Swimming on Sukkot

10/02/2023

In many Orthodox communities, the intermediary days of Sukkot (chol hamoed) are occasions for family activities, community-wide trips, outdoor events, and more, as schools are closed. Synagogue trips to amusement parks and other family activity sites are common. For example, Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey, Hersheypark in Pennsylvania, and the Chicago Botanic Garden all have special Sukkot holiday events scheduled, including a sukkah on their premises. Some Sukkot celebrants, however, have been looking for another type of activity, as noted by one Orthodox woman who said, “This is our [only] chance to go swimming at all, other than the bungalow colony. And for people like me who don’t have a bungalow, we never swim.” What place is this woman referencing where she and other holiday celebrants can swim in sex-segregated waters during Sukkot?

Photograph by Mark D. Zimmerman

A. Governor Gavin Newsom of California announced that a section of Huntington Beach was being reserved exclusively for women on October 5, during chol hamoed of Sukkot. While there was criticism that the state beach should not be gender segregated, he stated that his legal advisors assured him that this was not illegal, as much of the beach remains open to all. Rabbi Mendel Zeitland of the Chabad of Huntington Beach noted that volunteers from his community would be placing opaque panels along the beach to prevent others from watching the women swimming and sunning.

B. The DreamWorks Water Park at the American Dream Mall in East Rutherford, New Jersey is closing to the public and offering entry to members of the Jewish community during Sukkot, one day for men only and one day for women only. The park is the largest indoor water park in the United States, and features 15 water slides, cabanas and an enormous wave pool. The mall already has numerous kosher restaurants, and a number of sukkot will be erected in the mall’s outdoor areas.

C. Donald Trump offered the pool at Mar a Lago to the Orthodox communities on Florida’s Atlantic coast, noting that “the boys can come Monday and the girls can come Tuesday, because that’s what Ivanka, my Jewish daughter, said I should do.” Many Palm Beach residents opposed the idea of busloads of Jews coming to town to swim, but Trump noted that “there’s nothing wrong with Jewish people swimming at Mar a Lago. It’s not like that would bring down property values. Trust me. It’s still worth $1.8 billion regardless of what that highly partisan Democrat ‘Judge’ said about it only being worth $27 million.”

D. President Joe Biden announced that the lap pool in the White House basement will be open to men on Tuesday, October 3, and to women on Wednesday, October 4. In addition, a sukkah will be erected in the Rose Garden under the auspices of Rabbi Levi Shemtov of the American Friends of Lubavitch.

E. This weekend, New York City Mayor Eric Adams came under criticism after a major rain storm flooded subway stations throughout the city, leading to chaos as workers and students struggled to find ways to get home. Mayor Adams responded to the criticism by saying, “I do not see this as a crisis, but rather as an opportunity. I am announcing that the flooded subway stations will be made available for swimming during Sukkot for members of the Jewish community. Stations for the 1, 2, 3, A and C lines are reserved for men, and women can swim in the stations of the F, G, N, R and Q trains.”

Click here for the answer.

✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡

Yom Kippur in Dizengoff Square

09/26/2023

Since 2019, Tel Aviv’s Dizengoff Square has been the location of public Kol Nidre and Yom Kippur services, sponsored by Rosh Yehudi, a non profit organization. The services have attracted upwards of 2000 attendees, from Haredi Jews wearing kippot and tallitot, to secular Israelis in shorts and with bared heads, to Orthodox West Bank settlers. Noted author Daniel Gordis referred to the diverse crowd as reflecting the “open embrace of many Jews of different sorts for each other.” But controversy descended upon the planned 2023 Yom Kippur service when what happened?

Dizengoff Square by stupid systemus is licensed under CC BY 2.0

A. There are a number of food trucks that regularly park at Dizengoff Square. In the past they all agreed to close during the service, as the smell of food cooking was disturbing to many attendees. But this year, one felafel food truck owner stated that he would remain open throughout the service, as many attendees and others visiting the square do not fast for the holiday, and in addition, he needed to be preparing food that would be sold immediately after the service when there would be a huge crowd of customers. After much public outcry and further discussion, the truck owner agreed to park a couple of blocks away and move alongside the square only as the service was ending.

B. While head coverings are not required, many attendees wear baseball caps rather than kippot. An organization opposed to the efforts of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government announced that they would be distributing caps at the service which had the word Democracy in Hebrew. Leaders of Rosh Yehudi announced that they would not allow those caps to be worn as they wanted to keep politics out of the service. Ultimately the protestors agreed not to distribute their caps until the end of the service.

C. A centerpiece of Dizengoff Square is a kinetic sculpture by artist Yaacov Agam called the Fire and Water Fountain. At the 2020 Neilah service, a few attendees jumped into the water pool surrounding the sculpture at the point where “who by water and who by fire” was recited during the Unetaneh Tokef prayer. In subsequent years larger numbers of attendees took this action, causing the Tel Aviv Municipality to refuse to issue the permit to Rosh Yehudi this year, for fear of damage to the sculpture. Ultimately, the government relented when Rosh Yehudi offered assurances that they would place barriers and guards to prevent anyone from jumping into the pool, and there were no incidents this year.

D. The Tel Aviv municipality ruled that Rosh Yehudi was not allowed to place a mechitzah, a divider between men and women, in the public square as it violated laws against gender segregation in public places. When Rosh Yehudi’s legal challenge to that decision was denied, they considered canceling the event but ultimately decided to proceed, hanging Israeli flags overhead as a symbolic separation, hoping to mollify both sides of this issue. While the services did take place, there were huge protests from people on both sides of the religious/political spectrum.

E. Word leaked that the organizers of the service had changed the wording of the Unetaneh Tokef, the central prayer chanted during the services. As word spread, many Israelis stated that they would not attend this year’s event. Ultimately, the leaders of the service agreed not to add to the Unetaneh Tokef after “who by water and who by fire,” the phrase “who by Bibi and who by Ben Gvir.”

Click here for the answer.

✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡

Tashlich

09/18/2023

As part of the Rosh Hashanah observance, many Jews participate in the tashlich ceremony, usually held on the first day of Rosh Hashanah, though some celebrated tashlich this year on the second day of Rosh Hashanah because the first day fell on the Sabbath. Others will celebrate tashlich any time through Hoshana Rabah, the seventh day of Sukkot. Tashlich is a symbolic casting of sins upon the water, based on the verse from Micah (chapter 7 verse 19) which states “He will take us back in love; He will cover up our iniquities. You will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.” In addition to reciting prayers, the ceremony often includes the tossing of bread into the water to represent the shedding of sins. The rabbis stated that tashlich is best celebrated at a body of water with fish, outside the city limits. Some suggest that the presence of fish is desired because the eyes of fish, having no eyelids, are constantly open, symbolizing God’s constant watch over the Jewish people. Another rationale is that fish symbolize our desire to be fruitful and multiply like fish. If a body of water with fish outside the city is not an option, tashlich can be performed at a body of water with fish inside the city, or even a body of water without fish. Where else to the rabbis allow for the tashlich ceremony to take place?

The Taslich Prayer (1) by Government Press Office (Israel) is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

A. At a fish aquarium.

B. At a Phish concert.

C. At a running faucet.

D. At a mikveh.

E. At the fish counter at Russ and Daughters.

Click here for the answer.

✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡

Jimmy Buffett, RIP

09/11/2023

Singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett died a couple of weeks ago at the age of 76. Buffett’s music reflected what became known as “island escapism,” most famously as depicted in his hit song Margaritaville. In 1997 Buffett teamed up with Jewish novelist Herman Wouk to write a musical version of Wouk’s novel Don’t Stop the Carnival, which was about Norman Paperman, a Jewish New York press agent who moves to a Caribbean island to become a hotel keeper. Though the show failed, Buffett did release an album of the music. In 2021 developer Sharif El-Gamal purchased a building in New York’s Times Square with plans to convert it into a location of Buffett’s Margaritaville Resort and Restaurant. The purchase included the requirement to provide space for the Garment Center Synagogue that was already located there. This building would have been the only Margaritaville Resort with a synagogue; however, the developer reneged on the plan to house the shul, leading to a lawsuit by the synagogue which has moved to a nearby location. In collaboration with the Congress for Jewish Culture, Journalist Rohkl Kafrissen wrote a Yiddish version of what Jimmy Buffett song which was recorded by Lorin Sklamberg (of the Klezmatics) along with Yiddish singer Sasha Lurje and violinist Craig Judelman?

Jimmy Buffett 1 by Chief Mass Communication Specialist Michael W. Pendergrass is in the public domain via Wikimedia Commons

A. It’s 5 O'Clock Somewhere, including Yiddish lyrics that translate as “Pour me something tall and strong/Make it a Slivovitz before I go meshug/It’s only half past twelve but I don’t care/It’s five o’clock in Jerusalem.”

B. Why Don’t We Get Drunk, including Yiddish lyrics that translate as “Today I dipped myself/In the ritual bath just for you,” and “Let’s skip the motzi/Come to me.”

C. Son of a Son of a Sailor, including Yiddish lyrics that translate as “As a dreamer of dreams and a travelin’ man/I have chalked up many a mile/Read dozens of books about rebbes and schnooks/And I learned much from both of their styles.”

D. Margaritaville, including Yiddish lyrics that translate as “Wasting away again in Anatevkaville/Searchin’ for my long lost shaker of schnapps.”

E. Cheeseburger In Paradise, including Yiddish lyrics that translate as “Bagel and lox in Gan Eden/Heaven on earth with an onion slice/Not too particular, not too precise/I’m just a bagel and lox in Gan Eden.”

Click here for the answer.

✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡

Bagels

09/04/2023

Bagels are one of the quintessential Jewish foods. There are references to bagels in Kraków, Poland in the early 1600’s, though they may have first appeared in Germany prior to that. Polish immigrants brought bagels to the United States around the turn of the 20th century. The bagel became so popular that the International Beigel Bakers Union was established to represent the interests of the workers who eventually were producing millions of bagels weekly. Automation, popularized by Lender’s Bagels, brought an end to the dominance of the union and hand-rolled bagels. But according to a recent article in Politico, “The bagel has emerged as the unofficial food of official Washington.” The Guardian reports that “New York-style bagels are becoming something of a trend in Manchester, London, Leicester and Edinburgh.” Even Burger King is testing an everything bagel bun. According to a report published by online site Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery, in 2022 bagels led the way in sales compared to other fresh breads such as English muffins and sandwich breads. And while Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas faces controversy over his choice not to disclose millions of dollars of vacations and other gifts he received from wealthy donors, Justice Elena Kagen notified her circle of high school friends that she could not accept their offer of lox and bagels from New York’s Russ & Daughters as she felt it might violate the court’s ethics rules for accepting gifts. What is a unique bagel store that recently opened?

Bagels by Steam Pipe Trunk Distribution Venue is licensed under CC BY 2.0

A. Schmatte’s Bagels, located in New York’s Garment District, sells 15 types of bagels, plus schmears, and desserts such as rugelach and babka, but all the products they sell are made of recycled clothing. The bagels and other products are sold in a new section of the gift shop of the Garment District Museum.

B. Beagle’s Bagels, located in New York’s Soho neighborhood, sells 15 types of bagels, plus schmears, and desserts such as rugelach and babka, but all the products they sell are for dogs only. It is rumored, however, that some human patrons have raved about the taste of their Pup-peroni Bagels.

C. Feltz Bagels sells 15 types of bagels, plus schmears, and desserts such as rugelach and babka, but all the products they sell are made of felt. The products were created by artist Lucy Sparrow and are sold at TW Fine Art, a gallery in Montauk, New York, whose mission is to serve “as a nurturing space where artists can experiment, grow, and push the boundaries of their practice.”

D. Barbie Bagels, a popup bagel stand in Hollywood, sells 15 types of bagels, plus schmears, and desserts such as rugelach and babka, but all the products they sell are pink in color.

E. Potz Bagels, located in Greenwich Village in New York, sells 15 types of bagels, plus schmears, and desserts such as rugelach and babka, but all the products they sell contain cannabis, some in the form of THC which can make one high, and some with CBD, the non-intoxicating form of cannabis that can have medical benefits.

Click here for the answer.

✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡

RASHI, RAMBAM and RAMALAMADINGDONG

✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡ ✡

Weekly Quiz-2023

Swimming on Sukkot

10/02/2023

Yom Kippur in Dizengoff Square

09/26/2023

Tashlich

09/18/2023

Jimmy Buffett, RIP

09/11/2023

Bagels

09/04/2023