1. religion and spirituality
2. judaism

THE CHICAGO
JEWISH NEWS
May 29-June 4, 2015/11 Sivan 5775
www.chicagojewishnews.com
One Dollar
UNITY
DAY
On the first anniversary of
their murders, remembering
three Israeli teens by having
Jews come together
Jewish owners of
American Pharoah
Catholics and Jews,
50 years later
The specialness
of every Jew
Israeli
first
responder
2
Chicago Jewish News - May 29-June 4, 2015
Point of View
50 years on, how Nostra Aetate has transformed Jewish-Catholic relations
By Noam E. Marans
JTA
The transformation of
Catholic-Jewish relations over
the past 50 years has been so successful that few today neither
Catholics nor Jews know much
about Nostra Aetate (“In Our
Time”), the landmark document
that inaugurated historic changes
in the Catholic Church’s relations with other faiths and whose
50th anniversary we mark this
year.
Officially titled the Declaration on the Relations of the
Church to Non-Christian Religions, Nostra Aetate opened the
door for Catholics to that which
is “true and holy” in other religions, extending a hand to Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam as
well as to Judaism.
The declaration’s 600-word
section on Judaism approximately one-third of the document rejects the charge, long
leveled against the collective
Jewish people, that Jews are
guilty of killing Jesus. It also prohibits teachings in which Jews
are seen as accursed, condemns
anti-Semitism, affirms Christianity’s Jewish roots and validates
G-d’s eternal covenant with the
Jewish people.
Celebrating “the spiritual
patrimony common to Christians and Jews,” Nostra Aetate
recommends “mutual under-
standing and respect,” which is
the fruit of “fraternal dialogue.”
Thus Nostra Aetate reversed
nearly two millennia of Christian
enmity toward Jews and Judaism
that had led to violence and
death, peaking tragically with
the Holocaust. But what
changed after so many centuries?
How did Nostra Aetate happen?
It was a confluence of key events
and personalities. Pope John
XXIII (1958-1963), who as a
Vatican diplomat was personally
involved in saving scores of Jews
during the Holocaust, led the
church in a period of self-reflection that revealed the degree of
Christian culpability in the
genocide. Cardinal Augustine
Bea, who was appointed by the
Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel meeting in New York with Cardinal Augustine Bea, who shepherded the process of Catholic introspection
that led to Nostra Aetate. (JTA)
pope to shepherd the process,
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spent years dealing with the
complex and shifting nuances of
Vatican politics in drafting that
extraordinary document.
John XXIII did not live to
see the final result. His successor,
Pope Paul VI (1963-1978),
promulgated the Second Vatican
Council’s Nostra Aetate on Oct.
28, 1965.
Giving life to the theoretical, the church issued guidelines
and educational materials for the
practical implementation of Nostra Aetate. Beginning with John
Paul II (1978-2005), popes used
dramatic gestures to signal a new
era. John Paul became the first
pope since Peter to visit a synagogue. He also journeyed to
Auschwitz and paid respects on
bended knee. Significantly, he
established diplomatic relations
with Israel, followed by the first
papal state visit to the Jewish
state.
His successor, Pope Benedict
XVI (2005-2013), forcefully reiterated all of these messages, and
Pope Francis is today continuing
in that tradition. As the first
pope to enter the priesthood
after Nostra Aetate’s promulgation, Francis applied the document’s teachings in his
exemplary relations with Jews
while serving as archbishop of
Buenos Aires. Francis has made
his relationship with the Jewish
people a central feature of his
pontificate.
Nostra Aetate has been liberating for both Christians and
Jews. It has enabled Christianity
to advance beyond its burdensome past regarding Jews and Judaism. And it represents for Jews
the possibility that Christianity
would no longer threaten their
security and well-being. For creative Jewish religious thinkers, it
facilitated consideration of a positive role for Christianity in the
divine plan.
Although it was not the first
Christian attempt at self-reflection after the Holocaust, Nostra
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Chicago Jewish News - May 29-June 4, 2015
Reflections on life and death
By David Suissa
Los Angeles Jewish Journal
Is there anything in life
more dramatic than death? Can
anything, in fact, be more dramatic than absolute finality? We
experience many deaths in life
the death of a marriage, a friendship, a business, a dream but it’s
the loss of life itself that holds
maximum drama. A life carries
the totality of human experience
in one package called the human
body, and once that body goes,
what have we got?
As I became a year older this
past week, I reflected on how the
perception of death can influence our lives. I paid special attention to a few news items, like
one about a high school athlete
in Texas, Charlotte Brown, who
became totally blind but continued to compete in pole vaulting,
even winning third place at a recent meet.
Her eyesight may have died,
but her body didn’t, and neither
did her lust for life. “You have to
look fear in the eye and just
smile,” Brown said.
I also read about Dean Potter, who was killed while BASE
jumping in Yosemite National
Park. Potter was an extreme rock
climber, high-wire artist and
BASE jumper, famous for taking
greater and greater risks. Potter
didn’t smile at fear he scowled at
it. Death was not something to
be feared but to be conquered in
the service of a maximum adrenaline rush.
Most of us do the opposite
we minimize risk in order to extend life. This is especially true
as we grow older. Over the past
few years, I’ve run into more and
more people in our community
who are in their 90s. I can’t say
I’ve ever asked them if they
think about death, but how
could they not? One thing I have
noticed, though, is that they love
life, and they love going out.
You can never say to someone in their 90s, “Let’s have
lunch one day.” They will immediately respond: “Which day?”
You can’t blame them. When
any lunch or dinner may be your
last, who wants to wait?
Those of us who are not in
our twilight years delay things all
Jews have this
wonderful obsession with remembering those no
longer with us.
the time we make nebulous
plans, such as, “Yeah, let’s catch
up soon.” But our elderly remind
us never to assume there will be a
tomorrow.
You can’t contemplate life
and death without touching on
the cosmic tomorrow what Judaism calls olam ha-ba, the world
to come. Our tradition is of two
minds on this. Yes, planning for
the world beyond is important,
but even more so is what we do
here on Earth. In truth, who can
really be sure what happens after
death? I prefer to look at life before death, while asking, “What
did we do with our lives, and
what did we leave behind?”
Jews have this wonderful obsession with remembering those
no longer with us. The walls of
our synagogues, community centers, schools and museums are
filled with names of people who
tried to make a difference.
One of my favorite things is
something called “Jewish Contributions to Humanity,” which
chronicles how Jews throughout
the millennia have influenced
their societies. I love the series
because it celebrates life. We
make such a big deal in the Jewish world about Jews who died
through persecution and we
should but it’s equally important
to honor Jews who thrived and
influenced their times.
In a sense, honoring those
Jews adds an even darker note to
horrors like the Holocaust, because it begs the question: What
would those millions of Jews
have contributed to humanity
had they been allowed to live?
Living without external
danger poses a challenge of its
own. Feeling safe can dull our
senses. Many of our past heroes
lived with the drama of danger,
which made them deeply value
the preciousness of life. Most of
us don’t face that drama. We’re
free to do as we please.
How do we give our lives an
edge in times of unusual safety
and freedom?
One way is to look back.
There’s drama in feeling part of a
story, especially one like ours. Is
there any story more dramatic
than that of a people who survived for centuries despite
pogroms, persecution and genocide while still managing to give
back so much to the world?
Maybe that is the drama
that our ancestors those who
thrived and those who perished
have passed down to us. It’s a
drama that boils down to the
simple and powerful message of
embracing life and making the
most of it, no matter what.
That’s a message that never
gets old, even when we do.
David Suissa is president of
TRIBE Media Corp./Jewish Journal and can be reached at davids@
jewishjournal.com.
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Chicago Jewish News - May 29-June 4, 2015
Contents
Jewish News
■ Rabbi Shlomo Riskin said that, should Israel’s Chief Rabbinate attempt to dismiss him as chief rabbi of Efrat, ostensibly because of disagreements over who has authority over Israeli
conversions, he would not accept the decision. Riskin also said
that the Chief Rabbinate’s conversion policy lacks the support of
the vast majority of Israelis. Riskin urged the rabbinate to accept
a 2014 government decision reforming Israel’s conversion process.
The Chief Rabbinate has declined to automatically renew
Riskin’s appointment and has summoned him for a hearing on
the matter. The local government of Efrat, a West Bank settlement located in the Gush Etzion bloc, unanimously affirmed that
it would like him to continue as its rabbi. Should the Chief Rabbinate disagree, Riskin said, he would disregard its decision. “I
will remain the rabbi of Efrat for as long as the people of Efrat
want me to be their rabbi,” he said. “I don’t believe it’s up to the
Chief Rabbinate.”
■ A section of Jerusalem’s lower aqueduct, which brought water
to the city more than 2,000 years ago, was uncovered during sewer
work. The aqueduct, which was excavated by the Israel Antiquities Authority, was found in the Umm Tuba neighborhood, near
Har Homa. It begins near Solomon’s Pools south of Bethlehem
and continues for about 13 miles, running through several
Jerusalem neighborhoods. In a statement, the antiquities authority said the aqueduct operated intermittently until 100 years ago.
The water originally traveled through an open channel. About
500 years ago, during the Ottoman period, terra cotta pipe was
installed inside the channel to better protect the water, according to excavation director Yaakov Billig. Billig said the Umm
Tuba section of the aqueduct has been documented, studied and
covered again to preserve it for future generations.
■ Avigdor Liberman, Israel’s former foreign minister, called
supporters of a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict “autistic.” Liberman, who heads the right-wing Yisrael Beiteinu party, made his remarks in an interview with Israel Radio.
“Anyone who thinks going back to the 1967 lines will solve the
conflict is autistic,” Liberman said. Liberman, who declined to
join the new government coalition after serving in the previous
coalition with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party,
accused the prime minister of waffling on the two-state issue –
now saying he supports it after indicating during the election that
it was no longer in the offing. Jay Ruderman, president of the Ruderman Family Foundation, called on Liberman to apologize for
using the term autistic as an insult directed at Netanyahu. “Millions of people around the world and thousands of people in Israel
are autistic. By using the word ‘autistic’ as an insult, MK Lieberman has deeply hurt the autism community,” said Ruderman,
whose foundation is dedicated to strengthening the relationship
between Israelis and American Jews, and to the inclusion of people with disabilities in the broader society. “The term for a disability should never be used in a crude and derogatory manner. If
Mr. Lieberman had an autistic child, how would he like it if his
child heard a highly visible public figure like himself use autism
as cudgel against an adversary?”
■ A federal judge has ordered the opening of grand jury testimony in the 1950 case of convicted spies Julius and Ethel Rosenberg. U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein of New York ordered
the unsealing of the testimony of Ethel Rosenberg’s brother,
David Greenglass, who implicated his sister as a spy. Greenglass
recanted his testimony seven years after he gave it, saying that he
gave false testimony after prosecutors threatened him by saying
they would go after his wife, who may have assisted Julius Rosenberg. The judge said the testimony now could be unsealed because Greenglass died last year at the age of 92, though he fought
to the end of his life to keep it permanently sealed, according to
the Associated Press. “The requested records are critical pieces of
an important moment in our nation’s history,” Hellerstein wrote.
“The time for the public to guess what they contain should end.”
The Rosenbergs, who were Jewish, were convicted of espionage
for passing atomic bomb secrets to the Soviets, and were executed
in 1953. Declassified Soviet cables show that Julius Rosenberg
worked for Moscow, but that his wife’s involvement was never
proven.
JTA
Correction
In our last issue, we omitted Shimon Suss in the list of 2015
graduates of Solomon Schechter Day School. Our apologies.
THE CHICAGO
JEWISH NEWS
Vol. 21 No. 34
Joseph Aaron
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Torah Portion
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Arts and Entertainment
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Death Notices
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and Associates
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Chicago Jewish News - May 29-June 4, 2015
Torah Portion
CANDLELIGHTING TIMES
4
The specialness of all of us
Each person’s
link to G-d is
unique, precious
By Rabbi Shlomo Tenenbaum
Guest Torah Columnist
Torah Portion: Naso
Numbers 4:21-7:89
“This man has no reason to
live,” said the doctor, “so why extend his life with treatments?”
I was a little surprised at
what I’d heard. I had presumed
that the doctor would outline a
course of treatment for Jack, my
client, who had a brain tumor.
But we’ll come back to the story
in a moment.
This week we read Parshat
Naso, which is the longest parsha
in the Torah. The reason it is so
long is because it describes the
offerings that each of the 12
tribes brought for the inauguration ceremonies of the Mishkan
(Tabernacle.) And although
each brought the same offering,
the Torah rewrites the details of
each identical offering 12 times
in a row. This is like what the response might be if you asked,
“What did they serve at Bob’s
wedding?” and the answer was,
“Al had chicken. Mary had
chicken. Dave had chicken. Lulu
had …” you guessed it – chicken.
One short sentence, or even
one word, could have answered
the question perfectly well. If
everyone had chicken, identifying each of the 380 attendees individually doesn’t seem to add
any useful information, and, in
fact, seems arduous and unnecessarily redundant; and by the time
the speaker got to the 10th name
or so, you’d be looking at your
watch and wondering how you
could edge away without being
rude.
Yet surely this was not the
intent of the Torah. Rather, the
point of asking us to listen carefully and pay attention as the
same offerings are repeated 12
times in a row is to show that
Rabbi Shlomo Tenenbaum
each person’s connection with
G-d is unique and precious.
Merely referring to them as a
group would belittle each person’s importance. When two
people do an identical act, they
still aren’t the same. Each person
brings his/her own perspective,
experiences, and sensibilities.
Now, back to our story about
Jack.
After my conversation with
Jack’s doctor, I happened to be
speaking with one of the physicians who volunteers in the
Medical Clinic at the ARK,
where I work. I mentioned my
conversation with Jack’s doctor,
and asked him if he considered
this approach to be normal medical protocol. The doctor became
visibly angry. “We go to medical
school and become doctors in
order to heal the sick. It’s not for
any physician to decide if a life
has value.” He asked me to bring
Jack in so he could examine him.
I went to find Jack in the
dingy, dilapidated SRO where he
had a room. He had a lifelong
history of mental illness and
homelessness. He’d been estranged from his family for years,
and survived by “Dumpster diving” for food behind local shops.
This tiny room, with peeling
paint and cracked windows, was
actually the nicest place he’d
lived in for a decade. I urged him
to come to the ARK to meet
with the volunteer doctor.
When Jack showed up the
next afternoon, his clothes were
torn and stained, his hair uncombed, and he smelled terrible.
Before I brought him into the ex-
The point of asking us to listen carefully and pay attention as the same offerings are repeated 12 times in a row
is to show that each person’s connection with G-d is unique and precious.
amining room, I warned the doctor privately and apologized for
the odor.
What I witnessed next astounded me. The doctor greeted
Jack warmly, and spoke with him
with a manner of gentleness and
respect I’d never seen from a doctor. He listened to Jack’s heart
and checked his pulse; I then left
the room and waited outside as
the doctor examined Jack from
head to toe.
When I was invited back in
to speak with both of them, Jack
was smiling. I realized that this
doctor, an unpaid volunteer, saw
past the dirt, the odor, and the
assumptions most of us make
about the poor, the homeless,
and the mentally ill. He saw the
sanctity in the soul of the man
standing before him – a vision
that eluded others. I realized that
I was witnessing something special – seeing the Holy of Holies
at Neilah on Yom Kippur could
not have been more precious
than witnessing this routine
medical examination. I still have
burned into my memory the
image of the doctor gently removing Jack’s filthy sock and
tenderly checking his circulation.
I have been blessed to have
visited many holy sites, and have
had the privilege of meeting
many holy people. But I had
never before witnessed a moment
as holy as the one that took place
in that examining room on that
Tuesday afternoon.
Under the volunteer doctor’s care, Jack began receiving
treatment for his tumor. At the
ARK, he also began seeing a psychiatrist and received medication to treat his mental illness,
and after a few months was able
to move into a clean, safe apartment. The ARK gave him food,
pots and pans, clothing, and a
toothbrush, and an ARK social
worker visited him regularly to
help him get back on his feet.
With this new stability, he
reunited with his family and became a beloved member of the
ARK family as well. He lived another 2 1/2 quality years. When
he eventually succumbed to his
illness, he left this world with the
dignity he deserved, and fulfilled
by the knowledge that he was
loved.
Now we understand the true
importance of the repetitive descriptions in Parshat Naso. This
is what the parsha teaches us:
that every soul is unique and
priceless; and G-d loves every neshama on its own terms.
Rabbi Shlomo Tenenbaum is
director of the ARK’s Michael E.
Schneider Spiritual Enrichment
Program.
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Chicago Jewish News - May 29-June 4, 2015
Arts & Entertainment
Behind American Pharoah
The Zayats,
observant Jews,
are going for the
Triple Crown
By Bracha Schwartz
Joanne Zayat missed the crucial moment when American
Pharoah won the Kentucky
Derby. Victory had been tantalizingly close in the past for the Zayats – three second-place finishes
– and she was afraid the same
thing would happen again. Pioneer of the Nile was way ahead
in 2009 when a longshot came
up on the rail and passed him by
half a length. In the 2012 Derby,
Bodemeister was almost there –
when another horse passed him
to win by a nose.
“I didn’t watch Pharoah
come across the wire, thinking
we were going to lose,” she recalled. Her magnificent bay colt
was running in third place, but
he took the lead in the homestretch and galloped under the
finish line in front. “When I
heard the announcer say
Pharoah was the winner, I was
flying,” she said.
The Zayats live in two different worlds: the rarified, highstakes arena of thoroughbred
horse racing and the Orthodox
Jewish community of Teaneck,
New Jersey. “We maintain our
focus on what’s really important,”
she said earnestly, “G-d, family
and everyone else. We are fortu-
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Voice of Song
Richard Boldrey music director
Cantor Pavel Roytman music director designate
Cantor Vicky Glikin featured soloist
Kol Zimrah Jewish Community Singers
and its mission to share and preserve
the great tradition of Jewish choral music
Sunday, June 14, 2015, 3pm
Congregation Solel
1301 Clavey Road, Highland Park
Tickets $36 and $20
Contact Michael: [email protected] or
Monica: [email protected] or 847-297-5745
www.kolzimrah.org
Justin Zayat with American Pharoah
that’s great. But if he wants to try
something else, that’s great, too.
You have to do what you’re passionate about.”
The three other Zayat children
are big fans but not directly involved
in the business. Ashley, a jewelry designer, lives in Miami with her husband. The two younger ones are still
in school.
The horses are named after people and places important to them.
American Pharoah and Pioneer of
the Nile, his sire, reflect Ahmed
(Ephraim) Zayat’s Egyptian roots.
American Pharoah was the winning
entry in the Zayats’ annual naming
contest and no one realized that
Pharoah was misspelled until after the
name was officially registered. Several
horses are named for the Zayat children: Point Ashley, Justin Phillip, and
Littleprincessemma.
Ephraim Zayat has been passionate about horses since his
childhood in Egypt, where he
competed in horse show jumping
events. He moved to the U.S. at
age 18, earned an undergraduate
degree, and then a Master’s at
Boston University. He worked in
commercial real estate in New
York, and met Joanne through a
mutual friend. With the real estate downturn in the 1990s, he
returned to Egypt. The government was selling off assets that
(the late Egyptian leader Abdul
Gamul) Nasser had nationalized
in the 1950s and he bought a
100-year-old brewing company.
Zayat modernized the company,
introducing 180 brands and nonalcoholic beer, an innovative
concept for Muslims, who are
not permitted to drink alcohol.
The brewery’s success attracted
Heineken and he sold the company to them. He began looking
for a new career.
“He was commuting back
and forth and didn’t want to be
an absentee father,” Joanne
Zayat said. “He couldn’t retire, so
he had to find something he
loved that would let him be
home.” He returned to his love
of horses, and became an owner
of thoroughbred racehorses in
2005. Zayat Stables has been
named one of North America’s
top five owners seven times, including this year.
While the company is managed from New Jersey, the horses
live elsewhere. They are bred in
Kentucky, taught how to be racehorses at a farm in Florida, and
sent to one of several trainers
who are based mainly in California. They begin racing at age two
and travel to racetracks around
the country.
Fresh from his Derby win,
American Pharoah went on to
win the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course in the second
leg of The Triple Crown. The
third race will be held at Belmont Park on June 6. Racing
fans are always hoping for a
Triple Crown winner but there
hasn’t been one since 1978.
Zayat explained why a Triple
Crown winner is such a rarity. “It
takes tremendous stamina to run
a horse race, and usually a horse
won’t run another race for six to
eight weeks. But the Preakness is
two weeks after the Derby and
the Belmont is three weeks after
the Preakness. That’s three races
in the time span a horse usually
has just one.”
Whatever happens, Joanne
Zayat will always remember the
thrill of winning the Kentucky
Derby. “In my life, I never
thought it would be like this,
being at the Derby with the winner,” she said, reliving the incredible experience. “Every year,
there are 30,000 three-year-old
racehorses and only 20 make it to
the Derby. Just to be one of 20 is
an honor.” And to be the winner? “The high, the elation, is
like nothing you ever felt in your
life.”
Reprinted with permission
from www.jewishlinknj.com
7
Chicago Jewish News - May 29-June 4, 2015
Arts & Entertainment
One year after attack, Brussels
Jewish museum is heavily
guarded but drawing crowds
By Cnaan Liphshiz
JTA
Although they now have to
pass through a metal detector
flanked by three armed soldiers,
visitors to Brussels’ Jewish museum seem undeterred by the security arrangements that were
introduced there last year, after
the slaying of four people, allegedly by an Islamist fanatic.
Almost a year after the
shooting, the museum welcomes
80 to 250 visitors a day. That’s a
considerable increase from prior
to the attack, museum spokesperson Chouna Lomponda said.
In the Belgian media, the
occasion provided an opportunity for journalists to look back
and take stock of Belgium’s antiSemitism problem, which local
community leaders say is creating
a silent exodus and endangering
the very survival of the Jewish
minority in a country whose capital is also the capital city of the
European Union.
“The number of visitors
keeps increasing, but that’s an
ongoing trend that started when
we began putting on temporary
exhibitions, which render the
museum more attractive,” the
museum’s director, Philippe
Blondin, said.
The museum, located in
central Brussels, was closed after
the attack and did not reopen for
four months. Before the murders,
it was one of the Belgian capital’s
few Jewish institutions that
was not placed under police protection – a fact counterterrorism
experts said suggested a high degree of preplanning by the perpetrators.
Belgian authorities are holding two men they say are responsible for the murders: 30-year-old
Mehdi Nemmouche, a French
national who is believed to have
fought in Syria with jihadists and
who is standing trial for pulling
the trigger, and Nacer Bendrer,
26, who is believed to have
helped Nemmouche plan the attacks. They both deny their involvement. A third individual is
wanted for questioning for suspected complicity.
If Nemmouche pulled the
trigger, it’s because he was able to
give Belgian secret services, who
were following him before the attack, the slip. He then managed
to escape all the way to France’s
southern tip, where he was arrested, during a routine customs
inspection, several days after the
shooting with a bag full of
weapons similar to the ones used
at the museum. An internal investigation into how that happened may result in disciplinary
action against the security officials who allegedly let him get
away.
In the past year Belgian authorities have boosted security,
including by army troops, for
Jewish institutions in Brussels
and Antwerp despite complaints
by some nongovernmental
groups that the measures are disproportionate to the threat, Joel
Rubinfeld, the president of the
Belgian League Against AntiSemitism, or LBCA, and former
president of French-speaking
Belgian communities, said.
But these measures are not
long-term fixes, he added. “We
need to go to heart of the problem,” said Rubinfeld, who believes Belgian teachers and
politicians should confront antiZionism similarly to what is done
in France, where promoting boycotts of Israel is illegal and where
Prime Minister Manuel Valls
calls anti-Zionism “a portal to
anti-Semitism.”
Brussels Mayor Yvan Mayeur
“did not speak out when they
were shouting ‘death to Jews’ at
anti-Israel demonstrations,” Rubinfeld said.
Nostra
CONTINUED
F RO M PAG E
2
Aetate became the gold standard
by which all others would be
measured. Protestant churches
created their own documents, reforming centuries of antipathy
toward Jews and Judaism. And
leading Jewish activists in Christian-Jewish dialogue fashioned a
Jewish response, Dabru Emet: A
Jewish Statement on Christians
and Christianity. The first of that
document’s eight principles is
that Jews and Christians worship
the same God.
Nostra Aetate has been the
inspiration for 50 years of work
by Christians and Jews. The
Catholic-Jewish leadership conversation has matured. Yes, there
are disagreements from time to
time, but they are discussed and
often resolved among friends.
Given the remarkable normalization of interaction over
the past half-century, it is understandable that many take such
gains for granted. But in this
Nostra Aetate jubilee year, we
should recognize and acknowledge the courage of Catholics
and Jews: Catholics who faced
and addressed Christianity’s
tragic anti-Jewish past, and Jews
who were receptive to Christian
change.
This golden anniversary is
an opportunity to encourage
Catholics, Jews and all people of
good will to learn more about
Nostra Aetate and educate others while celebrating and offering
thanksgiving that we live in a
post-Nostra Aetate world. Rabbis and priests should share the
powerful brevity of Nostra Aetate with their communities, so
that millions might know and
grasp its contents.
We must nourish this
achievement. Only then will it
continue to give life to our cherished Catholic-Jewish relationships.
Simon Wiesenthal Center
Honoring
Robert A. Mariano
and
Christopher G. Kennedy
June 11, 2015
Standard Club, Chicago
www.wiesenthal.com/2015ChicagoDinner
or call
312.981.0105
for more information
A vigil was organized on May 25, 2014 by the Jewish community outside the Jewish Museum of Belgium in Brussels where a gunman killed
four people the previous day. (JTA)
8
Chicago Jewish News - May 29-June 4, 2015
UNITY DAY
On the first anniversary of their murders,
remembering three Israeli teens by
having Jews come together
This piece was written by Iris
and Ori Ifrach, Rachelli and Avi
Fraenkel, and Bat-Galim and Ofer
Shaer, the parents of Eyal Ifrach,
Gil-ad Shaer and Naftali Fraenkel.
(JTA) One year ago, our
families were thrust into a nightmare beyond anything we could
have ever imagined.
Our sons, Eyal Ifrach, Gilad Shaer and Naftali Fraenkel,
had been kidnapped while making their way home from school.
For 18 (chai) days, we hovered
somewhere between despair and
hope while we prayed for their
safe return home.
Tragically, that safe return
would not come to be. Our boys
joined the thousands before
them who lost their lives as Jews
and in the name of our ancient
homeland.
During that period of uncertainty we all shared an intense
sense of unity unlike anything
our people had experienced in
recent years with the message of
“Bring Back Our Boys” reaching
people from so many different
backgrounds and places. The
feeling of togetherness, of belonging and caring for one another only increased in its fervor
during the funerals and the shiva.
And today we are incredibly inspired by the actions people have
taken to continue this spirit in
memory of our boys.
During the shiva, our homes
overflowed with visitors seeking
to offer us comfort, and so many
conversations stood out.
But in one interaction with
Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat,
who made his way to each of our
homes, a seed of an idea was
hatched that we knew needed to
be developed. He said that we
needed to find a way to harness
that spirit of unity and keep it
alive because this would serve as
the ultimate legacy for our sons.
And so the idea of the
Jerusalem Unity Prize was conceived.
With Barkat and a professional team of organizers in
place, we formed a not-for-profit
organization named the Memorial Foundation for the Three
Boys intended to highlight and
promote the concept of Jewish
unity that defined that period.
Since announcing the establishment of the prize in January, we
have received more than 200 applications.
On June 3, three prizes for
unity will be presented in an historic ceremony hosted by Israel’s
President Reuven Rivlin. The
award winners from Israel and
the Diaspora were chosen for
best reflecting those ideals of
bringing Jews of different backgrounds and perspectives to-
Rachelli Frankel crying over the body of her son at the joint funerals for the three murdered teens.
gether for the common purpose
of building a stronger Jewish
community.
But we also began to appreciate that as powerful as the message of the prize might be, this
concept deserved to be shared
with the entire world. With that
broader vision, we embarked on
the concept of Unity Day. June
3, 2015, the one-year anniversary
of the kidnappings, will serve as
the first-ever Unity Day where
Jewish communities all over the
globe stop and consider the value
of unity and how to work even
harder to bridge the obvious divides that exist within our society.
There is no doubt that those
divisions waned during those terrible days a year ago. But tragedy
cannot be the primary catalyst
for unity. Rather, it is incumbent
upon us to harness the lessons of
that time to build a better soci-
ety.
During the course of the
year, we have all had our own
personal moments to reflect on
where these events will take us in
the future. Indeed, we all have
our personal answers and know
that the road ahead will not always be easy. But we also know
that this path will not be taken
alone. Through the power of the
memories of Eyal, Gil-ad and
Naftali, not only will their deaths
have brought us together but
their memories will as well.
In that spirit, it is our eternal joint prayer that they be remembered not simply as victims
of a brutal tragedy but also as
three “normal” boys who succeeded in bringing a nation together. May the memories of
Eyal, Gil-ad and Naftali inspire
us all to really live as one people
with one heart.
9
Chicago Jewish News - May 29-June 4, 2015
Lost teens still with us
By Jonathan Mark
New York Jewish Week
As we say in the Prayer for
Dew (“the symbol of youthful
promise”), with the boys in another world, “With His consent
I shall speak of mysteries.”
There are no lessons, only
mysteries from the deaths the
murders of Naftali Fraenkel,
Gilad Shaar and Eyal Yifrach,
the three kidnapped Israeli
teenagers whose bodies were
found in a field near biblical
Hebron. There are no lessons
here, none that we haven’t already learned from the Fogels, a
family of five stabbed to death
in their beds, the baby decapitated; from Leon Klinghoffer in
his wheelchair, sinking in the
sea; from Alisa Flatow, on an
exploding bus in Gaza; or from
the thousands of Israelis murdered in this loneliest of Jewish
centuries, at least since the previous one.
Alisa Flatow, the Brandeis
University student with the
lovely dimpled face, had to be
identified by her feet. Israeli investigators came to the Frankel
home asking about Naftali’s sandals. According to reports, Naftali’s mother Rachel and her
4-year-old son quickly went
through photos from Purim, a
birthday party, a camping trip,
“If you see a picture of Naftali,
tell me,” said Rachel. “We’ll
look at his sandals.” She asked
Ayala, her 14-year-old daughter,
“You know all these details, are
Naftali’s sandals black or
brown?”
There’s a YouTube video of
Naftali playing ping-pong in a
backyard. He’s wearing a dark
green T-shirt and black shorts,
the white strings of his tzitzis
fluttering as he bounces on the
balls of his feet, side to side, returning a volley with his red
paddle. He is barefoot.
On the 21-second video,
Naftali’s playing in the backyard
is as priceless as the 21-second
video of Anne Frank leaning
out of an Amsterdam window in
1941. You may think these murders were completely incomprehensible, or after thousands
even millions of murdered Jews
you might detect a pattern.
You’d be right either way. After
the boys were discovered, there
was a remarkable scene in a
Jerusalem square. It included
“the black hats and Bnai Akiva
[a Zionist youth group], girls in
hot pants and seminary girls in
long skirts, men with ear and
nose piercings and men with
payis. All singing … ‘Vehi Sheh’amda’ from the Passover seder,
“In every generation they rose
to destroy us…”
Future generations will remember some Palestinians passing out candy to celebrate the
kidnapping, and the drawings of
the three teenage boys depicted
in the Palestinian media as rats.
The boys were found at the beginning of the Hebrew month
of Tammuz. According to the
mystics, Tammuz is the month
for the fixing of our vision, to
see through the distractions and
distortions and discover the best
in each other and in Israel. As
was taught in Jerusalem’s Yeshivat Simchat Shlomo [Carlebach]: In the spirit of Tammuz,
may “Hashem bless us to see the
beauty of Eretz Yisrael [the Land
of Israel], the beauty of every
single
Jewish
neshamah
[soul]….
“These boys, our boys,” said
Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, two of
whom attended his yeshiva
Mekor Haim, “have died ‘al
Kiddush Hashem,’ simply because they are Jews.”
These were not just three
people, these were “our boys.”
How quickly and completely we
felt we knew them. We’ve been
memorizing their photos in our
shuls, homes, schools and
camps. We all knew someone
just like them, or so it seemed.
As one high school girl, Daniela
Krausz, told us at a rally for the
kidnapped teens, “You look into
the eyes of these boys, [they
were] kids you could see walking
down [our school’s] hallways;
someone you could be sharing a
laugh with.”
A Jerusalem friend emailed that the teacher of an 11
p.m. Talmud class at the Kotel
told his students, “For 18 days
[Eyal, Naftali and Gilad] united
‘Klal Yisroel’ [the collective of
Israel].” We lit extra Shabbat
candles for them, ushered in
Shabbat early, did extra mitzvot
and goodness for them and, in
the end, we did it for us. We
never met them, didn’t know
them, said the teacher at the
late-night Kotel, “but they were
our sons and brothers... There
was a [Heavenly decree] we
don’t understand, but they were
[empowered and endowed] to be
a unifying factor for the Jewish
people. Every person that said
Tehilim, learned, said a [blessing] or answered amen in their
[honor] has a chaylek [a piece
of] that.”
There were calls for revenge, from G-d, man or both.
At the same time, mourners are
told, “HaMakom yinachem,”
G-d will comfort, or more literally, “the place will comfort,”
the consolation of Israel, of
Jewish community. We have
not gone our separate ways
after the burials. The boys,
their souls, are still uniting us,
with a new consciousness of
love and defiance.
Naftali Fraenkel, Gil-ad Shaar and Eyal Yifrach.
“These boys, our boys have died ‘al Kiddush
Hashem,’ simply because they are Jews.”
10
Chicago Jewish News - May 29-June 4, 2015
Death Notices
Allen Alterson, age 76;
beloved husband of the late
Hermene; loving father of
Beth (Tom) Jenkins, Shari
(Ron) Kurzinski, and Mark Alterson (Byron Levan); proud
grandfather of Brad (Cristiana) Alterson, Nick (Natalya)
Kurzinski, Jessica Alterson,
Sarah (fiancee Greg Pasko)
Kurzinski; and a great grandfather to be; dearest friend
of Carmel Alterson; fond uncle and friend of many. Contributions may be made to
Joliet Area Community Hospice Home, 250 Water Stone
Circle, Joliet, IL 60431, 815460-3225 www.joliethospice.
org., or to your favorite charity. Arrangements by Lakeshore Jewish Funerals, (773)
625-8621.
Howard Bergman, died May
20; age 86; born in Deblin,
Poland; beloved husband of
Leonie, nee Taffel-Levy; loving father of Adelle Bergman
(Jim DeFelippis) and Jeffrey
(Karen) Bergman; proud
grandfather of Daniel, Emily,
Jillian, and Kevin; dear son of
the late Icek and Esther
Bergman; fond brother of the
late Israel Aaron Bergman.
Howard was a Holocaust survivor, and a member of
Chicago YIVO Society, Illinois
Holocaust Museum and Education Center, and the U.S.
Holocaust Museum. Contributions may be made to a
charity of your choice.
Arrangements by Lakeshore
Jewish Funerals, (773) 6258621.
Judi Cogan, nee Evans, died
May 24, beloved mother of
the late Michelle Butman;
mother in law of Steve Butman; adoring Bubbe of Zion
Butman, dearest daughter of
the late Paul and Bernice
Evans; fond sister of the late
Sidney Evans; sister in law of
Merle Evans; she had a special
relationship with her aunts,
cousins,and childhood friends;
employee of Mr. Travel where
she made many warm, lifelong relationships. In lieu of
flowers, contributions may be
made to Whitehall of Deerfield, 300 Waukegan Road,
Deerfield, IL 60015, would be
appreciated. Arrangements
by Lakeshore Jewish Funerals,
(773) 625-8621.
Harriette Simon Kretske, died
May 23; beloved wife of the
late Hon. Edwin Kretske;
friends Duane Shumaker, Tim
Bell, George Weeks, and Terri
Lind. Harriette worked for
many years as a well-known
realtor in the Gold Coast area
of Chicago. She will be
missed by her many friends
and admirers at Gibson’s, RL,
and Hugo’s. Contributions to
Lynn Sage Cancer Research,
lynnsage.org. Arrangements
by Lakeshore Jewish Funerals,
(773) 625-8621.
Solomon Z. Mandel, age 92.
Beloved husband of Yuliya
Druyan. Devoted father of
Boris (Irina) Mandel. Devoted
grandfather Yelena (Pavel)
Lapitsky and great-grandchild
Revekka Lapitsky. Arrangements by Mitzvah Memorial
Funerals.
Gene Sosin, Radio Liberty director and WWII codebreaker
(JTA) Gene Sosin, a former
director of broadcasting for Radio
Liberty, has died. He was 93.
He spent 33 years at Radio
Liberty serving in various posts.
Sosin also was a writer, lecturer
and specialist in Soviet affairs.
Sosin earned an undergraduate degree from Columbia University in New York, which he en-
tered as a freshman at the age of
16, before joining the U.S. Navy
in 1942. He spent his World War
II service in Washington, D.C.,
with a a top-secret communications unit serving as a codebreaker
and translator of Japanese.
After his discharge, Sosin
wrote news and features for the
Voice of America and returned to
Why did two Jewish funeral businesses
in Skokie close in the last year?
Perhaps it is in part that we left!
Columbia, where he earned his
master’s degree and a doctorate.
In 1950, he and his wife, Gloria, participated in the Harvard
Refugee Interview Project in Munich, in the American occupied
zone of Germany, interviewing
displaced persons from the Soviet
Union who remained in the West
after World War II.
Mitzvah Memorial
Funerals
630-MITZVAH (630-648-9824)
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Proudly serving your family (clockwise from left) are William Barr, Licensed Funeral
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Manager and Licensed Funeral Director; Todd Lovcik, Licensed Funeral Director; Jamie
Greenebaum, Licensed Funeral Director; and Arlene Folsom, Licensed Funeral Director.
Lloyd Mandel
Seymour Mandel
Bill Goodman
I. Ian “Izzy” Dick
Larry Mandel
Mitzvah Memorial Funerals has the most experienced staff of Jewish
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As Jewish families often have graveside services, or service from
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Insurance Agent (no longer with
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Jewish Funerals, Weinstein or Piser)
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11
Chicago Jewish News - May 29-June 4, 2015
THEMaven
Chicago Jewish News
ALL ABOUT
THE SECONDS …
■ When Eli Beer was six
years old, the child of American
parents living in Jerusalem during the First Intifada, he witnessed his first terror attack. He
was right next to a bus that terrorists blew up.
He decided at that moment
that he wanted to be a first responder and save lives when he
grew up.
When Beer was 16 he made
that resolution a reality, taking
his first EMT course and volunteering as a medic on an ambulance. Two years later he
founded United Hatzalah, a national independent non-profit
volunteer organization in Israel
designed for one purpose: to
save lives.
Today the organization,
with Beer as its president, coordinates more than 2,500
medics, paramedics and doctors
across the country who use the
latest technology to provide a
response within minutes, not
only to terror attacks but to all
kinds of medical emergencies.
Beer has received many accolades for his service, including
the 2011 Presidential Award for
Volunteerism, presented by Israeli President Shimon Peres,
and the 2012 Young Global
Leader Award by the World
Economic Forum.
The Hatzalah model has
spread to other countries; Beer’s
team was recently in Nepal
helping earthquake survivors.
He was in Chicago recently
to rally the city’s Hatzalah supporters after his story went viral
following a 2013 TED Talk he
gave. He said in a phone interview that last summer a group
of Chicagoans was touring the
Eshkol region of Southern Israel
during Operative Protective
Edge while sirens were blaring.
A young boy, Daniel Tragerman, had been killed by a mortar attack in the region.
As a result, a group of 40
Chicago families raised enough
money to train and place 100
United Hatzalah medics in the
region.
“The first week we started
saving lives,” Beer said. “I saved
a 70-year-old Holocaust survivor who was hit by a car. We
were able to get to him in one
and a half minutes” using another of Beer’s innovations, a
motorcycle, called an ambucycle, that can dramatically speed
emergency response time.
The introduction of the
ambucycle was one of the most
popular parts of Beer’s TED
talk, he says, as well as one of
the most important developments in emergency response in
Israel.
“Saving a person’s life is all
about seconds,” Beer said. “You
can be 10 seconds late … When
we volunteered in an ambulance it took us too long to get
there. We decided after a sevenyear-old boy choked on a hot
dog and it took an ambulance
21 minutes to get there, that
volunteers could get there much
faster.” Unfortunately that boy
did not survive.
Now, Beer said, the entire
country is honeycombed with
Hatzalah volunteers who can
reach almost any locale in three
minutes or fewer.
So many volunteers are
needed because small-scale terror attacks, ones that often
don’t make the international
news, are happening all the
time, he said.
“Just the other day, in
Jerusalem two soldiers were hit
by a terrorist,” he said. “We had
people there in seconds and
(the soldiers) are all right. But
things don’t always end up
good.”
In Southern Israel, near
Gaza, where the Chicago group
has focused its efforts, “during
the last war, the moments of response there were very important,” he said. The Chicago
supporters “went there, saw the
(terrorists’) tunnels, the whole
thing. They realized how great
the need was and how the important the moments of response were.”
Team Daniel, as it is called,
now has more than 100 volunteers.
“Volunteers are ordinary
people,” Beer said. “They are
lawyers, journalists, people
working in fish markets. Anyone who has a good heart and
wants to save lives can be
trained.”
Beer himself has five children and a wife, Gitty, who runs
a thriving real estate brokerage.
“She is very happy at the
end of the day that we’re saving
lives,” he said.
Now Beer is on to a new
and different project: expanding
United Hatzalah to an American city, specifically Jersey City,
N.J. , where eventually he
hopes to place 200 volunteers.
(A local organization, Hatzalah
Chicago, is not affiliated with
United Hatzalah, although Beer
said he supports its efforts.)
In Jersey City, “the mayor
realized that response time is
not quick enough,” Beer said.
“He wants to make it quicker.
This is the first U.S. city. We
are helping the idea go worldwide, not just in Jewish communities but everywhere. It is a
part of tikkun olam (repairing
the world) to do this.”
IDA CROWN STUDENT
NAMED PRESIDENTIAL
SCHOLAR…
■ Ida Crown Jewish Academy
senior Anat Berday-Sacks has
been named a U.S. Presidential
Scholar.
Berday-Sacks transferred to
Ida Crown as a sophomore after
spending her freshman year in
public school in Indianapolis. “I
am thankful I can come to a
Jewish school where I don’t
have to explain myself and fight
for moments of religious commonality. Freshman year, when
I was asked about my opinions
of Israel, or why I believed in
G-d, I wasn’t prepared to answer. I still have a long way to
go. But Ida Crown gave me a
year of Jewish History, the skills
to analyze primary sources, and
a group of friends who question
the same things as I do but have
found different answers. Ida
Crown has helped me do what I
love most, be it through a scholarship for YU’s Model United
Nations Convention or having
a cross-country team that
doesn’t compete on Shabbat.”
U.S. Secretary of Education
Arne Duncan announced the
presidential scholars, recogniz-
For more information see
United Hatzalah’s website:
https://israelrescue.org/.
Eli Beer
Pauline Dubkin Yearwood
Anat Berday-Sacks
ing the high school seniors for
their accomplishments in academics or the arts. “Presidential
Scholars demonstrate the accomplishments that can be
made when students challenge
themselves, set the highest standards, and commit themselves
to excellence,” Duncan said.
“These scholars are poised to
make their mark on our nation
in every field imaginable: the
arts and humanities, science
and technology, law and medicine, business and finance, education and government—to
name a few. Their academic and
artistic achievements reflect a
sense of purpose that we should
seek to instill in all students to
prepare them for college, careers, civic responsibilities, and
the challenges of today’s job
market.”
The program selects honored scholars annually based on
their academic success, artistic
excellence, essays, school evaluations and transcripts, as well as
evidence of community service,
leadership, and demonstrated
commitment to high ideals. Of
the three million students expected to graduate from high
school this year, more than
4,300 candidates qualified for
the 2015 awards with 141 being
chosen.
12
Chicago Jewish News - May 29-June 4, 2015
Community Calendar
Sunday
Monday
May 31
June 1
JCC Chicago presents “Jammin’ at the J” with kids’
musicians Mr. Dave and Little Miss Ann. 11 a.m.-noon,
Mayer Kaplan JCC, 5050
Church St., Skokie. $10.
gojcc.org/jjamz or (847)
763-3603.
Temple Sholom presents
musical “Freedom Song,”
one family’s struggle with
addiction for adults and
high-school age children.
7-8:30 p.m., 3480 N. Lake
Shore Drive, Chicago. Register, (847) 745-5422.
Emanuel Congregation
holds tea celebrating Rabbi
Herman Schaalman’s 99th
and his wife Lotte’s 100th
birthdays featuring guest
speaker Ambassador David
Saperstein. 3-5 p.m. ,5959
N. Sheridan Road, Chicago.
$120. RSVP, [email protected] or (312)
485-0053.
Tuesday
Temple Beth Israel hosts
program of Modern Jewish
Repertoire featuring Koleynu and TBI’s Adult Volunteer Choir. 4 p.m., 3601
W. Dempster, Skokie.
tbiskokie.org or (847) 6750951.
WednesdayJune 3Kohl Children’s Museum presents
“Chagall for Children” exhibit for ages 2-12 running
through Sept. 6. 2100 Patriot Blvd., Glenview. For
museum hours and costs,
(847) 832-6600.
Congregation BJBE presents
musical “Freedom Song,”
one family’s struggle with
addiction for adults and
high-school age children. 45:30 p.m., 1201 Lake Cook
Road, Deerfield. Register,
(847) 745-5422.
Lubavitch Chabad of Skokie
holds Teen Leadership
Awards Gala. 6:30 p.m.,
4059 Dempster, Skokie. $65,
$100 couple. (847) 677-1770
June 2
Temple Jeremiah hosts interfaith panel on “In a
World of Misunderstanding, What Do the Sacred
Texts Teach?” 7:30 p.m., 937
Happ Road, Northfield.
(847) 441-5760.
Friday
June 5
CJN Classified
CEMETERY LOTS
Privately owned but no longer needed.
SHALOM MEMORIAL PARK
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WESTLAWN CEMETERY
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Will show you the spots.
All owners anxious to sell to you.
OPEN SPACES LIFECYCLE SERVICES
847-778-6736
Saturday
Shalom Memorial Park
3 plots in
Section 3 Ramah
$2500 each
Will split
Call Davina
(702) 834-7478
HELP WANTED
JCRC’s Board of Directors is seeking a dynamic
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR to provide strategic direction and
ensure excellence for the organization. Ideal candidates share a
deep knowledge of and passion for Jewish community and values;
an eagerness to collaborate; strong public relations skills; a
capability to leverage social media; prior leadership and management experience; and fundraising/development skills.
To learn more about JCRC, visit www.jcrcstl.org.
To apply or for more information,
visit Collaborative Strategies at www.csiapply.com.
SPOTLIGHT
Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning
and Leadership premiers digital
restoration of 1938 film “Mamele”
starring Molly Picon, followed by
discussion with Lisa Rivo, co-director of the National Center for
Jewish Film. 2 p.m. Sunday, May 31, 610 S. Michigan, Chicago. $18,
$10 Spertus members, $8 students. spertus.edu or (312) 322-1773.
June 6
Illinois Holocaust Museum
and Education Center holds
Bank of America’s Museum
On Us Program for its cardholders on first full weekend of each month. 9603
Woods Drive, Skokie. (847)
967-4835.
Illinois Holocaust Museum
and Education Center presents “New Dimensions in
Testimony Technology”
with survivor Pinchas Gutter answering questions in
an interactive educational
experience allowing future
generations to “talk” with
Holocaust survivors. 10:30
a.m.-2 p.m. Also June 13, 20
and 27, 9603 Woods Drive,
Skokie. Free with museum
admission. (847) 967-4835
or [email protected].
Sunday
Congregation Beth Judea
VIRGIN GRAVES FOR SALE
holds summertime Shabbat
celebration including barbecue dinner and service. 6
p.m., Route 83 and Hilltop
Road, Long Grove. $7 adult,
$6 child 2-12, $25 family.
RSVP, Lneiman@bethjudea.
org or (847) 634-0777.
June 7
Congregation Beth Judea
presents Danny Siegel
speaking on “116 Practical
Mitzvah Suggestions and
How to Choose the Charity
that is the Very Best for
You.” 10 a.m., Route 83 and
Hilltop Road, Long Grove.
RSVP required, lneiman@
bethjudea.org or (847) 6340777.
Illinois Holocaust Museum
and Education Center holds
Family Day at the Museum
with gallery tours, art activities and refreshments with
the museum, Anti-Defamation League and National
Veterans Art Museum. 11
a.m.-2:30 p.m., 9603 Woods
Drive, Skokie. Free with
museum admission. Free for
teachers with school ID and
their families. Reservations
required, ilholocaustmuseum.org/events.
Illinois Holocaust Museum
and Education Center presents Lincolnwood Chamber
Orchestra performing compositions by famous Russian
composers. 2-3:30 p.m.,
9603 Woods Drive, Skokie.
$30, $20 members. Reservations required, ilholocaustmuseum.org/events.
$10 students, $12 UChicago
staff, faculty, alumni, $15
non-members. (773) 7029520.
Agudath Israel of Illinois
hosts Unity Dinner and
Midwest Leadership
Awards. More information,
[email protected].
Northwest Hadassah Chapter Book Club holds discussion on “The Light Between
Oceans” by M. L. Stedman.
7 p.m., Buffalo Grove Youth
Center, 50 ½ Raupp Blvd.,
Buffalo Grove. Elizabeth
Gordon, [email protected].
Temple Beth–El hosts lecture by U.S. Rep. Ed Royce,
chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, on
“The U.S. and Israel: Standing Together?” 7 p.m., 3610
Dundee, Northbrook. Preregistration recommended.
(847) 205-9982.
Monday
June 8
Ezra-Habonim, the Niles
Township Jewish Congregation holds Clothing and
Textile Recycling Drive. 9
a.m.-5 p.m. Also June 9, 10
and 11, 4500 W. Dempster,
Skokie. (847) 675-4141.
Tuesday
June 9
Buffalo Grove Post #89 &
Auxiliary hosts luncheon for
installation of 2015 officers.
Noon, Dover Straits Restaurant, 890 E. Route 45. $25.
(847) 668-0101.
North Suburban Synagogue
Beth El shows documentary
film “Roadmap Genesis.”
7:45 p.m., 1175 Sheridan
Road, Highland Park. (847)
432-8900.
Thursday
June 11
Simon Wiesenthal Center
Midwest Region holds 2015
Spirit of Courage Benefit
honoring Robert A. Mariano. 5:30 p.m., The Standard Club, 320 S. Plymouth
Court, Chicago. $350. (312)
981-0105 or kferrell@
wiesenthal.com.
Jewish Child and Family
Services holds workshop on
Financial and Future Planning for People with Disabilities presented by Ron
Dickstein, Hoopis Financial
Group, Mass Mutual. 6-8
p.m., 5150 Golf Road,
Skokie. EmilyTegenkamp
@jcfs.org or (773) 467-3741.
Friday
June 12
Congregation B’nai Tikvah
holds musical Kabbalat
Shabbat Service followed
by Oneg. 6:30 p.m., 1558
Wilmot Road, Deerfield.
(847) 945-0470.
Sunday
Wednesday
June 10
The Oriental Institute holds
“Epic Wednesday” exploring the ancient Near Eastern cosmopolitans with
gallery tours, artisan food,
live music and craft beer. 58 p.m., 1155 E. 58th St.,
Chicago. Free for members,
June 14
Anshe Emet Synagogue
hosts Chicago barbecue festival and competition.
11:30 a.m.- 4 p.m., 3751 N.
Broadway, Chicago. $5 suggested donation. (773) 6616384.
13
Chicago Jewish News - May 29-June 4, 2015
By Joseph Aaron
CONTINUED
F RO M PAG E
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That’s what he said. But who did he just appoint as his new chief
peace negotiator? Guy named Silvan Shalom who, by the way, is also
Interior Minister and also in charge of strategic dialogue with the
United States. But we’ll get to that part of the story in a bit.
Thing is that Silvan Shalom, the new chief peace negotiator, is
a staunch supporter of Jewish settlements in the West Bank and has
repeatedly and vocally opposed a two-state solution. “We are all
against a Palestinian state, there is no question about it,” he said to his
fellow Likud leaders in 2012.
And then you have Tzipi Hotovely, the new deputy foreign minister and the country’s de facto top diplomat, who told Israeli diplomats not to hesitate in asserting to their foreign counterparts that the
entire Land of Israel belongs to the Jewish people.
“The time has come to tell the world that we’re right – not only
smart.” Hotovely, who favors the annexation of the West Bank and
opposes the establishment of a Palestinian state, said “We must return
to the basic truth about our right to the entire land. It’s important to
say this country is all ours.”
So his new chief peace negotiator and his new deputy foreign
minister both oppose a two state solution.
Now you’ll note that Hotovely is deputy foreign minister, but is
running the foreign ministry. That’s because Bibi appointed himself
as foreign minister. He also appointed himself as health minister.
And as minister of regional cooperation.
And if you think that’s no way to run a government, you haven’t
heard anything yet. Bibi named a popular Likud member named Gilad Erdan to head both the Public Security Ministry and the Strategic Affairs Ministry. Erdan is also in charge of public diplomacy, and
the Iran dossier. He also is heading a team in charge of fighting international efforts to boycott Israeli products and cultural initiatives.
And he is also communications minister.
Indeed, as the Times of Israel put it, “The list of seemingly incoherent appointments is a long one. The minister of justice has no background in law, the minister of science none in science, while the transportation minister is also in charge of a newly christened Intelligence
and Atomic Energy Ministry. And on and on.”
And so we have Yair Levin serving as tourism minister, and as
minister-liaison between the cabinet and the Knesset; and as deputy
chairman of the Ministerial Committee for Legislation. And we have
Zev Elkin, who is immigrant absorption minister, also in charge of
Jerusalem Affairs, despite the fact that during the campaign, Bibi
promised the mayor of Jerusalem that Bibi himself would hold that
post. Another promise broken in the name of political game-playing.
But what shows most vividly that what matters is not competence
or experience but ego and power, is the case of Benny Begin, the son
of former prime minister Menachem Begin. Benny agreed to come out
of retirement at Bibi’s request to join his Cabinet. But a mere 10 days
after his appointment, Benny was unceremoniously kicked out of the
Cabinet, because someone had to go to meet the law that only allows
20 Cabinet ministers. And so they threw out the one guy who wasn’t
in it for personal advancement, the one guy not grabbing for power,
the one guy that all acknowledge is a serious and wise voice.
All of which is not to mention the tens of billions in additional
spending promised certain new ministers, not because their departments needed it, but because they demanded it so they had more patronage to spread around.
And then we have yet another example of the distortion of the
economy to favor the wealthy and powerful at the expense of everyone else.
Antitrust Authority Commissioner David Gilo said he is resigning because it seems Bibi has changed his mind about opening Israel’s
natural gas market to increased competition.
Israel in the past few years made two massive discoveries of natural gas.
Two companies were given a monopoly over it all. But when Gilo
learned about the obscenely high prices they intended to charge to sell
gas to the Israeli economy, he voided the deal that gave the two control over the offshore gas rigs. But Bibi’s new government has said that
instead of allowing competition, it would leave the two companies as
the sole operators.
In his letter of resignation, Gilo wrote, “My decision stems from
several considerations, mostly the knowledge that the government and
specifically the Prime Minister’s Office, the Finance Ministry and the
Energy Ministry will do all in their power to promote the new draft
on natural gas – a draft which I am certain will not bring competition
to this important market.” He added that it would damage the independence of the Antitrust Authority and prevent it from regulating
the market.
And so politics as usual continues with absurd appointments to
the Cabinet, with anyone trying to bring fairness to the economic system being run over, and with those put in charge of the peace process
being anti-peace process.
Helluva way to run a Jewish country.
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14
Chicago Jewish News - May 29-June 4, 2015
By
Joseph
Aaron
Look and listen
www.
chicagojewishnews
.com
The Jewish
News place in
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He even knew how to wear a yarmulke without looking silly.
I really don’t know why it is, but you can usually tell when someone is not a regular yarmulke wearer. When he puts it on for a funeral
or whatever, it always seems to point up like a tent, sits awkwardly on
the head. There’s really no reason why someone who wears a yarmulke
a few times a year should look any differently than someone who wears
it every day, but that is what happens.
And yet when Barack Obama recently went to a Washington
synagogue to make a speech, yarmulke on his head, he looked like a
natural. I took it as another sign of what a good friend of Israel and
the Jews he is.
I know, very many Israelis don’t like or trust him and too many
American Jews feel the same. Why that is, if you look at the facts, I
still don’t know.
Consider that in just the last week alone, the Obama administration approved the sale of $1.8 billion worth of munitions to Israel,
including precision guidance devices and bunker-busting bombs. And
said it will ensure that any text coming out of a conference reviewing the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty meets Israel’s interests.
I could cite more such facts but I know no matter how many facts
I present, a lot of you will never like or trust Obama when it comes
to Israel.
I would just like to caution you not to kid yourself that all the Republicans running for president and falling all over themselves in praise
of Israel, are doing it because they love Israel or Jews. They say what
they say because they love one particular Jew, casino billionaire Sheldon Adelson, who is to the right of Bibi, and who is going to choose
one of the Republicans to back and shower him with as much as $100
million in campaign funds. And they say what they say because they
love the 50 or so million Evangelical Christian voters in this country
who are more pro-Israel than Bibi, not for the reasons Bibi is, but because they need Israel around for the scenario to unfold that they believe will bring back Jesus.
In any case, I was quite struck by some of what Obama said in his
speech in that shul. A few excerpts:
“Anti-Semitism is, and always will be, a threat to broader human
values to which we all must aspire. And when we allow anti-Semitism
to take root, then our souls are destroyed, and it will spread.”
“From Einstein to Brandeis, from Jonas Salk to Betty Friedan,
American Jews have made contributions to this country that have
shaped it in every aspect. And as a community, American Jews have
helped make our union more perfect.”
“It would be a moral failing on the part of the U.S. government
and the American people, it would be a moral failing on my part if we
did not stand up firmly, steadfastly not just on behalf of Israel’s right
to exist, but its right to thrive and prosper.”
“I’m interested in a deal that blocks every single one of Iran’s
pathways to a nuclear weapon every single path. A deal that imposes
unprecedented inspections on all elements of Iran’s nuclear program,
so that they can’t cheat; and if they try to cheat, we will immediately
know about it and sanctions snap back on. A deal that endures beyond
a decade; that addresses this challenge for the long term. In other
words, a deal that makes the world and the region including Israel
more secure.”
“The people of Israel must always know America has its back, and
America will always have its back.”
Some Israel hater. But I know that all those Jewish Obama haters
out there heard only this sentence: “I believe in two states for two peoples, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security. Just
as Israelis built a state in their homeland, Palestinians have a right to
be a free people on their land, as well.”
Well, if that bothers you, truth is you don’t have to worry. There
isn’t going to be any peace process. For while Bibi is saying all the right
things, he is, as always, doing all the wrong things.
“We will continue to promote a diplomatic settlement,” Bibi said
at his new government’s first cabinet meeting. His government, he
said, “will advance the diplomatic process and strive to reach a peace
agreement with the Palestinians and all our neighbors.”
And he just told the European Union’s top diplomat that he was
committed to finding a two-state solution with the Palestinians. “I
don’t support a one-state solution – I don’t believe that’s a solution at
all,” Netanyahu said. “Israel wants peace. I want peace. We want a
peace that would end the conflict once and for all,” he said.
SEE BY JOSEPH
AARON
ON
PAG E 1 3
Chicago Jewish News - May 29-June 4, 2015
15
16
Chicago Jewish News - May 29-June 4, 2015
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