A Happy and Healthy
New Year

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essay

Mispacha (Family) Matters

I

STONE'S

JEWELRY

6881 Orchard Lake Rd. on the Boardwalk

(248) 851-5030

stonesﬁ nejewelry@gmail.com

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t’s easy to forget that Israel is more
than 6,000 miles away when stand-
ing in front of hundreds of sup-
porters at our annual Yom Ha’Atzmaut
celebrations. It’s moments like these
that make me feel like
I’ve been a member of the
Midwest Jewish community
forever. It reminds me what
I already know — that the
Jewish people are not just a
religion; they are a nation.
More than that, we are a
family. Judaism is what gives Aviv Ezra
us a sense of belonging and
identity in the communities
in which we live. This is why
it is so important that we
never feel divided from within.
This summer’s revisit to the Kotel
compromise, coupled with the sug-
gested conversion bill, unfortunately
surfaced a feeling of divisiveness.
Like in any family, the search for
equilibrium leaves some feeling
troubled. But as a family, it is crucial
to not only have dialogue, but also to
listen to each other and search for a
better understanding of one another.
Most importantly, family doesn’t give
up on each other, and this situation
shouldn’t be any different.
As an Israeli, I am not merely accus-
tomed to self-criticism, debate and
disagreement — I encourage it. And
I encourage you to also engage in
this debate, to empower yourself by
using your voice, and to stand up for
your beliefs by creating dialogue and
understanding. This is the only path to
reach equilibrium.
We deserve to find agreement rath-
er than disagreement and compro-
mise rather than confrontation. We
have to find a way to discover the one
voice within the many voices among

us in order to strengthen our roots
and proudly assert our Judaism as a
unified nation.
My Jewish extended “family”
throughout the Midwest is evidence of
the support and commitment
to the State of Israel that I rep-
resent. I am humbled to visit
congregations with siddurium
that contain prayers for the
State of Israel and for the
Israeli Defense Forces. When I
sit on bimahs alongside rabbis
of all denominations, I am hon-
ored to see an Israeli flag flying
alongside the American flag.
The overwhelming response
to the JUF Israel Solidarity
Day and the warm welcome I receive
when I visit the different cities and
states throughout our region, includ-
ing the city of Detroit and the state of
Michigan, is a reminder of the dedica-
tion people from Michigan, in particu-
lar, and the United States as a whole,
have for Israel.
Every day, I experience the support
and commitment of organizations and
individuals throughout the Midwest
who don’t always agree with Israel’s
policies or decisions, but who remain
engaged.
In the path that we seek, we’ll find
challenges, but we will work together
and our voices will be heard, loud and
clear. Now, more than ever, we want to
galvanize our voices in our journey to
find equilibrium.
This project called Zionism is a fam-
ily project. It’s a project of both Israelis
and the diaspora, and by better under-
standing each other, we can proudly
flourish in this project •

Aviv Ezra is Consul General of Israel to the
Midwest.

letters

Support To
Oak Park Area

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10

September 14 • 2017

jn

As a brief follow-up to the Jewish
News’ recent article on JPM
(“Coming Soon?” Aug. 17), we want
to again acknowledge the frustra-
tions of those waiting for further
progress on a new facility. We recog-
nize that the Jewish neighborhoods
in and around Oak Park are a thriv-
ing and vital part of our overall com-
munity, and we remain committed
to supporting Jewish life in the area
as we have been for many decades.
That includes our ongoing efforts to
build a new facility in Oak Park that
serves the local population.
As we have said, the proposed

facility must be financially self-
sustaining or we risk once again
putting our community in financial
jeopardy. Still, every one of the many
volunteers and professionals that
have been working on this project
share a sincere desire to see it suc-
cessfully completed.

Lawrence A. Wolfe,
President, Jewish Federation
of Metropolitan Detroit

CORRECTION

• In “What’s New At School” (Aug.
24), Farber Hebrew Day School’s
Head of School Rabbi Scot Berman’s
last name was incorrect several
times. We regret the errors.

