The Secular Issue
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The Debate Over Mixed Seating in the American Synagogue
Jack Wertheimer (ed.) The American Synagogue: A Sanctuary Transformed. New York: Cambridge 13 University Press, 1987 The Debate over Mixed Seating in the American Synagogue JONATHAN D. SARNA "Pues have never yet found an historian," John M. Neale com plained, when he undertook to survey the subject of church seating for the Cambridge Camden Society in 1842. 1 To a large extent, the same situation prevails today in connection with "pues" in the American syn agogue. Although it is common knowledge that American synagogue seating patterns have changed greatly over time - sometimes following acrimonious, even violent disputes - the subject as a whole remains unstudied, seemingly too arcane for historians to bother with. 2 Seating patterns, however, actually reflect down-to-earth social realities, and are richly deserving of study. Behind wearisome debates over how sanctuary seats should be arranged and allocated lie fundamental disagreements over the kinds of social and religious values that the synagogue should project and the relationship between the synagogue and the larger society that surrounds it. As we shall see, where people sit reveals much about what they believe. The necessarily limited study of seating patterns that follows focuses only on the most important and controversial seating innovation in the American synagogue: mixed (family) seating. Other innovations - seats that no longer face east, 3 pulpits moved from center to front, 4 free (un assigned) seating, closed-off pew ends, and the like - require separate treatment. As we shall see, mixed seating is a ramified and multifaceted issue that clearly reflects the impact of American values on synagogue life, for it pits family unity, sexual equality, and modernity against the accepted Jewish legal (halachic) practice of sexual separatiop in prayer. -
The Secular Music of the Yemenite Jews As an Expression of Cultural Demarcation Between the Sexes
JASO 27/2 (1996): 113-135 THE SECULAR MUSIC OF THE YEMENITE JEWS AS AN EXPRESSION OF CULTURAL DEMARCATION BETWEEN THE SEXES MARILYN HERMAN JEWISH men and women in Yemen are portrayed in the sociological and anthropo logical literature as having lived in separate conceptual and spatial worlds. As a result, two very separate bodies of song existed, one pertaining to men and the other to women. In this paper, I show how the culturally defined demarcation be tween the sexes is reflected and epitomized in the music of the Jews who lived in Yemen. i The key to this separation lies in the fact that women were banned from the synagogue altogether. This exclusion is not prescribed by Jewish law, and there is no precedent for it in the Bible or other Jewish literature or communities. The reason given for women being banned from the synagogue in Yemen was the fear that they might be menstruating. The condition of menstruation is, in Jewish law, This paper is based on my MA thesis (Herman 1985), which was written under the supervision and with the moral and academic support of Dr P. T. W. Baxter of Manchester University. My brother Geoffrey Herman willingly and painstakingly translated Hebrew articles into English for my benefit while I was writing this thesis. I. The period mainly referred to is the fifty years or so preceding 'Operation Magic Carpet', a series of airlifts between 1949 and 1950 in which the majority of Yemenite Jews were taken to Israel. 114 Marilyn Herman seen as ritually impure. -
Moses Hayim Luzzatto's Quest for Providence
City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works All Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects 10-2014 'Like Iron to a Magnet': Moses Hayim Luzzatto's Quest for Providence David Sclar Graduate Center, City University of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/380 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] “Like Iron to a Magnet”: Moses Hayim Luzzatto’s Quest for Providence By David Sclar A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty in History in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy The City University of New York 2014 © 2014 David Sclar All Rights Reserved This Manuscript has been read and accepted by the Graduate Faculty in History in satisfaction of the Dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Prof. Jane S. Gerber _______________ ____________________________________ Date Chair of the Examining Committee Prof. Helena Rosenblatt _______________ ____________________________________ Date Executive Officer Prof. Francesca Bregoli _______________________________________ Prof. Elisheva Carlebach ________________________________________ Prof. Robert Seltzer ________________________________________ Prof. David Sorkin ________________________________________ Supervisory Committee iii Abstract “Like Iron to a Magnet”: Moses Hayim Luzzatto’s Quest for Providence by David Sclar Advisor: Prof. Jane S. Gerber This dissertation is a biographical study of Moses Hayim Luzzatto (1707–1746 or 1747). It presents the social and religious context in which Luzzatto was variously celebrated as the leader of a kabbalistic-messianic confraternity in Padua, condemned as a deviant threat by rabbis in Venice and central and eastern Europe, and accepted by the Portuguese Jewish community after relocating to Amsterdam. -
A Fresh Perspective on the History of Hasidic Judaism
eSharp Issue 20: New Horizons A Fresh Perspective on the History of Hasidic Judaism Eva van Loenen (University of Southampton) Introduction In this article, I shall examine the history of Hasidic Judaism, a mystical,1 ultra-orthodox2 branch of Judaism, which values joyfully worshipping God’s presence in nature as highly as the strict observance of the laws of Torah3 and Talmud.4 In spite of being understudied, the history of Hasidic Judaism has divided historians until today. Indeed, Hasidic Jewish history is not one monolithic, clear-cut, straightforward chronicle. Rather, each scholar has created his own narrative and each one is as different as its author. While a brief introduction such as this cannot enter into all the myriad divergences and similarities between these stories, what I will attempt to do here is to incorporate and compare an array of different views in order to summarise the history of Hasidism and provide a more objective analysis, which has not yet been undertaken. Furthermore, my historical introduction in Hasidic Judaism will exemplify how mystical branches of mainstream religions might develop and shed light on an under-researched division of Judaism. The main focus of 1 Mystical movements strive for a personal experience of God or of his presence and values intuitive, spiritual insight or revelationary knowledge. The knowledge gained is generally ‘esoteric’ (‘within’ or hidden), leading to the term ‘esotericism’ as opposed to exoteric, based on the external reality which can be attested by anyone. 2 Ultra-orthodox Jews adhere most strictly to Jewish law as the holy word of God, delivered perfectly and completely to Moses on Mount Sinai. -
German Jews in the United States: a Guide to Archival Collections
GERMAN HISTORICAL INSTITUTE,WASHINGTON,DC REFERENCE GUIDE 24 GERMAN JEWS IN THE UNITED STATES: AGUIDE TO ARCHIVAL COLLECTIONS Contents INTRODUCTION &ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 1 ABOUT THE EDITOR 6 ARCHIVAL COLLECTIONS (arranged alphabetically by state and then city) ALABAMA Montgomery 1. Alabama Department of Archives and History ................................ 7 ARIZONA Phoenix 2. Arizona Jewish Historical Society ........................................................ 8 ARKANSAS Little Rock 3. Arkansas History Commission and State Archives .......................... 9 CALIFORNIA Berkeley 4. University of California, Berkeley: Bancroft Library, Archives .................................................................................................. 10 5. Judah L. Mages Museum: Western Jewish History Center ........... 14 Beverly Hills 6. Acad. of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences: Margaret Herrick Library, Special Coll. ............................................................................ 16 Davis 7. University of California at Davis: Shields Library, Special Collections and Archives ..................................................................... 16 Long Beach 8. California State Library, Long Beach: Special Collections ............. 17 Los Angeles 9. John F. Kennedy Memorial Library: Special Collections ...............18 10. UCLA Film and Television Archive .................................................. 18 11. USC: Doheny Memorial Library, Lion Feuchtwanger Archive ................................................................................................... -
Wertheimer, Editor Imagining the Seth Farber an American Orthodox American Jewish Community Dreamer: Rabbi Joseph B
Imagining the American Jewish Community Brandeis Series in American Jewish History, Culture, and Life Jonathan D. Sarna, Editor Sylvia Barack Fishman, Associate Editor For a complete list of books in the series, visit www.upne.com and www.upne.com/series/BSAJ.html Jack Wertheimer, editor Imagining the Seth Farber An American Orthodox American Jewish Community Dreamer: Rabbi Joseph B. Murray Zimiles Gilded Lions and Soloveitchik and Boston’s Jeweled Horses: The Synagogue to Maimonides School the Carousel Ava F. Kahn and Marc Dollinger, Marianne R. Sanua Be of Good editors California Jews Courage: The American Jewish Amy L. Sales and Leonard Saxe “How Committee, 1945–2006 Goodly Are Thy Tents”: Summer Hollace Ava Weiner and Kenneth D. Camps as Jewish Socializing Roseman, editors Lone Stars of Experiences David: The Jews of Texas Ori Z. Soltes Fixing the World: Jewish Jack Wertheimer, editor Family American Painters in the Twentieth Matters: Jewish Education in an Century Age of Choice Gary P. Zola, editor The Dynamics of American Jewish History: Jacob Edward S. Shapiro Crown Heights: Rader Marcus’s Essays on American Blacks, Jews, and the 1991 Brooklyn Jewry Riot David Zurawik The Jews of Prime Time Kirsten Fermaglich American Dreams and Nazi Nightmares: Ranen Omer-Sherman, 2002 Diaspora Early Holocaust Consciousness and and Zionism in Jewish American Liberal America, 1957–1965 Literature: Lazarus, Syrkin, Reznikoff, and Roth Andrea Greenbaum, editor Jews of Ilana Abramovitch and Seán Galvin, South Florida editors, 2001 Jews of Brooklyn Sylvia Barack Fishman Double or Pamela S. Nadell and Jonathan D. Sarna, Nothing? Jewish Families and Mixed editors Women and American Marriage Judaism: Historical Perspectives George M. -
Federal Register Volume 32 • Number 119
FEDERAL REGISTER VOLUME 32 • NUMBER 119 Wednesday, June 21,1967 • Washington, D.C. Pages 8789-8845 Agencies in this issue— Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service Agriculture Department Atomic Energy Commission Business and Defense Services Administration Civil Aeronautics Board Consumer and Marketing Service Fédéral Aviation Administration Federal Communications Commission Federal Highway Administration Federal Home Loan Bank Board Federal Maritime Commission Food and Drug Administration Geological Survey Interstate Commerce Commission Land Management Bureau Navy Department Securities and Exchange Commission Small Business Administration Detailed list o f Contents appears inside. Subscriptions Now Being Accepted SLIP LAWS 90th Congress, 1st Session 1967 Separate prints of Public Laws, published immediately after enactment, with marginal annotations and legislative history references. Subscription Price: $12.00 per Session Published by Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Service, General Services Administration Order from Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington, D.C. 20402 ¿vONAt.*- r r i i r O M l W SW D E P IC T E D Published daily, Tuesday through Saturday (no publication on Sundays, Mondays, or r r J l E i l r l I l i E l l I ^ I E l f on the day after an official Federal holiday), by the Office of the Federal Register, National $ Archives and Records Service, General Services Administration (mail address Nations Area Code 202 ^ Phone 962-8626 Archives Building, Washington, D.C. 20408), pursuant to the authority contained in the Federal Register Act, approved July 26, 1935 (49 Stat. 500, as amended; 44 U.S.C., Ch. -
1 Jewish American Women's Writing: Dislodging Preconceptions By
Jewish American Women’s Writing: Dislodging Preconceptions by Challenging Expectations Judith Lewin Josh Lambert describes “a little experiment” that he does with his Jewish literature classes: “I ask them to take out a piece of paper and a pen or pencil…. I say, ‘Draw a Jew.’…. One of my favorite questions to ask first is this: ‘How many of you drew a woman?’ (Usually, it’s at most one or two…)” (paras.1-3). Since Lambert notes that “usually, it’s at most one or two,” the students’ inability to imagine a woman inhabiting the category “Jew” is worth dwelling upon.1 Why is it Jewish American women are invisible, inaudible, and insufficiently read? This essay proposes a curriculum that engages students to think broadly and fluidly about Jewish American women authors and the issues and themes in their fiction. Previous pedagogical essays on Jewish American women’s writing include two in sociology/women’s studies on identities (see Friedman and Rosenberg; Sigalow), Sheila Jelen’s in Shofar on Hebrew and Yiddish texts, and a special issue in MELUS 37:2 (Summer 2012) that include women’s literature but without gender as a focus. The aim of this essay, by contrast, is to introduce teachers of American literature to an array of texts written by American Jewish women that will engage critical reading, thinking and writing by contemporary college undergraduates. Two questions must be dealt with right away. First, how does one justify treating Jewish American women’s literature in isolation? Second, how does one challenge the expectations of what such a course entails? As Lambert demonstrated from his informal survey, Jewish women writers are doubly invisible, to Jewish literature as women and to 1 women’s literature as Jews. -
Dvds - Now on DVD, Glenda Farrell As Torchy Blane - Nytimes.Com 5/10/10 3:08 PM
DVDs - Now on DVD, Glenda Farrell as Torchy Blane - NYTimes.com 5/10/10 3:08 PM Welcome to TimesPeople TimesPeople recommended: Sex & Drugs & the Spill 3:08Recommend PM Get Started HOME PAGE TODAY'S PAPER VIDEO MOST POPULAR TIMES TOPICS Get Home Delivery Log In Register Now Search All NYTimes.com DVD WORLD U.S. N.Y. / REGION BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY SCIENCE HEALTH SPORTS OPINION ARTS STYLE TRAVEL JOBS REAL ESTATE AUTOS Search Movies, People and Showtimes by ZIP Code More in Movies » In Theaters The Critics' On DVD Tickets & Trailers Carpetbagger Picks Showtimes DVDS B-Movie Newshound: Hello, Big Boy, Get Me Rewrite! Warner Home Video Glenda Farrell with Tom Kennedy, left, and Barton MacLane in “Torchy Blane in Chinatown” (1939). By DAVE KEHR Published: May 7, 2010 SIGN IN TO RECOMMEND The Torchy Blane Collection TWITTER Enlarge This Image “B movie” is now SIGN IN TO E- a term routinely MAIL applied to PRINT essentially any SHARE low-budget, vaguely disreputable genre film. But it used to mean something quite specific. During the Great Depression MOST POPULAR exhibitors began offering double E-MAILED BLOGGED SEARCHED VIEWED MOVIES features in the hope of luring back their diminished audience. The 1. 10 Days in a Carry-On program would consist of an A picture, 2. Tell-All Generation Learns to Keep Things Offline with stars, conspicuous production 3. The Moral Life of Babies Shout! Factory and New Horizons Pictures 4. Paul Krugman: Sex & Drugs & the Spill Youth in revolt: P. J. Soles, center, values and a running time of 80 5. -
Why the Success of Exodus in 1950S America? by Stephanie Schey Capstone Advisor: Dr. Lisa Moses Leff Spring Semester, 2011 Unive
Why the Success of Exodus in 1950s America? By Stephanie Schey Capstone Advisor: Dr. Lisa Moses Leff Spring Semester, 2011 University Honors in Jewish Studies College of Arts and Sciences: Jewish Studies 2 Capstone Abstract The positive reception of Exodus , by Leon Uris, in mainstream America during the 1950s is a phenomenon that has been largely overlooked. Arguably too much attention has been directed towards the aftermath of the book and film, without properly situating the novel in the context of current events and public opinion on Judaism and Israel at the time of its release. In order to establish a thorough framework within which to examine the legacy of Exodus , it is essential to understand American society at the time of publication and assess the impact of current events, such as the founding of the state of Israel and the 1956 Suez Crisis, upon the novel’s audience. In so doing, we learn a great deal about America’s attitudes toward Judaism and Israel. This paper explores the climate in America that allowed for the novel's positive reception, identifying the three strongest motivational factors for reading Exodus as: 1) Israel’s portrayal in the media, 2) suburban integration, and 3) Holocaust memory. Divided into three chapters, each portion of the paper analyzes one facet of America’s changing image of Israel or Judaism at the time of the novel’s publication in 1958. 3 Introduction The novel Exodus , written by Leon Uris, was published on September 18, 1958 and commanded immediate fame. Were his words the truth, Uris’s novel could have served as a creation myth for the state of Israel, inspiring nationalism amongst world Jewry and providing heroes for a downtrodden post-Holocaust generation. -
Bamcinématek Presents Joe Dante at the Movies, 18 Days of 40 Genre-Busting Films, Aug 5—24
BAMcinématek presents Joe Dante at the Movies, 18 days of 40 genre-busting films, Aug 5—24 “One of the undisputed masters of modern genre cinema.” —Tom Huddleston, Time Out London Dante to appear in person at select screenings Aug 5—Aug 7 The Wall Street Journal is the title sponsor for BAMcinématek and BAM Rose Cinemas. Jul 18, 2016/Brooklyn, NY—From Friday, August 5, through Wednesday, August 24, BAMcinématek presents Joe Dante at the Movies, a sprawling collection of Dante’s essential film and television work along with offbeat favorites hand-picked by the director. Additionally, Dante will appear in person at the August 5 screening of Gremlins (1984), August 6 screening of Matinee (1990), and the August 7 free screening of rarely seen The Movie Orgy (1968). Original and unapologetically entertaining, the films of Joe Dante both celebrate and skewer American culture. Dante got his start working for Roger Corman, and an appreciation for unpretentious, low-budget ingenuity runs throughout his films. The series kicks off with the essential box-office sensation Gremlins (1984—Aug 5, 8 & 20), with Zach Galligan and Phoebe Cates. Billy (Galligan) finds out the hard way what happens when you feed a Mogwai after midnight and mini terrors take over his all-American town. Continuing the necessary viewing is the “uninhibited and uproarious monster bash,” (Michael Sragow, New Yorker) Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990—Aug 6 & 20). Dante’s sequel to his commercial hit plays like a spoof of the original, with occasional bursts of horror and celebrity cameos. In The Howling (1981), a news anchor finds herself the target of a shape-shifting serial killer in Dante’s take on the werewolf genre. -
Introduction: Origins
Copyrighted Material Introduction: Origins In “The Non-Jewish Jew,” the Polish social revolutionary Isaac Deutscher, who began his education as a yeshiva student, argued that those who re- jected their ancestral religion and their people in favor of secular universal- ism had historical precursors. In a paradoxical formulation that captured something of his own identity, Deutscher wrote: “The Jewish heretic who transcends Jewry belongs to a Jewish tradition.”1 This “Jewry” is Judaism— not only the religion but all of the traditions built up over nearly three millennia. Yet, in transcending Judaism, the heretic finds himself or herself in a different Jewish tradition, a tradition no less Jewish for being antitradi- tional. Secular universalism for these heretics paradoxically became a kind of Jewish identity. Many of these ideas originated in the European Enlightenment, but they also often had a Jewish provenance or at least were believed by secular Jews to have such a provenance. Deutscher, for example, started his famous essay on an autobiographical note, remembering how, as a child in the yeshiva, he had read the story of the heretic Elisha ben Abuya (or Aher—the Other— as he is known). Elisha’s favorite student, Rabbi Meir, became one of the towering legal authorities of his generation, yet he never renounced his wayward teacher. By raising the question of the relationship of the Ortho- dox Rabbi Meir and the heretic Elisha, Deutscher implied that even the heretic remains somehow connected to that which he rejects, for the source of his heresy may lie within that tradition. For Deutscher, Elisha was the prototype of his modern heroes: Spinoza, Heine, Marx, Rosa Luxemburg, Trotsky, and Freud.