On One Foot: Joshua Hammerman's Blog

Author of "Embracing Auschwitz" and "Mensch•Marks: Life Lessons of a Human Rabbi - Wisdom for Untethered Times." Winner of the Rockower Award, the highest honor in Jewish journalism and 2019 Religion News Association Award for Excellence in Commentary. Musings of a rabbi, journalist, father, husband, poodle-owner, Red Sox fan and self-proclaimed mensch, taken from essays, columns, sermons and thin air. Writes regularly in the New York Jewish Week and Times of Israel.

Friday, May 10, 2002

Shabbat-O-Gram for May 10-11, Iyar 29, 5762

Rabbi Joshua Hammerman, Temple Beth El, Stamford, Connecticut

The Web link for this week's Shabbat-O-Gram is http://www.tbe.org/sog/020510.htm. The site is continually updated during the week with corrections and additions. Feel free to forward this link to your friends. People can subscribe to the weekly Shabbat-o-Gram at www.tbe.org. If you wish to unsubscribe, contact office@tbe.org.

SHABBAT SHALOM, Happy Mothers Day and Happy Jerusalem Day!

Photos from last week's fabulous dinner dance honoring Hazzan Sidney and Sandy Rabinowitz can now be seen online at www.tbe.org.

JUST THE FACTS: Services and Such (N.B. 7 PM Fri night, outdoors)

Friday Night: Candles: 7:41: PM

Kabbalat Shabbat: 7:00 PM, OUTDOORS (weather permitting -- and looks like it will be fabulous), featuring Rabbi Andrea Cohen Kiener. We begin our season of outdoors services with a more meditative style.

Shabbat Shalom Service: 7:15 PM (in the lobby)

Shabbat Morning: ELDERS DAY AND FAMILY SERVICE. We honor Norma and Milton Mann as or Elders of the Year. Part of the service will be led by Rabbi Andrea Cohen-Kiener in a more meditative style. Mazal tov to the Manns and thank you to Jack and Claire Steinberg for their ongoing sponsorship (and creative support) of this important annual event -- as well as the scrumptious lunch following services.
AND DON'T MISS OUR BEAUTIFUL ELDER'S DAY BOOKLET, FEATURING THE WRITINGS OF MANY OF OUR RELIGIOUS SCHOOL STUDENTS, SALUTING THEIR GRANDPARENTS.

P'sukey d'zimra (psalms and meditations) 9:15 and Shacharit: 9:30, featuring our scholar in residence.

Torah Portion: Bamidbar

Read the Masorti commentary at http://www.masorti.org/mason/torah/index.asp. JTS commentary is at: http://learn.jtsa.edu/topics/parashah/. USCJ Torah Sparks can be found at http://uscj.org/item20_467.html. UAHC Shabbat Table Talk discussions are at http://uahc.org/torah/exodus.shtml. Other divrei Torah via the Torahnet home page: http://uahcweb.org/torahnet/. Test your Parasha I.Q.: http://www.ou.org/jewishiq/parsha/default.htm. CLAL's Torah commentary archive: http://click.topica.com/maaaiRtaaRvQhbV2AtLb/

Children's Services: 10:30, in the chapel (grades 3 - 6) and downstairs in the Kindergarten room for younger grades. This week's jr. cong. is hosted by grade 4

Mincha - Havdalah: 7:00 PM

MAZAL TOV -- to Jennifer and Elizabeth Shepard, who will both become B'not Mitzvah this Shabbat afternoon!

Morning Minyan: Daily at 7:30, Sundays at 9:00

Coming Attractions…..

SHAVUOT SERVICES -- on Friday and Shabbat next week at the usual Shabbat starting times. Thursday night we'll join in celebration and study with other congregations at Temple Shalom in Greenwich (see below). Friday morning we'll have children's services with Nurit and at the conclusion of our main service, we'll follow our new tradition of unrolling a Torah scroll so that all of us, young and old, might "receive" the Torah again. The book of Ruth will also be read and discussed. Friday evening services will be at 7 next week, outdoors, weather permitting, and next Shabbat morning, the 2^nd day of Shavuot, in addition to Yizkor prayers, we'll be celebrating an Adult Bat Mitzvah for several women who have been working very hard for an entire year leading to this event. It should be a most memorable Shavuot here next week.
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Spiritual Journey on the Web: What's so Jewish About Mother's Day?

A man calls his mother in Florida. "Mom, how are you?"
"Not too good," says the mother. "I've been very weak."
The son says, "Why are you so weak?"
She says, "Because I haven't eaten in 38 days."
The man says, "That's terrible. Why haven't you eaten in 38 days?"
The mother answers, "Because I didn't want my mouth to be filled with food if you should call."

When I was growing up, I used to love the little satiric book by Dan Greenberg, "How to be a Jewish Mother." It contained the typical jokes about dominating, overprotective mothers and obedient, castrated sons. There's still lots of Jewish Mother jokes on the Web, such as those found at http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/6174/jmom-food-def.htm, "Jewish Mothers' Food Definitions," http://dave.editthispage.com/discuss/msgReader$148?mode=day, "Jewish Mother Jokes," and more assorted jokes at http://www.mazornet.com/jewishcl/humor/humor-mothers01.htm and http://www.zipple.com/weeklyzipple/joke.shtml#jewishmother. Here's a typical one:

A Jewish young man was seeing a psychiatrist for an eating and sleeping disorder. "I am so obsessed with my mother... As soon as I go to sleep, I start dreaming, and everyone in my dream turns into my mother. I wake up in such a state, all I can do is go downstairs and eat a piece of toast." The psychiatrist replies: "What, just one piece of toast, for a big boy like you?"

Some of the jokes are downright offensive, but many just seem dated. Or are they?. This week, Jewish Community Online ran a survey on this issue, asking: "With Mother's Day just around the corner, do you think that the stereotype of a Jewish mother is still valid? "(http://server1.jrmportal.com/survey/)

As of Tuesday, the results were:

Oh you bet... and I have the mom to prove it. 42.55%

No. Today's Jewish moms are more laid back than earlier generations. 31.91%

That wasn't a Jewish stereotype...it was an IMMIGRANT stereotype. 25.53%

Of course, Jews didn't always stereotype their mothers negatively. When Rabbi Yosef heard his mother enter the room he would say, "I must stand up, for the glory of God enters." Rabbi Tarfon used to help his mother get into bed by bending down and allowing her to use his back as a step ladder (nowadays, most people prefer to tell their mothers to get OFF their backs). For Jews, it used to be that every day was mothers day.

In 1907, Anna Jarvis campaigned for a national day to honor mothers. It is said that she was at odds with her mother at the time (ah… the power of maternal guilt). Read about her at http://www.rootsweb.com/~wvtaylor/mother.htm. For Jews, the "patron saint" of maternal figures would have to be the matriarch Rachel, who stands watch over her children even in death, as in life. At http://www.ucalgary.ca/~elsegal/Shokel/910501_Mothers_Day.html, you can read how Rachel's Yahrzeit has been transformed into a national Mothers Day of sorts in Israel, especially among pre-schoolers (it occurs in the fall, on the 11^th of Heshvan).

To read the fifth commandment is to understand that Mother's Day is indeed a daily occurrence for Jews -- or at least it should be. Sometimes it isn't easy to respect our moms. Take this Talmudic account, as related in a sermon by Rabbi Elan Adler of Baltimore (with whom I shared many great times when he lived here in Stamford):

The Talmud tells of Dama the son of Netina, who was once wearing a gold-embroidered silken cloak sitting among Roman nobles. It is clear that Dama ben Netina was highly regarded and respected. One day, his mother came to where he was sitting, tore off his elegant gown, struck him on the head, and spat repeatedly in his face. The Talmud says that with all this, he did not shame her. For he knew that the Torah demanded, "kabed et avicha v'et imecha," honor your father and your mother in all circumstances. The word "kabed" without vowels can also be read as "kaved", meaning a heavy load or burden. Sometimes, it is a heavy burden to respect our parents, especially when they are no longer capable, or when we don't see eye to eye with them. (find the rest of the sermon at http://www.btfiloh.org/adler.htm).

And indeed, there are also times when we can't honor our parents as much as we would like, specifically when they are abusive. Aish's Web site discusses these limits in an article found at http://www.aish.com/literacy/mitzvahs/Honoring_Parents.asp.

But, for the most part, mothers are due the highest respect and honor. As the saying goes, "God could not be everywhere, so God created mothers."

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY, MOM AND MARA, FROM ALL THE HAMMERMEN!

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REQUIRED READING AND ACTION ITEMS

ON SHAVUOT (Next Friday and Saturday, May 17 and 18)

We can begin with Rabbi Barry Lerner’s Shavuot downloads (html or Adobe), at http://shamash.org/holidays/shavuot/. A wealth of materials can be found there. Or, how about CLAL’s experiment in distance pluralism, found at http://www.shavuot.org, their "National Unity Shavuot Web site." http://www.jajz-ed.org.il/festivls/index.html literally maps out the Jewish festivals for easy navigation. Click on Shavuot for quick explanations of key concepts, emphasizing the multi-layered nature of this festival:

The reading of the book of Ruth on this festival makes Shavuot of particular interest not only to women, but also to Jews by Choice and champions of outreach. Find a nice summary of the book (in dramatized form) at http://www.rjca.org/ruth.html. A d’var Torah on Ruth by Rabbi Richard Hirsh, at http://www.jrf.org/recondt/shavuot_hirsh.html, makes the claim that Ruth’s wasn’t a religious conversion, per se, but an application for citizenship. Ruth, in effect, places identification with the Jewish people on a higher level than belief in the Jewish God. Affiliation comes before belief. The Jewish Outreach Institute sees Ruth as a paradigm for contemporary outreach efforts. Find out how at http://www.joi.org/celebrate/shavuot/story2.htm and also at http://www.joi.org/celebrate/shavuot/story1.htm. JOI’s Shavuot Home Page is at http://www.joi.org/celebrate/shavuot/.

Shavuot has begun to take on new meaning for all branches of Judaism. You’ll find a gold mine of Shavuot links at http://www.jr.co.il/hotsites/j-hdaysh.htm, and some neat audio lectures from a modern Orthodox perspective at http://www.jr.co.il/hotsites/j-hdaysh.htm.

Shavuot has made the greatest inroads in the liberal movements, although it still is not being taken as seriously as it should. In that way, it is the perfect Jewish match for the American Memorial Day, which has lost almost all of its meaning as a true Memorial Day. Between the aforementioned Ruth, the all-night study sessions, and the environmental, Zionist slant, this holiday is enjoying a renaissance. A good example is http://www.jewishappleseed.org/ and its treatment of the Omer. Also see Art Waskow’s interpretation of the Ezekiels’s vision of the chariot, a classic text of Jewish mysticism and a haftorah for Shavuot. It’s at http://www.shalomctr.org/html/seas06.html.

Finally, take a Shavuot quiz and send a Shavuot card. You can find a card at http://www.bluemountain.com/eng3/shavuot/, and the quiz at http://www.bus.ualberta.ca/yreshef/pesach/shavuotquiz/shquiz.htm.

ISRAEL AND THE WAR ON TERORRISM

http://www.jcpa.org/daily/index.html Daily alert Prepared for the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations
info@prescon.org by the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. Comprehensive and helpful.

http://www.bigbuttonscorp.com/ "Saturday Night Live's" mock-ad slamming France. An elixir for those who are too angry at the French for words.

www.pizzaidf.org -- send pizza to soldiers on the front lines. Really! (and a personal message too)

http://www.ariga.com The Ariga home page includes links to a collection of data on the formation of Israel since 1947, from a dovish perspective. Thanks to Mitzi Silverman for letting me know about it. It's important to see this conflict from all perspectives.

On April 24, 2002, Bill Bennett, Jack Kemp, and Jeane Kirkpatrick issued an open memorandum (attached below) about Israel and the Middle East. These 20 facts will help serve as a primer for those trying to understand the historical context of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Twenty facts about Israel and the Middle East:http://www.empoweramerica.org/stories/storyReader$517?print-friendly=true

http://israelbehindthenews.com/ Good journalistic resource on Israel

http://www.nymag.com/page.cfm?page_id=5972 Cover story in New York Magazine on American Jews' current crisis -- excellent

http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=160377&contrassID=2&subContrassID=4&sbSubContrassID=0&listSrc=Y Sen. Joe Biden on Israel and Jenin: 'The Massacre that Wasn't"

http://www.dailytelegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml;$sessionid$THP3KGIAAAN4JQFIQMGSFFOAVCBQWIV0?xml=/opinion/2002/05/04/do0402.xml&sSheet=/news/2002/05/04/ixnewstop.html No "Massacre" in Jenin -- from the Daily Telegraph (U.K.)

Yet More Evidence…

The IDF captured an anti-Semitic book titled "Zionazism - Fight it before it kills you". It was found in a residence maintained for Yasser Arafat in Bethlehem. The book’s author is a member of the Palestinian National Council and it carries a handwritten dedication to Dr. Yussuf Abdallah, a close associate of Arafat and head of his Presidential Guard.

The main points of this vile tract are summarized on the book’s cover:

1. The Jews of our times are not the descendants of Abraham or related to him.

2. The origin of today’s Jews is from various nations, religions and peoples, therefore the Jews are not our cousins.

3. The current Bible and Talmud are not god given.

4. A small number of Jews reached Palestine in the past. They lived east of Mt. Se’ir and later became extinct.

5. The God of the Jews (Jah-we) was created from an ancient volcano above the hills of Yemen. But what about Allah, praised be his Name, who is an answer to (Jah-we). [Note: meaning that there is only the Moslem Allah]

6. The temple was never built, neither in Jerusalem nor anywhere else.

7. Zionism is the Eighth Crusade. The Zionists are occupiers, crusaders and pirates who arrived from overseas, as planned by the imperialistic countries, notably the US.

8. Hitler never murdered nor incinerated Jews in gas chambers.

9. Relinquishing the liberation of Jerusalem constitutes great treachery.

10. Relinquishing the refugees right to return is even greater treachery.

11. The Zionazi settlement is a tumor (these are highly-developed and advanced military bases).

12. One of Zionism’s goals is to impose a degrading surrender on our people.

13. Some Arab leaders and some Palestinians conspired against the Palestinian problem.

14. Rabbi Ovadia Yossef suffers from a persecution complex, or from schizophrenia and a persecution and superiority complex. [Note: Rabbi Yossef is chief rabbi of the ultra-orthodox Shas movement]

The IDF website has scans of the book and additional information about it at this link: http://www.idf.il/arafat/terrorism3/english/main.stm

Related to this, the Jerusalem Post reported that "Mein Kampf" is selling well in Palestinian areas and in Arab quarters of London. http://www.jpost.com/Editions/2002/03/19/LatestNews/LatestNews.45493.html

From Honestreporting.com:

The Salute to Israel Parade in Manhattan on Sunday drew 700-800,000 people, including marching bands and professionally designed floats (http://www.salutetoisrael.org). About 600 protesters also showed up— representing about .0008 of total attendance. Yet The New York Times ran a front-page photo of an anti-Israel poster held by one of the protesters, suggesting to readers that there had been a huge ANTI-Israel parade! The ensuring article devotes more ink to the protesters than it does to the pro-Israel paraders themselves. Read the article at:http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/06/nyregion/06SALU.html Comments to: letters@nytimes.com. The Times did print a quasi retraction the following day:

"An article yesterday about a parade in Manhattan marking Israel's 54th anniversary reported that 100,000 people had registered to march and hundreds of thousands more lined Fifth Avenue in support. The article also said that anti-Israel protesters numbered in the hundreds.

A front-page photograph, however, showed the parade in the background, with anti-Israel protesters prominent in the foreground, holding a placard that read, "End Israeli Occupation of Palestine." Inside the newspaper, a photo of a pro-Israel marcher was outweighed by a larger picture of protesters, one waving a sign that likened Zionism to Nazism.

Although the editors' intent in each case was to note the presence of opposing sides, the effect was disproportionate. In fairness the total picture presentation should have better reflected The Times's reporting on the scope of the event, including the disparity in the turnouts."

Quote of the Week:

PRIME MINISTER ARIEL SHARON: HE WHO SEEKS
GAINS THROUGH TERROR "WILL CEASE TO EXIST"
Response to yesterday’s Rishon Lezion suicide bombing,
which claimed 15 Israeli lives

"I came here, to the United States, to talk over the possibility of reformation of the Palestinian Authority, which is an essential condition for furthering the diplomatic process. There cannot be progress in diplomatic process with a corrupt terrorist entity. I came here…to talk about the chances for holding a regional conference to advance stability in the area. [Despite] our frank efforts to move in diplomatic channels, we today received further proof of the true intentions of the person who stands at the head of the P.A.

"He who calls for millions of martyrs is guilty. He who incites incessantly is guilty. He who finances terrorism is guilty. He who dispatches terror is guilty. Therefore, anyone who tries to extort the state of Israel to make concessions large or small via terror and intimidation ... and the sowing of fear, I say today: the state of Israel will not surrender. It will not surrender to blackmail.

"He who rises up to kill us, we will pre-empt it and kill him first. Israel will act, and with might. Israel will fight anyone who tries to wage fear through suicide terrorism. Israel will fight. Israel will triumph. And when victory comes, Israel will make peace.

"The operation (carried out by the IDF in recent weeks in the West Bank) has yielded tremendous achievements, but our work is not done. The battle continues and will continue until all those who believe that they can make gains through the use of terror will cease to exist--cease to exist.

"Israel will act the same as any democracy that protects itself. Israel will act like any other democracy which fights the forces of darkness. Israel will continue to uproot the terror infrastructure."

(Ha’aretz, May 8, 2002)

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

Celebrate Rosh Hodesh Sivan With Barb Moskow
And special guest Bonny Grosz
Monday, May 13 @7:30-9
In the Youth Lounge
For women only
Join us for an evening filled with study, prayer, thoughtful discussion, food
And much more
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Don't Forget to Join us for our
Adult B'not Mitzvah Service on May 18, the Second Day of Shavuot!!!

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House-Hunting Help Needed by the Temple

The Temple needs to rent a three-bedroom apartment or house as interim housing for Cantor Deborah Jacobson and her family, until the Hazzan's Parish House becomes available. The residence will be needed beginning June 15th for three or four months. Furnished preferred but not essential. If you know of any available rental housing for the June-October period please let the Temple office know so that the Hazzan Transition Committee can follow up on it. Your help is very much appreciated.

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Friday Night Outdoor Services

weather permitting (otherwise we'll be indoors, but still at 7:00),

May 10, 2002 at 7:00 p.m., the first outdoor service will be led by
Rabbi Andrea Cohen-Kiener
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Eighth Annual Elders Day
Shabbat, May 11, 2002
Honoring Norma and Milton Mann,
featuring a special d'var Torah by Rabbi Andrea Cohen Keiner
Services begin at 9:30 a.m.
Congregational Family Luncheon to follow

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Don't forget…May 19 - "Hazzan: The Musical,"

Community Event to Honor Hazzan Sidney and Sandy Rabinowitz
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Junior Choir Reunion! Friday, June 14, 2002

The Committee to Honor Hazzan & Sandy is looking for former Junior Choir singers to participate in the upcoming festivities! If your son or daughter ever participated in the Beth El Junior Choir, please call Roz Perlson (323-7328), Kathy Paseltiner (356-9735) or Carol Kalter (968-1075) to give his/her name, address and phone number.

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TIKKUN LEIL SHAVUOT -- THURSDAY, MAY 16
Erev Shavuot at Temple Sholom in Greenwich, in Partnership with Greenwich Reform Synagogue, the Greenwich Beit Midrash and Temple Beth El of Stamford.

Begin your celebration of Shavuot, the Festival of Weeks, in a traditional way. Join Rabbi Hurvitz of Temple Sholom, Rabbi Richard Chapin of Greenwich Reform Synagogue, Rabbi Joshua Hammerman of Temple Beth El in Stamford, and Rabbi Eli Weinstock of the Greenwich Beit Midrash in an evening of study and preparation for the holiday.

7:00 PM Dairy Dinner (* optional), followed at 8 by a traditional/egalitarian Ma'ariv minyan OR Tefillah/ Prayer Workshop, then sessions (with plenty of nosh time) led by the rabbis through the evening, concluding at about 11.

Everyone is invited to attend. Please RSVP by May 10 to Carol Ann at 869-7191 ext. 100 (If you can only attend post-dinner, please let us still know that you are planning on attending.)

*The fee for the optional dinner is $10.00 per person. Please make your check payable to Temple Sholom and mail with the form below to 300 East Putnam Ave. Greenwich, Ct. 06830

If you cannot attend dinner, please join us for the remainder of the evening.

_____________________________________________________________________

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Israel and the Palestinians: What Next?

A lecture by Mitchell Kraus, former CBS News correspondent

Wed. May 22, at 1:00 PM

at the Harry Bennett Branch of the Ferguson Library

115 Vine Road

Registration recommended: call 964-1000 X292

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SHA’AR
Outreach to Young Jewish Singles

So, you’ve come to the Greater Stamford area and you are interested in the who’s who and the what’s what in the Jewish world. Well, you’ve come to the right place to find out. Through a grant provided by Michael Steinhardt, project SHA’AR was developed to provide information about and/or formulate welcoming Jewish educational, cultural and social programs that are geared to the interests of young Jewish singles. SHA’AR is your link to existing Jewish organizations in the Greater Stamford community.

SHA’AR will provide information about the existing Synagogues, so that you can find the one that fulfills your religious needs. A number of programming options will be available to fulfill your Jewish religious and educational desires. Additionally, SHA’AR can connect you to the popular Young Jewish Professionals singles group to accommodate your social interests.

Our program is unique, due to the fact that SHA’AR involves you in the development process of the project and that its coordinator is 26, single and can relate to and understand the needs of the young Jewish single.

For more information please contact Dan Rozett, Coordinator of SHA’AR, United Jewish Federation of Greater Stamford, New Canaan and Darien.
203.321.1373 ext. 115 or dan@ujf.org
www.ujf.org

SHABBAT SHALOM

The Shabbat-O-Gram goes out weekly to hundreds of Beth El congregants and others. Feel free to forward it to your friends, and if you know of anyone who might wish to be included, please have them sign up at www.tbe.org. You can unsubscribe by contacting our office at office@tbe.org.

For more information on my synagogue, check out Beth El's Web site at www.tbe.org. To check out some previous spiritual cyber-journeys I have taken, see my book's site at www.thelordismyshepherd.com.

Friday, May 3, 2002

Shabbat-O-Gram for May 3-4, Iyar 22, 5762

Rabbi Joshua Hammerman, Temple Beth El, Stamford, Connecticut

The Web link for this week's Shabbat-O-Gram is http://www.tbe.org/sog/020503.htm. The site is continually updated during the week with corrections and additions. Feel free to forward this link to your friends. People can subscribe to the weekly Shabbat-o-Gram at www.tbe.org. If you wish to unsubscribe, contact office@tbe.org.

SHABBAT SHALOM
JUST THE FACTS: Services and Such
THIS WEEKEND WE BEGIN A MONTH OF CELEBRATION OF 32 YEARS OF SERVICE AND DEDICATION ON THE PART OF OUR HAZZAN. APPROXIMATELY 400 OF US WILL HAVE THE CHANCE TO DO THIS AT THE DINNER DANCE ON SATURDAY NIGHT, AND MANY MORE AT THE EVENT ON SUNDAY THE 19^TH. ALSO WE WELCOME CANTORIAL SCHOLAR IN RESIDENCE DR. JOSEPH LEVINE, JOINING US AS PART OF THIS SPECIAL WEEKEND HONORING HAZZAN AND SANDY RABINOWITZ. DETAILS OF HIS LECTURES ARE FOUND BELOW.

Friday Night: Candles: 7:34 PM

Tot Shabbat: 7:15 PM (in the chapel)

Kabbalat Shabbat: 8:00 PM, in the sanctuary, featuring our scholar in residence and both the adult and junior choirs

Shabbat Morning:

P'sukey d'zimra (psalms and meditations) 9:15 and Shacharit: 9:30, featuring our scholar in residence.

MAZAL TOV to Joelle Braun, who becomes Bat Mitzvah this Shabbat morning

Torah Portion: B'Har - B'Chukotai

Children's Services: 10:30, in the chapel (grades 3 - 6) and downstairs in the Kindergarten room for younger grades. This week's jr. cong. is hosted by grade 3.

Morning Minyan: Daily at 7:30, Sundays at 9:00

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Spiritual Journey on the Web: To Eat and be Satisfied
Judaism is a glass-half-full religion; unfortunately, however, most Jews are glass-half-empty people. This paradox is borne out in our weekly portion.

The final portion of Leviticus, B'chukotai, contains a painful list of consequences should the people of Israel not fulfill the commandments. It is known as the "tochecha" (reproach) and is found in chapter 26 (http://www.bju.edu/bible/lev/26.html). It is quite painful to read (unless you happen to enjoy disaster movies where people are forced to eat their young -- see 26:29). Among the punishments is one that is rather curious, at the end of verse 26: "V'achaltem v'lo tisba-u," "You will eat, but you will not be satisfied." Compare this to Deuteronomy 8:10, where almost the exact same words are used to convey the opposite meaning, "You will eat, you will be satisfied and you will bless God for the good land God has given you." This last phrase is both found in the Grace after meals (Birkat Ha-Mazon) and is the basis for the commandment to recite that prayer.

The punishment described here is not a lack of food, but a lack of satisfaction. In other words, the punishment is self-inflicted. God isn't bringing about this misery -- it is a direct result of our lack of faith. The Jewish view is expressed by the well-known rabbinic statement, "Who is rich? S/he who content with his/her portion." Jewish prayer is relatively free of petition -- we do not focus on what we lack -- and it is dominated by glass-half-full expressions of appreciation and wonder. Find that famous rabbinic maxim in Pirke Avot 6:6, and a very nice UAHC commentary on it, excerpted below, at http://uahc.org/shabbat/middot/010421.shtml.

"To be truly joyful with one’s lot in life is wise advice. It is a wonderful way to live, but how easy is it to adopt this attitude? How many of us are truly satisfied with our portion? How do we recognize our own good fortune? All around us the world advertises the goods and services we all seem to "need." Our world is characterized by material acquisition, and to paraphrase a popular game show "who ‘wouldn’t’ want to be a millionaire?

This obsession with our "needs" is not just a contemporary concern. Solomon Ibn Gabirol, an eleventh-century Spanish poet-philosopher taught: "Who seeks more than he needs, hinders himself from enjoying what he has. Seek what you need and give up what you need not. For in giving up what you don’t need, you’ll learn what you really do need" (Mivhar Hapeninim 155,161 as found in The Jewish Moral Virtues, Borowitz and Schwartz, p.164). This is the challenge, balancing what we need and what we want in order to become samayach b’chelko - satisfied with our portion."

I found additional background on this at the World Union for Jewish Students (WUJS) site, at http://www.wujs.org.il/activist/activities/sources/theology/covenant.shtml:

"The three strongest natural instincts in man are the impulses of food, sex and acquisition. Judaism does not aim at the destruction of these impulses, but at their control and indeed their sanctification. It is the law that spiritualizes these instincts and transfigures them into legitimate joys of life. The first and probably most vehement of the three impulses mentioned is the craving for food; it can easily lead to gluttony, and what is worse, to the fundamentally wrong conception that man "liveth by bread alone." This natural, but dangerous food-instinct, is transfigured by the dietary laws into self-discipline. It is no accident that the first law given to man - not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil - was a dietary law... Self-control and self-conquest must start with the most primitive and most powerful of human instincts - the craving for food. Thus the dietary laws stand at the beginning of man's long and arduous road to self-discipline and moral freedom."

So the "punishment" described here is not a punishment at all, but rather, it can be seen as the natural result of our disregarding the mitzvot, especially those commandments related to the sanctification of our deepest cravings. Just as those who demonstrate self-discipline through dieting feel "good" about themselves, so do those who are satisfied to drink up that half-full glass, who imbue their lives with prayer, wonder and self-discipline, those who look at the world through Judaic spectacles. And the Judaic view of the world is decidedly optimistic

But Jews continue to be weighed down by our glass-mostly-empty history. Take a look at a recent AJC survey of American Jews, at http://www.ajc.org/InTheMedia/Publications.asp?did=351. If you go to page 7 (the last page) of that survey, you'll find that only 9 percent of those surveyed think anti-Semitism will decline over the next five years. OK, given how things are in the world right now, that's understandable -- but look at this: Forty percent actually disagreed with the statement, "Virtually all positions of influence in the United States are open to Jews." And this survey was conducted exactly one year after an identifiably Jewish individual nearly became Vice President! How soon we forget! And this pessimism appears at a time when high-ranking colleges are fighting to recruit more Jewish students to their campuses (http://online.wsj.com/article_email/0,,SB102003890421804360,00.html).

Abba Eban called us the people who could "never take "yes" for an answer." The Torah's main goal, in this sense, would seem to be to get us to "yes." We have a long way to go. But that journey begins in the simplest manner -- by being thankful for the food on our plate, and by being profoundly satisfied with the mere fact of being alive.
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REQUIRED READING AND ACTION ITEMS

http://online.wsj.com/article_email/0,,SB102003890421804360,00.html -- WSJ article (4/29) on how Jews are being recruited by college campuses "in effort to lift their rankings. "Yes, we're targeting Jewish students," Chancellor Gordon Gee told a March 17 board meeting of the Vanderbilt affiliate of Hillel, the nonprofit national Jewish campus organization. "There's nothing wrong with that. That's not affirmative action. That's smart thinking." Mr. Gee, who left the presidency of Brown University for Vanderbilt two years ago, says niche marketing to Jewish students is part of his "elite strategy" to lift Vanderbilt to Ivy League status. "Jewish students, by culture and by ability and by the very nature of their liveliness, make a university a much more habitable place in terms of intellectual life," he said in an interview.

ISRAEL AND THE WAR ON TERORRISM

http://www.idf.il/english/news/mapjenin.stm - Jenin, before and after -- IDF aerial maps

http://search.npr.org/cf/cmn/cmnpd01fm.cfm?PrgDate=04/30/2002&PrgID=2 Elie Wiesel interviewed on NPR's "All Things Considered." When I heard this on the radio, I pulled my car over to the side of the road. Amazing interview.

The Jerusalem Post reports that 3 Armenian monks, held hostage by the Palestinian gunmen inside the Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity, fled the church and were rescued by Israeli soldiers, after holding aloft a white cloth banner with the words "Please help." One of the monks, Narkiss Korasian, told reporters: "They stole everything, they opened the doors one by one and stole everything... they stole our prayer books and four [gold] crosses... they didn't leave anything." Israeli officials quoted the monks as saying that Palestinian gunmen had also begun beating and attacking clergymen. http://www.jpost.com/Editions/2002/04/24/News/News.47624.html. (Was this covered in the network news you watched?)

http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=105001985 (or find it at www.opinionjournal.com) Bernard Lewis on the dangers of kowtowing to moderate Arabs.

An investigation published in the Boston Globe (April 29) concludes that Palestinian allegations "that a large-scale massacre of civilians was committed [in Jenin] appear to be crumbling under the weight of eyewitness accounts from Palestinian fighters who participated in the battle and camp residents who remained in their homes." In interviews with civilians and fighters in Jenin, the Globe says that "none reported seeing large numbers of civilians killed." On the other hand, referring to the deaths of Israeli soldiers in Jenin, Abdel Rahman Sa’adi, a 14-year-old Islamic Jihad grenade-thrower, said "This was a massacre of the Jews, not of us." The Globe also quotes a spokesman for the Israeli army who says that Palestinians are moving bodies of people not killed in the Jenin fighting into graveyards around the camp "to score points with the UN committee." Online at: http://honestreporting.com/a/r/218.asp

A refreshingly straight article appears in the Globe and Mail (Canada) by Marcus Gee, "What really happened? The myth of Jenin grows" (April 27). Gee writes:" Only after those deaths did the army send in bulldozers to knock down the booby-trapped buildings where terrorists were hiding, and even then it made frequent announcements by loud-hailer that civilians would be allowed to leave, as some did. "That is considerably more than Hamas does when it dispatches killers to blow themselves up in Israeli buses, banquet halls and cafes. Yet militant leaders have the gall to blame Israel for attacking non-combatants." Online at: http://honestreporting.com/a/r/219.asp

The Massacre That Wasn't--VII
Two weeks ago, when Palestinians and British newspapers were claiming the Israeli Defense Forces had killed hundreds of Arabs at Jenin, Israelis estimated the Palestinian death toll at 45 to 55. Now, the Washington Times reports, the Palestinians have revised their estimate downward--to 56. Thirty-three Israeli soldiers also died during the battle.

http://mccain.senate.gov/aipac02.htm John McCain speech before the Senate

If you have a birthday present or wedding gift or any other to buy (someone's bar mitzvah?), you can find Israeli products in temple gift shops, etc. You don't even have to leave your house - you can go to a non-profit site on your computer that is being updated all the time: www.ShopinIsrael.com.

http://www.walk4israel.com/flowers.cfm - Seeds of Solidarity program -- plant flowers in Israel for Shavuot -- other ways to help terror victims' families are linked to this site.

THE JOKE DEPARTMENT:

http://24.104.35.12/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/001/161yaihr.asp Humorist Larry Miller on the Situation.

Life Imitates SatireWire
"Having nearly exhausted its supply of young martyrs, the militant group Hamas today asked a Palestinian court to approve of physician-assisted suicide bombing, arguing that the elderly and terminally ill should be allowed to end their lives with dignity, respect, and catastrophic destruction," SatireWire "reports."

Quotes of the Week:

"After the Holocaust, Jean Paul Sartre came out with that dismal and untrue statement, ‘A Jew is a Jew because he is seen as a Jew.’ Sartre’s disciple, Victor Levy—who began as a Maoist, a revolutionary and then returned to Judaism and now is a great Talmudic scholar in Jerusalem, made Sartre admit that he had made a mistake. We are not now nor have we ever been, defined by those who hate us. We will never, and must never, allow that to happen."—Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel, speaking in Jerusalem, where he participated in Yad Vashem’s International Conference on the Legacy of Holocaust Survivors. (Jer. Post, April 22)

"For me, now I know what is a massacre…This is a massacre."--Major Avner Fuxman, an Israel Defense Forces spokesman, expressing horror after seeing the barbarism of the Palestinian assault on the West Bank town of Adora, in which 4 Israelis, including a small child, were gunned down and killed in their beds. (Nat’l. Post, April 29)

"…The psychological structure [of the perpetrator of a suicide attack] is that of an individual who loves life… As a professional psychiatrist, I say that the height of bliss comes with the end of the countdown: ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one. And then, you press the button to blow yourself up. When the martyr reaches 'one,' and then 'boom,' he explodes, and senses himself flying, because he knows for certain that he is not dead… It is a transition to another, more beautiful world… The message to Israel is that we will not cease… It is very important to convey this message… The child who threw a stone in 1993 today wraps himself in an explosive belt."--Dr. 'Adel Sadeq, chairman of the Arab Psychiatrists Association and head of the Department of Psychiatry at 'Ein Shams University in Cairo. (MEMRI, April 30, 2002)

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

Scholar-In-Residence
Hazzan, Dr. Joseph Levine
May 3-4, 2002
Kicking-off a special weekend honoring Hazzan and Sandy Rabinowitz
Kabbalat Shabbat 8:00 p.m.
Shabbat morning service 9:30 a.m.

We welcome Hazzan Levine at Kabbalat Shabbat services, when his topic will be "Help, Rabbi, I'm Lost." The adult and junior choirs will be participating in the service, joined by singers who have sung with the choir throughout the Hazzan's 32 years at Beth El. On Shabbat morning, Hazzan Levine's topic will be, "The Paradox of Jewish Worship."

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House-Hunting Help Needed by the Temple

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Friday Night Outdoor Services

weather permitting (otherwise we'll be indoors, but still at 7:00),

May 10, 2002 at 7:00 p.m., the first outdoor service will be led by
Rabbi Andrea Cohen-Keiner
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Eighth Annual Elders Day
Shabbat, May 11, 2002
Honoring Norma and Milton Mann,
featuring a special d'var Torah by Rabbi Andrea Cohen Keiner
Services begin at 9:30 a.m.
Congregational Family Luncheon to follow

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May 19 - Community Event to Honor Hazzan Sidney and Sandy Rabinowitz
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Junior Choir Reunion! Friday, June 14, 2002

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COMMUNITY MISSION TO ARGENTINA

A mission under the direction of Tommy Haendler, going to Argentina, will depart on the night of May 12 and return early on May 16. The cost is approximately $1000. The purpose is to assess the deteriorating economic situation in Argentina and to determine how we can help specific needs there. Contact the UJF office (321-1373) for more information.

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Beth El Cares

BETH EL CARES and AMERICARES HOME FRONT NEED YOU!

SUNDAY, MAY 5, 2002 (FLEXIBLE HOURS)
Please volunteer to help us refurbish and repair the home of an elderly Stamford resident. No experience needed, though we are also looking for people with painting and home repair experience to assist the group.
TO SIGN UP OR TO GET MORE INFORMATION CALL:
Art and Sue Greenwald at (203) 329-1662 or e-mail adg521@optonline.net
JOIN THE MAY MITZVAH TEAM!

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SHA’AR
Outreach to Young Jewish Singles

For more information please contact Dan Rozett, Coordinator of SHA’AR, United Jewish Federation of Greater Stamford, New Canaan and Darien.
203.321.1373 ext. 115 or dan@ujf.org
www.ujf.org

Friday, April 26, 2002

Shabbat-O-Gram for April 26-27, Iyar 15, 5762

Rabbi Joshua Hammerman, Temple Beth El, Stamford, Connecticut

The Web link for this week's Shabbat-O-Gram is http://www.tbe.org/sog/020427.htm. The site is continually updated during the week with corrections and additions. Feel free to forward this link to your friends. People can subscribe to the weekly Shabbat-o-Gram at www.tbe.org. If you wish to unsubscribe, contact office@tbe.org.

SHABBAT SHALOM (and a green, springy Lag B'Omer!)
A WORD ABOUT PARSHAT EMOR: JEWISH LAW AND CARDINAL LAW
Just as I was sitting down to reflect on this weeks portion, which talks all about how the priests (cohanim) had to be perfect exemplars devoid of physical and moral defects, I picked up the USA Today and read on the front page, "Priests must be 'perfect,' Pope says." It's nice to know that the Pope is up on his Parshat Ha-Shavua (weekly Torah study). But, as much as I abhor the behavior of any individual who takes advantage of a position of trust, especially in regard to children (a problem that is certainly not limited to Catholic priests), I wonder if perhaps part of the problem in regard to clergy is that we are too quick to place them on pedestals. It is horrifying when a clergy person abuses a child, but no less so than when anyone else does. What makes this situation worse is that the Church has felt compelled to cover up these sins fearing that, once priests were revealed to be human, the whole edifice of clerical infallibility would collapse.

Although, for the most part, Jews do not entertain such fantasies of rabbinic infallibility, it is a dangerous trap that some succumb to. When rabbis and cantors are discovered to have abused trust relationships, the inclination has been all too often to keep it quiet. We've seen that recently with the Orthodox Union regarding a rabbinic youth leader in New Jersey and at Temple Emanuel in New York, with regard to their cantor. My own take on this matter can be seen in greater detail in an article written for the Jewish Week a couple of years ago, which you can see by going to www.tbe.org, then click on "rabbi's study," then "articles and sermons." There you will find: "The Problem with Pedestal Rabbis."

Note that while the cohanim were supposed to be blemish-free, they rarely became the true leaders of the people. Now we basically give them the first aliyah and that's it. When you think of all the great leaders of the Jewish people, all had flaws that would have disqualified them from the High Priesthood. Moses stuttered, Jacob limped, David was an adulterer, Miriam had leprosy (not to mention that she was, gasp, female), etc. The message is clear: religious leaders are no better than the rest of us -- that is the only way that they possibly can lead us. Perfection is for priests only, therefore not for us "real" folk.

JUST THE FACTS: Services and Such
L'hitraot to our third graders, headed up to Camp Sloan this weekend for their first class Shabbaton! They will also be receiving their Siddurim at a special ceremony on Lag B'Omer (well, the day after, really), on Wednesday evening. MAZAL TOV to them!
B'ruchim ha-baim (welcome) to the Israeli soldiers on the Tzahal Shalom program of the J.C.C, including several who will be attending our service (and speaking) on Shabbat morning. They will also be with our Religious School students during both sessions on Sunday morning. Parents are invited to join with the classes in greeting the soldiers and to meet with them separately from the kids as well, at 8:45 and at 11 a.m. Yashar Koach to the families who are hosting them, David and Hazel Katz, Robin Frederick and Michael Gold, Sylvan and Honni Pomerantz and Malerie and Jeff Cohen.
MAZAL TOV to our incoming Cantor Deborah Jacobson on signing her first (of many) contract last week and on her Cantorial Senior Recital at the Jewish Theological Seminary this Sunday (see below for details if you wish to attend).

Friday Night: Candles: 7:27 PM

Teen Service and Discussion (with me): 7:30 PM (in the lobby) See below for details.

Kabbalat Shabbat: 8:00 PM, in the chapel

Shabbat Morning:

P'sukey d'zimra (psalms and meditations) 9:15 and Shacharit: 9:30

MAZAL TOV to Robert Kempner, who becomes Bar Mitzvah this Shabbat morning;
Torah Portion: Emor

Children's Services: 10:30, in the chapel (grades 3 - 6) and downstairs in the Kindergarten room for younger grades.

Mincha - Havdalah: 7:00 PM

MAZAL TOV to Traci Lehrfeld, who becomes Bat Mitzvah this Shabbat afternoon.

Morning Minyan: Daily at 7:30, Sundays at 9:00

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Spiritual Journey on the Web: Lag B'Omer

Monday night and Tuesday bring us the least understood and most mysterious of all Jewish holidays: Lag B’Omer. About the easiest thing to explain about it is the name. Since each Hebrew letter has a corresponding numerical value, the letters lamed and gimel add up to thirty three, and Thursday night indeed is the thirty third night of the counting period between Passover and Shavuot known as the Omer.

What’s the Omer?

OK, so what’s an Omer? The Omer happens to be explained in this week’s Torah portion, Emor. It is also known as the Sephira, which means counting, but Jewish mystics have tied that into the notion of the Sephirot, God’s emanations. So let’s see, we’ve got Omer, Emor, Sephira, Sephirot…let’s call the whole thing off!

No, let’s just go to the experts for help. At http://www.ucalgary.ca/~elsegal/Shokel/880331_Omer_Light.html, you’ll find Eliezer Segal’s excellent tie-in to the portion, including an explanation as to a humdinger of a rabbinic controversy regarding the Jewish calendar. The Omer is considered a semi-mourning period. Find out why at http://jewishminds.healthekids.net/course.phtml?course_id=458. Then, for a detailed summary of the Sephira laws, go to http://www.yipc.org/new_page_62.htm, the site of Young Israel of Passaic. It is interesting to note that, even within the traditional world, "In the post-Holocaust era, uniformity of practice is virtually no longer possible to implement, since pockets of population with all sorts of customs have descended upon all Jewish communities. Accordingly, in one city it is no longer surprising to see a host of customs simultaneously observed."

This can often leads to much confusion in the scheduling of communal events, Bar Mitzvahs and weddings at this time of year. You can have a halachic field day on all this at the OU site, http://www.ou.org/chagim/sefira/default.htm.

The Kabbalalists loved the Omer concept both because of the tie-in to the Sephirot. To see how they do that, check out this from Reb Goldie Milgrom, of the New York Center for Jewish Meditation, at http://www.rebgoldie.com/Shavuot.htm. IF you really want to learn all about the Sephirot, got to http://www.aril.org/Drob.htm. For a Breslaver Hasidic view, see http://www.breslov.org/omer.html.

And finally, kudos to Rabbi Sue Fendrick and SocialAction.com for developing the concept of the seven-week counting leading us to constructive acts of world-repair. Find out how, and see some terrific articles, at http://www.socialaction.com/omer2000.html.

What’s Lag B’Omer?

Now we focus on the big day itself.

http://www.jajz-ed.org.il/festivls/shavuot/lagba.html is a good place to start. If after that you can figure out the difference between Rabbi Akiva and Shimon Bar Yochai, you’re ready for the Lag B’Omer hot sites at http://www.jr.co.il/hotsites/j-hdayla.htm. From there you can really go to town on this stuff. I mean that quite literally, for there are several visits to those hotbeds of Lag B’Omer festivities, Meron and Safed, nestled high in the hills of northern Galilee. http://www.ascent.org.il/html/Mystic/holidays/lagbomer61.html will take you to Meron, describing the white-hot bonfires, and you’ll also be exposed to some relatively palatable selections from the Zohar, that magnum opus of Jewish mysticism. Continue to explore Mount Meron with nice photos, at http://www.starkman.com/aviva/AJS/lag_baomer.html, and find out at http://207.168.91.4/vjholidays/lagbaomer/gallery.htm how the Meron scene is really akin to "Meah Shearim meets Woodstock." On the other hand, the article at http://www.jewishworldreview.com/0599/lag.html says that Meron "’aint exactly Woodstock." Lots less rain and lots more clothes, I suppose.

Back on earth, Lag B’Omer is more of a nature festival for those non-mystics among us. (I agree with those who see a definite May Day tie in, both holidays sharing ancient pagan roots with other spring nature festivals). In the early days of Zionism, it became a perfect time to celebrate the spectacular spring weather in the Land of Israel, with bonfires and picnics. All the secular youth groups would take part. A nice photographic reminder of that can be found at http://motlc.wiesenthal.com/gallery/pg26/pg2/pg26253.html.

For the kids, a nice story about Rabbi Akiba, one of the heroes of the festival, can be found at http://www.bjeny.org/images/Judaic_Curricula_/Rabbi_Akiva__From_Shepherd_to_/rabbi_akiva__from_shepherd_to_.htm. For the cooks, some Lag B’omer picnic recipes are at http://www.fspronet.com/kosherkorner/lagbomer.html.

I loved the material at http://www.kneidlach.com/kneidlach/index.asp. I have little knowledge of the background of the sponsor of this organization in South Africa, and a few things I see there make me wary, but the Lag B’Omer material is top-notch, with a special focus on Simon Bar Yochai You’ll also find a full mystical Omer chart there, at http://www.kneidlach.com/kneidlach/jho_prayers.asp

And one final, sobering note: Yitz Greenberg teaches us the lessons of Lag B’Omer’s history at http://jewishsf.com/bk970523/comm1.htm.

"Most people think of Lag B'Omer as a warm, fuzzy semi-holiday with a nature-loving theme. But in the Talmud, the 33^rd day of the Counting of the Omer period is a devastating reminder of a catastrophe caused by Jews' divisiveness. Today, Jewry seems headed for a repeat of the disaster"

And, in recognition of Yitz’ valid points, I pledge to hold back in my usage of inflammatory language involving other Jews.

Happy Lag B’Omer – and Shabbat Shalom to all the people of Israel – and the world.

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REQUIRED READING AND ACTION ITEMS
ISRAEL AND THE WAR AGAINST TERRORISM

http://www.nyobserver.com/pages/story.asp?ID=5715 "Second Holocaust" -- Eerie echoes of a Philip Roth novel in current events.

http://www.mideasttruth.com/cartoons.html -- cartoons that "get it."

http://www.ucomics.com/patoliphant/viewpo.cfm?uc_fn=1&uc_full_date=20020409&uc_daction=P&uc_comic=po -- a political cartoon, by Pat Oliphant, that decidedly DOESN'T get it. In fact, it's got clear anti-Semitic overtones. What's worse, our own Stamford Advocate chose to print it this week. I've sent a letter of protest about it. Have you?

Other examples of "Jews with horns" anti-Semitism: http://www.joi.org/qa/persecution.shtml; http://www.adl.org/presrele/ASUS_12/2380_12.asp, http://www.jpost.com/Editions/2001/11/19/News/News.38354.html;

http://www.thejewishweek.com/top/editcolcontent.php3 "The Media War," from Jewish Week editor Gary Rosenblatt.

http://www.msnbc.com/news/741019.asp Meet the Press interview between Tim Russert and the Saudi FM advisor. Chilling

"THE REAL MASSACRE - ISRAEL’S IMAGE"

Last week, the media amplified Arab claims that 500 Palestinians were killed by the Israeli army in Jenin. This week, when it became clear that the death count was a small fraction of that—and that many of the dead were gunmen—some of the media regrouped to parrot charges of Israeli war crimes by denying medical care to Palestinian wounded. The Economist opined (April 20): "Israeli authorities did breach those laws of war which require them to care for non-combatants and the wounded." The Guardian’s (UK) editorial, "What really happened in Jenin camp?" compares Israeli actions to September 11:

"Jenin camp looks like the scene of a crime. Its concrete rubble and tortured metal evokes another horror half a world away in New York, smaller in scale but every bit as repellent in its particulars, no less distressing, and every bit as man-made. Jenin smells like a crime. The stench of decaying flesh, of dead bodies left to rot or buried unabsolved under collapsed buildings greets those aid workers and reporters who manage to gain access..."Jenin already has that aura of infamy that attaches to a crime of special notoriety... like the Jews’ Massada, [Jenin] could be the stuff of legend upon which dreams are built..." http://honestreporting.com/a/r/212.asp

Send your comments to:letters@guardian.co.uk

Unfortunately, most media outlets published photos that fail to show the destruction in proportion. Instead, aerial photographs show the destroyed area to be a small percentage of the entire refugee camp, which itself is a small portion of the city of Jenin. See the aerial photographs at: http://www.mfa.gov.il/mfa/go.asp?MFAH0ll60

CNN offers one clue as to what may be behind the rotting stench reportedly permeating from Jenin: U.N. official Sami Mshasha "said residents said that animals had been killed or buried in the rubble, adding to the foul smell." http://honestreporting.com/a/r/209.asp

How did your local media report the battle of Jenin? HonestReporting.com presents several important pieces of evidence acquitting Israel of the charges. Members are encouraged to write letters to the editor using the information below, which depicts damage inflicted by Palestinians themselves, as well as the involvement of Jenin’s civilian population in the fighting.

===== (1) RESPONSIBILITY FOR DESTRUCTION =====

Al-Ahram (Egypt) Weekly Online, April 18-24 edition, contains a revealing article about Omar—one of "the revered bomb-makers from the City of the Bombers." Omar chillingly described the placement of hundreds of explosives throughout the camp and the involvement of Palestinian women and children in the war effort:

"Of all the fighters in the West Bank we were the best prepared," he says. "We started working on our plan: to trap the invading soldiers and blow them up from the moment the Israeli tanks pulled out of Jenin last month." Omar and other "engineers" made hundreds of explosive devices and carefully chose their locations.

"We had more than 50 houses booby-trapped around the camp. We chose old and empty buildings and the houses of men who were wanted by Israel because we knew the soldiers would search for them," he said. "We cut off lengths of mains water pipes and packed them with explosives and nails. Then we placed them about four meters apart throughout the houses—in cupboards, under sinks, in sofas."

The fighters hoped to disable Israeli tanks with much more powerful bombs placed inside rubbish bins on the street. More explosives were hidden inside the cars of Jenin’s most wanted men. Connected by wires, the bombs were set off remotely, triggered by the current from a car battery...

And what about the explosion and ambush last Tuesday which killed 13 soldiers? "They were lured there," he says. "We all stopped shooting and the women went out to tell the soldiers that we had run out of bullets and were leaving. The women alerted the fighters as the soldiers reached the booby-trapped area..."

Read the full Al Ahram report in English: http://www.ahram.org.eg/weekly/2002/582/6inv2.htm

====== (2) IRONIC BRITISH HYPOCRISY =====

With the British media leading the hoopla against Israel, it is important to note official British documents showing how British authorities—in combating Palestinian terrorism during the Mandate years—utilized anti-terror methods considerably harsher than those used by Israeli forces. (Much of the following information comes from the Jerusalem Post, "How the British Fought Terror in Jenin," by Raphael Medoff - April 19, 2002)

Following the assassination of a British district commissioner by a Palestinian in Jenin in the summer of 1938, British authorities decided that "a large portion of the town should be blown up" as punishment. On August 25, 1938, a British convoy brought 4,200 kilos of explosives to Jenin for that purpose.

In the Jenin operation and on other occasions, local Arabs were forced to drive "mine-sweeping taxis" ahead of British vehicles in areas where Palestinian terrorists were believed to have planted mines, in order "to reduce [British] landmine casualties."

On another occasion, British forces responded to the presence of terrorists in the Arab village of Miar, north of Haifa, by blowing up house after house in October 1938. "When the [British] troops left, there was little else remaining of the once-busy village except a pile of mangled masonry," The New York Times reported.

Under Emergency Regulation 19b, the British Mandate government could demolish any house located in a village where terrorists resided, even if that particular house had no direct connection to terrorist activity. Mandate official Hugh Foot later recalled: "When we thought that a village was harboring rebels, we’d go there and mark one of the large houses. Then, if an incident was traced to that village, we’d blow up the house we’d marked."

The British describe having demolished 237 houses in a few days. See the document at: http://honestreporting.com/a/r/210.asp

In response to concerns about the morality of these methods, Lord Dufferin of the British Colonial Office said: "British lives are being lost and I don’t think that we, from the security of Whitehall, can protest squeamishly about measures taken by the men in the frontline."

Sir John Shuckburgh defended the tactics on the grounds that the British were confronted "not with a chivalrous opponent playing the game according to the rules, but with gangsters and murderers."

Ironically, the British became the target of a smear campaign by Arab propagandists, who alleged that British soldiers gouged out the eyes of Arab prisoners. These charges were publicized widely in the Nazi German press and elsewhere.

====== (3) MEDICAL CARE =====

Dr. David Zangen, a senior pediatrician at Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem and the chief medical officer in Jenin, told a press briefing last week:

"There was no situation where we did not allow people to get into the hospital. Every ambulance that wanted to get into the hospital could go every time. We did check the ambulances. The reason was that the hospital was used to hide highly wanted terrorists. On one occasion one of our doctors checked one of the ambulances. According to what the Palestinian doctor said, there was one severely sick person lying inside. And then we looked at him—there wasn’t a scratch on him, he just had an intravenous, just taped to his shirt, not even inserted in his veins. And this was one of the highly wanted terrorists...

"There were cases that the Palestinians asked for doctors, and their doctors did not want to come, either because it was dangerous or they just refused, and we treated them. We treated Palestinians—a case of appendicitis, and we treated a case of leg wound and a wound in the neck -- some of them were on the list of people that we knew that fought against us.

"I must tell you about how the terrorists used people, used children. A few days after the battle ended, we saw a 6-year-old child with a little bag going in the camp. One of the soldiers asked him, "Listen, what do you have there in the bag?" and so he dropped it and ran away. The bag included three booby-traps. Six years old."

Zangen’s full April 21 testimony is at: http://www.mfa.gov.il/mfa/go.asp?MFAH0llb0

The Los Angeles Times confirms that Israeli soldiers "arrested a 6-year-old boy ferrying three pipe bombs from one building to another." http://honestreporting.com/a/r/211.asp

====== (4) "HIDING A MASSACRE" =====

Kenneth Preiss, a professor at Ben Gurion University and an HonestReporting member, writes:

Please inform the reporters trying to figure out if the Israeli army is trying to "hide a massacre" of Palestinians, that Israel’s citizen army includes journalists, members of parliament, professors, doctors, human rights activists, members of every political party, and every other kind of person, all within sight and cell phone distance of home and editorial offices.

Thousands of people at the home front know exactly what is going on in the war long before they hear it on the radio or see it on TV, because they have been updated by enlisted friends and family with cell phones.

"Massacre" means willful murder of harmless civilians. Had a massacre occurred, the personal public grapevine would have been inundated with information about it, within hours. The talk of "massacre" is yet another malicious canard.

=====================================

Dennis Ross was interviewed last Sunday on Fox News. Ross, our Hoffman lecturer last year, was the Middle East envoy and negotiator under the Clinton administration and was present in the crucial Camp David and follow-up meetings in 2000. As many of you know, Israeli PM Barak was pushed by Pres. Clinton to make major concessions in order to try to get a peace treaty before Clinton left office. The concessions put on the table went far beyond anything previously offered and probably went beyond what the Israeli public and the Knesset would accept. Nonetheless, in the face of the best chance for peace ever, Arafat said NO and turned to violence with the intifada that started in September 2000. The talks collapsed after Taba in January 2001 in the last days of the Clinton presidency.

Palestine Facts has descriptions of these talks on these pages:

Camp David: http://palestinefacts.org/pf_1991to_now_campdavid_2000.php

Taba: http://palestinefacts.org/pf_1991to_now_alaqsa_taba.php

Since then the Palestinians have attempted to spin what happened, to rewrite the history to say that the deal offered to Arafat was not so favorable or to say that the Israelis, not the Palestinians, walked out of the meetings. Another story is that the talks ended because of Sharon’s election in February 2001, not because of Palestinian intransigence.

The interview with Ross puts all the Palestinian claims into one category: lies. The full transcript is available here: http://foxnews.com/story/0,2933,50830,00.html

http://www.jajz-ed.org.il/hasbara/ Bookmark this site! An authoritative guide to Israel advocacy.

INTERNATIONAL CARD/PICTURE/POSTER CAMPAIGN TO BOOST MORALE IN ISRAEL!

A group of American rabbinical students (from JTS) studying in Jerusalem this year, gathered recently to figure out ways that we could support Israel during these difficult times. One project that we committed to involves Jewish communities all over the world, so we’re hoping you can help in this endeavor and that you will help us by passing this email on to others who might be interested!

The task is simple: We're asking that Jews (from all over the world) send handmade and decorative cards/pictures/posters of support and encouragement to Israel. Cards should include the name, age and community of the creators and should be sent to:
Machon Schechter c/o Dana Rone Saroken, Rehov Avraham Granot #4 PO Box 8600 Jerusalem, 91083. Israel.
Once these cards are received we will be posting them all over the storefronts, bus stops, places of terrorist attacks, hospitals, as well as other central places in Jerusalem.
It’s a simple gesture but will undoubtedly bring smiles to passerby's and increase morale in a bleak situation where many are feeling isolated.
We’re asking that these cards be sent in bundles from youth groups, Hebrew schools, day schools, senior centers, synagogues, Hillels, JCC’s, book clubs... as soon as possible. In order to make this project a huge success, please forward this email to any teachers, administrators, community leaders or friends that you know, from as many states and countries as possible!

If you have any questions, please e-mail: rafianddana@yahoo.com

Thank you, in advance, for your valiant efforts and your commitment to the concept "Kol yisrael Arevim Zeh LaZeh" - All of the Jewish People are Responsible for One Another" Hopefully, we’ll all make a big difference together!!!

Quote of the Week:

"We have crippled the top of the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, Fatah, Tanzim. We didn’t capture all of the people, all of the weapons or all of the labs. But we did a lot."—IDF Colonel Miri Eisin communicating that Operation Defensive Shield had netted about 70% of the leading terrorist operatives and 80% of the bomb-making labs in targeted West Bank cities [About 4,500 Palestinians were detained in the operation and while most were later released, 1,450 were formally arrested having admitted to involvement in terrorist activities. Among the weapons seized during the operation were almost 2,000 Kalashnikov rifles, 800 pistols, 388 sniper rifles, 93 machine guns, nine rocket launchers, six mortars, 40 ammunition crates and 430 explosive charges.] (National Post, April 24)

"…Yesterday afternoon, in downtown Hebron, crowds of Palestinians…surg[ed] forward to have a turn at kicking or spitting on the three bound corpses strewn before them on the street. Just moments before, hooded gunmen had dragged the three victims, suspected of having collaborated with Israel, out of a PA prison. As PA policemen stood by and watched, the gunmen proceeded to shoot them to death, accompanied by enthusiastic shouts of ‘revenge, revenge’ from the rapidly swelling crowd…Diplomats and policymakers abroad may have the luxury of wringing their hands and regarding such incidents as merely ‘troubling,’ but Israel can ill afford to view them so lightly…For as yesterday’s murders…clearly show, a police state is incapable of peace with its own citizens, let alone peace with its neighbors. An insistence on independence devoid of freedom and the rule of law will not only fail to bring peace or stability, but will betray the hopes of the Palestinians themselves."—Editorial (Jer. Post, April 24)

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

MAZAL TOV to Sophie and Barry Vlessing on the birth on Tuesday of Joshua Alan Vlessing, all 8lbs 2 oz of him!
Todah Rabah and Mazel Tov to Mr. & Mrs. Peter Kempner for their contribution to the Kiddush Fund in honor of their son, Robert, who will become a Bar Mitzvah on Shabbat morning.
Todah Rabah and Mazel Tov to Mr. & Mrs. Andrew Lehrfeld for their contribution to the Kiddush Fund in honor of their daughter, Traci, who will become a Bat Mitzvah Saturday evening.

The congregation offers condolences to:

Ruth Haendler on the loss of her mother, Reeva Ledewitz

Andrea Scherban on the loss of her father, Philip Fightlin

Joan Wexler on the loss of her mother, Lil Hauser

Don't Forget -- Upcoming Israel-Related Programs

Tzahal Shalom soldiers will be here Shabbat morning and Sunday. We'll hear from them at services on Shabbat and students will hear from them in class on Sunday. Parents can also meet separately with the soldiers on Sunday, from 8:45 to 9:45 and from 11:00 to 12:00.
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"Suicide Bombers Cannot Silence Israeli Children"
Documentary and Discussion
Thursday, May 2 at 7:30 p.m. at Temple Beth El
Dr. Mildred Pollner, President, Cinema Verite International, Inc. presents her documentary film. Panel discussion to follow. Below is a review of the evening, from a rabbi, whose congregation Dr. Pollner recently visited:
"Dr. Mildred Pollner, President of Cinema Verite International, Inc. presented her film documentary entitled, "Suicide Bombers Cannot Silence Israeli Children." Dr. Pollner interviewed Israeli children last summer after the Sbarro bombing. She manages to capture all the pathos of what it means to be a child in Israel today. There was not a dry eye in the audience when the film was over. No propaganda. She just lets the Israeli kids speak. It is a great program for Jewish and non-Jewish audiences."
THIS WILL BE THE CONNECTICUT PREMIER OF THIS FILM!! TELL YOUR FRIENDS
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Teen Service and Discussion with Rabbi Hammerman
ISRAEL: WHAT NOW???
What do we think about the current situation in Israel? How do we respond to the things we're hearing in school? How can we help?
This Friday, April 26, 2002 at 7:30 p.m.

Dress (and the service) casual, but Shabbat appropriate -- RSVP to 322-6901 X324 or youth@tbe.org

Deeee-licious Oneg Shabbat follows the service
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A "heads-up" from our office…..
The May Bulletin will be slightly delayed because our crack office staff has been consumed wit the production of the very long and extremely successful journal that has been put together for next week's dinner honoring Hazzan and Sandy Rabinowitz. Stay tuned to the Shabbat-O-Gram for program announcements in the interim.

JEWISH MEDITATION
with Rabbi Andrea Cohen-Kiener
Sunday April 28^th- One Session Only 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Jewish Meditation is an old/new tradition. Once practiced by small circles of mystics, the world wide interest in meditation has contributed to a reflourishing and expansion of this practice. Uniquely Jewish forms of attention practice and contemplative devotions have been restored to congregational and personal worship. We will explore and practice some of the basics in this two-part class with the idea of deepening our personal practice of both meditation and Judaism.
The cost is $10.00 RSVP to 322-6901 ext. 306
(The Youth Lounge will be open for childcare from 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. For your convenience, 1^stsession students may go to the Youth Lounge when school ends at 10:45 a.m. and remain until 12:00 p.m. 2^ndsession siblings may go to the Youth Lounge at 10:00 a.m. and remain until school starts at 11:00 a.m.)

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Cantor Deborah Jacobson & Cantor Marshall Kapell

Invite you to join them for their Senior Recital

As they celebrate their upcoming graduation from the

H. L. Miller Cantorial School

Musical Selections include Classical, Liturgical & Broadway

Recital will begin promptly at 1:00 PM

Sunday April 28, 2002

Feinberg Auditorium at The Jewish Theological Seminary

3080 Broadway

On the corner of 122^nd and Broadway

Dessert Reception to Follow

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Scholar-In-Residence
Hazzan, Dr. Joseph Levine
May 3-4, 2002
Kicking-off a special weekend honoring Hazzan and Sandy Rabinowitz
Kabbalat Shabbat 8:00 p.m.
Shabbat morning service 9:30 a.m.
We welcome Hazzan Levine at Kabbalat Shabbat services, when his topic will be "Help, Rabbi, I'm Lost." The adult and junior choirs will be participating in the service, joined by singers who have sung with the choir throughout the Hazzan's 32 years at Beth El. On Shabbat morning, Hazzan Levine's topic will be, "The Paradox of Jewish Worship."
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Friday Night Outdoor Services

resume, weather permitting,

May 10, 2002 at 7:00 p.m.
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Eighth Annual Elders Day
Shabbat, May 11, 2002
Honoring Norma and Milton Mann
Services begin at 9:30 a.m.
Congregational Family Luncheon to follow

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May 4 - Dinner Dance at Temple Beth El
May 19 - Community Event to Honor Sidney and Sandy Rabinowitz
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Junior Choir Reunion! Friday, June 14, 2002

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COMMUNITY MISSION TO ARGENTINA

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Beth El Cares

BETH EL CARES and AMERICARES HOME FRONT NEED YOU!

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SHA’AR
Outreach to Young Jewish Singles

For more information please contact Dan Rozett, Coordinator of SHA’AR, United Jewish Federation of Greater Stamford, New Canaan and Darien.
203.321.1373 ext. 115 or dan@ujf.org
www.ujf.org

SHABBAT SHALOM and HAPPY LAG B'OMER

The Shabbat-O-Gram goes out weekly to hundreds of Beth El congregants and others. Feel free to forward it to your friends, and if you know of anyone who might wish to be included, please have them sign up at www.tbe.org. You can unsubscribe by contacting our office at office@tbe.org.