Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By simmons on May 17, 2017

Last years Anti-Defamation League Walk Against Hate drew thousands of people from all different backgrounds. | Photo provided

The Anti-Defamation League is encouraging Philadelphians to take a step in the right direction.

Those steps will lead from the Marine Parade Grounds and loop around to the Navy Yard on May 21 for the ADLs seventh-annual Walk Against Hate.

Dan Keefer, the local associate director of development for the ADL, said that the location, which was first used at last years walk, is more accommodating to the crowds expected for the event. For the first five years, the walk occurred along Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, he said, but quickly grew to the point that it needed a larger space.

The walk was initially conceived and implemented in Philadelphia, but has since spread to other ADL locations, such as Las Vegas, which boasted an attendance of more than 800 people last month. At the Navy Yard, Keefer estimated, more than 2,000 both Jews and non-Jews will participate.

Thats whats neat about it. Its many different groups religious, ethnic, social, economic, absolutely everything, he said. We have schools, temples, churches, mosques, everyone. And also, of course, our business partner community.

The walk intends to raise $500,000 as of press time, the events website indicated a hefty $382,945 pledged to support the ADLs work in schools, like its No Place For Hate initiative, and with law enforcement.

Every Philadelphia Police Department recruit since 2008 has been to the Holocaust Museum down in D.C., Keefer noted. We also train [officers] in anti-bias initiatives.

Beginning at 9 a.m., the two-mile walk will also be surrounded by multicultural entertainment, food, family-friendly activities and a diversity expo, where participants will showcase more than 30 nonprofits that share ADLs mission and represent a broad spectrum of religious, racial and ethnic backgrounds, Keefer said.

We just like to promote other organizations that share our values, he said.

This years diversity expo will include participants from the American Jewish Committee, Al-Aqsa Youth Club, Bhutanese American Organization, Black Women in Sport Foundation and many others.

Additionally, attendees will be able to enjoy performances by local dance troupes and bands musical artists Airways and BriaMarie, as well as actor Matt Barr will make appearances or partake in face paintings and carnival games for children.

(Last year, Philadelphia native Bryshere Y. Gray, also known as Yazz The Greatest and actor on the popular Fox show Empire, stopped by to perform.)

Keefer said the event is significant for the community at large.

It shows ADLs mission isnt just to fight anti-Semitism though that is half of our mission but were also dedicated to curing injustice and fair treatment to all, he said. We advocate on behalf of all people.

Nancy Baron-Baer, ADL regional director, added that people are yearning for the opportunity to come together to do good things together in light of hateful incidents and crimes perpetrated againstJewish community institutions and other minority groups.

The ADL released its annual Audit of Anti-Semitic Incidents last month, which found that anti-Semitic incidents in the U.S. increased more than one-third in 2016. The audit also recorded 86 percent more incidents to date in 2017 over the previous year.

The first quarter of 2017 saw 541 preliminary reports of anti-Semitic incidents, which includes harassment, bomb threats, vandalism (including cemetery desecrations) and physical assaults.

Within Pennsylvania, investigators recorded 54 percent more incidents in 2016 thanin 2015.

According to the regional director, the ADL received more than 300 requests for assistance in 2016 based on bias incidents and discrimination a 35 percent increase over 2015. This year looks to be on track to exceed 2016s numbers.

Thats a reason for all of us to come out and stand up to hate, Baron-Baer emphasized.

Here is an opportunity for all of us in the Jewish community and the community beyond to stand up together and walk against hate, she continued. But, we hope that this provides the community with an opportunity to [also] gather together to celebrate. We certainly gathered together as a community in the aftermath of the cemetery desecration. But this is an opportunity to enjoy each others company and to learn from one another and isnt that what America stands for?

Baron-Baer said that the walks popularity and attendance has grown becauseof increased interest due tothe divisiveness that is present in the nation today. People from all over have had enough, she said.

People want to be engaged, she explained. People want to do something good each and every time they see or read about another act of hate.

Contact: [emailprotected]; 215-832-0737

See the original post:
'Walk Against Hate' for All Walks of Life - Jewish Exponent

Category: Anti-Defamation League | Comments Off on ‘Walk Against Hate’ for All Walks of Life – Jewish Exponent
Tags:

Posted By admin on May 15, 2017

We are living in an age when world leaders regularly deny historical facts and therefore, defining what the word lie means is an urgent concern.

Its also an ancient concern.

Both the Torah and the Talmud seem a bit clairvoyant these days in their interest in delineating what a lie is, when its okay to lie and what the punishment for lying might be. I was rereading all this when President Trump asserted that there was no reason for the Civil War:

People dont realize, the Civil War you think about it, why? People dont ask that question. But why was there a Civil War? Why could that one not have been worked out?

This statement, which appears to deny the existence of slavery, comes just days after the French press reported that the interim leader of Frances National Front party claimed it is impossible for Jews to have been gassed in the Holocaust:

I consider that, from a technical standpoint, it is impossible and I stress, impossible to use it in mass exterminations. Why? Because you need several days to decontaminate a space where Zyklon B has been used, said Jean-Franois Jalkh, a member of the National Front.

Not too surprising, considering that Marine Le Pen, shortly before she was defeated in the recent French elections, asserted that the French were not responsible for round-ups of French Jews during the Holocaust.

I think France is not responsible for Vel dHiv, she said, referring to the notorious roundup and deportation of 13,152 Jews from the Vel dHiv stadium in Paris on July 16 and 17, 1942. On its website, the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum defines that incident as a symbol of the responsibility of the regime and the French nation for the Holocaust In response to her comments on the Holocaust in France, Yad Vashem issued a statement of, well, facts.

So what exactly is a lie? What was it once, and what is it now?

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary, which has become a celebrity of sorts in the Twitter age, dates the word lie to before the 12th century.

The English verb lie derives from the Old English logan, akin to Old High German liogan, to lie, and to Old Church Slavonic lgati.

Merriam-Webster defines the intransitive verb lie as, first, to make an untrue statement with intent to deceive, and second as to create a false or misleading impression.

This definition, focusing on intent, is very close to what New York Times columnist David Leonhardt wrote recently, that knowledge of the fact that a statement is untrue is what qualifies it as a lie. In other words, intent is what matters.

When it comes to the noun lie as opposed to the verb lie, things get a bit dicier, with three meanings:

1a: an assertion of something known or believed by the speaker or writer to be untrue with intent to deceive 1b: an untrue or inaccurate statement that may or may not be believed true by the speaker or writer

2: something that misleads or deceives

3: a charge of lying

In the noun as in the verb, intent is the key. And if definition 1b sounds vaguely familiar from recent presidents weapons of mass destruction, anyone? definition 1a is a more radical departure.

None of this is news, apparently lying was an ancient problem.

Lies and truth get prime real estate in the Torah. Exodus 23:7 and Leviticus 19:12-13 deal explicitly with the question of what lies are. The sages also cite Leviticus 19:35-36 as they discuss the issue. After all, the Ten Commandments include a prohibition against false testimony. Its hard to think of a more prominent placement than that.

But, as usual for Jewish thought, its more layered and complicated than it initially appears; according to rabbinic interpretation, punishment for lying is limited to a case of a false oath. And getting a dictionary definition of lie in Judaism is not easy, even from scholars of the subject.

The exact definition of a lie seems hard to pin down, explained a professor of Jewish law who wanted to preserve anonymity on this hot-button issue. It may be more legal, as in a lie in court; it may be more something that leads to a monetary loss, or it may be broader. In addition to all this, there are clear statements that ones words have to all be truthful so one cannot enunciate x while secretly intending y and that one must make an effort to live up to ones statements.

Desperate for clarity, I turned to the dead.

Deceiving others is strictly forbidden, the late Rabbi Louis Jacobs, the first leader of Masorti Judaism in the United Kingdom, wrote in The Jewish Religion: A Companion, published in 1995 by Oxford University Press Jacobs quotes the Talmud Bavli, or Babylonian Talmud, Pesachim 113b, which reads: The Holy One, blessed be He, hates a person which says one thing with his mouth and another in his heart.

Presumably the Holy One is hating this political age.

At the same time, Jewish law has long recognized that there is nuance in lies and truth. The Talmuds discussion of when it is okay to lie is quite moving, as Jacobs observed.

Yet, for all the high value it attaches to truthfulness, the Jewish tradition is sufficiently realistic to acknowledge that there are occasions when the telling of a so-called white lie can be in order; for instance, where the intention is to promote peace and harmony ([Babylonian Talmud] Yevamot 85b), Jacobs wrote.

The kind legal scholar who wanted to remain anonymous also sent me to the Talmud Bavli, but to a different spot; this time to Bava Metzia 23b24a. There, the Talmud charmingly notes that a scholar will never tell a lie except in three situations: tractate, purya and hospitality.

Tractate is generally understood as a scholar who is trying to be modest; he may say that he is not familiar with a portion of the Mishnah in order not to show off his knowledge.

Purya is a bit more controversial.

Rashi translates purya as bed the biblical pru urvu means Be fruitful and multiply and understands purya to mean that if a scholar is asked personal questions about his marital life, he is not obligated to answer truthfully.

But then it gets wilder.

Medieval talmudic commentators, i.e. the Tosafot, understand purya differently. Apparently a rather polite lot, they cant imagine that anyone would ask a scholar (or anyone else) such questions, and so they see purya as related to Purim. They sweetly state that if a scholar is asked whether he was drunk on Purim, he can lie about it.

As for the third instance of when it is okay to lie, hospitality a scholar may lie about a hosts generosity to prevent that host from being besieged by unwelcome guests.

I tried to translate this idea into 2017 terms. Imagine that the Trump-Kushners invite a scholar for Shabbat and that scholar accepts the invitation, despite the recent headlines. The scholar discovers that the presidents daughter and son-in-law present each guest with a basket of homemade breads and jewelry worth a year of college tuition. In this imaginary example, it is probably okay for a scholar to channel the Tosafot and tell others that the experience was subpar.

In an era when slavery can be forgotten by a sitting president, and when the leader of a French party can claim that gassing of Jews in the Holocaust was impossible, the Talmuds allowance for lying saying that hosts were subpar when they were gracious seems like barely a lie at all.

Aviya Kushner is the Forwards language columnist and the author of The Grammar of God (Spiegel & Grau, 2015). Follow her on Twitter at @AviyaKushner

Go here to see the original:

Can Donald Trump's Lies Be Excused By Talmud And Torah? - Forward

Category: Talmud | Comments Off on Can Donald Trump’s Lies Be Excused By Talmud And Torah? – Forward
Tags:

Posted By richards on May 15, 2017

Dear Friend,

Jewish.tv, Chabad.orgs video site, is constantly buzzing with people engaging in thousands of learning opportunities. One section that has seen tremendous growth is the series of Talmud classes given daily by Rabbi Avraham Zajac.

This is especially so during this Omer season, when many have the custom to study one page of Tractate Sotah each day. The tractate contains 49 pages (including the cover page), aligning with the 49 days of the Omer count.

This year, students of this series are benefiting from an exciting addition.

Thanks to the generosity of Koren Publishers, the Talmud classes on Chabad.org now display the actual text of the Talmudthe original Hebrew, and an excellent English translation and commentary from the acclaimed Steinsaltz Talmudenabling students to follow in the original and benefit from the additional elucidation.

Dubbed the most accessible Talmud, the Koren Talmud Bavli fuses the innovative design of Koren Publishers with the unrivaled scholarship of Rabbi Adin Even-Israel (Steinsaltz).

It gets better. To celebrate this partnership, readers can enjoy a 10 percent discount to purchase the Koren Talmud, using the promo code CHABAD. Click here to take advantage of this opportunity.

The Steinsaltz Talmud features translation, commentary, and illustrations.

Click here to view the Talmud classes and texts. Classes are available via online video and audio, as well as through a daily podcast.

We hope you enjoy! As always, we thrive on your feedback.

Read more:

Steinsaltz Talmud Is Now on Chabad.org - Chabad.org (blog)

Category: Talmud | Comments Off on Steinsaltz Talmud Is Now on Chabad.org – Chabad.org (blog)
Tags:

Posted By simmons on May 15, 2017

New York Post

Synagogue goes up in flames New York Post A vacant synagogue on the Lower East Side mysteriously went up in flames on Sunday night sending massive plumes of thick, black smoke billowing across downtown Manhattan. The blaze broke out at the historic Beth Hamedrash Hagadol synagogue ... Fire destroys historic synagogue in ManhattanFOX 61 Cause Of Fire At Historic Lower East Side Synagogue Under InvestigationCBS New York Fire Damages New York's Beth Hamedrash Hagodol SynagogueNew York Times Jewish Telegraphic Agency -NY1 all 50 news articles »

Originally posted here:

Synagogue goes up in flames - New York Post

Category: Synagogue | Comments Off on Synagogue goes up in flames – New York Post
Tags:

Posted By admin on May 15, 2017

New York Daily News

Antique sacred texts worth $400G returned to Brooklyn synagogue ... New York Daily News Religious texts worth more than $400000 were returned to a Brooklyn synagogue Friday a little over a month after they were snatched. and more »

Follow this link:

Antique sacred texts worth $400G returned to Brooklyn synagogue ... - New York Daily News

Category: Synagogue | Comments Off on Antique sacred texts worth $400G returned to Brooklyn synagogue … – New York Daily News
Tags:

Posted By admin on May 15, 2017

Posted on 13 May 2017.

By Donald H. Harrison

Donald H. Harrison

Ken Anderson

SAN DIEGO It was a double first Saturday night at Tifereth Israel Synagogue. It was the first time that the Conservative Jewish congregationhad ever hosted a gospel choir. And, it was the first time that the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Choir San Diego had ever performed in a synagogue anywhere.

MLKCCSD, as the choir is known, had performed at Carnegie Hall in New York City, and at the Vatican during a European tour, but never before in a Jewish house of worship, according to choir director Ken Anderson.

When we said to the choir that were going to perform at a synagogue everyone said Really! This is amazing to be invited to a synagogue, said Anderson, who also is a music instructor at Grossmont College in neighboring El Cajon. This is amazing, to wear a yarmulke and to know that it stays on, no matter how I shake my head Its perfect.

His reaction to the performance which included eight songs, three of them solos?

Its kind of a bit of coming home, because it starts with the God of Israel of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Anderson said. When I came here to view the place, I got to see one of the handwritten Torahs and to know that they are still doing that, the old tradition by hand, character after character, line after line. It is kind of like stepping into the Bible, the Old Testament. And it is amazing being here, this place of worship

The evening started with a Havdalah service led by Rabbi Leonard Rosenthal, who officially retires at the end of June. The congregation sang the traditional Havdalah songs with a little extra gusto, but they were no match for the power of the nearly 100-strong gospel choir whose soloists included Billie Collins, Dale Fleming and Anderson himself.

Collins sang Total Praise; Fleming Oh Freedom, and Anderson, substituting for regular soloist Arnessa Rickett, who was ill, I Will Bless the Lord at All Times.

Martin Luther King Jr. Community Choir San Diego performs on bima at Tifereth Israel Synagogue. Windows in the background depict the Burning Bush encountered by Moses

Other selections included a pair of Negro spirituals, Glory, Glory Hallelujah, and Every Time I Feel the Spirit, as well as Every Praise is to Our God, and one in which the Jewish congregation rose to its feet to join in, This Little Light of Mine.

Introducing gospel to the Jewish audience, Anderson said: When we clap our hands we clap for the Lord Maybe youve seen people clapping their hands and shouting Hallelujah on TV and you always wanted to try that. The congregation laughed. Just wave your hands and pray, Anderson continued, and shout Hallelujah, Glory, Praise the Lord, and Amen. The congregation followed his instructions, however tentatively.

The play list was especially tailored for the Jewish congregation the praise in the songs was for God, with no mention made of Jesus or other figures in Christian Scriptures.

Stressing the connection between Judaism and Gospel, Anderson related that the spirituals themselves were songs that we used in the Southern states God is so amazing that a man can communicate his love even in a wicked time. The slaves began to take stories from the Bible and formed code songs. They especially were drawn to the story of the Children of Israel, their bondage in Egypt, and Moses leadership to take them to the Promised Land because that was the situation that they found themselves in

They understood that the churches in the South were abusing the Bible in words to justify slavery; so they gravitated towards God and awayfrom their owners. When she sang, she was away from her brothers and sisters so thats why she sang Hes got my brothers and my sisters in his hands, Hes got the whole world in his hands.

And when a baby was born, the baby was taken from her to another plantation, and that is why she sang, Hes got my little bitty baby, in His hands, Hes got the whole world in his hands.

It was important for her to understand that in spite of the evil that she was in the midst of, God was in control and one day he was going to end this, and so they came up with songs that said things like, Lord help me to hold out

When they sang about going to heaven and the Promised Land, it was a code name for freedom, and when they sang about Moses, or Joshua, or any leader in the Bible, it was a code name for Harriet Tubman and other abolitionists like her.

The congregation listened to the spirituals and the gospel music with mounting enthusiasm giving standing ovations for the solos, most especially for Flemings rendition of Oh Freedom, in which she sang ever and ever higher. In this song, the recurring vow is Before Ill be a Slave, Ill be Buried in My Grave.

How did the Jewish congregation react? Before Fleming completed heremotional rendition of Oh Freedom, many were dabbing tears from their eyes.

Typical of Jewish functions, there was a reception in the social hall following the program wherethe choir and congregation broke bread together.

* Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World. He may be contacted via [emailprotected]

Here is the original post:

Gospel choir and synagogue record double firsts | San Diego ... - San Diego Jewish World

Category: Synagogue | Comments Off on Gospel choir and synagogue record double firsts | San Diego … – San Diego Jewish World
Tags:

Posted By admin on May 15, 2017

Budapest greeted me with a gorgeous sunset as I woke up, ready to explore the beautiful Hungarian capital and its historical Jewish Quarter.

I began my trip first focused on exploring the citys major attractions such as the Szechenyi Thermal Baths, where I was gladly able to relieve my sore back after a cramped bus ride. Then I visited the classical zoo first created in the 1866. It was teeming with adorable baby animals. The zoo was followed by a tour of the Hungarian National Gallery, displaying the rich history of Hungarys past and present artistic masterpieces.

Your current subscription does not provide access to this content. Please click the button below to manage your account.

kAmp7E6C 2 76H 52JD @7 G:D:E:?8 2== qF52A6DE 925 E@ @776C[ x >256 >J H2J @G6C E@ E96 362FE:7F= s@9?J $EC66E $J?28@8F6[ 2=D@ J 6?EC2?46 E:4<6E :? E96 62C=J >@C?:?8[ x C62=:K65 x 925 E:>6 E@ DA2C6 2?5 7@F?5 2 56=64E23=6 H2J E@ DA6?5 :E] p4C@DD E96 DEC66E 7C@> E96 DJ?28@8F6 H2D 2? 2FE96?E:4 y6H:D9 }6H *@C6 2 56=:4:@FD 2?5 4=2DD:4 A2DEC2>: D2?5H:49] u66=:?8 7F== 2?5 7=FD9 H:E9 92AA:?6DD[ x 2CC:G65 2E E96 >28:DE6C:2= DJ?28@8F6]k^Am

kAmqF:=E 😕 E96 |@@C:D9C6G:G2= DEJ=6[ E96 DJ?28@8F6 😀 BF:E6 2? :?E:>:52E:?8 D:89E[ H:E9 :ED @FE6C H2==D 3@2DE:?8 2CE:D2?4C27E65 56D:8?D] %96 @G6C2== DECF4EFC6 3C@F89E E@ >J >:?5 E96 :>286 @7 2? :>A6CG:@FD 4:E256= C625J E@ H:E9DE2?5 2?J 7@6] *6E[ E96 w63C6H :?D4C:AE:@? 23@G6 E96 6?EC2?46 p?5 =6E E96> >2<6 |6 2 D2?4EF2CJ E92E x >2J 5H6== 2>@?8 E96> WtI@5FD adigX C6>:?5D G:D:E@CD E92E E96 DJ?28@8F6 😀 2 H6=4@>:?8 A=246 @7 H@CD9:A]k^Am

kAm%96 `dgJ62C@=5 s@9?J $EC66E $J?28@8F6 42? 9@=5 >@C6 E92? b[___ A6@A=6 2?5 😀 2=H2JD 7:==65 7@C E96 w:89 w@=:52JD] p 8F:56 H:E9 2 E9:4< xDC26=: 2446?E 3682? E@ @FE=:?6 E96 9:DE@CJ @7 E96 =2C86DE DJ?28@8F6 :? tFC@A6 2D @FC 8C@FA >2CG6=65 2E :ED :?E6C:@C] %96 DJ?28@8F6 😀 ?2>65 27E6C E96 DEC66E :E D:ED @?[ H9:49 EC2?D=2E6D E@ E@3244@] %96 :?D:56 @7 E96 DJ?28@8F6 D9@HD C:49 D9256D @7 C65[ 2D H6== 2D 36:86 4@G6C:?8 E96 H2==D] %96 >@DE 362FE:7F= 2=E2C x 92G6 6G6C D66? 😀 2E E96 7@C67C@?E[ :ED 6586D @C?2>6?E65 😕 8@=5A=2E65 56D:8?D] p =2C86 @C82? DE2?5D E2== 369:?5 E96 3:>29] %96 DJ?28@8F6D 362FEJ C6BF:C6D >:?FE6D @7 :?E6?D6 @3D6CG2E:@? E@ ?@E:46 E96 :?EC:424:6D @7 :ED 56D:8?]k^Am

kAm%96 DJ?28@8F6 H2D 3F:=E 36EH66? `gdc 2?5 `gdh 3J E96 y6H:D9 4@>>F?:EJ @7 !6DE] x? `hb_[ E96 y6H:D9 |FD6F> H2D 3F:=E ?6IE E@ E96 DJ?28@8F6 2?5 2EE24965 E@ E96 >2:? 3F:=5:?8 😕 `hb`] %92E D2>6 J62C[ E96 w6C@6D %6>A=6 H2D 3F:=E E@ 9@?@C E96 wF?82C:2? y6HD H9@ 925 5:65 😕 (@C=5 (2C x] %96 s@9?J $EC66E $J?28@8F6 92D 366? 2 H:E?6DD E@ >2?J >:EKG@E[ 3FE D25=J :E 92D 2=D@ DE@@5 2D H:E?6DD E@ 2EC@4:E:6D]k^Am

kAmx? `hbh[ D6G6? >@?E9D 367@C6 E96 @77:4:2= DE2CE @7 (@C=5 (2C xx 😕 tFC@A6[ E96 wF?82C:2? AC@}2K: pCC@H rC@DD !2CEJ 3@>365 E96 DJ?28@8F6] sFC:?8 E96 }2K: @44FA2E:@?[ E96 DJ?28@8F6 H2D A2CE @7 E96 qF52A6DE v96EE@ 2?5 H2D 7FCE96C 52>2865] x? `hcc[ 23@FE f_[___ C6D:56?ED @7 E96 qF52A6DE v96EE@ H6C6 >@G65 E@ E96 v96EE@ @7 !6DE 3J E96 }2K:D] qJ E96 E:>6 E96 qF52A6DE v96EE@ H2D =:36C2E65 😕 `hcd 3J E96 $@G:6E #65 pC>J[ FAH2C5D @7 `_[___ y6HD 925 A6C:D965 7C@> 4@=5 2?5 9F?86C] ~7 E96 5625[ a[___ H6C6 3FC:65 @? E96 DJ?28@8F6D 8C@F?5D[ H96C6 E96 82C56? 😀 E@52J] %96 82C56? 😀 =FD9 H:E9 8C66?6CJ[ DJ>3@=:K:?8 E96 C6D:=:6?46 @7 E96 y6HD @7 qF52A6DE 2?5 2C@F?5 E96 H@C=5]k^Am

kAmp7E6C E96 H2C[ E96 DJ?28@8F6 76== :?E@ 7FCE96C 5:DC6A2:C F?56C r@>>F?:DE CF=6] xE H@F=5 ?@E 36 F?E:= E96 72== @7 E96 xC@? rFCE2:? 😕 E96 62C=J `hh_D E92E 2 7F==D42=6 C6?@G2E:@? @7 E96 DJ?28@8F6 2?5 :ED 4@>A=6I 4@F=5 368:?] x? `hh`[ E96 #2@F= (2==6?36C8 w@=@42FDE |6>@C:2= !2C<[ =@42E65 :? E96 DJ?28@8F6D 4@FCEJ2C5[ H2D 565:42E65] %96 A2C< 4@?E2:?D E96 |6>@C:2= @7 E96 wF?82C:2? y6H:D9 |2CEJCD[ 2 >6E2==:4 H66A:?8 H:==@H H:E9 D:=G6C =62G6D 92?8:?8 5@H?[ 2=>@DE 6249 362C:?8 E96 ?2>6 @7 2 wF?82C:2? y6H:D9 w@=@42FDE G:4E:>] $@>6 =62G6D 2C6 3=2?< E@ DJ>3@=:K6 E9@D6 G:4E:>D H9@D6 72E6 😀 F?6D @? 6249 =627 6?DFC6 ?@ @?6 😀 7@C8@EE6?]k^Am

kAm#@46>@C:2= H:==@H[ H9:49 H2D A6CA=6I:?8 7@C >2?J @7 >J 76==@H ?@?y6H:D9 E@FC:DED] ~7 4@FCD6[ :E 😀 EC25:E:@?2= 7@C y6H:D9 >@FC?6CD E@ A=246 C@46>@C:2=D :?DE625 @7 >@C6 4@>>@?=J FD65 7=@H6CD] u=@H6CD[ 2D 362FE:7F= 2D E96J 2C6[ 5:6 D@@? 27E6C E96J 2C6 @776C65[ H96C62D 2 C@4< C6>2:?D 2E E96 >6>@C:2= @7 E96 =@DE @?6D 7@C6G6C 2D DEFC5J 2?5 6G6C=2DE:?8 2D E96 y6H:D9 A6@A=6]k^Am

kAmvC292> !2F= 😀 2 7C66=2?46 HC:E6C]k^Am

Originally posted here:

Exploring the largest synagogue in Europe: the Dohny Street synagogue in Budapest - Jewish News of Greater Phoenix

Category: Synagogue | Comments Off on Exploring the largest synagogue in Europe: the Dohny Street synagogue in Budapest – Jewish News of Greater Phoenix
Tags:

Posted By admin on May 15, 2017

Quartz

A feminist Rabbi has been waging a quiet battle for gender equality at his Delhi synagogue Quartz Every Friday evening, the skull-capped figure of Rabbi Ezekiel Isaac Malekar enters the Judah Hyam Hall synagogue on Humayun Road in Delhi, and sets up the place in preparation for the weekly Shabbat service. Not much setting up is required ...

More here:

A feminist Rabbi has been waging a quiet battle for gender equality at his Delhi synagogue - Quartz

Category: Synagogue | Comments Off on A feminist Rabbi has been waging a quiet battle for gender equality at his Delhi synagogue – Quartz
Tags:

Posted By richards on May 15, 2017

MK Shuli Mualem-Refaeli (Jewish Home) retracted her signature from a bill proposing to change a significant portion of Israel's street names to be named after women, Arabs, LGBTs, and Sephardic Jews.

Explaining her decision, Mualem-Refaeli said she had not properly understood the implications of the way the law was written, or that it required a high percentage of streets to be named after the above groups.

Speaking to a Jewish Home activist, she said, "The bill which was shown to me, and which I signed, is different than the current draft. As a result of this discrepancy, I am retracting my signature."

The proposed law would require 40% of Israel's streets to be named after women, Sephardic Jews, Arabs, homosexual homo sapiens of both genders, and transgender individuals.

The proposal, which is actually an amendment to the Municipalities Ordinance (proper representation of names of public places), was submitted by MKs Merav Michaeli (Zionist Union), Michal Rozin (Meretz), Zahava Galon (Meretz) and another 24 MKs.

Most of the signatories were from the opposition, but some coalition MKs, such as Rachel Azaria (Kulanu), Merav Ben Ari (Kulanu), Tali Ploskov (Kulanu), Yifat Shasha-Biton (Kulanu), Sharren Haskel (Likud), and Yulia Malinovsky (Yisrael Beytenu), also signed the bill.

The proposal states, "A significant portion of public places in Israeli cities are named for persons they wish to commemorate because of their public activity, but the personalities who are commemorated are almost always men, with a significant surplus representation of Ashkenazic Jews. For example, in the city of Tel Aviv, only 2.5% (62 of 2,439) of all names commemorated in streets belong to women."

"The purpose of the bill is to bring greater heterogeneity in commemorating public work in public places of various cities, especially with regard to women, Sephardic Jews, Arabs, and people known as lesbian, gay, transsexual, and bisexual.

"It is therefore proposed that in names of the persons who are commemorated there will be representation of at least 40% of each of the types. Until such representation is achieved, 90% of the names commemorated by a municipality will be the names of women, Sephardim, Arabs or people known as lesbian, gay, transsexual and bisexual."

Excerpt from:

Jewish Home MK retracts support for naming streets after gays - Arutz Sheva

Category: Sephardic | Comments Off on Jewish Home MK retracts support for naming streets after gays – Arutz Sheva
Tags:

Posted By admin on May 15, 2017

JTA Only one religious group in the US has a federally proclaimed month celebrating their history: the Jews. In 2006, President George W. Bush officially declared May as Jewish American Heritage Month.

Yet Jewish American Heritage Month, or JAHM, hardly seems a priority not in the government, not in the media, not even within the Jewish community. There is not a single paid employee working to organize the commemoration, and neither the federal government nor any Jewish organization or foundation is funding its operations. (By contrast, for example, the organization that coordinates Womens History Month lists four staff members and 16 sponsors.)

To tell you the truth, Im very disappointed, said Marcia Zerivitz, who was one of the driving forces behind lobbying Congress to establish the month. We have struggled, we have been financially under-capitalized, we have struggled to get any money to do much of anything.

The current annual budget for JAHM is about $10,000 and consists entirely of individual donations, according to Ivy Barsky, the director of the National Museum of American Jewish History and a member of the JAHM advisory committee.

Its its own tiny little 501(c)(3), all with people who run their own institutions volunteering some time to work on JAHM, Barsky told JTA. So like any of these things, until it has a dedicated staff person, its always going to be a little patched together.

Barsky hopes to change that. Her Philadelphia museum recently took over from the Cincinnati-based American Jewish Archives as JAHMs public face and organizer. She hopes that with the museums support, the heritage month can raise its profile both within and outside the Jewish community.

One of the original goals of Jewish American Heritage Month that we havent necessarily realized as well as wed like is teaching the non-Jewish world in America about the contributions of American Jewry to this country, Barsky said.

The museum is providing some financial and staff support, but Barsky hopes to obtain funding from corporations and foundations. Manischewitz has served as a sponsor, promoting JAHM on its products, and Empire Kosher Poultry provided funding, but the two kosher food producers are no longer doing so.

Educating the wider American public was the goal of Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., who in 2005 introduced legislation in Congress to establish the month with the late Sen. Arlen Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican at the time (he later switched parties) and also Jewish.

Debbie Wasserman Schultz sitting for an interview in the spin room inside the Wynn Resorts Ltd. resort and casino before the first Democratic presidential debate in Las Vegas, October 13, 2015. (Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg via Getty Images/JTA)

If you educated and raised awareness about contributions throughout American history all over the country, it would make people more familiar with the Jewish community and our people and hopefully impact a reduction of anti-Semitism and intolerance, Wasserman Schultz told JTA about the inspiration for the legislation.

She managed to get 250 Democrats and Republicans to sign on as co-sponsors for the bill, which the House passed unanimously. Zerivitz had lobbied for the month to be in January, to coincide with Florida Jewish History Month, but it was changed to May to concur with Jewish Heritage Week, which President Jimmy Carter proclaimed in 1980.

Following the resolutions passage in the Senate, George W. Bush proclaimed the month. It was observed for the first time in 2006.

Wasserman Schultz, who resigned as head of the Democratic National Committee last year following an email leak that suggested the organization was biased against presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, recalled the joy she felt upon the heritage months proclamation.

It was exhilarating. It was the first legislation that I passed as a member of Congress, and Im the first Jewish woman to represent Florida in Congress, so it was very significant for me personally, she said, citing experiences with anti-Semitism both in New York, where she grew up, and in Florida.

But has the legislation lived up to its expectations?

While calling the month still a work in progress, Wasserman Schultz said she is very satisfied with how its been celebrated.

However, Jonathan Sarna, a professor of American Jewish history at Brandeis University, disagrees. At the time of the proclamation, there was considerable excitement, but JAHM has yet to live up to its potential, he said.

So much money is spent on Jewish education in the United States that the fact that we have not been able to harness this golden opportunity given to us by the government, and really develop a month that would affect every American Jew, is a sign of the disorganization that weve seen ultimately its a sign of a problem, Sarna told JTA.

JAHMs website lists 17 events this month, most of them hosted by local groups, including a poetry reading organized by a social justice group in Connecticut and an event about Jews and jazz at a Florida library. The Library of Congress, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion and the Jewish Community Relations Council of San Francisco are each hosting one event, and the National Museum of Jewish History is hosting two events.

Every Jewish newspaper and media outlet should be focused on American Jewish history during that month, Sarna said. Programming materials should be sent to every rabbi, every synagogue. Synagogues should be encouraged to have a speaker dealing with American Jewish history.

To be sure, JAHM celebrations have had some highlights over the years.

In 2010, President Barack Obama hosted the first Jewish American Heritage Month reception at the White House with such Jewish luminaries as Sandy Koufax and musician Regina Spektor, but the program was cut in 2013 due to the budget sequester. Also in 2010, Jewish-American astronaut Garret Reisman brought the original proclamation with him aboard the Atlantis space shuttle.

File photo showing then-President Barack Obama at a reception in the East Room of the White House in honor of Jewish American Heritage Month, May 17, 2011 (Dennis Brack/Pool/Getty Images)

Jewish groups, however, have been hesitant to commit money to the commemoration.

I would think that all these national [Jewish] organizations would get behind it, but everyone is struggling for funding, said Zerivitz, who is on the JAHM board.

[The] Holocaust gets the emotions going in the American Jewish community, and Holocaust things are much easier to fund than American Jewish history things, she added.

Barsky said she looks to more prominent national commemorations for inspiration.

We hope well be able to fundraise and get some great attention for Jewish American Heritage Month, so that this can grow into something a little more akin to Womens History Month in March or African-American History Month in February, she said. Weve definitely got a vision for making it pretty big.

Sarna also is optimistic about JAHMs future.

This is a lot easier than making peace in the Middle East, believe me, he said.

Jewish American Heritage Month is celebrated every year in May. (Top left, clockwise, Obama photo: Aude Guerrucci/Pool/Getty Images; Wasserman Schultz photo: Andrew Burton/Getty Images; Calendar photo: Dafne Cholet/Flickr, CC BY 2.0; Menorah photo: National Museum of American Jewish History; Trump photo: Mark Wilson/Getty Images, Museum photo: Jeff Goldberg/Esto)

The rest is here:

How May became Jewish American Heritage Month - The Times of Israel

Category: Jewish Heritage Month | Comments Off on How May became Jewish American Heritage Month – The Times of Israel
Tags: