Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on August 24, 2017

Ashkenaz (Heb. ) refers to a people and a country bordering on Armenia and the upper Euphrates; listed in Genesis 10:3 and I Chronicles 1:6 among the descendants of Gomer. The name Ashkenaz also occurs once in Jeremiah 51:27 in a passage calling upon the kingdoms of Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz to rise and destroy Babylon. Scholars have identified the Ashkenaz as the people called Ashkuza (Ashguza, Ishguza) in Akkadian. According to Assyrian royal inscriptions the Ashkuza fought the Assyrians in the reign of Esharhaddon (680669 B.C.E.) as allies of the Minni (Manneans). Since the Ashkuza are mentioned in conjunction with the Gimirrai-Cimmerians and the Ashkenaz with Gomer in Genesis, it is reasonable to infer that Ashkenaz is a dialectal form of Akkadian Ashkuza, identical with a group of Iranian-speaking people organized in confederations of tribes called Saka in Old Persian, whom Greek writers (e.g., Herodotus 1:103) called Scythians. They ranged from southern Russia through the Caucasus and into the Near East. Some scholars, however, have argued against this identification on philological grounds because of the presence of the "n" in the word Ashkenaz. In medieval rabbinical literature the name was used for Germany.

The name Ashkenaz was applied in the Middle Ages to Jews living along the Rhine River in northern France and western Germany. The center of Ashkenazi Jews later spread to Poland-Lithuania and now there are Ashkenazi settlements all over the world. The term "Ashkenaz" became identified primarily with German customs and descendants of German Jews.

In the 10th and 11th century, the first Ashkenazim, Jewish merchants in France and Germany, were economic pioneers, treated well because of their trading connections with the Mediterranean and the East. Jewish communities appeared in many urban centers. Early Ashkenaz communities were small and homogeneous. Until Christian guilds were formed, Jews were craftsmen and artisans. In France, many Jews owned vineyards and made wine. They carried arms and knew how to use them in self-defense. The Jews of each town constituted an independent, self-governing entity. Each community, or kahal, established its own regulations made up by an elected board and judicial courts. They enforced their rulings with the threat of excommunication. The Ashkenazim generally shied away from outside influences and concentrated on internal Jewish sources, ideas and customs.

Ashkenazim focused on biblical and Talmudic studies. Centers of rabbinic scholarship appeared in the tenth century in Mainz and Worms in the Rhineland and in Troyes and Sens in France. Ashkenazi scholarship centered around oral discussion. Sages focused on understanding the minutiae of the texts instead of extracting general principles. The most famous early teacher was Rabbenu Gershom of Mainz. Some of his decrees, such as that forbidding polygamy, are still in existence today. The first major Ashkenazi literary figure was Rashi (Solomon ben Isaac of Troyes, 1040-1105), whose commentaries on the Bible and Talmud are today considered fundamental to Jewish study. The tosafists, Ashkenazi Talmudic scholars in northern France and Germany, introduced new methods and insights into Talmudic study that are also still in use. Early Ashkenazi Jews composed religious poetry modeled after the fifth and sixth century piyyutim (liturgical poems). While prayer liturgy varied even among Ashkenazi countries, the differences were almost insignificant compared to the differences between Sephardi and Ashkenazi liturgy.

While Ashkenazi Jews occasionally experience anti-Semitism, mob violence first erupted against them an the end of the 11th century. Many Jews were killed in what Robert Seltzer calls a "supercharged religious atmosphere." Many were willing to die as martyrs rather than convert.

In the 12th and 13th centuries, many Ashkenazi Jews became moneylenders. They were supported by the secular rulers who benefited from taxes imposed on the Jews. The rulers did not totally protect them, however, and blood libels cropped up accompanied by violence. In 1182, Jews were expelled from France. Ashkenazi Jews continued to build communities in Germany until they faced riots and massacres in the 1200s and 1300s. Some Jews moved to Sephardi Spain while others set up Ashkenazi communities in Poland.

The center of Ashkenazi Jewry shifted to Poland, Lithuania, Bohemia and Moravia in the beginning of the 16th century. Jews were for the first time concentrated in Eastern Europe instead of Western Europe. Polish Jews adopted the Ashkenazi rites, liturgy, and religious customs of the German Jews. The Ashkenazi mahzor (holiday prayer book) included prayers composed by poets of Germany and Northern France. In Poland, the Jews became fiscal agents, tax collectors, estate managers for noblemen, merchants and craftsmen. In the 1500-1600s, Polish Jewry grew to be the largest Jewish community in the diaspora. Many Jews lived in shtetls, small towns where the majority of the inhabitants were Jewish. They set up kehillot like those in the Middle Ages that elected a board of trustees to collect taxes, set up education systems and deal with other necessities of Jewish life. The Jews even had their own craft guilds. Each kahal had a yeshiva, where boys over the age of 13 learned Talmudic and rabbinic texts. Yiddish was the language of oral translation and of discussion of Torah and Talmud. Ashkenazi scholars focused on careful readings of the text and also on summarizing legal interpretations of former Ashkenazi and Sephardi scholars of Jewish law.

Ashkenazim focused on Hebrew, Torah and especially Talmud. They used religion to protect themselves from outside influences. The Jews at this time were largely middle class. By choice, they mostly lived in self-contained communities surrounding their synagogue and other communal institutions. Yiddish was the common language of Ashkenazi Jews in eastern and central Europe. With the start of the Renaissance and religious wars in the late 16th century, a divide grew between central and eastern European Jews. In central Europe, particularly in Germany, rulers forced the Jews to live apart from the rest of society in ghettos with between 100 and 500 inhabitants. The ghettos were generally clean and in good condition. Eastern European Jews lived in the shtetls, where Jews and gentiles lived side by side.

In the 1600s and 1700s, Jews in Poland, the center of Ashkenazi Jewry, faced blood libels and riots. The growth of Hasidism in Poland drew many Jews away from typical Ashkenazi practice. After the Chmielnicki massacres in Poland in 1648, Polish Jews spread through Western Europe, some even crossing the Atlantic. Many Ashkenazi Polish Jews fled to Amsterdam and joined previously existing communities of German Jews. Sephardim there considered the Ashkenazim to be socially and culturally inferior. While the Sephardim were generally wealthy, the Ashkenazim were poor peddlers, petty traders, artisans, diamond polishers, jewelry workers and silversmiths. As the Sephardim became poorer in the 18th century, the communities became more equal and more united.

The Jewish community in England also changed in the 1700s. It had been primarily Sephardi throughout the 1600s, but it became more Ashkenazi in culture as growing numbers of German and Polish Jews arrived.

By 1750, out of 2,500 Jews in the American Colonies, the majority was Ashkenazi. They were Yiddish-speaking Jews from Holland, Germany, Poland and England. The first Jews were merchants and traders. Since then, Ashkenazi Jews have built up communities throughout the United States.

By the end of the 19th century, as a result of Russian persecution, there was massive Ashkenazi emigration from Eastern Europe to other areas of Europe, Australia, South Africa, the United States and Israel. Ashkenazim outnumbered Sephardim everywhere except North Africa, Italy, the Middle East and parts of Asia. Before World War II, Ashkenazim comprised 90% of world Jewry.

The destruction of European Jewry in World War II reduced the number of Ashkenazim and, to some extent, their numeric superiority over Sephardim. The United States became the main center for Ashkenazi Jews.

Over time Ashkenazim and Sephardim developed different prayer liturgies, Torah services, Hebrew pronunciation and ways of life. Originally, most Ashkenazim spoke Yiddish. Ashkenazi and Sephardi tunes for both prayers and Torah reading are different. An Ashkenazi Torah lies flat while being read, while a Sephardi Torah stands up. Ashkenazi scribes developed a distinctive script. One major difference is in the source used for deciding Jewish law. Sephardim follow Rabbi Joseph Caros Shulhan Arukh. The Ashkenazim go by Rabbi Moses Isserles, who wrote a commentary on the Shulhan Arukh citing Ashkenazi practice. There are differences in many aspects of Jewish law, from which laws women are exempt from to what food one is allowed to eat on Passover. Today, many of the distinctions between Ashkenazim and Sephardim have disappeared. In both Israel and the United States today, Ashkenazim and Sephardim live side by side, though they generally have separate institutions.

In Israel, political tensions continue to exist because of feelings on the part of many Sephardim that they have been discriminated against and still dont get the respect they deserve. Historically, the political elite of the nation have been Ashkenazim; however, this is gradually changing. Shas, a religious Sephardi party, has become one of the most powerful in the country and individual Sephardi politicians now hold powerful positions. Moroccan-born David Levy, for example, has served as foreign minister and, in July 2000, Iranian-born Moshe Katsav was elected president.

An international team of scientists announced on September 9 2014 that they had come to the conclusion that all Ashkenazi Jews are descended from an original group of about 350 individuals who lived between 600 and 800 years ago. These people were of Middle-Eastern and European descent. The analysis was done by comparing the DNA data of 128 Ashkenazi Jews with the DNA of a reference group of 26 Flemmish people from Belgium, and then working out which genetic markers are unique to people of Ashkenazi descent. The similarities in the Ashkenazi genomes allowed the scientists to identify a base point from which all Ashkenazi Jews descend. According to the scientists, this effectively makes all modern Ashkenazi Jews 30th cousins, stemming from the same population almost 800 years ago. This discovery may help medical professionals treat genetic diseases, because diseases like Tay Sachs and certain types of cancers are more prevalent in the Ashkenazi Jewish population. In order to treat these diseases doctors will now have a better idea of where to sequence an individuals genome to test for disease succeptability. This discovery also effectively disproves the idea that Ashkenazi Jews were descended from Khazars who converted to Judaism during the 8th or 9th centuries C.E.

E.A. Speiser, Genesis (Eng., 1964), 66; U. Cassuto, A Commentary on the Book of Genesis, 2 (1964), 192; EM, 1 (1965), 7623 (incl. bibl.). ADD. BIBLIOGRAPHY: W. Holladay, Jeremiah, 2 (1989), 427; P. Briant, From Cyrus to Alexander (2002), 39.

Sources: Yehoshua M. Grintz, Ashkenaz, Encyclopaedia Judaica. 2008 The Gale Group. All Rights Reserved. Butnick, Stephanie. Study Says All Ashkenazi Jews Are 30th Cousins, Tablet Magazine. September 10, 2014. Ausubel, Nathan. Pictorial History of the Jewish People. New York: Crown Publishers, 1953. Dimont, Max. Jews, God and History. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1962. Seltzer, Robert. Jewish People, Jewish Thought. New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., 1980.

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Judaism: Ashkenazim - Jewish Virtual Library

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Posted By richards on August 24, 2017

Apparently, one is never too old to fall in love again, and I fell in love with Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. Actually, with the country of Azerbaijan.

You can walk the city of Baku for hours and not be bored. Every hundred steps you discover a building that stops you from walking. There is the old city protected by UNESCO, over eight hundred years old, then as you walk farther, you encounter buildings that remind you of Venice or Italy. Walk more, and you are in Paris, and a few yards later on, modern buildings that take your breath away. Zaha Hadid, the world-renowned architect, has her most celebrated creation here.

And every few hundred meters, there is a little park with benches and every few miles a big park where you can walk in the middle of the night and not worry. Even if you are a woman. The country has a crime rate of almost zero.

The city is immaculately clean. I have not seen a single piece of paper on the streets of Baku, and I have been looking for it.

The city has many restaurants, and every ethnic group is represented. But I loved most the local cuisine. The first thing they serve you as you sit down is not bread as customary all over the world. They put a big plate of uncut vegetables in front of you. Whole tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, and green onions.

Then the feast starts. Small dishes with small portions: a chicken wing, then some grilled fish, then some kebab. You are not eating much. You are tasting a lot. For dessert, Turkish delights, which are sweet pastries.

But it is not just the architecture and the food that I fell in love with. It is the people. I have never been to a more smiling, friendly country in my life, and I have been to many (58 to be exact).

The people here go out of their way to accommodate you, to make you welcome. They take being hosts very seriously. The waiters here literally run to perform their task, not just casually walk.

The Azerbaijani people are just a friendly bunch. That is all I can say. They are very tolerant of others. It is a Muslim country, some are Shias and some are Sunnis, but there has never been an aggression or rejection of each other or other ethnic or religious groups except with the Armenians with whom they have a territorial dispute and with the Russians during the battle for their independence. And never, ever a persecution of the Jews.

I came across a Jewish community here that is over two thousand years old. These are the descendants of the Jews exiled by the Babylonians. They are neither Ashkenazi nor Sephardic. These are the descendants of the people who made the famous wove, If I forget you, Jerusalem, may I lose my right hand. Verdi had an opera with a very stirring chorus about them. They are the original Jews from king Solomons time.

I came across a community of Muslims that do not work on Saturday. They must have been the followers of Shabetay Tzvi, the false messiah, who converted to the Muslim religion to avoid being executed and all his followers did the same but continued practicing Jewish customs in hiding.

And then there are the Khasars. In the history books of the Jewish people, I learned that along the Caspian Sea there was a kingdom that converted to Judaism. The only one ever to do so. Who are they? Where are they now?

Well, Khazaria was where Azerbaijan is now.

In Cabala, the old capital of the Caucasian Albanian empire that competed with the Khazar empire, I found in their museum a grave with a star of David on it. So they did exist. The guide in the museum called them the fake Jews.

There is a theory, not proved, that when the Khazars, whose empire spread from the Caucasian mountains to the Black Sea and to Kiev, today Ukraine in the north, when they were forced to convert to the Muslim religion, some of them refused and remained Jewish. They are the Ashkenazi Jews of today or at least some of them.

There are no Khazars today; no one identifies himself as Khazar. The Azeris of today are a mixture of many ethnic groups that passed through or lived in this region. There are about thirty million Azeris that speak the language. About ten million reside in todays Azerbaijan. The rest are in Iran where, for generations, they were the Shahs. Persian rugs that are so famous come from the region in Iran where the majority of the population is Azeri.

I was in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, in July and August. I feared the heat. Israel is unlivable during these months. Over 100 Fahrenheit. Europe is not better. Not to mention Gulf states. So I dreaded the time I would be in Baku.

Wrong. It was pleasant. Practically a warm spring.

Because of the wind. A wind that almost blew me away. Baku is called the wind city where the wind blows hard all the time. So the heat is not felt.

Gabala, an hour flight from Baku, the tourist mecca, is heaven on earth during the summer, with clear air and mild, pleasant weather. (It is surrounded by very high mountains covered with forests.) In the winter, it is a ski destination.

The hotels are overbooked by tourists from Abu Dahbi, Qatar, and Dubai, which are unbearably hot during the summer.

I watched the touring Arab women in those long, black dresses, with faces covered and only with a small opening for the eyes. To eat, they need to lift the veil a little bit, put the food in the mouth and lower the veil back. Like they do not exist. Totally covered and silent.

During breakfast, you could witness the clash of civilizations. . The women from the Gulf States, silent, dressed in black dresses, totally covering every inch of their bodies, served by Azeri women, modern, dressed attractively in Western clothes. Alive. Both are Muslim. Both follow the religion, but behavior wise, they are different.

What enchanted me THE MOST, beyond food, architecture, history, or the weather were the Azerbaijani women. I rediscovered femininity.

The young girls here have a pure, shy smile I see rarely in the modern world of the West or the East. Pure innocence. It is not an inviting smile. I can only describe it as a smile of a four-year-old beautiful girl. None of the subtle, angry, aggressive attitude one gets from some modern women. None of the defensiveness. None of the argumentative attitude. They are not afraid of having eye contact, of wide-open smiles that bring sunshine to your heart. I fell in love in elevators as these beautiful, high-cheeked, exotic, loving creatures smiled at me.

Is all in Azerbaijan heavenly? No. The disparity in income is severe. A guard in front of an apartment building earns 6 to 7 dollars a day max. Secretaries 200 to 300 dollars a month. So how do they survive? Everyone needs to be paid tips. This includes government officials. That is called corruption, which is rampant.

Career opportunities are rare, and anyone that can leave the country leaves.

My future involvement with the country will, I hope, address these issues.

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Not Goodbye, Baku - HuffPost

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Posted By simmons on August 24, 2017

Chicago has one of the largest Jewish populations in the United States, and while there are select delis that have thrived here, the deli is not nearly as prevalent as it is in New York City, where bagels and pastrami on rye are as symbolic of the city as the Statue of Liberty.

With their new BYOB restaurant, Steingolds (1840 W. Irving Park Road), opening in North Center at the end of the month, Aaron Steingold (Table 52, Farmhouse Tavern) and his wife Elizabeth Abowd are seeking to both boost the relevance of New York City-style Jewish delis in Chicago and reinvent the deli with modern twists.

The first step in that reinvention is combining traditional Middle Eastern dishes with traditional deli fare. Abowd, who is Lebanese, was the inspiration for the merging of the cuisinesand because of the close proximity of Lebanon and Israel and the similarity between the countries foods, the menu additions make sense. Steingolds maternal side being Greek played a role in the merge as well.

Steingold believes that the inclusion of Middle Eastern foods will increase interest in the deli in Chicago.

We live in a neighborhood with a lot of great Middle Eastern food and we eat it often. Though we are firmly rooted in traditional Jewish deli cuisine, the highlights and influence of (Lebanon) are going to come out, he said.

Lamb and chicken shawarma, a Middle Eastern dish typically served rolled in pita, will be a weekly special at Steingolds. The pita itself will be homemade at the deli.

Labneh, a Lebanese cheese resembling Greek yogurt, will be served on latkes, which will be made with other root vegetables like parsnips, in addition to potatoes. The deli will also serve labneh in lieu of sour cream with its caviar service, one of the aspects Steingold is most excited foran interest which stems not only from his personal taste for it, but also from his Eastern European Ashkenazi roots.

Caviar is such a specialty item, and Ive been a huge fan for a long time, Steingold said. There arent a lot of places in Chicago to eat it. Its a very special occasion (when you get to eat it.) My heritage is Eastern Europeanmy fathers side is from Poland, Lithuania and Bulgaria. We are going to be offering the type of caviar that you cant just purchase at Whole Foods.

Caviar served on blinis, a common food eaten during holidays in Russia and surrounding countries, was popularized in the United States by Eastern European Jewish immigrants. Steingolds stock will come from Rare Tea Cellara wholesale company in Chicago selling rare food and drink items. In addition to caviar, Steingolds will also sell Rare Tea Cellars tea and spices.

Rare Tea Cellars isnt the only collaboration Steingolds will have in Chicago. The deli will work with Paulina Meat Market to offer an affordable lunch option, the Urban Achievera wink at one of Steingolds favorite films, The Big Lebowski. The special will include your choice of either a beef hot dog or a traditional wiener on a challah bun with caramelized onions, peppers and mustard. The $6 special also comes with a side of schmaltz potato chips and a Dr. Browns soda.

Steingold is heavily invested in the concept of approachability at his deli, both in price points and atmosphere. The restaurant will be counter service, but with attentive staff walking the floor ready to refill your glass, grab you a coffee or clear your tray. The presentation of the food itself is also an important aspect of service.

Ive worked in several casual dining restaurants and at almost all of them, I tried to bring a lot of elements of high-end, fine diningthe service techniques and models, while still being casual, Steingold said. When you eat here you will get a beautiful tray with your food and deli paper. Just little touches. Very casual counter service with touches of luxury is my goal here.

Steingold wants to reach both the customers coming in for a sit-down meal and a chat, and the commuters rushing to grab lunch on the way to the trainbeing only steps away from the Brown Line, he thought a lot about how to please them.

Of course, when youre not in a rush, Steingold wholeheartedly welcomes you to make his deli your own. He even wants to be present at your holidays and family meals. Besides looking to cater Seders (Passover feasts), weddings and bat and bar mitzvahs, Steingolds will offer a Thanksgiving package, which you can pick up the morning of the holiday. It includes a turkey and sideswith all the hard work done for you so you can enjoy a delicious meal without fret.

Though Thanksgiving isnt inherently religious, some may find it interesting that a Jewish deli would offer a special for the holiday. One look at the menu, however, shows that Steingolds is all about reaching every customer, Jewish or not. An embracement of the long-time stereotype of Jewish people loving Chinese food, particularly on Christian holidays when most other restaurants are shut down, is something Steingold plans to poke fun at around Christmastime.

Theres always some truth in stereotypes, he said. At Christmastime we are going to do a Peking duck special. I think its better to have fun with stereotypes; its easier to embrace the less negative ones than it is to fight them.

The Uncle Paul, Steingolds version of a BLT, may also cause some head scratching. Steingold hadnt planned on offering pork on the menu until he visited a deli in Brooklyn that did so.

If a Jewish deli in Brooklyn can have pork on the menu, surely in Chicago I can get away with it, Steingold said of the controversial menu item. The Uncle Paul is named after my Uncle and my brother-in-law, who is also named Paul. I think a lot of Jewish families have a Christian uncle that married into the family, so thats where we are offering bacon.

Family plays a big part in the rest of the menu items as well. Perhaps the most inventive sandwich is the Sister In Law.

My sister-in-law is Korean, and shes an amazing cook. Im pretty competitive when it comes to cooking, and she blew me out of the water, he said. (The sandwich) is kind of a play on the Reuben, but using kimchi as the sauerkraut and were also using a hot Chinese mustard. I think people are going to be pretty excited about it.

Besides their names, Steingold will borrow a few other things from his family. The matzo ball soup is his great-grandmothers recipe, and the brisket, which uses cola spices, is a tribute to his grandmother, who cooked her brisket in Pepsi. His fathers nannys fried chicken is also on the menu and speaks to Steingolds southern upbringing.

Growing up Jewish in Greensboro, North Carolina was a unique experience. Being Jewish in the South is a huge part of the menu, he said.

For many of us who grew up eating matzo ball soup and our mothers perfected brisket recipe, Steingolds serves as a focal point for both nostalgia and ideals of the American Jewish community. But with modern menu additions and global influence, Steingolds refuses to be put in a corner.

We want to appeal to everyone, Steingold said. We want to appeal to the grandmother that goes to temple every Friday night and the guy that comes to pick a bong up at the head shop next door. If you can get you what you want and get it fast, or be able to order a bottle of champagne and caviar and sit here for five hours, I love that as well. I hope people do both.

Steingolds is set to open Aug. 29.

@AudreyGorden | agorden@redeyechicago.com

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Modern meets traditional at Steingold's, new Jewish deli in North Center - Chicago Tribune

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Posted By richards on August 24, 2017

The Anti-Defamation League has partnered with the mayors of several American cities. (Ari Perilstein/Getty Images)

NEW YORK (JTA) The Anti-Defamation League received 10 times as much money as usual from online donations in response to the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.

The group, which combats anti-Semitism and bigotry, reported a 1,000 percent increase in online donations during the week beginning Aug. 13, one day after the Charlottesville rally. The ADL said it received six times as many individual donations as during an average week this year, mostly from first-time donors, though it did not provide a total amount of money raised.

In the aftermath of the rally, the ADL has seen its profile skyrocket. It received $1 million donations from Apple and 21st Century Fox CEO James Murdoch, and announced a partnership with Bumble, a dating app, to block bigoted profiles. JP Morgan Chase also announced this week that it would donate $500,000 to the group. JP Morgan and Apple also pledged to match donations to the ADL and other nonprofits from employees.

On Friday, the ADL announced a partnership with the U.S. Conference of Mayors to combat hate and bigotry.

In 2015, ADL raised more than $52 million in contributions and grants, according to its most recently available tax filings.

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ADL reports 1000% surge in online donations after Charlottesville rally - Jewish Telegraphic Agency

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Posted By admin on August 24, 2017

In response to the recent violence, racism and anti-Semitism on display at the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, the Anti-Defamation League of Arizona hosted a meeting of Jewish communal leaders to discuss the current environment in the state.

Although the Monday gathering was held the day before President Donald Trumps visit to Phoenix, Carlos Galindo-Elvira, director of the ADLs Arizona region, emphasized that the meeting was not meant to be political.

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Valley Jewish organizations respond to recent violence on eve of Trump visit - Jewish News of Greater Phoenix

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Posted By simmons on August 23, 2017

This is good news. Remember that monolith of Jewish opinion? The days when the leading Jewish organizations dictated the pro-Israel line and all other Jewish groups fell into line lest they undermine the security of the Jewish state, with Wolf Blitzer and Jeffrey Goldberg running shotgun? Well that orthodoxy is at last coming to an end.

Charlottesville has been a depth charge. The Israeli right was loath to condemn the white nationalists at the fringe of Trumps base, and this has sent a shock through the American Jewish community. There is open argument about Israel; and its not going to end.

The best news is that the Forward, Americas leading liberal Jewish publication, published a piece by Naomi Dann of Jewish Voice for Peacelast week equating Zionism with racism.Thats revolutionary. Time was when that argument was made by Arabs at the United Nations and then stifled as supposed anti-Semitism. Now its in the Forward, from the mouth of a Jew!

Dann says that white nationalist Richard Spencer was right when he expressed common cause with Israel, saying its an ethnocracy that discriminates in favor of a privileged group.

Richard Spencer, whose racist views are rightfully abhorred by the majority of the Jewish community, is holding a mirror up to Zionism and the reflection isnt pretty.

Looking at Israel today, we can see a state premised on the privileging of one group, and all too often perpetuating the erasure and displacement of another. We also see an obsession with demographics and the maintenance of an ethnic majority.

Jane Eisner, from Jewish Boston

Its a marvel that this piece even ran. Forward editor Jane Eisner then responded angrily to Naomi Dann, denouncing her as a member of the radical group Jewish Voice for Peace spreading untruths about Israel. Ouch! Hats off to Eisner for allowing the debate to happen. Even if she says its all lies.

We work hard to reflect a range of American Jewish opinion, which is why the piece andreaction to itwas published. The free flow of ideas is to be cherished. But when a Jew even hints at comparing Israel to Nazis, it must be denounced.

The argument that Zionism is akin to Nazism is not new, and its never been correct. Its related equation that Zionism is racism was codified by the United Nations when it passedResolution 3379in 1975. Though hardly Israels best friend, the international body later came to its senses and overwhelmingly rescinded the resolution in 1991.

Eisner is an ardent Zionist. She believes that ideology is necessary to Jewish survival and that the current Israeli government is undoing Zionism (not expressing it) with its discriminatory policies and the occupation and denial of Palestinian sovereignty.

That such policies are done in the name of Zionism is painful, a perversion of the Zionist ideal. It is something that all Jews must reckon with. But the imperfections of reality do not negate the underlying fact that Zionism is not inherently racist and can and, in fact, does exist side-by-side with democracy.

Its great that the Forward is hosting this conversation, because people can argue openly about whether Zionism is necessary. Thats all Ive asked for; I believe the answer (No its an anachronism) will change US Jewry and crumble the Israel lobby. Norman Finkelstein once mocked the idea that Americans could or should argue about Zionism because Zionism might as well be the name of a hairspray to Americans. Good joke; but he was always wrong about this. People can argue about any idea thats important, once its identified. And this toothpaste is not going back in the tube.

Eisner clearly believes that Jews are unsafe in America, and thats why we need Zionism:

For Dann to write that Spencer is holding a mirror up to Zionism and the reflection isnt pretty is especially perilous in the current political climate. The intimidating display of Nazi slogans and symbols in Charlottesville, Virginia, legitimized by the shocking statements of President Trump, are a chilling reminder that even in America, Jews are at risk simply because we are Jews.

We need to recognize our shared vulnerability and strengthen our sense of solidarity, Eisner says. Back to the monolith! Palestinian vulnerability just gets passing mention.

Also addressing the idea of Jewish vulnerability arewriters Ayelet Waldman and Michael Chabon.Last week they published an open letter to our fellow Jews, in the U.S., Israel, and around the world declaring that Trump is an anti-Semite who is endangering Jews and its time for all Jews to denounce him.

Now hes coming after you. The question is: what are you going to do about it? If you dont feel, or cant show, any concern, pain or understanding for the persecution and demonization of others, at least show a little self-interest. At least show a littlesechel. At the very least, show a little self-respect.

To Steven Mnuchin, Gary Cohn, and our other fellow Jews currently serving under this odious regime: We call upon you to resign; and to the Presidents lawyer, Michael D. Cohen: Fire your client.

To Sheldon Adelson and our other fellow Jews still engaged in making the repugnant calculation that a hater of Arabs must be a lover of Jews, or that money trumps hate, or that a million dollars worth of access can protect you from one boot heel at the door: Wise up.

Boot heel at the door is a Gestapo reference. In another traditional phrasing, the writers warn Trumps Jewish family members Ivanka and Jared Kushner that if they dont act, Youre dead to us.

To Jared Kushner: You have one minute to do whatever it takes to keep the history of your people from looking back on you as among its greatest traitors, and greatest fools; that minute is nearly past. To Ivanka Trump: Allow us to teach you an ancient and venerable phrase, long employed by Jewish parents and children to one another at such moments of family crisis:Ill sit shiva for you. Try it out on your father; see how it goes.

Among all the bleak and violent truths that found confirmation or came slouching into view amid the torchlight of Charlottesville is this:Any Jew, anywhere, who does not act to oppose President Donald Trump and his administration acts in favor of anti-Semitism; any Jew who does not condemn the President, directly and by name, for his racism, white supremacism, intolerance and Jew hatred, condones all of those things.

Waldman and Chabon deserve a lot of respect because of their anti-occupation book Kingdom of Olives and Ashes,which contains anti- and non-Zionist voices. I disagree with them about the vulnerability of Jews in the United States. I dont think history repeats itself; I think that chapter in the west is over and the belief in its endurance is atavistic. But Im glad to have the debate; especially because that question is at the heart of Zionism.

Finally, here is Chemi Shalev in Haaretz, who ismore in the Jane Eisner camp, warning that the Israeli right has shattered American Jewish solidarity with Israel by siding with the enemies of American Jews.

Rash Embrace of Trump Accelerates the Jewish Schism is the headline. Shalev says Netanyahus animosity toward liberal, cosmopolitan, universalist Jews is reminiscent of the kind of anti-Jewish bile spouted by Jew-haters around the world, from David Duke to Viktor Orban.

The delineation between the two opposing Jewish camps has never seemed clearer. On one side we have Netanyahu, many of his colleagues, the pro-settler lobby, an unfortunate proportion of Orthodox Jews, supporters of Jewish settlements, Obama-and/or Muslim-hating Israelis along with hyper-hawks and ultranationalists such as Sheldon Adelson. On the other side there are Israeli doves along with American Jewish liberals, Reform and Conservative Jews and other Trump-haters. And increasingly it seems that never the twain shall meet.

Israels willingness to embrace Trump above and beyond the call of duty is alienating large chunks of the American Jewish community. Those that supported Israel wholeheartedly are beginning to question themselves, those who had been harboring doubts all along have reached a guilty verdict and those who are sitting on the wall certainly wont come down in Israels favor now or anytime in the future.

Emotions run high in times of conflict. When people fear for their country or for their wellbeing or for the safety of their love ones, there is scant room for moderation and nuance. In the era of Trump, the main question on the minds of his critics is the one Joshua asked when he met Gods emissary: Are you with us or with our enemies? By standing so firmly and so recklessly with Trump, Israel is telling American Jews exactly where it stands: With their enemy.

Again, Id insist on the existence of broader strains of belief here. Neither Eisner nor Shalev is a universalist. Universalist cosmopolitan Jews can include anti-Zionist Jews, anti-racist Jews, and those of us who do not see the haters of Charlottesville as a real threat to our place in the west.

Thanks to Annie Robbins.

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Jews argue whether Zionism is racism in the Forward! - Mondoweiss

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Posted By richards on August 23, 2017

Irans Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Jaberi Ansari made the remarks at a meeting with Sheikh Abdul Latif Derian, the Grand Mufti of Lebanon, on the third day of his visit to Beirut.

He underlined that clerics shouldered a weighty responsibility in confronting Zionism and terrorism as two major hazards to the Islamic world.

Lebanons Derian, for his part, confirmed Jaberi Ansaris comments asserting both threats can be eliminated through unity and integration of all Islamic religions and neighboring countries. He added that at a time when Muslim brothers and sisters are victims of non-humane attacks by the Zionist regime while Islamic states are sadly involved with internal disputes.

The Lebanese Grand Mufti said terrorist and Takfiri groups are abolitionist ones who seek to remove and reject others.

Also on Wednesday morning, the Iranian deputy FM met and talked with former President of Lebanon, Amine Pierre Gemayel.

At the joint session, Gemayel described Iran as a major country playing an outstanding role inside the region and stressed the need for close and friendly relations with Iran. He went on to add that the Islamic Republic of Iran acted as an older brother for the Lebanese by backing establishment of security and stability in Lebanon.

Referring to the current difficult situation in the region and the danger of fragmentation and collapse, the former Lebanese president emphasized the need for a practical initiative for regional security.

Jaberi Ansari also referred to the political and tribal diversity of Lebanon pointing out that the approach of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Lebanon involved a comprehensive approach and balanced relations with all components of the Lebanese community.

The Iranian deputy minister of foreign affairs, welcoming the idea of the regional security initiative, referred to the plan drawn up by Irans FM Zarif to form regional dialogue and highlighted that the main objective pursued by Dr. Zarifs project was to promote regional security.

At the end of the meeting, the two sides stressed the necessity of expanding and deepening relations between Lebanon and Iran.

HA/4067323

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Zionism, terrorism pose major threats to Islamic World - Mehr News Agency - English Version

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Posted By admin on August 23, 2017

I recently received a question on my Ask the Rabbi website regarding Judaisms most important values. There are so many good ones to choose from, but several that especially resonate with me as can be found in the Talmudic tractate of Yevamot 79a. The Talmud is part of Judaisms so-called rabbinic oral tradition and here is the verse from the Talmud:

The (Jewish) people are recognized by three qualities: they are compassionate, they are modest, and they perform deeds of lovingkindness.

I see this as a combination of a historical judgment and an ideal. The sage that wrote this is saying that Jewish tradition asks us to try to emulate these three qualities as much and as often as possible.

First and foremost, notice that there is no ritual performance in this list of qualities that a person must live up to. They are all moral and ethical qualities.

Compassion is a trait that covers a multitude of moral and honorable qualities. A person who is compassionate is caring, empathetic and loving.

A person who is compassionate is generally slow to anger, patient, and focused on how to help. In the Jewish heritage, action is primary. Compassion must include a strong component of reaching out and doing concrete acts of caring and helping, not just feeling good thoughts in ones heart.

Modesty refers to behavior that is reserved rather than boisterous or loud. It refers to a behavior of humility and being unpresumptuous. Too often we act out with attention-seeking behavior and lose sight of these qualities.

This Talmudic statement might serve as a useful corrective for modern societys looseness and laxity in these matters.

Acts of lovingkindness include a wide range of behaviors. Included in what is often considered the Rabbinic interpretation of Gods Top Ten acts of kindness are:

Showing hospitality to strangers

Offering consolation to the bereaved

Making peace between people

There is a special society in many Jewish communities known by the Hebrew abbreviation Gemachan abbreviation of the Hebrew words gemilut chasadimwhose mission it is to perform such acts.

Anytime you wonder what it means to be a good person; this Talmudic statement provides an answer that is sound, traditional and fulfilling.

I invite you to Cape Mays fourth annual Shabbat on the Beach prayer experience which will take place Aug. 25 at 6 p.m. in Cape May on the beach directly across from the Montreal Beach Resort.

People of all faiths are welcome to attend.

This musical experience in song and worship will include lots of singing with accompaniment of guitar, melodica (featuring the musical talents of composer and pianist Barry Miles) and the rhythm accompaniment of drums and tambourines.

Attendees are asked to bring their own chairs.

Looking forward to greeting you for a spiritual, musical experience.

I want to thank those who have e mailed me with questions or comments about my articles. If you have a question or comment, do be in touch.

With blessings of shalom,

ED. NOTE: Rabbi Isaacs is the interim rabbi at Beth Judah Temple, Wildwood. He invites questions emailed to his website http://www.rabbiron.com.

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What Are the Most Important Values in Judaism? - Cape May County Herald

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Posted By admin on August 23, 2017

Paula J. Owen Correspondent @PaulaOwenTG

GARDNER - The stained-glass Jewish star on a building near City Hall on Main Street has been an important reminder of Gardner's Jewish heritage, so when news spread that the synagogue building had been sold, people contacted the bank that purchased it to urge the buyer to somehow maintain its history.

Jonathan A. Dudley, who moved to Gardner in 2014, said he noticed the former synagogue, which had closed in the 1990s, and wondered about it.

Nothing made me sure it was a synagogue other than the Star of David, Mr. Dudley said. I read about immigrant stories in Gardner in the exhibit at (the now closed) Heritage State Park Visitors Center and started talking to the archivist at the library. We researched it in old city directories, but I didnt know anything else about it.

Then, about a week ago, he said, he read in the local paper that Workers Credit Union on Main Street had purchased the building at 152 Pleasant St. for just $500 and planned to demolish it and turn the parcel into a parking lot. The synagogue, built in 1912, was home to Congregation Ohave Shalom for much of the 20th century.

Concerned, Mr. Dudley emailed Doug Petersen, the banks chief executive officer, in the hopes the bank would at least preserve the stained-glass star.

When I read that Workers Credit Union had bought the historic synagogue on (Pleasant) Street I hoped that the building would be renovated in a way that celebrated the contributions of Gardner's Jewish residents, Mr. Dudley wrote in his letter, dated Aug. 17. I was deeply saddened to learn that instead Workers planned on tearing the building down for yet another parking lot. I hope that Workers will incorporate some historic marker or other feature to communicate to passers-by that the site was once home to a Jewish congregation and honor Gardner's Jewish heritage.

Mr. Dudley also contacted former U.S. Sen. Joseph I. Liebermans wife, Hadassah Lieberman, after he learned that she grew up in Gardner and that her father, Rabbi Samuel Freilich, was the rabbi at the synagogue for many years.

Monday evening, Mr. Dudley received a response from the bank.

You have helped to deepen our understanding of the place this building holds in the hearts of the people of Gardner, wrote Sandra Sagehorn Elliott, executive vice president and chief operating officer at Workers Credit Union.

The bank plans to commemorate the site with a marker and donate the stained-glass star to the Gardner Museum to maintain the citys Jewish heritage, the letter says. The building is close to the old courthouse and City Hall, where other memorials stand.

I was really glad to get a response, Mr. Dudley said. It has kind of felt constant that buildings come down here, and all of them mean something to someone. It was nice to see that it mattered to people and it made me realize that it is important, if things like this matter to us, to at least make some effort to make our concerns register.

I wonder, with the reality all over the news of Nazis marching in the streets, that it even made it more pressing to Workers Credit Union and made them more responsive, he continued. It seems the time is extra vigilant for how we celebrate different groups of people who make up our community. Its an intense time and certainly wasnt a time that I wanted to be imagining the Jewish heritage in Gardner would be erased.

Arthur E. Rome, 66, of Leominster, whose family has owned Rome Furniture on Main Street in Gardner for 72 years, attended services at the synagogue for decades with his mother, Sylvia Rome.

Mr. Rome, who was born and raised in Gardner, said his family had dual membership at the synagogues in Gardner and Leominster. Mr. Rome said he received his Hebrew school training in Gardner and attended temple with other Jewish families in Gardner, including the Cohen, Garbose, Goldstein and Rose families, and also with Hyman Sandrof, who donated the land for the synagogue.

It was very emotional when it closed, Mr. Rome said. Through all my youth and early manhood, I have a fond remembrance of temple and the people there.

He said, he too, contacted bank officials about maintaining the history.

On Monday night, he said, the bank's COO gave him complete assurance the Star of David would be taken down gracefully and delivered to the Gardner Museum, where other artifacts from the temple are on display, and that the bank would incorporate green space and a memorial into the parking lot.

That is a comfort to me, Mr. Rome said. It is comforting to hear they plan to take those pains and ensure the history is never forgotten here and will not be overlooked.

Rabbi Yehoshua E. Azehvi, from Congregation Agudat Achim in Leominster, said the synagogue there absorbed most of Gardners members when it closed, and memorial plaques and family records were transferred there.

I think it is very emotional and difficult when members have to transition to another area synagogue, Rabbi Azehvi said. But there does come a time, if the community is shrinking or changing, that they need to sell the building. For them (members), it can feel like the memory and history in the community is being erased, but it needs to be understood the building needs to be sold.

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Window on a changing world: Synagogue to be razed but star will ... - Worcester Telegram

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Posted By simmons on August 23, 2017

anti-Semitism By Ben Finley | August 20, 2017

Congregation Beth Israel synagogue in Charlottesville, Va., on Aug. 12, 2017. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) For Diane Gartner Hillman, the new reality of being Jewish in Charlottesville sank in when she had to leave Congregation Beth Israel through the back door.

On any other Saturday, worshippers at the citys lone synagogue would have left through the front and walked without fear to their cars, parked near the statue of Gen. Robert E. Lee in Emancipation Park.

But now, men wearing white shirts and khaki pants and other white supremacists carrying semi-automatic rifles were streaming past their sanctuary, taunting Beth Israel with phony Brooklyn accents and mocking Yiddish expressions, such as oy gevalt.

We were in a different world than where we had been previously, Hillman, 69, said Friday (Aug. 18), as a stream of people entered the synagogue, now guarded by three police officers out front and several more in the park. We just dont know where things are going to go from here.

The presence of hundreds of white nationalists and the loss of three lives last weekend have members of the synagogue confronting new levels of anxiety, and summoning their resolve.

Anti-Semitic vitriol and violence has been on the rise in the United States, according to the Anti-Defamation League and other organizations that monitor hate groups. But the dynamic in Charlottesville showed an intensity of bigotry rarely seen out in the open.

Writing for the website of the Union of Reform Judaism, Beth Israel President Alan Zimmerman said Nazi websites had called for the temple to be burned.

Fortunately, it was just talk but we had already deemed such an attack within the realm of possibilities, taking the precautionary step of removing our Torahs, including a Holocaust scroll, from the premises, he wrote.

Beth Israel hired an armed security guard for the first time last Saturday and plans to increase security, according to the congregations Facebook page. One Beth Israel member was injured by the terrorist who used his car as a weapon, but is recovering at a local medical center and is expected to do so fully, that post said.

As much as the show of hatred increased fears, it also boosted a sense of community in this normally quiet college town.

Cale Jaffe, a University of Virginia law professor, watched as the white nationalists marched past with guns, helmets and body armor, explicitly with the intent of intimidation and to create violence, and for the first time, felt anxious about walking into his synagogue, he said.

But it has crystalized for me why its so important to push through that anxiety and step inside the sanctuary, said Jaffe, 44. It made it clear thats a place I need to be. And many people in Charlottesville who arent Jewish have come to Beth Israel to show their solidarity, Jaffe said.

What gives me hope going forward is knowing so many people in the larger Charlottesville community feel that way and are there with us.

(AP National Religion Writer Rachel Zoll contributed from New York)

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Fear, resolve and more security at Charlottesville synagogue - Religion News Service

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