The current March/April issue of Adbusters magazine features a lead-in piece by editor Kalle Lasn titled, \”Why won\’t anyone say they are Jewish?\” In it, Lasn points out the fact that of the 50 or so neocons influencing United States diplomatic and defense policy either within government or in media and think tanks, about half are Jewish.
The boychick is Etan G, who calls himself The Jewish Rapper and whose CD, \”South Side of the Synagogue,\” features songs such as \”Yo Yo Yarmulke\” and \”Hava Na Wha?\” Even so, it\’s startling when he ushers a visitor into a living room that appears to be decorated by the set dressers from both \”Yentl\” and \”Shaft.\”
This year, the family is invited to an \”after-the-Purim-carnival buffet\” inspired by the elaborate banquets that were served in biblical days. One long table in the dining room will be set for all the guests, and our collection of Purim groggers (noisemakers) will be arranged at each place setting for everyone to use during the retelling of the Purim story.
The facility still under construction in Irvine is expansive and includes an infant-care facility, preschool, fitness center and gymnasium large enough to accommodate two basketball games. There are areas designated for workout classes, adult education and massage. When completed, there will be lockers for swimmers, space for an art exhibit, playground and Holocaust memorial.
With entrée in both spheres and his own bent for community involvement, Joel Landau\’s influence is felt far beyond Beth Jacob, which was his first full time pulpit 11 years ago.
\”When they hear Blanche\’s story, they get it,\” Tenaya Wallace said. \”She was so sick; it was an absolute transformation.\”
Seventeen-year-old Megan Knofsky keeps alive her sibling\’s memory by sustaining a teen support group that raises money for research to find a cure for cystic fibrosis, the genetic disorder that affects 30,000 people and claimed her sister, Sarah, in 1997.
At a time when the world shunned them, an estimated 20,000 Jewish refugees from Russia, Germany, Austria and elsewhere made their way to Shanghai before World War II.
The calendar is doing for Purim this year what Emeril suggests is good for any recipe: Kick it up a notch.
A pilot academy that would give adult students in Orange County certificates of graduation for completing three years of Jewish study expects to accept its first students in September.
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