Monthly Archives: May 2022

By Sarah WapnerStraus Center

On Shabbat of April 29-30, the Young Israel of Jamaica Estates hosted a Scholar in Residence program featuring students from Yeshiva Universitys Graduate Program in Advanced Talmudic Studies for Women (GPATS). Over the course of the weekend, GPATS students shared words of Torah through various shiurim [lectures] for the community.

Ariella Etshalom, a Shana Aleph [first-year] GPATS student, gave a shiur [lecture] entitled Holier than Thou: Emulating the High Priest, examining the avodah [ritual activities] of the Kohen Gadol in the Beit HaMikdash on Yom Kippur and the contemporary lessons we can draw from it.

Leora Moskowitz, also in Shana Aleph, presented a shiur on Questions that Count: Interesting Shaylas about Sefirat Haomer. Her talk examined common halachic [Jewish law] issues that arise during sefira and how these questions shed light on this important period between Pesach and Shavuot. The Shabbat program concluded with Shana Bet [second-year] student Atara Kelmans shiur, a thorough review of rabbinic responsa on the Holocaust, entitled Establishment of Yom Hashoah: Halakhic Disputes on the Role of History.

Over Shabbat in Jamaica Estates, I enjoyed the opportunity to meet a new community and witness their dedication to communal Torah learning, said Kelman. I was inspired by how large and diverse the shiur audiences were and particularly enjoyed hearing personal insights that connected to our shiurim.

Nechama Price, director of GPATS and senior lecturer of Judaic studies, expects that the GPATS Scholar in Residence program at Young Israel of Jamaica Estates will serve as a model for other communities. We are so appreciative to Judy and Zev Berman and Young Israel of Jamaica Estates for hosting three of our GPATS students for a special weekend of talmud Torah, said Price. This program was developed through the long-standing relationship between GPATS and the Jamaica Estates community, and we look forward to developing deep partnerships with other congregations, thus enabling GPATS students to teach Torah across many communities.

These GPATS students shone a light on Talmudic and modern rabbinic sources, exemplifying the next generation of Limudei Kodesh [holy studies] educators, said Judy Berman, the organizer and sponsor of the program.

For more information about GPATS, visit the website and follow GPATS on Facebook. To learn more about the GPATS Placement Program and other opportunities to support GPATS students, contact Keren Simon at ksimon@yu.edu

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A Weekend of Learning and Inspiration with GPATS at the Young Israel of Jamaica Estates - Yeshiva University News - Yu News

With the recent leak of US Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alitos draft majority opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health a case that questions the constitutionality of a 2018 Mississippi state law, which largely prohibits abortions after 15 weeks the always-simmering issue of abortion has again been brought to the fore. And if the leaked document is representative of the Courts final opinion, the landmark Roe v. Wade decision of 1973 is likely to be overturned, thereby eliminating federal protection of abortion rights. Instead, each state will legislate its own rules regarding when and if abortions may be performed. Indeed, 10 states still have abortion bans on the books that will become enforceable, should Roe v. Wade be overturned; another nine states have trigger laws banning abortion that become operable upon the repeal of Roe v. Wade. In other words, the discussion surrounding abortion is, now more than at any time in the past 49 years, a practical necessity.

Too often, Jewish people on either side of the debate offer facile and simplistic approaches that undermine the complexity of the halachic attitude towards abortion. A recent episode of Samantha Bees Full Frontal talk show featured Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg asserting, In Judaism, abortion is permitted; and where the pregnant persons life is at stake, its required. On the other side of the aisle, Orthodox commentator Ben Shapiro quoted Professor Hymie Gordon of the Mayo Clinic as saying, By all the criteria of modern molecular biology, life is present from the moment of conception, in order to argue that the life of a human embryo is qualitatively human.

In contrast to approaches like these, the Jewish legal attitude toward abortion is complex, nuanced, and multivocal. Some modern halachic decisors, such as Rabbi Moshe Feinstein, offered very restrictive approaches based on the assumption that a fetus is akin to a human life; others, such as Rabbi Eliezer Waldenberg, are much more permissive, considering the fetus an extension of the mother, rather than a separate living being. These differing positions echo parallel opinions expressed by earlier authorities, who, in turn, use the basic texts of Jewish law, the Torah and the Talmud, to come to opposing conclusions.

It is important to note that even the more restrictive authorities acknowledge that where there is danger to the mothers life, abortion is not only permitted, but mandated. (Naturally, the meaning of danger to the mothers life can, in turn, be understood in more or less restrictive ways.) Moreover, those rabbis who generally prohibit abortion also acknowledge that there is reason to be more permissive during the first 40 days after conception, when the Talmud says that the fetus is not yet human in any way.

Likewise, those scholars who are lenient with regard to abortion never argue that abortion is permitted in all situations without qualification. While feticide may be a form of wounding the mother, rather than a type of murder, Jewish law prohibits causing bodily harm to oneself without serious cause. And because the fetus is a part of the mother that, uniquely, contains within it the potential to grow into an independent person, the standard for serious cause is greater than it would be in other cases of wounding.

For this reason, Yeshiva Universitys Rabbi Jeremy Wieder said, on my Orthodox Conundrum podcast, that the term pro-choice is inappropriate for those who would halachically permit abortion in many cases, as even the most lenient scholars of halacha assert that abortion is much more serious than the word choice indicates. He also made the point that the weight of halachic opinion today appears to side with the more lenient Rabbi Waldenberg, than with Rabbi Feinstein. For this reason, Rabbi Wieder suggests that, even as he eschews the term pro-choice, religious Jews should be uneasy with possible repeal of Roe v. Wade. Because many states will outlaw abortion even in situations where most halachic authorities permit it, and because these authorities do not believe that abortion is a type of murder, the consequences of prohibiting abortion where it should be permitted are more dire than the ramifications of allowing it where it is halachically forbidden.

The Orthodox Unions Statement on the Potential Overturning of Roe v. Wade may have been imperfect in saying that we cannot celebrate either side of the debate, it ends up saying effectively nothing but it at least recognizes that the Jewish stance on abortion is deep and nuanced. If nothing else, it avoids the oversimplification that too often makes our Torah appear less than it is.

It is high time individuals, however well-intentioned, stop trying to squeeze Judaism into their respective preferred political platforms. Jewish law offers nuance and complexity and disagreement; nowhere is this more obvious than in the case of abortion and US law. We must allow the Torah to speak for itself, rather than forcing the Torah to agree with what we already believe.

When it comes to abortion, superficial halachic approaches are almost always incorrect.

Rabbi Scott Kahn is the director of Jewish Coffee House (www.jewishcoffeehouse.com) and the host of several podcasts, including Orthodox Conundrum, Intimate Judaism, and Baseball Rabbi.

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Judaism's nuanced view on abortion is not about 'choice' - The Times of Israel

Tampa hip-hop duo They Hate Change is embracing the duality of life. On the April release, Some Days I Hate My Voice, the band showcased the sincerity and honesty that is a trademark of their lyrics.Some days I hate my voice, raps Vonne Parks, one half of the group, in a verse reiterating the emotional directness of the singles title. Some days I feel like Im the Metatron.

Its unclear what the Metatron, a mythic Jewish angel referenced in the Talmud, sounds like exactly, but one could easily imagine a sublimevoice transcending the human and mundane. That rise and fall embodied in their lyricsto fluctuate from a low-frequency self to a fleeting state of complete power and potentialillustrates the very nature of being alive. The imagery also reflects They Hate Changes relationship to writing and producing their music: meditative and grateful.

They Hate Change released their debut studio LP, Finally, New, last weeka record they told Noisey was the result of years of channelling bounce, hip hop, footwork, deep house, drum-n-bass, post-punk, dancehall, emo, and the essence of Florida Jook music. We caught up with Parks and Andre Gainey, the two rappers and producers who make up They Hate Change, to discuss the album and their newest video for the recently released X-Ray Spex, a song about seeing through facades.

The record is maximal, said Parks of Finally, New. Parks, who met bandmate Gainey when they were both 14, has a relaxed and gentle smile, and at the mention of the duos music, it naturally expands and brightens.Theres a lot there, Parks said. Complex drum patterns, big sounding synths, a lot of depth to the bass.

They Hate Changes songs have a tangible sense of space, layering, and texture that are all intricately woven together as if decorating full rooms with sound. They pull from a cauldron of genres the group is infatuated with, which keep melting together and multiplying to create a sound that is energetic and different. As an album, Finally, New is stacked to the brim with experimentation, going on dramatic turns and landing at laid back, ethereal, and spacey lookout points.

Weve been really on a British sophistica-pop thing, Parks said of the self-taught bands recent fascinations. The Style Council, Pet Shop Boys, Sade, Prefab Sprout, stuff like thatlike, sweet music. That helps explain the title of X-Ray Spex, which is a nod to the U.K. punk outfit of the same name. The exploration of music can help you,'' Gainey added. He said there isnt much that is manufactured about their wordplaybeing that much of the material for their music is drawn from their real lives. Were talking about riding around in Volkswagens, he said with a laugh. Some of the bullshit is just not sustainable.

Gainey moved to Tampa from Rochester at age 12 and soon after met Parks at the apartment complex where they both lived. Having grown up in Palm River on the outskirts of Tampa, Parks was already entrenched in Tampas music scene by their teenage years. As far as they can remember, Parks has always been rapping.

Parks and Gainey began their musical collaboration by DJing together at Tampa Bay house parties a decade ago, retooling songs and experimenting with a wide range of genres in their live set. Through those years spinning shoulder to shoulder, Parks and Gainey were cultivating their ability to showcase all of their eclectic tastes. We were playing footwork tracks, deep house, old hip hop joints, and dancehall, Gainey said. We were going to different places that we just wanted to hear out in public, that we hadnt heard, at least not put together that way.

The two didnt realize it at the time, but by stacking BPMs and dissecting grooves to breathe and move together, they were laying the foundation of They Hate Change. Finally, Newis the culmination of that first DJ set, as an album, Parks said. Through years of absorbing and reimagining the music that challenged them, They Hate Change has been laying down bricks as they pave a path for themselves that is fully their own.

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They Hate Change Is The New Age Experimental Hip Hop Duo of Your Dreams - VICE

In 1972, Rabbi Yaakov Asher Sinclair opened SARM Studios the first 24-track recording studio in Europe where Queen mixed Bohemian Rhapsody. His music publishing company, Druidcrest Music published the music for The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1973) and as a record producer, he co-produced the quadruple-platinum debut album by American band Foreigner (1976). American Top ten singles from this album included, Feels Like The First Time, Cold as Ice and Long, Long Way from Home. Other production work included The Enid In the Region of the Summer Stars, The Curves, and Nutz as well as singles based on The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy with Douglas Adams and Richard OBrien. Other artists who used SARM included: ABC, Alison Moyet, Art of Noise, Brian May, The Buggles, The Clash, Dina Carroll, Dollar, Flintlock, Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Grace Jones, It Bites, Malcolm McLaren, Nik Kershaw, Propaganda, Rush, Rik Mayall, Stephen Duffy, and Yes.In 1987, he settled in Jerusalem to immerse himself in the study of Torah. His two Torah books The Color of Heaven, on the weekly Torah portion, and Seasons of the Moon met with great critical acclaim. Seasons of the Moon, a unique fine-art black-and-white photography book combining poetry and Torah essays, has now sold out and is much sought as a collectors item fetching up to $250 for a mint copy.He is much in demand as an inspirational speaker both in Israel, Great Britain and the United States. He was Plenary Keynote Speaker at the Agudas Yisrael Convention, and Keynote Speaker at Project Inspire in 2018. Rabbi Sinclair lectures in Talmud and Jewish Philosophy at Ohr Somayach/Tannenbaum College of Judaic studies in Jerusalem and is a senior staff writer of the Torah internet publications Ohrnet and Torah Weekly. His articles have been published in The Jewish Observer, American Jewish Spirit, AJOP Newsletter, Zurichs Die Jdische Zeitung, South African Jewish Report and many others.Rabbi Sinclair was born in London, and lives with his family in Jerusalem.He was educated at St. Anthonys Preparatory School in Hampstead, Clifton College, and Bristol University.

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There Are No Limits - aish.com - Aish

People leave messages at a makeshift memorial near a Tops Grocery store in Buffalo, New York, on May 15, 2022, the day after a gunman shot dead 10 people. Photo by Usman Khan/AFP via Getty Images

Last Tuesday, the Forward published an article originally headlined, The Buffalo shooter targeted Black people. But his screed focuses on Jews. After feedback from several Black Jews, the Forward changed the headline, to address concerns that the article focused on the Jewish community rather than the Black community that suffered the loss of life.

Even though the but was removed from the headline, the reader, in the second sentence of the article, encounters the real thesis of this article he was targeting Black people. In the diatribe he published to explain his motivations, though, he focuses more on another group: Jews.

The article briefly mentions, in three short paragraphs, that it was Black people that were targeted and murdered and the remaining 20 paragraphs focus on the portion of the killers rant that targeted Jews. The article quickly moves us through great replacement theory and then discusses how all this hatred formed a potent stew that effectively begins and ends with antisemitism.

The article pulls on the rhetoric that European-American Jews have always worked in solidarity with racial minority groups in an attempt to situate European-American Jews at the center of this tragedy. Once again, turning a tragedy in the African American community into a discussion about antisemitism. This tragedy was not about Jewish Americans. It was about African Americans and white supremacy.

In the United States, African Americans have been the primary focus of white supremacists. Whether through slavery, Jim Crow, or institutionalized racism, African American people have always been the primary target of white supremacists. Unlike other marginalized groups, African Americans cannot hide their Blackness, making them uniquely positioned to be the victims of terror attacks.

No one denies that other groups are targeted by white supremacists. Mexicans have been murdered in a mass shooting, Muslims are regularly targeted and beaten. Asians have been and are randomly and viciously attacked, and yes, Jews of European descent are, too, in the U.S. today.

If we were honest with each other, we would admit that we are all catching hell out here. But too often, instead of providing one another space to grieve and find support together, we position ourselves in competition with one another. It is not a contest.

The difference is when African Americans are targeted and murdered in the United States of America, there is little public outcry except from other African Americans. Take for instance the police killings of Black men and women before George Floyd. How many times did you hear that Michael Brown was probably stealing the cigarillos which turned out to be his in the first place?

In the United States, African Americans are not viewed as vulnerable. Due to the whitewashing of history, African Americans are portrayed as these superhuman beings that went through slavery and later became wealthy athletes and hip-hop celebrities. African Americans are portrayed as resilient and strong, and in the extreme as angry and dangerous.

No room is made for their grief, their loss, their sorrow. Who outside of the Black community stops to ask, what does the African American community need to heal from this recent attack, let alone half a milleniums worth of violence?

That is why this article was so offensive. During a time of mourning for African Americans, the article not only centered European-American Jews while erasing Jews of color, but also ignored the fact that there is a population within European-American Jewry that participates in white supremacy.

When in 2022 African Americans are still encountering European-American Jews that are still stating they have never seen a Black Jew or asking Black Jews how they could be Jewish, or stopping them as they enter the synagogue, European-American Jews need to turn the inquiry inward to ask how they are contributing to the problem.

They should not write articles that appropriate a terror attack against African Americans as an excuse to center European-American Jews and portray them as the ultimate victim. They should, instead, consider the feelings of African American Jews and what they may be experiencing in this moment of grief.

In the 1996 movie A Time To Kill, Matthew McConaughey in his closing argument makes the following statement: Can you see her? Her raped, beaten, broken bodyleft to die. Can you see her? I want you to picture that little girl. Now imagine shes white.

I ask you, too, to imagine the 10 Black individuals that were shot down while simply shopping for groceries. Imagine their terror. Imagine them being confronted by a white supremacist that wants them and people who look like them to be erased from the earth, regardless of his motivations.

Imagine the fear they felt when they were confronted with that gun. Imagine them being shot as they held onto a shopping cart or held groceries. Imagine their final thoughts for their spouses, their children, their parents. Imagine how their entire world was shattered because, as the Talmud tells us, when we kill one life, we kill an entire world.

Because Black Lives Matter just as much as Jewish lives do.

To contact the author, email editorial@forward.com

Dr. Elizabeth N. Webster is a former global health scientist/epidemiologist who worked internationally to address issues of public health preparedness. She currently owns Webster & Harrigan, a consultancy that focuses on issues of social justice, health, and law.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Forward. Discover more perspective in Opinion.

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It's not about you: Why the Forward's article on the anti-Jewish elements of the Buffalo shooter's screed was offensive - Forward