Authorities have arrested a 24-year-old Pennsylvanian man in connection with the vandalism at Nessah Synagogue this past Shabbat.
The Beverly Hills Police Department (BHPD) announced Dec. 18 it had arrested Anton Nathaniel Redding, 24, of Millersville, Pa, in Hawaii. He was charged with vandalism of a religious property and commercial burglary. The charges include a hate crime penalty enhancement.
In its statement, BHPD said Redding was apprehended as a “result of a thorough investigation, review of surveillance footage and the processing of forensic evidence.”
BHPD worked with federal and local law enforcement agents. After discovering Redding was in Hawaii BHPD Redding was eventually located in Kona and taken into custody. He is currently being held in Hawaii without bail ahead of an extradition hearing. Once extradited he is slated to appear at the Airport Courthouse in Los Angeles.
BHPD said it detained another suspect on the evening of Dec. 14. “However, that subject was excluded as a suspect based on forensic evidence and was ultimately released from detention.”
Beverly Hills Mayor John Mirisch applauded BHPD’s work. He issued a statement saying, “I said we would catch this guy and we did. The criminal who we believe desecrated a holy place on Shabbat is now in custody thanks to the superb work of the Beverly Hills Police Department. The Beverly Hills community is strong and will not be intimidated by despicable acts. Our thoughts remain with the Nessah community as they work to move forward from this terrible crime.”
The incident occurred around 2 a.m. on Dec. 14. The suspect desecrated Torah scrolls, overturned furniture and ransacked several areas of the Beverly Hills sanctuary, which serves the Iranian-Jewish community. An employee at Nessah discovered the burglary hours later around 7 a.m., on Shabbat. Nothing was stolen and nobody was injured.
(JTA) — Three Los Angeles Jewish schools were tagged with anti-Semitic graffiti days after a synagogue in Beverly Hills was found vandalized.
A swastika and hateful messages including the phrase “time to pay” were found spray-painted at the American Jewish University in Bel Air, the Westwood Charter School and Milken Community High School on Tuesday, according to a report on the LAist website.
On Saturday, a suspect described as a white male entered the Nessah Synagogue, a Persian Jewish congregation in Beverly Hills, and vandalized the sanctuary, tearing prayer books and strewing Torah scrolls on the floor.
In September, “Free Palestine” was spray-painted on the front of the Baba Sale Congregation in the Fairfax district of the city and “Six million $ was not enough” was drawn in marker on the welcome sign affixed to the gate of the city’s Temple Ahavat Shalom.
LAist cited the Anti-Defamation League as stating that there have been 36 such incidents in Los Angeles in 2019
Let’s face it, there’s nothing particularly Jewish about the Disney musical “Frozen.” Unless you count Idina Menzel and Josh Gad, both of whom appeared in the movie.
Nonetheless, at the same time as “Frozen II” hit the screens this month, the Journal headed to the stage show of “Frozen” at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre.
Opening night of the touring production made it abundantly clear that Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez’s juggernaut has not lost any of its luster since it debuted on Broadway in the spring of 2018. The theatre was packed to the rafters with both children (including many little girls dressed in Anna and Elsa costumes), and adults.
This hi-tech stage production elicited gasps from adults and children alike, because watching a cartoon come to life brings about its own kind of joy. It’s as though the “Frozen” magic thawed everyone’s hearts. For every parent who has been driven to distraction playing the movie ad nauseam to their children and being forced to listen to endless renditions of “Let it Go,” that appeared to have been magically forgotten at the Pantages.
That’s due in very large part to the stellar performances. And while the sets and costumes are truly spectacular, any great theatre performance always needs to be grounded in the performers themselves. If the electricity fails and the pyrotechnics disappear, is the show still worth watching? The answer in this case, is yes (and there were zero technical glitches).
On opening night Stella R. Cobb and Alyssa Kim took on the roles of Anna and Elsa respectively as children. There’s a lot resting on these extremely young shoulders as the curtain rises, and both girls tackled their parts with aplomb. Cobb, in particular, had so much sass and verve, once the grown up Anna (Caroline Innerbichler) took the stage, she appeared to be directly channeling the character that Cobb had so deftly carved out.
It’s difficult to take on the iconic roles of Anna and Elsa, whose performances by Kristen Bell and Menzel respectively are seared into everyone’s minds. But Innerbichler and Caroline Bowman, who plays the adult Elsa, make these roles their own.
Bowman’s tackling of the biggest song of the night (the eponymous “Let it Go”) had the audience on its feet. And she had to deal with the pyrotechnics, a live orchestra and a quick costume change. She might have been running around freezing the entire kingdom, but there was genuine warmth to her performance.
A new song, not in the film, written by the Lopez’s titled “I Can’t Lose You,” gives the sisters an opportunity to sing together and share their feelings. It’s an incredibly poignant moment, allowing both actresses to plumb the depths of their emotions.
Indeed, this is what stands out in the show. All the characters are truly three-dimensional. Even Olaf – performed by a puppeteer — brings a tear to the eye. Director Michael Grandage deftly balances the powerful, emotional moments with the laugh-out-loud humorous ones. The cast are putty in his hands, knowing exactly how to deliver a line designed to entertain young children, but still pull off the sometimes risqué innuendos for the older crowd.
Mason Reeves bring genuine pathos to the role of Kristoff; Austin Colby is a sexy enough villain for Anna to fall for in the early scenes; and Michael Milkanin had the audience eating out of his hand with his Olaf antics.
There are a million reasons to go see this production, not least because it’s one that people of all ages can enjoy. Warm the cockles of your heart his Hanukkah season and go see “Frozen.” It’s worth the price of entry just to witness the ingenious way the role of Sven the reindeer is performed.
Leonard Goldberg, the Hollywood producer and executive who for more than 60 years created hits on television and the big screen, died Dec. 4 in Los Angeles from injuries he suffered in a fall at his home. He was 85.
Goldberg was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., on Jan. 24, 1934. His father, William, made women’s clothing, and his mother, Jean, was a homemaker who raised money for B’nai B’rith.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and initially looked to follow his father into the garment trade by enrolling in an executive training program at Bloomingdale’s. It didn’t take and, after six months, he left for a job at ABC-TV’s research department.
His initial stint at ABC was followed by jobs at NBC and ad agency Batten, Barton, Durstine and Osborn. He returned to ABC in the early ’60s, and by 1966, was promoted to the network’s vice president of daytime programming, where he introduced groundbreaking shows including “The Dating Game,” “The Newlywed Game” and the gothic soap opera “Dark Shadows.” Their success led to his being named vice president of programming.
In addition to adding “The Flying Nun” and “Marcus Welby, M.D.” to ABC’s schedule, he helped develop the made-for-TV movie.
Moving in 1969 to Screen Gems, where he was vice president of production, Goldberg made one of the most memorable TV movies in history. “Brian’s Song” was based on Chicago Bears’ running back Gale Sayers’ memoir about his teammate Brian Piccolo, who died at age 26 from an aggressive form of cancer. The movie was a massive commercial and critical hit; the highest-rated TV movie of 1971 and winner of five Emmy Awards.
In 1972, Goldberg formed a production partnership with Aaron Spelling. Spelling-Goldberg was one of the most successful TV producers in the 1970s. The shows the duo produced — including “Charlie’s Angels,” “Fantasy Island,” “Starsky & Hutch” and “S.W.A.T.” — remain pop culture touchstones.
After 11 years, Goldberg split from Spelling to produce theatrical features, including the hit 1983 thriller “War Games.” He joined 20th Century Fox as president in 1986; successes such as “Broadcast News,” “Big” and “Die Hard” showed his knack for picking hits crossed over to movies. But he was happier as a producer, and left the job after three years.
As a solo producer, he was responsible for the ’90shits “Sleeping With the Enemy” and “Double Jeopardy.”
Goldberg was still making hits into the 21st century. “Blue Bloods,” the long-running drama about the lives of a New York Police Department family, still is airing on CBS.
Admired for his calm and charming manner, Goldberg was known for developing stars on both sides of the camera. Among the stars and executives whose careers he launched are actors Richard Gere, Kate Jackson, Farrah Fawcett and Daryl Hannah, and media moguls Barry Diller and Michael Eisner.
Many of them offered tributes to him. Actor Tom Selleck, the star of “Blue Bloods,” called Goldberg “simply irreplaceable.” Actor Samuel L. Jackson told Variety that Goldberg “had that unique quality of making anyone feel comfortable and special in his presence.” Actress Jacklyn Smith, one of the stars of the original “Charlie’s Angels,” said in a statement that she has “the greatest respect for him not only professionally but more importantly as a loving family man.” Producer and studio executive David Geffen called Goldberg “a pioneer in broadcasting” and “a friend of mine for almost 50 years … he was talented, creative, inventive, warm and devoted to his family.”
Goldberg is survived by his wife, Wendy Howard Goldberg; daughter Amanda Goldberg Raskind; stepsons Richard and John Mirisch; and five grandchildren.
Canada voted to uphold its Nov. 20 preliminary vote in favor of a United Nations resolution that calls East Jerusalem Israeli “occupied” territory and condemns Israel’s West Bank security barrier that was built in 2004.
The resolution, which North Korea, Zimbabwe, Egypt, the Palestine Liberation Organization and Nicaragua all sponsored, called East Jerusalem – where various Jewish holy sites are – “Occupied Palestinian Territory.” It also says that the barrier “severely impedes the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination.”
The resolution purports to be on "Palestinian Self-Determination" but declares at length that this right is "impeded" by Israel's security barrier, a self-defense measure against suicide bombings.
Co-sponsors: North Korea, Egypt, Zimbabwe, Nicaragua & the PLO.
Canada’s initial vote on the resolution in the U.N. General Assembly (GA)’s Third Committee came under fire from myriad Canadian Jewish groups; U.N. Watch had launched a petition for Canada to change its stance for the December 18 vote in front of the entire GA. The vote remained the same and the resolution passed the GA with 167 in favor, five against and 11 abstentions.
LEFT: Canada's @JustinTrudeau just voted for a North Korea sponsored resolution condemning Israel's anti-terror measures after 8,341 Israelis were killed or wounded by Palestinian suicide bombings, shootings, stonings, stabbings, lynchings & rockets.
Canada’s UN Mission Political Coordinator Anthony Hinton said to UN delegates after the vote, “Canada strongly supports the international consensus on a two-state solution, so that both peoples can have a secure and prosperous future. This is particularly important at a time when the prospects for ‘two states for two peoples’ is increasingly under threat.”
UN Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer argued in a tweet that Canada voted for the resolution so the country could secure a seat on the U.N. Security Council in 2020; he called it a “Faustian bargain.”
LEFT: First listed co-sponsor of today's U.N. General Assembly resolution that denounced Israel for defending itself against suicide bombings.
RIGHT: My prime minister who voted for it, trading Canada's bedrock principles of fairness for a seat on the Security Council. pic.twitter.com/NzpJQ1LycN
B’nai Brith Canada CEO Michael Mostyn said in a statement that the vote “stains Canada’s reputation. Just last week, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau assured the Jewish community that Canada would ‘always defend Israel’s right to live in security.’ Voting for this resolution is not in line with that commitment.”
The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) similarly tweeted, “We remain angry and deeply disappointed that #Canada voted against #Israel – Canada’s democratic ally – again today at the #UNGA.”
We remain angry and deeply disappointed that #Canada voted against #Israel – Canada's democratic ally – again today at the #UNGA, reaffirming its earlier vote on Nov. 19th in the 3rd Committee. https://t.co/BHrqLZjwBr
Klezmatics: A Hanukkah Concert The Grammy Award-winning Klezmatics return to the Pico Union Project, one of their favorite venues, with a Hanukkah concert that welcomes the holiday and Shabbat. Seven-piece gypsy rock band Mostly Kosher also will perform. 8:30 p.m. concert. $35 general admission, $45 reserved seats. Pico Union Project, 1135 Valencia St., Los Angeles. (213) 915-0084. .
Shabbat Service and Menorah Lighting With the start of Hanukkah 48 hours away, Kol Tikvah holds a Friday night Shabbat celebration. Attendees bring menorahs and light their candles on this celebratory Shabbat, featuring California Assemblyman Jesse Gabriel as the guest speaker. If you RSVP and bring an unwrapped new toy or gift card valued at $20, you can enjoy a hosted dinner with latkes. 5-8 p.m. 5:30 p.m. musical Shabbat services for all ages featuring the temple band, Kolplay, followed by fun activities and dinner. Kol Tikvah, 20400 Ventura Blvd., Woodland Hills. (818) 348-0670.
SUN DEC 22
Menorah of Giving For the first night of Hanukkah, Chabad North of Montana encourages all in the community to bring a can of food to a menorah lighting ceremony. The goal is 1,000 cans. The building of “The Can Menorah” starts at 4 p.m. At 4:30 p.m., organizers announce the winners of the student competition, “Shed a Light on Homelessness.” The cans will later be distributed among local food banks. The event includes live music by Neirot Children’s Choir, hot latkes and doughnuts. Free. RSVP required. 4-6 p.m. Annenberg Beach House, 415 Pacific Coast Highway, Santa Monica. (310) 280-6598.
David Broza
David Broza and Friends Spend the first night of Hanukkah with the international entertainer known as the Israeli Bruce Springsteen. David Broza brings his eclectic concert, “Broza & Friends,” to The Broad Stage. Raised in Spain, England and Israel, Broza performs music reflecting the diversity of his upbringing. Dramatically, he starts his show alone. With each new melody, he brings out additional performers. Trio Havana is among Broza’s special guests. 7:30 p.m. $45-$75. The Broad Stage, 1310 11th St., Santa Monica. (310) 434-3200.
YJP Lights & Strikes Pop open the Champagne, schmooze over cocktails and knock down bowling pins at Lucky Strike Hollywood. Young Jewish Professionals of Los Angeles’ annual Hanukkah soiree draws hundreds of young adults, who will be there for the top-shelf bar, the menorah lighting and the bowling while a DJ plays contemporary and traditional music. 21-and-over only. 8:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. $40-$75. Lucky Strike Hollywood, 6801 Hollywood Blvd. (323) 467-7776.
Farmers Market Hanukkah A family-friendly Hanukkah celebration takes place at the Original Farmers Market at Fairfax Avenue and Third Street. Kids create a giant Lego menorah and enjoy candle-making; PJ Library offers arts and crafts activities and face painting; and the music of Jason Mesches delights the little ears of children. Rabbi Chaim Fischer of Miracle Mile Chabad lights the menorah. 2:30-4:30 p.m. menorah building and candle-making. 4:30 p.m. live music. 5 p.m. lighting. Original Farmers Market, 6333 W. Third St., Los Angeles. (323) 933-9211.
MON DEC 23
Rabbi Nicole Guzik
Public Menorah Lightings Join Sinai Temple Rabbis Nicole Guzik and Erez Sherman at Westfield Century City this afternoon when they light candles to welcome the joyous eight-day holiday of Hanukkah. Guzik and Sherman lead the crowd in song and prayer on Level 1 at the top of the Constellation Boulevard entrance, near Nordstrom and the Crack Shack. 4:30-6:30 p.m. Free. Westfield Century City, 10250 Santa Monica Blvd. sinaitemple.org/event/hanukkah-celebration. Additional menorah lightings take place in Culver City and at the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica. For more information, click the link above or here.
Christmas Dinner Volunteers Needed Help Temple Israel of Hollywood serve its annual Christmas dinner to those in need. The Reform congregation is searching for volunteers to help prepare and serve Christmas dinners to less fortunate Angelenos. Volunteers are needed today from 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. for preparation and setup and Christmas Day from 6:30 a.m.-5 p.m. for food preparation, serving and cleanup. Shifts are mostly two hours. Choose your shifts and make a difference. Temple Israel of Hollywood, 7300 Hollywood Blvd. (323) 876-8330.
Lights & Latkes Jewish Veg holds its vegan Hanukkah celebration, Lights & Latkes, at a private home in Pacific Palisades. Since Hanukkah means dedication, many believe this is an ideal time to rededicate your life to a kinder, more sustainable world around a vegan diet. The evening is co-organized by Beth Chayim Chadashim’s Vegan Havurah and the community service agency Recruiting for Good. Rabbi Jonathan Klein, the rabbinic chair of Jewish Veg L.A., delivers a presentation. Kosher-certified meals available upon advance request. 6-9 p.m. $18. Address given upon RSVP.
TUE DEC 24
MatzoBall Singles Party Tonight is Christmas Eve, so it is time for the MatzoBall, the self-proclaimed leading Jewish singles event. Called the nation’s No. 1 holiday party, the good times stretch well past midnight. Have a drink, hit the dance floor and let loose around others who, like you, are looking to meet somebody special in time for New Year’s celebrations. Must be 21 or older to attend. ID required. 9 p.m.-2 a.m. $40. Derriere Nightclub, 6510 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles.
Tribal Ball Like the Matzoball, the Tribal Ball calls itself the community’s biggest singles event of the past decade. Mixing, mingling, dancing and romancing will take place as hundreds attend this evening at the newly reopened Bootsy Bellows. Celebrate with two DJs and two parties in the Main Room and the exclusive VIP Room. 9 p.m.-2 a.m. $30 for “Jewniversal” early bird pass, $35 regular admission, $50 VIP front-of-the-line access. Bootsy Bellows, 9229 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood.
“Fiddler on the Roof” Singalong It has become a bona fide “Tradition” for the Laemmle Theatres to screen “Fiddler on the Roof” on Christmas Eve, and the Laemmle’s 12th annual “Fiddler on the Roof” singalong, coinciding with the third night of Hanukkah, keeps the custom going. Dress up in costumes from the shtetl and enjoy trivia, prizes and the opportunity to sing melodies of memorable songs “If I Were a Rich Man,” “To Life,” “Sunrise, Sunset,” “Anatevka” and others. 4:30 p.m., some locations. 7:30 p.m., all locations. $18. NoHo 7, 5240 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood; Town Center 5, 17200 Ventura Blvd., Encino; Fine Arts Theatre, 8556 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills; Claremont 5, 450 W. 2nd St., Claremont; Playhouse 7, 673 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena; Lumiere Music Hall, 9036 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills; and Royal, 11523 Santa Monica Blvd., West Los Angeles. (310) 478-1041. laemmle.com. A “Fiddler” singalong also takes place for the first time in Long Beach at the Art Theatre, 2025 E. 4th St., Long Beach. 6:45 p.m. candle lighting. 7 p.m. screening. (562) 438-5435.
“Merry Erev Christmas” Comedian and actor Elon Gold performs at the Laugh Factory tonight for the seventh annual “Merry Erev Christmas” comedy show. Gold is bringing along a team of very merry — and funny — guests for two shows in one evening. 7:30 p.m. and 9:45 p.m. $40 general, $60 priority, $85 VIP. Laugh Factory, 8001 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles (323) 656-1336, ext. 1.
Stephanie Blum
Comedy Night What Jew doin’ on Christmas Eve? If you don’t have plans, consider joining Shomrei Torah Synagogue as its men’s club holds its sixth annual comedy night. Performers are stand-up comedian and Journal columnist Mark Schiff, Stephanie Blum (“Moms Rule” web series), popular club comic Howard Berger and Jimmy Brogan, who has appeared on “The Tonight Show.” 7:30 p.m. doors open. 8 p.m. show. $50 front row, $36 general admission, $40 at the door. Shomrei Torah Synagogue, 7353 Valley Circle Blvd., West Hills. For tickets and information, call Mark Cutter at (818) 406-2003 or click the link above.
Have an event coming up? Send your information two weeks prior to the event to ryant@jewishjournal.com for consideration. For groups staging an event that requires an RSVP, please submit details about the event the week before the RSVP deadline.
The Shabbat candles glowed even more brightly on Dec. 6 when more than 100 hosts throughout the community opened their homes to more than 1,300 participants from 500 households, as part of the Builders of Jewish Education’s (BJE) Celebrates Shabbat Across LA initiative.
As BJE represents the broad spectrum of the Los Angeles Jewish community, each Shabbat dinner reflected the individual hosts’ traditions. Each host received a bamboo challah board, a sheet of Shabbat blessings and information about the Torah portion of the week to inspire discussion around the table.
Kathi Barnhard, Sherry Burdorf, Linda Resnick and Leah and Sam Yebri co-chaired the event.
Volunteers assembled special gift packets for all hosts and their guests.
Based in Los Angeles, BJE is “dedicated to supporting and enhancing Jewish educational experiences, from early childhood through high school,” according to the organization’s website.
From left: StandWithUs (SWU) COO Jerry Rothstein; SWU CEO Roz Rothstein; “Shepherd” star August Maturo; writer-director-producer Lynn Roth and Carly Gammill, director of the SWU Center for Combating Anti-Semitism. Photo by Jonah Light Photogrphy
The Pro-Israel organization StandWithUs held a Nov. 26 screening of the celebrated 2019 Holocaustera-set film “Shepherd: The Story of a Jewish Dog” at the Writers Guild Theater in Beverly Hills.
Set in Nazi Germany during World War II, the film, which is based on the bestselling Israeli novel “The Jewish Dog” and won the Audience Award at the 2019 L.A. Jewish Film Festival, is about a Jewish boy whose parents give away his beloved German shepherd, Kaleb, after the Nazis banned Jews from owning pets. The boy and the dog eventually are reunited in the same concentration camp before escaping together.
Following the screening, the film’s writer-producer-director Lynn Roth participated in a panel discussion and Q&A with the film’s child star August Maturo and StandWithUs CEO and Co-Founder Roz Rothstein. Although the film was set in Germany, Roth shot it in Hungary, which offered the period-piece setting they sought for the film, Roth said.
Roth discussed how they used several dogs to portray Kaleb. She also said thefilm was shot for approximately the same cost as an episode of the television show “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.”
Maturo, who is not Jewish, discussed his experience working on the film. He addressed a crowd that included many of his family members.
The StandWithUs Center for Combating Anti-Semitism organized the event, which concluded with a dessert reception.
Birthright Israel Foundation’s recent honorees Gila and Adam Milstein. Photo courtesy of Birthright Israel Foundation
Birthright Israel Foundation raised $34 million during its sixth annual Los Angeles dinner on Nov. 21.
The event honored philanthropic husband-and-wife Gila and Adam Milstein, co-founders of the Milstein Family Foundation, and was chaired by Dorit and Shawn Evenhaim, and Sue and Larry Hochberg.
According to the Birthright Israel Foundation, the U.S. fundraising arm of Birthright Israel, which takes Jewish young adults on free educational trips to Israel, more than 350 people turned out for the sold-out event at Stephen Wise Temple.
Adam Milstein said he and his wife were most drawn to the aspect of the Birthright Israel trip that introduces American participants to Israeli soldiers.
“The element of the Birthright Israel program that really captivated Gila and I is called Mifgashim, or ‘the meetings,’ which brings together Birthright Israel participants with young Israeli soldiers for the duration of the trip,” he said. “Because of Mifgashim, both the young Americans and Israelis understood that the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) aren’t just defending Israel — they are defending the Jewish people, worldwide.
“Birthright Israel participants become connected to their Jewish identity and Israel,” Milstein continued. “Many of them return as proud Jews who are willing to take a stand.”
Attendees included Birthright Israel Foundation supporters Sheldon and Miriam Adelson; Birthright Israel Foundation President Israel Tapoohi; Consul General of Israel in Los Angeles Hillel Newman; Shoham Nicolet, CEO of the Israeli-American Council; and Jay Feinberg, CEO of Gift of Life, a bone marrow and stem cell registry.
“It was so wonderful to have so many people come together to support Birthright Israel, especially our special guests, Dr. Miriam and Sheldon Adelson,” Evenhaim said in a statement. “Their generosity continues to inspire the Jewish community and we are grateful for their leadership and support.”
Since its inception, Birthright Israel has sent more than 700,000 young adults to Israel on “life-changing trips,” according to the organization, with more than 50,000 Jewish young adults participating each year.
American Israel Gap Year Association (AIGYA) board members Judy Levin (far right) and Joanne Helperin (second from left) and Helperin’s daughter, Danya (far left) join Phyllis Folb, founder and director of AIGYA. Photo courtesy of the AIGYA
The seventh annual American Israel Gap Year Fair was held on Nov. 21 at Shalhevet High School.
More than 400 people, including parents, students and educators, turned out to hear about the many Israel gap-year options.
Forty Israel gap-year programs from across the denominational spectrum took part in the fair, highlighting travel programs, religious study, academic pursuits, community and military service and Israel advocacy.
The fair is the “cornerstone event” for the American Israel Gap Year Association (AIGYA), with families from Seattle to San Diego, Las Vegas to Phoenix turning out to meet with Israel program providers, according to AIGYA.
In a statement, AIGYA Founder and Executive Director Phyllis Folb said taking part in an Israel gap year increases a young person’s self-esteem, boosts their engagement with the Jewish homeland and enhances their knowledge of world issues, among other benefits.
“While gap year has long been associated with greater academic success, the gap year in Israel has proven to be a life-changing experience for Jewish youth,” Folb said. “We are finding that gap-year alumni are more knowledgeable and confident students when they return home. They are more engaged in the Jewish life on campus and better able to speak to issues that have been arising on college campuses. Their eyewitness accounts of the challenges that Israel faces makes them better global citizens, able to engage in conversations that could provide more insight and lower the rhetoric.”
Masa Israel Journey, which offers a variety of programs in Israel for young adults, was the featured sponsor of the event, which AIGYA says is the largest of its kind.
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Email ryant@jewishjournal.com.
Contrary to the claims in their letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, the Donald Trump administration policy doesn’t reverse “decades of bipartisan U.S. policy on Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.” Nor does it lack “any clear legal justification.” And it does not “disregard” Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.
Instead, the Trump policy reverses the Barack Obama administration’s December 2016 abstention in the United Nations Security Council that enabled the passage of Resolution 2334, which asserted that those Jewish communities constitute a “flagrant violation” of international law. It has thus corrected that anomaly, which was not the position of any previous U.S. administration other than the Jimmy Carter administration.
Far from lacking “any clearly legal justification,” it corrects the ignoring of the 1920 San Remo settlement –– later adopted by the League of Nations Mandate for Palestine that shortly followed –– which earmarked this territory for “close Jewish settlement upon the land.” This determination has never been superseded or repudiated by any subsequent, legally binding international agreement.
Far from “disregarding” Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, Article 49 actually prohibits “individual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from occupied territory to the territory of the Occupying Power or to that of any other country, occupied or not. … The Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.”
Because Palestinians aren’t being deported or forcibly transferred from Judea/Samaria to another territory and because Jews are not being deported or transferred from Israel to Judea/Samaria but rather are moving there of their own will, Article 49 has no bearing on the situation.
Instead of joining Israel’s enemies by slavishly repeating these propagandist perversions of international law and the anti-Semitic demand for a judenrein Judea/Samaria that lies at its core, the 107 Democrats should support the new U.S. policy without delay. Morton A. Klein, National President,Zionist Organization of America New York
Harkham’s Hospitality I know firsthand that Efrem Harkham practices what he preaches (“Israel-Born Hotel Magnate on the Lure of ‘Luxe’ Roots,” Dec.13). On Oct. 9, my husband and I, along with thousands of other residents, had to evacuate Porter Ranch because of the wildfires. I spent the day calling dozens of hotels from Studio City to Westlake Village to Beverly Hills. Those that weren’t fully booked had increased their prices for the night from $400 to $600-plus for rooms that normally would be half that cost.
I finally called the Luxe Hotel on Sunset, and its employees couldn’t have been nicer. They said they would absolutely accommodate anyone who was affected by the fires and forced to evacuate. They offered us an incredibly reduced rate and cut the parking in half. We arrived there at 9 p.m. after a very stressful day.
From the parking attendant, to the person who checked us in (and put us in a suite because he felt we had been through a lot that day), to the waitstaff in the restaurant, to housekeeping, we could not believe how amazing all the employees were and how well this hotel was run. Every employee we came in contact with was helpful and couldn’t have been nicer. It was remarkably impressive to see and it all starts at the top. Efrem has done an amazing job, and other hotels could learn from his philosophy. Carol Frischer, Porter Ranch
Begin to Biden: No Trembling Jew Given the current situation we find ourselves in, with discussions about making U.S. aid to Israel conditional, I think it’s appropriate to recall that in 1982, then-Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.) threatened then-Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin with cutting off aid to Israel. Begin replied as follows:
“Don’t threaten us with cutting off your aid. It will not work. I am not a Jew with trembling knees. I am a proud Jew with 3,700 years of civilized history. Nobody came to our aid when we were dying in the gas chambers and ovens. Nobody came to our aid when we were striving to create our country. We paid for it. We fought for it. We died for it. We will stand by our principles. We will defend them. And, when necessary, we will die for them again, with or without your aid.” Carolyn Kunin, Pasadena
2020 Election
We all want more secure elections. What’s the holdup in the Senate?
Our elections are still vulnerable to foreign interference. On top of hours of public testimony pointing to President Donald Trump trying to bribe Ukraine to dig up dirt on his possible opponent, the national security community has confirmed hostile foreign powers such as Russia, China and Iran already are working to compromise our upcoming elections.
That’s why the Senate’s refusal to pass much-needed election security funding measures is simply unacceptable. Earlier this year, the House of Representatives passed $600 million in election security funding for states to upgrade digital-only voting equipment with voter-verified paper ballots and other security measures that would safeguard election results from hacking and cyberattacks — which we should all agree needs to be prevented.
I’m urging my senators to follow the House’s lead and pass $600 million in election security funding for states before time runs out. Lawmakers are duty-bound to keep our democracy safe. The American people are counting on the Senate to do the right thing and stand up for our democracy. A.F. Shayne, Los Angeles
I’m sick to my stomach at the prospect of President Donald Trump being reelected.
The two articles of impeachment are but a glimpse into the damage he could do to our cherished democracy and a world forever in need of peace and harmony. His enablers are making a precarious down payment on the future of generations to come. Hal Rothberg, Calabasas
CORRECTIONS
The story on Mohammed Al Samawi (“Mohammed Al Samawi: How Interfaith Activism Became, and Saved, His Life,” Dec. 13) misidentified activist Megan Hallahan as Jewish. She is not. The story misstated Al Samawi’s disability as “a withered right arm and left leg.” His disability affects his right arm and leg. Al Samawi met activist Justin Hefter at the 2015 Seeds of Peace conference in Jordan, not the 2013 YaLa Leadership conference in Jordan. These corrections were made to the story online.
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Judaism doesn’t have Santa or the tooth fairy, but that doesn’t mean there are no religious spoilers awaiting us as we come of age.
At some point, we’re told that Hanukkah isn’t a major Jewish holiday; it’s a modern one. Its commandments are rabbinic, not divine, and the tradition of giving presents isn’t even original. On a religious level, Hanukkah certainly doesn’t hold a candle — let alone eight — to Pesach, Shavuot and Sukkot.
Decades ago, when my mother was a cub reporter at the Tacoma News Tribune and the only journalist on staff whose last name was Cohen, she was assigned a story on Hanukkah. Already disabused of the notion of Hanukkah as a major Jewish holiday and believing that American non-Jews misconstrued it as a religious analogue for Christmas, she spoke to a local rabbi looking for an angle that might present the holiday in a stronger light.
To her surprise, he pushed back on her preconception. On the contrary, the rabbi told her, Hanukkah is the essential holiday of contemporary American Judaism because it forces people to decide which side they’re on. I heard this story a few years ago from my dad, who said that small revelation marked the beginning of my family’s long arc toward religious observance.
Our tradition regards Hanukkah mostly as a cautionary tale against assimilation, but the existential threat is still a violent one. The physical danger described in the Hanukkah story seems equally acute to that of the Megillah. The Maccabees respond to state-sponsored vandalism of their religious institutions by staging a rebellion and overcoming an army raised to quell them.
It’s hard not to think about the specter of anti-Semitism this week. Days after an armed couple killed three people at a kosher grocery in Jersey City, N.J., a young man is suspected of breaking into Nessah Synagogue in Beverly Hills and ransacking the sanctuary. Authorities said he flipped furniture upside down, threw tallitot on the floor and badly damaged Torah scrolls.
Perhaps because this is a thread that has run steadily through our history, there is a suspicion of fun in observant Judaism. Fun implies worldly pleasures, which undermine the primacy of worship. More fun equals less serious. Less serious means less grounded and less prepared.
I can still hear my middle school rebbe severely informing the class that Judaism has no word for fun. (Kef is modern Hebrew.) Our life’s purpose is to serve God, not play games and drink milkshakes. You know who was having fun? The Greeks.
He was the fifth-grade rebbe in yeshiva day school, which I started attending at the culmination of my parents’ journey to observance. That he was my first Orthodox Jewish educator means he probably was the one who broke the news that Hanukkah wasn’t worth half a seder.
Jewish holidays are what make my extended family a family, despite only some of us being observant. Among those occasions for family gatherings, it is through Hanukkah that we commit to passing on the light of Judaism. We send detailed gift lists that double as life updates. Everyone comes in from out of town. We light the candles and sing the blessing together, and flagrant amounts of sugar are consumed. It’s a pretty good analogue for Christmas in my Jewish family. That’s not such a bad thing.
A few years ago, none of the eight days of Hanukkah worked for everyone in the family. Faced with a choice between celebrating without everyone there and holding a party after Hanukkah with the entire group, we decided to celebrate Hanukkah in January. We lit candles, opened presents and inhaled latkes and Krispy Kreme doughnuts some time in late Tevet. This was what taking Hanukkah seriously looked like, and it could not have happened on any other holiday.
Things are going to get worse before they get better. The vandalism. The violence. It’s here. American Jews may feel like they are being backed into a corner. Polarization among us is ascending.
Is Hanukkah the most significant holiday in our tradition? On a religious level, maybe not. But there may not be a more critical moment for a holiday that forces people to define themselves, or for a holiday fungible enough to make sure the extended Jewish family can celebrate it together. After all, if there is a time to appreciate the fun parts of being Jewish, it’s now. And if there is a word for fun in Judaism, it’s Hanukkah.
Louis Keene is a writer based in Los Angeles. He tweets at @thislouis.
Oh dreidel, dreidel, dreidel. I made you out of Junior Mints and Hershey’s Kisses.
These candy dreidels are perfect for Hanukkah favors. They’re easy to make, and are a great learning opportunity for kids.
What you’ll need: Junior Mints Mini Packs
Construction paper
Scissors
Glue stick
Pen
Hershey’s Kisses
Double-sided tape
1. The cube portion of the dreidel will be made from a Junior Mints Mini Pack. Junior Mints are certified kosher by the Orthodox Union.
2. Cut a piece of colored construction paper to 1 3/4 inches by 5 1/2 inches.
3. Wrap the paper around the Junior Mints box and adhere the ends with a glue stick.
4. Write the four Hebrew letters — nun, gimel, hei and shin — on the four sides.
5. Cut another piece of colored paper to 1/4 inch by 3 inches. Fold it in half, and fold 1/4-inch tabs at the ends. Attach the tabs to the top of the box for the dreidel handle.
6. Adhere a Hershey’s Kiss to the bottom of the box with double-sided tape. Hershey’s Kisses are also certified kosher by the Orthodox Union.
Jonathan Fong is the author of “Flowers That Wow” and “Parties That Wow,” and host of “Style With a Smile” on YouTube. You can see more of his do-it-yourself projects on his website.
