REAL...OR PURIM SPIEL?

Testing your Purim Spiel knowledge. Which of the following are real and which are no more than Purim Spiel?

1. The JEDI Inaugural Cohort– Jewish Federations’ JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion) Initiative supports the Jewish communal ecosystem in ensuring that people of diverse backgrounds are celebrated and valued as equal members of our community regardless of their abilities, whom they love, faith-experience, or the color of their skin.  In addition to the JEDI meetings and conversations with professional and lay members of our communities over the past 6 months, JEDI is launching its inaugural Community Cohort. 

2. Jews are indigenous to this land. We are called Jews because we are from Judea. Arabs are not indigenous to this land. Most hail from Arabia and North Africa. There was never a Palestinian state here. This is the land where the first Jews Abraham and Sarah lived, King David was anointed and ruled, Jacob slept and dreamt, Joseph is buried, the Maccabees established their base, and Jewish kingdoms existed for hundreds of years.

3. We denounce the baseless accusations leveled at the government of Israel regarding the distribution of Covid-19 vaccines that have regrettably been given credence by media reports and even by a few members of Congress. Despite the Palestinian Authority, not Israel, being responsible for the healthcare of Palestinians under the terms of the 1993 Oslo Accords, and the fact that the Palestinian Authority has insisted that it would independently source its vaccine supply from Russia and the World Health Organization, the Israeli government has taken numerous steps to improve the health and wellbeing of Palestinians during this pandemic.

4. With our absolutely brilliant Abraham Accords, personally negotiated by me, among Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, we now have peace in the Mioddle East just as I predicted we would Some nattering nabobs of negativism will claim that I, with the assistance of Jared Kushner, bought this peace with a promise of arms and F-35 jets. That's not true and anyone who believes that is a liar.

5. It is deeply troubling that a Biden administration seems poised to ignore Israel’s life-or-death concerns about Iran and to instead precipitously re-enter the disastrous Iran deal, lift sanctions and exclude Israel from Iran deal negotiations. 

Chag Sameach.

My own decision -- Spiel or Fact -- will be published as an Addendum to this Post on February 28. 

Rwexler

THOUGHTS

OMG, the President called the Prime Minister on 17 February. They spoke for over one hour on matters of substance. As this call did not come until 4 weeks after the Biden Inauguration, and even though it was the first call to a leader in the Middle East, so many "forever Trumpers" were projecting their own hate of Biden, Democrats and anyone other than Trump in their collective interpretation of the failure of the President to make "the call" as, perhaps, Biden was being sworn in -- after all, Jill could have held the phone and dialed it.

As was reported during the month of no call:

"While it is clear that Biden has his hands full with a myriad of domestic challenges, every day the phone doesn’t ring adds to concerns in Israel that Netanyahu is being frozen out by the new Democratic administration because of his close ties with Donald Trump and his public antagonism of Barack Obama.

The contrast between Biden and Trump is stark: Trump called Netanyahu within two days of taking office in 2017."

And, yet, the readouts of the call were clear. “'The two leaders noted their personal ties of many years and said they will work together to continue bolstering the strong alliance between Israel and the US,' the PMO readout stated." The White House stated:

"Biden affirmed his personal history of steadfast commitment to Israel's security...Biden emphasized US support for recent normalization of relations between Israel and countries in the Arab and Muslim world." 

These affirmations of the alliance won't be enough, of course, to satisfy those who choose to parse every word as if Rashi were examining Torah. I'm sure we'll read, if we haven't already: "what about Blinken, what about Malley, what about...." and more. 

Some believed that Biden's earlier silence was designed to exact some form of "revenge" for Bibi's assault on the Obama-Biden administration in his speech to Congress attacking the JCPOA; or for the Netanyahu Government's public approval of a large housing development in, as I recall, East Jerusalem on the cusp of then V.P. Biden's first official visit to Israel as Vice President; or for that passionate embrace between the P.M. and President Trump. Yet, we, as Jewish Americans, have always understood that the primacy of the Israel-United States relationship has withstood those who would undermine it because of the understanding that that relationship benefitted both nations. Clearly, Joe Biden recognizes that.

I have not wanted to devote this space to politics, but, sometimes...Joe Biden had not been in office even a week when a torrent of vitriol began to ooze out from both the usual suspects and the Jewish "forever Trumpists" who either wrote or distributed the attacks on things that had not happened (and might not ever happen) focused in the main on the portent that the Biden Administration would focus an Iran policy on rejoining the JCPOA, abandoning sanctions in place and, thereby, abandoning Israel. Biden has offered personal assurances that neither abandonment will occur.

One titled a diatribe as Biden's Drive to War in the Middle East. The author of that column somehow deduced that even before there was any "Biden Iran policy:" "Biden's Iran policy was conceived and is being implemented by the same people who negotiated the JCPOA..." Then she went on to assert, with the same absolute certainty about a policy that did not then exist, that "[T]his policy is irrational" and, demonstrating a firm grip on irrationality, the author conjured "...the Biden team's strategic fanaticism..."  

Other columns openly alleged with incredible bile that Biden foreign policy and intelligence appointments are "sinister," and that while sounding tough, the administration can be expected to "soon cave in" just because. And, worse, that the Biden Administration -- then in office for three weeks -- "...is an active threat to (Israel's) security."

On February 20 The Jerusalem Post reported:

"The United States has no plans to meet Tehran’s demand that it lift Trump-era sanctions against Iran as a prerequisite to holding talks to reenter the 2015 nuclear deal with the Islamic Republic."

And, of course, the right-wing drumbeat will go on and on; there appears  to be no hope that the Biden Administration will be given any chance whatsoever; no benefit of the doubt. 

And, I have some bad news for these folks -- Trump is not coming back. 

 

Rwexler

JUST TOO FUNNY

Sometimes you read something that is just perfect. Like this from The Forward. Enjoy:

Donald Trump's Letter of Resignation from the Manishewitz Frequent Buyers Club

"Mr. Manny Shevitz:

I write to you today regarding the so-called Zoom Chat to Discuss Future Discount Status aimed at taking away my deals on your Jewish crackers. Who cares!

While I think your crackers taste OK with Diet Coke and work as bread for Filet-O-Fish and my grandkids seem to need them at a long boring dinner, I am very proud to say that I saved the Saltine Cracker union and Tim Ritz loves me. I don’t even drink but hear your wine is terrible and gives you a headache. It’s like you people never heard of bread. Over my long career I’ve had rye bread and sourdough and crustless PB&Js — just to name a few

Your spokesperson Sammy Davis, Jr. was a loser (said to only have one eye), and I have perfect vision and have helped your company greatly by purchasing bulk orders of your food such as macarons and Geffen fish [sic], among many others.

Which brings me to your obvious attempt to use my patronage for free publicity to distract from your awful products. Your company doesn’t do anything for this country’s pig farmers, and even less for me — unless you count making me give money away when my grandkids find your product wrapped in a towel or competing with my Trump Winery and Trump Steaks — as evident by your rejection of bacon, the great American food, which incidentally would go well with your flat crumbly bread and soup balls.

These, however, are failures of taste. Your bad markdowns are even worse.

I no longer wish to be part of your circle — squares are a much better shape anyway.

At such time this letter is to inform you of my immediate withdrawal from the Manischewitz Frequent Buyer’s Circle. You have done nothing for me.

Regards,

          Donald J. Trump"

Kal ha'kavod to the author.

Rwexler

WHAT'S WRONG WITH FACTS?

Spin...Spin...Spin...

These are the most difficult of times for our community organizations -- most, if not all of them. Yes, there is so much to be proud of as in so many places, lay and professional leaders working together have rolled up their sleeves, worked so much harder just to remain in place. And, there is nothing to be ashamed of during this plague to have ended up where one started -- that's, in fact, an incredible thing...and took an amazing amount of work. And some did even better than that.

So, I really have to restrain my normal "urges" when I am on a Zoom call or hear of one on which some bloviating CEO or lay Chair paints a picture of prosperity when everyone, including that pro and that lay leader, knows should be the verbal equivalent of Munch's The Scream. Would the organization that CEO leads be negatively impacted if he/she chose to let their hair down, talk tachlis, and  just say: "I need help...we need your help." And, if that CEO were really thoughtful, he/she might even say "We need your help, with this, with this, with this...

I remember back in the day, we were all in the depths of recession and I heard the message from communal CEOs across the country: "Never use the "r" word...never, ever. Everything is great, going well." Fooled no one. Back then, at UJA, we committed to working harder, longer; honing our message to meet the times with the brilliant professional leadership of Bernie Moskowitz and Gail Hyman. In too many places it was: "we'll wait this out and, when it's over, we'll come back." Those communities that took the UJA message of "work.harder.now" held their own and hit the ground running when the economy came back. The others...not so much.

Trust me, friends, our donors -- that's us you know -- can handle the truth. Thus, when I hear the highest levels of continental professional leadership with their lay partners bragging of the "amazing results" of their overseas advocacy that to them allowed the federations to claim that allocations to the core budgets of the overseas legacy partners were an "incredible success' thanks to "an incredible year-end effort" that resulted in the lowest allocations in recorded history, I want to put up that very same Munch Scream on the Zoom screen.

It would be a sorry circumstance indeed were amcha, in some sort of Orwellian mind-meld, to not only accept failure as success, but to brag about it.

JFNA and the federations have done some remarkable things -- its support for the Survivor community, the creation and funding leadership embodied in the funding partnership that is the Human Services Relief Matching Fund, are but two -- dwell on those, promote those. But to dwell on painting failure as success is humiliating, self-defeating and discrediting.

Stop it.

Rwexler

RABBI TWERSKI, Z'L

The Jewish People lost another giant upon the passing of Rabbi Abraham Twerski at age 90 on January 31. My time spent with this beloved Hasidic Rabbi was brief but he inspired me as he did everyone he touched. Over the decades he was a constant source of inspiration.

It was when I chaired my Federation in 1985 that I met Rabbi Twerski. Steve Nasatir called me to tell me that the Rabbi was going to be in town and we "had to" meet with him. Steve did not often direct me to a command performance so, after a few perfunctory "are you sure," we met.

If you have seen photos of the Rabbi, he looked no different than he did when we met -- the kindest eyes and the whitest beard. He spoke softly and with incredible compassion and passion. Twerski was ordained at the Hebrew Theological College and then earned degrees in medicine and psychiatry. His life and works were dedicated to bringing the totality of the branches of his education to bear.

That night Rabbi Twerski wanted us to understand that tens of thousands of Jews acxross the country were in the  midst of drug  and alcohol addiction that the Jewish communities were ignoring, apparently out of shame and ignorance. As the communities and our congregations ostracized these suffering men and women, they were forced to attend their Alcoholics Anonymous meetings in churches and storefronts. I was moved and ashamed -- how could I not have known that among our People in my own community would have been many suffering with the diseases of alcoholism and drug addiction?

Rabbi Twerski saw a Jewish religious and cultural influence on the AA 12-step program. He saw his mission, reflected in his writings and his work, as spreading the word, influencing communities to our responsibilities to those of our People most in need, whatever the cause of their need. In Steve and I and our Federation, Twerski had ready believers. With our communal leadership, we created and funded a program responsive to th needs -- the needs to educate and serve.

And so we joined the 1000's directly influenced by this charismatic Rabbi.  It was one of the best moments among so many over the two years of my Federation Chairmanship; it was certainly one of thise moments of which I am so proud.

May Rabbi Avraham Twerski's memory be for a blessing. Baruch dayan emet.

Rwexler

FROM LITTLE ACORNS

It began a long, long time ago. 

In October or November 1986 as I recall. I had just been installed as the Board Chair of my Federation, working in my office in Chicago's Loop, when I received a call from Steve Nasatir's Assistant asking me to please come over to the Federation offices "for a minute or two." I'm pretty sure I asked why, but, perhaps not. I walked the few blocks to the then Chicago Federation building where one of the senior federation Campaign professionals was waiting to intercept me. He was carrying a check facsimile -- about 4 feet by 10 feet -- in the amount of $100,000 payable to Chicago's JUF.

Holding the opposite corner of this facsimile was a tall, handsome fellow, wearing a kippah and smiling. "Richard, meet Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein; he's started up an organization, the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, raising money within the Christian Evangelical movement to support Jews living in poverty in Eastern Europe and Israel." 

And, so it began -- one can draw a through-line from that date in 1986 to the recent sad case of the Jewish Agency's alleged termination of a partnership with a messianic Christian organization -- Canada's Return Ministries -- in the operation of a Jewish Agency company's project in the Galilee....and, perhaps, more.

From that 1st check, Rabbi Eckstein, z'l, built the IFCJ empire that his daughter continues on today with strength after the sudden death of Yechiel almost 2 years ago to the day. From my few blocks' long journey to pose, JUF professionals were soon traveling worldwide for photo-ops with ever-larger checks. And Rabbi Eckstein's ever-larger appetite for promotion led to his demands for greater recognition. 

From Chicago, those checks grew to become a contribution to the Jewish Agency through the United Jewish Appeal, then through Keren Ha'Yesod and, feeling insufficiently appreciated, direct allocations to the Jewish Agency itself -- contributions that soon approached those of the largest Federations. Rabbi Eckstein was first rewarded by JAFI with a constant barrage of thanks, then the Chairmanship of the JA Aliyah Department (in which, candidly, it appeared he had not much interest) and a seat on the Agency Executive and speaking privileges at all meetings with the Prime Minister. As the JAFI/Eckstein relationship cratered, a parallel partnership with the JDC flourished.

The IFCJ-JA "partnership" ultimately fell apart with mutual recriminations after Yechiel demanded equal status with the Jewish Federations on JAFI letterhead. Agency personnel had agreed to the new reflection of the IFCJ status as the first decade of the new Millennium drew to a close. The federations had not been consulted and, when they were told, they just said "no," the promises made to Yechiel notwithstanding. Agency leadership responded by asserting that no such deal on status had ever been agreed to; inasmuch as Eckstein was carrying around mock-ups of the proposed new letterhead, it appeared that a deal had been made. 

Never one to sit back, always citing his 100's of 1000's of donors, Yechiel pulled his dollars from JAFI and became JDC's new partner. The IFCJ began running its own Aliyah flights with its own basket of absorption benefits and its own deal with the Government. Fast-forwarding to the last months of 2020, the IFCJ and JAFI are once again working together to the credit of JA Chair of the Executive, Bougie Herzog, and Yael Eckstein.

BTW, if any (or all) of this resonates as familiar, reread the Return Ministries-JA balagan at your leisure.

The relationship between the Jewish Agency and Rabbi Eckstein was mutually beneficial -- the JA reaped 10's of millions in grants and the IFCJ received promotion of its works that it might not otherwise have received  benefitting its fund-raising.  Rabbi Eckstein's leadership assured that the donations he collected supported the Jewish Agency's work without even the fear that the Fellowship would in any way engage in conversion efforts or proselytizing --the only thing that Eckstein proselytized about was greater donations and the great benefits to the State of Israel from the growing support of Evangelical Christianity.

And, then, suddenly the Fellowship ATM was closed; the Jewish Agency, already suffering the affects of Federation/JFNA allocations collapsing, began thrashing about for other funding sources. And, voila, missionary evangelicals to the "rescue." Some have suggested that the Return Ministries debacle was but the tip of a growing iceberg of Agency indifference to evangelical proselytizing as long as the money for JAFI was there -- what some would call "turning a blind eye." 

One can only hope and pray that the Return Ministries embroglio was an aberration; a one-off not to be repeated. But, the Jewish Agency's financial desperation has only grown. So, even greater vigilance is vital.

Now...

Rwexler