Editorials and Letters to the Editor are posted and archived on JN Online: vv-ww.detroitjewishnews.com Is It Safe? IN FOCUS e sit on our sofas late at night watching live coverage of the most recent tragedy, a rampage of lead and venom at a Jewish communi- ty center in Granada Hills, Calif. We see little children holding hands as they leave the build- ing under police guard. News trucks with sophisticated satellite dishes beam the words of the on-air "talent" back to us. The psychother- apists stand by, ready to offer to heal. We hope to watch the S.W.A.T. team get the bad guy and somehow make things right and safe again. We hope our candidate, "good," will win this time. Then we can explain to our chil- dren that life goes on and so must we. But in our heads, we recite the earlier names, like so many Civil War battlefields — Oklahoma City, Columbine, Sacramento, West Rodgers Park. Was the Atlanta rampage only two weeks ago? We see the symptoms, but what of the sick- ness itself? There are no satellite dishes or talking heads or media shrinks on hand to capture its begin- nings, maybe in something as ridiculously ordi- nary as the slap of a hand by an abusing parent or in words that rip and tear a mind as surely as a 30-caliber slug does flesh. People don't need to wear a swastika to hate. They don't have to kill someone with a gun to hate. Haters have learned somewhere that life is less, not more, and hate doesn't need network coverage to thrive. No doubt what happened this week was again a hate crime, that anti-Semitism has car- ried its gun into the safety of a JCC. We can pretend to patch up the damage with a bandage of heightened security and a pareve call for gun control. But we as Jews need to help this diverse society figure out a way to rid itself of the dis- ease itself. And that disease usually makes its start in our homes, not in a school or in a JCC. We need to teach love to one another. We need to build and to re-build our self images. And we absolutely, once and for all, need to use the force of this great nation to put an end to this industry of guns. The same love that God teaches us, and that we pray for more fervently during Elul, this month of preparation for our repentance, this is how we can keep the light alive. Yes, guns, and yes, our appetite for the drama the media builds have roles in all of this. But that can be overcome. We will move on, we will be safe. We cannot underestimate the role of faith in all of this. Hear 0 Israel, the Lord Is God, the Lord is One. It's what we say, it is what we believe. Too heavy? Maybe. But the hating, the shooting, the killing. It's much heavier. And it must stop. 1-1 Mr. Maccabi Games tition out of-state in the heat of summer. early 170 strong, Detroit's JCC And he would be thrilled to see that Maccabi Maccabi athletes are fanning out week, with evening activities that stress Jewish across the country this week and identity, is still considered a Jewish experience, next to compete, make friends and not only a test of athleticism. celebrate being Jewish. We remember Mr. Robinson say- Jay Robinson, Detroit's Mr. Mac- ing how important the games are to cabi Games, would have been shaping Jews during the impression- proud. able teen years. We, as the American His death from cancer in April Jewish community, must never let 1998 at age 61, four months shy of logistics, staffing, squabbles or other last year's opening ceremonies, cast a challenges stand in the way of let- momentary pall over the Detroit- ting the games begin, he said. hosted 1998 games. But they were And he was right. successfully held, featuring 13- to That's because the JCC Maccabi 16-year-olds from 70 communities Jay Robinson Games reach beyond the circles of around the world. competition and friendship. They The games' spirit and popularity also foster Jewish interaction. And at the core of nationwide, with solid support here via the that interaction are the host families, who make Maccabi Club of Metropolitan Detroit, are a the games possible. Competitors are guests in tribute to Mr. Robinson's indelible imprint the homes of their hosts, typically strangers. But since the first torch lighting in 1982. more times than not, competitors and hosts are Were he alive today, Mr. Robinson would divinely linked at the soul. be thrilled to see that, a year after hosting So it is that we recall Jay Robinson, whose nearly 4,000 athletes and coaches for a nation- love for sport, faith in kids and vigor for Judaism al competition, Detroit still was able to recruit still resonate wherever the Maccabi torch is lit. 169 teens for this year's regional games. His soul lives on today in the 169 teenagers that He would be thrilled to see that 36 volunteers make up Detroit's Jewish Community Center- cared enough about the games to coach several sponsored Maccabi team for 1999. II practice sessions here and lead a week of compe- N • • • I. • • Northern Retreat Board members and friends recently dedicated a unique addi- tion to the Jewish Association for Residential Care's portfolio of homes: the Labes Vacation Home on Smallwood Lake in Glad- win. The barrier-free home is a gift from Jim and Laura Sher- man of Birmingham in honor of the birthday of Jim's sister, Ellen Labes of Bloomfield Hills (all shown on the deck over- looking the lake). The house is available on a rotating basis to all people served by the Southfield-based JARC agency. LETTERS Many Reform Jews Are Observant I enjoyed reading the article, "A Lesson For A Lifetime" (Voices In Jewish Education, Aug. 6), in which Willard Posen is featured. Mr. Posen's experience certainly reinforces the importance of a Jewish education and Jew- ish role modeling within the family. I feel compelled, however, to respond to the implication made by the Jewish News, in reference to Mr. Posen's back- ground, that people who grow up in Reform Jewish environ- ments are, by definition, less observant and less informed. The foundation of Reform Judaism is the notion that Jews study text in order to make informed and educated choices. Indeed, there are many Reform Jews who are "observant" in the traditional sense. There are also many Reform Jews who have stud- ied Judaism throughout their entire lives, creating personal and family minhagim [Jewish customs] and Jewish experi- - ences that are deeply spiritual. Given our history as a peo- ple and our immediate experi- ences in the ga/ut [diaspora], it is unproductive and irre- sponsible to suggest, even by subtle implication, that one movement within Judaism is less valuable than others. Nancy Gad-Harf West Bloomfield Lubavitch Also Offer Adult Ed It was exciting to note all the adult education programs available in our community ("Voices In Jewish Educa- tion," Aug. 6). You omitted from the article, however, an entire system of educational programming — one, more- over, that is based on a corn- LETTERS ON PAGE 31 199' 11. • ..... Detroit Jewish News n