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Jewish Journal

Connect. Inform. Inspire.

August 26, 2016

Rosner’s Torah-Talk: Parashat Ekev with Rabbi Michael Beals

Leave a Comment / News, Rosner's Video, Videos, Worldwide /

Our guest this week is Rabbi Michael Beals, leader of Congregation Beth Shalom in Wilmington, Delaware. Rabbi Beals was ordained at the Jewish Theological Seminary. He is also a graduate of the University of Judaism in Los Angeles (MA Hebrew Letters), of American University in Washington DC (MA International Relations), and of the University of California at Berkeley (BA Political Science). He received the Raoul Wallenberg Fellowship at Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Rabbi Beals, who has served Congregation Beth Shalom for 11 years, has also worked in a variety of roles from serving as a management analyst developing multi-cultural training programs to working with young and old in programs of music therapy, Shabbat programming, and providing pastoral counseling and support to the sick and elderly and to the families that support them.

In this Week's Torah Portion – Parashat Ekev (Deuteronomy 7:12-11:25) – Moses continues his address to the people of Israel, promising them that they will prosper in the land of Israel if they obey God's commandments. He reminds them of their sins, but stresses God's forgiveness. Moses describes the land of Israel to the people, demands that they destroy the idols of its former dwellers, and warns them of thinking that their power and might, rather than the lord, have gotten them their wealth. Our discussion focuses on the word Ekev, on the many associations it raises, and on the idea of severing historically significant passages from the Jewish prayer book.

Our Past discussions of Parashat Ekev:

Rabbi William Hamilton on Moses' retelling of the Golden Calf story and on the reasons behind God's forgivness toward the people of Israel.

Rabbi Robert Dobrusin on the importance of allowing our faith to grow with us and adapt to different circumstances in our lives

Rabbi Brad Hirschfield on the conditional and unconditional aspects of God’s covenant with Israel

Rosner’s Torah-Talk: Parashat Ekev with Rabbi Michael Beals Read More »

French court overturns burkini ban

Leave a Comment / Is Featured?, Lead Story, Mobile, Mobile-Homepage, News, Worldwide /

A little over one week after at least 30 French municipalities imposed regulations that banned wearing full-body swimsuits favored by Muslim women, the country’s highest administrative court overturned the bans, calling them unconstitutional.

The French Council of State passed its ruling Friday, following a polarizing debate about the burkini swimsuit in a divided France, which is struggling to balance freedom of worship with its attachment to other liberal values — including the fight against radical Islam and the oppression of women.

Defended by French Prime Minister Manuel Valls as a countermeasure against “a political project … to perpetuate female servitude,” the burkini ban and its enforcement have angered millions of Frenchmen who regard it as a gross infringement into the private realm and unwarranted discrimination toward Muslims.

The ruling by the court was specific to the Riviera town of Villeneuve-Loubet, but the decision is expected to set a legal precedent for the 30 or so resort towns that have issued similar decrees. 
Lawyers for two human rights groups challenged the legality of the ban, saying it infringed basic freedoms and that the towns’ mayors have far overstepped their powers by dictating what women can and can’t wear on beaches.

[RELATED: Ban the burkini?]

The mainstream representative organs of French Jewry have remained uncharacteristically silent on the burkini issue even as the Board of Deputies of British Jews complained Wednesday about reports of “police harassment” of Muslim swimmers in Nice. It was an unusual move for the board, which rarely comments on foreign issues without consulting the relevant Jewish communities.

A senior rabbi, Moshe Sebbag of the Grand Synagogue of Paris, acknowledged in an interview with JTA on Tuesday the reluctance of other French Jewish leaders to speak out on the issue.

“It’s a complicated subject and both sides have compelling arguments,” Sebbag said, adding that the French state is a “secular country with freedom of religion.”

But Sebbag ultimately defended the bans, whose supporters, he said, “understand today there’s a religious war, a takeover of the secular establishment of the French republic, and this is what they find unacceptable.”

Asked if he agrees with the burkini bans, he said: “Yes, because you see that going with it [a burkini] is not innocent, it’s sending a message.”

French court overturns burkini ban Read More »

The New California Assisted Suicide Law

Leave a Comment / Blogs /

“To die: to sleep;
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to, 'tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish'd.”
— Hamlet, Shakespeare

The California End of Life Options Act became effective in June. Before we can understand what the new law permits and how it might change the care of dying patients, we have to understand a little about end of life care prior to this development.

Suffering and dying is not a recent problem. Much has been thought and written about the alleviation of suffering and the medical care of dying patients. This is a well established topic in medical ethics that has been largely reflected in the relevant laws in many states.

So let’s imagine that we are quite ill, and that the pain and debility caused by our illness make us believe that death is preferable to our current state. Prior to the new law, what options were available to us?

One option is refusal of some medical care. This option is based on the general ethical principle of autonomy, which states that an informed patient who is able to make decisions may refuse any care, including life-saving care. So in our example, we may refuse life-saving antibiotics in the event of an overwhelming infection. We may choose not to be hospitalized the next time we are critically ill. We may decide ahead of time that if our breathing or heart were to stop, we would forego artificial respiration or CPR. This general approach allows patients to declare that they are unwilling to undergo some interventions even if these are necessary to prolong their lives.

In practical terms this is done through a conversation between a patient and her physician. These decisions can be formalized in various ways for communication with other doctors and other facilities. A standard way to document these decisions is the “>Cedars-Sinai Health System and of “But when you talk about destruction
Don't you know that you can count me out”
— Revolution, The Beatles

Learn more:

“>CA Aid-in-Dying Law (Cedars Sinai-Health System)
The New California Assisted Suicide Law Read More »

There’s Gold in Them Thar Hills – A Poem for Parsha Eikev

Leave a Comment / Blogs /

Because we’re coming to the end of a history that’s not provable.
Because we only get to enter this land because it was promised

to our fore-parents and not because we deserve it. Because of the
long list of reasons why we don’t deserve it. The complaining, the

calf. Did you know that calf was ground to golden dust and tossed
into a brook? Because our mistake became a gold-rush for future

middle-easterners. Because of all that. Because we’re so used to
manna raining out of the sky and now we’ll need to learn to find

food in a conventional manner. Because milk and honey are meant
to flow together. Try it one night – heated up in a pot, poured in your

favorite mug, then down your throat. Because of that comfort.
Because these words I teach to my children I sometimes take literally,

and can only think of a new neighborhood where milk comes out of
the faucets and the rivers are nothing but honey, and I don’t know

how I’d navigate that, and the unwanted attention from bears.
Because we should love our neighbors as ourselves and welcome

the stranger into our tent, except for the Canaanites, of course, who
we are about to slaughter and whose idols we will crush to more

golden dust, and maybe someone will benefit from the gold of their
history. Because if we abandon the precepts which have been

laid out for us, and which have been repeated over and over, and
are even now being repeated by a man who is scared, almost to

his death, that we’ll screw it up. Because, we’re told, screwing it up
will lead to our exile. And isn’t it funny that I’m writing this from a

foreign land where I’ve spent my whole life, where everyone I know
acts like they are not a stranger. Because my visits to the promised

land are just visits. Because of all that. Because I want to deserve
a promised land like it was assumed the first ones of my kind did.

Because I want the milk and honey in my cup to be a just reward,
a promise worth keeping, a gold rush in my mouth.

There’s Gold in Them Thar Hills – A Poem for Parsha Eikev Read More »

Clinton leads Trump by 43 points among Jewish voters in Florida

Leave a Comment / Election 2016, Jewish Insider, United States /

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton is leading Republican nominee Donald Trump by 43 points among Jewish voters in Florida, a new poll released on Friday showed.

According to the poll, conducted by Jim Gerstein from GBA Strategies, Clinton is supported by 66 percent of Jewish voters, while Trump is supported by 23 percent.

Trump’s image among Jewish voters is underwater by 50 percent. Only 21 percent view the father of Ivanka Trump and former Grand Marshal at the Israel Day Parade favorably. A whopping 71 percent have an unfavorable view of him.

Clinton is viewed favorably by 57 percent of Jewish voters and unfavorably by 33 percent.

The only group Trump is doing well is among Orthodox Jewish voters (6 percent of the Florida Jewish electorate). According to the poll, Trump leads Clinton 66-22 percent among Orthodox Jews. Among all non-Orthodox voters, Clinton leads Trump 77-22.

Jewish voters represent 3 to 6 percent of the electorate in Florida, in a state that is expected to be one of the toss-up battleground states that could determine the presidential race.

Clinton is ahead by 3.3 percentage points in Florida, according to the RealClearPolitics average.

“I think that in a situation where the race is almost certain to be as close as it will be, that, obviously, every community’s vote is going to be crucial and the Jewish community’s vote is something which could be expected to play a factor in this race, for sure,” Andrew Weinstein, an attorney and prominent Democratic donor from Coral Springs, told Jewish Insider.

The Republican Jewish Coalition highlighted the fact that Clinton is currently underperforming, polling lower than Obama’s actual portion of the vote in 2012. “This recently released poll of Jewish voters in Florida confirms again that Jews continue to flee the Democrat Party in greater and greater numbers,” Matt Brooks, RJC’s Executive Director told Jewish Insider is a statement. “Due to President Obama and Hillary Clinton’s policies, voters have seen the world fall into chaos as well as the erosion of our close alliance with Israel. Four years after President Obama received the lowest amount of support from Jewish voters in decades, Democrats should be panicked to see Hillary Clinton falling even further behind.” 

In 2012, President Obama got 68% of the Jewish vote in the Sunshine State, while Republican nominee Mitt Romney got 31 percent, according to exit polls.

A J Street exit poll also showed that 54 percent never considered voting for Romney, while only 27 percent always considered voting against Obama. Numbers from an “>interview with Jewish Insider last year, NJDC’s chairman Greg Rosenbaum boasted that Florida ended up in the Obama column in 2012 due to a concentrated effort to mobilize Jewish voters in the Sunshine State in the last weeks leading to Election Day. An exit poll conducted by Melman showed an increase of support from 59 to 71 percent – a twelve point shift in seven weeks, which was about 144,000 additional votes. The President’s margin of victory in Florida was less than 1 percent – 70,000 votes.


” style=”text-decoration: underline;” title=”View Jake Korn’s profile on Scribd”>Jake Korn on Scribd

I went to a special event with AARP called

The best part for me was spending time with travel friends new and old. It was great to have meals together and talk about challenges on the road and learn from their experiences. I highly recommend Blogher and I plan to go back again next year! Actually, I will go back to all of these conferences next year.

Let me know if you are going and we can meet up. Happy and Safe Travels!  

Los Angeles: My First Blogher Conference Read More »

They’re all crazy!: The language we use when reporting terror attacks

Leave a Comment / Opinion /

“But I don’t want to go among mad people, Alice remarked.
Oh, you can’t help that,”said the Cat: “we’re all mad here.”

Lewis Carroll: Alice in Wonderland

It has become fashionable to invoke the M’Naghten rules as soon as there is a terror attack in Europe. Typically the perpetrator shouts “Allahu Akhbar” and murders innocent bystanders at some restaurant, bus stop, theatre, night club or what have you. Authorities quickly follow up by darkly muttering that the terrorist was actually a person with mental health issues. Their job is to convince the public how to engage in denial.

Whereas Freud explained a hundred years ago how defence mechanisms such as denial, projection and rationalization affected human behaviour, today we embrace these concepts as an integral and essential part of political correctness. For instance, politicians have suddenly become theologians and experts in comparative religion by stating that shouting Allahu Achbar has nothing to do with the real Islam. Security officials backed up by government ministers on the other hand, suddenly transform into psychologists and psychiatrists and become mental health experts. It’s a new form of multitasking.

The M’Naghten rules stem from 1843 after Daniel M’Naghten was acquitted on the charge of murdering Edward Drummond whom he had mistaken for British Prime Minister Robert Peel. He had  believed that Mr Peel was conspiring against him. The court found him not guilty by “reason of insanity” which resulted in a public outcry to the extent that Queen Victoria intervened and recommended stricter criteria for insanity.

Unlike today’s government spokespeople and security officials, courts grapple with complicated insanity issues in criminal matters despite the input of expert mental health witnesses.

Of course, labelling each Islamist attack as a mental health issue could be counterproductive.

Anyone walking along a major boulevard in Berlin or elsewhere, would notice a fair amount of homeless people begging or bedding down for the night. Many of them would have mental issues, yet people walk past them without the slightest concern, let alone fear. Heaven forbid however, if one of these beggars would shout “Allahu Achbar,”—just these two words would be the game changer! If the beggar actually attacked a passerby, he or she would be labelled a criminal. Likewise, to stab or to mug someone in a park or bus stop is pure crime. Shouting the magic words whilst stabbing someone however, turns you into a mental health case. These people, it is routinely said, “became” radicalised just as others contracted some disease. Hence diminished responsibility.

From the terrorist’s, or in PC language, the “patient’s” point of view, the danger is, that by being called mentally ill, society steals his thunder. After all, ascending to Paradise as a psychiatric patient rather than a martyr, would certainly spoil the party. Welcoming virgins would also feel cheated and worse still, could find themselves in an abusive relationship.

Despite knee jerk responses to terror attacks by quickly reassuring the public that the stabber/shooter had “mental health problems,” the German government has nevertheless recommended that the public stock up with ten days of emergency  food and water supplies. People with “mental health problems” have thus become a national security issue. Street beggars must be shaking their heads in dismay as they get overlooked. They might also fantasise where they should store their ten days of emergency supplies. Whatever, they have every reason to hold a grudge.

Since security measures and terrorists are involved in a cat and mouse game of one upmanship, authorities may be put on the defensive if terror groups started calling themselves the Al Neurosa Front, the Psychosis Caliphate or the Front for the Liberation of Acquired Organic Brain Disorder.

If that, heaven forbid, occurs, security officials will be outmanoeuvred and certainly out-diagnosed. The M’Naghten rules would no longer apply.  EU officials in Brussels would have to come up with a new creative solution. They have already tried to regulate washing up gloves for the kitchen, the permissible shape of bananas and cucumbers, prohibited drinking water being falsely advertised as stopping dehydration, and made it illegal for prunes to be promoted as a fruit assisting bowel function. Creative thinking is certainly one of their strong points.

There is however one country which has had its fair share of terror attacks, but oddly enough, the perpetrators do not get labelled as having mental health issues. When it comes to Israel, the theologians and mental health experts in Europe and increasingly in the US, are either silent or rely on-you guessed it-the occupation.

“When I use a word,” Humpty Dumpty said in a scornful tone, “it means just what I choose it to mean—nothing more nor less.”  Indeed.

Ron Jontof-Hutter is a Fellow at the Berlin International Centre for the Study of Antisemitism. He is the author of the recent satire ”The trombone man: tales of a misogynist,” available through Amazon, Lulu.com and other outlets.

They’re all crazy!: The language we use when reporting terror attacks Read More »

Are ultra-Orthodox Israelis trending towards modernism?

Leave a Comment / Israel /

To the unknowing viewer, Israel’s Ultra Orthodox (Haredim) population is trending decidedly away from modernism. Walking past women in the streets of Jerusalem, Haredi men ostentatiously avert their eyes to prevent immodest gazing at passersby. Few learn English, and even fewer learn the most basic subjects needed to survive outside of their communities. Earlier this month, the Knesset rejected an amendment sponsored by the Yesh Atid party that would have required Haredi schools receiving state funding to provide 11 hours of math, English, and science for students. These basic subjects – the “Core Curriculum” – are widely criticized by Haredim who wish not to be forced by the State towards modernism; preferring instead a strict life of Torah, untouched by external influences. Rabbi Dov Habertal, a Haredi orthodox lawyer and journalist, says that secular education “changes the DNA of the Haredi personality” and “destroys religious life and the history of the Jewish people”.

Israelis place a high value on protecting pluralism, which is precisely why the Jewish state divides its schools into several sectors: state schools for the majority of pupils, Arab and Druze schools, state religious schools for modern orthodox students, and independent schools for other religious and international groups. Haredim largely populate the “independent schools” so as to keep and pass on their observances and traditions despite living in a multi-cultural environment. This pluralism lies at the very heart of Israeli democracy and allows multiple entities within the state to express their beliefs and independence.

But, just as a segment of society benefits from pluralism, so must it extend the same ethos of understanding and acceptance to others. And, in the case of the Haredim, many Israelis wonder if these communities are doing their fair share for the economy and building the country. Are they entitled to state-funded education or exempt from basic education laws? How will Haredi families continue to support themselves if they lack the basic education necessary to be a part of the workforce? Moreover, how might this impact Israeli society and the economy as a whole?

Some Haredi social activists say they are entitled to state-funded basic education within the context of their independent schools. They say that they should have a choice to include coursework that will allow their children to succeed in a modern society while also protecting their religious ideals. They decry the recent annulment of the Core Curriculum and criticize its naysayers as fearful and controlling. Tali Farkash, a Haredi journalist, said, “In the beginning of the State of Israel, there was basic education for Haredim and it did not undermine our community. Rabbi Dov Habertal himself is proof of this. He is a scholar Haredi man working within the modern community, but he doesn’t want to give others tools to do the same?” Farkash called Rabbi Habertal hypocritical and sexist, as he “believes women should not have opinions”, and refused to speak in the same room as he. “It’s all about fear and power”, she said. “He doesn’t want an educated Haredi society because that would create competition for himself. Our politicians comply because they want to keep their coalition in good shape. It is not in their interest to fight with allied [Haredi] parties”. 

It doesn’t help that many Haredim, most of whom live in closed communities where conformity is expected, are afraid to speak up against the repeal. Farkash maintained that those who want this basic education want to avoid being seen as “going against their society”. Privately, she says, many people come to her saying they wish things were different. Farkash has launched a petition calling on Israel’s education minister to ensure that core subjects are offered in some Haredi educational institutions. “There are only five institutions that fit our Haredi lifestyle and teach proper education- and they come at a premium price.” She explained that her masters program costs less than her son’s school that teaches both Torah and formal, albeit low level, education. “It’s not fair to say that people do not want this type of education. There are many who want a public solution for their children’s formal education.”

If Haredim are to continue towards modernism and integration into the workplace, education will certainly be the key. “Without formal education, one cannot get a proper salary, cannot go to university, and cannot provide for one’s own family”, said Farkash. Indeed, the Haredi sector in Israel represents around ten percent of the population- a great proportion of Israel’s workforce that would be considered largely unqualified if no core curriculum were taught. Of the business owners and employers who do not employ Haredim, 25 percent said they lack the education and relevant skills needed to do the job.

Other social activists say Haredim work under the radar, are not as rare as suggested, and are certainly growing. “The Israeli ultra-Orthodox community is changing”, wrote Racheli Ibenboim, a self-proclaimed ultra-Orthodox feminist. “A new generation of Haredi social activists is slowly emerging, inspired not only by the beauty of Jewish tradition, but also by values of individualism and equality. Haredi feminism is part of this trend, which also embraces integrating Haredi men into the Israeli workforce and society,” she explained. We may just hold the key to the future of Israeli society”.

The data suggest Ibenboim may be right. Israel’s Economy Ministry says that the working Haredi population has doubled in the last several years; from 8 percent of Israel’s workforce in 2008 to 16 percent of workers in 2015. And that’s not all she’s right about: feminist forces will likely lead a Haredi trend towards modernity. According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, Haredi women are doing quite well in the employment sect compared to Haredi men. Seventy percent of ultra-Orthodox women are employed, compared to 80 percent of the non-Haredi female population. But for men, only 56 percent of Haredim are employed while the average for non-Haredi men is a whopping 90 percent. Thus, change will likely be led by Haredi women like Farkash and Ibenboim, the latter declaring, “my colleagues and I are paving a critical path for Israeli society. The Haredi communities aren’t going away. If Israel is to survive, then we all need to find a way to enable us to participate in Israeli society.”

Still, Ibenboim admits that it may be a stretch to say the Haredi community is moving towards modernism. Although she maintains that “there are more and more people like me in the Haredi world,” Ibenboim acknowledges that “the gaps between the isolationist Haredi worldview and modern society get bigger and bigger.” The institution of programs like the Core Curriculum will not be an automatic push towards modernism. Even with basic education, it will be ultimately up to the individuals to decide what kind of life they choose to live. But one thing is for certain, says Tali Farkash- the Core Curriculum will offer something many Haredim currently lack: a choice.

Eliana Rudee is a fellow with the Haym Salomon Center and the author of the “Aliyah Annotated” and “Israel Girl” column for JNS.org. She is a graduate of Scripps College, where she studied international relations and Jewish studies. Her bylines have been featured in USA Today, Forbes, and The Hill. Follow her column on JNS.org

Are ultra-Orthodox Israelis trending towards modernism? Read More »