Jewish American Heritage Month

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TruNews, the website that touted Jew Coup, permanently banned from YouTube The Forward

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youtube

Rick Wiles, a far-right pastor and the founder of TruNews, called impeachment a Jewish coup.

(JTA) A website whose founder called the effort to impeach President Donald Trump a Jew coup has been banned permanently from YouTube.

TruNews had been the target of temporary bans from the online video platform where it has a channel. The announcement of a permanent ban came last week in a tweet.

Episodes of TruNews still appear on other YouTube channels. TruNews programs and podcasts also appear on the TruNews website, as well as on Facebook and Twitter.

YouTube had temporarily banned TruNews in November after its founder, Florida pastor Rick Wiles, had said in a video that efforts to remove Trump from office was a coup led by Jews to overthrow the constitutionally elected president of the United States.

I am going to tell you, Church of Jesus Christ, youre next, Wiles continued. Get it through your head! Theyre coming for you. There will be a purge. Thats the next thing that happens when Jews take over a country, they kill millions of Christians.

The White House has provided media credentials for TruNews, most recently for the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, last month.

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TruNews, the website that touted Jew Coup, permanently banned from YouTube - Forward

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Posted By admin on February 28, 2020

TEL AVIV A carnival troupe danced through the streets of a Spanish town dressed like Nazis and Jewish concentration camp prisoners next to a float made to look like crematoria, sparking outrage from Israels embassy in Madrid and Jewish groups.

We condemn the vile and repugnant representation that disrespects the victims of the Holocaust, the embassy wrote on Twitter about the carnival in Campo de Criptana, making fun of the murder of millions of Jews by the Nazis. European nations must collectively fight anti-Semitism.

Dancers wearing striped outfits to look like those of concentration camps while waving flags of Israel followed Nazi officers in a Holocaust-themed procession put together by the El Chaparral Cultural Association.

The town council of Campo de Criptana said permission for the display had been given on the understanding that it would commemorate the dead of the Holocaust.

We share the criticisms that have been expressed, it said. If the aim was to commemorate the victims, its obvious the attempt fell short.

Earlier this month, the American Jewish Committee charged Catalan MEP Clara Ponsat of making unacceptable remarks after she compared Spains expulsion of the Jews in 1492 with its treatment of the Catalan minority and implied that the expulsion had inspired Hitler.

The Israeli embassy called on European countries needed to actively combat antisemitism.

Two days prior, a carnival procession in the Belgian town of Aalst featured people dressed up as ultra-Orthodox Jews with huge fake noses and as ants. One troupe also wore Nazi uniforms.Another troupe also dressed up as Jews carried a sign warning people not to tell the truth about the Jew.

Israels Foreign Minister Israel Katz slammed Belgium for allowing such a vitriolic antisemitic display.

In last years procession, a float that featured ultra-Orthodox Jews holding rats and bags of money in an effort to protest the cost of living prompted UNESCO to remove the Aalst Carnival from its list of world heritage events.

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WATCH: Spanish Town Slammed for Holocaust-Themed Carnival - Breitbart

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Posted By admin on February 28, 2020

Conservative

AGUDATH BNAI ISRAEL: Meister Road at Pole Ave., Lorain. Mark Jaffee, Ritual Director. SAT. 10 a.m. 440-282-3307. abitemplelorain.com

BETH EL CONGREGATION: 750 White Pond Dr., Akron. Rabbi Elyssa Austerklein, Hazzan Matthew Austerklein. SAT. 9:15 a.m.; SUN. 8:45 a.m.; WED./FRI. 7:30 a.m. 330-864-2105. bethelakron.com.

BNAI JESHURUN-Temple on the Heights: 27501 Fairmount Blvd., Pepper Pike. Rabbis Stephen Weiss and Hal Rudin-Luria; Stanley J. Schachter, Rabbi Emeritus; Cantor Aaron Shifman. FRI. Shabbat Service 6 p.m.; SAT. 9 a.m., 6 p.m.; SUN. 8 a.m., 6 p.m.; MON.-THURS. 7/7:30 a.m., 6 p.m.; FRI. 7/7:30 a.m. 216-831-6555. bnaijeshurun.org.

MONTEFIORE: One David N. Myers Parkway., Beachwood. Services in Montefiore Maltz Chapel. Rabbi Akiva Feinstein; Cantor Gary Paller. FRI. 3:30 p.m.; SAT. Service 10:30 a.m. 216-360-9080.

PARK SYNAGOGUE-Anshe Emeth Beth Tefilo Cong.: Park MAIN 3300 Mayfield Road, Cleveland Heights; Park EAST 27500 Shaker Blvd., Pepper Pike. Rabbi Joshua Hoffer Skoff, Rabbi Sharon Y. Marcus, Milton B. Rube, Rabbi-in-Residence, Cantor Misha Pisman. FRI. 6 p.m. (Park East); SAT. 9 a.m. (Park East), 5:30 p.m. (Park East); SUN. 8:30 a.m., 5:30 p.m. (both Park East); MON.-FRI. 7:30 a.m., 6 p.m. (both Park East). 216-371-2244; TDD# 216-371-8579. parksynagogue.org.

SHAAREY TIKVAH: 26811 Fairmount Blvd., Beachwood. Rabbi Scott B. Roland; Gary Paller, Cantor Emeritus. FRI. Kabbalat Shabbat 6 p.m.; SAT. 9 a.m.; SUN. Minyan 9 a.m. 216-765-8300. shaareytikvah.org.

BETH EL-The Heights Synagogue, an Independent Minyan: 3246 Desota Ave., Cleveland Heights. Rabbi Michael Ungar; Rabbi Moshe Adler, Rabbi Emeritus. FRI. Kabbalat Shabbat Service 6:30 p.m., followed by pescatarian dinner and speaker (reservations required $10/person); SAT. Morning Service 9:15 a.m., Lunch and Learn after services. 216-320-9667. bethelheights.org.

THE SHUL-An Innovative Center for Jewish Outreach: 30799 Pinetree Road, #401, Pepper Pike. Rabbi Eddie Sukol. THURS. Toast & Torah at Corky & Lennys 8 a.m. See website or call for Shabbat and holiday service dates, times and details. 216-509-9969. rabbieddie@theshul.us. theshul.us.

AHAVAS YISROEL: 1700 S. Taylor Road, Cleveland Heights. Rabbi Boruch Hirschfeld. 216-932-6064.

BEACHWOOD KEHILLA: 25400 Fairmount Blvd., Beachwood. Rabbi Ari Spiegler, Rabbi Emeritus David S. Zlatin. FRI. Kabbalat Shabbat 5:56 p.m.; SAT. Shacharit 9 a.m., Study Group 5 p.m., Minchah/Maariv 5:45 p.m., Havdalah 6:58 p.m.; SUN. 7:30 a.m., Minchah/Maariv 6 p.m.; MON.-THURS. Shacharit 6:30 a.m., Minchah/Maariv 7:45 p.m.; FRI. Shacharit 6:30 a.m. 216-556-0010.

FROMOVITZ CHABAD CENTER: 21625 Chagrin Blvd. #210, Beachwood. Rabbi Moshe Gancz. SAT. Morning service followed by kiddush lunch 10 a.m. 216-647.4884, clevelandjewishlearning.com

GREEN ROAD SYNAGOGUE: 2437 S. Green Road, Beachwood. Rabbi Binyamin Blau; Melvin Granatstein, Rabbi Emeritus. FRI. Kabbalat Shabbat 6:05 p.m.; SAT. Hashkama Minyan 7:45 a.m., Shacharit 9 a.m., Youth Minyan 9:30 a.m., Tot Shabbat 10:30 a.m., Rabbis Talmud class 4:50 p.m., Minchah 5:50 p.m., Havdalah 6:59 p.m.; SUN. Shacharit 8 a.m., Minchah/Maariv 6:10 p.m.; MON.-THURS. Shacharit 6:40 a.m., Minchah/Maariv 6:10 p.m.; FRI. Shacharit 6:40 a.m. 216-381-4757. GreenRoadSynagogue.org.

HEIGHTS JEWISH CENTER SYNAGOGUE: 14270 Cedar Road, University Heights. Rabbi Raphael Davidovich. FRI. 7:15 p.m.; SAT Morning Parsha Class 8:30 a.m., Morning Services 9 a.m., Minchah 30 minutes before sunset; SUN. 8 a.m., 15 minutes before sunset; MON.-THURS. 6:45 a.m., 15 minutes before sunset; FRI. 6:45 a.m. 216-382-1958, hjcs.org.

KHAL YEREIM: 1771 S. Taylor Road, Cleveland Heights. Rabbi Yehuda Blum. 216-321-5855.

MENORAH PARK: 27100 Cedar Road, Beachwood. Rabbi Howard Kutner; Associate Rabbi Joseph Kirsch. SAT. 9:30 a.m., 4:15 p.m.; SUN. Minyan & Breakfast 8 a.m. 216-831-6500.

OHEB ZEDEK CEDAR SINAI SYNAGOGUE: 23749 Cedar Road, Lyndhurst. Rabbi Noah Leavitt. FRI. Minchah 5:55 p.m.; SAT. 9 a.m., Minchah/Seudah Shlishit 5:45 p.m., Maariv 6:45 p.m., Havdalah 6:58 p.m.; SUN. 8 a.m.; MON.-FRI. Shacharit 7 a.m., Minchah 5:55 p.m. 216-382-6566. office@oz-cedarsinai.org. oz-cedarsinai.org.

SEMACH SEDEK: 2004 S. Green Road, South Euclid. Rabbi Yossi Marozov. FRI. Kabbalat Shabbat at candlelighting; SAT. 9:30 a.m., Minchah at candlelighting. 216-235-6498.

SOLON CHABAD: 5570 Harper Road, Solon. Rabbi Zushe Greenberg. FRI. Kabbalat Shabbat 5:45 p.m.; SAT. Torah Study 9 a.m., Service 10 a.m., Minchah 1:30 p.m.; SUN. 8 a.m.; MON-FRI. 7 a.m. 440-498-9533. office@solonchabad.com. solonchabad.com.

TAYLOR ROAD SYNAGOGUE: 1970 S. Taylor Road, Cleveland Heights. SAT. Shacharit 9 a.m., Havdalah 7:07 p.m.; SUN. Daf Yomi 7 a.m., Shacharit 8 a.m., Minchah/Maariv 5:15 p.m.; WEEKDAYS Daf Yomi 6 a.m., Shacharit 6:45 a.m., Minchah/Maariv 5:15 p.m. 216-321-4875.

WAXMAN CHABAD CENTER: 2479 S. Green Road, Beachwood. Rabbis Shalom Ber Chaikin and Moshe Gancz. FRI. Minchah 6:05 p.m.; SAT. Shacharit 10 a.m., Minchah 5:55 p.m.; WEEKDAYS Call synagogue for service times. 216-381-1770. waxmanchabadcenter@gmail.com.

YOUNG ISRAEL OF GREATER CLEVELAND: Hebrew Academy (HAC), 1860 S. Taylor Road; Beachwood (Stone), 2463 Green Road. Rabbis Naphtali Burnstein and Aharon Dovid Lebovics. FRI. Minchah 6 p.m.; SAT. Shacharit (Stone) 8/9 a.m., (HAC) 9 a.m., Minchah 5:50 p.m., Maariv 6:58 p.m., Motzei Shabbat 7:06 p.m.; Shacharit: (Stone) SUN. 7:15/8/8:30 a.m., MON./THURS. 6:40/7:50 a.m., TUES./WED./FRI. 6:45/7:50 a.m., (HAC) SUN. 7:20 a.m., MON./THURS. 6:40 a.m., TUES./WED./FRI. 6:45 a.m. WEEKDAYS Minchah 6:05 p.m. 216-382-5740. office@yigc.org.

ZICHRON CHAIM: 2203 S. Green Road, Beachwood. Rabbi Moshe Garfunkel. DAILY 6 a.m., 6:45 a.m. 216-291-5000.

KOL HALEV (Clevelands Reconstructionist Community): The Ratner School. 27575 Shaker Blvd., Pepper Pike. Rabbi Steve Segar. FRI. Kabbalat Shabbat 6 p.m.; SAT. Alternative Shabbat Service 10:30 a.m. 216-320-1498. kolhalev.net.

AM SHALOM of Lake County: 7599 Center St., Mentor. Spiritual Director Renee Blau; Assistant Spiritual Director Elise Aitken. 440-255-1544.

ANSHE CHESED Fairmount Temple: 23737 Fairmount Blvd., Beachwood. Rabbis Robert Nosanchuk and Joshua Caruso; Cantor Sarah Sager; Jordana Chernow-Reader, Rabbi-Educator. FRI. Shabbat Evening Service 6:15 p.m.; SAT. Torah Study 9:15 a.m., Lay-Led Shabbat Minyan 10:30 a.m.; Shabbat Morning Service 11 a.m. 216-464-1330. fairmounttemple.org.

BETH ISRAEL-The West Temple: 14308 Triskett Road, Cleveland. Rabbi Enid Lader. Alan Lettofsky, Rabbi Emeritus. FRI. Service 7:30 p.m.; SAT. Torah Study 9:30 a.m., Service 11 a.m. 216-941-8882. thewesttemple.com.

BETH SHALOM: 50 Division St., Hudson. Rabbi Michael Ross. FRI. Shabbat Service 7:30 p.m.; SAT. Bar Mitzvah service 10 a.m. 330-656-1800. tbshudson.org

BNAI ABRAHAM-The Elyria Temple: 530 Gulf Road, Elyria. Rabbi Lauren Werber. FRI. Shabbat Service 7 p.m. 440-366-1171. tbaelyria.org

SUBURBAN TEMPLE-KOL AMI: 22401 Chagrin Blvd., Beachwood. Rabbi Allison Bergman Vann. FRI. Learning Shabbat: Hamentaschen Making 6 p.m., Kabbalat Shabbat Service 6 p.m.; SAT. Torah Study 9:15 a.m. 216-991-0700. suburbantemple.org.

TEMPLE EMANU EL: 4545 Brainard Road, Orange. Rabbi Steven L. Denker; Cantor David R. Malecki; Daniel A. Roberts, Rabbi Emeritus. FRI. Shabbat Service 6:15 p.m.; SAT. Parshat HaShavuah 9 a.m., Service 10:30 a.m. 216-454-1300. teecleve.org.

TEMPLE ISRAEL: 91 Springside Drive, Akron. Rabbi Josh Brown. Cantor Kathy Fromson. FRI. Service 6:15 p.m.; SAT. Torah Study 9 a.m., Morning Service 10:30 a.m. 330-665-2000 templeisraelakron.org.

TEMPLE ISRAEL NER TAMID: 1732 Lander Road, Mayfield Heights. Rabbi Matthew J. Eisenberg, D.D.; Frederick A. Eisenberg, D.D., Founding Rabbi Emeritus; Cantorial Soloist Rachel Eisenberg. FRI. 7:30 p.m. 440-473-5120. tintcleveland.org.

THE TEMPLE-TIFERETH ISRAEL: 26000 Shaker Blvd., Beachwood. Senior Rabbi Jonathan Cohen; Rabbi Roger C. Klein and Rabbi Stacy Schlein; Cantor Kathryn Wolfe Sebo. FRI. Kabbalat Shabbat 6 p.m.; SAT. Torah study 9:15 a.m., Shabbat Service 4:30 p.m. 216-831-3233. ttti.org.

JEWISH SECULAR COMMUNITY: Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Cleveland, 21600 Shaker Blvd., Shaker Heights. jewishsecularcommunity.org.

THE CHARLOTTE GOLDBERG COMMUNITY MIKVAH: Park Synagogue, 3300 Mayfield Road, Cleveland Heights. By appointment only: 216-371-2244, ext. 135.

THE STANLEY AND ESTHER WAXMAN COMMUNITY MIKVAH: Waxman Chabad House, 2479 South Green Road, Beachwood. 216-381-3170.

This is a paid listing with information provided by congregations.

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Synagogue service times: Week of February 28 | Synagogues - Cleveland Jewish News

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Posted By admin on February 28, 2020

You are about to experience a sacred moment. With these words, before a Friday evening crowd of 500 at Jerusalems Shai Agnon Synagogue, I inaugurated this years fourth-annual Druze Shabbat. Over the next 24 hours, Jews shared their Shabbat eve tables with Druze guests, synagogue services remembered fallen Druze heroes, Druze pre-military academy students were honored and Jews and Druze celebrated their peoples extraordinary partnership.Zidan Seif, a Druze policeman killed while battling the terrorists of Jerusalems 2014 Har Nof Synagogue massacre, is an enduring symbol of bravery and sacrifice. Zidan left behind his parents, siblings, his 21 year-old wife Rinal and their baby girl, Larain. The Seifs have attended each Druze Shabbat since the Yakir organization began the tradition in 2016. As part of last Friday nights program, Zidans father, Sheikh Nuhad, joined me in front of the synagogue as we chanted the prayer for the IDF and the Israel Police, first in Hebrew and then in Arabic. The prayer was translated into Arabic by Rinal, and it was read by Colonel Nazye Dabur, a decorated military officer and Druze leader, who has received multiple awards for his valor in battle (but whose most important distinction for my younger children is that he has consulted for Fauda).After services, our Druze guests, including dozens of young couples, bereaved families and elderly Sheikhs, were divided into small groups and hosted by neighborhood families in their homes for Shabbat dinner.At my family home, we hosted the extended Seif family and also the family of Lt.-Col. M, a Druze special forces soldier, who was killed in Gaza last year. The sensitivity and secrecy of his undercover mission were such that it is still strictly forbidden to reveal his name. I was personally privileged to make his acquaintance when he participated in Yakirs Druze Shabbat program just months before his tragic death. It didnt take long before the two Druze families discovered that they were not so distantly related (theres nothing like playing Druze geography around the Shabbat table). At the start of the meal, just before Kiddush (which we made over grape juice out of respect for our religious Druze guests, who dont consume alcohol), I gave the traditional Shabbat evening blessing to my children. It was for me the sweetest of pleasures when the late Lt.-Col. Ms two young sons approached me, so that I could bless them too.After dinner, Druze visitors, along with around 100 community members, packed into my home for desserts and socializing. I invited Sheikh Nuhad to say a few words, but he delegated the task to his always eloquent and inspiring daughter-in-law, Rinal. Rinal Seif shared with us the complex feelings she has each time she visits Jerusalem.On the one hand, Jerusalem forces her to relive an excruciatingly painful experience. (She did not mention it, but it surely was not lost on Rinal that the terrorist who killed her beloved Zidan lived in Jebl Mukaber, an Arab neighborhood less than 10 minutes by car from my home and easily viewable from my living room window.) On the other hand, Jerusalem reminds her of the blessings of friendship and love that were showered upon her after the attack, and which have enriched her life. I took the opportunity to wish Rinal a double mazal tov first, upon her marriage more than a year ago to Adnan, Zidans younger brother, and second, upon the birth of their baby daughter a few months ago. Adnan could not join us for Shabbat. Like his big brother, Adnan joined the Israel Police, and he was on patrol duty that Friday evening.Jerusalems Great Synagogue, with its diverse mix of religious, secular and hasidic (ultra-Orthodox) Jews, along with non-Jewish tourists, was our host for Shabbat morning. The Druze families stayed over in Jerusalem and they were joined at the Great Synagogue by approximately 20 Druze pre-military academy students. An enthusiastic supporter of Druze Shabbat, Great Synagogue President Zalli Jaffe had an expanded choir primed for a majestic service. Druze Shabbat is always scheduled for when we read Parshat Yitro, as the Druze revere Jethro as their founding prophet. The Druze followed along in Chumashim as the Torah portion was read. The fathers of fallen Druze soldiers and police officers were then invited to open the ark as memorial prayers were chanted for their sons, and the entire class of soon-to-be Druze soldiers stood by the open ark as the cantor chanted the prayer for the IDF. During my sermon, I told these students that we will never take for granted the fact that Druze soldiers are fighting alongside Jewish soldiers in defense of the Jewish state, and that when my son drafts into the IDF in April, I know you will have his back, just as I know he will have yours.Lunch following services, at the nearby Plaza Hotel, featured an address by Druze former Knesset member Shachiv Shinan, whose police officer son, Hayil, was killed by terrorists in the summer of 2017 while guarding Temple Mount. Shinan brought along his family for the weekend, including his baby grandson, Hayil, who carries his late uncles name. In his remarks, Shinan charged us to carefully preserve the covenant forged between the prophet Jethro and our teacher Moses. Late Saturday night, upon returning to his Galilee home, Shinan texted me: We have now returned physically to Hurfeish, but our hearts and souls remain in Jerusalem. The embrace and honor given to our fallen loved ones (and to those of us living) remind us what an amazing and unique people the Jews are, and that our painful sacrifices were not for naught.The writer is the founder and director of Jerusalem-based Yakir (www.yakir.org) and is the rabbi emeritus of New Yorks Fifth Avenue Synagogue.

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Jews and Druze share tables together for 'Druze Shabbat' - The Jerusalem Post

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Posted By admin on February 28, 2020

Rabbi Elisha Friedman stands in front of the future home of Kesher Israel Congregation in Riverside.

Last year, the Susquehanna United Methodist Conference closed many of its churches, and now one has been bought by another religious organization.

Kesher Israel, an Orthodox Jewish congregation in Uptown Harrisburg, is moving from its home of 72 years to the former Riverside United Methodist Church on the 3000-block of N. 3rd Street.

Its really exciting, Kesher Israels Rabbi Elisha Friedman said. People feel like weve got the perfect building.

Friedman explained that theyre moving because members felt the old synagogue on the 2500-block of N. 3rd Street was not located centrally enough for their community.

Most families live anywhere from one-half to two miles away from Kesher Israel, he said. That may not seem far, but for a congregation whose observation of Shabbat, the Sabbath day, restricts driving on a Saturday, it entails a lot of walking to and from services and prayers.

Walking a mile with two or three little kids on a Saturday can be really difficult, Friedman explained.

Kesher Israel was interested in the location of the church building for a while, but the sale and consolidation of the Methodist Churches in Harrisburg allowed them to begin negotiations. The synagogue purchased the church building last month for $176,000.

The new building is significantly smaller than the current synagogue, so Friedman believes the congregation will save money in the long run. However, with a congregation of about 125 families and individuals, some members are concerned about the size and have proposed an addition.

Other renovations may include work on heating and air conditioning, electricity and bathrooms.

And what about their current building?

Friedman explained they have received offers for it, but have not yet decided when to sell. He is also not certain when the congregation will move into the new building, but hopes to at least transition Friday evening and Saturday afternoon services to the space soon.

The new building will place Kesher Israel in close proximity to another synagogue, Chisuk Emuna, which is just next door.

One of the nice things is we are going to be close to this conservative synagogue, Friedman said. We are hoping that the relationship will develop a little more.

Kesher Israel also is working heavily to market their congregation and the Jewish community generally in Harrisburg. Friedman believes the community they built in Harrisburg is unique.

We are really trying to grow our community, he said. We are the only legit small town in the U.S. where you can live a full Jewish life. Our hope is that this move is going to contribute to that.

Kesher Israel is located at 2500 N. 3rd St., Harrisburg, and is moving to 3200 N. 3rd St. For more information, visit https://www.kesherisrael.org/.

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New home planned for Kesher Israel, as congregation purchases former Riverside Methodist church - The Burg News

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Posted By admin on February 28, 2020

Every day seems to bring a new report of anti-Semitism not just in other countries but in the United States as well. And for good reason. Jew hatred has infected our country, in Pittsburgh and Poway synagogues, in Monsey, New York, and in a New Jersey kosher market, to cite just a few recent examples. At a certain point a series of events becomes a trend, and history tells us that it can get worse.

My father, Frank Steinfield, was born in Chelsea in 1891, a year after his parents and brother arrived in this country. His father, for whom I am named, changed the family name from Pollock and moved to Claremont a decade later. They were the second Jewish family in a small town of about 6,500, and they spoke Yiddish at home.

The Steinfields became part of the community, but there was no synagogue, so my father celebrated his bar mitzvah in Springfield, Massachusetts, where another branch of the family had settled. Not long after, he left school to help support his family, and a few years later he and his brothers started a small factory alongside the Sugar River. Decades later, he helped turn his boyhood school into Temple Myer-David. He was an observant though not strict Jew, and a devout Republican.

My mother grew up the 1920s, in Littleton and Berlin, the daughter of Yiddish-speaking immigrant Jews with the less obvious name of Firestone. She married my much-older father, raised my sister and me, volunteered for the Claremont Red Cross, and drove us to Boston to visit relatives, see plays and buy shoes.

How lucky I was to grow up in mid-1950s Claremont. Like most Jews in predominantly Christian communities, we lived with a dual identity, at the same time both integrated and other. That duality never felt like a disadvantage, if anything the opposite. As I believe was true in my fathers case a half-century earlier, and in my mothers in Coos County as well, I did not suffer the pain of anti-Semitism.

I have come to the conclusion that the party in which my father believed, as it currently exists in the person of Donald Trump, is not good for minorities, including the Jews. I am fully aware that many people, including Jews, will not agree with me, and I also know that generalizations are dangerous and often wrong. But the evidence, if not overwhelming, is at least troubling.

The president likes the idea of people coming here from Scandinavia but not from shithole countries. Putting aside the fact that the countrys leader expresses himself so crudely, we need only turn back the clock to the late 1800s and the early part of the 20th century, not to mention the 1930s. How many of our ancestors came here from Norway? Can anyone say, with a straight face, that we still welcome your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free?

He has said that Jews who support Democrats are disloyal to their faith, as if the Torah were a partisan document? To weaponize religion for political purposes is to demean it.

When anti-Semitic white nationalists marched in Charlottesville and announced Jews will not replace us, did he condemn them and reject their support? He did not. He said, instead, There are two sides to a story with very fine people on both sides. Thats just wrong. Some stories have only one side and the people on the other side are anything but fine. Does he understand that his words have consequences? I think he does.

He calls himself the least anti-Semitic person that youve ever seen in your entire life. Some of his best friends are Jews, though you wouldnt always know it. Last December, speaking before the Israeli American Council in Florida, he warmed up by referring again to the Jewish dual loyalty and then hit his stride. I know you very well. Youre not nice people at all. But you have to vote for me. Some of you I dont like at all. Republican leaders, meanwhile, either say nothing or respond by calling his bigoted comments inappropriate or not what I would have said.

A recent insult is of a somewhat different kind. I refer to Trumps decision to award the presidential Medal of Freedom to Rush Limbaugh, a morally corrosive and politically cynical act to quote David Remnick (New Yorker, Feb. 6). Im not aware of any overt anti-Semitism on Limbaughs part, although the ADLs Abraham Foxman once accused him of for making a borderline anti-Semitic remark about Jews and money, to which Norman Podhoretz responded by calling on Foxman to apologize for saying such a thing about so loyal a friend of Israel as Rush Limbaugh.

Many Jews believe that being strongly pro-Israel means, by definition, that the person is not anti-Semitic. I take no position on that question, and, to be clear, I do not say that Limbaugh is anti-Semitic. But his homophobic and racist statements, heard by millions of listeners, are easy to find. A college friend of mine says I once told him that you cant be prejudiced selectively. I dont remember saying that, but I do believe it.

Ultimately, the growth of anti-Semitism in America raises a profound challenge to our countrys ideals, and we as Jews have a special obligation to speak out against intolerance, whether against us or any other group. In a recent Wall Street Journal article (Feb. 15-16), Rabbi Meir Soloveichik wrote in praise of Abraham Lincoln that America is an exceptional nation only if it remains ever loyal to the covenant of its founding. That covenant was never stated more succinctly than by that exemplary Republican president who, in his Second Inaugural Address, sought to bind up the nations wounds with malice toward none.

I first heard those words growing up in a tolerant New Hampshire community. They remain words for our time.

(Joseph D. Steinfield is a lawyer who lives in Keene and Jaffrey. He can be reached at joe@joesteinfield.com.)

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My Turn: Growing up Jewish in Claremont and words for our time - Concord Monitor

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Posted By admin on February 28, 2020

(JTA) Ruben Golran had studied for a year and a half in anticipation of this week, when 600 of his relatives and friends were supposed to converge on Milan to celebrate his bar mitzvah.

First, he planned to have a ceremony Tuesday when he would put on tefillin, a Jewish ritual object, for the first time a traditional rite of passage. Then, a blowout party Thursday night catered by a local kosher Israeli restaurant, and finally another ritual ceremony on Shabbat.

Instead, Rubens parents found out Sunday that everything would be cancelled. Because of the rapid spread of coronavirus in northern Italy, regional officials prohibited large gatherings. A day later, houses of worship were ordered closed.

Within a matter of hours, they called dozens of relatives across the globe, telling them to cancel their flights. On Tuesday, the tefillin ceremony included just Rubens close relatives and no friends instead of the 400 planned attendees.

There was no party Thursday night. Instead, Ruben and his family dined at the Israeli restaurant that was supposed to cater the affair. They still are not sure what will happen on Shabbat.

He learned everything, he was ready, he was waiting for the whole family to come and then they said it isnt happening, the synagogue is closed, you can go with your parents if you want, said Rubens mother, Nethaly Golran. He made us very proud because, through all of this, he was very mature. He never cried. He was sad, but he said, Its OK. Its OK, mom. Itll be OK.

Jewish residents of Milan say this week felt like the city, Italys economic capital, had shut down: Soccer matches were cancelled, the citys Duomo a major tourist attraction was closed and restaurants were instructed to shut their doors before a national evening drink and snack time called aperitivo.

The citys Jews who number about 10,000 are facing the same challenges as everyone else: Schools are closed, so people are scrambling for childcare even as some of them still go to work. The city is devoid of tourists, a mega-industry in Italy. There was a rush several days ago on grocery stores. The ban on large gatherings persists, and no one is sure when things will return to normal.

We feel like everyone here in Milan because its such a strange, unusual situation, said Claudia Bagnarelli, who co-founded the local Jewish day school. Everyone is a little shocked. Within [the space of] one day, they said the schools are closed and parents have to deal with it.

The community also has its share of unique challenges: Despite the closure of houses of worship, people have tried to convene prayer quorums in apartments, in case someone needs to recite the mourners kaddish. Some students taking a gap year in Israel who returned home for a short break are now stuck in Italy, barred from returning to their programs.

Milans official Jewish community organization has cancelled its regular classes and programs, including some celebrating the holiday of Purim, which is on March 10. They hope that things will return to normal before the holiday comes. The community has also set up a task force to assist people who live by themselves and need to get food and other services. The Jewish school is setting up classes via video chat.

A few people meet in apartments just to make the minyan but there are no people from outside, said Milo Hasbani, the president of Milans Jewish community. These are the kind of people who know each other.

Bar mitzvahs arent the only Jewish ceremonies to be affected. A bris on Monday also had to be scaled back. At a normal Milanese bris which, unlike their American counterparts, are often held around noon more than 100 guests would expect to dine on lasagna, ravioli and a delicious variety of Italian pastries.

But at this bris, conducted by community mohel Rabbi Shmuel Hezkia in a Milanese synagogue, only a handful of families showed up and there was no feast to be had.

Hezkia said the whole thing was over quickly. Local officials have instructed Milans residents to avoid public gatherings, and the last thing Hezkia wanted was to anger the local government and provoke an investigation of the religious ceremony.

We thought of doing it in an apartment, Hezkia said. But because it was organized, and we had already sent invitations on WhatsApp, we kept it as is.

Hezkia has said that, except for the ban on gatherings, life has gone on pretty much as normal. The thing he really notices is the lack of tourism.

Italy and Milan live on tourism, people who go out and spend, and unfortunately thats missing, he said. You can feel theyre missing. We feel that this Shabbat there wont be a kiddush, or guests to invite on Friday night.

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This Italian Jewish kid was supposed to have a 600-person bar mitzvah party. Then coronavirus hit. - JTA News

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Posted By admin on February 28, 2020

NEW YORK Days after bomb threats targeted 18 Jewish community centers across the state, Gov. Andrew Cuomo introduced legislation Thursday to combat hatred and intolerance of minority groups as part of his 2020-21 executive budget.

Cuomo announced the No Hate in our State campaign together with several leaders from the Jewish community during a news conference Thursday afternoon in New York City.

The rash of anti-Semitism that we have been experiencing ... it is a virus of hate that is spreading all across this country, Cuomo said. The Jewish community is such an integral part of New York, of our state ... New York would not be New York without the Jewish community.

The campaign includes a series of proposals in the state budget to combat hate, division and anti-Semitism with the nations first domestic terrorism law, investing $25 million for religious nonprofit organizations vulnerable to hate crimes, mandating a curriculum on diversity and tolerance for public school students, and investing $2 million to support the State Police Hate Crimes Task Force, according to a statement from the governors office.

Thursdays announcement comes on the heels of several recent anti-Semitic attacks across the state and nation. Dozens of Jewish community centers throughout the state received anonymous emailed bomb threats over the weekend, including the Albany Jewish Community Center on Whitehall Road.

Albanys JCC was evacuated for several hours Sunday while local and state police searched the property.

The state has seen 42 reported acts of anti-Semitism in the last two months, including a Dec. 28 stabbing at a rabbis home in Monsey during Hanukkah that wounded five people.

And its continuing, Cuomo said. We have swastikas popping up across this state. So, it is here the virus, the anger, the hatred and its spreading.

The state has increased the number of police resources to combat acts of hatred, Cuomo said, adding he promises New Yorkers its his administrations top priority to prosecute these crimes.

I want to make it clear that there is no tolerance for this activity on any level, Cuomo said. Its not just immoral, its not just wrong, its also illegal, and were going to pass additional legislation to make that position clear. We will enforce the law to the fullest extent.

National attacks on synagogues, Jewish organizations and communities have increased 34% since 2016, said Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League. The attacks include two deadly synagogue shootings in Poway, Calif., last April, and in Pittsburgh in 2018.

2019 was a particularly devastating year, Greenblatt said during Thursdays conference, adding 42 extremist-related murders took place in the nation last year. We tracked more than 300 anti-Semitic acts of harassment, vandalism and violence. ... The disease of intolerance is affecting all of us. Anti-Semitism is anti-American. Its not just a Jewish problem, its an American problem.

Incidents of racism and bigotry cannot be ignored and are not partisan, Greenblatt said, and are a rising concern in the 2020 presidential election.

Anti-Semitism is the canary in the coal mine, Greenblatt said. Dont be surprised when it spreads to Latinos, African Americans and other minority groups. ... We are concerned at the ADL about the rise of anti-Semitism in the political race. Anti-Semitism isnt an issue for the right or the left its an issue that exists across the board.

Part of the campaign that would require teaching diversity and Holocaust history in the state curriculum would reach more than 4,000 education programs, according to the governors office.

Combating hatred and intolerance of minority groups starts with educating the next generation, Jewish Community Relations Council President Cheryl Fishbein said.

In a recent study, 66% of millennials could not identify Auschwitz or what happened there, Fishbein said. Our efforts against Jew hatred must be sustained. ... We must bring together different groups to learn about diversity to learn about acceptance with one another ... and that education must continue outside the classroom.

That education is critical to teach people about their differences and celebrate them, Cuomo said.

Its almost instinctive that people fear their differences, Cuomo said. But the differences are actually special that we must understand and embrace, but thats a process of education. Yes, were different, but thats what makes us beautiful.

We have nothing but love and affection for the Jewish community, he added. We are going to do whatever we can to make that clear, and passing these laws is part of it.

The Tribune News Service contributed to this story.

Kate Lisa covers the state Capitol for Johnson Newspaper Corporation. Contact her by email at klisa@columbiagreenemedia.com or on Twitter @KaitlynnLisa

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Legislation would combat 'virus of hate' | Top Stories - NNY360

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Posted By admin on February 28, 2020

(JTA) Domestic extremists in the United States most them from the far-right killed 435 people in the decade that ended this past December.

According to a new study by the Anti-Defamation League, half of those murders were committed to further the killers ideology. The other half were murders that were committed by extremists but not necessarily for ideological reasons.

The report defines domestic extremists as American citizens or long-term residents with connections to some sort of extreme movement or cause.

According to the ADL, 90% of those extremist murderers this year came from the right. But the report noted that because right-wing extremists tend to be easily identifiable, it is likely that non-ideological murders committed by extremists other than white supremacists are underrepresented in ADLs data.

In terms of ideologically-motivated killings, 2019 was the third-worst year of the past decade, with 29 ideologically motivated murders by extremists. Those include 22 people killed by a white supremacist shooter at a Walmart in El Paso, four people killed in a December shooting that ended at a Jersey City kosher supermarket, and the synagogue shooting in Poway, California, in which one woman was killed.

[E]xtremist killings can have a disproportionate effect on communities, especially when they take the form of a hate crime or a terrorist attack, read the report. It is important to remember that extremist murders represent merely the tip of a pyramid of extremist violence in the United States.

The deadliest year of the past decade in terms of domestic ideologically motivated murders was 2016, which saw 58 such murders. That includes the mass shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, which was carried out by an Islamist extremist and killed 49 people.

The post US domestic extremists killed more than 400 people over the last decade, survey says appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

Domestic extremists killed more than 400 people over the last decade, survey finds

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Domestic extremists killed more than 400 people over the last decade, survey finds - Forward

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Posted By admin on February 28, 2020

In recent weeks, the Yated wrote about Rabbi David Hollander, the stalwart spokesman for Orthodox Jewry back in the era when Conservative Judaism had made powerful inroads into corrupting shomrei Torah, while allegedly trying to conserve what the Reform movement had destroyed.

Years ago, I noticed a picture of Rabbi Hollander that was taken at an event. The picture had four rabbis, and the makeup of the group struck me as odd, if not downright bizarre. There was my zeide, Rav Yaakov Kamenetzky, standing next to my father. Of course, I understood that pairing: My father was his eldest son and the dean of the new yeshiva. But the next two figures seemed incongruous. To my fathers left, looking rather stoic, stands Rabbi David Hollander, rabbi of the Mount Eden Jewish Center in the Bronx. He is next to Rabbi Irving Miller, leader of Congregation Sons of Israel, a shul that was slowly betraying its Orthodox roots by liberalizing its agenda to conform to the whims of the Conservative movement.

Rabbi Miller originally began his career in the Five Towns in the 1930s, as rabbi of Congregation Shaarei Tefillah, an Orthodox synagogue in Far Rockaway. In 1952, however, he moved on to Congregation Sons of Israel in Woodmere, New York. Under his tenure, an Orthodox shul with a mechitzah was transformed into one with a three-sectioned sit-as-you please service. Technically, even today, despite its breach of tradition, Congregation Sons of Israel is neither officially aligned with the Conservative movement, nor is it an official member of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism. Its charter directs that prayers should be recited according to the tradition of Orthodox Judaism. And to fulfill that missive, they use an Orthodox siddur.

Rabbi Miller, to his credit, founded the Jewish Center School, the first Jewish Day School on Long Island and perhaps one of the first 10 in the United States. But in 1954, the name was changed to The Brandeis School, in honor of Supreme Court Justice Louis D. Brandeis, and the school aligned itself with the Conservative Solomon Schechter Day School movement by becoming one of its first members. Rabbi Miller was also chairman of the Zionist Organization of America.

The picturewhich also has a glimpse of a Mr. Eli Gut, sitting in a corner and, as always, smilingwas taken at a hachnosas sefer Torah to the fledgling Yeshiva of South Shore in 1956.

I asked my father to explain how Rabbi Miller was connected to the yeshiva, why he would have come to the yeshivas event. But more interesting was why Rabbi Hollandera well-known zealous advocate for the primacy of Torah-true Judaismwould be standing next to Rabbi Miller at the same ceremony.

Rabbi Hollander was a kanoi, a powerful spokesman for unadulterated Orthodox Jewry, who would not even openly use the title Rabbi to acknowledge rabbinic members of the Conservative movement. Rather, he would call them members of the Jewish clergy. In many of his speeches, he expressed his view that those who use the term rabbi to refer to Conservative Jewish clergy, but do not recognize their rabbinic actions or rituals as valid, are being dishonest.

At the time, nearly 60 years ago, it was not easy to get someone to donate a sefer Torah. The executive director of the American Office of Slabodka Yeshiva, Rav Friedman, was delighted that a yeshiva had been started on Long Island by the son of his dear friend from Slabodka, Rav Yaakov Kamenecki (as it was spelled when he knew my grandfather in Europe). He met my father and introduced him to another Slabodka talmid, Rav Alter Koslowski, who lived in Woodmere.

Rabbi Koslowski and his wife were frail, and his daughter and son-in-law in Woodmere looked after them. The children were members of Congregation Sons of Israel, so thats where they brought their father to daven. Rabbi Miller allowed a separate minyan in his office for older-generation Orthodox members, including Rabbi Koslowskia minyan that still exists on Yomim Noraim until today, with a proper mechitzah in the synagogue building.

Rabbi Koslowski endeared himself to many of the congregants and introduced my father to another Orthodox member of that synagogueMr. Eli Gut, a successful manufacturer of zippers and fasteners. Mr. Gut, together with his wife, Lily, a scion of the Chasam Sofers family, was at the forefront of many philanthropic endeavors. They had commissioned the writing of a sefer Torah in honor of the bar mitzvah of their son Ralph, to take place on Parshas Lech Lecha in 1954. The bar mitzvah took placebut without the Torah. The sofer had passed away in the middle of writing it, so it wasnt finished on timeit took another two years.

Thats when my father stepped in. There was a yeshiva, and the yeshiva needed a Torah. And so, a relationship with Mr. and Mrs. Gut soon evolved into the dedication of a Torah scroll. It turned out to be a festive celebration, but there were some issues of political correctness to deal with, even in those days. The Guts were members of Rabbi Millers congregation, and it was only proper for him to be invited to the hachnosas sefer Torah. After all, the Torah was coming from his shul to the yeshiva, with his blessing. And if a rabbi comes, a rabbi speaks. But because Rabbi Miller had moved to the left, my father was afraid he might articulate some radical thought in his remarks, so he called his father, Rav Yaakov, for advice.

I will come, said my zeide. I doubt he would say anything against the mesorah in my presence. And just in case, invite Rabbi David Hollander. If there will be something needing immediate refutation, Rabbi Hollander has been a most powerful advocate for the emes, and would be able to counter the speech with one of his own.

Indeed, Rabbi Hollander, a son-in-law of Rav Shimshon Zelig Fortman of the nearby Congregation Kneseth Israel (The White Shul), knew what my father was trying to accomplish in Woodmere and accepted the invitation.

Rabbi Miller did speak, in English. Believe it or not, he only alluded to his leanings, stating that Yiddishkeit is like a tree, an eitz chaim, and a tree has as many branches as Yiddishkeit has divergent ideas and customs. But, he concluded, there must be a trunk. And the trunk of Yiddishkeit is a yeshiva. Without the trunk, there could be no branches. The message focused on the importance of the yeshiva, with little elaboration on what he meant by many branches. Afterward, he approached my zeide, subtly acknowledging that the presence of the rosh yeshiva clearly mitigated the chance of any wrong ideas coming from him. However, he apologized to my grandfather. I am sorry that I gave the speech in English. My grandfather smiled and said, Dont worry. What you spoke was a Yiddishe drosha.

I am not sure if Rabbi Hollander ended up speakingbut I do not think he had to. His very presence probably kept the other speaker in line.

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A Fascinating Non-Speech and Picture: Rabbi Hollander Comes to the Rescue - Yated.com

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