In the play Four Faces of Israel, Helen Gottstein represents an Israeli Arab's point of view

Tonight I went to Shalom College with a friend of mine to check out a play about Israel and its people.  I was surprised when in walked a religious, orthodox Jewish woman.  I was surprised but pleased to see her putting on the play.  After all, so many people have misconceptions about women in orthodoxy, what they can and cannot do, and it was so nice to see an orthodox woman sitting up at the front.

She began by introducing herself, telling us a bit about her background.  Born in Melbourne to a secular family, she became ba’alat teshuva (returned to orthodoxy) starting at the age of 19.  She moved to Israel, where she now lives with her 9 children.  She presented some very strong views so that, although initially I had agreed with her, I began to doubt, and then get upset.  She made some pretty bold and tactless statements, saying outright that her life as a religious Jew made her better than secular Jews, no matter what their scientific achievements.  I was bothered because I kept thinking, “This is NOT the way to do kiruv!”  I was also concerned that the ensuing debate would derail us and she would never begin the play.  Some people were so upset by her strong stance that they got up and walked out.

A few minutes later, in the heat of the debate, she pulled the scarf off her head and declared, “I am an actress!” and we all gasped and laughed with relief.  The play had begun, but she had acted the part so very well, handled the onslaught of questions in character with such knowledge, that we had not even realized it was all part of the play! I was very sorry for those people who had gotten up and left.  They ended up missing the point of the whole exercise.  Initially she was in the character of a charedi (religious, orthodox) Israeli Jew, who she had portrayed pretty flawlessly – good, bad, and all!

She tied a bright, tie-dyed scarf over her head and continued, in a Southern American voice, as a settler, living in Judea and Sumaria (the “West Bank”) with her five children.  She argued, with classic Southern fire and ice, why the land of Israel is ours and why we cannot give it back.  Aside from not doing a very good American accent (what Australian can?), she was convincing and it was great.  At one point, after some nudging from my friend, I asked a question – but did it in my very best Southern accent.  (I did grow up in Virginia, y’all!)  This elicited lots of laughter.  She fielded most questions well, and it was obvious she knew her stuff.  She stayed in character the entire time.

Then, she pulled off her scarf and her skirt, unrolled the pants she was wearing, and unbottoned the top few rows of her shirt.  Wrapping a fashionable scarf around her neck, she declared in an absolutely flawless Israeli accent that she has a very hot date to keep tonight so we must make this fast.  She told us about herself, how she grew up on a kibbutz, but left it to work in some factories – one making machinery parts and the other processing pork products.  Chas v’chalila!  She then acted 100% as a secular Israeli – laughing about the gay pride parade that the charedi woman had decried, insisting on the two-state solution against which the settler was so fervent. The debate with the audience continued.

Finally, she whipped off her fashionable scarf, putting on instead a huge long coat and a hijab, and entered the world of the Israeli Arab.  As an Israeli Arab living in a Jerusalem village, she has all the same rights as other Israelis.  Yet, when she crosses through the border into Judea and Sumaria every day to teach at the high school where she is principal, she is subject to a lot of questioning by the guards.  She cannot stay overnight there because if she does, she could lose her ability to return to Israel.  She is happy for a one-state solution, she is happy to live with the Jews, but she does not want any divisions in the land.  Interestingly enough, this character, which I thought would be the most fascinating and controversial of all, received the least debate and response.  It was almost as if the Jews in the room saw the hijab and were paralyzed.  Another Jew, we can question endlessly, but a Muslim? Well, questioning a Muslim just isn’t politically correct!

In the end, it was a powerfully compelling show that raised a lot of questions.  For myself, I identified a lot of areas where I agreed or disagreed with the characters and what they represented.  I found myself straddling the first two, identifying most with a group in Israel known as dati leumi – religious Zionist Jews – such that I agreed with both characters, and with neither.  The best thing about the play was how there was something in it to both please and offend every person in the room.  In my mind, the purpose of art is to foster thought, and one of the best ways to do that is to offend, and to provide contrast.  In this play, Helen Gottstein did exactly that.  She did a great job and I recommend seeing this play if ever it is in your area!

Today is a very exciting day in Australia. In Melbourne many people won’t go to work as they have a day of festivities leading up to the Melbourne cup which is an annual horse race. For those who do still go to work, most offices will have a party of some sort, were people wear a funny, dressy, or weird hat, have a few beers and bet on the horse races with their co-workers. It’s mostly all done in good fun. For those going to the races, it can be an event. Some will get dressed in their finest clothes and may bet a sizeable amount of money on the horses.

So what’s the Jewish take on all this?

For starters: According to Jewish Law, gambling in all its forms was either forbidden by the Rabbis or seriously frowned upon. According to the Talmud, taking money won in gambling is a form of stealing, because the loser does not want to give up his money. Professional gamblers according to rabbinic law were forbidden from giving testimony in a Jewish court of law. The gamblers as witnesses were not trusted. During the temple times it seems pigeon races were the in thing, and the Rabbis used one who bets on pigeon races as an example.

Secondly: The Torah and Judaism are against cruelty to animals. Overall racing animals raises some serious questions on how the animals are treated. It is important that we distance ourselves from any possibilty of partaking in what could be considered cruelty to animals. I took the following from this website: http://www.idausa.org/facts/racing.html

“Around 800 racehorses die each year from fatal injuries suffered on US racetracks. An additional number of approximately 3,566 sustain injuries so bad that they cannot finish their races. Several breeding and horse handling abuses contribute to the great risk of death and injury that horses face.

Breeders often race horses as young as two. These horses lack fully developed bone structure, and are more likely to suffer injury.

To keep horses racing through pain, handlers administer Lasix and Bute. These pain relievers numb pain, but do not treat the injuries that cause pain. Consequently, these injuries get worse. Horses that suffer severe injuries as a result of drug induced racing get sold to slaughterhouses, a more profitable venture for breeders than euthanization. These horses suffer long cramped rides to the slaughterhouse without painkillers, in unfit trailers. Handlers also use Lasix to mask the presence of illegal substances such as steroids.

A horse that fails to win also faces death in a slaughterhouse, where operators sell the horse’s flesh overseas for human consumption, or provide horsemeat to glue factories.

While horse racing is no longer legal in Belgium, it is a sanctioned event in many other places in the world. Work to end horse racing by: Refusing to patronize tracks and by encouraging others to do the same. Lobbying against the construction of new tracks. Educating the public about horse racing industry’s cruelty to horses.”

 Taking all this into account people should judge for themselves how they view the Melbourne Cup and any animal racing for that matter.

As an interesting note: the profit from the lottery system in Israel goes to fund medical expenses. Thus a religious Jew may still buy a ticket because he knows should he lose, the money is going to a good cause anyway and he’s happy to give the money. It is the same when buying charity raffle ticket where even if we don’t win we don’t care much because the money still goes to charity.

This little boy dressed up as a kohen gadol (high priest) for Purim. Instead of dressing up and pretending to be a ghost or demon, he dressed up like the spiritual leader of the Jewish people. This is a much better message to send our children!

Halloween is upon us and many Jews are probably asking, can I or should I (and my children) celebrate Halloween?  I remember being a kid and celebrating Halloween and loving dressing up and collecting pillowcases full of candy by running from house to house in our neighborhood.  Could there be any harm in this fun pasttime?

Actually, yes, there could be.  There are actually many, many problems with celebrating Halloween.  Here are some of them:

1. Halloween is a pagan holiday.  Halloween comes from the Celtic holiday of Samhain, still celebrated by some pagans in the world.  It is an actively practiced pagan holiday, just as X-mas and Easter are actively celebrated Christian holidays.  Judaism teaches that we cannot participate in something that is part of a pagan ritual or celebration, for any reason.  And this cannot be justified by saying that Halloween as it is celebrated today is not the same as the traditional celebration – it is actually very similar.  The ancient Celts believed that on October 31st, the worlds of the living and the dead would mix.  They believed that by dressing up as evil spirits, they could fool the real evil spirits.  They also lit bonfires that attracted bats.  And the tradition of going door-to-door collecting goodies was a way to merge Samhain with the November 1st holiday of Hallowmas, where beggars went door-to-door collecting food in exchange for praying for the dead on the November 2nd All Saint’s Day.  And although this was a Christian holiday, not a Celtic one, it still isn’t ok for Jews to observe it. It isn’t Jewish!
2. Halloween teaches children the wrong morals and values.  Halloween is a holiday about getting.  It’s a holiday where children go door-to-door demanding candies.  If no “treat” is given, then a “trick” could be played on the poor house owner.  This is still done today, with children and teens wreaking havoc in neighborhoods by playing “tricks” such as covering a house in toilet paper or throwing eggs at it.  To teach your children to demand things of others is contrary to Jewish values, as is the act of threatening or seeking vengeance on someone who doesn’t give you what you want.  Furthermore, Halloween focuses on dressing up like “scary” things, like demons, ghosts, or zombies.  None of these are things we should want our children to emulate.  We should never glorify scaring others and we should never glorify anything contrary to service to Hashem, such as demons.
3. We simply don’t need Halloween – we have Purim instead! Purim, a holiday occurring in or around the month of March/April, is a holiday where we celebrate the Jewish people’s deliverance from the hand of the evil Haman who wanted to destroy us.  We celebrate by dressing up in costumes as heroes and by having parties.  We take our children to visit others, to bring them gifts of food and to cheer them up and make them happy.  We make donations of money to the poor.  And there is plenty of wine for the adults.  A good time is always had by all.  In contrast to Halloween, Purim is a holiday focused on giving.  We give gifts of money, food, and happiness to others and expect nothing in return.  We use Purim as an opportunity to make peace with old enemies by giving them gifts (peace offerings, if you will) without any fear of embarrassment.  We can use Purim to teach our children good values and to allow them to emulate their favorite heros, such as Mordechai or Esther (the heroes of the Purim story), or to dress up as princes and princesses or doctors and nurses.  We do not need Halloween as an excuse to have a costume party when we have our own party planned in just a few months’ time.

This little girl chose to dress up as a princess for Purim. From her smile, you can tell she is really enjoying herself. She doesn't need Halloween - she has Purim instead!

If you are worried that your child might not understand why he/she cannot participate in Halloween when all their neighbors and non-Jewish friends are, you can use it as an opportunity to talk to them.  You can explain to them what it means to be a leader.  Help them learn to stand up against peer pressure.  (After all, if a bag of candy is all the persuasion it takes to succumb to peer pressure now, imagine what will happen when their peers are trying alcohol and drugs! It is much better to talk to them now.)  Teach your children to be leaders and show them the reasons why they should love their Judaism and soon you will find they are proud not to be celebrating holidays like Halloween, X-mas, and Easter!

Rabbi Ben meets a tzaddik in the streets of Jerusalem, Israel, where good role models are everywhere.

There are places in the world where you can expect to find good role models.  Places like Israel, where holy tzaddikim (righteous people) walk the streets all the time.  But then there are other places where you do not expect to find good role models.  There are places like Los Angeles and Miami, where body and celebrity worship is all the rage; there are places like India, where the struggle just to survive is so fierce that it becomes each man for himself.

The truth is, that in every place we can choose to find good role models and to become good role models ourselves.  And the truth is, in most cases, we don’t have to look so hard to find ordinary heroes in our everyday lives.  In Buenos Aires, Argentina, you find synagogues holding Friday night kiddush so that poor people in the community will be able to have a kosher Shabbat dinner without any shame or embarrassment.  In India, you can find a kind local willing to give you a ride to the train station so you don’t have to walk or pay for a taxi.  In Australia, if you fall down, people rush to help you up.  These are everyday people going about their business, yet doing kind deeds for others with no fanfare or fuss.

But there was a time when there truly were no good role models.  In the time of Noach, there really were no good role models.  Noach had nobody to look up to.  So what did he do? He looked straight to G-d, the ultimate role model.  And from that, he learned to be a good role model himself.  G-d taught him compassion and sensitivity.  We see that it took Noach 120 years to build his ark.  This is not because he was lazy or incompetent.  This was because G-d, in His infinite mercy, was waiting, hoping that someone would see what Noach was up to, ask what he was doing, hear the warnings, and repent.  But Nineveh this was not.  Still, when nobody repented and the floods came, Noach was reminded by G-d to take his sons onto the ark with him, and then his wife and daughters-in-law, to teach that the men and women would have to stay separated for the duration of the journey.  Noach was a role model: he could not enjoy pleasure with his spouse while the world was being destroyed.  Every single one of G-d’s creatures, however off the Torah path, is precious.

Rebbetzin Devorah Eisenbach of the Aish HaTorah Jewel Program in Jerusalem, Israel is a true role model. Compare this smiling, holy woman with the likes of Britney Spears and Ke$ha and you will see she is worlds above them. Yet for some reason, many people, even religious Jews, find it hard today to tell who the true role models are.

Sometimes it’s tempting to be swept up in the modern culture of adoring exactly the wrong role models.  In America, we glorify singers and stars like Lady Gaga and Beyonce, whose behavior is, from a Torah perspective, truly disgusting.  In Australia, the unofficial national anthem is Waltzing Matilda, a song about a man who steals a sheep and then commits suicide: two sad and terrible Torah violations.  And we don’t need to look very far in the Arab world to find idolized villains, like Ahmadinejad.  It’s so easy to be swept up in the fad, in the fashion of admiring the wrong thing. Yet, we must always remember not to admire and try to be like the wrong people.  If we cannot find a tzaddik around us to emulate, then we must follow Noach’s example and look directly to G-d himself.

Even if we are in the most remote parts of the world, we have to remember that it is our job as Jews to be a light unto the nations.  It is our job to be the role models.  We must become like Noach, we must become like Avraham.   Even in a place where there are no good role models for us, we must still be good role models for others.

Shabbat shalom.

If Noah were building an ark today he’d probably have some modern devices like GPS and satellites. The boat would be made mostly of metal and have an engine.

Here is a guy in the Netherlands who’s built a replica of Noah’s ark. I’d like to go there someday and see this ark. Click here to read the full story.

I think the greatest lesson to learn from Noah is that he spent 120 years building the ark. People thought he was crazy yet he kept on doing what he knew was the right thing to do and kept building for 120 years until the floods came. 120 years is the maximum life span of modern man. This means that we should be prepared to spend our entire life doing something we know is right regardless of if the world says we’re crazy.