Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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The audience was taken back in time to the days of the pilgrims as Jewish Academy of Orlando kindergarteners performed in the school's annual Thanksgiving show. Each student had a role telling the story of the first Thanksgiving, as pilgrims, Native Americans, fall leaves, or even King James through music, song and dance. The program included dialogue and songs about Plymouth Rock, the Mayflower, and the harvest. "The Thanksgiving program is a wonderful opportunity for our students to...
(JTA)-Stan Lee, who as one of the masterminds behind Marvel Comics created such mega-popular comic book franchises as Spider-Man, the Incredible Hulk and the X-Men, died early Monday morning at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. He was 95. Born Stanley Martin Lieber in 1922, the son of a Romanian-Jewish immigrant father and what he once called a "nice, rather old-fashioned Jewish lady," Lee drew on themes of his childhood to create a series of memorable pulp heroes whose outsider...
The Friends of the Israel Defense Forces invites the community to a special performance by the IDF musical ensemble to celebrate Israel's 70th anniversary and 70 years of Heroes and Hope. The ensemble will perform popular and traditional Israeli songs, including special songs for Chanukah. The event co-chairs are Burt and Barbara Chasnov. The event will be held on Dec. 9, at 2:30 p.m., at Congregation Ohev Shalom, 613 Concourse Pkwy S., Maitland. There will also be a former IDF combat soldier...
(Israel Hayom via JNS)-If there is one American politician who has made support for Israel a daily agenda item, Florida governor-elect Ron DeSantis is that person. DeSantis, a Republican who for six years served in the U.S. House of Representatives, has his name on a series of legislative initiatives in Congress aimed at protecting and strengthening Israel, the highlight of which was his relentless push to relocate the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Even after U.S. President...
Three minutes. That is all the time it took for an Arab terrorist to stab to death Michal Salomon's husband, Elat, his sister Chaya, and father, Yosef. The story of her family's tragedy was covered by many news sources as the Neve Tzuf massacre worldwide in July 2017. Salomon calmly recounted the events at a gathering held at the Roth Family JCC last Wednesday evening. She lived because she rushed her three children upstairs to a bedroom where her twin babies were sleeping. The terrorist, Omar...
Congregation Sinai helps the community celebrate all Jewish holidays with special events and services. Congregation Sinai has been serving the Jewish Community of Central Florida since 2003. Numerous services and annual events will be open and free to the entire community. Special Chanukah services will be held on Sunday night, Dec. 2, from 5 to 8 p.m. There will be a Chanukah candle lighting service with a Latke Party that evening. "This event will be free and open to the local Jewish...
Chabad of Altamonte Springs is hosting a grand Chanukah celebration on Tuesday, Dec. 4, at 5:30 p.m. in front of the Embassy Suites at Cranes Roost Park. There will be hot sizzling latkes, delicious donuts, dreidel giveaways, gelt, children’s crafts and more fun for the whole family. In addition to celebrating Chanukah, Chabad of Altamonte Springs will honor and recognize the community’s heroic fire department as they treat those in attendance with the Great Gelt Drop. It will “rain down” chocolate gelt as firemen drop the candy down from la...
The Congregation Ohev Shalom Men’s Club will host a Chanukah Nosh & Learn presented by friends on Monday evening, Dec. 3, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., at the home of Desi Rotenberg. This is the second in the Men’s Club’s Holiday Nosh & Learn series, following the successful Sukkot gathering. Learn more about the meaning and history of Chanukah and the spiritual and practical significance of kindling the lights each night. The discussion will culminate with what the holiday means to each member today, and how to apply the message to each one’s...
(JNS)-Israel's Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman abruptly resigned his post and removed his Yisrael Beytenu Party from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's governing coalition less than a day after Israel reportedly agreed to a ceasefire with Hamas. During the announcement at a meeting of the Yisrael Beytenu Knesset faction on Wednesday, Lieberman also called on Netanyahu to call early elections and not to "paralyze the country in the long term." "I have tried to remain a faithful member...
(Chabad.org/News via JNS)—Voices filled with emotion, Chabad rabbis from across California made clear their determination to help people in need while dealing with the ongoing devastation that uncontrollable blazes have wrought on their hometowns. “Paradise is a part of our community,” said Rabbi Mendy Zwiebel of the town in Northern California where more than 30 people have been killed as the Camp Fire decimated all of structures in its path. “We had people over for Shabbat who lost everything. This wasn’t expected. On Thursday morning,...
JERUSALEM (JTA)—Palestinian terror groups in Gaza reportedly have agreed to commit to a cease-fire of hostilities that have seen more than 400 rockets bombard southern Israel in a 25-hour period. Four mediators—Egypt, the United Nations, Norway and Switzerland—helped achieve the cease-fire, according to reports. Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad said in a joint statement, according to reports, that they are “committed to the cease-fire as long as Israel doesn’t break it and doesn’t attack the Palestinian people.” The terms were negotiated to...
By Andrew Silow-Carroll (JTA)—My father, whose own father changed his unpronounceable last name to Carroll when he came to America, would often tell a story about job hunting in the late 1940s and 50s. It was only after the interview that the men across the desk would ask, “And all we need now is a recommendation from your clergyman.” “I knew what you are asking,” Dad would tell them. “And yes I’m Jewish” He suspects he lost out on a lot of jobs, although somehow he became what he thinks was the first Jewish high school principal on Lo...
When it comes to Jews and Israel, the Boston Globe has a habit of inverting reality in the nastiest ways imaginable. Decades ago, the Globe reported on a Palestinian who had been arrested after the bomb he was making blew up and blinded him. The Globe headline? “Israelis Arrest Blind Palestinian.” Really. For years on the holiest Jewish day of Yom Kippur, when Jews repent for their personal sins, the Globe published op-eds by an anti-Israel Jewish activist who hectored Boston’s Jews to repent for “oppressing” the Palestinians. And then ther...
(JNS)—In the summer of 1993, I found myself at one of the most unsettling dinner engagements that I have yet experienced. I was a young journalist writing about the war in Bosnia, and a friend of mine in London who was working as an aide to Haris Silajdzic, the Bosnian foreign minister at the time, called one day with an invitation to sneak into a private dinner Silajdzic was attending in the British capital that same evening. “Sure,” I enthused. “Where?” “South Kensington,” my friend laughed. “The Iranian Embassy.” I went along. Under a hu...
In light of the recent tragedy in Pittsburgh, I have reflected on my vision of the future of the American Jewish community. These are my “Points to Ponder” ideas to reflect upon for the future survival of the American Jewish community-long term and our local Jewish Community. Points to Ponder 1. Why is there no voice for right of center Jewish voices in the greater Orlando area? All programs seem to lean toward the “left” which is not an accurate accounting of our local Jewish community. Why has there not been a demographic study made of the gr...
(JNS)—Who is the most evil: the Nazis or followers of radical Islam, white supremacists or Louis Farrakhan and Linda Sarsour? This is the great American Jewish debate. The not-so-hidden rationale for this passionate debate is to justify loyalty to one political party and slam the other. Truth: They are all horribly evil. The question remains: Is finger-pointing where American Jews should spend their angst and energy? In lieu of this waste of time, allow me to propose four very basic steps to fight Jew hatred. Pick any one of them or all of t...
Dear Editor: When my husband recently passed away, I tried to attend minyan every day. I went to the Jewish Academy during the week where I met a number of dedicated people who were there for me. BUT WE DID NOT HAVE A MINYAN EVERY DAY. If we were missing one and had only nine the Torah took that person’s place. Once or twice we had to depend on getting a teacher to stand in if we had only eight in order to recite Kaddish. I told the group that I would give back by attending at least once a month, on a Monday, which seemed to be the day when T...
MORNING AND EVENING MINYANS (Call synagogue to confirm time.) Chabad of South Orlando—Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. and 10 minutes before sunset; Saturday, 9:30 a.m.; Sunday, 8:15 a.m., 407-354-3660. Congregation Ahavas Yisrael—Monday - Friday, 7:30 a.m.; Saturday, 9:30 a.m.; Sunday, 9 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. Tem...
(JNS)—The U.S. Department of State announced on Tuesday rewards of up to $5 million each for information or identification leading to the capture of the following terrorist figures: Hamas leader Saleh al-Aruri, and Hezbollah leaders Khalil Yusif Mahmoud Harb and Haytham ‘Ali Tabataba’i. Aruri is a deputy of Hamas’s political bureau and a founder of the group’s military wing, the Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades. He is currently living “freely in Lebanon, where he reportedly is working with Qasem Soleimani, leader of the Iranian Islamic Revolutiona...
(JTA)-The death toll and damage continue to rise in California in the wildfires ravaging the state. More than 6,400 homes have been damaged and at least 31 people have been killed, according to CNN. Like other Californians, Jewish residents are evacuating their homes and dealing with the devastating fallout of the fires. Synagogues, camps and a day school have all sustained damage. Here are two remarkable stories of people coming together as a result of the fires, including a rabbi who ran into...
LOS ANGELES (JTA)-The Woolsey Fire, which began late last week and engulfed a massive swath of Southern California, has killed at least two people, burned nearly 100,000 acres and ravaged hundreds of structures-including several touchstones of Jewish life in this city. Three historic Jewish sleep-away camps and a Jewish retreat center, all nestled in the Malibu hills, were consumed. A Jewish community day school lost three of its buildings, and several synagogues have smoke damage. Many...
Happy Thanksgiving... From me, my family and especially from my grandson, ZACHARY, a great guy. He is so kind and helpful to his "aging" granny and also very musically talented. (Forget the aging part!) And staying on that happy holiday thought... I was watching television recently and saw a talent that almost blew me away! His name is Jim Bailey, a male female impersonator who did impressions of Judy Garland, Barbra Streisand, Phyllis Diller, to name a few. Not only did he look like them, he...
The Zionist Organization of America has condemned the anti-Israel record of newly elected Member of Congress Ihlan Omar and is seeking to alert the public to her record of hostile, anti-Israel extremism. Omar, a Muslim refugee from Somalia, was elected in the 2018 midterm elections to replace Rep. Keith Ellison (D–MI) in the state’s 5th Congressional District, a solidly Democratic seat. The ZOA has also called upon the Democratic Party and the media to criticize her anti-Israel extremism, something which reportage on her campaign and vic...
(JNS)-After Israeli and Armenian flags were torn down and other items were thrown to the ground by anti-Israel protesters at an event in May at the University of California, Los Angeles, the school's Students Supporting Israel chapter gave a list of demands to the UCLA administration to protect the pro-Israel community. SSI at UCLA is on the front lines fighting against the annual National Students for Justice in Palestine Conference, which UCLA is slated to sponsor from Nov. 16-18. For...
(JNS)-Actors Alyssa Milano and Debra Messing are being applauded for speaking out against anti-Semitism associated with the Women's March movement, with the former announcing that she will not speak at next year's march and the latter backing the decision. The Zioness Movement, which attended the Women's March in 2017, said it "applauds Alyssa Milano and Debra Messing for calling out the leaders of the Women's March for their hateful rhetoric and their continued association with bigots and...
