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The Meaning Of Gifts

epending on the numbers in both
your age and wallet, these are either
exciting or dreaded days. Last week-
end started the mad, final shopping
frenzy of what's generically known as the "win-
ter holidays." For many Jews, the crunch is
even harsher; Chanukah starts this
year at sundown, Sunday, Dec. 13.
It would be too easy to rehash the
standard lines over how Chanukah
is not Christmas, that public schools
need to be more sensitive, and the
need to not go overboard in gift
buying.
Instead, we'll deal with reality. Jews will
continue to give gifts, even as many are experi-
encing
personally or through relatives — a
spiritual renewal in American Jewish life. So
now, in the days leading up to Chanukah, we
should contemplate what is said by the gifts we
give, , and even how we give
them.
b
We urge that this year, as is already prac-
ticed by some, you bring a healthy dose of Yid-
a'ishkeit to the process. Don't just pick up a
best-selling book for someone you love; buy
one with a Jewish theme. For starters, check

D

IN FOCUS

out any of the outstanding books recently
showcased at the Jewish Community Center of
Metropolitan Detroit's 47th annual Jewish
Book Fair. Don't just buy a nice hat for that
special guy, get him a sports-Chemed kippah,
one that he'll enjoy wearing and showing oth-
ers. Guys, don't just purchase a nice
pin for your mom, wife or female
friend, get one that is Jewish art.
Finally, remember that Chanukah
gifts, for those who choose to give
them, can cost little but be worth a
fortune. Who could argue that a 4-
year-old's hand-drawn picture of a
family Shabbat meal is worth less than a new
sweater? Still feel the need to spend? OK, buy
a frame for it. Our gifts, when creative, can say
"I love you" in a fashion that Madison
Avenue's marketing gurus never could have
conceived.
There is no December dilemma. Chanukah
is a marvelous holiday with sweeping and spe-
cific themes about our relationship co faith,
history and tradition. When we are mindful of
this in celebrating with our families. we recog-
nize a value far beyond that of the price tag.

❑

Joking It Up

Rabbi Bob Alper of Dorset, Vt., delivered his standup comedy
shtick Nov. 22 as part of Temple Emanu-El's Year of Rededica-
tion events. In June, the Oak Park synagogue dedicated its
newly renovated sanctuary. The $1.5-million renovation project
included a new foyer, kitchen and nursery school playground,
as well as improvements throughout the 44-year-old building.

A Shot Heard 'Round The World

e protest and mourn the brutal
slaying of Galina Starovoitova,
the Russian legislator who was an
Iglir ardent crusader for democracy
and reform and a courageous and outspoken
voice against anti-Semitism.
Starovoitova, 52, was shot to death in St.
Petersburg Nov. 20 in the stairwell of her
apartment. The killing, widely believed to have
been a political assassination, has rocked the
Russian political establishment.
It should put all of us on guard as well.
Mark Levin, the executive director of the
National Conference on Soviet Jewry, told us
last week he had met Starovoitova many times
and that she was a "hero." He said she had had
close relationships to the Jewish community
and was a long-time ally of Jewish refuseniks
and dissidents during the Soviet Union era.
In recent weeks, Starovoitova had been
especially visible in her criticism of Albert
Makashov, a Communist member of the lower
house of parliament, the Duma, who had been
blaming Jews for Russia's economic troubles.
Starovoitova had led the effort to censure him,
which twice failed to muster the requisite law-
makers' votes.
It has been reported the Starovoitova called
the deputy head of the Kremlin administration
on the day she died to express her continued
concerns about a rising climate of hate. He
reported that she asked "how long the presi-

dent's office will passively watch manifestations
of extremism in the country?"
Rather than seeing the killing as a bell-
wether event, signaling a new and dangerous
trend, Levin said it is merely an "unfortunate
continuation." He said it highlights an ongo-
ing instability and the fact that violence is still
seen as an acceptable means to express political
opposition.
Still, the prominent role of Russian Jews in
business as well as in government, though less
prominent since the recent political shake-up,
makes them a vulnerable target of scapegoat-
ing. This is a cause for concern.
What's needed are continued expressions of
outrage by the United States and other govern-
ments, as well as by the Russian government.
Also, Levin contends, and we strongly agree,
that while the Yeltsin government's decision to
launch an official investigation is laudable, it
must go beyond investigations to get to the
root causes of anti-Semitism and work system-
atically at eradicating them.
We do not want to be alarmist and contin-
ue to support all efforts at Jewish renaissance
in Russia. At the same time, however, the
instability and the violence augur ill for
democrats, diversity and tolerance.
They also underscore the need for contin-
ued collective Jewish responsibility through
UJA Federations of North America for any
Jewish resettlement that is triggered.

❑

LETTERS

Religion
Vs. Belief

I must disagree with Michael
Egren, who wrote in his letter
("Varied Beliefs Demand
Respect," Nov. 20) that
"being Jewish means being
part of an ethnic group."
Judaism is a religion; it is a
belief. Many diverse and dis-
tinct populations contain peo-
ples of numerous and varied
ethnic groups that may have
individuals and groups that
are Jews and practice Judaism.
Jews are not all members of
one distinct ethnic group.
Mr. Egren recognizes "that
one of the underlying prob-
lems for this issue is that peo-
ple, including most Jews, have
difficulty defining Jewish and
Judaism."
This is true for some peo-
ple who would include in the
definition of Jews and as
members of the Jewish "eth-
nic group," those "Jews" who

have renounced their Jewish
faith, those who practice
Christianity as declared Jews
for Jesus, and those who work
with missionaries as messianic
Jews. Some would even
include as Jews those who do
not recognize or have any
belief in the Jewish God.
Others would include Jews
who do not recognize, believe
in or adhere to the Torah, the
Ten Commandments or to
the words of [the philosopher]
Maimonides, who set forth
his "definition" of Judaism in
his "Thirteen Principles of
Faith."
Some understand that the
drift from the Jewish religious
practices that sustained our
ancestors and kept Judaism
alive to this day, with inclu-
sions of changes and modifi-
cations of these practices, are
of recent "enlightenment."
Mr. Egren is absolutely
correct when he said, "There
have always been a variety of
religious beliefs and move-

12/4
1998

Detroit Jewish News

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