Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on October 8, 2022

Rising antisemitism, the assimilation crisis, the soaring cost of Jewish education, and the associated costs of an observant lifestyle are just some of the challenges contemporary American Jewry faces. In spite of these numerous challenges, many Jewish programs have inspired significant numbers of young Jewish Americans to strengthen their relationship with their Jewish roots. One program in particular, the Sephardic American Mizrahi Initiative or SAMi, stands out as it redefines and raises the bar on how organizations can assist young Jewish Americans from all walks of life establish and maintain a more authentic relationship with Judaism and the Jewish people through a Sephardic lens. When my beautiful, newlywed, Bukharian wife, Caroline said she wanted to explore her roots as a Bukharian Jew by traveling to Uzbekistan, countless hesitations came to mind and I felt anything but excitement for the idea of embarking on a trip to a place, I assumed, was anything but welcoming to Jewish people but I couldnt have been more incorrect.

Traveling to Uzbekistan with SAMi provided the authentic connection to Judaism I was craving. We were provided with a taste of a more undisturbed and genuine sense of what Jewish life was like in Middle Eastern and Central Asian countries for generations prior. Our tour visited the synagogues and yeshivot where some of our greatest Sephardic rabbis studied and where countless Jews from lands near and far were welcomed with open arms. As we drove through Uzbekistan, Manashe Khaimov, CEO of SAMi and an adjunct professor of Bukharian Jewish history and culture at CUNY Queens College, wove together Bukharian history spanning across centuries and waves of immigration, namely the Jews who were cast into exile following the destruction of the first and second Beit HaMikdash, the Jewish influence during the time of the Silk Road, and more recently the wave of European Jewish refugees who were taken in to Uzbekistan to escape the horrors of World War II. As we traveled from city to city, we encountered people of many different walks of life, yet we too were greeted with open arms. Our warmest welcome was definitely when we arrived in Samarkand and were greeted with an entire ensemble of Karnay and Surnay!

Each city that we visited had its own deep meaning for the members of the group. Tashkent, Bukhara and Samarkand were where some of their families called home prior to the collapse of the Iron Curtain. My wife was able to visit the graves of her ancestors at the Chigatai cemetery in Tashkent. We had the zechut, an honor to read tehillim at the graves of her great great grandmother, great grandparents, as well as a sibling of her grandmother (whose yahrzeit memorial remembrance day was a couple days after that visit). We visited museums, palaces, synagogues, cemeteries and strolled through the bazaars and marveled at the quality of fruits and vegetables. Samarkand had its own special energy in the air, but the highlight (besides an incredible Shabbat there) was definitely the extraordinary dinner at the courtyard of our hotel and surprise performance by Mardon Mavlyanov, national artist of Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. After our day exploring the Jewish Quarter of Bukhara my wife reflected Elul is a time of retrospection, for us to look back on this past year, but this Elul we get to look back to centuries ago to see where we as a people were as well as the journey all the way to 5782.

The thoroughly structured trip planned by SAMi had us on a week-long excursion with activities planned from the moment we opened our eyes until dinner with countless opportunities to bond with fellow group members who have all since become close personal friends of ours. Khaimovs expertise kept us engaged through his delivery of years of education and experience related to Bukharian Jewry, in addition to Uzbek history provided by world class tour guides arranged by SAMi. Each meal was under the strict supervision of qualified Mashgichim over delicious and fresh meat and other ingredients. Touring Tashkent, Bukhara and Samarkand consisted of the perfect balance of visiting each citys holy sites while also enjoying other luxurious amenities arranged by SAMi.

Traveling to the holy land of Bukhara provided me with a stronger connection to Judaism, comparable to no other experience in my life. I feel indebted to my lovely wife for convincing me to take part in SAMis life-changing program and pray to return to Uzbekistan someday soon. Uzbekistan and SAMi have forever altered my Jewish paradigm for the better and helped me realize that sometimes, experiencing Judaisms most authentic and unadulterated traditions (which can be traced back all the way to the times of our Holy Temples) will help us better understand what it means to be an observant Jew in America today.

The single most important thing you can do for your family may be the simplest of all: develop a strong family narrative. Knowing your heritage, gives an individual a tremendous amount of confidence, sense of belonging, and foundation for its identity said Khaimov.

SAMi: Sephardic American Mizrahi Initiative is a 501c3 organization that focus on communities that have a large number of Sephardic and Mizrahi populations in North America. SAMi is a central hub for Sephardic Jewish life on college campuses and local communities. SAMi aspires to transform the Jewish community across North America to be more inclusive, representative and diverse.

Theodore Feldsher, a participant on a recent SAMi trip, is an American Jew who focuses on making an impact within the Jewish community After high school, he attended Yeshivat Derech Ohr Somayach, Lev Aharon and Mechinat Garin Mahal and then joined the Israel Defence Forces Golani Brigade as a lone soldier. Feldsher currently works in a corporate law firm in Beverly Hills, Calif.

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Elul in Uzbekistan: Looking back at thousands of years to find inspiration for today - eJewish Philanthropy

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Posted By admin on October 8, 2022

Rabbi Levi Greenberg| Guest columnist

Holidays are generally the same every year. We eat the same foods and observe religious traditions, retell the same stories, and contemplate their messages. But the theme of the Sukkot festival changed drastically once every seven years in biblical times and has special lessons for us today as well.

On Sunday evening, Jews around the world will begin celebrating the festival of Sukkot. Sukkot means huts and is observed by dining outdoors in a specially constructed Sukkah (hut) covered by greenery and foliage. We eat in the Sukkah for eight days to recall how G-d miraculously provided our ancestors their needs in the desert for forty years after their exodus from Egyptian slavery.

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Sukkot is scheduled during the fall, after the crops are gathered and stored. Every year, Jews in ancient Israel would make a pilgrimage to the Holy Temple in Jerusalem to thank G-d for the years harvest and pray for a blessed coming year.

Once every seven years, however, the theme of the Sukkot pilgrimage changed. Upon settling in the Land of Israel the primary Jewish occupation was farming, and Judaism has a rigid seven-year agricultural cycle for farming in Israel. Fields are worked and crops are harvested for six years, but in the seventh year there is a religiously imposed sabbatical from field work. The fields lay fallow and wild crops are not harvested.

Following the sabbatical year, every Jewish man, woman and child would come to Jerusalem for Sukkot. But they did not come that year in appreciation for the bountiful harvest since there was none. Instead, they assembled in the Temple courtyard to hear the king read selected chapters from the Torah. This event was called Hakhel which is the Hebrew word for assembly.

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Hakhel was not a time for learning new ideas or discovering old traditions. It was meant to replicate the time when the Israelites stood united at Mount Sinai and received the Ten Commandments. When they accepted the divine code of life and committed to live by it.

The sabbatical year just concluded in Israel, and this years Sukkot is the anniversary of Hakhel. Although it cannot be practically observed in its biblical format in the absence of the Holy Temple, its energy is available to us this year, just like all biblical ideas continue to be spiritually and personally relevant, everywhere and at all times. The Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson called for the year of Hakhel to be utilized as a time for people to come together to be inspired to higher purpose.

Doing Hakhel isnt complicated. You need three things; people (a minimum of two), an influencer and meaningful inspiration to share. Family dinners, business meetings, parties and outings are perfect times to be an influencer of positive ideas and to inspire others to greater awareness of G-d and to do more acts of goodness and kindness.

Everyone can and should do it. This is the year for you to be an influencer of goodness. Good luck!

To learn more about Sukkot please visit chabadelpaso.com/sukkot.

Rabbi Levi Greenberg is associate rabbi at Chabad Lubavitch of El Paso.

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This is the year to be an influencer of goodness: Rabbi Levi Greenberg - El Paso Times

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Posted By admin on October 8, 2022

Rabbi Leonard Lewy knew he wanted a career that would allow him to perpetuate Judaism and the Jewish community.

His faith and culture were important to him as a second-generation Holocaust survivor. Lewy considered a career as a social worker. He also thought about working as a history professor.

Lewy instead became a rabbi, but he chose a setting other than a congregation for his workplace.

His career has included stints working in hospice settings, hospitals and at the Milwaukee Jewish Federation. Last year, Lewy became a staff chaplain at Ascension Columbia St. Marys Hospital in Ozaukee.

I think it came in my genes and upbringing, Lewy said.

Both of his parents worked in health care or had aspirations to, he said. For himself, Lewy said he enjoys caring for people, and the job includes some aspects of social work, with a substantial amount of listening and helping required. His love of Judaism is part of the equation, and his familys experience during the Holocaust is also on his mind.

Im able to do something much different for the people that I serve, and giving people honorable experiences, honoring peoples being created in Gods image of whatever faith and caring for them and ensuring that theyre treated with dignity, Lewy said.

As a staff chaplain, Lewy said he visits with patients and their families of all faiths. In addition to working with them directly, he said he makes referrals to patients congregations. He also collaborates with hospital staff on goals they have for patients.

Lewy also advises employees to help them bring cultural sensitivity to their work with Jewish patients. For instance, he discourages Christological language in prayer and other references while working with patients of a Jewish or other faith background. He also provides education on kosher food and adherence to a kosher diet.

Lewy added that he has been working with the food service department on improving its kosher options for patients and being prepared with options such as grape juice and challah for Shabbat and the holidays.

Rev. Traci Houts, Ascension Wisconsins spiritual care manager, pointed to Lewys work on the kosher options as an example of his impact at the hospital. Lewy, she said, has a gift for hospitality. His work with the food service department shows how Lewy works to make Jewish patients comfortable, as he does with patients of any faith.

He has really taken it upon himself what I would call the ministry of hospitality of making sure that we are honoring anothers culture, Houts said.

As he provides spiritual support, Lewy said he approaches patient interactions with an aim of assessing needs, building rapport and bringing cultural literacy to patients time in the hospital.

Sometimes people say that Ive helped them or given them a gift, Lewy said. But its a gift to me that I keep getting, every time I help and even encounter people of any background. It also includes our staff and volunteers, who are such valuable contributors to our health care team.

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Rabbi Leonard Lewy is here to help staff chaplain at Ascension Columbia St. Marys Hospital in Ozaukee - The Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle

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Posted By admin on October 8, 2022

Giovanni Van Bronckhorst has plenty of options to choose from as Rangers look to see off St Mirren in the league.

It was a high-intensity affair at Anfield on Tuesday for the Light Blues, as a quality Liverpool side won 2-0 with goals from superstars Trent Alexander-Arnold and Mo Salah relegating the travelling support to yet another Champions League defeat. On the night Van Bronckhorst went for the tried and tested, bringing in the likes of Alfredo Morelos over Antonio Colak.

But for Saturday's clash with the Buddies, an opportunity arises for fringe players to get game time under their belts. Liverpool signing Ben Davies seems to be up to match fitness, with James Sands missing out on Merseyside due to suspension and the centre-half could play. Van Bronckhorst went for a back five against Jurgen Klopp but will likely return to a back four.

Malik Tillman came under fire for his performance at Anfield as the youngster struggled to cope with the intensity of the game but there is no better place to redeem himself than at Ibrox at home in league action. Winger Rabbi Matondo showed flashes of energy off the bench in Liverpool and could be given the nod here.

Antonio Colak will be hoping he gets the chance to continue his incredible scoring form, with Morelos still a live option off the bench.

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Rangers predicted XI as Malik Tillman offered redemption chance with Rabbi Matondo to start against St Mirren - Scottish Daily Express

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Posted By admin on October 8, 2022

The Rev. Sara LaWall, Rabbi Dan Fink and the Rev. Andrew Kukla

By The Rev. Sara LaWall, Rabbi Dan Fink and the Rev. Andrew Kukla

As Idaho faith leaders, dedicated to compassion, equity and justice for all people, we strongly condemn Idahos abortion ban, decimating individual freedoms over ones own body and health care rights. We represent a diversity of faith traditions some of which have been on the forefront of protecting the sacred right of choice and individual conscience for longer than this has been a legal issue in our country. We all individually take seriously our moral obligation and pastoral responsibility to support those who find themselves facing life-altering decisions that are fraught with judgment and shame. We are committed to providing guidance, care, and the support of our traditions founded in unconditional love.

As the Idaho Supreme Court prepares to hear arguments in the Planned Parenthood Greater Northwest v. State of Idaho case, we wish to make it clear that religion does not speak with one voice on this issue. Denying someone the right to exercise their divinely-given moral agency and bodily autonomy, and to make decisions about their family and future is a violation of both human rights and religious freedom. Lawmakers using religion to justify removal of rights to access health care of any kind, constitutes theocratic tyranny. No government committed to human rights and democracy can privilege the teachings of one religion over another. Let us be clear, religion does not agree on the moral considerations surrounding abortion and the value of one life over another. But we do agree on religious freedom. Thus, religious freedom means reproductive freedom. We oppose any attempt to make specific religious doctrine concerning abortion the law for all Americans.

These extremist abortion laws place everyones bodily autonomy and freedom at risk. And, as always, marginalized and low-income people are the most harmed. These bans dont stand alone they are entrenched in a conservative, fundamentalist political agenda that has targeted voting rights, trans rights, immigration, education, and more. Its never just been about abortion; its about the control of our bodies.

Idaho already suffers from a shortage of medical providers, particularly in rural areas, carrying an overwhelming burden of care. When we criminalize those providers for offering health services we further burden and target the very people tasked with saving our lives. This is not a law to protect freedom or the well-being of society, but a heavy yoke across the shoulders of already overburdened medical providers putting them in a moral crisis. People have the right to be able to trust that health care providers will provide the best care possible, not worry that they may instead impose their private, religious beliefs on their patients.

More than 50 years ago, many religious denominations passed courageous resolutions in support of womens moral agency and their right to a safe and legal abortion. Despite numerous legal challenges and social, scientific and medical advances, we reaffirm this theological commitment: women must be able to make their own moral decisions based on conscience and faith. We call for a religious and moral commitment to reproductive health, rights and access.

Other faith leaders from across Idaho join us in our concerns about the impact of the Dobbs decision, including the following:

The Rev. Karen Hernandez, United Methodist, Twin Falls;

The Rev. Meggan Manlove, Trinity Lutheran Church, Nampa;

The Rev. Christie Dahlin, Hyde Park Mennonite, Boise;

The Rev. Jenny Willison Hirst, Callister United Methodist Church, Boise;

The Rev. Duane Anders, Cathedral of the Rockies, Boise;

The Rev. Jackie Holland, Center for Spiritual Living, Boise;

The Rev. Elizabeth Stevens, Unitarian Universalist Church of the Palouse, Moscow;

The Rev. TJ Remaley, Southminster Presbyterian Church, Boise;

The Rev. Connie Winter-Eulberg, King of Glory Lutheran, Boise;

The Rev. Joseph Farnes, All Saints Episcopal Church, Boise;

The Rev. Irene Laudeman, Cathedral of the Rockies, Boise;

The Rev. Gretchen Bingea, Lutheran (retired), Boise;

The Rev. Rob Tulloch, Woodlawn United Church of Christ, Boise;

The Rev. Daryl Blanksma, Whitney United Methodist Church, Boise;

The Rev. Mike Connor, Pocatello United Methodist Church, Pocatello;

The Rev. Barbara Condon, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (retired), Boise;

The Rev. Jenny Peek, Pocatello Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, Pocatello.

The Rev. Sara LaWall, Boise Unitarian Universalist Fellowship; Rabbi Dan Fink, Congregation Ahavath Beth Israel; and the Rev. Andrew Kukla, First Presbyterian Church, serve congregations in Boise.

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The Rev. Sara LaWall, Rabbi Dan Fink and the Rev. Andrew Kukla: Faith leaders unite in condemning Idaho's abortion ban - The Spokesman Review

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Posted By admin on October 8, 2022

Although this event is a moment of celebration for the Jewish community, all are welcome to the festivities.

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) On Oct. 13, the Jewish Music Fest will be held at the Pioneer Courthouse Square in celebration of a new era for the Portland Jewish community and the upcoming holiday Sukkot.

The event is produced by Jewish Oasis, a retail store, information and community engagement center that serves Portlands Jewish Community. This new center evolved from the original center called the Everything Jewish Chabad.

Two years ago, though, Southwest Portlands Chabad Center for Jewish Life was burned down.

It was a terrible, terrible situation, Rabbi Chayim Mishulovin, who moved to Portland about 18 years ago, said. He is the Director of Special Programs at the Chabad of Oregon. We made a decision that were going to come back and tell hate that were not going to back off and were going to come back bigger and better.

With community support and donations, they were able to buy a new building.

Mishulovin said the new centers name Jewish Oasis is representative of what they want to be for the community: a space to inspire and uplift anyone who enters.

My mission in coming to Portland was to see how to bring Jewish experiences to the public in creative ways, Mishulovin said. Right now, were really excited about the Jewish Music Fest. Weve had other music events and stuff, but never on this scale.

The upcoming fest is also in honor of the Jewish holiday Sukkot. According to Chabad.org, Sukkot celebrates the gathering of the harvest and commemorates the miraculous protection Gd provided for the children of Israel when they left Egypt. The holiday lasts from Sunday, Oct. 9 to Sunday, Oct. 16.

Attendees of the upcoming celebration can expect music, food and family-friendly fun. Children can enjoy activities from face painting to inflatables, and there will also be inflatable obstacle courses for adults.

Of course, Jewish Oasis has food covered as well. They will be partnering with Jewish-Kosher caterer Century Catering.

For entertainment, the 8th Day band founded by brothers Shmuel and Bentzi Marcus will be taking center stage.

8th Day is a beautiful mix of traditional Jewish-themed music with a very strong, modern take on it, Mishulovin said. On the one hand, their messages are spiritual, uplifting and powerful that way, but also very with it for todays modern music person.

Although this event is a moment of celebration for the Jewish community, all are welcome to the festivities.

This is a great opportunity for all of us to really come back and celebrate our city. Whether youre Jewish or not, whether you live in Portland or not, Portland has so much potential, Mishulovin said. I think its a great time also for the general community to see, Whats Jewish music? Whats a Jewish holiday?

Tickets for Jewish Music Fest are available online for up to $25. One ticket includes access to the family-friendly activities, food and drinks from the catering company, and preferred seating for the concert starting at 6:30 p.m.

The event is on Thursday, Oct. 13 from 5 8 p.m. at Pioneer Courthouse Square on 701 SW 6th Avenue.

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Portlands Jewish Music Fest to bring music, food and fun - KOIN.com

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Posted By admin on October 8, 2022

TheTorah columnis supported by a generous donation from Eve Gordon-Ramek in memory of Kenneth Gordon.HaazinuDeuteronomy 32:1-52II Samuel 22:1-51

In a rare moment of quiet meditation, the Rabbi of Chelm was at his desk with a quill in hand and a bottle of ink at arms length, writing over and over four Aramaic words in Hebrew letters: leit atar panui mineh.

Hey, you busy?

Startled, the rabbi looked up and saw a student at the door. No, yes, well, kind of, no. Come on in.

Are you a scribe?

For me, Hebrew lettering is a form of spiritual practice.

What are you writing?

Leit atar panui mineh There is no place without you, from the Tikkunei Zohar, a kabbalistic text.

And what is that one? The student points to another sheet of paper.

Ana aveda dkudsha brich hu I am a servant of the Holy One, from the Zohar, Parashat Vayakhel.

These are Hebrew words? They sound funny.

These are Aramaic words, written in Hebrew letters.

So, this is how you express yourself?

Youre here, I think, because your Torah reading is Parashat Haazinu, and youre trying to figure it out.

Yes, its just a long poem.

Its one of many poems in the Bible that appear at the end of a story. Haazinu, the Song of Moses, comes at the end of Deuteronomy:

Give ear, O heavens, that I may speak,and let the earth hear my mouths utterances.Let my teaching drop like rain,my saying flow like dew,like showers on the greenand like cloudbursts on the grass.

Many poems?

Yes, and they often appear after a long narrative. Here, Haazinu is the last great expression of the life of Moses. Way back in Genesis 49, there is the Song of Jacob. On Jacobs deathbed, at the end of the epic saga that began with Sarah and Abraham, he says:

Assemble and harken, O Jacobs sons,And harken to Israel your father.

And again, at the end of the Egyptian period of the Exodus story, Shirat HaYam, Song of the Sea, Exodus 15:1:

Let me sing unto the Lord for He surged, O surgedhorse and its rider He hurled into the sea.My strength and my power is Yah,and He became my deliverance.

And here, 1 Samuel 2, the Song of Hannah:

And Hannah prayed and she said:My heart rejoiced through the Lordmy horn is raised high through the Lord.My mouth is wide to bolt down my foes;for I was gladdened by Your rescue.

And at the end of 2 Samuel 22, at the end of Davids struggles with his enemies, he sings:

The Lord is my crag and my fortressand my own delivererGod, my rock where I sheltermy shield and the horn of my rescue.

The student thought for a minute and said, These poems are all expressions of thanks to God. What does God do? Can God be grateful? If God is perfect, how can God create?

Here, again, the Rabbi of Chelm sits amazed at the innocent question of a student, the capacity of the curious to ask the best questions. The Council of Chelm never does this.

I have a good answer for you. Its from Rav Kook, the first Ashkenazi chief rabbi of Jewish Palestine, and a great poet. He wrote an answer (Shemonah Kevatzim 4:68):

We understand that there are two aspects to the absolute perfection of God.

One aspect of perfection, from the perspective of its greatness and completeness, lacks nothing and therefore nothing can be added to it.

However, if there is no possibility of growth, then this in itself is a deficiency.

Perfection that comes from growth and constant improvement has an advantage and satisfaction that we deeply yearn for, to go from strength to strength.

Therefore, it is not possible for divine perfection to be lacking the quality of improvement. This is the impetus for divine creativity. Existence progresses without limit and becomes elevated. It is found that the divine soul of existence sustains its constant growth. It is the divine foundation that calls creation into being and drives its constant improvement.

So, the song of God is creation? Creation is Gods creation.

Continuous creation. Every new creation is praise.

The Rabbi of Chelm held back one more poem. It was a bit much, he thought dont spoil the moment. He recalled to himself the final poem of Walt Whitman, the 1892 version of Song of Myself:

I celebrate myself, and sing myself,and what I assume you shall assume,For every atom belonging to me as goodbelongs to you.

Whitman, he knew what There is no place without you meant.

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A good answer to a cheeky question: If God is perfect, how can God create? J. - The Jewish News of Northern California

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Posted By admin on October 8, 2022

RABBI MARC GELLMAN

Question: This probably isnt your bailiwick, but maybe you and Father Tom Hartman talked about it. Did God feel pain (not literally) as he watched his son being tortured and crucified? Anonymous

Answer: What a wonderful and difficult question.

Tommy and I did talk about it and this is what he taught me.

Because God is not a person, it is wrong to ascribe human emotions like pain to God. It is called anthropopathism. However, Tommy felt, and I agreed, that God feels a kind of love that is not human but is real and is infinitely compassionate.

Therefore, it makes sense that God felt pain at the torture and death of Jesus. Pain and love. Pain because of the torture and death Jesus had to undergo to make his sacrifice real but also love that Jesus was willing to suffer for the sins of humanity.

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For Christians, Jesus Resurrection is the ultimate sign of that divine love.

Also, Tommy taught me that since Jesus came to Earth precisely to suffer and die, no blame for his death is appropriate or fair given his divinely ordained sacrificial mission. That did not make it easy for Jesus or God, but it made it necessary.

There is a text from the Hebrew Bible in Genesis Chapter 22 that I then shared with Tommy. This passage has some similar theological conflicts.

It is Gods command to Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac to prove his faith.

Abraham had to believe two contradictory things: He had to believe God wanted him to sacrifice his innocent son, and he also had to believe God would never make him go through with such an abominable command.

If he believed God would never make him do it, he does not pass the test. If he believed God would make him do it, then God is a monster.

The life of faith is filled with such leaps of faith in which we are tested in our beliefs. Only God knows how we score on such tests. Our job is to be willing to sacrifice for God and to believe that such sacrifices cause God as much pain as they cause us.

In Gods image

Question: I dont understand the biblical statement that God created man in Gods image. That makes no sense to me at all! It cannot mean physically, because God seems to be a spirit and not a defined physical being. I do not believe it could possibly mean spiritually, because while mankind is capable of wonderful acts of kindness and self-sacrifice, mankind is also capable of horrific acts of violence and cruelty.

What does that biblical phrase mean? I would really appreciate an answer. Thank you. From P

Answer: Another wonderful question. I wrote a childrens book entitled Does God Have a Big Toe? And the answer is no, God does not have a big toe, even though we have big toes and even though we are made in the image of God.

God is not a human being, even though for some Christians Jesus is an exception to that rule.

What it means to be made in the image of God is that, like God, we have free will to make choices about our lives.

It also means that, like God, we can know the difference between good and evil. We are aware of the moral good.

It means that just as God cares for us, we must care for each other.

It means that just as God wants justice in the world, we must strive to pursue justice in the world.

It means that just as God has filled the world with life, we, too, must fill the world with life.

It means that just as God feeds all of us through Gods creation, we must feed the hungry among us.

It means that just as God rested on the seventh day, so, too, we should rest on the Sabbath.

It means that when we kill an innocent person, we are killing the image of God in this world.

It means that we must see every other human being as an image of God in the world.

We learn all this from an old Jewish story of how the great sage Rabbi Naman of Berditchev was walking along the street with his disciples in tow and suddenly he stopped and asked them, Who is that across the street? One of them said, Rebbe, that is just Moshele the water drawer. That is nobody. The Rabbi chastised them and said, You are not my students until you can say about any person you see walking on the street, There goes the image of God. And that is what it means to be made in the image of God.

Send questions and comments to The God Squad via email at godsquadquestion@aol.com. Rabbi Gellman is the author of several books, including Religion for Dummies, co-written with Fr. Tom Hartman. Also, the new God Squad podcast is now available.

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GOD SQUAD: Resurrection is the ultimate sign of divine love - Kenosha News

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Posted By admin on October 8, 2022

The gates of the Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz, Poland, circa 1965.

Keystone/Getty Images

Robert Keith Packer, a 57-year-old Virginian, achieved a measure of infamy at the Jan. 6 Capitol riot whenhe was photographedwearing a sweatshirt emblazoned with a skull and crossbones along with the words Camp Auschwitz. Work Brings Freedom, the front said, a translation of the notorious motto Arbeit macht frei thatappeared on the gates of Auschwitzand several other Nazi concentration camps. On the back was the word Staff.

Packer was sentencedto 75 days in prisonon Sept. 16, 2022, for his role in the riot he was tried for his actions, not his clothing. But his sweatshirt was far from the onlyHolocaust referenceon Jan. 6 or in its aftermath.

Rioters havecompared their arreststothe persecution of Jews, and commentator Candace Owenscompared Jan. 6 to the Reichstag fire, which Adolf Hitler used as pretext to consolidate power in 1933.

It is a reminder of something that is all too apparent to scholars of the Holocaust, likemyself: Americans are willing totrivialize the genocideby turning it into a tool for their own political goals.

As a historian who has written about the American role inliberating concentration campsat the end of World War II, I have spent a great deal of time thinking about how Americans have and have not talked about the Holocaust in the decades since. There is little evidence that outright denial of the Holocaust is widespread. Instead, the problem is apoor understanding of the tragedy, including this countrys response the focus of a remarkable documentary series, The U.S. and the Holocaust, which recently premiered on PBS.

The contemporary American story of the Holocaust focuses on the U.S. role in helping to bring the Nazi regime of terror to an end. A more nuanced understanding of Americas reaction is less comforting.

The PBS series, produced by acclaimed filmmakers Ken Burns, Lynn Novick and Sarah Botstein, traces what Americans knew about the vast and murderous campaign against civilians in Nazi-occupied Europe in the 1930s, as a flood of Jewish refugees attempted to flee Hitlers Germany.

The U.S. did not enter the war to stop Nazi persecution of Europes Jews. In fact,a majority of Americansopposed entering the war at all until 1940, a year before the Pearl Harbor attack brought the U.S. into the conflict.

Many Americans had no interest in protecting the rights of religious or ethnic minorities at home or abroad.Antisemitism and anti-foreign prejudicewas a core element of American society in the early 20th century, just as white supremacy was. These forms of hatred and exclusion drew from the same well of supposedly scientific beliefsabout racial hierarchy.

While the U.S. allowed almost125,000 Jewish refugeesto enter the country during the years between Hitlers rise to power and the start of the war, many more weredenied entryorleft in limbo.

This part of the countrys response has been largely forgotten, in favor of a story where the U.S. plays a more heroic part.

The liberation of the concentration camps in the spring of 1945 plays a central role in public memories of the war today, along withthe Allied landings in Normandyon D-Day in 1944. The hall through which millions of visitors have entered the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washingtonis lined with flags of the liberator divisions of the U.S. Army.

There is no question that the arrival of American forces at Buchenwald, Dachau and other camps across western and southern Germany saved thousands of prisoners facing murder or death by starvation and sickness. In reality, however, the systematic murder of Europes Jews had largely concluded, and primarily took placehundreds of miles to the eastin what is today Poland, Ukraine, Russia and the Baltic states. By the time American forces landed in western Europe, Europes Jewish population had already been reduced to a few small pockets.

Within weeks of the arrival of American troops at Buchenwald, Americans saw images andnewsreel filmof the horrors of the camps. However, it took decades for the story of camp liberation to become the most important act of the war in Europe in Americans minds. It would not be until the 1980s, when the liberators and survivors were entering old age, that the Holocaust was firmly entrenched in American school curricula and popular culture.

One important consequence of this long wait was that the stories told by and about liberators changed in the intervening decades. As Americans became more familiar with the events of the Holocaust throughtelevisionandfilms, liberator stories began to grow more similar to each other and merged into a general story of the Holocaust, which increasingly focused on the horrors of the death camps in German-occupied Poland.Liberators of Buchenwalddescribing the event decades afterward, for example, thought they remembered gas chambers at the camp, when in fact there were none at that location.

Auschwitz-Birkenau in Poland the most infamous camp facility, with its gates saying Arbeit macht frei came to represent all concentration camps in American memory, and even in family stories. In 2008, for example, then-presidential candidate Barack Obama told a crowd about hisgreat-uncles participation in the liberation of Auschwitz. Auschwitz was actually liberated by the Soviet army in January 1945. Obamas campaign later clarified that his great-uncle, Charles Payne, participated in the liberation of Ohrdruf, a subcamp of Buchenwald.

The centrality of camp liberation to the American story of the Holocaust has real consequences. It turns the Holocaust into a story of American triumph over evil and overlooks the countrys refusal to do more to save the victims.

This simplistic version of a complex history has allowed many Americans to use the Holocaust and Nazism asshallow symbolsfor any kind of government action they oppose and deem oppressive, particularly public health measures during the COVID-19 pandemic. Opponentshave comparedinfectious disease specialist Dr. Anthony Fauci to SS physician and torturer Dr. Josef Mengele. Representative Marjorie Greene hascompared face mask rulesto forcing Jews to wear Star of David badges, and Capitol police agenciesto the Nazi-era Gestapo.

As Burns documentary emphasizes, the U.S. is once again in a time of national reckoning about race, discrimination and histories of oppression. In the final minutes of The U.S. and the Holocaust, viewers see marchers in Charlottsville, Virginia, chanting Jews will not replace us, television pundits opining about the threat of cultural decline through immigration, the 2018attack on the Tree of Life congregationin Pittsburgh, and the Jan. 6 riot. There in the crowd, wearing his sweatshirt, is Robert Keith Packer.

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Historian: Holocaust Comparisons Are Frequent In US Politics - Texas A&M University Today

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Posted By admin on October 8, 2022

A Holocaust survivor will speak at Missouri S&T this October as part of the event series held in conjunction with the Americans and the Holocaust traveling exhibit. Rachel Miller, now a St. Louis resident, will speak about her experiences at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 19, in St. Pats Ballroom B of the Havener Center.

Miller was born in Paris to Jewish parents who had already fled from antisemitism in Poland. When she was 9 years old, she was sent to the countryside to live in hiding. Her mother and siblings remained in Paris and were taken to concentration camps days later. Ninety-three members of her extended family were killed during the Holocaust. Acting as their voice, Miller tells her story to honor her family.

For more information on the lecture and other Americans and the Holocaust events, parent and teacher resources and recommended reading and viewing, please visit libguides.mst.edu/holocaustexhibit/events.

Americans and the Holocaust: A Traveling Exhibition for Libraries is an educational initiative of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and the American Library Association. Missouri S&Ts Curtis Laws Wilson Library is one of 50 libraries nationwide selected to host the exhibit.

Americans and the Holocaust was made possible by the generous support of lead sponsor Jeannie and Jonathan Lavine. Additional major funding was provided by the Bildners Joan and Allen zl, Elisa Spungen and Rob, Nancy and Jim; and Jane and Daniel Och. The museums exhibitions are also supported by the Lester Robbins and Sheila Johnson Robbins Traveling and Special Exhibitions Fund, established in 1990.

About the Curtis Laws Wilson Library

The Curtis Laws Wilson Library is located on Missouri S&Ts campus at 400 W. 14th Street in Rolla. Dedicated in 1968, the library is named in honor of the dean of the university (then named the Missouri School of Mines) from 1941-1963. Learn more about the library at library.mst.edu.

About the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

A living memorial to the Holocaust, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum inspires leaders and citizens worldwide to confront hatred, prevent genocide, and promote human dignity. The Museums far-reaching educational programs and global impact are made possible by generous donors. For more information, visit ushmm.org.

About the American Library Association

The American Library Association (ALA) is the foremost national organization providing resources to inspire library and information professionals to transform their communities through essential programs and services. For more than 140 years, the ALA has been the trusted voice for academic, public, school, government and special libraries, advocating for the profession and the librarys role in enhancing learning and ensuring access to information for all. For more information, visit ala.org.

About Missouri University of Science and Technology

Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) is a STEM-focused research university of approximately 7,000 students. Part of the four-campus University of Missouri System and located in Rolla, Missouri, Missouri S&T offers 101 degrees in 40 areas of study and is among the nations top 10 universities for return on investment, according to Business Insider. S&T also is home to the Kummer Institute, made possible by a $300 million gift from Fred and June Kummer. For more information about Missouri S&T, visit http://www.mst.edu.

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'Hidden child' Holocaust survivor to speak at S&T - Missouri S&T News and Research

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