September 27, 2024 | 24 Elul 5784
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Candlelighting 6:50 p.m. | Havdalah 7:47 p.m. | Vol. 67, No. 39 | pittsburghjewishchronicle.org
This holiday season rabbis are thinking about Israel — and say you should too
Jewish/Arab relations expert visits Pittsburgh
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Local Jewish institutions plan for safe and secure High Holiday season
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A shofar is raised near the Western Wall. By Adam Reinherz | Senior Staff Writer
Olympian A.J. Edelman comes to The Carnegie Shul
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Israel advocacy — and comedy
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An interview with Michael Rapaport
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s the holiday season approaches, rabbis are refining ideas, retooling speeches and preparing to engage more people in the pews. The backdrop, however, is that midway through the Days of Awe communities will mark one year since the Oct. 7 massacre by Hamas in Israel. Both the attack and subsequent 12 months are weighing heavily on Temple Sinai’s Rabbi Daniel Fellman. “I’m clearly thinking about what it means to be a Jew in America today and what it means to be a Jew in the world today,” he said. “This last year has been brutally painful in too many ways to count. I suspect my words on the holidays will talk about Israel, very directly, antisemitism and anti-Zionism, but will also wrestle with what it means to be a Jew in the world today, what it means to be a Jew in America, and more intimately, what it means to be a Jew in Pittsburgh and in our Reform Jewish community. And, where are we headed?” This won’t be the first time Fellman has raised those questions since Oct. 7. “I’ve been having conversations with congregants all the way through,” he said. Dor Hadash’s Rabbi Amy Bardack has thought and taught much about Israel during the past year, but won’t speak about the Jewish state or its war with Hamas from the pulpit this holiday season.
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“I never incorporate Israel into sermons. I incorporate it into readings,” she said. “Everyone has a lot of thoughts about Jewish life post-Oct. 7, but that’s not something that any of us at Dor Hadash would directly address from the bimah.” Throughout its nearly 60-year history, Dor Hadash has been primarily member-led. Bardack, the congregation’s first full-time rabbi, was hired in 2022. During Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, she’ll speak only once. Other speeches will be delivered by lay leaders and will cover a range of topics. Although none of the High Holiday addresses will involve Israel or the war, Bardack hasn’t shied from the subject. “We provide lots of different sessions to talk about Israel,” she said. “We did classes on anti-Zionism and antisemitism. We engage in learning about Israel, just through other mechanisms like dialogue and education — everything that happens not on Shabbat. “It’s not that we don’t talk about Israel,” she explained. “We just do it through other learning mechanisms.” Rabbi Hindy Finman, senior director of Jewish life at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh, said her seasonal efforts are in response to conversations she’s had with community members as well as internal and external stakeholders. Please see Rabbis, page 18
Shawn Brokos, security director for the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh
Photo by James Uncapher
By David Rullo | Senior Staff Writer
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re you concerned about ringing in 5785 given the rash of worrisome headlines over the last year? Shawn Brokos, director of community security for the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, understands your concerns, and she and her team are working to create a safe High Holiday season for the entire Pittsburgh Jewish community. “We are doing everything we can to ensure the safety and security of all of our locations,” Brokos said. “That means working with each of our organizations to make sure that they have appropriate security in place.” In some cases, that security might be visible: additional police presence or armed guards. Other times, it won’t be as apparent. Security will be a welcome presence as the number of antisemitic incidents continues to rise following Hamas’ invasion of Israel on Oct. 7. A partial list of attacks against the local Jewish community over the last year includes antisemitic graffiti at Chabad of Squirrel Hill, the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh and private residences; a Jewish university student Please see Security, page 18
L'Shana Tova!
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