adnan husseini

B Y R A B B I Y A I RH O F F M A N

As we went to press onWednesday, we were saddenedto hear of the petirah, the loss, ofRebbitzen Basha (Bessy)Scheinberg, a’h, the wife of yblc’t,HaGaon HaRav Chaim PinchasScheinberg, shlita, the roshhayeshiva of Yeshiva Torah Ohr.

Rebbitzen Scheinberg wasthe daughter of Rabbi YaakovYoseph Herman, one of the pio-neers of Torah Judaism in theearly decades of the 1900’s. He

VegetariansRachael E. Schindler, MA 24

Towers Of PrideLarry Domnitch 25

Free Of ChargeHannah Reich Berman 38

The People ProblemRabbi Avi Shafran 39

MindBizEsther Mann, LMSW 40

Table Talk

On Monday, DRS celebrated Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan with its premiereStomp! competition. Each grade was represented by a team that

performed for the entire school. Congratulations to the 11th-grade class forwinning this competition!

New Month, Lots Of Noise Rebbetzin BashaScheinberg, a’h

Continued on Page 28

LIFE GOES ONAnother Mother’s Musings

B Y P H Y L L I S J .L U B I N

It is cold and rainy on thisSunday morning, not conduciveto venturing outdoors. But it’sthe first Sunday after the yomtov season, and there are placesto go and people to see.

This is the inaugural week ofthe Kulanu Sunday program,and Yussie, Lea, and Rochel areready to make an appearance.Rochel, now 14 years old, hasbeen a volunteer with theSunday morning program since

Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, one of the top authorities in the Torahworld, has issued a ruling that the public may not take money from the

International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (Keren HaYedidut)headed by Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein (above, left).

See 7


B Y L A R R Y G O R D O N

Among the rows of alphabeti-cally named streets in Wash-ington DC there is none that hasbeen assigned the letter J.Perhaps that is where a new up-and-coming liberal Israel politi-cal action committee took itsname from. It’s their way of com-municating to American Jewsthat their group has a messagethat the political establishmenteither may not have heard artic-ulated, was underrepresented, orhad just been ignored.

The emergence of J Street as aforce from out of virtual obscuri-

ty a year and a half ago hasturned the concept of what itmeans to be pro-Israel in 2009upside down. You can debatewhat it truly means to be pro-Israel in the age of Obama, butone thing is certain—the new JStreet has arrived with a missionto blur the distinction betweenwhat genuinely is and what canbe mistaken for being pro-Israel.

J Street is convening its firstnational conference inWashington beginning this

B Y S A M U E L S O K O LEXCLUSIVE TO THE 5TJT

I met Adnan Husseini in thelobby of the Ambassador Hotelin East Jerusalem. He did notlook like a powerful or influen-tial man by any stretch of theimagination. He looked like aretired blue-collar worker, thetype one sees in documentarieson the Arab world, sitting at asidewalk café playing backgam-mon and listening to the radio.

In reality, Husseini is

Continued on Page 4

B Y L A R R Y G O R D O N

I was sitting at a wedding theother night when, at somepoint between the first courseand the soup, I looked aroundand realized I really did notknow anyone at my table. Igazed around a little further atthe other parts of the room andsaw that I really didn’t recog-nize anyone at the other tables,either. That’s not so unusualthese days, because sometimesI get invited to simchas I really

don’t belong at, but I’m con-nected in some way, so I do theright thing and attend if I can.

There was an unusually eeriesilence at this table. I knew Iwould probably be the first oneto say something, but I wantedto see if anyone else would takethe initiative and just do the ele-mentary sociable thing,exchange some niceties, andtalk about the weather, lastweek’s parashah, or the beating

Continued on Page 11Continued on Page 15

CANDLE LIGHTINGOctober 23 – 5:44 PMOctober 30 – 5:35 PM

Analyzing J Street

R’ ELYASHIV: REFUSE MONEY FROM IFCJ

YU-RIETS Dinner honorees. See Page 53

Koidenover Rebbe to visit. See Page 53

Rabbi and Mrs. Arnold Maransto be honored by Amit.

See Page 46

VOL. 10 NO. 4 5 CHESHVAN 5770 jb ,arp OCTOBER 23, 2009$1.00 WWW.5TJT.COMSee Page 31

INSIDE FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK

HEARD IN THE BAGEL STORE

Adnan Husseini

INSIDE THE TEMPLE MOUNT

PhotobyS amuelS ok ol

2 October 23, 2009 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES October 23, 2009 3


Sunday, October 25, throughOctober 28. Their convention’stheme is “Driving Change,Securing Peace.” Over 100 U.S.senators and members ofCongress are listed as membersof the Honorary HostCommittee for Tuesday’s GalaDinner at the convention.

So increasingly shrouded indoubt and controversy is J Street,that politicians from both partiesare busy withdrawing theirnames from the list and contriv-ing conflicts and excuses for whythey will not be able to partici-pate in the J Street Conference.

Last week, both U.S. senatorsfrom New York, Charles Schumerand Kirsten Gillibrand, withdrewtheir names from the host com-mittee, and Senator John Kerryof Massachusetts, who was sup-posed to be featured as a keynotespeaker at next week’s gathering,announced a few days ago that aconflict in his schedule makes itimpossible for him to attend.True pro-Israel activists are work-ing round the clock this week,pressing elected officials identi-fied with J Street to come toterms with the positions theytruly represent and make theirdecisions about participation.

The roster of speakers sched-uled for the conference is verytelling. Muslim Public AffairsCouncil leader Salam al-Marayatiis a featured speaker. Al-Marayatipublicly claimed that Israelattacked the World Trade Centeron September 11, 2001, and he hasalso publicly praised Hezbollah.

Josh Healey, another featuredspeaker, has composed “poetry”that equates the U.S. with Hitler.He compares the U.S. detentioncenters at Guantanamo Bay toAuschwitz, and the fate of AnneFrank, who died at the hands ofthe Nazi regime, to the tragedyof Matthew Shepard, whosemurderers were prosecuted bythe U.S. government.

J Street supports endless nego-tiations over Iran’s developmentof nuclear weapons and refusesto identify a time when that tacticshould be replaced with sanc-tions.

Interestingly, now, at thebeginning of the Obama admin-istration, J Street seems to bethe president’s favorite Jewishorganization, though that maybe temporary. So dear is J Streetto the Obama folks that thegroup was invited to a meetingover this past summer with aselection of organizations underthe Conference of Presidents ofMajor American JewishOrganizations even though theyare not members of theConference.

The question is, who needswhom more? Has Obama beenmistakenly encouraged by the

FROM THE EDITORContinued from Front Cover

Continued on Page 8


appearance on the scene of J Street? Hashe been deluded into thinking that this isthe future direction of the collectivethought of the American Jewish commu-nity? Perhaps it is what Mr. Obama andhis foreign-policy aides want to hear.Maybe it is what they think it will take tomove the Israel-Palestinian peace processforward.

This is shifting some of the diplomaticfurniture around. Say you present your-self as a pro-Israel group while in realityyou are the opposite. Label yourself a pro-peace group while you push for danger-ous Israeli concessions and a Middle Eastwhere there is a State of Palestine with atleast part of Jerusalem as its capital. Thisis the J Street version of being pro-Israel.

J Street’s founder and director is JeremyBen-Ami. According to Lenny Ben David, afreelance journalist living in Israel, Ben-Ami’s agenda becomes somewhat suspectwhen viewed in light of his past profes-sional involvements. Ben David, a formeremployee of AIPAC and also of the Israeli

Embassy in Washington, writes that Ben-Ami served as Fenton Communications’Senior Vice President until he established JStreet in 2008. In early 2009, Fenton signedcontracts with a Qatari foundation to leadan 18-month-long anti-Israel campaign in

the United States with a special focus oncampuses. The actual text of the contractcalled for “an international public-opinionawareness campaign that advocates for theaccountability of those who participatedin attacks against schools in Gaza.”

Among the pro-Israel organizationscurrently working to clarify where JStreet genuinely stands on Israel andfuture peace is the American-Israel ActionCoalition, an arm of the National Councilof Young Israel here in the United States.AIAC is a non-partisan, non-politicalissue-oriented organization that wasformed to represent the more than250,000 American citizens living in Israelon issues pertaining to the continuedsafety and security of Israel and theJewish people worldwide.

On Tuesday, AIAC called on PresidentObama to direct national Security AdvisorGeneral James Jones not to appear at the JStreet conference next week. AIACChairman Harvey Schwartz said,“Although J Street describes itself as a pro-Israel organization, the American Jewishcommunity is well aware of the truth:that J Street is a far left, radical, anti-Israelgroup at least partially funded by Arab andMuslim sources and whose purpose is toundermine the safety, security, and con-tinued vitality of the State of Israel.”

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FROM THE EDITORContinued from Page 4


Say you present yourself

as a pro-Israel group while

in reality you are the

opposite. Label yourself a

pro-peace group while you

push for dangerous Israeli

concessions.

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Earlier this week, Israel’s Ambassadorto the United States, Michael Oren,announced that he would not be presentat or participate in the J Street confer-ence. Oren had been publicly invited toaddress the conference by Ben-Ami in aneditorial in the Jerusalem Post a fewweeks ago.

Among those still on the J Street “hostlist” is Congressman Steve Israel ofSuffolk County here on Long Island. In aconversation with his spokesperson onTuesday, the Five Towns Jewish Timesasked whether Mr. Israel would be with-drawing his name from the list, as somany others have done over the last fewdays. The spokesperson said thatCongressman Israel is not planning onattending the conference or participatingin any way. Asked specifically aboutwhether he would withdraw his namefrom the committee, she said that, fornow, “Congressman Israel remains on theGala Host Committee.”

It may be only a conference takingplace for a few days in Washington, butin reality it represents much more. It’simportant for the still-evolving Obamaadministration to see that American Jewsdo not concur with the theory that asmaller and weaker Israel, an Israel thatconcedes to the most far-reaching Arabdemands and that divides Jerusalem, isthe only option that can lead to long-term peace and a safe and secure Israel.It’s just not so. v

Comments for Larry Gordon are welcome [email protected].

FROM THE EDITORContinued from Page 8

Note: The following letter wasaddressed and sent individually to themore than 100 U.S. Senators andMembers of Congress who have beenlisted as being on the Honorary HostCommittee for the Gala Dinner at JStreet’s upcoming national conference inWashington, DC.

—Ed.The relatively new organization J

Street is currently using what it boastsis your endorsement to promote itselfas a mainstream vehicle for positivechange in the Middle East. But the poli-cies being promoted by J Street are not,as it claims, “pro-peace and, pro-Israel.”In fact, the J Street conference withwhich your name is linked features aspeaker who blamed Israel for 9/11, anda “poet” who equates the U.S. with theNazi regime.

Here are details of the conference JStreet claims you support.

Muslim Public Affairs Council leaderSalam al-Marayati will deliver a lectureat the J Street conference being heldOctober 25-28. Al-Marayati publiclyclaimed that Israel attacked the WorldTrade Center on September 11, 2001, andhe has also publicly praised Hezbollah,a group on the official U.S. terrorist list.Is this a “pro-peace” or “pro-Israel”organization?

The J Street conference will also fea-ture Josh Healey, whose “poetry”

equates the U.S. with Hitler and hisFinal Solution plans. He says“Guantanamo is Auschwitz,” and healso compared what happened to AnneFrank to the tragedy of MatthewShepard. Anne Frank died because ofofficial Nazi government policy;Shepard died at the hands of malevo-

lent individuals who were prosecutedby the U.S. government.

J Street seeks effectively endless“negotiations” over Iran’s developmentof nuclear weapons, and refuses to iden-tify a time when that tactic should bereplaced with, as U.S. Secretary of StateHillary Clinton has called for, “cripplingsanctions.” Iran poses a direct and

immediate threat to Israel and later, butmost assuredly, to the U.S.

Just over the past week numerousU.S. elected officials (see list below),when provided with the informationabove, have removed their names fromthe list of those endorsing J Street andits October conference.

We respectfully request that you donot associate with J Street’s harmfuland misleading policies.

Sincerely,Rabbi Pesach Lerner, D.Adm.

Executive Vice PresidentNational Council of Young Israel

New York, NY

Since last week, several Senators and Membersof Congress have withdrawn their names fromthe host committee for the J Street ConferenceGala, including Sen. Chuck Schumer (NY), Sen.Thad Cochran (MS), Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (NY),Sen. Blanche Lincoln (AR), Rep. Leonard Boswell(IA), Rep. Michael Castle (DE), Rep. MichaelMcCaul (TX), Rep. Mike Ross (AR), and Rep. JohnSalazar (CO).

An Open Letter About J Street

The J Street

conference with

which your name is

linked features a

speaker who blamed

Israel for 9/11.

WHAT’S YOUR OPINION?

WE WANT TO KNOW!

E-MAIL US AT [email protected]


the New York Giants had taken earlierthat day.

The table began to fill up, but nowords were exchanged, just a few awk-ward glances. For about ten minutes orso, I felt like I was in an elevator or in oneof those huge public lavatories whereeveryone is afraid to speak lest somethingghastly occur. I thought to myself, “Theseguys are good. It’s like we’re all invisible.No one sees anyone else.”

I am genuinely interested in people—possibly more so in those I don’t knowthan the ones I do know. I view a table ata wedding or bar mitzvah where I’m fair-ly certain I will not personally know any-one as a challenge of sorts.

So I’m sitting there as this awkwardquiet subsists, and it’s really beginning tosound—or not sound—just absurd.

Here we are, grown men at a wed-ding, helping the people we know cele-brate. Yet we’re sitting around like abunch of kids on the first day of pre-school. A few of us are potchkeringaround with our Internet-capable cellphones, probably text-messaging ourchildren back home important mes-sages such as “What’s doing?” or “Didyou have dinner yet?”

I knew what the person sitting acrossfrom me was doing, because he had “thatlook.” I was doing the same thing, so Irecognized the interest and intensity inhis eyes. He too was checking the scoreon the Jets-Bills game. The Yankees hadplayed that afternoon, the markets wereclosed, and the updates on the phones in

this very solid building were difficult tocome by.

This simcha-seating luck-of-the-drawplays itself out in our lives many timesin the course of the year. Some peopleknow precisely where they will be seat-ed, possibly because they’ve called toarrange it with the hosts or threatenedthem along the lines that they wanted tobe seated with this or that friend—orelse. The point is that no one wants tofeel uncomfortable or out of place, ifthey can help it.

Some people feel that where they areseated is a measure of the esteem they areheld in by the host. One thing is fairly cer-tain: you can pretty quickly tell howmuch time was invested in creating aseating plan at a simcha by where youend up. No doubt seating might be one ofthe most challenging aspects of being aba’al simcha, as it touches in some fash-ion upon your relationship with each andevery one of your guests.

At the other end of the spectrum atthese affairs is the way it’s done at manychassidishe weddings—no seating cardsor racking your brains trying to pair upfriends and neighbors who may or maynot get along with one another. And itmight even make more sense than layingout cards or little pieces of paper on yourdining-room table with the names ofevery relative and all the people you’veever met since you were born.

After all, your friends and most of yourrelatives are adults who are most likelycapable of figuring out all by themselveswhom they would like to sit with or pre-fer not to sit with. So why the place cardsthat communicate to the guests where

others believe they may belong? Whyopen that can of worms?

The truth is, most of the time it reallydoesn’t matter where you sit. That wasthe case with me the other night at thisevent. So it was a little quiet in the begin-ning. The music was pretty loud anyway,and even if people were talking it wouldbe difficult to hear them.

Even in this type of environment—and every simcha is truly a beautifulevent—eventually the ice was broken(and I believe that had very little to dowith the piping-hot vegetable soup). Howlong can people sit across from eachother until someone has the courage tosay something along the lines of “So,what’s your connection to this event?”;“Are you a relative?”; or “You must befrom the other side, because we don’t rec-ognize you from past simchas.”

In the end, it was after an hour and ahalf or so—after I had tried chit-chattingbut just got one- or two-word answers—that the guy sitting directly across fromme asked me how I ended up at a tablewith a bunch of people that were in someform related to one another.

I explained my association, involve-ment, or whatever you’d call it, and whenasked my name I finally introducedmyself. Now, make no mistake; justbecause my name has appeared on thefront page of this newspaper for the lastdecade, week after week, it doesn’t neces-sarily mean that I have achieved any sub-stantive name recognition. Maybe I haveand maybe I haven’t.

I told my table neighbors my nameand where I live, and they did the same.One man was from Queens, a few from

lower Manhattan, and so on. One guy,who said he was from Hewlett, hesitatedfor a few moments and then haltinglyasked whether I was the guy who hadanything to do with this newspaper. Isaid that, yes, I was. A few of the othersthen chimed in about how much theylike it and that they read it every week—which is always very nice to hear.

Then, after a bit more silence, theyoung man from Hewlett spoke up againand said to me, “You know, you really needto have some more news about Hewlett inthe paper.” I didn’t disagree with him, andI asked him what exactly is happening inHewlett. But then the band started playingagain, and it was time to dance.

A little later on, he told me that therewas lots going on in Hewlett and that Ishould make sure, if possible, to have acouple of Hewlett-oriented stories in thepaper each week.

I know he’s right and I have to do that.The last thing he said before we left at theend of the night was that he bets he’sgoing to be the subject of one of those“Heard in the Bagel Store” columns likethis one. I thought for a moment andthen told him, “You never know—that’scertainly a possibility.” v

Comments for Larry Gordon are welcome [email protected].

BAGEL STOREContinued from Front Cover

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in 3 ways:1. Read 2. Print 3. Email


its inception some nine years ago, whenit was housed at HAFTR ElementarySchool. This is the first week in Kulanu’snew location, conveniently located a fewshort blocks from our home. A little rainwas not going to keep them back, and Idropped them off promptly at 9:00 a.m.

Now for some needed mother/daugh-ter bonding. With my mom working full-time during the week, we need to sneakin our together time whenever we can. Alittle rain wasn’t going to stop our plans,either, and I picked my mom up for a nicetrip to the neighborhood coffee bar.Truth be told, we had wanted to try outthe newest coffee spot at Crawford’s, butthey were not open when we arrived, sowe walked a couple of doors down todine at Cravingz. We were thankful forthe hot coffee and a pleasant place tochat. How fortunate we are that at almostevery turn on Central Avenue there is akosher spot to stop at. I can recall myown childhood, growing up inWoodmere, when the only place to visitwas Sabra Pizza.

After my mom warmed me up physi-cally and emotionally, I was ready to startthe day. With almost no staples in thehouse, I picked Lenny up for a rainy-dayouting to Brach’s. After stocking ourshelves and our freezer, we were preparedto pick up the troops from Kulanu toattend our next event.

We were torn: two very importantactivities scheduled for the same day!Close to our hearts was the MakingStrides Against Breast Cancer walk along

Jones Beach, in which we have beenactive participants with Team HAFTRfor the past two years, but the BuddyWalk to benefit Down syndromeresearch and awareness was being heldat the same time at Nassau CommunityCollege. While both are worthy causes,the Buddy Walk captured our attentionas it was something we had neverattended, and we felt it was an eventthat both Yussie and Lea were capableof joining (walking five miles on JonesBeach was not something they couldmanage—nor we in the present weatherconditions) and, to be totally honest, Iwas looking forward to catching aglimpse of Chris Burke.

For those of you old enough torecall, there was a television dramaabout 20 years ago called Life Goes On,and one of the lead actors was a youngman who played a high-school boywith Down syndrome. The actor, ChrisBurke, actually did have Down syn-drome himself. This show was cutting-edge for its time, since members of the“D.S. Club” (as we are fond of calling it)were not often “mainstreamed” on tel-evision. The show followed a “normal”family who happened to have a childwho was “different.”

Though it was years before YosefBinyamin Lubin’s birth (he just turnednine a couple of months ago), somehowwe were always encouraged that a child,such as depicted on the show, could livea relatively typical life. I can still recallhow, immediately following Yussie’sbirth, as I cried at the news, my husbandsteadfastly reminded me that we mustaccept the challenges that Hashem hands

us, and life goes on . . .And so, after picking up Yussie, Lea,

and Rochel from Kulanu and getting aquick bite to eat, Lenny, Rivka, Rochel,Yussie, Lea, and I were off to embarkon our trip to Nassau CommunityCollege. I’m not sure I have ever seenso many smiling faces! It’s hard not tosmile when around such (mostly)happy children. There is a certain nat-ural sweetness detected in the eyes ofa person with trisomy 21 (the technicalterm for Down syndrome).

In addition, as Lenny and I noticedsome time ago, there is a special heartneeded by a person who chooses a careerinteracting with the special-needs popu-lation, even though this is a “job” to mostteachers, therapists, social workers, etc.Further, there is a certain hopefully posi-tive perspective found within the par-ents, grandparents, and siblings of spe-cial-needs children. Those touched bythese special children seem to becomekinder human beings.

One of the first smiling faces we recog-nized was Kathy, one of Yussie’s firstphysical therapists—another of the won-derful people we have met on this tri-somy 21 journey.

Alas, we were a little late for the walkitself (too bad—we missed the mile in thecold rain), but we were just in time forthe festivities. The Moon Walk immedi-ately caught Yussie and Lea’s attention,and although there was a bit of a line (andwe know Yussie is not a fan of waiting)Rivka and Rochel managed to keep thementertained while they waited and Lennyand I had the opportunity to gather infor-mation from the various booths. We

arrived back at the Moon Walk in thenick of time. The big grins on Lea andYussie’s faces as they jumped “high in thesky” were priceless.

After the final jump, Rochel pointedout the free face-painting. Lea had a fewballoons adorn her beautiful face, whileYussie was transformed into a cat.Whenever he spotted his reflection, hemade sure to react with a few meows.

The pièce de résistance for me was spot-ting one of our heroes, Chris Burke, in theflesh, performing with his band.

As I sit here Monday morning glanc-ing at the newspaper, I am heartened tosee that 17,000 participants hit JonesBeach in the Making Strides AgainstBreast Cancer walk, despite wet highwinds. But, as I muse a bit more, I won-der where the press coverage for theBuddy Walk was.

October has been named “DownSyndrome Awareness” month. I hope weare becoming more aware of the men,women, and children that live withDown syndrome, and we support theresearch for any possible future treat-ments and, G-d willing, cures that arewaiting to be discovered that will helpour loved ones live more independentand productive lives.

And let’s all try to remember that whenour days seems a bit rainy and difficult tohandle, the sun will surely come outagain—because life goes on! v

Phyllis Joy Lubin is an attorney with Rosenfeld &Maidenbaum, LLP, who resides in Cedarhurstwith her husband Leonard and six children:Naftali, Shoshana, Rivka, Rochel, Yosef, and Lea.She welcomes your questions and comments [email protected].

MOTHER’S MUSINGSContinued from Front Cover


B Y R A B B I Y A I R H O F F M A N

There is a famous story cited in the bookHaGaon HaChasid MiVilna (pp. 253–254)which originally appeared in Yashar’s biog-raphy of the Chofetz Chaim.

It was late on a Friday afternoon inVilna. Reb Chaim, the tailor of Vilna, wasin a bind. It seems a question had arisenon the kashrus of the chicken beingcooked in his kitchen. He quickly dis-patched one of his children to pose thequestion to the Vilna Gaon.

The hour was late. Normally, the VilnaGaon did not serve in the capacity of rav.But here, on account of the lateness ofthe hour, the Vilna Gaon made an excep-tion. Upon examining the chicken inquestion, the Vilna Gaon could come upwith only one answer: The chicken,unfortunately, was treif.

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to our tai-lor, his wife Malka had dispatchedanother one of their sons to see the greatRabbi Shmuel, the official rav of Vilna,who ruled leniently. The chicken, in hisopinion, was permitted.

Both children excitedly rushed intothe tailor’s home to report the responses.Not knowing what to do, Rav Chaimquickly ran to Rabbi Shmuel’s house andexplained to him that the Vilna Gaon hadforbidden the chicken. Rav Shmuel, themara d’asra of Vilna, remained firm in hisruling permitting the chicken. Heinstructed the tailor to prepare the chick-en, and he and the Vilna Gaon wouldcome that Friday evening and taste of it.

Rav Shmuel went to the home of theVilna Gaon and said, “My Master andRabbi, I am nothing but like dust underyour feet. However, I was accepted asthe mara d’asra here in Vilna by its resi-dents for halachic rulings. Since I ruledin this matter and I did so in the proper

manner with the proper research, thehalachah is in accordance with me. I askof you to come with me to the house ofthe tailor, and we shall both partake ofthe chicken so that the residents ofVilna will understand the full authorityof the rav, and that there will be no onewho argues or criticizes.”

The Vilna Gaon agreed. They both


DISAGREEING WITH THE RAV

I ask of you to come

with me to the house of

the tailor, and we shall

both partake of the

chicken so that the

residents of Vilna will

understand the full

authority of the rav.

entered Reb Chaim’s home andsat to eat. All of a sudden, before

they had a chance to taste of thechicken, a piece of cheilev(unkosher fat) fell from the can-dle above.

There are a number of fasci-

nating insights from this inci-dent. First and foremost, we seethe authority of a rav in his com-munity or shul. If the Vilna Gaonwas willing to sit and eat some-

thing that he had deemed to beunkosher, that says a lot. Howmany people in our times wouldbe willing to do that? (Anotherinsight is that the Vilna Gaon and

the rav of the community werewilling to eat at the home of anordinary tailor. Eating at thehome of a ba’al ha’bayis whoneeded to ask halachic questionsdid not seem to be an issue what-soever. For some reason, this atti-tude is no longer prevalent,notwithstanding that betweenthe average husband and wife, agood quarter million dollars hasbeen spent on their yeshiva edu-cation.)

The reader might object thatthis is merely a story and that wecannot rule based on a story.

We do find, however, that RavHamnuna placed a ban upon astudent who ruled in accor-dance with Rav Shimon inregard to muktzah in one partic-ular city. The Gemara (Shabbos19b) objects that the halachah isactually like Rav Shimon in thiscase! The Gemara answers thatthe city under discussion wasone where Rav Hamnuna wasthe outstanding Torah luminary.Clearly, undermining the author-ity of a rabbi in his communityor shul is a very serious matter.

The halachah is further quan-tified in the ruling of the Remain Yoreh Deah (245:22). He dis-cusses when and where itwould be permissible to con-duct a chuppah ceremony in thedomain of another rav. He con-cludes: “However, one should


DisagreeingContinued from Page 13



Palestinian Authority PresidentMahmoud Abbas’s advisor on Jerusalemaffairs and former director of the Waqf,the Islamic trust in de-facto civil controlof the Temple Mount. As such, he bearsresponsibility for the calls to jihad issuedfrom within the Al-Aqsa mosque, and is,in the eyes of many Israelis, at least some-what culpable for the recent violenceagainst Jews in and around the Old Cityof Jerusalem.

As we sat, he introduced me to his asso-ciate, Daoud. A big, burley man with aPalestinian Authority flag lapel pin, helooked every inch hired muscle. Adnanand I discussed his views on the stalledpeace process, recent violence on theTemple Mount, and the moral probity ofmemorializing terrorists that murder Jews.

Coming from the famous Husseini clan,Adnan has impeccable terrorist creden-tials. Husseinis were among the originalfounders of al-Fatah. Haj Amin al-Husseini,the Mufti of Jerusalem during the time ofthe British mandate, is infamous for meet-ing with Adolf Hitler and for organizingMuslim units within the SS.

Recently, there has been a wave of vio-lence against Jews in Jerusalem, egged onby the Palestinian Authority, which hasclaimed that the Al-Aqsa mosque is underattack by “extremists.” They have alsoclaimed that the Israeli government isplanning on undermining the TempleMount through the digging of tunnels.

The violence began when a large groupof Jewish pilgrims ascended to the mountin preparation for the Yamim Nora’im, the

Jewish days of repentance. Arabs peltedthe Jews with rocks, later found by policeto have been prepared in advance, andcaused multiple injuries.

This led to a closure of the mount toJews and lesser limits on Muslim accessas well. Since then, there have been mul-tiple firebombing and rock-throwingattacks throughout East Jerusalem andthe Old City.

Husseini began our interview by com-plaining that Israel was holding thePalestinian Authority to its obligationsunder the Oslo accords by banning the PA

from holding official activities within theIsraeli capital.

“I am being here since 900 years. Thepeople who ask me not to do, they arevery early people coming a few years agoso they don’t have the right to stop me,and this is an impression about the fail-ure of the Israel government to controlJerusalem and to do something for thebenefit of peace.”

“This is my answer about when they

interfere and asking us not to do anyevents, not to participate. This is nonsense.We told [foreign diplomats that] this is partof the measure that they are taking for peo-ple who are asking for peace.”

The PLO did not ratify the Oslo accordsas signed by Yasser Arafat.

When asked about Israeli measures tobring about peace, Husseini replied “Theyare not doing anything. They are justspeaking.”

“They should do, at least some kind offreedom, liberty. Freedom of behavior,you know. Their way of peace can never

be accepted by us . . . they demolish thisand evacuate this, and this is the peace.”

Israel has recently removed hundredsof earthen checkpoints and released 20female prisoners. During the most recentFatah convention in Bethlehem, the useof “resistance” was reaffirmed as a legiti-mate tactic in negotiating with Israel.

Regarding the recent Temple Mountviolence, Husseini became very firmand resolute. “We have been warning

that extremists, if they allow them todo everything, one day there will be ahospital in front of the government.What they are doing now in Jerusalem,the West Bank, they are threateningeven the security of Israel.”

If the government wanted to deal withthose that he considered “extremists,”Husseini stated, it would be incrediblydifficult. “They have very extreme think-ing that is not accepted in the interna-tional community, and this is the govern-ment that wants to deal with the interna-tional community.”

He then called for pressure to be puton the Israeli government. “[The settlerscome to] the Temple Mount, they come,they start to shout, ‘Go to Mecca, this isour country . . . We have to demolish theDome of the Rock.’”

Husseini denied that rocks had beenprepared in advance and claimed that theattacks were a spontaneous reaction tooutrageous provocation and were takenin self-defense.

I asked Husseini where he believedJews should go to pray. Jewish prayer iscurrently barred on the Temple Mount bythe Israeli police and the Waqf. Husseinireplied that the Jews have the Kotel plaza.However, Husseini has previously goneon the record calling the Western Wall aMuslim site. Husseini said to Israeli newssite NRG, “This is part of Islamic heritagethat cannot be given up, and it must beunder Muslim control.”

During my recent trip to Shechem, Isaw posters memorializing terrorists whokilled Israeli citizens. I asked Husseini if

Inside The Temple MountContinued from Front Cover


“Their way of peace can never be accepted by us.They

demolish this and evacuate this, and this is the peace.”


“Reb Elly and Brochie Kleinman arevery well known in America for beinginvolved in many inyanei tzedakah;almost everything involving tzedakahthat happens in America as well as inEretz Yisrael,” Shuvu’s co-chairman RebAvrohom Biderman introduced theguests of honor at the dedication cere-mony of the Kleinman Family ShuvuPetach Tikva Girls’ High School. “Withthe berachah and the eitzah of MoreinuHarav Pam, zt”l he was zocheh to be verymatzliach, but he never forgot his roots.Now that he was matzliach he didn’t say“kochi ve’otzem yadi” but rather he feelsachrayus; a model for everyone else whohas been matzliach to say “how can Ihelp others?” He’s helped so many mos-dos Torah v’chesed and we have thezechus that one of the mosdos he gotinvolved in is Shuvu.”

Back on November 5, 2003 theKleinmans began their tremendous devo-tion to Shuvu with their dedication of theShuvu Lod School. Starting with a mod-est 40 students, the Lod school has sincegrown to be one of Shuvu’s largest, andwith the fastest growth, with over 600students today. However not only is theschool known for its size, but also for itsexcellence. Thousands of Jewish childrenhave been learning Torah only in thezechus of the Kleinman family.

At the time, Hagaon HaRav ChaimKanievski helped the Kleinmans maketheir decision to dedicate the ShuvuLod school. “But we were told not justto dedicate the school but to visit

whenever we can, to check up on ourkinderlach. Baruch Hashem, my wifeand I have made it our business to visitregularly.”

It was upon one of these visits that theShuvu Lod principal Mrs. Michal

Huminer raised her concern of what willhappen with the talmidos. The graduatesneeded a Shuvu high school to continuein. “She didn’t want to lose even oneneshamah, chas v’shalom, going to a

school that is not appropriate,” recalledReb Elly. “My wife Brochie and I felt thesame way so I called up AvrohomBiderman and said: “It’s time for a girls’high school!”

And so on Monday, October 12, 2009,

Isru Chag of Sukkos, the Kleinman familywas joined by many distinguished gueststo celebrate the dedication of “TheKleinman Shuvu Petach Tikva Girls’ HighSchool.” The guests included Petach TikvaMayor Yitzchak Ohayon; his deputy, RavUriel Buso and other heads of the munic-ipality; Deputy Minister of Education MKRabbi Meir Porush; Shuvu’s rabbinic advi-sor and activist Hagaon Harav MosheSilberberg; Rav Shmuel Bloom, formerexecutive vice president of Agudath Israelof America; Rav Yitzchok Rosengarten;and of course, the hundreds of studentslearning in the Shuvu Petach Tikvaschools.

As Reb Elly, Brochie, and their childrenand grandchildren arrived at the schoolgrounds, the tremendous sense of gleeand pride was felt. Rav Chaim MichoelGutterman opened the ceremony bythanking the Kleinman family for its longsupport extended throughout to Shuvu.He recalled that during the recent chagthe Kleinmans donated two new massive,beautiful wooden sukkahs for the con-venience of the visitors to the Kosel.Having participated at the celebration forthe Kleinmans at the Kosel the weekbefore, Rav Gutterman quoted Reb Elly’swords then. “Reb Elly, you said then thateven had it been for only one individualwho is not frum who would’ve enteredthe sukkah and made a berachah, itwould’ve been worth it!”

“Shuvu,” continued Rav Gutterman,“unites everyone under one sukkah.Children from different backgrounds,Russians, Ethiopians, are all together.

Shuvu Celebrates KleinmanFamily Petach Tikva Dedication



he views such posters as incitement anda breach of the Oslo accords.

“Those people . . . died in some con-frontation here in the area and, youknow, they are from some movement,and the movement always try to com-memorate them. It is a part of a processeverywhere, you know.” He went on tosay that it is comparable to Israel makingmemorials to David Ben-Gurion.

Husseini also defended the recentFatah decision to retain their “right” toengage in “resistance” to the Israeli pres-ence in areas claimed by the Arabs.

Meanwhile, the Information Ministry ofthe Palestinian Authority has accused Israelof attempting to “implement a new seriesof organized state terror” in Jerusalem.

The Information Ministry further stat-ed, “Extremist Zionist groups announce[dtheir intention] to storm the mosque inorder to perform religious rites in theoccasion of the so-called ‘Yom Kippur.’

“Accordingly, the Ministry ofInformation calls upon our people togather at the mosque and to stand in theface of extremist Jewish groups.Furthermore, it calls upon the masses ofArab and Islamic nations and lovers ofjustice in the world to protest the crimeand to refuse it by all legitimate means.”

The “legitimate means” mentionedhave led to dozens of injuries andincreased violence against Jews. v

Inside The Temple MountContinued from Page 15

B Y G I L R O N E N

Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, one ofthe top authorities in the Torah world, hasissued a ruling that the public may not takemoney from the International Fellowshipof Christians and Jews (Keren HaYedidut)headed by Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein.

Groups that take money from the fundare flouting the Torah’s prohibition of idol-atry, Rabbi Elyashiv said, and they even aidfuture missionary activities and grantthem legitimacy. “We regret to say that wehave learned that several institutions,organizations, and charity groups havemade mistakes of this nature,” he added.

Taking money from this fund is an“unclean” act, the rav said. Other rabbiswho issued similar decisions includeRabbi Shmuel Auerbach, Rabbi NissimKerlitz, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, and RabbiMordechai Eliyahu.

The IFCJ was founded in Chicago in 1983by Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein. The fact that ittakes money from Christian groups causesmuch suspicion in some religious Jewishcircles. However, other religious circleshave no problem with the group.(IsraelNN.com) v

Rabbi Elyashiv:Refuse MoneyFrom IFCJ

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Elly and Brochie, you already havethousands and thousands of berachosand zechuyos of Shuvu children, andnow, in your zechus there is also a girls’high school!”

Rav Gutterman then called upon afew students to greet the Kleinman fam-ily and express their feelings about theschool. Ninth grader Nicole Danielopened her words with a personal note.As a resident of Ashdod and former stu-dent of the Shuvu elementary schoolthere, she said that no one had believedthat Kassam missiles would ever reachtheir town. Until Chanukah last year,during the Gaza War. Then the sirenswere sounded in the city and Kassamsdid indeed fall. Everyone stayed indoorsfor a complete week. After that week ofbeing cooped up and feeling a desperateneed to breathe some fresh air, Nicoleset out to go shopping with her father.Upon entering their car, though, sherealized that she had forgotten hersweater. She quickly ran back to her

house to get her sweater, and as she wasabout to reenter the car, the sirensounded announcing an imminent mis-sile. Nicole lay down on the groundwith her father lying on top of her, andshe started to say Tehillim. Seconds latera tremendous explosion was heard amere block ahead of them. “A Kassam

landed directly on the bus stop close tomy house, killing a woman,” sherecalled emotionally. “My father and Iwould’ve been exactly there had it notbeen for my going home again. The 20seconds Hashem delayed me to get mysweater saved our lives!”

Nicole continued, “That was one of the

moments that I thanked Hashem for myspecial relationship with Him. A very spe-cial relationship with Him which with-out a doubt would not have been so hadI not been learning here. In my years atShuvu I’ve learned values and middos,which I do not only implement withinthe school grounds. I learn of how we aremeant to talk to our teachers and to ourpeers. After all, we are all human beingsand we were all created B’tzelem Elokim!Primarily, we are taught to appreciate andrespect our parents who do so much forus, and we do so willingly and lovingly. Isee how peers of ours in other schoolstalk to their parents, and just find it hardto believe that one can treat them so! Wealso learn the importance of giving altru-istically, and in so feel the connection toour ancestors who gave up their last pieceof bread for others during the terribleShoah. We learn to distinguish betweenthe gevurah of one’s body, which is tem-porary, to the gevurah of one’s nefesh,which is permanent, and fills one withtrue simcha. I know that when I will grad-uate from Shuvu I will take with me val-ues which will stay with me my entirelife: the Torah values which comewrapped in warmth and love. Last yearmy mechanechet used to write me lettersshowing love and care—if I had experi-enced a success, or if she noticed that mysmile had disappeared for whatever rea-son, and that I was feeling down. Theseletters showed care, concern, and love,and I’ve saved them to this very day.What amazed me is that when I camehere from Ashdod following the war anddecided to stay, I’ve come to realize thatthere is no real difference between ShuvuAshdod and Shuvu Petach Tikva, and I’msure the same applies to Shuvu Jerusalemand the others. They all give over theTorah values in a loving and caring man-ner which strengthen my nefesh, ulti-mately bringing us to serve our Creator. Iam grateful every day for being able tolearn here, because there really is nothinglike Shuvu, and this is thanks to our won-derful principal and teachers who makeevery effort to make us feel that ourschool is our home. May Hashem giveyou all the koach to continue on!”

Seeing the Kleinman family’s devo-tion and love for the children of K’lalYisrael in general, and of Shuvu in par-ticular, and especially considering theKleinmans’ dream, it seems just a matterof time until b’ezras Hashem the headsof Shuvu and the Kleinman family willbe gathering again to celebrate morededications for their kinderlach, thechildren of Shuvu. v

ShuvuContinued from Page 16

R’ Elly Kleinman


not rule in forbidden and per-mitted matters or to lecture in amanner that shows authority inthe city of his friend.”

It would seem that theRema’s ruling applies not onlywhere there is a rav of thewhole community, but also tothe modern-day application ofsynagogue and shul rabbis.

The Rivash rules on a similarcase (Vol. I, No. 271) and statesthat no other rabbi may ruleoutside his domain against theopinion of the local rav. What isfascinating is that the Rivash’sresponse deals with a spiritualissue and not a halachic matter.Nonetheless, the Rivash is quiteclear that even in outside mat-ters, the authority of the ravshould not be undermined. TheRivash’s ruling is part of norma-tive halachah. The Chasam Sofer(Choshen Mishpat, No. 41) quotesthe Rivash authoritatively.

This idea is also seen fromthe words of Rashi in his expla-nation to Chulin 53b. He writes,“It is unseemly [“lav orach ara’a”]to permit something in a placewhere the other rav forbade it.”

There are numerous otherpassages in the Talmud wherethis issue is brought to light.For those who wish to researchfurther, see Shabbos 130a,Eiruvin 94a, Pesachim 30a, andYevamos 14a.

The bottom line of all this?The rabbi of a shul or communi-ty has a s’yata d’Shmaya in hisrulings. It is unseemly andagainst the Torah to underminehis opinion. This is true even ifone happens to have the erudi-tion of the Vilna Gaon. Certainlyit is true in our own times. v

The author can be reached [email protected].

DisagreeingContinued from Page 14

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B Y H A N A L E V I J U L I A N

A New Jersey township was hit lastmonth with its second anti-Semiticattack in two weeks, just a few hoursafter the end of Yom Kippur.

Early Tuesday, members of EdisonTownship’s Congregation Beth-El werehorrified to discover that the front doorsand windows of their house of worship

were covered with three huge blue spray-painted Nazi swastikas.

The Anti-Defamation Leagueannounced that it would offer a rewardof up to $1,000 for information leading tothe arrest and conviction of the perpetra-

tors of the vandalism at the synagogue.Local Police Chief Brian Collier told

the New Jersey Star Ledger, “We’re certain-ly not pleased with this kind of non-sense.” The Middlesex CountyProsecutor’s Office is also involved in theinvestigation because the incident wasclassified as a bias crime.

Police were tight-lipped on whetherthere was a link between the vandalismand a vicious attack nine days earlier on a16-year-old student at the Rabbi JacobJoseph Yeshiva on Rosh Hashanah.

The student, a resident of the town,told police detectives that a gang ofyouths in their mid-to-late teens shoutedanti-Semitic slurs at him while beatinghim. They jumped him from behind,knocked him down, and one youthpunched him in the head with a fist. Theboy sustained a cut above his right eyeand was later hospitalized with a con-cussion. The attack was classified as abias crime.

There have been several other anti-Semitic incidents in Edison this year,including a swastika painted on a man’scar in a shopping center parking lot inJuly, another one painted on a fence inJune, and a third scrawled with a blackmarker in March on a local church.

Last year, obscene and anti-Semiticgraffiti was discovered scrawled on thewalls inside the yeshiva, according to theNew Jersey Jewish News. Students and astaff member told the newspaper theywere often taunted by neighborhoodyouths, who yelled anti-Semitic slurs atthem as they walked by.

Rabbi Dr. Bernard Rosenberg, the spiri-tual leader of Congregation Beth-El, saidthat there was a pattern to the incidents,adding, “If you don’t punish people, theywill continue to do it.” (IsraelNN.com) v

Anti-Semitism Strikes Again InEdison Township, New Jersey

5 Cheshvan

Friday, October 23Daf yomi: Bava Basra 63

Z’manim*:Earliest tallis/tefillin: 6:21 am

Sunrise: 7:15 am

Latest Shema:

M. Av. 9:20 am

Gr’a 9:56 am

P’lag ha’minchah: 4:55 pm

Candle Lighting: 5:44 pm

6 Cheshvan – Shabbos

Saturday, October 24Shabbos Parashas Noach

Shabbos ends**:6:43 pm

72 min. 7:14 pm

12 Cheshvan

Friday, October 30Daf yomi: Bava Basra 70

Earliest tallis/tefillin: 6:28 am

Sunrise: 7:23 am

Latest Shema:

M. Av. 9:24 am

Gr’a 10:00 am

P’lag ha’minchah: 4:47 pm

Candle Lighting: 5:35 pm

13 Cheshvan – Shabbos

Saturday, October 31Shabbos Parashas Lech-Lecha

Shabbos ends**:6:36 pm

72 min. 7:06 pm* from MyZmanim.com

** add a few minutes for tosefos Shabbos according to

your minhag

Municipal CalendarFor 5 Towns and NYC

October 31Saturday night/Sunday: Daylight SavingTime ends (set clocks back 1 hour)

CALENDARLUACH

Oct. 23 – Nov. 1ZIP Code: 11516

The front doors and windows of their houseof worship were covered with three huge

blue spray-painted Nazi swastikas.

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Mini-Houses And Mezuzahs

B Y R A B B I A V R O H O MS E B R O W

Jay Shafer has been living, since 1997,in a house smaller than some people’sclosets. His decision to inhabit just 89square feet arose from some concerns hehad about the impact a larger housewould have on the environment.Wishing to share this experience withothers, he started the Tumbleweed TinyHouse Company. The houses and plans

they offer have been designed with care-ful attention to light, warmth, energy effi-ciency, and proportion. They have madethe most of each cozy interior by mini-mizing transitional areas such as hall-ways and stairwells and by using other-wise unusable space as storage. While hispersonal house is 89 square feet, he doessell a smaller house—the XS model. It has

a whopping 65 square feet of living space.If one purchases such a small house, is

he obligated to put a mezuzah on thefront door? The Gemara in Sukkah 3astates, “A house that does not contain anarea of 4 amos by 4 amos is exempt frommezuzah and ma’akeh and is not contam-inated by tzara’as . . .” Even if one wereto use the largest measure of amah, the65-square-foot XS house would still beobligated in mezuzah. Assuming an amahis 2 feet, the minimum shiur for mezuzahwould be a house that is 8 feet by 8 feet,

or 64 square feet. The XS meets that min-imum with a square foot to spare!

There is one caveat. The Chazon Ishruled that if permanently installed furni-ture takes up some of the floor space,thereby reducing the living space tobelow the minimum requirement, amezuzah is not needed. Therefore, if theminimum living space required to be

obligated in the mitzvah of mezuzah is 64square feet, the XS might not qualify.Nevertheless, the accepted custom inAmerica is to follow Rav Moshe’s opinion.According to him, an area of 4 by 4 amosis about 49 square feet. I haven’t studiedthe floor plans, but the XS model mightstill require a mezuzah with a berachaheven if some of the space is taken up byimmovable furniture.

The next question that we must con-sider is this: Is the 16 square amos arequirement for a house, or even for aroom? The Gemara when stating the 4amos requirement clearly says “bayis,” ahouse. Are tiny rooms in a large houseobligated in mezuzah?

According to the Maharam Shik, theanswer depends on a machlokes sur-rounding a Gemara in Bava Basra 61a.The Mishnah discusses a situationwhere one sold a house without specify-

ing exactly what was included in thesale. The Mishnah says that if the housein question has a small structure nearby,that structure is not included in the saleunless specifically mentioned. On this,Mar Zutra comments that only if thatsmall structure is a minimum of 16square amos is it not included in thesale. If, however, it is smaller than that,then the structure is deemed to beinsignificant and it is included in thesale of the house.

The Mishnah further states that if thehouse has an adjoining storage room, itis not included in the sale. Mar Zutra didnot clearly state whether or not there isa requirement for the room to be 16square amos to be excluded from thesale. Perhaps even a room that is lessthan 16 square amos is significantenough to be excluded from the saleunless specifically included.


Daf Yomi Insights

The minimum shiur for mezuzahwould be a house that is 8 feet by 8

feet, or 64 square feet.

Small houses designed by the Tumbleweed Tiny House Company.

The Maharam Shik says that this dis-pute would apply to the laws ofmezuzah as well. Does a room need to be16 square amos to be obligated inmezuzah? Or is perhaps any size roomthat is part of a larger house consideredusable and significant?

The Pischei Teshuva (286:11) quotes theChamudei Daniel that a storage room in alarger house requires a mezuzah even if itis less than 16 square amos. According tothis opinion, any walk-in closet would beobligated in mezuzah, regardless of its size.The closet is considered a usable room forits purpose and consequently is obligatedin mezuzah. (A closet that is not actuallyentered at all is certainly not obligated in amezuzah according to all opinions.)

Rabbi Yair Hoffman writes in his seferon mezuzah that one should initially fol-low this view and put up a mezuzah with-out a berachah (if he is just putting up thatmezuzah by itself). However, from mybrief survey, many local rabbanim haveadvised their congregants that they do notneed to put a mezuzah on a walk-in closetunless it is a minimum of 36 square feet(this assumes the smallest possible meas-urement of an amah: 18 inches). In fact,Rabbi Hoffman himself has a quote in hissefer attributable to Rabbi MosheFeinstein, zt’l, that the custom in Europewas not to follow the Chamudei Daniel’sopinion, and only rooms that had theminimum shiur were obligated inmezuzah. Therefore, one should ask hisrav for guidance on this issue. v

Rabbi Sebrow leads a daf yomi chaburah at EitzChayim of Dogwood Park in West Hempsteadand is an outreach professional at JEP of LI. Hecan be contacted at [email protected].


B Y R A B B I Y I T Z C H A K M E I RG O O D M A N

I would like to clarify and expand onsome points made in my recent interviewwith Rav Yair Hoffman (“Shabbos Shuvah,Part 2,” 5TJT, September 25):

(1) I mentioned that I once admon-ished people who regularly arrive late toshul by stating that they would never dothat if they had a regular job with anemployer. I “translated” the phrase “veyei-da kol pa-ul ki Ata pe-alto” as “everyemployee should know that You are hisemployer.” Some people imagined thatthis was my literal translation! Theycould not conceive that this was a pured’rash, just to bring out the point, and cer-tainly not meant as the literal translation.Darshanim have used this device thou-sands of times throughout the ages.

It is an unfortunate lamentable factthat many people set their own pace forarrival, whether ten minutes late, or ahalf-hour late, and do so consistently.This is a horrible habit, and there is noexcuse for it.

(2) I mentioned the lack of elemen-tary knowledge of dikduk, even amongfine talmidei chachamim. I gave oneexample: those who read “v’omar am to-ei leivav heim” instead of VA-omar. Thisvowel preceding a future first-personverb changes it to the past (vavha’hipuch) and thus the entire meaningof the phrase. This is similar to “vay-ishkav” (past tense), although “yishkav” is

future. The use of a kamatz before thefirst-person verb instead of a patachseems to confuse some people, but isbased on a grammatical point which istoo lengthy to discuss here. Most stu-dents learn this in elementary classes!

Another classic example is the factthat in Tehillim, we find “eidosecha”many times, as well as “eidvosecha”—andmany people do not see the difference.The latter pronunciation is correct when

there is a sh’va under the dalet. What fol-lows is what looks like the vowel “o” butis really “vo.” How many people do notnotice this difference!

One more: Young children in yeshivalearn that a segolate noun (like melech oryeled) gets the accent on the first syllable.How many times do we hear a ba’altefillah say “hameichin mitzadei gaVER”

with a clear emphasis on the final sylla-ble? [Unfortunately, in Jewish music thisrule is often ignored just to fit the tunebetter, as in songs which have a phraseending in “aRETZ” when it should beAretz, but doesn’t fit with the tune.] Butthe ba’al tefillah is not singing!

(3) The vowel “o” as in “lo” has manypronunciations amongst Jews of differ-ent backgrounds. The Galicianer chasidsays “oy” (as I do), the Lutvak says “Eiy” (asin “rein”), the German says “ow”, butabsolutely nobody says “ee”! So why do somany use “ee” instead of the o vowel inthe most important word in the entire sid-dur—the name of our Creator? Everytime I hear someone recite “Baruch ataAdeenoy” I cringe in my seat. I never say“boruch hu uvaruch sh’mo” and I sufferwhen I say “amen” at the end because Iseriously wonder if that is called aberachah! There are also those who saythe name so fast that it sounds exactlylike “adnoy” and sometimes even “anoy.”

The Mahara’m Lublin (Shu’t, No. 83)writes about how one must be careful inpronouncing every syllable of theHavayah correctly. It should slow downeveryone when they daven.

Many times I mentally thank myfather, z’l, for teaching me dikduk. It camein very handy countless times in myteaching years. I once suggested to a roshyeshiva that I would gladly offer a shortcourse in fundamental dikduk in the highschool. I still await a positive response.

P.S. Who can explain this: When weadd a “b” or a “l” before “p’nei” it becomes“bifnei” or “lifnei”—but when we add “m”it comes “mipnei?! Ba’alei dikduk knowthe answer. Do you? v

A Lesson In Dikduk

I suffer when I say

“amen” at the end

because I seriously

wonder if that is

called a berachah!

B Y R A C H A E L E . S C H I N D L E R ,M A , M S , C A I , C P T

Many times when I am working witha client and trying to get a feel of whatthey like to eat, I hear, “Oh, I never eatred meat, it’s soo not good for you.” Beinga carnivore (and Sephardic to boot!) Icould never just stop eating red meat,cold turkey that is! (It’s still a great sourceof iron and a lean cut is pretty high inprotein, vitamins, and isn’t high in fat.)But practically speaking, is there anyhealth benefit to being a vegetarian? Cana diet without meat provide adequatenutrients?

A vegetarian does not eat meat, fish,or fowl, or any product containingthem. A typical vegetarian diet focuseson grains, fruits, nuts, and vegetables;still, considerable variations exist. Alacto-ovo vegetarian avoids meat, fish,and poultry, but consumes dairy prod-ucts and eggs. The lacto vegetarian con-sumes dairy but avoids meat, fish, poul-try, and eggs. A vegan, or total vegetari-an, excludes both dairy and eggs,obtaining all nutrients from plantsources. So how prevalent is vegetari-anism in the U.S.? A 2006 poll conduct-ed by the Vegetarian Resource Groupfound that 7% of adults never eat redmeat and that 2.3% never eat meat, fish,or fowl. That’s no small cheese!

Why would someone want to chooseto be a vegetarian? There are a variety of

reasons people do so, including concernabout the environment, animal welfare,or world hunger; or they simply don’t likethe taste, never really ate meat often any-way, or believe it is unhealthy. Aside froma healthier lifestyle, religious beliefsand/or economic issues may also factorinto this choice.

From a more traditional standpoint, thescience of nutrition has focused mainly onthe intake of nine nutrients that are ade-quate to promote growth and reproduc-tion. Lately, however, this paradigm has

been shifting towards focusing on an “opti-mal diet” which promotes not only healthand longevity but also reduces the risk ofdiet-related chronic diseases or the preven-tion of other diseases, including cancer. Avegetarian eating plan can be adequate andoptimal and may even provide numeroushealth benefits.

According to various studies,

reduced red-meat consumption corre-lates with healthier cholesterol levels,other heart health benefits, andreduced rates of pancreatic and col-orectal cancers. (Please note: It wasunclear how much meat was con-sumed prior and subsequent to thestudy to produce that effect and howfatty the meats were.)

Studies have shown that a vegetariandiet may aid in weight management. In2007, Burke and colleagues suggested thatindividuals that adhered to a lacto-ovo veg-

etarian regimen were able to reduceintakes of both fat and calories and there-fore reduce overall body weight. Anothercomprehensive study published by theInternational Journal of Obesity and RelatedMetabolic Disorders (2003) examined thebody mass index (BMI) of four differentgroups, including meat eaters, fish eaters,vegetarians, and vegans. The meat eaters

had the highest BMI, followed by fisheaters and vegetarians. Vegans had the low-est BMI of all groups.

Contrary to popular belief, an individual’sprotein requirements can be met solelywith plant foods. Although animal proteinsare considered “complete proteins,” sincethey contain all eight essential amino acids,plant sources of protein are lacking in oneor more of them and are referred to as“incomplete” or “complementary” proteins.Some individuals know how to pair up theprotein sources to get a complete protein.Some wholesome combinations includepasta and veggies, a peanut-butter sandwich(on whole grain bread—not just wholewheat!) with vegetable soup, or a greensalad with walnuts and sunflower seeds.

When a variety of plant foods areconsumed and adequate calorie levelsare satisfied, the incomplete proteinswill combine to form complete ones;the amino acids will find and join eachother. If you don’t necessarily consumecomplementary proteins in the samemeal, you can just consume themthroughout the day.

Who needs meat, right? What’s thecatch here? The challenge is gettingenough of certain nutrients by eating avariety of foods. One such nutrient, vita-min B12, which contains cobalamine,biotin, and folic acid, may be lacking invegetarians since it is found predominant-ly in meat protein. This is especially thecase for pregnant and depressed individu-


To Be Or Not To Be . . . Vegetarian

If you don’t necessarily consumecomplementary proteins in the same

meal, you can just consume themthroughout the day.

als. The good news is that lacto-ovo vege-tarians can get adequate B12 if they con-sume whole eggs and dairy regularly.Vegans have to be sure to consume forti-fied foods, such as breakfast cereals, nutri-tional yeast, or soy milk. Just some foodfor thought: spirulina, sea vegetables, andfermented soy products are not reliablesources of this important vitamin.

Vegetarians, especially vegans, mustmake sure to consume Vitamin D and calci-um, both essential for bone health. Lack ofVitamin D can interfere with normal bonemetabolism, leading to rickets in childrenand osteoporosis in adults. In a study byBarr (2002) of 90 vegetarians, 56 reportedthat their diets have become restrictive overtime, and 48 planned more changes, specif-ically, to use fewer dairy products.

Furthermore, a Swedish study of 30vegans concluded that intakes of calciumand vitamin D were below recommendedguidelines. Specifically, when dairy prod-ucts are omitted, fortified foods such assoy, milk, cereals, breads, and juices mustbe consumed. Unfortunately, vegetablesources of calcium, such as spinach, con-tain high amounts of oxalic acid, whichinterferes with absorption.

Foods rich in Vitamin D include forti-fied milk products, fatty fish such assalmon, and fish liver oils, most notablycod liver oil. Fortified foods and eggsfrom hens fed Vitamin D are also goodsources. And the best source of Vitamin Dis the sun! Just a few minutes a day is allyou need. However, factors such as theuse of sunscreen, the time of day, the sea-son of the year, the level of the pigmentmelatonin in the skin, and even the dis-tance one is from the equator, all limitthe skin’s ability to produce this vitamin.

A vegetarian must also consume iron.Iron is a vital part of hemoglobin, a pro-tein that transports oxygen in the blood.Iron intake is important during all stagesof life, especially for growing children,and pregnant and menstruating women.The iron in meat, fish, and poultry is“heme” iron, which the body absorbsreadily. The iron in dairy, eggs, plantfoods, cereals, and breads is “non-heme,”which is less readily absorbed. However,foods rich in Vitamin C, such as tomatoes,oranges, and broccoli, aid in the absorp-tion of non-heme iron.

So, if you ate spaghetti and tomatosauce, the Vitamin C in the sauce shouldhelp with absorbing the iron in thespaghetti. In addition, those individualswho exercise must make sure their ironlevels are adequate, since many people,especially females who participate inintense, regular physical activity, reportmarginal to low levels of iron. Ironrequirements may be 30% to 70% greaterin active people as compared to seden-tary people.

In conclusion, a well-planned vegetari-an diet can be an excellent choice formaintaining a health-conscious lifestyle.Protein consumption is less of a concernthan ingesting adequate vitamins andminerals from a variety of sources. Sowith careful planning, enjoy nature’sbounty to the fullest! v

Rachael E. Schindler, MA, MS, CAI, CPT, has over18 years of experience in exercise physiology,Pilates, nutritional counseling, and teaching, aswell as multiple degrees in forensic anddevelopmental psychology. She specializes in foodand behavioral issues for both children andadults, offering the right combination of diet,exercise, and support all in one stop! Insurance isaccepted. She can be reached [email protected] or 917-690-5097.


B Y L A R R Y D O M N I T C H

There are two forms of revolt: one isthe rebellion by man against a regime;the other is the revolt against G-d. Theepisode of the Dor haPlagah, Generationof the Tower of Babel, described inParashas Noach establishes a precedentfor the latter.

Throughout history, revolts have mostoften taken place because of poverty. Whenone is lacking, one seeks to ameliorate thesufferings of hunger by forcibly replacing aregime that will better provide. Ideas are acatalyst for change, but hunger usuallyspeaks much louder than any words.

Conversely, revolts against G-d takeplace amid times of plenty.

Following the description of the gener-ations following Noah’s emergence fromthe Ark, the parashah states that the newsociety settled in the valley of Shinar(Bereishis 11:2). There, as one united entity,

amid the bountiful plains of the FertileCrescent, they planted and benefitedfrom the immense productivity of theland. The people then defiantly decidedto make bricks and build a tower tohonor themselves, as stated, “with its topin the heavens . . . and let us make aname for ourselves” (Bereishis 11:4).

The towering edifice would signifytheir self-confidence in their ownprowess as the masters of their destiny.The people of this generation staged arevolt against Hashem, thinking that theythemselves possessed their own abilitiesto successfully produce the bounty fromwhich they thrived. As a result, Hashemwould throw them out from their homesand force them from their unified socie-ty. The exiles of that generation wouldbecome a conglomeration of differententities speaking different languages.

The Midrash Sifri states that the DorhaPlagah revolted against Hashem out of

abundance as opposed to lacking. Theword “dwelling” in the fertile plains ofShinar implies that they were also partak-ing of the land’s abundance. Likewise, atMount Sinai before the sin of the GoldenCalf, the people were satiated; the Torahstates, “The people sat to eat and drink andthen they got up to rebel” (Sh’mos 32:6).

As B’nei Yisrael were soon to enter thePromised Land, the Torah admonishesthat they never take their future successand bounty for granted. Material successmust come with the recognition that all isfrom the Al-mighty and be accepted assuch. The Torah states, “Lest you eat andbe satisfied, and you build good housesand settle, and your cattle and sheep andgoats increase, and you increase silver andgold for yourselves, and everything youhave will increase and your heart willbecome haughty and you will forget

Building Towers Of Pride: A Tradition Since Noach



Lunar Flood, Solar YearYou’ve designated the weekend for

some quality time with your familywhen the phone rings; naturally, it’s anemergency at the office which requiresyour immediate involvement. You’veset aside the evening for volunteerwork in your community; instead, youspend it with your neighborhoodmechanic attending to another erup-tion of car trouble.

Relatively few of us, fortunately,have faced a “real” flood in which tor-rents of water threaten to engulf one’shome. But we’re all familiar with theexperience of being flooded with thecares of material life, of beingswamped with all sorts of mattersdemanding our attention just when wewere finally getting down to the thingswhich are truly important and pre-cious to us.

The Chassidic masters explain thatthis is the contemporary significanceof the great Flood which the Torahdescribes in the seventh and eighthchapters of Bereishis. A basic tenet ofChassidic teaching is that the Torah iseternal, its “historical” events connect-

ed to ever-present realities in our lives.Noach’s Flood is the prototype for achallenge which we all face: the floodof material concerns which threatensto quench the flame of spiritual striv-ing we harbor in our souls.

Indeed, our Sages tell us that Noach’sFlood began as an ordinary rainfall,which the misdeeds of man caused toescalate into the Flood. In other words,in their proper proportion and contextas a regulated means to a higher end,the waters of materiality are a benefi-cial, life-nurturing rain; but whenallowed to overstep their bounds, they

become a destructive deluge.The deeper significance of Noach’s

Flood is also reflected in the fact that itbegan and ended in the second monthof the Jewish year, the month ofCheshvan.

The first month of the year, the festi-val-rich month of Tishrei, is whollydevoted to spiritual pursuits: therenewal of our commitment to Divinesovereignty on Rosh Hashanah; repent-ing our failings on Yom Kippur; cele-brating our unity as a people and G-d’sprovidence over our lives on Sukkos;rejoicing in our bond with the Torahon Simchas Torah. The followingmonth, Cheshvan, marks our return tothe “daily grind” of material life.

Cheshvan is the first full month of therainy season in the Holy Land, comingafter the six rainless months of thesummer season and signifying thereturn to a life that derives its nourish-ment from the earth. It is no coinci-dence that Cheshvan (also called “Mar-Cheshvan”—mar meaning both “bitter”and “water”) is the most ordinary of

months, the only month of the yearwithout a single festival or specialoccasion.

The Jewish CalendarNoach’s Flood commenced on the

17th of Cheshvan in the year 1656 fromcreation, and ended on 27 Cheshvan ofthe following year. The Torah commen-taries explain that the Flood lastedexactly one year, and that the 11-day dis-crepancy in the dates represents the 11-day difference between the solar andlunar years.

This reflects the fact that differentcomponents of the calendar are basedon a variety of natural cycles which donot easily lend themselves to synchro-nization. The month derives from themoon’s 29.5-day orbit of the earth; theyear, from the 365-day solar cycle. Theproblem is that 12 lunar months addup to 354 days—11 days short of thesolar year.

Most calendars deal with this dis-crepancy by simply ignoring one or theother of the celestial timekeepers. Forexample, the Gregorian Calendar(which has attained near-universal sta-tus) is completely solar based. Its 365days are divided into 12 segments of 30or 31 days, but these “months” have lostall connection with their original asso-ciation with the moon. There are alsocalendars (such as the Muslim calen-dar) which are exclusively lunar-based,with months that are faithfully attunedto the phases of the moon. Twelve suchmonths are regarded as a year, butthese “years” bear no relation to thesolar cycle (a given date in such a calen-

From The Chassidic Masters

The sun and the moon represent the two sides of a dichotomy

which divides virtually every aspect of our existence.

dar will, in certain years, fall in themidst of summer and, in other years, inthe dead of winter).

The Jewish calendar is unique inthat it endeavors to reconcile the solarand lunar time-streams. By employinga complex 19-year cycle in whichmonths alternate between 29 and 30days and years vary between 12 and 13months, the Jewish calendar sets itsmonths by the moon and its years bythe sun, combining lunar time andsolar time into a single system whilepreserving the integrity of each.

For the sun and the moon representthe two sides of a dichotomy whichdivides virtually every aspect of ourexistence—a dichotomy whose differ-ences we must respect and preserveeven as we incorporate them in a cohe-sive approach to life.

Light And DarknessOn previous occasions, we have

explored various aspects of thesolar/lunar polarity: the contrast betweenthe surety and consistency of traditionon the one hand, and the desire for flux,innovation, and creativity on the other;the male/female dynamic, which imbuesus with the passion to give and bestowon the one hand, and the capacity toaccept and receive on the other. On thisoccasion, we shall dwell on anotheraspect of this cosmic duality: the twin-ship of spirit and matter.

The spiritual and the material areoften equated with light and darkness.Indeed, a number of religions and moralsystems regard the spiritual as enlight-ened, virtuous, and desirable, and the

physical-material side of life as belongingto the “forces of darkness.” The Torah,however, has a different conception ofspirituality and materiality, a conceptionembodied by the solar/lunar model.

The sun is a luminous body while themoon is a dark lump of matter. Yet bothare luminaries; both serve us as sourcesof light. The difference is that the sun’slight is self-generated, while the moonilluminates by receiving and reflectingthe light of the sun.

Spirituality is a direct emission ofDivine light. When studying Torah, pray-ing, or performing a mitzvah, we are indirect contact with G-d; we are mani-festly revealing His truth in the world.But not every thought of man relatesdirectly to the Divine wisdom; not everyword we utter is a prayer; not everydeed we perform is a mitzvah. G-d creat-ed us as material creatures, compelledto devote a considerable part of ourtime and energies to the satisfaction ofa multitude of material needs. By neces-sity and design, much of our life is“lunar,” comprising the nonluminousmatter of material pursuits.

Nonluminous matter, however, neednot mean an absence of light. It can bemoonlike, serving as a conduit of light.It’s all a matter of positioning. The moonis positioned in such a way as to conveythe light of the sun to places to which itcannot flow directly from its source.Placed in the proper context, the materi-al involvements of life can serve as facili-tators of Divine truth to places which, inand of themselves, are not in the “directline” of spirituality and holiness. The pro-ceeds of unavoidable overtime at the

workplace can be translated into addi-tional resources for charity; theunplanned trip to the mechanic can bethe start of a new friendship and a posi-tive influence on a fellow man.

A Complete YearOur lives include both a solar and a

lunar track: a course of spiritual achieve-ment as well as a path of materialendeavor. These orbits do not run in tan-dem; at times they clash, giving rise todissonance and conflict. The simplesolution would be to follow a singleroute, choosing an exclusively solar orexclusively lunar path through life. Butthe Jewish calendar does not avail itselfof the simple solution.

Our calendar insists that we incorpo-rate both systems in our time-trajectory:that we cultivate a solar self—thoughtsand feelings, deeds and endeavors,moments and occasions of consummateholiness and spirituality; and that at thesame time we also develop a lunar per-sonality—a material life which reflectsand projects our other, spiritual self.

This is also the lesson implicit in the365-day duration of Noach’s Flood. Thedeluge of material concerns which threat-ens to overwhelm our lives can be mas-tered and sublimated. The Flood can bereconciled with the solar calendar andmade part of a “complete year” in whichlunar and solar time converge and themoon receives and conveys the light ofthe sun. v

Based on the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe;adapted by Yanki Tauber. Courtesy ofMeaningfulLife.com via Chabad.org. Find moreTorah articles for the whole family atwww.chabad.org/parshah.


Hashem your G-d, who took you out ofEgypt from the house of slavery” (Devarim9:12–15). “And you may say in your heart,‘My strength and the might of my handmade me all this wealth’” (Devarim 9:17).

Settled in their land, when B’nei Yisraeldid not heed these repeated admonitions,they would face the attacks of their ene-mies. Then they would call out toHashem for deliverance.

Throughout history, Jews did not ceaseto show reverence to their Creator duringeras of deprivation. The Jews of the ghet-tos in their suffering turned to Hashem.They accepted their predicament andtheir lot as they humbly beseechedHashem’s mercy. It was when the ghettowalls were opened in the aftermath ofthe era of enlightenment, and Jews foundsuccess in the outside world, that theywould revel in their newfound affluenceand often forget Hashem.

How quickly, in just a few generations,much of American Jewry amid its foundmaterial success has forgotten the hum-ble and pious world of their ancestors ofEastern Europe!

In Parashas Noach, an utterly debasesociety, devoid of civility, is ended—butmankind survives. The message of theDor haPlagah is directed to both Israeland the nations of the world. With suc-cess and constantly improving technol-ogy, man may choose to build towersand honor himself for his glowingachievements—or he can honor hisCreator who has given him the tools foradvancement. v

Building Towers Of PrideContinued from Page 25

played a crucial role in the developmentof Rav Scheinberg as a Torah giant.Rebbitzen Scheinberg willingly left thecomforts of modern American life to joinwith her husband in Mirrer, Poland.

While back in America, her husbandserved as temporary rosh hayeshiva ofYeshiva Chofetz Chaim. During this time,Rebbitzen Scheinberg encouraged herhusband and his close talmidim with hergood cheer and warmth to get throughdifficult periods.

She personified modesty and wasunassuming in character, never bringingattention to herself. RebbitzenScheinberg exemplified the highest Torahideals of warmth, love, and concern forothers. She greeted everyone with aunique smile that made anyone who met

her feel as if they were family. Strangersfelt like grandchildren, grandchildren feltlike children.

Among her children are Rav SimchaScheinberg, shlita; Rebbitzen Weiner, wifeof Rav Dovid Weiner of Yeshiva ChofetzChaim; Rebbitzen Alpert, widow of RavNissin Alpert, zt’l, the rav of the Agudah inFar Rockaway; and Rebbitzen Altusky (wifeof Rav Altusky, the author of the acclaimedChiddushei Basra series on Shas).

Rebbitzen Scheinberg, a’h, was the sis-ter of Rebbitzen Ruchomo Shain, authorof All for the Boss, a biography of theirfather, Rabbi Yaakov Yoseph Herman.

Rebbitzen Scheinberg passed awayafter a long illness. Her family was by herbedside at Shaarei Tzedek hospital. Shewas 96 years old. Her kevurah was at HarHaMenuchos. v


Scheinberg, a’hContinued from Front Cover

She greeted

everyone with a

unique smile that

made anyone who

met her feel as if

they were family. Submit your photo to the5 Towns Jewish Times!

You can upload your

digital photos and see them

printed in the weekly edition

of the 5 Towns Jewish Times

www.5tjt.com/sendphotos

Dear Esther,I’ve been living in the Five Towns

area for the past six years. I was nervousabout moving here. I guess I’m not theonly person to feel that way. The FiveTowns has quite a reputation. And forgood reason. It can be very overwhelm-ing. We moved here from sort of thefringe area of Flatbush. We davened at alittle shteibel, and the people we knewand associated with were very down toearth and definitely simple in terms ofmaterial needs.

I guess I shouldn’t complain. My hus-band, thank G-d, has done very well in hisbusiness. He seems to be very good atwhat he does, and of course, has had a lotof mazel. I know that particularly thesedays, I should be and am very grateful.

The problem is that my husband haschanged dramatically over these pastsix years. He’s still a very good guy, verysincere and kind. But I see how he hasgotten himself caught up in all of thematerialism that goes on around us.Whereas in Brooklyn, he never reallythought much about what he wore,now it’s become very important to him.Everything has to be the finest andfrom a designer. He’s joined a gym andhas lost a lot of weight. Yes, he looksgreat, but I feel like he’s now unbear-ably into his looks. And that’s not theman I married.

I suppose I could put up with all ofhis new ideas. After all, he is still gener-ous and fine. What I’m having a problemwith is the pressure that he is putting onme. It’s becoming more and more impor-tant to him that I buy designer clothing.He wants me to keep up with his friend’swives. He wants me to shop where theyshop, wear the latest outfits, andbecome a clone of the local women. Hehas even suggested going shopping withme, which really struck me as kind ofabsurd! I don’t need his approval, thankyou very much.

That’s not who I am. I’m a simple girlfrom a simple background. I was raised tofocus on inner beauty and not to be a

slave to fashion. I think it’s ridiculoushow these women are so busy trying toimpress one another and the pressurethey put on themselves. I can’t under-stand why they fall for all of this nar-ishkeit. If you have the money to affordthe clothing, it doesn’t take any specialtalent to walk into a store and buy it. Ithink it just makes you a sucker! Thereare so many better things to do with thatkind of money.

My husband has bought expensivejewelry for me. He pressures me to wearthese pieces that I find absurd and almostvulgar. The crazy thing is that he doesn’teven like some of these people whom heis trying so hard to impress! That’s thereal kicker.

And it gets worse. He wants me to

entertain these friends on Shabbos theway they entertain—with enough foodfor an army and hired help for the serv-ing and cleaning. As if I’m not capable ofhandling the job myself. In Brooklyn hewas happy having company over andproud of me for serving a simple but deli-cious meal, without having to impress.Now it has to be the finest liquor and thebest of everything.

I feel like my husband and I are livingin two different worlds now. I don’tunderstand how and why he haschanged so much and he doesn’t under-stand why I’m not thrilled to become“one of them.”

Is there some way for me to getthrough to him or maybe I’m the onemissing something here? My husbandsays that I should get with the program. Isay that he should wake up from hisfool’s paradise. What do you say?

SimpleDear Simple,Let’s start with a basic premise.

Marriage is not necessarily easy. Whenyou think about two separate individuals,coming from distinctly different homes,

growing up with different sets of parents,assuming values that are rarely 100%identical, it’s easy to understand why ittakes work to find that middle groundwhere everyone feels understood, rele-vant, and comfortable.

It sounds as though you and your hus-band were off to a very good start. I don’tknow how long you lived in Brooklyn,but apparently it provided a safe havenfor the two of you to live peacefully andin harmony. It didn’t present any particu-lar temptations that nudged either you oryour husband from veering from thelifestyle that was working for you so nice-ly. No outside factors seemed to be rock-ing your boat.

Women in particular have strong gutfeelings about things. I think you sensedthat moving to the Five Towns wouldvery likely shake things up for the two ofyou. And so it has. Though your husbandthankfully has held on to his basic finecharacter traits, it does sound as thoughhe has been sucked into the “keeping upwith the Jacobowitzes” phenomenon.


Continued on Page 30He wants me to

shop where they

shop, wear the

latest outfits,

and become a

clone of the

local women.


The fact that you haven’t been influencedin the least and can remain objectiveenough to see the silliness of this eccen-tricity highlights your strength of charac-ter and confidence. I would venture tosay that most people don’t have the back-bone that you have.

Many people who worry so aboutkeeping up with others often sufferfrom some sense of low self-esteem orsome misplaced sense of values. Afterall, anyone worth identifying with andbecoming close to wouldn’t possibly bedetermining your worth based on theclothing on your back. Though I certain-ly can understand, appreciate, andadmire those people who are drawn tobeautiful things, can afford to buy them,and choose to express themselvesthrough their attire, I can’t understandhow this adds to their personal worth asa human being. As you mentioned, beau-ty is indeed skin deep.

Unfortunately, your husband to somedegree, has gotten caught up in thisshowy parade. I don’t fault him on want-ing to look sharp and stylish, but itsounds like his motivation is immatureand silly. I would imagine that you’vetried to explain your position to himmany times, but you have a problembecause he just isn’t hearing you.

The question is whether there issome way of compromising with him,finding some middle ground that couldwork for both of you. You don’t have towear designer clothing to look stylish,attractive, and youthful. Do you thinkthat your husband feels that you makeno effort at all? Are you trying to makea statement and, in doing so, purposelygoing to the other extreme? In somecommunities, a skirt and sweater is per-fectly acceptable attire for Shabbos. In acommunity like ours, the stakes are abit higher. Are you at least playing thegame to some degree? By sticking toyour guns, are you standing out or doyou blend?

If you are in fact trying to make a pointby purposely dressing down, don’t. Thereare other ways to get your point across. Ifyou purposely serve one main onShabbos, rather than the four mains thatyour peers are serving just to set therecord straight, maybe you can compro-mise and serve two mains, so that yourhusband feels more comfortable. I’m notsuggesting that you sell your soul. What Iam saying is that there is nothing wrongwith stepping outside your comfort zonein an accommodating way, to show yourhusband that you are sensitive to his feel-ings, despite not agreeing with them.

Hopefully, when your husband seesthat you are trying to work with himand give him something, he too will fol-low your lead, and compromise as well.Ultimately, though you are both comingfrom distinctly different places in thisregard, there are still many other, moreimportant matters that you agree on.Try to concentrate on all of the goodstuff that the two of you still share.After all, as you said, all of this is justnarishkeit anyway.

Esther

Esther Mann, LMSW, is a therapist and life coachin Lawrence. Esther can be reached at 516-314-2295 or [email protected]. She works withindividuals, couples, and families.

MINDBIZContinued from Page 29


B Y M A A Y A N A M I S K I N

Rabbi Shimon Natan NataBiderman, the Rebbe of Lelov, passedaway on the night of Yom Kippur, fol-lowing Kol Nidrei. He was 78 and livedin Bnei Brak.

On Sunday evening, he began theYom Kippur prayers in a local shul as

usual, but surprised his fellow worship-pers by leaving early.

Followers of the Rebbe reported thathe then retired to his room, saying hedid not feel well. For the first time, theRebbi did not prepare a cup and basinfor netilas yadayim the next day.Instead, he recited the Shema, lay downon his bed, and fell unconscious.

Paramedics who were called to thehome found the rebbi not breathingand unresponsive. He was taken toBeilinson hospital in critical condition,and passed away shortly afterward.

Over the course of Yom Kippur,many thousands of Bnei Brak residentsvisited the main Torah learning hall ofthe Lelov chassidic movement to paytheir respects.

Rabbi Biderman’s funeral began onMonday evening in Bnei Brak, attendedby thousands. The funeral processionproceeded to Jerusalem, where theRebbi was buried on Har Hazeisim.(Arutz Sheva) v

The Lelover Rebbe, zt’l

For the first time,

the Rebbi did not

prepare a cup and

basin for netilas

yadayim the

next day.

LELOVER REBBE PASSESAWAY ON YOM KIPPUR

UziBarak(haredim.co.il)

Believing And Not Believing

R ’ B E N T Z I O N S H A F I E R

“And Noach, his sons, and his wife camewith him because of the waters of the flood.”

—Bereishis 7:7Hashem told Noach that his entire gen-

eration was wicked and would bedestroyed. Only he, his family, and certainselect animals would be saved. Hashemthen commanded Noach to build a

teivah—300 amos long, 50 amos wide,and 30 amos high—in which they wouldlive for almost a year’s time.

When the flood actually began, thepasuk says that Noach and his familywent into the Ark “because of the watersof the flood.” Rashi observes that thesewords imply that it was the water thatcaused Noach to go into the teivah, notHashem’s command. Therefore, Rashisays that Noach was a “ma’amin v’eino

ma’amin—one who believed and didn’tbelieve.” On one hand, he believed thatHashem would bring the flood, but onthe other, he didn’t believe it would hap-pen. Therefore, he didn’t actually gointo the teivah until the rains forcedhim in.

This Rashi becomes difficult to under-stand when we take into account some ofthe background of the event.

Noach was a tzaddik. Noach is calledan eesh tzaddik, a righteous man. Whetherhe would have been called a tzaddik incomparison to Avrohom is a point ofdebate, but there is no question that in hisgeneration, he was considered an exem-plary individual, so much so that Hashemchose him to be the single person torebuild the human race. So how is it pos-sible that when Hashem told him therewould be a flood, he didn’t believe it?

This question comes into sharperrelief when we view the situation in itsbroader context. Many of the Rishonimask, “Why did Hashem ask Noach tobuild the teivah? If Hashem wanted todestroy the generation and save Noach,there are many ways He could have done

it. Why trouble this tzaddik to draw theplans, cut the wood, and fit together thepieces? Hashem could have miraculouslysaved him without Noach having tobecome a carpenter.

Rashi answers that Hashem wanted togive the generation one final opportunityto do teshuvah. When Noach would workon the teivah, people would see him andask, “What are you building?”

“Hashem told me He is going to destroythe world,” he would answer. “The only

hope is to repent. Do teshuvah.”For 120 years, while he was building

the teivah, Noach was on a mission toconvince his neighbors that Hashem wasgoing to bring a mabul and destroy theinhabited world . . . unless they changedtheir ways.

With this, the question becomes muchstronger. Here we have a man whom theTorah calls a tzaddik, whom Hashemspoke to directly. He was told by HashemHimself exactly what would happen. Hethen spent year after year preaching thatvery message to the people. How is it pos-sible that he didn’t believe it himself?

The nature of man. The answer tothis question is based on understandingthe nature of man. When Hashem creat-ed the human, He joined together twodivergent elements and fused them intoone entity. Part of me only wants to dowhat is right and proper, only wishes forthat which is good, and yearns to beclose to Hashem. That part of me, thenefesh ha’sichili, or the spiritual soul, isuntainted, pure intellect. It is the part ofme that understands exactly why I wascreated.

However, there is another part of me,a nefesh ha’bahami, or a physical soul.This other part is also vibrant and hasneeds, but its aspirations, drives, anddesires only relate to that which is phys-ical. It only sees the here and now. In itsworld, if I can’t hear it, feel it, or see it, itdoesn’t exist.

When I engage in any spiritual activity,these two components of me are in directconflict. For instance, when I daven, partof me feels a deep, inner yearning to growever closer to Hashem, and part of me isbored. Part of me is aglow because I amconnecting to my Creator, and part of me


The Shmuz OnThe Parsha

Hashem could

have

miraculously

saved him

without Noach

having to

become a

carpenter.


just doesn’t care. The nefesh ha’bahamidoesn’t see Hashem, can’t relate toHashem, and therefore doesn’t have anyconnection to anything spiritual.

As long as a person lives, there will bea part of his essence that denies theexistence of Hashem, not because thatpart is rebellious, nor because it wantsto do anything wrong, but because it isincapable of seeing anything that isn’tphysical. The more a person grows, themore clearly he relates to his spiritualside, and the less the nefesh ha’bahamiclouds his vision. However, as long as Iam housed in a body, this darknessremains a part of me.

The answer to Noach. The answer tothe question seems to be that Noach wasa real believer. He had a powerful, unwa-vering belief that everything that Hashemsaid would happen, would indeed cometrue. But that was only half of him. Therewas another part of Noach that didn’t seeHashem, couldn’t relate to Him, andcouldn’t see anything beyond the hereand the now. That part denied that therewould ever be a flood.

Even an eesh tzaddik, who spent 120years engaged in teaching that Hashemwas going to bring a flood, was still ahuman, and as such, he couldn’t fully seeit happening. It wasn’t until the rain start-ed that it became real to him, and then hewent into the teivah.

The darkness of physicality. Thisconcept is relevant to us because nomatter what level a person has reached,there will always be a part of him thatdenies anything spiritual. There willalways be a part of me that feels alonein this world because it cannot seeHashem, nor even relate to anythingthat is not physical. However, there isanother full dimension of me that intu-itively knows that Hashem is righthere, running the world, involved inevery detail of my life.

The great challenge of life is to allowthe inborn understanding of spiritualmatters to come to the fore. By workingon davening, learning Torah, and reach-ing out to my Creator, those under-standings become stronger and morevivid. But a person must remember thatas long as he is human, there will becloudiness in his thinking, a murkinessto all things spiritual, because theyremain hidden behind a heavy cloak ofphysicality. v

“The Shmuz,” an engaging and motivating Torahlecture that deals with real life issues is availablefor free at www.TheShmuz.com. The Shmuz onthe Parsha, a compilation on all of Chumash isnow available for purchase either in your localsefarim store, or at the Shmuz.com.

B Y S T E V E N G E N A C K

The Establishment Clause of the FirstAmendment of the Constitution statesthat “Congress shall make no law respect-ing an establishment of religion.” InLemon v. Kurtzman, 403 U.S. 602 (1971), theSupreme Court created a “test” to deter-mine what kind of law would be deemeda constitutional breach.

According to the new test, “The LemonTest,” the government’s action must havea secular legislative purpose; must nothave the primary effect of either advanc-ing or inhibiting religion; and must notresult in an “excessive government entan-glement” with religion.

In Defending Your Life (1991), a film thattracks the character of Al Brooks into thenext world after suffering a fatal automo-bile accident, another “test” is createdwithin the fictional film noir.

Upon Brooks’s death, he is transplant-

ed into “Judgment City.” Here, he willstand trial to determine whether hepassed the all important “test” that willgive him entrance into the next phase ofexistence. Everyone in “Judgment City” isappointed a defense attorney to try torebuff the prosecutorial charges.

In the trial, a few episodes of a per-son’s life are viewed on a large screenfor the lawyers, defendant, and judgesto see. These episodes are used as evi-dence to determine the final outcomeof the trial.

The “test” was rather simple. In eachepisode, you just needed to exhibit coura-geous behavior that was uninhibited bythe fear of failure. Non-performance ofactions based upon poor excuses securesa ticket back to earth.

On the day before the trial, Brooks’sattorney tells him that he is likely head-ing back to earth. Brooks felt dejected andregretful of his record. That night [in

Judgment City] Brooks meets a woman(played by Meryl Streep) who alreadywon her trial and was scheduled todepart to heaven the next day. Brooksopens his heart to her and seems to forgea strong bond with her.

The next day, after the prosecutionfinished closing arguments, the tribu-nal applied the “test of courage” andBrooks failed. He was scheduled tohead back to earth that same day at theexact time when Streep’s bus was goingto heaven.

As both buses gain in speed, Brookslooks at Streep for one last time and asthe buses are about to part Brooks coura-geously jumps out of his window intoStreep’s bus. This episode was beingwatched by the court and at that momentthey were satisfied that Brooks learnedhis lesson and allowed him to escortStreep to heaven.

Within the episodes that transpiredbetween Noach’s building of the ark andthe formation of the Jewish nation,courage, risk, and responsibility becomecrucial. Both Noach and Avrahamengaged in activities to effectuate change;

only one did it passively and the otherboldly and aggressively.

We begin to see the character ofNoach, by means of reference to anothercharacter in Tanach—Bezalel. This isbased on the fact that Parashas Noach has

153 pesukim, numerically correspondingto the word Bezalel, the architect andoverseer of the Mishkan. The commenta-tors point out the similarity betweenNoach and Bezalel. Each created a struc-ture for inhabitance—Noach the Ark andBezalel the Mishkan.

But the connection between these twofigures goes much deeper. When theTorah introduces Bezalel, the verse says, “Ihave filled him with a Heavenly spiritwith wisdom, insight, and knowledgeand with every craft (bechol melachah)(Sh’mos 31:3). A melachah is a manifesta-tion of something new that wasn’t therebefore (as inferred by the Beis Haleivi, onthe verse in Bereishis (2:2) that “G-d fin-ished his melachah on the seventh day,”meaning He refrained from creating any-thing new on the seventh day.

Therefore it may be said that Bezalel’screative ability and power to effectuatechange only came because G-d gave it tohim (“I have filled him with every craft”).Minus the infusion, Bezalel was not a cre-ative force or agent of change. He merelywas an architect by design.

Passivity seemed to be the calling ofNoach. Noach was a passive actor. Hisname, Noach, implies menuchah, rest,which was a mere continuation of theseventh day of creation. It was a passiveexistence that was more involved in thestatus quo than change.

The essence of Noach is captured byRashi on the verse, “Noach entered theark because of the flood” (Bereishis 7:7).Rashi comments that Noach was of thesmall believers in G-d (mekatnei emu-nah). Though he believed the floodwould come, he needed the waters torise up enough to literally push himinto the ark.

Rashi is highlighting Noach’s s indeci-siveness. We know that he built the arkover a 120 year period of time. (Rashi onBereishis 6:14). As once mentioned, 120marks the cycle of life based on the gema-triah of the word itself “muad” thatequals 120. Noach didn’t effectuatechange within a 120 year timeframe.

In this time period, he couldn’t swayG-d through prayer or influence the peo-ple to repent. As the Zohar comments,these waters belonged to him. They were“mei Noach” (Yeshayahu 54:9). In the finalanalysis, Noach and Bezalel’s achieve-ments were solely related to the buildingof structures. One didn’t have the ability


Different By Design

Leon Trotsky said,

“The end may

justify the means

as long as there is

something that

justifies the end.”


to effectuate creative change onhis own while the other lackedthe necessary will.

However, Avraham, unlikeBezalel, had his own creativewillpower and, unlike Noach,acted quickly, decisively, andboldly. Avraham’s house was amere means to an end. At hishouse he would serve meals toguests whom he would inspireto give praise to the One whocreated the bread. His home wasa vehicle to achieve a powerfulspiritual mission. He wasn’t con-cerned with people’s non-beliefin G-d. On the phrase “The soulsthey made in Charan” (Bereishis12:5), Rashi cites the Midrashthat “They brought them underthe wings of the Shechinah—Avraham converted the men,and Sarah converted thewomen—and the Torah consid-ers it as if they made them.”

It was in Avraham’s “ohelmoed” (his tent) that G-d appearsto him, as the verse says,“Hashem appeared to him in theplains of Mamre while he wassitting at the entrance of the tentin the heart of the city” (Bereishis18:1). Rashi notes that this wasthe third day since Avraham’smilah and though he was insuch pain, he desired to stand upto bring in visitors. To preventvisitors from appearing, G-dremoved the sun from its sack.This hints to the Gemara thatsays “There is no Gehinnom inthe World-to-Come. Rather, TheHoly One, Blessed is He, takesout the sun from its pouch,which heals the righteous andjudges the evil” (Nedarim 8b). Inthis instance G-d used the sun ina dual fashion, to keep away vis-itors and to heal Avraham.

Leon Trotsky said, “The endmay justify the means as long asthere is something that justifiesthe end.” Noach didn’t even usethe means to attempt to arriveat an end. He exhibited passivebehavior even amidst a stormytime. His indecisiveness andfailure to take risks was a testa-ment to his overall ideology. Hefailed to use the design of theArk as an inspiration to sway adeviant population. He wouldcertainly not have passed the“Brooks Test.”

Avraham, though, used hishome as a means to an end witha strong, justifiable end.Avrohom broke bread with peo-ple at his home and inspired ageneration to acknowledge oneG-d. He converted the massesbecause he possessed an innerclarity and decisiveness that per-mitted him to act aggressivelyand forcefully. He would surelyhave passed the “Brooks Test”since he exhibited courageousbehavior that often put the lifeof himself and his family at risk.G-d protected him by removingthe sun from its sack which lit-erally shone health over hisbody, “since the righteous arehealed through the sun.” v


One of the more popular developmentsin the global economy that has evolved inrecent years has been the lively purchasemarket in Israel of real estate by foreigninvestors. I am not referring to corpora-tions purchasing commercial buildingsand properties—that has been around fora long time—but rather the fervent pur-chasing of apartments and homes by indi-viduals from around the world—predomi-nantly from the United States, GreatBritain, France, and South Africa.

Some of these buyers are consideringmaking aliyah and are purchasing a pri-mary residence to live in. Others are look-ing for a second home to have in Israelthat they can stay in when they maketheir visits. A third and growing group arethose that purchase for investment. Partof this group typically buys an apartmentor home in a high demand area fortourists which they can then rent out forshort (or even for some long) stays. Theseapartments typically rent for a higheramount than an apartment an Israeliwould rent at market pricing and are verylucrative when the investor can obtainoccupancy on a consistent basis. Typically

these places rent for double or even moreduring the Sukkos and Pesach holidaysand make up for any vacancy experiencedduring the rest of the year.

This sounds wonderful on paper, andwhen everything is working and thetourists are pouring in and there is high

Investments In Israel

Some buildings

find themselves with

few residents all year

long and many empty

apartments, causing

a ghost-town feeling

for the residents

living there.


demand, it works well. But, (there isalways a “but”) this is a very specializedmarket that these investors have createdfor themselves, and like any other invest-ment, it is economy-dictated. The globaleconomy dictates if it will be a strongtourist year with high demand or, as wehave right now, a recession with many ofthese investors fighting for whatevertourist renters they can glean from a lean-er tourist travel year.

The upside of all of this, even in leantimes, is that the real estate sales market inIsrael has consistently risen over the years,and if they tire of chasing tenants they canstill depend on the value of their invest-ment property continuing to climb, andthey can always sell it and realize a profit.

Other investors do not even botherrenting their investment property out.They purchase their investment with theidea of holding it for a period of time andthen selling it for a profit as the value ofthe real estate market in the investmentproperty’s locale rises. The direction thatthe real estate market in Israel has beengoing can show a return equal to muchmore than one can get with any CD at abank today, and many savvy investorshave utilized the buying and selling ofproperties as well as the buying and rentalof properties in Israel to create a niceamount of money for themselves. Returnson rentals have been shown to be in therange of 8-13% in some localities—certain-ly very attractive in these days of vanish-ing bank interest rates—and profits fromthe purchase and sale of properties arealso seeing excellent returns. Percentagesare based on the locale and the amount oftime the investor has held the propertybefore reselling it on a climbing realestate market.

The downside is all the complaintscoming from Israeli residents living inthese affected areas all year long. The con-sequence of many of these investmentshas caused the real estate market to con-sistently climb and become more expen-sive for the average Israeli. The propertiesthat have been purchased have a tenden-cy to be left empty and shuttered quiteoften. Some buildings in high demandareas where there has been high foreigninvestment find themselves with few res-idents all year long and many emptyapartments, causing a ghost-town feelingfor the residents living there.

The area most impacted with this situ-ation seems to be sections of Jerusalemwithin walking distance to the Old Cityand the Kotel. This trend of rising foreigninvestment with its impact on Israelisseems to be an ongoing dilemma withthe city governments affected holdingregular discussions on ways to mitigateits effect on everyday life while not dis-couraging ongoing investment. So far,this issue remains unresolved.

This phenomenon of investment inIsrael is nothing new. It was created along time ago by Avraham Avinu whenfor a few shekalim he purchased Ma’aratHamachpeilah—and we know today howvaluable that investment was! v

Anessa Cohen lives in Cedarhurst and is alicensed real-estate broker and a licensed N.Y.S.mortgage broker with over 20 years of experience,offering full-service residential and commercialreal-estate services (Anessa V Cohen Realty) andmortgaging services (First Meridian Mortgage) inthe Five Towns and throughout the tri-state area.She can be reached at 516-569-5007 or via herwebsite, www.AVCrealty.com. Readers areencouraged to send questions or comments [email protected].

It’s amazing how three little words canhave such an impact on the lives of other-wise levelheaded people. The three wordsare free of charge. And the very mentionof them means that all sense of sanitygoes out the door. If something is avail-able at no cost, people come running. Totweak a well-known phrase, if you give itfor free they will come! And they willcome running. We’ve all witnessed this atone time or another and I recently sawthis firsthand. But it would be more cor-rect to say that, in the instance I refer tohere, people didn’t actually come running.Let’s just say they came walking. And in

some cases, they came limping. The free-bie in this case was the flu shot and manyof the folks who were anxious to takeadvantage of receiving the vaccinationwithout charge were senior citizens.Some were very senior at that. But oncethe word was out, it didn’t matter. Theyfound their way to CVS and couldn’t rollup their sleeves fast enough.

To say that the line was long is anunderstatement at best. So many peoplequeued up that the line snaked up oneaisle and down another. What was moreimportant was that the line didn’t move.At least it didn’t seem to. I had the distinct

feeling that there was a snafu some-where. Perhaps the nurse, or whoeverwho had been hired to administer theinjection, was still in training. Maybe shewas behind the pharmacy counter some-where way in the back practicing on anorange, which is what I was instructed todo when I was a nursing student.Whatever she was doing, it was taking avery long time.

Everyone on line expressed impa-tience in some fashion. Some heavedheavy sighs from time to time while oth-ers remained silent but shifted uncom-fortably from one foot to the other everyfew minutes. It was an unbearably longwait but there was a bonus. The storemanager had instructed a worker to handout coupon books to us. What he proba-bly said was, “Go give those schnookswho are foolish enough to take advan-tage of this free flu shot something tokeep them happy.”

The idea was for us to use the couponsand to shop while we waited. The con-cept made sense but there was one flawin the arrangement; once a person leftthe line to do the shopping he would

return to an even longer line. A more sen-sible plan would have been for people totake numbers so that no one would losehis turn. Taking numbers works well.After all, if it’s good enough for a bakery itshould work just as well in a drugstore.One would think that a flu vaccine isevery bit as important as a rye bread.However, that didn’t happen.

Another sensible but unutilized ideawould have been to provide seats forthese people. That didn’t happen either.It’s truly amazing how often I get thissame thought; if only I was in chargehere. But I wasn’t. So I waited along withthe other suckers.

But I have character flaws. For starters,I’m impatient. Also, I’m occasionally a quit-ter. So it didn’t take long for me to give up.I wasn’t the only one. I spotted a few oth-ers who, after throwing up their hands inexasperation, walked out. These peopleleft the store sans shot! The majority stuckit out but I wasn’t one of them. Sincepatience is not one my virtues, saving afew bucks didn’t make enough of a differ-ence. Sure I would have loved to havebeen vaccinated without charge but Irefused to stand there any longer. Twentyminutes was more than enough for me.

I tried to make an appointment withmy personal physician, but this was a fewweeks ago and at the time he hadn’t yetreceived the vaccine he had ordered. A fewdays after the CVS debacle I was visitingfriends in Queens and when the conversa-tion turned to flu shots, I was all ears.Walgreens, I learned, was giving flu shots.They were charging, but at that point I hadalready decided that I would pay to get theshot and know that I was protected.Walgreens is a drugstore that I had neverpatronized before but that wasn’t going tostop me. After taking directions from myfriends, I made a detour on my way homeand stopped in at a Walgreens to availmyself of the $24.99 privilege.

The scene there was vastly differentfrom the one in CVS and it was a badnews/good news situation. BAD NEWS:No coupons were being distributed.GOOD NEWS: there were several chairsavailable for those who were waiting.BETTER NEWS: there wasn’t a soul online. I was the only one there. I supposethat’s what happens when people have topay. The prevailing thought must be“what’s the rush?”

I shelled out the $25. After all, what is$24.99 if not $25? And I was happy to doso. To my way of thinking, my time isworth something, and I wasn’t going tomake a second attempt to get a freebie ifit meant standing on a long line for whoknows how long. Of course I know exact-ly what my husband, Arnie, would say ifhe was here. In fact, just as I finishedrolling up my sleeve and positioning myupper arm to receive the injection, Ithought I did hear a little whisper.“Hannah, exactly what is it that you haveto do that’s so important that you could-n’t stand on a line to save $25?”

Ignoring the whisper, I got my shot,paid the money, and left the store. As Iwas walking out the door the voice said,“I didn’t know I was married to anheiress.” That was when I knew for cer-tain that it was Hubby who was whisper-ing to me. v

Hannah Berman lives in Woodmere and is alicensed real-estate broker associated withMarjorie Hausman Realty. She can be reached [email protected] or 516-902-3733.


Free Of Charge


B Y R A B B I A V I S H A F R A N

The life work of Norman Borlaug, whodied shortly before Rosh Hashanah at theage of 95, should give deep pause to thosewho see humans as a threat to the planet.

Those, that is, like Dr. Borlaug’s fellowscientist, Paul Ehrlich, whose 1968 bookThe Population Bomb predicted worldwidefamine within 20 years as a result of risingbirth rates and limited resources.Hundreds of thousands of people, Dr.Ehrlich soberly prophesied, would starveto death by 1988. He compared the “popu-lation explosion”—he coined the phrase—to the uncontrolled growth of cancer cellsin a body, and advocated the “radical sur-gery” of compulsory birth control, in theform of spiking the world water supplywith sterilizing chemicals.

Over ensuing years, Dr. Ehrlich’s predic-tion was embraced by legions of scientists,intellectuals, and population-control advo-cates across the United States and Europe.

All the while, Dr. Borlaug, a plant scien-tist, for decades quietly continued exper-imenting with grain varieties, eventuallydeveloping strains of wheat and rice thatraised food yields by as much as 600%.

That achievement revolutionized mod-ern agriculture, allowing a country likeIndia, for example, whose population grewfrom 500 million in the 1960s to 1.16 billiontoday, to achieve food self-sufficiency.Largely as a result of Borlaug’s “GreenRevolution,” our world today experiencesfamines as, in the Wall Street Journal’swords, “politically induced events, not truenatural disasters.”

Strangely, when it comes to thegrowth of the human population, the sky,in one way or another, seems always tobe falling. Ehrlich was the 1960s’ ChickenLittle. Today’s panicked poultry point tothe planet’s rising temperature to indictthe human race anew.

A recent London School of Economicsstudy, for instance, projected thatincreased “family planning” would reducecarbon dioxide emissions by 34 gigatonsover the next 40 years, inspiring a New YorkTimes environmental-issues weblog to pro-pose, as a “thought experiment,” thenotion of “baby avoidance carbon credits.”

I’m not qualified to take a side in thedebate over global warming. Many scien-tists foresee worldwide disaster if carbonemissions are not greatly reduced; othersdeny that any human effort can stave offthe inevitable; and others still considerthe entire doomsday scenario an exam-ple of mass hysteria, contending thatglobal warming is either unaffected byhuman activity or that it will have no direconsequences.

But amid all the claims and—forgiveme—overheated rhetoric, it is worthwhileto keep Norman Borlaug and his accom-plishments in mind. To remember, that is,that human ingenuity (assisted, surely, byinspiration from Above) often can over-come even seemingly intractable chal-lenges. (We might also mull the notionthat, had The Population Bomb been pub-lished a few decades before it was, Dr.Borlaug’s parents might have been per-suaded not to have him.)

Jews the world over have now begun theyearly cycle of synagogue Torah-reading

The People Problem


NYC Marathoners Running ForTeamOHEL, November 1

What started as a nucleus of a fewrunners has metamorphosed into anenthusiastic group of some 13 dedicatedrunners who are running the NYCMarathon on November 1 to help chil-dren with disabilities and children livingin foster care or in domestic abuse shel-

ters to attend Ohel Bais Ezra’s year roundrecreational camps.

From day camps to summer camps,end-of-summer camps to winter camps,Ohel’s camps provide an activity-enriched, nurturing, and loving environ-ment for campers and much neededrespite for hundreds of parents of chil-dren with disabilities.

There is very limited to no governmentfunding for many of Ohel’s camp pro-grams, so initiatives such as TeamOHELare essential to ensure these programswill be available to so many—especiallyduring these tough financial times.

TeamOHEL runners come from acrossthe tri-state area and beyond includingCleveland and a father-son team fromChicago. Tamar Sicklick, TeamOHEL’sfounding runner, hopes her run will also“break down barriers.” As Tamar believes,“the stigma of developmental disabilitiesis still very common. While majorinroads have been made, there is still awidespread lack of awareness and misun-derstanding of those challenged by devel-opmental disabilities.”

Wallace Gottlieb, who started runningmarathons at 61, will be running hisfourth marathon—and his first for Ohel.Wallace comments that “working withand supporting children with disabilitiesis an important tradition in my family.My wife, Mary, and my daughter, Suri are

both special education teachers. I amdelighted to be able to join them in thisimportant cause by running for the manychildren that Ohel serves day in and dayout, all year long.”

On Sunday October 25, a week beforethe big race, several TeamOHEL runnerswill participate in a day of fun with chil-dren from Ohel Bais Ezra’s SundayRecreation Respite Program. A specialprogram of relay races, obstacle courses,etc. will enrich the day for the childrenand ensure a healthy dosage of furthermotivation for runners—who will be inthe final straits of training before thebig day!

Hundreds of families with develop-mentally disabled children depend onOhel’s year-round camps. Please supportthe children and families of Ohel bysponsoring TeamOHEL this year.

As Elly Libin, a member of TeamOHELsays, “It’s not just about a run but support-ing children and their lives.”

Sponsor a runner, and see the great


Above, left: TeamOHEL runner Tamar Sicklick with an Ohel Bais Ezra client.

TeamOHEL video at www.teamohel.org.Attractive TeamOHEL corporate spon-

sorship opportunities are still available.For more information please call PaulaSimmonds at 718-686-3214 and by e-mail [email protected]. v

Charity Administrators Gather ToEnsure Compliance With The Law

A legal workshop designed to helpadministrators of “gemachs” (specializedcharitable funds), special shul funds, andother charitable entities in the Orthodoxcommunity operate smoothly in compli-ance with pertinent state and federallaws took place at the Spinka Hall inBrooklyn on Wednesday, September 23.The event, which featured prominentattorneys and accountants, was spon-sored by Agudath Israel of America anddrew nearly 200 participants.

Serving as moderator was AgudathIsrael’s executive vice president, RabbiDavid Zwiebel, who lauded the astound-ing amount of chesed that is practiced inthe Jewish community. After thankingthose in attendance for taking hoursfrom their busy schedules during a mostbusy time of year, he introduced a spe-cial presenter, Rabbi Zalman LeibMeisels, dayan and the son-in-law of theSpinka Rebbe.

Rabbi Meisels echoed Rabbi Zwiebel’swords of praise for the sheer number ofcharitable funds that help so many in thecommunity, and delivered an eloquentand passionate plea that all administra-tors of such funds recognize theirresponsibility to operate entirely by theletter of the law and in compliance withall licensing and procedural require-

ments. Speaking in Yiddish, he urged hislisteners to resist the temptation to cutcorners with regard to technical require-ments of secular law and to “not take

such things lightly.”The professional presenters featured

were Baruch S. Gottesman, Partner,Gottesman Consulting, Inc.; Avraham C.

Moskowitz, Partner, Moskowitz, Book &Walsh, LLP; Abraham Roth, Partner, Roth& Company LLP, Certified PublicAccountants and Consultants; andMitchell A. (Moshe) Silk, Partner, Allen &Overy LLP.

Utilizing a detailed theoretical sce-nario prepared by Mr. Silk and projectedon screens at the front of the hall, RabbiZwiebel noted potential problems in theoperation of a fictional entity and askedthe panelists to comment in detail aboutthe propriety and wisdom of each of theactions taken by the cast of fictional char-acters in the scenario.

Although the program lasted a fullthree hours (with a short break forMinchah), participants were clearly allears, and dozens of questions were writ-ten on cards distributed at the start of theprogram and passed to the dais for a ques-tion and answer period that followed themain presentation.

“I didn’t know what to expect heretonight,” said one participant. “I don’tengage in any activity that is in any waymisleading or fraudulent, and I won-dered if any advice provided here wouldbe useful to me. But all of it was. Ilearned how it is not enough to be hon-est and straight but to follow all the pro-cedural and licensing requirements.Following the advice I heard tonightmight well save many here from legalproblems in the future.”

Wednesday night’s workshop was anoutgrowth of a massive gathering shortlybefore Tishah B’Av on the topic of hon-esty and propriety. After that gathering,



(L–R): Baruch Gottesman, Abraham Roth, Avraham Moskowitz, and Moshe Silk.

Rabbi David Zwiebel. Rabbi Zalman Leib Meisels.


anew. In the first portion ofBereishis, the world is created, thefirst man formed, and the formeris entrusted by G-d to the latter. Tobe sure, Adam, and we, his descen-dants, are forbidden to wantonlydestroy nature. But we are alsomandated, as per G-d’s commandto the first man and woman, to“subjugate . . . all the land,” to pressthe earth’s natural resources intothe service of the human race.Current cultural correctness aboutthe environment—what the lateauthor Michael Crichton called“the religion of choice for urbanatheists”—sees the earth as fragile,and endangered by one of itsspecies: the human. From anauthentic Jewish perspective,though, while the biosphere’scomplexity and beauty aresources of powerful inspiration,humans are no mere parts ofCreation, but its pinnacle.Bereishis, as understood by everyauthoritative commentary,describes the world as created forhuman beings to develop and use.

And to populate. CodifiedJewish law very clearly favorshuman procreation. It is a themenot ignored by the Jewishprophets either. Yeshayahu (45:18)declares that G-d “did not create it[the world] for emptiness” butrather “to be settled [by humanbeings] did He form it.” TheTalmud, for its part, predicatesthe Messianic era on the births of“all the souls” destined to occupyhuman bodies (Yevamot 63b). Therenowned Sefer HaChinuch con-siders the mitzvah, or command-ment, to procreate as “the onethat allows for [observance of] allthe mitzvos in the world, for theyare given to people, not angels.”

To be sure, were somehumanity-threatening catastro-phe both clear and present—and not merely distantly pre-dicted by some—we would berequired to take steps to meetthe challenge. But forecasts ofdisaster like Dr. Ehrlich’s havecome and gone countless times.Some turned out to have beenbased on error; in other cases,looming disasters were success-fully averted by human creativi-ty and Divine guidance.

Is global warming a clear andpresent danger or a pipe-night-mare? Is reducing our carbonfootprints pointless or impera-tive? I don’t claim to know. WhatI do know, though, is that whenwould-be parents and theirpotential progeny are fingered asthreats to the planet, the trulyJewish response is to recall thatthe Creator not only presentedthe world to Adam for his use butcommanded and blessed himand Chavah, in no uncertainterms, to be fruitful, multiply and“fill the earth.” v

© 2009 Am Echad Resources. RabbiShafran is director of public affairs forAgudath Israel of America.

People ProblemContinued from Page 39

and in response to recent developments,Agudath Israel received numerousrequests from institutions and individu-als asking for guidance on importantlegal issues affecting yeshivos, gemachs,businesses, and individuals. TheWednesday night workshop was the firstin a planned series to promote greaterknowledge of, and compliance with, sec-ular law; the next is being planned foryeshivos after the holidays and will focuson various tax-related issues.

Rabbi Zwiebel noted the significanceof the fact that Wednesday night’s wasthe first such workshop of its kind.“Heightened scrutiny of our community,”he said, “has made it imperative that accu-rate information and advice be effective-ly communicated. The larger enemy hereis not venality; it is ignorance of the lawand of technical procedures. And so thegoal is knowledge.”

The Agudath Israel leader emphasizedthe important role of the Spinka Rebbe,not only in making the Spinka Hall avail-able for the gathering, but for his ongoinginvolvement in helping design and pro-mote the workshop. In addition, he said,David Tauber and a group of othergemach administrators played a majorrole in the organization and execution ofthe gathering.

Rabbi Zwiebel also expressed grati-tude to Agudath Israel associate generalcounsel Rabbi Mordechai Biser for hiswork in putting Wednesday’s workshoptogether, and gave special thanks toYehuda Kupfer, a young lawyer who is

currently assisting Agudath Israel in itscommunity services work “withoutwhose hard work,” he said, “the gather-ing would not have happened.” v

Jewish Community Council OfMarine Park To Host InauguralLegislative Breakfast, October 25

The Jewish Community Council ofMarine Park, under the executive leader-ship of Jeff Leb and Shea Rubenstein willbe hosting their Inaugural LegislativeBreakfast on Sunday, October 25, at 9:00a.m., at the Kingsway Jewish Center,located at 2810 Nostrand Avenue inBrooklyn. The legislative breakfast is anopportunity for the community to shareits vision for our city’s and state’s futurewith those assembled at the breakfast.

The rabbinic leadership of MarinePark will be participating in the programand will be featuring Rabbi BaruchPesach Mendelsohn, rav of KehilahMarine Park who will deliver the invoca-tion and divrei berachah. Rabbi ChaimHalberstam, rav of Sha’arei Zion ofFlatbush will be receiving the RabbinicalLeadership Award.

Prominent officials that will be partic-ipating include Deputy Mayor Ed Skyler;Congressman Anthony Weiner; IsraelConsul General in NY Asaf Shariv; ViceMayor of Jerusalem Yitzchak Pindrus;State Senators Marty Golden and CarlKruger; Assemblyman Alan Maisel;Councilman Lew Fidler; DeputyInspector Frank Cangiarella of the 63rdPrecinct. David G. Greenfield, Directorand Counsel, TEACH NYS will serve asMaster of Ceremonies. CommunityAppreciation Awards will be bestowed

upon the breakfast’s gracious corporatesponsors MediStar, under the leadershipof Sam Greenfield, and All Care—a HomeHealth Service under the leadership ofBen Newman. The breakfast is beingcoordinated by The Friedlander Group.

The Jewish Community Council ofMarine Park (JCCMP) was established toorganize the Jewish community and uti-lize its resources for the collectiveempowerment of its Jewish residents inorder to promote the vibrancy and over-all welfare of the Marine Park communi-ty. The council’s goal is to unify commu-nity based institutions in order to betteraddress the needs of the neighborhood,and to speak with one voice to local elect-ed officials. Their goal is to provide awide range of services to improve thelives of the residents of the greaterMarine Park community. Through itsinterested citizens, organizations, andagencies, the council works togethereffectively to determine community serv-ice needs in the Marine Park area andadvocate for them. JCCMP is committedto address problems that detract from ahigher quality of life for its community.However, they cannot accomplish theirobjectives alone. Partnering with govern-ment is a key ingredient to enhancing thequality of life of vibrant and growingcommunities.

Additionally, the council’s mission is tocreate a strong unified voice throughincreased voter registration and establish-ing a community network to promotelocal businesses for the Jewish communi-ty that is a large, growing proportion ofthe Marine Park community, with an esti-mated base of over 1,000 families and

numerous shuls. A large communal pres-ence is expected to turn out for the event.

For more information please contactThe Friedlander Group at 718-436-5555,ext. 202. v

JCC Fall EventsThe JCC of the Greater Five Towns has a

central location in Cedarhurst at 207Grove Avenue and several satellite loca-tions around the community. The centralphone number is 516-569-6733.

Ongoing EventsCards and Friendship Group. Come

alone or bring a friend for a fun after-noon at the JCC. Enjoy meeting new peo-ple, good conversation, and challenginggames. Every Wednesday, 1:00–3:00 p.m.For further information, please call LisaStern (ext. 209).

Come Alive Program at Sons of Israelin Woodmere. This program provides anopportunity for homebound olderadults to participate in social, recre-ational, and intellectual activities.Kosher lunch will be provided and door-to-door transportation is available on alimited basis. For further information,please call Mary Sheffield (ext. 219) orLinda Balch (ext. 211).

Parkinson’s Support Group. The pur-pose of this group is to bring togetherParkinsonians, spouses, and their fami-lies in order to help them better under-stand the nature of the condition, gainconfidence, and join in community activ-ities. The group meets every Tuesday. Forfurther information, please contact CathyByrne (ext. 220).


AROUND THE FIVE TOWNSContinued from Page 41


Remember When. This program is espe-cially designed for memory enhancementand socialization. The cost includes a fullrange of therapeutic activities, morningbeverage, dessert, and a kosher lunch.Round-trip, door-to-door, handicapped-accessible transportation is available on alimited basis. Registration is limited, on afirst-come, first-served basis.

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) group atTemple Hillel in North Woodmere. 1000Rosedale Road. The goal is to offer a safehaven where clients and family membersfeel accepted for who they are. Takesplace on Wednesdays, 10:00 a.m.–1:00p.m. For further information, please con-tact Lisa Barnett (ext. 210) or ChanaPfeifer (ext. 213).

Upcoming EventsApples to Apples. This gourmet kosher

cooking class with Naomi Ross will takeplace on Wednesday, October 21, at 10:00a.m. The fee is $50. For further informa-tion call ext. 222.

Disability Mentoring Day. This NewYork initiative will take place onWednesday, October 21. For more infor-mation, call Gayle Fremed, JCC coordina-tor, at ext. 211.

Thanksgiving Bash for TBI membersand their families. Wednesday,November 18, 7:00–9:00 p.m. For furtherinformation please call ext. 210. v

JCCRP Annual LegislativeBreakfast, November 1

The Jewish Community Council of theRockaway Peninsula will hold its Annual

Legislative Breakfast on Sunday,November 1, at the Congregation KnesethIsrael in Far Rockaway at 9:30 a.m.Queens Borough President HelenMarshall, Councilmember James Sanders,Jr., and Parks and Recreation Depart-ment’s Jill Weber will be acknowledgedfor their contributions to rebuild LanettPlayground, a playground that is muchused by the children of the community.Sergeant Timothy Smith of the NYPD100th Precinct will also be recognized forhis sacrifices in the line of duty.

Reservations for the breakfast and adsfor the journal can easily be made by vis-iting www.jccrp.org/breakfast or contact-ing Harvey Gordon at [email protected] at 718-327-7755, ext 11.

The JCCRP is a beneficiary agency ofUJA-Federation of NY and a proud affiliateof the Metropolitan Council on JewishPoverty. It works to help the poor andneedy of the community. v

RZA Leadership ConferenceShabbaton, November 13-14

The Religious Zionists of America hasannounced a historic and inspirationalweekend of thought and action—itsLeadership Conference Shabbaton inNYC. The assemblage will take place overShabbos Parashas Chayei Sarah, Nov-ember 13–14. Tefillos and seudos will beheld at the Fifth Avenue Synagogue;guests will lodge at the San Carlos Hotel.

The theme for the weekend will be“American Jewry & Israel at a Crossroads.”Many pertinent topics will be discussedincluding: the Peace Process, Iran, the riseof anti-Semitism, the conversion crisis,and more. Prominent speakers will

include: Malcolm Hoenlein, RabbiHershel Schachter, Minister MKHershkovitz, Hank Sheinkopf, Rabbi TzviHersh Weinreb, John Podhoretz, RabbiPesach Lerner, and Solly Sacks.

Space is limited at the hotel and pro-gram venues. Interested parties are urgedto register for this historic Shabbos bycalling the RZA office at 212-465-9234.

For more than 100 years, the ReligiousZionists of America have been in the fore-front of every component of world Jewry, inthe unique perspective of ReligiousZionism to every social, political, and cul-tural challenge to Israel and the Jewishpeople. Its motto: “The Land of Israel, forthe People of Israel, According to the Torahof Israel” will come to life at this momen-tous weekend featuring the leaders andactivists of American and Israeli Jewry. v

Local Residents To Be Honored AtAnnual AMIT Dinner, November 8

Prominent Cedarhurst residents RabbiArnold B. and Zipporah Marans will behonored at the 2009 AMIT AnnualDinner, scheduled for Sunday, November8, at 5:00 p.m., at the Grand Hyatt NewYork in New York City. Hundreds of mem-bers, friends, and supporters of AMITfrom throughout the tri-state area areexpected to attend. All proceeds will ben-efit AMIT’s network of schools and pro-grams throughout Israel, which in recentyears has grown to encompass more than20,000 students from kindergartenthrough junior college.

Honorees also include Hattie andArthur Dubroff of West Orange, NewYork, and William and RonnieSlochowsky of New York City.

The Annual Dinner is being chaired byIna and David Tropper of Riverdale. Theco-chairs are Marion Crespi of Lawrence;Adrianne and Avi Shapira of New YorkCity; and Robyn and Bruce Shoulson ofWest Orange.

Rabbi Arnold B. Marans is the spiritualleader of the Sephardic Temple inCedarhurst. He and Zipporah have servedthe Balkan Sephardic community forover 56 years, first in the New Lots sec-tion of Brooklyn and now in Cedarhurstthese past 48 years. Together they havebeen involved in the many activities ofthe Ladino speaking Sephardic communi-ty: The Sephardic Home for the Aged onCropsy Avenue in Brooklyn, Americanand World Sephardi Federations,



Rabbi Arnold and Mrs. Zipporah Marans.

Sephardic Educational Center in the oldcity of Jerusalem and the famous MisgavLadach Hospital in Jerusalem, of whichRabbi Marans was president of theAmerican Friends.

Zipporah became involved with AMIT50 years ago, following in the footsteps ofher mother, Libby Mann, who was anardent member of Mizrachi Women.Zipporah was a founding member of theFive Towns Sabra Chapter and has coordi-nated the Sabra Book Circle and theGenerations-in-Israel Campaign for manyyears. On the national level, she hasserved on the editorial board of AMITMagazine and as co-chair of the Mother-in-Israel Campaign before becoming anational vice president of AMIT. She cur-rently serves as a member of the board ofdirectors. A highlight of Zipporah’s AMITinvolvement was organizing theSephardic Temple AMIT Chapter.

The Marans are especially devoted toAMIT Frisch Beit Hayeled in Jerusalemand played a major role in the establish-ment of its Benveniste Medical Center.This clinic, which will cover all aspects ofchild care, is already under constructionand will soon be functioning. In addition,the Marans were instrumental in helpingto establish, through a bequest, the JackFink playground in memory of RabbiMaran’s cousin, a Holocaust survivor. Thisplayground at Beit Hayeled has given thechildren a peaceful, modern setting forplay and exercise.

Rabbi Marans and Zipporah have fivemarried children, one of whom lives inJerusalem, and are blessed with manygrandchildren and great-grandchildren.

For further information and reserva-

tions for the AMIT Annual Dinner, pleasecall AMIT at 212-477-4725.

AMIT educates and cares for Israel’syouth, including the most vulnerable.More than three quarters of AMIT studentscope with educational, psychological, eco-nomic, and/or social risk factors. AMITapproaches each child as an individual,maximizing his or her potential, andenabling its students to become vital, pro-ductive members of Israeli society. TheAMIT schools promote religious tolerance,service to the state and the recognitionthat every child is blessed with unique tal-ents and abilities. Founded in 1925, AMIToperates more than 75 schools, youth vil-lages, surrogate family residences andother programs, constituting Israel’s onlygovernment-recognized network of reli-gious Jewish education incorporating aca-demic and technological studies. v

A Mutual Outpouring Of SupportBy Yonasan KleinFor some parents, it may have been

their first Simchas Beis Hashoevah orHachnasas Sefer Torah, but it certainlywon’t be their last.

While combining two simchas is rare,Acheinu weaved both into a formidableblend over Chol Hamoed Sukkos in KiryatSefer during a riveting seven hours ofnon-stop simcha, which began with theTorah parade and concluded with anunforgettable and rousing Simchas BeisHashoevah at Yeshivas Acheinu L’tzeirim.

The sefer Torah was dedicated by Mr.Shimon Courriel of France, in blessedmemory of his wife. The processionbegan at the home of Kiryat Sefer’s marad’asra, HaRav Hagaon Meir Kessler and

was accompanied by almost two hours ofspirited dancing and unsurpassed joy.Every footstep, instead of being tiring,provided more chizuk to parents whoexerted themselves to attend.

Ofer Cohen, whose son Adir is one ofthe yeshiva’s 65 bachurim, came fromKiryat Malachi, one of Eretz Yisrael’ssmaller, peripheral towns served by thegrowing yeshiva which opened two yearsago. “We were deeply moved but alsohappy and excited by this beautiful eventthat brought me to tears,” said Mr. Cohen.

His enthusiasm was matched by KiryatSefer residents. “I can tell you that at leasthalf of Kiryat Sefer attended,” says HaRavMichael Berlin, the rosh yeshiva. “It wasimportant for the city to see our yeshivaand it was important for the students to

see how the city turned out to supportthem. This really strengthened theirYiddishkeit.”

Throughout Chol Hamoed, Rav Berlinreceived 15 calls or messages from parentsjust as excited as the Cohens. “Parentscalled and said they never understoodwhat a Simchas Beis Hashoevah could beuntil they experienced ours.”

Acheinu’s Yeshiva L’tzeirim, whichopened under the direction of HaRavHaGaon Aharon Leib Shteinman, shlita,primarily serves boys graduating fromchinuch atzmai kiruv schools or Shas’sMaayan HaChinuch Hatorani system andprovides critical support for talmidimmaking the challenging transition to


At Acheinu’s Hachnasas Sefer Torah/Simchas Beis Ha’shoeivah in Kiryat Sefer.


yeshiva ketanah. The yeshiva l’tzeirimassigns an avreich to each bochur whoprovides chizuk for one hour each night.

The success is apparent. Speaking toparents at the Simchas Beis Hashoevah,HaRav Hagaon Shlomo Zalman Ullman,shlita, rav of Bnei Brak’s KehillasMishkenos Yaakov took the opportunityto thank the parents for enrolling theirchildren, and at the same time, asked thestudents to express hakaras hatov to theirparents for having enrolled them.

“If the streets today can be comparedto the mabul, then this yeshiva is like theteivas Noach,” said HaRav Ullman. v

U.S. Senator Robert Menendez ToSpeak At Emunah Benefit Dinner,November 14

A staunch and outspoken defender ofIsrael, Senator Robert Menendez, (D–NJ)will address the guests at the upcomingEmunah Benefit Dinner on November 14at The Marriot at the Brooklyn Bridge. Hisappearance at this event in support ofIsrael’s citizens aided by Emunah, is ofparticular significance during the currentprecarious political climate. Israel is find-ing itself fighting an uphill battle garner-ing the vocal support of U.S. politicianswho are unafraid to express their outspo-ken allegiance to the Jewish State and itsright to defend itself.

Since Israel’s birth, Emunah of Americahas distinguished itself as a leader in pro-viding critical support and excellent careto the people of Israel. At the benefit din-ner on November 14, friends and support-

ers of Emunah will gather to celebratethe accomplishments of the EmunahOrganization, which this year includedthe triumph of winning the prestigiousJerusalem Education Prize.

While Emunah continues to rescueabused and neglected children in theirfive children’s residential homes, educatethousands more through its award-win-ning educational network, and provideongoing social services to families in cri-sis and to the elderly, the challenge of car-ing for Israel’s most vulnerable citizenskeeps growing. According to Mindy Stein,Emunah’s national president, “The realityfacing Israel today is that the sharp rise inthe cost of living has had a devastatingeffect on social service programs. This,coupled with the devalued U.S. dollar, isthreatening Emunah’s ability to save livesin Israel. In addition, Israel’s volatile secu-rity situation remains a deep concern.”

The Emunah benefit dinner this yearpays tribute to influential and dynamicpeople who have championed the causeof Emunah at a time when their help wasmore crucial than ever. Heddy and MendyKlein from Lawrence are the evening’sGuests of Honor. Heddy Klein servedlaudably as the immediate past nationalpresident of Emunah of America, helpingto steer the organization toward expand-ing Emunah’s lifesaving services to thecitizens in Israel. Emunah will awardNorbert Strauss, from Teaneck, NJ, with ATribute in Recognition of HolocaustVictims and Survivors for his service andwork in ‘keeping the memory alive.’ Twooutstanding couples who have consis-tently taken concrete action to bringrelief and life-changing assistance to

Israel’s children will be recognized at thedinner; Arlene and Moshe Fox fromBrooklyn will receive the Keter Shem TovAward, and Diane and Dr. Ronald Strobelfrom Englewood, N.J. will be presentedwith the Bonei Tzion Award.

The proceeds of the Emunah BenefitDinner will help maintain Emunah’s vastsocial service and educational networkthroughout Israel. Emunah nurturesabandoned infants, provides thousands ofchildren with safe and secure day care andafterschool programs, cares for teens “atrisk,” counsels families in crisis, andserves Israel’s senior citizens. Emunah’saward-winning educational programs pre-pare Israeli youth for a successful future.

The evening will be chaired by BonnieEizikovitz and Fran Hirmes. For moreinformation and reservations, please call

Emunah at 212-564-9045 ext. 305 or visitwww.emunah.org. v

Shiur In Rashi And Ramban OnSefer Bereishis

Rabbi Boruch Fogel, rosh beis midrash ofthe new post-Israel beis midrash program atMesivta Ateres Yaakov, is giving a weekly 45-minute shiur on Sefer Bereishis. “In the firstfew weeks I plan to focus on the first perekof Sefer Bereishis. Everyone is very familiarwith the basic themes. In the shiur, by con-trasting Rashi and the Ramban’s commen-taries, we gain deeper insight into theunderlying concepts such as emunah, s’charv’onesh, and the place of man in creation.”

Each week’s shiur is a self-contained unitand is open to men in the community. Theshiur takes place Sundays at 12:00 p.m. inthe beis midrash at 1170A William Street inHewlett. For past shiurim visit the mesivta’swebsite, www.AteresYaakov.com. v

Shabbaton Spirit Fills GorgeousGlen Cove Mansion

The second annual Shalhevet HighSchool Shabbaton took place this pastShabbos, October 16–17, at the spectacularGlen Cove Mansion in northern LongIsland. With total participation of the 9th-and 10th-graders who make up the studentbody of Shalhevet, 36 students, as well as aminyan of administrators and their familymembers, arrived on Friday morning for afun-filled, inspirational weekend.

The girls enjoyed the magnificent facili-ties including the swimming pool, fitnesscenter, and other sports and recreationalareas on Friday, then came dressed for



U.S. Senator Robert Menendez.



Convection ovens, a tool once onlyused in professional kitchens, continueto gain popularity with home cooks. Theallure of these ovens is hard to ignore:faster cooking times, more evenly cookedfood, and improved energy efficiency.However, for anyone new to cookingwith convection ovens, there are adjust-ments that need to be made to time ortemperature, and sometimes both, to getthe results you’re after. If you’re trying tofigure out how to cook correctly withyour convection oven, here is some help-ful advice.

A conventional oven uses radiant heatthat emanates from the top and/or bot-tom surfaces. The result is usually anoven with hot and cold spots. Whatmakes a convection oven stand apart isthe internal fan that circulates hot air,creating an evenly heated environmentfor the food. The most obvious advantageis that all your meat, produce, and bakedgoods will cook faster and brown moreevenly.

In order to get the correct results whenusing convection instead of conventionalovens, you must either lower the oven’stemperature by about 25 degrees or short-en the cooking time by roughly a quarter.For cookies, reduce the cooking time by

10 to 15 percent, for large roasts reduce byup to 30 percent. Carefully monitor yourfirst few attempts at cooking in a convec-tion oven and you will quickly get a senseof how your convection oven cooks andwhat further adjustments should bemade.

If the air cannot circulate over andaround the food, your convection ovenwill be ineffective. Use shallow roastingpans and rimless cookie sheets when pos-sible because the lower sides allow hotair to flow more freely. Try to keep a two-inch clearance on all sides. Variables suchas initial oven temperature, quantity ofthe food, desired level of doneness, andoven model will all affect cooking time.

When roasting meat and poultry in aconvection oven, fat is rendered quickly,sealing in precious juices and leaving acrispy, uniformly brown skin withoutconstant shifting and basting. With fruitsand vegetables, the natural sugars start tocaramelize more quickly, leaving centersthat are creamy and moist, concentratedflavors, and edges that are crisp and gold-en.

During baking, butter or margarinereleases steam almost immediately, mak-ing the dough rise more. That means yourbaked goods will all be flakier, lighter,

and higher. For cookies, take advantage ofall available shelf space by baking withseveral trays at once. The fan dispersesheat throughout so you won’t have torotate them as often.

No matter which cooking method youare using, with a little adjustment to thetemperature or cooking time, you’ll enjoythose home-cooked dishes in no time.

Chicken LollipopsIngredients:

12 chicken drumettes or drumsticks,with skin on

1+ tsp. kosher salt, to tastefreshly ground black pepper3 slices sandwich sourdough bread,

crusts trimmed, torn into pieces, or 11⁄2cups dry bread crumbs

1 clove garlic, roughly chopped1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

leaves2 scallions, green and white part,

chopped2 Tbsp. unsalted butter substitute,

melted1/3 cup honey mustardHot sauce, optional

Directions:Preheat the oven to 450°F or a convec-

tion oven to 425°F.Stand drumettes or drumsticks on

their wide end and, holding the narrowbone at the top, use a paring knife topush and scrape the skin and meat down-ward to expose the bone and make aplump “lollipop” of chicken at the bot-tom. Season generously with salt andpepper and set aside.

Pulse the bread in a food processor tomake coarse bread crumbs, (or place dry

breadcrumbs in food processor). Add thegarlic, parsley, scallions, 1 teaspoon salt,pepper to taste, and continue to pulseuntil finely chopped but not a paste.Transfer the mixture to a shallow bowland toss with melted butter substitute.

Brush each drumette or drumstickwith some honey mustard. Then pressand roll each one in the bread crumbs tocoat. Arrange the drumettes (standing upif you can) on a rack set over a bakingsheet. Roast until chicken is cooked andthe bread crumbs are golden brown andcrisp, 20 to 25 minutes. Serve drumetteshot or at room temperature with hotsauce, if desired.

Eating quality, delicious meals is easy when allthe work is done for you. Hire a personal chef toprepare your dinners, Shabbos meals, or smallparties. For more information, contact Take HomeChef personal chef services by calling 516-596-8865, writing to [email protected], orvisiting www.TakeHomeChef.net.

A Guide To Using Convection Ovens

Shabbos to the pre-Shabbos ruach sessionwith Shabbaton musical guest, Rabbi Ari

Boiangiu. The hotel provided beautiful con-ference rooms, which were temporarilytransformed by Rabbi Zev Meir Friedmaninto Beit Knesset Shalhevet and by ScottFagin of Traditions and his mashgiach into

a delicious kosher catering facility.The weekend featured shiurim on the

parashah by Rabbi Friedman, Rabbi Eliach,and Morah Feder; student workshops onself-image by Mrs. Boiangiu, lashon ha’raby Mrs. Elsant, and emunah by RabbiSchwartz; as well as discussion groups androle playing with Morah Schwartz andMorah Schulman. The divrei Torah weredelivered by Shalhevet students DevoraEisenberg, Batsheva Feldman, ShainaGursky, Julie Harush, Gavriella Pearl,Zahava Schwartz, and Kayla Zeitz.

The food was great, the ruach was inspir-ing, and, most importantly, the achdusamong the girls was amazing. Mr. ChaimBoiangiu, Mrs. B.’s husband, who has beengoing to Shabbatonim for the past 22 yearswas extremely impressed. “The girls havesuch beautiful middos and are so nice toeach other. The level of ruchnius andachdus was extraordinary,” he said. “I can’twait for next year’s Shabbaton.” Ninth-grad-er Dani Elman seemed to concur when shesaid, “This was the best Shabbaton I’ve everbeen on!” One thing the girls could notagree on was the best part of Shabbaton . .. the music, the swimming, the sessions, the

bonding with teachers, the humorous yetinspiring workshops, the dancing, thezemiros, the Shabbos menuchah withfriends, the melaveh malkah, and more.

During seudah shelishis, a powerfulpresentation by Rabbi Eliach recalling hisrecent army service in Israel was fol-lowed by heartfelt singing which usheredout the Shabbos. Ari Boiangiu led the girlsin a moving havdalah ceremony, andthen later energized the girls with a con-cert at the final event of the Shabbaton, amagnificent melaveh malkah. The dinner,the music, and the lively dancing endedat 11:00 p.m., but the warmth and enthusi-asm of the Shalhevet Shabbaton will longremain with the students and staff.

Now that Shabbaton is over, Shalhevetis preparing to welcome prospective stu-dents and parents at its Open House whichwill take place on Sunday, November 15,10:30 a.m. For more information, [email protected]. v

Ohel Musical Inspiration, November 2

The Jewish concert world is abuzz withthe first-of-its kind interwoven live musi-cal, live acting, and film extravaganza thatis Ohel’s Fifth Annual Benefit Concert atthe Alice Tully Hall on November 2.

The concert features an outstandinglineup of talented performers, includingLipa Shmeltzer, Abie Rotenberg, and OhadMoscowitz and film shot on location inIsrael and the U.S. These stars will be high-lighting many of their favorite melodies,as well as new and original compositions.Attendees can also expect special musicalsurprises and cameo appearances.

By purchasing your ticket today to theOhel and Americare Fifth Annual BenefitConcert, you will be guaranteed a seat ata groundbreaking original experiencethat will combine the outstanding con-cert you have come to expect every yearfrom Ohel with an original film and fullyintegrated performance.

The evening is structured around atimeless story brought to life on stageand screen, with each song performed bythe singers carefully selected to mirroreach film segment’s specific theme. Thisevent is an entity so fresh that its formatdefies a standard label. You’ll have toexperience it for yourself!

The concert is a Dove/Kol RomMultimedia production. Participation inthis year’s concert is a celebration of Ohel’sfour decades of service to the Jewish com-munity. Proceeds of the concert will bene-fit the thousands of children and familiesserved every day by Ohel, Bais Ezra, and theLifetime Care Foundation. Whether it is achild with developmental disabilities, anadult with mental illness, an abused or neg-lected child, or an older adult, all find need-ed services at Ohel’s myriad locations. Atevery age and stage of life, Ohel is there forour community.

Special sponsorships are available andbenefits include VIP seating, admissionto the pre-concert VIP reception, andname and company recognition on theconcert website and in print and promo-tional materials. Sponsorship opportuni-ties are available by calling the Oheldevelopment office at 888-311-OHEL. Forcredit card orders and more information,call 866-OHEL-TIX or 866-643-5849. Youalso can purchase tickets online by visit-ing www.ohelfamily.org/concert. v



At the Glen Cove Mansion Shabbaton.


Koidenover Rebbe To Visit The FiveTowns, October 29

The Koidenover Rebbe, shlita, is sched-uled to visit the Five Towns fromThursday, October 29 to Tuesday,November 3. The Rebbe’s past trips to ourcommunity have left a long-lastingimpression replete with chizuk and inspi-ration. A captivating speaker who con-veys a message relevant to our genera-tion, the Rebbe is much sought after forhis wise counsel and berachos. The Rebbehas successfully revived a nearly 200-year-old chassidus, which now consists of twobatei midrash and a yeshiva, in additionto a multitude of chesed projects. Uniqueis the Rebbe’s beis midrash on Tel Aviv’sDizengoff Square, which serves as a kiruvcenter including a kollel and weeklyShabbos meals.

There will be multiple opportunitiesto see the Rebbe during his stay in theFive Towns. The Rebbe will be joiningRabbi Eytan Feiner for an inspirationalmishmar kumsitz on Thursday night,October 29 at Rabbi Feiner’s home (1133Sage Street in Far Rockaway). Friday nightthe Rebbe will be davening at ChofetzChaim Torah Center, 7 Derby Avenue inCedarhurst at 5:45 p.m. The tish will beginat 9:00 p.m. at the home of the Rebbe’sgracious hosts, Mr. and Mrs. Dov Perkal,858 Fiske Street in Woodmere. Shabbosmorning davening will be at 9:00 a.m. atCongregation Bais Medrash HaRav (RavNayman’s shul), 3 Beechwood Drive inLawrence. A kiddush will follow daven-ing. Minchah and shalosh seudos will be

at 4:30 p.m. at Aish Kodesh in Woodmere.It is sure to be an uplifting and unforget-table Shabbos.

The Rebbe will be available for privateconsultations and berachos at the WhiteShul, Thursday October 29, 7:00–9:30 p.m.He will also be available Sunday,November 1 beginning at 7:00 p.m. at thehome of Mr. and Mrs. Chaim Freud, 886Oxford Road in Woodmere. For addition-al times or information about the Rebbe’svisit or to schedule an appointment tomeet with the Rebbe please contactChaim Freud at 516-851-8855 or [email protected]. AmericanFriends of Koidenov, Inc. would like totake this opportunity to welcome theRebbe, a member of its board and Nasi ofMosdos Koidenov B’Eretz haKodesh, toAmerica. v

RIETS Annual Dinner, October 27In celebration of Torah excellence,

Yeshiva University’s Rabbi Isaac ElchananTheological Seminary will honor dedicat-ed leaders and educators of the Jewishcommunity at its Annual Dinner ofTribute on October 27 at the Grand Hyattin New York City.

Honorees include Dr. William and Mrs.Debbie Schwartz, Guests of Honor; Dr.Alvin I. Schiff, Lifetime Achievement inJewish Education; and Rabbi YaakovNeuburger, Rabbinic Leadership Award.The dinner will also include the formalinvestiture of Rabbi Kenneth Brander, theDavid Mitzner Dean of YU’s Center for theJewish Future (CJF). RIETS will also payrecognition to members of its 50th, 40th,




Above, (L–R): Rabbi Tzvi Flaum of the White Shul with the Koidenover Rebbe.Below, Rav Yakov Nayman with the Rebbe. Photos by Sender Schwartz/UMI.

and 25th anniversary classes (1959, 1969,and 1984).

A YU graduate and member of theRIETS Board of Trustees, Dr. Schwartz isthe founding president of the RocklandCounty Jewish Federation; a former vicepresident of the Adolph Schreiber

Hebrew Academy of Rockland; a formermember of the board of the CommunitySynagogue of Monsey; and a former cam-paign chairman of the State of IsraelBonds Doctors Division for RocklandCounty. Debbie serves as a vice presidentof the Yeshiva University Women’sOrganization and is a former member of

the Board of Directors of Shaare Zedek.An internationally recognized authori-

ty on education, Dr. Schiff, distinguishedprofessor of education emeritus at YU’sAzrieli Graduate School of JewishEducation and Administration, has beena visiting professor at prestigious univer-sities around the world. In 2005 he wasawarded the Israel President’s Prize forhis contribution to the enhancement ofJewish life, for inspirational educationalleadership, influential Hebraic scholar-ship, prolific research and writing, andfor the founding of important institu-tions of Jewish life.

Rabbi Neuburger, spiritual leader ofCongregation Beit Avraham inBergenfield, N.J., serves as rosh yeshiva atthe Yeshiva Program/Mazer School of

Talmudic Studies, an undergraduateschool for Talmudic studies at YU. AToronto native, Rabbi Neuburger receivedsemichah from RIETS in 1979.

Founded in 1896, RIETS is the leadingcenter for education and ordination ofOrthodox rabbis in North America. Tolearn more about the RIETS AnnualDinner of Tribute, make a reservation, orto participate in the Scroll of Honor call212-960-0852 or e-mail [email protected]. v

Shalom Singles Semi-Monthly Roundtable

Shalom Singles is designed for singlesages 40 and over, to meet the needs ofthis previously unrecognized and under-served group within the local area. On

October 13, they held their first in a seriesof roundtables, to be held on the secondand fourth Tuesdays of each month,beginning at 8:00 p.m. The roundtablesare conducted in a support group interac-tive setting at Congregation Beth Sholom(390 Broadway in Lawrence) and are opento all. Admission is free (although volun-tary tax-deductible contributions of anysize are welcome, with all proceeds beingexclusively dedicated to Shalom Singles).Memberships in Beth Sholom or ShalomSingles are not required, nor are reserva-tions. Each session is followed by adessert collation.

The roundtables are facilitated by apanel of psychologists, social workers,therapists, and counselors who have vol-unteered their time and expertise. Topics


Alvin Schiff

David Mitzner

William and Debbie Schwartz Rabbi Kenneth Brander


to be covered are those of interest toadult Jewish singles aged 40 and above,such as living as a single in a family-basedcommunity, dating, the social world ofadult Jewish singles, dealing withstepchildren and potential stepchildren,developing a blended family, relation-ships with former spouses and former in-laws, networking, financial planning,dealing with children of divorced cou-ples, dealing with aging parents, develop-ing social skills, interacting with singleswith different levels of observance, andthe singles scene.

The inaugural session was moderatedby Cyndi Stein of Woodmere. Cyndi deliv-ered a tour de force on issues of commu-nications skills and developing personaland interpersonal strengths. Her highlyeffective proactive style encouraged thecrowd of over 50 to fully participate andto meet and communicate with the otherfolks in attendance. There was great funand all in attendance learned a great dealabout themselves as well as the otherattendees. Cyndi brought along a widearray of props including a sandbox, yo-yos, baseball caps, dark glasses, individualquestionnaires, and self assessments, aswell as specially designed charts. Theseprops and Cyndi’s energy and great talentproved to be an exciting catalyst formany group discussions, all used withgreat effect.

While it seems like a challenge forthe next session to be quite as out-standing, Shoshana Averbach hasstepped up to take it on. On October 27,Shoshana, a well-known social worker,plans a participatory, proactive, andinteractive format with all participants

being actively involved. Shoshana’sprincipal topic will be “Spirituality inRelationships.” As before, it is expectedthat discussion beginning with thistopic will open further discussions thatevening on further related matters ofinterest to adult singles.

On November 10, the Shalom SinglesRoundtable will be moderated by notedlocal psychologist Zeldie Stein (no rela-tionship to Cyndi), whose topic will be“Divorce is Not a Disease.”

Shalom Singles is also planning a num-ber of other events in the very nearfuture. These include a Carlebach kumsitzevening (October 25), a wine-tastingevening, networking opportunities, acomedy night, a Shabbaton (weekend ofDecember 25), and a continuation ofShalom Singles’ occasional SaturdayNight at the Movies.

For further information, to volunteer asa member of the panel of moderators, tosuggest a new topic, or to be included onShalom Singles’ mailing list, please [email protected]. Shalom Singlesevents and programs are also featured inthe “Community” tab of the Beth Sholomwebsite at www.bethsholom.usa. v

Transcending Stuttering: The Inside Story, November 8

Do you know someone who stutters?Although stuttering affects 1 in 100 adults,it is often misunderstood. This issue cancreate challenges in understanding andcommunication for people who stutter,as well as their families.

Uri Schneider and Phil Schneider willpresent their documentary, TranscendingStuttering, which follows the lives of

seven people who stutter, as they growfrom childhood into adulthood. Thisinspirational film aired on PBS and hasbeen viewed around the world. It shedslight on the inner experience of peoplewho stutter.

The November 8 screening will be held7:00–9:00 p.m. in Lawrence. The secondscreening is scheduled for Sunday,November 22, 7:00–9:00 p.m. inRiverdale. Both events are open to teensand adults who stutter, and their families.To RSVP or for more details, e-mail [email protected].

Uri Schneider, MA CCC-SLP and PhilSchneider, EdD CCC-SLP are partners inSchneider Speech Pathology, specializingin stuttering, voice, learning, and publicspeaking. They have offices in Lawrence,Kew Gardens Hills, and Riverdale. v

November Events At Chabad OfThe Five Towns

Chabad of the Five Towns is located at74 Maple Avenue in Cedarhurst. To learnmore or to register for an event, call 516-295-2478 or visit www.chabad5towns.com.

CTeens Kick Off. Girls—November 1,Boys—November 8, 7:30 p.m. CTeens isgeared for Jewish students ages 13-15 andharnesses the incredible potential ofteenagers with awesome trips and pro-grams. For more information, please callRabbi Meir at ext. 19.

Bagel Babies Begins. November 2,9:30–10:30 a.m. A marvelous mommyand me program for children ages 12-36months. Moms and children have funwith Judaism through group play andsongs in a warm and wonderful envi-ronment. Choose the day that works

best for you Monday–Thursday. Pre-reg-istration a must.

Smile on Seniors Begins. November 3,11:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m. All seniors are wel-come to join this special program meet-ing once a week and offering exercise,crafts, music, and discussions. A lightbrunch will be served.

Children’s Rally for Chof Cheshvan.November 3, 6:15–7:00 p.m. Celebratingthe birthday of the Rebbe Rashab. R.S.V.P.appreciated.

Women’s Evening Class with Mrs.Chaya Franklin. November 3, 8:30 p.m.Explore The Creation in a Kabbalisticview.

JLI- Soul Quest with Rabbi Wolowik.November 4, 8:15–9:30 p.m. A six weekadult education course that explores thejourney through life, death, and beyond.Fee: $99 per person (textbook included).Pre–registration required. To learn more,visit www.chabad5towns/jli.

Farbrengen for Men. November 7, aftermorning services. Celebrating the birth-day of the Rebbe Rashab.

Mother Daughter Melaveh Malkah forgirls in grades K-3. November 7, 8:00p.m. Share a special evening with yourdaughter in an exciting atmosphere.Fun games, special projects, and a deli-cious pizza dinner are planned. Fee: $12per person or $36 max per family.R.S.V.P. appreciated.

Friendship Circle–Sunday Circle.November 15, 1:00–3:00 p.m. Sunday pro-gram for special needs children. For moreinformation, please call Batsheva at ext. 13or e-mail [email protected].



Women’s Circle: Yoga Dance. November16, 8:15 p.m. An uplifting experience formind, body, and soul. You will leave feel-ing both exhilarated and relaxed.Coordination not required. Will takeplace at the home of Mrs. NataliaThalheim, 354 Island Avenue inWoodmere.

Farbrengen for Men: Rosh ChodeshKislev. November 17, 8:15 p.m. Celebratingthe Lubavitcher Rebbe, ob’m and hismiraculous recovery from the 1977 heartattack.

Birthday Shabbos for children celebrat-ing their Jewish birthday in the Hebrewmonth of Kislev. November 21, aftermorning services. Family and friends joinin celebrating the special day with birth-day cake and activities.

Father–Son Melavah Malkah for boysin grades K-3. November 21, 8:00 p.m.Share a special evening with your son inan exciting atmosphere. Fun games, spe-cial projects, and a delicious pizza dinnerare planned. Fee: $12 per person or $36max per family. R.S.V.P. appreciated

Friendship Circle Father and ChildBowl-Along. November 22, 6:30 p.m.Please call Batsheva for more informa-tion and to register. Pre registration isrequired.

Friendship Circle–Sunday Circle,November 29, 1:00–3:00 p.m. Sunday pro-gram for our special needs children.

Farbrengen for men: the 14th of Kislev.November 30, 8:15 p.m. In honor of thewedding anniversary of the LubavitcherRebbe, ob’m. v

Li’refuah SheleimahCongregation Beth Shalom has issued

a Tehillim request for Rav Raphael benChaya Miriam Esther Yutla, who has beenadmitted into the ICU. v

State And Local Officials Join HikindIn Denouncing American Express’sInvolvement With NotoriousHolocaust-Denier David Irving

NYS Assemblyman Dov Hikind ofBrooklyn, a child of Holocaust survivors,is leading the charge among his col-leagues to force American Express torescind the merchant agreement ofnotorious Holocaust denier DavidIrving, who has commenced a UnitedStates book tour to promote his newhate-filled tome entitled, Banged Up:Survival as a Political Prisoner in 21stCentury Europe. “The notion that a well-regarded financial entity like AmericanExpress conducts business with some-one of Irving’s ilk is absolutely astound-ing to me,” remarked Hikind.

To express their outrage, Hikind anda dozen elected officials, includingSenate Democratic Conference LeaderJohn L. Sampson, wrote to AMEXChairman and CEO Kenneth I. Chenaultsaying, “By processing charges for tick-ets to Mr. Irving’s United States, hate-filled speaking tour, as well as for hispublications, your company is sanction-ing his repugnant message.”

The letter continues, “According toyour own merchant reference guide,‘American Express has built a brand thatis synonymous with trust, integrity, secu-rity, quality, and customer service. Wework diligently to uphold our reputation

and restrict merchants from engaging inactivities that would harm our businessor brand.’ Surely, Mr. Irving’s actions con-stitute a breach of the merchant agree-ment. My undersigned colleagues and Istrongly urge you to rescind Mr. Irving’smerchant agreement.”

Previously, Irving has claimed thatpeople pretend to be Holocaust sur-vivors because, “there’s money involvedand they can get a good compensationcash payment out of it.” Some of hisother rabid and factually perverse com-ments include, “It [the Holocaust] issomething like a religion . . . TheIntellectual Adventure is that we arereversing this entire trend within thespace of one generation—that in a fewyears time, no one will believe this par-ticular legend anymore . . . Yes, hun-dreds of thousands of people werekilled, but there were no factories ofdeath. All that is a blood libel againstthe German people.”

In response to Irving’s outrageousstatements, Hikind remarked, “It is mysincere hope that American Express willdo the right thing in this regard, andtake swift and decisive action to revokeMr. Irving’s privileges to bring us onestep closer to putting Mr. Irving out ofbusiness.”

The following elected officials lenttheir names to the letter sent to AMEXChairman Chenault: AssemblymembersPeter Abbate, Michael Benjamin, VivianCook, Rory Lancman, Nick Perry;Senators Eric Adams, Carl Kruger, JohnSampson, and Diane Savino;Councilmembers Mathieu Eugene,Michael Nelson, and Kendall Stewart. v

Agudah NewsSecurity Appropriations Bill

Approved By Congress. A recent vote inthe U.S. Senate, on the heels of one lastweek in the House of Representatives,the FY 2010 Homeland SecurityAppropriations bill has been passed byCongress. The bill includes an appropri-ation of $19 million for the NonprofitSecurity Grant Program.

The program provides assistance tononprofit institutions at high risk ofterrorist attack for the enhancement oftheir physical security—through meas-ures like video surveillance equipment,alarmed and reinforced doors and win-dows, security barriers, metal detec-tors, locks, gates, fences, and personnelsecurity training.

A number of national and localJewish groups—acting as a coalitionunder the leadership of the UnitedJewish Communities—worked togetherto advocate for the funding. Jewishinstitutions—including communitycenters, schools, places of worship,charitable organizations, and socialservice agencies—have in the past com-prised a sizable percentage of suchfunds’ recipients.

“Threats—and actual incidents—aimed at Jewish targets in the UnitedStates and around the world,” saidAgudath Israel of America Washingtonoffice director and counsel Rabbi AbbaCohen, “point to the particular vulnera-bility of our community and the need forthese funds to bolster security.” A mem-ber of the coalition, Rabbi Cohen wasactive in promoting the creation of theprogram, and in subsequent appropria-




tions and proposed enhance-ments.

The Agudath Israel represen-tative noted that this year’sappropriation was a particularlyimportant accomplishment, asopponents of the program havebeen successful in steadilyreducing funding over the pastfew years. While the approvedallocation is still less than theoriginal funding, it increases lastyear’s allocation by $4 million.

“Unfortunately, we have seensetbacks in the program’s fund-ing,” Rabbi Cohen noted. “Butwe are hopeful that today’s votesignals a turnabout in the for-tunes of the security fundsappropriation, a return to akeener recognition of theimportance of helping institu-tions protect themselves fromthe tragically ever-present threatof terrorism.”

The Agudah representativecited two factors that, he main-tains, contributed to this year’ssuccess: the number of domes-tic and foreign threats and inci-dents of terror directed at high-risk targets this past year; andthe priority afforded the pro-gram by President Obama. “Thiswas,” explains Rabbi Cohen,“the first time the security fundsappropriation was included in aPresident’s budget request. Thatsays much, and it said much toCongress too.”

Sukkos Travelers’ ReligiousItems Spared Destruction.Observant Jewish air travelersbefore and during the recentSukkos holiday generally hadno problems navigating airportsor boarding planes with their“four species” of plants and fruitused throughout the seven daysof Sukkos. As was widely report-ed, the Department ofHomeland Security (DHS)’sTransportation Safety Admini-stration was informed byAgudath Israel of America’sWashington office a number ofyears ago about the nature anduse of the Jewish ritual items,and was persuaded that theyposed no security concerns.

But what observant travelersfrom Canada to the UnitedStates may not have known wasthe work done by the AgudahD.C. office’s director and counselRabbi Abba Cohen to helpensure that the “four species”they carried were not confiscat-ed as a threat to agriculture andpublic health.

As a result of that work, short-ly before Sukkos began, an offi-cial memorandum was sent—asin each of the past 10 years sinceRabbi Cohen first raised theissue—by DHS’s Customs andBorder Protection agency toU.S.-Canadian border officials,setting forth procedures for han-dling and inspecting the reli-gious items.

The concern is the inadver-


tent spread of the Mediterranean fruit flyand other destructive pests into this coun-try. Canadian regulation is more lenientthan that of the U.S., as the cold climatethere is not hospitable to the insects.

“In the late 1990s, we began to receivenumerous phone calls from observantJews entering the U.S. who were notallowed to retain possession of their“four species,” said Rabbi Cohen. “Sometravelers saw their precious religiousitems destroyed—which, as one mightimagine, deeply disturbed them.”

Rabbi Cohen points out that issues ofhealth and safety were at stake, which theborder officials understandably took veryseriously. But they were often unaware ofthe holiday, he explains, and uninformedas to the appropriate agricultural inspec-tion procedures. Consequently, thoseresponsible for ensuring the safety ofAmerican agriculture and health some-times summarily confiscated and evendestroyed one or more of the holidayspecies.

As a result of the Agudath Israel repre-sentative’s intervention back then, offi-cials are now provided the informationthey need to do their jobs properly anddetermine if a particular plant needs tobe prevented from arriving in the U.S.While inspection can still turn up indica-tions of infestation, with species deniedentry, with better-informed officials, it isnot a common occurrence.

After Agudath Israel raised the issuewith the DHS, steps were taken to betterinform the observant Jewish community

north of the border. Rabbi Saul Emanuel,executive director of the Vaad Ha’ir ofMontreal, worked with Rabbi Cohen andDHS officials and has provided travelerswith information they need to know tosuccessfully bring their religious articlesacross the border.

“Isolated incidents continue,” RabbiCohen notes cautiously, “and need to beaddressed.” But, he adds, both authoritiescharged with airport and aircraft securityand those whose bailiwick is health andsafety alike, have been responsive to ourovertures and suggestions. “Over theyears, we have made much progress onboth fronts.”

One paragraph in the DHS memo wellcommunicates the agency’s sensitivity toobservant Jewish travelers.

“The esrog,” it reads, “is a lemon-likefruit that has special significance duringthe Jewish religious festival of thanks-giving celebrated in the autumn. Thefruit must be handled with extremecare. If damaged, the fruit loses its sig-nificance and no longer has value in thereligious festival of thanksgiving.Therefore, allow the passenger to openthe container, unwrap the esrog, presentit for inspection, rewrap and re-box theesrog in the inspection area.”

Agudath Israel Declares Support forHate Crimes Bill. As the United StatesSenate considers “hate crimes” legisla-tion as part of the Defense Author-ization Act, the provisions will have thesupport of Agudath Israel of America—the first time the national OrthodoxJewish organization has supported suchlegislation.

The hate crimes provision would,

among other things, impose new crimi-nal penalties for causing willful, hate-related bodily injury to members of spec-ified groups. The measure has alreadycleared the House, and enjoys the ObamaAdministration’s support.

Now it enjoys Agudath Israel’s too. Ina letter to the defense bill’s sponsors,the group’s Washington Director andCounsel, Rabbi Abba Cohen, writes thatthe problem of hate crimes is “personaland all-too-familiar” to the Jewish com-munity. He continues, “It is no secretthat Jews have often been, and contin-ue to be, the victims of violence andintimidation.”

“Orthodox Jews, in particular,” the let-ter notes, “because their mode of dressmakes them so identifiable and becausetheir living in clustered communitiesmakes them so visible, are often an easyand preferred target of anti-Semites.”

The bill, which relates specifically tobodily injury, also includes severalchanges to existing law that will make iteasier for the federal government to pros-ecute hate crimes. Limited federal juris-diction and overly restrictive conditionshave tied prosecutors’ hands—so muchso, Rabbi Cohen observes, “that, since theoriginal law’s enactment in 1968, therehave never been more than 10 indict-ments in any one year.”

Rabbi Cohen points out that duringthe 1991 Crown Heights riots, limitationsin the law at the time stymied the feder-al prosecution of Lemrick Nelson, whostabbed Yankel Rosenbaum, a rabbinicalstudent who died of his wounds.Sections of the current bill are directedspecifically at those limitations, and

will make it easier for federal authori-ties to intervene and effectively prose-cute violent hate crimes like Mr.Rosenbaum’s murder.

Agudath Israel has objected to similarproposals in the past in part because ofthe group’s concern that those, like mem-bers of the organization’s constituency,with deep-seated beliefs about what con-stitutes moral behavior, might be cast—or even prosecuted—as criminals fortheir religious beliefs or expressions ofthe same.

The legislation, Rabbi Cohenexplains, goes far in alleviating theseconcerns, directly addressing the issuesof religious belief, expression and asso-ciation in four specifically-targeted pro-visions. Each preserves a religiousadherent’s constitutional right to thefree exercise of religion and makes clearthat the legislation cannot be construedto infringe, prohibit, diminish, or bur-den that right. Of particular importanceis the bill’s inclusion of a provision thatno one can be prosecuted solelybecause he or she maintains a certainreligious belief or identifies with a cer-tain religious denomination.

The Agudath Israel letter, taking noteof those provisions, states: “These provi-sions provide vital reassurance thatmere religious belief, expression orassociation . . . would not give rise to anindependent “hate crime” prosecution. . . [and] that clergy and other religiousfunctionaries will have the ability toexercise their precious constitutionalright to preach and teach denomina-tional doctrine as they see fit—freelyand openly . . .” v



B Y E L Y A K I M H A E T Z N I

Did Barack Obama’s identificationwith the Arab world contribute to thedecision to award him the NobelPrize? At least one thing is certain: ifhis policies towards Israel were lessladen with animosity, he would nothave received the prize. It is theNorway-Obama combination that hasled me to this conclusion.

Norway is the proof that the presenceof Jews is not a necessary condition forthe existence of anti-Semitism. The num-ber of Jews there has never been higherthan 2,000, yet Norway has developed anobsessive “anti-Israelism,” the current syn-onym for the evil anti-Semitism of old.For what reason? What wrong did theJews and Israel do to far off Norway? Whyis it only the “sufferings” of thePalestinians that evoke heartfelt sympa-thy in Norway, with minimal humanitari-an feelings left for the genocide takingplace in Cambodia, Darfur, the Congo, andRwanda? What about the suffering ofother Muslims, non Palestinians, at thehands of their brother Muslims and thetrampling of human rights in the entireArab Middle East? Why do none of theabove much interest them as long as thereare no Israelis—i.e., Jews—involved?

There were no Jews in Spain for 500years and there are very few there today.The Inquisition is gone and the church

has lost its strength. Yet the Spain ofMoratinus and Solana is extremely activewith regard to the Israel-Arab conflict,and its position is invariably anti Israel.Why should this be?

Everyone knows that Socialismsprung from Jewish roots, Karl Marxand others, and that in the earlyCommunist Party Secretariat meetingsone could easily find a minyan forJewish prayers. Yet it only took one gen-eration to eliminate Jews from anypositions of leadership and to prepareto exile them to Siberia. Why is that?Why, of the many languages spoken in

the USSR, were only Hebrew bannedand Yiddish suppressed?

The part that Jews played in the slavetrade was the smallest of all thoseinvolved in it. It is the Arabs that playeda central role—and they still do. Yetthere are Afro Americans in the U.S. whopersist in searching for the Jews’—notthe Arabs’—responsibility for slave trad-ing. There is an ongoing phenomenonof conversion to Islam in the U.S., most-

ly by Afro Americans. Those who con-vert to Islam are seen as consideringChristianity a “white man’s” religion.Islam serves to express their protest atthis supposed fact. So why are they antiJews? After all, Jews marched side byside with them during the battle forBlack civil rights.

It was none other than Barack Obamahimself who mused, during an interviewwith Jeffrey Goldberg, that “One of thefrustrations . . . is the loss of what I con-sider the natural affinity between theAfro-American and Jewish communities,an affinity that was understood in depth

by the Black and Jewish leaders in theearly days of the civil rights movement.There has since been a distancing—formany reasons, that it is not possible toenter into at this moment . . .”

What are these reasons? Why didCondoleezza Rice identify heart andsoul with the Palestinians while evenher body language evidenced her dis-like for us? Why do leaders of the“Nation of Islam” such as Louis

Farrakhan feel such animosity towardsIsrael and personalities such as JesseJackson turn their backs on us? Do theyfind in the Arab experience a mirrorimage of the discriminatory practices towhich they are subjected in Americansociety, while glittering Jewish successstories staring at them from every cor-ner despite anti-Jewish discriminationevoke only jealousy?

Is the Collective Jew now “Israel”? Islove for the Palestinians just a way tocamouflage Jew hatred? Obama cannotgive the answer because he is part ofthe question. In fact, he is the perfectexample of it.

Afro Americans who turned to Islamfound the anti-Israel virus flourishingthere. When Barack Hussein Obama, aChristian raised and educated in aMuslim environment, gave his Cairospeech, he placed himself at the head ofthis phenomenon. From now on, allthose who wish “to return Israel to itsnatural size,” to keep her from beingstrong, proud, and victorious in thePromised Land, the setting in which herglorious past unfolded—racist gentilesand trendy Jewish leftists, men of thechurch and total atheists—all seeObama as their champion, as the onlyperson who is capable of bringing theJews of Israel to their knees.

And if such is the case, is it surpris-ing that the Norwegians and Obamafound each other? What does it matterif the man has no past accomplish-ments, after all the prize was awardedto him on account of the future, inexchange for what he is expected todo . . . (Arutz Sheva) v


Unholy Alliance:Norway And Obama

Is love for the Palestinians just a wayto camouflage Jew hatred?

Obama cannot give the answerbecause he is part of the question.

B Y T Z V I B E N G E D A L Y A H U

Hebrew University sold 24 acres ofland to Arabs to build homes in easternJerusalem, nationalist activist Aryeh Kingsaid. He also said that an appeal to U.S.President Barack Obama to blockAmerican funding for Jews to build ineastern Jerusalem will backfire on Arabsif they succeed.

The sale of the university land is “adisgrace to Hebrew University and to theState of Israel,” stated King, who is in theforefront of efforts to return Jews toeastern Jerusalem, where many build-ings are owned by Jews who wereexpelled during the British Mandate andwhere hundreds fled during the War ofIndependence in 1948.

He said that if the Arab world suc-ceeds in convincing U.S. PresidentBarack Obama to prohibit non-profitorganizations from raising money forreclaiming Jewish homes in easternJerusalem, the Arabs “are the ones whowill have to worry.”

He explained that groups, rangingfrom the American government’s USAIDproject to non-profit organizations inSaudi Arabia, are using tax-deductibledonations and American tax money to tryto “Islamize” eastern Jerusalem.

USAID gave millions of dollars to Arabsin an attempt to build illegal homes forArabs at Shdema, next to Bethlehem andlocated immediately south of Jerusalem.Israeli activists, headed by Nadia Matar,have succeeded in maintaining a Jewishpresence in the area to stop the project.

“There are Saudi Arabian non-profitsthat work in Jerusalem to Islamize theState of Israel.” he added. “Money alsoarrives from Arabs for building in Yafo(Jaffa),” adjacent to Tel Aviv.

King has asked National UnionKnesset Member Aryeh Eldad to intro-duce a bill that would prohibit Arabs“from having it both ways” concerningbuilding. Most Arab countries as well asthe Palestinian Authority prohibit Arabsfrom selling property to Jews. King wantsa law that would prohibit the same Arabsfrom buying land or buildings from Jews.

“Just like you and I cannot buy a housein Syria or Egypt, it is impossible tounderstand why Arabs from those coun-tries should be allowed to buy houses inIsrael,” King declared.

He also suggested to Jews in theDiaspora that it would be a lot moreeffective for them to buy homes in east-ern Jerusalem for themselves and theirchildren and grandchildren instead ofcontributing money for purchases by oth-ers. (Arutz Sheva) v


Report:Hebrew U. Sold LandFor Arab Homes InEastern Jerusalem

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B Y P R O F . E F R A I M I N B A R

For years I have been active in Israeli-Turkish relations, traveling often to thatbeautiful country, writing about it, andestablishing strong friendships there. TheBegin-Sadat (BESA) Center for StrategicStudies, which I direct, pioneered Israeli-Turkish academic dialogues and throughsymposia and lectures, educated Israelisabout the nature and the strategic impor-tance of Turkey. Over the years, BESA wel-comed Turkish academics, journalists,and political and religious leaders. Ibelieve that the Israeli-Turkish strategicpartnership is of utmost importance andvalue to both countries, and to the West.As result of being a philo-Turk, someIsraelis have even called me, “Mr. Turkey.”

As a true friend of that country, today Iam greatly concerned. The Turkey I havelearned to admire seems, unfortunately,to be sliding in the wrong direction.

In contrast to many in the West whowere suspicious of the Islamic credentialsof the ruling AKP party, I welcomed theascendance of the AKP in Turkish politics.I argued that traditional Kemalist secular-ism needed a religious corrective to helpTurkey find a delicate synthesis betweenrich religious tradition and modernity. Ibelieved that an AKP-led Turkey had thepotential to become a true model of mod-erate Islam for the Islamic world; a worldthat is grappling, mostly unsuccessfully,with the challenges of modernity.Looking today at AKP foreign and domes-

tic policies I am tentatively coming to theunpleasant conclusion that I was wrong.

Turkey under the AKP is increasinglysuccumbing to Islamic impulses; relegat-ing its political and cultural links to theWest to a secondary priority. For example,Turkey welcomed the despicable Presidentof the Islamic Republic of Iran, MahmoudAhmadinejad, for a formal visit in August2008. No Western country has issued suchan invitation to the Iranian leader.

Moreover, in contrast to its Westernallies, Ankara announced recently that itwill not join any sanction efforts aimedat preventing Iran from going nuclear.

Similarly, Turkey has deviated fromthe Western consensus by invitingSudan’s President, Omer Hassan al-Bashir,who was charged with war crimes andgenocide in Darfur. Befriending suchinternational pariahs, Ankara’s moralstature is deeply hurt.

Turkey’s defense of Hamas, a terroristorganization, also indicates that Turkeyhas sacrificed its moral compass for avery primitive Muslim brotherhood. Evenpro-Western Arab states supported Israel’sstruggle against Hamas. The Turkish pre-miere’s vehement and deeply insultingdenunciation of Israel during OperationCast Lead also grated heavily on my ears.We cannot simply chalk up his criticismto cynical domestic public opinion needs.

At home, traditional Ottoman andTurkish tolerance is gradually beingreplaced by pressure to conform toMuslim mores and by intimidation to

comply with government policies.Several friends in the business communi-ty confessed that sipping a glass of raki(the Turkish equivalent of ouzo or arak) inpublic could hurt ones chances of receiv-ing government contracts.

A sensational trial of former officers,government officials, journalists, busi-nessmen, and academics, accused of plot-

ting against the AKP government (knownas the Ergenekon affair), continues tooccupy Turkish attention since 2007, andseems to play a role in intimidation ofpolitical opponents too.

Similarly, the recent exorbitant fine of$2.5 billion imposed by the tax authori-ties on the Dogan Media Group, whichdared to adopt a critical attitude towardsome government-sponsored activities,smacks of an attack on the freedom ofpress. Colleagues in academic institu-

tions speak openly about leaving thecountry if the situation gets worse.

The AKP-led government is still play-ing mostly by the democratic rules of thegame. It garnered only 35 percent of thepopular vote and it could be replaced ifthe fragmented Kemalist camp organizesand nominates a decent political leader.Such a scenario is unlikely, however, inthe immediate future, despite decline insupport for the AKP in the March 2009municipal elections.

The current negative tendencies inTurkish domestic politics and foreign pol-icy orientation push it away from theWest. Does Turkey really want to becomemore similar to Middle East countries? Itis the job of my Turkish friends of allpolitical hues to put a stop to this.

Turkey is amidst the throes of an iden-tity crisis, trying to find a successfulaccommodation between its Muslimroots and the challenges of the 21st centu-ry. It is at an historic crossroads. Hopefullyit is not too late to choose the right path,despite the many signs that Turkey is slip-ping into Islamist retrogression.

I sympathize with my many Turkishfriends (secular, traditional, and religious)who are fully aware of the dangerouswaters their government is navigating.Hopefully, Turkish democracy is strongenough to choose the progress and prosper-ity that only a Western anchor can grant.The “loss” of Turkey to Islamism would bea great strategic blow to Israel and the West.But first and foremost it would be a tragedyfor the Turks. (Arutz Sheva) v

The author is a professor in political studies atBar-Ilan University and the director of its Begin-Sadat (BESA) Center for Strategic Studies.


LLeetttteerr TToo MMyy TTuurrkkiisshh FFrriieennddss

Befriending such

international

pariahs, Ankara’s

moral stature is

deeply hurt.

B Y G E R A L D A . H O N I G M A N

Recently, tragedy struck Samoa in theSouth Pacific in the form of a tidal wave.American Samoa is an unincorporatedstate southeast of independent Samoa. Asreports came in, I couldn’t help but pon-der the irony inherent in the use of theexpression American Samoa.

The Polynesian peoples living on thoseislands and others as well didn’t ask to beconverted, conquered, given offers theycouldn’t refuse, and so forth. Yet theFrench, Germans, and Americans woundup dividing the islands among them-selves.

The U.S. Navy secured Deeds ofCession of Tutuila in 1900 and of Manu‘ain 1904. The last sovereign ruler of Manu‘awas forced to sign that Deed of Cessionfollowing a series of U.S. Naval trials inPago Pago, Ta‘u, and aboard a U.S. Navywarship.

Samoa is many thousands of milesaway from America, Americans have nohistorical ties to the land, but—in thename of national interests—easternSamoa became American territory as aresult of the Tripartite Convention divid-ing the archipelago in 1899.

Now consider Samaria. Samaria andthe area known as Judea make up what isoften termed the “West Bank,” i.e. that ofthe Jordan River. The latter name did notexist until the early 20th century, whenafter the defeat of the centuries oldOttoman Turkish Empire in World War I,

the British and the French divided upmuch of the region’s spoils.

In 1922, to reward Hashemite Araballies in the Arabian Peninsula, the Britishchopped off almost 80% of the originalMandate of Palestine that they hadreceived on April 25, 1920 for the purposeof allowing a Jewish Homeland and hand-ed it over to the Hashemites.

Since all of this land reward consistedof Palestine across (east of) the JordanRiver, the East Bank became known as

the Emirate of Transjordan. Thus arosethe name “West Bank”—formerly knownfor thousands of years as Judea andSamaria—located on the opposite shore.

When Transjordan illegally seized thenon-apportioned territory of theMandate on the “West Bank” in 1948(where Jews, Arabs, and others were legal-ly allowed to live), when it joined otherattacking Arab states to try to nip areborn Israel in the bud, it further empha-

sized this designation to distinguish itsnewly conquered territory from the origi-nal 1922 Emirate.

Jews lived and owned property inJudea and Samaria for thousands of years.Massacres by Arabs in the 1920s and 1930stook their tolls as did previous ups anddowns of Jewish history under variousimperial conquerors which succeededeach other since the fall of Judea to Romesome 2,000 years earlier. However, assoon as Transjordan seized Judea and

Samaria, it declared that no Jew could livethere. Places such as Hebron, Beth-El,Shilo, Bethlehem, Shechem, and so forthare known to the world via the HebrewBible. Most Arabs came into the area aftertheir own imperial conquests in the 7thcentury C.E. They ruled, first out ofDamascus and then out of Bagdad, for afew centuries and were then conqueredthemselves by the next of Judea’s imperi-al settlers and colonizers.

After 1949, when Transjordan seizedthe “West Bank,” while no Jews wereallowed in the territories, Arabs pouredinto them from all over. To further itsJudenrein policies, Transjordan—nowholding both banks of the River—renamed itself Jordan and proceeded todestroy dozens of synagogues, cemeter-ies, and so forth in adjacent Jerusalemand elsewhere dating back numerouscenturies and showing the Jews’ continu-ous connections to the land.

The current American Administrationinsists that no Jews should be allowed tolive in Judea or Samaria as well. It alsodemands that Israel abandon what UNSCResolution 242 promised it after the June’67 War—secure, defensible bordersinstead of the previous ’49 armistice lineswhich made it virtually invisible on aworld map.

While America took over land thou-sands of miles away for its own interests,it claims that no Jew may live in Judea orSamaria. Does America act that way?

When President Noriega was toppledin Panama, thousands of miles away, wasit because he was a drug dealer? Did thePanama Canal, perhaps, have somethingto do with it?

Only Jews worry about being fair whenthey’re fighting for their very lives againstenemies who won’t grant them any peaceexcept the peace of the grave—regardlessof the size Israel shrinks itself to. The restof the world couldn’t care less.

Let us think about what’s needed forsurvival for a change…not thousands ofmiles away from home, but right onIsrael’s front porch and backyard.

If Judea must be Judenrein, then every


BBeettwweeeenn SSaammooaa AAnndd SSaammaarriiaa……

While America took over landthousands of miles away for its owninterests, it claims that no Jew may

live in Judea or Samaria.


Arab in Israel should be sent packing. Israelmust be made Arabrein. Half of the latterare just waiting—like vultures—to pounceanyway . . . given the right moment.

It is truly time for equal treatmenthere. What’s good for Jews must be goodfor Arabs.

Forget land for peace. It’s a bad joke—part of the Arabs’ openly-admitteddestruction-in-phases plan since 1967.Look at a map of the region. Is the prob-lem really a lack of Arab land in compari-son to Israel?

Peace for peace . . . Period.No recognition of a Jewish State of

Israel?Look at what came after Israel’s total

withdrawal from Gaza years ago to seewhat a total Israeli withdrawal from the“West Bank” will mean for Jerusalem, TelAviv, Haifa, Ben-Gurion Airport . . .

Then no recognizing a 22nd state forArabs—and their second, not first, one in“Palestine.”

Unlike Samoa to America, Judea andSamaria are literally a stone’s throw awayfrom Israel’s heartland, are an integralpart of Jewish history, and are positionedto allow a hostile army entering from theeast to cut Israel in half.

Finally, and this can’t be repeated toooften . . .

Look at what came after Israel’s totalwithdrawal from Gaza years ago to seewhat a total Israeli withdrawal from the“West Bank” will mean for Jerusalem, TelAviv, Haifa, Ben-Gurion Airport, theKnesset, and so forth once Israel has beenforced back to the ’49 armistice lines—not borders—imposed on it by theUnited Nations and which made it a mere9–16 miles wide at its strategic waist,where most of its population, industry,and so forth are located.

And the next time you hearWashington insisting upon a Jew-freeJudea and Samaria, please give a long, hardthought to American Samoa. (Arutz Sheva) v

Mr. Honigman’s new book makes its Washingtondebut at Professors Fuad Ajami and BernardLewis’s ASMEA Conference this month.

Noach was a righteous man,perfect in his

generation (Bereishis 6:9)

Among our sages, there arethose who interpret this asbeing in praise of Noach: Ifhe was righteous in his gen-

eration then certainly hewould have been even morerighteous if he would have

been in a generation ofrighteous people.And there

are those who interpretthis as a condemnation: inrelation to his generationhe was righteous, but hadhe been in Avraham’s gen-eration, he wouldn’t have

been regarded as anything.

(Rashi)


B Y H A N A L E V I J U L I A N

A record number of people—1.5 mil-lion visitors—came to the Western Wallduring the Hebrew month of Tishrei,according to figures from the WesternWall Heritage Foundation and the IsraelPolice.

The rabbi of the Kotel, Rabbi ShmuelRabinovitz, commented that “these fig-ures are evidence that the Western Wall isthe spiritual home for Jews from allaround the world, regardless of theirbackground.”

The Western Wall is the last standingremnant of the Second Temple inJerusalem, and became a place of Jewishprayer following the Roman destructionin 70 CE. The area was badly damagedwhile occupied by Jordan, from 1948 to1967, but was cleaned up and carefullyrenovated after it was restored to Israel inthe 1967 Six-Day War.

It is customary for Jews to visit theWall upon arriving in Israel for the firsttime, or as soon after arrival as possible.Visitors to the site, considered to be theholiest Jewish site on earth, traditionallyinclude all heads of state who come tothe State of Israel.

For those who are unable to make thetrip to Jerusalem, it is still possible tocarry out the tradition of placing one’sprayers in a note between the cracks ofthe Wall, thanks to the Twitter age.

The Twitter Western Wall service printsouts prayers sent through the Internet by“tweets” to a special account, and placesthem in the Wall. Prayers can be posted tothe Twitter group at twitter.com/theKotel.Alternatively, private prayers can also besent by e-mail to [email protected]. (Arutz Sheva) v

Record NumberOf Visitors ToWestern Wall

And G-d said toNoach: “The end

of all flesh is comebefore Me, for theearth is filled withviolence through

them”(Bereishis 6:13)

Why was the generation ofthe Flood utterly destroyed,

but not the generation ofthe Tower? Because thegeneration of the Flood

were consumed by robberyand violence, while amongst

the generation of theTower, love prevailed.

(Midrash Rabbah)


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Call 516-322-3555

Century Village, Boca Raton —

furnished 2 BR, 2 full bths, LR, DR,

enclosed porch, kitchen, close to tem-

ples, second floor. Minimum of 4 months.

518-438-8003

North Wdm. — house rental. Hi-ranch

in MIC. 4 br, CAC, den, on quiet street.

5 TOWN HOMES 516-569-5710

Madison Area — Immaculate 3 bed-room duplex, Large LR, DR, EIK Move-in condition!! Front/back porchesHardwood floors $2,200 (optional base-ment) 917-371-7982 lv mssg

Valley Stream: Nu 2 Mkt. Brick ranch,

great condition, quiet street. Nu EIK,

LR, Den, Lg Prop . . . . . . . . . . . $409KFor Rent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2,5005 TOWN HOMES 516-569-5710

Old Woodmere — for sale by owner.Col. 5 BR, 3 full bths, 2 half bths, c/ac,finished basement, walk to all, MIC.$825K 917-662-7384

COMMERCIAL REALESTATE FOR RENT

COMMERCIAL REALESTATE FOR SALE

Rockville Centre — 3,500 sq ft, fully

wired for Web, partitioned, will divide.

Call 516-322-3555

Far Rockaway — 2 Huge Office Spaces.6,000 and 2,500 Sq Ft. 2nd Floor. NearSubway & LIRR. Build to Suit. Can bedivided. Owner 917-359-9776

Far Rockaway commercial space.

Brand new construction. Ideally suited

for medical professional offices or com-

munity facility. High ceilings. Very

bright and airy. Many amenities, ocean

views, reasonable rent. Call WeissmanRealty Group, LLC 516-791-6100

Prime location on Central Ave. Approx.1,200 sq. ft. 3 offices, conference room,secretary area, 2 private bathrooms.Elevator bldg. Call 917-417-5725

6000 sq. ft on Central Ave. can bedivided. Excellent location. LowerLevel. Parking. Owner: 917-417-5725

Beautiful 12 family apt. building, in the

heart of Far Rockaway, stable tenancy,

income producing. Call

Weissman Realty Group 516-791-6100

Cedarhurst: Office rental: Executive 2

Bths, Fully Web wired, 1,250 sq. ft.,

CAC. 5TGR 516-322-3555


Deadline forAdvertising

in the Classifieds for Next Week is

Tuesday, October 27

5:00 P.M. Call

516-569-0502

MISCELLANEOUS

CLASSIFIED ADSContinued from Page 71 LOST AND FOUND

FOR RENT

FOR RENT FOR RENT

Bayswater — Beautiful sunnyApartment For Rent. 5 big rooms, 3 BR,New house, Large Dining/LR, EIK,Laundry Room. 2 Baths, Frum Block,MIC, Reasonable price. 347-234-5599

Cedarhurst — NU House, CH Col., LR,FDR, Kosher EIK, Den, 4BR., 3BTHS.Bsmt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $3,200

5 TOWN HOMES 516-569-5710

Florida — Sunny Isles BeachWinston Towers, 2br 2bth, ocean andbay views, new, kosher kitchen, pool &sundeck, health club. Young Israel 1/2block. Call 347-776-1918

Cedarhurst — Garden apt. Nu 2 Mkt.

2BR. 2Bth, Mint, 1st Flr, heat & prk

incld . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2,5005Town Homes 516-569-5710

Far Rockaway — apt for rent. 3 BR,new construction. Near all. New appli-ances. First floor. . . . . . . . . . . . $1,525Call 516-445-4048 ask for Barry

Ocean Corp. Houston, Texas. Train for

New Career. Underwater Welder,

Commercial Diver, NDT/Weld Inspector.

Job placement and financial aid for

those who qualify, 1-800-321-0298

Miami Beach, FL — Tower 41. Ocean

view, 1 BR apt, 2 bths, updated kitchen,

terrace, restaurant, shul, health club,

parking, furnished. Avilable now.

Seasonal. 917-407-4169

Lawrence Office sublet. 750 squarefeet. medical or commercial. 290 Central Ave. in Lawrence. Dr. Feibusch 516-375-8894

Bayswater — 1 BR, w/d, frum neigh-bors, private entrance, great kitchenprivate backyard. 516-374-3635

Far Rockaway — 1 BR apt for rent.

Good condition. Elevator building.

Cornega and Neilson. Includes heat and

hot water . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $975Call 718-692-2525 ext. 211

Alexander Hotel, Miami Beach By

owner Two bedroom/two bathroom new

kitchen, plasma TVs, Magnificent view

of ocean/ bay. Available for Winter

Break, etc.

[email protected] or 718-930-6800

Far Rockaway — 1, 2, and 3 BR apart-

ments. Some balconies. New kitchens,

lots of closets, 24 hr doorman, security

cameras. Close to White Shul, Shor

Yoshuv and train. Call Sherri

516-297-7995Far Rockaway — On beach. Brand new

building, 1 & 2 BR available. Granite

kitchens, balconies with water views,

Shabbos elevator, w/d hookup, parking.

No renter’s fee!

Far Rockaway — Beautiful 2 bedroom

apt, 2nd floor, recently updated, conven-

ient location, available immediately

Asking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,350Weissman Realty Group, LLC 516-791-6100

Far Rockaway/West Lawrence —Studio apt for rent. Private house, good

location, near Shor Yoshuv, synagogues,

yeshivos, and public transportation.

Good for office.

718-337-5753 or 347-461-6034

Cedarhurst — Nu House CH Col. LR,

FDR, Kosher EIK, Den, 4BR, 3BTHS.

Bsmt. For Rent . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2,500

5 TOWN HOMES 516-569-5710

Found child’s Ugg boot in GourmetGlatt parking lot on 10/19. 516-650-6005

Reads Lane — Short Term: Immediate-

June 30. Spacious comfortable corner

home. 4 BR, 3 bth, EIK, LR, DR, high

ceilings, huge backyard. 718-637-1471

Cedarhurst — All new, bright 3 BR, 1.5bths, ground floor apt in 2-family house,LR, FDR, EIK/ w new appliances, newcarpet, w/d included, yard and parking.Walk all . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2,2505 TOWN HOMES 516-569-5710

Lawrence — 18 Berkley Place

Center hall col., 4 BR, 3 bths, stunning

cul-de-sac, best location . . $4K monthly

Call Irene 516-652-7099

Cedarhurst — House Rental LR/FDR,

den, 3br, 2.5bth, Fin. Bsmt . . . . . $2,300

Call 516-322-3555

Far Rockaway — Large One BedroomApartment for rent. Beautiful elevatorbldg. Nice tenancy. Great location atNeilson and Cornaga, near Shor Yoshuv,transportation, and shopping. Asking $1,100. Call 718-692-2525 ext. 180

B Y R O N K A M P E A S

With the major knots that bedeviledU.S.–Israel ties this summer largelybehind them, U.S., Israeli, and AmericanJewish leaders say the relationshipbetween the two countries is muchimproved. But with some misapprehen-sion and mistrust persisting, all sidesappear to agree that things could bearfurther improvement.

Among the thorniest issues: a mutualperception between the Obama andNetanyahu administrations that eachside is playing the other using leaks.

The differences are broad enough thatIsraeli and American Jewish organization-al officials met last week at a retreat inGlen Cove, N.Y., for a private discussion of“the Israeli public’s low approval rating ofBarack Obama” under the aegis of the

Jewish People Policy Planning Institute, athink tank affiliated with the JewishAgency for Israel.

Dan Shapiro, who runs Israel issues atthe White House’s National SecurityCouncil, addressed the group and lis-tened to the concerns of an array of

Jewish organizational leaders, Israelidiplomats, and opinion shapers.

The consensus: Obama should reach

out to Israel.“President Obama should visit Israel

and cultivate a relationship with theAmerican Jewish community” was the

headline of the institute’s news releasesummarizing the retreat.

Avinoam Bar-Yosef, the institute’sdirector, said the issue of trust was key tothe discussion. “The Obama administra-tion is trying to promote a series ofthings, and they need a counterpartwhich is trusting them,” Bar-Yosef said.“Trust was built and a serious dialoguehas been started, but there is not yet asolution on everything. There is muchmore room for improvement.”

Obama administration officials attrib-uted several problems of miscommunica-tion in the early months to the fact thatboth Israel and Washington had newadministrations getting their respectiveacts together, with each side too busy tomaintain the necessary frequency ofcommunication.

That led to harmful leaks, particularlyrelated to the U.S. insistence that Israelfreeze settlement construction in theWest Bank. Following a barrage of leakscoming from Jerusalem on the subject, areportedly furious U.S. Secretary of StateHillary Rodham Clinton finally made thedispute public.

And prior to Israel’s announcement inearly September that it would build 455new units in Jewish settlements in theWest Bank, U.S. officials told reportersthat Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahuneeded to understand how his relation-ship with Obama depended on whetherthe Israeli leader understood that hefaced a “pivotal” moment in history.

Netanyahu’s advisers chafed at this ashigh handed and arrogant.

Insiders now insist that relations aresmoother. Shapiro and Uzi Arad,Netanyahu’s top national security adviser,talk all the time. Yitzhak Molcho, anotherNetanyahu adviser, and Mike Herzog,Defense Minister Ehud Barak’s top advis-er, visit Washington at least twice amonth to meet with top officials at thePentagon and the State Department.

Within the Obama administration is asense that the disagreement inSeptember over settlement constructionexemplifies, if anything, how the rela-tionship has improved: Netanyahu’s staffgave the White House a heads-up on theplan to give a green light to 455 new hous-ing units, and the White House had timeto prepare a tough response that helped itsave face in the Arab world.

In some areas, U.S.-Israel ties havegrown closer. Speaking earlier this monthat a conference at the conservativeHudson Institute on the subject of“Challenges to the Special Relationship,”Michael Oren, the Israeli envoy toWashington, noted the intensity of U.S.-Israeli coordination on combating theU.N. Human Rights Council’s Goldstonereport, which accused Israel of warcrimes during last winter’s war in Gazawith Hamas.

Oren said the sides also agree on theneed to isolate Iran as long as it appearsto be pursuing nuclear weapons, and onthe pace of applying sanctions on theIslamic Republic. He also said defense


U.S. and Jewish Leaders Meet to Discuss TensionsBetween Obama and Netanyahu Administrations


Netanyahu’s staff gave the White House a

heads-up on the plan to give a green light

to 455 new housing units.


Puzzle appears on page 65.

Answer to scramble: “Shlocky”

Solution To This Week’s 5TJT Puzzle:Jewish Best Picture Winners?


cooperation was closer than ever andthat the Obama administration wasredressing a decline in recent years ofIsrael’s qualitative military edge in theMiddle East.

The Obama and Netanyahu adminis-trations even have arrived at an agree-ment on freezing settlements, accordingto Oren. The freeze would not includeJerusalem and would account for some“natural growth” in West Bank settle-ment blocs Israel plans to keep in a final-status agreement.

The real problem is with thePalestinians, Oren said, who continue toinsist on a total settlement freeze, andnot between the United States and Israel.

But many members of the pro-Israelcommunity remain upset at the Obamaadministration for its focus on Jewish set-tlements in the West Bank. They say thisfocus makes settlements appear to be theobstacle to peace while giving thePalestinians and Arab states a pass onmaking concessions.

The Palestinians have rejected U.S.pressure to accommodate a partialfreeze, and Arab nations have yet toannounce the symbolic gestures Obamawas hoping to secure for Israel as areward for a freeze.

According to U.S. administrationinsiders, a number of Arab nations wereready to announce concessions—such

as allowing Israeli civilian aircraft over-flight rights and expanding business tieswith Israel—but withdrew them afterthe Netanyahu government announcedthe new construction in the West Bank

in September.Obama administration officials say

they understand that settlements arenot the sine qua non of advancing thepeace process, but they wonder whyIsrael does not address settlement issueseven while the Obama administrationpresses the Palestinians and the Arabsfor concessions.

It hasn’t helped the Obama-Netanyahu relationship that the U.S.administration continues to lavishattention on J Street, a lobbying andpolitical action committee that

describes itself as “pro-peace, pro-Israel.”The group has upset many U.S. Jewswith its positions on Israel; the Israeligovernment has kept it at arm’s length.

James Jones, Obama’s national securityadviser, is speaking this month to J Streetand the American Task Force onPalestine, a group that lobbies for U.S.action to promote the creation of aPalestinian state. (Jones also will addressthe American Israel Public AffairsCommittee, Israel’s stalwart advocate inWashington, at AIPAC’s annual nationalsummit in San Diego.)

Additionally, last weekend’s annualWashington Institute for Near EastPolicy Weinberg retreat, usually a venuefor high-minded exchanges betweenIsraeli and U.S. officials, lacked anyObama administration officials. Adm.Mike Mullen, the chairman of the JointChiefs of Staff, withdrew at the lastmoment, apparently because of the bur-geoning crisis in Afghanistan.

Mullen’s cancellation was too late tocompensate with a commensurate speak-er, and in the absence of an Obamaadministration official, speaker afterspeaker faulted the administration in itsdealings with Israel, the Arabs, and Iran.

In Israel, a consensus is emerging thatObama needs to pay more attention toIsrael.

Ofir Pines Paz, a Labor Party Knessetmember who otherwise opposes theNetanyahu government’s policies, thismonth told a pro-Obama group, the NewAmerican Foundation, that the presidentneeded to reach out to Israel.

“It’s something that should be tackled,”he said. “Maybe not by a speech, but notby hesitation. He shouldn’t give up onIsraeli public opinion.”

Oren said as much to the HudsonInstitute, referring to Obama’s single-digitapproval ratings in the Jewish state.

“We have to get this number up,” hesaid. Establishing trust in the U.S. admin-istration among Israelis “is a sine qua nonof the peace process.” (JTA) v

Leaders Discuss TensionsContinued from Page 74

Many members of the pro-Israel

community remain upset at the Obama

administration for its focus on Jewish

settlements in the West Bank.

For the next issue, deadline for reserving

ad space is Monday,

October 26at 5:00 P.M.

All graphics for ads must be in by

Tuesday,October 27at 5:00 P.M.

Call516-984-0079

adnan husseini

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