Judaism in Poland
I want to thank and congratulate you for again getting it right (“It’s Warsaw, Jake,” Oct. 18). It’s amazing what happens when power and authority are motivators. Since the Twarda has dealt with only the Orthodox community under Rabbi Michael Schudrich for years, it’s an uphill dynamic to move the pendulum at all or at least incrementally. Protectionism at its worst has allowed the selling off of valuable resources, but times may be changing with articles like this and the tireless effort of Severyn Ashkenazy, Rabbi Dov Beliak and a few others. Terrific insight, thanks.
Barbara Yaroslavsky via e-mail
The future of our people is in danger if we keep silent when such massive corruption is exposed.
Gil Nativ via jewishjournal.com
The Changing Face of Judaism
In David Suissa’s column “Can Common Sense Save Judaism” (Oct. 11), he states that Judaism in America is in trouble. I must tell you, with all due respect to the excellent job the Jewish Journal does in addressing the various issues and concerns of the Jewish community in Southern California, that I find both the ancient and recent reportage of this kind a lot of paranoid hooey.
I grew up in politically conservative Orange County in the early 1960s, at a time when Orange County’s residents were not exactly welcoming of Jews, and there were only two Jewish synagogues in the entire county. Now, they dot the map there, and I have no doubt that every one of them was packed to the gills on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. I accompanied my parents to their synagogue there for High Holy Days and took note of Hispanic, Korean and Japanese converts to our faith. Surely, that must tell you something. I would not be surprised if what I observed played out all over our nation in spite of intermarriage and other factors that Jewish pundits continue to cite.
Marc Yablonka, Burbank
A Plea for Funds to Repair Cemetery Damage
In May, the Journal printed articles describing the destruction of graves at Mount Zion Cemetery, one of the oldest burial sites in Los Angeles. At the time, three men donated $285,000 of the estimated $750,000 needed.
In “Funds Needed for Mt. Zion Gravesites” (Oct. 11) it states they have only raised $300,000. In this city of hundreds of thousands of Jews, only an additional $15,000 has been contributed to this important cause. This is shameful and an embarrassment.
Please donate at RestoreMtZion.com so Mount Zion Cemetery can be a place of peace and rest for those buried there.
Ilene Karpman, Woodland Hills
Why Marry Young?
Dennis Prager’s column on the advantages of early marriage (“Marry Young,” Oct. 11) constitutes a powerful argument for same-sex marriage. It is a positive gain for the entire community when all couples experience the benefits of marriage that Prager enumerates: accelerated emotional maturity, responsibility, hard work, career success and a stable home life.
Donald Bing, Moorpark
Religious Disconnect
Dennis Prager is right again.
In the article on Erica Hooper by Kylie Jane Wakefield (Conversion, Oct. 11), Wakefield writes: “Hooper, 30, grew up in East Los Angeles in a Catholic home. She attended Catholic school and considered herself religious — that is, until she went to college.
“ ‘There was this disconnect between things I learned in high school and the questions I asked as I got older,’ she said. ‘I didn’t feel like I was getting answers to certain things, and it made me feel disconnected from religion.’ ”
That is a perfect example of what Prager has written about in the past: Our education system and our colleges are indoctrination centers designed to discredit religion and morality in order to advance their leftist agendas.
Please ask Dennis to write more on this subject.
Mike Mains via e-mail
Heartfelt
Thank you for sharing such a heartfelt and beautifully written piece about your dear son (“A Mother’s Prayer,” Oct. 18). This makes me proud to work in clinical research.
Juliet Reiter via jewishjournal.com
‘Monday’ Cookbook Great Every Day
I have been cooking nonstop with this cookbook [“Monday Morning Cooking Club: The Food, The Stories, The Sisterhood”] since I purchased it at the book signing at Joan’s on Third a few weeks ago (“Australia’s Jewish Cooking Club,” Oct. 18). Everything I have made has gotten five stars in our house! This is a great go-to cookbook for everyday as well as Shabbat recipes. I have the orange cake in the oven right now!
Wendy Perla Klier via jewishjournal.com
correction
In “Who Decides Who’s Hungry” (Sept. 27), the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program passed the House of Representatives on Sept. 19.
correction
An article about Cantor Joel Pressman (“Unafraid of Death, Cantor Offers a Philosophical Love Fest,” Oct. 4) mistakenly reported that a cover story on Pressman had appeared in the Beverly Hills Courier. It was the Beverly Hills Weekly that published the story.
More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.