Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on March 26, 2022

The UN Special Rapporteurs report echoes recent findings by Palestinian, Israeli and international human rights organisations who analized Israels 55-year occupation of the Palestinian Territory.

There is today in the Palestinian territory occupied by Israel since 1967 a deeply discriminatory dual legal and political system, that privileges the 700,000 Israeli Jewish settlers living in the 300 illegal Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, said Michael Lynk, the UN Special Rapporteur for the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967.

Mentioning the lack of rights of people living in the same vicinity, but separated by walls, checkpoints and roads, Mr. Link acknowledged that there are more than three million Palestinians living under an oppressive rule of institutional discrimination and without a path to a genuine Palestinian state that the world has long promised, is their right.

Another two million Palestinians live in Gaza, described regularly as an open-air prison, without adequate access to power, water or health, with a collapsing economy and with no ability to freely travel to the rest of Palestine or the outside world, he added.

He ran through the internationally-understood legal definition of apartheid the system of institutionalized racial segregation practiced in South Africa prior to its dismantling in the early 1990s.

Israel, he said, conforms to the definition as a political regime which so intentionally and clearly prioritizes fundamental political, legal and social rights to one group over another, within the same geographic unit on the basis of ones racial-national-ethnic identity.

Apartheid is not, sadly, a phenomenon confined to the history books on southern Africa, Mr. Lynk said, in his report to the Human Rights Council.

The 1998 Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court came into law after the collapse of the old South Africa. It is a forward-looking legal instrument which prohibits apartheid as a crime against humanity today and into the future, wherever it may exist.

The independent rights expert added that Israels military rule in the occupied Palestinian territory has been deliberately built with the intention of enduring facts on the ground to demographically engineer a permanent, and illegal, Israeli sovereign claim over occupied territory, while confining Palestinians in smaller and more confined reserves of disconnected land.

Apartheid is not, sadly, a phenomenon confined to the history books on southern Africa - UN rights expert Michael Lynk

He also mentioned that leading international figures including former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, South African Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor, and former Israeli Attorney General Michael Ben-Yair have also all described Israels occupation, as apartheid.

Citing inhumane acts, arbitrary and extra-judicial killings, torture, the denial of fundamental rights, an abysmal child mortality rate, collective punishment, an abusive military court system, and home demolitions, Mr. Lynk said the international community bears much responsibility for the present situation.

For more than 40 years, the UN Security Council and General Assembly have stated in hundreds of resolutions that Israels annexation of occupied territory is unlawful, its construction of hundreds of Jewish settlements are illegal, and its denial of Palestinian self-determination breaches international law, he added.

Highlighting that no accountability had ever followed, the Special Rapporteur concluded, if the international community had truly acted on its resolutions 40 or 30 years ago, we would not be talking about apartheid today.

Mr. Link called on the international community to come up with an imaginative list of effective accountability measures to bring the Israeli occupation and its apartheid practices in the occupied Palestinian territory, to a complete end.

Special Rapporteurs are part of whats known as theSpecial Proceduresof the Human Rights Council. They are not UN staff, and do not receive a salary for their work, and serve in their own individual capacity.

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Israel's occupation of Palestinian Territory is 'apartheid': UN rights expert - UN News

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Posted By admin on March 26, 2022

DETERMINED TO STAYPalestinian Youth Fight for Their Village by Jody Sokolower 240 pps. Olive Branch Press $20

Determined to Stay: Palestinian Youth Fight for Their Village by Jody Sokolower is one of the rare non-fiction, young adult books that center contemporary Palestinian experiences and voices.

Teachers and students will quickly recognize that this valuable resource was written by a skilled educator, and one with deep knowledge about how to teach social justice issues to youth. After working as a classroom teacher in middle and high school settings, Jody spent eight years as managing editor of the social justice publisher Rethinking Schools, during which she edited two groundbreaking books. She now works as co-coordinator of the Teach Palestine Project at the Middle East Childrens Alliance and helps lead the National Liberated Ethnic Studies Coalition.

The structure and content of Determined to Stay utilize and model best practices in teaching material that is unfamiliar to students and about which there are different and potentially conflicting perspectives. For example, a compare-and-contrast approach is woven throughout the book enabling readers not only to learn about Palestine, but about their own communities. This starts right at the beginning with a framing introduction by Nick Estes (Lower Brule Sioux), co-founder of Red Nation, an Native American resistance organization. Past and current examples of US colonialism are integrated throughout the book, giving readers a home base from which they can venture out to understand whats happening in Palestine. She also includes the stories of Palestinian-Americans, who only infrequently get to see themselves in books. The inclusion of Palestinian-American stories helps non-Palestinian readers understand that the issues in the book are relevant in the US, not just over there.

The bulk of the content is Palestinians telling their own stories. The reader hears about Palestinian youths lives in their own words. Sokolower does not explain what Palestinians say or give her own opinions. She lets Palestinians voices stand on their own. She models self-reflection for the reader by gently commenting on her own experiences in light of what she learns from the Palestinians she interviews. She also models for readers the importance of considering ones own social location and biases. She reminds the reader that she is an older, white, Jewish woman from the US, and that reality shapes her experiences and perspective.

The chapters are short, between 5-10 pages, and can be easily woven into lessons in various disciplines at different levels. Given that the material is heavy and may be new to readers, these short bites are perfect for taking in an aspect of Palestinian youths lives, and connecting the learning to previous chapters and other material they are discussing in school.

It is refreshing that Determined to Stay starts small. It doesnt try to explain the entire background and history of whats going on. Context and history are included in reference to Silwan, the village that is the subject of the book. Most importantly, it doesnt try to balance what Palestinians say with opposing views, a tactic used in US media and educational settings to undermine Palestinian voice.

Again, showing her expertise in social justice education, Sokolower addresses hard issues like arrest of youth, demolition of homes, harassment by Israeli soldiers, the lasting effects of trauma, and more. But in every instance, she highlights the way that Palestinian youth cope, find agency, support one another and resist. In this way, the very difficult aspects of life under military occupation and siege do not define Palestinians, nor do they overwhelm readers. They are actors who think and act and offer hope for change. Seeing them act inspires us to consider how we, too, can act to improve our situations.

There are some maps, artwork and photos. The most important photos are of young Palestinians in a variety of settings, including dancing and playing as well as being arrested and resisting. Since many US readers never meet a Palestinian, they are subject to the ways Palestinians are framed, often as terrorists, in US media. Humanizing images are critical for young readers to be able to relate to and connect with the stories of their counterparts in Palestine.

Although Determined to Stay: Palestinian Youth Fight for Their Village is clearly about youth, it is not immediately obvious from the cover that it is for young readers. Adult readers, including teachers, will also benefit from the book, but there are plenty of other books for adults that address Palestinian topics. Determined to Stay: Palestinian Youth Fight for Their Village fills a void because it is aimed at youth readers, and it raises the bar for forthcoming books for this audience.

Sadly, despite increasing interest in Palestine and Palestinians in the US, it is getting harder for K-12 teachers to bring Palestinian perspectives into the classroom. Attacks on what is erroneously called Critical Race Theory are the most recent indication of the politicization and divisiveness of public discourse around education. Educators with social justice sensibilities, however, understand that the key to constructive civic discourse is not banning certain books or ideas, but rather prioritizing skills in listening, evaluating facts, analyzing different narratives, forming opinions, and engaging in civil discussion across lines of difference. Determined to Stay: Palestinian Youth Fight for Their Village is a valuable resource for all of us who want to keep education relevant, honest and effective in our struggle to improve the world in which we live.

So where are the Palestinian voices in mainstream media?

Mondoweiss covers the full picture of the struggle for justice in Palestine. Read by tens of thousands of people each month, our truth-telling journalism is an essential counterweight to the propaganda that passes for news in mainstream and legacy media.

Our news and analysis is available to everyone which is why we need your support. Please contribute so that we can continue to raise the voices of those who advocate for the rights of Palestinians to live in dignity and peace.

Palestinians today are struggling for their lives as mainstream media turns away. Please support journalism that amplifies the urgent voices calling for freedom and justice in Palestine.

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Pushing back against right wing attacks on education by centering Palestinian voices - Mondoweiss

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Posted By admin on March 26, 2022

Maurice Ebileeni's study of Palestinian literary narratives and the imaginings of the Palestinian homeland highlights the need to rethink both. Being There, Being Here: Palestinian Writings in the World takes the reader on a multifaceted journey through land, continents and languages as these intertwine with Palestinian authors' perceptions, imaginings and affinities to Palestine. Exile a common experience of Palestinians has played a major role in shaping diverse narratives that play out in literature, indicating a wide spectrum of how home is perceived, related to, expressed and narrated, in contrast to the Palestinian national narrative that is mainly built upon the legitimate right of return.

Ebileeni writes that Palestinian literature "is grounded in the idea of imagining a Palestinian homeland from a variety of positions that are not primarily dependent upon the artists' notion of birth or birthplace." The 1948 Nakba in particular, and the consequent displacement of Palestinians, resulted in a sense of belonging that is primarily attached to the memories of the previous generations. In terms of Palestine as home, the literature reviewed by the author produces a multitude of complex questions. Displacement, the author notes, is also reference to "the irreversible transformation of a certain area, rendering it alien to its native population."

Palestinian literature in languages other than Arabic, which started flourishing in the 1980s, still contributes to the Palestinian national narrative. The book draws upon Palestinian writing in English, Danish, Hebrew, Spanish and Italian, emphasising not only the widespread Palestinian diaspora, but also the writers' own experiences of living in their host countries, away from a home that is borrowed from memory.

INTERVIEW: Floating in tar, Palestinian artist Hani Zurob

Particularly for Palestinians who were born in Western countries, Palestinian literature spans a vast itinerary of displacement and sits at the crossroads between generations of remembrance and a Palestinian national narrative which is steeped in history yet, in many ways, is exclusive of experiences that are not necessarily conforming. Palestinian memory is political, and literature most not be perceived as a separate entity. Furthermore, the cultural significance of polylingual Palestinian writings must not be dismissed.

Drawing upon various texts, including those by Ghassan Kanfani, Susan Abulhawa, Fawaz Turki, Susan Muaddi Darraj and Lina Meruane, Ebileeni notes that, "The Palestinian novel is not merely an artistic extension of the national narrative." Through detailed analysis of literary texts, the author brings the experiences of Palestinian displacement to the helm, noting that the diverse experiences of exile are imparted through a variety of narrations and relation to belonging.

While the anti-colonial resistance, or armed struggle, remains part of the national narrative, polylingual Palestinian authors embrace other forms of association with Palestine. Abulhawa, for example, explores the concept of undoing "a historical injustice" and exile as a temporary condition if reconnecting to Palestinian roots is possible. Meruane, on the other hand, presents Palestine through her writing as "part of a heritage that is both culturally and linguistically remote." As a Palestinian born in Chile, Meruane maintains the desire of returning as an unfulfilled wish; "a return from someone else, made in someone else's place."

Ebileeni notes, "The ongoing fragmentation of Palestinian reality has yielded a culturally nuanced space composed of various localities transcending the diasporic vernaculars and expressing the de-territorialisation of a national centre." With the Palestinian exile narratives, belonging or connection to Palestine are rooted in imaginings or concepts that emphasise distance, yet the return is also a political call, even if different diasporas hold their own image of Palestine and return depending upon their experience. The book also notes the distinction between national narratives and local narratives in Palestinian literature, the latter being more prominent.

READ: Palestinian resistance poetry by Mahmoud Darwish

The narrative on Palestine, therefore, is vast and within an ongoing evolution. As the author states, "We should acknowledge the emergence of several epistemic Palestines similarly grounded in memories and narrations of the past that are constantly coming into being, as Palestinians everywhere distinctively fathom the past and envision the future."

Bringing together the diverse Palestinian narratives in terms of language and experience is necessary to comprehend both the roots of the Palestinian experience and literature. Additionally, the collective Palestinian national narrative, while still a political driving force, is no longer the only factor in terms of how Palestinians imagine or experience their belonging.

By hypothesising a return to Palestine 100 years after the Nakba, Ebileeni poses a series of pertinent questions which may be raised, and which also encourage the reader to ponder literary texts as part of a bigger picture. Throughout the book, the author dispels the notion of "a unified people". As the literature shows, recognising the spectrum of Palestinian experiences of exile and forced displacement is key to realising that holding on to the national narrative does not represent the Palestinian narratives prior to and after the Nakba. What the new Palestine may entail will ultimately arise from a diverse population, and one that that is aware of how exile has altered it.

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Being There, Being Here: Palestinian Writings in the World - Middle East Monitor

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Posted By admin on March 26, 2022

Yesterday news broke that yet another organization determined that Israels rule over Palestinians constitutes apartheid, this time a reportfrom the Special Rapporteur to the UN Human Rights Council. The Israeli government now fears an unprecedented effort to push the apartheid label, Haaretz says a wave Israels foreign minister predicted a few months ago.

Much to Israel supporters chagrin, The New York Times actually published a fair account of this new report. So no, This is not just a bad dream, its happening in the real world. The fact that the New York Times covered the report caused the American Jewish Committee to respond with rage to the report, coming on the heels of Amnesty Internationals apartheid finding in February:

AJC strongly rejects the biased findings of the UN Special Rapporteurs libelous report on Israel. Israel is a pluralistic democracy that ensures equal rights to all of its citizens. Bolstering @Amnestys baseless allegations does nothing to advance the cause of peace.

Amnesty International welcomes the new report today: Palestinian human rights organizations have been calling the situation apartheid for years, and this report is a landmark moment of recognition of the lived reality of millions of Palestinians. Human Rights Watch also welcomed the report which follows its apartheid report of last year.

While the Council on American-Islamic Relations drew the natural conclusion stop the Israel aid. More and more human rights organizations and experts are documenting the fact that the Israeli governments racist system of oppression against Palestinians meets the definition of apartheid, CAIR official Edward Ahmed Mitchellsaid. It is now time for our nation to recognize the obvious and stop funding human rights abuses against the Palestinian people.

The young Jewish group IfNotNow has also been publicizing the report and the word apartheid.

The @UNHumanRights report by @MichaelLynk5 notes the decades-long Israeli occupation is indistinguishable from annexation This is apartheid.

As for the Israel lobby, the rightwing lobby is angry, but the liberal lobby seems to be hoping that this goes away.

AIPAC wont even mention the word apartheid in an email about the Human Rights Council:

The U.N.s relentless diplomatic assault against the Jewish state exposes their deep, anti-Israel bias and plays right into the hands of Israels enemies.Only the U.S.-Israel alliance stands in the way of the U.N.s attacks

The rightwing Israel lobby group Camera put up a commentary bashing the report as antisemitic for describing Israels seizing of Palestinian lands as covetous.

But the center/left branches of the Israel lobby havent had much to say about the new apartheid report. It feels as if theyre embarrassed by the fresh charge and are pulling the pillow over their heads; theyd rather talk about the death of former secretary of state Madeleine Albright at 84. Democratic Majority for Israel is heartbroken at Albrights passing. The ADL is heartbroken, too. J Street also issued a statement on Albrights death.

But J Street has not mentioned the apartheid report on its twitter feed or even in its daily news roundups. Like it never happened.

The report is bothersome to liberal Zionists because it fosters dissatisfaction in their progressive base about why theyre not taking a stronger stance against human rights violations beyond acknowledging their existence (as J Street often does). Just last week a California congressman whom J Street took out to Israel said there are parallels to apartheid. But J Street is very clear that it does not use the word apartheid.

Americans for Peace Now is more direct about the new report, maybe because it is not in the business of talking to Congress but more aimed at the grass roots. The report shows very serious problems that cant be addressed with cries of antisemitism, APN says. (Much as J Street said when the Amnesty International report apartheid dropped.)

Americans for Peace Nows ceo Hadar Susskind elaborates:

Sure. Feel free to complain about the use of apartheid if you dont like it. But what are you going to do about it? And by it, I mean the reality on the ground.

Bear in mind that Americans for Peace Now chair James Klutznick actually called that reality apartheid in 2020: Whether or not anyone wants to say apartheid, I just said it. Its been de facto apartheid for a long time and this could end up being official.

So this report will create more pressure on liberal Zionists to acknowledge the reality in Israel and Palestine, instead of adhering to their vision, the just and necessary democratic national homeland for the Jewish people. A dream indeed.

So where are the Palestinian voices in mainstream media?

Mondoweiss covers the full picture of the struggle for justice in Palestine. Read by tens of thousands of people each month, our truth-telling journalism is an essential counterweight to the propaganda that passes for news in mainstream and legacy media.

Our news and analysis is available to everyone which is why we need your support. Please contribute so that we can continue to raise the voices of those who advocate for the rights of Palestinians to live in dignity and peace.

Palestinians today are struggling for their lives as mainstream media turns away. Please support journalism that amplifies the urgent voices calling for freedom and justice in Palestine.

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Yet another 'apartheid' report builds pressure on liberal Zionists to recognize 'lived reality' of Palestinians - Mondoweiss

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Posted By admin on March 26, 2022

Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) has long been viewed as a hate group on college campuses which isnt to promote education about Palestinians, but make the campus environment hostile for Israel supporters, assummed upby Aviva Slomich, international campus director for CAMERA.

On March 14, 2022, Tufts Universitys SJP chapter posted an opinion piece in the student run paper, Tufts Observer, called Justice Through BDS. The article promoted the familiar anti-Zionist propaganda, mislabeling Israel as a creature of European settler colonialism that runs an apartheid regime. It referred to Israel with a lowercase i to insult the Jewish State, and advocated for violence in its statement SJP supports the full range of Palestinian resistance against settler-colonialism.

The call for violence should get the group kicked off campus, but that is unlikely to happen unless and until Tufts alumni and student body demand action from the university (president Anthony P. Monacos office number is 617-627-3300).

In the same article promoting violence against Israel, SJP noted the good work that J Street has been doing in the Jewish community:

SJP specifically called out its appreciation for the lobbying and anti-Israel propaganda disseminated by J Street, but the hate group still could not embrace its colleagues, as the left-wing Jewish group still has a stated platform that Israel should exist in some form. SJP has therefore called for J Street to be included in its broad boycott.

SJP and J Street U have stood as allies on different college campuses, such as in February 2019, when both groupsblasted the University of Vermonts Jewish Hillelfor accepting money from the pro-Israel group Maccabee Task Force. The SJP-J Street allyship has built bridges to encourage more Jews to despise Israel, but not for Israel haters to embrace coexistence with the Jewish State.

When a virulently anti-Israel hate group like SJP praises J Street, a group that claims to be pro-Israel, it may finally dawn on the pro-Zionist community that the Jewish left-wing group is a dangerous gateway organization to destroy the Jewish State from within.

Related articles:

J Street: Going Bigger and Bolder thanBDS

The Evil Architects at J Street Take aBow

J Street Pushes to Make Israel a PartisanIssue

J Street is Only Considered Pro-Israel in ProgressiveCircles

J Street is a Partisan Left-Wing Group, NOT an Alternative toAIPAC

A Review of the Fifteen US Slates for the World ZionistCongress

Liberals Biggest Enemies of2015

{Reposted from the authors blog}

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Students For Justice In Palestine: J Street Is The Gateway For Jewish Anti-Zionists - The Jewish Press - JewishPress.com

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Posted By admin on March 26, 2022

Greg Keselman is worried about his wifes family outside Kyiv. Her brother, his wife and kids spend most of their time huddled in shelters to escape the shelling. Theres not much that Keselman, who grew up in Ukraine and now lives in Pleasant Hill, can do other than stay in touch.

Theyre alive, he said. This is the most important. They have enough food and water, at least for now.

Although he cant get them out, he can help them through this traumatic time. Keselman has just been approved for a loan from Hebrew Free Loan, which recently set up a program for this very purpose. HFL will provide up to $20,000 to qualified applicants who want to help friends and family in Ukraine, and Keselman is using that money to directly support his in-laws.

We try to do anything we can, but I dont know how much we can help more, he said.

Hebrew Free Loan executive director Cindy Rogoway said the San Francisco-based organization considered different ways it could support Ukrainians.

Its fair to say we, like everyone else here, feel like our hands are tied, Rogoway said. What can we do?

The answer was to do what Hebrew Free Loan does best: Give out interest-free loans to Jewish residents of Northern California or employees of Jewish organizations. The money can be used for food, housing, transportation or other humanitarian needs related to the crisis in Ukraine.

Keselman, who has been in the U.S. since 1994, has been trying to persuade his sister-in-law and kids to flee Ukraine his brother-in-law is of fighting age and has to stay, and a nephew is already in the army. But he said theyre scared to make the dangerous journey to the border.

Hed like to bring the family to the Bay Area, if the U.S. opens up a channel for refugees as it did for Jews leaving the Soviet Union starting with the Cold War.

In the meantime, Keselman said he is grateful for the support HFL is providing. Hes also been making his own donations to support aid efforts, as well as urging people to get behind the movement calling for NATO to create a no-fly zone over his beleaguered country to sign all kinds of petitions and convince our government to close the sky over Ukraine, he said something Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has called for repeatedly.

NATO has been reluctant to take this action, as enforcing it would most likely lead to actual combat with Russia, something Europe and the U.S. hope to avoid.

Other than advocating for his country and supporting his in-laws stuck near Kyiv, Keselman said there is little he can do to help.

This is the most difficult part, Keselman said. Because you cannot actually do anything.

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Hebrew Free Loan offers cash to locals with family in Ukraine J. - The Jewish News of Northern California

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Posted By admin on March 26, 2022

Teaneck author releases Shakespeare Haggadah

Martin Bodek, of Teaneck, talks about his Haggadahs, Tuesday, March 22, 2022

Kevin R. Wexler, NorthJersey.com

Martin Bodek was intense as a bowl of bitter herbs as he proclaimed his Passover primacy.

"Most people just write one Haggadah and move on," Bodeksaid in a recent interview. "Nobody writes this many."

For the 46-year-old Teaneck author, the Passover Haggadah is serious business, even if his specialty is quirky takes on the ancient Jewish text.

The Haggadah, Hebrew for "telling," is the 3,000-year old collection of story, song and ritualthat guidesparticipants though the Seder, the meal that marks the beginning of the Passover holiday commemorating Jews' exodus from slavery in Egypt. The eight-day holiday begins on April 15 this year.

Story continues after gallery

For many Jews, the Haggadah isthe framework for cherished memories of big family gatherings around a full table. But for youngsters, it can be a notorious chore,a manual for an hours-long ceremony that can seem as stale and dry as old matzo.

That's where Bodek comes in. TheIT-specialist and father of three has sold thousands of copies of his alternatetakes on the Haggadah, usingemojis, Jerry Seinfeld and the coronavirus pandemic to make the hallowed tradition relevant to a modern audience.

His latest, "The Shakespeare Haggadah," borrows from Othello, King Lear and other works of the Bard of Avon. It was published March 15 (appropriately enough, the Ides of March) by Wicked Son, a Jewish-themed imprint of Post Hill Press.A fifthHaggadah is in the works for next year, though Bodek won't reveal its theme.

"We are an ADHD society," he said, explaining his devotion to new interpretations of the old text. "We are desperate to set aside our phones and focus for a second onthe next thing that willinspire us spiritually and entertain. This whole holiday is designed to get children to ask questions. The more they are engaged and atthe table, the better chance there is that they'll bepulled in."

Writing is Bodek's hobby. Along with the Haggadot, he has published six other novels and nonfiction books on topics ranging from theologyto running to politics. His seventh, "Zaidy's War" will be released in October and recounts the experiences of his grandfather, a Romanian Jew who was conscripted into four different national armies over the course of World War II. The book will be released by Amsterdam Publishers, the largest publisher of Holocaust memoirs in Europe.

Bodek wanted to honor his grandfather's"extraordinary life," he said. He felt a responsibility "to make sure every voice that emerges from theHolocaustis properly heard, no matter how many yearsdistant from the catastrophe." The book "fulfils my moral obligation to bearwitness, for my generation and future generations."

The Haggadah is among the most widely published Jewish texts, with at least 4,000 variations, according to scholars. Many are serious, educational or artistic. But in recent years, a growing crop of humorous and lighthearted versions have offered a creative take on a tale that's been retold annually in Jewish homes for millennia.

Bodek grew up in an Orthodox Jewish family in Brooklyn where Passover was celebrated in a house packed with guests at Seders that lasted well into the night. His favorite Haggadah was a traditional Hebrew version that he received as a bar mitzvah gift when he turned 13.

He recalled his grandfather "singing beautiful songs," which he would go on to share with his three children. "It keeps them awake for just a bit longer."

When he began to host his own Seders, Bodek had to muster all of his creativity to keep younger participants at the dinner table. Eventually, that blossomed into his own whimsical versions of the Passover tradition.

Bodek created the "Emoji Haggadah," published by Brooklyn-based KTAV Publishing House, in 2019 as a way to engage young people as they deciphered the symbols. Written entirely in colorful digital hieroglyphs, it has sold more than 3,000 copies.

In 2020, Bodek penned "The Festivus Haggadah," which combines the canon of "Seinfeld," the famous "show about nothing," with the tale of the Jews' escape from existential danger. That was followed by thepandemic-themed "Coronavirus Haggadah."

Bodek's Haggadot [the plural of Haggadah] are illustrated andaverage 135 pages. They havetaken him anywhere from several weeks to several years to complete, he said. They are available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Judaica stores.

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'It's a war zone': New York rabbi in eastern Ukraine tries to keep up hope as bombs fall

His newest effortputs a Shakespearean twist on the Exodus story.

Act I of "The Shakespeare Haggadah" begins on an ominous tone, much like one of the playwright's tragedies. "The husband enters, following synagogue," explain the stage directions. "The wife is harried, beautiful, upset her husband is late. The four sons are squabbling. The in-laws are quiet, as ordered."

"This is the bitter bread of Banishment," Bodek writes, quoting from "Richard II" to describe the matzoeaten aspart of the Passover meal.

At another moment, he riffs on "As You Like It" to modify the Four Questions asked during the Seder: "Tonight we only chew the food of sweet and bitter fancy."

"There's plenty in common," Bodek said of Shakespeare and the Haggadah story, which both have their share of heroes and villains. "We're always eating and drinking wine, people are angry with each other and trying to free themselves from oppression."

Bodek's other works offer ablend of whimsical, topical and theological themes. "A Conversation on the Way" is a discussion between friends with different religious views. "Extracts from Noah's Diary" is a humorous account of the Biblical figure, and "54 Runners, 54 Stories" recountsa grand relay from Brooklyn to the Catskills.

"Bush II, Book I" is about the first term of George W. Bush's presidency written in Old Testament style and "Donald J. Trump Will You Please Go Now!" is a Dr. Seuss-liketake on the most recent occupant of the White House.

Avrohom Biderman, a longtime editor at Artscroll/Mesorah Publications in Rahway, said his Jewish publishing house has released approximately 60 Haggadot since publishing its first in 1977. It'snot unusual for people to buy a new Haggadah annually, he said.

"The Seder is a significant event in Jewish life. People are looking for new insights they can share with their families each year."

There's nothing heretical with a parody of the great text, as long as it remains faithful to the message of the original, Biderman added.

"It's a mitzvah to retell the story of the Exodus," he said, using the Hebrew word for "good deed."

"We want to make it fresh."

Deena Yellin covers religion for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to her work covering how the spiritual intersects with our daily lives,please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email:yellin@northjersey.com

Twitter:@deenayellin

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Can this Jersey guy save the Seder? Teaneck author has Seinfeld, Shakespeare on the case - NorthJersey.com

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Posted By admin on March 26, 2022

Parashat Shemini (Leviticus 9:1-11:47)By Rafi Ellenson | March 22, 2022

Often, we dont see our imperfections until weve completed our first drafts. This isnt a problem. Its a beautiful and essential part of human nature. We dont and we cant achieve perfection. We can only try and try again where we fall short.

Consider the creation narrative in Genesis. Seven days creates one perfect, whole, complete cycle of creation and rest. After thaton the eighth dayis when humanity really begins. On that seventh day, God ceased from the work that God had done, and on the eighth God made humanity a partner in creation. (Genesis 2:1) The true test of what we make, of what we do, of who we are begins on that eighth dayand continues each day after that.

And so begins our Torah portion Shemini, which asks what happens on the eighth day of the mishkan, the tabernacle, the earthly dwelling place of God, the portable dwelling place in the wilderness, after the priests were trained in their sacrifices.

In the Babylonian Talmud, Shabbat 87b, we learn that the day the mishkan was constructed was like the first day of creation, like the first day of the week. It was a day meriting measures of royalty:

Rav avivi from ozenaa said to Rav Ashi: Come and hear a different proof from the following verse: And it came to pass in the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, that the tabernacle was erected. (Exodus 40:17) It was taught: That day took ten crowns. It was the first day of Creation, meaning Sunday, the first day of the offerings brought by the princes, the first day of the priesthood, the first day of service in the Temple, the first time for the descent of fire onto the altar, the first time that consecrated foods were eaten, the first day of the resting of the Divine Presence upon the Jewish people, the first day that the Jewish people were blessed by the priests, and the first day of the prohibition to bring offerings on improvised altars.

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The mishkan transformed the history of the Israelites and of Judaism in fundamental ways. The mishkan brought with it the incomparable beauty of the Divine Presence, the capability to bless and to sacrifice but it brought prohibitions as well. Indeed, while there was excitement and joy regarding the construction of the mishkan, the eighth day after the mishkan was completed was accompanied by panic and tragedythat is, the death of Aarons sons when they brought forward an alien fire as an offering to God without being commanded to do so.

We read in Shemini:

Now Aarons sons Nadav and Avihu each took his fire pan, put fire in it, and laid incense on it; and they offered before alien fire, which had not been enjoined upon them. And fire came forth from and consumed them; thus they died at the instance of

For Nadav and Avihunot to mention their loved onesthe eighth day is defined by the horrifying instance of their death. While the midrashJewish legendary explanationseeks to answer why they died by rationalizing it through sin, arrogance, or drunkenness, none of these feel satisfactory to me. Medieval literature argues that God seems eager to make an example out of Nadav and Avihu, as sacrifices are only to be made when God commands them to be made. Like many, I am struck by what seems a cruel and callous act; an unnecessary response to mistake.

Aaron famously responds to his sons death with traumatized silence. After being admonished by God and Moses and being re-instructed in the laws of sacrifice, Aaron eventually speaks back, harshly, to his brother: Would you want me to not eat the meat of the guilt sacrifice after what I went through today? Would this have pleased God?

Moses is stunned. The leader who once was hard of speech has again reverted to his wordless state by his older brother:

And when Moses heard this, he approved.

Rabbinic literature understands Moses approval to mean a correction. He was wrong to demand so much restraint of his brother on a day of overwhelming pain. It is a poignant moment between the two characters that demonstrates Moses capability to listen and Aarons ability to self-advocate in the face of grieving.

As we ourselves enter our proverbial eighth day of the Covid-19 pandemic for what feels like the umpteenth time, we enter uncharted territory in which mask mandates are lessening, the world seems to be opening up, and the worst parts of the pandemic are, God willing, we hope, behind us. We need to begin asking ourselves: what will we do on the eighth day when mistakes will be rampant? How will we respond when we might do the wrong thing in a given situation and bring forward alien fire? How will we behave in the face of a still uncertain future where we long to reconnect in person and reasonable fears of worsening variants still loom ahead?

I encourage us all to approach others in good will, respect, and good faith. We have gone through a full cycleperhaps many full cyclesof this pandemic togetherof creation in what we have learned and destruction in what we have lostand we cant afford to give up those lessons. The eighth day can be a frightening time because it is the first day without Gods direct interventionwithout the explicit training of how to make sacrifices. We have to set our own path. But if we enter this time with Moses open ears, Aarons grieving heart, and belief in our own personal agency and ability, we will be ready for the challenges that this moment demands.

Rafi Ellenson is a second year rabbinical student at Hebrew College. He works as a Rabbinic Intern at the Bronfman Fellowship, a teaching fellow for the Miller Center for Interreligious Learning & Leadership at Hebrew College, and as a literary translator. He is currently translating the little book of e, a collection of the poet E. Ethelbert Millers haiku, due out for publication by Simon & Schuster in 2023.

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The Test of the Eighth Day | Hebrew College Wendy Linden - Patheos

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Posted By admin on March 26, 2022

Kylie Jenner and Travis Scott with their first child, daughter Stormi (Getty Images for Netflix)

This week, Kylie Jenner revealed that her newborn son with rapper Travis Scott is no longer named Wolf Webster.

FYI our sons name isnt Wolf anymore, Jenner wrote via her Instagram stories. Just wanted to share because I keep seeing Wolf everywhere. A month ago, shed announced her sons ex-name the same way.

There was a mixed reaction to Jenners announcement. Wolf Van Halen son of late musician Eddie Van Halen and actress Valerie Bertinelli wrote on Twitter: THANK F**K. Fans added, jokingly, There can only be one. But actually, in the world of celebrity baby names, Wolf isnt so uncommon. As well as Wolf Van Halen, theres Nakoa-Wolf Momoa, son of Jason Momoa and Lisa Bonet. And theres also the buttoned-up CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer.

Whatever the reason for the name change, Im all for changing a babys name if it doesnt suit them. In fact, I have several birth certificates highlighting my own parents journey to choosing my namewell, at least one of them.

My parents agreed on my first name almost immediately; it was my middle name that gave them trouble. So when pressed by hospital staff for a name, they said they needed more time. I spent the first few weeks of my life legally known as Baby Girl Weingarten.

Many observant Jews have two sets of names. Theres the Hebrew or Yiddish name used mostly by relatives or close friends, and theres the legal name, which for Americans is generally easier to spell and pronounce in English. Im a bit luckier than most. I have a Hebrew name, a legal name, and a constantly fluctuating name.

My Hebrew name is also Rachel, though its pronounced differently (add a guttural ch sound and youre on the right track). Since Im named after someone who died young my aunt Rachel was a young girl when she was murdered by the Nazis during the Holocaust my parents added the name Chaya (which means life) to that Hebrew name. But they didnt think that name was a great fit for my easy-to-pronounce legal name, the one that would be used in schools and on passports (kindly reference the aforementioned guttural ch sounds). And so, they continued to mull it over.

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In the end, my parents came to an unusual solution. They added the middle initial C to Rachel on my birth certificate, and figured that I could choose my own middle name at some point. Rachel C. Weingarten really is my full name, with nothing in between.

I strongly believe being able to choose my own name has shaped a lot of my personality, creativity, and independence. It continues to do so on a daily basis because I play around with that C as often as I can.

Indeed, Ive gone through so many names starting with the letter C that I dont remember most of them. There was Cassatt, for the artist Mary Cassatt, the first American artist and woman who was part of the French Impressionist movement. There was Caoimhe, when I was a columnist for a Scottish newspaper. My editor wasnt a fan of a middle initial in place of a name, so I let my readers choose my middle name.

There was also that time I told a bank officer my middle name was Cai a name Id developed a fondness for that month without realizing she subsequently added it to all my documentation. That took years to straighten out. Ive even had TSA officers try to get me to confess my real middle name when they look at my passport with confusion at airports. It cant be that bad, they say, trying to get me to admit the supposedly terrible name my parents gave me that I couldnt even stand to print out fully on my legal documentation. It isnt, I respond. It really isnt!

I still change my middle name regularly. I recently became a chaplain with the United States Chaplain Corps. In that part of my life, Im referred to as Chaplain Weingarten. Its become so familiar now that I think of my middle name as Chaplain.

When I started writing this, I called my mom to ask her what made her think of giving me an initial instead of a name. I was ahead of my time, she said, half-jokingly, before continuing, I thought people should have the privilege of choosing their own name. I know my mother was teasing, but it truly has been a gift to choose my own name to suit my mood or life stage.

As for Kylie Jenner and her baby whoever Wolf ends up being next I love the fact that when his name didnt fit, she and her baby daddy were brave enough to make the change. A cynic might wonder if changing the babys name is part of a multi-billion dollar entertainment franchise that didnt work with Wolf. But I like to take people at their word. I know from my parents experience that sometimes, feeling like a child doesnt suit anything you come up with can lead to a crisis but then an innovative solution.

Whatever name this baby ends up with, its the right fit for him alone. And if they decide he should simply go with the letter W, I can vouch for the fact that itll work out just fine.

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Voices: Like Kylie Jenner, my parents struggled with my name then they came up with an unusual solution - Yahoo News

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Posted By admin on March 24, 2022

Zbigniew Meissner/PAP

Around 10,000 Hasidic Jews, mainly from Europe and the United States, are expected to visit the town of Lezajsk, in southeastern Poland, to take part in commemorations marking the 235th anniversary of the death of Tzaddik Elimelech Weissblum of Lizhensk.

The first group of visitors to say their prayers at the tzaddik's grave is due to arrive on Wednesday afternoon. The observances will end late on Thursday night.

Those coming to Lezajsk believe that the tzaddik comes down from heaven on the anniversary of his death - he died on March 11, 1787 - and takes their requests to God for health, well-being for their children and success at work.

This is the second of two pilgrimages by Hasidic Jews to Lezajsk. At the end of February, about 5,000 Hasisidim took part in the observances. The double visit to the tzaddik's grave is connected with the Jewish calendar.

Before World War Two, Lezajsk was inhabited by a large Jewish community and was one of the most important centres of Hasidism in Poland. The tradition of visiting the grave of Tzadik Elimelech Weissblum of Lizhensk was revived in the 1970s.

With its grave of Tzaddik Elimelech, Lezajsk is one of the holiest places in the world for Hasidic Jews. Hasidim gather there not only to celebrate anniversaries of the tzaddik's death, but also on the occasion of various Jewish holidays, while making private pilgrimages and tours of Poland.

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Close to 10000 Hasidic Jews from around the world to pray in Poland - The First News

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