AT PLAY IN THE FIELD OF JEWISH STUDIES page 6

MORIAHS MIDDLE SCHOOL MITZVAH MANDATE page 8

SONGS AND SIRENS IN WOODCLIFF LAKE SUNDAY SCHOOL page 10
A POLEMICAL RING OF FIRE WITH INTERESTING POSITIONS page 37
DECEMBER 25, 2015
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Page 3
Playing the Chanukah cards
You wouldnt expect a

eight mystery gifts during

company called Cards
December for subscribers
Against Humanity to
who paid $15, the 150,000
provide the feel-good
subscriptions it made
Chanukah gift of the year.
available quickly sold out.
So maybe its for the best
And for the first three
that it followed up with the
gifts, they sent subscribers
years feel-weird Chanukah
socks decorated with
gift too.
chanukiyot.
First, some background.
For the fourth, subscribers
Cards Against Humanity
received a $1 bond and
is a party game where
a pack of Jewish-themed
players complete fill-incards.
the-blank statements using
Then the gifts got
mature-content phrases
interesting.
From Cards
printed on playing cards,
Cards Against
Against Humanity:
as Wikipedia puts it, and
Humanity donated
The gift of Chanukahit is as despicable and
$150,000 to Chicagos
awkward as you and your
public radio station,
themed
socks
!
s
Makes Great Latke
friends, to quote the
WBEZ, and gave
games own website. Its basically a
everyone a one-year membership to it.
family-unfriendly version of Apples to
For the sixth gift, it gave a paid
Apples.
vacation to everyone at the factory
It began with eight Jewish friends
in China that makes their cards. Since
from Chicagos Highland Park suburb.
the factory, like most in China, has no
They raised $15,000 on Kickstarter for
provisions for paid vacation, Cards
its first printing. That was in 2011. Since
Against Humanity hired the factory for
then, it has become a phenomenon.
a week and let everyone stay home.
How big a phenomenon?
Many were able to travel, and the game
So big that when Cards Against
company posted photos and thank you
Humanity announced its Eight
notes from the workers.
Sensible Gifts for Hanukkah, promising
That was the feel-good gift.
The feel-conflicted gift came next.
Cards Against Humanity bought
a 1962 Picasso, Tte de Faune, for
$14,000. And it put a Solomonic
question up for a vote: Should the
artwork be laser-cut into 150,000
pieces, so each subscriber could
have a piece? Or should it be
donated to the Art Institute of
Chicago?
At press time, it is not yet known
how the Cards Against Humanity
subscribers will vote nor what the
eighth gift will be.
The gift of a Picasso

A hip hop
message
exchange
Its not every day we at the

Jewish Standard get a thank

you note.
And its even less often that
we get a thank you noted
posted to Twitter by a winner
of a Grammy award for best
rap song.
But thats what happened
last week, after we posted a
video of Miri Ben-Ari singing
her version of Adeles hit song
Hello on our Facebook page.
The Israeli violinist, who now
lives in New Jersey, put this
image on Twitter.
To which we can only
respond with the immortal
words of Jay-Z: Youre
LARRY YUDELSON
welcome.

The gift of grateful Chinese workers

Meanwhile, Max Temkin, one of
the lead creators of Cards Against
Humanity, is having a breakout
success with his new game, which has
raised $1 million on Kickstarter. Secret
Hitler casts five to 10 people as
liberals, fascists, or Hitler as they seek
to either pass or oppose fascist laws.
The twist is that no one other than the
Hitler player knows who has drawn the
Hitler card.
It is a game with a message, its
Kickstarter page explains: We set

out to make a game to help us reflect

on the ways that others good,
bad, indifferent were complicit
in Hitlers rise to power. Our game
doesnt model the specifics of German
parliamentary politics. Instead, we try
to model the paranoia and distrust
he exploited, the opportunism that
his rivals failed to account for, and
the disastrous temptation to solve
systemic problems by giving more
power to the right people.
LARRY YUDELSON

Candlelighting: Friday, December 25, 4:15 p.m.

Shabbat ends: Saturday, December 26, 5:20 p.m.

For convenient home delivery,

call 201-837-8818 or bit.ly/jsubscribe

CONTENTS
NOSHES ...............................................................4
OPINION ............................................................14
COVER STORY ................................................20
TORAH COMMENTARY ............................... 35
CROSSWORD PUZZLE ................................ 36
ARTS & CULTURE .......................................... 37
CALENDAR ...................................................... 38
GALLERY .......................................................... 39
OBITUARIES .....................................................41
CLASSIFIEDS .................................................. 42
REAL ESTATE..................................................44

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to New Jersey Jewish Media Group, 1086 Teaneck Road, Teaneck,
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JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25 2015 3

Noshes

Look! Christians!
What Tablet editor-at-large Mark Oppenheimers 7-year-old daughter said
last week, with wonder, every time she saw a car with a Christmas tree strapped
to its roof, returning to Manhattan from a tree farm upstate, as reported on the
podcast Unorthodox.

ALREADY A WINNER:

Carol makes
the critics smile
Carol is already
the critics darling,
winning the highest
award at Cannes and five
Golden Globe nods,
including best film, best
director (TODD HAYNES,
54), and best actress
(co-stars Cate Blanchett
and Rooney Mara). The
film is set in the 1950s,
like Haynes highly
praised film Far From
Heaven (2002). Like
Heaven it involves
concealed gay relationships. Carol is a high-society woman, in the
midst of a difficult
divorce, who chances to
meet a much younger
store clerk (Mara). The
relationship that develops gives Carols neglectful husband ammunition in a custody fight
for their young daughter.
Quentin Tarantinos
new film, The
Hateful Eight, is set
in the Wild West not long
after the end of the Civil
War. The plot is long and
complex: suffice it to say
that it begins with a
bounty hunter (Kurt
Russell) taking a fugitive
(JENNIFER JASON
LEIGH, 53) to be hanged.
Things dont go smoothly as they run into bad
weather and of course a
raft of Tarantino-esque
oddball characters. Leigh
has received a best
supporting actress
Golden Globe nomination for this film (its her
third Golden Globe nod).
Leigh is low-key about
her personal life, rarely

talking about her late

father (actor VIC MORROW) or her Oscar-nominated screenplay writer
mother (BARBARA
TURNER, 79). So its no
surprise thats shes
never talked about what
a personal source told
me: her mothers family
was very active assisting
Jews fleeing Nazi
Germany in the 1930s.
DAVID O. RUSSELL,
58, has scored three
big hits with his last
three films (The Fighter,
American Hustle, and
Silver Linings Playbook).
The first and third
featured a family rallying
together in a time of
crisis. They were made
more real by being so
true with the details
about the characters
economic problems and
ethnic backgrounds.
Silver Lining co-stars
Robert DeNiro, Jennifer
Lawrence, and Bradley
Cooper also co-star in his
new film, Joy. Lawrence
stars as Joy Mangano, a
real-life working-class
woman who founded a
big cleaning product
company with the help of
four generations of her
family. DeNiro plays her
father, with Cooper
playing a QVC exec who
aids her. MELISSA
RIVERS, 47, in a cameo, is
playing her late mother,
JOAN, who sold tons of
jewelry on the QVC home
shopping network.
Lawrence got a Golden
Globe best actress
nomination for Joy, and

Todd Haynes

Jennifer Jason Leigh

Carole King

Rachel Weisz

Harvey Keitel

the film also is up for best

drama.
Youth, which has
received lukewarm
reviews, stars
Michael Caine, 82, as
Fred, an acclaimed
composer, who vacations
with his daughter
(RACHEL WEISZ, 45)
and his best friend, Mick
(HARVEY KEITEL, 76), a
famous filmmaker. Mick
is still active professionally, while Fred seems
happily retired. They talk
about their past and
what their experiences
mean in the present. Ill
probably see this film as
a tribute to Michael
Caine, whose down-toearth likability is irresistible, as is his embrace of
diversity. Heres Caine on
his background: My
father was Catholic, my

mother was a Protestant,

so I became Protestant
because she had the
upper hand. I was
educated by Jews in a
Jewish school because
of an accident of geography and the War and I
am married to a Muslim.
(His school, Hackney
Down Grocers, wasnt a
Jewish private school,
but a very good public
school with a predominately Jewish student
body and some Jewish
teachers. It became
known as the Jewish
Eton and the nursery of
Britains intellectual
Jewish community.)
(All these films will
play in NYC. You might
have a hard time finding
Youth and Carol in a
nearby theater until next
N.B.
year.)

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1

Kennedy Center honors

The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., holds a
gala every year to honor artists for lifetime achievements. This years was held earlier this month and CBS
will broadcast it on Tuesday, December 29, at 9 p.m.
The honorees are conductor Seiji Ozawa, actress Cicely
Tyson, actress and singer Rita Moreno, and singersongwriter CAROLE KING, 73. Reports say that Aretha
Franklins bravura performance of Kings You Make Me
Feel Like a Natural Woman was the awards ceremonys
highlight.
Since everyone knows who Carole King is, here are
two fun facts you might not know: (1) the lyrics of Natural Woman and another, very female King song, Will
You Love Me Tomorrow? actually were written by the
late GERRY GOFFIN, Kings ex-husband and her writing partner from 1958 to 1968. King has said that their
marriage might have endured if Goffins relations with
women were as perfect as his woman-friendly lyrics.
(2) Kings father, SIDNEY KLEIN, was a firefighter in
the New York City fire department, and he established a
rural Connecticut summer vacation residence for New
N.B.
York City Jewish firefighters.

California-based Nate Bloom can be reached at

Middleoftheroad1@aol.com

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benzelbusch.com
11/9/15 3:41 PM

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Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015 5

Local
Reporters notebook

Connecting the dots

Association for Jewish Studies convention offers food for thought
Larry Yudelson

f your idea of a good time is hearing

someone explain at length the connections between the treasures of
King Tuts tomb and the biblical ark
of the covenant, you should have been in
Boston last week for the annual convention of the Association of Jewish Studies.
I was there. And yes, I had a blast.
The conversation about the ark and
the pharaoh came late Sunday night, at a
reception following a long day of presentations. The enthusiastic explainer was
Raanan Eichler, who is doing postdoctoral
research at Harvard. For professionals in
the field of Jewish studies, the conference
is a chance to network, to interview for
jobs, and to present research. For me as an
interested amateur, it was a chance to hear
interesting talks about Judaism. And it also
was a chance to check in with a couple of
our areas scholars of Jewish studies.
First, an important caveat. The AJS conference is the sort of convention where
17 panels can be scheduled simultaneously. Each panel generally featured three
papers. So in my one day at the three-day
conference, I totally ignored scores of
papers. In fact, I ignored whole subfields
of Jewish studies. Apologies if youre a fan
of the past thousand years of Jewish history, let alone 20th century Jewish literature, film, and sociology.
As it happened, the sessions of New Jersey scholars aligned pretty closely to my
interests, leading me to discussions of the
Dead Sea Scrolls and the Talmud. (Had I
stuck around until Monday, I would have
happily listened to Dr. Eitan Fishbane
speak on A Typology of Character in
Zoharic Narrative. )
Dr. Jonathan Milgram of Teaneck
chaired one of the first sessions, The
Rabbis in Early Roman Palestine. As he
explained at breakfast, the responsibility
of being chair means leading the session,
fielding questions from the audience, and
generally keeping things under control.
Youd be surprised, he said, sometimes things get heated.
Dr. Milgram is assistant professor of Talmud and rabbinics at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. He showed me
a flyer for his forthcoming book, From
Mesopotamia to the Mishnah: Tannaitic
Inheritance Law in Its Legal and Social
Contexts. It is being published by Mohr
Siebeck, a 200 year old German academic
press with a strong line in rabbinic studies
and a willingness to price books as more
expensive than a deluxe boxed set of a
6 Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015

Fragments of the Pesher Habakkuk, among the original Dead Sea Scrolls discovered in 1947.
classic rock album. (Budget-minded Mishnah fans can relax: Dr. Milgram plans to
donate a copy to the Teaneck library.)
A key difference between academic
Jewish studies a field barely 200 years
old and traditional yeshiva studies
is that academics look not just at what
the texts (the Torah, the Talmud, the
midrashim) say but asks: How did those
texts fit into the broader picture of the
Jewish community of that era? How much
do they represent the reality of their era,
as opposed to what the authors wanted
to be true? How does other historical evidence mesh with those texts? And when
were those texts written anyway?
The central problem in these lines of
inquiry is there isnt all that much other
evidence. Like paleontologists deducing a
species of dinosaur from the shape of a fossilized jawbone, academic Jewish scholars
are trying to recreate a world from bits and
pieces (and sometimes, in the case of the
Dead Sea Scrolls, actual scraps of parchment). If you visualize pre-modern Jewish
history as a timeline, then you might put
1500 B.C.E. on the far left thats about
when the Bible dates the Exodus and the
invention of printing around 1500 C.E. on
the right. For most of this period, scholars have occasional points of evidence,
but there are huge gaps. Some of the
points on the timeline are the traditional

Jewish texts: biblical books, Mishna, Talmud, medieval responsa. Other points are
archaeological evidence: ancient inscriptions, buildings, utensils, animal bones.
(The latter show, among other things,
whether the inhabitants of a certain place
at a certain time did or did not eat pork.)
Then there is the evidence of books and
texts that didnt become part of the Jewish tradition. Some of those were written
but not preserved by Jews this includes
books kept as part of Christian editions of
the Bible; writers like the first-century Jewish historian Josephus, who didnt write in
Hebrew, and those texts that happened to
be preserved alongside Biblical scrolls in
the dry caves of Qumran at the shores of
the Dead Sea. And finally, there are those
books written by non-Jews that give insight
into Jewish histories, whether they are
Christian church fathers describing their
debates with Jews or Babylonian books
from the time of the Talmudic sages.
Faced with three or four dots that more
or less line up, the temptation is to connect
them into a pretty picture. For a professor
seeking renown and career advancement,
thats pretty mandatory. The danger,
though, is that someone will discover a dot
that was overlooked and that shows the
pretty picture didnt capture all the dots;
a theory that overlooked the evidence. So
there is a tension between the desire to

innovate and the fear of sticking out your

not-yet-tenured neck.
(Monday night, I was told later, featured just that sort of a conflict, when Dr.
Robert Body a professor of Talmud at
Hebrew University, one of the most cautious academic centers ripped into the
work of a younger generation of scholars
that has been highlighting the connections
between the Babylonian Talmud and its
native Iranian milieu.)
Of course, as a journalist and spectator
rather than a professional scholar, I dont
have to worry about my academic credentials. In thinking about the sessions I
attended, I can take to heart the word of
Peggy Noonan: Is it irresponsible to speculate? It is irresponsible not to.
All of which is to set the stage for the second paper at the first panel, which used
a variety of pieces of evidence to offer an
answer to a basic question facing students of
Mishna and Talmud: Who are the minim
a term often translated as sectarians and
why are they called that? Minim appear not
infrequently in the Mishnah, which records
that a blessing was added to the Amidah
opposing them. (The blessing was later transformed into the curse against the slanderers, in part because Christians understood
minim to be a reference to early Christians.)
Debates between rabbis and minim are
recorded. But who were they? And why are
they called minim, which literally means
varieties?
David Grossberg of Cornell University
began his session, Minim, Heretics, and
Sectarians in Early Roman Palestine, by
saying that efforts to look at the characteristics of the minim from the Talmudic
polemics and match them up with the
characteristic of known groups of Jews in
the Land of Israel in Roman times failed.
The full range in rabbinic texts does not
match up to groups known from other
sources, he said.
Instead, he proposed a theory to explain
how the term minim evolved over the centuries, meaning at various times the general notion of a group that sticks together;
a specific group of Jews who held themselves apart in the first century; and finally
coming to its larger sense of heretics.
This theory connected disparate dots on
the timeline.
The first dot is the biblical usage of the
term min. Actually, the Tanach doesnt
use the term min on its own. It is used as
in the first chapter of Genesis, where trees
give fruit lmino after its kind.
There should be an intermediate form,
where it means type or kind in a neutral

Local

Shlomo Wadler, left, with Dr. Moshe Bernstein of Teaneck.

sense, without the disparaging meaning
it has in the Mishna, Dr. Grossberg said.
He believes he found such an intermediate form in some texts from the Second Temple period, dots on the timeline
between the conclusion of the Tanach
and the destruction of the Temple in 70
C.E. These texts are the Book of Jubilees

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Dr. Jonathan Milgram

and the Wisdom of Ben Sira both books

were preserved in translation by nonJews, although some Hebrew fragments of
both showed up in the Dead Sea Scrolls.
These texts, he said, use the phrase min
lmino, a species after its species as
a variation of the biblical usage to make
the point: People of a kind join each other.

Its like the expression birds of a feather

flock together, he said.
He speculated that once this phrase
became widely used, the second half
would drop off and the simple min
would stand for the whole expression
just as birds of a feather does. A min
then would come to mean simply a group

that stuck together.

And from there, it might come to mean a
specific group that was seen, pejoratively,
as too cliquish.
Its difficult to be more than speculative as to the identity of this group, Dr.
Grossberg said. But it could be a group
mentioned by Josephus, which he said was
headed by Judas of the Galilee and incited
Jews against their Roman rulers.
If the minim originally referred to a
revolutionary group, it would have come
to its demise in the first century with the
crushing of the Jewish revolt, he said.
By the third century, the time of the
Mishna, the term would have shed its
specificity and the pejorative could apply
to other groups.
If so, minim began neither as heretics
nor outsiders, but as a contentious insider
group like the Pharisees and Saducees.
Over time, however, the term became
a stand-in for various groups opposed by
and to the rabbis which is why its usage
never lined up neatly with early Hebrew
Christians, he said.
Where Dr. Grossbergs paper was speculative, connecting multiple points and
hypothesizing connections, the paper
See connecting page 36

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Local

Learning to do good
Moriah Schools chesed program helps middle-schoolers help others
ABIGAIL KLEIN LEICHMAN

hesed, often translated as lovingkindness, is a central Jewish ethic. It is doing for others
without expecting anything in

return.
While most Jewish high schools require
a certain amount of chesed hours to set
students on the proper path, the Moriah
School of Englewood, which runs from
nursery through middle school, has instituted a similar mandate for its 250 sixth- to
eighth-graders.
For the first time, we are requiring
each of our middle-school students to do
30 hours of Torah learning and chesed in
any combination, outside of school, said
Rabbi Yoni Fein, the Moriah administrator
who co-directs the new Chesed/Talmud
Torah Program with Rabbi Eitan Lipstein
and Moriah parents including Judith Goldsmith of Englewood.
We partnered with 20 organizations
and created a chesed board at school
where kids can sign up for the posted
opportunities, Rabbi Fein said. We do
that also for learning opportunities in
the community. Weve logged over 1,300
combined hours in the first six weeks and
raised thousands of dollars for organizations including Table to Table, Friends of
the IDF, and Sharsheret through chesed
activities.
He explained that this initiative is a large
part of the schools new Rebbetzin Peggy
Weiss and Rabbi Joel David Balk Fellowship for Jewish Life, created through a
private donation and earmarked toward
creating an environment of experiential
education in and out of school. A spirituality assessment helped them determine
how these dollars should be allocated.
The biggest initiative to come out of
this assessment is the importance of our
students knowing that being a Jew means
putting Torah and chesed as a value and
pillar in life, Rabbi Fein said.
We define chesed not only in terms of
big activities, but also any action where
you sacrifice your time or needs for

Rabbi Eitan Lipstein, left, and Rabbi Yoni Fein with the Moriah chesed board.

someone else, like babysitting your siblings or volunteering to lead prayers, he

added.
We wanted a way to get kids involved
and develop a lifelong devotion to volunteerism, Ms. Goldsmith said. Its not easy
to find activities appropriate for kids under
16, so they can log hours even for things
like walking an elderly neighbor to shul.
Its spurred a real spirit of volunteerism in
the school. The slots on the chesed board
fill up immediately.
Doing something because you must,
not because you want to, does not always
engender a positive attitude. Yet several
children interviewed said the mandatory
experience has led to a genuine interest in
volunteering.
Ms. Goldsmiths seventh-grade daughter, Bella, admits that she probably

wouldnt have started volunteering in

the Kaplen JCC on the Palisades specialeducation nursery every Sunday if not for
the new school rule. But she likes helping the 4- and 5-year-olds so much that
she plans to continue beyond the 30-hour
requirement.
I love my volunteering and I love the
kids, she said. I have gotten so much out
of this experience, because I feel like I am
a better person and I dont only think of
my needs, but now look to help others.
Jake Nussbaum, a seventh-grader from
Teaneck, packs food for needy families
through the Tomchei Shabbos program
and also does babysitting. I wouldnt
have done it at the beginning if not for the
new chesed program at Moriah, he said.
But now I would still do it because its a
good feeling knowing youre doing such a

big mitzvah. Now I always try to do chesed

whenever I can, and I am more aware of
opportunities to help others than I was
before.
Ms. Goldsmith said that many of the
kids have expressed a desire to continue
beyond their obligated 30 hours for the
year. That is the goal: to show kids how
easy and rewarding it is to volunteer, she
said.
Each month, the middle-schoolers
receive chesed forms on which they
record what they did and for how many
hours they did it. This tally is validated by
a supervising adult. I enter the information into our overall spreadsheet and post
the numbers by grade, Rabbi Fein said.
At the end of the year, any student who
has over 45 hours will be invited to a special dinner with their parents.

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Rabbi Fein noted that Moriah also asks each family

to devote 10 hours throughout the year to school functions. In addition, weve tried to provide more family experiences in Judaism, such as a family mishmar
series every month, he said.
Mishmar is a tradition of learning Torah on Thursday evenings, Saturday nights, or Sunday mornings.
In the past, relatively few students participated in the
optional sessions, but now we get close to 100 participants each time, Rabbi Fein said.
Seventh-grader Gabrielle Green of Teaneck participates in the family mishmar, and volunteered to pack
boxes of supplies for U.S. soldiers as well as for the
pink challah braid-athon and sale that resulted in the
generous donation to Sharsheret, a locally based organization that runs a variety of national programs in
support of young Jewish women with breast cancer.
I think the new program at Moriah is really great
and special, Gabrielle said. I learned how it feels to
be a part of Am Yisrael, the nation of Israel. We are
one nation and we should always help someone else
in need, no matter what the reward is. Every person
needs to take care of one another, and the Moriah program is the perfect way to internalize that.
Ben Small, a sixth-grader from Englewood, fulfills
his hours by learning Torah on Saturday nights and
running bingo games at Prospect Heights Care Center
in Hackensack.
At first I did it because I was required to, and all of
my friends were doing things that I thought were interesting, Ben said. But now I see the smile on everybodys faces when I do chesed, and how much of an
impact I can make, and I am thankful for Moriahs program for giving me that opportunity.
Veteran Moriah middle-school teacher Rabbi
Shlomo Eisenberger said that the program has made
a tremendous impact not only on mishmar attendance and interpersonal interactions, but also on
school spirit. Its just incredible to see that a program with a simple, yet strong, message has started
an amazing movement here at Moriah.
Rabbi Fein said the chesed program has qualified
Moriah to be a WE School, referring to a program of
the international charity WE that challenges young
people to identify local and global issues that spark
their passion and gives them the tools to take action.
WE Schools provides educators and students with curriculum, educational resources, and actionable ideas
to address pressing issues such as hunger, poverty,
and lack of education in disadvantaged areas.
The students have learned that hunger and poverty
exist even in affluent Bergen County. Dara Berger, a
seventh-grader from Englewood, said that packing
weekly boxes of pantry staples through Tomchei Shabbos has made me realize how lucky I am that I have
food, and how important it is to help others.
Rabbi Fein related that one father told him he
recently overheard his daughter and her friends discussing the various chesed and learning programs
they participated in, comparing notes on how many
hours they had fulfilled and how they fulfilled them.
To me, that is an amazing achievement that students are getting excited about the chesed and Talmud
Torah and that they are getting involved in and sharing
that excitement with their friends, he said.

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JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015 9

Local

The earths not flat

Students
at Temple
Emanuel
teleconference
with fifth
graders in
Israel.

Holey Moley!
Lesson with twinned Israeli class
turns unexpectedly real for
Temple Emanuel sixth grade
LARRY YUDELSON
The teleconference for the sixth graders at
Temple Emanuel of the Pascack Valley in
Woodcliff Lake got off to a rocky start on
Sunday morning. But its sudden ending
was memorable and educational.
Since the beginning of the school year,
the sixth graders have been communicating with fifth graders at Remez, a school in
Nahariya, using email and shared message
boards. (Nahariya is the sister city of the
Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey.)
The program is part of Emanuels commitment to having a strong Zionist component
in its religious school education. Online
messaging has enabled the two groups to
pair up and communicate across the ocean
and the seven-hour time difference.
Sunday, however, was to be a big day. For
the first time, the two groups were to see
each other and communicate in real time.
Unfortunately, like many first attempts at
using technology with people watching, it
didnt work, at least not completely. Rabbi
Shelly Kniaz, Emanuels director of congregational education, was able to connect
her classroom to Israel. But from the Israeli
side, even the schools principal, its fifth
grade teacher, an English teacher, and the
computer teacher werent able to make the
Nahariya classroom show up on the screen.
No matter.
Once the audio connection was established, and the failure to get a video connection accepted, the Americans sang
their song of welcome: Hineh mah tov.
Good morning, New Jersey, the Israelis said.
Good evening, Israel, the Americans
said.
Then the Americans approached the
front of the classroom and the camera
with questions they had prepared. One
side was in English. A Hebrew translation,

which they presented to the camera, was

on the other side.
What is your favorite Disney character? an American asked.
Mickey Mouse came the reply.
What do you want to be when you
grow up?
Dov was chosen to answer this question.
I want to be the fifth grader giggles
nervously a doctor.
What do you like and dont like?
I like my house. I dont like girls. I like
English its a beautiful language.
Whether because their English teacher
was in the room, or because this was the
class of fifth graders that excelled most in
English, or because English really is just
that great a language, several of the Israelis explained they liked English.
What was it like to be in the bomb shelter? asked another American.
It was not very pleasant, came the
answer.
Then it was the Israelis turn to sing an
English song.
A Jewish song? Yankee Doodle? Maybe
the Beatles?
No, something for English as a second
language students, with lyrics like this:
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday,
Friday, Saturday.
Then it was time for some more
Q&A. A group of students stood up and
approached the front of the New Jersey
classroom.
Suddenly, a siren began to wail.
It took a moment or two for Rabbi Kniaz
to place it.
It was coming from Israel.
Excuse us, we have to go, said one of
the Israeli teachers, in rapid Hebrew.
We understand, go, be safe, Rabbi
Kniaz replied in Hebrew. She turned and
faced the classroom.
Do you know what that is? Thats a

10 JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015

Gay-conversion, Jersey City-based

JONAH to close in court settlement
JOANNE PALMER
JONAH, the Jersey-City-based organization whose website says that it works
with those struggling with unwanted
same-sex sexual attractions (SSA) and
with families whose loved ones are
involved in homosexuality, has agreed
to close, take down its website, reimburse the plaintiffs and their families,
and pay $3.5 million in legal fees.
That settlement, made public last
Friday, was the result of a trial in June,
where a jury, after deliberating for two
and a half hours, found the group guilty
of consumer fraud.
Jews Offering New Alternatives for
Healing, as the group is called (it used
to be Jews Offering New Alternatives for
Homosexuality but softened the name a
few years ago) was sued by three young
men who offered toe-curling details
about the therapies they had undergone in an attempt to change their sexual orientation.
As we wrote on July 1, JONAHs codirectors, Arthur Abba Goldberg and
Elaine Berk, and a consultant and fellow
defendant, Alan Downing, argued that

one-third of the clients with whom they

worked since 1999 have overcome samesex attractions. They argued that homosexuality was a disorder that could be
overcome with an amalgam of religious
and scientific techniques, although
they acknowledged that none of their
staff was a licensed psychiatrist, social
worker, or therapist.
Mr. Goldberg is a disbarred lawyer
who spent some time in federal prison
for mail fraud and conspiracy. His interest in conversion therapy began after he
was released from prison, when his son
came out as gay, and so did Elaine Berks.
JONAHs treatment plans included telling its clients to hit pillows with tennis
rackets while screaming Mommy! Its
retreats, set in secluded camps, were
conducted by mainly naked counselors
for the benefit of almost entirely naked
patients, and were said to involve reenactment of the act of sliding naked from
their mothers birth canals.
JONAHs methods were both unorthodox and unsuccessful, as the trial this
summer brought out in mortifying
detail.
The Southern Poverty Law Center

From their classroom in Nahariya, youngsters have a connectin with New Jersey.

siren saying that its time to go to the

shelter.
Holey moley, a child said.
The concern for the Israelis under attack
remained on Rabbi Kniazs face, but she
stepped smoothly into educator mode.
She pointed to the pudgy map of Israel at
the front of the classroom and began asking about where Nahariya was (north) and
who its neighbor is (Lebanon.)
Then the class concluded by singing
Hatikvah, originally planned as a joint
activity.

Later on, Rabbi Kniaz learned that three

Katyusha rockets had come from Lebanon
and landed in an open area, in retaliation
for the killing of Samir Kuntar, a Hezbollah leader. The students wrote notes to
their twinned classmates and asked Rabbi
Kniaz to find out how long they were in the
shelter.
And also: The Israelis sent a one minute
video of pictures of their class during the
teleconference. There they were in the
classroom, listening attentively, better late
than never.

s
h

n
.
-

Local
represented the plaintiffs in their suit
against JONAH, working with white-shoe
Manhattan law firm Cleary Gottlieb Steen &
Hamilton and the Newark firm Lite
DePalma Greenberg, and the lawyers put
out a press release.
JONAHs conversion therapy program
harmed countless LGBT people and their
families, it read. JONAH peddled discredited, pseudo-scientific treatments
to people who werent sick, who werent
broken, and who needed nothing but love
and support.
We obviously are happy with the strong
ruling from Judge Bariso, Steven Fulop
said. Mr. Fulop, who is Jewish, is the mayor
of Jersey City; Superior Court Judge Peter
F. Bariso Jr. oversaw the trial and the settlement. Particularly because Jersey City
has such a strong LGBT community, we
feel that JONAH has no place in Jersey City.
Or, for that matter, anywhere.
Obviously, coming from a city that just
last week was ranked with a perfect score
for LGBT outreach, and that has done
so much in extending transgender care,
diversity is very important to us. Mayor
Fulop was talking about the Human Rights
Campaigns municipal equality index,
which ranked Jersey City first in the state
in LGBT-inclusive laws and policies, and

violates the consumer fraud act, and the

ruling during the trial which prohibited
our attorney from arguing our freedom
of religion 1st Amendment rights, ended
any real chance for a fair trial and verdict.
However, we fervently believe that the
Torahs traditional values on sexuality and
the family will triumph in the end because
these universal laws produce the most just
societies which offer G-d given truths for
all humanity to follow.
The claim about the six defense experts
perhaps needs some explanation.
When JONAH tried to have six witnesses
explain why homosexuality is an illness that
can be cured, Judge Bariso did bar them.
The overwhelming weight of scientific
authority concludes that homosexuality
is not a disorder or abnormal, the judge
wrote in a decision last February. The
universal acceptance of that scientific conclusion save for outliers such as JONAH
requires that any expert opinions to the
contrary must be barred.
The theory that homosexuality is a
disorder is not novel but like the notion
that the earth is flat and the sun revolves
around it instead is outdated and
refuted, he concluded.
With this last settlement, it seems that
the final leg in JONAHs journey is over.

Michael Ferguson,
right, testified
against JONAH
this summer. Here,
he stands with
his husband, Seth
Anderson.

named it as one of 47 municipalities across

the country to get a perfect rating.
It is obviously important that an organization like JONAH doesnt get any traction because it is fraudulent at the core,
Mr. Fulop said. So we are happy that Judge
Bariso made such a strong ruling.
JONAH has not yet taken down its website, and its directors, Mr. Goldberg and
Ms. Berk, stand by their organization and
their beliefs. In response to an email asking their reaction, they sent this response:

The tragic miscarriage of justice which

occurred in the JONAH case reflects the
near triumph of political correctness
and the gay activist agenda in the USA.
We long for the day when the outcome
in the JONAH case will be recognized as
one of the greatest miscarriages of justice in modern history. So many of the
courts outrageous pre-trial rulings such
as not allowing our six defense experts
to testify, the equally outrageous rulings
that calling homosexuality disordered

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JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015 11

Local
Shaare Tefillah dinner
set for January 9
Congregation Shaare Tefillah of Teaneck invites the community to its
13th annual dinner honoring Rabbi Kenny and Shira Schiowitz and Natan
and Dena Cohen for their leadership and dedication. The dinner, set for
Saturday, January 9, at 8 p.m., will be at Temple Emanu-El of Closter, 180
Piermont Road.
Over the past 13 years, Shaare Tefillah has grown from a small minyan meeting in a house to a thriving community shul. Rabbi Kenny and
Shira Schiowitz are its spiritual leaders and the Cohens are committed
volunteer leaders Natan is the shuls vice president and Dena, a former
sisterhood president, is the editor of its newsletter.
For information about the dinner or the shul, call (201) 357-0613 or
email office@shaaretefillah.org.
The Cohen family

The Schiowitz family

PHOTOS COURTESY SHAARE TEFILLAH

Dr. Ben
Chouake, top
left, and Mark
Wilf, below
left, received
honorary
degrees from
YU President
Richard M. Joel.

JNF honorees from left were Rabbi Steven Penn, Joyce Bendavid, Millie
Leben, and Joan and Reuben Baron.
GERALD BERNSTEIN

JNF Teaneck dinner a success

YU dinner includes New Jersey honorees
Dr. Ben Chouake of Englewood and Mark Wilf of Livingston were among the
honorees at Yeshiva Universitys 91st annual Chanukah Dinner and Convocation at the Waldorf
Astoria in Manhattan on
December 13.
D r. C h o u a k e , t h e
national president of Norpac, the nations largest
pro-Israel political action
committee, is a board
member of both Yeshiva
College and the Bernard
Revel Graduate School of
Jewish Studies. He and
his wife, Esther, established the Esther and Ben
PHOTOS COURTESY YU
Chouake Scholarship at
Yeshiva College in 2003.
Mark Wilf is co-owner and president of the Minnesota Vikings football team. Mr. Wilf
sits on Yeshiva Universitys board of trustees, and his support of YU is also a family legacy
he is the son of Joseph and Elizabeth Wilf and the nephew of the late Harry and Judith
Wilf. He is a YU benefactor and serves as a member of the YU Institutional Advancement
Committee.
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo delivered the keynote address and received an honorary
doctorate.
Approximately $4 million was raised at the dinner and convocation; the evening is the
universitys main annual fundraising event.

12 JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015

More than 150 people representing many

of the Teaneck synagogues attended a
Jewish National Fund dinner and dessert
reception at Congregation Beth Sholom
in Teaneck on December 14.
Beth Sholoms Rabbi Joel Pitkowsky
welcomed the group, and the programs
co-chair, Jerry Rosen, introduced a film
in memory of the three young men who
were murdered in Gush Etzion in June
2014. Buzzy Green of Congregation
Keter Torah welcomed Shani Abrams

Simkovitz, chair of the Gush Etzion Foundation, who spoke of the history of Gush
Etzion in 1948, and how the children
and grandchildren of the massacre there
have returned to build new communities
in memory of the original settlers.
JNF Circle of Excellence plaques were
presented to honorees Joan and Reuben
Baron, Joyce Bendavid, Millie Leben, and
Rabbi Steven Penn.
For information about JNF projects,
email jinglis@jnf.com.

Local teens go to Brooklyn

for Jewish Heritage Night
Rabbi Yosef Orenstein, is
pictured bottom left, with
members of the Valley
Chabad CTeen group of
Woodcliff L ake. They
joined thousands of people including more than
100 teens from four Bergen
County Cteen chapters
Franklin Lakes, Teaneck,
and Tenafly and over 30
Cteen chapters from across
the tristate area, for Jewish
Heritage Night at Barclays
COURTESY VALLEY CHABAD
Center in Brooklyn.
The star-studded event included lighting a basketball menorah, a performance by
acclaimed Jewish superstar Yoni Z, and a rabbis vs. teens halftime game.
The Nets were one of at least 17 professional sports teams around North America to
host Chanukah menorah lightings and parties this year.

COURTESY OF FIDF

Benovitz named NCSY director

Chanukah concert
features Israeli soldiers
Nearly 200 people gathered at Congregation Ahavath Torah in Englewood for
Friends of the Israel Defense Forces, a
Chanukah celebration featuring a performance of popular and traditional Israeli
music by the Israel Defense Forces Musical Ensemble.

Hearing the IDF Musical Ensemble

perform was a special Chanukah treat,
FIDF New Jerseys director, Howard
Gases, said. We were honored and
excited to celebrate the holiday with
some of Israels brave men and women
in uniform.

Rabbi Moshe Benovitz, longand he will continue to lead the

time director of NCSY Kollel,
NCSY Kollel program, which is
is International NCSYs new
based in Beit Meir, Israel.
managing director. Rabbi BenRabbi Benovitz began his
ovitz, originally from Teaneck
involvement with NCSY as
and now based in Ramat Bet
a high school student in the
Shemesh, Israel, has a 25-year
1980s and he has worked with
career history with NCSY, the
NCSY throughout his professional career. He teaches at
Orthodox Unions international youth movement, and
Rabbi Moshe
Yeshivat Reishit in Ramat Bet
Benovitz
he will visit regions across
Shemesh. Before that, he was

COURTESY NCSY
North America in his new
the director of student activities at the Davis Renov Stahler
position. He will supervise
Yeshiva High School for Boys of the
NCSYs activities throughout the world,
Hebrew Academy of Long Beach in Woodworking with NCSYs international director, Rabbi Micah Greenland, and its assomere, N.Y., and taught at the Marsha Stern
ciate international director, Keevy Fried.
Talmudical Academy at Yeshiva University
Rabbi Benovitz also will be involved in
High School for Boys in Manhattan and the
recruiting for NCSYs summer programs
Bruriah High School for Girls in Elizabeth.

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JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015 13

Editorial
A tale of two mice

emember Somewhere Out

There?
Its sung by two cinematic mice,
Fievel and Tanya Mousekewitz, in
Steven Spielbergs animated 1986 feature, An
American Tale.
It took me years to be able to say this, but
that song makes me cry every time I hear
about it. Its about immigrants, about families being separated, perhaps forever, never
knowing if theyd ever find each other again.
Its about the courage that it takes to leave
what you know, no matter how horrible
it is, and strike out in search of the utterly
unknown, with hope and despair and longing
and dread in some ever-changing and probably literally unutterable because how could
you find words for it? And in what language
would you say them? mixture.
Yes, its about mice. Cartoon mice. And yes,
the song, and the mice singing it, are a deeply
sentimental image actively industrial-grade
sentimental and sentiment gets in the way
of clarity of thought. But the feeling is human
and real and it should be honored.
Now that immigration is on everyones
minds, its a good time to remember that
except for the approximately zero percent
of our readers who are full-blooded descendants of native Americans, every single one
of us is the beneficiary of someone who
found his or her way here.
Jews are used to having to run. Throughout
our extraordinarily long history, we have had
to go into exile from wherever we considered
home; there are very few long-term Jewish
communities that are flourishing now that
did not go through periods when their Jewish
populations were vestigial. (Like, for example,
Jerusalem; there always has been some Jewish
presence there, but for very long periods that
presence was small and stressed.) We have
always been an immigrant people. Diaspora
is as familiar to us as home.
Thats been made clear on Broadway this
season, in the new production of Fiddler on
the Roof, the archetypical musical that seems
to go directly from Jews ears to our hearts,
skipping all the usual stops in the brain and
has a similar effect on non-Jews, or so I have
been told. Fiddler went through a period
when it was considered kitsch, but it has
emerged from that to be seen as art, evocative, haunting, funny, beautiful, real.

Jewish
Standard
1086 Teaneck Road
Teaneck, NJ 07666
(201) 837-8818
Fax 201-833-4959
Publisher
James L. Janoff
Associate Publisher Emerita
Marcia Garfinkle

TRUTH REGARDLESS OF CONSEQUENCES

So according to news reports, this new

Fiddler production begins with a man on a
nearly empty stage, wearing a red parka, staring at a sign with the name of the town, Anatevka the place where most of the shows
action happen in Cyrillic letters. He soon
takes off the parka, revealing himself both as
the lead actor Danny Burstein and as Tevya,
the shows protagonist. At the end, the long
line of dispirited people leaving the town and
the only life theyve known ends with Mr.
Burstein, again in his parka.
Its wordless but the modern-day parallels
are clear.
We at the Jewish Standard are lucky in
that almost all of our grandparents and
great grandparents came here before the
Holocaust. Most of them left Europe because
of the crushing poverty, the lack of hope
and possibility there, and the pull of family already on this side of the ocean. They
came to a country that might not have been
actively welcoming to all of them all the time,
but allowed them to settle, establish themselves, and leave their children a better life.
We think of a story Madeleine Albright
tells. Ms. Albright is a former secretary of
state and U.S. ambassador to the United
Nations. Her father was a Czech diplomat
(and her parents were secret Jews who, she
said, did not tell their children about their
ancestry) who moved his family to America
from Czechoslovakia after the Communists
took over in 1948.
Her father would say that other countries
welcomed refugees. Theyd say Were sorry
you had to leave your country, she quoted
him as saying. Theyd say What can we do
to help? And by the way, when are you going
back home?
Americans, on the other hand, would
say, Were sorry you had to leave your country. What can we do to help? And by the way,
when will you become a citizen?
We do not presume to know which immigrants should be allowed into the country, or
how many of them, or from where, or how
they should be screened. We do know, though,
that we all are the descendants of immigrants.
We are overwhelmed by their courage, and by
our own good luck. We hope that the leaders
of our country, and of our communities, keep
our own past in mind when they consider
JP
other peoples futures.

Editor
Joanne Palmer
Associate Editor
Larry Yudelson
Guide/Gallery Editor
Beth Janoff Chananie
About Our Children Editor
Heidi Mae Bratt

jstandard.com
14 JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015

Correspondents
Warren Boroson
Lois Goldrich
Abigail K. Leichman
Miriam Rinn
Dr. Miryam Z. Wahrman
Advertising Director
Natalie D. Jay
Classified Director
Janice Rosen

This year we learned

that there are few
friendships in politics

f there is one lesson the Jewish com- far been none.

munity discovered in 2015, is that it
None.
had few friends. Or at least friends
No American response to Iran violating the nuclear agreement, negotiated
who would join us in the foxhole.
For years the communal model of activ- just three months ago which, by the
ism on the part of vital organizations like
way, Iran has never even signed. And the
AIPAC was to assign some generous cou- response from Democratic lawmakers,
ple to cultivate relationships with prospec- friends of the Jewish community all, who
tive political candidates to educate them
supported the deal and now watch Iran
about Israel. The relationships ultimately
systematically violate it?
were supposed to influence policy, to have
Same answer. None.
the individuals in question demonstrate
And yet, we are now witnessing the
to elected officials and their congressional
community scrambling yet again to reestablish relationships with, and raise money
aides how American values and interests
for, the same senators and congressman
align with Israels security, given that Israel
who got behind the deal
is the only human-rightsand did not even allow it
abiding democracy in the
to go for a vote in the SenMiddle East.
ate! All in the belief, already
But in 2015 that foundation principle of Jewish
disproven, that friendships
communal and pro-Israel
somehow will outweigh an
activism came undone. All
elected leaders political
the friendships in the world
interests.
could not motivate lawmakAs I look back on some of
ers who had a huge number
the battles Ive waged this
Rabbi
of Jewish friends and supyear over a moral American
Shmuley
porters to oppose a deal that
foreign policy, Israel, and
Boteach
will leave a genocidal nuclear
especially the Iran deal, I
threat hanging over Israel
have been pondering this
for decades to come. These friendships, in
age-old questions of whether relationships or interests are the deciding factor
other words, amounted to nothing more
in policy.
than a hill of beans.
David Remnick wrote a recent article
Already this week the Washington Post,
by no means an anti-Obama or conserva- in the New Yorker describing John Kerry
tive publication, published an editorial
as having an abiding faith in the value of
called Iran Provokes the World as Obama
personal relationships and of his capacity
Does Nothing. Harsh words indeed. But
to persuade. All he has to do is get the parties in a room and he cant lose. Remnick
it gets worse. A United Nations panel has
determined that Iran test-fired a nuclear- also writes how Henry Kissinger once told
Kerry, The difference between you and
capable missile on Oct. 10 with a range
of at least 600 miles, in violation of a U.N. me is that I think that personal relations
resolution that prohibits such launches. dont matter much. I think interests matter. Kerry replied to him, I think interMoreover, it appears likely that a second
ests matter, of course, but I think personal
missile launch occurred on Nov. 21, also
relations can help matters they can be
in violation of Security Council Resolution
influential.
1929. The U.S. response?... there have so
Rabbi Shmuley Boteach of Englewood is the author of 30 books. He soon will publish
The Israel Warriors Handbook.

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Founder
Morris J. Janoff (19111987)
Editor Emeritus
Meyer Pesin (19011989)
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Opinion
Whose argument has merit?
On the one hand, the Talmud
speaks of the close relationship that
Judah the Prince had with the Roman
Emperor Antoninus Pious, and how
this friendship allowed Rabbi Judah
special privileges to help the Jewish
community and save it from harsh
decrees. There also is the well-known
story of Eddie Jacobson, who was able
to use his close friendship with President Harry Truman to influence and
convince him to recognize and support the newly founded State of Israel.
But how many senators and congressmen who voted to give Iran $150
billion, which Iran will use to murder
people throughout the world, had
personal relationships with Jewish
friends and supporters who implored
them not to overlook Irans stated
intention of destroying Israel?
In the end, we may have to tip our
hat to the wisdom of Henry Kissinger,
however cynical it is. You can be the
best of friends, but interests are the
ultimate deciding factor. This truth
perhaps was best summed up by the
19th-century British prime minister
Henry John Temple, Lord Palmerston,
when he quipped, We have no eternal allies, and we have no perpetual
enemies. Our interests are eternal
and perpetual.
The other night Americas ambassador to the U.N., Samantha Power,
invited me once again to her Christmas party. This year I was surprised
at the invitation, given the criticisms
I have made about Samantha and the
Obama administrations position on
the Armenian genocide, unilateral
Palestinian pursuit of statehood at the
U.N., and the Iran nuclear agreement.
It was a classy move by Samantha
to invite us, demonstrating that even
in this hyperpartisan political climate
there are administration officials who
have the guts to be around critics. I
was treated warmly by all present,
especially Mia Farrow, the renowned
actress and humanitarian.
For years I have been a huge fan of
Samantha. In speeches I applauded
her bravery and was one of her foremost advocates. In 2011, while praising Samantha to the Jewish community of South Africa, an audience
member approached me with alleged
negative comments she had made
about Israel. I wrote a column calling
on Samantha to clarify her remarks.
She got in touch with me and invited
me to meet her at the White House.
The meeting directly addressed the
comments quoted; she explained
that they were made in response to
a hypothetical question about genocide. She seemed genuinely and
deeply pained by the perception that
she was not a friend of Israel.
I approached my friend Michael
Steinhardt, founder of Birthright

Israel, to tell him that I felt that

Samantha was being falsely accused
of anti-Israel bias. I asked if he would
host Samantha at his office and he
agreed. About a month later, Samantha arrived to address a closed-door
meeting of about 40 American Jewish leaders, who represented a wide
spectrum of our communitys most
important organizations.
In regard to that meeting, Foreign
Policy magazine wrote, Theres a
chance just a chance that Samantha Power might not today be on the
verge of becoming Americas ambassador to the U.N. if she hadnt played
nice with Michael Jacksons rabbi.
Thats probably overstating the case,
but it does capture the extent to
which I went to bat for Samantha at
the time of her nomination by President Obama.
Samantha and I became friends.
In November of last year my organization held a lecture event with her
and Elie Wiesel in which I praised
her effusively for the speech she had
given in Germany days earlier at an
international conference against
anti-Semitism.
But then came the Obama administrations continued inaction against
the indiscriminate slaughter of Arabs
in Syria and the murder of Arab children by poison gas. And of course,
there was Samanthas support for
the Iran deal, which I found astonishing given the regimes repeated
statement of genocidal intent against
the Jewish state. Samantha also stood
with the administration in not recognizing the Armenian genocide on its
centenary last April. And she said she
would not necessarily invoke the U.S.
veto at the Security Council to protect
Israel against unfair resolutions.
Ironically, I learned from Samantha herself and her literary masterpiece, The Problem of Hell: America
and the Age of Genocide, that you
cannot remain silent about genocide,
even if it frays relationships, even if it
gets in the way of friendships.
Which is why I come to this conclusion about friendships versus
interests.
In the coming year, the Jewish
community must demonstrate that
our lobbying for Israel is not based
on personal friendships with the
powerful. Rather, it is based on vital
American interests and American
values. America has thrived because
it is a moral nation, dedicated to the
freedom of humankind. And Israel
is the fortress of democracy, human
rights, and American values amid a
sea of tyranny and a cesspit of human
rights abuses. Israel, like America, is
the light.
God bless America. Long live the
Jewish State.

With full hearts

hen my husband was on a cardiopulmonary bypass machine

this October, I didnt worry about
what Id be making for supper the
following Thursday night.
Nor did I concern myself with what we would be
doing for entertainment during his recovery in the
hospital. I didnt think about washing the kitchen
floors or buying my oldest daughter new Shabbos
clothing. I didnt think about making my house
cheery and inviting with Get Well Soon! balloons,
flowers, baskets of fruit, or other goodies. I didnt
worry about coordinating my husbands trip to shul
via wheelchair in the coming weekends. And I certainly didnt stress about reading material during his
recuperation at home.
No, as my husband was undergoing open-heart
surgery for a genetic condition discovered only a
few short months prior, my only concern was that
he make it through the next couple of hours alive.
Waiting in a hospital during a loved ones surgery
is a nerve-wracking experience, wherein a person
is forced to admit helplessness and sit there doing
nothing while submitting to the grace
and will of the surgeon and/or God.
Okay, I didnt do nothing. I said tehillim
and then went down the block to pick
up a large 2,000-calorie chocolate milkshake from Baskin Robbins two acts
that were equally helpful in their own
rights. I read Facebook messages from
friends and family who made challah,
said tehillim, and sent well wishes for a
successful surgery. I responded to texts
Dena
and calls about any progress. I tried to
Croog
coax my mother-in-law, who was with
me in the waiting room, to drink half
of my milkshake. And I was successfully distracted
for a couple of hours when one of my closest friends
came to visit during the long wait.
By the grace of God and the skill of the NYU surgical team, the procedure was successful, and my
husband was sent home after four days in the hospital. The recovery period both in the hospital as well
as at home was fairly smooth, but I felt completely
overwhelmed, not by all the emotional chaos and
upheaval that this medical episode caused, but by
the unbelievable show of love and support that my
family received from relatives, friends, co-workers,
and our surrounding Teaneck community.
Words can never truly express the appreciation
that my husband and I have felt for the people in our
lives. To all those who visited, called, sent get well
messages, prayed, baked challah, made meals, sent
baskets and balloons, cleaned our house, helped
take care of the kids, inquired about our well-being,
and offered help in any way: Thank you. At risk of
diluting the meaning behind those two words, Ill
leave it at that. Thank you.
I am also fully aware that people experience illness and recovery differently. The other week I
was talking with a relative who had left her synagogue the previous year. She had been a regular,
active member, attending services every weekend,
until she had to bow out for a few months when
her elderly father fell ill. She was disappointed, to
say the least, that not one person from her synagogue, including the rabbi, reached out in regard
to her absence to see if things were okay. She
ended up finding and switching to a warmer synagogue community, but the whole episode left her

with a bad taste in her mouth.

Im glad that she found a welcome alternative, but
it frustrated me to hear her story, such a stark contrast to my own. I wonder if part of the difference in
our encounters had to do with the fact that my husband and I were open and forthright with information about his upcoming surgery, so that our community knew the situation and therefore were more
likely to respond to it. Maybe its simply a matter of
visibility. Not everyone is vocal about such matters,
though, even when it concerns a medical matter that
isnt necessarily dubbed personal or taboo (as
in, say, miscarriage or mental illness). Some people
are accustomed to being quieter about events in
their lives than others, and I dont think theres a
right or wrong way to go about sharing that kind of
information. I do think, however, that theres a right
or wrong way for a community to respond when its
own members potentially are struggling.
The week after hearing my relatives story, I went
away for Shabbos Chanukah. At morning services,
when it was time to say the Mi Sheberach the
Prayer for the Sick the rabbi told the congregation
to look around at the seats near them and notice if
there was anyone they havent seen in a while, who
might be absent due to illness. Think about them,
the rabbi said, during the following prayer. People
did look around as instructed, and
during the pause to insert the names
of the ill, people took turns from
where they stood in the sanctuary
and called out the Hebrew names of
individuals in need of prayers.
I found the experience to be
incredibly meaningful, especially
in light of the recent story I heard
from my relative as well as my own
encounter. I think it would be a great
and meaningful service to communities everywhere if the Prayer for the
Sick had such a simple, true preface every time it
is spoken, followed by this kind of personal community member involvement. Just a couple of sentences before a blessing can put people participating in services in the appropriate frame of mind not
just for the blessing itself, but for, in a more general
sense, thinking about other community members
they otherwise may not notice.
So, I urge the rabbis and members of our communities to keep these words in mind, especially during the winter months, when we might naturally see
other community members less frequently due to
the colder weather. Its important to ask ourselves: Is
it really the (eventual) snow and frost that is keeping
so-and-so away on Shabbos, or might it possibly be
due to something else, mental or physical, personal
or otherwise?
And even if it is personal, I would encourage
people to reach out. There are ways to phrase a
question; a simple inquiry into someone elses wellbeing will be appreciated by even the most private
of people. Even if the person in question is, in fact,
doing well, this gesture can make a profound difference in how welcome and included one feels in the
community.
Wishes to all for a complete healing a healing of
the soul and a healing of the body.
Dena Croog is a writer and editor in Teaneck and
the founder of Refaenu, a nonprofit organization
dedicated to mood disorder awareness and support.
More information about the organization and its
support groups can be found at www.refaenu.org.
You can also email dena@refaenu.org with any
questions or comments.
JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015 15

Opinion

The UN-Date
Reflections on the United Nations, date night, and the Jews

hen we first moved to New

she cried.
Jersey, my husband and I
Learning from Sang, I felt good about all
agreed on a schedule that
those pennies I collected for UNICEF as a kid.
included a weekly date
I had very different feelings about the U.N.
night and a monthly cultural experience in
and its work, however, after the date with my
New York City.
husband.
As we approached the main entrance of
I dont know how to explain the ambitiousness of this plan, given that our children were
the U.N.s New York headquarters, we saw,
4 and 5 at the time. Some combination of
among a few announcements, a large sign
sleep deprivation, wishful thinking, and love
advertising an exhibit called Palestinian
must have impaired our judgment. Today,
Children: Overcoming Tragedies with Hope,
with the benefit of experience, I am sure that
Dreams, Resilience, and Dignity. Knowing
we could set a more realistic schedule, but
the U.N. record on Israel, both my husband
when will we find the time to get together and
and I flinched.
discuss our calendars?
Of course, Palestinian children do overcome tragedy and tragedy befalls them
Last week, we defied the odds and enjoyed
brutally and often. Worse, some Palestinian
a date night during the day. Our days off
children never recover.
coincided, and at the last minute we decided
The exhibit is utterly without context.
to go into New York City and take a tour of the
The photos, sourced from three U.N. agenUnited Nations.
cies, including UNICEF, feature bombedPerhaps I lighted on the U.N. for our (too
out houses and brave children. Captions
rare) cultural outing because I had recently
provide the childrens names and locaattended a superb interfaith program cotions and describe their varied, admirable
sponsored by the New York Board of Rabbis
aspirations. Caption after caption writand the U.S. Fund for UNICEF. The subject
ten by the UN Committee on
was violence against children
the Exercise of the Inalienand human trafficking.
able Rights of the PalestinThe International Labour
ian people mentions that
Organization (ILO, a U.N.
the childrens homes were
agency) estimates the number
destroyed in 2014. No explaof children enslaved today at
nation is given as to why.
5.5 million. Other experts place
The only reality presented
the number as high as 9.5 million. Since children often are
is bombed-out homes and
hidden away in sweat shops,
so the bombers, presumably,
brothels, private homes,
must be entirely responsible,
Rabbi
remote farms, fishing boats,
the viewer is meant to infer.
Debra
and quarries, numbers are
Orenstein
Corrupt Palestinian leadership, terror tunnels, rockets
hard to pin down.
launched from Palestinian terUNICEF (originally the
ritories into Israel all go unmentioned and
United Nations International Childrens Emergency Fund, officially renamed the United
unshown, as, of course, does the suffering
Nation Childrens Fund) addresses such
of Israeli children.
Troubled by both by the suffering of the
everyday emergencies as human trafficking
Palestinians and the bias of the exhibit, I was
and extreme poverty, as well as sudden crises
not sorry to turn away, after looking careprecipitated by war and natural disasters. In
fully at each caption and photo. Across the
2014, UNICEF responded to nearly 300 emergency situations in 98 countries. It reunified
hall was a series of posters summarizing the
11,981 children with their families. By widely
U.N.s 70-year history by decade. The poster
promoting birth registration, it hindered traftitled 1970s noted that Kurt Waldheim was
fickers and helped schools and social service
the secretary-general from 1972 to 1981. It
agencies now and in the future.
brought to my mind but did not mention
Among the inspiring speakers was Sang
the subsequent revelation that he was a Nazi
Silano, managing director of global prointelligence officer responsible for the deaths
grams and field engagement at the U.S. Fund
of thousands.
for UNICEF. For 20 years, she has lived and
As secretary-general, Waldheim refused to
breathed child protection. As she presented
comment when Idi Amin, the Ugandan dictator, sent him (and Yasser Arafat and Golda
professionally and passionately about forced
Meir!) a telegram praising the murder of
marriage, child soldiers, domestic violence,
Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympic games
and slavery, she described herself, tongueand recommending the expulsion of Israel
in-cheek, as a lot of fun at dinner parties.
from the U.N. and the deportation of all Israeli
Facing horror in her daily work, Sang has
Jews to Britain. However, a few years later,
managed not to go numb to it. She showed
when Israel raided the Entebbe, Uganda aira short video about a UNICEF counseling
port to save Jewish hostages held there by tercenter in Guatemala, featuring a 7-year-old
rorists, Waldheim called the rescue mission a
girl who had been raped by her stepfather.
serious violation of the national sovereignty
Though Sang had seen the video many times,
16 JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015

The U.N. conference on Palestinian children is context-free, Rabbi Orenstein

says.. 
CRAIG WEISZ
of a United Nations member state.
The same 1970s poster listed a dozen or
so U.N. Highlights of those years, including the Treaty on Non-Proliferation of
Nuclear Weapons, assistance to Southeast
Asian refugees, and South Africas suspension because of its practice of apartheid.
Among the select, proud achievements was:
General Assembly recognizes Palestine
Liberation Organization as sole legitimate
representative of the Palestinian people in
1974. At that time, the PLO unquestionably
was a terrorist organization. The opposite
wall featured a photograph of Yasser Arafat,
speaking about olive branches while wearing a gun holster at the General Assembly on
November 13, 1974. Arafat arranged and/or
approved terror attacks against Israeli civilians, including children, both before and
after that speech.
In 2013, Ban Ki-Moon, the U.N. secretarygeneral, admitted in a frank exchange with
Israeli students that Israel has been criticized and has been suffering from bias and
sometimes discrimination in the United
Nations.
Since the United Nations Human Rights
Council was created in 2006, Israel has been
condemned 61 times. To put that in context, the total number of condemnation of
all other countries was 55 six fewer than
for Israel alone. The next highest number of
condemnations to a single country is 15 for
Syria.
At the U.N., I saw bias wherever I turned.
I also saw Jews and the Jewish question
everywhere. There was an exhibit on the
Holocaust that our tour passed by quickly
to reach a chamber where the topic was the
The Holy See and the 50th Anniversary of
Nostra Aetate. Popularly known as Vatican
II, Nostra Aetates central focus was CatholicJewish relations.
On the day we visited, Rabbi Jonathan
Sacks testified via video to the Economic

and Social Council about the oppression of

Christians in the Muslim world. In the minute that it took our tour group to walk in
silence across the back of the chamber, he
noted that over the last twenty years, the
Christian minority in Muslim Arab countries
has declined from 20 percent to 4 percent
the religious equivalent of ethnic cleansing. He also noted that Muslims suffer far
more than Jews or Christians under Muslim
extremism.
I saw many employees wearing kippot.
Next year, they can take Yom Kippur off as
a U.N. holiday. Just last week, after years of
lobbying by Israel, the U.N. added our holiest day to Christmas, Good Friday, Eid al-Fitr
and Eid al-Adha on its list of official holidays,
when votes are not taken and employees are
not docked vacation days.
The only place where Jews were not highlighted in one way or another was the General Assembly, where a speaker talked about
improving internet access in the developing
world.
My husband and I left the U.N. and our
worst date ever dejected. At the exit, we
saw a man, frustrated and fiddling with his
phone. He asked if he could use my phone
to call his wife, explaining, I keep trying to
call her, but I cant get this damn phone to
work. Im at the conference on technology,
and I need to tell her where we will meet.
After the gentleman used my phone and we
walked away, my husband and I couldnt help
laughing.
The U.N. is such a grand idea. It has so
much promise and prejudice. If only the
technology experts could get their damn
phones to work.
Rabbi Debra Orenstein, spiritual leader of
Congregation Bnai Israel in Emerson, is
working with Jewish educators and Free the
Slaves on a Modern-Day Slavery Passover
Curriculum, to be released in January, 2016.

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Opinion

The war is getting closer

he most recent Republican presidential debate

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right now.
To begin with, it was heartening to see Jeb Bush, whose
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United States, Bush pointed out a few indubitable truths,
most importantly concerning the Kurds.
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are the greatest fighting force

and our strongest allies.
Then came a fairly obvious point of information,
but you can legitimately
wonder whether Trump in
fact was aware of it.
Theyre Muslim, Bush
added helpfully about the
Ben Cohen
Kurds, as he advanced the
broader argument that
defeating Islamist terrorism
means we have to cement existing allies in the Muslim
world, and make new ones. The Kurdish struggle for
self-determination and against Islamist extremism hasnt
exactly been appreciated by the Obama administration,
and it was good to hear a Republican underscore why
that needs to change (and why it wont if the catastrophe
that would be a Trump nomination comes to pass).
Then there was the small matter of Iran and its ally,
the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria. To listen to the
Obama administrations rhetoric in the wake of the
Paris and San Bernardino massacres, you would never
know that the mullahs running Iran have played a central role in the rise of Islamic State. Not so with the
Republican frontrunners.
Assad is a puppet of Iran, said Marco Rubio,
who then explained that the Syrian tyrants brutality
towards Sunni Arabs led to the chaos which allowed
ISIS to come in and take advantage of that situation
and grow more powerful. There was also Chris Christie, who said, We need to focus our attention on
Iran, because if you miss Iran, you are not going to
get ISIS. The two are inextricably connected because
one causes the other. Indeed, the only candidate who
hasnt grasped the deadly dynamic between Iran and
ISIS is Trump, who made it clear that he sees Russia,
Iran, and Assad as allies against ISIS, and cautioned
that we can only do one thing at a time.
The overriding consideration here should be that
right now we are not doing very much at all. You
might think that we are in a position to strike a death
blow at ISIS, given how its corridor between Mosul
and Raqqa has been disrupted in recent weeks but
we are not. As for Iran, America is finally leading
from the front, but not in a good way. On December 17, Secretary of State John Kerry told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that Iran is fulfilling its obligations under the JCPOA, the nuclear deal
reached last summer, in a transparent and verifiable way. As a result, the Tehran regime can look
forward to the lifting of sanctions as early as January.
What about the inconvenient fact that a United
Nations panel deemed Iran to have violated U.N.
Security Council resolutions when it tested a ballistic missile that is capable of carrying a nuclear warhead back in October? That wont overly trouble the
Obama administration, which is determined to keep
the JCPOA operational no matter what Iran actually
does. Indeed, in a speech to the Atlantic Council,
Adam Szubin, acting under secretary for terrorism,
played down any hopes that Iranian violations of the
agreement, as well as wider actions that destabilize
the region, would result in the re-imposition of sanctions. Our first impulse isnt going to be put sanctions in place, Szubin asserted. Its going to be to
get Iran to immediately address it. Its the path that
is greatly in our interest.
The Iranians have the same understanding of the
word interest in this context. The October missile
test, said Defense Minister Hossein Dehghan, was
meant to tell the world that the Islamic Republic of

Opinion
Iran acts on the basis of its national interest. In plainer language, Dehghan essentially was saying that Iran can do what it
wants and why, given the Obama administrations record thus far, would it act with
greater prudence and propriety?
For the last four years, Syria has been
the main arena in which Iran has pursued
its goal of regional dominance. With Western countries now paralyzedsometimes
literally soby the thought of further ISIS
atrocities, Iran has wasted no time in playing the situation to its advantage. In the
last couple of weeks, there have been
rumors flying around that Iran was actually in retreat from Syria. Yet the reverse
is true; the Islamic Revolutionary Guards
Corps is getting ready to deploy fighter aircraft in Syria on Assads behalf.
What this represents is a direct threat
to Israel, whose air force already has been
compelled to engage in occasional strikes
against the transfer of weapons to Hezbollah. While a global crisis was just about
averted after the Turks shot down a Russian jet in the border area with Syria, we
might not be so lucky if there is a clash
between Israeli and Iranian fighter planes.
For that reason, its not enough to close
our eyes and wish we could fast forward
to a new U.S. administration in January

Irans Raad air defense system. M-ATF VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

2017. In the year between now and then,

much can happenwill happenunless
the Iranians are told clearly to back off,
with the consequences of not doing so
laid out unambiguously. For years, President Obama told us that all options
were on the table in dealing with Iran.
He has not, so far as I am aware, backed
down on that formula, which now has to
be revived in the Syrian theater. Because

if it isnt, the atrocities, the refugee outflows, and the spread of deadly Islamist
ideology will reach new heights.
Some readers may find the suggestion
that Obama now should tell the Iranians
that further escalation in Syria will result
in a re-imposition of sanctions, or even
military action, to be naive, ridiculous,
absurd, and all sorts of other adjectives.
Maybe. But, as is often said, you go to war

with the army you have. And the war is

JNS.ORG
getting closer.
Ben Cohen, senior editor of theTower.org
and the Tower magazine, writes a weekly
column for JNS.org on Jewish affairs and
Middle Eastern politics. His work has been
published in Commentary, the New York
Post, Haaretz, the Wall Street Journal, and
many other publications.

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JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015 19

Cover Story

Treating L
the whole
patient

Joanne Palmer

Englewood Hospital and

Medical Centers Jewish doctors,
administrators, and donors
talk about what they do, and why

20 Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015

ike just about everything

else in this world that matters, there is some tension
about how best to treat a
patient.
Someone with an illness
needs a specialist who has devoted years
of study, apprenticeship, thought, emotion, and single-minded devotion to it.
The more unusual or specific the condition, the less a generalist can contribute to
curing or even containing it.
On the other hand, a person with an
illness is not a symptom or body part, or
even a biological system whose main purpose is supporting that symptom or body
part. A person with an illness is a person,
and has to be treated by other people who
understand that basic human truth.

Englewood Hospital and Medical Centers goal is personalized medicine; it is on

the cutting edge of a movement to look at
patients first as people, albeit as people with
challenging illnesses that must be treated as
thoroughly and as well as possible.
Fine, you think, but whats so Jewish
about that?
First, there is the basic, overarching Jewish mandate to value life. From the Deuteronomic demand that given the choice
between life and death, between blessings and curses, that we choose life, from
the talmudic assertion that saving one life
is like saving the entire world, from the
necessity of redeeming prisoners because
their lives matter to themselves and to
their community, we are taught that we
must care about every single person, every
single patient.
And then there are the specifics.

Cover Story

Jennifer and David Graf

Englewood Hospital and Medical Centers president, Warren Geller; Dr. Steven
Brower, the surgeon who is the head of
its new Cancer Treatment and Wellness
Center, and Jen Graf, who with her husband donated the Graf Center for Integrative Medicine there and is intimately
involved with it, all are Jewish. All of them
are deeply devoted to personalized medicine, and each one of them sees his or her

like a more intimate approach, it

takes the same amount of time to
sit on the edge of a patients bed,
give their foot a squeeze, and ask
how theyre doing as it does to lean
against the doorway and ask the
same question, but youll get a completely different response.
The medical center has made
a huge investment, well north
of $90 million, Mr. Geller said,
in new space, technology, and
departments that further its goal of
humanizing medicine and emphasizing wellness, encouraging relationships that go well beyond illness to encompass much more of
life. The wellness center, which is
part of a new addition to the Berrie
Center, will house all the experts
Dr. Steven Brower, chief of surgical oncology, and Dr. Mark Shapiro,
and the latest and greatest diagnoschief of radiology, review images before presenting the case at a
tic tools, all under one roof, for a
cancer conference, where the patients treatment plan will be
collaborative approach to care.
discussed with the disease management team.
Everything will be in one place,
he said; at least some of the stress
values displayed through that work.
in a different way, and in a humanistic
of managing an illness, the logistical part
Humanism is the philosophy that makes
environment.
of it, will be reduced.
the medical center run, Mr. Geller said. It is
We have these words on our building
We look at three components, the
about the whole patient and the whole fam the Russell and Angelica Berrie Center
experts, the technology, and then humanily. You cant just look at the patient. And
ism, wrapping them together. We want
for Humanistic Care. We live by that by
thats truly how we differentiate ourselves.
to be here to answer your questions; we
humanistic care every day.
Anyone with a few shekels can buy
know that when you are in crisis mode,
You have to treat people the way they
the latest and greatest technology, but
that is a difficult time to make decisions.
want to be treated, Mr. Geller continued.
you need the right vision to attract the
The experts and the technology are the
It can be a cultural or a personal thing.
right experts, and you have to do things
purview of Dr. Brower, whose innovaSome people want a warm hand on their
tive work in genetics and demographics,
back, others want a handshake, and others dont want to be touched. And once
supported by grants from the National
youve figured out that someone does
Institutes of Health, reach out into the

The Graf Center

offers massage
therapy to patients,
their families, and
the community.

Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015 21

Cover Story

CEO Warren Geller talks with a patient.

community. The humanism is exemplified by the Graf Center, which is a perfect

example of offering not just what people
would consider traditional medicine, but
looking at the whole person and the wellness side of their care, from massage and
stress management to yoga for patients
and caregivers.
We want to treat people outside our
four walls, and the way to do that is to look
not just at the illness but at their overall
lifestyle, and help them make better decisions. To really be seen as partners in care.
Mr. Geller is part of the community too,
he said. I live in Demarest, and I belong
to Temple Emanu-El of Closter. I love running into our constituents, the patients we
serve, our donors, our board members
the whole community. Its a great position
to be in.
We decided to launch this modernization project several years ago, and we
wrapped a capital campaign around it,
he added. It is not a traditional campaign.
Usually you go out and raise some funds,
and then the buildings start to go up. But
the need for the cancer and wellness center is pressing. We are an aging population
in Bergen and Hudson counties. Were
not growing quickly we are aging more
quickly than we are growing, more quickly
than in other parts of the country. We are
densely populated, and the birthrate has
been relatively flat.
That means that our need for health
care is rising too. When you are over 65,
your chances of having to fight even one
form of cancer go up exponentially, Mr.
Geller said. But, he added, there is no
need to give up hope. The wonderful
scientists and clinicians of the world have
taken what traditionally was a terminal
illness and made it chronic for many disease sites. That also means that we need
more doctors, more health care workers,
more medical facilities, and more ways to
treat the stresses, fears, and implications
of long-term illness.
So our leadership took a bold step; in
June we announced the public phase of

Abbey and Steve Braverman

a $50 million capital campaign. We are

incredibly grateful to the community,
which already has raised $26 million. We
are well on our way, and the extraordinary
generosity of our benefactors and friends
is overwhelming. We are way ahead of
schedule and below budget, and that helps
us make sure that we can deliver services
to the community more quickly. In fact,
some of the new offers were available a
good year and a half early.
Medicine is changing, Mr. Geller continued. We traditionally have been in a
transaction-oriented service business, and

now we are moving to more proactive care

managing. We are making sure that its a
two-way dialogue, that patients understand the plan of care, that we are getting
to them faster, giving them more efficient
care, reducing the cost of health care and
that were using a collaborative approach.
To that end, in April Englewood Hospital and Medical Center signed a strategic
partnership agreement with Hackensack
University Hospital, he said, and the partnership will be both academic and clinical. We are proud to work together with
Hackensack to reduce the overall cost of

care, collaborate across disciplines, and

help people stay at home.
We are going to be a teaching hospital,
and we are going to increase the number of
medical students and interns we have, in
coalition with Hackensack and the medical
school that Hackensack will open at Seton
Hall. (That also means that Englewood is
ending its affiliation with Mount Sinai.)
Part of his responsibility, he added, is
creating an environment that will encourage the next generation of doctors, the
young people who grew up here, went off
to college, and are now graduating from
medical school, to stay at home.
Five years from now, a quarter of the
physicians in our community could be 65
of older, so we have an inherent responsibility to recruit the next generation of
experts, he said.
Mr. Geller acknowledges that its far
easier to talk a good game than to deliver
one. We cant say that we are going to
do things in a certain way and then have
patients have a completely different experience, or not have access to the experts,
he said. We challenge ourselves every
day, and we pride ourselves on efficient
engineering. We bring in outside pairs of
eyes to everything we do from the earthtone color of the walls, through natural
light, to more private rooms, state-of-theart operating rooms. When technology
can flow beautifully and seamlessly in one
operating room, thats transformational.
When you come out of hip replacement

Chief of radiation oncology Dr. David Dubin and radiation therapy technologists Brittany Paladino and John Johnson work
together to position a patient for treatment.

22 Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015

RCBC
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mediation
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surgery and you go to a large private

room, with rehab on that floor, and
beautiful views from the window, thats
a healing environment.
We are treating more people than
ever before in our history, Mr. Geller
concluded. For the second consecutive
year, we were rated number one by the
Leapfrog Group, a key rating agency, for
patient safety outcomes. Its no longer
about the traditional four walls of a hospital. It extends far beyond that.
Dr. Brower, who came to Englewood
from Beth Israel in Manhattan, via a path
that started in Valley Stream on Long
Island and wound through Scarsdale,
Atlanta, and a great deal of work at the
NIH, was drawn to his work by two different magnetic pulls.
As a medical student at the University of Buffalo, I saw an incredible doctor, his mentor, examine patients with
compassion and empathy like Id never
seen before, he said. And the patients
this doctor was examining had cancer,
and I had been interested, even as an
undergraduate, in how normal cells
became abnormal. Put those two things
together, and that did it for me.
I cared about both those things, and
I became passionate about surgery, and
about my ability to impact on patients
with cancer by doing my craft, Dr.
Brower said.
Compassion is critically important, he
added, and that is particularly true now.
It used to be that a doctor would sit at
the end of a patients bed for a very long
time, watching the vital signs go down,
he said. Now no doctor would have time
to spend all those hours just sitting but
now vital signs do not always decline,
and doctors have more in their toolboxes than patience and sitzfleisch.
The cancer center is focusing on personalized medicine. I came here to
Englewood because it is an amazing
cancer center that is totally committed
to special populations, Dr. Brower said.
Ashkenazi Jewish people, and Korean
and other Asian Americans with highrisk disease.

There are various risks associated

with these populations, so I have the
opportunity to hone in on them. And
I inherited a team committed to laser
focus at niche diseases.
Its all about personalized medicine,
he continued. No one therapy can be a
magic bullet. Its a ballet. We have to offer
the appropriate therapy at the appropriate time, and to withhold treatment
that might not be as effective for some
patients or have intolerable side effects.
So we look at the population, and
focus on genetics.
Its unique to this cancer center, Dr.
Brower said. Others are looking toward
this kind of focus, but with our genetics
program we have the experts in genetic
counseling.
One in 40 Ashkenazi women will
have the gene that is responsible for
the development of breast cancer, Dr.
Brower said, talking about the BRCA1
and BRCA2 genes. I believe that any
woman with breast or ovarian cancer
should seriously consider being tested
for the gene. Thats because the likelihood of her developing another cancer
goes up if she has the gene, and so does
the chance of her close relatives being
diagnosed with one of those cancers. It
is not rare for non-Ashkenazim to have
the mutation, he added, its just more
rare for them than for us.
And it doesnt stop there. We are
starting to uncover a whole array of
genes that are related to high risk that
are not BRCA but still affect the Jewish
population.
Because the patents on the tests that
look for BRCA genes have run out, the
procedure now is far less expensive and
easily available, he added.
Jews also should be aware that colon
cancer is very common, perhaps the
second most common, and there are
genetics that relate to this, Dr. Brower
said. We call these genes Lynch syndrome or mistake repair genes, and
they are found in both men and women.
If you are identified as having it, you also
incur a significant risk of endometrial or

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Jewish standard deCeMBer 25, 2015 23

Cover Story
breast cancer. It is important to be tested for colon cancer,
he said; this is not news but should be said again and again
because it matters so very much.
So far, about 10 to 15 percent of cancers are known to have
a genetic component, and I wouldnt be surprised if one day
that is as high as 50 percent, Dr. Brower said. Thats why
any patient considered to be high-risk is urged to work with a
genetics counselor on drawing up a sort of family tree, called
a pedigree, and match that with the result of blood tests to
determine what action to take and who else in the family
might be at risk and should become vigilant.
We have a unique relationship with the National Cancer
Institute, doing research on men and women with breast and
colorectal cancer, Dr. Brower said. We do research to see
how they react to specific drugs, radiation, chemo, even the
timing of their surgery. Its an in-depth look that produces a
lot of data, all highly personalized, all sent to the lab for further analysis.
Dr. Brower and the staff at the cancer center also perform
trials. You are trying to extend life and survival, he said, but
the trials do not always help the patients themselves, instead

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adding information that will help other patients, down

the road. Patients know that, Dr. Brower said, and he
always wants to thank the patients whose courage and
selflessness add to the store of knowledge from which
we all can draw.
The program at Englewood Hospital and Medical Center has three pillars, he concluded. Clinical excellence,
research, and education.
Dr. Browers Jewish background he grew up Conservative, joined the local Reform synagogue in Scarsdale because its rabbi was the remarkable Rick Jacobs,
who now is president of the Union for Reform Judaism,
and now is a member of the East End Temple, close to
his Manhattan home is never far from his surface. Of
course, the center focuses on Ashkenazi Jews, among
other groups. Beyond that, I think about how music
and art can carry you through difficult times, he said.
There often is a musician in the hospitals main lobby.
Thats because of Dizzy Gillespie, the legendary jazz
trumpeter who lived in Englewood and died in the
hospital there in 1983. His gift to local musicians was a
memorial fund that helps provide medical care to unand under-insured musicians; his gift to hospital patients
and visitors is the musicians who play there every day.
Patients art is displayed throughout the building, in
a program that the hospital runs with the Old Church
Cultural Center in Demarest.
Music and art are related to the question of how you
get through the most challenging aspect of your life, Dr.
Brower said; Jews confronted those questions across our
history, and patients confront them during the course of
their illnesses.
The Graf Center for Integrative Medicine, another
new wing of the Berrie Center, is a calm place, with
beautiful dark cyprus floors, large windows, subdued
lighting, restrained colors, soothing New Age music, textures that make a visitor want to touch them, massage
rooms, yoga rooms, and an overwhelming feeling of refuge and peace.
Jennifer Graf and her husband, David, who live in
Cresskill, donated the center. Ms. Graf, who started her
career as an advertising copywriter, is a licensed social
worker who has been leading stress management programs for 7 years and has been in private practice for
about 15. I do mind-body mediation, relaxation training, mediation-guided imagery, stress reduction, and
couples therapy, Ms. Graf said. Even before that I had
been a life coach. I also have training from the Albert
Ellis Institute in cognitive behavioral therapy. It all falls
into the same mind/body connection. Its what we do to
and for ourselves.
Until September 11, 2001, the Grafs lived in Manhattan, but after the terrorist attacks, I said, You know
what? Lets move to the burbs, Ms. Graf recalled. I
3493212-01
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carrol/BB
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ingMedia
looking
around to see where we could make a
difference, and we got a phone call from the foundation office, she said. Thats the Englewood Hospital
and Medical Center Foundation. This was our hospital growing up, and I am health-minded and so is my
husband, so it just made sense, she said. Establishing
integrative medicine at the hospital became her cause.
Integrative medicine is anything that complements
traditional medicine, Ms. Graf said. Its anything that

restores the bodys balance; the nervous system balancing the parasympathetic system with the sympathetic
system, so reducing stress. It could be acupuncture,
Reiki, massage, eating well nutritionally and holistically.
It could be exercise, whether it be yoga or any kind of
movement, or meditation-guided imagery. All of these
things are different routes to get to the same place balance in the body and in the mind.
So she started the center, teaching a few courses herself. At first, it was amorphous, just a couple of rooms,
she said. There was no real physical center for it, and
no one really knew about it. I have a friend who is a
party planner, and she said, why dont you do some
fundraising? I didnt know what I was getting into, but
the first fundraiser we did blew the doors out, and the
hospital said, Wow. People really want this.
We raised money, and we also raised awareness, she
continued. Warren Geller always was a big supporter.
About two years ago, the stakes were raised when Mr.
Geller and some board members called Jen and David
Graf to a meeting. We walked in and sat down, and they
showed us the David and Jennifer Graf Center for Integrative Medicine, she said. And I was like, Whaaaat
I got chills. And they said that you could have this, all for
the very low price of eeeeehhhhhhhh
And then my husband said, Oh God! We have to
think about it. And we thought about it. And it was my
dream. My husband is very philanthropic, very generous, and for me, professionally and personally, to be
able to help provide this to the community Momentarily wordless, even retelling the story years later, she
threw her arms open instead.
And I also had my own run-in with breast cancer,
and during my own surgeries I used Reiki, acupuncture, and other things. Medical research shows that it
speeds wound healing, reduces cortisol levels, improves
the bodys immune functions, and makes you feel better
and get through the process better. So aside from all the
research that shows that its effective, I also know that
it works for me.
Ms. Graf worked with architect/designer David Lawrence to design the center. I have a particular vision
and style, and I know that aesthetics matter, she said.
I wanted it to feel very Zen. Very peaceful, as if youre
not in the hospital. The ambiance, the music, the water
features, all the natural materials, the stone and wood.
It feels very organic. We sprinkle magic dust.
The center offers its services to patients, caregivers,
families, hospital staff, and the entire community. Physician, heal thyself, Ms. Graf said. Hospital staffers often
use the space as a place to find some peace, to take a few
minutes to themselves, to process whatever horror or
trauma or simply intense emotion theyve seen or felt.
Before the center was built, often theyd look for refuge
in the chapel, but increasingly they seek it in the centers
natural, serene space.
And then theres the Jewish aspect. Giving back to
the community is a Jewish value, Ms. Graf said; part of
the joy she takes from her gift is because of that value.
Learn more about the Graf Center at (201) 608-2377.
Yet another Jewish family, headed by Steve and Abbey
Braverman, of Englewood Cliffs, is about to open the
Braverman Family Executive Wellness Program. That
program, slated to begin on January 13, offers a concierge
service that allows time-stressed people a day of health
evaluation, entirely personalized and absolutely thorough. Its a service a luxurious one, to be sure that
allows people who often do not give themselves the luxury of time to make only one appointment and through
that appointment have all their health risks assessed. To
learn about the Braverman program, call (201) 608-2344
or email bravermanwellness@ehmchealth.org.

On behalf of everyone we serve,

thank you for your generosity.

Reminder!
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Think about what the New Year will bring with
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Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015 25

On behalf of everyone we serve,

thank you for your generosity.

Reminder!
Before this crystal ball drops...
Think about what the New Year will bring with
new opportunities to impact the Jewish community here,
in Israel and around the world.
The old year may bring tax advantages
if your envelope is postmarked by December 31, 2015.*

Please pay your pledge or make a new one.

Jewish Federation

OF NORTHERN NEW JERSEY

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www.jfnnj.org/donate
call 201.820.3937
*Please confer with your tax advisor for details.
JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015 25

Jewish World

Brandeis selects Ronald Liebowitz as next president

Brandeis University announced that its next president will be
Ronald D. Liebowitz, the former president of Middlebury College in Vermont.
Liebowitz will take over from interim president Lisa Lynch
on July 1, 2016. Lynch is the first non-Jew to lead the Jewishsponsored nonsectarian university; she was Brandeis stopgap
choice after the resignation of its previous president, Frederick Lawrence.
I am deeply honored, Liebowitz said in a statement. The
universitys founding, based on the premise of offering an
education to those who had been excluded from the finest
universities, is inspiring. Its commitment to social justice, as
espoused by its namesake, represents a precious compass
for an institution of higher education in the 21st century. And
its Jewish heritage and roots reflect a learning environment
committed not only to critical thinking but to self-criticism

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as well.
anti-Muslim statements she had made.
Liebowitz, a political geographer
Insiders noted that the whole affair could
who specializes in Russian economic
have been avoided had Lawrences office
and political geography, spent 31
simply conducted a Google search.
years at Middlebury, first as a profesDuring Liebowitzs tenure at Middlesor, then as provost and president.
bury, the college surpassed its goals in a
A native of New York, Liebowitz, 58,
campaign to raise $500 million in capital, added 120 endowed student scholarearned his bachelors degree from
ships and 16 endowed faculty positions,
Bucknell University and his doctorate
launched a school of Hebrew, and opened
from Columbia University. He stepped
the Center for Social Entrepreneurship,
down in June after 11 years at Middleburys helm, and he lives in Newton,
Ronald Liebowitz has
according to a Brandeis news release. In
been named the next
Massachusetts, with his wife and three
2009, Liebowitz was named one of Amerpresident of Brandeis
icas Top 10 college presidents by Time
children.
University. Brett Simison/
magazine.
Brandeis is looking to move past
Brandeis University
Marna Whittington, Middleburys board
the rocky times that marked the fivechair, called Liebowitz a transformational
year tenure of its previous president.
leader.
Although Lawrence helped stabilize Brandeis finances
Larry Kanarek, the Brandeis board trustee who
in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, his fundraising
chaired the presidential search committee, said Liebowfailed to measure up to that of his longtime predecessor. Lawrence also imposed austerity measures while his
itz met every one of the committees search criteria.
own compensation rose, making him unpopular among
He has exceptional, transferable leadership experience and a proven record of advancing academic excelsome faculty.
lence, Kanarek said. He is financially savvy and a
Lawrence was seen as having made several administrative missteps and stumbled through many controversuperb fundraiser. And he is a straight shooter who is
sies. In 2014, the university announced it would award
comfortable in his own skin and eager to engage all parts
an honorary degree to Somali-born feminist activist
of our community.

JTA Wire Service
Ayaan Hirsi Ali but then backtracked when critics noted

Brandeis new president:

We are going to pursue diversity
Uriel Heilman

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26 Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015

Last week, Brandeis University

announced that its next president
will be Ronald Liebowitz, the former
president of Middlebury College.
Though he wont start until next
July, Liebowitz shared some of his
ideas about the challenges he faces
in an interview with JTA. A condensed version of our conversation
follows:
Uriel Heilman: How do you
anticipate the challenges of leading Brandeis will differ from those
you faced at Middlebury?
Ronald Liebowitz: Each institution has its own idiosyncrasies and
special challenges. Brandeis has
some remarkable human resources
and attributes, but it needs an
understanding of itself: who it is
and what it wants to become. How
does it reconcile its rich past with
its future?
UH: Brandeis is best known for
being a Jewish school, sort of. I
believe the language the university
uses is Jewish-sponsored, nonsectarian. What does that mean
to you?
RL: It means we are first in line
when it comes to Jewish studies
and when it comes to academic

excellence. We want to be leaders

in Near Eastern and Israeli studies
as well. Were open to Jews of all
kinds, but in order for us to be a
first-rate university we also need
to have diversity. While we celebrate our history and strengthen
our commitment to Jewish studies
and history, we also are going to
pursue diversity of our students,
faculty and staff on campus for the
sake of creating the richest cultural
environment.
UH: Do you have a specific vision
for Brandeis?
RL: Its a little early. I really look
forward to a year of listening and
learning.
UH: What are some of the big
issues universities are grappling
with these days?
RL: The challenges of access
and affordability. Beyond that,
theres the issue of whether or not
the education of today meets the
needs of tomorrow. I think that
has become a bigger question and
has put pressure on colleges and
universities. We have to look at
the curriculum and consider not
just what we expect the students
to learn but what skills we expect
them to have when they graduate.
UH: Should defenders of the

humanities and liberal arts be

nervous?
RL: I dont think were doing
anything to water down the liberal arts. We endowed the classics department during my last
semester in Middlebury. I see the
humanities as the foundation of liberal arts. Were talking about what
do students need to learn that
includes skills they may not have
needed 20 years ago, not replacing
liberal arts education.
UH: Until a year ago, you lived
in Vermont for 32 years, with the
last 11 as Middleburys president.
Youve spent the last few months
living in Newton, Massachusetts,
and doing research for a book
youre co-authoring with your
wife, Jessica. Whats that been like?
RL: Ive been able to travel, read
and get re-engaged in Jewish life
since we moved here to Newton.
Living Jewishly in Newton, Massachusetts, is quite easy, and its
been really welcome. All my kids
are now in Jewish day school.
UH: Your bio says youre 58, yet
you look a decade younger and
your kids are 9, 10 and 11. How do
you stay looking so young?
RL: Being in a stress-free job.


JTA Wire Service

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Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015 27

Jewish World

Road improvements, research

buck stereotype of dangerous Israeli driving
MAAYAN JAFFE-HOFFMAN
Honk. Honk. Hoooonk. Its the sound of
the Israeli street.
Israelis do have a reputation for aggressive driving. But according to the 2014
Road Safety Annual Report, 263 people
lost their lives on Israels roads in 2012, a
40-percent decrease from the number of
accidents causing death in 2000.
There has been a real increase in the
awareness of the need for road safety,
said Dr. Victoria Gitelman, a researcher at
the Transportation Research Institute of
Technion Israel Institute of Technology
in Haifa.
So what has changed?
First: public transportation. According
to Dr. Tal Oron-Gilad, a tenured associate
professor in the Department of Industrial
Engineering and Management at BenGurion University of the Negev, there
has been a major shift away from cars,
with Israelis increasing their use of public
transport. In urban areas such as Jerusalem, the establishment of the light rail has
reduced city traffic. Paving lanes that are
exclusively dedicated to public transportation has improved travel time, in addition
to encouraging the use of public buses or
carpooling by cab.
This is not just a slogan, it is a real
change in priorities, Oron-Gilad said.
That being said, theres also a slogan.
A decade-long Ministry of Transportation
campaign to calm the traffic in Israeli
residential areas has resulted in a nearly
complete eradication of pedestrian casualties in those areas, Gitelman said. The campaign involved adding speed bumps and
sidewalks, and reducing residential speed
limits. Roundabouts in this part of the
United States we call them traffic circles
also have played a role in improving safety.
Another major factor has been Israels
investment in infrastructure upgrades. A
2014 Bank of Israel study that looked at
the impact of road improvements found
that guardrails dividing oncoming lanes
of highway traffic reduced the number
of accidents by 32 percent. Sophisticated
technologies, including rumble strips and
forgiving roadside designs that include soft
shoulders beyond the paved carriageway,
have helped mitigate the consequences
of run-off type road accidents where the
vehicle leaves the road and enters the
roadside. The result, Gitelman said, is
a reduction in the number of fatalities
and serious injuries resulting from these
accidents.
That same Bank of Israel study found
that sharp turns increase the number of
accidents by as much as 21 percent. The
addition of tunnels that cut through the
mountains and remove the ups, downs,

A traffic jam on Israels Ayalon Highway, near the entrance to Tel Aviv.

and curves in areas like the entrance to

Jerusalem off Highway 1, as well as the
entrance to Haifa, is changing driving dramatically, Oron-Gilad said.
These tunnels are very expensive, but
obviously it is a lot faster and safer if you
dont have to drive around a mountain,
but through it, she added.
A final major shift has been Israels
policy of looking for drunk drivers. For
decades (Gitelman says until the 2000s),
there was a popular belief that alcoholinduced traffic accidents were not a trend
in Israel. But when officials started to measure the number of alcohol-related traffic
incidents, they found that we do have a
problem, Gitelman said. In response, traffic police now dedicate a certain amount
of time to this issue, with random checks,
especially on holidays and weekends. In
that area too, Gitelman noted, there have
been positive results.
The more Israel learns, the more action
it can take, researchers argue. Several
Israeli universities have entire departments focused on ways to improve traffic
safety. This May and June, for example,
BGU professors published two separate
studies related to improving driving conditions. In May, BGU researchers and students released a sophisticated lifesaving
mobile app that classifies drivers based on
their driving style and phone usage while
driving. The system uses a smartphones
sensor to collect and store many kinds of

28 JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015

data on driving in the cloud; that data is

analyzed and given back to the user. That
provides an opportunity for remedial
training, showing drivers their own personal styles as well as how much time they
spend paying attention to their phones.
The hope is that reducing the time that
drivers spend texting while behind the
wheel could help in fighting a growing and
dangerous pandemic.
The second study addressed the way
that music contributes to traffic violations
and human error. In his book, Driving
and Music: Cognitive-Behavioral Implications, BGU professor Warren Brodsky
wrote, The research is irrefutable that
listening to music in the car affects the
way you drive Ideally, drivers should
choose tunes that do not trigger distracting thoughts, memories, emotions, or
hand-drumming along to the beat.
Yet there is still more work to be done,
the researchers say. While officials celebrate the increased use of public transportation, Gitelman said that arrangements to
help pedestrians navigate public transportation lanes have not been made.
Imagine a road, Gitelman said. You
have two directions: north and south.
Usually, that road is divided into two
parts. Now, if you build an additional
lane dedicated to public transportation,
and then you divide that section into two
parts, there are now four parts, and the
arrangement is much more complicated. A

MOSHE SHAI/FLASH90

pedestrian needs to cross all of these components and when crossing needs to look
left, right, left, right or sometimes right,
right, left. Unfortunately, this also has its
expression in accidents.
In Tel Aviv, where the weather is good
for pedestrian commuters, there has been
a successful thrust for use of bikes instead
of cars. But without bike lanes, people are
getting hit, Oron-Gilad said.
Israel sometimes falls short in strategic
planning, she added. When the country
built the much-anticipated Highway 6, it
failed to make the shoulders wide enough
or add enough rest stops to make it safe
for truck drivers or regular commuters.
Additionally, Oron-Gilad said, as Israel has
built up its road system, it has neglected
the periphery, where some of the countrys most dangerous highways lay.
People especially tourists think of
Israeli driving as what happens in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv. But there are many other
areas that need to be attended to, she
said. If we bring the train to a city like
Sderot or Netivot or Ofakim, you will bring
hope to these people because they can
access jobs and have more possibilities.
Nevertheless, while it may seem easier
to drive in the United States, where roads
are wider and often there is plenty of parking, Oron-Gilad believes that things are not
so bad in Israel. Israeli drivers are no different or worse than other drivers around
JNS.ORG
the world, she said.

Jewish World

Israeli officials condemn, restrict Breaking the Silence

BEN SALES
TEL AVIV Theyve been banned from
Israels schools and not allowed to speak
to Israeli soldiers. Israels prime minister
denounced them from the floor of the
Knesset. A right-wing group has accused
them of being foreign moles.
The Israeli veterans group Breaking
the Silence has been controversial since
2004, when it was founded by soldiers
who had served in Hebron during the
Second Intifada. The groups goal is to
give soldiers a forum to speak out about
their service in the West Bank and Gaza,
and to advocate against Israels occupation of the West Bank. It publishes soldiers testimonies of alleged abuses during conflict, such as indiscriminate firing
on civilians. It also runs tours of Hebron.
Figures on Israels political right and
center have accused the group of taking
testimonies out of context and distorting the truth. Its drawn particular ire
for publishing many testimonies anonymously, for releasing its reports in English, and for taking veterans on speaking
tours in Europe and the United States.
This week, Israels government
mounted an unprecedented campaign
against the group. Senior Israeli politicians have accused the group of slandering the IDF. Defense Minister Moshe
Yaalon banned the group from speaking
to active-duty soldiers, calling the groups
work hypocrisy and false propaganda in
a Facebook post. Two days later, Education Minister Naftali Bennett barred the
group from appearing at schools.
Breaking the Silence doesnt care
for the IDFs morality, Bennett wrote
on Facebook. Its focused on defaming IDF soldiers across the world: In
Belgium, in Sweden, in the U.N., in the
European Union. Since when does someone who cares for the IDF go around the
world spreading blood libels about our
soldiers?
Breaking the Silence has called the
recent moves against it an unjust and
undemocratic attempt at curtailing
speech.
This is a worrying and violent incitement campaign from the same forces
calling to close [Israels] Supreme Court,
who call the countrys president a traitor,
and who work to shut down human rights
organizations in Israel, Breaking the
Silence wrote in an email to supporters.
Bennetts and Yaalons decisions to bar
the group from schools and from contact

Israeli settlers record a video and argue with a member of Breaking the Silence
on Al-Shuhada Street in the West Bank city of Hebron in July. GARRETT MILLS/FLASH90

with active-duty soldiers come as the

Knesset is considering a bill to require
NGOs like Breaking the Silence to declare
their foreign funding sources. Yaalons
move also came the same day as Israeli
President Reuven Rivlin spoke before
the group did at a New York conference
hosted by the liberal Israeli daily Haaretz.
That day, Israeli TV Channel 20 called
Rivlins appearance at a conference that
also featured Breaking the Silence a
total loss of shame and said he didnt
represent the country. Knesset Opposition Leader Isaac Herzog called on
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to
denounce the channels comments.
Instead, Netanyahu criticized Breaking the Silence.
Come to the podium and vocally
denounce the Breaking the Silence organization, which slanders soldiers worldwide and works to tie the hands of the
state of Israel when it defends itself,
which defames the state of Israel, Netanyahu said from the Knesset podium.
Opposition to the group isnt universal. On Wednesday, left-wing Meretz
party Chairwoman Zahava Galon criticized Bennetts decision as a politically
motivated move.
Breaking the Silence is a patriotic
organization that helps the IDF keep its
moral character, Galon wrote on Facebook. They help us guard the human
image as a society and army.
Breaking the Silence has been
embroiled in controversy before, drawing criticism from Israelis seen as moderate. In 2013, the University of Pennsylvania Hillel initially barred the group
from holding an event in its building, but
allowed it in the face of strong backlash
from students.
After Breaking the Silence released a
collection of negative testimonies in May

from soldiers who fought in last years war in

Gaza, centrist Yesh Atid party Chairman Yair
Lapid formed a group of soldiers called My
Truth to counter the allegations with positive
accounts of IDF service. He called Breaking

the Silence anti-Zionist and radical.

On Wednesday, the right-wing organization Im Tirtzu took the condemnations a
step further, publishing a video accusing
the heads of Breaking the Silence and other
left-wing NGOs of being foreign plants and
supporting terror against Israelis.
But even Breaking the Silences critics
condemned the Im Tirtzu campaign as a
step too far.
The name-calling from left and right
using terms like traitors, fascists, agents
or McCarthyism, and demonization campaigns or personal attacks do not contribute
to a healthy public debate, read a statement
by Gerald Steinberg, president of NGO Monitor, a right-wing organization that opposes
Breaking the Silences activity and investigates its funding. This uncivil discourse is
antithetical to Israels democratic values.


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Jewish World
FIRST PERSON

What its like being a Jew in the South at Christmas

Sarah Moessinger
I grew up in northern New Jersey,
where my high school class was at
least 20 percent Jewish.
The local deli was run by one of
my grandmothers former fourthgrade students from when she taught
elementary school in Brooklyn. He
deferred to her as Mrs. Isquith, and
she still called him Kenny, as if he
were still in fourth grade.
If your parents had a falling out
with one rabbi, your family could
join another synagogue a few miles
down the road. The stores were
stocked with round challahs for Rosh
Hashanah and matzah for Passover.
Shop Rite, Grand Union, and Pathmark sold Chanukah candles and
Sarah Moessinger
gelt. Being Jewish in New Jersey in the
1980s didnt require much work because
Fast forward to 2003. I moved to North
the surrounding world was also Jewish.
Carolina with my then-husband and our

two young children. Our choice of

home was determined primarily
by proximity to the three shuls all
located within a few miles of each
other. The preschool in the Conservative synagogue had room for Hannah, so I signed her up to enter the
4-year-old class. In a city of 300,000
people, we had three congregations
the temple was Reform, the
synagogue was Conservative, and
Chabad was Chabad. If you felt like
synagogue hopping, the next cluster
was about 20 miles away. So that was
the beginning of my education about
how to be Jewish in the South.
One blisteringly hot summer day,
Hannah was playing at a local playground when I overheard a boy in the
sandbox tell her that she was going to
hell if she didnt accept Jesus into her
heart RIGHT AWAY. She was 4 years old
and fortunately had no idea what he was

talking about. I was ready to pack up the

moving van and move back north.
But we quickly became friends with the
other Jewish families in her preschool.
Most were transplants from the Midwest
or the East Coast and already had weathered the culture shock. Deli food? At least
a five-hour drive away. Kosher meat? Delivered once a month from Baltimore. Our
southern shtetl bonded over Tot Shabbat services and Friday night dinners,
and I began observing the holidays more
seriously and more deeply than I ever had
before. Because if I wasnt going to bring
Judaism into my home, no one was going
to do it for me.
The JCC was instrumental for the kids
and parents socialization. Hannah and
David went to summer camp there and
swam on the JCCs summer swim team.
The JCC brought kids and parents together
from all three congregations and some of
our closest friends today were made at the

Russian-Israelis embrace
tinsel, trees and Santa Claus
but dont call it Christmas
Ben Sales
TEL AVIV Every December Elana Snitmans family gathers at her home, where
they decorate a fake pine tree with
ornaments, placing gifts underneath to
exchange. After gathering for a dinner of
chicken, eggplant, and beet-and-potato
salad, they sing a traditional song about
the festive tree and the coming of winter.
Its a sacred tradition for the Snitmans,
but its not a Christmas tradition. Its all in
the name of Novy God, New Years in
Russian. Its a day, celebrated beginning
December 31, that for many of Israels Russian immigrants and their children encompasses Christmas-like rituals and symbols.
Most Israelis celebrate their new year on
Rosh Hashanah, and treat both Christmas
and New Years like any other day shops
stay open, kids go to school and adults
work. But many of Israels approximately
1.6 million Russian speakers see Novy God
as a cultural holiday and time for family
gathering. Soldiers from Russian immigrant families can receive a special leave
for the holiday.
From my perspective, it feels like something you need to hide because people
connect it to Christmas, said Snitman, 23,
who moved to Israel from the republic of
Georgia when she was 2. Thats not how

it is with us. We dont do the Christian holiday. Its a civil holiday.

Elaborate celebrations of Novy God are a
holdover from Soviet times, when the atheist government prohibited Christians from
recognizing Christmas and pushed off its
traditions by a week so they landed on New
Years Eve and Day. Russian-speaking Israelis brought the custom with them when
they moved to Israel en masse in the 1990s.
For them, Santa Claus is not a saint but a
warm grandfather-like figure who brings
presents. Carols revolve around the season
or wishes for the coming year, not around
Jesus birth. Some families buy piles of
plastic foam pebbles to simulate snow.
Gil Tairov, 17, works at Novy God market, which injects bright colors and flashy
lights into its drab concrete surroundings
at Tel Avivs Central Bus Station. Tairov
estimates that well over 100,000 people
visit the market in December to buy all
manner of holiday kitsch from plastic
pine trees and ornaments to Santa hats
and stockings. A giant inflatable Santa
hangs off one of the stands.
The store hasnt inspired only cheer: In
Israel, the war on Christmas or at least
Christmas merchandise is real. Members
of a far-right group protested a tree-decorating event at the Jerusalem YMCA last
month. Religious Jews heckled a Christian

30 Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015

Customers shopping at Joy, a small Tel Aviv store that has been heckled repeatedly for selling Christmas and New Years merchandise.
Ben Sales

choir singing carols on Jerusalems Ben

Yehuda Street last year.
Snitman says Jews have criticized her for
celebrating a Christian holiday, and Tairov
says hecklers come to his market about
once a week.
Yet Russian-Israelis say Novy God is
becoming somewhat more popular in
Israel, as Russian immigrants establish
themselves here and marry native-born
Israelis. Tairov estimates that 30 percent
of his customers are native Israelis not
descended from Soviet immigrants, and
he conducts business in Hebrew as well
as Russian.
Snitman is inviting two non-Russian

friends to celebrate with her family this

year.
Some 160,000 Christians live in Israel,
most of them Arab, and the president and
prime minister send out official greetings for Christmas. On Christmas Eve
and Christmas Day, the Tourism Ministry
provides a free shuttle between Jerusalem and Bethlehem, where a traditional
Mass is conducted. The Jewish National
Fund has sold Christmas trees for about
two decades.
Despite its spread among Jewish-Israelis,
Tairov predicted Novy God would remain
a niche holiday in Israel, not the national
winter festival it is in Russia.

Bunny Hains Jewelry

MEGA SALE

Jewish World
JCC. If we were minorities in our everyday lives, we
could be in the majority at the J.
But the Christian-majority world was never far away.
Every year there were stories of public school teachers bringing in a cake and candles so the kids could
sing Happy Birthday to baby Jesus. Or a teacher in
public school would read the gospels to the class in
December. The neighborhood behind us decorated all
the (public) light poles with Christmas wreaths. Periodically the majority culture would turn ugly and loud
and publicly boycott any store that displayed Happy
Holidays instead of Merry Christmas signs in the
store windows. And the newspaper would feature
irate letters that a sales clerk had wished someone
Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas.
December was very much a month where I felt our
otherness acutely, and as trite as it sounds, I really
wanted to see a few public Chanukah displays. For a
few years I didnt bring Hannah and David out very
much in December because they felt even more like
outcasts than I did.
We all have faced some amount of anti-Semitism
here. The kids have been told that they are going to
hell for their beliefs more than once. I get tired of
being the first Jewish person some adults have ever
met, and I am weary of explaining that December 25 is
just another day to us, and no, we dont have a Christmas tree, and no, we dont go to church. Wed eat

Chinese food if we could find an open Chinese restaurant.

But having said that, after 12 years here, I feel beyond
blessed to have our southern shtetl. When asked if I know
another Jewish family, I often do. Its a pretty safe assumption that we all know each other, or have at least heard of
each other. Since many of us are transplants, far away from
our families, we have created our own traditions and customs, once again a tribute to the resilience and adaptability
JTA Wire Service
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Alex, a cashier at the Novy God market in Tel

Avivs Central Bus Station, sells Christmas and
New Years kitsch to thousands of mostly Russianspeaking customers each December.
Ben Sales

A Russian bookstore in Jerusalem sells tinsel next to

Jewish holy books like the Bible and the Zohar. A holein-the-wall souvenir store in Tel Aviv is advertising a
Buddha next to a fake Christmas tree.
The Tel Aviv shop is called Joy. But its storefront is
bare, co-owner Gil Oren said, because the word joy
in Hebrew transliteration looks like the word goy, a
derogatory Yiddish word describing a non-Jewish person. People already heckle Oren for selling Christmas
merchandise, and he didnt want to attract even more
negative attention.
It surprises me that that happens, he said. If you
dont think its good, just dont buy it. JTA Wire Service

donate.
jfnnj.org/supersunday
Jewish Federation

OF NORTHERN NEW JERSEY

Seth Lipschitz | Donna Weintraub

co-Chairs

aaronh@jfnnj.org | 201-820-3942

Roberta Abrams Paer

Vice president, Campaign
Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015 31

Jewish World

Two Holocaust-themed films make the Oscar cut

Tom Tugend
LOS ANGELES Two films
about the Holocaust and its aftermath have made the cut in the
competition for best foreign-language film.
They were selected from
among entries from 80 countries
vying for Oscar honors, according to an announcement by the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts
and Sciences.
Both entries, Son of Saul and
Labyrinth of Lies, are among
the critics favorites to garner
an Academy Award indicating, once again, that the Shoah
retains its grip on the minds and
souls of both international filmmakers and the voting members
of the academy.
Last year, the foreign-language
Oscar went to the Polish movie
Ida, which followed the path of
a devout young woman who was
raised in a convent and about to
take her vows as a nun. Suddenly,
she learns that her parents were
Jews who perished in the Holocaust and she sets out to rediscover her roots.
In Hungarys Son of Saul,
winner of the Grand Prix at this
years Cannes Film Festival, Saul
Auslander is a member of the
Sonderkommando at AuschwitzBirkenau, forced to cremate the
bodies of fellow prisoners gassed
by the Waffen SS. As he goes
about his ghastly task, he thinks
he recognizes his son among the
bodies, unexpectedly clinging to
life for a few extra minutes.
With the Sonderkommando
men planning a rebellion, Saul
vows that he will save the childs
body from the flames and find a
rabbi to say Kaddish at a proper
burial.
Saul is portrayed by Geza
Rohrig, born in Budapest and
the founder of an underground
punk band under Communist
rule. Moving to New York, he
studied at a chasidic yeshiva and
graduated from the Conservative
moments Jewish Theological
Seminary.
The film also is nominated for
a Golden Globe Award.
Labyrinth of Lies, submitted
by Germany, is set in the postwar 1950s, a time when many
Germans preferred to deny or
ignore the Holocaust. The film
focuses on a young German prosecutor determined to bring the
Nazis who ran Auschwitz to trial

Top, a scene from

Labyrinth, and right,
Son of Saul.
before a German court.
In historical retrospect, the
subsequent trial is seen as a turning point in forcing Germans to
face the reality of the Holocaust.
Eric Goldman has reviewed
both films in the Jewish Standard, Labyrinth of Lies on September 25 and Son of Saul on
December 18.
Both the Israeli submission,
Baba Joon a Farsi-language
film and the Palestinian film
The Wanted 18, failed to make
the Oscar cut, leaving Jordans
Theeb, set during World War I,
when the Ottoman Empire ruled
the Middle East, as the regions
only entry to place among the
final nine.
Israels record in making the
prestigious short list of the five
finalists has been uneven, with
bursts of recognition in some
decades alternating with long
dry spells.
The first entry by the young
Israeli film industry in 1965,
Sallah, was surprisingly
among the five finalists, followed by four more Israeli
nominees in the 1970s and an
additional four between 2007
and 2011. Since then, no Israeli

32 Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015

movie has made it to the final

short list and none has ever
won the coveted Oscar.
Rounding out the list of nine
semi-finalists this year are:
Belgium: The Brand New
Testament, an irreverent satire
in which everything in the Bible
turns out to be wrong
Colombia: Embrace of the
Serpent, in which two scientists and an Amazonian shaman
search for a rare sacred plant

Denmark: A War, about a soldier who serves in Afghanistan

and the impact on his family at
home
Finland: The Fencer, in
which a fencing instructor evades
the Soviet secret police
France: Mustang, which
explores the alternately joyful and repressed lives of five
orphaned sisters growing up in a
Turkish village
Ireland: Viva set in a

Havana nightclub, a gay son

struggles against his macho
father.
The list of the current nine
contenders will be winnowed
down to five, with the remaining nominees announced Jan.
14. The glamorous award ceremony is on February 28 and will
be televised to more than 225
countries and territories across
the globe.


JTA Wire Service

Jewish World

Barak Stoltz lights Chanukah candles in the Mars Desert Research Station. 

COURTESY BARAK STOLTZ

Jews on Mars?
Training for interplanetary travel during Chanukah in Utah
PAUL WIEDER
Yes, he has seen the recent film
The Martian. But unlike the
other millions who have seen
that movie, Barak Stoltz went
much closer to Mars.
Stoltz spent Chanukah in the
Utah desert, in a few cramped
capsules that make up the Mars
Desert Research Station. He lit
his menorah, sang some songs,
and even tried his hand at making latkes all while practicing
for a manned mission to Mars.
MDRS is run by the Mars Society, a Colorado-based nonprofit
that works toward a human presence on that planet. The idea of
the MDRS is to recreate, as much
as possible, the living and working conditions that astronauts
might face once they start to live
on Mars. Through these practice
runs, the society hopes to refine
the equipment, experiments,
and practices necessary for a successful Mars mission.
Even more impressive, Stoltz
is one of the youngest people

ever to participate in the MDRS

in its 12 years. While his fellow
astronauts were professionals,
professors, and grad students,
Stoltz is still a college junior. He is
studying mechanical engineering
and physics at the University of
Illinois at Chicago. His title in the
MDRS was Crew Astroengineer.
The five MDRS participants
spent two weeks in December
in the living pods, the lab, the
greenhouse, and the observatory, wearing space suits when
they ventured outside. Stoltzs
assignment was in the observatory, which was donated by Elon
Musk, getting the telescope up
and running, testing its remote
controlmaking sure that the
telescope is fully functional upon
future crew arrival while exploring the beauty of space in the
process.
MDRS participants come
from around the United States,
Europe, Latin America, and
Asia. In addition to scientists, the
MDRS has also housed everyone

from experts in extreme wilderness survival to psychologists

testing the mental effects of Martian living.
As both a Jew and an Israeli I
plan on sharing some of my culture and beliefs with the rest of
the crew, giving them a glimpse
into our culture, Stoltz said. For
me, one of the incredible things
about my MDRS crew is the sheer
diversity. From Australia to Italy
and back, we bring a variety of
cultures and experiences into
one place and get the opportunity to work with each other; and
being the only Israeli on the team
I will attempt to answer any question they have about our people
to the best of my abilities.
Barak was born in Israel, like
his mother, and he spent his early
childhood there. In 2007, the
Stoltzes moved to Chicago, and
Barak attended Solomon Schechter Day School in Northbrook,
Ill., and Glenbrook North High
School. In college, he said, I am
currently working doing research

in a nanotechnology laboratory
on various nano-scale fibers
which have some incredible conceptual applications.
Ultimately, hed like to actually
go to Mars. A successful manned
mission to Mars would be one of
the biggest accomplishments in
human history, and being a part
of it would be an absolute pleasure, he said. It is time we push
for a goal that is greater than ourselves and explore a little deeper
into our universal neighborhood
what better place than our red
neighbor?
His dad, Michael, is on the
team, too. Im actually affiliated with the group, serving as
its volunteer media coordinator, Michael said. He met Baraks
mother in Israel; they lived there
for 14 years, and he worked in
public relations for Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as
Netanyahu transitioned from the
Knesset to the prime ministers
office. The Stoltzes still visit Israel
every summer.

As Barak elaborated, For

the longest time I had heard my
father talk about MDRS due to his
position as the director of media
and public relations for the Mars
Society. In my sophomore year,
my father mentioned to me that
one of the upcoming crews was
short one member, so I applied.
About a month later, I was officially a part of crew 159.
Overall, Stoltz was not nervous at all, more like excited!
MDRS is such a uniqueincredible learning opportunity both
from an academic perspective
as well as hands-on experience.
As an enthusiastic believer in the
future of space travel, I believe
that our mind should wonder
at the thought of space exploration, and what better way to do
so than in the middle of the Utah
desert with a sky full of stars.


JNS.ORG

Paul Wieder is associate editor of

Chicagos JUF News, where this
article first appeared.

JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015 33

Jewish World

The rise of Jewish-slash-something else restaurants

LUCY COHEN BLATTER

he successful chef and owner of

four buzzy restaurants in Manhattan, Einat Admony recently
decided to take on a new
challenge.
The Israel-born chef, who runs two
Taim falafel joints and modern Mediterranean eateries Balaboosta and Bar Bolonat,
wanted to create a casual spot where the
focus was on small plates and wine.
She considered fusing her signature Sephardic Israeli food with Mexican cuisine,
but decided that Spanish food would be a
better complement Thats thanks largely
to the two styles overlapping ingredients
tomatoes, saffron, olives and olive oil.
The result is Combina, which opened to
strong reviews this fall.
I just really like Spanish food and the
tapas style, Admony said.
Shes no expert on Iberian food, she
says. Instead, shes doing her signature
Israeli food with a Spanish twist. Dishes
include Mujadara Paella (a spin on the
Lebanese and Spanish dishes) and Sabich
Tostada, a melding of the Israeli/Iraqi and
Mexican sandwiches.
If it sounds innovative, thats because it
is. But Admony is but one of many chefs
across the United States who are pioneering inventive and truly modern ways
to merge Jewish and Israeli food with other
cuisines from around the world.
In Los Angeles, were seeing dishes like
pastrami quesadillas at fast food Mexican
spot J&S. In Seattle, a food truck called
Napkin Friends serves latke press sandwiches in decidedly non-kosher varieties
like a BLT. In New York and San Francisco,
you can order Kung Pao Pastrami at Mission Chinese Food. And El Nosh, a Puerto
Rican-Jewish food mash-up that started as
a food truck in California, threw a pop-up
event in New York as recently as October.
Jewish cuisine is about taking the long
way around and cooking food that is real
and homey, says Laura Frangiosa, owner
of the Avenue Delicatessen in suburban
Philadelphia, which merges Italian and
Jewish foods. And those are all trends that
are popular in dining these days.
The Avenue which isnt in a particularly Jewish neighborhood, Frangiosa
notes serves Italian-style subs topped
with schmaltz aioli; Jewish wedding soup
a take on the classic Italian wedding soup,
with veal meatballs and matzah balls; and
reuben arancini, rice balls stuffed with
corned beef and swiss cheese.
Jewish food appeals to the masses, says
Macy Hart, president of the Goldring/
Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life. He points out that many Southern towns with tiny Jewish communities
host popular Jewish food events that are
attended almost entirely by non-Jews.
Little Rock, Arkansas, for example, has

Chef Einat Admony, in front of her New York restaurant Balaboosta. She recently
opened a Spanish-Israeli eatery, Combina. 
COURTESY OF EINAT ADMONY

Laura Frangiosa, owner of the Avenue

Delicatessen in suburban Philadelphia,
holding her signature Jewish wedding
soup.
NEAL SANTOS

Richard Kimmel, the owner of Jewishsoul food venues Kittys Canteen and
Kittys-a-Go-Go in Manhattan.

COURTESY OF RICHARD KIMMEL

an Israeli food festival that people flock

to, he says.
Hart sees it as no surprise, then, that
Jewish-slash-something else food is
becoming popular around the country.
Its a natural progression of the palate,
he says.
Just as traditional Jewish and Israeli
dishes are drawing non-Jewish crowds,
these inventive, internationally flavored
updates can increase the appeal of classic Jewish food to younger members of the
tribe.
Its about progression, about tapping
into the next generation, says Steve Auerbach, former owner of the now-closed
Stage Deli in New York. Millennials have
new tastes, and those are the ones these
chefs are going after. Its about keeping it
current. Young Jews want the occasional
corned beef sandwich and potato pancake, but they want something new.
And in big cities like New York and Los
Angeles, where most of these fusion restaurants are cropping up, many customers may well have grown up eating one, or
both, of these cuisines.
For many of these fusion chefs like
Frangiosa, who is Italian and married to a

Jewish man the blending of two disparate cuisines is personal. Take Aaron Israel
and Sawako Okochis Shalom Japan, a Jewish-Japanese restaurant in Williamsburg,
Brooklyn. Theyve been serving dishes
like matzah ball ramen and a lox bowl with
rice, cucumber and Japanese pickle since
2013 usually to a packed house.
Israel says they get a lot of customers
who are like them; one is Asian and the
other is Jewish. And while Shalom Japan
has been hailed for its ingenuity At
its best, their food is fusion in the truest
sense, seamless and utterly convincing,
according to the New Yorker such culinary blending is a tradition that long precedes them, he says.
Jewish people went from place to place
and adapted the flavors of new places to
their cuisine, says Israel. Thats the
whole history of Jewish food.
Hasia Diner, a professor of Hebrew and
Judaic studies and history at the NYU Skirball Department of Hebrew and Judaic Studies, agrees. It was always fusion, she says.
Throughout history, Jews created food
that reflected the ingredients available to
them, and the climate and style of the people around them. And given the ubiquity of

34 JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015

Jewish migration, they were always picking

up and moving and getting new styles.
This culinary adaptability made them
culinary cosmopolitans, Diner says,
pointing out that as far back as the late
1800s, Jewish cookbooks featured recipes
for Italian food and Chinese food.
Nowadays its just more self conscious
and a little ironic, she adds.
The history of Jewish-Spanish food is of
particular interest to chef and restaurateur
Alex Raij. Raij is Jewish and her husband,
Eder Montero, is Spanish; they already
ran two successful tapas restaurants in
Manhattan when they opened La Vara in
Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, in 2011. Through La
Vara, Raij explores the Moorish and Jewish
legacies of Spanish cooking.
Rajj says she likes to imagine the kinds of
foods that would have thrived had Spains
Jews been able to stay. Many of the traditional Spanish sauces like the pepperbased romesco have their origins in
Moorish and Jewish foods, she says.
Not far away, in Williamsburg, Top
Chef alum Ilan Hall recently opened Esh,
an Israeli-style barbecue spot. Esh takes
the place of The Gorbals, a Scottish-Jewish fusion restaurant Hall opened in Los
Angeles in 2009 and in New York in 2014.
That was a representation of my childhood, says Hall, whose father is Scottish
and mother is Israeli.
For his new venture, he decided to stick
to more straightforward, Israeli-style grub,
something he says is undeniably popular
these days witness the success of Admonys empire, as well as that of Philadelphia
chef Michael Solomonovs popular, inventive restaurants. Hall says he will be using
some Texas-style barbecuing techniques.
This food is healthy and simple, he
says.
For Richard Kimmel, owner of the
Lower East Side jazz bar and Jewish-soul
food joint Kittys Canteen (in which Snoop
Dogg is a creative partner), the fusion of
soul food and Jewish cuisine started for
generations ago.
Kimmel, who founded the music venue
The Box, is the grandson of Kitty Kimmel,
a bookkeeper at a talent agency who used
to cook for the jazz greats of the 1930s. Her
food, which began as traditionally Jewish, became influenced by soul food, says
Kimmel.
Kittys Canteen and its recent spinoff,
Kittys-a-Go-Go, serve matzah-meal fried
chicken and their signature Bisgel, a
bagel-biscuit hybrid, which Kimmel says
was born when Dizzy Gillespie poked a
hole in one of Kittys biscuits.
The combination of Jewish food and
soul food is very natural to me. Its my life,
says Kimmel. Like jazz, its something of
an improvisation, but both foods are literally meant to warm your soul. Thats a sentiment we share.


JTA WIRE SERVICE

Dvar Torah
Vayehi: Preparing for the inevitable

art of the life of a rabbi is experiencing death. It seems like

I officiate at far more funerals than weddings. And that
is even with the increased divorce rate
which should, in theory, increase the
number of weddings to close to one per
person from one per two people. Our
people seem to always turn back to tradition for that final journey. This weeks
parashah, Vayehi, is also all about death.
Even Joseph, the model of the successfully acculturated Jew, insists that he
have a proper Jewish funeral in the land
of Israel. The Book of Genesis then concludes with the eerily disturbing words
that at his death Joseph is embalmed and
placed in a coffin, essentially mummified.
His remains are kept until the exodus,
when they are carried up to Eretz Yisrael
and the people finally fulfill his wishes.
Reading Vayehi, most of which is concerned with the death of Jacob and only
ends with the death of Joseph, I reflect on
how strange it is that we find ourselves
always unprepared for death. Jacob dies
and all of a sudden Josephs brothers are
afraid that Joseph will turn against them
and they fear for their security. Jacob gives
blessings and testaments to his children
and grandchildren, he speaks at length, in
prose and verse, on what is to be after his
passing, and yet he too is embalmed and
given a seventy-day Egyptian mourning
period only after which his family is able
to inter his remains in Hebron in the family plot. While Josephs remains must wait
longer than seventy days, the tension
is still evident between the conflicting

One lesson we can learn

Egyptian and Hebrew customs. The survivors seem to
from parashat Vayehi is to
not quite know what to do
consider it a mitzvah to
even though the deceased
prepare for death. Not to
was clear about his wishes.
prepare in a way that keeps
I see this as a rabbi all the
us from enjoying life, but in
time. Someone dies and the
a way that will help us and
survivors are frozen in place,
our families when the time
asking, Rabbi, what do I do
inevitably comes. One of
Rabbi David
now? There is nothing more
the first things I did when
J. Fine
natural than the disorientation
my first child was born was
Temple Israel
caused by loss, and it is not
take out a life insurance
and Jewish
surprising that the confusion
policy. And then I took out
Community Center,
and outright fear that we feel
another when we had our
Ridgewood,
Conservative
in our own lives is mirrored in
second child. I every now
the first Israelite family.
and then make a point of
While Jewish tradition offers
reviewing with my wife
us beautiful guidance on how to ritualize
information about insurance, pension,
death and pass through the stages of loss,
etc. We all intend to live long lives, but I
we might find comfort in learning that
generally opt to hope for the best but plan
even the family of Jacob and Joseph were
for the worst. I suggest that we all take the
conflicted on how frum and how Egyptian
time to do that. It is a mitzvah to make sure
[for us, American] they wanted to be. In
that we can continue to care for our loved
the end, they go with the Israelite customs,
ones even beyond our last breaths. Especially because we do not know when that
the traditions of family burial that we continue to this day.
will be, but we do know that that one day
What strikes me most as a rabbi as I so
must be.
frequently experience death with families
Preparation only begins with financials.
is how unprepared everyone is. IndividuWe must also take care to not leave arguals are not prepared to die and their famiments unresolved when they are possible
lies are not prepared for their loss. Looking
to resolve. While we say that time heals all
at things dispassionately, it is surprising
wounds, not all wounds have the luxury
that this is so since there is nothing more
of time to heal. We need to be proactive in
certain in life than the knowledge that we
expressing our love to those around us and
shall each of us one day die. A lesson of
avoid leaving the presence of a loved one
parashat Vayehi, and perhaps the reason
with lingering anger.
why the book of Beginnings ends with stoThe second lesson we can learn from
ries of death and mourning, is that part of
the parashah is the importance of our
genuine living is preparing for death.
spiritual legacy. Jacob imparts blessing and

BRIEFS

Tensions mount in northern Israel

in wake of Samir Kuntar killing
Three rockets were fired at Israel from southern Lebanon on
Sunday, a day after notorious Hezbollah terrorist Samir Kuntar was killed in an airstrike near Damascus. The strike has
been attributed to Israel by foreign media as well as by Hezbollah, which vowed to avenge the killing, but Israeli officials
have neither confirmed nor denied the reports.
The Israel Defense Forces responded to Sundays rocket
attacks with targeted artillery fire, officials said. Residents of
northern Israeli towns were not surprised to hear sirens wailing throughout their communities Sunday, as they had been
bracing for retaliatory Hezbollah fire since news of Kuntars
assassination broke.
The military said it holds the Lebanese Army solely
responsible for attacks emanating from its territory, and will
continue to take action against any attempt to undermine the
sovereignty of the State of Israel or compromise the safety of
its citizens.
Lebanese security officials said the rockets were fired from
an area south of the Lebanese port city of Tyre.

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot convened an emergency situation assessment on Sunday over Hezbollahs potential retaliation. Israeli officials voiced hopes that the rocket fire
and the Israeli response would signify the end of the aftermath of Kuntars death, but defense figures stressed that Israel
was bracing for the possibility of escalation along the northern
JNS.ORG
border.

Israel and Albania strengthen ties

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Albanian
Prime Minister Edi Rama signed a joint declaration of friendship marking 25 years of diplomatic ties between the two
countries.
During their meeting, Rama expressed an interest in
strengthening bilateral relations with Israel in the fields of
security, cyber, water, energy and innovation. Netanyahu
added that Israel plans to expand relations with Albania in a
number of areas including trade.
Netanyahu thanked Albania, a Muslim majority country, for
its steadfast support of Israel. I think Albania is the only country whose Jewish population during the Holocaust actually
grew because of the refuge and the sanctuary and the friendship and courage showed by the people of Albania. We never

wisdom to his family, wishing that they

continue in the path of the covenant that
he inherited from Isaac and Abraham. We
cannot wait until our dying day to worry
about what will be with our children. That
work starts at the beginning. Each decision
that we make from education to religious
life to culture and even vacation time form
the kind of person our child becomes. The
investment in our children is not one that
can be put off. At every stage of development we are charged with transmitting to
them our values and heritage so that they
in turn can carry on in the right path once
we are gone. Jacob made many errors with
his children as told in the Book of Genesis.
He set a rather unintimidating bar. But a
bar no less. Ultimately, our children will
make their own decisions, but we should
not have to regret not having imparted
something that we should have imparted.
The Torah teaches us to do that, not put it
off until it is too late.
The first book of the Torah ends with
the verse that Josephs remains are mummified. His wishes of burial with his family in the land of Israel are not fulfilled.
Even when the later Israelites bring his
remains with them, he is still not interred
in the family plot in Hebron. His purported tomb, a shrine outside Nablus, has
become a site of Palestinian and Israeli
conflict in recent times. Joseph was the
great dreamer who was able to manage a
planned economy in Egypt that survived
a seven-year famine and become a superpower. But he could not manage his own
death and burial. We should try to do a
better job.

forget our friends, and we appreciate that display of humanity, civility and courage in our darkest hours, he said.
Albania recently voted against the United Nations International Atomic Energy Agencys resolution proposed by Arab
nations that called for supervision of Israels nuclear facilities.
JNS.ORG


Israel to establish
first Arab college
Israel will establish the first Arab college in the north of the
country, Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennett announced
on Monday.
For the first time in the annals of the state of Israel we are
establishing a general academic college in an Arab town, Bennett said. This is history for the Arab sector and this is history
for the state of Israel.
Establishing an Arab college will benefit Israeli society, Bennett said. There is no reason and it isnt right to send young
Arabs to study in Hebron or in Arab states. Sometimes this
creates radicalism and the right thing is for Israelis to learn in
Israel. This is good for them as individuals and good for the
JNS.ORG
entire Israeli society.
JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015 35

Crossword
Kosher Carols by Yoni Glatt

Local

koshercrosswords@gmail.com
Difficulty Level: Challenging

Connecting
from page 7

that followed was much less so. Given

by Dr. Harry Fox, associate professor at
the University of Toronto, it reflected the
sort of old-school Talmud scholarship
featured in the Israeli movie Footnote.
Basically, it was an argument for moving a midrashic text, Shir Hashirim
Zuta, from one point on the timeline to
another. More than a century ago, Solomon Schechter had dated it to the time
of the Gaonim, in the early middle ages,
after the completion of the Talmud. Dr.
Fox, however, argued that it was from the
time of Rabbi Akiva, centuries earlier.
These kinds of questions, the historical and geographic provenance of specific works, the textual development of
individual talmudic anthologies, is what
Talmud scholarship focused on from the
19th to mid-20th centuries, Dr. Milgram
said. Perhaps the best example is Prof.
Saul Liebermans monumental critical
edition and commentary to the Tosefta,
Tosefta kifshuta, a third century companion to the Mishnah. Then, in the 1970s,
a shift took place in terms of a desire to
better identify the ideologies behind specific works, the greater purpose behind
them, with an eye for skepticism about
their historicity.
To a certain degree, this sea change
was due to the influence of Dr. Jacob
Neusner, who was a formidable force
in really casting doubt on the historicity
of these sources and asked fundamental questions like, if someone is quoted
in the Talmud, did he really say it? Or is
someone just recording something they
wanted him to say?
Dr. Milgram believes the field of Talmud is coming back to an in-between
kind of mode, generally having rejected
most of Neusners assumptions, where
the younger generation, in the books
they are writing, are trying to address
some of the larger questions Neusner
asked but through a more sophisticated
textual analysis that actually, at times,
harks back to the older classical academic methods in the field of Talmud.
He pointed to Dr. Grossbergs session
as an example: The question of min is
an ideological question. He accomplished
his analysis through rigorous textual and
linguistic work.
At the session on the Dead Sea Scrolls
later that day, there was a similar mix
of the philological and philologicallyinformed speculation. Dr. Moshe Bernstein of Teaneck, professor of Bible and
Jewish history at Yeshiva University, presented the challenges of characterizing
fragments from the Dead Sea Scrolls that
restated Biblical law. Its a virtual given
that there are two types of documents:
One is analogous to the Mishna, one analogous to the Bible, he said.
But really its not so simple, he added.
In his paper, Dr. Bernstein examined

about half a dozen short law texts and

had differing relationships to the original
biblical texts they drew upon.
Some were Torah with only the most
minute variations. Others, he said, seemed
to merge different earlier restating of law.
His conclusion: We have our work cut
out for us. Each text must be examined
individually for its relationship to scripture. Its probably premature to draw
conclusions.
Left unasked were the big questions:
What did the texts authors think they
were doing when they retold laws from
Leviticus? What authority did they think
their teaching had?
Another speaker at the panel looked
at the question of the authority of a specific character who appears in some of
the Dead Sea Scrolls: the Teacher of Righteousness. The presenter was Archibald
T. Wright, the rare non-Jew in the field of
Jewish studies. He teaches at the divinity
school of Regent University, a Christian
school in Virginia.
He focused on the explicit or implicit
claim in the texts that the spirit of the
Lord speaks through the Teacher of
Righteousness.
Each of these forms of inspired interpretation links interpretation to texts
already considered sacred while containing a new inspiration, he said.
These interpretive texts are referred to
by scholars as Pesher texts, because they
use the Hebrew word pesher to link a
Biblical verse to its interpretation. Shlomo
Wadler, a graduate student at the University of Notre Dame, gave a paper connecting the term pesher in the biblical Book of
Daniel to its usage in the Dead Sea Scrolls.
Both Daniel and the Teacher of Righteousness are portrayed as individuals to
whom God has given the interpretation
of revelation granted to someone else,
Mr. Wadler said. And that usage goes
back, perhaps, to the story of Joseph in
Genesis, where a similar word is used to
describe Josephs interpretation of Pharaohs dream.
So: Genesis is one dot. Daniel a later dot.
The Dead Sea Scrolls still later. And if the
pesher of the Dead Sea Scrolls were applying the idea of dream interpretation to
biblical texts, did that connect somehow
to midrashic interpretation of biblical texts
a couple of centuries later?
This is speculation, of course. Even
when all the scroll fragments are analyzed, all the data considered, all the
points on the timeline considered, all we
have are occasional windows into a past
that was real, and continuous, and ours. I
dont have the patience to piece together
the full puzzle, particularly knowing so
many pieces are missing. I dont have the
patience to look at all the images of seraphim in Harvards museum, one of Mr.
Eichlers projects during his postdoc. But
I appreciate their effort and the chance,
at the AJS convention, to enjoy some of
the fruits of their meticulous labors.

36 Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015

Across
1. Frenemy of Saul on Homeland
4. City of David activities
9. Dathan or Jezebel
14. Genre of the band JEW (Jimmy Eat
World)
15. Angelic glows
16. Hamins, e.g.
17. Moshav box
18. The High Priest wore them
20. Killer of a city of priests
22. Hamins, e.g.
23. Necklines forbidden in many seminaries
24. Where to wager on American
Pharoah, for short
27. Iron Butterflys ___-Gadda- Da
-Vida
28. Like Greenberg in 1935
29. Where to find Balaams donkey
34. Ethnicity of Lizzy Caplans character
in Mean Girls
35. Chills on Saturday
38. Bet ___
39. Actress Kirshner
40. Morgenstern of Rhoda
42. Day Yom Kippur can never fall on:
Abbr.
43. Hos Shalom
45. Sabbatai Zevi was one
47. Cry to Maya to go for public office
50. The ___ (Ill have what shes having)
52. Benjamin with a Turkish last name
who led the Crimean Karaites
53. Theyre not as professional as El Al
security
54. Maccabi ___
55. Bar mitzvahed
57. Good singer Lo?
61. A roomful of yentas wont be one
65. Dad of Max who wrote World War
Z
66. Achva product
67. Lambs blood locales
68. Some Abrams extras
69. Hebrew topic?
70. Fredricksen in Up
71. Daughter involved in a famous inheritance case

The solution to last weeks puzzle

is on page 43.

Down
1. Low Sea
2. Desert Eagle insert
3. Rappelling Mitzpe Ramon need
4. Gibson who plays for Jerry Reinsdorf
5. How Marceau would verbally say yes
6. They are often filled before the
Sabbath
7. 1975 Doctorow novel
8. College grad Joan (Rivers) told to
shut up about Gaza
9. Breaks the 8th Commandment, perhaps
10. Dancing Camel makes it
11. Medal of valor received by Major
Abaham J. Baum
12. Lindelofs Lost plot has them
13. An Israel bond, e.g.
19. One of Natalies Star Wars co-stars
21. Francisco who painted The
Inquisition Tribunal
25. Oz character who might be jealous
of Asher Lev
26. ___ Akiva
28. Seinfeld Movie
29. Spielbergs Bridge of Spies supporting actor
30. Youve Lost That Lovin Feeling cowriter Cynthia
31. How the Monster behaves in Young
Frankenstein
32. Ruling great-grandson of Solomon
33. Chaps (yiddish)
36. Kunis wore one in Black Swan
37. Wars I Have ___, Stein book
40. Facebooks was $38
41. Yutz
44. Tint choice, for Chagall
45. Slow work by Copland or Barber
46. Analyze ___, Crystal film
48. Vessel for little Moses
49. Locale of Netanyahus last stand
50. Its not kosher with unagi
51. Like 50-Down
55. Ers biblical brother
56. Role played twice by Harold (Ramis)
58. Writing on the wall
59. Higher power?
60. Girl from Arendelle played by Idina
62. Bond girl Green
63. Occasional oppressor of Jews in the
Middle-Ages: Abbr.
64. D&D company that also had an
Indiana Jones game

Arts & Culture

Land of Fire ignites debate
MIRIAM RINN

oes a polemic equal a play?

That question swirled in my
mind as I watched the Theater for the New City/New
Yiddish Reps production of Mario Diaments Land of Fire. Based on a documentary film by a survivor of a 1978 Palestinian terrorist attack, Land of Fire
lightly fictionalizes the story of the El Al
stewardess who tracks down the man she
calls my terrorist in the English prison
where he is serving his sentence, 23 years
after the shooting that wounded her and
killed her friend. In the play, she is called
Yael (Dagmar Stansova) and he is Hassan
(Mihran Shlougian). In short scenes, Hassan explains why he joined the Popular
Front for the Liberation of Palestine and
what happened to his family during the
War of Independence. Yael expresses her
loathing of the Israeli government, her
desperate hope for some peaceful resolution, and her insistence that they view
each other as human beings, not as us
and them.
Neither Hassan nor Yael are fully realized characters. Nor are any of the others
in the play they are mouthpieces for differing opinions about the situation or
are there to deliver historical exposition
but such viewpoints are so rarely heard in
our current discussions about Israel that
I wondered if that in itself did not make
Land of Fire worthwhile viewing.
Its not a good play, but perhaps it is a
necessary one.
Diament was born in Buenos Aires and

Mihran Shlougian is the terrorist and Dagmar Stansova is the former flight attendant in Land of Fire.PHOTOS BY RONALD L. GLASSMAN

is one of Latin Americas leading playwrights. He has been awarded the Konex
prize, Argentinas most distinguished
award, as one of the five best playwrights

David Mandelbaum plays the father of Dagmar Stansovas Yael Alon.

of the decade. He knows Israel well, having lived there for five years in the 1960s,
and while he is clearly sympathetic to
the Israeli left, he is not insensitive to the
anger and anxiety felt by Israeli citizens
subject to ongoing terrorism. Land of
Fire premiered in Sweden in 2012 and
also was produced in London, Montevideo, Uruguay and Asuncin, Paraguay,
as well as in Miami, where Diament now
lives. It is scheduled to open in Madrid in
2016. This is its New York premiere at the
Theater for the New City on First Avenue
at 10th Street.
The slim plotline in the play centers
on whether Yael will write a letter to the
parole board recommending Hassans
release. That is supposed to explain why
she keeps coming back to London to visit
him. The actual reason is so Hassan can
tell the audience more about the plight of
his people. After the Israelis pushed his
family out of their Jaffa home and business, he grew up in a squalid refugee camp
in Ramallah, regularly humiliated and brutalized. When he joined the Popular Front,
he felt he was no longer a refugee. I was
a fighter. The Jews were his oppressors,
his enemy, and the star of David was the

equivalent of the swastika for him.

Yael doesnt respond directly to his accusations. That is left to another character,
Geula (Marilyn Lucchi), the mother of the
stewardess who was killed. Geula points
out that the Arabs in Palestine hated the
Jews before 1948, and the War of Independence resulted in the summary expulsion
of one million Jews from Arab lands, a lot
more than the number of Arabs who fled or
were pushed from the new state of Israel.
Yaels father (David Mandelbaum) provides
the historical background on the behavior
of Israeli troops during the 1948 war.
Moshe Yassurs direction emphasizes
the debate-like quality of the play. The
actors barely move; they stay on their
sides and talk at each other. That may be
the point. Hassan often has his arms defensively crossed over his chest. Yael and her
husband Ilan (Scott Zimmerman) have
their own communication problems. The
standout is Naci Baybura as Walid, Hassans lawyer, who delivers the most natural
and convincing performance. Even with
better actors, the play would have a tough
time being more than a performed political argument. But it may be an argument
we need to keep having.

JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015 37

Calendar
Monday
DECEMBER 28
Blood drive in Teaneck:
Holy Name Medical
Center holds a blood
drive with New Jersey
Blood Services, a
division of New York
Blood Center, 1-7 p.m.
718 Teaneck Road.
(800) 933-2566 or www.
nybloodcenter.org.

Wednesday
DECEMBER 30

Book club in Teaneck:

The Artist-J.E.W., a painting by

Joyce Ellen Weinstein, above,
is included in The Jew as the
Other An exhibition of Otherness
Identity. The exhibit is part of
Yiddish New York, a new festival
celebrating Yiddish music,
language, and culture. Works by
Harriet Finck and Debbie Schore,
both of Bergen County, are
included. The exhibit, curated and
organized by Deborah Ugoretz of
Brooklyn, formerly of Teaneck, with
Tine Kindermann and Yona Verwer,
runs through December 30 at the
Abrazo Interno Gallery, Clemente
Soto Velez Cultural and Educational
Center, 107 Suffolk St., Manhattan.
www.yiddishnewyork.com.

Friday
DECEMBER 25
Shabbat in Ridgewood:
Temple Israel and Jewish
Community Center holds
a Reconstructioniststyle worship service,
6:30 p.m., followed
by a community
Chinese dinner. 475
Grove St. Reservations,
(201) 444-9320.

Saturday
DECEMBER 26
Shabbat in Glen
Rock: Rabbi Jennifer
Schlosberg leads a Torah
study course, 10:30 a.m.,
as part of Shabbat
morning services at
the Glen Rock Jewish

The continuing education

department at Maayanot
Yeshiva High School for
Girls offers a discussion
on The Paris Wife
by Paula McLain, led
by Samantha Kur,
Maayanots English
department chair, at a
private home in Teaneck,
8 p.m. Call Pam Ennis,
(201) 833-4307, ext. 265.

Sunday
JANUARY 3
Book club in Paramus:
The JCC of Paramus/
Congregation Beth
Tikvah offers a discussion
on The Chosen by
Chaim Potok, 10:30 a.m.
Coffee and Danish.
East 304 Midland Ave.
(201) 262-7691.

DECEMBER 27
Blood drive in Teaneck:
Congregation Beth
Aaron holds a blood
drive in conjunction
with the American Red
Cross, 8:30 a.m.1:30 p.m.
All presenting donors
will receive a long
sleeved Red Cross
shirt. Appointments
preferred. Call (800)
RED-CROSS or sign up
at redcrossblood.org and
enter sponsor code: Beth
Aaron. 950 Queen Anne
Road. (201) 836-6210.

38 JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015

Wednesday
JANUARY 6
Caregiver support in
Rockleigh: A support
group for those caring
for the physically frail or
people with Alzheimers
disease meets at the
Gallen Adult Day
Health Care Center at
the Jewish Home at
Rockleigh, 10-11:30 a.m.
Topics include long-term
care options, financial
planning, legal concerns,
and the personal toll
of caregiving. 10 Link
Drive. Shelley Steiner,
(201) 784-1414, ext. 5340.

Singles
Friday
JANUARY 1
Singles Shabbat in Long
Branch: Star Singles
& Shadchanim offer
Shabbat in Long Branch
for modern Orthodox
middle-of-the-road
Jewish singles. Friday
night dinner, icebreaker
event, oneg, Shabbat
kiddush lunch, speed
dating, and Saturday
night event/soiree.
Two groups, women,
25-35, and men, 2539; and women, 36+
and men, 40+. Email
FrumSingles@aol.com,
or call (718) 541-1793, for
information.

Sunday
JANUARY 10
Dinner and
entertainment in
Clifton: North Jersey

Center. Next class, Jan.

2. 682 Harristown Road.
(201) 652-6624 or
office@grjc.org.

Sunday

Ratzer Road. Chani,

(973) 694-6274 or
chanig@jewishwayne.
com.

Womens book club in

Wayne: The Chabad
Center of Passaic County
offers a discussion on
Elena Gorokhovas
memoir, Russian Tattoo,
7:30 p.m. Dessert. 194

Jewish Singles 45-60s, a

group sponsored by the
Clifton Jewish Center,
hosts a Jewish singles
New Year celebration
dance and dinner
with entertainment
by Nate Tiffe,
4:30 p.m. 18 Delaware St.
(973) 772-3131 or www.
meetup.com.

Announce your events

We welcome announcements of upcoming events. Announcements
are free. Accompanying photos must be high resolution, jpg files.
Send announcements 2 to 3 weeks in advance. Not every release
will be published. Include a daytime telephone number and send
to:
NJ Jewish Media Group
pr@jewishmediagroup.com 201-837-8818

Film fest in Teaneck

OnSaturday, January 2, from 8 to 10 p.m., Congregation Rinat Yisrael in Teanecks adult education committee presents its Israeli film festival, featuring four
short films from the Maale Film School House 103,
Addes, Sister of Mine, and Singing Through Our
Tears.
House 103, the story of the Tals, shows the familys
last days in their Gaza Strip house before the disengagement. Addes is about a 100-year-old Jerusalem
synagogues renovations that prepare it for its upcoming centennial celebration. Sister of Mine details
how Ruchi, whose family is forcing her into a miserable marriage, finds solace only with her sister, who has
Downs syndrome. Singing Through our Tears tells
the story of a group of English-speaking women from
Gush Etzion, who decide to take a novel approach to
the many terrorist attacks plaguing the area.
The synagogue is at 389 West Englewood Ave. in
Teaneck. For more information on the film festival,
go to www.rinat.org/filmfestivalor call (201) 837-2795.

Free month of YUConnects

The Center for the Jewish Future at Yeshiva University
offers a free one-month trial gold membership to
YUConnects to people who sign up through December
31. YUConnects fosters healthy meeting opportunities
that can lead toward marriage, and it is open to the
community, not just to YU students. There are more
than 3,000 members; each has two personal matchmakers who make suggestions tailored just for them.
YUConnects has an office at Yeshiva University that
offers dating guidance, educational forums, and social
events. For more information, go to www.yuconnects.
comor email yuconnects@yu.edu. To register for the
free month trial, use the Chanukah promo code miracle untilDecember 31.

Gallery
1

n 1 Rabbi Alex Freedman lit the menorah and Suzy

Rosenberg played guitar during one of the Chanukah
celebrations at the religious school at Temple Emanu-El
of Closter. They were joined by Rabbi David-Seth Kirshner and Cantor Israel Singer. COURTESY TEMPLE EMANU-EL
n 2 Early childhood students at Temple Emanuel of
the Pascack Valley in Woodcliff Lake lit the candles
for Chanukah on their bulletin board. COURTESY TEPV
n 3 More than 800 people attended Ohels annual Chanukah party, sponsored by Sammy and Lea Trencher.
The party included a Chanukah toy drive led by Ohels
volunteers. There also were gifts and giveaways, face
painters, balloon sculptors, magic, dancing, a performance by the Shloime Dachs Orchestra, food, and sufganiyot sponsored by Jerry Weisman of Omni Managed
Health. Ohel also had its Chanukah Foster Party for its
foster parents and children in foster care. COURTESY OHEL

n 4 Religious school students at Temple Beth Tikvah in Wayne marked Chanukah with songs and
blessings led by Cantor Charles Romalis and
treats from their teachers. COURTESY TBT
n 5 Temple Emeth of Teanecks Etz Chayim Choir
entertained the shoppers at the Shops at Riverside in Hackensack. Cantor Ellen Tilem, the groups
director, is pictured with them. BARBARA BALKIN
n 6 Waynes Shomrei Torah religious school celebrated
Chanukah with latkes, sufganiyot, and music, with
Rabbi Randall Mark, far left. COURTESY SHOMREI TORAH
n 7 Temple Beth El of Northern Valley in Closter
held a Chanukah menorah Lego building party, led
by Lego guru Stephen Schwartz. The group used
70,000 Legos to attempt to build the worlds tallest menorah. Families worked in small groups to create a menorah nearly 14 feet tall. COURTESY TBENV

JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015 39

Jewish World

Luxurious JCC opens doors

in ultra-wealthy Moscow suburb
CNAAN LIPHSHIZ
ZHUKOVKA, RUSSIA On the only road
that goes to this affluent village on Moscows western outskirts, Russian secret service agents are blocking all inbound traffic.
Drivers bound for Zhukovka pull over and
step out to smoke while chatting with other
motorists, as a line of luxury cars grows on
the shoulder of a two-lane road.
The closures are a frequent occurrence,
because Zhukovka and the adjacent riverside village of Barvikha are home to some of
Russias richest and most powerful people.
Among the 5,500 residents living in the two
villages are Ukraines ousted president, Viktor
Yanukovych, who has a $52 million mansion
in the area, and the Russian Jewish construction magnates Boris and Arkady Rotenberg.
All three are associates of Russian President
Vladimir Putin.
Ordinary millionaires who live here must
wait patiently as VIPs travel in motorcades to
and from Moscow, or receive visits by senior
officials. So do the tourists who come here to
catch a glimpse of the villages sprawling villas, with their private tennis courts and hedge
mazes.
But this month Muscovites, and Jews especially, received a more accessible attraction
in Zhukovka: A $20 million Jewish community center and synagogue opened here on
December 6, amid fanfare and in the presence of 400 guests, including Israels chief
Ashkenazi rabbi, David Lau. And while the
new JCC is seen as a demonstration of this
communitys robustness, it nonetheless
comes amid growing Jewish emigration that
is widely attributed to the financial crisis in
Russia and concern over its governments
nationalist agenda.
Designed by the international design firm
Gensler, the Zhukovka JCC is a doughnutshaped structure with a granite facade,
54,000 square feet of floor space, a small
cinema, and 24 luxury guest rooms that are
intended to be used free of charge by Shabbat
overnighters.
At the heart of the building is a synagogue
with a capacity of 400 worshippers and modular tables made of Swedish wood. The basement has still-unfinished, warm-water mikvah ritual baths. The building is under the
watchful eye of 24/7 security guards, who
operate airport-grade body and luggage scanners. The basement of the center, which was
built with money donated by wealthy Jews
(and some non-Jews), has a gourmet kosher
restaurant. Its kitchen is overseen by two Italian chefs, including the renowned restaurateur Uilliam Lamberti.
Among the first-time visitors to the center
last week was Oleg Babinski, a retired army
officer and business owner in his 50s who
worships with the Zhukovka Jewish community, though he does not live in the village.

I am not a rich man, but it still fills me

with pride to see that our community can
achieve something like this, Babinski said.
Such a building would stand out almost
anywhere else in Russia, where the average
monthly salary among city dwellers is less
than $600. But its par for the course in Zhukovka, where the shopping malls have Gucci
and Prada stores, and there are a host of luxury car dealerships
At one mini-mall this year, local Jews
placed a large menorah opposite a Bentley
dealership.
No one knows exactly how many Jews live
in and around Zhukovka. But its not likely
that there are enough to fill the synagogue.
Granted, this place is a little big for the
communitys needs right now, but its with an
eye to the future needs of a growing community, said Velvel Krichevsky, a Chabad rabbi
from Israel who will be working at Zhukovka.

An exterior view of the Zhukovka Jewish Community Center.

COURTESY OF THE FEDERATION OF JEWISH COMMUNITIES OF RUSSIA

Rabbi Alexander Boroda speaks at the opening of the Zhukovka JCC on

December 6, 2015.
COURTESY OF THE FEDERATION OF JEWISH COMMUNITIES OF RUSSIA

The head rabbi at Zhukovka is Alexander

Boroda, the president of the Chabad-affiliated
Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia,
a vast network whose rabbis have formed a
main engine for the renewal of Jewish life in
Russia after the fall of communism. Among
those rabbis is Berel Lazar, one of two chief
rabbis in Russia. Lazar is known for his close
ties to Putin the two men lit Chanukah candles together at the Kremlin on December 9.
Federation ties with Russian politicians
have been instrumental in obtaining land and
some funding for opening dozens of Jewish
institutions across Russia, though the Zhukovka center became a reality without such
aid. The decision to build a Jewish center in
Zhukovka came at the request of wealthy
local Jews, according to Boroda.
My friends asked for a synagogue near
their home, and I wanted to open a Chabad
house somewhere, so thats why it happened
there, said Boroda, a former Red Army soldier who began exploring his Jewish identity

40 JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015

after his discharge from the military in the

1980s.
Still, there is symbolism in the centers
opening in Zhukovka. The village, after all,
used to be the resort destination of Russian
Communist government leaders the Soviet
statesman Vyacheslav Molotov and Joseph
Stalins daughter used to live here who persecuted Russian Jewry and effectively drove
it underground.
This is going to be really great in summer,
said Rosa Skvortsov, 10, of Zhukovka, who
attends the Reshit Chochma Litvak religious
school in Moscow. Rosa visited the center last
week with her father, Vasily, a film director,
and a friend.
But the new centers future is by no means
certain. Built with funds collected over years,
it opened at the height of a financial crisis
that since August 2014 has halved the rubles
value against the dollar amid dropping oil
prices and Western sanctions over Russias
annexation of Ukrainian territory.

Although many Jews are assured by Putins

pro-Jewish policies, others are jittery over
his overt nationalism and expansionism, as
well as his governments xenophobia toward
gays and Muslims. The combination already
has generated a 31 percent year-over-year
increase in Jewish immigration to Israel from
Russia, which is home to about 260,000
Jews. In 2014, some 5,921 Russian Jews made
aliyah, compared to 4,094 the year before.
According to Natan Sharansky, the chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel, which
facilitates aliyah, theres been a rise in the
number of Jews moving to Israel from Moscow and St. Petersburg, where Russian Jewrys intellectual and financial elites tend to
live, and where Jews used to be more resistant to leaving than their coreligionists in
poorer areas.
These developments already are affecting the fundraising ability of Jewish groups.
In Zhukovka, the congregants who asked
Boroda to build the center have all left, some
to Europe, others elsewhere, the Zhukovka
rabbi said.
Still, Boroda insists that others have
replaced those who have departed, and
that his community will continue to raise
enough money to maintain its infrastructure, including the high-maintenance center
in Zhukovka.
You dont build a synagogue according to
this years balance sheet, he said.
And while emigration may be on the rise,
Boroda added that Russian Jews as a whole
are never going to let go of what we have
achieved just because of a few rough years.
JTA WIRE SERVICE

Cnaan Liphshiz traveled to Russia to receive
a journalism award from the Federation of
Jewish Communities of Russia. The federation
did not pay for his trip and had no role in the
editing or writing of this article.

Obituaries

Robert Schoems Menorah Chapel, Inc

Jewish Funeral Directors

Family Owned & managed

Generations of Lasting Service to the Jewish Community

Ben Adler

Ben T. Adler, 101, of Glen Rock,

died December 10.
He received a dental degree from
Indiana University and was an
Army World War II veteran.
Predeceased by his wife of 57
years, Julia, ne Jugie Zakim, he
is survived by his children, Marcy
Wells (Charles Tyler) of Glen Rock,
and Robert of Texas; niece, Marna
(LeVine) Atkin; nephew David
Zakim; and cousin Larry Schupak.
Arrangements were by Louis
Suburban Chapel, Fair Lawn.

Phyllis Friedman

Phyllis Latorre Friedman, ne

Rothleder, 77, of Paramus, died
December 16 at Villa Marie Claire
Hospice in Saddle River.
Born in New York City, she was a
member of the Combine Society in
New York City.
She is survived by her husband,
Frank; children, Carl of New
Milford, Jacob of Fort Lee, and
Beatrice Pinones of Bergenfield;
and three grandchildren.
Arrangements were by Eden
Memorial Chapels, Fort Lee.

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Charlotte Katz

Charlotte Katz, ne Weber, 91, of

Brooklyn, died December. 14. She
was a homemaker.
Predeceased by her husand,
Saul, she is survived by a daughter,
Marcy Schusterman (the late Herb);
granddaughter, Yael Adler (Marc);
and great-granddaughter, Breh.
Arrangements were by Eden
Memorial Chapels, Fort Lee.

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Marcella Krausz

Marcella Krausz, 98, of Passaic,

died December 15. Arrangements
were by Louis Suburban Chapel,
Fair Lawn.

201-791-0015

800-525-3834

LOUIS SUBURBAN CHAPEL, INC.

Exclusive Jewish Funeral Chapel

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Graveside services at all NJ & NY cemeteries
Prepaid funerals and all medicaid funeral benefits honored
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Richard Louis - Manager
George Louis - Founder
NJ Lic. No. 3088
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MAIN
Paterson, NJ 07502
317 Totowa Ave.
973-942-0727 Fax 973-942-2537

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Ralph august

We continue to be
Jewish family managed,
knowing that caring people
provide caring service.

Ralph August, 100, of California, formerly of River

Edge and Teaneck, died on Dec. 8 in San Jose, Calif.
Born in Port Chester, N.Y., he was a World War II
veteran, serving in the 9th Air Force in Europe. A
man of several careers, during retirement he was
the unofficial artist-in-residence at his retirement
community in Teaneck.
Predeceased by his wife, Gertrude, daughter,
Bonnie, and friend, Jeanne Kilgore; he is survived
by a daughter, Marilyn, grandchildren, Zoe and
Nicholas, two great-grandchildren, and many
cousins and friends. Arrangements were by the
Menorah Chapels at Millburn, in Union.

ALAN L. MUSICANT

MARTIN D. KASDAN

GUTTERMAN AND MUSICANT

PAID NOTICE

A Traditional Jewish Experience

Pre-Planning Specialists
Graveside and Chapel Services

Barry Wien - NJ Lic. No. 2885

Frank Patti, Jr. - NJ Lic. No. 4169
Arthur Musicant - NJ Lic. No. 2544
Frank Patti, Sr. Director - NJ Lic. No. 2693
327 Main St, Fort Lee, NJ

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IRVING KLEINBERG, N.J. LIC. NO. 2517
Advance Planning Conferences Conveniently Arranged
at Our Funeral Home or in Your Own Home
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www.edenmemorial.com

JEWISH STANDARD DECEMBER 25, 2015 41

Classified
Antiques

Antiques Wanted

Bronzes

NOTE: Deadline for classified ads for

issue of Jan. 1 is noon, Tuesday, Dec. 29.
Cemetery Plots For Sale
cedar PARK, Paramus, N.J., 8
plots, block #1, Lot S/4, 22-23.
Sold in entirety. Bargain priced at
$10,000 total. Call 561-292-3738;
email: jhochbaum@yahoo.com

WE BUY
Oil Paintings

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42 Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015

SALES ASSOCIATE
wanted for

Womens High End

Boutique.
Must have sales experience.
Englewood location.
E-mail:
workresumes79@gmail.com
teachers WANTED PASSAIC
Boys School seeking
4th & 5th Grade Teacher
1:30 -4:45,
no Fridays
At least 1 year teaching

Email: bhykop@gmail.com
or Fax: 973-778-5697
veteran/college graduate
seeks employment in telephone
sales. 25 years experience in purchasing and marketing of diverse
products. Proven success in generating new business through
building strong relationships, senior
buyer of toys, hobbies, hard goods
and bulk toys. Honest, hard worker. email:yendisid@optonline.net

YBH OF PASSAIC
seeks General Studies
Assistants for the afternoon
in our elementary division.
Bachelors degree preferred.
If interested email cover
letter and resume to:
ppersin@ybh passaic.org

Tutoring
WANT TO LEARN SPANISH?

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Call 201-965-1185

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973-517-4719
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caring for the elderly with Alzheimers/dementia. Knowledge of
kosher food preparation, will shop,
clean, administer medication and
drive client to MD appointments.
References upon request. 201310-3149
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trustworthy person seeking part
time work. Weekends OK. Meal
preparation, laundry, housekeeping. Will drive for doctors appointments; occasional sleepovers. 973519-4911

experienced
BABYSITTER
for Teaneck area.
Please call Jenna
201-660-2085
HOME Health Aide who is easy to
get along with is seeking job to
care for elderly. Live-In/Out. Experienced! References! Speaks English. 201-779-9798
Nurses AIDE /CARETAKER
available to care for your loved
ones. Over 17 years experience.
Top of the line references. Very
competent. 201-406-8309

Antiques

Sterling Associates Auctions

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Sculpture Paintings Porcelain Silver
Jewelry Furniture Etc.

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Help Wanted
. Private Elementary School in Bergen County, N.J. seeks certified General Studies Teacher wih masters degree for upper
elementary classes for immediate hire. High achieving students and stimulating work environment with professional and
collaborative colleagues. Competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package. PM hours only.
Send resume to resumes@rynj.org

Cleaning Service

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Help Wanted
office COORDINATOR
Position available for a responsible, energetic team
player for clerical duties: answering phone, entering
subscriptions, mailing invoices, etc. Computer literate.
Full-time/part-time.
Please send resume to:
publisher@jewishmediagroup.com

Congregation Bnai Jacob of Jersey City is seeking a

full-time/part-time Rabbi to serve as the religious, spiritual and
educational leader to our congregation. This person will partner closely with a dedicated Board of Directors to reinvent and
modernize the Synagogue. The person should be innovative,
inspiring and energetic. Primary responsibiliy is Religious
Services, Synagogue Development and Community Building.
Years of experience are flexible. Recent graduates of Rabbinical School are welcomed to apply as well as seasoned
Rabbis.
email: Dean.brody@am.jll.com

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Jewish standard deCeMBer 25, 2015 43

Real Estate & Business

Gaza border residents receive art therapy kits
Seventy-five families from southern Israel received
specialized art therapy kits, thanks to a new project
organized by United Hatzalah of Israels Team Daniel initiative. In conjunction with Artists 4 Israel, the
art therapy kits were distributed earlier this month
along with a program showing parents how to use
the kits with their children and visits by graffiti artists who worked with teens to paint neighborhood
bomb shelters. Various art therapists also participated in the events.
Team Daniel began with a visit to the region by a
group of Chicagoans during Operation Protective
Edge as the rocket sirens were blaring. The Chicagoans were so moved by their experience that
they decided to raise money to help the region
and established Team Daniel in memory of Daniel Tragerman, the four-year-old child killed by
Hamas shelling. The group committed to fund the
training, placement, and equipment needed for
100 volunteer United Hatzalah medics to serve
southern Israel.
This is the least we could do for these children
and families, who have endured so much and are
struggling to heal from deep trauma, said Brielle
Collins, Chicago regional manager for United Hatzalah. I really wanted to do something for the
children in this community since they suffered

from many traumas during the war. Because these

particular families are committed to saving lives
as United Hatzalah medics, it was important to
us that we give them a way to cope. Art is such a
powerful tool to give to people who are recovering
from war, stress and tragedy.
The Healing Arts Kit was developed by leading
experts in the mental health field in collaboration
with the non-profit group Artists 4 Israel. Top psychologists and trauma specialists from both Israel
and the United States worked together to create
a first aid kit for young minds that will immediately combat the effects of trauma and eliminate the chances of PTSD by up to eighty percent
through self-directed, creative play therapies.
United Hatzalah has been distributing the kits in a
pilot program throughout Israel since July.
The Healing Arts kits were first used in this same
region during last summers war with Hamas. Artists
4 Israel gave out kits to every child in Kibbutz Said
and Alumim.
We are honored to be working with Team Daniel
and United Hatzalah on this important project; they
truly understand what it takes to help protect and
promote life in the region and we are glad to contribute to this work, said Craig Dershowitz, executive
director of Artists 4 Israel.

Art therapy brings smiles to youngsters in Israel.

MORE listings. MORE experience. MORE sales.

TEANECK

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$1,350,000 NEW CONSTRUCTION 4 LUXURY FLOORS

vera-nechama.com
44 Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015

$525,000 APPROX 103 X 100

201.692.3700

$474,900 THE ROOSEVELT COMPLEX

VERA AND NECHAMA REALTY 1401 Palisade Avenue Teaneck, New Jersey
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info@vera-nechama.com

Real Estate & Business

Links Residential
welcomes Sara Landerer
Links Residential, a boutique real estate
agency, has welcomed sales associate
Sara Landerer to its growing team.
Ms. Landerers success and reputation as an effective, results-driven professional has fueled her new career as
a Realtor. Having worked in education
for the past 13 years, Ms. Landerer has
mastered the art of listening. Her experience and her masters degree in psychology give her added advantages and
discipline to succeed in the real estate
industry.
I am committed to tailoring my clients needs and building long-time client
relationships. I am familiar with various

New $41M Jaffa penthouse

said to be priciest in Israel
Are your many millions burning a hole in your pocket?
Heres a new place to park them: A $41 million topfloor apartment is now up for grabs in Jaffa, Tel Aviv.
Its allegedly the most expensive penthouse currently
on the market in Israel.
The penthouse at the W Tel Aviv Hotel, as the pad is
called, boasts more than 16,000 square feet of living
space. It has a 786-square-foot terrace and expansive
views of the city, the ancient Jaffa Port and the Mediterranean Sea. It sits atop the W Tel Aviv, a conversion of 19th-century buildings that were once home
to Jaffas French Hospital.
In recent years, Tel Aviv has experienced an unprecedented real estate boom. Housing prices in Tel Aviv
have increased by 84% since 2008 rising more than
10 percent over the past year, according to a September story from the Wall Street Journal that cited Israels Central Bureau of Statistics.
Tel Aviv developers have been raising their game
with bigger, more luxurious buildings, the article
states.
The residences at the W Tel Aviv comprise 38 units;
buyers have access to amenities at the adjacent W
Hotel, including a gourmet restaurant and lounge,
the citys hottest poolside scene and an exclusive
beach club, according to the marketing materials.
The project is designed by British architect John
Pawson (in collaboration with Israeli architect Ramy
Gill), who has merged his minimalist style with the
buildings incredible heritage to create an exceptionally atmospheric space.
The project is being developed by Aby Rosens RFR
Holding; the unit is expected to be delivered in the fall
of 2016 and can be customized to the lucky buyers
JTa Wire SerVice
taste.

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581 Northumberland Rd. Charm Sandstone Dutch Col. Cov Front

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Rm 3rd Flr: Media/Fam Rm. $479,000
951 Alpine Dr. C Club Area. Beaut & Totally Updated. 3 Generous
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125' Yard. C/A/C. Gar. $479,900
299 W Englewood Ave. Prime Whittier Area. Charm Col. Lemonade
Front Porch, Polished Wood Flrs. 3 BRs, 2 Car Gar. 60'x120' Prop.
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719 Ramapo Rd. Pretty Dutch Colonial. Univ Area. Open Front
Porch. 3 BRs, 2.5 Baths. $299,000

BERGENFIELD

Larry DeNike
President

MLO #58058
ladclassic@aol.com

Daniel M. Shlufman
Managing Director

MLO #6706
dshlufman@classicllc.com

Classic Mortgage, LLC

Serving NY, NJ & CT

25 E. Spring Valley Ave., Ste 100, Maywood, NJ

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PARADE OF HOMES

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communities and their resources, she

said.
Bruce Elichman, broker manager of
the Links Residential Teaneck, said that
Sara is great at reading people and filled
with determination. She will educate clients on the market and various neighborhoods to inspire the best decisions
throughout the sale process.
Sara lives in Teaneck with her husband and three children. She is a member of the National Association of Realtors, Eastern Bergen Board of Realtors
and the New Jersey MLS.
To learn more, visitwww.LinksNJ.com
or call us at (201) 992-3600.

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(201) 837-8800

Jewish standard deCeMBer 25, 2015 45

Real Estate & Business

Israel-Hong Kong cooperate
on industrial R&D
Companies from Israel and
Hong Kong will be able to
receive funding from both
governments
Viva Sarah Press
Israeli companies and Hong Kong-based
companies are looking to a new government-sponsored program aimed at
advancing industrial R&D cooperation to
give them a leg up in the technological
field.
The new program is suited to projects
focusing on research and development
from all industrial sectors. As part of the
program, each company taking part will
be funded by the relevant government.
When the business and technology
communities of both Hong Kong and Israel
join forces, they would no doubt generate
sparkles that would shine in the global
technological landscape. The Hong KongIsrael R&D Cooperation Program marks a
new milestone in our endeavor to forge
closer ties in the private sector, creating
new opportunities, said Secretary for
Innovation and Technology representing
the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), Nicholas
Yang.
Avi Luvton, executive director, Asia
Pacific, at the Israeli Industry Center for
Research and Development, said Hong
Kong holds a special status as a world

class financial, trading and business center. He said that its important location in
the rapidly-developing heart of East Asia
gives Hong Kong economic and strategic
significance for Israeli companies, and
that there is no doubt that the new program will make a significant contribution
towards realizing the potential for cooperation between the two governments.
With the new program, it will be possible to realize the unique technological
ideas brought forward by various companies from Hong Kong and Israel, said Avi
Hasson, chief scientist at the Israeli Ministry of Economy and Industry. I certainly
believe this program will further advance
technological ties between the two countries to even higher levels.
The Office of the Chief Scientist at the
Israeli Ministry of Economy and Industry and the Innovation & Technology
Commission in Hong Kong (ITC) recently
announced the launch of the new R&D
cooperation program to fund joint
projects.
In Hong Kong, entrepreneurs will
receive funding through the ESS (Enterprise Support Scheme) program, managed by the Innovation and Technology
Fund (ITF); in Israel, funding will be given
by the Office of the Chief Scientist at the
Israeli Ministry of Economy and Industry
and the program will be managed by the
executive branch of the Office of the Chief
Scientist, the Israeli Industry Center for
Research and Development. Israel21c.org

SELLING YOUR HOME?

The World We Want urban art

project comes to Tel Aviv
People on the street write
their aspirations for the
world they want to live in
on a public chalkboard
Viva Sarah Press
The Dizengoff Center in Tel Aviv is
always filled with pedestrian traffic.
But anyone walking past Gate 3 in midDecember would have found the sidewalk a bit more congested than usual
thanks to a huge chalkboard set up at
this entrance to the shopping mall.
The chalkboard is the local version
of New York artist Amber Raes inspiring public art project, The World We
Want.
The goal of the project is to invite
communities to connect more deeply to
themselves and each other, the Brooklyn-based artist and entrepreneur says of
the interactive chalkboard wall.
A group of Israeli social activists
helped bring about Tel Avivs version of
the wall. Many passersby stopped to fill
in a wish for the world theyd like to see,
writing in Hebrew and English.
Answers to Raes original two questions that appear on the walls I want
to live in a world where and To

create this world, I will are being

documented by the organizers. They
photograph the messages and then
erase some of them so that others can
add their ideas.
I want to live in a world where religions are not a source of conflict, reads
one message on the Tel Aviv chalkboard.
I want to live in a world where people dont need to hide from themselves,
reads another note.
I want to live in a world where there
is peace, reads a third message.
The response has been amazing.
They read it, they participate, they have
dialogue with one another and they
share. They spill their hearts and put on
this wall what they really want to see and
what theyre willing to do to make it happen, one of the local organizers, who
requested not to be named, said.
The World We Want installation
started at the Dumbo Art Festival in
Brooklyn, on September 26, 2014. The
idea next popped up in Chicago and
Boulder.
In the last quarter of 2015, hundreds of
communities around the globe launched
their own walls as a temporary installation of three days to three weeks. The Tel
Aviv walls lifespan was December 18-23.

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An Equal Opportunity Company. Equal Housing Opportunity. Owned and Operated by NRT LLC.

46 Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015

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Broker/Owner
Miron Properties NY

201.266.8555
T: 212.888.6250
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M: 917.576.0776

Ruth Miron-Schleider
Broker/Owner
Miron Properties NJ

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CROWN HEIGHTS

BEDFORD STUYVESANT

LOWER EAST SIDE

GREENPOINT

J
SO UST
LD
!

CO UN
NT DE
RA R
CT
!

N
FE O
E!

2 BR/1 BTH w/3rd BR/loft. Approx. 1,384 sq. ft. Modern 1,200 sq. ft. loft w/city views & balcony. 2 BR/2 BTH, convertible to 3 BR. $4,995 gross.

LOWER EAST SIDE

N
FE O
E!

Boutique rental. 3 BR. $3,995/month.

WILLIAMSBURG
SO

Brick building. 3 extra large apartments.

MIDTOWN EAST

UPPER WEST SIDE

Sleek 3 BR/3.5 BTH penthouse. $8,290,000

Magnificent 4 BR/3.5 BTH corner unit. $6,995,000

AV PAR
PL EN K
AC UE
E!

LD

Stylish luxury bldg. Heart of Brooklyn.

J
SO UST
LD
!

LIS JUS
TE T
D!

Contact us today for your complimentary consultation!

Jeff@MironProperties.com Ruth@MironProperties.com
www.MironProperties.com
Each Miron Properties office is independently owned and operated.

Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015 47

STORE HOURS

646 Cedar Lane Teaneck, NJ 07666

SUN.-TUES. 7AM-9PM
WED. 7AM-10PM
THURS. 7AM-11PM
FRI. 7AM-1 HOURS
BEFORE SUNDOWN
SAT. CLOSED

Tel: 201-855-8500 Fax: 201-801-0225

Sign Up For Your
Loyalty
Card
In Store

Sale Effective

Fine Foods
Great Savings

12/27/15 - 1/1/16
Save On!

FOR

Bananas

Imported
Kiwis

10 $2
FOR

Fresh

Fresh

Medallion
Steak

Osem
Mini
Mandel
14.1 OZ.

2 $5
FOR

Save On!

Heinz
Ketchup

2$4

20 OZ.

FOR

Reduce Fat or Original Only

Family Pack

2 $5
FOR

DAIRY

Assorted

Tropicana
Lemonade

2 5
59 OZ.

FOR

Richfield Gardens
Soups

32 OZ.

$ 99
Assorted

YoKids
Squeezers

2 $7
8 PACK

FOR

Lb

Super Family Pack

American Black Angus Beef

Miami
Strip Steak

$ 49
LB

Hot House
Cucumbers

2 $5
FOR

MARKET

DELI SAVINGS

FISH
`

Cucumber Avocado
Roll

4
Alaska

Empire
Natural Turkey

$ 95

1199

ea.

Roll

299

Dragon
Roll

1195

Lb

GROCERY

Save On!

Near East
Rice Pilaf
6 OZ.

2 3
$

FOR

99

Lb.

Lb

499

Kelloggs
Corn Flakes
Crumbs

21 OZ.

$ 99

12

Lb

Low Sodium

Kikkoman
Soy Sauce
10 OZ.

24
$

FOR

Lb

Save On!

89

Original & Everything

2 $4

2 $5

2 $7

2 $5

Instant
Coffee

Wesson
Canola
Oil

Paskez
Rice or Corn
Checkers
3.5 OZ.

FOR

Regular

6 99

7 OZ.

Assorted

Chobani
Flips

99
5.3 OZ.

Farms Creamery
Whipped
Cream Cheese

8 OZ.

$ 79
Assorted

Swiss Miss
Puddings

2 $5
6 PACK

FOR

Manischewitz
Tam Tams

9.6 OZ.

FOR

Save On!

499

64 OZ.

Assorted

Starbucks
Coffees & Lattes

48 OZ.

$ 79
Assorted

YoCrunch
Yogurts

2 $1
6 OZ.

FOR

Assorted

Natural & Kosher

Shredded
Cheese

2 LB.

$ 99

Cocoa or
Fruity
Pebbles
15 OZ.
FOR

Save On!

Heinz
Chili
Sauce

2 $4
12 OZ.

FOR

FROZEN

Freunds
Tilapia
Fillet

16 OZ.

$ 49

Eggo
Chocolate Chips
Waffles

Pretzel
Crisps

FOR

2 $5

3 $5

Birds Eye
Steam Fresh
Broccoli Florets
12 OZ.

FOR

6.5 OZ.

FOR

Lenders
Bagels
Plain
6 PACK
FOR

4 $5
FOR

Save On!

Quaker
Old Fashioned
& Quick Oats

2 $5
18 OZ.

FOR

Crystal Gyser
Water

Original or BBQ

Pringles
Crisps

2 $3 2 $6
5.6 OZ.

FOR

Frankels
Pizza
Snaps

16 OZ.

FOR

3 $5

2 7

EA.

Save On!

2 $5

5 OZ.

$ 99
Barilla
Ziti &
Elbows

4 OZ.

In Water Only

10.5 OZ.

Mac &
Cheese

Almondina
The Original

Bumble Bee
Solid White
Tuna

MorningStar
Chicken
Nuggets

Ossies

99

FOR

2 $7

FOR

HOMEMADE DAIRY

Lb

7.2 OZ.

2 $5
10 PACK

Check Out Our New Line

of Cooked Fish

15 OZ.

16 OZ.

Post Cereal

LB.

Don Pepino
Pizza
Sauce

Riverhead
Pearl Barley

LB.

LB.

Peppered
Tuna

Lb

$ 99

Original & Everything

Chocolate Whole Grain

99

White Meat

$ 99

Lb

2199
$ 99
8
$
1499

Salmon
Burgers

Chicken
Shwarma

Oriental Beef
Stir Fry

$ 99

Lb

FISH

Standing
Rib Roast

ea.

Wild
Salmon

American Black Angus Beef

Ready To Cook

Lifter
Steak

Vegetarian
Pastel

ea.

$ 99

Lb.

Jalapeo
Dip

$ 25ea.

Veal
Spare Ribs

American Black Angus Beef

$ 99

Skippy Creamy Tasters Choice

Peanut
Butter
16.3 OZ

Sweet
Yams

646 Cedar Lane Teaneck, NJ 07666

201-855-8500 Fax: 201-801-0225
www.thecedarmarket.com
info@thecedarmarket.com

SUSHI

Save On!

Fresh

$ 99

$ 99
Save On!

LB.

Chicken
Wings

Chicken
Fingers

$ 49

American Black Angus Beef

89

YOUR
CHOICE

LB.

Loyalty
Program

Text CEDAR to 42828 to receive our secret deals e-mails

You can view our weekly circular at TheCedarMarket.com
Follow @TheCedarMarket on your favorite social network

646 Cedar Lane Teaneck, NJ 07666

201-855-8500 Fax: 201-801-0225
www.thecedarmarket.com
info@thecedarmarket.com

Cedar Markets Meat Dept. Prides Itself On Quality, Freshness And Affordability. We Carry The Finest Cuts Of Meat And
The Freshest Poultry... Our Dedicated Butchers Will Custom Cut Anything For You... Just Ask!

Chicken
Cutlets
Lb

LB.

Anjou or
Bartlett
Pears

69

45

LB.

MEAT DEPARTMENT

Save On!

Mixed
Peppers

Save On!

49

YOUR
CHOICE

FOR

HEADS

Sunday Super Savers!

2 7

5 5

2 1

Super Family Pack

Sweet Butternut, Acorn,

Clementines
or Kabocha
Bag
Squash

Iceberg
Lettuce

Hass
Avocados

CEDAR MARKET

ORGANIC ORGANIC ORGANIC

Sunday Super Savers!

Loyalty
Program

ORGANIC ORGANIC ORGANIC

Squash PRODUCE

MARKET

TERMS & CONDITIONS: This card is the property of Cedar Market, Inc. and is intended for exclusive
use of the recipient and their household members. Card is not transferable. We reserve the right to
change or rescind the terms and conditions of the Cedar Market loyalty program at any time, and
without notice. By using this card, the cardholder signifies his/her agreement to the terms &
conditions for use. Not to be combined with any other Discount/Store Coupon/Offer. *Loyalty Card
must be presented at time of purchase along
with ID for verification. Purchase cannot be
reversed once sale is completed.

CEDAR MARKET

8 PACK

FOR

FOR

BAKERY

Tuscanini
Pizza

14.1 OZ.

99

Gardein
Seven Grain
Crispy Tenders

9 OZ.

$ 99

9 Inch
Merrick
Pie Crust

2 $5
2 PACK
FOR

Marble
Cake

$ 99

15 OZ.

Corn &
Chocolate
Chip Muffins

65
PROVISIONS

EACH

Assorted
Hod Lavan
Sliced Turkey
Aarons
Classic
Franks

2 $6
$ 99
4
5 OZ.

13.5 OZ.

We reserve the right to limit sales to 1 per family. Prices effective this store only. Not responsible for typographical errors. Some pictures are for design purposes only and do not necessarily represent items on sale. While Supply Lasts. No rain checks.

48 Jewish Standard DECEMBER 25, 2015