Kibbutz Magen member Shunit Dekel speaks via Skype to the almost 800 people who came out to Temple Sholom to show support for Israel. Dina Wachtel, executive director, Western Region, Canadian Friends of the Hebrew University, is at the podium. (photo from JFGV)
Close to 800 people gathered at Temple Sholom the night of July 27 to show solidarity between Canadians and the state of Israel.
Temple Sholom Rabbi Dan Moskovitz started the evening by leading the crowd in “Am Yisrael Chai,” and Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver chair Diane Switzer read aloud a letter of support from Premier Christy Clark who wrote, “The current conflict in Israel and Gaza is of great concern to anyone who believes in democracy and human rights…. At this difficult time, let us remember the values we share with Israel: a vibrant, culturally rich, democratic nation committed to maintaining the rights of its citizens, regardless of gender or religion. Israel is an example not only to the region, but the world.”
Farid Rohani, a businessman, social activist and a board member of the Laurier Institution, speaks to those gathered at Temple Sholom. (photo from JFGV)
The event featured a number of guest speakers, including Shunit Dekel, a member of Kibbutz Magen, and Farid Rohani, a businessman, social activist and a board member of the Laurier Institution. Dekel spoke via Skype from her home 4.3 kilometres outside of Gaza. Her kibbutz was forced into lockdown three times last week, because of the danger posed by the underground tunnels connecting it with Gaza. Rohani addressed the issue of antisemitism in recent social media. Through his own analysis of Twitter, he concluded that the coverage is remarkably lopsided and that “remaining quiet is a disservice not only to the values that we share as Canadians, but to order and what is right.”
The event was a collaborative effort between several local organizations: Canadian Friends of Ben Gurion University, Canadian Friends of Hebrew University, Canadian Jewish Political Affairs Committee, Magen David Adom, Congregation Beit Hamidrash, Congregation Beth Israel, Congregation Temple Sholom, Congregation Schara Tzedeck, Hillel BC, Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver, Jewish National Fund, Or Shalom, State of Israel Bonds and the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, Pacific Region.
At the end of the night, community member Bill Levine remarked, “The tone of the evening was respectful, and stressed our desire for a peaceful resolution. It was good to see the community react in the spirit of coming together.”
Rally in support of Israel drew a few hundred people to the Vancouver Art Gallery on Sunday afternoon. (photo by Shahar Ben Halevi)
Nearly 300 people gathered around the Vancouver Art Gallery on Sunday, July 27, at noon, to show support for the state of Israel and for peace in the Middle East.
The rally – organized by a Facebook group of Israelis in Vancouver – went peacefully, and there were no apparent counter protests in the area. The supporters carried signs calling for an end to the conflict, and emphasizing that Israel is fighting terrorists and not the people of Gaza.
The rally was covered by several local media representatives, but there were no speeches. The crowd sang together a few traditional Jewish songs and ended the event with Hatikvah, the Israeli national anthem.
L’Chaim Adult Day Centre member Shirley Kort, right, and her friend Zoe Oreck, who came to visit, listen to Kort’s daughter, Shoshana Litman, tell a story. (photo from L’Chaim)
I was invited into a very special world on June 30 – that of L’Chaim Adult Day Centre. Described as a therapeutic day centre for home-bound elderly, a place where safe, caring monitoring is provided along with kosher, home-style meals in a happy, embracing atmosphere, with multilingual staff, it is all that and more.
I was asked by Shoshana Litman, a gifted maggidah (storyteller), to come and watch one of her sessions at L’Chaim. After receiving permission to attend from Annica Carlsson, who is in charge of the centre, I arrived in time to see 14 seniors, mostly women, actively enjoying a ball exercise led by Marla Simcoff. When that ended, Litman entered the circle, smiled, introduced herself and explained why she was there, and that I was there to take photographs.
Litman opened with a blessing over the water, which she drank, and then introduced her mother, Shirley Kort, a member of L’Chaim and her mom’s friend, Zoe Oreck, who had come to visit.
The story Litman had chosen was one of Peninah Schramm’s – The Innkeeper’s Wise Daughter – which included riddles and a song. It easily invited audience participation and the listeners were only too glad to do so.
After I listened, enjoyed and participated in Litman’s storytelling, and I heard the various questions and answers, I began to realize the scope of what is accomplished under the watchful eyes of L’Chaim staff and Carlsson, who explained that the wide range of work on cognitive skills is easily managed because of the small size of the group.
In honor of her visit and in her mother’s name, Litman presented a copy of a calendar commemorating the 151 years of Congregation Emanu-El in Victoria. She showed photos of the costumes worn on the anniversary evening last year, as the event included a reenactment of those times. The photos brought back precious memories for one audience member, who was reminded that she had attended that event.
I left with a good feeling, and the others, who were chatting away over lunch with one another, also seemed relaxed and happy. We are fortunate to have this facility in our midst. Let’s grow old together.
Binny Goldmanis a member of the Jewish Seniors Alliance of Greater Vancouver board.
NCJW members unload boxes of toys headed for Israel as part of the Ship a Box to Israel program launched by NCJW Tikvah branch, Vancouver Harbor, 1947. (photo from JMABC L.11998)
Much of the work of Jewish women in Vancouver has occurred, both historically and still today, behind the scenes. The Jewish Museum and Archives of British Columbia is trying to change that with its online exhibit, More Than Just Mrs. Accessible at morethanjustmrs.wordpress.com, the exhibit discusses the history of the National Council of Jewish Women, Hadassah-WIZO (CHW) and Na’amat, the three predominant Jewish women’s organizations mid-century. It includes audio clips from local women who worked for these organizations and focuses exclusively on the work of the B.C. chapters.
“We’re trying to raise awareness of the Jewish community in B.C. and its history,” said Michael Schwartz, coordinator of development and public programs at JMABC, located in the Peretz Centre for Secular Jewish Culture in Vancouver. “When it came to these chapters of the organizations, I knew a few of the stories but wanted to fill in the gaps and learn more. I thought we should look at the organizations in greater detail, at the differences in their philosophies and the influential women who worked for them.”
The website has an introduction and then individual sections on each of NCJW, Hadassah and Na’amat, each one containing letters, certificates and other historical material relevant to the work the organizations performed. There are a total of six audio clips online but those who want to hear entire interviews may visit the Jewish museum offices to listen to them.
The exhibit offers a fascinating glimpse into Jewish life in Vancouver in the 1940s and ’50s: its fashions, the organizations’ priorities and their fundraising strategies. These women were professional volunteers, individuals who were not content to be “just Mrs.,” and insisted on devoting their time and talents to improving and meeting the needs of their local communities and communities in Israel and elsewhere. The name for the exhibit was drawn from an interview with one of the volunteers some 20 to 30 years ago, wherein she mentioned the phrase, “More than just Mrs.,” adding that, for her, doing this volunteer work was an opportunity to step out of her husband’s shadow.
NCJW supported an orphanage in Holland, for example, sending regular shipments of food and clothing to the aid of the 220 destitute war orphans being cared for in Bergstichting. The exhibit includes a letter from the orphanage dated April 1947, describing the difficult conditions at the orphanage. “The physical condition of our pupils being still rather week [sic], we had to fight with a scarlatina [scarlet fever] epidemic during five months,” wrote the director. “Sixty of our people were taken with this illness. But fortunately, your valuable gifts reached us just in those distressful months.”
The online exhibit was launched in September 2013 and some 2,500 people have visited the site since it was launched. Schwartz estimates it takes 60 to 90 minutes to read the material, which was produced by Annika Friedman last summer with the aid of Young Canada Works, a granting program subsidized by the federal government. Schwartz said another online exhibit is being produced this summer under the same program. Called Oakridge: The Final Frontier, it will chart the rise and decline of the Jewish community in the neighborhood. Elana Wenner, a master’s candidate in Jewish studies at Concordia University, will be interviewing community members and gathering photographs, videos and other relevant materials for the new exhibit. To contribute and for more information, Wenner can be reached at [email protected].
Lauren Kramer, an award-winning writer and editor, lives in Richmond, B.C. To read her work online, visit laurenkramer.net.
The sanctuary of Kelowna’s Beth Shalom Synagogue, which was founded in 1990. (photo from OJCA)
Kelowna boasts a small but tight-knit Jewish community, with its synagogue, Beth Shalom, located in the Okanagan Jewish Community Centre (OJCC). Although it’s estimated that more than 1,000 Jews live in this region and the surrounding area, only about 60 families are actively involved in communal life, which offers some unique benefits – and challenges.
“We’re not affiliated with anyone, so we cover the entire Jewish spectrum of Jewish identities and religious views, and we all respect each other’s differences,” said David Spevakow, president of the Okanagan Jewish Community Association.
David Spevakow, president of the Okanagan Jewish Community Association. (photo from OJCA)
Spevakow and his wife moved to Kelowna in 2002 and have been very active in the community, which offers Sunday Hebrew school classes, holiday celebrations, a community Passover seder and more.
“It helps that it’s a smaller community,” he said. “When we see each other, everyone knows each other. We’re all friends and family.”
To help attract and keep rabbinic leadership in smaller Jewish communities, there is a new pilot project, called Bridging Mountains, between Beth Tzedec in Calgary and the OJCC, on either side of the Rockies. It offers the OJC community rabbinic leadership, consultation and guidance on religious practices and questions. As part of the project, Beth Tzedec’s Rabbi Shaul Osadchey serves as a mentor to the community, answering questions and visiting the region.
“The rabbi gives us a feeling like we have leadership in a spiritual and rabbinical aspect,” said Spevakow.
A small community
Being part of the close-knit community afforded Jeremy Finkleman, who was born and grew up in Kelowna, with an opportunity to really develop his own Judaism without the outside pressures of strict religious infrastructure.
“I really found who I am as a Jew growing up in that community,” said Finkleman, 31, who now works as a transportation planner in Vancouver. “I was able to forge a Jewish identity for myself completely independent of what people were telling me Jews are supposed to behave like or think like. It really gives you an opportunity to take charge of your own Judaism and take leadership roles, whereas in other communities, you’d sit more on the sidelines.”
Since the community has no Jewish day school, Finkleman’s father taught him Hebrew and Judaic studies for more than 12 years.
“I can’t think of a better way of learning. It’s a lasting bonding experience,” he said. “Just like the commandment says, you should teach it to your sons – he took that very literally. We’d get together twice a week for two hours in the evening and we learned everything from Hebrew language to Jewish history to ritual practice to politics.”
With no Jewish day school, Kelowna Jews like Finkleman were exposed to a variety of different cultures, and were taught from an early age to respect others’ religions and differences.
“Everyone kind of shares in each other’s cultures there. Being part of such a small community, I would go with my best friend to Christmas Eve mass every year and then I would go over for Christmas dinner,” said Finkleman. “It was a cultural sharing experience, and he would come to OJC for the annual Chanukah party. Everybody shares in each other’s experiences and it was all very positive and open-minded.”
Challenges to face
A “tourist hub,” Kelowna’s population almost doubles in the summer, as out-of-towners come to visit the area’s sandy beaches, taste its fresh fruit, tour the wineries and play the golf courses. The city, however, faces many challenges similar to those faced by other small Jewish communities. Although Finkleman noted he probably wouldn’t be as observant as he is today had he not grown up in Kelowna, he said life for an observant Jew is not easy there.
“If you want to have any type of regular observance of things, even regular Shabbat services, there just isn’t the interest to have services once a week,” he said. He noted there isn’t much Jewish infrastructure in Kelowna and so, for example, you can’t purchase kosher meat there either.
“If you were an observant Jew who wanted to live an observant Jewish lifestyle, it is challenging in Kelowna,” he said.
The synagogue, founded in 1990, does have a Torah and does hold services, although not regularly. It was built by families in the community who spent a lot of time and money to acquire the land and build the structure, including Finkleman’s parents. He said his parents held many community events at their house before the synagogue was built and that his father has been involved in leading services at the synagogue for many years.
“We’re very, very proud of it,” said Finkleman. “There was a lot of energy around the building of the synagogue and leading up to it, and immediately following it. After a number of years, however, it started to wane and people started to come and go.”
As the city expands, thanks, in part, to developments at the airport and the new University of British Columbia campus, the city’s demographics have shifted as well, with younger families moving into the region, attracted to the opportunities and searching for a more affordable life than Vancouver can provide. As more professionals and young families move into the region, Spevakow said he is hopeful the community will expand and develop.
“We’re committed to building a growing and evolving Jewish community while enriching Jewish life by providing opportunities for social, cultural and educational development. We’ve got the same problems other small communities have, but I’m optimistic about the direction we’re going in.”
Vicky Tobianah is a freelance writer and editor based in Toronto. Connect with her on Twitter, @vicktob, or at [email protected].
The entrance to the newly established Jewish section of Cedar Valley Gardens Cemetery. (photo from OJKMS)
On July 9, in beautiful sunshine, a little bit of history for the Jewish community in central Vancouver Island was made when the new Jewish cemetery in Cedar, near Nanaimo, was consecrated in a ceremony attended by many members of the local Jewish and non-Jewish communities, who participated in the service by walking around the perimeter of the new burial ground, which is a completely segregated part of the Cedar Valley Gardens cemetery.
The new cemetery, which will provide a beit olam for Jews in the area, meets all halachic standards. It took over a year to become a reality, spearheaded by local residents Yvette and David Freeman of Qualicum Beach.
The Cedar cemetery location was first viewed by Elaine Berkman, z”l, of Nanaimo some years ago who, when her time came, wanted to be buried near her home and family. In a prophetic turn of events, she was the first person to be laid to rest in the new cemetery. Her funeral was held immediately after the consecration ceremony, which was brought forward as a result of her death.
Until a few years ago, burial on Vancouver
Island for those Jews who did not want to be buried off the Island was at the Congregation Emanu-El Cemetery in Victoria. Then, a few Victoria residents got together and arranged for an alternative Jewish section in the Hatley Gardens Cemetery near Royal Roads University. That still left community members living further up Island having to use Victoria for Jewish burial, with the attendant journey over the Malahat, often treacherous during the winter, and making for long journeys for spouses and other family members wishing to visit the graves of loved-ones.
Two years ago, the Freemans started to look for a suitable location for a small Jewish cemetery and, after one or two unsuccessful attempts, finally found Cedar Valley Gardens, where the management were happy to cooperate in finding a solution to the requirements for a truly halachic cemetery within the bounds of its grounds.
Once the basic understanding was agreed between Cedar Valley Gardens’ owners and the Freemans, Oceanside Jewish Kvarot Memorial Society was formed and incorporated by David Freeman, who is a lawyer, and binding agreements (including perpetual care and maintenance of the grounds) were finalized with Arbor Memorials (the owners of Cedar Valley Gardens), Sands Funeral Chapel and the new memorial society for a completely segregated section for a Jewish cemetery.
The only obstacle was money since, quite reasonably, the cemetery would not agree to start the various steps required to bring about the necessary changes until expenses were paid. Unfortunately, the North American reluctance to acknowledge that we all have a finite time on this earth and to deal with the practicalities of pre-planned end-of-life decisions meant that there was little or no interest in joining in financially. So, the Freemans decided that they had to front-end the project and to personally guarantee the funds to purchase the grave plots.
With the help of the property manager, the new section began to take shape with all the necessary requirements for a Jewish cemetery. With the project in its final stages, the society still only had the two directors, and the Freemans were pleased to have another member of the local community, Richard Steinberg, join the society’s board. Since Berkman’s funeral, there have been a number of enquiries from local residents after seeing the cemetery grounds.
The Jewish cemetery is operated under the direction of the Oceanside Jewish Kvarot Memorial Society, to which any enquiries can be made to [email protected].
Rabbi Shlomo Riskin speaks to the Vancouver audience via webcast. (photo by Cynthia Ramsay)
Empowerment. Scholarship. Connection. Each of these words was used more than once to describe the Rebbe – Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, z”l – and his impact during the July 9 community commemoration of the 20th year since his passing.
At Chabad Lubavitch at Oak and 41st, the six B.C. Chabad Houses hosted a night of learning, with workshops and dinner, followed by a speech, via webcast, from Rabbi Shlomo Riskin, chief rabbi of Efrat, Israel, and chancellor of Ohr Torah Stone in Israel, and the video The Rebbe: Marching Orders.
Timeless Leadership: An Evening of Inspiration offered two sets of workshops from which attendees could choose. The first set comprised Turning Lubavitch Outward by Rabbi Yitzchok Wineberg of Chabad Lubavitch BC; The Rebbe’s Melodies by Rabbi Falik Schtroks of the Centre for Judaism in White Rock; and Stories of the Rebbe by Rabbi Yechiel Baitelman of Chabad of Richmond. The second set was The Wisdom of the Lubavitcher Rebbe by Rabbi Binyomin Bitton of Chabad of Downtown, and The Rebbe’s Advice by Rabbi Dovid Rosenfeld of Camp Gan Israel; Rabbi Meir Kaplan of Chabad of Vancouver Island, was unable to attend.
Among the handouts was a timeline of Schneerson’s life prior to his becoming the Rebbe. Born in Ukraine in 1902, Schneerson was considered a child prodigy and, by the time he was in his teens, he was exchanging letters with respected scholars. He married Chaya Mushka, the daughter of the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, in Poland in 1928. He then went to the University of Berlin, followed by the ESTL engineering school and the Sorbonne in Paris, while also giving Torah classes and the like. When the Nazis conquered Paris, the Rebbe and his wife managed to escape, by ship from Lisbon to New York. At his father-in-law’s behest, Schneerson became a director of multiple Lubavitch organizations and began to publish his thoughts on Chassidic tracts and write responsa. In 1951, a year after his father-in-law died, Schneerson became the Rebbe.
Wineberg, who gave a brief overview of Chabad’s history, called Schneerson “a Rebbe for our times.” A more critical problem in our age – the last 65, and especially the last 30-35, years – than assimilation, said Wineberg, has been low self-esteem. In this context, he highlighted the Rebbe’s belief that, “There is no such thing as a small Jew.” The Rebbe took what was an insular, study-focused organization and, while keeping the foundation of Torah and study, broadened its vision to include all Jews, said Wineberg, noting that the Rebbe connected with every single person he encountered. The Rebbe, he said, was the inspiration behind Chabad heading to campuses, to welcoming Jews to dinner, to prayer, to don tefillin.
Bitton provided some statistics on the Rebbe’s outreach and his scholarly contributions: he spoke on 31,393 occasions, for example, and 11,700 of his letters have been published so far; there are tens of thousands of pages of his writings. The Rebbe’s unique approach to learning, explained Bitton, is that he connected talmudic understanding with its kabbalistic translation. When the Rebbe analyzed an idea, said Bitton, he peeled its exterior layers away and got to the pure essence of the idea, the quintessential idea that was at the root of the discussion. For the Rebbe, he said, kol haTorah inyan echad, the entire Torah is one “topic.”
In telling the stories of his encounters with the Rebbe, Riskin echoed some of the sentiments shared by the local Chabad rabbis in their presentations. He compared the Rebbe to Moses, in that, as Moses is still alive in a sense because his teachings continue to be studied, the same is true of the Rebbe. “Certainly for me,” said Riskin, “because not only did he change my life, but he gave me fundamental messages by which I live my life, and which informed my world of education … and my world of the rabbinate.”
Riskin shared how he became the founding rabbi of Lincoln Square Synagogue in the mid-1960s. Having attended Yeshivah University on scholarships, he wanted to repay the institution and agreed to do some speaking engagements after receiving his ordination, one of which was at “a kind of Rosh Hashanah-Yom Kippur synagogue” that didn’t have its own building and was in what was then a poor neighborhood. They had a rabbi and were relatively satisfied but not completely, so they approached YU and, after Riskin came for one Motzei Shabbat, they wanted to hire him. When deciding whether or not to accept the pulpit, Riskin was conflicted and received conflicting advice. So, he asked for a meeting with the Rebbe, who told him to listen to his own rebbe (Rav Joseph B. Soloveitchik, z”l), adding that, “In every battle, there are people who have to get dressed like the enemy and go into the enemy territory … and you will not only win the battle, you will win the war.”
When Riskin argued that his future congregants have no background and that he would have nothing with which to work, the Rebbe said, “You can never say about a Jew that he has no background. Every Jew has a kingly background; every Jew is, after all, a descendant of Avraham, Yitzchak, Yaakov, of Sarah, Rivka, Rachel and Leah…. I left the Rebbe’s presence awestruck, and with a very profound sense of empowerment.”
Another encounter with the Rebbe took place after Riskin had spent time working with an eccentric, wealthy man who, when he met Riskin was non-observant and married to a non-Jew. After that initial meeting, Riskin accepted the man as a single member of the shul (i.e. without his wife) but later found himself doubting that decision. When he asked the Rebbe about it, the Rebbe never told Riskin whether he’d made the right decision, but rather said, “No one is able to truly evaluate the profound value of the Jewish soul.” This meant, said Riskin, that “every Jew has an affinity to Torah and you can never give up on any Jew no matter how far away he may have went. And that, too, has become a very important part of my teaching.”
When Riskin was making aliyah, he could not meet with the Rebbe directly – because of the Rebbe’s ill health following a heart attack – but he received his blessing through Soloveitchik at a farbrengen (Chassidic gathering) they were all attending. To the blessing, the Rebbe added that, in Efrat, Riskin “must produce shluchim, emissaries, who are modern on the outside and Chabad on the inside.” Riskin credits the Rebbe for his having been able to establish Ohr Torah Stone, which has, among other programs, hundreds of shluchim.
Standing, from left to right, are panel facilitator Michael Levy, CFHU board member Stav Adler, Rabbi Andrew Rosenblatt, Prof. Raphael Mechoulam and Dr. Kathryn Selby. (photo by Michelle Dodek)
It may be a common occurrence in many parts of the city, but it is still a rare thing to pass through marijuana smoke while entering an Orthodox synagogue. But that was the case on June 24, when a panel discussion took place at Schara Tzedeck on the topic Should I Change My Mind About Weed? A small number of attendees, unsatisfied with a merely academic consideration of the topic, opted for a more psychoactive engagement.
The director of the local Canadian Friends of the Hebrew University, Dina Wachtel, was inspired to convene a panel on marijuana after watching Dr. Sanjay Gupta’s CNN documentary on the topic.
Prof. Raphael Mechoulam, a Hebrew University chemist and a leading expert on the subject, said that marijuana has been used in societies from India and China to the Middle East “forever.” Queen Victoria’s doctor, J. Russell Reynolds, used it to treat the queen’s migraines.
Mechoulam said that cannabidiol (CBD), a component in marijuana, may have medical uses “in almost all diseases affecting humans.” Unlike tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the component that causes a high, CBD does not deliver a high and has no known side effects. However, there have been almost no clinical trials on humans, probably because pharmaceutical corporations would not be able to patent it and governments, for various reasons, have avoided the matter.
Cannabinoid receptors are abundant in multiple brain regions, he said, including those affecting movement control, learning and memory, stress, cognitive function and links between cerebral hemispheres. Marijuana can impact appetite, blood pressure, cerebral blood flow, the immune system and inflammation.
In tests on mammals, such as mice, marijuana reduced brain trauma and reduced or eliminated cancerous tumors. There was a clinical trial on its use around epilepsy and its effect on patients experiencing 10 to 30 seizures per day. Cannabinoids were tested on people for whom existing drugs do not work and resulted in positive outcomes in large numbers of adult patients. “This is the only clinical trial that has ever been reported – 35 years ago,” he said.
Infants undergoing cancer treatment that causes vomiting were given small amounts of THC. “We saw a complete stop of all vomiting and nausea,” with no side effects, he said.
In treatment of schizophrenia, current drugs have some extremely unpleasant side effects, he noted, while CBD has none. Even so, in most jurisdictions, marijuana is in the same legal category as heroin.
Dr. Kathryn Selby, a clinical professor in the University of British Columbia’s pediatrics department specializing in developmental neurosciences, spoke on marijuana’s effect on the adolescent brain. She spoke of the “enormous plasticity of the teen brain” and said that THC can alter the brain’s structure and function, and that the neurotoxic effects can be lifelong. Maturing of the human brain continues into the 20s, she explained, and the prefrontal cortex, which involves judgment and executive functions, develops last. There are two peaks in brain maturation and cerebral volume, happening in early childhood and then, for boys, at age 14-and-a-half and, for girls, at 11-and-a-half. Trauma, stress, substance abuse and sedentary habits can negatively affect development.
The effects of marijuana use in the short term can be loss of motivation, fatigue and, in about 10 percent of users, addiction. Neuroimaging indicates that the longer-term impact of marijuana use by adolescents is strongly associated with psychoses such as schizophrenia later in life. Selby said there is a 40 percent increase in prevalence of psychosis among users, with a 50 to 200 percent increase in psychoses among heavy users and, among those who use marijuana daily during high school, there is a 600 percent increase in depression and anxiety later in life. Correlations also include lowered IQ, intellectual and emotional issues.
The frontal lobe, which is not completely formed by adolescence, is also the most affected by alcohol and drugs and leaves users vulnerable to the “adverse developmental, cognitive, psychiatric and addictive effects of marijuana.” Selby recommended that, if marijuana is used at all, that it be “as late and as little as possible.”
Rabbi Andrew Rosenblatt, Schara Tzedeck Synagogue’s spiritual leader, also has a biochemistry degree. Although the Torah does not say anything specifically about marijuana, Rosenblatt made the comparison to what the Torah and Talmud say about other forms of altered states, particularly drunkenness. If there were any questions about the severity of potential outcomes from inebriation, Rosenblatt said, the drunkenness and castration of Noah is a cautionary tale.
Rosenblatt also mentioned the story of Lot, whose daughters got him drunk and seduced him, resulting in Amnon and Moab, who were both Lot’s sons and grandsons. Rosenblatt cited it as an indication that drunkenness and disinhibition is to be avoided.
The holiday of Purim is of particular interest in this discussion and Rosenblatt said there is a modern interpretation of the old dictum that Jews should become so drunk on Purim that they cannot tell the difference between the names of the villain Haman and the hero Mordechai. The modern view, the rabbi said, is to drink a little, get tired, fall asleep and, when asked who is Haman and who is Mordechai, to roll over and snore.
Rabbis in recent years have overwhelmingly concurred that use of, say, morphine for terminal patients is justified, but the use of untested alternative measures is not.
“Anecdotal evidence is anecdotal evidence,” said Rosenblatt. If studies indicate that marijuana were clinically proven to assist in recovery or treatment for various diseases, he said, it would almost certainly become acceptable.
Prof. Raphael Mechoulam at CKNW. (photo from CFHU)
The panel was moderated by Michael Levy, CKNW radio and Global TV personality. Stav Adler, president of CFHU Vancouver chapter, introduced the evening. Hodie Kahn, president of Schara Tzedeck, invited the audience to stay around for munchies after the event.
Were minds changed? After Mechoulam’s presentation, he received an enthusiastic standing ovation from about half the audience of 200 or so. After her presentation, Selby was greeted with polite applause, while one man jumped to his feet.
Graduates of NCSY’s Impact leadership program at the spring regional awards banquet in Harrison Hot Springs, with Rabbi Samuel Ross. (photo from Rabbi Samuel Ross)
In a Jewish community with one of the highest assimilation rates, the role of youth groups such as the Vancouver chapter of the National Conference of Synagogue Youth (NCSY) has become more important over the years. NCSY Vancouver’s parent organization was founded in 1954 and the local chapter, which emerged about a decade later, is helping celebrate the 60th anniversary milestone.
NCSY works to develop a connection with Jewish youth before they embark on their university and professional lives. Rabbi Samuel Ross, NCSY Vancouver director, spoke about the “unique, beautiful situation” in which the chapter works. He said they “cater to anyone and everyone, which is an ongoing challenge but it’s really reaping rewards.” Indeed, many of those who join or take part in NCSY activities develop lifelong connections to Judaism and Israel, which was Nicole Grubner’s experience.
Grubner grew up in West Vancouver and became involved with NCSY when she was in Grade 9. She started attending their Shabbatons, and loved the warm atmosphere and Jewish connection that she felt at these events. By the end of high school, she was on the NCSY student leadership board, began keeping Shabbat, and had signed up for a post-graduate year at a seminary in Israel.
“I think the goal of NCSY is for it to be a jumping off point for you, so I used it as that and continued my Jewish education after high school,” said Grubner, 25. “It brought a lot of meaning into my life and week and I enjoyed the sense of community that it brought.”
NCSY Vancouver hosts a mix of educational and social programs, everything from a mock casino night to sushi in the sukkah to Shabbatons, trips and leadership programs.
“The city is growing, the chapter is exploding, I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. I’m actually bringing in someone else to come work for me next year,” said Ross, who has been leading NCSY Vancouver for the past three years. “We do the best we can to inspire them enough so that they’ll want to continue their Jewish growth once they get to university.”
In Grubner’s case, after her year in Israel, she studied at Stern College in New York, returning to Israel every year.
“I actually went back to NCSY and staffed summer programs in Israel for three years,” she said. “I had an amazing Israel experience and it was important for me to give that to someone else.”
Her love of Israel and connecting with the Jewish people didn’t dampen after university ended. In October 2012, she made aliyah.
“In Vancouver, we know that assimilation is a really huge problem, so NCSY is really important to the Jewish community in Vancouver because it’s a connection point, one that many kids don’t get the opportunity to be a part of.”
“It had a very big impact on my life, so much so that I made my best friends and closest connections in NCSY. I’m really grateful for the base it gave me, for the fact that I was able to get so involved and so connected in high school,” she said. “In Vancouver, we know that assimilation is a really huge problem, so NCSY is really important to the Jewish community in Vancouver because it’s a connection point, one that many kids don’t get the opportunity to be a part of. NCSY has really changed the face of Vancouver’s Jewish community,” she said.
NCSY is a globally recognized organization that connects Jewish youth through social, recreational, educational and spiritual programs.
“It’s about connecting kids to their roots and to their Jewish identity. Whether kids become religious or not, to me, that’s almost less important than kids thinking about their Judaism and it being something important to them in whatever way they choose to practise,” said Grubner. “It shouldn’t be a part of their identity that passes them by because of apathy or lack of knowledge.”
In Vancouver, the number of Jewish youth involved in NCSY programming has been growing. This year, they’re sending 16 youth to programs in Israel. Some of their programs draw 100 kids, and there are already 25 applicants this year for the NCSY Vancouver youth board.
“When I first came three years ago, we had to beg kids to be on that board,” said Ross. “Now, it’s really hard to get on. The kids have to write an essay why they like NCSY and what they can add, and it’s beautiful. You see how they write how Judaism has made such a difference in their lives and how passionate they are and how much they enjoy coming.”
Vicky Tobianahis a freelance writer and editor based in Toronto. Connect with her on Twitter, @vicktob, or at [email protected].
Eyal Yifrach, Gilad Sha’er and Naftali Fraenkel z”l (photo from mfa.gov.il)
On Monday, June 30, the bodies of Eyal Yifrach, 19, Gilad Shaar, 16, Naftali Fraenkel, 16, who were kidnapped June 12, were found northwest of Hebron. The sad discovery was the result of an extensive search effort led by the Israel Defence Forces, the Israel Security Agency and the Israel Police. A joint funeral was held July 1. Jewish groups and others around the world join in mourning.
In Vancouver, there will be a community memorial service, coordinated by the Rabbinical Association of Vancouver and led by Rabbi Berger, Rabbi Moskovitz and Cantor Szenes-Strauss, on Thursday, July 3, at the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver at 7:30 p.m.
As well, to share your thoughts and express your condolences to the families of the boys, visit the Jewish Federations of North America’s “Remember Our Boys” page.
