As Tevye said, there's an iBlessing for everything...

Even from the days of the Garden of Eden, it has been documented that humanity has a terrible weakness for Apples. Liz Paratz takes a look at the appeal of the iPhone for the Jewish user.

iPhones Part 1

So far, the 21^st century appears to be the era when existential philosophy updated its status to ‘iPhone, therefore I am.’ The Ultimate Gadget stands miles ahead of all previous mobile phones – to be scrupulously exact, it makes them look like just a bunch of shoe phones.

Of course, the iPhone’s dominance is now threatened by multiple other tech companies and soon enough the iPhone will probably be just another phone amongst a range of similarly incredible super-phones. But for now it stands alone and unchallenged. It’s an iCon. It’s addictive. It’s cutting-edge (although sadly not cut-price).

Key to the extreme desirability of the iPhone is the concept of the ‘app’, where third parties can develop software applications to be bought and installed on the phone. Software developers around the world have created a flood of ‘apps’, and now the App Store now lists almost 134, 000 of them. The future has come to us, and it turns out it really IS a Planet of the Apps.

Of course, it was only a short time before Jewish apps started popping up. Now, Israeli software developers, tech-savvy rabbis and the lovely people at Birthright have all developed apps to ensure that, wherever you are, all the Jewish resources you could ever need are just a finger-slide away.

This list is an update on ten of the most used and useful Jewish apps. The reality is, though, that this list is just the tip of the Eisberg. There are many many more ‘best-of’ lists circulating out on the internet, and now even a website called JewishiPhoneCommunity.org (surely the most recent breakaway sub-group within the Jewish community).

So, here is just one of many lists of  ‘Good Jewish Apps’ -

1. iBlessing : This is pretty self-explanatory. A plate of all different kinds of food appears on the screen and upon touching the kind you’re about to consume, the correct blessing appears. You get to choose to say the blessing in either Hebrew or English, and the iPhone can say it along with you. Netilat Yadayim and bentsching are also included in the app.

2. Kosher : For kosher travellers, this app could be invaluable. Users can discover all the kosher restaurants in a city, with information even including the restaurant’s hasgacha and relevant blessings in Ashkenaz, Sefard, Edot Mizrach and Chabad.

3. Synagogue : Again, fabulous for religious travellers. This uses GPS technology to find all the synagogues in the city for you. Full demographic data is given, including affiliation (ie, Reform v Orthodox) and even the number of households in the congregation.

4. Parve-O-Meter : This timer counts down the time between eating milk and meat. The timer can be adjusted for your level of religiousness, going all the way up the scale to ‘Chassidic’. At the end of the period, a congratulatory bell rings.

5. Mizrach Compass : Basically, just a compass with a few bells and whistles to make it a ‘Jewish app’. This app calculates the direction of Jerusalem from any position. It plots the Kodesh Hakodashim (31° 46′ 40.8″ N, 35° 14′ 7.44″ E) as its reference point.

6. iGrogger : Pertinent to Purim….if your arthritis is getting in the way of shaking your grogger as loudly as possible, this app reproduces that horribly loud rattle at full volume to ensure that Haman’s name will never be heard. You get to build the grogger from multiple backgrounds, materials and textures and there are several options on sounds.

7. iBubbe : (Why would you?) This is described on appshopper.com as ‘the premiere virtual Jewish grandmother for the iPhone’ She comes with over 50 quotes and offers ‘advice, nagging and traditional Jewish songs’.

8. Pocket Luach : This is essentially a calendar, with the capacity to convert dates on the Jewish calendar to and from the regular calendar. It also lists the Parsha for each week and all Yomim Tovim.

9. Shabbat Clock : Very clever technology. This app allows religious Jews to use an alarm on Shabbat. The alarm is set in advance, and plays for only 1 minute. Prescheduled calls can even be made using the app. Obviously though, you can’t hit the snooze button.

10. Guess Who’s Jewish : On the lighter side, this app flips up images of 2 celebrities and asks you to pick which one is Jewish. It’s a time-filling on-hold-with-a-call-centre kind of game. And probably quite addictive.

iPhones Part 2 [now with free food]

But of course the power of the app is shaking up many fields beyond the Jewish community. In the medical world for example, many medical apps – ECG interpreters, anatomy atlases, and drug dosage calculators – offer a huge helping hand to forgetful time-pressured health-care workers. But with that much information at their fingertips, will patients even need doctors as much in the first place? Could it be that, in 2010, using an Apple product a day can keep the doctors away?

If you’re interested in this topic, want to catch up with fellow health-care professionals or are just feeling hungry on Sunday March 21^st, you should absolutely come along to Young AJMF’s free medical comedy ‘Great Debate’ evening.

This year’s topic – ‘That iPhones will destroy medicine as we know it,’ – will be debated by a team of ‘Doctors’ versus a team of ‘Medical Students’.

The function, organized by Young AJMF [the Australasian Jewish Medical Federation], is the society’s first social event of 2010 and is open to all health professionals and students. Partners are of course also welcome.

A gourmet kosher supper will be provided and the event is free of charge. To RSVP and find out location details etc, please join the Facebook group ‘Young AJMF’ and join the event page, or email youngajmf@gmail.com . We look forward to seeing you there.

*Acknowledgements to Apptism.com and Dorit Murray

Image source: israel.foreignpolicyblogs.com

The following article by Martin Indyk, former US ambassador to Israel was written as a reponse to Gerald Steinberg’s op-ed on the New Israel Fund in the AJN. The AJN declined to publish it; it was first published by the AJDS, and we re-publish with their permission.We leave you to judge why the AJN published Steinberg’s original essay but not Indyk’s reply.

The Truth About the New Israel Fund
When I served as U.S. Ambassador in Israel in the 1990s, and as an American Jew committed to Israel’s survival and well-being, I became deeply concerned about the failure to adequately address the problems of inequality in Israel. I could see that Israeli governments were so preoccupied with war and peace decisions that they had little time to attend to the needs of Israel’s Arab and Bedouin minorities. Although growing into a robust Jewish state, Israel was falling short of Ben-Gurion’s standard that Israel should also be a state for all its citizens with equal rights for all, as called for in Israel’s Declaration of Independence. I feared the effect on the basic health of Israel’s democracy.

That’s why, when I left my post there and re-entered private life, I joined the board of the New Israel Fund (NIF). I had witnessed first-hand how NIF worked effectively to strengthen Israel’s civil society by training and funding those who lacked the ability to advocate on their own behalf. From the first laws to defend children’s rights to equity in land sales, from Israel’s first rape crisis centers to its first comprehensive law protecting the disabled, from the passage of Clean Air laws to Freedom of Information laws, NIF plays a unique role as the driving force behind positive social change in Israel and the defense of the human rights for all its citizens. And it does so not just for Israeli Arabs but for every disadvantaged sector of Israeli society, from orthodox women trapped by the Agunah, to Ethiopian immigrants struggling against discrimination, to Bedouin villages seeking government funding for basic infrastructure.

When Israel’s supporters rightly declare that Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East, NIF’s achievements are proudly cited as proof of that claim.

That is why I am so troubled by the attacks in Australia against NIF and the decision by the UPJ and the Zionist Council of Victoria to disinvite NIF’s president, Naomi Chazan from speaking to them. The apparent consequence is that the only voice in this “rip your arm off” discourse about NIF that Australian Jews now hear is that of NIF’s right-wing critics. How ironic that the organization that champions freedom of speech in Israel is denied the ability to defend itself through free speech in the Australian Jewish community!

Instead, Australian Jews are treated to the paranoid analysis of Gerald Steinberg and other self-appointed guardians of Israel’s virtue. I knew and respected Gerald when he was an academic for his work on arms control issues. Pity that he didn’t stick to that profession – he would have made a much greater contribution to understanding the real threat to Israel from Iran, rather than diverting attention of Australian Jews to the imaginary threat from civil and human rights organizations in Israel.

As a board member, I know that NIF maintains a thorough process for grant-making including clear criteria, ongoing evaluation and review. NIF demands accountability from its grantees and upholds complete transparency in its sources and uses of funds. That’s why NIF welcomes the proposed Knesset investigation into foreign sources of funding for Israeli NGOs, as long as all groups are investigated, across the spectrum, including for example, Mr. Steinberg’s NGO Monitor, and Im Tirzu, the shadowy right-wing front organization that has launched a vicious campaign against NIF and Naomi Chazan.

NIF does not support or fund divestment, boycott or sanction activities against the State of Israel. NIF opposes extremism, intolerance and ultra-nationalism in all its manifestations, both within Israel and among the nations and organizations that relate to Israel. NIF proudly supports Israel’s internationally- respected human rights groups which uphold the very best of Jewish and democratic traditions.

That does not mean NIF agrees with everything these groups do or say. Inevitably, some of them, especially in the Arab sector, will take positions that, as an individual, I strongly oppose, since they cannot be expected to buy into every aspect of the Zionist narrative. But I will at the same time strongly defend their right to speak out as long as it is in responsible ways.

NIF-funded human rights groups carefully monitored Operation Cast Lead. The IDF itself used their reports in evaluating its own conduct and has sought active collaboration from NIF grantees such as B’tselem in helping to formulate the response that was recently submitted to the UN Secretary General. The assertion that “without NIF there would be no Goldstone Report,” is based on bogus statistics. In fact, Goldstone based only 14% of his report – not 92% as claimed – on reports of Israeli human rights organization. Another 19% was based on other Israeli sources including statements made by Israel’s own military and political leaders.

These human rights groups were the first to call for an independent Israeli investigation, something which many now advocate in Israel, including the outgoing Attorney General Meni Mazuz, and Deputy Prime Minister and former Justice Minister, Dan Meridor. Such investigations have taken place after every major Israeli military operation. Far from weakening Israel by supplying ammunition to its critics, these investigations demonstrate the health of Israel’s democratic institutions, particularly in their ability to undertake and learn from self- criticism.

The New Israel Fund has vital work to do, promoting a more just, socially cohesive, and democratic Jewish state. I hope that Australian Jews, who have a proud tradition of open- mindedness and generous support of human and civil rights will see, as I do, that this work strengthens Israel much more than it strengthens Israel’s critics.

Photo taken at an 'anti-war' rally in San Franscisco in 2003*

By Philip Mendes

The outbreak of the second intifada in September 2000 has lead to an almost unprecedented outpouring of international hostility to Israel. To be sure, the situation is not as bad as that of the mid-to-late 1970s. To date, there has been no United Nations motion declaring Zionism to be racism. Nor have UK or Australian student unions widely called for the banning of Jewish student groups on the grounds that they support Israel and are allegedly racist. And many mainstream conservatives and social democrats in Australia and elsewhere strongly defend Israel on the obvious grounds that Israel is the canary in the Islamist mine.

Nevertheless, the situation is bad enough. There is a shrill and aggressive pro-Palestinian lobby everywhere that paints a binary view of the conflict based on good and bad nations, demands that Israel and all Israelis (and implicitly any Jewish supporters of Israel) be exposed as evil oppressors, and uses under-handed tactics to attack anyone who opposes their emotive message. Many reasonable people who aren’t ideological extremists are naively convinced by their one-sided arguments.

The contrast with the earlier period of the Oslo Peace Accord from September 1993 to September 2000 is almost incredible. Then virtually nobody other than radical Arab or Islamic groups contested Israel’s existence. Many Arab states formed ties with Israel, and many longstanding pro-Palestinian lobbyists abandoned their earlier anti-Zionist fundamentalism, and accepted a two-state solution. So how do we account for this radical change in public opinion?

I believe there are roughly four factors that have contributed to this swing in international attitudes.

One is an extreme disappointment that the intractable Middle East conflict has not been resolved, and an associated tendency to look for someone to blame. This search for scapegoats has always been a tendency of partisans on both sides. But what has happened in the last nine years is that many previously neutral or dispassionate people have abandoned a balanced approach based on urging mutual compromise from both sides, and have instead suggested that if only Israel concedes all Palestinian demands then this will fix the problem.

A second factor was undoubtedly the election of Ariel Sharon as Prime Minister of Israel. Sharon was a classic hate figure for supporters of the Palestinians as the initiator of the horrible 1982 invasion of Lebanon, and terrible for Israel’s international image. I say this even though in my opinion, his actual actions (notwithstanding the massacre that wasn’t at Jenin) and policies (the welcome withdrawal from Gaza) as Prime Minister were pretty moderate. Sharon didn’t need to prove he was tough. In contrast, I suspect a Labor Prime Minister would have responded far more roughly to the brutal suicide bombings of the Second Intifada.

A third factor is that there is a genuine international fear of Arab hatred, violence and terrorism. Nobody wants to experience another September 11 or July 2005 or Bali. There is consequently a willingness on the part of many scared people to sacrifice Israel if necessary to pacify Arab anger and save their lives just as Chamberlain sacrificed Czechoslovakia in 1938 to ostensibly prevent a world war. And there is the associated dangerous belief based on rational western political culture which has almost nil influence in the Middle East that much of this Arab anger and violence against Israel – the so-called “root causes” theory – must be a justified response to Israeli behaviour and actions. For those who are interested, I previously refuted this theory in my paper “Suicide Bombings: Oppression is no Justification” in Jewish Currents, September-October 2003, pp.6-7.

A final factor is that many Jews don’t realize the nature of the debate has irrevocably changed. One group on the rational Left genuinely support Israeli-Palestinian reconciliation via a two-state solution, but naively make unilateral concessions, and try to find common ground with pro-Palestinian lobbyists whose only aim is to obliterate Israel from the earth. This group need to chant to themselves over and over again “zero tolerance for those who brand Israel an apartheid or Nazi-like state”.

And then there are the Jewish conservatives who never accepted the Oslo Accord in the first place, and keep preaching in favour of a Greater Israel with no national rights for Palestinians good or bad. This group need to realize that they are wasting their time and energy, and get a grip on reality.

The international debate today is solely about whether there will eventually be a Palestinian State co-existing peacefully alongside Israel, or a Palestinian State instead of Israel.

* Image source: zombietime.com

In the story of Purim, Haman is a clear descendant of Amalek and the ‘bad guy’. The mission conducted by Esther and Mordechai to expose Haman and save the Jews is completely successful and ultimately Haman and his ten sons are hung from the gallows that was intended for the Jews.

As one rabbi has put it, ‘the Book of Esther immortalizes the dream of the Exiled Jew, as it says in verse 9:1 ‘and it shall be turned to the contrary, so that the Jews shall conquer their enemies’.

So the story of Purim in this sense might be understood as a model for Jewish communities to aspire to in the Diaspora when confronted with anti-Semitism and genocidal tyrants. It’s an inspiring story where a brave Jewish girl confronts evil and saves the entire Jewish people without a single life being lost. And then the bad guy gets hung with his sons. As a Jewish revenge fantasy, it pre-dated Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds by a long way.

Many people today draw parallels between the Shoah and the story of Purim. Within this context, Haman and Hitler share not only a philosophy but even somewhat similar names. Furthermore, in the Nuremberg Trials 10 men were hanged, reminiscent of the hanging of Haman’s ten sons.

Even the fact they were all hanged on a simple wooden gallows is surprising, given that most executions in the 20^th century tended to be a somewhat more modern matter of death by firing squad. However, even this detail echoed the executions of Purim.

Not only that, but the parallels become even more apparent when it is considered that in both cases there was an 11^th person scheduled to be hanged (Haman’s daughter and Hermann Goering) who committed suicide right beforehand.

And then, to take things well over into the zone of eerie, it was documented in newspapers around the world that the last words of Julius Streicher, editor of the violently anti-Semitic newspaper Der Sturmer, were ‘Purim Fest 1946’.

But unfortunately, as we all know, there is a major difference between Purim and the Shoah. While Esther’s acts saved all the Jews of Shushan, 6 million Jews perished in the Shoah.

Which is what brings us to the success of movies like Inglourious Basterds.

Does this movie cynically exploit our ‘Dream of the Exiled Jew, where the Jews conquer their enemies’? If we look closely, it seems that the movie deliberately reframes the tragedy of the Shoah as a Purim story.

Shoshana is clearly Esther. Like Queen Esther she masks her Jewish identity, posing as Emmanuelle Mimieux. She is chosen on account of her beauty to be the mistress (or ‘queen’) of Frederick Zoller, a young German military hero who is rather apolitical and neutral – in other words, an Ahashverosh figure.

However, he hangs out with some serious Amalekites – his boss Colonel Landa is known as ‘the Jew Hunter’, counts himself as a key architect of wiping out the Jews, and is bringing Hitler and other top Nazi officials to France for a night to celebrate their victories in WWII and their genocidal plans.

But brave Shoshana devises a plot, disguising herself as a French collaborator and turning the tables on the Nazis. At the last moment, the plot is reversed, and Hitler is trapped in a burning theatre where Shoshana reveals on a giant screen that she is in fact a Jew.

The plot of Inglourious Basterds seems to be so blatantly like the story of Purim that it almost conjures up an image of Tarantino reading the megillah, then growling, ‘Purim, I’ll raise you. How about Purim plus Brad Pitt and some scalpings?’

Maybe it’s that type of insight that makes an acclaimed director… knowing when a story that has been told for generations and generations just isn’t quite enough. Tarantino would seem to think that it’s good, but it needs some updating and some Basterds….

Chag sameach.

Dear Izzy,

Recently I discovered that a forgery of my passport was used in a mission to assassinate some terrorist in Dubai.  And now I don’t think I can go on a holiday to Dubai to check out that indoor ski centre – yes, I know it must use up obscene amounts of energy, but the novelty aspect of snow-skiing where the outside temperate is 45 degrees C is just too compelling to resist. But now, I feel all this has been taken away from me, my whole identity has been stolen, and as I write this you should know that I am in tears, bawling my eyes out. Oh Izzy, I don’t know what to do, I don’t know what to do…
Faithfully yours,

Johnny Fontane (named changed by editors to protect privacy).

So Johnny,

You want to know what you can do.  To quote a well known Italian gentleman I am acquainted with: YOU CAN ACT LIKE A MAN!  What’s the matter with you? Is this what you’ve become, a Hollywood finocchio who cries like a woman? “Oh, what do I do? What do I do?” What is that nonsense? Ridiculous!

But I don’t want to pick on you Johnny.  All you passport holders – Stop your whining!  These field agents put their lives on the line to take out an arch terrorist who would still be plotting to kill innocent civilians today, and you’re worried that now you can’t go on a shopping spree to that farshtunkeneh Dubai.

At least not all of you passport holders are whining.  Yasher Koach to you sir, Philip Carr, and everyone else displaying your seychel.

And while I’m on the topic of needless kvetching…

Governments, stop your whining! A mass murderer has been assassinated – nothing to cry about here. Even Mr Goldstone is in favour of assassinating terrorists.  To quote Ms Livni: “What was disproportionate this time? Was there a disproportionate use of passports?”

Incidentally, Ms Livni is a shayneh maydel, but I understand that there is at least one shmendrik out there who doesn’t know this.

And particularly you, Mr Rudd, one day you are announcing the most extensive counter-terrorism policy in Australia’s history, and then a few days later you have your Mr Smith getting precious about a few forged passports. Fair chapp of the chreyn jar! Imagine for a moment that a few forged passports could have prevented the Bali bombing. What do you have to say then Mr Rudd and Mr Smith? You should both be ashamed of yourselves.

And finally, you mavens in the Media – where’s your critical thinking? Maybe you shouldn’t take everything Dubai police have to say at face value – the list of suspects is now up to 26.  It only takes 11 football players to win a World Cup final, yet it apparently takes 26 agents to travel to Dubai to assassinate one terrorist?  I doubt it!  And maybe you should be asking the Dubai police this: what nationality passport was Mr al-Mabuh travelling on?  Why were you allowing this man to go about his business in your farshtunkeneh city?

OK readers, I am getting a little bit too worked up here.  I better take a lie down.  Discuss amongst yourselves!
________

All questions to Izzy should be emailed to Izzy AT GalusAustralis.com

Next week, the newly-revived Purim Spiel kicks off at the Phoenix Theatre in Elwood.

Last year, the Spiel was revived after a hiatus of over 15 years. “Of Mice and Menschen” was a great success, providing the community with a new avenue for Jewish involvement and connectedness, a warmly received form of musical entertainment, and an opportunity to raise awareness and significant funds for Emunah, and its social welfare programs in Israel.

This year’s production is titled “The 39 Shleps”, and is a brand new musical comedy with an original script that the whole community will love and a fantastic talented cast, orchestra and crew. Everyone involved is willingly volunteering time and skills. Written by Dr Talia Boltin and Josh Gurgiel, the show features an all-star cast including many original cast members from last year.

Best of all, all funds raised go straight to supporting Emunah, a volunteer-based Zionist women’s organisation, operating children’s day care centres, residential homes, and crisis intervention centres for children at risk, and a range of schools and training colleges in Israel. It also works to enhance the status of women in Israeli society by supporting women’s rights legislation and providing legal assistance to women in rabbinical courts.

Momentum is in place for the Purim Spiel to once again become a cherished annual event in the Melbourne Jewish calendar. The show opens on March 2 and runs to March 7 at the Phoenix Theatre. Tickets can be purchased online at purimspiel.com.au or by phone 03 9525 9292 / 0413 016 924.

For those that have been trekking in the Himalayas, here’s a quick and sloppy account of the events so far:

1. Chazan was set to come to Australia as a guest of the Union for Progressive Judaism (UPJ), and also to launch the UIA Progressive Trust Appeal.
2. Meanwhile, back in Medinat Yisrael, Im Tirtzu, an Israeli student group, spearheaded a campaign against Chazan and the New Israel Fund (NIF), of which Chazan is the chairperson.
3. As result of this campaign, Chazan’s trip to Australia was cancelled.

The Australian controversy essentially boils down to the following:  The UPJ has claimed that Chazan herself cancelled the trip in order to attend to the Israeli controversy surrounding the NIF; alternatively, the UPJ has also claimed that it was mutual decision, based on not letting the criticism of Chazan in Israel detract from the planned fundraising effort.

However, Chazan has given a very different impression of how things went down, suggesting that the decision to cancel her visit was made entirely by the UPJ.

The Zionist Council of Victoria had also planned to co-sponsor a public lecture involving Chazan, but then withdrew that sponsorship.  They have been more forthright in explaining their reasoning, stating that they withdrew their co-sponsorship of Chazan’s lecture because they consider the activities of the NIF inimical to their interests.

There sure is a lot of ‘he said, she said’ about this whole affair, which is why we are delighted to be able to offer our Melbourne readers a chance to find out for themselves what the NIF is all about, and also hear from the NIF about the recent controversy.  Even though Chazan’s visit has been cancelled, Daniel Sokatch, the CEO of the NIF is currently in Australia for family reasons.  While in Melbourne, Sokatch will give a talk at the Herzl club, and we have been informed that there will be ample time for supporters and detractors alike to ask tough questions.

The event is being hosted by Shira Melbourne, who are at pains to point out that they do not endorse any political platform and are hosting the event in the interests of promoting critical discussion.

When: Wednesday 24 February, 8 pm
Where: Shira Melbourne (at the Theodore Herzl Club), 222 Balaclava Rd, Caulfield
Entry: $5

The flyer can be viewed here.

Image source: CrownHeights.info

Outsider, Rachel Sacks-Davis, and insider, David Werdiger, comment on the expulsion of the “Moshiach Dancers” and related controversies at Yeshiva Shule. Click here to skip straight to David’s insiders’ view.

Outsider’s view
by Rachel Sacks-Davis
It’s 6pm on Wednesday the 28^th of January, and I’m on my bike at the corner of Inkerman Road and Hotham Street, on my way home from work. Three men are dancing in circles on the corner nearest the Yeshivah Centre; they are wearing yellow t-shirts and jester hats, and waving an enormous yellow flag. Evidently, their widely publicised ‘excommunication,’ has not dampened their spirit.

In June last year, when Frosh and I wrote our “Ode to the Moshiach Dancers,” we were aware that these four joyous if unconventional men were a source of embarrassment for some Jews outside of the Lubavitch community, but we did not realise how controversial they had already become in their own community.

Shortly after writing the article, I was told that the moshiach dancers were considered to be quite mad. Unfortunately, I got the impression that this perceived madness elicited derision rather than compassion; so the following Shabbat when I walked past the dancers on my way to shul, I made an effort to be particularly friendly to them.

Of course by now, anyone who reads the AJN knows that on January 10 this year Rabbi Telsner, the dayan of Yeshivah Shule, released a notice effectively excommunicating the dancers. Rabbi Telsner’s notice reached my inbox via a friend who is not a chabadnik, but nevertheless suggested that perhaps Chabad had “finally come to its senses” by distancing itself from these extremely messianic elements.

The secular staff writer at the AJN seemingly concurred, writing that when the moshiach dancers broke the fast of the 10^th of Tevet, they had “gone too far.” This struck me as being somewhat ironic coming from a secular person, who it is fair to assume, eats on the 10^th of Tevet as a matter of course.

The two Chabad commentators who wrote in the same edition of the AJN cast the moshiach dancers as eccentrics and cult members respectively. Neither expressed sympathy for the small group who are by all accounts a bit different from the norm.

It would be remiss not to mention the context in which the moshiach dancers had become unpopular, and certainly they had raised the public profile of an extremely controversial and divisive issue – Chabad messianism. (For some insight into this controversy, see David Werdiger’s blog post and subsequent comments on the “Yechi” debate at Yeshivah Shule.)

Nonetheless, it seems fairly insensitive to excommunicate a small group of “eccentrics,” with no real influence on the mainstream congregants at Yeshivah Shule. Moreover, whilst the excommunication might be partially related to the dancers’ explicit messianism, explicit messianism persists at Yeshivah Shule amongst its more mainstream congregants. In the weeks following the excommunication, a movement from within the Yeshivah Shule congregation petitioned Rabbi Telsner to take down the sign that hangs in the shul proclaiming (or at the very least praying) that the late Chabad Rebbe is the moshiach, but Rabbi Telsner has announced that the sign will not be removed.

Insider’s view
by David Werdiger
The so-called “Moshiach Dancers” have been largely viewed within the Yeshivah community as meshuga’im – crazies – not as much due to their extreme ideology regarding Moshiach, but more for the way they choose to express it, whether through loud defiant declarations and dances in the shul itself, or more recently their regular expressions of free speech in the street.

When they were evicted from the shul, it was because their actions were divisive and disruptive to the broader members. The recent declaration against their Chillul Hashem (desecration of God’s name) by publicly eating on a fast day in breach of Jewish law was, in my view, warranted, as they had crossed a line with such an action. No matter what their beliefs regarding the imminence of Moshiach’s arrival or his identity, this gave them no right to breach halacha. As the Dayan of the Yeshivah community and arbiter of matters relating to Jewish law, Rabbi Telsner was obliged to take a stand against such action.

Going beyond that to what some people would call the core issue of the “Moshiach Dancers” is the mental health issue. As a community, we ought to help them. We have committees for financial aid, and for meal assistance during crisis times, although these things can usually be done by lay persons. To deal with a mental health issue requires a professional, so perhaps what is required in this case is a communal approach (directed by a mental health professional) that would help lead these folks to get the help they need. Deriding their behaviour is callous, but expressing public sympathy or approaching them may not have the correct effect either, as it continues to reward their actions with attention.

While the actions of a few eccentrics are what capture the imagination, the substantive issue here is actually that of messianism at Yeshivah Shul, and in Chabad generally. Regarding this, the recent coverage in the AJN regarding the Yechi sign and the petition was shameful sensationalism carrying little insight into what is really going on.

People have left Yeshivah shul because of the Yechi sign at the back. Would they all come running back if the sign was taken down? No. Would the removal of the sign usher in a new age of unity within the shul? No. The existence of the sign does not affect the vast majority of regulars (certainly not those of us who daven facing the front of the shul where the aron kodesh is) – a minority on either side of the political/ideological fence either strongly object to it, or strongly object to its removal. Whether people agree with the outcome or not, a process was followed by launching a petition, and the Dayan made a ruling. It ought to stop there. The issues facing Yeshivah shul go far beyond messianic ideology, and are largely internal.

Rachel talks about the “explicit messianism” that persists at the shul. I’ve always maintained that the issue is not black and white: rather, there is a spectrum of belief within Chabad regarding Moshiach, with extremes on either side. What everyone wants to know is this: is it reasonable to believe that the Rebbe can still be Moshiach, despite having passed away some years ago? The answer, according to many authorities, is yes. And if that might be termed “explicit messianism”, then yes, it does still exist within many mainstream Chabad communities around the world. It is also reasonable to believe that the Rebbe during his lifetime could have been Moshiach (or was “the Moshiach of his generation”), but now can no longer as he has passed away. Both of these positions are supported by Jewish theology.

No matter what one believes about specific details (and indeed, whether these details are themselves important), what Chabad brought was a public awareness about Moshiach that was largely absent from the Jewish world for many years. This is despite the fact that our daily prayers are filled with liturgy about our craving for the Messianic era. It is sad and ironic that the concept of Moshiach, which encapsulates the reunification of world Jewry, has been recently subverted as such a divisive one.

Volunteers on the job in Nepal

By Keren Tuch

The first Australian Jewish international volunteer program has now been launched and completed, thanks to Jewish Aid and AUJS in conjunction with Tevel B’Tzedek – an Israeli NGO working in Nepal. It involved a one week orientation in Kathmandu where there was an intense learning program of the Nepali language, culture, history as well as preparation for the volunteering period.  The group then went out to a remote village for the next 3 weeks to volunteer in the school, work with women’s groups, teachers’ training and small construction projects in the village itself.  The Volunteer Nepal program was the first of its kind dedicated for Australians, and as the madricha of this program, if I may say so myself, it was a raging success.

But what bothered me and the six participants of the program, was the sentiment which surfaced when we tried to explain that as representatives of the Jewish tribe, we would be trying to help and learn from members of a different tribe, in fact a very different tribe that don’t know that our tribe even exists. One participant’s (Jewish) doctor scoffed at the idea of the trip, claiming there were so many disadvantaged people in Israel and that we should volunteer in the Holy Land instead. Another participant’s father echoed these concerns. After discussing this issue with the group, I felt that this topic – whether Jews should be helping non-Jews in light of our own problems – is one of the issues that causes a magnetic repellent from the Jewish community for a sizeable portion of young Jews today.

Growing up with a Jewish education, the mantra “Love Your Neighbour as yourself” (Lev 19:18) was drilled into me. What was not exactly defined or discussed was who exactly are your neighbours. Technically speaking, my neighbours happen to be Anglicans of Italian descent, and whilst I do enjoy saying hello over the fence and playing with their cute Shih Tzu, I highly doubt this is what is meant by “neighbours”.  Is it the people in your neighbourhood, community, town, country? The Hebrew word for neighbour, “re’eicha,” is probably better translated as fellow, but this still doesn’t answer the question. Perhaps in more testing times, a fellow or neighbour might be interpreted as a fellow Jew, but to me this interpretation of the Biblical verse is just that: an interpretation. Today in a more universal world, where images of foreign cultures that were previously oceans away from us are exposed two metres away on our television sets, perhaps our neighbours now encompass everyone.

Despite the commandment to love our neighbour being the biggest golden rule of Judaism that can be said standing on one leg, what should be more overwhelming is that the commandment to look after the orphan, the widow, and the stranger is mentioned a whopping 36 times. This is more than any other commandment in the Torah and is considerably important because we were once strangers in the land of Egypt. And who is the “ger “(stranger)?  Well, the ger is from the same root as gur, to live. Rashi defines Ger as “one who was not born in the same country (he now resides in) but came from another country.”   According to the 12th Century philosopher and physician Maimonides in Hilchot Melachim 10:12, he states “one ought to treat the resident stranger (ger) with Derech Eretz and Chesed, just as one does a Jew”. In modern times, this might be the new golden rule of Judaism given that there is an abundance of “strangers” in our midst, as well as beyond our midst, just a (relatively) short plane ride away.

There are many texts throughout the Talmud that deal with this issue of treatment of both Jews and goyim, some favourably and some not so favourably, potentially because the Jewish community was persecuted and in exile during the time of writing. There is one particular text from the Babylonian Talmud, Bava Metzia 71a, that explains who we should decide to lend money to.

“If the choice lies between a Jew and a non-Jew, a Jew has preference; the poor or the rich the poor takes precedence; your poor [I.e. your relatives] and the [general] poor of your town, your poor come first; the poor of your city and the poor of another town the poor of your own town have prior rights.”

Now for me this makes sense and it is a natural phenomenon to be concerned more for your family and then community before worrying about the plight of Eritrean refugees. My family will come before any of you dear readers. My friends, acquaintances and contacts will take precedence over strangers. But this text does not give us religious licence to forget or neglect those that are not in our immediate universe of obligation.

But then it becomes complicated when you ask, do I give to the poor from my city first, or to a Jew in another country? Does the organisation that supports my disabled cousin become the recipient of my tzedakah, or the Malawians in extreme poverty who struggle to feed their kids every day? How do I divide my resources? These baffling problems are complex and each requires deep thought. It is important to remember that although you can’t help everybody, there are people who don’t have anyone else that can help them, and it is still our responsibility to fill the void.

One of the reasons the volunteer Nepal program was so successful, was its ability to combine education about Nepal and the developing world with an opportunity to volunteer within a Jewish context. We spent shabbatot belting out kabbalat shabbat tunes while  the sun set on the rolling hills. We spent hours discussing our Jewish identities and our universe of obligation. This program has the potential to mobilise a currently dormant force in the Jewish community to help the less fortunate while strengthening our own identities. I’m sure the aforementioned doctor would refrain from making any negative comments if he knew that this program is more than a cultural exchange or volunteer opportunity, but also a space to inspire strong Jewish identities.

The Australian Jewish community is increasingly looking outwards to help others. There has been a recent increase in the amount of local Jewish organisations that assist in universal aid efforts. Nothing But Nets is an initiative of the Union for Progressive Judaism that raises money for bed nets to prevent malaria in Africa. Derech Eretz offers opportunities to volunteer in a rural Indigenous community during the school holidays. Jews for Social Action is an initiative which mobilises volunteers to help with Aboriginal literacy programs and at an asylum seeker refuge centre. Jewish Aid Australia has been around for more than 15 years to create awareness and opportunities to donate and volunteer with various projects in the wider community. It is time to stop spouting the rhetoric that we only need to look after ourselves, and instead divide our time, money and resources wisely to fulfil our obligation to help others as well. And maybe, just maybe, we might attract a number of young Jews who have previously been unaffiliated due to the insularity of the community.