LETTER FROM JERUSALEM


Coping—or not—with the Gaza rockets

By Ira Sharkansky

JERUSALEM, December 24 2008—Israel copes, and pays the price of unsolved problems in uncertainty and frustration.

Last weekend was difficult. The period of calm with Gaza had formally ended, after ending in practice some time earlier. The rain of rockets and mortars increased. Also increasing was the incidence of Israeli politicians calling for a solution.

We have heard it all before: cut off supplies; invade; respond with bombardments for every missile fired at Israel; destroy the Hamas regime; make Gazans pay with their blood for the constant tension, the property damage and injuries caused by their missiles and mortars.

The political campaign focused on February 10th added to the intensity of opposition candidates. If they were in the government, Israel would act rather than dither. The present leadership is failing once again.

Other politicians urged restraint and criticized their colleagues for stirring passions. The counter messages were also well known: the military is prepared for all contingencies; it has the power to do what it must; however, we will choose the right time to implement our plans; Hamas will pay a heavy price for its actions; before doing anything, we must take account of the Israeli prisoner, the response of the international community to civilian casualties among the Palestinians, and the capacity of Hamas to use newly acquired weapons (smuggled from Egypt) that can cause greater damage, further from Gaza, than what it is using currently.

Adding to the discussion was a reminder from an official charged with interpreting international law: the IDF must not bombard civilian areas.

Ordinary citizens are not so certain about international law. If Hamas and its friends send missiles and mortars toward Israeli civilians, why cannot Israel respond in the same way? What about the right of defense? And what about international law that assures Gilad Shalit visits from the Red Cross to see that he is being treated humanely?

It is not so simple, respond the experts. "National defense" is important, but does not provide total freedom of action. Hamas is a gang that operates outside of the law. Israel is a sovereign state committed to the rule of law.

Must Israel act differently than the United States in Iraq and Afghanistan or Russia in Georgia?

Of course. One expert admitted that great powers can thumb their noses at notions of international law. He asserted, however, that when they bomb indiscriminately and violate rights in prisons like Guantanamo they suffer not only criticism but also a lack of cooperation from governments that pride themselves as law abiding.

Israel is not so privileged. It has enjoyed some latitude to defend itself as against the attacks of Hizbollah, and will enjoy some latitude to deal with Hamas. But the international community provides its latitude on a short string, depending on how much time it takes and how horrendous the civilian casualties.

International law is more nuanced in practice than the laws applied at home about criminal violence or financial misdeeds. If Israel wants to maintain membership among the civilized, and enjoy opportunities for trade, scientific cooperation, travel and other modern conveniences, it must accommodate itself to the tolerances of greater powers.

Currently the Gaza front is complicated. Hamas and its friends are sending mixed signals. They want to reestablish the period of calm. Some messages indicate they demand greater concessions from Israel, such as extending the calm to the West Bank (i.e., no more seizures of Hamas operatives there) and opening the borders to Gaza for the transfer of supplies. Some messages indicate that they will accept an agreement about calm without any change in conditions.

One moment Egyptian authorities say they are fed up with Hamas and will not mediate between Gaza and Israel. The next moment Egyptian authorities urge restraint on Israel.

Hamas declared a one day unilateral cease fire. It passed with only six rocket attacks.

According to one report it was in response to Egyptian requests to allow mediation to proceed. According to another report it was in order to allow the transfer of humanitarian supplies from Egypt to Gaza.

With the end of the one day cease fire, attacks have began in greater earnest.

Turkish officials, currently mediating talks between Israel and Syria, warn that their success may depend on Israeli restraint toward Gaza.

Senior military officials are saying that a destructive attack is ready, and will be implemented when the time is right. One has hinted that it will come when the weather clears. Another says that even one day of calm is worth reconsidering a move that would escalate the violence.

Can Israel attack on Christmas? Maybe after Hanukah.

There have been no Israeli deaths and few injuries in this flurry of missiles and mortars. There have been a number of Palestinian deaths, including those of civilian bystanders, due to limited attacks on those firing, or preparing to fire at Israel. The people of Gaza continue to suffer from the nonviolent economic constraints. One day the border is open for supplies. The next day it is closed in response to a rocket attack.

How much more do we want to do, and how much of a cost in retaliation or international censure do we want to endure? If you think the answers to those questions are easy, think again.

While thinking, enjoy the holidays, but do not overeat. We are not as young or as healthy as we used to be.

Sharkansky is professor emeritus of political science at Hebrew University. He may be contacted at msira@mscc.huji.ac.il





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A HERALD IN ZION

An encyclopaedia of Kristallnacht atrocities


By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson

MEVASSERET ZION, Israel —A few months ago I was put in contact with the Synagogue Memorial Organisation. This organisation is engaged in preparing a volume or volumes in English which will commemorate all the Jewish communities of Germany which were attacked and destroyed in what is known as Kristallnacht, the pogrom of 9th/10th November 1938. The Synagogue Memorial Organisation estimates that there were over 1,500 such communities.

The organization, whose office is in Jerusalem, is run by a small team, headed by Professor Meier Schwarz, emeritus Professor of Agriculture at the Bar Ilan and Hebrew Universities, a former member of Kibbutz Hafetz Hayim, an expert on Torah and science and a former president of the World Association of Religious Jewish Scientists. Born in Germany in 1926, he came to Israel in 1939 and is currently engaged in overseeing the Synagogue Memorial project. Most of the funding for the undertaking comes from private donors in the US.

The team in the office is aided by a small cohort of outside writers who undertake research into the communities allotted to them. The job of the writers is to scour the internet and other sources, most of them in German, for information about ‘their’ communities. A website listing basic information about all the former communities in Germany has been set up by the Synagogue Memorial Organization and it is to this that the writers turn initially. Thus, for example, this writer was told to write up the five communities from Forchheim to Georgensmund, then to tackle the next ten from Schnaittach to Schweinfurt, and so on.

Each article must be written in accordance with the instructions issued by the Synagogue Memorial Organisation, specifying the date when the community is first mentioned, its size in 1933, the various aspects of its history, and of course the events of the pogrom of 1938. No article may exceed 255 words, which is quite difficult given that some sites (e.g., Alemannia Judaica) abound in information about each community, its synagogue, history, and population, and in some cases even include contemporary newspaper reports. Many of these communities dated back to the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, and suffered from discrimination and persecution of various kinds and intensities throughout their history. Of course, the ability to read and understand German, extract the main points from the often wordy text and present them in the required form and in good English is essential.

Before embarking on the job of writing up a community, writers are instructed to look at the relevant entry in the German Wikipedia. There one suddenly sees history coming to life. Many entries show photos of idyllic villages, where Jews once settled and presumably made a living, and rustic houses adorned with typical German timbering set in beautiful countryside surrounded by verdant fields and lush woodland. There are pictures of rural markets with bustling housewives and robust farmers. One can easily imagine these scenes as being not very far removed from those that presented themselves to the eyes of our forebearers many centuries ago.

All that ended in 1938, when the remaining Jewish population left or was deported to concentration camps. Almost all the synagogues were destroyed, together with their contents, though a few were preserved because they had been sold at a considerable loss and converted into beer halls or fire stations, for example. The devastation of all the communities was complete. In recent years some villages and towns have erected memorial plaques to their former Jewish communities.

Although it is sometimes agonizingly painful to do the work, I feel privileged to be associated with this important and worthwhile project.

Shefer-Vanson, a freelance writer and translator based in Mevasseret Zion, may be contacted at dorothea@shefer.com This article initially appeared in the AJR Journal, published by the Association of Jewish Refugees in the United Kingdom.






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FABULOUSLY OBSERVANT


What were 2008's top Jewish stories?

By David Benkof

NEW YORK—The year 2008 saw many significant Jewish events - but which ones will go down as important in Jewish history? More than thirty Jewish historians and Jewish press journalists responded to a survey I distributed asking precisely that question. Below are the five most important Jewish stories of 2008, as seen through the eyes of experts:

1) Barack Obama elected with heavy Jewish support

Earlier in the year, many pundits predicted that for a Republican, John McCain would win record Jewish support. Yet Democrat Obama scored 78 percent of the Jewish vote in the November election, two points higher than John Kerry had earned in 2004.

Respondents to the survey felt Obama's Jewish support was the most important Jewish news story of the year. Dr. Jonathan Krasner, professor of the American Jewish experience at Hebrew Union College, speculated that "the Democrats would need to run a personality with the radioactivity level of a Jimmy Carter" for non-Orthodox Jews to stop heavily supporting the Democratic candidate. And even then, he said, "The default voting pattern would reset in future elections and would continue to typify voting in state and local races."

Andrew Silow-Carroll, editor-in-chief of the New Jersey Jewish News, felt the most newsworthy aspect of this story was "the bitter campaign waged against Obama by his Jewish opponents." Silow-Carroll commented, "The attacks against Obama revealed a dark and paranoid streak among a certain kind of Jew - just as the eventual vote suggested optimism had carried the day."

Finally, a few Jewish press journalists pointed to the effect of Obama's election on intergroup relations in the United States. For example, Judy Bolton-Fasman, a columnist for the Jewish Advocate in Boston, wondered whether the 2008 race "may be the second renaissance of black-Jewish relations in the United States."

2) Rubashkin plant closed for labor violations

The travails of the Rubashkin kosher meat company got the second most votes for most important Jewish news story of the year. Most of the respondents were appalled at the alleged abuse of workers, inhumane practices, and hiring of illegals that took place at the Agriprocessors slaughterhouse and meatpacking facility in Postville, Iowa.

Dr. Harriet Freidenreich, a professor of modern Jewish history at Temple University, felt the controversy reflected poorly on the Orthodox rabbinate and community. In fact, she commented, "Jewish values and ethics seem more highly valued in the non-Orthodox (Conservative and Reform) rabbinate and community than among most of the Orthodox spokesmen."

Similarly, New Jersey Jewish News staff writer Marilyn Silverstein said the Rubashkin scandal shined a spotlight on "the disconnect that many times exists between the observance of Jewish law and the observance of Jewish values."

Dr. Krasner pointed out a more practical challenge of the controversy: the short-term shortage of kosher meat, which has led to a "spike in prices in the midst of a recession."

But not every one of the experts survey described Rubashkin and Agriprocessors as villains. Susie Rosenbluth of the Jewish Voice and Opinion in New Jersey said the kosher meat plant was the victim of two groups "whose power and influence the company failed to recognize": People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and the unions who were "livid that Agriprocessors was not unionized." She said that PETA attacked the company as a way to reduce the amount of meat eaten by Jews. Ultimately, Rosenbluth said, the Rubashkins deserve credit for making sure kosher meat could be found not only in major Jewish centers, but also in out-of-the-way locations.

3) Attack on the Chabad center in Mumbai, India

The November 26 assault, committed by Muslim terrorists, was described by New Jersey Jewish News reporter Robert Wiener as a "horror show in an unexpected venue." Boton-Fasman said the attack "highlighted how Islamic extremists want to destroy world Jewry."

The effect on international relations was important to Rosenbluth. She pointed out that "India and Israel (Hindus and Jews) already have very amicable relations. Having a common enemy - and the Islamists make no secret that they identify both groups as the 'enemy' - should bring these natural allies closer, to their mutual benefit.

Silow-Carroll pointed out an effect of the event on the Jewish community, that it "repositioned Chabad as the de facto Jewish vanguard, and made other Jewish groups acknowledge it."

4. Conversion controversy in Israel

A number of the respondents were particularly upset by the 2008 news that a haredi rabbinic council in Israel called into question the legitimacy of thousands of conversions by a prominent Israeli Orthodox halachic authority.

Anne Phyllis Pinzow, a regular contributor to Jewish newspapers throughout the United States, said that as far as she understands it, declaring converts to Judaism not Jewish "is against the Torah." Thus, she said, "to cut these people off is an internal form of bigotry."

And Washington University in St. Louis professor of Jewish history Dr. Hillel Kieval predicted that "conversion to Judaism in the State of Israel and definitions of Jewish status will continue to grow as issues in 21st century Jewish history."

Similarly, Elaine Durbach of the New Jersey Jewish News said the controversy "is going to rage on and on, with political, aliya, and demographic consequences."

5) Ahmadinejad speaks at the United Nations

The September 23 prominent public forum for the violently anti-Israel leader of Iran drew jeers from the experts surveyed. Wiener called him "threatening and gruesome," and Freidenreich described the event as a "reaffirmation of anti-Zionism as anti-Semitism in the broader Islamic world" which "emphasizes the role of Iran as a direct threat to Israel."

Finally, Dr. Dennis Klein, a professor of Jewish history at Kean University, said that the speech "tested the limits of free speech and the relationship between words and actions." He noted that he was impressed that there were not immediate, violent actions, which he hopes will "remind us of the value of protected speech."

David Benkof writes the "Fabulously Observant" column for the Jerusalem Post, from which this article was drawn. He can be reached at DavidBenkof@aol.com. His survey was compiled before the advent of the Bernard Madoff scandal.

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PEOPLE OF THE BOOKS

A Jewish leader's RX for what ails us


Hope, Not Fear: A Path to Jewish Renaissance; by Edgar M. Bronfman and Beth Zasloff; St. Martin’s Press, New York, ISBN 978-0-312-37792-2, 2008, 222 pages, $24.95


By Dr. Fred Reiss, Ed.D

WINCHESTER, California—If recent statistics are correct, American Jewry is on a path to self-destruction. First, the total American Jewish population dropped five percent between the 1990 and 2000 census. Second, of all American Jews presently wed, one-third of them are intermarried. Third, the rate of intermarriage is rising at a steady pace—forty-seven percent of today's Jewish newlyweds marry non-Jews. This is a four percent increase from 1990.

The reasons for intermarriage are complex, but undoubtedly stem from the fact that religious freedom in America has allowed Jews to leave the densely populated ghettos formed by arriving immigrants and move freely throughout the country. The lack of a powerful and active anti-Semitism in North America now permits Jews access to most colleges, universities, and places of employment; thereby letting Jews and non-Jews mingle at a personal level.

Those seeking religious freedom founded many of American’s colonies. Yet, religious freedom to them meant freedom from intrusion from other religions, not the freedom to practice a personal form of religion within the colony, as evidenced by Roger Williams fleeing the Massachusetts Bay Colony and founding Rhode Island. The first Jews in American, in 1654, experienced this, too. Peter Stuyvesant, Governor of New Amsterdam, refused to allow the Jews to disembark from a Dutch ship; yielding only when the Dutch West Indies Company authorized it, “providing that they take care of their own poor.”

As European immigrants arrived at American shores, many quickly shed their “shtetel mentality” for the American dream. The non-orthodox denominations of Judaism, established during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, reinterpreted biblical law to coincide with the American lifestyle; American Jewry followed, and with it learned only a rudimentary knowledge of Judaism

Statistics such as these frighten many Jewish leaders. Edgar M. Bronfman is one of them. Bronfman, the former CEO of Seagram, is a Jewish activist. He was the president of the World Jewish Congress, Chairman of the Board of Governors of Hillel, and is a leading philanthropist. Bronfman understands that in the last generation, North American Jewry clung together from a sense of necessity to combat an anti-Semitic society that resulted in a holocaust of the Jewish people. Today, he argues, there is no virulent anti-Semitism in North America to herd Jews together; to make Jews Jewish, and so Jewry is rotting from within. Hope, Not Fear is Bronfman’s platform to announce his ideas to stop the decaying and begin a Jewish renaissance.

Reflecting on the statistic that when Jews marry, they are having fewer children; a decline from over 2.0 children per family to 1.7 children, and one-third of the children of intermarriage are not being raised Jewish, Bronfman wants us to first rethink our negative view of intermarriage, whose roots can be traced back to the time of Ezra—2400 years ago—by recalling that the Jewish patriarch, Abraham, was so hospitable that he had an openings on each side of his tent and rushed to bring passers-by into it. If Abraham could welcome strangers into his house, then why should the Jewish community not embrace the non-Jewish spouse? In the face of a shrinking Jewish community, he insists that we ought not to be arguing about inclusion and exclusion, but rather about how to best extend a welcoming hand to strangers.

Another source of a shrinking Jewish community are disengaged Jews. If the statistics are accurate, in a given community, at least half the Jews are unaffiliated, and in some communities up to eighty percent do not belong to a synagogue or temple. Bronfman’s interviews with prominent Jewish leaders clearly show that, like Abraham, we are obligated to rush out and pull the unaffiliated into the community. At the orthodox-end of the spectrum, the Chabad Lubavitch organization has been reaching out to the unaffiliated Jewish community through free High Holiday services, mitzvah mobiles, and Chabad houses throughout the world. At the other end of the religious spectrum, the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) developed numerous programs to reach the unaffiliated and the non-Jew alike. Yet, with all this effort, the statistics expose that in many places the Jewish community is less robust than a decade ago.

Bronfman reveals that prayer and spirituality have little meaning for him. Rather, he connects with Judaism through intellectual and ethical pursuits. After all, Judaism is a culture as well as a religion. For individuals who bond to Judaism this way, and statistics show that forty percent of American Jews classify themselves as secular, he suggests that education is the means to draw them back into the community. Teach the Bible as a literary novel written by human beings; not by God.

Another means to grow the Jewish community is to be more inclusive. Provide leadership roles for women, accept gay and lesbian Jews, and acknowledge the racial and ethnic diversity of the Jewish people. The analogy of Abraham’s tent testifies to respect, not just tolerance. In addition to women, there are now gay and lesbian rabbis. Many synagogues have responded by adopting, in varying degrees, the inclusion of women into the religious and spiritual life of the congregation, as well as altering the structure of services by making them less formal and family friendly.

Time and time again, Bronfman returns to education as the means to achieve the Jewish renaissance. But, can Jewish youth be inspired to learn about Judaism? He answers yes, and cites the work of Hillel, Birthright Israel, and the Jewish camping movement as examples of success. To glean potential Jewish leaders from these sources, Bronfman cites the work of his own group, the Bronfman Youth Fellowships, in Israel, which began in 1987. This is a program that sends a diverse group of twenty-six outstanding Jewish teenagers to Israel for five weeks to expand their perspective of the Jewish people.

According to Bronfman, the final change required to bring about the Jewish renaissance is, perhaps, the most difficult: updating our Jewish institutions. For him, the division between affiliated and unaffiliated is passé. In his opinion, the decline of Jewish institutions does not necessarily mean the decline of Judaism. The real question is not, how can synagogues get the unaffiliated to affiliate? But, rather how can we inspire young Jews to understand Judaism? He responds with cultural events, Chavurot, and programs in which religiosity and social justice interact.

Hope, Not Fear presents readers with the perspectives of many prominent Jewish leaders and offers an understanding of the plethora of existing programs designed to capture the attention of Jews disconnected from Judaism. Yet, the book reads like a road map covering terrain that we’ve unsuccessfully traveled before. Jews are thinly distributed throughout the United States, except in large cities and in narrow corridors that transverse several east coast states. For these Jews, there is difficulty obtaining kosher foods, religious training and adult education, rabbinic services, and so forth. Bronfman focuses on the question how do we make the Jewish community more inclusive? Perhaps the question needs to be turned on its head by asking, how should we lengthen the reach our Jewish community?

Dr. Fred Reiss is a retired public and Hebrew school teacher and administrator. He is the author of The Ancient Secrets of Creation: Sepher Yetzira, the Book that Started Kabbalah, Revealed. His newest book, a novel, Reclaiming the Messiah, will be published shortly. Reiss may be reached via his website, www.fredreissbooks.com





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Thursdays with the Songs of Hal Wingard

Hal Wingard, a cultural Jew, is an atheist as a number of his songs makes clear. Here is a link to an index of Wingard's songs previously published by San Diego Jewish World. To hear Hal performing a song, click on its title.


#224, Faith

When you have come to the edge
of all light you know,
         
And are about to step off
into the darkness of the unknown,

Faith is knowing
one of two things will happen:

There will be something solid to stand on,
or you will be taught how to fly.
                        
--Anonymous assertion on bulletin board
   at Santa Sabina Center during the
   Pract-Inn, May 15-17, 1992

* *
Oh, oh, oh.
         
When you have walked the jungle path
     You've fashioned for you r life,
And then you're caught in undergrowth
     Of tension, stress, and strife.    
         
When you have reached the dismal dusk
     Of all you've known as light,
About to take an unknown plunge
     Into the dark of night.
         
Oh, oh, oh
         
When you have reached the final edge
     That rims the endless void,
And take a step with faith in faith,
     You're set to be destroyed.
         
For faith is mere unfounded hope
     That gods and fairy-kings
Will fill the void with solid earth
     Or grant your wish for wings.
         
Oh, oh, oh.    
         
But what if fairy kings and gods
     Are fictions of the mind,
And as you tumble through the void
     No help is there to find?    
         
It makes more sense to trust yourself,
     Upon yourself rely,
And follow paths around the pits,
     Or teach yourself to fly.
     Or teach yourself to fly
         
Oh, oh, oh.         

© 2008 Hal Wingard; May 18, 1992. Words and melody begun and completed during the Pract-Inn at Santa Sabina, May 15-17, 1992


#32, Cycles

     Cycles into cycles--
     Universe I know.
     Cycles into cycles--
     Endless ebb and flow.

The cosmos flows in cyclic rounds
     With me a tiny part.
No way to see where cycles end
     Or know where cycles start.
"Beginning" is a man-made thought--
     "Creation" just the same;
And both relate in no real way
     To life, as some may claim.

     Cycles into cycles--
     Universe I know.
     Cycles into cycles--
     Endless ebb and flow.

Certain links, like water's forms,
     Are plain enough to know:
Rain to river, sea to cloud,
     And back to earth as snow.
Other ties are hard to see,
     Or can't be seen at all:
Like weightless flight of butterflies
     And caterpillars' crawl.

     Cycles into cycles--
     Universe I know.
     Cycles into cycles--
     Endless ebb and flow.

Who can say a child begins
     The day it comes to light?
Is birth not just as well described
     When egg and sperm unite?
Or maybe "birth" is misconceived--
     A myth we must dispel--
Accepting life as simply passed
     From cell to new-made cell.

     Cycles into cycles--
     Universe I know.
     Cycles into cycles--
     Endless ebb and flow.

For me the world has always been--
     And will forever be--
An endless chain of cycles,
     All linked eternally.
If you believe that I am wrong,
     Then let me humbly beg
That you explain which one came first:
     The chicken or the egg?

     Cycles into cycles--
     Universe I know.
     Cycles into cycles--
     Endless ebb and flow.

© 2008 Hal Wingard; To Myla, January 16, 1978


#110, Borrowed Time

Time. . .is issued as a loan.
It's there to use. . .but not to own.
We never know how much we'll get,
Or when we'll have to pay the debt--
     Have to pay the debt.
    
We're livin' on borrowed time,
Livin' on borrowed time.
     With time we're given,
     We keep on livin'--
Livin' on borrowed time.

Time. . .is scarce as precious gold,
Becomes more scarce. . .as we grow old.
And surely there's no greater crime
Than losing bits of precious time--
     Bits of precious time.
    
We're livin' on borrowed time,
Livin' on borrowed time.
     With time we're given,
     We keep on livin'--
Livin' on borrowed time.

Time. . .is nature's clever way
To keep mankind. . .from too much play.
So, if we want some time to waste,
We've got to live more rapid paced--
     Live more rapid paced.
    
We're livin' on borrowed time,
Livin' on borrowed time.
     With time we're given,
     We keep on livin'--
Livin' on borrowed time.

Time. . .is issued as a loan.
It's there to use. . .but not to own.
We never know how much we'll get,
Or when we'll have to pay the debt--
     Have to pay the debt.

© 2008 Hal Wingard, August 26, 1980





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Adventures in San Diego Jewish History

Editor's Note: To create a permanent and accessible archive, we are reprinting news articles that appeared in back issues of various San Diego Jewish newspapers. You may access an index of the headlines of those articles by clicking here. You may also use the Google search program on our home page or on the headline index page to search for keywords or names.


It’s An Idea! (Editorial on fundraising}
Southwestern Jewish Press, July 7, 1950, page 2

The other day we heard of a new slogan. Rather plaintively, a group of business men asked that a special week be set aside by Presidential order to be called “Leave Us Alone Week!”

Drives for charitable purposes are becoming a drug on the market. There are few weeks during the year when a drive for funds is not going on for one thing or another.

Don’t get us wrong. We think the causes are all worthy and nee support. But we do wish we could look forward to some time during the year without a drive. Some organizations have begun to raise money on a year round basis instead of confining their activities to just a few weeks. It is true the need exists all year round, but the constant dunning is beginning to have its effect.

Individuals find themselves becoming hardened to all the pleas and stories of needs, desperate as these needs really are.

Fund raising can be handled intelligently.  Our United Jewish Fund drive is an example. Once a year we are approached and give a donation to local, national and overseas needs.

As a matter of fact, we have come to look with favor on the idea of giving percentage of earnings, according to means, as was done in Biblical days. It is the fairest and most equitable method of giving to charity.

We do not expect that anything will e done about this problem, but we did want to tall you of this new slogan: “Leave us alone week.”


Belief (Editorial on joining benevolent organizations)
Southwestern Jewish Press, July 7, 1950, page 2

In these days of great stress and strain, it is good to take time out and think about or relationship to world events. Where do we, the people, fit into the picture?  What have we to do with the gigantic struggle of two would powers for domination or survival?  Are we victims or vital factors in the Atomic Age?

As Optimists we do not fear the future but take comfort, based on history, in man’s drive for progress in ever-increasing areas of human relationship. We are convinced that good will triumph over evil. This may be naivete but it has been our faith since childhood.

It is our opinion that the people play an important part in shaping world history, not by direct action but through their pressure in groups dedicated to Truth, Goodwill and Justice.  By that we mean membership in Churches, Synagogues, Organizations, clubs, Schools, etc.  It is difficult for an individual to play an important part in our national life except through such groups.  Lack of participation makes some people feel helpless and bitter, but that is because they lack faith—faith in the democratic way of life, faith in the history of man’s progress and fait in themselves.

“The Four Freedoms” in our humble opinion, is the greatest single document since the “Rights of Man.” And the greatest of these is “Freedom from Fear.”  Recalling F.D.R.;s “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself” should remind us that belief in ourselves is the first step in World Faith.

The disillusioned take the easy way out by throwing up their hands and saying, “What can We do?”  A great deal can be done!  Active participation in the organization you believe in is one way. Support of institutions which advocate the fundamental truths and promote welfare of all the people. Don’t sit back and let things happen. Lend your efforts to make this the kind of world you want to live in.


Mouthful for Pipeful {Interview with Billy Rose}
Southwestern Jewish Press, July 7, 1950, page 3

Billy Rose took time out from “Pitching Horseshoes” to pitch some good advice to San Diego on his recent visit here.  Mr. Rose has accepted the post of Advisor to the 1953 World Progress Fair for a fee of one pound of his favorite tobacco.

The Jewish Press interviewed Mr. Rose and can attest to his know-how in the entertainment field.  Billy Rose’s recipe for success in World Fairing is to (1) Keep it clean, (2) Labor must play an important part in the activities of the Fair to demonstrate Democracy in Action, (3)  A successful Fair must contain Sex, Science and Sensation, (4) Prices should be slanted toward the small income bracket.  His recommendations, based on past experiences, were sound. He felt that an attractive Far should draw at least 15,000,000 people.

He could not understand the objections to the use of Balboa Park.  The Park will undoubtedly be enriched by the improvements necessary in buildings and grounds.


Daughters of Israel
Southwestern Jewish Press, July 7, 1950, page 3

By Laura Simon, Publicity

The Daughters of Israel wish to express their appreciation and thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Goodwin for their generosity in sponsoring the Annual Picnic on June 21st.  Proceeds from this affair will go towards the new center building.

Mrs.  Goodwin didn’t spare time or effort to make this affair a well remembered success. The food was delicious, especially the freshly picked corn.

Many thanks to friends and members who helped by attending.

The Daughters of Israel will discontinue regular meetings during the summer months but they will keep busy with a fundraising project.

“Adventures in Jewish History” is sponsored by Inland Industries Group LP in memory of long-time San Diego Jewish community leader Marie (Mrs. Gabriel) Berg. Our indexed "Adventures in San Diego Jewish History" series will be a daily feature until we run out of history.





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SAN DIEGO JEWISH WORLD: THE WEEK IN REVIEW

Wednesday, December 24, 2008 (Vol. 2. No. 305)

CHANUKAH
Chanukah sights and aromas in Jerusalem ... by Judy Lash Balint in Jerusalem

Bageling: How we tell others we're Jewish ... by Jessica Levine Kupferberg in La Jolla

Menorahs and some other favorite things... by Donald H. Harrison in San Diego

Jewish Internet Favorites:Hannukah Bird (rap) by Eric Schwartz...The Latke Song by Debbie Friedman

AUSTRALIA

The Jews Down Under, a roundup of Australian Jewish news...by Garry Fabian in Melbourne
—Chanukah lit up with controversy

—Samuel fights the good fight

—Australia fails Wiesenthal Centre test

—Jewish schools stand out with Year 12 results in 2008

—School fees set to jump in 2009

—United Israel Appeal enters 2009 with caution

—Australia - Israel defence ties encouraged

—Australian Jewish Community avoids investment fallout

ADVENTURES IN SAN DIEGO JEWISH HISTORY
July 7, 1950: Fund Campaign To Continue Throughout Summer Months

July 7, 1950: Irving Friedman To Serve in Chest Campaign

July 7, 1950: San Diego Host to B’nai B’rith Grand Lodge President

July 7, 1950: Father and Son Fashion Show
 

COMMUNITY WATCH {Link to other events}

 San Diego Jewish Academy: “Kindergarten, the Beginning of the Journey”

Soille San Diego Hebrew Day School: Learning About the Mayans at Soille Hebrew Day

Tuesday, December 23, 2008 (Vol. 2, No. 304)

INTERNATIONAL/ NATIONAL
Even at 95, peaceworker's task unfinished ... by J. Zel Lurie in Delray Beach, Florida

JUDAISM
No, Virginia, not everyone is Christian... by Donald H. Harrison in San Diego

Interfaith display....photo by Peter Spiro in Toronto, Canada

Celebrate Chanukah with music ... by Cantor Sheldon Merel in San Diego, with audio an audio clip of him singing with choir.

Golden Menorah.... art work by Sheila Orysiek in San Diego

LIFESTYLES
Jewish Internet Favorites: Two video versions of Adam Sandler's Chanukah song and Tom Lehrer's Hannukah in Santa Monica

ADVENTURES IN SAN DIEGO JEWISH HISTORY
June 23, 1950: J.C.R.A. {Letter from a patient)

June 23, 1950: S.D. Birdie Stodel B’nai B’rith Chapter No. 92

June 23, 1950: Hadassah Evening Group Announces Dinner Dance

June 23, 1950: Pioneer Women Negba Club

June 23, 1950: Hosenpud Replaces Berlin on Fund Board

COMMUNITY WATCH {Link to other events}
Soille San Diego Hebrew Day School: Reuben Klamer Game of Life Leadership Program at Soille Hebrew Day

Monday, December 22, 2008 (Vol. 2, No. 303)

INTERNATIONAL/ NATIONAL
Biking along the route of the Maccabees... by Ulla Hadar in Modi'in, Israel

JUDAISM
The day the whole town prayed for rain... by Isaac Yetiv in La Jolla, California

LIFESTYLES
Deck the Walls – with style and song... by Sheila Orysiek in San Diego

Happy Chanukah from four generations... photos by Donald H. Harrison in San Diego

Jewish Internet Favorites .... Dreidel's Day Out and Political Irony

ARTS
Look who's putting on The Thomashefskys ... by Cynthia Citron in Los Angeles

ADVENTURES IN SAN DIEGO JEWISH HISTORY
June 26, 1950: Hadassah
June 26, 1950: Home for the Aged
June 26, 1950: Jr. Pioneer Women Shoshana Club

June 26, 1950: Yo-Ma-Co News

COMMUNITY WATCH {Link to other events}
Soille San Deigo Hebrew Day School: Being Vikings at Soille Hebrew Day
 

Sunday, December 21, 2008 (Vol. 2, No. 302)

INTERNATIONAL/ NATIONAL
Many parties compete in Israel but usually the same ones actually win Knesset seats ... by Ira Sharkansky in Jerusalem.

Lakiya Negev Bedouin Weaving combines business methods, ancient craftsmanship... by Ulla Hadar in Lakiya, Israel

JUDAISM
White Gold Menorah .... an art work by Sheila Orysiek in San Diego

Did Shehekiyanu prayer fit during Shoah?

Conversing with enemies, there and here... by Rabbi Leonard Rosenthal in San Diego

LIFESTYLES
Two ancient cultures unite in one little boy... by Donald H. Harrison in San Diego

Jewish Internet Favorites: Menorah E-Mail and Moscow Yiddish Theatre

SPORTS
A bissel sports trivia with Bruce Lowitt... in Oldsmar, Florida

ADVENTURES IN SAN DIEGO JEWISH HISTORY

June 23, 1950: Tifereth Israel Synagogue
June 23, 1950: Temple Beth Israel
June 23, 1950: Beth Jacob Congregation
 

COMMUNITY WATCH {Link to other events}
Soille San Diego Hebrew Day School: Kindergarten Self Portraits in Clay at Soille Hebrew Day

United Jewish Federation: An invitation from Michael Rassler, chief executive officer

Friday, December 19, 2008 (Vol. 2, No. 301)

INTERNATIONAL/ NATIONAL
Madoff scandal illustrates inefficiency of institutions created for our protection ... by Ira Sharkansky in Jerusalem

Obama team may seek to solve wrong Israeli-Palestinian problems, and worsen them ... by Shoshana Bryen in Washington D.C.

Community self-help projects abound in Kassam-rocket-scarred Sderot... by Ulla Hadar in Sderot, Israel

ARTS

Open microphone Jewish poetry offered at Lawrence Family JCC; other events coming ... by Sara Appel-Lennon in La Jolla, California

The music that I like... and don't ... by David Amos in San Diego

LIFESTYLES
Jewish Internet Favorites:
Leonard Nimoy: The origin of Spock's greeting
Mom's Song

ADVENTURES IN SAN DIEGO JEWISH HISTORY
June 23, 1950: Labor Zionist Organization,Chaim Weitzmann Branch of San Diego
June 23, 1950: Beth Jacob Ladies Auxiliary
June 23, 1950: Temple Sisterhood

COMMUNITY WATCH
Soille San Diego Hebrew Day School: Second Grade Cooperative Learning at Soille Hebrew Day

Thursday, December 18, 2008 (Vol. 2, No. 300)

INTERNATIONAL/ NATIONAL
Islamic jihadism is not Israel-centric... by Shoshana Bryen in Washington, D.C.

LIFESTYLES
Jewish case against same-sex marriage ... by David Benkof in New York

Jewish Internet Favorites: "Captain Smartypants Sings Dreidel" and "Jews of Harbin, China"

ARTS
Thursdays With The Songs Of Hal Wingard:
#202, Falling In Love
#117, Eileen, I Wish You Knew
#299, Year Of Gold

ADVENTURES IN SAN DIEGO JEWISH HISTORY
June 23, 1950: Alpha Phi Pi News
June 23, 1950: Hillel Winds Up Year’s Activity
June 23, 1950: News of the Fox
June 23, 1950: Lasker Lodge Hi-Lites

COMMUNITY WATCH
Lawrence Family JCC: Where is there to go on December 24th to party with the Jewish Community?

Soille San Diego Hebrew Day School: Kindergarten Aleph Bet Calisthenics at Soille Hebrew Day

Tifereth Israel Synagogue: Special events at Tifereth Israel on December 18

Link to previous editions

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