In defense of Shas
Recently, the coalition negotiations with Kadima have brought up some very ugly epithets about Shas and its leadership. The political discourse has become rather unsightly. Regular readers of this column are aware that I am no great fan of Shas. Although some years ago I toyed with the idea of voting for the party, I feel that most Sephardim are not duly represented by Shas. In the two decades since its founding, little has been done to improve the lives of those impoverished Sephardim that are supposedly its constituency. Those who wish to defame Shas have pointed to the fact that many of their important decisions are made, not by their elected members of Knesset, but by a Council of sages, headed by Rav Ovadia Yosef. Aryeh Deri should not run for Jerusalem mayor
This past week has seen a dramatic turn of events in the upcoming Jerusalem mayoral elections. Rumors are circulating that disgraced former Shas political leader Aryeh Deri has decided to run for the top job in Kikar Safra. The rumors are obviously a test balloon placed by Deri to examine his potential popularity with Jerusalemites. This candidacy would certainly throw a spanner in the works of an already divided election. At the moment, the candidates are businessman Nir Barkat who is the front-runner, followed in the polls by MK Meir Porush of the Ashkenazi haredi party United Torah Judaism (UTJ). Although billionaire and Betar Jerusalem owner Arkadi Gaydamak is also in the running, he is far behind in the polls. No 'ethnic demon" in the Kadima race
"This is the moment we bury the ethnic demon in Israel," declared Amir Peretz in his victory speech for the Labor leadership in November 2005. However, he soon found out that his heritage remained an issue throughout his relatively short tenure as Labor leader and failed Defense Minister. With Minister of Transportation Shaul Mofaz putting his hat in the ring for the post of Kadima leader, Sephardim are the closest they have ever been to representation atop the Israeli political ladder. Iranian-born Mofaz could become the first Israeli prime minister who doesn't have a European heritage. No Sephardi has ever had such a realistic hope of attaining the premiership in the history of the state of Israel. Reappraising Jewish-Hispanic relations
In a recent Jerusalem Post column entitled Give it a rest, Professor Samuel Freedman laments the American Jewish community's 'obsession' with building relations with the African-American community. In listing the reasons why the African-American community is not as interested in formenting the relationship, Freedman claims that it has other greater concerns; one of which is the fact that "Hispanics (are) surpassing them as America's largest racial minority." The Jewish community has been slow to realize this modification in America's ethnic reality today and has achieved far less community building with the Hispanic American community than with others. Don't mess with the stereotype
I have to admit it; I really enjoyed Adam Sandler's new film "Don't mess with the Zohan". If all of Sandler's previous films barely elicited a smirk from me, with Zohan I was in tears. The Israeli stuck in the age of 'Disco' and obsessed with matkot (beach racket game) was spot on.
While Sandler's attempt at an Israeli accent sounded more Marseille than Metulla, there was another stereotype which bothered me more. It is time to decide
There is a battle raging in Israel that has long been simmering just below the surface of the mainstream Israeli perception. However, recent events have meant that the dispute has reached such a magnitude that it has become well known to even those outside of its parameters. Recent accusations against Rabbi Haim Druckman, head of the Conversion Authority that have since led to his being dismissed from his position, have opened this simmering dispute into something akin to an all-out rabbinical war. For those who are not aware of these latest events: basically a ruling by a panel of High Rabbinical Court judges upholding an earlier decision by the Ashdod rabbinical court retroactively annulled a woman's 15-year-old conversion to Judaism by Rabbi Druckman. The issue was that it was felt that Rabbi Druckman had converted someone that he supposedly knew would not lead a completely observant lifestyle. The beautiful game
I was invited to my first Israeli basketball game earlier in the week and I was curious to witness a live game and its accompanying atmosphere. Having been brought up in England, football (I refuse to use the word 'soccer' which is anyway a shortened version of Association Football) is the only sport that matters, however, I am always curious to experience any quintessentially Israeli events. In England and most of the world, 'Football is life'. As one English manager famously put it: "some people think football is a matter of life and death. I assure you, it's much more serious than that." The Nature of Yom Ha'Atzmaut
Every year there is a major debate amongst the religious community as to how much emphasis Yom Ha'atzmaut should be given in the synagogue. In most prayer books there are special prayers to be said on the evening of Yom Ha'Atzmaut which includes parts of Leha Dodi and tehillim, one sung to the tune of the HaTikva. While many Ashkenazi haredim will not acknowledge Yom Ha'Atzmaut, amongst the Sephardim the debate is more about the nature of the day. During the day there is a debate amongst Sephardim about whether to say Hallel with a blessing or without. The irony of Spain's Holocaust record
Up until the Shoa, the largest destruction in the history of world Jewry happened on the Iberian Peninsular. The Inquisition and the Expulsion of Jews in Portugal and Spain left an indelible mark on Jews up until this very day. At the beginning of the 15th century, not a single Jew officially resided in Sepharad. Where once nearly 90% of world Jewry lived, not one openly Jewish soul remained. This devastating period affects current world Jewry and Judaism more than we think and some have suggested that its effects rival even the Shoa for its after-currents. There was even a ban on visiting Spain for 500 years which was only revoked after King Juan Carlos apologized for his nations past conduct towards the Jews. While Spain was remembered very bitterly for many generations it became an unlikely haven for Jews escaping the Nazi destruction. The Kitniyot debate: between tradition and unity
At no other time of the year is there such seeming distinction between Ashkenazim and Sephardim. There are few customs - and it is only a custom - which are belittled by even respectable Ashkenazi authorities as the laws of kitniyot on Pessah. Rabbenu Yeruham ben Meshullam (Provence, 14th century) said "those accustomed to not eating rice and various kinds of cooked kitniyot on Pessah abide by a stupid custom which makes it harder on themselves (to observe and enjoy the festival) and I have no idea why they do so". Rav Yaaqov ben Asher rejected the custom, saying "it is an excessive restriction and improper". Rav Zvi Hirsch Ashkenazi known as "Zvi the Wise One" (1660-1718) and his son Rabbi Yaaqov Amdan (1697-1776) opposed the custom with all their might and wanted to eliminate it. They called it "a restriction that has no rhyme or reason for ever existing". Rav Shmuel of Falaise (in the 13th century), supported the custom but nevertheless admits that this custom comes from a mistake and prohibits things that had been permitted. |
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