Category Archives: Talmud

In observance of the yahrzeit of the Zera Shimshon on 6 Elul, we have dedicated the following dvar Torah from his writings:

You shall tithe the entire crop of your planting (Devarim 14:22)

The Zera Shimshon asks: Why is it necessary to say that one should tithe his entire crop? Is it possible that one would consider tithing only a portion of his planting, and not fulfilling the mitzvah in its entirety? The individual would only stand to lose from such conduct.

The Zera Shimshon cites the medrash (Taanis 9a) which tells of a wealthy man who had a fruitful field that annually yielded 1,000 kor of produce, from which the owner gave 100 kor for maaser. When the man got old, he bequeathed his property to his only son. He made him promise that he would continue the practice of giving 100 kor for maaser for it would surely guarantee that the fields would continue to thrive.

The first year, the land indeed produced 1,000 kor and, faithful to his fathers wishes, the son gathered 100 kor and gave it to the Kohen. However, it was difficult for him to take off those 100 kor when he saw how much he was giving away. The contribution continued to bother him, and he determined that he would not do so the following year. Once again, he sowed and planted his field as in the past, the rains fell and the sun shone, but to his surprise the yield was drastically reduced to only 100 kor. It was explained to him that initially he had been the owner of the field, and Hashem was the Kohen. Thus, he earned 90 percent of the crops and Hashem got 10 percent. When he was not satisfied with that arrangement and decided not to give maaser, Hashem said, Now Ill be the owner and you be the Kohen, and therefore the field only yielded 100 kor.

The Zera Shimshon explains that the Talmud in Brachos does, in fact, suggest instances whereby a limited form of tithing could be performed and one would have fulfilled his obligation. However, one must bring all of the tithes as it says (Malachi 3:10), Bring all of the tithes into the storage house and test Me with this to see if I will not open for you the windows of the heavens and pour down for you blessing without end, if he wishes to benefit from the blessing of wealth that is promised by Hashem.

HaGaon R Chaim Shmulevitz, the rosh yeshiva of Mir in Poland and Yerushalayim, once hosted an evening in his home on behalf of a charity organization in Yerushalayim. A guest speaker, R Yitzchak Dovid Gutfarb, one of the tzaddikim of the city, related the following:

A destitute individual had been knocking on the doors of residents in Yerushalayim erev Pesach asking for money for maos chitim. One of the homeowners who opened his door explained that every year he did his utmost to contribute as much as he could to the needy. Unfortunately, though, this year he too was penniless, and he had barely managed to collect a few portions of chicken for his family for the chag. Aside from that little bit of food, his large family did not have much else.

The poor man was unrelenting and begged for mercy because his situation was very dire. Sensing the beggars desperate plight, the homeowner realized he would have to extend himself beyond his means and share what he had with the poor man. He invited the beggar into his house, and went over to the refrigerator to give him some of the chicken he had for his own family. Imagine his horror, when he opened the refrigerator door and saw his little boy lying still inside, ice cold and barely breathing. The child was immediately rushed to the hospital, where the doctors were thankfully able to revive him. The doctors disclosed that the childs recovery had been miraculous, for if he had remained in the cold for only a few more minutes he would have lost his life.

At that moment, the Jew fully appreciated the words of our sages (Mishlei 10:2), Charity rescues from death.

Rabbi Shimshon Chaim ben Rabbi Nachman Michal Nachmani, known as the Zera Shimshon (1706-1770), was blessed with only one son, who passed on at a young age. Having been left bereft, Rabbi Shimshon Chaim dedicated his sefarim on the Written and Oral Law, imparting unique insights and profound lessons, to carry on his legacy with the name Zera Shimshon.

Prefacing his writings, the author beseeches people to study his books and promises that those who do so will be granted family, life, wealth and honor in that merit. Indeed, the anecdotal evidence of simchas and yeshuos that people have been experiencing is remarkable, just as the author affirms. The significance of the merit accrued learning these works has garnered much enthusiasm and interest, creating a worldwide revolution. Today, the sefarim of the Zera Shimshon are studied on every continent, with shiurim given in multiple languages on numerous media platforms.

For the last four years I have been giving a daily shiur at 4:00 p.m. EST, via a conference call, to over a thousand participants, creating a daily unparalleled united learning experience with like-minded individuals committed to delving into the secrets of the Zera Shimshon.

Over the last two years, I have been working on an anthology of the divrei Torah of the Zera Shimshon to commemorate his yahrzeit. Baruch Hashem, the book will be available to the public on 6 Elul. Titled The Promise, the book contains a compilation of the Zera Shimshons Torah thoughts specifically on the topic of teshuvah repentance and connecting to Hashem. Each chapter includes soul-stirring stories and insights.

Further details will be forthcoming.

Excerpt from:

Blessings From Studying The Zera Shimshon - The Jewish Press - JewishPress.com

From an early age, we have been taught to tell the truth. In his sefer, Sefat Tamim, the Chofetz Chaim writes that falsehood is the only sin in the Torah where we are explicitly required to keep a distance from, as it says; Keep away from anything false (Shmot 23:7). When you think about it, its truly amazing. We know how serious sins are, especially idol worship, murder, kidnapping and forbidden sexual relationships (among others) yet the only time the Torah shows us that big yellow sign: Caution Stay away is when it comes to lying.

The wonderful ArtScroll sefer Iggeres haGra A Letter for the Ages quotes the Vilna Gaon and how he impressed upon his family the need to always speak the truth. On page 66, Rabbi Shai Graucher, author of the sefer, brings several sources to explain this point. The first is the Talmud Bavli (Succah 46b) which admonishes a person to keep his word to a child for failing to do so will train them to lie. His second source is the Shela HaKadosh who advises parents who want their children to stay on the right path to only speak the truth and stress to them the evils of falsehood.

In short, there are no Pinocchios in Judaism. We are an honest people in words, texts, thoughts, and actions. Based on that, lets take a look at some of the things we say in our davening. (All translations are from the Complete ArtScroll Siddur)

Three times a day, in the Shemoneh Esrei, we ask that HaShem bring us to Israel (and not for a 10-day trip) Sound the great shofar for our freedom, raise the banner to gather our exiles and speedily gather us together from the four corners of the earth to our Land. Is this something you want? Do you really want HaShem to move you and your family out of your present location to Israel permanently?

In the Avinu Malkeinu prayer we ask for health, redemption, forgiveness, financial support but we also say; Our Father, our King, avenge before our eyes the spilled blood of your servants. We are not only asking for HaShem to take revenge, we are asking that He do it with us watching! We want to see the revenge on those who hurt our people! This is definitely not a politically correct prayer, but very soon in the days between Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur we will be saying this twice each day. Do you mean it?

Towards the end of the daily davening, we recite chapter 20 of Tehillim with the famous words; Some with chariots, and some with horses, but we in the Name of HaShem our G-d, we call out. They slumped and fell, but we arose and were invigorated. This is the ultimate tefilla of Emunah! The nations of the world have super advanced weapons and large armies, but we will triumph because our faith is in HaShem. Yet, despite the fact that we say these words daily, how many of us are worried about Iran, Hamas and Hezbollah? How many times do we question if the current USA administration will truly stand with Israel yet we say every morning that it is to HaShem we call out, not to the Americans. Do we believe what we say?

These themes are repeated on Shabbat during Mussaf (in Av HaRachamim) when, once again, we say; May He, before our eyes, exact retribution Let there be known among the nations, before our eyes, revenge. Then, during Mussaf Shemoneh Esrei we, once again, ask that HaShem bring us to Eretz Yisrael; May it be Your will, HaShem, our G-d and the G-d of our forefathers, that You bring us up in gladness to our land and plant us within our boundaries.

These tefillot are repeated, throughout our davening. Since this is an article, and not a thesis, I listed just a few examples but know, that over the course of the Jewish year we literally daven hundreds of times for vengeance against our enemies, the ingathering of the Jews from across the globe to Eretz Yisrael and for the Knesset to be replaced by the Davidic dynasty!

It is essential that we believe what we are saying! If we are warned many times against falsehood between friends, how much more does that apply when speaking to our Father in Heaven! Its terrible to lie to anyone but its simply unfathomable to lie to HaShem. Therefore, when asking for HaShem to smash our enemies (and to see it live!!) and to bring us home once and for all to Eretz HaKodesh, lets truly mean what we say!

Am Yisrael Chai!

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You Say it but Do You Believe it? - The Jewish Press - JewishPress.com

Jerry Stahl promoting "Nein, Nein, Nein!" at The 92nd Street Y. Photo by Mark Sagliocco/Getty Images

By Jim SullivanAugust 25, 2022

Editors note: This article contains discussion of suicide.

Jerry Stahl was on a bus tour of what he calls Naziland three concentration camps and related museums in Eastern Europe six years ago when his understanding of how the world perceives the Shoah did a somersault.

Stahl, the 68-year-old author best known for his 1995 memoir Permanent Midnight, knew hed be trodding upon, as he said in an interview, ground where the bones of the dead are buried and ashes had drifted. He had some inherent trepidation, and expectations of somber reflection.

My heart is open. Im one big emotion waiting to happen, Stahl said on the phone from his home in Los Angeles. Who do I think I am to think I can grasp the enormity of this suffering and honor it?

Yet grasping that enormity is precisely what Stahl tries to do in his new book, Nein, Nein, Nein!: One Mans Tale of Depression, Psychic Torment and a Bus Tour of the Holocaust. The account contains a crazy quilt of emotions captured with dark humor and keen insight.

The book, Stahl said, is a chronicle of what he felt on the trip as a human, as a Jew, as a man, as a citizen of the planet.

What it isnt at least, not always is an account of the somber reflection Stahl expected. The first thing he saw in Auschwitz, he said, was a guy in an Im With Stupid T-shirt slamming a Fanta and stuffing his face with pizza.

I just wasnt ready for it. I dont know why.

So, it wasnt the historic horror that struck him first. It was the mundane nature of people doing what people do in their day-to-day lives, no matter where they are. They eat, drink, crack bad jokes, respond in almost comically inept ways to their circumstances. Three Filipina girls who spotted Stahl became convinced that he was Michael Richards the actor who played Kramer in Seinfeld and kept yelling Kramer! because they wanted a selfie with him.

He let them snap the picture.

I agreed to do the most grotesque thing you can do, especially in a death camp, Stahl said of the selfie, but I think there is a certain human truth to people acting that way.

While Stahl took his trip in 2016, he only wrote about it during the 2021 pandemic-driven lockdown. Stahl faced serious roadblocks in finally beginning the book. He had lost many of his notes from the tour, and there were continual distractions from other projects mostly failed projects for TV, film and print.

And the subjects he planned to write about were challenging to revisit. As he writes in Nein, Nein, Nein!, he was not in a good place before taking the trip. He felt his career had run aground. His third marriage was in tatters.

He peered into the abyss or more precisely, looked down from a bridge in Southern California. He was discouraged from doing it, he writes, when he realized hed have to climb a fence and likely be caught by the suicide-prevention mechanism he described in our interview as these weird chain-link macrame large-enough-for-a-human-being bags.

Theres a lot of athletics involved, Stahl said. They make it hard. I would have been News at 11 Worlds Biggest Baby Caught in a Net, Swaddling.

So, Stahl said he thought, Why not go somewhere where complete and utter despair and depression is wholly appropriate? Like Auschwitz, Buchenwald and Dachau.

Another factor in his decision: Donald Trump was ascendent, and more than a few people were equating Trumps tactics and autocratic bellicosity with Hitlers. With Nazism on the rise here, Stahl said, it was almost like, Why sit here and watch the previews? Why dont we go to where it happened and where it was shot?

The book examines how Stahls own personal demons collided with the ghostly demons of the Holocaust, with a dose of absurdity added by his being on a tour with mostly Midwestern tourists early on the journey, he likened it to a 4-H Club trip complete with a forced, though not entirely unwelcome, camaraderie.

He told his tour guide, Suzannah, and his fellow tourists that he planned to write about the trip. I made the decision to be straight up about that, Stahl says. Being a writer, youre a little bit outside the main community. Everybody can take you aside and tell you their deepest and darkest. As cornball as it sounds, I grew to love these people at the end.

Part of what makes Nein, Nein, Nein! an engaging read are Stahls (sometimes) purposeful digressions. Some of these are whimsical, but all are pointed, like one about little salt-shaker-sized Lucky Jews statuettes of rabbis clutching coins sold at Warsaw gift shops. The idea: Place one at the door so money wont leave the house.

In Poland, we have a saying: A Jew in the hallway a coin in the pocket, the shop owner told Stahl.

I take six, Stahl writes. Because why not? Yes, theyre a racial stereotype, but in Stahls eyes, compared to the range of offensive depictions of Jews, these rabbi dolls feel almost benign. All Talmudic beard and soulful eyes. But maybe benign is more insidious.

There are gruesome details about the Nazis ingenious forms of torture and Josef Mengeles medical experiments. There are stomach-churning accounts about Ilse Koch, The Bitch of Buchenwald,who used her victims tattooed skin and body parts for crafting.

As to experiencing the camps themselves, Stahl notes the contrast in presentation of the museums at each. Though the high-tech, immersive exhibition at Dachau is more informative and far-reaching, he writes, for him it had a less powerful effect than the silent horror of Auschwitz.

Stahl also realized that being overwhelmed by an experience can also leave you underwhelmed. I cant remember a time when I wasnt aware of bodies piled up in mounds, he said, citing Lou Reeds song Heroin. Through no fault of its own, these images are so numbing and so overwhelming.

At one point late in the trek, Stahl found himself getting burned out on the concentration camps, he writes.

Ive become the weird guy who doesnt talk much on the bus. I try to front that Im gripped by the torment, soul-savaged by the in-your-faceness of strolling down the landscape where Hitler ripped the world apart, like a child tearing the head off a doll.

In the end, Stahl attempts to step back from the statistics and the stock images of the Holocaust to cast an eye on the lives of its victims, and what they may have been like before Hitler came on the scene. He considers how terrifying it must have been to have their ordinary lives stripped away the futility of all those wasted hours thinking about sex and money, did their hair look right, success and failure and all the things that drain the life out of life when life is so fucking vulnerable and fragile and easy to pluck away?

With a book so stark and revelatory as is pretty much anything Stahl touches one wonders, what didnt make the cut? Are there worse, more self-denigrating points not in print?

The eternal question, said Stahl, with a laugh. I think that answers going to go to my grave, but I dont know if theres much worse than what is actually in there. If I think about it too much, I will start pulling back, which for my purposes wouldnt ring true.

To bring up another great Jewish writer, Bruce Jay Friedman he said, If you write a sentence that makes you squirm, keep going. Somehow, I squirmed my way through this book.

Stahl has got two more books and another movie project in the works in addition to a possible film adaptation of Nein, Nein, Nein! which has been optioned by Robert Downey, Jr. but fears talking about them may be a detriment to doing them.

At my age, Im a lot closer to a man being dead than being 40, he said, so Im writing like a man being chased.

Jim Sullivan wrote about music and pop culture for The Boston Globe from 1979 to 2005. Currently, he writes for WBURs ARTery, among other sites.

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Facing a personal reckoning, with a dose of absurdity, on a bus tour of Naziland - Forward

Like much of her work, All of Us Flames is informed by a practice of Judaism if not in an immediate aesthetic sense (my suggestion of alter ego Klezra Furman gets a laugh but probably not real consideration). "I am often thinking, in between sips of coffee, [of Jewish theologian Heschels quote]: 'who is worthy to be present at the unfolding of time?' But I cant really seem to work that in," she sighs.

All of Us Flames is religious music in its dutiful ethic towards work and gratitude, in its responsibility towards history. She quotes the ancient book of Jewish law, the Talmud: Its not your obligation to complete the work, and you are not free to desist from the work. Basically, were not gonna finish the job of making a better world. Were just not. And yet were still supposed to work. Perhaps this is what it takes to get in touch with the divine. The dogged determination that grinds through All of Us Flames arrives at moments of true ecstasy (like Forever in Sunsets sudden explosion into exultant, Springsteenian glory), just as a disciplined practice of spirituality can help us access moments of true transcendence.

Its rabbinically emphasised that the mundane is more important than the peak experience moments, she says. The Torah, after all, is not all high drama. Theres a lot of miracles and smiting, but theres also a lot of boring tasks. The weekly portion for my own Bar Mitzvah a passage from the Torah that corresponds with the week of the ceremony, as per for the Hebrew Calendar was mostly instructional text on preparing garments. Not so thrilling. I mention this and Furman, miraculously, is familiar with the specific portion. Those boring parts, the menial tasks, she says, are the most important. Theres this wonderful conversation in the Talmud about whats the most important line in the Torah. And all these people have their different ideas God is one, Love your neighbour as yourself, etc. And then somebody else says, The most important line is, Slaughter one calf in the morning and one calf in the afternoon every day. And everyones like, Okay, thats the correct answer. The idea is that a high-minded moral principle may be really important, but what do you actually do everyday? Thats what holds us together.

You keep going, and thats how you keep going; forever in sunset. We owe it to ourselves and each other and everyone else to figure it out and keep figuring it out, she muses. One of the promises of a religious practice is that by taking part in a choreography a prayer, a ritual, a song we can unite ourselves with both everyone who has and everyone who will take part, living and dead. It can be a key into eternity, in both directions every apocalypse before and every apocalypse to come: every sunset in every forever. Thats whats inspiring its sustained. Its everywhere. At all moments we have to try, somehow, to weave love and devotion into our mundane life, she says, sitting on her patio. We both fall silent for a moment and listen to the birds chirping around us.

Read the original here:

Ezra Furman and the Tireless, Sacred Work of Being Alive | Interview - The Line of Best Fit

We often refer to summer Shabbosim as long Shabbos and winter Shabbosim as short Shabbos, based on the time Shabbos ends. But the truth is, Shabbos is always the same 25 hours every single week, and from my perspective, it is definitely not long enough! It is still only a fraction of our week. Given the potential of Shabbos to impact us on a weekly basis, we may have high expectations of what we want our Shabbosim to look like. Of course, while we may have had certain expectations before the pandemic, our experiences during the pandemic may have given us a different frame of reference for what Shabbos can be in our lives.

How might we frame what a successful Shabbos looks like? Is there a method for how we can approach this? In my own experience, I realized that I do not aspire to have davening to take longer than is necessary. But I also do not want to nap for too long. And I dont want to be at the lunch table until 5:00 p.m. Is any of this blasphemous? Am I too caught up on time? It occurred to me recently that while I had certain disparate expectations of my own of what I want to get out of Shabbos, there is potentially a systematic way of looking at this from the lens of halacha that could help us on a communal level to frame our Shabbosim, which I am calling the Well-Rounded Shabbos.

The Talmud (Pesachim 68b) tells us that half of Shabbos is for Hashem and half is for us. Therefore, a good Shabbos does contain a few different components: tefillah, oneg (i.e., kiddush and meals), Torah study, and napping. While we may be aware of these components in isolation, I began to wonder, how does one balance all of these? How should these different parts of the Shabbos experience interact to ensure that all have their proper place and time?

Lets begin with tefillah. It should be stated from the outset that tefillah should not be a burden. While we are in Hashems home and standing before Hashem, we should seek ways to make it meaningful. With that said, the pandemic raised many conversations about the length of tefillah in shul. There is clearly a large contingency of people who want a more streamlined tefillah. The truth is, this is not a new discussion. Although tefillah is not supposed to be a burden, poskim throughout the ages have argued that this does not mean the length of davening in shul should be indefinite. The Sages instituted only seven blessings in the amidah in an effort to avoid burdening people with lengthy tefillah on the day of rest. While I enjoy singing in tefillah, poskim encourage a balance to ensure tefillah is not too long; in fact, Maharshal writes that even if the community desires it, singing should not be stretched out on Shabbos and Yom Tov. Peri Chadash and R. Yaakov Emden both write in teshuvot that if our Sages instituted only seven blessings in order to eschew long tefillah, then that should be reflected in the amount of singing and Mi Shebeirachs.

But when I discussed these ideas in a shiur recently, someone said, Well, where are people rushing to if they make davening short? To kiddush, to shmooze?

Yes, kiddush and our Shabbos meals are part of our Well-Rounded Shabbos as well. We encounter the verse (Yeshayahu 58:13) vkarata la-Shabbat oneg, which is understood to refer to partaking of food to our delight. The Gemara (Shabbat 118b) says one who delights in Shabbat will be granted the desires of their heart. Kiddush in shul is not just a way to entice people to come to shul but is a fulfillment of the directive to have oneg Shabbat. Likewise, Shabbat meals shared between families are not merely a concession to social needs but rather a true fulfillment of the opportunity of oneg Shabbos. In addition, the opportunity for people to gather both at kiddushim and in each others homes for Shabbos meals contributes to the fabric that holds communities together. I stress that these are not bdieved concessions; they are vital for the vibrancy of our kehillot kedoshot.

Yet, with the great value that Shabbos meals hold, it is appropriate to ensure they come to a close in a timely fashion. The Rama writes that if one regularly naps on Shabbos afternoon, they should not skip it because this, too, is oneg (Orach Chayim 290:1). For those who nap on Shabbos, this opportunity may be part of a Well-Rounded Shabbos. I think it would be worthwhile to set a norm that Birkat Hamazon is said around two to two-and-a-half hours after a meal begins. This does not mean that guests have to leave if everyone is enjoying themselves and wants to stay longer. Yet, having the closure sooner than later will give people the opportunity to go home for their nap when they are ready without having to wait for their hosts to get the hint that some people are about to (or are trying not to) fall asleep at the table!

Still, as praiseworthy as the Shabbos nap is in a Well-Rounded Shabbos, I usually set an alarm for Shabbos afternoon to wake up from my nap (that I still usually sleep through). This may sound ridiculous, but the Mishnah Berurah (290:3) reminds us that our naps should not extend too long, as it is important to learn Torah on Shabbos as well. Indeed, the Talmud Yerushalmi (Shabbat 15:3) tells us that the whole purpose of Shabbos and Yom Tov is for the Jewish people to learn Torah. Rav Eliezer Melamed, author of Peninei Halacha, gives a quantified amount of time one should spend learning: six hours. How does he derive this? He explains that assuming one legitimately has to sleep seven hours every night, that leaves 18 hours to be divided between what we do for Hashem and what we do for ourselves. This leaves nine hours for our own enjoyment and nine hours for Torah/tefillah. If one is in shul for three hours, that would leave six hours of learning. Perhaps, based on average shul schedules in America, maybe it is four hours of tefillah and five hours of learning. Indeed, to make any sort of meaningful progress in what they are reading or learning, one probably needs a few hours. Whether one has a Gemara open or is reading an actual book as part of Rabbi Dovid Bashevkins I Read This Over Shabbos movement on Twitter, spending time engaged in wisdom is a crucial component of the Well-Rounded Shabbos.

When we take these different opportunities together, we see that not only are we fulfilling half for Hashem and half for ourselves, but were also including three major components of mitzvah categories. Torah and tefillah help us develop our Bein Adam La-Makom, while our kiddush/meal times help us develop our Bein Adam La-chaveiro, and our napping (and to some extent, learning/reading) helps us develop our Bein Adam Le-atzmo.

Shabbos is supposed to be relaxing and bnachat, not a day of time pressure. I do not suggest that it is worthwhile to time all of our Shabbos activities and rush from one thing to another. In fact, running is forbidden on Shabbos! Furthermore, it is obviously up to each individual to emphasize the parts of Shabbos they enjoy most.

However, I think it could be helpful to use these halachic perspectives to create a communal framework and language for what Shabbos can look like. We may have already been aware of these individual components, but I hope this perspective can give us a vision of implementing this type of Shabbos experience on a wider scale. With a bit of mindfulness about what we want our own Shabbos to look like and how we can help others create their ideal Shabbos experiences, we can ensure that the Jewish people is having a Well-Rounded Shabbos experience.

Rabbi Judah Kerbel is the rabbi of Queens Jewish Center and a middle school rebbe at Yeshiva Har Torah.

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The Long and Short of a Well-Rounded Shabbos - The Jewish Press - JewishPress.com

The golden-domed sanctuary at Congregation Sherith Israel is known for its glorious stained-glass windows. Its most famous one depicts Moses receiving the Ten Commandments in Yosemite Valley a modern promised land.

In another, a Biblical woman hands out food to the needy, with the words Feed the hungry Clothe the naked Shelter the homeless above her head. The message is one that resonates with Nancy Sheftel-Gomes, who considers it a call to social action for her synagogue community.

Its a commandment thats repeated in Torah over and over again. Its really a basis of humanity, she said. I think thats why it means a lot to people to participate because they know that theyre making a difference in somebodys life.

Sheftel-Gomes is a longtime member at the Reform S.F. synagogue, where she helps to run the HaMotzi program, a food-assistance initiative started in 1993. Every Sunday, she and her volunteers meet to prepare more than 100 meals for Compass Family Services, the San Francisco Womens Shelter and various community members in need. Once a month, Sheftel-Gomes also heads the Chicken Soupers meal program. Founded in 1988 to support those with AIDS, it now feeds the community at large.

We have an obligation to do this, she said. Thats our covenant with God.

Sherith Israel is not uncommon in its commitment to social action. Nearly all synagogues have similar projects in one form or another, whether its starting a community garden or building a homeless shelter from the ground up. For many Jews, social action is a mitzvah and an important part of their religious practice. Across the Bay Area, different communities have committed to a range of social justice issues to better themselves, their fellow humans and the world.

One of the projects at Or Shalom Jewish Community, a Reconstructionist synagogue in San Francisco, is called Sanctuary Or Shalom. A congregation-wide initiative to support immigrants in California, its reach is broad: accompanying people to their immigration hearings, protesting outside Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) centers and calling elected officials to advocate for legislative change.

Social action is part of the fabric at Or Shalom. In fact, social action is one of just five tabs on the homepage. Clicking on it leads to the Safety Net Action Committee (dedicated to advocating for universal health care), the Environmental Action Committee, and the Interfaith Action Committee (which works with Faith in Action Bay Area on issues of voter engagement, gun control and housing reform). Another project was a 2016 listening campaign that asked congregants to suggest social issues they wanted the synagogue to address before the election, and myriad topics were raised.

Leslie Roffman, a longtime member and the chair of the Sanctuary Or Shalom project, said this kind of work is part of how her community practices Judaism. Social justice is at our core, she said.

Similarly, at Bnai Israel Jewish Center in Petaluma, the social action team doesnt have just one project it has many.

Congregants are part of a rotation that helps run the Interfaith Food Pantry at Elim Lutheran Church in Petaluma. Members of the Social Action Committee have taken up a green mitzvah to reduce the synagogues carbon footprint, removing cleaning supplies, paper towels and anything else at the synagogue that can be replaced with more environmentally friendly alternatives. And at Hanukkah, the independent synagogue works with Jewish Family and Childrens Services in Santa Rosa to provide gifts for children in low-income families.

This month, volunteers held a drive to collect school supplies for the children of farm workers, collecting notebooks, art materials and water bottles to be distributed to children across the state. Last year, they donated more than 300 filled backpacks.

Abbey Levine, co-chair of the Social Action Committee and executive vice president of the Bnai Israel board, said her fellow congregants are always ready and eager to become involved in a new project. Social justice work is a fundamental part of Judaism and being Jewish, she said.

I think that as Jews and as survivors of so many things ourselves, to repair the world is really critical.

In Berkeley, members of Modern Orthodox Congregation Beth Israel have been volunteering at a local mens shelter for more than 15 years. Before the pandemic, they would cook and serve food to the shelters guests once a month. For now, with the kitchen closed for safety concerns, the program is on hiatus, although the shul still supports the shelter with donations and other supplies.

The popular program has helped connect Beth Israel to the larger community, said Maharat Victoria Sutton, who retired from the shul Aug. 1 after eight years as director of education and community engagement. She was among the many volunteers, and she brought her young daughter along to help out.

Chesed is a foundation of Judaism, she said. Often translated as lovingkindness, chesed means giving oneself fully, with love and compassion.

Meanwhile, the Tikkun Olam leadership team at Congregation Beth El in Berkeley has spent two years focused on the Care First Community Coalition, an organization dedicated to reducing the arrests and incarceration of people with mental health issues. Congregants at the Reform synagogue have lobbied the Alameda County Board of Supervisors to earmark funds to improve services for mentally ill people, and in 2021 the board approved a Care First, Jails Last policy resolution and set aside $8 million for services. Theyve been involved at every stage, helping to draft budget recommendations, facilitate connections between Care First and other local organizations, and publicize the coalitions mission.

The challenge is how do we bring this [mission] forward in a way that makes [Alameda County residents] care and helps them feel connected, said Becki Cohn-Vars, co-chair of the Tikkun Olam leadership team. The Care First Community Coalition is lobbying the county to again set aside funds for these services for another year.

Rabbi Rebekah Stern, Beth Els senior rabbi, said for her, like others, social justice work is integral to her Judaism. You cant read the Books of the Prophets without understanding that outcry against injustice is core to who we are as Jews, she said.

At Kehilla Community Synagogue in Piedmont, a commitment to social action is at the core of its mission statement. In 2017, inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, congregants formed the Belonging and Allyship Project, an initiative to address white supremacy and racial justice internally within Kehilla, at all levels of our organization and community, according to the website.

Ruthie Levin, a Kehilla congregant for more than 16 years, oversees the Belonging and Allyship Project as the synagogues people of color organizer. A Black Jew, Levin had experienced her fair share of prejudice, both within the Kehilla community and out.

What we want to work on is ways of improving how folks of color experience Kehilla moving forward, Levin said.

Kehilla now hosts a number of affinity groups to foster discussions on shifting focus away from whiteness and white supremacy in the community. A diversity, equity and inclusion team has been formed to offer training and advice to synagogue leaders. Levin wants to see everyone involved.

Its one thing to show up at synagogue and listen to a sermon and hear [tikkun olam] talked about in passing, she said. But to really embody it, in all that you do thats my goal.

At Peninsula Temple Beth El, Covid threw a wrench into its plans for an ambitious green initiative, launched shortly before the pandemic started. Following a listening campaign at the San Mateo Reform synagogue, where climate change emerged as members greatest concern, leaders of its Rodfei Tzedek (pursuing justice) team began focusing on steps they could take to reduce the synagogues carbon footprint.

PTBE members have started a community garden at the shul, donating what is grown there to Samaritan House; attended rallies for climate justice; and plan to install solar panels to help power the synagogue with clean energy. Yet the campaign has been different from what leadership imagined, said Marla Becker, one of the team members. Their vision for environmental justice work was based in group action, in the community with others. But the pandemic-led shift has not diminished their commitment to the cause, Becker said.

Theres a quote from the Talmud that we refer to often: Do not be daunted by the enormity of the worlds grief. Do justly now, love mercy now, walk humbly now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it, she said. We really believe that.

At Congregation Beth Jacob in Redwood City, social action has always been a priority, said Rabbi Nathaniel Ezray, who has been at the Conservative synagogue for 28 years. The communitys most recent work has been with United Hatzalah, a volunteer-based, free-of-charge emergency medical service throughout Israel.

Beth Jacob supports United Hatzalah through fundraising and spreading awareness about the organization. Bill Futornick, the synagogues ritual director, also leads trips for congregants to visit United Hatzalahs headquarters in Jerusalem and see its work in action. Ezray called the experience of visiting the sites in Israel that Beth Jacob supports transformative.

Social action is fundamental to the practice of Judaism, he said, and has been from the beginning.

I think that when we have a religion that talks about basic human dignity, about connecting our core story of having been slaves with the obligation to help others who are enslaved, when we have a series of values that say you may not stand idly by, when we define ourselves by loving our fellow human those things all create an imperative to act when somebody is suffering, Ezray said.

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At many Bay Area synagogues, the real action is social action J. - The Jewish News of Northern California

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Abortion is a religious issue, but not in the way you think - Santa Fe New Mexican

(JTA) Were about tosee a liturgical convergence in the Islamic and Jewish calendars. On Sunday, Jews around the world will fast and mourn on Tisha BAv, a day remembering thedestructionof the Temples inJerusalem. On Monday, many Muslims will fast and mourn in observance of Ashura, recalling the death of a revered Muslim forebear in the year 680.

The occasions share parallel themes and practices, and they may tempt leaders on both sides to use the convergence as an occasion for joint activities.

But Muslim-Jewish relations will be best served if we dont come together for this commemoration.

Dont get me wrong, I believe that when Muslim and Jewish holidays overlap, we often stand to benefit from cultural exchange and shared celebrations. This year, for example, Passover fell during the Muslim month of fasting, Ramadan (as did Easter, Vaisakhi and others). The Muslim-Jewish Advisory Council an advocacy coalition co-founded by my organization, American Jewish Committee hosted U.S. Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff and State Deparment official Rashad Hussain at a national iftar, or Ramadan break-fast. Members of many faith groups came together at the event to recognize the beautiful tapestry of American religious diversity.

Many in the field of Muslim-Jewish relations are primed to pounce on any point of shared interest with joint programming. Similar dietary laws make for good dialogue and common prophets are grist for the mill of shared text study. Points of shared concern (such as combating hate) allow us to rally together for advocacy and action.

Some may be tempted to do the same with Ashura and Tisha BAv, given the similar observances of fasting and common theme of tragedy born of disunity. However, on these days Jews and Muslims should focus on the needs of our own communities and not cross the boundaries.

Tisha BAv, literally the ninth of the month of Av, (observed on the tenth this year because the ninth is Shabbat) commemorates tragedies of Jewish history with 25 hours of abstinence from food and drink, sexual relations, leather shoes, makeup and bathing. Traditionally, Jews sit low to the ground for most of the day and recite the Book of Lamentations in synagogue. The firsthand account by Josephus (d. 100 CE) that the Temples destruction was brought on by Jewish political fractiousness is echoed in the Talmuds assertion that the metaphysical trigger was baseless hatred between Jews (Yoma 9b).

Ashura, too, came to be associated with political discord and the destruction it wrought for early Muslims. In Muhammads lifetime it marked the day on which God delivered the Israelites from the hands of Pharaoh. However, Ashura also came to take on a more somber tone for Muslims, Sunni and Shia alike, in 680 CE. It was the day of the Battle of Karbala, when Muhammads grandson Hussein and his family were slaughtered by Muslim forces loyal to another claimant to the mantle of leadership.

The event was foundational for Shia Muslims, who commemorate Ashura with intense mourning practices and ritualized reenactments. However, many Sunni Muslims also treat the day as a time for somber reflection on the need for Islamic unity, and fasting and added prayer is common in both communities.

Muslims and Jews may take solace from the fact that another religious group knows the experience of collective grief and that it too struggles with intra-communal conflict. However, the spiritual experience of loss is most affective and effective within our own separate worlds of symbolism, history and heritage. If you are not a member of the Jewish community, having tied your own fate to that of the collective, then you cannot fully comprehend the meaning of the loss of a unifying religious structure and the subsequent exile.

Likewise, as a Jewish person, I do not presume to understand how chilling and sorrowful it must be for Muslims to recognize the massacre of Muhammads own family less than 50 years after his death.

And yet: Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, a luminary of Modern Orthodox Judaism, famously argued that while one can never fully enter the experiential world of another faith tradition, that barrier cannot prevent us from building trust and cooperation.

Leaving aside the question of whether interreligious empathy is possible, it is still essential that religious communities dedicate space to focus on intra-religious acceptance. Theidentity politics, polarization and cancel culturewe seeacross the globe often lead our religious communities totransforminternal communal difference into demonization.Those engaged in Muslim-Jewish relations often get labeled as traitors by members of their own communities.They are accused of selling out the Palestinians or ignoring antisemitism and religious extremism or simply empowering people whose policy positions are anathema. Blacklists, smear campaigns, petitions, threats of boycott and withdrawn donations are far too common in our field. Sadly, internal communal discord is among the chief barriers to advancing Muslim-Jewish rapprochement and cooperation.

Islam and Judaism are each blessed with diverse forms of expression, whether across denominations, ethnic cultures or political camps. Our traditions both have ample sources to embrace this diversity: A widely attested hadith, or Muslim belief, is thatdisagreement among the people is a mercy. The Talmud declares that the Torah has 70 faces that is, it is open to diverse interpretations.

This Tisha BAv and Ashura, I hope Muslims and Jews committed to interfaith work are able to grieve our tragedies separately, work to heal our own internal divides and then come back together for interreligious education, cooperation and celebration.

--

The post Jews and Muslims are fasting next week. Lets hold the interfaith activities another time. appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

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Jews and Muslims are fasting next week. Let's hold the interfaith activities another time. - Cleveland Jewish News

Pennsylvania Republican gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano greets supporters on May 17, 2022. Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

By Jacob KornbluhAugust 02, 2022

In response to Pennsylvania GOP gubernatorial nominee Doug Mastrianos distancing of himself from Gab, after he was widely criticized for his embrace of the antisemitic social media platform, Gab users have stepped up their antisemitic postings including death threats and calls for violence against Jews a new report showed.

Mastriano, a state representative and leader of the Stop the Steal movement aiming to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, is running against Pennsylvanias Jewish attorney general, Josh Shapiro. Democrats and Jewish Republicans criticized Mastriano after it was reported that he paid Gab and its founder, Andrew Torba, a $5,000 consulting fee in April and maintained an active account on the site.

Gab, a far-right social media platform launched in 2016 has long been an online echo chamber for white nationalism and antisemitic tropes. Robert Bowers, the man who killed 11 Jews at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh in 2018, had been a verified user of the site, where he posted neo-Nazi propaganda and calls for violence against Jews.

Under pressure, Mastriano last week disassociated himself from Torba, who frequently shared his antisemitic beliefs and anti-Jewish conspiracy theories in posts promoting the Republican candidates campaign. The candidate condemned antisemitism in all forms and closed his account.

Gab users responded with anger to Mastrianos move, according to Media Matters, a nonprofit group that monitors social platforms.

Where is Adolph when he is needed, wrote one user, referring to Nazi leader Adolph Hitler. Dear Lord, Smite Josh Shapiro, that weasel lying Jew, another user wrote. Other comments included, I would like to see their masonic temple in DC burnt to the ground, exterminate all Jews and they are a disease. Like cancer, need to be cut out and removed.

In a video on Saturday, Torba attacked the Godless media and doubled down on Christian nationalist views he had previously expressed. The only groups of people that are chosen are those that believe in Jesus Christ, he said, adding that the values cited in the Talmud disgusts him. He attacked Jonathan Greenblatt, chief executive of the anti-Defamation League and called the group a Jewish Nationalist organization that endorses, promotes, and defends Zionism, or Jewish Nationalism.

Earlier this year Torba, celebrated the destruction of the Temple. Almost 2000 years later, that Temple is still not standing, he said in remarks at the America First Political Action Conference (AFPAC), founded by Nick Fuentes, a white supremacist, as an alternative to the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC).

Though Mastriano issued a statement saying Torba doesnt speak for him or his campaign, he stopped short of denouncing Torba or asking for a reimbursement.

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A Pennsylvania candidate for governor cuts ties with Gab, and antisemitism on the site spikes - Forward

It was with great anticipation that I read Rabbi Hayyim Angels latest commentary, Psalms: A Companion Volume (Kodesh Press, 2022). Like so many of his other books on biblical text, Rabbi Angels newest volumethis time a commentary on the Book of Psalms or Tehillimdoes not disappoint. Overall Rabbi Angel has written a relevant and readable commentary that will grow the readers appreciation for Psalms.

Tehillim often stands out as one of the most compelling yet enigmatic books in the biblical canon. Its authentic and powerful insight into human experience produces a uniquely penetrating and reflective experience that has endured for centuries. Psalms are often quoted by religious and secular leaders for inspiration and recognized as one of the great literary works of Western Civilization. In recent history leaders ranging from former President Barack Obama to former President Donald Trump have publicly reflected on Psalms (chapters 46 and 34 respectively).

The new commentary is divided into 13 discrete chapters covering a handful of Psalms. Each chapter stands on its own, exploring a different thematic or structural aspect of the Psalms. The subdivision of the book makes for pleasant readings that can be done in short bursts or longer continuous studies. Many classic points are discussed, including the original context, authorship, structure and overall message that helps the reader gain deeper appreciation and insight for these compositions. More in-depth discussions of intentional omissions, imperfect acrostics, difficult phrases, repetitive psalms and superscriptions are also addressed for more advanced readers seeking to engage with deeper biblical scholarship. Despite the complexity and advanced sources shared by the author, the text remains surprisingly approachable and readable.

Understanding Psalms is doubly important for Jewish readers as many chapters and verses are enmeshed in the traditional liturgy. Psalms forms the bedrock of traditional Jewish prayer, encompassing no less than 50 Psalms throughout the weekly and Shabbat prayers. While many chapters of Psalms may be familiar to readers, without context they can remain somewhat opaque in meaning. Having a masterful overview such as the one provided in this new volume gives one a deeper appreciation of these compositions and ultimately can contribute to more significant prayers.

Rabbi Angel quotes widely, citing secular academic, rabbinic, American, Israeli and even Karaite sources. His introduction of many contemporary Jewish scholars to the general reader is of particular interest and a real contribution to the field. High quality insights by the likes of Amnon Bazak, Amos Hakham Yehudah Elitzur, Elhanan Samet and Yakov Medan present the reader with new and sophisticated observations. Equally impressive are the array of traditional rabbinic scholars who are not often quoted in modern analyses such as Rabbis Yosef Albo, Moshe ibn Gikatilla and Yosef Hayyun. Both groups of Jewish scholars, contemporary and medieval, are given the spotlight in this volume to help decipher the intricate meaning of Psalms. That these rabbinic opinions are lesser known today is a lament underscored by the author in this short but powerful book.

The Maimonidean principle of accepting the truth from whoever speaks it is loudly reinforced throughout the rabbis commentary as he gives equal deference to all textually supported opinions. The volume includes a subtle suggestion that critiques on both ends of the commentary spectrum have forsaken the diversity of high quality rabbinic voices in the exegeses of Psalms. On one hand the ultra-orthodox approach produces an invented homogenous interpretation that this volume demonstrates was never maintained by traditional commentators. On the other hand, an equally extreme secular approach, which the author quotes often, operates on the opposite end of the same echo chamber by ignoring many important opinions from the rabbinic corpus. Rabbi Angel reinforces the idea that many of the modern secular scholarship issues related to biblical study were already addressed centuries ago by the traditional first rate scholarship of the rabbis in the Talmud and Midrash, leaving the reader with a greater appreciation for both rabbinic commentary and the Psalms.

The volume includes a subtle suggestion that critiques on both ends of the commentary spectrum have forsaken the diversity of high quality rabbinic voices in the exegeses of Psalms.

Interesting forays in the commentary include reading the Psalms as a midrashic-intertextual window to understanding the narratives of the Bible. Psalms often references biblical narratives or personalitiessuch as events in the life of King David, the destruction of Jerusalem, or the crossing of the Red Sea. Rabbi Angel contends that Psalms functions as an early form of commentary that helps elucidate these narratives for the reader.

Most importantly, the commentary focuses on the multiple understandings of the Psalms that can speak to readers on different wavelengths. For example, many familiar chapters of Psalms can simultaneously address issues on a personal, historical and national level. For example, what was once a lament of national proportions for the destruction of Jerusalem, can now be repurposed by an individual seeking to rebuild their personal lives after tragedy. Or a Psalm recounting the celebratory nature of the exodus from Egypt can be utilized for personal thanks and celebration. These multiple meanings are what Rabbi Angel contends have made the Psalms eternally relevant to generations of readers.

The wide diversity of opinions quoted in this volume demonstrates the complexity of Tehillim while leaving the reader with a sense of appreciation for the biblical text and the excellent arrangement of these sources by the author. Overall the resulting commentary is a very amicable volume rooted in traditional interpretation while fully taking into account modern scholarship. It will leave the reader inspired by timeless messages of Psalms and enthusiastic to further their study.

Dr. Murray Mizrachi is a business professor at the Murray Koppelman School of Business at CUNY. His advisory firm, Murray Mizrachi Consulting LLC, is based in New York City where he resides with his family.

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Reading the Book of Psalms in the Twenty-First Century - Jewish Journal