Great Neck Synagogue Magazine S|C|O|P|E Rosh Hashana 2019 Tishrei 5780 Mission to Moldova By Sophia Rein The One Day Reign of King Shaul (of Poland) By Dr. Arnold Breitbart Theodore Roosevelt and the Jews By Carol Buckmann Why Gedaliah By Stanley H. Fischer Mazel tov to our Simchat Torah honorees! Chatan Torah: Aryeh Family Chatan Maftir: Norman Rutta Chatan Bereishit: Marc Yehaskel GNS2019 SCOPE Magazine Rosh Hashana 2019 1 Maurycy Gottlieb, 1878 Jews Praying in the Synagogue on Yom Kippur Great Neck Synagogue Magazine GNS2019 S|C|O|P|E Great Neck Synagogue 26 Old Mill Road Rosh Hashana Issue | 2019 Table of Contents Great Neck, New York 11023 T: 516 487 6100 The One Day Reign of King Shaul (of Poland) By Dr. Arnold Breitbart p. 14 www.gns.org Theodore Roosevelt and the Jews Dale E. Polakoff, Rabbi By Carol Buckmann p. 16 Ian Lichter, Assistant Rabbi Yitzy Spinner, Cantor Who by Fire and Who by Water: Mark Twersky, Executive Director Documenting a Shoah Atrocity James Frisch, Assistant Executive Director By Robert Spitalnick p. 20 Sholom Jensen, Rabbi, Youth Director Dr. Michael & Zehava Atlas, Youth Directors Shabbat in Cracow Dr. Ephraim Wolf, z”l, Rabbi Emeritus By Hal and Debbie Chadow p. 22 Eleazer Schulman, z”l, Cantor Emeritus Chachmei Lublin Yeshiva and Majdanek Executive Board By Janet Pomerantz p. 23 Chairman of the Board Harold Domnitch Mission to Moldova President Erran Kagan By Sophia Rein p. 24 Executive Vice President Jordan Wolf First Vice President Bart Baum The Chaverim Center By Fred Shaw p. 27 Second Vice President Jon Reiss Third Vice President Sharon Goldwyn On the Nature of Love Treasurer Elie Cohen By Esor Ben-Sorek, Ph.D. p. 32 Recording Secretary Diane Rein Corresponding Secretary Steven Rosenzweig Why Gedaliah Financial Secretary Ruby Askowitz By Stanley H. Fischer p. 33 Service Officer Steven Blumner Service Officer Gary Chubak A Muddy Obstacle Course for Chesed Gabbai Natan Hamerman By Tami Kramer p. 36 Beit Midrash Gabbai Josh Shatzkes Remembering A Giant, GNS Rabbi Emeritus, Beit Midrash Service Officer Meir Stein Dr. Ephraim R. Wolf zt”l, on his 15th Yahrzeit: Pioneer for Orthodoxy and Yiddishkeit SCOPE Editorial Board in Great Neck By Dr. Paul E. Brody p. 41 Editor Diane Rein Art Director Andrew Allen Youth News Contributing Editor Dr. Esor Ben-Sorek By Rabbi Shalom Jensen, Contributing Editor Stanley Fischer Dr. Mike Atlas and Morah Zehava Atlas p. 44 Contributing Editor Carol Buckmann Ask the Rabbi Contributing Editor Dr. Arnold Breitbart By Rabbi Dale Polakoff p. 46 Youth Editor Sophia Rein Contributing Photographer Celia Lemonik The Modern Miracle of the Covenant By Stuart Kaufman p. 48 SCOPE magazine is published three times a year, Rosh Hashanah, Chanukah and Pesach, by Great Neck Synagogue, From Blue Fence to Blue Flag – 26 Old Mill Road, Great Neck, New York 11023 A Lone Soldier’s Journey By Robyn Spector-Blumner p. 51 T: 516.487.6100 | F: 516.487.6149 | www.gns.org It is distributed by mail to members and friends of the synagogue. Sisterhood of Great Neck Synagogue Paid subscriptions are available for non-members at $18 per year. By Farla Frumkin, Vivian Kron and Judy Lillien p. 54 Copyright ©2019 Great Neck Synagogue Rebbetzins’ Recipe Corner p. 56 All articles, logos & material used for another publication or lecture must be expressly requested in writing from GNS. The views ex- Great Neck Synagogue Men’s Club pressed in this magazine are those of the author and may or may not By Hillel Milun and Mark Friedman p. 58, 59 reflect the diversity of our membership. View previous issues of SCOPE online; scan the QR code below. Thanking God By Esor Ben-Sorek, Ph.D. p. 63 https://www.gns.org/category/publications/scope/ Holiday Laws p. 65 Schedule of Services p. 68, 69 Cover Painting: Maurycy Gottlieb, 1878 Jews Praying in the Synagogue on Yom Kippur Tel Aviv Museum of Art SCOPE Magazine Rosh Hashana 2019 2 03 A Message from the Editor SCOPE Diane Rein @15 Great Neck Synagogue Magazine S|C|O|P|E and assistance with SCOPE magazine over the past 15 years. Thank you also to Mark Twersky, Jimmy Frisch and Paula Minsky for all their help with each issue of SCOPE. A friendly reminder to please reach out to our ill, el- derly and homebound members of our shul to wish them a Shana Tova and let them know we are think- ing of them. If you would like to begin the New Year Welcome to our 15th anniversary issue of SCOPE by volunteering to be a member of the Bikur Cholim W committee or if you know someone who can ben- magazine! Wow – I am excited to have spent the last 15 years working together with my brilliant Art efit from our outreach, please email me at drein@ Director, Andrew Allen, who created, molded, and verizon.net. transformed this magazine into a beautiful work of art with his vision and originality. Even though he On behalf of my husband, David, and our children, lives in South Carolina – we easily work on SCOPE as Alexander, Oliver and Sophia (and our puppies Pe- if he lives around the corner from me in Great Neck. can and Cashew), I wish you all a very happy and Please email him at [email protected] to healthy new year! thank him for his many years of hard work and ded- ication to this project. Of course, the heart of this magazine is its writers and I’m sure you share my appreciation for the hun- Diane Rein dreds of articles that our synagogue members have sent me to publish over the past 15 years. I know each article is a labor of love invariably addressing an important and meaningful subject that the au- thor wants to share. Our advertisers and sponsors are also an import- ant part of SCOPE’s success over the past 15 years. Without a strong financial backing, we would not be able to support the publication of this magazine. Thank you to our wonderful advertisers and gener- ous sponsors for their loyalty and generosity. We always welcome new advertisers and sponsors! I am fortunate to work closely with Rabbi Lichter on this project. He is extremely supportive, respon- sive, helpful and insightful. He always makes SCOPE Roussimoff Ari Painting: magazine a priority as the deadline for each issue approaches. Thank you very much to Rabbi Pola- koff for his unwavering support, guidance, advice SCOPE Magazine Rosh Hashana 2019 3 04 know that the malach was standing there to kill him until Hashem allowed him to see the malach. A Message from our Rabbi The Sanzer Rebbe answers this question by recounting the Rabbi Dale Polakoff story of his encounter with a community Rav. When he asked the Rav about a particular family experiencing financial diffi- culties, the Rav responded that he didn’t know the circum- stances of that particular family. The Sanzer Rebbe chid- ed the Rav and asked him if thought that “not knowing” was an acceptable answer. The Sanzer Rebbe then point- ed to this pasuk, where he understood Bilaam’s words as or I erred because I did not know. Not knowing, said the San- zer Rebbe, is also a transgression. As we approach this season of teshuvah and we begin the process of repentance for all of the things we know we’ve done wrong, we should also contemplate our shortcomings in the area of “not knowing” and resolve to be more proactive and attentive in the coming year. In the middle of the summer we read the famous story of Bi- Ellen joins me in wishing you a ketiva vechatima tova! Ilaam and his talking donkey. Surprisingly enough, it contains an important message regarding teshuvah and responsibility. The Chumash tells us that Bilaam went along with the mes- sengers of Balak, despite Hashem’s admonition that he Rabbi Dale Polakoff would not be allowed to curse Bnei Yisrael. There were three episodes on this journey where Bilaam’s donkey perceived an angel waiting to punish Bilaam, and saved its master. The Not knowing, said the Sanzer Rebbe, first time the donkey turned into the field to avoid the angel. is also a transgression. The second time, when the angel chose a narrow passage- way, the donkey was able to avoid the angel but as a result crushed Bilaam’s foot against the wall. The third and final time, when the donkey realized there was no way to escape the angel, it simply refused to continue on the journey. Each time Bilaam hit the donkey, finally result- ing in the miraculous rebuke spoken by the donkey. It’s at this point in the story that Bilaam’s eyes are opened and he sees the angel prepared to kill him. It’s his response that highlights our message. Balaam said to the angel of the Lord, “I erred because I did not know that you were standing in my way. If you still disapprove, I will turn back.” Rabbi Naphtali Lavenda quotes Rav Chaim Halberstam, the famous Sanzer Rebbe, who writes that the words of this pasuk don’t make sense. Why is Bilaam apolo- gizing for something he didn’t know? After all, he didn’t Bilaam and the Angel, painting from Gustav Jaeger, 1836. SCOPE Magazine Rosh Hashana 2019 4 05 tool, whether we utilize it to better serve our tefilot or we employ it to attempt to comprehend the circumstances we A Message from our currently occupy. Assistant Rabbi Emunah is such an incomparably powerful force advancing Rabbi Ian Lichter Hashem’s purpose for us and our world.