“Listen World Listen Jew” Introduction | Posted by Barkochva Hamakabi

I sit here, in the Land of Israel: Jerusalem; Home. It is night and the stars twinkle with fierceness and a multitude of heavenly lights such as I have not remembered for many years. Across the valley sleep the hills of Benjamin and the lights of Ramalla shine directly across from me as to the left I strain to see Nebi Samuel, the grave of the Prophet Samuel. The night is totally quiet, carrying with it a stillness not born of the fear of other urban areas where people cling to their dwellings in the concrete jungle, but rather the gentle, peaceful quiet that affords tranquility to the soul and pause for thought to the mind.

I am home in Jerusalem and inside sleep my children who have returned with me. Tomorrow they will go to school, climbing the hills that forever bear the footprints of those who preceded them here so many years ago–their ancestors. They will walk the hills of Jerusalem, tread its streets, mingle with their brothers and sisters from Riga and Casablanca, pray at the wall and shyly–and then not so timidly–touch its craggy surface, add their lip prints to those who preceded them for twenty centuries and then joke in Hebrew with the bus drivers, drink their Jewish grapefruit juice as they read their Jewish newspaper and exult in their Jewish city.

“Our feet are standing within thy gates O Jerusalem,” and they will never leave. This is Zionism, and the United Gentiles call it “Racist” and debate how to take my city away from me. Foolish world; sooner will the sun fail to rise tomorrow. The Jews have come home to their Zion and have welded their city together with a fierce tightness that none-least of all the humor that is the United Nations-can sunder. A people which patiently bides its time for millennia will not easily-ever-give up its state and capital. A nation stubborn enough to awaken for centuries at midnight to weep for Zion and so obstinate as to pray in the North, the South, East and West, three times daily, four times on Sabbaths and holidays and five times on Atonement for the day when the Divine Presence will return to the Holy City, will surely do little more than yawn when the haters thunder about “Zionist hooligans.”

For two thousand years we wept for the Zion they tore from us with blood and fire; today it is returned to us and never again will it leave our possession. For centuries we were forced to visit as strangers at the sufferance of those who mocked and reviled us; today we sit as balel-batim, possessors and holders of title to our possession and never again will that title be effectively challenged. For a score of years no Jew could tread on the doorstep to the Holy Mount and place his slips of pleadings in the crevices of the Wall because Jordan was busy keeping the area Judenrein even as it was using the Jewish tombstones on the Mount of Olives to line latrines. Today a thousand Jews and more will pray at the Wall even as all others can pursue their own faiths with no one to prevent them. Never again will all the haters with all their lackeys and running dogs of Jew-hating imperialism, return us to the horrors that once were.

My first Sabbath in Jerusalem was the occasion for the reading in the Law of the words of the Prophet Isaiah: “For the sake of Zion I will not be quiet and for the sake of Jerusalem I will not hold my peace.” Let the world hear and the politicians remember. A people whose G-d keeps His word is not to be trifled with; a L-rd whose people is so determined is not to be taken lightly. “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem,” for if an alien hand attempts to seize it again it will surely be cut off. Pray for the peace of Zion because if there will be war over it, the whole world will be plunged into a holocaust-and in the end it will remain Jewish. In blood and fire did Zion rise again-never again to sink to its knees. This is surely the promise we give the world, and the guarantors whom we bring as surety are the same ones our ancestors once brought before the Almighty at Sinai-our children. They walk the streets of Zion and their Jerusalem and with the strength of their young and mighty arms will they assure that those streets and stones and hills and homes will continue to be Jewish ever more.

A certain resolution on Zionism has been passed at the United Nations. In reality, it is a resolution on Judaism. It is important that a reply be given. It is important that the world know precisely what Zionism is and what the Jewish people are.

It is important that the nations hear our proclamation: “Listen world; I am a Zionist, I am a Jew!”

And listen, too, Jew. Listen so that you will understand yourself who you are and what and why. For there is no escape from it even if one should be so foolish as to desire to flee, the greatness and majesty of the Jewish destiny. Listen so that you will be able to stand proud and tall and know what to reply-with dignity and not hesitant defensiveness. So that you will know from where you came and to where you go, since without the former it is impossible to know the latter.

And so, listen Jew as we speak to a world that understands as little as you about the eternity of the Jewish people. Listen, as the Jewish Idea is proclaimed. Listen, and learn. Listen and return.

Listen world, listen Jews.

Muslim on the Side of Israel?!!

“Everyone Is Entitled to Their Memory, Except Israel” | Posted by PiRo SCC

Rabbi Marvin Hier, Dean and Founder of the Simon Wiesenthal Center

From the New York Times: Rabbis Sound an Alarm Over Eating Disorders | Posted by PiRo SCC

The following article appeared in the health section of the New York Times on April 11, 2011.  While it is not necessarily written from a Jewish point of view, it raises issues that some consider worth discussing and bringing to fore.  We welcome your participation and comments.

___________________________________________________________________

By RONI CARYN RABIN

In the large and growing Orthodox Jewish communities around New York and elsewhere, rabbinic leaders are sounding an alarm about an unexpected problem: a wave of anorexia and other eating disorders among teenage girls.

While no one knows whether such disorders are more prevalent among Orthodox Jews than in society at large, they may be more baffling to outsiders. Orthodox women are famously expected to dress modestly, yet matchmakers feel no qualms in asking about a prospective bride’s dress size — and her mother’s — and the preferred answer is 0 to 4, extra small.

Rabbis say the problem is especially hard to treat because of the shame that has long surrounded mental illness among Orthodox Jews.

“There is an amazing stigma attached to eating disorders — this is the real problem,” said Rabbi Saul Zucker, educational director for the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, or O.U., the organization that issues the all-important kashrut stamp for food. “But hiding it is not going to make it go away. If we don’t confront it, it’s going to get worse.”

Referring to the high risk of death from heart problems and suicide in patients with anorexia, he said: “This isn’t a luxury type of disease, where, O.K., someone is a little underweight. People die.”

As a teenager, Naomi Feigenbaum developed bizarre eating habits that had nothing to do with Jewish dietary laws: Cocoa Puffs and milk in the morning, when she figured she had all day to burn off the calories, and nothing but Crystal Light and chewing gum the rest of the day.

At the kosher dinner table in her home near Cleveland, she said she would start arguments with her parents so she could stomp off and avoid eating. She lost weight so rapidly in high school that she used safety pins to cinch her long skirts around her waist.

By the time her rabbi came to visit her, she was emaciated. He told her that she must attend a treatment program that met on Saturday, the Jewish day of rest, even if she had to violate religious rules by riding in a car to get there. She could even eat food that wasn’t kosher.

“That’s when I realized it was a matter of life and death,” Ms. Feigenbaum said in an interview. “My rabbi does not take Jewish law lightly. But he told me the Jewish laws are things God wanted us to live by, not die by, and that saving a life takes precedence over all of them.”

Now 24, she has written a memoir, “One Life” (Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2009), about her recovery from anorexia after treatment at the Florida branch of the Renfrew Center, the nationwide eating-disorders clinic.

There is little research to indicate how many women are in a similar position. Israeli studies consistently find high rates of disordered eating among Jewish adolescents but not Arab ones, and Israel’s rate of dieting is among the highest in the world — more than one woman in four — though obesity rates are relatively low.

Data about American Jews is limited, but two small studies have reported high rates of disordered eating in certain communities. One of those, a 1996 study of an Orthodox high school in Brooklyn, found 1 in 19 girls had an eating disorder — about 50 percent higher than in the general population at the time. The 1996 study was done with the agreement that it would not be published. The other study, done in 2008, looked at 868 Jewish and non-Jewish high school students in Toronto and found that 25 percent of the Jewish girls suffered from eating disorders that merited treatment, compared with 18 percent of the non-Jewish girls.

Demand for treatment programs that accommodate Orthodox teenagers prompted the Renfrew Center to start offering kosher food at its clinics in Philadelphia, New York, Dallas and Florida, while a new residential facility catering to young women from the United States opened last year in Jerusalem. It is not affiliated with Renfrew.

Relief Resources, a mental health referral agency that serves Orthodox communities, runs an eating disorders hot line, and last year the O.U. teamed with a social worker to make “Hungry to be Heard,” a documentary about eating disorders among the Orthodox.

Most of the young women interviewed for this article said they did not blame the culture for their health problems and said they derived support from their religious faith. But they spoke openly about the enormous pressure they feel to marry young and immediately start families , and the challenges of balancing professional careers with the imperative to be consummate homemakers who prepare elaborate Sabbath meals.

Experts say that eating disorders usually emerge during adolescence and other times of transition. And in large Orthodox families, the girls are often expected to help care for their younger siblings, leaving them little time to pursue their own interests. Experts suspect that anorexia may provide a way to stall adult responsibilities by literally stopping the biological clock: the drastic weight loss can halt menstruation.

Young Orthodox women are also expected to conform to a rigorous code of conduct, with few outlets for rebellion. They are expected to be chaste until marriage and do not date until they start looking for a husband. Even gossip is considered a sin.

Once matchmaking starts, they may be expected to choose a life partner after only a brief courtship. Known mental illness in a family can affect the chances of a successful match, not just for the individual but for siblings as well, so young women may well avoid psychiatric treatment.

In addition to fulfilling the traditional roles of caregiver and homemaker, many Orthodox women also assume the role of primary breadwinner so their husbands can pursue religious studies full time.

“It’s too much,” said a 23-year-old woman from the New York area who is recovering from an eating disorder and asked not to be identified by name to protect her privacy. She is married and a full-time student, but has postponed having a baby.

“A lot of my friends are going to work and support their husbands,” she continued, “but part of my recovery is to say that I can’t do everything — I’m not superwoman.”

Food plays a central role in Jewish family and religious life, and both the Friday night dinner and the midday Sabbath meal, as well as holiday meals, can be multicourse affairs. But fast days — when no food or water is consumed for 25 hours — are also sprinkled throughout the year, often preceded or followed by a large meal.

Next week’s Passover Seders, which traditionally include matzo and four cups of wine, along with soup, gefilte fish, brisket and potato kugel, are a particular challenge, experts say. For women who struggle with eating disorders, they can be an invitation to purging.

“There are a lot of mixed messages,” said a 27-year-old woman from a strict Orthodox community in Brooklyn, who once carried less than 100 pounds on her 5-foot-6 frame. “My grandmother would see me and say, ‘You look so good, you’re so skinny — come eat, eat.’ ”

Many rabbis find themselves being asked to resolve conflicts between religious obligations — like the requirement to fast on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement — and doctors’ orders that patients not restrict food intake under any circumstances.

“A patient will call and tell me their weight is down to 82 pounds, and they have weaknesses in their body, and I’ll tell them there is no question they must eat during a fast — not that they can eat, but that they must eat,” said Rabbi Dovid Goldwasser of the Bais Yitzchak Synagogue in Flatbush, Brooklyn, who has become known in the Orthodox world as an expert on eating disorders and counsels women from all over the world.

“They have great difficulty with that,” Rabbi Goldwasser went on, “and they say to me, ‘But isn’t it true that by fasting you get atonement for your sins?’

“I try to answer the spiritual conflict and say that no, God wants you to eat. Your eating on that day is considered as if you fasted.”

Itbach al Yahood….Kill the Jews | by PiRo SCC

Dr. Mordechai Kedar of Bar-Ilan University speaking about Palestinian state and Al Quods (Jerusalem) on Al Jazeera | Posted by PiRo SCC

WOW!

Israeli Soldiers Harassing A Pregnant Palestinian Woman!! | Posted by PiRoSCC

Please use discretion while viewing.
This is hair-raising, heartbreaking, and infuriating at the same time.

Racism towards Muslims in Israel

Jews, practitioners of love and kindness.

The answer, as is expressed in Tehillim (Psalms of David  89:3): "Olam chesed yibaneh – a world will be built upon kindness."

Tamar Fogel, the 12-year-old who discovered her murdered family in Itamar, speaks out

 

This is what Judaism is about!!

ACTION ALERT | Report the “Third Palestinian Intifada” page on Facebook

A Facebook page has been created that calls for a violent Third Intifada against all Jews on May 15th.  The page has received a lot of attention in the media.  As of this writing, the page has over 332,000 followers. So far Facebook has refused to remove this page!!!

Here is how you can help:

1. Please visit the Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/Palestinian.Intifada, and report the page.  There is a link for this purpose at the bottom left of the page.
2. You can call Facebook demanding the page be taken down.  The phone number to call and to leave a message is 650.548.4800.
3. Please forward this message to as many people as you can, mention it in your status update, or write a post or blog about it.

A Very Important Event | ISRAEL UNITY COMMUNITY SOLIDARITY RALLY

We would like to point your attention to a very important event!

With the present violence and volatility in the Middle East and North Africa, it is now more important than ever for us to UNIFY in expressing our support of and solidarity with the state of Israel.

This is why we urge you to click here to be directed to the event page on Facebook for the ISRAEL UNITY COMMUNITY SOLIDARITY EVENT.  Please RSVP as attending, and do whatever you can to promote the event.

For the first time in 25 years all the Sephardic synagogues of greater Los Angeles have joined together to sponsor one of the largest events of the Los Angeles Jewish community.

The Sephardic rabbis of Los Angeles invite every member of the entire Jewish community of Los Angeles to join together with one heart in solidarity and support of Israel and Jews worldwide, in an uplifting event of unity, Torah, inspiration, and prayer in this time of great turmoil in the Middle East.

Honored guest: Israeli consul general Jacob Dayan

This event has been sponsored by:

Adat Yeshurun - Baba Sale - Beit Mitzvah - Em Habanim -Heichal Moshe - Jem - Jun - Kahal Joseph - Kahal Levy - Maimonides Academy – Magen David - Beit Medrash Mishkan Israel - Mogen David - Nessah Israel - Natan Eli Hebrew Academy - Ohr Haemet- Ohel Moshe - Tiferet Yisrael - S.T.A.R. - Shaarey Yerushalayim - Torat Hayim - West Coast Torah Center

***Let us join hands for the future of Israel***

The Abomination that is J Street

J Street styles itself as “The Political Home for Pro-Israel, Pro-Peace Americans!”

How does this video make you feel?  Remember, these are Jews!

Gilgul and Judging Favorably | By Rabbi Aaron Parry

In our ever-evolving experiences as homo sapiens aspiring to become homo spiritus, we wonder, “Why Me?” Why have I been given this unique challenge and tikkun to affect in this gilgul? Most of us are oblivious, and for good reason, who we were in an earlier incarnation. Dr, Brian Weiss in Many Lives, Many Masters suggests that groups of people tend to reincarnate together and chances are the people you encounter are familiar souls from a previous gilgul. If this is true, how do we deal with and process these encounters?

In-depth study of today’s reading of Sefer Tanya aroused a glimpse of an answer for me. Citing a famous dictum of Ethics of our Fathers, the Alter Rebbe writes “And be humble of spirit before all men.” (4:10) "This you must be in true sincerity, in the presence of any individual, even in the presence of the most worthless of worthless men." This accords, he continues, with the instruction of the Sages, “Judge not thy fellow until thou art come to his place.” (ibid 2:4) In a brilliant and incredibly perceptive insight from this passage, the Rebbe makes this novel thought:

“For it is his “place” that causes him to sin, because his livelihood requires him to go to the market place for the whole day and to be one of those who are “Yoshev Kranos,” (lit. “Sit by the corners”), where his eyes behold all the temptations; the eye sees and the heart desires, and his evil inclination is kindled like a baker’s red-hot oven, as it is written in the Prophet Hoshea, “It (yetzer hara) burns as flaming fire…” (7:6)

He continues to discuss the topic by making a distinction between others who are fortunate enough not to have to frequent “The Market Place,” perhaps they stay in the Beis Medrash all day, at home, or the like. What fascinates me by these words, in the parlance of contemporary street-lexicon, is that the Alter Rebbe is telling everyone, “Cut that person some slack!” as you have no idea what he/she is going through or must endure to eek out a living, contend with personal issues, and just make it through the day!

In attempting to parlay this amazing Torah into a resolution of the questions I posed above, I was thinking that fulfillment of “not judging someone until you’ve come to their place,” implies a tremendous intensity of the middat Tiferes, who’s best translation into English is “Compassion.” Such Tiferes leads to empathy which in truly evolved individuals, allows them to instinctively skirt reactionary judgmentalism, which is the bane of our society.

Embellishing a bit on the Rebbe’s interpretation of “his place,” I’d like to suggest that it may also connote the place of one’s incarnation. Meaning, that each person is so complex that not only are their personalities and proclivities, unique and pertinent, but so are their past-lives! We have absolutely no clue, literally, from which “place,” they’re coming! Conclusion? Unless we’re prophets, clairvoyants, or skilled in past-life regression techniques, let’s stop judging each other. Didn’t that British prime minister Disraeli once quip “It’s much easier to be critical than correct?”

For Your Viewing Pleasure: A Hero of Israel, From a Village in Ethiopia to the Knesset in Israel

A Great Event, Please RSVP Now | Chinese Auction!! to benefit Tashbar Torat Hayim

As we usually do, we would like to point your attention to a great event for a very worthy cause!  This is indeed a cause that we all can and should support.  We invite and encourage all our readers to attend and invite all their friends.  Please RSVP now on the Facebook event page by CLICKING HERE.

Chinese Auction
To benefit
Tashbar Torat Hayim Hebrew Academy
Tuesday February 8, 2011;
7 to 11 PM;
Nessah Cultural Center
142 South Rexford Drive
Beverly Hills, CA 90212

Your participation will support our community's children, and their education and development, by helping to build a safer and more stimulating play area to enhance and enrich the children's school experience, as well as facing other financial challenges in one of our local neighborhood Jewish schools, Tashbar Torat Hayim Hebrew Academy.  To learn more about Torat Hayim please click here.

To view and download the catalog of items up for auction please click on THIS LINK!

$18 admission will include light buffet and refreshments.

ONLY $5.00 per ticket!!!

We encourage you to invite all your friends to this event.
WE WILL SEE YOU THERE!

Guest Blogger: Expanding upon “Why is it so hard to get marry married these days?” | By Bethie Kohanchi M.A. LMFT

My intention was not to further expand on my previous posting on this blog, regarding the subject of marriage, yet, due to the many excellent comments received, I felt a need to explore the subject with the readers some more. I would like to note that I don’t necessarily write this from a Judaic/Torah point of view, since my limited knowledge in that area makes me unqualified to do so.

I have counseled many couples and singles on the challenges of marriage and generally I see the couples who seek help, are ones who for the most part, lack the necessary communication skills for a solid relationship. Individuals who come in for consultation are seeking a partner in life, and are usually trying to find themselves at the same time.

There are many phenomenon and or circumstances that play a major role in dating and marriage, for example: one’s culture, perception about life, expectation of marriage and of course age, and many more.

Every culture deals with dating issue differently; some cultures promote dating at an early age, while others hint at dating in later years. Some cultures only date through known acquaintances or recommended person, while still others may only do blind dates. Some cultures may not even give the person the option of choosing a date. It is important here to please keep in mind that within every family exists a DIFFERENT CULTURE. That means no matter how close a family you and I have, what my family’s expectations of “dating” is, may not be acceptable to your family’s “dating” expectations. Therefore, family expectations of how dating should be or when to start dating may delay or encourage earlier marriages.

A person’s individual perception about dating or marriage can hinder marriage. For instance, unrealistic expectations can be a big setback for some people. Unrealistic expectations can be different for each individual, what may be unrealistic for one, may not be for another. A good example to illustrate this point: the culture and language barrier.

Then we have another question: How do you know when your expectations are unrealistic? Talk to your friends, get advice, talk to married couples you know. Married people can shed light on what you need to focus on or not.

Another important issue to be aware of is your expectation of what a marriage should be about. If you are looking for someone to be just like you, or a marriage that has no arguments, you are setting yourself up for disappointment. You may have a long wait before Prince Charming arrives! Instead, look for someone who has empathy, who can understand your struggle in life, who can provide support and who offers help to guide you. Look for someone who you are not afraid of telling the truth to about the real you! Look for a person who is flexible in life and situations, who adopts to change easily without resorting to blaming others. As I mentioned earlier, marriage is about being committed to a relationship, about working through the many various issues that can arise.

As we age our expectations about dating also changes, some to our advantage and some to our disadvantage. For instance the person who you would want to marry when you are 20 years old, most likely would not be your choice when you are 35. Young people usually (and I emphasize usually) do not know what they really want from life, marriage or their spouse, and once married they just adapt to the life they have made for themselves. As one ages and looks for a spouse, different issues present themselves. She thinks she knows exactly what she wants in a partner, and because she is so exact in her list of requirements, she may never find that one person. Getting married in later years has the advantage knowing what kind of a person you want, however, if you limit yourself to a too specific population, you are closing yourself off from many other potential opportunities.

I once had a client who was only looking for certain type of a girl. He had finished medical school and was working. He eventually met his dream girl, but even when he found her, he had doubts and continued to contemplate about whether or not this was the “perfect girl.”

The point is: You may find the perfect person—but are YOU going to be ready to accept who that person is?

You have to know yourself, your needs and wants before you are able to know who you are looking for, but beware of being too rigid in your choices, we are all human and therefore all different.

Hope that helped !

Bethie Kohanchi M.A. is a  Licensed Marriage, Child and Family Therapist (LMFT).  She may be reached at bkohanchi@hotmail.com, at 310.968.6648 for appointments.

Guest Blogger: On Jews and Israel | By the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr…..We Wish!

Adapted from an article by John Lewis, U.S. Rep., a Democrat, representing the 5th Congressional District of Georgia and worked closely with Martin Luther King Jr. during the civil rights movement.
San Francisco Chronicle, January 21, 2002

The Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. understood the meaning of discrimination and oppression. He sought ways to achieve liberation and peace, and he thus understood that a special relationship exists between African Americans and American Jews.

 
This message was true in his time and is true today.

He knew that both peoples were uprooted involuntarily from their homelands. He knew that both peoples were shaped by the tragic experience of slavery. He knew that both peoples were forced to live in ghettoes, victims of segregation. He knew that both peoples were subject to laws passed with the particular intent of oppressing them simply because they were Jewish or black. He knew that both peoples have been subjected to oppression and genocide on a level unprecedented in history.

 
King understood how important it is not to stand by in the face of injustice. He understood the cry, "Let my people go."

 
Long before the plight of the Jews in the Soviet Union was on the front pages, he raised his voice.
"I cannot stand idly by, even though I happen to live in the United States and even though I happen to be an American Negro and not be concerned about what happens to the Jews in Soviet Russia. For what happens to them happens to me and you, and we must be concerned."

During his lifetime King witnessed the birth of Israel and the continuing struggle to build a nation. He consistently reiterated his stand on the Israeli-Arab conflict, stating "Israel's right to exist as a state in security is uncontestable." It was no accident that King emphasized "security" in his statements on the Middle East.

 
On March 25, 1968, less than two weeks before his tragic death, he spoke out with clarity and directness stating,
"peace for Israel means security, and we must stand with all our might to protect its right to exist, its territorial integrity. I see Israel as one of the great outposts of democracy in the world, and a marvelous example of what can be done, how desert land can be transformed into an oasis of brotherhood and democracy. Peace for Israel means security and that security must be a reality."

The words of King run through my memory, "I solemnly pledge to do my utmost to uphold the fair name of the Jews-because bigotry in any form is an affront to us all."

During an appearance at Harvard University shortly before his death, a student stood up and asked King to address himself to the issue of Zionism. The question was clearly hostile. King responded, "When people criticize Zionists they mean Jews, you are talking anti-Semitism."

---

From M.L. King Jr., "Letter to an Anti-Zionist Friend," Saturday Review_XLVII (Aug. 1967), p. 76. Also reprinted in M.L. King Jr., "This I Believe: Selections from the Writings of  Dr. Martin Luther King Jr."

". . . You declare, my friend, that you do not hate the Jews, you are merely 'anti-Zionist.' And I say, let the truth ring forth from the high mountain tops, let it echo through the valleys of God's green earth: When people criticize Zionism, they mean Jews--this is God's own truth.
"Anti-Semitism, the hatred of the Jewish people, has been and remains a blot on the soul of mankind. In this we are in full agreement. So know also this: anti-Zionist is inherently anti-Semitic, and ever will be so.
"Why is this? You know that Zionism is nothing less than the dream and ideal of the Jewish people returning to live in their own land. The Jewish people, the Scriptures tell us, once enjoyed a flourishing Commonwealth in the Holy Land. From this they were expelled by the Roman tyrant, the same Romans who cruelly murdered Our Lord. Driven from their homeland, their nation in ashes, forced to wander the globe, the Jewish people time and again suffered the lash of whichever tyrant happened to rule over them.
"The Negro people, my friend, know what it is to suffer the torment of tyranny under rulers not of our choosing. Our brothers in Africa have begged, pleaded, requested--DEMANDED the recognition and realization of our inborn right to live in peace under our own sovereignty in our own country.
"How easy it should be, for anyone who holds dear this inalienable right of all mankind, to understand and support the right of the Jewish People to live in their ancient Land of Israel. All men of good will exult in the fulfillment of God's promise, that his People should return in joy to rebuild their plundered land.
This is Zionism, nothing more, nothing less.
"And what is anti-Zionist? It is the denial to the Jewish people of a fundamental right that we justly claim for the people of Africa and freely accord all other nations of the Globe. It is discrimination against Jews, my friend, because they are Jews. In short, it is anti-Semitism.
"The anti-Semite rejoices at any opportunity to vent his malice. The times have made it unpopular, in the West, to proclaim openly a hatred of the Jews. This being the case, the anti-Semite must constantly seek new forms and forums for his poison. How he must revel in the new masquerade! He does not hate the Jews, he is just 'anti-Zionist'!
"My friend, I do not accuse you of deliberate anti-Semitism. I know you feel, as I do, a deep love of truth and justice and a revulsion for racism, prejudice, and discrimination. But I know you have been misled--as others have been--into thinking you can be 'anti-Zionist' and yet remain true to these heartfelt principles that you and I share.
Let my words echo in the depths of your soul: When people criticize Zionism, they mean Jews--make no mistake about it."

Guest Blogger: Why is it so hard to get married these days? | By Bethie Kohanchi M.A. LMFT

Have you ever heard the stories of your grandparents or great grandparents pre-arranged marriages? Have you ever wondered to how those marriages ever lasted?

 

When I think of pre-arranged marriages I have to ask myself, “Are you kidding?” The older generations never had the luxury of “dating” their potential spouse; they never had the extravagance of making such a crucial decision which would decide the course of the rest of their life. That said, why is getting married so difficult for our current generations? And despite the comfort and security of prolonged dating, where the couple is free to choose each other, why do half of today’s marriages still end in divorce?

For most of us, choosing the “right partner” is one of the most important decisions, if not the most important decision, of our life. However, we often miss the central point of marriage, that union is not a choice that one makes, but rather a commitment. We also need to understand the commitment is ongoing. The commitment needs to be made and remade every day. That means while dating, we should ask our important questions. Is it imperative that the other person on our date is not rich? Should the other qualities of the person be overlooked just because he is driving a luxury car? Or maybe we are thinking “the guy is not financially secure, so he’s not good enough for me.” Are these even reasonable thoughts, after all, we all have seen millionaires lose their fortune overnight due to unforeseen economic reasons. We have to accept there are many things we really don’t have much control over in many aspects of our future.

 

Just for a moment, imagine the expectations of a pre-arranged married couple (actually, probably not much expectation to begin with) and connect that to the current generation of young people ready to get married. Ask yourself, “Are my expectations skewed, am I really dating the right person?” Or maybe we have delayed getting married by convinced our self marriage is about “picking the right person” or “making the right choice” when the real thought is – “there is someone better than the person I am currently dating right around the corner.”

 

Being married is about being committed to a relationship; and by that I mean, in “a healthy relationship.” There will always be differences between partners, but the key point is how we deal with and express those differences. Also, both people should understand the power of shared commitment to building something together that lasts. Building something together serves as the foundation for all the other gifts a successful marriage offers.

 

What else lies at the foundation of a successful relationship? Physical attraction, emotional connection, and intellectual parity are all important qualities to compatibility. But remember, if you decide to run a marathon, you aren’t just choosing to show up on the day of the event. You are taking challenge that means conditioning every day long before the race begins. If you skip a week of training, you might not make it to the finish line. The same applies for a successful relationship. You must work through the issues of the relationship every day! And yes, that is every day! If you skip a day without training, of learning how to improve your relationship, you may not make the best of the whole relationship!

Bethie Kohanchi M.A. is a  Licensed Marriage, Child and Family Therapist (LMFT).  She may be reached at bkohanchi@hotmail.com, at 310.968.6648 for appointments.

In All the Dark Places

By Yitta Halberstam

Yitta Halberstam is the author and co-author of eight books, including the best-selling Small Miracles series (Cincinnati, 1997-2003) and Holy Brother: Inspiring Stories and Enchanted Tales about Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach (New Jersey, 2002). Her most recent book is the anthology Changing Course: Women’s Inspiring Stories of Menopause, Midlife, and Moving Forward Cincinnati, 2004). Click here to Listen to Steve Savitsky's conversation with the converts themselves, on Around the Dining Room Table.

This article first appeared on “Jewish Action,” the magazine of the Orthodox Union.  It may be found online at http://www.ou.org/index.php/shabbat_shalom/article/7100/.

It’s said that the “truth will set you free,” but when an intrepid Israeli reporter browbeat Dr. Daniel Brown* into going public five years ago, the aftermath was traumatic. “I had always been open about my identity with both my family and friends,” he recalls, “and no one had ever been less than supportive and warm. But this particular Israeli newspaper misrepresented its agenda to me. I didn’t know that it intended to publicize or sensationalize my interview the way it ultimately did. The story was printed in the weekend edition of the paper, and all day long on Thursday and erev Shabbat radio commercials continually blasted every fifteen minutes: Hitler’s nephew’s grandson - right here in Israel - and a Jew! The repercussions left my family shaken.”

Brown’s sons-enrolled in a Modern Orthodox yeshivah in Jerusalem-were spat upon by several of their classmates and called “Nazis.” A handful of neighbors studiously avoided Brown when they encountered him on the street. And in shul the Shabbat after the story aired, a number of social acquaintances who normally greeted him with hearty handshakes turned the other way. “To these people, who had known me as Jewish for twenty-five years, I had become -overnight - a pariah,” says Brown. “I thought I was sharing a valuable lesson with others: that the past can be recreated and that a person always has the opportunity to change. But actually, it was I who was taught the lesson: Some people will never let you change.” (Not surprisingly Brown wanted to use a pseudonym in this article.)

Still, the incident becoming a litmus test for the varieties of human behavior, the responses were not uniformly negative. “In the same shul that Shabbat, I was also the recipient of a clearly symbolic act of acceptance,” says Brown. “I was given the first aliyah. This told me in no uncertain terms that the majority of the shul members regarded me as a full Jew and an accepted member of the community. Sadly, however, the decency of the majority didn’t nullify the crude conduct of the minority. We were badly wounded by what happened.

“Now I understand why most of my counterparts hide their identities,” says Brown. “Many Israelis are uneasy about our genealogy; they don’t know how to react or what to do with us.”

Perhaps that is why in a country still scarred by the Shoah, a country whose very existence still trembles on the foundations of the ash and bone of the Six Million, very few people are aware of what I like to call “The Penance Movement”: a subculture of hundreds of children of Nazis who have embraced their own dark past in the most extreme possible way. They have not only aligned themselves with the group of people their parents sought to annihilate, they have cast off their former identities and themselves become members of that very group. The majority of them have converted halachically, live as Orthodox Jews and reside in Israel. This, I believe, is one of the last great, untold chapters of the post-Holocaust era. It’s a story that speaks to humanity’s quest for meaning in life, our capacity for goodness and our potential to reshape identity and destiny. Yet, when I contact government officials, rabbinic courts and Israeli journalists themselves asking about this phenomenon, most seem shocked by my inquiries. “Are you sure?” they ask, some surprised, others skeptical. “It’s an urban legend,” many insist. “How could it be that children of Nazis live right here in Israel and no one knows about them? Impossible!”

1

Interestingly, a disproportionate number of the German converts are distinguished academicians-most notably, in the field of Jewish studies. Brown has followed this trajectory himself and chairs the Jewish studies department at one of the country’s leading universities. In his engagement with rabbinic and Talmudic literature, Brown is joined by Rabbi Dr. Aharon Shear-Yashuv (formerly known as Wolfgang Shmidt and one of the few converts who grants me permission to use his real name), chairman of Jewish studies at Bar-Ilan University, and many others including the chairman of the Jewish studies department at a Southern university in the United States and a professor of rabbinic literature at an Ivy League college in the United States. But it is clearly Brown who possesses the most interesting antecedents of all.

“My grandmother’s name was Erna Patra Hitler,” says Brown. (After the War, she dropped the “t,” changing her name to ‘Hiler.’ ) “Hans Hitler-her second husband-was the Fuhrer’s nephew, but he didn’t resemble him in any discernible way. He was soft and gentle. But what my step-grandfather lacked in vitriol was more than made up by the fierceness of my grandmother who was a sworn Nazi. She believed in the Nazi ideology before, during and even after the War. She was proud that her father-in-law was Hitler’s brother, although he kept away from politics. Instead, he managed a café in Berlin, and because everyone knew that he was the Fuhrer’s brother, all the Nazi elite patronized his establishment. This made his family and him-including my grandparents-local ‘nobility.’

“When [my grandparents] visited us, they arrived in a black Mercedes, which was then a novelty and status symbol. It was a big deal when the Mercedes arrived in the working-class neighborhood where my mother and I lived.”
Brown was born in Frankfurt in 1952 to Protestant parents who had both served in the Wehrmacht. His father, an ardent supporter of the Nazi party, divorced his mother shortly after his birth, and promptly disappeared from their lives. Brown was raised by his mother, who scrambled to make a living in post-War Germany. She received neither financial nor moral support from Erna Hitler, whom Brown describes as “indifferent to the pain and suffering of others.” Brown’s childhood years were marked by deprivation and hardship, as his debt-ridden mother struggled to keep them afloat. They were constantly on the go, moving from one apartment to another, leaving when frustrated landlords forced them out for lack of payment. Still, in one respect that would have profound reverberations for his future, Brown was fortunate. His mother always told him the truth.

Today, there are Germans who complain that they are “sick and tired” of the “endless talk” about the Holocaust, but in the immediate years after the War, there was only silence and denial, explains Brown. “In school, history teachers taught German history only up until World War I, in accordance with governmental legislation,” he says. “The government was afraid that if these teachers had a Nazi past or had been supporters of Hitler’s regime, they would not be objective in the classroom. So, actually, this law was borne of good intentions. But as a result, we remained largely ignorant about what had happened only a few years before. I remember having conversations with classmates who refused to believe in Germany’s accountability. Their parents had glossed over the details or lied outright. But my own mother hadn’t.”
Instead of the elaborate fabrications concocted by his friends’ parents to conceal the truth, Brown’s mother showed her son her cache of documents (which bore seals of the Reich with accompanying swastikas), letters and photographs of family members - including herself - wearing Wehrmacht uniforms, which testified to their complicity. She told him that she had been stationed in the Polish city of Lodz, where they hung Jews in the center of the city. “It was awful,” his mother told him. “I needed to pass through the center of town everyday in order to get from my house to headquarters and back. But I couldn’t bear to see the Jews strung up like that, so I took a long detour around the city each day to avoid this terrible scene. I never got used to it.”

Brown was horrified by his mother’s account. He felt the room go black as he rifled through the physical evidence of her past, but his mother’s genuine remorse provided him with some small measure of comfort. “When I asked her why she kept following orders, why she didn’t resist, she answered simply, but with deep shame, ‘I was afraid.’ I believed her,” says Brown.

Although Brown tried to share his mother’s revelations with his school friends, they couldn’t accept them as true; they told him that he was making it up. “So I tried to block it from my mind,” says Brown.

But when he was a high school student his destiny came calling again by way of an inheritance from his biological grandfather-his grandmother’s first husband—who had willed him a carton of books, among them his personal copy of Mein Kampf. “I had never seen Hitler’s infamous book before, and I read it thoroughly,” says Brown. “I was absolutely enraged by what he wrote. I kept on writing comments in the book’s margins, comments that countered Hitler’s claims. I still have this book in my library, because it served as a major catalyst in my life. I couldn’t remain apathetic to what I read. I know my encounter with it shaped my future to a large extent.”

The future of every young German in the post-War period included a mandatory stint in the army, but largely as a result of his encounter with the Holocaust, Brown had become a pacifist. “I was expected to join the army as soon as I graduated [from] high school, so I cast about for ways to get out of this civil obligation,” he says. “I learned that the two groups that were exempt from military service were the clergy and students of the Catholic Church. So when I opted to become a theology student, it was originally out of opportunism, not spiritual concerns. But way leads on to way, and that’s precisely what happened to me.

“Theology students are required to take several courses in Judaism and Hebrew, and I became increasingly fascinated by what I was learning,” says Brown. “While studying Judaism, I saw more and more things that troubled me about Christianity. For example, the concept of the Holy Trinity bothered me a lot … how [could] God be three? Another thing that I didn’t understand was the idea that a Christian has to suffer in order to be redeemed. The Jewish approach manifested by Yom Kippur made much more sense to me.

“The vast theological differences between Judaism and Christianity created a schism inside myself, and I was beginning to feel schizophrenic,” Brown continues. “In 1977, I decided to go to Israel to further my studies at Hebrew University where I … took classes in Hebrew literature and Jewish philosophy. I fell in love with Israel and lengthened my stay from one year to two.” Ultimately, Brown ended up studying at Yeshivat Mercaz HaRav.

Brown makes short shrift of my “Penance Movement” hypothesis-that children of Nazis convert to Judaism as atonement-maintaining that he converted for theological reasons, not out of penance for his parents’ sins. “Maybe there are unconscious psychological reasons that drove me to Judaism,” he allows, “but since I am a critical thinker and very cerebral, on a conscious level at least, I believe that I came to Judaism from a place of pure intellect.” He does, however, concede this: “I believe that whoever is willing to take this step [conversion] must have a very deep identity crisis preceding the conversion itself. He’s not able to return to the identity that he was born into. I understood that I was not happy in the place where I was born, and I made a decision to go to another place.

“The fact is that during the seventies and eighties many young Germans who wanted to detach themselves from the previous generation, the generation that was complicit in the Holocaust, left Germany. And the percentage of German converts in Israel is not insignificant. I converted mainly because I had a theological criticism of Christianity. Is this a rationalization I gave myself? My grandfather didn’t have any educational or cultural influence over me, but it still makes me feel awful that this is the background I come from. It sharpens the identity questions that I am so busy with.... My identity is not taken for granted. It is something that I must continually deal with.”

Brown converted to Judaism in 1979, and married another German convert who is also an academician. Although his wife’s parents in Stuttgart cut off all contact with their daughter, his own mother (who died seven years ago) accepted him as a Jew and visited him several times at his home in Israel. “Perhaps she was afraid that if she didn’t accept my conversion, she would lose her only child,” says Brown. “Whatever the reason, she dealt well with my Jewishness. She attended my three sons’ Bar Mitzvahs and participated in our Pesach Sedarim. I once even suggested that she come live with us in Jerusalem and not remain alone in Germany, but she said, ‘You don’t plant an old tree in a new place.’ But up until her death, we remained very connected.”

Brown is strictly halachic, identifying with Centrist Orthodoxy. Still, as a German convert, there are a few areas that give him pause, such as participating in Yom HaShoah ceremonies; emotionally it is too turbulent for him. “I usually stay home.”

Brown and his wife have worked hard to create a home that is warm, loving and supportive. “I wanted to make sure that my children have a path, a direction, a value system, not the muddled and complex dysfunction I myself experienced as a child,” he says. “But as much as I’ve tried to protect them from their schizophrenic legacy, there are things I can’t control. For example, when my son Yisrael traveled to Poland with his school several years ago, his reaction was completely different from his classmates. ‘Everything felt weird,’ he told me. ‘I stood in the camps and thought about how the grandfathers of all of my friends had been inside, while my grandfather had been outside. My classmates came to those camps with their pasts; I just came to watch. I was caught in the middle-it felt screwed up.’

“I also feel utterly helpless when my sons’ classmates say mean and hurtful things to them-comments which have accelerated since the interview in the Israeli newspaper was first published,” Brown says. “Last year, for example, during a ceremony on Yom Hazikaron, several students whispered to my youngest son that they were going to beat him up because he’s a Nazi. I refused to send him to school for a week until the principal took care of the problem.”
Brown has had his share of ugly run-ins himself. “I have always tried to be open and honest about my roots; I have never hidden my background like many converts from Nazi backgrounds,” he says. “Most of the time, people are accepting and tolerant. Once in a while, though, someone will say something offensive. Recently, after sharing some biographical details with my university students, one of them told me: ‘Imagine! Your grandfather might have turned my grandmother into soap.’”

Brown guesstimates that there are approximately three hundred German converts in Israel, but most are averse to publicity and remain relentlessly reclusive. Still, as the Holocaust recedes into history, an increasing number of these converts are coming forward with their stories. Recent newspaper articles published in both Europe and Canada have detailed the extraordinary metamorphoses of people like Matthias Goering, great-nephew of the notorious Luftwaffe Chief Hermann Goering, who keeps kosher, celebrates Shabbat and wears a yarmulka; Katrin Himmler, great-niece of SS Commander Heinreich Himmler, who married an Israeli and Oskar Eder, a former member of the Luftwaffe who changed his name to Asher, married a Holocaust survivor and currently works in Israel as a tour guide. The astonishing trajectories of these personalities, and people very much like them, demonstrate for Brown the powerful message that “nothing is immutable. The meaning of my story, of my counterparts’ stories, is that things can be changed: You can change your behavior, your location, your faith. Being and becoming is what we are doing every day.” JA

Note:
fn1. Interestingly, it is in Germany where there is some heightened awareness of the subject due to the occasional article that has appeared in mass-circulation magazines such as Stern and Der Spiegel,and to the publication of a few books in German. These books include Rabbi Dr. Aharon Shear-Yashuv’s autobiography and an anthology by Antje Eiger entitled Ich bin Judein Geworden: Begegnungen mit Deutschen Konvertiten (I Became a Jew: Interviewswith German Converts) (Hamburg, 1994), in which a caustic essay by Henryk Broder, “Zum Teufel mit den Konvertiten” (“To the Devil with the Converts” ), scathingly denounces the German converts as opportunists who wish to “attach themselves to the right side of the victims.”

*Name has been changed.

Guest Blogger: Gifts from Shemayim | By Ari Zeltzer

Mordechi departed the physical world earlier in the morning. He awoke to find his soul in a place were souls go prior to their audience with the king of kings. An angel approached Mordechi and said, “Welcome, Mordechi. . . I have been assigned to you. I will be defending you before the heavenly court. There is not much time and a lot of work to do. So, lets begin.” Moredechi, stood in silence, a million thoughts racing through his mind. He was amazed, although he no longer had a physical body he was still able to think, feel emotion and he could articulate his thoughts without actually speaking.

The angel began, “Mordechi, tell me, what do you believe to be your greatest accomplishment during your time spent in the physical world?” Mordechi, immediately responded enthusiastically, “well my learning Torah of course. I spent all my days toiling in the Torah. I even finished Shas seven times!!” Impressive, the angel said. Very impressive. Mordechi continued, “I also never missed a minyan. I davened at the same shul every day! As far as I can remember I never missed a single prayer service.” The angel said again, “impressive, very impressive.” The angel continued, “your avodas to Hashem was strong that will serve well in your defense.” Mordechi felt good and confident. He was proud of the Torah he had learned and his avodas Hashem and was hopeful it would bring him a great portion in Olam Haba.

The angel continued, “Tell me Mordechi, I am curious, how well did you know the people whom you prayed with all those years at the shul?” Mordechi was surprised by this inquiry; after all when he went to shul he was there to pray and during those in between moments he spent his time learning. He never really gave much thought to the people around him. The angel probed further, “Did you know the name of the man who sat next to you everyday?” There was a brief pause as Mordechi thought about this and then with excitement he responded, “Of course I did!!!” Good said the angel, good. How about the man who sat five rows behind you on the right hand side of the shul, did you know his name? Mordechi, knew that while he saw the man everyday, in all honesty he could not remember his name, “I did not,” he answered. The angel continued, “Did you ever invite either of these men and their family over for a Shabbos or Yom Tov meal?” Mordechi thought for a long time and finally realized he never did, he realized that he prayed in the same shul all those years with the same people and never once asked them over for a Shabbos or Yom Tom meal.

How could he have been so self absorbed he thought? How could he have overlooked the important mitzvah of Hakhnassat Orchim (hosting guests) that Hashem provided him the opportunity to do everyday? Images began to race through his mind, not only of the men whom the angel mentioned but flashes of countless men and women of his congregation who he had come into contact with throughout the years, people who had no place to go for a meal, and yet he did not invite them. He never invited them. . .

The angel interrupted his thoughts; I see we only have time for one more question before we must go before the heavenly court. I need to know, were you involved at all in making Shidduchim (Jewish matchmaking)? As you know the almighty finds this to be an extremely important mitzvah. He spends all his free time making shiduchim. Were you involved in this mitzvah? “Of course,” said Mordechi, “I was involved in the process of all five of my children’s marriages!” Excellent, the angel said. “How about those who were not part of your family? Did you ever make any shidduchim outside your own family?” Mordechi immediately knew the answer to this question, however he did not respond. Rather he tried to recall any instance in which he might have been involved in a shidduch outside his own family. He thought and thought and went into the deep recesses of his memories hoping to find a memory of someone whom he had helped to find a shidduch. Someone who he made a phone call for, or made an introduction for, or even just offered moral support. Yet, he came up blank. He was unable to think of anyone outside his own family who he helped find a shidduch. Suddenly there was a great sound, the time had come, Mordechi along with his defending angel were being summoned. . .

Everyday Hashem presents us with numerous opportunities to do mitzvahs. The person who is sitting next to you at davening who needs a place to eat, the single who you see every week at shul who needs a shidduch, the person who needs a job, the sick person who needs a helping hand, the parent who needs help with their child, the student who needs a rabbi to help them grow , the person who needs a friend.  Every single day there is a new opportunity presented to each of us, every single day . . . isn't it time we open are eyes, see those  opportunities for what they really are, gifts from Shamayim and start taking advantage of them?

If you enjoyed reading this post, please comment and share it with a friend and commit yourself to taking advantage of the next opportunity that comes your way. 

Secular New Year, Emulating the Ways of the Nations, and Hypocrisy

by Aaron Parry on Friday, December 31, 2010 at 3:09pm

On the Socialite blog, a reader took umbrage with a comment I made concerning the Biblical proscription against gratuitously emulating the customs and practices of the Gentiles. Whether it has any bearing on the observance of the secular new year is a subject of debate among the later poskim. What intrigued (or incensed) this reader was his (alleged) assumption that many Charedi Jews and Chasidim are in violation of this prohibition (Leviticus18:3) inasmuch as they wear attire that was once worn by the Polish nobility centuries ago. I'm not going to address this issue at this time, but I'd like to tackle the implication or charge of hypocrisy by the Charedi world that this reader was advancing and see where that takes us.

If one were taking a survey, looking to add an 11th Commandment (not to be taken seriously as one cannot add to the Torah), I would vote for “Thou shalt not be a hypocrite.” Many students of the Talmud are imbued with that message early on, as they study the teachings of the Talmudic sages that are replete with examples of “Practicing what one preaches.” With that understanding, it comes is somewhat disheartening to read a different account in the Greek Scriptures where the allegation of hypocrisy is heaped upon the rabbinical Pharisees:

“The scribes and the Pharisees have sat in the chair of Moses. All things therefore whatsoever they shall say to you, observe and do: but according to their works do ye not; for they say and do not. For they bind heavy and insupportable burdens, and lay them on men's shoulders; but with a finger of their own they will not move them… And they seek salutations in the market place, and to be called by men, Rabbi" (Matt., 23:1-8).

Ouch, that hurts! Is that what learning Torah and training rabbinic leaders produced in the 1st Century? Josephus in Antiquities identifies the Pharisees as becoming practically synonymous with Judaism. A study of Talmudic history, he says, reveals a “certain moral dignity and greatness, a marked tenacity of purpose at the service of high, patriotic, and religious ideals.” As contrasted with the Sadducess, the Pharisees represented the democratic tendency; contrasted with the corrupted priesthood, they stood for both the democratic and the spiritualizing movement among the people.

So concerned with being consistent and taking responsibility for their teachings, that in Shabbat 54b, the Talmud cites the case of Rabbi Elazar ben Azaria, “whose cow” would go out on Shabbat with a forbidden rein between her horns. The rabbis explain that the cow did not really belong to R’ Elazar ben Azaria, but since R’ Elazar did not reprove his neighbor who was the actual owner, it was reckoned as if he had committed the violation.

So let’s examine an episode in the life of one of these scholars and evaluate if he fits the scathing indictment found in the Gospel of Matthew mentioned above.

The Talmud tells that Rabbi Yannai, a Pharisee, had a tree that spread into a public place. A case came before him where a person had a tree that leaned over into a public place and passersby were injured by the thorns.

Rabbi Yannai told the litigants, "Go home today. Come back tomorrow. I will tell you what the law is."

Meanwhile, Rabbi Yannai sent his servants to cut down his tree. The next day, when Rabbi Yannai was sitting to judge the case, he said, "The law is that you must cut down the tree because it is a public impediment."

But, Your Honor, you also have a tree that leans into the public street. Your tree is also a public impediment."

Go, take a look," replied Rabbi Yannai, "if I have cut down my tree. You must also cut down your tree. If I haven’t you can leave yours, as well"

The Talmud asks, "Why did Rabbi Yannai not cut down his tree earlier?"

Why did he wait until a case actually came before him?"

Rabbi Yannai assumed that passers-by enjoyed the shade of his tree. However, when a case came before him, he realized that a tree whose branches reach out into the public street cause grief to passersby. He reasoned that people were only quiet out of respect for him. Therefore he sent for it to be cut down.

In any case, Rabbi Yannai did not tell others to cut down their trees until he had cut down his own. Here is a case where we find a Talmudic sage, a Pharisee, not only “talking the talk, but walking the walk.” By no means were rabbi Yannai’s actions an exception. As a learned person of Scripture, he followed sound advice: "Remove your own straw and then remove others' straw." (Zephaniah 2:1) If your friend has a little piece of straw in his eyes and you also have straw in your eyes, remove the straw from your own eye and then remove the straw from the other person's eye. Put simply, “Don’t try to correct others until you’ve corrected yourself!” (Talmud Baba Batra 60a)

To my friendly blog reader, DrM, we should consider Rabbi Yannai's sound advice, before pre-judging our coreligionists who are grappling with their own issues on the battlefield of living and observing a Torah life in the lands of our exile. Shabbat Shalom!

The Rabbi Responds: To Celebrate Jan 1st or Not? | By Rabbi Aaron Parry

Daniyelle writes: "Is it wrong for a Jew to celebrate the secular New Year? Is there an actual commandment against doing so? I commemorate Rosh Hashana every year, and I know it's not 'Jewish' to go out on Dec 31., but what harm can it do?"

Rabbi's response:
This is an excellent question and one that has been addressed by several contemporary (or at least in the last 100 years) Halachic authorities, in their discussions concerning secular American holidays. They’ve invariably discussed the halachic issues from the standpoint of three principles: (1) avoda zara (Idol worship); (2) chukot hagoyim; (customs and mores of the Gentiles) and (3) adding mitzvot.

I don’t recall #1 or #3 having any significant relevance to the observance of January 1st as a New Year, for rank and file Jews would never attribute divinity to a day (some) associate with the anniversary of Jesus’ brit milah, or consider celebrating New Years as some additional “mitzvah.” We know what Rosh Hoshana means to us, and never the twain do they overlap or share any form or notion of comparison.

That having been said, what about #2, “Chukot HaGoyim?” Biblically, Jews are barred from emulating the customs of gentiles (Leviticus 18:3). The Vilna Gaon ruled that all customs were suspect unless we know they have a valid Jewish basis. For this reason, as an illustration, many Chasidic Jews eschew wearing neckties, and others avoid all Western attire. The Shulchan Aruch, “Code of Jewish Law,” was more lenient however, with the Rema, (Rabbi Moshe Isserles) adding that the prohibition against emulating gentile customs applies to activities that promote licentious behavior or that is tied to avoda zara. Even according to the most strict Chasidic sentiment on the issue, with respect to clothing, there is no problem if it is beneficial (e.g., a distinctive uniform to identify a doctor) or displays honor or is otherwise reasonable. I’m aware of Chasidim in the military who, of course, don official uniforms.

Getting back to New Year’s Day, according to Rav Moshe Feinstein, it’s sufficiently divorced from its religious origins to be permissible, but a "ba’al nefesh" (particularly scrupulous observant Jew) will refrain from it’s observance. Accordingly, Thanksgiving is clearly permissible but Halloween is very difficult to justify.

What harm would there be to “go out,” and celebrate New Years? Don’t drink and drive, nor promote licentious behavior and you should be fine.