No.54June 2006Sivan 5766

THE MAGAZINE FOR THE EDINBURGH JEWISH COMMUNITY

• Rabbi Rose takes us on a trip down the Danube

• Non-Jewish perspectives of being married to a Jew

• Education in ‘Klezmerology’

• It really is fun going kosher… it is… Really!

The Edinburgh Star

Synagogue Chambers4 Salisbury RoadEdinburgh EH16 5AB

Cover PictureIsraeli birds of paradise

EditorJudy Gilbert

Editorial BoardPeter BennettSidney Caplan (Treasurer)Phillip HarrisStephanie BrickmanJanet MundyEve OppenheimRabbi David Rose

DesignDebbie Bennett

ArtworkHelen McFeely

PrintingMeigle Printers LtdTweedbank Galashiels TD1 3RS

ContentsEditorial 1

Troubled Danube – Rabbi David Rose 2

The Triumph of Military Zionism – Colin Schindler 3

A day of Jewsih Culture – Janet Mundy 5

Around and About - Ian Shein 6

Youth Service Programme 8

Positive Steps forward in our community 9

Adventures in Kashvut – Stephanie Brickman 10

Society Reports 14

Musical Notes 16

The Other Half – Clare Hogg, Kite Silk, Martin Simmen 18

Jewish Perception of Jesus – Susanna Heschel 19

A review of ‘study of god’ by Robert Winston – Janet Mundy 23

Obituaries 24

Sports Events 27

Announcements

Forthcoming Events

The Board would also like to thank Mr & Mrs Harold Mendelssohn for kindly defraying the cost of sending The Edinburgh Star overseas.All pieces are accepted for publication at the absolute discretion of the Editor. The Editor has the right to make such amendments to any piece chosen for publication as may in his absolute discretion berequired in the editorial interests of this publication and to avoid exposing this publication or its staff to any criminal or civil liability or otherwise to avoid bringing this publication or its staff into disrepute.

Copyright subsists in this publication and in its typeset. No part of the publication may be reproduced by any means, including electronic, without the express written consent of The Edinburgh Star andwithout an acknowledgment of such consent, when given, being clearly printed together with an identification of The Edinburgh Star as being the source of such material.

The views expressed in The Edinburgh Star are those of the contributors and are not necessarily those of The Edinburgh Star, its staff or publishers.

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From the Editor

Sadly this cynical view appears to have some validity, but thenecessary strength to defy such stated Palestinian objectives,will hopefully come from the more enlightened youth in Israeland Palestine. This can be seen so vividly in the West EastDivan Orchestra, guided by its inspirational leader, DanielBarenboim.

These young people, brought up in an atmosphere ofsimmering and often more blatant animosity towards eachother, have succeeded in finding an area of commonality; theyseem far more able to see beyond the warring instinct of theirelders. I also see this on a personal level. My own son delightsin belonging to a football team in America, which could befairly described as comprising the League of Nations. Itincludes a whole spectrum of nationalities and religions,including Muslims and Jews. My wish is that ourcorrespondent, and indeed all of our readers, will feel theremay yet be a glimmer of hope.

In an effort to bring the concept of cultural harmony andinclusiveness into this edition, we asked three representativesof mixed marriages to share their thoughts on their ownexperience of living with a Jewish partner. Read how thisrelationship has shaped their family dynamics.

And whilst still in the realm of harmony, Simon Carlyle will giveyou some important facts about the essentials you mayhitherto have rashly omitted in your Klezmer education.

David Kaplan writes about what he perceives to be EdinburghStar’s obsession with trying to define ‘who is a Jew’ Whilstlevels of orthodoxy have certainly been explored in the past, intruth, the topic in question has only once before been aired.But to shy away from anyone’s personal views is not withinthe ethos of this publication and so despite his ratheruncomfortable assertions, it is not the Star’s objective to becensorial.

On a more positive note, his father Morris writes refreshinglyabout the Jewish way forward. He outlines his own personalcontribution, in which he has successfully encouraged familiesto feel comfortable and to participate regularly in his monthlyShabbat service.

Still on the theme of seeing things from various points of view,we have a scholarly discussion about ‘The Jewish perceptionof Jesus’, the last part of which will be continued in the nextedition.

With the passing of one of Scotland’s most highly respectedmodern novelists, the ‘Star’ has invited Michael Lister to paytribute to the literary achievements of Muriel Spark. That is notto say that we fail to acknowledge a son’s loss of his mother,which might be inferred from the apparent lack of a morepersonal tribute. There is, however, every expectation for thisomission to be rectified, as Robin, despite his sadestrangement with his mother, has generously agreed to writea personal account of her life in the next edition, by whichtime his more immediate emotions will have lessened.

As ever, community news is the consolidating factor for allreaders. This is an important component of the magazine;many will say the most important component, so please helpby keeping us informed.

With Shavuot nearly behind us and Rosh Hashanah on theway, it is timely to acknowledge Arnold Rifkind’s quiet andefficient organisation of the flyers and greetings list for theYom Teruah page, not forgetting the subsequent moneys itraises for both the Community and the Star.

Our grateful thanks are also due to Norman Berger, NormanDorfman and Ian Shein for the effort they have put into takingcare of the delivery side of the magazine for so many years.The new method of dispatch, having proved successful,means the same manpower is no longer required so now wewould like to express our appreciation for all their hard work.

Shavuot Tov.

Judy Gilbert

Since the last edition of the Star we have been exposed to the ups and downs, the comings and goingsof the two Middle East peoples most in our minds. Following the election of the Palestinian Hamasparty, its leaders made eager representations as to their sincerity, but it was not long before furtheraggression was shown, with Mahmoud Abbas effectively justifying the terrorist act by declaring that itwas not surprising, given all that has happened in the past. One of our Israeli readers and pastcontributors observed, ‘Hamas could be expected to show a friendly attitude; this is only a tactic. Thereal strategy remains; to wipe out the State of Israel’

Support The Edinburgh StarSend us your letters and articles. Deadline date: Monday 21 AugustNext issue: Thursday 21 September

The Editor, The Edinburgh Star, 4 Salisbury Road, Edinburgh EH16 5AB

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Troubled Danube: Reflections on HungaryRabbi David Rose

Balagan! That is the word that comes to mind when onethinks of modern Hungary, in both a positive and negativesense. The country itself is a mixture of styles and people,the nation’s relation to its history is confused and the Jewishcommunity is possibly the biggest mess of all. This, ofcourse, makes Hungary a fascinating and worthwhile placeto visit, as I found out when I spent eleven days there inJanuary.

The first balagan is in the physical make up of the countryitself and especially Budapest. Unlike Prague or Vienna, thecity is a hotchpotch of differing architectural styles, reflectingHungary’s varied history. One can gaze across from thestunning neo-Gothic Parliament, (surely the most beautiful inthe world and with free entry to EU citizens to boot), to thelate Medieval castle area. This area itself contains a medievalpalace (with excellent museums), the 19th century gothic styleFisherman’s Bastion, and a medieval church with 19thaccruements. This is just a taste of the feast for the eyes thatBudapest’s architectural balagan offers. Yet, perhaps the bestthing about Budapest is the fact that these treasures are notconcentrated in one area. Rather, they areoften dispersed among normal drab lookingbuildings. For example, walking downRakoczi Ut, the main shopping boulevard,one’s eye is suddenly caught by awonderfully decorated building that lookslike a museum or church, but is in factsimply a cinema. This is also true outsidethe city. Visiting the picturesque tourist trapof Szentendre, one notices that many of thebuildings need a coat of paint, butoccasionally you come across a structurethat appears to have been recently restored.In between the churches and monuments you will even find asmall synagogue. This town also houses a Marzipan museum,which is well worth a visit, even if you don’t wish to eat areplica of Michael Jackson!

Possibly the most interesting thing about Hungary is itspeople. Here also we have anomalies and paradoxes. Hungaryis of course a European country but with non-European genes.Its people look and speak like no one else in Europe. It is acountry occupied for a century and a half by the Ottomans butwith a negligible Muslim minority. Its national Protestantchurch only comprises a minority of its mainly Catholic people.This people, of course, speak a language different to all theirneighbours. Related, but unintelligible, to Finnish andEstonian, the unique nature of Hungarian gives Hungary asomewhat insular character; despite being located in the heartof Europe. If you wonder why Hungarians often do not speakEnglish, try learning Hungarian!

However, the most disturbing thing about Hungary is itsrelationship to its past. Other than casual references toHungary’s ‘lost territories’, (Croatia, Transylvania etc…) thebest illustration of this is the Terror House. This institution, partmuseum, part memorial, was set up by the last right-winggovernment. They appear to have learnt a lot aboutpropaganda from the communists. Overdone, over-dramatiseddisplays, greet you at every turn, with their selective take onhistory. Jews especially have much to be disturbed about. TheNazi ‘Occupation’ is juxtaposed everywhere with the Soviet‘Occupation’. The crimes of the Arrow Cross are dealt withbriefly, the crimes of the communists at length and the crimesof the Horthy regime under which the majority of Hungary’sJews were allowed to be murdered, not dealt with at all. Andthen there is the peculiar statement that, owing to the war, the

loyalty of Hungary’s Jews was weakenedand this allowed the communist regime toconduct campaigns against Zionism, inwhich ‘innocent’ Jews were also caught up;Comrade Stalin would be pleased!

But the most disturbing thing about theplace comes at the end; and has nothing todo with Jews. After being transported tothe memorial in the cellars, while a formerwarder describes how he hanged people,you come to the wall of the ‘victimizers’.These fifty or so names are of people,

many of who are still alive, who are held guilty of the crimes ofthe communist regime. Not only were none of them ever triedor convicted in a court of law but also the assertion that thesewere the guilty ones, effectively exonerates everyone else.Hungarian society is thus absolved of the blame for forty yearsof its history, which was seemingly imposed upon it by ahandful of individuals; this in a country that has still notopened up the secret service files to the general public. Therole of the Hungarian army, police and ordinary informers areconveniently swept under the carpet. A society that cannotface its past cannot truly move on to face the future, and inthis regard, Hungary has a long way to go.

So what about the Jewish Community? This appears to be thebiggest balagan of all. Firstly, Hungarian Jewry must be themost assimilated in the world. Of the estimated 100,000 Jewsin Hungary today, only about 8,000 are in some wayconnected to organised Jewish life. The community appearsto be run by an oligarchy, accountable only to itself. As inHungary, religious organisations are by law exempt fromfinancial scrutiny, no one knows what is really going on. Thereis a kosher butcher, but I was told that something ordered in

“Hungary is of course a European country but withnon-European genes. Its people look and speak likeno one else in Europe.”

“The role of the Hungarian army, police andordinary informers are conveniently swept under thecarpet.”

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June might come by February. The three-hour trip to shop inVienna is more reliable. The main Orthodox synagogue isstrange indeed, if stunningly beautiful. While they appear topray according to the normal Ashkenazi liturgy; the style ofprayer is Hassidic. A special feature of Hungary is theNeologies movement. This, a 19th century version of ModernOrthodoxy, is today an eclectic mix. Many of the synagoguesare indistinguishable from our own; while the main, worldfamous, Dohany synagogue has an organ and a moreConservative-type service. Women, however, are kept firmly intheir place. No synagogue has mixed seating and women arenot able to vote on community matters, let alone participate ina service. The English tour of the Dohany synagogue, full ofboth historical and religious inaccuracies, seemed mainly to beconcerned with who gave them money, and who didn’t.

Lest it all seem depressing, this is not the whole story. Thereappear to be a couple of excellent Jewish schools and themost dynamic body in Hungarian Jewry: the Pesti Shule. Thissynagogue was taken over by a group of young professionalsand academics, who in the last few years have turned it into adynamic spiritual and intellectual centre. On a Wednesdaynight, for example, lawyers, doctors and students come tolearn Hebrew for three hours! Lectures, Shabbat lunches and afriendly atmosphere make it a must to visit. Indeed Budapestas a whole, and its eclectic Jewish community are themselveswell worth a visit.

Inevitably, therefore, the question mustarise of 'transferring' those Arabselsewhere so as to make at least someroom for Jewish newcomers. But itmust be hateful for any Jew to thinkthat the rebirth of a Jewish Stateshould ever be linked with such anodious suggestion as the removal ofnon-Jewish citizens.

So wrote Vladimir Jabotinsky, thefounder of the Revisionist Zionistmovement, in his preparatory notes forhis speech in Dublin in January 1938.Such a categorical opinion wouldsurprise many in Israel today – from thebelligerent far Right, who quoteJabotinsky at their rallies, to those onthe unthinking section of the Left, whobelieve that Jabotinsky was a dyed-in-the-wool Fascist. He was a far moresophisticated and complex figure thansuch spitting imagery conveys. In part,the vision of Jabotinsky that comesdown to us 65 years after his deathwas constructed by both David Ben-Gurion and Menachem Begin, aproduct of the internecine war betweenthe Right and the Left in Israel. But itwas undoubtedly the product ofMenachem Begin’s determined attemptto seek and maintain the leadership ofthe national camp in Israel in 1948. Itwas also part of a wider desire toretroactively reinterpret RevisionistZionism through the prism of the Irgunand its political successors.

Menachem Begin always regardedhimself as a disciple of Jabotinsky, butthis was based on a selective readingof Jabotinsky’s canon of writings. It issignificant that Begin always referred to

the Jabotinsky movement, but rarely tothe Revisionist movement. Both menwere influenced by nineteenth centuryRomantic nationalism, the ItalianRisorgimento and the Polish strugglefor independence. Yet Jabotinsky hadcondemned the Easter Uprisingwhereas the Irgun enthusiasticallyembraced Irish Republicanism.Although undoubtedly inspired byJabotinsky, Begin was also profoundlyinfluenced by intellectuals in the Yishuvsuch as Abba Achimeir from theMaximalist camp of the Revisionists.

Abba Achimeir taught at the school forthe Betar madrichim. In part, this hadbeen deliberately established to definethe evolving identity of Betar. Was it apioneering youth movement similar tothose in other Zionist parties? Or was itan embryonic military organization?The school followed an increasinglyradical line. Military training was seennot as preparation for a new JewishLegion, as Jabotinsky had envisaged,but as the means of establishing themilitary wing of a national liberationmovement. The preference of theschool’s cadets for direct actionprovided the nucleus for the Maximalisttendency in the Revisionist movement.

Achimeir truly believed that ‘whoeverhas the youth – has the state’ andthereby directed all his intellectual andorganisational energies towardsinfluencing the youth.

Achimeir joined the Revisionists fromthe labour movement in 1927. Hisrevolutionary zeal was an implant fromthe Left. Achimeir spoke about

preparing and training for ‘our own1917’ and facilitating an ‘OctoberRevolution’ in Zionism. Achimeir washighly influenced by the writings ofOsvald Spengler and the work ofRobert Michels, a German sociologistand socialist who had followedMussolini into fascism. AbbaAchimeir’s nom de plume in Revisionistpublications was often Abba Sikrawhom the Babylonian Talmud refers toas the head of the zealots, the biryoni.Assassination of public figures couldtherefore be justified for nationalreasons.

Throughout 1932, Jabotinskyattempted in several articles to apply‘corrections’ to the growingexuberance of the Maximalists andtheir adherents in Betar in theDiaspora. ‘When to press theaccelerator, when to use the brake’.The electoral breakthrough of Hitler inJuly 1932 convinced Jabotinsky that itwas important that his movementshould not be contaminated by actsand accusations of extremism. TheMaximalists initially viewed the wave ofidealism that swept through Germanyouth with a certain sense ofvindication. Germany, they reasoned,now had a direction and a determinedleadership. It was a return to the era ofBismarck and Prussian values. The

“The Maximalists initiallyviewed the wave of idealismthat swept through Germanyouth with a certain sense ofvindication.”

The Triumph of Military ZionismColin Shindler

pernicious influence of the Marxistshad been halted. In the eyes of theMaximalists, Nazi anti-Semitism wasdeemed to be unreal and therebyassumed a secondary importance. Jabotinsky’s fury, however, knew nolimits. He angrily complained that sucharticles about Hitler were ‘a stab in theback for me personally and for all ofus.’ He ridiculed those who foundelements of ‘a national liberation’movement in Nazism.

Events in Germany quickly educatedAchimeir and his supporters, yetMaximalism was not extinguished.Instead it became increasinglyinfluential and dominant within Betar.While pro-fascist inclinations declined,it did not alter the general approach ofthe Maximalists. In Poland in the early1930s, many members of Betarsupported the Maximalists includingthe local commander in Brest-Litovsk,Menachem Begin. In ‘A Legend in HisLifetime’, Begin praised Achimeir as ‘abrilliant journalist’ whose articles camefrom within the genre of ‘spiritualliterature that incites the blood’. Beginsignificantly wrote this article in August1935 on the eve of the foundingconference of the New ZionistOrganisation. It was an implicitcriticism that Revisionism had notevolved into a body embracing directaction – and ultimately the armedstruggle.

Jabotinsky faced the impossible taskof bridging the gap betweenMaximalists, with their reliance ondirect action, fuelled by neo-Bolshevikardour, and his colleagues on theRevisionist Executive who wished to

remain within the Zionist Organisationand pursue diplomatic initiatives withBritain. Jabotinsky was no longer ableto maintain the distinction betweenencouraging youth to be militant anddefiant with their increasing desire totake up arms and retaliate. Maximalismtherefore found its time and placebecause events – the rise of Nazism,the Arab Revolt, increasing Polish anti-Semitism and Jewish degradation, theinability of the British to live up toZionist aspirations, the powerlessnessof the mainstream Zionist organisation– proceeded to overwhelm normativeJewish responses.

Following the Irgun’s retaliation againstArab targets in November 1937,Menachem Begin and others in Polandpublished the manifesto of the‘Activist-Revisionist Front’, anunequivocal attack on Jabotinsky’spolicies. Yet Jabotinsky was notdisavowed, but was selectivelyendorsed. His inspiration rather, thanhis policies, was embraced.

In September 1938, the famousconfrontation between Begin andJabotinsky took place at a Betarconference in Warsaw. Begin proposedan amendment to the Betar oath whichJabotinsky had formulated in 1934.Instead of ‘I will train to fight in thedefence of my people, and I will onlyuse my strength for defence.’, Beginproposed ‘I will train to fight in thedefence of my people and to conquerthe homeland’. This change displacedthe interpretation from a primarilydefensive understanding to one whichentertained the idea of offensive action. Although this effectively reversed

Jabotinsky’s understanding of the IronWall, Begin’s speech was greeted bytumultuous applause. Jabotinsky,however, was considerably irritated andhad interrupted Begin several timesduring his speech. He. said that ‘thereis no place in Betar for this kind ofnonsense’ and compared Begin’sspeech and its reception to the soundof the squeaking of a door. The Betar leadership still voted for thechange and thereby moved away fromthe Revisionists towards the Irgun,from diplomacy to armed struggle,from belief in England to fighting her.As Prime Minister of Israel in 1980,Begin denied that he was ever in anyserious dispute with Jabotinsky andthat there had been amisunderstanding.

Would Jabotinsky have embracedmilitary Zionism if he had lived? It allremains in the realm of speculation, buthis determination to outmanoeuvre hisradical acolytes, including AbbaAchimeir and Menachem Begin, is amatter of recorded fact. As the Beginera recedes, a more roundedappreciation of Jabotinsky will certainlyemerge to the benefit of all students ofZionist history.

Colin Shindler’s latest book ‘TheTriumph of Military Zionism:Nationalism and the Origins of theIsraeli Right’ has just been publishedby I. B. Tauris.

Colin Shindler is an expert on thehistory and politics of Israel.Ploughshares into Swords? Is just oneof his many publications on Middle-East matters.

With Compliments from

Jessie Franklin

With Compliments from

John & Hazel Cosgrove

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Sunday 5th March was proof that Jewish cultural events inScotland are like buses – you wait ages then three come alongat once. Glasgow’s Jewish Book Day fortunately finished earlyenough for a dash back to Edinburgh, where I had to make achoice, between Colin Shindler’s talk to the Lit, and Ladinosongstress Yasmin Levy – the latter a temptation I foundirresistible.

Decisions made and tickets purchased, I was one of severalwho headed through to Glasgow to discover that I had left theice and snow of Edinburgh behind for a sunny West ofScotland early spring day. The Jewish Book Day took place inthe pleasant surroundings of Eastwood House in delightfulparkland. Jeremy Isaacs was the initial speaker, renowned asa television producer throughout the country, but still, as hewas once described, “a small dark Glasgow Jew” (he onlytook exception to the “small”). He has recently published hismemoir “Look Me In The Eye”, which provided him with anexcellent opportunity to talk about his personal andprofessional life. The title of the book was inspired by thewords of Lord Reith (founder of the BBC) at a GlasgowAcademy prize giving. No doubt “the terrifying presence” ofLord Reith left an impression on all the schoolboy recipients,but only Isaacs among them would have been inspired to havesuch a distinguished broadcasting career of his own. Isaacsspoke eloquently of his professional achievements, particularly“World at War”, including the research necessary to trackdown former SS officers and persuade them to be interviewedfor the programme. However, he was equally keen to talkabout his personal landmarks, most notably the tragic death ofhis brother and sister-in-law at the hands of a PLO bomber in1975.

For the second and third sessions of the afternoon, there wereonce again agonising choices to be made, each time betweenworks set in Britain and Israel. As interested as I am inpolitics, music and, in this case, literature, always win out, andI found myself in the audience for two fascinating authors,both daughters of famous fathers, with a clear mutualadmiration. The first, Emma Richler, daughter of the late,lamented Mordecai, read an early section from her novel“Feed My Dear Dogs” about a large, eccentric Jewish familynot unlike her own, interweaving British icons Dickens andShackleton into their day-to-day existence. Asked about herinfluences (Jewish, Canadian, British?) she would only allowherself to be allied to one tradition, that of storyteller, as aninspiring reader of her own work.

The second “daughter”, Naomi Alderman (father Geoffrey),was in the audience listening to Emma, and the discussionbetween them was an interesting insight into the mindset of anauthor. For example, they laughingly agreed that critics oftenread symbolism into writing where none was intended.

Naomi herself had been thrust into prominence, as her firstnovel “Disobedience” was only published days before, andhad just finished being broadcast on “Book at Bedtime” onRadio 4, much to her delight. The day after the Festival, itwas announced that the book is on the longlist for the OrangePrize, which I trust will have equally pleased her. However,had we not known that she is a very newly published author,we would not have guessed, as she responded to audiencequestions with enthusiasm and confidence. Naomi’s novel isset in the Orthodox Jewish community in Hendon, which hasto try to come to terms with an unusual love affair. Much hasbeen made of the lesbian relationship, but Naomi contendsthat her interest was in the human dilemma of secularismversus religion and modernity versus tradition – “holding aparadox in their hands”. The little we learned about Naomi’spersonal life (a detailed knowledge of Kashrut and a love of“Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) suggests that these arecontradictions she lives with every day.

I missed the more political strand of the afternoon. FirstlyAlan Kaufman, formerly of the Israel Defence Force, talkingabout his novel “Matches”, based on his experiences, gave ableak view of the possibility of peace in the Middle East. ThenHirsh Goodman, author, political analyst and Middle East newscorrespondent, spoke about his memoir “Let Me Create aParadise, God Said to Himself: A Childhood in South Africaand a Life in Israel”.

The Book Festival in itself would have been enough culturalexposure for one day. However, when I heard a few weekspreviously that Yasmin Levy was coming to Edinburgh, I felt itwas an opportunity too good to miss. I have heard her sing“Adio Kerida” on the radio several times, as well as snatchesof other Ladino songs, and was instantly enraptured. In anycase, I love “roots” music and to hear one of its greatcontemporary exponents, who also happens to be Jewish,was sure to be a rare treat. She did not disappoint. Not onlyis Yasmin Levy a genuine diva (in the best meaning of theword), with an extraordinary voice and compelling stagepresence, but she is (once again) a daughter of a notablefather. Isaac Levy died when Yasmin was one, but he left hera unique legacy, having collected and published a large libraryof Ladino songs that were previously only handed down frommothers to daughters. Although Yasmin was born inJerusalem, she sings only in Ladino and Spanish. A highlightof the evening was when she sang a traditional Sephardi song,“Noches Noches”, in Flamenco style (itself based on Jewishand Muslim liturgical music), accompanied by her superb bandon classical guitar, violin, woodwind and percussion. Shefinished her performance with an unaccompanied lullaby – aperfect end to an inspiring day.

A Day of Jewish CultureJanet Mundy

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17 JanuaryLuncheon Club member Jonathan Kishis a member of a group of playersunder the auspices of Lothian RegionAge Concern. Based at MeadowbankStadium, it gives concerts toRetirement Homes, Senior Citizensgroups and associated bodies. On onewintry afternoon in January, they cameto our Luncheon Club where, after themembers partook of a typically tastymeal, they were entertained byJonathan and his colleagues to a halfhour mix of pantomime, songs andsketches, one of which had theintriguing title ‘The Mad Hatters TeaParty’. I wouldn't dream of elaboratingfurther. A most pleasant after-lunchsoirée was enjoyed with comments of‘let's have more’.

29 January The colourfully attiredtop table guests wereled in by piper JimCooper to herald the

opening oftheCommunityCentre'sBurnsNight. Anita

Mendelssohn welcomed the over 90group (not age it is hastened to add)before chairman Ian Shein took overthe proceedings. There followed anevening, always much cherished by ourcommunity, comprising an excellentmeal complemented by witty and

lighthearted speeches. Hilary Rifkindand her hard working team certainlygave us a dinner of culinary excellence.From the moment Jim Cooper againtook to his pipes followed by cookHarold Abrahams wearing his splendidwhite-chef’s hat and carrying aloft thesteaming haggis, the dramatic actionpacked evening commenced with well-known, jolly Fred Lowrie addressing thehaggis. David Neville gave the amusingwell-researched Toast to the Lasses,and his wife Michelle, respondedappropriately with a cleverly balancedreply. Burns songs were beautifullysung by Rosemary McKeroharaccompanying herself on the harp. Theenjoyment of a first class evening wasassured.

The main speaker was no stranger toour community. Councillor Eric Milligan,former Lord Provost of the city, a firstclass attraction no matter the occasion,gave the Immortal Memory in inspiringform. His informative, witty, entertainingand authoritive delivery was typicalMilligan oratory. Piper Jim deserved hisextra dram when again he was calledto the fore to assist kilt-clad RabbiDavid Rose in reciting grace aftermeals to the strains of Scotland theBrave. An amusing vote of thanks byJonny Sperber rounded off an excellentBurns Night to remember.

22 February Nine tables of enthusiastic players satdown to a WIZO Bridge evening. Theevent, with a break for a most pleasanttea of sandwiches and a variety ofcakes, proved to be a great success.Winners were top players AlecRubenstein and Sid Zoltie.Sponsored by John Donne, the eveningraised £339 for WIZO funds.

5 MarchWIZO introduced a novel conceptwhen they invited Edward Green topresent an illustrated talk on RoyalJewellery to an audience of 60 in theCommunity Centre. Edward, formerly a Director of Royal Jewellers Aspreysand Garrards, gave a fascinating andilluminating exposé on jewellery onceowned and worn by Royal Families, ourown as well as European, and pricelessitems, the responsibility of the State.His talk was interspersed withentertaining and informative anecdotesof his many contacts with the QueenMother and the King of Norway whenhe had to examine valuables forheritable purposes. Kate Goodwin, whohad introduced Edward, tendered avote of thanks and presented him witha certificate of appreciation from localmembers of WIZO; the organisationbenefited to the tune of £500.

13 MarchRabbi David Rose read the Megillah inhis own inimitable way for the Purimservice in a frenzy of hat changes tointerpret all the characters ‘on stage’.Sparkly crowns for the Queens, devil’shorns for Haman, a bowler hat forMordechai and a big crown forAhashverus. There were extraordinaryvoices to match. If ever Rabbi Rose isthinking of a change of direction, hemight like to consider a career on thestage.

There followed the ever-popular fancydress parade with David Nevilleinterviewing the candidates mostprofessionally…as expected. Withhamentaschen to the fore and other

Around and AboutThe Shein Scene

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refreshments duly consumed, curtainswere lowered, grease paint removed,crumbs swept away, the celebration ofEsther’s victory for her people was overfor another year.

15 MarchA Special General Meeting of theCongregation was held on when twomotions, unanimously approved byCouncil, were on the agenda for theformer's approval, (1) that RabbiRose's contract be extended for oneyear from 1 May 2006 and thereafterthere be a rolling contract (which bothparties desired) and (2) that a newConstitution be approved for theCongregation.The President, Philip Mason, spoke ofthe excellent work undertaken by theRabbi since he came here three yearsago, of his exuberance, enthusiasmand efforts. He had inspired a goodname within the wider community andhis hospitality was renowned....especially his cooking. He readily

became involved in all age groups andorganisations.

Bill Simpson inquired about anypossible contractual problems but wasassured that these had been previouslyevaluated and cleared by the Hon.Solicitor.The Executive adequately dealt with anumber of questions regarding theproposed new Constitution, copies ofwhich had previously been circulated toall members. Points arising includedthe titles of Executive, duties of sub-committees, encouragement ofmembers to stand for council, andprovision of facilities for members.Both motions were passed and thelatter will be operative at the AGM laterthis year. Arnold Rifkind proposed avote of thanks to the President andCouncil.

19 March

A pancake morning was hosted byPost-bar/bat mitzvah class members

who have become aspiring filmmakers.

The group of eight 14-15 year-oldsdecided to produce a film aboutkeeping Judaism alive in thecommunity.

They intend to interview members ofthe older generation and take a tripdown memory lane with them.

In order to help raise the £2000 neededfor a professional production, theyrecently hosted a pancake morning atthe Shul.

Melia Rosen, one of the groupmembers, said: ‘in the last threemonths we have worked as a team.Our energetic discussions on how tokeep Judaism alive in Edinburgh endedin a decision to make a film. The firstthing to do was raise funds and aseveryone knows, the best way to getJewish people together is to offer goodfood’.

Edinburgh goes to AberdeenAn array of historic Judaica was displayed to invited membersof the public on 14th March at the University of Aberdeen. Thetwin of the 14th century Sephardic Megillah, acquired from atravelling alumnus in the 19th century, was read to thecongregation by Rabbi David Rose who, donning theappropriate millinery for each Purim character, slowly workedhis way across the ancient parchment.

The collection of artefacts included the most treasured HebrewBible compiled in Naples 1493-94 in the brief period of peaceenjoyed by the Jewish community before the French invasionin February 1495. The exquisite ornamentation incorporatinglapis lazuli pigment and gold leaf, framed the text. Personaldetails of the work's patrons were also to be found scribbledat the foot of the sponsored pages. The Biblia Latinacontained detailed specifications of the Temple from which anattempt of recreation was once made.

Although some of the collection is regularly presented toserious students under strict supervision, this was one of therare occasions that so many examples were on display andaccessible to touch. An era of cultural life styles of the Jews at this time could be found between the pages of a botanicalcompendium with contributions by the Portuguese Jewishdoctor D'Orta who maintained interests in botany and themedical properties of plants. A very small Scottish Hebrewdictionary was also among the 14 or so wonderful exhibits.

Many thanks go to Aberdeen University for providing festivesustenance and putting so much effort into celebrating Purimin such a unique way.

The Winners!

8

Positive Stepsforward in ourCommunityMorris Kaplan tells interviewer ElaineLevy about how his vision of a thrivingyounger community in Edinburgh isbeing realised.

What gave you the idea for starting thefamily Service?For many years I kept asking the question‘Who is the Pied Piper of Edinburgh Shul?’ asthere were never any children in Shul.

Was it the Shul council, the Rabbi or Educationcommittee at that time, or was it the parentsand the children who were the Pied Piper. Thesad thing was that no one seemed to care.

I concluded that it was a mixture of all of themand the way to approach the problem was tohave a family service, specially designed forthe enjoyment of adults and children, so I setabout devising a user-friendly service.

Who exactly is the service for?The service is for everyone in the community.Originally it was aimed at the parents and theirfamilies who did not come to Shul, but now weattract many adults on their own.

Many people don’t come to Shul for manyreasons.

• They can’t read Hebrew very well

• Can’t follow the service

• Find the service boring

• Can’t be bothered

• Alternative things to do on a Saturdaymorning

……..and many other reasons

So I worked out a family service that wouldcombat all of these things and fortunately onFamily Service days, the Bais Hamedersh is fullof parents, children, families and adults, so Ireckon I must have got it right.

Would you describe the format of theservice for those people who have notattended one?We come together to enjoy our ShabbosService

Clare Levy

Katie Neville Jessica SpencerSarah Levy

William Gilroy & Lawrence Taylor

Shachrit Lawrence TaylorTaking out the torah James Hyams

Torah Reading Revii William GilroyMaftir Lawrence Taylor

Torah synopsis Rishon + Sheni Sonya RosenShelishi Sarah LevyRevii + Hamishi Jessica SpencerShishi Isabel KelpieMaftir Amanda HyamsHaftorah Melia Rosen

Gelilah 1 Jonathan FieldGelilah 2 Benjamin Griffin

Prayer for the Queen Isaac ForsythPrayer for Israel Mark GilbertReturning the Torah James Hyams

Sermon Erica Budd

Musaf Lawrence Taylor

Anim Zemirot Freddie GreenClare Levy

Wardens William GilroyJames Hyams

Shamash Michael Taylor

Youth Service Programme 26th February 2006

Michael Taylor

We start at 11am prompt and finishby 12.00 mid day, so everyoneknows exactly how long the serviceis.

We use our own Siddurim (Art Scrolland Singers), making our servicevery easy to follow.

The service consists of all popularand major parts of the Shabbosservice; Shema, Torah, Amidah,Adon Olam and many other popularprayers, which we say and singtogether. We also have a sermon.Everyone is able to participate nomatter what age or level you are at.The service is suitable for all agesand is very friendly.

We have our own kiddush, whichallows some of our own members tomake the blessing and to socialise,which is very important.

You have been running theseservices monthly for over 2 years.What has been your greatest joy?Every month my heart bursts for joyas the Bais Hamedrash fills up forour Family Shabbos Service and itwas wonderful when we had tomove our services on RoshHashanah and Yom Kippur to thecommunal hall due to the largenumber of people who wanted tocome to the Family Service.

I am so proud of the increasedknowledge and confidence ofeveryone who attends the service

and I get great nachas watching thecontinuing participation of theyounger members.

My greatest joy is in the knowledgethat my family service is helping theolder and younger members to enjoytheir Jewishness and be confidentand comfortable in Shul therebyhelping them with their Jewishidentity, which I know will be withthem for the rest of their lives. Forme to have achieved this is indeed aMitzvah.

The children of the community havebeen playing a more active role inthe main Shabbat services since theinception of the annual youth serviceby the Rabbi and the monthlyservice.

The children of the communityhave been playing a more activerole in the main Shabbat servicessince the inception of the annualyouth service by the rabbi andyour monthly service. How do yousee the role of young boys andgirls developing within thecommunity?The Edinburgh community isextremely lucky to have such a finearray of youngsters coming up.

The family service has given themknowledge and confidence and thiswas seen to good effect during theannual youth service, when all theyoungsters participated.

Many Shul members seem to thinkthat our community is slowly dying. Icompletely disagree and point to thefamily service as an example of whatcan be done, if you really care. Ouryoungsters should be encouraged toparticipate even more and together,with their parents, will, I amconvinced, keep for us a vibrant,Jewish community.

9

Berlin Memorial

10

I am a “Jew by Choice”, a termcoined by those kindly people whofeel “convert” sounds too much likeconvict. I am married to Josh, a “BornJew”, who was brought up reform inthe US. As a couple we’re probablynot top of the list of people you wouldexpect to kasher their home, but wehave.

Back when I was converting I metJosh’s family for the first time, andwhile I wasn’t keeping properly kosherthen, I had cut out pork and seafood. Itwas the naming of Josh’s niece Abigailin Washington DC, and the variousvisiting family members went out for ameal being held in the private room ofan upmarket Chinese Restaurant.

What I didn’t realise was that, to Josh’sbrother and sister-in-law, going outwas a chance for them to eateverything they wouldn’t have at home.There must have been fifteen delicatelittle courses, pork on lobster on crab -each morsel more treif than the last.

Morris Kaplan started the Edinburgh HebrewCongregation family Service in September 2003and it has been running monthly ever since withadditional services on Yom Tavim.

Family services are held monthly in the BaisHamedrash. For more information and timetableplease email or phone Morris Kaplan

Email: morris.Kaplan@blueyonder.co.uk

Tel: 0131 339 8201

Photos: Morris and Myrna Kaplan reward parentsand children for their regular support of the 'familyservice'.

Adventures in Kashrut Stephanie Brickman

“The first stage for anyonegoing kosher involves severaltrips to Ikea”

With Compliments fromMark & Judith Sischy

11

Being nicely brought up, I pretended toeat for two or three courses until Joshnoticed what was going on. Everyonegradually dissolved into laughter at theirony of a table of born Jews munchingaway, with one Jew-in-waiting trying toswerve the shrimp. As my 91 year oldPolish friend Ida often says “Stephanieyou really are a very kosher Shiksa!”

Four years later, here we are tellingJosh’s stunned family we have decidedto “go kosher”. Although they mighthave expected something like this ofme, they are dumbfounded that Josh isso keen. After all, this is Josh, who hadto be coached to not ask hisgrandmother for ham sandwiches as achild, Josh who will drive acrossScotland for lobster, Josh who onceate a pepperoni pizza on Yom Kippur…

The first stage for anyone going kosherinvolves several trips to Ikea to buycarloads of new kitchen things and thepurchase of a thing called the “KosherFood Guide”. Unfortunately, only afraction of said guide is devoted tofood, most of it revolving aroundadverts for “Simcha Enhancers” inNorth London. The section that isabout food contains nine pages ofconfectionery, followed by endless listsof brands so obscure that you wouldonly ever find them in a koshersupermarket. The guide also has theannoying trait of listing things thataren’t kosher, which doesn’t really help.In my limited experience to date, mostof the world is unkosher.

The next stage for us was tovelling –the immersion of all our new kitchenthings in the mikveh. It was at thisstage that an acquaintance of minefrom the BBC, Serena, decided thiswould make a good radio programme.And so it was, that Josh, and I, anobscene amount of kitchen equipmentand a radio journalist pitched up at theShul on a Sunday afternoon.

A handy abandoned shopping trolleyround the side of the Shul (ever

wondered what that was there for?)was deployed to shlep the stuffbackwards and forwards from the car.It worked quite well, the only problem,as it got darker, being the risk ofgarrotting ourselves on a washing linethat was stretched across the backyard.

We piled into the mikveh house. Abarefoot Josh rolled up his trousers,got onto his hands and knees andbegan to painstakingly tovel eachindividual thing allowing it to floatbriefly in the freezing cold water so ithad been properly immersed. Thecoldness of the water was my fault as Ihad gaily told the Rabbi it wouldn’t benecessary to heat the mikveh as thepots and pans wouldn’t mind! I wasn’tallowed to forget that. So he tovelledand I grovelled.

We had a little assembly line goingafter a while, on our hands and knees,unpacking, packing, drying. I was verygrateful that Serena the journalist wasthere as she was a whiz at picking offlabels. Seeing the comical sight ofJosh’s derriere bobbing up and downon the edge of the mikveh, I was gladfor his sake it wasn’t television.

It all took twice as long as expectedand our babysitter had to leave,leading to the addition of our toddler inthe proceedings just as a carving knifehad headed down to the deepestdarkest part of the mikveh. “WhyDaddy bath” our daughter chimed -hard to answer in two year old terms –as Josh fished around frantically with anet on a stick.

Weary but happy we headed home,thinking we’d sneakily finish off a lastbottle of unkosher wine before finallykashering the kitchen itself the nextweekend. It seems higher forces wereat work to keep us on the straight andnarrow, because in a fit of enthusiasmwe had tovelled the corkscrew and hadno idea where it was.

A week later we prepare to kasher. Istripped the kitchen of everything andcleaned while Josh concentrated onthe oven. We hadn’t quite finishedwhen the Rabbi arrived and in no timeat all was sloshing boiling water aroundthe kitchen while Josh went overvarious items and surfaces with acook’s blow torch. The pair of themwere having a whale of a time, like acouple of naughty schoolboys.

I retreated morosely to the bathroom toscrub bits of the hob with brillo pads,which apparently aren’t kosher. Serenafrom the BBC joins me. It isn’t the

“Things had got a little out ofhand with the flaming.”

“So he tovelled and I grovelled.”

12

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classic setting for an interview but I’m sure there have beenstranger ones.

Josh and the Rabbi knock on the bathroom door. “Ho ho” this is the part where we get to set fire to the kitchen”they quip.“Jolly Good!” I say sarcastically. Josh seems terribly

disappointed that I am staying in the bathroom and notmarvelling at their antics.Another knock at the bathroom door. Josh and the Rabbi werestanding in the hall looking very sheepish. Things had got alittle out of hand with the flaming. In the kitchen was one veryscorched cupboard.

The Rabbi pointed out that actually the flaming was optional.Josh pointed out that he had to flambé the kitchen to make itmore interesting for Serena’s radio programme.

“The flames went really, really high” said Serena, “It’s a pitythey didn’t make any noise though, so not the best radio.”

“You won’t put this in your article for The Star will you?” askedthe Rabbi. “No-one will ever kasher their kitchen again!”*

We turned the oven on very high to complete its kashering.After about ten minutes the glass door shattered intothousands of pieces. I swept and cleaned up, while trying tokeep a toddler out of kitchen with the broom and in my hastea shard of glass embedded itself in the palm of my hand.

“Look Josh” I yelled, watching a small pool of blood well up.“Call the whole thing off - stigmata!”

* Rabbi David Rose would like it to be known that he cannotbe held responsible if the man of the house decides to set fireto flammable liquid with a blow torch and then attempts todeal with the ensuing blaze by trying to blow it out.

All kashered out!

13

14

Society ReportsEdinburgh Jewish Literary SocietyRoss Bradshaw, the publisher of Five Leaves and the

literature development officer for Nottinghamshire CountyCouncil, spoke about the forgotten ``Jews in the Spanish CivilWar.'' Viewed by many Jews as a precursor to a fascisttakeover of Europe, the conflict drew Jews from all over theworld to fight on the side of the Republicans against Franco,who was supported by Mussolini and Hitler. About one third ofthe 40,000 volunteers were Jewish. Yet, 70 years later, fewJewish communities to this day will speak of them.Mainstream Jewish society shunned any acknowledgement ofJewish participation in the war on the side of the communists,despite Franco's anti-Semitism; referring to Jews as a``nauseating burden'' that he was grateful the Catholic Churchin Spain had freed Spain of. Even the Zionists, who werepredominantly socialist, gave scant support to the volunteers,arguing that they would do better to move to Palestine. Yet itwas Palestine that yielded to the war a greater percentage ofits population than any other region in the world. Nearly halfthe Polish volunteers were Jewish, and nearly all theRumanian.

It was a fight for ideals. The banner of the Botwin companyexclaimed in Polish, Yiddish and Spanish: ‘for your freedomand ours.’ Some came to conclude unfinished business, toestablish a republic in a land from which Jews had beenforced out or into hiding, and tortured or murdered by theSpanish Inquisition when discovered. Some simply came tolive up to the ideals of Jeremiah and the Maccabees. It was abloody war. A quarter of the volunteers perished, and only aquarter returned un-injured. Those who did, faceddiscrimination back home for having sided with thecommunists. The attitude has now shown a shift, as Jewishleaders have grown to recognise the Spanish Civil War as theopening battle of the Second World War. Teddy Kollek, inanswer to why so many Zionists headed to Spain instead ofPalestine, asked instead why they themselves did not.

Dr Colin Shindler, the

Chair of the Centre for JewishStudies in the School ofOriental and African Studies atUniversity College London,spoke to the Lit about ``TheTriumph of Military Zionism:Nationalism and the Origins ofthe Israeli Right.'' The originsof the Zionist right are largelyshrouded in mystery, not leastbecause of the mythical statusof its founder, VladimirJabotinsky. Born in cosmopolitan Odessa in the 1880s,Jabotinsky was a largely secular Jew with no interest inJudaism. On studying in Italy, he became much enamoured ofthe people's revolt led by Garibaldi. Soon thereafter heenvisioned a similar movement among Jews, which developedinto his special brand of Zionism, Revisionism. During the FirstWorld War, he organised a Jewish legion, against the better

judgement of most Jewish leaders, but notably withWeizmann's support; it was time to show Jews could nolonger be cowed.

Jabotinsky's fiery rhetoric and his 'arming of the Jews' wonhim favour among many Jewish youths. He established theRevisionist Jewish youth movement Betar, which Jabotinskyhoped would feed a revival of the Jewish Legion. But it seemsthe movement in time grew out of his control, wishing to freePalestine by force from the British. Jabotinsky, despite hisreputation today, in fact held fast to the belief that a Jewishstate would best be won from the British through diplomacy,not arms. His reputation it seems also suffered at the hands ofthe youth movement, especially its most famous adherent,Menacham Begin, who remodelled Jabotinsky's image afterhis own. More on this topic may be found in Dr Shindler'scontribution in this issue.

Avery Meiksin

Catherine Lockerbie,the Director of the EdinburghInternational Book Festival,appeared at the Lit on the 16thJanuary, to talk about her roleand about her work in bringingwriters from all over the world toEdinburgh.

Catherine Lockerbie gained adouble first in Philosophy andFrench at Edinburgh University.She has worked as a teacher of children with special needs,taught English in Turkey and for a while was a scriptwriter on aradio drama serial. From 1990 to 2000, Catherine worked injournalism and held a number of senior posts at theScotsman, including Literary Editor and Chief Leader Writer.

For the last five years Catherine has been Director of theEdinburgh International Book Festival - the largest bookFestival in the world. The Festival began in 1983 and hasgrown in size and stature ever since.

Over the past five years Catherine has particularly encouragedmore participation and debate both between writers andreaders and between writers and writers. It is quite simply ahotbed of debate and discussion attracting writers from allwalks of life, from the world of politics to the arts, from TVcelebs to explorers, from culinary experts to life changinggurus; and of course an eclectic mix of award winning fictionwriters.

Catherine has programmed many Jewish and Israeli writersover the past five years and her interest in their work formedpart of her talk at the Lit. Along with a rich variety of writersalready in the public consciousness, the Festival has been animportant platform for new and emerging writers. For examplelast year Catherine introduced Edinburgh audiences to the

Israeli author, Etgar Keret.

One of the main developments thatCatherine has brought to the Festival isto move further from sessions thatsimply promote an author’s latest bookto talks and discussions linking into avariety of topical and sometimescontroversial issues. In 2001, forinstance, she brought together AmosOz, David Grossman and RajaShehadeh to discuss and debate, “TheMiddle East – What next?” It was aneloquent and refreshing discussion onthe Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Facilitating writers talking to writers,and readers questioning writers, hasbeen at the heart of Catherine’s workat the Festival.

Catherine’s visit to the Lit concludedwith a lively question and answersession. And how does the Director ofthe biggest book festival in the worldcope with having to read so manybooks as part of her job? Answer: sheis one of these people who can get bywith very little sleep!

David Ian Neville

Professor Gary Gilbertof Claremont–McKenna College,California and currently Visiting Scholarat the Oxford Centre for Hebrew andJewish Studies, spoke to the Lit about‘Jewish identity’. While Jewish identityis a subject quite familiar to today’sBritish Jews judging from the numberof book, theatre, and film reviewsabout modern “identity” issues foundweekly in the Jewish Chronicle,Gilbert’s talkfocused onthe ancienthistory ofthese identityissues andtheirsimilarity tothose facingmodernJews.

Gilbert observed that with thedestruction of the second temple andthe separation of most Jews from theland of Israel, two of the importantmarkers of Jewish identity in theancient world were lost. It was thus leftto the Rabbis to decide on questionssuch as, “who is a Jew?” While theboundaries were set to includematrilineal descent and conversionrituals, in 1983 the Reform movement

further included those with one Jewishparent who lived in a Jewish home andwere brought up as a Jew.Gilbert argued however that identitiesare by no means clear-cut and neat.Rather they can be established indifferent ways, often including negativecriteria, e.g., not belonging to aparticular group. The central theme ofhis argument was that identities areestablished through a process ofnegotiation and interaction, and in thecase of the Jews, by interaction withnon-Jews. He illustrated this bycontrasting Jewish identity in twoancient cities, Alexandria andAphrodisias. The Greek city ofAlexandria was established in the 4thcentury BCE. By the time it wastransformed into the capital of RomanEgypt in the 1st century BCE, it washome to some 50,000-100,000 Jews. Ithad both synagogues and Jewish lawcourts and its Jews kept to Jewishcustoms such as lighting the Fridaynight candles and observing Pesach.At the same time, however, they clearlywere also integrated into thecommunity, as evidenced by theirspeaking Greek and attendingAlexandria’s cultural events. Yet in 38BCE, the Jews were moved into asmall crowded area, their propertypillaged and Jewish leaders killed.While commenting wryly that thisperhaps was an early example ofhatred of Jews and of the typicalhistorical episode characterised by“They killed us, God saved us, let’seat,” Gilbert then suggested that thisdisaster was more likely to have beencaused by political factors. The Jewshad supported the Roman takeoverwhile Alexandrians resented it. Underpressure from the Greeks, the Romanswere manipulated to accept both thatthe Jews had done wrong and thatthey were “foreigners,” i.e., not Greekcitizens of Alexandria. The grounds foridentifying Jews as foreigners werethat they did not worship the “Gods ofthe city.” Interestingly, it was onlyGreek citizens of Alexandria who wereexempted from Roman taxes and bothJews and other “non-Greeks” verymuch wanted to be Greek.

In marked contrast to the Jewishexperience in Alexandria, the Jewsapparently fared far better inAphrodisias, another ancient Greek citytaken over by the Romans. Evidencefrom a 4th century BCE inscription ona stone monument honouring thosewho held public (Roman) positionsindicates that those honoured included

Jews (whose community was led by aJewish woman) recent Jewish convertsand non-Jewish “God-fearers” welldisposed to the Jews. The very limitedevidence available also suggests thatnot only did Jews and non-Jews workwell together, but that non-Jewsparticipated in some Jewish activities.

Concluding his talk, Gilbert observedthat in both Alexandria andAphrodisias, Jews participated in bothJewish life and in Civic life, i.e., theiridentity was hybrid rather than one ofeither complete assimilation orexclusiveness. Yet their interaction withnon-Jews in Alexandria was met withhostility while in Aphodisias they werewelcomed.

Judging from the nature of the lengthyand lively discussion that followed thetalk, few in the audience doubted thatmodern preoccupations with thecomplexities of identity clearly haveancient and fascinating antecedents.Likewise, judging from both the praiseof audience members for ProfessorGilbert’s ability to combine a scholarlytreatment of his subject with a livelyand humorous presentation and thesubsequent volume and duration ofapplause, it was clear that this hadbeen a memorable event.

Steve Engleman

Beyond the Pale. The 2005-

2006 session of the Lit ended on 19March with a lively evening of musicand “drama”, an entertainment fit forPurim, as the syllabus described it.Edinburgh-based Klezmer band

The word “Klezmer” is derived fromtwo Yiddish words: “Vessel of song”from kli or kley: vessel or tool, pluszmer: song or melody.

Throughout Europe, the term was usedalmost exclusively to denote themusicians themselves. Only recently inAmerica, has the term been used todescribe the music itself. Other termscommonly used are “Shpilman” and“Muzikant”, which is a ratherderogatory term (the usual acceptedword for musician is “Muziker”). ItzikSchwartz, who grew up in Lasi (Jassy),Romania, said that Klezmorim weresometimes referred to as “Lautari”,though this more commonly describesGypsy musicians. A performing groupwas usually referred to as a “Kapelye”,but also “Khevrisa” (from a klezmer-loshn or musicians’ slang term,meaning a band or gang). In verypretentious circles the term “Orkester”was sometimes used (even whendenoting a group of only two or threeplayers!)

Klezmorim formed what amounted to ahereditary caste of professionalmusicians. Places in the kapelye werehanded on from father to son (and veryoccasionally daughter). There werealso Guild-like protectionist rules forapportioning the work availablebetween competing Kapelyes and for

keeping outsiders away from it. Inaddition, there were often rudimentaryarrangements for mutual support ofmembers: there are records of specificarrangements for sharing paymentsbetween musicians (the Mayster oftengot more, and the bassist anddrummer much less than the “average”share), making benefit payments toindigent or sick members, and evenpensions to their relicts.

Very much like popular musicians oftoday in many western societies,Klezmorim were viewed with somesuspicion and caution by the classeswho employed them. “Yikhes”, orancestry, was an important factor in aJewish community and Klezmorim(with almost no Yikhes) definitely fellinto in the lower part of the socialhierarchy, together with treygers(porters) and just above the Gypsieswith whom they often played, and withwhom they were often contemptuouslylumped.

The music that they played (forsimplicity, usually referred to as

“Klezmer music”) was exclusivelyinstrumental, and the role ofinstrumental music in JewishCommunities was oddly paradoxical.

After the fall of the Second Temple, allinstrumental music was forbidden, andalthough it gradually crept back intoreligious practice, and then intoeveryday life, there remained a feelingthat it belonged only in a religiouscontext, and that non-religious musicmaking was in some way improper. DrZev Feldman alluded to this when heobserved that the music’s function ofexciting and releasing passionateemotions without any devotionalcontext, also put Klezmorim in amarginal position in society, and theywere often seen as a threat to propertyand morals. For instance Stempenyu,the eponymous hero of SholemAleichem’s 1888 novella, was depictedas a Kapelmayster and demonicviolinist, from whose ravishing charmsno girl or married woman was safe. Itis perhaps doubtful if this is anaccurate representation of YoyseleDruker, the real Stempenyu.

On the other hand, there was always afeeling that even secular music wasimbued with a religious element, andthat God was only a dance step away.A quotation in a Memorial Book from

16

Beyond the Pale, comprising SimonCarlyle on tuba, Andrew Gardiner onclarinet, violinist Barbara Rast, andColin Warwick on banjo (Pav Veritywho plays the tsimbl was not presenton this occasion) played a variety ofklezmer pieces, preceded by a mostenlightening talk on klezmer music bySimon. (See ‘Musical Notes’)

Singing with the band was StephanieBrickman, also an Edinburgh talent,who has branched out from jazzsinging to include Yiddish song; herzestful performance of two lively songs- “Di grine kuzine” and the famous“Bay mir bistu sheyn” were receivedwith great enthusiasm by the audience.Stephanie also sang and acted the role

of Mordechai in the third part of theevening’s entertainment: a Purim shpilin Yiddish, written by Heather Valencia,directed by Gowan Calder andperformed with gusto by members ofthe newly flourishing Edinburgh Yiddishclass, among whom are several well-known Lit members who were notafraid to let their hair down in front oftheir friends! In time-honoured style themale roles were played by women andvice versa: thus Oron Joffe and DavidBateman (sporting blond and red wigs)looked gorgeous as the two QueensEsther and Vashti respectively, GowanCalder was a delightfully wickedHaman, and Ellen Galford in a top hatand dressing gown was a splendidlycomic Ahasuerus.

It is unusual for a whole evening of liveYiddish culture to take place inEdinburgh, and those of us who wereinvolved in this event are determined itwill not be the last!

Heather Valencia

Musical NotesKlezmer MusicSimon Carlyle

“Klezmorim were viewed withsome suspicion and cautionby the classes who employedthem.”

Tomashov in Poland illustrates this: When the wedding guests hadgathered round the rebe ... the rebeshook Shulik’s hand and said “Sing toour God with the violin”. The division between Klezmer musicand Khasidic nigunim (wordlessdevotional chants) was very unclear:nigunim were used by Klezmorim as animportant source of melodies, and viceversa.

The Klezmer’s function was playingsocial (incidental) music in the Jewishcommunity. As suggested above, thiswas occasionally in a liturgical setting,although it was usually peripheral, andsomewhat frowned upon. In earliertimes, klezmer music was especiallystrongly associated with Purimshpils,but also enlivened other occasionssuch as civic parades and socialdances. However, it is mostimportantly associated with weddings.It is perhaps not surprising thatKlezmorim were universally acceptedas absolutely essential for a properwedding celebration, with its blend ofsecular (not to say carnal) and religiousconnotations. There are numerousattestations of this relationship: twoquotations will suffice:

“Vos far a klezmer, az a khasene” (Thewedding is only as good as itsKlezmer)

“A levaye on geveyn iz vi a khasene onklezmer” (A funeral without tears is likea wedding without a klezmer)

A concise description of their duties isgiven in the records of the DubnoKapelye (in Western Volhynia) in the1890s: they had to do the following:

“play at the bazetsn for the bride, leadher to the khupe in the synagogue,then lead the wedding party withfreylekhs through only the streetswhere Jews lived.”

They were not permitted to go downthe wide streets like Alexandrovka orPanienska, where the neighbourhoodwas mixed. In addition they were hiredon an ad hoc basis to play for thedances at the wedding feast.

Klezmorim were largely ignored inofficial Jewish histories, and until veryrecently their music was not regardedas any sort of positive symbol ofJewish culture; it is very summarilydismissed in many early studies ofYiddish culture (eg A Z Idelsohn (1929):Jewish music: its history anddevelopment). This attitude also helpsto explain the disassociation of manyAmerican Jewish musicians (egGoodman and Tarras) from theirKlezmer heritage, according toFeldman.

However there were some notableexceptions, and a few seriousmusicologists did study Klezmer musicas a legitimate aspect of Jewish folkculture. A particularly large debt isowed to Moshe Beregovski (1892-1961), who collected approximately7,000 items (transcriptions, recordings,written music and photographs) fromtowns and villages around the Ukrainebetween 1928 and 1936 under greatpolitical difficulties. He was exiled tothe Gulag from 1950 to 1955, and onlyone of his several volumes of writingswas published in his lifetime. The vast

bulk of his material was presumed tohave been lost during Stalin’s anti-Semitic purges. It has recently beenrediscovered hidden away at theVernadsky Library in Kiev, and is onlynow finally becoming available forstudy by scholars and musicians.

Beyond the Pale is a group of five non-Jewish musicians with a sharedinterest in folk music; traditional jazz,Scottish, Swiss and Eastern Europeandance music. They discovered Klezmermusic 5 years ago and play for avariety of social events. They havemade a study of early Europeanrecordings and transcriptions andmusic within the social setting, ofAshkenazi tradition, which was largelyleft behind by emigrants to America,and so nearly exterminated in theHolocaust.

“Klezmorim were universallyaccepted as absolutelyessential for a proper weddingcelebration,”

A differnet perspective ofthe Yasmin Levy concert

The following concert took placeon Sunday 5 March at the Queen’sHall and was unfortunately indirect competition with anEdinburgh Jewish Literary Societyevent. For those who missed it,Berl Osborne and Eve Oppenheimhave written a short account of theconcert.

Yasmin Levy is an Israeli singer whohas taken a special interest inLadino songs.

Ladino is a Judeo-Spanish dialect –the Sepahardic counterpart to theYiddish Ashkenazim. She inheritedthis interest from her father whohad made a study of Ladino culture.

Her repertoire was wide and varied;even the Ladino varied in style, froma cantorial mode reminiscent ofKvartin, to the chanteuse manner ofEdith Piaff.

Many of her songs demonstrated aconstant overlaying theme offarewell and sadness, yet hersurvival instinct was always presentin the music.

Mention must be made of heraccompanying group, particularly avirtuoso clarinettist whose livelyrendition of some Klezmer musicwas quite captivating.

Berl Osborne

Clare HoggEditor of the Sukkat Shalom newsletter. Edinburgh Liberal Jewish Community.I’ve been involved with the Edinburgh Liberal JewishCommunity for 8 years. I first started attending monthly ErevShabbat services in Homeroyal House with my soon-to-behusband Ricky. It was a completely new experience for meand one which I grew to look forward to and enjoy. Thecommunity was small but very welcoming to me. Back then, Iattended an 18-month introduction to Judaism class run byRabbi Pete Tobias at Glasgow New Synagogue in Glasgow in1997-98 where all key aspects of Jewish life were covered; lifecycles, history, traditions, festivals, rituals, key prayers, Shulservices, Hebrew, Shabbat and so on.

For the past 12 months I have been producing the SukkatShalom monthly newsletter, but this is just a small thingcompared to other people’s contributions. I felt it was a taskthat I was reasonably equipped to do and for a small amountof my time, would take a lot of pressure off the community.

There is still a lot I don’t know about Jewish life but I’ve gotvery supportive people around to keep me right. I kept anopen mind about conversion and was never closed to theidea. I was brought up a Catholic and after the usual lapsedteenage years, began to be more active within my faith in laterlife.

When I attended Jewish services and community events withmy husband, I thought very carefully about what I believed inand what was right for me. Attending Basic Judaism classesenabled me to study further, ask questions and understandmore.

In the end, with a fully supportive husband, I felt that It wouldbe wrong to convert if I wasn’t 100% sure of the decision. Asthings stand now, I am active locally within my own churchand feel that I have made the correct decision for me to retainmy Catholic beliefs. When possible (small children permitting!)I still attend any Shul services that I can.

Every couple is different, but personally I feel it’s important tobe involved in my husband’s Jewish life. For me, being marriedand sharing in each other’s lives means a respect for eachothers chosen faiths; this also requires a level of commitmentto understand and participate when possible in those faiths.

Shabbat is such an important day for a Jewish person that Iwould find it hard to see how it could be celebrated fully ifthere was an issue about it in the household. It is a day of theweek that I look forward to.

I have learned a massive amount by participating in the Jewishcommunity and am sure that it will continue to further enrichmy life in years to come.

Kate SilkEdinburgh Liberal Jewish Community. Baker of challahfor Sukkat Shalom services, Kate also takes care of theKiddush glasses (the job no-one wants to do!). When my husband Nick and I were first together I wouldoccasionally go to a Jewish event but I never really got thatinvolved until after the birth of our eldest son Andrew. I don’thave a strong faith but I was brought up Church of England. Ithink it’s good to be brought up as “something”, it gives you a

moral background. We never really discussed it but I alwaysknew that the children would be brought up Jewish although Inever felt the need to convert myself.

When Andrew was 3 years old and David was 6 months oldthey were converted. I went to series of classes with the Rabbiat Glasgow New Synagogue to make sure I knew what to dofor all the festivals and so on.

Nick is very involved in the community and I like to be involvedto support him. That way it becomes a family activity. It’simportant to share it and not be isolated. Sukkat Shalom is avery welcoming community, there is no pressure to convertand there are a few people in my position, so it’s notsomething unusual and the community accepts it.

Martin SimmenEdinburgh Hebrew Congregation Co-organiser, with his wife Shari, of themonthly toddlers group.I admit it has been a struggle but for the firsttime ever I have made it through Pesach ona diet of matzah and macaroons. Assomeone raised in the Church of Scotland, I was, until a fewyears ago, completely unaware, not just of matzah, but of anynotion of the celebration of Pesach. Of course, as a child inSunday School, I heard the story of Passover and the Exodusfrom Egypt, but the fact that Jews continued to mark thisevent every year through millennia, went oddly unmentioned.It was only through my fiancée and then wife, Shari Cohn, thatI got to experience the beauty of Pesach and the otherfestivals, both in the Edinburgh synagogue (especially throughRabbi Shapira and Rabbi Rose) and in our home but also inthe homes of many friends in the community. Along the wayI’ve also had the chance to learn how to make proper matzoball soup, latkes, blintzes and rugelach. Synagogue servicescame as a bit of a surprise though: an act of worship, chat-forum, and theatre all rolled together — a far cry from thesolemnity of the Presbyterian services of memory, wherecomplete silence would descend whenever the minister wason his feet. As a scientist, I have great admiration for thevibrant tradition of questioning and debate that is so evident inthe community, not least through the Edinburgh JewishLiterary Society, where I have been lucky enough to hear manytalks of a remarkably high calibre.

My involvement got a fresh impetus in 2000 with the birth ofour daughter Hannah, whom we are raising as Jewish, but alsoto be fully aware of and respectful of other traditions.We have a Shabbat meal on Friday night (where Hannah keepsme right with the blessings), and enjoy attending the verywelcome monthly Family Service organized by Morris Kaplan.I also help out with the thriving Parent-Toddler group set up byShari, open to all Jewish children and their parents in theEdinburgh area.

Having come to see the value of many aspects of theOrthodox community, I can appreciate why intermarriage stillraises concern for some. However, when I look around theShul, I see a small but growing number of inter-marriedcouples committed to rooting their children in the Jewishtradition and contributing to the community more generally inwhichever way they can. If religion is to be true to its Latinmeaning (re-ligare, to bind back together), then I do not seethat as a threat to the future of the community but rather as anopportunity for its continuity and growth.

The Other Half This article examines and celebrates the contributions of three “non-Jewish spouses”

What greater theological intimacycould exist between two religionsthan to have the founder of one be apious member of the other? Yet likeall intimacies, tensions can easilyarise: to whom does Jesus belong, tothe Jews or the Christians? Who washe, a loyal Jew or the founder of thenew religion, Christianity?

For two thousand years, Jews rejectedthe claim that Jesus fulfilled themessianic prophecies of the HebrewBible, as well as the dogmatic claimsabout him made by the Church Fathers– that he was born of a virgin, the sonof God, part of a divine Trinity, and wasresurrected after his death. WhyChristians chose to form a religionabout a preacher from the Galilee haslong puzzled his fellow Jews. WasJesus a pious Jew whose followersinvented a religion about him after hisdeath? Or was Jesus a wicked Jewwho urged his followers to break withtheir Judaism? Who, indeed, was thereal founder of Christianity – Jesus orPaul? How did Jesus, a Jew, becomeChrist, the incarnate God worshippedby Christians?

For two thousand years, a central wishof Christianity was to be the object ofdesire by Jews, whose conversionwould demonstrate their acceptancethat Jesus had fulfilled their ownbiblical prophecies. Until the last twocenturies, however, Jews actually paidrelatively little attention to the figure ofJesus, and what they wrote was forinternal consumption. Jewishdiscussions of Jesus in antiquity andthe Middle Ages were not read byChristians, nor were they part of theformal Jewish-Christian disputationsheld in medieval Europe, whichconcentrated on doctrinal differences.In those internal Jewish discussions ofJesus, the tone was primarily one ofmockery. The Toldot Yeshu, apurported life of Jesus composed byJews in antiquity, follows the gospelnarratives of his life, but inverts theirsignificance. For example, Jesus'miracles are acknowledged to have

occurred, but are attributed to ill-gottensorcery techniques he learned inEgypt, or to his infiltration of theTemple's holy of holies where heallegedly stole the secret name of God.Jesus is presented as deceitful andself-serving, but without an intention ofstarting a new religion. The SeferNizzahon, a late thirteenth-centuryanthology of anti-Christian polemics,assumes a similar tactic, ridiculing thegospels’ claims to fulfill Old Testamentprophecies and presenting Jesus as asinner who deliberately violated Jewishlaw.

Underlying Jewish explanations ofJesus lies a political agenda: explainingto Jews how a disreputable Jesusmanaged to launch a religion thatultimately became far more powerfulthan Judaism.

Other medieval Jewish texts, writtenfor an audience larger than the Jewishworld, present Jesus as a pious Jewwho made no claim to divinity. ProfiatDuran's (d. 1414) examination of thegospels led him to conclude that Jesusmade no claims to being divine andsimply demanded adherence to theTorah. Maimonides (1135-1204)interprets Christianity and Islam as partof the divine plan of preparing theworld for redemption by bringingknowledge of God to the heathen, thusmaking them handmaidens of theJewish mission, even while he viewsJesus himself as a "wicked heretic."Yet the political agenda is just as sharpwhen Jesus is presented positively. IfJesus was a devout Jew, Christianity isultimately a theological distortionintroduced by Paul and the churchfathers. At best, Christianity issubservient to Judaism, spreading itsmessage of monotheism to theheathens. In the case of the ToldotYeshu, Jesus is the deliberate deceiverof his followers, whereas if Jesus,according to Profiat Duran, adhered toJewish law, Christians who believe hewas their messiah or lord have simplybeen deceived.

Beginning in the late eighteenthcentury, however, the tone and volumeof Jewish discussions of Jesuschange. Emancipation andEnlightenment, with their promise ofJewish entry into a secularizingChristian society, elicited a positiveJewish interest in Jesus not out ofappreciation for Christianity, but as atool to justify Judaism. For example,the noted Jewish philosopher MosesMendelssohn sought to win Christiantolerance of Judaism by reminding hisaudience of Jesus' Jewishness: "Jesusof Nazareth himself observed not onlythe law of Moses, but also theordinances of the rabbis; and whateverseems to contradict this in thespeeches and acts ascribed to himappears to do so only at first glance.Closely examined, everything is incomplete agreement not only withScripture, but also with the tradition.....And you, dear brothers and fellowmen, who follow the teachings ofJesus, should you find fault with us fordoing what the founder of your religiondid himself, and confirmed by hisauthority?"

The emphasis on Jesus’ faithfulness toJudaism initially had to proceed withcaution. Mendelssohn writes in anunpublished note in 1770, “It is adisgrace that we should reproachSocrates and Plato because they werepagans! Was this a flaw in theirmorals? And Jesus a Jew? -- Andwhat if, as I believe, he never wantedto give up Judaism? One can onlyimagine where this remark would leadme.” Into dangerous waters, no doubt,given Christian views at the timetoward Judaism. The Jewishness ofJesus was known, but not to bepublicised.

The rise of liberal Protestantism, withits quest for the historical Jesus and itsclaim that to be a Christian means tohave the faith of Jesus, rather than thereligion of dogma about Jesus, wasone of the historical factors thatencouraged Jewish theologians of thenineteenth century to contribute toNew Testament scholarship. Starting

Jewish Perceptions of JesusSusanna Heschel (discussion to be continued in the next edition).

“And you, dear brothers andfellow men, who follow theteachings of Jesus, should youfind fault with us for doingwhat the founder of yourreligion did himself, andconfirmed by his authority?”

“Jesus is presented asdeceitful and self-serving, butwithout an intention of startinga new religion. ”

“Other medieval Jewish texts,written for an audience largerthan the Jewish world, presentJesus as a pious Jew whomade no claim to divinity.”

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with Abraham Geiger and continuingwith Heinrich Graetz, Levi Herzfeld,Joseph Derenbourg, Leo Baeck,Joseph Eschelbacher, and Felix Perles,among others, the Second Templeperiod took a position of prominence inthe Wissenschaft des Judentums, notonly to elucidate developments in earlyJudaism, but to demonstrate how earlyChristian texts can be clarified withreference to Jewish sources,particularly rabbinic texts.

Yet in arguing that Jesus was a Jewwho can best be understood bystudying the gospel texts in thecontext of Jewish sources, theseJewish historians were not simplybuilding a bridge between the tworeligions, linked by the Jewish Jesus.Rather, they attempted a more radicalagenda: developing a counterhistory ofthe prevailing Christian theologicalversion of Christianity’s origins andinfluence. The Wissenschaft desJudentums did not merely want thestudy of Judaism to be added to thecurriculum, but wanted the study ofJudaism to radically revise theestablished view of Christian origins, inan effort to resist and even overthrowthe standard portrayal of Westernhistory. At the heart of the West,according to the new German-Jewishhistoriography, stood not classicalGreek or Roman civilization, nor Aryanculture, nor the New Testament, butthe Hebrew Bible and rabbinicliterature. It was those texts, notGreece, that produced the greatmonotheistic religions of Judaism,Christianity and Islam, and laid thefoundations for the West. Evenmodernity, Jewish historians argued,with its claims to secularised, scientificforms of knowing and its insistence ontolerance and diversity, was to beunderstood as the product of Judaism,not Christianity. After all, whileChristianity demanded belief inestablished dogma, Judaism permittedfreedom of belief and required onlyethical behaviour.

The initial step taken by Jewishhistorians was to redefine the nature ofJudaism during the era whenChristianity developed. Was it adessicated religion that required the

radical rejection led by Christianity?How did the Jew Jesus lead to thedominance of Christianity in Westerncivilisation?

In Isaac M. Jost’s narrative of Jewishhistory, written in the 1820s, thePharisees are presented as narrow-minded and hypocritical, responsiblefor their own destruction and for Jewsturning away to Christianity. Bycontrast, thirty years later, AbrahamGeiger, one of the founders of ReformJudaism, inaugurated a new era ofscholarship with his magnum opus, theUrschrift und Übersetzungen der Bibel,published in 1857, one of the mostimportant works of Jewish scholarshipof that century. Geiger defined twotendencies in early Judaism, Pharisaicand Sadducean, a liberal and aconservative proclivity, respectively.The Pharisees, far from being thefigures of hypocrisy depicted in theNew Testament, attempted to liberalizeand democratize halakha, Jewishreligious law, to make its practiceeasier. The Sadducees, the priests ofthe Jerusalem Temple, by contrast,represented the narrow interests of thepriestly aristocratic elite seeking topreserve its privileges by aconservative reading of Jewish law.

Jesus himself, according to Geiger,was part of the liberalising Pharisaicmovement of his day. In a book onJewish history that he published in the1860s, a passage that becamenotorious among Protestanttheologians declared: “He [Jesus] wasa Jew, a Pharisaic Jew with Galileancolouring -- a man who shared thehopes of his time and who believedthat these hopes were fulfilled in him.He did not utter a new thought, nor didhe break down the barriers ofnationality…. He did not abolish anypart of Judaism; he was a Phariseewho walked in the way of Hillel.” Afterthe destruction of Jerusalem in 70 CE,the Sadducees were left without aTemple to conduct their priestlyworship. Rather than join their ownenemies, the Pharisees, Geiger argues,the Sadducees were drawn to the earlyChristian movement, and they broughttheir old polemics with them, reflectedin passages such as Matthew 23.

Christianity was not founded by Jesus,Geiger argues, but by Paul, whobrought the Jewish monotheism taughtby Jesus to the pagan world, where itbecame corrupted by pagan thoughtand led to non-Jewish doctrines suchas the trinity. Where could Christianstoday find the actual faith of Jesus –Pharisaic Judaism? Geiger’s answer: inthe Reform Judaism that Geiger wasbringing into existence, a comparablePharisaic liberalization of Judaism.

Geiger’s extensive scholarlyexamination of Christian origins,especially the figure of Jesus, shouldbe understood not as an effort atassimilation, but, in light of postcolonialtheory, as an attempt to subvertChristian hegemony and establish anew position for Judaism withinEuropean history and thought. Inarguing that Jesus said and didnothing new or original, but was simplyone of the numerous liberal Phariseesof first-century Palestine, Geiger wasenacting a theological revolt againstChristian hegemony and claims tosupersession. Both Christianity andIslam had derived their most importantteachings from Judaism, he argued in abook entitled, What Did MohammedTake from Judaism?, and at theirinception both Christianity and Islamintended nothing more than the spreadof Jewish ideas to the pagan world,making them maidservants to the greatreligious genius of Judaism.

The conclusion was not simply thatJudaism had exerted an influence onChristianity and Islam, but that bothreligions were little more thanextensions of Judaism.

Professor Susannah Heschel, is anexpert on German-Jewish history, andholds the Eli Black Chair in JewishStudies. She is an associate professorin the Department of Religion atDartmouth College in the UnitedStates. She is also a social activist forthe marginalized in Jewish society anddaughter of Rabbi Abraham JoshuaHeschel.

References corresponding to thisarticle can be made available bycontacting the editor.

“Jesus himself, according toGeiger, was part of theliberalizing Pharisaicmovement of his day”

“while Christianity demandedbelief in established dogma,Judaism permitted freedom ofbelief and required only ethicalbehaviour. ”

With Compliments fromGreen & Frederick

Jewellery0131 226 7000

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It has been a pleasure to receive the Edinburgh Star throughmy letterbox in leafy Stanmore. Middlesex. Its currentCommunity News interspersed with pictures from the past,keep me updated and nostalgic. A vexing theme, though,seems to crop into virtually every edition, whether in aneditorial, a letter or an article. The recurrent question of whois a Jew and how this affects the Edinburgh Jewishcommunity can be found in practically every edition of theStar. In many ways, this has become the Edinburgh Starobsession.

It is obvious that there are some underlying agendas with thiscommon theme featured in the Star, particularly in the last 5years. This issue is a very delicate one for many families in theEdinburgh community, but the disproportionate coverage of itsmacks of something a little more strategic and personal. Sowhat is the issue that is so often aired in the Star and bywhom?

The main argument proposed is that there is no reason, underJewish law, why a child born from either a Reform orConservative (Masorti) converted mother, or from a Jewishfather and non-Jewish mother, cannot be considered fullyJewish.

Various arguments have abounded, including: Moses marrieda non-Jew so what about his children? King David's great-grandmother Ruth was a convert from Moab, so was KingDavid not really Jewish? And sadly the most common of allarguments put forward, Hitler and his Nazi regime did not careabout any distinctions relating to birth and they murdered allwho had any Jewish blood coursing through their veins.

To clarify, Moses was married before the Jewish Law wasgiven to him by God. Furthermore, Zipporah fully adopted thefaith of Moses as did her famous father, Yitro (Jethro). There isno dissent that Zipporah kept kosher, kept the laws of familypurity and observed the Sabbath after the Revelation at Sinai.

Ruth is probably one of the most famous converts in ourhistory who famously chose the Jewish way of life andconverted to follow her mother-in law's religion. It should benoted here that Ruth was married to one of Naomi's sons anddidn't convert during her marriage to him. Naomi's otherdaughter-in law was Orpah who did not go with Ruth. AsJewish irony would have it, Ruth's great-grandson was acertain King David and Orpah’s great-grandson was a certainGoliath!! They were second cousins!

The Hitler regime analogy is perhaps the most emotive andmost used of the modern day arguments and for me, perhapsthe bleakest road to go down. The Holocaust was an attemptby the Nazi regime and its collaborating allies to destroy notonly the Jewish faith, but predominantly the Jewish "gene"biologically, as Nazi science preached that the Jew, via itsblood and gene pool, infected world society and needederadicating from the planet. In order to ensure the completesuccess of this policy, the Nazi regime defined a Jew viabloodlines and enshrined them in the infamous NurembergLaws. Nazi law stated that a Jew, for the purposes of breedingand employment, would be defined as anyone having aJewish maternal or paternal grandparent. These laws

introduced the world for the first time to the concept of a Half-Jew. The Nazi regime didn't differentiate so called Half-Jewsand even Quarter- Jews from Jews. All were sent to theirdeaths. But, in our tradition we have no concept, nor shouldwe, of the Half or Quarter Jew, even though some Jewishmedia, including the Jewish Chronicle continuously employsthe term.

Thank God, we as the Jewish people do not allow Adolf Hitlerto define who is a Jew. To define a Jew today in the same wayas the Nuremberg Laws did, is surely an affront to the Jewishpeople.

The only over hang from these sad days for the Jewish peopleis the Law of Return in Israel which today is under seriousreview due to the reason for its adoption having disappearednow from post-Holocaust Europe.

I firmly believe it is up to practising and fully believing Jews,based on the Torah and the Talmud, to define who is a Jewand not to allow Adolf Hitler and Heinrich Himmler to makethis decision for our faith and us for generations to come. Inthis context, the term believing Jew is applied to Jews whohold with true faith that God himself revealed the Torah toMoses and the Jewish people on Mount Sinai. It is somewhatironic that Christianity and Islam also take this divine revelationto be true but Reform, Liberal and Conservative Judaism donot.

These movements do not like to see themselves as simply anupdated form of Judaism for the 21st century or as an easytouch for potential converts for intermarrying couples. TheReform/Liberal/Masorti Rabbinate and their respective nationalleadership are very keen to promote that they are ideologicallydifferent to authentic Orthodox Judaism. It is about time thatwe commended this approach and acknowledged that theyare simply different religions and not a modern alternative. Iam not concerned that the Reform/Liberal communities are inEdinburgh, as they will no doubt prove to be a welcome homefor many people who ideologically believe in the new religionthey adhere to.

Sadly, due to intermarriage, membership of Reform/Liberalcommunities in smaller Jewish communities have been in themain because of a Jewish status need and not via ideologicalbeliefs as is often the case in the larger Jewish communities.This can be clearly seen within the Glasgow Reformcommunity where, according to their previous religious leader,Pete Tobias, over 80% of their new members came fromintermarried couples of whom all the women had converted toReform Judaism.

There is hardly a Jewish family in Edinburgh which is notaffected by the difficult issue of assimilation and inter-marriage. I recall recently leafing through the Star with a few ofmy Edinburgh friends looking at a picture of the opening of theEdinburgh Cheder by the late Chief Rabbi Jakobowitz in 1982.It was a profoundly sad experience when we realised howmany of our Cheder friends had either married out of theJewish faith or we simply had no idea where they were today.The percentage of my Cheder class who have married out isnearly 85%.

A Community ObsessionDavid V Kaplan

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*According to Jewish law, we are all aware that a child born toa Jewish mother is Jewish (apart from femalereform/conservative converts). It is fantastic to see so manyfamilies in our community who have a Jewish mother and anon-Jewish father bringing their children to Shul, Cheder andfunctions. Equally, it is encouraging to see the leaders of ourcommunity embracing these families in a way that when I wasgrowing up in Edinburgh I would doubt would have been thecase.

I understand why Jewish fathers who have married non-Jewsmay wish their children to be recognised as Jews not only bythe Edinburgh Community but by the world at large. However,I would argue that nearly all Jewish men who marry out of thefaith know that their children will have Jewish status issues, asthere are very few Jews who are not at all aware that theJewish line passes not from the father but via the mother.

There is of course the argument that the Jewish people arediminishing in numbers and by accepting all those who wantto be considered Jewish will help secure the future of theJewish people? Thankfully Jews have not been overly pre-occupied by concerns over the numbers of Jews in the world.For Jews it is simply not a quantity issue and never will be.

There are many reasons why Jews have married out of thefaith and no doubt will continue to do so. I am not seeking tojudge those who have married out as that is their free choice.

From an educational perspective though, it is very importantto inform intermarried families that there is no need to seekJewish status per se as Jewish belief clearly states that youdo not have to be Jewish in the eyes of God in the quest foreternal life and salvation. For non-Jews, Judaism features theNoachite (7 laws given to Noah for all humankind) laws as aguide by which to live their lives. It is not a matter of Jewsbeing better than non-Jews. That notion is ludicrous. Wesimply have different laws and missions to carry out whichhave the same end product, carrying out God's will andbecoming closer to Him.

For Jewish men who have married out of the faith under theirown free will, very often the campaign for inclusion of their

children as Jews is carried out not by them but by theirparents. This is an interesting phenomenon in itself. It wouldfeel more authentic if my old Cheder friends in this situationwrote letters and articles on their own behalf stating how theywant their children to be fully Jewish and what practical stepsat home they are taking to keep the kosher laws and observethe Sabbath. After all Judaism cannot be learnt from atextbook, it must be lived.

I fully understand the grand parents of these children wantingacceptance, the opportunity *to have their grandson have aBar Mitzvah in the same Shul as them and the grand occasionof their 5 year old granddaughter reading the Four questionsat the Seder table must be great aspirations for most if not allJewish grandparents.

There is no issue at all in the Star congratulating families inour community on the birth of non- Jewish grandchildren asdetailed in the last Star editorial, as inclusion in the StarAnnouncements does not authenticate Jewish status. Weshould be confident as a community to wish our fellowcongregants congratulations on such occasions and notignore for what may be a difficult time for them.

I hope all my old Cheder friends who have intermarried havefulfilled marital lives and their children grow up to be greatcitizens of this country and the world generally. It does notmake these children any less loved or any less valued thatthey happen not to be Jewish. I am all for these childrenlearning about their families' history and heritage and they arewelcome to explore the religion further if they so desire andsome may even convert, but this is not the position the Jewishreligion starts from.

It is time that the Edinburgh Star ceased this obsession andmoved on and hopefully in 20 years time when the graduatesof today's Edinburgh Cheder thumb through the Star in 2026they won't have to pick out the one or two who are committedJews with committed Jewish families.

David V Kaplan describes himself as a ‘Graduate of EdinburghCheder 1984’

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You may have seen Robert Winston’s BBC series, alsonamed “the story of god”, late last year. This book,although related, is much more than a tie-in rushed out tocapitalise on the success of the series. It is a serious studyof the development of religion from its early roots to theemergence of the three main monotheistic religions and aninvestigation of the place of religion in the modern world.While scholarly, it is written in Professor Winston’s usualaccessible style, full of anecdotes and personal references,many relating to his position as a practising Jew, and onewhose family has lived in Britain since 1700.

The prologue to the book immediately sets the tone for thebook. The first paragraph describes a mezuzah, andparagraph two quotes the Shema, in particular “The Lord ourGod, the Lord is One” as a major theme for his book.Typically, he then expands on the personal to a more globalexperience, from an elderly Muslim inTashkent to a young woman praying inCambodia. He then introduces theconcept he calls the ‘Divine Idea’, a beliefin one or many gods, which he thenexplores throughout the rest of the book.As he says, “I hope also that a personalaccount of some of my own struggles withGod, and an expression of how I continueto attempt to resolve that conflict, as anaveragely rational scientist and as a Jew,will be of some interest.”

The book then covers a roughlychronological course, from the early rootsof religion, which he suggests can beinferred from the primitive practice ofburying the dead many thousands of yearsago, through the human sacrifices of earlycivilisations such as the Aztecs, to thegradual emergence of monotheism,starting with Zoroastrianism, whichpromoted the idea of a Lord of Wisdom,Ahura Mazda, “the one uncreated God,eternal and the begetter of all other gods”.There were other lesser gods, and an evilpower, Angra Mainyu. Zoroastrianism, likelater more familiar religions, also had sacred texts, the Avesta.

The Bible and Judaism are described in detail, primarily for anon-Jewish audience, as are Christianity and Islam. Theconstant shifts in the nature of the relationship between thesethree major religions form the main part of the book. Perhapsbecause Professor Winston has himself been the victim ofanti-Semitic threats from a small group of Catholics as a resultof his work on in-vitro fertilisation, which he describes late inthe book, he appears slightly less charitable towardsChristianity than Islam. For example he states, “One of thegreat paradoxes of the Divine Idea is its capacity sometimesto permit, or even motivate, acts of great cruelty. Nowhere isthis more apparent than in Christianity, where belief in a loving,forgiving God has been enforced with torture, branding,amputations and death by fire.” This bias may also be areaction against the Islamophobia of the modern Westernworld. For example, he says of the Bible and Qur’an, “The

Arabic of the Qur’an is considered a sacred language, andwhen Muslims approach it they feel they are entering into aspiritual experience, in the same way as Jews do when theyhear the Torah. By contrast, Christian attempts to render theBible into everyday language in order to spread the Word farand wide have sometimes diminished that aura of spiritualitysurrounding the text.” In relating the flourishing of Judaism inthe Islamic culture of the 12th and 13th century in comparisonto the Spanish Inquisition that followed it, he certainly seemsto feel a stronger relationship between Judaism and Islamthan Christianity. It is also possible that this is based onfamily tradition, as his ancestor, Rabbi Joseph ben EphraimCaro (who wrote the Shulchan Aruch, codifying Jewish law)was forced to move from Spain and Portugal to Turkey, beforemoving eventually to Safed.

Another reason for this may be a theme that recurs throughoutthe book – the contrast between religionand science, and particularly the currentcontroversy between scientificallyaccepted Darwinian evolutionary theoriesand the Christian creationists, who arecurrently challenging that paradigm.Anyone who saw the episode on thetelevision series where Professor Winstonvisited a group of American creationistsand was barely able to hide hisincredulity, will not be surprised that he isscathing in his repudiation of their views.He points out that, since Maimonides andNachmanides in the 13th Century,Judaism has had no difficulty with theBiblical creation story, as Judaism hasalways invited interpretation of the text,while some Christians are still strugglingwith it as literal truth today.

Conflict of all kinds recurs throughout thebook – between Sunni and Shi’iteMuslims, Protestants and Catholics,Arabs and Jews and, particularly,between religion and science, fromGalileo’s perceived heretical suggestionthat the earth rotates around the sun, to

Professor Winston’s gentler disagreements with noted atheists(and respected colleagues) such as Richard Dawkins, PhilipPullman and Douglas Adams. Despite thousands of years ofhuman history, no one has been able to prove, or disprove, theexistence of one or more gods. However, even in a modernera with wide scientific knowledge, Professor Winston notesthat a recent survey indicated that one in four respondentshad some sort of belief in a “traditional god” in this country.Whatever the truth, the book shows that as long as there arehuman beings, there will be a need for some sort of deity, or“Divine Idea”.

Whether your interest is in the history of religion, the debatebetween major religions or between science and religion, thereis much to ponder in this book, which I highly recommend.

Published by Bantam Press 2005. £18.99

A Review of ‘the story of god’ by Robert WinstonJanet Mundy

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Ruth Sophia Cohen25th July 1964 to 14th March 2006Ruth was born in Edinburgh a fewmonths after her parents, Philip andMyra, moved up to Scotland fromSurrey.

She attended Sciennes Primary Schoolduring which time her talents for art,dancing and gymnastics first becameapparent. These were furtherdeveloped during her time at JamesGillespie’s High School. She alsoattended cheder and was Bat Mitzvahin 1976.

Ruth went to Manchester Universitywhere she took an active part, andthoroughly enjoyed, the vibrant Jewishstudent life. She graduated with anHonours Degree in History followed bya post graduate course at NapierCollege in Edinburgh.

It was during her time at university thatshe was first diagnosed with MS. Thiscruel and debilitating disease was toincreasingly affect her mobility andhealth over the next 20 years. Despitethis, she fought bravely against it witha strong determination and was aninspiration to others. The love andsupport of her parents gave herstrength.

Ruth went on to work in CareersGuidance and it was here that she firstmet her partner John. He dedicatedhimself to her happiness. They alsotravelled widely together includingholidays to New York, Paris andStockholm.

Ruth wanted to help others in a similarsituation to herself. For example, sheset up a series of lectures which shewrote and gave to Architecturalstudents relating to disability issues.These were aimed at explaining thepractical problems of wheelchair users

and suggest how architects andplanners could improve their designs.

Ruth was not particularly interested insport but her one obsession was withsnooker. She went on an annual tripwith John to Sheffield, to see the WorldChampionship Finals which theyattended for 17 consecutive years,which must be some kind of record.

She also helped raise money forcharities. This included presenting atelevision appeal on behalf of a charityand making several tandem parachutejumps.

It was less than 2 years ago that Ruthbecame an aunt to my son Samuel.Her love and joy shone through.

There was much happiness in Ruth’slife; in her childhood thanks to theunconditional love of her parents, inManchester and during her many yearswith John.

She will be sadly missed by all whoknew her.

Braham Cohen

Obituaries

25

Dame Muriel Spark1st February 1918 to 13th April 2006

With the passing of Dame MurielSpark, Edinburgh, world city ofliterature, has lost one of its mostdistinguished writers, certainly its mostinfluential novelist since Walter Scott.The world of literature too has lost awriter of genius, a pioneering novelistand a brilliant short story writer whotransformed fiction-writing in English inthe second half of the twentiethcentury.

To wish to claim Muriel Spark forourselves as a 'Scottish writer' is anatural enough desire, though todescribe her as such tells only part ofthe truth, is only one strand in thestory, and is helpful only to a degree.Besides, how does one define what isor what makes a 'Scottish writer'?

Much of Spark's writing follows in thetradition of Hogg and Scott andStevenson. And some of her workshares the bitter and mordant economyand chilling darkness of the BorderBallads. Spark was to write in 2004that, 'no-one without a knowledge ofthose Ballads could understand mywork.' But it is also true that of hertwenty-two novels, only one, The Primeof Miss Jean Brodie, is set entirely inScotland, with two others being setpartly in this country, Symposium andAiding and Abetting.

'Scottish both by birth and formation',

and a writer who wrote with 'a Scotchaccent of the mind' that isunmistakably discernible in her work,Muriel Spark was much, much morethan a 'Scottish writer': she was one ofthe finest twentieth-century novelistswriting in English, an innovator with aninternational reputation, one of themost influential writers of the post-warperiod. In recognition of herinternational importance, the ScottishArts Council established this year theMuriel Spark International Fellowship.The announcement of the first holderof this fellowship, Margaret Atwood,was made only a few weeks beforeDame Muriel's death.

Born Muriel Sarah Camberg inEdinburgh in 1918 and educated in thiscity, she was to say that 'it wasEdinburgh that bred within me theconditions of exiledom.' Theseconditions took her first to Africa at theage of 19, after which Scotland wasnever to be her home again. Notwithout many connections, affiliationsand associations for Spark, Edinburghalso became for her that 'place that I, aconstitutional exile, am essentiallyexiled from.' It was that sense of exile,as well as her deeply felt experience ofit, that would inform her career as awriter, which began in earnest after sheleft Rhodesia for post-war London,where, of necessity, Spark took up anappointment with the Poetry Society asits General Secretary, combining withthis the editorship of the Society'sPoetry Review. Bringing youth andvitality to this near-fossilised institution,Spark's real enthusiasm forcontemporary poetry and her energyas a moderniser upset many there. Formore than a year, her attempts to dragthe Society into the twentieth centurymet with fierce opposition from somecolleagues and council members.Throughout this difficult period, Sparkrequired it of herself to exercisenothing but tact and to respond to hercritics with absolute charm until 'herface ached of it'. Worn down by theold guard, she eventually asked to bedismissed rather than resign. (Somedetails of this far from dull period canbe read in Spark's volume ofautobiography, Curriculum Vitae, whichshe published in 1992.) This newfreedom gave her room to write, andshe started her own publication,

Forum, a magazine for poems andshort stories. Although this ran for onlytwo issues, it featured work by RoyCampbell, Kathleen Raine, HugoManning and Henry Treece. Now beingpublished regularly in several poetrymagazines herself, Spark was admittedto the Society of Authors in March1949. She was also submitting poemsto major London publishing houses forpublication in a single volume. Butfrom all these publishers came politerefusals. A major reversal in herfortunes then took place when in 1951she famously won The Observer shortstory competition with 'The Seraph andthe Zambesi'. This is a surreal taleabout a world where things are not asthey seem, and which features a poet,a dancer, a Seraph and the ZambesiRiver, on which the Seraph rode'among the rocks that look likecrocodiles and the crocodiles that looklike rocks.' Almost 7,000 writersentered this competition for the hugeprize of £250 and the promise ofpublication. This award was not only tochange the course of Spark's career asa writer; it was also to change thecourse of literary history.

Of course, Spark's first appearance inprint had already taken place overtwenty years earlier, in 1930, at the ageof twelve, when five of her poems werepublished in The Door of Youth, acollection of poems by Edinburghschool children, with a foreword by thepoet, novelist and politician JohnBuchan. Spark's poems in thatcollection, and those she wrote duringthe 1930s for Gillespie’s High SchoolMagazine, are as remarkably confidentas they are technically accomplished.But it was not until after her success inThe Observer competition that theHand and Flower Press published herfirst collection of poems, The Fanfarlo,And other verse in 1952. This bookwas reviewed warmly in The TimesLiterary Supplement early the followingyear. Her poems were also published inThe TLS from time to time, her last oneappearing there only a few weeks ago.

Although her success in The Observercompetition naturally made herattractive to publishers seeking a firstnovel, it was not until 1957 that Sparkpublished that first novel. During thesesix years, Spark did not take a holiday

26

from writing. Despite a period of ill-health, she was immensely productive,writing literary biography, andcontinuing to write poetry. She hadalready published, with Derek Stanford,Tribute to Wordsworth; and therefollowed her own Child of Light, areassessment of Mary WollstonecraftShelley; and, with Stanford again, MyBest Mary, selected letters of MaryShelley; a study of the Poet LaureateJohn Masefield, whose Edinburghpublic reading she attended as aschoolgirl; an edition of Brontë letters;and, also with Stanford, a selection ofletters of John HenryNewman and a critical studyof Emily Brontë. More thanfifty years later, Spark'smeditative essay on thepersonality of Emily Brontë isstill highly regarded, and wassingled out for specialattention in the OxfordCompanion to the Brontëspublished in 2005.

Aided by the generosity ofthe writer Graham Greene,who had read some of herstories and who sent herregular cheques, 'with a fewbottles of red wine to takethe edge off cold charity',Spark completed her firstnovel, The Comforters, in1956. Published early thefollowing year, it wasgenerally well-received bythe critics. The famousEnglish novelist EvelynWaugh 'offered a glowing quotation forpublicity and an equally generousreview.' He had been working on anovel on a similar subject to Spark's,and went as far as saying, 'I wasstruck by how much more ambitiouswas Miss Spark's, and how muchbetter she had accomplished it.'

There followed in the next four yearseight new works: five novels,Robinson, Memento Mori, The Balladof Peckham Rye, The Bachelors andthe pivotal The Prime of Miss JeanBrodie, which Spark was to describenot unkindly as 'her milch cow'; aselection of the poems of Emily Brontë,a collection of short stories; and'stories and ear pieces.'

In her hugely productive literary career,Spark was to publish, in addition to herworks of biography and criticism,twenty-two novels, several collectededitions of short stories, and arespectable amount of poetry. But itwill be for her novels, quite naturally,that Spark will be most remembered,for their startling originality, their witand verbal brilliance, as well as fortheir technical assuredness.

What is consistently true about Sparkis that there was never a time when

she was not doing somethingremarkable in her novels. In terms ofthe themes, she created in severalnovels plots about the business ofnovel-writing itself, and explored theworld of the supernatural and theendless struggle between good andevil. In terms of technique, mostcharacteristically she would subvertconventional lines of narrative, usingthe devices of flash-forward or flash-back to create a sense of dislocationbetween present, past, and future.These devices, and 'the movementbetween past and present', the writerAnthony Burgess said, 'created a viewof reality that was Godlike'. Spark's'extraordinarily daring time-shiftsbackwards and forwards across the

chronological span of action',combined with her very distinctivefeature of 'prophetic glimpses of thefuture fate of her characters', thenovelist and critic David Lodgedescribed as 'mimicking theomniscience of God who alone knowsthe beginning and the end.' He wrote,'this does not serve the purposes of apat moralism or a reassuringprovidential pattern. It unsettles, ratherthan confirms, the reader’s ongoinginterpretation of events, and constantlyre-adjusts the points of emphasis andthe suspense in the narrative.' The

brilliance of Spark'stechniques as storytellerwas also paid due tribute inthe citation of the AmericanAcademy and Institute ofArts and Letters, when shewas admitted as anhonorary member: 'hernovels display an absolutelyconfident and economicalstyle, an uncanny insightinto human character, and ahighly individualphilosophical zeal that neverwearies of exploring thevanities of civilisedhellishness.'

Writing ten years ago abouthow some readers tendedto misjudge her age, Sparkwondered if she 'wroteyoung.' In her final novel,The Finishing School,published in 2004, shedemonstrated, with her

highly original vision and voice, thatshe did continue to 'write young.'

Muriel Spark was one of the luminariesof post-war British literature whosewritings brought pleasure and delightto readers worldwide, her works havingbeen translated into more than twentylanguages, including Albanian,Croatian, Japanese, Russian, andCatalan. She also massively influenceda new generation of writers of the'post-modern' novel. Muriel Sparkleaves an enormous literary legacy.

Michael Lister, Edinburgh

Photos by kind permission of Robin Spark

27

It was a cold Sunday February morning at Goldenacre whenMaccabi, playing in a red and blue strip, met a Heriots teamplaying in blue and white hoops. This was the second trial forMaccabi representatives to be selected to form part of the firstjunior rugby squad to represent Great Britain as an Under 18team at the 2009 Maccabiah Games.

The representatives came from Manchester, Blackpool andLondon and, of course, our very own Edinburgh. As Maccabistepped on to the pitch there was a huge cheer from thecrowd, but they knew straight away it was going to be a hardmatch. James Hyams, the captain of Maccabi for this game,went up to shake his opponent’s hand, then the whistle blewfor the start of the game. Maccabi put up a stern defence butwith a very experienced and strong Heriot’s side against themthey had to fight for every ball. Heriot’s strength shone throughafter only two minutes when they scored their first try.

Maccabi never gave up and fought bravely. When the half timewhistle blew the score was 23-0 to Heriots. This may look likea bad score, but for a team like Maccabi who have only mettwice before, it showed the talent of their side. As the secondhalf kicked off, the Maccabi team continued to fight bravely,with two members of the team coming off injured, one with ableeding nose, the other with a pulled muscle in his leg, after aterrific tackle against one of the Heriots players, who wastwice his height.

The game finished 57-0 to Heriots, which wasn’t a fairreflection of Maccabi’s tireless efforts. The Heriot’s coach,Andy Irvine, said that Maccabi fought bravely and didn’tdeserve this score, which made the team feel better and nowthey’re all set for their next trial in London.

Maccabi GB Junior Rugby vs. Heriots U15 Rugby ClubBy Steven (proud father) & James Hyams

12-year-old Michael, who attends ‘Azami Judo Scotland’every week, is seen with his trophy for the Scottish MiniMons Championship awarded on Sunday 29th January2006. Michael had to challenge three other competitorswithin his category. When asked how he felt on receivingthe trophy, his mother, Jackie, said that ‘he was surprised,pleased excited and delighted’ …in that order!

29

Mr & Mrs W Harwood, Mr & Mrs AD Gilbert, M L Weiser Mr J Gordon, Mrs R Massie, Mr G Mendick, Mr D Goldberg, Mrs M Lipman, Mr H Miller, Mrs K Ramsay, Mrs N Benjamin, Mr & Mrs P Segal, Dr & Mrs SH Curry, Rev .J Murrie, Mr & Mrs A Glass, Mr & Mrs H Ordman, Mrs M Altman, Mrs F Robertson, Mrs V Shrier, Dr E Gordon, Mrs B Guyer, Dr & Mrs Abramson, Mr & Mrs D Ellinson, Mr & Mrs B Caine, Mr D P Grosz, Mr & Mrs J Kronberg, Mr. J Beloff, Mr & Mrs J Baker, Mrs J Rowe, Mr & Mrs Engleman, Ms Fordei, Mr & Mrs B Landy, Mr & Mrs Rosen, Mrs B Caplan, Dr & Mrs B Osborne, Mr & Mrs S Skop, Mr & Mrs I Shein, Mr & Mrs A Caplan, Mr & Mrs I. Caplan, Mr & Mrs S J Caplan, Mrs I Skubiesjska, Mrs F Gordon Mrs S Lurie, Dr & Mrs M Merrick, Miss A Lurie, Mr J Roberts, Mr N Dorfman, Mr & Mrs D Fields, Dr & Mrs M Been, Mr D Ellison, Mr & Mrs J Sperber, Mr & Mrs N Berger, Mr & Mrs A Rifkind, Dr & Mrs B Dorfman, Mrs L Levy, Mr & Mrs R Taylor, Mr SR. Spark, Mrs R. Fluss, Mr & Mrs D Paul, Mrs R.Orgel, Mr & Mrs E. Mendelssohn,Mr & Mrs Valencia, Prof. & Mrs J Seckl, Mr & Mrs A Rubenstein, Dr J Miller, Mr & Mrs G Lindey Mrs M Gilbert, Mr & Mrs D Harris, Dr P Cowen, Mr & Mrs A Yarrow,Mr A Shamash, Prof & Mrs S Reif, Mrs A Brydon, Mr & Mrs D Mendelssohn, Mr & Mrs P Bennett, Dr & Mrs B Levy, Ms E Galford & Mrs E Kelly, Mr & Mrs S Zoltie,Mr & Mrs R Goodman, Anon, Mrs I King, Mr & Mrs D Hyams, Mr & Mrs N Cram, Mr & Mrs W Simpson, Dr & Mrs Wolfson, Mr G H Gordon Mr & Mrs B Levy, Mr & Mrs T Lowrie, Dr W Sircus & Mrs A Caplan, Mr & Mrs R Goodwin, Mrs B Abrahams, Mrs N Marks, Mr & Mrs Bialek, Mr & Mrs J Donne, Mr H Huntley-Grant, Sir Malcolm & Lady Rifkind, Mr & Mrs M Dorfman, Dr E Oppenheim, Mr & Mrs M Lurie, Mrs V Gruneberg, Mr A Morris, Dr & Mrs J Been, C V Edmans, Mrs E. McLaren, Mr & Mrs J Cowan, Mrs R Davison, Mrs D Sim, Profs. C & G Raab, Mr & Mrs Gamoran, Mr & Mrs H Kahn, Mrs H Levy, Dr. C & T Griffin, Prof E M. Smallwood, Dr & Mrs K Collins, Mr & Mrs A Bloom, Dr & Mrs L Kaufman, Mrs S Gore, Cissie Eppel, Dr & Mrs N Levinson, Mr A Rabinowitz,Mrs L Steel, Mr & Mrs A Glass, Dr R Lewis, & Dr E Sheinberg, Mr M Lichtenstein, Mr & Mrs S Hyams, Mrs R Braverman, Mr S Caplan, Mr and Mrs M Levitt, Mrs K Lemer.

The Board would like to thank all those listed below who responded to our appeal for funds.

If you have not already responded to our appeal, and would like to, it is never too late.Your donation, no matter how large or small, will always be most welcome.

The Star would like to apologise if any names have been incorrectly written.

If any person believes they have been inadvertently missed, please contact the editorand they will be included in the next issue of the Star.

June2 Friday First day of Shavuot

11 Sunday WIZO annual lunch/gardenparty at the home of Marylaand Edward Green

18 Sunday Cheder prize giving/picnic

21 Wednesday Synagogue AGM 8.00

July13 Thursday Fast of Tammuz

August3 Thursday Fast of Av

20 Sunday Festival open day12pm – 4.30pm

September23 Saturday First day Rosh Hashanah

There are no meetings ofLodge Solomon, Council ofChristians and \Jews orLiterary Society during theSummer months. These alongwith dates of future WIZO

lunches to be confirmed inthe next edition.

Senior Maccabi meet onSunday evenings in members’homes. For furtherinformation, contact AliceKelpie (337 1894).

The Luncheon Club meetsevery Tuesday and Thursdayat 12.30pm.

Al meetings take place in the|Community Centre, SalisburyRoad, unless otherwisestated. All are subject toalteration.

Corrections Apologies go to Cassie, Jontyand Lily Karro for misspellingtheir names in the last editionof the star.

Ivor Klayman informs us thatthe boy front row right in lastedition’s Star Trek is AlanMyerthal and not MervynSmith and that Shelagh Smithis the correct spelling.

With regret we cannot takeresponsibility for misspeltnames if given verbally. Ifreaders wish to insert apersonal announcement onthis page, they must provide aclearly written version.

Ronnie Goodman writesthat he and his wife Annerecently celebrated their59th wedding anniversary.He wrote a letter to HerMajesty the Queen,first to congratulateher on her 80thbirthday andsecondly, to wish herand Prince Philipcontinuing goodhealth so that theywould all be able tocelebrate theirdiamond wedding in2007. Ronnie explained to HerMajesty that despite the sadsituation of his wife Anne, whoresides in a nursing home, andwho no longer recognises him, hederives infinite pleasure in visitingher every other day and considersit a bonus when she greets himwith a big smile.

The Queen kindly responded through her Lady-in-Waiting andRonnie was touched by her sentiment and wished to share thetwo responses he received.

Congratulations

Deborah and Jonathan andMason on the arrival of their sonNatan Reuven, born on 2nd April2006. Proud grandparents, Ireneand Philip provided thephotograph.

Forthcoming Events

Announcements The Edinburgh HebrewCongregation

Jewish Edinburgh Group

Festival Open Day12.00 – 4.30pm Sunday 20th

August 2006

Join us for bagels and coffee

The Edinburgh Hebrew Congregation is having an Open Day during the Festival to welcome festival

visitors and performers.

The day will include:An exhibition about the History

of the Edinburgh Jewish Community

Tours of the Shul -a rare modernist 1930s building,faced in red brick, by leading Glasgow architect James

Miller. Grade B listed

We are hoping that a number of acts from the Festivalwith shows or events that have a Jewish cultural interestwill come along and talk about their shows and performextracts. Interested performers/groups wishing to take

part please write or email:

Jewish Edinburgh Groupc/o: The Synagogue,

4 Salisbury Road, Edinburgh EH16 5AB

Or email:jeg@www.ehcong.com

The Open Day will be held at the above address.