tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-71858440916152544852024-03-05T14:53:41.907-05:00WHC BlogAn Online Project of Washington Hebrew Congregation in Washington, D.C.WHC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17186891093360505771noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-62651426759850831272012-03-14T15:52:00.000-04:002012-03-14T15:52:06.472-04:00Inspiration from Our Founders<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
One of the things I find striking about texts from the early history of Reform Judaism is how relevant they remain. In class this week, the issue of the reformers' motivations was raised several times. Did they just want to assimilate? Did they push reform for political reasons?</div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
These somewhat cynical motivations certainly played a role. But I am convinced that the birth of Reform Judaism was motivated primarily by true religious commitment. Personally, I believe our founders were authentic in their belief that Judaism can and must change in keeping with the course of human history.</div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
Their struggle for a meaningful Jewish experience in the modern context remains our struggle today. In his opening address to the Breslau Rabbinical Conference in 1846, Abraham Geiger described it this way:</div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
The conditions are difficult, and confusion in religious affairs appears to be on the increase; despite this you are in this conference again making the courageous attempt to place the pure eternal content of Judaism in a form suited to the present and thus to breathe into it a new and powerful spirit. You wish to convince, to lead to the truth, not to forge bonds and fetters; you know full well that you do not appear here as guardians of consciences, that you have no sovereign power over the inalienable religious freedom of congregations and individuals; nay, you would repudiate such power were it to be offered you, for true religion can prosper and grow only in the atmosphere of freedom of conviction. (quoted in David Philipson, <i>The Reform Movement in Judaism</i>) </blockquote>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
There are countless similar examples, romantic invocations of the spiritual and intellectual project of Reform Judaism. Perhaps they are better suited to their romantic era—but I can't help but feel that studying, reading, and hearing our ideological predecessors would give us a great sense of purpose, pride, and identity as Reform Jews. </div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<br /></div>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-77441367554591299982012-03-07T10:33:00.000-05:002012-03-07T10:33:34.318-05:00Where Did "Jewish" Names Come From?<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/39/Die_deutschen_Kaiser_Joseph_II.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/39/Die_deutschen_Kaiser_Joseph_II.jpg" width="188" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Emperor Joseph II</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
In class this week, we talked about the <a href="http://www.myjewishlearning.com/history/Modern_History/1700-1914/Emancipation_and_Enlightenment/In_the_West.shtml">emancipation</a> of the Jews of Europe—the political, legal, and cultural process that brought Jews increasing civil rights and freedom from the legal and other disabilities imposed on them during the medieval period. We looked at Jewish emancipation from the perspective of the civil authorities, how the "improvement of the Jews" and their assimilation into the social and economic life of various countries was seen as an enlightened, humanitarian goal.</div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
Even if well-intentioned, not all of that assimilation was voluntary. In the 18th and 19th centuries, decrees granting Jews political rights also came with restrictions: Jews were forbidden to use Hebrew or Yiddish in legal documents, rabbis were forbidden to perform marriages without a civil license, and <i>Jews were compelled to adopt standardized names</i>.</div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
For most of Jewish history, Jews didn't have "last names." I was just Noah "son of Neil" or Noah "from New Jersey." But in 1787, Hapsburg Emperor Joseph II decreed that Jews must adopt regular family names, to be passed down from generation to generation. Other rulers followed his example. In some countries, the names Jews chose had to be approved by the government; in others, there was a predetermined list of acceptable Jewish names.</div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
After class someone asked if I could find one of these lists—full of "Rosenbaums," "Goldsteins," and other Germanic variations. I'm still looking, but a partial list and an excellent account of the whole story of Jewish names can be found <a href="http://www.yivoencyclopedia.org/article.aspx/Names_and_Naming">HERE</a>.</div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">[The link above is to an entry from the </span><a href="http://www.yivoencyclopedia.org/default.aspx" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">YIVO Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe</a><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">—a terrific website and fun to browse.]</span>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-40533284787714527502012-02-14T16:54:00.001-05:002012-02-14T16:54:57.968-05:00From Berlin to Beit Shemesh<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPjSv1lV75TVFGUp9SMOrk8eFADL3n03eBqS4C9ueHneN9Ffr631OlcO5M-WlhPlQgoRWrIeZH-TKwzRVYYiUAKdjqye5AANMjtm_KOk2WYVBBK0WRW41wQPqjG-guBs1eTNWbU_dcjPy6/s1600/Modesty+Sign.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPjSv1lV75TVFGUp9SMOrk8eFADL3n03eBqS4C9ueHneN9Ffr631OlcO5M-WlhPlQgoRWrIeZH-TKwzRVYYiUAKdjqye5AANMjtm_KOk2WYVBBK0WRW41wQPqjG-guBs1eTNWbU_dcjPy6/s1600/Modesty+Sign.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo by <a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Modesty-sign.JPG">Orrling</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
Since our session last night, I have been reflecting on why I think the <i>Haskalah</i> is such an important phenomenon in Jewish history for us to study and understand as Reform Jews today. After all, much of the <i>Haskalah </i>project, for better and worse, has long since been achieved (e.g., university-level Jewish studies, assimilation). But the <i>Haskalah</i> and its opponents represent a struggle in Judaism that is very much still with us, a conflict that is shaping the Jewish world.</div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
In the introduction to his history of the <i>Haskalah</i>, Shmuel Feiner writes:</div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
The Enlightenment's values are also threatened by its enemies, the fundamentalist streams. In essence, these are antimodernist and antirationalist streams, and their slogans challenge each and every one of the conceptions of the Enlightenment, beginning with the very perception of man and his autonomous status in the world, and ending with political conceptions relating to rights, freedom, and equality. In certain aspects, these trends also gain a particular expression in Jewish and Israeli life. As we shall see later, the orthodox claim that the Haskalah is an extreme manifestation of apostasy and assimilation originated as soon as the Haskalah movement itself came into being. This criticism has never died out, and is one of the hallmarks of militant ultra-orthodox historiography in the present as well, particularly in the <i>Kulturkampf </i>being waged in the State of Israel. In actual fact, the Haskalah was the opening battle of the Jewish <i>Kulturkampf, </i>whose later stages are still being experienced by Jews in Israel at the beginning of the twenty-first century. The dilemmas that the Haskalah provoked when it first began to grapple with the challenge of modernity have not yet been completely resolved, and some are still very much alive after more than two hundred years. </blockquote>
<blockquote style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<i>Shmuel Feiner, </i>The Jewish Enlightenment<i> (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2004), p. 13</i></blockquote>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
</div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
As an <a href="http://jwa.org/encyclopedia/author/feiner-shmuel">Israeli scholar</a>, Feiner is very sensitive to the intense conflict between the ultra-orthodox and the forces of secularism, rationalism, and religious reform—all heirs of the <i>Haskalah</i>. Just this week we were reminded that <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/md-politics/montgomery-delays-partnership-with-israeli-city/2012/02/08/gIQAtj5O6Q_story.html">what happens in Beit Shemesh touches Montgomery County</a>. And of course the struggle for the rights of liberal Jews in Israel is vitally important to Reform Jews everywhere.</div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
As Feiner suggests, hopefully the history of the <i>Haskalah</i> gives us insight and sensitivity into how our contemporary conflicts evolved out of the Jewish experience of modernity.</div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<i><b>(I know I didn't ask a specific question, but I still hope you will share thoughts and reactions in the comments!) </b></i></div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Photo: "Please Do Not Walk Through Our Neighborhood in Immodest Dress." This sign is from Jerusalem, but similar signs (and the issue of public modesty) are part of the ongoing conflict between ultra-orthodox and liberal groups in Beit Shemesh.</i></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<br /></div>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-10616926489482188902012-02-07T15:15:00.000-05:002012-02-07T15:15:13.317-05:00Beyond Basics: Modern Jewish History — Session 1<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQHQfvCOoJ1KU8F1i2wiwzig5HUIPgFctuYt-QD1HgjlZJeDOkuagSd9VAZqCXd1CFF6O6SrLnkmAOQwEWsez4X9ZlnP7r-aMsCyjM8KVMJ0ytHQ9tEdrXejqkYyPXQJmashc9KuFQhd1p/s1600/Michael+Meyer.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200px" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQHQfvCOoJ1KU8F1i2wiwzig5HUIPgFctuYt-QD1HgjlZJeDOkuagSd9VAZqCXd1CFF6O6SrLnkmAOQwEWsez4X9ZlnP7r-aMsCyjM8KVMJ0ytHQ9tEdrXejqkYyPXQJmashc9KuFQhd1p/s200/Michael+Meyer.bmp" width="178px" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://huc.edu/faculty/faculty/meyer.shtml">Prof. Michael A. Meyer</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Welcome to our most recent blog experiment! As I explained in class last night, as we immerse ourselves in the complexity of modern Jewish history, I hope the Temple blog will become a place for discussion, questions, and comments. After each session, I will post some thoughts or questions to get the conversation started.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Much of our class last night was devoted to Michael Meyer's seminal essay, <a href="http://web.history.ufl.edu/faithful/readings/MichaelMeyer.pdf">"Where Does the Modern Period of Jewish History Begin?"</a> in which he surveys how the great historians of the last two centuries have responded to that question. We did not have time to discuss a quotation I brought from one of Meyer's earlier works, in which he gives his own description of the "Jew in the modern world."</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">For the Jew in the modern world Jewishness forms only a portion of his total identity. By calling himself a Jew he expresses only one of multiple loyalties. And yet external pressures and internal attachments combine to make him often more aware of this identification than of any other. Conscious of an influence which Jewishness has upon his character and mode of life, he tries to define its sphere and harmonize it with the other components of self.</span></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Such Jewish self-consciousness—while not entirely without precedent in Jewish history—has been especially characteristic of the last two centuries. In the considerable isolation of the ghetto, Jewish existence possessed an all-encompassing and unquestioned character which it lost to a significant extent only after the middle of the eighteenth century. It is with the age of Enlightenment that Jewish identity becomes segmental and hence problematic.</span></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Michael A. Meyer, <em><a href="http://books.google.com/books/about/The_origins_of_the_modern_Jew.html?id=vb0GObDHZf8C">The Origins of the Modern Jew</a> </em>(1967)</span></div></blockquote><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">In this description, Meyer returns again and again to expressions of fragmentation ("portion of his total identity," "multiple loyalties," "components of self," "Jewish identity becomes segmental").</span><br />
<br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">How does this observation square with our experience? Do we feel that our identities are "segmental" or divided? Are we aware of our Jewishness as a "component of self," sometimes in tension with other aspects of our identity? Do you think this experience of complex/multiple identities is part of what makes us modern?</span></strong><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Feel free to comment on those questions or anything else that interested you from the class or readings. <strong>I look forward to your comments, </strong>and see you next week!</span>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-91213529080151698952011-04-01T16:30:00.000-04:002011-04-01T16:30:30.588-04:00Poem for Shabbat<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPCOC67p_CFX0B2ZGgdMNAqBlcFs3xwiirWIwMEb4YJkZjiTvaXoGdliqm4n2k4ihap1Unos_uphGdJQFWulEy4J0ZZdIZcm-V4OObcFqJV9aqTjc1Te_VPEnZVy-4dv_Z5f0OuR3-PhFZ/s1600/Krakow+Yizkor+Book+Resize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><img border="0" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPCOC67p_CFX0B2ZGgdMNAqBlcFs3xwiirWIwMEb4YJkZjiTvaXoGdliqm4n2k4ihap1Unos_uphGdJQFWulEy4J0ZZdIZcm-V4OObcFqJV9aqTjc1Te_VPEnZVy-4dv_Z5f0OuR3-PhFZ/s1600/Krakow+Yizkor+Book+Resize.jpg" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/"><span id="goog_545101818"></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Krakow Yizkor Book<span id="goog_545101819"></span></span></a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Earlier this week I was reading the </span><a href="http://chronicle.com/blogs/arts/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Arts & Academe</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> blog at the </span><a href="http://chronicle.com/section/Home/5"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Chronicle of Higher Education</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">, and I was pleasantly surprised to find a beautiful Jewish poem, Erika Meitner's "</span><a href="http://chronicle.com/blogs/arts/mondays-poem-yizker-bukh-by-erika-meitner/29041#"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Yizker Bukh</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">." </span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.hcnc.org/yizkor.html"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Yizkor books</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> (The poem title uses the Yiddish spelling.) were created by Holocaust survivors to preserve the memory of the Jews and Jewish communities of Europe. Working from memory, survivors would record the history of a village or town, often going back hundreds of years. They would describe families - all the relationships, births, deaths, and weddings - as best they could. The books include recollections of businesses, important events, and daily life. Many describe the destruction of the community during the Holocaust. They list and memorialize those who were killed. (Read some yizkor books online </span><a href="http://www.jewishgen.org/yizkor/translations.html"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">.)</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.erikameitner.com/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Meitner's</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> poem is a reflection on her grief after the death of her grandmother, who was a Holocaust survivor. I find it quite moving ("Memory is / ... / an animal with- / out a leash"), despite the fact that the rabbi in the poem is pretty obtuse.</span><br />
<br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>For Discussion: </em>Varying the length of the lines, the poet creates a very intentional shape for the poem on the page (or screen). How does this shape contribute to the meaning of the poem?</span></strong>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-2023172905169061042011-03-25T20:13:00.000-04:002011-03-25T20:13:18.534-04:00Go See a Jewish Movie<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Earlier this week, a man came to meet with me to talk about converting to Judaism. I gave him an overview of the process - a course of study, participating in the life of the community, spiritual reflection, and the traditional rituals of initiation. I also showed him a "syllabus" I've put together with suggested books and activities for those in the process of conversion. Looking over the list, he said, "I didn't expect you to assign so many movies."</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Why not? Movies are an important medium of Jewish culture. How many of us learned most of what we know about <em>shtetls</em> from <em>Fiddler on the Roof</em>? In a few weeks, Jews across the country will participate in the hallowed Passover tradition of watching <em>The Ten Commandments</em>. I use Woody Allen and Mel Brooks movies to talk about Jewish humor (and neuroses). </span><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053804/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Israel</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">, the </span><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108052/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Holocaust</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">, the </span><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094921/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">American Jewish experience</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> - movies are shared Jewish experiences and great conversation starters.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">You may remember from a <a href="http://whctemple.blogspot.com/2011/01/what-is-greatest-jewish-song-of-all.html">previous post</a> that I like pop culture lists. So here are two very different and highly debatable lists (<a href="http://www.adherents.com/movies/mov_judaism_top50.html">one</a> and <a href="http://www.filmwell.org/2010/05/16/25-essential-jewish-movies-bangitout-com/">two</a>) of "top" Jewish movies.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">If there are movies on those lists you haven't seen, think about renting (Netflix-ing, streaming, etc.) one. Or better yet, go out and see a new Jewish movie that might be a future classic...</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Last night kicked off the <a href="http://www.jccgw.org/articlenav.php?id=629">3rd Annual Jewish Film Festival</a> at the JCC of Greater Washington in Rockville. They're showing a different movie every night this week.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">For the D.C. contingent, think about seeing <em>Sippur Gadol </em>(<em>A Matter of Size</em>) <a href="http://washingtondcjcc.org/center-for-arts/film/">this Sunday</a> at the DCJCC downtown. It's about a group of Israelis who decide to become sumo wrestlers. It's one of my favorite Israeli movies of recent years, and proceeds from the showing will benefit relief efforts in Japan.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Check out the trailer below. And if you want to <strong>LEAVE A COMMENT</strong>, I'll give you a topic: What's your favorite Jewish movie? (Define "Jewish" however you like.) Why?</span><br />
<br />
<object height="311" width="500"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/v/6pK5BKU7vWA?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/v/6pK5BKU7vWA?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="500" height="311"></embed></object>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-50866677166366731362011-03-18T13:10:00.000-04:002011-03-18T13:10:09.787-04:00On Purim: Don't Forget Those in Need<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0sP0D6XNO_hCVzEYs8k55zasWF2-kAExP_gaRocpBV9uvH6I_Cc_nsltKiPZNZEh3nJ8s0UEDHzmAmZRBLIcfX1-3zfXjpiJ6i-R9nGmfoR6Jly44H3yIlO8uVdfsmV8DWoojgrZuZwUk/s1600/Hamantaschen+Resize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0sP0D6XNO_hCVzEYs8k55zasWF2-kAExP_gaRocpBV9uvH6I_Cc_nsltKiPZNZEh3nJ8s0UEDHzmAmZRBLIcfX1-3zfXjpiJ6i-R9nGmfoR6Jly44H3yIlO8uVdfsmV8DWoojgrZuZwUk/s1600/Hamantaschen+Resize.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flickr user <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/joshbousel/409160861/">joshbousel</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>This Sunday is Purim. As in most Reform congregations, our Purim observance is primarily focused on children. They wear costumes, sing songs, and of course, there's the Purim carnival. But Purim is not meant to be only a children's holiday. For one thing, the themes of the Purim story - antisemitism, assimilation, jealousy, sex, revenge - are far from pediatric. Purim also has four <em>mitzvot</em>, four commandments that are relevant and potentially quite meaningful for adult Jews today.<br />
<br />
1) <em>Megillah</em> - It is a <em>mitzvah</em> on Purim to hear the book of <em>Esther </em>("the <em>Megillah</em>," "the Scroll") read in its entirety. This is a tough one, since a complete reading of the <em>Megillah</em> is not customary in our congregation. Still, you could read <em>Esther</em> <a href="http://www.breslov.com/bible/Esther1.htm">online</a> (or in any Jewish Bible). You could even <a href="http://www.kolel.org/pages/holidays/megillah1.html">listen</a> to a little of the scroll being chanted.<br />
<br />
2) <em>Seudah</em> - It is a <em>mitzvah </em>on Purim to have a festive meal. This is the <em>mitzvah </em>we fulfill with our congregational celebration. This is also the origin of the custom of drinking alcohol on Purim - but any festive food and drink will do!<br />
<br />
3) <em>Mishloach Manot</em> - It is a <em>mitzvah </em>on Purim to give gifts of food to family and friends. Normally, these are ready-to-eat snacks like candy or - of course - hamantaschen! Sending <em>mishloach manot</em> is a nice way to reconnect with family and friends, or just to reach out and tell someone, "I'm thinking about you."<br />
<br />
4) <em>Matanot l'Evyonim</em> - It is a <em>mitzvah </em>on Purim to give <em>tzedakah</em> to the poor.<br />
<br />
This last <em>mitzvah </em>is the one I want to highlight, since I think it is most often forgotten in our celebration of Purim. At the end of the book of <em>Esther</em> we read: <br />
<blockquote>...observe the fourteenth and fifteenth days of Adar, every year – the same days on which the Jews enjoyed relief from their foes and the same month which had been transformed for them from one of grief and mourning to one of festive joy...observe them as days of feasting and merry making, and as an occasion for sending presents to the poor. (Esther 9:20-23) </blockquote>Commenting on this <em>mitzvah</em>, Maimonides writes:<br />
<blockquote>One should rather spend more money on gifts to the poor than on his Purim banquet and presents to friends <em>(mishloach manot</em>)<em>.</em> No joy is greater and more glorious than the joy of gladdening the hearts of the poor, the orphans, the widows and the strangers. He who gladdens the hearts of these unhappy people imitates God, as it is written: "I am…to revive the spirit of the humble, and to put heart into the crushed" (Isaiah 57:15).</blockquote>According to Maimonides, it seems that giving <em>tzedakah</em> to the poor should be the <strong>MOST IMPORTANT</strong> way we celebrate Purim. Whatever we spend on Purim costumes, we should be giving more to the poor. Whatever we spend on hamantaschen, we should be giving more to the poor. Whatever we spend on our festive meal, we should be giving more to the poor. Our joy in this holiday is best expressed by bringing joy and relief to those in need. <br />
<br />
In the Orthodox community, there are <a href="http://www.aish.com/h/pur/m/48969546.html">very specific guidelines</a> for <em>matanot l'evyonim</em>, the <em>tzedakah </em>of Purim. The Reform Movement has generated <a href="http://rac.org/pubs/holidayguides/purim/poverty_hunger/">numerous creative ways</a> to incorporate this tradition into our modern lives and families.<br />
<br />
Purim can be a lot of fun, but it also has a serious side. We deepen and enrich our Judaism when we take our holidays and traditions seriously. Let's honor and observe this Purim by making a special donation this Sunday to those in need.Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-15191876609710546962011-03-11T15:37:00.000-05:002011-03-11T15:37:50.102-05:00What's More Jewish?<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho7nb2QJO7jDHk8zC6t6XdoHtTtQHxqzuh4ICm-xBBRD2abXso-663HloZKKk7UF9uBfAjVNJLZRHLYoo-r0E0GNbhgM5ZWzoLdZyjXCOYDLEx74lJf0nfJo95xIa28BNHazL7GEPJDbjL/s1600/Seltzer+Resize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" q6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho7nb2QJO7jDHk8zC6t6XdoHtTtQHxqzuh4ICm-xBBRD2abXso-663HloZKKk7UF9uBfAjVNJLZRHLYoo-r0E0GNbhgM5ZWzoLdZyjXCOYDLEx74lJf0nfJo95xIa28BNHazL7GEPJDbjL/s1600/Seltzer+Resize.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Is seltzer the most Jewish?</td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The </span><a href="http://www.rrc.edu/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Reconstructionist Rabbinical College</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> (RRC) has launched a website with a game that is definitely worth a look. It's called "</span><a href="http://www.mostjewish.com/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Most Jewish</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">." The concept is simple: The site gives you four options, and you have to decide which one is--as you might have guessed--"most Jewish." Each time you play, the four options change. The fun is in the diversity of the options; strange juxtapositions abound.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Which is more Jewish: "Skepticism" or "Young Frankenstein?" "Teach for America" or "Storytelling?" </span><a href="http://www.mostjewish.com/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Give your answers</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">, and you can see what percentage of players agree with you. (There's also an option to leave comments explaining your decision.)</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Since it was developed by a rabbinical seminary, this is clearly meant to be more than a brief amusement. How do we decide if something is "Jewish?" Even if we can't articulate a rationale, the game forces us to adopt one. Most of the options are geared toward contemporary American society, highlighting the issue of Jewish identity in our integrated community. Thanks to RRC for a great conversation starter.</span><br />
<br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>For Discussion</em>: If you play the game, let us know what your favorite "most Jewish" thing was. Were there any very difficult decisions? How did you decide?</span></strong>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-34265906157835155882011-03-04T17:37:00.000-05:002011-03-04T17:37:15.406-05:00Have You Ever Thought About Hebrew Fonts?<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjwVTlSvxDutonPlEKFhLAIss5ZSC8aFHwLRXWOpQg_hYyn5Tnsnlid3CLx5yOyPCvQZZgOprf8WVxaTzZ19Br4OXz-zkODUWB-wqMNqqs1cGA_IFkk1MdiPy9Dm8gyd9aPYrnSjstO1er/s1600/rsz_hebrew_type.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjwVTlSvxDutonPlEKFhLAIss5ZSC8aFHwLRXWOpQg_hYyn5Tnsnlid3CLx5yOyPCvQZZgOprf8WVxaTzZ19Br4OXz-zkODUWB-wqMNqqs1cGA_IFkk1MdiPy9Dm8gyd9aPYrnSjstO1er/s1600/rsz_hebrew_type.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flickr user <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/nirtober/509953896/">Nir Tober</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">OK, probably not. But you probably have thought about English fonts, at least a little. When you start a new document or a new e-mail, what font do you like to use? Perhaps there's a font that you <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-11582548">absolutely can't stand</a>. Perhaps there's a font so excellent, <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-11582548">they should make a movie about it</a>.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">There are some classic Hebrew fonts you might recognize: There's the <a href="http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=bSJ&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&q=torah+script&bav=on.2,or.&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&sa=X&ei=i2RxTb-sIYj2gAfij5A9&ved=0CCsQsAQ&biw=1024&bih=578">square script</a> of the Torah scroll. There's the "<a href="http://new.myfonts.com/fonts/masterfont/frank-ruhl/">Frank Ruhl</a>" of many prayerbooks. But there aren't many clean, modern options.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">All of this is to introduce <a href="http://www.tabletmag.com/arts-and-culture/58585/letters-lost-and-found/">this great video</a> about the creation of a new Hebrew font. The artist, Scott-Martin Kosofsky, has attempted to digitally replicate the hand-cut Hebrew type from a 16th-century Bible. The process is fascinating, and the result is beautiful.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">And if you want to see for yourself, Kosofsky's font, "Le Bé," is used in <i>The Selected Poems of Yehuda Halevi, </i>a <a href="http://nextbookpress.com/books/1589/">free e-book</a> from Nextbook Press. It includes just 35 poems, a great introduction to one of the most important poets and philosophers in Jewish history. And if the poems spark your interest, I highly recommend Nextbook's <a href="http://nextbookpress.com/books/214/"><i>Yehuda Halevi</i></a>, by Hillel Halkin. Halkin is a distinguished scholar, and the book is a very accessible introduction to its truly exciting and underappreciated subject.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">(For now, the official font of this blog is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_%28typeface%29">Georgia</a>.) </div>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-118475000625351302011-02-25T12:30:00.000-05:002011-02-25T12:30:31.658-05:00Holocaust Stories Forgotten<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbiBuPQ_6dn3Kta8ZNKvuqK5g3K23-2MWyPAHqXpNpYClB2xGB1gWYvTN68FkMW1njLAfu8yZf9b3jPeiiMdgQsl-D_xXOY8D4g75fj_DojdsSL9Ag5_QlAmCwOI4YcPh20cr49aLDrJ5X/s1600/rsz_morocco_synagogue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbiBuPQ_6dn3Kta8ZNKvuqK5g3K23-2MWyPAHqXpNpYClB2xGB1gWYvTN68FkMW1njLAfu8yZf9b3jPeiiMdgQsl-D_xXOY8D4g75fj_DojdsSL9Ag5_QlAmCwOI4YcPh20cr49aLDrJ5X/s1600/rsz_morocco_synagogue.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bet El synagogue, Casablanca</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Last night I participated in an interfaith <a href="http://www.nationalcathedral.org/events/Film20110224.shtml">panel discussion</a> at the National Cathedral, following a screening of the PBS documentary, <i><a href="http://www.pbs.org/newshour/among-the-righteous/">Among the Righteous</a>. </i>The film traces the efforts of <a href="http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/templateC10.php?CID=11">Robert Satloff</a>, a Near East expert who heads a <a href="http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/templateI01.php">think tank</a> here in Washington, to find the story of any Arab Muslim who saved a Jew during the Holocaust.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">After 9/11, Satloff came to believe that one of the major divides between Arab Muslims and the West is the attitude of Muslims toward the Holocaust, which ranges, he observes, from denial to "glorification." He further notes that out of the more than 22,000 people recognized for saving Jews as "Righteous Among the Nations" by <a href="http://www.yadvashem.org/">Yad Vashem</a>, Israel's institution dedicated to Holocaust scholarship and commemoration, there are fewer than 100 Muslims and <b>not a single </b>Arab Muslim. In order to present the Holocaust to the Arab world in a different light, Satloff began his search for righteous Arab Muslims who saved Jews.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">His journey reveals a little-known part of Jewish and Holocaust history. At the outset of World War II, there were more than 400,000 Jews living in Arab countries in North Africa (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya). Though the experiences of these Jews were perhaps less extreme than those of the Jews of Europe, they nonetheless faced terrible persecution. As a French colony, Algeria instituted many of the antisemitic policies of the collaborationist Vichy France. Tunisia was actually occupied by the Germans, who brought their campaign of destruction with them. There were over 100 concentration camps in North Africa, with ghastly, inhumane conditions similar to the camps of Europe. Thousands of North African Jews were killed.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Why is this story forgotten? Following the establishment of the State of Israel and the rise of Arab nationalism in the 1950s, the relationship of North African Jews to their longtime homes grew very strained. Many left voluntarily for Israel, and many were forced out by antisemitism. Arabs opposed to Israel did not wish to acknowledge their prewar and wartime friendship with their Jewish neighbors. And Jewish memory of the Holocaust was dominated by the Jews of Europe, who had suffered by far the greatest magnitude of persecution and destruction.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">So, did Satloff find any Arab Muslims to add to the Righteous Among the Nations? He did. He found living survivors, family members, and witnesses and was able to record their stories. They are a heartening and important part of our history.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">THE ENTIRE MOVIE CAN BE WATCHED <a href="http://www.pbs.org/newshour/among-the-righteous/">HERE</a>. Satloff has also written a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1586485105/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_1?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=1586483994&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0E7AT77G202CTNK2G82D">book</a>, with a richer account of this history and his research.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">During the panel discussion, Dr. Satloff spoke excitedly of his efforts to bring these stories to leaders, historians, and the public in the Arab world - particularly through his partnership with the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. It is not easy work, but he has made wonderful progress. As a Jewish community and as people who care about peace in our world, we should be grateful.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dlisbona/1051699955/">David Lisbona</a></i></span></div>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-74121963624537656712011-02-18T13:59:00.000-05:002011-02-18T13:59:57.434-05:00Reform Judaism's Belief Problem<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKUVUbnzwoifOEMe1Lih9lFIVTH5kKvxSX3nI5Ytay2xKRqoOREl9kmjwvqasyYUhKLI8L_DR1r3fAdOD3z2zsG4ZeWwhU4XZTWaZYni28DgCo6WV45cErCia1oRK6QdVMqfOdcqRKKUQ0/s1600/Disputation+Resize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKUVUbnzwoifOEMe1Lih9lFIVTH5kKvxSX3nI5Ytay2xKRqoOREl9kmjwvqasyYUhKLI8L_DR1r3fAdOD3z2zsG4ZeWwhU4XZTWaZYni28DgCo6WV45cErCia1oRK6QdVMqfOdcqRKKUQ0/s1600/Disputation+Resize.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Theological <a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Disputation.jpg">Disputation</a>, 1483</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This week, the <i>Forward</i> published a <a href="http://www.forward.com/articles/135476/">thoughtful editorial</a> by Rabbi Dana Evan Kaplan, a Reform rabbi and scholar. In it Kaplan argues that Reform Judaism has a major theological problem. Our liberal theology, which embraces a wide diversity of beliefs and allows (I would rather say "requires") individuals to make their own decisions about religious living, prevents Reform leaders and institutions from establishing standards. Without standards for belief, participation, and observance, Kaplan argues, identification and commitment will inevitably be low.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">As a Reform rabbi--especially as a rabbi at a large synagogue--I feel very keenly the dilemma Rabbi Kaplan describes. On one hand, my commitment to pluralism is strong; I honestly believe that there are many different way of leading an authentic and meaningful Jewish life. I am also an advocate of theological humility. The Jewish community has always embraced many ways of believing and speaking about God, and especially in the modern world, I am skeptical of most attempts to impose specific doctrines about God, prayer, etc. that must be accepted on faith.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">But there are also many days when I wish our standards were higher. What if being a member of a Reform synagogue came with the expectation of attending services every Shabbat? What if Reform rabbis started teaching that to be a "good" Reform Jew, regular in-depth study is <b>required</b>? If we agreed that belief in God (even in the most abstract sense) was a prerequisite--not just an option--for Reform Jews, would it make our community stronger? Would it make our lives better?</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">(Personally, I would advocate <i>at most</i> two of the three standards above. Leave a comment to debate which ones.)</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Often, this conflict between openness and expectations is framed as a social or demographic challenge: How will these approaches affect synagogue membership? Kaplan identifies a deeper conflict that we talk about far less often: What do we really believe about Judaism? Do we believe that attending the High Holidays and an occasional life cycle event is enough for some Jews? Do we even have any way to decide?</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Kaplan does not choose sides in this debate, and that is a wise choice. The subject is too complex to be treated adequately in an op-ed (or a blog post, for that matter). But this is a major issue for the future of Reform Judaism. It's a discussion we've been avoiding for decades, and I sincerely doubt we can avoid it much longer. </div>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-41108197409737696572011-02-11T16:41:00.002-05:002011-02-11T16:46:02.451-05:00Shabbat Reading<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVWf0II0kg2i-lB4mW4UIZkyG2WUGtZ4tmrUkadF_ZEjftpkeBiIMqIPJ6rGOTxFhtdBNtfzYVKRDoHR6bfAIWnX9HMNeS7cbjGDR-C6ZuQbtAF6kCT4a4ZNJawdmIE7Tg2LxkT5TO87LQ/s1600/Torah+Scroll+Resize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" h5="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVWf0II0kg2i-lB4mW4UIZkyG2WUGtZ4tmrUkadF_ZEjftpkeBiIMqIPJ6rGOTxFhtdBNtfzYVKRDoHR6bfAIWnX9HMNeS7cbjGDR-C6ZuQbtAF6kCT4a4ZNJawdmIE7Tg2LxkT5TO87LQ/s1600/Torah+Scroll+Resize.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flickr user <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/natematias/229736078/">rubberpaw</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">When I decided to make Friday my regular blogging day, a number of people said to me--"So you're doing <em>parashat hashavua</em>?" <em>"Parashat hashavua</em>" means "the weekly Torah portion." It also describes weekly lessons or commentary on the Torah portion that many rabbis write or--more commonly now--post on the Internet.</span> <br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">So "no," I have not been doing "<em>parashat hashavua</em>" on this blog. This is partly because I like the freedom of taking on all kinds of topics outside the weekly Torah portion. But it is also because there is a wealth of high-quality, weekly Torah learning already available. I would like to share some of my favorites.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">1) <a href="http://urj.org/learning/torah/">Reform Voices of Torah</a>. The Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) has a long-running weekly Torah commentary, featuring perspectives by two different Reform rabbis (or cantors or educators) each week. Rabbi Shankman wrote a piece for them <a href="http://urj.org/learning/torah/archives/exodus/?syspage=article&item_id=57366&printable=1">just last week</a>. They also have an <a href="http://urj.org/learning/torah/archives/">archive</a> of more than ten years of commentaries for each portion.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">2) <a href="http://www.jtsa.edu/Conservative_Judaism/JTS_Torah_Commentary.xml">Torah from JTS</a>. The Jewish Theological Seminary, the Conservative rabbinical school in New York, posts <em>parashat hashavua </em>commentary by faculty members. This is the one I read every week. This site also provides the complete text of the Torah portion and Haftarah portion in English, which is great for a quick review.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">3) <a href="http://www.uscj.org/Torah_Sparks__Weekly5467.html">Torah Sparks</a>. Very accessible, with lots of discussion questions. This comes from the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism (USCJ), the Conservative equivalent of the URJ.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">4) <a href="http://www.biu.ac.il/JH/Parasha/eng/">Bar Ilan University Parashat Hashavua Study Center.</a> Not for the faint of heart! These essays are written by faculty members at Bar Ilan, an Orthodox university in Israel. Some are accessible, some horrifically technical. But if you want to make the effort, they make terrific connections between the Torah and later Rabbinic texts and Jewish thought. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">5) Haaretz. For an easier Israeli take, try <a href="http://www.haaretz.com/weekend/week-s-end/portion-of-the-week-clothes-make-the-man-1.342710">Portion of the Week</a> from Haaretz, one of Israel's major daily newspapers. There's no permanent link for future weeks, but you can always go to their "<a href="http://www.haaretz.com/weekend/week-s-end">Week's End</a>" section and scroll down until you see the "Portion of the Week" article. Can you believe this appears in a regular (secular) newspaper? Only in Israel...</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Of course, you probably aren't going to check out all of these every week. (I don't.) But taking a little time on Friday or Saturday to study <em>parashat hashavua</em> is a deeply traditional way to stay connected to the Torah cycle and a meaningful ritual that I highly recommend.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Shabbat shalom.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong><em>For Discussion:</em></strong> <strong>Is there a weekly Torah commentary you read online that I missed? Let us know in the comments</strong>.</span>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-88154111683239596842011-02-04T22:01:00.001-05:002011-02-06T12:23:59.135-05:00Do Jews Have Horns?<div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi84_JQ_DyU5Vq_0Bc1JGvgwyPz2Nn2Okyp2LkpK4OJz8GP0eEaaHHbvtw6J-3AZ_R8-hJeemjb8vHARV_jFJo1I3UUFYIW0nBkOBp3Qe_wNwf2y3T8rf7EccQZVLZysSMffdLt6qW72hon/s1600/Dan+Snyder+and+Moses.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi84_JQ_DyU5Vq_0Bc1JGvgwyPz2Nn2Okyp2LkpK4OJz8GP0eEaaHHbvtw6J-3AZ_R8-hJeemjb8vHARV_jFJo1I3UUFYIW0nBkOBp3Qe_wNwf2y3T8rf7EccQZVLZysSMffdLt6qW72hon/s320/Dan+Snyder+and+Moses.jpg" width="160" /></a>Despite not being in the Superbowl this weekend (<i>"Bashanah ha'ba-ah"...</i>maybe next year), the Redskins continue to generate the top news stories in Washington sports. This week the big story centers on Redskins owner Daniel Snyder, who has filed a <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/02/AR2011020206136.html">$2 million lawsuit</a> against the owners of the Washington City Paper. (The full complaint is <a href="http://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/31699/snyder-lawsuit-summons.pdf">here</a>.) The suit alleges that Snyder was libeled and defamed in a <a href="http://mirror.washingtoncitypaper.com/articles/40063/the-cranky-redskins-fans-guide-to-dan-snyder.html">November article</a>.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;"><a href="http://www.biu.ac.il/JH/Parasha/eng/kitisa/gartner.html"><br />
</a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;">One of the suit's most provocative claims is that an image of Snyder that accompanied the article (seen here...the top one)--with scribbled horns, mustache, etc.--is antisemitic. In a <a href="http://www.scribd.com/Letter-from-Washington-Redskins-General-Counsel-David-Donovan-to-Atalaya-Capital-Management-LP/d/48061507">letter on Snyder's behalf</a>, the Redskins' general counsel writes, "How would you react if you were vilified by an anti-Semitic caricature of you?"</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;"><a href="http://www.biu.ac.il/JH/Parasha/eng/kitisa/gartner.html"><br />
</a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;">Without debating the merits of Snyder's claim, I thought it would be interesting to discuss the strange origins of the misconception and sometimes-accusation that Jews have horns.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;">It all starts with Moses. In the Torah portion <i>Ki Tissa</i>, which we will read in two weeks, Moses returns to the people from his encounter with God on Sinai. "And it was as Moses came down from Mount Sinai and the two tablets of the testimony were in the hand of Moses when he came down from the mountain and Moses was not aware that the skin of his face was beaming when he spoke with Him" (Exodus 34: 29).</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;">"The skin of his face was beaming"--in Hebrew, "<i>karan or panav</i>." "<i>Or panav</i>," "the skin of his face," is the easy part. But what does the verb "<i>karan</i>" mean? It's a little hard to tell, since it doesn't appear in this form anywhere else in the Bible. What does appear is the related word "<i>keren</i>," a common noun that means "horns" or "antlers" of rams, gazelles, oxen, etc. Early Jewish interpreters decided that <i>"karan" </i>was a metaphor, that <i>rays of light</i> emanated from Moses' face<i>, just like</i> horns appear from an animal's head.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;">Some Greek translators of the Bible thought that "<i>karan</i>" meant that Moses had literal "<i>karnayim"</i> ("horns," plural of "<i>keren</i>"). Following them, the Vulgate--the major Latin translation of the Bible--rendered the phrase, "cornuta esset facies sua"--"[Moses'] face was horned." The horns of Moses became a standard image in the Christian world. Michelangelo's statue of Moses (pictured here...the bottom one) is perhaps the most famous of <a href="http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=TPE&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&q=moses+horns&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&biw=1024&bih=406">many examples</a>.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;">Note: the idea that Moses had horns was not originally derogatory. In the ancient world, horns were associated with power and authority. During the Middle Ages, the image of the Jew with horns took on a more sinister meaning. It was used to make Jews seem like animals, or worse, like the Devil.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;">This week's controversy over the Dan Snyder lawsuit shows that this particular Jewish stereotype remains a highly sensitive issue in the our community. What a remarkable impact for a 2000-year-old confusion over a single Hebrew word.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;">Shabbat Shalom. </div>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-83378680875127464332011-01-28T16:07:00.000-05:002011-01-28T16:07:57.230-05:00The Bright Side of Being in the Dark<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4_OfVlyLMCoCaNPG6V2dlJFJF3KRtLo09r0IGFy8BHq4SDoQFT7VCAlbuyF-nzoNKImhI48XCfxS5KBMWnSAdxxN8Fx7Q_ehn6TI4Se_EoxKrEdZksAKv2Zdk-FFwY3riJLl-aJTw1C9D/s1600/SnOMG+Resize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" s5="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4_OfVlyLMCoCaNPG6V2dlJFJF3KRtLo09r0IGFy8BHq4SDoQFT7VCAlbuyF-nzoNKImhI48XCfxS5KBMWnSAdxxN8Fx7Q_ehn6TI4Se_EoxKrEdZksAKv2Zdk-FFwY3riJLl-aJTw1C9D/s1600/SnOMG+Resize.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flickr user [F]oxymoron</td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Snow: here we go again. Again this week, our schools and workplaces were delayed and closed. </span><a href="http://twitter.com/search?q=%23thundersnow"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">#thundersnow</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> became a trending topic on Twitter. Local news revived last year's favorite </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portmanteau"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">portmanteaus</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">, "snowpocalypse" and "snowmageddon." And perhaps most vexing of all, many of us were left without electricity for hours or days.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Having no electricity is a strange experience. For most of us, thankfully, it is not a major hazard. It is certainly an inconvenience: no refrigerator, no clean clothes, no hot water. But for those who haven't sought refuge with friends or family, it also poses a lifestyle challenge: No television...no computer... What should we do with ourselves? </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Often, I think, how we respond to that question can make up for all the inconvenience. Maybe you will have a real conversation with a spouse or a child. Maybe you will play cards (or Monopoly or Scrabble) or do a crossword puzzle. Maybe you will eat a meal by flashlight or break into the stash of Chanukah candles. Without electricity, life slows down. We are much more aware of the time we are spending with others. We are more aware of the cycling of day into night, of the rising and setting of the sun.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Of course, in many Jewish households, this special kind of time is a weekly occurrence. It is the character of Shabbat, the day of rest. The Orthodox prohibition on using electricity on Shabbat helps families to focus on each other and to make space for reflection in our always-busy world.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">When we are without electricity, we are forced to live a different kind of life. And indeed, Shabbat is often described as an entirely different world. Rabbi Irving Greenberg writes:</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>Shabbat is the temporary anti-reality of perfection. For approximately twenty-five hours (Jews traditionally add some extra time to expand the realm of the good), all things are seen through the eyes of love, as if all of nature were perfect, in harmony with itself and with humanity. Normally, all the world conspires to persuade people that business cannot function without their personal presence, that great opportunities are being missed, that catastrophe looms, that crisis has struck and demands immediate attentiveness. For a day, Jews, dreaming, hear none of this. On Shabbat, it is not really that one is forbidden to work, it is that all is perfect, there is nothing to do.</em> (The Jewish Way, p. 131)</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Although the Reform observance of Shabbat is different from the Orthodox, we strive for the same measure of peace. I suggest that being "unplugged" for a while–even against our will–can point us toward achieving it. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Soon the Sabbath will begin, and I do hope that everyone's electricity has been restored. But on our day of rest, let us try to recapture the stillness, the quiet, the patience, and the togetherness of a day in the snow and the dark. <em>Shabbat shalom</em>.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong><em>For Discussion: Do you have a GOOD memory from being without power this week or in the past? Leave a comment and share it.</em> (<em>I'll go first–check the comments!)</em></strong></span>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-55650734122465197022011-01-21T14:23:00.000-05:002011-01-21T14:23:55.978-05:00Return to Haifa and History<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgalRK5mG5REOQaYv0rhjyP4cUz4iMA3KUTEZKWGtgzsTFMbWxlD8MUMzLf-UwGx8tStb2N8Y4v4484xE8pIsF8jq7WLvE5FP-VWcrB-NJZF3JbN0kLs4QcTQZvZ-08kk6S_p5D-o-xpoCf/s1600/Kanafani+Resize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgalRK5mG5REOQaYv0rhjyP4cUz4iMA3KUTEZKWGtgzsTFMbWxlD8MUMzLf-UwGx8tStb2N8Y4v4484xE8pIsF8jq7WLvE5FP-VWcrB-NJZF3JbN0kLs4QcTQZvZ-08kk6S_p5D-o-xpoCf/s1600/Kanafani+Resize.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Palestinian_graffiti_tribute.jpg">Graffiti Tribute</a> to Ghassan Kanafani</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This past Wednesday night, many members of Washington Hebrew saw a performance of <i><a href="http://washingtondcjcc.org/center-for-arts/theater-j/on-stage/10-11Season/return-to-haifa/">Return to Haifa</a>, </i>based on the novella by Palestinian author/activist Ghassan Kanafani, appearing until January 30 at <a href="http://www.washingtondcjcc.org/center-for-arts/theater-j/">Theater J</a> at the <a href="http://www.washingtondcjcc.org/">DCJCC</a>. I will not summarize the play, since many <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/17/AR2011011704069.html">reviewers</a> have done the job already. But as we saw Wednesday night at the panel discussion led by Rabbi Lustig, the play provokes strong reactions, controversy, and even protest.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Many thoughtful commentaries on <i>Return to Haifa</i> have been published online and are worth reading. <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/leon-t-hadar/return-to-haifa-whose-nar_b_811179.html">Leon Hadar</a> writes about the cultural fusion the play represents, the relationship of the source novella to international "resistance literature," and the potential incompatibility of the play's perspective with any two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. These <a href="http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=4&article_id=122414#axzz1BgzBrVC3">two</a> <a href="http://www.voanews.com/english/news/--111752129.html">articles</a> discuss an Arabic version of the play that was performed in Beirut last month (courting different controversies). <a href="http://arablit.wordpress.com/2011/01/08/changing-the-end-to-ghassan-kanafanis-return-to-haifa/">This post</a> on an Arabic literature blog talks about how the endings of both the Arabic and Hebrew versions of the play differ significantly from the ending of the original novella. I also recommend the <a href="http://theaterjblogs.wordpress.com/">Theater J Blog</a>, where Artistic Director Ari Roth is chronicling his experiences and many reactions to the play.<br />
<br />
One aspect I wanted to address personally is the charge that the play's portrayal of history is "false." In our panel discussion, this was the strongly-voiced objection of both Naomi Rosenblatt and the attaché from the Israeli consulate.<br />
<br />
This argument over the historical events of 1948 is hardly surprising. For more than 60 years, Israelis and Palestinians have maintained completely different, largely conflicting accounts. For Israelis, it was "The War of Independence." For Palestinians, it was "al-Nakba" ("The Catastrophe").<br />
<br />
The historical narratives particularly conflict on the subject of Palestinian refugees. According to the Zionist narrative (terribly oversimplified), Palestinians in the newly-declared State of Israel left their homes voluntarily. Arab leaders used radio transmissions and public announcements to urge evacuation to Jordan and Lebanon, at least until the war was over and the Jews defeated.<br />
<br />
The Palestinian story of these events is quite different. They teach that the Jewish "colonists" used violence and the threat of violence to force Palestinians from their homes.<i> </i><br />
<br />
<i>Return to Haifa, </i>by a Palestinian activist author,<i> </i>is clearly based on this Palestinian understanding of history. This explains the heated reaction of many of those raised in the Israeli/Zionist tradition, who have been taught to view the Palestinian story as a pernicious lie, a tool of propaganda <br />
<br />
But which version is the "true" history? What <i>really</i> happened? To the best of my knowledge, many questions remain unanswered. Almost certainly, there are aspects of truth and propaganda in both the Israeli/Zionist and Palestinian versions. The best resource I know on the subject is Benny Morris's book, <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Palestinian-Refugee-Problem-Revisited-Cambridge/dp/0521009677">The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem</a></i>. Morris is the <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/10/AR2007031001496.html">leading figure</a> in a group of Israeli historians (called "New Historians," "post-Zionists," or "revisionists") who are critical of the heroic historical narratives crafted by the Zionist and Israeli establishments.<br />
<br />
In the book, Morris finds many examples of Jews using violence and intimidation to force Arabs from their homes. But he also finds examples of voluntary evacuation and of Palestinian refugees being used cynically by their leaders for politically ends. Morris's scholarship has been strongly criticized by the Israeli right for undermining the ethical legitimacy of Israel's early history. Intellectuals on the left criticize Morris for relying too much on Israeli archival documents, instead of Arabic sources. Personally, I find it difficult to evaluate Morris's objectivity, but I consider being criticized by both sides to be a good sign.<br />
<br />
It is true that little of this historical complexity is portrayed in <i>Return to Haifa</i>. It chooses different complexities—questions of identity, parental legacy, home, and reconciliation. To let our discomfort at the play's historical and political claims prevent us from appreciating the themes it does treat with nuance and insight would be a terrible missed opportunity.<br />
<br />
<i><b>For Discussion: </b></i><b>This is a perfect opportunity for a blog discussion. If you've seen the play or read about it—what was your reaction? Leave a comment!</b> <br />
<br />
<br />
</div>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-16354762293233455362011-01-14T12:11:00.000-05:002011-01-14T12:11:53.535-05:00Remembering Debbie Friedman<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA_lW1XjA7JGA4etjxJuMj1gdyp421u5uDAB-eC-qJIrMDZ_BK8uKhvxOeyWiWYTXghxiQEzPusXtR2mm20KPGXyWAle6Ef4_b5U71KlA9qCe6If4CwgPF_gcYeA8PTpIzFVwV078_xIxO/s1600/debbie_friedman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA_lW1XjA7JGA4etjxJuMj1gdyp421u5uDAB-eC-qJIrMDZ_BK8uKhvxOeyWiWYTXghxiQEzPusXtR2mm20KPGXyWAle6Ef4_b5U71KlA9qCe6If4CwgPF_gcYeA8PTpIzFVwV078_xIxO/s200/debbie_friedman.jpg" width="198" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Earlier this week, Debbie Friedman passed away at the age of 59. It is possible that you don't recognize her name. But if you have been involved with WHC or any other liberal synagogue in the past 25 years, it is certain you have been touched by her music. Debbie was, quite simply, the most influential Jewish composer and musician in the second half of the 20th century (at least).</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">You can find a complete obituary <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/11/arts/music/11friedman.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=debbie%20friedman&st=cse">here</a>, but I want to highlight a few aspects of Debbie's work that reflect her beautiful Jewish soul and help explain her unique influence.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1) <b>Debbie gave us "new" prayers</b>. Many musicians have written folk-style arrangements of traditional Jewish prayers. Debbie's settings of prayers--<i>Sh'ma, Mi Chamocha, Oseh Shalom, </i>and countless others--are among our best-loved melodies. But Debbie went further. She wrote songs based on texts that were not commonly used in Reform Jewish prayer. The most famous example of this, of course, is "Mi Shebeirach." She took the prayer for healing--a minor part of the traditional Torah service--and gave it a melody and English text that gave voice to contemporary Jewish ideas about healing, strength, and blessing. "Mi Shebeirach" is now an indispensable part of Jewish worship around the world, due in large part to Debbie Friedman's insight. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">And there are more examples. Debbie's melody for the Havdallah blessings helped make the Havdallah service an essential aspect of the Jewish camp and youth group experience. Debbie's "Kaddish D'Rabanan" ("For our teachers, and their students, and the students of the students...") introduced to Reform Judaism, and especially to our children, the traditional Jewish prayer honoring teachers. Her English version of "V'ahavta" ("And thou shalt love the Lord thy God...") helped us appreciate the true meaning of a prayer many knew in Hebrew only by rote.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2) <b>Debbie's songs advocated values.</b> Debbie Friedman was at the forefront of some of the most important cultural and intellectual movements in American Jewish life. In particular, her music celebrated and helped shape Jewish feminism. With "Miriam's Song" and "Devorah's Song," she argued for (and achieved) the recognition of female role models. "L'chi Lach" (the feminine equivalent of God's command to Abraham, "Lech L'cha"), emphasized the divine calling that women receive. She pioneered the "Women's Seder," which she led several times here at WHC.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Debbie was also a key figure in the Jewish healing movement. In addition to "Mi Shebeirach," many of Debbie's songs speak to the power of spirit and community to create a sense of peace and wholeness in a person's life. She helped create and lead meditative "healing services," which have become a staple of Reform prayer.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">3) <b>Debbie's music spoke to all ages.</b> Some of Debbie's most popular songs were written for children. Her call-and-response Hebrew alphabet ("Aleph, bet, vet... <i>Aleph, bet, vet</i>..."</span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">) is universally known. What Chanukah would be complete without "The Latke Song" ("I am a latke, I'm a latke...")? The list goes on and on.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">With teenagers, she was a rock star. In camps and youth groups, songs like "The Youth Shall See Visions" and "Not By Might, Not By Power" became anthems, defining Jewish identity and spirituality for generations of young adults.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">And of course, from Carnegie Hall to synagogues throughout the world, Debbie's melodies for prayer and inspiration were sung and appreciated by countless adults.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">That range, that versatility and insight, is truly a rare blessing. She will be deeply missed.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Tributes to Debbie Friedman have been written by the hundreds this week. You might want to read <a href="http://blogs.rj.org/reform/2011/01/remembering-debbie-friedman-a.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rjblog+%28RJ+Blog%29">this one</a> by Rabbi Paul Kipnes or <a href="http://www.centralsynagogue.org/index.php/community_programs/of_note/remembering_debbie_friedman_zl/">this page</a> from Central Synagogue in New York. A <a href="http://www.jewishjournal.com/debbie_friedman/article/debbie_friedman_funeral_-_tuesday_jan_11_2011_11_am_live_video_20110110/">recording of her funeral service</a> in California is also available.<i><b> </b></i></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i><b>Washington Hebrew Congregation will honor the legacy of Debbie Friedman at Shabbat services on Friday, March 4, 2010. Check the Temple bulletin and weekly e-mail for more information.</b></i></span>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-35823737251537829562011-01-07T17:01:00.000-05:002011-01-07T17:01:43.512-05:00What is the Greatest Jewish Song of All Time?<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIHHvvqWxHDtmwTdRDgIxWF7ODwgiRn7KSyDh_uwWyS1bZzHAkZMCoA9TaAdUBTPve_LUX_GYqFd0wPJAxpJg-0rze4njRSghjreeJl6jDOjzCJhUuocPjz2gm29ARG2DTQI63honk6Asm/s1600/Yiddish+Songs+Resize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIHHvvqWxHDtmwTdRDgIxWF7ODwgiRn7KSyDh_uwWyS1bZzHAkZMCoA9TaAdUBTPve_LUX_GYqFd0wPJAxpJg-0rze4njRSghjreeJl6jDOjzCJhUuocPjz2gm29ARG2DTQI63honk6Asm/s1600/Yiddish+Songs+Resize.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/contemporaryjewishmuseum/3367815543/">Contemporary Jewish Museum</a> via Flickr</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Every year around this time, I love all the "best-of" lists. <a href="http://www.slate.com/id/2278793/">Movies</a>, <a href="http://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,20326356_20452083_20889239,00.html">television</a>, <a href="http://www.avclub.com/articles/the-best-games-of-2010,49432/">video games</a>, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/11/29/7-best-gadgets-of-2010-ph_n_783903.html#s182901&title=iPhone%204">gadgets</a>--if you want to know the "10 best" anything of 2010, somewhere in the past month, a list has been published for you.<br />
<br />
And then there are lists that are even more ambitious. <i>Tablet</i>, an <a href="http://www.tabletmag.com/">online Jewish magazine</a>, recently published a list answering the question, <b>"What Are the 100 Greatest Jewish Songs of All Time?"</b> It's a very fun list, mixing vaudeville with the High Holidays, Broadway and <i>"Dayeinu</i>." Before I give you the link, I want you to think: What would you choose as the greatest Jewish song of all time? Use any criteria you want. [I'll wait while you think.] OK, now you can <a href="http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/54218/the-guide-to-the-list/">look at the list</a>. (The original article, with explanations for the choices, is <a href="http://www.tabletmag.com/arts-and-culture/music/53984/songs-of-songs/">here</a>.)<br />
<br />
<b><i>Now share!</i> Leave a comment telling us your pick for the top song. What do you think of the list? What would you have done differently?</b>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-42996068417512719862011-01-07T16:28:00.000-05:002011-01-07T16:28:05.126-05:00New Year, New Resolution<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0ej-FCcHlmk0vaCJCloU3emD4iUQOOH2dmXIKh7y58jQY-rTv8M5Y5oinl6Z84whxAozQpIjIRSv8bFvd1OYdQmsjfY7U_GR7Gh90A7A0gvFC9pV_bOWjsNri8Xr1ggJywqIyH4Dc0sfl/s1600/New+Year+Resize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0ej-FCcHlmk0vaCJCloU3emD4iUQOOH2dmXIKh7y58jQY-rTv8M5Y5oinl6Z84whxAozQpIjIRSv8bFvd1OYdQmsjfY7U_GR7Gh90A7A0gvFC9pV_bOWjsNri8Xr1ggJywqIyH4Dc0sfl/s1600/New+Year+Resize.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flickr user <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sally_12/339912423/">*Sally M*</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>Has it really been since Sukkot? It was only going to be a short break. It turns out: like meaning to call a far-away friend or write a thank-you note, the longer you neglect a blog, the harder it is to get back to it. Bloggers are <a href="http://agentgenius.com/g-rants-insanity-more/real-estate/i-abandoned-my-blog/">filled with shame</a> for disappearing on their readers. As many as <a href="http://www.bloggingpro.com/archives/2010/07/21/blogging-pitfalls-how-to-not-abandon-your-blog/#more-19567">94%</a> of the blogs on the internet have been abandoned completely. I even recognized this danger myself, promising in my <a href="http://whctemple.blogspot.com/2010/06/why-blog.html">very first post</a> that this blog would be updated frequently.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I apologize. But I certainly have not given up, and since we are starting a new year, this is the perfect time for the WHC blog to get back on track.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>The Plan: At Least One Post Every Week, on Friday</b>. There may be more, of course, but the Friday post is a definite. (I'll post the first one right after this.)</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b><i>For discussion: </i>Do you have an idea for a post for the WHC blog? Would you like to write a post for the WHC blog? Leave a comment by clicking on the link below!</b> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-66336332475962359802010-09-23T14:03:00.000-04:002010-09-23T14:03:29.210-04:00Amazing Sukkot!<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0JS4yq7uVGx3YFh4zQatyLoW5E8Gz1sk5HzJ9UZ1paBoRQYa-tkXNa34dc7MqO1zMLPWX6ZcTVGKICCyvJLE8kesQhmglg0VIE2Xg7_Hf-2wNeZiMnHbh7Xu22lkMuYkhuw6yW7uWqBPY/s1600/Sukkah+City+Resize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0JS4yq7uVGx3YFh4zQatyLoW5E8Gz1sk5HzJ9UZ1paBoRQYa-tkXNa34dc7MqO1zMLPWX6ZcTVGKICCyvJLE8kesQhmglg0VIE2Xg7_Hf-2wNeZiMnHbh7Xu22lkMuYkhuw6yW7uWqBPY/s320/Sukkah+City+Resize.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Matthew McDermott's <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/matmcdermott/5005036107/">Flickr</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;">Earlier this week, there was an <a href="http://www.sukkahcity.com/">incredible display</a> of artist-designed <i>sukkot</i> (plural of "<i>sukkah</i>") in Union Square in New York City. The exhibition/competition was organized by <a href="http://rebooters.net/">Reboot</a>, a very cutting-edge organization dedicated to revitalizing Jewish cultural life and ritual.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;">My favorite part of "<a href="http://www.sukkahcity.com/">Sukkah City</a>" is that the entries had to conform to the construction requirements for a <i>sukkah</i> established in Jewish law. This is something the ancient rabbis talked about <a href="http://www.myjewishlearning.com/holidays/Jewish_Holidays/Sukkot/At_Home/The_Sukkah/Laws.shtml"><i>a lot</i></a>. The contest describes some of the more offbeat requirements <a href="http://www.sukkahcity.com/thecontest.html">here</a>.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;"><b>FOR DISCUSSION: Browse the Sukkah City <a href="http://www.sukkahcity.com/">entries</a>.</b> <b>Leave a comment on this post, saying which one is your favorite and why.</b></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;">I will start us off. I am very attracted to the simplicity and geometry of <a href="http://www.sukkahcity.com/sukkah/dor-l-dor.php">this <i>sukkah</i></a>.<b> </b>I admit, it does not look the most comfortable for sleeping.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,'Times New Roman',serif;"><i>Chag sameach!</i></div>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-57202279558631986302010-09-22T11:04:00.000-04:002010-09-22T11:04:28.384-04:00Chag Sameach — Happy Sukkot<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMGCSWN7M4JJGRKSIMQHUaVFBtN_TJw651zW-lXIxHqqpWTpncUAeNDysJ3So1aqrgZHK5ISd0-Q2ZaRaifeR9bjO8ukzNXW_ztPSuzHLeEJaVGDO3W3EWxisIA__Jagy4GYClJfLF1xqp/s1600/Sukkah+Resize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMGCSWN7M4JJGRKSIMQHUaVFBtN_TJw651zW-lXIxHqqpWTpncUAeNDysJ3So1aqrgZHK5ISd0-Q2ZaRaifeR9bjO8ukzNXW_ztPSuzHLeEJaVGDO3W3EWxisIA__Jagy4GYClJfLF1xqp/s320/Sukkah+Resize.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jerusalem Municipal Sukkah, 2008 (RahelSharon's <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/rahel_jaskow/2955409708/">Flickr</a>)</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Thanks to all of you for your good wishes on my wedding. Now that I am settled back at Temple and we have made it through the High Holidays, I look forward to returning to my regular blogging schedule.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Tonight we begin the festival of <a href="http://urj.org//holidays/sukkot/index.cfm?">Sukkot</a>. Coming only five days after Yom Kippur, I think there is definitely a sense every year that Sukkot sneaks up on us. We are exhausted, not ready to observe another major holiday. But this is really a shame, because as one of the Three Pilgrimage Festivals and as a holiday full of meaning and symbolic ritual, Sukkot is one of most significant days (a week, actually) on the Jewish calendar.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">During this week of Sukkot, I want to share with you a number of texts and thoughts, so that even if you don't have the opportunity to shake a lulav, eat, and sleep in a <i>sukkah</i> each day, we can experience the course of the festival as a community. (I see this as one of the great potential benefits of online discussions for congregational life.)</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> <br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The text I've chosen for today is from <a href="http://www.gwu.edu/gelman/spec/kiev/treasures/rosenzweig.html">Franz Rosenzweig</a>. Rosenzweig (1886-1929) was a German-Jewish philosopher; he was also a master teacher, the founder of a tremendously influential institution for Jewish adult education in Weimar Germany. He wrote:</div><blockquote style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> The Feast of Booths [<i>Sukkot</i>] is the feast of both wanderings and rest. In memory of those long wanderings of the past which finally led to rest, the members of the family do not have their merry meal in the familiar rooms of the house but under a roof which is quickly constructed, a makeshift roof with heaven shining through the gaps. This serves to remind the people that no matter how solid the house of today may seem, no matter how temptingly it beckons to rest and unimperiled living, it is but a tent which permits only a pause in the long wanderings through the wilderness of centuries. For rest, the rest of which the builder of the first Temple spoke, does not come until all these wanderings are at an end, and his words are read at this feast: "Blessed be He that has given rest unto His people."<br />
</blockquote><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Rosenzweig captures the sense in which Sukkot, like all Jewish holidays, concerns both the past and the future. Dwelling in the <i>sukkah,</i> we reenact the wanderings of the Israelites in the wilderness. But we also acknowledge that we too are wanderers—that our lives, our relationships, even our community...are fragile. The "rest" Rosenzweig speaks of—quoting King Solomon's dedication of the Jerusalem Temple in <a href="http://www.mechon-mamre.org/p/pt/pt09a08.htm">I Kings 8:56</a>—is the ultimate achievement of peace and tranquility we still seek as a "Messianic Era." Sukkot is an opportunity to connect to that greater sense of history and meaning.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>LEARNING OPPORTUNITY</b> — For those of you who would like to begin Sukkot with some in-person study, there will be a <b>Sukkot Adult Study Session</b> at Temple <b>TONIGHT </b>(Wed., 9/22) at 7:00 p.m. in the Library. We have some great texts to discuss, and we will visit the <i>sukkah</i> for <i>lulav</i>-shaking and blessings. Please join us!</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i><b>For discussion</b></i>: <b>Do you build a <i>sukkah</i> at your home? Tell us about it! (Click on the "comments" link below this post.)</b></div>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-15020388151111428742010-09-13T15:08:00.005-04:002010-09-13T19:42:21.983-04:00On Sunday the Rabbi Got Married...<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikdfioINnZgHoNUt-0u1QP1P3vz3bkgFr3cojIMeVgiX5qVu5XuQVVZxurDcEg68vZ5ENfFEZN_cTQgpaSJ213zRikGSWTdJhT1CKPmXWCB2464m1BxdayXyIVInyXKufr997B48-SIbQ/s1600/T-Blog-Ali+and+Noah.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikdfioINnZgHoNUt-0u1QP1P3vz3bkgFr3cojIMeVgiX5qVu5XuQVVZxurDcEg68vZ5ENfFEZN_cTQgpaSJ213zRikGSWTdJhT1CKPmXWCB2464m1BxdayXyIVInyXKufr997B48-SIbQ/s320/T-Blog-Ali+and+Noah.jpg" /></a>In case you haven't noticed, the flow of blog articles has slowed down in the last week or two. It seems that our blogging rabbi has had some other things on his mind...like getting married. In fact, the nuptials for Rabbi Fabricant and Alexandra (Ali) Harwin occurred on September 5, 2010 in NYC. The official public announcement appeared in the New York Times at: <b><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/05/fashion/weddings/05harwin.html?_r=1">Wedding Announcement</a></b><br />
<br />
On behalf of the entire congregation and all the WHC blog readers, we wish Ali and Noah a hearty and heartfelt Mazel Tov.WHC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17186891093360505771noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-87584680711804179942010-08-27T10:54:00.000-04:002010-08-27T10:54:58.610-04:00Poem for Rosh Hashanah<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHxnbBhUNTYET4El0U-d1-YiJ_xRm1pKXe-cO-P857wrBFc7tIjmjCsErzVZWucdtd1lgUcnHPBrox0BznfpToXo0F-SJtk2DMTAE9ufNz0RDiEq3d-a7165yl82-tBzsEYyXyUdb2aL75/s1600/Apples+and+Honey+Resize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHxnbBhUNTYET4El0U-d1-YiJ_xRm1pKXe-cO-P857wrBFc7tIjmjCsErzVZWucdtd1lgUcnHPBrox0BznfpToXo0F-SJtk2DMTAE9ufNz0RDiEq3d-a7165yl82-tBzsEYyXyUdb2aL75/s320/Apples+and+Honey+Resize.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flickr user <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/rbarenblat/2900190502/#/">rbarenblat</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">As part of my preparation for the High Holy Days, there are certain texts I read and study every year at this time. One is </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Last-Trial-Legends-Sacrifice-1899-1984/dp/187904529X"><em><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The Last Trial</span></em></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">, Shalom Spiegel's classic essay on the midrash on the Binding of Isaac. Another is <em><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Days-Awe-Treasury-Reflection-Repentance/dp/0805210482">Days of Awe</a></em>, the inspirational anthology edited by S.Y. Agnon, the only Hebrew writer to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">One shorter piece I return to every year is the following poem by </span><a href="http://www.enidshomer.com/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Enid Shomer</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">, a contemporary American Jewish poet. The title refers to "<em>Tishri" </em>(usually spelled "<em>Tishrei</em>"), the first month in the Hebrew calendar. The "first of Tishri"<em> </em>is the Hebrew date of Rosh Hashanah.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><blockquote><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>Freestyle, on the First of Tishri</strong></span></blockquote><blockquote><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The metaphor here is the pool, regular</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">and deep as the tradition itself. First I float,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">still and buoyant in what I don’t</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">accept. Then I shatter the surface, a scholar</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">dissecting text not to destroy but to enrich,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">a farmer plowing and disking the earth</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">before planting. On land, I forget breath’s</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">noisy ball bearings, the flutter kick’s</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">fringes blazing like tangible will. I imagine</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">that faith is nothing but a grudging promise</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">of repetition, like these laps, until this</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">continual splash in the mind begins—</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">not with grievance or prayer</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">but as gasp, a momentary bargain struck with the air. </span></blockquote></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The progression Shomer describes is familiar to us. Jewish tradition is vast and unfamiliar, and it seems as if we “float” on the surface, unable to truly enter. But eventually we can “dive in.” Through study, prayer, and communal participation, we start to swim; our kicking and splashing is our struggle with tradition, and we make our own unique “waves” in Jewish life.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The true impact of Shomer’s sonnet, though, comes with the closing couplet. Judaism is not “grievance or prayer,” the formal—sometimes impersonal—religious language. Judaism is like the swimmer’s gasp for breath—desperate, intimate, life-giving. Though repeated countless times, it is not routine, but dramatic and purposeful.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">As we approach the month of Tishrei, we have many opportunities to refine our strokes, to plumb new depths, to gasp for breath, and even to breathe deeply. We have many holidays and services and plenty of time to reflect in between. Let us do this hard work and build better Jewish lives for ourselves, our families, and our community. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong>For Discussion: <em>Are there any books, poems, etc. you return to read again and again? Share by leaving a comment!</em></strong></span><br />
<br />
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Note: This post is based on a bulletin article I wrote while I was the rabbinic intern at the </span></em><a href="http://www.rockdaletemple.org/"><em><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Rockdale Temple</span></em></a><em><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> in Cincinnati. If any of my friends there are reading this, I hope they don't mind.</span></em>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-67482675117142392822010-08-18T11:41:00.005-04:002010-08-18T13:05:19.996-04:00Rabbi Lustig on NPR<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAkFsteCB03vN2wHbaHfLrHDJgN4SH1yF-ECK9fXPSRegnaoFqCy2nBKZHwqCwqQbbf0HYCE7CcTr7L4-IC1uWMjRNgU85OrrFm6RbXAp2XVi9KgQkfrtFrgCSC_U96kKAUu25qyThPhXb/s1600/Radio+Resize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAkFsteCB03vN2wHbaHfLrHDJgN4SH1yF-ECK9fXPSRegnaoFqCy2nBKZHwqCwqQbbf0HYCE7CcTr7L4-IC1uWMjRNgU85OrrFm6RbXAp2XVi9KgQkfrtFrgCSC_U96kKAUu25qyThPhXb/s1600/Radio+Resize.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flickr user <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/coreycam/4392517450/">coreycam</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">In case you missed it, Rabbi Lustig was on the <a href="http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2010-08-16/religious-leaders-islam-america">The Diane Rehm Show</a> on Monday morning with his partners in the Abrahamic Roundtable, Professor Akbar Ahmed and Bishop John Chane. They discussed the controversy over the planned Muslim community center in Lower Manhattan—widely described as the "Ground Zero Mosque." They also spoke more generally about the attitude toward Islam in the United States.</div><br />
You can listen to the whole show <a href="http://thedianerehmshow.org/audio-player?nid=12865">here</a>. The program begins with Rabbi Lustig, Bishop Chane, and Professor Ahmed. After a political discussion, they return at the 27:30 mark.<br />
<br />
In his remarks Rabbi Lustig mentions several prominent leaders of Reform Judaism who have expressed support for the mosque/community center project. See <a href="http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/guestvoices/2010/08/why_jews_should_support_mosque_near_ground_zero.html">this editorial</a> in the <em>Washington Post</em> by Rabbi David Ellenson, president of the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, and Rabbi Robert Levine, senior rabbi of Congregation Rodeph Sholom in Manhattan. Rabbi Eric Yoffie, president of the Union for Reform Judiasm, and Rabbi David Saperstein, director of the Religious Action Center here in Washinton, released a <a href="http://rac.org/Articles/index.cfm?id=21580&pge_prg_id=12907">joint statement</a>. Rabbi Lustig also responds to a question about the ADL, which has <a href="http://www.adl.org/ADL_Opinions/Interfaith/Mosque_Ground_Zero.htm">taken a stand</a> against the project.<br />
<br />
<strong>For Discussion: </strong><em>What are your thoughts about this controversy? What are your reactions to the radio program or the articles? What do you think are the most important factors we should consider when addressing this issue?</em><br />
<br />
(Reminder: To post a comment, click the "comments" link below this post. Let's make this a [respectful] discussion!)Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-11355883126268696542010-08-13T15:11:00.000-04:002010-08-13T15:11:38.316-04:00Jewels of Elul<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkBE41gg-nkxPW_4DQe0Y2gx2ULmgW9vP-3VpAsYLRWCZa33DT0AsZRKP8vK3L7_pB9lUSkr9Xt1ozpENZ7gQdP8y7PMFmUF-emv2QQuypHO9Axds3HFlogJ28YmBAf6VLIrEP3XbEbi4r/s1600/Pomegranate+Resize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><img border="0" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkBE41gg-nkxPW_4DQe0Y2gx2ULmgW9vP-3VpAsYLRWCZa33DT0AsZRKP8vK3L7_pB9lUSkr9Xt1ozpENZ7gQdP8y7PMFmUF-emv2QQuypHO9Axds3HFlogJ28YmBAf6VLIrEP3XbEbi4r/s320/Pomegranate+Resize.jpg" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/martinlabar/59345056/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Martin LaBar's Flickr</span></a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">This week we began the Hebrew month of Elul, the last month of the Hebrew calendar. Because it leads up to the High Holidays, Elul is a time for reflection, self-examination, and study. During Elul, it is traditional to blow the shofar every weekday at the end of the morning service, to call us to repentance. (During my year in Jerusalem, I learned this custom the hard way, being awakened—literally, if not spiritually—at 6:00 a.m. every morning by the shofar from the shul nextdoor.)</span><br />
<br />
<em><a href="http://www.craignco.com/jewels/index.php"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Jewels of Elul</span></a></em><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> is a project designed to keep us mindful of this time of spiritual preparation. Every day they post a short teaching or reflection. You can even </span><a href="http://www.craignco.com/jewels/jeweladay.php"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">sign up</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> to have them e-mailed to you. Some are by rabbis, but many are not. Past contributors include President Obama, Desmond Tutu, Eli Wiesel, Deepak Chopra, and lots more. (</span><a href="http://www.craignco.com/jewels/index.php"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Today's</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> is by Lady Gaga.)</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Elul is also an excellent time to come to Shabbat services, visit cemeteries, or read a good Jewish book. Any of these things will add depth and meaning to our observance of the High Holidays.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>For Discussion:</strong> <em>Do you have anything you do this time each year to prepare for the High Holidays? I will start us off. I always make an appointment for my annual physical during Elul</em>.</span>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7185844091615254485.post-18204666266274592662010-08-13T14:52:00.001-04:002010-09-13T19:37:19.556-04:00First Gay Marriage<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0KvB_70k7zYjDep9x6fW_F9T3eML-eYSuQKuP1M6U-4JiUYvmv3VsD_lT2H7_mCaozv2XOV7Z7pO4gGq_pEOE-w3LITh0SFkprVNILnmcm0kzeZ57gEpzqvu8Fd1K5WYZtbMZpchRdWk0/s1600/Gay+Cake+Topper+Resize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0KvB_70k7zYjDep9x6fW_F9T3eML-eYSuQKuP1M6U-4JiUYvmv3VsD_lT2H7_mCaozv2XOV7Z7pO4gGq_pEOE-w3LITh0SFkprVNILnmcm0kzeZ57gEpzqvu8Fd1K5WYZtbMZpchRdWk0/s320/Gay+Cake+Topper+Resize.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">by <a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gay_wedding_a_by_Stefano_Bolognini.JPG">Stefano Bolognini</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This past Saturday night I officiated at my first gay wedding. Since same-sex marriage has only been </span><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/03/AR2010030300654.html"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">legally available</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> in the District since March, I am guessing this was among the first (if not <i>the</i> first) legally-recognized same-sex marriage conducted under the auspices of Washington Hebrew Congregation. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">With same-sex marriage such a hot topic in the news, I have been asked frequently about Reform Judaism's position. Answer: The major institutions of Reform Judaism have long been in favor of full civil rights for gay men and lesbians, including the right to civil marriage. In the mid-1990's, both the Union for Reform Judaism and the Central Conference of American Rabbis passed resolutions supporting the cause of same-sex civil marriage. (Available </span><a href="http://data.ccarnet.org/cgi-bin/resodisp.pl?file=gl&year=1996"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> and </span><a href="http://urj.org//about/union/governance/reso//?syspage=article&item_id=2000"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">.) The Religious Action Center </span><a href="http://rac.org/advocacy/issues/issuegl/"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">lobbies</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> on behalf of LGBT rights, including marriage.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The question of whether Reform Judaism supports Jewish marriage (<i>kiddushin</i>) between two men or two women is much trickier. The </span><a href="http://data.ccarnet.org/cgi-bin/resodisp.pl?file=gender&year=2000"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">official position</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> of the Central Conference of American Rabbis is that "the relationship of a Jewish, same gender couple is worthy of affirmation through appropriate Jewish ritual." But should that ritual be called "marriage?" Here, Reform rabbis still disagree. The CCAR's Responsa Committee (for answering Jewish legal questions) </span><a href="http://data.ccarnet.org/cgi-bin/respdisp.pl?file=8&year=5756"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">voted</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> 7-2 <i>against </i>granting same-sex relationships the status of marriage. (The committee's opinions are advisory, not binding.) Currently, the CCAR affirms each rabbi's individual choice whether and how to officiate at rituals for same-sex couples. This is similar to the position on officiation at interfaith weddings, which is also left to the decision of individual rabbis.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Personally, I am among the rabbis who believe that <i>kiddushin—</i>the rite of Jewish marriage—is the appropriate ritual for sanctifying and celebrating the relationships of same-sex couples. I officiate at those ceremonies with the same awe and joy I feel any time I am priveleged to join a couple beneath the <i>chuppah</i>. And I am grateful to be part of a congregation that respects my choice in what is still, for many, such a fraught and controversial question.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">For now, I am just thrilled to be the rabbi of one more happy, married couple. <i>Mazal tov, </i>Howard and Don! <i>L'chayim!</i></span>Rabbi Noah Fabricanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13210315611123135136noreply@blogger.com1