Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on August 28, 2021

The toxic effects of lead production are far more drastic and widespread than initially believed, according to a study conducted at Jerusalems Hebrew University.

The study led by geology Prof. Yigal Erel found that as worldwide lead production began and increased, so did the rates of lead absorption found in people living during those time periods.

While it has long been known that lead production could be potentially dangerous to those involved in it, this new study has found that even just living in the wide vicinity of lead production could cause potential health risks.

The study, published in the scientific journal Environmental Science and Technology, closely examined human remains from a burial ground in central Italy that was in consecutive use for 12,000 years.

While increases in lead production rates are noted in environmental archives, such as glaciers and sediments from lakes, lead concentrations in human bones and teeth seldom told the outside story of worldwide lead production rates, until now.

By analyzing bone fragments from 130 people who lived in Rome from as early as 10,000 BCE, well before the advent of metal production, until the 17th century, the researchers were able to compute the level of lead pollution over time, and showed that it closely correlated with the rate of worldwide lead production.

This observation of the toxic effects of metal pollution has wide-reaching implications for public health given the forecasted increase in production of lead and other metals to keep up with manufacturing demands for electronic devices, batteries, solar panels and wind turbines.

While we often think of lead in terms of paint and pipes, lead was first used 2,500 years ago to mint coins. This peaked during the Roman Period, before declining during the Middle Ages.

Prof. Yigal Erel. Photo courtesy of Hebrew University

A thousand years ago, lead production was on the rise again, prompted by silver mining in Germany, then in the New World, and finally to meet the demands of the Industrial Revolution.

Lead pollution in humans has closely followed rates of lead production, explained Erel. Simply put, the more lead we produce, the more people are likely to be absorbing it into their bodies. This has a highly toxic effect.

While miners and employees in recycling facilities have the highest exposure, lead can also be found throughout our daily lives in the form of batteries and the new generation of solar panels that deteriorate over time and release their toxicity into the air we breathe and the soil from which we grow our crops.

Any expanded use of metals should go hand in hand with industrial hygiene, ideally safe metal recycling and increased environmental and toxicological consideration in the selection of metals for industrial use, Erel concluded.

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Toxic effects of lead more widespread than once thought - ISRAEL21c

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Posted By admin on August 28, 2021

BESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 2,137, August 27, 2021

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: For many years, the Jewish people of Israel have been effectively paying the taxes of the Catholic Church and other churches in Jerusalem and elsewhere in Israel. It is high time not only for the churches to start paying the taxes they owe the State of Israel but to restore the vast troves of property looted from the Jewish people and stolen from their heritage by the church over a period of centuries.

Pope Paul VI arrived in Jordan on January 4, 1964. The next day he went to Israel to visit Nazareth, Tiberias, and Tel Megiddo, the place where the battle of Armageddon is prophesied to take place. He met the president of the State of Israel at the time, Zalman Shazar, but did not meet PM Levi Eshkol. He avoided visiting West Jerusalem and never, according to journalists, uttered the word Israel. He apparently took these precautions out of fear that his visit might otherwise constitute a de factorecognition of Israel.

Almost two years later, on October 28, 1965, and 25 years after the Shoah, the Declaration onthe Relation of the Church to non-Christian religions, the Nostra Aetate, was proclaimed. According to the Nostra Aetate, the [Catholic] Church buried the demons of Catholic antisemitism for good.In the eyes of the Conference of European Rabbis, the Rabbinical Council of America, and the Chief Rabbinate of Israel,The Catholic Church began a process of introspection that increasingly expurgated from Church doctrine any hostility toward Jews, enabling trust and confidence to grow between our respective faith communities.

Twenty-eight years later, on December 30, 199345 years after Israels Declaration of Independence on May 14, 1948the Holy See finally recognized Israel. On that date, a Fundamental Agreement Between The Holy See and the State of Israeland an additional protocol were signed. The Fundamental Agreement was ratified by Israel on February 20, 1994, and by the Holy See on March 7, 1994. A VaticanNunciaturein Israel and an Israeli embassy in Rome were established on January 19, 1994.

On November 10, 1997, the Holy See and Israel entered into a Legal Personality Agreement.Pursuant to Article 11 of this agreement, the Holy See and the State of Israel were to negotiate a comprehensive pact containing solutions acceptable to both parties on any unclear, unsettled, or disputed issues concerning economic and property matters relating to the Catholic Church or to its communities and institutions.

A Permanent Bilateral Working Commission was created and meetings took place over a period of many years, but a definitive agreement was not reached. In 2017, a proposal was made by the Working Commission but neither the Holy See nor Israel was willing to sign it.

The parties originally intended that an agreement should be reached within two years of the beginning of the negotiations (Article 10.3). During the negotiations, the parties agreed to avoid actions incompatible with the Agreements commitments (Article 10.4).

According to international law, in such circumstances, an agreement should have been reached within a reasonable time. Over 26 years have passed since the signing of the Agreement but no solutions have been agreed upon. Consequently, Israel cannot be faulted if it applies Israeli law to Catholic Church properties.

Under the Ottomans and the British Mandate, properties of the Church enjoyed a special legal and tax status pursuant to the Accords of Mytileneof 2, 4, 6, 9 and 10 November 1901 (Exchange of Letters). Under these Accords, French churches, chapels, hospitals, clinics, orphanages, and asylums, as well as other French and protected French institutions, were granted customs and tax privileges. The Turks omitted reference to treaties and conventions and referred to past practice and usage. By the Accords of Constantinopleof 18 November 1913, most French Catholic establishments (schools, churches, convents, hospitals, medical dispensaries) were put under the protection of France and privileges were added. These establishments were exempted from customs, income, municipal, and property taxes.

Other churches and European states succeeded in obtaining similar privileges from the Ottoman Empire.

On September 9, 1914, the Ottoman government, taking advantage of the outbreak of war in Europe, announced its decision to abolish Capitulations as of October 1 of that year. The above privileges were abolished and enemy consuls expelled (including the French Consul). The French Religious Protectorate came to an end.

During the British Mandate, Great Britain reinstated some exemptions and privileges to different churches, but there was no doubt that the days of the protectorate were over. Herbert Samuel, the first British High Commissioner in Palestine, reminded Cardinal Gasparri, There is no French protectorate anymore France gave it up in San Remo.

Church status became unclear with the creation of the State of Israel in 1948. According to international law, Israel was not the successor state of any existing sovereign state. Consequently, such privileges could not continue to apply.

In the Israel Land Registry (the Tabu), French Catholic establishments are registered under the name of their owner. These establishments are not French colonies and do not constitute independent territory that Israel has surrendered to France. They therefore cannot be considered consulates or embassies under international law. Nevertheless, this position was used by Presidents Jacques Chirac and Emmanuel Macron when they visited Christian churches in Israel as grounds to bar the entry of Israeli security guards.

France argued that it has rights and privileges mentioned in the Accords of Mytilene, the Accord of Constantinople (18 December 1913), and the Accords Chauvel-Fischer(6 September 1948-31 January 1949), and that Israel recognized these rights as a result of an exchange of letters between the provisional government of the State of Israel and the French Republic between 6 September 1948 and 31 January 1949. French recognition of the State of Israel depended on this, and on the acceptance of the eventual internationalization of Jerusalem.

In a letter dated 6 September 1948 from Maurice Fischer, Representative of the Provisionary Government of the State of Israel in Paris, to Jean Binoche, Director for Africa-Levant in the French Foreign Affairs Ministry, the Israeli government reaffirmed that it has [on] principle to respect the acquired rights and privileges of the French Catholic Establishments. France requested confirmation on 24 January 1949 and it was immediately given. France then recognized the State of Israel on the same day: 24 January 1949.

These rights and privileges are limited to specific French Catholic institutions (Oeuvres Franaises tablies sur lensemble de lex-territoire Palestinien) as listed in the letter dated 24 January 1949. They do not apply to all churches.

Under Israeli law, international agreements must be voted into law by the Israeli Parliament (Knesset). The Israeli Supreme Court did not grant any legal weight to the Accord Chauvel-Fischer because no law was voted on by the Knesset. Still, the Israeli government agreed to maintain the tax exemptions and privileges accorded to the French Catholic establishments.

According to the New Testament, Jesus said one should Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesars (Mark 12:17and Luke 20:25) and Pay everyone what you owe him: taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is due (Romans 13:7).

However, ever since the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, Catholic and other Christian churches have refused to pay taxes due Israel and its municipalities on their properties and local income. In 2002, the Knesset canceled certain tax exemptions to religious institutions (of any denomination) that offer health, hospitality, and welfare services (with the exception of houses of prayer like synagogues, churches, and convents), ritual baths, and educational institutions that are not commercial activities.

While it may seem reasonable that houses of prayer, ritual baths, and educational institutions be exempt from taxes, it is against internationally accepted rules of fair competition to exempt from taxes hotels, stores, restaurants, hostels, guest houses, hospitals, welfare services, and leases of apartments belonging to churches. They operate like regular commercial businesses. They are classified as unrelated business activitiesand should therefore be subject to taxes.

In 2012, the European Court of Justice obliged Italy to close a loophole enabling the Vatican and religious orders to avoid property tax on commercial activities as long as the premises contained a chapel. This action was brought by directly concerned competitors:the private educational establishment Scuola Elementare Maria Montessori and Pietro Ferracci, the owner of a bed and breakfast. In 2018, theEuropean Court of Justice ruledthat the Vatican must pay Italy 4 billion in unpaid taxes from 2006-11, and annulledthe EU Commissions decision not to order recovery of unlawful aid granted by Italy in the form of an exemption from municipal tax on real property.

If we follow these decisions, churches should pay taxes in Israel on the profits made in Israel by their schools, hotels, hostels, hospitals, and so on, and pay state and municipality taxes relating to properties that are not places of prayer, such as dormitories and priest residences.

In December 2017, the Jerusalem Municipality asked for payment of unpaid commercial taxes amounting to 650 million shekels (about $186 million) and froze church bank accounts.

This led the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and other churches to demonize Israel, going so far as to imply that Jerusalem does not belong to the Jewish State. For the Holy See and other churches, Jerusalem must be internationalized and become a corpus separatum. (This is not a new demand. During the Mandate period in Palestine, Catholic Church leaders complained, as do Arabs today, about the Judaization of Jerusalem.)

The Churches insist that they are not obliged to pay taxes to the Jewish State, even though their scripture states that it is necessary to submit to authority, not only to avoid punishment, but also as a matter of conscience(Romans 13:5).

Following protests and international pressure, then-Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu suspended tax procedures on Jerusalem church institutions, and committees were set up to bury the problem (a common tactic). The COVID-19 pandemic temporarily led to the closure of some of the affected tax-free places.

What all this means is that Israelis (of Jerusalem and elsewhere) are paying sanitation, garbage collection, municipal service, and other taxes that are not paid by the churches or by their commercial businesses (shops, hotels, and restaurants). The Mamilla Hotel,like other hotels, pays taxes (income and municipal). The Notre Dame Hotel, situated less than 100 meters from the Mamilla Hotel, does not pay any taxes.

The churches have apparently forgotten that the Gospel says:

Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which is from God. The authorities that exist have been appointed by God. Consequently, whoever resists authority is opposing what God has set in place, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselvesRomans 13: 1-2

For Israel, the behavior of the churches is a continuation of the past. For Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos III, Israels actions remind us all of laws of a similar nature which were enacted against the Jews during dark periods in Europe. This systematic and unprecedented attack against Christians in the Holy Land severely violates the most basicsovereign rights.

That is an astonishing assertion. After all the discrimination, humiliation, deprivations, and thefts of property and assets perpetrated on the Jews in the world and in Israel over the course of historywrongs and cruelties often inspired by the churchchurch leaders are happy to allow the Jews of today to pay their taxes for them, and are affronted by the suggestion that this is an injustice. Rather than blaming the Jewish people, church leaders should instead be thinking about how to compensate them.

Another subject that has not been mentioned in any committee until now is the return of the Jewish national and cultural heritage to the Israel Chief Rabbinate.

Pope Francis presumably understands the words Thou shalt not steal, The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10), and For I the Lord love justice, I hate robbery (Isaiah 61: 8).

Will he atone, as have many Christians, for the sins of previous church leaders and return to Israels Chief Rabbinate what was looted by the church from Gods people over the course of history? These thefts include Temple candelabragiven to Pope Innocent III by Baldwin I after the sacking of Constantinopleand the massacre of the Christian Orthodox population; Temple shofars and utensils; garments of the High Priest; the Tzitz (crown); the Nezer (blade); a gold plaque with the words Kodesh le-YHWH (Dedicated to the Lord);books of prayer; documents; writings; sacred objects; cultural objects; and many other objets dart, books, Talmuds, and manuscripts that the Vatican and other churches have appropriated and placed in their own storerooms, libraries, and museums.

These objects are the Jewish Peoples national, religious, and cultural heritage. They are Jewish and they belong to Israel, the State of the Jewish people, where more than half the worlds Jews live.

Pope Paul VI initiated a process of returning relics to the Orthodox Church. In 1965, relics of Saint Titus, which had been taken to Venice in 1669, were returned to Crete. In 2000, Pope John Paul II returned relics of Saint Gregory the Illuminator to the Armenian Orthodox Church. In 2004, relics of Saint Gregory the Theologian and Saint John Chrysostom were returned to Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople. In 2004, the same Pope returned the Madonna of Kazan to the Russian Orthodox Church in Moscow. Are Jews less entitled to their heritage than others?

After two millennia of robbery, discrimination, persecution, torture, murder, burnings, expulsions, expropriations, book burnings, kidnapping and forced conversion, Israel should demand in the name of the Jewish People that the Roman Catholic Church, the Christian Greek Orthodox Church, and all other churches present in the Holy Land return to the Jewish State all lands and properties situated in Israel that are not places of worship.

According to a study by the Jerusalem Institute for Policy Studies, in Jerusalem alone churches hold some 5,000 dunams (approximately 1,235 acres) of land in important areas of the city, such as the Old City, the Historic Basin, the Mount of Olives, Liberty Bell Park, Bloomfield Garden, Keren Hayesod Street and the surrounding area, the Talbiyeh neighborhood, the Valley of the Cross and the surrounding area, the public park around San Simon Monastery, the area around Mar Elias Monastery close to the Har Homa neighborhood, and more.

These lands and propertieswere given to the Jews by God. The churches held them in trust until the present return of the Jews to the land He gave them. The churches did not purchase them from anyone with genuine title. If they bought the lands, they did so from illegitimate owners who had taken them from their legitimate owner, the Jewish People.

Voluntary restitution of such possessions would be a small token of compensation after thousands of years of spoliation and theft of holy Jewish land and property.

Whatever happens, Israel has the right and should begin an intensive program of restitution of property and land in Israel (including the West Bank) that are not places of worship. This would be just, and would in no way be an assault on freedom of religion.

As the indigenous people of the land, the Jews

have the right to redress, by means that can include restitution or, when this is not possible, just, fair and equitable compensation, for the lands, territories and resources which they have traditionally owned or otherwise occupied or used, and which have been confiscated, taken, occupied, used or damaged without their free, prior and informed consent (Art. 28.1 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People (UNDRIP).

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Dr. Michael Calvo, born in Tunis, Tunisia, is an expert in International Law. He was a Member of the International Court of Arbitration. He is the author of The Middle East and World War III Why No Peace?, with Preface byCol. Richard Kemp, CBE. Dr. Calvo can be reached on LinkedIn.

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Israel and the Holy See - besacenter.org

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Posted By admin on August 28, 2021

In August 1981, Dr. Sidney Bolkosky, professor of history at the University of Michigan-Dearborn (UM-D), conducted an interview with Salvatore and Lily Katan, Detroit-area survivors of the Holocaust. This was just the beginning of a wonderful project.

Over the years, Bolkosky interviewed nearly 300 Holocaust survivors. These interviews became the Voice/Vision Holocaust Survivor Oral History Archive, a collection at the Mardigian Library at UM-D. As its website states: This archive represents a guarantee of honest presentation unembroidered, without dramatization, a scholarly yet austerely moving collection of information and insight, and that the Voice/Vision Archive is made to be used. In this respect, most of the interviews are now online.

Dr. Sidney Bolkosky (1944-2013) was born and raised in Rochester, N.Y., the son of Jewish immigrants. He earned a B.A. from the University of Rochester, an M.A. from Wayne State University, and a Ph.D. from SUNY-Binghamton. In 1972, Bolkosky returned to Michigan for a position at UM-D, where he made a distinguished career over the next 40 years, including receiving numerous awards for teaching as well as establishing the Voice/Vision Archive. Among his many publications was a first-rate history of Detroits Jewish community in 1991, Harmony and Dissonance: Voices of Jewish Identity in Detroit, 1914-1967.

Bolkosky did not believe he had any relatives in the Holocaust. Despite no direct connection to the Shoah, however, Bolkosky developed a keen interest in the subject. He constructed a course on the Holocaust with two teachers from Oakland County in 1978 and began his interviews with survivors in 1981. At that time, Bolkosky was on the cusp of a surge of popular and scholarly interest in the Holocaust, and he was a pioneer in collecting oral histories of survivors. Bolkosky retired from UM-D in 2012.

Dr. Jamie Wraight, Bolkoskys successor and current director of Voice/Vision Archive, described Bolkoskys legacy: It was Sids ability to let the survivors tell their stories at a pivotal point in their lives, as well as a pivotal point in the history of Holocaust memory, that makes the interviews in the archive so important and unique. The survivors were ready to talk, and Sid was there to listen. As I look back now at the interviews that Sid Bolkosky conducted over the span of nearly 40 years, Im always kind of blown away by how important his effort to collect these stories was.

Bolkosky left the Voice/Vision Archive in good hands. Dr. Wraight was first hired as a part-time curator for the collection in 2000 and, subsequently, worked with Bolkosky for many years. Upon Bolkoskys retirement, Wraight became director of the Voice/Vision Archive. In addition, he also teaches about the Holocaust at UM-D, as well as courses on modern and ancient history, and has lectured on the subject around the nation.

Sidenote: We are grateful that Wraight, with the support of Dr. Martin Hershock, dean of the College of Arts, Sciences and Letters, partnered with the Detroit Jewish News Foundation in January 2020 to display the Foundations exhibit, The Holocaust Unfolds, at the Mardigian Library.

Dr. Bolkoskys first interview 40 years ago led to a significant legacy at UM-D. The Voice/Vision Archive is one of the most important collections of survivor oral histories in the world.

Want to learn more? Go to the DJN Foundation archives, available for free at http://www.djnfoundation.org.

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Looking Back: The Bold Vision of Dr. Sidney Bolkosky Detroit Jewish News - The Jewish News

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Posted By admin on August 28, 2021

Israels inoculation campaign has received a significant boost in the ultra-Orthodox sector, with one of the countrys top rabbis declaring that unvaccinated teachers arent welcome in his community.

Chaim Kanievsky is the leader of a large section of the Ashkenazi ultra-Orthodox community, and his relationship with authorities during the pandemic has been complicated. For example, at times he okayed the opening of schools in violation of national rules.

But he has now unequivocally thrown his weight behind the governments vaccination push, telling coronavirus czar Salman Zarka late Tuesday that he wants principals to suspend teachers who arent vaccinated.

A teacher or an educator who hasnt been vaccinated wont come to teach, said Kanievsky, suggesting that vaccines fulfill the Jewish value of safeguarding life.

Notably, his stance goes further than the governments position on vaccinations and teachers, which permits regular testing instead of vaccination. Under the governments plan to reopen schools nationwide on September 1, teachers must present a Green Pass in order to enter schools; such a pass is granted to those who are vaccinated, recovered or who present a negative COVID test from the past 72 hours.

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Yehoshua Pfeffer, head of the Haredi Israel division at the Tikvah Fund, a philanthropic foundation focused on education, said: In a way it can be seen as an attempt to make amends for not taking a strong enough stance in the first waves, which made a very bad impression with the media and the general population.

Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky attends a campaign event for the ultra-Orthodox Degel HaTorah party in the northern city of Safed on February 26, 2020. (David Cohen/Flash90)

Authorities believe pushing for vaccination in the Haredi community, which has been particularly prone to infection in past waves and which is slightly more hesitant about vaccines, to be very important.

This is especially the case now, as the main Haredi cities of Elad, Beitar Illit, Bnei Brak and Modiin Illit have all become red, indicating high infection rates. Still, high infections are not translating to high rates of serious illness at this point, and serious cases in the Haredi community are actually disproportionately low, apparently because there is a large proportion of young people.

Mani Hadad, spokesman on the Health Ministrys Haredi desk, told The Times of Israel: We knew this would happen and there would be an increase in cases in the community, given people live in high-density settings and as Haredi schools have already restarted, but we are not worried at this stage. Vaccination levels are high, and people are open to boosters.

In Kanievskys meeting with Zarka, who comes from Israels Druze minority, the latter asked the rabbi for a blessing for the general vaccination campaign and for the ongoing distribution of booster shots. Kanievsky said that vaccines are bsiyata dishmaya, an Aramaic phrase suggesting they have come about with the help of heaven.

Kanievsky leads the non-Hasidic part of the ultra-Orthodox Ashkenazic community. But there is also growing enthusiasm for vaccinations among Hasidim. The rebbes or grand rabbis of the Belz, Gur, and Viznitz communities have all called upon their followers to get a third COVID shot as part of the booster campaign.

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Top rabbi says unvaccinated teachers not welcome in Haredi schools - The Times of Israel

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Posted By admin on August 28, 2021

They're Jewish, live in Germany and are part of the "Third Generation," the grandchildren of Holocaust survivors: Soprano Shai Terry, writer and feminist Laura Cazes, writer Dmitrij Kapitelman and Deborah Feldman, author of the global bestseller Unorthodox. The memoir tells the story of her upbringing in an ultra-Orthodox Hasidic community in New York City. Feldman became known to millions around the world after her book was made into an Emmy Award-winning Netflix series of the same name.

The four cultural figures were panelists in the DW discussion "Jewish Life in Germany. The Third Generation on the Move."The event, which took place at the Jewish Museum Berlin, was part of a year-long program celebrating 1,700 years of Jewish life in Germany. But rather than revolving around the past, the anniversary seeks to focus on the future of Judaism and the questions surrounding it.

Deborah Feldman became famous around the world for her book 'Unorthodox' and the subsequent Netflix series based on it

But is it possible to have such a focus in a discussion that takes place at the Jewish Museum Berlin? The institution deals with Jewish culture and the Holocaust and is located around 20 kilometers (12 miles) away from where the Nazis planned the extermination ofEuropean Jews.

Shai Terry came to Germany from Israel three years ago. It was clear to her that her chances as an opera singer would be limited in Israel, so she decided to go to Mainz to study voice and opera at university. "We try to leave history in the past," she said. Among her non-Jewish friends, Terry has observed a large interest in Jewish customs and traditions, as well as in Judaism's religious aspects.

Shai Terry came to Germany to help build her operatic career

Feldman shared similar thoughts. "When I came to Germany, I was fascinated about the intense passionate interest in what I am," she said.

Upon leaving her insular Jewish community in New York City, Feldman says she was met with disinterest from the larger secular United States; no one in her university writing workshops was interested in her roots, she added. [Feldman attended Sarah Lawrence College after leaving her ultra-Orthodox communityEds.] But after moving to Berlin, she immediately felt she was among like-minded people, Feldman said.

"It's the first place where I felt a sense of community, gratified by the diverse group of Jewish people living here," said Feldman, adding:"So many Jews fight for recognition here. They are prepared to fight for new ideas on what it means to be Jewish."

Both Terry and Feldman feel welcome in Germany, even though last year's attacks in Halle and Hanau and daily aggression towards Jews make them fearful.

Laura Cazes, a professed feminist who works for the Central Welfare Board of Jews in Germany (ZWST), definedthe fields of tension her generation has to deal with:"When we talk about Jewish life, then we often actually also talk about the Holocaust, about dead Jewish life," she said.

Cazes said it's up to her generation to renegotiate and redefine the social status of Jews in Germany, and she is convinced that her generation is coming into its own. A more diverse and self-confident Jewish community is taking shape, she said.

Laura Cazes works at a major Jewish organization in Germany

Dmitrij Kapitelman was 8-years old in 1994 when he came to Germany from Ukraine with his parents. They were refugees who were allowed to come to Germany through an expedited process for Jews orthose of Jewish heritage living in post-Soviet countries.

Kapitelman's childhood and teenage years in Leipzig were dominated by the constant threat of neo-Nazis. In 2016 he wrote his first novel, My Invisible Father's Smile (Das Lcheln meines unsichtbaren Vaters) based on a trip he took with his father to Israel.

Dmitrij Kapitelman has published two autobiographical novels

While promoting the book at some 100 events throughout Germany, Kapitelman said he noticed one thing. "The atmosphere was nearly almost always the same," he said. "Such rigidity, awkwardness." This would last 20 minutes, and then there would be a sudden shift. "The audience had this desire for reconciliation."

Kapitelman's second autobiographical novel, Eine Formalie in Kiew (A Formality in Kyiv), deals with heritage and nationality. The protagonist is confronted by absurd hurdles as he tries to acquire German citizenship after two decades of living in Germany.

Kapitelman now has German nationality but this doesn't make the question of identity any easier. His answer on the subject was succinct, but it left room for further discussion:"I am a Russian, German, Jewish writer. That's what I've got to offer. That's what I feel comfortable with."

He and other participants on the panel said they struggle with the idea of identifying a "Heimat," a home or place where they belong.

"Home is where you can live the best version of yourself," Terry said.

Feldman found her home in the German language; she wrote her latest book in German. She explained how English was always her second language since she grew up with Yiddish, which later opened the door to German.

Feldman has been living in the German capital since 2014. As she says, "I have set roots in the very thin sandy soil of Berlin."

An Englishvideo recording of the panel discussion will be available on the DW News YouTube channel starting August 31.

This article has been translated fromGerman by Cristina Burack.

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Young, Jewish and on the move in Germany - DW (English)

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Posted By admin on August 25, 2021

Dr Anthony Fauci has said the new aim is to get the pandemic under control by the spring, but that it will depend on the unvaccinated changing course and getting the jab.

The Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the Chief Medical Advisor to the president told CNN: If we can get through this winter, and get really the majority, overwhelming majority of the 90 million people who have not been vaccinated, vaccinated, I hope we can start to get some good control in the spring of 2022.

Dr Fauci said getting the pandemic under control means that you have either the overwhelming majority of the population vaccinated, those who have been infected ... and have cleared the virus will have a degree of protection.

He added that the recommendation for those who have been infected and cleared of the disease is that those people also get vaccinated because the degree of protection that you could induce in someone who has been infected, who has then recovered and then vaccinated, is an enormous increase in the degree of protection.

Dr Fauci said that if the US can get the 90 million currently unvaccinated eligible individuals to get the shots necessary I think we can get a degree of overall blanket protection of the community that as we get into the early part of 2022 ... we could start getting back to a degree of normality, namely reassuming the things that we were hoping we could do. Restaurants, theatres, that kind of thing.

But he said getting through the winter ... could be complicated by influenza or by a respiratory syncytial virus, which is a very common and contagious respiratory virus.

Dr Fauci also told CNN that theres a big caveat as the pandemic is caused by a very wily virus.

We thought we were going to have that degree of freedom as we got into the Fourth of July and the summer, and then along comes a sucker punch with the Delta variant, which is extraordinary in its capability of spreading from person to person, Dr Fauci said.

He said the hope is to see the start of a return to normal by spring 2022, but theres no guarantee because its up to us. If we keep lingering without getting those people vaccinated, that should be vaccinated, this thing could linger on leading to the development of another variant, which could complicate things. So, its within our power to get this under control.

Dr Fausi said it remains unclear what percentage of the population needs to get vaccinated to reach a level of control, as Covid-19 is a new disease.

Weve been there with measles. We know with measles, you get 90-plus per cent of the population vaccinated, you have herd immunity, he said.

You get to a community like we saw a couple of years ago, with [the] Hasidic Jewish community in New York, they got down below into the 80s and lower and they had an outbreak. The number could be 90, it could be 85. We dont know what it is. And what I say when people ask me and try to pin it down, you know how youre going to know, just get as many people vaccinated as you possibly can and when you get control, thatll be the number.

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Fauci says new aim is to get Covid under control by spring but this depends on unvaccinated changing course - The Independent

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Posted By admin on August 25, 2021

The man accused of stabbing a rabbi last month outside a Jewish day school is expected to be arraigned in Suffolk Superior Court on Thursday after a grand jury returned nine indictments against him, prosecutors said.

Khaled Awad, 24, is expected to be arraigned on armed assault with intent to murder, aggravated assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon (a knife), assault by means of a dangerous weapon (a gun), assault and battery for the purpose of intimidation resulting in bodily injury, violating an individuals constitutional rights, two counts of assault by means of a dangerous weapon and two counts of carrying a dangerous weapon on school grounds, Suffolk District Attorney Rachael Rollins said.

Awad previously was arraigned in Brighton District Court in connection with the July 1 attack on Rabbi Shlomo Noginski and sent to Bridgewater State Hospital for evaluation.

This act of violence nearly killed the victim, Rollins said. But it also traumatized the entire Jewish community and deeply impacted the people of Brighton.

Security camera footage captured Awad approaching the victim on the Jewish day schools steps as a childrens camp was underway. The victims style of dress made him identifiable as an Hasidic Jew, and a large menorah on the schools grounds made clear that the institution was affiliated with Judaism, the district attorney said.

Awad allegedly drew a weapon that appeared to be a gun and made what the victim interpreted to be a demand for the keys to the school van, she said. When the rabbi attempted to hand over the keys, Awad rejected them and instead motioned for the rabbi to enter the van, Rollins said.

At the same time, Awad put away the weapon and pulled out a knife, Rollins said. The victim fled to a nearby park, she said, and chased after him and stabbed him nine times. The rabbi also suffered serious wounds to the upper left chest near his heart and deep lacerations to his left arm, which he had used to try to shield himself from the attack.

Witnesses called 911, and officers found Awad minutes later in a nearby alleyway, where he brandished a gun at the officers, Rollins said. The officers convinced him to drop his weapon, and he was taken into custody after a struggle.

Detectives located security camera footage from multiple locations as well as body-worn camera footage that captured the attack and the events that followed nearly in their entirety, she said.

A witness also captured footage on a cellphone of Awad behaving suspiciously in the area of the day school a day prior to the attack, the district attorney said.

People who knew him told investigators he hated Jews. Awads attorney, Janice Bassil, could not immediately be reached for comment.

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Man accused of stabbing rabbi to be arraigned on nine indictments, including violating his Constitutional rights - Boston Herald

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Posted By admin on August 25, 2021

Filmmaker Keith Thomas, the director of the horror hit The Vigil, says he believes in telling authentic and undiscovered stories of human experience from different cultural perspectives. With The Vigil, the first-time director presents a story that is steeped in ancient Jewish lore and demonology.It follows Yakov Ronen (Dave Davis), a financially struggling Hasidic Jew who recently left his community. He reluctantly accepts an offer from his former rabbi to take on the responsibility of an overnight shomer, the ritualistic practice of looking after a dead body. But during the course of the night, he is targeted by a malevolent spirit known as a Mazzik. Hollywood Horror Film The Vigil to Release in India.

Thomas, who is from the Jewish community, said the film has an authentic appeal for audiences as it has been made from an insiders perspective.I tend to prefer stories that are rooted in authentic cultural perspectives rather than generalized experience. Give me a unique supernatural entity over the traditional ghost or vampire any day, Thomas told PTI in an email interview.The filmmaker said he wanted to create a film that dealt with themes of trauma and memory through the lens of the Jewish culture and faith. The Gray Man: Ryan Gosling and Chris Evans Paid $20 Million Each for Russo Bros Netflix Film.

I was also looking for a debut subject that felt unique and at the same time personal. There are very few Jewish horror films and even fewer that are truly Jewish in their approach, he added. One of the reasons for the lack of Jewish horror movies is that the community in itself is not very superstitious, Thomas said.There are stories about the evil eye and various accounts of demons but because there isnt a devil or a hell as there are in other faiths, supernatural evil isnt a common theme. I do think it is an untapped vein of horror and I hope there will be more Jewish horror films, he added.

The movie, which is streaming on Amazon Prime Video, also explores themes of isolation, grief, pain and suffocation. The director said he used a lot of his own experiences to tell the story.I pulled from my own psyche a lot. I rooted around in my memories both to find scares which are so subjective and emotionally resonant character beats.I like writing characters who are in the midst of crisis and plumbing emotional depths. For me, horror themes go hand in hand with personal struggles, Thomas said.

Asked why it was important for him to make a Jewish film about Jewish pain, the director said the theme worked well with the genre. A Jewish horror film, in my mind, needs to deal with concerns that are important to the community.And for this community, the Hasidic community, the trauma of history weighs very heavily, he said. During the Holocaust in the 1940s, the Hasidic community was particularly targeted by the Nazis as their clothing and other distinctive practices made it difficult for them to hide. Thomas said he did a lot of research while developing the script, especially around the mythology of the Mazzik a real demon from ancient Jewish lore.

I did not know about the Mazzik before writing the script. I came across it in some arcane literature, very little of which has been translated In pre-production, we had an amazing team of consultants to ensure that all of the aspects about the community, the religious expression, the signs and symbols, were accurate, he added. Also, in reality, the tradition of sitting as a shomer is quite beautiful, he said. I never (sat as a shomer) but I do know many friends and family members who have. None of them have experienced anything supernatural and the ritual itself is quite a beautiful one, he added. The film is executive produced by Hollywood producer Jason Blums Blumhouse Productions banner.

Thomas said the studio liked The Vigil a lot after the movie premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2019. The director is now collaborating with Blumhouse for a new take on Stephen Kings acclaimed 1980 novel Firestarter. Blumhouse was very impressed with The Vigil.They saw it after it premiered at TIFF and I met with them a few weeks later. That is what led to my making the new adaptation of Firestarter for them, he added.

Thomas said he had never thought about a career in filmmaking until he was bitten by the writing bug.I never set out to be a filmmaker. I wanted to be a physician and had a career in clinical research before the writing bug sidelined my focus. I was fortunate that I was able to use my time as a screenwriter while still working a full-time day job to learn the ropes of filmmaking. It took a decade of toiling away in the trenches to get to this point, he said. Thomas, however, believes that his prior experience will help him in navigating the unpredictable film industry. I may have come to it later in my life than most I am in my mid-40s but I feel as though my previous experience provides me with a balanced approach to what is a very unpredictable industry, he said.

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The Vigil Director Keith Thomas: Prefer To Tell Stories of Human Experience Rooted in Authentic Cultural Perspectives - Sports Grind Entertainment

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Posted By admin on August 25, 2021

Bernie Sanders, Joe Biden, and the left would have you believe that involving government in every nook and cranny of Americans lives will bring nothing but benefits for the public. But the case of Alta Fixsler, a girl British courts would effectively condemn to death, provides another example of the very real costs of the ever-encroaching power of the state on the rights of parents and the right to life.

The two-year-old Fixsler suffered a catastrophic brain injury at birth. Her parents, Hasidic Jews, consider withdrawing life-saving medical treatment against their religious beliefs. They wish to evacuate their child overseas, either to Israel or the United States, for treatment. American authorities have granted Fixsler, whose father holds U.S. citizenship, a non-immigrant visa to receive care.

But British authorities have forbidden Fixslers parents from transferring her overseas for treatment. By instead requiring that her medical care be withdrawn, they have all but issued her death sentence. A Mayrulingin the matter did not mince words: Alta has no quality of life. The burdens of Altas life outweigh any benefits that [British authorities have] been able to ascertain.

The ruling joins a growing line of cases in which U.K. authorities have demanded that parents watch their children die when care gets withdrawn. To the names of Charlie Gard, Alfie Evans, and other infants who succumbed because courts would not allow their parents to continue providing medical care, British courts would now add the name of Alta Fixsler.

In response to the justifiable outrage the Fixsler case has generated, the British intelligentsia continues to make the case that, however unfortunate the circumstances, the state and not parents should make these life-and-death choices. An Oxford University ethicist claimed parents dont have an absolute right to make decisions for their children. The legal and ethical system in [the U.K.] says that the childs interests must take precedence.

Of course parents do not have an absolute right to make decisions that would result in their childrens harm, or to abuse or neglect their offspring. But by all accounts, the Fixslers deeply love and care for their young daughter, and want to provide for her including via medical treatment as best they can.

As the mother of two young daughters, including one with a disability, I find the British willingness to substitute the judgment of the state for the wishes of two loving, qualified parents deeply troubling. The callous language used in its rulings, as when the judge wrote Fixslers parents would face the siren call of continuing medical treatment should she be transported to Israel, shows the way in which the U.K. court system devalues the lives of the most vulnerable in society.

Its not just the courts; socialized medicine is also to blame. Although notdirectly involved in the legal dispute regarding the Fixsler case,Britains model of universal health care, the National Health Service, denies access to life-saving therapeutics and treatments and empowers government, giving bureaucrats the authority to make critical care decisions for individuals, silencing the patient and their loved ones.

Sadly, our health-care and legal systems in the United States are not far behind. With the lefts constant push for socialized medicine, the growth of the murderous abortion industry, and legalized euthanasia, we may find ourselves in similar situations as the Fixsler case where vulnerable life is no longer valued.

As a society, we need to protect and cherish the most defenseless in our midst, and I hope and pray that Britain will come to the same conclusion for young Alta Fixsler.

Mary Vought resides in Virginia with her husband and two children. You can follow her at @MaryVought.

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Thanks To Government-Run Health Care, Alta Fixsler Is Fighting To Live - The Federalist

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Posted By admin on August 25, 2021

Rockland County Democratic Committee members have traditionally been spliton policies and politics, but now add COVID vaccination and testing requirements for members who would attendits upcoming nominating convention.

Acting Chairman Christian Sampson of Ramapo has rejected theexecutive committee'svote to require committee members to showproof of vaccination or a negative COVID test in order to attendThursday'sconvention.

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The executive committee said italso found an outdoor venue for the convention to fill committee vacancies, choose a new chairperson and recommendanelections commissioner.

But despite those maneuvers, Sampson remained adamant that the indoor event would take place at 7 p.m. at the West Haverstraw Community Center at130 Samsondale Ave.. The party's original notice gave the wrong address and participants are encouraged to check in at 6 p.m.

TheRockland Democratic Party standoff involving the extent of precautions against the deadly COVID-19 virus is wrapped up in a political split between the party's progressive wing and other Democrats, including the influential Ramapo Party who are backed by the Hasidic Jewish bloc vote.

The party has 600 members, though numerous vacancies exist,and some could be filled at the convention.

Sampson, a former Ramapo Town Clerk and East Ramapo School Board member, said the West Haverstraw venue will have mandatory mask-wearing and spacing of seats. He said the building has a state-of-the-art air filtration systemthat kills COVID and many other viruses.

Sampson said for those party members concerned about the virus, the party bylaws allow for a proxy vote so their choices will be counted.

The executive committee vote was not overwhelming, Sampson said, estimating it was 13-11 for the notifications.

"I was quite surprised they indicated they wouldexclude folks who were not vaccinated and didnt have a negative test," Sampson said. "I dont believe we canlegally exclude people. It's certainly not what our party stands for.We have a proxy process in our bylaws."

The standoff likely means more votes by proxy, where party members votes are cast by others attending the convention.

Aa COVID numbers in Rockland increase and areas in the county have full vaccination rates among adults as low as16%, some executive committee members raised concerns about anin-person gathering. The leadership voted on Joseph Coe's recommendation to require certification of vaccination and/or a negative COVID test result.

This was an easy yes vote, said Dr. Ivanya Alpert, an executive committeemember, apediatrician and a former Piermont trustee. With the delta variant on the rise and with so many of our committee members vulnerable, including senior citizens, and parents with unvaccinated children, it is incumbent on the chair to put measures in place to ensure the safety of our members and the community at large.

Alpert wrote Sampson that the vaccination and COVID testing requirement waslawfully voted on and adopted.

"While you may disagree with this vote, you as chair do not have the power to unilaterally overrule a vote of the EC," Alpert said. "Moreover, by NOT mandating proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test, you are limiting meeting access for those who are elderly, disabled, or who have medical conditions."

Trudi Feiner, 93, an Orangetown resident and decades-long party member, said she may not attend theconvention.

Ive been a member of this committee for many years, and I know how important my vote is, but Im also not sure Im willing to jeopardize my health and possibly even my life in order to attend," Feiner said in a statement. "I would ask someone to carry a proxy for me, but everyone I know feels just as uncomfortable attending an indoor convention with people who may not be vaccinated."

The Democrats on Thursday will look to replace Kristen Zebrowski Stavisky, who held the dual positions of party chair and elections commissioner. She has been appointed as the Democratic co-executive director of the New York State Board of Elections effective July 31.

Sampson said he will seek the party chair to fill the unexpired term of Zebrowski Stavisky, the elections commissioner since 2013. .Former Legislator Nancy Low Hogan of South Nyack, the party's first vice-chair, has indicated she's interested in running the party.

For elections commissioner, the Democrats are likely to choose between Kathy Pietanza, the deputy commissioner and a decades-long elections office employee, and Barbara Petlin, a Spring Valley resident whose spouse Joel is the Kiryas Joel schools superintendent.

Republicans and Democrats choose their own election commissioners and deputies. The Rockland Legislature has traditionally approvedthe party's recommendations.

The vaccine/testing mandate is not unprecedented. Manhattan's Democratic Committee mandated proof of vaccination and mask-wearing for its Aug. 5 Judicial Convention.

New York state law requires partiesto host the convention in person.

COVID cases continue to increase in the county as of Aug. 20, there were 731 active cases of COVID in Rockland. Less than a month ago, on July 27, 156 active COVID-19 cases were recorded. Health officials have said that the highly contagious delta variant is likely responsible for the overwhelming number of cases.

Rockland's vaccination rate stands at about 69.2% of the county's entire population.

However, certain areas still show low vaccination rates, particularly in areas of Ramapo.

A key fallout of the delta variants spread has been a climb in breakthrough cases or those among the vaccinated.

Rockland Countys COVID-19 dashboards were updated last week to show the vaccination status of people who are currently hospitalized with confirmed COVID. As of Friday, 17 people were being treated in Rockland hospitals for COVID; four patients were fully vaccinated, eight werent vaccinated and five had unknown vaccination status.

Rockland County Health Commissioner Dr. Patricia Schnabel Ruppert said Thursday that vaccines remain key to protecting people from bad outcomes. "Most people who are hospitalized and who die of COVID still are unvaccinated."

As of Aug. 20, the last day of results, there have been 48,613 COVID cases confirmed in Rockland since the pandemic was detected here in March 2020. According to the Rockland County medical examiner, 970 Rockland residents have died due to COVID-related causes.

Steve Lieberman covers government, breaking news, courts, police, and investigations. Reach him at slieberm@lohud.com. Twitter: @lohudlegal. Read more articles and bio.

Nancy Cutler writes about People & Policy. Click here for her latest stories. Follow her on Twitter at@nancyrockland. Do you get the Rockland Angle? Subscribe here.

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Rockland Democrats will convene with extent of covid mandates an issue - The Journal News

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