INSIDE

Responding
to the Tree
of Life
Shooting
Volume 48, Number 4 • Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779

Pages 6-8 The Pittsburgh Shooting, Our Community Unites in Response

Chanukah:
Not Just
Latkes!
Pages 14-16

Israel Fest
Story and photo by Diane Joy Schmidt
At 9:50 a.m. on Saturday morning, October
27, 2018, the deadliest anti-Semitic attack in
US history occurred at the Tree of Life syn-
agogue in the historic Jewish neighborhood
Page 19 of Squirrel Hill in Pittsburgh. A 46-year-old
white male shooter entered the synagogue
during a baby-naming ceremony. He shout-
ed, “All Jews must die.” Armed with a Colt
AR-15 semi-automatic assault rifle and
three Glock semi-automatic pistols, he killed
eleven people and wounded seven, including
four police officers who engaged him in a
shoot-out. He was wounded and taken to Al-
legheny General Hospital, where Jewish staff
attended him.
In Albuquerque, that Saturday afternoon a
widely circulated statement from Rabbi Har-
ry Rosenfeld of Congregation Albert includ-
ed the words, “I want you to know that we
live in an amazing community. A few minutes
after 10:00 am this morning, an Albuquerque
police sergeant arrived at the synagogue to
make sure we knew what had happened and
SHABBAT continued on page 2

Journey of a Torah Scroll Weaves History and Geography

Story and photos by Diane Joy Schmidt

Immigrant Jews came to Roswell more than a hundred and fifty
years ago, including the prominent Praeger and Jaffa families who
established a Jaffa, Prager & Co. Flour and Grain store there in the
1880s. Roswell, in southeastern New Mexico, 200 miles from Al-
buquerque, is today the fifth largest city in New Mexico.
In the 1940s, the Roswell Jewish community sponsored fami-
lies from Displaced Persons camps in Europe. Once they estab-
lished themselves in business, three of the men who arrived from
the camps pooled their resources and bought a former Nazarene
church. It became Congregation B’nai Israel, and was dedicated in
1949. The head of the congregation was David Lehman, who had
escaped Kristallnacht.
The congregation did not have a Torah. In another act of generos-
ity and thankfulness, survivor Isadore Karnowsky donated a Torah
scroll to B’nai Israel in Roswell in the 1950s. It was later examined
by a Torah scholar who determined it was one of those Torahs that
had been brought out of Europe surviving the Holocaust. Karnows-
ky dedicated the Torah to his father Samuel and uncles Jacob and
Abraham. His niece, Kathryn Karnowsky, and great-nephew Na-
than K. Lyons are members of Nahalat Shalom in Albuquerque.
Over the last many years, Rabbi Min Kantrowitz, Rabbi Jack fell on the roof of the building, upkeep was no longer tenable and
Shlachter, Rabbi Ron Wittenstein and Dr. Sara Koplik, community the building was sold.
outreach director for the Jewish Federation, among others occa- Emet Ma’ayan, president of Nahalat Shalom, continues the story
sionally traveled to Roswell to lead services. Last year, after a tree TORAH SCROLL continued on page 2

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2 The New Mexico Jewish Link
SHABBAT continued from page 1
to assure us he would be at our front
door until he could get a patrol car
on the property. He assured me that
APD would also be present tomor-
row during religious school and if
necessary, beyond. When I thanked
the sergeant, he replied: ‘No need.
It’s what my mother would want
me to do.’ I was moved speechless
as we shook hands.”
A call went out on social media
that there would be a community
gathering at sundown that evening
at Nahalat Shalom, the Jewish Re-
newal congregation. A gathering,
led by the cantor and president,
took place outdoors in a semi-circle
in the courtyard as the leaves fell in
the late evening light.
On Sunday afternoon, there were
organized gatherings throughout
New Mexico at synagogues, at the
Holocaust and Intolerance Museum
in downtown Albuquerque, and in
smaller communities. In Placitas, a
village between Albuquerque and
Santa Fe, an evening gathering for
the Jewish community and friends
at the Placitas Library packed their
small activity room. About fifty
people attended. Led by commu-
nity members, eleven candles were
lit, and then people stood up spon-
taneously and spoke.
Among those was Navajo lin-
guist and educator Frank Morgan,
whose presence and words seemed
to strike a special chord, as a num-
ber of people came up to thank
him afterwards. He spoke briefly
about the Navajo origin story of the
Twins who vanquished the evils in
the world. Later he said, “It was my
way of consoling the Jewish people
that things will change and that we
will have compassion and kind-
ness. Hate is a danger that we all
face. Hate will be resolved spiritu-
ally and Americans will experience
the opposite of the evils of hate.”
Following the shooting in Pitts-
burgh, the U.S. president tweeted
that day that it was an anti-Semitic
attack of pure evil. However, in a
follow-up he later tweeted, “If there
was an armed guard inside the tem-
ple, they would have been able to
stop him.” Despite calls from the
governor and the mayor of Pitts-
burgh not to come, he made a visit
to one of the funerals on Tuesday
with his wife, daughter and son-in-
law.
Residents were kept a block
TORAH SCROLL continued from page 1
on the NahalatShalom.org website,
“One day, Glorya Hale told her
friend, Kathryn Karnowsky, about
the problems with our (frail Holo-
caust) Torah.  Kathryn, one of our
members, then told her about the
Torah that belonged to the Roswell
synagogue and had been donated
to them by her uncle.  The Jewish
community in Roswell had dwin-
dled.  They had sold the building
that housed their synagogue.  The
Torah was to be carefully stored in
a bank vault.
“Glorya got in touch with Rabbi
away behind a barricade. As re-
ported by Reuters: “Over 2,000
people, including many from the
local Jewish community, protested
against Trump’s presence, chanting
“Words have meaning,” and carry-
ing signs with such slogans as “We
build bridges not walls.” The fol-
lowing night at a rally in Florida,
Trump would claim the protests,
which were well-documented, were
“staged” and “fake news.”
And finally, an organized request
went out across the country from
the American Jewish Committee, to
#ShowUpforShabbat on Friday at a
congregation, as a show of strength
and love against hate.
One gathering was held at Con-
gregation Albert in Albuquerque
on Friday evening, November 2nd,
led by Rabbi Harry Rosenfeld. It
was standing room only, and one
of the largest gatherings seen in the
synagogue’s history. “About 1,100
people, Christians, Jews, Muslims,
Sikhs, and others, came together in
solidarity Friday night at Congre-
gation Albert or watched on our
live stream,” said Rabbi Rosenfeld.
(The final attendance numbers were
based on the number of chairs that
were set out.) The link to watch the
service in its entirety is on the rab-
bi’s Facebook page and will also be
found on the Congregation Albert
website and on YouTube.
Mayor Tim Keller, former may-
or Richard J. Berry, and many
other government officials, polit-
ical candidates, and community
leaders were there. Local TV sta-
tions KOAT and KRQE came and
broadcast news reports later that
evening. Representatives of ev-
ery local Jewish congregation and
organization attended. Clergy of
many faith groups came. Those
who were invited to speak includ-
ed representatives of the Catholic,
Muslim, Christian Conference of
Churches, Sikh, Mennonite, Epis-
copalian, and a former director of
the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society,
now known as HIAS. Their state-
ments were profound and excerpts
edited for space, are included here.
If tikkun olam, the Jewish ethical
and religious mitzvot to repair the
world, has an angelic representa-
tive, she certainly was hovering
over the Friday evening service.
To look around, one could see fac-
es gleaming. It seemed that a great
Min Kantrowitz who …contacted
some of the remaining members
of the synagogue - and they have
agreed to loan, indefinitely, their
Torah to Nahalat Shalom.”
As Carolyn and Rick Sidd ar-
rived at Nahalat Shalom on August
30 from Roswell, a tallis was held
aloft by members of the Karnows-
ky family and Nahalat Shalom to
welcome the Torah. Carolyn gave
an emotional tribute, as she told
the bittersweet story of the histo-
ry of the Roswell congregation
and the journey of this Torah, the
loss of the building in Roswell,
and their decision to now share the
spiritual strength and sense of be-
ing uplifted to a more loving and
forgiving frame of mind had come
to everyone at this Shabbat service.
Statements by Clergy and
Religious Leaders
Archbishop John Wester of the
Diocese of Santa Fe: “We of the
Archdiocese want to assure you we
walk through that desert with you
(when) hatred rears its ugly head.
Genesis reminds all of us that we
are created in God’s image, so we,
as Rabbi said a moment ago, must
be wholly ourselves and allow our
love to conquer the hatred and the
insanity that snuffed out the eleven
precious lives at the Tree of Life
Synagogue. We commit ourselves
to stay that path of love. Shabbat
Shalom.”
Mohammed Abdul Haqq, pres-
ident of Dar al-Salam Mosque:
“Look around you. See who’s here.
Our community is united, and I
think that’s what’s important. As
Muslims, we believe that all life is
sacred and all life is precious and
that the taking of a single life car-
ries the same weight as the killing
of all of mankind. Conversely, we
believe that saving a single life car-
ries the same weight as saving all
of mankind.”
Abdul Haqq quoted from a had-
ith, a saying of the Prophet Mu-
hammad: “‘to gladden the heart of
a human being, to feed the hungry,
to comfort the afflicted, to light-
en the sorrow of the sorrowful, to
heal the wrongs of the injured, that
person is the most beloved of God,
who does the most good to God’s
creation.’ Let’s remember this as
we move forward, not as Jews or
Christians or Muslims, or any faith
you belong to, but as a single com-
munity, we remain united against
hate and work towards that. Shab-
bat Shalom.”
Rev. Susan Quass, New Mexi-
co Conference of Churches: “Peo-
ple of good will everywhere know
that good must triumph, that love is
stronger than hate, and that God is
One, God is Love, and there’s noth-
ing in this world that can overcome
that power. God created each one of
your faces in God’s own image, and
it is only when we forget that, when
we don’t see who we are looking
at, the beauty, the uniqueness, that
hate has a chance to spring forth.
Shabbat Shalom.”
Krishna Khalsa, Sikh commu-
nity of Espanola: “The Sikh tradi-
scroll with Nahalat Shalom. 
The Roswell Torah was put to
use immediately at High Holiday
services, and on Simchat Torah,
on Monday, October 1, Rabbi Min
Kantrowitz dedicated it, sharing
the story with the congregation at a
joyous celebration. She explained
that the journey of this Torah scroll
“weaves history and geography.”
Carolyn Sidd entering Nahalat
Shalom with B’nai Israel’s Torah
scroll. Husband Richard Sidd
follows her, while members of the
Karnowsky family hold the tallit
aloft as a chuppah.
tion is both a tradition of saintliness
and a tradition of spiritual warrior.
If you’re only a saint, people can
kick you around. If you’re only a
warrior, you’ll kick other people
around. So you have to do both to
serve humanity. Each person has
the opportunity to awaken to the
perfection within, and is waiting to
be awakened. We are at a time in
the history of this universe when an
awakening is happening.
“Part of that awakening is bring-
ing out a lot of sad reality that has
been an affliction for a long time;
but you can’t heal it if you can’t
see it. We sing a prayer whenever
we gather, in part, ‘When things
are down and dark, that’s when we
must stand tallest. Until the last star
falls, may our faith enable us, that
we may not give an inch at all.’
Shabbat Shalom.”
Rev. Erica Lea-Simka, Menno-
nite Albuquerque Church: “I’m not
a Jew. I wasn’t that lucky. But I did
the next best thing -- I married a
Jew. In my Mennonite community,
the words peace and justice are used
as frequently as prayer and potluck.
Mennonites believe that faithfully
following the teachings of Jesus re-
quire more than faithfully doing no
harm, but actively building peace
and restorative justice as an expres-
sion of love. Where there is Nefesh,
there is the Divine, where there is
Ruach, there is the Divine.
“I repent from and actively reject
the ways Christians have histori-
cally weaponized the Bible to de-
mean and diminish too long a list
of minority groups, but especially
Jewish communities, by perpetu-
ating anti-Semitic teachings. What
a disgrace to our Abrahamic fami-
ly and to Jesus himself. From my
queer, Jewish, Mennonite, fickle,
funky family to yours, you have an
ally, advocate, and you have an ac-
complice, when need be, in me, my
family and in Albuquerque Menno-
nite Church. Shabbat Shalom.”
Reverend Daniel Webster,
St. John’s Cathedral (Episcopal):
“Pray for those who have died, for
their families and their loved ones,
those who are wounded, pray for
our brothers and sisters in the Jew-
ish community, pray for the Tree
of Life Synagogue, pray for the
City of Pittsburgh, pray for Amer-
ica, pray for us all. And then, go
out and do something! Go out and
do something that helps to end the
long night and helps to bring in the
Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779
daylight. Visit a neighbor. Remind
our Jewish brothers and sisters
that they do not stand alone. Care
for someone (his voice cracked at
this point) Love. Stand for what is
right and what is good, then pray,
then act. So, on this day, which on
the Christian calendar is the Feast
of All Souls, I remember specifical-
ly 11 souls, and may their memory
be a blessing to all of us. Shabbat
Shalom.”
Norm Levine, retired director of
U.S. operations for the Hebrew Im-
migrant Aid Society, now known as
HIAS. “As the son of immigrants,
the proudest two decades of my ca-
reer were at HIAS. We welcomed
Jews from the former Soviet Union,
Jews fleeing persecution in Iran,
Baha’is fleeing persecution in Iran,
Liberians, Hmong tribesman from
the hills of Laos, Argentinians flee-
ing persecution. Whether they were
Jewish, Catholic, Protestant, Ba-
ha’i, we served them because we as
Jews were required to because we
were strangers in a strange land. We
will not forget, and we will not stop
resettling people. Let this be the
beginning of our recommitment to
serving refugees, asylees, and the
oppressed from about the world.
Shabbat Shalom.”
At the end of the service, Rabbi
Harry Rosenfeld spoke: “It is so
powerful and comforting to see my
clergy brothers and sisters as well
as people from other congregations
here. And our young people, that’s
so powerful to me. Growing up, my
father told me I had to be Jewish
“so that it didn’t give Hitler a post-
humous victory.” That weighed on
me. Later in life, I heard a lecture
by Leibel Fein (founding editor of
Moment Magazine) that there were
two ways to look at Jewish histo-
ry: as a tapestry, and as a shroud.
I vowed that I would look at our
history as a tapestry. Yes, there’s
some tears, some holes, some burn
marks, and you fix them, you find a
way to make it whole again.
“For almost 4,000 years Jews
had to repair the tapestry on their
own. It was just us. But for the last
70 years, we no longer have to re-
pair the tapestry on our own. With
us tonight, we’re not alone, we’re
not alone. And with that comes a
responsibility, we need to stand up
and be there for you as well. Go out
and take this spirit with you. Intro-
duce yourselves to each other, and
wish each other a Shabbat Shalom.”
Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779 The New Mexico Jewish Link
An Interview with Middle East Expert Bob Baer
By Diane Joy Schmidt
Bob Baer, former CIA spy and
current Middle East expert for
CNN and Time will be speaking
in Santa Fe at the James A. Little
Theater on January 21 at 7:30 pm.
George Clooney played Baer in
the film Syriana, based on Baer’s
memoir See No Evil. Baer spoke
with us from Washington D.C. the
morning of October 10th, just eight
days after the killing of Jamal Kha-
shoggi, journalist and critic of the
Saudi government, in the Saudi
embassy in Turkey. Baer said that
if Khashoggi was killed, his body
would likely have been dissolved in
a vat of lye. The body has yet to be
found.
The Crown Prince of Saudi Ara-
bia, Mohammed bin Salman Al
Saud (known by his initials MBS),
is widely considered to have or-
dered the killing. Baer explained,
“MBS thinks he’s got the support
of Donald Trump and Jared Kush-
ner so he probably thinks at the end
of the day that ultimately he’ll get
a pass.”
Link: The American and Israe-
li governments have been pursu-
ing alignment with Saudi Arabia
and the Sunni Arab states against
Iran.
Baer: Who created this problem
for Israel? It was George W. Bush
invading Iraq in 2003. That was sin-
gularly one of the most stupid things
in the world. But, if you wanted to
empower Iran, it was to invade Iraq.
Netanyahu, he’s saying privately,
‘those idiots, idiots!’ America in-
vades Iraq, letting the Iranians in,
overthrowing a dictator, setting this
example for the Syrians.
We are much worse off for Bush
and Cheney, and in all fairness, we
have put Israel in more danger than
we have in our entire history. The
Iranians are truly miscreants. So,
if you look at Lebanon, Syria and
Iraq, all Shia, it today is a threat to
Israel and you’ve got to say, ‘Oh,
who made this happen?’ And who
made this happen—it’s American
bumbling, which has endangered
Israel.
Link: Can Saudi Arabia be
trusted?
Baer: No, they can’t be trusted.
This kid, 33 years old, MBS, he’s
not a kid, he doesn’t know what to
do about Iran and for that matter
neither do we. We don’t know any-
thing about the country.
We don’t have anybody there.
There are 73 million Iranians. That
we can change the regime or not is a
complete guess. And I do think it is a
strategic threat, an existential threat
to Israel. Because, if they simply fill
up Syria and Lebanon with rock-
ets, once they bring the S300 and if
they eventually bring the S400 into
Syria, the balance changes. And no-
body in this country has a clue what
to do next. There is no plan.
Link: What’s in your crystal
ball at this point?
Baer: I think if they continue
3
the way they are, we’re sliding to- the Manchurian Candidate. They They’ve (the Russians) have been are under attack.
wards chaos and a regional war. I left their fingerprints all over this - brilliant about it. Look at the dam- Let me put it to you this way.
can’t give you timing on that, but this troll factory in St. Petersburg age done to the FBI, this poisonous Women are going to get us out of
obviously the Saudis, with taking was easily identified. political environment the Russians this mess in this election and 2020,
that risk with Khashoggi, they’re I don’t know if they’ve got black- have managed to create, which has or they’re not. I don’t see that white
worried about the stability; they’re mail on Trump. The point is, they’re so divided Americans, they’re more males, other than try to hold on to
worried about the Muslim Brother- undermined our institutions. More divided than the Civil War. power, are doing much. I know
hood. They’re worried about Iran than half of Americans believe Link: What’s next for our na- Trump thinks that American institu-
being more radicalized, as a force that Trump’s being blackmailed by tion? tions are the enemy: Russia is our
of disruption. the KGB. It never happened in our Baer: A society that believes in friend, American institutions are the
Friends of mine have just been country before. It’s an act of politi- conspiracy theories is easily ma- enemy, including the press.
thrown into these dungeons, they’re cal sabotage like we’ve never seen, nipulated into violence … I see the For more information about tick-
never heard from again. It’s a reflec- since the war of 1812. They’ve un- makings of a violent political con- ets and VIP packages to Bob Baer’s
tion of a paranoia, instability, that dermined our institutions more than frontation simply because our insti- presentation on January 21st in San-
I’ve never seen in the Gulf States. anybody ever has, ever. tutions are under attack, our norms ta Fe, visit www.jewishnewmexico.
So, I just see increasing instability
in the Middle East, and increasing
instability in the Middle East usual-
ly leads to a larger conflict.
Link: Is there any way to
avoid it?
Baer: I don’t think so. I just don’t
think so. And I look at the long-term
problems:
The Arabian aquifer is dried out.
The Saudis just pumped it dry, for
agriculture. And I look at the Indus
Valley aquifer, pumped dry. You’ve
got population problems.
Just a general irrationality run-
ning through humanity, from Wash-
ington DC to Nazis coming back.
All those things disturb me.
The fact that the far right in
Austria is back, full on, and led a
raid on their domestic intelligence
service on February 28th. We’ve
never seen that, ever, in Europe
Post-World War II.... And the immi-
gration thing has led to the ascen-
dance of the European Right. I see
it in France. They are psychopaths,
and they are completely anti-Semit-
ic. Who would have ever thought
that Nazis would come back in
Austria?
For your readers, what you have
to understand, is that French Jews
are going to get caught up in this
bigotry. It’s nothing they’ve done.
But if this trend continues, people
who are slightly different are (going
to be) getting caught up, and that in-
cludes people going to synagogues.
That’s my prophetic view, you can’t
prove it, but you see it all over.
Link: Do you see Trump as a
logical outcome of our ignoring
Russian influence in our elec-
tions?
Baer: All they wanted in 2016,
they were out to destroy Hillary
Clinton. They thought we were re-
sponsible for overthrowing Yanu-
kovych, Ukraine’s former president,
in 2014. It got too close for the Rus-
sians, because they have a policy Renowned author and former CIA case officer, Bob Baer is Time’s intelligence columnist,
of protecting the near abroad—and
that means Russians who are living and is a frequent commentator and author about issues related to international
in these satellite countries like the relations, espionage and U.S. foreign policy. Currently he is a reality television host
Ukraine, they feel they have an ob- on the History Channel’s program “Hunting Hitler” and is an Intelligence and Security
ligation to protect them and that this
liberal government that came in was
Analyst for CNN.
going to oppress the Russians in the Tickets
Ticket andnow
VIPonpackage
sale! $25 for general
info admission
available soonwithatVIP packages starting at $100.
jewishnewmexico.org
Eastern Ukraine. For more detail, go to jewishnewmexico.org/events.
It’s action-reaction with the Rus-
sians: you do something bad to us,
we’re going to do something bad
to you. We’re going to disrupt your
elections in 2016. They had no clue
Trump was going to win—he’s not
4 The New Mexico Jewish Link Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779

Israel Experience Fund Helps Dancer Soar

Jewish Federation of shifted. Whenever I am
New Mexico’s Israel Ex- creating now and begin
perience Fund provided to feel lost inside myself,
Rebeccah Peshlakai with a I take inspiration from
grant to help offset the costs my experiences in Isra-
of her Kibbutz Contempo- el,” reflected Rebeccah.
rary Dance Company 2018 Israel Experience

Life & Legacy

summer intensive dance Scholarships are admin-
program. The program is istered by the Jewish

Donor Spotlight
Both of their Jewish lives
began relatively late in life: for
Terry Lee, when she moved to
New Mexico 28 years ago, and
for Andrew, more recently still.
Their path was cultivated and
supported by the wonderful
people they came to know here.
Terry Lee and Andrew believe
it’s important to ensure that a
wealth of Jewish service, tradi-
tion and inspiration be forever
provided for those who need or
want it, just as it was for them.
“We were excited to sign
our letters of intent and help
kick off the new Life & Leg-
acy New Mexico program.
It’s quite simple to support the
Jewish community with an af-
ter-lifetime gift in your retire-
ment plan, will, trust or life
insurance policy,” said Terry
Lee. The Jewish Community
Foundation of New Mexico
also gives them the ability to
support non-Jewish charita-
ble organizations from their
endowment funds after their
hosted by Kibbutz Ga’aton,
east of Nahariya. An ac-
complished dancer, Rebec-
cah is a recent graduate of
NM School for the Arts in
Santa Fe. “Having this op-
portunity, the way I look at
my culture and connect it to
my dancing has completely
Save the Date:
Sunday, March 31, 2019
L’Chaim New Mexico:
To Our Jewish Future
Life & Legacy Year One
Celebration, Albuquerque
Museum, Ventana Salon
Terry Lee Heller & Andrew A festive celebration to
recognize those who have
Edwards Support the Future
made a commitment to leave
of Jewish New Mexico,
an endowment gift to help
You Can, Too!
support Jewish New Mexico
lifetimes, so all giving is in one for generations to come.
central place.  Learn more about Life &
If you’d like to learn more Legacy and download a Let-
about Life and Legacy in New ter of Intent. Visit jcfnm.org.
Mexico, contact Erika Rimson,
505.348.4472 or erika@jcfnm.
org.
Community Foundation
of NM. For information
on eligibility require-
ments and applications
visit www.jcfnm.org/
grants or contact Erika
Rimson, (505) 348-4472
or erika@jcfnm.org.
Rebeccah Peshlakai in Haifa, Israel
2019 Scholarship
Program
Support for Jewish
Young People
in New Mexico:
u $1,000 scholarship for a visit to Israel – Israel Experience Fund
4 application deadlines: March 1, June 1, Sept. 1, Dec. 1; awards made
30 days later
u Up to $500 scholarship for Jewish sleep away camp – Irving and
Hertha Auerbach Fund for Jewish Identity and Galit Mares Memo-
rial Fund
Apply between February 1 – April 1, award made by April 15
Support for young people, Jewish or non-Jewish,
in the Albuquerque area:
u $1,000 scholarship for college tuition – Neil Isbin Scholarship Fund
Apply by May 1, award made June 1
For information on eligibility requirements and applications visit www.
jcfnm.org/grants or contact Erika Rimson, 505.348.4472 or erika@jcf-
nm.org.

Echoes and Reflections: Teacher Attends Holocaust

Education Seminars in Israel
By Rebecca Wallace
This summer I had the oppor-
tunity for a once-in-a-life teacher
training and trip. I was chosen as
one of 29 participants to attend two
conferences in Israel at the Yad
Vashem: Echoes and Reflections
Advanced Learning Seminar and
the 10th International Conference
on Holocaust Education.
The voice of victims
The Holocaust is a difficult sub-
ject to teach. A difficult lesson to
hear was Holocaust survivor Rena
Quint’s story. Rena lost her par-
ents at a very young age while in
Bergen Belsen. After her mother’s
death many women became substi-
tute and caring mother figures to
Rena while in the camp and after
liberation, thus saving Rena’s life.
Our group was overcome and over-
whelmed by her story, but thank-
fully our facilitator and program
director Sheryl Ochayon used the
safely in, safely out protocol. (Our
goal is not to traumatize students
with the trauma of the Holocaust.)
This teaching strategy helped us
navigate our feelings of loss and
grief while guiding us safely out of
Rena’s testimony.
The voice of rescuers
To bring my students safely out
of our Holocaust unit, they research
a rescuer and present their findings
to the class. One thing I ask my stu-
dents to include is why the rescuer
gave them hope, so they are able to
see light and goodness even in the
midst of evil. This summer I learned
about the village of Le Chambon-
sur-Lignon on a plateau in southern
France. This village conspired to-
gether to save almost 5,000 Jews,
most of whom were children. They
created a city of refuge. Some were
motivated by their faith while oth-
ers were motivated to help their fel-
low humans; because these people
were willing to stand up for people,
their story gives me hope.
The voice of survivors
One problem facing the world
is a world without survivors. This
was addressed at the International
Conference on Holocaust Edu-
cation. Film makers are still re-
cording survivor testimonies. The
Azrieli Foundation in Canada is
editing, fact checking, and publish-
ing testimonies of survivors who
immigrated to Canada. The USC
Shoah Foundation is working on a
project called Dimensions in Tes-
timony where they interview sur-
vivors. The final product is a pro-
jected “hologram” one can interact
with and ask questions. Dr. Stephen
Smith, the producer, said students
ask different questions of the “ho-
logram” than they would in a class-
room setting. While this technology
is revolutionary, Dr. Smith remind-
ed us that we need to embrace the
survivors we still have! This com-
ment hit home and cemented for
me that I want my students to hear
a survivor testimony.
Our commonalities
Pre-war Jewish life has been lost
from educational curriculum in the
US, so one of my goals is to reintro-
duce this element to the classroom.
It is important to know what was
lost. One of the projects I participat-
ed in was exploring pre-war Jewish
life. While learning more about the
individual person who was lost, we
realized that the victim had many
similarities to our own lives. This
assignment to rehumanize the vic-
tims of the Holocaust will aid my
students with identifying similari-
ties with their own lives.
Our need to expose prejudice
and discrimination
After attending the two confer-
ences, I hope to further Holocaust
education in Albuquerque. My im-
mediate plans include incorporat-
ing more of the knowledge I have
gained, sharing that knowledge
with colleagues, and inviting a Ho-
locaust survivor to speak with my
students. For the next school year,
I would like to teach a Holocaust
studies class at Cibola High School.
I am grateful for the opportunities
afforded by attending these confer-
ences.
Humanity
The trees in the Garden of the
Righteous at the Yad Vashem are
carob trees. The seeds in each pod
weigh exactly the same, regardless
of how big the pod is. Each human
life is equal, important, and valu-
able.
Rebecca  Wallace, a teacher at
Cibola High School in Albuquer-
que, received a small grant from
the Jewish Community Foundation
to help cover the expenses of her
trip to Israel.
Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779 The New Mexico Jewish Link 5

Executive
organization that serves the en-
From the President’s Desk
Director’s tire Jewish community, it has long By Ron Duncan Hart
Corner been apparent to me that no ar-
chetype exists for the Jewish New The Jewish Federation of ment, people guarantee
Mexican. We are, perhaps, more New Mexico is the umbrella Jewish programs our state
reflective of the Jewish people’s organization that promotes Jew- into the foreseeable fu-
By Zach Benjamin ish causes, culture and welfare ture.
diversity than any other Jewish
community in the United States. to meet the needs of Jews from Members of the board
The city of Jerusalem was awash New Mexico to Israel through of the Jewish Federation
in the peace of the waning moments That diversity is not only ethnic
and religious, but it is also ideo- philanthropy, education and so- have been leading the
of Shabbat when my cell phone cial action. We promote unity in way in making commit-
began to buzz. Twilight cast long
Zach Benjamin logical.
The Albuquerque conversation the Jewish community statewide, ments to the endowment,
shadows on the golden stone of the supporting a sense of belonging, including Mimi Efroym-
buildings and sidewalks, and the streets were on security at moments reflected the tinderbox ownership, and pride in being son, Sabra Minkus, Mar-
quiet but for the gleeful exclamations of chil- of emotion and political division that current- Jewish. The Federation is inclu- Ron Duncan Hart vin and Gail Gottlieb,
dren playing soccer and Israelis of all stripes ly defines our national discourse. While much sive of all Jews, and it serves the Linda Goff, Betty and
engaged in spirited conversation. The Jerusa- of the discussion was productive, and indeed broader community from a Jewish value Keith Harvie, David and Paula Blacher.
lem light rail service had not yet resumed for the ideas it yielded will be helpful in defining system, and it is unique in its statewide We would also like to thank Terry Lee
the week, and so women, men, children, and how our Jewish community approaches se- outreach to individual Jews and smaller Heller and Ron and Meryl Segel for their
their pets roamed freely up and down Jaffa curity and crisis response going forward, the Jewish communities throughout the state. recent commitments to help fund our en-
Street. I had taken the weekend in Jerusalem conversation was also troubling. Earlier this year, the Jewish Federation dowment as well. Join my wife Gloria
to unwind after a productive but frenetic week I saw Jews pointing their fingers and raising
their voices against their fellow Jews. It was a of New Mexico established an endow- Abella Ballen and me and the others from
at the Jewish Federations of North America’s ment that will support Jewish values in our community who are making a gift for
General Assembly in Tel Aviv and subsequent scene of barely civil disagreement that was, to New Mexico for generations to come, the endowment. Leave a legacy in your
meetings with Federation’s partner communi- a certain extent, quintessentially Jewish—and provide funding beyond what we can see name or fund a program of your special
ties in Israel. thus not unexpected—but also disheartening.
In the days following the Pittsburgh mas- today, and give a basis for Jewish life and interest and leave your mark on Jewish
As I sat down to dinner at one of the city’s values in the state. We invite you to join life in New Mexico.
many street-side cafés, I pulled my phone sacre, The Atlantic’s Franklin Foer tweeted, us in securing the future of Jewish life The endowment is being managed
from my pocket and realized immediately that “Any strategy for enhancing the security of and community service in our state. through the Jewish Community Founda-
Shabbat’s peace would end prematurely that American Jewry should involve shunning Donors to the Federation embody our tion, and we are participating with the
night. It took me a moment to absorb the grav- Trump’s Jewish enablers…Their money thousands of years old tradition of caring Life & Legacy program to direct funds
ity of what was unfolding 5,000 miles to my should be refused, their presence in syna- that sustains us in the building of Jewish into the endowment. Please consider in-
west, at Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life Synagogue. gogues not welcome.” community, Jewish values of tikkun olam cluding the Jewish Federation in your
I allowed myself five minutes to compose my While it is natural to want to levy blame
when a crisis befalls our global Jewish com- (repairing the world), and Jewish peo- planned giving to provide a sustainable
thoughts, and then immediately began coor- plehood. We care and want to perfect an future for Jewish life and community ser-
dinating our federation’s response to what we munity, the finger should never, under any
circumstances, be pointed at our fellow Jews. imperfect world. Our passion of commit- vice in New Mexico.
would later learn was the deadliest act of an- ment, tzedakah, and a sense of social re- For further information call Zach Ben-
ti-Semitism in the history of the United States Our tendency to want to push our own out of sponsibility make a life changing impact jamin, executive director of the Jewish
of America. our already tiny tent is tragic in its own right.
for those who most need it. Federation or (505) 821-3214 or Erika
Thirty hours later, I was back in New Mex- The phenomenon is exacerbated by social me- The endowment of the Jewish Federa- Rimson, executive director of the Jewish
ico, where I was deeply grateful not only for dia and the ability of almost all of us to air tion of New Mexico offers the opportuni- Community Foundation (505) 348-4472.
how our community coalesced in a time of emotional, hastily conceived reactions to that ty to create a legacy to ensure the future Thank you for your support of Jewish
unprecedented need, but also for the solidarity which occurs in our world. of Jewish life in our land of enchantment. life in New Mexico.
demonstrated by New Mexicans of all faiths Indeed, it was important for those who at-
tended the community conversation on secu- By making a contribution to the endow- Photo by Diane Joy Schmidt
and political persuasions against anti-Semi-
tism and hate in all forms. rity to see that a variety of viewpoints does
While congregations across New Mexico, exist, and perhaps to realize that while dis-
along with the Holocaust and Intolerance agreement is healthy, every Jew belongs un-
Give Bigotry No Sanction, Persecution No Assistance
Museum, provided spiritual and communal der our tent in challenging times. By Ron Duncan Hart the day of the attack in Pittsburgh, an
healing, Federation exercised its role as a con- Rabbi Nolan Lebovitz of Los Angeles’s President, Jewish Federation Albuquerque Police Department car
vener to begin the difficult community con- Adat Shalom synagogue, in his sermon deliv- of New Mexico was parked at the door with the offi-
versation on securing our Jewish population ered at last week’s Solidarity Shabbat, offered cer standing in clear view. The next
and institutions. Within hours of the attack, an eloquent alternative to Foer’s irrespon- The deadly attack on Jews at prayer day at the memorial organized by the
Federation was in touch with clergy, Jewish sible, destructive rhetoric. “To stand against at the Etz Hayim (Tree of Life) syna- Jewish University, the Santa Fe Police
agency leadership, and law enforcement to anti-Semitism,” Lebovitz notes, “means that gogue in Pittsburgh struck all of us Department did the same with a SFPD
begin organizing public forums in Albuquer- each of us needs to look inside and not choose through the heart. In the time of tran- car parked in front and an officer at the
que and Santa Fe to educate the community partisanship over peoplehood, but rather use quility, peace and spiritual contem- door.
on the security infrastructure and protocols al- our partisanship to protect our joint bond of plation of life that is Shabbat and the The Jewish Federation of New Mex-
ready in place, as well as to begin discussing peoplehood. Kol Yisrael Aravim Ze La’Zeh— morning prayers, nothing prepares us ico is in regular contact with the FBI
how those protocols might need to evolve. All Jews are responsible for one another. That for terror and mayhem. But, in this time office in New Mexico, and the Secure
Days later, the first such forum took place is the spirit of our people.” of tragedy, let us not forget the words Community Network and the Jewish
in Albuquerque, where a panel was assembled Critical thinking, questioning, and disagree- of our first President, George Washing- Federations of North America work
consisting of leadership from the city’s three ment are part of our Jewish DNA. These ten- ton, when he promised to the Jews of at the national level with the FBI and
largest congregations, the JCC, Federation, as dencies have contributed to our success and America in 1790, “...the Government of Department of Homeland Security to
well as the Albuquerque Police Department, longevity as a people, but they also occasion- the United States...gives to bigotry no ensure the security of Jews across the
FBI, and U.S. Attorney’s Office. ally threaten to tear us asunder at times when sanction, to persecution no assistance... United States.
It was important that the community gather we are instead most in need of convergence. May the children of the Stock of Abra- In collaboration with the JCC and
for this purpose. Perhaps most critically, those Historically, low-grade conflict among us ham, who dwell in this land, continue the various congregations in Albu-
in attendance learned about the close commu- has served as one of the engines that ulti- to merit and enjoy the good will of the querque and Santa Fe, the federation
nication and collaboration that exists between mately drives us forward. We live in constant other Inhabitants; while every one shall has organized meetings for community
Jewish institutions. Every several months, the balance between peace and conflict, reflected sit in safety under his own vine and fig conversations about securing our Jew-
presidents, clergy, and executive management poetically by the quiescence of Shabbat in tree, and there shall be none to make ish institutions and based on the needs
of Jewish organizations across New Mexico Jerusalem, which existed in stark contrast to him afraid.” identified, steps are being initiated to
meet to share information, identify areas of the horrors occurring simultaneously in Pitts- Among the dozens of social and edu- strengthen and upgrade security mea-
potential collaboration, and learn about each burgh. cational programs that the Jewish Fed- sures.
other’s activities and needs. This includes Let us never allow the diversity that eration of New Mexico supports state- We ask that every Jewish institution
security and crisis response protocols, which strengthens us, nor the tension upon which we wide, we also have a less advertised be a part of these discussion and plan-
were the subject of the November meeting, so often thrive, to become excuses for aban- on-going working relationship with the ning sessions on security as we make
held the afternoon following Albuquerque’s doning each other or our responsibilities to the FBI, state, and local law enforcement New Mexico safe for Jews today and
community conversation on security. welfare of Jewish peoplehood. for the security of Jews and Jewish in- into the future. Every Jew, like every
Participants in the forum also faced diffi- stitutions in our land of enchantment. citizen of our land, has the right to live
cult realities regarding our community and As I arrived for the Shabbat morn- in safety.
discourse. As a professional representing an ing service at Congregation Albert on Am Israel Chai.
6 The New Mexico Jewish Link Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779

Responding to the Tree of Life Shooting

the man on the other side of the

A Narrow Bridge screen: “I know how you feel. I

By Robin Berman
Rebbe Nachman’s words: “All
the world is a narrow bridge and
the only thing is not to be afraid,”
were sung Saturday night, October
27 at Congregation Nahalat Sha-
lom.  More than 100 members of
our greater community and allies
of Jewish people, stood together in
grief, strength, support, and soli-
darity, after the day of the Pittsburg
shooting. Congregation president
Emet Ma’ayan reminded us: “We
have this Jewish lullaby for times
like these.” Before the gathering,
Nahalat Shalom’s administrator,
Dena Palley, noticed a piece of
paper attached to the side of the
synagogue’s mailbox. “At first my
heart sank, and then I read the pa-
per, which said: ‘We stand with
our Jewish neighbors. No room for
hate.”
As our newsletter says: “We
send a special thank you and
blessing to all of our non-Jew-
ish neighbors and friends, in-
dividuals, churches, schools
and organizations, who have
reached out to us with flow-
ers, plants, hugs, signs, cards
- and offers to stand guard at
our doors when we pray.
One neighbor wrote: “I can
sit and watch, and if people
come by, they can see that
the community is watching
and protecting its people. Let
me know if I can be of ser-
vice.” All of your responses
give us the courage and hope
to remember what the chil-
dren in the Rising Phoenix
School who share our space know: of the congregation told a story of members. On meeting a Holocaust
Love > Fear.”  her student, a 9-year-old Mexican survivor via the internet, he told
lost family too.”  The man, the
boy, and entire classroom were
in tears. 
You may be grieving and a
bit fragile after the Pittsburg
shootings. If anger comes up
in any of its disguises, such as
irritability, shutting down, rage,
etc., remember: the higher oc-
tave of rage is outrage, which
can lead to turning anger into
constructive action.  In every
situation we have two choic-
es: one is love and to be open,
the other is hate and to be
closed. We know which feels
better to our own hearts, spir-
its, bodies, and in our everyday
lives. This is the Narrow Bridge
we all walk every day.
Gathering at Nahalat Shalom, October 27, 2018 (Photo by Marc Wunder) Robin Berman is a member
of Congregation Nahalat Sha-
lom and facilitator of a heal-
Before Havdalah, one member immigrant, who had lost family ing meditation exploration group
which meets Mondays at 6:30 pm
at the congregation.

when a white supremacist entered the Tree of Kristallnacht is that the attacks and de-

ADL Stands Against Hate

By Scott L. Levin
Since the Pulse Nightclub massa-
cre two and half years ago, I have
been at far too may vigils and ral-
lies decrying attacks against the
LGBTQ community, Muslims,
immigrants, refugees, women, vic-
tims of gun violence and others. As
the ADL regional director for New
Mexico, Colorado and Wyoming, I
am mindful of ADL’s long-stand-
ing mission to not only fight an-
ti-Semitism, but also to secure
justice and fair treatment to all.
As a result, I know how import-
ant it is to stand up for others. I
just never thought that my com-
munity would need others to
stand up for us.
Any question about whether
the ancient disease of anti-Sem-
itism still exists was unequivo-
cally answered in the affirmative
Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh and killed 11
Jews on Shabbat.  This horrific event  shook
up Jewish communities across our country.
Here in the ADL mountain states region, an-
ti-Semitic incidents have been on a disturb-
ing rise and we have seen a dramatic increase
in white supremacist activity.  and town squares to stand up for one anoth-
November 9 - 10, 2018 marked the 80th
anniversary of Kristallnacht. We are acutely
aware that on this night in 1938, the flood-
gates were opened for what became known
as the Holocaust, as Nazi thugs attacked Jews
and destroyed Jewish businesses, homes and
hospitals. So many windows were broken
that night, that it became known as the Night
of Broken Glass.  prised of Colorado, New Mexico and Wyo-
One of the defining  characteristics of
struction went unchallenged by the German
government, law enforcement, clergy and
neighbors. In the aftermath of the shoot-
ings at the Tree of Life Synagogue, we are
thankful that thousands of people through-
out our region came together in synagogues
er. They came together to provide support
to their Jewish neighbors. These elected of-
ficials, law enforcement, clergy  and neigh-
bors made clear that the horror that began
with Kristallnacht and the horror that oc-
curred in Pittsburgh will not stand. 
Scott L. Levin is the regional director of the
ADL mountain states region, which is com-
ming.

Thoughts on the A White Jewish Anti-Racist Response

Pittsburgh Tragedy
By Rabbi Ron Wittenstein
Once Shabbos was over, and I had
found out the horrific extent of the trag-
edy in Pittsburgh, it took me much time
and contemplation to even begin to ex-
press my response. I believe that my in-
ability to formulate a rapid response re-
flects a concept we glean from the Jewish
tradition of serving of eggs in a house of
mourning. From the round, smooth egg,
which has no ‘mouth,’ we learn that we
should have no expectation for mourners
to talk or respond. We must give them
space so they can focus on their sadness
and loss, which will lead to healing when
they are ready.
Throughout our 3,300 year history, we
have faced anti-Semitism in many dif-
ferent guises, expressed in various ways.
We may have difficulty relating to events
that took place over a thousand years ago,
but when they strike close to home it is
an especially strong reminder of what we,
as a people, have faced in the past. For
Rivkah and myself, this newest tragedy
in Pittsburgh contains additional feelings
of sadness and melancholy. Rivkah and I
have very close family connections to the
Pittsburgh community; my mother-in-law
grew up attending the Tree of Life syn-
agogue, and we spent last Thanksgiving
in Pittsburgh with our extended family.
As with the attack in Har Nof that took
place four years ago, this tragedy is very
personal.
Let us focus on the feelings of sadness
we are experiencing, and truly empathize
with the community; with our thoughts
towards them, let us hope and pray that
they are comforted.
I would like to express my gratitude
and appreciation to those first responders
who put their lives on the line, and as the
Sephardic tradition wishes one another
at a Shiva house, I wish all of the Jewish
people, “Min ha-shamayim tenuchamu”
– “May you be comforted from Heaven.”
to the Tree of Life Shooting
By Amelia Mae Paradise
Saturday morning October 27, I cast my
mid-term vote and enjoyed an unfamiliar
sensation of civic hopefulness. The mo-
ment was fleeting.  After attending a voting
rally, I turned on the news and learned of
the shooting at Tree of Life Synagogue.  I
wasn’t shocked; mass shootings don’t sur-
prise me anymore. But, I didn’t know what
to feel. And I certainly didn’t know how to
understand this overt expression of antisem-
itism.
In these days following, digesting cov-
erage and conversations of the Tree of Life
Synagogue and the Louisville Kroger’s
shootings where an African-American cou-
ple was murdered, more clarity has surfaced.
It is essential for people committed to undo-
ing structural racism and systemic oppres-
sion to face anti-Semitism.
As American Jews today, we must engage
with the traditions we inherit thoughtfully,
heart-fully, and scrupulously. Be this the
tradition of assimilation that animates our
new-found and precarious whiteness, or
the tradition of isolation to which we have
turned for safety, we must look at ourselves
painstakingly.  We are mandated to use rig-
orous self-reflection, and the Jewish value of
learning, to understand why it is crucial we
reject the benefit of accepting whiteness and
commit to divesting ourselves from racial-
ized systems of oppression.
In his 2017 article, Eric Ward shares,
“Within social and economic justice move-
ments committed to equality, we have not yet
collectively come to terms with the centrality
of anti-Semitism to white nationalist ideolo-
gy, and until we do we will fail to understand
this virulent form of racism rapidly growing
in the U.S. today.”  Simultaneously, until
white Jews come to terms with the centrality
of systemic racism to Jew’s assimilation and
survival in the United States, we will not be
able to commit to a real antiracist solidari-
ty of what Chandra Talpade Mohanty calls
“mutuality, accountability, and the recogni-
tion of common interest as the basis for rela-
tionships among diverse communities.” 
Amelia Mae Paradise is a native New
Mexican currently pursuing a graduate cer-
tificate at UNM’s Institute for the Study of
“Race” and Social Justice.
Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779 The New Mexico Jewish Link 7

Responding to the Tree of Life Shooting

Thoughts on Pittsburgh in 2018 and Budapest in 1944
By Rick Hammer
I received a phone call two days
after the tragic events in Pittsburgh
from a good friend who is not Jew-
ish. He called to wish me condo-
lences, knowing that I’m involved
with my synagogue and that the
tragedy would strike close to home.
He asked me if I knew any of the
victims and I answered, “No, but in
a certain way, I knew them all.”
The elderly “Shul-goers” who
make it a point to arrive at the start
of services, arranging transporta-
tion with a friend or public agen-
cy to make sure they got there on
time. The same story for the two
brothers with disabilities who lived
together and probably also relied
on third parties for their transporta-
tion. All men and women like oth-
ers I’ve known at the synagogues
I’ve belonged to over the years. A
66-year-old physician, two years
older than I, coming to daven, hear
an inspiring sermon, or learn some-
thing new from the Torah. Yes, I
didn’t know them personally but I
feel I knew each of them for a life
time.
Three weeks earlier, I stood on
the banks of the Danube river in
Budapest, Hungary, at the “Shoe
Memorial;” simple shoes, many
too modern for the events they me-
morialized, attached to the top of
concrete steps that lead down to the
water. This was where hundreds, if
not thousands, of Budapest’s Jews
were shot and their bodies pushed
in the river by the Hungarian Nazis
late in 1944.
My grandfather was among them.
I said Kaddish to myself. I was
surrounded by dozens of tourists,
many from Asia, taking pictures of
the nearby Parliament building and
others sites, oblivious to me and the
meaning of that place to me. I left
a stone on a shoe, a wingtip, that at
least looked like one my grandfa-
ther could have worn.
What happened in Pittsburgh
in 2018 and Budapest in 1944 are
separated by time, distance, and,
yes, magnitude. I never knew my
grandfather, just like I didn’t know
the martyrs of Pittsburgh, yet I
know them all.

This Isn’t Our America! Oh yes, it IS

By Jeffrey Paul
After the horrific slaying of 11 Shabbat
worshipers at the Tree of Life Synagogue in
Pittsburg this past weekend, I heard many
people proclaiming, “This is not our Ameri-
ca.” I beg to differ. This is our America. This
is what America has become. It didn’t change
overnight and certainly didn’t change in just
the one week of terror involving mass murder
and outrageous bomb attempts against politi-
cal figures and the media.
So, how do we get our old America back?
One could start the conversation with talk of
gun safety legislation. But, that’s too simple.
We have had mass shootings for years. Often
precipitated by shooters with mental illness,
domestic violence history or a grudge against
another person, business or organization.
However, I look at the culture of violence
and its acceptance that has taken a drastic
and deadly turn in recent years. All too of-
ten, I hear our political leaders, neighbors,
friends, family and community leaders send
their thoughts and prayers. Enough already.
Thoughts and prayers offer comfort, but they
will never offer solutions.
While there are a multitude of ways to
place blame. I prefer to start with what has
become the major focus in this country since
the beginning of the last presidential cam-
paign; the rhetoric of hate, racism, bigotry
and violence coming from then candidate
Donald Trump and now President Trump.
Looking back at the loud, boisterous and
contemptuous campaign rallies and rhetoric
of Trump, one sees the hatred of the media,
the degradation of minorities, women and the
disabled.
His rallies frequently called for physical
violence against anyone attending that didn’t
cheer for him and wear a red MAGA hat. Fol-
lowing his election, we all looked forward to
candidate Trump becoming President Trump.
While he became President Trump, he has
failed miserably in becoming presidential.
His constant belittling, harassing, threaten-
ing, and intimidation of others, particularly
the media and politicians on the other side of
the aisle, sends a message to his followers.
The message says it’s OK to be hostile, to
threaten, to menace, to harm others, particu-
larly those who disagree with you.
There is another source of blame that is
even more hard to swallow than Trump him-
self. Members of Congress, both Democrats
and Republicans, have a duty to preserve and
protect the Constitution of the United States.
That is not done by ignoring what has made
America what it is today. The Republican
Party is Trump’s party. He is the leader of the
Republican party. For members of the presi-
dent’s party to sit back and do nothing about
their president’s violent rhetoric is both ap-
palling and inexcusable.
Rather than Republicans sending thoughts
and prayers, shouldn’t they be telling their
president that enough is enough? Shouldn’t
they be meeting en masse with the presi-
dent to demand that he change his noxious
rhetoric? Shouldn’t they be passing a formal
censure of the president? Shouldn’t they be
threatening him with articles of impeach-
ment?
But what do they do? They excuse his be-
havior, they ignore his threatening rhetoric,
and they refuse to confront or even denounce
him. Are they also to blame for what America
has become? Yes, they are.
So, while thoughts and prayers comfort
others, America needs to work on becoming
what we used to be; a nation of inclusion,
acceptance, kindness, togetherness, and one-
ness. With citizenship comes responsibility.
Responsibility to work to change the things
around you that need changing for the bet-
ter. Don’t just sit back and let the America
that we love become a memory. You want the
old America back? Become involved by de-
manding change from the top down. That’s
where it must start.

The Banality of Jew-Hatred

By Andrew Balis
I can’t say I’m surprised.
I don’t how many of my peers
share this sentiment, but my in-
tuition tells me that this was a
long time coming. In fact, the
only thing that feels surprising
was that it took this long for an
atrocity of this magnitude to take
place on American soil. There is,
however, something that feels al-
most like absolving oneself of a
fantasy. Let there be no mistake
about this: this was an act of ter-
ror against our people. This was
an act of terror carried out by a
man whose mind, rendered fertile
by resentment toward a changing
America he thought belonged
only to people like him, had been
poisoned by fantasies that we
were somehow to blame for those
changes.
Robert Bowers, the suspect in
this crime, had already made his
enmity toward Jewish people
well known. On social media, he
referred to our presence in this
country as an “infestation.” The
final straw for him was the activ-
ities of HIAS, which he believed
aided and facilitated the “cara-
van” of migrants currently mak-
ing their way from Central Amer-
ican to the southern U.S. border.
Shortly before his decision to
slake his bloodlust on the inno-
cents at the Tree of Life syna-
gogue, he remarked “I can’t sit by
and watch my people get slaugh-
tered. I’m going in.” In light of
this, we can no longer dismiss
such terror as the products of a
deranged mind. There are cur-
rents in culture and politics at
play here, as there always have
been.
Since the Enlightenment, the
main manifestation of Jew-hatred
in the West has been conspira-
torial in nature. This version of
anti-Semitism views modernity
as a vast diabolical plot, its vicis-
situdes arrayed against its unwit-
ting (non-Jewish) victims, with
Jews at its epicenter. The obvia-
tion of previously familiar power
structures, economic systems, and
mores of religion and culture be-
came products not of social forc-
es beyond the individual’s control
(changes in technology, new po-
litical systems, new scientific dis-
coveries, etc.) but of Jews acting
in conspiracy against the masses.
Embattled monarchies and fail-
ing republics found in Europe’s
Jews, who were gradually being
emancipated from the ghettos, a
useful scapegoat on to whom the
ire of the masses could be deflect-
ed. Thus, for example, it was not
the encroachment of capitalism
that pushed the peasants off their
lord’s manor and into destitution,
it was “Jewish bankers” to whom
the feudal gentry were in thrall.
It was “the Jews” who were to
blame for France’s defeat in its
war with Prussia and the myriad
failures of its governments. It was
“the Jews” who were to blame for
the decadence and incompetence
of the Imperial Russian monarchy
before it was overthrown in that
country’s revolution. And it was
“the Jews” who were to blame for
Germany’s defeat in World War I
and its humiliating acquiescence
to the terms set at Versailles, rob-
bing it of its destiny as a world
power, and whose destruction
would be required for Germany’s
true glory to be realized.
It should come as no surprise,
then, that such forces have found
fertile ground in an America
gripped by malaise, unsure of its
place in the world, inadequate-
ly prepared for the upheavals of
globalization and the digital age
and grasping for some lost time of
greatness. It is clear from Robert
Bower’s words that he was a firm
believer in the white supremacist
narrative of “white genocide,”
whereby the increasing propor-
tion of non-white people in the
United States represents an exis-
tential threat to white people.
Under such conditions of fear
people look for a scapegoat, and
what better scapegoat than we
are; an oppressed people, histor-
ically unmoored from the nation
state and thus “global” in nature,
and (due to our historical experi-
ences) sympathetic toward people
fleeing their native lands for ref-
uge in others. All that was a need-
ed was a spark to set this brutal
conflagration ablaze, a final, in-
tolerable act of war, and he found
it in a Jewish group’s efforts to
help asylum seekers.
But I do not despair. I refuse
to let an angry man with a gun
rob me of my place in the fabric
of this great nation. I will not af-
ford him that victory. And there is
hope for America that I do not see
elsewhere in the world: the out-
pouring of sympathy, not merely
from political elites, but from or-
dinary people across the country
to whom this came as a genuine
shock, even as it felt as banal and
unsurprising as any other piece of
the news cycle.
8 The New Mexico Jewish Link
Ancient Hatreds and
High-Tech Weaponry:
Our Nation’s Failings
By Sara Koplik, editor ancient hatreds are
combined with the
Every editorial I have most lethal, high
written in the past two tech weaponry
years is about gun vi- readily available in
olence or xenophobia. our stores and on
The combination of our streets. We are
hatred and easy access Sara Koplik dying from hatred
to weapons – most par- and malice and
ticularly assault weapons xenophobia, but also from a
– is irreparably harming our lack of political will to ban
nation. These two factors assault weapons and fully
lead inevitably to death. Yet regulate firearms. It is a most
again, our nation’s vulnera- virulent combination.
ble have been harmed. These massacres contin-
This time, it is our Jew- ue without pause. Only 12
ish people– Kehila Kedosha days after the shooting in
Etz Chaim/Or L’Simcha. Pittsburgh, there was another
This time it is the heart of a mass shooting in Thousand
synagogue – the elderly, the Oaks, California, this time
disabled, readers of Torah in a quintessentially Ameri-
and Haftarah, leaders of the can place – a country music
chevrah kaddisha, pillars of bar where 12 more precious
the community whose light souls lost their lives.
and joy were extinguished Deranged individuals,
in a few minutes. This time, overwhelmingly white
it has torn at the fabric of men, will continue to tar-
the Jewish community of get minority groups – Afri-
the United States, those of can-Americans, the LGBT
us who have benefited from community, Latinos, Sikhs,
centuries of tolerance and Muslims, Jews. They are
perhaps the warmest, full- also joined by state-spon-
est welcome ever afforded sored violence against immi-
our diaspora. We are heart- grants and people of color,
broken. We are bereft. Our particularly Central Amer-
people were martyred for ican immigrants, and the
the very first time on these African-American commu-
shores. nity. And then, we face the
As Jews, we must also violence of every-day life
place ourselves firmly in the in America – people going
context of this place and this to country music concerts,
time in history. The shoot- the grocery store, children
er chose Tree of Life Syna- attending school, routine ac-
gogue because of its inten- tivities which turn deadly be-
tion to hold a HIAS Shabbat, cause we don’t have enough
to welcome the stranger, political courage to do what
Muslim refugees from Syr- every other nation on this
ia and Yemen and other na- earth not engaged in a civil
tions. The Torah commands war has done.
us 36 times to welcome We have shown the full
the stranger, because “you inability to stop these high-
know the heart of a strang- tech killing machines, AR-
er.” We have been strangers 15s and the like, from falling
throughout our history, and into the hands of ordinary
we have learned all too well citizens. It is a great moral
that words laced with hatred and political failing. My gen-
lead to terrible actions: mob eration and the generations
violence, pogroms, crusades, before me failed to end the
and ultimately genocide. We carnage and suffering. I gave
know that hate speech mat- up. I didn’t think anything
ters. would change this nation’s
Blood libels are not going obstinance.
away, they are simply chang- But then this spring, the
ing form. When the president young people of Parkland
of the United States labels started to stand up and speak
George Soros a globalist, he up and tell their truths. They
is invoking a very old, viru- were joined by thousands
lently anti-Semitic conspira- of other young people who
cy theory that Jews dominate brought gun control to the
the world financially. These top of the national agenda.
ideas were widely dissem- Their courage and wisdom
inated by the Okrana – the are pushing us forward. And
Czarist secret police – in the
infamous Protocols. But now, HATRED continued on page 12
Remarks by Rabbi Neil Amswych of Temple Beth Shalom
On Sunday, October 28, during a
memorial service for the Pittsburgh
shooting where 350 people attended,
Rabbi Neil Amswych gave the follow-
ing remarks.
We are horrified at the attack on
the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pitts-
burgh. These were Jews in prayer,
celebrating the birth of a new child
in the community, who were brutally
cut down. The Jewish community has
long been aware of the dramatic rise
in anti-Semitism in America in recent
times, and now the rest of the country
is coming to learn about it too, albeit
too late. We were meant to be safe in
this country. Saturday was unques-
tionably the worst day so far in the
history of American Jewry.
What makes this attack so partic-
ularly egregious is that it has been
stoked with language from the very
highest office in the land. The mem-
bers of Tree of Life were targeted
A Meditation after the Pittsburgh Shooting
By Nathan Fox
The Shema, familiar to all of us, is
the Jewish people’s gift to humanity.
For over three thousand years we have
been proclaiming that everything is
inextricably connected. Transcending
even the idea of monotheism, the She-
ma tells us that All is One.
Oneness is our gift to ourselves as
well. It has become increasingly clear
to many of us in the past two decades
The Link is a community newspaper, published since 1971 as a service
by the Jewish Federation of New Mexico. It focuses on Jewish life in New
Mexico, and is committed to seeing Jewish life thrive.
Publisher:
Zach Benjamin, executive director
Jewish Federation of New Mexico (JFNM),
821-3214
Editor: Sara Koplik, Ph.D.
Editorial Board: Marvin Gottlieb, Ph.D.,
Ron Duncan Hart, Ph.D.,
Sabra Minkus, Sarah Newman
Contributors:
Diane Joy Schmidt, Ron Duncan Hart, Robin
Berman, Scott Levin, Rabbi Ron Wittenstein,
Amelia Mae Paradise, Rebecca Wallace, Rick
Hammer, Jeffrey Paul, Andrew Balis, Nathan
Fox, Rabbi Neil Amswych, Susie Sandager,
Kirsten Szykitka, Linda Goff, Sabra Minkus,
Susan Bapty, Raye Cohen, Karen Kerschen,
Neal Friedman, Phyllis Wolf, Maya Siler, Miranda
Jacobson, Rabbi Paul Citrin, Sybil Kaplan, Rabbi
Jordi Gendra, Rabbi Shefa Gold, Rabbi Min
Kantrowitz, K.E. Enzweiler, Helen Horwitz.
Production:
Christine Carter, Envision Graphics
Wire service:
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Address:
The New Mexico Jewish Link
5520 Wyoming Blvd. NE, Abq, NM 87109
Submissions:
Letters to the editor, articles, or other information
to be considered for publication must be sent
because they supported HIAS – an
organization dedicated to protecting
the stranger and welcoming the refu-
gee… people who have wrongly been
described as invading and infesting
this country. They were murdered not
just because of their faith, but because
that faith compels us to reach out to
the less fortunate than ourselves. They
were murdered for being the best
among us.
This is a terrifying time. Thin-
ly-veiled conspiracy theories regular-
ly point to the Jews. The Proud Boys
run amok like the Brown Shirts of old.
No-one in power seems to understand
the danger of their inflammatory rhet-
oric, or maybe they do and don’t care.
Early next month, we will com-
memorate the eightieth anniversary of
Kristallnacht, that terrible night when
Jewish communities across Germany
and Austria were attacked. Clearly,
humanity has not yet learned the les-
sons of that terrible time. It needs to,
that political divisiveness is danger-
ous. We know this intellectually but
we still often fall into the rhetoric of
blame.
Take a moment right now and re-
flect on what Oneness means to you.
Now take a moment and feel, from
the center of your heart, the Oneness
of the Jewish people. Reach your con-
sciousness around the world and feel
all of us connected. From outside of
our community, whether revered or
with return address and phone number and
signed by the author. E-mail submissions are
preferred. The editor reserves the right to edit or
deny publication to submissions. Materials sent
to The Link will not be saved or returned unless
accompanied by self-addressed, stamped
envelope. All letters, readers forums and opinion
pieces solely reflect the opinions of the authors
and not the opinions of The New Mexico Jewish
Link, nor of its publisher, the Jewish Federation
of New Mexico. These serve as a forum for the
New Mexico Jewish community and The Link
strongly urges submissions. Send submissions
via e-mail to sarakoplik@unmhillel.org or via
post to
The New Mexico Jewish Link,
5520 Wyoming Blvd. NE,
Albuquerque, NM 87109.
The New Mexico Jewish Link
is published quarterly.
Postmaster: Send address changes to
JFNM, 5520 Wyoming Blvd. NE
Albuquerque, NM 87109.
All letters, readers’ forums, opinion pieces
and advertisements solely reflect the
opinions of the authors and not the opinions
of the New Mexico Jewish Link.
Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779
now. As we mourn this tragedy, we
also acknowledge those who work
for peace and particularly those who
work to make this country free from
the scourge of anti-Semitism in all its
forms.
As rabbi of Temple Beth Shalom, I
want to thank the mayor and the Santa
Fe Police Department for their sup-
port during this time, as well as the
members of the Interfaith Leadership
Alliance who have contacted our com-
munity to offer condolences. The Jew-
ish community in America is much
smaller than people realize, which is
why as we come to learn the names of
the dead, we learn of friends and loved
ones we have lost.
The name of the congregation in
Pittsburgh comes from the Book of
Proverbs, talking of wisdom as a “tree
of life to those who hold fast to her.”
May we all hold fast to the wisdom of
loving our neighbor, of protecting the
stranger, and of seeking peace.
reviled we are seen as one: Jews.
Let us all take the opportunity this
recent tragedy provides us and take
a step toward one another. Whatever
that means to you: tzedakah, Shabbat
dinners, going to synagogue, starting a
book club. See, feel and recognize that
it is time to listen to our own age-old
call to attention.
We re ONE: all Jews, all humans,
all that is. Let us not become further
divided by fear.
“My heart within me is
broken…” Jeremiah 23:9
To Our Jewish Friends—in Pittsburg, in New Mexico,
in the US, Israel, and around the world—
Our hearts are broken and heavy.  Words fail.  We
mourn the cruel, senseless loss of life and  pray with you
for the victims and their dear families.  It was a murderous
act of anti-Semitism perpetrated by a vile individual who
dared to touch “the apple of G-d’s eye.” 
Several Christian organizations with whom we
collaborate have launched fund-raising efforts to aid the
victims and to restore the synagogue. In the aftershock of
such a horrific attack you may be tempted to feel alone
and fearful.   
Please know you are not alone. Bible-believing
Christians all over the world are with you and reaching
out with their hearts. Your collective well-being is
frequently the subject of our prayers as we plead for your
protection and strength. Yours is a high call: to be “a light
unto the nations,” and we Christians are awakening to
our own responsibility to stand with you.  You have our
admiration, our respect, and our love.  Oh, how we long
for you to be comforted at this sad time.
Your Christian friends want you to know we pray
for your protection and we view anti-Semitism not just
a Jewish problem, but a depravity we must all help to
defeat.
John and Susie Sandager 
and your YAD B’YAD friends
“Be strong and courageous.
Do not be afraid or terrified because of them,
because the L-rd, your G-d goes with you;
He will never leave or forsake you.”  Deuteronomy 31:6
Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779 The New Mexico Jewish Link 9

Creativity for Peace: Building Trust and Friendship

By Kirsten Szykitka, Director of
Operations, Creativity for Peace
How did a deep and meaningful friendship
develop between Eleanor, a young woman
from Kadima, Israel, and Adan, from the
Arab village of Baqa El Gharbea in Israel?
Despite their proximity, their daily lives sel-
dom intersect; they attend separate Jewish
and Arab schools, they grew up in segregat-
ed villages, and their native languages differ.
Their families, friends, governments, and re-
ligious leaders have taught them to fear, and
even hate, one another.
Yet their bond is strong and deep. Eleanor
and Adan share a common vision of build-
ing a future based on compassion and peace.
This spring, they travelled to Seattle and
expressed that vision to youth and adults in
high schools, faith communities, and public
venues, conveying their belief in and work
toward a future based on equality and mutual
respect.
Adan and Eleanor became friends through
Creativity for Peace. Their first encounter
with the other side, their so-called enemies,
was during an intensive summer camp in
New Mexico. Every year since 2003, in a
quiet and secluded canyon near Santa Fe, 16
young women—half Israeli and half Palestin-
ian—live together for three weeks in a large
house. While there, they share not only meals
and chores, but also their stories of growing
up in a region of almost constant conflict,
including their experience of losing family
members and friends to that conflict. With
the guidance of professional staff, layers of
intense emotion are peeled away to uncover
common humanity at the core.
Within the safe and structured environment
developed by Creativity for Peace, and with
the support of art therapists and dialogue fa-
cilitators, young women learn skills that help
them discover their voice and speak authen-
tically while at the same time listening with
compassion and an open heart to those whom
they view as “the other,” or even an enemy.
Dialogue focuses on personal stories, rather
than political discussion, based on the idea,
as expressed by Quaker activist Gene Knud-
sen Hoffman, “An enemy is someone whose
story you haven’t heard.” The transformation
is life-changing.
Upon returning home, participants like
Adan and Eleanor are met with animosity.
Many are not able to publicly speak about
their experiences or their intentions to be-
come peacemakers since this is increasingly
seen as traitorous. Creativity for Peace staff
in the Middle East support their difficult tran-
sitions with family, friends, and community
in a two-year intensive leadership training
with cohorts from the summer.
Over the past 16 years, Creativity for
Peace has equipped nearly 300 young wom- and results demonstrate, that imparting tools is the beginning of peacemaking.
en to be powerful and effective leaders. They such as authentic speaking, compassionate
“Tolerance means being able to listen and
are demonstrating that women, often side- listening, and project visioning and man-
accept others’ opinions even if you strongly
lined in the peacemaking arena, if given the agement, combined with real-world practice
disagree. This word is important for the de-
right tools and opportunities, can find fresh and personalized mentoring, yields women
mocracy of Israel, which is why we learned
perspectives and ways of addressing conflict. who are humane, resilient, and empowered.
it in citizenship class. I believe there could
They are influencing their circles of peers and Although grassroots work may be slow, no
have been peace a long time ago if everyone
families by demonstrating how listening with lasting change can be achieved unless the
truly understood and lived by this word, ‘tol-
an open heart and mind, building trust, and two sides understand and care for one anoth-
erance.’ -- Eleanor, Jewish Israeli
partnering for peace can be a way forward. er, realize that their dreams for the future co-
Over sixty young leaders – participants incide, and experience partnering to achieve “It was through Creativity for Peace that
who have made a long-term commitment those dreams. I’ve come to understand that all the answers
to this work – are spreading the word and Witness Adan and Eleanor, who spent their I was looking for have always been inside
acting as role models in local, regional, and week in Seattle sharing feelings, stories, and of me. I just needed to go deeper inside… I
global settings, including the United Nations, life experiences, talking into the wee hours, needed to listen carefully to everything in-
World Economic Forum, Global Youth Sum- listening to each other speak publicly about cluding myself. As I learned in the camp, the
mit, Rothko Chapel, and University of Texas. their politics, army service, and religious be- first step towards peace starts on the inside.”
Ultimately Creativity for Peace believes, liefs. Their friendship begets trust. And trust – Adan, Palestinian living in Israel

Experts Illuminate Jewish University Santa Fe’s Lecture Series

By Ron Duncan Hart
The Jewish University San-
ta Fe offers a unique series of
scholarly talks on Jewish life and
history and its diversity, includ-
ing Ashkenazi, Sephardic and
Mizrahi traditions. Speakers in-
clude national and international
scholars who are leaders in their
areas of expertise. The JUSF is
sponsored by the Jewish Feder-
ation of New Mexico, and it in-
cludes speakers on a wide range
of subjects of Jewish interest. The
JUSF 2018-2019 program is half
way through year with excellent
speakers planned for the spring
cycle of talks.
Dr. Shalom Sabar of Hebrew
University started the lecture se-
ries in September talking about
“Rembrandt and the Jews”. Some
art historians consider Rembrandt
the greatest Bible artist of all
times and many studies have been
written on his innovative and per-
sonal view of biblical stories and
heroes. Jews in modern times
have been fascinated by Rem-
brandt’s thoughtful interpretation
of the dramatic events in the early
history of Judaism, such as the
binding of Isaac.
A central question that remains
a puzzle to this day is how the art-
ist’s religious art was influenced
by his contacts with the vibrant
Jewish community of Amster-
dam. It was a unique community
made up of Portuguese conver-
sos who returned to Judaism in
Holland and Ashkenazim, who
were driven from other countries
by persecution. His paintings of
Jewish subjects during the height
of his career in the heart of Am-
sterdam’s Jewish quarter is con-
sidered among his best.
His sophisticated use of He-
brew phrases in some of his
famous biblical paintings also
indicates a degree of in-depth
knowledge of Jewish life and cul-
ture. Dr. Sabar is an art historian
at Hebrew University, and he is a
widely known lecturer on Jews
and their host societies in Chris-
tian Europe. His talk was under-
written by Nurit and Yehuda Patt.
The second lecturer during
the fall was Dr. Alma Gottlieb,
who spoke on “Africa across the
Seder Table,” discussing the his-
tory of Cape Verdean Jews. The
original Jewish settlers of those
islands were fleeing anti-Sem-
itism in Spain and Portugal in
the fifteenth century, and after
the Inquisition was established,
they had to go into hiding. Then,
other Jews fleeing persecution in
Morocco arrived, adding anoth-
er layer of Jewish influence to
this island outpost.
Dr. Gottlieb explored the 500
years of Jewish influence in Cape
Verde, looking especially at pres-
ent day Cape Verdean-Americans
of Jewish ancestry and how they
understand their religious her-
itage. Like New Mexicans, the
ancestors of these people were
forced to conceal or abandon
their religion during the centuries
of persecution by the Inquisition.
She posed the question about what
parallels and/or difference link the
Cape Verde experience with the
better-known crypto-Jewish expe-
rience of New Mexico?
Dr. Gottlieb is professor emer-
ita at the University of Illinois
and research associate at Brown
University. She is past president
of the Society for Humanistic An-
thropology and a leading Ameri-
can anthropologist. Gottlieb has
received awards from the Gug-
genheim Foundation, Social Sci-
ence Research Council, National
Endowment for the Humanities,
Wenner-Gren Foundation, and
other agencies for her research.
Her talk was underwritten by
Gloria Abella Ballen.
Mr. Steven Ovitsky
On Oc-
tober 28th,
Mr. Steven
Ovitsky
spoke on
“The German
Jewish Kul-
turbund.” In
1933, the German government
under the Nazis prohibited Jew-
ish involvement in music with
German Aryans. Jewish musi-
cians had major roles in the mu-
sical life of the Weimar Republic
years as composers, directors
and performers from 1919 to
1933 in classical music, as well
as cabaret and film.
After the Nazis rose to power
and Jewish musicians were fired
from their jobs and banned from
public performances, musicians
and actors formed the Kultur-
bund Deutsche Juden (the Cul-
tural Federation of German Jews)
to provide performances for the
Jewish populations of Berlin
and other cities. The Kulturbund
movement that resisted Nazi op-
pression became a cultural form
of resistance, keeping creativity
alive in face of the oppression
that was beginning. Ovitsky ex-
plored this unique experiment
with rare historic recordings and
film of performances and other
events during that period by the
Kulturbund.
Mr. Ovitsky has been is the ex-
ecutive director of the Santa Fe
Chamber Music Festival for the
last 14 years, and before that he
was executive director of the Mil-
waukee Symphony Orchestra and
vice president and general man-
ager of the Minnesota Orchestra.
He is an expert on Jewish music
Continued on page 10
10 The New Mexico Jewish Link Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779

Continued from page 9

and a sought after lecturer on the subject. His talk
was underwritten by an anonymous donor. New Mexico Jewish Historical Society
Dr. Eugene Garver
On December 2, Dr.
Eugene Garver will speak
Collects Families’ Oral Histories
on “Spinoza and the Cun-
By Dr. Linda Goff, President, NMJHS a central place in running these enterprises. Marian, Joanna
ning of Imagination.” Spi-
Uhlfelder’s granddaughter, married Abe Silver from New Or-
noza was the most import-
With generous support from the Jewish Federation of New leans and they operated the Guarantee, which took over the
ant Jewish philosopher of
Mexico, the New Mexico Jewish Historical Society (NMJHS) White House, until they sold it in 1986.
the Enlightenment, and
resumed collecting Jewish family oral histories for several
for more than 300 years,
important reasons. While there are various documents held Kathryn Rubin (z’l), Raton and Colorado Springs
his life and writings have
by various families, often in shoeboxes or unorganized files A conversation with
fascinated people. He has
written materials simply don’t tell the whole story. It is the Kathryn Rubin yields a
been praised and blamed for being both an athe-
oral interview that often brings to light the history that written wealth of information and
ist and the ultimate monotheist “drunk with God.”
documents don’t tell. The memories, recollections, anecdotes, insight into the story of
Some have claimed he had the politics of a cyni-
and insights make the history real. They also bring out the New Mexico Jewry. Kath-
cal Machiavellian, where might makes right, while
nuances of the lives and careers of the family members. ryn was the daughter of
others see him as an apostle of freedom, the first
There is an urgency to this on-going project because sev- Louis (Ludwig) and Mina
person to declare that democracy was the most nat-
eral of the family members are unfortunately aging, and if (Kahn) Heyman. She was
ural form of government.
the interviews/stories aren’t collected in the very near future, born and raised in Albu-
His ideas were so radical that his book Ethics
they will be lost to us. The initial three families were selected querque in 1923 and knew
was only published after his death and the Theolog-
among several to ensure that we capture their stories literally many of the early Jewish
ical Political Treatise was printed under the name
before it is too late. With the additional grant support from families not only in the
of a non-existent publisher. He was expelled from
the New Mexico Humanities Council, four additional families city, but also in Gallup
the Jewish community in Amsterdam, perhaps be-
were interviewed. All interviews may be found on our web- and Santa Fe, notably the
cause his ideas were so radical. Prof. Garver says,
site, www.nmjhs.org in the Oral Family History home page. large Kahn clan. She mar-
“I believe that the idea of freedom runs through his
NMJHS plans to continue with the interviews with additional ried Leon Rubin and set-
life and writings, and accounts for the conflicting
Federation support as part of the 2018 -19 allocation award. tled in Raton with him as his family owned a mercantile busi-
responses people continue to have over his work.”
The Jewish Federation also provided critical funding to al- ness in Raton. Barney later took over the store, and over the
Dr. Eugene Garver is a professor emeritus at
low us to interview three additional New Mexico Jewish fam- years the Rubins established several important commercial
Saint John’s University, and he had written six
ilies whose contributions to state, community, and civic com- enterprises in Raton. They were the town’s leading merchants.
books on philosophy, mostly Aristotle, before fo-
munities were of great importance. Kathryn Rubin (z’l), the The Rubins were also members of Temple Aaron in Trinidad,
cusing on Spinoza with his new book, Spinoza and
Jewish matriarch of Raton and Temple Aaron, Trinidad, CO CO., to which they were devoted. They played a vital role in
the Cunning of Imagination. He has also taught at
was interviewed along with Marian Silver, whose maternal leading the congregation and preserving the impressive build-
Cal State, San Bernardino, the University of Wash-
grandmother, Johanna Ulfelder, established the White House ing. Kathryn passed away in May 2018.
ington, and Yale University. His talk was under-
Mercantile store on Santa Fe’s Plaza. Lillian ‘Sis’ Druxman,
written by the Jewish Federation of New Mexico.
her son Michael and grandson, Lee were also interviewed. Lillian ‘Sis’ Druxman and Michael Druxman, the
Lillian’s father, Sam Klein, was mayor of Las Cruces and Family of Sam Klein, Las Cruces
Dr. Misha Klein
owner of the Las Cruces Furniture Store, one the largest busi- The Druxman interview,
In the spring of 2019 this
ness establishments in the area. with the daughter and grand-
series will include Dr. Misha
Each of these projects allowed us to increase our outreach son of Sam Klein, provides
Klein, associate professor of
and more widely disseminate the rich history of Jewish New an important introduction
anthropology from the Uni-
Mexico to the public at large who have a love and interest in to the history of the Las
versity of Oklahoma, who
history. Cruces Jewish community.
will be lecturing on Jew-
Sam Klein was born in New
ish life in present day Bra-
Marian Silver, Santa Fe York, but was attracted to
zil. She is a leading expert
The interview with the Southwest, first living in
on the subject and an important writer on Latin
Marian Silver encap- Douglas, Arizona and then
American Jews. Her book, Kosher Feijoada and
sulates the story of settling permanently in Las
Other Paradoxes of Jewish Life in Sao Paulo,
three generations of Cruces.
draws from years of living and doing research in
New Mexico Jews who Sam laid the foundation
the Jewish communities of Brazil. Dr. Klein will
played a significant role for its business community
talk about the role of Jews in the current political
in the economic, social, by planting his popular fur-
climate of Brazil. She looks at Brazilian identity
civic, and religious life niture store on Main Street. He was later joined by his cousin,
through the lens of Jewish identity, and how Jews
in Santa Fe. Members Joe Rosenfeld, who built the Boston Store, a department store,
figure importantly in the current presidential cam-
of the family revitalized and then his son-in-law, Jay Druxman who had a men’s cloth-
paign and the changing concepts of race in Brazil. 
commercial life on the ing store in the area. For some thirty years Sam Klein served
Plaza with the establish- in various political offices: county commissioner, member of
Dr. Alan Levenson
ment of two stores, the Las Cruces City Council, and mayor of Las Cruces. Sam and
The closing lecture of the
White House by the first his wife Frances were also among the founders and leaders of
year in May will be given by
generation (Uhlfelder-Blatt) and the Guarantee by the second Congregation Beth El, a Reform synagogue.
Dr. Alan Levenson, director
(Petchesky). It is particularly striking that women occupied
of the Schusterman Center
for Judaic and Israel Studies
at the University of Oklaho-
ma where he also holds the
Schusterman/Josey Chair in
Judaic History. He will talk about the subject of his
Federation Help Gets Seniors to
2013 book, Between Philosemitism and Antisemi-
tism: Defenses of Jews and Judaism in Germany,
1871-1932, which was nominated for a National
Services at Beit Tikva
Jewish Book Award. Congregation Beit Tikva in Santa Fe had and dropped off at home by a friend. Beit Tikva and remain fully engaged mem-
Dr. Levenson has written extensively on the a concern. We hold service Friday eve- The Jewish Federation of New Mexico bers of our congregation. Both the riders
Jewish experience for both scholarly and popu- nings, Torah study Saturday mornings, fre- helped provide an answer by giving us a and the rest of our congregation consider
lar audiences. His book Modern Jewish Thinkers quent weekend events, and adult education grant to support rides for seniors. Beit Tik- this a wonderful mitzvah.
(2nd edition) is widely used in classes on Jewish on weekday evenings. Yet some of our val- va made arrangements with a small local With a separate grant, the Federation
thought, and he has also written The Making of ued members were finding it hard to get to company that provides rides for people in also helped us provide a class on Judaism
the Modern Jewish Bible (2011) and Joseph: Por- those opportunities, due to aging or disabil- the community who cannot drive to med- 101 open to the community, led by our
traits Through the Ages (2016). He is the editor of ity they could no longer drive at night or at ical appointments and other things. The Rabbi Martin Levy. Those classes, last fall
The Wiley-Blackwell History of Jews and Juda- all. Though Santa Fe is smaller than Albu- Federation grant has, over the past year, and spring, brought several members clos-
ism (2012). He has lectured widely across the Unit- querque, it still covers a large area, and it help make it possible for us to ensure that er to their Jewish roots and closer to our
ed States, Israel and Germany. was often hard to arrange being picked up our elder or disabled members can get to Jewish community at large.
Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779 The New Mexico Jewish Link 11

Through the Eyes of a Community Mohel and a Poet/

Singer: The New Challenges of the Bnei Menashe in Israel
By Sabra Minkus

On my recent trip to Israel to

work on the oral history proj-
ect of the Bnei Menashe com-
munity, I was privileged to meet
many accomplished individuals.
Chungthong Joseph Kapp was
an early Sabbather and a talented
composer who comes from Na-
galand, a state in far northeastern
India that borders Myanmar. His
song, “Kathange, Kathange, Ben
Menashe” (“Honor me, honor me,
son of Menashe”) became the un-
official Bnei Menashe anthem.
Joseph also became a mohel. He
performed over 3,000 circumci-
sions starting in his village. After
he “came to Judaism,” he learned
that there were no circumcisers in
all of Manipur and Mizoram (two
states to the south of Nagaland
on the Indian-Myanmar border).
Most families went to a doctor.
But Joseph felt it important to do
it religiously because “the Bible
commanded it.” After praying for
guidance, he decided that his des-
tiny was to become a mohel for his
people.
He said, “I read in Isaiah that the
uncircumcised did not merit entry
to the Holy Land and that if I was
going to follow God’s word and
observe the Sabbath, it was only
natural to circumcise too. My faith
made my work easier. I ultimately
circumcised over 3,000 males, and
didn’t have a single complication.”
He then recounted his life story as
“the circumciser” for both Mes-
sianic and Jewish communities
as well as Christians. He is high-
ly regarded in the Bnei Menashe
community and is very proud of
helping his people.
Miriam Nemboi, who likes to be
called Nemboi, is a beautiful wom-
an who grew up in a small hut near
the rice paddies, not in a village.
Her mother lost three infants pri-
or to her birth due to the difficult
living conditions. Nemboi’s father
eventually became a very good
businessman who she described
as having “hands of gold.” He also
Elders in Afula discuss the challenges of aliyah.
was very devoted to his parents
and when they became ill, he gave
up everything and moved the fam-
ily to their village to care for them.
Nemboi said that her moth-
er wouldn’t eat any fish without
scales or meat of any four-legged
animal, even if cooked in her
house. She ate only vegetables.
Nemboi loves to make up songs
and sing them for people. The first
song she said she ever made up
was as a child while she was sitting
on the back of a buffalo.
“In the shade of the tree of life,
the angels flying in heaven above,
Oh, how I long to rest on holy
Mount Israel”
Prior to her making Aliyah, she
wrote:
“Oh, Israel government how slug-
gish you are!
Come soar like an eagle in the sky
And bring the children of Me-
nasseh home”
Since my last visit to Israel, the
Bnei Menashe population has had
a slow and fairly steady growth.
They are spread out over Israel.
The largest group is located in Afu-
la. There we met with a group of el-
derly men, including Chungthong
Joseph Kapp. As seniors, they
have no one to take them to doc-
tors or to hospital. There is no one
to help them with language barri-
ers. Transportation is a problem as
Meeting with the Indian Deputy Chief of Mission
Tsering W. Sherpa (far left) in Herzliya.
they don’t have cars and the buses
are difficult for them to navigate.
We also met with a new social
worker and three young adults in
Afula. They shared their difficul-
ties in finding work, language is-
sues, child care for young working
families or single parents, the lack
of funds for education, and the
need for some type of meetings
that would allow them to share and
help each other. The only space
available was in a bomb shelter.
In Tel Aviv, I met with Liami
Lawrence, a transplant from Los
Angeles, who guides B’nei Me-
nashe and other olim. He is the
CEO of Keep Olim. Some people
find the struggle to adapt to Israeli
life is too much for them...” Many
of the young turn to drugs and
some even commit suicide. Liami
is working to help guide the Bnei
Menashe in their transition. At
present, the Israeli government is
not helping people as much as they
could. Liami had his own prob-
lems with Aliya, worked through
them, and decided to start Keep
Olim to help others who are strug-
gling.
Another meeting was with Ben-
ny Benyamin, a commissioner
in the town of Ramla. Benny is
working hard to bring more Bnei
Menashe to Ramla because the
schools there are very good. It
also is a central location with good
transportation. The problem is
that the Bnei Menashe have large
families and all want to live clos-
er to each other especially when
celebrating Shabbat and holidays.
Unfortunately, the government has
scattered them throughout Israel.
At Tandoori Indian restaurant in
Herzliya, we met with the deputy
ambassador and a counselor from
the Indian Embassy in Israel. They
both are well acquainted with the
Bnei Menashe community and are
working hard to help them.
A very special couple have taken
on the task of providing fresh fruit
and vegetables to the small Bnei
Menashe community in Nazareth.
The community is quite poor and
has trouble getting enough food.
The couple has arranged with var-
ious food distributors to donate
some produce. If they don’t receive
enough donations, they buy more
produce. The wife brings food to
the community every Wednesday
afternoon. In addition, she helps
when medical care is needed, or
when there are problems at school,
or with family or friends. Her
dream is to have a marching band
made up of the Bnei Menashe in
Nazereth because of their love of
music.
My friends Jessica and Isaac
Thangom spend all of their extra
time helping their fellow Bnei Me-
nashe. Jessica coordinates almost
Miriam Nemboi (left) and Sabra
Minkus
everything for them from arrival
to moving into apartments, shop-
ping, life cycle events, mediating
problems, and planning communi-
ty events.
Isaac is conducting the inter-
views in our project and translating
them from their native dialects into
Hebrew. Then our dear friend Hil-
lel Halkin translates the Hebrew
into English and has begun writing
a book from the interviews. Hillel
has also been a lifeline to Isaac and
Jessica and their daughter Ilana as
they have adjusted to their new life
in Israel.
There are five distinct groups
of Indian Jews living in Israel. In
India, they were embraced and
allowed full freedom to worship.
When Prime Minister Narendra
Modi met with Prime Minister
Binyamim Netanyahu last year,
he declared there was a need for
a cultural and heritage center for
the Jews of India. A group quick-
ly formed and has a large plot of
land in Nevatim near Be’er She-
va. Eventually this will become a
major tourist destination, but even
more importantly it is unifying the
five groups!

From Tesfa to Tikva: From Hope to Hope

Since 1991, Irene Fertik has been work-
ing on a photo book project, documenting
Ethiopian Jews in their new/ancient home
of Israel. The title of the book, From Tesfa
to Tikva, means from hope to hope – the
first in Amharic, the other in Hebrew. The
story of the Ethiopian Jews spans millen-
nia. Holding fast to a dream of returning to
Jerusalem, this ancient biblical communi-
ty began immigrating to Israel in the late
1970s.
This community prayed for generations
to return to Jerusalem, and were met at
first with open arms by the people of Is-
rael, who had heard of their devotion to
their faith and the hardship of their jour-
ney. However, the move from isolated
agrarian mountain villages in Ethiopia to
a modern technological culture in Israel
meant an incredible sacrifice for the older
immigrants, and enormous challenges and
adjustments for their children.  casing an ancient African people in a
Today Israel’s nearly 135,000 Ethio-
pians are still in a transition period. The
successes within the community have
been tempered by many failures. Most
families live below the poverty line, and
juvenile delinquency is a serious issue; yet
there are over 2,400 Ethiopian students in
higher education studies, 100 Ethiopian
small businesses, and 24 rabbis have been
ordained. Both in photos and text, Fertik
chronicles the story of 25 years of change
and transition. In this stunning book, the
visual contrasts are extraordinary, show-
mostly white modern society. These grace-
ful, reserved people are enduring from tes-
fa to tikva.
Copies of the book may be purchased
from the publisher at http://africaworld-
pressbooks.com/ or by contacting Ms. Fer-
tik directly at irenefertik66@gmail.com.
12 The New Mexico Jewish Link
Behind the Lens: Student Portrayals of a Troubled World
By Susan Bapty & Raye Cohen
Just do the math. The last concentration
camps were liberated in 1945 with the Al-
lied defeat of Nazi Germany. Seventy years
later, there is an urgency to hear and docu-
ment the stories of these survivors as Mil-
lennials and Gen Y are perhaps the last gen-
erations to have the opportunity to connect
personally with a survivor. The Holocaust
and Intolerance Museum of New Mexico
(HIMNM), with the help of Regina Turner
at the New Mexico Human Rights Projects,
facilitated these connections through the Be-
hind the Lens: Student Portrayals of a Trou-
bled World, an education outreach program
of the museum.
The intent of this project is to commu-
nicate to middle and high school students
the experience of peer children who have
been affected by the Holocaust, genocide,
war, natural disasters, and abuse, and their
struggle to overcome the obstacles they
faced. The project engages adolescents in
a learning experience that uses Holocaust
education as the foundation to understand
and develop compassion for human rights
and social justice issues. It includes a hands-
on art making project in which students re-
search, write, and create short films about a
particular story that engages them. A film-
maker and museum educators collaborate
with middle and high school teachers to de-
velop and implement this program entering
its fourth year, which, at its conclusion each
spring, produces a small film festival show-
casing the four- to six-minute films students
make.
Protecting our Freedom to Worship
By Karen Kerschen and
Neal Friedman, Taos Jewish Center
In these times of social challenge,
we’re grateful for there being a Jew-
ish Federation of New Mexico, a con-
federation of Jewish organizations in
our state. The Anti-Defamation League
reported a 67 percent increase nation-
wide of anti-Semitic incidents in 2017.
In New Mexico this included cases of
harassment, assaults, bomb threats and
vandalism. Our remote mountain town
of Taos is a peaceful community, yet its
population of Native American, Hispan-
ic and Anglo residents is mindful of how
violence can tear peace asunder.
As we prepared for the High Holidays,
the board of the Taos Jewish Center de-
cided it was in the best interests of our
community to hire local security for our
High Holy Day services. This was a first,
and some of the impetus came from our
president and a board member, Bruce
Ross, listening in to a Jewish Communi-
ty Leadership Meeting conference call.
This confirmed that our concern was not
unique and helped to address our needs.
The gentlemen who kept guard were low
key — wearing suits and yarmulkes, but
prepared to defend against aggression.
Most of those who attended Rosh Ha-
shanah services didn’t even know we’d
taken that precaution.
However, before Yom Kippur we
received a report of a possible threat
and the security arrangements were an-
Through a grant funded by the Jewish
Federation of New Mexico, HIMNM be-
gan working with Congregation Albert Re-
ligious School two years ago. The program
that began in January 2018 focused on cap-
turing the stories of Albuquerque Holocaust
survivors with the intention of presenting
these films for Yom HaShoah. Working in
small groups, students in grades seven to
nine, first met their survivor and spent time
getting to know each other. Then, students
researched and develop questions to ask
based on each survivor’s story. The students
filmed the interviews with the help of Rein-
hard Lorenz, resident filmmaker, Meredith
Chapman, art educator, and Susan Bapty,
Congregation Albert educator.
One of the most profound legacies of the
Holocaust is not to stand in silence while in-
justices occur. Facing History and Ourselves
uses the term bystander to denote those who
see yet do nothing. Elie Wiesel sees by-
standers as “helping the oppressors, never
the oppressed.” Currently, museum educa-
tors and filmmaker work with students all
over Albuquerque to select a topic, research,
chronicle, film, and edit a documentary on a
social justice issue that speaks to them and
needs to be brought to light. Students are
taught how to become an upstander in their
own lives and in their communities.
The impact this project has on students is
profound. At Congregation Albert, students
were provided a brief overview of the Ho-
locaust before they interviewed a survivor.
Most students today have little knowledge
of what occurred during the Holocaust.
HIMNM feels that it is incumbent upon
nounced and greatly appreciated. During
the Yom Kippur service, Rabbi Judith
HaLevy opened the ark and invited con-
gregants to stand before it, individually,
in our own private space, to meditate or
pray before the sacred scrolls.
We have three — a modern scroll
crafted in the 1950s, a small traveling
Torah reminiscent of our history as a
wandering people who only two gener-
ations ago regained a homeland, and a
Holocaust scroll, a fragile Torah dating
back to 1780 and rescued from a Nazi
cache of Torahs that were confiscated
from synagogues throughout Eastern Eu-
rope during World War II. A modern vel-
vet embroidered cloak now protects its
antique parchment, which was stabbed
by bayonet or knife when it was taken.
The Holocaust Torah survives as silent
witness to defamation.
We come together as Jews to experi-
ence the intimacy of community wor-
ship and to share like values. We are not
unique in this sense, for throughout the
state there are congregations that observe
the same traditions that bind an ethical
way of life. The Jewish Federation of
New Mexico provides an overarching
structure for us as a broader community.
May it never come to pass, but we can
trust that our federation can mobilize and
unite against crisis.
Karen Kerschen is the editor of Taos
Jewish Center’s quarterly newsletter,
HaKol and Neal Friedman is president
of the center.
the museum to educate as many students as
possible, those in religious schools and in
public, charter, and private schools about
how and why the Holocaust happened. The
more knowledge young people have, the bet-
ter their ability to fight hate and intolerance
at all levels. Working in multi-grade groups
of four, students researched their survivor’s
history, wrote open-ended questions, found
primary sources, and edited an hour-long in-
terview. It was not easy for the survivors --
Mim, Paul, Shoshana and Raya to speak -- but
it was absolutely necessary for the students to
hear their powerful messages. The experience
made a lasting impression on the students and
all who have seen the films.
While the students at Congregation Albert
documented the narratives of Holocaust sur-
vivors, students at three other Albuquerque
schools chose a current social justice issue to
research, film, and edit. One student from a
South Valley charter school reflected on her
personal experiences aging out of foster care
and never knowing a permanent family. An-
other explored teen pregnancy and dropping
out of school. A seventh grader interviewed
Jamal, a graduate student who escaped op-
pression in Iran, which brought up the middle
HATRED continued from page 8
so today, I am putting my hope in our youth.
May we all live to see a time where the
future of our nation is not clouded by angry
souls with access to overwhelming arsenals.
May our days be marked with less fear and
Comedy Night at the JCC This
February with Keith Barany 
The comedy
of Keith Ba-
rany is often
described as
original, gentle
and brilliant.
The New York
Post called
him “The wit-
tiest comedian
working.” It’s
his lightning
fast “ad-libs”
that most amaze audiences. Born and
raised in the New York City area to a Jew-
ish family, and currently based in Utah,
Barany has been doing stand-up for over
30 years (even though he looks about 40).
He’s worked with everyone from Jerry
Seinfeld to Joan Rivers and has written
for television shows like the Jimmy Kim-
mel Show.
Barany, who books his own shows,
said that despite working with big names
in the industry, “I’m really not interested
in the part of comedy where you’re so
insulated from your audience you can’t
stand at the exit afterwards and chat with
people about the common experience you
just had.” And the common experience
that will be had on Saturday night, Febru-
ary 9 at 7:30 pm at the JCC, is for every-
one, he said.
In the current social climate, comedy
– and comedians – are important, Barany
said. “I think there’s probably more than
Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779
schooler’s own story of losing his father as a
young child.
Sexual identity and coming out was a topic
explored by one group who then had to battle
prejudices within their own friendship circle.
Addiction, homelessness, hunger, and bully-
ing the mentally challenged were other topics
explored. In each case, what started out as an
assigned research project turned into a per-
sonal reckoning and students were forced to
confront their own prejudices, biases, and in
many cases their own narratives. The process
of creating a documentary was both cathartic
and empowering for these students.
It is also a very labor-intensive program for
our small staff, so to extend our reach within
Albuquerque and New Mexico, we will be-
gin to train teachers in film editing and make
sequential lesson plans available through our
website. Some classrooms cannot commit to
the overwhelming time constraints of creat-
ing a documentary, so we plan to work with
teachers to create alternative artistic and edu-
cational mediums in which students can fulfill
the goals of this project.
Behind the Lens films can be viewed on-
line at You Tube, by searching for Behind the
Lens – Portrayals of a Troubled World.
sorrow. May we turn our swords into plow-
shares and then keep going, in the words of
Yehuda Amichai, and beat them into musical
instruments so that “whoever wants to make
war again will have to turn them into plow-
shares first.”
one reason
why it’s im-
portant, more
than one type
of primary
reason. Let
me speak for
myself first:
the reason
comedy is
important for
me is that it’s
getting harder
and harder to get certain types of people
to hear the truth. Comedy works under the
radar,” he said.
“Comedy has been since the absolute
beginning – from the court jester days,
from the Shakespearean fool days – it’s
always been ‘here’s the one dude that
we’re gonna let say whatever he wants.’”
Beyond that, Barany said, people are
looking for release. “Folks come out for
the catharsis and they come out for the
community,” he said. “That’s been a real-
ly recent lesson for me after 30-plus years
of being a stand-up, is that a big part of
why people laugh is because they want to
feel less alone.”
So, if you need a few laughs, and want
to feel connected to community, be sure
to get your tickets to see Keith. They cost
$20 for JCC members, students and se-
niors, and $25 for general admission. Vis-
it jccabq.org or holdmyticket.com or call
(505) 348-4518.
Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779 The New Mexico Jewish Link 13

Happenings
Albuquerque’s Only Jewish Food Festival Returns in January to New Venue
By Phyllis Wolf et-holders will be streamlined, and those pur-
chasing tickets at the door ($7) will be pro-
For lovers of all things food and fun, the cessed quickly. Early VIP noshers may enter
second annual ABQ NoshFest is sure to de- at 11:00 am to get a jump on the day with
light the senses on January 13, 2019 from pre-purchased $10 tickets.
noon to 4:00 pm. ABQ NoshFest will show- Many familiar food purveyors will be on
case the best in Jewish cuisine from tradi- hand, including: Savoy, M’Tucci’s Market
tional to new twists on old favorites. The fest and Pizzeria, Zinc, California Pastrami, Ein-
celebrates Jewish culture and community, stein Bros. Bagels, Chello Grill, Il Vicino, La
while raising funds for the Jewish Commu- Fonda del Bosque, Europa Bakery, Gourmet
nity Center of Greater Albuquerque. Due to to Go, Vintage 423, Congregations Albert,
the success and popularity of the inaugural B’nai Israel, Nahalat Shalom, and more.
event last year, this year NoshFest will be Event highlights include mouth-watering
held at the much larger Sandia Resort to ac- Jewish foods and delectable noshes includ-
commodate the expected crowd and offers ing savory brisket, pastrami and corned beef,
plenty of parking. Advance tickets start at $5 matzoh ball soup, lox and bagels, latkes,
at abqnoshfest.com and children under age and knishes. Nosh Talk with be held with
9 are free. The check-in process for tick- the best-selling author, chef, blogger Amy
at the J CC
Kritzer, Sweet Noshings.
There will be the eagerly anticipated Ku-
gel Cook-Off competition with emcee Mari-
sa Maez, KOAT morning news anchor, and
celebrity judges: Donnie Chase, 100.3 The
Peak radio personality, Amy Kritzer, chef,
author and blogger Nosh Talk guest speaker,
and Melissa-Lou Ellis, the 2018 America’s
National Miss New Mexico, the first Jewish
woman to hold the Miss New Mexico title.
There will be a premier raffle with the
grand prize of a three-day noshing trip to
New York City by Rio Grande Travel; second
place prize of a Baillio’s big screen TV plus
other prizes. This year Baillio’s will provide
a Football Play Off Zone for fans to watch
the Sunday football games, and a supervised
Kids Zone will offer lots of fun games and
crafts for kids under 9. Retail shopping will
include Judaica and cuisine-related items
with vendors including ModernTribe.com,
Congregation B’nai Israel and Albert gift
shops.
Shelly Prant, JCC executive director, is es-
pecially appreciative of the support shown by
the Albuquerque metro restaurant communi-
ty. “We are pleased that local favorite food
establishments have again stepped up to the
plate to prepare and serve popular Jewish
foods not easily found in our city. To help
make ABQ NoshFest a unique experience,
many of our participating chefs are creating
dishes that are not typically offered on their
menu.
Event sponsors are Jewish Federation of
New Mexico, Griffin & Associates, Elias
Law, Local Flavor, New Mexico Kids! Mag-
azine, SunPower by Positive Energy, TAS
Security, Rio Grande Travel, Photobooth
Rentals of NM and others.
Funds raised will benefit the programs and
services of the JCC that assist families and
children; provide summer camp, swim les-
sons and early childhood education scholar-
ships for those in need.
For more information please call: 348-
4518. Tickets are available at abqnoshfest.
com beginning December 1, 2018.

Wednesdays at the J – Live, Laugh, Learn

abqnoshfest.com

ABQ’s Only Jewish Food Festival!

2nd Annual ABQ NoshFest

A Feast of Everything Jewish and More!
Sunday, January 13th, 2019 2pm - 4pm
From left to right, Crystal Conn-Sainz, Sheila Pugach, Maya Siler, Judith Suss-
Sandia Resort and Casino man, Linda Arnold, and Elaine Klass show off their ready-to-be-baked honey cakes.

What's Your Favorite Nosh? Savory brisket? Corned beef
sandwiches? Matzoh ball soup? Falafel or Lox & Bagels?
Whatever you nosh, you'll nosh it at the second annual
ABQ NoshFest - a celebration of Jewish food and more. Thanks to our 2019 Sponsors!
Join us as we gather Albuquerque's finest & most popular
eateries whose chefs will prepare and serve their favorite
Jewish and Israeli foods. Some will serve a signature item
from their restaurant menu, and some will offer a new item
exclusively for ABQ NoshFest. Either way, we promise
that you'll nosh it like never before.
Don't miss Nosh Talk with a celebrated author
and Jewish culinary chef Amy Kritzer
The ABQ NoshFest is a fundraiser for the Jewish Community Center of Greater Albuquerque.
Proceeds benefit the JCC's programs that assist those in need.
For more information or for sponsorship / food vendor opportunities please contact:
Jill Patruznick, Coordinator, JCC ABQ NoshFest at 702-339-8114. Thank you for your support.
By Maya Siler
The new adult and senior program, Wednesdays at the J is set to wrap it’s fall ses-
sion. Occurring each Wednesday, the program featured guest speakers, holiday-themed
activities, lively entertainment, and thoughtful discussions between guests and partici-
pants. Group favorites included visits from Rabbi Min Kantrowitz, Rabbi Paul Citrin,
Rick Buchanan of ElderGigs, and Osher lecturer Roberta Boggess. Attendees also en-
joyed coffee, cookies, and conversation before each program, and delicious lunches
from Rhubarb and Elliott after, which often fostered further discussion about the pro-
gram of the day.
December features three more programs before the start of the new year. On Decem-
ber 5, adults and seniors are welcome to celebrate Chanukah with live music, dreidel
games, gelt, gifts, and a latke lunch.
Need some new dinner ideas? Come on December 12 to take a field trip to Monte-
bello Senior Living where Chef Charlie will present a demo entitled “Cooking in the
Winter for One to Two.”
The last program of the year on December 19 welcomes Mary Mortenson Diecker,
an author and lecturer with Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, who will present “Only
in New Mexico,” a lively lecture that delves into the history of our state and culture
with stories that have a decidedly New Mexican twist.
Wednesdays at the J will return on January 9 with a new semester of programming.
If you would like to receive the Winter/Spring calendar or be on the weekly call list,
please contact Maya Siler at (505) 348-4518 or mayas@jccabq.org.
14 The New Mexico Jewish Link Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779

Let the Light In: Chanukah

Remaining Inspired in Trying Times
By Miranda Jacobson
There are two memories that came to my mind re-
garding a Chanukah past, one personal and one of
historical sadness and prevailing despite the odds.
The personal remembrance was the Chanukah af-
ter my mother passed away. My mother had passed
away when I was a teenager in late September and
only my father and I were left in the apartment to car-
ry on, as my older and only sister was away at gradu-
ate school. It was Chanukah, quiet at home, what to
do? Traditions of lighting candles or baking certain
foods can bring strength even in what may be the
loneliest or saddest times of a person’s life. There
was no one to make latkes, no music, only silence.
I decided to light the Chanukah candles. The
silver family menorah was in a glass case and I re-
moved it. It hadn’t been lit for a few years and this
was the only time I lit them alone. Our family was
secular and didn’t recite the bruchas over candles or
food. But for some reason it was important for me to
light the candles.
I lit them and sat in darkness with just the candles
lit. Watching the candle light, being mesmerized by
the light, and all of the sudden a smell of smoke! My
bangs were on fire!! I had gotten so inspired to con-
centrate of the flames and light that they emitted that
I didn’t realize I had gotten too close to the flames.
Luckily, I got the flames from my hair out quickly
and tried to hide the smoke smell in the living room
so my father didn’t think I set the whole place on fire!
Since that time I have not missed lighting Cha-
nukah candles. The flames of the candles inspired
something in my soul that was both welcoming,
calming and enlivening to this day.
The second memory is one of a poignant picture
taken by the wife of a Rabbi Posner, Rachel Posner.
It stands in my memory as an emblem of heroic de-
fiance despite the prevailing ‘winds’ of their times.
Their home stood directly opposite the Nazi head-
quarters in Kiel.
“Rabbi Posner’s wife, Rachel, snapped a photo
of the menorah and … wrote a few lines in German
on the back of the photo. ‘Chanukah, 5692. ‘Judea
dies’, thus says the banner. ‘Judea will live forever’,
thus respond the lights.’”
Yehudah Mansbuch, the grandson of the family
who took the photo, remembers:
“My grandfather, the rabbi of the Kiel community,
was making many speeches, both to Jews and Ger-
mans. To the Germans he warned that the road they
were embarking on was not good for Jews or Ger-
mans, and to the Jews he warned that something ter-
rible was brewing, and they would do well to leave
Germany. My grandfather fled Germany in 1933, and
moved to Israel. His community came to the train
station to see him off, and before departing, he urged
his people to flee Germany while there was still
time.” (from rarehistoricalphotos.com/menorah-de-
fies-nazi-flag.)
The famous author Elie Wiesel when facing emer-
gency heart surgery and his own mortality poses this
reflection in his book Open Heart: “Even in darkness
it is possible to create light and encourage compas-
sion. That it is possible to feel free inside a prison.
That even in exile, friendship exists and can become
an anchor. That one instant before dying, man is still
immortal.”
There are two human reactions that occur when
life’s trials come across our paths, either a person
lets their inspirations go and dwindle or they cling to
traditions/create new ones, that help them keep their
inspiration alive and grow.
When you are bringing your family and close
friends to the Chanukah table, whether it is in your
home, your place of worship or even on social media,
remember what lighting one candle can create. A
candle, an idea, a source of hope. One candle dispels
the deepest of the dark.
All you need to do is provide the small spark to
light the wick and the darkness begins to dissipate
until it becomes friendship, inspiration, compassion
and light.

The Hope Offered by Chanukah

By Rabbi Paul J. Citrin not what yields hope for our surviv-
al as a flourishing, vibrant Jewish
“Memory is the secret to redemp- community.
tion,” so taught the Baal Shem Tov Those who know something
in the eighteenth century. As we about the historical details of the
approach the Festival of Lights, we Maccabean wars are aware that
do well to ask: What should we re- for thirty years after Judah defeat-
member about Chanukah? ed the Hellenistic Greeks, Jews
We claim that at Chanukah we fought each other over how they
remember our war for religious and envisioned the shaping of Jewish
cultural freedom from Hellenistic life. Remembering that ancient civil
rulers. Yet, recalling that conflict is conflict remains as a warning to us
MOUNTAIN STATES
“Look at how a single candle can both defy and define the darkness.”
- Anne Frank
At this Season of Light, we thank you for your support
and for joining us not only in our fight against anti-Semitism,
but also in our efforts to secure justice and fair treatment to all.
Best wishes for a wonderful Hanukkah and a happy and peaceful New Year
from your ADL Mountain States Region,
serving New Mexico, Colorado and Wyoming
now to cherish each other and our
entire people, beyond any religious
or political disagreements. Surely
the tragedy our people underwent
in Pittsburgh underscores how pre-
cious we all must be to one another.
This memory is only the beginning
point of our redemption, of our
committed and creative communal
existence.
The core and essence of our re-
demption is more than memory.
It lies in the very root of the word
Chanukah itself. We translate the
word Chanukah as “dedication.”
This reminds us of the Maccabean
restoration and re-dedication of the
desecrated Temple, the heart of our
people’s religious and national life.
Today both synagogues and other
Jewish institutions are the heart of
our life in the diaspora. Our reac-
tion to the slaughter at Congregation
Eytz Chayim in Pittsburgh is to re-
dedicate ourselves to strengthening
our synagogues and institutions. We
will do so because they are the well-
spring for our age-old dedication
to life, human dignity, justice and
peace.
The root of the word Chanukah
is comprised of the letters chet, nun
and chaf. These letters also can spell
chinuch which means “education.”
The verb, l’chaneich” means to ed-
ucate. A “chanich” is a student, an
apprentice. I would add to the Baal
Shem Tov’s claim that memory is
the secret to redemption by saying
that education includes and enhanc-
es memory itself. Thus, following
the Maccabean conflict, it was not
the power of the sword which pre-
served us. It was the learning and
Torah transmission by our Sages.
It was also the case, and still is, that
anyone could join the ranks of the
chachamim, the learned, by becom-
ing a chanich, a student.
Jewish study, learning, encoun-
tering sacred texts, engaging with
fellow students is the essential
foundation for a flourishing Jew-
ish community. So, here comes the
commercial. Our synagogues in Al-
buquerque and around New Mexico
offer many worthy opportunities for
adult learning. The JCC is also a sol-
id venue for gaining Jewish knowl-
edge. By enrolling in a course, you
will enhance your life as a Jew, and
be intellectually and spiritually en-
riched.
This Chanukah season is a per-
fect time to dedicate yourself anew
to chinuch, to Jewish education in
community. It is the deepest, most
authentic way to respond to the mur-
derous anti-Semitism at Pittsburgh.
Sign up for a lecture or a course
this winter/spring. As you remem-
ber and as you study, your light will
burn brightly at this season of Cha-
nukah and beyond.
Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779 The New Mexico Jewish Link 15

The Eighth Night: A Short Story

Story and Photo by
Diane Joy Schmidt
In December, Joy flew again
from Albuquerque to Chicago to
be with her mother. It was the first
night of Chanukah and Joy and her
two sisters lit the candles each night
then regularly at Miriam’s hospital
bedside and cheerfully sang the
songs, tuneless and off-key, some-
thing they hadn’t done together
since they were children. On Sun-
day, the eighth night of Chanukah,
Joy’s sisters went off to a play.
Miriam said, “That’s okay, I’m
getting a little sick of Chanukah.”
Joy felt abashed; she laughed.
In late afternoon, as the winter
sun began to set, Joy lit the thin col-
ored candles in the family menorah
while her mother slept, and quietly
hummed the songs to herself. Mir-
iam woke up in the darkened room
and saw the candles burning. Her
eyes grew bright and her face lit up
against the pillow.
She said, “I see the spirit of Cha-
nukah. Do you see it?”
Joy saw tall white wings on ei-
ther side of Miriam. She said,
“Yes, I see white wings.
Miriam reached up with both
hands in front of her and lovingly
patted something in the air before
her. “Yes, it’s right here.”
“What do you see?” Joy asked.
Miriam fell silent, embarrassed.
Then she said, “Oh… I don’t really
see anything…”
“What exactly do you see? Tell
me.”
“Oh. It’s just my own little idea,
that the spirit of Chanukah comes
to those who celebrate all eight
nights.”
Joy said, “That would make a
lovely children’s story. May I share
that with others?”
Miriam said yes. Joy thought she
sounded pleased.
Joy added, “What you see is
probably the Shekinah, the Jewish
spirit. Hold to that, what you are
seeing, it is protecting you. Picture
it when you need it.”
Then Miriam said, haltingly,
“You mean the white bird, and not
the circling black ravens that come
after?” Stunned, Joy murmured af-
firmatively.
Miriam turned to look again at
the Chanukah candles, now melt-
ed down into little colored pools
of blue and green and gold. One
had not yet gone out and it was
the very first one that had been lit.
She shook her finger now at it and
smiled wryly, and in a secretive
way said, “I wouldn’t have bet on
that one.”
It was our personal family tradi-
tion to bet on which candle would
last the longest. Months later it
would finally dawn on Joy what her
mother meant, that Miriam’s broth-
er Milton, now 96 and the oldest of
six, would outlive her.
That evening there was an enor-
mous white rabbit sitting in the
driveway at the house, the largest
she had ever seen. The rabbit was
comforting. That night she dreamed
that her friend from Shiprock was
showing her around a Navajo ho-
gan, but it wasn’t just the tradition-
al octagonal house, it was a whole
town peopled with activities at each
of its eight sides. In the morning,
Joy called him and he said, “That
is the house from which you came. Joy couldn’t make out if she had steeped in Jewish tradition, called
The home, the spiritual home of the said it the same way, but she be- from Brooklyn. Yaffa told her that
Great Spirit, where you come from lieved that she had. the last day of a holiday is espe-
and go back to.” That night Miriam fell into a cially powerful; that it holds all
Then she saw, framed by the deep coma. The next day when Joy the strengths and qualities of that
small square window in the front arrived at the hospital her sisters holiday. Joy then spoke to the rabbi
door, a huge black crow sitting on went to lunch and then the aide who said that in the Jewish tradi-
the garage roof pecking at some- Alicja also took off on an errand. tion it is written that angels come
thing inside the rain gutter. It She was left alone in the room to comfort you and to reduce your
frightened her. It was the last day of with her mother. The daily phone fears when you are dying. And he
Chanukah, and the winter solstice. call came from her mother’s broth- said the Shekinah is the feminine
Later that day Joy said to her er Milton, who lived in a nursing aspect of God, the part of God that
mother, “Do you know that I love home in Ohio. Joy held the receiver comes closest to us.
you more than anyone in the whole up to Miriam’s ear so he could say Some months later if someone
world?” goodbye. It seemed her eyebrow were to ask how she was doing Joy
Miriam’s eyebrows flickered up lifted. A few minutes after Joy hung would say: I am at peace, but still
in surprise and she said, “I love you up the phone Miriam passed away. I grieve. The animals are all quiet
…mpff..ph..wre…too.” That evening Joy’s cousin Yaffa, now.

From My Kosher Jerusalem Kitchen: Not Just Potato Latkes

By Sybil Kaplan
An old folk proverb does say:
“Chanukah latkes teach us that one
cannot live by miracles alone.”
Joan Nathan, Jewish food writer and
cookbook author, contends the word
latke is not Yiddish as everyone pre-
sumes but stems from “a Russian
word, latka, and a pastry, from ob-
solete Russian oladka or flat cake of
leavened wheat dough.” This, in turn,
probably came from a Middle Greek
word, eladion, or oil cake, stemming
from elaion, meaning olive oil.
Potato pancakes do seem to have
originated among poor Eastern Eu-
ropean Jews, but potatoes did not
become a staple until mid-19th cen-
tury. John Cooper, in Eat and Be
Satisfied--A Social History of Jew-
ish Food, comments that Jews from
Lithuania ate pancakes made from
potato flour for Chanukah and had
borrowed the idea from the Ukrai-
nians who made a potato pancake
dish with goose fat called kartoflani
platske, which they ate for Christ-
mas.  Since Chanukah fell about
the same time, and there were plen-
ty of geese to provide goose fat or
schmaltz, we could conclude that
schmaltz became a substitute for oil.
Jews living in the Pale of Settle-
ment in the 17th century probably
adapted it for Chanukah as a way
to dress potatoes differently for the
holiday. Cooper also states that many
Eastern European Jews ate buck-
wheat latkes for Chanukah, while
Polish Jews made placki, pancakes, 1 t. dry parsley ley and salt and mix. compiler/editor of 9 kosher cook-
from potato flour and fried them in ½ t. salt 3. Heat oil in a frying pan. books and food writer for North
oil. But what happens when you get oil Make latkes by hand, add to American Jewish publications, who
tired of potato latkes? Here are some 1. Grate parsnips and carrots into a oil, and fry until brown on both lives in Jerusalem where she leads
variations for Chanukah. mixing bowl. Toss with flour. sides. Drain on paper towels. weekly walks of the Jewish food mar-
2. Add eggs, chives or onion, pars- Sybil Kaplan is a journalist, author, ket, Machaneh Yehudah, in English.
Old Jerusalem Zucchini Pancakes
6 zucchini
salt
salt and pepper to taste
1 diced onion
2 T. chopped parsley
2 T. chopped dill
2 large eggs
½ cup matzoh meal
1 T. vegetable oil
oil for frying
1. Grate unpeeled zucchini into a
strainer. Sprinkle with salt and drain
for 30 minutes.
Squeeze to remove remaining liq-
uid.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine zuc-
chini, salt, pepper, onion, parsley,
dill, eggs, matzoh meal
and 1 T. oil.
3. Heat oil in a frying pan. Form
zucchini mixture into patties. Fry for
a few a minutes on each side. Drain
on paper towels. Makes 20 patties.
(Adapted from The Delights of Je-
rusalem by Rena Valero, Steimatzky,
1985)
Carrot-Parsnip Latkes
16 patties
5 grated parsnips
2 grated carrots
¼ cup flour
2 eggs
1 t. dry chives or onion
16 The New Mexico Jewish Link Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779

Sending Light Outward: A Chanukiyah in the Window

By Rabbi Jordan Gendra, Ph.D.
Director of Casa Sefarad
One of my first memories as a
child is my mother trying to explain
why some people harassed us due
to being Jewish. This is always a
difficult moment for a mother, es-
pecially in Spain during the dicta-
torship.
But, how do we interact with
those who dislike or actually hate
us? One of the ways that I was able
to impact public opinion in Spain
was when I made a conscious
choice to be active in the media.
After a period of reluctance, the
encouragement I received from
non-Jewish friends enabled me to
understand the impact this could
have on how their relatives per-
ceived Judaism.
Our tradition is extraordinari-
ly modern, and I am constantly
reminded of that each time I
participate in interfaith events or
roundtables. Explaining this Jewish
wisdom is one way of changing
our image. I  find that the mere
fact of being a rabbi and gay is
useful to dissolve the equation so
often made between “religious”
and “reactionary,” “obtuse,”
“extremist” or “out of fashion.”
Another way of defending our
identity as Jews, is simply living as
Jews, knowing who we are, being
glad to belong to this tradition of
warmth, love, conscience and re-
sponsibility; living it through sim-
ple and pleasing acts, like the Shab-
bat meal with family or the lighting
of Hanukkah candles.  possible that the flame would die,
The candles of Hanukkah are just
the expression of our pride and our
wisdom, attitude and measured our
human tradition associated with
unlimited hope. Indeed, the rea-
son given by the halachah for the
lighting of candles is pirsum ha-
ness, publicity of the miracle. Yes,
we have a message for the world.
Our chanukiyah is placed on the
window facing out, it expresses our
dignity as Jews, and our freedom,
our right to have a mezuzah on the
door and a chanukiyah in window.
How is our dignity and our freedom
expressed through this? Because
we can publicize the message of the
miracle; the  perpetuation of hope
even when it is irrational, as in the
case of the small jar of oil.
If I can bright some light in this
world, then I must do it now. It is
who knows? It is possible that there
were not be enough oil to fuel the
flame, but meanwhile I’m sure this
little flame will burn at least for a
while. Like the burning bush that
burns without being consumed,
the fire of life, the passion of being
Jewish, of infinite hope burns in us
and for us, without being burned
without ever extinguished.
According to Halacha, the cha-
nukiyah must be visible from the
outside, but our rabbis added, if it
is dangerous, it can be lit inside the
house and not the window.  sequence of small acts of everyday
When we are able, we should
express our Judaism. This helps to
familiarize our environment, to ed-
ucate, to develop for us and the oth-
er Jews a sense of security facing
the outside world. It helps to defend
the freedom of all people, Jewish or
not, to live their particular identity.
Even when it’s uncomfortable
or even dangerous, we still need to
find ways to express our Judaism
and shine, but it can be done inside
the house, discreetly, but always
with joy and meaning. If the flame
cannot enlighten the outside, then
at least it will be passed to the next
generation. In all cases, we must
feed the flame and keep the happi-
ness and pride in what we are. 
This is the Jewish struggle, a
daily struggle. This is the concept
of tseva shalom, armed peace. The
life is what builds the future. This
is our battle. The lighting of Cha-
nukah candles, spending time with
family and friends around color-
ful candles, is what builds us as a
people. And beyond that, wherever
possible, the reaffirmation of our
message facing the outside world
must to be added to the construc-
tion of our people, building our-
selves.

stroyed, the place of our connection in the image of God. This is the

The Inner Practice of Chanukah to God moves inside. Prayer takes

By Rabbi Shefa Gold
 
Chanukah celebrates the re-dedi-
cation of the ancient Holy Temple,
the place where the infinite meets
the finite, where the spark of God
bursts into flame within us. Each
year we recall the great miracle
that happened there.  And that same
miracle is happening inside as we
heal the desecrations we have suf-
fered and re-dedicate our lives to
holiness.
 The Temple of our Soul is des-
ecrated when we endure a sense
of separation from God, and from
each other. The Temple of our Soul
is desecrated when we become
cynical, when we feel unworthy
or afraid, when we stop trusting
the essential goodness of life. On
Chanukah, we have an opportuni-
ty to clear away the debris that has
accumulated in our inner Temple,
and then kindle the flame of our re-
newed intention to stay connected
to the mystery at the center of all
life. That connection to God is our
lifeline. That remembrance of God
gives us our freedom. When we
forget God, that expansive mystery
at our core, we risk becoming en-
slaved to the illusions of our most
narrow perceptions.
God says to us, “Make for me a
holy place so that I can dwell inside
you. Yes, it is possible to stay con-
nected with me at all times in all
places, even as you engage in the
life of the world.” When we make a
place for God to dwell in our lives,
then we will never be caught in the
illusion of separateness. God will
be available and accessible to us in
the innermost chamber of the heart
and in the inner dimension of all
creation.  cesses of our own hearts.  the light grows brighter, shining its
Spiritual practice is about mak-
ing our lives into a Mishkan, a
dwelling place for Divine Pres-
ence. About one third of the Book
of Exodus consists of the detailed
instructions for building the Mish-
kan, (the portable sanctuary that we
carry through our wilderness jour-
neys). The purpose of the Mishkan
is to send us to the space within
where we can receive the Mystery
of Presence. Just as a great poem
points us towards a truth that is
beyond mere words, so the beauty
that shines from the Mishkan of our
lives illuminates the beyond that is
within us.
 As Judaism evolves, the func-
tion of the Mishkan (the place of
connection with God) is repre-
sented by the Holy Temple in Je-
rusalem. When the Temple is de-
the place of sacrifice and the altar
of sacrifice is hidden in the dark re-
The story of Chanukah reminds
us that even the holiest place with-
in us can become desecrated. We
must enter the darkness of our own
wounded hearts, survey the dam-
age, clear away the rubble, and
then light a candle to rededicate
ourselves to holiness, to our own
wholeness and connection to the
cosmos. It is truly miraculous that a
single spark of hope can ignite the
radiant fires of passion that illumi-
nate our way forward, even on the
darkest night.
 As the days grow short and the
night darkness long, we are invit-
ed to enter into the darkness of our
own hearts. There, buried beneath
the rubble of our disappointments,
we find the miraculous spark of
our divinity, the awesome knowl-
edge that we are each created
spark that kindles our Festival of
Lights.  Each night of Chanukah,
we light another candle. Each night
radiance into our own hidden plac-
es.  
The “great miracle” of healing
is happening right here within us
when we call light into our own
places of darkness, when we bring
the healing light of compassion into
hidden crevices of shame or fear.
 As we light the flames of Cha-
nukah, may we kindle the flame
within that will shine the light of
awareness across the true expanse
of soul.
Rabbi Shefa Gold received her
ordination both from the Recon-
structionist Rabbinical College and
from Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Sha-
lomi, and is the director of C-DEEP.
Shefa has produced ten albums, and
is the author of four books. You can
reach her at www.RabbiShefaGold.
com.

Community Conversation on Security

On Wednesday evening, November 7th, the Jewish Federation of New Mexico hosted its first community conversation on securing Jewish institutions at the JCC. Over 50 attended
a discussion of how Jewish organizations are working to secure our community. The panel included leadership from three Albuquerque synagogues, officials from the Albuquerque
Police Department, an FBI delegation that included New Mexico Special Agent in Charge James Langenberg, and U.S. Attorney John Anderson. Photos courtesy of Tammy Peter.
Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779 The New Mexico Jewish Link 17

Growth is at the Edges: Nahalat Shalom Continues the Experiment

By Rabbi Min Kantrowitz
Rabbinic Advisor to the Nahalat
Shalom Board of Directors
It’s another experiment!  Since
its birth in 1982, Congregation
Nahalat Shalom has been experi-
menting.  As a welcoming, inclu-
sive congregation with a mission to
inspire understanding of the joys,
practices, and ethics of Judaism and
to nurture spiritual growth, Congre-
gation Nahalat Shalom is constant-
ly reinventing itself.  Now using a
previously untried approach to spir-
itual leadership, it is being served
by nine (NINE!) different ordained
Jewish clergy, each of whom are
offering their unique strength to the
growing congregation of more than
150 members.  variety of interests and practices of
Congregation Nahalat Shalom is
associated with the Jewish Renew-
al movement, an approach which is
egalitarian, progressive, ecological,
feminist, joyful, musical, inclusive,
spiritual and devoted to meaningful
Jewish learning and practice.  High
Holidays, led this year by Rabbi
Shefa Gold, were innovative, excit-
ing, deep and powerful.
The nine clergy who serve the
congregation were ordained by
Jewish Renewal, Reconstructionist,
Reform, Conservative and trans-de-
nominational training programs.  by Cantor Beth Cohen, Ethical
Reflecting this diversity, our
Shabbat services offer a variety
of experiences, including a fairly
traditional but highly participatory
services led by Cantor JoAnn Rice,
a Renewal service led by Rab-
bi Chavah Carp, meditation and
chanting services, Der Freylekher
Shabbes service led by Cantor Beth
Cohen with klezmer music and
dance, and Casa Sefarad Shabbat
dinner and celebration, led by Rab-
bi Jordi Gendra-Molina. (The web-
site specifies which type of service
is happening on which Friday eve-
ning and Saturday morning—see
nahalatshalom.org).  This approach
is designed to both reflect the wide
the congregation and to offer the
opportunity for people to expand
their spiritual experiences.  ty-five years, Cantor Beth Cohen,
And it’s not only Shabbat re-
ligious services that are diverse.  Querque, a three day internation-
Regular spiritual opportunities in-
clude a chanting circle with Rabbi
Shefa Gold, and two meditation
groups led by Robin Berman. Ed-
ucational opportunities for adults
include introductory/intermediate
Hebrew, Beyond the Torah study
group (peer-led), trope (how to
chant from the Torah scroll) taught
Will taught by Rabbi Paul Citrin,
and Returning to the Original Ha-
sidic Teachings of the Ba’al Shem
Tov taught by Reb Moshe Aharon
(Miles Krassen).
Serving children and families,
the congregation hired Rabbi Cha-
vah Carp as director of family edu-
cation to coordinate the children’s
religious education programs for
pre-K-7 students and B’nai Mitz-
vah preparation.   music, and art. Casa Sefard is led
While we celebrate Jewish holi-
days with prayer, music, dance and
food, as do most congregations, we
are unique in having two in-house
klezmer bands and a Jewish dance
troupe! Our community has always
attracted and supported the arts and
artists of all kinds. Led by the con-
gregation’s cantor of nearly twen-
Nahalat Shalom sponsors Klezmer-
ally recognized annual festival of
klezmer music and dance. Nahalat
Shalom also has an art gallery,
which is currently featuring works
by members of the congregation in
an exhibit “This is Who We Are.”
Nahalat Shalom is the home of
Casa Sefarad, which for more than
twenty years has been providing
an inclusive, welcoming and safe
place to celebrate Sephardic heri-
tage. Casa Sefarad hosts a monthly
Sephardic/Crypto-Jewish/Anusim
Shabbat Dinner in Ladino, Hebrew,
Spanish and English and produces
the annual Festival Djudeo-Espan-
yol, which celebrates the history
and culture of the Iberian Jewish
presence in New Mexico (and be-
yond) through workshops, Shabbat,
socialization, and sharing food,
by a team including Rabbi Jordi
Gendra-Molina, who has been sup-
porting the group for a decade and
now serves as the director of Casa
Sefarad.
We recently enjoyed welcoming
a new Torah into our safekeeping
from the shrinking congregation
in Roswell, New Mexico. We also
welcomed members of that congre-
gation who are now automatically
members of Nahalat Shalom as we
honor this Torah with a new life in
a new home.  We marked another
milestone this year by consecrating
our own cemetery, located within
La Puerta Natural Burial Ground,
a 40-acre private, serene, conser-
vation burial site at the base of the
Manzano Mountains. 
Our membership is extraordi-
narily diverse, in age, race, family
constellation, gender identity, mar-
ital status, religious affiliation and
training; now our spiritual leader-
ship reflects this diversity.
People are drawn to Nahalat
Shalom because of the accepting,
non-hierarchical and joy-filled at-
mosphere that permeates what we
do. This innovative approach has
challenges, of course.  Nahalat
Shalom is a kind of umbrella that
shelters a wide variety of religious
experiences.  Once in a while, the
umbrella might spring a little leak,
and some parts of the experiment
might need to be improved or even
abandoned.  But that is what cre-
ative Judaism is about.  In religion,
as in biology, growth is at the edg-
es. Nahalat Shalom is exploring the
edges, and is growing. 

When they go low, we go CHAI!

Soul Blues
By Diane Joy Schmidt
After certain experiences in my
life, I was never able to be at home
in my own skin, I felt an undercur-
rent of unease, that I had no right
to be here. I ran around looking
for respect, validation, vindica-
tion, love, or even, like, would do.
Hell, I’d settle at least for accep-
tance.
I’d sometimes get recognition,
affection, love, but it didn’t ad-
here, it didn’t stick, it was like
when the body cannot process
nutrients, the good feelings would
the evil tongue, a person who
Celebrate life with your community.
We like you just the way you are!
_________________________________________________________________________
spreads stories about someone. In
Sunday, December 2, 4:00 - 8:00 pm, Nahalat Shalom
the Jewish tradition it is a serious
sin. Whether the stories are true or Nahalat Shalom Hanukah Festival
not doesn’t matter, this is slander. Join us as we light candles and celebrate the first night
It causes harm. For me, it had cast of Hanukah with music and dancing with Cantor Beth
a shadow that reached across my and the Nahalat Shalom Community Klezmer Band,
whole life. It was a pattern that latkes, food, silent auction, raffle, family fun, puppet
would repeat.
When I finally wrote about this
show and more. Support your community and have fun
horrible experience, which I had in this FUN RAISER!-
__________________________________________________________________________
never clearly faced before, over
the next days a new sense of my- Thursdays 4:30-6:15 pm: Grades K-8 / Sundays: Pre-K
self came to me. It was exactly Cheder – our inclusive Hebrew School
like a part of me returned that I Rabbi Chavah Carp, Director of Family Education
didn’t even realize had gone miss- ___________________________________________________________________________

fade quickly, I was soon starving
again.
It didn’t occur to me that what
I needed was self-acceptance,
self-respect, self-love, self-vali-
dation. You’re supposed to learn
those things when you’re a young
adult. But for some of us, it takes
a lifetime.
Over many years, decades real-
ly, I sought healing. Prayers were
said for me. Over years, layers
healed, and then there would be
more underneath, like an onion. I
also had to do the work.
Quite recently, while writing
poetry, it happened that I faced
some deep humiliations I had ex-
perienced fifty years ago. In junior
high school, certain girls who
were mean and jealous spread evil
gossip about me, what today we
call social bullying. This is what
in Hebrew is called Lashon Hara,
ing. It was like meeting a long-
lost friend that I welcomed in my
soul’s house. Perhaps it had been
waiting out there somewhere, like
the experience, all those many
years. I experienced a kind of re-
demption, grace and self-forgive-
ness.
The New Moon of that month
marked the beginning of the High
Holy Days of the Jewish tradition
with Rosh Hashanah, the New
Year, and at sunset on September
18th began Yom Kippur, the Day
of Atonement. We reflect during
this time on those things we wish
to ask forgiveness for, to atone for
and, most importantly, we prac-
tice self-forgiveness. Each year
I have a deeper understanding of
what that means, and especially
this year.
I’d like to say, I’ll never be
lonely or self-doubting again. It’s
not like that. But new growth is
taking place in my soul and that
undercurrent of anxiety, of emp-
tiness and fear that, like a dull
hum in the background you forget
is there, has lessened. There has
been “post-traumatic growth,” a
phrase I’ve heard recently that I
like. I feel respect and acceptance
for myself. I am allowed to be
here, to have faith in myself, I can
trust my judgments. I can breathe.
It has been a long journey. I think
that is a blessing and spiritual heal-
ing for which I am truly grateful.
Read more at dianejoyschmidt.
com
SIX Different Shabbat Experiences
• Der Freylekher Shabbes
and Potluck Dinner (1st Friday)
• Sephardic / Crypto-Jewish Shabbat Dinner
and Celebration (2nd Friday)
• Renewal Shabbat (2rd Saturday)
• Queer Shabbat (4th Friday)
• Chanting Kabbalat Shabbat (4th Friday)
• Tent Minyan (last Saturday)
___________________________________________________________________________
SAVE the DATE: February 14-17, 2019
17th Annual KlezmerQuerque Festival 2019
Four day of performances, dance parties, video
presentations, hands-on workshops and more!!
Visit our website for details:
www.nahalatshalom.org
Nahalat Shalom
3606 Rio Grande Blvd. NW
ABQ NM 87107 505-343-8227
office@nahalatshalom.org
18 The New Mexico Jewish Link
ADL Staff Makes Connections and Builds Relationships in New Mexico
ADL’s mountain states re- week long Holocaust Education program presented by the
gional office has begun to Olga Lengyel Institute for Holocaust Studies and Human
deliver education programs Rights and coordinated by veteran educators in the region.
across the state of New Mex- Ms. Raju met 30 dedicated educators who spent a week
ico. Shannon Davis, a teach- of their summer vacation learning about new resources,
er at Gadsden Middle School information and strategies to teach the Holocaust to their
in Anthony, connected with students. The conference provided a perfect opportunity
ADL’s education work through for Ms. Raju to introduce educators to a wealth of ADL
a pamphlet sent to her school information and resources, including lessons plans, edu-
about the student essay contest Tara Raju cator blogs and other materials. Educators expressed ap-
A Tribute to Moral Courage: preciation for being able to use ADL’s resources directly
Standing Up Against Injustice this spring. Her 7th and 8th in their classrooms.
grade students researched, wrote and submitted essays to Ms. Raju met with leaders at Albuquerque Public
ADL’s 2018 contest. Ms. Davis found a valuable way to Schools, a school district with over 90,000 students, and
connect her students to the history of the Holocaust and to began to lay the groundwork to launch ADL’s flagship
the idea of standing up against injustice just by participat- No Place for Hate initiative. At the Mexican Consulate,
ing in the ADL project. Ms. Raju trained consulate staff about issues of bullying
Tara Raju, ADL regional director of education, met and cyberbullying in schools, and provided resources that
Ms. Davis on a trip to Albuquerque when both attended the consulate can share with members of the community.
an Echoes & Reflections workshop presented as part a Plans are in place to provide two additional workshops
MitzVote: Hillel
Students Encourage
Civic Participation
On November 1, students from the Aaron David Bram
Hillel House at the University of New Mexico held a
voting party as a part of a nation-wide effort to increase
voter turn-out among the youngest voters. UNM Hillel
partnered with Hillel International and Vote Together for
this non-partisan event which welcomed over 70 stu-
dents for a party complete with cake, games, photo booth
and general merriment.
Scams & Cons:
How to Spot Them, Avoid Them
and (Sometimes) Fix Them*
Presented by Michael McGuire, Staff Attorney
Senior Citizens’ Law Office
FREE Seminar – February 7th
9:00 – 10:30 AM
JCC, 5520 Wyoming Blvd. NE
Join us for refreshments and practical
answers to an all too common dilemma.
*Tips to help Cover Your Assets so you can enjoy retirement
and donate to your favorite charitable endowments!
Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779
this fall regarding hate crimes and the anti-immigrant
movement, all as part of a relationship ADL has estab-
lished with the Mexican government.  
ADL has also been working with Jewish teens and their
allies in our state, empowering them to stand up to an-
ti-Semitism now and when they get to college, through
its Words to Action program. Trainings were held at
the University of New Mexico Hillel, Congregation Al-
bert, BBYO’s J-Serve Mitzvah Day, and at Camp Oran-
im. ADL Senior Associate Director Sue Parker Gerson
worked locally with senior educator Susan Bapty. Al-
buquerque teacher Scott Melton participated in ADL’s
national Train-the-Trainer program in order to facilitate
additional programming next year.
Building relationships continues to be a critical part of
the ADL mountain states’ regional work in New Mexi-
co to ensure ADL is meeting the community’s needs.
Additionally, ADL will continue its focus on providing
resources to schools, law enforcement, community mem-
bers and more.
Rosh Hashanah Meets
Batman with a Mustard Stain
By K.E. Enzweiler
There’s nothing like a good comedy of errors to get your first
official holiday as a newly converted Jew started off right. Ours
was the Sunday night services of Rosh Hashanah. That day, my
wife and I were vending at a healing arts fair. The fair went all
day, from 9 am to 5 pm. This meant that we had to be up and run-
ning by 6 am. Knowing that we would not have time to go home
and change in between the fair and services, we had our clothes
ready and packed.
About halfway through the fair, I started getting sick. I ended
up in the car trying to cool down while the sweat poured off of me.
I got the better end of the deal as my wife kept going until closing.
Luckily, at the end of the event, many people helped us pack up.
That, however, didn’t stop the heat, dust, and dirt from making its
home all over our clothes. As we got into the car, we heard a voice
screaming “Stop! I have something for you!” A friend handed us
a ziploc bag, it nestled between us as we drove away.
At that point, I was really worried about my wife. She is dia-
betic, and was not looking good. During her hours of vending,
she rarely stops to eat or drink, that is why I accompany her. It’s
my job to make sure that her blood sugar doesn’t get too low. But
because I was in the car and she was so busy with customers, she
simply forgot to take care of herself.
As soon as we were buckled up, I quickly went to the first place
that I could find to get her something to eat and drink. She was a
little bit out of it, a lovely shade of green, and she was closing her
eyes and holding her head.
I got us both burgers and something to drink, then I parked for
a few minutes. It had been a really busy day and we were both
drained, she worse than I. After 10 minutes, I drove over to shul
and we sat in the parking lot. That’s when the reality of our situ-
ation hit us.
The clothes for shul where at home sitting on the kitchen count-
er. My Batman t-shirt had a big mustard stain on it and my wife
was dressed for vending. She was in one of her dresses that shows
a fair amount of cleavage, and that had now become the home of
burger crumbs.
I could not believe it. I got to thinking really quickly, if we
could wear tallit, then we could pull it off. I texted a dear friend
to double check to see if we could wear tallit. Of course, the an-
swer was no, it was an evening service. As I put the phone down
my wife and I caught each other’s eyes and then we both looked
down at the ziploc bag between us. It was filled with blackened
BBQ pork ribs.
At that point I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry or what.
This was our big kickoff, our first event as one of the Jewish Peo-
ple. What just happened?
It was very obvious that my wife couldn’t come inside consid-
ering what she was wearing. I however took a very deep breath
and went inside. Me, Batman, and my newly formed mustard
stain. I thought I was really slick when the gentleman leading the
services said hi and I blurted out “Batman is Jewish.”
I bet he didn’t even notice the mustard.
Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779 The New Mexico Jewish Link 19

By Helen Horwitz
The Christmas Tree selection had been picked over and proceeded to McClellan’s where my vision of hiding the tree’s woeful extra special that year. But perhaps
only a few scraggly, misshapen we again found bare counters and shape. most important, I never again even
I believed in Santa Claus until specimens remained. We settled on shelves in the Christmas decorations Back at home, Don and I started to thought of having a Christmas tree.
shortly after Christmas 1948. That’s the best of them, and as Don carried section. hang the ornaments on the tree and I Every year since Christmas 1949,
when one of my classmates at Lew it home I planned how glittering or- Our last option was Kress, which I felt tears of disappointment welling I enjoy the season – even if it isn’t
Wallace Elementary convinced me naments and carefully hung tinsel usually avoided; to my child’s nose, up in my eyes because my dream of my holiday. In fact, some of my
that her father – not Santa Claus – would camouflage its obvious short- the store always smelled musty and a perfect, story-book Christmas tree most treasured memories are of the
placed her presents under their tree comings. foul. Kress had a few ornaments was not to be. Then, for reasons my people and experiences on these past
on Christmas Eve. Her father didn’t Next, we walked a few blocks left, but instead of shiny glass balls young mind couldn’t define, I real- Christmases. Here in Albuquerque,
like peanut butter, so she had pur- downtown to shop for ornaments. of green, red, blue and silver, these ized that not only did I not want this the luminarias and holiday lights
posely left Santa a plate of peanut As always, big, bright Woolworth’s were muddy pink plastic orbs. tree, but I also didn’t want – or need give me joy, and until two years
butter cookies. Sure enough, the at Fourth and Central was my first Blue streaks that looked like veins – any tree. ago I’ve sensed more kindness and
cookies were still there on Christ- choice – but when we arrived, we coursed across their surfaces. The ornaments went back in the goodwill among people.
mas morning. discovered the store had completely We bought a box of the awful box, and Don threw the pitiful lit- But I will never forget my first
This other eight-year-old’s qua- sold out of bulbs and tinsel. Cross- pink bulbs and returned home. Kress tle fir in the trash. And just as my and only Christmas tree, an object
si-scientific experiment fed the ing to the south side of Central, we had sold all its tinsel; so much for parents had hinted, Chanukah was lesson in understanding who I am.
seeds of doubt I already had about
Santa Claus. After confronting my
mother – who revealed the painful
reality to me – I was devastated by
this coming-of-age truth.
Because we were Jewish, my
Israel Fest: Fun for the Whole Community
On Sunday, November 4, over
family never had a tree, but Decem- 200 people came together to
ber in my home was always a fes- celebrate Israel’s 70th birthday
tive time. Every Christmas morning, at North Domingo Baca Park
Santa had magically slipped down in Albuquerque. The event fea-
the chimney and left me presents on tured a performance by Congre-
our fireplace hearth. We also lit Cha- gation Albert’s religious school
nukah candles on all eight nights and students, games and activities
we dined on latkes. There were eight for the whole family, schmooz-
nights of presents, too, although un- ing, birthday cupcakes, and
til my post-Santa Claus years they even Bamba (an Israeli peanut
were more modest than what Santa and puffed corn snack)! Partici-
brought me. pants from many different back-
We had other traditions as well. grounds and ways of life joined
On Christmas Day, my mother got in the celebration of Israel and
Kristin Gurule (left) and Deborah Sara Koplik (left) and Zach Benjamin welcome Nicole
up early to prepare a huge turkey our Jewish community.
Albrycht prepare for Israel Fest. Walker and Kenneth Brown from the Navajo Nation.
dinner. After my grandfather came
to live with us in 1945, we cele-
brated his birthday on December
25th and this meal became his birth-
day celebration. Grandpa Markus
hadn’t known his birthdate in the
Old Country, and when he had to
declare one after he immigrated, he
chose December 25th. He reasoned
that if the date was good enough for
one Jewish boy, it was good enough
for him.
But in 1949, when December
came again, I was in anguish. Al-
though I knew very well we were
Jewish, and my parents had been
hinting that Chanukah would be
very special this year, I ached for
a Christmas tree – something ab-
solutely forbidden in our home. As
only a nine-year-old can do, I tor-
mented my parents, nagging and Even the dogs were in a Religious school students from Congregation Albert perform.
generally irritating them non-stop festive mood.
with my pleas for a tree.
Finally, a few days before Christ-
mas and to my complete astonish-
ment, they gave in.
My mother took out a ball of

ber a nd
Rememlan ahead .
twine, a yardstick and some scis-
sors. Next, she carefully measured
and cut a 24-inch length, which she
handed to my brother, Don.
“Take Helen to the tree lot and
help her pick out one,” she directed
him. “But it can be no taller than the
p
length of this piece of twine.”
I was overjoyed, because even a The Jewish Section at La Puerta Natural Burial Ground:
small tree could be magnificent! In For Jewish People and Their Families
my mind’s eye, I was visualizing Simple, low cost, environmentally sound, and respectful.
how stunningly beautiful it would
be after I had decorated it.
But when my brother and I ar- For more information go to naturalburialnewmexico.com
rived at the tree lot on Tijeras, the
20 The New Mexico Jewish Link Fall/Winter 2018 - Stav/Horef 5779

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JCC Book Fest: Six Visiting Authors in 16 Days

By Phyllis Wolf

The 10th annual JCC book fest and

visiting author series (October 15-No-
vember1) is in the books! 425 book
lovers attended six author presenta-
tions which inspired, entertained, ed-
ucated and engaged. Rachel Kadish
kicked off this year’s series with over
120 attending on a Monday night. Au-
dience members gave her high acco-
lades: “energetic, charismatic speaker;
wonderful discussion of what fiction
is and how important it is an art form.
I especially liked how the author set
about writing her novel.”
Additional highlights of this year’s
fest included Izzy Ezagui, a young US
Jewish American man who served in
the IDF at 19, losing his arm in battle,
and still returned to the frontlines after
healing. Audience members repeated-
ly remarked that Izzy is “personable,
engaging and inspiring with great
warmth.”
Joyce Maynard, author of 16 books
both fiction and nonfiction, charmed
the audience with her openness, intel-
ligence, poignancy, generosity. The
bagel luncheon prepared by Ruth
Rachel Kadish and the JCC’s
book selection committee.
Rosenstein’s Rhubarb & Elliott also
received rave reviews. The 16 days
wrapped up with a rousing presen-
tation by Stephen Fried, author of
Benjamin Rush, who brought to life
the early years of the founding of our
country. Several in attendance com-
mented: “I appreciated Fried’s enthu-
siasm and explanation of his use of
primary sources and how he shared
several situations of yesteryear that
were relevant to those of today.”
The last speaker of the 2018-19
Book Fest is celebrated Jewish chef,
author and blogger, Amy Kritzer, who
Book Fest audience.
will appear at ABQ NoshFest on Sun-
day, January 13 at 2 pm as this year’s
“Nosh Talk” featured chef. Amy
will discuss her best-selling Sweet
Noshings: New Twists on Tradition-
al Jewish Desserts. With stories of
life as a Jew in Texas, and plenty of
kitsch, Amy’s modern interpretations
of classic recipes bring new light to
old favorites and creates a whole new
unique cuisine. Amy will also demo a
recipe and provide samples! For more
information about ABQ NoshFest and
Nosh Talk, visit abqnoshfest.com or
jccabq.org.

Make Your Reservations

Early for the
Jewish Federation of
New Mexico’s
Jane and Stephen Hochberg
Annual Community Seder of
Northern New Mexico
Friday, April 19th at 6:00pm
Drury Plaza Hotel
228 East Palace Avenue, Santa Fe NM 87501

Catered kosher-style by

Restaurant

For reservations, call Kristen Gurule at (505) 821-3214 or email kristen@jewishnewmexico.org