Shana Tovah?

As we say farewell to 2009 and become excited about 2010, is it appropriate to say Shana Tovah?  Can I wish a fellow Jew happy new years in Hebrew?  Or is that something that is reserved only for Rosh Hashanah and the Jewish New Year?

Is it bad taste to take a Jewish New Year wishes and use it again during a secular New Year?

I tried googling it and found no references.  Surely I’m not the first to ask this?  Perhaps some folks who are more “learned” than I am can answer that question.

In any case–Happy New Years!  Shana Tovah!  May the new year bring you and your family peace and blessings! May 2010 be only the first of many prosperous love-filled years ahead.

Celebrating Hanukkah Away from Home

I’ve been away from home for a few days this week.  Unfortunately, this means I’m away from my family during Hanukkah.

Last week I read a great story to my boys–”Hanukkah at Valley Forge” by Stephen Krensky.  It gave a different angle to the Hanukkah story of the Maccabees.  It’s a fictionalized book that is supposedly based on what is a historical anecdote found in someone’s Diary.

The book is about George Washington and his army at Valley Forge–when Washington encounters one of his soldier lighting a menorah.  Washington asks the soldier what he’s doing and learns about the powerful story of Hanukkah and the universal fight for freedom.

Upon learning the story of the Maccabees, Washington remarks “the fight for liberty is an ancient one. And no one likes squirming under the thumb of a distant king.”

I highly recommend this book–but thats not why I’m writing this blog. I’ve been away from home in the past during Hanukkah–and always felt something was missing.  The book inspired me to do something I didn’t really do in the past.

You guessed it!  I brought a little menorah with me.  In my hotel room every night, I quietly lit my menorah, said the blessings, and drank a bit of wine with it.  It was, for me, inspirational and yet peaceful.

I took a picture of the menorah.

I shared the picture with my boys when I connected with them via videophone.  They were excited to see that I celebrated Hanukkah even when I was away from home and alone.

What did you do for Hanukkah.  What are some of the unusual places or settings you’ve celebrated Hanukkah?

May Hanukkah bring you peace and blessings!

New website: DeafJews.org

I just learned of an impressive new website intended which aims to provide “a range of ASL videos that focus on different topics in Judaism. All videos are fully captioned for those who do not understand American Sign Language.” (Thanks to Steve Brenner for the tip!).  Check www.DeafJews.org out!

It is just wonderful when I see young individuals stand up to affirm their Judaism and to carry out the essential Jewish mitzvah of Tikkun Olam or making the world a better place.

It shows that you and I are not alone!

Since its almost Chanukah time, I checked out their videos on this topic.  The video “Cooking with Rachel” is enticing.  I especially enjoyed the ABC story on Chanukah–and really liked the video on the Chanukah Question.

The last video (Chanukah Question) is absolutely apt because it reminds me of the old Jewish saying that when two Jews get together, you’ll end up with three opinions.

Happy Chanukah everybody!

A Jewish Thanksgiving?

Thanksgiving is coming up this week!  I’m excited!

While Thanksgiving has traditionally been a secular holiday—I’ve always felt that Thanksgiving is a spiritual—or even religious—holiday.  This perception is further reinforced by my family’s tradition of going around the table and having everyone share what they are thankful for.  I’ve also felt that Thanksgiving is about religious freedom because it marks the arrival of people who left other countries seeking the freedom to practice their religion.

In other words, it is because of Thanksgiving that we are able to celebrate and practice our faiths in America.

What I’ve been struggling with for a long time is perhaps my need to receive validation that my views on Thanksgiving aren’t crazy.

I’ve found such validation!  Instead of keeping it to myself, I’m sharing it here.  Three great articles:

Thanksgiving Is a Very Jewish Holiday
http://blog.beliefnet.com/virtualtalmud/2006/11/thanksgiving-is-very-jewish-holiday.html

Creating a More Jewish Thanksgiving
http://www.ocjewishlife.com/stories/xarchive.php?id=174

My synagogue’s Rabbi, Doug Heifetz, discussed Thanksgiving last year in his blog:
http://theravblog.com/2008/11/26/gratitude-times-of-trouble-the-thanksgiving-seder/

Even better yet, I’ve come across some Seder text on how we can combine the Seder tradition (which is familiar to so many of us) with Thanksgiving.  One of them can be found from a link on Rabbi Heifetz’s blog.  Two others were written by Rabbi Phyllis Sommer and can be found at:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/8462447/Thanksgiving-Seder
http://www.scribd.com/doc/8172968/Thanksgiving-Seder-for-Families-with-Small-Children

I also learned that some of my friends have always added some Jewish food to the tradition Thanksgiving feast—whether it is chopped liver (ugh), gefilte fish (not bad) or kuegel (now, that can be very good!).

I know what I’ll be doing for Thanksgiving—reading from one of the Thanksgiving Seder—and adding a Jewish dish to our Thanksgiving buffet.

What traditions do you have in your household that combines faith with Thanksgiving?

Whatever you do, have a great Thanksgiving!

Why Does Being Deaf Matter?

When it comes to being Jewish, why does my being deaf matter?

Some so-called brilliant scholars have determined that deaf people cannot practice Judaism and thus observe the various mitzvahs of Judaism.  This viewpoint goes back many centuries and even persists to this day when the Israel Rabbinical Court ruled that deaf people cannot convert to Judaism because they care incapable of observing mitzvahs.

Fortunately, there are just as many learned scholars who say otherwise ranging from Rabbi Yehuda in the first century to Rabbi Yochanan ben Gudgeda who had deaf sons, to even Maimonides himself.

Perhaps the biggest cause of this divide is the one of the most important Jewish prayers, the Shema which states.

Hear, O Israel: the Lord is our God, the Lord is One

Shema Yisrael Adonai Eloheinu Adonai Echad

Note the very first word, “Hear.” Many have interpreted this prayer literally—saying that if one cannot hear, one cannot acknowledge our God.

Obviously, I subscribe to the opposing view that the Shema (hear) part of the prayer essential is an alert to fellow Jews—calling their attention, informing them and communicating with them.

There’s a good article on this very topic here.

What does word Shema in that prayer mean to you? What does it mean to have deaf people in the Jewish community?

Join me on my journey

Why am I starting this blog?  I keep trying to think of something brilliant and inspirational to start so I simply gave up and decided just to say what’s on my mind.

I’ve been on an exciting lifelong journey in learning about Judaism, my heritage and my future.  That journey, of course, is affected by the fact that I’m a deaf person who grew up Jewish, had a Bar Mitzvah at 13, and is now raising and teaching two sons about Judaism.

I’ve always been engaged in very exciting discussions about Judaism and religion in general with many other people.  I’ve always loved those discussions as they make me think and help me understand myself better.  Those discussions helps me better as a husband, father, brother, son, friend and as a human being.

I’ve been having more of those inspirational discussions lately—in small groups with other people who come from very different backgrounds and experiences.

I guess—this blog is a way for me to record my own thoughts and experiences so I can go back and review my notes.  This is also an opportunity for me to share with others what I’ve learned in my studies and in my discussions.  Perhaps best of all, I hope that this can become a place where I can learn from even more people.  Each of you are thus encouraged to share your thoughts, experiences and views.

I’m reminded of the famous quote by Israel founding father David Ben Gurion who observed that for every two Jews there are three opinions.

So here it is. Welcome to my blog!