Remembering Debbie Friedman
Debbie Friedman (z”l), age 59, brilliant singer-guitarist and Jewish liturgical composer, missed celebrating her own Simchat Chochmah, by a few days, .
Part of Friedman’s legacy is that with her twinkling eyes and joyous and comforting voice, she empowered us with her ebullient, enthusiastic, sparkling, spirited, sharing self. She wrote and sang the music and inspirational songs (sung all over the world) for the original “Simchat Chochmah — Joy of Wisdom” about turning 60, eldering ceremonies. For Los Angeles feminist historian Savina Teubal’s (z”l) Simchat Chochmah ritual that Savina created for the occasion of her 60th birthday in L.A. in November 1986 on Shabbat Lech Lecha, Friedman with Teubal, wrote lyrics to “Lechi Lach,” adopting and feminizing the Torah words “Lech Lecha” (Genesis 12:1-2). “Lechi Lach” premiered at the first Simchat Chochmah.
For Los Angeles activist Marcia Cohn Spiegel’s Simchat Chochmah No. 2, Friedman wrote the “Mi Shebeirach” prayer that we sing for healing, and also “Miriam’s Song” (“And the women dancing with their timbrels …”), celebrated at women’s rituals and synagogue services, based on biblical Miriam HaNeviah’s timbrel dancing and song when the Israelites crossed from slavery to freedom (Exodus 15:20).
I danced that song with Friedman for over two decades, and I am grateful and blessed that I was on percussion at times to accompany her.
Joy Krauthammer, via email
Jews Must Defend Themselves
David Suissa makes some powerful points in “Why Jews Must Learn Self-Defense,” Jan. 3): It is time for the ultra-Orthodox community to seriously commit to self-defense training.
Not only white supremacists but also Islamic and recently black supremacists have joined the list of bigots and threats to Jews. It would be prudent for Orthodox Jews to disavow their aversion to dogs, who simply serve to protect. The machete attacker would have been DOA had the Monsey, N.Y., home where the attack occurred or even surrounding synagogues availed themselves of canine protection, a valuable asset that Israelis have put to extremely effective use.
Historically it is not only Jews who suffer from violent bigots but other religious communities, perceived by all evil predators as vulnerable. Recently, Mormons were massacred in Mexico by drug cartels and worshipers were attacked in a Texas church. In the distant past, Buddhist monks were robbed and attacked frequently in their journeys, leading to the creation of the original martial art: open-hand combat, also known as karate.
The more things change, the more they stay the same.
Richard Friedman, Culver City
It’s Time to Increase Security
Hope, optimism and the eternal pursuit of happiness are all states of mind that people of all denominations strive for, and these attitudes of bliss are the unifying tenets for all faiths. To achieve sustaining happiness and peace, a sense of security and calmness in the surroundings of our daily lives must exist. Once the security has been breached, the tranquility is replaced with uneasiness and often sorrow.
In the early hours of Dec. 14, an individual gained access to Nessah Synagogue, one of the country’s most prominent Iranian synagogues, and not only breached the security of the humble place of worship but also tried to desecrate our sacred religious artifacts. This individual displaced our sense of calm; he made us question our safety in our surroundings that we never questioned before. It was a miracle that the synagogue was closed and was empty of worshipers. However, let us as a community ponder the nightmare scenario: What if there were people in the synagogue? An event similar to those experienced at the Chabad of Poway in San Diego County and the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh could have unfolded, and we would have been left blaming ourselves for not acting sooner to create necessary security checks.
Let us come together as a community and give thanks for this miracle in disguise, that there was no loss of life, and that we now have the opportunity to act and create the necessary security checks. .
This was a warning to the Jewish community nationwide, especially to every Jewish home, Jewish business (specifically restaurants and supermarkets), synagogues, schools and institutions, most of them with very little or no security. Most of all to the Iranian Jewish community of Los Angeles who stand out more than the others.
Ebby Jebreel, via email
Prejudice in the Media
Rabbi David Eliezrie, president of the Rabbinical Council of Orange County, denounces the Los Angeles Times for media bias in its reporting on an attack by a black man at a rabbi’s home (“A Story of Media Bias,” Jan. 3). A key part of its news report was an interview with an anti-Israel propagandist who happens to be black. The attack occurred in Monsey, N.Y. So why did the Times seek out a black Jew who lives in San Francisco for her opinion on what happened in New York — a person, no less, “whose views are an anathema to the majority of American Jews”? Rabbi Eliezrie believes that the Times has failed in its mission as a news outlet to give us “real journalism.” As the Jewish Journal headline suggests, this is a case of “media bias.”
George Epstein, Los Angeles
A Call for a National Day of Fasting and Prayer
Dear Mr. President and Mr. Vice President,
The current surge in violent attacks against Jews across this land is dangerous for all citizens of this country. It threatens the freedom and liberties of all its people, of all its religions, of all its races. When one life is threatened, all lives are threatened. It was not long ago that we witnessed thugs chanting, “Jews will not replace us.”
It was not so long ago when Jews were murdered while in prayer in Pittsburgh and Poway. It was just recently that someone broke into a synagogue in Beverly Hills and desecrated a Torah, and when a terrorist walked into a private home and stabbed people. It was just recently when a woman was accosted on the street for being a Jew and when a flyer was posted multiple times stating that “anti-Semitism is OK.” And it was just recently when someone walked into a church and killed people while in prayer, recalling other people in other churches who were murdered while in prayer and study.
It is not OK, Mr. President and Mr. Vice President. None of this is acceptable. While thoughts and prayers are good, they are not enough. Domestic terrorism is a threat to our national security. We are in a state of national insecurity. People of every faith are threatened. We are in a state of moral crisis. We are in a state of spiritual emergency.
I call on you to join me in fasting, of refraining from eating food, and to declare a national fast day on Monday, Jan. 20, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a day on which you and I and millions of Americans can fast, reflect, repent and pray for Americans to be humane with one another and to commit to working for the well-being of all citizens, all residents, all visitors who live and work together to make this nation and this world a good place to live together.
Furthermore, I ask you to declare Jan. 20, in honor of King, to be “Turning Strangers Into Friends Day.” That on this day, every American who is physically able is asked to have a conversation with someone he or she does not know. The goal of the conversation is simply to begin to know and understand someone — his or her beliefs, fears, loves, dreams, and the good that this person does in the world.
Rabbi Elihu Gevirtz, via email
CORRECTIONS
In a story about the Persian Jewish community (“Expanding Community Roles for Young Persian Jews,” Jan. 3), the site of the first Taboo Summit was incorrect. It was at the Iranian American Jewish Federation.
The title of the poem in the Jan. 3 edition was incorrect. It is “Vayigash.”
A letter to the editor from Mina Friedler (“Black Nationalist Hate,” Jan. 3) mistakenly referred to Washington Heights instead of Crown Heights in Brooklyn, N.Y.
Now it’s your turn. Letters should be no more than 200 words and must include a valid name and city. The Journal reserves the right to edit all letters.
letters@jewishjournal.com.
