The Southern Shmooze
December 2022
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Oh, Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel... |
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When temperature dips below 70º, Southern Jews know that Chanukah–the Festival of Lights–can't be far off (it starts this year on the evening of December 18). This eight-day festival commemorates the Israelites’ defeat of the Syrian/Greek army in 165 BCE and the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem after it had been defiled.
During Chanukah, children play a simple game with a spinning top, called a dreidel (well, they did before video games were invented). The four sides of the dreidel have the Hebrew letters nun, gimel, hay, and shin for the Yiddish words nicht (nothing), gants (all), halb (half), and shtel ayn (put in).
The stakes are pennies or nuts or chocolate coins, called gelt. Depending on which letter on the dreidel lands face up, the player either takes all of the pot, takes half, puts one into the pot, or does nothing. The letters on the dreidel also have come to stand for the phrase Ness gadol haya sham – a Great miracle happened there. Of course, in Israel, they say, Ness gadol haya po – a great miracle happened here.
Whether you are here in New Orleans, there in Israel, or anywhere in between, we hope you have a joyous holiday season. And if you'd like to shtel ayn to help support the Museum, you will have gants our thanks!
Image: The Roanoke Times, Roanoke, Virginia, 1893
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The Southern Jewish Hanukkah Hymn |
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Penina Moïse is known by many for writing Fancy’s Sketch Book, a book of poems and the first book published by an American Jewish woman, in 1833. Moïse’s parents had arrived in Charleston, South Carolina, in 1791 after fleeing the Haitian Revolution and Penina grew up in Charleston's Jewish community, one of the largest in the country and one of the first to embrace the American form of Reform Judaism.
But Penina is also responsible for helping to turn Chanukah–a minor Jewish festival–into a celebration as popular as Christmas. In 1840, Moïse wrote Hanukkah Hymn, alternatively know as Great Arbiter of Human Fate. Written and sung in English, the hymn was included in Congregation Beth Elohim's hymnbook and became a favorite with Reform Jews across the country. Singing hymns in English, along with the inclusion of organs and choirs into synagogue services, is one example of how many Southern Jewish congregations acculturated into the surrounding Christian communities while maintaining their religion.
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Penina Moïse's Hanukkah Hymn in The Service Hymnal, published by Edward Stern & Co., Philadelphia, PA, 1904
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Carol Lise Brenner Rosen
Since we opened our doors in May 2021, we've been fortunate to have the help of many wonderful volunteers. Some serve as gallery attendants, some assist with organizing our artifact collection, others help out when we have special events and give tours.
Carol Lise volunteers welcoming visitors and answering their questions as they explore our exhibits. Here's what she thinks about volunteering at MSJE.
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Why are you choosing to volunteer your time here at the Museum?
I’ve been a volunteer most of my adult life – National Council of Jewish Women, Jewish Family Service, etc. – and I was looking for a different opportunity. The Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience seemed like a perfect fit for me, since I’m Southern and Jewish! Volunteering here gives me a chance to spend more time in the exhibits and really let them sink in.
Is there an item or object that you like to share about the most with people as they come through the Museum?
A fellow volunteer showed me the tallis in the Foundations of Judaism exhibit that was woven from cotton grown, picked, and ginned on a Jewish-owned farm in Mississippi. That's something you don't see everyday!
What is something interesting you’ve learned while volunteering at MSJE?
Unfortunately, I learned that just as many Jews owned slaves as Gentiles did. The Museum tells it like it was, even when it hurts.
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All good things come to an end |
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Saying Shalom to Shalom Y'all
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Just after New Year, we'll be saying goodbye to our wonderful special exhibit, Shalom Y'all: A Snapshot of Southern Jewish Life. This exhibit of black-and-white photographs taken by Bill Aron and curated by him, Vicki Reikes Fox, and MSJE's inaugural curator Anna Tucker, harkens back to when the museum was located at Henry S. Jacobs Camp, in Mississippi. It was originally scheduled to be up until this past summer, but due to its popularity, we extended it through the end of the year. If you haven't seen it yet, you still have the month of December to get to the Museum!
What's coming up next? Here's a sneak peek...
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Stay tuned for the exciting news! |
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Calling All Congregations! |
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Book your 2023 Virtual Southern Jewish Stories Program
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We'd love to have your congregation visit the museum, but if you're too far away, we'll come to you! Virtual Southern Jewish Stories is a live, one-hour Zoom-based interactive program with a member of the MSJE team that includes a tour of our exhibits, Q&A, and always a lot of story sharing. The program costs $100 for groups under 100 people and $200 for groups with more than 100 people.
If your congregation (or Sisterhood, Brotherhood, NCJW section, Hadassah, religious school, Kiwanis Club, historical society, lunch-n-learn group, etc.) is looking for a turn-key program that is educational, engaging, and entertaining, schedule a Virtual Southern Jewish Stories program today!
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If you missed our recent program with Peter Wolf, author of the new book about Leon Godchaux, you can watch it on our YouTube channel. Peter has written an eminently readable, and sometimes personal, biography of his great-great-grandfather, the "Sugar King" of Louisiana.
We sold out of the book and are awaiting a second printing. You will be able to purchase it at the museum or from our online store when the shipment arrives in early 2023.
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Watch the event video here 👇 |
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Welcome to the team, Abra! |
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MSJE is excited to welcome our new Membership & Marketing Coordinator, Abra Kaplan, to the team!
Abra is new to both MSJE and New Orleans. She is originally from New York, but comes to us by way of Sydney, Australia, where she and her family have been living for the past two and a half years. She has an academic background in English literature and many years of professional experience creating and managing digital content and marketing campaigns for Jewish non-profits all over the world (Jerusalem, New York, Sydney, and now NOLA!). Abra is thrilled to join the MSJE team and excited to be a part of this dynamic Southern community.
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Museum Store Special: Spin to Win! |
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🎶 Oh, dreidel, driedel, driedel,
You're crafted from a tree
And when we hit the gift shop,
You'll spin discounts for me! 🎶
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This month, not only can you purchase one of our fun wooden dreidels in our Museum Store, you can also Spin-to-Win big savings! Every spin gets a discount: 5%, 10%, 15% or 18%. That's a lotta gelt to save!
Can't make it to the Museum Store in person? That's okay – take 10% off your online purchase, too! Use discount code HOLIDAY10.
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The Museum Store is dedicated by Harold Wainer in memory of George & Helen Wainer
and Harriet Wainer Kugler.
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This Month in Southern Jewish History |
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SOUTH CAROLINA: December 2, 1778
The South-Carolina and American General Gazette publishes a reply to an article questioning Jewish patriotism. The letter ends, "The Charlestown Israelites... hitherto have behaved as staunch as any other citizens of this State, and I hope their further conduct will be such as will invalidate the malicious and designing fallacy of the author of the piece alluded to. I am, Sir, Yours, etc, A real AMERICAN, and True hearted ISRAELITE."
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FLORIDA: December 7, 1893
Paula Herskovitz Ackerman is born in Pensacola, FL. She taught religious school at Temple Beth El, eventually marrying the rabbi there, William Ackerman, and relocating with him to Meridian, MS. When her husband died in 1950, Congregation Beth Israel asked her to assume his position. Despite the refusal of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations to sanction her, she agreed, becoming the first American woman to lead a Reform congregation.
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TENNESSEE: December 10, 1925
Jack Cristil is born to Jewish Russian and Latvian immigrants in Memphis. After studying broadcast journalism in Minnesota, he began a career in sports broadcasting. In 1953 Cristil was hired by the Mississippi State University to call Bulldogs football games, which he did for the next 58 years. From 1957 until 2011 he also called MSU's men's basketball games. His trademark call to "Wrap it in maroon and white," meant a Bulldogs victory.
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GEORGIA: December 15, 1989
Driving Miss Daisy opens in just three theaters, but a month later gets a wider release and becomes the number one film in the country. The movie follows the relationship between a Southern Jewish widow and her black chauffeur. Penned by Atlanta writer Alfred Uhry and based on his play of the same name, Driving Miss Daisy went on to win four Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Actress for Jessica Tandy.
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MISSISSIPPI: December 17, 1862
Union General Ulysses Grant issues his infamous Order No. 11, from Holly Springs, expelling all Jews from his military district in Tennessee, Mississippi, and Kentucky. In his effort to curtail black market smuggling of Southern cotton, Grant singled out "Jews, as a class...." Following outcries from American Jews on both sides, the press, and some members of Congress, President Lincoln revoked the order three weeks later.
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OKLAHOMA: December 27, 1966
William Scott Goldberg is born in Tulsa. He became a bar mitzvah at Temple Israel there, played football at University of Georgia, and then pro football with the Rams and the Falcons. But it was as a professional wrestler that "Goldberg" made his mark, becoming WWE's 1998 Rookie of the Year, winning multiple world championships, and being induced into their Hall of Fame in 2018.
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Help us make it across the finish line |
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We have now raised $9.4 million toward our $10 million Capital Campaign goal. Your end-of-the-year donation will help us reach that goal (and may give you certain tax benefits). |
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GIVE ONLINE
MAIL US A CHECK
to PO Box 15071, New Orleans, LA 70175
DONATE FROM YOUR IRA
required distribution
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DESIGNATE MSJE
as a recipient of your Donor Advised Fund
DONATE STOCK
or other marketable securities
INCLUDE MSJE
in your estate planning (we can help)
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Shalom. Make yourself at home.®
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Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience
818 Howard Avenue | New Orleans, LA 70113
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Banner images (l-r): Members of Congregation Beth Israel in Clarksdale, MS, c.1910. Collection of Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience; Blue Star campers, North Carolina, 2016. Courtesy of Blue Star Camps.
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