"White Privilege" The Big Antisemitic Lie

re: language/word/term

I get terribly offended by the relatively new term "white privilege." Honestly, it's antisemitic. 

That nasty term hides/denies how most Jewish immigrants struggled in their early decades in America.

The vast majority of Jews who moved to the United Stated in the previous two centuries were fleeing poverty. The wealthy didn't come, only the poor. 

The "WASPS" didn't want them and quickly passed a quota law to keep Jews out. FDR wouldn't even fill the quota when those fleeing the Nazis tried to legally enter the United States. And if you check your history, Harry Truman didn't improve things after World War Two. Holocaust survivors had a very difficult time getting visas to live in America.

Sabbat observing Jews were discriminated against and needed new jobs weekly, or made do as independent peddlers. 

It didn't help that the Great Depression was making it hard on many. The last to be hired and first to be fired were Jews. 

Many Jews went to work as young as possible to help their families. Even those who graduated high school as academics ended up working, since they couldn't even afford the "free" universities. 

Those using the term "White Privilege" are inventing a false history, a lie. I find the term very offensive.

Zachor Remember

National Unity Government Like Biblical Ketoret, Or Do You Want More Elections?

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.

Nobody's quite sure who really coined these words of wisdom, but I wish that sixty-one 61 plus Knesset Members would take the words to heart and and hammer out a workable coalition agreement for the good of the State of Israel, so we don't have to uselessly vote again.

None of us are perfect, nor are our politicians. Instead of demonstrating to oust Bibi, there should be demonstrations near all the MKs' homes urging them to put away their egos and platforms. We want a viable government coalition, warts and all. 

Ketoret, a specially blended incense, was used in Temple and prior to that Mishkan, Tabernacle for prayer. 

The ketoret consisted of a special blend of herbs and balms whose precise ingredients and manner of preparation were commanded by G‑d to Moses.

Some of the herbs and balms were sweet, others bitter, and all were needed to properly make the Ketoret. 

Right now Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid, whose positions concerning many issues clash, but they both believe that the State of Israel needs a national unity government. One thing for sure, both have supporters/voters/MKs not all happy with the views of the "other." Think of the bitter herb that must be included in the Ketoret.

If the MKs whom Bennett and Lapid bring into this coalition from their political parties and others come with the right attitude, the State of Israel will have a good working government, like the Ketoret needed for prayer in Biblical times. Gd willing...

...because it's truly insanity to expect election results very different from what we've had the previous four times.

Shiloh Hakeduma, Tel Shiloh, Hologram of Tabernacle worship

"Ensnared in the Wolf's Lair: Inside the 1944 Plot to Kill Hitler and the Ghost Children of His Revenge," Book Review

Ensnared in the Wolf's Lair: Inside the 1944 Plot to Kill Hitler and the Ghost Children of His Revenge by Ann Bausum is from National Geographic and written for older children, but I really enjoyed reading it. It is one of those books that can be appreciated by readers of all ages. It's slightly larger than standard print made reading very pleasant.

Ensnared in the Wolf's Lair tells what happened to the families, especially the children, of those who were involved in the 1944 attempt to kill Hitler.

On 20 July 1944, Claus von Stauffenberg and other conspirators attempted to assassinate Adolf Hitler, Führer of Nazi Germany, inside his Wolf's Lair field headquarters near Rastenburg, East Prussia. The name Operation Valkyrie—originally referring to part of the conspiracy—has become associated with the entire event.^[1][2]

Wikipedia

To be perfectly honest, even though I had a vague idea that such a failed attack had happened, I certainly never thought about this had effected the families of the conspirators. 

No one should be surprised that the children suffered greatly, separated from home, family and identity. They were only saved by the fact that the war ended not long after the assassination attempt. 

We get to know some of the children well through their diaries and excellent research. I highly recommend Ensnared in the Wolf's Lair: Inside the 1944 Plot to Kill Hitler and the Ghost Children of His Revenge for readers of all ages. 

Product details

• Publisher : National Geographic Kids (January 12, 2021)
• Language : English
• Library Binding : 144 pages
• ISBN-10 : 1426338554
• ISBN-13 : 978-1426338557
• Reading age : 10 - 14 years
• Grade level : 5 - 9

The Israeli Public Must Choose Between Compromising Ideals & Infinite Elections Ad Nauseum

I think even the most experienced and capable of political pundits here in Israel are getting dizzy from all these useless elections. Not too many years ago, the minimum vote percentage a party needed to get Knesset seats was raised just to prevent a situation like we have now. But it seems like a political party of four plus seats is as stubborn and unrealistic, if not more, as single MK parties.

No matter how you play with the numbers/MKs, the only way a working/viable/realistic coalition can be formed is for party leaders and MKs to go against their sworn ideals/platform. Some MKs will need to leave their parties and join this unity coalition. 

For me to say this isn't easy. I'm an idealist, a purist, but I'm also a pragmatist. 

As a pragmatist I'm sure that over sixty elected Members of Knesset can find some basic workable positions in terms of economics, security, development policies that can be the basis of a lasting, at least for four/five years government coalition. It shouldn't be top heavy expensive with Ministers, like that monstrous ineffective farcical Bibi-Gantz agreement. Committee chairmanships should be the "diamonds on the crown." The public will like that much better. It's in the committees where the real work is done.

Gd willing, that's what we'll soon see. Let them leave their egos behind. The State of Israel needs unity not infinite elections.

On Love and Tyranny: The Life and Politics of Hannah Arendt, Book Review

On Love and Tyranny: The Life and Politics of Hannah Arendt, by Dr. Ann Heberlein (Author), Alice Menzies (Translator) is a very readable book. I really must make a point of say that. I also have to admit that it is a much, much more interesting and compelling read than I had expected. I had feared it would be a heavy tome in weight and serious verbiage, but it's barely three hundred 300 pages including index and bibliography. And even more important, it's beautifully written and translated for ordinary people like myself. It doesn't read like an academic doctoral thesis. 

So before I tell you about Hannah Arendt as depicted in On Love and Tyranny: The Life and Politics of Hannah Arendt, I want to make it very clear that I highly recommend the book. Buy it for yourself and as gifts for others.

I must confess that besides Arendt's name being vaguely familiar, I knew absolutely nothing about her before reading this biography. Hannah Arendt was born 1906 in Germany and had to flee the Nazis as a young woman, already involved in academic life. At first she thought she could stay in Europe, but  was forced to finally make her way to New York. No doubt an adventurous suspense-filled movie could be made about that part of her life, which included finding her husband and mother after they had all been separated.

It's now the Passover Holiday, which celebrates the exodus from Egypt, though it is said that only one fifth of the Jewish People left with Moses and Aaron. It has always seemed so hard to believe. How could anyone prefer slavery? But, davka, Heberlein tells us that when Arendt and all the other prisoners had the opportunity to leave Camp Gurs, the internment camp in which she had been imprisoned, "only two hundred out of seven thousand" left when they had the opportunity. 

page 105

That's a lot less than one fifth. This fact in On Love and Tyranny is something I've been mentioning a lot when discussing the Haggadah and Passover. 

The prisoners seemed more afraid of freedom than they were of the approaching Nazis. Arendt was in a small minority. 

After trying to find refuge in Europe, she, her mother and husband fled to the United States. It wasn't an easy trip, but they finally arrived. In America they all had to learn a new language and build their careers from scratch. Yes, Hannah Arendt did the impossible and built a very successful life in America.

In  On Love and Tyranny: The Life and Politics of Hannah Arendt, you will learn of her private life, husbands, lovers, philosophical controversies and more. Arendt was a most fascinating woman who survived very dangerous and challenging times.

Product details

• Publisher : Anansi International; Translation edition (January 5, 2021)
• Language : English
• Paperback : 272 pages
• ISBN-10 : 1487008112
• ISBN-13 : 978-1487008116

Hours to Go Before We Vote...

In just thirty-six 36 hours citizens of the State of Israel will go to the polling stations to vote for a new Knesset and Gd willing a viable new coalition government. 

We vote for the pieces... meaning we choose a political party, and depending on what percentage of the total votes it gets*, those on its list will become MKs Knesset Members. It can be as little as zero or as many as a few dozen. 

Then, after we vote and the votes are counted, the wheeling and dealing start in earnest. Usually the political party that ends up with the most votes MKs can manage to craft a coalition, but there have been exceptions. 

One of the big difficulties is that not all political parties even have a chance of being part of a coalition. The Arab parties have almost no chance of being included. The main reason is that it goes against their basic party platform. And the second is that some political parties won't sit in a coalition with an Arab party, since they promote the destruction of the State of Israel. Arab MKs can be in the coalition as members of regular Israeli political parties.

Another political party which has a small chance of being included is Avigdor Yvette Lieberman's party Yisrael Beiteinu. He has a hard core of voters who give him, according to the latest polls, seven seats. He's more a spoiler than a kingmaker. His leaving the coalition a couple of years ago was the cause of the spate of recent elections. I don't trust Lieberman. He's neither right nor left, just an anarchist.

Even though there are four people running for the position of Prime Minister, in actuality we  can't vote for any of them. We vote for a party list and hope and pray that our choice party will be part of the ruling coalition.

Who's going to win? That's a good question. So far, ever since Yvette Lieberman broke up the last "normal" government, the citizens of the State of Israel have lost every election. 

I don't take polls seriously, since they're just polls. But if you want to see what the polls are showing then check out Jeremy's blog.

My educated guess and gut feeling are that the actual count won't be completed until next week. There will be many more "double envelope votes" than usual. All of those soldier, hospital, jail, special COVID corona and quarantine polling stations will allow people to vote with a double envelop. Each outer envelope will have the person's ID number which has to be checked against the master list of those who voted in their official location. This is a very time-consuming process. If the ID number doesn't show up, then the ballot envelope is collected to be counted. And then all kosher votes are added and calculated, and then we'll know who the next one hundred and twenty 120 Knesset Members will be.

I don't think that the party leaders will have much of a Passover Vacation. But since all I can do is vote once and then pray... I'll enjoy the holiday.

PS In case you're wondering, I'm voting Yamina ב that's Naftali Bennett's party. Here's the reason why.

*Actually the calculation is a bit more complicated, since not all parties get enough votes to have representation. 

Rosh Chodesh Nissan- Month of Miracles

Every month, the first of the Jewish Month, Rosh Chodesh, we, a number of women from The Shiloh-Eli area, sometimes more and sometimes fewer, gather at the Place the Mishkan, Tabernacle rested for almost four hundred years, in Shiloh Hakeduma, Tel Shiloh, to pray together. The Bible tells of Hannah praying there for a son after many years of being barren. A son was subsequently born to her, Samuel The Prophet who led the Jewish People from the anarchy of Judges to the rule of the Davidic Monarchy.

Here we are Rosh Chodesh Nissan at Shiloh Hakeduma, Tel Shiloh

Shiloh Hakeduma, Tel Shiloh is a well developed archeological site open to visitors on weekdays. There's lots to see and do. Phone: 02-5789122, visit@telshilo.org.il.

Tel Shiloh is the actual location of the Biblical Shiloh

Next Women's Rosh Chodesh Prayers:

Rosh Chodesh 1st of Iyyar 5781

Tuesday April 13, 2021 8:30am

All Invited

תפילת ראש חודש נשים

ראש חודש א' אייר תשפ"א

יום ג' 12\04\2021 8:30

כולן מוזמנות

On Rosh Chodesh Nissan I was overjoyed to see students from girls high schools walking to the site of the Mishkan for festive prayers.

Will The March 2021 Elections Be Better Than The March 2020 Elections?

March 2020 Elections

Will The March 2021 Elections Be Better Than The March 2020 Elections?

That Is The Question...

After a year of COVID corona, the world seems a bit shaky. 

Today in Matan listening to a Bible class, taught by Dr. Yael Ziegler, about Noach and family hesitatingly leaving the ark, we could easily relate. Even though most adults are fully vaccinated against COVID corona, we haven't yet resumed our previous level of socializing. Most of us are still pretty solitary, unless zooming, whatsapping or writing or phoning. Our tables are still pretty empty of guests, and we haven't had a Shabbat meal at neighbors for over a year.

It's hard to believe that in less than two weeks, we'll be voting in Knesset Elections. Will we be required to remove our masks so the "officials" can match our faces to our Identity Cards?

And even more important:

Will sixty plus 60+ of the resulting one hundred and twenty 120 Members of Knesset be able to come to some viable coalition agreement?

We the citizens of the State of Israel want a viable government with strong leadership to steer our precious country to security, sovereignty and good health.

I will vote for a political party that has positions, a platform and plans, not for a party that just says "NOT BIBI."  To be honest, I do feel that it's time for Bibi Netanyahu to retire. He's a few months younger than I am and I have no idea where he gets his energy. But energy or not, it's not good for a country to have the same political leader for over a decade. 

I'd like to see Bibi retire with dignity and pass the baton on to the next generation. But I'm not voting for a political party which makes "replacing Bibi" the key issue to their campaign.

For the past decade plus, I've been a member of a small group of women studying the Bible. Right now we're studying Chronicles, which is about the Jewish Kings, the descendants of King David. Some are good, some are bad and some are very, very evil. It's not enough just to put on crown on someone's' head and call him "king." And just because someone wants to be prime minister and has financial backers to cover the expenses of a political party's campaign, doesn't mean he, or she, will do a good job as prime minister or even politician.

Politics is a very complex profession, and here in Israel, because a prime minister must control a coalition it's especially complicated. It can be described as playing a dozen difficult chess games simultaneously. Maybe two dozen would be more accurate. 

I think it's important to vote for a party headed by a potential prime minister, unless you want Bibi and Likud to continue. As I have already said, it's time for Bibi Netanyahu to retire.

That's why I'm giving my vote to Yemina ב. Of all the wannabes, I prefer Naftali Bennett. 

Bennett had a successful career before he went into politics. He has been working his way up, did a good job when Bibi have him responsibilities and has an excellent team working with him.

Rosh Chodesh Women's Prayers

The Jewish Month of Nissan is rapidly approaching. Ladies, please join us for Rosh Chodesh Prayers at Tel Shiloh. 

Rosh Chodesh is traditionally considered a holiday for woman, so take advantage. Come to Holy Shiloh and pray together with us.

Shiloh Hakeduma, the archeological park at Tel Shiloh is a wonderful place. There's lots to do there. If you can't come on Rosh Chodesh, visit a different time. And in case you're wondering, it is the actual location of Biblical Shiloh, a very holy place.  Call 02-5789122 or write  visit@telshilo.org.il.

Masks- A Linguistic Purim Spiel, Story, Dvar Torah

Bemasked and Bewigged Purim 5781

I was rather surprised and even flattered when a neighbor asked me to prepare something to say about "Masks" for the Old Fogeys' Purim Party. To be honest, I wasn't quite sure if I was supposed to be serious, theological or humorous, but I figured that if I asked too many questions, I'd lose the gig.

My mind began racing in all different directions in two languages. Actually, I was thinking in English and translating into Hebrew almost simultaneously. The talk was to be in Hebrew, even though my brain's wiring is primarily English. 

One shouldn't forget that according to some expert linguists, Hebrew is the root/source of all languages. If that's really true, then thinking in English is sort of like thinking in Hebrew. 

Every once in awhile the similarities between English and Hebrew words strike me like a bolt of lightening. When I'm on the Jerusalem Lightrail in Pisgat Zeev I hear:

"פסגת זאב מרכז"

"Pisgat Zeev Merkaz*"

"Pisgat Zeev Market"

Until the lightrail announcement, I had never noticed the similarity between merkaz and market. Remember that markets are in town centers...

Back to masks...

...The job of a mask is to mask is to hide...

OOPS! A mask is a מסכה masecha, but to mask or to hide is להסתיר lihas'tir which unrelated linguistically to מסכה masecha. which has the same root as סוכה succah, which gives us protection. 

By thinking/planning in English I was making no sense in Hebrew. And davka me, who gets all riled up at bad translations causing even theological mistakes. For example a Biblical Prophet, Navi נביא is not a fortune or future teller. He or she is a messenger, a tool Gd uses to pass important warnings to the Jewish People. Because it's always translated into "prophet" meaning teller of the future, now even Hebrew speakers think that the role of a Navi is tell the future.

Mask does sound very much like masecha. Maybe they are related...

Then it hit me! Such siyate d'Shmaya, such irony, too! During this past year masks have been a tool for protection against the COVID corona virus! No longer do we primarily think of a bank robber in a mask. Now we wear masks to stay healthy and keep others healthy. It's for protection, not hiding. 

Hebrew really is the root of all languages.

Stay safe, and wear your mask in public or when with other people.

*Center

Rosh Chodesh Nissan Prayers at Biblical Shiloh- Save The Date

 

Women's Rosh Chodesh Adar Prayers at Biblical Shiloh were wonderful, perfect weather. Shiloh Hakeduma, Tel Shiloh is the most suitable location for women's prayers. It's where the Mishkan, Tabernacle was localed for close to four hundred years and the same exact place where the Biblical Hannah had prayed for son. 

Now Tel Shiloh is one of the most interesting and well kept Biblical archaeological sites in Israel. There are attractions and activities for people of all ages. 

Next Rosh Chodesh is Nissan, Sunday March 14, 2021, the 1st of Nissan 5781, 8:30am.

ראש חודש ניסן, תפילת נשים א' ניסן תשפ"א יום ראשון 14\03\2021 8:30 בבוקר.

כולן מוזמנות 

Everyone's invited

More info shilohmuse@gmail.com פרטים נוספים

For more information about what to do at Shiloh Hakeduma, Tel Shiloh 025789111, visit@telshilo.org.il.