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DECEMBER 15, 2023 | 3 TE V E T 578 4 | VO L. 1 05 | NO. 9 | CANDLELIGHTING | FRIDAY, DECEMBER 15, 4:37 P.M.
A beautiful gift Children’s Museum returns to JCC campus Page 3
The Foundation wraps up a successful 40th Anniversary celebration Page 5
ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT Jewish Press Editor n Sunday, Jan. 14 from 3-5 p.m., the community is invited to come see the newest addition to our Staenberg Kooper Fellman Campus. The Milton Mendel and Marsha Kleinberg Jewish Community Heritage Center will officially open, and we can’t wait! “Much has changed in recent years,” Bob Goldberg said, “but the Kleinberg Heritage Center might be one of the most exciting things this community has been given. We are so grateful to Milton and Marsha for this beautiful gift. It’s a wonderful way to keep telling the stories of Jewish Omaha.”
Event chairs Gloria Kaslow and Margo Riekes have contributed many hours to making this a success. Margo became involved with the project because the Riekes Museum, formerly located by the JCC’s front entrance and endowed by Dorothy and Henry Riekes, was dismantled when the renovation of the JCC began several years ago. “Our family pursued the idea that it should become part of the new museum,” Margo said. “We collaborated with the museum developers to find the best way to incorporate its essential features. Although its new rendition is not an actual synagogue that can be used for a prayer service, people will see a replica of what an old Orthodox See A beautiful gift page 3
Omahans March for Israel, part 2
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Spotlight Voices Synagogues
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Avinathan Or ANNETTE VAN DE KAMPWRIGHT Jewish Press Editor The Ohel is the place where the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory, was laid to rest on the 3rd of Tammuz, 5754 ( June 12, 1994), next to his father-in-law, the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Y. Schneerson, of righteous memory. Chassidim, Jews and non-Jews from all walks of life come from around the world to the Rebbe’s resting place for blessing, spiritual guidance and inspiration.
Marsha and Milton Kleinberg
O Operation Grateful Goodies returns for 6th year Page 11
SPONSORED BY THE BENJAMIN AND ANNA E. WIESMAN FAMILY ENDOWMENT FUND
On Nov. 14, approximately 290,000 people participated in the March for Israel on the National Mall in Washington D.C. Among them were members of our Omaha Jewish community, as well as the wider Omaha community. The Jewish Press asked some of those in attendance to describe the experience. LILLIAN COHEN On Oct. 7, our world turned upside down. We experienced the biggest slaughter of Jews in a single day since the Holocaust, and instead of being met with sympathy and support, we were hit with a wave of antisemitism
Lillian and Karen Cohen
and hatred. And somehow, we are suddenly finding ourselves too nervous to speak up on college campuses for fear that the backlash we may experience could be even more detri-
mental than what we are already facing. This led me to Washington DC to attend the “March for Israel,” where close to 300,000 of us peacefully came See March for Israel page 2
Avinathan Or
Sometimes people who visit are overwhelmed with gratitude. One such visitor, eager to pass it on, chartered a plane and flew a group of Israelis to New York for the purpose of praying at the Ohel, seeking comfort. There were 200 family members of hostages on that plane. Among them was a woman named Ditza Or. Ditza’s oldest son is fighting in Gaza; she has another son who is a hostage. His name is Avinathan, and he was taken on Oct. 7. That same week, Rabbi Mendel and Shani Katzman found themselves in New York, to visit family, and to attend the Kinus Hashluchim, the International Conference of Chabad-Lubavitch Emissaries. Kinus is Hebrew for “gathering” or “conference.” The Kinus Hashluchim (International Conference of Chabad-Lubavitch Emissaries) is a yearly event in which thousands of emissaries gather to share inspiration, ideas and goals, leaving rejuvenated and ready to carry on their work. There are nearly 4,500 families of shluchim in more than 90 countries around the world, continuing the Rebbe’s charge to spread the Torah’s teachings and inspiration far and wide. When the Israeli visitors arrived at the Ohel, there was a sizable welcoming committee: They came in four buses,” Shani said. “They arrived adjacent to the actual Ohel, where there is space to welcome guests. There were posters of the hostages on all the See Avinathan Or page 2
2 | The Jewish Press | December 15, 2023
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March for Israel
Continued from page 1 together. While standing there at the National Mall, singing about the day when fighting and violence will be no more, I couldn’t help but feel somewhat unsettled. How is the world, who claims they want peace, choosing to side with the people who are throwing rocks at us, yelling “gas the Jews,” and calling for days of rage and the mass destruction of Israel. This is what I simply cannot understand: that the monsters who brutally murdered 1,400 Israelis and kidnapped 240 others, are being defended with excuse after excuse. Even at UNL, after the attack on Israel took place, our college community was silent. Yet, the UNL student government hosted a “listening night for those affected in Gaza.” When we reached out to ask about the event, the answer was that we were not being left out as Jewish students, because this event was “open to include everyone in peaceful dialogue.” However, if this was in fact true, the event tonight would have been given a different name. As Ari Kohen said best in his response, “It’s not only the things we do that signal how we feel; it’s also the things we don’t do.” As Jewish college students across America are facing unimaginable things on their campuses, I initially was thankful to be in Nebraska where those acts of antisemitism were unlikely to occur. However, even here at UNL we are no longer immune, and beginning to feel these effects making their way to us. Many pro-Palestinian protests are scheduled for this week, and we are scared because of what this could lead to on our own college campus as their voices grow louder. Because
of this, I have been so conflicted as the president of Hillel. I want nothing more than to host pro-Israel events on campus and to proudly lead our Hillel and spread our Jewish light through this darkness. What makes me so furious is that I cannot do so without putting all our Hillel members at risk for their safety, just because of who we are. This is NOT something I should have to be worried about, and because I am, my heart aches. My heart aches for the 240 souls that are trapped in the tunnels of Gaza. My heart aches for the families of the 1,400 that were brutally murdered on October 7. My heart aches for the innocent Palestinians. My heart aches for my friends on college campuses who are being attacked for nothing else other than that they are Jewish. My heart aches for anyone who has to change their name in the Uber app because they are scared for their driver to see their Jewish name. My heart aches because my grades are dropping, and I am not sure how to explain to my professors why, for fear of what their response may be. My heart aches for five-year-old Lillian, who every single Friday, when asked to make a wish for Shabbat at Friedel, would say םלועב םולש היהיש הווקמ ינא. (I hope there will be peace in the world.) My heart aches for that little girl, who when she learned about the Holocaust, was terrified, but reassured herself by saying “never again.” But more than anything, my heart aches that now 17 years later, in the year 2023, this is not something she is so easily able to reassure herself with anymore. And that day by day, I am watching my biggest fear slip into a reality as the world silently watches.
INFORMATION ANTISEMITIC/HATE INCIDENTS If you encounter an antisemitic or other hate incident, you are not alone. Your first call should be to the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) in Omaha at 402.334.6572, or email JCRCreporting@ jewishomaha.org. If you perceive an imminent threat, call 911, and text Safety & Security Manager James Donahue at 402.213.1658.
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Avinathan Or
Continued from page 1 chairs, there was opportunity to write messages and pray at the Rebbe’s graveside. It really felt like we were creating a holy space, fighting not just for the land of Israel, but for the beauty of Jewish peoplehood.” Ditza was accompanied by her Rebbetzin, Brachi Admoni. When they finished praying at the Ohel, they were supposed to take the bus back to the hotel to rest up—the group would leave the next morning Ditza Or, left, Shani Katzman for DC to atand Rebbetzin Brachi Admoni tend the Israel rally. But Ditza said she could not possibly leave without visiting 770, even though it was, by now, after midnight. “770” is the familiar name for the building at 770 Eastern Parkway, in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn, New York; the central headquarters of the worldwide ChabadLubavitch Chassidic movement, residence and office of the Sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson, from 1940 until his passing in 1950; office (and sometimes residence) of the Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, from his arrival to the U.S. in 1941 until his passing in 1994. It’s a place that’s always busy, day or night, but especially so during the Kinus. And that’s where Ditza happened to strike up a conversation with Rabbi Mendel Katzman. “It was Rosh Chodesh Kislev,” he said, “so it was even busier than usual. We all went inside and made a special L’Chaim for Avinathan.” After, they went to share a meal at Shani’s mother’s home in Crown Heights. Avinathan is still being held in Gaza, one of many hostages who have yet to come home. Please keep him and all others in your prayers, and may they soon be returned home.
The Jewish Press | December 15, 2023 | 3
A beautiful gift “Milt connected by playing handball,” Marsha said. “I, on the Continued from page 1 Omaha synagogue “shul” looked like during the late 1800s and other hand, was always amazed at seeing the photographs of early 1900s. After writing explanations of the artifacts that community members. Whenever I visited the JCC, it was were to be displayed, I volunteered to help write the texts for those photographs that gave the building warmth. As an outother exhibits in the Kleinberg Hall of history. I learned a great sider, that was something visual that meant a lot to me, and I deal from researching and working with the committee tasked want to pass that on. This is a wonderful Jewish community; with this amazing and worthwhile endeavor!” we must tell our stories.” Gloria was equally eager to volunteer her time and talents. “The members of our Jewish community should be blown “When I heard that Milt and Marsha Kleinberg generously donated to the JCC renovation campaign for a museum, I immediately thought Scott Littky and I, both representing the Institute for Holocaust Education, should participate in the research and writing. Later in the process, I became hooked and wanted to participate in the entire project.” “I am most excited that the museum will be a permanent and educational part of our spectacular Jewish Community Center,” Margo added. “It’s the ‘frosting on the cake!’ Thanks to Milton and Marsha Kleinberg’s generosity and the incredible work done by the Jewish Federation of Omaha, its staff, volunteers and the professional designers, the Omaha Jewish community will have a unique Granddaughter Maayan, her husband David Machness and their children visited Marsha and space devoted to the history of Milton from Israel earlier this year. Jewish Omaha – a history we can all be very proud of !” away when they walk through the museum,” Margo said, “and Gloria agreed: “This is such an exciting addition to our ren- learn about Jewish Omaha - from the time of its first Jewish ovated campus, located right off the central lobby of the front settlers in 1856 when the city was founded; the development entrance. All who come into the building can either peruse or of our Jewish community, its institutions and organizations; study in-depth the long history of Jewish Omaha and its role and the numerous extraordinary Omaha Jews who made in shaping the community and city’s culture and heritage. The major contributions to this Jewish Community, to Omaha, to museum traces the Jewish community’s journey from its early the United States and to the world. It’s truly remarkable that roots to its present-day accomplishments. Visitors can explore a relatively small group of people could have created such a stories of Jewish immigrants who arrived in Omaha, the es- beautiful legacy to pass on to future generations of Omaha tablishment of synagogues and other institutions, religious Jews and to also be able to share this history with others.” life, and the countless individuals who have made indelible Gloria said: “For me, one of the exciting aspects of the mumarks in various fields.” seum’s features is its ability to expand and expound on what Milt Kleinberg, as a Holocaust survivor, is an excellent ex- it offers. Like many new museums, the Kleinberg Hall of Hisample of resilience, perseverance, and success, Gloria added. tory isn’t just a static display of photos and text. Each area will “Along with Milt’s unique survival story, there are many other have a digital screen that provides additional information and survivor stories in our community, all important to share and that can continually add more information and up-to-date preserve. The museum is an excellent place to tell these sto- material. We hope that the museum will appeal to all generaries, not only as a stark reminder of the consequences of ha- tions. Some people will see their own families’ contributions tred, prejudice, and discrimination, but also to highlight the to the history of our community and others will be learning incredible resilience and strength of the human spirit. The sur- the history for the first time. Younger generations can learn vivors rebuilt their lives and made important contributions to from the experiences of their ancestors, the struggles they the rich tapestry of Omaha’s Jewish community.” overcame, and the successes they achieved. Hopefully, all who A few months ago, Milton and Marsha, accompanied by fam- visit will be reminded that history is not just a thing of the past; ily members visiting from Israel, visited the space. While still it’s a living, breathing force that shapes our present and future. unfinished at the time, it was easy to imagine the final product. We hope the Kleinberg Hall of History provides a platform for “We have six grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren,” intergenerational conversations and a source of inspiration.” Marsha and Milton said. “It’s a constant reminder of how imPlease watch your mail for the event postcard, which will inportant it is to keep telling the story.” clude the link to RSVP. We look forward to seeing you Jan. 14 That story, Marsha said, was an important part of making from 3-5 p.m., for kosher hors d’oeuvres and drinks. And, conOmaha their home. sidering the time of year, we will have valet parking available!
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Children’s Museum returns to JCC campus HEIDI HEILBRUNN NEEDLEMAN PJ Library Coordinator PJ Library Omaha and Friedel Jewish Academy are excited to announce the return of Super Science Sunday, featuring the Omaha Children’s Museum. This hands-on STEM favorite is free for families with children ages 6 and under in the Jewish community as well as students of The Pennie Z. Davis Early Learning Center and Friedel Jewish Academy. The program, which began in 2018, brings families together to learn about science and math. This year The Omaha Children’s Museum will feature a thrilling science program called Molecular Mayhem. Accord-
ing to the OCM, the outreach ‘explores what happens to molecules when they are put to the test!’ A museum educator will demonstrate to the children how chemical reactions happen; making liquids into solids and making soap become fluffy. The event will take place on Sunday, Jan. 7 from 10-11:30 a.m. Pre-registration is requested. PJ Library and Friedel Jewish Academy thank their generous donors: The Murray H. and Sharee C. Newman Supporting Foundation, Esther K. Newman Memorial Fund, Foundation Impact Grant, Anything Grants Staenberg Family Foundation and Kiewit Companies Foundation.
ORGANIZATIONS B’NAI B’RITH BREADBREAKERS The award-winning B’NAI B’RITH BREADBREAKERS speaker program currently meets Wednesdays via Zoom from noon to 1 p.m. Please watch our email for specific information concerning its thought-provoking, informative list of speakers. To be placed on the email list, contact Breadbreakers chair at gary.javitch@gmail.com.
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The Jewish Press
CHARLES SHAPIRO We can’t listen if we can’t hear. According to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, 25% of people aged 65 to 74 and 50% of people older than 75 have disabling hearing loss. It is estimated that only one-third of those who could benefit from hearing aids get and use them in these age groups. These statistics mean that many in our community attending services and programs are hard of hearing. Many have not yet taken advantage of hearing aids. However, even with hearing aids, understanding what is said in services and lectures may remain difficult because hearing aid microphones are designed for close range and not for picking up sound from across a room. People who can’t hear the program will stop attending. Amplifying sound may not be effective since making speech louder does not always make it clearer. Background noise further compromises our ability to hear speech, even at close range. It’s complicated. I use two hearing aids and experience frustration when unable to enjoy programs because speakers are not using a microphone or not using one correctly. Because I know that many people have similar hearing issues as I do and feel the same frustration, I surveyed the major Jewish institutions in the Omaha area to determine what accommodations are available and how that information is conveyed to the public. THE THREE-LEGGED STOOL Effective communication with the hard of hearing during programs and services can be described as a three-legged stool. All legs must be engaged for success: the listener, the institution’s technology, and the speaker. The first leg is the listener, who needs to be proactive. The listener needs to get an appropriate hearing instrument (hearing aids or cochlear implants), position themselves close to the speaker to benefit from visual cues, use the listening systems that the institutions provide, and speak up when the systems are not working. The second leg is that the institution provides appropriate technology to assist the person who is hard of hearing. There is varied technology that addresses this need. Collectively, they are called Assistive Listening Devices (ALDs). Some ALDs operate through the listener’s hearing aids, and others do not. Progress with ALDs and hearing aids has been made. However, there is no consistency across our institutions where systems are in place. To further complicate the issue, hearing aids vary in which technology they support. Some hearing aids have the capacity to use a T-coil/loop system that sends a signal from the speaker’s microphone directly to the hearing aid. The user does not need a separate headset or earphone with this system. If the person does not have hearing aids or has hearing aids that don’t have the ability to use the loop system, a receiver picks up a signal, and then the signal goes through headphones to the listener’s ear. The good news is that Beth El and Temple Israel sanctuaries and the Alan J. Levine Theater at the JCC have ALD systems. Each works differently, and signage at each location informs visitors of their availability. The only concern with these systems is that the speaker must use the microphone since the sound is sent out through the venue’s sound system. This means that questions from the audience are lost if not spoken through a remote microphone or repeated by the speaker with the microphone. Having the sanctuaries wired for an ALD is a necessary first step in providing access for people who are hard of hearing. However, none of the institutions have systems that work in their other spaces. Many events are held in classrooms, social halls, and conference rooms. All three institutions have microphone/speaker systems for other spaces, which, when used appropriately, can be very helpful. An upgrade would be a
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portable system that could be used in smaller situations or when only one person needs the system. There are FM systems that fill this need. Which takes us to the third leg of the stool. The third leg of the stool is the intention and concern of the speaker(s) involved in the program. Presenters and organizers can greatly improve access to their events by being aware of the challenges many have to hearing adequately. We have all been in lectures where someone stands up to ask a question and refuses the microphone because they have a loud voice. It is up to the presenter to insist on using the microphone or summarize that person’s comments for those in the audience who would otherwise miss the information. Digital programming presents other challenges, especially when the event is in-person and online. Best practices include making sure speakers can be seen since much information is communicated by the face and the lips. It is particularly difficult to view a slideshow without being able to see the presenter. As with in-person events, the person with the microphone must repeat the question or get the microphone to the speaker so those online can hear the question. Temple Israel has an ‘Owl’ that automatically moves the camera and microphone toward the speaker. ACTIONS THAT HELP COMMUNICATIONS Knowing what kind of listening environment a person will encounter is helpful to the person who is hard of hearing when deciding to attend an event. Indicating in flyers and promotional material that accommodations are available signals that the institution is friendly toward persons who are hard of hearing and open to making adjustments. For example, Temple Israel has closed captions available on its hybrid events. Publicizing that they are captioned would be a great next step. Training speakers, both guest and clergy in practices that improve auditory access is needed continually. This includes using the microphone, repeating questions or comments not spoken through a microphone or clearly, facing the audience, and standing when talking. These practices help make the speaker more likely to be heard and understood. Due to halacha - Jewish law - on Shabbat and holidays, Beth Israel and Chabad cannot use amplification systems. Beth Israel utilizes microphones in the sanctuary and social hall at other times. Due to the smaller physical size of Beth Israel and Chabad, if needed, one can easily move to be close to the speaker, they do not have ALD systems. In Lincoln, Tifereth Israel has an ALD system, the receivers are placed where all can see when entering the sanctuary. B’nai Jeshurun has an ALD system, but it is not functioning now. This article is intended to promote the use of the available technology, suggest that more can be done, especially in the non-sanctuary spaces, and remind those with hearing issues to use the available equipment and speak up when they can’t hear. The problems facing hard of hearing people are not the same as those facing deaf people. Most of the institutions indicated they would try to hire a sign language interpreter if arranged in advance. Although expensive, there are transcription services that would provide real-time captioning by a human, which avoids some of the problems with straight digitizing systems not getting the words correct. Currently, mixing Hebrew and English is beyond the ability of the common digitizing systems. I thank all the administrators of the Jewish institutions for answering my questions and improving this article. Several pointed out that these systems are expensive and that making decisions about their purchase is balanced with other needs. These systems will more likely be upgraded and expanded if those who are hard of hearing use them and advocate for their acquisition. Kathy Beauchaine, Cindy Shapiro and Joan Sudmann Shapiro contributed ideas and editing advice.
The Jewish Press | December 15, 2023 | 5
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The Foundation wraps up a successful 40th Anniversary celebration
Living Legacy: Silverstein-Freeman
Gail and Irv Veitzer
All in the Family
Bonnie Hines and Arlene Beber
AMY BERNSTEIN SHIVVERS JFO Foundation Executive Director We extend our heartfelt gratitude to our amazing community, both near and far for your support of The Foundation’s remarkable 40th Anniversary celebration. Over the course of 2023 we have elevated our visibility through an engaging calendar of events, accessible to all. One of the highlights of our anniversary celebration was the creation of a compelling video, The Foundation Story, that beautifully captures The Foundation’s journey, spotlighting our dedicated donors and the profound impact that our grants have on the community. This video has allowed us to share our story widely and showcase the meaningful work we do together. You can open your camera and position it over the QR Code to view our story.
Our calendar of events was equally impactful. The Hats Off to You donor reception held at the Samuel Bak Museum saw the enthusiastic participation of 100 guests, a heartwarming testament to the strong community spirit we have fostered. At the JFO’s Annual Meeting and Awards Night, we had the honor of celebrating Murray Newman’s achievements and sharing our inspiring video, with over 200 guests. The festivities continued with the Summer Camp Reunion at Sonny’s, complete with a camp sing-along that brought back cherished memories and strengthened the bonds within our community. July’s With Heart in Hand event witnessed a thoughtful conversation with
our rabbis on the profound meaning of tzedakah, drawing in engaged participants. This has been a highlight of the celebration! In August, the film premiere of Who Are the Marcuses? was met with resounding success, featuring a fireside chat with Ellen Marcus and the director. Our capstone event, All in the Family, featured three generations from three different families, each sharing their multigenerational philanthropy stories of giving back with time, talent and dollars. The Fabulous at 40! celebration has been truly comprehensive. Our endeavors were accompanied by a new brochure, celebratory t-shirts for event attendees, illuminating Jewish Press articles, including the Rosh Hashanah issue
dedicated to The Foundation, with over 30 articles documenting our remarkable history to the present. This is an amazing community! With your support, we have achieved an extraordinary celebration, setting the stage for the next 40 years of meaningful impact and growth. Your involvement has been instrumental, and we are profoundly grateful for your commitment to our shared vision. Thank you for your contribution to this momentous occasion, which has not only allowed us to honor our past but has also ignited the spark for an inspiring future. Charitable giving begins when you care deeply about something. Let’s talk about what is important to you. Your priorities become our priorities. Contact me at 402.334.6466 or ashivvers@jewishomaha.org.
SHINING A LIGHT ON ANTISEMITISM In the first 7 weeks following the vicious attack on Israel by HAMAS, the ADL documented more than 1,400 antisemitic incidents – an average of 35 per day – and we suspect that number is actually higher.
Now more than ever, IF YOU SEE OR HEAR SOMETHING, SAY SOMETHING! The JCRC is our first line of defense and reporting and we have made it easy to report incidents! Scan QR code or Email: JCRCreporting@jewishomaha.org Or contact: James Donahue, JFO Safety and Security Manager jdonahue@jewishomaha.org • 402-213-1658 Sharon Brodkey, JCRC Executive Director sbrodkey@jewishomaha.org • 402-249-3010 As always, if the situation is urgent, CALL 911!
6 | The Jewish Press | December 15, 2023
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Happy Birthday, Jack
Save the Date for Super Tuesday
The Jewish Federation of Omaha Campaign team has scheduled Super Tuesday for January 23, 2024. It will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Leonard and Shirley Goldstein Community Engagement Venue. Volunteers will be calling donors who have yet to make their 2024 Annual Campaign pledge, so if you have not yet filled out and returned your pledge card, expect a call! Thank you to Joe and Linda Fisher, our 2024 Super Tuesday Chairs. We are currently looking for 20 volunteers to help us make calls. For more information and to volunteer, please contact Director of Development Rachel Ring at rring@ jewishomaha.org or 402.334.6443.
Trade scholarships available for the 2023-24 academic year
ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT Jewish Press Editor Michael Cohen recently returned from Israel; he was there for his and Karen’s son Jack’s 19th birthday. “On the ground only 72 hours,” he said, “but it was a bittersweet experience with the country fighting such an existential threat. There are Bring Them Home fliers and posters everywhere. There was even a projection 50 feet high on one of the buildings in Jerusalem at night.”
Michael also visited the donation center at Jack’s yeshiva for soldiers. “It was amazing to see a steady stream of soldiers and police officers coming through and picking up anything they needed for free,” he said. “They carried everything from socks to military equipment. But so lovely to see these young people helping in the effort, and the gratitude of the recipients for having this resource.”
An anonymous donor in our community has created two trade school and/or cosmetology school scholarship opportunities, up to $5,000 each, to go towards the 2023-24 academic year. Not every student who advances into higher education signs up for a four-year curriculum. Some high school graduates seek job training that lasts a year or two and then places them in the workforce. Such opportunities include, but are not restricted to: Information Technology, Construction, Industrial, Transportation and Horticulture. It is not too late to apply for this upcoming school year! Qualified students who have unmet needs regarding tuition for either a two-year trade school program or a trade certificate program can contact the Jewish Press at avan dekamp@jewishomaha.org or jpress@jewishomaha. org for more information.
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The Jewish Press | December 15, 2023 | 7
Above, left, right and below: So many familiar faces at our PJ Library Book Swap at Beth El Synagogue Omaha. The kids loved the snacks and making their own library book bags to fill with books.
SP O TLIGHT
GENEROUSLY SUPPORTED BY
PHOTOS FROM RECENT JEWISH COMMUNITY EVENTS SUBMIT A PHOTO: Have a photo of a recent Jewish Community event you would like to submit? Email the image and a suggested caption to: avandekamp@jewishomaha.org.
Below: The Residents of RBJH enjoy seeing the wedding and honeymoon photos of Colin Heskin, Director of Social Services, and his bride, Sarah Navratil. Mazel Tov Colin and Sarah!
Top, above and below: Tina and Joe Meyers, Jennifer Glazer, and a long list of family friends have generously donated this food day in Lynette’s honor to express their appreciation to all staff for the care and compassion shown to Lynette during her stay. Since purple was Lynette’s favorite color, the staff were encouraged to wear purple. The 402 BBQ food truck was parked at the RBJH main entrance, offering all the shifts a full menu of options and delicious sides. Thank you to the Meyers family and Michelle Alberts for organizing this fun and special luncheon.
The Jewish Community relations Council hosted visitors from the Israeli Consulate. Above: Ethan Ramer, Director of Commercial & Economic Affairs, left, Sharon Brodkey and Itai Biran, Consul for Political & Economic Affairs. Below: Bob Goldberg, left, Mike Siegel and Rabbi Mordechai Geiger.
Below left and right: A great time was had by all the kids (and even the parents/grandparents) at the Havdalah Pajama Party. We learned about Israel from our Omaha shlicha, Mika, danced to Israeli music and snacked on falafel, hummus and Bamba. We also collected so many toys for children in Israel. Thanks Chabad of Nebraska for hosting!
Below: The olive press demonstration by Chabad of Nebraska was very cool!
8 | The Jewish Press | December 15, 2023
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Margie Gutnik President Annette van de Kamp-Wright Editor Richard Busse Creative Director Howard Kutler Advertising Executive Lori Kooper-Schwarz Assistant Editor Gabby Blair Staff Writer Sam Kricsfeld Digital support Mary Bachteler Accounting Jewish Press Board Margie Gutnik, President; Abigail Kutler, Ex-Officio; Helen Epstein; Andrea Erlich; Seth Feldman; David Finkelstein; Ally Freeman; Mary Sue Grossman; Chuck Lucoff; Suzy Sheldon; Joseph Pinson and Larry Ring. The mission of the Jewish Federation of Omaha is to build and sustain a strong and vibrant Omaha Jewish Community and to support Jews in Israel and around the world. Agencies of the JFO are: Institute for Holocaust Education, Jewish Community Relations Council, Jewish Community Center, Jewish Social Services, Nebraska Jewish Historical Society and the Jewish Press. Guidelines and highlights of the Jewish Press, including front page stories and announcements, can be found online at: www.jewishomaha.org; click on ‘Jewish Press.’ Editorials express the view of the writer and are not necessarily representative of the views of the Jewish Press Board of Directors, the Jewish Federation of Omaha Board of Directors, or the Omaha Jewish community as a whole. The Jewish Press reserves the right to edit signed letters and articles for space and content. The Jewish Press is not responsible for the Kashrut of any product or establishment. Editorial The Jewish Press is an agency of the Jewish Federation of Omaha. Deadline for copy, ads and photos is: Thursday, 9 a.m., eight days prior to publication. E-mail editorial material and photos to: avandekamp@jewishomaha.org; send ads (in TIF or PDF format) to: rbusse@jewishomaha.org. Letters to the Editor Guidelines The Jewish Press welcomes Letters to the Editor. They may be sent via regular mail to: The Jewish Press, 333 So. 132 St., Omaha, NE 68154; via fax: 1.402.334.5422 or via e-mail to the Editor at: avandekamp@jewishomaha.org. Letters should be no longer than 250 words and must be single-spaced typed, not hand-written. Published letters should be confined to opinions and comments on articles or events. News items should not be submitted and printed as a “Letter to the Editor.” The Editor may edit letters for content and space restrictions. Letters may be published without giving an opposing view. Information shall be verified before printing. All letters must be signed by the writer. The Jewish Press will not publish letters that appear to be part of an organized campaign, nor letters copied from the Internet. No letters should be published from candidates running for office, but others may write on their behalf. Letters of thanks should be confined to commending an institution for a program, project or event, rather than personally thanking paid staff, unless the writer chooses to turn the “Letter to the Editor” into a paid personal ad or a news article about the event, project or program which the professional staff supervised. For information, contact Annette van de Kamp-Wright, Jewish Press Editor, 402.334.6450. Postal The Jewish Press (USPS 275620) is published weekly (except for the first week of January and July) on Friday for $40 per calendar year U.S.; $80 foreign, by the Jewish Federation of Omaha. Phone: 402.334.6448; FAX: 402.334.5422. Periodical postage paid at Omaha, NE. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: The Jewish Press, 333 So. 132 St., Omaha, NE 68154-2198 or email to: jpress@jewishomaha.org.
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Anti-Zionism is Antisemitism ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT Jewish Press Editor “The U.S. House of Representatives approved a nonbinding resolution saying that anti-Zionism is antisemitism,” Ron Kampeas wrote for the Jewish Telegraphic Agency December 6, “with support from all but one Republican and a substantial minority of Democrats. It was notable for the number of Jewish Democrats who voted “present,” effectively abstaining, in part because they did not agree with the resolution’s contention that all forms of anti-Zionism were antisemitic. The resolution passed 311 to 14, with 92 members voting “present,” among them eight of the 24 Jewish Democrats in the House. Democrats voting in favor numbered 95. Of the 14 who opposed, 13 were Democrats, most associated with the “Squad,” a small grouping of far-left progressives.” I’ll be blatantly honest. Coming from a Social-Democratic Western European background, my thinking for the longest time has been pretty blackand-white. I am in favor of protecting abortion rights, women’s rights, LGBTQ+ rights, I want separation of church and state and a humane immigration policy. I believe in a multi-cultural society where we can all get along, if we try hard enough. In the past, all of that meant I automatically looked toward the Democratic Party for the answers. They seemed most aligned with my personal beliefs. Don’t move too far to the right: it’s where the Nazis are. That is how I grew up. Twenty-six parties at my birthplace’s most recent election; moving from that to a two-party system is difficult. It feels like you
have to choose one or the other, and once you choose, you have to be all in. Of course, that always made it slightly uncomfortable when it came to Zionism. I remember the Women’s March in Chicago banning rainbow flags that had a Mogen David printed on it. I know BDS finds a home on the left. I know about the Squad. But I was willing to overlook it, because, in the
grand scheme of things, I still believed. And, while I’m being honest, I don’t have citizenship so I don’t vote anyway. What’s the harm? Now I know. And yes, you can roll your eyes at me; this is me learning in real time. Where do we go from here? How do we process everything we are seeing and hearing, without making overly emotional decisions? Or, hear me out, is it okay to embrace our emotional side right now? Because those nay-votes make me angry, the ab-
stentions make me angry, the fact that I feel like we are all living in 1933 makes me the angriest of all. I’ve used up my monthly allotment of bad language and it’s only the first week of December. I feel powerless and frustrated and I cry at the drop of a hat; I’m disappointed-but-not-surprised, confused, hurt, and again, angry. I yell at strangers in traffic, cowardly from within my car (nobody can hear me) and I’m paranoid. It’s like all the feelings that washed over me on October 7 are magnified and I’m slowly starting to realize life has forever changed. Anti-Zionism IS Antisemitism; we all know that. The ones who deny it, know it too. Anti-Zionism has long functioned as a way to mask hatred of Jews. It worked for a while, too. It used to sound logical to me: of course one can criticize a government without hating the people. If I don’t like Biden, or Trump, or DeSantis, it doesn’t mean I hate Americans. I can despise Putin without thinking all Russians are awful or complicit. I can distrust Geert Wilders without taking it out on my family members. Those rules don’t apply when it comes to Israel, though. And that’s maybe the hardest thing for all of us to deal with: any rules of decency, of morality, of humanity, never apply when Israel is judged. Whether it’s the UN, whether it’s Times Square, whether it’s Harvard; when it comes to Israel, all bets are off. Israel is held to an impossible, illogical and distorted standard. We can expect fair treatment when pigs fly. And I think I always, deep down, knew that. I just wasn’t willing to accept it.
It’s not just Israeli Jews who were displaced by the Hamas attack DYONNA GINSBURG AND TANYAH MURKES JTA When Solomon and his family were forced to flee their home in Sderot after the Hamas attack on Oct.7, they were directed by the Aid Organization for Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Israel, known as ASSAF, to a shelter in Tel Aviv for people whose lives had been upended by the violence. But when they arrived, they were abruptly denied entry. Unbeknownst to ASSAF, the shelter owners wished to serve only Jewish Israelis, not asylum-seekers like Solomon who hailed from Sudan or Eritrea and have been living in Israel sometimes for decades. Solomon (not his real name) is among the estimated 30,000 or so asylum-seekers in Israel from Africa, who fled genocide, slavery or political unrest in their countries of origin. According to the UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, 1,200-1,500 of these African asylum seekers have been forced to leave their homes in southern Israel as a result of the Hamas attack. Because asylum seekers cannot obtain Israeli ID cards, many had previously lived in apartments without having signed formal contracts recognized by the state. They were, therefore, not officially evacuated by Israeli municipalities nor were they guaranteed shelter. When they have found temporary homes on their own, the apartments often lack a “safe room” and are 10 minutes or more away from the closest bomb shelter, not nearly enough time to reach safety before the rockets come. The discrimination Solomon and countless others experience as they seek new homes in the aftermath of Oct. 7 reinforces a dismal reality: Those who are already on the margins of Israeli society experience additional hardships during a time of war. This is not only the case for refugees and asylumseekers, but also for tens of thousands of migrant workers, primarily in agriculture, construction and home healthcare. While the legal status of these workers is different from that of asylum-seekers, they too experience discrimination and injustice. Shelter is just one of many challenges these populations are currently facing. Many are struggling with food insecurity, job losses, language barriers that prevent them from receiving essential services, and a near-total absence of economic and social safety
nets. There has also been an extreme deterioration in mental health within these communities, especially among refugees, who report that they are reliving past traumas triggered by the current violence. Between Oct. 7 and Nov. 15, the NGOs ASSAF and HIAS saw a significant rise in requests for assistance from refugees, compared to the previous year, with ASSAF reporting a 153% increase in calls.
African asylum-seekers volunteering on a farm in central Israel. Since the Oct. 7 attacks, dozens of asylum-seekers are supporting emergency efforts in Israel in a collaboration with ARDC Israel and Leket Israel. Credit: ARDC Israel
Although no Israeli politician has publicly stated that these populations should be excluded from government aid, official evacuation plans and the wartime economic plan do not explicitly reference them, despite calls from NGOs for clear recognition. While so many refugees, asylum seekers and migrant workers are often made to feel like outsiders, a vast number of them proudly see themselves as a core part of Israeli society. And while they are neither Jewish nor Israeli citizens, their lives are deeply intertwined with ours. They work in our fields, hotels and restaurants; they are caregivers for our elderly and people with disabilities; and, tragically, some 100 of them were among those injured, killed and kidnapped during Hamas’ deadly attack. Since then, like so many Israelis, they have demonstrated solidarity and resilience that represent the best of our society. We, Israeli leaders of organizations working with vulnerable populations in Israel and around the world, have witnessed a remarkable spirit of volunteerism and collective responsibility in these communities over the past few weeks. In the wake of the Hamas attack, dozens of people have contacted many of our organizations to ask how they could
support emergency efforts. When a Nepalese man who was severely injured on Oct. 7 was transferred to a Jerusalem hospital, a micro-community of local Nepalese caregivers and Israelis rallied by his bedside to ensure he received the emotional and cultural support he needed. He had arrived in Israel only 21 days prior to the socalled “black Sabbath,” and was completely alone in a strange land. It is largely due to the kindness of this micro-community that he can now see a future for himself, despite his new reality. But the kindness of migrant workers and refugees is not limited to caring for their own. Hundreds of African refugees have volunteered regularly at the Civilian Command Center at the Expo Complex in Tel Aviv, organizing and packaging meals and donations for evacuees from southern Israel and Israeli soldiers. Another group of Eritrean refugees, who were themselves evacuated from Ashkelon as a result of the war, have joined the tens of thousands of Israelis who are volunteering to harvest food and support Israeli farmers suffering a shortage of workers. As Israel continues to recover and chart a new path forward, we urge Jewish leaders abroad to join Israelis who are calling for asylum seekers, refugees and migrant workers to receive the care and support they deserve. This means both advocating that the Israeli government distribute aid equitably, so that they too receive the assistance they need, as well as keeping these communities in mind when collecting and allocating philanthropic dollars for those impacted by the massacre. This includes not only those who were killed, kidnapped, or injured, but also those who lost homes, jobs, and are suffering from trauma. As Hillel famously wrote, we must be for ourselves, but not only for ourselves. Now, more than ever, we must show empathy for the strangers among us — refugees, asylum seekers and migrant workers — as we, in Israel and the global Jewish community, recover from a shared trauma. When we honor our shared humanity, our entire society will be stronger. This essay is co-signed by Sivan Carmel, Country Director, HIAS Israel; Tali Ehrenthal, Executive Director, ASSAF-Aid Organization for Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Israel; Anat Herrmann-Aharoni, Executive Director, Hotline for Refugees and Migrants, and Or Mor-Yosef, CEO, African Refugee Development Center.
The Jewish Press | December 15, 2023 | 9
How ‘decolonization’ became the latest flashpoint in the discourse over Israel
ANDREW SILOW-CARROLL JTA Attend or watch footage of a campus pro-Palestinian demonstration these days and you are likely to see someone carrying a sign reading “Decolonization is not a metaphor.” Almost immediately after the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, George Washington University Students for Justice in Palestine put out a statement praising the terrorists, declaring “Decolonization is NOT a metaphor.” As a political slogan, it may not pack the same punch as “Free Palestine” or “From the river to the sea.” But to activists on both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian divide, the charge that Israel is a “settler colonial” state and calls to “decolonize” Palestine are becoming an increasingly potent part of the toxic, perhaps unbridgeable, discourse. Two nearly simultaneous events inspired me to take a dive into the meaning of the slogan. The first was a news release from the American Jewish Committee announcing that, in light of the “terrifying increase” of antisemitism since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack against Israel, it was adding new terms to its online “Translate Hate” glossary of antisemitic terms. Among those terms, alongside “from the river to the sea” and the newly added “Globalize the Intifada,” is “settler colonialist.” “Those who oppose the State of Israel as a Jewish state,” writes AJC, use the term to charge that Israel “engages in ethnic cleansing by displacing and dispossessing a native or pre-existing population.” It goes on to explain why the term is “categorically false.” More on that in a moment. The second event was a webinar in memory of Hayim Katsman, 32, the Israeli ethnographer and peace activist killed when Hamas infiltrated his kibbutz. The webinar was the launch of a new book of scholarly essays, “Settler Indigeneity in the West Bank,” that features an essay by Katsman. Like many of the other Jewish and Israeli contributors to the book, Katsman used the term “colonialist” to describe aspects of Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians, even while recognizing how it can be abused. In the book’s introduction, its editors, Rachel Z. Feldman and Ian McGonigle, explain why. They acknowledge the argument — put forth by AJC and others — that unlike the Europeans who colonized Africa, the Americas and Asia, Jews had a longstanding connection to and presence in the Land of Israel, and that the “early Zionist settlers did not have a home empire.” (Or, as AJC puts it, “unlike European settler colonialists who settled colonies to enrich their motherlands, and who maintained a connection to their home countries to which they could return if they so wished, Jews who came to Mandatory Palestine had no motherland in Europe to enrich.”) However, write Feldman and McGonigle, aspects of political Zionism certainly resemble colonialism. “If we read Hertzl, if we read Jabotinsky, they’re speaking about a colonizing project,” Feldman said at the book launch, referring to two of political Zionism’s founding fathers. “And, unfortunately, they were subject to the modalities of European thought that … looked at Palestinians as primitive people who could not possibly have a sovereign imagination of their own.” But “colonialism” doesn’t tell the whole story of Israel, Feldman, assistant professor of religion at Dartmouth, told me on
Friday. “I think that’s where things can slide into antisemitism, writes that the “decolonizing narrative is much worse than a when this just sort of blanket equation is made between Zi- study in double standards; it dehumanizes an entire nation and onism and all European colonial projects. It would be missing excuses, even celebrates, the murder of innocent civilians.” the fact that Israel is the historic ancestral homeland of the In his chapter for the “Settler Indigeneity” volume, about reJews,” she said. “But that doesn’t mean that Jews haven’t acted ligious Jews living in the Negev, Katsman appears to agree with in ways that are settler colonial.” scholars who describe Israel’s efforts to “‘Judaize’ Palestinian Ignoring those power dynamics — or, as many Palestinians space” as colonialism in effect, if not intent. But he doesn’t reand their supporters tend to do, denying any Jewish connec- ject Israel, only those Jewish ideologues who want to erase the tion to the land — “will never get us closer to peace and rec- Green Line separating pre-1967 Israel from the West Bank. He onciliation,” Feldman continued. “This debate about who is bewails “the growing acceptance [among Jews] of a one-state more native is a fundamentally flawed debate and it leads to reality between the river and the sea.” dehumanization of either Israelis or Palestinians. Both people are in this land together, and that is the absolute basis of any future kind of reconciliation.” “Reconciliation” is barely on the minds of those who quote “Decolonization is not a metaphor,” the 2012 paper by American academics Eve Tuck and K. Wayne Yang that poularized the phrase. The two argued that “decolonization” means exactly what it says: “repatriating land to sovereign Native tribes and nations, abolition of slavery in its contemporary forms, and the dismantling of the imperial metropole” – that is, the colonizing “homeland.” It is not a handy bit of jargon for improving our societies and schools or fighting racism or “easing” an occupation, they write. The paper only mentions “Palestine” once, in a roll call Palestinians and their supporters protest outside the Embassy of Isof colonialist malefactors that includes Australia, the rael in London two days after Hamas killed 1,200 people in an attack United States and apartheid South Africa, but it became on southern Israel, Oct. 9, 2023. Credit: Wiktor Szymanowicz/ Future a touchstone for radical movements that felt the wide- Publishing via Getty Images spread rhetoric of anti-colonialism had lost its bite. That seems of a piece with the scholarship and activism for George Washington University Students for Justice in Pales- which he was known. His mother, the American-born Orthotine, since suspended by the administration, takes the phrase dox feminist activist Hannah Katsman, told Haaretz that he to its logical, violent extreme, calling the Hamas attack a “tan- came to Kibbutz Holit after the army to help revive the desert gible, material event in which the colonized rise up against outpost. Although he studied in the United States, he was dethe colonizer and regain control of their lives.” termined to return home. Among other things, he took part Another pro-Palestinian group, Decolonize This Place, calls in solidarity shifts to protect Palestinian communities hafor “direct action and [is] driven by the belief that all colonized rassed by Jewish settlers in the West Bank. and oppressed people have the right to take back their land, to His dissertation, about political trends in Religious Zionism, realize self-determination, and to win their liberation by any was dedicated to “all life forms that exist between the Jordan means necessary.” The day after the Hamas attack , it said on River and the Mediterranean Sea.” Instagram: “[T]he heroic Palestinian resistance and the people’s “He was determined to understand the political rise to power steadfastness continue, while settler colonial Israel, the US, and of Israel’s religious right wing, which he viewed as a serious obthe ‘international community’ ignore that Israel is the violence.” stacle to the establishment of a just and lasting peace,” Feld“Softer” versions of decolonization call for divesting from man said in her opening remarks at the book launch. She also countries and institutions that support colonialism. Corinna quoted Katsman, whom she got to know over the years, saying Mullin, who teaches international relations at the University of that he worked to create a world where “Israelis and PalestiniTunis in Tunisia and recently at CUNY’s John Jay College, used ans both are able to live full lives as equals under the law.” the “not a metaphor” phrase during a Nov. 17 Labor for Palestine Since his death at the hands of Hamas, Katsman has been teach-in in support of the boycott of organizations with “links held up as a counterpoint to the zero-sum nihilism repreto Zionism.” “We need to materially decolonize these institutions sented by his murderers. Perhaps he should also be seen as a so that they no longer are serving the causes of oppression and symbol of the possibility of two peoples sharing a land without exploitation, but instead are in the service of liberation,” she said. either one trying to expel, dominate or colonize the other. Those who wave the “not a metaphor” sign at rallies may emAndrew Silow-Carroll is editor at large of the New York brace all or none of these interpretations. AJC insists that the “set- Jewish Week and managing editor for Ideas for the Jewish tler colonialist” label is, however it is used, a slur. And when it is Telegraphic Agency. “used to say Jews do not have the right to national self-determiThe views and opinions expressed in this article are those of nation or to deny Israel’s right to exist,” it explains in the glossary, the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of JTA or its “that is antisemitism.” The historian Simon Sebag Montefiore parent company, 70 Faces Media.
Ending hostility and violence means wrestling with our own shadows RABBI ADINA ALLEN This story was originally published on My Jewish Learning | JTA Hostility originates in the disowned and unacknowledged elements within us. That, at any rate, is the claim of a body of research based on the work of Carl Jung, the Swiss psychiatrist and founder of analytical psychology. Jung introduced the concept of the shadow, the unconscious part of ourselves that we are unable or unwilling to acknowledge. Those elements we repress stem from painful experiences that give rise to difficult emotions such as shame, jealousy, rage and grief. “The level of hostility a person exhibits is proportional to the amount of shadow,” writes Roderick Main, a professor in the Department of Psychosocial and Psychoanalytic Studies at the University of Essex. At this moment of intensifying hostility within our communities and devastating levels of violence in our world, this week’s Torah portion, Vayishlach, offers us glimmers of insight into how we might heal society’s fractures and open a way towards peace: We must stop projecting our shadow on to others, and instead grapple with it for ourselves. As the portion opens, Esau is on the march toward his brother Jacob, whom he has not seen since Jacob stole his birthright and ran away, evading responsibility. Jacob gets word that Esau is approaching with 400 men and becomes afraid and distressed. Rashi says the fear is that Esau will kill him, while the distress is that he will have to kill Esau. Either way, this already hostile situation seems likely to end in violence.
It is easy to imagine Jacob preparing to meet his brother by doubling down on a path of self-interest and plotting a preemptive attack. What’s more difficult to imagine is what he does instead. Before meeting his brother, Jacob creates the conditions to first meet himself. Jacob separates himself from all that he has amassed and places it on one side of the Jabbok river where his family is camped. He then crosses back to the other side empty-handed and unescorted. That night, vulnerable and alone, shorn of all that has come to define him, a mysterious figure appears and wrestles with Jacob until dawn. As day breaks, Jacob demands from the figure a blessing. It is then that he is renamed Yisrael — one who has struggled with beings Divine and human and endured. According to Jung, this kind of transformative experience of the Divine is “a force … that will only function and express itself where there is a true dialogue between ego-consciousness and the unconscious.” In this light, we can understand the mysterious figure with whom Jacob wrestles as representing the disowned, unacknowledged elements within that he finally brings to consciousness. Jacob emerges from his dark night of the soul humbled, hobbling and blessedly transformed. When dawn breaks and he and Esau finally meet, there is no hostility or violence. Instead, in an act of tender intimacy and relief, the brothers embrace and together they weep. We aren’t told how Esau prepares for this encounter, or why he was able to meet Jacob with open arms. We could imagine that he prepared for multiple possibilities, including a hostile
encounter. But with its focus on Jacob, the text seems to suggest that the changed contours of the conflict have much to do with the wrestling Jacob did within his own soul. We can infer that without this internal work, this story could have been the beginning of ongoing war, rather than a tender reconciliation. It was only after Jacob engaged in the wrenching, humbling work of grappling with his own shadow that the conflict could resolve. The Torah is not meant to be a straightforward guidebook for how to navigate the world. But perhaps Jacob’s wrestling with his shadow can offer us clues towards actualizing the new realities we seek. Each one of us has the capacity to do the inner work that changes how conflict unfolds. In this difficult and divisive time, what if we, like Jacob, acknowledged the fear and distress that we feel? What if we risked being “alone,” separated from the beliefs, narratives and identities that have come to define us, allowing for the vulnerability and disorientation that necessarily will arise? What if we wrestle with the difficult questions and challenging truths that come to meet us? Perhaps if we are tenacious enough to stay with the struggle long enough, we, like Jacob, will discover the blessing it contains. Rabbi Adina Allen is a spiritual leader, writer and educator who believes in the power of creativity to revitalize our lives and transform Jewish tradition. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of JTA or its parent company, 70 Faces Media.
Synagogues
10 | The Jewish Press | December 15, 2023
B’NAI ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE 618 Mynster Street Council Bluffs, IA 51503-0766 712.322.4705 www.cblhs.org
BETH EL SYNAGOGUE Member of United Synagogues of Conservative Judaism 14506 California Street Omaha, NE 68154-1980 402.492.8550 bethel-omaha.org
BETH ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE Member of Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America 12604 Pacific Street Omaha, NE. 68154 402.556.6288 BethIsrael@OrthodoxOmaha.org
CHABAD HOUSE An Affiliate of Chabad-Lubavitch 1866 South 120 Street Omaha, NE 68144-1646 402.330.1800 OChabad.com email: chabad@aol.com
LINCOLN JEWISH COMMUNITY: B’NAI JESHURUN South Street Temple Union for Reform Judaism 2061 South 20th Street Lincoln, NE 68502-2797 402.435.8004 www.southstreettemple.org
OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE Capehart Chapel 2500 Capehart Road Offutt AFB, NE 68123 402.294.6244 email: oafbjsll@icloud.com
ROSE BLUMKIN JEWISH HOME 323 South 132 Street Omaha, NE 68154
TEMPLE ISRAEL Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) 13111 Sterling Ridge Drive Omaha, NE 68144-1206 402.556.6536 templeisraelomaha.com
LINCOLN JEWISH COMMUNITY: TIFERETH ISRAEL Member of United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism 3219 Sheridan Boulevard Lincoln, NE 68502-5236 402.423.8569 tiferethisraellincoln.org
B’NAI ISRAEL Monthly Speaker Series Service, Friday, Jan. 12, 7:30 p.m. with our guest speaker. Our service leader is Larry Blass. Everyone is always welcome at B’nai Israel! For information about our historic synagogue, please visit our website at www.cblhs.org or contact any of our other board members: Renee Corcoran, Scott Friedman, Rick Katelman, Janie Kulakofsky, Howard Kutler, Carole and Wayne Lainof, Ann Moshman, Mary-Beth Muskin, Debbie Salomon and Sissy Silber. Handicap Accessible.
BETH EL Services conducted by Rabbi Steven Abraham and Hazzan Michael Krausman. IN-PERSON AND ZOOM MINYAN SCHEDULE: Mornings on Sundays, 9:30 a.m.; Mondays and Thursdays, 7 a.m.; Evenings on Sunday-Thursday, 5:30 p.m. FRIDAY: Kabbalat Shabbat, 6 p.m. SATURDAY: Shabbat Morning Service, 10 a.m. at Beth El & Live Stream; Jr. Congregation (Grades K-12), 10 a.m.; Mahjong Shabbat, 12:30 p.m.; Havdalah, 5:35 p.m. Zoom Only. SUNDAY: Operation Grateful Goodies Baking Day, 9 a.m.; BESTT (Grades K-7), 9:30 a.m.; Hebrew Reading for Adults, 10:30 a.m. with Hazzan Krausman; Adult B’nai Mitzvah, 11:15 a.m. with Hazzan Krausman; Gesher Bowling Bash (Grades 6-8), noon. TUESDAY: Pirkei Avot, 10:30 a.m. with Rabbi Abraham. WEDNESDAY: BESTT (Grades 3-7), 4:15 p.m.; Hebrew High (Grades 8-12), 6 p.m. THURSDAY: Operation Grateful Goodies Drop Off, 9 a.m.-noon. FRIDAY-Dec. 22: Operation Grateful Goodies Drop Off, 9 a.m.-noon.; Nebraska AIDS Project Lunch, 11:30 a.m.; Kabbalat Shabbat, 6 p.m. SATURDAY-Dec. 23: Shabbat Morning Service, 10 a.m. at Beth El & Live Stream; Jr. Congregation (Grades K-12), 10 a.m.; Havdalah, 5:40 p.m. Zoom Only. Please visit bethel-omaha.org for additional information and service links.
BETH ISRAEL FRIDAY: Nach Yomi, 6:45 a.m.; Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Mincha/Kabbalat Shabbat/Candlelighting, 4:38 p.m. SATURDAY: Shabbat Kollel, 8:30 a.m.; Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Tot Shabbat, 10:30 a.m.; Youth Class, 10:45 a.m.; Kids Kiddush Club, 11:15 a.m.; Soulful Torah: Unpacking the Or HaChayim’s Teachings, 3:45 p.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 4:30 p.m.; Laws of Shabbos/Kids Activity, 5 p.m.; Havdalah, 5:43 p.m. SUNDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 4:40 p.m. MONDAY: Nach Yomi, 6:45 a.m.; Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Monday Mind Builders, 4 p.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 4:40 p.m. TUESDAY: Nach Yomi, 6:45 a.m.; Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 4:40 p.m.; Board of Directors Meeting, 7 p.m.
WEDNESDAY: Nach Yomi, 6:45 a.m.; Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 4:40 p.m. THURSDAY: Nach Yomi, 6:45 a.m.; Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Character Development Class, 9:30 a.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 4:40 p.m.; Parsha Class, 5 p.m. FRIDAY-Dec. 22: Fast Begins, 6:17 a.m.; Nach Yomi, 6:30 a.m.; Shacharit, 6:45 a.m.; Mincha/Kabbalat Shabbat/Candlelighting, 4:41 p.m.; Fast Ends, 5:37 p.m. SATURDAY-Dec. 23: Shabbat Kollel, 8:30 a.m.; Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Tot Shabbat, 10:30 a.m.; Youth Class, 10:45 a.m.; Kids Kiddush Club, 11:15 a.m.; Soulful Torah: Unpacking the Or HaChayim’s Teachings, 3:45 p.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 4:30 p.m.; Laws of Shabbos/Kids Activity, 5 p.m.; Havdalah, 5:46 p.m. Please visit orthodoxomaha.org for additional information and Zoom service links.
CHABAD HOUSE All services are in-person. All classes are being offered in-person and via Zoom (ochabad.com/academy). For more information or to request help, please visit www.ochabad.com or call the office at 402.330.1800. FRIDAY: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Inspirational Lechayim, 4:30 p.m. with Rabbi and friends: ochabad.com/ Lechayim; Candlelighting, 4:37 p.m. SATURDAY: Shacharit, 9:30 a.m. followed by Kiddush and Cholent; Shabbat Ends, 5:42 p.m. SUNDAY: Sunday Morning Wraps: Shacharit, 99:30 a.m., Video Presentation, 9:30 a.m. and Breakfast, 9:45 a.m. MONDAY: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Personal Parsha, 9:30 a.m.; Intermediate Biblical Hebrew Grammar, 10:30 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Parsha Reading, 6 p.m. with Prof. David Cohen. TUESDAY: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Intermediate Biblical Hebrew Grammar, 6 p.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Introductory Biblical Hebrew Grammar, 7 p.m. with Prof. David Cohen. WEDNESDAY: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Mystical Thinking (Tanya), 9:30 a.m.; Introductory Biblical Hebrew Grammar, 10:30 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Parsha Reading, 11:30 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen.. THURSDAY: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Parsha Reading, 10 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Advanced Biblical Hebrew Grammar, 11 a.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Talmud Study (Sanhedrin 34), noon; Introduction to Alphabet, Vowels & Reading Hebrew, 6 p.m. with Prof. David Cohen; Kitzur Shulchan Aruch (Code of Jewish Law) Class, 7 p.m. FRIDAY-Dec. 22: Shacharit, 8 a.m.; Inspirational Lechayim, 4:30 p.m. with Rabbi and friends: ocha bad.com/Lechayim; Candlelighting, 4:40 p.m. SATURDAY-Dec. 23: Shacharit, 9:30 a.m. followed by Kiddush and Cholent; Shabbat Ends, 5:45 p.m.
LINCOLN JEWISH COMMUNITY: B’NAI JESHURUN & TIFERETH ISRAEL Services facilitated by Rabbi Alex Felch. All services offered in-person with live-stream or teleconferencing options. FRIDAY: Shabbat Candlelighting, 4:41 p.m.; Erev
Rabbi Geiger’s Weekly Torah Expedition PARSHA VAYIGASH TAP, TAP, BANG! Clint, please leave the classroom! Clint was always getting in trouble. You see, teachers tend to like the classroom to be quiet. But Clint could never seem to settle down. Come to think of it, I don’t believe only teachers get an- RABBI noyed by constant banging MORDECHAI and tapping on tables. It’s GEIGER annoying! Clint’s principal Beth Israel suggested that he sit on his hands but to no avail. One day, Clint’s teacher was so upset with his tapping he gave Clint detention. At detention, the teacher reaches into his desk, and Clint is terrified of the assignment he’s about to get. Is he going to have to show it to his parents? But instead, the teacher pulls out a set of drumsticks. “Clint, you ever tried drumming”? This was the beginning of Clint Pulver’s career as a drummer.
We all know nice words can build people. They can charge a person’s whole life. But sometimes we get mad! Occasionally, we lose touch with our ideal altruistic self. We’ve had enough, and it’s time to put that guy in his place! The first interaction in this week’s Torah portion gives an insight into how to motivate ourselves in those moments. As ruler of Egypt Joseph tested his brothers to see how loyal they were to each other. In the middle of their conversation, suddenly, “Judah came close to him [ Joseph]” (Genesis 44-18). Ohr Hachaim explains Judah came close to Joseph so that no one else would overhear them. Because Judah knew that if he proved Joseph wrong in front of everyone, it would be embarrassing. And Embarrassed people will sometimes do pretty nasty things. So, in selfpreservation, Judah avoided embarrassing his enemy. When you are so upset you can’t see someone else’s world, be kind anyway. Do it for yourself.
Shabbat Service with Rabbi Alex, 6:30 p.m. at SST. SATURDAY: Shabbat Morning Service, 9:30 a.m. at TI; Torah Study, noon on Parashat Mikeitz; Havdalah, 5:46 p.m.; Potluck Dinner and Family Game Night, 6 p.m. at SST. Please bring a dish to share. All ages are welcome. SUNDAY: LJCS Classes, 9:30 a.m.-noon; Men’s Bike/Coffee Group, 10:30 a.m. in the Conference Room at Rock 'n Joe (5025 Lindbergh St.). For more information or questions please email Al Weiss at alb ertw801@gmail.com; Jewish Book Club Meeting, 1:30 p.m. on Zoom and will discuss A Play for the End of the World by Jai Chakrabarti. Email Deborah Swearingin at devra60@gmail.com to receive the meeting link; .Pickleball, 3-5 p.m. Anyone interested in playing or learning how to play can text Miriam at 402.470.2393. If there are enough interested people; we will play in the Social Hall at TI. TUESDAY: Ladies' Lunch, 1 p.m. at Copal, 4747 Pioneer Blvd. For more information email Barbara Barron at oohhmmm.barb@gmail.com. WEDNESDAY: LJCS Hebrew School, 4:30-6 p.m. THURSDAY: Annual Temple Meeting, 7 p.m. at SST. FRIDAY-Dec. 22: Shabbat Candlelighting, 4:44 p.m.; Erev Shabbat Service with Rabbi Alex, 6:30 p.m. at SST. SATURDAY-Dec. 23: Shabbat Morning Service, 9:30 a.m. at TI followed by Kiddush Lunch sponsored by Howard Feldman; Torah Study, noon on Parashat Vayigash; Havdalah, 5:49 p.m.
OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE
FRIDAYS: Virtual Shabbat Service, 7:30 p.m. every first and third of the month at Capehart Chapel. Contact TSgt Jason Rife at OAFBJSLL@icloud.com for more information.
ROSE BLUMKIN JEWISH HOME The Rose Blumkin Jewish Home’s service is currently closed to visitors.
TEMPLE ISRAEL
In-person and virtual services conducted by Rabbi Benjamin Sharff, Rabbi Deana Sussman Berezin, and Cantor Joanna Alexander FRIDAY: Drop in Mah Jongg, 9-11 a.m. In-Person; B’yachad Service, 6 p.m. In-Person & Zoom. SATURDAY: Torah Study, 9:15 a.m. In-Person & Zoom; Shabbat Morning Service, 10:30 a.m. In-Person & Zoom SUNDAY: Grades PreK-7, 9:30 a.m. In-Person; Book Club, 10:30 a.m. In-Person & Zoom. WEDNESDAY: No Youth Learning; Yarn It, 9 a.m. In-Person. FRIDAY-Dec. 22: Drop in Mah Jongg, 9-11 a.m. InPerson; B’yachad Service, 6 p.m. In-Person & Zoom. SATURDAY-Dec. 23: Torah Study, 9:15 a.m. In-Person & Zoom. Please visit templeisraelomaha.com for additional information and Zoom service links.
TO SUBMIT ANNOUNCEMENTS B’nai Mitzvah announcements may be emailed to the Press with attached photos in .jpg or .tif files to jpress@jewishomaha.org; faxed to 402.334.5422, or mailed to 333 So. 132 St., Omaha, NE 68154. Forms are available through Omaha and Lincoln synagogues, by contacting The Jewish Press at 402.334.6448, or by e-mailing: jpress@jewishomaha.org. Readers can also submit other announcements -- births engagements, marriages, commitment ceremonies or obituaries -- online at: www.om ahajewishpress.com. Go to Submission Forms. Deadlines are normally eight days prior to publication, on Thursdays, 9 a.m. Check the Jewish Press, however, for notices of early deadlines prior to secular and Jewish holidays.
JEWISH PRESS NOTICE The Jewish Press will be closed on Mondays, Dec. 25, 2023 and Jan. 1, 2024. There will be no Jewish Press on Jan. 5, 2024. Questions? Call 402.334.6448.
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The Jewish Press | December 15, 2023 | 11
News
Before someone offers you alcohol or other drugs, decide what you are going to say.
Pulverent e
LOC AL | N AT I O N A L | WO R L D
Having the facts can give you confidence.
Operation Grateful Goodies
Over 60 Years Experience With Jewish Lettering and Memorials
For more information, call
1439 So. 13th
1-800-648-4444
402-341-2452
LINDA SALTZMAN What are YOU doing on Dec. 25? The city will seemingly have shut down, and Hanukkah will have ended 10 days prior. Let’s show our appreciation to those who work to heal and protect us with a gift box of homemade goodies. Operation Grateful Goodies returns for its sixth year in 2023! Through Operation Grateful Goodies, members of the Jewish community fan out across the Omaha area to deliver thankyou boxes of homemade goodies to those working on Dec. 25, away from their families, to save lives. Among the recipients of the gift boxes include police officers, firefighters, nurses, emergency veterinarians, Offutt AFB personnel and National Weather Service staff. In 2022, volunteers visited 112 locations!
Not only is Operation Grateful Goodies a mitzvah, but it’s also FUN for volunteers of all ages! Following are ways volunteers can participate: • Bake! We need a lot of homemade baked goods (kosher not required) to fill our gift boxes. • Sort! We need volunteers to sort and pack gift boxes. (space is limited) • Write! We need thank-you notes to attach to the gift boxes. • Deliver! We need volunteers to deliver gift boxes on Dec. 25. • Donate! We always need funds for extra goodies. Volunteers are asked to register for one or more of the following shifts: Dec. 17: Baking Day at Beth El. 9 a.m. to noon. Dec. 21: Food and cards drop off at Beth El. 9 a.m. to noon. Dec. 22: Food and cards drop off at Beth El. 9 a.m. to noon. Dec. 24: Sorting at Beth El in two shifts beginning at noon and 1 p.m. Dec. 25: Pick up boxes for delivery noon to 1 p.m. Operation Grateful Goodies is a program of Beth El Synagogue’s Miriam Initiative in partnership with Temple Israel, Beth Israel, Chabad of Nebraska and the Jewish Federation of Omaha. The program is a perfect opportunity for families, couples and singles to bring smiles to those working for our health and safety on Dec. 25 and all year long. Register at https://www.bethel-omaha .org/form/grateful-goodies-2023.html.
Julie Platt leads Penn’s board amid transition PHILISSA CRAMER JTA To steer the university through an unexpected leadership change induced by debate over antisemitism, the board of the University of Pennsylvania turned to their vice chair — who is also one of the most prominent Jewish communal leaders in the country. Julie Beren Platt, a 1979 Penn graduate, has been on the Penn board of trustees since 2006 and recently started her second stint as vice chair, making her a natural fit to step up when chair Scott Bok resigned from the management body on Saturday, following the resignation of the university’s president, Liz Magill. Platt is also the chair of Jewish Federations of North America, the umbrella of 146 local Jewish communal bodies that has collected more than $700 million — and allocated more than $240 — to drive the American Jewish philanthropic response to the Oct. 7 attack on Israel. Platt cited that commitment in emphasizing that her leadership of Penn’s board would last for a short period: She said she will step down in January when a permanent chair is selected. Platt’s dual roles mean that she has been on the front lines in two of the most prominent organizations reshaped by the Oct. 7 attack and its aftermath. It also suggests, as she acknowledged in a statement, that even the presence of a seasoned Jewish leader in a senior university board position is not sufficient to address antisemitism on college campuses right now. “I have worked hard from the inside to address the rising issues of antisemitism on campus. Unfortunately, we have not made all the progress that we should have and intend to accomplish,” Platt said in a statement issued by JFNA, adding, “I will continue as a board member of the university to use my knowledge and experience of Jewish life in North America and at Penn to accelerate this critical work.” Platt, 66, is the daughter of Joan Schiff Beren, a philanthropist who died in 2016, and Robert Beren, the Wichita, Kansas, oil magnate and Jewish philanthropist who died in August at 97. She is also the mother of five children — four of them Penn graduates — including the Broadway actor Ben Platt and Jonah Platt, a musician who also sits on the board of 70 Faces Media, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency’s parent company.
Previously the chair of the Los Angeles federation and the Foundation for Jewish Camp, Platt also chairs a foundation named for her and her husband, Hollywood producer Marc Platt, and has been involved in an array of Jewish educational initiatives. She became the second woman to helm JFNA’s board last year, assuming leadership of the fundraising organization at a crucial time. The organization has distributed hundreds of millions to groups providing emergency aid in Israel since Oct. 7. The group has also supported local Jewish communities in the United States in strengthening their own response to antisemitism through an initiative, LiveSecure, created in 2021, that Platt was instrumental in launching. “We are leading the largest mobilization in our history in support of Israel’s right to protect its citizens and against the rise of antisemitism in North America, including staging the largest Jewish rally in American history on the National Mall,” Platt said in her statement. “We will continue this fight with all our energy.” Penn was already grappling with a crisis related to antisemitism in the weeks prior to Oct. 7, as a festival featuring Palestinian writers drew criticism. Platt and Bok had issued a statement of confidence in Liz Magill, Penn’s president, in the wake of that crisis and in the immediate aftermath of Oct. 7, even as some criticized the school’s initially response as tepid. But last week, Magill was one of three college presidents who declined during a congressional hearing to say that the genocide of Jews would violate their schools’ codes of conduct.
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12 | The Jewish Press | December 15, 2023
Thank You!
We express our heartfelt gratitude for your support of The Foundation’s remarkable 40th Anniversary celebration. We have received praise from numerous community members who attended our programs, gained inspiration from The Foundation Story video, and now have a deeper understanding of The Foundation’s work and its impact. A special thank you to our grant supporters who played a pivotal role in helping The Foundation mark this 40th milestone: Anything Grants, Foundation Grants Committee – Foundation IMPACT Grants, Shirley & Leonard Goldstein Supporting Foundation, Herbert Goldsten Trust, Milton S. & Corinne N. Livingston Foundation Fund, Murray H. & Sharee C. Newman Supporting Foundation, and the Special Donor-Advised Fund. And to Debra Kaplan who captured every celebration with her camera and heart.
JFOF Executive Director: Amy Bernstein Shivvers JFOF Staff: Laurie Peatrowsky Diane Walker Stacie Metz Linda Pollard
JFOF Board of Directors: Bob Belgrade Stacey Erman Rockman Michael Abramson Steven Bloch Paul Epstein Ted Friedland David Gilinsky D Donald Goldstein J Jay Gordman K Kip Gordman Howard M. Kooper H T Troy Meyerson Murray H. Newman M S Steve Nogg S Susan Norton C Carl Riekes A Andrew Robinson L Louri Sullivan
ff to Ythoue Samuel Bak Museum Hats O at eception Donor R
“Who are the Marcuses?”
Fabulous at 40! Event Chairs: Mary Bernstein Andie Gordman Joanie Jacobson Jody Malashock Marcia Pitlor Jane Rips
Film premiere followed by panel discussion
With Heart in
Hand
Conversat ions with Rabbis on Tzedakah
E Emeritus Council: J Jody Malashock M Marty Ricks
40! Fabulous at
tion Staff
The Founda
Event Chairs
Scan the QR code to view “The Foundation Story,” a video that beautifully captures our journey, highlighting our donors and the profound impact our grants have on the community.
4
www.jfofoundation.org • 402-334-6498
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Multigener ational Je wish stor ies & Jew ish values