II
:1' :?
'If&
k kW %
• • g
,
•
Where There's A Will
... there's a supporter of Israel.
ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Congratulations to all those music fans out there who identified singer Juice Newton (born Judy Cohen). Those with the correct answer
were: Brian Ackerson, Robert Alpiner, Michael and Phyllis Bernstein, Ross John Fazio, Millie Fetch, Sheila Freedman, Jeri Gallant, Dr.
Larry Kaplan, Marshall Korby, Michael Meryl's, Pennie Michelin, Norman Pollak, Dr. David and Keirsten Schwartz.
And now ... on to another challenging question!
Can you identify this mystery person?
He was born in Prague in 1836. Originally destined for the rabbinate, he interrupted his talmudic studies to take up
mathematics at the Vienna Polytechnic Institute. When he was 12, he joined the Vienna Chess Club, and by 1861 he
was devoting himself full time to the game. In 1866 he was world chess champion. He settled in London, then came
to the United States in 1893. This mystery person invented a gambit that bears his name and is considered the
founder of a new school of chess based on exploiting small advantages in position. He died in 1900 at the New York
Asylum for the Insane.
.00
TABLECLOTHS AND NAPKINS
With any 8 lb. minimum incoming linen or tablecloth laundry order.
Excluding all other specials.
Expires 6/18/97
JN
0:
Send your guess to Tell Me Why, c/o The Jewish News, 27676 Franklin Road, Southfield, MI 48034. NO PHONE CALLS. Letters will be
accepted through May 2.
1 1a4Z11111
1"tai.
mum wif
.00
SHIRTS LAUNDERED
With incoming dry cleaning. Not valid with same day service.
Men's plain business shirts only.
Expires 6/18/97
4W
•
JN
ntilitifieft4t
.00 OFI
George Will is one of Israel's biggest
supporters.
CUSTOM DRYCLEANING
Q: We have a dinner bet going on
the answer to our query. My girl-
friend wants to know if George Will,
of "This Week," is Jewish? We both
admire him, but I say he is gentile.
Who wins the dinner?
From reader M.R. in Baltimore
It You do.
With any $7.90 or more incoming dry cleaning order. Coupon not
good with any other dry cleaning coupons.
Expires 6/18/97
JN
1.00
U
BEDSPREADS, QUILTS OR BLANKETS I I
DRYCLEANED OR WASHED
With any $7.90 or more incoming dry cleaning order. Coupon not
ood with an other dricleaniig coupons. Expires 6/18/97
J
liammomumpintunia
41$41
• SHOE REPAIR
With any incoming Men's or Ladies' shoe repair order only. We also
offer shoeshine service. One coupon per order. Expires 6/18/97 JN
44
.
Mr. Will, also a syndicated
columnist, is without a doubt
one of the most brilliantminds
around — and one of the most
articulate spokesmen on behalf
of Israel. In fact, it would be dif-
ficult to find anyone more sup-
portive of Israel. But Mr. Will
is not Jewish. He's Episco-
palian.
Some years ago there was a
Guide to Growing Up Catholic
published that included "peo-
ple we're glad aren't Catholic"
(like Howard Cosell) and "peo-
ple we wish were Catholic" (like
Albert Einstein). George Will is
just the kind of guy you've got
to wish was Jewish.
Meanwhile, why is it that so
many people begin their letters
to Tell Me Why with "We've got
a bet on this ... ' but I never see
any of the booty?
Q: A couple of weeks ago
there was an interview with
O.J. Simpson "Dream Team"
member and Harvard law pro-
fessor Alan Dershowitz in
which he decried the state of
Jewish education. He offered
as an example of the ignorance
of American Jewish youth that
more kids know the name of
Jesus' mother than of Abra-
ham's mother. This bothered
me, for while I'm no talmudic
scholar neither do I consider
myself Jewishly illiterate. I
could easily recall the name of
Abraham's father (Terah), but
for the life of me I couldn't re-
member his mother.
So I went to my Chumash and
searched for this woman. Not only
was she not mentioned by name, she
wasn't mentioned at all. Now I'm re-
ally curious. Is she mentioned in
midrash or somewhere else? Or was
I looking in the wrong sedra?
And is it just me or is Mr. Der-
showitz's question inane? After all,
Jesus' mother is an icon of West-
ern civilization, a Jewish girl to
whom every European cathedral is
dedicated and whose name crops
up even in such casual cultural ref-
erences as a "Hail Mary pass." On
the other hand, Abraham's parents
weren't even Jewish. Our story as
a people doesn't really get started
until Abraham and Sarah leave their
families and set off for Canaan. It
seems to me that while trivia is fun,
Jewish education should concen-
trate on conveying the incredible
richness of our tradition — spiri-
tual, moral, social, aesthetic and
philosophical.
From reader A.C. in Owings
Mills, Md.
A: Your question has three
parts, but the answer to your
central query is that the moth-
er of our patriarch Avraham
is named, although not in
the Chumash. The Talmud,
in Bava Batra 91a, states that
Avraham's mother was Am-
athlai, daughter of Karnebo,
without further elaboration
on the identity of either per-
son.
Second, the Torah makes an
oblique reference to Avraham's
mother. In Parshat Vayera
(Genesis 20:12), Avraham states
(in reference to his wife, Sarah),
"In any case, she is really my
sister. She is the daughter of
my father, but not the daugh-
ter of my mother."
Third, as to whether Alan
Dershowitz's question is inane:
Yes, the question is inane. Def-
initely inane.
Q: When I was a kid growing up
in the Midwest, I was a Boy Scout
and all our functions were kosher
and we never had meetings on
Shabbat. My best friend, who was
a member of the same troop, insists
that those days are long, long gone,
that there are no more shomer
Shabbat Boy Scout troops. Is that
true?
4- A: No, but they certainly
aren't abundant. In fact,
there's just one left in the Mid-
west. It's Boy Scout Troop
#153, which is in Overland
Park, Kan., a Kansas City sub-
urb.
❑
Send questions to Tell Me Why,
The Jewish News, 27676
Franklin Road, Southfield, MI
48034, or fax to (810) 354-6069.
All letters must be signed and in-
clude the writer's address. Ques-
tions answered in the column will
feature only the writer's initials
and city of residence.