ShalomCT! This week in Jewish life

THIS WEEK IN JEWISH LIFE

March 17, 2023

Shabbat Shalom CT!

If you are like me, for the last few weeks your inbox has been flooded by articles about the current climate in Israel, photos and videos of the protests, and lots and lots of questions. Daily, I watch my own family in Tel Aviv marching in the streets and waving their flags in solidarity.

Next Thursday, we are hosting an important talk with Dan Elbaum, CEO of the Jewish Agency for Israel, who will address our concerns.

We invite you to join us on Thursday, March 23 at 7 PM

via Zoom for a conversational webinar.

"The Current Situation in Israel –

How We Got There and What Happens Next"

This will be an enlightening conversation with Daniel Elbaum, the Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI) CEO of North America and President and CEO of Jewish Agency International Development (JAID).

The webinar is co-hosted by many of our community synagogues.

There will be lots of time to ask the questions you want answers to and get the information you've been anxious for.

I hope you join us on March 23. You can register below.

Also, this week, our Israel Emissary, Ofek Moscovich, shares his own thoughts on leaning into Israel during these challenging times. It's enlightening to see the world through the lens of a 24-year-old Israeli.

I wish you a safe and peaceful Shabbos.

Carin Savel, CEO

carin@shalomct.org

Shalom,

This week I’m going to share my thoughts on the challenging time Israel Is facing. Israel, my home and the Jewish homeland, is facing many issues that will dramatically change the status of democracy that currently exists. Some will say that the new reform will take Israel on a path to be a democracy again, some people are saying it takes Israel on a route to a non-democratic country and some will even say dictatorship.

Most of the proposed legislative reform is about the balance between the court system and the government. Like many countries, Israel is facing this dilemma of prioritizing the value of majority rule versus the value of having an independent court that protects the minority. Israel has managed to balance between these two values for her 75 years of existence. Now some people in our government are trying to change the balance, and because Israel has no official constitution, everything becomes more complicated.

This situation is worrying a lot of people in Israel and a lot of people abroad. And, this situation is worrying me. I see our country get polarized more every day and the image of hundreds of thousands protesting in the streets makes me very sad and proud at the same time.

In my family we have many different opinions, from people who support the judicial reform to people who are against the judicial overhaul. In the past we could have discussed those topics in a calm way, respecting each other. Recently the anger on each side is growing and it is harder to speak and come to an understanding. I don’t think it’s too late, it is our responsibility to talk with each other and remember we are one big family.

My family is a reflection of the larger Jewish family. We cannot forget that we are part of a Jewish family who lives in Israel, the U.S.A., Ethiopia, Ukraine, Russia, India, Morocco and many more countries. We have to take care of each other and look out for each other when we are in trouble.

I’m very happy to see that many people in our Fairfield County community are worried about the actions that are happening right now in Israel. Israel does not only belong to Israelis. It is the Jewish Homeland and every Jew around the world should feel welcome and at home when he gets there.

In my opinion, the best way of showing love to Israel is to care about Israel. I don't expect anyone to blindly love Israel and I encourage people to ask questions and challenge the actions that are happening in Israel right now. Join discussion groups, hear different opinions, learn, teach and make Israel a part of your life. Now it’s the time to step forward, not backward! Do not stop your support and do not disconnect from our mutual home!

On the same note it is very important to say, what happens in Israel will change Israelis' lives first. The people who live in Israel are the first to be affected and are the first people who will feel the change. Israel has a strong democracy and the government was elected by Israelis who live in Israel, love Israel, serve in the army and pay taxes and will feel the changes.

At the same time the people who are protesting are Israelis who live in Israel, love Israel, served in the army and pay taxes and will feel the changes. When I talk to my family they tell me that the day-to-day feels the same and no catastrophe happened yet. We have to be careful and keep our eyes open but at the same time take everything in proportion.

I’m going to finish with a positive note. Israel is a complicated melting pot and the Jewish people is a complicated melting pot as well. This melting pot brings us many challenges but that’s what makes us so beautiful. In the Jewish tradition discussions are sacred and disagreeing on topics is in our DNA. We have to remember that we are brothers and sisters, all around the globe. We should take care of each other, protect each other and let each other know if we think they are going in a direction we don’t think is good for them.

I won’t let my siblings, Yonatan, Nitzan and Sagi disconnect from me in any condition and that’s why I won’t let my brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world disconnect from me in any condition.

Here is a family photo of my family last year. Ultra-Orthodox and secular, right-wing and left-wing, from the center of Israel and from the north and south, from Israel and abroad. Everyone comes together to celebrate a wedding in Israel. It is not easy but it is possible. So, I urge you to talk instead of yell and respect instead of reject. It is always harder to disagree rather than agree but that’s what makes us so special.

Shabbat shalom!

Ofek Moscovich

Federation Israel Emissary

STOLEN CHILDREN - REGISTER

On Monday, Merkaz teens joined Westport food blogger and our Honey Cake & Latkes event facilitator, Liz Rueven.

We created one of the recipes from the cookbook, Honey Cake & Latkes: Recipes from the Old World by the Auschwitz-Birkenau Survivors: Miriam Ziegler’s noodle kugel. YUM!

Afterwards, Head of School, Seth Marion, led the students in an exercise around food and memory. Inspired by the recipes and memories shared in the book, students wrote down a favorite recipe and shared their own memories of food, family, and history.

COCKTAILS FOR A CAUSE - REGISTER!

EMAIL SARA

EMAIL MERKAZ

COMING SOON

In Real Times - Arthur Szyk:

Artist and Soldier for Human Rights

September 29 – December 16, 2023

The Jewish Federation will be hosting the next Civil Rights Journey on January 21-23, 2024. (Participants should plan to fly into Atlanta on late afternoon or evening of Jan. 20). The 2023 Journey sold out quickly, and the 2024 is more than half full already, so please Email Carin if you wish to add your name to the list. Registration will open soon!

Read 2023 Mission reflections here.