 80% of all Iron Ore to the Asian manufacturing market, where tens of trillions of dollars are invested in manufacturing in China, Japan, Korea and the rest of Asia.

Asia achieves its position in world trade by using Australian Iron Ore. Asian economies and industry have no alternative.

In the 1960s, Australia had an export license on the export of Iron Ore. The United Australia Party will introduce a 15% export license on the export of all Australian Iron Ore. The export license receipts will be isolated for the sole purpose of repaying our National Debt which will relieve every Australian from that burden and set up our future. So Australia can be all it can be without the financial destruction the Labor and Liberal parties have imposed on our country.

Bring Australian Super Home Australia has over One Trillion Dollars of Super invested overseas. Just like when John Curtin in World War 2 brought the troops back to save Australia, the United Australia Party will bring back a Trillion Dollars of Australian Super back to Australia, to save Australia To save your home and Australia, I need you to vote 1, for your United Australia Party candidate for your electorate, in the House of Representatives and for the United Australia Party Senate team.

We can save Australia and your home.

God bless Australia.

Craig Kelly

Craig Kelly Leader United Australia Party Authorised by: Craig Kelly, Parliament House, Parliament Drive, Canberra ACT 2600

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OPINION STUART EIZENSTAT

“How long have known me, Stu?” Madeleine Albright asked me that question with a sense of urgency I had not heard from her before.

It was mid-January 1996 and I was in my hotel room in Davos, Switzerland, at the World Economic Forum. She called me through a secure line from her office in the State Department during the transition following Bill Clinton’s 1996 reelection, before she was confirmed by the Senate as the first female Secretary of State in American history. I was about to be nominated by the president to the position she offered me as her Under Secretary of State for Economic, Business & Agricultural Affairs.

“Well,” I replied, “20 years, since you and I worked together in the West Wing of the Carter White House, you as congressional liaison for the National Security Council under Zbig Brzezinski and me as President Carter’s Chief Domestic Policy Adviser.”

The next question was even more odd: “What religion am I?” “Madeleine, of course, you are a Czech Catholic. What’s this all about?”

She explained that a Washington Post reporter, Michael Dobbs, was doing an investigative article on her background as she awaited Senate confirmation, and determined that she was Jewish, not Catholic. She had known that her parents twice fled Czechoslovakia: first to London as Hitler and the Nazis were going to take over and then again in 1948, this time to the United States, after her father, a Czech diplomat who returned after the war, was confronted

by Stalin and the Communists. She did not know that both of her parents were born Jewish and converted to Catholicism during the war, raising her and her siblings as Catholics.

“What must I do?” she asked. She told me she feared the American Jewish community would oppose her nomination, believing that she was embarrassed by and covered up her Jewish past and this might sink her confirmation. Moreover, she said, “What am I supposed to say to my three girls?

Am I to tell them they should now convert to Judaism?”

My instant advice was to tell the truth, which was that she never knew about her parents’ conversion, to embrace her newly discovered Jewish past with pride and that, of course, neither she nor her three children should feel they needed to convert to Judaism. I also explained that given my work on Holocaust justice in the Clinton administration and frequent interaction with Holocaust survivors, the Jewish community understood that during World War II all sorts of methods were used to protect Jewish children, including placing them in Catholic convents or in Christian households where they were raised by righteous gentiles.

I told her that several of the Jewish friends I had made in Belgium when I was US Ambassador to the European Union had been saved in just that way.

The advice I gave Madeleine Albright

Tomas Kraus, the head of the Federation of Czech Jewish Communities, later confirmed that “it is common for Jews from this part of the world to be ignorant of their Jewish roots.”

By being candid, I was certain there would be no blowback either from the Jewish community or the Senate. Besides, I reminded her, as UN Ambassador

Synagogue to look for her grandparents’ names among the more than 77,000 Czech and Slovak Holocaust victims lovingly inscribed by Czech survivors on the wall of the synagogue. She found the names of her paternal grandparents, Arnost and Olga Korbel, who had perished in the Nazi death camps — Arnost in Theresienstadt in 1942 and her

"My instant advice was to tell the truth, which was that she never knew about her parents’ conversion, to embrace her newly discovered Jewish past with pride …" during Clinton’s first four years in office, she had established herself as a strong, fervent supporter of Israel against Arab attacks.

She followed my advice and was confirmed with a 99-0 vote. On her first foreign trip as Secretary of State, as I was in her office for a last-minute briefing, she looked at her suitcase and, with her characteristic wit, said, “Well, with my newly discovered Jewish background, I suppose I should say I am going to schlep my suitcase!” We all burst into laughter.

But Madeleine Albright went beyond my fondest hopes in identifying with her Jewish past. As Secretary of State, in her maiden trip to her Prague birthplace in July 1997, she went straight to the Pinkas

grandmother in Auschwitz in 1944. At the synagogue she said publicly, “Tonight … their image will be forever seared into my heart.”

Later during her tour to welcome her native Czech Republic and two other former Soviet bloc countries into NATO – a burning issue today with the Russian invasion of Ukraine – she toured other Jewish sites in Prague and movingly confronted her past: “The evil of the Holocaust” has taken on “even greater personal meaning” since she learned the fate of her grandparents. “To the many values and many facets that make up who I am, I now add the knowledge that my grandparents and members of my family perished in the worst catastrophe in human history. So, I leave here tonight

with the certainty that this new part of my identity adds something stronger, sadder and richer to my life.”

She went a step further and on a later trip went to the small villages where her fraternal and maternal grandparents had lived to try to relive their history.

As her Under Secretary, I saw up-close how her background as a refugee from fascism shaped her foreign policy views and her greatest triumphs in the two Balkan Wars, in Bosnia and Kosovo. As UN Ambassador she joined with National Security Adviser Tony Lake to successfully urge President Clinton, over Pentagon and State Department opposition, to take aggressive US leadership of NATO and direct military strikes against Bosnian Serbs following the brutality against Bosnian Muslims encouraged by Serbian strongman President Slobodan Milosević.

The July 1995 massacre of more than 7,000 Bosnian men and boys at Srebrenica, dumped into a mass grave, evoked for her the Holocaust her parents had escaped. She confronted Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Colin Powell, stating, “What’s the point of having this superb military that you’re always talking about if we can’t use it?”

That military action paved the way for the Dayton Accords, negotiated by Richard Holbrooke, the peace agreement that ended the war.

In January 1999, following another Serb massacre of Kosovo Albanians at the small Kosovo village of Racak, Secretary of State Albright brilliantly combined diplomacy with NATO military force, again over Defense Department opposition, to secure a peace which lasts to this day.

She was a strong, constant supporter of my work on Holocaust justice in my negotiations with Swiss and French banks, German and Austrian slave labour companies and European insurance companies. She gave the keynote speech at the Washington Conference which led to the Washington Principles on Nazi-Confiscated Art, where she weaved her own Holocaust background into the contemporary challenge of returning looted art. And she asked me to lead the US delegation to the Kyoto conference on Climate Change, giving me strong backing for the Kyoto Protocols.

Madeleine Albright, tiny in stature but huge in impact, had a charisma, a sparkle, a brilliance and a fluency in Czech, French, Polish and Russian. She connected the foreign policy she forged with President Clinton to the lives of everyday people around the world. All of these qualities made her larger than life.

Stuart Eizenstat co-chairs the Jewish People Policy Institute’s board of directors.

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OPINION

BY MAAYAN HOFFMAN COURTESY: JWIRE.COM.AU The Russia-Ukraine war is being fought not only in the field but also on our social networks, according to Haifa University professor emeritus Gabriel Weimann.

“Unlike in many previous wars, in this war we have psychological warfare launched by both sides using very new technologies and in a no-limits way,” Weimann said.

The Russia-Ukraine conflict has highlighted what has become an integral part of the contemporary landscape of conflict: information warfare.

“This is part of the Cold War 2.0 paradigm,” explained Yaniv Levyatan, an expert in psychological and information warfare, also at Haifa University. “Both sides show that they can make significant moves that are directed towards the other side, the local population, or people around the world who are watching the events.”

Israel experienced this last May when TikTok videos helped spark several nights of clashes and chaos among Arab and Jewish youth in Jerusalem. Scholars, including Weimann, blamed the videosharing platform for playing a role in the security escalation, which included Hamas firing thousands of rockets in Israel.

“Everyone is calling it the TikTok intifada,” Tehilla Shwartz Altshuler, a senior fellow at the Israel Democracy Institute, said in an interview then.

According to Levyatan, the world needs to be “looking and learning” from the current conflict to understand the vital role information warfare could play in future escalations.

Cold War 2.0: Russia and Ukraine’s information warfare campaigns “During the war in Ukraine we are getting a clear understanding about the crucial role it plays in today’s modern warfare,” he said.

Borrowed videos, rumour mills Russian information warfare began weeks before the invasion itself. The country used social networks to show images and videos of its soldiers on the Ukraine border, showing the size and strength of its force.

Then, when the war launched, “the Russian invasion was accompanied by a huge “noise” of TikTok videos designed to sow demoralisation among the Ukrainians,” Levyatan said. “Along with genuine videos of the Russian army’s progress, there were videos “borrowed” from other armies and even Star Wars’ movies. The message promoted here was that the invading Russian army is huge.”

Social media was also used to spread rumours, such as one that special units were being sent to Ukraine to assassinate President Volodymyr Zelensky or that Zelensky had fled Ukraine, which put the Ukrainian people on high alert.

But while, on the one hand, Russia’s goal has been to intimidate the Ukrainians, on the other hand its greater focus has been messaging targeted at its own people. Russia is using social media to bolster domestic public opinion of the war and Russian President Vladimir Putin, which Levyatan said is crucial for the continuation and safety of the regime.

“Russia is practicing mostly in-house propaganda, trying to convince Russian

civilians that this is not a war and that the operation in Ukraine is against America and Western superpowers who are trying to develop nuclear and biological weapons in Ukraine,” he said.

Ukraine is engaging in the same virtual battle, but in its case the messaging is more geared toward world public opinion, he said.

“From the beginning, Ukraine’s goal was to position itself as ‘David’ to [Russia’s] ‘Goliath,’” Levyatan said.

He said President Zelensky is, likewise, trying to share a message with the west that “we share the same values” to help keep officials and the public engaged.

“But we must understand that both Putin and Zelensky are using fake news – telling lies to achieve their goals,” Levyatan said. This includes the “Snake Island” incident, where Zelensky reported that 13 brave Ukrainian soldiers chose death rather than surrender to the Russians when, in fact, they had surrendered. Another incident was the supposed deliberate bombing of Babyn Yar by the Russians, which turned out not to have happened.

“On a daily basis we see fake stats, fake pictures, fake maps, false information about victims,” said Weimann. “You cannot trust even the basic numbers, like how many people were killed.”

He said even some of the testimonies that appear heart-wrenchingly genuine are contrived.

“The most important problem with this is that the fake news [on the social networks] is now being conveyed to us by the conventional media,” he noted.

Professional journalists are being “fooled” by disinformation because they are “starving for pictures and stories and eager to get as much information as they can in a fast way in today’s competitive media environment,” he said. “The thresholds are lower and their selection of material is with less caution than on other days.”

A lesson for the future Both countries are using a variety of social networks, from Twitter and Facebook to TikTok and Instagram.

However, Levyatan said that “most fascinating” was the way that LinkedIn was now being used.

“LinkedIn is a business social network and using it is super intelligent and effective because people on LinkedIn can relate to one another,” he explained. “If I am in the high-tech community and see my colleagues in Ukraine leaving their offices with an AK47, I feel empathy. You can see huge numbers of likes and comments.”

He added that both Russia and Ukraine have engaged top marketing professionals to carry out their campaigns and are using the same data that any other business would – measuring traffic, evaluating who saw what message where and on what device.

Russia, of course, has a history of using information warfare. But as Weimann stressed, this latest example is just the start of what we are likely to see in the future.

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OPINION

RABBI BENJAMIN BLECH COURTESY: AISH.COM It was an all-too-common post Holocaust syndrome. Psychologists even gave it a name: it was called “survivor’s guilt”.

Six million had perished and survivors were few. They were condemned to live with the scars of their memories. Their dreams would forever bring with them nightmares which they most often could not bear to share with anyone. They bore the guilt for having survived.

Why me? It was the unanswerable question for those who realised that they had, on an almost daily basis, somehow managed to escape the angel of death. Survivors speak of daily miracles that saved them. If they continued to believe in God, they considered it divine intervention. If their fate caused them to lose faith, they attributed it to incomprehensible good fortune that somehow protected them. And for the rest of their lives they continued to wonder: why me? Why did I live while the great majority of those around me perished?

Survivor’s guilt was an appropriate response to survivors of concentration camps or those directly under the heels of Nazi domination and oppression. They were the intended victims of Hitler’s genocide.

I believe the term “survivor” can apply to another group of people.

Six million people have died from COVID-19

Thankfully, I never endured the horrors of Auschwitz or Bergen-Belsen. I was born in Switzerland and managed to escape on the very last boat able to leave Europe in 1941. It was a boat filled with fearful Jews who had no idea if the modern-day Haman might, God-forbid, be successful in his desire to murder every last Jew on Earth.

While it’s certainly not the same of those who survived the death camps, I, too, feel like a survivor. Any Jew who survived the years of the Holocaust, be it in America, Germany, or anywhere

in the world, is prone to survivor’s guilt.

It is a syndrome that Sheryl Sandberg sensitively called “a thief of joy and yet a secondary loss from death”.

And the most common and helpful coping mechanisms to the troubling feelings related to survivor’s guilt syndrome is this: “If I inexplicably and mysteriously continue to live while so many others perished, there must be a reason – and I have an obligation to make the rest of my life have meaning and purpose.”

The miracle of longevity dare not be an unfathomable question; it must provide an irrefutable answer.

There are countless survivors whose commitment to living a meaningful life constitute the most powerful and resounding response to their being alive.

They strove to somehow make sense of their survival.

The total number of deaths from the global pandemic recently passed six million. Six million lives have now perished with COVID-19. Some of our closest friends and dearest family. Six million is the number that now represents the contemporary tragedy, which challenges us once again with the seemingly inexplicable question, “Why me?”

Somehow the angel of death did not select us. We have been spared. Let us use the residual survivors' guilt that many of us may be experiencing to increase our commitment and efforts to fill our lives with purpose, achievement and love.

Rabbi Benjamin Blech is a Professor of Talmud at Yeshiva University and an internationally recognised educator, religious leader and lecturer. He is the author of 19 books. His website is rabbibenjaminblech.com.

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Pesach – resetting our perspective

the many opportunities to reflect of our past through our festivals also inform our behaviours.

At Pesach, the Haggadah serves as a form of narrative therapy. By retelling our history, we reduce the influence of a slave-like mentality upon our lives. By reciting the story of our freedom and escape, we reinforce our attitude towards autonomy and selfdetermination.

Passover and the Haggadah places us in both the protagonist and author roles: switching the view from a narrow perspective to a systemic and more flexible stance. The timeless messages from the Haggadah provide the Jewish

people with guidance and reminds us how far we have come.

The mindset of slavery can be hard to shake. It does not just apply to traditional enslavement as described in Egypt, but also relates to contemporary events.

We may feel like we are slaves to the daily grind, unable to free ourselves to focus on the things that are important.

Instead of being able to enjoy time with our family and friends and engage in activities that give us joy, we are slaves to technology, food and other vices.

The Talmud recounts that in every generation a person must see themselves as having been personally a part of the experience of the exodus. Egypt is representative of the hardships that one might endure. Every generation has their own challenges. When one reflects upon them, they may become overwhelming.

However, the Talmud says that G-d does not request unreasonable outcomes. The mindset with which one approaches their trials should be positive. The Haggadah tells us that we are capable of overcoming. The idea of leaving Egypt is not metaphoric, rather it is a framework of reference, demonstrating how to deal with adversity.

Pesach, the holiday which celebrates our freedom and redemption, allows us to reset our perspective.

Wishing you and your families a reflective, redemptive and meaningful Pesach!

At times, we consider our legacy … what imprint we will leave on this world? Reflecting on the social post referenced earlier, I reflect on my own "rabbinic legacy". Do I want people to remember me one day as the "coolest" rabbi in town? Having the reputation of being the "most open-minded" would be a nice legacy though, wouldn't it?

There is also a rabbi that enriched the lives of those around him both spiritually and physically. Could I support people in times of joy and sorrow in a warm, passionate, and sincere manner? In

some way, I hope to be able to live up to the qualities and attributes of my primary school teacher.

To engage the Jewish community today, I maintain that this approach is essential. An embracing approach is necessary in order to connect with the younger generation. In the past, "Jewish guilt" and fear of punishment encouraged people to attend synagogues and become involved in Jewish life. After working with university students for several years, I can assure you that that will not work with them. An about face is required. Synagogues and communities need to make people feel valued and welcome.

That does not mean that we should compromise on Jewish law, traditions, values or customs. I strongly believe that if a person is allowed to explore and understand the laws, the traditions and customs with a rabbi (or Rebbetzin) that is personable, non-judgmental, warm and embracing, he, she or they will start to appreciate, respect and hold these ideals and values dearly. I have seen many of my colleagues exhibit these qualities and I have witnessed the incredible connections and bonds they have made with their congregations.

Through this approach, the congregants often ask a rabbi to teach them more, to guide them into tackling more at their level of pace and comfort.

It is a blessing that we have the most valuable gift of all, namely the Torah.

Nonetheless, it is our responsibility to ensure that its teachings are passed on with love, respect and kindness.

RABBI GABI KALTMANN ARK CENTRE We, the Jewish people, are known as the “People of the Book” because throughout our history we have placed critical emphasis on our texts. For almost 2,000 years of exile, Jews relied upon the written word to guide them, provide comfort and serve as a reminder of the bridge between the past and the present.

Perhaps one of the most famous books in the Jewish canon is the Haggadah, which relays the story of Jewish slavery to exodus. This book links all Jews with our ancestors who escaped from Egypt as a free people.

The text discusses the trauma of bondage and the process of redemption, while examining our journey towards emancipation. By retelling the stories of our forebears, the Jewish people have comforted themselves and identified survival strategies.

I recently completed my Masters of Social Work, during which I studied a number of theories used by social workers to provide support and comfort to those requiring assistance. One popular concept is centred around a form of treatment known as “Narrative Therapy”. That is where social workers focus on helping people to create stories about themselves, identifying values, skills and knowledge to enable them to

confront whatever problems they face.

This helps in separating people from their problems. By viewing their difficulties as issues, distinct from their skills, experience and mindset, they can reduce the trauma that their problems cause. Narrative therapy allows them to switch their view. Instead of focusing on the potency of their problems, they see their power to change the situation.

As Jewish people, events in our history have shaped our current perspectives.

In our texts we have immortalised the experiences of millennia of exile – the good, the bad, the traumatic and the blessings. As people who put so much emphasis on our heritage, it is clear that

The ideal rabbi DANIEL RABIN SENIOR RABBI CAULFIELD SHULE Having recently begun my new position as senior Rabbi at Caulfield Shule, I recall a post I saw on Facebook some years ago from a couple looking for a "fun, cool and casual" rabbi to officiate at their wedding. The couple wanted someone young and hip for a backyard service. Commenters from various communities and shuls suggested that "their Rabbi" was the "coolest" in town or the "most open-minded" and would be the best choice for this situation. I was very thankful and grateful that a few people had put my name forward (I didn't pay them to post it)!

It reminded me of a congregant of mine who asked if I could describe my vision for the role of a rabbi and the Jewish community as a whole. Upon further consideration, I wrote down my thoughts. Here are a few of them.

A number of years before I was born my parents became observant. As a student at a Jewish day school in Johannesburg, rabbis were part of my life every day. As with all people and professions, there were some that did not make much of an impact and some that left a negative taste, but there were also those that made a significant difference.

One of my primary school teachers was such a rabbi. It was not his teaching or oratory skills, nor even the depth of his knowledge, that made him stand out in my mind, but rather his genuine care and concern for every student. Whenever

someone forgot lunch, he would purchase some for him with his own money.

He was encouraging, positive and looked for the best in each of his pupils.

I believe that is what the primary role of a rabbi should be. Rabbis perform many different tasks, including delivering sermons, leading shiurim (Talmudic study sessions), officiating lifecycle events and more. While they are often very busy, their ability to display empathy and humility towards others is what defines who they are on the inside.

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JNF – forging a better future JNF VICTORIA The JNF Blue Box has always represented hope and belief in an individual’s ability to contribute towards a better world.

This Pesach, the Blue Box continues to represent that hope.

Israel’s sustainable infrastructure, made possible through 120 years of donations from the diaspora, has placed the Jewish homeland in a position of strength structurally and financially.

It has enabled the country to, thus far, absorb more than 5,000 Ukrainian refugees, send aid to Ukraine and establish a field hospital in Mostyska to treat war victims.

JNF continues to raise funds to develop Israel’s southern periphery, creating a flourishing environment for its residents.

Funds raised for JNF’s 2022 Pesach Blue Box campaign will be dedicated to Yerucham, a town that began as barren land in 1951 and is now a diverse and growing community of in excess of 10,000 people. Holocaust survivors from Romania, refugees from North Africa, Persia and India, and immigrants from the former Soviet Union have made Yerucham their home.

The story of our land, like Pesach, is one of hope, freedom and vision.

Blue Box donations will directly support the people of Yerucham. Development of the Yerucham Heritage Park will help grow the town’s economy, empower its community and provide an important venue for ongoing educational and cultural events.

For more on this project, visit jnf.org.au/ blue-box

JNF BLUE BOX PESACH 5782/2022 Since 1951, Yerucham has been home to heroic pioneers.

Today, Yerucham is a diverse and growing community of over 10,000 people. Just like Pesach, Yerucham is a story of hope, freedom and resilience.

Help us keep the story alive by supporting Yerucham Heritage Park.

With your kindness, we hope to share the miracle of Yerucham with visitors for years to come.

DONATE NOW jnf.org.au/blue-box or 1300 563 563

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CANDLE LIGHTING TIMES Friday, Apr 8, 2022

5:46 pm

Shabbat ends, Apr 9, 2022

6:41 pm

Friday, Apr 15, 2022

5:36 pm

Shabbat ends, Apr 16, 2022

6:32 pm

Friday, Apr 22, 2022

5:26 pm

Shabbat ends, Apr 23, 2022

6:23 pm

Friday, Apr 29, 2022

5:18 pm

Shabbat ends, Apr 30, 2022

6:15 pm

Friday, May 6, 2022

5:10 pm

Shabbat ends, May 7, 2022

6:08 pm

Friday, May 13, 2022

5:03 pm

Shabbat ends, May 14, 2022

6:02 pm

Friday, May 20, 2022

4:58 pm

Shabbat ends, May 21, 2022

5:57 pm

Friday, May 27, 2022

4:54 pm

Shabbat ends, May 28, 2022

5:53 pm

10

the melbourne jewish report | April 2022

CO NS I D E RE D

OPINION

RABBI DR BENJI LEVY The massacres in Ukraine are horrendous.

The exodus of millions of displaced people is tragic. This war has exposed some of the worst in humanity and many responses have catalysed some of the best in humanity.

With Passover, the most celebrated Jewish festival, almost upon us, I have seen many Jewish educators discussing the idea of utilising our unique story of redemption from subjugation and our exodus as refugees as an opportunity to dig deeper into the contemporary story in and around Ukraine. That is something I appreciate. Others are saying the current story is much more relevant and that’s where our focus should be as Jews this year. In essence, why go back thousands of years when we can discuss the plight of a people in the here and now? We can live in the present rather than revisit the past and transpose their story with ours.

Beyond just relevance, by disconnecting from our own group and muting difference, it is thought that we can extend our empathy beyond the boundaries of a specific identity, creating a cultural melting pot of commonality.

As John Lennon suggested: “Imagine there’s no countries. It isn’t hard to do.

Nothing to kill or die for. And no religion, too.” I admire this desire and imagine it is coming from a good place, but I also believe it is ultimately misguided. The biblical imagination offers a radically different approach: a more powerful way to appreciate the stories of others is to own our own stories first.

The obligation to actively remember our enslavement as a persecuted minority is embedded throughout rabbinic literature and Jewish practice.

There is a biblical mandate to remember the Exodus from Egypt daily and Passover focuses on just that. Yet, there are no festivals focusing on the reign of the great Hebrew monarchs. Times of powerlessness are emphasised in the collective Jewish imagination more than times of power. Days commemorating the destruction of the Temples and other traumatic events such as the Holocaust serve only to cement this.

We do not have to forsake our heritage to connect to others. It is quite the opposite. When we truly embody our legacy, we realise that everyone has a legacy. The biblical story tells of our origins as “strangers in a strange land” and we are called upon to act.

History can be academic – a sense of detachment as we recount “his story”. Modern Hebrew has adopted historia, but there is no indigenous word in the ancient language. The closest equivalent is in zachor, which literally translates as the command to “remember”. One possible explanation for this is that the biblical concept of history is not a fixation on the past, but an undertaking in the present to remember for the future. By reliving the hardships from where we have come we can learn

Connecting to ourselves to connect to others

to better appreciate the significance of the hardships experienced by others.

The first night of Passover is one of the greatest tutorials in experiential education. We heighten our senses on our journey back in time in the here and now. We move from an intellectual subject to visceral memory. We taste the bread of affliction and the bitter herbs of hardships, and dip the hardboiled egg (a symbol of mourning) into the saltwater

world will be as one”. The biblical vision, however, is that the world will be big enough for billions … not by removing differences, but by dignifying diversity.

Lennon, one of the great songwriters, understood that musical harmony is predicated on celebrating, not removing, diversity. The same is true for social harmony.

One of the myths of universalism in its purest form may mean that if everyone

a beacon for countless others. The same slaves who inspired the beautiful tunes of African Americans as they demanded, in the same words of Moses, “Let my people go” and in Nelson Mandela’s autobiography,

“The

Long

Walk

to

Freedom”. As Heinrich Heine famously said, “since the Exodus, freedom has always spoken with a Hebrew accent”.

I will tell my children that we must feel for those who are insecure by

"The first night of Passover is one of the greatest tutorials in experiential education."

connecting

to

insecurities,

appreciate

our

own

people’s

how

much

we can be grateful for and make our unique contribution to the world by understanding the unique world from which we came.

of tears. We rediscover freedom through the Exodus and sing the songs of praise at these jubilant moments as free people. By putting ourselves in the shoes of our ancestors and shrinking the distance between us and our past, we take a profound step in closing the gap between ourselves and others with similar predicaments, cultivating empathy in one of the deepest ways possible.

John Lennon’s dream was that “the

escapes their own history we broaden our humanity, but it is the other way around. Only through connecting to our distinct stories can we appreciate the stories of others. And when our particular story has universal themes, it has the capacity to inspire all. So on the night of Passover, my children and I will once again become a band of slaves – the same slaves that inverted society, rewrote the course of history and became

Rabbi Dr Benji Levy is the founder of Israel Impact Partners, which provides philanthropic advice and support to leaders across the globe and Keshev, which offers mental health services to individuals and groups. He was previously the CEO of Mosaic United and Dean of Moriah College. He shares his thoughts at www.RabbiBenji.com and on social media @Rabbi Benji

11

the melbourne jewish report | April 2022

JUDAI C A

Test your knowledge

QUIZ

RABBI DAVID FREEDMAN Each year, time seems to speed up between Purim and Pesach!

In this Passover edition, there is a dedicated theme to the questions below – yes, each examines and delves into different aspects of this momentous time on our lunar calendar.

After all, this is an epic biblical story chronicled in the Book of Exodus exploring timeless themes.

G-d freed the weary Israelites after centuries of slavery – Moses led the way to the Promised Land. On the home front, it is a busy but rewarding time in the pre-Pesach, cleaning, cooking and preparing zone all leading up to the Seder. Within, every minute is infused with so much, from the four cups of wine to the bitter herbs to the songs, the stories are compelling and the drama of it all is unparalleled! Admittedly, the most important question on that evening is Ma Nishtana HaLaila HaZeh? Why is this night different to all other nights? Well, you’ll have to read more on Seder night to get that answer. In the meanwhile, here are 25 Pesach-themed questions to read out and enjoy with family and friends over your Yom Tov table!

1. Why is Pesach known as Passover?

2. True or false: Pesach Sheni is the second day of Passover?

3. Which one of the Five Megillot: Song of Songs; Ruth; Lamentations; Ecclesiastes or Esther is read in synagogue during Passover?

4. The generic name of the Egyptian monarch was Pharaoh.

Only two pharaohs are mentioned by name in the Bible: Pharaoh Hofra and Pharaoh Necho.

During the time of which Israelite prophet did these pharaohs live – Isaiah, Jeremiah or Ezekiel?

5. Mitzrayim, the Hebrew word for Egypt, is first mentioned in Genesis 10:6. Within, it refers to a person who was related to Noah. What was the relationship between Noah and Mitzrayim?

6. According to the Targum (the ancient Aramaic translation and commentary to the Torah) 200,000 fully armed warriors defied the will of God and fled Egypt thirty years before the Exodus. Which prophet wrote a prophecy in which he saw the skeletal remains of these soldiers – Isaiah, Jeremiah or Ezekiel?

7. True or false: Shabbat HaGadol (loosely translated as the Great Shabbat) always occurs on the Shabbat immediately before Pesach begins?

8. Which infamous action by the Nazis began on Erev Pesach, Nissan 14, 5703 corresponding to April 19th, 1943?

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9. In which year did Barak Obama host the first ever Seder in the White House?

10. At the end of Barak Obama’s Seder service (see the preceding question) when the participants said Next Year in Jerusalem, what did Obama add?

11. In the song which concludes the Seder – Chad Gadya, how much did the father pay for the hapless goat known as the one little kid?

12. Where would one find the Bird’s Head Haggadah?

13. Who spoke these words on April 3, 1968: “If I were standing at the beginning of time, with the possibility of taking a kind of general and panoramic view of the whole of human history up to now, and the Almighty said to me, "Which age would you like to live in?" I would take my mental flight by Egypt and I would watch God's children in their magnificent trek from the dark dungeons of Egypt through, or rather across the Red Sea, through the wilderness on toward the Promised Land.”

14. Moses with Pharaoh's Crown by Guido Reni (Scottish National Gallery) was painted in which century?

15. On Shemini Atzeret Jews pray for rain, what do they pray for on Pesach?

16. Who played Pharaoh Ramases II in the 1956 Cecil B. DeMille’s version of The Ten Commandments?

17.Cecil B. DeMille’s first version of The Ten Commandments was made as a

silent movie. In what year was this film made?

18. What is Maot Chitim?

19. Which famous Biblical personality is said to attend every Seder service?

20. The Haggadah About Nothing by Rabbi Sam Reinstein was inspired by which television programme.

21. Dukeh is a type of food eaten on Pesach by Yemenite Jews. What is the equivalent food eaten by Ashkenazi Jews?

22. In the song Who Knows One? Known in Hebrew as Echad Mi Yodea, sung towards the end of the Seder service, what does the number 11 represent?

23. How many of the following are real novelty haggadot – The Emoji Haggadah; The Zombie Haggadah; The Baseball Haggadah; The Trump Haggadah and The Hogwarts Haggadah?

24 .Chassidic Jews refrain from eating Gebrochts during Pesach. What does the word Gebrochts mean?

25. What was the name of the 1998 American animated musical adaptation of the Book of Exodus and the life of Moses released by DreamWorks Pictures?

The voice cast included - Ralph Fiennes, Sandra Bullock, Danny Glover and Helen Mirren.

ANSWERS PAGE 15

12

the melbourne jewish report | April 2022

M O V I E

REVIEWS

Seder in Antarctica

NOMI KALTMAN COURTESY: AISH.COM How one scientist celebrated a wintry Passover at the bottom of the world In 1995, David Hornstein, a Jewish environmental scientist originally from Australia, was living and working for IBM in Christchurch, New Zealand.

He happened to come across an advertisement in a local newspaper seeking people to join New Zealand’s scientific mission to Antarctica. “I was immediately drawn to the ad and decided that I would apply to join the scientific team,” Hornstein told me.

The position was located at Scott Base, New Zealand’s Antarctic research facility. Hornstein’s application was successful and he, along with nine others, was offered a one-year contract to live and work on the base as a science technician.

He arrived in Antarctica in September 1995 and immediately got to work. “As part of my role I got to undertake amazing scientific experiments, including measuring ozone levels in the atmosphere, collecting atmospheric gases for analysis in New Zealand, radar experiments and looking at seismic waves going through the Earth,” Hornstein said.

But Hornstein, who grew up in a traditional home, still wanted to observe Jewish holidays and that involved overcoming certain obstacles.

For instance, the sun doesn’t set for six months in Antarctica, so Hornstein wasn’t sure when to observe Shabbat or other festivals that begin at sunset.

(Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Kazen, a New York City-based Chabad rabbi, best known for setting up the website Chabad.org, advised Hornstein to follow festival times based on the city he’d come from most recently: Christchurch.)

Photo courtesy David Hornstein But it was Passover in 1996 that posed the thorniest problem. During the Antarctic winter, which lasts from February to October, the average temperature plummets to between minus 18 and minus 40 degrees Celsius – too cold for planes to fly. So, for six months of the year, no flights can come or go.

Knowing that Passover would fall during the Antarctic winter, Hornstein was still determined to celebrate on Scott Base.

“I wanted to celebrate Passover … like my parents celebrate Passover and that is by having a traditional Orthodox Seder,” he said.

Hornstein contacted some of his friends in Melbourne, asking for help in obtaining appropriate Passover supplies. Aided by financial support from Melbourne Chabad Jewish philanthropist Rabbi Joseph Gutnick, matzo and wine were shipped from

Melbourne to Christchurch. “In our prayers on Rosh Hashanah, we say God remembers all the good deeds we have forgotten,” Rabbi Gutnick told me, noting that this can also refer to “all the people that are forgotten about in faraway places.”

Once a month, a U.S. Navy C-130 Hercules military helicopter delivers packages from Christchurch to Scott Base. “On the last flight out before the Antarctic winter began were the supplies for my Passover Seder, including matzo and wine,” Hornstein said.

The New Zealand Antarctic scientific base is located about three kilometres from McMurdo Station, one of three American Antarctic scientific bases.

While the American base usually has 150 to 250 people living on it over Antarctic winter, New Zealand’s base typically only hosts 10 to 20 people

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over the winter months. While there was one other known Jewish person on the American base who was invited to join the only known Seder in Antarctica that year, they were unable to join Hornstein.

“That did not matter though, as all my colleagues on New Zealand’s scientific base were very respectful and interested in undertaking the Seder with me and learning about Jewish traditions. That included one particularly devout Christian who was enthralled with the idea of celebrating Passover in Antarctica.”

Hornstein’s journal from 1996 records his preparations for the Seder: “There we were: all 10 of us in the Scott Base bar. The Navy Chaplain had ordered kosher food just for this occasion. I had two chickens, some livers and heaps of canned matzo ball soup, so I had made chopped liver, chicken soup and matzo balls … just for the occasion.”

With preparations for the Seder set, Hornsten recalls a particularly impressive feature of his Antarctic Seder. “We went to open the door of the New Zealand scientific base during the Seder to welcome Elijah the Prophet,” he said.

“It was about 23 degrees Celsius inside the base, but outside it was absolutely freezing and when we opened the door, the outdoor temperatures caused sheets of white mist to fly into the room in front of my colleagues. I can assure you that we were the only ones in the world that year that invited Elijah to visit an Antarctic Seder!”

More than a quarter of a century later, Hornstein recalls his holiday in Antarctica fondly: “I can assure you that my Seder experience in Antarctica was one of the most meaningful Passover experiences I have ever had.”

This story originally appeared in Tablet Magazine (tabletmag.com) and is reprinted with permission.

13

the melbourne jewish report | April 2022

CHANGING

DIRECTION

Leaving Hollywood

NES BLAU COURTESY: AISH.COM I started acting at the age of eight. I was in shows like The X-Files, Everybody Loves Raymond, Malcolm In The Middle and Martial Law. When I was a little girl I wasn’t asked to dress in an inappropriate way, but it wasn’t long before those requests began to come. “Short skirt … crop top … bikini … bra … see-through … nothing …”

Hollywood is extremely competitive and the more you comply to their requests, the more likely you are to get the roles. It surprised me when actresses walked into an audition and they weren’t “dressing the part” as instructed by the casting director. Waiting to go in for an audition, I once frantically asked the girl sitting next to me, “Is that the outfit we were supposed to wear?! I was given different instructions.”

“No, I just wanted to wear this,” she said. “This outfit expresses my individuality.

It helps me stand out.” She came out seconds after she entered the audition room in tears. “They said I can’t follow directions. I didn’t dress the part!”

In the beginning, I decided to hold my ground and be unique. I wanted to make it to the top of Hollywood my way. I refused to be stripped of my individuality.

But in Hollywood, competition gets fiercer with age. The most monumental time in an actress’ career is 18 to 24. This time frame could make or break you. It is no secret that wrinkles, weight gain and all sorts of bodily changes happen as you

get older. I felt the pressure of ageing and was afraid of my youth fleeing me. The older I got, the more submissive I became to what was asked of me. I wouldn’t eat for a week just to wear “The Dress” that I wouldn't be caught dead in.

I was willing to let go of being me in order to pursue my dream of being someone else. I kept telling myself, “It’s only acting. That’s not who I am. I’m original, modest, sensitive, empowered and intelligent. I’m a diamond.”

It was only a matter of time before “It’s only acting” became, “It’s only a movie, filming for three weeks … it’s only one scene in the movie … it’s only a premiere… a business party … a meeting … a luncheon … a public appearance.”

Who was I kidding? I allowed myself to succumb to the pressures of Hollywood that increasingly objectified me.

Before every audition, your agent will receive a thing called a “breakdown”,

which is a description of the role. Here’s a typical Hollywood breakdown for an audition: Aria: Lead. Caucasian, 18, really attractive and skinny, with attitude. The kind of girl that’s not afraid to show off her body. Hottest girl in school. Everyone wants to be her and every guy wants to be with her. No baggy clothes. Come with sex appeal. Series Regular.

Some people dream of getting into Hollywood. I lived my dream by leaving it.

The longer I stayed as a working actress, the more I felt like I'd never escape. The less I felt like my own being, making my own choices in life. When you have a dream, it’s easy to get lost and do whatever it takes to reach you goal, even if it means compromising your values. I often think back to that eight-year-old girl who was so naive going to auditions and acting in TV shows. I think back to all those times I wore outfits, delivered lines and acted in ways that just weren't a true representation

of who I really am. It’s hard to believe that was me.

I'm now married and a mother. Would I want my daughter to misrepresent herself? Would I want my daughter to dress in revealing clothing and do inappropriate things? It’s my job to be her role model.

I spent so many years watching movies and dreaming, pretending to be someone else. I can finally say that real life stories don't happen in the movies.

They happen in real life. Since I left Hollywood, I'm now writing my own story and hopefully my experience will set an example for others.

Women are born leaders and true mentors. We can set an example and take a stand. We need to teach the world that it’s not okay to objectify women because we are not going to objectify ourselves. It’s our job to realise how much control we truly have and to walk around life with dignity and preservation of our beauty.

It was so hard to go against society, but the payoff was huge. I felt so much better about myself. I discovered that inside I really am a diamond. Just as every diamond is unique, God created every human being unique. And it’s up to me to live my life with integrity and dignity befitting of my true internal value.

Nes Blau (formerly Vanessa Elgrichi) decided to leave her career in Hollywood and start leading a more spiritual life.

She studied at Neve Yerushalayim in Jerusalem. Today she is married, living in Los Angeles and has built a Jewish home.

Chag Sameach!

From left: David Schulberg and Ronen Cohen at One Voice (March 2022) Photo: Sean Meltzer

J-AIR broadcasting inside and out.

Tapping into the Jewish community. www.j-air.com.au

14

the melbourne jewish report | April 2022

T H E AT R E

R E V I E W S

Musical theatre excellence

HAMILTON ALEX FIRST Dramatic, emotional, evocative.

Electrifying. Triumphant.

That is Hamilton, as good a musical as has appeared on stage.

That’s right. Nothing yet seen can or has bettered it.

The story is woven into the music, often delivered at breakneck speed and we are taken on a journey of discovery.

Hip hop predominates, but everything from R&B to pop, soul and traditional show tunes are on show. Couple that with flawlessly choreographed dance sequences.

I have so much admiration for the man who wrote the book and composed the music with lyrics. He was inspired by the book Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow. No wonder Lin-Manuel Miranda is a Pulitzer Prize winner, Tony Award winner, Olivier Award winner, not to overlook gongs at the Grammys and Emmys.

Alexander Hamilton (11th January, 1755 – 12th July, 1804) rose from poverty to become an influential figure in US politics, a Founding Father no less.

A penniless immigrant from the Caribbean, his father deserted him and his mother died when he was 12, so Hamilton had to find a way to survive.

With a towering intellect and the gift of the gab, he was never afraid of speaking his mind. In fact, he revelled in doing so.

Photo: Daniel Boud At age 19, he befriended a man named Aaron Burr, who would become his adversary – a man with whom he would lock horns on countless occasions and who would grow to resent Hamilton.

Burr would rise to the position of US vice president.

Hamilton’s notoriety grew during the American War of Independence when he became George Washington’s righthand man.

King George III was supremely confident he had the forces to defend territory.

In the musical he is presented as an arrogant and vindictive narcissist who loved power and control.

After the war, both Hamilton and Burr went on to become lawyers.

Hamilton accepted a position as the

first Secretary of the Treasury.

That resulted in a series of ding dong battles with the first Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson.

A couple of head-to-head rap contests between the pair, initiated by President Washington, present as verbal jousting at its finest.

Hamilton had earlier married into a wealthy family, but that union was not without its difficulties.

All this and much more is explored in Hamilton, the musical.

Hamilton explodes onto the stage from its opening salvo.

It presents a captivating first number, during which we learn about Hamilton’s formative years.

The dynamite script adds layers as each song gives us more of the Hamilton

story as well as providing insight into those tumultuous times. Tension is the name of the game and Hamilton is inevitably at the centre of it, never backing away from a fight.

The musical showcases those who played a significant role in his life, drawing out their strengths and peccadilloes.

The music is magnificent – often bold and brash and uplifting, but not without moments of tenderness. The cast is as polished and assured as it could possibly be – uniformly strong through a total of 34 numbers (17 in each act).

The “competition” between Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton is matched by their vocal prowess in this musical.

The scene stealer is Brent Hill as the uppity King George, who generates a rousing reception when he parades onto the stage carrying a sceptre, resplendent in regal red, gold and white fur. The single stage design, dominated by solid wood, brick and rope, presents a sense of place.

The costumes – elaborate and colourful – capture the period.

Hamilton is a masterful work – innovative and mesmerising.

I was fortunate enough to see it in Sydney and I assure you I was just as captivated second time around.

I urge you to buy a ticket. Do not miss it.

Two hours 50 minutes, including a 20-minute interval, Hamilton is playing at Her Majesty’s Theatre.

Romance against a dark backdrop AN AMERICAN IN PARIS ALEX FIRST Once you learn that Robbie Fairchild was a principal dancer at the New York City Ballet you can understand why he glides so effortlessly across the stage in a stellar display as the centrepiece of An American in Paris.

He’s a wonderful talent and he pairs that magnificently with acting and singing.

Mind you, his leading lady, Leanne Cope, who was First Artist at the Royal Ballet and who originated the role she plays here on Broadway and the West End, is glorious too.

There is so much to like and admire about this lively and colourful love story, set at the end of World War II. US Army Lieutenant Jerry Mulligan (Fairchild) is attracted to a woman – Lise Dassin (Cope) – he sees on the streets of Paris just after the liberation.

He deliberately misses his train and decides to stay on in the French capital and pursue his passion for painting.

Mulligan chances upon a café, where he is greeted by a fellow veteran, pianist and composer Adam Hochberg (Jonathan Hickey), whose injuries have left him with a permanent limp.

Hochberg soon introduces Mulligan to Henri Baurel (Sam Ward), the son of wealthy French industrialists, when the latter enters the diner to rehearse the nightclub act he is putting together with Hochberg.

Photo: Darren Thomas The Baurels (played by Anne Wood and David Whitney) – especially Henri’s mother – want him to follow in their footsteps, but Henri has dreams of making it big on Broadway.

Circumstances see Mulligan unexpectedly bump into Dassin again, this time at ballet auditions for a prestigious company.

That is also where American philanthropist Milo Davenport (Ashleigh Rubenach) takes more than a passing interest in Mulligan.

Mulligan subsequently makes a romantic play for Dassin, but she is resistant.

Little does Mulligan know that she has a back story concerning the Holocaust and the Baurel family.

Henri is her long-term boyfriend, while Hochberg mistakes politeness and charm for something more and also plays his hand.

Musically, An American in Paris is a triumph for George and Ira Gershwin.

Numbers like I Got Rhythm, ‘S Wonderful and They Can’t Take That Away From Me continue to resonate.

The entire cast is poised and polished.

They are equally at home with ballet, jazz and tap, all of which feature – with an onus on the former.

Jonathan Hickey is gifted the best lines in the piece and delivers them wonderfully. His penchant for comedy is unmistakable.

Sam Ward readily steps into the role of an uptight Frenchman carrying a family secret.

Ashleigh Rubenach is a revelation as the gregarious and single-minded patron.

Anne Wood makes an art form of standoffish and is juxtaposed perfectly with her on stage husband David Whitney.

They are supported by a talented ensemble and Orchestra Victoria.

The direction and choreography by Christopher Wheeldon are exemplary.

He makes the complex looks simple and free-flowing.

The staging is breathtaking. Often elaborate props channelling all things Parisian are wheeled in and out seamlessly.

The ever-changing visual imagery – from watercolours to sketches filled with spots of colour – is equally creative and evocative.

An American in Paris is a show that is romantic, comedic and dramatic.

It delights and amuses and it deserves the standing ovation it received on opening night.

It is playing at the State Theatre, Arts Centre Melbourne, until 23rd April, 2022.

15

the melbourne jewish report | April 2022

Panada – style and quality PANADA Located in Armadale, family-run women’s boutique Panada first opened its doors in 1989 and has since become one of Melbourne's fashion institutions.

Known for its exclusive labels and highquality customer service, each piece of clothing in the shop has been carefully selected in Europe for its beauty, quality and style.

Exquisite designs and bright colours sit alongside wardrobe staples – all ethically sourced.

Panada owner Emelia looks for items that can’t be found in larger department stores.

Each size in each garment is in strictly limited supply, adding to its cachet.

The retailer has long-established and trusting relationships with many of its clientele who return season after season.

For those who can’t make it in-store, Panada keeps its website up to date and purchases can readily be made online.

Just go to www.panada.com.au, where you can shop by brand or by specific item i.e. tops, knits, skirts, dresses, shirts, pants, jackets, coats and accessories.

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Judaica quiz answers 1. Because the Book of Exodus says that the Angel of Death ‘passed over’ the houses of the Israelites during the time of the tenth plague 2. False. Pesach Sheni (The Second Pesach) is a minor festival one month after Pesach. It was instituted by Moses to allow Israelites, who for various reasons, could not celebrate Pesach on the correct date to make it up to some extent one month later.

3. Song of Songs (Shir Hashirim) 4. Jeremiah 5. Mitzrayim, the son of Ham, was Noah’s grandson 6. Ezekiel 37: ‘The valley of the dry bones’ 7. True. Shabbat HaGadol (literally The Shabbat of the great … ) possibly refers to the great miracle by which the Israelites were permitted to slaughter a lamb in preparation for the Exodus in spite of the Egyptians venerating this creature 8. The liquidation of the Warsaw Ghetto which led to the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising 9. 2009 10. Next year in the White House 11. Two zuzim. (According to some modern writers this would amount to about A$50 in today’s currency) 12. One of the oldest surviving Ashkenazi illuminated manuscripts, The Bird's Head Haggadah, produced in Southern Germany circa 1300, takes its name from the birdlike human figures illustrated in its margins. It is preserved in the Israel Museum, Jerusalem 13. Martin Luther King Jr. in a speech delivered in Memphis, Tennessee generally known as The Promised Land Speech. He was killed the following day on April 4, 1968 14. 17th century. Guido Reni was an Italian painter who lived from 1575 until 1642.

Experts believe that the painting Moses with Pharaoh's Crown was one of his last, painted circa 1640 15. Dew – Tefillat Tal is recited on the first day of Pesach 16. Yul Brynner 17. 1923. The Ten Commandments was an American silent religious epic. The film was divided into two parts: a prologue recreating the biblical story of the Exodus

and a modern story concerning two brothers and their respective views of the Ten Commandments. Lauded for its "immense and stupendous" scenes, use of Technicolor process, and parting of the Red Sea sequence, the expensive film proved to be a box-office hit upon release 18. The exact translation of Maot Chitim is “Wheat Money”. This is an ancient religious obligation whereby more affluent members of the Jewish community raised funds to ensure that every Jew was able to purchase matzah and celebrate Pesach in the correct way 19. Elijah The Prophet, known as Eliyahi HaNavi.

Elijah is said to be the forerunner of the Messiah and Pesach was regarded not only as a time of past redemption but also of future salvation. Hence Elijah was to be on hand to announce the coming of the Messiah 20. The Haggadah About Nothing: The (Unofficial) Seinfeld Haggadah features the whole Seder service, commentary and parody connecting the Haggadah, the Exodus story, and other Jewish texts to the nine seasons of Seinfeld 21. CHAROSET. Dukeh included pomegranates, apples, dates, almonds, raisins, walnuts, ginger, wine and sesame seeds that had been roasted and seasoned with cinnamon.

Dukeh was the original name for Charoset as preserved in the Jerusalem Talmud (Talmud Yerushalmi, Pesachim 10:3) 22. The eleven stars in Joseph’s dream 23. All of them 24. Gebrochts means BROKEN. Many communities, Chassidic ones in particular, have the custom to refrain from eating gebrochts on the first seven days of Pesach.

Gebrochts is a Yiddish word that refers to matzah that has come into contact with liquid. It literally means “broken,” and it has come to mean “wet matzah” because matzah is usually ground or broken up into crumbs before it is mixed with liquid 25. The Prince of Egypt

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the melbourne jewish report | April 2022

AROUND

T H E

COMMUNITY

4me gluten free – Pesach delights

4ME GLUTEN FREE Sharon and Yinon Hacham moved from Israel to Australia with their then two-year-old daughter in 2012. They have since built a unique and thriving business. The Jewish Report talked to Sharon about it.

Why did you start 4me gluten free?

We thought about starting up our own business using Yinon's expertise to create gluten free baked goods. Yinon and his family operated a successful bakery in Israel specialising in kosher for Passover products. Yinon understood that these products could also appeal and cater to the coeliac community in Australia and assist customers that have a range of dietary requirements. Yinon started baking from home and taking phone orders in 2012 and then we moved into our shop at 439A Kooyong Road in Elsternwick in 2017.

What is special about your shop and its products?

Our products are all gluten free, dairy free and nut free. They are also fructose friendly. We have vegan as well as low fodmap options. There are also sugar-free items available. Our shop is unique in that we create a range of delicious savoury and sweet items and customers can enjoy these irrespective of their dietary constraints. Yinon can also satisfy custom-made requests, whereby

Sharon and Yinon Hacham customers do not need to concern themselves about cross contamination.

What do you regard as your specialties?

Our range of mousse cakes as well as fruit cakes and lamington cakes.

How many different products do you have on your menu?

We started with only four products when we started the business five years ago. Now, we have more than 100 products available in-store and online.

We also create celebratory cakes, wedding cakes and cater for special events at schools and in businesses.

How often to you expand your menu and introduce new products?

We try and change our menu every season. Yinon enjoys the challenge of introducing new items based upon customer requests. Then, if they become popular, we add them to our regular menu. Customers enjoy being part of the process and get quite excited when

they know they have been involved in creating a new product.

What are your most popular products?

Chocolate mousse cake, marble cake, brownie log, raspberry and coconut cake and the traditional lamington cake.

What are your personal favourites and why?

It is hard to pick a personal favourite as it depends upon which event I am attending. If I am going to Shabbat dinner with family, I may take a chocolate or strawberry mousse cake.

If I go to a picnic or lunch, I often take a lamington or raspberry and coconut cake. At home, I enjoy a marble cake with my tea.

It is Pesach, so what special treats do you have for us?

This year we have different variety of mousse cakes, chocolate and coconut macaroons and we are also introducing a pineapple swiss roll, as well as a vegan strawberry brownie cake. We don't add any matza meal to products and don't have any kitniyot (legumes).

4me gluten free is located at 439A Kooyong Road, Elsternwick.

To avoid disappointment, it is best to order online via www.4meglutenfree. com.au/order or phone Yinon on 0401 835 656 or Sharon on 0413 487 709. To find out more about 4me gluten free, go to www.4meglutenfree.com.au

PASSOVER 2022 NO KITNIYOT | NON GEBROCHT | FRUCTOSE FRIENDLY

Passover 2022!

PROUDLY SUPPORTING THE COMMUNITY FOR OVER 5 YEARS! NO KITNIYOT | NON GEBROCHT | FRUCTOSE FRIENDLY

Order now!

www.4meglutenfree.com.au For orders, go to: www.4meglutenfree.com.au/order FREE delivery for all orders over $150

www.4meglutenfree.com.au/order

439A Kooyong Road, Elsternwick Yinon 0401 835 656 4me.glutenfree@gmail.com Sharon 0413 487 709

439a Kooyong Rd Elsternwick

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