July 4, 2008 (24 Sivan 5768)
CLAL
Highlights:
For
MORE FROM CLAL, please
click here.
As always, each week we will bring you commentaries by
the CLAL faculty on the week's Torah and Haftorah portions, beginning with this week's portion for
Chukat. Also be sure to check out CLAL Across America, CLAL's updated calendar for the month of
July, to find out where you can catch the CLAL faculty in your area.
Shabbat
shalom!
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this year. For more information, please contact Dale Brown at
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TORAH TODAY News from CLAL
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CLAL CALENDAR
CLAL Across America: Where CLAL
Faculty will be this Month
Keep abreast of where the CLAL faculty are this month across
America and around the world.
MORE
FROM CLAL
Hirschfield & Kula: Intelligent Talk Radio
-
What does American consumerism say about us? From alcohol to the
size of our mortgages, are we out of control or just expressing
our freedom?
New
Listen to Brad Hirschfield and Irwin Kula on KXL’s
Hirschfield and Kula: Intelligent Talk Radio broadcast in
Portland on two topics.
From
Hirschfield & Kula: Intelligent Talk Radio.com
June 29, 2008
"Brad Hirschfield on the Pew Study -"Thank
God for the Athiests"
New
"According
to a new Pew survey, 21% of American atheists believe in God or
a universal spirit, 12% believe in heaven and 10% pray at least
once a week. What do you make of this?...”
Read Rabbi Hirschfield's
Thank God for the Athiests response...
By
Brad Hirschfield from Newsweek/Washington Post “On Faith”
Blog
July 2, 2008
From the Windows & Doors daily blog--
"Who's
A Terrorist"
New
“Something
is really off when everyone from CNN (scroll to the World
section) to the news on the AOL homepage (see the Top News)
describes the attack on public buses in Jerusalem as the work of
a "terrorist," using quotes because of their apparent discomfort
with calling this an act of terror and labeling this murderer, a
terrorist. If that is not terror, what is?..." Read
more...
By
Brad Hirschfield from Beliefnet.com's Windows & Doors Daily Blog
July 2, 2008
 Can
tolerating the natural chaos of life free you to be more
creative and happier?
Check out July’s issue of Self magazine where Irwin Kula is
quoted in an article by Marjorie Ingall entitled “More Mess,
Less Stress.”
By
Marjorie Ingall from
Self
July 2008
Spotlight: CLAL President Brad Hirschfield Joins
Beliefnet.com with Daily Blog -- WINDOWS & DOORS: New Online Site
Where Politics and Pop Culture Meet 3,000 Years of Jewish Wisdom
"Scheduled for June
25, Brad Hirschfield will begin a new daily blog on Beliefnet.com, the
net’s largest online site for spirituality and inspiration... Described
as a living laboratory where ideas and practices that can better our
lives will be explored and tested against the daily chaos of modern
life, WINDOWS & DOORS will examine how faith can overcome fear and lead
to genuine spiritual openness. Informed by Jewish wisdom but accessible
to anyone, the blog will re-frame the issues, delivering new insights
for thoughtful debate...." Read
more...
By
Judy Epstein from
CLAL
June 18, 2008
How can a Jewish Family Service agency make
tradition relevant?
“LOCAL VOICES: Giving
Tradition Relevance” -- “…I found resonance in [Rabbi Kula’s] contention
that the only reason to practice Judaism is because it makes us more
ethically, spiritually, engaged human beings. ‘The goal,’ he said, ‘is
not to be Jewish. It is to be a developed, involved, flourishing human
being. Judaism is a technology to achieve that.’…”
Read
more...
By
Robert Sklar from The Detroit Jewish News
June 17, 2008
Irwin Kula
is Profiled on Voice of America
Author, Lecturer, Peace
Activist Rabbi Irwin Kula Offers Jewish Wisdom for All. "...an
eighth-generation rabbi ...[He] is now a leading voice for religious
pluralism, and a Jewish ambassador to the world's other religions.…”
Read
more...
To hear the interview, click
here.
By
Adam Phillips from Voice of America Radio
June 11, 2008
Hirschfield & Kula: Intelligent Talk Radio
Moves to a New Time
Starting on June 21,
Portland, Oregon listeners can hear hosts Brad Hirschfield and Irwin
Kula from 5-6:00 pm on Saturdays on KXL Newsradio 750. The new time slot
will allow more people access to the incisive talk, featuring the best
commentators and experts on radio. Discussing all of the hot button
issues, from politics and social issues to culture and spirituality,
Hirschfield and Kula delves into the news of the day, challenging
listeners to rethink their views. And for those not in the Portland
area, Hirschfield and Kula is available online. Go to
www.intelligenttalkradio.com, and tune in to past shows, Irwin and
Brad’s blogs, and other information on what they are up to as they
travel around the country. Stay tuned!
 You Don't Have to Be Wrong for Me to Be
Right: Finding Faith Without Fanaticism
How can we create a world with
less violence and division? Rabbi Hirschfield's new book
explores this and other questions, offering hope and anew
perspective to the American spiritual, social and political
landscape. For more, click here
or go to
www.bradhirschfield.com. Book tour media coverage includes:
● CNN Radio, “The Paula Gordon Show,” 6/21/08
● WASN (Cleveland), “Louis
B. Free Show,” 5/22/08
● KPBS (San Diego), “These
Days,” 5/22/08
● WORT-FM (Madison), “A Public Affair,” 5/8/08
●
Washington Report on Middle East Affairs April 2008
● WRPI-FM (Albany), “In the Spirit,” 4/24/08
●
The Morning Show (Wisconsin Public Radio), 4/15/08
●
The
Jewish News (New Orleans), 4/11/08
●
The Norman Transcript (Oklahoma), 4/4/08
● KREF AM (Norman, OK), “Religious Talk,” 4/6/08
June 18, 2008
Leaving Hebron: In his memoir on faith and
fanaticism, Rabbi Bradley Hirschfield recalls his spiritual journey from
JDL militant to JTS rabbi.
"Rabbi Brad Hirschfield’s
Judaism is one of inclusion and pluralism, tolerance and respect; his is
a Judaism that looks to the core, not the borders. He’s an Orthodox
rabbi building as many bridges as he can...." Read
more...
By Sandee
Brawarsky from The Jewish Week
June 12, 2008
"A Daughter of Holocaust Survivors
Remembers"
“…'My father has taught me
that love is stronger than death.' It’s a remarkable assertion
by one whose parents both survived the Holocaust….” Janet R.
Kirchheimer spoke about her book, How to Spot One of Us,
to 70 people at the YMCA Y’s Men of Meriden, CT, on June 3,
2008.
Read more...
From Y's
Men of Meriden.com
June 2008
"The Incompleteness in Each of Us"
“I just returned from what
I think may have been my thirty-fifth visit to Israel. My
wife, youngest daughter, and I spent nine days there -- six
nights hanging out in Tel Aviv enjoying its culture, art, an
nightlife and then three days dealing with the burden,
heaviness, and over-determined meaning of Jerusalem.
Despite the huge difference between the sacred secularity and
normalcy of Tel Aviv and the less-than-holy religiosity and
abnormality of Jerusalem, one question repeated arose:
What about the matzav (situation) with the Palestinians.…”
Read more...
By
Irwin Kula from Tikkun
May/June 2008
Celebrating Passover in Bhutan
In May of 2008, Irwin Kula led an interfaith journey to Bhutan where participants
explored the history and importance of tradition for a country,
its culture, and its people. Along with exploring Buddhist
rituals, the group took part in a traditional Passover Seder led
by Rabbi Kula. They experienced the transformative power
of the Seder, moving from suffering to freedom.
For photos...
June 4, 2008
Irwin Kula speaks about his trip to Bhutan and Yearnings
on WRPI-FM
"In the Spirit,"
WRPI-FM (Albany), 6/5/08.
June 4, 2008
 Irwin
Kula participates in launch of Tony Blair Faith Foundation
On May 30, 2008, Irwin Kula
participated in the event marking the start of the Tony Blair Faith
Foundation. The launch called for "the creation of a new coalition
to harness the moral leadership of people of faith to do good and to
show the relevance of faith to the challenges of the modern world...."
For photos, click here.
Tony Blair Faith
Foundation
June 4, 2008
"Obama
Served Up a Zionist Version of Mom and Apple Pie at AIPAC Conference"
"Not, as Jerry
Seinfeld would say, that there’s anything wrong with that. In fact ... I
loved everything he had to say. But it did strike me as funny that Obama
hit every base in the Jewish game without offering very much in the way
of details about how to achieve a set of goals which I personally
support.…" Read
more...
By Brad
Hirschfield from Beliefnet's Casting Stones
June 5, 2008
US
Troops in Iraq host Days of Remembrance Ceremony featuring
CLAL's Janet R. Kirchheimer's Poetry
"As part of a Days of
Remembrance memorial service, Janet R. Kirchheimer’s poems “Town
Hall” and “Breaking Laws” were read at a Multi National
Forces service May 2, at U.S. Army Camp Victory in
Bagdad, Iraq.…"
Read
more...To
view the poetry reading, click
here.
(REAL VIDEO)
June 4, 2008
An
interview with Ms. Kirchheimer appears in The Connecticut
Jewish Ledger. Read
more...
April 23, 2008
A review of Ms. Kirchheimer's book How to Spot One of Us
appears on the JUF News of The Jewish Federation of Metropolitan
Chicago. Read
more...
May 1, 2008
Poems from How to Spot One of Us were published in The
New Jersey Jewish News in honor of Yom Hashoah.
May 1, 2008
 Spotlight: Building Bridges: Abrahamic
Perspectives on the World Today (Season II) Now available as
a 3 DVD Set
Acclaimed TV Series with Rabbi Brad Hirschfield Looks at the
Issues Dividing Our Faiths and Our Country
"... Bringing together
religious leaders from the major traditions to grapple with the
issues spitting religious communities and our country, the
series looks at where we are similar, where we are different,
and how to build a new level of understanding in a time of
suspicion and uncertainty. 'Moving beyond the typical sound
bites...'" Read more...
To order, click
here. To
view photos, click here.
By
Judy Epstein from
CLAL
May 29, 2008
Does religion meet the needs of contemporary life?
Do our wisdom traditions speak to a wide audience, or do they
only address the concerns of a particular community? How does ritual
play a part in our spiritual life? Listen to Irwin Kula speak with Chuck
Freeman, Minister of Spiritual Life on Soul
Talk Radio.
To hear... Aired 4/18/08. (REAL
AUDIO)May 12, 2008
 PBS TV: The Jewish People: A Story of Survival
From slavery to the loss of
a homeland; from exile to anti-Semitism; from pogroms to near
annihilation in the Holocaust, how did the Jews endure while so
many other communities vanished? The Jewish People: A Story
of Survival, an original one-hour film explores these themes
of resilience, fortitude and achievement of the Jewish people,
moving chronologically over four millennia. Featuring Rabbi Brad
Hirschfield, it is hosted by Martha Teichner, Senior
Correspondent for “CBS News/Sunday Morning.”
Following are some broadcasts, please check local listings for
times:
● Wednesday, May 7, 9:00 pm, WLIW/Channel 21, New York City Area
● Sunday, June 1st WETA, Washington, DC
● Monday, June 2nd WHYY, Philadelphia, PA
● Wednesday, June 4th KOCE, Los Angeles, CA
● Thursday, June 5th WTTW, Chicago
May 7, 2008
 Learn about the laws of God and people from the perspective of
the three Abrahamic faiths
Watch a Rabbi, an Imam, and a Christian Theologian talk about
issues of the day on Season I of Building Bridges: Abrahamic
Perspectives on the World Today with Rabbi Brad Hirschfield.
You can view "Hopes and Dreams" as well as other episodes on
the CLAL website by clicking
here. (REAL VIDEO)
May 7, 2008
CLAL
Listed in Newsweek's “Top 50 Influential Rabbis in America” for
2nd Year
"Naming the top 50
most influential rabbis in America, Newsweek magazine listed a
virtual “Who’s Who” in its Periscope section this week. Rabbi
Irwin Kula was ranked no. 7, Rabbi Brad Hirschfield, no. 39, and CLAL
Senior Associate Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, no. 21. A complete list is
available in Newsweek’s online edition:
http://www.newsweek.com/id/131600...In addition, a list was created
for the “Top 25 Pulpit Rabbis in America.” Of the 25, CLAL is proud to
note that many of the rabbis listed were participants in CLAL programs
throughout the years. They include: Jack Moline, Yosef Kanefsky, Brant
Rosen, Asher Lopatin, David Stern, Amy Schwartzman, Terry Bookman,
Mordechai Finley, Janet Marder, Rick Block, and Ed Feinstein. (For a
complete list, go to
http://www.newsweek.com/id/131598?tid=relatedcl)...." Read
more...
Spotlight by
Judy Epstein from
CLAL
April 11, 2008
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Copyright ©2008 CLAL - The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership
All rights reserved.
|
Be
sure to visit
Brad
Hirschfield's
new daily blog on
Beliefnet.com!
To read daily blog, click
here.
Brad
Hirschfield's
New book
For more
information or
to order, click
here.
Irwin
Kula's
Award Winning Book
For more
information
or
to order, click
here.
Remember
for Life:
Holocaust Survivors’ Stories of Faith and Hope
Edited by
Rabbi Brad Hirschfield
Click
here to order.
For Remember For Life Reading Guide, click
here.
HOW TO SPOT ONE OF
US
A Collection of Poetry
by Janet R. Kirchheimer
Click
here to order.
FOR MORE CLAL RESOURCES
See our growing collection of books, videos and tapes.
Purchase
Online Easily & Securely
CLAL Across America
Click here
to keep abreast of where the CLAL faculty are this month across
America and around the world.
CLAL Update,
Spring 2008
“Why
is it so difficult for us to forgive people?” WTTW/"30
Good Minutes"
(2-13-08)
Watch Irwin Kula on “30 Good Minutes” broadcast on WTTW/Channel
11 (PBS) in Chicago Feb. 10, 2008. Click
here to view.
(REAL VIDEO) |
