"For you were a Stranger..."
Much has been said, written and commented on involving refugees from Africa and specifically Darfur who have made it across the border and have found haven in the Jewish State.

Well, several thousand refugees and seekers of asylum currently live in Israel. Many are situated in South Tel Aviv, Eilat, and lower-class neighborhoods of Jerusalem.

A few weeks ago Mara and I began babysitting two evenings a week for a family from Darfur. The parents go to Hebrew classes and we stay with their kids as volunteers. We have completely fallen in love with the family and I'd like to post a few pics of them here.

The oldest, Mudasir, who was born in Sudan, is 7 and goes to 1^st grade in Jerusalem – he speaks Hebrew like an Israeli. Abi - born in Egypt, the 3.5 year old speaks like a 3.5 year old – kind of mumbling a combination of Arabic (which they speak at home) and Hebrew. And Tal, born in Eilat, the baby girl, is only 6 months old. So cute, and Mara is crazy about her. The family has been in Israel for 2.5 years and while the father speaks Hebrew well, the mother does not. They have official refugee status and thus are allowed to stay in Israel for the time-being and work, but it is not clear what will happen to them in the long term.

In the short term spending time with them really brings a human face to all that is happening in the country and in the world.

GLIMMERING GOLDSTONE GOES FOR GOLD

I have been relatively silent on the matter of the UN and Judge Richard Goldstone's report on operation Cast Lead, but after reading many articles, I find it most appropriate to endorse this one:
"The Goldstone Illusion" by Prof. Moshe Halbertal. He really thoroughly hits the nail on the head, and ably refutes every point that the report makes. An excellent read and an important tool in attempting to understand the complexity of the report.
Thanks Prof. Halbertal.

Berlin

I am writing this as I wind my way through the country side on the way from Berlin to Hamburg. I am going to visit Christiane and Sebastian and to meet their new baby Lilli!

This was my second time attending the Jung and Judische conference in Spandau in Berlin. Fortunately this time, I was invited back as a lecturer, and had my way paid for. Touching down in Berlin, I felt very differently than I did the first time I landed last year. I remembered the heart palpitations, the minor freak-out that almost prevented my disembarkation from the plane. Last time I wanted to hate everyone, and stifled several internal screams (זעקות).

This time, much was different. Landing and making our way through Berlin reminded me more of my former many visits to Prague. I didn’t know the city woo well, but felt comfortable enough to get around and decipher some of the German. Without Mara as my researcher and navigator I took up the responsibility for Mark and Maoz (traveling with me from Israel). I found my bearings quickly and in our short free time prior to the conference I took them to see the Orianenburger Strasse Synagogue and the grave marker of Moses Mendelssohn.

It was cold and sleety, and after a night of no sleep (I mean I had to watch “500 days of Summer” on the plane) we made our way back to Spandau to get ready for the conference.

I guess I should stop and mention here that certain facts of life should not be taken for granted. For instance, it goes without saying that the Berlin public transit system is impeccable, clean, runs on time and basically accessible to all areas needed. It also is a simple fact of life that all over the city are waste receptacles for sorting “garbage”. Plastics, glass, and organic bins frequent S & U-bahn stations as well as hotel rooms. Wow. Why exactly is it that in all of our brilliance and technological savvy we can’t get our act together to put such a system into place in Israel??? I know, I know there are excuses, some of them even legitimate, but still.

The Conference

The “Jewish Journeys” conference that I participated in this weekend left me with more questions than answers. As I continue on my own track, continuing to study and work in the field of Jewish education, and drifting further and further away from any religious expression, I found myself in a sort of weird place of not caring yet bothered by certain things.

I try not to make a habit of attending tfilot too often, yet felt the obligation to go (seeing as the conference paid for my being there). So, I was polite and went and tried to be a good example for my former Shnat Netzer students, but some things just get under my skin, as a sort of nostalgic remnant of days when I did care about such trivialities. For example, I can’t help but cringe when the guitar player strums an Em when a G would have suited better. Not something that anyone else noticed, but I just couldn’t help it. Why do they need to cut out so much of Kabbalat Shabbat??? I realized that I connect much more to this section of the Friday night davening as it is simply a compilation of Psalms and Piyyutim that I enjoy much more than other liturgical expressions. I suppose they can’t very well bring themselves to cut the Amidah, but אם כבר אז כבר…

Shabbat morning was slightly worse. It was like a ‘best of’ of classical Reform with thr true German traditions. Now, don’t get me wrong, the rabbinical students leading are indeed well versed, thoughtful and talented, it just wasn’t my style. The former professional classical musician turned rabbi-in-training would be I’m sure a wonderful option for an old school Temple Sinai (Chicago) or Emmanuel (NYC) or even the Great Synagogue (with a piano) but I could only take so much and needed a temporary relocation to the lobby couches where I curled up with a book until the Torah service.

What does this say for the future of liberal Jewish life in Europe? Well, I’m not sure.

More to come...