SHABBAT SHALOM, GESHER SHALOM!


 
December 7th 2018
 
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Shabbat Times: 
Candle Lighting
Evening Service
Morning Service
Minha
Menorah Lighting at the Triangle
4:10 pm
7:00pm
9:00am
12:30pm
5:45pm
 
  Forecast: 36/ sunny

IN THIS ISSUE...
Shabbat Kiddush
Join us for Kiddush on Shabbat. This is the perfect opportunity for us to experience community and get to know each other better.

 
Birthdays & Anniversaries
 
Alice Grodman
Evan Fein
Terry Plawker
Mark Laufer
Stephen Obstbaum
Alan Sommer
Emma Schulman
 

 
 
 
   UPCOMING EVENTS
           
Saturday 12/8
Morning Service 9:00 am
Minha, 12:30 pm
Menorah Lighting at the Triangle 5:45 pm followed by Havdalah and Chanukah party at the synagogue. Bring your own Menorah or light one of ours!
Tuesday 12/11
Sisterhood Board Meeting 1:00 pm
Thursday 12/13
Rabbi's Class "Talmud and Tangents" 10:30 am
Visiting Scholar Janet DiNardo White - Lecture topic: "The War of 1812" 1:00 pm
Friday 12/14
Bible Class 11:30 am
Post Chanukah Shabbat Dinner 6:00 pm RSVP Required



Torah Rea ding   265, 930, 808        Haftarah 1270  

MI-KETZ
Pharaoh dreams of cows being consumed by cows, and sheaves being replaced by sheaves. The dreams leave him puzzled and anxious. He demands to have someone interpret his dreams, but all the royal experts in such matters are at a loss as to what the dreams portend. The wine butler remembers Joseph's ability to interpret dreams from their days in prison together. Pharaoh orders that Joseph be brought into his presence immediately. Joseph explicates the dreams: seven years of bounty will be followed by seven years of famine. Pharaoh elevates Joseph to second in command of the whole country with the mandate to prepare for the famine while produce abounds.
 
During the famine, which extended beyond the borders of Egypt, ten of Joseph's brothers come to Egypt to buy food. Joseph recognizes them, but they don't recognize him. Joseph accuses them of being spies and puts them through a series of unpleasant experiences in order to get them to bring his brother Benjamin to Egypt on their next trip to obtain provisions. Despite grave misgivings, Jacob ultimately accedes to his sons' demands to have Benjamin accompany them to Egypt. There Joseph frames Benjamin for stealing his special wine goblet, and has him arrested.





 
President George H.W. Bush Playing Dreidel  
The Surprising History of the Dreidl  
30 Hanukkah Puns in 60 Seconds 

The Best Jewish Children's Books of 2018 
From biblical tales to Holocaust stories, these books make perfect Hanukkah gifts-with a dash of magic and a bit of jazz  

Debbie Friedman: Not By Might; Not By Power...                                  
Not By Might-Not By Power
Not By Might-Not By Power

Shlock Rock: The First Guys to Produce a Hanukkah Video ("My, My, My, My Menorah") 
The Top 8 Hanukkah Parodies of All Time
Kids Tell The Jimmy Kimmel Show What They Know About Hanukkah     
                                        
Kids Tell Us What They Know About Hanukkah

When we were about to make our holiday debut as parents, I informed my wife that we would be celebrating the season not only with Santa Claus but also with Hanukkah Harry.   
8 Nights of Hallmark Hanukkah Movies 
The Hallmark Channel just announced that it'll be producing Hanukkah films. We have ideas...      
Teri McGuire, MA'16, wrote her master's thesis on the impact 'The Rugrats' had on Jewish children. Unsurprisingly, the Hanukkah-themed episode holds a special place           
Lesser-known facts about the Festival of Lights 
A new exhibit at The Jewish Museum explores Hanukkah lamps through the ages, from gold and silver to acorn shell and pomegranate peel      
Satellite Radio Sirius XM -- Channel 77 
Features an extensive collection of Hanukkah-themed music, including contemporary, traditional and children's selections as well as daily reflections and prayers related to the holiday. (And if I read the website correctly, it is online already now on Channel 787)
The Empire State Building Decked Out for Hanukkah (Courtesy Hilda Froelke)


 
Tonight at 7:00 p.m.
Tomorrow morning at 9:00 a.m 3 Torahs!!! 
Diana Yacobi, guest speaker on Ethiopian Jewry!!!                                                                                                
Ian & Alex Gilenson chanting the haftarah!!!
Mincha at 12:30 p.m.
Menorah Lighting at the Fort Lee Triangle: Lemoine/Main/Schlosser (and Bandshell) at 5:45 p.m
 
followed by
A Blowout Hanukkah Party at the Shul
Havdalah &  Menorah  Lighting (bring your own Hanukkiyot!)                                                          
 Music & Food

Thanks to Dr. Alan Stern for lighting up our Menorah on Monday and Tuesday evenings

This Week's Yahrzeit Observances
We hope that our weekly listing of yahrzeit observances will serve 2 purposes:
1)     To remind those who ha ve 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 
 
Eloise Polinsky will be observing yahrzeit for her mother, Anna Hoffman on Saturday evening, December 8th
Seymour Zlotnick will be observing yahrzeit for his father, Morris Zlotnick on Sunday evening, December 9th
Seymour Green will be observing yahrzeit for his mother, Rose Green on Monday evening, December 10th
Larry Lesh will be observing yahrzeit for his uncle, Jack Lesh on Tuesday evening, December 11th
Shirley Kochansky will be observing yahrzeit for her brother, Marvin Lesnick on Wednesday evening, December 12th
Vida Story will be observing yahrzeit for her grandmother, Anna Dyme on Thursday evening, December 13th
Murray Feit will be observing yahrzeit for his mother, Mrs. Lucia Feit on Thursday evening, December 13th
Steven Kolitch will be observing yahrzeit for his mother, Pearl Kolitch on Thursday evening, December 13th
Norman Schaer will be observing yahrzeit for his father, Saul Schaer on Thursday evening, December 13th
Carolyn Tauber will be observing yahrzeit for her relative, Sandra Schipper on Thursday evening, December 13th









Today is December 7 (yes, a day that will live in infamy-for 50 years or so. the late Pres. Bush, a WW II veteran, got the date wrong in one of his more famous gaffes). By December 11 I need your RSVP's for the Rube Goldberg trip, please.


Important Reads
  UN General Assembly Votes 87-57 to Condemn Hamas... but a procedural vote calling for a 2/3 majority meant that the measured failed                                         
Wow! Jason Greenblatt with an op-ed in the Palestinian news agency's publication
Anti-Normalization with Israel Is a Failed Policy that Only Hurts the Palestinians                                            

Are Palestinians More Moderate than Their Leaders?   
Sharansky: President George H.W. Bush Repeatedly Helped Soviet Jews                                 

Marshall Breger Remembers George H.W.Bush
Benjamin Netanyahu Hated George H.W. Bush's Peace Plan. Now It's His Policy
Remarks by Vice President Pence at the 5th Israeli-American Council National Conference  
THE MIDDLE EASt'S MOST OVERLOOKED REFUGEES 
Today, only some 4,000 Jews remain in Arab countries. In other politically incorrect words, the Jews are the victims of ethnic cleansing                                                                                   
How the Democratic Socialists of America  Went From Supporting Israel to Boycotting the Jewish "Ethnostate"
 "We were the place to go on the left if you were a socialist and you were pro-Israel," one former leader of the Democratic Socialists of America recalled. No longer.                                                                         

 
Israel
Israeli Technology Effectively Prevents Attacks During G20                                                             

Israeli Technology Detects Suspicious Drones at G20 Summit in Buenos Aires                                    California Fire Rescuers Drink Water Pulled from Air 
Watergen sends Israeli water-making machine to assist rescue and recovery workers after massive wildfires.                                                          
Israel Developing New Laser Missile Defense System    
Israeli Medical Unit  
Pete Hegseth explores the terror tunnels found in Israel
Pete Hegseth explores the terror tunnels found in Israel
 
 
Israeli Scientists Create Personalized Tissue Implants  
Portable, wearable device will offer over-the-counter alternative to pills or surgery, to be used as needed                                                    
Israel: A World Leader in Cardiology Inventions                                                                  

How Israeli Innovation Using Artificial Intelligence Can Save Lives                  
Novel Gel Propulsion to Slash Cost of Launching Communication Satellites                                                                               Cheaper, more environmentally friendly rocket-engine technology offers same level of performance and control as toxic 'legacy' fuel.         
Exposure of Israel's Intelligence Collection in Gaza by Hamas Only Undermines Hamas                            
 The release of this information by Hamas attests to the efficiency of Israeli intelligence in Gaza                        
Israeli Force "Resided in Gaza for Weeks"                                                           


Iran/Hizbollah
It seems to me that Israel's tunnel detection capabilities have been monitoring Hizbollah for quite some time... Why act now? Some read into Israeli action now a Bibi political ploy. Maybe so; I cannot determine if that claim has merit or not.
It is also possible that as the war in Syria winds down, Iran and Hizbollah are getting ready to set their sights on Israel. If I was the one monitoring my enemy more closely than they knew (see the video of a booby-trapped Israeli video camera in one Hezbollah tunnel here:
Hezbollah Terrorist Caught on Camera
Hezbollah Terrorist Caught on Camera
I would let them expend as much money and effort as possible before destroying their positions. I think that is what is Israel is doing now.
And you should know that AIPAC  has lobbied Congress to approve more than $177 million for research and development of technology to detect future tunnel threats. That technology and know-how is now being utilized on Israel's northern border for this new danger.

Israel Destroys Hizbullah Attack Tunnels at Lebanese Border                                                        
IDF: Hizbullah Tunnel Was to Be Used to Cut off Metulla                                                                    
IDF Operating Against Hizbullah Tunnels in Three Locations    
Twitter Video Update from the IDF                                                          
An Israeli security official told i24News that the Hizbullah operative caught on camera by the IDF in a cross border tunnel this week was Dr. Imad "Azaladin" Fahs, a commander of the Hizbullah observation unit on the border and a commander in the tunnel unit. Fahs, in his 30s, has a PhD in mechanical engineering from Tehran's University of Technology and trained with Mexican drug cartels near the U.S. border.
A year ago, 11 members of the IDF engineering corps were sent to Europe for special training with the best experts in the world and learned about working with similar rock types as the ones in which Hizbullah dug its tunnels from Lebanon. "We realized we had to train people to excavate" - to drill into rock, said a senior IDF officer. "We trained in terrain we weren't accustomed to, working in hard earth and rocky terrain and in tough areas, in order to learn about excavating."
                                               
How Iran Spreads Disinformation around the World                                                                  
Iran Duped Pakistan into Threatening Israel with Nuclear Attack in Wake of Fake News Story 
A New Order Emerges in Southern Syria as Assad Regains Control                                                                               
Syrian regime closes accounts with West - and Israel-linked rebels, as Iran builds and expands its presence in the area. 



Anti-Zionism / Anti-Semitism / BDS
European Council Calls on All EU States to Adopt IHRA Definition of Anti-Semitism                                            
The Marc Lamont Controversy
Why 'From the River to the Sea' Cannot Be Explained Away    (Despite the Huffington Post op-ed piece which follows, and claims to do just that)
Temple University professor - and former CNN contributor - Marc Lamont Hill ignited controversy by calling for a "free Palestine from the river to sea" during public remarks at the U.N. Hill also said violence by Palestinians could be justified as self-defense.
Speaking at an event last week commemorating the U.N.'s International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, Hill said that America's civil rights movement benefited not only from the nonviolent methods of Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. but also from "slave revolts and self-defense." He added: "We must promote nonviolence at every opportunity but cannot endorse narrow politics that shames Palestinians for resisting." Hill advocated a commitment to political action as "what justice requires and that is a free Palestine from the river to the sea."
Some Jewish-American groups equated Hill's comments with calling for Israel's destruction. CNN announced Hill's termination the following day. Temple University's initial response defended Hill's right to free speech, but a follow up statement from the school's president acknowledged the comments were seen by many as a "perceived threat." The Chairman of the university's board called the comments "lamentable" and disgusting," adding: "The board's not happy. The administration's not happy. People wanted to fire him right away. We're going to look at what remedies we have." A Temple trustee declared: "He called for the destruction of the State of Israel in code words....I think it was anti-Semitic."
Hill published follow up op-eds in The Philadelphia Inquirer and The Temple News. He apologized for unintended "interpretations, feelings and responses" to his choice of language and to Temple University faculty and staff, but not for using the questionable phrase. On Twitter, Hill defended its use, explaining he was advocating for a bi-national, Arab-majority state. So how is that different than calling for the elimination of the State of Israel?
Here's the HuffPost op-ed by Yousef Munayyer, executive director of the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights:

CNN Fired Marc Lamont Hill For Saying Palestinians Deserve Equal Rights                                    
The most pleasantly surprising thing in this article is that our Senator Cory Booker has endorsed the legislation! (kas)
Senator Cardin's Proposed Anti-Boycott Legislation                                                                                                       Report from JTA's Ron Campeas
Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., reportedly hopes to get a bill that would ban U.S. compliance with international boycotts of Israel.
A number of Democrats who supported the bill, chief among them Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, have withdrawn support following objections by the American Civil Liberties Union.
In a letter, the ACLU notes that Cardin tweaked the measure to address some of the group's objections. It doesn't say how, but the bill's current iteration makes clear that offenders would be subject to fines and not jail time. (The late 1970s anti-Arab League Boycott laws, upon which this bill is based, included both fines and imprisonment as possible penalties.) Cardin has told me that the drafters never intended for the bill to include jail time, and he was glad to make the change.
Still, the ACLU finds the bill objectionable, arguing that whereas the anti-Arab League legislation was designed to combat government-initiated boycotts, this bill establishes a government-initiated boycott (of entities boycotting Israel. Got that?). The ACLU letter also points out that state anti-boycott laws have run into trouble in the courts.
So does Cardin get the bill through? He's smartly trying to get it attached to a must-pass spending bill -- but other senators also are pushing hard to get their favored amendments tacked on to the same bill. (The Intercept insinuated that Cardin was trying to sneak his bill past colleagues before Congress disbands for the year, but lawmakers typically make last-minute efforts to shepherd favored bills through via amendment before a Congress disbands.)
What's clear is that the ACLU has made inroads among Democrats: Only 14 in the outgoing Democratic caucus back the bill, while 44 Republicans are on board. Notably, Gillibrand was not convinced by Cardin's suasions and is still out. Cory Booker of New Jersey, long a holdout, is now on board, as Jewish Insider reported last month. Gillibrand and Booker are both seen as likelies in the 2020 Democratic presidential stakes.
BDS Declared Illegal for All Cities in Chile-But Nationally, It's Another Story
Campaign Against U.S.-Israel Police Programs Is the BDS Version of a Blood Libel                                           
The program's aim is to show police how to handle extraordinary threats of terror and violence within the constraints a democratic society with an independent judiciary puts on law enforcement. What is so wrong with that? (kas)     
This is so awkward: Saudi Arabia and Israel have drawn close-unofficially, but...

Saudi Arabia Loses Right to Host Chess Tournament over Discrimination Against Israel                                  
101 Jewish and Pro-Israel Groups Ask Universities to Oppose Israel Boycotts                    
Ohio State University Student Government Rejects BDS                                                             
Boycott Groups Succeed in Removing Israeli Professors from South African Conference Program                            
 
Packers' Brett Favre, Other Celebrities Duped into Recording Anti-Semitic Messages                                                                   The group behind the Cameo videos calls itself the GDL, or Goyim Defense League, using the Hebrew word for non-Jews.                                                                                  




Dear Congregant,
 
Looking for a Hanukkah gift that'll last a lot longer than a bag of chocolate gelt? Give your child the summer of their life at Jewish camp!
 
Jewish overnight camp offers endless activities-filmmaking, singing, rock climbing, you name it-but camp is about more than just campfires and color war. Your campers will return home confident and invigorated, sure of themselves and proud of their heritage.   And if your child is a first-time camper, you might be eligible for $1,000 off this summer!
 
Give a gift that lasts a lifetime. Visit  www.onehappycamper.org to learn how the One Happy Camper program can help your child get to camp this summer. Happy Hanukkah!
 
P.S. Camps are already filling up (and once grants are gone, they're gone!) so visit  www.onehappycamper.org today!








 


 

THE DAY
PERFORMED BY WENDY WHELAN AND MAYA BEISER
CHOREOGRAPHY BY LUCINDA CHILDS
MUSIC BY DAVID LANG
Lumberyard
December 7, 2018 | 8:00 pm
December 8, 2018 | 7:00 pm
LUMBERYARD Catskill NEW YORK
The Day is a work in development featuring dancer Wendy Whelan who the New York Times calls "America's greatest contemporary ballerina" on stage with world renowned Israeli-American cellist Maya Beiser. They have joined forces with the seminal modern dance choreographer Lucinda Childs and evocative music by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang. This bold, highly collaborative work explores universal themes not easily grappled with - memory, aging, death, the survival of the soul - through the shared language of music and dance.
Audiences are invited to see the work in progress at LUMBERYARD in showings on December 7 and 8.


Music
Swinging Holiday Show with
The Eyal Vilner Big Band
Sunday December 9th | 6:00 pm*
Birdland Jazz Club
Eyal Vilner's skills as a musician are unquestionable, but his talents as a composer, arranger and bandleader are what's truly on display with The Eyal Vilner Big Band. It features a remarkable debut recording from a group poised to take their place among the major big bands of the East. 'Vilner offers clever charts, excellent musicianship and an exciting new sound in the finest tradition of contemporary big band music' writes Edward Blanco, in All About Jazz NY.
Doors open at 5:00 pm*


Film
Schindler's List
25th Anniversary Re-release
1993 | 3 hrs, 15 min | English
Friday, December 7, 2018
Schindler's List 25th Anniversary
Steven Spielberg's iconic film will be screened at movie theaters and schools across the country. The extraordinary heroism and humanity displayed in Spielberg's retelling of the story of Oskar Schindler is especially relevant today in our increasingly polarized communities.


Music
Inbal Segev, Cello
The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
Friday December 14 | 7:30 pm
Sunday December 16 | 5:00 pm
Tuesday December 18 | 7:30 pm
Alice Tully Hall
Inbal Segev will be playing J. S. Bach's complete Brandenburg Concertos with The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center.


Music
Einav Yarden, Piano
92nd Street Y debut
Friday December 7 | 9:00 pm
Buttenweiser Hall 92nd Street Y
Schumann, Fantasy Pieces, Op. 111
Haydn, Sonata in F Major, Hob. XVI:29
Bartók, Three Burlesques, Op. 8c
Haydn, Fantasia in C Major, Hob. XVII:4
Schumann, Fantasie in C Major, Op. 17

Hailed for her Haydn interpretations, Israeli pianist Einav Yarden brings two selections by the composer to her 92 Street Y debut. The Washington Post describes her as "a probing, incisive pianist with a beautiful sound and an impressively transparent touch."


Music
KOOLULAM
Celebrate Unity and Love Through Song
Universal + Timeless
Israeli Culture in North America FB
Have a look and a listen.... lets join together in song!
The Founders of קולולם - Koolulam Asia Society New York The Game Changer Awards Spreading Unity through Song in One of the World's Most Divided Cities. Check out the Award Winning Music Video created in honor of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) General Secretary's visit to Jerusalem is part of a comprehensive, global campaign to transform religion from a political weapon into a source of universal love and compassion.
See KOOLULAM among 2018 AWARD HONOREES


Exhibition
Should We Keep The Head
Artist, Amir Nave
SHIN Gallery
November 28 - January 6, 2019
SHIN Gallery
Amir Nave (b. 1974), an Israeli artist with a solo show at SHIN Gallery includes smaller drawings of ink and pen on paper and large paintings made of oil and graphite on canvas. In all of these works, Nave attempts to create moments of eternity within immortal objects. He is interested in consciousness and human emotion and through his attempt at subversion, he exploits them to their fullest states. The viewer becomes aware that they too, are simply a figure with an acute sense of awareness and limitation.


Music
Israeli Jazz Spotlight: Lior Milliger Quartet
December 9 | 8:00 pm
Cornelia Street Cafe
Lior Milliger, an upcoming contemporary sax player, composer and improviser, has been performing compositions and free improvised sets with New York's leading musicians. Lior's music is influenced by traditional Jazz as well as ancient Jewish music and Israeli folklore. His compositions lean towards contemporary and modern improvised music.


Exhibition
Yuval Shaul: Alchemical Shifts Curated by Tamar Arnon and Eli Zagury
Thru December 8, 2018
Christine Park Gallery
Opening of the first New York solo exhibition by Tel-Aviv based artist,Yuval Shaul, featuring his new series of painting and sculpture. This exhibition is curated by London-based curators Tamar Arnon and Eli Zagury. Shaul's art is held in prominent collections such as the Israel Museum (Jerusalem), Tel Aviv Museum of Art (Tel Aviv), Herzliya Museum of Art (Herzliya), Janco Dada Museum (Ein Hod), Leumi Bank Collection (Tel Aviv), Discount Bank Collection (Tel Aviv), Hapoalim Bank Collection (Tel Aviv), the Israel Parliament and the Knesset Collection (Jerusalem).


Exhibition
The Desert Shall Rejoice and Blossom : Photography
Cleveland Israel Arts Connection
Through January 2019
Roe Green Gallery Mandel Building Beechwood Cleveland
Israeli artists Oded Balilty and Tal Shochat provide contrasting yet complementary metaphors for the spirit of their native country: the prickly pear and the fruit tree. Balilty's somber black and white "Sabra Traces" a series and examines the tenacious, thorny, and omnipresent cactus that has come to symbolize native-born Israelis. Shochat's lush, colorful portraits of fruit trees in bloom and full fruit, are shot in the fields, but have been isolated against cloth backdrops and groomed for the camera. Balilty, a Pulitzer-prize winning documentary photographer, captures his country as it is, while Shochat creates an idealized vision, an Edenic Israel made possible by the character traits represented by the sabra.