SHABBAT SHALOM, GESHER SHALOM!


 
February 21st, 2020
 
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Shabbat Times: 
Candle Lighting
Evening service at CBIOTP
Morning Service at CBIOTP
M inha at CBIOTP 
5:19  pm
7:00 pm 
9:30 am
4:45 pm
 
  Forecast: 48/sunny

IN THIS ISSUE...
Birthdays and Anniversaries 
Elsie Zeilberger
Suzanne Fasman
Rose Jakoby
Arnold Insler
Gloria Singer
Nancy Schiff
Diane Sudakoff
Craig Barnett

Selma & Rabbi Irving Spielman

   UPCOMING EVENTS
 
Wednesday 2/26
On The Road with the Rabbi to Yivo RSVP required
Thursday
2/27
Rabbi's Class - 10:30am
The Legends of the Bible
Newcomers welcome!
 




The World Zionist Congress, which will take place in October 2020, is the body that makes major policy decisions concerning the future of Zionism, Aliyah and absorption, Israeli advocacy worldwide, Jewish education and the war against antisemitism, settlement in Israel and other vital issues for Israel and the Jewish people's future.
I very much hope that you, as supporters of Conservative/Masorti non-profits, will vote for MERCAZ USA between now and March 11th, when the election ends.
  The World Zionist Congress will make decisions regarding key institutions which allocate nearly $1 Billion annually to support Israel and World Jewry (including the World Zionist Organization, Keren Kayemet LeYisrael - Jewish National Fund and the Jewish Agency for Israel).
When you vote MERCAZ you support these amazing programs:
  • Over 800 kehillot world-wide through the USCJ, Masorti Israel, and Masorti Olami (worldwide)
  • Thousands and thousands of youth members through USY, NOAM ISRAEL, and NOAM OLAMI
  • The training of rabbis, cantors and educators at five locations: JTS, Ziegler School in Los Angeles, Schechter Institute, Seminario in Buenos Aires, and Zechariah Frankel in Germany
  • The Rabbinical Assembly has a membership of 1800 rabbis worldwide
  • The Cantors Assembly connects 600 hazzanim
  • The Jewish Educators Assembly and North American Association of Synagogue Executives serve hundreds more professionals
  • The nurturing of young adult leaders via Marom the Israeli Masorti movement's organization for students and young adults, which provide activities based on religious pluralism and Jewish content
  • And...The Nativ College Leadership Program - Gap Year in Israel, the Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem, Kibbutz Hannaton with its pioneering community and educational offerings,
  • And Reshet Ramah-Ramah channel for aged out Ramahniks who never grow old, USY alumni, and Solomon Schechter Schools alumni, all student communities tied-in to our five rabbinical schools.
  • The Movement administers hundreds of synagogue schools, dozens of Jewish day schools, TALI schools in Israel via the Schechter Institute, and camping through the Ramah Camping Movement.
ALL THIS for a mere $7.50...WOW!
So it's time to cast your ballot
VOTE MERCAZ  in the World Zionist Congress Elections
Vote MERCAZ ...
For Pluralism
For Democratic Values
For Equality
For Funding of Conservative/Masorti Programs
For Our Seat at the Table!
This is the ONLY election where American Jews can formally voice their concerns and views. Let's make sure that our vision of Israel as a thriving and pluralistic homeland for all Jews is secure.
PLEASE CLICK HERE TO BEGIN
OR  call me to obtain a paper ballot






















 
Torah Reading 456, 1277   Haftarah 523
MISHPATIM
Following the Decalogue (Ten Commandments), a series of laws in concise form is given to the Israelites. These include regulations governing the master-servant relationship, capital offenses, bodily injury, and damage to property, negligence, theft, marital law, and treatment of the stranger, orphan, widow, debtor and animals. The application and effectiveness of these laws is dependent upon the integrity of witnesses and judges; their truthfulness and objectivity must be assured.
 
Mitzvot regulating food and agriculture are also dealt with - first fruits and firstborn must be dedicated to God. Meat of an animal torn by beasts may not be eaten. The land must lie fallow every seventh year. Everyone - including servants - must rest on the Sabbath. Pilgrimage to the Sanctuary must be made on Passover, Shavuot and Sukkot. A kid may not be boiled in its mother's milk.
 
The people enthusiastically accept God's laws. Moses, the priests and the elders witness a mystical vision of God's glory. God commands Moses to ascend Mount Sinai to receive the tablets on which the Ten Commandments are inscribed. While Moses remains on the mount for forty days, Aaron and Hur will govern the people.
 

 
Tonight: Evening service at 7:00 p.m.
Tomorrow morning at 9:30 a.m.
Minha, Seudah Shlishit, Ma'ariv & Havdalah at 4:45 p.m.
During Seudah Shlishit we will read...
Gilad Shalit, Israel's Son, Is Getting Married   by Bari Weiss          
    
This Week's Yahrzeit Observances
We hope that our weekly listing of yahrzeit observances will serve 2 purposes:
1)     To remind those who have the yahrzeit for a second time, much closer to the date of the actual observance
2)     To alert friends and acquaintances that someone they know is observing a yahrzeit. We hope that you will show them your support by joining them at our minyanim, and helping to assure that Kaddish can be recited with a minyan 
        
Charles Shatz will be observing yahrzeit for his brother, Sheldon Shatz on Friday evening, February 21st
Hennie Ostrower will be observing yahrzeit for her mother, Gussie Kalb on Friday evening, February 22nd
Harry Richman will be observing yahrzeit for his mother, Bessie Richman on Friday evening, February 22nd
Tobey Lyden will be observing yahrzeit for her mother, Natalie Friedman on Sunday evening, February 23rd
Marlene Perkal will be observing yahrzeit for her mother, Rebecca Laufer on Sunday evening, February 23rd
Stephen Obstbaum will be observing yahrzeit for his mother, Evelyn Obstbaum on Sunday evening, February 23rd
Richard Schiff will be observing yahrzeit for his father, Eugene Schiff on Sunday evening, February 23rd
Laurie Smilovitz will be observing yahrzeit for his father, Bernard Schwarz on Sunday evening, February 23rd
Stephen Whitman will be observing yahrzeit for his father, Sydney Whitman on Tuesday evening, February 25th
Sylvia Gosberg will be observing yahrzeit for her mother, Ellen Schoenfeld on Tuesday evening, February 25th
Robert Mohl will be observing yahrzeit for his father, Samuel Mohl on Wednesday evening, February 26th
Lois Bruno will be observing yahrzeit for her sister, Roberta Morganstein on Thursday evening February 27th

Next Shabbat:
I will be at AIPAC (with a record-breaking 12 other members of the Shul!);
Cantor Zim will be enjoying the last Shabbat of his vacation...
But services will go on, led by Cantor/Rabbi Eric Wasser at CBIOTP
Next Friday at 7:30 pm (please note the time change!)
 A Special Musical-Meditative Service Led by Rabbi Wasser
Next Shabbat morning at 9:30 am
Our regular service
Next Shabbat afternoon at 5:00 pm
Mincha / S'uda Sh'lishit (food for life; food for thought) / Ma'ariv / Havdalah
We will read:  The Keys to Understanding American Anti-Semitism - And Fighting Back  -  by Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks                                                                                                                                                              



Important/Interesting Reads 
Hebrew May Be the World's Oldest Alphabet                                                                   
  Syrian Journalist: Jews "Make Miracles Out of the Impossible"                                                                
The Palestinian Case at the ICC Took a Big Hit This Week                                                                  
Iran Threatens to Destroy Tomb of Esther & Mordechai and Build Palestinian Consulate on the Site        
The Jewish Vote and the Nagging Question of Dual Loyalty
The charge has dogged American Jews since the election of 1868                                                  
Lara Friedman, the president of the Foundation for Middle East Peace, analyzes the significance of the Jewish vote in the 2020 election for the Arab Center Washington DC. Friedman notes the vast differences between what Jewish voters want and what Jewish political funders like Sheldon Adelson want, and pays attention to a lesser-known aspect of Jewish campaigning: the down-ballot. "Forcing Democrats to constantly fend off accusations of being anti-Israel or anti-semitic siphons off campaigns' time, energy, political capital and funds," she writes.                                                                                                                                         
Hues of Jews: Metro Detroit's Jews of Color                                                                            



AIPAC and the Trump Peace Plan
The Kushner plan puts AIPAC in an odd place: For the first time in its history, the largest Israel lobby in the U.S. finds itself to the left of a Middle East peace plan.
AIPAC has sustained its backing for a two-state solution, while the Trump administration and the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have retreated from it.
President Donald Trump's recently released plan restores the phrase "two states," but Netanyahu has said he does not see the terminology as determinative of statehood. The plan explicitly counts out some trappings of statehood for the Palestinians, including an independent foreign and defense policy.
Before the plan was released, AIPAC made clear it might be supportive, but wanted more information. That looks likely to come at the lobby's conference on March 1-3: Three of the plan's mapping committee members will speak, including U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman; Aryeh Lightstone, Friedman's senior adviser; and Ron Dermer, the Israeli ambassador to the United States.
Notably, a number of Obama administration veterans who have voiced skepticism of the plan, to varying degrees, also will speak. They include Dennis Ross and David Makovsky of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, and Daniel Shapiro, who is now at Israel's Institute for National Security Studies. So will two officials of the Israel Policy Forum, which has lambasted the plan.
How to read the tea leaves at the AIPAC conference: How tight-lipped the group can be, figuring that out is harder than it seems.
  • For example, don't pay attention to applause for the plan - AIPAC's grassroots supporters are famously to the right of its leadership and likely will be wild for its provisions entrenching Israel in the West Bank.
  • Instead, watch for whether panels in the plenary and the sidebars address the plan, and whether they include skeptics as well as supporters. See, too, if the moderators ask the plan's architects probing questions about its viability.
  • Watch for the legislation that AIPAC asks its activists to push on the conference's final day, when they lobby their Congress members. Does it include anything that explicitly supports the plan? (A handful of Democrats have said they see positives, which may give any AIPAC initiative the bipartisan backing that is the lobby's sine qua non.) Or is the plan ignored? Is there any language in the talking points that explicitly refers to two states?



Israel
Bible Coming to Life? Locusts 'Plague' Middle East, Asia, Africa                                                                                        Israel is also preparing for the possibility of the first desert locust infestation in seven years, according to Channel 12 news. The infestation in 2013 caused hundreds of thousands of shekels in damage to Israel's agriculture industry. In a recent situation evaluation, Agriculture Minister Tzachi Hanegbi said that there is currently only a low chance that the locusts will come to Israel, but stressed that the forecast could change and preparations should be made in advance.                                                                
Finding Love in Israel    
When these People signed up for Masa Israel Journey programs, they never anticipated meeting the love of their lives in Israel                                                                                             
For you next trip to Israel:
In the Heart of Israel's "Start-up Nation," an Exclusive Scene Opens Up
 Tel Aviv's flourishing tech sector is expanding and diversifying, offering travelers a surprising new lens on the city.                                                                                                                                        






 BDS / Anti-Semitism / anti-Zionism
New Documentary Featuring Bill Clinton Examines Anti-Semitism in US and Europe                                           
U of Illinois Student Government President Vetoes Divestment Resolution                                                       

Neo-Nazis from Across Europe Rally in Budapest  
In an attempt to Make Hungary Great Again, the populist government digs up some musty anti-Semitic nationalists for its recommended reading lists instead      
  Jewish Lawmaker from Macedonia Removed Amid Hostile Anti-Semitic Environment                                             
Former Polish Priest Indicted For Hate Speech And Holocaust Denial                                                           
Israel Calls on Belgium to Scrap Parade Over Anti-Semitism
Large Blue Swastika Painted on Jewish-Owned Business in Jackson, New Jersey 
New York City's Latest Tactic to Combat Anti-Semitism: An Ad Campaign Featuring Diverse Jewish New Yorkers   
More than half of the hate crimes in New York City last year were attacks on Jewish people. Orthodox Jews are particularly at risk.                                                                                         

France is Failing to Fight Its Rising Tide of Anti-Semitism     
A Brazen Anti-Semitic "Blacklist"   (Editorial in The Australian)                   
Britain Criticizes UN Move to List Companies Operating in West Bank       



Iran / Syria / Hezbollah
Photos: Airstrikes Destroy Iran Quds Force HQ, Warehouse at Damascus Airport                                               
Soleimani's Death Derails Iran's Regional Momentum                                                                      
Iran, Hizbullah, and Unidentified Insurgency All Operate in Syria near Israel's Border                                                                                   
Lebanese Politicians Criticize New Statue of Iran's Soleimani                                                             

Arab Official Rules Out Aid for Lebanon under Hizbullah's Sway



The Palestinians                                   
Mahmoud Abbas' Map of Lies      Rebuttal by Israeli Amb. Danny Danon                                                         
  Israeli Company Spots Hamas Cyberattacks on PA Officials                                                                   
 
Palestinians Slam Israel's West Bank Power Project                                                                  

How Hamas Is Spending Qatari Money: With Little Accountability                                                                  

Israel, PA End Economic Dispute  
IDF Cancels New Measures for Gaza after Rocket Fire                                                                    
Why Arabs in Israel Do Not Want to Live in "Palestine"                                  
                         
Why Does the White House Object to a "Sovereign" Palestinian State?                                                         
The United States seeks to rewrite the history of international peace efforts in the Middle East.
Egypt Builds a Wall on Border with Gaza                                                                                                        
Bringing Jews and Palestinians Together -Through Art, Education and a New Web Series                                                                                                          


Hi-Tech
Israeli Device to Help Coronavirus Patients Nears Market in China                                                      
Israeli Surgeons Help Burn Victims in Haiti Using Latest Laser Tech                                                      


Pop Culture        

From Bialy to "Jew York," Oxford English Dictionary Adds Dozens of (Sometimes Offensive) Jewish-Themed Words and Phrases  
Ben & Jerry's Israel is Having a Purim Costume Contest. You Could Win Free Ice Cream for 6 Months.   
The Jewish History of America's Most Famous Ice Cream  
18 Things to Know About Ethiopian Singer Eden Alene, Who Will Represent Israel in Eurovision  
 
Orthodox Rapper Nissim Black Reintroduces Himself to the World 
 The Black Jewish rapper talks to Alma about his journey to Judaism and new single, "Mothaland Bounce."   
Meet Lior Schleien, Israel's Jon Stewart         




Lecture at the JCC in Tenafly:
Holocaust Memory in a Challenging World
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, based in Washington, DC, is working to keep Holocaust memory alive by inspiring citizens and leaders to confront hatred, prevent genocide, and promote human dignity in our constantly changing world. Museum historian Dr. Edna Friedberg will discuss the depth, reach, and enduring relevance of the Museum's work, connecting Holocaust history with social, cultural and political issues today, such as laws that seek to limit Holocaust research, as well as the recent rise in white nationalist and far-right movements around the world. Examining trends and concerns through the lens of history, Dr. Friedberg will assess the current threat to Holocaust memory and how the Holocaust Museum's programs look to address them.
$8 JCC members and US Holocaust Memorial Museum members, $10 public

Includes reception 
Sponsored by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
Wed, Mar 25
7:30 PM - 9:30 PM
$8.00 Member
$10.00 Public
40HMCW00W0

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New York Sephardic Jewish Film Festival
Feb 23 - March 2
Center for Jewish History
Opening its 2020 edition with the NY Premiere of Keren Yedaya's Red Fields, among numerous other Israeli films included in the festival, the NYSJFF specializes in screening compelling, Greater Sephardi narratives and documentaries, that celebrate the beauty, diversity, and vitality of the Jewish experience.

Film
In Times Like These: Amos and Efratia Gitai
March 5-9
MoMA
Staged reading and film series introduced by Amos Gitai. Featuring Marthe Keller, Ronald Guttman and Edna Stern. The intellectual and artistic bond between mother and son, the birth of a nation both emerge through the prism of Jewish history and literature.

Music
Port of Entry: New York
March 3 | 8pm
Carnegie Hall
At the concert celebrating the cultural melting pot of New York, Israeli composer/pianist Dina Pruzhansky will present a segment from her Hebrew opera 'Shulamit', and will perform her piano solo piece, dedicated to New York.

Film
Sustainable Nation
March 2 | 6:30pm
Asia Society
Water scarcity is one of the most daunting challenges humankind faces today. While we may not feel it in our day-to-day lives, millions of people around the world are suffering from a lack of water. Sustainable Nation is a new, award-winning film that profiles three Israelis who are tackling the problem and bringing sustainable water solutions to countries across the globe.

Art
You Belong Here
Through April 23
C24 Gallery
At a time when questions of home, homeland and displacement loom large on the global landscape, artists Orit Ben Shitrit & Nirit Takele each channel their personal histories of mixed identity, culminating in a multi-media exhibition that collectively explores notions of self and belonging in a complex and dangerous world. 

Music
Noa: 30th Anniversary Concert
March 18 | 7pm
The Temple Emanu-El Stericker Center
Noa returns for her fourth appearance at the Streicker Center with Gil Dor and bassist Or Lubianiker for a special 30th anniversary concert of her greatest hits and her most audacious music yet, modern interpretations of Bach's concertos and cantatas. 

Art
Times Square Valentine Heart
Through March 1
Duffy Square, Times Square
Times Square Arts and Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum unveil "Heart Squared," this year's winning Times Square Valentine Heart designed by MODU (Led by Rachely Rotem and Phu Hoang) and Eric Forman Studio. Tilted in various directions within a steel frame that evokes the outline of an anatomic heart, the 125 mirrors of Heart Squared transform the spectacle of Times Square into kaleidoscopic images of people, buildings, and brightly-lit billboards.

Dance
Peridance Contemporary Dance Company: Spring Season
March 21-22, 27-29
Salvatore Capezio Theater
PCDC's program features works by Igal Perry, Yin Yue, and Dwight Rhoden. Photographer Rachel Neville and filmmaker David Bates, Jr. will be honored at our opening night benefit dinner. The program also includes a low-cost matinee performance for community members.

Film
Waltz with Bashir... With A Live 25-Piece Orchestra
March 25 | 7:30pm
The Temple Emanu-El Stericker Center
Ari Folman's animated Golden Globe-winning documentary follows his search for the truth about his own experience and the mass murder of Palestinian refugees in the Sabra and Shatila camps. The Wordless Music Orchestra will perform the soundtrack.

Art
Growing a Garden for an Unknown Lover by Boaz Aharonovitch
Through February 28
ZAZ10TS
Friends of Bezalel present Israeli artist Boaz Aharonovitch's photo-diary, artfully documenting a gardening project that took place in his studio. The outcome of the process is a meditation on the fleeting nature of the garden as a metaphor for the passage of time and longing. Curated by Aya Goshen.



Birthright Israel - Free Trip
10 amazing days of new discoveries, friendships, and adventures!
Free trip to Israel with Israel Outdoors
This trip is a gift from Birthright Israel with additional support from
Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey
May 31 - June 10, 2020

Onward Israel
Jumpstart your career!
Intern in your field of study this summer in Tel Aviv. Rolling admission registration has begun - don't miss your chance to apply!
Spend summer 2020 living and working in the center of Tel Aviv
Build Your Resume | Experience Israel
June 10 - August 4, 2020
Cost: $500
Rolling Admissions: November 18, 2019 - March 15, 2020




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