Speaking About Sderot, Gillibrand Gets Choked Up
By Nathan Guttman
An unusually emotional moment at the Orthodox Union’s annual Senate luncheon Tuesday.
Among those stopping by to greet the OU activists, who spent two days in Washington for the group’s leadership mission, was the new senator from New York Kirsten Gillibrand. As she took to the podium, Gillibrand began talking about her recent trip to Israel and quickly choked up with tears. She told the activists about the rabbi she had met in Israel who told her the story of a girl from Sderot, who said she did not want any toys; her only wish was that Hamas shoots the rockets later on in the day, so she doesn’t have to run for shelter in fear on her way to school.
As she continued talking about her meeting with Sderot parents and children, who had been living under Hamas rocket threat, Senator Gillibrand paused for a moment and tried to overcome the tears.
“It was so emotional for me,” she told the crowd. Adding that talking about the suffering of children in Sderot made her think of her own two kids, both were at home sick.
July 20, 2009, 2:22pm
OU Booklet Alleges Vatican Collaboration With Hezbollah
By Gabrielle Birkner
A booklet that alleges that the Vatican is in cahoots with Hezbollah was published by a branch of the Orthodox Union and was, until recently, being distributed to Israeli solders. Haaretz is reporting that the booklet — purported to be narrated by a Hezbollah leader who converted to Judaism, changed his name to Avi, and spied for Israel — asserts that Catholic prelates lead members of the Iran-backed terrorist group Hezbollah on concentration camp tours in order to teach them how to kill Jews.
In a press release, the New York-based Orthodox Union said the decision to endorse the text, which was published in conjunction with the chief rabbi of Safed, had been made by staffers in Israel, and had not been approved by the organization’s senior management. The statement reads:
While the Haaretz report certainly sensationalized the book’s contents, there is no doubt that some of what it contains is antithetical to the well-known views of the OU regarding respect for other faiths and their leaders. The OU rescinds the endorsement of the book and disavows any connection to the views expressed in it. The OU’s senior leadership has directed that an internal review of this incident take place, and that the organization tighten its procedures to ensure that such a situation is not repeated. The Orthodox Union expresses its sincere regret to those of other faiths who may have been embarrassed or offended by the publication of this work.
The IDF, alerted to what a spokesman called “the sensitivity of [the booklet’s] content,” has stopped giving the pamphlet to its ranks, according to Haaretz.
May 6, 2008, 2:14pm
Mama, Don’t Let Your Rabbis Grow Up To Be Cowboys
By Daniel Treiman
When Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Weinreb took the reins at the Orthodox Union in 2002, observers took note of the fact that the new executive vice-president of the centrist congregational umbrella group was fond of wearing a black hat of the sort popular in more religiously right-leaning precincts. Now that Weinreb is wrapping up his tenure, I’m left wondering whether his newly named successor, Rabbi Steven Weil of Beth Jacob Congregation in Beverly Hills, will wear a cowboy hat.
Granted, I have no evidence whatsoever that Weil actually wears cowboy hats. But the Lyndonville, N.Y., native is, apparently, something of a country music fanatic.
On Beth Jacob’s Web site, Weil’s biographical page reveals a set of interests that one wouldn’t necessarily expect from a leader of American Orthodoxy.
Among his favorite Web sites, he lists www.mesorah.org and www.yu.edu — nothing too unusual so far. But then, for his third and final choice, there’s this one: www.cmt.com. (For all you city slickers, that’s the site for Country Music Television.)
Then, under hobbies, he lists “The Rambam” and “country music.”
Given Weil’s taste in music, we shouldn’t be too surprised that when he turns east to Zion, he also sees another locale beckoning. Responding to the prompt “I will retire and live in..”, he answers: “Israel or Nashville, TN.”
So let’s all wish the O.U.’s next executive vice-president a big mazel tov — and a yee haw!
Advertisements
Advertisements