Page 4 - The Canadian Jewish News, Thursdayj August 16, 1984
M-T
Rabbi Barak
By
RABBI MOSES J. BURAK
Question: I attend the Daf Yoml group every ;i| day in my synagogue. Since 1 am unable to 11 study a blatt gemarra by myself, what do I do II when I go on vacation?
Itis important to learn and study at least one 11 blatt gemarra each day. Some may ask whether :| that is enough. But, 11 the Gaon Rabbi Meir li Schapira z.l. saw that ji an hour a day for a ii blatt was an attain-|; able goaL There were II others who had the II idea before him, but: 11 he alone implement-|; edit^and preseinted it 11 in such a dramatic i:; way that it caught the' |: imagination of the i; Jewish masses, so that today, all over the 11 world, the same pages of the Talmudic |; Tractate a:re studied on the same day.
Forsake this program for a day, and you are || lost. The rhythm and the continuity are gone.
What should you do? You have to plan your II itinerary the way a young athlete I knCw, some II 30 years ago, planned his travels. One II summer, I noticed a young man who played II tennis,^hen golf, arid spent endless hours in II the svv^irnming pool. He had come from Chicago II with his wife a:nd two small children to spend |i the summer in the inountains of New York. II Noticing his obsession with the pool, and II knowing that he had motored all the way from II Chicago, I asked him what he did about II swimming during his long journey,
He replied that he planned his trip carefully II in such a way that he stopped, each day, at a i: hotel or motel where there was a swimming II pool; The same thing must be done by a Daf |; Yomi scholar when planning his vacation. You ;| must plan to stay only at such places where the ;| Daf Yonii is on the daily program. And this ii program of learning a daily blatt gemarra in a II group goes pn almost every where. 11 kosher foo^ found all over the land, and II for those to whom a daily blatt statisfies their 1^ spiritual hunger such as study group will be || found in abiondance.
When visiting Miami in the winter, I heard |i that the Gaon Rabbi Yaakov Kameriecki shlita II was saying the Daf Ybmi each day, in the Beth II Midrash of the hotel where he was staying. II Being a stranger there, I didn't find the^otel so il easily, and arrived after the blatt had already II been started. Six tables were fully occupied II with men who had come from far and near, and II I found thelast seat available.
The old rav sat in his slippers, a:nd explained II the gemarra in his soft Litvishe nasal drawl; II and the people listened in awe as he expressed II the ideas of the most complex passages, simply :| and sweetly. No questions were asked of him II for elucidation. It was enough for them to have II heard him. The rebbetsin passed by the door,
II from time to time, checking on his voice; if his II diction was clear, his health was good.
This summer, seeking to escape the Toronto II heat and the telephone, I went to the 11 Homowack Hotel hi thle Catskills. Here, too, I 11 found the Daf Yomi on the daily program. A Ii young Gaon, Rabbi Shlomo Kovitz shlita of |i New York, giveis the blatt with clarity and skill. Il The attendance at the blatt was modest in size; JI the questions asked were sharp... and still the |: blatt was completed in one hoiir, from 10 to 11 |> in the morning.
I Thus, you see that a Daf Yomi is available at
II resort hotels even if the majority of the patrons II favor the swimming, skating, and other enter-I tainments. So, make sure you arrange your |: vacation at a place where scholars gather for § their daily blatt. Should you be going, 1; however, to fish for Arctic,char, you had better I take along your tape recorder and buy some ;|; gemarra tapes so you keep up with your S chaverim and their studies.
Q Canadian Jewish Congress SMALL COMMUNITIES COMMITTEE
Small Communities requiring >. theservices of a
Rabbi and/or Cantor
Please contact Sam Miller, u „ Canadian Jewish Congress, Montreal, Quebec H3G1C5 or phone (514) 931-7531.
Election Update
Tough batte in Metro ridings
By ■; PAULLUNGEN
In politics there is usually no sure thing ... and at this stage of the election campaign the final outcome is certainly in doubt;
One truism that may hold this year is that what happens in Metro Toronto's 23 ridings will have a significant impact in dietermining who leads Canada after Sept.
According to figures supplied by the Canada-Israel Committee baised on the 1981 census, approximately 110,000 Jews^Tlve in seven key Metro iridlngs. And of those seven ridings with the largest Jewish population, four are held by the Liberals, two by. the Tories and one by the New Democrats.
\Vhat makes that statistic especially significant is that in five of them — Willbwdale, St. Paul's, Don Valley East, York North and Spadina (the others are Eglinton-Lawrence and Don Valley West) — the margin of victory enjoyed by the winning candidate in the last elections was less than the number of Jewish votes.
In 1980, Willowdale's 26,320 Jews accounted for 28.8^^0 of the population, as Liberal Jim Peterson took the riding with a 10.1 % plurality.
Even in Spadina, the Metro area with the smallest Jewish population, Dan Heaps' .9% margin of victory was much less than the 4.i % that, the area's 3,000 Jews account for.
In Willowdale, Peterson will be seeking reelection in battles with two candidates who have never held political office before. Economist John OOstrom is representing the Conservatives, while lawyer John Pagan is the N DP candidate.
In St. Paul's, Employment and Immigration Minister John Roberts is seeking reelection in the seat he's held for nine of the last 10 years. He's facing a stiff challenge from economic analyst and writer Barbara Mcbougall of the Conservatives and businessman John Webb of the New Democrats. ;
In this traditional swing riding — it backed Joe Clark in 1979, the Liberals in 1980 — the 17.285 Jewish residents represent 22.8% of the population. In 1980, Roberts won by 5.9% of the vote.
In Eglinton-Lawrence, Incumbent Hev. Roland de Comellle did not face that sort of tight race in 1980. He took more than 50% of the vote last time around.
There are about__ 13,860 Jews in Eglinton-Lawrence — or 16.3% of the population — who'll choose between de Cor-neille, businessman Dan La Caprara of the Tories and high school teacher Marlene Miller of the NDP.
A riding with an even larger Jewish population is Don Valley East, where 16,425 Jews make their homes. If 1980 was any indication, Liberal David Smith will be in a very tight race. He took the riding in the last election by 825 votes.
This year he'll be facing Tory Bill Attewell, while Joe MacDonald is running for the NDP.
In York Centre, Solicitor-General Robert Kaplan will be defending the seat he's held since 1974. Kaplan won the seat with 64% of the vote in 1980, while the riding's 13,015 Jews account for 12.7% of the population.
Contesting the seat are lawyer Michael Cohen for the Conservatives and Van Newell for the New Democrats.
In York North, John Gamble of the Conservatives is standing for reelection in a riding he won by a 2.9% plurality in 1980. The area's 11,170 Jews comprise 7.7% of the population of the riding.
Opposing Gamble are Aldo ToUis of the Grits, Doris Schwar of the NDP, and an independent, Tony Roman. _
In Don Valley West, . Conservative John - Bosley took over 50% of the vote last time around. Challenging him are David Wishart of the Liberals and Ian Cameron of the NDP.
The 7.250 Jews of the constituency make up 8.5% of the population.
Finally, the Metro riding which could see the closest race is Spadina. In a 1981 by-election, the NDP's Dan
Heap squeaked by Liberal Jim Coutts, Pierre Trudeau's former secretary, by about 200 votes. Joining the race this year is Alderman Ying Hope of the Tories.
In the West. Winnipeg's Jewish community has traditionally been centred in two ridings — Winnipeg North and : Winnipeg-Assiniboine.
The larger of the two, Winnipeg North had 7.305 Jewish residents — or.8.3% of the population — while* at last count, Winnipeg-Assiniboine had 4,650, or 4.8%.
David Orlikow of the New Democrats has rep-, resented Winnipeg North since 1962.' This year Tory Luba Fedokiw and Liberal Chris Lorenc are challenging his hold on the riding.
Tory Dan McKenzie is
the member for Winnipeg-Assiniboine and he is being challenged by Liberal David Matas and Robert Johannson of the NDP.
In Vancouver Centre, where the riding's 1,970 Jews make up 2.4% of the population, Pat Carney js running again for the Tories. In 1980, she took the riding by a 3.7% margin. This year she's opposed by Paul Mannings of the Grits and Johanna Den Hertog of the NDP.
In Ottawa West, where 1,890 Jews reside
. — 2.1% of the population — Liberal Lloyd Francis is seeking re-
"election. Challenging him are David Daubney of the Tories and New Democrat Ross Chapman.
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In the six Montreal ridings where Jews form a substantial proportion of the population -— Mount Royal, Outre-mont,DolIard, St. Henri-. Westmount, Laval and Notre - Dame - de Grace-Lachine East — the Liberals had no trouble bi 1980, whming all the seats by comfortable margins.
Their narrowest victory was by 18,238 votes in St. Henri-Westmount, the home of 9,940 Jews, where Donald Johnston holds the seat.
This time he's being challenged by Bertrand Laforte of the Tories, John H. Thompson of the NDP and Luc Richard of the Parti Nationaliste. Harold Quesnel of the Party for a Commonwealth of Canada and Laurent Alie of the Rhinos are also running.
In the highest profile riding — and the one with the largest Jewish population in Canada, according to the 1981 statistics — Liberal Sheila Finestone is hoping to retain the seat held by former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau (CJN Aug. 2).
The 41,865 Jewish residents of Mount Royal (47.4% of the population) will see Finestone opposed by Nancy Pearson of the NDP. Sharon Wolfe of the Tories, Andre Daoust of the PN, Victor Levis of the Libertarians. Claude Racine of the Rhinos and Independents Guy Huard and MarkSholzed.
In OutremOnt. home of 13.775 Jews (17.8%), Lucie Pepin will be trying to folloNv Marc La-londc in hoiding the riding for the Liberals.
Johannc Beaudin of the- New Democrats,
Anne-Marie Sylvestre of the Tories, Christiane Beland-Gervais of the PCC, Roger Leboeuf of the PN, Claude Hamel of the Rhinos, Francois Lubrina of the Green Party and JoCelyne Rioux of the Communists are also vying for the seat.
In Dollard Louis Des-marais of the Grits is seeking reelection. In the last election he had no trouble taking ;r the seat, winning by 32,093 votes. About 14,360 Jews or 13% of the residents live in Dollard.
Pascal Galasso of the PCC, Gisele Hurtubise of the PN, Sidney In-gernian of the NDP, Hugh Rowe of the Libertarians, Rita (!!!onstantin Truba of the Rhinos and Gerry Weiner of the PCs are also running. (See separate story on Gerry
Weiner).
Marcel Roy of the Grits is running again in Laval, home of 9,680 Jews, where they account for 8.3% of the population.
Opposing him are Tory Guy Ricard, John Fasciano of the NDP, Conrad Moniere of the PN, and Jean-Claude SouvrayofthePCC.
Finally, in the Montreal riding with the smallest of the Jewish populations, Notre-Dame-de-Grace- Lachine East, Xiberal Warren Allmand is seeking .reelection.. ^
About 4.985 people in the riding .or 6.2 % of the residents, are Jewish. Others in the race are Nick Auf der MaUr of the PCs. MicheLCorriveau of the PCC. Rene Cussonof the PN^-Grendon Haines of the NDP and Don McTaggart of the Rhinos.
Nancy Pearson
woman
hopes jbr^^^i^^
MONTREAL-
Nancy Pearson is the "other woman" making her bid to be the member for Mount Royal. She is running for the New Democratic Party against Liberal Sheila Finestone and Progressive Conservative Sharon Wolfe. It may be the first time anywhere that the three parties are fielding women candidates in the same riding.
Pearson, who is Jew-• ish like the other two. is a 24-year-old graduate political student at Concordia University and has been working during the summer as a payroll clerk at Weight Watchers. ■ -—^
She said she was asked by the party to riin ^r-amtindicated she has not been especially active in politics until now.. She lives in the Snowdon district at present but grew up in Chomedey and attended Chomedey High School. She holds an undergraduate degree in communications.
One of her goals in this election is to build up the membership of the local
NDP association, which is presently close to nonexistent.
Among the issues she wants to address in the campaign are the growing number of unemployed youth in the riding and the province, the ' 'continuing neglect" of senior citizens, pension reform, extension of federal health care grants to enable the provinces to provide a system of "pharmacare." and the support, of a nuclear weapons freeze.
Worrien's rights is one of her main concerns. She believes in the principle of equal pay for work of equal value and says she will fight for it in areas under federal jurisdiction.
">^ovY is the time for a policy of positive action via a vis the hiring of women in the federal service, which should set an example for the private sector."
To vote NDP. she says, is to "maintain a conscience and insurance policy for the people of Canada."
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