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Congressman Jaime Raskin's visit to HTAA!

10/18/2017 03:12:19 PM

Oct18

Frank Solomon

Mazal Tov to Frank Solomon  for his recent write-up in Kol HaBirah on Congressman Jaime Raskin's visit to HTAA! 

Click Here To Read The Article! 

AT HAR TZEON-AGUDATH ACHIM, CONGRESSMAN SHARES INFLUENCE OF HIS JEWISH IDENTITY ON HIS PUBLIC LIFE

09/28/2017 01:35:01 PM

Sep28

Frank Solomon - Kol HaBirah News

Jews may be “People of the Book,” but Congressman Jamie Raskin (D – Md.) believes in putting words into action to help make the world a better place. That was one of the messages the new representative for Maryland’s 8th District had for the packed audience at Har Tzeon-Agudath Achim in Silver Spring, Maryland, on Sept. 23, Shabbat Shuva.

The former American University law professor and veteran Maryland state legislator said he could have chosen to become a rabbi, but chose a different road of public service.

And he never looked back: Raskin was elected as a Maryland state senator for District 20 in November 2006, representing parts of Silver Spring and Takoma Park. In 2012, he was named the majority whip for the Maryland State Senate and chairman of the Montgomery County Senate Delegation. For the past nine months since his election to Congress, he has applied his 25 years of academic teaching expertise to teach his colleagues about the U.S. Constitution.

Read More Here

THE RIGHTEOUS RAILWAY WORKERS OF LILLE, FRANCE: A LOCAL CONNECTION FROM ROSH HASHANAH, 1942

09/14/2017 01:37:02 PM

Sep14

Ira Brandriss - Kol HaBirah News

My mother, Perla Brandriss, often mentioned to us as children that it was Erev Rosh Hashanah, 1942, that the Nazis came to take her parents. They and their two youngest children were rounded up and taken to the railway station in their home town of Lille, France, together with many of the city’s other Polish Jews, to be sent to their deaths at Auschwitz.

Erev Rosh Hashanah that year fell on September 11, the date on which, 59 years later, another enemy of the Jews (and of enlightened mankind) sent airplanes crashing into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and a Pennsylvania field, murdering thousands.

Read More Here

The Untold Story of the Jewish Effort to Pass the G.I. Bill.  By our newest congregant,  Anna Selman

07/15/2017 01:00:33 AM

Jul15

On June 22nd, we celebrated the anniversary of the G.I. Bill, a historic act that was the first major piece of legislation dealing with the postwar era challenges to come.  With veterans coming home to already fully staffed factories, the G.I. Bill, officially known as the Service Member Readjustment Act of 1944, helped stop another recession by providing education and housing opportunities to veterans - allowing them to create new jobs and businesses in America’s new booming economy.  However, the Jewish effort behind the G.I. Bill is little known to the public.

In 1944, there were large groups of World War II veterans already living in the United States– discharged for either disability or family reasons.  A column in The Jewish Veteran explained, “Vets are being discharged more than 8,000 a week.  More than a million have been honorably discharged since Pearl Harbor.”  Many of these veterans brought with them unique postwar challenges similar to those war-related disabilities we see in today’s veterans. 

With over 50,000 Jewish World War II veterans discharged in 1944, the Jewish War Veterans of the United States (JWV) was one of the first veteran’s organizations to anticipate the needs of the returning soldiers.  Their national headquarters already had staff working on job placement, vocational training and treatment for disabled veterans.   It was no surprise when the American Legion announced their “GI Bill of Rights”, JWV was one of the first organizations to join on in support of the legislation. 

JWV was most effective in its campaigning and behind the scene work with Congressional members.  Not only did JWV leadership meet with Congressional leaders, the organization also started a vigorous phone and letter-writing campaign after their National Commander Archie Greenberg called their membership to action – “JWV favors S. 1767, the so-called GI Bill of Rights, for World War II Veterans sponsored by the American Legion and VFW.  Contact your local congressman immediately and urge them to support this vital bill for veterans.  Send National copies of all congressional letters.”

Chag Kasher V'Sameach!

04/07/2017 05:16:51 PM

Apr7

Visit htaa.org/passover to:

Sell your Chametz

Contribute to Maot Chittim

Check Holiday times for Services, Candle Lighting, & Yizkor

Kitchen Cleaning Guide

A White Shabbos!

01/22/2016 01:28:33 PM

Jan22

A message from our congregants,Carmi Kobren & Abbé Levin

01/08/2016 12:49:39 PM

Jan8

A message from our congregants,
Carmi Kobren & Abbé Levin

This story begins while I was siting in Shul during Shmeni Atzeret of this year.  The congregation was getting ready to begin Yizkor.  I was sitting with my parents thinking about my brother Ami.  Abbé was there to say Kaddish for, among others, her brother Robert.  Abbé approached me, and to my surprise asked to see if Save a Child's Heart could set up a meeting between her and Yulitha, a child the Levin family had sponsored for heart surgery in 2014 in memory of their brother Robert during Har Tzeon's yearly campaign.

Abbé explained that she would be traveling to Tanzania in January and if the family of Yulitha would be willing, she would love to meet the child that her family sponsored.  "My only hope was that a young child would have a chance at a full life. It would have thrilled Robert. To actually meet Yulitha would mean so much.”

So we got to work. People at Save A Child's Heart in Israel began to try, through their contacts in Tanzania, to find the Mcunguzi family to see if they would agree to meet Abbé. Two months later Abbé received an email from Save A Child’s Heart.  This is what it said:

I am glad to introduce you to Dr. Antke-Zuechner,  Dr. Emmanuela and Dr. Neema – our partners in Mwanza.  I have told them all about you and your trip to Tanzania, and they will be happy to assist with meeting Yulitha and her family during your visit in Mwanza.  They already spoke with the family and they are ready to meet with you at Malaika Beach Hotel. Dr. Emmanuela and/or Dr. Neema would escort the family and translate.

On January 2, Abbé met Yulitha and her family. With stuffed animals and other gifts in hand, Abbé and Tom meet Yulitha her sisters, brother and parents.

You have all been so generous in helping keep my bother Ami's dream alive.  Our Shul has been a major sponsor of Save A Child’s Heart and its work in mending the hearts of indigent children from around the world.  I look forward to this year’s campaign as we add more children to the 33, Yulitha among them, who have been saved thanks to Har Tzeon.

Shabbat Shalom,

Carmi Kobren


Rabbi,
I made it to Tanzania and met This beautiful young, happy, HEALTHY girl, Yulitha, W/her family last Saturday in Mwanza.  I thought you might like to see what HTAA has made possible w/SAVE A CHILD'S HEART.  For me, it was a very special day in my life, and how better to start 2016 (or should I say 5776?).  Lions are roaring now and baboons making themselves known.  No longer in the city and moving on.
Abbé Levin


 

A Message From Cantor Ben Bazian

12/29/2015 09:19:55 AM

Dec29

Dear Friends,
 
As Eva and I are in the final preparations for the wedding of our son and future daughter, Sam & Jessica, this weekend, I was tasked to prepare a D’var Torah for the Shabbat meals.  How wonderful that I have a son who made it so easy for me to connect the this week's torah reading with our Simcha.
 
Parashat Vayechi culminates the story of our Patriarchs with the passing of Jacob and Joseph.   It starts with Joseph and his sons approaching Jacob and he asks, “Mi Eila who are they?  There are various commentaries as to why Jacob did not recognize his grandchildren.  Some say it was because of his old age, others argue that G-d removed his inspiration due to their unworthiness to receive a blessing from Jacob.
Joseph responds to his father, “these are the sons that G-d has given to me with this” (asher natan li Elohim bazeh).  Rashi states that the term bazeh refers to his engagement document and marriage contract, the Ketubah.  This was Joseph’s way of showing Jacob that the boys were indeed worthy of his blessing and that they were not the product of the lecherous proclivities of the Egyptians.  Joseph showed his father that even in the midst of depravity he maintained the family's high standards of morality and faith.  Although Joseph was highly immersed in Egyptian culture, his Israelite identity and relationship with the Almighty never wavered.
 
Many years ago, I read a beautiful but highly technical commentary that unfortunately I cannot properly attribute to its author.  The question is asked, why is the marriage contract called a Ketubah?  The document should be referred to as a Ketav, writing.  There are seemingly 2 extraneous letters.  Ketav is spelled כתב while Ketubah is spelled כתובה.  Why the extra Vav ו and Heh ה ?
 
The Ketubah is used to unite a man and a women in the bonds of holy matrimony.  It outlines the obligations assumed as part of this bond and its standardized text has been used for many centuries.  The Hebrew words for man and woman are איש and אשה respectively.  Both words have two letters in common - the Aleph א and the Shin ש.  However, there are two unique letters, the Yud ' in man and the Heh ה in woman.  If we combine the man and woman and the Ketubah, the sacred marriage contract, the four letter name of Hashem is revealed. We have the Yud and Heh from man and woman and combined with the extra Vav and Heh from the Ketubah thus we construct the name of Hashem.  In a loving Jewish marriage, Hashem is ever present.
 
When a couple marries we pray that they build a Bayit Neeman B’Yisroel, a faithful Jewish home.  They do this by including Jewish values, rituals, love of God and each other in their household. 
 
Eva and I would love for you to share in our Simcha on Shabbat January 2, 2016 as we will host a Sheva Brachot luncheon for the newlyweds after services.
 
Shabbat Shalom,

Cantor Ben Bazian

 

Shana Tova 5776

09/11/2015 01:10:16 PM

Sep11

Will we ever see justice in the AMIA bombing case? by Dan Mariaschin

07/21/2015 10:35:35 AM

Jul21

Did the best chance for justice in the AMIA bombing case die with Alberto Nisman?

 

On July 18, 1994, terrorists bombed the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association (AMIA) building in Buenos Aires killing 85 and wounding 300. Twenty-one years later, no one has been brought to justice.

 

In fact, years of efforts to solve the case could be characterized as farcical. The original judge on the case was even removed and charges were brought against him. Things finally changed 11 years after the attack. That is when then-Argentine President Nestor Kirchner created a Special Investigative Unit and named Alberto Nisman as its prosecutor.

 

For years, Nisman heroically followed evidence in the terror attack wherever it led. And it led to some dangerous places.

 

Nisman’s investigation uncovered deep involvement in the attack by top levels of the Tehran government, often through its terror proxy—Hezbollah. Based on Nisman’s dogged research, Interpol issued arrest warrants for the attack, but no arrests have ever been made.

 

Nisman had been bravely gathering evidence in the case for a decade. Until his body was found Jan. 19, on the eve of a scheduled appearance before the Argentine Congress to expand on the complaint he made against the president and other members and allies of the government.

 

His mysterious death came soon after he filed a complaint against Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner and Foreign Minister Héctor Timerman alleging they offered Iran impunity in the 1994 terror attack, just before teaming up with Iran to create the “Commission of Truth,” designed, incredulously, to find those responsible for the attack.

 

It was easy to be skeptical of the “Commission of Truth” from the start. The stated goal was to form a partnership between Iran and Argentina what would “independently” investigate the bombing.What essentially occured was the Commission of Truth put the chief suspects in the case in charge of finding the attackers and interviewing them in Tehran.

 

An Argentine federal court recognized the absurdity of this relationship, calling it unconstitutional, and struck down the deal that basically would have shielded Iran from culpability in the attack. The Argentine government appealed this ruling though, and a Cassation Court will soon decide the matter.

 

Twenty-one years does not diminish the need for justice, or sooth the pain for the families of the victims, and the community as a whole.

 

Last month, I met with Jewish community leaders in Buenos Aires, along with representatives of families who lost loved ones in the attack. They are not giving up on justice. And neither are we.

 

Active in more than 20 countries in the Western Hemisphere, B’nai B’rith established our first Latin American branch in Argentina 85 years ago. Argentina is the home of the largest Jewish community in Latin America, the third largest in the Americas (after the United States and Canada), and the sixth largest in the world, with approximately 250,000 Jews.

 

Justice is not just an ephemeral idea to strive for. It’s a concrete embodiment of living in a civilized society. Having the perpetrators face charges for their vicious attack demonstrates to would be attackers that the world is watching, and there is a price for your barbarity.

 

In some ways, the AMIA bombing demonstrates how justice denied has lingering and deadly repercussions. The AMIA bombing was actually the second terrorist attack on the Argentine Jewish community. In April of 1992, 32 people were killed when the Israeli Embassy in Buenos Aires was bombed. Two years later, the AMIA bombing would become the worst terrorist attack ever committed against a Latin American country, and the worst anti-Semitic event since World War II.

 

Alberto Nisman’s death means the AMIA case has lost its most dogged, fearless and thorough champion. But it doesn’t mean the pursuit of justice should stop. 

It can’t. Because never forgetting, holding terrorists responsible for their actions, showing the civilized global community that chaos and lawlessness will not be rewarded, is a fundamental right and responsibility we share.

 

Daniel S. Mariaschin is Executive Vice President of B'nai B'rith International.

This article appeared on Fox News Opinion Page, 7/16/2015

http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2015/07/16/will-ever-see-justice-in-amia-bombing-case.ht.html

Not Just Numbers - The Sanctity of Speech - by Charles Shenitz

07/08/2015 10:27:45 AM

Jul8

This past Monday, June 29 the 12th of Tammuz was the first yahrzeit for my father George Abraham Shenitz, Yosef Avraham ben Binyamin Halevi z"l. I presented a Torah learning session in memory of my father after daily morning services. I chose to focus on my father's ability to carefully choose his words on all occasions as the inspiration for the following lessons.


We note that the Hebrew name for the book of Numbers in which we find ourselves now for Torah reading is Bamidbar. The Hebrew noun midbar meaning desert or wilderness can be reassigned vowels for the consonants mdbr, and we arrive at midaber, simply meaning, speaking. It is interesting to note what the book of Bamidbar has to offer on the subject of speech, both proper speech and very much improper speech. We will highlight a few examples here. Most of the discussion to follow was taken from the book of Torah commentary by Rabbi Pinchas Winston, Perceptions.


The second Torah portion of the book of Bamidbar, Naso, offers three clear-cut examples of the use or misuse of speech. That portion contains the Priestly blessings, illustrating possibly the best example of the use of human speech, namely, to ask for a blessing from G-d for others. The portion also contains the strange and lapsed ritual for dealing with the suspected adulteress, the Sota. Classical rabbinical commentary links this situation of a confirmed adulterous to the misuse of speech to entice others into adultery. Finally, there is the segment about the Nazir, one who takes a vow to abstain from wine and to not cut his hair, ostensibly for the purpose of attaining greater spiritual heights. This last example in Naso can be deemed a positive use of speech.
It pays to pause in our survey of the Torah portions to state the following about human speech. The rabbis in both ancient and modern times view human speech as a special gift from G-d. After all, it separates us from the animals and makes human life potentially sacred whereas we cannot say the same at all for the rest of the animal kingdom. Therefore, misuse of speech is seen as a very grave sin. We will see this very clearly shortly and repeatedly.

In the portion of Shelach Lecha, Moses sends the 12 spies to scout ahead in the Land of Israel. Ten of the spies come back with a basically true report but a distorted, slanderous assessment of the Promised Land - only Joshua and Caleb give the proper, positive assessment and encouragement for the children of Israel. The slanderous report from the group of 10 leads the children of Israel to anguish and despair concerning the prospects for continuing on towards Israel. The Torah reports that it was a night of weeping. From the Rashi comment that says that G-d told the children of Israel that "you are weeping now so you shall continue to weep on this day for the many coming years", that day being the ninth of Av, we see that the ill use of speech to slander and to foment rebellion resulted in later tragedy throughout our history. This is of course in addition to the punishment immediately proclaimed, that all of the adults who came out of Egypt would die in the desert and not see the Promised Land, all of course except for Joshua and Caleb.  This punishment of continued traveling in the desert for a total of 40 years is well known.

The portion of Korach of course features the uprising instigated by Korach against Moses and Aaron, and thus against G-d. The Midrash adds many taunting and demeaning questions that Korach challenged Moses with regarding particular commandments of the Torah. For Korach's egregious misuse of speech, he was punished when "the Earth opened its mouth and swallowed" him and his followers, truly a punishment measure for measure, midah kineged midah, for sinning with one's mouth, for poor use of the human faculty of speech.

In Chukat, there is the well-known episode where Moses is commanded by Hashem to speak to the rock to draw water for the children of Israel who were complaining about the lack of such. Moses hits the rock in anger after castigating the children of Israel for their prolonged complaining. Water does come out, the mission of sensors fulfilled, but Moses and Aaron, who was by Moses’ side all along, are then punished. The two leaders are informed by Hashem that they will not be permitted to enter the land of Israel for failing to obey the Divine command. The usual lesson was well explained this past Shabbat at services at Har Tzeon, where the punishment for this seemingly slight offense is considered appropriate for exalted leaders of the people of Israel.  (It should also be noted that there are other explanations in rabbinic literature as to why Moses in particular was barred from entering the land of Israel.) A possible, deeper explanation of what transpired here was offered by Rabbi Winston, namely, that the use of speech in drawing water from the rock would have achieved a higher spiritual level and thus brought an increase in faith in Hashem to the Children of Israel. Alas, hitting the rock was a prosaic display of physicality and thus did not go towards increasing the people's faith or spirituality. (Compare this with the similar situation in the Book of Exodus 14:6 where Moses was commanded to hit the rock to draw water, and the mission was successfully carried out.  The physical action there was appropriate because the Children of Israel were on a lower spiritual plane then, being "the new kids in the desert!").

Let us skip for the moment to the last portion of Bamidbar, namely, Maasei. One has to say that there is not anything that immediately jumps out in this portion that would appear to pertain to speech. If we look closely at the very end of the portion, that is, the very end of the book, chapter 36 of Numbers, we see something interesting. Briefly, the daughters of Zelophchad do not get to inherit their father's land. Circumstances there motivate the other members of the tribe of Manasseh to speak up on behalf of the five daughters of the deceased Zelophchad, who left no male children (a male child inherits the family (father's) portion of land, and a female child inherits nothing according to the law as proclaimed up to that point).


If one reads that chapter carefully, one sees that the plea for some relief for modification in the law was carried out in a very orderly way, with tribe members approaching Moses and the chieftains (princes) with their case without recrimination or accusations, as happened in earlier events in Bamidbar. Moses then apparently seeks an answer to the difficult question from Hashem (explicit dialogue between Moses and Hashem is not recorded here). The answer from G-d (Numbers 36:5) is, "The plea of the Josephite tribe is just" (Etz Hayim, recent JPS year 2000 corrected translation). The unambiguous term of approval, expressed in the translation as "just" in the message handed down from Moses. This is the Divine message for this situation, for otherwise we might have anticipated simply a command such as, "speak to the children of Joseph (Manasseh) and instruct them ..." Our conclusion here is that this passage illustrates that the proper way of raising issues and engaging in discussion of Jewish law or other matters where there appears to be a conflict is to go to and through the proper authorities to discuss, and not to antagonize or foment rebellion or 'machlotet', divisiveness. (A further note on translation leading to "just" in 32:5 is presented below. In addition, we can appreciate an allowance for woman to inherit and own property under particular circumstances, although this salutary outcome of the situation is not part of our survey of the use of speech.).


May we all try to observe rules and principles of good speech to make sure that our precious human capability, the gift of speech from G-d, is properly used. 

Shabbat Shalom.

 


 Endnotes for further investigation

The interested reader may continue here to see other excerpts and topics that were not dealt with above. Some of these items are somewhat obscure relative to the main subject, the proper use of speech, and would have distracted from the flow of the main exposition above. In one famous case to be approached here, some surrounding issues would have been too distracting.
The first portion of the book of Bamidbar, itself named Bamidbar, was skipped in the survey of topics of speech because there is very little directly related to that subject of interest here. One claim is that the census taken in the portion  Bamidbar requires and implies speech to some extent but that seems to be a rather tenuous connection.
The portion of Behaalotcha of course includes the famous incident of Miriam and Aaron speaking in less than flattering terms about their brother Moses and his wife. There are different interpretations of what was said and why it was defamatory speech, other than the two siblings brazenly comparing their relationship to Hashem with Moses' relationship to Hashem. The upshot was that Miriam was struck with the plague of leprosy and had to be isolated outside the camp for seven days. This incident does seem to serve as the paradigm for the later rabbinical attribution of leprosy as a punishment for lashon hara, evil speech. Also, Moses' succinct, impassioned plea to G-d to heal Miriam is certainly worthy of note (Num. 12:13).
In the portion of Balak, in addition to the speeches of Bilaam, we find the quick, decisive action of Pinchas to a public display of immorality at the very end of the portion. The aftermath of this action, the high praise of Pinchas, takes place immediately following in the next portion, which bears his name. Of course, the immediate analysis of this event says that Pinchas is a man of action but no apparent significant use of speech is present in the text. The Midrash adds that Pinchas quickly consulted with Moses about the Law when the public, reprehensible, immoral act was taking place. Moses did confirm that the man and woman taking part in this act deserved to die, and thus Pinchas then acted decisively and effectively. In addition, along the lines of acts of speech and delving into some arcane analysis, Rabbi S. R. Hirsch pointed out that the first two letters in the Hebrew name Pinchas form the words "My mouth". The remaining letters of name, with a switch of sibilants at the end from samech to tsade, then read as the root of the word meaning drive or impel. Those we can read this in a more expanded form as, “G-d's command drove me to do this.”

The next to last portion, Matot, of the book of Numbers contains laws of upholding or on occasions nullifying oaths and vows. In other words, this portion clearly is included in our survey of the theme of speech within the book of Numbers. The final portion of Numbers, Maasei, was included above with the questions of inheritance for the daughters of Zelophchad. A fine-grained detail of the language will be looked at now.


We note that the Hebrew word kayn, just simply meaning 'yes' in today's modern idiom, is  a form of the root meaning just, upright, correct in Hebrew. (Other derived forms are kaynim and kaynut.) This appears to be part of the justification for the word ‘just’ appearing in the translation of what Moses brought back to those pleading the case.

In addition, to borrow one of the techniques of investigation and exposition of great commentators such as Rashi, we can look at Targum Onkelos, the ancient Aramaic translation that accompanies the text of the Torah in many printed editions. The rationale of course is that this ancient translation was much closer in time than our modern age to the writing of the original text of the Torah. The Aramaic word there corresponding to the Hebrew, kayn, and English 'correctly', is yaut (yaus, Ashkenazic, two syllables in either case). According to the authoritative dictionary of Marcus Jastrow on the ancient Aramaic language, the words 'yaut' has the meaning of 'propriety' (and right and correct, merely confirming most modern translations of that verse).
 

Finally it should be mentioned that the children of Israel complained and provoked Moses and Hashem on several occasions throughout the book of Bamidbar. Two of the six things to remember daily according to the Torah are the ways that the children of Israel "angered Hashem in 'the wilderness'" and what Hashem did to Miriam "when you departed from Egypt". These six remembrances are sometimes added at the end of the morning service, such as can be found in the Art Scroll Siddur.

The JCRC of Greater Washington Stands with the Community of Charleston at This Time of Tragedy

06/19/2015 02:57:06 PM

Jun19

 

The murders committed in Charleston at the historic Emanuel AME Church and the desecration of the Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes at Tabgha reflect a fundamental misunderstanding of the unity of all of G-d's creation. We issue the following statements in response to these heinous crimes:

The JCRC of Greater Washington Stands with the Community of Charleston at This Time of Tragedy

We stand with the people of Charleston, the city's faith community, and the congregants of the Emanuel AME Church today as they confront the most horrific of acts - the hateful slaughter in a holy sanctuary.

We remember the victims of this senseless violence: Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, Reverend Clementa Pinckney, Cynthia Hurd, Tywanza Sanders, Myra Thompson, Ethel Lee Lance, Daniel L. Simmons, Rev. Depayne Middleton, and Susie Jackson. May their memories be for a blessing.

The long history of churches as the site of violence against the black community attests to the evil nature of racist extremism. We affirm the sanctity of every life and our commitment to building a just society where every individual is valued and cherished. We affirm our responsibility to pursue justice, work with our coalition partners, and support our law enforcement and justice system to build a better society.

On September 15, 1963, Klu Klux Klan terrorists killed four girls when they bombed the 16th Street Church in Birmingham, Alabama. The Reverend Martin Luther King said: “They died between the sacred walls of the church of God, and they were discussing the eternal meaning of love.” May we all strive to fulfill the commandment of our creator: “To love our neighbor as ourselves.”

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The JCRC of Greater Washington Deplores Attack on Church of the Multiplication of Loaves and Fishes at Tabgha

The JCRC of Greater Washington strongly deplores the despicable attack on the Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes at Tabgha. We join representatives of the government of Israel

and Israeli religious officials in calling for a swift and thorough investigation leading to the arrest of the perpetrators. Setting fire to a house of worship is in direct opposition to the Israeli commitment to religious tolerance and the Jewish values of honoring the dignity and rights of all. This is an act of “Hillul HaShem” a desecration of G-d’s name and an affront to the entire Jewish community, as well as to civilized people everywhere.

This is an opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to the struggle against extremism, and to reach out to build coalitions with all communities who struggle with their own extremists and to promote tolerance and understanding.

Who Is A God-Fearing Person? 

06/04/2015 05:04:20 PM

Jun4

In our Shavuot inter-generational Torah study we divided into pairs, and attempted to answer the following question:

Who is a "God-fearing" person? 

By looking at the 4 stories in the Torah where the term "God-fearing" is mentioned, we found a common denominator: 

A "God-fearing" person is one who treats the stranger and the underprivileged with compassion!

How did we arrive at that conclusion?  

See for yourself and participate in our Torah study by printing the following table, analyzing the relevant text,  and filling out the columns: 

Happy Mother's Day

05/09/2015 11:59:30 PM

May9

Someone once asked if the idea of observing Mother's Day is consistent with Jewish law and tradition. Not because he was bemoaning having to pay inflated prices for flowers but, as a traditionalist, the concept did not sit well with him. He suspected that identifying a single day to honor our mothers would be inconsistent with our biblical obligation to honor our parents - an obligation which applies, as the Sefer HaChinukh explains, at all times. He argued that people should strive to honor their parents each and every day and that to designate a particular day would be incongruous with our tradition.

 

Following this line of reasoning, I answered him, we should also not observe Passover or Yom Kippur. Passover since never a week goes by, especially on Shabbat, that we do not recall the Exodus from Egypt as part of our liturgy. This is just the beginning of our frequent recollection of the Exodus. According to our annual Torah reading cycle, four weeks per year are dedicated to retelling our collective experience of being taken forth from slavery to freedom and ultimately to the Promised Land. Still, it is incumbent upon us gather around the table on Seder night and stay up late telling the dramatic story of the miracle of the Exodus and the birth of our People.

 

On Yom Kippur, we ask forgiveness from one another and atonement from God. This activity, too, is not limited specifically to the 10th of Tishrei or even the preceding months. We are taught that we should constantly be involved in doing teshuva, introspection and repentance. We do not wait until next Yom Kippur to analyze our thoughts or alter our actions. Yet, on Yom Kippur, we do teshuva in a much more grand way than usual. We wear white, abstain from nourishment and focus solely on reconciling our relationships with God and man. Although it is our goal to constantly be involved in teshuva, if every day were Yom Kippur, nothing would ever get done.

 

While we indeed show gratitude and respect to our most important women every day, on Mother's Day we do so on a different scale. This weekend, we show our appreciation in a more notable way than usual as we celebrate the women who are significant to us as mothers, wives, sisters, and daughters. You are essential to our people as givers and teachers of life. Happy Mother's Day to all.

 

Rabbi Steve Suson

 

The Magic Omer Formula: How to Figure Out the Correct Count without A Calendar or Internet!

04/22/2015 02:22:22 PM

Apr22

By Shamai Leibowitz

If you were stranded on an island without a Jewish calendar and no internet connection (oy gevalt!), how would you know what number to count in the Omer?

Every year, on the second night of Passover, we begin a special 49-day period in the Jewish calendar known as Sefirat Ha’omer, the counting of the Omer.

Counting the Omer is a Biblical mitzvah, mentioned in Leviticus 23:15, and it is performed consecutively for 49 nights by reciting a blessing followed by the correct count of that particular night. On the first night – “Today is one day to the Omer”, on the second night – “Today is two days to the Omer” and so on, until the 49th night – which is always the night before Shavuot.

Rabbi Soloveitchik interprets this mitzvah as a sign that we control our own time – which is the mark of free people, while other commentators offer interesting and profound explanations for this mitzvah. The problem, however, is how to remember the correct count for any particular night, especially now that we’re past the first week. This Friday, for example, is it 14 or 15 or 16 to the Omer?

Sure, you can look up a Jewish calendar or go online and find websites, but what if you don’t have access to calendars or to the web? Imagine you are in an army operation where no electronics are allowed? Or what if you’re hiking on the Appalachian Trail?

Magic Formula: G.S.S–7

Every year there is a magic formula to figure out the correct Omer count on any given night. It can be summarized with the acronym G.S.S – 7 which means:

  1. GUESS a number
  2. SUBTRACT the day of the week (Sunday=1, Monday=2, etc).
  3. SUBTRACT magic number 1
  4. If your result is DIVISIBLE BY 7 (or it’s 0), your guess is right. If not – make another guess and repeat the process.

 

Let’s see how this formula saves the day by following the story of the Amars who went on a vacation to the Pago Pago Islands.

Yaakov and Rachel Amar felt they needed quality time together, so they left all their smartphones and tablets back home, and traveled to the romantic Pago Pago Islands. They arrived there on Friday April 24, and immediately relished the amazing landscape and inviting beaches of these American Samoa islands.

On Friday night, as they were about to begin a Shabbos meal, the Amars remembered that they haven’t counted the Omer. Just as they were about to begin the blessing, they realized, to their chagrin, that they forgot what’s the correct count! Because they were so excited about the trip – they couldn't remember what’s the Omer count tonight. They had no calendar, and it's Shabbos (so they couldn't call anyone), and anyway, there is no wireless service on this island. 

Both of them knew the Halakhic rule that if you forget to count one night, it irreparably disrupts the count, and you are not allowed to continue counting the Omer with a blessing on any of the following nights. The Amars became crestfallen, deeply concerned because they were about to lose the privilege to perform this special mitzvah. An otherwise magical vacation was about to be ruined. 

Just when they thought all is lost, Rachel remembered the magic formula. Excitedly, she exclaimed: “Guess, subtract day, subtract magic number 1, divisible by 7?”

She proceeded to make a reasonable guess. “Let’s try 22 for tonight’s Omer number. After all, we started counting about 3 weeks ago so it must be in this range.”
Applying the formula, from her guess of 22 she subtracted the day of the week, Friday:

22 – 6 = 16


She then subtracted magic number 1:

16 – 1 = 15

The result, 15, is not divisible by 7. That means her original guess (22) is wrong. 

Catching on quickly, Yaakov realized they need to refine their original guess so he suggested “Let’s try 21 and see what happens.”

They reapplied the magic formula:

21 – 6 – 1 = 14

Eureka!

The result, 14, is divisible by 7, showing that the refined guess of Omer count 21 is the correct count for this Friday night!

They did it! Without any connection to the outside world, our couple figured out that this Friday night, April 24, we count 21 in the Omer.

They high-fived each other, drank a L’chayim, and made the blessing over the Omer, joyous that they were able to perform this mitzvah and count the Omer properly.

This formula will work for any night of the Omer this year, with a small caveat that your guess has to be within a range of 7 of the correct count. That should not be a problem because most people know the approximate range we’re in so their guess is not completely wild.

The formula is good for every year, but the magic number changes. You'll need to come back to our website to get next year's magic number. But for the current Omer season, this formula will ensure that even if you find yourself on the amazing Pago Pago Islands or simply got stuck without your smartphone, you’ll never forget the correct Omer count. 

Shabbat Shalom

04/17/2015 03:42:06 PM

Apr17

28 Nisan 5775 / 17 April, 2015

Parashat Shemini

Shabbat Shalom! 

Freedom is a value to which we can relate both as Jews and as Americans. It means that we respect others' rights to live and believe as they please. Freedom is not anarchy, in order for all to truly be free, one's actions must not infringe on the freedom of others. The theme of Passover, celebrated last week, was about celebrating freedom and liberation from oppression.

 

It is no wonder that, merely six days after Passover, we observe Yom Hashoa (Holocaust Remembrance Day). More than seventy years have passed and we still cannot grasp the enormity of the evil that was perpetrated upon six million of our brothers and sisters and upon millions of other victims of the Nazi reign of terror and death. Freedom is on our minds because we are committed to never allowing atrocities that plagued our past to recur in the future.

 

That is why I am proud that our synagogue is home to so many survivors who are committed to educating the next generation. This year, in our community, Martin Finkelstein, Harvey Goldfarb, and Josie Traum shared their stories of survival with our Religious School students and Nesse Godin addressed the congregation last Shabbat. Outside our walls, too, our members were working double time to do their part in ensuring that the world never forgets. Isaac Gendelman will share reflections on his experience as a Polish survivor at the Kemp Mill Synagogue on Sunday, 4/19. Gil Waganheim (pictured below) shared his experience with Leisure World residents. Gil was an American soldier who fought at the Battle of the Bulge and his company liberated the Mauthausen Concentration Camp in Austria. Click here to view more photos of our members' activities on Yom Hashoa.

 

We pray that the divine will that all people should live in freedom, safety, and mutual respect be realized quickly and in our lifetimes. May we enjoy a Shabbat of shalom in our own households and may the world, one day, enjoy the blessing of shalom - peace among all peoples.

 

Shabbat Shalom & Chag Sameach!

 

Rabbi Steven Suson

 

Gil Waganheim (HTAA Trustee) speaks at Leisure World


!מזל טוב

Vivana Labarca will celebrate her Bat Mitzvah at HTAA this Shabbat. Please join us for Shabbat Services on her special day! Mazal tov to Vivi and the entire family!

 

!יום הולדת שמח

Happy Birthday to:

Marta Ressin, Felipe Kohn, Ilana Barris, Daniel Fox, Eileen Curreri, Iris Cooper, Ruth Seemann, Joshua Schmidt, Claire Windsor, Brent Polkes, Isaiah Kohn

 

המקום ינחם

Condolences to:

Sidney Coplon on the loss of his sister, Margaret "Jimmie" Evelyn Coplon Semel, z"l. May her memory forever be a source of blessing and inspiration.


    

Happy Passover!

04/03/2015 05:08:04 PM

Apr3

14 Nisan, 5775 / April 3, 2015

Happy Passover! 

For a host of reasons, this Passover does not come at a most joyous time in my life. Don’t worry, I’m fine. However, I suspect that we all have our own personal “mitzrayims” - afflictions for which we never asked and conditions from which there seems to be no escape. Thankfully, we are not physically imprisoned, but emotional and psychological bondage bring shackles that are no less binding. All of these struggles leave us saying “Dayeinu! Enough already, I can’t take any more.”

 

Sometimes we are pushed to the brink of what we think we can handle, only to have God rescue and deliver us through perilous times. When every obstacle in life looms larger than the last, we are presented with two choices: to give up or to push even harder and trust that things will work out for the best. 

 

Recently, we watched the Disney Pixar movie, Finding Nemo (one of my favorites), with our 4 year-old. Although it is an animated film, all of the characters have distinctive personalities and they represent people who we all know in our own lives. More than that, each character represents aspects of our own personalities that come into play when we are faced with various real-life decisions. At times we are like Marlin, the over-protective parent or Crush, the extremely permissive one. We can relate both to the selfish seagulls and to staunchly committed friends and advocates like Gill, the Moorish Idol. But my favorite character in the movie is Dory, the forgetful put lovable Blue Surgeonfish. Whenever Dory found herself in a hairy predicament, she just repeated the mantra, "just keep swimming, just keep swimming."

 

In a few hours, we will be singing Dayeinu, it would have been enough. Of course, we know that it would not have been enough. If God had led us out of Egypt but not split the sea, or split the sea but did not drown the oppressors… I don’t believe that any of these miracles would have sufficed and I suspect the author of the poem didn’t either. So why say Dayeinu - it would have been enough? Because we have to continually thank God for all of the goodness with which He blesses us - even in small ways. We recognize that our blessings are many and our troubles are great and each time an obstacle miraculously transforms into a blessing, however minute, we say Dayeinu. It’s a statement that we are grateful for the watchful protection of our Creator and know that, come what may, if we do our best to let our principles guide us, God will reveal a path and unbind our hands. That is the meaning of the blessing, matir asurim.

 

It is said that the evening of the first Seder marks the original Passover celebration and the ensuing exodus from Egypt. Can you imagine in your mind’s eye how daunting it must have felt to march out from Egypt only to be chased by one of the worlds most powerful armies? Our ancestors were faced with a massive sea blocking their escape from Pharaoh’s chariots and certain death.

 

The talmud teaches that the crossing of the Sea of Reeds took place on the 7th day of Passover. At the final hour, when hope was bleak and freedom seemed so far away, suddenly another miracle happened and the sea split.

 

The message of Passover, as summarized by Dory the Surgeonfish, is to never give up on hope and trust in God’s love - even against all odds. Just as the sea split for our ancestors at the most dangerous moment, God will continue to watch over you and all humankind as long as we just keep swimming.

 

Shabbat Shalom & Chag Sameach!

 

Rabbi Steven Suson


 

 

HTAA Students Play Music and Show Their Talents to Seniors at "Cohen-Rosen House" on Good Deeds Day 2015

03/22/2015 03:07:54 PM

Mar22

In order of appearance: 

Vivi - playing "Ode to Joy" on oboe

Annie Sacks - playing "Classical Sonatina" on piano

Emily, Nina and David twirling the hula hoops

Marta - playing "Russian Dance" on piano

Niv Leibowitz - breaking boards with Taekwondo punches and kicks

The More You Give, The More You Get

02/24/2015 04:14:06 PM

Feb24

משנכנס אדר מרבין בשמחה

"When Adar comes, we increase our happiness!" (Taanit 29a)

Today we celebrate Rosh Chodesh and joyously welcome the Hebrew month of Adar.  When this time comes around, the Talmud instructs us to increase our happiness level.  In fact, this is one of the few seasons that we are actually commanded to be in a positive, even happy, mood.  Although it seems strange that our tradition would tell us how to feel at a particular time, some of the mitzvot associated with the upcoming holiday of Purim can help us to achieve a happier demeanor.  These observances help us to focus on the hidden miracles that bless our lives each day.  All of the customs on Purim are designed to remind us to

  • appreciate and give thanks to the Almighty for the Divine protection we enjoy. 
  • cherish our families and close friends, upon whom we rely for support and inspiration.
  • realize our potential to help others in need.

In addition to reading the Purim story in Megillat Esther, participating in a festive Purim celebration and sending Mishloach Manot (food related care packages) to our friends and neighbors, there is another very important mitzvah to be completed in this season which adds to our sense of satisfaction.  It is known in our rabbinic texts as Matanot L'evyonim or giving charity to those who are less fortunate.  These gifts help the recipients in obvious and measurable ways, but let me suggest that this precept is central to this season because of the personal affect giving has on the giver.  

Newton's law of every action having an equal and opposite reaction surely applies to charitable giving as well.  The satisfaction we feel after having effectively helped others to improve their lives enriches us spiritually and helps us to achieve personal happiness.

Although sometimes outside factors influence us emotionally, an important lesson of the month of Adar is that we do have control over how we feel by virtue of our actions.  When we do good for others we, in turn, feel more complete, useful and happy.

Click here to increase your happiness by increasing your tzedakah.

Wishing you and your family a Shabbat Shalom and a very happy Adar!

Rabbi Steve Suson

Lessons from the Olive Tree 

02/10/2015 12:33:40 PM

Feb10

By Chana Williams

A 2000-year-old olive tree in Israel (credit: Dawn Moraski)

On Tu Bishvat, one of the fruits we eat is olives. The Hebrew word for olive tree is "etz shemen," meaning “tree of oil”. As you probably know, olives can be squeezed to make olive oil, which has many uses in Jewish tradition. 

Back in the times of the Mishkan and Beis Hamikdash, we used olive oil to light the Menorah, and to kindle our Shabbat lights. When our prophet Shmuel anointed Saul and David as kings, he poured olive oil over their foreheads. Moshe also poured olive oil over Aharon’s head when he became the Kohen Gadol. When we offered daily korbanos in the Beis Hamikdash, olive oil was used in the service.

For a deeper understanding of olive trees and olives, I’ll explain how the olive tree symbolizes our nation.

Let’s start with the root of the tree. Our roots are Avraham and Yitzchak. Why are they our roots? Avraham was full of chesed – kindness; always inviting people to his tent, cleansing their neshama by feeding them Kosher food, and teaching them to bless HaShem. Then there’s Yitzchak, whose trait was gevurah – strength. He never doubted the will of HaShem. Even when he knew he would be offered as a sacrifice on Mt. Moriah, he nevertheless went along with his father, having faith in Hashem. 

The trunk can symbolize Yaakov. He was emet – truth. Truth is the ability to interpret reality from all perspectives, and not be confined only to one, narrow view. When we apply both a strict view and a compassionate view, we are getting a truthful perspective. 

The branches of the olive tree symbolize the 12 tribes. From the branches come the twigs and leaves. The twigs and leaves are the families of Israel. The "crown jewels" of the olive tree are the olives, which are the young children of the nation who are studying torah and following Hashem’s ways.

But why olives? Let’s go back to the time of Noah, at the end of the flood. Noah sent out a dove, wanting  to check if it can find dry land. The first time it returned because it couldn't find any dry land. He sent the dove out for a second time, and it returned with an olive tree leaf:

וְהִנֵּה עֲלֵה-זַיִת טָרָף בְּפִיהָ; וַיֵּדַע נֹחַ, כִּי קַלּוּ הַמַּיִם מֵעַל הָאָרֶץ.
(בראשית ח', י"א)

And the dove came unto him at evening; and in her mouth was an olive leaf, freshly plucked;

so Noah knew that the waters had receded from the earth. (Genesis 8:11)

 

This shows that despite the deluge, the olive tree remained with leaves and twigs, symbolizing the reemergence of life and hope after a devastation. 

In Jeremiah, Chapter 17, Verse 8 we read:

He shall be like a tree planted by waters, sending forth its roots by a stream; It doesn’t sense the coming of heat, its leaves are ever fresh; It doesn’t cease to yield fruit.

This means that as long as we follow the commandments, read the Torah, and do mitzvot, we can overcome hardships that come in our way. At times we may falter but because Hashem is with us, we can persevere. 

Parashat Vayechi - Why is "Yehuda" Special This Week?  by Shamai Leibowitz

01/05/2015 11:43:37 AM

Jan5

 
 
In writing a Sefer Torah, the scribe has has wide latitude on how to place the words in the columns. There is no halachic or mesorah imperative that the columns start or end with any particular word, and the scrolls vary from sefer to sefer. Although some Sifrei Torah start all the columns with a “vav,” this custom is controversial, with sages such as Maimonides opposing it because it caused the scribes to stretch out letters to accommodate this layout, which made the Sefer Torah look deformed.

However, there are 6 exceptions to the “free formatting” rule. Six words in the Torah must appear at the top of the column. As mentioned already by Rabbi Menachem HaMeiri (13th century, France), the scribe must plan his writing so that these six words - spread throughout the Torah -  will appear at the top of a column. These six letters are: 
 
ב "bet"
י "yud"
ה "hey"
ש "shin"
מ "mem," and
 ו "vav." 
 
Notice that they form the Hebrew acronym: ביה שמו (pronounced BeYaH SHMO), which, coincidentally, has a nice meaning: "with G-d's name."
 
 
​So what do these letters stand for? 
 
The “bet” of BeYaH SHMO - is obvious: It's the first word of the Torah – “breishit”
​ which naturally comes at the top of the column​
.

In this week’s parsha, we find the second word that must appear at the top of the column. The “yud” from BeYaH SHMO is the first letter of the name “Yehuda” in the verse:

יְהוּדָה, אַתָּה יוֹדוּךָ אַחֶיךָ

(Breishit 49:8)

Why did Yehuda receive this great honor? 
 
I didn't find any explanation in the commentaries but my suggestion is that it's because he had the courage to admit his mistakes. 
 
In the story of his daughter-in-law Tamar, Yehuda admitted publicly that it was he who had sexual relations with her, and canceled his own decree to burn her at the stake (see Genesis ch. 38). 
 
In the story of the brothers in Egypt, Yehuda stood up for his younger brother Benjamin, and when Benjamin was falsely accused of stealing the goblet, Yehuda made a deeply moving speech, offering to remain as a servant in Egypt as long as Benjamin will be freed. That speech begins with the words "Vayigash Eilav Yehuda" ("Then Yehuda approached him") and the S'fat Emet understands these words to mean, "Yehuda approached himself." He discovered who he really was, not the compromiser who said "Let us sell him . . . " [selling Joseph to the Ishmaelites] causing his father boundless grief, but the advocate for compassion and family harmony.  
 
​In our shul, Chaim, who received the fourth aliyah on Shabbos, verified that “yehuda” was at the top of the column, and assured the congregation of the validity of our synagogue's Sefer Torah. 
  

Happy, Healthy & Prosperous New Year!

Parashat Vayeitze

12/01/2014 10:27:03 PM

Dec1

Was Laban Really A Wicked Person?

By Charles Shenitz and Shamai Leibowitz

In this week’s Torah portion, Vayeitze, one of the main characters is Laban, or Lavan, Rebecca's brother and Yaakov's uncle, with whom Yaakov has a tumultuous relationship. 

 We referenced Lavan in this column several few weeks ago in our commentary on the Torah portion of Ki Tavo. In that portion, the Torah prescribes that a person bringing bikurim (first fruit offerings) to the Temple in Jerusalem must make a declaration. This declaration opens with the Hebrew statement, “arami oved avi” and we saw there are at least two completely different interpretations – and therefore translations - of those three words: 

One translation is, “my father was a wandering Aramean” and “my father”  can refer to either Yaakov or Avraham. The other translation, perhaps shocking, is: “An Aramean sought to destroy my father”. The Aramean - in this translation - is a reference to Lavan. Let us investigate this highly unflattering interpretation now.

 The critical and denigrating identification of Lavan leads to the statement in the Haggadah where it is stated that Lavan (the Aramean) “sought to uproot all”, to destroy the forming Jewish people (that is, the progenitors of the 12 tribes of Israel). From where does this harsh treatment of Lavan come?  

To answer this question, we will investigate some of Lavan’s attributes found in this week’s portion. In the interest of balance, fairness and full intellectual inspection of the texts, we will also try to show where some positive attributes of Lavan can be found!

In the first place, most people will find fault with Lavan squeezing many years of labor out of Yaakov to enable him to obtain Rachel as his wife. Most people are familiar with that story. Lavan "switched brides" to marry off his older daughter Leah first, forcing Yaakov to work 7 years for Rachel and then another 7 years (after the surreptitious "bride exchange") before finally marrying Rachel, and then working an additional 6 years after that. It would appear that mainly for this reason, Rashi comments (in Ki Tavo) that the Hebrew term for Aramean, “arami,” can be rearranged to spell “ramai”  or cheater!

The first time we are introduced to Lavan is when Abraham’s servant, Eliezer, travels to Aram Naharayim and meets Lavan and his father Bethuel. In that story, following Eliezer’s request for permission to take Rebecca back with him, the text quotes their reply as follows:

Then Lavan and Bethuel answered: ‘The matter was decreed by the L-rd; we cannot speak to you bad or good.’ (Genesis 24:50)

Rashi notes that Lavan was a wicked person and so rushed in to answer before his father. However, there may be a more favorable interpretation. Following this verse, we no longer here about Bethuel.  Only Lavan continues to converse with Eliezer until he finally gives Rebecca his blessing and sends her off. This signals that Lavan, as the brother, had more duties and powers in regard to his sister than his father, and can easily explain why his name came first in the aforementioned verse.

When Yaakov finally departed from Lavan with all of Yaakov’s children, cattle and other possessions, the scene where Lavan and Yaakov face off speaks poorly for Lavan’s character. In that scene, Lavan himself said clearly,

“It lies within the power of my hand to do evil to you” (Genesis 31:29).

 Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik points out that Lavan used the plural form in Hebrew for “you.” Rav Soloveitchik contends that Lavan should have used the singular form, since he was talking to Jacob only (according to context, anyway). In this manner, says the Rav, he was threatening to kill even his own daughters and the other children and grandchildren. Not even Pharaoh did this as Pharaoh tried to kill the Hebrew male children but not his own son. Says Rabbi Soloveitchik: "In comparison, Pharaoh was sane... He wanted to keep the Jews downtrodden but he did not try to wipe them out nor did he wish to harm his own family.”

In another comment, Rabbi Soloveitchik notes the verse in Genesis 31:2, where the Torah states, “Jacob also saw that Laban’s manner toward him was not as it had been in the past.” In other words, Yaakov has noticed that his father-in-law, Lavan, is no longer pleased with him. From there follows the flight with the whole family and possessions. Furthermore, Rabbi Soloveitchik enters a deeper discussion about the covenant that Lavan entered into with Yaakov. Lavan invoked the name of his ancestors, Abraham and Nahor, and with regards to the latter, Rabbi Soloveitchik interprets this as seeking to perpetuate idolatry and thus bring an end to the incipient holiness and uniqueness of the great ancestors of the Jewish people.

 However, we must remember the main point of the story which is the reconciliation between Lavan and Yaakov. Our parasha concludes by telling us that Lavan heeded G-d's warning, and never did any harm to Yaakov. Furthermore, we witness a detailed scene of peace-making between Lavan and Yaakov, in which the men collect stones and build a pillar. The Torah even tells us both how Yaakov called the pillar ("gal-ed") and how Lavan named it ("yegar sahaduta"), demonstrating that both sides took this treaty very seriously. The story ends with Yaakov and Lavan breaking bread together while making a covenant (brit) of peace. 

The modern exegete Yehudah Nachshoni, in his “Studies in the Weekly Parashah,” compiled several lesser-known comments on the character of Lavan. In a section titled, “The Trickery of Lavan,” he notes that commentators view the feast that Lavan threw in honor of the upcoming marriage as a “smokescreen” to hide the switcheroo between Rachel and Leah. It was just to cause confusion and aid the trickery. 

 However, when Lavan explains his actions with the comment: 

"It is not the practice in our place to marry the younger before the older”

this  can be interpreted as a subtle rebuke of Yaakov's deceitful action of stealing the blessings from his brother Esav. 

 As the Midrash explains, Lavan is simply applying the concept of "midah k'neged midah," the idea that "what goes around, comes around" and telling Yaakov:  

 I have heard stories of younger siblings rushing ahead of older ones as you yourself did, but we don’t do that here.

 Thus, Jacob has just learned why it was wrong for him to deceive his father and trick his brother Esav. Rather than moralize, the Torah lets Jacob discover that people who give themselves permission to lie and cheat find themselves in a world where no one can be trusted. 

 Finally, we must note that we learn an important halakha concerning women's rights from  Lavan. A few chapters back, when Eliezer asks Lavan and Bethuel permission to take Rebecca back to Canaan to marry Isaac, Lavan and Bethuel don't rush to send her away, but rather ask Rebecca for her own opinion:  

 They said: Let us call the girl and ask for her reply. 

 (Genesis 24:57).

 This is not only a progressive stance relative the prevailing custom in those times, but an actual halakha, enshrined in our tradition. As Rashi on this verse states: From this we learn that a person [in position of authority] should never marry off a woman against her will! 

Shabbat Shalom.  

Parashat Ki Tetzei

09/07/2014 08:16:18 AM

Sep7

What's At Stake?

Understanding the Prohibition of Leaving A Corpse on the Stake

by Charles Shenitz

 

At the beginning of this week’s Torah portion Ki Teitsei, we find the prohibition against leaving a body hanging overnight: 

If a man is guilty of a capital offense and is put to death, you must not let his corpse remain on the stake overnight . . . for an impaled body is an affront to God. (Deut. 21:22)  

Let's focus on the last words of the verse - "affront to God" - which in the Hebrew read: 

כִּי קִלְלַת אֱלֹהִים תָּלוּי

The translation used above, from the Jewish Publication Society, understands these words as meaning that a hanging corpse is like cursing God. But is that the only meaning possible? 

The pivotal word here for our initial discussion is "Elohim" or "Elokim," taken to mean God (substituting the "h" for the "k", of course, reflects a different meaning of the Hebrew word). 

As we know from other places in the Bible, the word "Elohim" can have an entirely different meaning, referring to human judges. So the question is whether - in our verse - it is to be taken as a reference to God, or as a reference to secular authority? 

The great medieval commentator from France, Rashi, assigns the first interpretation to the text, that is, that the hanging body is an affront to God, “Elokim” (substituting the ‘k’ sound when not praying or reading the Torah helps separate the different points of the present discussion). That interpretation is straightforward, and, as is usually the case, most English translations follow Rashi’s interpretation. 

But two generations later we find our first alternative interpretation. Rashbam, the grandson of Rashi, asserts that the word in the text should be construed as ‘elohim’, or judges, and thus, decidedly ordinary or secular, as opposed to the usual Divine meaning of the Hebrew word. In Rashbam's own words: 

When passers-by view the corpse of a person who has been hanged they are in the habit of cursing the judge who decreed this penalty, or the relatives of the victim curse the judges accusing them of handing down a harsh verdict for a“minor” offence, such as the collecting of kindling on the Sabbath (Numbers 15:33). If the Torah considered it as necessary to warn the people against cursing their judges (“elohim lo tikalel”, Exodus 22:27) [the secular use of‘elohim’ in the Exodus verse] …..”,the body must not be left hanging overnight but must be taken down, as our cited passage in this week’s portion prescribes.

Note that this interpretation changes the whole meaning of the hanging body to being NOT an affront to God but to being an insult to the judges!

The divergence of opinion continues a few centuries later, as we read the commentator Seforno who  construes the meaning of ‘elohim’ here to be the same as the generally accepted interpretation of the word and description in a very strange incident recorded in the First Book of Samuel, Chapter 28. This is where King Saul in disguise persuades a medium (a diviner of spirits, a “witch”) to call upon the spirit of the dead prophet Samuel. The text there describes the medium (the Witch of Endor) as seeing an ‘elohim’ rising, typically translated as “spirit”. So we have our third interpretation here. 

Finally, some commentators of more recent centuries, among them Samson Raphael Hirsch and Ohr Hachaim, express what might be considered an amalgam of an insult to the Divine and to mankind. The person in life is imbued with a godly soul (as seen from early passages in Genesis), and even in death, the body must be respectfully treated as (having been a) representative of that combination of a Divine and physical being. This latter point seems to be keeping with the long-time practice (mentioned in the Talmud), if not the impetus, for avoiding a delay, to the greatest extent possible, in burying our deceased. Also, Nachmanides concurs with  this last view of seeing an insult to the Divine component of a person.  As an example, we can read Rabbi Hirsh's concluding comment:

Yea, an unburied corpse is to be considered as a disgrace and degradation to all living people, whose conception of the true worth of all human beings suffers at the sight of a dead body.

The Torah is said to bear 70 facets with each word; therefore, divergence of opinions among the learned as we have seen above can be very much respected and revered as a source of inspiration in many ways. 

 

Shabbat Shalom.

Parashat Re'eh: 

08/22/2014 03:44:47 PM

Aug22

Individual Actions Matter
                                      by Charles Shenitz & Shamai Leibowitz
 
רְאֵה, אָנֹכִי נֹתֵן לִפְנֵיכֶם הַיּוֹם:  בְּרָכָה, וּקְלָלָה. 
See, this day I set before you blessing and curse:
the blessing, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I enjoin upon you this day;
and curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the Lord your God (Deut. 11:26)
 
The first verse of our parasha contains a striking grammatical discrepancy. The word "re'eh" (see) is a singular imperative while "lifneychem" (before you) is in the plural. Why this abrupt change -- in the middle of a sentence -- between singular and plural? 
 

While we did not see Rashi or any of the other big classical commentators comment about this discrepancy, the sages in the Babylonian Talmud (Tractate Kiddushin 40b) taught that a person should always view himself as being able to do good or bad deeds with consequences affecting all of the people of Israel, if not the whole world! Thus, Moshe addresses the Israelites as one nation, but then stresses -- by using the plural - that each person's actions matter. 

In the same vein, Rabbi Moshe Alshich, the 16th-century commentator from Safed, explains:

 
Unlike an emperor who has a large army at his command, and who is not too concerned if an individual soldier is slack in his duty as long as the army as a whole achieves its objective on time, God is concerned with the individual input by each soldier in His army. Therefore, Moses addresses each individual as part of a whole (Commentary on the Torah, translated and edited by Eliyahu Munk). 
 
Another explanation, offered by Rabbi Moshe Shields from Olney, Maryland, focuses on the difference between seeing and perceiving. Everyone can see the same thing but how each person perceives it can be vastly different. For example, one child can have the perspective that going back to school is so exciting because of friends, new subjects, and a caring environment, while another can have a perspective of negativity. Our job as parents and teachers is to try our best to create an atmosphere of positive feelings while never ignoring the thoughts and concerns of all children.  

HTAA's Multi-Generational Trip to NYC

08/15/2014 11:20:47 AM

Aug15

Upon the 69th anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki (August 6 and 9, respectively), a multi-generational group from Congregation Har Tzeon-Agudath Achim traveled to New York City to watch the Off-Broadway musical, Atomic, about Leo Szilard, a Jewish-Hungarian brilliant physicist, who co-designed - together with Robert Oppenheimer, Hernico Fermi and others - the atomic bomb.

Szilard had discovered the nuclear chain reaction, and after he had moved to America, he joined the US government's top secret program - codenamed "Manhattan Project" - to build the bomb. But when he learned that the A-Bomb is going to be dropped on Japanese cities, he had serious reservations.

Szilard was so troubled that he organized a petition - signed by 60 scientists from the Manhattan Project - opposing the use of the atomic bomb on Japanese cities (Nazi Germany had surrended by then), and tried to get it delivered to President Truman. The petition, most probably, never reached the President.

On the way to New York and back, we held vigorous discussions of the ethical dilemmas involved in the decision to use the atomic bomb on civilian population to end the war with Japan. Our most senior participant, Bob Abrams, wrote a review of the play: 

I traveled to NYC with the HTAA group to see the Broadway musical "Atomic" and was very surprised to see a show that far exceeded my expectations.  

The performance:

The staging of the musical was excellent.  I was most impressed with the lighting that added a dimension that surprised the audience and fulfilled the awesome power of nuclear warfare.  The opening scene of the Japanese lovers caught in the atomic flash brought the audience to the seriousness of the plot.  The clear, mellifluous voice of Euan Morton as Robert Oppenheimer begged attention and kept the audience on edge to see and hear more.  The plot was well conceived and did not result in boring scenes.

The cast:

The voices of all the singers were superb and the melodies fit into the frame of the seriousness of the plot.  The acting was up to par for a Broadway experience.

Negative notes:

Sometimes the voices of the actors did not project well into the entire theater.  The female voices were subdued and I (with a hearing difficulty) had trouble understanding the words.  There were too many times that the orchestra's loudness overrode the voices of the singers; my friends with good hearing agreed that this was a problem for them too.

The portrayal of Paul Tibbets did not come across as a serious bomber pilot who had been on multiple raids over Japan.  I thought the show did him an injustice; he has a place in history and the author dishonored his relevance.

All in all, great show.  I hope it goes on the road.  It would do well in my city, Washington, DC, and probably anyplace that has a well educated populace.

 

I lived through WWII as a teenager.  My brother Morris was on a troop ship sent to Japan for the invasion when Hiroshima was destroyed, leading to the surrender of the Japanese before the land invasion began.  I do not share Dr. Szilard's moral dilemma, but I do sympathize with his conscience.   

 -----    Robert Abrams

 

My Solidarity Visit to Israel by Lou Numkin

08/14/2014 02:41:18 PM

Aug14

On July 28-30, I was one of five members (including the National President) of a Hadassah Solidarity Delegation’s mission to show support to Israel.  Immediately upon arrival we were whisked to Mea Shreya, a youth village, which was hosting families from southern Israel who wanted to get further out of harm’s way and enjoy time together swimming, playing soccer, and touring.  This facility has an award-winning school, a children’s dairy farm and vineyard, and was originally donated by the Rothschild Family. 

 

After seeing the area, meeting staff, and families, we visited Haifa where Hadassah had donated an elevator to a Senior Center, and actually dredged out the pre-1948 port area. Our van had to pull over so we could exit and lay on the ground a distance away as a siren was sounded alerting us to a possible incoming rocket.  Thankfully, we continued our travels to a Tel Aviv hotel shortly thereafter.  At around2:30 am, another alarm had residents running to prescribed shelters, and again, no damage to report.

 

Tuesday morning we headed to Beer Sheva, the largest city in the Negev with a population of 200,000.  At the entrance to the town was a beautiful park, donated by Hadassah, and the current Mayor (reelected by 92% of the vote!) is ambitiously building the second largest lake (yes, this is the desert!) in Israel as one of over 30 water elements in the city – using recycled water.  We met with Deputy and Vice Mayors in the city’s underground Situation Room, where they explained that 144 missiles fell on the city in just a few days and that there were 61 sirens since the start of Protective Edge.  Next, we planted olive trees in a park near where the lake is being excavated. 

 

We then headed to Sderot which was created in the 1960s as low-cost housing for disabled veterans but is now a prime target for Hamas rockets.  Being so close to the border, residents only have 15-seconds to get to a shelter after sirens sound.  Even so, Sderot has just opened a new train station and new housing and apartments are being built.  While there, we spent time in JNF’s “Big Blue Box” which is a large bomb shelter that appears like a kids’ playground – games, toys, and food keep youngsters occupied while providing safe haven.  Shortly after we departed for Tel Aviv, sirens sounded in Sderot and two nearby kibbutzim.  Enroute, we stopped at another village to see where a home had been flattened by a rocket.

 

Wednesday began with an informative visit to the Iron Dome (“Kippat Barzel”) battery in Ashdod.  A Brigadier General explained how the system has been so successful in minimizing the loss of civilian life.  Ashdod inhabitants have 60-seconds to get to shelters following sirens.  Once in the shelters they must remain for ten-minutes to allow missile-destruction debris to settle to the earth before returning to what they were doing. 

 

Leaving Ashdod, we headed to Jerusalem’s Hadassah Hospital at Ein Karem neighborhood.  It was this 14-story tower which we had dedicated during my last stay, in October of 2012, and this time we visited wounded soldiers and their families. But first we sat with and listened to an Arab journalist from the Jerusalem Post, and his talk was enlightening.  Then we headed four-stories below ground to see one of the 20 bomb-protected, state-of-the-art operating suites which are almost ready to be put to use.  Lastly, we visited a bench – in the main lobby of the hospital – which I had dedicated to the memory of my dear parents, Ruth and Bernard Numkin z”l. 

 

We next headed for the Kenesset where we met with a Likud member, MK Gila Gamliel, and she informed us of a four-hour cease-fire that was to begin shortly.  Our next stop was Mount Herzl and the graves of recent IDF casualties – some of the gravesites were very fresh as the burial had happened a day before, and we held a memorial service. 

 

Then, we were off to visit the President of Israel.  President “Ruby” Rivlin had just written a letter to President Obama which he read to us. Former President Perez had begun a custom of visiting the shiva houses of all soldiers, and President Rivlin told us he made 27 such visits in the last few days, and was on his way to 2 more shiva visits. In closing, the President echoed what we had heard throughout our visit, “Thank You for coming and demonstrating support for Israel.”

 

In Memory of Eyal, Gilad and Naftali, Z"L

07/15/2014 06:31:48 PM

Jul15

Thu, March 28 2024 18 Adar II 5784