Texas Jewish Post (Fort Worth, Tex.), Vol. 59, No. 39, Ed. 1 Thursday, September 29, 2005 Page: 46 of 48
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TJP V59-39 09-29-05 p46-48 9/27/05 7:30 PM Page 46
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46
Texas Jewish Post
In Our 59th Year September 29,2005
Columnists
Ask the Rabbi
Dear Rabbi,
What is the meaning ofShofar on
Rosh Hashanah? Is it meant to be
musical? — Sandy L.
Dear Sandy,
The literal meaning of the word
"shofar" comes from the
word "Shaper" in Hebrew,
which means "to
improve." Its blast is meant
to be a wake-up call for us
to improve our actions
and resolve on Rosh
Hashanah to better our-
selves for the rest of the
year. Some have said that is
why we wish people a
"Shana Tovah" or a Good
Year, rather than a "Shana Sam-
eycha" or a Joyous Year, like our
neighbors greet each other on their
New Year with a Happy New Year.
Although, of course, we hope
everyone's New Year will be joyous,
the bigger blessing we greet each
other with is that the year should be
"good," a year to make ourselves
better, truly good people and Jews.
By Rabbi
Yerachmiel D. Fried
Many have noticed that we are
receiving another wake-up call this
Rosh Hashanah in the way of Rita,
on the coattails of Katrina. It is fas-
cinating that the events of 9/11 also
took place just before Rosh
Hashanah that year.
Although we don't know
just why these things are
happening to us, we have
mentioned in the past that
the Jewish way to react to
such vicissitudes is by
introspection. Much as the
shofar cries out to us to
"improve!" such is the mes-
sage we must take from the
devastation around us, that
mankind on the whole has much to
improve, and we, as a Light Among
the Nations, need to lead that clarion
call with our shofar blast and our
reactions to these events.
The Kabbalists explain that Rosh
Hashanah has the ability to make
the shofar blast heard to our inner-
most souls, as this day coincides
with the day of the creation of the
first man and woman. On this day,
we are much more in touch with
our inner selves than other days of
the year. Hence the sound of the
shofar, which the Talmud explains
is meant to sound like one crying,
as the toot-toot-toot does if you
listen carefully. It's not meant to be
musical, but to reflect the cry of the
soul that feels distant from the
heavens that it was brought here
from. It's the cry of the soul not fully
fulfilling its potential in the world
and not connecting fully to its
source and Creator. That cry, echoed
by the shofar blast, is what wakes us
up and inspires us to improve, to
still the cry and turn it into a cry of
joy, connectedness and meaning.
May the shofar blast this year
usher in a year of peace in Israel,
safety and prosperity in America,
and the joy of our souls as we
improve ourselves and grow.
Rabbi Yerachmiel Fried, noted scholar
and author of numerous works on
Jewish law, philosophy and Talmud,
is founder and dean of DATA, the
Dallas Area Torah Association. Ques-
tions can be sent to him at
yfried@sbcglobal.net or at DATA,
5840 Forest Lane, Dallas, TX 75230,
(214) 987-3282.
Shalom from the Shabbat Lady
Learning to swim — more
than one teachable moment
Dear Families,
It says in the Talmud that a father
must teach his children to swim.
What a strange piece of
advice to be writing in
ancient Babylonia! What
could the sages have been
thinking about? As a camp
director, I know the
importance of swimming
and also the absolute joy
children feel in the water,
but after watching our
Taglit preschoolers in their
weekly lessons at our
indoor pool, I think I understand
those ancient rabbis a little better.
Yes, our children are learning
actual swimming skills, but there is
By Laura
Seymour
so much more to learn. They are
learning to listen, to follow direc-
tions, to have a healthy respect/fear
of the water. In addition to the
lessons in the water, there are won-
derful lessons to be learned with the
entire process — remem-
bering to bring your suit
and towel, carrying every-
thing to the locker room,
finding the locker with
your name on it, changing
your clothes and putting
everything in the locker,
and, of course, the reverse
process at the end of the
swim lesson.
Children learn every
minute of every day from things we
teach them and from the things we
do—we must give them the oppor-
tunities to grow and learn. The sages
of the Talmu d knew that swimming
was a survival skill and their lesson
to all the people was to be prepared
for wherever you may wander. The
lessons are vital for today: Keep your
head above water, don't go in too
deep, and always swim with a
buddy. Judaism has always been a
practical religion!
Believe it or not, there is another
reference to swimming in the
Talmud that is also a valuable lesson
for every day. Our sages taught:
there are two times when we should
keep our mouths closed — when
swimming and when angry! Share
these lessons as you swim with your
child and enjoy the time together.
Laura Seymour is director of Taglit
Preschool at the Aaron Family Jewish
Community Center.
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In My Mind's I
By Harriet P.
Gross
Nose for news uncovers
Dallas connections at
seminal UT event
You can't teach an old dog new tricks
You can't keep an old reporter from run-
ning after a new story.
On a recent "pleasure" (ha!)
trip to Austin, I was alerted to
something at the University of
Texas with profound Dallas
connections and implications,
something that should make
all of us proud: the First
Annual Keep UT Hate Free
Community Celebration. Its
driving force was Hillel and
campus activist Danielle
Rugoff, a university senior I knew as a
child at Congregation Beth Torah in
Richardson. Herphoto, with ElieWeisel,
was on page one of this summer's Jewish
student newspaper, The Jewish Texan.
Now it was Danielle's turn to stand
front and center herself in Welch Hall,
introducing the pantheon of notables
she'd brought together to start some-
thing everyone hopes will grow and
grow, assuring there will be no more
ugly incidents like those that have
scarred the UT campus.
Prime speakers ran from the well-
known Dr. Mark Yudof, Chancellor of the
University of Texas System, to the for-
merly almost-unknown Ross Bennett,
member of Zeta Beta Tau. Ross has
become much better known since he
was brutally attacked on the porch of his
primarily Jewish fraternity house after
four young men asked him if he
belonged there, and if he was Jewish, and
he answered "Yes" to both questions.
"Hatred always seeks an outlet and
finds a victim," said Chancellor Yudof,
recalling issues of years ago when he was
growing up in a time of segregation.
"Despite so much progress, there are
always some ignorant people who subju-
gate someone else."
Bennett, also a UT senior from
Dallas, talked about the irony of his sit-
uation. He was picked up bodily, thrown
over a six-foot ledge, punched in the face
and kicked in the ribs for his religion,
but "I'm adopted," he said. "By birth, I'm
100 percent pure Aryan. So it doesn't
matter how you look, or how you present
yourself."
During his freshman year, two
pledges in Ross Bennett's ZBT house
were jumped by skinheads, and a year
later, a member of the SAMmys, another
Jewish fraternity,wound up with a metal
plate in his head. "You have to stick up
for who you are, for yourself," Ross con-
cluded. "One day this will change." (In Email: harrietg@texasjewishpost.com
running to get some more information
after the speeches, I slid — fell — and
broke my right hip. Obviously I am too
old to learn a new trick like sliding safely
in slick-soled sandals. I took my tumble
before I could catch up with him, but I've
been told that Bennett and his
family belong to Temple
Shalom.)
Ross's theme was echoed
by 15 speakers, each of whom
made a brief pitch for the very
kind of change Danielle
Rugoff mobilized people to
start bringing about. She had
professors there, ministers,
student leaders and campus
police, and the black Dr. Gre-
gory Vincent, a former civil rights
attorney who has accepted the chal-
lenging new position of Vice Provost for
Inclusion and Cross-Cultural Effective-
ness at UT.
"As a lawyer," he said,"I know the law
is a powerful tool. But it's after the fact
— after a person has already been hurt.
The challenge is for people to get out of
their comfort zone and know someone
different."
Was it all just a lot of talk? Well,
William Pieper, a UT crime prevention
officer, doesn't think so. In fact, he drew
a cheer from the crowd when he played
on local pride: "We're Texas. What starts
here changes the world!"
In truth, that crowd was a very small
one. UT Austin has some 40,000 stu-
dents; fewer than a hundred were on
hand for this event. And yet, and yet.. .As
Shakespeare continues to remind us,
"How far that little candle throws his
beams!"
Is Danielle Rugoff just a dreamer?
What kind of audacity, to call something
like this "First Annual" when she'll be
graduated and gone by the time there
may or may not be a second! But she's
counting on those coming up behind her
to keep that little candle burning.
"This evening is an opportunity to
promote awareness and go beyond toler-
ance," she said. "We hope that you are
inspired and motivated to educate your-
selves and each other. The success of
Keep UT Hate Free depends on all of
you." Her motley crew of followers, of all
races and religions and ethnicities, left
Welch Hall primed to take up the chal-
lenge.
I hope they all know the line from
Shakespeare that comes after the first:
"So shines a good deed in a naughty
world." This is what's helping an old
reporter to recuperate!
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Wisch, Rene. Texas Jewish Post (Fort Worth, Tex.), Vol. 59, No. 39, Ed. 1 Thursday, September 29, 2005, newspaper, September 29, 2005; Fort Worth, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth188099/m1/46/: accessed May 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; .