chametz in hospitals on Pesach decided by Supreme Court

The Supreme Court decided to wait until after Pesach to decide on the case regarding visitors bringing chametz into hospitals. Maybe they figure that by next year the decision will be behind us and forgotten and they wont get attacked over it before the holiday.

The Supreme Court ruled that the hospitals in Israel do not have te authority to stop people form bringing chametz in during the Pesach holiday.

Justice Uzi Fogelman explained that this prevents patients form eating what they want in their own space and is damaging to their rights to personal honor, autonomy and freedom from religion. Especially in a hospital where people lose their independence and have to deal with pain and discomfort, they need to be dealt with with more compassion and protect their honor and individuality and their needs. The authority held by the hospital does not include preventing people form bringing in food for kashrut issues. Using the security guards to check for this is also a breach of the authority given to them for protection and security.

A compromise was suggested by Justice Grosskopf by which the kashrut of the hospital kitchen and dining areas would be protected just as people's individual rights and preferences would be protected in their personal spaces, but each hospital would have to decide on that individually and implement such a division.

As long as the hospital has the ability to keep its facilities kosher - don't allow personal food to be brought into the public areas for consumption, etc. - I still do not see why someone bringing chametz and eating it privately should bother me to the point that I have to disallow it. Sure, Jews eating chametz on Pesach bothers me, but that is their decision, and it is not my job to take away their free will. Also, plenty of non-Jews are in the hospitals (as patients, staff and visitors), and why should they be forced to only eat matza and other Pesach foods?

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What should De Blasio have said about the funeral in Williamsburg?

Mayor of New York Bill De Blasio came under criticism for a tweet he sent.

Caveat: I have no idea if DeBlasio is doing a good or bad job at anything. I do not know if he is popular and well-liked or not. I do not know if he is good for the Jews or bad for the Jews.

Mayor de Blasio tweeted about a hassidishe funeral from Williamsburg that broke social distancing regulations and had too many people participating. it was the funeral of hassidic rebbe called the Admor of Tolaas Yaakov, and his followers and adherents crowded to the funeral, drawing the ire of de Blasio.

Here is de Blasio's tweet:

My message to the Jewish community, and all communities, is this simple: the time for warnings has passed. I have instructed the NYPD to proceed immediately to summons or even arrest those who gather in large groups. This is about stopping this disease and saving lives. Period.

— Mayor Bill de Blasio (@NYCMayor) April 29, 2020

People got upset that the Mayor called out "the Jewish community" when it was really just a problem by a small group of people. This is generalizing and stereotyping, racist and incitement as it will cause people to be angry at the Jews.

I am not going to defend de Blasio, but I would like some clarification.

De Blasio is criticizing a group of people who broke serious health regulations, and he is warning them that this is a serious violation.

What should he have said instead of "Jewish community"? He added "and all communities" - does that not temper it? This violation was by Jews, so why should they not be called out for it? Should he have said the Hassidic community - but that is also generalizing against all Hassidim, many of whom are following the guidelines? Should he have said the Tolaas Yaakov community? Has he even ever heard of them - I never heard of them until this incident. Should he have left it generic - people are breaking the rules and should not as we will enforce - that does not seem to make the point and most people probably would not even know what he was referring to.

What should he have said instead of what he did say?

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MK Gafni speaks on Yom Haatzmaut about the Haredi relationship to the State of Israel (video)

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NOPE! Steve Harvey won't read this question! | Family Feud (video)

wait for it......

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UnderDos: Sovereignty (video)

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Synagogues of Israel Part 19 Haifa (video)

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Omer Adam - Tefilla (video)

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Flags all over the country - the full drone clip (video)

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Prayer for the State of Israel, Yom Haatzmaut 2020 5780 - Dvir Spiegel, Moshav Gimzu (video)

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Momentum and Yedidim light torches (video)

notable from the Yom Haatzmaut torch lighting ceremony last night..

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Yom Haatzmaut Home Formations (video)

cute

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Avinu Shebashamayim - in honor of Israels 72nd Independence Day (video)

The online platform for Cantors, Choirs, Singers and Bands- JVocals.com, in collaboration with the Moscow Male Jewish Cappella conducted by Sasha Tsaliuk, is launching a special musical production in honor of Israel's 72nd Independence Day for the famous melody composed by the world-known cantor Sol Zim, to the words of the blessing for the peace of Israel, chanted every Shabbat in synagogues all over the world: "Our Father in Heaven" (“AVINU SHEBASHAMAYIM”).

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Yonina- Chai (video)

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President Rivlin's greeting for Israel's 72nd Yom Haatzmaut / Independence Day (video)

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LIVE: Yom Haatzmaut Torch-Lighting Ceremony at Har Herzl (video)

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Bereaved Families Sing Power Rendition of Hatikvah (video)

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Picture of the Day

Photo Credit: Pearly Goldmeier Shore

From FB:
Crazy times.
Today at the siren we took a 2 minute break from testing corona samples so we can honor our fallen soldiers and victims of terror.
This picture was taken by me (I’m not pictured) from the out side through the window as my teammates paused their work and this window was opened for the first time in weeks so they could hear the siren.
I am so grateful for the land so many have sacrificed their life for.
#MemorialDay #YomHazikaron #Israel #CoronaTimes #LabTechs #Meuhedet 

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Shayna Applebaum-Abramson shares her family's moving story (video)

Renowned emergency physician, David Applebaum, and his daughter, Nava Applebaum, were killed in a terror attack the day before her wedding. Now, Shayna Applebaum-Abramson shares the story of how their family honors their legacy.

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A PRAYER FOR THE IDF - מי שבירך לצה"ל THE PORTNOY BROTHERS - האחים פורטנוי (Yom Hazikaron 2020) (video)

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PM Benjamin Netanyahu interview for Yom Hazikaron (video)

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Singing in their Memory, from the Knesset plaza (video)

Ishay Ribo is one of the singers....

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U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman with A message from the US to Israel on yom Hazikaron (video)

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Israelis singing from their balconies on the eve of Israel's Memorial Day (video)

very cool, and beautiful, and I even know one of the families in the clip!

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Yom Hazikaron: El Male Rachamim - Shai Abramson (video)

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even when fighting for a life, the pettiness does not go away

Evacuating a population to hotels (for Corona isolation) is surely going to be difficult, especially when the population insists on everything being exactly the way they ant it, and each person wants something else.

The latest drama is out of one of the hotels being used for isolating Haredi Corona patients.

Some of them complained that they had televisions in their rooms and they wanted them out. After some back and forth, it was decided to take out all the televisions in the entire hotel. Some residents complained because they want to use the televisions int heir rooms, some saying they also have televisions at home. On the one side you have people who want to keep the televisions int heir rooms and on the other side you have people who want no televisions at all in the hotel.

I do not get why a television in Reuven's room needs to bother Shimon, but it does.

When the televisions were removed, some residents contacted Defense Minister Bennett to complain, as the Corona Hotels are under the authority of the Defense Ministry. Bennett looked into it and decided that each person can choose for himself what to do  - those who want it removed can have the television removed and those who want to keep the television can keep it.

Some people did not like that, so they complained to Minister Deri. Deri decided that it was difficult enough to get people to agree to go to the hotels, and by leaving televisions in parts of the hotel, they might decide to leave and go home. To prevent that, all televisions must be removed form the Haredi Corona Hotel, and anyone who wants to have access to the television is welcome to register to switch to a different hotel.
sources: Ynet, Kikar, Behadrei and more

I am happy they all found solutions, until the next thing they are not happy about, such as the people who moved hotels might no longer get mehadrin meals because now they are residing in non mehadrin hotels - do people who watch tv have no right to a mehadrin level of kashrut? And if they did not have televisions, would it be the end of the world? So they'll be bored like everyone else. People hardly need televisions today anyway, as everything is accessible via telephones and laptops..I am happy they, for now have found a solution, but do they all really have to be so petty when fighting for lives?

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Quote of the Day

This [rotation] agreement has more holes than the golf course Bibi loves in Ceasaria... there are at least 3 chapter sin the agreement via which the rotation can be avoided... do you really think one day Bibi will go to Sara and tell her "clear the drawers, Revital Gantz is coming tomorrow to arrange her clothes"? You know it isnt going to happen... The Likud has 59, and with another 16 that is 75 and at any moment that Bibi might decide he does not want to uphold his rotation agreement, and he will not want to uphold it, all he will have to do is come to me and tell me that he wants to revert the laws back to their original draft...and I will say yes. We will agree to revert the laws back to the original, and you'll have to deal with it because he will have the support of 75 MKs. Why? Because we respect democracy and these disgraceful laws need to be voided, as you are passing them for purely personal reasons...

  -- MK Yair Lapid (Yesh Atid), in the special committee meeting discussing passage of laws to make the PM rotation agreement possible

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Above and Beyond (video)

Is a straightforward, documentary that shines a light on a group of World War II Jewish American pilots who were recruited to essentially create the Israeli air force during the Palestine War in 1948.

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Religious Israelis: What is the role of the prophets in Judaism? (video)

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Tour of Beit HaNasi, the President's Residence - Part 3 (video)

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Mike is TWO POINTS away from a BIG PAYDAY! | Family Feud (video)

very cool. they were neighbors back in the old country, and davened in the same shul as us...and I love how they dance like they are at a bar mitzva at the end...

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Avi Kraus - All Okay [Official Music Video]

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Picture of the Day

the sign was posted at the entrance to the Mahane Yehuda Shuk today. It says, welcome to the Mahane Yehuda branch of Ikea.

Vendors of the shuk are upset that the shuk remains closed while more and more indoor stores continue to be granted permission to open, such as large department and furniture stores like IKEA. Today one of the vendors committed suicide because of his financial situation since the Corona Virus closed down the amrket.

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do double duty

Just thinking out loud for a moment...

while the police and the army have RBS B under full closure for most of the week, perhaps they can do double duty (or City Hall can bring their people in) and get rid of all the graffiti and clean the place up at the same time...

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MK Eichler threatening UTJ won't join coalition

Despite UTJ getting a sweet deal from Netanyahu to join the coalition without even having to fight or negotiate for keeping their power, while the rest of the Netanyahu bloc all has to accept the fact that they will get less this time around, MK Yisrael Eichler is now threatening that UTJ will not join the coalition, unless...

According to Behadrei, Eichler wants the government to found an entirely new stream of schools for the Haredi educational system and fund it 100%.

According to Eichler, there are two officially recognized Haredi streams right now - Maayakn hachinuch Hatorani (of Shas) and Chincuh Atzmai (of Degel). Since 1992 these chains have been funded 100% just like the official State school system.

According to Eichler, the hassidic school systems were not granted the same recognition because they always wanted to preserve 100% control over the hashkafa of their educational system and have made do with their system of schools being classified as mosdot ptur - exempt, with diluted funding from the State.

The financial state of the educational system has caused a major problem for the parents and the schools, with donations drying up and parents unable to pay much and tuition rising. And that was before the Corona crisis. Now everything is much worse as people have lost jobs and businesses and even people before who had money now do not necessarily have and parents cannot be expected to pay hundreds of shekels each month.

If a new stream is not founded and funded completely, UTJ will not enter the coalition.

Interestingly, he seems to be speaking for the entire UTJ when he says this. I wonder if the others in his party agree and would hold out for this.

Eichler is forgetting about a third Haredi stream of education that already exists. that is, the State Haredi Education. UTJ refuses to recognize it and fights against the opening of school under this system wherever they can. The schools that do get opened have so far, supposedly, been flourishing with a very happy student and parent body.

Of course, it then will nto be enough to star a Hassidic stream of schools, as they will need separate streams for Belz, and for Gur and for Viznitz and for Dushinsky and for any others that operate their own schools and want to get in on this.

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Book Review: Armed With Spirit

NOTE: I was not paid to review this book. It is an unbiased and objective review. If you have a book with Jewish or Israel related content and would like me to write a review, contact me for details of where to send me a review copy of the book.

Book Review: Armed With Spirit, by Rabbi Shalom Hammer

Armed With Spirit, by Rabbi Shalom Hammer, is a book in which Rabbi Hammer really wrote via Whatsapp.

Rabbi Hammer's son enlisted in the Israel Defense Forces, the IDF, in the Nahal Brigade. As a religious soldier, his father felt it important to not just stay in regular contact with him but also to lift his spirits with spiritual messages - so he sent him a weekly dvar torah on the weekly portion of the Torah reading, or for holidays or other events. The divrei torah were not just nice vertlach on the parsha, but they were lessons relevant to a soldier int he IDF, deduced from each parsha. Those divrei torah sent to his son in the IDF are what became the book Armed With Spirit.

The personal touch and connection Rabbi Hammer worked to maintain and develop is touching on its own. Even more is that often his son, Soldier Hammer, would write back his own thoughts in response, and sometimes it would lead to some back and forth discussion, which is also included in the book. It is touching to see the relationship. It is touching to see the respect with which each holds the other.

I did find it very impressive that Rabbi Hammer was able to take a lesson relevant to a soldier in the IDF from every single parsha and holiday. That could not have been easy.

It is admirable, and I am a bit jealous, that Rabbi Hammer thought to do this and did it - a  feat on its own, as surely he and his son both had busy schedules and surely some weeks it might have been difficult to find the time or to remember to do it or even to come up with an interesting message to pass on.

I suspect that if all IDF parents could work to keep or develop a relationship with their soldier in a similar way, both our soldiers and we would all be the better off for it.

Armed With Spirit is not just a book, it is a look at the relationship between father and son both tasked in holy work.


You can buy Armed With Spirit on Amazon

NOTE: I was not paid to review this book. It is an unbiased and objective review. If you have a book with Jewish or Israel related content and would like me to write a review, contact me for details of where to send me a review copy of the book.

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MK Moshe Abutbol wants haircuts in Meron on Lag B'Omer

It seems as if MK Moshe Abutbol (Shas) has some special connection to the issue of haircuts.

Before Pesach MK Abutbol was requesting that the Corona Task Force, ie PM Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister Yaakov Litzman, allow barbershops to open. His logic then was that after Pesach people will not be able to get haircuts due to being in the middle of the Omer, so there was a pressing need to allow haircuts before Pesach, even though it was not within the regulations. or the spirit of the regulations. He wanted them to make an exception for haircuts in barbershops because of the Omer situation after Pesach.

And now MK Abubtbol is requesting that despite the regulations, or at least the expected regulations, for Lag B'Omer, will have Meron closed to the public (and possibly only open to a number of pre-approved rabbonim to have small bonfires), they open it to the public for haircuts for young children. Abutbol explains that it is a holy minhag to wait until a child is 3 years old and to go to Meron on lag B'Omer for the first haircut.

Abubtol suggests allowing it for children who pre-register and the haircuts can be staggered with each child being given a time to be there, rather than having it in large crowds as usual. Also the empty parking lots could be used and partitioned off to different areas with 19 people in each, similar to the minyanim now allowed at the Kotel (for people who live in the Old City).

I don't know that this is an issue important enough to fight over, when minyanim are barely allowed and when yeshivas are not open. I still cannot believe that people find things like this more important than being machmir on health concerns that they are willing to try to put pressure on the government to get this allowed. Corona does not just go away and stay away just because you successfully pressured the government to allow your event.

I wish them all good health and recommend they are either wait a little longer until the country opens up some more and/or the Corona threat goes away. Or they can just give the chalaka somewhere else - such as at home.

With the gradual easing of regulations anyway, with every few days being a little bit more returned closer to normal, this all may be moot by then anyways. By then haircuts might be allowed. I suspect even with that Lag B'Omer in Meron might be shut down, just like Pesach was shut down and Yom Haatzmaut will be, but if the numbers improve enough before then, perhaps it will be somewhat open and possible.

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Headlines Podcast: 4/25/20 - Show 269 - Divorces and Parent Alienation: What’s the Halacha and Hashkafic Approach (audio)

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Minister Naftali Bennett on steps to open up Israel (video)

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Eli Beer: I received my life back, coronavirus is a terrible and aggressive disease (video)

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Israeli Music 3 REVIEW (video)

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Amiran Dvir: Connect Me To You (Official video clip)

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Havdalah - Cantor Netanel Hershtik & The Maccabeats (video)

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Ya'ale Ve'Yavo | Kippalive (video)

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Ani Mamin-Avraham Fried, Yonatan Razel,Chanan BenAri (video)

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Yonatan Razel - Vehi Sheamda (video)

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be careful what you wish for

The public movement has been growing trying to pressure Minister Litzman out of the Health Ministry. Personally I think the movement was misguided. They should have been workign to push him out of the public arena of politics altogether, nto specifically out of the Health Ministry.

Litzman likes to point out the survey from many years ago that showed he is so well liked, often described as the sweetheart (mami in hebrew) of the government. And he was well liked for a while.

Eventually the honeymoon wore off, and people got frustrated by him., he ran the ministry like so many politicians run their ministries and areas of responsibility. he used it to give priority to people somewhat connected. He used his influence to help abusers and molesters get out of jail on vacations and furloughs and paroles. He used, and is using, his ministry to help an alleged serious abuser avoid the courts and extradition. Polls show that a significant majority of people are very dissatisfied with the way he has handled the Corona crisis (though Netanyahu polls favorably on this).

While Netanyahu stays loyal to Litzman and UTJ,,the pressure has been mounting to remove him from the Health Ministry. Netanyahu would not do that to Litzman or UTJ, unless it came from them - for example, if Litzman would request a new ministry.

The news is now reporting that there are strong rumors that Litzman has offered, not requested but offered, to abandon the Health Ministry in exchange for the Housing Ministry.

If people did not like Litzman in the Ministry of Health, a ministry that was mostly ignored and did not think much about until Litzman took it over, wait until he takes over the Housing Ministry and builds for Haredim and gives them discounts and pushes Haredi projects into cities that dont want them and gives them priority purchasing and subsidized mortgages and grants and discounted taxes. Wait until Litzman gives his Haredi and specifically Gur developer friends access to the most lucrative projects. Again, every minister and politician does this to a certain extent, but Litzman is particularly heavy handed on these types of matters. He really answers to no one except the Gerrer Rebbe.

That is why I say, people should be careful what they wish for. Litzman was not not worthy of the Health Ministry. Litzman was not worthy of being in politics at all. People fought to get him out of the Health Ministry, and they might be getting what they wished for, but they will regret it if he gets his hands on an even more important ministry. Be careful what you wish for.

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Proving Good People Make Good Government

A Guest Post by Dr Harold Goldmeier

A simple public interest story.

The city of Bet Shemesh is situated midway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. It is reportedly the fastest growing city home to a young population. Senior citizens were asked to register when things got dicey with the unimaginably contagious novel C-19, so the government will know where we live. Ominous.

We registered online. This was to reveal itself as a well-thought-out public health plan.  We got well-check calls. Then meals delivered to our door first by city workers and eventually by army personnel. I surmise the government does not want its seniors going grocery shopping, since we are highly susceptible to the virus, suffer extraordinary damage, consume expensive medical resources, and have high rates of death. Their plan is to keep us away from the maddening crowds. 

Also, senior citizens tend to not eat nutritious meals or consistently when isolated. Providing filling, balanced meals, and packages of fresh vegetables encourage us to eat well to keep our strength up. It is less expensive and more humane for the government to have us eat at home than feeding us intravenously in a hospital bed.  Promoting health and preventing disease are the essence of smart and effective public health measures.

Today we lived dangerously and took a walk. Sedentary seniors have their health problems exacerbated. We suffer increased pain and notice it more. We put on weight and worry. Our muscles soften and balance is affected. We were keeping a safe distance from the few others walking and kids on bicycles. A police car driving past suddenly crossed the road blocking traffic and stopped nearly parallel in our path. The officer leaned out her window and handed us envelopes. I thought...tickets. Nope. Inside each envelope were three surgical masks to replace our homemade fashionable masks; “these fit better and will protect you better,” she told me.

And there were kosher for Passover meals delivered. And more well-check calls. “How are you guys? Do you have any fever or coughing? Do you feel well? Do you want to ask me anything?” One asked if we need any medicines? “Are you taking your medicine?” Ensuring the safety of public health is but one aspect of the government’s responsibilities. Treating the elderly with dignity demonstrates good government is made up of good people. Everyone can take a lesson and share in our pride for our government. 

I offered one soldier some oranges but she refused to take anything. So, the least we can do is thank the people in the government for being generous and kind and tell you to feel free to share this story.

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Philadelphia Cream Cheese now Cholov Yisrael

I saw this in the supermarket...

If you are not sure what is remarkable about Philadelphia Cream Cheese, it is the section on the left side. It has the hechsher (Triangle K-D) on it and underneath the hechsher it says Cholov Yisrael from the time of milking under the hechsher of the Triangle K in the USA and under the authorization of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel.

Say what you want about the Triangle K, that is not the topic of interest here. Rely on it or not, that is your business. The topic of interest here is that I do not recall ever seeing or hearing about Philadelphia Cream Cheese being Cholov Yisrael. The question is really just because it seems out of place. Is it using a different definition of cholov yisrael? is it a special run? I did see that it is imported from Spain rather than the USA (not seen in the picture above), so chances are high that it is a special run.

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Mayor Aliza Bloch with a message for local businesses (video)

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Palestinians: Is religion important to your identity? (video)

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Tour of Beit HaNasi, the President's Residence - Part 2 (video)

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Eli Beer on i24NEWS interview. (video)

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Shiru L'Hashem (A Capella Version) by Franciska (video)

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Quote of the Day

As for the annexation of the West Bank, the Israelis will ultimately make those decisions. That’s an Israeli decision. And we will work closely with them to share with them our views of this in (a) private setting.

  -- US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo

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Shut It Down!

Thinking about Lag B'Omer some more, it looks as if the government is about to declare another full closure and lockdown for Yom Haatzmaut, similar the lockdown of the first days of Pesach.

Fair enough.

They are concerned about people getting together to celebrate. A lockdown with tight enforcement means people will stay home, or at least almost all will - maybe only the President, PM and other government officials will celebrate with other people.

It makes sense, and it is necessary to avoid another spike, sad as it may be.

That being the case, the government should do exactly the same for Lag B'Omer. Don't allow minimal bonfires at Meron. Don't allow any bonfires at Meron. Meron is not the only problem - Meron will likely be heavily policed to ensure the small groups there adhere to the rules. The problem is that with bonfires at Meron, people will make bonfires all over the country and there will be gatherings and celebrations, even fi the government tries to minimize it.

If they can shut down Yom Haatzmaut, they can shut down Lag B'Omer. For the safety of all of Israel. Rabbi Rabinovitz (or someone else) can make one bonfire with ten people, the way he ran the Pesach Birkat Kohanim. And that's it.

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Proposed Law: Freeze Rental Payments and Reimburse Landlords

According to Globes, there is a proposed law on the table, proposed by MK Ofer Kasif (Joint Arab List) and supported by MKs from Kachol Lavan, UTJ and Meretz, that would cancel all rental payments for homes during the Corona crisis until 60 days after the crisis is considered over. The proposed law states that the State will reimburse and compensate anyone hurt by this freeze on payments - that would largely be the landlords.

Additionally, the proposal states that during this period of crisis there will be no evictions from rental homes for not paying rent.

MK Kasif explains his proposal saying we cannot allow this crisis to put millions of people into deep debt, and to cause people to be thrown out of their homes into the streets. The moves taken by the government until now are going to put millions into debt and cause them to be destitute, to hunger and to living in the streets. It is the State's responsibility to take care of them all, the renters and the landlords who live off their rental income.

It won't pass, but it is a nice thought. It likely would not even help because it would take so long for them to actually try to help, tying it all up in bureaucracy, that the landlords would likely go bankrupt before any financial reimbursements come in.

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Sivan Rahav Meir: what I learned this week from Ishay Ribo and Rabbi Jonathan Sacks (video)

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Rav Asher Weiss Shlita on Covid 19 (video)

Rabbi Asher Weiss Shlit'a, one of the leading Gedolim/sages of the Torah world speaking about the Coronavirus pleading with people to continue with social distancing, even as Israel begins lifting them.

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French Jewish Spy Who Survived the Holocaust Celebrates 100th birthday (video)

The 100th birthday of a Holocaust survivor and former French-Jewish spy who went behind Germany enemy lines was feted with an appropriately socially distanced parade of cars. Marthe Cohn sat in her driveway in Los Angeles wearing a face mask and gloves as cars full of people drove by wishing her well, shouting through rolled-down windows and sun roofs. A banner hanging on the garage door behind her read “Happy 100 Birthday Mrs. Cohn.” Neighbors stood in their driveways holding signs bearing well-wishes, too. A letter of congratulations from Israeli President Reuven Rivlin was read over a bullhorn and Cohn later received a phone call from both Rivlin and the president of Germany, as well as hundreds of emails. A new documentary, “The Accidental Spy,” tells her story, and Cohn co-wrote a memoir in 2002, “Behind Enemy Lines: The True Story of a French Jewish Spy in Nazi Germany.” Marthe Cohn was born Marthe Hoffnug in Metz, France, on April 13, 1920. She was one of seven children in her Orthodox Jewish family. They lived on the border of France and Germany, so the family aided Jewish refugees on the lam. “There was antisemitism in Metz, but very low-grade,” Marthe recalls. “In September 1939, before the war started, the French government demanded that the people who could afford to do so move to Poitiers [400 miles to the southwest]. My two brothers were in the French army; my oldest brother was on the Maginot Line and my youngest was in Tunisia, where he was doing his service, until 1940, then he was sent back because Jewish kids were not kept in the French army anymore. My oldest brother was taken prisoner on the Maginot Line. He was in a camp in Strasbourg, and he overheard the Germans say that the next day they were going to be transferred to a camp in Germany so he escaped that night and he was able to come home. He joined us in Poitiers in December 1940.” “My sister, Stephanie, and I were helping a lot of people who wanted to escape to unoccupied France. We had the assistance of Noel Degout, a farmer in the small village of Dienne, near Poitiers, who helped thousands of people cross through his property, which was partially in both zones. He never asked for one penny and posthumously received the title of Righteous Among the Nations at Yad Vashem after they read my book.” In June 1942, Stephanie was arrested and sent to Route de Limoges camp, a camp for foreign Jews in occupied France. “We were able to organize her escape from the camp, but she refused to escape because she told me that if she did, we would all be arrested, but the rest of us decided to escape from occupied France,” Marthe says. Stephanie was then transferred to two other French internment camps, and then deported on Yom Kippur 1942 to an unknown destination — later, her family found out she had been sent to Auschwitz, where she was murdered. After Stephanie’s arrest, Marthe and her family escaped occupied France with the help of a city hall employee: “He told me that he could provide us with identity papers without the stamped ‘Jew.’ When I asked him how much it would cost, he started crying and he said, ‘I do not want to be paid. I do this to save you.’ He gave me all the identity cards.” They first went to Arles, to join two of her brothers, then Marthe went on to Marseille to finish her nursing studies. After completing her studies, she went to live with her sister, Cecile, in Paris in September 1943. Paris was liberated in August 1944 — and Marthe immediately tried to join the army. In November 1944, she joined the French Army as a nurse, but was soon transferred to the army’s intelligence service. She was nicknamed Chichinette, for “little pain in the neck.” She tried 13 times to cross the front; on the 14th try, she crossed the border into Germany and took up a cover identity of a German nurse searching for her missing fiancée. She was 24 years old, and 4 foot 11 inches tall. “I had no idea what I was getting myself into,” Cohn said. “I’m not a liar or an actor, but when your survival depends upon it… I did it for what Germans had done to us.” She spent three weeks in Germany, on the front lines, as the war was winding down. Thanks to her covert mission, Marthe reported two critical pieces of information to the French intelligence: one, northwest of Freiburg, the Siegfried Line had been evacuated and two, the location of where the German army laid in ambush in the Black Forest. In 1945, the French Army awarded Marthe the Croix de Guerre, a French military decoration. Yet, after the war ended, she didn’t talk about what happened. “I always felt that people wouldn’t believe me. They would think it was tall tales,” Marthe said.

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Police in Beitar Ilit salute local Holocaust survivor during Yom Hashoa Siren (video)

Wow!

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Yonina- Mekimi (video)

beautiful rendition

Mekimi, words from Psalms, composed by Yosef Karduner. During holocaust Memorial Day, we sat together and watched the national broadcast .While listening to the haunting stories told by the survivers, concluded with modern pictures of them with their large families here in Israel, we thought of this song- "Mekimi"- from Psalms (to the beautiful tune of Yosef Karduner), translating- You raise me up from the dust...and set me with princes. Today is the first of a few national days in the upcoming month, which mark a journey- from the memory of the holocaust towards the national days celebrating the revival of the Jewish people in our land- yom ha'atzmaut and yom yerushalaim. From darkness to light

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the Haredi power struggle

The Haredi news sites are all abuzz right now with what seems like a power struggle in the Haredi community in Israel, as a rare public dispute between the gedolim takes place.

It turns out, reportedly, that Rav Chaim Kanievsky has signed a letter ordering schools to reopen, while keeping to the health guidelines.

As an aside, curiously, the health guidelines are that schools cannot open, so any keeping of guidelines can only be partial if they open schools against the guidelines.

Back to the story...

Rav Gershon Edelstein has disagreed and said it is still too dangerous and schools should not yet be reopened. Rav Edelstein has also insisted that people continue to daven at home rather than in outdoor minyanim, also saying it is still too dangerous. He was one of the first to say to stop shuls and outdoor minyanim in the first place.

According to the reports, on the instructions of Rav Edelstein, Yated did not print Rav Kanievsky's letter.

That is big news.

After this hit the airwaves, the damage control kicked in. A statement was released by the courts of Rav Kanievsky and Rav Edelstein saying that the reports are lies and the rabbonim are all in pain from the schools being closed and the bittul torah because of it. The rabbonim are working together to find a solution as quickly as possible...
sources: Kikar, Behadrei, and a bunch more

we can talk about the power struggle between the rabbonim, we can talk about the askanim, we can talk about the changes happening int he Haredi community as a result of Corona, or some other things. But we won't. I'll leave that to other pundits who are all already analyzing those topics online and writing their predictions. Whatever the news reports about a power struggle, there is still too much unknown to me, and surely unreported, about the details to offer an opinion on the matter.

Personally I think this (not the argument, just the raising of the issue) is the beginning of pressure being put on the government to get the schools open. just like they successfully pressured the government this past week to ease regulations and allow outdoor non-porch minyanim and even mikvas, despite the lack of any change in the health situation and still not yet having any knowledge of how much the virus spread over the Pesach holiday, they are now working to do the same for the schools.

That is how I see it. The next step will be having the UTJ reps, MK Gafni and Minister Litzman, pressuring Netanyahu to allow the schools to function in some format in the next stage of "easing the regulations".

It is a power struggle. I don't know if it is a power struggle between Rav Kanievsky and Rav Edelstein, but it is surely a power struggle between the Haredi community and PM Netanyahu and the Health Ministry.

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A Lag B'Omer Kiddush Hashem

Similar to the way the mass Birkat Kohanim event on Pesach was scaled down to just a small number of kohanim and a live broadcast over the Internet, due to CoronaVirus, the State decided that the annual bonfires at Lag B'Omer will happen in a scaled down format as well.

As soon as they announced it, all the various hassidic groups submitted requests to be granted a slot. The person in charge then announced that there are too many requests, and not enough time int he 24 hours to grant them all slots, and that is before they even start getting the requests from the other sectors, such as the sefardic groups and rabbis and the Dati Leumi rabbis and maybe some Litvishe Haredi ones as well. They then set a number, 19 if I am not mistaken, and said there would be 19 bonfires, each an hour apart throughout Lag B'Omer. Each one, led by a different group, will be able to have a small number of attendees.

Among the scrambling for slots, and surely the application of "Vitamin P", ie protexia, one group stood out in their approach.

Journalist Yisrael Cohen tweeted:

קידוש השם: חסידות קרלין החליטה לבטל את מעמד ההדלקה במירון כדי לצמצם סכנת נפשות וחשש להדבקה בקורונה

— ישראל כהן (@Israelcohen911) April 21, 2020

He writes, the hassidut of Karlin made a kiddush hashem in their decision today to cancel the Lag B'Omer bonfire in Meron in order to minimize the risk to human life and the concern of spreading Corona.

Kol Hakavod to them for their responsible approach. Others should be acting similarly. They should have a token bonfire, and stream it live to whoever wants to see, just like by Birkat Kohanim. Each hassidic group can host its own small bonfire in their home location, following Ministry of Health guidelines and keeping the events small. Show some responsibility.

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Interesting Psak: Paying Tuition while school is off because of Corona

One of the first things to be closed down when CoronaVirus was identified as spreading dangerously fast were the schools. Only after Pesach did distance learning really become a thing in any significant manner. Before Pesach there was a small amount of distance learning, but it was not serious, in both the amount of time daily, the amount of material, the importance given to it and the preparation for it. Even since Pesach, with it being taken more seriously, it is far from a full day of learning.

Because of that, many parents have spoken in frustration about paying tuition while there is not any real significant school. That talk might go away now with more serious distance learning in place, at least in many schools, But for much of the month of March, at least if not also April, parents think they should not have had to pay tuition.

I do not know if any parents actually cancelled their standing payments, but it was definitely discussed as a possibility. I am confident that there were surely some parents who cancelled, while others did not.

It is really a difficult situation, as schools still need to pay teachers, but many people have lost their jobs and businesses and might not have extra money to pay for schooling they are not even getting.

the question is a legal one, as well as a moral one, but it is also a halachic question.

The beis din in Beitar has now reportedly dealt with this issue and issued a psak. After conferring with government officials to determine the exact status of the finances and of the teachers (for example, the Ministry of Education prohibited schools from putting their teachers on unpaid leave), the beis din decided that school principals must discount part of the payments for the parents, and in a second some money will be refunded to the parents for previous payments.

According to the article linked, the psak was accepted as reasonable by all sides.

If the government is really looking for ways to help people struggling because of the closures and lockdowns, which I am not sure is really the case, one thing for them to do would be to stop all payments from parents and cover all costs of the schools in the interim, especially considering it i the government preventing the schools from putting the teachers on unpaid leave, during which they would be able to collect unemployment benefits.

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Rabbi Lau: Learn a lesson from coronavirus - no discrimination (video)

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PM Netanyahu's Speech at Yom HaShoah Ceremony (video)

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El Male Rachamim for Holocaust Victims - Shai Abramson (video)

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Israel Has A Government!

Mazel tov! The State of Israel finally has a government. According to news reports, Netanyahu and Gantz just signed the final agreement for a national unity emergency government.

We have gone through over a year of a temporary caretaker government, with 3 elections, but we finally are headed to some stability with the ability to move on and deal with the issues the State is facing.

Mazel tov. May the ministers and Prime Ministers all serve the State and the People of Israel faithfully.

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Interesting Psak: music during Omer during Corona

Chief Rabbi Rav Yitzchak Yosef has paskened that this year, because of the situation caused by CoronaVirus, people can be meikil and listen to music even though it is the days of Omer when we normally do not listen to music.

Rav Yosef was asked that with people in isolation, people stuck in their homes, some people being sick, people kept away from shuls and batei medrash, with everything closed up and sealed shut, and kept at home with the children. We have to keep the children busy and can play recorded music for them. Also, people feel the need to somewhat get rid of the pressure and even depression and loneliness. People want to know if all this pressure and trouble is a good reason to be allowed to listen to music.

Rav Yosef explains that not listening to music during Omer is not in the Shulchan Aruch. What it does say is that during these days we do not marry women, and from that we deduce that we do not do things that bring us to joy, and music is included in that.

Rav Yosef clarifies that vocals, aka a capella, is always allowed, every year, and definitely is allowed this year. Singing with your mouth was neever prohibited, as long as it does not lead to dancing (even not mixed :-) ). Poskim have allowed music this year. People in isolation feel it necessaty o have music as it is difficult to be alone for so long, and the music will make it a bit easier for him to cope.

Live music with instruments is not included in this leniency. Rav Yosef explicitly said that is not included and he is only referring to recorded music. Parents can play music for their children, to keep them busy and engaged.

As well, if a person is home with children, they get bored quickly and might drive their parents crazy.

Rav Yosef further qualifies that a strong healthy person who is not suffering should not be lenient in this. he could be lenient with vocals, a capella music and music that will not lead to dancing, but not with regular music.
source: Kikar

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Picture of the Day

As the month of Nissna winds down with most of it keeping people indoors, some became concerned that they will miss the opportunity to say the bracha on the new fruit tree blossoms. Still wanting people to stay indoors as much as possible, the township of Beitar Ilit loaded a couple blossoming fruit trees onto the back of a trailer and drove it around town to give residents the opportunity to go out to their porches, see the trees and blossoms and make the bracha.

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Book Review: Dreams Never Dreamed

NOTE: I was not paid to review this book. It is an unbiased and objective review. If you have a book with Jewish or Israel related content and would like me to write a review, contact me for details of where to send me a review copy of the book.

Book Review: Dreams Never Dreamed, by Kalman Samuels

Wow! What a book! What a story!

Kalman Samuels is one of the founders of Shalva, a home and center in Jerusalem for special needs children.

Many of us, or maybe I should only say I, only knew about Shalva peripherally - knowing it existed, knowing it is there to help special needs children and their families - without really knowing much about it. Until last year when the Shalva Band took center stage in the Israeli consciousness. They blew everyone away with their performances in the competition to represent Israel in the Eurovision contest - but more than their music which was also phenomenal was their attitude and composure. They captured the hearts of Israel. And they piqued curiosity and interest into Shalva - what kind of organization is this that can take such challenged children and work with them to produce such phenomenal people, possibly doing a much better job than many of us with children without those challenges?

Dreams Never Dreamed, by Kalman Samuels, is complicated because I am not sure what story it is telling us. Is it the story of Kalman Samuels, the young man growing up secular in Canada who ends up in Israel, becomes religious and then founds Shalva with his wife after their child gets injured from a tainted vaccine? Is it the story of Malka, Kalman's wife, who founds Shalva and works tirelessly to help her children and then the special needs children and their families? Is it the story of Yossi, the child injured by a tainted vaccine and then develops tremendously through hard work, his and his parents and the that of the therapists and doctors and becomes a talented adult? Is the story of the families, including thee Samuels family, and the donors? Is the the story of Shalva - how it came to be and how it became what it became?

Or maybe it is the story of all of them together, intertwined as their lives and beings were.

Kalman grew up in Canada, with little connection to religious Judaism. While on his post high school travels he finds himself in Israel and ends up becoming religious and Hassidic and staying in Israel, for the rest of his life. Samuels goes pretty extreme in yeshiva, marries young and starts his family. Yossi's first birthday throws the family into the whirlwind of life that will eventually lead to the foundation and growth of the tremendous organization called Shalva.

The story is emotional, enlightening, humorous, educational and fascinating, as it takes us on the ups and downs of Yossi's treatments and diagnoses, the decisions to create a center for similar children, to provide support for the families, to grow the organization to support more children, to fund the organization and to build and design a world class building so as to be able to provide the best environment and most professional services for the children and their families.

Malka and Kalman's drive to create a place that would provide the best possible opportunities for the children to thrive is astounding. Their drive brought them to tremendous successes in creating such a center and in helping the children succeed and reach their potential, while giving the families of the children some peace and ability to deal with the rest of the family. The power of their will and persistence is a central theme, never giving up despite the adversities they were met with at every step of the way. Most normal people would probably have given up pretty quickly, but they dreamed big and grew their dream each time a new reality hit. They set their goals and did not rest until the goal was realized, and then set new goals.

I expect that people who read the book Dreams Never Dreamed will be inspired by their leadership and drive, but will also be more patient and appreciative, and especially more accepting of others who are different.

You can buy Dreams Never Dreamed on Toby Press - Koren

NOTE: I was not paid to review this book. It is an unbiased and objective review. If you have a book with Jewish or Israel related content and would like me to write a review, contact me for details of where to send me a review copy of the book.

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