Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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JNS.org—In his speech at the United Nations General Assembly last Tuesday, U.S. President Barack Obama named Iran’s pursuit of nuclear weapons and advancing Arab-Israeli peace as two of his top foreign policy issues. “In the near term, America’s diplomatic efforts will focus on two particular issues: Iran’s pursuit of nuclear weapons, and the Arab-Israeli conflict,” Obama said. Obama said these two issues “have been a major source of instability for far too long, and resolving them can help...
I have devoted numerous columns of late to the tsunami of anti-Semitism sweeping throughout Western Europe, noting that aside from the frenziedly anti-Semitic Islamic extremists, the principal perpetrators are left wing activists frequently led by those purportedly promoting human rights. Manfred Gerstenfeld’s most recent book “Demonizing Israel and the Jews” documents evidence of the depressingly high levels of European anti-Semitism, highlighting the frequent employment of Holocaust inver...
Known as the “Father of the Center” among those who gave birth to the Roth Jewish Community Center, Abe O. Wise, in whose living room the JCC and Hebrew Day School began their formative years, passed away Sept. 26, 2013. He was 90 years old. The opening sentences of the written history of the JCC states: “The Jewish Community Center of Central Florida was born of a dream realized in 1973 through the efforts of Abe Wise and a group of dedicated community leaders.” “Abe used to laugh when I referr...
Nine teens were selected this month to be a part of Orlando’s J-Serve Teen Task Force. The Teen Task Force is a unique leadership opportunity for Jewish teens in grades eight through 12 to plan the community’s annual J-Serve day of teen community service. Teens on the Task Force are selected because they have a desire to plan and lead their peers through community service, representing all local Jewish youth groups. The team is comprised of: Jonah Goldberg (sophomore, Lake Mary Prep), Matthew Gottfried (eighth grader, Sanford Middle), Tay...
JERICHO, West Bank (JTA)—The Intercontinental Hotel Jericho’s towering brick palazzo, flanked by a row of palm trees leading to an ornate archway entrance, seems the very epitome of desert luxury. But inside, the hotel lobby—replete with marble floors and plush armchairs—stands empty on a recent weekday morning, save for a lone tourist rushing through wrapped in a towel. General manager Hisham Nammari said the hotel’s 181 rooms are sometimes full during the summer and that business is generally...
WASHINGTON (JTA)—The good news for Israel in President Obama’s speech at the United Nations was his insistence that any steps Iran might take to solve the standoff over its nuclear program must be transparent and verifiable. The bad news was that Obama wasn’t clear about what those steps should be. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a one-minute video posted online Tuesday after the Obama speech to the General Assembly, welcomed the parameters outlined by the president and made clear...
Israel Hayom exclusive to JNS.org—Twenty-eight members of Israeli Knesset, among them seven deputy ministers, last Tuesday called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to cancel the planned release of terrorists to the Palestinian Authority (PA) as part of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict negotiations process. Habayit Hayehudi faction chairwoman Ayelet Shaked spearheaded the request, writing a letter that was signed by MKs from Habayit Hayehudi, deputy ministers and MKs from Likud, and MKs from United Torah Judaism and Shas. “It doesn’t make...
After months of planning, Lake Mary is finally on the map of premier Jewish learning. Beginning this fall, the Rohr Jewish Learning Institute (JLI) opens a new branch in Lake Mary, which brings the total number of JLI locations to over 600 worldwide. JLI is the first international educational institution to present traditional Judaism in a professional, innovative, academically challenging-yet-accessible format. JLI was created to address the need of Jewish adults for in-depth Jewish knowledge. Authorities on each subject have organized the...
Zionistas will present “Hatred Directed Against Israel and the United States” on Tuesday, Oct. 15, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Woman’s Club of Casselberry, 251 Overbrook Drive, Casselberry, Fla. The event is open to the public and is free. The guest speaker will be Dr. Jonathan Matusitz, associate professor in the Nicholson School of Communication at the University of Central Florida. Matusitz has contributed to more than 95 academic publications and has given more than 100 conference prese...
We’ve all been there: on our way to a time-sensitive appointment (and probably running a little late) when all of sudden traffic on the highway comes to a screeching halt. As you crawl forward inch by inch, the first thing that comes to mind is definitely not “What does Judaism have to say about this?” “It’s natural to equate religious practice with religious institutions,” observes Rabbi David Kay of Congregation Ohev Shalom in Maitland. “That’s especially true for Jews, where the synagogue is the focal point of the community.” But...
“My father is living alone and he needs supervision 24 hours a day but we do not want him to move.” “I need to move out of my family’s home but I am not sure I can afford alternative living arrangements.” “I would like to move into assisted living but I have to take my dog with me.” “I had to move to Orlando for my daughter’s health issues and my mother needs to transfer to a local nursing home connected to a Jewish community.” “My husband has dementia and I need time to run errands without him.” “My mother has declined in independent l...
A few weeks ago, I ventured the theory that rather than the so-called “Israel Lobby” controlling the administration, it’s the administration that controls the Israel Lobby. As evidence, I cited two recent episodes. Firstly, Secretary of State John Kerry’s much-vaunted effort to revive Israeli-Palestinian conflict negotiations, which, to this date, have gone nowhere for much the same reason that past efforts have failed: the Palestinian refusal to recognize Israel’s historic legitimacy by abandoning the so-called “right of return.” Nonetheless,...
It is too early to comment with any certainty about the policy of the United States, or any other country with respect to Syria’s chemical weapons or its civil war. There are likely to be twists and turns before us heavy thinkers can pass on to other topics. Nonetheless, there are hints of interesting developments. My concern is with the United States and Barack Obama more than with the morass of Syria. His waffling was not impressive. Sending Kerry to make an impassioned speech, then making a very forceful half speech of his own before turning...
It is estimated that there are at least 120 million fanatic Muslims around the world who want, and frequently chant, “Death to America!” Unless we Americans wake up to what they are doing, these fanatics will achieve their goal “Death of America!” Are you willing to give away our way of life? Hezbollah’s secretary general, Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, stated, “We consider the United States to be an enemy because it wants to humiliate our governments, our regimes, and our peoples, because it is the greatest plunderer of our treasures, our oil, an...
Recently Palestinian Authority (PA) leader Mahmoud Abbas met with Jewish community representatives in New York during his trip to the United Nations at a special dinner hosted by the S. Daniel Abraham Middle East Foundation for Peace. Guests included former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, former National Security Advisor Sandy Berger, and former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Daniel Kurtzer; Alan Dershowitz, the Felix Frankfurter professor of law at Harvard University; Wolf Blitzer, host of CNN’s The Situation Room; Congresswoman Nita L...
On the first weekday of chol hamoed Sukkot, most years, my wife and I take our four children to Hershey Park. The park, which is in Lancaster, Pa., is closed to everyone but frum Jews on that day. Lancaster is not known as a center of frumkeit—it is most decidedly “out of town”—but on that day Hershey not only makes accommodations for the visitors, but actually reconfigures the whole park to be frum friendly. The food stands, including the kettle corn that draws some of the longest lines, are all kosher. Placards advertise the times for min...
Dear Editor: (In response to front page article titled “Arab Knesset member claims Temple Mount for Muslims only”) “Jews will not be allowed to ‘contaminate’ the Temple Mount and the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.” “The Al-Aqsa Mosque is a place of prayer for Muslims alone. Period! Not for the others.” “We repeat: the occupation of Al-Aqsa by the Crusaders was long, but it ended; the same was true of the British Mandate,and the same will be true of the Israeli Occupation of Al-Quds (Jerusalem) and Al-Aqsa.” These vile words were spoken by Ahma...
MORNING AND EVENING MINYANS (Call synagogue to confirm time.) Chabad of South Orlando—Monday and Thursday, 8 a.m. 407-354-3660. Congregation Ahavas Yisrael—Monday - Friday, 7 a.m.; Sunday, 8 a.m., 407-644-2500. Congregation Chabad Lubavitch of Greater Daytona—Monday, 8 a.m.; Thursday, 8 a.m., 904-672-9300. Congregation Ohev Shalom—Sunday, 9 a.m., 407-298-4650. GOBOR Community Minyan at Jewish Academy of Orlando—Monday – Friday, 7:45 a.m. – 8:30 a.m. Temple Israel—Sunday, 9 a.m., 407-647-3055. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 4 Light Shabbat candles at 6:50 p.m....
Kinneret residents were treated to a Sukkot celebration on Wednesday, Sept. 25, in the Jessie Render Social Hall led by Rabbi Dubov of the Chabad Jewish Center and his sons. Rabbi Dubov shared the story of Sukkot and led the residents in a thoughtful dialogue before everyone got to shake the luluv and esrog and enjoy some pastries. Kinneret board members Mollie Savage and Lauren Sharfstein, along with her daughter Maia, joined in the festivities. “Our board is committed to providing Jewish h...
The words to Bob Dylan’s song “The times they are a-changin’” could not be more appropriate for today. October is Mental Health Awareness Month, and for the first time in 13 years the White House held a conference on mental health. An entire nation is now speaking about mental health issues. The fact is one out of four Americans suffers from some form of mental illness that covers a broad spectrum of brain disorders. Depression, as an example, the oldest known malady to man, affects millions; yet, stigma around mental illness persists, rooted...
Congregation Beth Sholom invites the public to its Shabbat service, led by Rabbi Karen Allen, on Friday, Oct. 11, at 7 p.m. The synagogue is located at 315 North 13th St., Leesburg, with the entrance on Center Street. Refreshments will be served following the service. For more information, call 352-326-3692, or visit their website at www.bethsholomflorida.org....
Garry A. Greenberg of Heathrow, passed away on Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2013 in New Smyrna Beach. He was 56 years old. Mr. Greenberg was born on Aug. 13, 1957, in Philadelphia, Pa., to Elliotte and the late Anita Sirulnick Greenberg. He was a graduate of the University of Miami and, during his working career, was an executive in the investments field. He married the former Rosaline Paret, who survives him, in New Jersey on May 26, 1979. After relocating to the Miami area, the family moved to greater Orlando in 1982. In addition to his wife and...
Marianne Schleichkorn of Apopka, passed away at her home on Friday, Sept. 27. She was 89 years old. Mrs. Schleichkorn was born in Giessen, Germany, on Jan. 7, 1924, and came to the United States in 1948. In New York, in 1950, she met and married her husband of 60 years, Jay Schleichkorn, who predeceased her in 2010. The couple relocated to the Orlando area in 1989, becoming active members of the Congregation of Reform Judaism. A proud mother and grandmother, Marianne is survived by her sons Raymond (Deborah) of Apopka, Peter (Ilene) of New...
The Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando held the Hy Lake Pacesetters Dinner in support of the Shaping the Future: 2014 Annual Campaign at the home of Mardi and Ron Shader. Pacesetters is the major donor division of the Federation. The evening featured special guest speaker Alison Lebovitz, who currently serves as co-chair of the National Young Leadership Cabinet for the Jewish Federations of North America. Lebovitz, who is also an author, television host, and nonprofit executive. lives in...
A complete surprise... At least to me. I read the following in the World Jewish Congress Digest (WJC) recently: “This October, Israel once again plans to offer some 100 sacrificial animals to needy citizens in Dakar.” (What is meant by “sacrificial” animals? Is it what I think it is? For shame!) To continue: “Eli Ben-Tura, the Israeli ambassador posted in the capital, said ‘It registers very strongly with locals that Israelis give them sheep for a Muslim holiday while most Arab embassies d...
