“Moshiach is ready to come now, all we have to do

is increase in acts of goodness and kin

dness.”

“If people want to fight terror, do something kind

for a neighbor, love somebody, mentor a child, standup to evil with acts of goodness and kindness ”

Global Audience

: 30

0,000

Tishrei 5763 / Fa

ll 2002

Certified Soul Nutrition

Light

Look

ing Out For

IntroductionBy Dovi Scheiner

rom the window in my living room I can make out acemetery, a cemetery unlike any other that exists in

our country. Those buried in this cemetery did not die gradually;

they died suddenly. Those buried in this cemetery did notpass away; they were taken away. Though no coroner’s reportever established the precise cause of death, it is clear that theseinnocents died of a horrible disease. A disease called terrorism.

My home is located near Ground Zero. I suspect they call itthat because its woeful tale lays the Ground for a feeling ofZero hope in our future.

But there is hope… From my living room window I see a light, a light unlike any

other that exists in our great country. On an island of hope,there soars a Torch of Liberty, a beacon of religious and civicfreedom to generations of Americans and new immigrants.

This is a light that can never be extinguished. This is a lightthat was not designed to illuminate the outside world, but theinside of a nation. This is a light that is held high in the hand ofone, and in the hearts of untold millions.

The spiritual climate of our day can be assessed from differ-ent perspectives.

On the one hand, we live in an era where people are far moreeager to establish a high-speed Internet connection, than theyare anxious to create a connection on High; we obsess overdownloading information to our Palm Pilots, but overlook theneed to load up our souls with inspiration; we are forever buy-ing and selling stocks, yet rarely find time to pause and takestock.

On the other hand, “Human decency is on the rise,” informsone billboard in lower Manhattan, “and kindness is making acomeback.” Our President tells us we can best fight terrorismby being extra friendly to our neighbors. In these uncertaintimes, we find ourselves open to life’s inner meaning and sub-lime message, as the need to establish a meaningful relation-ship with G-d assumes added urgency. Thus, the time is clearlyripe for a reawakening of our Kosher Spirit.

So please welcome our new magazine as a personal letteraddressed to your soul. Read us like an e-mail marked“Essentials” and addressed to you@jew.edu. In the pages aheadyou will find much ‘light’ reading, designed to help your spiritsoar. Negotiate our magazine as you would a staircase, everyarticle a further step on what we hope will amount to a journeyof spiritual ascendance.

F

2

3

4 - Dancing On 9/11?

6 - A Candle for Truth

8 - The Road To Jerusalem

10 - Liberty, Equality andFraternity…Bitterly

5 - A Palace inFlames

12 - TheChallenge

14 - Worry

15 - The Materialistic Spiritualist

18 - Gusto va Mare

19 - Perrier and the~

20 - A Mother’s Heart

13 - Savta Speaks

We welcome your comments, submissions, and letters to the editor. Mail: Kosher Spirit391 Troy Avenue • Brooklyn, NY 11213Tel: 718.771.0100 • Fax: 718.771.0991E-mail: editor@kosherspirit.com

RABBI DON YOEL LEVYKashrus Administrator

EDITOR: Dovi Scheiner

ASSOCIATE EDITOR: Sara Levy

EDITORIAL CONSULTANTS: Neria Cohen, Shalom Doron

EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTORS: RuthBenjamin, Hanna B. Geshelin, Baila,Chaya and Rivka Glitzenstein, Yosef Y.Jacobson, Thelma M. Levy, MichoelMoss, Phillip Namanworth, BenjaminNetanyahu

PHOTOGRAPHY AND ART: Linda Rosier, Devorah Shinan

SPECIAL THANKS: Shoshe Ben-Abou,Rikal Fogelman, Yitz Goldberg, RivkaGoldstein, Miri Kamman, AudreyKashuk, Sara Feiga Mayteles, DovidPolter, Moshe Rosenfeld, Rabbi MosheScheiner, Sara Malka Schlass

All kashrus inquiries:Mail: Organized Kashrus Laboratories391 Troy AvenueBrooklyn, NY 11213Tel: 718.756.7500Kashrus Q & A: questions@ok.org~ Laboratories Website: www.ok.org

Graphics and design bySPOTLIGHT DESIGNTel: 718.493.2866E-mail: www.spotlightdesign.com

In honor of the marriage of Devorah Leah and Peretz

COVER ART: Andrew LichtensteinSeptember 12, as citizens in mourninggather in Union Square, kindled candlesbring to light a fiery likeness of theAmerican Flag.

NOTE: The views and opinions presented in the Kosher Spirit, do notnecessarily reflect those of the ~.

Inside

e monitored the forecast out of concern forfalling showers, but nothing could have pre-

pared us for the prospect of falling towers! Theholy Reb Yisroel of Ruzhin once said, “Not only is it

announced in heaven whom you will marry, it is alsoannounced in heaven the location, the date and the peoplewho will attend the wedding.” Remarkably, the day chosen inheaven to feature our wedding would play host as well tothe most catastrophic hour in American history.

Many disasters are remembered by catchphrases - we allattach meaning to words like Pearl Harbor and Chernobyl.The tragedy of the Twin Towers, will forever be rememberedby the date on which it occurred:

9.11.01. The day the Twin Towers were toppled. 9.11.01. The day Esty and Dovi Scheiner were wed. Late on my wedding day, when I should have been taking

a refreshing shower, I found myself weeping bitterly instead,my face bathed in hot tears. I asked my spiritual mentor,“How can I tell my legs to dance as thousands of my fellowcitizens prepare to bury their loved ones?” My Rabbiexplained that this was not a question of Happiness vs.Sadness, it was a matter of Good vs. Evil.

The events unfolding in our city did not call for surrender,they called for swift retaliation. Terrorists had just torn downa magnificent structure, now it was our calling to help buildit back up.

Marriage in Judaism centers on the creation of a Jewishhome. A Jewish home is not only constructed physically butis essentially constructed spiritually. A Jewish home is one inwhich G-d is a dominant partner. Prayer and Torah study,charity and hospitality, form the true foundation of theJewish home.

So, as rescue workers were sifting through the rubble atthe site of the World Trade Center, Esther and I donned our‘hard hats’ and headed towards our Chupah, just over theBridge in Brooklyn. With a plume of black smoke suspendedin the skies above our wedding canopy, it was clear to bothof us that our challenge in life would not be to build a Jewishhome, it would be to build a Jewish tower! Hour by hour,deed upon deed, we hope to raise our tower until its turrettouches the sky. A lasting tribute to the Twin Towers thatwill be remembered forever!

By Dovi Scheiner

W

4

he horrific events ofSeptember 11 ought to serve

as an urgent call for the Jewish peopleto reclaim its mission statement articu-

lated at the moment our faith was born,3800 years ago.

How did the Jewish faith come into exis-tence?

The Midrash describes the birth ofJudaism with the following cryptic para-ble:

The Lord said to Abraham, “Leave yourland, your birthplace, and your father’shouse.” To what may this be compared? To aman who was traveling from place to placewhen he saw a palace in flames. He won-dered, “Is it possible that the palace lacks anowner?” The owner of the palace looked outand said, “I am the owner of the palace.” SoAbraham our father said, “Is it possible thatthe world lacks a ruler?” G-d looked out andsaid to him, “I am the ruler, the Sovereign ofthe universe.”

Abraham’s bewilderment is clear. This sen-sitive human being gazes at a brilliantlystructured universe, an extraordinary pieceof art. He is overwhelmed by the grandeur ofa sunset and by the miracle of childbirth; hemarvels at the roaring ocean waves and atthe silent, steady beat of the human heart.The world is indeed a palace.

But the palace is in flames. The world isfull of violence, bloodshed, injustice andstrife. Thugs, abusers, rapists and killers arecontinuously demolishingthe palace and its royalinhabitants.

What happened to theowner of the palace?Abraham cries. Why doesG-d allow man to destroyHis world? Why does Hepermit such a beautifulpalace to go up in flames?Can G-d have made a worldonly to abandon it? Wouldanybody build a palace andthen desert it?

The Midrash records G-d’sreply: “The owner of thepalace looked out and said, ‘Iam the owner of the palace.’G-d looked out and said toAbraham, ‘I am the ruler, theSovereign of the universe.’”

What is the meaning of G-d’s response? Britain’s ChiefRabbi, Jonathan Sacks, pres-ents the following com-pelling interpretation:

Note that the owner of the palace does notmake an attempt to get out of the burningbuilding or to extinguish the flames. He ismerely stating that He is the owner of thepalace that is going up in smoke. It is as if,instead of racing out, the owner were callingfor help. G-d made the palace, man set it onfire, and only man can put out the flames.Abraham asks G-d, “Where are you?” G-dreplies, “I am here, where are you?” Man asksG-d, “Why did You abandon the world?” G-dasks man, “Why did you abandon Me?”

Thus begins the revolution of Judaism -humanity’s courageous venture to extinguishthe flames of immorality, injustice andbloodshed and restore the world to the har-monious and sacred palace it was intendedto be. Abraham’s encounter with G-d in thepresence of a burning palace gave birth tothe mission statement of Judaism - to beobsessed with good and horrified by evil.

o o oOne year ago, on September 11, 2001, we,

too witnessed a palace going up in flames. Yet our palace - unlike Abraham’s palace -

could be destroyed because we, the Jewishpeople, have neglected the covenant craftedbetween Abraham and G-d during that fate-ful day, 3800 years ago.

For too long, many Jews have succumbedto the lure of the popular notion that there isno such thing as absolute evil behavior.“Though shall not judge,” has become ourcherished motto. We have been taught to

probe and understand the underlying frus-trations compelling the aggressor to followhis extreme route.

This sophisticated and open-minded pointof view has allowed us to sustain an ethos ofboundless tolerance, accepting all forms ofbehavior as just, since at the core of everymean act lies a crying heart.

Few ideas have been rejected in the Torahwith so much passion. Judaism places as itshighest ideal the creation of a good and ethi-cal world. Consequently, the refusal to take astand on what is wrong, results in its victory.For example, a non-judgmental view of a sui-cide bomber, may appeal to our compassionand understanding, yet in reality it is a dis-play of extreme cruelty to the innocent vic-tims who will die at the hands of frustratedmilitants.

Judaism, in its impassioned attempt toturn the word into an exquisite palace, creat-ed absolute universal standards for good andevil. These standards are defined by theCreator of the universe and are articulated inHis manual for human living, the Torah.Taking the life of an innocent person is evil.No ifs, buts or why’s. The killer may be badlyhurting but that never justifies the evil ofmurdering an innocent human being.

Yet, tragically, we have become numb toour mission statement. For six years Israelhas displayed tolerance toward terrorists,neglecting our most cherished doctrine thatthe preservation of human life reigns

supreme over every otherconsideration. The result ofour moral confusion is dev-astating: Thousands ofinnocent Jews and Arabsare now dead and terroriststhe world over have learnedthat they can continue theirdespicable work withoutserious consequences.

Good people of the worldare waiting to be inspired byour four-millennium longheritage of standing up toevil and banishing it fromG-d’s palace.

Yosef Y. Jacobson, one of themost sought-after speakers inthe Jewish world today, has lec-tured to Jewish and non-Jewishaudiences in six continents andtwenty states and is the authorof the tape series “A Tale of TwoSouls.” You can e-mail theauthor at YYJacobson@aol.com

5

A Palace IN Flames

By Yosef Y.Jacobson

esides fighting our obviousbattles with terrorism, wehave to fight on one otherfront, the battle for public

opinion. The terrorists arevery clever and their principle weaponagainst us, other than bombs, is propa-ganda. That is the one element Arafathas which distinguishes him from otherterrorists, he’s got P.R. Arafat is a BinLaden with P.R. and this works inEurope, North America, and it definitelyworks in the U.N.

The terrorists always cite a few mainideas in their propaganda speeches.They say, “We’re not the terrorists, youare the terrorists! You’re the guys whoare killing civilians; in fact, you arekilling more civilians than we are killing.Anyway, one man’s terrorist is anotherman’s freedom fighter,” and so on. Wehave all heard this type of propaganda.

The first thing we have to do is dispelthis deliberate obfuscation. Terrorism isnot defined by the identity of its perpe-trators, or by its cause, real or imaginary.Terrorism is not defined by what theyprofess to be their goals; terrorism isdefined by one thing alone, by the natureof the act!

Terrorism is the deliberate and sys-tematic attack on civilians. It is not theunintentional harming of civilians thataccompanies every war. In 1944 theBritish air force set out to bomb theGestapo headquarters in Copenhagen, aperfectly legitimate target. But theBritish pilots missed, and instead of hit-ting the Gestapo headquarters, they hit achildren’s hospital nearby and 83 chil-dren were horribly blown to death. Thatincident was not called terrorism, butinstead was acknowledged to be anunintentional accident.

In contrast, the terrorists we knowdon’t hit children by accident, they hitthem deliberately, again and again andagain. They bomb our coffee shops, ourhotels, our busses; they put children intheir line of fire and purposefullysqueeze the trigger. During these acts ofterrorism, they kill soldiers too, butessentially aim to kill innocents.

Terrorism is quickly followed by adeliberate attempt by terrorists to hidebehind their own civilians, seeking topurchase immunity. Israel has shownmuch restraint. We have an enormous

air force that wedo not use, oruse only forpinpointstrikes. Infact our reac-tion is very dif-ferent from the way Britainand the United States actedin Afghanistan.They firstcleared it out;they gave prop-er warning, andthen leveled anycivilian areawhere the terrorists could encampthemselves. In the end they sent inthe ground troops, and even thenon a limited basis because theydid not want to incur casualtieswithin their own ranks.

Israel did not use her air powerin order to prevent civilian casu-alties amongst the opposition.Israel went in, putting our sol-diers at risk and some died.

It is important not to fall forthe lie that Israel targets civilians.Terrorists hide behind their civil-ians for immunity. We do howev-er target terrorists for our verysurvival; unfortunately, on occa-sion unintended civilian causali-ties result.

The terrorists also say, “Well,maybe we do attack civil-ians, but it is becausewe have no otherchoice. We’re frustratedby the deprivation ofour national or civicfreedom. If you want toreally fight terrorism,you don’t fight it, butget rid of the root caus-es of terrorism.” I amsure you have all heardthis argument. Theysay, “To solve terrorism,get rid of the depriva-tion.” This means, togive into the terroristdemands, all of them,and then terrorismwill disappear.

This argumentcan only be foisted

at the beginning of the 21st centu-ry, when you have vast

numbers of peo-ple whosesense of histo-

ry extendsback to break-

fast. In the modern period of

the 19th and 20th centurythere have been endless

conflicts for nation-al liberation, forcivic freedom andcivic equality. If theroot cause of terror-

ism was the deprivation of thesefreedoms we ’d expect to see ram-pant terrorism in those struggles,but we hardly see any at all. In the19th century there were manynations who fought for theirnational liberation. The Polesfought against the Russians, theGreeks against the Turks etc., butthey never attacked women andchildren and defenseless civil-ians. In the 20th century Gandhididn’t use terrorism againstBritain in his fight for India’sindependence. Martin LutherKing didn’t use terrorism fightingfor civil equality for allAmericans. Those two leadersactually preached non-violence.

The people of Eastern Europedidn’t use terrorism orfighting to bringdown the Berlinwall. Even the worstoccupation in histo-ry, the Nazi occupa-tion of Europe neversaw the Frenchresistance resort tomurderous terror-ism. There wereplenty of opportu-

nities as the wivesand the children of

collaborators and eventhe wives and childrenof German officers werestationed in occupiedFrance within reach.

Why is it that somany nations didn’t

feel the need to use

6

By Benjamin Netanyahu

B ACandle forTruth

7

terrorism? The answer is very simple,because they were true democrats (witha small ‘d’). They believed in the demo-cratic ethos which says that every per-son is born with inalienable rights; thata baby is born with inalienable rights -the first one being the right to life and itdoesn’t make a difference if it’s a Jewishbaby, an Arab baby or a Tibetan baby.Because of that inalienable humanright, they had to curb the way theywaged their struggles.

There are limits to the use of power;there are moral laws that govern humanaction. This is what the democraticmindset stipulates. The mindset of a ter-rorist is different, those who practice thedeliberate slaughter of the innocent,they don’t believe in any rights of men.They believe something entirely and dia-metrically opposite. They believe in ahigher cause so totally, that it allowsthem to forgo conventional morality. Itcould be a racial cause, or an ethniccause, or a political cause, it doesn’tmake any difference, the cause is sototal that it calls you to brainwash yourdisciples so that they abandon conven-tional morality, crush humanity to theground and blow up a bus full of babiesif necessary.

This behavior is called totalitarianism,the root cause of terrorism. In mod-ern times, from the daythat Baqunin put this the-ory on paper, it was takenup by Lenin, Stalin, Hitler,the Ayatollahs, the Talibanin Afghanistan and even-tually Arafat inArafatistan. It’s all the same idea,the cause changes, but the system is thesame. Totalitarianism involves the com-plete obliteration of morality for the sakeof a twisted cause. This is the root causeof terrorism.

In the thousands of acts of the Jewishunderground forces, maybe two inci-dents could be construed as terrorismunder our definition. There’s a famoustelegram in which Jabotinsky, the ideo-logical father of the Irgun, cables fromLondon: He said, “I understand there

was an action in which two women andtwo children were killed. Is it true? If it istrue, was it deliberate or accidental? If itwas deliberate, immediately put thoseresponsible on trial.” Can you imagineArafat sending a telegram like that?

Begin used to call the British militaryauthorities and tell them to take civiliansoff the trains because they would beblown up. Could you imagine Arafatdoing that?

Arafat glorifies thesekillers, he lionizes them,he says they’re heroes. Henames public squares intheir honor. He has suicidekindergarten camps thatteach three-year-old chil-dren to become humanbombs.

These terrorists are not the productsof oppression; they are in fact the carri-ers of this oppression. We can clearly seewhat happens when those who practiceterrorism do come to power. They do notestablish democracies, but insteadestablish dark, dank, corrupt dictator-ships and use terror against their ownpeople as well as against their enemies.

Terrorism is the carrier of oppression,it is not the result of oppression, and it iscertainly not the result of any oppressionwe have done, because we have donenothing. They are changing the facts ofpast history. Arab propaganda uses theoldest technique in the book. Called thereversal of causality, the Arabs substitutethe results of their aggression for itscauses. They say that they’re attackingus because of the settlements - fine,except that there wasn’t a single Israelisettlement in Judea, Samaria or Gaza in1967 when they first attacked us. Thatwas how we got into those territories inthe first place; our being there in recenttimes is a result of Arab aggression, notthe cause of their aggression. As peoplebelieve them, this version takes on a‘facade of truth.’ Similarly, between 1948and 1967 when you asked the Arabs whythey were attacking Israel, they said, “Itis because of our refugees.” But therewasn’t a single Arab refugee in the

Middle East in 1948 when the Arabsattacked the embryonic Jewish state.

More recently, only two years ago,when an Israeli Prime Minister offered(scandalously to my mind) unbelievableconcessions - willingness to dismantleall of the West Bank and Gaza, all ofJudea and Samaria thus uprootingdozens of settlements - Arafat justrejected it. It reminds me of OliverTwist, but he didn’t even say, “Please sir,I want some more.” He said “More! More!Akko, Haifa, Ramla, Lod.” Because theideological banner that Arafat has forhis particular kind of totalitarianism, isnot a State next to Israel but a Stateinstead of Israel. He preaches to his ownpeople the doctrine of destruction ofIsrael using the technique of suicide andmass murder.

What can we do against this endlessvilification and distortion of the truth?We can only uphold the truth, the factsof recent and ancient history, the factsof today and yesterday. These are theonly weapons we have against this vili-fication.

When I came to serve as Israel’sambassador in the U.N. I was asked by aformer soldier of mine to come and visitthe Lubavitcher Rebbe on SimchasTorah. During that conversation, theRebbe said, “When you go into thathouse of lies (that’s what he called theUnited Nations) remember that in thedarkest hall, if you light one candle itwill shed a light that will be seen by allfrom a great distance. What you must dois light a candle of truth against all thoselies.” And that’s exactly what I have triedto do ever since.

I think each one of us has the opportu-nity in our daily lives to dispel myth anddistortion, either in a letter to the editor,in conversations we have with our chil-dren, or in a phone call. Possibly theworst and most pernicious affect of Arabpropaganda is its affect on our own peo-ple. So become educated with the factsand then stand up for the truth.

Light a candle for truth.

Based on a public speech by BenjaminNetanyahu, given at the Palm BeachSynagogue, Florida.

Baila and Chaya are twins, aged 11, andtheir sister, Rivka is 10.

t’s 8:30 in the morning. The schoolbell rings and students enter the class-rooms, but not us. We usually get toschool during or after the morning

recess.We live in Ma’ale Efraim, which is locat-

ed “behind the green line.” Every day wetravel about four hours (back and forth)to school in Jerusalem, with our brothersand sister. The roads in our area haveseen very hard times. The way is verynarrow and hilly. To begin with, theArabs only threw stones or put tires andboulders in the middle of the road, butsince last year, they have been shootingand putting explosives or bombs on theroad instead. We used to get to school ontime because it actually takes only anhour to Jerusalem, but since it becamedangerous, we travel by “Eged” bus,which is bulletproof.

The bus stops off in all the settlementsand army camps along the way. It goesup and down a long winding hill to eachof the settlements, so the trip is not easyat all. Many times, the bus is over crowd-ed with soldiers, so we don’t even haveplace to sit. If we had a private bus, wewould get to school on time and sit com-fortably, but it’s better to travel safely.The truth is that even the bulletproofbusses were shot at, and unfortunately,people were wounded and killed.Whenever there is a shooting or explo-sives, the army closes off the roads, andthen we have to travel by a differentroute.

There are also “Machsomim” on theway, where the soldiers stop every carand check them, and then the bus waitsa long time on line. Once, at theentrance to Jerusalem, we

waited for so long, that bythe time we got into thecity, we didn’t even get toschool, we just went rightto the bus that brings ushome. Our trip to school alwaysshows us how G-d watches over us. Wehave seen so many miracles. Many times,there was shooting a few minutes beforeor after we passed a certain place. Alsoexplosives went off on the road, butalways missed the bus we traveled on.

We used to take 10 “agurot” to schoolfor charity every day, but since it becamedangerous, we always take 30 “agurot.” 10 we put in charity on the bus, (wealways travel with a charity box), 10 weput in school, and 10 we put in charity athome as soon as we arrive. This way, weare sure that we will have a safe trip.Even so, we must admit, that the securitysituation does have an effect on us. Whenwe get off the bus, we have to walk about20 minutes to get to school. Last week,while we were walking, we suddenlynoticed a man on a motorcycle thatstopped near a house and threw some-thing towards the house. Then he wentto the next house, and did the samething. All three of us were quite scared,because we thought that he was a ter-rorist who wants to kill Jews (HeavenForbid), and we started running away.Only afterwards, we realized, thathe was just throwing newspa-pers into the houses.

This is how mostpeople in Israelfeel. For exam-ple, wealwaystake acellu-

lar phone with us because of the situa-tion. One day, the phone fell out of ourbriefcase, and we didn’t realize rightaway. Afterwards, we found out that thepeople who saw it were afraid that it wasa bomb. Also, anyone who sees a bag oranything on the sidewalk, in a store, on abus, etc., right away thinks that it may bean explosive.

Since we spend so much time on thebus, we try to use this time to speak tothe people or soldiers on board aboutkeeping Torah and Mitzvoth. Our teach-ers don’t understand why we can’t dohomework on the way, but the trip is sowinding and hilly, that it’s too hard toconcentrate and if we try to read we getnauseous. Instead, we speak to the peo-ple. They ask us all sorts of questions,like - “Aren’t you hot in the summer - whydo you wear long sleeves and socks,” or“Do you really believe that Moshiach willcome.” Most of the people on the bussesare soldiers or people who don’t knowmuch about Torah and Judaism.

We try our best to explain tothem how important it is toserve Hashem andhow happy weare to bereli-

8

The Road By Baila, Chaya and Rivka Glitzenstein

—MA’ALE EFRAIM, ISRAEL

JERUSALEMTo

9

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gious, even though sometimes it can be alittle difficult. We tell them thatMoshiach is ready to come! Usually, wedon’t know what came out of the conver-sations, but once we did find out. Ourolder sister has a friend who runs aTzivos Hashem club in Jerusalem for girlswho don’t know about a Torah way of life.One day, a new girl began to come. Shetold the Madricha (counselor) - “Do youknow why I decided to come? Believe me,I never thought I would be coming tothis kind of club. But one day, when Itraveled on a bus from Jerusalemto Tiberias, I met some girls wholive in Ma’ale Efraim and we hada very interesting conversation,and because of that I decidedto come.” The girl was sur-prised that the “Madricha”also knew us… That was realDivine Providence!

Most private families can-not afford to get a bulletproofcar, therefore there is a“G’mach Shachpatzim” for peo-ple who live in “Yehuda andShomron.” A “Shachpatz” is a veryheavy metal bulletproof vest,which you can put on,and they haveall sizes.Whenwe

wear a “Shachpatz” we simply can’t movethe whole way, and it feels very heavy onour shoulders and on our backs. But wedon’t complain, because we see how G-dhelps us and watches over us every day.But unfortunately we keep on hearingthe sad and scary stories of all the peoplewho were wounded, or killed, or losttheir parents. It makes us very worriedand sad, and we immediately recite

Psalms for them.One thing is for sure.

Because of the security situation, somany people have started praying andbegging Hashem that we need Moshiachimmediately! Even people in Ma’aleEfraim who used to think that it is just adream, today, they tell us - “Nu, what’swith Moshiach? Something has to hap-pen. Things can’t continue this way!” Weknow that if Jews around the world willreally ask Hashem to bring Moshiach, hewill come immediately! So anyone who

reads this article and wants tohelp us, should try to tell all

the people you know topray and do Mitzvoth so

that Moshiach willcome TODAY!

uring the French revolution,Voltaire and Rousseau were facedwith a curious dilemma. Amongsttheir writings on tolerance, they

had inserted copious anti-Semitic com-mentaries, but were still trapped intounwillingly tolerating the Jews. Theirown revolution was based on the princi-ples of “Liberty, Equality and Fraternity”which needed somehow to apply to theJewish masses as well. September 1791brought about a bitter battle in the hallsof the new National Assembly of Franceas a law of complete emancipation ofthe Jews was drawn up.

Historically, France has always beenvirulently xenophobic and often anti-Semitic. (A point with which AlfredDreyfus would agree.)

Recent fears of a united Europe, theadvent of the Euro currency andmassive immigrant populations -especially Muslims - pour-ing into France, haveFrancophiles worriedabout their republic.France today has thelargest Jewish andMuslim population inEurope, with 5 millionMuslims and 650,000 Jews.

Leah, a French ex-patriot livingin New York, looks uncharacteristicallysolemn as she describes a recent visit toher family in France. She had always feltthat her fellow Frenchmen were faintlyanti-Semitic but tolerable. It was overthe Passover holidays and tension wasbuilding in the Middle East. Arafat’scompound was under siege and so werethe Jews of France. Her husband andbrothers had to face spitting and hissesof ‘dirty Jew’ on the way to synagogue.

It has been suggested to those living inFrance that they should try to look lessJewish. But the Jews of France feel this istheir home - they were born in Franceand love France, but are even moreproud of their Jewish identity. “Whyshould they cover up their kippah?” asksLeah. The way a Jew answers a Jew witha question, I reply, “You are right. Why

should they?” There is no answer.Leah told me more horror stories. Her

12-year-old niece was walking from theschool to the gym with classmates andteachers, when thugs began attackingthem throwing rocks. A young girl washit in the head and the blood began toflow.

She says the propaganda makes it tentimes worse. Coverage of Israel mostlyshows sad Palestinians burying theirdead. Suicide bombing reports alwaysspeak only of the oppression of thePalestinians and how they heroicallyblow themselves up on “special opera-tions” for the sake of their people.Zionism is commonly referred to as aform of Nazism. The French have always

been a bit uncomfort-able with

the

Jewish peo-ple, who can never be totally French dueto their loyalty to Jerusalem. There is afeeling amongst the French political farleft that the Palestinians are the newproletariat, and they are portrayed bythe French media as freedom fightersdeprived of their rights.

Leah is not imagining the anti-Semitictension. Other incidentshave occurred,unthinkablysimilar toevents leadingup to theHolocaust.

In Bondy,France on April11th, hooded

attackers wielding metal bars and sticksattacked a Jewish amateur soccer team.The 15-year-old goalkeeper suf-fered a head injury and wastreated in the hospital.The sports center wasdefaced and fires werelit, but they went outon their own. OnApril 7th, there wasan arson attack at GanPardes Jewish School during thenight. On April 5th a small bomb wasfound in a synagogue in Strasbourg,which fortunately did not ignite.Another bomb was found in the Jewishcemetery and arsonists also set fire tothe prayer pavilion there. March 31, agunman opened fire on a kosher butchershop in southern France; a synagoguewas gutted by fire in Marseille; anothersynagogue was attacked in Brussels;and a young woman was confronted inthe subway, by chants of, “Dirty Jew,we are going to finish the work of

the forties…all of you willburn.” The list of incidents isendless but few suspectshave been found.

Police say perpetratorsare probably a small

number of young, secondand third generationFrench citizens of North-African descent whosympathize withthe Palestiniansand want to getin “on the action.”

Sam Pisar, aPolish bornJew whosur-

10

By Sara

LIBERTY, EQUALITY AND

d

It was over the Passover holidays and tension was building in the Middle East.Arafat’s compound was under siege and so were the Jews of France.

vived Auschwitz and two other concen-tration camps and has lived more

than half his life in France, sayshe never thought he would

face a time when Jewswere persecuted again.

He believes the cli-mate of anti-

Semitism is as bad asit was just before

World War II. He said,“Not enough is being

done to stem the whole thing,people are just letting it goand praying that it will notexplode.”

The French political leadersare no lovers of the Jews. Thegovernment controls the heavilybiased media. It was even reportedrecently, that during a conversationabout the Middle East crisis withConrad Black, (owner of the DailyTelegraph newspaper), French ambas-sador to Great Britain, Daniel Bernard

spoke about “That (expletive) littlecountry Israel, that is smaller thanthree French ‘departments’(provincial districts) is causing so

much worldwide trouble.” Thestory yielded denials and edito-

rials mostly on free speech butlargely ignored the escalating

contempt for the Jews ofFrance.

The governmenthas belatedly offi-cially sided with

the Jews in theattacks, but the

French aregenerally

knownfor

favoring the Palestinians. French Prime Minister, Lionel Jospin,

did make a statement saying: “Any act ofviolence committed against Jews is com-mitted against our whole national com-munity. It is a violation of our Republic’s

mostfundamental principles.”

President Chirac also made a state-ment: “I have come here to convey tothe Jewish community of France, myindignation, my sense of solidarity andabove all my strength of feeling follow-ing the attacks which, lately in ever-increasing numbers and more especiallyin the last few days, have been directedagainst persons, property and symbolsof the Jewish community. These acts areutterly unimaginable, unforgivable, inde-scribable, and must be condemned andpunished as such. They are unworthy ofFrance, they are unworthy of the Frenchpeople.”

For some, the statements are justmore and more empty words.

Then there is the ultra-nationalisticNational Front (FN) party and the bla-

tantly anti-Semitic com-ments by its leader,

Le Pen. Le Pen’sgrowing politi-

cal supportshocked theworld. LastFebruary, LePen accusedChirac of being

“In the pay of Jewish organizations andparticularly of the notorious B’nei Brith.”

Catherine Mégret, who stood in forher husband, Bruno at a meeting, (thenumber two leader of the FN and oftendescribed as the party’s brain) repeatedanother Le Pen statement that “thereare differences between the races…

there are differences in the genes…there are simply too many immi-

grants, and they make whoknows how many children

whom they send into thestreets and then claim wel-

fare…” And so it goes on…

It says in Tehillim (Psalms), “Hismouth is filled with false oaths, with

deception and malice; under histongue are mischief and iniquity. Hewaits in ambush near open cities; in hid-den places he murders the innocent”(Psalms 10:7-8). This could be a quoteabout the suicide bombers and thepropaganda machine that supports thisbehavior, however it was written by KingDavid thousands of years ago. Anti-Semitic propaganda is not new, it has allbeen said before. We just need to beaware of the threat to our brethren, par-ticularly now in Europe.

Leah does not want to go back toFrance anytime soon. She just prays thather family and community will be safe.Her parents will not move to Israel, fortheir whole life is in France and they feelthey are too old to start again some-where else.

The words of Tehillim also offer uscomfort: “G-d is the champion of theorphan and the downtrodden, so that heshall no longer be terrified of an earthlymortal” (Psalms 10:18).

May G-d grant us Moshiach (Messiah),the only peace process that will be ever-lasting.

Sara Levy is associate editor of theKosher Spirit.

11

Suicide bombing

reports always speak only of

the oppression of the Palestinians

and how they heroically blow

themselves up on “special

operations” for the sake of

their people.

a Levy

FRATERNITY… BITTERLY

he route of every Jew whobecomes observant is

unique. One of the turningpoints on my journey

occurred at a large Iowa univer-sity with a miniscule Jewishpopulation, where during myfreshman year of 1963-64, I wasthe only undergraduate femalewho identified herself as Jewish.

Among my roommates duringmy first term was a junior tak-ing a child development classon cultures. She decided to jointhe committee researching theJewish culture because she hada ready-made resource to inter-view - me. As a fourth-genera-tion American descendent ofReform Jews who emigratedfrom Germany before the U.S.Civil War, I didn’t know muchabout Judaism, but I did mybest to answer her questions.The relief that I felt when shefinished questioning me wasshort-lived, however. Everyterm after that, the childdevelopment professor gavemy name to the committeestudying Judaism. To meetthis challenge, I would haveto learn something about myheritage.

The college library hadtwo shelves of books onJudaism. I started at oneend of the upper shelf andbegan reading. They gaveme basic informationabout Jewish history, tradi-tion and beliefs. With thehelp of the books I man-aged to get through th

questions during the winterterm. Then, in the spring of myfreshman year, I met Janet.

Janet was a Southern Baptistfrom a small town in Iowa. Likemany students at college, shecame from a family for whomchurch was a major focus. Herbeliefs guided her behavior inall aspects of her life.

I was the first Jewish personshe’d ever met. She told me thatshe had chosen to write aboutthe Jewish culture because shewanted to learn about the ori-gins of her faith. Could shecome with me to synagogue?

The town had a small Reformcongregation that met Fridayevenings in the parlor of one ofthe churches. I agreed to takeher, and as we strolled throughthe quiet streets she asked meabout my religious life. “Wheredo you eat?” she asked sudden-ly.

Mystified, I gave the name ofthe dorm dining hall.

“How do you manage?” sheasked.

“What do you mean? I justeat.”

With an edge to her voice shesaid, “How can you ‘just eat?’We get ham, pork or shellfishthree or four nights a week, andmost of the rest of the timethere’s meat and milk at thesame meal.”

“Oh,” I said confidently, “Youmean kosher. I’m Reform, andwe don’t keep kosher.”

“You don’t keep kosher? Butfrom everything I’ve read,kosher is one of the corner-stones of Judaism. Why don’t

you keep it?” I shrugged. “I don’t know, we

just don’t.” Janet stopped and turned to

face me, hands on her hips. Ican still picture her standingthere in the light of a streetlamp, dressed the way shewould for church in a navy suit,a small white hat and whitegloves. She looked me up anddown as though I were a bug ona pin. Then she said words thatstill reverberate through mymind: “If my church told me todo something, I’d do it.”

In the long silence that fol-lowed, I rolled the words overand over through my mind. AndI wondered, why did the Reformmovement say keeping kosherwasn’t important? I decided tofind out.

The next day I found, on oneof those shelves of Jewish books,a history of the Reform move-ment. Breaking bread with oth-ers, said the book, is a universalgesture of friendship and good-will. Keeping kosher preventsJews and non-Jews from break-ing bread together; thus it pre-vents casual communionbetween “us” and “them.” WhenJews stop keeping kosher andeat non-kosher with theirneighbors, anti-Semitism willend and Jews will be fullyaccepted into mainstream soci-ety.

I thought of the Jewish historyI’d been reading, of MosesMendelsohn and theEmancipation; of my mother’sfamily, which hadn’t keptkosher in at least four genera-tions; and I thought of theHolocaust, which began in

Mendelsohn’s and my great-great-grandparent’s home-land,Germany. I turned to the titlepage of the book and saw thatoriginally the book had beenpublished in German in Berlinin 1928.

Maybe in 1928 German Jewscould say that eating with non-Jews would end anti-Semitism.But they were about to beproved disastrously wrong.Could I continue to eat in anon-Jewish fashion, when thereasoning for permitting Jews toeat treif was based on a com-plete fallacy?

“If my church told me to dosomething, I’d do it.” Janet’swords took one end of myYiddishe neshama and thebook’s glaring fallacy took theother end, and they shook meuntil I had to sit down, rightthere on the floor in thelibrary stacks. When I stoppedshaking, I knew that until Icould find a good reason, atrue reason, to not keepkosher, I had no choice. I wasa Jew, and the Jews keptkosher. It was that simple.

My complete transforma-tion from a secular to aTorah observant Jew tookmany years and many morelessons in faith. But my firstbig step began that Shabbatnight, when a Christian girlchallenged me to stand upand act like a Jew.

Hanna Bandes Geshelinhas been a social worker,technical writer, librarian,and storyteller. She lives inWorcester, Massachusettswith her husband.

CHALLENGETHE

By Hanna B.Geshelin

12

Mrs. Thelma M.Levy, wife of the lateRabbi Berel LevyOB”M and matri-arch of the ~ Labs,shares her thoughtson the organizationshe knows best.

y husband, Rabbi BerelLevy OB”M, was agreat thinker. From themoment he first got involved in kashruth,in the 1960’s, he envisioned an efficientkashruth organization, living up to thehighest standards in Jewish law and alsoworking seamlessly with food companies,facilitating a wealth of strictly kosherproducts. In 1965, he assumed leadershipof the ~ Labs. At the time, we were cer-tifying only a small number of compa-nies, but Rabbi Levy entered the industrywith a tremendous energy and awarenessof how important and integral thekashruth movement needed to be.

Rabbi Berel Levy’s reputation spreadvery quickly, his outgoing personality andstrong principles instilled confidence inothers. He possessed an incredible mindthat retained information much like acomputer, about all the companies andingredients we certified. Of course wehad files, documents and kosher lettersbut he rarely had to go to the file. At first,Rabbi Levy did everything himself, I did abit of typing and billing, but he called thecompanies, inspected the factories, andsupervised all correspondence. Almostovernight, we started to grow rapidly,and soon we began to branch out beyondour local metropolitan area.

Shortly after he took over the ~ Labs,Rabbi Levy began to travel. During hisbusiness trips to six continents, he wouldmake a concerted effort to educate thepeople there about their Jewish heritage.He would teach people about Shabbat,help communities to build Mikvahs andaid in preventing intermarriage.

The kashruth industry requires a com-prehensive knowledge of chemistry,knowledge that Rabbi Levy promptlyacquired. Understanding how any singlefood item is produced is complicated.You have to know the composition andsource of each ingredient, as well as anyprocesses it may undergo. To inspect afactory, besides knowledge and expertise,you have to be very inquisitive. I wentwith Rabbi Levy on a few inspections andhe had to go into the stock room andsupply room, look around, ask questionsand write down what he had to checklater. Nothing passed him by.

One of the primary policies Rabbi Levyimplemented was the policy of non-solici-tation of companies. If a companyapproaches us with interest in our certifi-cation, we set down our strict standards.Were we to approach a company and askfor their business, if they do somethingwrong later on and we protest, they canpoint out that we wanted their business.They did not initiate the relationship andtherefore we should not interfere withtheir desire to compromise on variousissues. People have to come to us,approaching us shows readiness toadhere to our standards. It is the only wayto operate according to Jewish law.

As our organization continued to grow,it became increasingly difficult for myhusband to run solo. We asked our son,Rabbi Don Yoel Levy to join us in 1977.Over a period of seven years, since thetime of his marriage to Malka Deutsch in

1970, Don Yoel hadbeen learning full timein Kollel in KiryatMalachi, Israel. He wasvery focused andlearned constantly.

At first, Don Yoelresisted our invitationto join the ~ Labs. Hehad hoped to serve as acommunity Rabbi andeducator, reaching outto Jews with limitedreligious education.When he asked the

advice of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, theRebbe told him that kashruth is a veryimportant mitzvah to spread.

In 1987, Rabbi Berel Levy passed away.After his death, a client told me that hewould have given anything if he couldhave only gone into Rabbi Levy’s mindfor a few minutes, just to see the tremen-dous knowledge stored there.

My husband left behind a surging,vibrant kashruth organization, whichdue to his principles, solid foundationand the integrity of our son, continues togrow.

In 1996, we built our own expansiveoffice building. When we moved in, wehad extra offices for the first time. Wehave steadily grown bigger, hiring newemployees, buoyed both by the confi-dence people have in our strict kashruthstandards and all the new companieswho want~ certification. The extraoffice space has somehow evaporated. Idon’t know where we are going to pushout the walls.

Although we are as strict as ever, evermore companies are joining. Once theycome, 99% of them stay, due to our tech-nology, superbly reliable kosher certifica-tion, professionalism and prompt serviceto our clients.

I think my husband would be veryproud of our organization as it is today.

13

Amazon Cafe - Brooklyn, NY - Dairy Restaurant

American Bagel - New York, NY - Dairy Restaurant

Ameripac Chemical - Santa Fe Springs, CA - Potassium Sorbate

Aroma Kosher Restaurant - Surfside, FL - Dairy Restaurant

Balford Farms - Ben Salem, PA - Dairy Products

Big Boy Food Group - Warren, MI - Dairy Products

Chateua Shalom - Brooklyn, NY - Liquer

Cine Citta Cafe - Miami, FL - Dairy Café

Clement Pappa’s & Co - Seabrook, NJ - Mineral Water

Diehl Specialties - Defiance, OH - Dairy Products

EEE’s Bakery and Cafe - New York, NY - Dairy Restaurant

Food Handler - Westbury, NY - Pan Liners

Hataboon - Flushing, NY - Baked Products

Healthy Delites - Brooklyn, NY - Baked Products

IFF India - India - Flavors

My Grandma’s Coffee Cakes - Boston, MA - Coffee Cakes

Noga Dairy - Farmingdale, NY - Dairy Products

Planet Kosher - N. Miami Beach, FL - Meat Restaurant

Polar Foods - Canada - Flax Oil

Ron Ben Israel Cakes - New York, NY - Cakes

Schreiber Foods - Greenbay, WI - Dairy Products

Two Tribes - Glenview, IL - Cheese Products

Wilcox Farms - Roy, WA - Dairy Products

Zanders Creamery - Croos Plaines, WI - Dairy Products

Savta rejoices at thewedding of hergranddaughter

New~ Certifications

Oooh it’s not really my profession,Friends say it’s a compulsionBut they’re dead wrongIt’s merely an obsession.

Doctors say that worry implies a lack of trustBut I never trusted doctors’And I don’t see why I must.When every year some rotten flu turns all their theories into dust,Ooh, I worry.

But what if I’m wrongOoh that would grieve me,And what if I’m right.Where exactly does that leave me.

Well I worry about the planet, the water and the air.I’m dressing for success, But I’m not sure what to wearThe only thing that I don’t worry aboutBecause it’s always thereOoh, ooh, is my worry.

How do I look tonightOoh, ooh, I worry.

14

WORRY

It might appear my thinking’s convoluted at its best.But for me, it’s nothing less than a spiritual quest.Each person in this life is given his or her own test

and for me it’s been to worry.

I worry about tomorrow,I worry about today

I worry that you’ll leave me,Then I worry that you’ll stay.

I can’t make up my mindBecause I know that either way

All I’m gonna do is worry.

I worry about my job,I’m afraid I might get fired.

It’s really so ridiculousI haven’t even been hired.

Why should I let that stop me?When I’m obviously inspired

to worry, worry, worry.

Oooooh I’m a black belt in panicand I find that peace of mind

Only tends to make me manic.

My friends say I should loosen upWith all that I have learned.

But the fact that they have mentioned it, leaves me concerned.

And if it’s only my own craziness,At least its been well earned.

Ooh, I worry.

Phillip Namanworth is a singer/songwriter who haswritten songs for Sesame Street, Nickelodeon,Saturday Night Live, movie scores, theatre and vari-ous recordings. He has created two CD’S of hiscabaret songs. E-mail: Namsoup@aol.com

The past is behind us. The future has yet to come. The present zooms by in the blink of an eye.

So why worry? — R’ Avraham Even Ezra

By PhillipNamanworth

he concept of a‘materialistic spiritualist’

may sound like a quintessen-tial oxymoron, yet that’s pre-

cisely what we are on RoshHashanah.

Rosh Hashanahis the anniversaryof the creation ofman. On the firstday of his life,Adam, the first man,encouraged his fellow cre-ations to acknowledge thereality of a Higher Being:“Come! Let us prostrateourselves and bow, letus kneel before G-d,our Maker.”1 Each yearon Rosh Hashanah,we relive this experi-ence by acknowledg-ing the supremacy ofthe Divine. We callupon G-d to involveHimself in our exis-tence, enjoining Him to“reign with glory over theworld in its entirety.”Simultaneously, since RoshHashanah is the day onwhich G-d assigns us ourannual financial allot-ment, we pray also forour material needs.

These dual realitiesappear contradictory.In our desire to establish G-d as Kingover all creation, it is incumbent upon usto follow His will regardless of concernfor our personal benefit. This self-nega-tion before a Divine ruler seems to leavelittle room for individualized pleas forthe allocation of our material needs.

Indeed, this awkward juxtapositioncalls into question the essential compati-bility of our material and spiritualspheres. When striving to carry out thewill of his Creator, is man justified inrequesting the fulfillment of his personaldesires?

Eli the Priest said “No!” In the Haftorahof Rosh Hashanah, a long childlessHannah poured out her impassioned pleato G-d to “give Your maidservant maleoffspring.”2 Eli the Priest, observing this

sceneat theSanctuary in Shiloh,was filled with disapproval,deeming Hannah’s mention of her per-sonal needs while standing before G-d aform of self-intoxication. “How long willyou be drunk?” he censured Hannah,“remove your wine from yourself !”3

However, for a Jew, the material is reallya means to a spiritual end. Requests forprosperity and plenty are therefore consis-tent with the goal of establishing G-d’ssupremacy throughout creation. Byassuming ownership of a physical objectand utilizing it in one’s service of G-d, theJew succeeds in expanding the G-dlydomain to include this article as well - hismaterial possession newly spiritualized.

Whereas on a conscious level, man’s

pleas for material plentymight appear to be a

desire to satisfy his phys-ical self, in reality theyare motivated by the

workings of his soul.Commenting on the verse,

“Hungry as well as thirsty, theirsoul fainted

withinthem,”4

the BaalShem Tov

explains5 that thephysical hunger andthirst of the body isrooted in a spiritualcraving of the soul, adesire to release theG-dly sparks trappedwithin a given dishor drink.

So went the retortof Hannah before Elithe Priest: “I havedrunk neither winenor strong drink, and Ihave poured out my

soul before G-d.”6

Hannah argued that herprayers were not rooted in

her sense of self, but in hersoul; not born of a selfish wish,

but of her need to serve G-d selfless-ly. This truth was evidenced inHannah’s pledge to dedicate her off-spring to the service of G-d. Shepromised that if G-d fulfilled herrequest and gave her a son: “then I

shall give him to G-d all the days of hislife.”7

Registering Hannah’s response, Eliadjusted his tone in support of herprayer: “Go in peace! The G-d of Israelwill grant the request you have made ofHim.”8 With these words, Eli the Priestforever afforded credibility to the lifestyleof the materialistic spiritualist.

1. Psalms 95:6.2. 1 Samuel 1:11.3. Ibid. 1:14.4. Psalms 107:5.5. Kesser Shem Tov, Siman 194 (25,3).6. 1 Samuel 1:15.7. Ibid. 1:11.8. Ibid. 1:17.

15

TheMaterialisticSpiritualist

By Michoel Moss

The hall looked wonderful! The caterershad truly done a great job despite the lim-ited budget. Nothing was lavish, it couldn’tbe. Yet everything looked its best. Pristinewhite tablecloths, fresh flowers, andgleaming silverware… every detail gavetestimony to the fact that there was animportant Bar Mitzvah celebration inprogress.

David looked around, overwhelmed thatall this was done just for him, to celebratehis Bar Mitzvah. His immediate family,friends and community had been invited.David had been a little disappointed thatnone of his aunts and uncles from Israelhad been able to attend but it had beenimpossible, especially as it was two weeksbefore Rosh Hashanah, and the beginningof a new school year for his cousins.

In his modesty, he felt as if he were just apart of the scene, hesitant to claim hisplace as guest of honor. His father walkedover to him and patted his arm, “Come,David, come with me to the front of thehall. We have to shake hands with all theguests.” David began to suggest that maybehis father should join his mother therewithout him, but with a sigh he realizedthat there was no way out of this one.

But it was not uncomfortable standingat the hall door welcoming people whoturned to him with bright smiles and wish-es of Mazal-tov. Most pressed gifts orenvelopes, some bulging with money, intohis hands. He immediately passed every-thing on to his father looking slightlyabashed.

He was glad that the Torah reading partof his Bar Mitzvah was over. Shabbatmorning had been slightly terrifying as hewaited to be called up to the Torah to readhis portion and make the blessings. He had

been practicingfor nearly

eight

months, but that didnot seem to matter in

the shul, full of congregants andfriends. His voice had seemed to echo ashe took upon himself to do all theMitzvoth that a man must do.

His mind went back to his first lessonwith the Rabbi’s son. At that time he had noteven dreamed that he would begin tochange his life and his lifestyle. He had neverdreamed that his Bar Mitzvah would cometo mean what it was supposed to mean, thathe would accept upon himself all of Torahand Mitzvoth. He had been enthralled by hislessons with Yanky, and soon he had realizedthat he was not only learning his Torah por-tion, he was learning to be an observant Jew.The fact that Yanky was only three yearsolder than himself and someone who livedaccording to all he was teaching madeDavid’s lessons more meaningful.

Most of the guests were in the hall. Therewas now only a trickle and even that wasstopping. He frowned. Benny, the new boyin his class had not arrived, and yet he hadbeen so excited that he had been invited.They had hit it off right away and Bennyhad promised he would be here. As hisparents turned to go back into the hall,David walked outside and stood lookingright and left at the many cars parked inthe parking lot.

A car was turning into the parking lotand stopped right in front of the shulentrance. Benny got out and Davidbeamed, walking quickly to meet him.“Benny, I am so glad you have come. I waslooking for you.”

Benny looked embarrassed. Thoughdressed for the Bar Mitzvah in a similarblue suit, he hung back not wanting tocome in. “David,” he said. “I don’t know if Iwill be welcome here, not by your fatheranyway.” David looked at him, obviouslyshocked. “My father?” he exclaimed in sur-prise. “Why on earth would my father notwant you here... I mean...” his voice trailedoff, full of questions.

“I will explain. David, your last name isRaben and my

last name is

Rabinowitz.” “Well I suppose it sounds similar,

but...” “Yours was changed, Americanized.” “What do you mean ours was

Americanized?” “My father only asked me who’s Bar

Mitzvah this was when he dropped mehere. I showed him your invitation andwhen he saw your father’s name on it, hegot really upset. He wanted to turn the cararound but I begged him not to. He toldme that many years ago there were twobrothers, Benny and David Rabinowitz.They had some kind of misunderstandingabout money. I don’t know the details atall. All I know is that the two brothersnever spoke to one another or had contactwith one another ever again.”

“You mean...” “Raben is the shortened name of

Rabinowitz, these were our grandfathers.Our fathers are cousins. We are also kind ofcousins.”

David blushed with excitement. “That isfantastic. I don’t have many cousins myown age. Please come inside.”

“But I can’t,” said Benny. “There is familyfaribels. Your father won’t want to see us.”

“I don’t believe that at all,” said David.“He will be delighted, so will Mom. Wewere just saying how we missed having anyrelatives at my Bar Mitzvah. I will go andfetch him.”

Before Benny could protest, he wentquickly back into the hall to find his father.Within minutes a somewhat confused Mr.Raben was following his son towards thecar outside. Benny was standing next to it,his hands in his pockets looking fright-ened. On seeing him, Benny came over toDavid. They watched David’s father talkingto Benny’s father through the window. Hethen got into the car and the boys, mostlysilent waited for their fathers to talk.

When David’s father emerged afterabout fifteen minutes, the boys could seehe had tears in his eyes. “Come into thehall, boys,” he said. “Your Mother is proba-bly wondering where we all are.” “Chaimhas gone tofetch the rest

By Ruth Benjamin

16

17

of the family, our family,” he added. “Wecalled them and told them to get dressed,so they won’t be long.”

Mrs. Raben was waiting for them. Hesaid a few quiet words to her, and thencontinued to play the perfect host to alltheir guests.

Half an hour later, the Rabinowitz familyarrived, and they were greeted with hugsfrom the Rabens and escorted to placeswhich had been created for them at themain table.

It became time for Mr. Raben to make aspeech:

“Ladies and Gentlemen... or should I say,friends, because you are all our friends, ourreally treasured friends.” He went on, a nat-ural speaker, catching the attention of hisguests.

“We Jews have often found ourselvesseparated from our relatives, our family, bycruel circumstances, perhaps the latestone being the Jews of Russia behind theIron Curtain, separated from loved onesfor decades; other families were separatedand lost in the concentration camps. Myfather was lonely. I had always thought hewas an only child, but almost 20 years ago,when he was dying, he kept calling out tosomeone called Benny who I realized musthave been his brother. He would cry andbeg him to come to him. We all assumedthat he had been somehow killed or lostduring the war.

“We were lonely as a family in that wehad no relatives living here, friends, yes,wonderful friends, but no relatives. Thefew we have live in Israel and could notcome tonight.” He looked at his cousin,“But we do have family here tonight, mycousin Chaim is here with his wife, Judyand their children Benny, Baruch andLeah. I want to tell you all that I met themfor the first time tonight.”

The crowd began to clap and he waitedfor silence. “But it was not circumstancesthat divided us, that held us apart. 40 yearsago, two brothers, neither of whom is alivetoday, had a quarrel.” He broke down,weeping, totally overcome, signaling Davidto continue.

David picked up his well-rehearsed BarMitzvah speech and then turned it facedownwards on the table.

“Mom, Dad,” he began, “my Uncle Chaimand family.”

Again everyone clapped. After a pause he picked up his Bar

Mitzvah speech and began to read. “Becoming Bar Mitzvah means I have

become answerable for all the Mitzvoth. Ihave taken Torah observance on and willcontinue to do so. For centuries, Jews, faceda death full of meaning rather than give uptheir adherence to Mitzvoth. Here inAmerica where I have freedom, I will bemore prepared for a life full of meaning, as Itoo will be adhering to the Mitzvoth.

“On Shabbat, I became Bar Mitzvah andwas called up to the Torah. Today I put onTefillin, tomorrow I am going to put onTefillin, and please G-d all my life I will

continue to put on Tefillin. I am also work-ing on steadily becoming more Torahobservant as well.

“Mom has even turned our home kosherin the last month for me,” he added.

He put his speech down with a sigh ofrelief and said, “I want to thank you all forthe many generous gifts and we will have agreat time opening them.” He paused andtook a deep breath.

“I would like to ask you all just to giveme one more gift, a Rosh Hashanah gift asit is only two weeks till Rosh Hashanah. Myfather was saying that throughout the cen-turies Jews have been separated from oneanother, from their families, by cruel cir-cumstances and governments. But all

these years, unfortunately, my family hasbeen separated by unnecessary anger.Please, just try to think if you have cut any-one off, or distanced yourself from anyonewho should really be close to you. Pleaseinvite them for Rosh Hashanah.”

It was in shul on Rosh Hashanah thatDavid realized that his words had impact-ed people at their shul. It was first Mr.Greenberg who came up to him, thankinghim for giving him the insight and thecourage to phone his distanced brotherand invite the family for the first night ofRosh Hashanah. Mrs. Weinstein told him

shyly that her husband had had a quar-rel with her parents three years ago butnow invited them for Rosh Hashanah,(he said he would manage somehow toget along with them.) Several more peo-ple came to him with similar stories.

And then Richard, a man in his forties,came to shake David’s hand.

“I have made a resolution, because ofyou,” he announced.

Waiting for a similar story to those hehad been hearing, he was surprised.

“When I was Bar Mitzvah, many yearsago, I decided that I would continue put-ting on my Tefillin, but never did. Peopletold me that I was really expected to wearthem only once, on my Bar Mitzvah, so Ididn’t bother. When you said in your BarMitzvah speech that you were going toput on Tefillin forever I felt a pang of sad-ness because I knew, or thought I knew,that such a decision would not be actedon. However I have been speaking to myfriend Bill Cohen, and he tells me he hasseen you put on Tefillin every morningbefore school. Well it looks liketimes have changed. I am going

to get myself a pair of Tefillinand this time I am going toput them on every day.”

David smiled,“Times haveindeedchanged... forthe better.”

Ruth Benjaminis a clinical psychologist,University lecturerand prolific author of con-temporary Jewish fiction.She lives in Johannesburg,South-Africa.

~DINING—Gusto va

n East 53rd street, just a couple of steps down fromsidewalk level, nestles a lovely upscale restaurant

named ‘Gusto va Mare,’ which, translated, means‘Taste of the Sea.’

We went there for lunch one Sunday, my husband and I andour two small children. On walking in, we found an old worldItalian ristorante that serves fish and dairy dishes.

Although not particularly child-ori-ented, they did not seem fazed by thechildren.

We were warmly welcomed by thestaff and were seated and offereddrinks immediately.

I ordered fresh, frozen strawberrygrannada, which was absolutelyrefreshing. They offer various freshlysqueezed and frozen fruit juices,sodas and a variety of wines.

Old-fashioned subdued lamps castsoft light over the blue and whitetables. A brick wall divides therestaurant into two sections. Thewall affords a separation betweenfamilies with children, and business-men or other patrons who prefer aquieter dining experience.

Hot crusty rolls were brought tothe table along with spiced olive oiland the menus. The menus were con-cise and the dishes were describedquite thoroughly, which is helpful foranyone with food allergies.

Elana Sniad, mother of six chil-dren, ranging in age from 5 to 26,runs the restaurant with extremeefficiency. She directs and overseesevery detail, both in the kitchen andin the restaurant itself. Elana’s Mother is from Madrid (Spain),and her father from Milan (Italy). Her Italian grandmotherpassed on her love of preparing good food to Elana.

We did not have to wait long for our food. They do not have aspecial children’s menu but generally suggest fresh pizza, a high-ly successful idea. The children liked the pizza enough not towant to share too much of it with us, but what we did taste wasexcellent.

I ordered the Bruschetta to start - grilled bread with freshmozzarella and garlic herbed tomato - which was seasoned per-fectly. My husband, a vegetarian who does not eat cheese,ordered the Lentil Croquettes served with a Dijon mustardsauce. I tried one and found it tasty.

Elana told me that they do not cut up the vegetables until anorder comes in. This has a special impact on their Tuscan french

fries, which of course we ordered. They are shoestring thin, crisp and

absolutely delicious. Despite thespices, even the children loved themand we ordered more.

My husband and I both tried a fishdish, called Mahi Mahi, a Hawaiian fishwith apricot sauce served on a bed ofmixed greens, which was very good.

The ‘Lasagna Combinazione’ wasmy favorite. These combination plat-ters are regarded as their specialty.The chef creates a plate with four dif-ferent types of lasagna each with a dif-ferent filling and sauce. For someonewho loves lasagna or wants to try var-ious flavors, this is a must. ‘Gusto vaMare’ also makes combination gnoc-chi or combination fish platters.

For those on a diet, they have anassortment of low-calorie soups. Sinceeverything is freshly prepared, mostdishes can be made without cheese orextra sauces. As a rule, they use onlyolive oil for cooking, and fresh herbswhenever possible. Everything isfreshly prepared including theirhomemade desserts.

For dessert, we ordered the cheese-cake, the deep chocolate cake and the

baked figs with a lambrusco sauce, to share. All were excellent.The cheesecake was creamy; the chocolate cake moist and faintlybittersweet, perfect for the chocolate-aficionado; the figs weredelicious in their wine sauce. They also have a fine selection ofcoffees and cappuccinos to complete a fine meal.

‘Gusto va Mare’ is a classy Italian specialty restaurant, andwould be perfect for a business lunch or dinner date. It is wellworth a visit.

18

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GUSTO VA MARE • Under~ supervision • 237 East 53rd Street Betw. 2nd and 3rd Ave. • New York, NY 10022 • Tel: 212-583-9300 • Reservations preferred

ost of our readers know that the~ Laboratories is involved inkosher supervision on an inter-national level. The ~ pioneered

supervision in the Far East, and we haveextensive activity in Europe and Asia aswell.

Our rabbinic coordinators and I are fre-quently on the go, because proper supervi-sion requires a hands-on approach.

Occasionally, our travels take us to placesthat arouse poignant emotions and memo-ries. As the centuries have gone by, Jewishdispersion has left its mark in city after cityand country after country. Sometimes thememories are sweet, but often they are bit-ter with terrible sorrow. On a past trip toMontpelier, France, where I traveled tomonitor our supervision of Perrier, I wasreminded of the sorrow of the town.

Montpelier, located not far from theSpanish border, seems like a typical Frenchtown. However those familiar with historyknow that between 700 and 800 years ago itplayed an important role on the stage ofJewish life. At the time, the Maimonideancontroversy, concerning the per-missibility to study philosophy, wasraging. On one side stood thosewho supported Maimonides - theRambam - and his Moreh Nevuchim, theclassic philosophical work that had deeproots in Aristotlian thought. On the otherside stood the opposition: great rabbis whoopposed such study.

One of the Rambam’s opponents was RavAvraham min Hahar, whose name literallymeans ‘Rabbi Avraham from the Mountain.’His name originates from the fact that hehailed from Montpelier - “Mont” meansmountain in French, although interestinglythere are no mountains there.

During the same period, Montpelier wasthe site of a terrible event - the public burn-ing of the Talmud by the Church. When onereflects on all these events, one is over-whelmed by our Jewish experience in exile.

Turning my attention to the present, Imet with Rabbi Peretz Partouche. He is theRabbi who heads the thriving Jewish com-munity in Montpelier. Among his manyroles is that of mashgiach at the worldfamous Perrier factory, which is located inthe small village of Vergezze.

Eyebrows naturally rise when we talk ofkosher supervision for Perrier. Why, afterall, should it be necessary tohire someone tocheck the kosher

status of water?The surprising answer is that good rea-

sons exist for having a mashgiach atPerrier. One reason is that Perrier water iscarbonated. Carbon dioxide gas can comefrom various sources; some are natural,while others are not. One of the sources ofCarbon dioxide is the gas emitted duringbeer production. The use of such a gaswould make the product unsuitable for useon Passover.

Most water companies want their prod-uct certified for Passover; this necessitateschecking the source of the Carbon dioxidegas, which they use in their products.

The gas used in Perrier is natural gas,local to Montpelier. In fact, it comes fromthe same underground area as the wateritself. Even the sand used to producePerrier’s bottles is of local origin.

The production system at Perrier is fas-cinating. The entire process - fromturning sand into glass bottles to thefinished product - takes place in oneenormous room.

There is another important factor toconsider in the case of Perrier, and that

pertains to flavored waters, whichPerrier also produces. Some of

these flavors are produced inthis Perrier facility, while

others are manufacturedat other facilities.

Naturalflavors cancontain prod-ucts of animalorigin. In orderto monitor theseflavors, we callupon the expertise ofRabbi Partouche.

After leaving Perrier, Itook a four-hour train ride toNice. There I met Rabbi YosefPinson, who runs a beautiful school inNice, in addition to overseeing Jewishcommunal activity innear-

by Cannes.Rabbi Pinson is involved in the supervi-

sion of Perrier because some of the flavorsand extracts used in Perrier products areproduced nearby, in Grasse. This city, locat-ed in the mountains, is renowned for flavorproduction.

The synagogue in Nice used to feature akosher restaurant, which was recentlyburned down by an anti-Semitic act ofarson perpetrated by an Arab cook. It willhopefully be rebuilt soon.

Nice also evokes special memories of theLubavitcher Rebbe. It was to Nice that theRebbe and his wife fled from the Nazis.There is an interesting anecdote, whichillustrates the Rebbe’s resourcefulness anddeep concern for fellow Jews. In order toobtain a hotel room, refugees from theNazis had to prove they had financialmeans. Understandably, in the dire circum-

stances of the War, many peoplearrived almost destitute. The

refugees could barely payfor the hotel room itself,let alone show ‘financial

security.’ The Rebbe had in his

possession one hundredAmerican dollars, a very signif-

icant sum during that period. Helent the money to those in need sothat they could secure suitable lodg-

ing. Each person would show “his”hundred-dollar bill and receive aroom. The bill would then passon to the next person. The Rebbedid this as long as it was neces-sary.

Today, the deeds the Rebbeperformed in France over fiftyyears ago are bearing splendidfruit, from Paris down to theRiviera. The evidence is clear:

Thousands of Torah observantJews live in cities throughout the

country. May G-d grant theRebbe’s burning desire to bring

about the final redemption, with theimminent coming of Moshiach.

Rabbi Don Yoel Levy is KashrusAdministrator of the ~ Laboratories.

19

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Perrier

and the~

By Rabbi Don Yoel Levy

EREV YOM KIPPUR, THE FOLLOWERS OF REB LEVIYITZCHOK OF BERDITCHEV WOULD LINE UP TO MEETTHEIR REBBE. THEY WOULD SUBMIT THEIR NAMES SOTHAT HE WOULD PRAY ON THEIR BEHALF. KNOWINGTHAT THEY WERE IN THEIR REBBE’S PRAYERS, THEYCOULD REST ASSURED THAT THEY WOULD MERITA POSITIVE INSCRIPTION FOR A SWEET NEW YEAR.

ONE YEAR, R. LEIVIK LET IT BE KNOWN THAT FOREACH PRAYER OFFERED UP, MAN, WOMAN OR CHILDWOULD HAVE TO PAY ONE GOLD COIN. FOR EACHPERSON, A COIN.

With a wife and ten children, I had to come up with twelve gold coins!I had to sell my horse.

Thank you, Rebbe.Now with peaceof mind we facethe new year.

Please, sir. Havemercy. Time isrunning out.

I’m so sorry.I have noth-ing.

Please, Reb Leivik. Haveyour meal. The fast isabout to begin.

No, I must wait forthe widow. I thinkI hear her now.

Rebbe, I havesearched andbegged. I couldnot come upwith another goldcoin.

I will place you onmy list. The child isyoung and pure.Hashem will havemercy on his soul.

Rebbe, NO! You don’t feel theheart of a mother! Accept

my coin and pray formy child alone.

Master of the Universe; Beholdthe love of a mother for herchild. G-d in heaven, Your peopleare Your children. Show us mercyand grant us a sweet new year.

Rebbe, I ama widow. AllI possess ismy baby anda single goldcoin. Pleasepray for usboth.

I am sorry. You must payone gold coin per person.There is still time. Hurryand collect more money.

I will mention you all inmy prayers.