7-13 Tishrei 5781 • September 25-October 1, 2020 Connect. Inform. Inspire.

THE BOOK
OF RUTH
Remembering the life and legacy of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

INSIDE: Experiencing a Deeper Yom Kippur by Rabbi Mordecai Finley

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 16 31 36

INSIDE THE JOURNAL

» HONORING A HERO Throughout this issue, there are multiple 31 » BREAKING THE FAST WITH SWEETNESS The
tributes to the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died on Sephardic Spice Girls share their Yom Kippur break-fast recipe for biscotti and a
Sept. 18 at the age of 87.
special coffee.
9 » COLUMNISTS Tabby Refael on why she’s jealous of the Abraham 32 » COMMUNITY REMEMBERS GINSBURG Local
Accords; Dr. Dan Stone on the “mask madness” during the pandemic; Dan
Schnur on the enormous stakes involved in selecting RBG’s successor; community leaders share the lessons and legacy of the Notorious RBG.
Reyna Gentin on sending her son to college; and Judea Pearl on RBG’s Compiled by Esther D. Kustanowitz.
contribution to the book “I Am a Jew,” honoring his late son, Daniel.

15 » RBG’S IMPACT ON WOMEN Randi Braun on the 34 » A LAWYER’S TAKE ON RBG UCLA law professor Peter
enormous influence Justice Ginsburg had on her life and the lives of women Reich on the impact Justice Ginsburg had on lawyers and law students
everywhere. worldwide. Managing Editor Kelly Hartog reports.

16 » A DEEPER YOM KIPPUR Rabbi Mordecai Finley’s deep dive 36 » YIZKOR GARDEN Unable to meet in person for Yom Kippur, IKAR
into how to get the most out of Yom Kippur.
has created an experiential garden where mourners can connect and remember
»
18 JUDAISM FOR NONBELIEVERS Rabbi Bradley Shavit loved ones. Esther D. Kustanowitz reports.

41 » TOVAH FELDSHUH ON MEETING RBG The actress

Artson argues that regardless of our beliefs, we can grow into better versions of
ourselves by dialoguing with Jewish wisdom.

21 » A MINI KOTEL AT BETH AM Rabbi Adam Kligfeld was who has performed as Ginsburg, shares details of her private meeting with the
late justice in her chambers. Managing Editor Kelly Hartog reports.
searching for greater human connection during the pandemic. He found it by

42 » THE MOSSAD IN IRAN Apple TV + new thriller “Tehran,” depicts

inviting congregants to spend time in Temple Beth Am’s new Holy Ark.

25 » HOLIDAY FEVER Political Editor Shmuel Rosner on the fear, anger a dangerous mission inside of the Iranian capital. Gerri Miller reports.
and frustration that marked the start of the High Holy Days in Israel.

29 » TABLE FOR FIVE: YOM KIPPUR Judy Gruen and Rabbis 58 » YOM KIPPUR ‘CORONA CONFESSION’ Comedian
Joel Chasnoff on his irreverent coronavirus video set to the tune of the traditional
Lori Shapiro, Elchanan Shoff, Michael Barclay and Ari Segal share their insights
on the meaning of Yom Kippur. Vidui. Kylie Ora Lobell reports.

SHABBAT CANDLE LIGHTING

» Fri September 25 6:26 p.m. 9 » Columnists 31 » Food 46 » What’s Happening
Shabbat ends September 26 7:29 p.m.
25 » Rosner’s Domain 32 » Community 55 » Jonathan Fong Style
YOM KIPPUR CANDLE LIGHTING
» Sun September 27 6:24 p.m. 30 » Blog Bytes 41 » Arts 58 » Just Asking
Yom Kippur ends Monday September 28 7:18 p.m.

September 25-October 1, 2020 JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 5

Election season.
Pandemic times.
Latest news.
And so much more.

More urgent. More useful. More human.

The New JewishJournal.com

Volume 37, Number 28
September 25-October 1, 2020
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September 25-October 1, 2020
Ruth Bader Ginsburg On Friendship and Unity
» by David Suissa
THERE’S PLENTY TO LOVE ABOUT
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the trailblazing lib-
eral Supreme Court justice who died on
Sept. 18 at the age of 87.
Many of her fans love her because she
was a champion of their cherished causes,
from abortion to immigration to health
care to women’s rights to gender equality,
among others.
In the Jewish world, there is obvious
pride in having a Jewish woman on the
highest court in the land.
Even in popular culture, Ginsburg cap-
tured the nation’s imagination. Her nick-
name, the Notorious RBG, is a play on the
name of rap star the Notorious B.I.G. She
earned it by tirelessly defending human
rights, through her grueling workouts and
through her tenacity in surviving several
bouts of cancer.
“Throughout Justice Ginsburg’s entire
career, there was sort of like nothing that
could ever take her down,” Julie Cohen,
the co-director of the Oscar-nominated
documentary “RBG,” told Yahoo News. “If
she got rejected, if she got discriminated
against, if she got kind of dismissively
pushed aside, her response to that was al-
ways just to push right past that.”
We all value
friendships, but
we usually stick
to like-minded
friends. It feels
more enjoyable,
less stressful.
Ginsburg and Scalia
transcended that
thinking.
Perseverance and resilience, then, are
things we can learn from Ginsburg in this
horribly challenging pandemic year. But
there is something else, something per-
haps even more critical in these divisive
times that we can learn from her.
It’s well known that Ginsburg had a
close friendship with a colleague who was
her ideological opposite, the late Supreme
Court Justice Antonin Scalia.
EDITOR’S NOTE
Ginsburg and Scalia were colleagues for Their relationship was so special it
years on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals spawned an opera, “Scalia/Ginsburg,” in-
before Scalia was nominated to the high spired by their court rulings. After Scalia
court in 1982 by President Ronald Reagan. died, Ginsburg said: “Toward the end of
“I have missed Ruth very much since leav- the opera ‘Scalia/Ginsburg,’ tenor Scalia
ing the Court of Appeals,” Scalia, who died and soprano Ginsburg sing a duet: ‘We are
in 2016 at the age of 79, told an audience different, we are one,’ different in our in-
years after he was appointed. terpretation of written texts, one in our
reverence for the
Constitution and
the institution we
serve. From our
years together at the
D.C. Circuit, we were
best buddies.”
In that statement
is a pearl of wisdom.
Ginsburg and Scalia
differed in their in-
terpretation of writ-
ten texts, but they
shared a reverence
for the Constitution
and the institution
they served.
In other words,
Considering how strongly Ginsburg felt
Their friendship
about her liberal views, how could she be
so friendly with someone who so sharply
was not simply
disagreed with her? And how could Scalia
himself reciprocate such an extreme level
an expression of
of tolerance?
One possibility is that they didn’t see
their humanity.
their ideological differences as something
to “tolerate” — like a bitter medicine or
It rested on a
a nasty flu. Rather, they separated their
ideology from their humanity. Easier said
fundamental pillar
than done, right?
In our era of vicious political division,
they shared.
it’s almost impossible to conceive of ideo-
logical rivals becoming such close friends.
We’ve become so attached to our political
worldviews it’s hard to even fathom a deep
friendship with someone from the “other
their friendship was not simply an expres-
sion of their humanity. It rested on a fun-
side.”
Maybe that’s why in the eulogies of
damental pillar they shared.
Can we find pillars today that we share
Ginsburg, we don’t hear much about her with our ideological foes? If anything,
friendship with her ideological opposite we’re going in the other direction. We’ve
— it’s too hard to relate to. It’s easier to fo- become geniuses at finding the things that
cus on Ginsburg’s legacy, her remarkable divide us. Those pillars we thought we
shared are crumbling beneath us.
character and her many legal accomplish-
ments. After all, compared to the crucial As we honor the extraordinary legacy of
issues of the day, a friendship doesn’t Ruth Bader Ginsburg, as we recall her trail-
seem like much of an accomplishment. blazing accomplishments, as we sit shivah
We all value friendships, but we usually for a Jewish and American hero, let us not
stick to like-minded friends. It feels more forget the part of her legacy that speaks di-
enjoyable, less stressful. Ginsburg and Sca- rectly to our divisive times.
lia transcended that thinking. They found a Of all the things to love about RBG, “We
way to stay true to their convictions while are different, we are one” may be the one
honoring the timeless value of friendship. we need most. n
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 7

Don’t be shy. Send your letters to letters@jewishjournal.com
The Court Without Ginsburg
With the death of Justice Ruth Bader
Ginsburg, America has lost a pioneer and
icon of the movement for equal rights for
women, and the Supreme Court has lost
one of its most renowned and respected
jurists.
Ginsburg, who died on erev Rosh
Hashanah, also was one of eight Jewish
justices, and the first female Jewish justice,
to serve on the nation’s highest court.
In a 2004 speech at the U.S. Holocaust
Memorial Museum, she connected her
heritage with her passion for justice: “I
had the good fortune to be a Jew born and
raised in the U.S.A. ... My heritage as a Jew
and my occupation as a judge fit together
symmetrically. The demand for justice
runs through the entirety of Jewish history
and Jewish tradition. I take pride in and
draw strength from my heritage.”
Ginsburg was a feminist, a Zionist,
a proud Jew, a lawyer, a judge and a
devoted wife and mother. She will
be remembered as someone who
fought injustice and left the world a
better place for her having been here.
May we all find inspiration in the example
she set, the values she embodied and the
legacy she leaves us.
Stephen A. Silver
San Francisco
Israel, the UAE and Bahrain
During the signing ceremony of
agreements normalizing relations between
Israel, the UAE and Bahrain on Sept. 15,
I had a sickening feeling in the pit of my
stomach because previous accords always
have been bittersweet, with Israel trading
land for an obscure peace arrangement.
I felt that way until I realized Israel
wasn’t giving away anything but instead,
hopefully gaining new friends.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
8 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com
YO U R T U R N
Netanyahu, with all the legal and political
issues surrounding his tenure, is the best
representative Israel has to strengthen its
standing in the world. These new
agreements are convenient for Israel’s
new allies as they face the Iranian threat
but it doesn’t diminish what Netanyahu
has helped to achieve.
Allan Kandel
Los Angeles
Music to Their Ears
The Ella Fitzgerald Charitable
Foundation would like to thank the
Journal for its wonderful conversation
with Ben Bram (“Ben Bram on Creating
A Cappella During a Pandemic,” Sept.
18). We have happily helped support his A
Capella Academy, offering “camperships”
to talented young singers. Ella Fitzgerald
would be so proud.
Fran Morris Rosman
Executive director,
The Ella Fitzgerald Charitable
Foundation
Pacific Palisades
Ethnic Studies Are Unfair
The Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum
(ESMC) presents a limited view of
California history, as being exclusively
dedicated to minorities’ suffering and
disenfranchisement, mostly in the past,
with the implication that nothing has
changed in the present. The ESMC’s
authors have stated: “Ethnic studies
teaching is grounded in the belief that
education can be a tool for transformation,
social change, and liberation.” That sounds
very similar to Karl Marx and Friedrich
Engels’ “Communist Manifesto.”
Our educators deserve a much more
appropriate model in a state comprising
dozens of ethnic groups that have
participated in creating the sixth largest
W
economy in the world. California teachers
would be better off guided by a factual
t
and objective, not Marxism-driven, ethnic
study curriculum.
Vladimir Kaplan
via email
»
sig
be
Em
on
Letters should be no more than we
200 words and must include a valid pa
name and city. The Journal reserves th
the right to edit all letters.
letters@jewishjournal.com. an
SFSU: Aiding and Abetting I c
Terrorism ha
San Francisco State University, by to
inviting Leila Khaled, a known terrorist Ira
and member of the Popular Front for the I have much more power than anyone,
Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), to participate And I control the land — Mi
in a forum on Sept. 23, could be in violation In any accomplishment man has made, br
of 18 U.S. Code 2339A, “Providing material I have had a hand. Za
support to terrorists.” wi
SFSU, if it does include Khaled in this So take a load off your shoulders, be
forum, is raising Khaled’s profile, thereby And depend on me a bit, las
assisting her efforts to raise funds for the The last thing you should do now,
PFLP, a possible violation of 18 U.S. Code Is throw up your hands and quit. on
2339A.
Richard Sherman You must believe I’m watching,
Margate, Fla. And I guide you, when I can.
A Letter From God
You certainly also must realize,
That I’m your biggest fan! A
Forgive me please for allowing you,
To sink to this emotional low. So tonight when you are sitting,
th
Believe me, I’m not testing you,
To see how low you’ll go !
Feeling lonely as can be.
At least have the satisfaction of knowing,
p
I know that you believe in me.
You’re sitting there with me.
Alan Ascher
m
Maybe more than most folks, too. via email B
b
But Faith must be 100%,
You see what less will do. We Have A Dream
U
My father, Nachman, a Jew From Wlodawa
I’ll decide if the mistakes you make His friend, Berman, who died on the way
a
need punishment or not, Uncle Victor, bad boy from Vienna
And from what I’ve seen the past few My mother — all the others
days, Who came before and after
You’ve punished yourself a lot. Had a dream for two thousand years wa
to return home to Zion tar
You sometimes feel alone in life, ter
And wonder why you’re here — They didn’t hate or want to destroy ca
But I really don’t understand that, But to share, to build up Am
What is it that you fear? To leave behind pogrom winters sp
Walk free among the orange blossoms ye
There are a lot of people on Earth, you Like anybody else
know, sa
And in order to be fair, So, in America, in the Diaspora, for
I try to answer all requests, we don’t need to feel ashamed hi
That are asked of me in Prayer. Or on “the wrong side” pr
When we speak out for Israel th
Only I can help you, Proudly, despite Her imperfections no
To really have peace of mind. Can’t we, too, have a dream? fre
Belief in yourself — or anyone else, Mina Stern we
Will pull you further behind. Venice
to
September25-October 1, 2020 Se

Why I’m Jealous of
the Abraham Accords
» by Tabby Refael
WATCHING THE LIVE VIDEO OF THE
signing of the historic Abraham Accords
between Israel and the United Arab
Emirates and Bahrain at the White House
on Sept. 15 was like attending an ex’s
wedding. There they were, the happy
parties, joined in peace and unity. And
there I sat, seething with jealousy.
As a Zionist, I love this new era of peace
and what it means for Israel. But inside,
I coveted it with a passion that would
have left Abraham mortified. Is it normal
to be jealous of the UAE? Yes, if you’re an
Iranian Jew.
I watched “the groom,” Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and “the
bride,” UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin
Zayed al-Nahyan, stand together and I
wished I was the bride. There should have
been a Persian bride at the White House
last week. It should have been Iran.
For 41 years, my community — which
once boasted 100,000 Jews in Iran — has
As a Zionist, I love
this new era of
peace and what it
means for Israel.
But...is it normal to
be jealous of the
UAE? Yes, if you’re
an Iranian Jew.
watched helplessly as the regime has
targeted Israel through a campaign of
terror, demonization and proxy wars. You
can’t imagine what it’s like as an Iranian
American Jew watching Iranian leaders
sponsor Holocaust cartoon contests every
year.
In his remarks, President Donald Trump
said the Abraham Accords “open the door
for Muslims around the world to visit the
historic sites in Israel and to peacefully
pray at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, the
third holiest site in Islam.” And Israelis
now can visit Bahrain and the UAE in total
freedom. Such sweet words, and yet, they
were like salt on a wound.
I want that. I want to be able to go back
to Iran. I want to swim in the Caspian Sea
September 25-October 1 , 2020
COLUMNIST
and buy flowers at the famous Tehran
bazaar. I want to return, only this time as
an annoying tourist who won’t be fooled
I AM THE
by local merchants. I want to haggle with
them in perfect Persian until their hair falls
out. That’s how I’ll know I’m truly back.
But more than anything, I want to visit
the graves of my paternal grandparents,
whom I lovingly called Babachi and
Nanechi, but never saw again after my
immediate family escaped Iran. If an
Israeli now can sunbathe in Bahrain, is it
too much to ask that I be able to place a
stone on my Nanechi’s grave in Tehran?
During the ceremony, when bin Zayed Life, I am the new year.
passed on “the regards of the UAE people” I am an unspoiled page in your book of time.
to millions of Israelis, I broke down. Peace I am your next chance at the art of living.
is so hard-earned and yet so attainable. I am your opportunity to practice
Many Iranians don’t hate Israel. They hate what you have learned about life
the Iranian regime. I believe the Iranian during the last twelve months.
people do send their regards to the people
of Israel. All that you sought
Trump said that “other countries will and didn't find is hidden in me,
follow” and pursue peace with the Jewish waiting for you to search it out
state. At that point, he was just teasing me. with more determination.
Yes, other countries probably will follow
All the good that you planned
(according to some analysts, Morocco
might be next), but not Iran. It’s too busy.
and didn't achieve
is mine to grant
All that uranium won’t enrich itself.
If Morocco and Israel normalize
when you have fewer conflicting desires.
relations, I expect to attend a peace
agreement party hosted by local Moroccan
All that you dreamed but didn't dare to do,
all that you hoped but did not will,
Jews, who’ll cheer and toast with cups of
arak while I sit on an ottoman and seethe.
all the faith that you claimed but did not have—
these slumber lightly,
Sure, I’ll clap, but it will be hard to watch. waiting to be awakened
Does that make me self-centered and by the touch of strong purpose.
petty? Yes. But I really loved my Nanechi.
I am your opportunity
Israel and some Arab states are aligning
to thwart Iranian power in the region, and to renew your allegiance to Him who said,
'Behold, I make all things new.'
last week’s ceremony sent a clear message
to Tehran. Will there be peace between
I am the new year.
Israel and Iran in my lifetime? I don’t know.
The bigger question is whether there will
be a free, democratic Iran in my lifetime. Warmest wishes for a year filled with light and love;
It’s something I pray I’ll live to see. Maybe with health and happiness; with peace and prosperity.
one day, the president of a free Iran will The RVW Team
stand alongside the Israeli prime minister
at the White House. Can you imagine that? Selwyn Gerber, Jonathan Gerber, Stephen Seo, Jesse Picunko  
Nothing will keep me away from that Loren Gesas, Mary Ann Moe, Mike Chen, Simon Liu, Lisa Blackledge  
ceremony. Shelly Moore, Kristen Gunn, Abigail Huffstatler, Kelly Richardson
During his remarks on Sept. 15,
Netanyahu imagined a future where Jews We are grateful for another year of strong growth
and Arabs “live together, pray together and in the number of client families we serve and the
dream together.” Until a president of a free assets entrusted to our stewardship.
Iran offers such messages of peace and
friendship at the White House, it’s still just
that — a dream. But I won’t stop hoping. n
RESILIENT INVESTING FOR TURBULENT TIMES
Tabby Refael is a Los Angeles-based writer, 310.945.4000 • RVWWealth.com
speaker and activist.
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 9

A Time to Remember
Kever Avot V’Imahot Service
Sunday, September 27, 2020
Service Led By Rabbi Calvin Dox-DaCosta,
Temple Israel of Hollywood
Joined by Rabbi-Cantor Alison Wissot, Temple Judea
Cantorial Soloist Shelly Fox, Temple Israel of Hollywood
Cantor Patti Linsky, Leo Baeck Temple and
Congregation Kol Ami
Musical Accompaniment by Michael Alfera and Simone Vitucci
Shofar - Michael Gropper, Hebrew Union College
For many centuries, the Jewish people have upheld the tradition
of visiting the gravesites of loved ones during the High Holidays.
Although our world is quite different these days,
Hillside Memorial Park is committed to bringing the community
together with a memorable and meaningful service.
We invite you to join us for a very special online service of song,
prayer, and remembrance, available to view from the comfort of
your home beginning at 9:00 am Sunday, September 27, 2020
www.hillsidememorial.org/kever-avot
Rafael Ochoa, General Manager, 6001 W. Centinela Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90045
(888) 820-9950 hillsidememorial.org FD 1358
A Community Service of Temple Israel of Hollywood
/hillsidememorialpark
@hillsidemempark @hillsidememorialpark
10 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com
Mask Madness
» by Daniel Stone
AS AN INTERNAL MEDICINE SPECIALIST,
I spend my days treating patients with
all sorts of illnesses, including COVID-19.
That may be one reason why I was so
annoyed a few weeks ago when I walked
by a crowded Pilates studio on the Westside
and noticed 20 people exercising barely 6
feet apart and without masks. Thinking of
my elderly COVID-19 patients, I rapped on
the large window and bellowed, “I hope you
don’t have grandmothers at home! If you
do, you could bring back a virus and kill
them!” The instructor flashed a look to her
assistant, who headed outside to meet me.
I looked across my mask at the assistant
as he approached me and mumbled,
disapprovingly, “Free speech, you know.”
Why do many Americans still shun the
safety measures that produced coronavirus
success stories in Korea, Taiwan and
elsewhere? The unfortunate answer
probably relates to two American cultural
trends: contempt for science and extreme
libertarianism.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government’s lead-
ing infectious-disease expert, recently com-
mented that “science is truth.” Unfortunate-
ly, Fauci’s view of science meets resistance
when it brings unwanted personal or po-
Unfortunately, the
federal government
continues to miss
opportunities
to alter public
behavior and save
lives.
litical implications, as in climate science and
vaccinations. Last year, State Sen. Dr. Richard
Pan’s common-sense bill to improve school
vaccine compliance faced surprisingly strong
anti-science opposition. At a recent UCLA
symposium, Pan expressed extreme frustra-
tion with his opponents. They told him that
they heard his facts, but had their own opin-
ions. He realized that rational discourse is
useless when opinions become independent
of the facts.
The “dirty secret” of mask wearing is that
it protects others better than it protects the
wearer. When everyone masks, we’re all
protected. To the extent that others benefit,
the motivation depends on an investment in
others’ well-being. Unfortunately, the social
balance between personal and collective
COLUMNIST
benefit has increasingly shifted over the
decades. Sixty years ago, President John F.
Kennedy told the nation: “Ask not what your
country can do for you — ask what you can
do for your country.” Two decades later, the
fading of that communal ethic could be seen
in presidential candidate Ronald Reagan
asking Americans, “Are you better off now
than you were four years ago?”
This emphasis on individualism rather
than the greater good also can be seen in
the arguments of anti-maskers. Many deny
the government’s authority to restrict their
personal freedom by compelling public
mask use. These advocates of extreme
libertarianism don’t understand that self-
determination was never a blank check. The
late Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell
Holmes Jr. noted memorably that the right
to free speech “would not protect a man
falsely shouting fire in a theater and causing
a panic.” Libertarians may wish otherwise
but, like freedom of speech, the “right” to
avoid a mask is constrained legally and
morally by the imperative for public safety.
The experiences with COVID-19 in Tai-
wan, Korea and elsewhere demonstrate that
effective leadership and cultural values can
overcome resistance and ensure compliance
with mask wearing and the other practices
that can stem this pandemic. Unfortunately,
the federal government continues to miss
opportunities to alter public behavior and
save lives. From the beginning of the pan-
demic, the Trump administration acted as
though an appeal for changes in personal
behavior would underscore the seriousness
of the situation and sabotage the message
that we now are “great again.”
In the short six months of this pandemic,
less than 10% of the population has been
infected, yet we have lost nearly 200,000
American lives, more than three times the
death toll of the Vietnam war. The potential
for further loss of life remains enormous,
particularly because so many states
continue to see resurgences of COVID-19
cases and hospitalizations.
Hundreds of thousands of lives still
can be spared if we all finally adopt the
simple measures proven to work elsewhere.
It’s time to stop the mixed messages on
masking and social distancing. All public
servants should model appropriate behavior
by wearing masks in public. They should tell
their constituents that to defeat this enemy,
we must practice public health measures
we know will save lives.
For vulnerable Americans like my senior
patients, death is knocking at the door. The
time to act is now. n
Daniel Stone is a medical doctor practicing
in Southern California.
September 25-October 1, 2020

A Lesson From
Ginsburg, Mandela
and Scalia
» by Dan Schnur
BECAUSE IT’S UNLIKELY THAT THE
United States will elect a Jewish president
in the foreseeable future, the passing of
Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Sept. 18 will mark
the most impactful death of an American
political figure to this community that many
of us will experience in our lifetimes. Because
of an unusual combination of demography,
ideology and cultural iconography, Ginsburg
had taken on, in the minds of her admirers,
a status well beyond those of most Supreme
Court justices and most elected officials. The
result has been an outpouring of grief among
most American Jews.
That doesn’t mean to suggest that every
Jewish American supports the aggressive
liberal agenda for which Ginsburg fought
throughout her career. A sizable minority of
Jewish voters will cast a ballot for Donald
Trump this fall, and most of them are rooting
heavily for Trump’s nominee to the high
court to be quickly confirmed. But it should
be possible to disagree with Ginsburg’s
judicial philosophy while still admiring her
The stakes involved
in selecting her
successor are colossal.
accomplishments, and shivah should be a
time to share fond memories rather than
revisit old disagreements.
The stakes involved in selecting her
successor are colossal. In a less polarized
and less angry political climate, it would
have been considerate to Ginsburg’s loved
ones and respectful to her memory if
political combatants allowed a decent
amount of time for mourning before
moving into a high-stakes bloodletting
over the court’s future. But in a bitterly
divided country, only weeks from a bruising
election, that is simply not conceivable.
And so, the battle has been joined.
The debate will infiltrate almost every
corner and crevice of the nation’s politics,
governance and culture, and will dominate
the remainder of the presidential campaign
and beyond. No matter which man wins
the election, and which woman is sworn
in to fill Ginsburg’s seat, this fight will scar
our nation even more deeply than the past
several years of partisan warfare.
September 25-October 1, 2020
COLUMNIST
When the dust settles, almost exactly half
the country’s population will be dreadfully
disappointed, not just at the final outcome
but with a process they will believe has
swindled them out of what they know they
deserved. Almost exactly half of our fellow
Americans will believe that their country has
been stolen out from under them, and will
immediately began plotting resistance and
revenge. The only questions are whether that
aggrieved faction will occupy the political
right or left, and whether the equally angry
victors will be progressive or conservative.
Either way, the chasm that separates
Americans will grow wider and the acrimony
and anger will worsen.
At that point, we will have two choices.
Either our society can continue to turn on
itself, with ever-increasing consequences as
a downward cycle of fear, rancor and retali-
ation accelerates. Alternatively, whichever
side prevails could decide that absolute sub-
jugation and humiliation of the defeated is
unlikely to lead to any productive accom-
plishments and forward progress, let alone
any actual healing.
When Nelson Mandela was sworn in as
South Africa’s first Black president, many
of his allies were eager to seek retribution
against the leaders of the apartheid state
they replaced. Mandela instead called for
conciliation, and argued to his colleagues
that their country could not reunite if
their primary goal was to subjugate those
they had defeated. “If you want to make
peace with your enemy, you have to work
with your enemy,” Mandela said. “Then he
becomes your partner.”
Such magnanimity seems unlikely in
these troubled times. But it will be necessary.
In the weeks ahead, I will do my best
to provide analysis on how this critically
important nomination might play out. But
for today at least, let us think about our
obligation after the battle is done. During
their time together on the bench, Ginsburg
and her conservative compatriot Antonin
Scalia forged a close friendship across deep
ideological divisions. Now that both are
gone, perhaps this is one lesson that those
on both sides can take from our respective
heroes. n
Dan Schnur teaches political communica-
tions at UC Berkeley, USC and Pepperdine. He
hosts the weekly webinar “Politics in the Time
of Coronavirus” for the Los Angeles World Af-
fairs Council & Town Hall (lawac.org).
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 11
 COLUMNIST
Jewish Contributions to Humanity
#56 in a series

Their Work Struck Averting a Meltdown

a Chord With During the Big Move
Music Lovers. » by Reyna Marder Gentin
THIS FALL, MY SON BEGAN HIS
freshman year at a college too far from
our home in New York for us to load the
car with all his stuff and drive him, which
we had done for his older sister each year.
Instead, he decided to fly, and because
New York’s COVID-19 regulations would
have required us to quarantine for 14 days
upon our return, we sent him by himself.
His luggage would be picked up at our
house, placed in a gigantic U-Haul, and
driven 16 hours to the Midwest, where it
would sit in a warehouse in the summer
Billy Joel Bob Dylan Debbie Friedman heat for nearly a week until he arrived to
claim it. I lamented that I wouldn’t be able
BILLY JOEL (1949-). b. New York, New York. The piano man. to make up his bed in his dorm room. He
One of the most successful singer-songwriters in American music history, Billy Joel is said I shouldn’t worry; he’s not planning to
the sixth best-selling recording artist and the third best-selling solo artist in the U.S. He has make his bed — ever. Cringe.
written each of his 33 Top 40 hits, has won six Grammy Awards, sold 150 million records, His impending independence notwith-
and is in the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Born in New York standing, my son was grateful when I of-
to a German-Jewish father and British-Jewish mother, a young Joel took piano lessons at fered to pack the duffle bag with linens,
his mother’s insistence. He was so talented that he was playing piano bars in high school, blankets, towels and various other sun-
and didn’t technically graduate until 1992, having fallen short by a few credits in his senior dries for his room. I explained the usage
year in 1967 when he overslept a final exam due to his having a late-night piano gig. Over the of the new white mattress pad and pillow
next five years, Joel hopped between multiple bands in New York, failing to gain commercial protectors, and he looked at me blankly. He
traction with any of his songs. Moving to Los Angeles, in 1973 Columbia Records offered
him a recording contract after his song “Captain Jack” was picked up on radio. The next
year, his song “Piano Man”, and the album by the same name, launched him into stardom.
the luggage onto the truck, then we
went inside the house, lost in thought,
wondering what to do with ourselves until
his departure the following Sunday.
On Wednesday night, after dinner, my
son opened the freezer and, after looking
around for a minute, asked, “Where’s my
ice cream?”
“I don’t know. Did you buy ice cream?”
I asked.
“Yes. I bought a pint of Häagen-Dazs
when I went to the CVS for my shampoo
and stuff.”
A look of confusion passed over his face,
then understanding, then horror. He had
packed the ice cream in his clothes trunk.
My son, an honors physics student in high
school, calculated the volume of frozen
versus melted ice cream and contemplated
how the container would expand in the
heat. I retreated to my bedroom to run a
Google search: Does melted ice cream in a
closed space explode? All week, I imagined
every permutation of what that ice cream
was doing in my son’s luggage.

BOB DYLAN (1941-). b. Duluth, Minnesota. Nobel Prize in Literature, 2016.

He changed the times. I smiled when I noticed he’d packed a
An American cultural icon for five decades, musician and singer-songwriter Bob Dylan has
sold more than 100 million records, and has won a Grammy, an Oscar and a Nobel Prize in suit for yom tov and teared up when I
saw he’d left at least a few of his beloved
Literature. Dylan was raised in a religiously active and Zionist family, and his love for music
was nurtured by listening to blues, country and rock and roll on the radio. His music career

Mets shirts behind.

began in earnest when he dropped out of the University of Minnesota as a freshman to move to
Manhattan’s Greenwich Village. There, in 1961, he played harmonica with Harry Belefonte in his
first professional recording session. After a positive review of one of his public performances in
The New York Times, Columbia Records signed Dylan, whose work became hugely influential politely declined the washcloths, wonder- By Thursday, my son announced he
thanks in large part to the ‘60s counterculture. Songs like “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “The Times ing aloud what they’re for. I added a surge was “over it.” It will be what it will be.
They Are a-Changin’” were anthems for the anti-Vietnam War movement. Since then, though, protector and a small fan, and congratu- He left on the plane Sunday morning,
Dylan has greatly expanded his repertoire, incorporating folk, blues, country and jazz into his lated myself on providing some items that and I sat on my hands so I wouldn’t flood
work, and playing the guitar and keyboard in addition to his signature harmonica. will be useful but wouldn’t have occurred him with texts upon his arrival. In the
DEBBIE FRIEDMAN (1951-2011). b. Utica, New York. d. Mission Viejo, to him. I tossed in a collapsible lawn chair mid-afternoon, he finally posted a video
California. in the hopes he’ll socially distance out- in our family group chat. I watched as he
Coined as “the Joan Baez” of Jewish song, Debbie Friedman was one of the Jewish musical doors while the weather holds. approached the bag, nose-first, announcing
world’s most prolific artists and performers of the past generation. The singer-songwriter’s work I left him to pack his clothes — he was that from the outside, there was no
fused ancient Jewish texts with modern melodies, often with a folksy twang. Her classic rendition way too grown up for me to choose his smell. He methodically opened the trunk,
of Mi Shebeirach is used by hundreds of synagogues across America and throughout the pants or count his underwear. I smiled removing layers and pausing to sniff, until
English-speaking world. Friedman recorded more than 20 albums and sold about half-a-million when I noticed he’d packed a suit for yom he uncovered the paper CVS bag. He reached
copies. Born in New York, but raised in Minnesota, Friedman taught herself guitar by listening to tov and teared up when I saw he’d left in and pulled out the pint of ice cream. It
Peter, Paul and Mary. She wrote many of her early songs as a song leader at a Jewish summer at least a few of his beloved Mets shirts was entirely intact, dry and odorless. He
camp. Her inspiration to set classical texts to original melodies came to her sitting in synagogue behind. On Sunday night, he managed to raised a fist in triumph and declared with a
one night and feeling bored listening to the choir. Her first album, “Sing Unto God,” was released stuff all of his clothes and shoes into his confident smile, “We’re all good.”
in 1972. That album’s collection of Shabbat songs put Friedman on the map and, over the next old, soft-sided camp trunk. I don’t know And we are. We’re all good. n
four decades, she toured extensively, encouraging audiences to sing-along during her concerts, whether he had to sit on the top to close
and stirring countless people with her themes of healing and renewal. the zipper; I was afraid to ask. Reyna Marder Gentin is a graduate of
On Monday morning, two friendly Yale Law School. Her debut novel is titled
Original Research by Walter L. Field Sponsored by Irwin S. Field Written by Jared Sichel and efficient young men arrived to pick “Unreasonable Doubts,” a romantic legal
up the bags. We watched as they loaded thriller (with a Jewish bent).

12 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com September 25-October 1, 2020

 COLUMNIST
Rebbe’s Teachings

Ha’azinu:
RBG on “Being Jewish” The Poem of
» by Judea Pearl
IN 2003, WHEN MY WIFE, RUTH, AND For example, I say who I am in certain visible
Testimony
I were editing the book “I Am Jewish: signs. The command from Deuteronomy

T
Personal Reflections Inspired by the appears in artworks, in Hebrew letters, on
Last Words of Daniel Pearl” (Jewish Light three walls and a table in my chambers.
he tenth section of the Book of Deuteronomy, Parashat Ha’azinu, is com-
we Publishing, 2004), we asked more than “Zedek, Zedek tirdof,” “Justice, justice shalt posed of the Poem of Testimony that God instructed Moses to teach the
ht, 300 prominent Jewish personalities to thou pursue,” these art works proclaim; Jewish people. In it, God directs them to hearken (Ha’azinu, in Hebrew)
til contribute an essay, a note or a paragraph they are ever present reminders to me of to His words and to learn from history, recalling humanity’s past mistakes and
on what the words “I am Jewish” what judges must do “that God’s faithfulness in fulfilling His promises. He warns of the consequences of
my meant to them. they may thrive.” There is violating the covenant, and reminds them that the purpose of the vicissitudes of
ng Some responded with outright also a large silver mezuzah history is to bring them to their ultimate goal, the final Redemption.
my rejection, saying that in a world mounted on my doorpost. All this, of course, rings familiar, since three parashiot ago, in parashat
heading toward globalization, It is a gift from the super Tavo, the consequences of violating our covenant with God were spelled out
?” there is no point dwelling bright teenage students at
quite graphically. What does Ha’azinu add that was not covered in the admo-
on ethnic distinctions. Some the Shulamith School for Girls
nitions in parashat Tavo?
zs apologized for not being able to in Brooklyn, N.Y., the school
oo treat such complex question in one of my dearest law clerks
The answer may lie in the fact that the Ha’azinu admonitions are cast as a “poem,”
less than two or three volumes. attended in her growing-up a literary form whose use the Torah usually reserves for joyous praises to God. Later
e, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg did years. use of the Ha’azinu poem, in the Temple ritual, bears out this conception:
ad not hesitate for a moment and A question stated in various Every Sabbath, while the musaf sacrifice was offered up, the Levites would
k. sent us a 300-word piece we knew right ways is indicative of what I would like to sing a segment of the Ha’azinu poem, completing the entire poem over the
h away will strengthen the spines of Jewish convey. What is the difference between a New course of six weeks. Inasmuch as it is expressly forbidden to be sad on the
n youngsters for generations to come. York City Garment District bookkeeper and Sabbath, the fact that the Ha’azinu poem — which concerns punishment and
ed We assured her that she would be a Supreme Court Justice? One generation. retribution —was recited while the Sabbath sacrifice, which expresses the joy-
he remembered by that piece, especially by My life bears witness, the difference ous essence of the day, was offered up seems perplexing, to say the least.
a the millions who will forever associate between opportunities open to my mother,
True, the opening and closing passages of this poem are mostly “positive,”
a Jewishness with the biblical command a bookkeeper, and those open to me.
describing God’s benevolent providence and His promise for a bright future.
ed “Tzedek, tzedek tirdof” (Justice, justice, you I am a judge, born, raised and proud of
m shall pursue ...) (Deuteronomy 16:20). being a Jew. The demand for justice runs
But the intervening passages are largely “negative,” so why were they recited
Now that Ginsburg no longer is with us, through the entirety of the Jewish history by themselves on their designated Sabbaths, detached from the redeeming
and Jewish tradition. I hope, in all the years I optimism of the poem’s opening and closing passages?
have the good fortune to serve on the bench It appears that the point of reading the poem over a span of six weeks,
of the Supreme Court of the United States, I thereby dividing it into six sections, is precisely to emphasize this point —
“What is the difference will have the strength and courage to remain
steadfast in the service of that demand.
that even the retributive content of the poem is meant to be understood as
part of the whole, a paean of praise to God.
between a New York This becomes even clearer when we note that the finale of the poem is
A
City Garment District somewhat
s I reread this essay in 2020, there
is one sentence that strikes me as
ironic: “[We] are fortunate to ...
God’s promise of messianic redemption. From this perspective, all our turbu-
lent history can be seen as leading toward our ultimate radiant destiny. Thus,
the fact that this review of past failings ends on this positive, hopeful note
bookkeeper and a live at a time when Jews residing here face
few closed doors and do not fear letting
transforms the entire poem from a dirge into an exultant, joyful hymn.
The same applies to our own personal histories: we learn from Ha’azinu that
Supreme Court Justice? theHaving
world know who they are.”
been involved in a few campus all phases of our life, even those marked by embarrassing failures or suffering,

One generation.”
he incidents lately, I can’t help but imagine are necessary stages in personal growth, all leading to our eventual maturation as
RGB’s disappointment upon finding out her human beings fully devoted to our Divine mission and equipped to fulfill it.
g, grandchildren are becoming increasingly But more than that, the fact that Ha’azinu is a poem of praise teaches us
od — Ruth Bader Ginsburg hesitant to let the world know who they that the highest form of returning to God (teshuvah, the overall theme of the
he are. Had they applied to UCLA or USC, Book of Deuteronomy) is the return motivated by joy and performed in joy,
eo it is time for us to fulfil our promise and for example, they might well be deemed focused optimistically on the happy ending awaiting us at the conclusion of
he make her essay available to the general unfit to serve in student government by
the drama we are all living.
ng public. virtue of being Jewish, highly suspect of
Thus, this last, concluding section of Moses’ review of the covenant is his
no The following is the essay Ginsburg Zionist affiliation, beliefs or aspirations.
k, wrote for “I Am Jewish,” a book inspired by And Zionism, so university administrators
reminder to us to keep its significance at the forefront of our consciousness.
til the murder of my son by terrorists in 2002 tell us, is not a word their lawyers would In this way, our entire lives—past, present, and future—take on true meaning,
ed in Pakistan: permit them to spell, let alone respect or true vitality, and true direction. Our triumphs and our sufferings, our personal
It protect in public. and national identities, all combine to form our song of destiny, all flowing
He Former Supreme Court Justice Arthur May history remember Ginsburg for the toward the ultimate goal of making the world into God’s home. u
a Goldberg once said, “My concern for ideas she affirmed, the values she pursued
justice, for peace, for enlightenment stems and, not the least, her understanding of
From the writings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson.
from my heritage.” Justice Stephen Breyer the power of heritage in shaping values The Rebbe’s inspirational teachings on the Torah portion can be found in the Kehot
and I are fortunate to be linked to and ideas. n Chumash, produced by Chabad House Publications.
of that heritage, and to live in the U.S.A.
Sp ons o re d by Cha ba d o f Ca lif o rnia , in lov ing m e m o ry o f Ra bbi Tze m a c h
ed at a time when Jews residing here Judea Pearl is a professor emeritus at Yeh osh u a Cunin, E m is s a ry o f the Re bbe a nd Dire c to r o f Cha ba d o f Ce ntury City.
al face few closed doors and do not fear UCLA and president of the Daniel Pearl Foun-
letting the world know who they are. dation (danielpearl.org).

20 September 25-October 1, 2020 JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 13

A makeshift memorial
for Supreme Court Justice
Ruth Bader Ginsburg in
front of the U.S. Supreme
Court on Sept. 19 in
Washington, DC.
Photo by Samuel Corum
RBG and
the Lone Dissent
» by Aryeh Cohen
IN THE BABYLONIAN TALMUD, THERE
is a tale about King Yannai and Shimon
ben Shetah, a prominent sage and head of
the Sanhedrin (the high court), who both
lived — at least in the rabbinic imaginary
— around the first century before the Com-
mon Era (Sanhedrin 19a). In the story, one
of King Yannai’s servants killed a person,
so Shimon summoned him for judgment.
But Shimon also summoned Yannai as the
ultimately responsible party and ordered
him to stand and give testimony.
The king was insulted that he was
forced to stand in front of 71 seated jus-
tices. So Yannai refused, saying that he
would testify only if all of Shimon’s col-
leagues on the court ordered him to do
so. Yannai had hoped that not every judge
had Shimon’s spine — and he was right.
When Yannai looked at each judge, they
all buried their heads. Realizing that the
rest of the court had not backed his de-
cision, Shimon cursed them, and the an-
gel Gabriel smote them. For this reason,
the Talmud mandates that a king neither
judges nor is he judged.
This story is obviously not the reason
for this law. The law instead grew out of
the tension between a justice system
and a monarch. In the story, though, the
Mishnah’s authors captured the limits of
jurisprudence, the fragility of judicial in-
stitutions and the danger of relying on the
courage of one justice. The fact the sages
inscribed this story as the law’s origin sto-
ry demonstrates the weakness of law in
the face of raw power. The sages all were
killed. Shimon ben Shetah miscalculated,
and he lost. The law lost.
On the first night of Rosh Hashanah
this year, Shimon ben Shetah died.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg was born on March
15, 1933, in Brooklyn, N.Y., to an immigrant fa-
ther and a first-generation American mother.
As the second female on the Supreme Court,
she became a legend and an icon of the femi-
nist movement. However, this was not the
obvious trajectory of her life.
Ginsburg grew up in an immigrant Jew-
ish neighborhood in Flatbush, and she
14 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com
MY TURN
always retained loyalty to her heritage.
As she said in a speech to the American
Jewish Committee in 1996: “I am a judge,
born, raised and proud of being a Jew. …
The demand for justice, for peace and for
enlightenment runs through the entirety
of Jewish history and Jewish tradition.”
Her mother, Celia Bader, supported her
daughter’s intellectual ambitions, and she
set aside money so her daughter could at-
tend college. Ginsburg married young and
followed her husband, Martin Ginsburg, to
his military post and then to Harvard Law
School. Martin Ginsburg became an officer
to fulfill his ROTC requirements, and she,
being pregnant, was allowed only to be a
secretary because any other job would re-
quire that she travel for training. An often-
As Jill Lepore recently wrote, “Ginsburg
bore witness to, argued for, and helped to
constitutionalize the most hard-fought and
least-appreciated revolution in modern
American history: the emancipation of
women.”
told anecdote recounts that at the end of
her first year at Harvard, Ruth Bader Gins-
burg and the eight other women in her
class were summoned to the dean’s resi-
dence for dinner. At that dinner, the dean
asked the women to justify why they were
taking a man’s place at the school. Gins-
burg replied that she was studying the
law to understand her husband’s profes-
sion better. To many, Ruth Bader Ginsberg
seemed destined to fulfill the role that
many white Jewish women filled in mid-
century America — housewife with a pro-
fession secondary to her husband’s.
Yet, as Jill Lepore recently wrote, “Gins-
burg bore witness to, argued for, and
helped to constitutionalize the most hard-
fought and least-appreciated revolution in
modern American history: the emancipa-
tion of women. Aside from Thurgood Mar-
shall, no single American has so wholly
advanced the cause of equality under the
law.”
How did she get from there to here? De-
spite her qualifications, Ginsburg couldn’t
obtain employment as a lawyer because of
her religion and gender. Instead, she began
work at Columbia University on a com-
parative project, which required that she
learn Swedish and spend time in Sweden.
Ultimately, Ginsburg wrote a treatise on
Swedish civil law, which remains a leading
work. More importantly, she witnessed a
society that was more equitable than the
United States. Feminism was flourishing
in Sweden, child care was readily avail-
able, and it was not unusual for women to
combine their parenting and professional
roles. As they say, “You can’t be what you
can’t see.”
After this period, Ginsburg embarked
on her feminist legal career, teaching law
at Rutgers and then at Columbia. Outside
of the classroom, Ginsburg handled dis-
crimination cases for the American Civil
Liberties Union. One of the more notable
cases she worked on — although she didn’t
argue the case in front of the court — was
Reed v. Reed. The case challenged an Idaho
statute that gave preference to men in ex-
ecuting estates. In writing the majority de-
cision, Chief Justice Warren E. Burger used
Ginsburg’s now famous phrase, proclaim-
ing, “The choice in this context may not
lawfully be mandated solely on the basis
of sex.” Ginsburg also co-authored a first-
of-its-kind textbook on sex discrimination
and law. By the time she was nominated
and confirmed as a Supreme Court justice
in 1993, she was able to rule from prece-
dents in cases that she had argued in front
of the court.
However, the political winds shifted,
and Ginsburg attained her “Notorious
RBG” moniker from her scathing dissents.
She called out the conservative wing of
the court for gutting the Voting Rights Act
(Shelby County v. Holder); for not recogniz-
ing the realities of employment in the Lilly
Ledbetter pay-discrimination case, which
led to new congressional legislation; and
on and on. She was fearless in calling out
power in her dissents. In the Shelby case,
Ginsburg likened the majority opinion to a
person holding an umbrella in a storm and
deciding he does not need it any more since
he is dry. But her dissents extended beyond
the bench. In 2016, for example, Ginsburg
got into trouble for calling President Don-
ald Trump a “faker” and had to apologize.
Her last public statement, dictated to her
granddaughter Clara Spera, was, “My most
fervent wish is that I will not be replaced
until a new president is installed.”
Like Shimon ben Shetah, however,
Ginsburg also miscalculated and erred.
Many who urged her to retire in 2012,
when President Barack Obama could have
nominated a new justice who would have
been approved by the Democratic major-
ity in the Senate. However, this calculation
comes with great hindsight. Although RBG
seemed to have mastered popular cul-
ture, she missed the shift in culture that
was represented by the Black Lives Matter
movement. She spoke disparagingly of Co-
lin Kaepernick’s protest, and she was part
of the majority (with Sonia Sotomayor the
lone dissent) in Kansas v. Glover, a case
that legitimated traffic stops for no dis-
cernible reason.
We are at another moment when it
seems that “you can’t be what you can’t
see.” Activists in the streets, especially
Black activists, are showing us that there
is a new vision — a vision of a different
kind of safety that is not dependent on
armed police and an out-of-control car-
ceral system. That vision is not yet in the
court, and if the Senate is able to confirm
Trump’s choice for a new justice, that vi-
sion may be denied. Without the vision
and the courage of Shimon ben Shetah to
back it up, the court will be a subsidiary of
the executive branch — a rubber stamp to
the president’s will.
Ginsburg’s legacy is that brilliance, te-
nacity and vision matter. And as Ginsburg
showed in her Ledbetter dissent, it is cru-
cial for justices to understand the lived re-
ality of impacted peoples (Ginsburg, for in-
stance, had suffered pay discrimination).
This humanity is also part of her legacy.
The law cannot be so distant from the peo-
ple that it loses touch.
As we enter this new year, it seems
that we may have a Yannai that threatens
the justices and has no regard for justice.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s legacy must live on
in the form of courage, a courage that all
justices must muster to protect our de-
mocracy against our president. We must
show that courage, too. We must take to
the streets to demonstrate that we will
not abide a cowed and cowering Supreme
Court, that we will have the backs of jus-
tices like Sotomayor, who can voice dis-
sent. This will be the way we honor Ruth
Bader Ginsburg’s memory. n
Aryeh Cohen is professor of rabbinic litera-
ture at American Jewish University, the rabbi-
in-residence at Bend the Arc: Jewish Action,
Kogod Research Fellow of the Shalom Hartman
Institute and immediate past co-chair of the
Board of Clergy & Laity United for Economic Jus-
tice. His latest book is “Justice in the City: An Ar-
gument From the Sources of Rabbinic Judaism.”
September 25-October 1, 2020

She personally
broke the rules
for women in the
workplace, then
rewrote them for a
nation. We should
be obligated to
follow them — and
her.
Living Life According to Justice Ginsburg
» by Randi Braun
“A JEW, A WOMAN AND A MOTHER,
that was a bit much. Three strikes put me
out of the game,” Justice Ruth Bader Gins-
burg once recalled.
Ginsburg’s life meant a lot of things to
a lot of people. To Jewish working women
and mothers, she was our patron saint.
Before we the term “glass ceilings” was
coined, she shattered them. Before we
conceptualized intersectionality or a di-
versity, equity and inclusion movement,
she defined them.
On the morning of Sept. 19, Rosh Ha-
shanah morning, I came down the stairs.
Before I even reached the last step, my
husband called out to me, his voice shak-
ing, “Randi, I have terrible news.” I thought
somebody we loved had died — and in-
deed, she had.
As we dwell in the 10 Days of Awe be-
tween Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur,
we’re asked to seriously consider our
mortality and stand in awe of life itself: If
we’re inscribed into the Book of Life this
year, what will we do with this life?
This year, as we dwell in the Days of
Awe, we also are in awe of Ginsburg. Not
just of what she accomplished, but what
she meant to us. For many of us, that is
overwhelming — and that’s OK; awe is, by
its very definition, overwhelming in all its
wonder and reverence. So as we sit a com-
munal shivah for RBG (as she was nick-
named) during these Days of Awe, let’s
take time to wonder and marvel at her.
September 25-October 1, 2020
Let’s tell her stories and celebrate her life
with reverence.
Through reverent tears, many of the
Jewish women I’ve spoken with in recent
days are overwhelmed because they just
can’t imagine the Supreme Court, the
country or the world itself without her.
That’s why we should be obligated to take
RBG’s legacy with us into our daily lives —
which is in and of itself a very Jewish idea.
Famous for chipping away at the wall of
gender bias instead of toppling it, the petite
associate justice taught us the power of
winning the war by winning small battles.
As we say l’dor v’dor, we don’t just honor
RBG’s legacy as the most influential Jewish
American woman of the 20th century. We
remind ourselves that it is our responsibil-
ity to write the next chapter. One of us will
be the RBG of the 21st century: The most
influential and beloved Jewish American
woman of a century. As we move from
generation to generation, many more of us
will touch and change the lives of others
in the process.
So where do we go from here, at this
intersection of grief, memory, celebration
and legacy?
Look no further than RBG herself. Hon-
oring her legacy daily and in perpetuity
feels like a tall order, but it was she who
taught us the power of seemingly “small”
actions. Famous for chipping away at the
wall of gender bias instead of toppling it,
the petite associate justice taught us the
power of winning the war by winning
small battles. Kabbalah similarly teaches
us that each one of us has the ability to tilt
the energy of the universe toward good or
evil with each of our thoughts, words and
deeds.
So why not tilt it toward that RBG side
each day?
As we consider how to honor her lega-
cy, let’s look to her words for inspiration:
On being more than what you do: “If
you want to be a true professional, do
something outside of yourself.”
MY TURN
On hope: “So that’s the dissenter’s
hope: that they are writing not for today,
but for tomorrow.”
On persistence: “Real change, enduring
change, happens one step at a time.”
On women in leadership: “Women be-
long in all places where decisions are be-
ing made. It shouldn’t be that women are
the exception.”
On being allies as Jewish Americans:
“Perhaps I should start by saying, I grew up in
the shadow of World War II, and we came to
know more and more what was happening
to the Jews in Europe. The sense of being an
outsider — of being one of the people who
had suffered oppression for no sensible rea-
son. It’s the sense of being part of a minority.
It makes you more empathetic to other peo-
ple who are not insiders, who are outsiders.”
On goals and expectations: “You can’t
have it all, all at once.”
On being our best self: “I would like
to be remembered as someone who used
whatever talent she had to do her work to
the very best of her ability.”
As we say zichronah livrachah, we know
her memory will indeed be a blessing. It’s
also a call to action. She personally broke
the rules for women in the workplace,
then rewrote them for a nation. We should
be obligated to follow them — and her. n
Randi Braun is an executive coach, consul-
tant, speaker and the founder of Something
Major. somethingmajorcoaching.com
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 15

Rosh Hashanah begins the work. Yom Kippur seals it. But only if you are willing to go deep.
IN MY 40 YEARS OF LEADING HIGH
Holy Days services, many people have giv-
en me reasons for why they were at Yom
Kippur services, even though they are non-
believers. Each year, congregants approach
me and tell me they are excited for Yom
Kippur because it is “the annual meeting of
the Jewish people.” Some congregants say
they enjoy “being in the presence of their
community.” Others tell me they “don’t be-
lieve in God, sin or a God who punishes,”
but they “still belong at services.”
We may have been deceiving ourselves
these past 40 years — and possibly much,
much longer. Yom Kippur isn’t the annual
meeting of the Jewish people. We don’t sit
around tables and decide policy; we typi-
cally sit quietly with books in our hands
and listen. Nor is God the entire reason
for being there; if that were the case, then
why would nonbelievers bother to show
up? And if we celebrated Yom Kippur just
to be around other people, then is the day
canceled for those of us quarantining?
What, then, is the point of participating in
Yom Kippur services?
I think the answer lies in the vast num-
ber of ways people have experienced the
recent shutdown. We have not only dis-
tanced, we have also experienced inward-
ness: People have learned new skills and
practiced old ones, read and reread great
books, watched amazing TV shows and
16 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com
YO M K I P P U R
What Does it
Mean to
Have a Deeper
Yom Kippur?
» by Rabbi Mordecai Finley
movies, and created great work with pod-
casts, YouTube, TikTok and other platforms.
We have scheduled time to talk in groups
and one on one with our friends. There
have been Zoom minyans, Zoom weddings,
Zoom study groups and Zoom counseling.
People have told me they are amazed at the
depth of the other people in their online
groups, whom they never would have met
had it not been for social distancing.
Even if you don’t believe in God, you can
suspend your disbelief for a moment and
know God is on to you. On this day, there is
nowhere to hide.
We also have become much closer to
Judaism. I’ve heard only a few people say
they won’t attend an online High Holy
Days service. Instead, many of us are turn-
ing inward — as we have in our day-to-day
lives — to the High Holy Days. We don’t
want a screen-sized version of services;
we want services that will match our deep
experiences from these past months.
Most of us know we belong at services,
even from a distance. Even if we are not
sure what to believe, we are drawn there.
Because so much of the familiarity of Yom
Kippur is not there — the physicality, the
immediacy — it seems we are more ready
than ever to experience the true meaning
of Yom Kippur. We are prepared to seek
depth.
What are those depths? If we take into
account the power of the liturgy, the Kol
Nidre, the many confessionals, the con-
stant sense of urgency to do teshuvah, we
see an insistent push to face the parts of
us that hide and resist change. We see a
push to go deep.
On this deepest day of the Jewish year,
at the core of our souls, we seek to con-
front our inner disruptions — the darkest,
scariest parts of ourselves — and carve
paths to truer, authentic selves. The High
Holy Days are what set us on the path to
do the digging.
Rosh Hashanah begins the work. Yom
Kippur seals it. But only if you are willing
to go deep.
‘Deeper’ is different for each person
A deeper Yom Kippur depends on how
honest and courageous we can be with
ourselves. For each person, a deeper Yom
Kippur will look different. We all have
depth, and we all have distinct things
in our depths: brilliant coral reefs but
also stark, lonely sunken ships; prayers
never uttered; lives yet to be lived; words
we can’t take back, tossed into the deep.
These depths are unavoidable. If not sal-
vaged, they will haunt us.
For me, the basis of Yom Kippur is that
the day assumes things are hiding in your
depths. Maybe you know what they are,
and maybe you don’t. One of God’s names
on Yom Kippur is “Chacham Ha-Razim,”
“Wise to the Secrets.” Even if you don’t be-
lieve in God, you can suspend your disbe-
lief for a moment and know God is on to
you. On this day, there is nowhere to hide.
Consider Jonah, the book we read on
Yom Kippur. Jonah took a ship to run from
God, and a storm threatened to sink the
ship until the sailors threw him overboard.
Eventually, Jonah ended up in Nineveh,
whether he liked it or not.
September 25-October 1, 2020

You must intend
the words of the
confessional so
strongly that they
break your heart,
causing you to
mourn the wasted
time, the wasted
energy of excuses.
We are not as lucky as Jonah. God will
not chase us down. We can avoid our spiri-
tual work, shut our ears, avoid the voice,
close our eyes and not see the truth. I have
— and I’m sure you have — met people
like that. Those who are not wise to the
truth of who they are. Other people, how-
ever, can see through them. Other people
can see through you, too.
On Yom Kippur, imagine God sees you.
You show up to services, physically or
virtually, to be seen. We belong to people
who, at least once year, agree not to hide,
not to run, but rather, to go deep.
Digging for true depth
Yet feeling deeply on Yom Kippur is
not the same thing as depth. We all feel
things deeply. We are deeply angry, afraid
and confused, and maybe feel some dread
about the things going on outside of us.
There truly are great problems to solve, so-
cial justice issues to work out and political
agendas to pursue.
I can tell you, though, what every coun-
selor knows about these difficult times:
People are suffering, and politics play no
favorites. I counsel people of just about ev-
ery mainstream political view. Their opin-
ions on how to repair the world differ, but
their suffering is pretty much the same:
trouble in relationships, especially spous-
es and teenagers; internal senses of anxi-
September 25-October 1, 2020
ety, fear, hatred, anger and resentment;
alcohol and drug abuse; severe domestic
strife—the list goes on. And even if these
issues are not happening to you, they are
happening to someone close to you, and
we seek the wisdom to help. We have a day
for that.
The issues you are passionate about
will continue to go on, even if you think
about something else for the 24 hours of
Yom Kippur. There are things at stake
within us that will determine our well-
being until we change. Ignore what is hap-
pening in you at your peril.
Perhaps start by focusing on your fam-
ily or friends. Maybe you don’t quite know
what they’re thinking or feeling. Maybe
you close your eyes or shut your ears be-
cause if you really knew what they are
going through or how they perceive you,
you’d have to change your life. Or maybe
you’d be grateful for the opportunity to
change. The Jewish tradition has a day for
that.
Someone once asked me how they can
indulge going in deep with all the dreadful
things going on out there. I instructed this
person to imagine they are walking a sca-
brous path through the time and terrain of
our lives. Under this terrain, though, min-
ers are digging a shaft deep inside of you
— and they have found a precious stone.
Astonishingly precious. With this stone,
you can see the secret of your soul and see
into the Heart of the Universe. Through
this precious, crystalline quartz, the Heart
of the Universe makes its love known to
you and knows you have arrived.
How do you find this mineshaft? You
start by creating a clearing. Our lives are
full of debris and clutter. Misspent emo-
tions of anger, resentment and fear pile
up. Debris consisting of lack of empathy,
resistance to grieving and moving on, not
forgiving or forgiving too quickly. Stub-
bornness and procrastination. Taking on
irrational obligations. Giving in to destruc-
tive guilt. Being an addict or an enabler.
A deeper Yom Kippur involves confronting
your resistance to moral and spiritual
excellence.
Not holding back your tongue. There is lit-
ter of being needlessly hurt and defensive
because others are needlessly insensitive
and hurtful. But look over yonder —you
might see someone else making a clearing
on Yom Kippur, too.
Many people don’t want to call these
inner disruptions “sins” because, they tell
me, “Jews don’t believe in sin; just in miss-
ing the mark, missing the target.” But just
because someone doesn’t believe in some-
thing doesn’t make it untrue. If we don’t
face our disruptions, they can make our
Even without an idea of God, imagine
there is the most authentic version of you
just beyond the horizon. It is a version
living your deepest values — not just
having them, but being them.
relationships with others and ourselves
toxic. Our paths to transformation begin
by clearly identifying our disruptions and
marshaling up a tenacious and unremit-
ting will to change our lives.
Let’s take God out of the equation for
a moment. Even without an idea of God,
imagine there is the most authentic ver-
sion of you just beyond the horizon. It is a
version living your deepest values — not
just having them, but being them. It is a
you beyond the horizon, without excuses.
Clear — with integrity, humility, wisdom
and depth. Now list what stops you from
becoming that person you have yet to be-
come. We gather on Yom Kippur — physi-
cally or virtually, but certainly spiritually
— to share our lists, share our sadness,
and share our hopes for the future.
Try to identify what stops you from be-
ing your authentic self. It probably seems
like bad habits. But when you attempt to
change those habits, you will find they
have dug in deep into “the shadow of your-
self,” as Jungian tradition would say.
“Go ahead, try to change your habits,”
a voice from the shadow laughs. Your bad
habits will fight back. They don’t want to
be changed. They’d rather destroy you, or
at least your potential for becoming your
authentic self. You are not just missing
the target; something inside you is tearing
apart that target.
A deeper Yom Kippur involves con-
fronting your resistance to moral and
spiritual excellence. With a deeper Yom
Kippur, you will understand those ob-
stacles as not just bad habits, but instead
as an organized alienation from your true
potential as a human being. In Judaism,
we call that alienation the yetzer harah.
The word “yetzer” is from the Hebrew
word “to make” or “shape.” The yetzer ha-
rah, then, is a pattern with a will of its
own, defying and resisting our highest
values. It is an inner entropy, waiting for
us to fall apart.
How to dig
How do we dig and find our true selves
on Yom Kippur? One way is the confes-
sional. Every speaker at a 12-step meeting
begins with a confession: “I am an alcohol-
ic”; “I am a drug user”; “I am a gambler.” It
takes some courage to do that. Now imag-
ine your own meeting: I am a hater. Liar.
Poser. Bully. Coward. Confused. Victim. Un-
organized. Mean Spirited. Whatever your
demons are, do you have the honesty and
courage to say it? Out loud to yourself?
Yom Kippur has a confessional for that.
Several of them.
The confessional, though, is only a ver-
bal prompt. The confessional requires you
take these words seriously and intend these
words to pierce your avoidance. You must
intend the words of the confessional so
strongly that they break your heart, causing
you to mourn the wasted time, the wasted
energy of excuses. And out of the depths
of this brokenness, a new will and new self
shall appear. The will to change, and the self
who will lead you beyond the horizon.
Now, let’s put the idea of God back into
our thinking. Consider not only the most
authentic versions of ourselves that exist
beyond the horizon, but also a Divine who
is seeking you, calling you — a God who
is seeking your heart of truth. Even those
who don’t believe in God can find sacred-
ness in the depths of the broken heart. It
does not matter what you call the sacred-
ness of that experience. The main thing is
that you have arrived.
A deeper Yom Kippur is a moment of
truth — a day to be truthful with your-
self. It is as if this is your only life; as if
you don’t have all the time in the world to
get it right; as if you have debris of regret
and needless pain littered behind you; as
if you desperately want to create a clearing
ahead of you, to dig down, break through
the resistance and find your heart of truth.
These piercing calls into our depths are
not unique to this year’s Yom Kippur. Per-
haps, though, on this Yom Kippur, when
our lives are shorn of attractions to the
nonessential, we can be especially tilled
for the “light that is sown to the righteous.”
Find the Heart of the Universe, who is
waiting for your arrival and readies you for
the next mine to dig. That is a deeper Yom
Kippur. n
Rabbi Mordecai Finley is the spiritual leader
of Ohr HaTorah and professor of Jewish Thought
at the Academy of Jewish Religion, California.
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 17

Judaism Is for
Nonbelievers, Too
» by Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson
THIS IS THE TIME OF YEAR FOR JEWS
to feel like hypocrites. We come to syna-
gogue every year, pick up the machzor
and recite words that we’re not sure we
believe. Do we really think there’s a mon-
arch in the sky? Does God really shift from
one throne to another? Do we really think
that the words we recite will avert an evil
decree?
There are good reasons that lead many
to reject belief. For example, Elisha ben
Abuyah, known as Acher, one of the great
heretics in the Talmud — and one of the
greatest rabbis of his generation — experi-
enced trauma when he witnessed a father
tell his son to climb up a tree and fetch
an egg from an elevated nest. The boy
scrambled up the ladder, shooed away the
mother bird — then tripped and plunged
to his death. Watching that tragedy, Acher
exclaimed, “If this is possible, then there is
no judge and there is no justice.”
Here’s the background you need: The
only two biblical commandments that
explicitly promise long life are “honor-
ing your parents” and “shooing away the
mother bird.” The boy obeyed both com-
mandments and yet he died.
Despite abundant reasons making it
hard to have faith, so many of us return
to services year after year. We recite these
old prayers that some of us believe. Others
don’t believe them at all. Maybe that’s why
we sing so many prayers in Hebrew — to
blur the gap between our words and our
convictions.
Nevertheless, we return and sing. That
is because Judaism is bigger than dogma,
more fundamental than metaphysics
18 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com
and more soaring than any articulation
of faith. In the Jerusalem Talmud, God
says to one of the rabbis, “Would that the
Jews abandon me but keep my Torah, its
light would bring them back.” If God has
to choose between our loving Torah or our
believing, God prefers that we engage with
the Torah. God is not an egotist. Mitzvot
and community matter.
It may seem like a whopper to claim
that Judaism is bigger than belief or re-
ligion, that it has always been the very
breath of the Jewish people. Yes, it is a big
claim but it’s true. Just look at the Torah it-
self. The Bible doesn’t have a word for “re-
ligion” because the modern understanding
of religion — a discrete set of beliefs or ob-
servances — is not a Jewish concept. The
Torah understands that Judaism encom-
passes who we are and what we do: our
culture, people, land, values and language.
Judaism is so much more than just a creed.
The Talmud doesn’t just stick to “belief,” it
addresses every subject under the sun.
We need religion, whether or not we
are believers, because there is no human
enterprise more capable than religion for
building community, teaching compas-
sion, inculcating morality and kindness,
harnessing education for success, balanc-
ing optimism and pessimism and foster-
ing creativity. Regardless of our beliefs, we
all can grow into better versions of our-
selves by dialoguing with Jewish wisdom
and walking a path of Jewish spirit.
A cure for loneliness
Our need for Judaism is made obvious
by the way so many of us feel drawn to the
holy days. If we’re honest with ourselves,
whether or not we are talking to God, we
love talking and singing with one another.
The way that religion can build communi-
ty is unequaled in the world. One leading
manifestation of emotional pain is chronic
Regardless of our
beliefs, we all can
grow into better
versions of ourselves
by dialoguing with
Jewish wisdom and
walking a path of
Jewish spirit.
loneliness. And Americans are more alone
than ever. Even before social distancing,
we ate meals alone, went to movies alone
and longed for people to call us. Religion
shatters that isolation, turns around and
opens up people to the importance of each
person.
Consider Judaism’s insistence that a
minyan (10 adult Jews) is needed to recite
our most sacred prayers. It’s not that God
can’t hear until there’s a 10th person in
the room, it’s that we need one another.
Religion for us is not what we do with our
M Y TUR N
solitude, it’s what we do with the people in
our community.
One of my rabbis, Keilah Lebell, high-
lighted the need for community with a
teaching in Mishnah Rosh Hashanah. The
way the sages used to determine the date
of the New Year was by asking people to
travel to Jerusalem so they could attest
that they had seen the new moon. After
the rabbis had two witnesses, then they
could proclaim the date for Rosh Hasha-
nah. But what happens if 100 witnesses go
to Jerusalem to testify? After finding two
witnesses, there are still 98 people who
took the trouble to get there, expending
money and energy out of a sense of public
duty. Do you say to those 98 people, “Too
late. Go home?” No.
The rabbis of the Mishnah teach that
even after there are enough witnesses, we
still interview each person because every-
body represents something unique that
only they embody. Similarly, a Torah scroll
is not ritually fit if it is missing even a sin-
gle letter. All the letters together make a
Torah, and Judaism also requires all of us
together.
There is nothing like religion to build
community. Those of you who are syna-
gogue regulars know that if you don’t
show up on a Saturday, someone will call
you and say, “We missed you. Where were
you? Are you OK?”
A story big enough to hold us
Part of what helps build this commu-
nity is the extraordinary way that Juda-
ism repeats its fundamental stories again
and again. This repetition reminds us that
September 25-October 1, 2020
M Y T U RN
daism, look no further than our broken
Western education system. I attended
one of the world’s most famous universi-
ties, taking history and literature courses
from leading scholars. In history class, we
focused on dates or names, resource allo-
Religion is too big to cation and the nature of government. Yet
we never asked, “What does this have to
leave to the believers. do with living a better life today?” Similar-
ly, in literature classes, we learned about
the life of the author, the nature of writing
and their use of language. But we never in-
quired, “How does this novel change us?”
These questions are not permissible in
the academic study of literature. But these
very questions are what motivated the au-
thors to write in the first place.
In Judaism, we read precisely to an-
swer questions about meaning. We don’t
read the Torah just to learn about the Iron
Age or to understand ancient syntax. We
read the Torah because we intuit its deep
Image by Kateryna Kovarzh/Getty Images
wisdom speaking to us, elevating us and
projecting our story on an ancient screen.
When we read the Torah, we are expected
to seek what we can learn from those sto-
ries today, what this poetry asks of us and
how it plays out in our lives.
Unlike secular education, in which you
read a book once and then never read it
again, religious education selects a hand-
ful of transformative books and then
affirms that in each rereading we will
discover new insights and make them ac-
we are part of something bigger than our- cessible through repetition. Even though
selves, that we are not living isolated lives we know how the story ends, we don’t
and that we are, in fact, the Children of Is- know how our story will end, so we pre-
rael. We discover our best selves through pare for our journey with these timeless
the paradigmatic stories of our people: and timely texts. If you read a book, watch
creation, Sabbath, Egypt, slavery, freedom, a film or view a piece of art once, they are
wandering to a Promised Land, command- merely entertainment. But if you engage
ments, trying to build a kingdom of righ- with them repeatedly, they become portals
teousness, failing, getting exiled again and to wisdom that remain accessible during
trying to get it right this time. difficult times. They intertwine with our
That story is not just about one of our
own biological lives. It is not just about our
very selves.
circle of loved ones and children. Because
of Judaism, our story is as big as our peo-
A balance between optimism, pessi-
mism and resilience
ple, encompassing all of our values and
aspirations from generation to generation,
Just as we need Jewish education to di-
rect our vision and fortify our pursuit of
linking our heritage to our destiny. It is the
allure of a worthy future that inspires us
meaning, we need Judaism to ground us
in a realistic integration of long-term opti-
to organize our present and to live lives of mism and short-term resilience to get past
purpose. And there is no grander future life’s bumps.
than knowing we are journeying toward a We live in a culture that values opti-
Land of Promise together. mism, but the kind of optimism it values
Linking ourselves to this encompassing is often superficial. I can’t count the num-
narrative also means that our story must ber of times someone has told me, “No
include other people. The Chasidic mas- worries.” Every time, I want to shriek in
ter, Rebbe Moshe Leib of Sassov, taught, response, “Have you read the newspaper
“If someone seeks your aid, act as though lately? Of course there are worries.” Exces-
there is no God and you be the one to help.” sive optimism is a drug and a distraction.
Rav Kook used to teach that the danger of For the sake of a false sense of comfort, it
religion is that you can say, “Well, God will forces us to ignore the needs of others and
take care of it.” But Judaism teaches us to the wounds of our hearts. Judaism deflects
act as if there’s no God and do something this excessive optimism by asking us to re-
to fix the problem ourselves. When we call and ritualize tragic moments, opening
step up and take responsibility, we grow in our hearts to grief and consolation. Our
compassion and connect with others, re- memories keep us human.
ducing their loneliness and ours. But excessive pessimism is just as toxic
and pervasive in our culture. Jewish histo-
An education for character ry refutes the sterile nihilism that it can’t
To truly understand our need for Ju- get better. We are the people who con-
September 25-October 1, 2020
stantly achieve the impossible. No people
in the world have wandered in exile for
thousands of years, returned to their an-
cient homeland and rebirthed their an-
cient language. But we did. A full heart
and a mature life require a blend of opti-
mism and pessimism as well as hope and
acceptance, which is precisely the counsel
of Judaism.
There is a profound story in the Tal-
mud of the rabbis wanting to terminate
the yetzer harah (the evil impulse) be-
cause it was causing illness, death, lust
and violence. So God permitted the rabbis
to isolate the yetzer harah. Shortly after-
ward, the rabbis discovered that chickens
stopped laying eggs, artists stopped cre-
ating, people stopped falling in love and
getting married and nobody had children.
Reluctantly, the rabbis realized the world
could not exist without the yetzer harah.
So they returned and asked God to liber-
ate and release the evil impulse. God con-
sented, but the rabbis decided to blind it
in one eye, to weaken its power before re-
leasing it.
We need both the yetzer tov and the
yetzer harah. We need a dose of optimism
and pessimism to lead optimal lives,
which is why Judaism teaches us to man-
age both through its pervasive blend of
memorializing tragedy and celebrating joy.
That’s rabbinic realism.
A creative muse
Beyond inspiring a realistic sense of
hope and mobilizing us to bring that hope
to fruition, religion also cultivates art and
imagination. The world’s great museums
are filled with religious art. The world’s
great cities are crowned with spectacular
Because of Judaism, our story is as big as our
people, encompassing all of our values and
aspirations from generation to generation,
linking our heritage to our destiny.
religious architecture. And much of the
world’s great literature is inspired by re-
ligiosity. Why? Because nothing inspires
human imagination the way that religion
does.
Of course, a great deal of contemporary
art is inspiring. But compare the way we
look at secular art with the way we relate
to religious art. For secular art, people go
to a museum and see an exhibit that is
themed by what period it was made in, or
by a particular artist or school. The pieces
are collected in a room together, and visi-
tors stroll through, looking at the artist’s
use of paint and reading snippets of the
artist’s biography. But at no point does
someone turn to you and ask, “What do
you know about yourself or about emo-
tions differently because of this painting?”
By contrast, religious art heightens
our capacity for joy, grief, hope or empa-
thy. Imagine a Catholic who goes before
Michelangelo’s “Pietà,” the magnificent
statue of Mary with the corpse of her son
Jesus on her lap. But you don’t have to be
Christian for that poignant statue to break
your heart. Pondering that image invites
us to visit our own heartbreaks. Gazing at
the figure of Mary, we realize we are not
the only ones who have suffered.
In many ways, religious song evokes our
emotions just as religious art does. This holy
season is rich in chords that help us soar
and in minor keys that soften our grieving
hearts. How can we not tremble with the
yearning in Avinu Malkeinu, whose under-
lining minor cadence evokes somebody
sobbing, somebody whose desire for pur-
pose and wholeness has been repeatedly
shattered? But in Avinu Malkeinu, we hear
that they will not give up, so we know that
we don’t have to either. We return to these
tunes each year because they remind us to
feel, sob and renew.
Be honest, be yourself, be religious
Religion is too big to leave to the believ-
ers, and I say this as a believer. I love God
and God has been a big part of my life. But
I don’t write to my fellow believers now.
I write to those of you who are drawn to
these holy days because you are honoring
someone for whom it’s important that you
are here. I write to those of you who rever-
berate to the sound of the shofar because
being a Jew matters to you, and whether
or not you believe, you know that on this
day, your place is with your fellow Jews. I
write to those people who may not believe
what’s in the prayer book but do stand
with the history and the tradition that
generated it. I write to all who want to join
in the great future that is coming. To all of
you, I want to say, you are not hypocrites.
You are heroes. Like the rest of us, you
need the growth that can emerge from en-
gaging with Torah, with mitzvot and with
Judaism. So be honest, be yourself and be
religious. n
Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson holds the Abner
and Roslyn Goldstine Dean’s Chair of the Ziegler
School of Rabbinic Studies and is vice president
of American Jewish University in Los Angeles. A
professor of philosophy, he also is dean of the
Zacharias Frankel College in Potsdam, Germany,
where he ordains Conservative rabbis for Europe.
To dig deeper into this approach to religion, spend
time with “Jewish Religiosity” by Martin Buber,
“Religion for Atheists” by Alain de Botton, and “A
Common Faith” by John Dewey.
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 19
Israeli paratroopers march October 25,
1973 along the Suez-Cairo road on the
western bank of the Suez Canal during
the Yom Kippur War.
Photo by Ilan Ron/GPO/Getty Images
The Yom Kippur War:
A Story of
Love and Friendship
» by Roberto Loiederman, Contributing Writer
IN EARLY OCTOBER 1973, MY WIFE,
Betty, was living at Kibbutz Amir in the
Upper Galilee’s Hula Valley, where she
worked half days in the orchards and stud-
ied at an ulpan during the other half.
On Friday, Oct. 5, 1973 she took the four-
hour ride from the closest city with a bus
station, Kiryat Shmona, in order to spend
Yom Kippur with her relatives in Tel Aviv.
By early Saturday afternoon, Oct. 6, they’d
been fasting for 18 hours when, shocking-
ly, they heard noises: tires screeching, cars
pulling out of driveways.
Sabche, Betty’s aunt, was worried. “She
said something ‘serious’ was happening,”
Betty recalled. “Nobody drives in Israel
on Yom Kippur.” Minutes later, an alarm
sounded.
The Yom Kippur War had started.
Betty’s thoughts were with her friends at
Amir: those at the ulpan (a school for the in-
tensive study of Hebrew) as well as kibbutz
members, including her Hebrew teacher,
who’d become a surrogate father to her. She
knew most men in the kibbutz would be
mobilized. By the third day away from the
In February 1973, eight months before the
Yom Kippur War, we landed in Israel with
$20 in our wallets, and became volunteers
at Kibbutz Netiv HaLamed Hei in the Valley
of Elah.
kibbutz, Betty felt she had to go back.
“It’s crazy,” Sabche told her. “You’ll
be in a war zone.” Betty reasoned that if
there was a bus going to Kiryat Shmona, it
meant things were OK up north. She went
to Tel Aviv’s Central Bus Station, where she
felt comforted by the crowds, a sign of nor-
malcy. Buses were leaving, so she caught
one that was half-full to Kiryat Shmona.
20 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com
FIRST PERSON
As the bus got closer to Kiryat Shmona,
people got off, leaving fewer and fewer
passengers. It got dark outside and what
had at first seemed safe became terrifying.
When the bus arrived, there was only one
other passenger — and he lived in Kiryat
Shmona.
She got off the bus and looked around.
“Every window in Kiryat Shmona was
blacked out,” she recalled. “It was scary but
I had no way of returning to Tel Aviv.”
There was a war going on, and she was
alone. Shakily, she walked toward Amir.
“I don’t remember how I got to Amir, but
I got there. I probably hitchhiked. It was
a 10-minute ride. At Amir, there were no
lights. It was hard to walk around. I made
my way by memory to the dining room
and went inside. They’d blacked out all the
windows, but inside, there was light.
“When I went in, they looked at me like
I was an apparition. ‘How did you make it
here? What the hell are you doing here?’ I
said I felt it was better to come back and
do whatever’s needed instead of being
back in Tel Aviv doing nothing.
“At Amir, the windows were blacked
out, explosions on the mountains, fires,
planes flying low. There were alarms and
we had to run to shelters, where the chil-
dren slept. It was a different feeling from
Tel Aviv. I wasn’t scared, but it felt like a
war zone.
“One day, I was walking with my ulpan
teacher. We saw two soldiers at the kib-
butz gate and he said, ‘What’s going on?’
I asked him what he was afraid of. He
said he doesn’t like to see soldiers coming
into the kibbutz in time of war; it means
they’re bringing bad news — maybe a kib-
butz member has been killed.
“I remember getting together with some
soldiers who’d been on the front lines in the
Golan and they’d been given two days off.
The soldiers looked tired, wasted. I had the
feeling the situation was bad. I remember a
young woman, a kibbutz member, toasted
them with ‘L’chayim aruchim,’ to a long life
…. It was very poignant in that situation, in
the middle of a war, with these soldiers on
temporary leave, not knowing if they were
going to survive.”
Betty and I had met in Argentina in
1971. As a couple, we wandered Latin
America and Europe with little money. In
February 1973, eight months before the
Yom Kippur War, we landed in Israel with
$20 in our wallets, and became volunteers
at Kibbutz Netiv HaLamed Hei in the Val-
ley of Elah.
Our closest friends there were Shu-
mach and Yael, members of the kibbutz,
a married couple with no children. Every-
one, including Yael, called him Shumach,
his last name. We spent a lot of time with
them, and the four of us traveled together
throughout Israel. Once, when Shumach
pointed out for the umpteenth time the
historical importance of a place we visited,
I said, “Does every spot in Israel have a bib-
lical connection?”
“Small country,” Shumach said. “Big
book.”
By June 1973, we’d been at Netiv
HaLamed Hei for four months. We liked it
but didn’t want to feel that staying there
was our only option. I had received a small
tax refund and decided to use it to travel
overland to an Asian port where, as a
professional deckhand, I could get work on
an American merchant ship. Meanwhile,
Betty was set on going to a kibbutz with an
ulpan so she could refresh the Hebrew she
had learned as a student.
Betty recalled that “the night before we
left Netiv HaLamed Hei, Shumach and an-
other kibbutz member came to our volun-
teer shack. We were in bed already; it was
late. I remember they saw us in bed and
stood in the doorway and pleaded with us
to return to the kibbutz and become mem-
bers, l’hishtoresh, get rooted there.” We
were deeply touched by that.
During the next few months, while
Betty lived at Amir, I worked as an able
seaman in the Persian Gulf. After the Yom
Kippur War started, those days in October
after she returned to Amir from Tel Aviv,
the ship I worked on happened to be in
Dammam, Saudi Arabia.
While war was raging, Betty was in Is-
rael, near the Golan, and I was in Saudi
Arabia.
It got dark outside
and what had at
first seemed safe
became terrifying.
I read Time and Newsweek magazines,
but all mention of Israel had been blacked
out, pages torn out. I contacted my par-
ents, who lived in Baltimore, and they
communicated with Amir. Betty and I re-
layed our messages via my parents and
assured each other we were OK. We also
made plans on how and where to get back
together.
Fast forward to July 1974, seven months
later. Betty and I are in New York; she’s
pregnant with our first child. We aren’t
sure what our next move will be. Should
we remain in the U.S.? Go back to Argen-
tina? What about Israel?
We contacted Netiv HaLamed Hei and
received tragic news: On Yom Kippur, Shu-
mach, our dear friend, was on reserve duty
in the Sinai and was killed during the first
hour of the war, which lasted Oct. 6-25,
1973.
We remembered that thoroughly hu-
man, loving moment when Shumach
barged in while we were in bed, how he
stood in the doorway and pleaded with
us to come back and establish roots. How
could we refuse him now — now that
he had given his life for Israel? We owed
it to him, owed it to that moment when
he stood in the doorway and asked us to
come back.
And yes, we did go back. We became
members of Netiv HaLamed Hei, lived and
worked there for two years, and our older
son, Rafi, was born while we were there.
After we left the kibbutz, we lived for
more than five years in Jerusalem before
moving to Los Angeles. n
September 25-October 1, 2020

Photos courtesy of Rabbi Adam Kligfeld
The Ark — In Person
» by Rabbi Adam Kligfeld
WITH THE DOORS TO THE ARK OPEN,
they came with their hearts open. They
came with their unexpected tears and
their whispered intimacies. They came,
broken and battered by COVID-19 and
wildfires and choking air and societal up-
heaval and crushing loneliness and finan-
cial worry. They came with the crevices of
their souls exposed and they had a chance
to place a prayer in the crevices of the Holy
Ark.
When Temple Beth Am dedicated its
new sanctuary in 2019, just a few weeks
before Rosh Hashanah, we had no idea
how one spiritually whimsical design de-
tail could become so important and pro-
found in 2020. And with our sanctuary so
full and robust last year, we couldn’t an-
ticipate how empty and lonely it (and its
usual attendees) would be this year.
That one design detail was in our Aron
HaKodesh. Its doors include an array of
iridescent cubes. The sun’s rays stream
in from the vast window on the east side
of the room, refract through those cubes
and create a subtly dazzling dappled light.
When one is inside the ark and turns
around to face the sanctuary, one can
see the back of those cubes — hundreds
of them. And many are perforated with
small, tubular hollows.
We intended that our ark would be a
repository not only for God’s words but
for ours. Not just holy writ but our writ-
ings. At the dedication last year, members
wrote small prayers on special colored
paper. They rolled the prayers around a
dowel and inserted them into the cubes’
hollows. Beth Am’s mini-Kotel, we mused,
had enough space for notes to last several
generations.
September 25-October 1, 2020
The prediction was apt, but it did not
account for the coronavirus. As the leader-
ship thought through the worship options
we would offer our community over these
unique holidays (small, truncated services
outdoors as well as “Zooms galore”), we
also explored creative ways, borne out
Virtual reality is
impressive, but it is
no replacement for
human touch, for
presence, for true
closeness.
of this excruciating moment, to serve up
tastes and feelings related to the High
Holy Days.
One of those ideas was to invite family
units to spend 15 minutes at and within
the Holy Ark with one of our rabbis. The
scene looked like a hybrid between a hock-
ey penalty box and a Catholic church con-
fessional, with the rabbi in one “pen” be-
hind a plexiglass screen and the family in
a separate pen on the other side of the ark.
Despite the masks, the physical distance,
the plexiglass and the otherwise empty
room, these moments have felt intimate,
grand, full and pregnant with meaning.
And prayer.
There is such joy in seeing a member of
your community in person: having them
MY TURN
Despite the masks,
the physical distance,
the plexiglass and
the otherwise
empty room, these
moments have felt
intimate, grand, full
and pregnant with
meaning. And prayer.
articulate what has been painful and dis- the digital world is greater than the human
tressing about this era, yet challenging world. It is not. Virtual reality is impressive,
them to name one unexpected wonder but it is no replacement for human touch,
they have found. Stepping back so their for presence, for true closeness.
whispered words aren’t audible and thus On Kol Nidre, many communities recite
remain private, and inviting them to turn a piyyut (liturgical poem) whose refrain
to one another to articulate any wish or is labrit habet, v’al tefen layetzer. We ask
God to remember
the covenant and
not pay attention to
our wayward urges.
This year, I sug-
gest we turn those
words on ourselves.
Let us not succumb
to the urge that
values the virtual
over the personal.
Rather, let us re-
member the cov-
enant of humanity
we share and re-
commit — both in
creative ways while
the pandemic rag-
es and in all ways
once it ebbs — to be
together, because
feeling welling up inside of them. we need to be together more than we ever
And then, we turn back to the mini- have before.
Kotel, watching as Jews — who are about So much of human connection has
to recite a litany of scripted prayers during been wrenched away from us. For all of the
the High Holy Days — write out personal digital davening wonders we will deliver to
ones and place them within our ark. our community as we celebrate 5781, per-
Zoom is a wonder. Navigating COVID-19 haps nothing will be more important and
— personally, professionally, education- needed than those 15 minutes by the ark.
ally — without it is nigh impossible. But And perhaps even some of those prayers
Zoom also has limitations in some ways by in our mini-Kotel will be answered. n
enslaving us even more powerfully to our
screens. Zoom’s ubiquity and effectiveness Rabbi Adam Kligfeld is the senior rabbi at
is reinforcing to a young generation that Temple Beth Am.
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 21
 MY TURN

What
H
to
ru
M

Is
ph
tw
N
O

sa

Judaism?
a
na
ea
jo
st
co

God’s primary ra
w

» by Dennis Prager
demand is that sp
of

people be good. Te

Therefore, correct fo
pa

behavior matters ab

more than correct ul

Th

intentions and more

SOME THOUGHTS FOR YOM KIPPUR
on the beliefs that define Judaism. Al-
though not an “official” list, these beliefs
have been widely held by Jews for thou-
sands of years.
1. There is one universal God. This God
is the creator of the world; the God of
all humanity; the God introduced to the
world by the Hebrew Bible.
2. One universal God means there is
one universal morality. This was one of the
many radical innovations of the Torah that
be good. Therefore, correct behavior mat-
ters more than correct intentions and
more than correct faith.
6. There is an afterlife. God rewards the
good and punishes the bad. If good people
and bad people have the same fate, there
is either no God or God is not just.
7. Although there is an afterlife, God
wants us to be preoccupied with this life.
than correct faith. H
R
G
D
qu
te
b) The most important distinction 13. The Torah is from God. If the Torah is H
among human beings is not their race, man-made, it will be man-rejected.
religion, nationality, class or sex. It is 14. Judaism has a trinity: God, Torah, Is- of
their behavior. In the words of Viktor rael (Jewish peoplehood and the Land of Is- vo
Frankl, “There are only two races; the de- rael). The removal of any one of these three te
cent and the indecent.” components is no longer Judaism, and en- H
c) Human life is sacred and animal life is sures the ultimate demise of Judaism. th
not — although humans are forbidden from 15. Jewish faith rests on two pillars: Cre- te
inflicting gratuitous suffering on animals. ation and Exodus. Judaism cannot survive
denial of either as a divine event. They are th
to Judaism what Jesus’ crucifixion and res- so
urrection are to Christianity. D

Although there is an afterlife, God wants us

made moral civilization possible. 16. Judaism is a religion of distinctions. su
3. God is: These distinctions are:

to be preoccupied with this life.

a) Incorporeal (not physical). This
means, among other things, that there is a
reality outside of matter (the soul, for ex-
ample).
b) Eternal — all matter has a beginning
and an end; God exists outside of time.
c) Outside of nature — God is not in na-
ture; and nature is not divine.
d) Personal — God knows each of us.
e) Good — God is moral and compas-
sionate.
f) Just — God judges every human be-
ing.
4. God is the God revealed in the Torah
— the God of Creation, the God of Israel,
the God of the Ten Commandments. To a
Jew, any other god is not God.
5. God’s primary demand is that people
8. Reward in the afterlife (“heaven”) is
available to all good people, not just good
Jews.
9. Human beings are not born basically
good. Therefore:
a) Evil comes primarily from within, not
from external causes, such as poverty.
b) The greatest battle for most human
beings is with their own nature, not with
society.
c) The most important task of society and
of parents must be to make good people.
10. All people are created in the image
of God. Therefore:
a) Racism is theologically impossible.
a) God and man. ex
b) Good and evil. id
c) Man and woman. an
11. God created the world for human d) Holy and profane. Tr
beings. Therefore, there is no purpose to e) Life and death. Pa
nature without man to appreciate and use 17. Judaism can ennoble anyone. There- de
it (responsibly). fore, any non-Jew is welcome to embrace fr
12. The Jews are the Chosen People, Judaism and become a member of the Jew- So
chosen to bring mankind to the God of ish people. But one does not need to be- of
the Torah and to the Ten Commandments, come a Jew to enter heaven. si
and to bring the Torah to the world. How- 18. Jews look forward to the coming of po
ever, Jews are not obligated to bring people the Messiah or the Messianic Age. n ye
to Judaism (though Judaism warmly wel- in
comes converts). Chosen-ness has never Copyright 2020 creators.com. Dennis
meant that Jews are better than anyone Prager is a nationally syndicated radio talk M
else. Indeed, the Torah and the entire He- show host; president of PragerU, and author ac
brew Bible go out of their way to depict the of volume two (“Genesis”) “The Rational Bi- m
Jews as flawed. ble.” Reprinted with permission.

22 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com September 25-October 1, 2020 Se

 NAT I O N / WO R L D B R IE FS

Honduras to Move Embassy Internet Giants Urged old rapper, also known as Freeze Corleone, en- ’30s” and “couldn’t care less about the Shoah.”
to Jerusalem by Year’s End to Remove French Rapper’s gages in “anti-Semitism, conspiracy theories, Corleone’s album has enjoyed consider-
Honduras will move its embassy to Je- Songs on Hitler, Jews and Money glorification of Hitler and the Third Reich and able commercial success by local standards,
rusalem by the end of this year, the Prime France’s oldest anti-racism watchdog the terrorist Mullah Omar,” a former leader of selling about 15,000 copies since its release
Minister’s Office in Israel announced. group called on internet giants to remove the Taliban, LICRA wrote last week on Twitter. on Sept. 11 — a date some believe he chose
The Sept. 21 statement followed a tele- from their platforms newly released rap songs Corleone sings on his 10th album, “The deliberately. The album’s 17 songs have been
phone conversation the previous day be- that critics say are anti-Semitic. Phantom Threat,” about wanting his children played more than 5 million times on Spotify,
tween Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin The International League Against Racism to “live like Jewish investors” and of being “de- according to the magazine Marianne. Cor-
Netanyahu and Honduran President Juan and Anti-Semitism (LICRA) urged YouTube, termined like Adolf.” leone has a long history of similar statements
Orlando Hernandez. Google, Apple Music and Spotify to remove He also sings “F*** a Rothchild, f*** a Rock- in his previous albums, the magazine showed.
Last year, Honduras recognized Jeru- works by Issa Lorenzo Diakhaté. The 28-year- efeller, I come determined like Adolf in the — Cnaan Liphshiz, JTA
salem as the capital of Israel and opened
a commercial office in the city. The two
nations and the United States had met
earlier in the year in Brazil and issued a
joint statement in which they agreed to
strengthen political ties “and coordinate
IMAGE OF THE WEEK
cooperation on development in Hondu-
ras,” as well as to “pursue a plan of action,
which includes meetings in their three re-
spective capitals, to advance the process
of the decision to open embassies in both
Tegucigalpa and Jerusalem.”
“We hope to take this historic step be-
fore the end of the year, as long as the
pandemic allows it,” Hernandez tweeted
about the embassy move to Jerusalem.
Honduras has the second-largest pop-
ulation of Palestinians in Latin America,
The Times of Israel reported.
— Marcy Oster, JTA

House Passes Bill

Requiring Federal
Government to Act Against
Domestic Terrorism
The federal government would be re-
quired to take steps to prevent domestic
terrorism under a bill passed by the U.S.
House of Representatives.
The Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act
of 2020, which passed on Sept. 21 by voice
vote, would authorize dedicated domestic
terrorism offices in the departments of
Homeland Security and Justice, as well as
the FBI, to analyze and monitor domestic
terrorist activity.
Rep. Brad Schneider (D-Ill.) sponsored
the legislation, which had 179 co-spon-
sors. Sen. Dick Durbin, also an Illinois
Democrat, has sponsored a similar mea-
sure in the Senate.
“Racially/ethnically motivated violent
extremists were the primary source of
Fearless for RBG
ideologically motivated lethal incidents
and violence in 2018 and 2019. From the Wall Street’s “Fearless Girl” statue wears a lace collar in memory of the late Supreme Court Justice
Tree of Life synagogue to a Walmart in El Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Sept. 21 in New York City.
Paso, Texas, we have all tragically seen the
deadly effect,” Schneider said on Sept. 21
from the House floor. “According to the
Southern Poverty Law Center, the number
of white nationalist groups rose by 55%
since 2017. And last November, the FBI re-
ported violent hate crimes reached a 16-
year high in 2018. That number went up
in 2019.
“Groups like the Boogaloos, Rise Above Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images
Movement and white nationalist militias
across the country are organizing, and so
must we.”
— Marcy Oster, JTA

September 25-October 1, 2020 JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 23

 HUMANS OF ISRAEL

The CEO Creating ‘Joy Ventures’

in the Well-Being Space
» by Deborah Danan, Contributing Writer
WITH A NEUROSCIENTIST MOTHER AND
tech entrepreneur father, Miri Polachek grew
up in a home where Nobel laureates were
the ultimate celebrities. Years later, when Po-
lachek found herself in the late President Shi-
mon Peres’ Jerusalem residence, she asked
him if he would pose with her for a picture
alongside his Nobel Peace Prize medal.
Peres was the visionary who inspired the
now-defunct Israel Brain Technologies, the
nonprofit that worked to establish Israel as
people manage their daily lives more joyfully.
“It’s a different kind of space to operate
in,” Polachek said. “You really need to take a
fresh look all the time at consumer trends, at
what people’s pains are and understand the
“You really need to take a fresh look all the time
at consumer trends, at what people’s pains are
pel” is worn on the wrist and creates a silent
vibration that mimics a heartbeat to either
reduce stress or increase alertness. San-
ga’s unique meditation program features
human coaches to help people achieve a
rently is in a pilot program in the U.S. A
portable, interactive “soft and fuzzy” globe
created by a textile designer turned tech
entrepreneur, Reflect uses biofeedback to
monitor and improve its user’s mood.
One of the perks of working in the con-
sumer space, Polachek said, is that she
and her staff get to be the guinea pigs. On
several occasions, she’s even brought the
products home for her three teenagers to
try.

and understand the different demographics.”

a hub for brain-related innovations. Polachek
was the founding director.
Polachek spent the first half of her career
working in finance for large corporations in
the United States. After moving to Israel, she
switched to the entrepreneurial domain. She
said the entrepreneurial mindset captures
her imagination and inspires her, adding that
it is the lifeblood of the startup ecosystem.
Today, Polachek is the CEO of Joy Ventures,
a company that supports, funds and builds
science-backed consumer products in the
well-being space, or in her words, “that help
different demographics.”
Emotional well-being has become de ri-
gueur in tech, with apps like Calm and Head-
space flooding the booming mindfulness
market. The advent of COVID-19 has taken a
heavy toll on people’s mental health, and the
companies that Joy Ventures supports aim to
help people get through this period of height-
ened stress.
Empathic Technologies’ so-called “Dop-
stable meditation practice. The Vi Trainer
app is a conversational fitness coach that
uses GPS and phone movements to moni-
tor progress.
The challenge, Polachek said, is creat-
ing a product that is fun, appealing and
marketable, while using technology that
can have a meaningful impact on how
people feel. One product Polachek said has
achieved this balance is Reflect, which cur-
“It brings awareness to them of how
important it is to be aware of our emo-
tions, to manage them and to develop re-
silience to stress and uncertainty — skills
that are not always taught at home and
school,” she said. Polachek added that her
children love to cuddle and take a moment to
relax with the Reflect ball.
“It’s actually so natural when you talk to
kids about it,” she said, “that it’s sort of an aha
moment, that there should be more products
they can use to help them develop those
skills.” n

20 YEARS AGO IN THE JEWISH JOURNAL

Top Stories

FTC Report Message of Hope

Some in the entertainment industry acknowledge Iranian minister is optimistic about the Shiraz
that violent content does have an effect. 10 during a visit to a Reseda congregation.

Challenging Content Strike Against Hate

Parents Television Council wages a battle to The ADL joins with Barnes & Noble and
return to family-friendly programming. Scholastic Books to teach tolerance.

Center of Controversy Reaching Out

A year after the North Valley shooting, the Burgeoning groups focus on keeping disaffected
Westside JCC weathers a tidal wave of criticism. 20-somethings involved with Judaism.

Tamales & Tchatchkes No Kidding

Fiesta Shalom organizers hope to smooth a Laugh Factory founder continues a 15-year
rocky patch between local Latinos and Jews. tradition of hosting free High Holy Days services.

24 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com September 25-October 1, 2020


High Holy Days or
High Fever?
» by Shmuel Rosner
LESS THAN A WEEK AGO, FOR THE
first time in my life, I blew the shofar on
Rosh Hashanah. I have a short, black sho-
far that’s relatively easy to blow. I bought
it on Sept. 17, the day before the holiday
began, at a small Chabad shop not far from
where I live.
Because I have some experience play-
ing trumpet, clarinet, flute and other brass
and wind instruments, I figured that the
challenge would be manageable. Indeed, it
was. On Sept. 20, we climbed onto the roof,
recited the blessings, and let the whole
In a year like no
other, it was a Rosh
Hashanah like no
other.
neighborhood know that a new year was
upon us.
In a year like no other, it was a Rosh
Hashanah like no other. On the eve of the
holiday, Israel was placed on lockdown, at
least officially. Having failed to contain the
spread of the coronavirus, the government
imposed restrictions on movement, con-
gregation and activity. Some of these rules
were meant to make the synagogues less
dangerous to our collective health. It was
ordered that only small groups could pray
together, preferably outside, or in “cap-
sules” separated by partitions.
I decided not to trust the rules, the
government or the synagogue. The road
to hell is paved with good intentions. And
in Israel’s case, the road to confusion and
insubordination is paved with the same
bricks. I knew from experience that in
many synagogues the rules aren’t taken
seriously. And when they are, they aren’t
strictly practiced. And when they are, they
are insufficient. People get infected at the
synagogue. So the choice was simple: Visit
a synagogue at your own peril or avoid it
and set up your own holiday show.
Such dilemmas are becoming everyday
life in Israel. Workplaces are open (except
for those, like stores or restaurants, that
must engage with the public), but schools
are closed. Some people must find a way
September 25-October 1, 2020
R O S N E R ’ S D O M A IN
Fro m Is ra e l
Rosner online
On “Rosner’s Podcast,” you can listen to a conversation with Rachel Azaria, an
Israeli politician and social justice activist, about the need to build coalitions, and
Israel’s search of a new status quo:
“We don’t have any other choice. Israel is the only country we have. If we con-
tinue in this [polarized] way, we will end up having a civil war. And nobody wants
that. In fact, I think we are already in some kind of a cultural civil war. Everything
is almost mean. I think this is because we are trying to understand who we are and
what we stand for.”
to go to work without having any ar-
rangements for the kids — unless they
leave the kids with a relative who’s not
sheltering with them. But that violates
the edicts. Or take them to work. Also
a violation. Or send them to a friend’s
house. Also a violation. So parents end
up breaking the rules by skipping work
or by having contact with a relative
who’s not sheltering with them. Some
Photo by Amir Levy/Stringer/Getty Images
have lost their jobs.
Had Israelis been certain that the
lockdown would stem the spread of the
virus, they might be somewhat under-
standing, somewhat cooperative. But
government officials continue to say it’s A protester holds a photo of
not enough. They say the policy issued
by the government won’t work. What
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu with a protective face
this means is that Israelis are going to
pay a heavy price — claustrophobia,
mask during a demonstration on
Sept. 20 in Jerusalem.
economic hardship, job loss, loneliness
— without any benefits. When the High
Holy Days are over, the government is go-
ing to tell Israelis that they need to con-
A week’s numbers
tinue the lockdown, or implement strict- What changes in the religious-state arena are the most important to Israelis? A
er rules, or whatever. In the meantime, Hiddush survey provides an answer:
hospitals are becoming crowded and the
death toll rises daily.
Israel is spiraling and there’s no pilot.
Or maybe our problem is too many pilots
are pulling us in different directions. Or
maybe it’s Israelis — the passengers —
who make it impossible for the pilot to
take back control.
That’s probably it. The pilot lost control
and, with it, the passengers’ trust. When
Rosh Hashanah ended, thousands pro-
tested shoulder-to-shoulder in Jerusalem.
Thousands more drove their cars from city
to city and lied to officers who questioned
them at roadblocks about where they were
going or where they’d been. Thousands
more said goodbye to their families, hav-
ing spent the holiday together, against the Insight: It’s good to remember that even Israelis with whom you agree could
rules. have different priorities about what’s preferable and what’s really urgent (yes,
In short, when the pilot is finally try- Women of the Wall, I’m looking at you).
ing to control the plane, Israelis won’t let
him. The pilot says, “Lockdown” — and
we say, “Been there, done that”; “won’t
A reader’s response:
work”; “can’t stand it”; “don’t believe you”; Lisa Sanderson commented on my stories about the Israel-United Arab Emirates
“what about prayers”; “what about pro- deal:
test”; “what about shopping”; “what about “When Trump and Netanyahu are gone, this deal is gone.”
schools”? The pilot says, “Trust me.” We My response: No, it won’t be. Look at Egypt. Egyptian President Anwar Sadat was
burst into bitter laughter. The pilot says, assassinated, President Jimmy Carter failed in his reelection bid, Israeli Prime Min-
“There’s a pandemic.” We say, “Where? We ister Menachem Begin launched a war in Lebanon — still, the agreement survived.
can’t see anything because of our masks.”
The pilot asks, “Are you finally wearing Shmuel Rosner is senior political editor. For more analysis of Israeli and international
masks?” We laugh again. n politics, visit jewishjournal.com/rosnersdomain.
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 25
 O U R TU RN
Throughout
her successful

R
career, Ginsburg uth Bader Ginsburg, whose death on the first
night of Rosh Hashanah sent shockwaves

remained deeply throughout the country, was a trailblazer.

She was the second woman to serve on the

proud of Jewish Supreme Court and the first Jewish woman.

Although she came from humble beginnings, she never

tradition and forgot her upbringing or the obstacles she overcame, us-
ing them to drive her pursuit of justice. May we learn from

Jewish history. It her life so we can inherit her spirit, her legacy and her
battle for a better world.

was at the core From Brooklyn to the bench

of her values and Ginsburg’s childhood resembles that of many Jewish
Americans. She grew up in Flatbush with an immigrant

influenced her father and an American-born mother. Her father, Nathan

Bader, came to the United States with his parents at age

immensely. 13 as a part of the great wave of Jewish immigration from

the pogroms. Ginsburg’s mother, Celia Amster, was born
in the United States within months of her parents’ arrival
from Europe. Gifted, Celia graduated from high school at
age 15 but was unable to afford college, working instead
in the garment industry, which was, at the time, a major
source of jobs for Jewish men and women. In Flatbush,
education was the key to advancement.
The Bader family attended East Midwood Jewish Cen-
ter, a thriving Conservative congregation at the heart of
the neighborhood. Although she attended Hebrew school,
Ruth Bader didn’t have a bat mitzvah because that prac-
tice didn’t become mainstream for Conservative syna-
gogues until the 1950s. Remarking on the role of women
in Judaism, Ginsburg once said, “My colleague Elana Kagan
was the first Supreme Court Justice to have a bat mitzvah”
— but that was only after Kagan’s family left their Modern
Orthodox synagogue so she could do so.
But the Brooklyn that Ruth Bader grew up in was a
place where barriers were being broken. When she was
14, the Brooklyn Dodgers’ Jackie Robinson broke the col-
or barricade in baseball. She intuited his example: to get

THE
ahead, you had to be twice as good, twice as tough, twice
as determined. All around her, fellow students were the
first in their family to speak English, the first to gradu-
ate from high school, the first to attend college, the first
whose horizons were less limited by poverty. After World
War II, America became a land of opportunity, at least for

JEWESS
men.
Based on her academic success in high school, Gins-
burg was able to attend Cornell University, where she met
the man she would marry — Martin Ginsburg. Their love
and marriage would enter lore as the justice achieved
celebrity status. Martin was outgoing and gregarious, his

AND THE
wife shy and reserved. He loved to cook and bake. She was
told by her family never to enter the kitchen. They both
loved music and, above all, each other.
Martin Ginsburg was a confident man who could revel
in his wife’s achievements. Although he was a success-
ful tax attorney, he was willing to adjust his life to make

JURIST
room for her to rise to the top of her profession. Unapolo-
getically, he used all his contacts and clout to advance her
candidacy for the Supreme Court.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg became an icon of modern femi-
nism — but so did Martin. By witnessing their love, many
husbands are reminded that it takes a real man to be sup-
portive of and empower an accomplished spouse. True to
form, on his deathbed, Martin wrote, “My dearest Ruth …
You are the only person [aside from my parents, children
» by Michael Berenbaum and Edward Gaffney, Jr. and grandchildren] I have loved in my life and I have ad-
mired and loved you almost since the day we first met at
Cornell. What a treat it has been to watch your progress to
the very top of the legal world.”

26 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com September 25-October 1, 2020

 After she married Martin, the two moved to Lawton,
Okla., as Martin had to fulfill his military obligation. Gins-
burg was offered a job, but the offer was rescinded after
her employer learned she was pregnant. Ginsburg had to
accept another job with the government as an entry-level
GS-2, quite a demotion for a brilliant Ivy League student.
One can hear the echo of those early rejections in her lat-
er efforts to achieve equal justice for women.
After their stay in Oklahoma, the Ginsburgs enrolled in
Harvard Law School. When Ruth entered, there were no
women on the law faculty and only nine women in her
class of 552. Each woman was challenged by the eminent
dean of Harvard Law School — Erwin Griswold — to justify
why they were taking “a man’s place.” Ruth Bader Gins-
burg never forgot this question.
In his third year of law school, Martin developed tes-
ticular cancer. Rather than wallow, Ruth went into over-
drive. She attended her classes, gathered the notes taken
At a seminar on gender
discrimination led by Justice
Ginsburg and her husband,
both of them exemplified the
duty of attentiveness.
by Martin’s fellow students, typed them up, and worked
with him to get him to graduate on time — all while ex-
celling at her own studies and mothering their daughter,
Jane. Her work ethic and her fierce determination served
them both well. Many of those who have looked at Gins-
burg have not appropriately recognized the herculean ef-
fort it took for her many accomplishments.
When Martin graduated, he took a job in New York.
This posed a problem for Ginsburg, who still had her last
year of law school left. She approached Griswold with a
request that she take her last year at Columbia but obtain
a Harvard degree. Griswold refused such an accommoda-
tion, so she transferred to Columbia. It was a decision that
Harvard lives to regret and one that Columbia continues
to celebrate.
After graduating from Columbia, Ruth Bader Ginsburg
looked for clerkship opportunities, and only after enormous
pressure from her professor was she offered a clerkship for
a federal judge. But even that couldn’t compensate for her
gender. Ginsburg was unable to secure a position in a pres-
tigious law firm. Instead, she went into academia — first
at Rutgers and then at Columbia — and worked with the
American Civil Liberties Union on landmark gender equal-
ity cases. For her trailblazing legal work, President Jimmy
Carter appointed Ginsburg to the U.S. Court of Appeals for
the District of Columbia Circuit in 1980. In 1993, President
Bill Clinton appointed her to the Supreme Court. Ginsburg,
who was excluded from law firms and the bimah, secured
one of the most exclusive jobs in the country.
A trailblazing Jew
Throughout her successful career, Ginsburg remained
deeply proud of Jewish tradition and Jewish history. It was
at the core of her values and influenced her immensely.
In a speech at the United States Holocaust Memorial Mu-
seum in 2004, Ginsburg said:
My heritage as a Jew and my occupation as a judge
fit together symmetrically. The demand for justice runs
through the entirety of Jewish history and Jewish tradi-
tion. I take pride in and draw strength from my heritage,
as signs in my chambers attest: a large silver mezuzah on
September 25-October 1, 2020
my doorpost, [a] gift from the Shulamith School for Girls
in Brooklyn [a Charedi school] ; on three walls, in artists’
renditions of Hebrew letters, the command from Deuter-
onomy: “Tzedek, tzedek, tirdof” — “Justice, justice shall
you pursue.” Those words are ever-present reminders of
what judges must do that they “may thrive.”
But like her work in the legal sphere, Ginsburg went be-
yond respecting Jewish tradition — she sought to change
it. In the early 1980s, when the chancellor of the Jewish
Theological Seminary said with pride that “we accept
women in a cantorial school,” Ginsburg reminded him
that the new generation of women didn’t understand why
women could not be rabbis. For her outstanding work in
both the legal and Jewish community, Israel sought to give
her its Genesis Prize in 2018 (the prize was ultimately not
awarded to her, because judicial ethics would not permit
her to receive a prize from a foreign government.)
Ginsburg also held immense respect for the Jewish
community. From time to time, I (Michael Berenbaum)
would reach out to her to participate in Jewish events,
where I thought she might truly have an impact. Her an-
swers were always gracious, and when her schedule per-
mitted, she would make the effort to participate in and
advance the work of Jewish women.
Ginsburg’s genuine insights
For all of Ginsburg’s successes, she did lose one battle.
She hoped to outlast the presidency of Donald Trump and
to be replaced by a justice who would advance the cause
of social justice. Some of her work is at risk of being re-
versed.
But Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was focused on the
future — and so should we. Just consider the final words
from 2004 speech at the Capitol:
I was fortunate to be a child, a Jewish child, safely in
America during the Holocaust …. In the aftermath of
World War II, in the civil rights movement of the 1950s
and 1960s, in the burgeoning women’s rights movement
of the 1970s, “We the People” expanded to include all of
humankind, to embrace all the people of this great nation.
Our motto, E Pluribus Unum, of many one, signals our ap-
preciation that we are the richer for the religious, ethnic,
and racial diversity of our citizens.
Despite the considerable progress, a daunting distance
remains to be traveled …
While mindful of current realities, the opening of doors
long closed makes me optimistic about a future in which
daughters and sons alike will be free from artificial bar-
riers, free to aspire and achieve in full accord with their
God-given talents, and their willingness to do the hard
work needed to make their dreams come true.
A s we sit shivah this week for Ruth Bader Ginsburg, we
should reflect upon her experiences as a Jew, a law
student, a law professor, advocate of gender equality, and
federal judge and see how we, in her stead, can adopt her
genuine insight.
According to the eminent Canadian philosopher Ber-
nard Lonergan, genuine insight requires attentiveness, in-
telligence, reasonableness and responsibility. Ruth Bader
Ginsburg had all of these qualities — and more.
At a seminar on gender discrimination led by Justice
Ginsburg and her husband, both exemplified the duty of
attentiveness. They began each day’s discussion with a fo-
cus on actual experiences of the people they represented
in these cases. They knew all of their clients by name and
how their lives had been affected by irrational legislation.
Justice Ginsburg began the seminar by stating, “The first
thing Marty and I did was to get to know the client. It is
always important to find out what’s happening in the cli-
ent’s life …. Our primary role as lawyers is to help this
person, not to promote a cause.”
Second, Ginsburg was intelligent. The facts she learned
from her clients always generated a serious question
about a woman’s place in a man’s world. Ginsburg persis-
tently applied the two fundamental norms of American
constitutionalism — due process of law and equal protec-
tion of the laws — to the rules that confined the freedom
and dignity of women and men. She focused sharply on
the gendered roles that laws embedded in virtually all as-
pects of life.
Third, Ginsburg was reasonable in her advocacy of
change. She was no dilettante, ready to compromise on
any major principle. Her goal was to fundamentally chal-
lenge the systematic denial of equality in American law.
She stated that clearly in her confirmation hearings, and
the senators appreciated her candor, confirming her ap-
pointment by a vote of 97-3. Ginsburg was, at heart, an
egalitarian feminist. She argued that changing outdated
laws would be better for women and men. Her keen and
personal awareness of discrimination against women
enabled her to identify the prior decisions that needed
reconsideration or overturning. And she understood the
mentality of many male judges, who were all too com-
fortable with the idea that legislatures could make laws
that appeared to protect women. But she spoke the truth:
putting women on pedestals actually put them in cages.
Fourth, Ginsburg was responsible. She listened care-
fully and imbibed the facts from her clients’ experiences
of inequality. She shared with other feminists an under-
standing of these experiences as a denial of human dig-
nity and personhood. In brief after brief, Ginsburg offered
carefully tailored reasons for invalidating a law for its
procedural fairness. If government wanted to stop her by
throwing a long list of laws at her, she would address each
As we sit shivah this week
for Ruth Bader Ginsburg,
we should reflect upon her
experiences as a Jew, a law
student, a law professor,
advocate of gender
equality, and federal
judge and see how we, in
her stead, can adopt her
genuine insight.
one, one at a time. But Ginsburg also recognized that there
was a way to achieve gender equality without litigating
law by law. She advocated strongly and persistently for
the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment because
she saw it as a move “toward a legal system in which each
person will be judged on individual merit and not on the
basis of an unalterable trait of birth.”
In short, Ruth Bader Ginsburg was insightful in the
most expansive and rigorous meaning of what human
understanding entails: being attentive, intelligent, rea-
sonable and responsible. The best way we can honor her
legacy is to emulate those character traits.
May her memory be a blessing on us all. n
Michael Berenbaum is director of the Sigi Ziering Institute
and a professor of Jewish Studies at American Jewish Univer-
sity. Edward Gaffney Jr. is a senior scholar at Valparaiso Uni-
versity.
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 27
 » by Toby Klein Greenwald

Efrat settlement
Written during the first intifada, late ’80s

CHILDREN OF ABRAHAM
And you came with terror
both of us
and hate
children of Abraham
We answered you
who walked this holy land
with schools
with staff in hand
with doctors
and faith
with hope
Children of Abraham
We beckoned to you
who offered his son
in peace
to God on the holy mount
We screamed from the bottom of our souls:
Together we
who we call Isaac
“Peace!”
and you call Ishmael

could offer
who said to his cousin Lot,
You answered our pleas
“Let us part ways
with Munich
the world
in peace.”
and Maalot
You answered our prayers
a vision
Children of Abraham
with pain in the night
we never left this land
There were eras
when only a handful survived
no more
no more
together.
while nations came and went
Romans and Greeks and Turks
can we turn away Together we
could offer
no more
Byzantian and British
no more
While the children of Abraham
tended fields
Our blood checkered with yours across the fields the world a
dream.
Our children, schoolbags full of hope
wrote in the cities of Safad
passing your little shepherd boy on the road we share
and Jerusalem
your flock mingling with ours
books of wonder and of wisdom
so young, so young
A destiny so old, and so young
Children of Abraham

Photo by kolderal/Getty Images

who fought and succumbed
Together
who fought and won
we could offer the world a vision
each of us claiming:
together
“Chosen”
we could offer the world a dream
We have danced a dance of death
O Children of Abraham
too long
How you will miss
too long
the Children of Abraham
if one day
Children of Abraham
they are gone.
a new age
and we returned home
to the Jerusalem that had never left Toby Klein Greenwald is an award-winning playwright and
our hearts, our prayers, our dreams director of biblical musicals for Raise Your Spirits Theatre.
We came from the death throes of pogroms During the first intifada, Greenwald served as a liaison be-
from Europe’s hell tween various American news organizations and journalists,
from the lands of your brothers as well as the settler community.
who had expelled us, penniless and broken
We returned home to till our ancient land
To water our fragile grains with our ancient tears

28 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com September 25-October 1, 2020

 TA B L E F O R F IV E
W EEKLY PARSHA: O NE V ERSE, F IVE VOICES
Edited by Salvador Litvak, Accidental Talmudist

Judy Gruen Rabbi Ari Segal

Author, “The Skeptic and the Rabbi: Falling in Love With Faith”
Jews don’t rely on intermediaries to connect with HaShem. It’s up to us to forge these
relationships as individuals. In my life, I have been awed to discover that my attempts to
connect with HaShem have been repaid out of all proportion to my efforts.
We also rely on prayers recited on our behalf. Our ancestors, sages,
rabbis, teachers, family, friends, Kohanim and even Jews we have never
met pray for us regularly, and additionally in our time of need. With
life’s uncertainties, we need all the prayers we can get! The power of
prayer is bountifully documented in many studies. Sick patients who
are remembered through prayer chains often have improved clinical
outcomes over those without that benefit.
The high priest of the Temple days needed to be a man of the world to
actualize his full spiritual strength, and being married was vital to these
credentials; hence the “spare” wife standing by in case of sudden bereavement. Who can begin
to imagine what level of spiritual preparation he needed to perform the Yom Kippur service?
Without the Temple, the avodah of repentance on Yom Kippur became democratized.
We are responsible for our spiritual assessments and repairs. We confess our transgressions
in the plural, because even if we are innocent of hard-heartedness or gossip-mongering,
someone else is guilty. We take it for the team. Israel is a community that demands personal
accountability and collective responsibility.
May your new year be filled with blessings!
Head of School, Shalhevet High School
This is an unusual verse in the intensely spiritual context of Yom Kippur. These practicalities,
down to the contingencies made in case something goes awry with the Kohen Gadol (high priest),
feel like the equivalent of a caffeine detox before the fast. Sure, it’s part of the process, but why
focus on it?
I think the practicality of these contingency plans reveals an important
spiritual insight. Even in the most mundane of circumstances, we are all well-
served by coming up with “Plan B’s” and “Plan C’s” for our practical goals. This
has become profoundly evident this year, as shuls, synagogues, shteiblach and
temples around the world make plan upon plan for observing Yom Kippur in
the time of COVID-19. From in-person davening, to Zoom services, to at-home
prayer materials, we’re all being armed with tiers of practical options for this
most spiritual time of the year.
The same should be true for our personal spirituality. We must explore multiple options for the
challenging work of connecting with God. Maybe praying in shul isn’t working out for you. So what’s
your Plan B? Do you connect with God better in nature? Through meditation, study or chesed? Don’t
settle for an unsatisfying experience; make the plans that will help you succeed.
The practical contingencies provided for the Kohen Gadol were what enabled him to bring
the nation through a spiritually successful Yom Kippur. Emulating this process for ourselves
can have a transformative effect on one’s Yom Kippur experience.

YOM KIPPUR Lori Shapiro

Rabbi Elchanan Shoff Rabbi, Open Temple
Beis Knesses of Los Angeles The Chamber of Parhedrin refers to a
Being married was required of the Seven days prior to Yom Kippur Roman official (“Parhedrin”) assigned to a
high priest in order to serve God properly position of power in ancient Judea for a single
on Yom Kippur. Therefore, a woman was
the Sages would remove the High year. The Parhedrin perpetuated corruption,
waiting for him in case his wife died, so Priest from his house and install exploited power and yielded material reward
that he could be married. But what of love? him in the Chamber of Parhedrin through taxation and price gouging.The rabbis
What of romance? used this term as a cutting commentary on
The Torah obligates … Rabbi Yehuda says they would the Kohen Gadol’s corruption at that time, one
marriage. It is a even designate another wife for who “was more interested in their honor than
mitzvah. A Jewish in the spiritual importance of the position.”
wedding begins with a him lest his wife die. The Talmud continues
blessing affirming that to describe how
God sanctified us with each distinct Kohen
His commandments, occupying this position
instructed us about “redecorated the

Yoma 2a, B. Talmud

relationships and
established marriage. Despite the truism
that our sages teach us, that “one who
lives without a wife is living without
joy” (teaching us the great happiness
that so many have in successful married
life), marriage is nonetheless seen by
traditional Judaism as an obligation. You
must get married! You must have a family!
This is an obligation, not just a choice.
Great happiness in life comes from
helping the needy, from hosting guests,
from visiting the sick. Altruism brings
happiness to people, as study after study
have shown. But that is not the reason
that we help the needy. The reason that
we do what is right is because it is our
obligation to do what is right. The most
elevated and refined people, those who
are worthy of guiding us, are people who
live up to their obligations. They love
their families as we all do, and they feel
the pain of the afflicted acutely, but their
sense of obligation is what guides them
the most. They know what is expected of
them. Marriage is wonderful. Obligations
always are.
chamber,” illustrating
their wealth and
position of authority;
thus the Chamber of
Rabbi Michael Barclay Parhedrin symbolizes the spiritual egress of
Temple Ner Simcha, Westlake Village our Second Temple priests.
Yoma is primarily about Yom Kippur preparations and practices for the leaders and The Pharisees triumphed through their
people. Beginning with instructions for the high priest, the tractate moves through details recollections of Sadducee failures. These
to be observed for a meaningful holiday experience. lurid details are fodder for good Talmud. But
These teachings have never been more important. Although there is no Temple (may it be is this merely about the rabbinic disdain for
rebuilt speedily), the instructions are especially important this year, with the priestly tradition? Why would Tractate
so many Jews observing Yom Kippur at home rather than in synagogue. Yoma, dedicated to our most pious of days,
These lines remind us how spiritual preparations affect family invite us into a space of moral depravity?
members. With so many households observing by themselves in front Perhaps it comes to remind us that the
of a screen, it is vital to prepare your home properly. Don’t make the leader in question on our holiest of days is
mistake of just watching services on a screen while multitasking. Clean just as we are: a flawed mortal. No greater,
your house; make the area where you are watching services holy and no less.
special. Use the days before to create a sacred “set and setting,” and the With Yom Kippur upon us, we are lured
holiday will be more impactful. into distraction: fires, pandemic, civil
Our synagogue has been having live, in-person holiday services, but many temples are unrest, economic distress, homelessness,
only streaming, or even prerecorded their services months ago. But each individual at a the election’s political circus. The Talmud
synagogue or watching a screen can make services meaningful on a personal level through chastens us from distraction and back to the
conscious preparation. Spend the week before Yom Kippur like the high priest, preparing for matter at hand: What are our own deeds,
the inherent power of the holiday for your entire family. Create a sacred space and make misgivings, transgressions, deceptions,
this Yom Kippur, in person or online, the deepest Day of Atonement yet. mishandlings? We must enter our own
May we all be blessed to have the insights of the high priest; to prepare fully; and have chambers and reconcile our artifice with our
an easy fast. aspirations toward moral nobility.

September 25-October 1, 2020 JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 29

 B LOG BYTE S
EXCERPTS F ROM
OUR ONL INE
CONTRIBUTORS

“YourMomCares helps all Edited by Erin Ben-Moche,

Staff Writer
children by creating and funding
innovative, cutting-edge programs and
“I think we can safely say that 5780 came
solutions that have a direct
with incredible challenges. I
impact on children’s mental
can’t think of another time
health. And admirably, its
I so eagerly anticipated a
mental health services are
chance to recharge, renew
provided regardless of a family’s
and re-imagine. Whatever
financial situation, race, gender or sexual
your religion, spiritual path or culture, you
orientation.” — Darren Paltrowitz on YourMomCares (Sept. 15)
probably can use some refocus right now.”
— Rabbi Zach Shapiro on ringing in 5781 (Sept. 18)

“Researchers believe that heat waves

and other extreme weather events will “The traditional imagery of
become more frequent in the wake of the High Holy Days is that of
the climate crisis. As humans, we have a celestial court, where God
various means of dealing with sits on the throne as judge and
intense heat and dryness, each of us stands in court with
such as air conditioning or one angel as our prosecutor and another as
immediate water access.” our defender. All our deeds of the past year are
— Yael Mor discusses climate change in Israel (Sept. 22) presented to the court for God to consider, to
determine, as the Unetaneh Tokef prayer says,
‘who shall live and who shall die.’ ”
— Naomi Ackerman shares her reflections on the Days of Awe (Sept. 22)

“I have enormous hopes for this historic occasion, that it will be far more
than a moment that we celebrate; that we will still witness a profound
and lasting shift in the global tensions surrounding Israel and how Muslim
nations relate to Israel.” — Milikh Yevdayev on the UAE deal (Sept. 22)
C o nt inue rea d ing th e se blog posts an d ot h er s at Jew i sh Jo u r n al .c o m

30 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com September 25-October 1, 2020


SHARON: MY FAMILY IS VISITING
the apartment building in Israel where my
uncles and their families live. I awake in
the middle of the night and hear adult con-
versation in the living room. I jump out of
bed to find my parents and my Uncle Naim
and Aunt Dalia standing by the second-
floor window, looking out onto the main
road. They’re concerned about the convoy
of military trucks, some loaded with jeeps,
barreling up the main road toward Israel’s
northern border.
I am a little girl visiting from Australia.
I have no concept of geopolitics and the
impending threat of war. I go back to sleep.
The next afternoon, my Uncles Naim
and Eliyahu are pulled away from their
prayers in the synagogue and commanded
to join their units. Four weeks before, we
all had celebrated the wedding of my Un-
cle Aryeh. Three weeks before, we had cel-
ebrated the brit milah of Naim and Dalia’s
baby boy Rafi, who, like my older brother
We are fortunate
to know that the
meals we eat to
break our fasts
this year will be
filled with delicious
treats.
Mickey Kahtan’s Cheese Babka
and four other cousins, is named for our
late paternal grandfather.
I see my uncles sitting in the kitchen.
They break their fast on simple sandwich-
es of white bread spread with homemade
strawberry preserves.
I see them walking away from their
homes, wives and young children, through
the orange orchards, in khakis with back-
packs slung over their shoulders. I see
September 25-October 1, 2020
CRANBERRY ALMOND
BISCOTTI
The Sweetness
of Yom Kippurs Past
» by Rachel Sheff and Sharon Gomperts
them walk purposefully toward the war.
Rachel: Every year, after the Kol Nidre
service, my brothers and I would gather in
our Los Angeles living room and my par-
ents would regale us with stories of their
childhoods in Larache, a port city in Mo-
rocco. We would laugh long into the late
hours of the night.
The next day meant long hours in the
synagogue. We’d come home and, before
resting, my mother and I would set the
table with pretty linens, the finest china
plates and crystal glasses. My mother
would proudly display the sterling silver
cutlery she had brought in her suitcase
when my family emigrated from Morocco.
When the end of Yom Kippur was sig-
naled by the long blast of the shofar, my
mother and I would rush home from the
synagogue. She would whip egg yolks and
sugar until they were a creamy pale yellow
and I would brew coffee. The minute my
father and brothers would walk through
the door, my mother would pour the coffee
into cups and spoon a generous amount of
the whipped egg on top. This Spanish Mo-
roccan custom was the only way to end a
long fast: a hot drink to restore the body
SEPHARDIC SPICE GIRLS
Photos by Alexandra Gomperts
after fasting and to start the New Year on starch, baking powder and salt. Mix well.
a sweet note. Make a well in dry ingredients and in-
After our coffee and cookies, we would corporate egg-and-sugar mixture.
sit down to eat a hot meal, including soup Add almonds and cranberries and com-
and a stuffed chicken and letrea (egg bine well.
noodles). Nowadays, we have adopted my
husband’s family tradition of a dairy meal.
Line two baking sheets with parchment
paper. Shape dough into narrow logs.
And we have a new, very American, very
beloved-by-our-children tradition: creamy
Bake 15-20 minutes. Slice dough with a
serrated knife.
macaroni and cheese with crispy sage and Lower temperature to 275 F and bake
a crunchy panko topping. until biscotti is golden.
Sharon and Rachel: We are fortunate to Makes 8-10 biscotti.
know that the meals we eat to break our
fasts this year will be filled with delicious
PONCHE DE HUEVOS
treats, such as the babka we ordered from
our good friend Mickey Kahtan. Kahtan is
from a traditional Iraqi family but, along
the way, she perfected the art of the Polish- PONCHE DE HUEVOS
Lithuanian dessert babka. Very popular
in Israel, they are called oogot sh’marim
(yeast cakes). They come with various deli-
cious fillings such as cinnamon, chocolate
and, like the ones Kahtan baked for us,
tangy, creamy, slightly sweet cheese. Fol-
low Kahtan on Instagram @MickeyBakes.
We also share our mothers’ recipes:
Nana Sue’s Cranberry Almond Biscotti and
Maman’s sweet coffee (Ponche De Huevos).
This year, we gratefully celebrate Yom
Kippur basking in the knowledge of a new
peace agreement with our Arab brethren. n
3 large egg yolks
CRANBERRY ALMOND BISCOTTI 1/2 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 cup olive oil Separate yolks into small bowl.
2/3 cup sugar Add sugar and beat briskly with a whisk
1/2 cup brown sugar until sugar dissolved and mix is light pale
2 teaspoons vanilla yellow.
3 cups unbleached flour Top your favorite coffee with a gener-
1/4 cup cornstarch ous dollop.
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt Rachel Emquies Sheff and Sharon Gomperts
3/4 cup slivered almonds have been friends since high school. They love
3/4 cup cranberries cooking and sharing recipes. They have collabo-
Preheat oven to 350 F. rated on Sephardic Educational Center projects
In large bowl, combine eggs, oil, sugar and community cooking classes. Follow them on
and vanilla beat until sugar is dissolved. Instagram @sephardicspicegirls and on Facebook
In another bowl, combine flour, corn- at Sephardic Spice SEC Food.
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 31
Community Voices
on the Legacy
of Justice Ruth
Bader Ginsburg
» Compiled by Esther D. Kustanowitz, Contributing Writer
RUTH BADER GINSBURG’S DEATH ON
erev Rosh Hashanah hit the Jewish commu-
nity hard. The Journal reached out to local
Jewish community leaders to ask them how
Ginsburg inspired or impacted them.
Yet You Persisted
Daughter of East Midwood Jewish Center,
you dissented long before others were will-
ing. Harvard Law School’s dean asked why
you were taking the place of a man. Justice
Frankfurter turned you down as an intern. Yet
you persisted. Even as a professor, you were
paid less than your male colleagues. Yet you
persisted. You defended widowers denied
pensions, fighting for gender equality before
the law. Your elevation to the Supreme Court
elevated us all. With the passage of time, you
became the living symbol of the dignity of all
people. You used the power of your pen and
office to force the law to conform. You per-
sisted. Through it all, you lived life well. You
cultivated a loving marriage, raised kind and
smart children, supported a diverse circle of
friends. You lived the Torah’s demand to love
your neighbor as yourself, that there must be
one law for the citizen and the stranger, that
the land must be allowed to rest, that we are
commanded to pursue justice. We will honor
you. We will walk your path. Your memory is
a blessing.
— Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson, Abner and
Roslyn Goldstine Dean’s Chair of the Ziegler School
of Rabbinic Studies and vice president of American
Jewish University
Justice and Equality
There have been 114 justices on the Su-
preme Court since 1789. But only one of them
became a veritable rock star. How remark-
able that it was the millennial generation
that elevated this tiny octogenarian Jewish
mother and bubbe into the iconic Notorious
RBG. She may have been the second woman
on the Supreme Court, but she was the first
feminist. At her core, she was committed to
elevating the powerless, to empowering the
vulnerable, and to bringing justice and equal-
ity based on the simple concept of fairness;
and she often cited her Jewish heritage as a
source for her commitment to and pursuit of
justice. Her rise in popularity coincided with
her stinging dissents in which she displayed
32 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com
her courage and conscience as she spoke
truth to power. It fills me with hope for the
future that our younger generation recog-
nized her for the hero that she was. May her
memory be a blessing.
— Janice Kamenir-Reznik, co-founder, Jewish
World Watch and Jews United for Democracy and
Justice; chair, Beit T’Shuvah
Strength Embodied
She was a living symbol of resistance, a
hero of human rights, the very embodiment
of strength in a tiny frame. Despite well-pub-
licized battles with cancer and her advanced
age, she somehow seemed superhuman.
And, so, when I learned of her death, it was
hard to fully comprehend. How could RBG
die? The truth is, the ideals that Justice Gins-
burg fought for are bigger than any one life,
no matter how extraordinary. We were truly
privileged to share the world with her for a
time. Now it is up to us to carry on her dis-
sent against the status quo. Madam Justice,
we are ready.
— Rabbi Adam Greenwald, vice president
for Jewish Engagement, American Jewish Uni-
versity and director, Maas Center for Jewish
Journeys and the Miller Introduction to Juda-
ism Program
We Cannot Surrender to Fear
As the newly freed Israelites were es-
caping from Egypt, trapped on the shores
of the Sea of Reeds, one person, Nachshon,
had the courage to step into the water
first. The waters did not part at first, but
Nachshon kept going, risked drowning,
and inspired the others. Ruth Bader Gins-
burg was a modern Nachshon. At her first
appearance before the Supreme Court,
she famously quoted Sarah Grimke: “All I
ask of our brethren is that they take their
feet off our necks.” It was chilling to think
about those words just a few short months
after a knee on the neck of George Floyd
again demonstrated the deadly weight of
racism and state violence. Her absence
leaves the Supreme Court poised to put
a knee on the neck of Native American
rights, voting rights, reproductive rights,
LGBTQ rights, affirmative action, access
to health care, clean air, clean water, the
separation of church and state (which has
been vital in protecting the rights of those
Yet You Persisted •
• Strength Embodied • W
to Fear • The Thurgood M
Rights • A Giant of Her
Took Her Life Bu
• Optimism and Fe
Combination of
• A Resilient, Defiant Tra
the Greatness o
• She Sought Justice
Sparks a Great Awakeni
Photo by/Getty Image
Confront Ageism • A T
• Restore for U
from minority religions, like Jews) and
much more. I won’t lie — when I think of
all of that I feel afraid. But I’m certain of
this: We can’t surrender to fear. We must
all find within the Nachshon-like courage
of Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
— Eric Greene, writer, civil rights activist,
board member of Jewish Multiracial Network
The Thurgood Marshall
of Disability Rights
The disability rights community lost
a champion in RBG. The NAACP and oth-
ers have noted that President Bill Clin-
ton, when nominating Justice Ginsburg
to the Supreme Court, referred to her as
the Thurgood Marshall of women’s rights.
Often hailed as the legal linchpin of inde-
pendent living for people with disabilities,
her powerful decision [in 1999’s Olmstead
v. L.C.] mandated that people with disabili-
ties should live in the least restrictive en-
vironment possible. The centerpiece of the
opinion is Justice Ginsburg’s recognition of
the value and humanity of people with dis-
abilities, and the danger of shutting us away.
Justice Ginsburg was known to emphasize
the importance of the Jewish exhortation
“U’vacharta b’chaim (Choose life).” Her juris-
prudence gave that choice to thousands of
Americans with disabilities.
— Matan Koch, director of RespectAbility
California and Jewish Leadership
A Giant of Her Generation
Every night, my 3-month-old goes to
sleep with a stuffed likeness of Justice Ruth
Bader Ginsburg in his crib. The proliferation
of RBG swag may seem kitschy, but her sta-
tus as a pop culture icon reflects a deeper
yearning in our society: We are hungry for
righteous role models. The non-superhu-
man among us find strength and refuge in
the massive shadow cast by an 85-pound
octogenarian. She was a seeker of justice
with a steadfast moral compass and an un-
flinching fight balanced only by a patient in-
tegrity that enabled her to navigate a world
that was decades behind her. She had faith
that the world would catch up. I want that
faith. And I want to teach that faith to my
son.
— Rabbi Sarah Bassin, associate rabbi,
Temple Emanuel of Beverly Hills
Photo by Leslee Komaiko
Cancer Took Her Life
But Never Defined Her
Our late founder, Rochelle Shoretz,
clerked for Justice Ginsburg in 1998, and
the women shared a strong bond of friend-
ship and respect. Justice Ginsburg served on
Sharsheret’s Honorary Advisory Board, and
in her 2015 eulogy for Rochelle, she shared:
“Rochelle redoubled her efforts to uplift oth-
ers battling cancer. Rochelle will be missed
by legions whose lives she touched. We have
a store of memories of her bright spirit. May
September 25-October 1, 2020

sted • Justice and Equality
ed • We Cannot Surrender
good Marshall of Disability
of Her Generation • Cancer
Life But Never Defined Her
and Fearlessness • A Rare
tion of Civility and Intellect
ant Trailblazer • Witness to
ness of America’s Promise
ustice for All • A Loss That
wakening • A Shofar Call to
m • A Trailblazing Advocate
e for Us Our Judges of Old
those memories encourage us to follow in
her way — to love life, and whatever the ob-
stacles, to exert our best efforts to advance
worthy causes outside ourselves.” Ironi-
cally, these words best capture how Justice
Ginsburg inspired Sharsheret’s community.
Though cancer took her life, it never defined
her. Her dedication to the pursuit of justice
and devoted commitment to women and hu-
manity inspire our work.
— Jenna Fields, California regional director,
Sharsheret
Optimism and Fearlessness
I found out that RBG had passed away
just as we started our Rosh Hashanah family
Zoom call. It felt almost like taking a punch to
the stomach right at our moment of joy with
the new year beginning. While of course her
entire life had been dedicated to the pursuit
of justice, I found her fearlessness over the
Photo by Leslee Komaiko
past four years to be truly awe-inspiring. With
everything against her — failing health, a con-
servative majority on the bench, ugly public
discourse — she did not slow down, she did
not lose her spirit. In this perilous moment in
history, I find comfort in her words from about
a year ago: “The progress I have seen in my
lifetime makes me optimistic for the future.”
My hope is that we can carry on with her opti-
mism and fearlessness.
— Todd Shotz, executive director and founder,
Hebrew Helpers; board co-chair, JQ International
September 25-October 1, 2020
Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Image
even believe she had a right to be a lawyer. She
fought for the rights of women to be seen, to
be treated fairly and to use their sensibility to
change the world. RBG was a classy feminist
of the most esteemable order. Thank you, RBG.
— Mayim Bialik, actress and neuroscientist
Witness to the Greatness
of America’s Promise
Hearing about the passing of Justice Gins-
burg felt like losing a hero, a Jewish biblical
matriarch and a grandmother all at once. As
soon as my daughters were old enough, my
wife and I read them books on “Ruth” and
took them to the exhibition about her life at
the Skirball Center. “Ruth” instantly became
their hero, too. Justice Ginsburg drew strength
from her Jewish values and often spoke about
her family story. My favorite quote of hers was:
“What’s the difference between a bookkeeper
in the garment district and a Supreme Court
justice? One generation.” Her life bore witness
to the greatness of America’s promise and
her life’s work made sure that promise was
extended to more and more Americans. And
like a good grandmother, she even gave us all
some good marital advice: “In every good mar-
riage, it helps to be a little deaf.” Baruch Dayan
Emet. Blessed be the true Judge.
— Sam Yebri, 30 Years After president and co-
founder
She Sought Justice for All
Ruth Bader Ginsburg proved through her
own incredible life story that nothing stands
in the way of those who are determined to
succeed, even if they are from a disadvantaged
A Rare Combination of Civility background, or, as was the case during her for-
and Intellect mative adult years, a disadvantaged gender. In
1996, she wrote that she was “proud of being a
I wish our public servants would better Jew,” adding that “the demand for justice runs
emulate her rare combination of civility and through the entirety of the Jewish tradition.”
impassioned intellect. Most famously, this RBG has inspired generations. She had such a
feat of character appeared in her storied great relationship with her legal nemesis on
friendship with her colleague and ideological the Supreme Court, the late Justice Antonin
rival, fellow Justice Antonin Scalia. Observ- Scalia. Her greatest quality was that she was
ers often noted her ferocity, particularly on a true mensch.
women’s and voters’ rights — all the more po- — Rabbi Pini Dunner, Beverly Hills Synagogue
tent for the mildness of her presence and the
moderation of her language. At the end of her A Loss That Sparks a Great
life, she emerged as a contemporary hero, em- Awakening
bodying an Americanized version of Sham- Jewish tradition teaches that when a righ-
mai’s admonition (Avot 1:14-15): “Stick to your teous person, dies, an opening is created for
guns; walk the walk; and greet everyone with a moral and spiritual awakening among the
a friendly disposition.” community of mourners, and even in the
— Joshua Holo, dean of the Hebrew Untion natural world. We pray that Justice Ginsburg’s
College-Jewish Institute of Religion Jack H. Skirball death, especially in this time of unimaginable
Campus in Los Angeles and associate professor of loss, especially with the devastating implica-
Jewish history tions it will likely have for our nation, will in
fact spark that great awakening. We hold now
A Resilient, Defiant Trailblazer many layers of grief — first and foremost for
After I emerged from my yontif break from the death of an exceptionally brilliant, fierce
technology, I read some of the articles on RBG, and courageous Jewish woman, a jurist, a
including those by people who were profes- mother and grandmother, a role model to mil-
sionally closest to her, and was struck by what lions, whose steadfast commitment to justice,
a woman of few words she was socially. (I equality and basic fairness made this country
want to learn from her in this regard, for sure.) and world a better place. And we hold antici-
I was reminded how much of her strength as patory grief, as we project the ramifications of
a woman was because of her resilience, her her death and the brazen political maneuver-
defiance and her trailblazing in a field of mi- ings that will likely ensue in her absence. We
sogynistic men of the legal world who did not must remember: even as we say Mourner’s
COMMUNITY
Kaddish for our beloved Justice Ginsburg, we
must not yet say Mourner’s Kaddish for our
nation — for this fight is not yet over. And Jus-
tice Ginsburg, of all people, would fervently
decry the passive acceptance of predeter-
mined outcomes. We grieve, and then we pick
up the baton and carry on.
— Rabbi Sharon Brous, senior rabbi, IKAR
A Shofar Call to Confront
Ageism
I am especially grateful for the ways Ruth
Bader Ginsburg was a shofar — an instru-
ment that calls out for change. She [also]
challenged the way we think about growing
older. A common stereotype of older adults is
that they disengage from life, become physi-
cally frail and withdraw from many of those
activities that had brought purpose to their
lives. Not Justice Ginsburg. Think of her now
famous “Ruth Bader Ginsburg Workout” that
encouraged so many of us older adults. She
kept working at a job she loved, demonstrat-
ing that older adults ought to be able to find
meaning whether they continue to work,
explore encore careers or discover volunteer
opportunities through which they can make
a difference. She was a role model for getting
good at getting older and a shofar call to con-
front ageism.
— Rabbi Laura Geller, rabbi emerita, Temple
Emanuel of Beverly Hills; co-author, “Getting Good
at Getting Older”
A Trailblazing Advocate
I am the first female executive director of
the Jewish Free Loan Association in its 116-
year history because of people like Justice
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who spent her life tire-
lessly fighting to ensure equality for all. To-
day, millions of women like me benefit from
her trailblazing work for fair employment
practices. We must learn from the strength of
her convictions and continue to work toward
creating equality for all, while modeling her
dignity and credibility. RBG’s legacy can serve
as a guide for everyone and inspire each one
of us in our quest to make the world a little
more just. May her memory be for a blessing.
— Rachel Grose, executive director, Jewish Free
Loan Association
Restore for Us Our Judges
of Old
Forty-three years ago on my bar mitzvah, I
read the Torah portion Shoftim (Judges), whose
opening verse reads, “You shall appoint judg-
es and officials.”The third verse contains three
of the Torah’s most famous words: “Tzedek,
Tzedek Tirdof — Justice, justice, you shall
pursue.” RBG spent a lifetime following the
Torah’s vision of pursuing justice and creat-
ing a just society. Those famous words were
framed on the wall of her Supreme Court
chambers, and they were etched deeply in
her heart. As I mourn her loss, I connect to
these words even more, as I do to the words
recited thrice daily: “Restore for us our judges
of old.”
— Rabbi Daniel Bouskila, Sephardic Educa-
tional Center and Westwood Village Synagogue
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 33
 COMMUNITY

What Ginsburg Meant

The Dortort Center for Creativity in the Arts at UCLA Hillel
and Hillel at UCLA Proudly Present to a Jewish UCLA Law
Professor
Black » by Kelly Hartog, Managing Editor

and Jewish IN THE WAKE OF SUPREME COURT

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death, social
media has reminded us of how enigmatic
like someone who is carrying the flag
falls and someone has to rush in and
pick up the flag and fill that position,” he

in America
she was. We don’t even bat an eye when said, adding, “that is a duty that not just
we speak of the justice who became a lawyers have but citizens have in terms
pop culture icon and earned the fabulous of achieving a broader notion of justice in
nickname the Notorious RBG. However, she society. I don’t think that law exists simply
was part of a not particularly glamorous to serve the powerful. I think it exists to
profession for those who work in it every day. spread the notion of justice to all people
Thursday, October 1, 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM A Jewish professor of constitutional in all situations. That is something she
law, evidence, law of the border and other definitely believed and she connected with
RABBI SANDRA LAWSON legal courses at the UCLA School of Law, Judaism.”
Peter Reich told the Journal that Ginsburg That sentiment resonates with Reich, as
Associate Chaplain for Jewish Life and
Senior Jewish Educator at Hillel at Elon University “was someone who does Ginsburg’s famous
was a model for many quote that she had said
Rabbi Sandra Lawson was ordained by the Reconstructionist Ruth
generations of law Bader before but also used to
Rabbinical College in June 2018. She graduated magna cum laude students and lawyers Ginsburg close her talk in 2001
from Saint Leo University with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, and — in terms of someone during an address at
holds a Master of Arts in Sociology from Clark Atlanta University. who combined her the National Council
Rabbi Sandra served in the United States Army as a Military Police scholarly precision of Jewish Women titled
person. She later started a personal training business and worked as an Adjunct Instructor with activism for social “Three Brave Jewish
of Sociology at local community colleges. She also served as the Investigative Researcher justice.” Women,” focusing on
for ADL’s Southeast Region, becoming the go-to person on hate groups for southern law Reacting to her Emma Lazarus, Anne
enforcement. She is also a writer for The Forward. Rabbi Sandra’s vision is to help build a more death, Reich said, “It’s Frank and Henrietta
inclusive Jewish community where all are welcomed and diversity is embraced. a huge loss. She was a Szold (founder of
person who spent every Hadassah). The quote
In conversation with day of her working life was: “I am a judge
as though it was her born, raised and proud
last. I feel as though of being a Jew. The
SAMIRA MEHTA

Photo by Brendan Smialowski/Getty Images

we’ll be missing a
Assistant Professor of Women and Gender Studies voice on the court; not
and Jewish Studies at the University of Colorado at Boulder only a voice of reason
Samira K. Mehta’s research and teaching focus on the intersections but a voice for various
religion, culture, and gender, including the politics of family life causes.”
and reproduction in the United States. Her first book, Beyond One of the classes
Chrismukkah: The Christian-Jewish Blended Family in America (University of North Carolina Reich teaches is U.S.
Press, 2018) was a National Jewish book award finalist. Mehta’s current project, God Bless the Constitutional Law for
Pill: Sexuality and Contraception in Tri-Faith America examines the role of Jewish, Catholic, Foreign Lawyers. One
and Protestant voices in competing moral logics of contraception, population control, and of Ginsburg’s cases he
eugenics from the mid-twentieth century to the present. Mehta holds degrees from Emory teaches is what Reich
University, Harvard University, and Swarthmore College. said is probably her
most famous: the 1996
equality case U.S. v. Virginia that struck
down the Virginia Military Institute’s
Introduction by ban on admitting women, in which she
RABBI AARON LERNER authored the majority opinion.
“[Ginsburg] clearly set up a standard for
Executive Director, Hillel at UCLA
defining when sex discrimination takes
place under the 14th Amendment equal
protection clause,” Reich said. “This case,
Registration is free RSVP at uclahillel.org/blackandjewish in a way, was sort of an accumulation of
the work that she had done as an advocate
Zoom details provided after online registration is confirmed.
for women’s rights and earlier cases
when she was a lawyer. Equal protection
under the law doesn’t just apply to racial
minorities; it also applies to women.”
Reich plans to discuss Ginsburg’s
passing with his students. “The way I
look at [her death] is when someone in
the ranks of fighting for justice falls, it’s
demand for justice runs
through the entirety of
the Jewish tradition. I
hope that all the years
I have the good fortune
to serve on the bench
of the Supreme Court
of the United States, I
will have the strength
and courage to remain
steadfast in the service
of that demand.”
As a member of IKAR,
Reich has been involved in a slew of social
justice projects with the community going
back over a decade and professionally
has represented pro bono plaintiffs in
land rights and water rights cases in the
Southwest, particularly involving the cross-
border access to water between the United
States and Mexico. Ginsburg, he said, “has
been an inspiration in all of these things.”
However, he doesn’t believe all of
Ginsburg’s decisions were uniformly
progressive. “I would call her a structuralist
with progressive inclinations, by which
I mean she looked to recurring patterns
and themes in the Constitution like access
to justice, the federal-state relationship
and equality. She was a careful writer and
didn’t overextend herself.” n

34 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com September 25-October 1, 2020


Rabbi Takes on County
Over High Holy Days
» by Evan Henerson, Contributing Writer
WHATEVER ELSE MAY TRANSPIRE
during the craziness of 2020, Jewish
Angelenos can be secure in the knowledge
that any in-home gatherings they hold
during the holidays will not be interrupted
by raids by Los Angeles County Sheriff’s
deputies and subsequent hefty fines in
the name of preventing the spread of
COVID-19.
Could such a scenario have been
possible? Perhaps not, but a local rabbi was
concerned enough to enlist a well-known
legal organization dedicated to religious
freedom with an eye toward clarifying
the county’s intent and quashing any
proposed threat.
“Our Jewish
neighbors are
strong and resilient
and simply want to
share a table with
their local families
during the High
Holidays in peace.”
— Stephanie Taub
Earlier in September, the county had
implemented a coronavirus health order
that specifically called out having dinner
with extended family and friends “to honor
the high holidays (Rosh Hashanah and
Yom Kippur).” As the holidays approached,
the county changed the language of the
order to reference “religious or cultural
holidays” instead of calling out the Jewish
observances specifically.
But members of the Jewish community
still interpreted the order as specifically
targeting their holiday observances.
Agudath Israel California CEO Rabbi
Yisrael Gelb hired the Texas-based First
Liberty Institute to file a formal objection
and urge the county to lift the order. The
petition was filed on Sept. 16.
The petition stated, in part, “The burden
of this policy is particularly heavy on
members of the Orthodox Jewish tradition.
… In accordance with millennia-old
tradition, Rabbi Gelb intends to gather with
another family to observe the High Holy
Days safely in the host family’s home. Los
Angeles County now has the opportunity
September 25-October 1, 2020
COMMUNITY
to demonstrate whether it intends to
follow through on its threat to criminalize
the observance of the High Holy Days
at a family’s dinner table or whether its
profoundly disrespectful language was
a mere empty threat. The county must
immediately remove all language from
county policy threatening to police small,
religious gatherings at family homes.”
According to First Liberty Senior Partner
Stephanie Taub, violations of these types of
orders historically have warranted fines of
up to $1,000. Even in the wake of COVID-19,
however, L.A. County has not been enforcing
bans of small gatherings. Taub told the
Journal she did not expect there to be a
crackdown on holiday assembling either.
“That’s what makes this even more
egregious,” Taub said. “Even though they’re
not enforcing it, they still list it as an
example of prohibited conduct. So along
with gathering with friends at the beach,
they list meeting with your extended
family to celebrate the most holy days of
the Jewish calendar.
“They haven’t enforced this when they
have had mass protests of 100,000 people
marching through Hollywood,” she added.
“It just shows a disrespect that they would
single out these Jewish holidays as they
did in this policy.”
Asked for its response to the First
Liberty petition, L.A. County released a
statement emphasizing its commitment
to “protecting the health and safety of its
residents through an unprecedented crisis.
“We recognize that religious services
are central to many of our residents’
lives, especially in these trying times,”
the statement continued, “and religious
services have been allowed to be held
online and outdoors with physical
distancing and the use of face coverings,
and they may continue to be held with
those public health safeguards in place.”
In a subsequent email to First Liberty,
the county’s legal counsel, Mary Wickham,
addressed Taub’s concern that small, in-
home holiday gatherings might result
in raids, fines or other strict measures of
enforcement.
“You … have asked whether Los
Angeles County will ‘dispatch Los Angeles
County Sheriff’s deputies to the homes
of Jewish families gathered for religious
meals during the High Holidays inside
someone’s homes,’ ” Wickham wrote. “The
answer to that question is no.”
“Our client and the Jewish residents of
Los Angeles County can breathe a little
easier,” Taub said. “Our Jewish neighbors
are strong and resilient and simply want
to share a table with their local families
during the High Holidays in peace.” n
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 35
 Dr. Eugene
Rogolsky
June 09,1929 - September 13, 2020
Dr. Eugene Rogolsky was someone who had a passion for
medicine, not only in practicing, but in the teaching as a Keck
Medical Professor and mentoring of other physicians. A pioneer
in the field of HIV healthcare, Dr. Rogolsky never shied away
from helping those most marginalized. Rather than turn his back
on those suffering from HIV and AIDS, he became a fighter in
the battle. His compassion and empathy helped those suffering,
and offered hope when many felt hope was lost. He volunteered
at many healthcare centers and utilized his gift of helping others.
He was honored for his work many times including The Los An-
geles Jewish Aids Society and AltaMed HIV Services.
In addition to medicine, Gene had an appreciation for the
arts, he had a love for theater and he was a well known art col-
lector. His gift of about 800 pieces to the USC Fisher Museum of
Art was celebrated in 2016 with an amazing exhibit that showed
his eclectic taste and interest in varied mediums.
Friends and family alike would note that Gene always had
a twinkle in his eye, and was generous with his appreciation
and gratitude to those he held dear. He will be missed by many,
and especially by his partner and husband of 28 years, Joseph
Boutell.
On June 9, 1929 Eugene Harmon Rogolsky parents, Eva and
Israel David Rogolsky, welcomed their son, into their family of
girls, Lillian (Bickart), Jeanette (Kaufman) and Ann (Lesser). Over
the years, this devoted son was a loving Husband, Brother, Un-
cle, Cousin, friend, and mentor to many.
He is survived by his loving husband Joe Boutell. His many
loving nieces and nephews, Joan Colman and Eric Colman, Dr.
Martin Lesser and Dr. Linda Ann Groene, Lauren, Max and Ari
Bogren, Madeline and Alek Jeziorek, Steven, Lori, Samantha and
Matthew Lesser, Debbie, Dori, Julia and Elizabeth Nagar, Jeffrey
Debi, David and Jessica Kaufman, in-laws Tina, Harley and
Vincent Boutell , first cousins Howard and Elinor Bernstein and
many members of his extended family and friends.
To donate in his name please donate to Birthright Israel at
https://birthrightisrael.foundation/donate
36 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com
IKAR’s Yizkor
Memorial Garden: A
Space for Memory and
Community Connection
» by Esther D. Kustanowitz, Contributing Writer
IKAR PUBLISHES A YIZKOR BOOK
every year that features members’ stories of
loved ones who have died. Reading these re-
flections during Yom Kippur services — along
with the Yizkor service — was a way to con-
nect deeply with other IKARites, and to serve
as witnesses to their loss and learn more
about how they became the people they are
today.
This year, as with everything relating to
the High Holy Days in the era of COVID-19, the
space that IKAR carves out for grief had to be
rethought. The result is IKAR’s Yizkor Memo-
rial Garden, a physical space on IKAR’s patio
off La Cienega Boulevard, with an exhibit that
holds people’s memories and limits the num-
ber of visitors at any one time for health and
safety reasons.
IKAR Assistant Rabbi Keilah Lebell, who
created the space with co-chairs and IKAR
members Samara Hutman and Sarah Gold-
finger, said the goal was to create “a way
for people to come to a physical space and
have a Yizkor moment that didn’t have
anything to do with a screen.”
Feedback from several mourners
shaped a more interactive experience that
also adhered to safety guidelines. Hutman,
who had been a set decorator for years,
suggested a garden, Lebell said, and cre-
ated “something that’s alive, where people
could visit and spend time there.” Lebell
credited Goldfinger for knowing “how to
create sacred space and a sense of beauty.”
“[The experience] had to be something
touch-free,” Goldfinger said. “How do you
create a space that feels interactive even if
you’re not touching anything?”
The team settled on asking visitors to take
a stone with them from the entrance and de-
posit it in a mandala’s spiral before they exit.
“When you go to a cemetery, you leave a peb-
ble,” Goldfinger said. “With our stone activity,
the idea is to pick one up and carry it through
and put it in a spiral in a sacred community
of mourners. So even though you didn’t touch
anyone, you see people mourning with you.”
She added, “The sculptures and mandalas on
the ground do the job of ushering you into the
space.”
Hutman said, “We were groping for how
people can be together because it’s been so
painful to mourn in isolation.”
Lebell noted that one guiding idea was the
wall of candles present in many churches.
“You might be completely alone but you light
a candle and see the other candles that are lit
and know that others have been there,” she
said. “We are all part of this space together,
creating connection between community
members.”
On Monday afternoon, the garden was
empty of people, but the breeze carried sounds
that you only hear when human voices are ab-
sent: air lightly whipping at sheltering tarps,
wind chimes tinkling idiosyncratically, the
bubbling fountains creating a spa-like calm.
“It is a very holy place,” Hutman said. “I
myself have been healed here over the course
of weeks as we took it from idea to place, to
human space with dimension, and quotidian
rhythms: pruning the plants and sweeping
the paths; listening to the chimes in the wind;
watching fiery skies with worry; welcoming
September 25-October 1, 2020
 COMMUNITY

[the garden is] like a hug.”

Pamela Jacobson, one of the volunteers
who worked to create the space, called it
“incredibly therapeutic after being so iso-
lated for several months. It was an unex-
pectedly powerful and positive experience,”
she said. “Reading the stories, seeing the
images and working with my hands in col-
laboration with others to create something
so beautiful and meaningful was a gift that
brought me a new sense of hope and pos-
Photo courtesy of Samara Hutman sibility.”
Added Hutman, “It is in the symphony
of collected stories and faces, in the aching
tug of loss and the durability of the connec-
tion that remains, that we fully understand
the precious fragility of life and the durable
power of love.”
In keeping with COVID-19 safety guide-
lines, there are sanitizing stations at the
the blue sky and the sun back, and [welcom- entrance and exits, and visitors must wear
ing] purer air back in the last few days.” masks and maintain 10 feet of distance.
At the center of the space, the team in- Only eight people are permitted in the gar-
stalled bulletin boards with 200 photos and den at any one time.
250 written reflections of members’ lost loved “An important facet of the garden is
ones. “We wanted the boards to be the center- the way it has reconstituted, in space and
piece of activity,” Goldfinger said. place, the soul of our community, through
The boards tell stories of parents long the physicalization of our Jewish com-
gone or recently departed; friends tak- mitment to collective memory, grief and
en too soon; beloved grandparents who prayer,” Hutman said. “At a time when we
shared wisdom or took their secrets with are required to be apart, this opportunity to
them; and the children whose heartbreak- gather is a gift for all of us who used our
ing smiles remind you anew of what was hearts and hands to create it, and for all
lost. Together, the words and images begin who will enter and experience it.”
to fill out the contours of community. Be- Seeing my mom in the middle of that

Where do I
cause of these people, we are the people we collage in a bright yellow shirt, smiling,

What
are today. looking slightly off-camera with delight
want to go?
inspires me?
Who
“We were groping for how people can be am I?
together because it’s been so painful to
mourn in isolation.” — Samara Hutman
There’s also an acknowledgment of
more global losses, from the Holocaust to
the COVID-19 pandemic, and the destruc-
tion caused by California’s most recent fires.
By the Monday morning after her passing,
the volunteers had added a section dedi- Find your right direction
on a Gap Year in Israel.
cated to Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader
Ginsburg.
I took comfort in the silence, and in
knowing no one was pressing me to move
Go to college with confidence in who you are, and
forward. When others arrived, we talked at
a distance, but not in the hushed, reverent upon some grandchild who is just out of purpose to define and achieve your educational goals.
tones of a memorial. We are desperate for frame, I like to imagine that she can see me The essential Israel Gap Year guide
mask-to-mask conversation, for the third and the other people who are visiting this now available on Amazon
dimension of our community to be re- space, as if it were a two-way mirror. As peo-
stored, so we can stand with one another ple pass in front of her photo, I know they are “Motivating book that delivers an
during challenging moments. getting a window into her life and impact. Per- important and powerful message
about the Gap Year in Israel.”
Goldfinger said she thought a lot about haps she’s also getting a window into mine. n - Rae Nelson, co-author of
past experiences of “being in a room saying The Gap Year Advantage
Kaddish with other people and feeling that For security reasons, contact Membership@ “Phyllis’ knowledge of Israel Gap Year
we’re all in this together, having someone ikar-la.org for hours and information. Those who programs is second to none.”
to nuzzle up against. It’s really moving to have been in contact with anyone infected with CO- - Jim Patterson, Director of the Kutler Conferences • Counseling
Center, Harvard-Westlake School Educational Resources
be able to grieve that way,” as people did be- VID-19 in the previous 14 days, including anyone
fore the pandemic, she said. “I didn’t set out who is experiencing or displaying symptoms of CO- EMAIL: INFO@AIGYA.ORG • @ISRAELGAPYEAR • VISIT AIGYA.ORG
at the beginning to replace that feeling, but VID-19, are asked not to enter the garden.

September 25-October 1, 2020 JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 37

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Jewish Groups Mourn
Ruth Bader Ginsburg
» by Aaron Bandler, Staff Writer
VARIOUS JEWISH GROUPS PAID
homage to the late Supreme Court Justice
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died on Sept. 18
at the age of 87 from metastatic pancreatic
cancer.
Following the news of her death at her
Washington, D.C., home, Chief Justice John
Roberts said in a statement, “Our nation has
lost a justice of historic stature. We at the
Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague.
Today we mourn but with confidence that
future generations will remember Ruth
Bader Ginsburg as we knew her, a tireless and
resolute champion of justice.”
The justice became a pop icon and
earned the nickname the Notorious RBG.
“As the sun sets on Rosh Hashanah,
we mourn Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg,
the first female Jewish SCOTUS Justice,”
Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan
Photo by Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images for Berggruen Institute
“She fought fiercely
and unflinchingly to
advance and defend
the rights of women
and minorities.”
— Ronald Lauder
Greenblatt tweeted. “We honor her memory
& her words: ‘Fight for the things that you
care about, but do it in a way that will lead
others to join you.’ We promise, #RBG.”
American Jewish Committee (AJC) CEO
David Harris hailed Ginsburg in a tweet as
“a giant of American jurisprudence, she
championed women’s rights & gender
equality. She exemplified courage &
conviction throughout her life. We’ll never
forget her speeches to @AJCGlobal.”
His tweet also featured a 1996 New York
Times adaptation of a speech Ginsburg
gave to the AJC in 1995 in which she said, “I
am a judge born, raised and proud of being
a Jew. The demand for justice runs through
the entirety of the Jewish tradition. I hope
in my years on the bench of the Supreme
Court of the United States, I will have the
strength and courage to remain constant
in the service of that demand.”
The Simon Wiesenthal Center tweeted,
“We join all Americans in mourning the
passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth
Bader Ginsburg #RBG who brought dignity,
grace, and brilliance to our Nation’s highest
September 25-October 1, 2020
COMMUNITY
court for 27 years. May her memory always
be a source of blessing.”
The tweet also featured a cartoon of
Ginsburg greeting the late Justice Antonin
Scalia, who died in 2016. The two had a
close friendship while serving on the high
court together.
J Street tweeted, “If this year has taught
us anything, it’s how to mourn as we fight
and fight as we mourn. RBG’s memory
shall be a blessing and her example an
inspiration as we give our all to defend our
democracy.”
Thanks for Listening
Jewish Democratic Council of America
Executive Director Halie Soifer tweeted
that she was “devastated” over Ginsburg’s
death. “#RBG embodied the Jewish value of
tikkun olam & fulfilled the commandment
There’s a wonderful story in Philip Goodman’s “The Rosh Hashanah Anthol-
to pursue justice, which hung in her
ogy”:
chambers in Hebrew. May her memory be At the conclusion of the service, the cantor approached Rabbi Vevel,
the maggid of Wilna, to extend New Year greetings and to be complimented
for the manner in which he led the congregation in prayer.
The rabbi returned the greeting and added:
“It says in Pirkei Avot: ‘The world is based on three things: Torah, prayer
and deeds of kindness.’ Blessed is our congregation which fulfills these three
requisites. I teach them Torah; you pray for them; and they perform deeds of
kindness by listening to both of us.”
It doesn’t go unnoticed that all of you take many hours over the chagim to
listen to us — your rabbis and cantors, messengers of Torah and messengers of
prayer. It is with humility in which we offer our gratitude. Thank you for your
trust, loyalty, confidence and partnership.
This year, we endeavor to engage in High Holy Days in ways that feel for-
eign and strange. Many clergy davening without congregants in the pews;
looking at screens, reaching out to hearts that are miles and miles away. The
journey leading to Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur 5781 is undoubtedly a
a blessing & may we honor her dying wish.” strange one. And yet, in knowing that we daven together from living rooms
Ginsburg said in a statement to her and backyards all over the world, you give us peace in knowing that we too,
granddaughter days before her death: are not alone.
“My most fervent wish is that I will not be
replaced until a new president is installed.” May this High Holy Days season be one of meaningful prayer, engaging les-
The Democratic Majority for Israel sons, poignant revelation and strong connections.
(DMFI) similarly tweeted, “We will be forever
grateful for her moral leadership and her
Connection to God, connection to one another and, dare I say, connection
to the internet.
fierce advocacy for women’s equality and
for justice. This is a profound loss for our
Shanah tovah. Have a healthy and joyous new year.
country. May her memory be a blessing.”
World Jewish Congress President Ronald
Lauder called Ginsburg “a trailblazer on be-
half of gender equality.” His statement went
on to say, “She paved the way for women
in the law and on the courts. She fought
fiercely and unflinchingly to advance and
defend the rights of women and minori-
ties, and, in the tradition of Justices Louis D.
Brandeis and Benjamin Cardozo, embodied
the principle of equal justice for all under Rabbi Nicole Guzik is a rabbi at Sinai Temple.
the law, as well as the Jewish value of ‘tze-
dek, tzedek, tirdof’ — ‘justice, justice shall
you pursue.’ Her life is a legacy and a tes-
tament, and her memory will be a blessing
and a lesson forever more.” n
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 39

Actress Tovah Feldshuh
on Playing RBG and
Meeting the Justice in
Her Chambers
» by Kelly Hartog, Managing Editor
ON SEPT. 18, HOURS AFTER JUSTICE
Ruth Bader Ginsburg died, a memory popped
up on my Facebook page. It was a photograph
I had taken of actress Tovah Feldshuh in the
lobby of the Wallis Annenberg Performing Arts
Center in Beverly Hills. The photo was taken
after I interviewed Feldshuh on opening night
of the West Coast premiere of the play “Sisters
in Law” by Jonathan Shapiro — on Sept. 18,
2019.
In it, Feldshuh plays the Notorious RBG op-
posite Stephanie Faracy’s Justice Sandra Day
O’Connor. During that interview, Feldshuh
told me she was excited because she was go-
ing to meet RBG in her chambers the follow-
ing month. One year later, Feldshuh agreed to
speak about that meeting.
“Like the country, I was shattered [by Gins-
burg’s death],” Feldshuh said in a phone in-
terview from the Hamptons on Long Island,
N.Y. “Obviously, I’m sharing what we all feel —
that we’ve lost a humble woman with a great
sense of profound justice and liberty for all.”
During that 2019 interview at the Wallis,
Feldshuh said, “How do we honor a woman
who is soft-spoken, shy, modest and just de-
cent and moral?” It’s something Feldshuh was
deeply concerned about, especially “because
I’m about as shy as a tank coming toward you.”
It was that tank-like mindset that prompt-
ed Feldshuh to reach out to Ginsburg after she
landed the role in “Sisters in Law.”
“I wrote her a very professional loving let-
ter,” Feldshuh said. “I wrote, ‘I know how ex-
traordinarily occupied you are with the great
matters of the United States of America and
making sure there is justice for all. I, however,
have been given this extraordinary opportu-
nity where I will be playing you. I will be your
messenger out in the theatrical universe. Is
there any way you would meet with me? I just
need to be in the room with you, to have a cel-
lular interchange, to take you in.”
Ginsburg did indeed respond. “I got an
email back via her aide,” Feldshuh recalled. It
said, “ ‘Dear Ms. Feldshuh, I received your love-
ly letter. Please be in my chambers on Oct. 23
at 4:30 sharp.’ I just couldn’t believe it.”
It would be the first of at least four occa-
sions that Feldshuh spent time with Ginsburg.
During that first meeting, Feldshuh got to
spend an hour alone with the justice. “Her two
aides escorted me into this gorgeous mahog-
any-paneled room,” Feldshuh recalled, “with
all the pictures of her family. And it made me
September 25-October 1, 2020
ART S
think of on my Steinway, and in my living
room on my hearth, there are all the pictures
of my family. I don’t claim to be anywhere
near as extraordinary as Ruth Bader Ginsburg
but there are certain values that people can
share and certain values that people share as
Jews that was clear about her office and was
clear about my life. It was as if we had come
“I said, ‘Please forgive me. I’m so very moved to meet you, having
spent so much time on you and watching you from afar and with all
the research I’ve been doing. Seeing you in the flesh is like moving
from a book of illustrations to the real deal.’ ” — Tovah Feldshuh
from the same pod, just a generation apart.”
Feldshuh, 66, also recalled when she fi-
nally met Ginsburg she teared up. “I said,
‘Please forgive me. I’m so very moved to
meet you, having spent so much time on
you and watching you from afar and with
all the research I’ve been doing. Seeing you
in the flesh is like moving from a book of
illustrations to the real deal.’ ”
Knowing of the justice’s love of opera,
Feldshuh went to the Metropolitan Opera
shop and bought Ginsburg a jacket from
‘Der Rosenkavalier,’ and gave it to her at
that meeting. “She was thrilled with it,”
Feldshuh said, “and told me she was going
to wear it to the opening of the Washington
Opera [season], which she did.”
So, what did the two women talk about
during that hour in chambers?
“We talked about opera and we talked
about gender equality,” Feldshuh said. “We
talked about how early in her life she had a
purpose, and her very intimate relationship
with her mother and the loss of her mother
(Ginsburg’s mother died of cancer the day
before Ginsburg’s high school graduation),
and [probably] carrying on her mother’s
torch.”
And although Feldshuh signed a non-
disclosure agreement before that meeting,
now that the justice is dead, Feldshuh said
she can talk about “generalities” they dis-
cussed, which included “sharing with me
some of the intimate details of her life —
the type of perfume she liked, the shampoo
she used, the brands of lipstick she liked
[which] were whatever her roommate from
Cornell [University] had sent her last.”
Feldshuh said Ginsburg also spoke about
the fact that she didn’t have pierced ears, that
she hadn’t cooked since 1980 — that her late
husband, Marty Ginsburg, was her chef par
excellence, and that marrying him was the
luckiest moment of her life. “I also learned she
loved mangos, Granny Smith apples, bananas,
raspberries and strawberries, and that she
didn’t eat ice cream because she didn’t want
to digest fat.”
Feldshuh came to that meeting with
books for Ginsburg to sign, which she did. She
showed the justice photographs of her grand-
son Raphael. Later, Ginsburg sent Raphael a
T-shirt that said “Grand Clerk of Justice Ruth
Bader Ginsburg.”
What stood out most to Feldshuh about
Ginsburg was “that as humble and as quiet as
she appeared, she was intellectually fierce and
not intellectually shy. Ruth was a tiny woman
but as they say in [Shakespeare’s] ‘A Midsum-
mer Night’s Dream,’ ‘though she be but little,
she was fierce.’ She was this voracious learner,
a voracious reader. She entered the minds of
other people the way normal people enter the
hearts of other people.”
On a personal level, Feldshuh said Gins-
burg “gave me tremendous help in my char-
acterization of her in “Sisters in Law,” which
was supposed to come to New York but then
COVID happened and that was the end of that
for now.”
However, she has managed to play Gins-
burg again in her one-woman show “Aging Is
Photos by Kevin Parry
Tovah Feldshuh as
Ruth Bader Ginsburg in
“Sisters in Law.”
Optional,” which played in New York in Janu-
ary and February before COVID-19 shut down
that, too. In that show, she said, “With a wink
in my eye, I did a rap as RBG, which is one of
the great moments of that concert.”
And, in true Feldshuh style, she broke into
the rap down the phone, complete with beat-
boxing:
I’m always optimistic, I never get rattled
Each day’s an opportunity to win another
battle
Don’t worry about my health, I’m perform-
ing at my peak
You’ll find me on the bench, doing pushups
next week
According to Twitter I’m notorious
I’ve gone viral, ain’t it glorious
I’ve much in common with B.I.G.
We’re homies from Brooklyn, Yo, Jay-Z!
“I did what I could to support a great
American soul — a great patriot,” Feldshuh
said. “I loved her very much and I will miss
her. Considering all the cancer she had, she
lived brilliantly and was alert. She never had
dementia. She lived until she died; until she
fell off that cliff. She didn’t diminish except in
the last weeks.”
Despite the great loss of Ginsburg and the
turmoil now swirling around her potential re-
placement, Feldshuh said, “I believe in Anne
Frank. The world will right itself and this per-
son in the White House will be out and we will
get well again.” n
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 41
 Thriller ‘Tehran’
or
su
di

Depicts Dangerous
th

Is

Mossad Mission
pr
lit
am
Zo

Slow down...
Read the Journal.
Inside Iran le
m
hu

» by Gerri Miller, Contributing Writer

“
NAMED FOR THE IRANIAN CAPITAL price is for trying to break away from them.”
in which it is set, “Tehran” is an edge-of- While it was co-creator Maor Kohn’s origi-

the-seat espionage thriller about an Israeli
mission to disable a nuclear reactor — a
task that’s left in the inexperienced hands
of a young Mossad agent and master hacker
on her first undercover assignment. Things
don’t go according to plan as errors are made
and relationships both romantic and famil-
ial complicate the operation and raise the
stakes.
From co-creator Moshe Zonder, who
wrote the first season of “Fauda,” it stars Niv
Sultan in the central role and “Homeland’s”
Shaun Toub and Navid Negahban —both
born in Iran — in supporting roles. The eight-
part Apple TV+ series will premiere three
episodes on Sept. 25 and one installment per
week thereafter.
“Our show is entertaining and full of ac-
tion but we knew that it would be better if
we [could] integrate the personal side of the
characters, to make one thing lead to another
… [and raise] the stakes to be as high as pos-
sible by integrating those two layers,” Zonder
told the Journal. “The show is actually about
identity, connection, devotion to your family
and your roots and checking out what the
s
nal idea five years ago, “Everything about Iran
has fascinated me, the ayatollah regime and
the young people who are demonstrating
against the regime in the streets, risking their s
lives,” Zonder said. He endeavored to human-
ize characters like Toub’s security chief Faraz a
Kamali, who has to deal with a personal crisis
as well as a national one. Ta
“Our biggest challenge was to write the th
Iranian characters; to get under their skin and Sh
understand the way they feel, think and act,” da
Zonder said. “I was an investigative journal- al
ist before I became a screenwriter and it was ta
always a challenge for me to cross the border
physically and mentally, to learn about my up
enemy, the one I’ve been told that wants to en
kill me. When we were doing the research se
before writing, we looked at YouTube for ex- ism
ample, and if you put it on mute, they looked im
Israeli. We are more the same than different.
There are a lot of similarities between us.” in
During their research, he and co-writer w
Omri Shenhar met and interviewed Mossad ta
case officers who work counterintelligence la
on Iran’s nuclear program. For obvious rea- in
sons, they couldn’t go to Tehran at that stage is

42 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com September 25-October 1, 2020 Se


or to shoot the series. Co-creator Dana Eden
suggested Athens, Greece, as a stand-in, and
director Daniel Syrkin and his team worked
their magic.
As for their main character, Iranian-born
Israeli Tamar Rabinyan, “We wanted our
protagonist to be a woman. It was a po-
litical decision to put a young woman, this
amazing hacker, in this tough macho world,”
Zonder said.
It’s Sultan’s first international role, and
learning to speak Farsi and training in the
martial art krav maga were not her only
hurdles. “It’s such a challenging role because
“She’s not the regular Mossad agent,
saving the day. She’s brave, powerful and
strong, but she’s also afraid and insecure
and she makes mistakes.” — Niv Sultan
Tamar combines so many layers within her,”
the actress said. “Her journey is so interesting.
She’s not the regular Mossad agent, saving the
day. She’s brave, powerful and strong, but she’s
also afraid and insecure and she makes mis-
takes.”
Of Moroccan Jewish heritage, Sultan grew
up in Jerusalem, where she visits most week-
ends. “In the middle” between religious and
secular, she has a strong connection to Juda-
ism, her family and her city. “Faith is a very
important thing for me,” she said.
Although she always dreamed of becom-
ing an actress, the Tel Aviv entertainment
world seemed out of reach. But after her mili-
tary service, she moved there to study and
landed TV series roles starting in 2013. She’s
in rehearsals for a new series now. “ ‘Tehran’
is such an important story and I hope to keep
September 25-October 1, 2020
ARTS
on working in these kinds of things,” Sultan Photo courtesy of Apple TV+
said. “I’m hoping to keep on doing things that
interest me and challenge me and make me
feel alive. I’m hoping for good things to come.”
Zonder’s Polish-born father escaped to Is-
rael in 1935 and his mother, also Polish, moved
to Canada after the war after losing her entire
family in the Holocaust. “She came to Israel
for a vacation in 1956 and met my father.
They fell in love and she stayed here,” he said.
He’s married with two sons, one who recently
completed his military service and the other,
who has just started it.
Zonder was studying to be a movie and
TV director at the University of Tel Aviv
when he “realized I was writing the scripts
for half of my class,” he said. “I really love to
direct actors but my heart is in the writing.
I wrote five feature films and then started
to write TV series.” He’s developing a new
show now and has ideas for a second sea-
son of “Tehran,” but can’t share any details
yet about either.
“Tehran” already has aired in Israel, and
“the reaction was amazing,” Zonder said.
“Many people saw it and loved it. While it
was airing in Israel, there were mysterious
bombings in Iran. Israel didn’t take respon-
sibility, but everyone was thinking that the
Mossad was connected to it.” n
“Tehran” premieres on Sept. 25 on Apple
TV+.
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 43

Albert Dabah Tackles Delicate Family
Material in ‘Extra Innings’
» by Simi Horwitz
WRITER-DIRECTOR ALBERT DABAH
knows he’s treading in delicate territory in
“Extra Innings,” an autobiographical debut
film that dramatizes two family suicides,
those of his brother, Morris (Robert Ramos),
who overdosed on pills, and then five years
later, his sister Vivian (Mara Kassin), who
jumped off a cliff.
Violating family privacy heads the list of
challenges Dabah faced, but he felt compelled
to tell his story nonetheless. The movie was
not simply a therapeutic outlet for his own
lingering anguish; it also was his way of recog-
nizing and honoring their lives, which seem-
ingly were erased almost from the moment
they died.
“No one ever talked about them,” Dabah
said during a phone conversation from his
New York City home. “It was as if they never
existed. I think perhaps I’m the only one who
ever really knew them, anyway. I had a close
relationship with both.”
Set in the early 1960s in an insular Jewish
Syrian community in Brooklyn, the award-
winning “Extra Innings” is at its core a com-
ing-of-age tale, awash in intergenerational
culture clash. Young David (Aiden Pierce Bren-
nan), who attends a religious day school, loves
baseball and has his sights set on a baseball
career. But his father (played by Dabah) has lit-
tle tolerance for David’s dreams. His immedi-
ate concern is David’s upcoming bar mitzvah,
and he views baseball as an intrusion. Beyond
that, he expects David to join the family busi-
ness (though it’s never entirely clear what that
is) and marry a Jewish woman. He is not at all
pleased with David’s non-Jewish friends (and
later, a non-Jewish girlfriend). His mandate is
simple: “You stick to your own kind.”
The family also includes David’s belea-
guered but empathic mom (Geraldine Singer);
a goody two-shoes older sister, Rita (Natasha
Coppola-Shalom); Vivian, who is living in Los
Angeles, a divorced, sexually liberated free
spirit always longing for that elusive love; and,
most centrally, Morris, a lethargic round man
who speaks in a drone when he speaks at all.
A diagnosed schizophrenic and arguably an
44 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com
idiot savant, he is brilliant in mathematics,
classical music, literature and baseball. His
topics range from Dostoevsky to Ty Cobb.
“Extra Innings” endured 12 revisions over
20 years. Dabah recalled that in an earlier
draft, his Jewish Syrian community was al-
most a character, clearly defined and vividly
etched. What now emerges on screen is a
Jewish world but one that is not singularly
Syrian.
“I wanted the story to be more universal,
but I was also sensitive to Syrian Jews being
an intensely private community,” Dabah said.
“My very religious [surviving] sister who still
lives in that world begged me not to make the
picture. She has seven children and 61 grand-
children and was fearful that if the suicides
in our family came to light, her grandchildren
would not be viewed as marriageable. Suicide
is still that much of a stigma and therefore
not talked about.”
One major reason for making the film was
“I wanted the story to be more universal, but I was also
sensitive to Syrian Jews being an intensely private community.
My very religious [surviving] sister who still lives in that world
begged me not to make the picture.” — Albert Dabah
to open up the conversation and help lift the
stigma. Dabah was careful not to lay blame
at anyone’s feet. The family is dysfunctional,
but there are no villains. Even the father, who
seemingly is the most disconnected, is doing
the best he can.
“Playing my father did not really change
my view of him, but rather confirmed what I
already knew,” Dabah said. “Yet, when I said
the lines to David [the older David is played
by Alex Walton], as my father said to me, that
he would disown me if I married my Chris-
tian girlfriend, I broke down all over again. I
was sad for me but also sad for him. He was
unable to know me.”
Dabah’s father could not reconcile himself
to his son’s love of baseball, early career as a
psychotherapist and later his stint as an ac-
tor. His son’s disaffection with religion was
further alienation, though Dabah said he very
much identifies as a Jew.
At 69, Dabah is mature for a first time film-
maker, but he insisted he encountered no age-
ism. For the past 40-plus years, he has headed
Simba, his video production company that
creates commercials plus educational and
promotional materials, among other services.
During the course of his career, he has worked
with many major names (Meryl Streep,
Martin Scorsese) in front of and behind the
scenes. His experience with casting directors,
for example, showed him what to look for in
auditioning actors, not least the ability to do
a scene in more than one way. That was the
stumbling block among the actors he audi-
tioned to play his dad. Even if they resembled
him, they didn’t have the acting chops.
“Jon Lovett suggested I do it,” Dabah said.
“And once I decided I would, I brought on a co-
director [Brian Drillinger]. I didn’t feel I could
direct myself.”
Dabah never envisioned himself as a writ-
er and director, let alone a co-producer of his
own feature film. But like many new screen-
writers, he futilely shopped his script around.
Responses (from those who bothered to re-
spond at all) were all over the map. “Typically,
they wanted me to tell a whole different story
— their story,” Dabah said. “One well-known
distributor was turned off by the two suicides.
ARTS
He found it implausible, even though it had
actually happened.” In the end, Dabah felt that
to tell his story the way he wanted, he would
have to make the film himself.
Asked to what degree he reshaped the
truth in order to make it believable, Dabah
said he changed nothing that was funda-
mentally significant, though he employed
dramatic license in recounting some of the
more peripheral details. In an effort to hit a
contemporary note, his late sister’s lover was
portrayed as a woman when in fact it was a
Black man. Dabah felt the lesbian relation-
ship would have greater resonance today
than an interracial love story.
Dabah would love to write and/or direct
another film, though at the moment none is
in the hopper. Recently, he took a life-coach-
ing course, toying with the idea of wearing
his therapeutic hat again. His attentions now
are focused on “Extra Innings” and he hopes
that after viewing the film, people are more
comfortable talking about mental illness in
general and suicide in particular. It’s not that
the pain will go away, he stressed.
“There’s no such thing as closure,” he
said, debunking the widely held myth. “But I
no longer feel guilty for having survived and
having had a good life.” n
“Extra Innings” is available on Amazon,
iTunes, Google Play, Vudu, Fandango, Xbox and
InDemand.
Simi Horwitz is an award-winning feature
writer and film reviewer.
September 25-October 1, 2020

AMERICANS HAVE BEEN GUARAN-
teed the freedom of religion under the First
Amendment for more than two centuries,
but it’s not a right that we can or should take
for granted.
That’s the alarming message in “The
Religion Clauses: The Case for Separating
Church and State” by Howard Gillman and
Erwin Chemerinsky, which is the latest title
in the “Inalienable Rights Series” from Ox-
ford University Press. They argue that the
conservative majority on the Supreme Court
already has signaled that they “reject the
idea of a wall separating church and state,”
and the authors point out that a tireless
Watching the Wall
Between Church and
State Crumble
» by Jonathan Kirsch
champion of freedom of religion under the
First Amendment was the beloved dissenter,
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Sept.
18 from complications of pancreatic cancer.
The freedom of religion in the First
Amendment actually consists of two sepa-
rate principles. The so-called “Establishment
Clause” addresses what the government can
and cannot do when it comes to supporting
religion, and the “Free Exercise Clause” ad-
dresses what the government can and can-
not do when it comes to limiting religion.
Jurists and commentators who are willing to
dismantle the wall between church and state
are called “accommodationists,” and those
who seek to keep the wall intact are called
“separationists.”
Hill and Chemerinsky declare from the
outset of their provocative and deeply well-
informed book that they are separationists.
“Under this view, the government should
be secular; the place for religion is in people’s
lives, their homes, and their places of wor-
ship,” they write. “We are convinced … that
those who drafted the Constitution, including
the Bill of Rights, overwhelmingly wanted a
secular government.”
As distinguished scholars — Gillman is a
political scientist and Chemerinsky is a con-
stitutional law scholar — the authors do not
engage in special pleading for the impact of
the First Amendment on Jews, but everything
they write about the freedom of religion in
America has a special resonance for the Jew-
ish reader. Even in a liberal democracy like
England, a practicing Jew could not sit in Par-
liament until 1858 and, even then, the head
September 25-October 1, 2020
of state was (and is) the head of the Church of
England. As recently as 1986, they point out,
the Supreme Court ruled that an Orthodox
Jewish psychiatrist who worked for the U.S.
Air Force “was required to abide by its uni-
form dress requirements even though that
meant he could not wear a yarmulke while
on duty at a military hospital.”
So, the authors find themselves compelled
by the facts of history to point out that “[v]ir-
tually every recent Supreme Court case about
the Religion Clauses has involved whether
the government can accommodate Christi-
anity” — and the answer has been “yes.” But
when it comes to non-Christian religions, the
high court has rejected legal arguments based
on the First Amendment. Thus, for example,
“the five most conservative justices rejected
a challenge based on the Religion Clauses” by
upholding President Donald Trump’s travel
ban “even though he repeatedly declared that
his goal was to prevent Muslims from enter-
ing the country.”
The dismantling of the wall between
church and state by the Supreme Court has
required some strange moral and intellectual
contortions. When the court ruled in 2019
that a 40-foot cross on a war memorial stand-
The authors do not engage in special
pleading for the impact of the First
Amendment on Jews, but everything
they write about the freedom of religion
in America has a special resonance for
the Jewish reader.
ing on public property in Maryland was not
a violation of the Establishment Clause, Jus-
tice Samuel Alito argued that that “the cross
has taken on a secular meaning,” and yet he
also argued that removing the cross “would
be perceived as hostility to religion,” which
would violate the Free Exercise Clause.
The defense of freedom of religion fell to
Ginsburg and her fellow separationists, who
were always in the minority. “By maintain-
ing the Peace Cross on a public highway, the
[government] elevates Christianity over other
faiths, and religion over nonreligion,” she
wrote in one of the dissents
for which she is celebrated.
“Memorializing the service of
American soldiers is an ‘ad-
mirable and unquestionably
secular’ objective. But the
[government] does not serve
that objective by displaying a
symbol that bears a ‘starkly
sectarian message.’ ”
In a rare moment of per-
sonal testimony, the authors
attest to impact these cases
have on Jewish citizens of
the United States and, at the
same time, they anticipate
and rebut any argument that
separationists are necessarily hostile to reli-
gion.
“Both of us grew up mindful that we were
Jewish in a Christian-dominated political sys-
tem and we believed we were as entitled to
the government’s respect as those who had
their Christmas holidays formally recog-
nized in our school’s calendar, even though
our Jewish holidays were not,” write Gillman
and Chemerinsky. “If there were a large Latin
cross atop a city hall, those who were not
part of religions that accept the cross as a
BOOK REVIEW
religious symbol would feel that it was not
‘their’ city government.”
To their credit, the authors are plain-
spoken about their own values and aspira-
tions. The First Amendment, they declare,
“was meant to create a wall that separates
church and state.” For that reason, “prayer
should not be part of government activi-
ties, religious symbols do not belong on
government property, and the government
should be very limited in its ability to give
aid directly to religious institutions.” At
the same time, “the government can make
sure that women have access to contra-
ception and that anti-discrimination laws
are enforced,” both of which are issues on
which recent Supreme Court cases — Hob-
by Lobby and Masterpiece Cakeshop — “were
wrongly decided.”
Among their many other credentials and
achievements, Gillman is chancellor of UC
Irvine and Chemerinsky is the dean of the
law school at UC Berkeley. Yet they have
successfully navigated between scholar-
ship and advocacy in “The Religion Clauses,”
which serves as a short course in the con-
stitutional underpinnings of freedom of
religion and, at the same time, as an acces-
sible and persuasive argument that, when it
comes to the proposition that government
must not make any law that impinges upon
freedom of religion, no law means no law. n
Jonathan Kirsch, author and publishing at-
torney, is the book editor of the Jewish Journal.
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 45
 WHAT ’ S HAP P E N I N G

Yom Kippur Services, Kever Avot, Sukkot Event

» by Ryan Torok, Contributing Writer
FRI SEPT 25
SHABBAT SHUVAH
Young adult community NuRoots
celebrates Shabbat Shuvah at its virtual
Shabbat table, reflecting on how you may
have missed the mark this year and how
you may improve. Join members in rituals
and in breakout rooms on Zoom. 5 p.m.
$30. nuroots.org/awe.
ART IN TIME OF CRISIS
Asylum Arts founder Rebecca Guber
talks about the challenges of creating art
in a time of worldwide crisis. She is joined
by cartoonist Chari Pere in an interview
Rebecca
Guber
SUN SEPT 27
HIGHER HOLIDAYS
Organized by Hillel and Reboot, “The
Highest Kol Nidre” features a musical
performance by Broadway actor Adam
Kantor, plus actor Danny Burstein
delivering a dramatic reading of the Kol
Nidre text in English, with instrumental
sounds by company members from the
award-winning musical “The Band’s
Visit.” Also includes Iraqi-Israeli actor-
singer Sharone Sayegh, a presentation
by Rabbi Jessica Kirschner and poetry
by Blavity’s Aaron Samuels. 2:30 p.m.
and 5:30 p.m. higherholidays.org/kol-
nidre.

SUN SEPT 27 Adam Kantor

‘DAYS OF AWESOME’
“Days of Awesome” is the name of Pico Shul’s High Holy
Days services for millennials. Husband and wife Rabbi
Yonah Bookstein and rebbetzin Rachel Bookstein hold
Kol Nidre and Yom Kippur services together with Cantors
Yehuda Prero and Tuli Skaist. The in-person garden
services comply with health and rabbinic guidelines.
6 p.m. Kol Nidre; 8:45 a.m. Yom Kippur morning service
and Yizkor; 4 p.m. Mincha (first come, first served); 5:30
p.m. Neilah (first come, first served). Individually wrapped
break-fast items provided. Register at daysofawesome.org.
with Rotem Rozental of American Jewish
University. 9:30 a.m. aju.edu.
SUN SEPT 27
KEVER AVOT SERVICE
Hillside Memorial Park and Mortuary
holds a Kever Avot service led by Temple
Israel of Hollywood Rabbi Calvin Dox-
DaCosta, cantorial soloist Shelly Fox, Temple
Judea Rabbi-Cantor Alison Wissot and others.
9 a.m. hillsidememorial.org/kever-avot.
IKAR FREE SERVICES
IKAR’s free and virtual High Holy Day
services include Kol Nidre, featuring
Chazzan Hillel Tigay’s traditional and not-
Bryan
Stevenson
so-traditional melodies and Rabbi Sharon
Brous’ sermon, designed to stretch hearts.
On Yom Kippur, the morning service
features Bryan Stevenson, founder and
executive director of the Equal Justice
Initiative. IKAR and the Jewish Emergent
Network team for afternoon programming.
6 p.m. Kol Nidre; 10 a.m. Yom Kippur; 12:30
p.m. Yizkor; 6:15 p.m. Neilah. ikar-la.org.
KOL NIDRE, YOM KIPPUR
Beth Ohr welcomes members and
visitors to Kol Nidre services and to four
events on Yom Kippur with Rabbi Haim
Beliak and cantorial soloist Andrew Henry.
Separate tickets ($40) are required for
most services. 7:30 p.m. Kol Nidre. For Yom
Kippur: 10 a.m. morning service; 3 p.m.
study and community discussion; 4 p.m.
Yizkor; 4:30 p.m. closing service and virtual
break-fast. bethohr.ontrapages.com.
YOUNG PROFESSIONALS’
YOM KIPPUR
Sinai Temple’s Atid group for young
professionals in their 20s and 30s holds
Kol Nidre and Yom Kippur services. 6:30-
8:30 p.m. Kol Nidre. Yom Kippur: 9 a.m.
Atid service; 10 a.m. Torah in the Round
service; 10 a.m. family minyan; 11 a.m.
Ziegler Sanctuary service; 1:30-4 p.m.
yoga, meditation, reflection and learning
for young professionals via Zoom; 5-7 p.m.
Neilah/Havdalah. Email atid@sinaitemple.
org with questions. For more information, visit
atidla.com.

Have an event coming up?

Send your information two weeks prior to the event to
ryant@jewishjournal.com for consideration. For groups
staging an event that requires an RSVP, please submit details
about the event the week before the RSVP deadline.

46 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com September 25-October 1, 2020


MON SEPT 28
NAVIGATING IDENTITIES
Temple Emanuel of Beverly Hills continues
its annual tradition of holding in-depth
conversations on contemporary issues. This
Rabbi
Sarah
Bassin
year, the discussion is held virtually with
Rabbi Sarah Bassin moderating “Multiple
Identities: Navigating Jewish Spaces as a
Person of Color and Minority Spaces as a
Jew.” April Baskin, former vice president of
September 25-October 1, 2020
MON SEPT 28
‘UNSPOKEN TRUTHS’
Pico Union Project holds two
conversations. In “What’s the
Issue?” Fernando Guerra, director
of the Center for the Study of Los
Angeles, and Jessica Levinson of
the Loyola Law School examine
ballot measures that will
shape Los Angeles in the years
ahead, with Stuart K. Robinson
moderating. In “My Song — The
Art of Art,” musicians Peter
Yarrow, Chava Mirel, Dave Koz
and Gabriel Mann join founder
Craig Taubman. 12:30 p.m. and
2:30 p.m. picounionproject.org/
truths.
audacious hospitality for the Union of Reform
Judaism, and Emiliana Guereca, executive
director of the Women’s March Los Angeles,
join Bassin in tackling the quetions, “What are
the common joys, challenges and experiences
of Jews of color? What are the barriers facing
Jewish people who are not white?” 2:45 p.m. at
facebook.com/templeemanuel.
TUE SEPT 29 THU OCT 1
CENSORSHIP IN THE ISRAELI ART ‘OFFICIAL UNOFFICIAL
WORLD VOTING STATION’
Israeli artist and gallery curator Abraham The new virtual exhibition
Kritzman in conversation with Rotem “The Official Unofficial Voting
Rozental of American Jewish University about Station” begins a two-month
“Free Speech and Censorship in Israel’s Art run at the Skirball Cultural
World.” 11 a.m. aju.edu. Center. The exhibition imagines
an idealized online polling
WED SEPT 30 place. skirball.org.
‘CONDITIONAL CITIZENS’
Moroccan immigrant Laila Lalami, a
Pulitzer Prize in fiction finalist, talks about
marginalized groups and her new book,
“Conditional Citizens: On Belonging in
America,” with Black Southern writer Kiese
Laymon. 7:30 p.m. skirball.org.
THU OCT 1
GAMES FOR THE SUKKAH
Stacy Katz, co-inventor of the family card
game “Not Parent Approved,” talks to Rabbi
Sherre Hirsch of American Jewish University
about suggested games for the sukkah during
Sukkot. Noon. aju.edu.
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 47
 FOR MANY JEWISH ELDERS, FASTING
on Yom Kippur is a religious and cultural
imperative as well as a lifelong tradition.
In fact, many seniors who may not be

Yom Kippur Fasting

traditional in other ways continue the
practice of abstaining from all food on this
holiest day of the Jewish year, the Day of
Atonement.
But is it safe for seniors to fast? And

Expectations for Seniors

what does Judaism have to say for those
whose health issues may make fasting
dangerous?
Perhaps not surprisingly, Jewish law
directs sick people to consult a physician.
The priority is always to err on the side
Photo vy Adene Sanchez/Getty Images

» by Dana Gitell, Hebrew SeniorLife of health. For example, if a patient feels

well enough to fast but their physician
disagrees, the patient is directed by Jewish
law to skip the fast. Conversely, if a patient
does not feel well enough to fast but their
physician believes they are healthy enough
to do so, again the patient is instructed
not to fast. Jewish law also offers that
those who need to eat for health reasons

48 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com September 25-October 1, 2020


may observe the fast by eating in small
quantities throughout the day, rather than
traditional meals.
But even the small-snacks route can
cause problems for seniors with certain
health conditions. Dr. Jennifer Rhodes-
Kropf, a Hebrew SeniorLife staff geriatrician
and assistant professor of medicine at
Harvard Medical School, encourages all
seniors to consult a physician before any
fast — especially those with the following
specific medical issues:
• Diabetes: “If someone has diabetes
and they are on diabetes medication, they
absolutely should talk to their physician
about whether and how to fast safely,”
Rhodes-Kropf said. Taking the usual
medication without eating can induce
hypoglycemia, a condition in which blood
glucose levels become dangerously low.
• Chronic pain: There are certain
pain medications, like nonsteroidal
anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and
narcotics, that are advisable to take only
with a full stomach. NSAIDs include
common drugs like aspirin, ibuprofen and
naproxen.
• Dizziness: For most seniors, Rhodes-
Kropf recommends some level of hydration.
Insufficient fluid intake increases the risk
of dizziness and falling.
• Hypertension: If you are reducing your
Senators
Ben Allen
Steven Glazer
Bob Hertzberg
Hannah-Beth Jackson
Susan Rubio
Henry Stern
Scott Wiener
Wishing you and your family a healthy and sweet New Year! Shana Tova!
September 25-October 1, 2020
fluid intake, blood pressure medication
may need adjustment. Going off these
medicines suddenly can be dangerous, so
consult a professional first.
“Even if you are older, fasting can be
done safely if it is important to you,”
Rhodes-Kropf said. “The key is making
the decision thoughtfully, considering
one’s medical conditions and doctor’s
advice.”
Rabbi Sara Paasche-Orlow, director
Is it safe for seniors to fast? And what
does Judaism have to say for those
whose health issues may make fasting
dangerous?
of spiritual care for Hebrew SeniorLife,
adds there are many ways for seniors to
have a meaningful Yom Kippur, fasting
or not. “The obligation to fast is about
inflicting your soul,” she explained.
“While some suffering is intended, the
idea is to put aside worldly pleasures
during this day such that you can reflect
on the themes of Yom Kippur: repentance
Senator Ben Allen, Chair
and
Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel, Vice Chair
Paid for by the California Jewish Legislative Caucus Leadership Foundation
and renewal. It’s a time to focus on the
meaning of life — to open up your heart
to new possibilities — and set personal
goals for the year ahead.”
This reflection can be achieved in
many personal ways beyond the realm
of food, including attending religious
services, reading reflective texts and
contemplation. “Fasting does not define
Yom Kippur,” she said.
To help nonfasters put their eating
in context with the purpose of the day,
Paasche-Orlow offers a prayer for the
holiday, “Before Yom Kippur for One Who
Cannot Fast,” for those who cannot fast as
a possible meditation:
Ribbono shel Olam / Master of the
Universe; Creator of All, Source of All Life,
Who Knows What is Deep in Human
50 PLUS
Hearts, Who Nurtures Every Living Being:
As You know, dear God,
Yom Kippur is here,
and I am not able to keep the traditional
fast — I cannot abstain totally from eating.
On this Day of Atonement, this Sabbath
of Sabbaths, this year and every year,
it is so central to join the people of
Israel
in abstaining from food and drink for
one day and to focus on correcting our
misdeeds,
on knowing our mortality;
on reaching for a life of Torah, mitzvot and
lovingkindness.
You know, dear God, that it is not my
intent
to be apart from our people and our
tradition.
My current state of health makes it
unsuitable for me to fast.
So, dear God, I turn to You now in
sincerity and openness:
Help me in the coming year to do my
best in guarding my health.
I thank You for the breath that is in me
May my eating be as a fast;
May it be dedicated to You, to teshuvah —
renewal and return. n
A version of this story appeared on
hebrewseniorlife.org in September 2014.
Assemblymembers
Rebecca Bauer-Kahan
Richard Bloom
Marc Berman
Laura Friedman
Jesse Gabriel
Marc Levine
Jose Medina
Adrin Nazarian
Blanca Rubio
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 49
 L’SHANA
TOVA

Photo by Natalie Board / EyeEm/Getty Images

Wishing you and your
family a happy and
healthy new year!
Jewish Programming
Innovations — for
(and by) Seniors
» by Julie Wiener
AS BABY BOOMERS AGE, SENIOR
programming, services and care are evolving
— leveraging technology and adapting to the
needs and interests of older adults. Many new
programs are being piloted and developed by
seniors themselves. Here are some pioneering
programs being modeled in the Jewish world.
ChaiVillageLA (Los Angeles)
Temple Emanuel of Beverly Hills (Reform)
and Temple Isaiah (Conservative) once saw
each other as competitors for members. Now,
while each synagogue remains independent,
the two share a “village.”
With 230 members between the ages of 60
you need to be a member of one of the syna-
gogues,” Geller said. “We’re discovering that
people who would have left the synagogue
are staying and others are joining a synagogue
because they want to be part of the village.”
To join ChaiVillageLA, individuals pay an-
nual dues plus synagogue membership and
commit to doing four hours of community
service a month, anything from taking an-
other member to the doctor, to tutoring with
a literacy organization, to volunteering at one
of the synagogues.
ChaiVillageLA leaders already are work-
ing with four synagogues in the Los Angeles
suburbs to help them plan their own villages

MONICA ANDRIACCHI, AU.D. and 92, ChaiVillageLA is the first synagogue-

based member of the Village to Village Net-
and are exploring the possibility of creating a
national network of synagogue-based villages.

Doctor of Audiology work, a nonprofit supporting these grassroots

The House Institute Hearing Aid Centers is dedicated
to providing hearing health care solutions custom-suited
for your individual needs.
intentional communities for older adults, in
which members provide services for one an-
other, such as helping with household chores
or running errands, and get together for
shared activities, such as excursions to muse-
ums, art classes and book clubs.
Villages, which proponents say reduce
loneliness and make it easier for members to
“We’re not looking to expand ChaiVillageLA
but to offer the model to other synagogues,”
Geller said.
LGBTQ Seniors Initiative
(Hebrew SeniorLife, Boston)
Among the souvenirs circulating at the
Boston Pride Parade in 2018 were hundreds of
handmade rainbow-colored potholders, each

Call (424) 272-7480

continue living independently at home, are
becoming increasingly popular; as of 2019, the
Village to Village Network reported the exis-
to schedule an appointment. tence of 240 open villages and more than 100
in development in 41 states and Washington,
D.C.
Rabbi Laura Geller, rabbi emeritus of Tem-
ple Emanuel and co-author of “Getting Good
at Getting Older,” was inspired to launch
ChaiVillageLA not just because it filled a need
for a demographic the Jewish community has
2825 Santa Monica Blvd., Suite 103, Santa Monica, CA 90404 long neglected — older adults who are retired
but still healthy and active — but because she
househearing.com believed it would strengthen synagogues.
“In order to be a member of ChaiVillage,
one with a label that said, “Made with Pride
at Hebrew SeniorLife.” And each of the nine
long-term care facilities in this Harvard-affil-
iated, Boston-area senior care network, which
serves more than 3,000 (mostly Jewish) clients,
has a rainbow banner displayed outside.
The message, reinforced by the extensive
training chaplains and staff there now un-
dergo: LGBTQ seniors are welcome and sup-
ported.
“I’ve literally had someone look at the ban-
ner and then say, ‘Oh, I thought I was going
to have to be closeted here,’ ” said Rabbi Sara
Paasche-Orlow, Hebrew SeniorLife’s director of
spiritual care, who began the LGBTQ Seniors

50 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com September 25-October 1, 2020


Initiative.
Hebrew SeniorLife also has a chaplain
dedicated to issues related to the LGBTQ com-
munity, provides training for other senior care
institutions, and offers various programs to
promote LGBTQ awareness and sensitivity
among residents of its facilities. The staff learn
to be sensitive to some of the unique challeng-
es LGBTQ seniors may face. Many have linger-
ing trauma from earlier in their lives, such as
experiencing police brutality at gay bars or
having their children taken away from them
because of their sexuality, Paasche-Orlow said.
The heightened sensitivity paid off when a
male resident arrived and staff found several
articles of women’s clothing in his suitcase.
Whereas “in the past that might have resulted
in the staff giggling about him or maybe taking
those clothes away,” this discovery prompted
an open conversation about the man’s iden-
tity, Paasche-Orlow said, and “between then
and when he died, he was able to live out his
orientation.”
‘Experience stations’ for dementia
patients (San Francisco Campus for
Jewish Living)
The San Francisco Campus for Jewish Liv-
ing (SFCJL, formerly the Jewish Home), a non-
profit providing long-term residential and
short-term rehabilitation care for older adults,
is developing several “experience stations” —
sophisticated virtual reality booths — where
residents with dementia will be able to do
“Jewish grandparents matter in family
life today. And we need to pay attention
to that.” — Lee M. Hendler
a variety of things, from playing games to
spending time in simulated pleasant environ-
ments to visiting special places from earlier in
their lives.
The main goals, said Robert Sarison, SFCJL’s
director of campus programs, are to “improve
quality of life” and provide greater cognitive
stimulation. He said, “People with dementia
are still capable of learning new things,” add-
ing that mastering a new tool, such as a virtual
reality game, can be empowering.
Jewish Grandparents Network
(national)
Lee M. Hendler calls grandparents the
“ghosts of the Jewish world.”
For decades, the Jewish community has
focused obsessively on engaging almost every
other demographic — teens, college students,
new parents, toddlers, 20- and 30-somethings
— while Jewish grandparents of children un-
der 18 were “overlooked” and “invisible,” Hen-
dler said.
In fact, Jewish grandparents often play a
critical role in families, with their working
children frequently turning to them for child
care and financial assistance. So in 2017, Hen-
dler and her friend David Raphael created the
Jewish Grandparents Network to learn more
September 25-October 1, 2020
50 PLUS
Zoom into Shabbat with Lev
about this demographic and how Jewish insti-
tutions can serve them. Saturday, October 3 at 10:00am
First, the network commissioned a land-
mark study of Jewish grandparents of children Join Lev Eisha for an interactive,
18 and under, which, according to Hendler,
found that “transmitting Jewish traditions
virtual Shabbat service via Zoom
matters” to Jewish grandparents, but they with Rabbi Toba August and
don’t always have the tools or know-how to Cantorial Soloist Cindy Paley. We
do so.
Hendler and Raphael have been meeting can’t wait to “see” you there!
with a range of Jewish institutions, including
the Jewish Community Centers Association
All are welcome; please
of North America, to help them better engage visit www.leveisha.org to join.
Jewish grandparents. That involves everything
from making sure they’re offering relevant,
appealing programs to ensuring that grand-
parents feel welcome and are represented on
institutional websites.
The two also are engaging StoryCorps, a
ROSNER’S DOMAIN
nonprofit focused on collecting, sharing and
preserving stories, for help in developing tools
to make it easier for Jewish grandparents to
pass on family stories.
“Jewish grandparents matter in family life
today,” said Hendler, herself a grandmother of
six. “And we need to pay attention to that.”
Wise Aging (national)
Life doesn’t come with an instruction man- ON THE U.S., ISRAEL, THE MIDDLE EAST AND THE JEWISH WORLD
ual, but maybe the last third of it does: Linda
Thal and Rabbi Rachel Cowan’s 2015 book,
“Wise Aging: Living with Joy, Resilience, and
Spirit,” which offers a variety of tools, many
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of them Jewish, to navigate the spiritual and
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the United States, many in synagogues or Jew-
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people have trained to facilitate Wise Aging
groups — some of which meet for eight ses-
sions, while others last for years. Participants
are mostly between the ages of 65 and 85.
“While we’re not trying to have a Pollyana- UP TO
ish perspective, we are seeing that [this age]
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JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 51
 L’SHANA TOVA FROM ALL OF US AT
VALLEY VISTA SENIOR LIVING
WISHING YOU AND YOUR
FAMILY A HAPPY AND
HEALTHY NEW YEAR!
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52 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com
How Seniors
Can Celebrate
Jewish Holidays
Safely in 2020
» by Jewish Family Home Care
WITH THE HIGH HOLY DAYS UPON • Challah with honey
us and safer-at-home orders still in place, • Fish
many are wondering how they can cel- • Chicken
ebrate the fall holidays with their families. After fasting, a break-fast meal often
The truth is seniors and their loved ones includes (but is not limited to):
still should be able to look forward to cel- • Kugel, eggs
ebrating all the Jewish holidays while keep- • Cheese
ing everyone safe. • Quiches
Seniors and their loved ones can cel- • Bagels
ebrate by:
• Social distancing Sukkot
• Wearing their masks Sukkot, or the Feast of the Tabernacles,
• Communicating via video calls
• Getting tested before gathering
• Limiting the gatherings to 10 or fewer
family members and friends
Let’s explore the holidays at hand and
start planning all the activities that still can
be enjoyed at home while social distancing
and following city, county and state orders.
Photo by fizkes/Getty Images
Yom Kippur
Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atone-
ment, begins on the evening of Sept. 27 and
ends the following evening. The highest of
the holy days, it is a time for self-reflection
spent in prayer and fasting to begin the
new year with a clear conscience.
The holiday traditionally features a begins Friday evening, Oct. 2, and concludes
pre-fasting meal, with foods that include on the evening of Oct. 9. It is traditionally fol-
(among others): lowed by Shemini Atzeret (Oct. 10) and Sim-
• Stuffed dumplings chat Torah (Oct. 11).
• Rice The holiday commemorates the He-
September 25-October 1, 2020

brews’ trek in the Sinai before entering the
Promised Land and serves as a celebration of
the fall harvest. Sukkot features the building
of a sukkah, which can be a perfect activity
for families to come together and decorate.
Celebrating Safely During
the Pandemic
The traditional activities of the holi-
days can continue at home, such as the
preparation and cooking of traditional
meals, which can be enjoyed with imme-
diate family and even close friends.
In situations where seniors are
unable to join family members, video
conferencing is a great way to share
holiday traditions with them.
Social distancing should be practiced,
protecting seniors from virius infection
while allowing them to enjoy the holiday
traditions with family.
In fact, older family members likely
would enjoy teaching traditional recipes to
younger family members. During the time
September 25-October 1, 2020
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Photo by tovfla/Getty Images
together, seniors also can share family sto-
ries of past holidays and even reminisce
about their own childhood when they
learned the traditions, as well as enjoying
the foods prepared and the symbolism be-
hind them.
In situations where seniors are unable
to join family members, video conferenc-
ing is a great way to share holiday tradi-
tions with them. They can prepare the
foods and guide young ones, who can fol-
low along in their own homes.
In any instance, families can enjoy
It’s More Than Retirement. It’s Five-Star Fun.
reading from the Torah and joining in
prayer together, as well as carrying on
8138 Woodlake Ave • West Hills
family traditions during Yom Kippur and
Sukkot. n (747) 900-2043 • FairwindsWestHills.com
A version of this story appeared earlier this
month on jfcares.org.
JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 53
Under existing law, the County of Los Angeles or another
regional entity could raise the Beverly Hills sales tax rate
and collect that incremental revenue. Measure RP ensures
any new sales tax revenue would remain in Beverly Hills
under local control.

DOES MEASURE RP INCREASE TAXES?

Measure RP does not raise taxes unless the County or
another entity imposes an increase to the sales tax.
Measure RP would then be imposed to capture that
revenue for use in Beverly Hills.

HOW WOULD MEASURE RP IMPACT BEVERLY HILLS?

If approved by a majority of Beverly Hills voters, Measure RP would prevent
the loss of local sales tax revenue to regional control and instead retain this
funding for local use under local control.

For more information, please visit beverlyhills.org/measureRP.

 J O N AT H A N F O N G S T Y L E

Break the Fast

with Jonah and
the Whale
If y
pro ou ma
ject
, w ke thi
Pos to see e’d lov s

Placemats
t it e
me n soo it!
d c
#JJc ia with ial
raft
s

» by Jonathan Fong
AFTER READING THE STORY OF JONAH ON YOM KIPPUR,
what better way to break the fast than with a meal featur-
ing these Jonah and the Whale placemats?
For this project, I used a drawing of Jonah that I created
for a Jonah and the Whale tissue box a few years ago. You
can download that, draw your own Jonah or substitute
photos of family members so they can be in the belly of
the whale. My favorite part of the placemat is the blow-
hole for the napkin. n

What you’ll need:

Blue construction or poster Glue stick
paper Scissors
White paper

1. Start with a large sheet of blue construction paper or 2. Cut a whale shape out of the paper. You don’t have 3. With the excess paper you cut off, fashion a tail and
poster paper. Mine was 12 inches by 18 inches. to be anatomically correct. Just make a rectangle with attach it to the shorter end of the whale with a glue stick.
rounded corners with one side taller than the other.

4. Cut out an eye and mouth from a white sheet of pa- 5. With the rest of your white piece of paper, cut out an 6. Cut a slit at the top of the whale for the blowhole and
per and glue it to the front of the whale. You also can draw oval shape for the belly and glue it to the middle of the insert a napkin through the opening.
them. whale. Add a drawing of Jonah to the belly.

Jonathan Fong is the author of “Flowers That Wow” and “Parties That Wow,” and host of “Style With a Smile” on YouTube. You can see more of his do-it-yourself projects at jonathanfongstyle.com.

September 25-October 1, 2020 JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 55

 O B I T UAR I E S

Annette Barnett died Sept. 3 at 94. Sur-
vived by daughters Wendy (Sid) Engel,
Laurell (James Kelty); 1 grandchild; 1 great-
grandchild. Mount Sinai
Faye Finegood Delson died March 27
at 93. Survived by daughter Cindy Baron;
son Kevin (Diane); 5 grandchildren; sister
Esther Cardinale; brother Samuel (Susan)
Finegood. Chevra Kadisha
Thalia Garin Faye died Sept. 12 at
82. Survived by son Scott (Ilise); 3 grand-
children; sister Nurit (Benjamin) Herkovitz;
brother Avraham (Judith) Garin. Mount Sinai
Selma Myrna Frost died Sept. 10 at
98. Survived by daughter Lesa (Jerry) Leeds;
1 grandchild. Mount Sinai
Roslyn Gerstl died Sept. 14 at 87. Sur-
vived by daughter Michelle Seukunian; 1
grandchild; brother Sumner Feldman. Gro-
man Eden
Joan C. Gill died Sept. 11 at 89. Sur-
vived by sons Mark, Robert (Patricia Ger-
gen). Mount Sinai
Ruth Giller died Sept. 16 at 90. Survived
by daughter Sara; son Paul. Mount Sinai
Marcia Claire Gould died Sept. 7 at 82.
Survived by husband Richard Shontz;
daughter Valerie (Jeff) Eaton; sons Todd
(Jennifer Barbaro), Alan (Stacy); 5 grand-
children; brother David (Lynne) Lertzman.
Mount Sinai
David Hirsch died Sept. 12 at 99. Sur-
vived by daughter Susan; sons Robert, Mi-
chael. Malinow and Silverman
Melvin Kahn died Sept. 14 at 84. Sur-
vived by daughter Tamara (Michael) Katz;
son Andrew; 1 grandchild. Mount Sinai
Mark Kushnir died Aug. 26 at 82. Survived
by daughter Diana (Fima Smelchanskiy); son
Yuriy (Helen Moshkovich); 3 grandchildren.
Chevra Kadisha
Howard M. Leeds died Sept. 5 at 84. Sur-
vived by wife Elena; sons Jeffrey, Scott; 2
grandchildren; sister Helene Sussman. Hill-
side
Roslyn Machlovitz died Sept. 10 at 85. Sur-
vived by husband Arthur; daughter Helen;
son Michael (Ronda); 5 grandchildren. Hillside
Ester Setare Malekan died Aug. 20 at 92.
Survived by daughters Mahin, Shahnaz, Ja-
net; sons Ruben, Aziz, Joseph, Issac, David,
Kourosh; 8 grandchildren; sisters Neima,
Miryam; brothers Morad, Abraham. Chevra
Kadisha
Alfred Maskell died Sept. 11 at 95. Sur-
vived by daughter Linda (Larry) Barouch;
sons Randy, Jay (Joice), Kenneth (Jamie); 8
grandchildren; 2 great-grandchildren. Mount
Sinai
Alfred Meyer Miller died Sept. 10 at 84.
Survived by wife Ann; daughters Deborah
(Carl), Laura (John) Mueller; sons Steven,
Daniel (Jaymie); stepsons Brad (Shawn) Al-
lan, Gregory Phillip Meinhardt; 11 grand-
children; 3 great-grandchildren. Mount Si-
nai
Joshua T. Nimoy died Sept. 4 at 41. Sur-
vived by mother Marijo; father Joseph;
brother Marc (Rebecca). Mount Sinai
Enayat Norouzi died Aug. 19 at 89. Sur-
vived by wife Mahin; sons Kamyar, Ray; 1
grandchild; sisters Farogh, Farah, Parvin;
brothers Bahman, Fred, Hosang, Cirus.
Chevra Kadisha
Eytan Orlander died Aug. 13 at 62. Sur-
vived by wife Ora Lanzer Orlander; sons
Etay, Tom; mother Esther; father Mordecai;
sister Nurit Keshet. Chevra Kadisha
Eileen Popkin died Sept. 8 at 83. Sur-
vived by daughters Donna (Bill) Snell, Kim
(Marc) Kroll, Stacey (David) Aucella, Cyndi
(Andre) Pegus; 8 grandchildren; 1 great-
grandchild. Mount Sinai
Tanya Rashkovsky died Sept. 8 at 79.
Survived by husband Gregory; daughters
Alexandra (Oleg Lebovich), Ayala (Offer)
Cohavy; 8 grandchildren; 2 great-grand-
children; sisters Lyubov (Leonid) Berkhin,
Anna (Yakov) Vaserfirer. Mount Sinai
Eugene Harmon Rogolsky died Sept.
13 at 91. Survived by husband Joseph
Boutell. Mount Sinai
Janice Schrager died Sept. 8 at 88.
Survived by daughter Sheryl; son Michael; 2
grandchildren. Mount Sinai
Irene S. Stein died Sept. 15 at 98. Sur-
vived by daughter Joyce (Richard) Stern; son
Howard; stepson Joe (Kerri); 1 grandchild; 4
great-grandchildren. Mount Sinai
Phyllis Turbow died Sept. 14 at 86. Sur-
vived by husband Bernard; daughter Ellen
Turbow Parr; sons David (Brianna); Steven; 6
grandchildren; 3 great-grandchildren; brother
Bruce (Beverly) Young. Malinow and Silverman
Ruth Waller died Sept. 11 at 89. Survived
by daughter Beth (Edward) Silverman; sons
Franklin, Jonathan; 3 grandchildren; 1 great-
grandchild. Mount Sinai
Susan Washton died Sept. 8 at 71. Sur-
vived by husband Martin; daughters Aman-
da, Rebecca; son Matthew; 5 grandchildren;
sister Janet. Hillside
Phyllis Wills died Sept. 13 at 90. Survived
by daughters Amy, Judi (Tim); son Robert
(Echo); 2 grandchildren. Hillside
Ronald A. Zacky died Sept. 11 at 83. Sur-
vived by wife Sandra; sons Brent (Amy),
Mathew, Hayden (Michelle); 9 grandchildren.
Mount Sinai
Sara Zand died July 16 at 87. Survived
by daughters Lenore Lowen, Odelia (Aha-
ron) Cooper; 3 grandchildren; 2 great-
grandchildren; brother Yossi Friedman.
Chevra Kadisha

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20 September 25-October 1, 2020 JewishJournal.com Jewish Journal | 57
 JUST ASKING

Comedian Joel Chasnoff on His Yom Kippur

‘Corona Confession’
» by Kylie Ora Lobell, Contributing Writer
COMEDIAN JOEL CHASNOFF KNOWS THAT YOM KIPPUR IS JJ: How are you keeping people laughing during the pandemic?
going to look a little different this year. Instead of confessing to JC: As of January, I had never touched Zoom but now it’s where
breaking one of the 613 commandments, in his new video “Corona all the comedy is happening. There are also magicians and singers
Confession,” he shows how the Jewish people will be apologizing for on there. There are some advantages, like not having to travel to a
their actions during the pandemic instead. show. I’d travel to the U.S. for a one-hour show. But I very much miss
The video — which as of press time had racked up close to 75,000 a live audience.
views — shows Chasnoff pounding his chest and confessing to some
of the cardinal sins he and others have committed since the onset
of the COVID-19 pandemic. They include Barachnu, which is leaving
a Zoom meeting early under false pretenses; Googalnu, Googling
coronavirus statistics for no reason; Netflixanu, using the pandemic
as an excuse to watch Netflix; and Purellnu, which is finishing the
Purell. Set to the tune of the Yom Kippur “vidui” (confession) tune,
and in the same vein as the Vidui prayer, Chasnoff lists the sins in
alphabetical order.
A Chicago native who now lives with his family in Ra’anana, Israel,
The rabbi Chasnoff spoke with the Journal about why he made the video, what

said, “We’re
it’s been like doing comedy over Zoom and how he’s been surviving
not one but two lockdowns in Israel.

doing services Jewish Journal: Why did you decide to make “Corona

online. Can
Confession”?
Joel Chasnoff: It’s a strange story. I’d done a Zoom comedy show

you make
for a synagogue because a lot of them are doing that a lot nowadays.
The next day, the rabbi said, “We’re doing services online. Can you

something to make something to make it more exciting?” I brainstormed ideas and

it came to me to make a parody of sins we list off in this particular

make it more prayer but [I’d relate them] to corona.

exciting?” I JJ: How many of those things in the video have you actually
done?

brainstormed JC: I’ve done all of them. I’ve certainly made up excuses to leave
Zoom meetings early and I took a neighbor’s dog for a walk because
ideas and it in Israel, one of the only ways you can get outside when you’re on
lockdown is to walk a pet. I’ve certainly touched fruit in the store and put JJ: Did you do outdoor shows when they were allowed?
came to me it back. I can easily say I’ve done all of them because I reflected on my own
misdeeds. A lot of people are emailing me and saying, “I’ve done all these,
JC: I’ve always felt that comedy is an indoor sport. There is
something about comedy that once there’s no roof, a vibe is lost.
to make a too.” I’m not the outlier here. It relieves us of the burden of thinking we Comedy is so psychological. It’s all about energy and having a shared

parody of sins
aren’t behaving so well. sense of laughter and enjoyment. The energy literally vaporizes into
the atmosphere when it’s outside. I have done 10 outdoor shows

we list off in
JJ: When did you make aliyah? since the pandemic began and I’ve made them work, but it’s not the
JC: I made aliyah twice. The first time was when I was 23 and I joined same thing.

this particular
the army. Then I made aliyah 20 years later after I raised a family in the
U.S. Four years ago, we remade aliyah again as an entire family. My wife JJ: How is the comedy scene in Israel?

prayer but [I’d

is a sabra (native Israeli), so it’s not technically aliyah but returning to the JC: Comedy in Israel is taking off. There are many more comedians
country. My wife and I always wanted to try raising the kids in Israel. It than there were 20 years ago. There are more stages where they can

relate them] started out as an experiment and now it’s been four years, so I guess the
experiment is working.
perform. There’s more variety. The comedy used to be very Israeli.
Now you’re getting comedians who are a little more intellectual.

to corona. JJ: How has life been in Israel with the coronavirus?
JC: It’s been pretty tumultuous. The first round, we were patting
ourselves on the back. We transitioned too fast and the country is on
lockdown again for three weeks. We can’t be more than 500 meters from
our homes. All restaurants, gyms and movies are closed again. It’s like the
first few weeks of the pandemic. The mood here is sour.
JJ: How are people celebrating the High Holy Days?
JC: There are rules, like you can have up to 20 people in an outdoor
space as long as they are 2 meters apart. I think a lot of people will be
davening at home. It’s a vacation season. It’s a time when many Israelis
go away either to Europe or Cyprus or Greece. It’s a chance to be with their
families, so a lot of people are disappointed they can’t go away this year.
Israel is coming up with great TV shows. The comedy clubs were
pretty much sold out before the pandemic.
JJ: How can people stay happy throughout all this?
JC: What I’ve been doing is watching old comedians like Rodney
Dangerfield and Steve Martin and Richard Pryor and reminding
myself of how funny they were and why I got into this in the first
place. It’s a great thing to do, to appreciate the older comedians
and just how funny they were. I watch contemporary things, too.
Comics are putting out videos to shed light on this situation. There
is content being made, thank God. n
You can watch Joel Chasnoff’s “Corona Confession” video at youtube.
com/watch?v=yFmPysI3tl0.

58 | Jewish Journal JewishJournal.com September 25-October 1, 2020