Remembering the Fallen

Today is Yom Hazikaron.

I have watched social media buzzing about it and as the sister of a US Army soldier something really stood out to me this year – Israelis (even those who no longer live in Israel) and many Anglo Jews take this day seriously.  This is such a stark contrast to Memorial Day here in the US, which many people take to be the start of BBQ season with no regard for the meaning for the day off.

Israeli sirens were sounded twice and during each of these moments, everything stopped. Traffic, radio, conversations – everything. When life resumes, I am told there is a different feeling in the air which permeates for the entire day. People are somber and reflective. Radio stations play songs which convey the mood. Places of entertainment are closed. (And afterwards, they run into the arms of the country to celebrate its very existence on Yom Haatzmaut.)

In a little over a month, America will celebrate Memorial Day, and few people will take moments of silence or recognize the day. They will celebrate the day off work, not commemorate the reason why.

While I understand that the compulsary service in Israel creates an entire country in which people are activly engaged in the military and are more likely to know someone who has died in service to the country. I do not understand how not having that makes it ok to check out of recognizing the lives lost for your freedom. I think the US should really take a moment to learn from the Israelis about how to remember.

In the meantime, I urge us all to take a personal moment of silence today in honor of all those who have lost their lives fighting for Israel, or by being bystanders to those who fight against it.

 

L’shana Haba b’Yerushalyim

Pesach as always been an emotional time of year for me, but this year it went to a whole new level. This year, I knew that when we said “L’shana haba b’Yerushalyim” it meant something tangible. Next year, I will (iy’h) be in Jerusalem.

Holy crap, did I just write that? Did I really grin like a crazy person at the sedar singing L’shana haba b’Yerushalyim? (Chaviva can confirm I did, I’m sure.) Is this real life?

Why yes, yes it is. And honestly, we all knew this had to happen at some point, right? I mean how can we change the world without having spent some time doing serious torah lishma in Israel. So, off we go!

I will be at Nishmat for at least one year doing general studies and hope to be able to continue there either in or with (depending on timing, etc) the Yoetzet Halacha program. Having spent the past few years working as a Jewish professional while interacting with so many of you via this blog and the social media world it connected me to, I have found a space which calls to me in a deeper way. Discussing these topics feels natural for me, and like a perfect coalescence of my social worker, health educator, and Jewish communal worker selves. Ultimately, I hope to be able to use social media to make taharat ha’mishpacha (the laws of family purity) less scary and more meaningful and accessible.

Meanwhile, D will be at Pardes for the first year and the time thereafter will be determined as it grows closer. He may stay at Pardes, learn in the Beit Midrash at Bar Ilan, spend some time at HaMivtar, or explore a yeshiva we don’t know about yet. Only time will tell how the specifics all shake down. He does have conditional acceptance to what seems to be a perfect fit for a rabbinical school, however we are always exploring the programs we may not have previously known about so that we can both make our dreams come true.

I have to thank you all for your support and discussions. I only look forward to seeing where this next step of the journey takes us, and hope you’ll stick along for the ride.

(Also if you know of any grants, scholarships, etc that we should apply for beyond what MASA promotes please let us know!)

Buy Israeli Goods (BIG) Day – Today!

This is not my usual sort of post, but it is important.

On March 30th, go shopping for Israel no matter where you live. Buy for Israel. Buy for peace. Be a big part of this BIG (Buy Israeli Goods) Day. Buy goods: MADE IN ISRAEL.

The reason it is today is theeefold. 

1) The Anti-Israel groups have declared March 30th a day to boycott Israel. 
2) We must defeat the boycotters who advocate destructive instead of constructive measures, who undermine hopes for peaceful co-existence, and whose only goal is to defame and damage Israel. Buy for Israel, buy for peace.
 3) We can help Israel if we work together.

 

I implore you all to go shopping today and buy something made in Israel.  Be it a bottle of Israeli wine for Shabbat or in prep for Pesach, a bag of bamba for a snack on the way home from work, or a new Soda Stream.  Just buy something. The “peaceful protest” of the Global March on Jerusalem, is far from peaceful and while there is not much to be done from halfway around the world, we can do this.

For more information:

http://standwithus.com/app/iNews/view_n.asp?ID=2231

http://www.standwithus.com/app/iNews/view_n.asp?ID=1787

http://www.buyisraeligoods.com/

Five Years Too Long

This weekend marked five years of Gilad Shalit’s captivity.  In case you need some backstory on this situation or a reminder, here is a blurb from StandWithUs:

On 25 June 2006, then-Corporal Gilad Shalit was kidnapped by Hamas terrorists from within Israeli territory and taken to the Gaza Strip. The kidnapping was part of an unprovoked attack which involved seven armed terrorists using a tunnel dug under the Israel-Gaza border. Gilad was 19 at the time of his abduction.

During the course of the attack, an IDF soldier, Staff Sergeant Pavel Slutzker, and an officer, Lieutenant Hanan Barak, were killed, while five others were wounded.

25 June 2011 marks 5 years of Staff Sergeant Shalit’s captivity. For 5 years, Hamas has continued to deny Gilad his most basic humanitarian rights, including Red Cross access. For 5 years, his family has suffered greatly, waiting for his return.

The international community should act to end this intolerable situation. As Prime Minister Netanyahu stated (23 May 2011): “I think that the entire civilized community should join Israel and the United States and all of us in a simple demand from Hamas: Release Gilad Shalit.”

It has been so prevalent around social media on Thursday and Friday that it was definitely with me as we entered Shabbat.  The minyan (service) I davened (prayed) with on Shabbat morning, always does a prayer for captives and includes his name.  While this is something I have always appreciated, this Shabbat I found myself getting teary eyed and wondering what his family was doing.

I found that over Shabbat I often thought of the Shalit family.  How much must have happened in the past five years, as I think of my family and what happened in the past five years.  Five years ago I didn’t live in this city or know D.  Five years ago I was still in graduate school and wearing jeans and tank tops.  Five years ago my parents were still living in my childhood home. Five years ago my niece was still struggling to overcome the barriers of being a premie.  Five years ago, I had no idea my life would like it does now.  What has happened in the past five years of your family’s life? Can you imagine not having been a part of any of those experiences, or not having a key member of your family there?  This is why we must support the Shalit family, in any way possible.

While there is little we can really do, beyond sign a petition and pray our hearts out – we can do that.  We can light an extra candle this upcoming Shabbbat (the anniversary on the Hebrew calendar) to shed more light. We can also be kind to others and share compassion and empathy.  We never know what the back story is on another persons life and what they may be dealing with.

Huge News for Orthodox Converts

This amazing news, shared by eJewishPhilanthropy (full text below also) is rapidly making its way around the web and the Jewish blogosphere.  However, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to share it as well. I don’t even know what to say, other than that it is an amazing step in the right direction for Jews who underwent an Orthodox conversion and have the desire to make aliyah. Wow, just wow.

 

Shas and Jewish Agency Reach Agreement on Orthodox Conversion Aliyah

June 14, 2011 by Dan Brown
Filed under In the Media

Leave a Comment

In a letter dated yesterday, the Interior Ministry of the State of Israel notified the Knesset of a change of policy as to procedures for granting Oleh status to Orthodox converts. Instead of turning to the Chief Rabbinate for eligibility approval, it will now turn to the Jewish Agency for Israel.

According to sources close to the issue, Chief Rabbi Amar supports the move which also had to gain approval of [Shas] Interior Minister Eli Yishai.

This agreement represents the first real compromise between the Shas led Interior Ministry and Jewish Agency Chair Natan Sharansky on a question of Jewish identity.

Many conversion questions are up in the air and the only forum actually dealing with the issue is the conversion roundtable chaired by Sharansky. This is only one of many issues, but it represents the first real agreement to come from the process.

The (Evil) Rotem Bill

Ok, so I am sure that some of you are surprised at the lack of commentary on this blog about The “Rotem Bill” which has been all over the Jewish news lately.  For those of you who live under a rock (ok, maybe that was too harsh) and haven’t heard about it,  in short the bill began as a way to ease the conversion process and questions, especially in regards to the relatively recent immigration of Jews from the Former Soviet Union.  However, over time the bill evolved to the point in which it grants all authority over conversion to the Charedi Chief Rabbinate, including retroactively saying conversions are not Kosher.

The reason I have neglected to say anything on it is not because it has not been on my mind, but the exact opposite.  It has been such a heated part of my life, I could not think of how to express myself in words suitable for public consumption.  In fact I still cannot, however I also cannot go another day without mentioning it.  So instead, I will share links to many other prominent organizations and leaders who have written and spoken about the topic. This is by no means a complete list – merely a list of what I have seen and found interesting so please feel free to share more.*

Organizational Statements:

Masorti.org (link)

USCJ.org (link)

Anti-Defamation League (ADL) (link)

Professional Statements:

Rabbi Steven Wernick, CEO and Executive Vice President of USCJ (link)

Rabbi Julie Schonfeld, Executive Vice President, Rabbinical Assembly (link)

Rabbi Marc Angel, Founder/Director of the Institute for Jewish Ideas and Ideals, Rabbi Emeritus of Congregation Shearith Israel (link)

Arnold Eisen, Chancellor, Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS) (link)

Opinions:

“Are you Jewish Enough?” – Jewish Journal – 07.13 (link)

“The Diaspora Need Not Apply” – New York Times – 07.15 (link)

“Rotem’s Bill Promises but Doesn’t Deliver” – The Jewish Week – 07.20 (link)

“Editors Notes: Unconverted” - JPost  - 07.23 (link)

*As much as I am open to different viewpoints, sometimes I have to hold my ground and this is one of those times.  If you do not agree that this is bad for world Jewry, kindly keep your opinions to yourself or share them on your own blog.  This is something neither Jessica nor I are distant from and we ask you to respect that.

Connecting to a Far Away Country

Post by Melissa

This week we celebrate two very big days for Israel, Yom Ha’Atzmaut (Israeli Independence Day) and Yom Ha’Zicaron (Israeli Remembrance Day – think Memorial Day and Veterans day rolled together, and actually celebrated), and by we, I mean Jewish communities worldwide.

I teach in my synagogue’s religious school, and this morning we had a party for Yom Ha’Atzmaut. I attempted to prep my students by discussing Israel in a positive light. Reading a story about a boy who dreamed of planting trees in Israel after learning about a relative who was one of the early Zionists. Showing photos of Israel and reading about the sights. Having students who had visited the country or had heard stories from their parents who had visited, and in one case  gotten engaged, in Israel share the stories and experiences.  Yet none of this seemed to really drive home any message.  While they really enjoyed singing and eating cake, and the extra Israeli snacks I had brought in – the point of it being from Israel seemed lost on so many of them.  Half of them even drew five pointed stars on their Israeli flags, even though my aid and I corrected them and I had an Israeli flag hanging in the front of the room.

So my question for you faithful readers, is in this time of celebration and commemoration – how do you connect your daily life, to that of those in Israel?  How can we impart the beauty and value of this country on those who have not yet had a chance to visit or intellectually comprehend the importance of having a Jewish state?

Hypocrisy at the Wall

Photo by: Barry Schlesinger - Source: Jpost.com

We read in the Talmud that when the month of Adar comes, joy increases.  Somehow, I don’t think the Ultra-Orthodox praying at the Kotel on Monday morning have learned that.

Every month the women’s prayer group Women of the Wall gathers together for the morning service at the Kotel to celebrate the mew month – which is traditionally a women’s holiday.  This month, they had more than 150 women on the women’s side praying Shacharit and Hallel, and 50 male supporters on the other side of the partition.  During the service, some Ultra-Orthodox men began to yell at the women, though they were quickly curtailed by police. (Quite a change from recent months in which leaders of the organization have been interrogated and arrested .)  Shortly after these men were stopped a group of Ultra-Orthodox women  shoved their way through the crowd heckling, pushing and spitting. The women screamed epithets and in one case, actually screamed the words of Hallel back at the Women of the Wall.  Ironic, no?  According to articles on Ynet and The Jerusalem Post they went so far as to call the women “Nazis” and tell them to “go marry preists.”  Once again, the police stepped in and were able to protect the Women of the Wall from physical violence, but it did not stop the verbal assault.  That only ended, when they left the Kotel to go to Robinson’s Arch for the Torah and Musaf service.

The same Ynet article notes that the increased presence of Israelis praying with Women of the Wall indicates that the people are unwilling to be pushed out by the Ultra-Orthodox minority.  Meanwhile, Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, Rabbi of the Western Wall and Holy Sites of Israel condemns Women of the Wall’s prayer group, yet in the same breath he says that all sides have to be understanding of the complexity of the issue.

It appears to me that Rabbi Rabinowitz is issuing quite a double standard.  How can he say that the Women of the Wall need to be respectful of the holiness of the wall, when they were the ones engaged in prayer? The women’s group was standing towards the back of the women’s section respectfully praying the morning service, according to all reports I have seen.  They were using the holy site in a holy manner.  It was the Ultra-Orthodox renegades who created the conflict by speaking out, yelling, spitting, etc.

Every month, I am outraged and amazed at the reaction to the Women of the Wall.  I cannot comprehend how a group of women praying, on the women’s side, is disrespectful to the holy site, but others interrupting their own prayer, as well as the prayers of this group, to yell at these women is not.  The hypocrisy from the Israeli Rabbinate astounds me.  I can only hope and pray that someday women will be able to pray for peace in peace at the holy sites as every religious person desires.

If you support Women of the Wall, become their fan on Facebook and let them know!