Jewish Standard, December 18, 2015

7/23/2019 Jewish Standard, December 18, 2015

1/64

Our reporter treksthrough time and spacwith William Shatner

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3/64

Fruit-flavored cup makes water excitingIs water just too bland a

drink for you or your kids?

A new Israeli productpromises to make water

more palatable without

adding flavor, calories, or

sugar substitutes to your

drink.

Instead, it changes the

container.

The Right Cup is a

plastic drinking cup

infused with FDA-

approved aromatic fruit flavors to

trick your senses into thinking plain

water has a fruity taste.

Six years of research and patented

technology went into the BPA-free,

recyclable cup.

Isaac Lavy had good reasons

to drink only plain water: doctors

orders, following a diabetes diagnosis

when he was 30. But he hated the

taste, and thus began a long process

of research, trial, and error that led to

the first prototype of the Right Cup.

Lavy is co-founder and CEO of the

company.

Isaac has been lecturing about

scent marketing for a long time, so

naturally this is what entered his

mind after being told he had to drink

only water, co-founder and creative

director Erez Rubinstein said.

Over the years, he told many

people about his idea, and they all

said it was impossible.

As we all know, Israelis read

impossible as Im possible.

Skepticism only serves to strengthentheir resolve to turn their out-of-the-

box idea into reality.

The company has already raised

242 percent of its $50,000 goal

from about 2,000 backers on the

crowdfunding site Indiegogo, and the

campaign is not over yet.

Expected to hit the market next

April after starting production in

Israel, the Right Cup will cost about

$35 and will be available in orange,

mixed berry, lemon-lime, and appl

varieties to start. The three-part

cup releases aromas for at least si

months if it is hand-washed.

A blogger calling herself Aweso

Jelly reports that the company sen

her test straws made of the same

material as the cup, infused with

lemon scent and flavor.

When I took my first sip of wat

from the Right Cup straw I was blo

away, she said. The material is a

smooth, hard plastic type materia

that smelled exactly like lemon. I

honestly have no clue if the mater

tasted like lemon or if my brain

perceived it that way, but is most

certainly tasted like I was drinking

fresh glass of lemon water.

I then gave the test straw to my

8-year-old daughter and asked he

simply try the water. Her immediat

reaction was amazement and awe

She said that the lemon water tast

soooooo good! When I told her

that it was the straw that caused t

water to taste like lemon she wasquite amazed and immediately as

if I had other flavors.

Rubinstein affirms that other

flavors are planned. He says the Ri

Cup has no competition. Of course

you can buy flavored water, but

that always includes some type of

natural or artificial sweetener. Peo

perceive flavored water as much

healthier than it is, he said.ABIGAIL KLEIN LEICHMAN/ISRAEL21C

The shocking story of the modern latke

Now that Chanu-

kah is over, we can

reveal an uncomfort-

able truth about latkes

without the risk of

spoiling your holiday

appetite.

The latke is one of

those Jewish foods that

feels steeped in tradition,

as if its been made the

same way since the days

of the Maccabees.

But in a revelatory

article, Atlantic senior

editor Yoni Appelbaum

explains that the latke

as we know it grated

potatoes fried in olive oil

is a relatively new culinary

invention. Here, in brief, is the

Chanukah staples origin story.Latkes were originally an Italian

cheese dish: deep-fried ricotta cheese.

According to Appelbaum, they

were inspired by The Book of Judith,

set hundreds of years before the

Maccabean Revolt. The book, from

the Catholic Bible, tells the story of a

daring widow who seduced and killed

the Assyrian general Holofernes to save

Israel from invaders.

In an obscure Hebrew version of the

story, Judith distracted Holofernes in

part by feeding him pancakes salted

and mixed with cheese. Italian Jews

adopted the custom of deep-frying

cheese pancakes on Chanukah to

honor the story, which they apparently

conflated with that of the Maccabees.

Appelbaum notes that potatoes wereoriginally cultivated in South America

and werent introduced to Europe by

Spanish explorers until the second half

of the 16th century. Potatoes werent

widely grown and consumed in Eastern

Europe the Old World from which

many Jews emigrated to the United

States for a couple more centuries.

Until the early 19th century, Eastern

European Jews made pancakes from

grains, such as

buckwheat and rye,

according to foodhistorian Gil Marks.

Those were among the

few crops available to

them during the frosty

early winter, when

Chanukah is celebrated.In the 1800s, even

after potatoes took

root in Eastern Europe,

latkes were still not

fried in olive oil (as they

are today, providing a

convenient link to the oil-

rich story of Chanukah).

Olive trees were

uncommon in the region,

and people cooked with

schmaltz, fat rendered from

chickens, geese, or beef.In fact, schmaltz remained a

traditional latke ingredient well into

the 20th century. Appelbaum cites a

stipulation from a 1927 issue of The

American Mercury magazine (which he

says includes the first mention of the

word latke in English) that the potato

pancakes be fried in schmaltz.

The advent in 1911 of Crisco, the first

shortening made entirely of vegetable

oil, changed the way latkes (and many

other fried foods) were made. Kosher,

Crisco was once marketed as the

miracle for which the Hebrew race had

been waiting 4,000 years.

When Crisco fell from favor, as

Appelbaum writes, olive oil took its

place at the Chanukah table and the

modern latke was born.So whats a latke? asks Appelbaum.

Simple: Its a shredded Andean

tuber, fried like a buckwheat pancake,

which was substituted for Italian

cheeses, once eaten to honor a

mistaken reading of obscure variants of

an apocryphal text.

But its cool if you want to keep

making the oil connection.

GABE FRIEDMAN/JTA WIRE SERVICE

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JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 18 2

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ROCKLAND ......................................................16OPINION ...........................................................22COVER STORY ............. .............. ............. ........30HEALTHY LIVING &

ADULT LIFESTYLES .......................................41TORAH COMMENTARY ...............................50CROSSWORD PUZZLE .................................51ARTS & CULTURE ..........................................52

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Would Trump supporters still support his presidential

race if he called for a national registry of Jews? In a

focus group of Trump supporters arranged by the

Daily Show, two out of seven said yes.28%

Maccabee

MakesGreatLatkes!


4/64

Noshes

4 JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 18, 2015

Hope can triumph over despair. Light canprevail over darkness. at sounds like adescription of the new Star Wars movie President Barack Obama, summarizing the story of the Maccabees at the Whi

House Chanukah party

Want to read more noshes? Visit facebook.com/jewishstandard

employee happened to

see a film that Abrams

made at a festival for

teen filmmakers. She

was impressed enough

to recommend him to

Spielberg. Talk about

mazel!)

Spielberg became

something of a mentor

to Abrams, and Abrams

is now most famous for

doing a good job re-

booting The Star Trek

and Mission Impossible

film series. However, he

is not viewed as a first-

rank writing or directing

talent by most critics. He

may vault into that rar-

efied air if Force really

blows away fans and crit-

ics. If the overall recep-

tion is just okay, I expect

Abrams will always be

viewed as just a compe-

tent reviver of iconic film

series and a workman-

like director.

Abrams, I should add,

may get a wow just

from the look of the film.

Abrams grew up before

the digital age and he

says he strove to give

Force a cool retro look

that distinguishes it from

the many CGI special-ef-

fects spectaculars at any

multiplex. The Forces

special effects are mostly

not CGI and the movie

wasnt shot digitally, but

on real film stock.

Sisters sounds

like a hoot: Tina

Fey and Amy

Poehler (who wed comic

NICKKROLL, 37, in 2013)co-star as sisters whose

parents are downsizing

and summon them to

Harrison Ford

GRAND OPENINGS:

Force is readyto rumble in

blockbuster reboot

Carrie Fisher

Lawrence Kasdan J.J. Abrams

Star Wars: The

Force Awakens

is easily the most

anticipated release of the

year. Script details have

been guarded closely,

but we know that the

action takes place 30

years after the events in

the Return of the Jedi

and that theres an

ongoing conflict be-

tween the good guys

(formerly the Rebels,

now called the Resis-

tance) and the bad guys(Formerly the Empire,

now the First Order).

Veteran returning rebels

include HARRISONFORD, 73, as Han Soloand CARRIEFISHER, 59,as General Leia Organa

(formerly Princess Leia).

Fisher, hands-down, has

been the most entertain-

ing of the cast members

making media promotion

appearances. She was a

combination of a Borscht

Belt comedienne and

Monty Python character

in a December 4 inter-

view on GMA that has

gone mega-viral and

really should be seen.

(Google Good Morning

America and Carrie

Fisher and youll find it.)

Fishers daughter and

only child, Billie Lourd,

23, has a role in the film

its unclear how big

it is but we do know

she doesnt play the

young Princess Leia in

a flashback. Fisher, the

daughter of the late

EDDIEFISHERand ac-tress Debbie Reynolds,

came to identify as Jew-

ish over the years, and

she has said she exposed

her daughter to Juda-

ism. I dont know how

Billie identifies. Her fa-

ther, agent Bryan Lourd,

isnt Jewish. Carrie and

Bryans marriage ended

when Bryan came out as

gay. After they separat-

ed, he told Fisher he had

been gay before they

married but he blamed

Fishers drug use for his

resumption of gay rela-

tions. Fisher writes in hermemoir, Wishful Drink-

ing: He told me I had

turned him gay by tak-

ing codeine again. And

I said, You know, I never

read that warning on the

label. I thought it said

heavy machinery, not

homosexuality turns

out I could have been

driving those tractors all

along!

Force was co-written

by LAWRENCEKASDAN,69, who also co-wrote

two much-loved sequels

to the original Star War

film (The Empire Strikes

Back and The Return of

the Jedi). J.J. ABRAMS,49, the director and co-

screenwriter of Force,

has a lot riding on how

this film is received. He

got a quick start in Hol-

lywood when he was

hired in 1981, at age 15, to

use the skills he picked

up making his own sci-fi

films at home to repair a

trove of recently discov-

ered but decaying home

movies that STEVENSPIELBERG, 68, madeas a teen. (A Spielberg

Goldbergs are finallyheld up to the lights

I found out too late to tell you in advance, but T

Goldbergs series on ABC had a milestone on Dece

16: a Chanukah episode. It was a milestone because

far as I know, its the irst time the Goldberg family been identiied explicitly as Jewish since the series

in the fall of 2013. It was a pretty good episode the

family matriarch tries to jazz up Chanukah by maki

a lot like Christmas. But her father (GEORGESEG

and other things, convince her of the error of her w

(Available online or via services like the ABC app on

Roku; also on Hulu.)

California-based Nate Bloom can be reached at

[email protected]

move out their stuff.

Their trip home becomes

an excuse for a big

blow-out party for their

old hometown friends.

Co-stars include IKEBARINHOLTZ, 37

(playing James, the

male character and

Poehlers love intere

and MAYARUDOLP43, as the sisters ol

friend.

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5/64JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 18, 2

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The Valley Hospital not only meet these benchmarks we exceed them, earning incentive rewards.

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Holy Name Medical Center andThe Valley Hospital exceed

national quality benchmarks.

71% OF HORIZON OMNIA HOSPITALSDONT EVEN MEET THEM.

Rewarded by Medicare for achieving quality, low cost and value:

HOLY NAME MEDICAL CENTERAND THE VALLEY HOSPITAL:

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6/64

Local

6JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 18, 2015

Passing the peaceLocal interfaith group meets at shul to fight hatredJOANNE PALMER

Glass half full or half empty?

Full-on war of civilizations

or a chance for unlikely allies

to come together?

Hope or no hope?

In response to the massacres in Paris

and even more in San Bernardino, a

group of religious leaders of the three

Abrahamic faiths came together in Tem-

ple Beth Or in Washington Township on

Sunday night. They were joined by an

estimated 350 to 400 others, Jews, Chris-

tians, and Muslims, who chose to gather,light Chanukah candles on the holidays

last, most light-illed night, and demystify

themselves to each other.

We brought together 18 different com-

munities of faith, Rabbi Noah Fabricant,

who heads Beth Or and who spearheaded

the meeting, said. The entire event was

put together in about a week. Hateful rhet-

oric toward Muslims was increasing

that was the week when Republican presi-

dential hopeful Donald Trump said that no

Muslims should be allowed into the coun-

try, although he was not clear on what he

would do with those here already and I

felt a need for a community response.

So my congregation began to reach outto other local congregations, and I reached

out to local clery through the Upper Pas-

cack Valley Clery Council.

Rabbi Fabricant, who is Reform, also

talked about the program with rabbis and

cantors from the Ridgewood area, and he

discussed it with members of the North

Jersey Board of Rabbis, the body that

represents Conservative, Reconstruction-

ist, and Reform rabbis. Some rabbis and

cantors came from eastern and southern

Bergen. His Christian and Muslim counter-

parts also talked up the program in their

own organizations, and drew some people

from outside the upper Pascack Valley.

It was an intergenerational crowd; lots

of teenagers as well as their parents andempty-nesters came out for the program.

The evening opened as the clery mem-

bers processed formally down the aisle,

continued with readings from the sacred

texts of all three religions, and culminated

with the menorah lighting. I created a

text, a kavannah an intention for

each of the candles, so that as we lit each

of them we could express a commitment

to our vision of unity and standing up

against bigotry, Rabbi Fabricant said.

But real human relationships rarely

grow out of formal structures. We wanted

an opportunity to socialize, so we had a

reception, with lots of food, and we stayed

and talked and met one another, and

made the face-to-face connections that are

so important to reducing fear.

It was wonderful, he said.

People said that it is one thing to readabout interfaith understanding, and even

to know something about it intellectu-

ally but to form a relationship, to see

people face to face, to hear the Muslim

call to prayer from the bimah of our syn-

agogue That impressed them with the

reality and the urgency of the situation in

a different way.

He had no idea what to expect, Rabbi

Fabricant said. All week I ping-ponged

between worr ying that no one would

come and that we wouldnt have enough

chairs. And as people started to arrive

I realized that what we had was the best

possible outcome.

He was moved by much of what he saw

that evening, but two incidents stood out.

Two Muslim women came up to me after

the service, and one of them said that in the

last few weeks, since San Bernardino, shedhad trouble sleeping. She felt really afraid.

Being at this event, seeing all those

people standing with her, really brought

her a sense of safety. A sense of physi-

cal safety and comfort. She said that she

thought shed sleep better that night. That

was really powerful for me.

And then there was the ceremony itself.

As the clery walked in, the congrega-

tion was invited to sing This Land is Your

Land. That, of course, is the haunting,

camp-evoking, quintessentially Ameri-

can Woody Guthrie song whose lyrics go

This land is your land/This land is my

land/From California to the New

island;/From the redwood forest

Gulf Stream waters/This land was

for you and me.

Quite a few people said to me

ward that after that song, you coul

stopped right there, Rabbi Fabrican

That, right there, was the message.

Imam Moutaz Charaf and 25 to

The clergy at Temple Beth Or last Sunday night represented 18 local congregations. ANTONY M

Rabbi Noah Fabricant, right, and Imam Moutaz

Charaf, left, with a member of Imam Charafs

mosque. ANTONY MORALES Muslim girls smile as they fill out name tags. ANTONY M

Rev. Marc Stutzel Rev. Mark Su


7/64

Loc

JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 18, 2

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his congregants represented the Elzahra

Islamic Center in Midland Park, one of

the two mosques to send a delegation. His

mosque is a cross-section of Muslim Amer-

icans, he said; some are American-born

and others are immigrants. Their roots

are in India, Pakistan, and across the Arab

world; most now live in Midland Park andthe small towns that surround it.

The meeting was important, Imam

Charaf said. We are living in a dificult

time for all people of faith, and all Ameri-

cans, so we thought it was a good time for

people of faith and their leaders to give

a strong message of peace and unity and

diversity, and of respect for each other.

We all stand together very strongly

against all types of violence, aggression,

discrimination, and hatred, and we felt

that we need to send a strong message,

and to show that we are standing together.

We have much in common. All religion

calls for peace and love, and we should not

accept any hate speech, or any discrimina-

tion against anybody.We are all people of God, and we were

all created by the same God. So it was won-

derful to read scripture together, to pray

together, to listen to each other, and to see

each other and break down some of the

walls that some of us have built between us.

It was good to see each other as human

beings, Imam Charaf said.

The Rev. Mark Suriano of the First Con-

gregational Church of Park Ridge went to

the meeting, he said, because, like Rabbi

Fabricant, I was increasingly alarmed at

how we used religion to separate ourselves

from one another, and particularly from

the Muslim community. So I was eager to

go to emphasize the things that we hold

in common. We are all religions of peace.

And we all three are religions of the Book,

and people who share at least some spiri-

tual ancestry.

The evening was likely to be a success,he said, and he realized that, prosaically

but tellingly, even before he went into the

shul building. I got there early, and I had

trouble parking. It was going to start at 7, I

got there at twenty to, and there were only

a few spaces left. There already were more

than 300 people there.

The camaraderie was amazing, he

continued. No matter what faith they

belonged to, people had a common con-

cern and a need for better understanding.

I saw people who were emotionally moved

by the experience of being there.

It was overwhelmingly beautiful.

One of the things that most struck the

Rev. Suriano was the sign of peace. Its

a Christian ritual, a moment in the ser-

vice where we are invited to turn to each

other and say Peace be with you, and the

response is Also with you.

At this service, we were invited to indpeople we didnt know and extend the

wish of peace to them. We were encour-

aged to ind people who didnt look like us.

There actually was a great sense of peo-

ple looking for people they didnt know,

and there was a great deal of excitement

around it. It was very powerful.

This is Advent, he continue

weeks leading up to Christmas when

tians anticipate the birth of their me

I preached about it a few Sundays

the Rev. Suriano continued. It is n

being sociable. It is a prayer and a

and a hope for peace. So to experieyesterday, in another context, with a

people for whom it is not a usual pr

there was a sense of earnestness ab

Watching how people were moving ar

everyone was up and moving, all 3

400 of us it was quite a powerful th

And then there were the Chan

lights. What Rabbi Fabricant wro

powerful, he said. It was a great w

summarize what we are about and

we have to do to bring peace. It wa

lenging and it was inviting.

The Rev. Mark Stutzel is the pas

Christ Lutheran Church in Woodclif

He usually teaches a conirmation c

seventh- and eighth-graders on Su

evenings; instead of holding the rclass, he suggested that his studen

their families join him at Beth Or

many did.

I had been at Temple Beth Or, bu

never worshipped there before, th

The camaraderie was amazing. Nomatter what faith they belonged to,people had a common concern and

a need for better understanding.

SEE INTERFAITHPA


8/64

Local

8 JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 18, 2015

Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi, youre my only hope...

Princess Leia, Obi-Wan is not your only hope.

Jewish Family Service will always be here for you.

Contact our force at

201-837-9090 - www.jfsbergen.org

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Helping kids glow againLocal student defers college to work with widows, orphans in Israel

ABIGAIL KLEIN LEICHMAN

Malka Schnaidman of Teaneck was supposed

to begin college at NYU this year.

Instead, she is in Israel as a National Ser-

vice (Sherut Leumi) volunteer. She is work-

ing in resource development for the IDF Widows and

Orphans Organization, which offers a range of services for

some 5,000 widows and 3,000 orphans of fallen soldiers.

Her last-minute decision to defer college for another

year she had just returned home from a gap year in

Israel when she realized how much she wanted to go back

means that instead of getting to know fellow freshmen in

New York she is meeting Israeli spouses and children who

are struggling to go on without their fathers, or in some

cases their mothers.

Today I was helping a girl write an English essay to get

into a program at Brandeis. This is something her father

would have done with her, so she called us instead, Ms.Schnaidman said. Were here for them every day.

Founded in 1991, IDFWO is the sole organization of

its kind recognized by the state of Israel, from which it

receives half its funding. The widows and orphans of sol -

diers always received government beneits, but the organi-

zation chaired by IDF widow Nava Shoham-Solan ills

many other needs.

Year round, it provides social, emotional, and inancial

support, including camps, retreats, trips, support groups,

an annual group bar/bat mitzvah ceremony, holiday par-

ties, scholarships, school supplies, wedding gifts, and

home visits.

This is the irst year that the organi-zation requested an English-speaking

National Service volunteer to help

raise funds and awareness abroad. Ms.

Schnaidman, who turns 20 in January,

found out about the position amid her

flurry of early-morning phone calls

from New Jersey to Israel last summer,

once she decided to return for another

year. That decision was made with the

full agreement of her parents, Rena

and Menachem Schnaidman.

It sounded very dynamic; not just

calling people and asking for money

all day, or stufing envelopes, Ms.

Schnaidman said.

Living with six other National Ser-

vice women in Petac h Tikvah, shecommutes to the IDFWO ofice near

Bar-Ilan University every day. Im

dealing with real money and real sit-

uations, she said. Were building a

website and setting up a new fund in

America, so Ive been dealing with law-

yers and speaking with donors. I go to

all the events and I answer phones

and help out with anything I can.

Were nine people in the ofice, and

its close-knit.

Ms. Schnaidman, who graduated

from the Moriah School in Englewood

and Maayanot Yeshiva High School for

Girls in Teaneck, is not fazed by her

all-Israeli environment, as her gap-year program at Migdal Oz integrated

the overseas students with Israelis. I

speak Hebrew all day in the ofice and

at home, she said.

Last week she went along on a

retreat for 600 widows. I looked around and realized that

for every person sitting here, one person had to die. But

you see them laughing, clapping, talking about how cute

their husbands were. They have something that connects

them and allows them to relax and have fun together.

An IDFWO Chanukah party in the Negev last week

included a webcam hookup that allowed 150 IDF orphans

to light candles and sing with Jewish teenagers from New

York and Munich, including an a cappella group from SAR

High School in Riverdale.

It was incredibly emotional to see Jewish youth from

two other continents join us live to celebrate Cha

together, IDFWOs youth director, Shlomi Nahu

said. It just goes to show that the people of Isra

one, no matter where they reside in the world. Th

orphans felt a warm embrace from abroad and a

demonstration that they are not alone.

We hope to make this an annual tradition, a

like to send out an open invitation to other schoo

youth groups worldwide to join us and empower

left behind.

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Sar Shalom with his new tefillin.

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9/64

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jewishstandard

Ms. Shoham-Solan addressed students on Decem-

ber 17 at Maayanot and at Torah Academy of Bergen

County, before a parlor meeting that evening at the

home of Susan and Mark Wiesen of Teaneck.

At the annual IDFWO bar/bat mitzvah celebration in

October, Ms. Shoham-Solan told the crowd how proud

she was as one who lost her own husband and raised

two young children alone, to see the IDF orphans

grow stronger by the day and grow into upstanding

citizens of the state of Israel.

She and IDF Chief Rabbi Brig. Gen. Rai Peretz gave

each bar mitzvah boy his irst set of teillin, while

bat mitzvah girls received ornate Shabbat candle-

sticks and a set of Jewish books. Boys and girls from

the Druze and Bedouin communities received gifts

and celebrated their coming of age together with the

Jewish IDF orphans. These 45 children will have theopportunity to tour the United States next summer.

President Reuven Rivlin, Defense Minister Moshe

Yaalon, IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot, and the

heads of the Israeli police and prison service all came

to the ceremony at the Jerusalem Theater. President

Rivlin told the celebrants that he considers each and

every one of you as my own grandchild.

You see people flooding in because everyone

wanted to be there for these kids, Ms. Schnaidman

said. You realize how much Israel wants to embrace

them. The kids were just glowing.

For more information, go to www.idfwo.org/

homePage.htm

Two girls at the OTZMA Chanukah camp last

week. IDF WIDOWS AND ORPHANS ORGANIZATION

It sounded very

dynamic; not justcalling people and

asking for money allday, or stuffing

envelopes.


10/64

Local


Birthright for MommiesLocal representatives join Jewish Womens Renaissance Project in Israel

ABIGAIL KLEIN LEICHMAN

Connection.

That word is mentioned over

and over by the Bergen County

women who recently returned

from a Jewish Womens Renaissance

Project trip to Israel, aka Birthright for

Mommies.

The subsidized eight-day Momen-

tum tour, which is illed with touring,

classes, socializing, and introspection, is

designed to empower women to change

the world through Jewish values that

transform ourselves, our families, and

our communities.

Participants say the experience leads

to a strong connection with one another,

with Judaism, and with Israel.Started in 2008 by author and educa-

tor Lori Palatnik along with seven other

Jewish women of different afili ations ,

JWRP has led 6,500 women from 19 coun-

tries on Momentum tours since 2009. (A

newer Momentum tour for Jewish fathers

has had 400 participants so far.)

Momentum works with more than 100

partner organizations around the world,

including JInspire, a national grassroots

Jewish learning initiative that has chap-

ters in New Jersey and New York.

The group of 20 from Bergen County

was part of a 400-woman Momentum

tour for Jewish mothers from the United

States, Canada, Russia, and Israel duringthe week of October 18. The local contin-

gent was led by JInspire educators Julie

Farkas of Bergenield and Dena Levie,

Esther Friedman, and Andrea Portal of

Teaneck, and past participant Ellen Fin-

kelstein of Teaneck.

Karen Sackstein of Fair Lawn signed

up as a birthday present to herself. She

turned 50 on the day of departure. Ive

wante d to go to Isra el for quite some

time, and it was just the right time, she

said; still, it was hard leaving her hus-

band and 12-year- old son. Im a mem-

ber of the sand wich gene ration, she

said. Ive been caring for other people

for a long time, and this was the irst time

I was doing something for me.

Everyone talks about how youre

going to feel so connected to Judaism dur-

ing this trip, and youre waiting for that

aha moment, she continued. Actually

there were many. But the one that sur-

prised me was the Shabbat we spent in

Jerusalem. Lighting candles, singing and

dancing with 400 women there wasnta dry eye in the place. All of a sudden

everything just made sense for me.

It was an overwhelming feeling of

connection to the women I had been

with only ive days at that point and who

became my best friends, but also to our

Jewish heri tage. Shabbat is something

weve been doing for thousands of years.

For me, it was no longer something only

the Orthodox do.

Ms. Sackstein also gained a new per-

spective on Israel. I was ignorant about

Israel before. You read things in the

news and its always something that is

happening over there. I didnt under-

stand why they were ighting over this

stupid piece of desert. Being there, talk-

ing to the Israelis on the trip, and to my

cousins who have a child in the army,

I realized that most of the people, Jew-

ish and Arab, really do want peace and

really do get along. Its no longer about

over there but about real mothers andreal children. It makes you want peace

so much.

She and Janet Freitag of Ramsey stayed

in Israel a few extra days after Momen-

tum ended. I went with Janet to Old Jaffa

one day, and there were crazy rains and

the shops were flooded, she said. A

Jewish shop owner told us that an Arab

construction worker helped her for three

hours to bail out.

Upon returning home, Ms. Sackstein

felt that the experience had pushed her

reset button. In Israel, everyone is grate-

ful, literally dancing in the streets, she

said. Weve all read about the i

tance of practicing gratitude and

fulness, but being in a place wher

live gratitude and mindfulness is veferent than reading about it in a bo

People can see that Ive change

letting go of stuff that doesnt matt

Rena Bernstein, 56, of Fair Law

Momentum a life-changing exper

very different than I anticipated. If

back now and went to the same s

wouldnt be the same.

You can go and see Israel, yo

hear people talk about it, but you

necessarily feel it. Thats what th

was. I felt the why. I felt a conn

and a transformation. We went

women from New Jersey 25 incl

our leaders and came back as a fa

Ms. Bernstein said that both shher husband were raised knowi

tle about Judaism. I always wan

learn and understand but never

the right opportunity, she said.

not religious but I feel very conn

to Judaism and I always wanted to

Israel for reasons I didnt understa

Two years ago, her son, now 22

on Birthright with a group from co

She told the rabbi leading her son

that she wished she could go along

he told her about Birthright for

mies in other words, JWRPs Mo

tum. She heard about it again from

Rapps, the director of the Jewish

Encounter Program that her 12-ye

daughter attends on Sunday morniTeaneck.

Ms. Bernstein inally had the cha

look into the trip a few months ag

discovered that there was one pla

for October. As I was illing out th

of the application where they as

to write about why you want to g

good friend Roz Wisotsky, also fro

Lawn, called and said, Listen, you

to do this right now. I just got an

that I was accepted on this trip to Is

Mommy Birthright. She had never

tioned it to me and I had never ment

SEE BIRTHRIGHTPA

From left, Dena Levie, Karen Sackstein, Janet Freitag, and Shamira Malekar all

were part of the Momentum trip.

We went as women fro

New Jersey25 including o

leaders acame back

a fami

Its no longerabout over

therebut aboutreal mothers andreal children.Itmakes you wantpeace so much.


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12/64

Local


it to her. And here I was about to hit the

submit button. So we wound up going to

Israel together, and spent an extra ive days

there together.

Ms. Bernstein recalls the groups visit

to the Western Wall, the sole remnant ofthe Second Temple complex destroyed

by the Romans around 70 CE. Before we

approached, we made a circle, she said.

Our leaders went around and asked us

each to talk about something personal we

would like to ask for, and that brought us

closer together. They gave us each a prayer

book with our name imprinted on it, and

inside they had highlighted the prayer

you say at the Wall. When we got there

and touched it, it brought all the pieces

together. It was just awesome a connec-

tion between me, my story, my history, my

friends, and my roots.

Though these women can get together in

Bergen County and they have done so, for

follow-up programming after the trip Ms.Bernstein said that being in Israel cemented

their relationship. A big part of it was that

in New Jersey we feel like were individuals

who, even when in shul, are surrounded by

a society that doesnt understand, accept,

or embrace us. In Israel I truly felt I was

home, even though I had never been there

before.

The decision to go during a time of unrest

was not easy, however.

The founder of JWRP, Lori Palatnik, kept

monitoring the situation and all the partici-

pants had a conference call with her a week

before the trip, Janet Freitag said. She said

they wouldnt take us to places that are not

safe, and I had no doubts about going. Wehad armed former IDF soldiers accompany-

ing us on the trip, so we did feel very safe.

Ms. Freitag, 46, irst heard about Momen-

tum from a friend in Woodcliff Lake who

went in 2012. She kept talking about how

meaningful it was, she said. This year

my son had a bar mitzvah, so I was extra

exposed to my Judaism, and that prompted

me to look into the trip.

She also became more interested in Jew-

ish learning through her attendance at fam-

ily school with her 10-year-old daughter on

Sunday mornings at Beth Haverim Shir Sha-

lom in Mahwah.

My husband is not Jewish, but my syn-

agogue embraced him, and we agreed to

raise the kids Jewish, Ms. Freitag said. Hewas supportive of my going on the trip; he

knew I needed to go spiritually.

I always thought Israel was so far away

and didnt feel a connection to it. Going

there deepened my faith, and a lot of the

things I learned about had more meaning. I

feel I want to be more involved in my syna -

gogue and stay in touch with the women on

the trip. I want my children to go to Israel,

too.

One of her favorite moments was on top

of Masada, a mountain near the Dead Sea

where a group of 900 Jews held out against

the Roman Legion for three years. The

author Alice Hoffman based her novel The

Dovekeepers on this historic episode.

I read The Dovekeepers with my bookclub six months before the trip and it was

beautiful to see where this story took place,

Ms. Freitag said.

Before joining the other city groups

for the irst night in Tiberias, the Bergen

women traveled to the Jewish Federa-

tion of Northern New Jerseys sister city,

Nahariya, on Israels northwest coast.

They visited historic sites, met with

the residents of a federation-supported

group home for teenage girls, and toured

the underground attack-proof emergency

and surgery center at Nahariyas Western

Galilee Medical Center.

In addition to Jerusalem and Masada,

the Momentum itinerary included Safed,

the Dead Sea, Yad Vashem Holocaust

Memorial, camel rides at Eretz Beresheetin the Judean Desert, Shabbat meals with

local Jerusalem families, spa night at the

natural sulfur hot-spring pools at the

Akoya Spa in the south, and lectures on

topics ranging from marriage to Israel

advocacy to drawing meaning from light-

ing Shabbat candles.

It was so lovely how everyone in Jerusa-

lem says Shabbat shalom to each other; I

didnt realize before that it was such a big

deal, Ms. Freitag said. We completely

observed Shabbat; we shut down our elec-

tronics and just enjoyed.

By the end of the eight days, she said,

everyone was exhausted but renewed at

the same time. At the Bergen trip reunion

on November 30th, each participantshared the same sentiment we all felt a

deep connection with Israel and started to

bring some new Jewish traditions into our

family routines.

Julie Farkas, one of the trips leaders

and coordinators, said that she found out

about JWRP in 2011, at a time when she

was teaching Hebrew to students at the

Jewish Learning Experience and JYEP. I

wanted to ind a way to help them connect

more deeply, she says. JWRP has created

a diverse group of women Conservative,

Orthodox, Reform and weve become

one, a sisterhood. Its an international

organization, so no matter where

we have sisters there.

She noted that Israels diaspora M

has started providing half the fundiMomentum trips, allowing the organ

to increase the number of participant

1,000 women per year to 2,000 in th

two years. Registrants pay only air fa

The goal is to create communit

connect women to their Judaism a

have them come back and be leade

give to their communities, Ms. Farka

This trip shows you the soul of Israe

mix of classes and sightseeing thats

evant to the mission to connect every

When you come back its hard t

balize what it was like, so you have to

with others who went with you.

Each of the leaders offers option

low-up activities, including classes

monthly challah-bake. Ms. Farkasa Torah class on Sundays at the Te

General Store.

I know its dificult as a mother to

your family for eight days, Ms. F

said. It takes a lot of effort and

but thousands of mothers have d

through JWRP, and its a life-cha

experience that will enhance your

ism and strengthen your faith, so its

worth it for yourself and for your fa

JInspire already is recruiting for it

Momentum trip, set to leave on N

ber 13, 2016. For information, ema

Glauser at [email protected].

BirthrightFROM PAGE 10

The trip included a visit to Masada.

This trip showsyou the soulof Israel.Its amix of classes

and sightseeingthats all relevant

to the missionto connecteveryone.


13/64

Loc


This event is generously sponsored by the Brodsky family in loving memory of

Bernice and Bernard Kramer, zl, grandparents of Molly Brodsky, Maayanot Class of 2013

Maayanot Yeshiva High School for Girls invites you to our

Day of Big IdeasFriday, December 25, 2015 9:30 AM12:30 PM

Keynote Speaker, former Rhodes Scholar

Dr. Jeremy DauberAtran Professor of Yiddish Language, Literature, and Culture &

Director, Institute of Israel and Jewish Studies, Columbia University

Frightening Jews: What Makes a Jewish Horror Story?

With additional lectures by members of our distinguished faculty, including:

Mrs. Tamar Appel The Menorah Society: Illuminating American Jewish Identity

Mrs. Randy Bernstein The Statistics of Polling

Mrs. Enid Goldberg Sophocles' Antigone: Lessons for Our Time

Dr. Julie Goldstein Chrismahanukwanzakah: Hellenism Yesterday & Today

Mrs. Esther Slomnicki Boys will be Boys (and Girls will be Girls): Genes and Gender Determinatio

Mrs. Yael Weil Michelangelo, the Sistine Chapel and.......the Jews?!

1650 Palisade Avenue, Teaneck, New Jersey * 201-833-4307

Scholars-in-ResidenceRABBI ARYEH LEBOWITZ

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FREE JET SKIING & SPA TREATMENTS

ALL DAY BEACH BBQS

GLATT KOSHERCHOLOV YISROEL

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RABBI ARI LAMMJewish Center

Upper West Side, NY

Orthodox rabbis: Christianity is part of Gods plan

Teanecks Dr. Eugene Korn helps draft statement

LARRY YUDELSON

Fifty years ago, at the Second Vatican

Council, the Catholic Church reversed its

attitude toward the Jewish people, reject-

ing the charge of deicide and acknowl-

edging that the Jewish covenant with God

remained valid.

Two weeks ago, a group of Orthodox

rabbis returned the favor.

In its statement, To Do the Will of Our

Father in Heaven: Toward a Partnership

between Jews and Christians, the rabbis

who signed the statement seek to do the

will of our Father in Heaven by accepting

the hand offered to us by our Christian

brothers and sisters.

It is a groundbreaking statement,

Rabbi Dr. Eugene Korn said. Its the onlystatement I know of by an international

Orthodox body that talks about the prac-

tical and theological relationship with

the Roman Catholic church after Nostra

Aetate.Rabbi Korn, who lives in Teaneck and

Jerusalem, was one of the drafters of the

statement, which was published by the Cen-

ter for Jewish-Christian Understanding and

Cooperation, an interfaith center in Israel

founded by Rabbi Shlomo Riskin. Rabbi

Korn is the centers academic director.

The real importance of this Orthodox

statement is that it calls for fraternal part-

nership between Jewish and Christian reli-

gious leaders, while also acknowledging

the positive theological status of the Chris-

tian faith, Rabbi Riskin said in the press

release announcing the statement. Jews

and Christians must be in the forefront of

teaching basic moral values to the world.

This was made possible by the CatholicChurchs new respect for Judaism.

Now that the Catholic Church has

acknowledged the eternal Covenant

bet ween G-d and Israel, we Jews can

acknowledge the ongoing constructivevalidity of Christianity as our partner in

world redemption, without any fear that

this will be exploited for missionary pur-

poses, the statement said.

Jewish thinkers have previously crafted

statements like Dabru Emet in 2000 on

Jewish-Christian relations and theoloy,

but few Orthodox rabbis could go along

with those theological and practical claims

in light of their understanding of Jewish

tradition, Rabbi Korn said.

This proclamations breakthrough is

that influential Orthodox rabbis across all

centers of Jewish life have inally acknowl-

edged that Christianity and Judaism are

no longer engaged in a theological duel to

the death, and that Christianity and Juda-ism have much in common, spiritually and

practically. Given our toxic history, this is

unprecedented in Orthodoxy.

In what Rabbi Korn called a con

extension of the halachic and rabbindition, the statement cited past ra

thinkers, from Maimonides to Rabb

son Raphael Hirsch through Rabbi

Shear Yashuv Cohen, a recent chief

of Haifa, who afirmed that Christia

part of Gods plan for humanity.

We acknowledge that Christ

is neither an accident nor an erro

the willed divine outcome and gift

nations, the statement reads. In se

ing Judaism and Christianity, G-d w

separation between partners with s

cant theological differences, not a s

tion between enemies.

It continues: We Jews and Chr

have more in common than what d

us: the ethical monotheism of Abrthe relationship with the One Crea

Heaven and Earth, Who loves and

SEE CHRISTIANITYPA


14/64

Local


Deadline nearing for JTS grants

Jewish Theological Seminary alumni have

until December 31 to apply for a 2016 grantfrom the JTS Seeds of Innovation Project,

which provides support for initiatives that

cultivate Jewish engagement through the

principles and ideals of Conservative Juda-

ism. In three years, JTS Seeds of Innova-

tion has distributed more than $100,000.

A selection committee that includes JTS

alumni and is chaired by the seminarys

executive vice chancellor allocates fund-ing from the JTS Seeds of Innovation Proj-

ect. Eligible programs can be synagogue or

organization based or independent, and

they must have clear-cut leadership goals

intended to affect the Jewish community.

For an application and instructions go to

jtsa.edu/seedsoinnovation.

Englewood shul participatingin Israel solidarity missionCongregation Ahavath Torah in Engle-

wood is part neri ng with Emunah of

America for an emergency solidarity mis-

sion to Israel led by Rabbi Shmuel Goldin.

The mission, in response to the continu-ing terror attacks in Israel, is building on

a record of many trips during dificult

times.

Participants will leave on the night of

Saturday, January 2, and may chose to

return either Friday morning, January 8,

or Sunday morning, January 10. The mis-

sion includes solidarity meetings with

soldiers and residents in critical areas;

visits with victims of terror and their fam-

ilies; hospital visits; high-level brieings

by representatives of the IDF and major

political and community leaders, and

opportunities to patronize businesses

affected by the situation.

Ahavath Torahs most recent missionbrought two busloads of participants to

Israel during the Gaza War in the sum-

mer of 2014. Earlier missions include

trips during the two intifadas and the

irst congregational trip to Israel during

the so-called Scud War.

The January mission is open to all. The

sponsors welcome other synagogues to

join as mission co-sponsors. For informa-

tion, call the synagogue at (201) 5681315

or Emunah at (212) 9475454, ext. 321.

Jewish Standard story helps SinaiHoly Name Medical Center prograHoly Name Medical Center in Teaneck

received a $10,000 donation from the

Just Enery Foundation, to be used prin-

cipally for programs run by the Sinai

Schools.

Teaneck-based Sinai works with chil-

dren with physical and developmental

challenges, tailoring education specii-

cally for each child and housing those

programs in Jewish day schools. HNMC

is the only hospital to provide vocational

training for Sinai students, and it pro-vides them with generous scholarship

aid as well.

Were very excited to see that the

positive impact of Holy Names partner-

ship with the Sinai Schools has inspired

support from our community, Michael

Maron, Holy Names CEO, said. The hos-

pital is also helping to simplify access to

healthcare for adult Sinai graduates who

are living in supportive housing. In 2015,

Holy Name Medical Center expanded its

partnership with Sinai by establishing

a scholarship program for tuition assis-

tance so more families in need can afford

to send their children to Sinai School.

Miriam Stiefel of Englewood, the

director of Just Enerys national afin-ity program, read the story that this

newspaper wrote about the partnership

between Sinai and Holy Name (Reining

a partnership, November 6, 2015).

I read the article, Ms. Stiefel

said. It was an amazing story, really

well-wri tten, and I read it, and

moved, and I saved it, and then I

to our foundation to see if we coul

port the program.

She also was moved by the peop

saw in the storys photos. I recog

Sammy Sam Fishman, she sai

Fishman is Sinais managing dir

he was also one of my older bro

friends, when I was little and we li

Brooklyn. Once I saw his name, I

exactly who he was.I know that Sinai is a wond

cause, she continued. I have f

who use Sinai, so I know how goo

and how important.

When she met Mr. Maron, Holy N

president and CEO, she was impr

by him. He exudes warmth an

ing, she said. And I was touch

how Mike wants to give back. He

to make a difference and he doe

We are absolutely delighted to

this donation to Holy Name Medica

ter Deb Merril, Just Enerys co

executive oficer, added. Its coll

tion with Sinai Schools, in particu

helping to secure necessary medic

community resources for special students, ills a critical gap. This st

reflects a guiding principle of th

Enery Foundation to help ensu

one is turned away from the car

support they need and deserve d

inancial hardship. JOANNE

Miriam Stiefel, the director of Just Energys national affinity program, an

Shon Prejean, center, Just Energys national affinity sales director, prese

the $10,000 donation to Michael Maron, president and CEO of Holy Nam

Medical Center.

Chanukah packages for hospital residents

The Community Affairs committee at the

JCC of Paramus/Congregation Beth Tik-

vah made and delivered Chanukah gift

packages for Jewish residents at Bergen

Regional Medical Center in Paramus for

its annual Chanukah party. For informa-

tion on synagogue programs, go to www.

jccparamus.org.

1245 Teaneck R

Teaneck

837-870TALLESIM CLEANED SPECIAL SHABBOS RUSH SERVICEWe want your business and we go the extramile to make you a regular customer

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AND ALTERATIONS

J-ADD celebrates ChanukahThe Jewish Association for DevelopmentalDisabilities held its annual Chanukah party

with food, music, and a menorah lighting

at the JCC of Paramus/Congregation Beth

Tikvah. JADD is a private nonproit orga-

nization that serves people with devel-

opmental disabilities and their families in

Northern New Jersey.

Dr. John Winer, J-ADD

executive director, left, and

Marcia Greenwald, a mother

of a J-ADD resident, light

the Chanukah candles.

At J-ADDs Chanukah party.PHOTOS COURTESY J-ADD.


15/64

Local


In U.S. Israel Bond Sales

For the Third Consecutive Year

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Cruz courts pro-Israel dollarsduring Englewood eventDisastrous Iran deal is focusas candidate raises $110,000

ROBERT WIENER

Republican presidential candi-

date Sen. Ted Cruz (RTexas)raised an estimated $110,000

December 9 at a breakfast

fund-raiser in Englewood sponsored by

Norpac, the nonpartisan pro-Israel politi-

cal action committee.

On November 3, Norpac members raised

$100,000 for rival presidential contender

Sen. Marco Rubio (RFla.).

Cruz spoke very well, said Norpacs

president, Ben Chouake, a few hours after

the meeting. It was the usual partisan

stuff. His presentation and Rubios were

similar. The two discussions were mostly

related to U.S.-Israel relations. Both are

very interested in strong relat ions with

Israel and United States security, and bothrecognize the relationship is not only in the

economic and security interests of Amer-

ica, but support of Israel is also a moral

obligation of the United States.

Dr. Chouake said that much of the talk

focused on the multinational nuclear agree-

ment intended to keep Iran from develop-

ing nuclear weapons.

Mr. Cruz spelled out his stand in Sep-

tember, writing in the National Review that

the lifting of $100 billion is sanctions will

give (Irans) Supreme Leader the tools and

resources to greatly accelerate the nuclear

program.

Dr. Chouake said most of the Republi-

can candidates Ive met with feel that the

deal is disastrous, and say they will do whatthey can to dismantle it.

Another hot topic, Donald Trump, was

barely touched on during Norpacs session

with Mr. Cruz. We didnt talk about Trump

in terms of anything more than Cruz pre-

dicted people are going to lose interest in

him, Dr. Chouake said.

One day earlier, Mr. Cruz had said that

I do not agree with Mr. Trumps pro-

posal for banning Muslims from entering

the United States, but he did commend

his rival for standing up and focusing

Americas attention on the need to secure

our borders.

Mr. Cruz is now ranked as second behind

Trump in several polls of likely Republican

voters, and he is rising in many polls.

The topic of banning Muslims from thecountry or even immigration policy did not

come up at all, Dr. Chouake added.

Dr. Chouake, a registered Republican,

offered his own analysis of Mr. Trumps

popularity.

Trump has said stuff that sometimes

is offensive to certain people but the

stuff he has been saying connects with

other people in a big way, and whether

you agree with it or not, he is polling on

top of everyone e lse, Dr. Chouake said.

That is because he is saying what

people are feeling, whether it is good or

it is bad. He is basically saying, We are

at war, and we need to be more careful.

That is why he is doing well in the polls.I dont think Trump is anti-Semitic, Dr.

Chouake added. I dont know him, but

the people I know who know him are con-

vinced that he would be a tremendous sup-

porter of the relationship with Israel.

Mr. Trump solicits donations for his

campaign on his website, but he has said

that he is not seeking funds from politi-

cal action committees like Norpac.

Although Norpac has no plans now

to host other presidential aspirants, Dr.

Chouake said he believes New Jersey

Governor Chris Christie is as supported

as Cruz among its members.

Norpacs members evince little inter-

est in the candidacy of Dr. Ben Carson, a

brain surgeon and politica l novice whohas slipped to third place in public opin-

ion polls, Dr. Chouake added.

I dont think Carson is going to get it,

he said. I think his problem is he says,

I am brilliant. I am a brilliant neurosur-

geon. But he doesnt know anything,

and if you want to run for president,

youve got to do your homework. You

cant say, Ill learn it on the job.

Youve got to be prepared, and the per-

ception is that he is not.

Reprinted from MetroWests New Jersey

Jewish News

Norpacs president, Dr. Ben Chouake, left, stands next to Republican presi-

dential hopeful Ted Cruz. Ben and Batya Klein, right, hosted the fund-raiser in

their Englewood home. AVI SCHRANZ/NORPAC


16/64

RocklandLove-bombing

the communityRocklAND Jewish campaignshores up a diverse mainstreamwith pride and positivity

JOANNE PALMER

Lets look at the question of per-

ception and reality.

Philosophers, neuroscientists,

theologians, and college fresh-

man have debated that abstract issue for

at least as long as there have been philoso-phers, neuroscientists, theologians, or col-

lege freshman. But sometimes the abstract

has to give way to the pragmatic.

Sometimes perception matters tremen-

dously, sometimes the perception isnt

reality, and sometimes the two have to be

brought into consonance.

Ergo, to go from the abstract to the very

speciic, Rockland and Jewish.

Rockland County has a population of

about 324,000 people, and almost a third

of them 31.4 percent as of last year, to

be exact are Jewish. That makes it the

county with the highest number of Jews

per capita in the country.

But there also is a problem. Although theliberal Jewish community is old and well

established, for some time now the public

face of Jewish Rockland County has been

its rapidly growing chasidic community.

New Square and Monsey provide images

of a certain kind of Jewish life that often

appeal to less traditional Jews but evoke

nostalgia rather than a sense of belonging.

And, of course, the ongoing problems

in the East Ramapo school district, which

faces massive inancial dificulties and alle-

gations that the school board composed

mainly of chasidic Jews whose children do

not use the public schools whose funds

they control has diverted funding inways that profoundly damage the districts

public school students. The situation has

become so dire that a group of liberal rab-

bis, who until recently decided that it was

more moral to sit on the sidelines than to

be seen as attacking fellow Jews, has taken

a public stance against the school board.

The situation in East Ramapo is fluid. On

Monday, a team of monitors, headed by

former New York City Schools Chancellor

Dennis Walcott, said that the state should

send a special monitor with veto power

to the district, that a monitor should

oversee the school board elections, and

that at least some of the board members

should have a child in the system. It alsoendorsed a report, iled by another state

monitor, Harvey Greenberg, last year, that

witheringly eviscerated what is sees as the

boards fecklessness.

What all this means is that there is a

huge divide in Jewish life in Rockland

County, with the liberal streams on one

side and the various thriving and vigor-

ously differentiated chasidic groups on the

other. (The position of the modern Ortho-

dox community is a story for another day.)

Thats where Rockland and Jewish

comes in.

Rockland and Jewish (or RocklAND Jew-ish), at the most basic level, is a Facebook

page. Its a campaign, created and funded

by the Jewish Federation of Rockland

County and the Rockland County Board

of Rabbis, to bring the real face of Jewish

Rockland to public view.

It shows the world that Jewish Rockland

is not black and white but made up o

ous color. (To ind the page, go to Fac

and type in Rockland and Jewish

Rockland and Jewish is the resu

very generous grant to the Board o

bis of Rockland County, Rabbi Paul

Drill of the Orangetown Jewish CenConservative synagogue in Orang

said.

It shows people and has little sho

ries about their lives, Rabbi Drill sa

says that we look like all kinds of p

and that like everyone else we are p

the fabric of the county.

Elissa Nyez, left, and Aviva Banayan and Sophie Goldberg, right, all are featured on the new Rockland and Jewish Facebook page.

On Rockland and Jewish, Monica Bergman, shown here with her husband a

child, tells her story.



17/64

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It also shows all the great reasons

to be Jewish in Rockland. People talk

about the kosher restaurants here,

and about hiking here, and about

Nyack being a really funky cool place.

There are some lively stories of Jewish

life. If people to the right of us would

open their eyes and look at it, theywould see something.

This is what mainstream Judaism

looks like, and here we are, living it,

in Rockland County.

The Facebook page Rockland and

Jewish has been up only for about

three months, but its been about two

and a half years in the making.

Rockland and Jewish is a dream

that really started percolating with

Craig Scheff, my co-rabbi at Oran-

getown, Rabbi Dr ill said. He is the

president of the Board of Rabbis, and

Rockland and Jewish is his brainchild.

He was talking about the quandary

of negative press here, about Jewish

people inding ourselves somehow inthe middle, between not wanting neg-

ative press for any Jewish people and

also not wanting to be identiied with

the behavior of people in this county

who are not us. So we came up with

the idea of showing that this is the way

we live, and this is also Jewish.

This was right around the time

that the Rockland Board of Rab-

bis became involved with Rockland

Clery for Social Justice. Here at my

synagogue, many congregants were

asking the rabbis what we were doing

about the negative press.

For both non-Jews in the countyand Jews outside the county, it started

being very negative, Rabbi Drill con-

tinued. Say Im part of a young Jew-

ish family in Riverdale or the Upper

West Side, and were looking to move

to the suburbs. Why would I look to

move to Rockland? All I hear is how

horrible it is there, and I dont identify

with any of those people.

For people who already live in the

county, its an ego lift. Were not awful

people. Were showing people in the

county that we live just like you. Ourkids play little league like yours do.

We serve the homeless like you do.

We live in your neighborhoods.

We want people outside the

county, young people, young fami-

lies, to consider Rockland County as

a good place to live, a place with a via-

ble liberal Jewish community.

Rabbi Scheff agreed that the point

of the campaign is to counterbal-

ance negative images with positive

ones. The way to do that is to craft

an image without creating a we/they

situation, instead throwing it open to

everyone who wants to be part of it

by promoting the good things we are

doing.We consciously made the effort

not to paint anyone as other. I per-

sonally feel strongly that if we are to

call out our neighbors in any way it

would be done more privately and

Cantor Barry Kanarek of the Nanuet Jewish C

also is the director of the federations Rockla

Jewish Initiative.

This is whatmainstream

Judaism lookslike, andherewe are, living

it, in RocklandCounty.


18/64

Rockland


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more sensitively. This is our way of going

positive.

There are issues that we as individual

community members use our own ways to

ight injustice in this world, but as a board of

rabbis this is something that we all could buy

into comfortably and believe it. It expresses

what we all feel.Because the group decided to use social

media for its campaign, Rabbi Scheff asks

people to support it by sharing it. Some-

times people forget that it is their job to

carry forward this mission, he said. As

institutions we can come up with an idea,

and it can look good, but it loses steam if

individuals do not take upon themselves the

responsibility for making it happen.

In this case, it is not hard work. Dont just

like it, Rabbi Scheff urges. Share it. Press

that button.

He calls the Facebook pages relentlessly

optimistic outlook, its refusal to be negative,

love bombing.We love-bomb our community, Rabbi

Scheff said. Look at how wonderful every-

thing could be.

Barry Kanarek is the cantor of the Nanuet

Jewish Center, a Conservative shul, and he

is also the director of the federations Rock-

land Jewish Initiative. He enthusiastically

supports the Rockland and Jewish cam-

paign from both positions.

Cantor Kanarek thinks that there is far

more cooperation between the Ortho-

dox and non-Orthodox communities

than public perception will grant, and

that perception in this case is not reality.

We have had a number of celebrationswith Jews from the Orthodox commu-

nity, he said. We all celebrated Sukkot

together, and some of us go and learn

with them on an ongoing basis. They are

doing kiruv, outreach, he said. But its

not unequal, no matter what the word

kiruv might imply. If you have two Jews

studying together, thats equal, he said.

They also make music together. Our

synagogue has a group called the Tem-

ple Dudes, and they have a group called

the Traveling Chasidim, and we play

together.

I dont think that Rockland and Jew-

ish exists because we have separate com-

munities, he said. It exists to show

another side of Rockland, but not neces-sarily to draw us apart. It is just to high-

light this other part.

Rockland is a thriving Jewish com-

munity, and a wonderful place to live,

Rabbi Daniel Pernick of Beth Am Temple

in Pearl River said. I say this as someone

who never wanted to live in New York. I

am from Southield, a suburb of Detroit,

and my wife is from Boston. Neither of

us wanted to live in New York,

But we have lived here for a little over

30 years, and it has been a wonderful

place to live.

He is entirely comfortable with Ortho-

doxy, Rabbi Pernick said. He keeps

kosher, and beneits greatly from thebutc her shops and rest aurants that

thrive in the county. He has fou

dren; one of his sons is about to gra

from Yeshivat Chovevei Torah, the

Orthodox seminary in Riverdale, a

son-in-law was ordained there.

The campaign is to show

although the news stories about

land are correct, and those issues

the community, and it would be s

claim that they arent they aren

of most peoples daily life.

He is saddened by the chasmseems to increase between dif

Rabbi Paula Mack Drill of the Orangetown Jewish Center is a strong Roc

land and Jewish supporter.

On Sukkot, David Toplitsky tries

a streimel as the Traveling Chas

and the Temple Dudes play tog

at the Nanuet Jewish Center.


19/64

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groups of Jews, he said. It wasnt always

like that. About 20, 25 years ago, we all

came together, he said. There was an

anti-Israel defacement of Temple Beth

El in Spring Valley, a Reform congrega-

tion that recently merged with Temple

Beth Torah to form the Reform Temple

of Rockland but was flourishing then.The attack wasnt as much anti-Semitic

as it was anti-Zionist and anti-Israel, and

it clearly came from someone within the

charedi world.

Ramapos town supervisor, Herb Reis-

man, held an unprecedented meeting,

and called everyone in Reform, Conser-

vative, Orthodox, chasidic. Everyone. He

said, You guys have to talk. This is unac-

ceptable. And a lot of contact came from

that. It petered out eventually, but a lot of

relationships continued.

We have our own identity, Rabbi Per-

nick said. There is a thriving Jewish com-

munity, and it is fascinating. Not everyone

is exactly the same.

The problem is that people feel thatthey are not being seen or heard or under-

stood, because someone else is always

getting the attention. Frankly, when some-

body dresses different or looks different,

thats who gets the attention. So if you

look on TV you see only chasidic Jews, as

opposed to people who looked like me or

like you, because we look just like every-

one else.

We are not newsworthy. We are just liv-ing our lives.

Beth Singer of Beth Singer Design cre-

ated the Facebook page. The campaigns

objectives are to improve and restore the

self-esteem of the Jewish community in

Rockland, and to increase the publics

understanding of the diverse Jewish pop-

ulation there, and to differentiate them

from ultra-Orthodox Jews, Ms. Singer

said. Our campaign messages are that

the Rockland Jewish community is diverse,

vibrant, engaged, and tolerant, and that it

has a positive effect on the community,

and that Jews in the county are main-

stream and responsible; that they are very

different from the Jews who have domi-

nated the news.The Rockland Board of Rabbis was very

concerned about non-ultra-Orthodox Jews

moving out the county. They were afraid

that the population would shrink, and that

it would become very dificult to attract

more Conservative, Reform, and unaf-

iliated Jews. The public perception of

the Jewish community was becoming too

negative.

Ms. Singer, whose design and communi-cations irm has worked with many Jewish

clients, brought a team to Rockland, and

the group four crews, two making videos

and the other two taking still photos did

80 interviews over the course of two days,

she said. We put together a diverse list,

so we could focus on all different aspects

of the community. Rabbis also were asked

to talk to their congregants, hunting for

volunteers.

Which stories have been the most pow-

erful? Rabbi Scheffs son, Jared, said that

he had been shomer Shabbat for his whole

life, and when he invited his friends for

Shabbat at irst they would turn up their

noses. They said they didnt want to dis-

connect. And then they would come any-way, and theyd be delighted. Theyd feel

so taken care of, so wonderfully enveloped

by the Scheff family. Jared was so

that he could show his friends the

being shomer Shabbat.

The most interesting thing ab

though, was that in the comments a

man said I was one of those peopl

I credit who I am as a man to the sh

Shabbat experiences at the Scheff hIt was just so beautiful.

And there was Paul Galan, a Hol

survivor, who said that he wasnt

and that we should all look forwar

not be bitter. The video crew told m

cried when they ilmed it.

There are many other stories o

page already; from a widow who sta

support group for young widows an

owers from a woman who conver

Judaism and for the last 15 years ha

teaching about prayer in her synag

from a young modern Orthodox w

who talks about how much she lov

Rockland Jewish community.

The goal is to be positive, Ms.

said. We have a very clear directivebe negative. Our goal is to restore p

the Jewish community.

Super Sunday volunteersVolunteers are needed Super Sunday, a day of com-

munity building and fundraising for the Jewish Fed-

eration of Rockland Countys annual campaign. Adult

and teen volunteers are needed as well as donations

and sponsorships from community businesses. For

information, email Beth Weiss-Dunn at bweiss-dunn@

jewishrockland.org or call (845) 3624200, ext. 121.

Bingo in Pearl Riverat Beth Am TempleBeth Am Temple in Pearl River holds bingo games on

Tuesday and Sunday evenings. Games are open to the

public and are scheduled through 2016. Doors open at

5:30 p.m.; bingo starts at 7:30. Bingo is in the ground-

level social hall, which has its own sound system and

cushioned chairs. The building is handicap accessible

and has a large, lit parking lot.

A full admission game

Jewish Standard, December 18, 2015

Documents

Transcript of Jewish Standard, December 18, 2015