arts & entertainment A Jewish Perspective The religious allure of the Beatles. Joel Benjamin Special to the Jewish News j ust as Judaism is an ethical and spiritual lighthouse — so, too, were the Beatles. Most religions have their roots in spiri- tual awakening. The Beatles had a power- ful appeal to a generation in calling forth a spiritual bonding. They sought out wonder, meaning and innocence in their lives and music. Similar to Judaism, the religious allure of the Beatles was a vital factor in allowing the group to endure. The Beatles were spiritual apostles that evangelized a kind of gospel that resonated with tens, if not hundreds, of millions of people across a broad spectrum of the planet. Their own personal search for a meaningful spirituality was a major part of their attraction. Joining the Beatle religion was nothing more than a matter of "belonging to the community" of like-minded people who enjoyed their music and agreed with its idea, tone, focus and message. The Beatles preached a fantastic gospel through music. Just as Jews benefit from belonging to the Jewish community, a large Beatlemania from page 51 RECORDINGS: On Jan. 21, as part of the 50th anniver- sary of the Beatles' conquest of America, Capitol Records released a box set, The Beatles: The U.S. Albums. The 13-CD collection includes the 12-track American versions of the British 14-track albums — now considered the standard discography of Beatles releases — from the 1960s. In addition to different track sequenc- Jews I Nate Bloom Special to the Jewish News Winter Olympics U 52 The Winter Olympics will be held Feb. 6-23 in Sochi, Russia. Israel is sending a five-member team. So far, I know of one Jewish athlete on the American team and one on the Canadian team. The American is figure skater Simon Shnapir, 26, who has Shnapir competed in pairs skating with his part- ner, Marissa Casteilli, 26, since 2006. February 6 • 2014 part of the global community became part of the "Beatle community" by listening to their songs, loving what they stood for and following their incredible lives. With no formal rituals, the gospel according to the Beatles is a story of spiri- tual and personal exploration. The central concern of their simple message was their unfolding philosophy, which always piv- oted on freedom of one type or another — political and spiritual. The human prob- lem, in their eyes, was one of limitations and constraint. We can't reach our full potential if we are inhibited. In the same way, the Jewish idea sug- gests that we need to free ourselves from the limitation and entrapment of our physical world — at least once a week on Shabbat. This weekly time-honored Jewish practice of "freeing ourselves so we can embark on a more spiritual path" is exactly what the Beatles projected to the world. There are theological parallels between the Beatles and Judaism, as well. The Beatles spent exactly seven years together: from August 1962 when Ringo joined the group until August 1969, when they completed the recording of Abbey Road. Seven is a key number in Judaism. es, different mixes sometimes appeared on these early American albums. Capitol also released extra albums — made up of leftover album tracks and added singles — that had no direct British counterpart. The box set includes Meet the Beatles, The Beatles' Second Album, A Hard Day's Night, Something New, The Beatles' Story, Beatles '65, The Early Beatles, Beatles VI, Help, Rubber Soul, Yesterday ... and Today, Revolver and Hey, Jude. Later albums that were identical in the U.S. and The duo won the 2013 and the 2014 U.S. championship in their event. The Canadian is figure skater Dylan Moskovitch, 29, a native of Toronto, AR, Oft who competes in pairs with his partner, Kirsten Moore-Towers, 21. The duo has won Moskovitch several international competitions. Neither the Jewish-sounding Gracie Gold nor Mikaela Shiffrin is Jewish. Opening ceremonies are on Friday, Feb. 7; on Thursday, Feb. 6, a new event, team figure skating, will take place. NBC's coverage starts at 8 p.m. God created the world in seven days; the number repre- sents spiritual perfection and fullness or The Beatles with their Jewish manager, Brian Epstein, center completion. The Beatles recorded 12 studio albums. Twelve is a ers, bringing honor to God's sovereignty. number also signifying perfection. There are There is no doubt the Beatles reached the 12 divisions of heaven called the mazzaroth, masses with a message of love, peace, per- which God uses for signs and seasons — sonal fulfillment and happiness. They were hence the 12 symbols of the zodiac. taking the first step in implementing tikkun Another way the Beatles and the Jews olam — a call to make a better world. are linked is that the direction of the The Beatles' historical legacy certainly group's music changed on June 1, 1967, provided the backdrop for a "spiritual when the Sgt. Peppers album was released renewal" in the last half of the 20th cen- and changed music and pop culture forev- tury. er. Seventy-two hours later, on June 5, the The question remains: Were they "given" Six-Day War broke out, forever changing seven years to help us to spiritually free Israel and its place in the world. ourselves? These two major events occurred in the span of just 72 hours, which is 4 times 18 Israeli business and economics journalist (18 being the number for "life"). Joel Benjamin is the author of two research The Beatles left a lasting legacy of tik- studies, Beatle Musings and Beatle Song kun olam, a phrase signifying that as man Profiles, on the musical and historical legacy shares a partnership with God, humanity is of the Beatles (www.ArjonPublishing.com). instructed to take the steps toward improv- He can be contacted for lecture inquiries at ing the state of the world and helping oth- BeatleLectures@outlook.com. ❑ Britain are not included. In November, Capitol released On Air Live at the BBC, Volume 2, a follow- up to 1994's The Beatles Live at the BBC. On Air's 63 tracks, none of which over- laps with the first BBC release, include 37 previously unreleased performances and 23 previously unreleased recordings of in-studio banter and conversation between the band's members and their BBC radio hosts. Both albums also are available in a new box set. — ❑ Movie News Last week, French choreographer Benjamin Millepied, 36, told an Israeli newspaper he is converting to Judaism. Millepied wed actress Natalie Portman, 32, last year in a Jewish ceremony; the couple have a young son. Opening on Friday, Feb. 7, is Monuments Men, based on a real-life American Army unit that was tasked with finding and rescuing the works of art the Nazis had looted from all across Europe (a large percentage of the art was stolen from Jews). The film was directed and co-writ- ten by George Clooney and co-written by Grant Heslov, 50, Clooney's pro- The Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show, Feb. 9, 1964 ducing partner. The real names of many unit members are used in the film; Clooney stars as real-life unit head George L. Stout. About half of the real-life members of the unit were Jewish, including James Rorimer (1905- 1960), who went on to become direc- tor of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (played by Matt Damon), and Preston Savitz (played by Bob Balaban, 67). Rorimer worked very closely with the real-life Rose Valland (played by Cate Blanchett), a French art curator. ❑