What We Eat - United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism

Transcription

CJ_SU12 Cover
5/2/12
3:34 AM
Page 1
SUMMER 2012 / 5772
VOL. 5 NO. 4
9057-p02_03
5/2/12
11:45 AM
Page 2
9057-p02_03
5/2/12
11:45 AM
Page 3
9057-p04_05_TOC_p2
5/2/12
12:22 PM
Page 4
9057-p04_05_TOC_p2
5/3/12
CJ
2:41 AM
Page 5
TA B L E O F C O N T E N T S
6
8
9
10
11
SUMMER 2012 / 5772
VOLUME 5 NUMBER 4
This magazine is a joint project of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, Women’s League for Conservative Judaism, and FJMC
LETTERS
Women’s League’s S A R R A E G . C R A N E
offers some Reflections on the Kiddush
Ladies
FJMC’s R A B B I C H A R L E S S I M O N has
some suggestions For Fathers of Adult
Children
R I C H A R D S K O L N I K introduces
Tomorrow’s Visionary Leaders from Nativ,
United Synagogue’s program for post-high
school students in Israel
R A B B I N E I L G I L L M A N discusses books
on Jewish life In the Bookshelf
12
29
40
A PERSONAL MIRACLE
THE FIRST MASORTI
RABBI IN UKRAINE
RAMAH FOSTERS COMMUNITY
RABBI TZVI GRAETZ
introduces a young man
whose journey is inspiring
30
JEWS IN GEORGIA
A photo essay
For R A B B I E D W A R D F E L D , kashrut must interweave
ritual rules and regulations
with modern challenges
14
42
M A K I N G I T M AT T E R
After USY, Ramah, and Koach, our committed
young Jews often look elsewhere for meaning in
their lives, worries R I C H A R D S . M O L I N E
34
44
W H Y A R E Y O U W E A R I N G T H AT C A M E L
AROUND YOUR NECK ...
A R U A C H FA M I LY S E R V I C E
There are many ways to introduce the weekly
Torah reading. J O A N N E P A L M E R describes one of
them
W H AT W E E AT
Looking at Kashrut
Through a Conservative Lens
National Ramah Director R A B B I M I T C H E L L C O H E N
is proud that Ramah accomplishes so much
without sacrificing Jewish content
35
Sensing a void in her synagogue’s programming,
P A M E L A K I R S C H N E R W E I N F E L D and friends created a
service for school-aged children and their parents
46
TRANSFORMING TEFILLAH
describes how congregations
offer new ways to experience Shabbat
. . . A N D W H AT ’ S T H AT O N Y O U R H E A D ?
B O N N I E R I VA R A S
His collection of kippot reflects B E R T S T R A T T O N ’ S
23 years playing clarinet at weddings and bar
mitzvah parties
48
SKYPING
T H E M I N YA N
CJ REVIEWS
NEW KOSHER
COOKBOOKS
FRAN GINSBURG
finds value
beyond the recipes in cookbooks
– and also shares some recipes
A friend saying kaddish
in the Hague joins R A B B I
D A V I D L E R N E R ’ S minyan
in Massachusetts
J E W I S H T R AV E L
50
WOMEN SPEAK
B AT M I T Z VA H : TA K E T W O
19
W H AT ’ S J E W I S H A B O U T C A M P I N G ?
Even though M A X I N E S E G A L H A N D E L M A N did not
grow up camping, she now spends a Shabbat each
summer with 60 friends and family in one of
Wisconsin’s beautiful state parks
21
A JEWISH MUSUEM IN SAINT JOHN?
SHIRLEY MOSKOW
invites you to enjoy the Jewish sites
in Canada’s oldest city
23
ON A MISSION TO ISRAEL
On a recent trip to Israel, R A B B I R O B E R T S L O S B E R G
was exhilarated by the thriving Masorti movement but
discouraged by some of its challenges
26
ISRAEL FOR KIDS
There is a lot to do in Israel for children of all ages,
from petting zoos to scavenger hunts in Jerusalem,
according to A V I T A L C O H E N
28
FA C T S Y O U M I G H T
NOT KNOW ABOUT MASORTI
There is a great deal to know about our movement in
Israel, according to R A B B I A L A N S I L V E R S T E I N
JEWISH SUMMER CAMPS
Describing one bat mitzvah with two celebrations
50 years apart, L I S A K O G E N illustrates the
trajectory of this now common coming of age ritual
36 52
YAY F O R J E W I S H S U M M E R C A M P S
Camp doctor S H A R O N S I L V E R M A N P O L L O C K can’t
rave enough about the benefits of sending kids to a
Jewish summer camp
WORDS OF THE WEEK
It’s easy to grow your Hebrew vocabulary using a
new program devised by FJMC and D A V I D P. S I N G E R
37 56
IN MEMORY OF A FRIEND
His experiences at Camp Ramah help
A D I N Y E H O S H U A M E I R mourn the death
of his closest friend
U N I T E D S Y N A G O G U E ’ S N E W B Y L AW S
reviews the changes that will make
United Synagogue more agile and responsive to
the needs of its member kehillot
J O A N N E PA L M E R
38 57
CAMP FOSTERS
COMMUNITY
asks
what we can do to
get more
Conservative kids
to Jewish camps
REBECCA KAHN
HEARING MEN’S VOICES
A S I G N AT U R E P R O G R A M O F F J M C
A R T S P A R edits a discussion among some FJMC
mentschen
ABOUT THE COVER
The Hesed House Social Club, in Rustavi,
Georgia. Photo by Amir Halevy, who
participated in the Jdocu journey to
photograph Jewish communities worldwide.
See more photographs beginning on page 30.
Cover design: Josef Tocker
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
5
9057-p06_07_Letters
5/2/12
1:25 PM
EDITORS
Rhonda Jacobs Kahn
Joanne Palmer
ADVERTISING DIRECTOR
Page 6
Letters
Bonnie Riva Ras
DESIGNER
Josef Tocker
P U B L I S H I N G C O N S U LT A N T
Doug Steinberg
EDITORIAL BOARD
Dr. Robert Braitman, Chair
Bernice Balter
Michael Brassloff
Renée Brezniak Glazier
Shelly Goldin
Rosalind Judd
Dr. Bruce Littman
Rachel Pomerance
Elizabeth Pressman
Evan Rumack
Marjorie Shuman Saulson
Allan M. Wegman
ADVISORS
Dr. Stephen Garfinkel
Jewish Theological Seminary
Rabbi Cheryl Peretz
Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies
CJ: Voices of Conservative/Masorti Judaism
is a joint project of
F E D E R AT I O N O F J E W I S H M E N ’ S C L U B S
Michael Mills, President
Rabbi Charles E. Simon, Executive Director
UNITED SYNAGOGUE OF
C O N S E R VAT I V E J U D A I S M
Richard Skolnik, President
Rabbi Steven C. Wernick, Executive Vice President
WOMEN’S LEAGUE FOR
C O N S E R VAT I V E J U D A I S M
Rita Wertlieb, President
Sarrae G. Crane, Executive Director
The opinions expressed in this magazine are
those of the authors and do not necessarily
represent the views of the publishing organizations. Advertising in CJ does not imply editorial endorsement, nor does the magazine
guarantee the kashrut of advertised products.
Members of FJMC affiliates, United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism congregations, and Women’s League for Conservative
Judaism affiliates receive this magazine as a
benefit of membership. Subscriptions per
year: $20.
Please direct all correspondence or changes
of address to CJ: VOICES OF CONSERVATIVE/
MASORTI JUDAISM at Rapaport House, 820
Second Ave., 10th Floor, New York, NY 100174504. 917-668-6809. Email: [email protected]
or [email protected]. To advertise, email
[email protected] or call 917-668-6809.
CJ: VOICES OF CONSERVATIVE/MASORTI
JUDAISM is published quarterly by United
Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, 820 Second
Ave., 10th Floor, New York, NY 10017-4504.
Canadian Copies: Return Canadian undeliverables to 2835 Kew Dr., Windsor, ON N8T 3B7
PM 41706013.
6
CJ — V O I C E S O F C O N S E R V AT I V E / M A S O R T I J U D A I S M
CHANGING CULTURES
WOMEN RABBIS
I have just finished reading Michael Mill’s
article, “Cultures Can Be
Changed” (Spring 2012).
I endorse every word about
men being part of the whole
rather than loners. What
puzzles and intrigues me,
however, is what I don’t read.
Unless my eyeglasses need
changing, the word
“woman” doesn’t appear
once in the entire text. As
a result, the article sounds
exactly like what appeared n the monthly
newsletter put out by the Conservative synagogue my family attended in Chicago 75 to
80 years ago.
Yes, my father was active in the men’s club,
but my mother predated him by almost half
a decade with her membership in the sisterhood. In those prehistoric times, women
were virtually shut out for membership on
the board of directors. Incidentally, I don’t
find the word sisterhood – a term often
denigrated in the 21st century as a relic of
bygone eons – anywhere in the article. Am
I missing something?
What fractures me most of all is the Grand
Canyon-size chasm between the article and
the cover of the same issue of CJ, an overt
plug for women’s participation in synagogue
hierarchy. Shouldn’t you be functioning on
the same wavelength?
In D. Korenstein's letter to the editor in
the Spring 2012 issue, the
author writes the his synagogue “hired a senior
woman rabbi. Within a few
years a significant portion
of the membership was
gone.” I object to the automatic assumption that the
cause of the declining membership was attributable to
the hiring of a woman rabbi.
Many synagogues are experiencing shrinking membership numbers.
The causes are demographic, philosophical, financial, religious, etc. Many are con(continued on page 53)
DAVID R. MOSS
Los Angeles, California
ADD YOUR VOICE!
Conservative Judaism is made up of a plethora
of voices. Our movement is wide-ranging. Members of our kehillot, sisterhoods, and men’s clubs
share core beliefs and practices and at the same
time have singular or even unique takes on our
philosophy, theology, and customs.
CJ runs stories that illustrate both our similarities and our differences. Often we run more
than one take on the same subject.
We want to hear more of those voices. We
want to hear from you – your reactions to our stories, and your suggestions for stories developing
in your communities. And if you speak better
through the lens of a camera, please send us photographs that focus on the issues we discuss:
Jewish life here and abroad, Israel, halachah,
and Jewish traditions and learning.
9057-p06_07_Letters
5/2/12
1:25 PM
Page 7
9057-p08-10_Messages_p2
5/2/12
1:31 PM
Page 8
REFLECTIONS ON
THE KIDDUSH LADIES
BY SARRAE G. CRANE
T
HERE IT WAS AMONG
the weekly Shabbat
announcements: Kiddush
is provided by the sisterhood. If it happened to be
sponsored by a bar mitzvah family, it was assumed that the sisterhood
ladies had set it up. The kiddush ladies were
the members of the sisterhood. And for most
people that was the basic equation. Sisterhoods had meetings and then their members
set up kiddush and the ongei Shabbat. They
also might have helped decorate the sukkah,
adding their touches to those of the children of the religious school.
But a look around any synagogue should
have revealed much more. Who ran the
Judaica shop? The sisterhood ladies. Who
was in charge of ordering the kippot for the
b’nai and b’not mitzvah? The sisterhood
ladies. Who made shalach manot baskets
for Purim? Who sponsored the flowers for
Shavuot? Who promoted the gift honey for
Rosh Hashanah? Who sent Chanukah care
packages to the congregation’s college students? Who were the key participants in the
PTA and the Youth Commission? Again,
the sisterhood ladies. Which arm of the congregation could always be counted on for
a significant contribution? Of course, sisterhood.
The sisterhood ladies were far more than
a coffee klatch enabling Shabbat attendees
to enjoy a little wine and sponge cake. They
were – and continue to be – at the core of
any synagogue’s life. Without the dedication of kiddush ladies our congregations
Sarrae Crane is executive director of Women’s
League for Conservative Judaism.
8
would be a shadow of themselves. They did
what women do so well, creating a warm,
welcoming community by making people
feel at home. They studied and learned more
about Judaism, created Jewish homes, incorporated Jewish values personally and into
their families’ lives. The bonds that were created in the sisterhood strengthened Judaism
for many generations.
If we turn the clock back nearly a century, to the early years of Women’s League,
the organization of Conservative sisterhoods, we discover that Women’s League
and sisterhoods had a much larger agenda
than worrying about what to put out for
kiddush. One of Women’s League’s earliest projects was the creation of an offcampus space for Jewish students in the
vicinity of Columbia University, Barnard
College, and the Jewish Theological Seminary. That concern continued to be
expressed through its Torah Fund campaign, which saw the need and underwrote
the creation of the Mathilde Schechter
dormitory at the seminary. It was renewed
last year when Women’s League adopted
the Koach kallah, a Shabbat retreat for college students across North America, as a
project. (We are delighted that through
our efforts and support, Koach almost doubled the number of attendees from last
year!) We are committed to the perpetuation of Conservative/Masorti Judaism
and are proud that our board has voted
to continue our support of the Koach
kallah.
But Women’s League has not only looked
outward. We have looked inward as well.
For decades Women’s League has produced
publications to enrich the lives of Jewish
women, running from The Jewish Home
Beautiful in 1941, to our most recent
Women’s League Hiddur Mitzvah Project. We
have fashioned material and developed training programs that enable our women to
deepen their knowledge of Judaism and
intensify their liturgical skills.
In recent years more of us have entered
the work force, many in time-consuming
professional positions. Those of us working
nine to five plus often have neither the time
nor the energy left to fulfill the traditional
roles of the sisterhood ladies. Yet we still
expect kiddush to be there on Shabbat morning. And we still are women who actively
identify as Jews, seek to enrich our Jewish
education and observance, and want to be
part of a network of women who share the
values of Conservative Judaism. The mission of Women’s League is as relevant today
as it was when we were created by Mathilde
Schechter in 1918. To expand that network,
we have embarked on a systemic and strategic look at our future.
And for future reflection . . . . On the
recent Conference of Presidents Mission
to Israel, we journeyed to Amman for a day.
In addition to meeting with King Abdullah, we were hosted for lunch by Israel’s
ambassador to Jordan, Danny Naveh, who
had cooked for us and was in the kitchen
preparing fabulous desserts. It is clear that
the kitchen is no longer only the province
of women. Perhaps in the future it can
be the kiddush men and women who provide this essential element of synagogue
life as we re-imagine the ways both men
and women contribute to our congregations.
We are proud to be the next generation
of kiddush ladies and so much more. We
know that it is the day-to-day things that
we do that secure the structures that enrich
our lives as Jews. CJ
5/2/12
1:31 PM
Page 9
FOR FATHERS OF
ADULT CHILDREN
BY RABBI CHARLES SIMON
E
In the past my responses have always
VERY PARENT STRUGGLES to balance making been “Don’t obsess with what you could
decisions for our children have done. There is so much that you can
with empowering them to do!” My responses to fathers have become
be independent. It’s rarely even stronger as a result of what I have been
easy. As our children become learning about fathers.
We know a great deal about mothers and
adults all too many of us believe that our
how
they influence their children. We know
ability to influence their decisions is inversely
related to their level of independence. Fathers that in a majority of situations the deciwho feel their influence lessening are often sion-maker regarding a family’s religious
conflicted. We are proud of our children and commitment and practice is almost always
the woman. It doesn’t
their emerging indematter if she is Jewish
pendence, but we still
or not. If she decides
have to live with the We are beginning to
the family will be Jewdecisions that these
understand
more
about
a
ish, the children will be
young adults make.
father’s
ability
to
influence
Jewish. In addition
We acknowledge the
many
sociologists
possibility of failure his children.
believe on the basis of
and feel somewhat
frustrated because we can’t assure success. the data collected over the past 30 years
Indeed, we know that even if we could “fix that her children will identify as Jews and
it” that could hinder the maturation of our seek to live, in some manner, Jewish lives.
We are beginning to understand more
sons and daughters.
about
a father’s ability to influence his chilUnfortunately, too many parents, and
specifically fathers, fail to understand that dren, even adult children who are no longer
even after our children have made deci- living at home. Last year, at an FJMC weeksions with which we are not comfortable end retreat, I piloted a lesson plan to fathers
we still retain the ability to influence their whose adult children no longer live with
decisions. I can’t tell you how many times them. I asked the group how many of them
fathers have approached me and expressed texted or emailed or called (I know that
their pain and upset because one of their sounds archaic) their children regularly
children has chosen to marry or partner to wish them a Shabbat shalom. The
with someone who was not Jewish. “But response was mostly negative: “I never did
what could I do?” they ask. “What can it before.” “They will wonder why I’m
doing it.” “My children are in their late
I do?”
30s.”
I encouraged it and was pleased the following morning to see a group of men with
Rabbi Charles Simon is the director of FJMC
and author of Building a Successful Vol- smiles on their faces because their chilunteer Culture: Finding Meaning in Ser- dren had texted them back. They were beginvice in the Jewish Community, Jewish Lights ning to realize their actions could still
(continued on page 25)
Publishing: Woodstock, Vermont.
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
9
5/2/12
1:31 PM
Page 10
TOMORROW’S VISIONARY
LEADERS FROM NATIV
BY RICHARD SKOLNIK
H
AVING RECENTLY
celebrated the festival
of Shavuot, which
commemorates matan
Torah – the giving of
the Torah to the Jewish
people – I know that it is a gift to be handed
inspiration that extends the afterglow of
this beautiful festival.
For me, inspiration arrived in the form
of feedback about the stellar achievements
of our Nativ program in Israel
(www.nativ.org), which has been creating a
cadre of college leaders for the past 31 years.
This program, which has trained more than
1,000 remarkable young people, garnered
the highest ratings from a recent independent Jewish Agency-sponsored evaluation aimed at examining all long-term
Masa-funded study/volunteer programs
in Israel. (Masa is an organization that connects young Jews with programs in Israel.)
Nativ’s impressive graduates provide our
movement with the human resources necessary for charting a bold new course for the
new millennium.
The latest crop of Bogrei Nativ – Nativ
graduates – have hit the ground running,
charged with the formidable challenge of
reinvigorating our kehillot in North America and reinventing the Conservative movement for a new generation. Visionary and
cutting edge, their influence is critical to the
vitality of our movement.
Meet some of our recent Bogrei Nativ.
Richard Skolnik is the international president
of the United Synagogue of Conservative
Judaism.
10
Rabbi David Goldberg Russo, Nativ 23
David,
from
Hamilton, Ontario,
was an active member of ECRUSY,
and in 2003 he was
USY’s international
president.
Ordained at JTS
this spring, David has taken a position as
rabbi at Anshe Emet Synagogue in Chicago.
He met his wife, Rebecca Russo, when they
both were international USY officers, and
she also was on Nativ 23. Rebecca is the
director of engagement at Hillel of Northwestern University.
“Nativ provided me with the unique opportunity to explore Israel, study at an incredibly high level, develop critical leadership skills,
all in the context of a fun, social experience.
Many of the relationships that I developed
on Nativ are still ones that I rely on today, both
personally and professionally. My experiences
studying in the Conservative Yeshiva and
the opportunities that I had to explore my Jewish identity certainly helped me on my path
toward becoming a rabbi.”
Aliza Sebert, Nativ 27 Aliza is from New
York City, where
her father is the
rabbi of the Town
and Village Synagogue in lower
Manhattan. In her
last year at Brandeis
University, she is
president of Hillel’s theater group and executive musical director of Ba’note, the Jewish women’s a cappella group. For the last
two summers she has been a division head
at Camp Ramah in the Berkshires.
“Nativ was an experience that I will never
forget. It is an amazing program that allowed
me to grow, learn about myself, and gain independence before going off to college. It gave me
a greater level of appreciation and love for
the land of Israel, and allowed me to create
friendships that have already strengthened and
will stay with me for the rest of my life.”
Maya Dolgin, Nativ 25 Maya, from Huntington, New York,
was a student at
Solomon Schechter
High School of
Long Island. After
Nativ, she graduated from Wellesley
College, where she
was president of Hillel. She has worked at
Camp Ramah in Nyack for the last seven
summers, and this summer she will be division head and coordinator of the Israeli staff.
Maya was on the staff for the Nativ 30
kibbutz group. Last year she made aliyah,
and now lives in Jerusalem, where she is
Nativ’s assistant director.
“My year on Nativ 25 set me on a path that
has been immensely fulfilling. It helped to
strengthen the skills and values that I learned
during my years studying at Solomon Schechter
and working at Ramah Day Camp in Nyack.
On Nativ I strengthened my love for Israel and
Judaism, and learned how to translate this
passion into something accessible to others,
which led me to return to Israel in 2010 as
a madricha – counselor – for Nativ 30. My
year of staffing Nativ allowed me to gain yet
another perspective on Israel. I was able to
see the country through the eyes of a group
of young Jewish leaders who were living in
Israel for the first time and wrestling with
9057-p11_Bookshelf_p2
5/2/12
1:44 AM
Page 11
BY RABBI NEIL GILLMAN
Democratizing Judaism by Jack J. Cohen,
Academic Studies Press, 2010
Rabbi Cohen, longtime spokesperson for the
Reconstructionist movement, has served,
among other positions, as Hillel director at
the Hebrew University and member of the
faculty at both the Jewish Theological Seminary and the Reconstructionist Rabbinical
School. This volume is a summary of his more
than 70-year association with Reconstructionism, his personal relationship with the
movement’s founder, Mordecai M. Kaplan,
and the wide-ranging moral and religious
issues that he has encountered in his decadeslong work in Israel and that have engaged him
in a very personal way. Cohen is endlessly
engaging. His biographical notes on Kaplan’s
life and teaching, his detailed and largely evenhanded discussion of the many criticisms leveled against his teacher, and his attempt to
apply his personal thinking to the issues that
rage within the state of Israel today are compelling. The snippets from Kaplan’s personal
diary that illuminate his feelings and thinking are particularly fascinating.
The Bible and American Culture: A Sourcebook by Claudia Setzer and David A. Shefferman. Routledge, 2011
This is indeed a sourcebook, as the editors
claim. (Setzer is professor and Shefferman is
assistant professor of religious studies, both
at Manhattan College.) It should be used
as a sourcebook rather than read cover-tocover, but – and this is barely an exaggeration – it should be shared with all Americans,
of all ages, who are involved in searching for
particular biblical references, Jewish and
Christian, that appear in American life and
Rabbi Neil Gillman is the Aaron Rabinowitz
and Simon H. Rifkind emeritus professor of
Jewish philosophy at the Jewish Theological
Seminary.
culture. Topics include the uses of biblical
texts in the debates on slavery. Homosexuality, feminism and civil rights, and biblical sources that appear in art, fiction, music
and poetry are all here. Lincoln’s biblical references in his second inaugural, Martin
Luther King Jr.’s last speech before his assassination, and a poem by Emily Dickenson
are included as well. A rich index facilitates the volume’s use. It belongs on the bookshelves of all knowledgeable Americans.
Today I Am a Woman: Stories of Bat Mitzvah Around the World, edited by Barbara
Vinick and Shulamit Reinharz. Indiana University Press, 2012
The editors, both affiliated with the Hadassah-Brandeis Institute, where Reinharz is the
director as well as a professor of sociology,
have assembled a substantial anthology of
personal testimonies about how young
women from around the world reflect on
their bat mitzvah experiences. The testimonies come from Africa, Asia, the
Caribbean, the former Soviet Union, and
Latin America, as well as from more familiar places, just around the corner from where
we North American Jews live. The narratives
may center around the bat mitzvah itself, but
in the process we learn about Jewish life in
widely different Jewish communities around
the world, about what it means to become
an adult woman, and most important, about
the power of a ritual that far too many American Jewish families understand as simply an
opportunity to have a party. The photos scattered throughout are endearing.
rience. The selection, translation, and commentary on each text are by Fishbane, who
teaches Jewish philosophy, mysticism, and
chasidism at JTS. Readers who are familiar
with Abraham Joshua Heschel’s classic work
on the Sabbath should benefit from Fishbane’s anthology. He has selected texts from
throughout chasidic literature, his commentaries generally clarify texts that frequently
are elusive, and his notes suggest further readings. But what is important is that these texts
are not designed for study, or only for study.
Rather they are in the form of meditations
that should be absorbed slowly and with care
and be allowed to permeate our own awareness as we too experience the Sabbath day.
The Sabbath Soul: Mystical Reflections on the
Transformative Power of Holy Time by Eitan
Fishbane. Jewish Lights, 2012
The core of this book is a series of texts drawn
from the writings of chasidic masters on
the various dimensions of the Sabbath expeCJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
11
9057-p12-13_What We Eat_p2
5/2/12
1:45 AM
Page 12
WHAT
WE
EAT
Looking at Kashrut
Through a Conservative Lens
BY RABBI EDWARD FELD
W
HAT IS THE CONSERVATIVE
movement’s approach to kashrut?
It is the observance of traditional
food laws as seen through the lens
of a set of values that is central to
our contemporary understanding of Judaism.
The hallmark of Conservative Judaism is
its appreciation of both tradition and modernity. It is a Judaism that lives within contemporary society and culture. In North
America, it embraces the promise of the new
world, the blessings of freedom, democracy,
and equal opportunity. At the same time,
its commitment to Jewish religious life
creates community, develops Jews whose
values include a sense of responsibility to
others, upholds the sacredness of life, and
informs a personal spiritual practice that
allows an ongoing relationship with God.
To navigate the Jewish heritage within
this North American matrix, Conservative Judaism turns to the tradition in all
its fullness – to the minority opinion as well
as the majority, to roads taken and not taken.
Talmudic texts, medieval philosophic formulations, mystical understandings, folk
stories, and more all are grist for this mill.
Conservative Judaism has an approach to
religious practice that is deeply informed by
history, the knowledge of change, and the
multiplicity of opinions and perspectives,
Rabbi Edward Feld is the senior editor of
the new Conservative machzor, Lev Shalem,
and is now at work on a siddur for Shabbat and holidays.
12
along with a sense of purpose derived from our contemporary situation.
This formula ought to be played out
in our observance of kashrut. We need an
American Jewish approach to our traditional
food laws that also takes into account the
circumstances of Jews in an open democratic
society. We engage with society at large over
drinks, at dinner, at parties, in restaurants,
and at home. We Conservative Jews need
not separate ourselves from life by eating
only in establishments under rabbinic supervision. Rather, we can participate in the larger
culture while maintaining our distinctive
Jewish consciousness. Thus, entering a restaurant and checking which items conform
to kashrut – what we may order within a
broad reading of the law – is a way of integrating into society while maintaining our
particular religious consciousness.
It is not accidental that the Talmud
includes many of its food laws in the tractate Avodah Zorah, the volume dealing with
relations with the surrounding pagan culture. Food laws in the Talmud are a way
of constructing a barrier between Jews and
the larger society. Roman and Persian cultures were perceived as threatening. Restricting diet minimized the contact between Jews
and non-Jews.
We now live with a different relationship
to the society around us, so the regulations governing what and how we may eat
must be adjusted to reflect that reality. This
is not a matter of changing our relation to
the mitzvot spelled out in the Torah but
of recognizing that many rabbinic laws are
responsive to specific
social conditions. Many
rabbinic rules
are meant to
regulate a person’s relationship to society, so
it is reasonable to assume that as conditions
change these regulations must change to
reflect the new reality.
In the tractate Hulin, which deals directly
with laws of kashrut, the Talmud adopts
a more liberal position than the one enunciated in Avodah Zorah. There, a taste test
is set as the standard of kashrut: Food cooked
in a pot that had been used to cook nonkosher meat is considered to be kosher if no
taste of the non-kosher food remains. This
standard can be applied easily to eating in
a restaurant that uses the same pots and pans
to cook non-kosher meat and vegetarian
offerings. It demands care and still permits openness.
But the way Conservative Jews keep
kosher is not simply a matter of finding
leniencies. There is no “Conservative
kashrut.” Kashrut is kashrut, at least as it
relates to shechita – ritual slaughter. But
for Conservative Jews, it is also much more.
One of the hallmarks of the Conservative
approach to Jewish law is its sensitivity to
ethical issues. The recent creation of Magen
Tzedek, a certification that kosher meat has
9057-p12-13_What We Eat_p2
5/2/12
1:45 AM
Page 13
been processed in a way that is both halachic
and not abusive to the labor force, is an
important example. Judaism’s strong opposition to cruelty to animals underlays many
aspects of kashrut. The Rabbinical Assembly has passed resolutions condemning hoisting and shackling animals as a means of
kosher slaughter, so it should be relatively
easy for Conservative synagogues to insist
that their caterers not use meat slaughtered in this way. Indeed, if Conservative
synagogues brought the full weight of their
collective purchasing power to bear they
could effect a major change in the industry.
On the same ethical grounds, we can
insure that the proper treatment of animals
becomes a standard for personal practice.
Families should buy eggs laid by free-range
chickens. We should oppose farming practices that turn chickens into factories, housing them in tight cages, with fluorescent
lights shining on them 24 hours a day, so
that they will produce the maximum number of eggs with the smallest possible amount
of human labor. Similarly, as much as we
can we should buy the meat of free-range
chickens. It is one thing to feel that eating meat is necessary, but quite another
to deprive animals of their natural life. We
need not consume food produced through
cruelty. Interestingly, Empire Kosher, the
largest commercial producer of kosher chickens, proudly announces that its chickens are
all free roaming.
For the same reasons, we should buy grassfed beef. American cattle growers often
use feed that cows never would eat in nature.
Sometimes the feed contains ground up
blood and animal products, though cows
are vegetarian by nature.
A congregant of mine who had thought
about keeping kosher, but worried about
how difficult his life would become were he
to try, once saw my wife and me eating in
a Chinese restaurant. It inspired him. “I
didn’t realize that it was so easy to keep
kosher,” he said, and went on to adopt
kashrut as a standard for his own life.
For Conservative Jews, keeping kosher is
both easy and demanding. It is an exciting and responsible way to live in the modern world Jewishly and to live a life that
is holy. CJ
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
13
9057-p14-17_Cookbooks_p2
5/2/12
1:33 PM
Page 14
NEW KOSHER
COOKBOOKS
CJReviews
BY FRAN GINSBURG
A
Any cookbook of value
today is more than just a
compendium of recipes or
instructions. It has an
overriding message or theme.
Fran Ginsburg presents cheese classes and tasting events through her company, The Dairy
Man’s Daughter. She is also a development
consultant for Jewish communal organizations and a member of Congregation Beth
Sholom in Teaneck, New Jersey.
connect with our past, provide meaningful work for kosher butchers, and serve delicious variety to our families.
For all who enjoy meat and poultry this
book is a winning addition to your cookbook collection.
The Kosher Revolution by Geila Hocherman and Arthur Boehm, published by Kyle
Books, is a beautifully illustrated volume
that will be enjoyed particularly by those
itching to try flavors and combinations that
have been forbidden until now. The authors
take full advantage of the expanded availability of kosher foods, using nut milks as
thickening agents, Asian condiments, and
the like. Kosher cooking always has reflected
the cuisine, culture, and ingredients of the
lands in which we live. Jews have been adapting recipes and substituting ingredients to
comply with the requirements of kashrut
for as long as we have been cooking. The
real revolution is in the availability of new
certified kosher products. The Kosher Revolution uses these ingredients and displays
a world of new possibilities, introducing the
kosher cook to prosciutto made from cured
duck breast or crab cakes made from surimi
and Old Bay seasoning.
NY COOKBOOK OF
value today is more than just
a compendium of recipes or
instructions. It has an overriding message or theme.
Recipes are easy to come by.
How often have I gone to the internet because
I want to use a particular ingredient or have
decided to make lamb stew? Click. Dozens
of recipes are at my fingertips. Looking for
the technique to make homemade ricotta?
There’s an app for that.
Each of these new kosher cookbooks
has a message beyond measures and ingredients lists. Each provides a context for your
cooking, and like kashrut itself, each gives
meaning to our foods beyond flavor or
sustenance.
I liked all these books, but my favorite
is June Hersh’s The Kosher Carnivore, published by St. Martin’s Press. June burst onto
the kosher cooking scene with her brilliantly
presented anthology/cookbook Recipes
Remembered. She writes with an enthusiasm
that makes me want to rush into the kitchen
and cook. Her style is personal and warm,
generously sharing knowledge and advice
as if with a younger sister. No doubt, to June
food is a celebration. Cooking is fun. And
14
with humor and wit, she graciously invites
us all to participate.
Most of the well-composed recipes are
approachable even by a novice cook. With
helpful hints and technique descriptions
peppered liberally throughout, nothing
seems too daunting. The different cuts of
meat are explained and creative uses for leftovers are provided. While the focus is
squarely on meats and poultry, a well-edited
repertoire of vegetables, starches, and soups
compliment any meal.
While she provides recipes for some classics, this book is not at all the same-old sameold. The Kosher Carnivore reaches liberally
into the cuisines of different cultures to make
the book fresh, creative, and enticing.
Throughout, June encourages cooks to
speak with the butcher to get the best and
special cuts, something most of us don’t
bother to do. With June’s encouragement
we can reverse a trend toward uniformity,
5/2/12
1:33 PM
Each of the recipes indicates whether it
is dairy, meat, or parve, with helpful substitutions offered to change things up.
Recipes are written clearly, often with a personal and helpful introduction. Once your
pantry is complete most of these recipes are
quite manageable, though a few might be
more complicated than an everyday cook
might enjoy. The book includes a generous list of meatless mains (potentially making those nine days in summer a culinary
highlight), sides, and sweets. The book
includes a helpful list of websites where you
can buy some of the harder-to-find ingredients and a useful ingredient exchange,
so that the adventurous cook can create new
recipes with confidence.
Keeping kosher requires thoughtfulness
and contemplation. It does not limit us
to a particular cuisine, method, or set of flavors. Borrowing from a range of cuisines,
this book helps us feel that we can have it
all! Bored with your repertoire? This book
is for you.
Taking a more scholarly approach, Gil
Marks, in Olive Trees and Honey, from Wiley
Publishing, presents a comprehensive selection of vegetarian recipes from Jewish communities around the world. Well known
to those curious about Jewish culinary history or trends, Marks understands Jewish
life through the context of food. Vegetarians (and all cooks) looking for inspiration
will find it in this expertly researched and
well-written volume.
This hefty textbook includes a brief history of Jewish food traditions from all corners of the globe, a descriptive section on
Page 15
seasonings and spices, and lists of holiday
foods from communities as far away as Calcutta and as familiar as Italy. Ever a teacher,
Rabbi Marks liberally includes biblical references, information about the ancient spice
routes, and maps illustrating the differences
in omelets and dumplings around the world.
Each of the sections, on soups, grains, pastries, and so on, is preceded by abundant
information about cultural norms, food
availability, history, and migratory patterns.
Recognized by the James Beard Foundation with its prestigious award, the hundreds of recipes are clearly written, and when
similarities exist among several cuisines,
they are noted as variations. Rather than
discourage a cook looking for a recipe,
the skillfully organized index and glossary make the book useful and important
on many levels. Can there really be so many
variations of Sabbath stews? Or so many
uses for chickpeas? Have you ever pined for
a new way to cook eggplant? You need look
no further.
Olive Trees and Honey is more than a cookbook. It gives us a means to hold on to
elements of our culture that otherwise might
be forgotten as Jews continue to leave the
lands of their parents, and as we all move
toward more universal, simple, uniform, or
factory-made preparations.
I can’t wait to read Gil Marks’ new Encyclopedia of Jewish Food. I trust that like this
book, it will go far beyond just recipes that
are delicious and exciting to include social
and cultural history and help each of us
become a participant in the timeline of Jewish life.
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
15
5/2/12
1:33 PM
SIMPLER BEER-BASTED CHICKEN
From The Kosher Carnivore
Basting is a great way to ensure a juicy
chicken, but every time you open the oven you
let precious heat escape. A better method is
to baste the chicken from the inside out. There’s
no delicate way to explain this process. Take
a can of beer, be sure to pop the top, and
then push the can into the cavity of the chicken
so that the bird is perched upright with the can
of beer in its tush. The beer infuses the cavity with constant moisture, and the metal can
helps conduct the heat consistently from the
inside out. The result is an incredibly moist
chicken that roasts very quickly. If your chicken
is on the wagon, try filling the can with chicken
stock, herbs, and freshly squeezed lemon juice
or any flavorful liquid such as cola or ginger ale.
1 (3 1/2 - to 4-pound) chicken
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black
pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon sweet Hungarian paprika
1 teaspoon freshly chopped rosemary
leaves or 1/3 teaspoon chopped dried
rosemary
1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil
1 open can of beer
2 bay leaves and fresh herbs, optional
1 large onion, quartered
6 unpeeled garlic cloves, optional
1 to 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
Pat the chicken dry inside and out, and
remove any packaging hidden in the cavity.
If time allows, place the chicken on a paper
towel-lined plate and let it hang out in the
fridge for an hour. When ready to roast, preheat the oven to 450 degrees and lower your
oven rack to its lowest position. Take the
chicken out of the fridge.
Combine the seasonings in a small bowl
(this helps prevent cross-contaminating your
seasonings while working with the chicken).
Take a pinch of seasoning and rub it inside
the cavity. Drizzle the oil over the entire bird
and then sprinkle the outside with the seasonings. Pop the top of the beer can (toss in
some fresh herbs or bays leaves if you like
for added flavor) and carefully place the
chicken upright on the can. Jiggle the legs
in position so the chicken appears to be
16
Page 16
sitting and does not topple over. Place the
bird, upright, in a shallow roasting pan and
scatter the bay leaves, onions, and garlic,
if using, and add 1/2 cup of the stock. Place
in oven. Lower the oven temperature to 425
degrees. After 30 minutes, add 1/2 cup more
stock and continue roasting, until an instantread thermometer registers 160 to 165
degrees when it is inserted in the thigh, about
30 minutes more. Transfer the chicken to
a carving board and cover with a piece of
aluminum foil; the internal temperature will
rise 5 to 10 degrees while the chicken rests
and the juices will redistribute throughout the bird. Do not handle the can – it will
be very hot!
Place the roasting pan directly on the
stove, skim off some of the fat, and add more
stock if necessary to create the gravy. If
you roasted the garlic cloves, squeeze them
to extract the roasted garlic and mash it into
the sauce. Discard the skins. Let the gravy
simmer until heated through. If you prefer a thicker gravy, make a slurry by mixing 1 teaspoon of cornstarch with 2
teaspoons of cold water, stir back into the
pan, bring to a boil, and repeat if necessary. When ready to carve, use an oven mitt
carefully to remove the beer can from the
chicken. Carve the chicken and serve with
the gravy drizzled on top.
Serves 4
SEPHARDIC CHEESE-STUFFED
EGGPLANT (Berengena Rellenas de
Queso)
From Olive Trees and Honey
The first time I made stuffed eggplant,
following a different recipe from this one, I
was enormously disappointed in the results, as
the vegetable tasted insipid and too firm, even
after baking for an extended period. Then, an
informative Sephardic grandmother advised
to parboil the eggplant to give it a creamy texture. Other cooks panfry the eggplant rather
than parboiling it, but I find the frying requires
more effort and adds extra calories. There
are numerous versions of stuffed eggplant,
adapted to whatever ingredients are available
in the pantry. This cheese-filled version makes
a savory entrée for a light meal or a delicious side dish.
2 eggplants (about 1 pound each), halved
lengthwise
4 tablespoons olive oil or vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
2 to 3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons fresh parsley
1 cup fine fresh bread crumbs
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives or 1
teaspoon dried oregano and 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
About 1/2 teaspoon table salt or 1 teaspoon kosher salt
Ground black pepper to taste
1 cup (5 ounces) crumbled feta, 1 cup
(4 ounces) shredded Cheddar or Nuenster cheese, or 1 cup (8 ounces) ricotta
cheese
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts, 1/4 cup coarsely
chopped capers, 1/2 cup chopped pitted black olives, or any combination
(optional)
1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil for drizzling
Scoop out the cores of the eggplant (a
melon baller or grapefruit knife works well)
leaving a 1/2-inch-thick shell and reserving
the pulp. In a large pot of salted boiling
water, cook the shells until tender, but not
soft, about 3 minutes. Drain.
Coarsely chop the reserved eggplant pulp.
(It might appear like a lot, but it will cook
down.) In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons
of the oil over medium heat. Add the onion
and garlic and sauté until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil, then the eggplant pulp
and parsley and sauté until softened, about
10 minutes. Remove from the heat and
stir in the bread crumbs, chives, salt, and
pepper. Add the cheese, egg, and, if using,
the pine nuts.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Oil a
large baking pan.
Lightly salt the insides of the eggplant
shells and stuff with the pulp mixture.
Arrange in the baking pan and drizzle with
a little oil. Cover and bake for 20 minutes.
Uncover and bake until golden, about 10
minutes.
Serve warm.
Serves 4
5/2/12
1:33 PM
Page 17
PIGNOLI COOKIES
From Kosher Revolution
Years ago I had a date with a boy who
brought me a box of pignoli cookies from
Little Italy. The cookies were an instant hit
(alas, he wasn’t) and became a great favorite
of mine. They’re simple to make, pareve, and
perfect for Passover. The nuts give the cookies a buttery richness even though they’re nondairy. Just what you want from a pareve cookie
as addictive as these.
8 ounces almond paste
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg white
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup pine nuts
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line
2 cookie sheets with parchment paper and
set aside.
In a food processor, combine the almond
paste and sugars and process until the mixture reaches the consistency of sand. Transfer to the bowl of a standing mixer fitted
with the paddle attachment, or a medium
bowl, and add the egg white, vanilla and
almond extracts. Beat on medium speed
or by hand for 4 minutes.
Place the pine nuts in a small bowl. Next
to it place a small bowl of water for wetting your hands. Wet your hands and form
1 1/2- to 2-inch balls with the paste mixture, making 5 at a time. Drop them into
the bowl of nuts and press down gently so
the nuts adhere to the bottom of the dough.
Transfer to a cookie sheet nut side up.
Repeat, filling each prepared cookie sheet
with about 15 balls. Bake until puffed and
beginning to color, 15 to 18 minutes.
Remove from the oven, and cool on the
parchment paper on a countertop. When
completely cool, peel the cookies off the
paper and serve.
30 cookies CJ
Since its earliest days, sisterhoods throughout the Women’s League network have
been publishing cookbooks as fundraisers
as well as simply to share their members’
favorite and most delicious recipes. To find
out more, go to www.wlcj.org/shopping and
resource center.
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
17
9057-p18-20_Camping_p2
18
5/2/12
1:48 AM
Page 18
5/2/12
1:49 AM
Page 19
WHAT’S JEWISH
ABOUT CAMPING?
BY MAXINE SEGAL HANDELMAN
I
DIDN’T GROW UP CAMPING, but my husband did. 0000
Every summer his family would
spend several weeks at Devil’s Lake
State Park in Wisconsin. After college he decided to go up to Devil’s
Lake with some friends. It started with maybe
a dozen single twentysomething friends, for
a long summer weekend. They hiked, canoed,
swam, and celebrated Shabbat. Each year they
returned to Devil’s Lake, even as the group
grew.
The journey from single to married to families never slowed us down. In 2001 four pregnant women were part of the tent-building
crew. I sat at the fire with one hand on my
swollen belly, the other hand on my friend
Ann’s even larger belly, and as both babies
kicked in utero, I rejoiced in our children’s
first playdate. In 2002 four babies, ranging
from 6 weeks to 11 months old, crawled about
the campsite. Our standards for clean babies
went out the window. It took a really long
time to break down camp that year.
Everyone took part in a meal crew, making one meal and relaxing for the rest, a system that serves us well now that the group
exceeds 60 people, with kids ranging from
toddlers to teenagers. We are a Jewishly
diverse group, ranging from modern Orthodox to non-observant. The food is kosher
and nut-free, with gluten-free and vegetarian options at every meal. We take care
of the earth as we strive to live off it. (Well,
not entirely. This is car camping, after all.)
Maxine Segal Handelman is United Synagogue's early childhood education consultant. She has been camping her entire married
life, and her daughters each went on her first
camping trip in utero.
Scenes from Devil’s Lake
Most families have acquired a set of camping dishes to use at every meal. Some families have two sets of camping dishes, to
be washed in the meat or milk three-bin
washing systems (soapy water, plain water,
and bleach water for disinfecting).
Every year we have to promise the park
rangers that the fishing wire we are stringing through the trees around our entire
campsite will be gone by the time we leave
on Sunday. We don’t even try to explain
to them why we need this eruv to make carrying items around our campsite permissible on Shabbat.
Shabbat at Devil’s Lake is a palace in time.
(Except of course for the one year that it
started raining as we made kiddush Friday night and didn’t stop until Saturday
night as the sun set, but we try not to think
about that year.) We set up picnic tables
in a big circle around the fire, built up so
it will last long into Shabbat. One of the several rabbis leads the group in Kabbalat Shabbat, paced to hold the interest of all the kids
and the adults, peppered with singing and
a good story or two. Tea lights are lit on
the tables, grape juice and wine passed
around, homemade challah blessed and
shared. Dinner is a feast – sometimes tincan stew (made in 10 gallon cans collected
for weeks before the trip) or chicken fajitas – and the singing around the fire pit can
go late into the night. Stars shine brightly
at Devil’s Lake, especially compared to the
city streets of Chicago where I usually do
my gazing. Friday night is the perfect time
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
19
5/2/12
1:49 AM
Page 20
to bring a blanket to a nearby field and watch
for shooting stars.
Hiking and swimming are all within walking distance of our camp site. Shabbat is
a day to explore nature or kick back with
a good book (or both – Shabbat is long in
the summer). At first, we new parents
climbed the bluffs with children riding in
backpacks. When she was 2, our younger
daughter made the climb by herself to the
top of the bluff, about half a mile up, and
then she climbed into a backpack and slept
the rest of the hike.
Now, having grown up at Devil’s Lake,
the children are master hikers, taking on
more challenging boulder fields every year,
helping their friends along. Kids of all ages
run in packs, watching out for each other
and creating their own experience.
One year, we grown-ups were treated to
a variety show with skits and dance numbers performed by all the kids. Another year,
among the cords of wood we bought for the
fire were some odd bits left over from some
building project. That year, the boys spent
hours creating cities and superhero worlds
with those wood pieces.
Havdalah at the campsite is a sublime
moment. As a new fire grows in the fire
pit, we gather around, 60 or more of us,
singing and swaying, smelling spices often
created from plants and flowers collected
near the site. And as the last notes of
“shavuah tov” fade away, the kids scramble to pop marshmallows onto the sticks
they have foraged and do what they have
been waiting for all of Shabbat – make
s’mores! The guitars come out, and the songbooks, and we sing folksongs and Indigo
Girls late into the night.
I didn’t grow up camping. But my kids
will. They can put up a tent and break one
down. They can shlep water without too
much kvetching, pick up a daddy longlegs
spider by the leg to get it out of the tent (oh,
wait, that’s me, they still don’t do that), row
a canoe, pee in the woods, and take pleasure climbing a boulder field with their
friends. They thrive in this camping community that now includes friends from all
over the Midwest. I just hope they let me
come back and join them when they start
a camping group of their own. CJ
20
9057-p21-22_St.John_p2
5/2/12
1:51 AM
Page 21
A JEWISH
MUSEUM
IN SAINT JOHN?
BY SHIRLEY MOSKOW
W
HATEVER WERE
they thinking when
they named the only
Jewish museum in
Atlantic Canada the
Saint John Jewish
Historical Museum?
Yes, it is located in Saint John, New
Brunswick, Canada’s oldest city, but to give
a Jewish institution the name of a Catholic
saint is unusual. Since the museum is unique
in the province, it could have been called
the New Brunswick Jewish Historical
Museum, or simply the Jewish Historical
Museum. The name gives a hint that this
is no ordinary museum and that Saint John
is no ordinary city.
Founded in 1986, Saint John Jewish Historical Museum was created and is maintained by the dwindling congregation of
Shaarei Zedek Synagogue as a loving tribute to the heritage of the Jewish community and to the city that befriended it.
The museum occupies an impressive stone
building at 91 Leinster Street. When it
was built in 1897 by a ship owner as a
wedding gift for his bride, it was reputed
to be the best home in the city. It is prominently featured on the self-guided Victorian
Stroll, which includes such noteworthy edi-
Shirley Moskow, a former newspaper editor,
is a Boston-based freelance writer with specialties in the arts and travel. She has published two books and contributes to such
magazines as AmericanStyle, Caribbean Travel
& Life, and Antiques and Fine Art.
fices as the elaborate Second Empire house
at 167 King Street East and the massive Italianate row houses on Orange Street.
In the heart of the city, the museum is
popular with travelers from all over the
world, especially passengers on the cruise
ships that dock at Market Square. It is many
people’s first contact with Jewish culture,
and the high school student guides answer
questions about Jewish ritual and the lifecycle events portrayed in the galleries – a
table set for the Passover seder, a video of
a woman making bagels, a marriage ketubah.
Visitors often are curious about the theater seats in the sanctuary. Hollywood producer Louis B. Mayer, who was born in
the Ukraine, grew up in Saint John and celebrated his bar mitzvah at the synagogue.
His mother, Sarah, was known as the first
lady of Shaarei Zedek. After Mayer established himself in the movie business, he
shared his good fortune with friends. Con-
EUROPE
Explore Venice, Florence, and Rome or
learn about the rich Jewish history in
Toledo, Granada or Prague. Discover Berlin
or Vilna. Tour Cracow, Warsaw and Lublin
and visit the concentration camps in
Poland. Learn about the past, present, and
future of these unique Jewish communities
on a one-of-a-kind kosher tour with
meaningful Shabbat experiences.
ISRAEL
Tour from North to South with an itinerary
to meet your synagogue’s needs. You will
explore our people’s rich history while
learning and experiencing the modern State
of Israel and our dreams for the future.
The staff at the Fuchsberg Jerusalem Center has more than 35 years experience
planning trips for Conservative groups to Europe and Israel. Contact us so we
can plan your synagogue’s next meaningful excursion overseas together.
Website: www.uscj.org.il E-mail: [email protected]
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
21
9057-p21-22_St.John_p2
5/2/12
1:51 AM
gregants became film distributors and owners of theater chains. One donated the sanctuary seats.
The Jewish community contributed to
Saint John’s cultural life in many ways. A
poster in the corridor commemorates life at
Millie and Ben Guss’ home, which was a
hub for music lovers. Everyone in the family sang and played an instrument. During the many years that Ben was president
of the community concert series, guest artists
often practiced in their living room. Daughter Faith recalled that “when Glenn Gould
practiced on our piano we sat on the steps
to the second floor landing … like quiet little mice with huge ears.” Son Jonathan
remembered that “Yitzchak Pearlman spent
the afternoon at the house before a concert.
He played chess with me at the dining room
table…. He was very good.” These are the
intimate memories that the heimisch
museum aims to preserve.
Brushing aside old memories, 90-yearold Isadore Davis, who celebrated his bar
mitzvah in the synagogue, proudly declared
that today Shaarei Zedek is “Conservative
22
Page 22
and egalitarian.” But the first Jews in the
port city were Orthodox. Solomon and Alice
Hart, who emigrated from England and
came to Saint John in 1858 by way of New
York, are considered the first permanent
Jewish settlers there. The Harts prospered
from Solomon’s tobacco business, and as
more British Jews followed, the city became
a cigar manufacturing center. For a while,
the Harts held religious services in their
home. When they lost a young daughter
in 1873, they dedicated land for a Jewish
cemetery.
In 1881, there were 15 Jewish families
in Saint John. Using contributions from
people of all faiths, they built the city’s
first synagogue, aptly named Ahavith Achim
(brotherly love). Alice opened a nursery and
taught in the Hebrew school. The following year, she organized Daughters of Israel
“to help the needy and nurture the sick.” In
1882, their daughter Elizabeth married her
English cousin Louis Green in Saint John’s
first Jewish wedding.
By 1891, there were 43 Jewish families in
the city. A decade later, the census shows
nearly 300. The influx of Ashkenazim, fleeing Eastern Europe and the pogroms of
the Russian empire, introduced an exotic
flavor to the city. They practiced customs
the locals did not understand. They spoke
little or no English, only Yiddish. The men,
who were mostly peddlers, dressed in black
and had long beards; the women covered
their heads with kerchiefs and dressed in the
peasant clothes of the shtetl. Nevertheless,
they found a comfortable home in Saint
John, and in 1906 they founded the Hazen
Avenue Synagogue. Although both congregations were Orthodox, they had little
to do with one another. They reflected different cultures; their customs were different; there were class differences; they spoke
different languages. Their services were different and each had its own rabbi.
Both congregations thrived and outgrew
their buildings. When the city’s handsome
neo-Gothic Presbyterian church became
available in 1919, they managed to set aside
their differences to merge, launching a
golden era. The combined congregation,
comprised of about 200 male members,
chose the new name Shaarei Zedek.
Jews participated in the vibrant life of
Saint John. They founded successful businesses. In 1977, the city elected Samuel
Davis as its first Jewish mayor. (His father,
Harry, a cabinetmaker, crafted the ark and
reading table in the museum.) Benjamin R.
Guss became the first Jewish judge and
Erminie Cohen the first Jewish senator.
In the 1950s, however, younger people
began drifting away. To be more modern,
Shaarei Zedek affiliated with the Conservative movement. But the pull of opportunity in the big cities was strong.
Membership declined to about 40. There
has been no rabbi since 1982. In 2008,
the congregation sold the church building, its home for almost 100 years.
Shaarei Zedeck has functioned for years
under the able administration of Dan Elman,
a lay reader, who organizes services, sends
out yahrzeit reminders, leads classes to teach
adults how to conduct services, and fills
in as the Hebrew school teacher.
The museum’s success has ushered in a
new optimism. Marcia Koven, a descendant
9057-p23-25_IsraelMission_p3
5/2/12
1:35 PM
Page 23
Masorti Leadership Mission participants in the Knesset synagogue where they held an historic egalitarian minyan.United States Ambassador Dan Shapiro
and Emily Levy-Shochat, chair of Masorti in Israel, are in the photo at right.
ON A MISSION TO ISRAEL
BY RABBI ROBERT SLOSBERG
T
HE WHIRLWIND
four-day Masorti leadership mission to Israel
in January 2012 was a
real eye-opener. I was one
of a group of 21 Conservative rabbis and lay leaders from around
North America who had come expecting to
see recent developments in our nearly 65
Masorti kehillot. But we also were there to
express solidarity with Israelis committed
to pluralism and to challenge government
officials over policies that favor minority
Orthodox extremists over the majority’s democratic values.
On the one hand, the mission was exactly
what I had anticipated. Still, I was unprepared for just how overwhelmed I would be
by everything we encountered. I was particularly moved by young Israelis’ excitement over the Masorti movement, and their
embrace of the democratic, pluralistic, open
practice of Judaism that we offer. Israelis are
connecting to Masorti through the educational, religious, and social programs and
community service opportunities available in our kehillot; through the Noam
youth movement and the network of Marom
chapters for college-age and young adults;
Rabbi Robert Slosberg is the spiritual leader
of Congregation Adath Jeshurun in Louisville,
Kentucky.
and through the political activism the movement organizes to protest discrimination
against women and against non-Orthodox streams in Israel.
The personal stories of Masorti congregants deeply moved me. For many, the
Masorti kehilla is their first exposure to a
way of Jewish life that encourages the equal
participation of the entire family. My Israeli
rabbinic colleagues, who despite financial
sacrifices serve our movement with distinction, are dynamic teachers and spiritual
leaders. It isn’t easy to impress a roomful
of Conservative rabbis, but we were dazzled
by text study with several rising young stars.
Nathalie Lastreger, the new spiritual leader
of Kehillat Sinai in Tel Aviv, who will be
ordained soon, mesmerized us with the tale
of her personal journey, from marriage to
an ultra-Orthodox rabbi to the impassioned
Masorti professional and human rights
activist she is today.
Rabbi Hanna Klebansky, an olah from the
former Soviet Union, is defying the unequal
treatment of women in Israel in a most
unorthodox way. Late into the night, after
putting her five children to bed, Rabbi Klebansky sits at her desk in a tiny corner of her
living room writing a Torah scroll. It was
a thrill to hold and pass around one of the
64 panels she will eventually complete.
We heard from Masorti rabbis, kehilla
leaders, and local officials about the posi-
Rabbi Robert Slosberg
tive impact Masorti is having on life everywhere, from large cities to small towns and
villages, from relatively affluent communities to those facing significant poverty and
other disadvantages.
The gan (kindergarten) at Kehillat Eshel
Avraham in Beersheva, one of Masorti’s larger
communities, has a waiting list nearly as large
as its enrollment of 230 youngsters. At the
large plot of land that the city is interested
in providing the kehilla for a second gan, we
learned about the congregation’s long-range
vision for an elementary school as well.
Elsewhere in the Negev, at Kehillat Netzach Yisrael in Ashkelon, we lunched with
Rabbi Gustavo Surzski, lay leaders, and graduates of Masorti’s Noam youth movement.
These young Israelis, undoubtedly the next
generation of Masorti leadership, are living
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
23
5/2/12
1:35 PM
Page 24
and working at an absorption center for
Ethiopian olim as part of Noam’s Shin-Shin
community service program in the year before
army enlistment. Listening to the director of
the absorption center praise these bright
young men and women, I realized that the
future of our movement is in great hands.
We heard from enthusiastic leaders of several new kehillot in Tzur Yitzchak, Petach
Tikvah, Holon, and Pardes Hanna about
how they are building their communities.
In Karmiel, Rabbi Mijael Even David and
24
Rabbi Hanna Klebansky showed the group the
megilla scroll she inscribed.
kehilla leaders showed off the new addition
to their building and shared their plans
for continued growth.
In Kfar Vradim, just south of the Lebanese
border, we were moved by the persistence
of Mayor Sivan Yechieli in helping the kehilla
realize its dream for a new home. For nearly
10 years that dream was on hold, as government ministries under the control of
ultra-Orthodox parties blocked efforts to
construct a facility. Even though Sivan is
not observant, he could see the importance of the Masorti kehilla to the Kfar
Vradim community, and he was determined
to make the building happen.
Pluralism has made its way onto the radar
of many of Israel’s leading political figures. At our opening dinner, Tzipi Livni,
who then was the head of the Kadima party,
offered some very forceful words in support
of democratic values. Her appearance, given
the timing in a critical primary season, was
testament to her view of Masorti’s growing stature. We met, too, with Meir Dagan,
the former head of Mossad, and with Rabbi
Uri Regev, the head of Hiddush, a Jerusalembased organization promoting religious freedom and diversity. And one of my proudest
moments was meeting U.S. Ambassador
Dan Shapiro at the American embassy. He
and his family are regular and active members of our Masorti kehilla in Kfar Saba.
Finally, during our visit to the Knesset we
held the first egalitarian prayer service to be
held in the synagogue there since the building’s dedication in 1966. The service was
lead by Rabbi Jennifer Gorman, a Conservative rabbi. It followed a morning of
meetings with government ministers and
Knesset members, where we made the point
that religious pluralism and democracy are
matters of major concern to diaspora Jewry,
5/2/12
1:35 PM
and that Israel’s political landscape must
change if Israel is to redefine the increasingly anti-democratic relationship between
religion and the state.
We talked to Dan Meridor of Likud, who
is deputy prime minister and also minister
of intelligence and atomic energy, and to Uzi
Landau of Israel Beiteinu, minister of energy
and water. We also talked to MKs Yohanan
Plesner and Orit Zuaretz of Kadima and
Isaac Herzog of Labor. We were delighted to
discover that they, too, were familiar with
Masorti’s contributions to Israeli life.
I flew home awed and inspired by the
growth and depth of Masorti in Israel, yet
frustrated knowing that the movement’s
amazing work is being accomplished on a
shoestring budget. For a number of kehillot,
the biggest challenge is finding funding to
hire a rabbi or rabbinic intern. The government provides less than $50,000 to all Masorti
programs and services, compared to the more
than $450 million it provides to Orthodox
institutions. It pays the salaries of about 3,000
Orthodox rabbis and not one Masorti rabbi.
In truth, the budget of the entire Masorti
movement is less than that of some individual
congregations in North America.
And as I flew home I also considered
this appalling fact: Conservative/Masorti
converts to Judaism meet the traditional
requirements of Jewish law, but because their
conversions are not accepted by Israel’s official rabbis they cannot get married in the
Jewish state. The hoops that even those of
my congregants who were born to Jewish
parents must jump through if they wish
to marry in Israel are daunting. It is hard for
me to fathom that I have fewer religious
rights in my Jewish homeland than I do
in the Commonwealth of Kentucky! The
continuing lack of pluralism in Israel and
discrimination against non-ultra-Orthodox
Jewry is simply unacceptable. It is critical
that we support Masorti in Israel and express
the need for change.
So I flew home from Israel feeling exhilarated, depressed, and determined. Exhilarated by the possibilities of Jewish life there,
depressed by the challenges other Jews put
in our way, and determined to be part of the
solution that will make Israel the home it
should be for all Jews. CJ
Page 25
Charles Simon
(continued from page 9)
influence their children. Late afternoon
we met as a group and I asked how they were
going to respond to their adult children
when they were asked why, all of a sudden, they wished them a Shabbat shalom.
“Because it is important to me,” they decided
to reply. Six months later, they are still doing
it. Hopefully, it will be passed on to their
grandchildren.
A world of information is becoming available to help men learn to become more effective fathers. It’s one piece of FJMC’s Hearing
Men’s Voices Initiative. Hearing Men's
Voices provides the venue for men to talk
about the issues that affect their daily lives,
including their roles as fathers. As they
engage in these conversations they both
mentor and learn from others at the same
time. Many of these issues are also explored
on Mentschen.org, the online address for
conversation for Jewish men. CJ
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
25
9057-p26-28_IsraelKids_p2
5/2/12
1:37 PM
Page 26
Young bee keepers pet some
of the animals at Devorat
Hatavor.
ISRAEL
FOR
KIDS
V
ISITING ISRAEL WITH
your kids is fun, exciting,
and educational. It is an
adventure that you and your
children will remember forever. There’s so much to do
and see that it’s important to plan ahead to
make the most of your trip.
If you’re wondering about how you’ll manage with language issues and safety, don’t
worry. There are many activities geared
toward English speakers. Most Israeli guides
are fluent in English. Israel’s safety regulations are on par with those in other developed countries, so all you need to think
about is how much fun you and your kids
will have.
Here is just a sampling of ideas to inspire
you. Your little ones can enjoy fun gyms,
petting zoos, arts and crafts, puppet plays,
donkey rides, or bee farms (yes, bee farms!).
For slightly older kids with lots of energy,
think Action Park, ATV/jeep rides, kayaking, rock climbing, and horseback riding.
There are plenty of educational experiences available as well: museums, tours of
factories, learning the art of ancient spices,
silk, and honey, and scavenger hunts exploring the various neighborhoods of Jerusalem.
Avital Cohen, MSW, is the founder of Israel
Kids, a new website for activities, local events,
and services in Israel, for kids and families.
26
B Y AV I TA L C O H E N
For fun in the sun don’t miss out on glassbottom boat rides, the dolphin reef, and
Israel’s national parks.
For direct access to these sites, go to
www.uscj.org, scroll to the bottom, and click
on the cover of this magazine. From there,
you can click on this article. You also can go
to Israelkids.co.il.
Central
• Pe’alton Gymboree has locations
throughout Israel (Toddlers) http://www.
pealton.co.il
• Beedvash in Kfar Chabad is a petting
zoo (Ages 3+) http://beedvash.co.il
• Diaspora Museum, Beit Hatfutzot, on
the Tel Aviv University campus, to learn
about the ongoing story of the Jewish people (Age 6+) http://www.bh.org.il
• Tnuva factory visitor center in Rehovot
demonstrates how milk gets from the cow
to your fridge (Ages 6+) http://www.visittnuva.co.il
• Tel Aviv’s Sportek Climbing Wall
offers rock-climbing lessons (Ages 9+)
http://israelkids.co.il
Jerusalem
• Train Theatre offers puppet plays,
story telling and more. (Ages 2+) http://
Outside the Diaspora Museum, Beit Hatfutzot in Tel Aviv.
5/2/12
1:37 PM
Page 27
www.traintheater.co.il/english
• Bowling Center is a great way to
spend a rainy day (Ages 6+) http://
israelkids.co.il
• Jerusalem Scavenger Hunt (Ages 9+)
http://www.jerusalemscavengerhunts.com
• Ammunition Hill Museum to learn
about the liberation and reunification of
Jerusalem (Ages 9+) http://israelkids.co.il
• Keyad Hadimyon, outside Modiin, not
far from Jerusalem, for arts and crafts (Ages
3+) http://www.hadimyon.co.il
South
• Philip Farm in the northern Negev
for donkey rides and other fun activities (All
ages) http://www.philipfarm.co.il
• Eilat’s Yisrael-Yam (glass bottom boat
ride) for a relaxing ride along the Red Sea
(All ages) http://israelkids.co.il
• Dolphin Reef (Eilat) to watch dolphins
in their natural habitat (All ages)
http://www.dolphinreef.co.il
• Kiryat Gat’s Action Park offers thrilling
rides, games and more (Ages 6+) http://
www.action-park.co.il
• Eilat’s Camel Ranch for adventurous
horseback riding (Ages 6+) http://
www.camel-ranch.co.il
North
• Devorat Hatavor in Moshav Shadmot
Devora, for a bee farm and petting zoo (Ages
3+) http://www.dvorat-hatavor.co.il
• 101 Kilometer, south of Paran, home
to the largest reptile farm in the Middle East,
for ATV/jeep rides (All ages) http://
israelkids.co.il
• The Galilee’s Etz Habakbukim (Bottle
Tree) to learn to make ancient spices (Ages
6+) http://www.ein-tzurim.org.il
• Achziv Beach National Park, north of
Nahariya, has stunning views and natural
and artificial seawater pools (All ages)
http://www.parks.org.il
• Hagosherim kayaks, in Hagoshrim,
offers an adventurous kayak ride down the
Jordan River (Ages 3+)http://www.kayak.
co.il
Go to Israelkids.co.il to get a full list of
fun activities for children as well as discount
coupons for many of these attractions. CJ
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
27
5/3/12
2:48 AM
Page 28
FACTS YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW ABOUT MASORTI
B Y R A B B I A L A N S I LV E R S T E I N
• Masorti is the name of the Conservative movement in Israel.
It stands for religious pluralism and democratic values in an egalitarian Judaism.
• Masorti is dominated at its grassroots by sabras as well as
by olim – immigrants – from Latin America, the former Soviet
Union, and Muslim lands, unified via the Hebrew language.
• Masorti of 2012 is young and getting younger all the time.
Its kehillot abound with kindergartens and nurseries filled
to capacity, with 600 bnai mitzvah ceremonies annually,
with almost 2,000 members of Noam, the nationwide youth
movement, and with 500 summer campers at Ramah/Noam.
• Over the last few years, Masorti has grown from less
than 50 to 63 kehillot, springing to life in such towns as
Tzur Yitzhak, Holon, and Petach Tikvah.
• Israelis are becoming increasingly aware of Masorti. An
Avi Chai/Guttman Institute survey released in January shows
that 30 percent of Israelis have attended services at a Conservative or Reform congregation. Yizhar Hess, the movement’s
chief executive, frequently is invited to write op-eds in the
Israeli press and is interviewed on radio and television. The
movement and its leaders are gaining influence within the
Knesset, as well.
• The rabbis in Masorti communities are dynamos. Veterans such as Mauricio Balter and Roberto Arbib have been
joined by a new generation of young and passionate colleagues
including Elisha Wolfin, Tamar Elad-Appelbaum, Chaya Rowen
Baker, Gustavo Surazki, Yoav Ende, Dubi Hayun, and Jeff
Cymet.
• Once you leave Jerusalem, openness to Masorti increases
dramatically. For example, in Kfar Vradim, a new building
for our Masorti kehilla came into being because of strong
support from the secular mayor and his colleagues. In Beer-
Rabbi Alan Silverstein, PhD, is the chair of the board of the Masorti
Foundation for Conservative Judaism in Israel and the spiritual
leader of Congregation Agudath Israel in Caldwell, New Jersey.
The Bookshelf
Mortality and Morality: A Search for the God
after Auschwitz by Hans Jonas, edited by
Lawrence Vogel. Northwestern University
Press, 1996
This generous selection of papers by one
of the most influential Jewish thinkers of
28
sheva, the municipality has designated land for a second Masorti
kindergarten in a developing part of the city.
• Masorti’s kehillot include thousands of dues-paying members. Under rabbinic guidance, the members of these kehillot
reach out to the community at large through nurseries and
kindergartens, Noam, life-cycle ceremonies, absorption of olim,
assistance to those below the poverty line, advocacy of ecological
concerns, outreach to Israeli Arab communities, and the provision of special needs bar/bat mitzvah training and ceremonies.
Masorti touches more than 75,000 Israelis annually. Impressively, the Avi Chai/Guttman Institute survey reveals that nearly
500,000 Israelis self-identify as Masorti or Reform.
• Vaani T’fillati, the Masorti Shabbat and weekday siddur, which is published by Israel’s largest publishing house, has
been a best-seller. A Masorti machzor is being prepared. These
egalitarian liturgical reflections of Israeli life offer prayers for
Yom Ha’Atzmaut, Yom HaZikaron, entering the IDF, and other
life-cycle events.
• Masorti is central to the spectrum of Israeli Judaism, offering the only regular egalitarian Shabbat morning minyanim.
Masorti also offers a halachic approach that is both flexible and
traditional, addressing issues such as the religious permissibility of visiting the Temple Mount, of trading land for peace,
of women serving in the IDF, and so on.
• The Israeli public is ever more receptive to our message.
In the most recent poll, 63 percent support official recognition
for both Masorti and Reform. A growing number of secular
Israelis indicate that they are “open to” encountering aspects of
the Jewish tradition within their lives in a “noncoercive” manner. These are code words for Masorti, Reform, and the liberal elements of modern Orthodoxy.
As the evaluators of the Avi Chai/Guttman Institute poll
conclude: “The results of the survey are evidence that Israeli Jews
are committed to two significant values: preserving Jewish tradition on the one hand, and upholding individual freedom of
choice on the other.” In sum, the fact is that Masorti Judaism
is emerging as part of a broad Israeli-Jewish consensus.
the 20th century deals with moral, religious,
and ethical issues in the wake of the Holocaust. Jonas, a German Jew who studied
with and was a friend of philosophers Martin Heidegger, Rudolph Bultmann, and
Hanah Arendt, was himself exiled by the
Nazis, fought in World War II and the Israeli
War of Independence, and ended up on the
faculty of the New School for Social Research
in New York. The essays are suffused with
his major concerns: the moral impulse,
the meaning of a human life, and the possibility of faith in God after the Holocaust.
These essays do not make for easy reading, but they are all rewarding and they open
new vistas of thinking. CJ
9057-p29_Ukraine_p2
5/2/12
1:54 AM
Page 29
A PERSONAL MIRACLE
The First Masorti Rabbi in Ukraine
BY RABBI TZVI GRAETZ
J
EWISH LIFE IN UKRAINE
has changed and grown tremendously since the end of the Soviet
era. One of the biggest changes was
inaugurated in March 2012, when
the first Conservative/Masorti
rabbi took up a permanent post in Kiev.
The story of Rabbi Reuven Stamov (his
first name originally was Roma) and his long
journey back to Ukraine is nothing short of
miraculous. Reuven was born in Simferopol
in Crimea – a region of Ukraine – in 1974.
His family was Jewish but entirely secular. He was teased at school for being a
Jew, but during his childhood he never really
had the opportunity to explore what that
meant. As the Soviet period came to an end,
many Ukrainian Jewish families left, relocating to Israel or other places. The Stamovs
decided to stay in Ukraine, however, and at
18 Reuven became involved for the first time
in Jewish educational activities. He began
to understand the purpose and rituals of the
festivals, gained a rudimentary understanding of Hebrew, and developed a passion for Masorti Judaism.
Throughout the 1990s, Reuven’s commitment to Judaism, the Jewish community, and Jewish and Zionist education grew
as he became involved in the Ramah summer camp in Ukraine operated by Midreshet
Yerushalayim. A division of the Schechter
Institute for Jewish Studies, Midreshet
Yerushalayim focuses on Russian-speaking Jews in Israel and parts of the former
Soviet Union. Camp Ramah-Yachad gave
Rabbi Tzvi Graetz is a graduate of the
Schechter Rabbinical Seminary in Jerusalem
and the executive director of Masorti Olami
and Mercaz Olami.
Reuven a religious home, a place where
he could grow as a Jewish communal leader,
teaching campers about Masorti Judaism
and developing his own knowledge and practice at the same time.
Reuven says that he began to want a more
spiritual, meaningful, and observant Jewish life from his very first Camp Ramah experience. This eventually led him to move
to Israel in 2003, and shortly afterward he
came to the logical conclusion that his destiny was to become a Masorti rabbi. That
would allow him to share with others his
love and understanding of a Judaism that
was traditional and modern, spiritual and
intellectual, and committed to both Israel
and the diaspora.
Reuven studied at the Schechter Rabbinical Seminary in Jerusalem for nearly
seven years, receiving support from Masorti
Olami, the worldwide Masorti movement,
via the Schorsch Fellowship, which supports
rabbinical students committed to working in developing Masorti communities
in Europe. During his studies he continued
to work with Midreshet Yerushalayim in
partnership with Masorti Olami. He traveled to Ukraine several times each year to
run seminars, summer camp, and a successful conversion program, as well as many
other projects that created the foundation
Email [email protected]
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
29
9057-p30-32_Georgia_p2
5/2/12
1:55 AM
Page 30
Jews in
Georgia
JDocu is a group of amateur photographers,
friends who know each other from Israel’s
thriving high-tech world. They have set
themselves the task of documenting Jewish communities around the world. These
pictures are from the photographers’ journey to Georgia, in the former Soviet Union,
to document what is left of the Jewish community there after the exodus of Jews from
the region that began in the 1970s.
The photographs were first exhibited at
Beit Hatfutsot: The Museum of the Jewish People, in Tel Aviv, in March 2012, with
support from the American Jewish Joint
Distribution Committee and the Jewish
Funders Network.
See more of the group’s art at jdocu.com.
An empty container for a Torah Scroll
stands in the old synagogue in Oni.
Tali Idan
Just before Shavuot, girls in Rustavi get ready for a festive portrait. Yossi Beinart
A bagel stand on the main road from Tbilisi. Atalla Katz
30
5/2/12
1:55 AM
Page 31
Dr. Shalva Buziashvilli, the last
Jewish doctor in Rustavi, and his wife.
Tali Idan
Books are illuminated by light from the window
in a deserted synagogue in Kutaisi. Eli Atias
A tzedakah box in a closed synagogue. Tali Idan
The abandoned synagogue in Kutaisi.
Amir Halevy
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
31
5/2/12
1:55 AM
Page 32
A women in the Jewish club in
Rustavi. Yossi Beinart
A scene from the synagogue
that no one visits anymore.
Yossi Beinart
32
9057-p33_p3
5/2/12
1:38 PM
Page 33
Richard Skolnik
Saint John
the same issues that face Israelis and diaspora Jews on a regular basis. I hope that I continued facilitating this growth in others this
year as the Nativ assistant director. I will forever be grateful for all that I have learned over
the years of my involvement with Nativ, most
importantly the understanding that all
Jewish journeys are intertwined and neverending.”
of an early 20th century immigrant, established the museum and was its first curator.
She began by hiring Katherine Biggs-Craft,
a college classmate who is not Jewish and
by her own admission “knew virtually nothing about Judaism.” It was a fortuitous choice
nonetheless, and when Koven retired, BiggsCraft became curator. The museum archives
now attract scholars from all over the world.
The American Association for State and
Local Libraries, the Church and Synagogue
Library Association, and the province of
New Brunswick all have honored it with
awards. CJ
Aaron Sherman,
Nativ 26 Aaron is
from Santa Rosa,
California. While
he was on Nativ he
was in the Hebrew
University
–
Yerucham track,
and afterward he
went to the University of California at Davis.
There, Aaron was involved with the Israel
student group, and he spent a semester
interning for Secretary of Defense Robert
Gates in Washington, DC. Aaron has spent
every summer since Nativ staffing USY Eastern Europe/Israel Pilgrimage, first as a counselor and then as a group leader. After
graduating from UC-Davis, he staffed Nativ
30’s Yerucham group, and now he is the
communications/speechwriting intern at
Obama for America’s headquarters in
Chicago.
“Nativ not only gave me experiences of a
lifetime, but it taught me how to live my
life. From what I love about davening to my
thankfulness for Shabbat each week, almost
everything about how I live a Jewish life I
either learned, built upon, or discovered while
on Nativ. Without Nativ, I wouldn’t be the
educated, passionate, committed Jewish young
adult I am today.”
A wholehearted yashir koach goes to
Nativ’s director, Yossi Garr, and his incredible staff, who work tirelessly throughout
the year to educate our students in such
an outstanding manner. Nativ graduates are
our bridge to the future, our inspiration,
and our most precious resource. CJ
TO ADVERTISE CALL
917-668-6809
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
33
9057-p34-35_Yarmulke_p2
5/2/12
1:56 PM
Page 34
WHY ARE YOU WEARING THAT
CAMEL AROUND YOUR NECK?
S
34
Pho
tos
by
O WEARING THE TIE
that’s an overall matzah print
on Pesach makes perfect
sense.
The tie with the big whale
for the afternoon of Yom Kippur, when the haftarah is the story of Jonah,
yeah, that’s pretty obvious too, once you think
about it. (Rosh Hashanah morning and Kol
Nidrei, on the other hand, call for a simple
white tie to match the kittel.)
These ties are a very basic introduction
to the very many ties of Frederic S. Goldstein, gabbai and third-generation face of
Congregation B’nai Jeshurun on New York
City’s Upper West Side, familiarly referred
to as BJ.
The one with hearts on it? That’s for
Parashat Va-era, when Pharoah’s heart was
hardened. (Va-era often is read in February,
but no, it’s not for Valentine’s Day.)
The game quickly gets harder. What about
the tie with the Cat in the Hat? There are
no cats mentioned in the Torah, and certainly there is nothing about top hats. It’s
because the Cat in the Hat is a creation of
Dr. Seuss, and in Parashat Beshallach, when
the people sing the Song of the Sea, we
are told that they are celebrating God’s having hurled horse and driver into the sea.
Horse and driver? Suess vrachvo. Oh! Got it!
Freddy, who is an Excel guru in civilian
life, started teaching about computers at
Baruch College in 1970, back when computers and he both were young, and he
teaches there still. He is the grandson of the
Reverend Jacob Schwartz, who was BJ’s cantor from 1914 to 1953. (BJ was a founding member of United Synagogue, which
was chartered in 1913, just a year earlier.)
He traces his interest in parashah neckwear to his grandfather.
And
rew
She
rma
n
BY JOANNE PALMER
“My mom” – Bobbye S. Goldstein –
“would dress me in a suit when I was a little boy when we’d go to shul,” he said. “It
was a time when everyone was dressed more
formally. I would sit up in the balcony.
My grandfather would sit on the bimah and
look up at me and he’d rub his tie, and I
would rub my tie. I would be sitting in
the middle of 1,000 people, but it was as
if I could hear him saying ‘Hello, Freddy,”
and I was yelling back to him ‘Hello,
Grandpa Jack.’ I like to believe that’s how
my tie thing started.”
Freddy has always worn a tie, even when
he was an undergraduate in the 1960s, when
they were not at all in vogue.
“I can’t remember when I first started with
the parashah themes, but among the first
idiosyncratic ties I had was one with watermelons,” he recalled. It’s from Parashat
Beha’lotekha, where the Israelites, who for
a change are complaining, say that they used
to have melons back in Egypt. The word for
melons in biblical Hebrew, avatichem, is the
word modern Israelis use for watermelons. Et voila!
Some of Freddy’s ties are literal – animals
for Parashat Pinchas, which describes sacrifices in what might be too much detail. At
least one day of Sukkot calls for a tie with
a citron on it, and Shemini Atzeret – the
eighth and last day of the festival – demands
a tie with pool balls, one of them sporting a great big number 8. He has a rainbow tie for Parashat Noach, and one with
stars for Lech Lecha, where God promises
Abram that he will have as many descendants as there are stars in the sky.
Sometimes Freddy gets ties as gifts – like
the one showing Moshe coming down
Mount Sinai with the tablets in his hand,
which clearly appeals to a very niche market. Others he buys himself. He went to the
M&M store in Times Square for its iconic
M&M tie. He wears it when two parshiyot,
Mattot and Massei, are read in the same
week. The habit might get expensive, but
there are ways to cope. “You can buy a regular tie starting at $30 and going way up,
and you can get tourist ties for a few dollars,” he said. The tourist ties, needless to
say, tend toward the garish.
9057-p34-35_Yarmulke_p2
5/2/12
3:18 PM
Page 35
AND WHAT’S THAT
ON YOUR HEAD?
B Y B E R T S T R AT T O N
AYBE A COLLAGE
artist could do something with my assortment of yarmulkes,
which I’ve collected
during the 23 years
I’ve spent playing klezmer clarinet at weddings and bar mitzvahs in Cleveland.
My Guatemalan yarmulkes – crocheted
by Mayan Indians – come from hipster weddings. These multi-colored Mayan kippot
are especially big hits with female rabbi
brides. That’s a niche.
My most heimisch lids are bubbie-knit.
For one party, a grandma knit 150
yarmulkes. I took about five leftovers.
Skull cap. Those are harsh words. I have
some blue suede yarmulkes, distributed
by A1 Skull Cap Co. out of Brooklyn. The
yarmulkes don’t breathe. I like a yarmulke
that breathes, crocheted or knitted.
Camouflage kippot. I have a few. My band
Bert Stratton plays clarinet in the klezmer
band Yiddishe Cup and is the author of the
blog Klezmer Guy: Real Music & Real Estate.
He is a member of Park Synagogue in
Cleveland. www.klezmerguy.com.
played a bar mitzvah where
the theme was Zahal (that’s the
Israel Defense Forces). The bar
mitzvah boy’s father wore combat
boots and a full Israeli army uniform. The
band wore IDF T-shirts, except our trombone player, who is a pacifist.
Sports-themed lids happen too. One time
we had to wear basketball jerseys and kippot at a bar mitzvah party. There even was
a cheerleader squad. The girls did gymnastics formations while cheering “Mazal
tov, let’s shout hurray. It’s Jeremy and Sam’s
bar mitzvah day.” Another cheer was “I
say ‘oy,’ you say ‘vey,’ Jeremy and Sam are
men today.”
My band’s keyboard player often starts
gigs by asking, “Is this a yarmulke gig or
not?” He’s a gentile. I have explained that
some are half-and-half: yarmulke for the
ceremony, no yarmulke for the party.
My Conservative rabbi wears a “throwaway” yarmulke, the black satin number
used by funeral homes and synagogues. My
rabbi doesn’t want to look different from his
congregants, I guess. I don’t have the guts
to ask him why.
My white satin yarmulke from December 9, 2007 is imprinted with the groom’s
name, Ananth Uggirala. His parents, from
India, were Anjaneyulu and Manorama
Uggirala. I had to announce them. Memorable.
You need the right kind of yarmulke clips
if you’re a musician because you move
around a lot. Bobby pins are the worst. They
take your hair out. Duck bill clips – also
bad. The best are the little surfboard barrettes.
If you don’t have good clips, you’re in
trouble, particularly at outdoor gigs.
I remember one Israeli guy marching
with the chuppah outdoors, while smoking and balancing a drink. His yarmulke
blew off. He scooped it up, put it back
on, and took a drink. Secular Israelis, they’re
funny.
I wore a yarmulke for a week when I hitchhiked out west. This was decades ago. I
had just seen a photo of Bob Dylan wearing a yarmulke at the Kotel. None of the
drivers who picked me up commented. My
hat was just a hat – to them. To me, it was
a religion. CJ
Occasionally his ties have a more personal meaning. His father,Gabriel F. Goldstein, was a chemist, a pioneer in plastics,
and Freddy honors him at his yarzheit by
wearing a tie with some of the signs of his
discipline, chemical symbols or a balance
scale.
Freddy points out that as much fun as
his hobby is, and as creative as it allows
him to be, at its core it is serious. His life
has connected him to the rhythms and
assumptions of the Jewish world in profound
ways. Not only was his grandfather a cantor,
for many decades his grandmother, Lottie
G. Schwartz, was the president of the sisterhood (yes, B’nai Jeshurun also had an early
connection to Women’s League for Conservative Judaism). Freddy’s other grandfather, Herbert S. Goldstein, was the rabbi
of the West Side Institutional Synagogue,
and his other grandmother, Rebecca Fischel
Goldstein, was the president of that kehilla’s
sisterhood. “I’ve been in shuls all my life,”
Freddy said. So the game is a logical one
for him. To do it properly it is necessary
to study the parashah thoroughly. The idea
of such study, week after week, comes naturally. Putting the tie together with the
parashah is a puzzle, far more art than
M
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
35
5/2/12
2:19 PM
Page 36
YAY FOR
JEWISH SUMMER CAMPS!
BY DR. SHARON
S I LV E R M A N P O L L O C K
S A PEDIATRICIAN AND
specialist in adolescent behavior and emotional development, I want to encourage
parents to send their kids to
Jewish summer camps. I can’t
rave enough about the invaluable meaning,
depth of connection, and enduring worth
that immersion in a Jewish summer camp
experience offers.
Not only is camp a great place to form lifelong friendships, I believe that it is an inoculation against teenage angst and deleterious
risk taking and a remedy for teen disillusion.
Twenty-first century teens need a place where
they can learn to tolerate inactivity and distress safely, and to experience social life as real
human interactions, not screen facsimiles.
Camp is that place.
My office is in the San Fernando Valley.
Beyond earthquake fault lines, there is much
more trouble rumbling through my community. In the past few months there have
been three teen suicides, one heroin death,
three alcohol poisoning deaths, and many
lucky survivors of extreme party nights. Why?
Some were related to grades and perfectionism, others to intolerance of breakups
and emotional despair, and some were just
experimentation gone wrong. Many of the
victims were Jewish. While parents who read
about Wendy Mogel’s blessings of wounded
knees and bad grades and Amy Chua’s battle hymn of tiger moms who are worried
about how their kids will get into the right
colleges, too many teenagers are looking
A
Sharon Silverman Pollock, M.D., is a pediatrician with a practice in psychopharmacology. She is a doctor at Camp Ramah in Ojai,
California.
36
to check out in some way.
According to Monitoring the Future, a
yearly survey of teens across the country, 6.6
percent of high school seniors – that’s 1
in 15 – use marijuana daily. How can we
prevent that? Jewish summer camp. According to adolescent specialist Ken Ginsberg,
M.D., social growth and connections provide the attributes that will help kids develop
the resilience they need as they become
teenagers. Those resilience attributes are
competence through experience, confidence
rooted in competence, fostering close connections, building character, feeling a significant contribution to a community, and
learning both coping and control. If we can
help kids find social success and forestall the
more distressing benchmarks of teen risk
taking, they will gain more experience at
establishing their personalities in the larger
world.
Kids do risky things for many reasons.
One is that somehow it makes them feel
good despite all the harm it creates. Kids
can quote you line and verse about the negative consequences of substance abuse. But
they still use alcohol and drugs and cut themselves. They are depressed, and they commit suicide. We need to create places and
opportunities where kids can benefit from
positive experiences.
If we empower young people and still
allow them to take risks, they will grow
strong in their concept of themselves. The
risk taking built into summer camp includes
leaving the safety and comfort of home and
interacting socially with more kids. Summer camp experiences are designed to create resilient adolescents. Camp helps develop
self-confidence and social competence by
growing interpersonal and core mindfulness skills, as well as some mastery in regulating emotion and tolerating distress.
I won’t say that it’s something only Jewish summer camp does. The Jewish community offers it in kehilla and community
affiliations, USY and Kadima, and schools
that instill values of tzedakah and community service. Parents should be invested
in connecting their kids to these communities. Kids are taught morality and the difference between right and wrong in
environments that are centered in Jewish
values. Camp does this through educational
programs, music, sports, drama, daily routines, arts, and food. Parents also should
model these behaviors.
At camp, everyone is understood to be
created betzelem elohim, in God’s image.
Still, the same painful parts of puberty are
packed into campers’ duffle bags – girl stuff,
boy struggles, fitting in, and body image
struggles. At camp, though, campers learn
to meet distress and to cope.
Yay Jewish summer camp! That is why
I am a camp doctor and my kids have been
raised in camps and have become great mensches. That is why I train the counselors
in adolescent behavior and how to include
different kids, recognizing behavior as issues
of self-expression. I love and support the
Jewish camping movement. CJ
All photos courtesy of the National Ramah Commission.
9057-p36-37_Camp-Friend_p2
9057-p36-37_Camp-Friend_p2
5/2/12
2:19 PM
Page 37
IN MEMORY
OF A FRIEND
BY ADIN YEHOSHUA MEIR
Adin and Eric
AM A FORMER RAMAH
camper and staff member stricken
with grief at the sudden death of
my lifelong friend and fellow
Ramah camper and staff member,
Eric Steinthal, z”l. In the wake of
his death, I feel compelled to tell the story
of how Camp Ramah in the Berkshires has
transformed and shaped my life, and the lives
of our group of friends.
I first met Eric as a 10-year-old at Ramah
in the Berkshires. We were in the same bunk
– A-16 – and have been close friends ever
since. Over the next few years, our group of
camp friends grew to 10. We didn’t just hang
out together in camp; sleepovers and shuttling between each other’s houses were the
norm all year. Our backgrounds were varied, and represented all facets of Conservative Judaism, from kids like me who
attended day schools and were immersed in
Jewish learning and culture, to kids who did
not observe kashrut or Shabbat. Yet when
we gathered in Ramah every summer we
were all equal. We all observed Shabbat. We
all kept kosher. We all went to tefillot every
day, and wore a tallit and tefillin every morning. We all said the motzi before we ate, and
we benched after every meal. And Shabbat...
Shabbat in camp is magical. The day-to-day
I
Adin Yehoshua Meir, an energy engineer, lives
in Hoboken, New Jersey, with his wife, Jordana.
The 10 friends
routine is replaced by something more spiritual, more kadosh, more holy. Even as young
kids we understood that Shabbat is very different from any other day of the week, and
it was camp that taught us that lesson.
For us, camp did not end with the summer. Kids who did not eat kosher at home
told their parents that they wanted to start
keeping kosher, observing Shabbat, and even
leave public school for Jewish day school,
as Eric did.
Our group grew tighter as the years passed,
and many of us attended Solomon Schechter
high schools, deepening our bonds. As we
entered college, many of us continued to
work in camp, but eventually we had to enter
the real world and get jobs. But we still held
onto our friendships, which culminated
every year with the Ramah Berkshires Labor
Day alumni weekend reunion. This was the
most important weekend of the year. I
refused to schedule my wedding over Labor
Day because I did not want to miss it! Many
of us met our wives and significant others
during that weekend, and indeed it is where
I met my wife, Jordana, almost six years ago.
My Ramah friendships shaped and
defined my life. It is easy to take for granted
that nine other people will be there for
you whenever you need them, but I can
never take that for granted again.
Our friend, Eric Jay Steinthal, who died
suddenly on Saturday, March 17, was the
center of our circle. It was Eric and his
fiancée Jodi Siskind who hosted all of our
poker games and get-togethers. Their apartment was our home base. Eric embodied
the concept of menschlichkeit, and his quiet
and unassuming demeanor and self-confidence made him extremely popular
throughout the Ramah community. He was
even the commissioner of the Ramah
Alumni Basketball Association, and a member of the Berkshires Alumni Hanhallah
– its board.
After hearing the terrible news, four of
Eric’s friends, all from Ramah, rushed to the
hospital to try to give his family support and
comfort. The next day, more than 15 of
us gathered at my parents’ house. We spent
the day and night telling funny stories,
trying to get through the nightmare. Eric’s
funeral was the hardest day of my life. It was
filled with memories, love, and most of
all, Camp Ramah. Eric’s life revolved around
camp, and to a certain respect the camp
alumni community revolved around Eric.
We are all trying to make sense of a tragedy
that no parents, no siblings, no partners,
and no friends should ever have to endure.
But we have comfort. We have our bonds,
forged together at Camp Ramah. They
can never be broken. I cannot imagine having to endure this terrible pain without them.
Even in the face of overwhelming tragedy,
we find support, love, and hope that will
enable us to continue without our friend.
For all of us, that is what Camp Ramah
stands for.
May Eric’s memory be for a blessing. CJ
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
37
9057-p38-39_CampCmmty_p2
5/2/12
2:20 PM
Page 38
Camp
Fosters
Community
BY REBECCA KAHN
O
VER THE PAST FEW
months, it seems that every
time I open my inbox I see an
announcement from the
National Ramah Commission
about a new grant it has
Rebecca Kahn graduated from Tufts University in 2003 and has an M.A. in public
administration and nonprofit management
from the NYU Robert F. Wagner School of
Public Service.
38
received.
This is no accident. For more than 60
years, the Ramah camps have been leaders in Jewish camping. They have pushed
the field to bring the best in Jewish education into camp, in both professional development and programming. The eight
Ramah camps have set the standard for
ongoing leadership development of its staff
and campers. This year, the Ramah camps
have been awarded two important grants.
One of them is a $1.8 million grant from
the Avi Chai Foundation and the Maimonides Foundation that will fund an
alumni program called Reshet Ramah.
Another grant from Avi Chai, this time of
$144,000, is to fund training opportunities
for camp specialists at Ramah camps as well
as the camps run by the Union for Reform
Judaism.
9057-p38-39_CampCmmty_p2
5/2/12
2:20 PM
Page 39
I went to Camp Ramah in the Berkshires munal professionals. I think Ramah is the
for nine summers, and I credit my experi- best but it is not for everyone. It might sound
ence as a camper, staff member, and exec- heretical, but not all Conservative Jews want
utive leader on the alumni association board their children praying daily, engaging in
to my being where I am today, both per- Jewish text-based study, or being immersed
sonally and professionally. My commitment in a religious setting during summer vacaand involvement in Jewish life and the Con- tion. And whether we agree or disagree, isn’t
it our collective responservative movement is
sibility to make sure that
a direct byproduct of
these families find an
Ramah, Solomon
appropriate Jewish comSchechter day school, We all should rise to the
munity for their chiland my family. I have challenge of helping create
dren over the summer?
spent the past eight more community for more
As a community we
years as a Jewish proof our children.
have to grow Ramah
fessional, working to
engage children and young adults in Jewish participation – but we also can’t give up
life through Israel programs and Jewish sum- on the other children of our movement.
Is it possible to develop summer expemer camp.
This March my extended camp family, riences that meet Conservative Jews where
and I had to grapple with the sudden death they are in their observance, not where we
of our friend, Eric Steinthal. I looked around think they ought to be? A place where they
the room at his funeral and was struck by can explore their Judaism? Is there room for
the power of my Ramah community – we a different brand of Conservative camps that
grieved together, celebrated his life together, would reach more of our constituents? There
and I hope provided some comfort to his are plenty of excellent Jewish mission-driven
family, his fiancée, and his inner circle of camps that meet the standards of the ConRamah friends. It was strange and com- servative movement’s membership; do we
forting to be surrounded by this amazing have an obligation to promote these camps
extended camp family grieving and cry- to our families alongside Ramah to make
ing instead of laughing and dancing, which sure that every child has a rich Jewish sumwe do each year at Camp Ramah’s Labor mer experience?
By neglecting to engage in a larger conDay Alumni Weekend.
According to the National Ramah Com- versation about Jewish overnight camps and
mission, fewer than 10 percent of eligible other Jewish summer opportunities, are we
Conservative movement-affiliated children simply giving up on the majority of famigo to a Ramah camp. If camp creates com- lies who send their children to secular
munity, then we all should rise to the chal- overnight camps (which generally tend to
lenge of helping create more community for attract lots of Jewish kids) and missing an
more of our children. We know that when important opportunity to engage these famchildren go to camps whose values and phi- ilies in a meaningful way? To ensure the
losophy are deeply rooted in Jewish life, the future of this vitally important movement,
odds that those children will become adults to which I am proud to belong, we need
who participate in the Jewish world and more than 10 percent of our children going
identify with it are greatly increased. That to Jewish camps each summer, whether those
is why we need to grow the number of camps are Ramah, another Conservative
children enrolling in this transformative movement camp, or other Jewish missiondriven camps.
experience.
We need more opportunities to engage
Ramah is an extraordinary place. It nurtures leaders for the Conservative move- all Jewish children in Jewish camping. Every
family should have a strong community
ment.
We also know that not every family can so they too can celebrate joy and share loss
imagine or will want its children to grow up together. Jewish summer camp is a great way
to become rabbis, teachers, or Jewish com- to develop our community. CJ
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
39
9057-p40-41_Ramah_p2
5/2/12
2:01 AM
Page 40
RAMAH FOSTERS COMMUNITY
BY RABBI MITCHELL COHEN
REBECCA KAHN’S
article on the need for all
of us to encourage more
children of Conservativeaffiliated families to attend
Camp Ramah and other
Jewish summer camps is to be applauded.
Indeed, Rebecca echoes the sentiments of
so many who praise our growth in recent
decades and advocate for even more aggressive expansion.
We are proud of the last 20 years, when,
in the face of declining demographics in
the Conservative movement, Ramah has
attracted and retained 30 percent more
campers, so that we now host more than
R
Rabbi Mitchell Cohen is director of the
National Ramah Commission of the Jewish
Theological Seminary.
40
9,000 children, teens, and young adults
each summer. We have built new overnight
camps (Ramah Darom in Georgia in 1997
and Ramah Outdoor Adventure in Colorado in 2010), opened new day camps (in
Philadelphia and Chicago), and added
capacity to our existing camps to make room
for more children who come from a wide
variety of educational and religious backgrounds.
What makes us most proud, however,
is that we have accomplished all this without compromising our commitment to the
highest standards of intensive Jewish experiential education. This, I believe, is the
source of the cohesive lifelong friendships
and Jewish commitment that thousands
of alumni cite as the legacy of Ramah, credited by so many as the source of the most
positive and joyful Jewish experiences of
their lives.
Rabbi Julie Schonfeld, executive vice president of the Rabbinical Assembly, recently
wrote: “As Conservative leaders, it is hard
to remember how to dream because our Jewish religious vision symbolizes something
that the community knows is necessary but
fears is unachievable. Miraculously, advocates and skeptics agree about Ramah. Let’s
take yes for an answer. If we get behind
an effort to dramatically grow the Ramah
system, we will be surprised by who comes
along with us.”
So my response is yes! Let’s all work
together to radically increase the number of
Conservative families attending Ramah and
other camps that have strong programs of
Jewish identity-building. And yes, let us
continue to develop new and cutting-edge
methods of teaching Jewish content, with
the understanding that our families represent the broadest spectrum of Jewish prac-
9057-p40-41_Ramah_p2
5/2/12
2:01 AM
Page 41
tice and various levels of education.
But we can accomplish all this without
sacrificing Jewish content. Ramah has shown
that with the proper guidance from young
role models, constant innovation, and
tremendous care and sensitivity, we can
indeed attract children from all levels of family observance and bring them, on their own
path, to greater commitment to Judaism.
The Conservative movement does not
need any more attempts to attract more
adherents by lowering expectations. Ramah
is one of the movement’s success stories
because we stand for something. We must
be open to change, and our camps are centers of experimentation and innovation. The
real challenge is to continue to grow and
innovate, and to bring the Ramah experience to a wider percentage of North American Jewish families. Our professional and
lay leaders strive to accomplish this every
day. But we cannot do this alone. We call
upon all our Conservative partners to heed
Rebecca’s call for growth, but within a
Ramah system that has proven itself over 65
years, is willing to answer the call for modernization and innovation, has attracted the
support of the top foundations of Jewish
life, and has maintained, not compromised,
Jewish standards.
In his keynote speech at the 60th anniversary celebration of the Ramah camping
movement in 2007, JTS Chancellor Arnold
Eisen said: “We need more Ramah, more
camps, more campers, more leaders, more
mitzvot, and more prayer that’s enlivened
by the wholeness of self that comes about
only in a camp setting.... I want to have more
and more human beings at Ramah who
understand the gift that they have been
given, the ability to develop answers for
themselves to the eternal questions of why
the Jews, why Judaism, how to live Torah,
how to partner with God. And to do all
of this inside of the Jewish time and space,
of wholeness and of joy that are not easily
available elsewhere.”
Ramah looks forward to decades of
growth, to bringing into our camps more
families with an even wider spectrum of
practice, and to our alumni continuing to
strengthen our synagogues and schools,
to help build a stronger Conservative movement and a brighter Jewish future. CJ
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
41
9057-p42-43_Moline_p2
5/2/12
2:02 AM
Page 42
MAKING IT MATTER
BY RICHARD S. MOLINE
I
N FEBRUARY I HAD THE
privilege of teaching at the Koach
Kallah, the annual gathering of college students sponsored by United
Synagogue’s college outreach department, under the superb direction
of Rabbi Elyse Winick. The weekend, which
included tremendously spirited singing and
davening, serious study, and wonderful social
activities, brought together some 150 students
from more than 55 colleges and universities
across North America. The kallah was held at
Boston University and made possible primarily
by the generous support of Women’s League
for Conservative Judaism.
That’s the commercial (and a good one it
is). Now to the tachlis – the real content.
It’s no secret that our movement is under
siege, whether it’s from the press, some of
our affiliates, or any number of other outside sources. Yet if you were to have walked
into the room during any part of the weekend, you would wonder what the problem might be, or even if there was one.
Granted, 150 college students is hardly a
major sample, but the fervor and commitment they show for Conservative Judaism
are nothing short of inspirational. So if things
are so good, why are they so bad?
I taught a session Friday night called
“What Makes Us Conservative Jews and
Does It Really Matter?” We talked about
ideology, relevance, and the facts on the
ground. The session was packed, and while
I hope it was instructive for the students,
I know it was incredibly valuable to me.
We do a great job providing our young
people with topnotch experiential Jewish
education, whether in Kadima or USY,
Camp Ramah, or other Jewish youth groups
or camps. Many of our teens carry these
experiences with them to the college campus, primarily at Hillel but also through
informal gatherings with friends. Deeply
moved by what they’ve experienced, they
Richard S. Moline is United Synagogue’s chief
outreach officer.
42
9057-p42-43_Moline_p2
5/2/12
2:02 AM
are primed to lead full Jewish lives.
And then they come home.
In fairness, it is difficult to replicate intense
peer experiences outside camp, a youth
group, or a college campus. On the other
hand, when you have been part of a strong
Shabbat community and suddenly find
yourself in a place where no such community exists, especially on a peer level, it is
extraordinarily frustrating. It can send a
wrong message, which no one means to send.
It can tell young people that the Shabbat
that they have valued, the Shabbat experiences they have treasured throughout their
time in USY, Ramah or on campus – forget
it. The meaning they’ve been encouraged to
give Shabbat – let it go. You’re out in the real
world, we tell them, and the real world does
not have time for Shabbat.
The result of this mixed message often
is that people who have come to value a
Shabbat community do find one, no matter what its ideology. The power and support of community often trump belief and
practice (and such communities are not limited to right, center, or left).
I know people in their 20s who grew up
in the Conservative movement but now
go to modern Orthodox synagogues. I
recently asked one of them why. Her answer
was not a surprise. “It’s simple,” she said.
“I went to the local Conservative synagogue
twice. Both times, there were a lot of people in the sanctuary. Nobody took the time
to talk to me and I left as I came – anonymously. The first time I went to the local
Orthodox synagogue, I had an invitation to
Shabbat lunch before we even got to Musaf.”
Quite a few of the students at the Koach
kallah spoke about the disconnect between
clergy and laity, between ideology and practice. “In my experience,” one student told
me, “the rabbi is the only person who seems
to care about what we stand for. Everybody else picks and chooses.”
What struck me most about these comments is that so many of these students
feel a desperate need for validation. They
want to be part of the movement, and I
am convinced they are not alone. They are
seeking a traditional egalitarian Judaism,
where people are fully engaged in all aspects
of Jewish life. Many find it in the scores
Page 43
of independent minyanim or chavurot that
have emerged in recent years. Others create
their own opportunities in neighborhoods
across North America. Some of these enterprises are quite informal; they have no clergy
and meet perhaps once a month on a Friday night. Others meet every Shabbat morning and include study and social service
projects during the week.
Some people look at these enterprises
as threats. One colleague has suggested that
the proliferation of independent groups
could mean the decline of the synagogue.
Rather than view these creative and vibrant
groups negatively, I would suggest we
embrace them. Even though many of them
don’t want to be labeled in this way, they
represent one of the greatest successes of the
Conservative movement in modern times.
Our support does not mean that we diminish our existing kehillot; rather, it is the natural extension of Solomon Schechter’s notion
of klal Yisrael, the community of Israel.
Of course, we have to work on making
our own communities more welcoming
(many do a wonderful job already), but we
also must be realistic. Many kehillot simply don’t have the critical mass (do we say
critical minyan?) to nurture and sustain a
peer community for people in their 20s. But
when we encourage the kehillot that do incubate young communities, we are laying the
groundwork for revitalization, creativity, and
spiritual growth. In doing so, we must understand that many of these groups will not want
to carry a denominational label of any type.
That, too, can be viewed as an opportunity; to see it as a threat is myopic at best.
The role and definition of the synagogue
are changing. We must identify and support
the communities of caring, committed, and
passionate young Jews who will redefine our
purpose and develop a traditional egalitarian Judaism that will bring meaning to
their lives and the lives of the generations
that will follow.
The college students who gathered in
Boston for the Koach kallah, thanks to
Women’s League, sent us a strong message.
They are committed to our future, but they
are not sure whether we are committed to
them. We have to listen to them carefully
or we will be left behind in the dust. CJ
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
43
9057-p44-45_Ruach_p2
5/3/12
2:43 AM
Page 44
A Ruach
Family Service
BY DR. PAMELA KIRSCHNER WEINFELD
I
N MAY 2010, RABBI MICHELLE
Robinson held a meeting at Temple Emanuel in Newton, Massachusetts, to find out why so few
school-aged children showed up at
Shabbat morning youth services.
Although there was a thriving pre-school service, there never seemed to be more than a
handful of school-aged kids at the service for
them. Was the town’s amazing Saturday morning soccer program an insurmountable obstacle to a successful youth service?
The outcome of that meeting – a monthly
lay-led family service – rejuvenated the youth
services, brought the parents closer together,
and strengthened their connection to Temple Emanuel. We even added to the synagogue’s membership roster! We hope our story
will inspire you to imagine what might be
possible at your own synagogue.
The idea for the Ruach Family Service
took shape at that May meeting. A few parents, beginning with the understanding that
working parents are away from their kids all
week, said that they would like a family service so they could be together on Shabbat
morning. Advocates of the family service
described their vision – the room would
have to be full. People had to know they
would see their friends there. The service
should be real. There would have to be a
true a sense of kavannah – intention. It
Dr. Pamela Kirschner Weinfeld, a dermatologist, lives in Newton, Massachusetts, with
her husband, Dr. Mark Weinfeld, and their
children, second- and third-generation members of Temple Emanuel. You can reach her
at [email protected].
44
should be monthly and the families should
participate. It would have to be special. If it
were, families would make an effort to
attend.
I had shown up at the meeting desperate for a service that my 8-year-old son could
relate to. He did not like singing with the
guitar in the youth service. The excitement in the room about a family service was
palpable, and we knew we had to build on
the momentum. I volunteered to lead the
first family service and insisted that we have
it right away – in July! Because there were
no other kids’ services offered in the summer, it seemed simple enough to try it.
Given the emphasis placed on the importance of a full room, my main focus was
to assign as many parts leading prayers as
possible, so that families would commit
to showing up. To make leading prayers
exciting, we made illustrated laminated cards
for each prayer – we call
them honor cards. We
added leadership cards,
which the kids fill with
star stickers for each
prayer they lead. To
entice the kids to attend,
we advertised heavily,
focusing on the makeyour-own ice cream sundaes with fun toppings that we’d have at the kiddush after the
service. I also planned a question and answer
session about the parashah, with candy for
anyone who tried to answer a question.
We sent out a lot of emails and sent up a
lot of prayers.
We picked a small classroom because our
expectations were low, but 30 people came
and the room overflowed. The kids did a
great job leading the prayers (with a little
assistance) and they liked the questions (and
the candy!). David Goldstone, one of the
original proponents of the service, offered
an important suggestion: “You need something for the parents. You need a d’var
Torah,” and he agreed to give it himself each
month. He also agreed to co-chair the family service and helped recruit more families for the next one. David mailed me
highlighted copies of sections from Rabbi
Elie Kaunfer’s book, Empowered Judaism,
stressing constant innovation as key to a successful community endeavor.
Because the classroom had been so full
for that first service, we moved our next service to a social hall. “Shock and awe” is a perfect description of how we
felt when 80 people showed
up – in mid August! That’s
when we knew the July service really had been a hit.
David gave an engaging
parashah summary and
d’var Torah, and then I led
a lively Q & A session and
gave out Twizzlers. Both parents and kids
loved it. During the prayer portion of the
service, I handed out the honor cards while
helping the kids lead the service, but soon
we learned that leading and organizing the
service at the same time was just too hectic. We needed more help.
Fortunately, more parents volunteered.
Increasing parental involvement turned out
to be key to our continued success. Par-
9057-p44-45_Ruach_p2
5/2/12
2:22 PM
Page 45
ents who became
more involved in
organizing the service became committed to attending,
growing the service
while also preventing burn-out on the
part of the original
organizers. The many roles allowed people with various skills to participate in different ways.
David continued to give his Torah summaries and divrai Torah each month, and
I kept my role as chazzanit and leader of the
Q & A. Anthony Lehv sent out humorous (and serious) email announcements.
Jenny McKee-Heinstein and Nicole Gann
recruited kids to lead the kids’ parts. Julie
Chivo premade name tags from lists of members and their school-aged children and
greeted all who attended with a warm smile,
so that everyone felt welcome. Michael
Robinson read Torah so we could add a short
Torah reading. Ana Volpi ushered the service – that is, she lined the kids up to minimize the time we spent waiting for each
child to lead the next prayer. Marc Stober
coordinated Torah readers, and Cheryl Stober created a Facebook page. Once we had
more volunteers, we avoided duplication of
efforts using a shared Google document, so
that the organizers could enter each assigned
part and everyone else could see it.
We innovated constantly. We chose a new
room with a carpeted floor to limit the
distracting noise of the wooden floor in the
social hall. In addition to nametags, we
started having each family introduce itself
before Adon Olam to make sure that the
service stayed warm and inviting. The synagogue staff and leadership were extremely
supportive, not only of the service but also
of the changes and new ideas.
The biggest stumbling block proved to
be finding the right siddur. It was important to us to have a genuine service, with
prayers in Hebrew and no musical instruments, which we felt made kids’ services too
concert-like. When two parents separately
confessed that they were struggling with the
prayers, we realized that we needed a simpler siddur with a full transliteration. Rabbi
Robinson suggested that we make our own.
Marc Stober volunteered to be editor-inchief. To create artwork, we organized an
art brunch on a Sunday morning at the synagogue. We provided paper, markers, and
stencils. The parents ate bagels and chatted while the kids made magic.
The kids love seeing their own artwork
in the siddur! In addition to making sure
that there was a full transliteration and translation for every spoken prayer, Marc added
such features as bold type for the parts the
congregation sings together. Thanks to our
siddur, the parents who needed transliter-
ations have become regular attendees, and
we have attracted many families with different levels of knowledge. In fact, one
parent later confided to me that the reason she feels so comfortable with our allHebrew service is that because the kids are
learning, she is not embarrassed that she
is learning, too.
We are amazed to see how much everyone has learned. It truly has been incredible to see the kids, even the shy ones, coming
forward to lead a prayer, with the whole
room rooting for them, and to see their faces
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
45
9057-p46-47_Tefillah_p2
5/2/12
3:26 AM
Page 46
TRANSFORMING TEFILLAH
BY BONNIE RIVA RAS
O
NE SIZE DOESN’T
always fit all, particularly when you are talking about people’s
spiritual needs. The traditional Conservative
prayer service doesn’t always work for everyone.
Kol Emeth in Palo Alto, California, is a
kehilla that is looking for creative ways to
experience tefillah in a new way. “We are
experimenting with multiple minyanim,”
Rabbi David Booth, one of the three rabbis
at Kol Emeth, said. Choices for its Saturday
morning program, which is called Kol Shabbat, include a study group using the Mitzvah Initiative curriculum from the Jewish
Theological Seminary, a coffee and schmoozing room for parents of children in a Shabbat school program, and a new Hebrew class
that is a gateway into the service. The programs are of varying lengths; when they
are over participants often go into the sanctuary and join the service there. A community Shabbat lunch follows services every
week.
When Kol Shabbat is in session, it generally draws about 200 adults and 100 children from its 613 family members. “Shabbat
attendance has gone up,” Booth said. “We
are appealing to parents who want to be
in the synagogue but may not want to come
into the main sanctuary. We want families to be here together for a whole Shabbat experience.”
Around 2005, Shabbat synagogue attendance was declining at Temple Emunah,
a 535-member kehilla in Lexington, Massachusetts, so a committee was formed to
grapple with ways to turn it around. The
46
next year, the committee decided to adopt
the Synaplex model for Shabbat because
“people experience Shabbat and tefillah in
different ways,” Rabbi David Lerner said.
Lerner is the head rabbi of Temple Emunah.
Synaplex, which ran from 2003 to 2010,
was part of STAR (Synagogues, Transformation and Renewal). “The model allowed
congregations to rethink the way they did
Shabbat and to find multiple entry ways
into the synagogue,” its founder, Rabbi
Hayim Herring, said. “The model gave congregations a way to invite people into the
synagogue to be part of a Shabbat community.”
Participating kehillot made their own
choices and found the things that worked
best for them. About 90 Conservative
kehillot took part in Synaplex officially but
many more have adopted a similar style
of multiple minyanim. The program is over
but the number of kehillot using its framework is growing.
Temple Emunah began a more-or-less
monthly program called Choose Your Own
Shabbat Adventure, which begins with
breakfast and then offers several options,
including meditation, yoga, or a traditional
Pesukei D’Zimra. It began in 2006 and still
is going strong today. The Torah service
selections include a traditional Torah reading, text study, and bibliodrama. There
are up to 20 different options but the congregation always ends up together as one
community. Shabbat morning attendance
went up from 100 people to around 450 on
those special Shabbatot.
Friday evenings are just as innovative. “We
wanted to bring in people who celebrate
Shabbat in different ways and combine it
with something social,” Lerner said. This
includes three summer Friday evenings,
when the proceedings begin with a barbeque,
outdoor Kabbalat Shabbat with musical
instruments, candle lighting, Maariv (held
outdoors whenever possible), and a community Shabbat dinner, ending with traditional singing. Scattered throughout the
year there are also creative Minchah, Maariv,
and Havdalah services that end with social
events.
Some kehillot hold multiple minyanim
every week. Shirat HaYam of the North
Shore in Swampscott, Massachusetts, is one
of them. It offers roughly 10 different
options for adults on Shabbat morning,
beginning with breakfast and including alternative tefillot with Rabbi Baruch HaLevi in
the chapel and a traditional Shacharit led
by the cantors in the sanctuary. There is also
Limmud School (sort of a hybrid
Synaplex/Hebrew school) for children on
Shabbat mornings. And there is a Shabbat café where people can nosh and
schmooze. The minyanim join in the sanctuary for a healing service and a d’var Torah,
text study, or bibliodrama, and the children
come into the sanctuary for a spirited and
musical ruach rally. Then there is Shabbat kiddush lunch for the community. “My
philosophy is that there is no one way to
speak to God,” HaLevi said. He estimates
that around 250 to 300 people attend. This
is up from around 40 on a pre-Synaplex
Shabbat.
Smaller kehillot can create innovative worship experiences too. “We have different
themes during the year to provide different types of tefillah experiences in the main
9057-p46-47_Tefillah_p2
5/2/12
3:26 AM
Page 47
service on either Friday or Saturday,” Rabbi
Daniel Schweber said. He is rabbi of Shaare
Tikvah, a 175-family kehillah in Scarsdale, New York. “The congregation offers
early morning yoga or a slower, more musical Pesukei D’Zimra, aptly called Stop and
Smell the Psalms,” he said. On some Shabbat mornings the service will focus on Torah,
and bibliodrama is added after the main
service. Creative Shabbat services are held
once a month.
A few times a year, Shaare Tikvah holds
a themed Friday evening service that includes
a dinner. During daylight savings time, when
Shabbat starts late, the kehilla holds a musical service with instruments. Service attendance goes up on the Fridays when there
is a special service and dinner.
Themed services do not have to be limited to Shabbat. The leaders of daily
minyanim also use innovative planning to
attract more participants. “Temple Emunah
is the only shul in the area that still holds
a daily minyan, and we are always looking
for new ideas to strengthen them,” Lerner
said. Last year, two minyan leaders, past president Fred Ezekiel and Cathy McDonald,
came up with a friends and peers model.
In that model, groups of people who work
together, are alumni of the same university, or share interests or background in some
other way, are invited to the
Minchah/Maariv minyan, which also
includes a food and schmooze element.
Themed minyanim are held on evenings
when it can be difficult to gather a quorum.
Themes have included MIT alumni, CUNY
alumni, the men’s club softball team, cycling
enthusiasts, and Israel advocates. The list
keeps growing.
Each month, the synagogue bulletin carries an article about the minyan. People who
are 10 for 10 – who attend ten minyanim
– are recognized in the bulletin. “The minyan isn’t full but the themed minyans have
helped,” Lerner said. “This model can be
used by other communities to build and
strengthen minyanim.” CJ
Ruach Family Service
grade-led Discovery Service inspired by it.
This new service is attracting 20 or 30 kids
each month, an attendance level that would
have been unthinkable two years ago. In
addition, several non-affiliated families who
heard about our service from friends and
started attending have gone on to join our
synagogue.
Founding the Temple Emanuel Ruach
Family Service has enriched our lives as Jews,
as families, and as a community and congregation. Now it’s your turn! Use our story
as your blueprint. It’s an endeavor worth the
effort. All you need is a minimum of three
or four committed families, someone who
can help lead the service, and someone who
can talk about the Torah parashah. If you
have someone who can chant a brief Torah
excerpt, that’s a plus. Don’t forget the Twizzlers and ice cream, of course. Go ahead and
try it.You are welcome to adapt our prayer
book!
You can read more about ruach Shabbat family services and see the siddur at
Temple Emanuel’s website. Go to temple
emanuel.com/ruach-shabbat-family-services. CJ
(and their parents’ faces) afterward, shining
with delight. The kids have all become more
confident with experience, and we now have
several who can belt out multiple prayers.
To celebrate these accomplishments and
the service’s first anniversary, we gave out
personalized trophies with Jewish stars to
all the kids. Now they have a concrete symbol that their effort at services is just as
important as their effort on the soccer field.
They also have enduring memories of fun,
lively, beautiful Shabbat mornings spent
at synagogue with family and friends.
After a few months working together, my
husband and I invited the Goldstones over
for Shabbat dinner. We realized that evening
that creating our service also was about building community. We started extending more
invitations, and the friendships that are
developing have strengthened everyone’s
ties to each other, to our service, and to Temple Emanuel.
The year after the founding of our service, the synagogue launched a monthly sixth-
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
47
9057-p48-49_Skyping_p2
5/3/12
2:45 AM
Page 48
HALACHAH IN THE MODERN WORLD
SKYPING THE MINYAN
BY RABBI DAVID LERNER
P
EOPLE WERE GIVING
me strange looks.00000000
I guess it was to be expected
– I had come into the minyan
and opened up my laptop,
which now was making
strange noises. People were curious about why
the rabbi would be disturbing the sanctity of
the daily minyan by playing with his email.
At the end of services, the mourners
observing yahrzeit got up to recite the
Mourner’s Kaddish. At that point I turned
to the laptop and looked in, and a woman
on the screen stood up to recite the Kaddish
with them.
I explained to the minyannaires that we
had a new participant in the Temple Emunah daily minyan. Her name is Maxine Marcus, though everyone calls her Max. She lives
in Amsterdam and works in the Hague,
where she serves as a war crimes prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal
for the former Yugoslavia.
The story behind the story: My wife,
Sharon Levin, and Max have been close
friends since they participated in USY’s
Poland Seminar/Israel Pilgrimage 25 years
ago. Theirs was among the first USY groups
to visit Poland to see the instruments of
the Nazi death camps. Both Max and Sharon
were profoundly moved and transformed
by that experience.
Max’s parents were survivors of the Holo-
Rabbi David Lerner is the spiritual leader
of Temple Emunah in Lexington, Massachusetts. He is president of the New England Rabbinical Assembly and co-chairs the
RA’s Commission on Keruv, Conversion and
Jewish Peoplehood.
48
caust. Her mother was deported from the
Hague in 1942 at age 12 and was imprisoned in more than 10 concentration camps.
She spent her 14th birthday in Auschwitz
and endured unspeakable horrors, tortured
by the infamous Dr. Josef Mengele. Growing up in the 1970s and ’80s, Max heard
these stories and internalized a profound
commitment to Judaism and a deep sense
of justice.
During her college years, Max spent her
summers volunteering at a Bosnian Muslim refugee camp helping the victims of war
crimes, often Muslim women. My wife also
was a volunteer during the Yugoslavian war
in the early 1990s. After law school, Max
worked for human rights in Africa and eventually wound up in the Hague.
In recent years, Max had been dealing
with her parents’ aging and the cancer that
Max Marcus and her mother, Stella Marcus, z’l.
eventually took
her mother’s
life. She discovered that it
is not easy to
say Kaddish in
Amsterdam. She and I realized that she could
participate in our daily minyan through the
free internet video calling service known
as Skype.
But would it be kosher? Interestingly
enough, 10 years ago Rabbi Avram Reisner wrote a teshuvah, a religious responsum
for the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards of the Rabbinical Assembly, explaining that should such technology arise (Skype
had not yet been created), it would be permissible for someone to join in a minyan,
although not to count in the quorum of 10,
and to recite the Kaddish. While it also
9057-p48-49_Skyping_p2
5/2/12
2:29 PM
would be allowed through the phone, it
is much better to have a real-time audiovisual link.
After examining dozens of sources and
precedents from thousands of years of Jewish history, Rabbi Reisner concluded that
a minyan may not be constituted over the
Internet, an audio- or video-conference,
or any other medium of long distance communication. Only physical proximity, that
is being in the same room with the shaliah
tzibbur (the prayer leader), allows a quorum
to be constituted.
Once a quorum has been duly constituted, however, anyone hearing the prayers
in that minyan may respond and fulfill his
or her obligations, even over long-distance
communications of any sort. A real-time
audio connection is required. Two-way connections to the whole minyan are preferable, though connection to the shaliach
tzibbur alone or a one-way connection linking the minyan to the mourner is sufficient.
Email and chat rooms or other typewritten connections do not suffice. Video connections are not necessary, but video without
audio also would not suffice.
Rabbi Reisner defines a hierarchy of preference. It is best to attend a minyan for the
full social and communal effect. A real-time
two-way audio-video connection, where the
mourner is able to converse with the members of the minyan and see and be seen by
them, is less desirable. Only in exigent circumstances should you fulfill your obligation by attaching yourself to a minyan
through a one-way audio medium, which
essentially is just overhearing the service.
As long as someone who is physically
present in the minyan recites the Mourner’s
Kaddish, a participant at another location
may recite it as well; this is not considered
a superfluous blessing.
As you can see, Skyping into the minyan is permissible according to Rabbi
Reisner’s teshuvah. It has been a powerful
experience, as members of the minyan got
to know Max, schmoozing with her for a
minute or two over Skype after minyan. This
has been a great blessing. It is a reminder
that our minyan is not just a gift to each participant – allowing us to experience the
power of God, prayer, and community –
Page 49
but it also reaches out to include all who
participate, even those on the other side
of the Atlantic Ocean.
Last summer, Max visited Temple Emunah in person. For the first time, our members, who had never been in the same room
with her but felt close to her through her
Skyped recitation of the Mourner’s Kaddish, were able to meet Max.
Today, we occasionally Skype in members who are ill as well as members of other
shuls who have heard of our Skype minyan.
It is our hope that many shuls will add this
option to their daily minyans.
Kol Yisrael areivin zeh ba’zeh – all Israel
is responsible for one another – whether
in person or through the internet.
You can see the full text of Wired to the
Kadosh Barukh Hu: Minyan via Internet,
at rabbinicalassembly.org/teshuvot/docs/
19912000/reisner_internetminyan.pdf See
also the RA Spotlight http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/story/skyping-minyan?tp=
323. CJ
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
49
9057-p50-51_BarMitzvah_p2
5/2/12
2:08 AM
W
O
N THE EVENING OF
Friday, June 5, 1959, 13-yearold Roberta Hirshfield celebrated her bat mitzvah at the
Astoria Center of Israel in
Queens, New York.
A bat mitzvah still was a relatively rare
occurrence. Roberta, however, had attended
Hebrew school and weekly Shabbat services
for many years, so it seemed a logical progression. For her bat mitzvah, she and another
girl in her Hebrew school class shared the
berakhot (blessings) for the haftarah and then
the haftarah itself. Roberta’s partner led
Aleinu and Roberta led Yigdal.
The families then went on to the social
hall, where the guests were treated to a catered
oneg Shabbat. The next morning, of course,
the members of the Astoria Center of Israel
heard a repeat of the haftarah that Roberta
chanted the night before – but this second
reading was the one that counted as the synagogue’s official haftarah recitation.
Nevertheless young Roberta was thrilled
with this milestone. It did not occur to
her at the time to compare her own accomplishment to that of her brother Stuart, who
was 4 1/2 years older. Stuart’s bar mitzvah
was marked by his aliyah to the Torah on
Shabbat morning and celebrated with a
splendid kiddush, and again that night with
an even more opulent party, complete with
a live band and a multicourse sit-down meal.
Also unlike Stuart’s religious rite of passage, there was no hefty photo album, just
a few snapshots of a proud young girl in a
Lisa Kogen is education director of Women’s
League for Conservative Judaism.
50
Page 50
omenSpeak
Bat Mitzvah: Take Two
BY LISA KOGEN
fancy white dress. But most significant of all,
Roberta never again was called upon by
the Astoria Center of Israel to demonstrate
those skills that she so ardently had acquired
over more than 8 years of Hebrew school.
It was now 50 years later. Roberta Hirshfield Schreiber – wife, mother, and grandmother – had watched as several generations
of women participated in the no longer
exceptional bat mitzvah ceremony when
girls are called to the Torah by their Hebrew
names on Shabbat morning, wearing their
own tallitot. They recite the blessings, read
from the Torah, and lead services, full and
equal participants in the congregation’s
ritual life. It was time, Roberta decided, that
she too should become an active participant
rather than a mere spectator.
After consultation with Rabbi Gary Parras of Temple Israel in Orlando, Florida,
where she has lived for many years, Roberta
again honed her Hebrew reading skills, this
time to include the Torah trope. On a Shabbat morning in June, close to her original
bat mitzvah date, Roberta Schreiber was
called to the Torah by her Hebrew name,
Raza Tova bat Zev veChannah. She recited
the blessing, read from the Torah, and later
made kiddush with the kiddush cup that
was presented to her at her first bat mitzvah. This time Roberta wore a tallit, beautifully decorated with images of the
matriarchs. The following day she invited
her guests to a party, complete with a live
band and a multicourse sit-down meal.
But more significantly, Roberta subsequently became a regular in the rotation of
the Yad Squad at Temple Israel, the synagogue’s
cadre of lay Torah and haftarah readers.
In her dvar Torah Roberta spoke about
9057-p50-51_BarMitzvah_p2
5/2/12
2:08 AM
Samson’s mother, the subject of her haftarah, who had no identity of her own
beyond being Manoach’s wife and her son’s
mother. Roberta spoke about her own journey from her first to her second bat mitzvah as a spiritual quest, and as a reflection
of women’s progress.
Roberta’s two bat mitzvah celebrations
are more than just a human interest story.
Rather, they give a face to the trajectory
of modern Jewish feminism over the past
50 years.
This year, 2012, the bat mitzvah celebration is the topic of much discussion.
This March marked the 90th anniversary
of Judith Kaplan’s bat mitzvah, the first one
celebrated in the United States. It was a
momentous event – extraordinary really –
and no doubt partially attributable to the
fact that Judith was the musically gifted
and Hebraically knowledgeable daughter
of Mordecai Kaplan, the founder of Reconstructionist Judaism. But despite Kaplan’s
progressive vision, which profoundly influenced Conservative Judaism, bat mitzvah celebrations remained relatively rare
until after the Second World War.
By the 1960s, the Friday night bat mitzvah had become a regular rite of passage in
most Conservative synagogues. Like the
bar mitzvah, the bat mitzvah served as a
public coming of age. But like the 1959
bat mitzvah of Roberta Hirshfield, the ceremony was a construct. Except for leading
a few permissible prayers, non-liturgical
readings often were picked because they
were about women (Deborah, Ruth and
Hannah were very popular) or were taken
from the week’s haftarah. Unfortunately, a
young girl’s bat mitzvah generally marked
the end of her inclusion in the religious life
of the synagogue, not the beginning.
Once the bat mitzvah became established,
other issues arose. What about the status
of a girl after celebrating her bat mitzvah?
Was this to be a one-time event, where she
acquired skills that would never be used
again? While formal approval to extend aliyot
to women came in 1955 in a minority opinion from the Rabbinical Assembly’s Committee on Jewish Law and Standards, most
congregations followed the majority opinion, which did not sanction the practice.
Page 51
It was not until the early 1970s, with the
grassroots pressure from women for full
parity in religious ritual and then the 1973
CJLS takkanah (rabbinic enactment) allowing women to be counted in the minyan,
that the pace of egalitarianism accelerated.
In short order the bat mitzvah was integrated into the Shabbat morning service
and became the equivalent of the bar mitzvah. The process, beginning with Judith
Kaplan in 1922, had reached its logical
manifestation by becoming commonplace.
But this change did not affect only young
women. As bnot mitzvah became equal
partners in the religious lives of their congregations, their mothers, aunts, and grandmothers began to seek entrée as well. With
egalitarianism the rule rather than the
exception, women – many of whom had
grown up with little or no Jewish education – embarked upon ambitious programs
of acquiring Hebrew literacy and studying
classical Jewish texts. Women’s entry into
what was once the exclusive domain of men
led to the development of new Jewish
women’s rituals, including the adult bat
mitzvah.
Over the past several decades, hundreds
of synagogues across North America have
offered a wide variety of adult bat mitzvah
classes and learning opportunities for
women. The benefits accrue not only to
the women who derive personal satisfaction from the acquisition of the skills
required to daven and read Torah, but to
congregational life as well. As more and
more congregations rely on laity to read
Torah and lead services, the inclusion of
women has increased the ranks of learned
and actively engaged communities.
For nearly a century, Women’s League
for Conservative Judaism has been devoted
to providing a wide variety of educational
initiatives to its members. Mirroring developments in synagogues, thousands of
Women’s League members have participated in adult bat mitzvah programs. The
phenomenon was so popular and the
demand so great that in 2002 Women’s
League commissioned a bat mitzvah curriculum, Etz Hayim He, for Conservative
congregations. Educators have hailed the
two-year course of study, written by Dr.
Lisa Grant, who received her PhD from
the Jewish Theological Seminary, as a model
of adult learning. In addition, starting in
the early 1990s Women’s League created
Kolot Bik’dushah, a society of qualified Torah
readers and prayer leaders. To date, nearly
a thousand women and post-bat mitzvah
girls (Banot Bik’dushah) have been admitted to the ranks of this elite society.
When a Jewish child is born, whether
male or female, the parents entreat the Creator that they might raise him or her to
“a life of Torah, chuppah (marriage) and
ma’asim tovim (good behavior/good
deeds).” It wasn’t so long ago – barely a
generation – that the opportunity for
women to be raised to a life of Torah was
pragmatic and bound to domestic obligations – keeping a kosher home, raising
Jewish children, and observing private
mitzvot. Today a woman’s life of Torah can
include all areas of Jewish living, both
private and public – and the bat mitzvah
has become, finally, a celebration of
beginning. CJ
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
51
9057-p52-53_Words_p2
5/3/12
7:19 AM
Page 52
WORDS OF THE WEEK
B Y D A V I D P. S I N G E R
I
N THE 1970S THE FEDERATION of Jewish Men’s Clubs developed the first broadly based adult
education Hebrew reading program
in the Conservative movement.
FJMC’s Hebrew literacy program was
based on the concept of laypeople teaching
one another using two traditional texts,
Shalom Aleichem and Ayn Keloheynu. More
than 200,000 people throughout North
America have learned to read Hebrew and to
participate more meaningfully in our prayer
services thanks to this program.
Last year, the Temple Israel Men’s Club
of Natick, Massachusetts, a member of
FJMC’s New England region, and I added
a new element to the program. Not long ago
I passed my 20-year mark at Temple Israel
and I realized that if I had learned an average of just one Hebrew word a week during
Shabbat services, I’d now know more than
1,000 Hebrew words. Using the approach
that if we learn a little bit at a time we can
acquire a substantial vocabulary, FJMC and
I have created the Divrei HaShavua – Words
of the Week initiative. If we look at learning Hebrew as a lifelong process rather than
a one-time class, the challenge of learning
a new language becomes surmountable.
Each week, the program’s website offers
five Hebrew words from the Torah portion
with their English translations and transliterations. Synagogues insert the words into
their Shabbat flyers and weekly emails. The
words are selected by volunteers from Temple Israel of Natick and by men’s club members from California to Toronto to Florida
whom I met at the 2011 FJMC international
convention. A sample of the table of words
for parashat Noach is shown below:
David P. Singer, a founder of his men’s club,
is a vice president of FJMC’s New England
region.
52
To participate simply copy the weekly
table from the website into a Shabbat flyer.
My feeling is that no one should leave the
Shabbat morning service after reading the
story of Noah without knowing the Hebrew
word for flood (kucn) or the story of Joseph
without knowing the word for dream (oukj).
Divrei HaShavua has the potential to stimulate interest in the parashah for everyone, including those who often don’t feel
ch:verse
Hebrew
a connection with the Torah service. This is
one small step to help make services more
accessible to current and potential synagogue members. It might even inspire some
people to participate in the FJMC’s Hebrew
literacy program or in another Hebrew class.
For more information about Divrei
HaShavua, go to www.fjmc.org and click
on Activities and then Hebrew Literacy or
email [email protected]. CJ
transliteration
English
6:9
tsadik
righteous
6:14
teva
ark
7:6
mabul
flood
9:12
berit
covenant
10:8
gibor
strong, mighty
Words provided by Marty Levine of Bet Breira Samu-El Or Olom in Miami, FL
Camel Around
Your Neck
science; the more you know about the
parashah’s details, the more nuanced the
connection between the tie and the reading can be.
It’s educational for the rest of the kehilla
as well. People look at his tie and try to
figure the connection out. “In most shuls,
people ask what the rabbi said,” Freddy said.
“At BJ, they ask what the rabbi said, and
then they ask what tie the gabbai wore.”
Freddy still has one tie on his wish list.
He would like one with a big red letter C
– that’s Beshallach again, for the crossing.
Camels, olives, pieces of silver, Mickey
Mouse – an entire world of Torah hangs
around one man’s neck. CJ
9057-p52-53_Words_p2
5/2/12
2:38 PM
Page 53
Letters
LOST SYNAGOGUES
Rabbi Prouser.
solidating, closing, or otherwise changing.
My own is considering a wonderful rabbi
who happens to be female. The Reform temple has doubled in membership during the
current term of their rabbi, a woman whom
everyone there loves.
Look at the true issues that drive membership, especially the relevancy of the synagogue in peoples’ lives. The argument that
it has much to do with gender is underresearched at best.
HARRIS SHILAKOWSKY
Brockton, Massachusetts
LIGHT UNTO THE NATIONS
I heartily agree with Rabbi Joseph H. Prouser’s
proposal (“Acknowledging American Exceptionalism,” Spring 2012). I have long felt that
the United States was given the mission to
be a light unto the nations. Despite its struggles with various human failings, it has to
some extent already achieved that goal. There
is hope that as time passes, it will move
further in that direction. It would be well to
adopt the Harachaman prayer suggested by
A Personal Miracle
for a vibrant Masorti movement in Ukraine.
Reuven met his wife, Lena, in 2004 on
one of those trips. The couple now has
two daughters, Miriam and Alisia.
Reuven’s path to the rabbinate was not an
easy one. His studies were intensive,
demanding, and all in Hebrew – most of his
colleagues in rabbinical school were native
Hebrew speakers. He combined the usual
academic disciplines of Jewish history, Talmud, halachah, and Mishnah with his regular visits to Ukraine.
Reuven feels that completing rabbinical school and achieving his goal of becoming the spiritual and community leader he
dreamed of being is a personal miracle,
driven by his own connection with God.
Reuven is charismatic, approachable, and
lovable. He is bright, warm, and charming,
and clearly he understands the challenges
DR. STANLEY SCHEINDLIN
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
MORE ABOUT THAT COVER
I read with great interest the letters to the editor stemming from the cover photo of the
Winter 2011/2012 issue. The photo
prompted a fascinating colloquy between me
and my rabbi, which served to uncover some
false preconceptions (I presumed – wrongly
– that it was a picture of two men holding
hands) and led to some solid learning that
touched on the custom and practice of wearing tefillin, current gender issues within the
Conservative rabbinate, and more. I suggest that the photo itself has enduring didactic value, one I would certainly like to put
into play in my shul’s School of Jewish Studies. I think showing it to children within our
movement and asking them what they see in
it will lead to many fruitful conversations
about important issues of Conservative Jewish thought and practice.
Having been a member of the Laurelton Jewish Center for more than 50 years, until its
closing several years ago, I resent that Ellen
Levitt (Spring 2012) made Bernie Madoff
seem to be its only claim to fame. There
was much more to our history than Madoff. Rabbis Saul Teplitz and Howard Singer
were our religious leaders. Dr. Morton Siegel,
who became director of education at United
Synagogue, was principal of our huge Hebrew
school. Other former Laureltonians who have
contributed positively to our society should
have been cited, rather than that one disgrace
of a man. While there is not a Laurelton Jewish Center any longer, just look around the
Jewish United States and Israel and you will
find former LJC students in leadership positions. I am an example. Having been a vice
president at LJC I am now a vice president
at Congregation B’nai Sholom Beth David,
one of the most vibrant Conservative synagogues in the New York area.
And by the way I still live in Laurelton.
JOEL F. BROWN
Past President,
Am Yisrael Conservative Congregation
Northfield, Illinois
ALICE PURUS
Laurelton, New York
of developing Jewish life in his home country. Throughout his studies he never forgot that his purpose was to share his passion
for Judaism with other Ukrainian Jews.
In a moving address at his ordination ceremony in February, Reuven told the assembled guests – faculty, staff, family, and friends
– that the week’s Torah reading, Beshallach,
recounted the miracle of the parting of the
Red Sea. He drew a parallel between this
miracle and the miracle in his own life. In
his view, both the Israelites crossing the Red
Sea and his developing an entirely new Jewish identity required support and cooperation from many people, a belief and
commitment to God, and of course God’s
involvement to complete the action. Reuven
is one of only a handful of Ukrainian Jews,
beginning with little or no understanding
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
53
9057-p54-55_WLConvention_p2
5/2/12
4:18 PM
Page 54
JW MARRIOTT SPA & RESORT
54
9057-p54-55_WLConvention_p2
5/2/12
4:18 PM
Page 55
WOMEN’S LEAGUE CONVENTION
Every two years, members of Women’s League for
Conservative Judaism gather for four days of
outstanding speakers and leading scholars, inspiring
services, valuable workshops, in-depth training and
leadership development, region meetings and parties.
This year’s convention, in exciting Las Vegas,
promises to be better than ever! While what happens
in Vegas might stay in Vegas for some people, our
delegates will leave ready to greet the new dawn of
Women’s League with a focus on personal growth,
creating healthy sisterhoods, and celebrating
Conservative/Masorti Judaism.
Plans include:
• Being a Conservative Jew: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow, by Rabbi Elliot Dorff
• An Evening of A & E: Fun (and some learning) celebrating the arts, both high and
popular
• A Night on the Town! Take advantage of the pleasures our host city has to offer
• The unveiling of the new Women’s League Strategic Plan that will usher the organization into the 21st century as a vital, integral network for all Conservative Jewish
women
Register online at www.wlcj.org
• Jewel in the Crown Awards to sisterhoods that demonstrate their commitment,
excellence and creativity in programming. Last year over 100 sisterhoods won. You
don’t want to be left out in 2012!
• Celebration of 70 years of Torah Fund
DELEGATE FEES (Rates for commuters and
• Tribute to Honorary Convention Chair Blanche Meisel
hotel guests are the same. Hotel registration is separate.)
• Tikkun olam project supporting veterans, with featured speaker Rabbi Bonnie Koppell
FULL-TIME DELEGATES (Includes meals
from Sunday dinner through Wednesday lunch)
• Specialized programming for sisterhood presidents
Early Bird Special
(through September 28)
• Installation of officers and board
$935
• Great shopping in the exhibit hall for Judaica, toys, books, jewelry, and more
First Time Delegate Special
(through September 28)
$835
Enjoy discounts for first-time and early-bird registrants
After September 28
$1000
• Innovative workshops for personal fulfillment
• Authors corner
FEATURED SPEAKERS
PART-TIME DELEGATES (Includes any 3
or 6 consecutive meals)
3 consecutive meals
$340
6 consecutive meals
$680
HOTEL REGISTRATION: Hotel registration is
not included in the convention registration fees and
must be done directly through the hotel. The special
rate for Women’s League delegates is $200 for all
three nights, double occupancy.
Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson, dean of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies
Rabbi Elliot Dorff, Rector, Sol & Anne Dorff Distinguished Service Professor in
Philosophy at the American Jewish University
Dr. Arnold Eisen, chancellor of the Jewish Theological Seminary
Rabbi Bonnie Koppell, Associate Rabbi of Temple Chai in Phoenix, Arizona, and
Command Chaplain of the 807th Medical Command (Deployment Support) in the U.S.
Army Reserve, where she holds the rank of colonel.
Rabbi Gail Labovitz, associate professor of Rabbinic Literature at the American
Jewish University
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
55
9057-p56_Bylaws
5/2/12
2:11 AM
Page 56
UNITED SYNAGOGUE'S NEW BYLAWS
BY JOANNE PALMER
O
N MARCH 18, THE
United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism’s board of
trustees voted to accept new
bylaws. This was the second
reading for those bylaws, and
the second time they passed. Both times,
the vote in favor was overwhelming, much
higher than the already formidable-sounding two-thirds majority that was required.
With that second vote the bylaws were
accepted, along with new standard operating procedures to support them. United Synagogue now will begin its second century
in 2013 as a revitalized, reshaped, and reenergized organization.
The bylaws are a direct result of the strategic plan that the board accepted last March.
It took courage for many of the board
members to vote yes, and that they did so
anyway was a testament to their commitment
to United Synagogue. One of the changes
the bylaws now mandate is that the board
will be smaller, and another is that board
members are expected to give United Synagogue not only time and energy but also
to see it as a philanthropic opportunity, and
an opportunity, moreover, that they can share
with their friends. Many board members,
some of whom had been with us for years, or
even decades, had to vote themselves off
the board. That was pure self-sacrifice, and
we honor them for it.
The new bylaws will make United Synagogue’s governance more agile and responsive, not only by reducing the size of the board
and the number of committees the board
oversees, but also by redefining the partnership between the executive committee,
the board, other lay leaders, and United Synagogue’s staff. The committees will oversee
the areas that the strategic plan recognized as
core to the organization’s mission – kehilla
strengthening and transformation, education, young adult engagement, and assisting
new and emerging kehillot. (A kehilla, or
56
sacred community, is the term the framers of
the strategic plan have chosen to describe the
various communities that make up United
Synagogue, feeling that the change in wording reflects the change in orientation.) The
new bylaws will increase the organization’s
accountability to the member kehillot. That
accountability will be institutionalized in the
relationship between the General Asssembly,
which will be composed of a member from
each kehilla. There are many mechanisms
that will speed and oversee that process,
demand a new focus on priorities, measure
whether those priorities have been achieved,
and empower staff to implement the changes.
United Synagogue also will engage with
lay leaders who are not on the board in a
different way. We will recruit them to offer
their services as kehilla ambassadors or expert
volunteers, sharing their expertise, teaching,
and training.
Leadership training is one of the areas where
our member kehillot most want help. Leaders would like help in making themselves
more effective at the positions to which
they have been elected. They would like to
be able to grow not only managerially but
spiritually, and they would like their kehillot
to become places where people come for spiritually and emotionally transformative experiences, to learn more about their people and
themselves. They also would like help in identifying and training the next generation of
kehilla leaders. In response to that need,
we have expanded and reimagined Sulam.
That program used to train new and prospective synagogue leaders; now, it has become
a three-part enterprise that includes Sulam
for Current Leaders, Sulam for Presidents,
and Sulam for Emerging Leaders. The goal
– we would call it a dream but it is achievable – is to train 5,000 leaders in the next five
years. Think what that will do for Conservative Judaism!
Another change that has resulted directly
from the strategic plan and the new bylaws
is the system of kehilla relationship managers.
Our KRMs are our grassroots support system.
United Synagogue and Conservative
Judaism represent and embody Jewish life as
the product of eternal truth, millennia of history and tradition, and openness to the world
as it is now. It is the vital center of North
American Jewish life, the place where tensions are negotiated and challenges are faced.
The new bylaws, with their new understanding of the relationship between the central organization and the kehillot, are a
necessary tool, a way to help us balance on
the high wire.
“I am very proud of the collaboration
between our professional staff and our lay
leadership in crafting these new bylaws,” international president Richard Skolnik said. “The
endgame is to provide a refocused energy that
truly has an impact on the services that we
provide to our more than 600 kehillot.”
“The vote is a major achievement in United
Synagogue’s reorganization,” CEO Rabbi
Steven Wernick said. “It aligns new strategies with governance, staff, and structures.
Our leaders affirmed the wisdom of our mission, vision, and strategic plan, our commitment to excellence, and the value we
add both to our affiliated kehillot and to
the larger Jewish world.
“‘The person who occupies himself with
the needs of the community – it is as though
he occupies himself with Torah,’ the Talmud
tells us. United Synagogue’s leaders listened
to the needs of its community of kehillot,
and it acted on them. This courageous vote
will lay the foundation for our next 100 years.”
The new bylaws are the next step in the
path that has taken us from the creation of
the coalition of Conservative leaders that
hammered out the strategic plan to now. We
look forward to the strengthening and revitalization of United Synagogue and of Conservative Judaism. We will achieve that work
together. CJ
9057-p57-58_Men'sVoices
5/2/12
2:39 PM
Page 57
HEARING MEN’S VOICES
A Signature Program of FJMC
EDITED BY ART SPAR
The 2011 Rosh Hashanah issue of CJ included
the article “A Mentsch is Born,” about FJMC’s
Hearing Men’s Voices program. Since that time
HMV programs have proliferated across the
continent. Eight mentschen gathered for a (virtual) conversation in early December.
Moderator Paul Davidson (Temple Israel,
Sharon, Massachusetts): Each of us is a
Hearing Men’s Voices leader. Our goal
tonight is to share our best practices with
each other. Who’d like to begin?
Mark Givarz (Congregation B’nai
Amoona, St. Louis, Missouri): Our HMV
theme this year is spirituality. On Rosh
Hashanah we did a Hearing Men’s Voices
program as an alternative to the Musaf service on the second day. (We modified the rules
to allow women to join in.) The topic was
seeking God. We formed two circles of about
14 people each to discuss the questions:
Do you ever seek God? If so, have you found
God? The groups talked for about 90 minutes, and we could have gone on for hours.
The big discovery was that people can find
spirituality in alternative ways to prayer.
Neal Fineman (Temple Israel, Sharon,
Massachusetts): Our guys are passionate
about their participation. We average about
16 guys; there’s usually a lot of laughing; the
guys enjoy it. It’s really catching on. We don’t
have to make phone calls anymore. They
just come.
Bob Braitman (Temple Shaare Tefilah,
Norwood, Massachusetts): Men who come
to HMV aren’t necessarily involved in other
synagogue activities. I went to one program
and I didn’t recognize any of the faces. Since
I go to services regularly, I realized that
the HMV guys were completely different.
By introducing HMV into synagogue life,
we’ve created a completely new on-ramp to
the Jewish community. In his article in
this issue of CJ, Rabbi Charles Simon’ writes
about guys who aren’t turned on by traditional prayer.
ence that lay people, not professionals, have
run the best sessions. The most important
criteria for group leadership are to be a good
listener, to be empathetic and show caring.
It’s about being heard. It’s not about a professional providing wisdom. The leader should
come across as, “I’m a guy like you, let’s talk.”
Mark Travis (Temple Beth Judea, Buffalo
Grove, Illinois): Our HMV group has been
attracting about 15 to 20 people per session.
How do we get people involved? We conducted a survey among young guys in their
30s and 40s. They told us that they don’t
need any more formal religion. They get
enough from their wives and synagogue.
They wanted time with other men to socialize and discuss issues men have in common.
The one topic all the men share is children. How should we talk to our children?
Like Paul said, the most important recruitment tool is being asked by another man
to participate. Our slogan is “I hear voices,
voices at home, at work, at play, voices in
the synagogue, from my family, but…who
hears my voice?”
Gary Smith (Adath Israel Congregation,
Cincinnati, Ohio): At our last HMV session, we asked each of the participants to
discuss the most important lesson or statement that their father or grandfather taught
them that most changed their life; in other
words, a life lesson. There were multiple
generations in the room, and the men were
blown away by the similarities and differences shared by men of different ages. But
what was most effective was that we only
knew each other for years as a name and
a face. Who knew what they were like inside?
Now we know each other. We can interact and have a more man-to-man conversation. Now we don’t just say hello. We stop
and talk, ask questions, share something
about ourselves. We truly involved Jewish
men in Jewish life.
Bruce Gordon (Congregation Olam Tikvah, Fairfax, Virginia): I’m just getting
started, but HMV has perceptions that need
to be overcome. Should the leader be a
trained psychologist? Can we do this without years of experience? I’m helping get
groups started in Fairfax, Rockville,
Potomac, Gaithersburg, and in the Tidewater region. What advice can you offer me?
Bob: One of the greatest misconceptions
about HMV is directly related to Bruce’s concerns about not being a health care professional. He’s asking himself whether he’s
qualified to run a session. It’s my experi-
Bob: I’ve attended several gatherings where
men have been brought to tears. I was
shocked the first time. Have any of you had
that experience?
Neal: I was brought to tears a few times.
It happened to me in an HMV session at
the FJMC international convention. I was
among strangers. I was just thinking about
my relationship with my father and I lost it.
I didn’t know these people, and I didn’t know
how they would react because a lot of them
were new to HMV, but that’s what I needed
to do. But I was brought to tears, and it was
CJ — S U M M E R 2 0 1 2
57
9057-p57-58_Men'sVoices
5/2/12
2:39 PM
a wonderful release. It was good for me, and
I wanted to share with them that you can
do this kind of thing.
Paul: I’ve been in numerous sessions hysterically laughing and crying, and every place
in between. There are too few places where
men can speak in a safe manner. I’ve seen
guys linger after an HMV session not wanting to part with each other because they’ve
formed bonds. Now I see guys hug when
they see each other in shul. Sometimes when
I see an HMV buddy, we give each other
a knowing glance because we’ve shared something very deep.
Art Spar (New York, New York): HMV
doesn’t create emotion. The emotions are
already there. We’re creating an environment to release them or experience them.
These emotions are residing there all the
time and we create something that allows
them to come to the surface.
My HMV experience in Manhattan has
been interesting. We’ve brought together an
eclectic mix of guys from rabbis to non-shulgoers. We meet over dinner. Our first meeting was in a kosher Indian restaurant. The
next time it was pizza and salad at my house
with a bottle of scotch and some wine on the
side. We’re not part of any synagogue or men’s
club but we use FJMC materials. We’ve gotten to know each other, our roots and our
dreams; and we plan on continuing as long
as we enjoy it. We’re just a bunch of Jewish men involving ourselves in Jewish life.
A Personal Miracle
of Judaism, who have been inspired to educate others about Judaism. In his ordination
address, he also explained that Beshallach
is in the book of Shemot, the book that we
call Exodus but whose name literally translates to Names. The list of names of those
people who have helped him academically,
spiritually, and even financially is incredibly long, but he could not have reached
his goal without each of them.
Reuven acknowledges that now that he
58
Page 58
Paul: Is it better to meet at a synagogue
or at home?
Art: I’ve been to both. The informality of
a home setting allows guys to connect in
ways that a synagogue does not.
Bob: Very few synagogues have comfortable spaces. I remember a meeting in a library
sitting around a conference table. It was not
intimate in the way it would have been in
a living room. The big problem with the
synagogue is the formality of the setting. It’s
not the fact that there’s a Torah down the
hall, it’s actually the space itself. And temple classrooms are worse with the little chairs!
It’s too bad but most synagogues are not
warm spaces.
Paul: Why are you so passionate about Hearing Men’s Voices?
I remember running a session about the
high holy days. It forced me to think about
what the Days of Awe meant to me. I discovered that it wasn’t only the religious aspect
of the day that draws my focus. It’s the memories of being at my father’s side, holding
his hand, that opened a floodgate of feelings that are always there but rarely experienced.
Paul: In the Jewish world, there’s nothing
else like Hearing Men’s Voices.
Art: There’s nothing more important than
human contact. We have lots of mixed sex
settings, but men are unique, our experiences are different than women’s. There’s
something about a men-only session that
allows that uniqueness to shine, to flower.
The camaraderie is special. I enjoy it, I need
it.
Bob: Many men today don’t know how to
form relationships. We get most of our relationships through our wives as couples. We’ve
lost the art of conversation, and we’ve lost
the art of community. I want a place where
men can come together, in a forum that isn’t
threatening, to talk about things that are sitting in our hearts and minds, in plain sight,
or that we’re completely unaware of. HMV
is an extraordinary resource – there’s no other
venue like it. The dividend is it will strengthen
our synagogues, our clubs, and our communities, but the real value is that it makes
our lives richer.
Neal: It’s powerful. It’s a place to find your
passion. I’ve never been to a session I didn’t value. You see your own life in the expression of others. There’s common ground
we all share. Hearing it from others adds
a powerful perspective to our own lives.
has completed one challenge, another has
opened up as he tries to bring Masorti
Judaism to the estimated 100,000 Jews who
live in Ukraine. For the last 20 years,
Midreshet Yerushalayim and Masorti Olami
have worked to create a base of supporters and a core of Masorti communities in
Kiev, Chernovitz, Donetsk, Kharkov, and
other cities around the country. The work
of developing committed, passionate, and
stable kehillot with ongoing Jewish lifecycle and calendar programming still is to
come. We are sure that his determination,
along with a little help from God, will enable
Reuven to meet these challenges.
Should you visit Kiev or other cities in
Ukraine, we invite you to spend Shabbat or
a festival with a Masorti community and see
just how well things are going. CJ
Paul: It’s a non-competitive experience with
no performance expectations. You don’t have
to know Hebrew. There are no skills
required. CJ
Advertise in CJ
FALL 2012
Ad Reservations due
June 18
TO ADVERTISE CALL 917-668-6809
9057-p59-60_EndPages
5/2/12
2:12 AM
Page 59
5/2/12
CJ
,ukue
2:12 AM
Page 60
VOICES OF CONSERVATIVE / MASORTI JUDAISM
820 Second Avenue
•
11th Floor
•
New York, NY 10017
PRSRT STD
U.S. Postage
PAID
CJ Voices
5/2/12
2:12 AM
Page 61
CJ
,ukue
VOICES OF CONSERVATIVE / MASORTI JUDAISM
PRINTED IN THE USA

What We Eat - United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism

Transcription

Similar documents

Celebrating Tradition, Embracing the Future!

Walk For Our Shul - Forest Hills Jewish Center

March-April-2013-Mes.. - Forest Hills Jewish Center

Media Guide - Moment Magazine

JCORE Choveret for Youth Groups - LJY

The Shofar - Beth Am Shalom

February 2014

for Pesach 2013 - EDDIE`S KOSHER TRAVEL

Winter 2010-2011

Spring 2012 - Jewish Historical Society of South Carolina

The Role of the Forgotten Mourner

mazal tov - Mizrachi

Obermeyer Award: Hans-Peter Klein

Caulfield Beth HaMedrash Caulfield Beth HaMedrash Caulfield Beth

stand for what you believe in. be a councillor.