The 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 21 Midrashim and Literal Truth

$1.00 WWW.5TJT.COM !jna dj VOL. 6 NO. 36 5 SIVAN 5766 JUNE 1, 2006

INSIDE

From The Editor Larry Gordon 6 Aliyah Chronicle Shmuel Katz 19 Now I Know Why Hannah Reich Berman 32 The 15-Minute Chef Jamie Geller 36 MindBiz Esther Mann, LMSW 47

Concert Chairmen Joseph Frager and Paul Brody. See Page 38

Bar Mitzvah of Sholom Kanner. Simchas: See Pages 45 & 78

Mesivta Ateres Yaakov Honors. See Page 44

CANDLE LIGHTING June 1 – 8:01 PM June 2 – 8:02 PM June 9 – 8:06 PM Torah Scrolls by C.H. Nathan. This and other Judaica works are available at www.judaicartexchange.com 2 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 3 4 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 5 al wandering—the doing little or nothing—became a thing that identified a certain type of individual, and the commitment to aimlessness became the aca- P.O. BOX 690 LAWRENCE, NY 11559 demic equivalent of pursuing an 516-984-0079 advanced degree in absolute confusion [email protected] [email protected] about what to do with one’s young life. LARRY GORDON I believe that being in school is like Publisher/Editor oxygen for children up until the age of ESTA J. GORDON about eighteen. Remove them from Managing Editor Only For The Children school, and you are removing their sup- YOSSI GORDON ply of oxygen. As you can see, the result Director of Sales Too many children who belong inside mer yeshiva student myself, and as a is the creation of a very dangerous situa- CHANA ROCHEL ROSS the walls of yeshiva classrooms have casual observer of what is currently tak- tion. A child needs help breathing in the Editorial Assistant apparently either been maneuvered out ing place in our Jewish communities. As tools and ingredients that form and result SIDI BARON, YAKOV SERLE, JERRY MARKOVITZ or have voluntarily opted out, and that is far back as I can recall, there were always in an adult life. You know what happens Sales Representatives the primary cause of a situation that is kids who dropped out from yeshiva for when someone is deprived of oxygen for SHMUEL GERBER already of crisis proportions. Some will one reason or another. In the yeshivas I too long a period of time. Chief Copy Editor say that our yeshivas’ inability to handle attended, there were very few such kids But, you’re thinking, not all these MICHELE JUSTIC, YEHUDIT SANDERS Copy Editors a certain type of child has left them with over the years; but they did exist, and we kids who are out of school simply opted CONTRIBUTING EDITORS no choice but to insist that, for the bet- were aware of them. And it really didn’t out. Many of them were asked to leave Irwin Benjamin ter good of the majority of yeshiva stu- make a big difference how we as or, as it’s more commonly referred to, Hannah Reich Berman dents, some of these kids just not attend. teenagers viewed the role of school in our they were thrown out of school. Even if Rabbi Arye Z. Ginzberg Frequently, decisions of this type young adult lives. that’s the case, there is still no reason Yochanan Gordon Michele Herenstein may solve just part of a problem while I recall viewing those situations as for them not to be in some kind of Rabbi Mordechai Kamenetzky leaving unanswered what this child is unfortunate, and understood that no school environment. This means that Esther Mann supposed to do with the remainder of matter how much I may have disliked the child or teen can be in any number Rochelle Miller Arye Nisonson his or her adolescent educational school, felt uninterested in what the of specialty yeshivas or even, if need be, Paula L. Simmonds years. When these children cannot rebbi was teaching, or been complete- in public school (if absolutely no yeshi- DOV M. GORDON find an alternative educational institu- ly bored with some of the subjects in va can be found). This idea of living and Operations Director tion in which they are welcome and school, this was the place that I being on the street should be both intol- IVAN NORMAN, IRA THOMAS comfortable, the result is too often the belonged and I had a commitment to erable and unacceptable to all. Staff Photographers realization of a parent’s worst night- stay the course and see high school Still, for some reason we accept the FRANKEL & CO., CREATIVE DESIGN LLC mare, and a serious collective prob- through to its conclusion. situation as it is. I can recall that the few Design & Production lematic situation which does not Somehow, over the last 10 years or times my friends either cut school or cut TALIYE CORLEY reflect well on all of us as members of so, it became okay to beg off from out early on some days, they were always Art Director a community renowned for chesed, attending yeshiva and “opting out” for a in fear of being caught on the street by The Five Towns Jewish Times is an independent weekly newspaper. Opinions expressed by writers and columnists are not outreach, and caring for our fellow young life filled with aimlessness, misdi- truant officers and either reported or necessarily those of the editor or publisher. We are not Jew, no matter what their age. rection, and a year or so or more of somehow labeled as truants. This classi- responsible for the kashrus or hashgachah of any product or establishment advertised in the Five Towns Jewish Times. I can only comment on these matters doing and accomplishing almost noth- fication would be recorded on a school as a parent of yeshiva students, as a for- ing. Even more than that, the intellectu- transcript and would not necessarily

6 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES bode well for future references or, once through some kind of series of parenting you rethought the direction you wanted courses. That suggestion might be a lit- your life headed in, if you wanted to pur- tle extreme and even unnecessary. I real- sue some level of advanced education. ly do not know how to score or analyze Frankly, I wasn’t really certain that a parent’s performance, but I believe there was such a thing as being brand- that since all people were once children ed a truant, until years later when I themselves, they learned how to be a spotted a patrol car on a street in parent from their parents, and their Brooklyn, and on the side of one of its mother and father learned the parenting doors were the words “City of New ropes from their own parents, and so on York Truant Officer.” So I really never down the line. understood, and still don’t understand, Certainly the parenting courses being how kids today can just take them- offered so widely these days cannot do selves out of school and say that school anyone any damage. There are, of course, is just not for them. situations in which extenuating circum- I’m trying to say two things here. One stances invade the family infrastructure, is that having teens and others drop out and in these instances an intervention of of school and get into trouble on some some sort may be helpful and even neces- level has always happened and will most sary. Looking around, however, I cannot likely continue to happen. An educator I accept at face value that parenting in gen- spoke to last weekend told me that his eral has broken down so completely that research had shown him that the very attendance in these courses should be a same things drew kids out of the main- prerequisite to allowing children to be stream in the European shtetl 60 and 70 registered for yeshiva. and even more years ago. Kids were The events that occurred last week were drawn and taken by the ideas of the tragic. They were the worst display of the New World—new ideas, “enlighten- system breaking down and failing some ment,” and other things that caught young men. No one is comforted by the their fancy or enchanted them. fact that similar events occurred 10 or 20 The second thing, and perhaps more or more years ago. But they do happen, and important, is that even though these they are no less sickening. Each time we things have happened and continue to witness or hear about them, we have to happen, our objective as a public and steel and strengthen our resolve and as a community has to be that these become more determined than ever before types of situations should not develop to reach out and help open our minds and and should be nipped in the bud when- arms and not let up or forget about what ever possible. these young people—our children—may At the forum in Far Rockaway last be enduring. We can’t stop it completely, week, one of the speakers made the but that doesn’t mean we can’t try. ❖ point that every parent registering their Larry Gordon can be reached for comment at child for yeshiva should have to go [email protected].

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 7 Thoughts From The Peanut Gallery

BY DEBBIE BINDLER AND It is one thing to make suggestions, FAYA COHEN but quite another to do the hard work of implementing them. Nevertheless, Our Far Rockaway/Five Towns we are making these suggestions, in community is justly proud of the the hope that they will at least stimu- many acts of chesed done on an indi- late discussion and possible imple- vidual and institutional basis. The mentation by those who have the needs addressed cover many areas. wherewithal to do so. There is provision for the material We understand that our local and physical needs of the members of schools are already overburdened our community, whether temporary or with both ordinary and extraordinary long term. Among the litany of needs functions. Nevertheless, we see the that our community has diligently schools as a starting point for at least attempted to address, we would like the following forms of preventive to highlight a particular area that is chesed: largely unmet, perhaps because it is 1. Early childhood screening.It so labor-intensive and requires a sus- seems that many adolescents who tained commitment of time. don’t conform to the norm have some There are children of all ages in history of learning difficulties that this community who could use a big were not adequately diagnosed or brother or big sister—whether or not addressed during elementary school. they already have one. Some need an It is important for schools and parents adult mentor even if they are part of to be partners in conducting a review an intact family, and all the more so of the following basic concerns: (a) if, unfortunately, they do not have a Are the child’s basic skills on grade mother or a father at home for vari- level? (b) Is the child appropriately ous reasons. interacting socially with his or her Even seemingly intact, fully func- peers? (c) Is the child fulfilling his or tioning families have many stressors, her potential? This review is most which affect even children who are valuable in the early grades and early outwardly well adjusted. If it is hard on in the school year. The answers to to imagine the daily toll of dealing these questions are not usually clear- with chronic illness, unemployment, ly stated in the typical report cards. disability, divorce or death, how much 2. Peer tutoring/exchange of skills. harder is it to imagine the daily toll of While most, if not all, of the girls’ the less visible problems of family schools have chesed requirements, the strife, emotional or psychological boys’ schools, in contrast, generally do impairment, or subtle learning issues not. Boys have as much of an obliga- that don’t fit into any formal category? tion to do chesed as their female Whatever the case, these families counterparts, and they should be would greatly benefit from having an encouraged by their schools to con- older friend to play with a child in tribute at least half an hour towards a need of extra support—someone to chesed requirement. The boys’ chesed learn with, do homework with, or just activities could include being a big spend time with. brother to a slightly younger boy, play- These concerns are not new, but ing with small children on a Friday recent tragic events in our communi- afternoon so that the parents can con- ty have brought home to us the centrate on Shabbos preparations, or importance of paying attention to the learning with a lonely elderly gentle- children who get lost in the crowd man who can only find a chevrusa if when young, but as adolescents get he is willing to pay for a tutor. Peer noticed for the wrong reasons. tutoring, where classmates tutor each There are a number of wonderful other both in academic subjects and local organizations that have been in other skills areas such as sports, working with our youth, each in its chess, or other hobbies, should own way. While each of these organi- become the norm in all schools. zations does vital work, the need for 3. Staff oversight. Ideally, every one-on-one attention vastly exceeds school—boys’ and girls’—should have the resources of paid professionals a staff member in place to research (and the resources of families hiring and follow up on the needs of its pop- those professionals) and mentoring ulation, addressing the first two organizations. This is the kind of points above. Shadchanus is usually a chesed that requires an ongoing com- term relating to marriage, but it can mitment of time that is probably not be used in this situation as well. feasible for anyone presently occu- We are blessed to live in a commu- pied with significant family or work nity that rallies together with tremen- responsibilities. Who might be able to dous achdus in times of crisis. It’s make a weekly commitment to time for us to bring that strength of befriend another Jew? Those people achdus to the fore and apply it toward might include boys in high school and prevention. Many medical insurance beis midrash and girls in high school companies are slowly beginning to and seminary, young married couples, understand the value of covering pre- and empty-nesters and retired people. ventive medical treatment. Without In the event that there are available question, the mental health of our volunteers, our next concern is to pro- youth can benefit from prevention as vide a clearinghouse for making these well. Let us consciously look for and connections. Our hopes would be for try to prevent potential problems. Let each existing organization (education- us make prevention our byword, and al and spiritual) to attempt to make work together to reach out to those matches within its own ranks, or per- children who do not feel as if they fit haps with affiliated organizations. in—before it’s too late. ❖ 8 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 9 it, the fact that we are so obsessed and determined to consume the finest cheese blintzes and kugels on Shavuos is great proof that Torah is Divine (if you need proof). After all, how do we know that this event—the giving of the Torah to Am Yisrael at Sinai—actually took place when we say it did? I mean, look, it was a pretty long time ago. The Cheesecake, Soufflé, Blintzes, cheese is the clincher. Our sages tell us that “minhag Yisrael Torah hi”—a cus- And Kugel At Mount Sinai tom or a tradition of the Jewish people is considered as if it were actually Shavuos is here, which means that painful past of the Jewish people, it Torah. So don’t take this cheese thing it’s time for those cheese dishes. just might be that on that count we are too lightly. (Though you can use light Everyone knows what happened on in a fairly good position. cheese to fulfill the requirements of Shavuos—the Jews were commanded So the Jewish people were the custom.) to eat cheese. Right? Not exactly. As encamped at Har Sinai ready to receive To grasp the concept of the minhag you know, of course, Shavuos is that the Torah. This took place over 3,300 to consume cheese products on beautiful Yom Tov that marks the day years ago. We know as a result of our Shavuos, one must place oneself in the on which the Jewish people, after a mesorah that the Torah came from shoes of the Jews who just exited Egypt torturous enslavement in Egypt, pre- Sinai. But where did the first cheese- (providing you can imagine that they pared themselves very expeditiously— cake come from (not to mention all had shoes. And that they only had one buried out here in the desert?” I don’t in just 49 days (including week- that lasagna)? A casual and unthinking pair of shoes each): The Jews are gath- know, but it seems that in those olden ends)—to receive the Torah from observer can easily conclude that eat- ered at Har Sinai; they are there for the days G-d gave in to the Jews a lot. They Hashem at Sinai. ing cheese dishes is the focal point of ceremony that will surround their would complain about water, and What a time that must have been to the holiday. In the food stores on receiving of the Torah. Mind you that instantly get water; they wanted meat, be alive. My goodness—the sense of Central Avenue they are gearing up for one of the early complaints of the G-d sent them quail to satisfy their triumph and accomplishment must the run on cheese dishes at a pace Jewish people after being miraculously culinary desires; and so on. have been overwhelming. What a priv- matched only by the demand for she- liberated from their oppressors in Egypt So, we received the Torah, and one ilege it must have been to be chosen as murah matzah before Pesach. was that they did not like the menu they of the things relevant to our eating the generation that receives the Torah The question remains: Is “Thou had to endure during the journey. habits governed by Torah is the fashion from G-d at Har Sinai. The only possi- shall eat cheese” one of the command- Remember that they would fre- in which meat must be slaughtered ble thing close to that is to live in the ments? Well, it’s not among the first quently ask Moshe Rabbeinu why he and prepared. Considering that the generation that sees the arrival of Ten, and I’m fairly certain that it is not took them out of Egypt, and they Torah was just given a few hours or a Mashiach, for which we are very much included among any other of the 613, would consistently pose this inquiry in few days prior, and that Moshe did not in the running. There are, of course, either. The Torah mostly lets you eat rather facetious and sarcastic context. yet have the opportunity to teach all those who maintain that living through whatever you want, as long as it’s “What’s the matter,” they would say, the laws to everyone in a comprehen- the times of Mashiach can be wrought kosher and so on. So where and how “weren’t there enough graves in sive fashion, the Jews had a problem: with great travail. But in the aftermath did this whole cheese thing get started? Egypt?” In other words, “Did you take How do they slaughter (or shecht) of the Holocaust and the generally Actually now that I’m thinking about us out of Mitzrayim just to have us meat so that we comply with the

10 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES requirements of halachah as dictated much easier. I guess that’s just one of that accompany a physical existence. get yourself lost in the study of Torah, by the newly introduced Jewish law? those things that fits into the category But we are finite, being in this beauti- and you can taste the G-dliness that is Mind you that there was not yet any of “nothing is the way it used to be.” ful and intriguing materialistic and eternal. organized rabbinate, there was no time I think the point is that without physical world. For some, that’s very Which brings us to the next unusu- yet to enter into contract negotiations cheese blintzes and cheesecake, there frustrating and even disturbing. al thing about observing Shavuos. And with rabbis, and there was no recog- is a remote chance that some people But not for the Jew—a Jew with that is the custom to stay up all night nized va’ad. Later, when there was a would not accord Matan Torah the Torah. Torah is the key to eternity. on that first night of Yom Tov studying functioning va’ad, an opposition to attention it should be accorded. Not When the Jews received the Torah at Torah. As you know, the origin of this that va’ad developed under the leader- minhag is to provide a tikun, a rectifi- ship of Korach, and you know how that cation, for the fact that the Jews at story ended. Sinai overslept on the morning of In any event, Moshe was the We have learned many times that some of our Matan Torah. Can you imagine that? authority, and there was no need for The Jews are about to get the Torah anyone else, as Moshe was in direct greatest tzadikim throughout the ages have from the King of all Kings Himself, communication with Hashem. So and they can’t wake up, like a teenager there they were: It was summer in the had high aspects of Torah revealed to them struggling to make it to yeshiva for desert, and they were on a spiritual Sunday-morning minyan. high, having just received the Torah. while they were asleep. Interestingly enough, however, the They couldn’t ritually slaughter their Midrash states that the Jews slept so animals, because they were not yet soundly and so peacefully on the familiar with the intricacies of the morning of that first Shavuos that not law. So they played it safe and ate only that Torah needs cheesecake to make Har Sinai, we accepted an invitation to even a fly was allowed to disturb dairy products. I know; you’re won- it more palatable. Torah, for those who forever—just like G-d Himself. Of them. So the question is, if Hashem dering whether everything was chalav understand, is the key to life’s ultimate course it’s not that simple, because was not happy with the fact that the Yisrael, and I would speculate that, desire—and that is eternity. I think before we get there we have to experi- Jews had slept late, why did he not yes, it was all chalav Yisrael. I mean, every thinking organism inherently ence and endure a life of physical and allow the flies to disturb them? Those there was no Nestlé or Hershey yet, desires to be eternal; eternal without emotional travail and sometimes tor- and Oreo cookies would not get an O- the burdens, obstacles, and troubles ment (make that often torment). But Continued on Page 12 U certification for a few thousand years. And if every Jew milked his or her own cow, then it was all chalav Yisrael. Oh, what brilliant simplicity! So the Jews played it safe, and decided on this first Yom Tov of Shavuos to consume dairy products. They ate cheese and milk and things of that nature. But did they have cheesecake there? And what about cheese blintzes? For the purpose of this essay, it is important to assume that they did indeed have cheesecake and blintzes on that first Shavuos. It is additionally important to note and observe the way in which a Jewish custom gets started, and the beautiful way in which it is able to endure thousands of years of exile, pain, and uncertainty and for the minhag to emerge intact. And how does that wonderful and, okay, cheesy tradition manifest itself in these modern times? Well here in our area, a careful survey of the tradition has resulted in finding that thousands of cheese blintzes are sold here in Cedarhurst for Shavuos. That’s a stag- gering amount of cheese and dough. (Did I mention the dough?) So the Jews, being the resourceful people they are, figured that with all the not yet fully understood detailed laws of shechitah, they were better off with simple dairy meals. Except that if you ask the women and men who prepare Yom Tov meals, they will tell you that it is more difficult to prepare milchig meals than the more straight- forward meat meals. Of course, that’s nowadays, when you can go into Supersol and the cow is already slaughtered and cut up into little pieces and shrink-wrapped and vacu- um-packed with a little price tag glued to it. Unwrap the package, pop the flanken into the oven, and you have a meal (I think). Any gourmet baalabus- ta will tell you that dairy meals are far more difficult. But don’t forget, in the desert if you decided you were in the mood for steak you had to go out and chase a cow around. Same if you wanted lamb chops. If you wanted sweet breads— good luck. Dairy, in those days, was 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 11 HEARD IN THE BAGEL STORE what the Jews desired in unity as they to cheesecake. And the question as to slept so soundly on the morning of whether your neshamah is capable of CALENDAR Continued from Page 11 Matan Torah. appreciating a really good piece of menacing desert flies could have So if that’s the case and if this is cheesecake from Mom’s Pastries or LUACH been used to wake up those lazy such a beautiful thing, why do we in one of those Schwartz’s blintzes. There sleeping Jews. But no, Hashem this day and age have to rectify this are some cheesecakes out there that allowed them to sleep undisturbed. alleged faux pas by desisting from are indeed heavenly, or at least they June 1 – June 10 Chassidic thought explains that the sleep on Shavuos night? And the taste like it. So maybe, just maybe, it’s Jews’ oversleeping on Shavuos morning answer is that Hashem admired the those carefully prepared sweet cheese ZIP Code: 11516 was not because their alarm clocks did- beauty of the Jewish intent to receive dishes which are the bridge between 5 Sivan – Erev Shavuos n’t ring or the roosters didn’t cock-a- Torah from Him at the highest level the good taste of the physical and the Thursday, June 1 doodle-do. The Jews slept because they possible. But this was not G-d’s pur- sweetness of the spiritual. Omer: 49 understood that they were souls in pose of creation. Hashem created us Whether you eat cheese on Shavuos Eruv Tavshilin physical bodies and that the soul in this and gave us Torah and mitzvos so that because you are reminded of how the Candle Lighting: 8:01 pm world is restricted by being enclosed in we can perform them here with our ancient Jewish people denied them- 6 Sivan – 1st Day Shavuos a finite body. To receive Torah, they bodies in a physical world, thereby selves flanken and steak because of Erev Shabbos wanted to have their souls—which transforming mundane physicality their uncertainty regarding proper she- Friday, June 2 ascend to Heaven during sleep—to into great and high holiness. Our chitah or because you consume dairy Daf yomi: Shekalim 16 receive the Torah unencumbered. function as flesh-and-blood humans is on Yom Tov to honor the land of milk Z’manim*: We have learned many times that to take the physical things that this and honey, your cheesecake, your Earliest tallis: 4:20 am some of our greatest tzadikim world has to offer and turn them blintz, your soufflé, or your kugel is Sunrise: 5:26 am throughout the ages have had high against their nature, making them connecting you to the depth and Latest Shema: aspects of Torah revealed to them holy and fulfilling Hashem’s intent of thoughtfulness of your ancestors—the M. Av. 8:33 am while they were asleep. Our forefa- creating a lower worldly environment Jews at Sinai. Gr’a 9:09 am ther Yaakov saw the entire future of suitable for Hashem to dwell in and Chag sameiach to all. ❖ Candle Lighting: 8:02 pm the Jewish people, from beginning amongst us, which was the intent at 7 Sivan – 2nd Day Shavuos Shabbos until the coming of Mashiach—but Creation. Larry Gordon can be reached for comment at only when he was asleep. And this is Which oddly enough brings us back [email protected]. Saturday, June 3 Megillas Rus Yizkor Shabbos/Yom Tov ends**: 9:11 pm 72 min. 9:34 pm 8 Sivan – Isru Chag Sunday, June 4 13 Sivan – Erev Shabbos Friday, June 9 Daf yomi: Yoma 2 Earliest tefillin: 4:17 am Sunrise: 5:24 am Latest Shema: M. Av. 8:33 am Gr’a 9:09 am Candle Lighting: 8:06 pm 14 Sivan – Shabbos Saturday, June 10 Shabbos Parashas Naso Pirkei Avos: Chapter 1 Shabbos ends**: 9:16 pm 72 min. 9:38 pm * from MyZmanim.com ** add a few minutes for tosefos Shabbos according to your minhag Municipal Calendar For 5 Towns and NYC Thursday, June 8 NYC public schools: no classes.

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12 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 13 All Together, Now: JCC, Kulanu, CAHAL, And TOVA Join Forces

BY PAULA L. SIMMONDS social activities, support, and education. This group effort allows us to fill The refrain “All together now…” the gap with new activities and serv- from a popular song aptly describes a ices, including babysitting, tutoring, brand-new community effort involving mentoring, information and referrals, several well-known local organiza- Teen Night, and family-centered tions, including the JCC of the social events.” Greater Five Towns, Kulanu, CAHAL, and TOVA. These four groups have joined forces to provide much-needed services to Five Towns families with Through this cooperative children and teens on the autistic spectrum, giving new meaning to the program, each of the concept of the whole being greater four organizations hopes than the sum of its parts. Since each of these organizations to serve approximately already delivers unique services to the community, one might wonder 100 families on a why they decided to work together. Rina Shkolnik, executive director of limited, first-come the JCC of the Greater Five Towns, first-served basis in the speaking for the group, explained the reasoning behind the project: “The Five Towns area. community can and should come together. When we work together, we can do great things. Before this program existed, there was a gap in aux- Under the auspices of the JCC, iliary family-centered services for which manages the program, called those families affected by ASD “Lemaan Mishpachotainu” (“For Our (Autistic Spectrum Disorder) syn- Families”), the four organizations are drome. By coming together, we can the recipients of a two-year grant now provide services not only to the from the UJA designed to provide special-needs child, but also to the services to families with at least one siblings and parents, with respite, special-needs child on the autistic

14 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES spectrum. Children vary from high- functioning, who can be successfully mainstreamed, to children with a cluster of communication, motor, and socialization-related symptoms that may require round-the-clock care. “Each organization takes responsibility for one particular piece of the program. This is the first time that these organizations serving different seg- ments of the autistic population have joined forces for the benefit of the community,” said Ms. Shkolnik. “Since the JCC is the organization connected with UJA, we are overseeing the entire program. Additionally, we will offer recreational facilities, staff, and equipment as our part of the joint program.” Kulanu will focus on helping children and families by providing case Rina Shkolnik management and community sensitivity education, helping with social skills, working with siblings, and leading lies living with these challenges. But recreational activities for the entire since the needs of children on the family. TOVA will provide ASD-specif- autistic spectrum can vary so widely, ic training for the Big Brother/Big the program is highly specialized to Sister mentoring programs, which will recognize and address the individual be supervised by a licensed clinical needs of the families, each with their social worker. CAHAL will participate own unique situation. by providing direction for after-school Ms. Chana Pfeifer, director of spe- tutoring services to children within the cial needs at the JCC, further out- school system. lined the program objectives: to offer Families with a child on the autistic a number of different activities, with spectrum usually shoulder extra bur- the goal of reducing the isolation and dens, which can create additional burden on families with ASD chil- stressors for the entire family. Lemaan dren, and to provide a collaborative Mishpachotainu was developed for the community effort for all in need. Ms. Five Towns community to relieve Pfeifer said that very often the autis- some of the day-to-day stress, while improving the quality of life for fami- Continued on Page 16

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 15 All Together Now: Henry Kaufman campgrounds.” South Shore of Long Island and special-needs child and give them Continued from Page 15 Jonathan Cooper, Kulanu’s pro- Queens with support, referral activi- one-on-one attention.” gram director of inclusion services, ties, consultation to area schools, CAHAL’s Naomi Nadata, program tic child is “identified” for services, described his organization’s role as respite/summer camp, information director, and Alice Feltheimer, educa- but there is a need for sibling support, one that fulfills the social and respite and referral, and support groups for tional coordinator, explained that in the form of fun, social activities, aspects, arranging sibling groups and siblings and parents. Kulanu also has they are very enthusiastic and com- and relaxation, as well. providing case management and a middle and high school called mitted members of the team, serving Rina Shkolnik explained that trained specialized babysitters for the Kulanu Torah Academy. Tzippi children with learning disabilities in a through this cooperative program, autistic child and siblings. A recent Posner, the Lemaan Mishpachotainu different segment of the population. each of the four organizations hopes to activity was Teen Night, staffed by coordinator at Kulanu, explained that Ms. Nadata said, “We see our role in serve approximately 100 families on a Kulanu counselors, during which consultative support services are this as giving insight into how some limited, first-come first-served basis, teens shared pizza, played games, and available to area schools such as children learn differently and provid- with activities and services tailored to schmoozed with each other. HAFTR that are administering the ing outside support such as tutoring their unique needs. The program tar- and being in touch with classroom gets nursery-age children to teenagers, teachers. We hope our students with and offers respite for the families, pro- learning disabilities can be helped. viding babysitting for autistic childlren The children who CAHAL services and their siblings. The CAHAL portion of the program is are children with different learning Ms. Shkolnik added, “Our primary styles who are in the academic goals are to raise awareness within the working with kids from grades 1 through 8, process, learning mainstream materi- community and to reduce the tension al in the schools.” The CAHAL por- and stigma that families with a child tion of the program is working with on the autistic spectrum experience.” but they are also now beginning a kids from grades 1 through 8, but What are these organizations able to they are also now beginning a high- do with the grant that they weren’t high-school program for girls that will be based school program for girls that will be able to do before? based at TAG, and a boys program According to Shkolnik, “We weren’t based at Mesivta. able to provide these ancillary support at TAG and a boys program based at Mesivta. “For Our Families” is a wonderful services for the entire family. We can opportunity to come together and reap now provide an organized program the benefits of the expertise of this and additional services which are typ- coordinated effort. To learn more ically very costly, while raising aware- Another example provided by Mr. programs. about this program, send e-mail to ness and public knowledge. This is Cooper is Bowling Day, where “we Andrea Borah, director of TOVA, tzippi.posner@fivetownsjcc or call the something we all need to work on offered respite, support, and appropri- outlined her organization’s role in the JCC at 516-569-6733. ❖ together to help. As part of our goal to ate social activities with staffing, joint program: “For this project, we’re educate the community, we are plan- through planned activities, so families doing the mentoring for the children The JCC of the Greater Five Towns is a ning an awareness week in could relax, have a good time, and feel in the program. With offices in the beneficiary agency of the UJA Federation of New York, a member agency of the United Way of September, where we will reach out to comfortable.” Five Towns, Queens, and Manhattan, Long Island and the Jewish Community Centers synagogues and provide speakers. In Kulanu is primarily a parent-driven TOVA mentors children from 1st Association, and an affiliate of the Five Towns Community Chest. addition, we plan on having a Sunday organization that has been servicing grade to 12th grade. We train the Big Paula Simmonds is a contributing editor for the Funday this summer at the JCC children with special needs on the Brothers/Big Sisters to mentor the Five Towns Jewish Times.

16 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES Preparing For s”xc The Invasion: Hundreds Of Missionaries Coming To New York BY GAVRIEL ARYEH SANDERS

Recently, the Five Towns Jewish Times informed you that hundreds of “Jews for Jesus” missionaries are preparing to launch an unprecedented campaign throughout the Jewish communities of greater New York, including the counties to the north—Westchester, Rockland, Putnam—all five boroughs of New York City, and way out on Long Island. Northern New Jersey and the Jersey shore are on the missionary map, as well. I’ve been in touch with a number of communal leaders, and can assure you that this will not occur without a decisive response from the greater Jewish community. Nothing unites us like a good communal threat. The missionaries are coming with a $3-million war chest to spend on radio, TV, billboard, and print ads. You can expect more mailings (like the one that targeted over 80,000 frum homes from Lakewood to Monsey two weeks ago), phone calls to your home, concerts in parks, so-called Torah studies, and a whole lot of very visible activity on the streets, especially in the city. While this really happens every summer—and has been for the last 33 years—it’s never been on this scale. And why davka now? Because the sponsor- We will be open Thursday, Erev Shavuos from 10:30am - 2:30 pm. ing organization, Jews for Jesus, is con- We will re-open Sunday, June 4. cluding a five-year evangelistic outreach Happy Shavuos!! to 65 Jewish communities around the world. New York is the last and the biggest. They are bringing in teams of seasoned missionary leaders to lead hundreds of volunteers. And they are multilingual, since they are targeting Russian, Hebrew, and Bukharian Jews, as well as English-speaking Jews. I’ve reviewed the statistics on this five year campaign they call “Behold your god”—I call it “Behold your fraud”—and they really have done a poor job in most cities, at least as far as reaching Jews. With 48 cities reporting statistics to date, they claim so far to have converted 958 Jews from around the world. That’s an average of 20 per city. They claim to have converted 3,592 non-Jews in five years of effort— that’s about 75 per city. And they’ve spent millions and millions to do this. You and I know that every neshamah is precious to us—each one representing whole generations. For 958 Jewish souls lost to be lost to deceptive missionary misrepresentations is a tragedy and a travesty. But when I look at this from a business point of view, I think their “Behold your god” campaign is a failure, and I expect their New York efforts to be a failure, as well. We’re not as naive as they think we are. This is the most Torah-centric Jewish enclave outside of Israel itself. And missionaries going door-to-door in Boro Park, Williams-

Continued on Page 18 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 17 Preparing For The Invasion until the Jews as a nation respond posi- mining our mekoros and meforshim to lous T-shirts that say things like “Jesus Continued from Page 17 tively to the message. They believe we put together a whole new substrata of made me kosher” and “Jews for Jesus.” are in acharis hayamim—the end of proofs—really more spoofs. They are Should you encounter any of the burg, Crown Heights, New Square, and days—and that the millions of Jews will quoting—or rather, often misquoting— hundreds of missionaries planning to Monsey are likely going to meet serious come to believe in him. Rashi, the Rambam, Ramban, the Al- be here throughout July, here are three and testy resistance. Contrary to what some counter-mis- shich, even the Vilna Gaon—all in a things to do and three things not to do. I have to tell you a little something sionary groups might suggest, they are quest to demonstrate that our heilige 1. If you meet them on the street, tell about their message, their motivation, not cunning deceivers. I was one such sages knew that Yoshke was Mashiach them you are in a hurry. What can they and their mindset, though, just so you missionary for many years. I never took but engaged in a great cover up. give you to read? Take their literature. understand where they are coming a class in Bible College called “How to Now, what are they out to actually Take as much as you can get. Put it in from and how you can best respond— Deceive the Jews.” I was a sincere accomplish in coming to your door, or your pocket, your shoulder bag—what- or not respond. believer, not a cunning deceiver. And stopping you on the street, or sending ever. Get all you can. If they resist, They are convinced from reading so it is with these missionaries. They literature and audio/video media to remind them that their messiah said to their bible that JC, whom they’ll call really believe what they are saying. To your home? give to whoever asks of you. When you Yeshua, is the messiah of the Jewish them, it’s true because they believe it. It’s very simple, and this is how you leave them, go around the corner and people. They point to some 300 After all, there are over a billion can deal with them in a kind way. drop the material in the nearest trash pesukim from Tanach to prove this. Christians on the planet. How could a There’s no need to be angry and com- can. They usually go out to conduct They have proof texts. I call them spoof handful of Jews be right about Torah? bative; that only reinforces their need street outreaches in two to four hour texts. Most of them are mistranslated, They believe that the sufferings of to feel and be persecuted. They love sorties. The sooner you exhaust their lit- misquoted, taken out of context, and in Jews over the last 2,000 years, includ- that. Don’t give it to them. erature, the sooner they have to go back a couple of serious cases, non-existent. ing the Holocaust, are a result of our First of all know this: Their primary to get more. They believe that the Jewish people collective rejection of JC. job during this 29-day outreach in New 2. While most of these missionaries must have a chance to hear their mes- Underneath that, of course, is the York is to (1) give you something to read, will not be Jewish, perhaps one out of sage so we can make a decision to need to prove that we are wrong, hear, or view and (2) to get your contact four will be. The Jews amongst them believe or reject their false messiah. because they have a nagging ques- information for follow-up. In most know very little about Torah Judaism. They believe that JC—Yoshke, Jesus, tion—what if the Jews are right? cases, they have to do this within three What they are pushing is a bastardized whatever you want to call him—can’t So in recent years, they’ve become to five minutes. Much of the time, blend of Jewish ideas and Christian the- return to earth in his “second coming” very sophisticated and have been data- they’ll be highly visible, wearing ridicu- ology. Ask the person if his or her mother is Jewish. If they say yes, tell them you know that the Jewish experience they had growing up was probably not much more than cultural Judaism. You are a Torah Jew. Give them a phone number of a kiruv organization like Jews for Judaism or Aish HaTorah or Outreach Judaism or Judaism’s Answer. Pick one of these groups and have the number on you to recommend. 3. When you meet one of these missionaries, or if they should come to your door, say: “Oh, thank you for reminding me! I was planning to send a contribu- tion to Yad L’achim [or Jews for Judaism, or whatever your preferred Jewish action group may be].” Tell the missionary that their visit to your door is a wake-up call to do what you can to counter their efforts. And then of course, do send it. On the other hand: 1. Do not get into conversations with them about interpretations of who the messiah is. They are playing verbal chess with you. They have rehearsed for many hours on how to lead you with questions. They are better than a used-car salesman at this. Don’t start with them. 2. Do not give them your contact information. That is their main job. They will turn that information over to local churches and to local messianic Jews to follow up with you in a month or two after this campaign. 3. Do not give them mussar.You won’t be speaking the same language at all. By the same token, don’t be mean, angry, or verbally abusive in any way. Point to the mezuzah on your door and tell them that any home with one of these will not be interested in hearing their message. A simple “No, thank you” is enough. Don’t reinforce their stereotype perception that Torah Jews are angry and reactive. Now, even though the “Behold your god” campaign isn’t scheduled to begin on the streets until July 1, it’s really already begun in Jewish mailboxes. To keep up-to-date with the campaign and how you can prepare yourself and your family, listen to the Gavriel Sanders Show on Monday nights at midnight on WSNR 620 AM or in the audio archives at www.gavrielsanders.com. ❖ 18 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES Our Aliyah Chronicle BY SHMUEL KATZ

Part 6: Going, Going… In December of last year, we took a day off and made a special trip to the Jewish Agency to open our tik aliyah (aliyah file). Any Jew is entitled to automatic Israeli citizenship should he so desire. The Jewish Agency is responsible for the evaluation of each appli- cant to determine if they are indeed Jewish and thus entitled to automatic citizenship under the Law of Return. We met with our shaliach aliyah, Yonati Greenfield, to discuss the various issues facing our family. She was extremely helpful to us in finding information and in wading through the red tape. Quite frankly, of all the current olim I have spoken to, it seems as if our processing was as simple as it gets. Right off the bat, we discussed our oldest son. At age 15, we feel that it is unfair to force him to become an oleh and Israeli citizen, especially since he has already mapped out his schooling and career choices for the next ten or so years. In third grade he announced that he would attend Harvard Law School (recently changed to Yale) in preparation for becoming the youngest partner in his law firm’s history. While we will certainly encourage him to follow our example (and hope that his friends will do so as well), we feel that he is entitled to make his own decisions in life and we therefore made it a priority to arrange for the choice to be his. This will happen when he turns 18. Our other children, being younger, will not have a choice in this matter; they will be Israeli citizens from day one, with all the obligations and benefits that come with citizenship. This is the plan that we felt worked for our family. As I have said before, I do not believe there is a right or wrong. Each person and each family has to make decisions based on what they think is best for themselves and their families.

Paperwork With that settled, Yonati carefully reviewed the documents that we had prepared (our passports, original birth certificates, marriage license, and a letter from our rabbi certifying that he knew both Goldie and me as well as our families and that he could vouch for our being Jewish). She noted what documents were not originals and then reviewed all the paperwork we needed to prepare to qualify for aliyah. Applicants for aliyah under the Law of Return are issued a specific aliyah visa in their foreign passport. Essentially, the paperwork is required in order to apply for an aliyah visa. When the paperwork is approved, the visa is issued. Each adult has to sign waivers and consents that they understand what the paperwork is for and that they indeed are applying for Israeli citizenship. Each member of the family (or their parent/guardian) must sign a medical form certifying that they are in

Continued on Page 20 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 19 Our Aliyah Chronicle We ordered certified copies of our Israeli passport for that particular person. There is a common misconception Continued from Page 19 missing papers, and in late January we Other people have had difficulty that Nefesh B’Nefesh is actually paying returned to Jewish Agency to give all getting birth certificates, marriage the costs of the charter flights that are good health. our papers to Yonati for processing. licenses, and even acceptable letters leaving for Israel twice a month from I found the reason for the medical Thankfully, we had actually prepared from rabbis who can verify the lineage JFK this summer (as well as flights from form quite interesting. As you may know, the forms correctly, and within 10 days of both parents as Jews. Thankfully, we Canada and England). In truth, the Israel has “socialized” health care, with we received notification that our aliyah had none of these issues, and we were cost of a one-way ticket (except for a full coverage for every citizen. Apparently, was approved. approved very quickly. $50 processing fee per ticket) is paid by in recent years there have been olim who I can tell you that many other olim With the notification of our visa the government of Israel for each oleh have moved to Israel in order to get cov- have a much harder time getting their approval, we were also given instruc- as part of the Law of Return. erage for expensive medical procedures paperwork processed. Although we were tions for how to get our visas processed What NBN does is to assemble all for which they have no medical coverage not required to (and I have no idea why), and put into our American passports. the olim together in group flights that in their home country, after which they the government pays for. They also return to their country of origin. This arrange for officials of the Interior same thing is also done by Israelis who Ministry to be on the plane to process have left Israel, which has resulted in the “What are you doing here? each oleh’s paperwork in-flight, saving Israeli Government legislating a manda- countless hours of waiting in the air- tory waiting period before returning citi- port upon arrival. zens can get medical benefits. Are you making aliyah?” To which Olim are also entitled to free trans- In addition to the medical form, portation to their Israeli destination each person who will be making aliyah upon arrival in Israel. Arrangements must complete and sign a visa applica- he replied, “Yes, we are—and it is for taxis/transportation for all their tion in duplicate. Many of the forms olim is also a service provided by NBN included a listing of the names and all because of you!” (among the countless other things that ages of all siblings, so they took quite NBN does for olim). some time to prepare. As NBN olim, we had much less to do With five children making aliyah, with the Jewish Agency than other olim. this meant that we needed to fill out (i) there is a certification known as “apos- Additionally, we had to notify Nefesh Two weeks ago, we presented our pass- two waivers, (ii) two general aliyah tille” certification that many people are B’Nefesh that our visas were approved ports at the Israeli consulate for process- applications, (iii) seven medical forms, required to have put on their birth and and get them a copy of our visas once ing. We assumed that the consulate was and (iv) fourteen visa applications. marriage certificates. This is a specific they had been issued, so that we could in its own building with soldiers posted We set aside two hours on a motzaei type of certification that can only be get scheduled on an aliyah flight. outside guarding it. Turns out, that is the Shabbos to go to my office in the yeshi- ordered through the city or state, and we Before NBN, the Jewish Agency embassy. The Israeli consulate occupies va and prepare the forms with no dis- have been told it is a pain to arrange for. would schedule flights for olim on reg- a floor in a midtown office building. They tractions. About 10 minutes before we Additionally, we know some families in ular El Al flights. Upon entering the have a special elevator which is guarded completed filling out the final set of which a grandparent was an Israeli citi- country, olim would first go to the for- and additional security outside the eleva- forms, I realized that we probably could zen, which made one of the spouses eign passport control area and then tors on their floor. When we passed have saved ourselves a ton of writer’s intending to make aliyah an Israeli citizen proceed to a special office where they through security, we entered a room that cramp had I simply scanned the forms as well. This puts them in a totally differ- would wait (seemingly for hours) for could have doubled as a bank. There into the computer and just edited the ent category of oleh, requiring not only a their visas to be processed. NBN has were 20 or so bulletproof “teller” win- information for each child. Too late. different visa but also the issuance of an streamlined this process tremendously. dows manned by consulate employees.

20 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES This, of course, being the Israeli con- near future. Yet, here was the husband at clearly I had nothing to do with the even feels a sense of responsibility that sulate, we had to wait on line to see a get-together for aliyah-bound couples. process, which is what I told him. their aliyah be successful, as she would which window we would need to go to So I turned to this fellow and said, He assured me that I was wrong. feel terrible if we were responsible for wait on line at. When we got to the “What are you doing here? Are you This is what he told me: a negative outcome. “aliyah visa” window, there was no one on making aliyah?” He and his wife have talked for years I wish I could take the credit. But the line, but we were still told to take a seat To which he replied, “Yes, we are— about making aliyah. They have talked credit really goes to Larry Gordon. He until we were called. I have no idea why. and it is all because of you!” about the need for parnasah and how to came up with the idea for these articles Once we were called and organized I didn’t really believe him, but our make aliyah work for their family. Their and he is the one who thought that this our visa photos (we need something like hosts assured me that this couple was children were encouraging them to very result would come from it. So I wish 10 passport photos for each person to indeed planning to make aliyah this make the move. But the task seemed a yasher ko’ach to Larry Gordon for com- attach to the various forms we will have coming September. Jennifer Airley too daunting to them; without a job, ing up with the idea for these articles, and completed by the time we get to Israel) even mentioned that she had been they didn’t really consider it an option. I hope to be able to wish an official Mazal and documents, we were told to return waiting for weeks to see the look on my Then they started reading these arti- Tov to this family in two weeks or so. I in no less than 10 days, as there was no face when I heard the news. cles, and it didn’t seem so overwhelm- also hope and pray to be wishing many way we could get the visas stamped into I cannot describe the emotions I felt ing (it really is—but once you put your more Mazal Tovs in the near future. our passports that same day. at hearing his words. I was absolutely mind to it, things just happen). So they Until then I wish you all a Gut Yom This week we will go back to the con- stunned. The thought that this family gave Nefesh B’Nefesh a call and they Tov and may we all be zocheh to cele- sulate to pick up our passports with would even jokingly imply that I had talked about jobs. After discussing it brate the rest of our chagim together in visas (and will have done so by the time something to do with their decision with his boss, it seems that commuting Yerushalayim—the capital of our holy you read this). We will copy the visas was overwhelming. I was literally for 10 days a month will work for them, land, Eretz Yisrael. ❖ and send the copies to NBN, and they moved to hug this fellow and I was and all of a sudden here they are plan- Shmuel Katz is the executive director of the will literally make all the other arrange- trembling from nervous excitement. ning a September departure to join us Yeshiva of South Shore. His wife, Goldie, is the ments for our flight on July 5. I had no idea that this family was this year. If all goes well, they will make controller at Bnos Bais Yaakov. Together with even considering aliyah, and here they it official two weeks after Shavuos. their six children (ages 1 to 15), the Katzes will iy’H be making aliyah this July. Mr. Katz can be Housing were talking about their post-Shavuos Even now, as Goldie and I talk about reached at [email protected]. We hope to get a copy of our lease pilot trip to find a community to settle this, we are literally close to tears as In response to the many requests Shmuel has had for reprints/copies of the prior articles, he this week. We might actually have in. Obviously this was something that we consider the profound impact our has published them on the web at someplace to live (more details to fol- they had considered over time, and words have had on this family. Goldie aliyahchronicles.blogspot.com. low once the lease is signed). We packed a few more boxes—our current total is 26. We also signed up to march with Nefesh B’Nefesh olim in the Israeli Day Parade this Sunday. This past Shabbos a friend of our daughter came by the house. Her family is also making aliyah on July 5. When she saw me she excitedly announced, “Mr. Katz—39 days!” I remarked to her mother later that day that it is almost like we are in a reverse sefirah, counting down the days until we make the big move. Only five weeks left.

The Aliyah Chronicles Approximately seven and a half weeks ago, I got a phone call from Larry Gordon, the editor of the Five Towns Jewish Times. He had an idea for a new column that he wanted me to write. He told me that there are more and more people making aliyah from the Five Towns, but there are surely even more who are considering it and may be on the fence. Furthermore, while we often hear about people making aliyah, once the people leave, there is very little personal connection that we here in America have to them in understanding the experience. Larry asked me to write an aliyah journal about our experiences. His idea was to personalize the process of making aliyah. His only instruction to me was to try to make the reader feel as if he or she were standing right next to us as things unfold- ed. He felt that this might encourage others to consider aliyah or, at the very least, give them a greater understanding of what olim go through. “Who knows,” he told me, “this just might be the thing that gives someone the final nudge.” This past Monday night, a group of adults got together at the home of Robert and Jennifer Airley in Cedarhurst. Each one of those attending will be moving to Israel this summer. (There will be another get-together in mid-June; if you are moving to Israel this summer and would like to join us, please send me an e-mail.) As Goldie and I entered the house, I saw a very familiar face. I have known one spouse of this couple since college, and our children have played together over the years as well. As far as I knew, this family had no plans to make aliyah in the 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 21 Midrashim and Literal Truth

BY AVI GOLDSTEIN taken literally—is on the mark. Unfortunately, many There is a series of Torah rebbeim do not take the time tapes to which we have put my to differentiate allegorical youngest son to bed this past Midrashim from historical year. The series is wonderful, truth. The error is compound- bringing each parashah to life ed by the fact that teachers for my son. When an adult thereby fail to teach the mean- friend of mine was stumped by ing behind the Midrashim. a question at the motzaei The actual lesson is lost, while Shabbos father–son learning its façade is taken as Torah program we attend, my six- miSinai, and our talmidim year-old had the answer! learn how to miss the point. Yet these tapes concern Simultaneously, students are me, because they are largely taught to believe that if one based on the Midrash, and questions the literal truth of they retell Midrashim as if Midrashim, he is a heretic. they are literal truth. I worry Le’havdil, the story of Alice that my son’s Torah educa- in Wonderland is written on tion will be distorted, as the two levels. It is a children’s wrong balance is struck fable, but it is also a political between historical reality and satire. In like manner, the the lessons that Midrashim Torah can be understood at attempt to teach. many levels, and many In this light, I was thrilled Midrashim are also styled in to read “The Dangers of this fashion. Thus, one can Midrashim” (Five Towns teach the Midrash that Moshe Jewish Times, May 19, p. 64) Rabbeinu was 20 feet tall at a by Rabbi Pinchas Rosenthal, simple level. For a six-year-old, WHAT’S YOUR OPINION? WE WANT TO KNOW! the dean of the Torah this may suffice. For a 20-year- Academy of Long Island. old, it is unacceptable! At some E-MAIL US AT [email protected] Rabbi Rosenthal’s thesis—that stage, one must seek the les- Midrashim often are not to be son behind the Midrash. And

22 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES even a six-year-old should be exposed to easy, fun way out is to teach the such Midrashim only in moderation, Midrash literally and stop there. lest he or she lose sight of the reality The second element is our bias within which our ancestors lived. toward Rashi’s exposition of the Torah. I believe that two elements have led Rashi’s importance cannot be empha- to this regrettable misunderstanding of sized enough. However, he does some- Midrashim. The first element is the times resort to Midrashim, especially intrinsically enticing quality of when he feels that they conform to his Midrashim. To illustrate, let us take stated intent of focusing upon the sim- the Midrash that when Yaakov Avinu ple understanding of the text. (At the lay down to sleep at Beit E-l, he put beginning of Parashas Vayeishev, rocks around his head (Bereishis Rashi’s grandson, the Rashbam, writes that he took Rashi to task for not writing his commentary in a simpler way. In order to counter the The Rashbam records that his grandfather conceded the point.) teaching method to When our children begin to study Chumash with Rashi, rebbeim expose which children are them to the Midrashim that Rashi brings, without bothering to note that exposed, I have sought, many Midrashim are to be taken figura- from when my kids were tively. A prime example is Rashi’s comment on the word “vachamushim”in young, to explain that Parashas Beshalach (Sh’mos 13:18). Rashi’s first explanation is the literal one: Midrashim are not that the Israelites were armed with weapons and supplies when they left necessarily literal. Egypt. Rashi then proceeds to record one of several Midrashim on “vachamushim.” Extracting its root, 28:11). Each rock desired to be the which is ch-m-sh, or “five,” he states that one upon which Yaakov actually lay his only one of every five Israelites actually head, so G-d fused them into one rock. left Egypt, with the remaining four-fifths It is undeniably more exciting to teach perishing during the Plague of Darkness, the Midrash kiphshuto, in its literal out of sight of the Egyptians. form. How enthralling it must be for a Inevitably my children have come child to read about this miracle. If we home from yeshiva with Rashi’s take the Midrash as allegorical, we are Midrashic comment as the true mean- forced to seek its intended message. ing of “vachamushim.” And yet, if this What do the Sages mean to imply about the greatness of Yaakov? The Continued on Page 25

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 23 the patient should consult experts and tive issues, such as laws of family purity, Do-It-Yourself Halachah undergo all the necessary medical tests mikveh, and others. My rebbe, Rav to independently determine what condi- Nuchim Tzvi Kornmehl, zt’l, used to BY RABBI PINCHAS his friend may make a similar mistake, tion is afflicting him. Who would take urge rabbanim to take upon themselves CHATZINOFF and assume that the halachic decision medication based upon a friend’s sug- the burden of making this process easi- obtained by the first man should apply to gestion from her pharmacist without er for people, giving encouragement and In our very capable, very accom- the second. But this is simply not the consideration by an expert as to the putting people at ease. Further, it goes plished Jewish community, there is a case. Halachic decisions may be affected interaction of all the drugs she is already without saying that a rabbi must make disturbing trend among some toward a by such issues as the type of food, the taking? So, too, in the arena of himself as accessible as humanly possi- cavalier, make-do attitude toward timing of the blunder, the impact, and halachah: each of us must consult ble to his kehillah, such that no one halachah. The very fabric of our Torah the persons involved. experts in the field, provide them with should feel disenfranchised and without lives—complying with the Divine Will There are additional pitfalls of all the data, and not do it ourselves. options other than to take a guess at the as ascertained by our sages—requires attempting self-determination of A story is told about Rav Moshe halachah. a commitment to truth and accuracy halachah. In deciding any halachic Feinstein, zt’l, and a woman who This is particularly critical in deal- that sometimes falls as a casualty of issue, one must assume that his judg- appealed to him for guidance, having ing with halachic inquiries surround- the busy times in which we live. ment may be impaired in reaching a discovered that her post-war second ing taharas hamishpachah and mikveh Specifically, many people unfortu- decision that affects his own life; it marriage—undertaken in reliance upon attendance, where time constraints nately have become accustomed to suggests an obvious conflict of interest. her belief that her first husband had make a rabbi’s availability so crucial. assuming that halachic decisions by Moreover, a halachic ruling obtained been killed, and upon an apparent p’sak Women should never be in a position competent poskim are fungible and by one person may have the context of halachah (halachic decision) allowing of having to wait an hour at the mikveh interchangeable—a veritable mix-and- being part of an overall halachic the second marriage—was an error; her for guidance, or even worse, “borrow- match. Nothing could be further from approach of a particular rabbi. Thus, first husband was indeed still alive. The ing” a heter from a friend because a the truth. To ascertain the correct when someone “borrows” some lenien- rosh yeshiva refused to accept her ver- rabbi was not available or because she halachah in a given situation, a poseik cy, it may lose its integrity and context. sion of facts, insisting that if the poseik did not think it made any difference. must bring the breadth and depth of his For example, a woman might attend the upon whom she had allegedly relied Finally, a word about rabbinic profi- knowledge to a painstaking review of the mikveh and insist that certain cosmetic had indeed issued such a heter (permis- ciency is in order. Not every rabbi is an specific facts at issue. Knowledge and appliances, like nail attachments, may sive ruling), then this awful outcome expert in every halachic area, and even sensitivity to which facts are critical and be left attached because her friend would never have happened. Rav the experts often need some time to which are superfluous comes only after obtained such a ruling from her rabbi in Moshe was certain that such an honest deliberate and check sources. It is far a thorough mastery of the halachic a different setting, under different cir- rabbi would have been the beneficiary more important to come to a correct sources and experience in addressing cumstances, as part of that rabbi’s over- of Divine assistance in rendering the conclusion than an independent or that particular topic. all approach to the issues; but this correct decision. quick one. This is well known to the If the goal is truth and the correct woman knows only of the leniency of The woman broke down in tears, rabbanim, and should be appreciated application of truth, then the danger of which she wishes to avail herself. confessing that she did not receive such by their congregants. people deciding halachah for themselves Imagine if people were to treat a a ruling, but a friend had, and she had In the merit of our conscientiously acutely threatens that goal. A poseik may medical dilemma in this fashion. Who determined that the circumstances, and pursuing Hashem’s Will through decide two different cases—which, to would consider it appropriate to self- thus the decision, were the same. Her halachic observance, may our poskim the untrained eye, seem to be identi- medicate or undertake certain medical error was indeed a tragedy. and leaders be granted with Divine cal—in very different ways. For instance, treatments based upon the fact that his Often, people feel intimidated or hes- assistance and blessing. ❖ one man may blunder in the kitchen friend who had similar symptoms itant to ask their rav certain questions of Rabbi Chatzinoff is the mara d’asra of the with a meat pot and a dairy spoon, and received that medical advice? Certainly, halachah, sometimes dealing with sensi- Tifereth Zvi Yeshiva minyan in Cedarhurst.

24 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES Midrashim version? We are taught that the Continued from Page 23 Israelites were mired in 49 levels of impurity, out of a possible 50 levels. were meant to be understood literally, The Midrash hints at this low spiritual several questions should arise. First, it level by stating that one in 50 Israelites would mean that the Plague of left Egypt—that only 2 percent of Darkness was actually much more a Israel’s spirituality had been preserved plague for the Israelites than it was for during the Exile. the Egyptians. Second, it would The result of literal teaching of require us to believe that the Egyptians Midrashim is mind-boggling. Our chil- did not notice how 80 percent of the dren grow up believing that the Israelite population suddenly van- ancients lived a fairy-tale existence. ished! Third, it would be inconceivable On the aforementioned tape series, that just a few weeks later, a decimat- the narrator, a highly respected rebbi ed Israelite population would go with (and former teacher of mine), says that such joy into the wilderness. How, in during the Plague of Wild Animals, all the face of this massive loss of life, the world’s animals descended upon could they heartily celebrate the Egypt, bringing along their local cli- Exodus? Finally, the Midrash records mates. Thus, where the polar bears other opinions that have a much small- were it was icy cold, while where the er number of Israelites escaping the lions were it was hot. This is taught as Plague of Darkness. One opinion is literal truth, in total disregard of the that only one out of 50 left Egypt. much more likely alternative: that wild Another opinion is that one in 500 sur- animals native to Egypt served as G-d’s vived. And the Talmud, in Maseches instrument of punishment, without a Sanhedrin (111a), writes that only 2 bizarre change in climate. out of every 600,000 left Egypt! In order to counter the teaching For one thing, only one of these method to which children are exposed, can be literal. Moreover, if we take I have sought, from when my kids were the calculation in Sanhedrin literally, young, to explain that Midrashim are it would require us to believe that not necessarily literal. I have pointed 180 billion Israelites lived in Egypt. out that the Talmud itself states: “The Truly the Rambam is correct in writ- rabbis spoke in exaggerated terms” ing that the literal approach to (Chullin 90b). I hope that other par- Midrashim is a foolish one. (And yet, ents are doing the same. many years ago I heard a rabbi in our I have no doubt that Rabbi community say that this Midrash in Rosenthal’s brave piece (and this arti- Sanhedrin is literally true!) cle as well) will encounter fierce oppo- Meanwhile, the lesson of these sition. It is too bad that in some quar- Midrashim is missed. How about the ters, in-depth Torah study has been following interpretation for the 1-in-50 forced to yield to shallowness. ❖

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 25 The Dark Ages out of favor with the king and was At Sinai, G-d revealed His very hanged, the decree he initiated essence to man. As the Torah tells it, remained in effect; the only thing that “G-d descended upon Mount Sinai” Esther was able to achieve was to pre- and we “saw the G-d of Israel.” On vail upon Achashveirosh to issue a sec- that day, we were “shown to know that ond decree, in which the Jews were G-d is the Supreme Being; there is given the right to resist those who came none else besides Him”; “Face to face to kill them. The first decree, calling G-d spoke to [us], on the mountain, upon all citizens of the realm to annihi- from within the fire” (Sh’mos 19:20 late the Jewish minority in their midst From The Chassidic Masters and 24:10; Devarim 4:35 and 5:4). on the 13th of Adar, remained in force In terms of any open signs of the until that date, when the Jews were vic- Divine presence in our lives, the events torious in their war against their ene- of Purim were the diametric opposite mies, killing 75,000 of their attackers. Underneath of the revelation at Sinai. G-d’s home For that entire year, when being a on earth, the Beis HaMikdash (Holy Jew meant that one’s life was free for Temple) in Jerusalem, lay in ruins, its the taking by imperial decree, not a rebuilding, ordered 14 years earlier by single Jew broke ranks from his people The Mountain the emperor Cyrus, halted by to seek safety by assimilating into the Achashveirosh’s decree. The era of pagan populace. In fact, Megillas On the sixth day of Sivan in the year 19:17). How does one stand beneath a prophecy—G-d’s direct communica- Esther records that that period saw 2448 from creation (1313 BCE), the mountain? The Talmud interprets this tion to man—was coming to a close. many conversions to Judaism! So entire nation of Israel assembled at the to mean that “G-d held the mountain We were in exile, at the mercy of our strongly did the Jews radiate their faith foot of Mount Sinai. There G-d chose over them like a barrel and said to enemies, and G-d seemed oblivious to in G-d and their confidence in His sal- us as His people and we committed them: If you accept the Torah, fine; if the fate of His chosen people. Even vation, that many of their neighbors ourselves to observe the laws of life as not, here shall be your grave.” But a the miracle of Purim was so complete- were motivated to join a people with outlined in His Torah. most basic rule of Torah law is that a ly clothed in natural events that G-d’s such a powerful and immutable rela- The Talmud (Shabbos 88a) points contract entered into under duress is guiding hand in all that occurred was tionship with G-d. out, however, that nearly 1,000 years not binding; hence, concludes the shrouded by the illusion of fortunate Therein lies the deeper significance were to pass before our covenant with Talmud, there was a standing contest coincidence. This is most powerfully of the “coercion” to accept the Torah G-d was sealed. As formulated at Sinai, to the legality of our commitment to demonstrated by the fact that in the at Sinai and the validation of our the contract between G-d and Israel observe the Torah. entire Megillas Esther, there is not a covenant with G-d achieved on Purim. contained certain vulnerabilities; in But during the events of Purim, the single mention of G-d’s name! At Sinai, we had no choice. Faced fact, its very validity was contestable. It Jewish people reaffirmed their accept- How did this spiritual blackout affect with such an awesome revelation of was only nine and a half centuries ance of the Divine law without any hint our commitment to G-d? It spurred us the Divine truth, one could hardly later, with the events of Purim, that of coercion from Above. In the words of to what can be described as the greatest doubt or dissent. In effect, we were our acceptance of the Torah was estab- Megillas Esther (9:27), they “established demonstration of our loyalty to Him in forced to accept the Torah; over- lished upon an unshakable foundation. and accepted”—meaning, says the our history. For 11 months, a decree of whelmed and completely enveloped by The Torah tells us that prior to the Talmud, that they established as valid annihilation hung over the entire com- the Divine reality (“the mountain held revelation at Sinai, the People of Israel and incontestable that which they had munity of Israel. As Megillas Esther “stood beneath the mountain” (Sh’mos accepted a millennium earlier at Sinai. relates, even after Haman had fallen Continued on Page 30

26 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 27 one that is said but once a year. silence of his toddler son, still recent memories, and just the I read the words to myself too young to fathom the impact memories from my own little Hidden Fruit in Hebrew, translating silently of these grave events. circle of acquaintances. Just in my mind: I hear myself answering the within my own community. Blessed are You, L-rd our phone just a few weeks ago to What of the suffering of our BY CHANA WEISBERG budding tree in April is suc- G-d…who has not made His an urgent request for members brethren elsewhere—homes that cessful. With our mild past world lacking in anything and of the community to say were shattered, lives that have It’s the last day of the Hebrew winter, though, we are hopeful. He created in it goodly creatures Tehillim. The prayers are for a crumbled, brave individuals who month of Nissan. On this breezy, About a block from my and goodly trees to give pleasure 14-year-old boy diagnosed with have been reduced to tears? spring day, the sun shines down home, we spot it. to mankind from them. a brain tumor. What of all the many tragedies on us and the small, newly bud- My children excitedly inform As I recite the words, I feel On my lips are still the the world over, young and old suf- ded branches rustle. We are me that they remember how the every fiber of my being rebelling. Tehillim I said this morning for fering a whole score of sorrows? walking around my neighbor- small, aromatic red-and-green Has not made His world lack- a very likable, special woman in This is a world that is not hood in search of a fruit tree. apples swelled from this tree’s ing? Not lacking in anything? our community, currently lacking in anything? Am I Today is the last day to recite a branches last summer. We exam- My heart vehemently undergoing chemotherapy. really expected to extol a blessing, whose opportunity ine the tree closely; the little protests as my memory conjures And my eyes still sting from world where misery mingles comes only once a year—the flowers that will soon turn into up images from the past year… the funeral of an elderly so easily with happy times? blessing on a fruit tree that has sweet, juicy fruit are discernable. We are standing just a few woman, a former kindergarten We are now walking the short begun to bud, which can be said Our search is over. blocks away, on a colder day but teacher who, just over a week distance back to our home. I see only in the month of Nissan. My husband opens the sid- at this same time of year, at the ago, was finally but so sadly children playing innocently Given the varying weather dur (prayer book) for us to read funeral of a young father. I can released from her last years of along the streets of our suburb. patterns in Toronto, it’s not the blessing. This is not a bless- almost hear the sobs of his suffering and hospitalization. My youngest child—my every year that our search for a ing we are familiar with, as it is young pregnant widow and the And these are but the baby—who just turned two, comes out of our home to greet me. This last year has brought many changes for her, as well. She has grown from a barely crawling infant to a walking, talking, and quite independent toddler. Gazing at her, I silently pray that the coming year will signal just as much continued growth. She is a budding flower, replete with potential, burst- ing with energy and capability just waiting to develop. I think back to the budding flowers on the fruit tree—their potential so tightly wrapped, hidden within, a secret to the world. Now it is a plain green bud, but within is held a precious secret, a key to joy and survival. It won’t be for several weeks until it pro- duces its aromatic, juicy fruits. But right now, within that bud, is contained all that power, all that latent potential. To the naked eye it looks unremarkable and spare, but the discerning eye sees life-giving treasure hiding just beneath the surface. Within my child—within every child, within each of us— lies, like the budding fruit flowers on the tree, all that it takes to make our world a perfect world; a world of redemption; a world of peace and unity; a world without strife and misery. Each of us holds the keys and the prospects to make our bar- ren world bloom into a redemp- tive one. We need only have the eyes to see and discern what lies beneath the tiny bud of each of our positive actions, and have the courage to create a world “that does not lack in anything.” Because hiding within our world is the potential each of us has to palpably discover and actualize the reality that our G-d has not made His world lacking in anything and has created its goodly creatures and goodly trees to give pleasure to mankind. (Chabad.org) ❖

Chana Weisberg is the author of Divine Whispers: Stories that Speak to the Heart and Soul and three other books. She is a noted educator and columnist, and lectures worldwide on issues relating to women, faith, relationships, and the Jewish soul. 28 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 29 INSIGHTS ON THE TORAH the people of Israel “established what sen to do so on our own, but because a mechanisms were completely silenced. they had already accepted”: Purim was consciously chosen commitment could This was the true significance of Continued from Page 26 the fulfillment and corroboration of a not begin to express the true extent of what occurred when we stood beneath over them like a barrel”), we could not truth that had already been imple- our acceptance of the Torah. the mountain. But for many centuries, but commit ourselves to our Divinely mented at Mount Sinai. Our covenant with G-d extends the events at Sinai were open to misin- ordained mission and role. That truth is that our relationship beyond the finite world of our con- terpretation. In our own minds, we But a thousand years later, we reaf- with G-d is not bounded by reason. It scious desires, embracing the infinite remembered the event as a time when firmed this commitment under entirely is not dependent upon our under- expanses of our supra-conscious self— we were overwhelmed by the Divine different conditions. The Divine pres- truth and compelled to accept it. Did ence did not hover over us, compelling this come from within—from a place us to recognize its truth. On the con- in our souls not accessible by the contrary: the Divine face was hidden. We We were on our own, our commitment to G-d scious self? Or perhaps it came from were on our own, our commitment to without, from an external force which G-d deriving wholly from within—from deriving wholly from within—from an inner coerced us, against our own true will, an inner choice to cleave to Him regard- into our covenant with G-d? less of how invisible He remained to us. choice to cleave to Him regardless of how Then came Purim, with its total eclipse of all perceivable G-dliness. To So Why The Coercion? invisible He remained to us. remain a Jew—to remain loyal to our This is not to say that on Purim a covenant with G-d—was a choice unin- new, valid contract replaced the origi- fluenced by any supra-conscious revela- nal, contestable one. If that were the tions. By choosing to accept the Torah case, what was the point of the revela- standing of it, or even upon our con- the supra-conscious self that always under such circumstances, we affirmed tion at Sinai? Certainly, the Torah was scious awareness of its existence. It sees G-d and is unequivocally aware of that this is the true will of the Jew. We a binding commitment between our- transcends our conscious self, residing His truth. At Sinai, this supra-con- affirmed that our “coercion” at Sinai was selves and G-d for the 950 years from in the very core of our souls. scious self was revealed. Our con- not against our will, but in complete har- Moshe to Esther. If we look closely at This was why we were compelled to scious self, occupying but a minute mony with our true desire. (Chabad.org) ❖ the Talmud’s interpretation of the receive the Torah at Mount Sinai: not corner of our soul, was completely Based on the teachings of the Lubavitcher verse from Megillas Esther, it says that because we would not have freely cho- overwhelmed and its choice-making Rebbe. Courtesy of MeaningfulLife.com. “Cool Dessert” Shavuos Recipes From Elite

With Shavuos here, and summer rapidly approaching, many amateur and professional chefs are avidly searching for new lip-smacking recipes that they can quickly whip up in the kitchen. This year, the gourmands at Elite, Israel’s premier chocolate and confec- tions company, are offering several creative culinary ideas with a distinct Mediterranean halva twist to millions of consumers in the U.S., Israel, and the UK. For Shavuos, one can prepare cool and creamy rich desserts using the finest Elite products, including eight different kinds of chocolate bars and halva, which are readily available at local supermarkets and sweet shops. Elite’s halva is known as a nutritious Mediterranean treat that is also rich in calcium content. Elite chocolate bars and halva carry both the OU and Badatz kashrus symbols. Below are two of Elite’s most popular summertime dessert recipes that are both fun and easy to make. B’tayavon and Chag Samayach!

Chocolate-Halva Frozen Delight (Dairy) Ingredients: 15 oz. Elite halva 4 small containers sweet whipped cream 9 oz. Elite chocolate spread

30 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES Corporations are owned via shares of return of the owners. stock; limited liability companies are The Limited liability company com- owned by membership interest. bines many of the advantages of a cor- Corporations are required to hold poration—such as limited personal lia- annual meetings of shareholders and bility—with the tax advantages of a directors and to keep written minutes partnership. A limited liability compa- of each meeting. Limited liability com- ny offers personal liability protection panies do not have this requirement. to all of its owners (called “members” I am starting a brand-new business restrictions and may be owned by non- A corporation is a separately taxable or “managers”). It may be treated like a and I don’t know if I should incorpo- U.S. residents, business entities, or entity where profits and losses are partnership or S Corporation for tax rate. What options do I have? individuals (except corporations with taxed directly within the corporation at purposes, allowing income or losses to Your question may not necessarily what is known as Subchapter S sta- the corporate tax rate, except be reported on the member’s individ- be simple to answer. You will need to tus). As the needs of your company Subchapter S status. This can lead to ual tax returns, thereby avoiding dou- consider several things, and your ble taxation. Both a corporation and an options are not confined to the ones individual can be owners of a limited I’ll present in this column. You should liability company. also consult with your accountant, Corporations are owned via shares of stock; limited If you are considering incorporating, since there are tax implications. liability companies are owned by membership interest. call my office for a consultation and we If you are considering to incorpo- will assist you in making your decision. ❖ rate, you should know that there are certain similarities between a corpora- The Law Offices Of Howard M. Adelsberg is a full-service law firm with over 20 years of tion and what is known as a “limited change, the corporation can amend double taxation when corporate profits experience, and handles a variety of legal matters liability company” (LLC). Both are the existing business structure or form are paid out to owners as individuals. A in the areas of personal injury, estate matters, legal entities created by law and a new business structure. limited liability company is a “pass- real estate transactions and litigation, commercial litigation, and family law. You can involve state filings. Both help protect There are also some differences that through” tax entity, and, like corpora- call the office at 516-569-6930. your personal assets from your busi- you should be made aware of. tions with Subchapter S status, the Readers are encouraged to send questions to [email protected] or to Law Offices ness liabilities. Corporations issue stock, while limited profit or loss generated by the business Of Howard M. Adelsberg, 445 Central Avenue, Both have very few ownership liability companies do not. is reflected on the personal income-tax Cedarhurst, NY 11516.

Preparation: Mix halva and contents from 2 containers of the whipped cream using a blender until you get a smooth whip. Pour into a long pan until it is half full and place in freezer. Melt the chocolate spread together with another half container of whipped cream, and whip the remaining whipped cream until firm, then fold chocolate mix into whipped cream. Pour into pan over halva layer. Cover with saran wrap and place in freezer for 6 hours. Recommendation: Serve over halva strips.

Halva-Chocolate Balls (Dairy) Ingredients: 8 oz. Elite halva 4 oz. Elite bittersweet chocolate 4 oz. Elite milk chocolate 1 stick of butter 5 spoons confectionary sugar 1 cup milk 9 oz. Elite petibar biscuits

Preparation: Melt chocolate (both types), butter, confectionary sugar, and milk; cool. Crush petibar (biscuits) and halva in blender, place in large container, and pour chocolate mix over it. If the mixture is too wet, you may add more biscuits. Cool the mixture. Form balls out of the mixture. You may cover or decorate the balls with chopped walnuts. Place in refrigerator for at least an hour before serving. ❖

Deadline for Advertising in the Next Issue is Monday, June 5 at 5:00 P.M. Call 516-984-0079

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 31 mechanical, nor am I the quick study I demonstration of how to operate the once was, so, as he placed the boxes on equipment, and my first thought was my kitchen table, my anxiety level that the guy was a prince because he headed due north. I stood silently by as never batted an eyelash. In fact, he he opened the boxes. The first thing I was too calm about it. And that’s when noticed was a book sitting on top of a I realized that this was no surprise to machine that resembled a mini humid- him. He hears this plea from everyone ifier. My new friend insisted it was a who gets snookered into accepting this Now I Know Why booklet—probably because he thought face-mask business. that if he called it a booklet, I would be He showed me how to put it togeth- lulled into thinking that the material er, take it apart, wash out the plastic I’ve always assumed that an inher- might care to make. inside was condensed and simple. container, attach the hose, detach the ently honest nature keeps one from I opened the door to a uniformed But I’m not that easy to fool. One hose, clean the filter, and remove the considering a life of crime. Recently, gentleman. The fact that he had his look at the thickness of this tome and container in order to fill it with water. however, I’ve had second thoughts arms wrapped around two large boxes I immediately knew I was in trouble. He also answered my questions about about that—at least in my case. To play didn’t escape my attention. So, instead As is my custom, I went to the last how often the water would need to be it safe, most bank robbers wear masks, of the customary “hello,” my greeting page first. I do this in order to make a replaced, how often to clean the filter, and now I understand that it just might and how often to wash the plastic. be the prospect of wearing a mask that After 30 minutes I finally let the guy has kept me on the straight and narrow escape, but I didn’t think to write all these years. I will testify to the fact He showed me how to put it together, take it down this information. So chances are that while apnea and sleepless nights I’ll have to let my eyes tell me when are troublesome, wearing a mask is no the water gets too low, when the plas- walk in the park, either. apart, wash out the plastic container, attach the tic looks yucky, and when the filter After waiting for several weeks, I looks dirty. Either I rely on my powers received a call informing me that my hose, detach the hose, clean the filter, and of observation, or I read 76 pages, and sleep mask was ready to be delivered. since I have no intention of doing the Oh, joy! I made an appointment for the remove the container in order to fill it with water. latter, I guess I’ll have to eyeball it. following Tuesday. (My mother always As of this writing, I’ve worn the mask told me that Tuesday was a mazeldikeh (for want of a more descriptive word) day, so I was optimistic.) About 2:00 in exactly once, and what they say is true: the afternoon, on the day in question, was more along the lines of “Uh-oh, this quick determination as to how much It will take time to get used to this. It’s the doorbell rang. I’m one of those isn’t going to be a simple thing.” I must reading I’ll have to do. I found out. not nearly as uncomfortable as the one people who are never lucky enough to have said it aloud, because his first And my first thought was that anything I was forced to wear in the sleep lab. receive an early morning or late after- words to me were, “Don’t let these boxes that requires 76 pages of description But then it’s also not as comfortable as noon delivery of anything. My mother worry you, ma’am. The equipment and explanation is not for me. I said as sleeping without one. A clear plastic may have been right about Tuesday inside is compact and simple to use.” much to the man, who, by the way, hose, measuring two inches in circum- being a mazeldikeh tug, but my own He was half right. The apparatus is doubled as a technician. I made it ference and three feet in length, runs personal mazel is such that a delivery relatively compact. But, as for the “sim- abundantly clear to him that reading from the humidifying machine to the is always right smack in the middle of ple to use” part of his commentary, that the booklet wouldn’t do the trick. nasal plugs that rest just above my lip the day, thereby ruining any plans I depends entirely on the user. I’m not I asked him to give me a complete and press into my nostrils.

32 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES I had a hard time trying to sleep not anymore. One look at me in full with it, and being a restless sleeper regalia would scare the life out of the made it even more difficult. Every time most determined intruder. I wanted to turn over, I had to move If the first night is any indication of the hose. As I schlepped it from left to what’s to come, I may have a major right and then back again, it occurred problem. The purpose of wearing this to me that if I wasn’t careful I might equipment is to help keep me breath- accidentally compress the thing and ing, which hopefully will allow me to then there would be no air getting into sleep through the night. On my maid- my nostrils, the nasal piece would act en voyage with the humidifier, hose, as a plug, and eventually I would suf- and nose apparatus, I was so anxiety- focate. It wasn’t a comforting thought. ridden that I didn’t sleep a wink. In But on the positive side, I realize fact, I had less sleep last night than at that, G-d forbid should a robber sur- any time in the past five years. Not a prise us in the middle of the night, good sign. ❖ we’ll have nothing to worry about. Under normal circumstances most Hannah Berman lives in Woodmere and is a licensed real-estate broker associated with people appear defenseless when awak- Marjorie Hausman Realty. She can be reached at ened from sleep, but not moi—at least [email protected] or 516-902-3733.

And it came to pass on the third day... (Bamidbar 19:16)

A Galilean scholar lectured before Rabbi Chisda: “Blessed be the Merciful One who gave a three-fold Torah (consisting of Torah, Prophets and, Scriptures) to a three-fold people (comprising Kohanim, Levites, and Israelites) through a third-born (Moses, the third child of Amram and Yocheved) on the third day of the third month.”

(Talmud, Shabbos 88a)

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 33 Dear Editor, your people; but, nevertheless, you Since we made aliyah, I have really shall not stand by the blood of your missed your paper, especially the edi- neighbor (and you must speak out in torials. Thanks for sharing it online at order to prevent harm).” 5tjt.com!! I do not challenge Rav Ginzberg’s Robin Weinstein sensitivity to the laws of shemiras Israel ha’lashon, chas v’shalom! I am, concerned, however, that there is more to the issue than he allows in his article. Dear Editor, Lashon hara is a tool of abuse—both Rav Aryeh Zev Ginzberg’s article when derogatory speech defames inno- “Reading Is Believing” (on the cover of cent people, destroying their reputa- last week’s Five Towns Jewish Times) tions, but also when warnings to correctly warns us about the dangers refrain from derogatory speech are of lashon hara and slander that is read- used to silence victims of abuse who ily available in newspapers, magazines, cry out for help. As careful as we must and websites. He points to Rav Chaim be not to speak, listen to, or repeat dis- Volozhiner’s comment on the juxtapo- paraging information when it is forbid- sition of the clauses of Lo seileich den, we must not allow the threat of rachil regarding not speaking slander speaking lashon hara to silence the cry and Lo sa‘amod al dam rei‘echa regard- of innocent victims. ing not taking another’s life: Don’t Victims of abuse need to speak out, cause harm through your speech. for all kinds of personal reasons, in However, he could also have quoted order to help themselves. Their sup- the Netziv (See Ha’amek Davar; porters need to speak out in order to Ha’amek She’eilah, Parashat Vayikra help them. And the community needs 68:2) who explains that although there to speak out in order to hold the perpe- is a prohibition of defamation (clause trators responsible and in order to pro- 1), that prohibition is overridden by tect other innocents from potential the obligation to save another or to tes- harm. All must be diligent in meeting tify in his behalf (clause 2). Thus, the the conditions required for such verse should be read, “You shall not go up and down as a slanderer among Continued on Page 37

34 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 35 Secrets Of The 15-Minute Chef brate my birthday with a nice dinner Chill Time: none and my even nicer hubby. My step- Yield: 6 to 8 servings mother-in-law, who is coming for Ingredients: We Could All Use A Little Help Shabbos and Yom Tov, is practically 2 5-oz. package mixed field greens 1 cooking all the meals and will also 1 ⁄2 cups dried cranberries or BY JAMIE GELLER bring their famous cheesecake (think obviously be on hand should we go Craisins last week’s recipe), their to-die-for into labor. And my mother has started 1 small red onion, thinly sliced 1 Shavuos is here, another wonder- lasagna, or just a couple of sodas. shopping for me this last month— 15⁄2-oz. log soft fresh goat cheese, ful Yom Tov that just seems to have A lot of us tend to be very control- buying enough fresh (organic!— crumbled 1 popped out of nowhere—or rather, ling. Okay, I’ll admit it—we tend to be woohoo, because she’s paying!) fruits 1 ⁄2 cups walnuts come in a flash along with this oh-so- control freaks. It’s that “my way or the and veggies to feed my entire block. For dressing: 1 oppressive humidity and heat. I may highway” mentality, the “if you want So in the end, instead of everything 2 ⁄2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar be slightly more sensitive to the tem- something done, and done right, then coming crashing down on me, it 1 Tbsp. Dijon-style mustard 1 perature, as I am as huge as a house do it yourself” attitude, that “I need to seems to all be coming together. My ⁄2 Tbsp. fresh thyme, finely chopped or as big as a barn (take your pick) oversee every detail” approach to life. only remaining issue is finding some- 7 Tbsp. olive oil 1 during the final days of my pregnan- Trust me—coming from a recovering thing to wear in this heat. But you ⁄2 tsp. salt 1 cy. While everything else seems to be perfectionist, overachieving, obses- know what? My new awesome neigh- ⁄4 tsp. pepper moving in super-fast-forward motion, sive, multitasking, “Jamie, you have bor offered me her light Shabbos Steps: these last few days of my third and too much on your plate again” per- maternity robe and, after writing this 1. Mix greens, cranberries, and final trimester feel like they are being son—that whole “I have to do it all” article, I just may just go knock on onion in large salad bowl. measured in months, not hours. And style is completely overrated. her door and take her up on the offer. 2. Sprinkle cheese and walnuts over now, I must cook, devise a game plan Here’s another favorite saying: Here’s one more tip before I sign off, salad mixture. for my daughter should I go into “Don’t be afraid to delegate.” I’ve especially if you don’t have as generous 3. For dressing, mix vinegar, mus- labor on Yom Tov or Shabbos, and found that some of the most success- of a mother-in-law, stepmother-in-law, tard, and thyme in small bowl. figure out a way to feel normal and ful people in the world, from corpo- and mother (who lives for shopping for 4. Gradually whisk in olive oil; sea- not like a schmatte that’s been run- rate CEOs to mommies of 10, are organic produce, among other things): son with salt and pepper. ning ragged (or, as my favorite saying great delegaters. Those who can When I do cook, I find that if I cook 5. Toss dressing with salad immedi- goes, “like a chicken without a relinquish the right amount of con- something posh (British-talk for ately before serving. head”) from one thing to the next. trol and power to the right people, at “fancy”) then I need to cook less. Tip: To bring out a nice roasted I think the answer is to do special the right time, seem to get everything Which means that if the dish is some- nutty flavor, place the walnuts in a things for myself and my family, take done. And when it feels like every- how special, unique, or out of the ordi- shallow baking dish and roast them in time out, and lean on others as much thing is crashing down on you and nary, I feel less of a need to go over- the oven for 10 minutes at 350°F. as humanly possible. There’s no shame there isn’t enough time to shop (let board with how many dishes I serve. So Jamie Geller is an NYU graduate and former in that, you know: looking to others for alone cook), to sleep (let alone pam- here is a posh, and oh-so-delish (Jamie- senior writer/producer for HBO. She quit her job help, support, advice, babysitting per yourself), or to even find some- talk for “delicious”), gourmet dairy to be a stay-at-home mom, publish a quick-recipe and—most importantly—sharing in thing in your closet to wear (let alone salad that’s perfect for Shavuos. Enjoy, cookbook, write newspaper and magazine articles, host and produce a kosher food TV pilot, teach the cooking load. The more your iron)—just delegate!! and good Yom Tov. dance classes at the local gym, and care for her guests, friends, and family contribute My mother-in-law takes my daugh- husband and baby girl in Far Rockaway. to the meal, the more heimishe it is. ter for a night here and there. This Goat-Cheese Walnut Salad Jamie’s cookbook will be released by Feldheim You know people feel so happy when past week, I used her expert overnight Prep Time: 12 minutes during the Fall of 2006. You can contact her at they can be of help, when they can babysitting skills to enjoy and cele- Cook Time: none [email protected].

36 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Continued from Page 34 speech, including knowledge of or ver- ification of the facts, proper motivation, the curbing of personal animosi- ties, no exaggeration, and the like. Allowances must be made for persist- ent rumors and circumstantial evidence when their credibility meets halachic standards. Too often, our community, its leaders, and its institutions have failed those who were abused. I know this firsthand from speaking to many credi- ble victims. These victims have felt ignored by the establishment and feel they have no place to turn but to the media. Some are appalled by this public exposure of our failings in the newspapers and invoke the principle of h. illul Hashem, the desecration of G-d’s Name, a value that obliges us to live in ways that protect and enhance the rep- utation and integrity of Hashem, His Torah, and the Jewish people. Airing our dirty laundry, they argue—especially in the general press—is deplorable. Not surprisingly, this is one of the arguments these very same people use to prevent victims from coming forward and speaking out in the first place. I disagree with their argument. The h. illul Hashem was not perpetrated by the victims and those that speak out in their defense; it was committed by those rabbis or teachers when they abused. The h. illul Hashem was perpetrated when those in positions of authority and responsibility refused to come to the aid of the victims. The h. illul Hashem was perpetrated when Jewish law was misinterpreted and misapplied. The h. illul Hashem was perpetrated when vulnerable girls and boys, men and women, were sacrificed on the altars of individual, institutional, and communal interests. Articles such as those in New York magazine and discussions on the web—and this very article—would have been unnecessary if our community leaders would have acted responsibly in the first place. That is the real h. illul Hashem! Ultimately we will be judged by how we respond to the cries of victims and what we do to protect them—or to protect ourselves. When we fail our people and we undermine our faith, we will be condemned. But while the judgment of the general community may be harsh, the judgment of Heaven will be even harsher. Rabbi Mark Dratch West Hempstead

And all the people saw the voices (Bamidbar 20:15)

They saw what is ordinarily heard and they heard what is ordinarily seen.

(Midrash Lekach Tov; Rashi)

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 37 Israel Day Gala Concert

Dr. Joseph Frager (L), chairman of the board of American Friends of Ateret Cohanim, and Dr. Paul Brody (R). Both are chairmen of the Israel Day Parade concert which will take place this Sunday, June 4, in Central Park. Among the featured performers will be Shloime Dachs, Blue Fringe, Shlomo Katz, and Yoni Shlomo.

38 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES Back to the defendant (your hus- naps until the last guest has left, help- band). It sounds as though he is some- ing with the cleanup—these are just what of a hermit, and that’s working for some examples of what needs could him just fine. But it’s not working for look like, and these concepts need to you. He may never understand your be discussed up front. need for people besides himself; he Many women reading this column doesn’t have to understand that need. will be envious of the fact that you But that fact shouldn’t stop you from seem to satisfy your husband so totally Dear Esther, tacular. (Do you get the feeling I’m learning the art of negotiating. And and he only has eyes for you. In that My husband of 24 years is very happy very fond of my female friends?) It that’s where compromise comes into respect, consider yourself very lucky. to be with me and no one else. He never doesn’t sound as though you’ve made play. Surely, there are certain things he Some husbands demand to have wants company. He doesn’t need people these connections for yourself, and wants from you, whether it’s to sit home guests every Shabbos, which would to visit, and he’s never thrilled about perhaps you’re using your husband as with him several evenings a week doing lead one to wonder whether they dread going out to other people’s homes. He’s an excuse for it not happening for you. crossword puzzles, or baking his being alone with their wives. It’s kind always been this way, and even though So where do you begin? Getting favorite cake, or calling his mother five of sweet that yours enjoys being alone I’m a much more social person, I’ve close to others can be challenging, but times a week. Find your leverage. with you so much. kind of gone along with it. We were hardly impossible. You may consider The key is that he doesn’t have to He sounds like a good man who will busy raising our children and the house joining a few women’s groups (such as want to have company, but he has to be open to a discussion and, hopefully, never felt empty, so I wasn’t aware of Amit), or a book club, or a group that be a mensch about it and do it simply a working compromise. But regardless our lack of good friends. does volunteer work. Any time you because it pleases you. Give to get. of how successful you are at negotiat- Now, with our kids more or less out work or play side-by-side with others, One hand washes the other…you bake ing this area of your life, try to keep of the house, I suddenly feel an enor- you have an opportunity to connect. his cake, he tells you how often he can forging ahead with your own relation- mous desire to be with other people. I Take a chance. Ask someone out for tolerate Shabbos guests. Will once a ships. That work is yours, and yours realize more and more how interesting lunch. Yes, there is the risk of being month work for him? Fine. After that, alone. But it is so very worth the effort! everyone is in their own way, and I find rejected, but if you don’t take risks negotiate what having company means Esther myself really wanting to get to know you’ll never advance your cause. But I to you. Spell out the parameters, Esther Mann, LMSW has a private practice in new people and, as you so often write doubt that your husband is really the because sometimes people can seem a Lawrence. She can be reached at 516-314-2295 about, “connecting.” one holding you back. bit dense. Being a gracious host, no or [email protected]. I recently invited two couples over for Shabbos lunch. It was going pretty well, but then, as soon as we finished benching, my husband got up and said he needed to take a nap. I was horri- fied. I think the two couples looked surprised and suddenly got up to leave. I think they felt as though they were being kicked out of the house. I was speechless, not knowing what to say. Naturally, I was very embarrassed. My husband is a nice guy in general, but just doesn’t need too many people in his life. He doesn’t seem to understand what my needs are all about. I don’t know how to get through to him. Though I seem to be enough for him, he’s not enough for me (though I do love him). How can I get him to understand that I’ve grown and want my home to feel alive with friends and good times? I feel lonely and am starting to resent my husband for his isolation. I also feel dragged down by him. My world is too narrow and I’m ready for it to open up. Any ideas for me? Lonely

Dear Lonely, How nice that you’re discovering the importance of friends and delighting in the special gifts that everyone has to offer. It’s easy to be distracted from this aspect of your persona while building a life with a husband and raising kids. Now that your children are grown, it’s a perfect time to get to know yourself and others better. One way of doing this is by establishing close ties with female friends, who can inspire you in ways you never thought possible. They will provide a shoulder to lean on when the going gets rough, a person to laugh with until your sides hurt, and someone who can listen to you in that special way that only a female friend can. Though I want to address your husband’s lack of interest in socializing, I am first struck by the fact that you feel you need him on board to make friends. There are couple friends, who are wonderful to have, but tend to be “light” in nature, and then there are those amazing “one-on-one” female buddies, who can be intense and spec- 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 39 and California tournaments respec- explosion last week in Washington tively, for all their help in making each DC—where 550 motivated Jewish lay- tourney a success. OHEL also thanks men, exploding with purpose and ener- “Lobo” for donating the golf balls used gy, were set loose through the halls of in the tournament. Congress. NORPAC (a national organ- You can join OHEL for the upcom- ization for political action) brought ing golf event on June 26 at The about 20 busloads of concerned men, OHEL’S Next Tourney In Lawrence tournament was: Michael Pinewski, Seawane Country Club in Lawrence. women and students (among whom On June 26 David Neiss, Jacob Harman, and Evan Last year’s event was sold out, so regis- were many successful professionals Nearly 150 golfers participated in Honigsfeld. The winner of the JetBlue ter today at www.ohelgolf.com. who wisely took the day off) to DC to OHEL’s two annual Chol Hamoed golf Challenge was David Neiss. The real winners of all OHEL golf meet with our Senators and tournaments in Florida and California. Approximately 62 golfers played in tournaments are the thousands of chil- Congressmen. The meetings were held Both tournaments were played in OHEL’s “California Classic” at the Ted dren and families who depend upon with one congressman or senator at a beautiful, sunny weather and featured Robinson 27-Hole Golf Course, OHEL—they are the beneficiaries of time, with his/her complete attention great food, prizes, and great giveaways Rancho Las Palmas Marriott Resort & the day! focused exclusively on the points the to all who participated. Spa in Palm Springs, California. individual groups were presenting. Nearly 80 golfers participated in the Hosted and sponsored by Chaim Read About A Good Explosion So, what was being addressed? Bills! OHEL Invitational that took place at Kaminetzky and Pesach With The By Rivki Rosenwald Legislation that is pending right now in the beautiful Doral Golf Resort and Chevrah,” this year’s successful tour- “I’ve had it with rising gasoline Congress. Bills that affect the security of Spa in Miami and was sponsored by nament was won by Robbie, Eric, prices!”…“Is the U.S. left with no the United States and Israel. Bills that Meridian Capital Group. Each player Judah and Adam Silverman. choice but to negotiate with the get buried on the bottom of the pile of received deluxe golf club travel bags as The JetBlue Challenge winner was Hamas terrorists?”…“Is our govern- hundreds of bills up for legislation. We gifts. OHEL’s friend and benefactor, Michael Greenspan; Meir and Robyn ment taking any concrete steps to stop show up to make things happen! We Milton Cohen of UKT Tours, which Gelman of Los Angeles won the trip to the threat of a nuclear bomb from cause the statesmen to focus on our oversees the yearly Pesach program at Israel sponsored by Pesach with the exploding?” issues and get assurances that they will the Doral, provided a delicious lunch Chevra and Binyamina Wines. Are these familiar anxieties and vote for it. And by going there we break and buffet dinner. OHEL thanks Mordy Sohn and Ezra frustrations that plague you? through the personal malaise many of us The winning foursome of the Florida Birnbaum, the chairmen of the Florida Well, there certainly was a good suffer—speculation, conversation and frustration without action to stop the problems and the threats we face. We encourage our congressman to co- sponsor such bills as the Palestinian Anti- Terrorism Act, which would place strong economic sanctions on Hamas until they decry terrorism in their streets and institutions and further obligate them to recognize the right of Israel to exist as a Jewish state; the U.S.–Israel Energy Cooperation Act, which would fund joint ventures between Israel and the U.S. to find alternative sources of energy using Israel’s proven scientific and technologi- cal expertise; and the Iran Freedom Support Act, which would penalize foreign companies that invest in Iran’s energy sector as well as provide assistance to pro-democratic forces in Iran and would fund independent broadcasters to Iran. We elucidate the strong points of the bill and explain why it should be passed— now! We engage in dialogue that helps us understand the thinking of our representatives and get an idea of where they stand and who else’s support to seek to help the bill get passed. We met with over 400 Congressmen and Senators. We exercised our democratic right to affect our present and future. Everyone who went felt the opti- mism of making something happen. An extremely rewarding aspect of the mission was the opportunity to bring children along (from 8th grade to graduate students) and let them learn to lobby their congressman directly, thereby gain- ing the realization that they can take an active role in affecting the course of their lives and the actions of our country. It was especially exciting for me to share this with my eighth grader. Though she will be going to Washington next week on her graduation trip and learning much about our government, her experiences on that trip will not be comparable to speaking directly to senators and congressmen on vital issues. Last year, only two people from Long Island were among the group. This year there were forty. Hopefully, next year when NORPAC (a bipartisan group representing Israel’s interests in the U.S.) creates this pilgrimage opportunity again,

Continued on Page 42 40 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 41 AROUND THE FIVE TOWNS young professional who gasped at this proof-positive evidence of the Continued from Page 40 Holocaust and its implications for we Long Islanders will grab our children today. and go join the explosion of energy. Thus many more of us will be among those rac- Alphonse D’Amato Receives 5T ing through the offices of congressmen Jewish Council’s Tenzer Award expending our energy lobbying for the Former New York Senator Alphonse bills that affect us most. Trust me, these M. D’Amato will receive the Five Towns are the kind of explosions we want to be Jewish Council’s Twelfth Herbert setting off. Tenzer Memorial Legislative Award at If you would like further informa- its annual breakfast. The event will be tion about NORPAC, visit their web- held at Temple Hillel on Rosedale Road site at www.norpac.net, or call 201- in North Woodmere, on Sunday, June 788-5133. ❖ 11, at 9:30 a.m. The Tenzer family gen- erously funds this event. Jeffrey S. Rivki Rosenwald is an attorney who lives in Lawrence with her husband and five children. Wiesenfeld, Principal of Bernstein Global Wealth Management, will make On Deathbed, Nazi Turns Over the presentation. Parchment Cut From Torah Scroll The award is being given to Mr. On an official visit to Germany, The excised piece of a Torah scroll that a Nazi made into an I.D. holder for himself is shown by D’Amato in gratitude for his successful Motty Doten, head of Israel’s Galilee Rabbi Yitzchok Grossman of Israel to Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis at her Hineni Torah class as effort, as Chairman of the United Regional Council was approached by another chilling reminder of the Holocaust and an important message for the Jewish people. States Banking Committee, to restore Deter Hertzig, a member of the assets to Holocaust survivors and their German Bundestadt (parliament) with denial, he wanted the Jews to have proof Memorial Council, said, “We cannot heirs, ultimately forcing the Swiss an astounding story. positive that it really happened. The Nazi simply attribute this to coincidence. Banks to pay over $1 billion in restitu- The German official’s father admitted died soon after making that request. That Nazi could have cut a piece from tion to survivors. He served as Special on his deathbed, that he had been a pilot Motty Doten gave the I.D. and wallet any part of the Torah, but G-d led him to Master in the Holocaust settlement in Hitler’s Luftwaffe (air force) and had made from the Torah Scroll to Rabbi these terrifying passages, and it reaches case with the German and Austrian bombed many synagogues. On one occa- Yitzchok David Grossman, founder and us now, when the president of Iran, banks, having been appointed by the sion, he visited one of these synagogues dean of Migdal Ohr in Israel. When the Ahmadinejad, Hitler’s successor, lays his United States District Court of the and found, strewn on the floor, a scroll rabbi read the words on the parchment, plans for a new Holocaust and threatens Southern District of New York. made of parchment, which he thought he began to tremble. The terrifying pas- to wipe Israel off the map. In 1995, Mr. D’Amato was selected would make good material for an I.D. sages were from the tochachah—the Rabbi Grossman visited Rebbetzin as the National Republican Senatorial folder, and he cut a piece from the Torah chapter of rebuke in which the Torah Jungreis’s Torah class in Manhattan, Chairman. His political skills have scroll for that purpose. Now, on his warns of terrible tragedies that will the home of the internationally helped elect scores of local, state, and deathbed, he asked his son to hand it over befall the Jewish people if they abandon renowned Hineni outreach organiza- federal candidates to office. He is cur- to the first Jew he met and request that he G-d’s Torah (Devarim 28:57–62). tion, and displayed the Torah wallet, rently one of the most sought after give it to a holy rabbi in Israel who would Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis, herself a the Nazi I.D. Rabbi Grossman and public policy and business develop- surely know what to do with it. He Holocaust survivor, who was appointed the rebbetzin explained the meaning ment strategists in the country. He is a explained that, in an age of Holocaust by President Bush to the U.S. Holocaust of these passages to hundreds of founding partner of Park Strategies

42 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES LLC, established in 1998, which has in Lawrence and was one of the founders provided advice and counsel to its cor- of Congregation Beth Sholom in porate clients throughout the nation. Lawrence, New York. He created the During his tenure in the Senate (1981- Save the Children Foundation, which 1999), he served as Chairman of the rescued children from the Holocaust. He Senate Committee on Banking, Housing was one of the founders of the United and Urban Affairs, overseeing legislation Jewish Appeal; the America-Israel affecting America’s financial institutions, Friendship League, where he served as banking, public and private housing, President for over 25 years; Cardozo Law urban development, and foreign trade School; Crown Heights Yeshiva; Friends promotion. He served on the Senate of Survivors; the Jewish Community Finance Committee, the Senate Relations Council; B’nai Zion, where he Subcommittees on Health Care, was a National Vice President; the Salute International Trade, and Taxation and to Israel Parade; the Long Island Lodge IRS Oversight. He was the Chairman of of B’nai Brith; and Yeshiva University. He the Commission on Security and and his wife Florence were actively Cooperation in Europe (the Helsinki involved in the Lawrence-Cedarhurst Commission). He authored the Libya and Woodmere Chapters of Hadassah. Sanctions Act to combat efforts by rene- He participated in the early efforts of the gade nations to finance international ter- Five Towns Jewish Council. He was also rorism through oil field development. the Chairman of Barton’s Candy During his tenure on the Senate’s Caucus Corporation. on International Narcotics Control, Mr. This event is free and open to the D’Amato was a leader in the fight against public. For further information, call illegal drugs. He has appeared frequently 516-374-6374. Linda Dascher, RN, (left), Peninsula Hospital Center’s vice-president of performance improvement, and Edward Ozechowski (right), administrative director of cardio-pulmonary in the Five Towns, most notably, when he services, present an achievement award to Jeanne Gilligan, RT, RRT (center) for her exemplary accompanied President Ronald Reagan leadership and collaboration with the Intensive Care Unit staff as well as for her valuable service to Temple Hillel and the home of its Continued on Page 44 in patient care rounds. rabbi, Morris Friedman. He was honored by the Conference of Jewish Organizations of Nassau County (COJONC) during its first dinner. He appears regularly on radio and television. Mr. D’Amato and his wife live in Island Park. Jeffrey Wiesenfeld is the son of Holocaust survivors. He served in the foreign counterintelligence division of the FBI. He then became an assistant to Congressman Thomas Manton and Queens Borough President Claire Shulman. He subsequently was appointed Chief-of-Staff to Mayor Koch’s Traffic Commissioner. At the conclusion of the Koch Administration, he became the New York Metropolitan Area Executive Assistant to Senator Alphonse D’Amato. He was responsible for many of the Senator’s activities and was his personal representative in the eight counties of the downstate region. In 1995, he became the Executive Assistant to New York State Governor George Pataki for the New York Metropolitan Region. In 1999, he became the New York City Regional Director of the Empire State Development Corporation. He is currently a member of the Board of Trustees of the City University of New York, the board of the United Nations Development Corporation, and a Commissioner within the Long Island North Shore Heritage Area Planning Commission. He also is the Director of the Boards of the Long Island Chapter of the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America; New York Metropolitan Region and National Governing Board of the American Jewish Congress; Berkshire Hills-Emanuel Camps; Queensborough Community College Holocaust Resource Center; Open University of Israel; Folksbiene Yiddish Theatre (as Chairman); North Shore Hebrew Academy; Great Neck Arts Center; Jewish Community Relations Council of New York; and the Advisory Board of the Rubin Museum of Art. He lives in Great Neck, New York with his wife and daughter. Herbert Tenzer represented the Five Towns Community during his two terms in the United States Congress. He lived 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 43 AROUND THE FIVE TOWNS Continued from Page 43 MAY Annual Dinner Mesivta Ateres Yaakov of Greater Long Island—Ruth and Hyman Simon High School cel- ebrated its third annual banquet on May 10 at the Sands at Atlantic Beach. Under the dynamic leadership of its mena- hel, Rabbi Mordechai Yaffe, Ph.D., and its principal of general studies, Rabbi Sam Rudansky, Ateres Yaakov has emerged as a vibrant Torah institution that provides a supe- rior Torah education supple- mented by an outstanding general-studies curriculum. The smorgasbord provided The third annual dinner of Mesivta Ateres Yaakov took place on Wednesday, May 10, at the Sands at Atlantic Beach. Above, left: Honorees Barry and Robin by Sharmel Caterers provided a Picker with Howard Weitzman, Nassau County comptroller. Above, right: Honorees, top row (L-R): Rabbi Menachem Brick, Baruch Singer, Howard Weitzman, perfect backdrop for friends Leibel Zisman, Itzi Laub; bottom row (L-R): Leah Brick, Susie Singer, Myrna Zisman, and Irene Laub.

and family to gather before the main banquet and program. The delicious main course was served as soon as the attendees entered the main ballroom. The program began right on schedule. Following the recital of Tehillim in an act of solidarity with our brothers and sisters in Israel, there was a surprise presentation to the outgoing co-presidents of the PTA, Mrs. Goldy Friedman and Mrs. Shari Weiss. The spirit and love of Torah was clearly evident as those individuals who have maintained a continuous and deep involvement with Mesivta Ateres Yaakov were recognized. The banquet chairmen, Dr. Steven Kadish and Michael Salzbank, along with the journal chairman, David Portal, Esq., joined the entire community in extend- ing gratitude to Itzi and Irene Laub, Guests of Honor; Leibel and Myrna Zisman, Grandparents of the Year; Rabbi Menachem and Leah Brick, Parents of the Year; Barry and Robin Picker, Amud HaTorah Awardees; and Baruch and Susie Singer, Amud HaChesed Awardees. The video presentation, which highlighted the unique brand of chinuch that is provided at the mesivta, was thoroughly enjoyed by all. In addition, Rabbi Yaffe’s indi- vidualized remarks prior to each of the presentations provided an intimate and personal touch that truly captured the warmth that perme- ates everything that the mesivta does. As one guest commented, “you could feel the tremendous warmth that everyone involved in the mesivta puts forth. From the video, it was clear that they truly are combining academic excellence…in Torah learning and in the general studies, while maintaining the

Continued on Page 47 44 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES A Five Towns Simcha Photos By Captured Images

Bar Mitzvah of Sholom Kanner took place this past week on Shabbos, Parashas Bamidbar, at the Lawrence Country Club. Inset: Sholom with his grandparents, Eli and Greta Hirmes.

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 45 46 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES AROUND THE FIVE TOWNS Shuvu School in Beer Sheva. Together, they raised $4,000 for the Shuvu stu- Continued from Page 44 dents who are the children of Russian closeness of a family. In today’s cli- immigrants from secular homes. mate, this is really amazing.” Rav Binyomin Kamenetzky, shlita, Perhaps the most remarkable aspect who established the yeshiva in the fast- of the evening was the consideration growing Hewlett community in the for the guests and supporters. The Five Towns area seven years ago, was a entire program concluded punctually friend of Rav Avrohom Pam, zt”l, as planned, and while the guests were founder of the Shuvu Schools move- able to leave at a very reasonable hour, ment in Israel. Rav Binyomin suggest- many remained to partake of the ed to Rav Pam that yeshivos in the U.S. Viennese table and to savor the sweet- should each adopt one of the Shuvu ness of the evening just a little longer. schools and make it their ongoing tzedakah project. Rav Pam was JCC Adult Education impressed by this idea and comforted The JCC of the Greater Five Towns that some of the fundraising burden of invites everyone to “Learn to Prepare Shuvu would be shared in this way. Super Summer Salads,” Wednesday, Rav Mordechai Kamenetzky, rosh June 7, at 10:00 a.m. The fee is $45. yeshiva of Yeshivas Toras Chaim and These new salads will add color and fla- son of Rav Binyomin, explained: “The vor to your table. Fennel mango salad, learn-a-thon has become one of the spicy grilled corn salad with black bean various annual fundraising events and roasted red pepper, and more! through which all the yeshiva students This adult-education program is part help their brothers in Israel, thereby of the Kosher Culinary Institue for June connecting students of Torah around and July. The class will be held at 207 the world in the spirit of acheinu B’nei Grove Avenue, Cedarhurst. Pre-registra- Yisrael.” ❖ tion for all JCC classes is a must. Please call Susan at 516-569-6733.

Chidon HaTanach The Hebrew Academy of Long Beach DRS Yeshiva High School for Boys takes great pride in announcing their representation in the international Chidon HaTanach Bible Competition next year. Yehuda Grossman (’08) placed second in the National Bible Contest on Sunday May 14. The United States National Bible Contest is coordinated by the Jewish Zionist Education Department of the Jewish Agency. Yehuda qualified for this national contest by taking and passing three qualifying regional exams. These regional examinations are administered to over 500 students from around the country, representing over 35 middle and high schools. The national contest took place at the Ramaz Middle School on May 14, and Yehuda came in second place com- peting against other finalists from around the country. Yehuda was one of only four students in the competition moving on to the International Bible Contest, which takes place in Israel next Yom Ha’atzmaut. This international competition brings together contest winners from all over the Diaspora and Israel for a two-week Tanach Camp, during which they tour the country and meet with important government officials. The competition itself is broadcast live on Israeli television and is attended by the Prime Minister of Israel. Congratulations to Yehuda and his family on his success, and hatzlachah in next year’s international competition!

Dedicated Learning A Pesach learn-a-thon was organized by Rav Shlomo Drebin, a rebbi at Yeshivas Toras Chaim Of South Shore, and talmidim from grades 5 through 8 joined in enthusiastically. Each pro- cured sponsorship for every additional period of learning that they completed during vacation time. Their parents were happy to support two such worth- while causes—limud Torah and the kiruv rechokim work undertaken at the 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 47 ment or connection.” No peace rain of missiles emanating from the process or deluded Oslo fantasies of “disengaged” Gaza. Direct From Jerusalem peace here—rather the end of engage- And now, in the post-Sharon era, ment; a divorce. And truly, what the the rise to power of Hamas has ren- BY SHLOMO WOLLINS And one day in the year 2003 or disengagement represented was the dered even the process of disengage- EDITOR, ISRAELREPORTER.COM 2004, the term “disengagement” was beginning of a divorce process from a ment to be a non-starter. While we coined and applied to the unilateral fictitious marriage partner known as have defined “disengagement” as a 5TJT Update: May 28, 2006—In the surrender of strategic southern Israel the “Palestinians” and an aborted divorce, the terminology still implies year 2004, as Ariel Sharon betrayed his and the wholesale and wanton wedding known as Oslo. the existence of a partner to divorce election platform and ordered the destruction of the 21 Jewish commu- While it is rare to find a political from. The democratic, landslide elec- strategic surrender of the Gaza Strip, tion of Hamas unveiled the Arab popu- the spinmeisters worked frantically to lation as a toxic and adversarial entity; create a new poli-marketing term to any language of disengagement no describe this most bizarre and unpre- It sounds so positive and healthy, yet longer fit reality. So, the spin doctors dictable turn of events. Due to the uni- worked overtime and have applied a lateral nature of the Gush Katif sur- “convergence” is a word-mask for a remarkably new term, “convergence,” to what is render and the increasingly warlike essentially a continuation of unilateral rhetoric issuing from the rising Hamas Chamberlain-like surrender of highly strategic surrenders such as Lebanon, Hebron, power base, the Oslo-nian terminology Gush Katif, and now the Yehuda and of “peace plan” was neither applicable land to the genocidal Hamas enemy. Shomron Biblical heartlands. nor marketable to an Israeli population “Convergence” is defined as “a coming thoroughly saturated in the blood of together to unite a common interest or the post-Oslo travesty. The term focus.” It sounds so positive and “peace process” clearly implies an nities that had flourished for decades position that is 100 percent correct healthy, yet “convergence” is a word- active and willing partner in the in that region. “Disengagement” is or incorrect, the security arguments mask for a remarkably Chamberlain- process, which even the surrender- defined as either “the breaking off of of the proponents of the Gaza “disen- like surrender of highly strategic land drunk, post-1967 Left could no longer military action against an enemy” or gagement” have been proven to be to the genocidal Hamas enemy. sell to the average Israeli voter. “the act of releasing from an attach- thoroughly bankrupt under a daily The political advantage of the term “convergence” is its implication of an entirely internal process, one that neither interacts with nor inter- faces with another entity. Perhaps what Olmert should be declaring upon his “triumphant” return to Israel is, “There will be convergence in our time.” I was one of many political analysts in shock during Sharon’s betrayal of the southern Gaza settlements, and we all struggled to bring some understanding to this painful and historic political Benedict Arnold. It was not simple then, and it remains difficult now to portray Sharon as an outright coward and traitor. Let us theorize the following: Sharon had been witness to a series of Prime Ministerships that went down in the flames of broken Arab promises. One after the other—Peres, Netanyahu, Barak—they all relied upon Arab compliance to further their political platforms, and all resembled political Charlie Browns to the “Palestinian” Lucy, pulling back the football at the last moment. Perhaps the calculating Sharon discovered a new “unilateral” political strategy for survival as an Israeli Prime Minister, and that is: Don’t ask for or rely upon agreements with the Arabs. Certainly, all who were close to Sharon make it clear that he did not trust the Arabs in the slightest measure. Little did Sharon figure that his leadership would be cut short by ironic and Divine intervention, and not by Arab diplomatic betrayal. Essentially, Sharon introduced a new survival tactic for Israeli leaders, a “political unilateralism” that is structured to insulate Israeli govern- ments from the two Arab constants: terrorism and political obfuscation. And we see that Sharon’s chief student, Ehud Olmert, is following the path of this delusional and defeatist policy—a path laced with European approval and 18 standing ovations from a joint session of the two houses of Congress. How the House of Representatives passes the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act by an overwhelming 361-37 vote, and just 48 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES the next day applauds the Olmert from this historical right.” plan of terrorist appeasement and the In July 2002, new Israeli Prime creation of “Hamastan” defies logic Minister Ehud Olmert said in a and clearly reveals the Western psy- speech in New York City: “We are chosis in confronting the Islamic reli- tired of fighting, tired of being gious jihad. heroes, tired of winning, tired of In 1937, David Ben-Gurion striking at our enemies.” declared as follows: “No Jew has the Notice any change in the 65 years right to surrender any parts of the between the statements? Ehud, if you Land of Israel. No Jewish group has are tired, can we recommend an this right. Even if all the Jews living extended hiatus from politics and today want to surrender land, they your charade of Jewish leadership have no right to give up any amount and statesmanship. Because, sir, the of land. This is the right of the Jewish Arabs are not tired of fighting and of people in all generations to have this striking at Jewish targets, and they land. Even at some time, if there will smell victory in your “convergence” of be some who want to give up land, Jewish cowardice and unilateral they have no right and no authority to national surrender. ❖ do this to further generations. The Jewish people are not obligated and Shlomo Wollins, based in Jerusalem, is the founder and publisher of israelreporter.com.Mr. will not bend to any surrender. The Wollins has lived in Israel for over six years, and right to this land in its entirety is ours has focused on the relevant issues for over a decade. Mr. Wollins can be reached in Israel at for eternity. Until the complete (0)54-7388-054 or at Redemption comes, we will not move [email protected].

And when you make Me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stone: for if you lift up your sword upon it, you have defiled it (Bamidbar 20:22)

Iron was created to shorten the life of man, and the Altar was created to lengthen the life of man; so it is not fitting that that which shortens should be lifted upon that which lengthens. (Talmud, Middot 3:4)

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 49 Cooking Concepts Overcoming Kitchen Lingo!

BY NAOMI ROSS So how can we overcome this pho- bia? Be adventurous! Be daring! Don’t Anyone who has ever looked for new turn the page. Try it anyway. recipes, let alone tried to follow one, is Obviously, that is sometimes easier most likely familiar with a common said than done. How can you try a phenomenon. My students call this technique with no knowledge of how “turn the page.” Ever look through a to accomplish it? First of all, keep cookbook and come across a new and reading; many times, the recipe itself exciting recipe? You think, “Hey, I’d will explain the term in the directions like to try that.” With interest, you and tell you what to do. And if not, start skimming the recipe to see what’s educate yourself! Most cookbooks involved. And then BAM! There it is, contain a whole lot more information an ingredient or a cooking term com- than just recipes. A good cookbook pletely foreign to you, staring you right can be home to glossaries, charts, and in the face. Like a deer caught in the explanations of ingredients. All you headlights, you stop dead in your have to do is look and explore for tracks. Your initial enthusiasm fades, more information. The Internet is you stop reading and…turn the page. also a great resource for this kind of Ring a bell? thing. Your local supermarket grocer All too often, we let unfamiliar lingo is usually happy to guide you to a new and ingredients stifle our kitchen cre- exotic ingredient, as well. ativity just because we are scared or I recently taught a wonderful intimidated. We think it must be too recipe for pan-seared tilapia with complicated; it must be a patchke. And chile-lime butter. I know what you’re so we turn the page. Poached salmon thinking. “What? That sounds like is one of the easiest things to prepare, something I would order in a restau- and yet when I ask my students if rant. I can’t make that at home. I they’ve ever attempted to make it, they don’t even know what pan-searing is!” reply “No! It’s way too fancy—I don’t Not so! You can make it at home, too. even know what poaching is!” We get It’s fast, it’s simple, and I will help caught up in the lingo and are afraid to you troubleshoot your pan-searing try, even though that recipe could be woes. My husband has informed me our next great dish. that only I have pan-searing woes.

50 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES That may be, but here are some kosher salt pointers to help you get it right. freshly ground pepper Rav Salomon To Speak In Lawrence Pan-searing is a wonderful method 1 Tbsp. Flour of cooking that uses high heat to 4 tsp. canola oil quickly brown food in a skillet. It seals in flavor by creating its own Directions: crust. Perfectly pan-seared fish is Pat the fish dry; season with salt moist and tender on the inside, gold- and pepper to taste on both sides of en brown and delicately crisp on the fish. Dust with flour on both sides. outside. Pan-searing is not sautéing. Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a large, Both use skillets and only a small heavy nonstick skillet over moderate- amount of fat; however, pan-searing ly high heat until just smoking. Cook is over a higher heat and does not 3–4 pieces of fish, turning over once involve frequent stirring, as does with a spatula, until golden and just 1 sautéing. It is best to leave it alone in cooked through, about 5 minutes (2 ⁄2 order to allow a crust to form. Here minutes per side). Transfer to a plate. are some more tips: Cook remaining fish in remaining 2 • Get your pan hot! Make sure the teaspoons of oil in the same manner. pan and oil are hot before you place Serve each piece of fish with a dol- the food in the pan. When the oil lop of chile-lime butter. begins to smoke, it is ready. Chile-lime butter can be made one • Do not overcrowd fish in the pan. day ahead and chilled, covered. Bring • Do not move fish until it’s time to to room temperature before serving. turn the fish over. • Do not overcook fish! Nobody likes Naomi Ross teaches Cooking Concepts, courses on the fundamentals of cooking and Jewish HaRav Mattisyahu Salomon, shlita, will be the featured speaker at a breakfast reception benefiting overcooked fish—it can be dry, mushy, homemaking skills. She can be reached at Vaad Nidchei Yisroel on Sunday, June 18, at 9:30 a.m. at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey rubbery, or even fishy flavored. Follow [email protected]. Eisenberg in Lawrence. Pictured above, Rabbi Salomon visiting a Vaad Yeshiva in Russia, where the “10-minute rule” for foolproof fish: thousands of young Russian Jews continue to seek a Torah education. 1. Measure the thickest part of the fish. 2. Cook fish for a total of 10 minutes for each 1 inch of thickness (5 1 minutes for each ⁄2 inch). 3. Always check for doneness a couple of minutes before you think it 3 should be done. For example, a ⁄4-inch- 1 thick fillet may take up to 7 ⁄2 minutes total cooking time. If the first side is golden brown in 3 minutes, check for 1 doneness 2 ⁄2 minutes after turning the fillet over. The flavored butter in this recipe is perfect in combination with the tilapia. If it’s at room temperature, it will melt upon contact with the fish and create a terrific flavor. Perfect for Shavuos or any night of the week, this recipe is light, delicious, and quick to prepare. Don’t turn the page! Experiment and enjoy!

Pan-Seared Tilapia With Chile-Lime Butter Serves 4–6. Chile-Lime Butter: Ingredients: 1 1 stick ( ⁄2 cup) unsalted butter, soft- ened (but not melted!) 2 Tbsp. shallots, finely chopped 2 tsp. freshly grated lime zest 4 tsp. fresh lime juice 2 tsp. minced fresh Thai chile or serrano chile (preferably red but green will work as well), including seeds* 1 tsp. salt

*Be careful when handling chili peppers not to touch face or eyes, as they contain oils that can burn the skin. Wash hands with soap afterward (or use gloves when handling them). The heat of chili peppers is contained primarily within the seeds. For more spiciness, add more seeds. For a more mild taste, remove some.

Directions: Stir together all ingredients in a bowl. Set aside.

Fish: Ingredients: 6–8 pieces (5–6 oz. each) skinless tilapia fillet 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 51 What Is Torah? BY YANKI TAUBER details the commitments and duties we assumed toward each other when The Torah is a guidebook. Valuable G-d chose us as His people and we things (lawn mowers, MP3 players, chose Him as our G-d at Sinai. minivans) come with a book of instruc- The Torah is identity. What con- tions on how to properly and optimally nects the black-skinned Ethiopian use them. The same applies to the Jew with the red-bearded chasid in

Torah is the Divine blueprint for creation, the vision that illuminates the foundations of existence, its purpose, and its significance. To study and live Torah is to understand and experience the soul of reality.

valuable (and complicated) thing we Moscow? What does the West Coast call “life”—the Manufacturer enclosed Jewish filmmaker have in common an instruction book. with his peddler grandfather or his The Torah is a contract. When two olive-growing ancestor? Nothing. people enter into a partnership, bind- They share no common language, ing their financial futures to a joint facial features, or diet. Any two Jews destiny, they draw up a contract that can be as culturally or even genetical- spells out their respective duties and ly diverse as any other two members commitments. When two people of the human race. But the Shema marry, a marriage contract, called a recited today in a Canadian syna- kesuvah, is drawn up that does the gogue is the same Shema that was same. The Torah is our marriage con- proclaimed in Egypt 3,500 years ago; tract with G-d, the document that the criteria for the mikveh built at

52 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES you, ‘Do not take her,’ for Masada are the same as for Indeed, we are referred to as accomplishment; namely, the and diligence. The teacher she is your wife. This one the one that opened in Brazil favor, however, I ask of you: “children of G-d” (Devarim very things that are often the and student have chosen to last week. Torah bridges con- Wherever you go to live, 14:1) in affirmation of the most “exciting” elements in a bond with each other. tinents and de-gaps genera- prepare a chamber for me absoluteness of our bond. relationship—are present in Yet the master–disciple tions to serve as our single that I may dwell with you, There is, however, one ele- the parent–child relationship relationship obviously lacks common expression of our for I cannot leave my ment which the parent–child by default only, and thus lack the essential nature of the Jewishness. daughter.” relationship seems to lack: the meaningfulness and per- parent–child bond. The Torah is vision. Why In the same way, G-d the element of choice. The sonal significance that are Now picture this: Imagine are we here? Where are we said to Israel: “I have given child did not choose to be attached to that which is that you are a great king, and going? “An architect who you the Torah. I cannot part the parent’s child. Nor did consciously and willfully the most precious thing in builds a palace,” cites the with her, and I also cannot the parent choose this partic- chosen. your life is your only daugh- tell you not to take her. But Midrash, “has scrolls and ular individual to be his Thus another metaphor ter. And now you must this I request of you: notebooks which he consults Wherever you go, make for child; if it were up to him, he comes into play: that of the choose the man who will to know how to place the Me a house wherein I may might have chosen someone relationship between a great become your son-in-law. rooms and where to set the dwell.” wiser, kinder, prettier, or sage and his brilliant disci- The Torah is G-d’s daugh- doors. So it was with G-d: He more talented. One can ple. Theirs is a relationship ter. And the Torah is Israel’s looked into the Torah and What can be more powerful therefore argue that while that is predicated on each bride. In wedding the King’s created the world.” Torah is than the bond between child the two are connected in other’s qualities. The love daughter we unite with her, the Divine blueprint for cre- and parent? The one is the essence, they are connected and devotion of the disciple becoming one with that ation, the vision that illumi- very extension of the being of in essence only: the more are motivated by the sage’s which is one with Him. It is nates the foundations of exis- the other. To the outsider they “external” trappings of per- greatness; the teacher’s love an essential oneness, yet tence, its purpose, and its sig- may seem as two individuals, sonality—intelligence, char- and devotion are motivated also a chosen oneness. nificance. To study and live but in essence they are one. acter, physical attractiveness, by the disciple’s intelligence (Chabad.org Magazine) ❖ Torah is to understand and experience the soul of reality. The Torah is daughter and wife. The sages of the Talmud offer a fascinating parable for our special relationship with G-d and the Torah’s role in that relationship: There was once a king who had an only daughter, and one of the foreign kings came and married her. When her husband wished to return to his country, her father said to him: “My daughter, whose hand I have given you, is my only child; I cannot part with her. Neither can I say to

And they camped in the desert (Bamidbar 19:2)

In the ownerless wilderness was the Torah given to the people of Israel. For if it were given in the Land of Israel, the residents of the Land of Israel would say, "It is ours"; and if it were given in some other place, the residents of that place would say, "It is ours." Therefore it was given in the wilderness, so that anyone who wishes to acquire it may acquire it.

(Mechilta D'Rashbi)

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 53 communities require a response. We sadists—people who get some sort of cannot keep our heads in the sand any thrill out of hurting others. Then, of longer. While the statistics may not course, there are the hoodlums, ex- seem alarming enough to warrant the cons, and assorted criminals. Finally, Staying Safe purchase of an armored Humvee or there are those addicted to alcohol lifetime membership in a martial-arts and/or drugs, and the purveyors of BY LEON ZACHAROWICZ, MD Brooklyn alarm New Yorkers. A brutal club, many members of our local com- these substances. Overall, a small but kidnapping of a 20-year-old Jewish girl munity could benefit from a height- real percentage of people in the world A series of home invasions leaves in Lakewood makes national head- ened sense of caution. are “bad guys.” dozens of local victims frightened. The lines. A magazine article alleges This article will not discuss why bad I have, unfortunately, encountered vicious murder of an 81-year-old decades of abuse by a religious things happen to good people. The dozens of victims of violent crime, rang- Jewish man shocks apartment dwellers teacher. These come in addition to vio- answers to such questions are best left ing in age from infants to elderly adults. in Washington Heights. Attempted lent crimes against Jews worldwide. to rabbis, spiritual advisors, and per- No one is immune. The effects of life- abductions of Jewish children in Recent violent crimes in Jewish haps philosophers. This article will threatening events should not be instead concentrate on how bad things underestimated. Even among those happen—and, more importantly, how who survive seemingly intact, a large to lower the chances that you will be a number go on to experience post-trau- victim. matic stress disorder, a chronic and psy- We live in a world filled with many chologically crippling condition. Many very good people, many people with a have altered relationships with friends combination of good and bad, and a and family. Some become violent to few purely evil people. These evil peo- others. Childhood victims of chronic ple include essentially two-legged violence often grow up to become per- predators—similar to the rodef of the petrators of violence themselves, and Torah—waiting for their chance to may also attempt to injure themselves. harm someone else for their own grat- How can one lower one’s chances of ification or for no logical reason at all. being victimized by a violent crime? People who have not a single altruis- There are a few essential steps to avoid tic bone in their body are often classi- being “in the wrong place at the wrong fied as psychopaths or sociopaths. A time” or in the vicinity of the “wrong” recent chilling book, The Sociopath person. In several public schools, vio- Next Door, estimates that over one per- lence prevention is part and parcel of the cent of the population fits the curriculum. In our relatively sheltered sociopath pattern. Sociopaths are espe- world, many people do not learn the sim- cially dangerous because they appar- ple steps that can lower their chances of ently lack a conscience, or yetzer tov. becoming another crime statistic. While some of these miscreants are One can categorize anti-violence easy to spot and avoid, the relatively guidelines in many ways, including sophisticated sociopath “cases” his vic- looking at who commits such crimes tim methodically until he strikes. In addition to sociopaths, there are Continued on Page 56

54 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 55 Staying Safe nals, in many cases—and frequently access to the house was limited, by this they to get mugged, they might hesi- Continued from Page 54 involve other criminals as victims. A savvy homeowner. tate to end their conversation, prefer- recent New York Times article on who If you encounter someone who acts ring instead to hand over their purse or and who are likely victims, when such commits murder in New York City and like he is on “The Sopranos,” it might wallet while chatting away. Use your crimes are likely to occur, where who are the victims emphasized this be wise to give this person some lee- cell phone when appropriate, but be crimes often occur, and how someone very same point, as does a new book by way rather than some lip. Actually, sev- alert to who might be in your vicinity. can react if a violent attack seems David Buss, a psychology professor eral of the actors in this TV show have Many community members are car- imminent. who specializes in the study of murder reportedly been associated with violent ing and trusting individuals—be they While this article will focus on low- and its prevention. crimes, including the alleged murder children, teens, or adults. While it is ering one’s chances of being victimized So, avoid violent types and you of a police officer. In this case, life great that so many community mem- by violent strangers, we need to keep lower your chances of becoming seems to mimic art. If someone looks bers jump at the chance to help others, in mind that perpetrators of violence another one of their victims. Think the part or acts the part, be on guard. in some cases this enthusiasm, coupled may include acquaintances and even twice about whom you let into your Bad guys also look for “easy marks.” with naiveté, can spell danger. Look family members. house or to work in your garden. It In addition to noticing people who before you leap to do a good deed. This article will limit its focus to might be worth it to pay a little more if flash their money, jewelry, and expen- Some community members may wish physical violence, keeping in mind that that means you will be dealing with a sive items, they may focus on a person to give their credit-card numbers and there are other ways that innocent more reputable company, such as one who is so caught up in his or her cell- other identifying information to people can be hurt. that does background checks on its phone conversation that the person is strangers offering to “scalp” baseball One important caveat: This article prospective employees instead of pick- not paying attention to what is other- tickets on the FTS list—especially if they contains general information only, and ing up its “employees” off the street. wise going on. use a Jewish-sounding name, which to cannot be relied on as specific advice During the recent installation of a I have seen people answer and then some makes these strangers seem hon- or for all situations. bookcase in his home, bought at a talk mindlessly on their cell phones, est. However, if you reveal your home local store, someone I know chatted while davening in shul and wearing address or other identifying information, Who with the men and discovered that tefillin, and have witnessed numerous or if you open your door to strangers—or As former New York City mayor Ed indeed one of the workers was picked near-accidents due to cell-phone use. I even more so, leave it unlocked—you Koch once noted, most violent crimes up off the street to help with the imagine that there are probably people increase the chances of being victimized are committed by a relatively small installation. Needless to say, this per- out there who are so caught up in their by a violent criminal. Some crimes are number of people—hardened crimi- son was carefully watched, and his cell-phone conversations that, were simply crimes of opportunity. Limit the opportunity, and you limit the chances of being victimized. Don’t be fooled by the garb worn by bad guys. In religious communities, good guys wear black—but so can bad guys. It is not hard for an intelligent bad guy to buy some black clothing and a black hat to “fit in.” Judge people by the context and their behavior; do not judge people by their clothing alone. Several infamous serial killers reportedly dressed very well, lulling their potential victims into a false sense of security. Unfortunately, as pointed out by David Mandel of Ohel in a talk he gave in the community a few years ago following a horrendous attack on a girl walking to a local school, molestation of children often is perpetrated by people who know the child and not by total strangers. While many of us may welcome a single fellow who volunteers to run the Shabbos program for boys, or to coach little league week after week, too few of us wonder why that same person insists on no adults being present, and very few of us take even a moment to consider what reason would someone like this have to want to be around children without getting paid. Many of us are thrilled when our sons or daughters go to a gym class, but how many of us even know the background of the instructor—besides the little that he or his employer chooses to tell us? It is a bitter truth that deviant people take jobs and volunteer for positions that give them access to children and teens. Our schools, our JCCs, our rabbis, our principals, and we parents are all “too busy” and too trusting to do even mini- mal background checks, let alone to have a sense of caution. No wonder that the average deviant will assault hundreds of children before he is caught, and even then often gets off scot-free— to go on to another school or shul or Jewish center and find more victims. The special topic of domestic violence and domestic discord is beyond the scope of this article. For detailed information, contact the Shalom Task

Continued on Page 58 56 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 57 Staying Safe extra degree of caution is advisable. ly. Keep your phone charged up and, You can sometimes find out where Continued from Page 56 After all, criminal types are often better yet, have a car charger. high-crime areas exist in your area and sleeping during the day and just start- If you can avoid going to an ATM in surrounding areas by reading local Force. Special cases such as bullying ing out at night. A recent book on the middle of the night, or running crime reports in the newspaper, such as in school—a problem which plagues so gangsters describes their “schedule,” into the 24/7 shop at the gas station, or The Wave or the Nassau Herald, or even many students in yeshivas and semi- which apparently includes sleeping going to get a newspaper at 1 a.m., you by politely asking a police officer. When naries—will also not be discussed. until noon or 2 p.m. (while the rest of may have a bit less cash overnight, a I travel, I usually ask the person at the us are at work, in yeshiva, etc.). Then, bit less caffeine in your veins, or a bit hotel’s front desk as well as any police- When these bad guys slowly wake up, get less knowledge of how the Yankees man I encounter which areas of town In general, nighttime and early ready to go out, and eventually head fared, but you probably have a bit more are safe and which should be avoided. morning hours are often times when out for their “business activities” late sense than some of your carefree On one occasion nearly two decades violent crimes by strangers are com- at night, staying up until 5 to 6 a.m., neighbors, who may, G-d forbid, one ago, on the night before a medical res- mitted. I say “often,” because there are and then finally heading home. night run into the wrong person in one idency training interview, an acquain- important exceptions, such as break- (According to this book, some gang- of these locales. tance and I started walking toward a ins—including home invasions— famous beach area in Los Angeles, which may very well occur in the mid- thinking we would enjoy a stroll on the dle of the afternoon, as happened to a boardwalk. A police car with two of doctor friend of mine. Pre-program your cell phone to dial 911 with LAPD’s finest passed us; then it made In many areas, most homicides, car a sharp U-turn, and one of the officers accidents, and acts of violence occur got out. He asked us who we were and late at night or in the early morning a single push of the button, and keep your where we were heading. After we hours, between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. answered, the officer emphatically said When I was in training to be a physi- phone nearby. Some cell phones have global we would be crazy to walk on that cian, we used to joke that late nights boardwalk at night. (Apparently, it was on weekends were the hours when the position systems (GPS) which enable the 911 the “territory” of some ethnic gang.) “Knife and Gun Club” would meet, as Surprised but thankful, we turned victims of violence would be brought operator to locate you very quickly. around and headed back to our lodg- in, one after another, to the hospital ings—and lived to tell about it! trauma center. Crimes tend to occur in the vicinity To lower your chances of becoming a of liquor and drugs. Ergo, if you go to crime statistic, don’t make unnecessary sters take time off on Sundays to be Where a club or bar where there are tough- trips outside during these late hours. with their nuclear families.) Most crimes occur in certain areas, looking people drinking hard liquor or Indeed, Pirkei Avos warns the person If you must go out at a high-risk in geographic clusters. This, too, was going to the bathroom to use drugs, who goes out at night on a “solitary time, it is probably a good idea to take emphasized in that recent New York don’t be surprised if your evening turns path.” I realize that some people get an adult with you, and/or a cell Times report. Avoid these high-crime out much tougher than you had antsy late at night and really want to go phone. Pre-program your cell phone areas, and you should lower your planned. Even an innocent gathering for a drive, but if at all possible, mini- to dial 911 with a single push of the chances of becoming a victim. If the of friends can quickly turn violent if mize your late-night excursions. button, and keep your phone nearby. downtown area in your town is a hang- alcohol or drugs are introduced. The I realize that this warning will do lit- Some cell phones have global posi- out and crimes occur there, think Talmud tells the cautionary tale of the tle to dissuade teens from heading out tion systems (GPS) which enable the twice before traveling alone into or after 11 p.m., but nevertheless some 911 operator to locate you very quick- through that area. Continued on Page 63

58 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 59 Pint-Size YKLI Sefirah Poster Contest Winners HAFTR Yom Yerushalayim

Proud winners of the Yeshiva Ketana of Long Island Sefirah Midos Poster Contest (L-R): Sruli Vegh, Shlomo Zalman Grumet, Daniel Klein, Aryeh Berger, Avi Gelfand, Ezriel Spinner, Eli Farkas, Shlomo Klahr, and Moshe Shalom Pfeiffer.

HAFTR nursery students “rebuilt the Kotel” in honor of Yom Yerushalayim. Amidst singing and dancing, each child carefully crafted two “stones” and assembled the wall.

Deadline for Advertising in the Next Issue is Monday, June 5 at 5:00 P.M. Call 516-984-0079

60 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES HALB Yom Yerushalayim

Grandparents of the kindergarten children of HALB Lev Chana were invited to participate in hands-on workshops with their grandchildren to celebrate Yom Yerushalayim. At left, Allysa Silvera and her grandmother, Mrs. Linda Mitgang, string a blue-and-white necklace. Center: Amiel Kerstein, his grandmother, Mrs. Phyllis Kerstein, and great-grandmother, Mrs. Perla Topiel, design a picture frame. Above, right: Chana Sigman and her grandmothers, Mrs. Fanny Malek and Mrs. Bonnie Sigman, make Israeli salad.

Scholarship Finalist

Michael Kessler has been named by The National Merit Scholarship Program as a Finalist. HAFTR Student In Government

HAFTR student Sam Yusopov was invited to participate in the ninth annual Town of Hempstead “Students in Government Day” on May 17. Students spent the day learning about local government, meeting with Supervisor Kate Murray, and touring Town Hall, Norman J. Levy Park, and the Conservation and Waterways Department. 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 61 62 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES Staying Safe Continued from Page 58 violence that ensued when two sages started imbibing alcohol on Purim. When you are out and about, always be aware of your surroundings. Does a car or its occupants seem out of place? Are people hanging around the street? Is someone trying to get the attention of passersby? Are things too quiet? Develop a sense of “radar.” It’s not as hard as it sounds. When on the move, make sure to park your vehicle in a well-lit spot, preferably where other people come and go frequently—such as near the entrance to a mall or the elevators in a parking garage—and, if possible, back your vehicle into its parking spot so when you exit you can do so quickly. Try not to park next to a van or another large vehicle which can block the view of passersby. Always lock your vehicle, even if you plan on being away just for a minute. When walking to your car, keep your keys in your hand, ready to open your vehicle immediately. Scan the surroundings, and glance in the back seat. Be especially careful in high-risk locations such as near your car, house, or bank. These are often areas where bad guys will strike. Why? Like Willie Sutton, bad guys go where the money is. When walking in certain areas, it is probably best to walk on the side of the block facing oncoming traffic. This way, you can see all cars as they drive toward you, and someone up to no good may have to stop his car and start backing up to get close to you. Develop a sense of personal space. Anyone who enters within several feet of you deserves your heightened attention. If a stranger is walking toward you, even if the person is talking in a calm manner, or smiling, be at least somewhat on guard. You can sometimes stop an aggressive person with a stern voice com- manding them to “Stop!” or “Get lost!” Never get close to a vehicle that seems occupied. Under no circumstances should you willfully get into a stranger’s car, regardless of what the person claims or threatens. Women and teens should think twice about getting into an acquaintance’s car, as well. There has been at least one recent case of an attack on a Jewish child who entered a stranger’s vehicle to “give directions.” ❖

Dr. Zacharowicz has studied and taught self- defense and personal safety classes for years. He recently earned his brown belt with Tora Dojo, a martial-arts system founded by Professor Haim Sober of Yeshiva University in 1967. For comments or queries, or for information about the upcoming June 11 martial-arts and self- defense exhibition in the Five Towns, contact [email protected].

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 63 Ending Gaza’s ‘Humanitarian Crisis’ BY DAVID SINGER

There seems to be a general international consensus that Gaza is gripped by a growing humanitarian crisis that requires the injection of large amounts of international financial aid to prevent a human catastrophe of massive proportions. The international community sees itself as trapped between a rock and a hard place. It wants to grant such financial aid, but does not want to be seen to be supporting the recently elected Hamas government, since Hamas is list- ed as a terrorist organization in most of those countries whose financial assistance is now being urgently sought. Israel is under international pres- sure to remit tax monies of $50 million per month it has been collecting for the Gazans. Israel objects to paying this money to a government whose policy openly and uncompromisingly calls for the destruction of Israel. Israel is struggling to devise a means to get that tax revenue to the civilian population, even though it was that population that elected Hamas to power, thereby causing the current crisis. Many question whether there is indeed a humanitarian crisis or even the threat of such a crisis in Gaza. An inves- tigative journalist, Arlene Kushner, claims that roughly USD 10 billion in aid has been provided to the Palestinian Authority in Gaza since 1993. Billions of dollars in buildings, businesses and agricultural enterprises and infrastructure were acquired for nothing following Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza last year. Much of this has been trashed in an orgy of looting and mindless destruction. Muhammad Dahlan, former Palestinian Minister of State for Security, told London’s Guardian newspaper in August 2004 that a total of USD 5 billion in international dona- tions “have gone down the drain and we don’t know to where.” Others compare the situation in Gaza to the Darfur region in southern Sudan, where emaciated children are dying from lack of medical treatment, women trek 50 kilometers to bring back food and water for their children and villages have been totally burned to the ground with the village men being taken away and slaughtered. Commentators point to AIDS, drought and corrupt govern- ments that have created a series of humanitarian crises in southern Africa that are far more serious than in Gaza. Nightly, on our television screens, we see pictures of angry Gazans demonstrating at funerals of assassi- nated terrorists or even fighting between themselves. They all seem well fed, well clothed and well armed, hardly what one would expect to see in a humanitarian crisis situation. Perhaps one of the more bizarre sights last week was the Hamas civil militia sporting new guns and new uniforms strutting the streets of Gaza City in open defiance of the recognized secu- 64 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES rity forces. Where the money came ent path, forsaking armed confronta- from to equip and outfit this smartly tion in favour of building a better life turned out militia is unknown. for themselves. There is a huge arsenal of weapons The ground rules for surrender of stored in Gaza, much of it allegedly pur- weapons could be drafted so as to pre- chased with funds provided by the inter- vent the disclosure of the identity of the national community for the specific organizations co-operating in the buy- purpose of improving the lives of the back. The monies paid would be given civilian population. Offering to buy back to the organizations for distribution that arsenal from the armed militia among their members and supporters. organizations presently operating under The government would have no interest a plethora of names and openly flouting or claim on these monies since it had the authority of the government, pres- no ownership in the weapons being sur- ents an opportunity to bring this rendered. The contributing countries “humanitarian crisis” to an end in Gaza. would be given access to monitor the It could also help to ease the ten- implementation of the program to sions between Israel and Gaza and ensure the money was being distributed restore some authority to the govern- to the civilian population. And finally, ment in Gaza. Perhaps, it could even the weapons themselves would be pub- provide the impetus for a return to the licly dismantled and destroyed—never Road Map sponsored by America, to be used again. Russia, the European Union and the The Gazan economy would be reju- United Nations. venated by the infusion of these Australia introduced a gun buy-back monies into the system. A growing program 10 years ago after a massacre market for goods and services, and in Tasmania led to public outrage and a greater employment opportunities, demand for action to prevent it hap- would be created. This would, in turn, pening again. At the end of the buy- create revenue for the government in back, on 31 August 1998, Australia had the form of increased taxes, which paid AUS $320 million for 643,726 could be used to provide or improve firearms. True, the Australian buy-back essential services such as roads, hous- was not the success that was envi- ing, hospitals and schools. sioned and Australia has once again If this offer is refused, the interna- seen a proliferation of guns in the com- tional community should spend its aid munity since the buy-back was com- money elsewhere, on the myriad num- pleted. However, conditioning financial ber of humanitarian crises occurring aid on the surrender of weapons would in other parts of the world. send a clear message to the Gazans If the Gazans turn down this offer, that they had a choice—to continue on then let them eat bullets, for they their present descent into anarchy and would have brought this “humanitari- self destruction, or to go down a differ- an crisis” on themselves. (Arutz Sheva) ❖

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 65 Torah Scrolls Make Trek Up Mountain, Completing Masada Shul’s Restoration

BY SUE FISHKOFF On Shavuot eve, 2004, a ZAKA group brought a donated Torah scroll Most tourists who make the pilgrim- to Masada, carried it up the mountain, age to Masada have seen the ruins of the and opened it at the top in a festive 2,000-year-old stone synagogue built by ceremony before handing it into the Jewish Zealots who hid there from Campbell’s safekeeping. the Romans for four years before com- After that night, Campbell kept the mitting mass suicide in 73 C.E. scroll securely locked in his vault at the It was a sad little building, without a roof, its crumbled walls but a few feet high. One had to imagine where the “But the importance worshippers stood to pray. What rituals did they observe? What, if any, religious items did they have? of returning a Torah Last year, the little synagogue was restored. It now boasts a roof, door and to the exact same small bookshelf. But the focal point is along the eastern wall: an ark covered place where Eliezer by a dark blue velvet curtain, which, for the first time in two millennia, Ben Yair might have houses two complete Torah scrolls. “After 2,000 years, we brought back hidden his Torah the Torah to Masada,” says Eitan Campbell, director of the Masada scroll that night, that National Park and a key figure in the restoration project. The impetus came three years ago he could understand.” from Yehuda Meshi Zahav, founder and chairman of Israel’s ZAKA non- governmental rescue and recovery visitors’ center at the base of the moun- team. He had brought a team of ZAKA tain. When visitors asked to use it, he volunteers to Masada for a sound and would let them take it up the moun- light show, and noticed there was no tain, but he “didn’t feel good about it,” Torah there. When people held a reli- he says. The Torah didn’t belong in a gious ceremony atop the mountain, vault, it belonged on the mountain. they had to bring their own scroll. “We realized it belonged in the

66 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES geniza,” he says, the small room Masada since 1993, flew in from the behind the ruined synagogue where Canary Islands for the event. At sunrise, the Zealots buried their holy books. he played a few songs—not religious That was where Yigal Yadin’s excava- songs, he said, but the soulful, spiritual- tion team found Bible fragments in ly infused music for which he is known. 1963, including the famed “dry bones” Last week, he was back at Masada, passages from Yechezkel. showing it to his daughter and her “There were some obstacles,” boyfriend. He and Campbell, who both Campbell admits. One can’t keep a feel a strong attachment to the site, Torah scroll in a ruin—it requires a sometimes sleep on the mountain. But roof, floor and secure ark. And the whereas Campbell is entranced by the chief archeologist was “not too enthu- tragic history of the Jewish Zealots, siastic” at the idea of interfering with Broza says it’s the power of nature that the structure, a UNESCO World draws him back. Heritage Site. “There’s massive energy, the change “But the importance of returning a of light from 3 a.m. to sunrise” he told Torah to the exact same place where JTA, reflecting on why he returns again Eliezer Ben Yair might have hidden his and again to hold concerts there. Torah scroll that night, that he could “You let yourself get carried away, understand,” Campbell says, referring you don’t really have control over your to the Zealot who led Masada’s defense. emotions. And if the show is good, the South Florida philanthropist Warren music takes you even further.” Struhl provided the funding for the syn- Both Torah scrolls are now housed agogue’s restoration. Struhl and three permanently on the mountain. They colleagues forked over the $80,000 are used for morning prayers every Campbell needed for the job, and Monday and Thursday, Campbell says. donated a second Torah scroll as well. “Word has gotten out that the scrolls On September 26 at 3 a.m., more are here,” he says. “We’ve closed the than 600 men, women and children, 2,000-year circle. If those last defend- fervently Orthodox to secular, began to ers would know there’s still a Jewish dance and sing their way up the south- presence on Masada, it would mean a ern slope of the mountain, carrying lot to them.” (JTA) ❖ both Torah scrolls to their new home inside the restored synagogue. The Sue Fishkoff, a special correspondent based in Northern California, covers American Jewish goings-on were streamed live over the issues, with a special focus on Jewish identity iIternet. and affiliation. She also serves as a contributing “It was a morning that anyone who editor, responsible for coordinating JTA’s coverage of the former Soviet Union. She is a former was there will never forget,” Campbell staff writer for the Jerusalem Post, has written says. extensively for a variety of national Jewish publi- cations and is the author of “The Rebbe’s Army: Israeli music legend David Broza, Inside the World of Chabad-Lubavitch,” pub- who has held more than 20 concerts at lished by Schocken Books.

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 67 The Alternative To The Dreaded ‘Singles Shabbaton’

BY MICHAEL FELDSTEIN Virtually everyone who attends these Shabbatons leaves generally disap- Ask a group of typical Jewish singles pointed. Fortunately for the organiz- whether or not they like attending ers, there always seems to be a new “singles Shabbatons,” and chances are group of singles interested in attending that the vast majority will say that they the next Shabbaton. hate the experience. Yet singles Is there a better way to run a sin- Shabbatons continue to be one of the gles Shabbaton that participants will more popular venues for Jewish singles enjoy more? Indeed there is. This past to meet others. year, I’ve personally helped organize Why do singles continue to flock to nine Shabbatons for singles through such weekends even though they pro- an organization called End The fess to hate them? Part of the reason Madness (www.endthemadness.org). is that many singles really believe And each one has been an unqualified that their future spouse might be at a success, according to the feedback particular weekend—and that by not provided by participants and the num- attending a Shabbaton they are going ber of singles who have attended to miss out on their golden opportu- more than one Shabbaton. nity. Advertisements for these week- What made these Shabbatons differ- ends loudly claim “Meet your bash- ent than the typical singles Shabbaton? ert!”—and singles are more than will- First, the Shabbaton is held in a ing to plunk down up to $300 a per- Jewish community that has an active son in hopes of cashing in on the synagogue (not in some hotel in the claim. Catskills), and activities and meals Another reason is the numbers are integrated with the rest of the game. Singles believe that if there are community. Past Shabbatons have lots of other singles in attendance, it been held in Lawrence, Teaneck, means that there is a better chance of Passaic, West Hempstead, Stamford, finding their soul mate there. Singles Elizabeth, and Monsey. Singles are tend to gravitate to the Shabbatons divided into groups of six (three men with the largest number of people, and three women) for Shabbos meals, thinking that this will improve their which they eat at the homes of the odds of finding a match. various hosts. This makes for a much Logically that may seem correct. more natural and comfortable—and However, what’s the real success rate? less pressurized—environment for

68 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES singles to meet and mingle. Singles times recommend others that they also daven with the rest of the mem- know as possible dates to those who bers of the community, and partici- attended the Shabbaton. In addition, pate in the rabbi’s class on Shabbos community members enjoy hosting and the shalosh seudos meal. meals because it allows them to do Second, the Shabbaton is intention- something tangible for the singles ally limited. Only 48 singles can attend, community. and applicants are carefully screened to The nice thing about this model is make sure they are the kind of people that it doesn’t take a lot of work to with which other participants and plan a Shabbaton. It can also be members of the community will enjoy accomplished by singles informally, spending a Shabbos. Every one of the without an official organization. Shabbatons that were planned has been You’ll need to find a point person in a sold out—and there is always a waiting specific community to arrange hous- list for singles to attend. ing and meals, and you’ll need a cou-

Because of the hospitality of community members in providing meals to singles at their own tables, the Shabbaton is usually priced at $25 per person, which includes a Saturday night activity, as well.

Third, the Shabbaton does not cost ple of organizers on the singles side an arm and a leg. Because of the hos- to screen applicants, take reserva- pitality of community members in pro- tions, assign participants to homes viding meals to singles at their own for meals and sleeping, and plan the tables, the Shabbaton is usually priced program. at $25 per person, which includes a There is a better way to run a Saturday night activity, as well. Shabbaton for singles, and this con- Finally, by interacting with mem- cept really works. Why not plan one in bers of the community, singles your community this coming year?! ❖ increase their own networking opportunities. After meeting singles Michael Feldstein serves on the Singles Task Force of the Orthodox Caucus, and volunteers over Shabbos, many hosts stay in for End The Madness. He can be reached at touch with their guests—and some- [email protected].

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 69 70 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES MyAunt Evelyn BY TOBY KLEIN GREENWALD

They say that as we grow older, we “become” our parents, like when our daughter leaves the house in the evening and we say, “Take a sweater!” Or the shock we get when we hear ourselves reminding our teenager that the barbecue with his friends should end at an hour that will actually enable him to go to school in the morning. But I think I’m becoming my Aunt Evelyn. My “Auntie Evie,” one of my mom’s four sisters, worked into her eight- ies. But when she wasn’t in the office, she was doing good deeds. She never walked into our house (or anyone else’s) without opening her bottom- less purse and pulling out gum, chocolate, Kennedy half-dollars, or the latest article by one of her award-winning journalist daughters. My Aunt Evelyn had a wealth of information about the community and the extended family (not to be confused with gossip, which I never heard from her), but more than that, she was a one-woman chesed committee. If one of her relatives or friends (or the mother of a friend, or the second cousin of a friend) needed a prescription filled, letters mailed, film developed, or a piece of clothing exchanged at the mall, Aunt Evelyn was your woman. But by far her most frequent mitzvah was giving people rides. I thought of Aunt Evelyn recently, as I was on my way home to Efrat, in Gush Etzion (the Etzion Bloc). Most people stop to pick up hitchhikers at the Gilo Junction, the last stop in Jerusalem before one gets onto the highway to Gush Etzion. Our Gush Etzion bus used to make stops in Jerusalem, but they were recently eliminated, so even adults have begun to do what was previously a mostly teenage habit—they take a bus to Gilo Junction and hitchhike home from there. It is a major headache, especially after shopping or a long day at work. When I stopped at a red light in town, I noticed a few women standing at a local bus stop that I knew leads to Gilo. People don’t usually give rides to folks in the city, for security reasons, but their head- scarves and long dresses indi- cated that they might be from our neck of the woods. I rolled down my window and asked

Continued on Page 72 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 71 My Aunt Evelyn Continued from Page 71

them where they had to go. “Gilo Junction,” they answered. Nobody lives at Gilo Junction; it’s only a hitch- hiker’s stop. “No, where do you really have to go?” “Carmei Tzur and Kiryat Arba,” they replied. “Wait, I’ll pull over,” I said. They piled in with their packages, offering enough blessings on my head to last a lifetime, when I told them, “I’ll take you all the way to the Gush Etzion junction,” which was beyond where I had to go, but was another major stop that would mean a shorter ride to their homes, and it was easy to get a ride from there. They were overcome with gratitude. Their children were waiting at home, their packages were heavy, it’s so hard to get a ride at Gilo… I felt a warm glow. We paused again at the Gilo junction to pick up a neighbor of mine, an adult who doesn’t own a car. He was so exhausted, he could barely talk. “I hope you don’t mind that we’re taking a detour by the Gush junction before we go back to Efrat,” I said. “Are you kidding?” he said, as he sank happily back into the seat. In the course of the ride, I played Jewish geography with the women, leading to the discovery that one of them knew a daughter of mine, and the other had a daughter who wanted to audition for one of our local theater groups. I continued up the highway, passing Efrat on my left, drove on to the Gush junction, and let them off to the sound of more blessings. I turned around and drove home. My neighbor was getting ready to get out at the crossroads closest to his house, but I said, “I’ve brought you this far, I’ll take you all the way.” I was on a roll; I called my married daughter who lives in a different part of Efrat. Her husband was away for the night for work, and I knew she’d probably

And there Israel camped opposite the mountain (Bamidbar 19:2)

At all their other encampments, the verse says vayachanu (“and they camped,” in the plural); here it says vayichan (“and he camped,” in the singular). For all other encampments were in argument and dissent, whereas here they camped as one man, with one heart.

(Mechilta; Rashi)

72 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES walk over to spend the night at our house. “I’m already in the car,” I told her; “I’ll pick you up.” And then the cap. Leaving our little local shopping center, I saw two women I know from the senior’s club, where I teach creative writing. They were schlepping bags and walking slowly. “Ride home?” I offered. They got into the car with effusive thanks. They only live around the corner; I didn’t think a ride would be a big deal. I was wrong. One of them said, “He who saves one life, has saved the world,” and when she got out, told me, “I try to be as independent as possible, but that walk, with packages, is a hard one.” “Just call me if you need a ride next time,” I told her. “If I’m home, I’ll be happy to pop you over there.” It was when she got out of the car that it struck me. “That’s it,” I thought, “first I turn into my mom, by telling my daughters to take sweaters, and now I’m becoming my Aunt Evelyn.” When Aunt Evelyn died, the funeral home had to move the ceremony from the smaller chapel to the larger one, usually used for (G-d forbid) younger deaths, or people who were extremely important and well- known in the community. I live in Israel and couldn’t be there, but my parents told me that the crowds kept coming and coming. Like the human parade at the end of the film Pay It Forward, no one imag- ined how many lives Aunt Evelyn had touched until they saw the hundreds gathered at her funeral. Anyone who has buried a loved one knows how it feels to look at that casket and think, “All that we take into the next world are the good deeds we have left behind.” Aunt Evelyn’s daughters eventually moved from journalism to more active public service. Babs volunteered for various presidential candidates, got a law degree, and eventually worked for the Securities and Exchange Commission. Dolly got a Ph.D. in public health and is seeking a cure for tuberculosis at the CDC. And me? I hope that, some day (we should all live till 120), when the friends and family I leave behind gather round, in addition to whatever else they’ll have to say, they’ll be able to say, “She gave people rides.” You never know what will make someone’s day. And I learned that from my Aunt Evelyn. ❖

Toby Klein Greenwald, when not giving rides to people, is a journalist (like her cousins), a theater director, and the editor of WholeFamily.com. 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 73 Mishael Heshin Lashes Out At Chief Justice Aaron Barak BY HILLEL FENDEL and he knows that you don’t mean what you said in all its intensity.” Just-retired Supreme Court Justice Heshin also elaborated on his recent Mishael Heshin said what he really majority opinion: thought about Chief Justice Barak’s “I’m not willing to take a chance. Not agenda—“civil rights win out over pre- in the Park Hotel [the site of the venting suicide bombings”—but then Passover seder bombing in which 29 apologized. people were murdered], not in Haifa, Heshin and Barak recently found and not in exploding buses in Tel Aviv. themselves on opposite sides regarding Why should I take a chance? We’re deal- the legality of a law forbidding Arabs of ing with an enemy state, no matter how the Palestinian Authority from becoming you look at it. After Pearl Harbor, when Israeli citizens merely for having married the U.S. entered the war against Japan, I Israelis. Barak wrote the minority opin- don’t remember hearing that 10,000 ion rejecting the law, claiming it violated Japanese were allowed to marry basic civil rights, while Heshin authored Americans and come to America. It’s the majority opinion in favor of it. inconceivable. If someone comes in and Barak “is willing to have 30 or 50 cooperates with the terrorists and kills 4- people blow up in suicide attacks, as 5 Jews or Arabs, Israeli citizens, I don’t long as there are civil rights,” Heshin agree. Why do I have to? There is no told Haaretz. country in the world that has a constitu- After he saw the headline in print, tional right to bring a foreigner in to the Heshin expressed remorse. Speaking country, and all the more so an enemy.” with Army Radio, Heshin said, “I haven’t Atty. Yitzchak Fuchs, one of the lead- changed my mind, but the publication in ers of the judicial battle against the the press caused me great sorrow… It Disengagement, said, “The cat is now would have been better had these things out of the bag. Heshin’s resignation not been said. I am someone who quick- allowed him to say what he wants, and ly gets upset, and I am sorry about the his remarks express the sentiments of remarks that were publicized.” the public that is sick of Barak using his Heshin explained that the remarks position to promote his radical leftist were taken out of context: “I was positions, at the expense of terrorist vic- speaking like I was speaking with a tims. How sad it is that a man like Barak, friend who knows that you don’t really a genius who could have been a great mean it. A friend understands that you Torah giant, served as the defender of are angry at the idea, not at the man, Israel’s enemies.” (Arutz Sheva) ❖

74 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES Gaza last week, prompting Abbas to since Hamas-Fatah violence erupted Jordanian Citizen Killed order police onto the streets too. Within earlier this month. a barely day, the two groups had clashed. The confrontations were triggered, Apparent assassination attempts on two in part, by Hamas’ decision to deploy In Gaza Strip Gun Battles top Abbas commanders over the weekend, its own 3,000-strong security force, in which one of the intended targets was parallel to the Fatah-dominated police BY ARNON REGULAR the streets came under fire and sought badly wounded, have stoked worries of fur- and security services. cover in the abandoned building, from ther internal violence, although Hamas Tempers were also running high after May 22—A Jordanian citizen was where they fired back. A Palestinian has denied any responsibility. two assassination attempts against killed today and three other people police cruiser trying to approach the security chiefs loyal to Palestinian were wounded, as a new Hamas-led area came under fire, the witnesses said. Ambush In Khan Yunis Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas security force exchanged heavy fire The fighting, which erupted in an The overnight battle between in recent days. with gunmen near the Palestinian par- area between the Palestinian parliament Hamas and Fatah gunmen erupted Palestinian security forces said liament building in Gaza, in a fresh and police headquarters, involved Fatah near the southern Gaza town of Khan Sunday they had foiled an attempt to outbreak of internal violence. activists, Hamas activists, members of Yunis before dawn. Fatah said two of kill a top commander loyal to Abbas. A Hospital officials identified the man the Palestinian security forces and mem- its fighters were ambushed in their car, bomb weighing 70 kg (154 lbs) was as Jordanian citizen Khaled Radaida, 45, bers of the new Hamas security unit. while Hamas said the firefight was found and defused outside the Gaza and said he was the driver of Jordan’s The Hamas gunmen, holed up in an triggered by Fatah’s attempt to kidnap Strip home of Rashid Abu Shbak. ambassador in Gaza. The death brings to abandoned building during the battle, a Hamas member. A second Fatah gun- On Saturday, Tareq Abu Rajab, head eight the number of Palestinians killed fired a rocket-propelled grenade and man was wounded. of General Intelligence in Gaza, was in internal fighting this month. threw two hand grenades at the police, Today’s pre-dawn death brought to badly wounded by an explosion in Gaza Witnesses said Radaida was driving witnesses said. seven the number of Palestinian gun- that Abbas called an attempted assassi- when he was hit. The ambassador, Tensions between Hamas and Fatah men killed in internal strife in Gaza nation. An aide was killed. (Haaretz) ❖ Yehiya Qarallah, was not in the car at have threatened to explode over a sec- the time. Under police escort, the ond assassination attempt against a ambassador was taken to the morgue Fatah-aligned Gaza security chief in as of Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital and iden- many days. The new fighting under- tified Radaida. The diplomat sobbed as scored fears that the spate of internal he emerged from the morgue. clashes could lead to civil war. The Hamas and Palestinian security forces flare-up followed an overnight incident gave conflicting accounts of how the in which a Palestinian gunman was fighting started. Security officials said killed fighting between rival militias. the incident began when members of a Witnesses said members of the new new Hamas militia stopped a car carrying force set up by the ruling militant Islamic members of the Preventive Security group returned fire as they took cover Service, a branch loyal to Palestinian inside a building near parliament after Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas. coming under attack from unknown gun- Preventive Security officials said men. Bystanders fled the streets. Hamas militiamen fired at the car. Hamas, which took power in March Earlier, witnesses had said the incident after winning January elections, began when Hamas gunmen patrolling deployed its new 3,000-strong force in

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 75 me in a space where everything I saw was a Divine message. But was it the lack of physical suste- Sleep, At A Time Like This?! nance that caused me to be out of touch with reality, or just the opposite? BY AYELET had beaten my chest just a little too I carefully examined it. The sign really Perhaps my participation in the hard, but something told me that said, “Cod Cakes.” required fast was just the platform I After one very powerful Yom Kippur, I maybe I was delirious. Why on earth I laughed out loud as I walked on (it needed, availing me the opportunity to was walking home to break my fast, would a fish store have a sign in the didn’t matter at that point, did it?), and be in touch with a higher reality. when I glanced in a fish store window and I saw the sign. It said, “G-d Cares.” “Wow,” I thought, with warmth in my heart, “even the people in a New York The tradition on Shavuos is to stay up all night City fish store know that G-d cares!” I walked on with a goofy grin on my face, smiling at people as they passed by. This and learn Torah, and then, in the morning, appeared to be a wonderful way to scare off the mightiest of New Yorkers, who were crossing the street to avoid me. But we internalize the spiritual receiving of the Torah, I didn’t mind—all I knew was, G-d cares! I stopped dead in my tracks as I real- and eat cheesecake. ized that something seemed a little off. (And no, it wasn’t the scent of New Jersey, wafting through the Holland Tunnel.) window that says “G-d cares”?! I thought how funny it was that some- Rather than accounting my experi- Maybe it was the hunger, or the fer- Retracing my steps, I returned to times we just see what we want to see. ence to the after-effects of a long peri- vor with which I had prayed all day the fish store and took another look at My euphoric state of a spiritual high od of food deprivation, I would like to long in the synagogue, or perhaps I the sign in the window. Only this time from the Yom Kippur sanctity had put think that seeing the Divine message is possible everywhere in life, in the right place and at the right time. And Judaism gives me the formula to find it. On Shavuos, we celebrate the festi- val which happens after counting the omer for seven weeks starting on Passover. The tradition on Shavuos is to stay up all night and learn Torah, and then, in the morning, we internalize the spiritual receiving of the Torah, and eat cheesecake. (I don’t know exactly why we do this, but I certainly have an easier time doing anything while eating cheesecake.) The idea behind staying up all night is that when the Jews actually received the Torah, they were so excited about their new acquisition that it was beyond their imagination to actually get any sleep. So they busied themselves with learning all night long, in anticipation of the final moment. While I might rationalize that it would be easier to celebrate a holiday on a full stomach—or a full night’s sleep—perhaps it is exactly the opposite. The Jewish calendar is full of cycli- cal occurrences which radiate energy within each time period. It’s impossible to get the spiritual energy of Shabbos on a Wednesday, or the freedom from Passover from eating matzah in July. Shavuos is the only Jewish holiday that was instituted with no specific date. It was marked as the end of the counting of the omer, seven weeks from Passover. We now know the exact date because of the count. But it’s the time that makes all the difference. Shavuos comes out at a time in which the spiritual energy is infused with the characteristic of “openness” for the receiving of the Torah. By staying up and harnessing the power of this very special night, the energy can open our hearts to receive the Torah, our minds to contemplate the effects it will have on our lives, and our eyes to the miracles and wonders that are available. And all this can only happen at this auspicious time. I’m waiting to find out what may be the Divine message I can see on Shavuos, and I won’t attribute it to lack of sleep, but the availability of openness of the moment. ❖ 76 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES one leg amputated at the knee. as the Sun Sentinel and the Miami wristbands imprinted with the words An American teenager, a healthy, Herald, and an AP story picked up by “Pray for Daniel.” The synagogue also athletic boy from sunny Florida, is the Los Angeles Times (but by none of set up a fund through its website to Daniel’s transformed in a split second into a AP’s other major subscribers), the rest help assist the family with the extraor- shattered vessel, a soul hovering of the mainstream American media has dinary expenses it is suddenly facing. between life and death. More and ignored the continuing and profoundly Daniel’s parents, Sheryl (Sarah) and more parts of his body, instead of pro- moving story of Daniel Wultz. Tuly, changed Daniel’s Hebrew name to Story viding him with mobility and life sup- Is it because his parents, so focused Chaim Meir Naftali. Following Jewish port, turn against him, and are pared on praying for their broken son, will custom, the word for life was added to BY LORI LOWENTHAL away in an effort to save his life. not share his story with the media? the beginning of his name in an effort to MARCUS Islamic Jihad claimed credit for the That is true, but there is quite a bit of guard him from further danger. April 17 bombing. One of the terror information available about Daniel; How can it be that an American Editor’s Note: Daniel Wultz passed group’s leaders expressed sorrow that information that fleshes out the cold Jewish teenager whose survival of a away on May 14, 2006—shortly after Daniel had not been killed, according anonymity of just a name and home- terrorist bombing has been called a this article was written. May his memo- to WorldNetDaily, one of the few town, information that one would miracle is something most American ry be for a blessing. media sources to cover the story. think would draw the interest of caring media sources consider inconsequen- It is a perverse human quality, but we Another Arab terrorist group seeking Americans; information that is likely to tial? Why was his story not newswor- are drawn to news stories about human to share credit for the bombing interest news consumers, if only the thy—because Daniel Wultz was a tragedies. Some characteristics of such extolled the double treat of having news sources would provide it. teenager, an American, and an stories intensify the level of our interest: almost murdered an American and a Daniel Wultz had been a student of amputee, or because he was a Jewish descriptions or pictures of gore or disfig- Zionist. Islamic Jihad threatened the David Posnack Hebrew Day Zionist? Or was it because the media urement; pictures of grieving loved Americans and Jews everywhere, say- School in Plantation, Florida since ele- thinks we are only interested in the ones; and some form of personal con- ing they are all legitimate targets. mentary school. One of Daniel’s pas- personal lives of homicide bombers nection—no matter how indirect—to What American could hear this story sions was playing basketball; he played and their families? And whose fault is those at the center of the tragedies. The and not become riveted, eager for competitively at his local YMCA. that? (Arutz Sheva) ❖ adage “if it bleeds it leads” condenses updates, eager to cheer his progress or The Wultz family synagogue, Lori Lowenthal Marcus is a writer, a lawyer and this notion to a pithy directive. despair at any further impediments? But Chabad Lubavitch of Weston, Florida, the President of the Zionist Organization of Yet, the American media has failed to other than the Florida newspapers, such distributed blue and white rubber America, Greater Philadelphia District. cover a story containing every item on the sure-to-interest-newsreaders’ check- list. I invite you to ponder why that is. An Arab Palestinian homicide bomber detonated himself at a falafel stand in Israel on April 17, during Passover. The murderer killed nine innocent people and wounded dozens. A broad range of news sources, including USA Today, the New York Times, the Washington Post, CBS, ABC, CNN, and the Philadelphia Inquirer, gave personal background information about the bomber. We learned that he was an Al-Quds University drop-out and, incredibly, that he had been a social worker. In his going-away video, the murderer claimed he sought martyr- dom on behalf of imprisoned Arab Palestinians. Satisfying its compulsion to draw par- allels between Israeli and Arab Palestinian suffering, at least one newspaper—the Philadelphia Inquirer— placed on page one of its April 18 edition a photograph of an unnamed Israeli grieving over the body of an Israeli victim. Placed directly below that is a photograph of the murderer’s mother wistfully holding two photographs—in one she is holding a rifle of her now-dead son. Juxtaposing these photographs suggests that there are victims on both sides of the conflict in the Middle East: Arab mothers grieve for their dead sons and young Israeli men grieve for dead Israelis. I find this moral equivalence repulsive. But let’s take one more step. If bleeders are leaders, and some kind of personal connection with the bleeders increases consumers’ interest in a news story, then there is a follow-up story from the April 17 bombing that should have been all over the American media. Daniel Wultz was a 16-year-old Florida teen who accompanied his father to Israel to visit relatives during Passover. On April 17, Daniel and his father were eating in one of the few kosher shawarma restaurants in Tel Aviv. Daniel was almost killed by the homicide bombing. In a coma for two weeks, Daniel’s spleen and one of his kidneys had to be removed. Then, this basketball-loving teenager had to have 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 77 A Five Towns Simcha Photo By Jeff Neckenoff

Bat Mitzvah celebration of Esther Aiga Sarah Rimler of Kew Gardens Hills took place at Fresh Meadows Jewish Center; entertainment by Azamra DJ. Mazal Tov to parents Debbie and Berish and brothers Ely, Menachem, Simcha, and Meir. Miss Rimler attends Bnos Malka Academy in Queens.

78 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 79 grant Yisrael Beiteinu party joined the government, there would be several; For Olmert, Snub Of Russians and if not, Marina Solodkin, who was sixth on Kadima’s Knesset slate, was sure to be included in the party’s min- Could Come Back To Haunt Him isterial lineup. But in the end none of this materi- alized: The coalition talks with BY LESLIE SUSSER lost the Russian vote forever. More tant policy initiative: his plan to with- Lieberman collapsed, and Olmert immediately, Kadima’s Russian- draw from large chunks of the West failed to appoint Solodkin. By failing to include a single speaking Knesset members are Bank. And he might be forced to go for “There are no more portfolios,” Russian immigrant in his cabinet, threatening to defy party discipline in early elections that he could lose. Olmert reportedly told Solodkin the Ehud Olmert has made a major blun- day appointments were made. der that could shorten his term in According to Solodkin, this was not office, undermine his Kadima party just a personal slight. The entire and hurt his plans for separation Russian community, she says, feels from the Palestinians, senior Israeli Since 1992, the Russian vote has betrayed, insulted and humiliated. pundits say. It’s as if Kadima “slammed the door” It was the first time since 1995 that been crucial in determining the on “hundreds of thousands of Russian an Israeli prime minister has formed a immigrants looking for a political government without a representative home,” she told an interviewer from from the huge immigrant community outcome of Israeli elections. the Ma’ariv newspaper. of more than 1 million. It was a mis- Rina Greenberg, acting mayor of take Ariel Sharon would never have Carmiel and one of Kadima’s unsuccess- made, pundits say. key Knesset votes. During the coalition negotiations, it ful Russian immigrant candidates, was Outraged members of the Russian The upshot could be that Olmert seemed certain that there would be at even blunter: She told Olmert’s people community speak of a sense of will have difficulty mustering a parlia- least one Russian immigrant minister. they were “committing political suicide.” betrayal, and say Kadima may have mentary majority for his most impor- If Avigdor Lieberman’s mainly immi- “In two years,” she declared, “there won’t be a single Russian-speaker left in the party.” Since 1992, the Russian vote has been crucial in determining the outcome of Israeli elections. The Russians have invariably voted for the winner— Yitzhak Rabin in 1992, Benjamin Netanyahu in 1996, Ehud Barak in 1999 and Sharon in 2001 and 2003. They also have shown a readiness to defect when they feel let down or slighted: by Labor in 1996, Netanyahu in 1999 and Barak in 2001. Barak, for example, promised a “civil revolution” to solve immigrant citizenship, marriage and burial problems, but quickly shelved it to form a coalition with the fervently Orthodox Shas Party. “Ehud the first [a refer- ence to Barak] took nearly two years to betray us,” the Russians say; “Ehud the second [meaning Olmert] only two days.” The Russian vote accounts for 18 to 20 seats in the 120-member Knesset. In the March 28 election, the Russians gave Olmert four or five seats: Without them, Solodkin maintains, he would not have beaten Labor’s Amir Peretz, who got hardly any Russian support. To win Russian votes, Kadima included six immigrants on its slate and had Solodkin at No. 6, high enough to signal a guaranteed ministerial post. “The feeling in the Russian street is that they used us and then discarded us,” Solodkin said. Most of the Russian vote went to Lieberman, who got nine or ten Russian seats. However, Lieberman’s inflammatory positions on Arab issues—he favors redrawing the bor- ders of the state to exclude most Israeli Arabs, and recently hinted that Arab Knesset members who maintain ties with Israel’s enemies should be executed—meant that Olmert would have been harshly crit- icized had he included Lieberman in the coalition. Still, some people in Olmert’s camp have been implying that Solodkin, who was in charge of getting out the Russian vote, could have done better. At the start of the campaign, 80 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES Kadima’s position, with Sharon at the ship; and Solodkin says she wants to helm, was much stronger. Polls form a forum of Russian Knesset showed Kadima winning eight members from all parties. Russian immigrant seats, ahead of More significantly, Solodkin and Yisrael Beiteinu with five. Indeed, Michael Nudelman, another Russian Sharon, who was extremely popular immigrant legislator, reportedly are among immigrants, was planning a talking to Lieberman about possible strategic partnership with them simi- future cooperation. lar to the one Menachem Begin Should they decide to vote against enjoyed as Likud leader from the late Olmert’s withdrawal, and recruit 1950s with Sephardi immigrants from other non-immigrant Knesset mem- North Africa. bers in the coalition who have doubts The result of Russian immigrant about the plan, the consequences for pique could be the formation of new Olmert could be disastrous. The loss sectarian parties primarily representing of Kadima votes would make him immigrant interests. If they lose the dependent on Israeli Arab parties, Russian vote, Olmert and Kadima could and could trigger an erosion of public be in real trouble next time around. and Knesset support for the plan. Lieberman could be a major bene- That could force an election that ficiary. His American spin doctor, Olmert might not win without immi- Arthur Finkelstein, is working on a grant votes. strategy designed to elevate Why did Olmert get himself into Lieberman to the premiership, based this vulnerable position—arrogance? on taking ultra-hawkish positions to Shortsightedness? Inexperience at the capture the leadership of the Israeli highest level? Confidence that success right and winning over immigrants by in dealing with immigrant problems cultivating the perception that the will turn things around? Israeli establishment doesn’t want As far as the Russian immigrants are them as equals. concerned, it doesn’t really matter. Olmert’s rejection of Lieberman as a They’re determined to teach the prime coalition partner and his failure to give minister a lesson he won’t forget. (JTA) ❖ Solodkin a ministerial position played into Lieberman’s hands, pundits say. Leslie Susser is JTA’s diplomatic correspondent In the meantime, Russian anger at in Jerusalem. Also the diplomatic correspondent for the Jerusalem Report, he has covered the Kadima knows no bounds. Party peace process and Israeli domestic politics since activists are threatening to return their the early 1990s. Before that he was head of English News at Israel Radio and night editor at membership cards en masse; immi- the Jerusalem Post. He is the author of the grants who won Knesset seats on the recent Israel chapters in the Middle East Kadima slate are talking about build- Contemporary Survey and the Encyclopedia Britannica Yearbook, and co-author of Yitzhak ing a power base in the party that will Rabin: Soldier of Peace. He has a Ph.D. in be able to exert leverage on the leader- modern history from Oxford University.

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 81 82 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 83 SERVICES SERVICES PROVIDED PROVIDED

Simchas Naava Highly educated tutor available Share your simcha flowers! Be for tutoring in several subjects. I have m’sameach other simchas! Donate an M.Ed from Loyola University in your fresh flower arrangements! We Chicago and was ABD on my Ph.D. will match your simcha date with in Educational Administration at the simchas following yours or deliver University of California, Riverside. I them to nursing home residents. To am available for tutoring in U.S. donate or obtain flower arrangements, History, Government, Psychology and call 516-239-6066. research methodology (including term In memory of a special friend, papers, etc.) Please call me at Naava Wassner Katlowitz 516-792-6248 or e-mail at Plumbing and Heating: Sundial [email protected] I will be Plumbing. Boilers/water heaters available over the summer. serviced and installed. All leaks fixed. Personal Rebbe/Chavrusa Bathrooms, kitchens, basements. No *Experienced rabbi/teacher, Yadin- job too big or small. 718-252-1234. Yadin (Torah Vodaath), Scientific, New Table and Chair Gemach B.A., M.S. (Y.U.), will teach/learn any 740 Mador Ct. Far Rockaway. texts/topics you choose. Call 718-471-0368. Call 718-471-9089.

Too Much to Type? Too Much to Do? College Reports, Simcha Lists, LOST & FOUND Secretarial Support. Call Gold Star Typing Service for help. Reasonable rates. Call 718-471-9712. A multi-strand pearl bracelet was Study with Steve Tutoring/ found on Sunday, May 28, 2006, on Training. High School & Elem. Central Ave. across the street from Math, Math Regents, Computers. Carvel and outside Upper Class Hats. Call 516-371-5522. If you have any information regarding the owner of this lost item, please Master Teacher Tutors call 718-544-4860. Limudei Kodesh/Secular Subjects Specialize grades 1-8. Adults; Boys; Girls. Call 718-868-3968. HELP Carpets! Carpets! Carpets! WANTED Located in the Five Towns Residential/Commercial. Mohawk, Shaw, Beaulieu. Come to our show- Teachers – Excellent Opportunities - room or we’ll bring our showroom to Junior High School in Far Rockaway you. Wholesale prices guaranteed. has available vacancies in the General $9-$39. Call 917-349-9471 or Studies Department, grades 6-8, in 516-216-4007 Math, Language Arts, and E2K Complete Construction Science for the 2006/2007 school All home renovations (interior as well year. Qualified and interested appli- as exterior). Brooklyn/Five Towns cants are invited to fax resumes to Poor man’s prices…rich man’s work. TAG, attention Mrs. Cecile Wieder, at Call 917-349-9471. 718-868-4612. Local yeshiva seeks organized Experienced Tutor available for administrative assistant; excellent this summer. Give your child the people and word processing skills, opportunity to work with a highly correspondence, phones, project/data- skilled Rebbe/teacher who will break base management. Part-time to start, down even the hardest subjects so excellent salary. Contact Yosef that they’re easy to understand. 516-374-7070. Please call 718-778-9137.

Electrician—Recessed lighting, ceil- ing fans, security lighting, all electri- cal repairs/installations. Telephone lines. Switches and outlets installed or replaced. Guaranteed. Shomer Shabbos. Call Robert Schwartz 718-327-9320.

Amy’s Craft Kits To Go. I do the work. You have the fun! Great for parties, gifts, vacations. Camp packages available. Summer craft classes. Call 516-489-1913.

84 June 1, 2006 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES HELP HELP REAL ESTATE REAL ESTATE WANTED WANTED FOR SALE FOR SALE

Bookkeeper Assistant P/T. Seeking enthusiastic, lively Walk To All from this beautiful JR4 5 TOWN HOMES Queens Special Ed pre-school. college student to shadow 4-year- converted to a small 2nd BR/Office Immed opening. Computer literate. old boy in typically developing pre- 516-569-5710 or DR. New Kitchen w/Pergo Flrs. Proficiency in Excel a must. school. Shadow will facilitate social Fax resume to Ann: 718-205-0178 interactions with peers. Five mornings Updated Bath. Spacious Master BR NORTH WOODMERE: or e-mail: [email protected] a week 9:30-12:30. Please call w/Custom Wall to Wall Closets. Open House: 12-2 516-376-6244 and leave message. Yeshiva in the Far Rockaway/Five Parking. Storage Bin. Reduced to 740 Eagle Drive $679K Towns area seeks an experienced Part time Great Neck–Seeking $229K! Owner Motivated and Hi Ranch, 4+Br, 2.5 Bth, Over Large kindergarten Morah for September experienced counselor who can be Negotiable! Call Holly at Prudential Property. 2006. Please call 516-295-0815. firm and provide structure for young Douglas Elliman 516-456-2516. adult female who lives in Great Neck. LAWRNCE: NU Construc’n, 6Br, Secretarial Position Available 5Bth, Lg. prop, Walk all, With all Hours: from 4:45 p.m. weekdays. Cedarhurst - Priced to Sell ! Secretary is responsible to maintain Please call Annie at Ohel Bais Ezra at goodies. Plans can be seen in office. 3BR, 2.5 bath, LR, DR, EIK. smooth running of the office as well 718-686-3484. as act as executive assistant to execu- Low $5’s. 550 Arlington Rd. CEDRHRST: NU constrc’n, C/H Teachers - Preschool Morahs and tives. Responsibilities include: Owner 516-524-3059. Col. 7Br, 4.5Bths, Lg. EIK, Prime assts. for innovative, child-centered Receptionist, meet and greet guests, loc…$1,250K. yeshiva preschool for 2006-2007 House for sale in Israel in Ramat travel booking, filing, internet school year. Excellent salary, fax to CEDRHRST: NU Renovt’d S/H, Beis Shemesh Aleph — research, and oversee day to day run- 212-874-5706 or e-mail 5Br, 3Bths, 2 dens, LR w/fpl, full ning of office. Candidates should be [email protected] 8 bedrooms, 6 bathrooms, large EIK, bsmt, quiet street...$885K. well-versed in MS Office (specifically LR, DR, den, office, playroom, game- Office Position/Admin Assistant CEDRHRST: 2Fam, 3Br/3Br, 2Fpl, Word, Excel & Outlook), have a pleas- room, central air/heat, 3 porches, ant phone manner, be Internet savvy, Manufacturer/Importer in Deck. All Nu, Great location, Oceanside. Shomer Shabbos. Must walking distance to all shuls. $599K possess outstanding organizational Full bsmt...Bring Offers. have good computer skills, including Call Yossi 516-557-3816. and verbal communication skills, and Excel and Word. Accounting software CEDRHRST: LgLr, Dr, EIK, Den, have the ability to work in a team experience a plus. Basic Accounting/ Far Rockaway—Legal two family 5Br, 3bth, Skilits, Cabana, Lg prop., environment. Please fax resume to Bookkeeping preferred. Full Time. four bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, DR LR, IGPool…$699K. 516-295-7611 or e-mail Please submit resume and salary EIK, large deck, yard, garage, ground [email protected]. history to: Fax–516-977-3319 N. WDMR: HiRanch, 4br, 2.5bth, E-mail–[email protected] floor rental, priced to sell $659K nu kit, deck, over lg prop. $679K Teachers – General Studies negotiable Call 718-471-7153. All boys Queens Yeshiva Pre-1A and Busy Five Towns Medical Office N.WDMR: NU 2 Mkt, NU constrc’n, lower elementary grades for seeks part time receptionist. Best location - Far Rockaway/ C\H col 4Br, 3Bth, lg. granit kit, Full bsmt, SD14…$929K. September 2006. M-Th.12:00-4:00 Call 516-569-6996 or fax resume West Lawrence - $715K 4+1 bedroom, 3 full baths, Beautiful PM, Fri. 10:30-1:00 PM. Excellent to 516-791-7755. HWLT: MIC, 3+Br, 2.5Bth, full fin. basement, C/A, deck. opportunity for dynamic and creative bsmt, Lg Prop. Priced to Call 917-642-3179. educators who would like to join a Sell...$589K. Your Real Estate, New to market For sale by owner great team in a premier school set- HWLT: Lg. C/H, Col. 4Br, 3Bth, —Lawrence. 4 BR, 3.5 BTHs, LR ting. Must be certified and experi- SD14, Lr, FDR, EIK, Den, Full bsmt, with fireplace, FDR, EIK, den, full enced. Reply by fax or mail to: Service, All Systems, CAC, quiet tree-lined finished basement with two bedrooms Principal Yeshiva Tifereth Moshe street...$759K. and full bath $899K. 113-06 Abingdon Road or Help Wanted Ad Call 516-554-1580. Kew Gardens, NY 11415. 5 TOWN HOMES Fax: 718-441-3962. Here Every Thursday Ramat Beit Shemesh/Modiin bar- 516-569-5710 gain! Exclusive preconstuction spa- Part-Time to Full-Time Office cious cottage with garden start. 2 Co-ops — Lawrence — Help – looking to work 25-30 hours 50,000 readers look forward to $310K. 4 rms apt start $175K. Immaculate Junior 4 converted per week, flexible hours, computer what’s happening in the Lemkin Realty 201-645-4083 experience, photography interest, second bedroom, fully renovated, new www.lemkinrealty.com. graphic/Photoshop experience 5 Towns by reading kitchen appls with double sink and desired. Call Ira at 516-791-7230. Lawrence Co-op For Sale—2 Large kosher dw, indoor parking, walk to all. The 5 Towns Jewish Times. Bedrooms, 2 Full Modern Baths, Five Towns Yeshiva looking for Cedarhurst — Beautiful two bed- Large Modern Kitchen with Dinette, Full time Academic Secretary rooms/two full baths, w/d, separate Deadline is Monday at 5:00 p.m. Many Extras. Walk to Shuls, with strong computer background dining room, lots of closet space. Shopping, LIRR. $375K. Weisman Realty 347-752-0948. including Microsoft Office, Davka 1 Week...... $35 Contact Ben 917-803-3029. Writer, and DDC. Must be able to multi-task. Fax resume 2 Weeks ...... $60 LAWRNCE CO-OP: NU 2 Mkt, 1st 516-374-9376. Flr, 3Br, 2Bth, Fdr, Lr, Patio, W/D, lo Classified Ads are 4 Weeks ...... $100 maint $439K. 5 TOWN HOMES Continued on the Next Page. 516-569-5710.

Weekly Ads of up to 25 words

Call: 516-569-0502 Fax: 516-977-0608 Or E-mail ads to: [email protected] Include payment info.

5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES June 1, 2006 85 CLASSIFIED ADS REAL ESTATE REAL ESTATE REAL ESTATE Continued from Page 85 FOR RENT FOR RENT FOR RENT REAL ESTATE FOR SALE Far Rockaway – Lg. Hse Rental: House For Rent Brooklyn Bayswater For Rent - 3 Large 4br, 2bth, bsmt., Hi ceil’g, NU bths, Madison Area—Immaculate 3 bed- Bedrooms, 2 Full Baths, Large EIK W\D. Call 516-322-3555. room duplex, Large LR, DR, EIK. with d/w, with large LR/Dining Room Condominium For Sale – Far Move-in condition!! Front/back porch- Area. Washer/Dryer. MIC. Excellent Rockaway, Reads Lane property 5 TOWN HOMES es. Hardwood floors. 718-645-0214. block. Stunning View of Bay. Ground floor of a two unit dwelling, Ask $1,250. Call 718-471-1282. 516-569-5710 Far Rockaway — Studio & one bed- 3 1/2 bedrooms, eat-in-kitchen, living room apts available in beautiful eleva- Far Rockaway – 2br, semi-bsmt., room/dining room, 2 bathrooms, cen- tor bldg (1st floor). Great location, washer/dryer, carpet, large EIK all CED: Col. Hse: 3br, 2.5bth, tral air, spacious yard, low taxes and Neilson & Cornaga. Reasonable rents new, Beach 12 Street/Lanett Ave., Fin. Bsmt…$2,500. maintenance, near schools and shuls. include heat & hot water. Rent pvt. house, light & airy, quiet block, easy parking. $1,150. Please call 917-613-1399. Ground floor studio apartment Stabilized bldg. Call 718-377-0708 Call 718-539-4472. for rent in Lawrence with drive- leave message. Beautiful 6 bedroom home, fully way. All new. $800 including utilities Large Studio Apt. for rent in renovated, full basement w/separate Far Rockaway - Apt for Rent except electric. Also, looking for West Hempstead. Near the LIRR, roommate for 3 bedroom apartment entrance, huge property, heart of 3 bedrooms, 1 1/2 baths 1st floor of Shuls, and Shopping. Recently reno- above studio apartment. $600. Bayswater. Call Weisman Realty 2 family home Security system, CAC vated. Only $650/Month incl. Call 718-810-0001. Group 347-752-0948. w/d hookup. Great Location. Available Utilities. Call 516-750-0531, Lawrence—2 Br, all nu apt., own Sept. 2006 Call 516-967-1967. leave message. REAL ESTATE heat. Call 917-757-9351 FOR RENT Cedarhurst—Office For Rent 1000sf, all services, grt location, rea- Deadline for Classified Advertising sonable rent. Call 516-322-3555 Office for rent – located on Rockville Center—Retail/Office in the Next Issue is Monday, June 5 Central Avenue. Entire second floor. 5000sf, all new, hi traffic, grt for Excellent condition. Available June financial or furniture. Will divide. at 5:00 P.M. Call 516-569-0502 first. Call 718-851-1688. Call 516-322-3555.

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