OpinionThe JewishPost&Indiana Edition

Presenting a broad spectrum of Jewish News and Opinions since 1935.

L’ShanaTova!

Cover art “David Tower”by Alex Levin (see full painting and About the Cover, p.2).

Volume 79, Number 1 • September 26, 2012 • 10 Tishrei 5773www.jewishpostopinion.com

&Chag Sukkot Sameach

David Tower(Oil on canvas 20”x 40”; above)by Alex Levin, Art Levin Studio –www.ArtLevin.com.

Alex Levin comes from Kiev, the capitalof Ukraine, where he was born in 1975and later attended Art Academy, fromwhich he graduated with honors.

In 1990 Levin immigrated to Israel, wherehe continues to live in the city of Herzeliya.

With a most productive and hecticschedule, Levin finds additional time to grow

About the Cover

Simcha Announcements2 The Jewish Post & Opinion – IN September 26, 2012

Photo credit: Morgan Matters Photography.

Ella Perel, daughter of Gary and Inga WeissPerel, was Bat Mitzvahed on Aug. 25, 2012at Congregation B’nai Torah in Indianapolis.She is the granddaughter of Raisa Perel, andTibor and Dora Weiss, great-granddaughterof Roza Zelikovich and sister to Lenny Perel.

L-R: Leslie and Jennifer Gubitz.

Dani Loewenthal, daughter of BruceLoewenthal and Gayle Garber of Carmel,Ind. married Brandon Lafferman, son ofBruce and April Lafferman of Los Angeles,Calif. on June 23, 2012. The ceremony and reception were held at IndianapolisMuseum of Art and Rabbi Aaron Spiegelofficiated.

The bride’s grandparents are Bill andBebe Weinstein of Indianapolis and BobLoewenthal and Nancy Israel of LosAngeles. The groom’s grandmothers areMay Zarin and Sylvia Lafferman ofMaryland.

The bride is a 2011 graduate of IndianaUniversity with bachelor’s degrees in psychology and sociology. She is currentlyin her last year of graduate school atIndiana University where she is pursuinga masters degree in social work.

Mazel Tov to…

Simchas Welcome! Had a recent joyousoccasion in your family or Jewish organization? The Jewish Post & Opinion– IN Edition welcomes your announce-ments for placement in our Simchasection. Submit photos and text to:jpostopinion@gmail.com. Next Deadline:Oct. 15, 2012. All decisions on publishing,date of placement, size of photo, and lengthof announcement are at the sole discretionof the publisher.

The groom is a 2007 graduate of ButlerUniversity with a bachelor’s degree ineducation. Currently the president andowner of Indiana Primetime Sports, heteaches physical education and health,and coaches basketball at University High School.

The Maid of Honor was Lili Glazier, achildhood friend; Bridesmaids werefriends of the bride: Katharine Luerssen,Ruby Kohler, Alissa DiMarchi, HollyClark, and Erica Waggoner. The Best Manwas Ryan Cole, college friend and business partner; Groomsmen werefriends of the groom: Maxx Wolfson, ToddWolfson, Matt Waggoner, Collin McGann,and Kevin Oliverio.

For their honeymoon the newlywedstraveled to Kauai, Hawaii. Brandon andDani currently reside in Carmel. AAAA

Rachel and Yitzchok Knopf announcedthe birth of their daughter, NechamaBayla, born on Sept. 7, 2012. She weighed5 lbs. and 11 oz. Maternal grandparentsare Elliot and Ethel Bartky of Indianapolisand paternal grandparents are Normanand Judy Knopf of Chicago. AAAA

Jennifer Anne Gubitz (above), a productFort Wayne Community Schools (FWCS)Magnet schools and the daughter ofCharlene and Jeff Gubitz, was ordained by the Hebrew Union College-JewishInstitute of Religion on May 6. She holds a

(see Cover, page 8)

(see Simchas, page 7)

bachelor of arts degree in Jewish Studiesand English from Indiana University and aMaster’s of Hebrew Literature from HUC-JIR. Prior to entering seminary, sheworked for the Religious Action Centerand Hillel in Washington, D.C. Jenniferwill assume the post of assistant rabbi at

September 26, 2012 The Jewish Post & Opinion – IN 3

In the Indianapolis Star on Sat., Aug.29, 2009 a man wrote to Billy Graham thathe was hurt by someone in his family, butthat person will not admit that he or shehas done anything wrong, let alone ask forforgiveness. The questioner wanted toknow how to forgive this family member.

On occasion, I read Graham’s “MyAnswer” column to see what advice hewill give to spiritual questions like this. Idon’t agree with him when he writes thatthere is only one way to salvation, but hisanswer to this question is very appropriatefor Jewish people at this time of year.Graham’s response:

It’s easier, of course, to forgive someonewho knows he or she has hurt us and is asking for forgiveness. But life isn’t alwaysthat easy, and sometimes the whole burdenrests on our shoulders.

But that doesn’t mean we don’t need toforgive. After all, when someone hurts us,we begin carrying a burden, and we need toget rid of it. Imagine it as a heavy basketfilled with emotions that weigh you down:anger, hurt, jealousy, a desire for revenge,guilt, bitterness and so forth.

You have only two choices: carry it or getrid of it. Every object in that basket hurtsyou. So what is the best thing to do? TheBible is clear: “Get rid of all bitterness, rageand anger, brawling and slander, along withevery form of malice” (Ephesians 4:31).

This only happens as you forgive. And thisbecomes possible as we realize how muchGod has forgiven us.

Our Jewish tradition teaches that forsins against a fellow human, we cannotask God for forgiveness until we haveasked it of the person whom we have hurtat least three times. We may then ask Godfor forgiveness even if the person refuses.

In Hebrew, the word for sin is translatedas “missing the mark.”This suggests thatone is aiming to hit the mark – do what isright – but simply missed. This impliesthat perhaps people do not begin with theintention to purposely hurt another.Realizing this may make it easier to forgive those who have hurt us.

I like Graham’s analogy of looking athurt as a heavy basket, and it is similar towhat my Aunt Diane said. (The followingparagraph was originally published in my editorial from July 9, 2003 and wasreprinted here in the July 29, 2009 issue.)

“If one is constantly bitter, filled withanger, hatred, resentment, and regrets,eventually that will affect other areas in one’s life and could lead to health problems. My aunt, Diane Arnold fromTampa, has a unique way of expressingthis. She said, ‘When someone hates

Editorial

another, it is as if they carry that person on their back. The one being carried is not sweating. The one who hates has tostruggle with the extra weight.’”

Then in Nov. 22, 2006, Charles Roth of

Inside this Issue

1427 W. 86th St. #228Indianapolis, IN 46260email: jpostopinion@gmail.comphone and fax: (317) 405-8084website: www.jewishpostopinion.com

OpinionPost&The Jewish

Jewish News and Opinions since 1935.

Simcha Announcements.........................2About the Cover ......................................2Editorial.....................................................3Rabbi Benzion Cohen

(Chassidic Rabbi).....................................3High Holiday services live on Web .....3Community Events .................................4Israel Bonds Dinner of State.................5Rabbi Brian Besser

(High Holidays).......................................7New Midwest Wiesenthal director......8Obituaries .................................................9A JEA blast from the past ....................10Rabbis Dennis and Sandy Sasso........11Rabbi Sasso’s new book reviewed ....11IU Hillel awarded Hadassah grant ....13Henya Chaiet

(Yiddish for Everyday) ..........................13On This Day in Jewish History..........13Hadassah meeting on Public Health .......14Rabbi David Wolpe

(Why Faith Matters) .............................14Interfaith exhibit returns to HUC ......15Jewish Theatre to raise season curtain ....16

Tishrei in Lubavitch is a wonderful time.Tishrei is the first month of the year, andmost of it is holidays, starting with RoshHashanah, and ending with Succos andSimchas Torah.

Baruch Hashem, we got a lot of exerciseand happiness. On both days of RoshHashanah we walked to our nearby hospital to blow the shofar. Each day was atwo hour walk. The walk itself was reallyspecial, as I was accompanied by a son-inlaw and three grandchildren. We did a lotof dancing and singing on the way.To hearthe shofar on Rosh Hashanah is inspiring,and to blow the shofar and help othershear it is even more inspiring. My 11-year-old grandson and my nine-year-oldgranddaughter also blew the shofar, andreally made a lot of people happy. After allof that inspiration, exercise and fun I wasfeeling ten years younger and much happier.

During Succos I danced about 10 hours.We spent Simchas Torah in Netanya. Myson Avraham Sender and his family live afew minutes from the Laniado Hospital.On the night of Simchas Torah we dancedfor an hour at a local shul, went home tomake Kiddush, and then I walked withfour grandchildren to the hospital. Wewent from ward to ward and from room toroom, dancing and singing. Dancing withgrandchildren is always very special, evenmore so on Simchas Torah, and even moreso in the hospital. There they did a lot ofmitzvahs. They brought the happiness ofSimchas Torah to the patients and doctorsand nurses. A lot of faces lit up with big

BY RABBI BENZION COHEN

Chassidic Rabbi

(see Editorial, page 9)

j i HH services live on Web

The 92nd Street Y in New York City willbe sharing its High Holiday Services via livewebstream at www.92Y.org/HHLive. Thisis done to provide High Holiday servicesto those unable to attend, whether in NewYork or other communities, on militarybases around the world, or in hospitals orsenior centers.

Tune in live at these times (ET): YomKippur: Tues., Sept., 25 from 6:30–8:30p.m., and Wed., Sept., 26, from 10 a.m.–2p.m., and 5–8 p.m. AAAA

j i

smiles, and those who could, joined us inthe dancing. What is the best way to findtrue happiness? Go out and make otherpeople happy!

On the fifth day of Succos we had ourannual Succos family reunion. Almost allof our children and grandchildren came,plus a few of our in-laws and we had agreat time, Baruch Hashem. We hope thatyou also had a great holiday.

I had a beautiful experience. One of myfour-year-old granddaughters walked overto me, held up her little hands, and askedme to pick her up. How could I resist? Itook her to give a kiss to the mezuzah, andshowed her the picture of the Rebbe. Weenjoyed each other’s company for a fewminutes, and then I tried to put her down.No deal. She held onto me with all of herstrength and said “Don’t put me down!”My heart melted and I held her for anotherfew minutes.

The next morning while I was saying mymorning prayers I remembered my grand-daughter. I looked up to the heavens andsaid to our Father “Pick me up! Don’t putme down! Hold me forever!” BaruchHashem, I know that Hashem loves us

(see Benzion, page 5)

4 The Jewish Post & Opinion – IN September 26, 2012

Eli Groner, Israel’s Minister for EconomicAffairs to the US.

Jewish LawyersJewish lawyers group meets for lunch

on the fourth Wednesday of each month.The next meeting is Oct. 24 at Shapiro’sdowntown at 12:15 p.m. Presently, thegroup’s leaders are Irwin Levin, Zeff Weissand Elliot Levin. For more informationcontact Elliot at edl@rubin-levin.net.

14th Annual Ann Katz Festival of Books and Arts

Oct. 24–Nov. 17, at the JCC. (See page 6for details.)

Music @ Shaarey Tefilla Carmel’s Conservative synagogue

welcomes all for music up close of the2012-2013 season. Join us for the first ofthree performances: Mon., Nov. 12, for“6-strings and Keys” featuring guitaristAdam Levin and the Lincoln Trio, at 7:30p.m. at Congregation Shaarey Tefilla, 3085West 116th Street, Carmel, Ind. The seriespresents a broad range of musical stylesand collaborative musicians uniquelyfocusing attention on a Jewish theme,composer, or performer. Artistic Director,violist Michael Strauss, crafts each program as you would an excellent meal,with the comfort of familiar composersand their masterworks balanced with thezest of new or little known pieces. Knownfor its intimate, casual setting and meet-and-greets with the performers at after-concert receptions, this is the place to bethree Mondays each season. Call 317-733-2169 for ticket and more information.

A Health and Art FairSun., Jan. 13, 2013 – a health & art fair

titled “L’Chaim: Arts and Wellness for

Ushpizin, which depicts an Israeli couple’shilarious Sukkot celebration. Then join usin the Sukkah afterward to shake the lulav!Contact Rabbi Nadia at nadas@ihcindy.org.

Unattached Jewish Adults On Sun., Oct. 7, at 12:30 p.m., join us in

the Sukkah in front of Congregation Beth-El Zedeck, 600 W. 70th St., Indianapolis,to say the blessings over the Lulav andEtrog. At 1:15 p.m. meet with old friendsand make some new ones at HollyhockHill for lunch. If it is raining, we will not meet in the Sukkah before lunch. Formore information email Scott Levine atchatwithscott@gmail.com or call 405-8084.

Live! from Terre Haute, it’s Elliot GouldThe 7th Annual CANDLES Fall

Reception is Sat., Oct. 13, 2012 from6–10:00 p.m. in Terre Haute, Ind. Specialguest this year is Oscar-nominated actorElliott Gould. Tickets include dinner withMr. Gould at the O’Shaughnessy Hall atSt. Mary-of-the-Woods College, and asilent auction. All proceeds benefit CANDLES Holocaust Museum andEducation Center. Please join us for thiswonderful event! Tickets are $75 andavailable at the museum and onlinewww.candlesholocaustmuseum.org or bycalling 812/234-7881.

JCC Business NetworkThe next meeting will be on Wed.,

Oct. 17 at 6:30 p.m. at the Arthur M GlickJCC, 6701 Hoover Rd. RSVP to LarryRothenberg lrothenberg@jccindy.org orcall 317-715-9233.

Israel Bonds annual dinnerOn Thur., Oct. 11, 2012, the Indiana

Campaign for Israel Bonds cordiallyinvites you to attend a Dinner of State inhonor of Gigi Felsher, with guest speaker

Jewish Bereavement Group The Albert & Sara Reuben Senior and

Community Resource Center began abereavement group in partnership withCommunity Home Health Services, a part of the Community Health Network.This bereavement group, which has aJewish perspective and is facilitated byRabbi Bruce Pfeffer, is open to all. Forinformation regarding meeting timesplease contact Julie Sondhelm at 317-259-6822 x6

The Mothers Circle Enrollment is always open – we

welcome all women of other faith traditions who are raising Jewish childrenin the context of an interfaith marriage or committed relationship with a Jewishpartner. Come learn about Jewish holidays, rituals, ethics and the how-to’sof creating a Jewish home, and get toknow some amazing women just like you!For information, contact Patti FreemanDorson, Facilitator, at 441-5259 or themotherscircle@comcast.net.

Meditation HikeA Pomelit pre-Shabbat Walk at the

IMA, 4000 N. Michigan Rd., will be heldon Fri., Sept. 28 from 5:30–6:30 p.m.Set aside the stress and craziness of a busy week. Meet at the Efroymson Family Entrance Pavilion. Casual Kiddishfollowing the hike. No charge. For more info, contact Laurel Brown at laursbro@aol.com, Paula Goldberg atpgoldberg@indy.rr.com, or Margo Fox atmfox@jfgi.org or call 317-715-9268.

Pedal for PeaceOn Sat., Sept. 29 from 3–7:00 p.m. at

the Major Taylor Velodrome join Beth-ElZedeck’s Pedal for Peace team! Ride yourbicycle (or a stationary bicycle if your riding skills are rusty) with your team toraise money for the Interfaith HungerInitiative. Go to: http://www.pedalforpeace.org/ for more information and toregister for this event!

A Celebration of Vision and Memory:The Photography of Dr. Mark Pescovitzand Asrar Burney

Reception: Sun., Sept. 30. Please jointhe Pescovitz and Burney families for lightrefreshments as you enjoy the galleryopening. Dr. Ora Pescovitz and Asrar Burneywill speak briefly starting at 1:15 p.m.

Sukkot Movie NightOn Wed., Oct. 3 at 6:30 p.m., Indianapolis

Hebrew Congregation will be a screeningof the award-winning Israeli comedy

Community Events

(see Events, page 7)

IN 16 December 1, 2010

Expert Collision RepairM, T, TH 7:30-5:30 W, F 7:30-6:00

829 BROAD RIPPLE AVE.Same location since 1965

Meridian Hills North

251-1900

Holiday Greetings from theMordoh Family & the Staff

-

-

"The course of history

-

-

-

-

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best to convince other states to

--

was grateful for the honors -

-

-

-

-

Kaufman is a military his-torian with the Indiana War Memorials Commission in In-

Fellow at the Sagamore Insti-tute, Kaufman is the author of

can be found through Amazon or

Israel BondsContinued from page IN 10

Specializing in problem alignments, brakes, shocks, struts, steering and suspension

M, T, TH: 7:30-5:30; W, F: 7:30-6:00829 BROAD RIPPLE AVE.Same location since 1965

WHERE QUALITY IS NO ACCIDENT

Expert Collision Repair

“In the heart of Broad Ripple”

255-4166

September 26, 2012 The Jewish Post & Opinion – IN 5

His arms all the time. However, in order toactually feel the presence of Hashemrequires a lot of effort. This is the real goalof our morning prayers. We put aside all ofour mundane affairs and speak toHashem. We meditate how Hashem isreally everything. We ask Hashem to helpus to return to Him and come close toHim and feel His presence.

We want Moshiach now! We want toactually feel that Hashem is picking us upand holding us. Not just for a few minutes,but forever. When Moshiach will take us allout of exile we will feel Hashem’s presenceand His great love for us all of the time.

It is up to us to make it happen. We haveto follow the teachings and instructions ofMoshiach, the Lubavitcher Rebbe, and hewill lead us to our complete redemption.He taught us to learn about Moshiach andto make the effort to go out of our ownpersonal exile, and come closer toHashem. To bring Hashem into our livesmore and more by learning more Torahand doing more mitzvahs. To plead withHashem: “Pick us up! Take us out of exile!Send us Moshiach! Long live our master,our teacher, and our king, Moshiach,forever and ever! “

Rabbi Cohen lives in K’far Chabad, Israel. He can be reached by email at bzcohen@orange.net.il. This column wasoriginally published Nov. 9, 2011. AAAA

The State of Israel Bonds organizationis pleased to announce that it will be honoring Gigi MarksFelsher at its Annual IsraelBonds Dinner of Statebeing held in the LaikinAuditorium at the ArthurM. Glick JCC at 5:30 p.m.,on Thurs., Oct. 11. EliGroner, Israel’s Minister for EconomicAffairs in the United States will be theguest speaker.

Gigi Marks Felsher, the well-deservinghonoree, is an active volunteer in the general and Jewish communities. Her volunteer activities began in the 1980’sand she has not stopped since. She hasserved as a member of the executive committee of Community Action ofGreater Indianapolis and was a memberof the Junior League of Indianapolis. Shehas served on the boards of CongregationBeth El Zedeck, Hadassah, the NationalCouncil of Jewish Women, the HastenHebrew Academy and held leadershiproles with Women’s American ORT bothlocally and regionally. With the JewishFederation of Greater Indianapolis she is a3-time Campaign co-chair, Endowmentco-chair and has served as its president.She has won the L.L. Goodman YoungLeadership Award and the EndowmentAchievement Awards from the JewishFederation and the HAI-Life award fromthe Hasten Hebrew Academy.

For questions or to RSVP: 312/558-9400.To RSVP: Indianapolis@israelbonds.com. AAAA

Israel Bonds Dinner of State

Lee Mallah of Lena’s Mediterranean Kitchen, a popular booth at the Broad RippleFarmer’s Market, sells Middle Eastern spreads and pastries.

BENZION(continued from page 3)

much, much more then we love our ownchildren (or even our grandchildren).Hashem in infinite, and His love for us,His children, is infinite. He is holding us in

6 The Jewish Post & Opinion – IN September 26, 2012

September 26, 2012 The Jewish Post & Opinion – IN 7

Leshanah tovah tikateivu! “May you beinscribed for a good year!”– this is how weheartily greet each other for the New Year.The well-known motif of “being inscribed”derives from the Talmudic notion of theBook of Life, which is reserved for therighteous. (bRosh Hashanah 16b) What isthe Book of Life? Does enrollment in theBook of Life ensure staying alive one moreyear? Does the converse imply that one isdestined to perish, chas ve-shalom, Godforbid! Or, is there another way, perhapsless superstitious and more profound, toview this imagery?

I recently came across the followingpronouncement, attributed to FranzKafka, which suggested to me a new wayto think about the Book of Life. He said:“we are sinful not so much because wehave eaten from the Tree of Knowledge,but because we have not yet eaten fromthe Tree of Life.” (Moments ofTranscendence, Rabbi Dov Peretz Elkins,

p. 16) Kafka refers, of course, to the twonamed trees in the Garden of Eden: theTree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, andthe Tree of Life.

It’s important to read the parable inGenesis not as a mere fairy tale, but as aprofound meditation on what it means tobe human. Adam and Eve representeveryman and every woman. The Tree ofKnowledge represents the awareness ofright from wrong, and the Tree of Life represents the meaning of life itself. Thekey to unlocking the lessons of the Biblicalstory is to view Adam and Eve’s so-calledpunishment as “not really a punishment atall, but the painful consequence of beinghuman.” (Harold Kushner, When BadThings Happen to Good People, p. 76)Having partaken from one tree but not the other, they – we – are caught in themiddle, somewhere between the Tree ofKnowledge and the Tree of Life, betweeninstinct and reason, between bestialityand divinity.

What is life, after all? In nature, theessential characteristic of life is growth.The essential characteristic of growth ischange. If we knew everything, therewould be nothing to learn. If we alwaysacted right the first time, there would beno opportunity to improve. We would, ineffect, be (spiritually) dead. As myRabbinic advisor said to me recently:

“Brian, you are going to make mistakes.The question is not whether you are goingto fail, but how you handle your failures.”

When confronted with mistakes, short-comings, and conflicts in ourselves and inothers, we certainly have the option toavoid them. However, by summoning usto partake from the Tree of Life, Kafkachallenges us to move toward the sourceof our anxiety.The Book of Life and the Treeof Life are the same. Being inscribed in theBook of Life doesn’t guarantee physicalsurvival any more than eating from theTree of Life would guarantee immortality.

High Holiday Service Date TimeErev Yom Kippur / Kol Nidre Tuesday, September 25 7:30 pmYom Kippur / Yizkor Wednesday, September 26 9:00 amYouth Service Wednesday, September 26 10:00 amYom Kippur / Mincha Wednesday, September 26 5:45 pmYom Kippur / Neila, Maariv, Havdalah Wednesday, September 26 7:00 pmSukkah Decorating* Sunday, September 30 9:00 amErev Sukkot Sunday, September 30 6:30 pmSukkot Shacharit (1st day) Monday, October 1 8:00 amErev Sukkot (2nd day) Monday, October 1 7:00 pmSukkot Shacharit (2nd day) Tuesday, October 2 8:00 amHoshanah Rabbah Sunday, October 7 9:00 amErev Shemini Atzeret Sunday, October 7 6:30 pmShemini Atzeret / Yizkor Monday, October 8 8:00 amSimchat Torah Celebration Monday, October 8 6:30-8:30 pmIce Cream Social Monday, October 8 following servicesSimchat Torah Shacharit Tuesday, October 9 8:00 am* All services Sukkot thru Simchat Torah and Shabbats open to the community.

L’Shanah Tovah Tikateivu!From our Board, President Matt Burton, Rabbi Ben Sendrow,and our membership at Congregation Shaarey Tefilla, wishing

you and all your loved ones a Healthy, Sweet, and Good New Year!

From our newborns to our seniors, we are a family! We’d love to have you join us!

Call us for more information regarding services, seats, and membership.3085 W. 116th Street, Carmel, IN 46032

(317) 733-2169 • office@shaareytefilla.org • www.shaareytefilla.org

The Book of LifeBY RABBI BRIAN BESSER

HighHolidays

EVENTS(continued from page 4)

Better Living”will be held at IndianapolisHebrew Congregation.

Rabbi Arthur Green, Scholar inresidence in Bloomington, Ind.

Rabbi Arthur Green, Ph.D., will bescholar in residence for the weekendbeginning Jan. 18, 2013. Rabbi Green is recognized as one of the world’s preeminent authorities on Jewish thoughtand spirituality. In addition to his HebrewCollege Rabbinical School role as Rector,he serves as Irving Brudnick Professor ofPhilosophy and Religion at HebrewCollege and is Professor Emeritus atBrandeis University. Previously, he taughtat the University of Pennsylvania and theReconstructionist Rabbinical College,where he served as Dean and Presidentfrom 1984 to 1993. One of the purposes ofhis trip to Bloomington is to help installRabbi Brian Besser, the new rabbi atCongregation Beth Shalom. AAAA

j i

SIMCHAS(continued from page 2)

Temple Shir Tivka in Wayland, Mass.Leslie Michelle Gubitz, also a product of

the FWCS Magnet school program, andyounger sister of Jennifer graduated fromIndiana University with a Bachelor of Artsdegree in Jewish studies and biologicalstudies. Upon graduation, Leslie will joinTeach for America as a corps member,teaching in St. Louis. She will spend the summer in St. Louis and Chicagoattending TFA training before assumingher role as a science teacher in the St.Louis school system.

Jennifer and Leslie are the grand-daughters of Morris and Carol Schwartz,of blessed memory, of Indianapolis.Among other activities, Carol sang in thechoir at Congregation Beth-El Zedeck for many years. AAAA

j i (see Besser, page 14)

8 The Jewish Post & Opinion – IN September 26, 2012

Shana TovaTizku leshanim rabbot

Best wishes, good health and happiness to the entireCommunity for the coming year

Rabbi Eytan Cowen and the Etz Chaim Congregation

Western Wall and it’s surrounding religiousneighborhood. Through the strokes of hisbrush, Levin has captured the residents ofJerusalem’s ultra-Orthodox neighborhoodof Mea Shearim, Jewish attributes, andpeople at the Western Wall, one of Judaismmost holy places.

The artist’s new vision of a VeniceCarnival takes a completely uniqueapproach and presents the viewer with alavish and most prominent feature ofVenetian Carnival – the Mask.

The earlier paintings from the “Mask collection” were introduced in 2002 inVenice and were awarded with a scholarship to the Venice Academy of Artto support the artist’s continuing artisticdevelopment and enable him to devotesubstantial time to the creation of new work.

In 2007 Levin received the Medal Awardfor the Contribution to the Judaic Art fromthe Knesset. AAAA

COVER(continued from page 2)

as an artist and studies new techniqueswith Professor Baruch Elron who was theChairman of Israel Artist Association.

His main painting styles are Surrealismand Realism – featuring a range of worksin oil, acrylic, pencil, charcoal, and temperapaints – practicing the original manner of16th century technique, which is the multilayered use of tempera and oil (nobrush strokes).

Artworks of Levin are admired worldwideand were purchased for numerous private,corporate, and institutional collections inthe United States, Israel, France, Italy,Ukraine, Switzerland, and Belgium.This young artist, who just turned thirtyyears old, was directly acknowledged bymany influential figures including actorand producer Richard Gere, Madonna,Canadian Jazz player Oscar Peterson andformer president of Israel Ezer Weizman.

After serving 3 years in the Israeli Army,in 1997 Levin entered the industrial andweb design program which was a greatbenefit to his artwork.

He is currently working on two themes:“Tradition of Jewish Heritage”and “Venicethrough the mask’s eyes”.

“Tradition of Jewish Heritage” is a collection of works of Jerusalem’s holy

Another successful Etz Chaim Bake Salewas held on Sept. 9.

Simon WiesenthalCenter announcesnew MidwestRegional Director

Alison Pure-Slovin joined the SimonWiesenthal Center (SWC) professionalstaff as Midwest Regional Director inChicago on Aug. 27, 2012. Her emailaddress there will beaslovin@Wiesenthal.com.

The mission of SWC isto work toward combatinganti-Semitism and defendIsrael. They also have anAcademy-Award winningMoriah Films division that produces filmson epic events of recent Jewish history as well as extraordinary Museums ofTolerance in Los Angeles, New York andsoon to be built in Jerusalem, which promote from our history – tolerance,understanding and human dignity.

The SWC had an office in Chicagowhich was closed about 20 years ago. TheCenter’s Midwest constituency has grown considerably in the last two decades andPure-Slovin will lead the effort to servethem directly. AAAA

September 26, 2012 The Jewish Post & Opinion – IN 9

ObituariesAllan David Khitlik, 31, died Aug. 9,

2012. He was born Nov. 25, 1980.He attended North Central High Schooland graduated from BocaCiega High School inGulfport, Fla. He attendedSt. Petersburg College.

He is survived by histhree children Natasha,Tatiana, and Alec who livein St. Petersburg, Fla., his father TsalyaKhitlik, owner of Sasha’s Watch andJewelry Repair in Broad Ripple, and older brother Eddie Khitlik. Memorialcontributions may be made toCongregation Beth-El Zedeck or theJewish Community Center.

Hortense Cohen, 96, of Brookline,Mass., died August 20, 2012. She was bornin Cleveland on Nov. 6, 1915 to Georgeand Bertha Weiss. She is survived by herdaughter, Marcia Wright. Hortense waspreceded in death by her husband,Charles Philip Cohen. A graveside servicewas held Aug. 23 in the IndianapolisHebrew Cemetery South. Arrangementsentrusted to Aaron-Ruben-NelsonMortuary.

Brittney Ann Wolinsky, 19, diedAug. 23, 2012. She was abeautiful girl, loved by all.She will be greatly missed.She was laid to rest in thepresence of her family.

For those who wish tohonor the life of Brittney, amemorial fund has been established in hername at “Friends of the Family Endowment,”Families First, 615 North Alabama, Ste.320, Indianapolis, IN 46204. Friends mayshare a note, prayer or memory with thefamily by visiting: www.arnmortuary.com.Arrangements entrusted to Aaron-Ruben-Nelson Mortuary.

Sheldon Siegel, 83,, Dean Emeritusof the IU School of Social Work died Aug.26 from complications of COPD. He wasborn in Detroit, Mich., on Sept. 22, 1928 toAnna and Sam Siegel. He is survived by

his wife of 56 years,Natalie; his sons, Daniel,Eli (Mary Smith) andMatthew (Deborah Caul)and grandchildren, Adahand Nathan and 8 niecesand nephews. He waspreceded in death by his sisters, Sarah andShirley and his brother Albert.

We honor his dedication to and his loveof family and delight in his grandchildren.He will be remembered as always puttingfamily first and his caring, open andaccepting nature. He had a lifelong passion for social justice, and a great loveof theatre and world travel.

At IUSSW Dr. Siegel increased thediversity of both faculty and students andestablished the PhD program at theschool. Prior to his appointment as Deanat IUSSW, Sheldon served as Director ofthe School of Social Work at the Universityof Cincinnati and Director of Admissionsat the University of Michigan’s School ofSocial Work. He had a lifelong interest ingerontology serving on the University ofMichigan’s Institute of Gerontology, theUniversity of Cincinnati’s Committee onAging and in 1985 chairing a Task Force onthe Mental Health needs of olderHoosiers. He served as President of theCouncil of International Programs from1991–1995 and was on the board ofCICOA from 1997–2004, serving as president of that board from 2000–2002.

Memorial services were held on Aug. 29,2012 at Aaron-Ruben-Nelson Mortuary.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributionsmay be made to the Sheldon and Natalie Siegel Scholarship Fund c/o IUFoundation, PO Box 500, Bloomington, IN47402 or the charity of your choice.Friends may leave a message of condolence for the family by visitingwww.arnmortuary.com

Rebecca Levin, 95, died in Columbus,Ohio on Aug. 26, 2012. She was bornMarch 30, 1917. Becky was the wife of the

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EDITORIAL(continued from page 3)

New York who was the executive editorand vice president of this newspaper from1953–1983 wrote the following on thesubject. This is another creative way tohelp one realize what he or she is doing bynot practicing forgiveness.

“Reb Zalman Schachter-Shalomi teachesthat when one holds a grudge, it is asthough you are holding the person againstwhom you have the grudge in jail. But ifyou are holding the person in jail, you arethe jailor and have to sit in jail, keepingyour prisoner there. And you will have to remain in that jail so long as you keepthe grudge. So drop the grudge and letyourself out of prison.”

In Finding a Way to Forgive from a seriescalled Life Lights (brief essays on wholenessand healing), published by Jewish Lightsand written by Rabbi David Wolpe, hewrites: “We forgive, in part, because weneed forgiveness. Every one of us hasbruised another, betrayed and ill-treatedeven those whom we love. Can any marriage or any friendship endure without constant forgiveness? What wehope for in the world we must create. Wecannot have what we will not give.”

He suggests developing strategies andpractices of forgiveness.“Lifting ourselvesout of the here-and-now can give us atruer perspective on our predicament. Willthis insult matter in 30 years, or even in 30days? If you could fly and take an eagle’sview of the crisis, would it still matter somuch? In short, is what happened asgrievous as it seems?

“Judaism teaches those who have donewrong to seek forgiveness. It mandatesthat the offenders must sincerely ask pardon and seek to correct the wrongsthey have done. But it also teaches thatafter a certain point – three sincere apologies, an attempt at restitution, and aclear indication that the person haschanged – it becomes the obligation of thewronged party to forgive.”

Rabbi Wolpe advises us to take heart,take time, and begin the journey.“Forgiveness takes time. Forgiving is aprocess we go through to attain the stateof forgiveness. There will be anger andbacksliding. But like all true journeys, wecannot now exactly imagine where we willend up once we have taken the journey.To forgive another is to open up a newpathway in your spirit.”

Seeking and granting forgiveness is amajor focus for Jews at this time year.Even though it is better to resolve thesesituations as soon as possible after they takeplace – there is a prayer for forgiveness inthe daily Amidah – sometimes it is a littleeasier when everyone else is engaged in

(see Obituaries, page 10)

j i the same activity.

Therefore lighten up by emptying thatheavy basket off your shoulders andreleasing yourself from prison by askingfor forgiveness from those you have hurtand granting forgiveness to those whohave hurt you. Then we can all enter intothe New Year with a clean slate.

Jennie Cohen, September 26, 2012.(Reprinted from 9-9-09.) AAAA

10 The Jewish Post & Opinion – IN September 26, 2012

A JEA blast from the pastThe Jewish Post & Opinion recently

received this program guide in the mailfrom N. William Weinstein. It is from anevent on May 27, 1962 at the JewishEducational Association (JEA) inIndianapolis (currently called the Bureauof Jewish Education – BJE). It was titled YomHa-Moreh (Teacher’s Day). The messagefrom Weinstein said: “Memorabilia – ‘oldstuff’can be fun! So spend a few momentswith this 50 years ago program, and I’ll betyou will feel a giggle coming on! Enjoy!”

We took Bill’s advice one step furtherand found this photo from the event in theJune 8, 1962 issue of this newspaper.

Thank you, Bill! – who was the chairmanof this event and who’s daughter Rachel gavethe closing prayer. ~Editor AAAA

OBITUARIES(continued from page 9)

late Harry,“Gershie”Levin. She is survivedby her beloved sister, Fannie Ozan and hernephews and nieces. She was laid to restnext to Gershie in Shara Tefillah Cemetery.Funeral services were on Aug. 28, 2012 atAaron-Ruben-Nelson Mortuary. RabbiLewis Weiss officiated.

Suzanne Beth Centman Miller, 45,life-long resident of Indianapolis, diedsuddenly on Sept. 17, 2012. She was a1985 graduate of North Central HighSchool and attended University of Arizonaand IU. She spent her career in restaurantmanagement overseeing The Cooker andPF Chang among others.

She was a long time member ofIndianapolis Hebrew Congregation (IHC)and had been active in youth sports at theJewish Community Center.

Suzanne will be deeply and forevermissed by those that loved and knew her.Survivors include her beloved family:husband,Tim Miller; step children; Austin,Brooke and Hannah; her mother andstep-father, Jane and Charles Butcher;aunts, Ronnie Frank and Ronna Sherman;cousins, Joel Frank, Laurie Frank, RisaFrank, Barbara Rooney and Jeff Sherman.Her father, Carl, preceded her in death.

Funeral services were at Aaron-Ruben-Nelson Mortuary on Thurs., Sept. 20.Burial followed in Indianapolis HebrewNorth Cemetery. Memorial contributionsmay be made to IHC. Friends may leave amessage of condolence for the family atwww.arnmortuary.com. AAAA

Shown at the Teachers’ Day celebration are (left to right) students Jennie Cohen,Rosalie Simon, Deborah Passo, Debra Kempler, Susan Prince, Ruth Siegel, and SharonDavis, with teachers Gerhard Posner, Rachel Max, Arieh Lor, and Gideon Lapushin.

September 26, 2012 The Jewish Post & Opinion – IN 11

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De Tocqueville, the insightful Frenchmanwho in the 1830’s wrote about Americansociety, remarked that democracy wouldfail if Americans didn’t develop certain“Habits of the Heart.” In his new book,Healing the Heart of Democracy, ParkerPalmer calls these “Habits” the “inwardand invisible infrastructure of democracy.”They are ways of receiving, interpretingand responding to experiences by engagingour intellect, our emotions, our sense ofmeaning and purpose. He speaks of a politics of the broken-hearted in whichour shared concerns can open us to buildbridges of connections.

The Jewish High Holy Days invite us todevelop such “Habits of the Heart” – tounderstand we are all in this together, torespect differences, to disagree in life-affirming ways, to know that our voice canmake a difference, and that we have the

capacity to strengthen community. This isa time for turning – to turn to one anotherin dialogue, to develop appreciation for a“commonwealth” that places dignity andrespect above privatism, consumerism,violence and greed.

A core component of the High HolyDays prayers of confession deal with theways we use language, whether to bless orto curse, to upbuild or to denigrate, topraise or malign, to break or to make whole.May the words of our mouths express our best hopes and open our hearts to one another for a year of wholeness andhealing, renewal and peace.

Mazel Tov to the Rabbis Sasso who havebeen senior rabbis of Congregation Beth-ElZedeck in Indianapolis for 35 years, and toSandy whose newest children’s book, TheShema in the Mezuzah: Listening to EachOther has just been published. AAAA

put up on the doorpost of her new house.She stops to tell Annie about a townwhere the people disagreed so much onhow to put up the mezuzah on theirdoors, they shouted and argued loudlyabout it. Then they consulted the rabbiwho had a very interesting reply to them.

Children ages 3 to 6 will enjoy this serious, yet lively story of how people whodisagree can learn to compromise. It alsoteaches young children about God, themezuzah, and living with each other.

Rabbi Sandy E. Sasso was the firstfemale Reconstructionist rabbi and thesecond female to be ordained as a rabbi.When she married a rabbi, she and herhusband became the first rabbinical couple, and she was the first rabbi tobecome a mother.

She and her husband have been rabbisat the Congregation Beth el Zedeck inIndianapolis, Ind. since 1977.

Joani Keller Rothenberg, who also livesin Indianapolis, is a children’s art therapistand mural painter. She created the whimsical, colorful illustrations for this book.

Sybil Kaplan is a journalist, food and featurewriter, and author of nine kosher cookbooks. AAAA

As the Jewish High Holy Days begin,the election season swings into full gearwith the party conventions and thePresidential debates soon to come.Political advertisements pit one candidateagainst the other, focusing less on relevantissues than on personal attacks. The climate is combative and marked by anatmosphere of confrontational and uncivildiscourse. Ideological polarization in ourcountry grows deeper and wider. There islittle incentive to reach consensus.The veryconcept is tantamount to political suicide.The desire for personal advancement andprivate gain takes precedence over thecritical needs of the public welfare and thecivil good. Gaining power takes priorityover solving problems.

We tend to approach disagreements as“either/or” debates that disintegrate intoover-simplification of complex issues.False dichotomies invite hostility and incivility. The results are proving toxic.

Technology worsens the addiction.Faceless communication makes it easier todemonize others. The demand for instan-taneous response does not allow forreflection or for tempering of anger. Civilsociety must operate within the frameworkof cherished liberties. Still, just because wehave the right of free speech, does notmean that everything we think, should besaid; nor that everything we say, should bewritten; nor everything written, publishedor given a public forum. Yet that is whatoften happens on the internet.

Words have power. Biblically the divineact of creation is verbal. Cosmos (order) iscalled into being out of chaos (disorder).The magical expression – abracadabracomes from the Aramaic. It means abra – I will create, kadabra – as I speak. Wordscreate worlds. Unfortunately, our wordsare generating chaos rather than cosmos,tearing us apart rather than bringing us together.

We need fewer split screens of pro/condebates that seek to entertain us and morein- depth and thoughtful analyses thataim educate us. We need to refrain fromcharacter assassination and engage inissues illumination. We need our candi-dates and elected politicians to do less forthe sake of partisanship and more for thesake of our commonwealth.

Civility andDemocracy

BY RABBIS

DENNIS C. AND

SANDY E. SASSO

Rabbi Sandy Sassopens anothercharming tale

The Shema in the Mezuzah: Listening toEach Other. By Rabbi Sandy EisenbergSasso. Jewish Lights, $18.99 hardcover,October 2012. Illustrated by Joani KellerRothenberg.

Anyone familiar with children’s bookscan be excited whena new Rabbi SandyEisenberg Sassobook is published.She has written 16 children’s books(if my count is correct) and atleast five books for adults.

Based on a 12thcentury rabbinic debate, this charming talebegins with Annie’s grandmother whodelays baking cookies until the mezuzah is

REVIEWED BY SYBIL KAPLAN

12 The Jewish Post & Opinion – IN September 26, 2012

September 26, 2012 The Jewish Post & Opinion – IN 13

Yiddish speaking friends listen “up”,and let’s speak a little. Not a literaryYiddish, but a common every day one:

1) Geh nisht mit shlechteh chaverim.(Don’t associate with bad friends.)

2) Ess ah bisseleh nor zaul daus zeineppes goot. (Eat a small amount, but besure it is something special.)

3) Zizeye nisht farnotisht. (Don’t be afanatic!)

4) Vaus der mensch lehrent zich ausgait nisht farloren. (Whatever a personlearns never gets lost.)

5) Ah mol iz besser ahz nieh shvaikt.(Sometimes the best answer is none at all.)

6) Ahz meh lehpt der lehpt mehn. (If youlive long enough everything will happen.)

7) Der mensch dahf zach tzoo graytentzoom shtarben, nor meh darf nishtvarten. Ahz der malach ahmauvess hautdein kvitel vet err deer gehfinen. (Weshould prepare ourselves for the inevitabledeath, but don’t sit around waiting for it tohappen. When the angel of death has yourticket, he will find you wherever you are.)

8) Ah zay vee meh lept ahzay shtarptmehn. (The way you live your life is theway you die.)

9) Ahz meh kaucht shane, macht mehnah bissel mere effshare veht imehtzerkumen. (When you’re already cooking,cook a bit more – never can tell whensomeone might drop in.)

10) Ah mol iz besser ahz meh hertnisht ah zay goot. [On her deafness](Some things are better not heard.)

Henya Chaiet was born in 1924 ten daysbefore Passover. Her parents had come toAmerica one week before Passover the yearprior. They spoke only Yiddish in their homeso that is all she spoke until age five whenshe started Kindergarten. She then learnedEnglish, but has always loved Yiddish andspeaks it whenever possible. AAAA

What my clevermother used to say

BY HENYA CHAIET

healthy dating relationships, targetingteens, parents, and college students fromacross southeastern Massachusetts.

Temple Beth El, Traverse City, Mich.: Toconduct a program about young Jewishwomen and their mentors, featuring a film about photojournalist Ruth Gruberand a panel of leading local women innorthern Michigan.

Next Dor STL, St. Louis, Mo.: To createa monthly Rosh Hodesh program forwomen in their 20’s.

Congregation Agudath Israel,Caldwell, N.J.: To conduct a programabout how mainstream media contributesto the under-representation of women inpositions of power and influence.

Solomon Schechter School of Queens,Flushing, N.Y.: To start a Rosh Hodeshprogram for teen girls.

Chapel Hill Kehillah Synagogue,Chapel Hill, N.C.: To implement a well-ness program that advances girl power,health and leadership.

Hillel at Ohio University, Athens,Ohio: To conduct a personal safety, assaultprevention and self-defense workshop foryoung women in the college community.

B’nai Brith Youth Organization, OhioNorthern Region, Beachwood, Ohio: Toenhance its B-Fit program for teenagegirls with workshops about bullying,planning for college and personal finance.

The Jewish Community High Schoolof Gratz College, Melrose Park, Penn.: To use a curriculum that explores theissues surrounding dating and its powerstruggles that can lead to violence withlocal teens.

The Hadassah Foundation is dedicatedto refocusing the priorities of the Jewishcommunity through funding innovativeand creative projects that serve womenand girls from diverse cultural groupswithin Israel and the Jewish community inthe United States. The foundation is aphilanthropic pioneer in the fields of economic security for low-income Israeliwomen and leadership and self-esteemprograms for adolescent Jewish girls andyoung women in the United States. Since2000, the Hadassah Foundation hasawarded grants totaling almost $6 millionto more than 60 nonprofit organizations.

The Hadassah Foundation, founded in1999 by Hadassah, the Women’s ZionistOrganization of America, and this year celebrating its bat mitzvah year, is dedicatedto refocusing the priorities of the Jewish community through innovative and creativefunding for women and girls in the UnitedStates and Israel. For more information,visit www.hadassahfoundation.org.

Founded in 1912, Hadassah is celebratingits 100th year. For more information, visitwww.hadassah.org. AAAA

NEW YORK – To celebrate 13 years ofgrantmaking, the Hadassah Foundationhas awarded 13 mini-grants, in honor of its “bat mitzvah year” of service, toorganizations in 11 states serving Jewishyoung people. The 13 Bat Mitzvah YearMini-Grants support new or expandedprogramming that promotes the physical,spiritual, and emotional well-being ofJewish girls and young women.

The Hadassah Foundation seeks to augment the work of Hadassah, theWomen’s Zionist Organization of America,by improving the status, health and well-being of women and girls in the UnitedStates and Israel.

“We are delighted that this mini-grantprogram will enable so many youth-serving organizations in the Jewish community to create feminist-orientedprogramming,”said Donna Gerson, Chairof the Hadassah Foundation. “This program enables us to reach many newcommunities that normally wouldn’t betouched by the Hadassah Foundation.”

The Hadassah Foundation’s BatMitzvah Year Mini-Grant program impactsall segments of the Jewish community.Recipients of the $500 mini-grants includeorganizations from all major Jewishdenominations, synagogues, day schools,Hillels, a community-based organizationdoing outreach to people in their 20’s, anafter-school high school program, and alocal board of Jewish education.

The following organizations wereawarded Bat Mitzvah Year Mini-Grants:

Shearim Torah High School for Girls,Scottsdale, Ariz.: To conduct a leadershiptraining program for their students.

Bureau of Jewish Education, SanFrancisco, Calif.: To enhance their RoshHodesh programming with yoga instruction.

Temple Kol Tikvah, Woodland Hills,Calif.: To create a female mentorship program, linking teen girls with adultfemale members, based on the teens’potential career interests.

Hillel Foundation at IndianaUniversity, Bloomington, Ind.: To hold a three-part workshop series that promotes self-esteem and healthyliving among young Jewish women.

Congregation Agudath Achim,Taunton,Mass.: To create multiple programs on

IU-BloomingtonHillel awardedHadassah grantMini-Grants to support well-being ofJewish girls, young women. Organizationsserving Jewish youth in 11 states benefitfrom support.

On this date inJewish history

On September 26, 1898The composer

George Gershwin was born.~ From The Jewish Book of Days published by

Hugh Lauter Levin Associates, Inc., New York.

Yiddish forEveryday

14 The Jewish Post & Opinion – IN September 26, 2012

Enid Zwirn was the speaker at theopening meeting of Hadassah on Sept. 9 atthe Arthur M. Glick JCC. She is a fascinatingperson, a very skilled and interesting publicspeaker. “Public Health:Who Needs It?” was thetopic of her talk. The following are highlightsfrom her speech.

The mission of Public Health is to promote physical and mental health andprevent disease, injury and disability; thevision of public health professionals is thedevelopment of healthy people in healthycommunities. Public health has three corefunctions – assessment, policy developmentand assurance – and ten essential servicesplus research and management functions.

Some of public health’s essential servicesare monitoring health; diagnosing andinvestigating disease; informing, educating,and empowering the public; mobilizingcommunity partnerships; developing policies; enforcing laws; providing care;assuring a competent workforce; evaluationand research. Public Health works througheducation, engineering and enforcementto affect change.

Primary prevention efforts, taking placewhen individuals are healthy includehealth promotion and disease prevention.Secondary prevention, when there ispathology, includes early detectionthrough screening and early care. Oncethe disease has been treated, tertiary prevention efforts include rehabilitationand chronic disease management.

Seventeen percent of the gross domesticproduct (GDP) in this country is currentlyspent on health care. The GDP is the market value of all officially recognizedfinal goods and services produced within acountry in a given period. Fifty years agoonly 4% of the GDP was spent on health

Hadassah meetingon Public Health

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BESSER(continued from page 7)

Rather,“therefore, choose life”(Deuteronomy30:19), the ringing rejoinder of the HighHolidays, means: choose willingness tolearn over closed-mindedness, choosechange over complacency, and choosegrowth over stagnation.

Leshanah tovah tikateivu. May you bewritten – may we write ourselves – in theBook of Life.

Rabbi Brian Besser is the new rabbi atCongregation Beth Shalom in Bloomington, Ind. AAAA

Why FaithMattersBY RABBI DAVID WOLPE

Sleeves much longer than their armswere a mark of privilege of the Czars,showing they did not work, so today wetalk about “rolling up our sleeves.’ Theseweeks of self-examination are the time ofyear to roll up the sleeves of our souls, andput them to work. ~ 9-11-12

These are the ten days of repentance,self-examination, reflection and prayer.May we be honest with ourselves,sorrowful for our wrongs, resolved in ourbetterment and confident in God’s love.May we feel forgiven. ~ 9-19-12

From Facebook posts of Rabbi Wolpe.Wolpe is the senior rabbi of Temple Sinai inL.A., and author of Why Faith Matters. AAAA

care and the GDP was a much smalleramount of money.

The beneficial results of the money spentare longer life spans and major technologicaladvances such as dialysis, joint replacementand organ transplantation. However,compared to other industrialized nationswe have a high infant and child mortalityrate, more obesity and relatively low lifeexpectancy. Also 50 million Americanshave no health insurance and medical debtaccounts for 46% of all personal bankruptcies.

Locally our health is not as good as itcould be. Hoosiers are the 4th highest inthe nation in the percent of people whosmoke. We rank 11th highest in the percent of adults who report being physically inactive, and 15th highest in thepercent of adults who are obese.

The subject of immunizations arose andZwirn said that when a community hasreached a level of 85% immunity to a certain disease, we can comfortably allowcertain individuals to remain unimmunized.At that level the causative organism cannot take hold and remain within thatpopulation. This means that perhapsinfants with allergies or children who arereceiving chemotherapy might be exemptedfrom mandatory immunizations. Difficultiesarise in populations when the immunizationlevels dip below 85% and that is why it isso important that surveillance activitiesactively monitor immunization levels.

Some helpful resources are the: WorldHealth Organization, United States PublicHealth Service, Centers for DiseaseControl, Indiana State Board of Healthand Marion County Board of Health.

In the question and answer period afterthe talk one person asked if we should beconcerned about the West Nile Virus thathas claimed the lives a few people inIndiana. Zwirn gave suggestions on howto prevent being bitten by mosquitoes that spread the disease. She encouragedattendees to be cautious around stagnantwater, especially during dawn and dusk,and wear clothing that covers most of theskin, such as long-sleeved shirts and long

pants. The use of insect repellants was also discussed.

A large turnout for this opening meetingwas stimulating especially since everyonetook an interest in Zwirn’s informativetalk. Afterward she answered severalquestions on a variety of health topicsincluding the one mentioned above. AAAA

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delivered to the Western Wall.The return of “A Blessing to One

Another” to Cincinnati is a collaborativeeffort of Xavier University, Hebrew UnionCollege-Jewish Institute of Religion,The Jewish Foundation of Cincinnati,The Jewish Federation of Cincinnati, theJewish Community Relations Council(JCRC), The Center for Holocaust andHumanity Education, The Archdiocese ofCincinnati and the Skirball Museum.

“A Blessing to One Other: Pope JohnPaul II & The Jewish People”will be at theSkirball Museum on the campus of

Hebrew Union Campus-Jewish Instituteof Religion, 3101 Clifton Avenue,Cincinnati, from Sept.10 through Dec. 31,2012. Admission is free, but donations areencouraged. The museum will be open tothe public Monday, Thursday and Friday, 9a.m. to 4 p.m.; Tuesday and Wednesday, 9a.m. to 8 p.m.; Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m. (Themuseum will be closed on Saturdays.)Tours for schools, synagogues, churchesand other groups will be available Mondaythrough Friday, 9 to noon. For moredetails, please call 513/487-3053 or visithucinci.org. AAAA

In October 2004, representatives fromXavier University, Hillel of Cincinnati andThe Shtetl Foundation met with Pope JohnPaul II to ask his blessing for an exhibitiondocumenting his life-long affirming relationship with the Jewish people, the firstexhibition on the subject ever assembled.

That blessing was given and the exhibit,“A Blessing to One Another: Pope JohnPaul II and the Jewish People” opened atXavier University on May 18, 2005, whichwould have been Pope John Paul II’s 85thbirthday. From there it has traveled to 17venues around the United States, where ithas been seen by more than 800,000 andhad positive impact on Christian-Jewishrelations in each of those communities.

The exhibit will make one last visit toCincinnati before beginning a Europeantour in 2013. It will be the opening exhibit at the Museum of the History ofPolish Jews in Warsaw, which is now completing construction. From there, theplans are for it to travel through Poland,Germany, Austria, Italy and France.Discussions are underway for the exhibitto also go to Israel in 2013.

In Cincinnati, the exhibit will openSeptember 10 at the Skirball Museum onthe Cincinnati campus of Hebrew UnionCollege-Jewish Institute of Religion.

The 2,200 square-foot exhibit takes itsname from the pope’s 1993 letter commemorating the 50th anniversary ofthe Warsaw Ghetto uprising: “AsChristians and Jews, following the example of the faith of Abraham, we are called to be a blessing to the world.This is the common task awaiting us. It istherefore necessary for us, Christians andJews, to be first a blessing to one another.”

Dr. James Buchanan, Rabbi Abie Ingberand Dr. William Madges were the threeprincipals in the creation of the exhibit.

Visitors will experience a multi-mediawalk through the 20th century throughthe eyes and experiences of Pope JohnPaul II from his childhood in Wadowice,Poland, his experience of the World War IIand the Holocaust, and his years as ayoung priest in Krakow and his Papacy. Atthe end of the exhibit there is a replica ofa part of the Western Wall where visitorsare invited to insert their own prayer on theback of a replica of the prayer that PopeJohn Paul II inserted in the Wall during hishistoric trip to Israel in 2000.These prayersare taken, unread, to Jerusalem and placedin the real Western Wall. To date, morethan 80,000 prayers have been hand

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BLOOMINGTON, IN — The JewishTheatre of Bloomington announces fourupcoming performances of Out of OurFathers’ House. to raise the curtain of its2012-13 season. This play is based on EveMerriam’s book Growing Up Female inAmerica and includes music drawn from thediaries, journals, and letters of six Americanwomen who sought independence duringthe 19th century. The women depicted in the play include Dr. Anna HowardShaw, Maria Mitchell, Elizabeth Southgate Bowne, Elizabeth GertrudeStern, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and“Mother”Mary Jones.

Out of Our Fathers’ House is a compelling story of the human struggleagainst repression and self-determination.It speaks to all those who experiencerepression in any form while highlightingthe distress, the hurt, the determination,and triumphs of six women born during atime when women were expected to dolittle more than marry and raise a family.These women are shining examples ofwomen who for the most part, did notshed or disparage their traditional roles aswives and mothers, but who were alsolooking for more to life, for freedom fromsociety’s limited expectations for women,and who had the dreams, the ambition,and stamina to emerge “out of theirfathers’house.”

The Jewish Theatre of Bloomington’sproduction stars three prominent localactresses, Diane Kondrat, Martha Jacobs,and Gail Bray and marks one of Kondrat’sfinal appearances on the Bloomingtonstage before she moves to the PacificNorthwest. The play’s director is DarrellAnn Stone. Music accompanying the playwill be performed by Anne Hurley andLara Weaver.

Jewish Theatre ofBloomington opens’12-’13 season with Outof Our Fathers’ House

Evening performances are scheduled for Wed., Oct. 24; Thurs., Oct. 25; and Sat.,Oct. 26, at 7:30 p.m. A matinée performanceis scheduled for Sun., Oct. 28, at 2:00 p.m.All performances are at the BloomingtonPlaywrights Project, 107 West 9th Street.Tickets will be available at the Buskirk-Chumley Theatre Box Office, or online atwww.bctboxoffice.com beginning Oct. 1.

The Jewish Theatre of Bloomington isdeeply committed to both Judaism and thetheatre. It is our intent to produce works thatarise from or reflect the Jewish experience,

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but that also focus on universal issues ofthe human condition and that are accessibleto a diverse audience. The genre of Jewishtheatre is a vibrant performing arts experience with a rich and long standinginternational history! While Jewish theatresexist in numerous cities across the UnitedStates and worldwide, the Jewish Theatreof Bloomington proudly takes its place asthe only one of its kind located in Indiana.

For more information about the theatreand Out of Our Fathers’ House, please visitwww.jewishtheatrebloomington.org. AAAA

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