This Moment: When Does Joseph First Cry? Hello, Margaret, It's Me, God; Bringing Jewish Values into the Synagogue Kitchen

 

In This Moment  The annual Yom Ha'atzmaut Bible Quiz was held yesterday in Jerusalem. Here are the two finalists grappling over the final question: When does Joseph cry for the first time? (Answer below) The Golden Rule is found in many faith traditions, and more than once in Judaism. But it all began with Leviticus 19, which we read this Shabbat. Join us for our Praying the Margins on Shabbat morning and on Friday night, we can put the mitzvah of loving our neighbor into practice as Building One Community's Jennifer WIlliams will teach us how we can save innocent people from deportation. Both services are available in person and virtually. Recommended Reading & Listening "Are you there, Margaret? It’s me, God." (Joshua Hammerman - Substack) - It was said that when one of Brennan’s predecessors as CBS anchor, the legendary Walter Cronkite, came back from Vietnam and gave a scathing report of his findings in Feb. of 1968, President Johnson famously commented, "If I've lost Cronkite, I've lost the country." Last Sunday morning on CBS, Netanyahu lost Margaret Brennan, and he lost America. It’s not that she was that tough on him - so was Chuck Todd the week before on Meet the Press. She simply persisted and asked follow up questions, the kind of questions not allowed in an illiberal democracy. When it comes to religion, ‘Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret’ was decades ahead of its time (RNS) Intro to Judaism - This Thurs. night's class will focus on Shabbat. Here are three info packets that we'll be using: Shabbat Info Packet 1 Shabbat Info Packet 2 A focus on the rituals of Friday night Is Holocaust Education making Antisemitism Worse? Atlantic - Dara Horn Israeli teen girls win first, second place in annual Bible quiz (TOI) - Result is first of its kind in 17 years; Emunah Cohen and Neta Lax beat out 41 contestants from 20 countries who qualified for advanced stages. See the video here. The final question? When does Joseph first cry? Answer: Joseph cries a lot! At least seven times: Genesis 42:24; 43:30; 45:2; 45:14-15; 46:29; 50:1; 50:17. The first time is when Reuben leads the brothers in pleading with Joseph not to hold Benjamin captive. Once the floodgates are opened, he basically doesn't stop crying when seeing his family. Not that there's anything wrong with that. When did you know you were Israeli? (Joel Chasnoff and Benji Lovitt) Here are some examples: I visited New York City, and everyone seemed so polite. I texted people a question without first saying, “Hi, good morning.” I let my shopping cart hold my place in line at the supermarket while I did my shopping. I started saying “Ehhhh” instead of “Uhhhh.” Harry Belafonte, singer and civil rights activist who popularized ‘Hava Nagila’ in the US, dies at 96 (Jewish Week). See Belafonte and Danny Kaye singing Hava Nagila below. Today's Israeli Front Pages click for pdf of the full page Yediot Achronot (Hebrew) Ha'aretz (English) Jerusalem Post (English) Above: Yediot Achronot front page for Yom Hazikaron. A girl speaks of "the Father I Never Knew." She was just ten months old when her father was killed in the Second Lebanon War. Parsha Packets for Ahare Mot / Kedoshim Jews and Tattoos Don't Stand Idly By Civility and Discourse on Israel in the Jewish Community The Holiness Code and Gay Sex: New Interpretations: The author explores the complicated verses in Leviticus traditionally interpreted as forbidding gay sex, surveying several interpretations that stray from the traditional approach to these verses How to Tell People Off and When to Hold Your Peace: The Art of Moral Criticism "And Live By Them..." Jewish Law and the Infinite Value of Human Life Taking Kosher to the Next Eco-Level Although I've been a vegetarian for most of my life, I've never been an evangelist for the cause, though I do believe that humanity's natural state was vegetarian, before things got screwed up in the early chapters of Genesis. With Earth Day just behind us and with it becoming clearer that dramatic grass roots action is needed to head off disaster, an interesting alternative has sprouted: DefaultVeg. In L.A., the Jewish Initiative for Animals (JIFA) has been appearing on billboards promoting the idea that we see "fleshed out" below. It's simple and inclusive - not an imposition. Aligning food choices with Jewish values makes lots of sense, no? This is is no PETA extremism. You won't have to give up that schmear or even that chicken dinner. No need for blame and recrimination. It's not about fault, it's just about defaults. And really, if you think about it, why should the vegetarian option always be the one at the end of the table? Why are we always made out to be the fussy weirdos? And if you are a Kosher Vegetarian, you are doubly weird - bring out the cellophane airline dinner for that one! Maybe it's time to rearrange the tables as proposed by DefaultVeg. Otherwise we'll soon be rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. 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Temple Beth El | 350 Roxbury Road, Stamford, CT 06902