by Daniella Alhadeff Local legend says that when the first Jews of India arrived by ship on the Konkan coast of India, they were accompanied by Prophet Elijah. Escaping persecution in the Galilee, it is believed to be thanks to Elijah that the Jewish families survived a shipwreck and subsequently settled in the region. 2,100 years later, locals watch curiously as a group of nineteen Australians disembark from a large white bus and enter the nondescript gates of the oldest synagogue in the remote Panvel village in Southern India. A young man pours chai into a large silver vat by the dusty narrow street, tuk-tuk drivers wait for custom in their parked vehicles and goats wander languidly through the village. "Jews in India? Really?" This was the common response from our social circles in … Continue Reading
What Jewish Philanthropy Means To Me
by Patti Vile I have seen some amazing acts of philanthropy because of my organization, Volunteer Expeditions. Well over 40 groups will have traveled to rebuild New Orleans by the end of this year - which means close to 1200 volunteers! These groups come from all over the nation and the majority are Jewish. Others have drastically different backgrounds, yet they unite in a spirit of philanthropy. Recently, I had the pleasure of leading two separate synagogue youth groups on volunteer vacations to New Orleans. The participants, 18 and younger, were completely committed to helping those less fortunate. Many teens have trouble focusing on a “tweet” for more than a few seconds, but these dedicated volunteers spent many full days cooking meals for the homeless, clearing fields, insulating and … Continue Reading
Israeli Billionaire Shari Arison Promotes ‘Good Deeds Day’
by Abigail Pickus Shari Arison just wants us all to do good. Israel’s wealthiest woman - who happens to also be the richest woman in the Middle East and #57 on Forbes Most Powerful Women in the World list - has made it her mission to encourage good deeds and positive thinking. “I believe that in order make a difference in the world and to make the world a better place for all of us, we need a critical mass of people who think good and do good. If we join together we can really make a difference,” said Arison in a recent phone interview with eJP. There’s even a day earmarked for mitzvoth - Good Deeds Day - which was launched in 2007 by Arison’s nonprofit Ruach Tova and supported by The Ted Arison Family Foundation. What began with over 7,000 participants throughout Israel that … Continue Reading
Tikun Olam: Opportunities – or Missed Opportunities
by Michael Steiner I have news for you. We need Tikun Olam (healing of the world) because of one main reason - the world is NOT perfect … in fact it is broken, cracked and needs a lot of healing. To explain further, I see the world around us as a broken “vessel” (as I call the world, the life in it and the things around us), with more cracks than neither you nor I can fix! From my perspective, things are even more complicated - the imperfections in the world. In fact, in most cases I have no idea how to fix the “broken” things that require healing. The imperfections I see: hunger, poor and suffering people, things that others deserve and don’t have, dreams others have and cannot achieve, sorrows and suffering - all of these and so much more - I have no idea how to fix them. The … Continue Reading
For IsraAid Japan’s Trauma isn’t Forgotten
by Jana Daniels In a series of short interrupted conversations with IsraAid Relief Program Japan Project Coordinator Yotam Polizer, come responses to interview questions as he rushes off again busy with work in the field. Each time, he again picks up where he left off. “Demand is high,” Polizer explains. This is the reality in the field during a humanitarian aid mission. For Polizer, though, it is clear, that the reward is great. He explains that he is a true believer in the mission of IsraAid which first and foremost is to provide humanitarian assistance, focused on both development and relief, to people irrespective of religion, race or nationality. IsraAid is fueled by the desire to engage in Tikkun Olam, which is one of the core Jewish values, and which is the responsibility to fix what … Continue Reading
The Speech of the Summer
[eJP note: Back in July, Daphne Leef inadvertently kicked off Israel's Summer of Protest when she set her tent down on Rothschild Blvd. in central Tel Aviv. While the protest movement moves to the next stage, we believe many of our readers will be interested in the very powerful speech Leef delivered at Kikar HaMedina - The State Square - Saturday night, September 3rd.] This is a rush translation so apologies for rough bits, and all credit to Daphne Leef and Dror Feuer, her speech-writer. Yediot has an edited video of the speech here. Even if you do not follow the Hebrew, it's worth noticing the passion ... Daphne Leef's speech September 3rd 2011 Something massive, something huge happened this summer. Summer 2011 is the big summer of the new Israeli hope. This hope was born, like many … Continue Reading
The Jewish Community of South Africa has Moved Beyond the Apartheid Era
by David Newman I have written in the past to extol the virtues of one of the most successful educational experiments in the Jewish world in the past 20 years - the Limmud conferences held every winter vacation on a British UK campus, and which are attended by some 3,000 participants. A week-long festival of Jewish learning for young and old, religious and secular, who come together for no other purpose than the age-old desire to “study for the sake of it” (limmud lishma). And now I have experienced the international expansion of Limmud as it has moved beyond the British Isles, to almost every place where there is an organized Jewish community. This past week in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town, I witnessed the coming together of 1,000 members of the South African Jewish community to … Continue Reading
Jewish Agency Expands Service Learning Programming
The Jewish Agency for Israel announced today that Dyonna Ginsburg, an internationally-acclaimed Jewish service learning professional, has joined the organization’s New York staff as its director of service learning. Ginsburg joins the Jewish Agency from Bema’aglei Tzedek, an Israeli NGO she led that uses education and social action campaigns to create a more just Israeli society informed and inspired by Jewish values. In her role at the Jewish Agency, Ginsburg will focus on the following priorities: Expanding existing service learning opportunities for young North American Jews in Israel and creating new programs (i.e. alternative breaks and summer volunteer programs) that close the gap between short-term programs, like Taglit Birthright, and longer-term programs, such as those … Continue Reading
Never Again: A Teen Takes Action to Honor These Words
“First they came for the communists, And I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a communist. Then they came for the trade unionists, And I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, And I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a Jew. Then they came for me, And there was no one left to speak out for me.” This famous statement by Pastor Martin Niemoller is too often overlooked. When proper attention is paid to this quote, reflections to the Holocaust are made, and regret is felt for non-Jews and Jews alike, wondering how they could have changed this horrible outcome or spoken out. Although these feelings are important, they are not good enough. This quote may be old, but it is timeless - as timeless as genocide itself. I recently … Continue Reading
Values and Volunteering
by Lisa Barkan I have learned many an important lesson from my father, lessons which I carry with me to this day. Better to get an average grade and not cheat than to copy from another student and get an ‘A’. If the grocer gives you too much change you must return it, even if you have to walk all the way back to the store. Always keep an eye open for an older person who might need help. And the one that resonates with me every day, the one that I try to listen to as much as I can, admit when you have made a mistake. There is nothing wrong with saying that you could have done better. As individuals we always have something to learn, and as a community, as a people, we always have a new lesson waiting around the corner. Such is the challenge of the Jewish people. To learn our lessons, act, and … Continue Reading
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