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All the news that fits__ / Compiled by Elizabeth Applebaum
Intermarriage 'Terminal'
For Jewish Identification
h
fixed marriages may be "ter-
minal" for Jewish iden-
tification, particularly in
households that incorporate Christian
as well as Jewish symbols and prac-
.tices, according to a new American
Jewish Committee study.
"Jewish Identity in
Conversionary and Mixed
Marriages" was written by
Peter Medding of Hebrew
University in Jerusalem,
and Gary Tobin, Sylvia
Barack Fishman and
Mordechai Rimor of the
Cohen Center for Modern
Jewish Studies at Bran-
deis University.
The authors based their conclusions
on data from eight Jewish communi-
ty surveys conducted between 1985
and 1988, which together provide the
largest sample of intermarried Jews
ever to be analyzed in depth
To assess the level of Jewish iden-
tification, the authors selected 10 be-
havioral indicators: synagogue
membership, synagogue attendance,
Sabbath candle lighting, participation
in a Passover seder, fasting on Yom
Kippur, lighting Chanukah candles,
membership in a Jewish organization,
donating to a Jewish charity, visiting
Israel, and having predominantly Jew-
ish friends.
One percent of the the mixed-mar-
rieds scored high in the
Jewish identification
category, while 69 per-
cent were in the low cat-
egory. By contrast, 33
percent of the mar-
riages in which the gen-
tile spouse converted to
Judaism scored high in
Jewish identification,
with 17 percent scor-
ing low.
Since 1985, more than 50 percent
of American Jews have married gen-
tiles. Of these, 5 percent of the gentile
spouses have converted to Judaism.
A new AJCommittee pamphlet,
L
n Simchat Torah last week, Jews
danced with the Torah and sang
songs and (the under 12 set) ate
candy. A lot of them waved flags, too
—flags showing Torah scrolls and the
12 Tribes of Israel and adorned with He-
brew phrases appropriate for the day.
Probably you, intelligent reader that
you are, imagine these flags were made
in Israel.
Guess again.
New York?
No.
Gee, Detroit?
Time's up. The flags were printed in
Hong Kong. Is that because Simchat
Torah is such a popular holiday in Hong
Kong?
0
The Mystical Way To Self Renewal
You've got a meeting in 15 minutes
with your boss (the subject: your pro-
posed raise). The dog just ate a hole
in your new pants. The baby has been
making raspberries with her strained
prunes and it got all over your white
shirt. That half a bottle of aftershave
you splashed all over reeks of lime.
Your boss hates the smell of lime.
Stop. It's time to start over.
Jewish mysticism suggests that—
reflective of the Jewish day, which
starts at night — the way one goes
to sleep affects his attitude toward the
next day.
It also is necessary to appropriate-
ly prepare the body when the soul de-
parts during sleep to be refreshed in
heaven, Kabbalah teaches. The soul's
absence allows negative spirits to en-
ter the body. To avoid this, and to start
the day off right, Kabbalah encourages
the following routine:
charge. Send a legal size, stamped and
self-addressed envelope to Janice Hy-
man, American Jewish Committee,
165 E. 56th St., New York, N.Y. 10022
Edward VII and British Foreign Min-
ister Anthony Eden, and to the Times
of London and the Manchester
Guardian. The next day, the 48-year-
old husband and father went to a
meeting of the League of Nations at
the assembly hall in Geneva, where
he shot himself in front of the dele-
gates.
The note he left for Mr. Eden said,
in part, "I hope that this voluntary
sacrifice of an unknown soldier of
life will help bring a little clarity and
truth. When a man dies deliberately
after serious reflection he can ask to
be heard."
Lux died that night, his gesture
quickly forgotten.
Before going to sleep, consider the
previous day and make resolutions and
plans to make tomorrow even better.
Then, say the Sh'ma, which re-
minds one that God is omnipresent,
day and night, and in difficult as well
as pleasant times.
Third, be enthusiastic when you rise.
Fourth, remember positive thoughts
from the night before, which will link
the night and the day.
Fifth, thank God for restoring your
soul to the body.
(Excerpted from the Jerusalem-
based Ascent magazine.)
Foundation Supports Settlers
In Judea, Samaria and Gaza
Questions Jewish Parents Ask About
Intermarriage, may be obtained at no
Mysteries of Jewish History:
The Tragic Story of Stefan Lux
ittle is known about Stefan Lux,
though he made an unforget-
table gesture he hoped would
bring attention to the plight of suf-
fering Jews.
He was a journalist and film pro-
ducer, born in 1888. A native of Vi-
enna, he was a volunteer with the
Austrian army during World War I,
when he was wounded twice. In
1933, after Hitler came to power, he
left Vienna and settled in Prague.
Lux was horrified by what was
happening to Jews throughout Eu-
rope, and the world's lack of inter-
est in their plight.
On July 2, 1936, Lux sat down
and wrote letters to England's King
Will They Make
Falafel Next?
Strange But True
Sourdough Tales
t came from Alaska, but nobody
knows much more than that. It is
a package of "Scrumptious Sour-
dough Starter" produced by the
Scrumptious Sourdough company of
Anchorage (and is available at health-
food stores). Included with the pungent
starter is a small collection of recipes.
This message is featured:
"Warning! Don't consume sour-
dough on Passover.
"Moses told the sons of Israel not
to eat anything with yeast in it during
the week following the Passover. This
includes all things that are preserved
with yeast."
The message also discusses why
one should not "consume blood," in-
cluding eggs and dairy products. The
rest is too bizarre, even for the Round-
Up.
he Israel Community Develop-
ment Foundation, which sup-
ports Jewish settlers in Judea,
Samaria and the Gaza Strip, recently
sponsored its first tour in the United
States. The fund-raising tour featured
ICDF Executive Director Yechiel Leit-
er, who visited several states on the
East Coast and in the Midwest.
The tour was necessary because
settlers in the territories do not receive
funding from major American Jewish
organizations, an ICDF spokesman
T
said
Since the ICDF began fund raising
at the beginning of 1992, it has col-
lected more than half-a-million dol-
lars. The money will be used for
non-government projects in such
fields as social welfare, education,
medicine and recreation.
For information, contact the Amer-
ican Friends of ICDF, 70 W. 36th St.,
Suite 503, New York, N.Y. 10018, or
call (212) 643-0971.
Amit Campaign Helps Children
Amit Women is hosting a Mother in
Israel Campaign to benefit children and
their families. The funds will be used
to benefit new immigrant children and
children of deprivation. Projects include
psychological counseling, dental work,
birthday parties, a day out at the zoo or
the museum, or a Purim costume —
"anything that will make a child feel spe-
cial, important, worthwhile," an Amit
spokesman said
To contribute locally, contact Bonnie
Torgow, Batya Chapter Mother in Israel
Campaign president, at 355-5645.