Page 10 - The Canadian Jewish News, Friday, December 16, 1977
Or^nizations and People
Israel Klavan of Rabbinical Council of America
Sparks from the torah
By RABBI MEIR GOTTESMAN
Parshat Vayigash/Fast of Asarah b'Tevet (Tuesday) Ani Yosef Achichem...l am Joseph your brother...
Emet. Honesty is the Seal of G-d.
In the town where the saintly Machtzlt Hasheliel was rabbi, a Gentile was found stabbed to death. Nearby lay a bloodied knife, which everyone knew to be the rabbi's. Obviously it had been stolen from the rabbi and used to commit the heinous crime so that yet another blood libel could be raised against the Jews.
The townspeople advised the rabbi to deny the knife was his. but at the trial the rabbi stuck to the truth. In the end, he was found completely innocent.
When he was asked why he had been so adamant, the rabbi explained. "1 learned it from Joseph and his brothers. When Joseph insisted that the brothers bring dovim their youngest : brother Benjamin to Egypt to prove they weren't spies, Judah had to fight tooth and nail to get his father Jacob's permission.
"But why couldn't they just take another Jewish boy and claim he was Benjamin? But it shows how far they kept from changing the truth even with life at stake." (Fun Unzen Alten Oitzer)
A Jew is not only allowed to lie. Midvar sheker tircliali... he has to keep faraway from falsehood, even a whiff.
Yiddishkeitis hot just shackling. It's life. Torah means action everywhere.
A religious Jew must care about his less learned brother.
Consider.. .when Joseph wanted to test whether his brothers sincerely regretted having kidnapped him 20 years before, he insisted that they bring Benjamin to him. He threatetied : "If your little brother doesn't come down with you, you won't see my face anymore..."
But between you and me — Joseph was a good Jewish boy, right? How could he be so cruel to his brothers and insist that they drag Benjamin away from his old, grieving father? Where's the yoisher?
Ah, but it teaches... Joseph wasn't just talking about himself. He was telling Jews of every generation what their responsibility is...If our "little brothers", the Jews who never got a real Jewish education, the ones who were never raised in a religious environment — if we don't bring them down with us, teach them, make them one with us, be mluirev them, then how can we stand before the Almighty and say we're good Jews?
"You Won't see my face anymore!" Joseph cried. The Almighty himself cries for all the beautiful neshamas in Toronto who are being neglected because we don't do enough for them-
More irriportant than house committees and high holiday committees, every shul should have a Brother Jew Committee, to reach out to every Jew and give them a chance to learn...(Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev)
Of Course, brotherly love can go too far.
Reb Velvel discovered before Shabbos that he had a $10 bill in his pocket and had to hide it. He opened a chomash and stuck it in the page that read:"Thoushalt not steal!"
After Shabbos, he opened to the pageand it was gone. Instead, he found $5 on the page that read: "Thou Shalt love thy neighbor as thyself..."
When Joseph revealed himself to his brothers, he first sent away all the Egyptians. Why? To teach — whatever faimily fights we Jews may have among ourselves, let's keep it to ourselves.
Our neighbors never have to kiiow our quarrels. (Pninei Kedem)
Shabbat Shalom."
Shaarei TefiUah Synagogue celebrates 25 th anniversary
The material in this column was supplied and space purchased by the United Jewish Appeal
By RUTH GOLDSMITH
TORONTO —
Shaarei Tefillah Congregation celebrated its 25th anniversary on the
first night of Chanuka with the same guest speaker who addressed the synagogue's first High Holy Day services in 1954 — Rabbi Israel Klavan, ex-
ecutive vice-president. Rabbinical Council of America.
He cautioned the 350 guests at the silver anniversary banquet not to
Henry Yoskowich shows tbanksfor the gift of life as UJA campaign leader
TORONTO —
Henry Yoskowich has lived through it all — from day to day anti-Semitism in his native Poland, to the Nazi death camps. He survived to see the fulfilment of his father's and grandfather's dream of a Jewish homeland.
Bom in Chenstochov, Poland to a family of ardent, active Zionists, he is the only member of his immediate family to survive the Holocaust and get to Israel. Yoskowich went there in 1948 and stayed 4'/2 years before coming to Canada.
Around United Jewish Appeal headquarters, he is known as a "one-man canvassing blitz." After retiring from his business 18 months ago, he decided he would devote all his
Henry Yoskowich of UJA
time to doing whatever he could to help dean up cards in his own division, societies and organizations. He wa;s so successful that he expanded his sphere of activities to
other divisions and per-
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I Annual meeting | f of TJC is set I
I TORONTO —
1 Annual meeting of Toronto Jewish Congress 1 will be held on Sunday afternoon. March 12. at = Beth Emeth-Bais Yehuda Synagogue. 100 Elder, S- it- was announced last week by TJC president E Milton Harris.
5 The meeting will elect 60 individual members to S the TJC council for a two-year term. Immediately 1 after the meeting, the council will elect from its i membership the officers and 50 members of the = i executive committee for a one-year term. s i A nominating committee will make its recom- H I mendation for the council at least 60 days before s = the annual. meeting and for the officers and 1 I executive at least 30 days before. H i Additional nominations for officers and execu- = 1 tive can be made by individual members of the = i. TJC, b ut no later than one week prior to the annual § i meeting. Nominations for the council must be S I made no later than five days before. = i The bylaws of TJC state that "only individual 5 I members of the TJC who have made a monetary H 1 contribution to the United Jewish Appeal in § i respect of the previous year shall be eligible to 1 S serve as representative on the council." = s ■ ■ S-
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Safer Torah (used) Al condition. Foi* sale.
Miriam's Bookstore 3007 Bathurst Street 781-8261
sonally completed 1,200 cards in the 1977 campaign.
Yoiskowich needed no prodding to repeat his yeoman efforts for 1978 and so he's back, a familiar figure to all the fund-raising staff, asking for more and more uncovered cards, to' complete.
In addition to all this, he is 1978 chairman of treas-ur>' gifts for the societies and organizations division.
All this dedication and zeal comes from his personal conviction that he had survived the horrors of Auschwitz for a reason and that he must devote all his energies to tangibly express his gratitude for the "gift of life."
In his own words: "Life has been so good for me in Canada, that 1 want all Jews here to realize how fortunate they are, but they must be on guard to keep this community strong."
For Henr\' YoskowicH, that means giving as much as possible to Is^ae^, through UJA, which he says is our primary responsibility.
In two or three years, he will be moving to Israel with his wife. In the tTi^1t|b time, he will contiri^ft.^ devote all his energies^ getting the UJA m< = across to as many j
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relax their efforts. "Don't 1 et the prophet of doom get hold of you — once you give up, life has passed you by. Keep woridng!" he declared. _
Shaarei Tefillah was founded in 1951. Services were held in basements, in a tent, in stores, private homes and rented premises until 1954, when construction started on the building at Bathurst and Wilson.
Two amalgamations with other congregations — with the Anshei Apter in 1968 and the Anshei Libavitch in 1976 — have brought membership to 400 families.
During the program, tribute was paid to Shaarei Tefillah past presidents Ab Bergson, Murray Frie-berg, Harry Magder, and Jack R55S, as well as the late Frank Mushell. Nine people with 25 years continuous membership were honored: Lou Allen, Max Cohen, Irving Cohen, Hymie Feldman, Harry Magder, Harvey Peranson, Joseph Reich-man, Jack Ross and Jack Schwartz.
Allan Offinan, UJA deputy chalnnan, addresses opening meeting of Conunonity Serrlces gronp. Ustenlng to what he has to say are: Ben Kfayer, Hillel director; Steven Rndin, assistant administrator, Bay-crest Hospital; and Beqfamin Schneider, gronp clialmian.
BETH DAVID BNAI ISRAEL BETH AM
PERSONAL ADVISORY SERVICE
A community service for individuals & families. Free and immediate short-term counselling. Stnctiy Confidential.
Please call 633-5500
Counsellor - Steven Levy D.S.W.
H as possible.
CANADA PARK
HL-\M 1RH-.S A,SD , KKKP ISRAKL (iRKKN,
Call bur Tree Number
Toronto......781-5515
Hamilton... 527-7385
Windsor......256-2284
Montreal.....934-0313
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Toronto Board of Education HERITAGE LANGUAGES PROGRAM
WHAT IS A HERITAGE LANGUAGE PROGRAM?
In a Heritage Language Program, students learn a language other than English or French - usually their native tongue. This program is open to all students attending elementary school. The enrollment is not obligatory, this is a voluntary program over and above the*egular school day curriculum. Most classes take place after school, in the evening or on the weekend. - ..Classes may take place during the school day under ^ Certain conditions.
-r*; >T!HDi?»gh4h«,^or^t&'^B^ of-Education and in . ,
Heritage Language Programs are being offered in the fcdlownng languages in 1977:
Bengali
Cantonese ^Croatian * Greek
Gujrati
Hindi
Italian
Japanese
Korean
Mandarin
Ojibwe
Panjabi
Polish
Portuguese
Russian
Spanish
Ukrainian
Urdu
For further information on these programs, please call the Board of Education at 598-4931, local 346.
HOW TO APPLY TO HAVE A HERITAGE PROGRAM?
If there is no Heritage Language Program near you or in your language, you may wish to request that one be establisEedr The Ministry of Education policy states: "... Any group of parents will be able to approach its local school board with the request that heritage language classes for elementary school children be given under the Continuing Education Program ..."
An average of approximately 25 students per class is required. If you are interested in beginning a Heritage Language Program, please contact your school principal. Further information may be obtained from the Board of Education at 598-4931, local 346.
•
\ An evening of
Jewish Music and Folklore
PRESENTED BY BETH EMETH BAIS YEHUDA SYNAGOGUE
Featuring an Ori^al Script by Fishl Kolko and starring
Cantor Louis Danto
Music Co-Ordinator
Judith Lebane
Soprano
andJllark Arshawsky, Boy Soprano
Narration by Sam Crystal and Danny Nathan Musical Accompanimmit Marianna Ros^fdld
Wednesday, I>ec. 21, 8:15 PJVI., 100 Elder St. Dowisview Come, Learn more about ow Jewish Heritage
ADMISSION $2.50
J ( STUDENTS $1.00 For Tickets call Synagogue Office 633-3838 or at the door.
REFRESHMENTS
Tubby Gble
When I canvass prospects and explain how great the needs are in Israel, I.often get this question: "How can my contribution help when you need so many millions of dollars?"
Well the Jewish Agency has given me a few facts about what your money can buy:
$250 provides monthly support for an immigrant family while undergoing retraining that helps professionals, craftsmen and small businessmen establish themselves in their own profession or trade.
$500 pays the full tuition for a student attending high school. Grades 10.11 and 12 are NOT part of Israel's free education system.
$1,000 provides an elderly immigrant with monthly old-age payments. This is for immigrants who, upon their arrival in Israel, are too old to participate in the social security program.
$1,500 pays for the construction of an additional room to an existing housing unit in order to ease the problem of families living in overcrowded conditions.
$7,500 rehabilitates a family on welfare. The Jewish Agency makes one-time grants to welfare cases where there is hope that ^uch grants will enable a return to gainful employment,
$100,000 builds a kindergarten of two classrooms plus a kitchen, showers, washroom and shelter. (This is a great idea as a project for organizations in our Synagogues and Organizations division.)
• • . *. ♦
UJA (and TJC) eipeQutive director Irwin Gold tells me "the new Toronto Jewish"^Cbiigress budget will be announced officially very soon. This will show how the UJA dpllar is spent in Canada.
*. •. • .. •.
Rapidly heading towards our goal of 75% completion by the end of the year are the following groups in the Synagogues and Organizations division: Tzosmerer, - (over the top) 105%; Piotrkov Tomashov Belchatov, 91%; Jews of Hungarian Descent, 58%; New Fraternal, 41%; Beth Sholom, 40%.
There's intensive activity in this division and I'm hoping to report even greater achievements in my next column.
It was quite an experience I had last week making a UJA television commercial at CFTO's studio.
TTiirty seconds may seem like a very short time but it's almost an eternity when you are reading the commercial off the cue cards, trying to be as effective as possible without slipping on a word, and reading quickly enough so as not to run over the allotted period.
The commercial, to be seen on Channel 11 and Channel 9, emphasizes the need to co-operate with the canvassers to achieve our 75% completion goal this month. The commercial points out that "UJA canvassers will be doubling their efforts in the next couple of weeks."
As noted in an earlier column, the time for the commercials was donated by friends of the UJA. So was the production.
The Women's Division held a mammoth all-day pull-in of cards at Baycrest Terrace on Dec. 15. This followed a week-long telethon. Chairman MarveOe KoEBer promises to keep up the drive to complete the women's campaign as quickly as possible.
Garth Orabinsky, co-chairman of the Film & Enter-taininent group, has a lot of big names lined up for a telethori on Sunday morning, Dec. 18. Expected to come is "His Majesty" the King of Kensington, AI Waxman, who is a veteran UJAtelethoner;LanyZoIf,PaiiI Soles, Beryl Fox, Unda Shapiro and others . From what I have heard, some of the calls they make are funny enough for a mini television series — and they do get resultsl
Even when the meihbers of the UJA staff jplay, the campaign is a primary factor in the shedanigans. Through the grapevine, I learned that at their annual Chanukah party last week there was a 20-minute skit built around the premise of the 30th anniversary of UJA in Toivnto, which coincides with Israel's 30th year of independence.
Six staffers took part in the:^y hijinks, which was conceived and written by Maurice Lqcow's PR associate, Esther Mehr. The performers were Peter Flstjier, controller; Emle Glnsler, fund-raiser for the Faculty group; AOan Jmls. who is responsible for the Young Executives: Hanrfd Alter, who looks after Community Services; David Mario' gal Friday, Shelley Ri^kowskl; and Myra WUte, who serves double duty as secretary to both Fischer and Juris.
Wish I'd been there. Iguess in a way I was. Someone by the name of Chubby Cole was mentioned as captain of the "North Toronto Yeshiva Bochers" football team — ' 'sure-fire contenders for the 1978 Grey Cup.''
See you next issue.
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EDUCATION & YOUTH yDIRECTOR
Full or Part Time — Experience Preferred.
Interested Persons, Contact Mrs. Garber,. 449-3872,120 Old Colony Rd.^ Willowdale