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UN Holocaust Commemoration Day Bystander Panel Discussion
Tomorrow (January 27, 2012) is the United Nations Holocaust Commemoration Day. At noon Eastern Time tomorrow, we’ll join forces with the Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education to examine bystanders, who through their inaction played a large role in the events of the Holocaust. Through countless current events, we know that people continue to act as bystanders and look the other way when bad things are happening. While all of us think that we would take action, why in so many cases do people do nothing in the face of injustice, violence, abuse?
You’ll be able to watch the live-streamed event here and also watch the archive later.
Panelists include: Rabbi Robert Barr, Werner Coppel, Victoria Barnett, Nancy Kersell, and Dr. Cathy McDaniels Wilson. Sarah Weiss will facilitate the conversation.
You will have the opportunity to share your thoughts and ask questions during the panel. I’ve already heard from some of you who have expressed interested in the topic.
Jack Angelo sent me this email about bystanders in the UK in the 1940s:
“The theme of Bystanders for UN Holocaust Day is so timely, but it took me back to a few years after World War II when I was 8 and in a boarding school in the UK. There were a only a handful of Jewish boys of different ages. One day a new housemaster arrived from France, M. Barbier. At first we thought he was OK because he liked football. Then he found out Michael’s surname was Rosen. This led to constant verbal abuse and bullying, but none of the big boys would stand up for Michael. It was the custom for housemasters to sit with us at mealtimes. At one dinner, Barbier got up and poured hot tea from the pot over Michael’s head. He was 13. I can still see his eyes red and swollen from crying. Eventually, after weeks of this cruelty, the matron – a 53 year old woman – complained to the headmaster and Barbier was dismissed.
In 1949 UK I knew nothing about the Holocaust and I didn’t know why Barbier hated Michael. But I realized later that this was my first glimpse of anti-Semitism.
The point I would like to make to the panel is that children are so often the unwilling bystanders. They always sense when something is wrong and have to endure the behaviour of all the adults present. I remember the feelings and the actions. I can recall none of the words. I still despise those bigger boys for not defending Michael.
I shall be watching online tomorrow. There is a real community out here and we thank you both for it and all your efforts.”
And Melanie raised some great questions via email:
“How do we instill in people the urgency of standing up for others?
How can the enormity of that task of standing up for others be made somehow “bite-size” so that people are not instantly paralyzed by the daunting task at hand? Is there a way to simplify it down to something very basic so that people will get it and be able to do it?
The reason I raise those two questions is that if what is asked of people is just to “do the right thing” or “have compassion” or “have courage” there will be many people– if not most people– who think of themselves as to little to rise to the task. It may cause them inner shame at not being able to be up to the task but they will shirk it just the same because it seems so huge.”
So thank you to those of you who have already shared your personal stories and questions. I look forward to more great conversation tomorrow at noon. See you then!
Oh, and if you are interested in readings about the Holocaust and memory, photographs related to the Holocaust, and/or stories about righteous people who saved Jews during the Holocaust, please check out our Holocaust page.
Coco the Clown, Humanistic Judaism, and Online Community
Lisa’s second essay about adopting Judaism (her first can be read here) discusses Coco the Clown, Humanistic Judaism, and Online Religious Communities.
Lisa writes…
About 4 years ago, I was blissfully cruising through the internet letting my imagination guide me through the rich resources when something caught my eye. Sarasota, Florida. Sarasota, home of the Ringling Bros. Barnum and Bailey circus popped up on a vacation ad. I love Florida. I had the unique opportunity in my life to know Michael Polakovs, THE Coco the Clown. He was a lead man for Ringling Bros. for many years and was the first national Ronald McDonald. For whatever reason, out of all the beautiful United States, Mr. Polakovs lived in Catlettsburg, Ky. Why he came to Appalachia, I’ll never know but I was quite used to seeing him out and about. That strange little connection led me to explore Sarasota online. It seemed like a nice community. Mr. Polakovs was Jewish and so I Googled Humanistic Judaism. Pop! Up came the Congregation of Humanistic Judaism in Sarasota. I went to their website and reveled in the information available there. I spoke via computer to a member who asked about local groups up here. I only knew those listed by the Society of Humanistic Judaism and so there were none in Ohio. This lady advised me that she had heard of a beautiful Congregation outside of Cincinnati. I was on it!
Timing is everything, as they say. Beth Adam was just firing up an online community, OurJewishCommunity.org. I began to frequent the site. I wrote to Beth Adam to ask if there were out- of- area memberships. They were the closest Humanistic Judaism Congregation for me. Next is 8 hours away in Washington, DC or 10 hours away in North Carolina. The website offered a lot of practical information, wonderful sermons and fascinating insights into Humanistic Judaism. The most outstanding feature was this wonderfully intelligent, highly articulate and open and approachable team of Rabbis that had “dreamed the dream” and thus made this community possible. They were reachable by phone (I have spoken to them several times). They are reachable by Email (we have had some rich discussions here as well).
It’s funny; a lot of people have a really tough time with the idea of an online community. I never have. I grew up in Eastern Kentucky and my Aunt Erma was disabled. She was pretty much homebound but was very religious. She LIVED for this one weekly TV preacher. She knew all the peoples names on the broadcast. She sent money, talked on the phone to them, participated faithfully in services and talked to young or new members to encourage them. It was the center point of her week. Her church community was completely real to us. We didn’t for a second think it wasn’t a real community just because she hadn’t sat down with that preacher. She had already learned to achieve her goals in life without the cooperation of her body. She lived more in a mental/ spiritual world. To have the preachers body present while he ministered wasn’t necessary to her. He just had to be connected mentally. So I was prepared already for the online community experience. It is as real to me as if I were to walk into a synagogue and sit down. With OurJewishCommunity.org, I walk into that synagogue almost daily and anytime of the day or night. I have access that is unprecedented. My Aunt Erma would’ve burned this website up if she had lived until the computer age! People just need to think outside the body! OJC is an out of body experience, I guess you could say!
The Judaism of the future must continue to evolve. The use of technology does not hinder, it enables us to have greater access. I know how much I seek the wisdom, knowledge and sense of community at OJC. I know others too are seeking solace and joy in our community. I love Friday evenings, the peace of participating in lighting the Shabbat candles and sharing in services. I recently changed jobs because it was becoming more and more important to me to spend my Friday evening observing Shabbat. Judaism has profoundly affected my life. It is one of my greatest joys. OurJewishCommunity.org has given me the tool to have this experience. I will forever be grateful to Rabbi Baum and Rabbi Barr for making this available to us. I will forever honor them for their wisdom and for reaching out a hand into the land of the internet and pulling me through.
Lisa’s Adoption of Judaism
Earlier this week Rabbi Barr and I had the privilege of welcoming an extraordinary individual into the Jewish community. Lisa has been an active participant in OurJewishCommunity.org for the past few years and has really embraced learning about Judaism. After several conversations and much reading, Lisa was ready to be officially welcomed into the Jewish community. While this is often called “conversion” to Judaism, Rabbi Barr and I really like the word “adoption.” Lisa adopted Judaism that day and we, the Jewish community, adopted and welcomed her.
I want to share with you one of Lisa’s extremely powerful and thought-provoking essays that she wrote during her process of adopting Judaism. Stay tuned for a second essay by her soon! You can also read about Tom’s and Bob’s adoption of Judaism.
Before I share Lisa’s writing, I do want to acknowledge that there are many requests from participants in our online community for online conversions, and this is not something we can generally help with on an individual basis. The requests we get far outweigh our resources, and that is why over the course of four years we have only worked with a total of three individuals on this long process. Please know that although we won’t be able to work individually with those of you who want to formally adopt Judaism, you are welcome to still participate in our online community.
Lisa writes:
I was born and raised in the dark hills of Appalachia in Eastern Kentucky. One of the most religious states even in the Bible belt, I was born into the one Kentucky family that had not a lick of interest in religion.
My father worked 8 to 16 hour days in a carbon plant. Years of swing shift and shoveling coal from train cars into the bakers left him uninterested in spending any time off work in a hard church pew. My Mom had long ago soured on organized religion when the local Methodist church had failed to help her family out during a dire crisis. About the most religious thing my Mom ever said to me was, “You better pray that stain comes out of your new school shirt!” Despite the lack of religion in my household it was everywhere around me! There was a church on every corner. I began to wonder about those churches and God from an early age. This is how I remember it…
The smell of Camel cigarettes mixed with axel grease and Old Spice meant I was near my Uncle Gene. I dearly loved my Uncle Gene. He was a quite man, a railroad man. Handsome in that dark Appalachian way, he had a close trimmed beard and moustache topped with a shock of coal black hair. His grey eyes twinkled when he smiled and he smiled a lot. The cigarette was ever present in the left corner of his mouth.
One cool Sunday morning in October, I sat in the garage with Uncle Gene while he pounded away on something. Whack! Whack! Whack! Thud!
“Owwww!” Uncle Gene began to shake his thumb and dance in place. A stream of cuss words poured out until he could get himself under control. He let out a long sigh,”Sorry ‘bout that.” I sat quietly. I decided to use distraction to help him out.
Out the South window of the garage you could see the orange brick of the Nazarene church. Off to the East was the big white Baptist church.
“Uncle Gene, which one of them churches do you think is right?”
Gene stared at me,” How old are you?”
“Seven”
“He shook his head and looked at his thumb,”Cain’t say as I would know.”
“Well, “I persisted,”Both has a sign that says it’s “The House of God”. Which one of them houses do you think God went to today?”
“Kid, you got me! It’ll take a smarter fella than me to know that!”
At just that moment my Aunt Helen rounded the corner into the garage.
“Hey Helen! Which…”
“Awww… I wouldn’t if I was you.” Uncle Gene warned but it was too late I had started.
A little more sheepishly I started again,”Hey Helen, which one of them “Houses of God” do you think God went to this morning?”
Helens eyebrows shot up in surprise then her gaze narrowed first casting daggers at Gene then turning her attention to me. She held her voice calm and steady.
“God is at BOTH the Nazarene church and the Baptist church this morning. In fact, God is everywhere even in this garage!”
I must’ve looked surprised ‘cause she repeated that part,” That’s right, God is even here in this garage.”
I waited a moment before I asked, “Has he been here all morning?”
“Yes…” she nearly purred at me.
I turned and looked at my Uncle Gene and burst into laughter. “Boy, Uncle Gene, you better hope he didn’t hear what you just said!”
It all kinda happened quick from that point. I just remember Uncle Gene laughing and saying something about me being able to “talk the hind leg off a dog” and the pain as Helen led me by my pigtail back to the house all the while mumbling something about it would be a miracle if God didn’t strike the whole lot of us dead on the spot.
Next thing I knew I was seated at the kitchen table with a fried bologna sandwich and an ice cold Mt. Dew. PLOP. Helen sat a stack of books in front of me. She lifted my chin til our eyes met.
“Now sit here quietly and entertain yourself. Just hush for a while!” I nodded my head.
It’s funny, you never know when your whole world is getting ready to change.
I looked at the books. They were written by two young Jewish men Bob Kane and William Finger. They had created a main character that was born to great wealth, suffered intense loss and emerged with a desire to make the world a better place, to right the wrongs. A man who always did the right thing, not the easy thing… a hero. I was hooked. I read and reread each story. I didn’t just skim the stories I absorbed them, internalized them. I wanted to be…The Batman.
The next logical step then when you are seven is to play Batman. The cape was easy. I had to come up with rules though. Every game has rules. What were the rules of Batman? I came up with five rules or guidelines for how to be Batman.
Rule #1: Do something. In the face of Evil and despite the odds, Batman always acts.
Rule#2: Seek Justice. Batman is not about revenge. It is about Justice.
Rule#3: Study! Batman’s only superpower is his mind! He must study and learn all that he can. You never know when some arcane piece of knowledge may save your life!
Rule#4: Treat others with respect.
Rule#5: Believe you can make the world a better place! Bruce Wayne (Batman’s alter ego) was wealthy and he constantly gave charity to help those in need. Batman believed he could right the wrongs and fix the world.
And so I internalized these rules. I determined that they were a pretty good set of rules to live by even if you aren’t The Batman. Throughout my life I read extensively on theology. I was always searching for that answer, always wanting to know, which one of those “Houses of God” did God go to? I have studied everything from Atheism to Zen and back. But in 1997 I picked up a little paperback book called WHERE WE STAND: JEWISH CONSCIOUSNESS ON CAMPUS. I began to read and I was shocked! There in this book on Judaism were the rules of Batman!
Then it made sense to me. Bob Kane and William Finger built their hero from the best of human qualities that they knew. And they were Jewish. Suddenly, Judaism was to me, the example of the best a human being could strive to achieve. Those five building blocks that Mr. Kane and Mr. Finger gave me when I was seven were filled with ancient wisdom, distilled through tough experience. My heart and soul felt at home.
The five rules are a bit more refined now but still reflect the same sense of righteousness.
Rule #1: Do not stand idly by while your brother’s blood is shed.
Rule#2: Justice, Justice you shall pursue.
Rule #3: Go and study!
Rule#4: That which is hateful to you, do not do unto your neighbor.
Rule#5: Tikkun Olam… Repair the World
While all types of Judaism have their plusses and minuses, I find Humanistic Judaism to best reflect my belief system. I believe that just as in Gotham City, Evil in our world is created and perpetrated by humans. It can be solved and corrected only through human action. My studies as a scientist (I am a Zoologist and a Family Physician.) lead me to appreciate the complexity of life and our world but also shows me that there are natural laws and explanations for the existence of everything. I do not use “God of the Gaps” to explain missing pieces of knowledge. I believe that while we may not know the answers to something now, eventually we will through science. Judaism has given me a strong foundation of how to interact with others in a fair and ethical way. Judaism has given me not only the desire to better my world but the tools and means to achieve that.
I realize that there are more than five rules to a good life! But it was a wonderful start for a little girl lost and searching for a path to give meaning to her life.
Synagogue Dues – A Thing of the Past?
An interesting case study about a synagogue scrapping its dues structure intrigued me this week. This is certainly a concept I know at least a few other congregations use and one that Rabbi Barr and I discuss often. What would it mean if Congregation Beth Adam, our bricks-and-mortar congregation, eliminated dues?
We’ve not made that leap yet, but the reality is that at Beth Adam, we already do things differently than most congregations. First of all, we do not have tickets for the High Holidays – we never have. Anyone who wants to attend is welcome. Second, we do not generally publicly recognize donors here. We have one donor wall that lists people who gave to our building fund, although there is no way to know how much each person gave, and that is it. No named libraries, no names on the backs of chairs, no lists of donors printed in our newsletter. We recognize different people contribute in lots of diverse ways to congregations (including giving time, money, and other resources) and that some people have more resources to share than others. We want everyone to know this is their congregation, whether they can afford to make a $10 donation or a $100,000 donation.
While an online congregation is different in many ways from a bricks-and-mortar congregation, we have the same values informing our choices here. We do not have “membership” and we do not charge for participation. We have no tickets for the High Holidays – you can all watch online. Of course, it costs a lot of money to create and share OurJewishCommunity.org with all of you so we greatly value donations. That said, we know not everyone can contribute financially. And we do not want to build barriers to participation. Anyone who has access to the Internet can participate in our online community – and we are proud of that.
I recognize that most of the models of institutional Jewish life are models of the past that won’t necessarily work for the future. We’re busy creating new models here and eager to see what the future will bring.
Violence against Women in Israel is Wrong
In case you were so busy with the holidays that you missed seeing some of the news about what’s been happening in Israel, here’s a quick overview.
Thanks to a brave 8 year old girl, violence committed by Hareidim (ultra-Orthodox Jews) in Israel is getting the negative attention it deserves. Here’s a video with that young girl and her mom – with English subtitles – that is worth watching – though quite disturbing.
Violence committed by ultra-Orthodox Jews against innocent people is nothing new. Neither is treating women as second class citizens, which also got some attention this week thanks to Israel’s “Rosa Parks.”
But what is new is that there seem to be increasing attention and energy around these issues now. And that’s a good thing. This violence and any unequal treatment of women must be addressed immediately by Israel’s authorities. Violence is wrong. Period. To those Orthodox men who claim they are doing what God wants by mistreating women and children, I say you are wrong. Very very wrong. Make no excuses – because you are simply wrong. And you should stop defending acts of evil through what you say is Judaism. Because, like I said, you are wrong.
Belated Hanukkah and Hanukkah/Christmas Stuff
New Year’s Resolution #1: Blog more regularly. Here we go!
I actually didn’t write one blog this year during Hanukkah, though I was busy posting videos and other material for Hanukkah. So in case you didn’t see it on Facebook, Twitter, Livestream, or YouTube, I will now wish you a very belated and very Happy Hanukkah! Or consider it an early Happy Hanukkah – since Hanukkah is coming on December 8, 2012 (by the way, not to freak you out or anything, but in 2013 Hanukkah coincides with Thanksgiving!!).
A few thoughts about Hanukkah, all related to interfaith celebrations. When I was flying in November, I saw this ad in Delta’s Sky Magazine for a “Hanukkah Tree Topper.”
I thought it was fascinating – and reflects the growing number of interfaith families (hey, even marketers have realized this now). I am fully supportive of interfaith families – in fact, at our bricks and mortar congregation (Beth Adam), I often don’t know who the Jewish partner is and who the non-Jewish partner is in an interfaith family – because we make no distinction.
I’m curious what you all think about the tree topper. The ad calls it “a must-have for interfaith marriages.” I don’t know that it’s a must have – most home decorations aren’t! And beside that, I’m sure it’s a perfect addition for some interfaith families’ celebrations – and I’m sure that others prefer to celebrate both holidays while keeping the symbolism of each holiday a bit distinct and separate. Both seem reasonable to me – what are your thoughts?
And one more thing about interfaith holiday celebrations. This was a pretty interesting piece in Huffington Post written by Susan Katz Miller: 8 Reasons My Interfaith Family Celebrates Hanukkah and Christmas. If you’re in an interfaith family, I’m curious if these points resonate with you. Are there ones you would take off the list? Ones you would add?
Happy New Year! I hope you’ll participate in OurJewishCommunity.org throughout 2012. We’re looking forward to a great year!
OurJewishCommunity.org named Innovative Organization by Slingshot
This time of the year is one where attention seems to be drawn more toward gratitude – thankfully (pun intended). OurJewishCommunity.org, now entering its fourth year of existence, has a lot to be thankful for: all of our participants, financial supporters, donors of in-kind services, the help we get from all of you who spread the word about our online congregation – and much more.
We did have quite the reason to celebrate and be thankful last month when OurJewishCommunity.org was chosen by the Slingshot Guide as one of the 50 most innovative Jewish organizations in North America. You may order or download the complete Slingshot ’11-12 Guide here.
OurJewishCommunity.org was selected for this list because of its groundbreaking use of technology to create an online Jewish community with a contemporary Jewish voice and philosophy.
Slingshot is used by philanthropists, volunteers, not-for-profit executives, and program participants to identify path-finding and trailblazing organizations grappling with concerns in Jewish life such as identity, community, and tradition. OurJewishCommunity.org was chosen for the first time by a panel of 36 foundation professionals from across North America.
We are so incredibly thrilled to be part of a list of such impressive organizations. It provides validation that Jewish leaders recognize and appreciate the groundbreaking work we’ve done by building our online community with all of you.
So, at this season of gratitude, thank you to all of you who have participated in various ways in our online community. As we’ve said from day 1, we’re building this together!
Zach Wahls’ Religious Identity and Principles
My guess is that if you spend anytime on Facebook, you’ve already seen this amazing video of Zach Wahls. Zach was raised by two moms and he spoke passionately and eloquently at the Iowa House chambers in his testimony in support of gay marriage.
Zach’s testimony is powerful and inspiring – so much so that I watched it a few times. A few days after I saw the testimony, I saw this article that Zach wrote about how his testimony was influenced by his religious background. Zach is a lifelong Unitarian Universalist. And here’s some of what he shared in his article:
“My church in Iowa City is a forward-thinking congregation by any standard and has officially been a Welcoming Congregation since the mid ’90s. In our religious education program, I learned the importance of thinking outside the box, considering all possibilities and putting others before yourself…”
“…From the get-go, it was clear that we were to approach everything with an open mind and to consider as best we could the benefits and drawbacks of all the religions we studied. It was in my RE program, and through the Seven Principles, that I was endowed with some of my most guiding and persistent values: To bring an open mind to the world, to let my light shine and not attempt to extinguish the light of others, to fight for what I believe to be true while remembering that I am fully capable of being (and often am) wrong, to live freely and love openly.”
This is the power of how education in a church or synagogue can be so significant in the life of a developing child. At Congregation Beth Adam and OurJewishCommunity.org we hope to engage in conversations with our students that help them think about who they are as humans and as Jews. We don’t provide black-and-white answers to many questions – but we do encourage them to think about their personal values and to have open minds to explore the best of what is around them in their decision making process.
Zach’s religious identity does not appear to be about dogma. Instead it is about 7 principles of Unitarian Universalists.
The 7 principles are a refreshing approach to what it means to be human. How lucky Zach is to have been exposed to such a strong community and to have been strengthened by his religious education as well.
Here, at OurJewishCommunity.org we have our own set of values, values which I think provide a great framework for being human and for being Jewish:
• We value learning opportunities that support participants’ connection with their Jewish heritage
• We value open-mindedness and respect for differing views
• We value discerning intellectual inquiry that thoughtfully questions and explores Jewish texts and other sources of wisdom
• We value acknowledgment of each person’s religious and spiritual journey supported through our unique liturgy
• We value principles of responsibility and origin of authority that rests with each individual
• We value evolving to meet the needs of our growing online congregation and a changing Jewish community
• We value nurturing connection and building community with each other as Jews and with all humanity
• We value community engagement and social justice that is responsive to the ever-changing world
Online Converation with the Rabbis
Tomorrow night (Wednesday, November 30 at 7:30 PM Eastern Time (i.e. New York time)), Rabbi Barr and I will be hosting an online “Evening with the Rabbis.”
We’re very excited about this. It’s an opportunity for all of us to engage in conversation about OurJewishCommunity.org and its philosophy and contemporary Jewish voice. We often receive emails from our participants in our online synagogue who ask a range of thoughtful questions. We’ll address some of those FAQs during the online conversation. You’ll also be able to ask questions live. You can either type them in the chat feature or ask them over video if you have a webcam. If you do choose to use your webcam, please make sure you have the latest version of Adobe Flash Player (available free at www.adobe.com).
To watch and participate in the conversation, join us tomorrow evening at: http://www.ourjewishcommunity.
An archive will also be available for you to watch on-demand if you miss the live stream.
We look forward to seeing you online tomorrow night. If you have questions you already know you’d like to ask, you can post them here and we’ll include them in tomorrow evening’s conversation.
Boycott Wodka Vodka
So, I’m actually not much of a vodka drinker, but if I were I would make it a point to avoid Wodka Vodka.
The Wodka Vodka company has released a holiday ad shown here.
You can see that the billboard reinforces antisemitic stereotypes that say that Jews are cheap. The ad suggests that Christmas (Christianity?) has quality and Hanukkah (Judaism and Jews?) is cheap.
Fortunately, I just read on the ADL website that the company has apologized and will be removing the billboards. I’m glad to hear that, but I wish the ad had not been created in the first place.
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